Burst Angel

Publisher
Funimation / MVM
Country of origin
Japan
Format
Series
Running time
24 episodes / 24 minutes
Year
2004

Burst Angel Volume 2: A New Tokyo

By otaku_kei
25th Feb 06

In the future the world has gone bad! Spiralling rates of violence and crime has called for a new breed of law enforcement, a policing service that is willing to to as ruthless as the criminals which they apprehend. RAPT has been established to serve that purpose, armed with the latest in high tech weaponry they risk their lives trying to keep the peace but their brutal tactics have led these protectors to being as much a threat to the public as the criminals! But there are those who are working from outside the law to protect others: Jo, Meg, Sei and their allies are an independent task force. By independent, I mean mercenary, and for the right price they will tackle any job! Think the A-Team but prettier and with access to mecha units!

At a very expensive prep school for girls there have been some bizarre goings on. Several of the girls have attempted suicide in the last several months. In an effort to find out just what is going on Meg goes undercover. But when she finds herself the centre of some unwanted attention by a secret cult of demon worshippers, it falls to Jo to come to the rescue! But whilst the schoolgirls may be a threat, the real danger lies with the demon masquerading as one of the pupils - a demon that can make itself invisible, and strike out with its deadly claws! So Jo is going to have to rely on her hand cannons to finish this demon off the old school way! Has Jo met her match with this monster or will she come away victorious once again? But once again Meg finds herself captured by the big bad and ends up having to rely on others to rescue her, a predicament that is starting to become a regular occurrence in this show!

But trouble for the girls does not end there! When a giant crow starts snatching up young women - including one of Kyo's classmates it looks like Jo and the others may just be the best chance of saving these girls, as long as they can take the time away from their otherwise busy lives. But when Meg is one of the girls snatched up (see how that happens again) Jo puts all other business on hold to save her young friend! This rescue is against the clock as Kyo's life also hangs in the balance after being injected with a cutting edge nano virus - a virus that the crow wants, and that Sei needs to keep in safe hands! Jo strikes out on her own, using Kyo as a bargaining chip, and unable to rely on her allies it looks like things could go very bad for young Meg.

Personally I found these episodes much more satisfying. Not only do we get a fair share of action we also get a lot of character development. Kyo, who was so mortified by what the girls did in the first volume now seems completely at ease in the middle of a firefight and risking his own life to save Meg. This sentiment more than anything endears the young cook to Jo, and we finally get to see her starting to accept him. Jo is also starting to reach the end of her tether when it comes to Meg's propensity for getting herself captured, a sentiment that is felt all too well by the audience. The girls also start to show some of the strain and internal conflict that any group of strong personalities will have when put into the type of pressure cooker situations that these girls end up in.

This show continues to be very entertaining, providing a lot of bang for your buck! With alien/demon/genetically engineered monsters, mecha fights, fan service (that isn't too intrusive) and characters that are on the whole quite fun. Even with all this though Burst Angel is not without its problems. The CGI is not as polished as Gonzo have managed in dome of their other shows, and the characters far too often come off as stereotypes. Whilst the characters are starting to evolve and break out of the stereotypical molds, there is still some way to go for these girls to become rounded individuals. But whilst there may be issues with this show they are certainly not enough to detract from the meaningless fun and guilty pleasure that Burst Angel delivers. If this show continues to deliver the high octane thrills of the first couple of volumes then I am sure that this show will become a cult classic!

R2 DVD Notes

Features: English Language 5.1; Japanese Language 5.1; English Language Subtitles; Textless Opening & Closing; Radio Drama; Episode Commentary; MVM Trailers

Release information: COMING SOON - 20th March 2006

Notes: Yet another example of how well MVM are treating the shows that they are releasing over here. Not only is the A/V quality top notch, but we also get some rather nice extras. Once again we get some of the standard textless songs and trailers, but we also get a rather amusing commentary track form the Voice Director and two of the Voice Actors. This makes for a nice addition, that adds little to your appreciation of what is happening in the show but gives a hint to just how much fun the VA's are having in their job. Of course their are also a few fun swipes at the more hardcore otaku elements in anime fandom, but its all in good fun!

-- otaku_kei 25th Feb 06