Cutey Honey, New

Publisher
ADV
Director
Yasuchika Nagaoka
Production
Toei
Country of origin
Japan
Format
OVA
Running time
8 episodes
Year
1994

New Cutey Honey vol 1 & 2

By John Huxley
20th Nov 05

Despite its popularity elsewhere, Cutey Honey has never really made much of an impact in the UK. Which is a shame, because along with Devilman and Mazinger, Cutey Honey represents Go Nagai’s most influential and best loved work. Now several decades after the character first appeared, ADV are attempting to rectify this with the release of Go Nagai’s New Cutey Honey, an OAV series that was originally released sometime during the 90's.

Although it was a relatively late entry in the Cutey Honey franchise, New Cutey Honey is actually a pretty good starting point for newcomers to the series. Because - a few references to earlier series aside - this wipes the slate clean and begins the story from scratch.

For the denizens of the seedy metropolitan future of New Cutey Honey, crime is a day job. There are a few good apples, such as the honourable mayor Mayor Light and his assistant Ms Honey, but they are fighting a losing battle against the evil hoards lorded over by the ruthless Dolmeck. It will take intervention from a young boy named Chokkei and his mechanised grandpa to realise the potential in their most unlikely of saviours - the mayor’s beautiful assistant Ms Honey! In actuality a powerful android designed for combat, Cutey Honey uses her unique ability to transform into a myriad of different guises to adapt to her surroundings. But she’s going to need the friendship of her new makeshift family, the welcoming Chokkei and his parents, if she’s to topple Dolmeck from his throne...

Yes, this is typically cheesy Go Nagai stuff. Much like ADV’s earlier update of Mazinger Z, there’s been little or no attempt to modernize the formula in an effort to appeal to a new generation of anime fans - squint a little, and New Cutey Honey could quite easily be mistaken for the 70's original. Which means that all the flaws, imperfections and gaping plot holes remain unfortunately intact.

Alternatively, depending on your point of view, New Cutey Honey retains all the charm, quirkiness and innocence that personifies anime of the period.

Personally, I’m a subscriber to that second point of view. In a day and age in which seemingly no anime is complete without superfluous pondering on the nature of existence, it’s refreshing to watch something that’s not embarrassed to revel in its own stupidity. Here, we can quite contentedly watch as Honey transforms into a variety of utterly pointless costumes (only the armoured one actually seems to serve any purpose other than aesthetic) without questioning how or why this is happening. There’s no scientific reasoning that reveals a dark secret behind Honey’s powers - it’s all just a silly excuse to watch Honey transform into a variety of different costumes.

Which brings me to the fanservice. As New Cutey Honey errs on the side of family entertainment, there’s none of the pseudo-rape that Go Nagai’s works have become (misleadingly) infamous for. However, this is substituted with an unusually high amount of nude and semi-nude content that give the various male character’s (and in turn, our own) perverted tendencies an excuse to flourish. Yet despite the volume and pronounced nature of the fanservice on offer, it’s really rather tame by today’s standards. Everything here is executed with perfect innocence - enough to amuse, but not nearly enough to titillate.

All this fanservice culminates in the notorious ‘presto-changeo’ type sequences which the original series somewhat dubiously pioneered. As Cutey Honey turns and spins around in some featureless void, her everyday clothes are torn apart to reveal a flash of naked skin - but not for long, as her new costume (whatever that may be...) magically grafts itself around her body. If you’ve ever watched more than one episode of Sailor Moon, you’ll know how quickly these repetitive sequences can become very, very irritating. And as much as I’m willing to provide concessions in the name of all things retro, I was quite pleased to learn that this is one of the few things New Cutey Honey had the common sense to update. In an unexpected bout of generosity from the animation studio, almost every transformation sequence in New Cutey Honey is unique...or different enough to prevent irritation from setting in, at least.

Alas, for those wanting something new and refreshing, that’s about as far as it goes. New Cutey Honey, although the name may suggest otherwise, is primarily concerned with appeasing fans of the older series and Go Nagai’s work in general. In fact, fans of Go Nagai’s other flagship titles Devilman and Mazinger are in for a real treat with New Cutey Honey. Not only does the iconic Devilman and his nemesis Silene make an impromptu (and utterly unexplainable) appearance during the opening sequence of each episode, Akira Fudo actually plays a pivotal role during one of the later episodes. Mazinger fans should also watch out for mechanised grandpa Danbei with his suspiciously Mazinger-like special powers, and an additional supporting role from Professor Kabuto, the mad genius responsible for Danbei’s unusual upgrades.

Excitable fanboyism aside, sadly the majority (Danbei’s Mazinger reference is perhaps the only exception) of these cameos lack ingenuity and spontaneity, leaving them feeling more than a little forced. In particular, Akira Fudo’s appearance doesn’t really make any sense in the context of either series and really ends up feeling awkward and out of place. It’s obvious that he’s only there for the sake of selling a few more copies to Devilman-obsessed junkies like myself. Yet somehow, despite the supposed callousness of their inclusion, they do add something to overall ambience of the series. It’s almost as if New Cutey Honey is a celebration of all things Go Nagai, an homage to his considerable influence and lasting legacy as a creator. Besides, for Devilman fans like myself, it’s really great to see Akira Fudo back in action, even if it isn’t exactly an ideal situation (come on Neo Devilman, where are you!).

If anything, New Cutey Honey spends too much time trying to appeal to the already established fans, resulting in a sadly neglected and underdeveloped central storyline. Yet it started out with such good intentions; the first few episodes set up the premise and establish the characters nicely, introducing us to the Dolmeck storyline and providing us with a clear outline of things to come. Honey must rid the town of evil and topple Dolmeck from his throne. Great, that should make for some pretty straightforward viewing.

Only, by the time we reach episode four, we find that Dolmeck has been defeated and the city is saved by its newfound guardian angel, Cutey Honey. To all intents and purpose, this is a bonafide ending. So what happens during the last four episodes? Well, there is another villain introduced as Dolmeck bites the dust, but unfortunately nothing really comes of this. The next four episodes are comprised of a series of mostly unconnected events, and arriving at an almost nonexistent conclusion that ends the series on a real low note.

In fact, I kinda wish ADV had shuffled the episodes round to fit the more satisfying conclusion to the Dolmeck story at the end (of course that couldn’t really happen because the continuity would be all messed up...and ADV know better than to mess with the originals). Don’t get me wrong, there are some great episodes on the second disc - it just doesn’t work as well as a complete package.

But don’t let this little shortcoming dissuade you from considering picking up New Cutey Honey. After all, the storyline was never really Cutey Honey’s strong suit. Even during the most frivolous of episodes, there’s a lot of entertainment to be had from watching Honey strut her stuff as she beats up the bad guys and saves the day. The action, though nicely animated and directed with a certain amount of panache, is very much of its period. No one scene is likely to stick in your mind as particularly spectacular in any way, yet the ride is an enjoyable one while it lasts. This is helped along by the various bizarre and colourful adversaries Honey fights, showcasing some of the imagination that made Go Nagai famous, regardless of the restraints imposed by the more family-friendly environment (but don’t misunderstand me - New Cutey Honey isn’t the kind of show you’d let toddlers watch!).

In the end, I guess your enjoyment of New Cutey Honey very much depends on what you’re expecting. If you’re after the magical girl equivalent of Evangelion, then you’d best look elsewhere (heck, I don’t even know if it exists!). New Cutey Honey is an homage to all things retro, a celebration of bygone era. If that’s an era that’s best left forgotten is really up to you. Personally I think New Cutey Honey is the perfect antidote to the straight faced and self-conscious anime of today, and would add a kind of balance to almost anyone’s collection. Of course fans of the genre and Go Nagai’s work in general should snap it up straight away, but I don’t think its audience should be limited to these groups alone. Do yourself a favour - it’s only two volumes long, and serves as a great introduction to one of anime’s best loved characters.

R2 DVD Notes

Features: English 5.1 and Japanese 2.0 audio, English subtitles, live-action costume play, production gallery, animated phon messages, Cutey Honey press conference, actress interview, The Honey’s live, recording session, Cutey Honey trailers, ADV previews

Release information: UK: Out now, ADV

Notes: New Cutey Honey makes a clear deceleration of intent with two less than subtle covers, both featuring a semi-naked Honey with her clothes torn off by some unseen assailant. Although they’re quite nicely designed, both use a very similar composition and colour scheme which makes it difficult to discern between the two at a cursory glance. Not exactly the most pressing of concerns, but something worth noting all the same. Inside the box there’s a single page leaflet included that features a chapter selection and some colour artwork. Miraculously Honey has managed to remain fully clothed here. Slot the disc in the tray and things start tog et a whole lot better - each DVD boasts a few quite substantial extras, including but not absolutely limited to interviews with the original cast, a live cosplay performance, a press conference and some bizarre answer phone messages. Some work better than others, obviously, but you should be able to waste away a good hour or so after you’ve finished the main feature. All credit to ADV for putting together an excellent package for a title that surely can’t be classed as AAA material.

-- John Huxley 20th Nov 05

Cutey Honey, New Images