A link to Part 4.
Best Production
So many strong contenders existed in terms of the best looking and produced work, so much so even one of the disappointments from this season deserves to have a mention. The 2000 feature film reinterpretation of Escaflowne, dubbed Escaflowne: The Movie, is frankly a misguided project. Too short to have the scale of the original series, it was trying its hardest in a different direction, openly done to try to appeal to a male audience, of a darker and more violent work. Some of this decision, with the lead Hitomi not the bright and cheerily female protagonist but one tackling the subject of near suicidal depression, could be seen as outright blasphemy considering how good the 1996 television series was, but could have still succeeded. For me however, it failed because it never had the time and focus to take its different direction as far as needed. Only an insane person, however, would bash how incredible the film looks, which makes the failure more disappointing.
Also worthy of mention, which goes to show how strong the competition was, Perfect Blue (1997) is only now being mentioned despite being one of the my most highly regarded anime productions in existence; it may not necessarily be the most perfect in animation, but Satoshi Kon's debut is a legend as much for its atmosphere and how the film, in style and craft, creates a rare psychological horror narrative in the medium. Ping Pong the Animation (2014), in any other race, would be higher on the list with its "including the kitchen sink" approach, but considering Masaaki Yuasa is always strong in his work's aesthetic quality, he is considerable as God-like in this area. One unique work to get a mention now is Kihachiro Kawamoto's The Book of the Dead (2005). Not arguably anime at all, as it is a stop motion feature film with puppets, I feel however, any form of animated art from Japan should be covered. Adapting a Japanese novel, this is a glacial and idiosyncratic film, in tone and presentation, which really was different from anything I encountered; by the point of this film being created, working in the short film medium, Kawamoto was at a point of being a veteran and it is felt.
The actual top list does have to include Revue Starlight (2018) somewhere. The music is a huge virtue, but this is also a high budget television series, elaborate as it is surreal in look and style too. Interstella 5555: The 5tory of the 5ecret 5tar 5ystem (2003), a collaboration between Daft Punk and Leiji Matsumoto, alongside Toei Animation and the film's director Kazuhisa Takenouchi, were going to make sure this cultural cross over was going to be as strong as Daft Punk's music was. Lupin The Third: The Woman Called Fujiko Mine (2012) has also not been mentioned a lot, which is a shame as, with one of the few pronounced female directors, Sayo Yamamoto made a name for herself alongside Takeshi Koike as the character designer with a huge risk. When the Lupin franchise needed to change direction, she was influenced in her own directing by avant-garde and classical seventies aesthetic with the added surprise that, taking the erotic aspect that always came with Fujiko Mine as a character, as a fan service character and/or a femme fatale, she felt this was not a bad thing, could be feminist, and embraced the sensuality. (This is even to the point of an episode entirely riffing on Sapphic schoolgirls at an all-girls school transpires, as if the show was suddenly Dear Brother now). It is a contentious production aesthetically, the most on this list, due to Koike's black line heavy character designs and a style which for some may be off-putting, but in terms of a huge risk with a franchise at that point, this succeeded for me.
The Vision of Escaflowne (1996) is not surprisingly here. The 2000 film version is the most beautiful in terms of visuals, but Sunrise, the studio which produces the Gundam franchise, backed Shoji Kawamori's project tenfold. The music, the voice acting, the character designs, the mecha designs, everything is distinct in fleshing out this world onscreen as much as the narrative, everything here distinct and truly magical as a result. It only does not claim the prize as another theatrical film, only mentioned now, has to brought up as a unique production, being Isao Takahata's My Neighbours the Yamadas (1999). Not necessarily a big hitter in the Studio Ghibli canon at all, and actually a failure in terms of box office, Takahata decided to adapt a four panel manga and in doing so the production had to innovate in computer animation to depict a watercolour aesthetic. The film, alongside being criminally underrated, is an incredible achievement in animation and had to win the imagery award. Even within Ghibli's incredible back catalogue, only Isao Takahata again, with The Tale of Princess Kaguya (2013), his final film before his death, made another film this idiosyncratic in look, and considering Yamadas was arguably a test run for that final incredible film, my appreciation of this charming gem grows more as a result.
Best OVA/ONA/Short/TV Special
To clarify for this year's version of this award, this is for non-theatrical and television series anime, to which this season was entirely dominated by OVAs, and in this case a fascinating window to the 2000s for the most part, where the straight-to-video medium of anime was frankly becoming less significant for a market as the decade went on, usually left as bonus episodes or additional stories for television series and other projects.
To clarify one detail, the Urotsukidôji franchise is contentious for me as the versions I have seen are the theatrical cuts of Legend of the Overfiend and Legend of the Demon Womb, so I did not qualify them. That does not mean this infamous franchise does not appear on this list however...
Possibly contentious for some is the brazenly softcore Futari Ecchi (2002-4), which is just nudged off the list, simply because it probably has more sex and nudity than in most fan service softcore shows or even hentai. Here is the thing however, baring one ill judged attempt at dealing with a plot, and clearly being targeted at a male audience, it is rare to have an anime which is this openly sexual, rather than not showing anything in more problematic sex comedy. It is a work with adult characters rather than teenagers, and adapted from a sex comedy manga written as much to provide relationship and sex advice, about a young heterosexual pair growing as a newly married couple. The two, despite being the stereotypical male lead, and the timid but busty wife, are likable characters whose growth is love for each other more and having a great sex life. As mentioned, it is not perfect, but the positivity here is something to admire from an obscure OVA.
More obscure, as Futari Ecchi (renamed Step-Up Love Story) had an American DVD release whilst this was a bonus DVD with manga in Japan only; Electromagnetic Girlfriend (2009), as mentioned already, has many problematic aspects I have stated. I have however been mentioning it a lot, and it is here because the premise and the tone was for me legitimately good. Only just needing to remove questionable and lurid aspects to its material is the issue, whilst everything else was a pleasure as a premise. Never mentioned until now, Animation Runner Kuromi 1 & 2 (2001-4) are a pair of OVAs which have a problematic aspect which they are just unfortunately burdened with, that we cannot now look at anything directed by Akitarō Daichi without knowing of the allegations of sexual misconduct he has disclosed against him during the time of the Speaking Out and MeToo movement2. It is a shame to know someone squandered their talents through their reprehensible behaviour, as you are still stuck with the art itself. Animation Runner Kuromi is still a good short narrative, with a sequel which added to the material, dealing with both how stressful it is to work in the anime industry whilst yet showing the passion that keep people within it, played out as a sweet partially slapstick farce.
The following are also going to be contentious, but with varying reasons. Butt Attack Punisher Girl Gautaman (1994). Gautaman was an OVA I learnt of through the July 2009 episode of the Anime World Order, a show which is still going in 2021. The dumbfounded reaction by the poor female co-host, Clarissa, when assigned the title and the talk of the content, barely scratching the surface, made this is a perverse holy grail for context for my interest. It lived up to this even though, yes, this is not exactly a "great" OVA, just compelling one. Urotsukidôji III: Return of the Overfiend (1992) is contentious for the same reason the whole franchise is, but viewed in its OVA form with the Japanese language track, this for all its problematic content is still a compelling epic with little expectation but took me by surprise by what took placed over its four episodes.
Bludgeoning Angel Dokuro-Chan (2005-7) has no problematic aspects, and anything that feels taboo, sick and twisted is just because Tsutomu Mizushima had a taste at that point for misanthropy. Even whilst still letting the show have a sweet romance in its centre, it is a perverse sadomasochistic crush between a violent female angel and the male charge she is meant to prevent from becoming a pervert. It is a shame the second 2007 OVA series is not good, as it says a lot (even if separate rights) it was not acquired for the 2020 Discotek Media Blu Ray release. The first series, effectively a micro-series in OVA form, is a misbegotten yet compelling ride in dark humour. One running joke never mentioned until now in this writing is knowing, despite effectively being the antagonist, another female angel sent to kill the lead is still sympathetic and is a vagrant living in a cardboard box in the human world; it is more twisted knowing Mizushima was probably intending this (even with the sad end theme song from her perspective) to be funny.
Winning this, and not a surprise in the least, is Macross Plus (1994-5). Arguably, this is one of the best titles covered this year, and enough has been said throughout already, for how many times it has been brought up, to argue for this. To write any more after all I have said would be repeating myself - this is a title you, as a reader, should watch as one of the best examples of anime in any format.
To Be Continued in Part 6....
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1) Depressing to have to bring up in a post meant to celebrate, nonetheless the testimony of this is referred in the following article.
2) For anyone wanting to listen to that episode, it is Anime World Order Show # 81b, and for me is one of their best still even if a little profane at times.
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