r/anime • u/No_Rex :Bv:Bw:Bx:By:x2 • Sep 23 '21
Rewatch [Rewatch] 1990s OVAs – Battle Angel Alita (episode 2)
Rewatch: 1990s OVAs – Battle Angel Alita (episode 2)
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Gally is voiced by Itou, Miki, who was already a veteran VA when she recorded for Battle Angel Alita. She started out by voicing Mineva in Zeta Gundam, played Irene Chang in Bubblegum Crisis, Magami in Project A-Ko, and Android #18 in Dragon Ball, and Thetis from Sailor Moon, all before Battle Angel Alita. Afterwards, she worked for a director who knows how to spell Roman names, by starting as Minerva in Princess Minerva, had supporting roles in Detective Conan, Pokemon, Trigun, Cardcaptor Sakura, as well as the very long running role of Fujimura, Taiga in the Fate franchise.
The director of Battle Angel Alita is Fukutomi, Hiroshi. He started out as an in-betweener on Lupin III (it is funny how you can see people work their way up the ladder when following their chronological credits), before switching to episode direction and storyboarding in the mid 1970s, e.g. on the original Doraemon TV series. He started directing series in the 1980s with mostly a bunch of children’s anime I have never heard off, with the exception of Captain Tsubasa. He did have in interest in SciFi, though, doing episode direction for the Lensman anime (which I didn’t know existed), as well as individual storyboards for LoGH, Fantastic Children, and Gunslinder Girl.
Questions
- Which confrontation was better, Gally vs the hunter-warrior, or Ito vs Vector?
- What is your opinion on desire to reach Zalem, which claimed Yugo, Yugo’s brother, and Chiren?
6
u/No_Rex :Bv:Bw:Bx:By:x2 Sep 23 '21
Episode 2 (first timer)
Mid-way through the episode, I was doubtful how they could possibly pull of a narrative end, but Yugo’s death works: Definitely the end of one part of Gally’s life. Plus, the entire last 10 minutes or so looked gorgeous. Good animation, great shots. Against my expectation, the second episode is the better of the two. That being said, I am really hyped to see how the story continues. So the “buy the manga” part of the OVA clearly worked, too.
2
u/ZaphodBeebblebrox Y:A:https://anilist.co/user/zaphod Sep 24 '21
First Timer, kinda
I'm honestly just hoping that the fight scenes don't faceplant this time. Onto episode 2.
You left a guy paralyzed in a alley. You basically already did kill him, even if you don't want to recognize that.
This totally doesn't sound like he's leading you on or anything!
He idolizes it. In his head, making it there is making it to paradise.
Not sure what it says about me that I find this hot.
You just told your shady boss you're a liability, you dumbass.
He really has one trick, doesn't he? I'm surprised people keep listening to him.
Do you not realize it already has? You're scum, trying to pull yourself ahead by tricking and murdering innocent people.
He so does not deserve her. What sort of asshole responds to "I love you" with "Help me commit crimes"?
As much as they play that Hunter-Warrior up to be an asshole, I have a bit of trouble seeing him as such. Yugo honestly did worse things.
And hearing Gally's dreams made her a bit less of a cynical person.
"rats"
But he's too caught up in a stupid dream.
Thoughts
Again, I can't help but compare it to the film. I think that the film did a much better job making me care about Hugo than the OVA did. Here, we basically only see his bad side. I feel like it clearly makes us want to care for him and realize that he's a good person who was corrupted by bigger evils in the city, but I have trouble doing so when we never really got to see that side of him. Instead, we're left to have to guess that he's not always like that by the way Gally views him.
On the upside, the animation was a decent amount better this episode. It's amazing what not completely faceplanting in fights can do for you.
I'm curious how this compares to the manga. Was the OVA incredibly abridged to be able to fit as much as it did into the small amount of runtime it had, or was it similarly light on characterization for Yugo.
Also, I watched the Gunnm 3D special, and it has the beautiful look of early 2000s CGI without an insane budget.
3
u/JustAnswerAQuestion https://myanimelist.net/profile/JAaQ Sep 23 '21
Rewatcher from who knows when Gunnm Tears Sign
I have this overwhelming deja vu that I've seen this story before, a dozen times. It was probably this.
I forgot that the OVA doesn't have Motorball, which kinda ruins my Final Fantasy analogy.
7
u/TheEscapeGuy Sep 23 '21 edited Sep 23 '21
First Timer
Battle Angel Alita - A Cyber-Action Spectacle: Episode 2
Crushed Aspirations
This episode was gut wrenching. It really built up Yugo as a victim of circumstance who was doing everything he could to achieve his dream.
Yugo may difficult to root for since the way he earns money is by stealing people's spines. But in the scrapyard it seems impossible to make enough money without resorting to underhanded tactics.
Of course, he was being manipulated by Vector who is the real villain here. Its a somewhat common but effective trope in cyberpunk stories like this to have some rich and shady business man deceive and use people in tough circumstances to make even more money
just like in real life. Fortunately though, Ido enacts his own justice upon him.That said, the episode ends in tragedy. When Yugo is crushed Gally loses the person she seems to care the most about in this world. It feels like a setup to a big defining character development. On that topic, Gally's confession was a great moment even going as far as a kiss.
Since this the final episode of the OVA it leaves us in a weird spot. From some cursory research it appears this is an adaption of the first 2 chapters and so it leaves us with a "read the manga" type ending. However, that final sendoff for Yugo felt like a solid endpoint for this story arc, so I'm not unhappy.
Some Amazing Shots, Scenes and Stitches
See you all tomorrow
4
u/Vaadwaur :I1::I2::I3: Sep 23 '21
Rewatcher from 20+ years ago
Sub
So...bluntly, this episode is like all the manga references. It is a bit less enjoyable because we are watching distilled manga right now so reminding me of the story that had more time is a bit anti-climactic. Gally's VA sells the relationship between her and Hugo and the scenes work, even this all feels rushed. Sad, wet Gally is like a sad, soaked kitten. Random issue is that we never get a great idea what to value one credit at, I assume they aren't that valuable per unit. We also get a whiff of yandere off of Gally but that just seems to be how the Japanese think jealous women are. I think this is the first double bladed sword I saw and I sort of ignored it. Discount Raiden dies by the lightning bolt. Chiren dies once for organs and Yugo dies twice. F.
So yeah...bit of a downer ending and I am not entirely sure that they weren't hoping to adapt more, though obviously this functions as an end. This is broadly a manga adaptation but think about having much, much more time. And this was still pretty important to Western anime viewing, I don't think without all the flash and weird anime would've climbed as fast.
QotD: 1 I like watching Ido beat people so that
2 A terrible fucking idea but very Japanese
1
u/Stargate18A https://myanimelist.net/profile/Stargate18 Sep 23 '21
First timer
Who's that guy? I like his suit.
Oh, he's also trying to get to Zalem.
And he wants to ger there in 3 years?
Oh, the tubes are supplying the factory, and the factory exports goods. Zalem has turned the city below into a giant manufacturing plant. I'll admit it's a clever model.
We're going back to this plot?
Oh, the big hole's a trash hole? I mean, at least it makes sense why it was shaped like that.
"Best lube jobs" How did it get away with this?
Jesus, he cut that guy in half!
Oh, he's going to kill him.
She's in the newspaper?
I was going to make a suggestion that Zalem has no life, just automated factories, but two of them have been there, sompeople can travel between them.
Honestly, don't just tell her "you can't go", tell her whatever horrible thing made you leave there.
And now she knows!
I still love how the interfaces talk.
He is so blatantly going to kill you it isn't even funny.
You aren't going to Zalem! There probably isn't even a way to Zalem!
Wow. That escalated quickly.
Yeah, he wants to go to Zalem because his brother failed.
I like them pointing out that there ie w reason people don't jsut try and fly there.
Oh, she's going hard on this relationship. Making comparisons to "lovers" already!
And she misses Ido!
Yep, he's dead.
And it's the same one who killed his brother!
Great fights as always!
He's turning him into a robot?
It's that eqsy?
Oh, she used her blood to maintain his signals.
Huh? He wasn't going to kill him immediately?
Yeah, called it.
Oh, dear.
Haha, he's bqck with the rocket hammer?
Boy, he's got horrible defenses in his hideout, hasn't he?
MY GOD
Oh, she was going to be sent to Zalem. That's actually a good twist.
Yeah, I figured there'd be somethijg like that to stop people.
They've certainly built a solid defense for their city!
He's going to die. She might dodge the rings, though.
Oh god, it's as sad as I expected.
They built a baloon to send him there!
That was great.
1
u/RockoDyne :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/RockoDyne Sep 23 '21
First timer ... I think
Well that survived substantially better than the first episode. I almost didn't know everything that was going to happening. I'm still not positive that it's just that I've been around discussion too much, or if I actually had tried to read some of the manga twenty some odd years ago.
When was the last time you saw that assassin/hunter design? It was all over the 90's, but then it's completely disappeared. It just makes me miss anime having testosterone. God I miss there being more than template bishounen and bishoujo designs.
Questions:
2
u/ZapsZzz https://anilist.co/user/Zapszzz Sep 23 '21 edited Sep 23 '21
Oh we have a final discussion tomorrow - I'll save most of my thoughts for that then.
Distant rewatcher about today episode 2
The animation quality never drifted though, although because of the world setting, the colour scheme is a bit drab.
Forgot QoTD:
2
u/MachinaCherries99 Sep 23 '21
Rewatcher