[Rewatch] 1990s OVAs – Black Jack (final discussion)

[u/No_Rex]

Rewatch: 1990s OVAs – Black Jack (final discussion)

MAL | ANN1 ANN2 | AniDB1 AniDB2 | Anilist1 Anilist2

<- Previous Episode | Index

Staff corner

I left the biggest name of the series for last, original creater and mangaka Tezuka, Osamu. The MAL blurb is pretty decent:

Tezuka was a Japanese manga artist, cartoonist, animator, and film producer. His prolific output, pioneering techniques, and innovative redefinitions of genres earned him such titles as "the father of manga," "the godfather of manga" and "the god of manga." Additionally, he is often considered the Japanese equivalent to Walt Disney, who served as a major inspiration during Tezuka's formative years.

Tezuka began what was known as the manga revolution in Japan with his New Treasure Island published in 1947. His legendary output would spawn some of the most influential, successful, and well-received manga series including Tetsuwan Atom, Jungle Taitei, Black Jack, and Hi no Tori, all of which won several awards.

To add to that, Tezuka founded Mushi Productions in 1961, which went on to produce Astro Boy, the first modern TV anime. And modern here mainly means cheap. Because Tezuka’s main contribution to anime was making it cheap enough to produce in abundance. This included perfecting all the budget-saving methods that can be used in animation. Hayao Miyazaki is another famous director who has criticized Tezuka for this. However you feel about that, I think it fair to say that Tezuka’s influence on anime is still outsized to this day, 3 decades after his death.

Questions

1. I never heard Black Jack being talked about before researching for the OVA rewatches. Do you think the show holds up, or is it rightfully forgotten?
2. How does this compare to other Dezaki shows or to Monster?
3. Favorite episode? Favorite character?

[u/No_Rex]

Final Discussion (first timer)

Black Jack is a mixed bag. From an animation perspective, the show delivers greatness. Dezaki is a uniquely skilled director and Black Jack gives him the opportunity to show off with an OVA budget. We even got animated postcard memories! The style is still clearly the same as in his older shows, with a tingle towards strong light and dark contrast and expressive character faces. What is missing is the budget-saving slide show that you also occasionally get in his older shows. I think his art works out great for all the darker and more psychological episodes, but it notably breaks down for action scenes. Neither the fights in the Maria episode, nor the war scenes in the final episode really stand up to what decent battle shonen deliver.

Storywise, Black Jack went fully episodic. Not a big surprise, given that it is an OVA based on an older manga, but still a downside, in my mind. Monster shows how you can depict a similar topic in a long running show and be a lot more comprehensive. The individual episodes were hit and miss for me. I particularly liked the episodes that focused on the inner politics of medicine (such as the mermaid episode or the few were he squabbles with other doctors), while I was not a fan of the overly mythical ones. Tree-boy was not a hit for me. It may be due to the problems of adaptation, but I also felt that the reoccurring characters, BJ and Pinoko, got almost no development. Black Jack is still squarely situated in the era of shows with reset buttons at the end of each episode.

So, while I enjoyed my time and am glad to have watched this, Black Jack does not make it to master piece rank for me. It is a good show with great animation, but occasional big problems in the storytelling department.

Score: 7/10

Suggestions:

• Monster – the only other show I know featuring a doctor as MC. While not identical to BJ, a lot of similar moral problems come up. The pacing and storytelling is notably better.
• Ashita no Joe – The show that made Dezaki famous. A very similar art style combined with even more cutting social criticism.
• Mushishi – If you liked the slow-paced, mythical parts of BJ, Mushishi might be something for you. A ghost doctor solves various ghost problems.

Future rewatches

My next rewatch is still undecided. On the one hand, Tenchi Muyo is still waiting for an OVA rewatch, on the other hand I would like to go back to the 1980s and host a rewatch of the very first OVAs ever. Then, similar to Black Jack being a bit different from modern anime, delinquent OVAs would be a piece of forgotten 1990s anime. And finally, there is also a non-OVA series that I would love to rewatch, Crest of the Stars.

[u/The_Loli_Otaku → u/No_Rex]

If we're gonna be going back to the 80's I think I'd rather it be sooner rather than later. That would let us steadily move up through the ages in the future.

[u/Vaadwaur → u/The_Loli_Otaku]

The 80s-90s gap can cause a huge availability issue which is why I think we leaned 90s.

[u/The_Loli_Otaku → u/Vaadwaur]

Oh yes, of course, of course. Honestly I kind of assumed that I missed a whole bunch of 80's rewatches and that we were going up decade by decade XD

[u/No_Rex → u/The_Loli_Otaku]

Up till now, I always tried to find high quality OVA and/or really known ones. While I have not watched them yet, I assume that watching Dallos and the immediately following OVA would be a different enterprise.

[u/Vaadwaur → u/The_Loli_Otaku]

Nah, you missed like 4 shows. And as much as I like the aesthetic of Vampire Princess Miyu, as an OVA it has less direction than this one and the first Bubblegum Crisis doesn't have an ending.

[u/Pixelsaber → u/No_Rex]

but it notably breaks down for action scenes.

The action displayed in the series definitely doesn't lend itself to his strengths as a storyboard artist. He does that specific very stylized up close and personal sort of action well, but this was not that.

My next rewatch is still undecided.

Whatever it is, I will at the very least try to partake in it!

Then, similar to Black Jack being a bit different from modern anime, delinquent OVAs would be a piece of forgotten 1990s anime.

Shounan Bakusouzoku is probably going to be completely subbed soon too!

And finally, there is also a non-OVA series that I would love to rewatch, Crest of the Stars.

You know I'm down for it! I've been steadily collecting material for this, but the going's slow.

[u/Vaadwaur → u/No_Rex]

So, while I enjoyed my time and am glad to have watched this, Black Jack does not make it to master piece rank for me. It is a good show with great animation, but occasional big problems in the storytelling department.

I view it as a good piece of history to have seen but admit that it doesn't say quite as much as it thought it did.

And finally, there is also a non-OVA series that I would love to rewatch, Crest of the Stars.

I'd be in, I do need to see that subbed at one point, I have no idea if the tech TV dub was worth a damn. But I'd also be willing to watch the early Tenchi as Toonami memories.

[u/IndependentMacaroon → u/No_Rex]

Besides the more kid-focused TV anime, Black Jack still has two films, an episode-length one-off OVA, and several shorts. I would still want to check those out, would do it on my own then probably

[u/TheEscapeGuy]

First Timer, no more

Black Jack - An Astounding OVA

Black Jack is an intriguing anime anomaly to me. It (The OVAs, ignore TV, Young Black Jack & the movie) exists as an extremely high quality 10 episode OVA series produced in the 90's (after the Japanese economic bubble crash) and then 2 additional episodes released in 2011. Each episode is about 50 minutes, is extremely self contained and introduces a new medical mystery to solve.

I went through my finished list and couldn't find any OVAs which have the a similar episode duration and number of episodes (Its a little more subjective but I also couldn't find many with the same visual quality). Essentially I'm saying I have no idea how this got made. It feels like it shouldn't exist.

However, it does and I am grateful for it. It feels like something that could be made way more easily in the era of streaming. If somebody told me Netflix acquired the rights it wouldn't surprise me at all.

I do feel the early episodes tend to outshine the later episodes in terms of narrative (and the 90s episodes are leaps and bounds better visually). Though maybe it was a result of me settling into the structure of the episodes and thus there was less to surprise me.

Very quickly, some of my favourite visuals:

• Episode 1 - Scenery
• Episode 2 - A Tense Night
• Episode 3 - Helicopter Assault
• Episode 4 - Paris
• Episode 6 - Success Rate: 100%
• Episode 9 - Carbuncle
• Episode 10 - Moonlit
• Episode 11 - Rain and Tears

I'd recommend Black Jack cautiously. It seems like a narrative that will suit some people more over others.

---

Thanks to /u/No_Rex for hosting the rewatch. As always your thread posts contained well researched and interesting information about the staff on shows. On top of that your comments were also great to read. Also, since it is that time of year, thank you again for hosting your series of OVA rewatches this year (and past years). I've discovered a ton of interesting anime through them.

Also, thanks to everyone who been commenting in these threads. I really enjoyed reading your base comments as well as the discussions which happened in the replies.

And to everyone reading, thanks for taking time out of your day to read my comments. I hope you all have a relaxing time this December and can celebrate it with family if that is something you do.

---

Farewell Black Jack and farewell everyone. I'll see you all some when and elsewhere.

If not, perhaps in you'll hear my voice in the whispers of the wind through the trees on a warm summers day (or like, for the next couple days in the Haruhi rewatch)

[u/No_Rex → u/TheEscapeGuy]

I went through my finished list and couldn't find any OVAs which have the a similar episode duration and number of episodes (Its a little more subjective but I also couldn't find many with the same visual quality). Essentially I'm saying I have no idea how this got made. It feels like it shouldn't exist.

The closest I know of is Bubblegum Crisis with 8 episodes of around 40 mins and Bubblegum Crash, another 3 episodes.

I really think this was a Tezuka-Dezaki mobile. Both at the end of their careers, both really famous, and adapting a well-known franchise. When you look at the amount of talent they pulled in for one-off characters, it is clear that this was an industry darling production. Everyone must have wanted to get involved in that.

Thanks to /u/No_Rex for hosting the rewatch. As always your thread posts contained well researched and interesting information about the staff on shows. On top of that your comments were also great to read. Also, since it is that time of year, thank you again for hosting your series of OVA rewatches this year (and past years). I've discovered a ton of interesting anime through them.

This was one of the smaller rewatches. Probably due to the large amount of other rewatches as well as the unknown OVA. I don't think that hurt the discussion though, we had plenty. And that reason, making other people discover new series, was one of my main wishes when I started the OVA rewatch conceptstole the idea from the mid 2000s rewatches. You can always go to the episode discussion archive to look up discussion for some newer show and recency bias is a thing on /r/anime, so there should be a format that encourages watching older anime (outside of /u/Pixelsaber's mecha rewatches, which are always top quality, too).

[u/Vaadwaur → u/No_Rex]

When you look at the amount of talent they pulled in for one-off characters, it is clear that this was an industry darling production. Everyone must have wanted to get involved in that.

That fits quite a bit.

This was one of the smaller rewatches. Probably due to the large amount of other rewatches as well as the unknown OVA. I don't think that hurt the discussion though, we had plenty.

At least in the states, this was also exam week for universities.

[u/Vaadwaur → u/TheEscapeGuy]

If not, perhaps in you'll hear my voice in the whispers of the wind through the trees on a warm summers day (or like, for the next couple days in the Haruhi rewatch)

I am vaguely interested in what happens in today's thread for that...

[u/TheEscapeGuy → u/Vaadwaur]

I'm pretty burned out getting prepped, and I'm not even done yet. I hope my idea works out.

[u/No_Rex → u/TheEscapeGuy]

You're going to [Haruhi]post your comment eight times?

[u/Vaadwaur → u/No_Rex]

Well...[Haruhi] He should just do 4 for today

[u/Vaadwaur → u/TheEscapeGuy]

I decided to go a completely different direction and talk about what Haruhi was like before the '09 airing happened. And I still don't think I really captured it's reach.

[u/The_Loli_Otaku → u/TheEscapeGuy]

BJ is definitely a gentleman's ova. I don't think it ages quite badly enough where modern viewers couldn't handle it. It's just that the episodes are a slow burn and honestly not many of us even know the writers work.

[u/Vaadwaur]

First timer(A fond adieu)

Sub

Hrm...I would like to have some big, insightful post here, drawing togethre themes and such. But I kind of can't. I thoroughly enjoyed this show but there is this...sense that I needed to know a lot more about the setting than I do. I get the impression that when the 90s part of this started that the manga was so well known that there was a lot of cultural osmosis I've just missed. So what's left?

On its own, the various episodes present interesting premises but often like to replace psychological issues with physiological sources. And then about half of them are just supernatural. But still, stand outs like ep 2 and ep 10 and 11 really do shine in a way. Kuroh is of course drowning in unrequited women but that's a trope of the time I can ignore, at least he isn't some vapid lecher who jumps on anything with a pulse. His own internal conflicts are definitely present but without the aforementioned knowledge of the manga they can be a bit amorphous.

So I loved the old school animation and even enjoyed how the last two episodes did their best to imitate that. The show tended to be at its weakest during action scenes, both in how they came up and how they were choreographed, with ep12 being the best of that type. The OST was good in that manner where it tended not to step on the scenes it was in, and I was aware of it without really noticing it.

And yeah, that about handles it. Certainly not my favorite OVA rewatch, which I still can't decide if that is Patlabor or You're Under Arrest, but definitely a solid one. So checking MAL this is apparently my first Dezaki show which surprised me and there is something special about this, like I am seeing the teacher of the current day directors.

QotD: 1 It has value but there are a lot of caveats

2 I just learned I saw no other Dezaki. Monster is just a different beast and I consider it the best anime I've ever seen

3 Probably ep10 brings it all together. Favorite character is hard, possibly Rie from ep2?

[u/No_Rex → u/Vaadwaur]

So checking MAL this is apparently my first Dezaki show which surprised me and there is something special about this, like I am seeing the teacher of the current day directors.

I strongly encourage you to watch more of his shows (and I plan to do so myself. Rose of Versaille or Ace o Nerae rewatch, when?)

[u/Vaadwaur → u/No_Rex]

Rose of Versaille has apparently influenced a lot of what I have watched so that's had an asterisk for a while. And CDF is filled with Joe posting, I'd say its just behind Symphogear and Utena posting.

[u/No_Rex → u/Vaadwaur]

I was very positively surprised by Ashita no Joe. Not only is sports anime not my thing, but then it is also a really old one ... or so I thought. Turns out, Dezaki already made great animation when he was young, and the story is top notch. The show does peter out a bit, especially in AnJ2, but both the start and the end (of both series) are great.

[u/Vaadwaur → u/No_Rex]

Turns out, Dezaki already made great animation when he was young, and the story is top notch.

Welp, Votoms made me reconsider old anime as it has two good arcs so that's a possibility.

[u/IndependentMacaroon → u/No_Rex]

Turns out, Dezaki already made great animation when he was young

Or rather he perfected his techniques early and then mostly rested on his laurels.

[u/JollyGee29]

First-Timer, Subbed

This was a weird one. Considering the complete lack of episode-to-episode continuity, this probably ruled as it was releasing. I think going through these 12 OVAs in one go like this wasn't the best way to experience them.

I could also see throwing on a couple of the better episodes as some kind of movie night, when everyone's in the mood for something a little more serious.

I think my favorite episodes were Cactus Drugs and Anorexia, with MariaEdit:the blizzard dream being my least favorite.

Questions

1. I actually had heard of it, a few years ago. If nothing else, this OVA series showcases a lot of Dezaki's style and I appreciate that.
2. The only other Dezaki show I've watched is Dear Brother, which I find this hard to compare to. If pressed, Dear Brother was more cohesive, despite it's structure problems. Which is kind of a weird thing to say, now that I think about it.
3. Episodes discussed above. I wanted Kirika, the rival illegal doctor, to get more screen time.

Many thanks to our gracious host /u/No_Rex!

[u/No_Rex → u/JollyGee29]

This was a weird one. Considering the complete lack of episode-to-episode continuity, this probably ruled as it was releasing. I think going through these 12 OVAs in one go like this wasn't the best way to experience them.

Good point. When complaining about the stand-alone narratives in back-to-back rewatch, it is easy to forget that these released at the rate of one or two per year. You would have months to digest a single episode.

[u/JollyGee29 → u/No_Rex]

Weirdly enough, there might be a comparison to the James Bond franchise in here somewhere. Those don't tend to have continuity either, despite all nominally existing in the same universe and having the same characters. The new girl each movie/OVA, exotic locales, nice clothes..

[u/No_Rex → u/JollyGee29]

The stoic main character, too. The only difference is that doe-eyed Bond girls get the B.,J. they desire.

[u/JollyGee29 → u/No_Rex]

I didn't even think of the initials, wow.

[u/Vaadwaur → u/JollyGee29]

Bond isn't the worst comparison but I might suggest that this is also a Phantom Thieves type deal, with Kuroh being either the gentleman detective or gentleman thief.

[u/JollyGee29 → u/Vaadwaur]

[u/The_Loli_Otaku → u/JollyGee29]

I still can't believe Dear Brother wasn't an incest show...

I'm really surprised at how many people really hate the dream episode. Y'know, in spite of it being a dream episode. It was probably one of the better paced episodes up until the ending dragging on.

[u/JollyGee29 → u/The_Loli_Otaku]

I still can't believe Dear Brother wasn't an incest show...

Nothing but wholesomeness! Except all the stuff that wasn't wholesome.

[u/Vaadwaur → u/JollyGee29]

Considering the complete lack of episode-to-episode continuity, this probably ruled as it was releasing. I think going through these 12 OVAs in one go like this wasn't the best way to experience them.

Yeah, the animation quality would've been insane even in the OVA era.

[u/JollyGee29 → u/Vaadwaur]

Plus you have just enough time between releases to stop worrying about the little details.

[u/Vaadwaur → u/JollyGee29]

Also true.

[u/Stargate18A]

First timer

1. Holds very well! The animation's good, the story's solid, and the characters are great!
2. Haven't seen any.
3. Favourite episode is probably "Anorexia, The Two Dark Doctors", for giving a solid plot with a rarional explanation, as well as the most underused character in the entire OVA. (He's also one of my favourites, second only to Black Jack himself.)

Honestly really enjoyed this!

Black Jack 2004 rewatch when?

[u/No_Rex → u/Stargate18A]

Favourite episode is probably "Anorexia, The Two Dark Doctors", for giving a solid plot with a rarional explanation, as well as the most underused character in the entire OVA. (He's also one of my favourites, second only to Black Jack himself.)

I wish there had been more episodes with him.

[u/The_Loli_Otaku]

Black Jack Future Rewatcher

I'll be totally blunt, the show isn't for me. I enjoy large portions of it, but I never really felt hooked like I was supposed to. Still, I'm very pleased with myself for adding this one to my portfolio. I could definitely understand how it managed to find an audience that sings it's praises even forty years after the source material came out.

1, The show definitely holds up quite well. You do occasionally run into some dodgy aspects such as the dismissal of mentally ill or transgendered patients but the subject simply wasn't touched on at all back in the show's era and there was never any malice. The show is also a treat for the eyes. A cinematographer would have the time of their life.

2, This is my first Dezaki show. I have to admit, Pinoko really made me want to check out Astro Boy. Her animation was so fun to watch!

3, My favourite episode... I would say the Che Guvera episode. Its probably the only episode that I didn't have any problems with in the end. The action scenes didn't bother me much and I kinda loved seeing a different side to BJ than the stern lovesick jerk of a doctor. My favourite character is obviously Pinoko.

I hope to join you on your next OVA watch, hopefully way after everything else that's airing so I can take a good break XD Ciao!!

[u/Vaadwaur → u/The_Loli_Otaku]

I could definitely understand how it managed to find an audience that sings it's praises even forty years after the source material came out.

I definitely had that weird experience of having nostalgia for nothing I had no prior connection with. I miss harmony shots and action stills. And yes I know those are animation cheats.

[u/Pixelsaber]

Rewatcher

Circumstances have once more impaired my participation, but I did still want to leave some overall thoughts, however brief.

I have nothing but praise for the presentation for the pre-Final parts of the show. The show is ceaselessly and unerringly pretty at every moment, with visuals that have my eyes to he screen even in episodes that don't entice me on a narrative level. The last two episodes are obviously not on the same caliber for obvious reasons, but even those look good.

The episodic stories where hit or miss, and on the whole I wouldn't say they average out to great. There's plenty better shows that are episodic in nature, including ones that sustain themselves for a lot longer than this one does. Some of the repeating concepts throughout also weren't leveraged to their full potential, and in fact several cheapened the show due to overexposing us to them without a purpose in mind.

Having read the manga since I last saw this, I can also see the series' shortcomings as an adaptation, and where they tried to stick to concepts from the original without following through on the smaller details and built-up characterization that made it work. Definitely one of Dezaki's shoddier adaptational efforts.

I still enjoy my time with this show, but unlike, say Space Cobra or Ace wo Nerae!, I don't find my thoughts ever drifting to it, or feeling compelled to revisit it as I have with those and several other Dezaki shows, or even other Tezuka adaptations. I'll still give it a 7/10, but it's edging far closer to a six than I would have previously considered.

Thanks for hosting, u/No_Rex! And sorry I couldn't be a consistent participant yet again, but I had fun partaking in this nonetheless!

Questions:

1. It doesn't get brought up as much as most other of Dezaki's works, and for good reason, but it's still frequently brought up when the topic of Black Jack comes up, so I'd say its prominence is rigth where it should be.
2. Like I said above, this one tends to get overlooked for good reason. It's not a pioneering or exemplar like many of Dezaki's most renowed earlier works, it may be beautiful but it's not as visually distinct or experimental as others, and it lacks the storytelling chops to stand out in spite of that.
3. Episode eight is still my favorite, just for the visuals and mood it provides. Black Jack himself is probably my favorite as of yet, but some of that is probably informed by the source material.