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Vol. 1-2
by Keith Rhee
Vivid imagery, neat character designs, and a decent story though not as
popular as TENCHI MUYO!,
EL HAZARD proves to be a highly amusing and
enjoyable OVA series in its own right, offering the proper mix of comedy
with a touch of drama.
While the ending brings closure to a good story, it also leaves plenty
of room for other stories within the EL HAZARD universe.
So what do you do with a successful story that has plenty of room left to explore?
You make a sequel, that's what. Picking up where the first series left off,
EL HAZARD 2 brings back the original cast for another wacky
adventure, with the addition of a few new good guys and adversaries.
The Eye of God conflict is over, and the palace is in a festive mood:
Fujisawa-sensei is to be married to the water priestess Miz Mizhtal! But as
the big day arrives, the groom is nowhere to be found. Hmm, who's that
scruffy looking guy trying to sneak out of town?
Shocked by Fujisawa's departure, the otherwise mild-mannered Miz
throws a hysterical fit (and destroys the palace in the process). Vowing
to confront Fujisawa, Miz then sets off to find the hapless teacher
with the entire gang in tow, of course.
Meanwhile, Jinnai and his Bugrom buddies stumble across a young female
android, like Ifurita but much younger in appearance. Awakened from
stasis by Jinnai, the innocent looking girl introduces herself as Karlia
and joins Jinnai's band.
In the second volume, Makoto's group reaches a mysterious mountain
which acts as a barrier into a hidden world. And surprise! The place
is guarded by Ifurita! An overjoyed Makoto tries to approach Ifurita,
only to get shot at for his trouble. The keeper of the world
intervenes, and the group soon learns that this is a second Ifurita
model, not the Ifurita that vanished in the Eye of God conflict.
Soon everyone converges onto the same location. Fujisawa stumbles into
the hidden dimension and straight into the arms of his fiancee. Led by
Karlia to "a weapon of great power," Jinnai's band of Bugrom arrive at the
mountain as well. Jinnai, seeing Makoto and his friends, begins to
apologize profusely for his past misdeeds. The keeper of the world lets
in Jinnai and Karlia at Makoto and Fujisawa's behest (who are convinced),
despite the protests of the others (who are not). Once inside, the
seemingly innocent and childish Karlia suddently reveals her true menacing
nature.
The sequel maintains the high animation quality of its predecessor,
and fans will be delighted to know that the cast returns with
redesigned outfits that look sharp. The story maintains the same
comedic tone of the previous series as well, and the addition of
Fatora as one of the main cast adds a nice twist to the show.
Portrayed as a damsel in distress for most of the first series, Fatora
soon turns out to be a conniving, scheming character and a lot of
trouble for our heroes. See, Fatora is actually a lesbian. Her
lookalike Makoto is surrounded by females, and the scheming Fatora
attempts to use this to her advantage.
Whereas the latter episodes of the TENCHI MUYO! OVA series
fails to live up to to the original series, the first few episodes of EL HAZARD 2 already show a great deal of promise, developing a
solid story instead of settling for a mere rehash. If you're a fan of the first
series, head to your nearest anime store and pick up the LDs. One
note of caution: it is not known when EL HAZARD 2
will be released domestically, so for now your only option is the import laserdiscs.
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EL HAZARD 2
Copyright © 1997 AIC / Pioneer LDC
Volume 1, 30 min HiFi Stereo, CAV LD: PILA-1421, VHS: PIVS-1541, 21 March 1997
Volume 2, 30 min HiFi Stereo, CAV LD: PILA-1422, VHS: PIVS-1542, 25 May 1997
¥5800 (each) |
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