Tenchi In Tokyo

—by Peter Kenzaburo Cahill

In a way, this review is almost unnecessary. If you're a TENCHI fan, and very many people are, then this TV series will delight you. If you haven't seen any other TENCHI incarnations, then I suggest you start with the original OVA series since you'll miss out on a lot of the jokes otherwise. And if you don't like the franchise at all, then I have to say this show won't change your mind in the least.
In issue 2.7, our own Eric "Scanner" Luce reviewed the Japan release of SHIN TENCHI and found it lacking. While he's right that very little of this show is original or even fresh, I must disagree with his conclusion that the show isn't worth the ride. (Although I too am a little wary of the mecha-Ryo-Ohki...)
The first thing to mention is the slightly different mood of this show. This seems to be the lightest and least serious of the OVAs, TV series and movies. In fact, there's a very tangible silliness to this show, so much so that it may put off some longtime fans. The use of wild takes, falling statues and general slapstick has greatly increased. Plus, many scenes are animated with notations and markings usually found in manga, with graphic bursts for emphasis and spelled-out sound effects. Again, this will probably not please most fans, but it is amusing and falls short of a total paradigm shift.
The next thing you'll want to know about is the cast. The whole crew and their seiyuu are here, and we even have new arrivals. (Die-hards with nothing better to do than study TENCHI trivia will notice that one of Tenchi's new classmates is the same fellow student from the very first OVA.) Also, like the other TENCHI incarnations, their background stories are slightly different. This time none of the girls start out on Earth. Ryoko is still a pirate, but she fell to Earth with Washu as her temporary accomplice. Mihoshi and Kiyone, as well as Ayeka and Sasami, were of course chasing them, as the pirate and mad scientist had stolen a precious artifact from the Jurai family. Instead of Ryoko's ship, Ryo-ohki is Sasami's mecha suit, while Ayeka has Azaka and Kamidake to protect her. Tenchi, his father and grandfather all live at the Masaki shrine, but this time Tenchi has a crystal pendant that belonged to his mother. After the group's disastrous first encounter (which we don't get to see until episode 7), Tenchi gives a shard of the crystal to each of the girls. We haven't yet been told how Tenchi's family is linked to the Jurai royal house, but it will probably be something similar to previous explanations.
As usual, we get to see the new villain, Yugi, but we don't yet know why she's playing tricks on the gang any more than they do. However, the biggest addition is Sakuya, voiced by Iizuka Mayumi. She appears to be the first normal girl Tenchi has ever met, yet she resembles the others in that she immediately falls totally in love with him. (Surprise, surprise.) She is, however, very persistent. As one would expect, this infuriates both Ryoko and Ayeka who then join forces in a temporary truce in order to destroy this new rival for Tenchi's affections.
I was very pleased with this show's music. The opening and closing themes are wonderful, and I wonder if anime conventions won't start holding contests to see if anyone (or any group!) can sing the tongue-twisting ED. The English dubbing for the show is as good as it usually is for a TENCHI video, but like other shows that are so... well, Japanese in their style and feel, it's just not the same. This isn't like GHOST IN THE SHELL or NIGHT WARRIORS, where the story itself doesn't really hinge on background location and language—they could've used any setting. Their characters spoke Japanese simply because the shows were produced in Japan. However in TENCHI the location, religious shrines, demons and moral sensibilities all rely very heavily on Japanese culture. (It may sound silly, but even the ridiculous melodrama and overacting of the original voice cast helps with the cultural as well as comic atmosphere as much as the wild takes and sound effects.)
To solve this dilemma, I can wholeheartedly recommend the DVD. It's very convenient to be able to toggle between the Japanese and English voice-tracks, as well as the English subtitles and the closed-captioning. Furthermore, as small a bonus as it is, the conceptual drawings included on the disc are quite nice. (Sorry, no alternate endings, director's cut, or widescreen; it's just a TV show!)
In the end I highly recommend this show, but, as I mentioned earlier, you've probably already made up your mind. (And I doubt the enclosed jacket design postcards will sway any fence-sitters.) If you still want new TENCHI but miss the old OVAs, then you can still buy the TENCHI MUYO! OVA DVD Box Set, due out at the end of March.

Released in N. America by Pioneer Entertainment (USA) L.P.
Volume 1:
100 minutes
VHS Subtitled PIVA-7121S $29.98
VHS Dubbed PIVA-7121D $24.98
DVD PIDA-7121V $29.98

Volume 2:
75 minutes
VHS Subtitled PIVA-7122S $29.98
VHS Dubbed PIVA-7122D $24.98
DVD PIDA-7122V $29.98

Available now in the USA
Where to buy