Bubblegum Crisis...
Sometime in the early 1990s, I picked up the VHS version of Bubblegum Crisis...
Liner Notes From Episode 7 --
The scruffy, worn-out view of the not-too-distant future envisions beings called "boomers" who work and sometimes fight with humans. Bubblegum Crisis has a complex story line spanning several episodes. The series is also notable for its groundbreaking use of music.
When Bubblegum Crisis came to the U.S. in the early 90's, it was fairly expensive for a "cartoon" at $45, and it was less than an hour, and I would have to read! It took me a good long while before I could convince myself to pay $45 for the first episode. By the way, the first episode was originally untitled by AnimEigo when it was released in the U.S. - the packaging reads: "Episode 1 of 8".
But, it was soooo good. I can still remember rushing into work the next day and announcing to my co-workers that one of the characters in the series had died. After all, it was the first time since Bambi's mother died, that I saw death depicted in a cartoon! Well, my co-workers weren't nearly as excited about this shocking turn of events as I was.
According to an Animerica article circa 2004...Episode 1
Tinsel City
It is the year 2032 A.D. Like a Phoenix, the city of MegaTokyo is rising from the ashes of a devastating earthquake. In the twisted canyons of the megalopolis, the Knight Sabers, a small band of high-tech mercenaries, fight a lonely battle against the evil GENOM Corporation and it's sinister android "Boomers." A hard-rock soundtrack and gritty "cyberpunk" style propel this intense action film into an all too probable future, where technology has run amuck, and emotion is all that separates man from machine.
Episode 2
Born To Kill
It is the year 2032 A.D. The private war between the Knight Sabers and the GENOM Corporation heats up when GENOM recovers the "black box" the controls the U.S.S.D. satellite weapons system from the wreckage of Aqua City. Mason, the sinister GENOM executive in charge of the project, incorporates the black box into his pet project, the Superboomer android, and sets his Boomer assassins on the trail of anyone who stands in his way - including a friend of one of the Knight Sabers.
Episode 3
Blow Up
It is the year 2032 A.D. The GENOM Corporation's plan for "Urban Renewal" of MegaTokyo involves the use of Combat "Boomer" androids to terrorize the population and induce them to sell their land - cheaply. In other words, it's business as usual at the world's largest company. Meanwhile, Mason, the sinister GENOM executive whose plans have twice before been thwarted by the Knight Sabers, is determined to discover their secret identities and destroy them once and for all. When GENOM accidentally kills the mother of a young boy who has been befriended by Priss, reason can no longer hold emotion in check, and the Knight Sabers launch an attack on GENOM's huge, monolithic headquarters - and face a final confrontation with Mason at it's very summit.
Episode 4
Revenge Road
It is the year 2033 A.D. After their victory over GENOM and the evil Mason, the Knight Sabers take time out for a little fun. But all is not well in MegaTokyo. A mysterious black car, the "Griffon", is hunting down the rebellious bikers known as Outsiders. When Priss tangles with the Griffon on her new bike, she ends up with more than a few lumps and a score to settle. Enlisting the aid of Nene, the Knight Sabers' mole inside the AD Police, she begins her own private investigation. They soon narrow down the list of suspects to one man, Gibson, the victim of an Outsider attack. Meanwhile, Gibson makes the final adjustments to his terrible masterpiece. The Griffon emerges once again to stalk it's prey, AD Police springs a deadly trap, and the Knight Sabers race against time to prevent a tragedy.
Episode 5
Moonlight Rambler
It is the year 2033 A.D. A group of young women make a panicked escape from an orbiting industrial complex, crashing a stolen space shuttle on the outskirts of MegaTokyo. Priss finds a new friend, but what secret is she hiding? Could it have anything to do with the recent rash of "Vampire" murders? Or is that the result of skullduggery at GENOM, Inc.? Who is the mysterious Largo who seems to know altogether too much about the Knight Sabers? And just where is the D.D., a semi-intelligent battlesuit with an atomic dead man switch? The AD Police and the Knight Sabers race to gather the clues, and the result is a countdown to... DESTRUCTION!
Episode 6
Red Eyes
It is the year 2033 A.D. The mysterious Largo infiltrates GENOM and uses look-alike Boomers to frame the Knight Sabers. It's all part of his master plan to reshape the world into his terrifying vision of paradise. Helping him is Anri, the 33-S "Sexaroid" Boomer who, after the death of Sylvie in "Moonlight Rambler", is the last surviving space-station fugitive. Priss, heartbroken because she could not prevent Sylvie's death, resigns from the team. When Largo's imposters reappear, the three remaining Knight Sabers are seriously outclassed. Meanwhile, a chance encounter with Leon and a near-miss by an orbital bean weapon put Priss on Largo's trail. Largo faces down Quincey, the elusive chairman of GENOM, and demands that he hand over the Overmind Control System. Seeking to atone for Sylvie's death by rescuing Anri, Priss takes on Largo alone. A BIG mistake. Perhaps the last mistake Priss will ever make!
Episode 7
Double Vision
Houston, Texas, 2033 A.D. A GENOM executive inks a pact with the Gulf and Bradley Corporation to produce a sophisticated new combat Boomer. McLaren, GandB's Boomer expert, is looking forward to sampling the pleasures of MegaTokyo while working on the project. The festivities are rudely interrupted by a powerful crab-like Mecha. McLaren is the only survivor of the attack. Meanwhile, in MegaTokyo, the big news is the upcoming concert by Vision, a very famous and very mysterious Rock Star. Need we mention that Priss is not at all impressed? Vision's concert is just a cover. She's really here to avenge the murder of her little sister, Irene, who was murdered by a Boomer in "Born to Kill." Assisted by the faithful Kou, she attacks the research center in her Mecha but her reluctance to kill innocent bystanders dooms the attempt to failure. McLaren, more than a little unnerved by the attack, arranges for some protection - The Knight Sabers!
Episode 8
Scoop Chase
It is the year 2033 A.D. Would-be VidReporter Lisa Vanotte films the Knight Sabers in action, forcing Priss to destroy her father's favorite camera. Lisa vows to get even by discovering their true identities. When you want to dig up dirt in MegaTokyo, it doesn't hurt to be the Chief of A.D. Police's favorite niece! An unfortunate Nene finds herself saddled with the job of escorting Lisa around town. Despite a discouraging start, Lisa proves to be more difficult to mislead than Nene anticipates, and she almost manages to discover the Knight Sabers' secret training facility at Raven's garage. Lisa isn't Nene's only problem. Once again, her latest combat simulation is well below par, and the rest of the Knight Sabers won't let her forget it. They won't let her forget those extra pounds she's put on, either. Lisa refuses to give up her quest, and eventually persistence pays off. She obtains a photograph that proves Nene is a Knight Saber. Sylia, hoping to protect their identities, pays Lisa a visit, and tries to explain what the Knight Sabers' true purpose is. Meanwhile, Dr. Yoshida, a truly demented GENOM scientist, has secretly built a new type of Boomer. He decides to test them out by having them destroy A.D. Police H.Q. By hacking into the building's central computer one of the Boomers turns the building into an automated death-trap. Now Lisa's scoop may become an obituary -- her own!
Hurricane Live 2032 (Music From Bubblegum Crisis)
Now you can experience the hottest hits of 2032 MegaTokyo, in 5 pulse-pounding Music Videos created from the images and music of the revolutionary animated science fiction series, "Bubblegum Crisis."
Hurricane Live 2033 (More Music From Bubblegum Crisis)
Now you can bop to the time-warped beat of the hottest hits of 2033 MegaTokyo, in 7 thundering Music Videos created from the images and music of the revolutionary animated science fiction series, "Bubblegum Crisis," including live action sequences from the special "Tinsel City Rhapsody" concerts!
Originally released in Japan in 1987, BGC (then fully titled "Bubblegum Crisis: The Story of the Knight Sabers—Mega-Tokyo 2032") was a humble straight-to-video project featuring rather spotty animation quality and running less than an hour. However, it had something. Set in Mega-Tokyo (the city rebuilt after a second Great Kanto Earthquake) in 2032, BGC followed four young women who moonlighted as an armored mercenary/vigilante team called the Knight Sabers. Opposing them is Genom, the world's largest corporation and the manufacturer of Boomers—a series/race of mechanoids designed to serve man but who often threaten us in berserker fits. Caught in the middle is the hapless AD (Advanced) Police, a heavily armed anti-terrorist and anti-Boomer team.Bubblegum Trivia
Heavily influenced by the cyberpunk live-action film Blade Runner (1982) and the "rock and roll fable" Streets of Fire (1984), BGC was both a product of its times and something fresh and new. The anime perfectly captured the characteristic '80s obsession with anti-corporate anxiety, post-apocalypse survivalism, and technology run rampant. For good measure, it added heavy doses of superheroing, rock 'n' roll, mecha combat, and hot chicks. Talk about a recipe for success! The resultant brew was well-met in Japan, but was a smash hit in America's then-nascent anime environment.
Well-conceived by Suzuki, BGC had enough grabbing elements and mysterious plotlines to support nigh-endless development. Bubblegum Crisis proper carried on for eight OAV (Original Animation Video) installments, with each episode featuring better animation, writing, and directing than those before it. (The design work was always top-notch, however.) Now-bigwig designer/director Masami Obari (Fatal Fury, Battle Arena Toshinden) directed fan-favorite episodes 5 and 6, but troubles within Artmic and Youmex brought the series to an early close. Meanwhile, Suzuki had written an A.D. Police manga (illustrated by Tony Takezaki) that garnered praise as Japan's bible of all things cyberpunk.
Liner Notes From Episode 7 --
According to Suzuki Toshirnichi, Priss was slated to die ad the end of episode 6, and be replaced by Vision, because Oomori Kinuko was contractually unable to continue singing in the series [after episode 3]. Mr. Suzuki wrote 5-7 personally to engineer the change, but Priss was saved by a last minute change of heart. --- Source: Liner notes from episode 7.
Attentive readers will recall that, in the notes for Part 7, "Double Vision", we mentioned that the reason Oomori Kinuko had not performed any of the solo vocals after Part 3, "Blow Up," [because] she had landed a singing contract with, to quote Fujita Junji, President of Youmex, and Executive and Music Producer for Bubblegum Crisis, "a certain record company," and her contractual obligations effectively prevented her from singing solo in the series.
Those same readers may also note that, despite such statements, Oomori is back performing a solo vocal in... episode [8]: the theme song, "Chase the Dream". If you're wondering what gives, or even if you're not, there is an explanation. According to Mr. Fujita, around the time this episode was originally in production (mid-lo-late 1990), Oomori Kinuko, was forming a new band, SILK. When the video was originally released in Japan (January, 1991), SILK also released its first album, also called "SILK." The connection is that "Chase the Dream" was originally recorded by SILK for its debut album, and borrowed afterward by Youmex for use as this episode's theme. A similar thing happened with "Mr. Dandy," the ending theme to the original "Bubblegum Crisis" (now officially called "Tinsel City"), which was originally recorded by a band named "Bluew"(no misprint) for their debut mini-album, before being included in the video.
By the way, the band SILK takes its name from Oomori Kinuko's nickname, SILK, which is itself derived from the Kanji "Kinu" in her name, Kinuko, which literally translates as "Silk".
The scruffy, worn-out view of the not-too-distant future envisions beings called "boomers" who work and sometimes fight with humans. Bubblegum Crisis has a complex story line spanning several episodes. The series is also notable for its groundbreaking use of music. When Bubblegum Crisis came to the U.S. in the early 90's, it was fairly expensive for a "cartoon" at $45, and it was less than an hour, and I would have to read! It took me a good long while before I could convince myself to pay $45 for the first episode. By the way, the first episode was originally untitled by AnimEigo when it was released in the U.S. - the packaging reads: "Episode 1 of 8".
But, it was soooo good. I can still remember rushing into work the next day and announcing to my co-workers that one of the characters in the series had died. After all, it was the first time since Bambi's mother died, that I saw death depicted in a cartoon! Well, my co-workers weren't nearly as excited about this shocking turn of events as I was.
This is one of my favorite series. At ten tapes, Bubblegum Crisis, was a fairly large series with lots of music, but, well worth the expense. I used to have all 10 individual subtitled VHS (this includes two music video collections - Hurricane Live 2032/33). Later, I repurchased the series on DVD and when a new and improved DVD box set came out, I repurchased the series again. Bubblegum Crisis is one of the few titles that I've paid to have three times. Of course, now the series is available in much more convenient packaging. Sometime ago I tracked down a three-disc set of all of the vocals in the series. The Bubblegum Crisis Complete Vocal Collection CD has 36 tracks on 3 discs and I liked 20 tracks for a total of 55.5% which works out to a rating of 3 out of 4.
