Armitage III...

Years ago, I picked up the VHS version of Armitage III...

They made her pretty, they made her smart and they made her strong. They gave her a sexpot's body and a little girl's face. And then they did the cruelest thing of all... they gave her a heart. Now, if they find out her secret, they'll want her dead. Two men already know: one's her partner, the other's a killer... bad luck for him. Because if anyone wants to tell this little girl she's nothing but a toy, they'd better be ready for a fall.

Fast-cut, beautifully stylized, sexily sophisticated and set to a hard-edged techno beat, Armitage III is a mature sci-fi thriller that captured awards at ICON XIV for "Best Cyberpunk Genre Anime Premiere" and "Best Cyberpunk Genre Anime Soundtrack".

OVAs

Electro Blood
The Place: Mars, during the terra-forming process. As soon as detective Ross Sylibus arrived at the spaceport, he got involved in a murder. The victim was Kelly McCannon, the popular singer. Ross discovered something shocking: the fact that the corpse was not a human, but a 'third', a much more advanced robot than the 'seconds' which are currently in common use. Ross must team up with Armitage of the Martian Police Dept. (MPD) to chase the killer, Rene D'anclaude, who is destroying the 'thirds' one by one.

Flesh and Stone
Armitage stopped D'anclaude--- nearly dead in his tracks. Of course, he's the only suspect involved in the multiple deaths of the 'thirds'. The new mystery unfolds when, another bullet riddled Third, Lavinia Whately, is found dead at an industrial power plant. However, Armitage is still missing. Yet... isn't D'anclaude supposed to be in the police hospital? Another victim brings new confusion to the MPD. Still echoed by D'anclaude's mocking laughter. And now, Armitage's mysterious disappearance places her under suspicion.

Heart Core
The MPD decides to drop the investigation of the Third type murders. They are now focusing all operations into a full-time investigation of a terrorist case involving the seconds. Ross doesn't agree with the department's decision. He instead heads to the Shinora General Hospital to find out if the true D'anclaude is really there. Meanwhile, Armitage discovers a video still photograph of D'anclaude and Asakura together in earlier days. What secret do they hold together involving the development of the Thirds? The key to this whole mystery lies with D'anclaude in a hospital bed in Shinora.

Bit of Love
Both D'anclaudes- the original, and the Third- are lost in the flames of Shinora. Now the only one remaining with the knowledge of the secret of the Thirds is Asakura. With the lead he provides them- 'Asakura is at the dome on top of Dannich Hill'- Armitage and Ross head out to follow it up. But the Asakura they find there has had his memories altered, and had no recollection of Armitage. Armitage finds herself in the pits of despair... Will the secret of her existence ever be revealed to her?

Movies

Movie 1
Poly-Matrix
Poly-Matrix is the movie version of Armitage III and contains new footage. Parts of the story are different and Armitage's and Ross's voices are now dubbed by Elizabeth Berkley and Kiefer Sutherland.

2179: Mars has been colonized by Earth, populated by humans and "Second Types" - robots designed to perform the menial tasks humans won't do. Then there are the "Third Types" - illegal humanoid robots designed by a nationalist force to look and behave exactly like humans - living undetected among the Martian population as citizens, until one man, Rene' D'anclaude, declares war on the "Thirds," starting a massacre in a vow to destroy them all.

That's where she comes in. She's Naomi Armitage. A cyberpunk Martian cop in hot pants, with an attitude as deadly as her gun. She's also a "Third," and her fight against D'anclaude is a fight for her survival. Her partner, Ross Sylibus, lost his partner at the hands of a cybernetic killer and hates robots.

Ross must face this prejudice when he is injured and received cybernetic limb replacements, bringing him closer to becoming one of the monsters he abhors. He begins to realize that being human is more then just flesh and blood and joins Armitage in her fight against D'anclaude and her quest to discover the mystery of why the "Third Type" was created. Armitage and Ross are brought together in a bond of love and hope as their journey uncovers a secret that could destroy two worlds!

This is a story about technology and emotion. About hatred and love. About a human on the verge of becoming a machine and a machine on the verge of becoming a human. It is a story of survival.

Movie 2
Dual-Matrix
Bad Girl Returns! Naomi Armitage (featuring the voice of Juliette Lewis) and Ross Sylibus have changed their names and live with their daughter Yoko as a normal happy family on Mars - until a riot breaks out at an anti-matter plant on Earth. Armitage learns the riot is a plot to suppress evidence of illegal research and development of more "Thirds Types" and decides to go to Earth to find out who is behind this heinous act. What Armitage discovers is the most powerful enemy she has ever encountered... Replicas of herself!

Armitage III is set on Mars of the future and the "thirds" (as in third generation of cyborgs) were made to serve humanity, but, they were too much like humans to be allowed to exist. I didn't like the music that much at the beginning, but, after a while it grew on me. The visuals and story line are fairly good and the movies feature better-than-average vocal talent and new footage. The first movie is basically a retelling of the events in the OVA with some new footage. Poly-Matrix features voice talent of Elizabeth Berkley and Kiefer Sutherland and Dual-Matrix features voice talent of Juliette Lewis.

Armitage III is good place to start if your looking for a series to get into. I used to have the OVA series and the first movie on subtitled VHS. I enjoyed the series enough that I repurchased the OVAs and the first movie on DVD. Of course, I also picked up the second movie on DVD. I gave Armitage III a 3 out of 5. The Armitage III soundtrack CD has 17 tracks and I liked 10 tracks for a total of 58.8% which works out to a rating of 3 out of 4. When I purchased the Armitage III soundtrack CD, it was packaged in a unique 4-way fold-out CD case with lots of artwork.