Nuku Nuku TV News

This "Banneko" is a transforming heroine!? A little love is added in.

This is a translation of a panel review of Bannou Bunka Neko Musume DASH! Mode-1. It is taken from page 119 of the November 1998 issue of Animage, a Japanese anime magazine. Each of the five panelists rated the show on a scale of one to five stars, five being the best, plus provided some brief comments. The translations are in blue, followed by my comments in brackets. Thanks to Kazuya-kun for helping me with the hard parts of the translation.

Buruma: *

Instead of "Nuku Nuku" [literally: cuddly], this should be called "Nuru Nuru" [slimy]. I'm sorry to say this, but director Fujimoto is better suited to serious stories than gags. I think only about 45 minutes of the compilation can be watched. Just like the TV version, the tasteless costume design is pathetic.

[Preach on, brother! Tell it like it is. Actually, I don't think the OAVs are that bad, but I'm glad he specifically disses the director and TV series. Yoshitaka Fujimoto definitely has a problem with comedy.]

Watanabe: ***

The side characters are enjoyable. With characters like the sassy kindergartner and flower-selling girl, the difference between their appearance and their actions causes laughter. Each instance of such characters are an essential part of the pattern of this work. Even though there are 4 episodes, that one pattern is still seen.

[Hmm, why do I get the feeling she searched really hard for something nice to say. I didn't like the flower girl at all, but the kindergartner is cool. She is the same little girl that was Ryunosuke's neighbor in the TV series. Somehow she got younger while Ryunosuke got older.]

Osaragi: ****

Nuku-Nuku's sweetness is the best thing in this series. However, weren't the transforming heroine elements really unnecessary? Except for that one thing, I have no complaints. I agree with each one of as for Ryunosuke's extremely wholesome, inexperienced, spring-like reactions.

[I agree that the romantic element is the strongest part of the series. I don't think the action parts can be so easily overlooked, though.]

Asari: *

"From whose point of view, how does it make them feel..." These are the most important things to ask when making the work. This work (Nuku-Nuku) does not have these important things, so you get the sense of seeing the exposed magic of the entire contents. Naturally...if Nuku-Nuku's charming cat look is missing, how enjoyable can the series be?

[This sounds a little awkward when translated, but Kazuya-kun felt it was the harshest review of the five. Basically Asari is saying that, while all the parts are there, it's missing the enjoyable feeling of the original Nuku-Nuku OAVs, and so the rest is pointless. I agree; the new Nuku-Nuku lacks personality.]

Mucchiri: ***

Compared to the OVA, the TV series appears friendly and easily watched. Ryunosuke's narration is also cute. The daydream scenes are also cute... Hehe, every time, a new character is appearing, that could be a nice bonus.

[This has to be the fluffiest review of the bunch. I guess some people did enjoy the light comedy of the TV series, rather than the more serious tone of the OAVs.]

Well, that's all there was to the review. Remember that these comments apply only to the first LD release, Mode-1. Take a look at my own review of all three volumes for more details. I have to agree with Asari: this series is not as good as the original OAVs. However, it is a bit unfair to judge the series that way. Looking at the new series on its own merits, I think that Buruma and Osaragi had the best comments. The reviews also do a good job of pointing out everything I hated about the TV series.

By the way, the November issue of Animage was published at the beginning of October 1998. The release of Mode-2 was at the end of October, and Mode-3 was supposed to follow in November, but it was delayed until the end of December. Mode-3 also turned out to be the best of the three, dropping the silly comedy elements and actually adding some real feeling, some drama to the series. I have to wonder if this review was one reason for the delay. The text on the Mode-3 jacket does say that "the production team was so particular about every detail that they almost missed the deadline." Whatever the cause, it's nice to know that Fujimoto and the rest of the staff can produce some good anime if they try.

All screen captures on this page come from the OAV opening credits, grabbed off LD using a Snappy (thanks Fred). The Snappy was giving my trouble, though, so I only have a few pictures so far. The LD covers were taken from the Starchild web site.