ANIME: Robotics; Notes

Robotics; Notes is an interesting anime which makes extensive use of palmtop computers, wireless broadband, voice recognition, and Augmented Reality. It starts off as a sport anime for "robot wars" competitions, where remote controlled robots a foot tall battle each other to destruction. Cute right? And then they throw in a subplot with a video game played on the ubiquitous palmtops which lets you control a bigger battle robot in a 3D game, coded by a quirky blonde who talks in LOLs and ROTFLs and GTFOs in internet IRC chat speak. She's fun, right? And the hero's girlfriend is a total Genki girl, all gushing enthusiasm and loud cheerfullness. You gotta like her she's just that irrepressible. She motivates her friends to help her build a giant robot in a world that basically admits they only exist in AR, that they will never exist in the real world. There's no reason for them, and they're physically ridiculous. There are many things I like about this show. I like the tooled leather holster the gamer hero wears to carry his palmtop. I like that everyone seems to ride around on Honda Supercubs because its an island so gasoline is expensive and its stupid to own cars there. I like that the space launch base is largely unused. This island actually exists, btw, and they really did launch rockets there. Mostly agriculture now. Really beautiful place in Google Earth.

But then they throw in this geotagging subplot and if they'd revealled it was JUST geotagging, and the reports revealled by each ridiculous requirement to release items for download were actually part of a game? That would have been a great little note which fit well with the overall theme.

Instead? We get paranoid conspiracy and end of the world murders, cities lit on fire, robots attacking people, and assassinations of decent people by evil govt/corporations out to kill us all for profit? No. Just no. Totally ruined the show for me. Killing great characters just to be mean? No. The hell with you, Kazuya Nomura (show director). You started off so well, and you turned it all to crap. I haven't felt this betrayed by an anime since Asuka got eaten to death by the white EVAs. That's how badly you screwed up.

Thankfully, there are other AR shows, an older one involving children solving mysteries in a town built for AR is Denno Coil, which has Studio Gibli looking characters and Google Glasses to see the AR everywhere. Its a peculiar show which didn't hold my interest. This show does have some funny characters, including a busty programmer in a black leather motorcycle suit who leaves the protagonist girl deeply jealous, something I consider both realistic and poignant. Pity they didn't overcome the boredom I felt from the ongoing mysteries.

Compare all that with a cheerful girls anime about a school sports team with cute girls operating WW1 and WW2 tanks. Yes, tanks. As a sport. Shooting non-lethal rounds and the tank pops up a white flag when hit. The rounds can tear off a tread, mind you, but they're non lethal, thanks to extensive use of Plot Armor. Girls in this alternate universe wear kimono, arrange flowers, serve perfect tea, and operate tanks. Its like Strike Witches with pants. The show is called Girls Und Panzer. The entire concept is so weird you can't help but laugh. And the tanks have realistic mechanical faults which military geeks appreciate.

Another weird sports anime with cute girls being cute is Dog Days, which is about a guy spirited away to a land where warring factions fight for dominance... in non-lethal battles with blunt weapons and sacks of flour. Nobody gets hurt, magically protected that way. Its charming and harmless. The set battles are meant to resemble the butchery of mass infantry of the Warring States Period in Japan. Oh, and instead of horses they ride sort of Ostrich things which can sometimes fly, and all the people are actually cats and dogs with human faces and body shapes, but turn back into cats or dogs when "tagged" or bopped on the head. Utterly harmless.

I'm somewhat baffled why so many Japanese programs feel the need for murders and psychos threatening rape or dismemberment in otherwise charming stories. Problem Children is new this season, supposed to be a tournament anime but I kinda want to stab most of the villains and would NEVER even attempt to deal with them as if they were honest since they're clearly murdering psychopaths. You put down mad dogs. You have to do the same with those sorts of not-people.

So why was it written, much less animated for a children's show? Its cheap, and its mean, and it leaves me thinking: "If I was this chick, I would totally stab that guy in the heart, right this instant." Then again I'm male so my defensive impulses exist for a reason. I just don't see why so many Japanese mangaka (manga artists) feel like they really have to destroy the goodwill they've earned in their audience and take something charming and sweet and cover it in blood and violence. Why? Its not helping sales. You already had that when it was a charming sports story with sweet girls being cute. When I run into shows ruined by their creators with blood and violence? I stop watching and find something better.

I plan to continue on with Dog Days because it will stay sweet and charming and I like that. It's what I liked about Hayate No Gotoku, that and mocking the ignorance of rich kids. Measuring value in Ferraris? Yes, that is funny. I suppose I should just mark my irritation off as another cultural difference which just doesn't translate well into English. Its a good thing their charming stories MOSTLY don't turn into blood and violence. I've had more than enough of that at the Poison Factory, thanks very much.