Air Gear

Other Anime
21

And so it begins…

To start this off, I have to say, I did get to see two episodes of this when it aired on VOD last year, and it really didn’t interest me in the slighest.
I have never had an interest in skateboarding or roller blading, so generally, things of that nature have very little appeal to me.

I bought it for two reasons:
A: I wanted to finish it since it was one of the Sojitz titles.
B: Everyone has been raving about it on every forum I’ve been to.

That said:

DVD 1 (ep. 1-4)

[details=spoiler]Hmm, nipple shot right out the gate in the first episode.
The soundtrack is not appealing at all to me either.
Not a good start for me.

It does have some humorous moments though, that may be its one true saving grace.
The Ikki/Buccha battle in episode 4 was rather fun.

But all in all, given my general dislike for the concept of skating, that may not be enough to save it for me.

The dub on the other hand, is actually really good[/details]

22

[quote=LadyOfWicca]
I watched and I am here!

What shall we talk about?[/quote]

How could Ikki not have known anything after living with the girls for a while at the start of the series?

A guy living with 3 hot girls and sometimes alone at the house, was he THAT fearful to get caught sneaking through their rooms and such? :unsure:

23

Well girls (don’t laugh) are pretty good at keeping secrets. And being that he wasn’t all that into skating, it may have been easy for him to miss. Plus the girls seem able to keep him in line. And his thing up till now seemed to be getting into fights.

Besides, according to the show, he is very young (I find that hard to believe) and I think he was interested in other things.

Like peeping on the girls while they are bathing.

I think he only discovered skating because of free spirited Simka She fascinates him.

Also they haven’t really said anything yet about how the house is set up. How long has he been there and what is his relationship to the rest of the girls in the house? How are the girls related to each other? That might explain some things as well.

24

[quote=LadyOfWicca]
Well girls (don’t laugh) are pretty good at keeping secrets. And being that he wasn’t all that into skating, it may have been easy for him to miss. Plus the girls seem able to keep him in line. And his thing up till now seemed to be getting into fights.

Besides, according to the show, he is very young (I find that hard to believe) and I think he was interested in other things.

Like peeping on the girls while they are bathing.

I think he only discovered skating because of free spirited Simka She fascinates him.

Also they haven’t really said anything yet about how the house is set up. How long has he been there and what is his relationship to the rest of the girls in the house? How are the girls related to each other? That might explain some things as well.[/quote]

The girls are sisters from what I remember from ep. 1. and all in the same skate group ‘sleepy forest’ or something.
So far it seems like your average show. Nothing bad/horrendous but also nothing that makes me go “Oh, snap!”

25

Sorry, I meant other than Sleeping Forest tie-in. But I did miss they were sisters. Thanks!

26

The first 4 episodes are really nice set up episodes, with your traditional get to know the characters and the dynamics of the system.

Great combination of slapstick comedy, fanservice with the ever popular sports/tournament aspect of seeing the hero/heroine (in this case hero) grow from nothing into somebody… and the viewer watching the transformation as he/she overcomes certain obstacles.

I’m surprised you didn’t like the music Coffee. It’s got this very hip, trendy and stylish style that really gives off the pump it up energy feel that’s so perfect for this series.

I love the counterbalance between Simca with her naughty and instigating nature, vs Ringo’s calm and balanced (good girl) nature.

The basics are covered, but it’s only going to get better and better at this point - and what a cliffhanger way to end ep 4. Re-watching this has been immensely more satisfying, now that I know the full story - catching all the little details in the dialogue’s been cool. Can’t wait for DVD2 tomorrow.

And yeah the dub is nothing short of fantastic. Where else can you get popular VAs like Chris Patton, Luci, Hilary, Monica, Shelley, to at the time, new up-and-commers like Clint Bickham hitting a home run - then veterans like Mike Vance too? Jay Hickman with the english accent as Spitfire shows his tremendous flexibility with his range. I’ve spoken at length with Clint Bickham before about the work he did in this series, and as far as I’m concerned he’s one of the top level script writers in the industry as shown by the superior adaptation into English with Air Gear and Welcome to the NHK.

I love the little scene with Shiraume making the dolls. No one can do creepy better than Hilary Haag. (See: Le Chevalier D’Eon)

Oh Great!'s stuff is a ton of fun, and this is no exception.

27

[quote=dragoon]
I’m surprised you didn’t like the music Coffee. It’s got this very hip, trendy and stylish style that really gives off the pump it up energy feel that’s so perfect for this series.[/quote]

It’s not really bad per se, maybe it’s my frame of mind or perhaps carried over from trying to acclimate myself to a concept that I really don’t like, but something about it just really grates.

28

Well, I’m late, but I’m here.

First off, I wanted to say that I didn’t notice how young Ikki and Ringo were when I watched this series the first time through. I don’t know if I was moving around when they were showing the ages or what, but I was surprised when I saw this.

I have to say, I think this series has a really solid dub. I find it hard to complain about any of the VA and the jobs that they did with this. The music however, is just okay to me. I have always enjoyed the OP and ED for this show, but I really didn’t pay a whole lot of attention to the other music until now. I matches the show I suppose, but it’s nothing that I would go out of my way to buy.

Those crows, especially during the bath scene! Such a cool way to “censor” certain areas of the body. It makes me giggle every time I see one. Maybe it’s just me, but I find it weird how Ikki wants to catch a peek at the girls in the bath. I know it’s part of the comic relief and stuff, but I have to assume that they have lived together for an extended period of time, so they should be like brothers and sisters, right? Besides, I would think that looking at Simka would be enough for him.:slight_smile:

I also love the shop owner that Ikki has to work off his debt to…“If you suck, you suck.” :laugh:

That’s all I’ve got for now. Later guys!

29

Well, now that I’m getting use to the air trek concept (still don’t like it, but I can deal) it isn’t too bad.
Parts of the animation remind me of Cromartie High, at least a lot of the overexaggerated comedic parts.

DVD 2 (episodes 5-8)

[details=spoiler]So, we start this off by finishing the cliffhanger left over from yesterday, the Ikki/Buccha battle.

Simka really is a conniving little trollop, isn’t she?

In these episodes, we get introduced to a few more of the players and a little more information on the 8 Kings.
We also find out a little history on Sleeping Forest and Ringo’s situation.

The last episode had kind of a nice little story to it.
"A man stopping time for a girl"
I liked that.[/details]

This is not really directly related to this series (yet it is), but now that I’ve seen quite a few series, I’ve started noticing this tend.
What the hell is up with the Japanese and their fetish for eyepatches??

30

In Japan it is often custom to wear a mask to prevent spreading illness. Over your mouth is common, but an eye injury or pink-eye, or something like that would have a mask/patch over it to prevent airborne infectants from affecting others around you. It the higher level of respect to others shown in some of Japanese culture, like taking your shoes off before entering a house.

Like fads go anywhere, someone decided it would be neat to just wear one for fun, and make a fashion statement with it, and POOF the fad caught on like bell-bottoms, hooded sweatshirts (I think they call them “hoodeds” now to make them sound kewl), and platform shoes. They caught on big with MJs single glove and have been looking for ANY kind of fashion statement since then and will use ANYTHING as a fashion statement. Notice the number of people wearing bandaids these days with no injury just because of the characters or designs on them.

31

I’m enjoying the humor as well as the story so far. I especially enjoyed the side story in episode 8 that was mentioned above. Real sweet.

The only problem I’m having with the show is the age thing. I find it very hard to believe that Ikki is only 13. He just doesn’t seem that young. Anyway, looking forward to more of the story!

32

I loved this volume (Volume 2).

It was just freakin’ hilarious. There were a lot of funny comedy moments - overall thoughts:

Vol2. Spoiler warning

[details=spoiler]- Simca ending up in Ikki’s room and Ringo having to break the door down. :slight_smile:

  • Onigiri and the way Greg Ayres says Hit the Road Jack!
  • Simca getting into the bath scene. LOL
  • Shiraume and Ikki stoned out from the mushrooms. :slight_smile:
  • Oniguri and the Buccha love episode. Perfect portrayal of the comradery between boys that age.
  • I loved the scene and episode between Ikki and Ringo went out and her jealousy came out - boy-girl-love-hate emotions that are so prevalent in drama media
  • The final episode in Vol 2 is also a favorite of mine. Loved the sentimentality of it and how it showed a surprising back-story that works in this series’ context. Also Nancy Novotny as Tom-Tom, wonderful.[/details]

Really enjoyed the soundtrack in the context of these episodes. The ever-popular Chain theme with the various arrangements (in the scene between Ringo and Ikki with the laid-back string version). The same theme with the more upbeat arrangement for the action scenes with the orchestra hits hit all the right notes for me, but I’m also partial to the other arrangement of it with guitar and distorted synth lead. It’s not a complex or sophisticated composition, just powerful melodies that are extremely memorable. The other more background music tracks are fresh, hip and really capture the culture that Air Gear represents - perhaps even better than Jet Set Radio.

I can’t think of any electronica that blends funk, Jrock, pop, big beats, instrumentals anime album in the last few years that’s this fresh or this good. It’s a shame like most media, all one hears in the media (in this case anime) are just snippets of themes.

33

Okay, so up to ep. 10 and I have to say I’m doing a lot of eye rolling over this. More so than any other show that I’ve seen. I think the major saving point of this show is the Ikki/Ringu/Simca menage-a-trois. But that’s no surprise since it’s Chris Patton and Luci Christian voicing them.

34

With this, we hit the half-way mark.
And as of yet, I still do not see what all the hype is about with this series, though it does have its moments.

This volume I’ve started skipping the OP/ED.
I’ve given it them chance, for the past two volumes, but still, not liking them.
The OP in particular, as it’s disturbingly reminiscent of Linkin Park, who I don’t like at all.

DVD 3 (episodes 9-12)

[details=spoiler]I’m pretty sure I heard it before in the previous episodes, but I can’t place it.
However, I really did like the Techno/Trance song at the begining of the battle, which was sadly interupted by Ikki taking a dump, and again in the next episode.

I still don’t get why they like adding eyepatches a lot in anime, but in this case, the personality switch is an interesting twist to it.


Ooo! Ooo! A whip!
Now we’re talking!

And now they have their own team and starting their first official battle wagering their emblem.
After continuous failure, Ringo decides to costume up to help them out, and of course, wins that round. However, the next two rounds are won as well, by Kazu, who is startingto finally have faith in himself, and then followed by Ikki’s win over Natsumi using her womanly charms, winning the emblem, and the battle.[/details]

All in all, what’s happened thus far, I’d be really surprised if I ever watch this again.
It isn’t bad, infact, the dub is rather awesome and probably the one thing it has going for it, it just isn’t something that interests me.

35

Still find this series very funny. I like the music too. It works with the story.

[details=spoiler]Love the whole Jekyll & Hyde thing with Akito. I think in this case the eyepatch just symbolizes the personality switch. Just makes it easier to distinguish between Akito/Agito.

Glad Kazu finally came in to his own.

Poor Ringo. Nice of her to help out, but not too sure about the superhero costume she got stuck with. -lol- If she appears again, I wonder if she will have the same one or something better. Can’t wait to see!

And Ikki actually ignored a pretty girl!! I’m impressed. Looks like he is growing up a bit more and taking the AT thing more seriously. Good! Liked his rainbow too. A nice touch - chasing rainbows or making your own.[/details]

Can’t wait to see what happens next!

36

I’m behind due to today’s football games and football party-crashers here preventing me from watching the DVD, may have to watch this tomorrow morning and comment then.

Lady it’s interesting to hear you’re enjoying it. Since this series is definitely geared towards guys with a lot of guy-fanservice. I thought it might be a turn off to you.

Out of curiosity how many people watching in this group viewing have played the Jet Set Radio games?

37

I try to have an open mind. I will pretty much give anything a chance and if I like it, I will stick to it. I don’t really see this series as geared to the guys - well, maybe a few scenes - but the girls in this have pretty strong personalities. They can stand on their own and I like that as well. Maybe I wouldn’t have liked it as much if the girls were just decorations/eye candy. I don’t enjoy any type of wishy washy character like that.

And I love the voice acting as well. Good voice acting is always a plus in my book!

This series isn’t a turn off at all. The story itself is very good, even without all the “extras”. Those things just make the situations funnier!!

As for the games, no, I never played.
:slight_smile:

38

From your girl POV: Simca or Ringo? :wink:

39

[quote=dragoon]
Out of curiosity how many people watching in this group viewing have played the Jet Set Radio games?[/quote]
I have not.


Come to think of it, I’ve never even heard of them.
-runs off to Google-

40

It was a popular (and yes great) game on the Dreamcast, with a sequel later on for Xbox.

It presented a lot of the culturalisms found in this Anime series with the whole Japanese skater culture in a very cool, hip but fun way.