Anime Unleashed Official Talkback - Week of 4/28/03 - Dual (SPOILERS!)

[Mynd Hed]

This week's schedule:

Monday, April 28
4:30 p.m. Anime Unleashed "Crest of the Stars" series begins with peaceful invasion of planet Martine by space-faring Abh race
Tuesday, April 29
12:00 a.m. Anime Unleashed "Dual" -- Kazuki is plagued by visions of giant robots that no one else can see
12:30 a.m. Anime Unleashed "Dual" -- Kazuki meets a pretty girl and then runs into a mad scientist
3:00 a.m. Anime Unleashed "Dual" -- Kazuki is plagued by visions of giant robots that no one else can see
3:30 a.m. Anime Unleashed "Dual" -- Kazuki meets a pretty girl and then runs into a mad scientist
4:30 p.m. Anime Unleashed "Crest of the Stars" -- Jinto worries about meeting the alien Abh race
Wednesday, April 30
12:00 a.m. Anime Unleashed "Dual" -- Kazuki faces dangers, but gets to fight them driving robots
12:30 a.m. Anime Unleashed "Dual" -- Kazuki fights dangers, but his allies are twice as strange
3:00 a.m. Anime Unleashed "Dual" -- Kazuki faces dangers, but gets to fight them driving robots
3:30 a.m. Anime Unleashed "Dual" -- Kazuki fights dangers, but his allies are twice as strange
4:30 p.m. Anime Unleashed "Crest of the Stars" -- Jinto's relationship with the Abh princess Lafiel grows deeper
Thursday, May 1
12:00 a.m. Anime Unleashed "Dual" -- Kazuki trains as a Core Robot Pilot
12:30 a.m. Anime Unleashed "Dual" -- Matchmaking mamas interfere with Kazuki's robot battles
3:00 a.m. Anime Unleashed "Dual" -- Kazuki trains as a Core Robot Pilot
3:30 a.m. Anime Unleashed "Dual" -- Matchmaking mamas interfere with Kazuki's robot battles
4:30 p.m. Anime Unleashed "Crest of the Stars" -- Jinto and Lafiel escape from a surprise attack
Friday, May 2
12:00 a.m. Anime Unleashed "Dual" -- Kazuki gets abducted in the middle of a robot battle
12:30 a.m. Anime Unleashed "Dual" -- Mitsuki falls in love with the captured Kazuki, even though he is her enemy
3:00 a.m. Anime Unleashed "Dual" -- Kazuki gets abducted in the middle of a robot battle
3:30 a.m. Anime Unleashed "Dual" -- Mitsuki falls in love with the captured Kazuki, even though he is her enemy
4:30 p.m. Anime Unleashed "Crest of the Stars" -- Battle against the Abh ship, the Gosroth, rages in space
11:00 p.m. Anime Unleashed "Armitage III: Poly Matrix" Humans on Mars declare war on robots masquerading as men
Saturday, May 3
12:00 a.m. Anime Unleashed (Continued) "Armitage III: Poly Matrix" Humans on Mars declare war on robots masquerading as men
2:00 a.m. Anime Unleashed "Armitage III: Poly Matrix" Humans on Mars declare war on robots masquerading as men

Well, lots of stuff happening this week. TechTV finally takes my advice (I'm sure the check's in the mail, guys, heh heh) and has more than one series going at once. We see the beginning of the long-promised 4:30 pm time slot for Anime Unleashed. We get a new series in Dual, and a new movie in Armitage III: Poly Matrix.

Speaking of which, although the title of the thread only lists Dual because of title length constraints, talkback on the reruns of Crest of the Stars and Armitage III: Poly Matrix are more than welcome on this thread as well. Talk away!

[Cyber E.]

Wow, so three animes this week? Cool! I haven't seen any of them (Started watching AU with Betterman) so this is cool, I just hope that Friday comes back to replay the episodes that aired Monday-Thursday as I know have to set two VCRs to tape both AU and ASA. @_@

Also, the schedule in this thread sometimes confuses me, is this correct?


Monday, April 28
4:30PM Crest of the Stars

Tuesday, April 29
12:00AM Dual
12:30AM Dual
3:00AM Dual
3:30AM Dual
4:30PM Crest of the Stars

Wednesday, April 30
12:00AM Dual
12:30AM Dual
3:00AM Dual
3:30AM Dual
4:30PM Crest of the Stars

Thursday, May 1
12:00AM Dual
12:30AM Dual
3:00AM Dual
3:30AM Dual
4:30PM Crest of the Stars

Friday, May 2
12:00AM Dual
12:30AM Dual
3:00AM Dual
3:30AM Dual
4:30PM Crest of the Stars
11:00PM Armitage III: Poly Matrix

Saturday, May 3
12:00AM (Continued) Armitage III: Poly Matrix
2:00AM Armitage III: Poly Matrix
-aJb

[Disco Pete]

Wow. Wow. Oh, and WOW. And the moral, folks, is: Don't visit weird scientists homes... no matter how hot their daughter is!. I cracked up when he met Kazuki and said "It's him! It's the chosen one, and he feels good!" But that's how I like my scientists; MAD.

I wonder why Kazuki can see both realities, and why he doesn't have an opposite in the alternate reality? And why did he start seeing this reality after jr. high? (one of his classmates mentioned that "he wasn't like this in jr. high") This will probably be addressed in a later episode, but I'm betting it has something to do with his ability to pilot the mech. Also, when in the alternate reality, can he see his own reality?

I'm very happy with the time change. Now it comes on at midnight in my time zone, and that's perfect. (I miss Trigun and Inuyasha, but I got them taping on another tv). Now I'll be able to see the whole series!

Oh, one last thing. Does anyone else think that's a cool opening song? Not "Tank" cool, but cool nonetheless. Or maybe it's just me.

Looking foward to Armitage III this Friday.

[raykremer]

I wonder why Kazuki can see both realities, and why he doesn't have an opposite in the alternate reality?
Whatever anomaly that caused him to be in one universe but not the other must have turned him into the "special one", allowing him to see the visions of the other universe.

Also, when in the alternate reality, can he see his own reality?
I would imagine so, but it oesn't have anything like giant robots that woul draw his attention.

Seems like a nifty show so far. It superficially resembles Evangelion in the way that Deep Space Nine resembles Babylon 5.

One thing I'm hoping gets clarified - if the Sanada girl from the normal universe has been in the robot universe for the past month, does that mean the her that dragged Kazuki to her dad's house in the normal universe was the her from the robot universe?

[BlackCat]

Disco Pete took the words right out of my mouth. Wow. This is definitely becoming my favorite of the ones they've shown so far. Great characters so far with Kazuki and the Sanada family. I love the mix with action and comedy, and the animation quality is great. I do have questions like why Kazuki could see images from the alternate reality and how he could control the robot. I hope it all gets explained soon.

I'm happy they're finally expanding the AU block with CotS at 4:30pm. Armitage III - Poly Matrix is a nice addition also. Once Dual! is done, what are they going to do with 12-1am time period and the Friday block? Is TechTV planning on acquiring more shows?

[Nobuyuki sama]

I'm glad to see people enjoying Dual! so much. Don't worry, everything gets explained eventually, although you may have to put some pieces of the puzzle together yourself. ;)

[Galaxia]

Dual! Is awesome - I just borrowed the first DVD from a friend and I'm enjoying it a lot :)

In fact, I like it so much, my friend and I wrote a parody of the theme song! (This is just a joke - I don't hate the show in any way, shape, or form :))

Oh no!
You may get (you may get)
Ready to sue!
You may get (you may get)
Ready to sue!

We like to bootleg
Popular shows like Tenchi and Evangelion
Not to mention others
Like El Hazard, my God!
It's like a smorgasbord

Maybe you don't think we've stolen much,
YOU'RE WRONG!
We have taken concepts good and plenty.
Please understand!
This wasn't planned!
Our cels were never drawn by hand...
We had them stolen!

DUAL! - We take characters from many places!
DUAL! - We plaguerize their clothes and faces, yeah.
DUAL! - Skip it all we took their animation.
It's okay, we can say, our artists were on vacation!

[Nobuyuki sama]

LOL!
*applause*

[D.Shaffer]

Popular shows like Tenchi
Not to mention others
Like El Hazard, my God!
I know you meant it in jest...but considering Tenchi and el Hazard were animated by the same group, I'd think it's fairly intentional. Heck, there's an OUTright Tenchi reference later on with the main character gaining an attack using 'Lighthawk Wings'

[D.Shaffer]

One thing I'm hoping gets clarified - if the Sanada girl from the normal universe has been in the robot universe for the past month, does that mean the her that dragged Kazuki to her dad's house in the normal universe was the her from the robot universe?
I love this series :) But yes, this DOES get clarified later. Both Mitsuki's are from 'our' universe. When Mitsuki travels between universes, she tends to show up a couple months before whats his name does'. Alt. Universe Mitsuki...well...You'll see who she is soon enough :)
HA HA HA! Enemies of the Rara army! Prepare for your immediate doom! HA HA HA!

[raykremer]

I was even more confused about Mitsuki, but I went ahead and read the spoiler. Yeah okay, I can live with that.
Parallel universe travel doesn't normally involve time travel as well, but what the hell.

Things continue to roll along. Fun stuff, really. It continues to resemble Evangelion in the way that MegaTokyo resembles Love Hina.

How do mechs stand on stilleto heels?

[Beat]

As the latest in a long line of EVA copies, Dual stands out by adding a light comedic tone and totally dumping the religious background.

[Zechs]

I was even more confused about Mitsuki, but I went ahead and read the spoiler. Yeah okay, I can live with that.
Parallel universe travel doesn't normally involve time travel as well, but what the hell.

Things continue to roll along. Fun stuff, really. It continues to resemble Evangelion in the way that MegaTokyo resembles Love Hina.

How do mechs stand on stilleto heels?
Good question I'm female and have yet to master stilleto heels. But then again I've tried and did not like it.

[Disco Pete]

I'm suprised no-one's mentioned the heels on unit 1 yet! I haven't seen too many mech series yet (some Gundam, Robotech, and Eva), but still, I don't think there's too many mechs out there with high heels!

I love Kazuki's pilot suit! Especially the, er... "Shock Absorbers". :p I woke up my mom when that scene came on.

Dr. (Prof?) Sanada is currently my favorite in the show. I got a thing for perverts.

[The Man in Black]

So when does Dual begin again from the start?

When does Polymatrix air?

ANd when will Betterman and SIlent Mobius Reair?

Thanx for your help (schedule is confusing)

[Chosen Raven]

So when does Dual begin again from the start?

When does Polymatrix air?

ANd when will Betterman and SIlent Mobius Reair?

Thanx for your help (schedule is confusing)

It looks like Dual won't be replayed for a while(They're not re-airing episodes on Friday anymore). You might have to wait till they go through the previous series' again.

Armitage III will air Friday (check Mynd Hed's post for the times, I don't know if they are Central of Eastern).

Betterman and Silent Mobius might re-air after Dual (and after Crest of the Stars in the 4:30 p.m. slot).

I'm really likeing Dual so far. It's got great animation(love those robot fights!), characters, comedy, and a pretty nifty plot. The opening song is stuck in my head now(not a bad thing, since I Like it).

Kazuki's voice actor is good and everything ,but I just keep thinking of Tai every time I here him.

Kazuki seems to have Tenchi Complex, and as every guy knows, Tenchi Complex is the best complex you could ask for!

[Mynd Hed]

All the show times given in the first posts in my Anime Unleashed talkback threads are always in Eastern time. I take them directly from TechTV's Anime Unleashed web site, www.techtv.com/animeunleashed, and you can always go there for the latest official news on schedules and showtimes.

[BlackCat]

The show is progressing nicely. Kazuki living with the Sanadas should be fun. It was a little odd to see Mitsuki get startled so easily. Kazuki's new pilot suit was...interesting. It's nice to see him get equal treatment with some "shock absorbers". :D I really like that white haired girl Kazuki saved and can't wait to see more of her.

One thing I'm a little bothered with are Mitsuki's and Kazuki's voices. They aren't bad, but I just imagine them with different voices. Kazuki's voice is a little too high and Mitsuki's doesn't really fit her as well as it could. Other than that, I love it. I'm just a little mad at how many time cuts there are. I always knew they were doing it, but I didn't know there were so many. I just hope they aren't going to be as numerous as there were in episode two (http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/columns/edit-list.php?id=163).

[Disco Pete]

Can't get enough of those mech designs, I mean, they look like eva knock-offs, but I could never see an Evangelion with heels! Ok, maybe I'm making too much of a deal about this.... How about that theme song, huh?

It's nice to have a couple episodes to set up the home environment. I imagine we'll see that rivalry between Mitsuki and the white-haired girl (I have trouble memorizing names, so it'll be a while) will show up from time to time.

Kazuki seems to have Tenchi Complex, and as every guy knows, Tenchi Complex is the best complex you could ask for!
Looks like he's got a lethal case; if he so much as looks at any of the girls, Mitsuki will slap him silly. But what a way to go! :D

Cultural References Time: Does anyone know if matchmakers and marriage interviews are that common in Japan? I think I heard that it's pretty common in many Asian cultures.

[Nobuyuki sama]

I was even more confused about Mitsuki, but I went ahead and read the spoiler. Yeah okay, I can live with that.
Parallel universe travel doesn't normally involve time travel as well, but what the hell.
That Mitsuki spoiler was confusing; I read it wrong the first two times I went through it. :p
But as far as your spoiler, raykremer- that's explained later on, too. ;)

And I'm not going to post anything that would need spoiler boxes. Keep watching and it should all make sense at the end.

[raykremer]

Browsing the internet, most people seem to compare Dual to Eva, Tenchi, and El Hazard. We're seeing the Tenchi-esque bits now.

All that trouble caused by Mitsuki's interference. The question is, is she just that much of a prude, or is she trying to save Kazuki for herself?

The deja vu moments are humorous.

[Beat]

There's a big difference in how serious the villians can be taken. Dual has a fat bald idiot dictator, while EVA's main villian could be considered anyone from Shinji's dad to God Himself.

That being said, I like Dual.

[BlackCat]

Yayoi moves in! :)

It looks like we're getting a full house already. It's a little surprising to see how jealous Mitsuki is. The stuff with D was great and it was nice to see her emotions developing when she was looking for Mitsuki's diary. The next scene we see of Yayoi is her changing. :D I actually was surprised to see her move in and then become both Kazuki's school teacher and battle instuctor. The rivalry between her and Mitsuki is really heating up with Yayoi's special treatment of Kazuki. It looks like he does care, since he deliberately went out to stop the marriage interview.

This was a great look at the characters, but it will be nice to see more action with the upcoming battle with the new mech.

[Galaxia]

Dr. (Prof?) Sanada is currently my favorite in the show. I got a thing for perverts.

^^; Me too - he's hillarious! :D

It's a shame that TechTV isn't showing the ending (then again, I wasn't surprised when they cut it) - the ending is really cute.

[FutureMan]

Dual is quickly becoming my favorite show of the AnimeUnleashed block :D! This show has it all: comedy, romance, action, suspense, drama.. and, did I mention comedy? And yeah, I can really see alot of the comparisons in this show between EVA and Tenchi that alot of you have already drawn up.

BTW, I was wondering just how many episodes does this series have left?

[EroSennin]

Dual is quickly becoming my favorite show of the AnimeUnleashed block :D! This show has it all: comedy, romance, action, suspense, drama.. and, did I mention comedy? And yeah, I can really see alot of the comparisons in this show between EVA and Tenchi that alot of you have already drawn up.

BTW, I was wondering just how many episodes does this series have left?

Id have to agree.This is becoming one of my favorite shows. Bad part is only 6 more episodes left.

[Beat]

I just realized who Mitzuki reminds me of. An evil teen cross between Ayeka and Martha Stewart.

[BlackCat]

I didn't see that one coming. The Ra Ra chick being that world's Mitsuki came out of nowhere. We get a look at the war from the other perspective and add yet another one to the love triangle. It's going to be very interesting to see where it goes from here, now that Kazuki has gotten to know Ra Ra better. It's just too bad that the show is so short with only six episodes left. :(

[Cyber E.]

I am only going to review Dual this week, since I haven't anything to really say about CotS and I don't feel like reviewing Armitage III: P.M.

Dual - Life Sympathy
Wow, this has got to be the greatest anime on Anime Unleashed as of yet. This thing beats out Silent Mobius by a mile. The storyline is pure genius and something that I've never heard of before, double universes?! HOW SWEET IS THAT?! The artwork is really breathe-taking and it flows so well. The dialogue is just great and every voice I hear really puts it into the character. Although, is it just me or do some of the things of the show resemable Neon Genesis Evangelion? A+

Dual - My Home
Another excellent episode. After we learn some more about this another universe they start to create and mold a plot which from what we see could have some great outcomes. I got alittle confused as which girl was which but I gave up trying to figure out after a few minutes. Just try to enjoy the show I always say. The only problem yet is I haven't really heard any good music come out of the series except for the great Opening Theme. Ah well, can't have everything. A

Dual - Illegal Guy
We start to learn more and more about the series as the episodes continue. Some new characters are finally introduced and the plot is really starting to move. I must say I am really falling inlove with this series. It packs a great bunch and keeps things moving. A+

Dual - No Disguise
I found this episode to have more comedic value than action itself and was a nice change from Romance/Comedy/Action genre. It gave out alot of funny stuff and I found myself laughing through the whole thing. A+

Dual - Campus Life
This was a very touching episode. It really had some heart-filled moments while maintaining a comediac point of view. D is a very creative character while having no "person" to herself at all. A few relationships build up and it and in the end it's just great. A+

Dual - Intrigue
I didn't really enjoy this episode as I did the other ones. I didn't really find the plot all that good and the only good scenes where was Mitsuki was trying to mess things up. That was quite enjoyable. The only good thing is seeing all these women attracted to Kazuki, it has a very Tenchi-like premise.

Dual - Hard Case
This has got to be one of the best episodes so far, it took a very different turn then the previous episodes and focused alot on the battle instead of anything else. You could feel for Mitsuki trying to go out and help Kazuki. Woner what will happen in the next episode. A+

Dual - Mitsuki
This had some very surprising revolutions. I am glad to see another one-sided episode which focused more on the romance then any of the other types. The romance between the other worlds Mitsuki and Kazuki is starting to heat up and the outcome will surely be good. The ending didn't really give any closure and just seem to end. B

-aJb

[FutureMan]

Id have to agree.This is becoming one of my favorite shows. Bad part is only 6 more episodes left.

What? Only 6 more episodes left :confused:!?! That sucks. I've only been able to watch everyother episode of Dual, since Trigun is on during the first half.*sulks* :(

[Cyber E.]

Just so you know, whatever episodes that air from 12-1AM also air again at 3-4AM that same night.

-aJb

[Chosen Raven]

Just so you know, whatever episodes that air from 12-1AM also air again at 3-4AM that same night.

-aJb

I love that about Tech TV's schedule. I just pop in a tape in my VCR for Trigun, then switch the channel and set the VCR for Dual(no way I'm staying up that late).


What? Only 6 more episodes left !?! That sucks. I've only been able to watch everyother episode of Dual, since Trigun is on during the first half.*sulks*

Yeah, that does suck. Some animes are so entertaining that you wish they had the length of DBZ. Ah well, no anime's perfect. It all ends next week :(.

I don't suppose anybody has news on plans for a sequal?

[The Man in Black]

Is Armitage III: Polymatrix different from Armitage: Dual matrix?

[gohan11]

Is Armitage III: Polymatrix different from Armitage: Dual matrix?

Armitage III: Polymatrix is the first movie while Armitage: Dual matrix is the second.

[FutureMan]

Wow! This really pushed the boundaries of editing standards on TechTV.. infact any basic cable network! Armitage III was more censored when it was aired on the SciFi network awhile back. The only word that I noticed censored was Sh**(then why was it left in Lain? :confused: ). It doesn't get much more uncensored(on basic cable) than this folks! :p :D

[livingfruitvirus]

Wow! This really pushed the boundaries of editing standards on TechTV.. infact any basic cable network! Armitage III was more censored when it was aired on the SciFi network awhile back. The only word that I noticed censored was Sh**(then why was it left in Lain? :confused: ). It doesn't get much more uncensored(on basic cable) than this folks! :p :D

i was gonna say: how'd they get away with showing titties?

[EightOh]

The only word that I noticed censored was Sh**(then why was it left in Lain? :confused: ). Actually, I even heard bull"feces" tossed around at least once, and it was said loudly and proudly.

The editing standards really confused me. They would say "s-word" sometimes, and others they take it out. Then they up and show the breasteseses of the singer(Dead Robot Autopsy Girls Gone Wild!), making it even more baffling. Really strange.

[The Man in Black]

I liked Armitage's additude and VA better in this movie then the second. and, are there only two Armitage Movies? and I assuming it's called Armitage III cause she's a third, right?

[FutureMan]

Actually, I even heard bull"feces" tossed around at least once, and it was said loudly and proudly.

The editing standards really confused me. They would say "s-word" sometimes, and others they take it out. Then they up and show the breasteseses of the singer(Dead Robot Autopsy Girls Gone Wild!), making it even more baffling. Really strange.

Yeah. How weird. But still, I ain't complaining. :p

[Beat]

Actually, I even heard bull"feces" tossed around at least once, and it was said loudly and proudly.

The editing standards really confused me. They would say "s-word" sometimes, and others they take it out. Then they up and show the breasteseses of the singer(Dead Robot Autopsy Girls Gone Wild!), making it even more baffling. Really strange.

I'm actually going to go out of my way and chalk this up to an audio screwup. You air it once, you air it whenever you feel like it.

Naked Armitage, naked dead chick, tons of action, and a pretty damn good story, what's not to like? Besides the commericals...

[EightOh]

Naked Armitage, naked dead chick, tons of action, and a pretty damn good story, what's not to like? Besides the commericals...The story seemed a bit jumpy at times. Of course, that could have been due to the godawful commercial breaks that kept it from developing any real flow... I felt like I was watching a 2-hour block of commercials with short movie breaks every now and then. Still, it was pretty solid.

[raykremer]

Wow. The plot really thickens. The RaRa Mitsuki is a lot more laid back than the other one. Cuter hair too.

Dual is 13 episodes with a one episode OVA, so 14 in all.

[Beat]

The story seemed a bit jumpy at times. Of course, that could have been due to the godawful commercial breaks that kept it from developing any real flow... I felt like I was watching a 2-hour block of commercials with short movie breaks every now and then. Still, it was pretty solid.

The brilliance of fast-forward ,and recording the movie the night before. Thanks to that, I'm able to keep up with the flow, and actually care more deeply.

[Chosen Raven]

Uh....shouldn't there be a Dual week 2 thread by now? Or am I wrong on this?