Title: Armored Trooper VOTOMS OVA Collection 1
Director: Ryōsuke Takahashi
Studio: Nippon Sunrise (Sunrise)
U. S. Distributor: Maiden Japan, Section 23
U. S. Release Date: May 14th, 2019
Format: Blu-ray (Standard Definition) / 8 OVA / 595 Minutes
Genre: Sci Fi, Mecha, Space Opera
Age Rating: TV MA
Overall Personal Rating: B-
Synopsis:
They may be encased in suits of powered armor, but the soldiers who wear a VOTOMS unit in battle are simply serving the purpose that infantry has always served in war: to take ground and hold it, no matter what the cost. Combine that mission with the explosive fuel mixture and thin metal of their powersuits, and their chances of survival are decreased rather than enhanced, and only a handful will live to fight again. But of that elite group of survivors, a few will become legends.
Return to the universe of the most realistic mecha warfare ever animated as the beachhead established with the epic 52-episode Armored Trooper VOTOMS widens into a full scale invasion of spectacular and previously unreleased original video animations in Armored Trooper VOTOMS Collection 1!
Commentary:
I am becoming very weary of all the 1980’s Mecha anime that are being rereleased. I understand the ease of reproduction and play to nostalgia along with the quick ability to make money. I also understand that there is a push to revitalize the toy sales from these series. If you remind enough people of what they saw when they were young you might be able to sell them some collectable items.
As for the series, it is a rather predictable story that gives you plenty of melodrama and action along with a taste of how far the Japanese pushed these story lines back in the 1980’s. I can’t say that I found it easy to watch, but I did find it entertaining along with somewhat relaxing because of the total non-committal posture I took while watching it.
Overall Grade: B-
In may ways the series should be rated much lower. I opted to try and place myself in a 1980’s frame of mind and it gave me reason to give it a B-. The writing was fair enough to bring it over the finish line. The production quality was rather interesting if you look at it with the understanding that technology was still a non-starter and the men and women who made this series worked in sweatshops and almost never got to sleep in their own beds even if sleep was something they had time for.
I did find the look into the past rather refreshing which gives me even more reason to be critical of some of the poor quality anime that is being made now.
The main reason I gave Armored Trooper VOTOMS OVA Collection 1 is due to the overall melodramatic quality of the story. It became rather tedious from time to time and in the end I can honestly say that it doesn’t make me look forward to collection 2.
If you are a serious fan of old Mecha and looking for some additional material from the Armored Trooper VOTOMS series then I can tell you that you will need this in your collection.
