Title: Battle Programmer Shirase: Complete Collection on Blu-ray

Director: Hiroki Hayashi

Studio: AIC, GANSIS

U. S. Distributor: Maiden Japan, Section 23

U. S. Release Date: Aug. 6th, 2019

Format: Blu-ray / 125 Minutes / 5 Episodes

Genre: Sci Fi, Comedy, Techno Silliness

Age Rating: TV 14

Overall Personal Rating: B

Synopsis:

BPS: Battle Programmer Shirase contains episodes 1-5 of the anime directed by Hiroki Hayashi.

What is it that passes behind those dry, sorrowful eyes? Akira Shirase, the solitary programmer who has an unusual aptitude for problem solving: He is called a legendary hacker, and few know his true identity. What has he lost, what has he gained, and what has he seen in pockets of the vast internet? How now does he feel, on what is false and what is true and what exists in code? This is the man they call Battle Programmer Shirase – also known as BPS!

Commentary:

Sometimes I am baffled why any unfinished series ever get re-released and Battle Programer Shirase is certainly one of them. The fact that the original 15 short episodes were condensed into 5 standard episodes is puzzling enough, but the story is a great reminder of the rather silly humor that the early to mid 2000’s brought.

Battle Programmer Shirase is very silly and with the perverted setup at the beginning of every episode works for 5 episodes, but it would have become boring if the series was longer. I guess there are some s\good things that come from an unfinished series.

Overall Grade: B

I wanted to give Battle Programmer Shirase a much lower grade, although I just couldn’t. For everything it failed to give us it was still funny and silly. I found it very easy to watch and also appreciated the taste of Japanese culture at was tossed in.

I cannot be too sure if the series would have failed if it was completed or if it would have become a classic. I have a feeling that it would have lost its way and become another forgettable series from 2004. As it is now I can honestly say that it is a curiosity that almost delivers. The animation looks more like the late 1990’s and much of the plot feels dated. With all of that said I did enjoy it and will be happy to force friends to watch it from time to time.

If you want a taste of the early 2000’s that is not bashful about reminding us of how the neet generation in Japan really lived, then you should check out Battle Programmer Shirase.