Title:
The Irresponsible Captain Tylor: The OVA Collection |
Format:
Bilingual DVD
10 Episodes
360 Minutes |
Production:
Kadokawa Shoten
Tylor Project
Bigwest
King Record
VAP
Right Stuf |
Comments:
One of the most rewarding series I've ever seen. |
Overall Rating:
 84% |
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Animefringe Reviews:
The Irresponsible Captain Tylor: The OVA Collection
By Adam "OMEGA" Arnold
"No matter how lucky you may be, and no matter who you may be. Eventually Tylor's luck has to run out, right?" - Lt. Kim
The Holy Raalgon Empire and the United Planets Space Force have enjoyed an uneasy time of peace ever since the climatic showdown near the end of The Irresponsible Captain Tylor TV Series. During this time of peace, the crew of the Sayokaze have been reassigned to ground duty. Some of the crew, like the Marines, are in training to get their licenses to use the latest equipment, Yuriko Starr now works a prestigious Intelligence Division job, and Tylor and Mr. Yamamoto are stuck in the Records Division. Even so, the crew gets together every-so-often to spend some quality time together drinking and gossiping.
Everything seems to be pretty much normal until Mr. Yamamoto becomes the captain of his own ship. Finally it's his time to shine, but it's short-lived when his ship and the supply ship he's guarding are mysteriously attacked by a magnetic meteor cluster, a red light, and a strange noise. It seems the time for peace is at an end, but something just isn't right about these recent events.
By the very nature of the TV Series, it would be expected that the OVA series would be more of the same episodic light-hearted space opera that came before, but that just isn't the case. The series does have it's share of light-hearted moments, but they are merely to keep the show from becoming too bogged down in the paranoid events taking place on both sides of the war.
The first DVD features the two part An Exceptional Episode: Tylor's War which ties up many of the loose ends from the TV Series and sets the next phase of the series in motion. Tylor is given a secret mission from Admiral Mifune that only Tylor can complete. The episodes are mainly there as a retrospective to reintroduce the key players and to show the growing distrust in Tylor's luck that everyone, even Tylor's own crew, now has.
The second DVD entitled "The Sidestory Collection" features six episodes that show how many of the characters have been dealing with the downtime. The first episode is all about Azalyn and the troubles of being the leader of an empire while the second episode makes Kojiro the star as he goes up against a hotshot pilot in an episode that is a bit of a homage to Macross Plus. The next episode features the Marines as they take on a rouge Newtype battle suit and the fourth offers a bit of Christmas cheer as the show finally shows what Tylor's been up to all this time (ie: nothing much). The other two episodes make up a two-parter entitled "If Only the Skies Would Clear" in which Mr. Yamamoto is confined to his quarters after a his ship and cargo were devastated on a routine mission to the frontier and Yuriko is abducted by Raalgon spies in order to get her to supply disinformation concerning an investigation she is conducting.
The final two episodes, "From Here to Eternity," are included in their entirety on the final DVD and take the scattered events of the previous six episodes and tie them all together into one coherent story that paints a broader picture of just what has been going on. I won't spoil anything else from here on out.
Keep in mind that this show isn't for anyone that hasn't been fully immersed in the TV series, because the characters, rivalries, and events will all just seem foreign without the knowledge of the events that came before. Now, it is possible to watch a few of the OVA episodes, but the viewer will probably never pick up Tylor again. So, the best course of action is to pick up the TV Series and watch it all the way through before even thinking about seeing how everything turns out. The experience will be all the more rewarding then.
It's hard to talk about Tylor and not mention how enjoyable the show is subbed. There is a lot of humor that can be derived just from sitting and reading subtitles while the original voices go at it. The same experience can be had from the dub as well, because much of the cast will most assuredly be recognizable to even the most casual fan of Pokemon. After finally watching all of Tylor dubbed, I can safely say they complement the originals quite nicely and do help some of the humor to come out more easily. Yet, one of my biggest gripes with the dub of the TV series was not the voices, but the fact that the theme songs were dubbed. Thankfully, the songs of the OVA series (with the exception of the crew singing at the end of part two of Tylor's War) are all left in Japanese. Still, if you want to enjoy the series subbed, then I'm happy to report that all three DVDs have the sub as the default option when you start up the disc.
All three DVDs feature some rather unique music videos that feature fan service-based adventures of a particular character set to an image song. The cool thing is the songs are done in a different director's style. One music video may have a painting feel while another may be right out of a samurai flick. It's pretty cool to spend some time watching and listening to all of these. Oh, the third DVD also features a art gallery that is set to music as well.
After all is said and done, the viewer is left with a sense of longing for more. There just isn't anything left to be seen, and unless you can read Japanese, then your only alternative for learning what happens next lies in the mind-numbingly detailed linear notes included on the DVDs. The linear notes can be found in the scene selection menu and they read much like those of the TV Series making them into a guide for understanding the episodes more, and believe me, that's a welcome addition. The OVA series can be very confusing due to the non-linear storytelling that ends up all tying back together in the final two episodes. Still, regardless of the different art style and the more character-based approach to storytelling, the OVA series is a rewarding experience for anyone who has taken that long journey into the Tylor universe.
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