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It took us a while–okay, it took 17 years since the last one–but we finally get around to completing our coverage of the 1980s Yoshikazu Yasuhiko post-Gundam film trilogy as Gerald reviews 1986’s Neo Heroic Fantasia Arion, which most of us just knew as “Arion.”
Introduction (0:00 – 31:43)
Everybody catches up on what they’ve been up to, what anime they’ve been watching, or in the case of what anime they haven’t been watching, what videogames they’ve been playing and/or what movies they’ve been watching. This one gets a lot more “off topic” than usual, and so in keeping with our last episode’s call for show format feedback we ask once again: do these segments work better as part of a single episode, or would you prefer they be standalone? We know a lot of our existing listeners who write back will be inclined to say “keep things as they are” since well, you’re already an existing listener. But if you find yourself needing to listen to the episode in multiple sessions, then perhaps that’s a sign we need to change things up. Remember to back us on Patreon, for in a few short days there will be a Patreon-exclusive “the AWO gang watches the trailers for all of the new anime coming out in the new season” event that is likely to have some of us wishing for somebody, ANYBODY, to slash the tires on Truck-kun once and for all.
Promo: Right Stuf Anime (31:43 – 34:49)
This week, Udon Entertainment titles are on sale, so if you’re looking to get some hardcover artbooks or prestige manga now is the time! All volumes of The Rose of Versailles are currently out of stock, but if you place your order at the sale price they will honor the sale price and ship your copies out once additional copies arrive (your credit card isn’t charged until they ship the order). It’s pretty easy to hit the $50 free economy shipping mark when you’re buying hardcover books.
Review: Arion aka Neo Heroic Fantasia Arion (34:49 – 1:17:27)
Gerald reviews this 1986 film from Yoshikazu Yasuhiko to complete the trifecta of Crusher Joe, Arion, and The Venus Wars which were previously reviewed long, long ago (there was also the television series Giant Gorg). To think that once upon a time this stuff was hard to find and now it’s all out on Blu-Ray in the US! Speaking of which, you can totally buy Arion on Blu-Ray courtesy of this affiliate link. The film itself has many of the same strengths and weaknesses of YAS’s other output from this era: gorgeous visuals, amazing soundtrack, breakneck pace that comes at the expense of characterization/narrative depth, and so on. But hey, perhaps that’s befitting an anime equivalent of Clash of the Titans! Or perhaps it’s an anime equivalent to God of War, though it’s not as gory as God of War and features more child nudity–look, it’s an anime epic film take about the gods of ancient Greece, okay?! This stuff comes with the territory. Here’s the interview with YAS that Daryl was reading from where he mentions having some sort of issue with the producers of the film (who also published Animage).
He should be becoming the leader b is satisfied with being meve soldier
Observant listeners will note that Daryl previously reviewed Arion for Otaku USA Magazine around when the Blu-Ray first came out, and so he kinda just recycled a lot of his same lines from that.
Speaking as someone who grew up with Saint Seiya, I’ve always been interested in seeing how Japanese anime reinterprets and adapts Greek mythology.
After finally watching Arion, I found it quite appealing in the end.
Yes, the film has a very unique take on various gods and legendary figures, but in some ways this movie was arguably able to reflect more of the themes and spirit of the Greek myths than, well, any of Masami Kurumada’s works.
Which includes but isn’t limited to all of the various problematic aspects briefly mentioned. Saint Seiya, as much as I will forever cherish its best moments and its unforgettable soundtrack, often treated the Greek mythology as merely window dressing and didn’t really deal with anything too controversial (outside of a lot of the Bronze Saints being technically half-brothers, I guess?).
Here, I felt there was a creative intention by YAS to actually interact and play around in that world in a more comprehensive manner. The result was certainly quite dense, which in my experience provided a sense of going on a grand adventure. It might be difficult to summarize yet I was never bored. Even when Arion does fall into the JRPG-style formula of presenting about three different characters who could ostensibly be considered as the “final boss” including one that comes out of nowhere…I felt it was a worthwhile purchase.
I prefer keeping the “what you all have been watching” section with the review itself. It keeps rss feed cleaner, and I just prefer longer episodes in podcasts that I like.
As a long-time listener, I’m quite accustomed to the format and see no need to change it. Since most people listen to podcasts on their phones now, surely they can just instantly skip ahead using the visible timeline if they want to get to a particular segment? Or have people become so lazy they can’t be stuffed doing even that?
I still listen to podcasts on an actual iPod. In fact, I still have the very same iPod I bought in January 2006 in order to listen to AWO while at work.
For anyone who wants a better written anime about ancient Greece, look no further than Reign the Conqueror. Actually adult besides violence and occasional nudity (but those two are required). Although most of the animation was done by Koreans, so some purists will not accept. [Most of the animation for American and Japanese productions alike from the era that Alexander Senki came out was done by Koreans. These days, Korea is gradually becoming “too expensive” as befell Japan before it. –Daryl]