Search - Assemble: Insert on DVD

Actually 3 and a Half Stars - Very Funny!

11/08/2002

(3 out of 5 stars)

"I have to disagree with the only other reviewer (at the time of this writing.) This is a really fun anime! And I actually was laughing out loud while watching it! The other reviewer said something to the effect of Americans not understanding the pop idol phenomenon. Hey, didn't that rock-pop phenomenon actually start in America? It has mutated in Japan, surely, in that country's own way, but not to the point where this simple, fun, silly parody would go over American's heads. And no, trust me, I watched it with a friend who hadn't seen much anime before and we were both laughing out loud at some points. It's not brilliant, mind you, but it's good light fun for some laughs. Enjoy!"

A parody on pop idols, sentai shows with its protagonist as

Dennis A. Amith (kndy) | California | 08/08/2008

(3 out of 5 stars)

"My first time watching "assemble insert" was back in the early 90's as it was one of those OAV's that people owned the Japanese LD's of and would either show it at anime club meetings in straight Japanese or fansubbed.

I watched it in straight Japanese and to tell you the truth, I really didn't know what was going on at the time but what I was able to pick up was that the main character Maron was just an unlikely hero that had super strength but probably not at all headsmart.

Also, found it weird that the anime would have these live commercials for a vitamin energy drink featuring two women and really, I had no idea what was going on.

Flash forward nearly 15 years later and I happen to spot this DVD for cheap and figured that I could probably have a better understanding of the two OAV episodes that I watched a long time ago.

The main story focuses on a special task force led by Chief Hattori since the criminal organization known as "demon seed" are wreaking havoc around the city and the police have been unable to stop them.

With so much destruction caused by "Demon Seed" and citizens blaming the police, Hattori goes on a search to find the face of the new task force and hopefully give them a positive image towards the public.

In comes Maron Namikaze. Not that smart but she's cute, sweet and has the ability to crush metal with her bare hands. Needless to say that's she's hired!

Unfortunately, because Maron's strength, although she's more than capable of beating "Demon Seed", the destruction in the city continues to mount as she causes destruction wherever she goes and thus giving Chief Hattori and the police a headache.

So, the two OAV's are probably a few chapters from the 1985 manga series by Yuuki Masami featuring the introduction of Maron and her taking on "Demon Seed" and obviously a parody anime series on super-heroe anime, sentai shows, pop idols and with only two episodes, you would imagine that this type of storyline would probably be best told if it was a TV series.

Unfortunately, "assemble insert" really never caught on as Yuuki Masami's "Mobile Police Patlabor" became a bonafide hit and "assemble insert" became a short OAV series that really didn't amount to much animation wise.

If there was one positive, it was the music featured in the anime series by Maron voice actress Kasahara Hiroko. Not only was she able to do Maron concert CD's for "Assemble Insert" and even perform two concerts live in Tokyo and Osaka. But if anything, it helped jumpstart her career as a voice actress where she would do countless anime and video games. But also Japanese dubs for Hollywood films such as Mena Suvari's character in "American Beauty".

Also, the anime would feature popular voice actress Kawamura Maria who plays Maron's pop rival Kagiri.

As for staff, animation director Sugiyama Toyomi would be part of another anime that would have almost a similar theme to "assemble insert" which was "MOLDIVER" while director Chibuki Ayumi will be known for his work on "Monster Rancher" but the key animator for "Windaria".

"assemble insert" is an older anime that one would pick up for its price, one is nostalgic of the manga series or saw the original OAV series and then those who are fan of Yuuki Masato's or even Kasahara Hiroko's work.

Unfortunately, this two-episode OAV series starts and ends and you just come off feeling of "that's it?".

And you just move on and anime series like this, especially since there is no manga support in the US and there have not been anything but CD releases in Japan, unfortunately these type of series fall through the cracks.

If anything, the series would serve as a precursor to Nozomi Entertainment (The Right Stuf International) emergence into the anime industry and would later come to release "His and Her Circumstance" which in my opinion was one of the well-produced DVD's for anime fans interested in the Japanese or English dub.

But all in all, I paid less than $5 for it and it was enjoyable to finally understand the series nearly 15 years since I watched it at an anime club meeting but I doubt it's an OAV series that I would want to watch again."

Adorable Classic

Jessica The Cat Bot | California | 03/05/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"There's robots, explosions, and enough ridiculous pranks to keep you snickering through the whole thing, and if anything, the English dub of this amplifies the original humor by 10 (no worries, though, the Japanese audio and English subtitles are readily available on the DVD.)
The animation is not up to par with today's "standards", but this is simply because this OVA was made over 18 years ago.
If you love titles such as Dr. Slump and All Purpose Cultural Cat Girl Nuku Nuku, there's a good chance you'll love this one as well."