Search - The Big O: Anime Legends Complete Collection on DVD

A Good anime

J. Profrock | London | 01/26/2008

(2 out of 5 stars)

"the anime itself is excellent. Big O will always be one of my favorites but my one complaint with this is the packaging when i bought it i assumed with the name The Big O: Anime Legends Complete Collection that it would well be...the complete collection all the episodes just not the first season. If it had been named The Big O: Anime Legends Complete Collection vol 1 then i could have assumed there would be a second vol but with out that i just assumed that it would be the entire series and ended up buying vol 2 a week later after sadly realizing i was wrong
"

It's showtime!

E. A Solinas | MD USA | 12/07/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Imagine a crumbling domed Gotham City where everyone has amnesia, and Batman fights evildoers using a giant black mecha.

That's a fairly basic description of "The Big O," a strange and action-packed anime with an art deco style, a noir atmosphere and lots of giant robots and strange conspiracies. This is no simplistic action show -- there's a deep central mystery that each episode revolves around, and some deeper meditations on the nature of memory.

Negotiator Roger Smith is hired to get the kidnapped daughter of a client back... only to discover that "Dorothy" is an android, who asks him to protect her. When he starts investigating, Roger learns of her "sister" -- vast mecha "Dorothy 1" -- who can only be stopped by his own mecha, the Megadeus called "Big O." But when Dorothy vanishes during the attack, Roger must find her before a gang of thieves do.

With the help of Dorothy and his faithful butler Norman (and occasionally hardened cop Dastun), Roger uses Big O to deal with a series of increasingly bizarre mysteries. Among his problems: a giant electric eel, a skeletal mecha controlled by the psycho ex-reporter "Schwarzwald," a billionaire's missing son, a piano-playing android, a "sea titan" in a flooded city, a mysterious cat with horrifying origins, a Heaven's Day attack, and a mysterious woman haunting Dastun's dreams.

Things take a darker turn in the last few episodes, especially since Paradigm City's strange past becomes the most important part. Roger is hired to give a severance check to Schwarzwald, but becomes enmeshed in his plans for Paradigm City -- and witnesses the unveiling of another Megadeus, Big Duo.

And when a series of murders are committed by a red-cloaked figure -- who leaves Big O's motto "Cast In The Name of God, Ye Not Guilty" at each crime -- Roger starts to suspect that Dorothy may be involved. And even more confusing, Roger is suffering flashbacks of whatever happened forty years ago... which may be even more ghastly than anyone suspects.

"The Big O" is one of those series that drips with lots of influences -- it hasa lovely classic noir feeling, more than a hint of "Batman," and some tinges of Isaac Asimov (R. Dorothy?). And even the animation has a style reminiscent of art deco, with lots of long clean lines and dark shapes -- even the vast Megadeuses and other mecha have them.

But the real beauty of "The Big O" is in the storytelling: the individual plots are reminiscent of a noir detective's adventures, but with a weird sci-fi twist -- a mad journalist in a haunted subway, a mad geneticist, and giant robots that fly and swim. It's also graced with some explosive slam-bang action, intriguing hi-tech gadgets, and lots of wry humour (Dorothy sets off an elevator's weight alarm) and dialogue ("Did you say 'mama'? As in your mother?").

And running under each episode is the haunting question of what happened to Paradigm forty years ago. The plots drop hints about floating memories and something terrible that turned Paradigm City into a series of half-ruined boroughs. This is especially true in the final episode, which briefly shows the horrifying past.

Dashing playboy Roger Smith is a pretty likable hero -- charismatic, charming, a bit lacking in chivalry at times, but ultimately quite heroic and kind. Dorothy's emotionless attitude makes a nice counterpoint, but she shows some signs of becoming more human ("Even I feel like playing the blues sometimes"). And for the true noir feel, there's a mysterious femme fatale named Angel who keeps getting Roger into trouble, and the likably efficient butler/cook/technician Norman.

While it appears to be just another mecha anime on the surface, "The Big O" is actually a clever sci-fi/noir series with underlying conspiracies and haunting mysteries."

Big O

Edward Zeta | 05/12/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The main character of this series, Roger Smith, is much like Batman. He might not have a costume or cape but he has a giant robot mega-deuce called Big O. He starts out as a negotiator but gets pulled into the deeper plot of uncovering memories that were suddenly lost by everyone in the isolated Paradigm City forty years ago. Would make a great addition to any anime collection."

Short and simple review

Stanley C. Sargent | San Francisco, CA | 01/12/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This was a great series. The DVD is great but you should know it has a few shortcomings. The theme music as aired on Cartoon Network is great; the theme music on this particular DVD collection is totally different as it is a rather irritating rock tune that isn't very good (all episodes have this bad opening music). Finding the extas, for what they are worth, is difficult. When the opening menu comes up, you have to use the down arrow to see the extras and audio choices. The commentary by the writer, director and a couple cast members is a typed script you have to read and is spread across the four discs. The commentary is not very enlightening, especially when they reference particular episodes of other (much older, all the way back to "Ultraman") Japanese TV shows. If you don't know those shows, these references go right over your head. The trailers are for other anime programs, not this one. Apart from these "gripes" I've just stated, I love this DVD set. As long as you don't miss the theme music too much and have low expectations for the extras, you'll love this set too -- and you'll want the second season complete. Looks like there will be no third season, so there don't expect the many, many loose ends to be tied up by the end of season two as they aren't."