Search - Zone of the Enders (ZOE) - Dolores, i - Countdown to Destiny (Vol. 1) on DVD

Good but beware ...

Anthony Colon | ASTORIA, NEW YORK USA | 11/23/2002

(3 out of 5 stars)

"When I first saw Zone of Enders - Idolo I was imediately impressed with the quality of the picture, story, sound and continuity (see my review for ZOE - Idolo). This was the reason I pre-ordered Dolores, i. I must say, however that this continuation really turned me off. Set years after the first OAV and video game the series seems to take a turn in the wrong direction. It seemed to lose something. Suddenly the frame (or mech) is not of the same caliber as the Idolo in the first OAV. It appears comical along with the main character Links. The music was changed and does not have the same emotion as Idolo did.If you are into the mech genre of anime, you may not be too disapointed. For those who are expecting a repeat performance of Idolo ... Beware."

A bold and ultimately successful leap from Idolo

Sexual Chocolate | Oakland, CA United States | 07/16/2003

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Warning, this is NOT just a longer version of ZoE: Idolo. The ethos and pathos are totally different. Idolo was a beautiful tragedy about a soldier fighting for the freedom of Mars and ultimately his tremendous sacrifice. Dolores is a more heart-warming story and an often hilarious adventure about James Links, a scoundrelous father trying to put together his family again after basically wasting his life away being an over-the-hill Han Solo. The plot unfolds at a wonderful pace, from Jame's coincidental discovery of the Dolores orbital frame, to his guffaw-inducing attempts to regain the respect of his children, to the chivalrous spirit and purity of heart with which James approaches the difficult situations that arise. The characters are very well developed and behave realistically with the treachery, hurt, and the occasional dash of reckless heroism unique to our nature. My favorite character in Dolores is James. He's such a riot and his love for his children is palpable. You rarely see a good presentation of Father-Son-Daughter emotional angst in anime. It's usually just Mother-Son. Dolores is awesome. Normally I would not use the word "adorable" to describe a 40-ton killing machine. But her girlish mannerisms and awkward sentience makes her way more appealing than the stereotypical bishoujo anime girl. She also kicks a lot of mecha butt in the series although her true powers are still dormant. PS "Dolores" is the name of the orbital frame created by Dr. Links, who's the long lost wife of James Links. Dr. Links named the new mecha she created "Dolores" in honor of the girl who saved her life in the Idolo saga. Dolores, as you may remember, sacrificed herself to save Dr. Links and her death drove the pilot of Idolo mad with grief and led to the climatic tragedy at the end.In conclusion, ZoE: Dolores is one of my favorite anime series and it is highly recommended for fans of ZoE: Idolo and new fans as well. Just don't expect the same intensity action-wise and emotion-wise."

The beginning of a great series!!

Ronnie Clay | 12/11/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"For those of you that saw Zone of the Enders - Idolo, this takes place a few years later. It's not nearly as dark as Idolo, but give it time... (I've seen later episodes) it all ties together in the end to make a fantastic series for fans of powerful Mechs, action, Sci-fi, with a little comedy thrown in for good measure. Take a chance like I did and get in the Zone!!
PS: I loved the english performances!"

Well the ending robbed me!!!

Ronnie Clay | Winnsboro, Louisiana | 11/04/2005

(3 out of 5 stars)

"This is decent, not great, not good, but decent enough to watch. The mecha, not the bada$$ one, reminded me a lot of Gundam and Robotech/Marcoss mecha. The Idolo mecha reminded me a whole lot of Evangelion. But overall they weren't too blatant.

The voice acting was pretty good. The dialouge at spots was a bit odd, but you can never nail dialouge perfectly. The story was beautifully drawn and written, yet I felt the backstory wasn't very well set up."