Shôjo Commando Izumi

Imagine the most over-the-top 80s Hollywood movie starring Sylvester Stallone. But in a skirt.

Every cheesy 80's cliche rolled up into one low-budget Japanese TV show. It's like a Van Halen music video, but with more explosions. This is like eating pizza slices at the arcade while flirting with the cute girl in pink legwarmers chewing bubblegum. It's like Tom Selleck in a Ferrari and hot pants. But a teenage Female Tom Selleck. WITH AN RPG!.

Meaning an approach to the Sukeban character-type more action oriented, less focused on school antics (albeit they're still present in some form in order to avoid making the protagonist a one-dimensional caricature) and just really fun in general. And you know why it succeded this time? First of all, it had no previous iterations of the franchise made in a certain way already setting the expectations of the viewer from the get go, and secondly the producers of this didn't present the main character and her supporting cast as friggin' ninjas with magic powers eating weeds and mud to survive (or scuba saboteurs in WW2 operating at night, boring Sukeban Deka II movie I'm looking at you). Also, the iconic Sailor Suit, title of the last episode permitted, is NOT the preferred attire of the main protagonist, who usually sports jeans and jackets a là Top Gun. As the cherry on the cake, this awesome series is, thanks also to its excellent score, pure 80's unbounded, as 80's as thrash metal and city pop are, which is a really nice thing compared to the awful, ridicolous attempts to ride on the 80's nostalgia for the sake of nostalgia of today a là Kung Fury, Far Cry Blood Dragon, Ready Player One etc. Etc. This is no fake, this is the real thing. All in all, it's highly recommended.