Blue Gender

I'm not a big anime fan, and I only put this on my watchlist because YouTube randomly recommended me a video list of gritty/gory anime featuring mechs, and this was on it. So it seemed like it was worth checking out.

The first two or three episodes were really good, and set the tone of how dreadful the world is within this anime series, but the entire middle section of the series has way too many filler episodes. Even then, I could have tolerated that had the continuity of the series been much better.

In some episodes vehicles and mechs were heavily damaged, but in the next episode (or even later in the same episode) the vehicles and mechs were restored. Later in the series they were better about the continuity, but early on there were a ton of issues like this, which made it hard to get immersed in the series, since moments that should have and could have had more impact were lessened due to immersion-breaking incongruities.

A good example is that characters seem to have infinite amounts of ammo just until the story doesn't need them to have infinite amounts of ammo. Mechs are highly capable just until they're not, and they become cannon fodder for the bugs.

I didn't have any problems with the over-arching story and what the series was trying to get across (even though it was wrong in its assessment of what's happening on the planet). But the continuity didn't improve until the second half of the series.

I think from episode 14 or 15 onward things really ramped up and improved greatly. Also there's a much stronger focus on the consistency of the characters, battle damage, and the war effort. So it made it feel much more grounded in its depiction of the world and battles.

Characters regularly repairing their mechs, and the damage they encounter makes more sense later in the series, which, again, makes the story flow and action scenes mean a lot more.

For this reason it's a difficult series to judge. A lot of the filler episodes are insufferable and mostly pointless, and some episodes seem to be filled with the two leads constantly just yelling out each other's names (especially on the space station).

But the back-half of the series really picks it up and is quite impressive. You can tell a large portion of the budget was put into the first half of the final episode with the big battle scene, which was really well done. And again, there was consistency with the way the battle played out. It's just a shame that there were so many wasteful episodes getting to that point, as well as a lot of ridiculous plot contrivances for certain characters as well. I think if the first half flowed better and they weren't so quick to kill off certain characters within the first handful of episodes, it could have been a much better series.

Still, the premise is awesome. The first two episodes are intense, and the back-half of the series really improves the flow and storytelling pacing. It's just a shame that there is a lot of filler getting to that point.

This anime was rather good, it really pulled you in the first few episodes, however at a point it loses some of its steam and is just not the series I was expecting it to be. Basically, the story starts off great as this dude with some mysterious illness is put into cold storage so that one day he can perhaps be revived when a cure is found. He is awakened, but not to a bunch of doctors saying "We did it!". No, instead he is awakened in a nightmare as the earth has been overrun with giant insect creatures, his only chance of survival a mysterious girl using some type of robot vehicle to fight off the many different creatures now seemingly intent on killing people. This part of the story is great, seems they have some plans on using the dude to stop the creatures, his illness being the key. A lot of people are now living in space and this is where the girl must get the boy so they can begin setting a plan of attack against the bugs in motion. It is a really good series up to the point you sort of find out what the people with this illness are needed for and you ask yourself "what"? I just never got what was so special about them, seems like they really had no special ability to me. The series once it reaches the go back to earth phase kind of loses its luster that it built up in the very exciting escorting kid back to the spaceship part of the show. I also never saw the last episode of this series so while I saw all the others I still feel incomplete when discussing this start with a bang series. Just needed work on the second half of the show.

Yuji Kaido is an average guy with a problem: he's sick, and there's no cure. Doctors simply don't know enough to fix the problem, but they can offer Yuji an amazing opportunity. After reluctantly agreeing, Yuji is cryogenically frozen until a cure for his condition is discovered. But things are very different when he wakes. Tokyo (the entire Earth, for that matter) is in ruins, consumed by merciless, insect-like predators known as the Blue. Pursued by the massive arthropods, Yuji is rescued by icy professional soldier Marlene Angel, a member of a military team assigned to recover "sleepers" like Yuji and transport them back to the orbital space station where humanity has taken refuge. As the Blue hunt them at every turn and team members start to die, Yuji and Marlene will have to rely on each other to survive and to escape from the planet.

This is an exceedingly well-made show. The Blue are interestingly designed and frighteningly portrayed, the characters are likable (well, the good guys are), and the storyline never bores the viewer. The general film "rules" about who can and cannot die (children are safe, noncombatants are safe, etc.) are not rigidly followed here, and the series is all the more suspenseful for it.

There are a few issues, like a small amount of nudity that can jar you if you're not expecting it, and an environmental plot element that can feel somewhat preachy at times. However, these aren't enough to justify taking away any more than one star.

Blue Gender has a dark tone and its fair share of violence, and is not for everyone. However, if you enjoy the genre, this is a visually and, I kid you not, emotionally appealing series that can be horrifying, exciting, and even touching.

The good:

* Hardcore SciFi.

* The excellent plot.

* Script takes no prisoners, literally.

* Cinematography, especially for the many non-action parts, is sometimes average, but often brilliant.

* Drama and romance.

* Whether it concerns sex or violence, this is adult content, and not ashamed about it. The sexual aspects though, are in good taste, for the sake of the plot.

* No silly humour or fan-service.

* No fillers - a smooth ride from start to finish.

* Many of the non-moving visuals are incredible.

* Great and appropriate use of colours.

* The soundtrack is absolutely amazing, and matches the plot and visuals quite well.

The bad: * The action sequence are alright, but many parts fall short of the standards of today. Even in the 1990s, there was better (see: Neon Genesis Evangelion).

* Some typical cliches of the Sci-Fi post-apocalyptic genre.

* The animated is dated, sadly.

* Too many Japanese cultural mannerisms for an anime of this type.

* Becomes a bit environmentalist-preachy towards the end.

* A tad overuse of the soundtrack sometimes.

* Main character (Yuji) who could have been less annoying.

Overall, an enjoyable show. Should absolutely receive a remake, a live-action version (series and not a film!), and a video game. Truly excellent material that can be worked with further.

With superior animation, slightly better-orchestrated action-scenes, and less cliche, this could have easily been a 9/10. But as it is, a 7/10. I would still recommend it to SciFi lovers who also like anime.

I've seen a lot of anime, this is by far the darkest, most disturbing anime I have ever seen. It's great!! When I first saw the trailer for Blue Gender I got goosebumps. It's really a fantastic series that has twists and turns around every corner that leaves you wondering what's going to happen next. The voices are dark and haunting, the music is dark and scary. FUNimation did a fantastic job with this. With the voices of Eric Vale (DBZ's Future Trunks) and Laura Bailey (Kid Trunks, Keiko Ukimura). Word to the wise: Don't get too attached to any character, because there aren't any Dragonballs to bring them back. I got attached to a few characters that were killed off pretty quick. I wasn't happy. Also, the voice actors speak very low, so you might need to turn the volume up, but that captures the darkness about it. All in all Blue Gender is a very unique and dark series that any anime fan would love.