Well, I've finally seen the first tape of Eat-Man '98. And boy, was it ever worth the wait! I ordered the dub, mostly out of curiosity (that and it's fifteen dollars cheaper!).
So, what did I think of my first taste of '98? Keep in mind this is just one guy's opinion.
| CHARACTER DESIGNS |  |
| Well, they're by Akihito Yoshitomi himself, so that's a good start. I was really attached to the Bolt design from the first anime series, but nonetheless I was much more comfortable with the '98 version than I expected. And the supporting characters just scream "I'm from Akihito Yoshitomi's Eat-Man manga!!". That adds a nice touch that's entirely missing from the first anime. |
| OVERALL VISUAL DESIGN | |
| This anime is beautiful. It's colourful and active in a way that the first series never was. The increased budget is really obvious. Everything's brighter and cleaner, with a lot more detail. It's a different world. |
| MUSIC |  |
| "
This is where I think '98 falls down. In place of the first series' frantic, eclectic and wildly atmospheric soundtrack, '98's music is for the most part dull and unmemorable. The opening theme (Burning Blue) is, I dare to suggest, almost downright unlikeable. Burning Blue's one saving grace is that it occasionally echoes a particular piece of incidental music from the first series, which adds a feeling of continuity and connection that isn't found anywhere else." A few months later: Gosh, how harsh was I...?! After listening to the Eat-Man '98 soundtrack a few million times, my opinion has greatly changed. I do still like the music from the 1997 series better, but hey, '98's pretty cool too, once you get used to it. "Black Cats, you're gonna shake it loose tonight..." ^_^ |
| DUB QUALITY | |
|
This is the important part; never mind the differences between Eat-Man ('97) and Eat-Man '98. What about the transition from sub to dub? What I mean, basically, is does Bolt's dubbed voice sound any good? And in my humble opinion, the answer is more or less yes. Unfortunately there's no English credits to inform us of the dub cast, so I don't know who it is, but the guy who voices Bolt in English does what I consider to be quite a good job. Of course he's no Masashi Ebara, but I liked him. |
So, yeah, I was impressed. '98's not nearly as stylised as the '97 show -- it's missing that huge, dark, overbearing personality; but it's much more in tune with Yoshitomi's original vision. That works greatly in its favour. The general tone is far less bleak, but sadly it's so far lacking Bolt's periodic attempts at comic relief from the '97 series (like all that incomprehensible grinning... I liked that!). Ultimately, Bolt's still the coolest guy in the universe, so what's to complain about, right?
And it's pretty amazing to watch them actually properly animate Bolt's "handgurgitating".