27 December 1997
Bubblegum Crisis: Knight Sabers 2032 / Series Outline [subtitled version]; eight episodes, varying lengths [:25~:50 min]; OAV series [made for direct release to video w/high-quality animation]
© 1988 Artmic/Youmex ; translation © 1990-91 AnimEigo
Bubblegum Crisis is the story of four women's battle against the corrupt Genom Corporation
and its cybernetic creations, the Boomers. BGC is a cyberpunk classic set in a future Tokyo City,
now renamed Megatokyo, which has been rebuilt since the coming of a devastating earthquake,
largely thanks to the aid of Genom. However, its Boomers serve as combat aids to Genom just as
often as they do domestic ones; even though the manufacture of combat models has been illegal
for many years, Genom continues to produce them, both for the profit they offer as wepons for
sale, as well as for their usefulness in more blatantly criminal endeavours...
The Megatokyo Police, having been unable to quell this threat, formed a special division many years back called the A.D. Police, or ADP. since that time, the ADP has evolved into a separate entity focusing exclusively upon the controlling of Boomer crimes...with the equipment and armament neccessary to do the job. However, sometimes the Boomers are too much for the
ADP, and thats where our heroines, the Knight Sabers, come in...
The Knight Sabers are a small group of women who, working for money as often as not, take
on Boomers - and therefore Genom - when the ADP are either out of their jurisdiction...or out
of their league. They are able to do this, in part, due to the large sums of money they charge, not to mention their specialized training and the "HardSuits", or combat "power suits"...The Knight Sabers are:
» Sylia Stingray, the leader and brains behind the KS organization. She is the oldest, apparently in her low 30's... as well as the wisest, she acts as the contact between the KS and potential customers. She also runs the Silky Doll lingerie shop as a cover, and has done quite well on the money from that alone. She pilots a white HardSuit, and is the most adept at aerial maneuvering. Her preferred weapon is the vibro-blade concealed in the right arm of her suit....
§ Quote: "Frail humans need not fear anything more..." §
» Priss Asagiri is a headstrong and gutsy fighter with the skills and strength to back her
arrogance up. She is a local rock&roll singer, and performs at local joints with her band, the
Replicants. She is in her low-to-mid-20's, with attitude to spare. She is the rebel of the group, and enjoys three things in life more than anything else: trashing Boomers, riding [and trashing]
motorcycles, and power...meaning, both firepower and horsepower...She pilots a blue HardSuit,
and is physically the strongest of the group, as well as the most aggressive. Her preferred weapons are the laser needles and her Motoslaves: cycles that can transform into separate fighting vehicles or else form up around a HardSuit in order to amplify firepower and durability...[[see also the AnimEigo logo, below]]
§ Quote: "Eat this!" §
§ another: : " I hate cops...especially AD Police." §
» Linna Yamazaki is the most introspective Knight Saber, and specializes in
up-close-and-personal combat. She teaches local aerobics classes, and is the most agile fighter in the group. She forms close bonds with those whom she considers friends, and never forgives
anyone who would harm them...Linna pilots a white-and-pale-green HardSuit, and prefers
grappling with her enemies. Her preferred weapons are: the Knuckle Bomber, a set of discs
on her right hand that give an explosive power to her punches, and two long hairlike strips
which dangle from her helmet, acting as very, very sharp monofilament whips, capable of cutting
through any Boomer who gets a bit too close...
§ Quote: "Reika, I think there'a another way besides revenge...if you want to take Irene's hopes, and see them through" §
» Nene Romanova is the youngest and physically weakest of the KS, but she is even more of a
computer expert that Sylia, able to crack any code and hack any system she comes up against.
She is the most fragile emotionally and most idealistic, but is a valuable asset to the team, as she is every bit as dedicated to their cause as any of the others. Nene is an officer in the AD Police, and serves as a valuable link for the KS, keeping an eye out for Boomer crimes that might be too much for the ADP to handle...In this, she also can serve as a coordinator and scanner, as the sensing gear in her suit allows her to keep track of targets and scan areas for potential danger...or just hidden security cameras...^_^...Nene pilots a purple HardSuit, later upgraded to a stronger, red one. She doesn't have a specialist weapon so much as her scanners, so she just uses the standard PalmBlaster - a machine gun concealed in the palm of her suit...
§ Quote: "Th...there are extenuating circumstances, aren't there?..." §
Other characters in the series include:
» Mackie Stingray : Sylia's younger brother, he helps the KS as a mechanic and aids Nene with
computer hacking
» Leon McNichol : An AD Police officer with a crush on Priss; He is a well-respected offcer who
isn't afraid of Boomers...or much else...; "If I meet the vampire, I'll break its fangs and bring 'em back as souvenirs."
» Largo : The Knight Sabers' egotistical nemesis; Quote : "For the crime of injuring me, a god, I
demand as atonement, death"; he shows up in BG Crash [the sequel series] as well, and has some
sort of a connection to Sylia
» Quincy : The CEO and head muckymuck at Genom
Well, that's it...I may be working on an episode guide, but I'll keep it separate...this is meant to be an overview, and not give away too many secrets...^_^...If you want info on more anime, write in and I'll see what I can do
Eric H. Krieger
erickei@usa.net
16 June 1998:
Episode guide is complete, now available as bgceps.txt and should be on this site.
(
geocities.com/tokyo/ginza) (
geocities.com/tokyo)