Texhnolyze: Box Set
Label: MVM.
Release date: 11th May 2009
Certificate: 15
Discs: 6. (22 episodes)
Running time: 500 mins approx
Video: 16.9 anamorphic
Sound: English 2.0, Japanese 2.0
Subtitles: English.
RRP: £49.99
Brief synopsis:
Buried deep in the bowels of the Earth, the experimental city of Lux was originally constructed as the last hope of survival for the rapidly dying human race. Decades later it lies forgotten and left to fend for itself by the world above; Crime syndicates, street gangs and religious luddites rule the city while the population toil away in quiet desperation. A young prize-fighter by the name of Ichise finds himself on the wrong side of his promoter who orders that he be viciously mutilated and left to die on the streets. Near death, Ichise is found by the ruling Organo syndicate and taken to a skilled surgeon who replaces his lost limbs with prosthetic ones, a procedure known a “Texhnolyzation”. Procedures of this kind are seen as the next step in human evolution and the only way to save the human race. Whoever controls Texhnolyzation controls the survival of humanity and many will stop at nothing to be the ones with that control. When Ichise meets Ran, a young girl who can see the future, and Onishi, the leader of the Organo syndicate who can hear the voice of the very city itself, events are set in motion, which forever change humanity’s fate. But will it lead to the people’s salvation, or to their ultimate demise?
Comments:
From acclaimed manga artist Yoshitoshi ABe (Serial Experiments Lain, Haibane Renmei, NieA under 7) and the team behind the likes of Serial Experiments Lain, Haibane Renmei and Hellsing comes one hell of an epic head twister so heavy in politics, power plays and behind the scenes machinations that it makes Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex seem easy to follow in comparison. This is actually one of those show’s that’s rather hard to recommend out of the blue as, if it’s the kind of thing that will appeal to you then you’d probably have heard of it already. Comparisons are hard to come by as well but it does have similarities to the likes of Ergo Proxy, the aforementioned Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, Wolf’s Rain and other anime heavy on the mass conspiracy and amoral political scheming. This is isn’t to say that there isn’t any action, gun-battles or good, old fashioned, bare knuckle fist fighting as there it’s far from absent, though as it’s not the main thrust of the show it’s used somewhat sparingly. The phrase “less is more” seems to be the watchword of this show but what action you do get is graphic, bloody and holds nothing back. It’s certainly earned it’s 15 cert rating through language, sex and violence, though all three are underplayed and are included to enhance the story and to show the seedy and vicious side of life in the dystopian city of Lux rather than just to titillate the audience. A lot of what goes on is heavily implied rather than out and out stated, from motives to the eventual fates of several characters and there’s not a whole lot of easy clues out there so even the smartarses in the audience will have a hard time getting the end in advance, which incidentally is one of the biggest downer endings I’ve ever seen.
The characters are the kind that don’t immediately make you care about them, in fact you’ll probably still have trouble caring about them even at the end, but this is a definite “grow on you” type of show. As you get deeper into it they’ll interest, though I wouldn’t go so far as to say engross. On the whole it suffers slightly from being constricted by the set length of each episode, some could have done with being cut down while others could have down with 2 episodes being merged together and the whole show really could have done with being a good few episodes shorter though at a grand total of 22 episodes, rather than the more normal 26, it’s obviously already been pruned down as much as was commercially viable.
Visually the art style is very much what the fans have come to expect from Yoshitoshi ABe. If you’ve previously seen Serial Experiments Lain or Haibane Renmei, or have read any of ABe’s lesser know printed works such as White Rain then you’ll know what to expect. While ABe himself wasn’t responsible for the whole look of the show it’s obviously based to a large degree on much of his portfolio. A lot of the art’s experimental and can take some getting used to but once you do it really does add tot eh look and feel of the show. Just remember to have your TV remote control handy as you’re really going to need those contrast/brightness buttons where you can get to them.
Audio/Subtitles
While the original Japanese language track for this show is very good, the Dub track is certainly one of the best around. But with the very limited use of background music or even background noises the dub really does need to be good. Victoria Harwood, probably best know as Integra from Hellsing, is as always a joy to listen too and the ADR Director (the same as for Ergo Proxy) even managed to get a decent performance out of Carrie Savage which is quite an accomplishment in itself. Not every line or casting choice is perfect but the good heavily outweighs the bad.
The music used throughout this show is excellent, including the industrial-techno opening theme by British band Juno Reactor (who are best known for their work on the various Matrix soundtracks) though as mentioned before it’s used quite sparingly. This is essentially a good move as it could easily have overpowered the show. Many of the underground scenes have no background music and all underground scenes are totally bereft of such things as bird song and insect sounds to really bring home how cut off they are from the outside world. Influences range from mid western country to orchestral to industrial and on the whole it’s somewhat reminiscent of Wolf’s Rain or the less jazz oriented episodes of Cowboy Bebop.
Extras:
Apart from the standard pair of trailers per disc, the textless opening and closing animation and a textless version of the series ending animation each disc includes what they call “Alternate Dialogue Outtakes”. Basically these “re-imaginings” of several major scenes by the Dub cast, or basically a chance for them to unwind and mess about making for some great comedic moments to counteract the original gravitas and seriousness of the show in general.
Texhnolyze: Box Set is available now from most online and high street retailers April 2009. As usual, both Amazon and Play, are currently offering this volume at significantly less than the recommended retail price.
Reviewer: Penfold