Madpenguin
"009-1: Introducing James Bond (sort of) if he was a chick."
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009-1: Introducing James Bond (sort of) if he was a chick.
-
Jul 5, 2011
- by Madpenguin
- posted in ASIANatomy
Rating:
Taking place during the Cold War which has continued pass the nineties. The Western and Eastern blocs attempt to gain a decisive edge on each other by utilizing spies, hit men, and other strategic means. Working for the Western Bloc, Mylene Hoffman aka Nine-One, is a member of an all female group called the Zero Zero Agency. They're a group of intelligence spies equipped with various weapons through cybernetics. Myleen's arsenal consists of dual machine guns in her breast, ray gun, and needle guns in her boots. Her associates sometimes handle napalm explosives in their arms. Together or solo, this well trained group conducts espionage, undercover, or assassination operations.-summary
+3
009-1 is based on a late sixties manga by Ishinomori Shotaro. The manga was set during the Cold War. The anime follows its manga counterpart and pushes the Cold War beyond the nineties adding mutant children, advanced weaponry, cyborgs, and androids. 009-1 shares similarities to James Bond, but in many ways lacks the cleverness of the suave special agent.
At first glance, 009-1 appears to be another chicks with guns anime series packed with fan service, mindless sex scenes, and very campy action scenes. Serious viewers could find it tough to get past the first episode. The first episode is action packed with a good amount of shoot outs and hand to hand scenes, but it has a very cheesy feel to it. Honestly, had I been watching this series four years ago, I would have dropped it right away.
Fortunately, these days I can watch almost anything. Therefore, when I do start on something, I try my best to finish it no matter how painful it could be. After all, one of my goals is to see every anime ever made.
Now, by the time the second episode arrives, the series takes a different turn, and you soon realize you're not watching just another totally mindless girls with guns anime, which is very reminiscent of that monstrosity Najica Blitz Tactics. The story mainly revolves around Myleen and develops her character through her solo missions. Even though Myleen is a professional and takes her job seriously. She often shows compassion to her victims loved ones, and sometimes even to her targets, but she will deal out death to those whom she really believes deserve it. This bit of character depth is very much needed, because Myleen comes off as a total sleaze. She sleeps with almost all of her targets and I'm not into trashy characters such as these.
009-1 is plot less(until the last three episodes) and it follows an episodic format. Normally, anime like this would follow a certain predictable pattern. This follows a pattern somewhat, with almost every episode beginning slow paced, and later building up to an action packed ending, but there is variety in the show. Some of the stories have great endings simply because they abandon all cliches. I'll leave this part up in the air to avoid spoilers, but I will say episode four stands as my favorite.
009-1 is a watchable series but has its flaws, and it doesn't reach its full potential. For one thing, Myleen is the only character who is developed. The others in her squad receive no background and their roles are pretty much non existent. There really isn't much of an excuse for this, because at least two episodes served very little purpose. One in particular because I felt later on, the subject concerning Myleen's compassion for others was a dead horse taking a beating. I also have a problem with some of the writing. I mentioned this series is similar to James Bond but minus the cleverness. I'll elaborate on this subject. While the character of James utilized wits, gadgets, and the story overall used strong and imaginative writing to depict his escape from capture. Myleen was forced to resort to very uninteresting gimmicks such as the breast guns(which is so corny) and at least one time, her escape provided no explanation at all(how did she get out of those chains?), the writing can be way too weak.
I also mentioned the sex scenes earlier. The scenes really don't hurt the series, because they aren't graphic and are mainly left to your imagination, plus the series isn't packed with them as a desperate attempt to push the episodic plot. I also feel the ending was somewhat tacked on and it didn't provide enough closure.
The biggest issue I have with this series is definitely the character designs. There was some effort put into the females of the series, especially, in the case of Myleen. They went out of their way to make her as sexy as possible, but too bad everyone else received the cold shoulder. The character designs are horrible, and I really can't put it into words.
I'm amazed that a 2006 title can visually be trumped so bad, by American series such as the X-Men and Batman of the nineties. The artwork for the backgrounds are just as bad at times. The buildings look almost like building blocks on some occassions. Other times, the artwork can be outstanding, especially, for the sunsets and night time backgrounds. The soundtrack was pretty good to me, but it could of used a few more songs. Overall, they fit very well with the series consisting of jazz and modern rock. The series also has solid voice acting. The English version contains a bit of foul language. I haven't seen the sub.
009-1 surprised me early, admittedly, because I set my expectations very low. It's an entertaining series that establishes its own identity, and doesn't always rely on cheap gimmicks, like terrible shows such as Najica Blitz Tactics and Kiddy Grade, but make no mistake, this is no Noir either. I only recommend this to die hard otakus, who must see everything or the very easily pleased. I don't regret watching this series at all, however, if I had something better at the time, I would have put this on the shelf for a little while. The series is 12 episodes with a 300 minute run time and one bonus episode.
Pros:
-Bloody action and action packed
-Decent stories
-Good music
Cons:
-Very bad character designs
-A bit of weak writing
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Post a Comment
FM_ALEX
July 09, 2011
Great review
Madpenguin
September 29, 2011
Thanks man.
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woopak_the_thrill
July 05, 2011
still a treat to read this review once more, man, such a treat!
Madpenguin
July 05, 2011
Thanks.You seen this one yet?
woopak_the_thrill
July 06, 2011
Yes, I saw this one after you reviewed it.
Madpenguin
July 06, 2011
I don't think I could ever watch this again though.
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Madpenguin
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May 22, 2011
Last Login: Jun 15, 2013 08:21 PM UTC
Last Login: Jun 15, 2013 08:21 PM UTC
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About this tv show
009-1 (ゼロゼロナイン・ワン Zero Zero Nine-One?) is a spy-fi anime series based on a manga series by famous manga artist Shotaro Ishinomori. It was first broadcast on TBS TV in Japan in October 2006. The original manga was named 009ノ1 ("Zero Zero Ku-no-ichi"; a pun on kunoichi and a reference to the main character's occupation as a spy) and was serialized in Weekly Manga Action from 1967 to 1970, then returned briefly in 1974. It concerns Miléne Hoffman (ミレーヌ・ホフマン Mirēnu Hofuman; "Mylene" in the English translation), a female cyborg with machine gun breasts who works as a secret agent. Prior to the anime, it had been adapted into a live-action drama for Fuji TV in 1969 entitled "Flower Action 009ノ1".
The 2006 anime has been licensed for a North American release by A.D. Vision. The first volume was released on June 19, 2007[1], although it was originally scheduled for release in March 2007. In 2008, the show, along with 30 other ADV titles were relicensed to Funimation Entertainment.[2]
Although it was also created by Ishinomori, and features similar themes, this seinen manga, despite the "00" name and the cybernetized protagonists, has no relation to his previous work Cyborg 009, a shōnen manga (although in the original manga, the cyborgs from Cyborg 009 actually make appearances in some chapters). In the final episode, there are two homages to Gerry Anderson television shows involving the moon, an Eagle Transport from Space: 1999 and ...
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