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Lunch » Tags » Movies » Reviews » Mad Bull 34, Pt. 2 - The Manhattan Connection

Mad Bull 34, Pt. 2 - The Manhattan Connection

1 rating: 3.0

An Anime OVA

Mad Bull 34 (マッド★ブル34, Maddo Buru Sanjūyon?) is a manga series written by Kazuo Koike and illustrated by Noriyoshi Inoue, serialized in Shueisha's Young Jump between 1986 and 1990 and collected in 27 volumes. The series follows the toughest cop in … see full wiki

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1 review about Mad Bull 34, Pt. 2 - The Manhattan Connection

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More sex and violence. Anime style!

Oct 19, 2011

by Madpenguin
posted in ASIANatomy

Rating:

In the rough streets of New York where rape, prostitution, and murder run rampant. New officer on the force, Daisuburo "Eddie" Ban, is assigned to the 34th Precinct. His first day of duty sees him partnered up with officer John Estes aka Sleepy, but better known as Mad Bull. Daisuburo gets his first taste on what it means to be a cop working the 34th. But Sleepy's excessive force has him wondering, what kind of cop is he? And how the hell did he make it to the force?

Previous Volume:

Mad Bull 34 Part One: Scandal

Mad Bull 34 Part Two: The Manhattan Connection

Sleepy and Daisuburo are on a high speed chase after a drug dealer, who may have some valuable information on his suppliers. During the pursuit, the dealer gets the upper hand on them and takes a hostage. After the situation is cleared up, Daisuburo is introduced to the beautiful blond, Det. Perrine Valley by Sleepy. The three end up working for another cop named Lt. Demiyer. Soon, the team find themselves going up against a wheel-chair bound drug lord named Enrico, a man Perrine thought was killed during one of her bust.- summary

Mad Bull 34 Part Two is the second volume of the four part OVA directed by Satoshi Dezaki. The series is based off the manga by Kazuo Koike, which I still haven't read up to this day, and after watching this complete series again after so many years. I'm not too sure if reading the manga is in my future. I guess it all depends on what kind of mood this leaves me in after I really think about it.

This time around, there appears to be more of a plot that kicks off pretty early. This is actually a slight improvement, since the previous volume was plotless until somewhere around the half way mark. But the main point is that the OVA sticks to its guns, which is the sex, violence, and twisted comedy. Whether that's a good thing or not is completely up to you.

After watching the first volume and seeing what this anime is all about. The fate of the new character, Perrine Valley, is about as predictable as the sunrise. After the first few minutes, it was crystal clear that she was nothing but a vehicle to push the possible rape scenes. However, the writers do make her seem more important than what she really is by the end. But the truth is, she's just another female used as a sex object. On a positive note, the main characters are still developing in a way, with Daisuburo developing a really fast crush on Perrine, to include, his sheer bravery in battle, along with Sleepy revealing a heart of gold underneath his blood lust.

The story really isn't too interesting though, because the supposed plot twist is so predictable, that it's completely unbelievable that the characters didn't catch on to the possible double-cross. It really doesn't seem as if there was any real attempt at telling a story. It feels as if the plot is just going through the motions, while the action and soft core smut attempts to cover up all of the weaknesses.

Although a few small steps down, the violence is still a good portion of what sells this series. There are a few gun battles, with hand grenades making it into battle in the strangest way possible. But the scene that stands out the most, happens to be a Billy Batts of Goodfellas type of beating. I mean seriously, this dude takes a thrashing like no other, to the point where it's real tough to watch.

The animation is kind of a step down, with a few stills throw in there during a couple of action scenes. In other cases, it does work well with what it has. It's hard not to find some enjoyment in the action, as you get a good look at some real sick blows to the mouth. In addition, the facial expressions on the part of Sleepy can be hilarious at times with his silly looking grins.

The backgrounds are incredibly bland though, and this time around, the soundtrack really isn't as catchy. But it does work well with the scenes. I found the voice work to be ok, despite the heavy over acting trying to capture that New York accent. But one thing is for sure, Mad Bull 34 isn't really a slouch in the style department.

Now, make no mistake, Mad Bull 34 is not exactly a good anime, but it's hard not to keep watching. The silly action scenes is what can keep one coming back, here are examples, things like people being shot bloody in the rear end, the back of heads hitting tables to death, or better yet, little guys being hung on chandeliers by their pants belt, and punched repeatedly half to death. Every volume has at least one death or shoot out, that had me shaking my head in disbelief, and I just couldn't wait to see how someone would eat it next.

In closing, Mad Bull 34 is a guilty pleasure from hell. It's a mindless anime that doesn't try to be anything more than that. If it wasn't for the tasteless fan service, and lack of attempt at telling a good story. It would actually be a little bit better. The OVA has a 50 minute run time.

Pros:
-Still knows what it wants to be

Cons:
-It's meant for a specific audience

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FM_ALEX October 22, 2011

This sounds like something I may like.

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woopak_the_thrill October 19, 2011

The more I read your descriptions...the more you are getting me interested. "hard to not keep watching"....sounds like me when I saw "La Blue Girl" LOL!!