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Anime DVD Review

Beck: Mongolian Chop Squad Vol. 1 – Anime DVD Review

beck-mongolian-chop-squad-1-dvd-cover.jpg

I just finished reading the first volume of the Beck manga when I decided I should watch the anime to do a comparison. And hey, the R1 just got released! How convenient!

beck-mongolian-chop-squad-1-dvd-cover.jpg

I just finished reading the first volume of the Beck manga when I decided I should watch the anime to do a comparison. And hey, the R1 just got released! How convenient!

DVD Blurb:
Koyuki Tanaka was feeling the rut, though he’s only a teenager. The sheltered and stifling grind of school, the girls that spend their time not noticing him, the lifeless distractions of the arcades… Every day was just another day of being a total nobody. There wasn’t much action until a fateful meeting with Ryusuke, a local rock n’ roller haunted by a shady reputation.

Now everything feels electric, charged by the unfamiliar sounds of the underground. Music can change your life, sometimes against your will. Just remember… When it’s live, anything can happen.

Analysis:
Fact: Everything is made better when Engrish is added to the equation. When I read the manga, it was sorta funny to see the drunk American dudes yelling at Japanese in English, and the Japanese trying to respond, but nothing can replace spoken Engrish. For some reason, Ryusuke’s got some weird lisp whenever he speaks English, too. Oh well.

Another fact: Music manga can be made better when in anime form. There’s no way to really convey the sound of music on a page of manga. I mean, you could print sheet music (and I’ve read some of the sheet music on Nodame Cantabile, it’s real music!) but most people aren’t going to get the sounds just from sound effects alone.

These two facts combine to make a pretty sweet anime. There are quite a few things that are different from the manga though. I noticed that Koyuki’s former favorite singer is a pop idol instead of a Okinawan folk singer, and Koyuki didn’t get caught stealing Izumi’s swimsuit; he sorta just started swimming. These aren’t huge differences, and I guess they were necessary to make the switch to anime.

As far as the rest of the story goes, it’s still cool. The anime does a great job bringing the music to life, like with the festival contest where Koyuki and Maho sing together. That’s one catchy tune! Despite the Engrish!

Also, I noticed that the kids are taking a class in wrestling history? What’s up with that?

Character Designs and Art:
To elaborate on what I wrote in the manga review, the anime version of Beck seems to be almost superflat! At least, the ending credits are. I’m not sure if the actual animation would fall under that category, but it is certainly interesting to look at. It’s sorta weird how all the video games drawn in the anime are so badly drawn. It has to be on purpose!

The Actual DVD:
The DVD came with a guitar pick! How cool is that! Maybe I’ll start learning guitar! Then girls will like me! Oh wait, I already play trumpet! Which is why girls don’t like me?

Anyway, the DVD also has a music video of “A Life on the Road,” and the textless OP and ED. There’s also a commentary track where the directors discuss what they did to localize the anime. I didn’t really watch much of it though, since I watched the whole thing in Japanese.

Conclusion:
Beck is the first anime in a while that I’ve seen that has mostly original plot. Koyuki isn’t trying to become the next Hokage or become stronger so he can protect someone; he just wants have a more interesting life. It’s cool to see the progression from shut-in to rock star. Also, I’ve got a weakness for any storylines that have to do with music. I personally think he should take up a brass instrument, but I guess guitar will have to do. Don’t let me down Koyuki! You don’t know how much I’ve got believe in you!

Many thanks to Funimation for sending me a review copy of Beck: Mongolian Chop Squad Volume 1!

2 replies on “Beck: Mongolian Chop Squad Vol. 1 – Anime DVD Review”

A great review! I’ve been looking forward to this for ages since, as you rightly pointed out, the themes are a little different from the ‘save the world’ stuff that most anime and manga goes for. I’ve been an amateur guitarist for years too so the idea of ordinary guys trying to forma a band and experiencing everyday problems really appeals to me and is something that many of us viewers can relate to!

Something British fans ought to be aware of is that the UK edition of the series (I’m not sure if it applies to stateside releases too) offers a novelty artbox that’s designed to look like one of those old Fender guitar amps – it looks darned cool actually.

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