Hyper Police

In the near future, we have a special police task force that is highly equipped with hi-tech weapons and gadgets as well as unrivalled information network to pursue and catch criminals who defy the law. So beware you evil wrongdoers because justice never sleeps and they will definitely get you with the long arm of the law. But too bad that isn’t what Hyper Police is all about as I initially thought it was. Sighs. The usual likes of me jumping to conclusion based on the promotional poster has got me thinking this would be one of those dystopian adrenaline pumping action packed police series (at least something like Bubblegum Crisis). Too bad it’s just a retro comedy about a bunch of police wannabes AKA bounty hunters trying to eke out their miserable lives by catching criminals with equally paltry rewards and their other random shenanigans and tomfooleries. Yup. Just the kind of energetic hype we all need.

Episode 1
Bounty hunters, Natsuki Sasahara and Batanen Fujioka try to take down a monster terrorizing a couple of humans. In their haste to get their target before their competition, they destroyed the surroundings and the baddie got away. Obviously back at their base, they get chewed out by their chief, Mudagami who reminds them that they are a private company (Police Company) and not a government agency so their revenue depends very much on results. And now they’ve given him more bills! Then more lecture how in such modern age, all races have started living together but there are some who can’t accept that and want to disrupt the peace and hence that is what their organization is for, to maintain that peace. They might get a chance for redemption as a monster is taking a human hostage. Calling Natsuki and Batanen as traitors to their kind, Batanen tries to distract him and then gives the signal to Natsuki to fire. Only, she is a lousy shot and shoots him! But she is still strong enough to cut the building in half so the monster gets scared and surrenders! And don’t worry about Batanen. As a werewolf, he is immortal and will heal completely by the next full moon. So that will be a while? With Batanen out, Mudagami introduces Naoko Kondo as Natsuki’s new partner. Too bad Kondo is a racist and doesn’t like working with this monster cat. Even if she has a valid reason for hate (her parents were killed by monsters), does this warrant such racist behaviour? But Natsuki being the sweet girl, tolerates her behaviour. We see Kondo being ruthless and aggressive in taking down the monsters. So much so she doesn’t want Natsuki to join her. This causes Natsuki to feel down but with the Tachibana pair, Makoto and Ayami who runs a diner that she frequents to, giving her some comforting assurance, she feels better. Natsuki receives a distress call from Kondo. Looks like she has met her match in that monster who got away. She could’ve been crushed to death had not Natsuki arrived in time. Too bad Natsuki forgot her sword and gun! Armless! Good thing the monster decides to kill her first as Natsuki picks up a broken sword but imbues it with her magic to take him down. Kondo apologizes for being a dick but Natsuki forgives her. Natsuki visits Batanen in hospital. Must be fine since he is indulging in a porn magazine!

Episode 2
Sakura Bokuseiinmonzeninari (?!) was teased by her brethren when she was young. As a nine tailed fox, she only had 1 tail. Now all grown up a buxom babe, she has now 8 tails and needs a final one to get her revenge. She enters the slum part of town and almost got mugged but I guess she mugged them instead. Then she picks Batanen’s pocket. Yeah, that guy suddenly realizing why he has no money to buy this porn mag! Natsuki picks him up as Sakura remembers her from that fight with that monster. Sensing strong powers in her, Sakura is hell bent in not letting her get away. She tails Natsuki although the latter could feel somebody watching her. Natsuki takes the broken sword to a swordsmith in hopes of turning it into a dagger. Since it is made of orihalcon metal, it is going to cost her. Natsuki ponders her financial woes. Can’t ask Mudagami for an advance because as seen how Batanen begs him for it, he gets turned down. So the only way is to do a proper job. She hunts this tick monster down. As she fights it, Sakura goes in for the move to kill her. As she is about to take her tail, it seems Natsuki is still alive and even when restrained, she shows great power. Sakura realizes she can’t be taken in as her powers are a lot more powerful than she thought. Time for plan B. Sakura flees. Natsuki is confused but looks like the tick monster died from Sakura’s blast, oh well, just go get her reward. Natsuki soon gets her dagger but can’t help wonder who Sakura is. Wonder no more because Mudagami introduces a new partner for her: Sakura!

Episode 3
Natsuki and Sakura go on their first mission together. As they try to take down this mantis monster, Natsuki as usual being clumsy but then, is Sakura trying to sabotage her? The monster got away. With this failure, Mudagami is worried because he thought of pairing them so as to cover each other’s weaknesses but looks like it is not working. Also, it is revealed Mudagami put them together because Sakura begged him and give him a picture of her panty shot! WTF?! Back home, Natsuki wonders if Sakura is targeting her but remains positive she has turned over a new leaf. Sakura then heard rumours (especially from Gray) that she is after Natsuki. Later Sakura confronts her and wants her to tell the truth that this partnership is a nuisance to her and that she is regretting it. WTF Gray distracting Natsuki with cat stuffs and this only pisses of Sakura to think it is true. This strains their relationship and Sakura is not on talking terms with her. Later Natsuki sees Sakura living in a makeshift cardboard box as her home behind the alley. Well, Sakura did give permission for her to laugh. Sakura is about to get her but Batanen tells them he has info about the monster they’re chasing. He is giving this info as his parting gift. He also tells Sakura not to fall for Gray’s rumours as they turn out to be false most of the time. Natsuki heads there first while Sakura continues to ponder about it. Sakura then sees a special mithril bullet Natsuki got her (that would have an effect on the monster). Hence Sakura heads down there in time before Natsuki is mincemeat. This time she didn’t miss and Natsuki is able to take it down. Only, now all the monster’s eggs hatch from the commotion! The place is flooded with little mantis critters! The ladies manage to escape until Sakura learns Natsuki asked for an advance for this special bullet. Meaning, they worked this case for free. Sakura really feels like killing her… In the aftermath, Natsuki has lots of paper work to file for this case. But Sakura has already done hers. She managed to get away by sending a picture of Kondo to Mudagami this time! Kondo is going to kill her so Sakura runs and hides behind Natsuki.

Episode 4
Some piggy terrorist is bombing the town. He zooms past Natsuki and Sakura as they go chase him on their sidecar. After a few damages, they finally bring him down. Sakura claims the prize money herself since Natsuki is tending to her wrecked vehicle as Sakura makes it sound like Natsuki is dead, worrying the hell out of Batanen. Thank goodness just the vehicle got wrecked but beyond repair. Then they go to the automobile store to see if they can get a replacement. Then they stumble into Fonne Walkure, a pretty famous officer at MAD Police. She is also here looking for a vehicle but mocks the duo as poor as they cannot afford better ones like her. WTF Sakura trying to call it a racial incite?! The duo continue to search for the remaining piggy brothers. No such luck. With their stomachs growling, Natsuki decides to get a quick one. Ah, this oden stall nearby could help. However the owner claims he is done for the day and has nothing to sell. Natsuki continues to beg and this makes him clumsy? WTF? No choice, he has to activate the stall and fire a missile! Yes, he is one of the piggy terrorists. If not for Batanen passing by, how the f*ck can he grab the big missile and throw it in the sky?! Piggy is cornered by the ladies so he is forced to give up. Despite their success, Fonne is here to further mock them they only got the small fish while she will net the bigger prize which is their leader. Sakura then returns home to her cardboard box since the showers at office aren’t fixed. Natsuki sees her paltry living conditions and will allow her to live at her house until they find a suitable place for her. Natsuki after all lives alone. Oh Sakura, making this your own place, huh? Yeah, nice hot bath. That night, Sakura thinks of getting Natsuki in her sleep. Too bad all her cats are watching her with piercing stares and eventually Natsuki’s critter familiars zap her! I guess Sakura will give up on Natsuki tonight. Can’t be ungrateful for the food and shelter, no? Next day, Sakura firmly denies she is lesbo for Natsuki because the Tachibanas are thinking there’s a love triangle between Natsuki, Sakura and Batanen.

Episode 5
Natsuki is Batanen and his team have been working overnight to catch this top but elusive criminal. She hopes to get such jobs in the future. On another mission with Sakura, another successful one as Natsuki cuts this mushroom down while Sakura’s bullets did nothing. She thinks the company has been stinging and providing inferior quality ammo. Then they see Fonne and her team using their hi-tech equipment to catch a criminal. Amazing but does Fonne need to come and mock these peasants? Apparently yes. Sakura then has this idea of not cashing in their bounty rewards. Hide the bodies somewhere and then when the time comes, retrieve it to get their reward. This is so they don’t overspend. I think if that’s the case, the root of their problem still isn’t solved… Meanwhile Batanen’s team try to catch the elusive lizard monster but he manages to give them the slip. With Sakura trying to make her own bullets, the company cutting corners is confirmed by Kondo since because of its ineffectiveness, the criminal got away. Batanen then needs Sakura and Natsuki’s help for this case and has got permission from Mudagami. That night, they raid his hideout and a shootout begins. When they get to the boss room, they are shocked to see he has a son. Natsuki pins him down while trying to assure him they are only here to arrest his dad. Going to be tough as the rest try hard not to kill him but he is firing all he’s got. Unfortunately it is all for naught as Fonne kills him right before his son’s eyes right before he is about to shoot Natsuki. Then Fonne brags about everything, including daring the kid to get her for revenge. She tells off Natsuki that she must be grateful otherwise she should’ve been shot dead instead. With the kid blaming everybody, this makes Natsuki feel sad. She goes into despair as she ponders about her career path. She thinks of quitting. Though, Sakura is optimistic that she’ll forget about it in 3 days.

Episode 6
Well, Natsuki is still depressed. She drinks catnip milk till she is drunk. Be careful of her powerful lightning zaps! Yeah, almost destroyed her own house and Batanen too who carried her home! So as Sakura asks if Natsuki wants to quit, the latter feels indecisive so Batanen suggests she takes some time off to think about it. So the rest continue their job as Batanen tells how he first met Natsuki. Apparently he was chasing a criminal through the slums. Natsuki was taken hostage. Batanen was to kill himself for Natsuki’s safety and he looked like he was about to do it when Natsuki’s fear zapped the baddie. Too bad Batanen got zapped too. He then recruited her into the company and was made his partner. Seems like a long time despite being just a year ago. As Natsuki continues to remain depressed, a young girl named Miri claims she is her biggest fan and wants to become like her. Natsuki isn’t in the mood for it but WTF she takes the dagger and plays with it?! She wants to be Natsuki’s apprentice and do you think Natsuki has a say in that? This means being loggerheads with Sakura and obviously you can see the vast treatment. Miri treating Natsuki to her great cooking while Sakura only gets pittance. Natsuki wants to take her home after this but Miri claims she has none as her parents were killed by monsters. That night, Sakura once again tries to get Natsuki in her sleep. Well, WTF Miri can kick in her sleep! I guess that’s it for tonight. More Miri shenanigans as she shaves one of her cat just to have a tail like her?! Then as they head out, Miri tries to be a hero to tell off a hooligan who is eating without paying. She’s not scared because her master will beat him up! Unfortunately Natsuki doesn’t want to fight and takes Miri and run. Miri is in disbelief when Natsuki throws away her dagger. It makes her sad as she runs away but bumps into that baddie. Batanen tells Natsuki that Miri has no powers like her. She has the power to save the weak so believe in yourself. Returning her dagger, Natsuki fights the baddie and feels that thrill once more. Once over, Miri is done playing this game. Yeah, she’s a rich kid who went missing so she called her father to pick her up. In a blimp! With this episode over, Natsuki regains her confidence and wants to continue as a bounty hunter.

Episode 7
Natsuki and Sakura are staking out this guy, Ryudo Gan. This criminal has a tendency to get violent when he loses at gambling. Oh, there he is at it again. Raining his bullets down on the casino, the girls could only watch helplessly as he flees. The duo then hunt around for some info and get to know where he hangs out at some bar. Too bad they got distracted doing some serious shopping while on duty. Then at the bar, they pay the barkeeper for some info on when he comes around. Going to be hard for the guys since this place is swarming with sexy waitress. So the team take turns doing their stakeout and for a few days, Ryudo is no show. One time Sakura trying to get Natsuki’s tail again but her critters zap her. Give it up for now. Finally he shows himself and as usual, he takes a hostage after a shootout. Natsuki’s cool moment as she walks in and reads him all his rights before she accidentally zaps him out. Whatever. But everybody is glad this case is over and can look forward to a big pay out. However when they return to office, they are shocked that all the company assets are being seized by the administrator. Looks like Police Company just went bankrupt and they can’t take anything that is seized or they’ll be fined. This includes Ryudo their prize. That is company property! Natsuki is sad because just when she thought she loves the job with everybody, now they have to go their separate ways.

Episode 8
I guess they still have to eat as they continue to do some bounty hunting. However because they don’t have their own licence (unlike Batanen), they only get a meagre portion of the reward. Even this dangerous job at the red light district whereby Natsuki almost got raped by the target! Yeah, was it worth the meagre pay? Can’t complain or they will be reported for operating without a licence if they resist. And wow, it’s like Fonne has this sensor on them because she’s here to mock them as unemployed losers. Sakura still won’t give up on Natsuki’s tail so that night she tries again. Oh, forgot about the cats! Meow! Cat attack! Next day, Natsuki has this idea that Sakura as a fox should transform into Batanen so they can get the full bounty pay. However this hits a nerve and makes her sad. She reveals she does not have that transformation power (due to the lack of that single tail!) so Natsuki apologizes for her insensitivity. Natsuki then tries to get a job outside bounty hunting. Yeah, this waitress job may do the trick. Too bad she is clumsy and gets distracted. It’s amazing the boss hasn’t fired her. Then a lone robber tries to rob the place. She zaps him because he made her drop those plates again! But that’s the last straw because since she also zapped the entire diner, the boss fires her. Get out! So I guess the only job she is cut out for is bounty hunting? With Sakura, they go hang back out at the Tachibanas. They are relieved to see the rest of their colleagues still hang out here. It’s the only place they all can gather. Despite the company gone bankrupt, it doesn’t mean they are forever gone. They are after all still bounty hunters. Natsuki then heard because of Tommy’s screw up, Batanen got his leg blown off. She becomes very worried. Oh look, here he comes. He’s fine. Just a scratch. Natsuki is glad to see him and hugs him.

Episode 9
How many days have they not eaten? So on a job to catch their target, they enter the target’s place but no one is around. They instead eat all the food around and fight over it. Damn, they spilt it. Eventually the target is captured by of course Fonne. B*tch mode activating as she warns them about treading on her territory or she’ll really arrest them. Will they become criminals instead? Oh well, Natsuki has some catnip food. Want some? Think not! Sakura then remembers that mushroom bounty she buried and goes to dig it up. Natsuki feels like wanting to team up with Batanen but Sakura disagrees with that idea over some pride thingy. In actuality, if Batanen is around, she won’t have a chance to steal Natsuki’s powers. I mean, well, was she even successful without him around?! Anyone, Tommy blunders by pouring water over the dead mushroom as it revives and escapes. Batanen then gives Natsuki a place where she could get some info for bigger bounty prizes. That place is Mudagami and Gray having this secret computer lab where they sell and trade info for a price. Too bad Sakura wants to do credit… Looks like Mudagami’s belt will be tighter… Natsuki and Sakura head to this next big job as they talk about friendship and the likes. Then as they stake out this abandoned building where human children are being trafficked, Sakura’s idea is to have them lead them to their ringleader. Because Natsuki cannot stand the children being abused, she comes out of her hiding to arrest those mushroom people. After Sakura zaps them, the place is surrounded by police. The ladies try to run but Natsuki being too slow, gets frozen by Peau D’ Roquefort. Sakura abandons her and escapes herself. Natsuki rues her fate and is thrown into prison. Still in a frozen state!

Episode 10
Natsuki fears for her future and look who is here to pour more misery? Yeah, Fonne telling her how offenders will get their memory wiped out on a clean slate! Tommy tries to find Batanen to report what happened but looks like he is out flirting with a chick. Sakura? Not sure what praying to her fox god will do. Will it give her the final tail? Once Batanen and Sakura realize what happened, they blame each other and start arguing. Until Ayami tells them off to go save her! However Sakura won’t go and has Batanen take Bob instead (one of Natsuki’s cats). Back to Natsuki a couple of chameleons in the next cell want her to join in their prison break since they were framed by Fonne and they need to get to their dying mother. They manage to do some tricks for them to break free. Batanen sees Peau and claims her is Natsuki’s fiancé for her release. She’s not buying it and tells them to leave. Then Bob senses something as Batanen and Tommy follow. Crawling through the air vent, the prison escapees arrive at a power plant. The chameleons want Natsuki to destroy it. Apparently the story they told was a lie. They need her powers to destroy the plant and shutting down its power will let other prisoners and their client escape. Natsuki won’t do it so they tell her she has no choice as she is now a criminal. Death penalty for breaking out of prison? This makes Natsuki mad as her power starts activating. Either way, the chameleons are relying on this to destroy the plant. That is when Batanen and Tommy arrive as Bob calms her down. The guys punch out the sneaky chameleons before Peau and the police surround them. Peau is going to re-arrest Natsuki for breaking out as Batanen tries to make a deal with her. Not a bribe. They’ll owe her one if she sets Natsuki free and they’ll forget seeing all this (as it would taint their reputation). Peau agrees to this arrangement and lets Natsuki go. Natsuki is happy to be reunited with Batanen but smells another woman all over him. WTF she slaps him?! Is that a way to treat your saviour?! So she’s sulking back home and holding a grudge as Sakura claims she’ll go live with Batanen if that’s the case. Obviously Natsuki won’t allow that. Sakura suggests if she is so worried about him, put him on a leash. This has Natsuki getting strange ideas and she takes it as ‘permission’ for them to work as Batanen’s partners! Oh Sakura, should’ve shut your big mouth. But yeah, Natsuki back to being that happy girl.

Episode 11
Because Natsuki only has an amateur licence, even the baddies mock her! They get done in by the rest, though. This makes Natsuki sad but I guess the only way is to get a real licence herself, right? Tommy states all the procedures needed to get one. Cool but the last day is tomorrow! It will be some time before they open up for another licence test. So Sakura and Natsuki get down there to get their licence. With Sakura’s sharp shooting skills and Natsuki’s exceptional swordsmanship, they pass the preliminaries. The final is to fight this giant Spartan golem. Now we see the candidates fail one by one. Come Sakura’s turn, she easily destroy it via Achilles heel. She passes but Natsuki as the last candidate has nothing to fight. Can’t pass by default. The instructor suggests fighting him. Yeah, a chance to be a lecher and grope her. Obviously this has Natsuki zap the hell out of him. She passes. To get their licence, they have to get the documents from one government bureaucracy to another. Yeah, see all the government red tape BS? Panicky Natsuki calling Tommy for help when an agency has been destroyed as she is sent rushing to the next prefecture! Can she make it? Of course. Sakura is waiting for her return when an arrested criminal escapes. Fukusuke pleads for Sakura’s help but this time she calls the shots. Not going to work for free. Gonna have to give a better reward than that. After haggling for a much higher price, she agrees. Natsuki returns in time as they both take out this Kirby clone and this whole incident is being aired nationwide. Yeah, sleazy reporters trying to get a low shot of them! Eventually they win but the documents are partially destroyed. Damn government office won’t accept it. Got to go back and get new ones. Sakura flies Natsuki with all her might. Can she make it? Well, 2 minutes late. Can they make an exception? Okay. They say their heroics on TV and allow it. Yeah, they dump it with the pile of next round applications! All that rushing for nothing!

Episode 12
Batanen tells his teammates about their next big gig at Osaka. Apparently they are assigned to be bodyguards of a top priest visiting as he will be signing a very important pact between humans and monsters. Obviously there will be enemies who want to kill him before that happens so this is where they come in. So we see the gang tour around Osaka and obviously the evil goons are watching their movements very closely. A girl goes up to Natsuki and Sakura, claiming she is their biggest fan after watching their heroics. She gives them a bell each as present. While Natsuki is happy, all Sakura can think off is how much she can sell it! And sold it off she did! Well, it was perhaps a good thing because we soon find out that girl was made to do all that by the baddies. There is a tracker inside the bell. So even when Batanen senses they’ve been followed and has the team split up, the baddies aren’t panicking and know they’ll regroup somewhere. That is when they will pounce everything in one fell swoop. Batanen and co go meet the top priest in some hideout. The priest is the young successor to the predecessor who already passed on. Batanen once served him before and that’s how he got the connection. But soon, porcupine monsters start attacking the place. Monks with machine guns? Now I’ve seen everything! Batanen becomes the decoy to lead them all away as he takes them out one by one while the rest stay put to protect the priest. Natsuki remains worried about him even until the coast is clear. So when it is time to go escort the priest to his destination, Natsuki continues to be anxious. But all that turns into relief as Batanen shows his face. Natsuki can’t contain her happiness and rushes into his arms. Oh big guy, it’s not because she’s hungry that she is crying her heart out and throwing a tantrum!

Episode 13
The journey continues via ship but obviously the baddies have planted bombs in it. BOOM! Can Sakura carry all of them to safety? Nope. Too heavy. They manage to survive and take refuge in some cabin in the woods. They talk about if this pact is futile but they continue to maintain some positivity that it has brought some good. They have to start running as bad guys are here to get them. They manage to shake them off but not sure what farm Tommy went to borrow a tractor to continue their journey. Up ahead at the pass, they can see the baddies are waiting for them. They manage to trick them by disguising as farmers but soon Natsuki’s bell gives way and they have to run. Can they outrun a missile? Nope. Boom! They fall off the cliff and the baddies are sure they can’t survive. Lucky thing they decide to go make sure their bodies and obviously they know they are still alive when they can’t find any. Yup, our heroes still live as they landed safely. They continue their journey as they try to hitch a ride. Nobody falling to Sakura’s feminine charms to hitch them one. Yeah, I am guessing they’re all gays! Oh well, continue your running man game as the baddies are here in hi-tech gear to chase them! With sheer dumb luck, our heroes manage to escape and take refuge. It is then the priest realizes Natsuki’s bell has a tracker in it seeing he has sensed some strange vibes from it. The only way is to toss it away but Natsuki can’t do it. Hence Sakura suggests to use it against the baddies and that is for Natsuki to be the decoy while the rest escort the priest to his destination. Sakura accepts the job as she has the baddies hot on her tail. When she is cornered, surprisingly Sakura pops up to help. This is her surprise attack to them. With Natsuki hugging her for this assist, Sakura now thinks it is time to get her powers. She bites her and this is when Natsuki unleashes all her zapping power, not only taking out Sakura but all the other baddies surrounding the place too. I guess Sakura needs to wait till Natsuki is weaker before she can try such stunt again. The priest is escorted safely. It is revealed he has a twin brother who is actually the real priest. Hence Batanen and co have been escorting a decoy. Taken for a ride. But they got the job done so that’s that.

Episode 14
Sakunoshin Chikura is a samurai and on his way to deliver a message to Nobunaga. However Mitsuhide’s ninjas surround him. His beloved Kasumi sacrificed herself so he could complete his mission. Explosion?! Now we see Natsuki and Sakura doing their bounty hunting job but this criminal is a tough one to crack. Yeah, he has a shield. Sakura is taken out while Natsuki is distracted by whatever lizard tail distraction. The criminal is about to get away but Sakunoshin pops up from the time-space explosion. He cuts down the criminal and mistakes Sakura as Kasumi and brings her away. By the time Batanen arrives, the criminal is dead, Sakura is missing but she dropped her gun. As Sakunoshin tries to treat Sakura’s wounds, she wakes up in shock to find herself naked. She thinks he has defiled her and in her panic, runs away. Sakunoshin thinks she is injured that badly. Tommy’s sniffing leads them to Sakunoshin as the samurai introduces himself and his mission. Tommy’s history has Sakunoshin in despair as he realized he was too late to deliver the message to Nobunaga as he died via harakiri. As for Sakura, well, she is back at Natsuki’s home eating her heart out. Depressed? Mad? Definitely. Next day, Sakura realizes that she should have just killed that bugger instead of running away. Now she is fuming mad as she heads to Mudagami and Gray to upload a bounty of this man. This sketch? Whatever. So when the rest sees this online, Batanen realizes what might be happening. Wow, can he call for Tommy to cancel the bounty online just like that?! Oh well, internet in those days… Sakunoshin is in culture shock. This might be hell as he sees all kinds of weird monsters. As for Sakura, the infuriation continues as she is now using cursed dolls to curse that bastard!

Episode 15
Sakunoshin is still confused with everything and regrets letting his lord die. Some gangsters want to harass him for money but he is in no mood for it and shows them their place. I guess they’ll be giving him their money. He goes to eat and coincidentally, Sakura sits next to him. They both stare at each other. I guess it was dark then so they couldn’t see well. Yeah, kinda familiar… When Sakura realizes she cannot pay, Sakunoshin covers for her. Then as they talk, he learns a bit more after what happened after Nobunaga’s death. Pains his heart, eh? So they talk about life and thus Sakunoshin still has someone he wants to find. Gangsters see the bounty and want to bring Sakunoshin in. Yeah, they actually identified him from that lousy sketch?! They attack but get taken out easily. Sakura sees how cool he is and falls head over heels for him. She suggests partnering up and as she shows off her gun skills, Natsuki comes by thinking she is going to shoot him and zaps them both! WTF?! Back home, Sakura doing some cooking and obviously she is in love with samurai boy. But the rest think she is trying to poison him and tie her up! Then when they point out this dude is the guy whom she is trying to kill, her world just crumbles. Yeah, that’s not how she remembered this demon! Tommy examines the sword and theorizes about the time travelling thingy. When Sakunoshin wakes up, the moment he sees Sakura tied up, he attacks her friends thinking they are the enemy. He moves very fast and this even makes Batanen on his toes. Too bad for Natsuki’s dagger, though. He frees Sakura and wants to escape but she whacks him for trying to hurt her friends. After apologizing for the mix up, Sakunoshin is surprised himself that he didn’t realize Sakura is the girl he treated back then and not Kasumi. With Sakunoshin telling them today’s date, this confirms he has time travelled from the past. They continue to explain the current era but who knows how much of that he understood. Sakura has Sakunoshin stay with her. Where else could he go? Yeah, she’s happier with him around. Oh, be sure to take that nail out from that cursed doll! Yeah, it’s been giving Sakunoshin chest pains ever since!

Episode 16
It’s sakura season and spring time means the season of mating! Sakura puts on her best kimono trying to seduce Sakunoshin but he is nowhere to be found. Time to go look for him. Meanwhile Tommy is in love Peau. He waits for her at her usual patrolling and then tries to give this pair of high heels to her. To step all over him?! Obviously embarrassed, she ignores him. Natsuki takes her broken dagger to the swordsmith as he notes some perfect lost arts cut it in half. Hence it is not broken. In exchange, he gives his father’s dagger made of orihalcon too to her so it could be of better use. Then there’s the moment Natsuki seems to be flirty all over Batanen. He is holding it in and when he couldn’t, the damn rain ruins all the mood. Tommy continues to stalk Peau outside her office. Too bad Batanen brings him away since they have a mission. But then Tommy collapses. I hope it’s not love sick! As they nurse him, Tommy thinks Natsuki is Peau so she plays along and promises him a date. And now that he is well, she has to live up to her words. What convenience since Natsuki is the same size as Peau. Batanen dresses her up and puts her perfume scent. And now they’re ready to go on a date. After dinner, they stumble into a fortune telling stall. Hey, isn’t that Peau?! Looks like she is moonlighting to get extra income for some expensive reference book. Since this is illegal for government employees, sly Natsuki is going to take advantage of this if Peau wants to keep this a secret. Hence now Natsuki plays the fortune teller going to tell the couple’s love fortune. What a match! Obvious BS but Tommy is so taken in and believes it. Now he can die happy and wants to be trampled?! DAFAQ?! The physical contact got too much for Peau so she freezes them all and leaves. Meanwhile Sakunoshin is trying to find some battle but to his disappointment, none. Sakura finally finds him and who knows what she is going to do to him. Can he fight his way out of this battle?

Episode 17
So, who are these little brats terrorizing Natsuki and her house? Oh sh*t! You mean last month Sakura gave birth to 3 pups?! You mean she and Sakunoshin really did it?! OH MY! That escalated quickly! WTF are the parents doing?! This is Natsuki’s house and it’s like the freeloaders have taken over! Yeah, Natsuki getting terrorized by all their hyperactive naughtiness and hell, even her cats aren’t spared! When your cats leave, something is really wrong! Natsuki can’t raise a finger towards them as Sakura has warned her. So yeah, the stress is building up. She tries to chill out at the Tachibanas but is this now a day care centre?! Apparently some parent bring her kids… Sakura tries to get some job from Mudagami but since he says there is none and is apparently free, she dumps her kids on him! There. Take care of these critters while she and Natsuki go look for some money. Lucky, they stumble into this mole robber robbing a bank. He gets away via digging underground so they try to follow. They almost get shot by Fonne who is of course in b*tch mode again. But more surprisingly, Kondo is her partner! Yeah, she just joined last week. I guess she has to earn a living somehow. The duo continue their hunt and finally find the mole. However he escapes to the surface and since this is a kindergarten, he takes a kid hostage. Not sure all the trouble Natsuki went through just to ambush him while Sakura distracts him but it worked. Natsuki returns home but no peace and quiet since those brats are turning it into a battlefield. Then as they fight over food, one of them releases an explosive fire that blows up her home! Oh my. What does Sakura and her family do? Flee! Oh, Sakunoshin says going on a journey. I can’t blame Natsuki as she is so up to here and had it. Unfortunately Batanen who is here to check on her, bears the brunt of her zaps as she takes out her pent up frustrations.

Episode 18
For the time being, Natsuki crashes at Batanen’s place. Yeah, a girl at his place, you bet that guy can’t sleep. She seems clingy while she sleeps. To a point Batanen can’t hold himself any longer and pounces on her. Too bad, just a dream! Natsuki cooks for him as she stays there. Then meeting up with Sakura, it seems they not have a condo because Sakunoshin is human, the government provides free housing. On the way back, Natsuki spots a peddler selling wind chimes that represents love. She thinks of not buying them for fear she’ll lose the current happiness she has. Batanen buys it for her anyway and then holds her hand as they walk home. Natsuki is relishing all that and even starts deluding some fantasy. Batanen almost overheard it and in her shock, zaps and destroys the bath. Oh well, have to go the public bathhouse now. Along the way, Batanen hides Natsuki in the alley because he sees his nosy neighbour. She’ll spread gossip if she sees them. So is he ashamed to be seen with her? Eventually they get spotted so the cat’s out of the bag. Back home, Batanen catches Natsuki when she slips after putting up the wind chime. Romantic mood ruined as the nosy neighbour teases them to go all the way. Then Nupu is here to discuss some business with Batanen but sees Natsuki changing. Zap! Thank goodness his home is still fine. Nupu advises Batanen to not hold back because otherwise someone is going to steal her. That night Batanen is about to steal a kiss from sleeping Natsuki. Obviously she isn’t asleep but she is anticipating it. But hell, the phone rings! WHO THE F*CK CALLING AT THIS HOUR?! Oh, it’s Tommy. He got arrested while stalking Peau. Please help. Batanen goes out and Natsuki is clearly agitated and snarling. After Batanen bails Tommy out and returns, looks like Natsuki has packed her bags and left. Looks like she’s staying at Sakura’s place now.

Episode 19
A couple of dirty corrupted politicians get robbed and put in their place by this group known as Cat Cross Army. Basically they’re like the Robin Hood as they rob from the rich and give it all to the poor. However they are soon cornered by Batanen and co who are to arrest them. Stealing is after all still a crime. However they are given the slip. Nupu has been working on this case for a year to expose them. Now that it has come to this, all that is left is to rely on Natsuki. She disguises herself as a stray orphan. She bumps into a fellow brethren, Mao who gets into trouble with the law and both get thrown into the slammer. Thanks to Mao’s guardian freeing her, Natsuki is also freed as Mao feels bad for getting her involved. Natsuki is taken to a church where it houses all the orphan cats. Mao’s guardian is the priest of this place and takes care of them. It seems the Cat Cross Army has provided them with donations and meals from time to time although the kids do not know they are stolen money. They’re just happy they get to eat such meagre meals. With Mao revealing herself to Natsuki that she is part of Cat Cross Army, she invites Natsuki to join and they may get their first mission together. Natsuki returns to her comrades looking in a dilemma. She wants to borrow money from Batanen but he tells her off if she can keep this up for the next week of month. Eventually Sakura lends her some money. Yeah, with interest. Natsuki buys lots of food for those kids. Mao has her suspicions where she got the money but won’t prod further. She hopes she can join Cat Cross Army in tonight’s mission. Natsuki can’t and instead confess her dilemma to the priest about how wrong everything is. Especially about Cat Cross Army how is trying to provide for those that society abandoned. Father knows about Natsuki’s background because he too is the same as other sinners. As a man of God, he has also engaged in crimes to provide for the poor. When his eyesight got worse, Cat Cross Army came to offer help to repay him. Of course this cannot go on forever as he is willing to be arrested. Speaking of which, Cat Cross Army has been busted after Batanen and co were waiting for them at their heist. Mao sees father being arrested and screams Natsuki the traitor. 2 months down the road, a new law has expended the special protection to more than just humans. Though, it’s going to cost the taxpayers more. Natsuki comes by the church to see the kids once in a while as per father’s request. Mao is now managing the place and father will be out on parole soon. Batanen tells Natsuki to be proud of what she did. Had no one stopped them, they would’ve continued to live in fear. But Natsuki has to fear right now the interest rate Sakura is charging her!

Episode 20
While trying to capture a cornered criminal, the panda accidentally blows himself up. Don’t worry, nobody dies. This leads to the gang finding a time capsule left behind by humans. Yeah, to some it is just junk. But soon, a strange dome starts to envelope the ward. The government sent several teams to investigate but none ever came back. Hence there is this very high bounty reward for anybody to get them back. Sounds tempting for Sakura but Batanen throws his caution that with such high sum, it is very risky. He doesn’t have a good feeling about this. Fonne and Kondo enter the dome and never returned too. Sakura gets tempted by the money as she also flies in although she notes some strange stones forming a pentagram shape outside the dome but doesn’t give much thought about it. Nupu sees her entering and also follows suit. Because Sakura never came home, Natsuki tells Batanen and Tommy that she might have entered the dome. I guess it’s their turn to enter. When they do so, they realize they have entered a time period where humans were at their peak. Welcome to Japan. The showa period more specifically. Tommy then sees Peau as they start playing frisbee together before disappearing to parts unknown. Strange, because Natsuki doesn’t see Peau at all. Getting stranger, Batanen’s body regresses into a kid. They walk around trying to look for others and spot Fonne and Kondo’s abandoned machine. Speaking of them, we see snippets of them living their happy human life. Batanen then gets taken hostage by a robber. Nothing that Natsuki can kick and zap him out before the police arrests him. Batanen is a bit injured so Natsuki hugs him and promises to protect him this time. As they continue to walk around, they stumble into Natsuki’s house. It’s still up and in good condition. As they enter, Natsuki is shocked to see her father.

Episode 21
There’s her mom too but she doesn’t remember her quite well. Batanen says with Natsuki and even bathe together?! I guess she is giving this a pass since he is a kid. Batanen now regresses to that of a child as he hides from Natsuki. Yeah, why hide when hoping for her to find him? So you gonna stay there forever if she doesn’t find you? Eventually some scary mouse gnawing the box has him scared and come out of hiding, crying in Natsuki’s arms. They continue to live their happy family life and even Natsuki is starting to forget who Batanen is. Batanen is walking around and meets the other characters, living out their strange happy lives. As Natsuki tries hard to remember Batanen, her zapping accidentally destroys the house. Then an old geezer goes up to do his magic to fix it. She tries to follow him for answers but he is too fast. Then she stumbles into a room whereby her clones are pampering Batanen. The clones attack Natsuki and accuse her for abandoning Batanen. They decide to fight and the winner gets him. That is when Batanen goes to protect Natsuki, breaking the spell and reverting him back to normal. As the illusion is gone, they see the old guy in his discount Stonehenge. They try to approach him but he gets agitated and blows them out of the dome. They are rescued by Sakura. No, it’s her mom. Apparently that old geezer is Sakura’s dad. He wants to see his grandkids and escaped when she wasn’t looking. Mom destroys the pentagram to destroy the dome. Now everyone is free of the spell. Especially Sakura who now realizes it is her old man’s doing. They go reseal him in a box (?!) as mom hopes Sakura will get a proper ceremony and come see them. It is theorized that Natsuki didn’t get swayed by the illusion is because she prefers the current reality with her friends rather than something she couldn’t remember much.

Episode 22
In an attempt to catch this bug criminal, Tommy tries to show off to Peau as he unauthorized rides on Fonne’s plane to go catch it. WTF a portal opens up in the sky and a huge T-Rex floats down and eats the bug before ascending back?! Though, it causes a huge crater. Tommy and Fonne are trapped below. She is injured and needs her meds. He tries to be considerate but this b*tch won’t allow him to get this close to her. Peau is looking for them but when she finds them, slips into the water and starts drowning. Tommy dives in to save her. Peau is fine in hospital. She feels embarrassed he was saved by him. Oh look, he is here to visit her as he explains about the T-Rex ghost causing that crater. She doesn’t believe his story but soon gets a call to seal another hole. Oh sh*t, T-Rex leg sticking out of it? Peau feels bad for calling Tommy a liar as she seals it. However more holes appear and she is forced to go around sealing them. Is there nobody else but her to seal them?! Apparently. Then when she goes to see Tommy at the diner, he isn’t in and the rest said he gets called on by some woman. This makes Peau jealous that he proclaimed his love for her but disappears off with another woman. Not only Peau has to seal the holes but she has to investigate its cause and she is close to none of that. Tired and overworked, finally she gets some time to spend with Tommy. Wow. So relaxed with him. Until she learns he was with Fonne and then loses her cool thinking he is cheating on her and freezes his ass. So, are they even dating?! Next day in the streets, stalking Peau sees Tommy with Fonne. Too bad Fonne treats him as her abused pet and making him do errands. Peau confronts Fonne about this as they argue over Tommy. Natsuki tries to stop them but the women tell her to butt out. So much so her zapping causes a hole in the sky. So Natsuki is the cause?

Episode 23
Sakura is happy thinking she is blessed with this life of hers. Until of course she hears Sakunoshin mention about Kasumi’s name in his sleep. Oh well, time to fly into a rage! If only that old flame didn’t exist! Since Sakunoshin continues to do that, Sakura has had it and runs away back to her parents’ place. Of course she has an ulterior motive. With mom away, she unseals dad so as to throw her back in time before Sakunoshin met Kasumi. She’ll get rid of her then. She is now back in that era but how does she know how Kasumi looks like? Ah, this person who looks like her. Good thing Kasumi introduced herself so Sakura whips out her gun trying to kill her. Meanwhile Natsuki witnesses Sakura’s kids vanishing into thin air. Trying to tell the rest about this, nobody remembers about Sakura. Besides, Sakunoshin is married to Kondo who is Natsuki’s partner. Natsuki is shocked that Police Company is now a huge organization. She goes to see Mudagami and it seems he knows that someone went back in time and altered history. He hints he is some sort of god. Gray continues to explain about Kasumi and Sakura being related so when Sakura killed her off, she ceased to exist. So to say without Sakura, everyone is prospering? Natsuki feels sad for everyone to forget about her. Yeah, why is Natsuki the other only one who remembers her? Since she wants Sakura back, they suggest doing that lightning zap thingy. Oh you know, that opens portals, right? And with that, Natsuki goes back in time. Heck, can she go back to a specific period? Meanwhile, Sakura tries to kill Kasumi. Damn, her bullets cannot outmatch her athletic skills! Kasumi blunders but before Sakura kills her, Natsuki zaps the jealous woman out. Sad at this interruption at first, she realizes the consequences after Natsuki explains it. Sakura decides to go back since she cared so much and remembered her. When they return, everything reverts to how it is. But there is 1 thing Sakura couldn’t get. If Kasumi died in the original timeline, how can Sakura still be alive if she is related? Natsuki’s flimsy excuse is that she is a reincarnation of Kasumi and love transcends time! WTF. Whatever. Sakura returns to her happy life and thanks Natsuki for remembering her. Short clip shows after Kasumi was supposedly killed, she wasn’t actually 100% dead as the villagers rescued her.

Episode 24
Fonne talking how nice it would be if there is a country exclusively only for humans. Kondo suggests saving up enough to buy an island in which she can be queen. Hopefully she can join in this country of hers. Yeah. F*cking racists! Meanwhile Ayami accidentally breaks Natsuki’s wind chime. Obviously the latter is depressed but nothing that Makoto can’t improvise and fix it back to normal. Sakura and Natsuki meet up with Batanen and Tommy to catch a criminal that slipped away. Thus Ayami is left to care for Sakura’s kids. At the park, as the kids pick up a dragon critter, suddenly it attacks Ayami. Luckily Fonne is nearby as she fights it. Her bullets can do no jack sh*t against it and furthermore it can clone itself and zap a powerful discharge. Kondo is severely injured as the critter disappears. Fonne takes Kondo to the ICU where she lies in comatose state. When the rest arrive, Fonne launches her racist tirade about humans and monsters cohabitating together. Yeah, you’re not welcome here. Get out. Unfortunately Natsuki took this to heart and so she’s also facing her own dilemma. Then as they try to talk to Ayami, obviously she is very shaken up so it’s not a good time to talk to her. As Natsuki ponders about the cohabitation, Mudagami and Gray pop up to conveniently tell her that long ago, humans and monsters lived in separate realms and never mixed. Because humans did lots of bad things, that barrier was broken and monsters came flooding in. That day was known as the Day of Catastrophe. Had it not happen, today’s cohabitation will not be possible. Peau talks to Sakura’s kids and giving them scary mug shots to have them identify the culprit. Not kid friendly. Tommy knows how to deal with kids so he shows them some kiddie monster illustration encyclopaedia in which they soon naturally pinpoint the culprit. As Natsuki visits Kondo in hospital, the critter pops up before her and tries to agitate her by saying if both sides lived separately, this would never have happened. Natsuki gives chase and obviously she is being led. At the same time, Kondo dies and this makes Fonne very mad. She goes out to get revenge and sees Natsuki fighting the critter. She tries to intervene but the critter puts her out of commission. Seeing Fonne’s defeat, Natsuki becomes devastated as her powers go berserk. She disappears along with the critter. Now she finds herself in a different era.

Episode 25
The mastermind behind is this discount Dracula who wants Natsuki to use her powers to close the door so that Day of Catastrophe will never happen. Yeah, another f*cking racist. Oh, so this potato blob is the door that caused that day?! Meanwhile everybody is looking for missing Natsuki. But Sakura is smarter as she hounds Mudagami for answers. Knowing he is a god and that Natsuki has been whisked to another timeline, Mudagami unfortunately cannot do anything. Because only Natsuki somehow has the power to control it as seen in certain events like that dome, she was the only one unaffected. Hence it all depends on her decision. Natsuki is further spammed by Dracula dude about human living happy lives if that day did not happen. As she prepares to do so, she sees a vision of an alternate world if it was so. Natsuki living as a normal high school human girl. She seems pretty lost about her future even if she has a friend to talk and give some advice. We see other characters with different lives like Peau a newscaster and Batanen a real dog! One day, Natsuki sees a street peddler (Sakura) selling some items. The wind chime got her attention but since she has no money, Sakura gets disappointed, gives it to her for free and then closes shop. WTF? Because she has no home, Natsuki drags her back to hers. So, picking up stray cats is one thing, now a homeless person? What does her parents have to say about that! Further talking with Sakura, it seems despite Sakura has no money, she is happy and free to do what she wants. Because of that, Natsuki soon decides on her future. Back to current time, Natsuki destroys the door instead and sends the mastermind into despair. She loves this world where everyone lives together. Especially Batanen. Natsuki returns to her normal timeline and to her favourite friends. Meanwhile Peau arrests the mastermind who turns out to be her superintendent for attempted murder. Yeah, that critter pet belongs to him. I guess he is in so much despair, he doesn’t even resist arrest. F*cking racist. More good news as Kondo is back alive and Ayami is back to her normal self. Natsuki continues her bounty hunting job with the rest. The world might not be perfect and has lots of crimes but she loves working to make it a little better for everyone. Slowly but surely? Feels like it will take a long time…

2 Broke Girls…
That’s right, people. Always the status quo and obvious solution that many good guys always take. The current present sh*tty timeline is always better than any other timeline even if it is way more peaceful and less dangerous. Because being selfish and not undoing all the memories that you have had with your friends and family in your current life still beats wiping it all out for a more peaceful and just world without that. And if you don’t want to cohabit with different kinds of people and species, you’re just plain f*cking racist! Oh wow. Even such a retro anime back in 1997 has woke vibes. Or it’s just me overthinking about this as the season reaches its conclusion with such a trope. Yeah, sadly living in today’s pitiful era makes you wonder if you would go back in time and shut off the door that made this wokeness a monster today! Oh my! Would I? Nah! Wouldn’t want to change a thing! Hah. Oh well, went off tangent there. Where was I…

Anyway, the series’ story feels a lot random and like standalone. Uh huh. There is no serious plot to follow at all and even if there was, it was just for a small mini arc that perhaps don’t really matter in the bigger picture. Hence the series is about our main characters trying to eke out a living as bounty hunters as well as all the misadventures they face during their stint. That’s pretty much it. Though, I read there were some differences between the manga source and this animated version like the characters although I did not delve much into it. After all, having such random episodes gives a lot of leeway on the kind of misadventures our characters will go through. Imagine starting out as some bounty hunting shenanigans and then throwing in some iffy romance between the characters before the theme of racial issues as the series’ closure. Jumping here and there, aren’t we? Thank goodness it’s not isekai! Is it?!

While some are more straight forward and can just end everything in that episode (like that Cat Cross Army one), some others they can have lots of strange encounters that don’t make sense and this is probably why some episodes left me confused and all. For example, when portals start to open and it was said Natsuki was the source. Like, huh? Did I miss something? Because she has been zapping things whenever her emotions run dry and I thought it was the series’ running joke for some electrifying moments (sorry, bad pun). And then suddenly, all of a sudden her lightning zaps are able to open dimensions to another timeline?! Did I really miss something here?! Of course it is all for that final stretch of the season which could’ve been something else but I suppose we needed some kind of final arc drama of Natsuki choosing whether or not she wants both sides to live together. Obviously, as a veteran I already knew the answer she was going to pick. It would’ve been more shocking had she chosen otherwise. So all is well, ends well. Pretty cliché. Nothing more to see here. Go back to your normal lives in this weird melting pot timeline. At least we can’t call Natsuki a racist. Heh.

Yeah, I guess it was a good try in trying to give this series some sort of such theme. Oh you know, the setting of humans being protected species because they are so few in numbers. Heh. Never knew humans would become such a special category even way better than UN’s endangered species list. Strange indeed. Thankfully, Human Lives Matter wasn’t such a thing back then… But I guess with such a setting, this gives lots of flexibility for the producers to animate lots of weird looking creatures. When you start thinking that monsters are the one doing all the mischiefs and crimes, it makes humans looking like angels but then you have to remember, homo sapiens are far and few in between and that’s why we don’t see any of them committing such atrocious acts in society. Monsters taking over the role of humans, huh?

With the story being in such fashion, the burden falls on the characters to deliver but honestly I feel that they are mainly a mixed baggage. In short, they are the same characters you know from the start and remain so in the end. A bit of drama here and there, maybe some like Sakura has changed a bit but overall she is still basically very much the same conniving woman. Hence for Natsuki the main character, she is your typical good natured and sweet girl who is struggling to make a living while also juggling the feelings of her heart. It is obvious she likes her senpai but because of her innocence, it’s like she can’t bring herself to face more adult styled romance and hence the running joke of zapping Batanen when things get a little bit spicy. Other than that, the mystery of that power of hers is not explained and it is possible that she could actually be the child of some god. I mean, only gods can have powers like opening portals to another dimension, right? So what if her human father and monster mother was just her foster parents? Since this was never addressed in the series, I’m just going to leave it as that. Because no point in me getting headaches and sleepless nights trying to think about it and never getting answers for it.

So I’ll just remember Natsuki as one who tries to uphold the law by reading criminals their rights (flubbing her lines most of the time) and turning into her usual cat-like behaviour when cat-like distractions are made. But the biggest mystery of it all: How can Natsuki maintain and live in her decently big Japanese house if she is this broke and her income is not fixed?! Even if we assume she inherited it from her father, do you know how much it takes to maintain her house? Filled with furniture! And she’s got decent food to eat! HOW?! And she’s always close to being broke, you know. I don’t think she has a habit of borrowing from others or if she moonlights in other jobs. Oh well, since it got destroyed, looks like it is under perpetual construction. I guess this proves she is broke as she got no money to renovate and move back. Only her cats live there now…

Then there is Sakura who looks like the troublemaker of the group. She is quite a devious character and if you remember, her goal of joining forces with Natsuki is to get her tail so she can complete hers. But ever since she got hitched to that samurai guy, she has dropped that goal. Or at least we never hear her wanting to pounce on Natsuki or even see her attempting it like previously whereby suddenly and randomly they show us Sakura’s futile dumb attempts for another steal. I guess that is the biggest change for Sakura because now that she is a happily married woman, whatever pride in completing her 9 tails seem like so unimportant now. But she’s still a shrewd person and also a broke girl when it comes to money despite having better knack for handling money. Too bad Sakunoshin feels like a very unimportant character. Ever since his debut and then knocking up the foxy lady, he has fallen into obscurity and I see him like an unemployed guy bumming around doing nothing. What’s worse than being a ronin? Why, being a NEET! Get what I’m saying?! I guess being human as a protected species gives him lots of special privileges. Wow. Why does that sound so familiar and woke in today’s standards…

I believe that Natsuki would have been further lost down the road had she not have this single person whom she always trusts and relies: Batanen. Yup, he is quite a reliable senior and does his best to look out for her and sometimes give her some hard advice and facts of life and reality. Also because obviously he is in love with her but can’t make any rash moves despite his perverted horny desires at times because as we all have seen, innocent Natsuki would just zap the sh*t out of him. That should zap all that horniness out. So when will these 2 get together officially? Who knows? Maybe when they’re ready. Which isn’t enough time in this anime. I don’t know if I should say if they can take their time because Batanen is immortal so well… Nothing can kill this guy so why isn’t he being all reckless going all out to complete the mission? Oh right. Pain is real. (Spoiler alert: End of manga had them married! Hooray!). Then there’s Tommy who is hovering in between a comic relief as well as the nerd genius guy. Not as experienced as Batanen and sometimes making some screw ups but at times shows his genius like his proficiency in history and handling of kids. Tries to score with Peau who could’ve been a cold hearted woman but in the end, she softens up is it because she has a soft spot for Tommy who never gives up in getting her to like him? Maybe. Thank goodness this doesn’t play out too often or I am forced to think this would turn into that Looney Tunes’ character of Pepe Le Peau Pew and Penelope! Oh my!

I’m sure the character whom we all love to hate is Fonne because of how much she looks down on the monsters especially our characters. She likes to brag her superiority to them even especially when they are down or just failed their mission. Yeah, like we get it! Can you just STFU and GTFO?! Too bad the characters can’t lift a finger towards her or talk back because as a minority race, Fonne gets a free pass (why does this seem so wokefully familiar?!) and also because characters like Natsuki are so good natured that she is willing to just take the lecture. Well, it is true that they flopped on their mission. But still, sadly they didn’t kill off this b*tch and Kondo almost got that. Perhaps it is that having a partner like Kondo, Fonne doesn’t seem to be all that spiteful and has toned down a bit. But still a b*tch in my books. On a side note as I read, Kondo feels very insignificant and negligible in the anime unlike the manga in which she has more prominent roles.

Lastly, Mudagami and Gray, it makes me wonder if they are fallen gods and demons because it’s like they hold the script of the series and knows what is going on. Or perhaps they are still that but are only watching and can’t interfere. Either way, they don’t stand out unless the plot tells them to. And even being deities can’t make them overcome the issue of money. Yeah. Really. What’s with Mudagami’s weird eye bags? Did he have not enough sleep and spent time jerking off every night?! JUST KIDDING! And Gray keeps complaining she is still single and not married. Hey, I thought Mudagami was a pair with her? Oh right. Mudagami is married and complains about his wife running his life. As already mentioned about the nature of the series, many other minor characters that appear in 1 or 2 episodes, they don’t really appear again. Like that top priest whose predecessor was Batanen’s friend. Or that son of the lizard mafia who vowed revenge. Maybe he hasn’t grown up enough yet. Or remember that pig brothers whose leader was never captured? Or least not seen so because I guess they don’t want to bore us with such an unimportant character. I guess Miri is done playing good cop and prefer the rich spoilt princess life, huh? For other minor supporting characters like the Tachibanas or Nupu, they just play supportive roles and nothing more than that.

Art and animation are definitely very dated as you can see this 1997 production eking out the animation style of that era. Unfortunately, I can’t say that the production quality is satisfactory because in many scenes, there are visual downgrades and the characters or the background looking a bit simplistic. Sorry, maybe it is not the DVD quality that I watched. Some character designs are strange for example, Batanen. It is just freaking odd to see him having a human face and then huge kangaroo ears popping out from his head. And that big plume of fluffy dog tail. Like, uhm, is this really what a werewolf looks like? At least Tommy is more ‘believable’ as he has a dog face. Same case for Sakura. Human face but big animal ears sticking out like a sore thumb as well as her big fluffy tail. This anime was done by Pierrot who animated many legendary titles like Bleach, Naruto, Tokyo Ghoul, Black Clover, Yuu Yuu Hakusho and GTO. Thus personally I understand this is one of their lesser qualities and not so well known works.

Initially I didn’t want to comment on the voice acting since it’s pretty standard. But I have to point out Chiyako Shibahara who is the voice behind Sakura. At first she sounded a bit raw and crude and I found it a bit weird. However that is only because I am not used to the Osakan accent in which her Sakura character speaks very heavily upon. That’s right. Because of that Kansai-ben, it makes her character sound very crude. Unlike others like Natsuki and Batanen that sounds so typically anime-like, that is why when Sakura first spoke in the initial episodes, it struck me off as weird. But of course I got used to it. As for the rest of the cast, some I have never heard of like Yuuko Miyamura as Natsuki, Ryuuzou Ishino as Tommy, Yumi Hikita as Kondo, Yuri Amano as Peau, Naoki Bando as Mudagami, Kanako Mitsuhashi as Gray, Wakami Yamazaki as Ayami, all could’ve already retired while others that I have heard from time to time in the industry are Akio Ootsuka as Batanen, Kotono Mitsuishi as Fonne, Toshihiko Seki as Sakunoshin and is that the late Keiji Fujiwara as Makoto?! The opening is retro rock music. That’s Hypertension by Aya reeks retro energetic rock vibes and somewhat to my liking. As for the ending theme, it’s a cute duet between Natsuki and Sakura. Hold Up is a mix between rock and jazzy-cum-funky vibes that makes the song have its own cute charms.

Overall, this retro series might be obscure and couldn’t stand up to other ‘giants’ that was released in the same season of spring 1997 like Slayers Try, Revolutionary Girl Utena, Clamp Campus Detectives, Shin Tenchi Muyou and Kindaichi Shounen No Jikenbo (can I consider the original Chuuka Ichiban in this category too?), but in its own right, it is still funny and enjoyable. That is, don’t think too much of the loopholes that the anime doesn’t provide answers for and you’ll be okay. Also, personally the only slight downside of watching this show from this point in time and era, it’s hard not to compare and do some referencing with all the wokeness of today but thankfully I’m such an open minded guy :-). Yeah. In the end, I’d rather have these bunch of funny bounty hunters who fail in some of their missions but can still smile and eat together rather than police brutality any time!