Rating: 
Summary: I want my bubbleguMTV
Review: As you should know, most of J-pop and MTV music video are worthless. Then, how surprising that Hurricane Live, which features songs in music video format with images culled from the series Bubblegum Crisis, comprises some of the best pop songs and cool visuals ever.
For admirers of Bubblegum Crisis it's a well-known fact that the series is great on many levels, not least in its musical department. Songs range from hard rock to love ballads, from catchy pop tunes to elegiac lamentations. Also, the singer for the first Hurricane Set, Omori Kinuko, had a truly rare quality, almost extinct in today's pop music culture: a quality simultaneously tough and vulnerable, fierce and gentle.
Songs like Mad Machine are as thoughtful and complex in laying out sci-fi themes of technology out of hand; other songs are about being lonely in a faceless crowd, the irrepressible life spirit, the romance of rebellion, sad love for a lost friend, the power to overcome hopelessness and face the new day.
Comparable to Beatles' Rubber Soul, Stone's Between the Buttons, and Beach Boys' Pet Sounds.
Rating:
Summary: Bubblegum Universe to Expand Indefinitely
Review: Bubblegum Crisis is the greatest work of anime and perhaps one of the greatest artworks of the 20th century. It's modern myth in the making, in many respects comparable to Arthurian legends and Greek myths. This may sound silly as a description of animated series, but the impulse and imagination behind Bubblegum Crisis are identical to those that gave birth to some of mankind's greatest achievement in art and spirituality.
Bubblegum Crisis is about the need to preserve humanity in body and spirit in an everchanging world of technological innovation and dominance. The world is Megatokyo of 2032, national boundaries have become meaningless, our planet is dominated by great multi-national corporations. The sense of technological might have corrupted mankind into slaveowners over a new robotic race called boomers; it has also created a would-be leader of the boomers--born of perverse fusion of flesh and metal--, named Largo, who, exulting in powers unknown to man and boomer, dreams of becoming god. Against world out-of-balance this are the Knight Sabers, representing the harmonious and complementary melding of man and technology. They are the modern Amazon warriors, strong and fierce but beautiful and graceful. The leader of this troop is Sylia Stingray, brilliant, wise, but also necessarily worldly. The greatest character, one of the greatest females ever created, is Priss Asagiri. Headstrong, passionate, sublimely beautiful with a mane of flaming hair, often seeing roaring down the highway on her superbike, she reminds us again and again, for all eternity, what a wonder is man, or better yet, a woman.
Kenichi Sonoda served as character designer. His Priss in Armour suit belongs in the Louvre. The music is excellent and the Vocal tracks rank alongside the best pop songs of the Beatles and the Beach Boys.
Rating:
Summary: 80's cyberpunk rock video mecha girl classic
Review: Future post-earthquake Tokyo has all-powerful corporation Genom taking complete control, were it not for interference from a vigilante mercenary super hero girl group called the "Knight sabers".This is one of the best anime series projecting beautiful, sexy women in a non-degrading way. The Knight Sabers leader (Dr. Stingray) is a super-genius who designed (and keeps improving) the hard suits which are the only thing that can defeat Genom's android fighting units. Anime pinup idol Priss, the toughest one, is as daring on a motorcycle as she is beautiful. Linna is a great athlete while Nene is a computer hacker. Inter-personal relationships between these 4 are done really well. There are lots of fighting scenes for those into that, but the story is really about the state of society (a possible future for us) and why the girls put their buts on the line and try to change what they can. The music is like what MTV used to play, back when they actually played music videos. Those really into this (Or fans needing to see more of the Knight Sabers in action) will love the "Hurricane Live" bonus DVD. Kind of nostalgic, but not obnoxious as some 80's revival stuff tends to be. Overall this MegaSeries is a great value with all 8 "OAV" episodes in this box set. The animation is a bit dated compared with more recent releases, but the story line is still better than most recent releases. Anime doesn't get much better than this. A must for "best of class" collectors. (Word on the 'net is that this OAV series is superior to later derivatives).
Rating: 
Summary: not what i expected, but cool nonetheless
Review: I picked this dvd up by mistake thinking it was somthing else haveing to do with BGC. When i got home i popped it into the dvd player and it turned out to be a delightful collection of music videos pertaining to the original OAV series of BGC. After i got done slapping my forhead for my stupidity i watched what was there and loved it. If you love the music for BGC you will love this extra.
Rating:
Summary: A Slightly Worn-Out Classic
Review: In post-apocalypse Mega Tokyo (just how many times has Tokyo been demolished and then rebuilt in anime?), the GENOM Corporation manufactures intelligent androids called "Boomers." They were instrumental in the rebuilding of the city after the earthquake, but sometimes they get a little malicious and destructive . . . and the bumbling AD Police, the force assigned to stop rogue Boomers, usually can't stop them. But the Knight Sabers--a mercenary group of four young women in advanced hardsuits--can. Led by briliant leader Sylia Stingray, the team battles errant Boomers and unveil some of the more sinister projects and conspiracies going on beneath the giant ediface of GENOM and its imposing tower. This is the original OAV series, which has inspired several knockoffs (Bubblegum Crash, AD Police Force, and most recently Bubblegum Crisis 2040). On the surface, it doesn't seem like a terribly original anime--"women in sexy uniforms stop malfunctioning and malicious robots" is what the plotline often boils down to--but there's some attention to detail and storyline that sets it apart from the crowd. There are, for one, the Blade Runner references and homages--it's pretty clear from the very first episode that this is really a homage to that great Ridley Scott film by the animators. Second is the animation quality--dated, perhaps, by current standards, but very high quality for its day. The action scenes are still quite well-directed, though so many animes have taken after BGC and stolen designs, concepts, and other aspects enough that watching it now makes it seem very familiar, much like reading quotes from Shakespeare that have now become cliches. As far as story and character go, the notable episodes are 5, 6, and 7, all which deal with some difficult decisions that the characters have to face. There's some basic emotional resonance there absent from the rest of the series, which are otherwise run-of-the-mill action plots. Characterization-wise, most of the main girls fall into well-known "types" one finds in action films and anime, so there's nothing to write home about in particular. Now, of course, one can't talk about BGC without mentioning the music, which is for the most part top-notch, then-state-of-the-art-produced 80s J-pop. The melodies are better developed than most of the dreck that topped the charts in that decade, though age has inevitably made some tunes sound rather "cheesy." But the music always fits the action on screen, and the DVD set includes some decent music videos for the songs (the non-live action ones, that is. The live concert videos, alas, are incredibly embarassing to watch now). BGC has, ultimately, become a classic and is well worth watching to examine the roots of many current anime tropes. You won't watch it to be emotionally involved or intellectually provoked, but it's lost little of its charm and fun over the years.
Rating:
Summary: Blade Runner Anime Style
Review: Takes place in the same universe "Bubblegum Crisis", but before Knight Sabers existed. Robots called Boomers, look just like humans, are very intelligent and work in the cities for the humans doing a variety of tasks such as construction, cleaning and even sexual services. Sometimes these robots malfunctioned and ended up killing innocent people. The A.D. Police force was created to destroy malfunctioning boomers. What I liked about this series was the good quality of animation, action, sound fx, and tense story telling, it has all the makings of a great anime. With its futuristic cities and noire over-tone it has a similar look and feel like the movie, Blade Runner. The Boomers are robots that look and act like humans; they are like the Replicants. In a way, the A.D. Police are like Blade Runners. I also enjoyed this anime because the cop, �Leon� is a good character, and I always wanted some background on him. Blood and gore, nudity, for adults only. Each episode is self contained so you can watch any of them and not feel lost in the story. Ends on 3 then connects with the anime Bubblegum Crisis 2030
Rating:
Summary: Music Videos Dedicated to the Beautiful Knight Sabers :-)
Review: The final DVD in the original Bubblegum Crisis series presents thirteen music videos based on the series. Two videos are of live-action concert footage by the main voice actresses of the series, one video ("Say Yes!") mixes live-action concert footage with animation from the much-loved series, "Touchdown to Tomorrow" introduces new animation of the Knight Sabers as a rock group, and the others present excellent music with the best action scenes from the series. For those who have not seen the original Bubblegum Crisis series, or for those who absolutely love the series, the Hurricane Live videos present a beautiful and inspiring overview of the entire series. The series, inspired by Blade Runner and itself a tremendous influence on following anime, is full of fast-paced action and incredible music. This DVD provides anime newcomers with an excellent introduction to the world of anime.
Rating:
Summary: One of the Best '80s Anime Series Finally Gets a Box Set :-)
Review: The original Bubblegum Crisis is one of the best-known and most-loved anime series. Each of the four DVDs is available separately, but all can finally be purchased at once. The first DVD presents the first three episodes of the Bubblegum Crisis series. The first episode presents the post-earthquake world of MegaTokyo in 2032, with Genom Corporation's Boomers wreaking havoc in the city, and a band of four women (the Knight Sabers) in hardsuits protecting the innocents. The second episdoe focuses on one of the women, Linna, and a close friend who is targeted by a Genom executive. In the final episode, the conflict between Genom and the Knight Sabers escalates. The second DVD presents the episodes 4-6 of the Bubblegum Crisis series. Episode 4 steps away from the Genon-Knight Saber conflict to one man's deep-rooted hatred for a biker gang and his attempt to extract a very high-tech revenge. The fifth episode begins with a group of women attempting an escape from a top-secret space station, leading to the most personal injury Priss has ever received at the hands of a fabled Boomer model. Episode 6 presents the greatest challenge yet to the Knight Sabers, in the form of an evil group of "Knight Sabers" seeking to eliminate the real Genom-fighting quartet. The third DVD of the original Bubblegum Crisis series contains my favorite episodes of the series. Episode 7 of the series introduces an American idol singer, Vision, who suddenly comes out of obscurity to start a new concert tour, beginning in Tokyo, although she really has revenge on her mind. The final episode of the original BGC series finds a snoopy reporter working with one of the Knight Sabers to uncover the identities of the fabled all-female fighting force even as Genom launches a new line of Boomers specifically to defeat the Knight Sabers. Finally, the disc ends with four BGC music videos featuring the music of the series' own music group Priss and the Replicants set against excellent footage of the Bubblegum Crisis series. The final DVD in the original Bubblegum Crisis series presents thirteen music videos based on the series. Two videos are of live-action concert footage by the main voice actresses of the series, one video ("Say Yes!") mixes live-action concert footage with animation from the much-loved series, "Touchdown to Tomorrow" introduces new animation of the Knight Sabers as a rock group, and the others present excellent music with the best action scenes from the series. For those who have not seen the original Bubblegum Crisis series, or for those who absolutely love the series, the Hurricane Live videos present a beautiful and inspiring overview of the entire series. Each DVD is constructed extremely well. With the exception of the Hurricane Live DVD (the last in the set), all offer Japanese and English audio; all four DVDs have English and French subtitle options, as well as a musical image gallery featuring highlights of the episodes on each disc. The only downfall to the DVD construction is that there is no way to play all episodes of each DVD sequentially. The series, inspired by Blade Runner and itself a tremendous influence on following anime, is full of fast-paced action and incredible music. This DVD Box Set provides anime newcomers with an excellent introduction to the world of anime.
Rating:
Summary: Please be well aware...
Review: There isn't much I can add to all the other reviews but one: The original 3 DVD's gave you the option to either listen to the English or Japanese soundtracks. Personally I hate the English track but if for some reason you preferred English over Japanese, for the serie as well as the music, then this DVD is not for you.
This blast from the past houses all the music from the Bubble Gum Crisis but only in their original language. If you never listened to the Japanese tracks on the BGC DVD's before now would be a good time to do so (after putting this disk in your wishlist, believe me: you'll need it later on :-)).
Rating:
Summary: Good? Yeah Right!
Review: This has got to be one of the BEST animations I have ever seen. Great transitions from action to calmness then exploding in eyepopping effects. To put it kindly, if you Don't watch this movie, You WILL regret it. And may you rot in peice. Drake
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