Bubblegum Crisis

genre: cyberpunk / science-fiction / action

Seven years ago, a second great earthquake had leveled areas in around MegaTokyo. But, as in the past, the crowded city has rebuilt itself. The construction boom has brought on its own problems -- the rapid introduction of a new type of mecha, the "boomer," has not only produced the mega-corporation, GENOM, but has also brought on the infiltration of high-tech crimes. In an attempt to address these crimes, a special division of the police force -- the AD Police -- has been formed. But even these officers are no match for the new mecha that seem to spring daily...

Four women, however, can. Led by Sylia Stingray, whose father was killed in a boomer-related incident, the Knight Sabers don their powered combat armour to fight boomer crimes -- for a price. The other members: Nene Romanova, also works as a computer operator for the AD Police, Linna Yamazaki, an aerobics instructor, and Priss, the lead singer of a small-time band, The Replicants.

This ground-breaking eight episode OAV series features character and mechanical designs by the innovative Sonoda Kenichi, and a driving pop-rock beat. Many consider this to be the definitive work of the cyberpunk genre, and is rightly called a "classic." Videos are distributed by AnimEigo in North America, and is available on VHS or LD, both subtitled and dubbed. Two music videos are also available, Hurricane Live 2032 and Hurricane 2033, as well as a CD-ROM screen-saver from Software Sculptors.

Parental Guidance Advised - Borderline 'recommended for mature audiences'. Fair amount of graphic violence, including one particularly nasty scene where a police officer is literally ripped to shreds by a barrage of bullets from a gatling gun. Language in the dialogue is sometimes quite strong , and some strong sexual content in episode 5, plus the constant homosexual innuendos by Daley. Instances of nudity are present in most of the episodes.