Doin' it wrong.
It’s a real pleasure to see Sunrise putting out a series that’s not mecha. It’s an even bigger pleasure to see them put out a series that’s not disappointing. But when you combine the two? Now that’s just a treasure of heroic proportions and that’s precisely what Tiger and Bunny is, heroic.
Stylin'.....but still wrong -_-.
Now don’t get me wrong here, T&B is far from being labelled an instant classic but it has a certain quality that a lot of the other so-called classics- and if you ask me a lot of anime that has come out in the last couple of years-lack and that is heart. From the very first episode the viewer is assaulted with a seemingly relentless barrage of camp and flash and cheap visual gags but once you’ve gotten your toes wet you begin to feel the inkling of an incline below the water’s surface that suggests the water may be a little bit more than just shin deep. Even if it may only turn out to be waist deep ^_^;.
Wrong...on so many levels.
This brings me back to the issue of “heart”, the driving force in this series is, without a doubt, the characters. They all feel very organic and expressive and what’s more they act like main characters in their own right (from Karina’s insistent Tsundereness to Keith’s theatrical antics and even Ivan’s brooding over his supposed “uselessness”). They all have healthy egos with believable, interesting motivations and fun pesonalities that mesh quite well with each other. It goes without saying that they make a better team than the troubled children of EVA or the one-man-band that is the Z-fighters or even the master-servant team ofthe SOS brigade but I digress. The characters give the show a lighthearted and natural feel that makes it pulsate and resonate with both the casual viewer as well as the serious anime aficionado. Heart, they’ve got it.
Wook at the widdle cwimefighters XD
I think a series that is unafraid of laughing at itself and that recognizes the silliness of its premise deserves respect. You can see that in how the Heroes treat the business of crimefighting like any other job by going out to buy groceries or hitting the bar when the day is over [reminds me of a special mini comic I read in the back of Niel Gaiman’s special Batman epilogue story “Whatever Happened to the Caped Crusader” where Batman and the Joker are sitting in the green room waiting for their chance to ‘come onstage’ in the panels of the comic. They discuss such mundane topics as the job market or how each other’s families are doing (can you imagine the Batman or the Joker as a middle-aged working man with a wife and two kids? *shudder*)]. T&B plays this up well without undermining the actual importance of the work they do in maintaining the city’s peace (Kotetsu takes his superheroing ESPECIALLY seriously).
Which brings me to the titular characters themselves Kotetsu “Wild Tiger” Kaburagi and Barnaby “Bunny-chan” Brooks Jr. are the anime reincarnations of Starsky and Hutch. Their special brand of teamwork occupies a comfy niche between Batman and Robin and the Odd Couple and it’s the reason I kept coming back week after week.
"We're from the National Superheroing Observational Board; Division 6."
Kotetsu is a strong contender for most likeable anime protagonist of all time and is probably a definite frontrunner for most likeable anime character of the year. In his role as the well-meaning idiot hero he doesn’t cross the line that so many of his predecessors have so egregiously run over in the past (I’m looking at you pre-timeskip Naruto, Luffy, and Black Star). I would like to say that it’s because he’s an adult with a child to take care of and so on, but then what would be Goku’s excuse? No, good characterization is what’s at work here and that’s that. Plus, the dude’s fecking hilarious!
Not so funny however is his physically perfect partner Bunny. Now, as far as characters of this archetype go I have to say he’s a lot less overbearing than most of your Ishida Uryuu’s and your Sasuke Uchiha’s and way more expressive than your Joe the Condors or Ogami Rei’s. The thing is, while Bunny is indeed the classic “reluctant partner” his progression is more gradual and believable than others because it’s consitent (from the moment he receives his nickname from Kotetsu his atitude towards his partner begins to improve). Barnaby plays an excellent Tsukkomi to Kotetsu’s Boke and he’s no slouch in the combat department either. Oh, and let’s not forget his most important role as yaoi fangirl bait (let me put it like this: it is easier to find non homoerotic fan art of the show’s one ACTUALLY gay character than it is for these two -_-).
And this is among the STRAIGHTER stuff I've seen -_-;;;.
Both Tiger and Bunny play off of each other’s strengths and weaknesses quite well and near the end of the series this dynamic comes into play in a very big and satisfying manner. Without spoiling much of the series’ finale I can definitely say that the teamwork exhibited by not only T&B but the whole cast of heroes is quite thrilling to say the least. In fact the final five episodes played out with the kind of visual and theatrical and even storyline quality that I’ve come to expect from other excellent Sunrise series and while the ending won’t leave you feeling like your brain got assraped *coughcough*CodeGeass*cough* it will still make you appreciate the diligent work of the writing and animation staff and even the staff of HeroTV for taking you along on such a fun-filled adventure. Tiger and Bunny gets a B from this humble reviewer (B+ if you’re a huge fan of pretty visuals and cool CG, B- if you like a little more SuperSeriousness with your Superheroes).
Sunrise's answer to the Justice League.
Til next time, Let’s Believe Heroes! And as always
Aspire toward Nirvana, Anime watchers.
Otaku Ascetic
Moonlit Sojourn 