Anime: Tiger & Bunny

Imagine a reality show focused around X-Men-este characters saving the day in very corny and cliché ways. Now imagine that idea, but good, executed well and is actually very entertaining and has characters you seriously can't help but to cheer on, despite the corniness and clichés.

STORY: Saturday morning cartoons about superheroes were awesome, but that's the past and those shows are near dead, but this anime here, this lovingly homage to those flashy costumed hero shows is quite frankly one of not only the best, but one of the most important anime created in 2011, it's one of those kind of anime while it isn't the most original thing ever, but the execution of its premise is executed hundred percent perfectly you'd look on similar anime and find them mediocre by comparison. Sure the series is heavy on being campy and borderline silly, but it's made that way, and works, it simply works. But there's a under taste of well thought up satire beneath the goofiness along with a future that is surprisingly dark and strongly character driven.
Tiger & Bunny takes your average cliché super hero show and almost turns the genre on its head by including the concept of a reality game like competitive television show with a points system where all of the heroes are sponsored by real life companies (Like Bandai for example) that adds an interesting depth to this series that others fail to achieve, challenging the characters to whether or not to take the call of justice and save the day or work for a superfluous award for popularity and bragging rights. That is where the most important development for the characters lay, and it's incredibly partnered up with two very fascinating main leads, Wild Tiger and Barnaby.

Tiger is one of the most realistically relatable character in anime I've personally ever seen, a single man in his thirties (Not a god damn teenager for once!) with a daughter with realistic problems such as putting his job as a hero (This show let's me say that being a superhero is job, like an office job even, if that's not unique, I wouldn't know what it would be) on a higher ground then his family, which isn't an easy decision to do, but with his dream that is important to himself he does what he has to do to achieve it despite that he comes off as, in the start of the show, a washed up has-been, the old fogey pass his prime who just can't keep up with the more popular heroes because he doesn't care for the points or for that matter what his TV directors tell him to do because all he wants to do is save the day, or for that matter get his merchandise based on him to even get looked at on the shelves, is forced to join up with the popular new comer, Barnaby, who even has the same powers as Tiger for the world's (Of this anime) first superhero team.
Opposite of Tiger, Barnaby is driven by revenge (Hold your moans and groans for a sec) to be become a superhero, he doesn't care for Tiger's old fashioned way of thinking what superheroes should be, he's out there to make himself as popular as possible, getting the points, all for the sake of his revenge, which quite frankly, is similar to popular anime. Barnaby comes off arrogant and somewhat cold, but he Tiger have an incredible chemistry that alone is entertaining to watch as they bicker and argue (Which has most of the show's comedy come forth) and their ideals clash despite that they are partners. As the show progresses, they become more understanding of each other, while they both gain equally outstanding character growth and development, yes, a revenge based character development that actually has favorable outcomes. You want to know why? Because the target(s) of revenge are developed adequately enough to be easily hated by both Barnaby and you the viewer, I guarantee that.

Not only the characters Tiger and Barnaby are fleshed out to extraordinary lengths, but even the other heroes too, heck even the villains (Of course not to the point where Tiger and Barnaby are fleshed out, I mean they're the main characters, it's understandable they get the spotlight, if a series main cast has no priority development, you simply failed at making a show). Other Heroes include, Blue Rose the series, unfortunately, the real commercialized character (Pepsi anyone? No? I don't want one either) and main female character of the other heroes, she is pretty much that teenager the usual shonen action show would start with, SkyHigh, your typical boy scout of a man, who represents the typical hero of any superhero show, Origami Cyclone, the background character, literally the background character, Fire Emblem, the painfully stereotypical homosexual man with real fire power, Dragon Kid the tomboy little girl with kung fu skills paired with electricity powers, and Rock Bison, the least shown character in the series. Each of the other heroes do get their little background episode with brief development (With Blue Rose getting the most attention out of all of them) but are hardly deeper characters than respective character archetype, but along with the heroes, there's even a vigilante criminal killer, Lunatic, who even gets his own episode that completely rocks the world of Tiger&Bunny to its core, after kicking off the series surprisingly much darker tone later on than what the early episodes about friendship and whatnot was going about with.
But it's each characters individual quirk that get fan reaction such as "We want to see more of so-and-so" is what makes these characters special to the series in their own right.

While plot threads like Barnaby's revenge takes many twists and turns and Tiger's later on problems with his powers keep you on the edge of your seat with baited breath for happens next, Tiger&Bunny may come off as too cheesy, or too silly at times for some people, but it's that cheesiness and throwbacks to superhero shows with a satirical twist is what can keep viewers returning for more, and it helps that the core characters are interesting with satisfying developments.

ANIMATION: As great as the story this is, the animation is a bit iffy relaying on mostly CG animation (Similar but fortunately done better than that Gonzo is known for) is by Sunrises least talented animation crew, but this show is one of those kind of shows where it could only take off from the ground through endorsements from other companies, not just Sunrise.
During the CG scenes, the models look great, and the action scenes are well animated but the anime still falls into the category of "3d on 2d" so it looks awkward most of the time. While the 2d animation is fine, not terribly great, but fine either way. Character designs however, look great, very diverse, and very creative.

SOUND: As for the audio department, the background music sounds exactly like your average super hero show, which works perfectly for this series. The theme music however, is a bit bland, though as a bias opinion I like Unison Square Garden and their music is good enough to me. Voice acting is good and is probably the performance that stands out is definitely Tiger's, from bickering with Barnaby to just simple dialogue, he's a treat to listen to. No English dub has yet to emerge, but a show like this will definitely benefit from one.

OVERALL:
The Good:
+ Perfectly executed theme with a fun and exciting story to boot.
+ Great lead characters, Tiger is one of the best leads in an action anime I've seen in a good while.
+ Good humor and character interaction.
+ Legitimately love to hate villains.
+ Decent animation, with some of the best uses of 3d animation in 2d settings.

The Mixed:
+/- Side characters are likable / despite that they are stereotypes.

The Bad:
- Not enough attention to the rest of the cast.
- Might come off as too campy for some.

Why is this anime one of the most important anime of 2011? Because it has the potential to bring fans into anime with power equal to what Cowboy Bebop and Fullmetal Alchemist had, and is hopefully the first step of anime in general to finally move forward from the current and shameful trends of the anime of today.

There are times when relative simplicity is the option used for a series, and indeed Tiger & Bunny is just that: a throwback to classic Superheroes presented by a straightforward narrative rather than an obfuscated one; personified by larger than life characters instead of a multi-faceted and realistic ensemble; a work where the viewer can abandon most thought and let the rule of cool dictate the value of the show.

If nothing else, it certainly achieves the first two traits quite well. A show being simple popcorn entertainment isn’t bad by itself so long as there is an assertive force to draw in attention to the story, which this anime lacked in the first several episodes. All too often the suspension of disbelief is under-minded by the fact that the antagonist of the week is so mundane that it raises the question of how it manages to create any sort of conflict for someone with superpowers in the first place. Fictitious nonsense is fine; outright nonsense isn’t.

However, the introduction of Lunatic marks the point where the anime remedies the suspension of disbelief and changes the series from mediocre to thoroughly engaging. The villains now pose a legitimate threat to the heroes and by extension create a true sense of conflict, an overarching story is introduced, and the action became genuinely exciting and well-choreographed despite the options being limited by the powers of the characters themselves. While the CGI is noticeable on the designs of Blue Rose and Dragon Kid, the backgrounds and settings keep the same feel so as to maintain consistency, and it also prevents the kicks, punches, projectiles or the like from being reduced to motion blurbs; movements that could have been animated much easier by common tricks are instead presented in full.

Speaking of Blue Rose and Dragon Kid, they, along with almost all of the heroes, are given a spotlight episode. Normally a distraction at best, here the story still manages to progress and finds a method for incorporating the developments into later episodes, and are usually done smoothly so as to not disrupt a personality. Usually, because unfortunately one of the characters got shafted in favor for someone else to gain an extra modicum of depth, only for said development to become something of a plot device that’s entirely ham-fisted in hindsight. Adding insult to injury is the fact that even the main character, Wild Tiger, becomes somewhat overshadowed by the cool best friend in Barnaby.

Now while it is true that the conflict regarding Barnaby’s past is the only driving force behind the narrative, to dismiss the character himself outright would be a mistake. What the cast lacks in depth they more than make up for with dynamics, and the two leads are certainly aware of that; more than a battle of Good VS Evil or an action-packed superhero anime, Tiger & Bunny is about the rise, fall and redemption of friendship and trust. It truly takes a long time for Tiger and Barnaby to ally with each other back-to-back, so long in fact that there’s a timeskip between each cour because the scriptwriters couldn’t bother showing the gradual change. But at the very least, the end of the first half manages to show the start of the “rise”, alleviating the sudden excuse for development somewhat.

Still, even after the first several episodes are cleared the show ends up falling victim to a few inconsistencies, one of them being the power level problem where a character defeats an opponent portrayed as stronger than someone originally made to look more impressive than said character, among others. As previously mentioned one of the heroes is also left without a spotlight episode, but somehow Lunatic does, and subsequently ends up degrading into a punching bag towards the end. What’s worse is that the show inevitably finishes with more questions than answers, although it seems deliberate, indicating the chance of a sequel. Assuaging all of the loose threads later on is fine, but a good story needs to stand on its own, and unfortunately this show’s strengths aren't quite enough to make up for some noticeable weaknesses.

Despite my rather negative tone, this is by no means a bad anime. Taken altogether it’s solidly above average and definitely something that superhero fans or even action fans in general should take a look at. However, the uneventful beginning, shafted characters and plot holes are just enough to stop me from being quick about recommending it otherwise. Tiger & Bunny is flawed yet enjoyable, far from the best, but not a complete waste of your time either.

T&B is basically a buddy cop show with superpowers, coupled with a theme of multi-national corporations working as their sponsors. They pay for the expenses of a hero’s costly equipment, and glamorous lifestyle. In return, they advertise their products and increase the sales. That means you get lots of product placement like PEPSI and BANDAI, which unlike Pizza Hut in Code Geass, is excused in-series.

The introduction to the setting was close to amazing as each hero needs a manager for his public relations, as well as to maintain popularity by being cool in the eyes of the audience. Heroism is more about entertainment than protecting the world from villains, and I was really interested to see where they would go with such a premise. It could be about the exploitation of marketing, the vanity of commercialism, or the façade of a secret identity. Sadly none of that happened.

The show belongs in the same vein as One Punch Man and My Hero Academia, that is, making a comical version of western superhero stories, with a few hints of getting serious and dramatic that are quickly rendered meaningless. As soon as they set the stage for an aging hero who lost his glamour and wants to do a comeback, everything turns to a semi-episodic comedy, filled with breezy missions and not much exploration concerning the premise of superheroes being the same thing as superstars.

It’s not like there is no redeeming value, since the show spends a lot of time in showing us the lives of its characters instead of being a braindead storyless action flick. Each one of them has a life outside of being a stereotype that needs to look cool in front of cameras. Everybody gets a decent amount of fleshing out. Too bad it’s not used in an overarching plot, or doesn’t play any part in their superhero missions.

And boy, are the superhero parts bad. They are just poorly orchestrated action scenes with bad CGI, no sense of choreography, and easily defeat-able villains. They are more silly than exciting and they end up damaging the show by making everything feel stupid. If the show is supposed to present more down to earth superheroes, it is all ruined with villains who toy with the heroes instead of killing them, and improbable comebacks that have no consistency in power scaling. An energy beam that can blow up a powerful robot in one scene, doesn’t do shit when it hits a hero in another.

Also, the superpowers are abused way more than they should. Even if you like the characters, when you have powers like mind control and amnesia, their personalities mean nothing. They are puppets that behave in any way the plot wants them to behave. The final conflict was cheap since it was basically a villain mind controlling the heroes to fight each other, and the resolution was lazy since all it took was using a superpower than negates other superpowers. There was no strategy or diplomacy, and on top of that it was forced.

I liked the premise, but the presentation was random nonsense. There is no tension or drama, and it’s not rewarding when resolutions are all about deus ex machinas instead of wits and personal choices.