Anime: Seisenshi Dunbine

Dunbine is mostly remembered nowadays as the first isekai anime not aimed at kids (aka, it’s not a fairy tale). It is also the first case of a dark isekai / fairy tale in anime that many seem to overlook these days and think there has never been such a thing before Rezero and Mushoku Tensei.

The premise is cool, about people from Earth being forcefully transported to another dimension, where they become pilots of huge robots that work with aura, this world’s life source. It’s very similar to the Newtypes of Gundam in this regard. So similar that it’s actually… a complete copy of them, forcefully added in the show. In the original story there were no mechas, but Sunrise added them because Gundam was “in” and the show would sell more plamos. Thus you get these bug-like huge robots that work like Gundams.

The story continues with the lead pilot turning renegade after he sees how cruel his boss is and aids rebels and neighboring kingdoms in ending his dictatorship. Oh I said kingdoms, didn’t I? Yes, it’s because the setting of the world is like the Middle Ages, accompanied with unicorns, fairies and … flying saucers and bug robots. It’s a weird science fantasy setting, akin to He-Man’s Eternia. Most of the plot can come off as episodic missions, like transporting a princess to safety or battling enemy camps, and occasionally you get romantic sub-plots and turn-heels. Every decent strategy rpg needs those.

The pacing will definitely feel slow for modern standards, as the need to have a mecha battle in each episode is crammed in by Sunrise and becomes an excuse to stretch the length of an event to at least 3 times its natural duration, because they needed to sell more plamos. This changes in the last two episodes, which go turbo and end hastily two dozen sub-plots at the same time, making the finale to feel sloppy.

The story is not that linear or predictable, since you get the rare occasion where the isekai world bleeds in our world and you have an alien invasion of sorts. And there is plenty of genocide, so it’s not some Power Rangers defending Angel Grove situation. There is also a large death toll throughout the show, maintaining the feeling of dread that war leaves in its path. Remember, this is a dark isekai. The ending goes as far as killing almost all its cast, something which Tomino reused as a concept from his Ideon work. And just like it happened there, it was done in a rushed manner, as if the plot armor magically lifted and everyone could suddenly die now just because the show is about to end. It comes off as a cheap method to have a more vivid last impression.

As far as the cast goes, there is variety in personalities and agendas that prevent the characters from becoming boring too fast. Plus, many of them eventually die or gain your sympathy along the way. But as far as personalities go, I only consider Chaum, the mascot pixie, to be the only memorable character for her perky looks and silly actions. She works as nothing but a comic relief but she is also a huge contrast to everybody else and as weird as it sounds, she is the only one I was cheering for. So ok, she is cute too, but that is not all I found in her. Tomino had another pixie in his later L-Gaim anime, yet that one didn’t manage to win me as much because she was mute and was used as a panacea for various problems. Not that the cast is otherwise bad; it is in fact a worthy bunch of idealists and scheming aristocrats. Their names are also so weird; a blend of mythology and engrish that vary from cool to silly. They all have their purpose in the story, which unfortunately wraps up in a hurry during the finale.

The production values are bit hard to appreciate if you are accustomed to modern anime. There are a lot of jerky motions and still panels used, the background will usually loop too obviously, and the characters will look weird in many occasions. Other than that, the weird blend of sci-fi and fantasy create an interesting setting that can be captivating if you don’t expect another photorealistic Avatar. The music themes can be catchy and memorable.

In all, this is one of Tomino’s best works after Turn-A and the original Gundam season. There are plenty of pacing issues and the animation suffers more than it should for its time, but it’s otherwise a good science fantasy anime with lots of dark twists. With that said, the similar in tone Escaflowne blows it out of the water and I highly recommend it over this one.

Oh, by the way, keep the hell away for the sequel New Aura Dunbine as well as the spin-off The Wings of Rean. They are as shitty as shit can get.

Animation

Good for it's time, but when compared to newer stuff out today, it's mediocre -at best-. A lot of repeat animation is used, but other than that it's very bearable.

Sound

I found that the English dubbing in Aura Battler Dunbine was among the best I've seen to date, but it could just be me. There weren't any extremely high pitched voices (barring Cham, who wasn't as bad as she could have beem), and the British accents were done well enough.

The opening theme is catchy, and I liked it so much it's on my hard drive, but the ending theme was kind of dull in comparison.

Story

Tomino's crowning acheivement in my opinion. The story is deep, and action packed, though there are a few lulls around episode 7-10 and 40-45. The story of Dunbine is on such a grand scale, and there are a few twists, albeit predicatble ones.

Characters

In all honesty, I found all of the characters quite bland. This was probably my least favourite aspect of the series. And although the rest were bearable, Cham was just damned annoying.

Value

Having downloaded this for free, I'm quite happy, but if I hadn't had the means to, I would have bought it.

Enjoyment

Lots of action, decent character development, solid plot. All in all a good series.