 |
| 7. Silver
Scorcher  
It's understanding as to why this anime has received a lot
of mixed reviews. Most people simply found it too whacked out and mind numbing
to be funny. I should know that because when I saw the first DVD I didn't find
it all that funny. But I decided to give it a chance and I ended up finding myself
to be well rewarded. As of now, I find this title to be one of the funniest anime
titles that I've come across. However I did find the little antics of the main
characters, Excel & Hyatt, to be a very tiresome after a while. Fortunately
the supporting characters, especially Pedro, make the anime more worthwhile. AD
Vision really went out on a limb with this title. The DUB was very well done.
While some of the original jokes were changed, the acting itself from the English
cast was exceptional. On top of that, they also threw in vid-notes to explain
what anime or movie is being parodied, Japanese cultural references and direct
translations for Excel's often used puns. But vid-notes or not, most anime fans
should easily be able to tell what is being parodied. So,
if your looking for an anime that has no story line, is just plain whacked out
and doesn't require a lot of thinking, then Excel Saga is the title for
you, and that goes for casual and hardcore fans alike. Most of you won't be disappointed.
If you don't find it funny within the first 9 episodes, you should probably look
elsewhere. I guess all that's left now is to see what the spin-off Puni Puni
Poemi has to offer. |
| 6.
Global Frequency
Excel Saga makes about as much sense as your average
Wesley Willis song and is funnier by far than most of our home-grown American
animated comedies. The plot is all but superfluous, involving the insane Excel,
her anemic partner Hyatt, their boss Ilpalazzo (all three named after hotels,
by the way) and their plan to conquer the world, beginning with F City in F Prefecture,
Japan. Nearly every episode is a sendup of one film/anime genre or another, from
sports drama (naturally, in Excel Saga they pick bowling) to horror, with
occasional deviations into total insanity. There's
an intimidating amount of dialogue here, as Excel is almost constantly
jabbering, so there are a lot of subtitles to tackle - but don't ever, ever watch
Excel Saga dubbed. The humor is almost entirely lost in English, since
a great deal of it centers around wordplay and cultural barriers, and the dub
itself is - well, remember the most irritating noise ever, from Dumb and Dumber?
Imagine that in half-hour episodes. I can handle Excel Saga in moderation;
after four episodes straight, my brain is mush. If you want to laugh hard and
you're tired of the tried and true anime comedy formula (rom/com featuring financially/romantically
challenged college-bound ronin finds himself living in a mansion/bathhouse with
four to six women who beat the hell out of him for no apparent reason on a regular
basis), check it out. |
| 5. Tempy
Excel Saga is one of the wildest comedy shows out there,
filled to the brim with insane characters as well as obscure and not-so-obscure
parodies. Fast-talking Excel and weakish Hyatt (who's always on the verge of death)
attempt to conquer the Earth for their leader Il Palazzo. But not only does original
mangaka Koshi Rikdo appear in the show, director Shinichi Watanabe's
alter-ego Nabeshin also likes to steal center stage, complete with afro and Lupin
III clothing. Immigrant worker Pedro also provides for some hilarious moments. Unfortunately
the self-proclaimed defenders of the Earth aren't up to the same level of entertainment
as the rest, and when the show starts developing a plot and the defenders get
more air-time, things start to bog down. Still, there are plenty of unique moments
that makes this show worth watching, just to see what they'll come up with next. |
| 4.
Yogi 
Excel the idiot genki girl, with her smart and constantly dying
companion Hyatt, work for an organization that tries to take over the world. In
the process, they parody every single aspect of anime, which is conveniently explained
to the viewed before each episode. The show depends entirely on gags, physical
humor, and general parodying of events. It’s funny in a twisted sort of way. |
| 3.
Iodine
Super-hyper Excel and her deathly-pale partner Hyatt are the
top (and only) agents of the great Lord Ilparazzo, who is a leader in the ACROSS
organization bent on taking over the world. In this frantic parody show where
nothing is sacred, it's surprising how well the original material comes off even
without all the gags and references. From the emergency-food-supply canine Menchi,
to Sumiyoshi who only speaks in captions, to an unfortunate immigrant laborer
named Pedro, it's the characters that make the show worth watching. Every episode
is meant to poke fun at a different genre of films or anime shows in particular,
and the results are a riot. In addition to the obvious evil Pokemon clones
and android warrior babes, we also get truly inspired setups like Excel beating
the baddies through bowling or secret messages being delived through an angst-ridden
pop-singer's music. Hyatt coughs and chokes her way through the opening number
while Menchi barks the ending (with translation!). Even the eyecatches before
commercials aren't sacred. The animation in the
show isn't fancy, but it gets the job done. The designs are a little iffy at times,
but do a very good job of expressing the full range of the show's insanity. It's
quite obvious the crew had a great time making the series, and a lot of the jokes
involve running out of money, time, and ideas. Self insertion is especially rampant,
as the original manga author and the series' director make regular appearances
and entangle themselves in the plot. Though the show was quite obviously made
for diehard anime fans, and knowing the referenced material is a big help, there's
still plenty to see and plenty to like for the uninformed. |
| 2.
Cross Scars 
Excel Saga is one of the few anime series that concentrates
solely on being a comic anime rather than a hybrid of genres in comparison to
rom/com series like Love Hina for instance. This fact alone means that
the series is without a doubt the funniest anime I've ever seen by a long way
and there's not an unfunny episode in the whole show. Excel
Saga's "plot" revolves around the secret organization Across whose
goal it is to first dominate F City, where the series is set, and then the world.
Excel, our heroine, is a senior executive of this rather small 3-man organization
and the series follows her and her partner, Hyatt's, attempts to put Across's
plans for domination into effect. Excel Saga
is so funny simply because it takes absolutely nothing seriously - Excel dies
about 4 times in the first episode, the ending theme is sung by her dog while
simultaneously translated by a human, the series parodies just about everything
possible, to the extent that it has no problem parodying even itself. Excel
Saga also has characters who can deliver amusing one liners but overall it's
the sheer absurdity of the characters and the situations that they find themselves
in that makes the show as funny as it is. The characters do a lot to make this
series as great as it is. Excel is without a doubt the most hyperactive anime
character ever created, playing off this is Hyatt who's soft spoken and always
seemingly near death, Nabeshin is a Spike parody while also being the series director's
representation in the anime and the list goes on. The
series never tires because each episode is played around a different parody. These
parodies range from rock anime episodes to pretty girl episodes, where none of
the male characters are allowed their face on screen. As such the series is constantly
different and this allows for such a sweep of parodies to be made. Excel
Saga might not appeal to everyone's sense of humour but if like me you like
parody and find absurd situations funny rather than simply stupid you'll love
Excel Saga. |
| 1. Tyrenol
The show is funny in it's own cryptic way. It's got a lot of
inconsistancy that keeps your mind busy. And if that doesn't scream into your
face the value of entertainment; then you should move on to another anime. Meanwhile;
the title female lead of this show is on methanphetamines. Her talking speed rivals
that of Blur from the Transformers Post-Unicron Saga. And it's a good thing
that the "Will Of The Great Universe" character had been created; or
the show would've stopped on the first episode. The
show includes a varying array of characters that interact with each other; resulting
in chaotic ludicracy and such. There's an annoying part where Misaki (one of the
beauties of the SAA) beats up poor Iwata for trying to hit on her. But if you
can get by this, you'll be treated to a whole new world of comedy. |
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