Burst Angel

Lets see, this anime is kind of somewhere between Evangelion and Bubblegum Crisis Tokyo 2040 leaning more to Bubblegum Crisis, with a whole lot of large breasts, bland characters, no plot, horrible music, bad cgi, and not much more. To say the characters are one dimensional is an understatement, so don't hope for any character development. The characters play up to established anime archetypes but don't really do anything for the viewer. The plot is a string of unrelated fights that eventually tie together for a conclusion but is very in-cohesive. I found the music and the western theme irritating, there's one character who speaks with a western accent that sounds like nails on a chalkboard to me. The robots are done with cgi and are stiff and an eyesore. The girls are dressed in skimpy outfits, the same ones the entire series, and are painfully obvious that the only reason for the show is to flaunt their features for a male audience. The only redeeming quality of the show is the overall animation which is pretty good and consistent for the most part. Not a bad series if your looking for a show about boobs with a side-story of big dumb robots. It gets better towards the end but its a painful ride. Worth a viewing I wouldn't buy it again though.

Burst Angel is a mix of all the unwanted and over used anime ideas smashed into one, which much to everyone's surprise turned out great.

Now to those oblivious Burst Angel fans who try to convince the rest of us that Jo and Meg are just "Good Friends" I suggest that you look it up on the computer because it's in the Yuri category, and just in case you don't know Yuri means lesbian.

Also it must be said that Burst Angel is in no way anything like Charlie's Angels. Get over it.

One last thing Burst Angel is styled after a western so some people will have western sounding accents.

If you think the whole concept is stupid don't go out of your way to discredit the series, just don't watch.

If you like Westerns, Big Robots, and a lot of action Burst Angel is right for you.

This anime was a lot of fun. The overall plot is sort of rambling, but it's a great ride. It's one of the sci-fi-western genre, similar to Trigun, although the characters (four females who fight crime in Tokyo) reminded me of the main characters from Bubblegum Crisis. It's heavy on the gun and mecha action, and there's a mystery about one of the characters and her origins that is nicely resolved at the end. And if you like commentaries, there were commentary tracks for six episodes in the DVD set.

The music is excellent. The opening theme ("Loosey") is one of the most memorable I've ever heard.

That said, there was a lot of fan service, several allusions to gay love, and a good amount of violence, so it's definitely not for the kids.

Looking forward to the OVA.

This is the worst anime I have ever seen. The reason over 5 times as many men as women have even BOTHERED to rate the series on IMDb.com is because... it's made for men. All it is is big breasts with nipples poking through skimpy prostitute-style outfits complete with garters plus machine guns and huge robots and fast cars. I also found the dialog very banal. My friend, who is a guy, recommended Burst Angel very highly to me (and now I'm not surprised why HE liked it) and I was thoroughly disappointed. Like Charlie's Angels, it had absolutely no plot. It was a cartoon version of Charlie's Angels except worse.

Also, what the heck is a Texas cowgirl doing in future Tokyo?! Would love to know that one.

I'm just going to get straight down to it here. I've seen reviews that rate it a one because of all the fan-service, I've seen tens for the same reason. I've seen people praise it and people loathe it, with very little middle ground. Allow me to be that middle ground.

It's a good show, I won't give away the overarching plot, but I found it interesting. It's a bit 'monster of the week', but it is able to link most of the stand-alone episodes into the main arc quite well. Most episodes are 2 parters, too, which give time to develop the minor arc's plot better. It also lends itself to building tension between the weekly releases.

The animation is good, the sound is phenomenal, given Gonzo's penchant for hit-and-miss audio, and the fights are amazing. The dialogue is interesting, I didn't zone out at any time like I do on some shows, and it's well paced and funny at the appropriate times. BA has found a balance between good action, good dialogue, and good characters.

But that's the thing. It's good. It's not 'great'. It's above average, in my opinion, and I find it wildly entertaining and it has re-watch value, but it's just not 'the greatest'. That being said, I think that it has something some other animes lack, character and heart. As another poster said, it's the refuse of anime all tied together, but it's got a certain something more. That is, in my opinion, what brings this show from 'above average' to 'my favorite anime, one of my favorite programs' and separates itself from the pack.

Granted, the fanservice can be a bit much. In my opinion that's something that held it back. Had there been less emphasis on cup size, I think many people could have taken it more seriously. They're between the ground of no fanservice and Highschool of the Dead fanservice, which is a limbo that turns off people on both ends.

Overall, a good show, and if fanservice doesn't bother you you'll love it. 8/10