LaMB Redux

Well, there they go again. And this time, they might have done it a bit better.

LaMB Redux is a 'redo' of the disastrously horrid LaMB animated feature Animax had funded a while back. Now, I'm sure if you're reading this article from my blog, the scathing review I gave is just a few posts back; check it out if you want to get an idea of how bad it was.

On to Redux.

Not much has changed, really. If anything, I suppose the animation was improved slightly, and voice acting was seemingly redone. I can't really concretely say that they have, as I have no access to the original material to compare, and I have mostly forgotten the details of a mostly forgettable production. The new format also makes for difficult comparison.

The format of Redux was made into a 5-minute short, usually highlighting a particular detail of the story, with accompanying infodump at the start.

This is quite surprising, as one of the complaints I made was that nobody really understood the background of the characters and the story itself. In the case that someone had visited the LaMB website and read the LaMB 'manga', they *might* have an idea, yet hardly enough.

Whether the infodump is a good thing or not is somewhat iffy. On the surface, it is a positive addition, as the obscure background information would be brought into the foreground, explaining things people may not have understood the first time around. Conversely, it is a bad thing because it means the source writing was so bad that it could not express the background info in the story context itself, instead relying on an infodump.

Now, of course, the fault doesn't only lie on the writers' shoulders; it might have really been the fault of the original material. The length of the overall movie is also to blame, since it could well have spent an additional 30 minutes (bringing the length to an hour and half) sprawling backstory and character development as they see fit.

Some things to note about the show proper itself.

The animation differences are difficult to pinpoint. My personal note on it is that it appears to be smoother. Rigging is still a problem, as exhibited by Eve when hanging her head. It looks like her head and neck are detached from her shoulders. Somewhat minor, but still highly illogical.

Voice acting just seems a tad improved, or at least clearer. I can't say if it was really improved or that I'm just less critical, but I believe the Directress' (can never remember her name) voice is easily the best of the bunch, not to mention the best rack... :D

The others, not at all prominently improved. In the words of Keiko Suzuki:

"You ruined EVERYTHING!!!!!"

Yes, Ms. Suzuki...and so did you.

Also suspiciously absent was the music (of the featured bands) from the 'Eve dress-up' segment. Two thumbs up.

Now, all I need to see are the fight scenes and the infamous 'conductor-baton-waving-style-of-shooting' part.

I guess I'll be seeing that in the movie.