Gantz #6:
Sudden Death

75 minutes
English/Japanese
English Subtitles
Released: 07/05/2005
Reviewed: 10/11/2005

I'm pretty convinced that the 13 episode series was made exclusively for me. As has been shown time and time again my attention-span frequently reaches levels so embarrassing that hyperactive schnauzers could provide a more attention audience than I. I don't know how to sit still, literally, and could not name the last time I watched the TV without having a computer to type on or someone else to talk to. The rare moments where I sit back and try to enjoy some Law & Order without purposefully distracting myself more often than not end with me passed out in a puddle of my own drool. It's no comment on the quality of Law & Order, as we all know anything pre-Criminal Intent is superb, I just don't know how to sit and take something in. Basically, if there aren't twenty things happening at once, it's not always gonna my bag.

This all ties in very easily to anime DVDs. I was never of the mindset that anime was anything more than TV shows, which I think is an entirely logical conclusion to draw because its true. As natural as it is, though, it then curries with it the same problem that TV has. I can't sit still while watching it. At least, not unless there's giant robots on the screen. That's a different matter entirely.

So why has Gantz kept me so interested for so long? The pace of this show is way off, the core concept sounds a little flawed from the beginning, and just when you think the characters are gonna start shaping up a lot of them just revert to less likable than when they started. Despite awesome Fist of the Northstar bedtime stories, I'm still a bit at a loss as to why I was so down with this first season of Gantz.

Maybe it's just because they know how to make you wait. The first four episodes is an all out brawl of excitement. People are getting decapitated by trains, dogs are molesting young ladies, onion-head aliens be running around slicing people up with their angry claws. At that time Gantz is exciting and new, so full of promise! As I've made mention of many times before, I was hoping to see a show that lambasted anime fandom, really raked them over the coals. You want to see tits and blood and explosions? Well we're gonna give you so much that you won't be able to help but feel ashamed of yourself for ever asking for it.

Either that was not their intent or they don't understand their core viewership at all. Excess amounts of subhuman immoral CRAP is exactly what the most vocal anime fan seems to thirst for with a burning passion.

After those four episodes, it's still pretty interesting. We watch the characters try to reintegrate themselves into normal society. It's a tough thing to do after you've seen half a dozen guys get slicked up and been spattered in alien chunks and green goo. At that time even Kishimoto's retarded embarrassment over everything and Kurono's perverted machinations seem almost worthwhile. The mid-season showdown with the bullies in school yard is pretty nice. But after awhile it just wears thin. Kishimoto can't get a single sentence out without stammering over every single freaking word and Kurono never figures out that his nearly date-rape worthy actions probably aren't the nicest thing you could do to your housemate.

And all this time I'm just trying to wait for the game to start again. Three-quarters of the way through the season the whole thing was wearing a little thin. The only thing that was halfway decent was Kato's reluctant heroism and stoic acceptance of his foster mother's maltreatment of him and his younger sibling. I understand that, at least in some fashion, these characters are meant to represent current archetypes of Japanese life. The dainty girl with self-esteem issues, the gentleman who keeps all his rage buttoned up inside and the pervert who hates everyone but it's too craven to made good on his malicious thoughts. That's all well and good... but the fact remains that everyone but Kato is completely unable to be empathized with because they're all self-important pricks or wussy girls with spines made out of tissue paper.

So what do you want from me, Gantz? You managed to hold my interest despite the fact that basically nothing happened for half of your first thirteen episodes, and despite the fact that most of your characters are crappy caricatures. Things pick up pretty well in the last three episodes, but not enough to pay off for all the promise that the show started with. But I guess I can't stop watching now... I've got the next DVD sitting unopened on my shelf.