Project A-ko Versus: Gray Side/Blue Side (1990) Anime OVA Series Review

Project A-ko Versus (Project A-ko: Uncivil Wars) is a 1990 action sci-fi anime OVA mini-series divided in two parts: Grey Side and Blue Side and is a reboot of the Project-Ako film and OVA series. It was directed by Project A-ko's original director Katsuhiko Nishijima and written by newcomers Yuji Kawahara and Shôichi Tsuji. The cast includes Miki Itô, Emi Shinohara, Michie Tomizawa, Kazuo Oka and Tesshô Genda. These OVA'S are basically unrelated in plot and characters but they do retain the same designs and part of the energy of the original, transplanting the girls into a sci-fi setting.

In an undetermined intergalactic setting, A-ko and B-ko are two space bounty hunters who catch giant creatures in a desert planet. Fate has in store for them more than what they can chew as they find C-ko, a small princess kidnapped by space pirates. What begins as a simple crime turns out to be a menace for the universe as a powerful sorceress possesses C-ko's body and gets her evil plans going.

Continuing the Project Ako franchise by making a straight science fiction story with little to no resemblance to the original concept was quite a wild move on their part because this really could have been titled just about anything else and it still would have made sense and be understood, it didn't need to have any connection to the Ako series whatsoever. Having said that, what we do get is quite cool on its own. Yeah, it stands apart from the franchise but fits perfectly into the landscape of anime shows with female friendships at their core, having A-ko and B-ko be more similar to Kei and Yuri from Dirty Pair than their original incarnations. C-ko is also shown as an actual small child which makes her usual behaviour make more sense even if she is dumbed down and aged down explicitly in the story. The three are cute together and have some hilarious moments.

The new villains are very cool, particularly Liza Chichi, who engages in awesome combats with A-ko, who still has super human abilities in this version but not in an overpowered way as she has to put up a fight against Liza. The action sequences are expertly crafted and dynamically boarded with very smooth animation once again. The change of setting makes things be a bit more generic, we see space shuttles and some typical desolated planets instead of the high school, so that type of contrast gets mostly lost on the change of setting but we do get some notable fight scenes sprinkled with some spicy touches, so it's a bit faithful to the spirit of Project A-ko in that regard.

Blue Side has a lot of great moments, but the set up of Gray Side I found to be the most engaging, especially because it all seemed to build up to something outstanding or at least an exciting climax with a lot more action and stakes, and while we do get a good ending I think the writers were hoping for more OVA episodes that never came because the way these conflicts are resolved don't really close much and it all feels too scrambled and loose to be a proper ending. I could see the rivalry between A-ko and the blondie get more complex or reach a more impactful breaking point if they had gotten more episodes.

It's overall a very highly recommended OVA series but don't expect to come back to the same characters in the Project A-ko saga, because you are not, you are gonna be exposed to a brand new universe that is a lot of fun on its own. 

Project A-ko 4: Final (1989) Anime OVA Review

Project A-ko 4 is a 1989 action comedy sci-fi anime OVA movie directed by Yuji Moriyama. The fourth Project A-ko OVA in the series is also the very last one in the original continuity. It features the voices of Miki Itō, Emi Shinohara and Michie Tomizawa. The screenplay was done by anime writer and producer Tomoko Kawasaki (Slayers OVAs, Revolutionary Girl Utena, Corpse Princess).

The aliens known as the Alpha Cygnans are back! Meanwhile, the girls' teacher, Miss Ayumi, has been behaving in unexpected and somewhat strange ways recently. A-ko and B-ko are still at each other's throats, mostly about Kei. C-ko feels sidelined and begins to feel distant to A-ko. Kei is getting married to the girl's teacher. The wedding gets crashed by the aliens, who are still looking for their princess, and all hell breaks loose during the final ceremony.

In this cornucopia of previously seen characters, conflicts, scenarios and jokes, the callbacks and familiar faces collide into one cohesive work that ties up and concludes this needless but enjoyable series of OVA sequels. A self-aware lampoon of the franchise itself as it drinks from its well in clever ways. It's a summary of all of Project A-ko's virtues and flaws in one final fun romp. Fast pace, nonsensical elements put together in a way that has them crashing down and breaking logic and reason. It's about what you expected for a proper sequel.

The characters are all their lovable usual selves while perhaps exhibiting slightly more unconventional facets, ones that feel natural and not as out of nowhere as in the third OVA. The plot points are honestly sort of arbitrary and the excess and the overflowing of characters and subplots could be a bit too much but they manage to mostly balance them out just fine by having a very solid structure that gives the proper time and place to everyone. A lot of this fits into the A-ko franchise by virtue of being carefree and more of a spoof of tropes rather than a straight reproduction of them but without degrading itself to be mocking or contemptful, much less cynical.

I enjoyed the reveals and the twists that they throw at you without warning. When it comes to the actual resolution I definitely think it's a satisfying one, it doesn't really break any continuity and goes back to the plot points that were added as a monkey wrench to disturb the stability of the first movie. Seeing how A-ko and C-ko end in this OVA is so adorable and moving. A lovely, comfortable ending that warms my heart. I came to realize that the actresses doing the voice work and the animators created very lovable and deeply engaging characters without much "profoundity" to them by simply having them exist and be so exuberant and full of personality, to the point where these crazy platonic lovers are the cutest thing imaginable.

If you made it all the way to the fourth OVA I think you will enjoy this one or just watch it regardless. It's one of the funniest ones and has a very good conclusion to the whole story. I do recommend it.