You're Under Arrest Vol. 6

Quite a bit of character development this time around. Aoi and Yoriko each get their own episode, the dynamic duo stages a bank robery, and Sena and Daimaru finally get hitched.
With three character heavy episodes, there's not a lot of action on this disc. There's only one simple car chase, and Yoriko and Aoi get bullied a little bit.

For those not in the know, You're Under Arrest is a Kosuke Fujishima (also known for Oh! My Goddess!) story centered on two Tokyo traffic police officers named Natsumi Tsujimoto and Miyuki Kobayakawa. Miyuki is a soft spoken car and motorcycle freak, an excellent mechanic, and a whiz with electronics. Natsumi is her loud, often drunken, inhumanly strong partner at the Bokuto Police Station. The series comes complete with the gossiping klutz Yoriko, the cross-dressing male officer Aoi, the pint sized wanna-be policewoman Saori, the interfering vigilante Strike Man, a loud scooter driving shop-a-holic, and enough romantic angst to leave you wondering if Nakajima even likes women at all.

This disc includes episodes 21-24, produced by AnimEigo, and expertly dubbed by the great Coastal Carolina Sound Studios.

"The Bank Robbery Task Force Manual"
In this episode, the always wonderful Natsumi and Miyuki stage a fake bank robbery in order to test a local police department's reaction to the situation. As usual, the girls mop the floor with their opposition, pulling out all the stops to give the police officers a real challenge. Miyuki pulls out all sorts of tools and gadgets, and Natsumi uses her own...unique talents to literally beat them at their game. Throw in a car and helicopter chase and you've got a classic YUA episode.

"Yoriko Nikaiduo's Day Off"
A 90% Yoriko episode, so if you don't like Yoriko, you should skip over this one. A young foreign prince named Saki is on the run from a country in chaos. There's been a coup, and he's being hidden for his protection. Unfortunately the rather hot headed prince decides to wander around Tokyo on his own, without informing anyone. Bokuto is charged to keep an eye out for him, and they comb the city - all except Yoriko, who is enjoying her day off. When the prince gets into trouble (consistently), it's Yoriko to the rescue. Or well, she attempts to rescue him at least, in her own little way. Which means she gets herself into decidedly more trouble by trying to help. As he watches Yoriko help out the neighborhood residents, even on her day off, his heart warms to her and he falls in love.

"A Flower Blooms on the Virgin Road"
Don't ask me about the title; it's beyond my knowledge to sort out some sort of interpretation outside of the song that the characters sing at the end of the episode. This episode is devoted to the marriage of Sena and Daimaru (Nakajima's father). Given the romantic feel of the episode, it's logical to think that there will be some sort of progress between Nakajima and Miyuki's dead still relationship. And there is, though it's brief, and as usual doesn't lead to any real development between the two hopeless love birds. For fans of the pair, there is finally a kiss - a small peck on the cheek for Nakajima. Otherwise, most of this episode's charm comes from the reuniting of Sena and Daimaru's friends, who are car and motorcycle enthusiasts, respectively. They roll into the ceremony with their tricked out rides, causing Miyuki to enter a state of euphoria. But this episode is, first and foremost, about the marriage of Sena and Daimaru.

"A White Rose for Aoi"
A classic Aoi episode, in which he is mistaken for a charming young lady. Studly famous actor Go Kitakoji visits Bokuto to promote traffic safety as a stand in chief for the day. Aoi unknowingly got his attention when she served as a guide for him at another precinct. He presents her with her favorite flower, a white rose, and requests her for his guide while at Bokuto. His feelings for Aoi are quite clear, and Aoi is certainly feeling something as well, which would be quite sweet and romantic if it weren't so hilarious (or weird and creepy, depending on how you view the situation). Kitakoji is completely unaware that Aoi is actually a man who masquerades as a woman. It's much more than that, of course; Aoi is a woman in every way except where it matters. Confused with her feelings and unsure how to deal with Kitakoji's obvious affections, Aoi decides to turn him down.

Welcome

Hello, and welcome to my little corner of the Internet. Thank you for stopping by. I have a Live Journal, Myspace, Facebook.... But I'd like for this to be less personal. The idea is that I will use this space to write reviews and things. I read a fair amount of comics, books, and manga; watch a good amount of anime; and play the occasional video game. I'm also highly opinionated. :) So, I thought, why not give others the heads up on things they may be similarly interested in? Money is tight these days, and it's nice to only spend it on things you know you'll like rather than waste it on something that turns out otherwise.

A little about me:
I have a bachelor's degree in theatre arts, with an minor in English. I've worked in comic book and video game stores, and spent several highly aggravating months in an office job/copy shop. I spent a bit of time writing reviews and what not for a web comic called [sic] Productions (link on the upper right hand side there), but they have, unfortunately, since been removed. However I do still do some work with the artist.

I do tend to gravitate toward shojo, seeing as how I am a girl after all, in my reading material, but the occasional action book slips in. My anime tastes are rather more varied, ranging from Bleach to Victorian Romance Emma, and lots of different things in between. I only read a handful of comics these days; a few major titles and some indies. But my video game tastes are pretty predictable - I'm far more likely to pick up the latest RPG from Japan than the new war game, and I stay far away from MMOs.

With all the great games coming out, the movies based on comic books and fantasy novels, and a proliferation of amazing conventions, it's a great time to be a geek.