Directed by: Yuzo Sato
English Cast: Adrian Pasdar, Neil Kaplan, Milo Ventimiglia, Cindy Robinson
Japanese Cast: Keiji Fujiwara, Unshō Ishizuka, Rikiya Koyama, Hiroe Oka
MPAA Rating: Not Rated
Distributed by: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
Release Date: April 24, 2012
Running Time: 287 minutes
Series: 3 out of 5 stars
Extras: 3.5 out of 5 stars
I am a huge fan of Japanese anime. Combine that with the amazing work of Marvel superheros and you should have match made in heaven. Although besides the fact that this series looks really cool as an anime, it just doesn’t entertain as much as I thought it would. The series is rather slow and doesn’t get really start until it is almost over. Overall, this series had some good parts and I would recommend to Iron Man fans. I enjoyed the fact it was produced and default to Japanese audio with subtitles, I think that really adds a lot to the feel of the show. If you are looking for some kick-ass Marvel Anime, I would also highly recommend the X-Men series.
The show follows Tony Stark as his arrives in Japan to build a new arc reactor that will deliver unlimited free energy to the Japanese people. He also plans to retire from suiting Iron Man and focus on plans to mass-produce armor known as “Iron Man Dio”. Stark faces not only challenges from the Japanese government and a mysterious organization Zodiac funded by terrorists. Stark needs to battle of them in order to save the day. Keep an eye out for crossover from Marvel including X-Men’s Wolverine.
The special features on the DVD are impressive and included some decent extras. The first feature called “Re-Imagining Iron Man” focuses on converting the show to anime. “21st Century Hero: The Technology of Iron Man” focuses on Tony Stark’s goodies and gadgets. “Special Cross Talk” is a roundtable discussion with the shows creators. “Voicing Tony Stark” is an interview with Japanese voice of Tony Stark, Keiji Fujiwara. I hope Sony is planning on releasing the rest of the Marvel Anime series for “Blade” and “Wolverine” as well. Fingers crossed.
