- Apocalypse Zero (1996: AIC and Ashi Productions) 2/2 eps.
Staff and Background
Oh Apocalypse Zero, how your name sends shivers down the spines of those in the know. This is another infamous show but for very different reasons, namely that it is utter shit. It is based on a manga of the same name by Takayuki Yamaguchi who’s other famous work is Shigurui, which also got an anime adaptation.. The OAV was directed by our old friend Toshiki Hirano, the guy behind Dangaioh and Zeorymer.
Story and Characters
Well the story….yeah. The world has been fucked by natural disaster and so now monsters, thugs, and general criminal types are stalking the land. As such our main character, Kakugo, and his sister have been trained by their father in secret martial arts so they can protect the weak, they are then also given some power armour. The story picks up with Kakugo a bit later on as he arrives in town. He is joining a high school because apparently every still goes so school despite the monsters and the fact that most of the buildings have been ruined, I guess anime needs its high school! Kakugo then fight off monsters who attack his new friends, his new friends also quickly figure out that he is the cyborg ninja man who keeps turning up to save him. The whole show ends up with him kind of fighting the main villain, except not really, and has no real conclusion. There isn’t really a plot here and there aren’t really characters either.
Audio and Visuals
What you are here for are the crazy ass fights, monster designs, and the gore. Well the monster designs are crazy but sadly I can’t link to them here because they feature nudity, so go have a google. They certainly are ugly and I do quite like them, sadly I can’t say the same for the other character designs. Just look at this shit!
Seriously, what were they even going for? At least this show is gory as fuck (NSFW so you get to see these terrible designs being destroyed in hilarious ways. In general the action is quite funny for just how over the top and nonsensical it is with my favourite part being a moment the main character somehow manages to punch out most of a dude’s head out as a solid block leaving a ring of flesh and bone attached to the neck. The animation is pretty piss poor for the most part by no means the worst I’ve seen. I watched the dub for this, as one really has to with this kind of how, and it was just as bad as to be expected which is kind of what you want. The music is awful, I have nothing more to say.
Conclusion
This show is shit but lots of fun to watch, especially with mates and a few drinks. If you are into that sort of thing then is this a must watch, otherwise stay well clear.
Final score: 1C
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