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Review

by Allen Divers,

Super GALS

DVD 2: Never Break a GAL's Heart

Synopsis:
Super GALS DVD 2
Ran Kotobuki has decided that the best way to celebrate her brother and Miyu's first date is to have them treat her to a day at the pool. While Ran and the gang head to the pool, it's left to Ran's little sister to defend the streets of Shibuya! Then, just as Miyu feels as if she has put her past behind her, a string of emails and phone messages show that someone is aware of her past and wants revenge. And poor Yuya, just when he thinks he has the guts to ask Ran out, a rival appears to make things even harder. It's just another day in Shibuya for Ran and the gang!
Review:
The star of Super GALS!, Ran Kotobuki would probably have one thing to say to you about this volume: "Never break a girl's heart." With a title like that, viewers may be a bit confused about what this series has to offer, and the pretty pink box included with volume one of the series probably leaves most males wondering what they're getting into. What they'll get when they pick up this series is a fun show about three girls shopping in the streets of Shibuya. To be more precise, what they get is a wild slice of life series filled with gal-speak, fashionable outfits and a outrageous comedy. Super GALS! is much more than an average shoujo story: there's a fun script, out of this world characters and even a bit of drama mixed in to entertain all comers.

Building off the intro in the first volume, volume two packs five more episodes of Super GAL mayhem. Extras include culture notes in the form of an insert, textless opening and closing animations, the standard array of ADV previews and a mini-poster featuring one of the gals. With its hip soundtrack and para para beats, the English soundtrack takes on a wild streak behind the lead of Luci Christian in the role of Ran Kotobuki. Luci puts a lot of attitude into this role, allowing Ran to be one of the most memorable anime characters seen in a while. The rest of the cast follows suit with great performances from Chris Patton, Greg Ayres and Jason Douglas. The entire cast puts a lot of heart into their performances enhancing the high energy already present in the show.

The animation and artwork sticks with a simple style of animation, not too worried about a super realistic feel. A lot of the differences between many of the female characters are seen more in their fashions and their hairstyles than facial features. The animation is fast and furious, pushed by the manic personalities of those characters. Sticking with the upbeat atmosphere of the entire series, the artwork is bright, and the colors are vivid. The artwork creates a definite style, contrasting the simple character designs with their complicated fashion sense.

Super GALS! is a hyperactive slice of life following the adventures of a group of schoolgirls. Putting things like that, males may immediately be turned off by this girly show. In fact, Super GALS! actually has a lot to offer both men and women with its fun storylines. Simply put, the show is outrageous. It all starts with the lead character, Ran Kotobuki, and flows out through the rest of the cast. Having established the main characters in the previous volume, volume two introduces a few new characters to the mix. First up is Ran's little sister. Then it's a rival for Second-place Yuya. While some shows can easily become bogged down with too many characters, Super GALS! takes it in stride, actually coming out even more outrageous. Along the way, there's even some time for the characters to grow as former bad-girl Miyu comes face to face with her past. This variety helps Super GALS! be more than a mindless comedy show, giving viewers something else to ponder while watching.

Super GALS! is a must-see for those who like shows where the characters are the most important part of the show. There are no major storylines or evil plots, just some girls looking to live their lives to the fullest and not compromise who and what they are. Heavy of the comedy, Super GALS! manages to mix in elements of drama to keep the story moving. Volume two shines with its comic hijinks and heartfelt moments. Super GALS! is the epitome of something different. It's hard to pigeonhole this series with all the elements present. Simply put, you just have to get this series to enjoy it for yourself.
Grade:
Overall (dub) : A
Overall (sub) : A
Story : A
Animation : A
Art : A
Music : A

+ Outrageous fun in the streets of Shibuya
Girly wrapping may be a turn off for a few males

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Production Info:
Director: Tsuneo Kobayashi
Series Composition: Masashi Kubota
Script:
Masaharu Amiya
Miya Asakawa
Kenichi Kanemaki
Masashi Kubota
Kazuhisa Sakaguchi
Hiroaki Satō
Mayori Sekijima
Storyboard:
Noriyuki Abe
Tetsuya Akino
Saeko Aoki
Makiko Date
Tetsuya Endō
Akihiro Enomoto
Jun Fukuda
Tetsuya Fuyuno
Tetsuya Haruno
Shigeki Hatakeyama
Hajime Higashino
Shigenori Kageyama
Kazuhito Kikuchi
Eio Kobayashi
Tsuneo Kobayashi
Chiaki Kon
Junya Koshiba
Jōhei Matsuura
Tetsuya Natsuno
Mitsutaka Noshitani
Mio Oshikiri
Hiromitsu Ōta
Masafumi Sato
Shinji Satō
Akira Shigino
Masami Shimoda
Tsuneo Tominaga
Shigeru Ueda
Yoshiki Yoshida
Episode Director:
Tetsuya Akino
Sanjūrō Akishima
Saeko Aoki
Makiko Date
Tetsuya Endō
Tetsuya Fuyuno
Tetsuya Haruno
Shigeki Hatakeyama
Eio Kobayashi
Chiaki Kon
Rion Kujo
Masayuki Matsumoto
Jōhei Matsuura
Tetsuya Natsuno
Mitsutaka Noshitani
Masami Shimoda
Hiroyuki Tsuchiya
Shigeru Ueda
Atsushi Yano
Yoshiki Yoshida
Music: Hikaru Nanase
Original creator: Mihona Fujii
Character Design:
Yuko Kusumoto
Hiroto Tanaka
Art Director: Junichi Higashi
Animation Director:
Kazuyuki Ikai
Keiichi Ishikura
Noboru Jitsuhara
Akio Kawamura
Yukihiro Kitano
Fumiko Kon
Haruo Miyagawa
Tsutomu Murakami
Masae Nakayama
Noriko Otake
Yukimaro Ōtsubo
Konomi Sakurai
Hideo Shimosaka
Seiki Tanaka
Shinsuke Terasawa
Kenji Tojo
Sound Director: Toshiki Kameyama
Director of Photography: Naohisa Haijima
Producer:
Tomoko Gushima
Ryunosuke Tsuno
Licensed by: ADV Films

Full encyclopedia details about
Super GALS! (TV)

Release information about
Super GALS! - Never Break a GAL'S Heart! (DVD 2)

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