Medabots, Vol. 4: Medabot Wars (1997) – DVD Review

Film:
DVD:

Directed by Tensai Okamura
Character Design by Tokuyuki Matsutake
Story by Medarot Company

Dindrane’s Anime Warnings:

Mean doctors with poor name choices

Smart-mouthed robots

Robot on robot violence

Minorly scary villain costumes that might frighten younger kids

Released by: ADV
Region: 1
Rating: NR
Anamorphic: N/A; episodes appear in their original 1.33:1 format.

My Advice: Get it if you have young children who like the genre

Medabots, which has quite a following among younger anime viewers, is a harmless anime story about the hero Ikki and his friends, who, with the help of the Medabots, oppose the evil Dr. Meta-Evil and the Rubberobo Gang. In the grand tradition of Pokemon, young Ikki has always had a dream of winning the Robattle Tournament, but the only Medabot he could afford, Metabee, is not exactly easy to control. Will Metabee and Ikki be able to work out their differences and work together as a team to train for the upcoming Tournament? What is the secret of Metabee’s Rare Medal? Will Dr. Meta-Evil’s plans for world-domination allow Ikki time to train? And just why does this kid never seem to study or go to school?

The audio is nicely done, with good voice-acting by both English and Japanese cast. The Japanese cast does get a bit screechy at times, especially the younger females, but that’s to be expected in a show of this type. The video is also strong, with bright clear colors, thick lines and simple designs typical for children’s anime. There are no problems with the digital transfer, though my copy locked up when I tried to access the Battle Recap from the scene menu. This is almost certainly a flaw with my disc, however, and not the coding overall.

All in all, if you like good-hearted battle/training type anime shows like Pokemon, Beyblade, or Digimon, then you should enjoy Medabots. It’s inoffensive, and parents can be sure that the show will teach the not-so-fine line between good and bad, in a world where the difference is clear, heroes are always heroic, and even a kid can make a positive difference. Your daughters, however, will undoubtedly want to know why girls are always in pink in anime and why Karin’s medabot’s special “attack” is Healing. The creators weren’t trying to do anything all that ambitious, which keeps the show from transcending its genre, but it is a decent example of its genre of human-controlled battlers, and this time no animals are harmed in the winning of tournaments (unlike that Ash kid, whose “best friend” ends every episode beaten up). Check this one out if you have kids under thirteen or so, or you just long for a simpler world.

Buy it from Amazon.