Series: Brain Powered

Availability: Dub and Sub VHS

Episodes Reviewed: 1 & 2 (subtitled)

The last half of the 1990’s has not been too kind for giant robot series. After Gundam Wing, Escaflowne, and most notably Neon Genesis Evangelion hit the airwaves, there has been an awful lot to live up to, especially in the dramatic realm, to the point that parody and comedy have become the trend. And then there are some, like Brain Powered, that try to follow where Evangelion led.

Brain Powered’s world is the usual Earth of the near future. Earthquakes and strange events are aplenty, including random attacks by Plates, spinning disks that create Antibodies (organic mechs). Hime, apparently a refugee, gets caught in the middle of one of these attacks, and, when the Plate creates its Antibody, bonds with the machine. Antibodies from Orphan, the mysterious organization that has a monopoly on Antibodies, then attack her. She escapes, after trading words with Yuu, one of the pilots pursuing her. One year has passed, and Hime has joined with Novis Noah, a group fighting against Orphan. Meanwhile, Yuu had become obsessed with Hime and leaving Orphan. When Yuu finally decides to leave, his former comrades chase him from Orphan. Turns out Hime and Novis Noah are waiting...

So how does Brain Powered fare against other mech shows? Not well. It falls into the trap of mistaking obscure storytelling for real depth. This show needed to convey more background information. I watched every minute of the two episodes and I was quite confused as to what was going on. The episodes never ended on a finite note or even a cliffhanger, but the endings were jarring in their flow. And the production values... ::sigh::

Brain Powered had a washed, dull feel to the visuals. While this could be due to the tape I watched, the designs lacked the crispness of line seen nowadays. This would have been a minor quibble had the series not come out in 1998. The animation was smooth, but unimpressive, as were most of the character designs. The music was okay, not truly bad, but not truly good. At least it did not drop into Sailor Moon S levels of awful.

The subtitle job was jarring as well. The letters were much larger than the usual Bandai job and in an unattractive, blocky font. While I have usually been impressed (or at times, been tolerant) with the Ocean Group’s dubbing abilities, this subtitle job does not live up to their usual standard. Again, I am not impressed.

So what stands out about Brain Powered? Very little. The characters, art, and music just lack that speacial something that grabs your attention. What does stick out is the suggestive visuals running throughout the show, and not just in the fan service heavy opening animation. Other than that, this one’s a snooze. Evangelion claims another victim.

Final Verdict: Neither great nor bad, Brain Powered is something you will want to rent before considering buying.