Burn Up! Excess
| バーンナップEXCESS |
This is an old ‘un. Burn Up Excess is a 1997 anime consisting of 13 30-minute episodes. It is the 3RD incarnation of the Burn Up! anime. Burn Up! W is the 2ND incarnation and is the only other one that holds a similar story, with all the characters in the same cast. Burn Up Excess can be described as “ecchi” and “action.”
Rio is the tough, energetic, hand-to-hand combat expert of a secret police organization, WARRIOR. WARRIOR was created to bypass administration red-tape in dire situations. You can figure out the main premise from here, but what about the plot?
I was first introduced to Burn Up!, the 1st incarnation, and it sounded … lame. Admittedly, that was only a 50 minute OVA, but I had no desire to watch it. Then I came across Excess and figured that at least I’d have something to complain about and get a laugh at the boob/skirt physics. Lmao, it’s SO GREAT. What made it great was all the characters remained at least marginally important. I’ll admit that Nanvel, the dark-skinned hottie, was a tad … superfluous … but because of the subtle hints of Rio genuinely caring for her and vice versa, it was overlookable.
What got me first was Rio. One look and I thought, Ugh. Blonde ditz bimbo who’s there just for boobage and fantasies. Well, I was wrong. Rio’s always in debt … because she puts herself there. I loved that she wasn’t in debt because of poor environment, unsteady jobs … no. Rio’s always out of money because she loves to shop before paying bills and eating. She wants to marry for money to ditch her civil servant role. And she’s not a cop for various pitiful reasons. It’s a steady job with some excitement, that’s all. And Maya (green hair) is a CRAZY mf! Give her guns and -EEEHEHEHE! – the maniacal laughter comes out.
Okay, about the ecchi. It’s … not that bad. Not many panty shots, but lots of boob shots. LOTS of boob shots. Some suggestive scenes, but it always turns out to be comedic. VERY comedic. But a lot of fanservice nonetheless, like Maya getting her boobs squeezed by everyone and their mother in one episode (almost literal). It’s mostly posing ecchi (like a discussion in underwear), and not expressly pointed out in anything but visuals. Oh, Yuji (the only guy in WARRIOR), is a leg fetishist and a general perv, though. He usually gets that crap beaten out of him.
That being said, I liked how Yuji was actually GOOD at what he does (piloting) instead of just being thrown in there for giggles and laughs. He’s a perv, but when it comes down to it, he’s still generally liked by the girls to build a good team dynamic, as well as being on top of his game. Heck, I liked how all the characters were good at what they do. Rio’s AMAZING at hand-to-hand, Maki (blue-hair) is a formidable administrative pro, Lilica (pink) is always integral in computers, Maya … though not always integral she IS the firearms pro, and Nanvel … well, she invents stuff. Questionably admirable. But the group always succeeds their missions in a very believable way without you wondering, “How do those ditzes accomplish anything.”
Oh, another thing I liked. There are only two romances in this anime. One of them is between Rio … and a tank. Yeah, that’s right. A military tank (with AI of course) “falls in love” with Rio. It was surprisingly touching. The other romance would spoil too much if I told you what happened. Even though this anime is all about fanservice, all the girls are pretty virtuous, if a little carefree about dress. Rio appears to believe in sex after marriage (and is hinted as a virgin), while all the other girls are pretty “don’t touch unless you wanna lose that hand.”
With the comedic aspect is a dark underlying enemy in every episode, being funny with a bit of dark tension. And, for a decade old animation, it runs pretty smoothly and prettily. It has some repetitive animation (in the tight-budget way), but it’s overlookable. I recommend at least a peek for curiosity’s sake. (Transvestite jewel-smugglers and a panty thief!)
