Customer Reviews

Dual! Parallel Trouble Adventure: Visions (Vol. 1)

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I don't know about the next guy, but I think that this series was spot-on fantastic! Made by the same folks who brought us the hilarious Tenchi Muyo, they've got another REALLY good anime on their hands. In the real world, an ordinary boy named Kasuki Yotsuka gets transported to a parallel dimension where a war is going on by a mad scientist bent on taking over the world, but don't let that serious bare-bones plot fool you. If it's done by the guys who did Tenchi Muyo, then you know that it's gonna have a lot of hijinks thrown into the mix. Most of them center around his relationship with the most popular girl in school, Mitsuki Sonada (as well as the Tenchi-esque rivalry with other girls after his lucky self), and her father, a slightly mad scientist, named Ken (as well as his counterpart in the parallel world). It's the "Why, oh why does this stuff happen to me?" Kind of humor, and lovers of Tenchi and El Hazard (which BTW, is done by the same folks who did Tenchi) will love this particular anime... as will lovers of big mecha (that's giant robots for the anime uninitiated)which composes the bulk plot of this anime. And the detailed CGI animation mixed in with this show's vibrant cell animation is quite harmonious. This show, I tell you, has it all! In short, this is one not to be missed, so rent it, buy it, love it! I myself, can't wait for the next volume!

When I first saw the series I was immediately hooked; it had all the great comedy qualities and love-triangle scenarios that made Pioneer's Tenchi Muyo so fantastic. The concept of para-dimensional portals and alternate worlds came right off El-hazard, also from Pioneer. Moreover, the addition of mechas added more action (even though the mechas are *too* reminiscent of Evangelion *hint hint*). The mecha fight scenes are well-done, but definitely not incredible or intense. However, being a short anime series, Dual couldn't expand on some issues that came up, such as the true origins of the mechas or their properties (like for example, where the heck did those mysterious mechas underground come from?!?). The strange ending that plagued the series fortunately ends in a good note (unlike Evangelion). All in all, Dual just comes out to be a mixed clone of Tenchi Muyo and El-hazard, adding little originality to the storyline and leaving viewers scratching their heads a little after the series ends. If you are interested in Dual, the great thing worth seeing is the solid character interaction. Hopefully, if Pioneer decides to continue this series, they can expand the storyline to explore some of the more confusing details.

Dual! is another one of those titles that perfectly showcases everything that makes anime great. Kazuki Yotsuga is yet another in a long line of SNT's. (Seemingly Normal Teenagers). And of course, if he were normal, it wouldn't be interesting. Plaguing Kazuki are visions of gigantic robots doing battle right in his hometown! However, nothing really happens in his town due to the fact that the robots aren't there.

Kazuki meets up with Mitsuki Sonada, the lead heroine. Mitsuki brings him to her father Ken, a young scientist (and I use that term loosely) interested in the discovery of an alternate realm, a Parallel Universe, if you will. After accidentally being sent to this other dimension, Kazuki quickly finds himself in the middle of a war for the world. And I will stop the plot summary there to avoid spoiling more of the fun.

Dual! is a charming series, filled with likeable characters and humorous situations in the semi-romantic tensions between Kazuki and Mitsuki (And the other girls that Kazuki meets). Another pleasant suprise is the ability Dual! has to handle drama effectively, letting you connect with the characters on a deeper basis than your normal comedy anime. Action is also done well, as the mecha engage in high-impact battles that are almost equal to that of the legenedary Neon Genesis Evangelion, although they are considerably shorter.

Spanning four DVD's, this is an incredibly affordable series, and a definite must-have for fans of Tenchi Muyo (Dual! is a production of the people who brought you Tenchi) and Evangelion, or those who would enjoy a nice Sci-Fi/Comedy show.

AIC has done a really wonderfull thing and taken two series and combined them into one. I know that this will lead to people getting upset about it stealing from "their" favorite shows. That's why it seems so familar to everyone. I love Neon Genesis and I love the Tenchi Muyo OVAs, so to me this seems like the best of both worlds. I love the way that the characters interact with each other just like they do in Tenchi. Some charaters don't seem to be to well thought out and don't have too much feeling to them. That can be attributed to the length of this series though. I found that the story moves right along making you smile and laugh.... sorry it's not as serious as neon genesis is but it does have some exciting mecha battles. You'll find yourself rooting for your favorite girl to hook up with Kazuki. There is just a whole lot of fun in viewing this anime. This first DVD out of four deals with setting up the characters and the situation. There are some hidden things on these discs that are pretty neat that wil enhance the viewing experince of the series(there are secrets on all the discs). The animation is really pretty darn good with a style like that of Tenchi Muyo. I gave this series a 5 because they were just as fun as the tenchi series were, and since I am a huge fan of Tenchi then what else could I have given this? The only thing about this series that I absolutely hated was the inclusion of the CGI. They detracted from the viewing experience and they did not blend well with the animation. Yuk!!!! If you are a fan of Tenchi Muyo then you can't afford to miss these.

There is nothing new to anime in the first DVD of Dual. Everything that does not smack of a previously issued AIC series (like Tenchi Muyo, El-Hazard or Photon) is obviously borrowed from Gainax's Neon Genesis Evangelion. Even some of the characters can be best summarized as hybrids of existing characters: Kazuki, the male lead, is Eva's Shinji crossed with El-Hazard's Makoto. Mitsuki's father owes equal parts to Gendo Ikari (Eva, again) and Fujisawa-sensei (El-Hazard, again) and possibly even Nobuyuki, Tenchi's father.

That said, though, the series is just plain fun. Possibly more than any other AIC Series I've seen so far, it knows how to have subtle fun with itself. You know what's coming and the series has fun with that. Nothing's original, but nothing's boring, either. Somehow, the producers once again find a way to make you wonder about the fate of the characters (and the world[s] they inhabit) even though, if it's anything like Tenchi, El-Hazard or Photon (and it probably will be), the answers are probably quite obvious.

I highly recommend this disc even though there's nothing really new about it. It's a lot of fun. It was the first anime series in quite some time to make me actively eager for the next installment to come out.

In the beginning when you're watching this series, you could play Evangelion on a tv set right next to the one you're watching and the two series would be identical. But that is completely fine because Dual! is simply a great series even though it obviously copied from Tenchi and Eva. It has the best sense of humor that keeps you wanting to see more and wishing that it wouldn't end (I still think Mitsuki Sanada deserved much mor...n/m). The characters are done well and keep things light yet intriguing and all guys out there should watch Dual! just to see the "shock absorbers" scene. I was ROFL!

Alright here is the deal, Dual! is a wonderful series, people may not like it because it takes so much from other series (Evangelion, El-Hazard, and Tenchi) but thats what makes the show so much fun. The first two disks are almost filler, but adding just enough to keep you interested. If you pick up the first two and are mildly interested, do yourself a favor and pick up the last two, they are much more story filled and dramatic. You are gonna love this one.

I agree that this has so many anime cliches that it's almost silly. Boy shoved into strange world. Boy with no expierience turns out to be incredible robot pilot for some mysterious reason. One of the cast is a strange girl who has trouble with emotions. Boy is kind and considerate and as a result ends up with multiple love interests. Giant robots funded by the military fight for dominance of Earth.

That said, this is a damn good anime series. I never laughed out loud, except for that bit in episode 4 where the professor and the boy examine the shock absorption of the boy's feminine disguise, but I smiled a lot. Everything is kept rather light and the entire thing is just fun to watch. You know the Boy is going to expierience an intense emotional desire to save someone and then reach unprecedented levels of skill, it's a staple of almost all shows with giant fighting robots, and you know what will happen, but it doesn't seem boring. Instead it seems right, like they're following a formula that works, not one that gets repetitive and stale.

And even if it is formulaic at times, there is enough original material to keep you guessing. Even the formulaic stuff seems executed in a new way. If you liked the stuff that this was based on then you'll like this. It took all the great elements from other series, added in a couple of its own twists, and produced a fine anime series.

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This anime is simply one of the best their is. While it holds relation to evangelion, its characters and plot are too unique in their own ways to make this an issue, and instead simply adds something thats good about it. Unlike the Tenchi series (I had tremendous issues with its pacing and character interaction, the women were basically flopping over the guy, it was so incredibly artificial) AIG does the harem anime right. The girls are dynamic and interesting, and their interest for Katzuki, whether it exists or not, seems largely natural and the relationships fleshed out here are phenomenal. The action is great but takes a side seat to character development and mostly all of the characters in this series are incredibly interesting in their own ways, adding so much to the series. The brevity of the series, though creating heartache because you want more, is a a part of its immense charm. Their isn't any filler here, its 100 percent development 100 percent of the time. It has all the elements of great anime, interesting characters interacting in interesting and creative instances, some surreal or profound untertone, an enticing plot that is consistently strong, and just a sense I've only ever felt with Evangelion, Code Geass, Trigun, and to a lesser extent Last Exile. Though this sense is distinct with dual. Plus the music is great. Get it! You won't be disappointed.

Greetings;

In the span of but a single moment, the fate of the world is changed. A construction worker is told to dispose of an alien artifact off of the site he is working on, in one scenario, he simply tosses the strange stone-like device into the back of a dump truck, in another, he pockets the device. In the world that the main character Kazuki inhabits, the device was simply tossed away and the world was able to continue on more or less as it was meant to. The boy however, it would seem, is a kind of x-factor in the alternate world where the device was kept and studied and for this, he is able to see much of that alternate plane...I would not of course want to give away too much, though I have indeed watched the whole series through and loved it, the final episode was very Tenchi-esque, that is to say episode 14, touches on the whole, why not have it all feeling you get from Tenchi Muyo. I especially loved it when the 'evil' leader's wife from the alternate universe tries over and again to get Kazuki to seduce her daughter for the sake of forcing him to marry her and therefore inherit the specialized mecha that he comes to pilot, moreover his own special abilities to operate it.

As some have mentioned, many times it does indeed seem to feel a great deal like el-hazard, which was indeed a series done by the folks behind Tenchi, though overall not quite nearly as famous. Something interesting you will notice watching the show is that each of the women who end up in Kazuki's life tend to have a unique cooking style. One prepares Japanese cuisines, another Chinese and so forth. With the 4 volues I bought to the dvd series, the insert page that comes inside the dvd case, the one that usually tells you the episode titles and chapter selections, it lists out what is, or as near as I can tell, the speciality of the main, featured woman. Some don't come out and list who's it is, though there is always a picture of them. A picture of the actual dish and the recipe guide, which I always found to be a nice personalization. I also received decal in one of my copies, the kind you would hang in a mirror or a window, clear, with one of the girls posed, almost cel-like. Could possibly be one in each, but several if not all of mine were used copies, so that is difficult for me to say at this time.

This is just a personal opinion, but I really didn't mind the soundtrack either for that matter.

Oh, something else I remember. Back when the series was consideribly newer, back when you could also find it on a number of vhs tapes, I remember reading about it. It was compared more to tenchi muyp gxp, which, it is sort of reminescent of, yes. The special mecha Kazuki ends up piloting is the same one that Seina Yamada in GXP ends the series operating. Kazuki even is able to summon light hawk wings, which is a Jurai power, so there is certainly that element for a crossover. I even recall reading about how a number of characters from GXP are seen here and vice versa, though this isn't something I am able to confirm as I have never bothered to investigate this, though I honestly don't doubt it at all.

Thank you and take care...