Customer Reviews

Excel Saga - Complete Collection

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Excel Saga has been described by some as the "Family Guy of Anime." While this covers the fact that it's definitely wacky and random, this is a poor framing for a series as original as this. Sure, the humor comes at you from multiple directions at once, is often "inappropriate" and is at times non-sensicle, but the comparison is a stretch.

You can find great reviews of the series itself on the page for the "Imperfect Collection," the previous box set release. What I mainly want to address here is that this thin-pack collection may not be the best way for first-timers to experience this series. Any time a series is brought over from Japan and translated for us westerners, many things get lost in translation. In the case of Excel Saga, many of the jokes and references fall victim to the dreaded "Lost-In-Translation" syndrome. ADV was able to help us with that problem by including the "ADV Notes" feature on previous releases of the series, which explained many of the jokes and references that often are lost on non-japanese audiences. That feature is conspicuously absent from this thin-pack release. While not an essential feature, it's extremely helpful for first-time viewers and those of us not nearly as immersed in the otaku lifestyle as some. Veterans, feel free to save a few bucks, but newcomers would be better off with the "Imperfect Collection."

Words cannot express my gratitude to ADV films for bringing us such a great series! This is simply anime at its coolest, funniest, and most insane. Every episode is legendary and you simply must own them all. The story revolves around an insane girl ("First name, Excel, last name, Excel, or just Excel for short") and her constantly-on-the-verge-of-death partner in crime, the impossibly meek Hyatt, as they seek to help the megolomaniacal (and often bored) Lord Illpilazzo take over the city. He sees the world as corrupt and plans to take it all over, but taking over the world is as he says, "for imbeciles who can only grasp the most general of concepts" so he's settling for just one city for now. So he basically just sends his girls on bizarre missions hither and thither to create general mischief. This story line (or lack thereof) is so hilarious it could carry the sereis unaided, but wait there's more! Such as Excel's next-door neighbors who fight loudly amongst each other at all hours over such things as money, food, and porn magazines. They all join a public service job under another insane character who attempts to make them into a crime-fighting group reminiscent of the Power Rangers. Then there's Pedro, who is killed in an Excel-related accident in the first episode and now wanders the earth as a ghost and undergoes torture after torture throughout the entire series while we all laugh at his expense. His catch phrase: "NOOOOOOO!!!!!!". And, of course, there's Nabeshin, the director's afro-sporting alter-ego "whose sense of self-promotion seeks to straddle the world" as he bursts unannounced into every storyline for no apparent reason other than the fact that he can because he's the director. In fact, the whole staff is in on the joke and the writers, original manga author, and even the singers of the theme song all get in on the action. This may all sound insane and confusing as is, but trust me, I've barely scratched the surface. Anime satire, parody, and truly disturbing comedy is the name of the game in this show which I can only describe as Japan's answer to shows like "The Simpsons" and "Family Guy"...but on crack, PCP, and acid. No genre is left untouched; American and Japanese pop culture alike are targetted for ridicule. Not to mention the too many movies and animes to list that are singled out and parodied including Power Rangers, Jaws,Fist of the North Star,Aliens and whatever your favorite anime or movie is, all are brutalized equally. If any of this perks your interest, you really must buy this set. I can't imagine any anime fan with a sense of humor and a cynical outlook on life not enjoying this series. The episodes can be (nay, MUST BE) watched again and again, in Japanese and English, and you will still catch some new joke every time you watch them. In fact, to get every single joke and reference you'll almost certainly have to go through some scenes frame-by-frame (it's a labor of love). Alright, I'll let you go now so you can buy the damn boxed set already!

Excel Saga is probably the definition of a guilty pleasure. Think about it: during this series, you'll laugh at violent deaths, eating a puppy, a sickly young girl who can't seem to sing one song without coughing, and a creepy adult man who enjoys surrounding himself with little girls. Yet it's able to pull this off in its own way, by never once allowing any kind of seriousness to creep into the series whatsoever.

That, however, is also what hurts this series. The chaos may just be too chaotic. The fictional writers within Excel Saga are constantly suffering from a lack of ideas of where to take the series. I think this may have been true in real life as well. Excel Saga seemed too contrived at times. Not only that, but there wasn't even close to a continuing story to carry it from episode to episode. After about half the series, I got bored with it, until maybe the last four or five.

Luckily, the characters of Excel Saga were there to back up the humor and keep it going. Of course, there is Excel, the main character, who works for Lord Ilpalazzo, a mysterious, over-lord-like figure who resides under F City. Also along for the ride is the sickly alien princess Hyatt, Pedro the whiny romantic, the government workers of F City, an afro sporting secret agent, some adorable-yet-ugly aliens, and, of course, the neighbors of Excel and Hyatt. All of these character play a key role in bringing about the laughs. Every episode of Excel Saga, while it usually revolves around Excel herself and the organization of Across, also follows one or more of these characters in their own personal quests.

In the end, what I came away with after watching the entirety of the series was that Excel Saga was indeed a funny anime, and definitely the best of its kind. But the thing is, there aren't very many of its kind, so that's not a good comparison. Basically, I'd say to play it by tastes; if you like Adult Swim, then chances are you'll enjoy Excel Saga.

This is an anime version of Brazil meets A Hitchhikers Guide as told by Monty Python while on serious mind bending drugs. About the only continuity to this series is the running gag with the emergency food supply. If you can enjoy almost random comedy, a story that seems to have no boundaries, characters that push the envelope of stereotype and irreverence, and dialogue that could be written by a drunken poet in a sailors bar in Bangkok.... >breathe<.... then this is your cup of sake.. er... tea. Be warned.... some of the episodes are a little course. So if you enjoy stuff that is "outside the box" (I really don't think it matters what order you watch the episodes in...), and are looking for something you can enjoy again and again either alone or with guests, this wouldn't be a bad choice.

Its flat out hillarious with the kind of random "out of left field" unpredictible humor that keeps you in a state of either laughter, or sheer "wtf" astonishment.

pop culture references galore

theres a bit of "shock value" humor too

its the kind of thing you can watch over and over and notice something new every time.

(i love their depiction of the americans when she travels to the usa)

just do your self a favor... dont try to predict it, you cant, and your head might explode into a ball of confetti.

and when you're done, go get "puni puni poemy"... its kinda like a sequal

basic plot....

...theres a group trying to take over the world...theres another trying to stop them... and a race of super cute (until you injure them) alien teddy bears with their own agenda as well.....

atthe end of each episode, everything sort of "resets" so they can try it in a different way

the director pops in every now and then to decide the "genre of the day" ranging from teen drama, to horror, to action, to mystery, etc.

...good times

Excel saga would have been one of favorites, but the only problem for me was that the incredible excel lost her voice half way through the series and was replaced by one of the most annoying voice I've ever heard in my life.. Pure hatered for that new voice actress. Besides that the first half is awesome and is still worth buying, plus you could always just watch it in japanese then there would be no change resulting in a headache from the replacements damn voice.

I was impressed there was only a hair of scratch on one disc. Everything else looks brand new including the box it came in even though it was used, well worth the buy for a great show.

Everything I asked for in a dvd. As for the series, I knew what I was getting before I bought it.

Please look at my review at:
Excel Saga - The Imperfect Collection
Here you will find ALL the infomation you will need, "Or what I needed to know at that time" :P

i first watched this with a friend and we laughed so much! this is the first comedic anime i got into and i wasn't disappointed. the change of voice actresses for Excel was unfortunate, it threw me off for a while. but i got over it. :) be warned, it's pretty weird humor.