Welcome to Astral Animations, where we'll examine the imports of Japanese animation currently available in the United States.

This review does not represent the opinions of the general public. It reflects my personal thoughts and opinions on the movie.

That said, on to the review!

Several years ago, a man gave up his human body to become 8-Man, a cyborg hero who used his superhuman abilities--strength, speed, endurance, etc.--to combat crime. But something happened, and the man in the 8-Man died, leaving behind his cybernetic body to be locked away, never to be used again. It was a terrible loss for the police force, but much more devastating for the woman who loved the man in the 8-Man's body, Sachiko. When her beloved fiance vanished along with the 8-Man, the grief stricken Sachiko forced herself to endure. Later, she began working in the public relations department of a bio-technology firm, putting her past behind her.

Now, though, the city is under siege by a new threat. Cyborgs have begun popping up left and right, all falling prey to violent tendencies that causes the death toll to climb and climb. At the heart of it all is a scientist gone missing, along with schematics and data on cyborgs stolen from a government thinktank. Called in to track down the missing scientist and recover the info is Hazama, a private investigator with a major grudge against the police. The trail leads right to one of the most powerful companies in the city, the same bio-tech company that Sachiko works at. It brings Hazama into Sachiko's life...and drags her back into a world of crime and death.

Hazama and Sachiko go on a single date, and the aftermath of it all leaves her in the hospital and Hazama mortally wounded as a sinister figure from Hazama's past with a stake in the present decides to protect his future by putting Hazama out of his misery. The next day, however, Sachiko learns that Hazama was somehow already released from the hospital, something that should have been impossible from what she had seen of his wound. Later, when their paths cross again, he is seemingly fully recovered, moving without any signs of stiffness or bandages. Shortly after, Sachiko is shocked to see the 8-Man back in action, tearing apart cyborg gang bangers. She calls after him, but while he does pause, he does not stop. Who is the new 8-Man? How did Hazama recover so quickly? And who is the evil mastermind that is flooding the city with cyborgs?

I don't know if there was an 8-Man series or just a movie, but the 8 Man After: Perfect Collection is a stand-alone presentation, 104 minutes long, collected onto a single DVD. Originally released by the now defunct Streamline Pictures, this anime has been re-released, allowing fans another chance to watch the new 8-Man in action.

I know what you're thinking: "Another cyborg flick." Well, so what if it is? The central story is very tight with only a few extraneous subplots; most of the smalller stories have a direct connection to and impact on the main plot. There are only a few loose ends that last until the end of the presentation, but their late resolution only heightens the tension and draws you in further. For example, whatever happened to the scientist Hazama was searching for?

There's really only one thing that bothers me. There's this police officer, Ichiro, who happens to be the nephew of the police chief. He seems to know the main characters, Hazama and Sachiko, relatively well. If that's so, why don't we learn more about him, or why doesn't he have a greater impact on the story? There are others who are never really named that talk more and play greater roles in the story. Although, as a supporting character Ichiro gets the job done competently enough. Maybe he originally did have a bigger role but this collection cut down on his time. I wonder...

Unless you understand and speak Japanese fluently, you'll have to watch this DVD in its English dub. There's no subtitle option for this presentation, so you'll just have to endure the English voices. However, as far as I can tell, the English dub is just fine. The language is clean and clear, and while there are a lot of scenes with blood and violence, most viewers who watch it will undoubtedly be old enough to handle it.

Interested in buying this video? You can! Just follow the link to order the DVD version. You can also visit the Stellar Video Store for other titles.

This page posted August 1, 2002.

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