FIF#83-Tiger and Bunny

 

It is the year NC 1978.  45 years have passed since the emergence of superpowered individuals known as Noted Entities with eXtraordinary Talents, or NEXT.  The most popular heroes of the city work with sponsor companies to bolster their image and seek the crown title of “King of Heroes” in a popular live televised event known as Hero TV.  This season, one company is trying something new: a team up.  Long time hero Kotetsu T. Kaburai aka Wild Tiger is being paired up with a new rookie, Barnaby Brooks Jr., a hero with no name.  Both come from very different ages of heroes so theyre bound to butt heads.  But with state of the art new gear and the will to do what’s best for the people, these two might end up being the best thing to ever happen to one another.  It’s going to be an exciting season of Hero TV that’s for sure.

When you hear a title like “Tiger and Bunny” is the first thing that comes to your mind a series about superheroes competing for ratings, adoration of fans and the overall spotlight?  If your answer is “no”, im not shocked.  It wasnt until I was maybe towards the end of the first episode when I saw this at Katsucon that I realized, “Oh this is Tiger and Bunny isn’t it?”  That’s partly my fault for coming in late (and not seeing an intro sequence) and partly the con not having the Sunday screening schedule up.  In any case, this was a surprise to check out and in a world where superhero Anime are proving to be better superhero stories than anything we churn out stateside, why has Tiger and Bunny fallen by the wayside when it seems to have basically paved the way for My Hero Academia and One Punch Man?

The first couple of episodes of TnB are a really fun ride all throughout.  The dynamic between idealistic veteran Tiger and the up and coming, by the books Bunny (who only gets that nickname because of the ears on his suits helmet), is classic buddy cop.  In fact the tag line from Lethal Weapon applies right here, “If these two can stand each other, the bad guys don’t stand a chance.”  Kotetsu is easily my favorite of the two heroes because he isn’t as much of a tight ass as Barnaby and I like that he still believes in what it means to be a hero beyond the glory that comes with it.  In fact, Kotetsu’s actions throughout might make him seem like a bit of a goofball.  But we do get some background as to why he does what he does, equal parts inspiration and tragedy. He could very well be what Deku ends up being at some point in Hero Aca…just not as clumsy and wayyyy more powerful.  The points and ratings system is fascinating.  A hero can gain or lose points (or opportunities to gain them) at various stages of fighting crime, from saving lives to last second interventions, and of course the ultimate criminal capture.  There’s also a small number of heroes fighting for the crown of Top Hero and all of them are likeable, with their own quirks and unique personalities and abiltiies.  That and they all seem to get along quite well despite competing constantly with one another.  My favorite stand out is the incredibly cute Blue Rose, who’s basically a female Captain Cold with way more powerful freeze guns.  Should also point out the animation style.  There’s a lot of 3D CG effects in this series, especially when it comes to Tiger and Bunny’s mecha uniforms they receive right after they team up.  I have to say, the combo of 2D and 3D animation isn’t as bad as other shows ive seen in recent years.  Wont say it’s flawless but I don’t have anything negative to say about its presentation either.

As far as intro episodes go, Tiger and Bunny is exciting, funny and just as inspiring as My Hero Academia and One Punch Man, which again is interesting since this came out a few years before either appeared.  I guess it just wasn’t at the right time when we really needed a huge dose of heroic inspiration in Anime?  Whatever the case, I think I could continue on with Tiger and Bunny to enjoy a trifecta of really good hero themed Anime, again a genre Japan seems to excel at more than America sometimes.  The dynamic between Kotetsu and Barnaby is entertaining without feeling cliché, the cast is diverse and likeable, the action is flashy and a ton of fun, and there’s just as much good dramatic timing as laugh out loud humor.  I really need to finish this one so I can see why it isn’t on a lot of radars like it’s fellow Heroic Anime brethren.