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00:30Hi gang, Penguin Truth here waxing nostalgic on today's Otaku Evolution.
00:55It's been too long since I've taken a look at my favorite Lurid Larsonist, Loop on the
00:58Third.
00:59This is a pretty good time to do just that, since the new television series is airing
01:03in both Japan and Italy.
01:05It's a great series, and I've been reviewing it for my blog, so go check that out.
01:09In the meantime, time to flash back to the 1980s again.
01:13A staple of the Loop on the Third franchise has been the TV Special, a 90 minute movie
01:18that aired on Nippon TV from 1989 until just recently.
01:22That's a new feature for over two decades, so as you might imagine, just as there's a
01:26variety of stories, so too is a variety of quality.
01:30The first few were helmed by anime legend Osamu Dezaki, who we haven't looked at since
01:35the Blackjack movie, and since we're going so far back, we might as well look at the
01:39first one with Bye Bye Liberty Crisis, released here as Bye Bye Lady Liberty.
01:44Now, this isn't really one of my favorite of the TV Specials, but rewatching it, I came
01:50to appreciate it a little more.
01:52The biggest problem is that it has the usual 1980s conception of computers being magical.
01:58But uh, that's not the only problem, not in the least, but as we'll see, Loop on does
02:03carry off a pretty audacious, if not absurd, caper in this one.
02:07Our story begins when Inspector Zemigata arrives at an ICPO facility in Paris.
02:13He makes his way to a vault where they keep computer data on criminals.
02:17He decides against advice to check out all the data on Loop on the 3rd, but it turns
02:22out that there are two Zemigatas, and of course the one so eager to smuggle out the data is
02:27Loop on himself in his favorite disguise.
02:30Zemigata is keen on preventing this information theft, very keen, extremely keen, psychotically
02:39keen, but Loop on, as usual, comes out on top.
02:43These opening sequences are usually the best part of the TV Specials.
02:48There's usually some kind of heist, a chase, Loop on using his wits to get what he wants
02:52and or get away from the law, and the Dezaki era is no slouch in this regard.
02:59Sometimes those opening bits have little or nothing to do with the main plot, like the
03:02opening to James Bond movies, but we'll see that in this case, it's fairly relevant.
03:08Despite a victory over Zemigata, we find a down and out Loop on in New York City, slumming
03:13it in a crummy apartment at the corner of Stab and Run, watching pro wrestling.
03:18But after succeeding in stealing the information from Interpol, why is Loop on living the domestic
03:54Not counting on Loop on to take part in a new caper, Chigin turns to Goemon for assistance.
04:01However, the stoic samurai rejects the request, preferring to go search for himself in a far
04:07off land.
04:08As for Fujiko, she's living it up with a slick wealthy businessman, who is apparently in
04:13some kind of mysterious organization.
04:16Zemigata finally tracks down Loop on to his apartment, but finds it empty, save for a
04:20strange little boy who seems to know who Loop on and Pops are, and takes off to find
04:25him.
04:26Chigin seems resigned to relying on his old contact Rooster for the next job, but as it
04:30turns out, Loop on decides there's nothing for him but the business, and he'll tag along
04:34after all.
04:35It looks like they have even more company, because some ninja-garbed gunmen target them
04:40at the warehouse.
04:41Loop on springs into action, creating a diversion for Chigin's escape.
04:59Loop on soon encounters the little boy in the nearby junkyard, surprised he's aware
05:03of him, and annoyed he wants to hire him.
05:06Loop on shrugs him off, he's got bigger problems right now.
05:09Rooster however, has an even bigger problem.
05:12Apparently he's stolen something already that the gun ninjas want.
05:16He dies taking a bullet for Chigin, who pays the killers back.
05:20Loop on and Chigin plan to carry out Rooster's wishes, to fence the fantastic super egg diamond,
05:26which he hid in the Statue of Liberty.
05:28But because this is the 1980s, computer magic means a program can pinpoint exactly where
05:33Loop on's going to be, based on…uh…uh…anyway, Loop on and Chigin run into some trouble on
05:41their way to the statue.
06:03If you think that chase scene was wacky, you haven't seen anything.
06:07This next bit is…well, this is either the highlight of Loop on's crime career, or
06:12a huge blemish on the franchise for it's reality shattering nonsense.
06:18Prepare for…well, just watch this.
06:21Looking for an opportunity to search the statue in peace, instead of just searching it during
06:25the night, Loop on opts to actually STEAL THE STATUE OF LIBERTY ITSELF, attaching a
06:32balloon to the top and floating it away.
06:36The Statue of Liberty.
06:38How does…what is going on here?
06:42Oh, and this weird kid with his computer is there too.
07:02I think Loop on was just trying to start a rivalry with Carmen Sandiego at this point.
07:07But can he steal lakes?
07:09On a train in the frozen wasteland, from which the Palin clan hails, a woman is in trouble
07:15being chased by men in black suits.
07:17Fortunately, she runs into the Loop on gang's reliable workhorse, Goemon.
07:22Goemon is a sucker for a woman in trouble and helps her escape from her pursuers.
07:27Her very zealous pursuers.
07:30And he struggles to stay chased in the wake of her gratitude.
07:34An inhuman feat if there ever was one.
07:36In the meantime, Loop on and Jigen search the Statue of Liberty, which they've stowed
07:41in the Grand Canyon.
07:42Yeah, the Grand Canyon.
07:45In Arizona.
07:46This is a thing happening in this feature.
07:49Loop on decides that Michael, the little boy, might be useful and consults him for his computer
07:54know-how, but the boy insists on hiring Loop on for a job.
08:00Well, what's the deal?
08:05I want you to steal me data material which I can use to manipulate a virus.
08:10Am I saying that again in English?
08:12It means a virus can be introduced into a program that destroys the data held in the
08:17computer.
08:18What I want is a much more sophisticated database that manipulates what's already in a program.
08:23I could hack into a particular program and be in control of that program.
08:27Loop on uses his own unique brand of camouflage to keep the statue hidden as helicopters search
08:33the canyon.
08:34But a small camera robot picks up on it and it turns out that one of the people who wants
08:39the Super Egg found the most is the man that Fujiko has been making time with.
08:44Fujiko infiltrates his organization's headquarters to loot their treasures and overhears a conversation
08:50with their leader regarding the Super Egg.
08:53Curiosity gets the best of her, however, and she's discovered.
08:57Loop on and Jigen settle down for the night, still unsuccessful in pinpointing the Super
09:02Egg.
09:02Luckily for them, Rooster hid the unnaturally shiny diamond in the torch of the statue,
09:08which lights up the night.
09:09But of course, the light attracts the attention of the organization after them, and cue another
09:15action scene.
09:22Huh?
09:23I thought we'd decommissioned him.
09:28Huh?
09:36Loop on, with Michael, gets separated from Jigen in the chaos, and while trekking through
09:41the desert runs into none other than Pops, who seems to finally get his man.
09:46Meanwhile, Jigen encounters Goemon and the mysterious woman who, uh, for some reason
09:53got from Alaska to Arizona via...
09:56teleportation, I guess?
09:59I don't know.
10:00Senegata has Loop on locked up in an old western style town.
10:04He's pretty proud of himself, though perplexed by the boy.
10:08But of course, Loop on can't stay in the Hooscau too long, and blasts his way out.
10:13The cavalry arrives for him in the form of Jigen, Goemon, and that woman, a rescue he
10:18very much welcomes.
10:21Goemon has taken it upon himself to be the woman, Isabella's bodyguard, but Loop on
10:26immediately has designs on her himself.
10:29Loop on tries to move in on the woman, but it could just be a cover because he realizes
10:33there's more to her than she lets on.
10:36She proposes a business deal to buy the super egg from Loop on, but they're interrupted
10:40by the organization and are forced to flee for their lives.
10:44Once again, Loop on tries moving in on Isabella.
10:48And, once again, there's no rest for the wicked.
11:08Oh, by the way, you'll notice that he's referred to as Wolf in the English dub?
11:13It's a legal thing.
11:14And weird because the Loop on theme still plays with his name in it.
11:19Go figure.
11:24The statue is returned to New York, where Loop on homes in on where Michael is.
11:28Isabella once again offers to pay Loop on for the super egg, but Loop on is more interested
11:32in why the organization is after her as well.
11:35Meanwhile, at the organization HQ, the slick rich guy, having discovered Fujiko is an ally
11:40of Loop on, puts her in front of their leader.
11:42They perform some kind of weird ceremony where the leader, uh, I'm not exactly sure what
11:47I'm looking at here, but it's some kind of Bohemian Grove style stuff.
11:52They're either summoning a demon or trying to bring Ed and Al's mother back to life.
11:56Senegatta arrives in New York with Michael, but when Pops falls asleep, Loop on, disguised
12:00as a punk, meets up with a kid, who reveals a football hiding the super egg.
12:05They arrive at the meeting point to make the buy with Isabella, but Fujiko, apparently
12:09possessed by the old cult leader, interrupts the purchase, and that's not all.
12:40Michael explains that his mother abandoned him to his grandmother to pursue her career
12:44as a genius computer scientist.
12:47Angrily, the boy admits that he had hoped to meet up with her and confront her about
12:51it.
12:52Speaking through Fujiko, the leader of the organization demands an exchange, the super
12:56egg for Isabella, and with that, his hold on Fujiko is released.
13:01At the cult's headquarters, however, Slick Mc80s is looking to make a secret deal with
13:05Isabella.
13:06It turns out that he's not such an alpha and she's not super innocent, but Goemon senses
13:11something about her and heads off to rescue her.
13:14Loop on and Jigen decide to leave Michael in the care of Fujiko while they head off
13:18behind him.
13:19Isabella, meanwhile, makes her move against the cult leader.
13:37Goemon, who witnessed the whole thing, is gravely disappointed in Isabella and attempts
13:43to leave, but the organization has different ideas on the matter.
13:48The samurai ends up in the basement with a captured Pops who'd been snooping around.
13:53Loop on and Jigen arrive to make the exchange, the super egg for Isabella, unaware that the
13:58situation has changed.
14:00But the truth is revealed and Isabella takes possession of the diamond, leaving Loop on
14:04and Jigen to take the plunge.
14:06It's a regular Cagliostro here.
14:09Loop on doesn't fret about being in the bowels of the cult building, though, because he's
14:13got Pep in his step.
14:15Pep in rocket shoes.
14:17And long legs.
14:19And leaping skills.
14:21And incredible luck.
14:24And...
14:25Loop on is officially sick of the mystery of the super egg and demands to know the connection
14:48between the diamond and the manipulative computer virus.
14:51Apparently the diamond was found by the organization and Isabella, the leader's chief subordinate,
14:55stole it and imprinted part of the virus onto it.
14:58However, as it could only be used in tandem with her, it was securing her life through
15:03necessity.
15:04Loop on tells Slick, thanks for the information.
15:08Isabella prepares the ritual to unleash the power of the virus from the super egg in some
15:11mystical psychic ceremony that screams, this is not how computers work.
15:18Loop on has blended in with the rest of the cult to witness the virus's awakening, which
15:21is... well, if there was ever a signature to Dezaki's work, it was stuff like this kind
15:26of imagery.
15:27But sadly for Isabella, now that the virus has been activated, Slick Mc80s plans to rid
15:32himself of his only obstacle and take the throne.
15:36Loop on probably should have finished off the guy while he had the chance.
15:55Fujiko and Michael appear to assist Jigen and Goemon, but Pops is as usual given the
16:00short end of the rope.
16:02Loop on's own escape plan is hampered by the sheer number of cultists and a downturn in
16:06his luck, but help arrives just in time.
16:09Michael finally gets his reunion with his mother, but can't bring himself to berate
16:12her and instead breaks down.
16:15Slick is a sore loser and prepares to use the cult's computer technology to launch nuclear
16:19missiles from the US and Soviet Union, because that's a thing you can easily do by pressing
16:24random buttons on a computer wall.
16:27Michael delivers the bad news to the Loop on gang.
16:30Loop on takes the little boy back inside to deactivate the computers, but things get a
16:35little dicey due to the lack of a stepstool.
16:55Loop on and the gang make their way out of the building as the self-destruct brings it
16:59down, which probably kills hundreds of people in the surrounding area.
17:04Despite the defeat of the cult, Isabella passes away from her injuries with final words
17:08to her son.
17:09In a coda to our little adventure, Loop on puts his own computer hacking skills to the
17:15test as he tries to erase the information about him from Interpol computers without
17:19the virus.
17:21His success is...questionable.
17:26And there you have it, the first of many, many Loop on the 3rd TV specials, and it was...well
17:34it wasn't anything special.
17:36Sure, all the usual Loop on elements were in it.
17:40Loop on being clever, chase scenes, Goemon doing all the real work, Cheegan making impossible
17:46shots, Fujiko complicating things, and a whole host of nonsense.
17:52There were movie-only characters, and even a precocious pint-sized kid character who...wait
17:58a minute...1980s, name is Michael, loves a computer...hey, am I in this thing?
18:06I don't recall hanging out with Loop on the 3rd before.
18:11Pretty sure my mom's not a scientist either.
18:13But then this special's interpretation of computer science makes CSI shows seem reasonable.
18:19And hey, I hang out with anime characters all the time, apparently.
18:24The problem is, while all the elements necessary to make a great TV special are here, they
18:29don't add up to be more than their parts, and honestly, not even two of their parts
18:33at times.
18:34It's not an agonizing sit, but I felt like it was plotted out by a Mad Libs with all
18:39these random elements, and even for Loop on, stealing Lady Liberty is a bit much for my
18:44tastes.
18:45Dezaki's next few Loop on specials were decidedly better, especially the second one, but sadly
18:52none of those were ever dubbed, so the chances I'll ever cover them is remote at best.
18:58I would like to review another Loop on feature in the future, but next time I'll be making
19:03paper airplanes with a three-part OVA read-or-die.
19:07Until then, see ya!