Related Titles: FAKE (manga)

Genre: Police | Mystery | Romance | Shounen-Ai
Production Companies: Biblos Co. (Be X Boy)
American Liscensing Company: Media Blasters
Format: 1 episode
Dates: ???
Original Creator: Sanami Matoh
Age Rating: Not suitable for young children; 15-18 and up

Synopsis: Dee Laytner and Randy "Ryo" Maclane are two New York cops taking a needed vacation in England. Dee has very strong feelings for Ryo and wants to take this chance to advance their relationship (and if he's lucky, maybe seduce Ryo). Ryo doesn't understand his own feelings for Dee, and doesn't know if he wants to (or should) acknowledge them. Their vacation and relationship is suddenly disturbed when murders and missing person reports keep surfacing around their hotel. The only common tie the cases have is that all of the victims were Japanese or Japanese descent. Dee and Ryo have to solve the case before Ryo, who is half Japanese, becomes the next victim.

SCORE: 73%

Say hello to the first shounen-ai/yaoi anime I ever saw! It's a classic, but if you like this genre, I think you'll like this OVA. Afterall, Dee and Ryo are so cute together. ^_^

Plot: This plot is not amazing at all. Well, it is a good premise, but the execution kind of stunk. This OVA was based off one of the stories from the manga actually (for once! Yay!), but had enough difference in it that it made me cring. Yeah, cring. While the original story wasn't bad, and I didn't mind the two new female characters (I actually like Arisa and her friend. Arisa really brought out some cuteness in Dee and Ryo), the ending was bad. What I mean actually, is the climax of the story. It didn't happen that way in the manga, and for good reason. Afterall, after being run over with a bike...I wouldn't be standing.... To understand what I mean, watch this OVA, lol. The ending wasn't really bad, but was just a teaser. Sure, it left things open a little, but that was just so people would go read the manga. LOL, afterall, even though most things are explained well enough about the characters, this OVA was still meant for the manga readers, and it shows a tad. I can't help but wonder if thoughts about making more OVA episodes or tv show were in the works, since this OVA had a complete opening made with characters that didn't get the chance to appear in this OVA episode. However, that's been years ago now, so I'm sure that is definitely out of the question. The manga did end 3 years ago too.

Plot okay. That's about it. For more insight on the characters, check out the manga review. That'll tell you all you need to know about what I think of the characters. ^_^

As for the shounen-ai/yaoi element? Very tame in this OVA. A few kisses and a failed attempt to jump someone's bones, lol. This OVA at the most is only shounen-ai.

Visual: This anime shows it age, coming from apparently from the same animation companies that produced the first Yu Yu Hakusho movie and the Ninku movie (or all were at least released in America by the same company). This OVA is not the best animation by any stretch of the imagination. However, it was efficiently made, if anything. Good animation, not horrible, not extraordinary, just very good.

The designs were very true to the manga. I enjoyed seeing the style duplicated so well.

Sound: Sounds were pretty good, and about average. Some sounds were some commonly used ones, but less noticable sounds, like when Dee bumps his head, were enjoyable and adds to the humor. Good.

The music was very common and not remarkable at all. However, the opening Shake It, Buddy or whatever it is called can be very enjoyable, and is also the type of music I would expect for this kind of anime, since it was produced mid-90s, and the whole fashion of the show is very early to mid-90s. Fits nicely.

Voices were great! I loved Bikky and especially Ryo's. And of course I really enjoyed Dee's, being by one of my favorite voice seiyuu again, the wonderful Seki, who is know for his roles in Gravitation, Escaflowne, Weiss Kruez and so on! He did so well doing this kind of voice, I didn't even recognize it was him! Good work, Seki!

The Dub: Hmm...it was just okay for the most part. Ryo's voice needed acting lessons pretty badly. Dee was pretty good for the most part. The rest of the cast was okay.

Extra Rants and Bitching: I love Tomokazu Seki! Heehee, but actually, I love the characters of this show! I wish more of the great manga could have been animated! *SIGH*

Score Comments: While this anime is very enjoyable for me, some of the stupid things...like the bike thing...really bothered me. While this was adapted very well from the manga, it was adapted well enough. And if you haven't read the manga, you might be a very tiny bit confused about who the kids in the show are, even though everything else is explained. Not a marvelous anime, but good nonetheless.

Websites:

Have a website about this series, or do you know of a good one? Want me to link to it on this review? Well, the feel free to email the sucker to me! Just make sure to put "Review Link" in the subject.