The original Marvel Anime line consisted of twelve shorter episodes that aired in Japan in 2010-11 and in the U.S. in 2011-12 and eventually becoming available on DVD in 2012. Aside from Iron Man, Marvel Anime also sought to introduce the X-Men, Wolverine, and Blade the Vampire Hunter to Japanese audiences in their own 12-episode anime series. Opinions may vary but the Iron Man Anime was the best of the bunch, followed closely by X-Men, then a steep drop to Wolverine and lastly Blade. Iron Man: Rise of Technovore continues a great Anime Iron Man tradition.
This new Iron Man Anime clocks in at just under ninety minutes, quite a different feel from the episodic 22-24 minutes of the former Marvel Anime released by Madhouse. It could be that I was just accustomed to the episodic feel of the last Marvel Anime Iron Man as opposed to this new feature-length feel, but I do believe that the material just lends itself better to the episodic framework better. The original twelve episode Iron Man, like many other episodic anime shows like Cowboy Bebop, Samurai Champloo, or Full Metal Alchemist, just seemed to fit the material more than the feature-length variety. This new format seemed to drag at times or be in need of useless filler while the 23 minute format fed me what I needed to eat and digest and kept me entertained in the process. It was a format that I had grown accustomed to not only in the anime but in the source material itself — the comic books.
The longer format issue is an aesthetics one, however, the feature itself is a solid outing that I can’t wait to see more of. Straight from The Walking Dead, and one half of the Boondock Saints, Norman Reedus himself lends his voice to the Punisher character and does a great job with a relatively short part. Besides more Iron Man Anime, a Norman Reedus Punisher feature would be a fun ride. The Punisher material here is also a great place to start with the character. You also have appearances by Black Widow, Hawkeye, and Nick Fury, but their roles are more clear-cut as agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and don’t really lend themselves as well to their own feature. It would be interesting if Marvel and Madhouse followed the Marvel Movie model with stand alone features like an Iron Man, Punisher, or even a Power Man & Iron Fist that built up to an episodic series like a SECRET WARS confrontation — follow the model yet use different source material.
As for the IRON MAN: RISE OF TECHNOVORE material, the introduction of Obadiah Stane and his son is a good one. The role the son plays and his battles with Stark give Technovore it’s feel of anime and manga. Iron Man and War Machine’s action scenes are good ones and the Punisher fun cancels out some of the useless actions by Fury and Shield. Really like the work by Madhouse and think a definitive plan like Marvel Studios Phase 1 and subsequent Phase 2 plans would really benefit this East meets West romp in animated comic fun. A solid B- grade from me.
The Guy in the Hat