Episodes: 3

Genres: Action, Drama, Mystery

Studio: Anpro

Year: 2008

Source: Manga

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The Good

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Bus Gamer does look good. The character's have unique styles and appearances that flow well together and the world they inhabit. I always love a style you can point to and immediately find the party responsible. Kazuya Minekura's mangas are fantastic and a pleasure to look at. There were also a number of funny moments due to the clashes in the personalities of the main trio. Toki Mishiba, Nobuto Nakajo, & Kazuo Saito are more different than similar and seemingly incompatible. However tentative their teamwork is, it takes them far and I am a sucker for a team of clashing personalities unwilling to work together. 

 P.S. I love flip-phones.

My least favorite character is probably Toki, who's not actually like, bad or anything. He's just pretty boring even though he is given a mysterious and/or tragic back story. It doesn't really bring much.

 P.S. Best dressed, hands down. Love a good necklace.

 Nakajo is fun because he has some dumb one-liners and talks a lot of shit. He also is probably the best dressed.

 P.S. She's a filthy gamer on the side too. Respect.

The only other prevalent character is Keiko Ichinomiya who is not part of the games but is instead a detective invested in the mysterious deaths of many young guys that we know are the result of the games. She's ignored by her boss and ends up demoted to the archive department after carrying a suspect's gun around in her bag while getting drunk at a beer garden.

 P.S. Idiot. Why does be need one billion yen and why does he carry a picture of a nun?

Saito is the most dynamic character and a person I feel is the most relevant to the viewer. He is a total novice to the crime world and sticks out like a sore thumb. He lacks the coolness of Toki or the bravado of Nakajo. He has some funny moments but some of them are also a little overbearing, he's still the character I found most enjoyable. The gun gag was probably the best bit but it could have been given a more subtlety to really highlight the absurd elements of the show.

The Bad

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The overarching plot is pretty weak. The games of three vs. three have no unique rules to make the story tense or intriguing. The goal lies in either protecting the 'home base' and not letting the other team get a CD full of secret information or the reverse. In a later match the rules are suddenly changed and both teams have CDs and have to fight to keep their own disc and steal the other from the enemy. In the end it leads to just boring fist or knife fights with no parameters to follow to make the tension higher. The only time the show tries to up the ante is when they have to do battle in a crowded public place but it's too little too late. 

The Rest

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Bus Gamer goes by fast, it feels like it's gonna reveal a whole lot more but before you know it you get those final frames of the three in their usual jobs. A traffic cop, a bar tender, and a store clerk. Still, what it was able to get done was well executed and therefore deserves a mild recommendation badge.

P.S. It does look cool. It does.

The Score

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 Story: C. The death and money games narrative is not particularly interesting and here it feels incredibly rushed.

Characters: C. While the archetypes are interesting, the three episodes don't really let you make a connection with any of the characters. 

Style: A. Excellent style. The outfits, character details, and colour palettes are outstanding. I also liked a few of the settings.

Pacing: C. Very fast, but it's better than dragging on with no purpose.

Animation: C. The animation is not bad but the action scenes are less than exciting.

Music: B. Decent openings but nothing special. A few interesting instrumentals during the action sequences. The ending theme really outshone the opening theme.

Final Score: C. A quick watch with little to get immersed into but a fun exercise n style. 

More Reading . . .

Bus Gamer Manga Review [xx/xx/xx].

Gensomaden Saiyuki Anime Review [xx/xx/xx].

Sayuki Reload Anime Review [xx/xx/xx].

Sayuki Reload GunLock Anime Review [xx/xx/xx].

Sayuki Reload Blast Anime Review [xx/xx/xx].

Sayuki Reload: Zeroin Anime Review [xx/xx/xx]. 

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