In the year 3195, there was a war between an army of robots and the humans. When Shaian, a sentient combat armor, lost his companion in battle, he shut down until his internal systems spotted a new human. It's now almost a 1000 years later, and Shaian's greatest enemy is still alive and doing battle in Brazil. With a new friend`s help, Shaian may be able to stop this evil force before another war rages over the continent.
(Source: ANN)
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Comentários
AbsoluteTheory
If you love that style of gritty, garage, 80's mecha anime, this lost, unpolished gem might be right up your alley. It's clear that they only had the production budget for a short one-shot, so the story seems to be very condensed. Still, I love this kind of stuff. The live-action opening breaks the animation fourth wall, but years later it still sticks in my mind.
jadedXotaku
Here we have an anime that only saw a vhs release in Japan. And that's really unfortunate. Released in 1988, Dragon's Heaven is but a brief 40 minute OVA based on Makoto Kobayashi’s manga of the same name. With such a short running time, it's unsurprisingly light on plot, but gives you just the right amount of character for you to care, and more than anything, has a aesthetic style unlike what's ever seen in anime. Developed by design studio ARTMIC (who also produced such OVAs as Genocyber, Bubblegum Crisis, and the anime the kicked off the OVA boom, Megazone 23), the art style veryaccurately mimics that of mangaka Kobayashi’s, which has a gritty and rough style that's reminiscent of French artist Moebius. Something of which gives it a visual flare more akin to the 1981 animated film Heavy Metal than in an anime, giving it a look that's truly unique in the medium, and much like California Crisis two years prior, has a visual style that hasn't been seen in anime before or since.
In the very far future, a young woman and a sentient combat mech battle robots in the desert of Brazil. Like I said, there isn't much plot, but the characters aren't poorly handled either. Make no mistakes though, this is almost purely about the artistic style. And despite being made during the mecha boom of the '80s and creator Kobayashi having worked on two Gundam series, the mechs don't look quite like what one would expect from the time. Like the art style itself, they too look unique. Speaking of unique, the OVA very surprisingly begins with a live action segment featuring the hero and villain robots in the form of remote controlled models. It's an interesting way to start an anime for sure.
Dragon's Heaven was easily one of my favorite "obscure" anime I'd seen some years back, and I truly wish it was given a blu-ray release. I've heard anime fans talk about how expensive new series on blu-ray can be, but it's even worse with some of the older stuff. As mentioned in the beginning, it was only released on vhs in Japan, so getting a physical copy will cost you some dough if you find one. Last time I saw one for sale, it was going for over $80, and art books of the anime (also only released in Japan) run from $49 - $94. Luckily there are funsubs, and it can be easily viewed on youtube, but an anime with such a unique artistic aesthetic really needs to see an official release on blu-ray, and simply doesn't deserve to be forgotten.
matthigh
There's really only one reason you would want to watch this one-shot OVA: The artwork. It's like nothing else you are going to see anywhere else in anime or manga (with, maybe the exception of some of the ancient tech of Hayao Miyazaki in the Nausicaa manga). The art style is much more reminiscent of eighties European comics. More in the tradition of Heavy Metal or Epic Illustrated, heavily leaning on Jean Giraud or Pepe Moreno. All of the artwork, that is, except for the main female character. Which is designed in a much more standard stereotypicalanime design. The juxtaposition between the two is very, very jarring, and because the running length of this is less than 30 minutes, you never have the time to get over it. It's annoying all the way through.
The story is nothing worth writing home about - a post apocalyptic grudge match between two sentient giant mecha in the far, far distant future. But really, forget the story, it's meaningless anyway. Just soak in the gritty art instead.
RockoDyne
Somewhere out there has to be an artbook that is far more interesting to read than this is to watch. Given that the first few minutes of the show are shots of their human-sized, model robot articulating, the priority of the OVA is almost exclusively on the mechs to the detriment of everything else. Honestly, the biggest criticism of Dragon's Heaven I have is that there just isn't anything to it. It's a post-apocalyptic setting, but it boils down to a desert that is a featureless Tatooine (and that isn't the only thing that looks ripped off from Star Wars). Our protagonist is acute, spunky, 80's anime girl, and the most important thing about her character is... hold on, I'm sure there was something... she takes a bath? She's out in the desert and wakes up a robot. The robot follows her home, and she decides to keep it. Now she and her pet robot become the only force to stop invaders, for some reason. They win and mecha-fido doesn't even have to die.
Then there is the art that rides the line between being highly detailed and being messy. A lot of the shading was done in the lineart, and sometimes without any color, so there might be times you only see four or five solid colors. There will also be times where a liberal airbrushing puts colors everywhere, so it ends up feeling like it's lacking coherent art direction. Did I mention the four minutes of filmed footage?
If you have started to exhaust all of 80's mecha anime, then give it a shot. Otherwise, no one is missing anything that hasn't been done better elsewhere.
JuneNephthys
The beauty of the "Dragon's Heaven" passion project is unfolded within the span of a thirty-minute runtime: scenic deserts, strange Giger-inspired towers of machinery, sand-covered robots, and a young woman — standing in the zeitgeist of it all. Dragon's Heaven is short OVA, that makes me miss the beauty of experimentation in Japanese animation. Most productions seem so formulaic, nowadays! This style seems similar to GAINAX's unconventional "Daicon Film" — made during the group's university tenor. Something strange, powerful, and rare radiates from projects like that and "Dragon's Heaven"! ⚠️ This review will have spoilers ⚠️ —Story/Characters This OVA has a very short run-time, but is dense witha Mœbius type of "je ne sais quoi"! The beginning sequence reminded me of Vega's backstory, in Rintaro's adaptation of "Genma Taisen: Harmagedon"! The alien cyborgs seemed to play a similar role to the giant androids in this series, expect there is only one, core human character: Ikūru. Which is funny because her name is eerily similar to the Japanese word "ikiru" (生きる), which means "to live"!
It's rather odd because, based on Ikūru's reaction to the automatons, in general, it appears that she has a robot-fetish. The way that she grinned, when Shaian printed out a picture of his enemy, Elmedain, seemed... suggestive. She flirtatiously complemented his framework and says that he is much better than Shaian. Was it a sexual implication, or was she just trying to rustle his jimmies? The OVA isn't really long enough to get a grasp on her character — not nearly enough is provided to elucidate what she feels towards the huge, hulking androids as a whole. It might just be a benign sense of amusement, but one this is for sure: she seems to have fallen in love with Shaian.
Luna's Favorite Works by Each Respective Creator = ✅
Makoto Kobayashi (director), notable works:
* 6 Angels
* Ice
Commentary: I haven't watched any of Mr. Kobayashi's other works, but — from the behind-the-scenes extra, at the end of the feature, it seems like adapting "Dragon's Heaven" was a big passion project for him! Great job on the OVA!
Osamu Kobayashi (storyboard, color setting, mechanical design, key animation), notable works:
* Ao no 6-gō — Mechnical Design, Setting ✅
* Beck — Director, Character Design ✅
* Birth — Mechanical Design ✅
* Mahōtsukai ni Taisetsu na Koto: Natsu no Sora — Director
* Paradise Kiss — Director, Series Composition ✅
* Venus Senki — Mechanical Design ✅
* Zoids Genesis — Mechanical Design
Commentary: Not to be mistaken for the aforementioned Mr. Kobayashi, but man, does OSAMU Kobayashi have a lot of good titles under his biographical belt! His mechanical designs are particularly notable and his directing is top-notch, too! Amazing and talented creator!
Yuko Minaguchi as Ikūru, notable roles:
* Mercelida Ygvar, Astarotte no Omocha!
* Sayaka Murakami, Bio Hunter
* Hotaru Tomoe, Bishōjo Senshi Sailor Moon ✅
* Apricot, Bosco Daibōken
* Ringo, Casshern Sins ✅
* Midori Yamabuki, Dr. Slump
* Pan, Dragon Ball GT
* Videl, Dragon Ball Z
* Klose Rinz, Eiyū Densetsu: Sora no Kiseki the Animation
* Linaly Klauser, Final Fantasy ✅
* Key Mii, Greed
* Hoshimi Kimizuka, Maps
* Yakumo Shindō, Mushrambo
* Musse, One Piece
* Yaone, Saiyūki ✅
* Farah Oersted, Tales of Eternia ✅
* Girl, Tori no Uta ✅
* Hinoto, X/1999 ✅
* Yawara Inokuma, Yawara!
Commentary: Ms. Minaguchi's portrayal of Ikūru is very sultry, it seems comparable to some of her older, "sexy mother" performances. Great job!
Iemasa Kayumi as Shaian, notable roles:
* Baron, Hottarake no Shima: Haruka to Mahō no Kagami
* Project 2501, Kōkaku Kidōtai ("Ghost in the Shell") ✅
* Gardin, Legend of Lemnear: Kyokuguro no Tsubasa Valkisas
Commentary: I only recall hearing Mr. Kayumi's voice in the "Ghost in the Shell" film, and with both this role and that one, he nailed it. Rest in peace, Iemasa Kayumi.
Kei Tomiyama as Elmedain, notable roles:
* Marco Polo, Animation Kikō: Marco Polo no Bōken
* Rigodon, Anime 80-nichikan Sekai Isshū ("Around the World with Willy Fog")
* Takaya Todoroki, Arrow Emblem Grand Prix no Taka ("Super Grand Prix")
* Largo, Bremen 4: Jigoku no Naka no Tenshi-tachi
* Terrence G. Grandchester, Candy Candy ✅
* Gakusha, Gamba no Bōken
* Lingam, Genmu Senki Leda
* Wen-li Yang, Ginga Eiyū Densetsu ("Legend of the Galactic Heroes") ✅
* Subaru, Ginga Tansa 2100-nen: Border Planet
* Duke Fleed, Grendizer: Getter Robo G — Great Mazinger Kessen! Daikaijū
* Eric Jones, Kagaku Kyūjo-tai TechnoVoyager
* Wilfred Anderson, Oh! Family
* Sankichi, Robot Carnival ✅
* Sabu, Sabu to Ichi Torimono Hikae
* Yabure Roppō, Roppō Yabure-kun
* Ban Bamba, Samurai Giants
* Sir Djorgo, SF Saiyūki Starzinger
* Naoto Date, Tiger Mask
* Narrator, Time Bokan
* Susumu Kodai, Uchū Senkan Yamato ✅
* Tochirō Ōyama, Waga Seishun no Arcadia ✅
* Micheal, What's Micheal?
Commentary: Mr. Tomiyama has played some great roles, as Elmedain he is very sinister, as opposed to his typical "hero" roles! I really loved him as Yang Wen-li ("Ginga Eiyū Densetsu") and Susumu Kodai ("Uchū Senkan Yamato")! Farewell, Kei Tomiyama, you will be missed.
The conclusion of this review is: please go check this OVA out! Even if you're left a little confused by the characters or story, the visuals are absolutely stunning, and there are some great vocal performances, too. Productions like "Dragon's Heaven" and "Little Nemo" are the reason that I miss cell-animated anime! I give this OVA a 6/10!
Rating: ★★★☆☆
nexoscore
Dragons Heaven is a movie that I would recommend only if you are looking for an anime purely for it's art style. The style is amazing and should be your reason to see it, with its gritty texture and feel. The story starts off very interesting but when it gets going, the story becomes very bare. The character interactions fell real but the villain fells a little over the top and not enough explanation for his motivation besides just wanting to take over the world and being evil. I fell that if it had another thirty minutes, it would benefit a lot with being ableto flesh out the characters and world to get more invested in what is happening. Overall would recommend and implore you to make up your own mind on this interesting OVA.
hagrid1994
I loved it.Made me feel warm and fuzzy at the end and I would recommend it to old-school-style fans. I watched the English sub version on Youtube.I don't know if there is an English dubbing to this anime. But there are 2 things I need to address: 1)According to MAL this is a 24 minutes piece.It is about 30 or 42 if you would include the credit scene.I hope someone would see and fix this. 2)I felt like I'm watching a pilot for a show.An unfinished work so to speak.The story felt rushed and could have been much more.The final fight didn't make much sense.
MephistoPan
I gave 5 starts not because the show is average, I would say it is worse than that. However I didn't give 4 stars because calling it bad isn't exactly true. There's the need to take into consideration this animation was done around 1988. I love the old school animations, I really do. The art style could be a bit better but it satisfied me enough. There are basically 2 things that I absolutely didn't like: 1 - The plot is very poor and even somewhat cliche. 2 - The main character (the girl) has a "way over the top" sort of personality which makesme cringe.
CaptainSalty
The art style of the movie was very pleasing to look at, the detail of anything covered in sand or rust was good. Some of the music reminds me heavily of Metal Slug (which didn't release for another 8 years). The story, characters, and world however, were very bland. The designs of the robots were very cool though. It had a good grit feel to it but the tone was extremely light hearted despite some of the things they attempted to tackle. A good easy watch but it doesn't offer much besides some eye candy and great music, mixed feelings overall.
