Shortly after waking up in an unknown street with no clothes or memories, Retro and Pandy team up and begin a life of thrill chasing and violence. Retro's wild antics and Pandy's carefree personality make them the perfect partners in crime to cause mayhem wherever they strike.
When an accidental mistake lands them behind bars, Retro and Pandy are sent to Dead Leaves—a high-security prison on the Moon. Once there, they soon discover that the other inmates are clones, all products of genetic mutation experiments. With nothing better to do, they escape from their cell and lead a prison break with the other captives. Armed with a crew of mutants and a hunger for havoc, the chaotic duo begins their wacky escape.
[Written by MAL Rewrite]
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Comentários
Skadi
Dead Leaves is the kind of show that would probably blow your mind if you watched it stoned or drunk. It is so completely insane that it almost doesn’t make any sense if you’re sober. The first thing I am reminded of while watching this was another wild and crazy series, Furi Kuri. By the end of that show I wasn’t sure if I liked it or not. That’s not the case with Dead Leaves, it was a great ride that I recommend strongly. The story for Dead Leaves is as nutty as you might expect. A couple find themselves nakedand without memories and turn to a crime spree in which they are eventually caught and sent the moon's prison called Dead Leaves for life. They soon manage to free themselves and the other prisoners and find themselves in a life or death struggle to escape, and to recover their own memories that seem to be related with the prison. It’s not incredibly deep but the action is furious and nonstop. Don’t blink or let your attention wander because you’re bound to miss something and become confused.
A word of warning for anyone who is going to watch this. This one is not for the small kids. The humor is perverse, highly sexual, graphic and gory. The body count and level of death is shockingly high. I have railed against violent humor before in the past but Dead Leaves is one in which this actually works. Dismemberment has never been so much fun or humorous.
Characters are a real strong point as this movie features some of the most enjoyable I have seen to date. The two protagonists are Pandy and Retro. They are both drawn in a very bizarre style like everything else in the show. The first thing that will probably strike you is why does Retro have a TV for a head? There is good chemistry between the pair and I can’t see anyone not liking these two from the start. There is a plethora of supporting characters, many of them are quite hilarious. Most noticeably "Dick Drill" and the Doctor. I’m not sure if it’s even possible for me to describe these two to someone who hasn’t seen this anime. Just watch it, if you don’t think they are hilarious then check your pulse because you’re dead.
The animation, well it’s unique. I would say that it is a masterpiece really but I can’t really justify it. It is so odd and so bizarre that it is sure to not appeal to everyone. I thought it was perfect because it set the tone so well for both the story and the characters personalities. It all really fits together well. Like I said before those who have seen Furi Kuri are going to find a lot of similarities here. The acting is also top notch. With so many crazy personalities the cast does a wonderful job of bringing out all these quirky and insane people and giving them life.
I really recommend this movie highly to everyone. If you like zany, graphic, and wild comedy then this show is definitely for you. FLCL fans should also check this out without fail. I would also recommend another series called Trava which is very similar in art style and story pacing. Dead Leaves isn’t for everyone, but I think everyone should give it at least a try.
Venneh
Title: Dead Leaves Anime: Dead Leaves is a 55 minute OAV that was created by Imaitoonz (who also did work on the 3D mechanical designs on Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann), was produced by Production IG (known for their work on Azumanga Daioh and the Ghost in the Shell series), and directed by Hiroyuki Imaishi (who also directed Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann and FLCL). It was released in Japan on January 17th, 2004, and was licensed Stateside by Manga Entertainment, who released it on September 28th, 2004. Story: Retro, a guy with a TV screen for a head, and Pandy, a girl with a panda-esque mutation markover her eye, wake up naked on Earth with no idea of who they are or how they got there. They promptly decide to go on a crime spree to get food, clothes, and transportation in Tokyo, and are promptly captured and sentenced to time on the lunar prison known as Dead Leaves. Little do they know what awaits them there.
There is but one thing you need to know abotu this OAV: It is cracktastic. No other word for it. Utterly cracktastic. And when you look at the director's previous works, it's not all that surprising.
There is no real overarching plot and character development is minimal. The OAV moves along very quickly from sequence to sequence, sprinkled liberally with sex and mayhem and violence and insanity.
It's a hell of an OAV to watch, and definitely worth it, in my opinion. Just don't expect much in this department, and just let the crazy wash over you.
WARNING: Very crude (one character has a drill for a dick), sexual acts/references, over the top violence, and some nudity.
Art: The art on this is absolutely insane. And I love it. The entire OAV is animated smoothly, which makes the freneticness of the entire thing that much more awesome to watch. There are very sharp contrasts in this, along with striking color choices, which I absolutely love. The character designs also score major points for originality; all the designs are just as crazy as Retro, Pandy, and drill-dick guy's.
Music: Nothing that stood out too much here.
Voice Actors: I watched this dubbed, which is pretty unusual for me. The VA work on this was excellent, and I'm amazed at their ability to keep up with the speed of the lines that was required.
Dub: Not covered here, as I don't have much to compare it to.
Length: Seeing as I am convinced this is crack in a pure, distilled form, this was about all that I could take; any longer, and my brain would have exploded, any shorter, and it wouldn't have made a bit of sense.
Overall: Cracktastic. Definitely worth a watch, if you can stand a lack of sense, and crudeness.
Story: 7/10
Art: 9/10
Music: 7/10
Voice Actors: 9/10
Length: 8/10
Overall: 40/50; 80% (B)
hiruma55
No words can begin to describe how ridiculously epic this anime is, this is just a film on another level. The film is just in-your-face action on the top end of the awesome scale. Dead Leaves is an anime that will have you stuck to your seat the entire time, the sheer amount of action in the film is like an adrenaline rush that takes you there so fast it’s like being on a rollercoaster ride. Sure there are moments where the film gives you moments to breathe to explore the story and characters, but once that point is over you are on the movein a flash.
In terms of art design the film has a highly stylized look that is fabulous to look at, it’s very sharp full of bright block colours that help the animation stand out greatly and when the animation moves hold on to your seat because this film just moves like a crazy carnival ride. The animation is completely consistent and never lets up and there are points when so many things are happening at once while the screen moves from place to place you may up incapacitated.
The sound in the film is very nice, the choice of music is very upbeat and helps amplify the chaotic action and while it’s not really memorable in any kind of way it works for the film itself. The characters in this film are cool, Retro is just a madman who knows how take care of things in a crazy fashion and the fact that he's voiced by Kappei Yamaguchi just adds to the character too. Panda is hot chick who is packing heat when the action starts, she seems to be calm in every situation she's in and is almost the opposite of Retro outside of the battlefield. The villain of the film isn't half bad and the supporting characters are really funny bunch of people.
To be honest I totally loved Dead Leaves, I thought it was great, while the story wasn't ever going to be really engaging it had a unique concept behind it and was good for what it was. I recommend this highly for anyone looking for a little epicness in their lives. And lastly if there are any people who have watched Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann should give this a go for sure.
Bluesnow
Dead leaves was made by the same people as Furi Kuri~ which if you saw that series should give you a hint of how messed up this movie isXD Because its just a movie~ they kind just threw out any attempt to make a comprehend able story~ and instead just threw action/Sex/And freaky Mutants in a blender and created this movie. Don't try to make sense of it~ just turn your brain off and bask in the craziness of the movie. Story: There's a story some where, but its not really the focus of the movie, and half of it makes no sense at all; not eventhe main characters them self seem that interested in whats going on~ as long as they can have sex and shoot everything=D
The plot is more action oriented, with occasional lolz. Its very fast paced, so much so that there's no point trying to figure out whats going on.
Art: The animation... is original at least. It has a very "post modern" look. Most of the characters themselves aren't even "human" looking. The animation style kind of feels like a comic book in color scheme and the use of shading and shapes.
I can't really say much else about it, but some of the character animations look gross or disturbing lookingX_x
Sound: Nothing stuck out in my mind~ it kept with the feeling of the movie, but wasn't a masterpiece.
Characters: Only two of the characters are really delved into, and even then not very much. They like to have sex and kill stuff, and have amnesia~ thats all you really need to know. And the girl tends to be slightly more intelligent.
There are a few more characters... like a fellow inmate at their prison that has a drill thats supposed to be his... ... ... and a female villain thats 1/2 naked that wants revenge against the female protagonist.
Enjoyment: Besides the feeling of loosing braincells by the end of the series I really did enjoy the movie. The pace never really left you bored, and the fighting scenes were just so gory and raunchy its hard not to like themXD
Be warned it is rated R for Nudity~ and lots of sexual innuendos.
But it is definatly a fun watch.
krelyan
As a preface, Hiroyuki Imaishi's works seem to be a mixed bag for me. While I've greatly enjoyed what I have seen so far of his latter work, Gurren Lagann, Dead Leaves seems to be more reminiscent of his earlier piece, the infamous FLCL. Unfortunately, for me FLCL was a bit too eccentric to get into. Art: The surrealist, stylized artwork was certainly the highlight of the show. Not only is the animation crisp, bright and visually inventive, it's also chaotic and frenzied (almost to the point of headache-inducing). I viewed the show over a television broadcast and the intermittent advertisements may havesaved my eyeballs from exploding. Scenes are often littered with a frame-by-frame comic book / manga layout which generally works well in the show's frantic environment. My only real complaint is the crude and bizarre character designs evoked comparisons to a Ren and Stimpy cartoon (of which I was not a fan).
Sound:
I can't recall any of the soundtrack sticking out as noteworthy, but it was not particularly distracting or obnoxious either. The dub was serviceable. Amanda Lee admirably captured Pandy's melancholic sarcasm. The other lead, Retro, was a bit more inconsistent but for the most part channeled Retro's dementia effectively.
Characters / Story:
The two leads are mildly amusing characters just don't expect any development. Plot exposition occurs in rapid-fire succession, such as the sequence detailing Pandy and Retro's journey to the lunar prison. And let's face it, expecting much character growth or plot in a 50 minute OAV would be asinine. While the literal "Does any of this really matter?" approach to story doesn't really hinder the show as it allows the insanity to flow uninterrupted, it's hard to view it as a plus either.
Enjoyment:
It was able to hold my attention, but not much else. There is a lot of hyper-stylized violence and gore which did not appeal to me, nor did the hardly subtle gross-out humor.
Overall, I felt the show lacked the focus and scope of Gurren Lagann. While Lagann clearly (reverently) satirizes the Super Robot genre popular in the 70's and 80's, I was often confused as to goal of Dead Leaves. Was it insane just for the sake of being insane? Was the bizarre, minimalist plot and devoid character development supposed to be a jab at the convoluted plots found in the philosophical / psychological-scifi genre (Evangelion, RahXephon)? I can't really put a finger on it and it left me feeling rather ambivalent towards the show.
On the other hand, if you enjoyed FLCL's zaniness and wanted an even less subtle take on the penile-drill innuendo found in Gurren Lagann (yes, apparently it is possible), then this show would come highly recommended.
lawlmartz
I thought I had seen it all, then I saw Dead Leaves. Preface: From the mind of Hiroyuki Imaishi (director of FLCL and Gurren Lagann) comes this cracktastic adventure of the bizarre and insane. Get ready for a 45m long wild ride on ludicrous speed. It goes full plaid. Story: 8 Retro- a guy with a TV for a head, and Pandy- a woman with an enormous red eye wake up in the middle of nowhere with no recollection as to how they got there, or what the heck they were doing in the first place. Their inhibitions flung to the wind, they take up arms andgo buck wild on the city, only to be rounded up and sent to the prison Dead Leaves, which is located on the half munched-off remainder of the moon. Hilarity, violence, and madness ensue.
Art: 10
Everything about this OVA screams Hiroyuki Imaishi. I loved seeing his unique art style on display- Everything in this looked like the bumper slides from Gurren Lagann for reference, and I thought it was awesome. Crisply animated, and so so so many quick cuts, flashing lights, and fast, fluidly moving action pieces. Vibrant colors, and those glorious stars.
Sound: 8
I watched this in sub, and the voice acting was appropriately outrageous and manic. The energetic music pumped along to the explosions, gunfire, and general mayhem going onscreen. Great stuff.
Characters: 8
Okay, so, Pandy the Red-eyed asskicking leading lady, and Retro, the deranged TV head team up to figure out just exactly what the heck is going on, along with a skeevy doctor that looks like Zoidberg, but swap the tentacles for bad teeth, some dudes with some not-so-subtle reproductive organ parts for heads, and Mr. Chinko Drill, who has an enormous golden drill for a penis. That's right, a drill, and he's not afraid to use it.
They all play their parts with equal bits psychosis and thirst for violence, and it couldn't be much more entertaining to watch.
Enjoyment: 9
What a rush. Nonstop, quick cut, over the top, sheer craziness from start to finish. It never lets up. Blink, and you might as well be watching something else- it goes FAST. Story on hyperdrive, action on lightspeed- I had to rewind several times after trying to find my jaw to put it back on. The absurd situations, the crude jokes, loved all of it. Couldn't stop laughing the whole time.
Overall: 8.8 (rounding this one up, because it was too much fun) - 9
In typical, addictive Imaishi style, it is extremely irreverent, edgy, and a bit crass, but when combined with his incredible art, a tasty soundtrack, and more gonzo than you've seen since Inferno Cop, and we have a formula for success.
Note: I see this as a sort of spiritual predecessor to Gurren Lagann. The art style definitely was inspired by this, and no-one can deny the introduction of the awesomeness of Spiral Power that we have Dead Leaves to thank for.
PokeNirvash
This series seemed ugly the first time I came across it, but after watching it on Sci Fi Channel, I instantly fell in love with it. STORY: The main plot, the one involving the lunar prison, comes into effect in the first five minutes - not in the first twenty minutes like every other anime out there. ART: Crazy style that reminds me of FLCL. Sharp colors and psychedelic designs build up the DL universe, from the simple-drawn streets of Tokyo to the "chewed-up" persona of the moon where DL is located. SOUND: Clear sound that gets all the sound through the speakers to your noiseholes. CHARACTER DESIGN: Togo with the psychedelic art, you need hallucogenic character designs. About every design in DL is crazy, from Retro's TV head to the awkward features of the inmates. The only "normal" character designs are Pandy's, as well as the faceless pedestrians in the opening sequence, and the security of DL.
CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT: Amnesiac first-time meeting to semi-romantic relations build across the movie.
MUSIC: Technofunk, technorock, and the occasional opera tune fill this series with the drug-induced music that will make you wonder if you're high or the movie is high itself.
FANSERVICE: Not much fanservice, save the straightjacket sex and Galactica's mild nudity.
WATCHABILITY: It'll blow your mind like FLCL. The mind blowing will force you to sit down and watch the rest.
PROMOTION: SciFi didn't actually promote it. But the trailers are good enough to pass as trailers.
OTHER:If you're watching Sci Fi October 26, 2008, stay after Gurren Lagann for the awesomeness that is this movie.
OVERALL: What anime should feel like on acid. 10/10 with extra points for colorful action galore!
Adam-Kun
If you are looking for something different, and want something to make you say "what the hell" out loud, with crazy sex scenes and gory, (but comedical) violence, then I suggest you watch Dead Leaves. Story - 7 Very odd storyline, which fits this very odd anime. In short, the two main characters, Retro and Pandy, awake naked on Earth, not knowing who they are or how they got there. After going on a rampage in Tokyo, they are captured by the authorities and sent to the high level security prison - Dead Leaves. From there on, Retro and Pandy make plans to escape from there,and they soon come to realize who they truly were.
Art - 9
This was definitely one of the high points of the series for me. It is something that I had never seen before - a funky, over-the-top, quirky animation style that was simply fun to look at. The colors are vibrant and always full of action, and it almost has a comic book type of feel to it - not manga necessarily, but a more westernized version.
Sound - 8
The sound was what you would expect - crazy and over-the-top. Retro was voiced perfectly, as his VA is Kappei Yamaguchi (most popularly known for voicing Ussop from One Piece. Overall, the voice acting was very good, and the sound clips were great.
Character - 8
In short, the characters in Dead Leaves are amazingly original. The main character has a television set for his head, while another character has an extremely large drill for a penis - how much more original can you possibly get?
With their original character designs also came great voice acting that suited their rolls perfectly - which made this anime much more fun to watch.
Enjoyment - 8
This anime was very enjoyable from start to finish. It is extremely fast-paced until the very end, and never had a dull moment. With crazy sex scenes, over-the-top violence, and a mix of comedy and action like you wouldn't believe, it is hard not to enjoy this different, quirky anime.
Fullmetal-Locke
I do believe I watched this once before, last year I think. Small fragments of memories of this still remain floating about in my head, but I decided to watch this again. Storywise, this film lost me completely. I got to the point where their past is explained on the train. Then understood nothing after that. It was like there were bits missing from the film. That was how confusing it was. For me at least. I mean, I do have to point that out because there's always one who will disagree. And I may sound odd in saying this & you may disagree, butI felt that for a heavily action orientated film it was actually pretty story led, from the very beginning there is mystery & our 'heroes' trying to discover the truth. Very loose, but story has a surprisingly big part in this film when you'd except it to take the backseat. So really, it should have been better & easier to follow.
Actually the animation, it's just not that good. I'm sorry, but it isn't. It's fun & quirky, bright & vibrant. Exactly what it says on the tin & works brilliantly to emphasise the over the topness of the film, however as it got towards the end & people seemed to be made of guns or swords it became so unclear it was ridiculous. Just a big blurry mass of bullets or grey things which I think were swords. Which is only made worse because at the beginning, the animation is so incredibly slick & clear. And it's just amazing animated, you wouldn't believe some of the animations unless you see it for yourself. The work & care felt sloppier as the film went on.
I'm not even sure if it was, but I could have sworn Retro's voice actor was Ussop & as odd as this may sound this was almost the thing that ruined the character for me. Because every time he spoke I thought of Ussop & a badass with a TV on his head isn't badass when voiced by the same dude as that coward with the slingshot.
The characters are often disgusting, but they are still amazing. I found it amusing Retro is the only really cool looking male good character since all the others are so darn ugly or down right freaky. And Pandy is really quite attractive in my personal opinion, but the other women...no thanks.
But really there isn't anything to write home about it just seems they tried to make them as ugly & disgusting as possible. Except Three-Six & Three-Seven, who are pure badass.
But seriously, you could say even the ugly ones are good in themselves simply because it's so incredibly creative.
So I have established the story is to hard to follow & so is the animation. But did I enjoy this? FUCK YEAH. There was so much GAR & it kept seeming to remind me of TTGL for some reason. The crazy art, in the crazy world, with the crazy characters. Retro & Pandy with their pure badassery & of course Three-Six & Three-Seven. It's just badass from start to finish, it's pure insane fun. It won't really make sense why, but you'll love it. Much like roller coaster.
So even thought it seems surprisingly story lead for an action film, don't bother watching this for the story unless you want to be lost & disappointed. It is however totally worth it for the badass fight scenes & to see Pandy in her pants!
Colonelfancy
Jeez, I just finished watching this on my DVR and wished it wasn't the last thing I saw before I went to bed. I remember hearing the title Dead Leaves, but couldn't recall what it was, and the title is appropriate. I don't mind a good OVA or short movie every now and then, but for the love of God, can they at least make just a little bit of sense. I felt like I was watching Furi Kuri ( hate that show) or that other horrible mid 90's cyber punk, music video-styled bull crap that's packed with mindless action and crude language. Is thatsupposed to be edgy or stupid!?
I'm not a stickler for beautiful animation, but this is just animated vomit that made on the screen. I felt like I was going to have a seizure eight minutes into it. It's like Nightmare Before Christmas ate Dr. Katz. Even if it's for comedic effect, it fails because I wasn't laughing. If it's supposed to be some kind of artsy, avante-garde independant movie because the director was mad that this got shot down for a major theatrical release, don't quit your day job.
This wasn't as structured as my normal reviews, but if the director isn't going to try, why should I bother trying to legimately critique this mess? I found this an incredible waste of time for only 55 minutes. If you really want to waste your time with a short, really really stupid film, just watch Kakurenbo instead. at least that's shorter. The world is a better place without animation like this.
PROS: Um....I now remember what Dead Leaves is about
CONS: The end credits don't appear fast enough.
kirAth-shiAue
Stupid and pointless. The worst Anime movie ever. This is so bad it makes me want to change all my other 1's to a 2. I would be so embarrassed to watch this in front of non-Anime fans, like my sister, who would make fun of me for the rest of my life if she knew I watched this horrible mess. The story was almost decent and the action was good(there was a lot of it), but the art was terrible and the characters were so stupid looking. I didn't care for any of them, and wouldn't have mind if they all got killed(sorry if thatseems harsh).
Anyways, it was a very perverted movie(a lot of sex) and it was violent too. I usually like violence with a large body count, but it seemed like they tried to hard to kill off as many characters as possible.
I didn't think it was funny either. I didn't laugh at all, only at how ridiculously stupid it was.
I watched this awhile ago and don't remember too much of the ending(I think there was a crazy evil chick and a rapidly growing baby). All I remember is that I was glad it was finally over. If Dead Leaves was longer, like a short OVA instead of a movie, I probably wouldn't have forced myself to watch it.
Asfaria
Dead Leaves is a bizarre, psychedelic 45 minute long movie. People often say for shows like "Gurren Lagann" and "Kill La Kill" that you just need to shut your brain off in order to really enjoy them, and this movie is kind of similar. Well, it's similar except that even by doing that Dead Leaves is just too bizarre and too bad to enjoy. It begins with two naked people, one man and one woman. The man has a TV screen for a head and the woman has a strange red eye. Not remembering who they are or why they have amnesia, the two dothe only logical thing: rob a bank, steal a car, and cause mass mayhem. Aside from the action scenes throughout the movie which tend to take more time than necessary, the story of the movie is fast paced. However, it tends to make almost no sense at times with only a couple psychological moments seeming the least bit interesting.
Now for the strangest aspect of Dead Leaves, the animation. Most of the scenery, characters, and all of the explosions and random things that happen are basically all geometric shapes from squares to circles to spirals. Every character is just as strange as their design and there really isn't anyone "normal" in the whole series. Surprisingly, Dead Leaves is actually one of the goriest things I have ever seen. Have you ever seen a guy severed in half by a "drill penis?" I have, thanks to Dead Leaves. The art in this movie gets more and more bizarre as the fights get bigger, people die all over the place, a woman gets pregnant, and there's a caterpillar.
As for the sound, it repeats A LOT. It doesn't sound bad, but they often use the same repeating techno sound for an entire fight sequence. There's no vocal pieces and I don't remember hearing anything with any actual instruments included aside from maybe some drums.
The only important characters are the two main characters but trying to understand them is pointless as they don't even understand their situation or themselves due to their amnesia. They are slowly given information about their pasts, but they never really clear up some bigger parts of it and even they get confused hearing about it. And then the show just gets so ridiculous anyway that their pasts seem kind of simple by comparison.
This show's only real redeeming factor are the few psychological moments, but they are generally put together with some of the strangest and goriest moments which dilutes their impact. The animation is cheap and I can't think of any other show that look weirder than this movie. The action scenes often rapidly repeat several shots together in slow-motion to try to show the impact of the moment, but it just ends up getting annoying after fifteen seconds or so. There was also one part where I had to look away because it was just flipping around so quickly and with so many colors that I felt like it should have "Seizure Warning" written somewhere on-screen. The sound repeats and is all just simple techno beats, and the characters are just there to move the strange story, to be as weird as possible, and for death fodder.
Mugiwara-Pyon
This is some kind of weird funky kind of anime which somehow takes place in the future where these 2 people , pandy and retro who wakes up naked in this deserted place near a city and they have no recollection or memory of what happened before they woke up in that place. Both of them team up together to get some clothes food and such and become wanted criminals in that city and resulted in them getting caught and brought to an infamous prison going by the name of dead leaves where escape is impossible.Its full of gore killing , bloody scenes along withsome sex scenes and funny scenes. This anime is also pretty comedic in a different way
Art: This is the only anime i've come across so far with this kind of art..its reli funky and crazy with lots of colours
Sound: sounds realistic to me..with explosions and stuff
Characters: the characters here are pretty crazy with weird personalities
Enjoyment: i thought this anime was funny so i have to say its pretty enjoyable if u want to watch some thing which is different
Overall id give it a 9 :3..hope my review helped :D enjoy the anime Dead Leave XD
kekekeKaj
I was told this anime was "FLCL, except worse". I found it hard to believe... how can anything be worse than "FLCL"?! Now that I've watched it, I'm sorry to say that, impossible though it may seem, this anime is truly more worse and more insane than "FLCL". If you despise "FLCL", then this anime is not for you. If you hate shows that are just crazy without making much sense, then this anime is not for you. I think there's meant to be some sort of story behind this, and if the everyone in it would stop pissing about so much then maybe I could figureout what. All I know is that it's something to do with a mutated gene. Maybe the plot is actually so full of holes they made everything really crazy so that you wouldn't understand it. If that's what they're aiming for, then by God they've certainly achieved it.
Everyone in "Dead Leaves" act like asses, and should all be locked up in a mental institute till they rot. Just thinking about their voices make me shudder - can't any of these people talk in a normal tone? Ever? It's not just their voices that are odd. The character designs seem to be weird for the sake of weirdness - the main character's a guy with a TV for a head! It certainly gives the anime a... er... unique flavour - a flavour that makes me want to bash my head on my keyboard repeatedly. It's a show that thinks it's a lot funnier than it actually is. All the over the top craziness bored me much more than it entertained me. I can remember one bit that made me laugh, where during a jail break attempt, Guy-With-TV-For-Head gets his hands on a motorbike, and tells the other 20 or so prisoners to hold onto his bike as he's about to ride out of the prison, and they all just looked at him like this: O_o (in fact the animation is so rubbish their expressions were almost just like that). But that's it, that's the only part that I can remember being amused by. The rest were just a mad jumble of random situations backed up by random music that didn't fit it - the only time when the BGM (background music) actually matches the situation is during the final showdown moments when the "final boss" is revealed. Although admittedly, it probably would have been damn hard to come up with anything that would match 99% of the scenes in this poor excuse of a "show".
Because the story had a couple of points of interest buried under the mountain of craziness, it's probably the only department that some saving grace... equivalent of saved from plunging into a painful death in lava to being plunged into a painful death in boiling oil instead - better, but not much better. This whole thing is so nonsensical that I suspect that the people who made it are either aliens who's thoughts we can't possibly comprehend, or were pumped up so full of drugs they had it leaking out of their asses... in the form of this anime. Maybe both. Anyway... don't come within a mile of this if you don't want your brain reduced to mush. And if someone gives this to you as a birthday present, you should kill them before they kill you cos it means they hate you THAT much.
angelsreview
This is a kind of rather wacky and out of control, kind of like FLCL and SuperJail. I will not have you watch this without a warning, this show is really over the top, packed with sex, poop, gore, and pretty much any type of joke around. Those who take offence to any of this or are young children should leave the room, as I will probably be talking about stuff like that in this review. Are they gone? Alright, back to the review. This show is, hard to actually review as it’s that type of humor that you either get it or you don’t. Itsnot something you can actually explain well or have a large discussion about because then it loses its humor. We all know (or at least any Otaku out there who watches anime can tell you) how strange and odd Japan is. Frankly, I believe it’s partly because of how strict their country was on honor, morals, and codes of conduct. Those who did not have these standards had to hid or be killed. With that little bit of history, I can see why they have something like this. It’s out of control including many scenes of sex and gore. Many different… should I really call them ‘fetishes’ are pronounced in here like tubes up the ass and all manner of gross images I can never unsee.
The story has an interesting storyline, and YES, it does have one. They actually didn’t just throw crap into it and try to make a show off of something that doesn’t have consistency. It follows two main characters, Pandy and Retro as they call themselves, who one day wake up without any idea who they are or what they are doing naked near a futuristic Tokyo. They start on a crime spree and it takes no time for them to be caught and sent to the moon prison where they find that they and so many others are rejected clones. They try to free themselves and that’s as far as I can go without spoiling anything more. If I read into it, and I have to review such a thing, I would consider this more of the dangers of mass cloning and those trying to figure out their place in life. I can only guess that because there is very little to work with. We got a bunch of rejected clones fighting to have their own life.
The animation, lets face it, its god awful, not looking like the banner or cover at all. But yet, I have to say this is one of those shows that I really didn’t care much. Similar to Panty and Stocking, it has its own interesting spin, although creepy. All the shadows are done in black, leaving rather jagged edges to even more jagged characters. Sometimes it’s hard to pick out what are backgrounds and what’s a character because the bodies elongate and squash depending on the scene, sometimes filling the whole screen to the point that they look more like a strange deformed background. It doesn’t help that everything is a mass of oddly shaped colors pieced together like a puzzle. A lot of times when Pandy is pregnant, her belly changes shape, growing and shrinking from scene to scene.The aliens are actually rather creative, including an alien that has a dick that’s a drill (Although I really freaken don’t want to know more about him!).
The English voices are actually pretty good, being dubbed to each character. Jaxon Lee and Amanda Winn-Lee do pretty good jobs as Retro and Pandy, playing off each others personalities as well as keep the characters interesting. Pandy is almost always in monotone, while Retro seems not able to hold himself back and has a tone of energy (think sort of like Naruto from Naruto and Haruko from FLCL had a kid). The music is pretty fast paced and retro sounding, almost like some old action adventure game, but with a lot of techno after tones that make it more sci-fi feeling.
It’s not something I would really watch again, but it was interesting none the less.
KayR707
I'm a big fan of Trigger/Gainax, mainly Hiroyuki Imaishi's work. Weird, energetic anime is my favorite kind of anime. When I heard Imaishi worked on this I added it to my plan to watch list and eventually got around to it and... I didn't enjoy it as much as I was expecting. Before I get into what I didn't like, I'll get into what I did like: the art and animation. A very unique art style and incredible, lively animation. Not to be an Imaishi fangirl but pretty much everything he works on looks so good. The biggest enjoyment I got out of the movie waslooking at the animation and comic book-like art style.
The story of Dead Leaves didn't feel very important, but that's how a lot of Imaishi works are. The art/animation and humor is more important. Like Space Patrol Luluco. It focuses on being silly, entertaining, and pretty, rather than having a super masterful story. It's style over substance, but in a good way. Dead Leaves is the same way, while the art held up, the humor was where the movie lost me.
Panty and Stocking with Garterbelt, which is just toilet humor, sex jokes, and cuss words the anime but with cute girls, is one of my favorite anime. I'm not a prude and I do love some gross humor. FLCL, which is WTF the anime, is also one of my favorites, so I do love some weird shit (I know FLCL is very metaphorical, but I can also appreciate being weird just for the sake of being weird). However, Dead Leaves steps a little over the line of what's too weird and what's too gross for me. I didn't find myself laughing, just cringing, and waiting for the scene to end. For example, there's a scene where they forced all the prisoners to shit with a tube or something? What in the actual fuck was that? During that scene, I was so uncomfortable I just mentally checked out. There was a lot of cringey, gross shit that made me want to turn off the movie, but I forced myself to get through it. I love absurd, weird, edgy bullshit but this was too much. The whole movie I was just thinking "If anyone walks in on me watching this I am going to kill myself." Because it gave me an insane amount of secondhand embarrassment rather than enjoyment.
I'm one of those anime fans who preach about why FLCL and Kill la Kill are masterpieces and how "Actually the whole thing is a big metaphor!" and "You just don't get it!" I'm also one of those anime fans who thinks Panty and Stocking is the peak of comedic genius. But OH. MY. GOD. Whenever I see people praising Dead Leaves and calling it a masterpiece I just think "Are you okay? What possessed you to think this was a masterpiece? Are you on drugs?" Is this how everyone else sees us FLCL/Kill la Kill/Panty and Stocking fangirls and fanboys? Maybe now I finally understand why people look at me like I'm a weirdo when I say those are my favorite anime.
Anyways, the only really good thing about this movie was the comic book style art and use of Imaishi's animation style. The story was put on the back-burner (although that's to be expected from Imaishi's work) and the humor was just fucking stupid. If you didn't like FLCL's weirdness or any of the other anime I mentioned, I would absolutely NOT recommend this movie to you. And even if you do like the anime I mentioned, I still wouldn't suggest you watch it. If you think you can handle the gross shit, grosser than Panty and Stocking (especially since the art is more edgy and gritty, it just enhances the grossness), maybe give it a go.
literaturenerd
Hiroyuki Imaishi as I've mentioned a number of times in previous reviews is a polarizing figure. He's undeniably an animation genius, but his work can be frustrating at times. The anime industry has other highly talented animators like Masaaki Yuasa, but Imaishi just might be the best in terms of frantic, chaotic energy. Everything he works on looks SO fluid and is an absolute treat for the eyes. Unfortunately, this animation genius refuses to move beyond the gross out humor of 90s American cartoons. I'm pretty sure he has a shrine to Ren and Stimpy in his house and says prayers to it each morning.Imagine some of the greatest animation in world being squandered for the sake of poop, booger, fart, and wiener jokes. That's the Imaishi experience and it is perfectly captured here in Dead Leaves.
I would describe my tastes as "Imaishi Adjacent". There are TONS of things that the man worked on that I love such as FLCL, Evangelion, Re:Cutie Honey, Red Line, His and Her Circumstances, FMA 03 and even Inferno Cop. However, these are all works where the man himself isn't in the director's chair and isn't the main person in charge. Gurren Lagann is considered his magnum opus, but even there you have to give a lot of credit to head writer Kazuki Nakashima. So, what happens when Imaishi is 100% in charge with no interference from anyone? What does pure, highly distilled Imaishi look like? The answer can be found in Dead Leaves. Extremely silly, gross, nihilistic, juvenile bullshit of the highest caliber. Just pure bullshit for the sake of bullshit that also happens to look gorgeous.
I could describe the entire plot of Dead Leaves and still not feel like I spoiled anything. Some random psychopaths who look like freaks happen to wake up naked with amnesia and go on a murder spree. Then they get sent to the moon where stuff happens involving tubes sucking shit out of people's asses and a drill penis that won't stop ejaculating everywhere. Some stuff does get explained later but it honestly doesn't matter. One does NOT watch Dead Leaves for the plot or characters. This one is pure visual spectacle through and though, which is why I'm glad it's only 50 minutes. Any longer and it would have worn out its welcome. However, 50 minutes keeps it entertaining and digestible.
While I've mostly focused on the negatives until now, I still mostly enjoyed this one. The humor works well for the most part. If you're in a silly mood, there are plenty of laughs to be had. The animation as I've mentioned is incredible. The character designs are also quite fun and pay homage to cartoons from all over including South Park, John K's style, The Gorillaz, and more. This is a perfect anime to watch with friends. You need to view it with someone else to share this WTF experience.
A_Fine_Egg
Dead Leaves is the pinnacle of Hiroyuki Imaishi's untamed insanity, given full bore like a rich man in a brothel with a raging boner. Many people would be surprised to learn that, besides FLCL, all of the work that Imaishi is known for such as Gurren Lagann, Kill la Kill, and the spiritual successor Panty & Stocking were after Dead Leaves, making this absolutely insane, asisine joyride the grandpappy of the anime-saving works of our lord and savior Imaishi. But is such a short burst of Imaishi's ridiculous insanity worth your time? Let's see. STORY - 7 Dead Leaves cares very little about its backstory. It claimsto, by having moments of exposition or mystery, but these moments are for the most part talked over or interrupted by moments of cacophony and insanity. Nevertheless, it does have a story. It's not a bad story by any means, but obviously this part of Dead Leaves was not what was intended to be interesting, which makes moments of exposition within this explosive hour-long OVA a tad boring and the attempt at some sort of message seem rather out of character for the tone of the OVA. I was also a little peeved at how quickly it ended.
ART - 10
Is this really a question? Imaishi's trademark, unique style is as brain-melting and adrenaline-inducing as it always has been and always will be, but the genius in Imaishi's work on Dead Leaves does not stop there. Dead Leaves has something interesting or fun to look at on every single frame. It is an artistic marvel that always has something unique to look at, from the fun fight scenes to the uniquely portrayed sound effects to the silly and weird characters within chaotic crowds splayed across the screen. The character designs are as fun, wacky, interesting and cartoonishly over-the-top as possible, making them all a joy to look at.
SOUND - 8
The soundtrack is pretty good, with lots of songs that keep the pace adrenaline-pumping and extremely interesting. There are a lot of genres pumped within such a short little OVA that it keeps the music fresh and interesting, along with a few little gems that make the OST worth listening to in its own right, especially the catchy and ridiculously fun to listen to song titled "Mamu Saibou Mamu Saibou". I also have to commend this OVA for having a dub that isn't godawful, which I was surprised about.
CHARACTER - 8
For a short Imaishi work that cares not about logic or character development, it is imperative that the characters we follow are at least fun, and they are in spades. Whether they have one hilarious quirk, such as the man with a Giga Drill Dick, to the thuggish and fun protagonists Pandy and Retro who give about as few fucks as the people on this website do about my reviews. The characters may not be deep or exactly interesting, but they're fun as hell.
ENJOYMENT - 10
There is so much to adore about Dead Leaves that I couldn't possibly rate my enjoyment as anything lower. Whether it's the bustling, insane animation that gives you no time at all to rest, the ridiculous plot that moves like a shuttle train to the Docking Bay, or the hilarious banter between the inmates and the protagonists, there was never a moment during this movie when my mouth was at anything but a goofy, crooked grin. It's a joyride from beginning to end.
OVERALL - 9
While not exactly deep and sometimes a little misguided, Dead Leaves is fun, fantastic, depraved, and hyperviolent. Besides the few little dips when things get slow, every frame of Dead Leaves is absolutely ridiculous and fun. Whether you watch it in Dub or Sub, Dead Leaves is sure to keep you interested.
Whiskeyjack1k
I have a tendency to enjoy absolutely batshit expressions of creativity. Unsurprisingly Dead Leaves was right up my alleyway. It reminded me of getting way too drunk or way too stoned, dizzying experiences that are hard to fathom at the time but special in retrospect (that's a pathetic pun right there but fuck it). Dead Leaves submerses the viewer in this deluge of insanity without offering too much explanation. There is a story but it takes a backseat to the true selling points; the outrageous art, frenetic characters and absurdist comedy. Seriously this is fucking hilarious and actually pretty disturbing. Ultimately though, this is a filmfull of originality and it's really refreshing.
It's not long but seems to condense a full show into it's small runtime. Nonetheless the abrasive pacing challenges you to think it's poorly made. In fact shoddy work is the one description that couldn't be farther from the truth. It's clear a lot of effort was put into making a product that will fuck you, snort cocaine, then run off muttering about conspiracy theories and you'll probably be content with that.
Sometimes you just have to mentally bend over and accept the metaphorical drill that will send you off to a fairy tale prison on the moon by the name of Dead Leaves. Give it a go.
