Dual! Parallel Lun-Lun Monogatari

well, after watching all the Episodes, I think its like a happy version of Neon Genesis Evangelion, as for story goes there probably stuff that didn't make sense but i didn't care much. overall it was enjoyable despite the outrageous storyline, its one of those anime where you're enjoy it or not. overall as for animes goes, its more watchable than some other animes, like for example..Gate Keepers.. which didn't make f**k sense to me. but then again, someone might not think Dual Parallel makes any sense. well at least its a "happy" anime.

Unironic Review about the plot, art & sound and Character development. NTS: Picked this anime series up from a random isekai related recommendation post on reddit. Didn't expect much from this series considering it was an older mecha series (they tend to have basic plot progression and characters), and I watched unironically oblivious to the Evangelion parody. Despite being a fairly basic plot structure and generic harem character palette, this series was actually fairly interesting to watch. Let's get into why! Story: We are given an immature, pre-prepubescent nerd that is able to see large mecha fight and destroy his surroundings without affecting his world; thanks tothe opening scene with a mysterious artifact that most likely split the interaction with it into two different worlds (like a butterfly effect) Nonetheless, this teen male picks up a popular, high in demand chick who seems interested in him till he meets her old man, a mad scientist - Long story short he finds himself in the dystopian parallel world as a result of the ancient artifacts. His job in the parallel world is to draw an end to the war as soon as possible so that both worlds experience peace (also to stop his mecha hallucinations). My thoughts on the series: I felt that despite trying to stay exclusive to the mecha genre, this series fails to develop a structured narrative by the end of 13 episode (I didn't bother watching the special) It is a debatable claim however, I really wasn't grasping a powerful narrative apart from the 'save both worlds' mindset - Not the worst but not innovative especially considering it relies on mecha and similar human figured robots to develop the plot. As such, I will be rating this series a fair 7/10 in terms of plot. Art & Sound: 1999, a fairly well aged series in terms of animation and music. I enjoyed the main theme that played in between key events in the series but that was about it, most of the music played were fairly generic - Art style to me was fairly average especially for the date it was made in. As such, a generous rating of 6/10 will be given for art & sound. Character: In terms of character development, I'd say all of the side characters as well as the FMC (female main character) had most of the major changes in this series. All the female characters in the harem have more power individually over the MC even at the end of the series - This is fairly ironic considering MC is the person that shines in his mecha on the battlefield. Not a fan of this but atleast it didn't dwell on fan service such as other known mecha series. I'd rate this series a 6/10 in terms of character development, not the best but definitely well needed improvement in character development for the MC . Enjoyment: I was fairly discouraged in the first half of the series because I felt the plot was intentionally being forced to progress - It happened quite fast this way which is why I wasn't as emotionally connected to the characters. Nonetheless the ending definitely didn't disappoint seeing everyone in a good mood is a better ending than a series that kills off characters for 'plot progression'. As an older series, I'd say there needs to be a higher threshold for leniency because most of the mecha plots weren't innovative or unique, so I'd rate this series a solid 8/10 in terms of enjoyment, beginning started off a bit rushed but was on the right track and entertaining by episode 6/7. Overall: 7/10 Story: 6/10 Art & Sound: 7/10 Character: 6/10

This series proved to be quite a bit of a mixed bag for me. Another harem comedy made by Tenchi Muyo creator Masaki Kajishima, Dual Parallel Trouble Adventure looks to also be parodying mecha anime in its run considering it makes enough nods to Evangelion with its premise, mecha and character designs and some notable moments from the mentioned series. The Evangelion parodies did get me giggling as Dual Parallel's creators seemed to know enough about the show where Eva fans could spot certain elements from the series that Dual Parallel decided to poke fun of at points. The series also features Kajishima's style of comedyfeaturing male lead Kazuki putting up with his unwanted harem of gals and having unexpected moments of comedy from details on events that characters fail to mention (quite often happening via Misaki's father). The latter element effectively delivers well with Dual Parallel, while the focus on the harem didn't get me as amused since Kazuki and the girls are pretty much cut-out archetypes you likely would see at one point or another in other anime titles and to a great extent, these characters don't get much in the way of depth or growth. This makes them kind of bland and hard to relate with when the series later gets more serious in its plot developments. Speaking of plot, Dual Parallel's premise on mecha fights and alternate dimensions was a bit of a disappointment for me. While the premise seems promising at first when Kazuki finds himself adjusting to life in a different world and piloting a mecha, the later mentioned serious developments in Dual Parallel's plot lead to the anime's biggest weaknesses to come about. It gets in enough of a bad habit of dropping hints and brief details over elements to the world of the series or characters that get introduced just to advance the anime's plot and it never bothers to elaborate on how these elements are important or why one should care for them. It felt like the second half was cobbled together in many areas to try creating something more serious without bothering to go into depth on how and why things were happening. Visually, Dual Parallel sported clean details and a bright color palette in the designs of scenery and characters, while sporting Kajishima's drawing style in said character designs. The show makes frequent use of CG animation at points (such as the use of deploying mechas, camera pans of scenery and the ED sequence) which while it is well detailed, it sticks out like a sore thumb compared to the hand-drawn animation. Animation in battle scenes for Dual Parallel is nothing out of the ordinary for a TV anime with hand-drawn sequences, but it gets the job done. Overall, Dual Parallel seemed to wow me with its comedy more than its plot and characters. The comedic delivery for the anime was spot-on for me in most areas, but the bland main cast and the messy second half did hurt its quality to a good extent for me.

"Dual! Parallel Trouble Adventures" is, as everyone I've met who has seen it in its entirety and I will call it, a happy Neon Genesis Evangelion. I say this because for the large part, there are enough parallels between the two series that it's at times not to accidentally finding yourself calling the main character Shinji. Except, in Dual! the main character has a spine and actually grows very bold when it comes to him fighting the enemy of the series, the RaRa Army. But even though it can be hard not to see the parallels, it's its own entity. Dual!, for all intent andpurposes, is a Tenchi series. It's drawn and written by Masaki Kajishima, has a few Easter eggs that point you towards the Tenchi universe, and there's even a direct throwback to Dual! in Tenchi GXP. with that being said, let's dissect Dual!. First we have the artwork. As a 1999 series, we see that the cell painted style has cycled out and has been replaced by the more smoother use of computer animation (most likely an early adobe or correl product) and the slightest hint of CG with a sophisticated enough style to remind you of Beast Wars (which only appears when the mechs are being launched, computer screens are shown, or a long hallway needs to be walked down....you'll see). Textures and patterns are used very sparingly, and "cheesy" photoshop effects are used only when needed. Overall, the artwork is at the point where it's just about at it's best. Second is the Opening and the Ending. The opening song is catchy, but at the same time forgettable. I say this because if you were to put the opening to NGE to Dual! you'd never tell the difference the sound would make. The ending...... it's cute (and again forgetable) but the graphics... my god, the graphics... I will say this. Watch it ONCE and SKIP IT forever more. It's that bad. Third on the list is the plot. The plot is fairly simple, and yet complex because of the questions it leaves you with once you've figured out how Dual! fits into the tenchi universe. But for the most part thle plot can be broken down into this : 1.Boy has visions of giant robots beating each other up 2.Boy meets girl 3.Girl's father sends boy to world where the robots are 4.Boy has to fight robots to figure out a way back Simple, no? Next up, the characters. All I can really say is this. Once you see the parallels between NGE and Dual! (it's inevitable so I'm telling you now) take a second to stop, completely remove any thoughts that these characters are from NGE ad enjoy them or hate them for who they are and how Masaki wrote the to be. That's all I can really say about them. Second to last are the voice tracks. We all know they all sound better in Japanese, but Dual! is from that magical time period when English dubbing didn't suck. Not only can you watch it in English, but you can ENJOY it in English. Finally Is the fun factor. The humor isn't really slap-stick, because it's the character's demeanor and their personas that add the humor to the series. The giant robot fights are fun all around and certainly add to the series, even though Dual! could survive without them if it had too. Overall, Dual! is a great series with good artwork, characters, vocals, plot, and humor. If that's not enough, it'll make you feel better for ever having to sit through the horrible mind-breaker that is Neon Genesis Evangelion since it mocks Eva to the core by saying "this is funny and leaves you feeling good, unlike Eva".

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