Muteking the Dancing Hero

If you want an unique but niche series to watch in the Fall 2021 season, look no further than Tatsunoko's Super Hero series of a long lost IP, starting with the 1980-81 show Muteking The Dashing Warror, rehashed as Muteking The Dancing Hero for a reboot/remake. And I feel that because of the recent success of Tsuburaya Productions with the reboot of the classic 1994-95 Gridman The Hyper Agent series done by Trigger (rehashed as the SSSS.Gridman universe), the big guns over at Tatsunoko wanted their own causal Renaissance period as well. And unless you're the type that really wanted to feel what's like ofthe long lost magic of Japanese shows in the early period of the 1980s, then the appeal will be just right for you. Muteking The Dancing Hero is the epitomy of a wacky and goofy weekend morning kids show that you can just turn off your brain and thoroughly enjoy, and it is just that because the period of the 70s and 80s used to be Tatsunoko's golden age doing shows that aren't like the modern day example of the anime industry. Everything was fresh back then and being in the mindset of kids, it's no wonder that Tatsunoko have made a name for themselves as one of Japan's top premier animation companies in the 20th Century (alongside studios such as Toei Animation and Sunrise) with varied works across the board. Gouging research for Tatsunoko in the 1980s isn't easy, and it's well worth it for at least a history lesson of sorts. But enough about that, let's go back to what Muteking The Dancing Hero is all about. For context and to link back to the original franchise, only the aliens with their nefarious plan to take over the world with their science and shape-changing powers remain the same, everything else is all new. Directed by VOTOMS director Ryousuke Takahashi alongside Tatsunoko in-house directors Hiroshi Sasagawa (executive) and Yuuzou Satou (assistant), the reboot of Muteking is set in a dystopian 1980s version of Neo San Francisco, where music is lively and there is evil lurking around in the form of aliens forming around the OctinQ coporation (the parody of the modern-day Silicon Valley), advertising their products in the city and with the help of a virtual idol which turns ordinary people into black gold for the aliens to store energy. And who are you gonna call? Muteking, the hero who only knows how to dance and sing his way out to save those in captivity! For a show like Muteking, it's easy to really have the nostalgia bit of a time forlorn because everything is so simplified, from the story to even the aesthetics that's rife with the standards of a Tokusatsu-esque show back in the day. And especially for a superhero such as Muteking that has been lost in time, the reboot/remake gives enough chance for the current generation to ever wonder how a 20th Century made show would transition to the 21st Century. In the same way, some hits or misses. Let's start with the bad, because the current state of the anime industry is rife with so much superhero business shows and source materials that Muteking can feel absent or absconded, lost within the confines of so much there is to the fame of the Tokusatsu genre. The good thing is that people like Ryousuke Takahashi and Hiroshi Sasagawa are still very dedicated to the business model of the old Tatsunoko ways, and still want to bring their influence into the 21st Century for all to see, and it won't be everyone's cup of tea, but props for at least trying to stand out in a desolate state of the anime industry. I mean, the premise is this: DJ meets Muteki, he directs him to become the Muteking hero that saves people from becoming black waste, wash, rinse and repeat until the final moments with the virtual idol Aurora and mastermind Ceo Eight's unwavering confidence of prevail. You can't ask much for a simple story such as this, but it definitely fits into the 1980s era of when kids are just starting to grow up watching the popularity of anime rise up as their childhood. You have to put yourself in the mindset of times past to really enjoy this one wholeheartedly, and I can see why some people do. Otherwise, I'd thought that since Ryousuke Takahashi of Sunrise chimed in this show would label it as a Tatsunoko X Sunrise collab, but handing the reigns over to Tezuka Productions also works the same way, because both studios go way back with their respective well-known founders. It really gives Muteking a sleek and psychedelic feel that appeals to the children that have now grown up into adults. As much as I kinda hate the fact that Tatsunoko is trying so hard after the fall from grace of their more recent work (Winter 2019's Egao no Daika), this show is but only yet another statement piece that Tatsunoko should stick to producing children's shows instead. At least the OST was really good with ORANGE RANGE's OP and KALMA's ED. Muteking The Dancing Hero won't ever break the bank for trying to be different, and this reboot/remake will once again be lost to time. But if you ever pick Muteking up, please watch it with an open and unhinged mind, and just enjoy it while the journey lasts. Can't say I enjoy the show, but I can at least appreciate it for what it is and the history of the franchise as but a small footnote in Tatsunoko's long history.

Honestly, I thought…I thought that after losing the potential half way in the series, it wouldn’t get worse. But now after completing the series, even Magical Girls are more mature than this. First, with the interesting choice in the artstyle and music focus I thought a very unique series would happen. Then learned about it a reboot, and hoped that at least it would get any good. Repetitive fights with barely any monster design, like, why not make up a design for each monster at least? Something to find differences? And the fight scene…Yes, fight scene. You can only find a different fight scene after you getover the half of the series, because it IS repeated a lot. Cheap cuts to avoid animating too much. I enjoyed the setting before…Slowly, I realized how childish this reboot was, yes, you have DJ looking at BOOB in one of the episodes and I thought this show wouldn’t turn into rainbows and smiles and sickenly large happiness if it can make those scenes. But, I ended up wrong. Overall, it is a kid’s show. Show it to your kids if you want. But watching it yourself is a chore. Keep it in mind for the future.

Banking on the modern revival of 1980s pop culture, we have a remake of a 1980 Tokusatsu inspired children's anime... by Ryosuke Takahashi of Armored Trooper VOTOMS fame? Well, I just had to check this one out and I am glad I did. Story: 5,5/10 Muteking the Dancing Hero is an anime based on a simple concept, seen in anime and western animation alike hundreds of times before. An evil plot threatens the regular lives of people in Neo-San Francisco. Mixed in there is a subtle critique of modern day large scale capitalism, gentrification and consumerism from a most likely social democratic perspective. As for the mainplot itself, it was decent, but I thought like the final few episodes needed a bit more time than they actually got to develop some of the plotlines, so it felt kinda rushed. For a goofy and light hearted show though, it was perfectly fine. Art: 8/10 Muteking is primarily an anime that aims to capture the feeling of a decade past, and it does so in the most hyperbolic way possible. The city of Neo-San Francisco is colorful and vibrant, the CGI scenes don't feel jarring and you will find yourself cheering each time a certain sequence is shown on the screen in a large part of the anime. Is the artstyle purposely exaggerated? Yes, and I liked it a lot. Sound: 10/10 The soundtrack to Muteking is full of bangers, starting from the opening to the original 1980 anime to the insert songs of one of the characters in the show and even an instrumental to one of the most famous city pop songs of all time, it manages to mix in the 80s nostalgia with modernity really well. Characters: 7/10 Muteking has quite a large cast of characters, and both of the main characters and several of the secondary characters receive a surprising amount of attention. While remembering that this show is a remake of a kids' show, it's no surprise that these are still simple and not complex ones. The best character in my opinion is a certain suave mystery man, who really shone in parts of the anime. Enjoyment: 7,5/10 Muteking is a very fun show that doesn't take itself seriously and it knows well what it's aiming for. I found myself excited for every new episode, and despite the enthusiasm being lessened by the final few episodes, it was a very enjoyable anime to watch and a good surprise return of an old school director to making new shows. Overall: 7,5/10 Despite its current score being on the low side, you will likely enjoy Muteking if you don't mind it being cheesy like a 70s super robo mecha show.

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