Alternative TitlesJapanese: ぼくらの
Information
Type: TV
Episodes: 24
Status: Finished Airing
Aired: Apr 9, 2007 to Sep 25, 2007
Duration:
23 min. per episode Rating:
R - 17+ (violence & profanity)
L represents licensing company
StatisticsScore: 7.931 (scored by 13230 users)
Ranked: #5442
Popularity: #517
Members: 34,127
Favorites: 443 1 indicates a weighted score
My Info
Popular Tags
drama horror mecha sci-fi |
SynopsisDuring a summer camp, 15 children, 8 males and 7 females, find a grotto by the sea. Deep within they discover working computers and some electronic equipment, and later the owner, a man called Kokopelli. Kokopelli claimed to be a programmer working on a brand new game, in which a large robot has to defend the Earth against alien invasions. He persuades the children to test the game and sign a contract. All but one of them signs, barely a moment later they mysteriously awaken on the shore believing what happened was just a dream.
(Source: ANN) |
Related AnimeAdaptation: Bokurano
Summary: Bokurano Recap
Characters & Voice Actors
Staff
Reviews
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Aeterna
64 of 81 people found this review helpful
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24 of 24 episodes seen
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| Overall |
9 |
| Story |
9 |
| Animation |
7 |
| Sound |
8 |
| Character |
10 |
| Enjoyment |
9 |
“I have no choice but to pretend I am a warrior who knows no fear.”
Truer OP lyrics have rarely been attributed so well to an anime series.
Fifteen children are tricked into participating in a battle for Earth itself. However, don’t be fooled by video clips of huge mecha fighting each other – this is not a classic mecha series with epic space battles and the like. Instead, each child who comes to pilot the mecha known as Zearth faces not only the struggle to save the world but also a struggle of their own. What do they fight for? Some fight for their loved ones. Others fight for themselves. A few see it as their duty. Some don’t know why and struggle to find a reason to look death in the face for the sake of complete strangers.
Each story arc deals with the next pilot set to fight on Earth’s behalf. Each child has a story to tell, a conflict of some sort to work out before they fight. One wants to prove himself to his workaholic father. Another deals with bullying because of her mother’s reputation. Another grapples with his disappeared dad while supporting his three younger siblings. And so on and so forth. At first, getting to know all the kids all at once is overwhelming, but as each one is explored and developed, they become unique and well fleshed out. Each arc then becomes a “coming of age” story for each of the kids, culminating in their final battles as they reflect on their lives and the world they fight for. In the meantime, the group of children draw unwanted attention to themselves from the government and military and they must deal with the implications of their actions.
As you can imagine, it’s heavy on drama and it gets amped up even further as the story progresses and the children learn more about this twisted “game” (but to discuss them here would be very spoilery). Bring tissues.
For the more technical merits of Bokurano, it fares pretty well. Animation and art aren’t overly detailed and there aren’t any bright, glaring colours. Realism is what the animators seemed to be aiming for. Still, it slips up here and there, and sometimes obviously so. I also caught some re-used animation a few times, too. The mecha are done in CG and while it’s noticeable, it doesn’t stick out too much in a bad way, and Zearth and some of the other mecha designs are well rendered.
The OP and the two EDs are all sung by Chiaki Ishikawa. The OP, “Uninstall”, carries a rather haunting melody and is well-suited to the anime. The EDs are, unfortunately, more forgettable. Still, it’s notable that the lyrics of each song fit the anime to a T, so the translated lyrics are well worth paying attention to. The background music is, for the most part, unremarkable – not noteworthy but not bad, either. I have no complaints about the seiyuu as they all did a great job.
Overall, Bokurano was a surprisingly strong series that gives viewers plenty to think about. No magic tricks here, no fairy tale endings. Nevertheless, despite all the hardships the characters face, I can’t help but feel a bit hopeful, like I should appreciate life a little more and all the good things in this world. After all, we never know when it’ll all be over. read more
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kanye_west
58 of 76 people found this review helpful
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24 of 24 episodes seen
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| Overall |
10 |
| Story |
10 |
| Animation |
8 |
| Sound |
8 |
| Character |
10 |
| Enjoyment |
10 |
Goddamn.
Just to throw out a disclaimer here, the manga totally dominates the shit out of the anime. The anime is still fantastic, but if you haven't read the manga yet, do so and then get ready to SHED SOME TEARS.
You will laugh, you will cry, you will get a boner; this anime is basically the best thing GONZO has ever produced. Strike Witches? Fuck outta here with that lame ass shit. This is the real motherfucking deal here.
Bokurano started as a manga written by Mohiro Kitoh. Remember Shadow Star Narutaru? That was this guy's creation. If you don't, I'll just sum it up by saying that this guy is pretty messed up. His collective work is probably the most depressing collection of stories ever written. "Oh look a nice show that looks like it's geared towards childre--" and then bam, the OP ends and someone gets raped or brutally beaten or j-walks or something. The majority of his productions revolve around children, too, so not only is he psychologically/physically abusing his characters, he's psychologically/physically abusing children too, which unlike NGE doesn't always result in bucketloads of angst. Sometimes it does though.
After the manga finished up, GONZO decided to adapt it into a 24 episode anime. But, the director of the anime decided that he fucking hated the manga and made some rewrites to the story, including an ending change. This is why the anime is sufficiently less depressing than the manga.
Anyway, onto the story. Basically, Bokurano is about this group of 15 kids who are at summer camp, and obviously they're just starting to get to know each other when they stumble over this cave at the beach. They decide it'd be fucking awesome to go exploring in it and at the other side is a small room with a bunch of computers and whatnot; you know, regular cave shit. After breaking shit for a solid 5 minutes, some random guy pops in, who we then learn is named Kokopelli, and is all, "stop fucking with my computers" at first but then gives the kids an offer to beta test a video game he's making. They agree (SPOILERS!!!!!111 except for one SPOILERS!!!!!111), sign a contract, and then wake up on the shore like none of that shit back there just happened. Soon they discover that the game they signed up for is actually real and that they have to pilot a big ass CGI gundam to fight against other big ass CGI gundams attacking Earth. SPOILERS!!111!!! They find out, after fighting a couple battles, that each pilot dies after his/her battle, and that if they lose, the Earth will be destroyed SPOILERS!!111!!!.
The art is pretty good. Decent character designs. Nothing too flashy but nothing shitpoor. The CGI was pretty obnoxious though.
Sound was money. The OP and ED are pretty dope. Better than Death Note's.
The thing about this show is that it's not really an action show despite being about mechas. The show is more of a character driven drama, as each episode goes into depth about the selected pilot's backstory. At first you think this is going to be some lame shit, but you do honestly end up connecting with the characters as they get more and more developed. Just be warned though, all these characters are depressing, and watching them SPOILERS!!!!111 die SPOILERS!!!1111! can be even more depressing, but sometimes it can be downright uplifting (not because you don't like them, but because it gives you hope). This shit is seriously deep, bros.
Enjoyment, well, it's pretty fucking good. Again, not as good as the manga, but I mean, it's still a well told story. If you're a woman or a man with high levels of estrogen you may cry a lot, but regardless, check this shit out. Did I mention you should read the manga too? Do both at the same time. Compare and contrast, bitches. read more
Recommendations
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Bokurano and Madoka both feature young people in a serious situation that may affect the world. In both series, the children must fight and win at all cost. The characters in each are also guided by a mysterious being throughout their course.
Magical girls and mecha are genres apart, but these series do the same thing with them: deconstruct them viciously. You have one, maybe two episodes to get used to the cast and premise, and then prepare to have your expectations torn down and a wonderfully told story filled with drama and trauma unfurl before your eyes. Structurally and content-wise there are similarities that pile up the farther you go, but of course to elaborate would be to spoil -- and if you've seen one series, you know you won't want to be spoiled for the details of the other.
Despite being two very different genres on a surface level, I felt Bokurano and Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica to be so similar in theme, story and atmosphere that I decided I had to make the only recommendation I've ever made.
In Bokurano we are presented with the appearance of a show about a Mecha piloted by a group of kids, but very early in the show harsh circumstance teaches them they've gotten involved in an event far larger than themselves, and not necessarily in a heroic way, nor in a traditional mecha way.
In Madoka, we see an identical situation, with the anime giving the false appearance of a Magical Girl series, though it is something so much more dangerous, with only its art remaining as its only relation to the Mahou Shoujo staple.
The juxtapositioning used in both of these series will bowl you right out of your seats, and the overwhelming sense of helplessness in both cases leaves you clawing for more, empathising with the characters and their cruel fates they've gotten thrown into without realizing.
Though you could consider one show a mecha, and the other a mahou shoujo - two very different genres, both of these anime use those genres as a facade to hide their agonising plots that are one in the same. So if it was the atmosphere of Madoka that you enjoyed, I highly recommend Bokurano, and Vica Versa.
They have similar premise: young children are tempted to make contracts and play a dangerous game, often without being fully aware of what lies ahead. Anything more would be too spoilerific for either of them (the fact they are similar is already a huge spoiler).
Both are about children entering contracts to gain the power to help save the world, but with some nasty catches. Both ponder the same dilemmas:
1) Is the price of gaining power actually worth it?
2) Can you trust anyone who hands out such powers?
3) Is the world really worth saving?
4) What is the difference between you and your enemy?
Madoka has the same premise as Bokurano: a group of kids that are pulled into a contract not knowing what's ahead of them. Both of these shows have the theme of "fighting for what believe in or what you have left." Despite Madoka being a mahou shoujo show, these shows share a lot of similarities i.e Kyubey and Dung Beetle.
Bokurano is like Madoka, but instead of Mahou Shoujo, it's about Mecha.
Both of them are about kids who have their lifes changed to become "heroes", however, both anime are very dark and very dramatic.
Both anime have the same theme, namely: "You think you are fighting the good fight but in reality you are being used,and those powers are gonna come back and bite you in the ass".
Both Mahou Shoujo Madoka★Magica and Bokurano center themselves around very common anime plots: school children being exposed to a magical or otherworldly force that offers them great power/makes them special. Both series than explore a perverted version of these plot lines giving them a grittier reality. Both Bokurano and Madoka explore the realities of being bestowed powers by a seemingly harmless off-worlder and the consequences implied.
Both are about innocent teenagers who were tricked into a vicious cycle of death and destruction.
Kyubey and Dung beetle are similar in that they both serve their main roles as manipulators, contracting the kids into a cruel fate.
Both are dark and somewhat depressing.
-High school
-Psychological
-Life or Death
-Plot Twists
-Fighting
-Tricked into problem
-Guidance by another being
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Eva and Bokurano deconstruct the mecha genre by adding layers of extremely dark psychological content. Both are highly visceral, the action being centered around children who are forced into a conflict of literally cosmic proportions. In these series the nature of the enemy is ambiguous to the extreme, which makes the whole experience all the more poignant. Eva's latter episodes focus heavily on existential topics, which are replaced in Bokurano with a more psychological approach. The limitless situations the casts are subjected to and the depth of characterization makes these anime masterpieces, with an appeal that goes beyond the giant robot niche.
I think its obiviously..In both some kids must save the world, with a giant robot..But many problems apear in their way.
Both have Mecha's, children's problems are very similar, run a similar issue, they seem to be complement
Fourteen-year-olds with loads of emotional baggage piloting giant robots to protect a world full of people and things that sometimes seem like they might not be worth protecting. They both work the psychological angle nicely and are great if you want to kick your mood down a few notches.
Hey, it's kids in giant robots, and both have great stories as well! ^_-
Bokurano is very similar to Evangelion:
- they both have mechas, piloted by teenagers who are, little by little, shown to make extreme actions and decisions
- the protagonists are forced to fight those "sort of unknown" enemies in order to protect/save the Earth, and all of them will pass through a very hard path
Among all this, there's this very strong dark atmosphere over all the serie that will slowly bring both stories towards important and psychological ends similar to eachother.
If you liked one of them, I highly recommend you to watch the another as well, as you might probably like them both.
Several identical points: kids piloting giants robots, with hard and dismal plot; both are psychological too.
Both has robots, epic fights, teen ages fighting for their lives to protect the earth.
Mecha, saving world, people problems
They are both deconstructions of the mecha genre except Bokurano is much darker. Bokurano deals with touchy subjects it is much more realistic in the portrayal of its characters.
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Opening Theme"Uninstall (アンインストール)" by Chiaki Ishikawa
Ending Theme#1: "Little Bird" by Chiaki Ishikawa (eps 1-12)
#2: "Vermillion" by Chiaki Ishikawa (eps 13-24)
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Fansubbing Groups
Which fansubbers do you like the best? Click + to approve of their subs for this show. Click - if you don't think they did such a great job.
HakkeSHU [HakkeSHU] (Brazilian Portuguese)
SubTnT [SubTnT] (Brazilian Portuguese)
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