Kageyama Tamio no Double Fantasy

Kageyama Tamio no Double Fantasy is a colorful, creative, and technically competent little two episode OVA that has a lot of spirit behind its bite-sized storytelling that gets you engaged right off the bat, and ultimately leaves you wishing this anime was graced with a full run of 12 episodes or more. The story, or rather stories, are linked by a brief nod to each other and the fact they both have to do with the tropical island of Saipan, a noted vacation spot and one of America's stops during the island hopping campaign of the Second World War. Given that each episode has its ... own identity in this regard, able to express such range in terms of the radically different atmospheres on display, the story as a whole becomes impressive. The first episode has this high-energy, zany vibe that manages to thoroughly entertain from start to finish by way of an absurdity that builds upon itself, and even become endearing through the gradual softening of the initially standoffish relationship between the two newlyweds, Boku and Yurie, who are made to open up to each other due to the extremity of the circumstances they find themselves in. The second episode does a total 180, while still managing to feel as though it's being told by the same people who wrote the first episode. That's because it is, but the fact it still feels that way is made impressive when considering the drastic tonal shift. Here we have a stoic, tortured photographer, Hanezawa, who's sent to do a job he's reluctant to accept based on his creative aspirations. The atmosphere as he stays in this near-abandoned hotel with his coworker Yoshino is distinctly off-putting, with a sense that something is very wrong, though I will say that it is more the art direction which does the heavy lifting with this second episode. Just before I move on, however, I have to reiterate how impressive it is that this anime manages to tell two such different stories in a mere 2 episode OVA, and each one with enough atmosphere, tension, and potential to be expanded into full series in their own right. The fact that it does this all without losing its own identity is what makes the story the strongest aspect of this anime.

The art is also a powerful and distinctly unique feature of this anime, with a unified visual identity that is adapted to two entirely different circumstances. As a whole, it has this stylized, form-over-function approach that emphasizes color and exaggerated personal aspects to differentiate characters, like Yurie's bright red hair, Boku's slouching posture, or Hanezawa's prominent mustache. In many ways, I'd say it almost feels like a more refined visual counterpart to the funnies section in a newspaper, prioritizing a similar set of artistic principles. Meanwhile, the backgrounds, while also awash with color, are much more detailed, but rendered such that they don't lose that same sense of saturated vitality that many of the characters have. The result is that the characters jump out in an energetic and noticeable way, and more focus is put on their movement and their actions rather than their strict form. As for how this art style is applied differently between episodes one and two, episode one is defined by color contrast and constant motion, highlighting the contrast between Boku and Yruie, and how they move together through the context of their misadventure. Meanwhile, episode two is defined by long, foreboding shadows, cavernous interior spaces filled with gradients of inky blackness, and a kind of confined, oppressive atmosphere which is made stuffy by Hanezawa's cigarette smoke, and contrasting with the crisp, colorful clarity of the world outside the hotel. As with the story, the art managing to maintain its overall identity in these two extremely different situations is notably impressive.

There is less to say of the sound, though it does meet all the basic standards of quality for the time, and the voice work is impressive insofar as it manages to be quite fast-paced without becoming cumbersome or tripping over itself at any point.

The characters are all great, operating as the perfect subjects of the stories they find themselves in, which feel organically motivated by their own actions. However, my favorites are definitely the couple from the first episode, Boku and Yurie, given how cute their relationship is when they warm up to each other. Overall, Kageyama Tamio no Double Fantasy is, in every sense of the word, a hidden gem. It manages to take its own compelling, original style, both in terms of its storytelling and its art, and uses that unified identity to tell two entirely different stories which are engaging and notable for entirely different reasons. In short, it is a fantastic OVA that is memorable in such a way that many short anime don't quite manage to get. As such, it is easy for me to recommend.

It's not exactly bad, just incredibly bland and forgettable. You're better off spending your time watching something else.

This special is divided up into two segments of differing genre that have the thinnest of connections.

In the first, a couple lose their tickets and take up an offer from the creepiest man alive for a discount flight. Instead the flight is just, well, cheap. Oddly prescient in how airlines will now nickel and dime you for everything, but it's still one joke that never evolves or goes anywhere else. The shared hardship makes them appreciate each other a bit more instead of arguing so much? Maybe? Still. ... It's a sketch at best.

The second story is a horror story except it too never goes anywhere. A bunch of build-up. Some creepy stuff happens. The end. It's not even threateningly creepy or with any real purpose or explanation. Yeah, WWII. Got it. But Heavy Metal did the same kind of segment much better.

Both of these feel like one sentence ideas tossed off without anything further. That said, the plot is the only real downside. The art and sound are both acceptable but unexceptional with a few brief flourishes thrown in from time to time. It just matches every other aspect in making no impression whatsoever.

Skip it. You're not missing anything.