In the first test of a revolutionary personal battle-suit, the MADOX-01, Ace female test-pilot Kusumoto Elle smashes an attacking tank force and humiliates Lt. Kilgore, Japan’s most-macho tank-jockey, in the process. Kilgore swears he’ll get even, and he gets his chance when the prototype MADOX literally falls off the back of a truck in the middle of Tokyo. Meanwhile, the MADOX, which fell off the back of one truck, off a bridge, and into the back of another truck, has found its way into the hands of college student Sugimoto Kōji. Intrigued by the MADOX, Kōji makes the big mistake of fooling with it without reading the manual first, and soon finds himself locked in the suit and zooming around downtown Tokyo. Unfortunately, the homing signal the now-active MADOX transmits results in a no-holds-barred response by Kilgore; even more unfortunately, even though Kōji doesn’t know how to fight, the MADOX does a pretty good job on automatic (it’s got “Full Self Driving” capability), resulting in a firefight the likes of which the local residents haven’t seen since the last time Gojira hit town. Concerned about the property damage being caused to some of the world’s most expensive real-estate, Elle dons a second prototype MADOX and tries to find and rescue Kōji before Kilgore’s many minions totally trash Tokyo. And apart from the attempts to destroy the suit (and it’s driver), Kōji has his own problems: if he breaks his date with his girlfriend, he will lose her forever — and he’s a tad overdressed for the occasion! Will Kōji be late for his date? Or will Kilgore make him “the late Kōji?” And more importantly, is it possible to eat Convenience Store shrimp in a battlesuit? The answers to these and many other questions await you in the 41 action-packed minutes of Metal Skin Panic: MADOX-01!
For thoughts on Metal Skin Panic: MADOX-01, please check out our discussion on The Video Attic:
Video Quality
Metal Skin Panic: MADOX-01 comes to Blu-Ray courtesy of AnimEigo with a fetching 1080p transfer that brings all new life to this action-packed adventure. While details about the source are scarce, the master used for this one appears to be in really healthy shape. The colors present are very deep and nuanced in a way that really pops off the screen. There is a complexity to the hues that really show off the mastery of the animation. Delineation is crisp and pleasing with no unnatural jagged lines or color bleed. The textures, from the character designs to the environments, are impressive and give the films a nice sense of space. One of the areas where the animation really shines is the distinct details of the character and suit designs. Black levels are strong, and there are no obvious signs of banding or compression issues. Fans of this material will be blown away by this presentation.
Audio Quality
This Blu-Ray comes with an LPCM 2.0 track in the original Japanese, as well as an English dub. This release comes with a cool array of subtitle options including multicolored in English and English SDH, standard white English SDH subtitles and SDH subtitles for the English dub. One of the primary things you will notice throughout is that there is thankfully very little in the way of age-related anomalies present here with the track presenting free of damage. Dialogue sounds crisp and clear without sound effects or the score trouncing on important information. The world provides a very lively atmosphere that is only enhanced with the bursts of action sound effects. The track handles these environmental effects quite capably. While this is not a full surround presentation, there is a dynamic energy to the proceedings which opens up this world admirably. This track presents everything accurately without much in the way of damage or other unwanted issues.
Special Features
- Primary Japanese Commentary: Director Shinji Aramaki, Kimitoshi Yamane, Satoshi Koizumi provide a very insightful track in which they discuss detailed steps of the animation process, the meaning behind certain elements, developing the story, memories for the production, the character designs and more.
- Backup Japanese Commentary: Director Shinji Aramaki, Kimitoshi Yamane, Satoshi Koizumi return for a second commentary track in which they talk less about the activity occurring on screen and more so the anime industry at the time of this production. This is a great complement to the first track which offers an entirely different experience.
- English Commentary: Steve Rassin, Eric Tomosunas, Zach Hanner, and Stever Vernon deliver a commentary track that is generally entertaining but not very informative. While you do get some specific insights into the creative process, mostly the crew seem to be talking about getting into the anime industry in general and their experiences tackling this type of content.
- Weapons of MADOX Documentary: A six-minute featurette is provided in which you see some of the inspirations for weapons and vehicles depicted in the film and how they compare to real life.
- Robert Woodhead Interview: A nearly 21-minute archival interview with the CEO of AnimEigo in which he discusses the founding of the company, his personal background, the history of anime before the release of this film, the importance of MADOX to the company, his favorite sequences and much more.
- Eric Tomosunas Interview: A six-minute with the man who dubbed MADOX-01 for AnimEigo in which he discusses how he got attached to the project, what attracted him to the material, the casting of the project, his continuing relationship with the performers and more.
- DVD Easter Egg: An eight-minute goofy video which features the staff of AnimEigo.
- Color Art: A gallery of fully animated artwork is provided here.
- Line Art: A gallery of sketches is provided here.
- Production Credits: An option that allows you to toggle through the credits.
- Isolated Score: There is an optional to watch this with only the score being audible in LPCM 2.0.
Final Thoughts
Metal Skin Panic: MADOX-01 is a very brief adventure, but it is one that delivers a grand time to any who embark upon it. The plot is simple and told in an accessible manner, but the care put into the animation keeps it from being anything but forgettable. The action sequences are genuinely thrilling, and the stakes are compelling enough to keep you gripping your seat. If you are a fan of mecha-suit narratives, you will not be disappointed by investing your time here. AnimEigo has released a Blu-Ray with a stellar A/V presentation and some very engaging special features to make up for the brevity of the feature. If you love classic anime, give this one a shot. Highly Recommended
Metal Skin Panic: MADOX-01 is currently available to purchase on Blu-Ray.
Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.
Disclaimer: AnimEigo has supplied a copy of this set free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.
Dillon is most comfortable sitting around in a theatre all day watching both big budget and independent movies.