Shingu is a new series being released by TRSI in the US. It appears to have been completely ignored by the fan subbers, and by everyone else for that matter. Having seen the first disc, I can't fathom why. Suffice to say that it is very good, at least so far.
It seems to be mostly a mixture of a high school comedy/drama, and an alien conspiracy. With some mecha. All of which is executed very well. The technical merits aren't very exciting: it looks and sounds nice enough, but isn't anything special. This carries over into the English dub, which is certainly watchable, but nothing terribly special.
The plot is pretty involved already, with plenty of stuff being out in the open, such as the huge alien craft that appears, and the giant robot that seems to be made from paper that appears and crushes it. On the other hand, there are still lots of things I don't know, like exactly who is involved in this galactic federation thing, and what the hell these aliens, who may or may not be invading Earth, actually want.
The best part of the show, however, is the characters. Everyone is developed well, not through drama and monologues, but simply through the way they interact. Everyone is a bit weird, funny, interesting, likeable, and different from all the other characters.
The thing it most resembles is a high school comedy/drama version of Nadesico, which I suppose isn't that surprising given that it's from the same director. Both manage to have a huge cast of well characterised eccentrics who are, for all their over-the-top quirks, nonetheless still very believable. And funny. Both also have an interesting, well-executed plot, at least so far. I just can't help but hope that Shingu gets a better paced and more coherent ending.
It seems to be mostly a mixture of a high school comedy/drama, and an alien conspiracy. With some mecha. All of which is executed very well. The technical merits aren't very exciting: it looks and sounds nice enough, but isn't anything special. This carries over into the English dub, which is certainly watchable, but nothing terribly special.
The plot is pretty involved already, with plenty of stuff being out in the open, such as the huge alien craft that appears, and the giant robot that seems to be made from paper that appears and crushes it. On the other hand, there are still lots of things I don't know, like exactly who is involved in this galactic federation thing, and what the hell these aliens, who may or may not be invading Earth, actually want.
The best part of the show, however, is the characters. Everyone is developed well, not through drama and monologues, but simply through the way they interact. Everyone is a bit weird, funny, interesting, likeable, and different from all the other characters.
The thing it most resembles is a high school comedy/drama version of Nadesico, which I suppose isn't that surprising given that it's from the same director. Both manage to have a huge cast of well characterised eccentrics who are, for all their over-the-top quirks, nonetheless still very believable. And funny. Both also have an interesting, well-executed plot, at least so far. I just can't help but hope that Shingu gets a better paced and more coherent ending.