Guyver: The Bioboosted Armor—Days of Future Past, Vol. 1

Guyver is a new rendition of the “classic” but unremarkable 1989 original Japanese anime series, based on the 1985 manga Shonen Captain by Yoshiki Takaya, about a teenage boy named Sho who accidentally acquires a suit of high-tech body armor from the sinister and mysterious Chronos Corporation, a company that secretly runs the world. Guyver boasts aliens and cartoon mayhem of all sorts, but also flat characters, awkward dialogue, and zero subtext—in other words, this is the kind of stuff that makes non-fans believe that anime is nothing but bald-faced adolescent power fantasies. Compiling the first four of 16 episodes on a dual-language disc, rated TV-MA, DVD extras here include commentary with Guyver fans Rod Peters and Jack Glauser, a manga-to-anime comparison, and a 32-page color booklet full of sketches and interviews. Optional. [Note: Guyver, Vol. 2 is also available.] Aud: P. (M. Johanson)