Dirty Pair

Tough girls.

 

The 80s were a unique decade for science fiction. Inspired by blockbusters from the   previous decade, we witnessed the birth of some of the most beloved Animé franchises that still keep their legacy intact despite the sad transition from Animation cels to CGI. Comic Books also released some of their best "Graphic Novels" and giant story arc events that had their sequels and remakes decades later. Music wise, that same trail of creativity was felt immensely with the rise to fame of Disco, New Wave, Glam Rock Hardcore Punk, and Alternative Rock. Of course, not everything was nice in the 80s. They killed John Lennon! dictatorships were rotting Latin America, and the consequences of Cold War still seemed like a very real threat. 

Anyway, the Animé industry, being as culturally Japanese as it can, it also nurtured itself with what was going on both good and bad.

Dirty Pair must be one of the earliest successful attempts at putting women front and center. No more damsels in distress, no more men saving the day. Produced by some of the busiest animation companies in the 80s: Studio Nue (Macross, Orguss & Samurai Pizza Cats, Sunrise (Mobile Suit Gundam, Cowboy Bebop, Inu Yasha) and Nozomi Entertainment (Zeta Gundam, The Rose Of Versailles), Dirty Pair is a testimony of what the 80s thought the future would be like. Neon colors, disco music, robots ,and fearless heroes. 

"If you're in a big trouble, call the World Welfare Work Association or WWWA. They will send out a team of highly trained capable agents called Trouble Consultants who can solve your problems. But if the team they send you is the Dirty Pair, there will be a lot of collateral damage aside from solving your problems."

An inseparable team of justice and comedy.

New artwork for the Blu Ray box.

While their prominence in Japanese animation is unquestionably admirable, it’s how relevant the show feels almost thirty years later that truly impresses. The balance between hilarious eighties cheesiness and masterful animation is remarkably inviting, making the episodes feel like something that could have been released a few years ago. Yes, newbies will find the 4:3 aspect ratio annoying, but Yoshikazu Yasuhiko’s art style is as electrifying as ever.

The show revolves around Kei and Yuri, two enticing members of the Trouble Consultant Team 234. The code named “Lovely Angels” are disaster magnets, always leaving a trail of utter chaos and madness…hence their nickname Dirty Pair. Despite their destructive temperament, they somehow always end up catching the bad guy, even if it means destroying half a city. Dirty Pair can be best described as a Cyberpunk action-comedy inspired by classics like Blade Runner and Mad Max. While the tone is clearly more lighthearted, fans of such films will absolutely devour the show’s diverse sci-fi aesthetic. The action sequences in nearly every episode are nothing short of amazing. The spectacular battle set pieces give Dirty Pair an impressive cinematic quality and while most of the series feels somewhat episodic in nature, the charming duo keeps each narrative segment thoroughly entertaining and captivating.

 

Incredible artwork from the incredible blu ray box.

Dirty pair indeed.

The inspiration for Dirty Pair novels was a visit to Japan by the British Australian science-fiction author A. Bertram Chandler, probably in 1978. On his itinerary was a stop at the young Studio Nue, which Takachiho co-founded. As something to entertain their guest, two of the staffers there, Yuri Tanaka and Keiko Otoguro, hit upon the idea with Takachiho of taking Chandler to a tournament of the All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling organization, which was a member of the World Women's Wrestling Association (WWWA). The card included the highly-popular wrestling (and singing) team, the Beauty Pair. Something that passed among the foursome during that match led Chandler to remark to Takachiho something to the effect that "the two women in the ring may be the Beauty Pair, but those two with you ought to be called 'the Dirty Pair'."

This became the germ of an idea for a novella Takachiho decided to write, transplanting the rough-housing of pro-wrestling to the realm of space-opera mystery stories, with which he already had experience in his already successful Crusher Joe series. The team code-name "Lovely Angels" is also a play on the names of certain women's teams of the time, such as the Queen Angels.

 

Dirty Pair,the novels.

The wrestlers that inspired our lovely angels.

An anime television series based on the novels, simply titled Dirty Pair, ran for 24 episodes on Nippon Television affiliates from July to December 1985, winning the Animage Anime Grand Prix prize for that year. Scripts had been written for two additional episodes, that were produced after the TV-series had aired, and released as an OVA in January 1987. In subsequent re-airings those two episodes were added to the original show making the series 26 episodes long.

The Dirty Pair anime has a closer setup to the original light novels by Haruka Takachiho more than any of the other incarnations. Unlike the light novels, the universe of the anime has a more comical atmosphere and presents the typical styles of a 1980s inspired future. The Lovely Angels and the WWWA reside in a location known as Eleanor City where Kei (voiced by Kyouko Tonguu) and Yuri (voiced by Saeko Shimazu) live in an apartment together in the city's famous Damocles Tower. The chief of the 3WA in this version is Gooley Andrew Francess along with Calico who serves as second in command. The Lovely Angels also have two assistants, a genetically modified feline named Mughi, and a small robot known as Nanmo.

 

Their 1st appearance in the Crusher Joe OVA.

Crusher Joe in Dirty Pair final episode OVAs.

Since Dirty Pair was very well received in Japan, it led to its first animated film Dirty Pair: Project Eden in 1986. Later in 1987, a 10 OVA series was released. To avoid confusion with the original Animé, the series was called Original Dirty Pair in Japan and Dirty Pair 2 in English. Also in 1994 the Dirty Pair Flash series was a reimagining of the original series and it ran for 16 episodes until 1996. Of course, its international fame would come a bit later with the big OVA boom from the early 90s. I remember seeing Dirty Pair mentioned in a few fanzines, and offered by mail service in glorious VHS format. Luckily, retrofuture allowed it to be re-released on DVD, and also in a brand new HD transfer on Blu-Ray. God!, how I love retro animé on HD! the mastering work makes it look brand new, and the colors! oh the colors! neon everywhere! Not to mention the pristine sound that boosts the action scenes and improve the dialogs and soundtrack by a 100%. 

 

But has it aged well? 

 

Absolutely! Don't believe all the crap stupid teenagers write about Animé from the 70s and 80s. Their usual complains include "I don't like the 4:3 ratio", "The animation is horrible compared to today standards". Fucking ball-sacks!  The 4:3 Ratio is the "TV Aspect" Even television from the 90s had it! Get an education! The animation sucks? go gag on Satan's mayonnaise! These shows were all hand-drawn! the artistic value they hold is incalculable! go jerk-off to your lame CGI furry-femboy shit!

Teen roasting aside, this Animé in particular was produced by three of the most prolific and creative studios from the 80s. The animation style is top notch even by today's standards.

The lovely angels!

Print magazines will return in the retrofuture.

Plot wise, each episode is its own adventure. In comic book lingo, each episode is a "one shot". However, this doesn't mean it ends up being derivative, and boring like most American made cartoons from the same decade. Comedy plays a major role here, and we do get to see the chemistry the main characters share with either their colleagues & enemies. Dirty Pair was made to entertain, and even 37 years later after its release, you can still get every joke.  In addition, the show tends to maintain the base of an action-comedy, but along the way hits on everything from crime thrillers to psychological horror to westerns. If you're just going through the series for the first time, there's an innate compulsion to fire up the next episode just to see what happens next. Meanwhile, if you're revisiting the series, the quality of the episodes remain intact. In no time you'll be back in the 80s saying "Oh!, I remember that episode!". Two crazy memorable episodes are the 'mouse dictator' episode or the one where Kei and Yuri try to work their way into the good graces of a guy with a violent allergy to women. Basically, Dirty Pair TV, some call it that, isn't just the best Dirty Pair anime, it's also the gateway drug that will turn you into a fan. Just don't forget there are animated movies, a collection of OVAs and the 90s remake waiting for you once you complete your journey through one of the best Animé from the 80s, and probably all time.

Here's the Opening:

Here's the Ending:

And a bonus video comparing the original standard definition of the series with the recent Blu Ray remaster: