- Concept
- Plot
- Characters
‘Tiger and Bunny’
1st impression (after reading the name): Oh cool! An anime about wild animals 
2nd impression (after seeing mecha-like suits): Oh cool! An anime about wild animals AND mechas 
3rd impression (after watching a few minutes of the 1st episode): OH COOL! An anime about superheroes! 
Wild Tiger and Barnaby Brooks Jr. Effectively known as 'Tiger and Bunny', the obvious main characters.
‘Tiger and Bunny’ is neither about cute looking wild animals nor mechas. It is an anime about the coolest genre of all, superheroes! As expected from any superhero-genre show, this show has loads and loads of action and character development.
Genre: Superhero, Science-fiction
Episodes: 25
Directed by: Keichi Sato
Written by: Masafumi Nishida
Studio: Sunrise
Summary
The true identity of New York City’s Spiderman is Peter Parker. Likewise, the true identity of Sternbild City’s Wild Tiger is Kotetsu T. Kaburagi. However, unlike the youthful Peter Parker, Kotetsu is a middle-aged man. He also has a serious personal issue, which being that he is getting too old for this superhero business, thus, the story begins. Back in his time, he was one of the best superheroes around when he was younger, but now, he has lost the limelight to newer and younger superheroes and is being forced to team up with the newest superhero around, Barnaby Brooks Jr (hence the name ‘Bunny’). Barnaby might have given him a chance to get back to the game, but alas, ‘Tiger’ and ‘Bunny’ goes along as well as oil and water. The story revolves around how these two unlikely partners get to know each other better, eventually becoming the two best superheroes around.
One crucial fact I need to include: This show has twisted the superhero genre a small bit. How? Well, each superhero (called NEXT) in the city of Sternbild is part of a hugely popular TV show named HERO TV, and every time they do a heroic activity (like saving the lives of innocent bystanders or capturing a criminal) they earn Hero Points. The superhero with the highest number of Hero Points at the end of the season of HERO TV earns the title ‘King of Heroes’. Every one of the superheroes needs to be at the top to boost the popularity of the company they are advertising (the names of the respective companies are written on their suits). This is the twist I was talking about. Apparently, in the city of Sternbild, advertising is a main part of being a superhero.
HERO TV Logo
Concept/Idea 9/10
While main characters of most Shonen anime tend to fit the role of ‘heroes’ quite nicely, this is the first time I am seeing the term ‘superhero’ used to such an extent in an anime.
Despite this concept being extremely common, it is extremely awesome. Everyone loves superheroes, and I can say this with a guarantee, everyone will love this anime.
Plus point for bringing advertisement into the world of ‘saving the day’.
Plot 8/10
What kind of plot should a superhero-themed show have anyway?
Only one kind, which includes three things:
- Bad things happening in the peaceful town, mostly due to a super villain
- The hero saving the town
- The hero facing a personal problem and learning how to deal with it
‘Tiger and Bunny’ has used all these three story-lines to an amazing degree, especially the 3rd point. All the superheroes shown in this show (the villains as well) have either bad pasts or disturbing personal issues, coupled with excellent story progression to get rid of these problems. Goes to show, the heroes need to save themselves first, before saving everyone else.
Characters 9/10
What is the most attractive thing about a superhero-themed show? Of course, it is the superhero itself. All of the superheroes shown in this anime have been created fantastically and gets enough screen time, enough to make fans out of anyone. Everyone has different personalities and points of views, but when push comes to shove, everyone will do their best to do what they do best: ‘Saving the day’.
The only better way I can think of to describe the characters of ‘Tiger and Bunny’ would be to spam the word ‘awesome’ all over this review. No, I am not going to do that.
Kotetsu T. Kaburagi (Wild Tiger)
Affiliation: TopMag (former) / Apollon Media (current)
Suit Advertisements: S.H. Figurarts (Japanese toy line) / Softbank (Japanese media company)
Barnaby Brooks, Jr.
Affiliation: Apollon Media
Suit Advertisements: Bandai / Crusade (Bandai’s trading card game) / Amazon.co.jp [since Episode 6]
Tiger and Bunny, with their affiliation and suit advertisements stated. Not to mention with their suits too.
Overall rating 9/10
The highest overall rating I have given to an anime in one of my reviews so far. Gets a 9 barely because of the average 8.6 rating…
All in all, ‘Tiger and Bunny’ is the kind of anime everyone of any age can enjoy. The concept is something loved by all, the storyline is smooth enough for everyone to understand and the characters are… Just awesome. The animation and artwork is new and fresh, adding another reason for watching this anime.
‘Tiger and Bunny’ is certainly, one of the best anime this year. Give it a watch if you haven’t. You won’t be disappointed. I know I wasn’t.
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