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Only half interesting (and marginally better) than the previous volume.
Well, the previous volume of NADIA: THE SECRET OF BLUE WATER was truly dreadful to watch (though the non-existant "plot" DID go somewhere toward the end) and a slapping insult to the show. This next entry has its moments (not to mention very nice extra: a text interview with Meg Bauman, the thirteen-year-old actress who plays Nadia in the English dub which warrants a read), but overall, it's barely an improvement over Volume 7.
The voice casts on both the English and Japanese tracks do their best, but their efforts cannot compensate for the artistic, plotting, and scripting flaws the last volume shared which sadly still exist here. Although there are some lines which come off as funny, the dialogue overall is pretty silly and difficult to even take seriously. As far as the content goes, only two out of the four episodes on this DVD are watchable (Episodes 30 & 31); the first one not only doesn't add anything to the plot, but just an excuse to show off more character stupidities and pointless sequences. Here, we see Sanson and Hanson constantly bickering like infantren whose cold war turns into a race involving two mechanical lions resembling King(!). Although some interesting information is provided at one point about why Nadia is such a strict vegetarian (and one amusing "999,999,999,999,999" line), this episode overall is wasted, misplaced, dragging filler trash. Grandis sums it up best: "This is getting ridiculous!"
The second and third episodes, although not without some silly moments and fourth-rate animation (Jean's eyes popping out of his head at the sight of mosquito bites on Nadia's legs; Grandis being seduced by Ayerton for wine; the pointless construction of a mechanical chariot pulled by boars), are at least not as offensive as the horrible Lincoln Island arc. Where things *really* get interesting is when Nadia and Jean venture into some sort of long-forgotten factory where it becomes clear that there is more to their island home than they thought. In a spellbinding sequence, Nadia becomes entranced by an invisible force and disappears into a dull wall, leaving her clothes in Jean's arms! Behind this wall is some sort of monotone alien-robot-computer voice which identifies itself as Red Noah, who has a lot to reveal to Nadia -- including the origins of her identity and the Blue Water. To reveal anything else about what new information is given in this engrossing episode would be giving spoilers. However, it may be daring to say that it culminates with a superbly plotted finale where Jean dashes to rescue Nadia while Grandis and the others take off in their Gratan. All the while, the island shakes in terrible tremor and starts to submerge. This is the highest point of the volume, and is enough to make one believe that the show will finally get back on target.
But then along come Episodes 32 & 33, in which our heroes crashland into an African tribal village, where they get mixed up in an absolutely intrusive sidestory that adds virtually nothing to the plot. For one, the village is hideously stereotyped, almost as if it came straight out of a lame TARZAN episode (and get this--its sacred treasures are a tin can of food and a drink that can make anyone who drinks it run super-fast). Furthermore, the concept and characterizations are even worse than the island episodes; the story plays out like a lame Saturday morning cartoon, with the characters taking complete 180-degree turns in their personalities for absolutely no reason. Case in point: in the previous episode, Nadia had admitted that Jean was more important to her than the Blue Water, and heck, embraced him nude. So why does she become madly infatuated with a bland-looking villager who does little more than recognize her Blue Water and give her a totally bizarre compliment? It doesn't make a whole lot of sense, and it makes even less sense that she even (infuriatingly) resorts to treating Jean hideously when he just risked his life for her. In an even more groanworthy way to resolve this uninspired, wirethin "love triangle" (in Episode 33), we find out that the guy is already engaged to an obese warrior woman(!). Just as worse is when Grandis falls again for her ex-fiance, who shows up completely out of the blue. Worse still, the new characters have zero personality and do not fit into the atmosphere of NADIA at all. Grandis' ex-love is especially dreadful; in Episode 12, the writers had concocted a believable backstory for Grandis involving her previous love affair, but here he is presented as a totally uninteresting, moustache-twirling, Snidely Whiplash-like caricature. This guy is so boring, it's hard to imagine how Grandis could have fallen for him in the first place. Way to ruin a credible subplot and then not even making it (or remotely anything about the whole two-episode story) worthwhile. I also have a problem with the characterization of the aforementioned warrior; he interprets Nadia's Blue Water and is knowledgeable, but he does not come across as a very credible or well-defined character. Why Nadia would get hearts in her eyes at the sight of him (or the utterance of his beyond inept "flattery") is beyond me. It's somewhat mentioned that he's 13, but he looks much older than that! The African arc, in short, is stupid, inane, unimaginative, uninteresting, incoherent, pointless, and ultimately damaging to the show and the characters.
All in all, those who have been disappointed by Volume 7 will find little to resuscitate their interests with Volume 8; the first and last episodes on this DVD obviously HAVE to go, but the second and third episodes are watchable. My recommendation? Stick with the good episodes on this disc, but skip the horrible stuff. And you'll be pleased to know that, after a horrible first episode on Volume 9, NADIA: THE SECRET OF BLUE WATER will return to its initial roots wherein lies its appeal.
[Wednesday, August 28, 2002]
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Nadia's True Identity Reveals (Episode 29-32)
