Zebraman 2: Attack on Zebra City Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.5
Overall		3.5

Zebraman 2: Attack on Zebra City Blu-ray Movie Review

Is everything black and white in Zebra City?

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman December 1, 2011

I’m guessing that we Americans don’t have much wiggle room for complaining about outlandish superhero ideas, considering we’ve been the nation that’s given the world everything from a web-slinging arachnid human mutant to an alien from Krypton to however it is you want to describe Kick-Ass. And so we must all cut a little slack for the patently odd Zebraman franchise, a Japanese creation that debuted several years ago with a well received initial film, but which like so many outings in the superhero universe, sputtered somewhat with its sophomore presentation, Zebraman 2: Attack on Zebra City. Like many a superhero before him, Zebraman posits the life of a mild-mannered everyday sort of guy, in this case a nebbish third grade teacher named Shinichi Ichikawa, a guy whose family life is in shambles, whose professional life hasn’t amounted to very much, and who escapes into fantasies sprung from his memories of a short-lived seventies television show called (you guessed it) Zebraman. Shinichi fantasizes about Zebraman, and in best unlikely superhero fashion, he manages to become his idol, unexpectedly discovering he actually has superpowers, powers which help him defeat an invading horde of green Gumby-like aliens. Filmmaker Takashi Miike shot the original Zebraman on what was likely a shoestring budget (maybe only half a shoestring at that), but part of Zebraman’s decided charm was the very lo-fi ambience with which the film was imbued. Miike is not exactly known for his restraint, and in fact many of his films have been greeted by shocked outrage from the normally reserved Japanese, but the fact is Miike’s oeuvre is really rather surprisingly varied, as Zebraman itself patently proves. The first Zebraman was awash in a certain nostalgia, especially for those who grew up worshiping any given superhero on television. Zebraman 2: Attack on Zebra City, on the other hand, pretty much jettisons the lo-fi ethos of the first film, and some may fear it similarly jettisons all of the charm of the first Zebraman as well.

Though Zebraman 2: Attack on Zebra City is ostensibly a sequel, its relation to the first Zebraman film is tenuous at best, at least in terms of timeframe and even character. After a quick and somewhat confusing set up where Shinichi (Sho—sometimes transliterated Show, as it is in the supplements on this package—Aikawa) is subjected to some nefarious experiments by the villainous Aihara (Guadalcanal Taka) extracts part of Zebraman’s power, Miike fast forwards his narrative to circa 2025, when Shinichi awakens with amnesia, remembering nothing about his superhero past. In the intervening years between the first and second Zebramans, Tokyo has gone to hell, or at least to zebras, as it’s now colloquially known as Zebra City and is overrun by thugs who celebrate Zebra Time, a daily five minute window where all crime is encouraged and is non-prosecutable. Aihara has assumed Mayoral duties, made up to look for all the world like Alex’s Asian cousin from A Clockwork Orange, and it turns out the elements he extracted from Zebraman have been incorporated into an evil young woman known as The Zebra Queen (Riisa Naka), a power mad pop star (is there any other kind?) evidently patterned at least somewhat on Lady Gaga (and, no, I’m not kidding).

Shinichi of course does regain his memory and is reinvented as Zebraman, this time largely white rather than black (something that elicits gasps of awe from several passers-by throughout the film). As should probably be evident by now, Zebraman 2: Attack on Zebra City is patently silly stuff, but the interesting thing with regard to this supposed “sequel” and its progenitor is how completely different in tone both films are. The first Zebraman was actually kind of sweet, while Zebraman 2: Attack on Zebra City has a decidedly darker, more Goth, feeling to it that’s somewhat reminiscent of the Christopher Nolan reboots of the Batman franchise.

There’s still goofy fun to be had throughout this Zebraman, to be sure. The Zebra Queen is a hiss-worth villainess, and it’s actually kind of funny to see an evil mastermind in the guise of a Top 40 rock star, performing her latest music video with élan after she’s just finishing murdering her biggest pop rival. And the climax of the film, which features yet another gigantic green jiggling alien (and a flatulent alien, at that) is just flat out weird and hilarious, as is Miike’s usual wont. The film obviously had a relatively gigantic budget, at least when compared to the first Zebraman, but Miike probably intentionally crafts his CGI to be pretty lo-fi looking all the same.

People who have fond memories of the first Zebraman may actually be more disappointed by Zebraman 2: Attack on Zebra City than those with no familiarity with the first film. This is really a sequel in name only, and there’s really no need to “catch up” to this story by watching the first film. In fact the second film gives a quick recap and actually veers so quickly off into new territory, both content wise and tonally, that too recent a viewing of the first film may actually be a bit of a detriment. Still, if you can be slightly amnesiac yourself, and forget the goofy ambience of the first Zebraman, there’s enough—well—kick-ass content to Zebraman 2: Attack on Zebra City to warrant a return visit.

Zebraman 2: Attack on Zebra City Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Zebraman 2: Attack on Zebra City is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of FUNimation Entertainment with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.78:1. Shot on HD video, Zebraman 2: Attack on Zebra City has that smooth, shiny, textureless look that is one of the immediate signs of this "film" format. Miike also intentionally filters a lot of the footage here, especially in the recap sequence which is desaturated and skewed toward the yellow side of things. Later the film glories in a slate gray and cool blue ambience which deprives the film of at least a little fine detail. A lot of this film is quite dark (as in actual lighting conditions, not tone, though it's dark that way, too), and many scenes suffer from fairly noticeable crush. All of that said, fine detail is at the very least above average, and when the film approximates a more realistic palette in more natural lighting conditions, it's excellent. Contrast is played with throughout the film, occasionally pushed quite a bit, at other time dialed back, giving the film a slightly surreal look quite a bit of the time.

Zebraman 2: Attack on Zebra City Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

No English dub is included on this new Blu-ray, meaning only Zebraman 2: Attack on Zebra City's original Japanese track is offered here, on a good if not spectacular Dolby TrueHD 5.1 mix. I was a little surprised at the lack of consistent surround activity on this track. While the traditional dialogue scenes are expectedly anchored front and center, some of the action sequences as well are weighted much more toward the front channels than the sides or rears. The good news is the surrounds come fully alive in the quasi-music videos which The Zebra Queen performs a couple of times throughout the film, and the film's J-music proclivities offer some wonderful low end, with some great thump heavy bass and drum work. Fidelity is excellent and dynamic range is well above average considering the contrast between some of the film's quieter dialogue scenes and its over the top action and music elements.

Zebraman 2: Attack on Zebra City Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• The Making of Zebraman 2: Attack on Zebra City (SD; 1:26:18) is an in depth piece chronicling everything from pre-production through shooting and post elements like CGI.
• The Making of "Zebra Queen's Theme" Music Video (SD; 7:10) shows the proto-music video being shot, with some direction being given on choreography.
• Interview with Director Takashi Miike (SD; 6:55). Miike is rather surprisingly reserved, especially considering his kind of out there reputation, and talks about his concept for this second in what he obviously hopes will be a Zebraman franchise.
• Interview with Riki Abe (Niimi) (SD; 4:27). Abe talks about how excited he was to work with Miike and Aikawa and what the first Zebraman had meant to him.
• Interview with Show Aikawa (Shinichi/Zebraman) (SD; 5:23). The legendary actor seems to have a great sense of humor about this odd role and gets a kick out of discussing such things as fitting into his zebra suit.
• Interview with Masahiro Inoue (Asano) (SD; 4:56) seems somewhat surprised to have been asked to be in the film and how it was a challenge to get into the mindset necessary to play Asano.
• Interview with Riisa Naka (Yui/Zebra Queen) (SD; 5:12). Naka is surprisingly sweet and diametrically opposed to the vicious role she plays in the film.
• Original Commercials (SD; 1:21)
• Theatrical Trailers (SD; 1:44)

Zebraman 2: Attack on Zebra City Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

If you're a fan of Miike, you kind of—kind of—know what to expect with Zebraman 2: Attack on Zebra City, at least as much as you ever know what to expect with Miike. This is another deliberately outré, quite odd offering from the director. It's also an odd sort of follow up, one which seems to jettison a lot of the first Zebraman's innocent charm in favor of a much darker, almost sadomasochistic approach. The film is visually quite spectacular, and it's often quite funny despite being fairly violent a lot of the time. If you don't mind something a bit nonsensical and completely weird, Zebraman 2: Attack on Zebra City comes Recommended.