The Marginal Service

Let me get this out of the way. The animation sucks. It's especially sad to see how far 3Hz has fallen considering Flip Flappers was the show that made me continue this hobby to begin with. The direction and cinematography is uninspiring and there is a general air of mediocrity surrounding this. It's not difficult to say that this is Cygame's weakest original and nowhere close to the brilliance that is Zombieland Saga or Akiba Maid Sensou. And yet, the show is still pretty fun regardless. Like their other originals, TMS is a pastiche of some bygone genre, in this case 70s-90s Hollywood action movies, wrappedup in Cygames' own bespoke package. The show can get overly self-referential at times, and some references do overstay their welcome, but it's still a fun romp regardless. The show's premise is profoundly stupid, and it never takes itself too seriously, so I'm not as harsh with it as I am with other shows. Even its attempts at an Aesop relating to immigration is handled so poorly and so haphazardly it loops back to being unusually charming, unlike a certain other show that has the subtlety of a bull in a china shop *COUGHGUNDAMCOUGH*. If anything, had this show gotten some more polish, preferably with a different creative team and studio, I'd have been more fond of it. The characters are pretty fun to follow, but Zeno did get pretty annoying for me and his motivations, while clearly a homage/parody/reference of many action heroes from the era, still didn't do me any favors to win me over. He does get some funny moments, being the straight man to a lot of the weirdness in this, but I still didn't like him. The villains are pretty forgettable, but I laugh every time the Tengu shows up with his fanboyism for Rubber Suit's CDs. Overall, if you have the tolerance for some really lousy animation, then TMS is a fun, soulful experience that has a lot of the creativity going for it when it comes to a Cygames Original show. It won't blow your mind, but there are plenty of great moments here that will surprise you and make you smile. 6/10

When Americans try to make anime appeal to the Japanese, well...they range from OK to great; just look at Monty Oum's RWBY series to Cyberpunk: Edgerunners (with the help of studio Trigger). At least it isn't all that bad. But flip the scenario, and what about the Japanese trying to make anime appeal to Americans? Well...they range from bad to worse; just look at RWBY: Ice Queendom, and now add it to the category for the worst of the worst: The Marginal Service. What's worse is that the previous year, in the same exact season of Spring 2022, studio 3Hz made one of my favourite AOTS originalshows of yesteryear: Healer Girl, courtesy of FMA: Brotherhood director Yasuhiro Irie. And come this year in the exact same timeframe, comes The Marginal Service, which is yet another studio 3Hz original show, brought to us by the capable scriptwriter and series composer Kenta Ihara, as well as director Masayuki Sakoi, I can't figure out the hell of my life if this show was meant to be a troll of sorts to the studio's record. I'm sure that your first impression of this show is: Why am I seeing half-naked guys in all various shapes and sizes, 6-packs and below? The answer is simple: like Totally Spies (but the men's version), The Marginal Service is a reference guide to all things American-influenced, from the Men in Black-like setting to adult-like movie references like Die Hard, if you can spot it hard enough. But are these Easter eggs enough to overshadow the entire story and plot of the main show? Similar to Men in Black, Brian Nightraider is the sole new addition to The Marginal Service, a secret underground branch based on the fictional UN that handles the alien race, otherwise known as Borderlanders. And like Will Smith's Agent J, Brian was once on the police force as a detective with an impeccable record, though his attitude grated on his superiors enough to fire him, only to be recruited to the seemingly unkempt group where only the weird people are housed there for some reason: - Zeno Stokes, like Tommy Lee Jones' Agent K, is a stoic know-it-all in regard to The Marginal Service, as well as the "by the book" laws and regulations governing Borderlanders and the UN, and always carries a stern-looking demeanour everywhere he goes, which is a stark contrast to Brian's freestyle attitude, which the latter is unfortunately paired with. - The pair of Bolts Dexter and Robin Timbert, clearly yet again referencing Jean Claude van Damme and Tom Cruise (though both Bolts and Robin are nowhere near as outstanding as their real-life counterparts), the obsessive protein and bodybuilding former American mercenary, along with the former MI6 spy, are the ludicrous duo, just bickering and mentioning the same lines over and over again (e.g. Bolts with the protein). - Lyra Candeyhart and the Service's unofficial mascot, Peck Desmont. The only able female of the group and a tech wizard, along with the infatuated talking squirrel that knows all shit to be unafraid and frank. - Cyrus N. Kuga, who is the somewhat quiet field medic of the group but knows how to act cool. Together, like said movie, the Marginal Service must thwart any evildoers who are attempting to derail the course of humanity, like in the case of the alien race through Borderlanders: the constant nitpick that is Rubber Suit, who has a Michael Jackson-like popularity as a star but also engages in the illegal trade, which makes him the star of the Service's hijinks, both in good and bad ways. About the only thing that's subpar to decent is Studio 3Hz's production, which feels fine to me. There's nothing that'll blow you away, but it can feel forgettable at times. Not making anything better is the music, which is the same terribad level of forgettable as well. Though Mamoru Miyano's OP "Quiet explosion" is a rather epic song in its own right. If you have the balls for some 6-peck or naked men, this show is for you. Otherwise, pass on, you're not missing much.