ADV releases the most bizarre, not to mention funny, show to come down the pike since Excel Saga with this new DVD set of The Super Milk Chan Show.  This show is the South Park of the anime world; it's very funny with a lot of swearing and odd situations, and is sure to attain cult classic status.

This DVD set is a little different than most.  There are two DVDs, one that contains the new English versions that have been heavily altered to make the show more accessible for American audiences, and a second disc that has the original Japanese shows, in a standard translation.  There are three episodes of the recent Super Milk Chan show and four vintage episodes.  The same episodes are on each DVD so you can compare the ADV version with the way it was meant to be seen.

This show star Milk Chan, a 5 year old superhero without any superpowers. She lives alone with her robot nanny that looks like a giant milk bottle and spends her time dodging her landlord since she's six months behind on the rent.  Every episode the President calls her on the hot line, and there is some trouble at hand.  Don't worry about her lack of abilities though, she doesn't really accomplish anything, just complains and swears a lot.

The American version is outrageously funny!  The humor in this show is definitely off beat and strange, just about as strange as a powerless 5 year old superhero who lives alone.  In one show she convinces her landlord to leave by imitating Michael Jackson.  "Michael" threatens to slaughter a bunch of cows and place a blood curse on the landlord if he doesn't leave.  "There's a slot on my shit-list between Spielberg and Geffen." Milk/Michael Jackson yells at the poor man.   In the same episode the president discusses his sexual exploits with the tot and relates how Condoleeza Rice said that she wanted more of his 'executive branch.'  The humor is definitely off kilter.  One problem Milk faces is tracking down a counterfeiter who has replaced the picture of Mary-Kate Olsen on the new currency with that of Ashley Olsen.  As the president states, there's no way that "Joe McBus-pass" will notice that difference.  It's up to Super-Milk Chan to find the creator of the bogus bills before the economy is ruined.

My favorite episode by far was "How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Drop the Bomb." in which the president accidently launches a nuclear missile aimed at his own country.  He calls up Milk Chan to have her stop it, but gets side tracked telling her stories and then forgets why he called.

The 'vintage' Milk Chan episodes weren't as funny, but they were still decidedly odd and I enjoyed them quite a bit.  The one aspect of the show that I really liked, that I thought I'd hate, is the live action sequences.  At the beginning, end, and in the middle of every show, the voice actors who are working on the show and other cast members act out 'behind the scenes' segments that are actually very entertaining.  The cast bicker and fight, they start wagering whether the new guy is living an alternative lifestyle, and they even poke gentle fun at anime fans.  The quality of the acting varies, but it is generally very good.  The voice director stole the scenes she was in, being cold and cruel with no redeeming qualities.  I found myself laughing every time she was on the screen.

This would be a great show to watch with a group of anime fans who don't take themselves too seriously.  I laughed more at this DVD than any anime show I can recall.  The jokes are thick, and those with a sharp sense of the bizarre are going to love this.

The Japanese version on the other hand is not nearly as funny.  There are just too many cultural references that fly by me.  I'm fairly well versed in anime and know something about Japanese culture, but these references were very obscure.  The tone of the Japanese show was much more quiet too.  It wasn't as dynamic and loud as the ADV Americanized version, and that seemed to sap a lot of the humor out of it for me.  I guess that's just another cultural difference.
 
This DVD is rated as 17+, and there are a lot of swearing and sexual suggestive phrases.  (Some of which I can't even list here!)  I'd definitely recommend that parents preview the new version before letting their children watch this. It is definitely aimed at adult viewers, no matter how cute the character on the cover is.

Audio:

The second disc, the one that has the original shows, are presented in both English and the original Japanese with English subtitles.  The Americanized version has only an English soundtrack without any subtitles.  All soundtracks were in stereo.  The audio sounded clear and clean on all tracks, without any distortion or other
defects.

Video:

The full frame video was very good.  The new episodes were very bright and colorful with sharp lines.  The vintage shows were a little faded, with more sedate colors, but they still looked fine.  There weren't any digital defects worth noting.  This was a very nice looking DVD.

Extras:

The first DVD has a commentary track which covers the whole disc.  Most of the cast appears at one time or another on the track with various members entering and exiting as the show progresses.  This is very good commentary track.  If you've read many of my anime reviews, you'll know that I don't really care for the 'party' atmosphere that many anime commentary tracks have.  This track is much more sedate, where the people talking actually discuss the show instead of just laughing at each other's jokes.   They talk about how they chose the actors, and who plays what roles.  They discuss the translation; what was changed and what was in the original, and why they made so many alterations.  They also point out some inside jokes.  This was a good track.

There is a character Q&A text piece where Milk Chan answers some questions like "What turns you on?"  It is very brief but funny.

There are also previews for Nurse Witch Komugi, Magical Play, Happy Lesson, Excel Saga Collection, Azumanga Daioh, and Supergals.

The second DVD has the original Japanese opening and closing, with the text, but without the audio track.

Final Thoughts:

I really enjoyed the English version of this show.  ADV did a splendid job altering this show for American audiences.  It was a gutsy move on their part, and it paid off.  The show reminds me of South Park in a lot of ways, very funny and highly unusual.  This would be a great DVD to introduce anime to people who are fans of that show.  (Just be sure you screen the American version for them.)  Highly Recommended.