Gunslinger Girl Il Teatrino Complete DVD Review
FUNimation, Marvelous Entertainment Anime Based on Yu Aida's Manga
Sep 28, 2009
Gunslinger Girl, based on the manga by Yu Aida, was an impressive anime, full of well developed characters. Despite its "little girls turned into cybernetic assassins" premise, it rose above what it could have been by emphasizing story and character arc over violence and gunplay, making the quiet sequences the most powerful.
FUNimation has returned to the well with the second series, entitled Il Teatrino. Despite using Marvelous Entertainment Studios to animate the series – and the increased involvement of creator Yu Aida – Il Teatrino is neither as lavishly animated nor as compelling as its predecessor.
Marvelous Entertainment Inc., FUNimation Produce and Distribute Gunslinger Girl: Il Teatrino Anime
The cybernetically enhanced, tween assassins from Section 2 of the Social Welfare Agency are back, defending the Italian government against the terrorist organization known as the Five Republics Faction. This time Section 2 is trying to stop the separatist FRF from destroying a bridge over the Strait of Messina, and protect an important politician from being kidnapped.
This time much of the plot revolves around Triela, the eldest Section 2 girl operative. During a rescue mission, she encounters a deadly FRF assassin, about her age, who calls himself Pinocchio. Her violent, complex relationship with the brainwashed young man forms much of the drama in this series, with the ruthless operative doubting her own abilities after the un-enhanced assassin defeats her in several duels.
It's not immediately obvious, but Marvelous has cut corners with the animation. The characters' movements aren't as natural as in the original series, plus there are frequent pans across static images, using the camera to create movement. The backgrounds also aren't as well-done as in the original. It's a shame that Marvelous wasn't able to hold to the same standards that Madhouse set.
That said, the stories are still as compelling and the characters are as well-rounded as before. Pinocchio makes a fascinating foil for Triela: despite their being on opposite sides of the conflict, there's a sense that they have more in common than they'd like to admit. Certainly, they both become obsessed with each other after taking artifacts that belong to each other (Triela's SIG-Sauer pistol and Pinocchio's pendant) following their first fight.
DVD Extras
Unlike the previous set, FUNimation didn't bring as many extra features to Il Teatrino. There's an interview with the Japanese voice actor for Marco, along with the original TV commercials. Add the inevitable textless songs plus the trailers, and that's all she wrote.
The Final Analysis
Gunslinger Girl: Il Teatrino is still a fine series, and a worthy entry in the "little girls with big guns" genre of anime. However, despite the compelling battle between Triela and Pinocchio, it doesn't match the standard set by its predecessor.
It gets an 8/10.
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