Cute but too short This one is a long ways from the TV and OVA specials. At 20 episodes, this little series shows more fanservice than anything else but it makes up for that with comedy. This little gem will keep you laughing to the end. During the TV series, which is 52 episodes long it makes you laugh and cry at times. This series will have you laughing hard and getting an eyeful of pure Your Under Arrest! comedy. Dont think just because its funny doesnt mean its just a comedy, it is more than that. The developing relationship between Ken Nakajima and Miyuki Kobayakawa, which is really slow since both are afraid to admit their feelings. Yet Natsumi Tsujimoto and Shouji Toukairin's relationship shoots off quicker than Miyuki and Ken's romance. One of the most tender scenes of the whole series was Natsumi kissing Shouji Toukairin. If you loved the TV and OVA then you will love this little gem.
Mini is Better than Movie, but Still Lacking Well, the Mini-Specials are far better than the movie with its dark tone, but there's still something missing in the series. It's like the magic the OAV's had has never quite been recaptured in the TV series, movie, or mini-specials. To be sure, You're Under Arrest works much better in small doses. However, towards the end, the Mini-Specials grow redundant (how many times can they crack jokes about people seeing the cross dressing officer's "thingie"?) and the plots never vary much from their formulas of panty thieves and/or teaching egotistical citizens a lesson (although the designers come up with good ideas to change the settings and scenarios slightly). Although it has good animation and voice acting, I think I had already seen everything that Miyuki and Natsumi would see in their daily lives before I watched this.
YUA 5-minute Shorts This DVD has the 5-minute shorts (20 episodes) that comprise the "You're Under Arrest Specials" series. The final episode in this series was a full-length episode which is included in the AnimEigo collection (last DVD of box-set four). For those of you who enjoyed the AnimEigo English dub of the series, you are in luck. ADV used the same company, so the dub cast is the same.
As to the shorts, there's really not a lot one can do with five minutes. So instead, we get a lot of stuff with Miyuki and Natsumi solving petty crimes, primarily involving panty thieves, peekers, and the like. This is due to the increased fanservice in the series. If you want to see Miyuki, Natsumi, or the others in states of undress, well here's your chance. Personally I don't like fanservice so I whack the series for that. But in addition, the series weakens Miyuki by making her a screamer. Yeah, she's afraid of ghost stories, but in "You're Under Arrest" (AnimEigo) and "You're Under Arrest 2" (unlicensed a/o this review), she doesn't scream like this. Miyuki also becomes very sadistic in this series. She electrocutes people on three occassions.
On the plus side, there are laughs to be had in this DVD. Even though it was the sadistic Miyuki at work, the idea of her booby-trapping her purse was pretty funny. But the laughs aside, this series doesn't really have any part in the main "You're Under Arrest" series (the initial OAV, first TV series, movie, and 2nd TV series).
Bottom line: worth a few laughs. People who want to own every YUA DVD will want it in their collection. Kudos to ADV for looking out for dub fans and keeping the same dub cast as AnimEigo used.
Too much fanservice in too little time compared to TV eps The Mini-Specials are, sadly, the least enjoyable part of the You're Under Arrest franchise. While they are not bad, they suffer from a lack of creative energy and from their structure: these are truly "mini" episodes, lasting only a few minutes. Briefly, You're Under Arrest focuses on two unorthodox female police officers in Tokyo, with a large and likeable cast of weirdos (police and civilian alike) around them. If you haven't already gotten into the show, you don't want to start here--these mini-specials would be even less enjoyable not knowing who the characters are.
For those who do know You're Under Arrest, the problems are simple. First, much of YUA's charm comes from the interaction between the characters. That's severely hampered by the brevity of these mini-specials--the characters don't have much time to do anything other than charge through the miniscule plot that covers the few minutes allotted. Second, the episodes don't have much life to them. The fanservice and perverted elements are made much stronger here versus the show--there are multiple underwear thieves, peeping tom cameramen, and flashers on this one disc. There just isn't much else here, and because it's so single-mindedly fanservice oriented, it just lacks the charm of the TV episodes.
In sum, then, if you're a completist and have the rest of YUA, you might want to get this, particularly if you liked the more limited fanservice elements of the TV episodes. If you haven't checked out YUA, you should, but not via these mini-specials. Look at the TV series (or the original comic).
Madness reigns in Bokuto! -by Tajeri Lynn "You're Under Arrest" is the famous anime series centering on two female traffic cops in Bokuto Station, Tokyo. The heroines, tomboy Natsumi and mechanical wiz Miyuki, constantly find themselves trying to solve bizarre crimes at the same time laying the smackdown on woman-loving perverts all across the city. Here are the main points of the story.
Cast
Natsumi- tomboy policewoman, has no respect for any man except for the Chief. Any man who crosses her will feel her superhuman wrath and Amazonian strength.
Miyuki- not just the tech whiz, but a bit on the cowardly side. She's much gentler than Natsumi and has a liking to Nakajima. The most likable character in the series.
Yoriko- a bespectacled girl with thousands of ideas, give or take a few good ones....
Aoi- I'm not into this character at all. She is supposed to be a he, but the most unfunniest thing about her is that we get little proof, at least in the DVD, that she's a he. Terrible character.
Chief- the authority lead. He often questions Natsumi and Miyuki's unorthodox tactics, with hilarious results.
Nakajima- also known as Kenny, he's the mild-mannered traffic officer who feels easily intimidated around the girls, but they all love him.
The episodes can be a mixed bag. They all have some hilarious jokes and play on the sexist theme very nicely, but one must endure through stiffly done animation (somebody say Pokemon?) and the time length for each episode (only 7.5 minutes). There's also the sad lack of a Japanese language track without subtitles, though the dubbed version isn't that bad at all. Still, this is 150 minutes worth of 20 episodes, so you get alot out of the characters, most of whom are great to watch. Voice acting helps solidly too, making Natsumi and Miyuki tough or sweet when the situation calls for it.
Highlight episodes include.....
-The whole police station losing their wallets, leading to a Rashomon-like whodunit.
-Natsumi and Miyuki trying to increase the popularity of the unpopular station cafeteria
-Natsumi and Miyuki getting involved with a suicidal man
-Natsumi and Miyuki chasing a Porcsche driver with a tricked out Mazda (Now that's too fast, too furious!)
-Natsumi and Miyuki using Nakajima to catch a peeping tom in a fitness building
-Natsumi and Miyuki vs. high-tech underwear thieves
-A robber who steals Miyuki's purse, and pays for it in ways you can't imagine!
Despite little extras, this DVD is great to watch and the quality is crystal. You'll want to get arrested by these officers anyday!
Anything Goes Trivia
Last Kiss
Megaton Man
Trevor
