Blade: For once, I won't beat around the bush with sarcasm, and simply come out and say that this is one of my favourite new anime and a strong contender for one of my favourite animes, period.

Epsilon: Strange Dawn is one of the most intelligent anime I've seen in years.

Blade: Yes, a very intelligent anime...pity the same cannot be said for the people who decided to market it to children.

Epsilon: Because god knows every child longs to get their daily dose of philosophical debate on the nature of war.

Blade: And rape scenes. Can't forget the rape scenes.

Epsilon: No matter how much I want to erase them from my mind. I mean, the Lego Bible is sacriligious enough without having to deal with the thought of Teletubbies molesting each other.

Blade: And obsessing about each other's feet.

Epsilon: And every kid's show needs a giant tentacle monster!

Blade: Indeed. Hmm, so much for avoiding sarcasm.

Epsilon: Hmm, we should fill this out a bit more before we get to the summarised review.

Blade: Right. Well, Strange Dawn, for those of you who haven't heard of it (ie, most of you) is an anime put out by Urban Vision...

Epsilon: Or half put out, anyway.

Blade: Right, and I wish they'd get on with it, but anyway...an anime that appears at first to be a magical kid's show about two schoolgirls transported to another world full of very cute midget people. The schoolgirls are supposedly destined to save the world from war.

Epsilon: But are completely incapable of doing so, and in fact one doesn't even want to do so, as we find out numerous times.

Blade: Which is the point, really: Strange Dawn is not by any means a typical show of the "humans transported to other worlds" genre. In fact, it could almost be considered an antidote to them.

Epsilon: Starting with the fact it skips the worthless prologue showing the characters in the "real world".

Blade: The cute little natives of the world aren't quite so cute once you get to see them a bit better, watch them bloodily kill each other in the war they take extremely seriously, and engage in complex interpersonal relationships and political double-dealing and backstabbing.

Epsilon: Which is both the show's strength and its major flaw, because the contrast could make it hard for some people to take the show or its characters seriously.

Blade: On the other hand, for those who can get past that initial impression, or in fact more to the point, realise that the initial impression is deliberately misleading in order to throw the brutality of the situation in sharper relief, will probably find the show very enjoyable indeed. And despite the parts we've been harping on, it's also quite funny in places. A+.

Epsilon: If you're looking for one of the most intelligent and creative anime ever made, that allows you to examine real-life problems in a fantasy mileu...

Blade: As opposed to "problems" like "Why can't that long-blonde-haired stud look at me instead of that snotty princess?"

Epsilon: Ahem...I don't interrupt your synopsis'...

Blade: Sorry, couldn't help myself. Pray continue.

Epsilon: Definitely worth the pickup, especially as it might encourage Urban Vision to actually put out the rest of the series. A+.

Blade: We don't have any ulterior motive for this review, of course.

Epsilon: Nooooooooooo, not in the slightest.

Blade: Oh, and I also recommend you at least try the dub, because even though Urban Vision can't mix properly, and there is no attempt at lip-synching whatsoever, and some of the lines are translated a little too literally, it's still pretty damn good.

Epsilon: Besides, British accents are cool.

Blade: Indeed, worth +2 cool points.

Epsilon: If you had a sword with a British accent, you would kick so much ass!

Blade: Does that explain Elric?

Epsilon: Yes. Yes it does.