The appeal and reviews of TwinBee Paradise: A nostalgic game revived as an anime

TwinBee PARADISE - TwinBee Paradise - All-round evaluation and recommendation

■ Public Media

OVA

■ Original Media

game

■ Release date

February 25, 1999

■Release and sales

・Distributor: TDK Core, Beam Entertainment

■Frequencies

half an hour

■ Number of Episodes

Episode 3

■Original Story

Konami Corporation

■ Director

Norihiro Takamoto

■ Production

・Produced by Public and Basic Co., Ltd.

■ Story

The year is 2801 in the space calendar. TwinBee is a fighter plane created by Dr. Cinnamon, a scientist who lives on the outskirts of Donburi Island. Its pilot, a boy named Light, takes on various incidents that occur on a cosmic scale. A slapstick story unfolds as he fights alongside another fighter plane, WinBee, and its pilot, Pastel, while discovering an alien baby in the wreckage of a UFO and repeatedly getting caught up in the evil schemes of Dr. Warumon, Dr. Cinnamon's rival.

■Explanation

This OVA is based on Konami's shooting game "TwinBee". It consists of three episodes across volumes 1 to 3. The characters' names were used during the production of the arcade game "Dettana! TwinBee", and were later used in the radio drama that was broadcast in three series starting in 1993.

■Cast

・Light/Kappei Yamaguchi ・Twinbee/Mayumi Tanaka ・Pastel/Hekiru Shiina ・Winbee/Kumiko Nishihara ・Professor Cinnamon/Kazumi Tanaka ・Madoka/Mariko Kouda

■ Main staff

・Executive Producer / Akihiko Nagata・Planning / Hisanori Terasawa・Producers / Koji Ikeda, Kiyoshi Kawanishi, Kimiki Matsuura・Director / Norihiro Takamoto・Screenplay / Yasuki Ide・Character Design / Akihiro Asanuma・Mecha Design / Masahiko Okura・Art Director / Takeshi Waki・Color Design / Naoto Tanaka, Kanako Nishida, Naomi Hayakawa・Director of Photography / Ryutaro Shimakawa・Digital Editing / Seiji Morita・Music / Konami Kukeiha Club・Sound Director / Yoshikazu Iwanami・Sound Producer / Toru Nakano・Production Cooperation / Office Ao・Production / Public & Basic Co., Ltd.・Cooperation / Konami Music Entertainment Co., Ltd.・Production / TDK Core Corporation・OP
・"Twin memories"
Lyrics: WINBEE
・Supplementary lyrics/arrangement/Kenichi Mitsuda・Song/Mariko Kokuda

・ED
・"Let's go with the sun"
・Lyrics/Mariko Kokuda ・Composition, Arrangement/Kaori Okui ・Songs/Mariko Kokufuda

■ Main Characters

Light is the protagonist of this work and a TwinBee pilot. He has a bright personality and is a passionate man, but he has a weakness for cute girls. Although he is physically strong, his immune system is extremely weak.

A girl who pilots the Pastel Winbee. She is the granddaughter of Professor Cinnamon and Light's cousin. She calls Light "Big Brother" and adores him.

Mint Pastel's younger brother. Although he is still a baby, he is a natural born genius and can pilot the fighter plane GoonBee.

・Professor Cinnamon Creator of TwinBee and WinBee.

Madoka: Light's classmate who runs the cafe "Fantasian." A girl with a fancy personality.

■ Main robot items

・TwinBee: A fighter plane created by Professor Cinnamon. Its unique feature is that it can grow huge or shrink.

・The second fighter plane based on WinBee TwinBee.

The third fighter plane based on GuinBee TwinBee. It serves as a guardian for the pilot, Mint.

■Subtitle

・Vol.1/Smile of Venus ・Vol.2/Midsummer Mirage (Just like that)
・Vol.3/Revival of evil!

■ Related works

・Radio drama "TwinBee PARADISE" Series 1 to 3

■ Theme songs and music

・OP
・"Twin memories"
Lyrics: WINBEE
・Supplementary lyrics/arrangement/Kenichi Mitsuda・Song/Mariko Kokuda

・ED
・"Let's go with the sun"
・Lyrics/Mariko Kokuda ・Composition, Arrangement/Kaori Okui ・Songs/Mariko Kokufuda

Detailed review and recommendation of TwinBee PARADISE

"TwinBee PARADISE" is an OVA based on Konami's popular shooting game "TwinBee" and was released in 1999. While based on the worldview of the game, this work develops its own story and characters, providing new appeal to fans. Below, we will provide a detailed evaluation and recommendation of this work.

Story and setting

The story of "TwinBee Paradise" is set on Donburi Island in the year 2801 of the space calendar. TwinBee, a fighter jet developed by scientist Dr. Cinnamon, and its pilot, a boy named Light, face various incidents. While following the basic setting of the game, the story unfolds in a slapstick tale that combines humor and action, such as discovering an alien baby in the wreckage of a UFO.

Particularly memorable are the episodes where the protagonist gets caught up in the evil schemes of Professor Warumon, a rival of Professor Cinnamon. These episodes maintain the tension of the game while also providing the humorous developments that are unique to OVAs. Also, the appearance of new fighter planes such as WinBee and Goombee in addition to TwinBee keeps viewers interested.

character

The characters in this work follow the worldview of the game, but have their own unique charm as OVAs. The main character, Light, has a bright and passionate personality, but also has a weakness for cute girls, making him a character that viewers can easily relate to. In addition, new characters such as Pastel and Mint also add depth to the story.

Pastel, in particular, is the granddaughter of Professor Cinnamon and Light's cousin, and is memorable for calling Light "Big Brother." Her character has a major impact on the progression of the story, and plays an important role in helping viewers empathize with her. Mint's genius talent and Professor Cinnamon's appeal as an inventor also enrich the story.

Visuals and animation

The visuals and animation of "TwinBee Paradise" are of high quality for an OVA production. Character design was done by Akihiro Asanuma and mecha design was done by Masahiko Okura, faithfully recreating the world of the game while bringing out the unique charm of the OVA.

Especially in the battle scenes, the movements of TwinBee and WinBee are smooth and make a visual impact. The color design is also vivid, pleasing to the eyes of the viewer. Under the direction of art director Takeshi Waki, the backgrounds and sets are also made with great attention to detail, enhancing the quality of the entire work.

Music and Sound

The music was produced by Konami Kukeiha Club, who provided a unique soundtrack for the OVA while retaining the atmosphere of the game. The opening theme "Twin Memories" and the ending theme "Taiyo de Ikou" are particularly impressive, with Mariko Koda's singing voice adding to the worldview of the work.

Under the direction of sound director Miwa Iwanami, the cast of voice actors is also impressive, including a talented cast of actors such as Kappei Yamaguchi, Mayumi Tanaka, Hekiru Shiina, Kumiko Nishihara, Kazumi Tanaka, and Mariko Kouda. Their performances bring out the individuality of the characters and add depth to the story.

Ratings and Recommendations

"TwinBee PARADISE" is a work that can be enjoyed not only by game fans but also by anime fans. While based on the worldview of the game, it develops its own story and characters, and is a highly entertaining work that combines humor and action.

In particular, the quality of the visuals, animation, music and sound, which are unique to OVAs, is highly praised. The appeal of the characters and the development of the story are also elements that attract viewers. Although it is a short episode of only three episodes, it is a satisfying work, and I highly recommend watching it at least once.

In addition, this work is related to the radio drama "TwinBee PARADISE", so fans can enjoy the entire series. This work is recommended not only for game fans, but also for those who are interested in anime and OVAs. Please try to experience the world of TwinBee.