Desert Punk Volume 6

As the fifth volume of this series left a great impression on me, I was excited to watch the last episodes of Desert Punk and to see how everything unfolds leading up to the finale. In the end it left me with a feeling of satisfaction, although not without some complaints.

After the tragic event of Desert Punk’s presumed death, we start one year in the future with his apprentice Taiko standing over his grave. Although she is still saddened over the loss of her master, most folks are glad to be rid of him (as the graffiti on the grave and the conversations show.) Still, Taiko has become a fully fledged Handyman and now takes on jobs with her own apprentice Mitz. Mitz is a weak and shy kid who always seems to make mistakes – but when his master is in trouble, he turns into a huge muscular maniac but loses all self-conciousness (his Hulkosis syndrome is a homage to Marvel’s Hulk character.)

While completing jobs throughout these episodes, Taiko is drawn back into the anti-government Underground Mercenaries organization. When things started to unravel I couldn’t tell which side I was supposed to be on – but by the end, it all made sense. Although it was a surprise at first, the more I thought about it, I should have known that it would end up the way it did.

Which brings up this volume’s weakness. Although Taiko is a very likeable character, it feels as if she’s been rushed into the main character role. You’re not getting memorable moments like Kanta’s and Taiko’s teamwork, and Mitz, her useless apprentice, comes across as a forgettable character most of the time.

There are still some great action set-pieces: an attack from a huge floating tank, smart tactics used to destroy stealth robots, and a fair share of firearm attacks, all thrown in with the typical humour that Desert Punk is known for.

I think that the best moment by far is the appearance of the new Kawazu gang leader. Like Mitz, he has the same Hulkosis syndrome; as you can see in the first screen cap, he can hold four RPG Rocket Launchers at once (I’ll repeat that: “Four RPG Rocket Launchers at once!”) I mean you can’t get more manly than that; not only was I holding my sides in laughter, I could not handle the sheer awesomeness of the scene.

The extras include a last episode Directors’ Commentary held by both ADR directors Zachary Bolton, and Jeremy Inman (who also voices Fuyo Kawaguchi in the English dub.) Don’t expect a serious in-depth chat on how the episode was made; it’s an energetic and comical offering and if either one is reading this review, yes, it was one bad-ass commentary. The usual Textless Openings and Closings and some trailers for Disgaea and Gravitation complete the list.

In Summary

In short, the Desert Punk series ends with a good conclusion but not a brilliant one; it’s still worth watching if you want to see how it ends. So to end this review, I will leave you with the closing monologue of the English dub:

“Its a vicious cycle but oh well, that’s the way it goes, I guess, and these people sure are changing, dumb-asses!”