Bubblegum Crisis Season 1

Right now you can watch Bubblegum Crisis Season 1 on and — and it goes further with its ideas than most genre entertainment bothers to. The 1-season run is exactly the right length for what it is doing. Its 7/10 TMDB score, built from 55 ratings, reflects a title that consistently delivers. Kinuko Oomori anchors it with a performance that grounds the bigger ideas in something human. There is no real reason to keep putting it off.

Whatever else is competing for your attention this week, Bubblegum Crisis Season 1 is worth clearing space for. Bubblegum Crisis Season 1 uses its genre premise as cover for asking bigger questions. MegaTokyo 2033: Tokyo was left flattened as a result from a great earthquake. A new city, MegaTokyo, was then recreated due in no small part from the aid of a multi-million dollar company, Genom Corp. Genom created and mass-produced biomechanical creatures called Boomers to aid in the restoration of MegaTokyo. Kinuko Oomori and Akiko Hiramatsu lead a cast that brings real weight to the material. It was aired in 1987. What separates Bubblegum Crisis Season 1 from lesser genre entertainment is a willingness to let the concept cost the characters something. It knows exactly what it is, and does not try to be anything else.

Viewers burned by ambitious sci-fi that could not sustain its premise should give Bubblegum Crisis Season 1 a chance. It does not lean on comparisons to make its case. The complete run is available and best experienced without too much prior knowledge of where it goes. Watch for Kinuko Oomori in particular — the performance elevates the material. Satisfying on multiple levels.

🎬 Bubblegum Crisis Season 1 — Episode Guide

Tinsel City

1987-02-25

And so it begins, with the appearance of the Boomers, and the plan by GENOM to try and control the world. But can the Knight Sabers stop them from kidnapping a computer technician, and what's Mason, head guy at GENOM, planning? This is the beginning of a three-episode arc, ending with episode 3.

Born to Kill

1987-09-05

Part 2: Cynthia, the newly formed Boomer, has recently been destroyed, but now an even bigger threat awaits the Sabers. When GENOM reveals their new threat, a super strong Boomer created from the remains of Cynthia. The Sabers may have destroyed it, but is that all that awaits them?

Blow Up

1987-12-05

Part 3: GENOM's Boomers are terrorizing MegaTokyo and the AD Police is helpless, or rather useless, to stop them. But GENOM may have gone too far this time, by terrorizing Sho, the boy Priss looks after. Can Priss finally stop Mason while keeping her cool, and her moral code as a Knight Saber, with...

Revenge Road

1988-07-24

A year later and there's not been much action from GENOM for the Knight Sabers. But now there's a strange new car called the Griffon that's terrorizing bike gangs in the city. When the Knight Sabers arrive at the scene, they realize the Griffon's not all at fault, and it's going to take a lot of fir...

Moonlight Rambler

1988-12-25

There's a lot of trouble brewing over MegaTokyo, as the space island Genaro is recoiling over the loss of their shuttle and weapons, and the exposure of their ties with GENOM. Meanwhile, a "vampire" has recently been sucking people's blood everywhere, and Priss's mysterious new friend Sylvie has som...

Red Eyes

1989-08-30

The 33-S Boomers are back to seek revenge on the Knight Sabers. How do they do it? By framing the Knight Sabers, that's how!

Double Vision

1990-03-14

GENOM's back with a new creation, a new breed of Boomer that will prove to be a challenge for the Knight Sabers. Also, an American Rock star known simply as "Vision" has come to MegaTokyo to spread the word of rock to its citizens... that is, until she gets mixed up with the likes of GENOM.

Scoop Chase

1991-01-30

The Knight Sabers seem to have all under control, until "ace reporter" Lisa Vanette threatens to reveal the true identities of the girls. Plus, GENOM's got some brand new, specially created Boomers, with weapons aimed directly at the Sabers.