California Crisis - 1986

California Crisis is a 45 minute OVA by the largely unkwown Studio Unicorn. A small, independent company that set out to do a few ambitious projects but failed to cause more than a blip on the radar before going the way of the dodo. California Crisis is very unique for many reasons. As the name suggests it's set in Southern California, spread over a range of locations from San Diego, Orange County to Los Angeles. The time flashes on the screen when a key scene or location changes. You can tell the creators were striving to push the boundaries of style with this one, seen particurly clearly by the way the character designs and high contrast animation style are constructed. Only Megazone 23 Part II has used such a similiar technique and that came out in the same year, which shows what little effect it had on the industry.

The story is about a guy named Noera who loves driving his red convertible. One day he meets a girl called Marsha after rescueing her from some trouble. She has a mysterious object that the government's Men in Black are chasing her for. Noera agrees to protect her and the wild adventure begins.

More extensive review & screenshots coming soon - English Subtitled Fansub now available below:

Download Here - California Crisis

Overall Grade/Rating: A+
Commercial Availability: VHS (Japan), LD (Japan)