Share

1988 was a great year to be a junior in high school because I had plenty of time to watch anime. I would get together with a friend to go to the Japanese market called Kotobuki near Neptune and Dale Mabry across from the Publix and next to Wright’s Gourmet. I had a great advantage over other anime fans because a good friend of mine had grown up in Japan and copied anime straight from live TV. There was no waiting around for a localized version from an American distributor like U.S. Manga Corps. So I saw Dominion: Tank Police OVAs in their original Japanese form complete with commercials left in. Sometimes the tapes would be edited and often times not. I loved the Japanese commercials almost as much as the anime. The 80’s McDonald’s commercials were my favorites because of the Japanese Ronald, uber hyper Japanese children, and amazing toys that blew away anything ever to come out of a US Happy meal.

I couldn’t really follow the story but the Sci Fi animation was excellent. Dominion: Tank Police is set in a gritty futuristic Japan where green polluted water empties into the underground sewers. There is so much pollution you can see it in the air as in appears grey against the night sky. Humans must wear gas masks just to go outside.

I have always been a fan of vehicles and mechs, more so than the main characters in some cases, and the tanks are gorgeous. Huge hunks of ingeniously designed metal tanks with large torrents patrol the city streets because crime has gotten out of hand and the police need something to deal with it all.

That is where the Tank Police squadron comes in. You have Charles Brenton the big beefy muscular leader who is busting with machismo. From his take no shit attitude to his playfully allowing his squad to torture criminals to get leads, he is a man’s man who commands and leads the charge, holding his flag, as he goes after the bad guys. In fact, Brenton’s entire squad is all male until newcomer, Leona Ozaki, arrives.

Screaming mad Charles Brenton

Leona Ozaki

Leona walks inside her new department to see other members of Tank Police trying to get answers from a suspect by sticking a grenade into his mouth that is tied by a string to a bucket of water, if the water should leak out, the string will pull the pin. The members take turns playing golf with a rifle and a grenade to see who will be the one to knock the bucket over. At first Leona is alarmed that this is going on and complains that it is definitely against police procedure. Then Brenton barks out that the department has sent him a girl. Finally something bad is going down and the Tank Police must go into battle. Leona and her partner, Al Cu Ad Solte, a young computer hacker, drive their massive tank through the streets, tearing up the road as they go. Brenton is inside the tank with them and he tells Leona that everyone loves their tank as if it were a child.

Enter the criminals. Buaku is a short and fat thug who hides his massive gun inside a bandage around his arm.

The Puma Sisters with Buaku.

But the real lovely vixens are the Puma sisters.

Puma Sisters

They are introduced so well in Episode 1 as Tank Police has Buaku surrounded and it looks hopeless. Two sexy girls wearing skimpy bikinis appear and put their backs against each other.



Then they slowly strip off underwear and bras, and it is now playtime. Just as the men in Tank Police are ogling their sexy bodies the girls leap into the air with guns blasting. These cute sisters are dangerous androids who are hell bent on defeating Tank Police.



During Episode 1, Leona wrecks Brenton’s favorite tank and that sets him into an insane rage. He immediately tries to transfers her to another department. However, Leona slowly wins him over when she gets in his face and yells back during a heated argument as Brenton cries over the demise of his tank. She is quick to counter that the tank was too big and hard to handle. She has an idea up her sleeve that proves to be a better alternative.

Leona is really just trying to get along and find acceptance. She is fiercely competitive and quite naturally hates to lose. She is the type of girl who has lots of guys friends and can joke around and turn deadly serious should the need arise.

She gets together for her relaxed partner, Al and together they take parts of the beloved wreck tank and create a smaller tank that she names Bonaparte.

Leona and Bonaparte

It has a smaller torrent and is easily for her to maneuver. After she takes it out for the first time she babies it and erupts into a rage with she notices a small scratch that is hard to see. When the other larger tanks are stopped by obstacles, Leona comes to the rescue and is able to succeed due to her smaller tank that increases mobility and still has a powerful canon with enough power to send Buaku and his gang of sexy catgirls running. Plus Leona doesn’t fall for those girls and their sexy antics the way her male counterparts do.

Dominion: Tank Police is a 4 Act OVA (Original Video Animation) that was released in Japan back in 1988. It was distributed by U.S. Manga Corps on videotape soon after. The OVAs were followed by a sequel called New Dominion Tank Police in 1993, consisting of 6 episodes. That was followed by a third OVA called Tank S.W.A.T 01 in 2006.
Dominion: Tank Police is such a fun and entertaining show to watch. It has something for most every kind of anime fan out there. I love the Sci Fi cyperpunk look of the show plus I love the resourceful, Leona Ozaki, who succeeds despite all the obstacles she is forced to encounter.

Do yourself a favor and take time to watch this amusing series that is currently available for streaming on Youtube.

---

"The Asian Aperture" is ©2012 by Jason Fetters. All contents of Crazed Fanboy are ©2012 by Nolan B. Canova and Terence Nuzum.

Share This Article on Facebook!     Email