Very rarely does a show reach the levels of insanity that Broccoli's DiGi Charat reached. Those that do often devolve into a despicable mess of repeated gags and hackneyed catch-phrases that are annoying after episode one. However, Broccoli has stepped up to the challenge of besting its own creation with Galaxy Angel: an anime series that gives a whole new name to insanity. With its absurd plot and methodical pace, Galaxy Angel presents a fun new version of the situation comedy.

The Angel Brigade is a special branch of the military of the Transvaal Empire. This division's primary mission is to search for the enigmatic Lost Technology. However, nobody, well... really knows exactly what the Lost Technology is. Therefore, the division is stuck doing pointless busywork instead of pursuing their true mission. Enter Milfuelle Sakuraba: a ditz of a girl with a lucky streak the size of Canada that has recently joined the Angel Brigade. Will the brigade, accompanied by Milfuelle's luck, be able to finally recover the mysterious Lost Technology, or will they be stuck in rent-a-hand status forever?

The spiritual successor to DiGi Charat, Galaxy Angel takes the formula that made its predecessor so endearing and subdues it enough to work a general story around. The end result is an enjoyable helping of random wackiness that will satisfy even the most fickle anime fan. Taking a fifteen minute episode format, the series manages to satisfy the situation presented and deliver a fair amount of random weirdness without extending the show to a length that would make watching intolerable. The first disc does an excellent job of introducing the Angel Brigade's members, right down to their unique quirks. Naturally, a standard introduction would be boring, so the Brigade is thrown into crazy situations from the start, which include but are not limited to finding a royal cat and disarming a smartass talking missile. The content varies enough that viewers will find themselves glued to their seats in eager anticipation of what will happen next.

There shall be NO references to sexual organs in this review.	Forte decides that now is a bad time to do the safety dance.

Being a 2001 series, Galaxy Angel suffers very little in its transition to DVD. The series' bright colors show up with no signs of artifacting or cross-coloration. Aliasing and other visual defects are almost nonexistent. On the qualitative scale, the show is gorgeous, with clean animation that ranges from CG to the 2-dimensional animation. The CG is well done, but it is fairly uncommon and usually reserved for exterior space scenes. The 2D animation is smooth, with few dropped frames or jerks in character motion.

To help its already strong presentation, Galaxy Angel is gifted with an excellent audio mix. Using the standard stereo presentation, the disc shows no signs of dropouts or distortion on either track. The show itself reinforces its cheerful mood with an arsenal of bouncy, upbeat tunes to complement the action onscreen. At the same time, the series has its selection of slower, more serious tracks to complement the rare serious moment that pops up. However, while both the English and Japanese tracks are well-acted, the two are far from comparison. The original Japanese has a chemistry between characters that the English version seems to lack. Furthermore, Milfuelle's English voice seems to be just missing the part of her characters. She seems to be too cheerful, but not ditzy enough to propel her role.

Like most of Bandai's Platinum Release line, Galaxy Angel saw multiple releases: the limited edition with a box and scads of goodies, as well as the disc-only release. The disc-only version, while nowhere near as "endowed" as the limited edition, is still a satisfying product on the whole. The front image of the keepcase features a group shot of the Angel Brigade standing before a yellow background that features Normad: the Angel Brigade's unofficial source of intelligence. The back of the cover has a computer-styled interface that contains a brief description of the disc's contents, a short summary, and a selection of screens from the show. The insert sees a return of the cover art, as well as a cast list and a miniature profile for Milfeulle. The menus are straightforward and accompanied by snippets of animation and a looping music track. The extras, while modest, are both enjoyable and informative. Aside from the standard textless opening, the disc sports a promo clip and seven of the series' "Now I Get It!" lectures. The promo clip, which is taken from the 2000 Tokyo Game Show, portrays the series in a completely different light; the series displayed is completely different from the final product."Now I Get It!" is a series of lectures that aired right before Galaxy Angel. Hosted by Ryoko Shintani (complete in Milfeulle costume), the lectures reveal bits of the backstory of the main series.

A hilarious romp from start to finish, the first disc of Galaxy Angel leaves this reviewer hopeful for the rest of the series. If the show can keep up with the pace it has set, then Broccoli may have a modern classic on its hands.

Distributor: Bandai Entertainment
Creator: Broccoli / Madhouse
Released: 2001

Video Quality: B+
Audio Quality: A-
Presentation: A-
Content: A
Overall: A-