Copyright © 1997 Studio OX / MOVIC / BMG JAPAN INC.

WILD CARDZ is a guilty pleasure anime, the kind that's almost embarassing to explain to friends who don't follow anime. "Four young women with big eyes and skimpy outfits use vaguely defined superpowers to save a kingdom from evil giant robots? (awkward pause) How old are you again?"
But if you can get past the mild shame factor, WILD CARDZ is pretty fun to watch. The animation is fast and furious while the action is frenetic and fantastic. The women are cute and the fan service is fairly constant (PG-13 rated, of course, but omnipresent nevertheless.) The plot... well, let's just admit right from the start you won't watch this for drama or character development.
Our heroines are the Crown Knights of the Card Kingdom. Jo Diamonds can run very fast, an ability that apparently enables her to kick boulders, fly, or turn into an energy torpedo. Coco Hearts is the youngest of the group who commands a fleet of airships and a deck of explosive "psycho-magic" cards. Casa Clubs is a martial arts expert who has extrasensory powers, pink hair, and the largest set of, um, er, never mind... Sunday Spades is their fearless leader and her superpower not only prevents huge objects from crushing cities, it also removes all her clothes.
The plot of these two episodes is little more than the girls trying to prevent two enormous mechanical chess pieces from trashing the Card Kingdom. A few other silly characters make their appearance: a mean woman riding a wolf, a guy in a mask who makes Jo blush, and a blundering black market dealer who evokes some grating Chinese stereotypes. The show doesn't give you much back story to this supporting cast though, so their interjections are interesting only as foils to the girls' antics.
The only times WILD CARDZ falls flat is when it takes itself too seriously. So long as they are rushing about, blowing things up, or screaming their heads off, the Crown Knights are fun to watch. However, when they launch into their "We will fight to the end!" credo, they come across as just plain goofy. These heavy-handed attempts at dramatic tension are thankfully brief, allowing the show to move along at a very nice clip when the nifty action, not strained close-ups, dominate the screen.
Be forewarned that the dub by U.S. Manga Corps can be occasionally irritating. It is not until halfway through the first episode that the voice actresses really begin differentiating their characters from each other. Furthermore, the broken English blather of the Chinese merchant is either practically unintelligible or painfully hackneyed.
Ultimately, though, WILD CARDZ is eye-candy—pure and simple. It won't challenge your worldview or stretch your imagination, it will simply please the senses. Like a quick, harmless game of penny ante poker, the stakes in WILD CARDZ are pretty low but the rewards are cheap and easy.

Released in North America by U.S. Manga Corps
English Subtitled: USM 1776
VHS, 50 minutes
Available now in the USA
Where to buy