Copyright © 1994 Asamiya Kia / Kodansha / King Records / MOVIC

In Medias Res (literally, "in the middle of things") is a powerful story telling device. It means starting a narrative in the middle of the story, at a crucial point in the action. Employed properly, it grabs the audience's attention immediately by propelling them straight to the heart of the drama.
What it doesn't mean is continuing a story from the middle, with little background information so you can confuse your audience. Which is what COMPILER has done. Nor does it mean reversing the episode order on the tape, so your viewer gets to see episode two before episode one. Which is what A.D. Vision did when they bring COMPILER over.
First appearing as a manga, COMPILER is a story about the Igarashi brothers Nachi and Toshi, and two beauties from another dimension, Compiler and Assembler. Originally sent to conquer Earth through a game of destruction and creation, Compiler and Assembler ended up deciding that living in our world is more fun than conquering it. They moved in with Nachi and Toshi. A growing relationship began to develop between Nachi and Compiler, and Toshi and Assembler, though none of them can bring themselves to admit it outright.
Meanwhile, the people who sent Compiler and Assembler to conquer Earth were outraged by their apparent betrayal. They sent two assassins, Bios and Directory, to deal with the renegades and proceed with the invasion plan. And so, the misadventures begin...
If only viewers were told this before watching the video. Instead, the viewer gets only a thirty-second monologue from a nameless character, delivered at a speed sure to make any radio announcer proud. Instead of providing background information, it makes me wonder if I'm watching the right episode. Before I can figure out why, the story proceeds to bombard me with jokes that are not funny because I don't know what's going on! Episode "Alternating Currents" begins with Assembler yelling at Toshi. Apparently she's throwing a tantrum because Toshi won't eat the breakfast she made. In between serious over-acting by the voice actress to the point of clipping the equalizer on my VCR, I heard pieces of accusations about Toshi seeing Assembler in the nude in some previous incident, and being a two-timer with his girlfriend Megumi. Wow, what happened in that incident? Who's this Megumi? I never found out. Then again, maybe it doesn't matter because the subjects are never brought up again! Maybe COMPILER is some "RAMdom" comedy where I'm supposed to let one joke overwrite another, never dwelling on any.
Before I knew it, the group is on a vacation in Osaka, and the two assassins Bios and Directory show up to kill them all. If only things can be so simple. Bios and Directory are now sporting feminine figures, a punishment for their previous 36 failures. Disguising themselves as some bad stand-up comedians (with a stage name Upload and Download, go figure), they spring an ambush for Compiler and Assembler.
And they ambushed the audience with bad jokes. Really bad jokes. Then the over-acting gets out of hand, as everybody is screaming at the top of their lungs. In voice acting there is being excited and emotional, there is yelling, shouting, or screaming. Then there is just being loud. A wall of noise assaulted my ears as all dialog ceased to be legible. It's like watching the JERRY SPRINGER SHOW complete with cheap catfights. But wait, there is more. The final showdown between Compiler and the two assassins is a baseball joke so obscure, that it required four screens of text to explain the humor afterwards. Certainly, this is a fitting insult to the injury.
I was glad the episode was over. I was glad the wall of noise went away and a decent ending song rolled. I was not glad to see there is an episode two. What passes for the first episode in A.D. Vision's release is actually the second episode in the Japanese version. But I can understand why A.D. Vision made the switch. "Changing Polarity" is so boring, so lackluster, that nobody would sit though the tape if they present it up front. It deals with Compiler getting jealous and angry with Nachi, because he keeps getting drunk every night and goes about womanizing, only to forget about his date the next morning. She eventually storms out in a huff, and Nachi chases after her and apologizes. He promises that from now on, he will tell his one night stands that he does not mean it when he tries to seduce them with his sweet talks. Compiler storms off in a bigger huff while Nachi chases after her. End of story.
That's supposed to be funny? Well, if you have read the manga, and know Nachi for the chronic womanizer he is, you might laugh at the whole situation. But I can't help but feel Nachi is a class A jerk at the end. I kept looking for some other gags aside from Nachi's womanizing ways to lighten up the mood. There is none. Small wonder A.D. Vision decided to tuck this episode to the back of the tape. Of course, the question that begs asking is, if the show is so bad that you have to switch the episode order fearing the loss of your viewers, why was it licensed in the first place?
Obviously, COMPILER caters to that small niche of Asamiya Kia fans that have read the manga. But since it is not widely available in the USA, this niche is going to be pretty small. Perhaps starting at the beginning would have resulted in a better—or at least more accessible—story. I can't help but hear Scott Frazier's voice echoing in my mind: What were you thinking?

English Version Produced by A.D.V.Films Inc. VHS, 60 mins
dubbed: VHSCP/001D $19.98
subtitled: VHSCP/001S $29.95
Available now in the USA
Contains nudity. Parental guidance is suggested.
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