Until today I legit thought that my sister and I were the only ones who knew about Hummingbird. It was one of our favorite OVAs when we were pre-teens. My sister still has all of our (hard fought for) Hummingbird merch collection (original Japanese release of all the videos, artbooks, CDs, various goods, magazines which have promo stickers and posters) We never found subs so we translated what we could on our own. It is a fun series and I am happy to see others remember and enjoy it!
Funnily enough while Hummingbird does predate Sakura Wars, the company that made that game, did make something similiar, beforehand: Galaxy Fraulein Yuna which is about idol singer in mecha space battles. It’s an early visual novel and by Red, the same company that would later make Sakura Wars. The game came out 1992 but it also got an anime adaption just one year after Hummingbird in 1994, directed by Shinbo Akiyuki.
I'm surprised that there was no mention of Sakura Wars, which while not the first (Hummingbird pre-dates it by 3 years) would become a spectacularly successful multi-media franchise in Japan. And while it wasn't exactly idols (they're a theatrical troupe in the Taishō era) it did explicitly pull from the still-developing dating sim genre and then mash that up with strategic mech combat. Cute girls, occupying clear anime archetypes, piloting mechs, and falling in love with the protagonist? Oh yeah, that was definitely a part of it. Looking earlier, the girls with guns genre is arguably the bigger influence. Simply scaling things up more and more. Likewise, Patlabor arguably played a role as well, going with a slightly cuter take than the average sexy female mech pilot and a greater connection between the lady and her machine.
Absolute banger episode, I wasn't expecting a crash course in the evolution of popular radio but damned if it doesn't elevate the proceedings. Another classic rescued from obscurity by the best OVA channel on RUclips.
Idol Defense Force Hummingbird is one of my favorite OVA series, i am so happy i came across this video! loved all the history througho, absolutely fascinating and informative! gooooosh the mention of the SHMUP-like instrumental soundtrack makes me desperately wish there had been a game made based on this series.
This was really interesting! I always thought that 801 TTS Airbats was the first anime in the Military Moe genre. Looking back at it now though, it feels like it's more of an air force-themed Love Hina.
I'm a bit shocked that there was never an Idol Defense Force Hummingbird arcade game. Nevertheless, I would be surprised if the OVA hadn't influenced at least a few shmup developers. For example, one of the main characters in the Sonic Wings (aka Aero Fighters) series is Mao Mao, the idol singer / ace fighter pilot.
I'm not a big fan of the J-Pop idol music but the entire scene fascinates me because it really goes against the Anglophone idea that music needs to be authentic. The Anglophone equivalent of Idol singers exist in the form of boy and girl bands from the Monkees onward but it got rejected hard by music critics and a lot of listeners. The seamless integration of different fields of entertainment is also interesting. I think one reason why comics remained a subculture for a long time in the United States is that despite some cartoons based on them like Super Friends or Spider Man and His Amazing friends, they weren't exactly able to form entertainment alliances that easily.
This is very much overstating the case. The mainstream might have more of a grip in Japan than it does in the United States, but that would require a lot of evidence to prove, but there are weird subcultures and artistic bohemians in Japan. In a nation of 120+ million, statistics alone would contribute to lots of Japanese just not conforming. @@j.2512
We've had a few close calls in that regard Stateside--there's the Chipmunks and Jem and the Holograms (the latter not really doing much to actually sell music, since that was mostly a toy-focused franchise). And funny you should mention the comics angle, considering the late-70s near-alliance between Marvel Comics and Casablanca Records that resulted in the creation of longtime X-Men character Dazzler.
I nearly noped out of this a few minutes in, but I'm glad I didn't. I'm glad this series had some light character-focused storytelling and good action. I may have to look this up now.
1:15 Somewhat off topic, but this picture makes me even more eager to see you cover Martian Successor Nadesico someday. I rewatched it last year for the first time since the 90s and was absolutely floored by how self-aware it was about this exact thing. (I'd never even heard of this one, but you had me at "From the author of Irresponsible Captain Tylor." 🙂)
Would you say Nadesico is a parody in the vein of Mel Brooks' filmography, or that of the Abrahams-Zucker Bros. team behind "Airplane!", "Top Secret!", and the "Naked Gun" series?
@@aaronorenstein5963 Hmm... I mean, there's some of that in it, but it's more a loving tribute to 70s sentai/mecha shows that manages to segue smoothly into a loving deconstruction partway through. I guess if I had to compare it to a movie like that, it's maybe closer in tone to Young Frankenstein? But it's really its own thing.
I can never watch idol anime or anime about idols. I've seen how the sausage gets made in that particular industry and I can never enjoy idol music past the misery and sadness hidden behind the singers' eyes.
7:13 This is what I love most about your body of work, KB. We come away learning not only about the subject of anime, but Japanese history and it's culture!❤
I do not care one bit for military moe one way or another, but there was so much in this video, I loved it! Japan banned the Takarazuka Revue during the war!? (cries in retro shoujo anime) Monstrous! Hummingbird does seem a fun little anime, will be checking it out!
This is definitely an anime I knew chiefly from looped clips in Future Funk streams. Now I'm curious about it, since it seems like the "this walked so a later work could run" example for AKB0048.
I did not expect you to go the extra mile and do a research on the real life origins of cute girls doing military things. But you did. Pat yourself on the back.
So, the concept is if Lynn Minmay of macross became a veritech pilot? The breakdown of this anime trope is awesome as someone that researches military science fiction
There's trouble in a far off nation Gotta get in a love formation Your love's more deadly than Saddam That's why we gotta drop the bomb! Yvan eht nioj.. Yvan eht nioj.. Yvan eht nioj
No fewer lines have been as true as the opening sentence to this video; people forget otaku culture was wrapped in garage kits, star wars, and military fetishization. Its fun to look back at our oldtaku roots. My favorite channel.
This is a genre that is so bizarre, so specific, and so clearly pandering to straight military nerd boys that I am incapable of suspending even one fleck of disbelief. It's too much.
Until today I legit thought that my sister and I were the only ones who knew about Hummingbird. It was one of our favorite OVAs when we were pre-teens. My sister still has all of our (hard fought for) Hummingbird merch collection (original Japanese release of all the videos, artbooks, CDs, various goods, magazines which have promo stickers and posters) We never found subs so we translated what we could on our own. It is a fun series and I am happy to see others remember and enjoy it!
The fact that this predates Sakura Wars is kinda surprising
Funnily enough while Hummingbird does predate Sakura Wars, the company that made that game, did make something similiar, beforehand: Galaxy Fraulein Yuna which is about idol singer in mecha space battles. It’s an early visual novel and by Red, the same company that would later make Sakura Wars. The game came out 1992 but it also got an anime adaption just one year after Hummingbird in 1994, directed by Shinbo Akiyuki.
@@auralunaprettycure Interesting. I'll have to check that out.
That team of 5 girls somehow jogged my memory of Sol Bianca!
For me, its Gall Force!❤
I did a anime review on sol bianca recently!
This feels like Bubblegum Crisis but with a new coat of paint
Thanks for solving a mystery. I've seen clips of this show in AMVs for 20 years and could never figure out what the anime was.
"On second thought, lets not go to Japan! Tis a silly place" - King Arthur
Ok. Adding this to the "Discotek please license" list.
I'm surprised that there was no mention of Sakura Wars, which while not the first (Hummingbird pre-dates it by 3 years) would become a spectacularly successful multi-media franchise in Japan. And while it wasn't exactly idols (they're a theatrical troupe in the Taishō era) it did explicitly pull from the still-developing dating sim genre and then mash that up with strategic mech combat. Cute girls, occupying clear anime archetypes, piloting mechs, and falling in love with the protagonist? Oh yeah, that was definitely a part of it.
Looking earlier, the girls with guns genre is arguably the bigger influence. Simply scaling things up more and more. Likewise, Patlabor arguably played a role as well, going with a slightly cuter take than the average sexy female mech pilot and a greater connection between the lady and her machine.
Absolute banger episode, I wasn't expecting a crash course in the evolution of popular radio but damned if it doesn't elevate the proceedings. Another classic rescued from obscurity by the best OVA channel on RUclips.
Idol Defense Force Hummingbird is one of my favorite OVA series, i am so happy i came across this video! loved all the history througho, absolutely fascinating and informative!
gooooosh the mention of the SHMUP-like instrumental soundtrack makes me desperately wish there had been a game made based on this series.
Always neat when I finally learn where a piece of animation in the intro to this series came from
This is one of those OVAs that more people know from a AMV than the source material.
I'm a simple girl, I see a KB upload, I click.
This was really interesting! I always thought that 801 TTS Airbats was the first anime in the Military Moe genre. Looking back at it now though, it feels like it's more of an air force-themed Love Hina.
For no reason, here's the sixth Hummingbird, Apu!
I'm a bit shocked that there was never an Idol Defense Force Hummingbird arcade game. Nevertheless, I would be surprised if the OVA hadn't influenced at least a few shmup developers. For example, one of the main characters in the Sonic Wings (aka Aero Fighters) series is Mao Mao, the idol singer / ace fighter pilot.
If it did exist I would expect something along the lines of "Sexy Parodius".
I'm not a big fan of the J-Pop idol music but the entire scene fascinates me because it really goes against the Anglophone idea that music needs to be authentic. The Anglophone equivalent of Idol singers exist in the form of boy and girl bands from the Monkees onward but it got rejected hard by music critics and a lot of listeners. The seamless integration of different fields of entertainment is also interesting. I think one reason why comics remained a subculture for a long time in the United States is that despite some cartoons based on them like Super Friends or Spider Man and His Amazing friends, they weren't exactly able to form entertainment alliances that easily.
Music needing to be authentic isn't an Anglo thing.
lol ok
L. Jpop is amazing
This is very much overstating the case. The mainstream might have more of a grip in Japan than it does in the United States, but that would require a lot of evidence to prove, but there are weird subcultures and artistic bohemians in Japan. In a nation of 120+ million, statistics alone would contribute to lots of Japanese just not conforming. @@j.2512
We've had a few close calls in that regard Stateside--there's the Chipmunks and Jem and the Holograms (the latter not really doing much to actually sell music, since that was mostly a toy-focused franchise).
And funny you should mention the comics angle, considering the late-70s near-alliance between Marvel Comics and Casablanca Records that resulted in the creation of longtime X-Men character Dazzler.
Once you brought up "Macross: Do You Remember Love?" you immediately got my attention!
Love to see a video on that!
I nearly noped out of this a few minutes in, but I'm glad I didn't. I'm glad this series had some light character-focused storytelling and good action. I may have to look this up now.
Gosh, this channel is just the best
1:15 Somewhat off topic, but this picture makes me even more eager to see you cover Martian Successor Nadesico someday. I rewatched it last year for the first time since the 90s and was absolutely floored by how self-aware it was about this exact thing.
(I'd never even heard of this one, but you had me at "From the author of Irresponsible Captain Tylor." 🙂)
Would you say Nadesico is a parody in the vein of Mel Brooks' filmography, or that of the Abrahams-Zucker Bros. team behind "Airplane!", "Top Secret!", and the "Naked Gun" series?
@@aaronorenstein5963 Hmm... I mean, there's some of that in it, but it's more a loving tribute to 70s sentai/mecha shows that manages to segue smoothly into a loving deconstruction partway through. I guess if I had to compare it to a movie like that, it's maybe closer in tone to Young Frankenstein? But it's really its own thing.
I can never watch idol anime or anime about idols.
I've seen how the sausage gets made in that particular industry and I can never enjoy idol music past the misery and sadness hidden behind the singers' eyes.
7:13 This is what I love most about your body of work, KB. We come away learning not only about the subject of anime, but Japanese history and it's culture!❤
ooh passing mention of borgman! it was a nice watch
Cute girls doing cute things is a more dangerous weapon than any gun.
Surprised this didn't get picked up and dubbed by Media Blasters/Central Park Media way back when.
Wait what?
I’m saying that this would’ve made for an interesting title to import and sub/dub, but no one did so.
13:31 oh, that is where that gif is from
I do not care one bit for military moe one way or another, but there was so much in this video, I loved it! Japan banned the Takarazuka Revue during the war!? (cries in retro shoujo anime) Monstrous! Hummingbird does seem a fun little anime, will be checking it out!
This is definitely an anime I knew chiefly from looped clips in Future Funk streams. Now I'm curious about it, since it seems like the "this walked so a later work could run" example for AKB0048.
I did not expect you to go the extra mile and do a research on the real life origins of cute girls doing military things. But you did. Pat yourself on the back.
You deserve eight billion subscribers
13:04 Well the premise is weird enough as is, might as well throw a Team Rocket in there
So, the concept is if Lynn Minmay of macross became a veritech pilot? The breakdown of this anime trope is awesome as someone that researches military science fiction
One of the reasons why battle idols exist in the #starshatter series :D
Sound of the Sky as well as Earth Defence Mao-chan are two series I know of that takes the Cute Girls doing Cute Things with big military machines.
Big fan of this channel
This one is adorable.
There's trouble in a far off nation
Gotta get in a love formation
Your love's more deadly than Saddam
That's why we gotta drop the bomb! Yvan eht nioj..
Yvan eht nioj..
Yvan eht nioj
No fewer lines have been as true as the opening sentence to this video; people forget otaku culture was wrapped in garage kits, star wars, and military fetishization. Its fun to look back at our oldtaku roots. My favorite channel.
this feels less like SDF Macross and more like Macross Delta
Ooph, what I time to mention Johnny in a video.
The Japanese pop equivalent of Phil Spector and his particular troubles?
Never heard of this one.
I love these OVA watch it a lot episode 1 and 2 are really good, 3 and 4 not so much bbut is much better than many mode modern anime
So basically Macross 7
Nice
At 0:22, in the intro - what does she say?
Did you do a video on Hetalia? I tried watching that thing, thinking it'd tell me about Japan in the war and never found it.
What is the Kyoto Video theme song?
Wow, this anime is like 801 T.T.S. Airbats but better.
I've been watching that OVA, funny you should bring that up. Only thing it has over Hummingbird is it being dubbed.
I like this
KB, what's the song you use in the intro?
Bro you can't do that !!!!!
No song list ???????
😭😭😭😭
Whats the anime at 0:58?
"Otaku no Video!" I've never seen the video quality so sharp and clear.
@@stickershock66 Thank you!
Funny how art style has change, those girls wouldn't be cute for today standards.
This is a genre that is so bizarre, so specific, and so clearly pandering to straight military nerd boys that I am incapable of suspending even one fleck of disbelief. It's too much.
Cry about it
every time I see that pink bird thing in the thumbnail I keep thinking that its that dude from smiling friends