Audience reviews
16 · Sample from the first available page, separate from the total number of ratings.
7gatsu
Have you ever heard of someone called Masamune Shirou? No? What about Ghost in the Shell? If the answer is yes, well, you should also know that Black Magic M-66 is the first and only OVA directed by Masamune in 1987 (and based on his manga from 1983).
The animated adaptation has a short runtime of 45 minutes so, as always, the watcher has to realize that something has to be sacrificed in order to wrap up the story. The "confusing plot" that most critics point out it's just their inability to piece together a story without the media telling them every single bit of information so don't pay too much attention to those who point out such a silly statement.
I found the direction very straightforward and easy to understand but once again, people are mistakingly pairing Black Magic M-66 with J…
Read at the sourceBiisoo
I was casually strolling through MAL and I stumbled upon this work by Masamune Nightow, who is the author of the acclaimed Ghost in the shell series.
Instead of watching this Ova first I read the manga to get the gist of it and it let me down so much. It was so random and hard to read due to huge text and unclear story. Didnt like that much. But when I started watching this I immediately knew this adaptation was better because its more in line with Ghost in the shell and its just a classic terminator esque robot kills everyone flick, It was good for what it was.
Obviously wasn't expecting it to blow me away, but considering when it was released I'd say it was good.
Not a must watch,but by no means a bad watch eother.
Read at the sourceFlintPaper
Two killer cyborgs are on the loose and while the military tries to contain the situation, a clueless reporter including her camera pops up in the middle of things. Based on a story by Masamune Shirow, directed by Hiroyuki Kitakubo (worked on AKIRA, GUNDAM and GOLDEN BOY). 50 minutes of cyberpunk technology and action. The characters and the plot are pretty dumb, but I still loved it. Feels like an 80s sci-fi-action movie - doesn't take itself too serious, but excites nonetheless. I also liked the designs of the futuristic cities and mecha. Artwork seems a little bit more polished than the animations. Good show!
Read at the sourceBensonas
Well, the isn't much that can be said about Black Magic M-66. It's very short. One of those older little stories of the Golden Era. Do I think it's any good though? Well, not really.
My first point, animation is lovely. It's really difficult though to look at this Golden Era of animation style without unrelenting love. Every movement, every shade, every frame is just chefs kiss lovely. Is it as good as Demon Slayer? No. On a technical level it's not even close. But it's like comparing the raw analogue production of Led Zeppelin to the crisp digital production of Periphery. We know what technically sounds better, we don't have an issue with it, but we all know which we prefer deep down
Now then, onto the rest. It's really poor. There is barely any story whatsoever. You are taking into th…
Read at the sourceDISKOWN
Black Magic M-66 is a classic Ova that should be on everyone's radar. The narrative is intriguing and lends itself well to the action/thriller vibe the anime is going for. The animation holds up and is a delight to see. It is well paced, never feeling overly long or drawn out. All that being said, the best part is the character writing. The characters aren't unique or complex but, the main lead Sybel is an excellent example of a strong female character, and straight up cool. She has a lot of courage and doesn't run from danger. The soldiers are also well written, being competent and professional throughout. Black Magic M-66 holds up well and is extremely enjoyable to watch.
Read at the sourceNeimaj
"My favorite anime of 2021 is Osama bin Laden Ranking."
- Neimaj, 2022
I'm not sure what I was expecting when I saw the cover art and the title for this OVA. Black Magic M-66 is gonna be the name of my new indie metal band; talk about a sick name.
Very straightforward anime here. Sexy, naked, tanned, anime lady Sybel is hoping to get a new big story or scoop for whatever news channel she's working for. It's never really clarified who she works for, but it doesn't matter. She discovers that the military is hiding some kind of secret weapon and tries to get more information out of the situation by spying on the military. She does this with the help of her not so helpful partner in crime. He's not important at all and you don't need to remember his name. Turns out, the military was hiding t…
Read at the sourceNeonGod7
On the Verge of Shitshow and Meh! I came to watch a glorious 80s/90s OVA, alas, I was showered with shit!
This anime is horribly boring and dull. The storytelling is on the floors. I dreaded to finish this. Action is drawn insanely bad that most of the time I could not understand whats going on (I mean I understood but it gave me headaches), or even lost my sense of orientation by some movements.
There were some minorly interesting points like the elevator chasing scene, but that is all. And even that was very bad but it shone because of the otherwise shittiness of this horrible shitshow. I gave this anime not a 1 in all aspects because at least the overall production quality was OK. I mean at least it animated somehow.
Read at the sourceOry_Senpai
Black Magic M-66 is an OVA by the author of “Ghost in the Shell” made several years before he began working on that iconic masterpiece.
That sentence alone should be enough to get you to watch this OVA (it’s only about 45 minutes long, what is that, in the great span of your life really?), but because I’ve got a word count to deal with, I suppose I’ll write a proper review.
According to some quick Wikipedia research, this OVA was based on one story from the original doujinshi published by Masanori Ota a.k.a Masamune Shirow in 1983. It’s short, and to the point.
No complicated details about anything, for the most part; this film has a plot, some good lucking characters (and character design) and great set pieces. It’s a very simple action movie that doesn’t get weighed down with existent…
Read at the sourceThe_Triumphant
I think the "66" stands for the amount of times I fell asleep.
Highlights:
- Super cool idea for a plot that takes inspiration from American classics like Terminator and Alien
- The main character, Sybel, is quite likeable [and memorable] with her determination and sense of justice
- Cool urban environments that make interesting playgrounds for destruction once the action finally picks up
Criticisms:
- The plot execution is poor due to the overall blandness that is present in every aspect of the film
- The painfully boring parts could have easily been rescued with good uses of a music score/soundtrack
- Poor pacing that drags along makes 1 hour feel like 3
- The weaponized robot's character design is awful with its blank, non-intimidating, disinterested. gaze and old lady hair
Final tho…
Read at the sourceDentonman
When i first came across this OVA, it sounded way too good to be true. An action thriller with clear terminator inspirations based on a manga by Masamune Shirow? I was ready to cum all over myself, but it turns out that it really was too good to be true.
In concept this anime has all i ever wanted, loads of inspirations from holywood blockbusters alongside Shirow's classic sociopolitical commentary and dystopian themes, but what ultimately happened is that they took all of those great concepts and tried to cram them into a 50 minute OVA. The pacing is way too fast, and the moment to moment plot get's reduced to basically acknowledging something important to the plot for a few seconds before quickly moving on to the next thing. There is no set up to anything, nothing get's properly establis…
Read at the sourcePerry_R
Black Magic M-66 is the sort of action OVA I wish all action OVAs could be - an all killer, no filler romp through a cyberpunk dystopia. It's got a lovable main character, a phenomenal art style, stunning animation, and nearly non-stop action. Sure, it may be light on story - but that's not really the point of Black Magic M-66. It came to give thrills, and as far as I'm concerned, it's a roaring success.
Also, there's an important distinction to be made between story and character. The story, the actual plot of how everyone gets from point A to point B is weak, but I must reiterate - the protagonist, Sybel, has an unbelievably strong character. She steals every scene she's in with trademark Shirow tomboy spunk and snappy dialogue, letting her bounce off the rest of the cast with ease. Ser…
Read at the sourceSidewinder51
Rate 6
English Dubbed
Story
From introduction to conclusion each had a kind touch. In terms of the intro it provided the right mystery. Not too revealing yet not to vague. Also, it's happenings made sense. Plot continued to stay true to the end. At the end not only was the ending slightly touching but even at the credits the viewer finds some rewards. Sure it was not thrilling to where one would be hanging to the edge of their seats but all in all a decent show.
Art
Made sense with plot. There were some slight art cut backs. For example the trees. They for the most part looked natural then cue in that small running scene and they soon transferred back into art. Characters were nicely drawn.
Sound- no issues. Also, some of the characters like the doc i found to be a rather good pick.
Ch…
Read at the sourceRuriTenshi
This was one of the most entertaining OVA's I've watched in a long time. Made by the people behind Ghost in the Shell it's obvious these guys can really pull off even a 50 minute OVA. Now when watching this, it reminded me a lot of Terminator and I really mean a lot but I didn't have a problem with that since I am a Terminator fan my self. Unit M 66 is basically a Terminator with one job. Eliminate the target. The action in this anime was overall very impressive especially for an anime approaching the age of 30. Some the scenes were designed way ahead of its time and the suspense was amazing. The art was of course, amazing. But what can you expect from the same guy who illustrated Ghost in the Shell and Appleseed.In fact there is an Appleseed reference in this show, which was kind of amusi…
Read at the sourceLuquillo
Black Magic M-66 is a simple story on the puppet master losing control of his puppets. The two androids are suppose to be the perfect robots and at times they seem to be, by utilizing stealth tactics and later on displaying a wide range of all out attacks. They quickly make short work of the military forces. The story begins to develop more of a plot when the target is finally revealed.
The main character Sybel, a journalist whom was captured by the military learns who the target is and decides to protect the person. Surprisingly, even for a short film(48mins.) character development is present. Sybel is well developed, and she eventually puts her personal goal aside to try and save the very possible victim, therefore it's pretty easy to cheer for her. However, the androids are the standou…
Read at the sourceCreator_Kun
I’ve had conversations with some people who have either general or diverse opinions over older anime. There are tons of older anime series, but people will either pass them off or think they are all like Dragon Ball. It's to be expected because the majority of them are outdated. But there is a difference, I think, between "classic" and "outdated." As for Black Magic M-66, I believe it fails to reach any sort of “classic status” and as always, I plan to explain my reasoning behind my claim.
Released in the year 1987, Black Magic M-66 as a whole is somewhat... well, FRUSTRATINGLY mundane. Of course, it was directed in part by Masamune Shirow, and he did the Appleseed, which was awesome, (maybe I’ll review that one) so I don’t understand how M-66 came out as a bad anime. Well, it IS of the t…
Read at the sourcebarcaman101
Two of the military's top-secret android weapons, called M-66 units, are lost and go berserk. One is hunted down and destroyed at the cost of quite a few men, but the other escapes, with orders to kill the granddaughter of its creator implanted in error. It comes down to an intrepid photojournalist, Sybel, to save a girl from a situation she has very little control over. Will she be able to do what the military could not...stop the doll-like M-66 from its mistaken mission of death?
This is a really nice anime,its fast pace and comes off as a confincing sct-fi action anime.the animation is quite good,i loved the colours used and the drawing looked quite realistic.overall nothing spectacular but still a good anime.
Read at the source