Cybersix is, to the best of my understanding, the cartoon adaptation of a Spanish comic. Featuring the heroine Cyber 6 in what can best be described as a cross of Sailor Moon and Batman, she adopts the label of 'Adrian Seidelman' by day, a simple literature teacher, while she dons an awesome leather outfit, the baddest cape there ever was, and a wicked hat by night to become the world's greatest female pugilist. With monster-of-the-week shenanigans and a steamy undertone of forbidden romance, she and superpowered-panther-sidekick Data 7 kick some serious evil hindquarters.Sound cheesy-Saturday-morning-cartoon enough for you yet? If it didn't, well... keep reading.StoryAdrian Seidelman, literature teacher, starts his new job at a school in Meridiana city; he works alongside one Lucas Amato, the jovial, honest type of guy who teaches biology. A bit of a flake, strange and prone to saying some very out-of-place things, Adrian is a bit of an odd friend to Lucas.On the other hand, Adrian sheds the costume of a common teacher and dons the label of the courageous Cyber 6 (or Cybersix, as the show refers to her), who jumps from rooftop to rooftop and smashes crime right in its crime-doing face. Yeah! Punch it!The plot jumps from crisis to crisis, displaying either Cybersix's courage and cunning, or the closeness she shares with her friends; one way or the other the day is saved through friendship and teamwork, and evil is sent skittering home to fight another day.Von Reichter, a mysterious (and totally not dubious) scientist sends his son Jose, a mischevious and egotistical little kid, to act out his bidding onto Meridiana; bidding such as stealing from the bank with a giant drill machine, or destroying the city with a giant crustacean. However, we quickly learn that Cybersix was a creation of Von Reichter's; when this comes to light, he tasks Jose with capturing her at all costs.And so the plot ambles along comfortably as an average monster-of-the-week show; daytime segments introduce the crisis, discuss Jose's newest plot and build on a tension that settles in an odd love triangle of Adrian > Lucas > Cybersix, while the nighttime shows Cybersix fighting crime, meeting with Lucas to talk about what's currently brewing, and in a handful of the episodes, getting her tush whupped by crime so her friends can save the day.Tons of plot elements lurk beneath the surface but because the show is only 13 episodes, only the whole relationship between Lucas, Adrian and Cybersix receives much attention; there is a lot of potential there that goes unused in favour of having more zany monsters show up to wreck houses and the like, which ends up having a lot of the elements constantly come up but really just fall flat. I imagine, as is the case with all shows full of promise, the comic relieves this story-based itch.Unfortunately, as the weakest part of this show the story really isn't worth much more than a 5/10; it satisfies the bare minimum of holding things together, but at least it does that much. It's hardly the captivating feature of the show and it's certainly anything but groundbreaking as it's presented here.AnimationWhew! It's beautiful, right here. Somewhere between gritty Western and flashy Eastern, Cybersix captures the best of two worlds with a strong urban clutter and some gnarly monster designs and movements while action scenes punctuate the dismal feel with flashy moves and unthinkable maneuvers. Flips, spins and inhuman jumps are displayed with great fluidity and everything feels like it's just awesome. Best thing is, fanservice isn't present, and so there's no detracting from Cybersix's tough image. Jose is usually accompanied by silly sounds and animation, just highlighting the ridiculous role he fills.Humans are believably proportioned in most cases, and important characters get more distinct designs than side characters do. Everything about the design feels Western; but a lot of things about the animation itself feels pretty Eastern. It really is a sublime mix in this case and creates a wonderful affect coupled with an art direction that's all its own.A smattering of some stock footage is noticeable in a few parts, unfortunately, dragging the score from its perfect realm; 9/10 for knocking on the door of unattainable beauty, but never quite opening it up.SoundAnother home run hitter here, Cybersix is accompanied by a beautiful soundtrack that is full of character and emotion. The opening song plays an instrumental version as a main theme to Cybersix's appearances, while being one of the more catchy openings for 90's children; other tracks capture moods and emotions very well, from carefree to dramatic to tense. And really, again, that main theme-- precious. Maybe that's nostalgia speaking, but I couldn't care less.Sound effects and voice acting are done excellently. I really haven't got much comment beyond that.Again marred by a small flaw-- while excellent, the soundtrack is a bit small. After the first few episodes you will have heard all the tracks in their glory, and while they never get unbearable to listen to or anything, there are points where some slight pressure would have made things better. So again, 9/10.CharactersAs being attached to the story, the characters unfortunately fall into the same trap it does, being cursed by the show's short duration. Cybersix herself is a distinct heroine, bold and brave but with a womanly side no less; she's some sort of non-human, but has all the feelings and components of a human, so it's an interesting conflict there. Data 7, her sidekick-- who also happens to be her brother implanted into a panther (you read that right) is as much as one would expect of a brother character... strong, reliable and trustworthy. But, you know, also a panther. Yeah.Lucas Amato is Cybersix's love interest (and she, his) and Adrian's co-worker. A strong and honest type, Lucas is always there to try and eke out a piece of the action while getting closer to Cybersix, learning of her, while ranting and raving to his good buddy Adrian about her. The irony, I know.To disguise herself, Cybersix puts her hair up, dons glasses and men's clothing, and adjusts her voice a bit. All-in-all, I guess you'd have to be there to know, but it doesn't seem like a convincing costume to me and after a while, I wonder why Lucas hasn't caught on much earlier. It seems pretty obvious to me, but...As discussed, Jose and Von Reichter are pretty much 'bad guys' in a word; looming and ominous with a bevy of science and evil up his sleeve, Von Reichter sends creature and machine alike to Jose's waiting hands. Jose himself is a child at heart, all-too-happy to just see things blowing up, but basically existing to be foiled by Cybersix and company. There really isn't much to them beyond that.Other characters come and go but in general, only two others stay consistent-- one is Julian, a street urchin with an adorable personality who is a quick thinker and clever with his sleight of hand. More than once, his adorable antics save Cybersix from a spot of trouble, and his joking, happy-go-lucky personality is pretty contagious at times.Lori is the other, a strange girl who seems to have repeated fascinations with teachers. While she's only really prevalent in a few episodes, she's consistent and that's more than most of the distinct characters beyond the main cast can announce. Fortunately, with her involvement being minimal, her generic personality doesn't really feel like a detriment.All the characters get their personal developments and a viewer learns well enough of how they act and react, but their backstories never get much attention; so while the interactions are enjoyable and cohesive, and feel true to their personalities and some do develop and grow as characters with interactions all around, there's never any real information on what brings characters where they are-- in specific, what exactly Cybersix is and why she's fighting Von Reichter despite being his creation. It's left to guessing, as far as the show is concerned.And so, I can only dish out a 7/10. It's not wholly bad and the characters are an enjoyable menagerie. There's just a lot of backstory referenced and never built upon; I feel that's a huge faux pas for these shows and it needs to never happen. Granted, this was released in '99, so...OverallWith enjoyable characters, fun action, and some bizarre plot elements, Cybersix is an enjoyable ride; you won't have your socks blown off, but for 90's kids it's good nostalgia and for other viewers who don't remember it, it's about what you'd expect from a show with a female lead in that day and age. Neither weak nor strong in any exceptional regard, unique animation and good sound quality carry the enjoyment factor quite a ways. It's a long stretch to say one wouldn't enjoy Cybersix for what it is-- monster-of-the-week eyecatches designed to keep children interested. But there's some good quality wrapping on this present and it's enough to make it unique and distinct.So overall, 7.5 is pretty much fitting; it gets carried along by its good features which do enough to smear the bad features, but you can't help but notice them at certain points. It is nonetheless easy to enjoy if one isn't trying to pry some deeper meaning from it, and it's a short and easy watch at 13 episodes, all of which tend to go pretty quickly as monster-of-the-week fare does.
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