Urusei Yatsura, TV Series 1 (Episodes 1-4)
This disc offers the first four installments of the 195-episode TV series based on Rumiko Takahashi's popularmangaseries,Urusei Yatsura("Those Obnoxious Aliens"). In Japanese mythology,oniare hideous demons; Takahashi turns them into aliens. To save the Earth, high school lecher and nerd Ataru Moroboshi is pitted against the lovely, curvaceous Lum in a game of tag. When he wins, Lum believes he's proposed and moves in with his long-suffering parents. Shinobu, Ataru's girlfriend, objects and a skewed romantic triangle develops. Lum's friends and relatives begin arriving and complicating life further: cute little Ten breathes fire; staggeringly handsome Rei transforms into a tiger-monster. No wonder the neighbors want to run the Moroboshi family out of town. This slapstick comedy-romance anticipates Takahashi'sRanma 1/2, but Ataru, who has virtually no redeeming qualities, is less likable than Ranma. Unrated; suitable for ages 12 and up: Risqué humor and brief nudity.--Charles Solomon