Black Magic M-66
Masamune Shirow, who later wroteAppleseedandGhost in the Shell, directed this short (48 minutes) OAV based on his early fanzine story. Tough-as-nails journalist Sybel eavesdrops on a secret military channel and discovers that a helicopter has crashed, releasing two prototype antipersonnel androids. The F6402, which resembles a cross between a Barbie doll and theTerminatorcyborgs, has erroneously been sent after Ferris, the inventor's granddaughter. Sybel succeeds where the army fails: she locates Ferris and protects her from the murderous android. The silly story contains numerous plot holes (where does Sybel get the plane she pilots through the city?), and the ending, where the destruction of a skyscraper is falsely described in the press as a "terrorist attack," no longer plays. But viewers looking for fast-paced, violent action will find plenty inBlack Magic. Unrated; suitable for ages 16 and up: Graphic violence, profanity, brief nudity, tobacco use.--Charles Solomon