A lot of OVAs, particularly those that were promotions for other media (manga, video games, novels), were one-and-done affairs, such as Sanctuary, Meisou Ou Border, Cosmic Fantasy, and Joker: Marginal City. Much rarer are OVAs that were planned as multi-episode - even had animation for a second episode - and simply stopped. That's the case with 1996's Alice in Cyberland. The first episode has a preview for a second episode - it even has a release date for it (Feb 25, 1997) - but the second episode never appeared. It's quite a mystery.
Alice in Cyberland was a tie-in to a "gal adventure game" (to quote the English loan words in the game promo) of the same name. It tells the story of Alice and her two friends, Rena and Julie, who go "diving" into cyberspace to hunt for "Eastern European cyber-anarchists" that threaten the world-wide network. (Sounds kind of prescient, doesn't it?) A mysterious network entity named Lucie gives Alice powers to enter cyberspace and to combat the villains there. She and her friends dispatch the bad guys and return to their normal existence. And that's it. The second episode promised another adventure in Cyberland, but it's lost out there in the ether.
The voice cast includes:
Moho Kareshi translated the dialog and the songs, and laalg checked it. Yogicat timed; I edited and typeset. Nemesis and VigorousJammer QCed. The encode is a laserdisc rip by Erik of Piyo Piyo Productions; it looks really good. The disc includes several promos: a preview for the non-existent second episode; ads for related CDs and PlayStation games; anda series of stills from the game. The promos beyond the preview have not been translated or typeset.
By itself, Alice in Cyberland is a frothy little bauble that comes and goes quickly, with no lingering aftertaste. But the mystery of the second episode... that lingers. What happened? As Fats Waller used to say, "One never knows, do one?" Meanwhile, you can get Alice in Cyberland from the usual torrent sites or from IRC bot Orphan|Arutha in channels #nibl or #news on irc.rizon.net.
Alice in Cyberland was a tie-in to a "gal adventure game" (to quote the English loan words in the game promo) of the same name. It tells the story of Alice and her two friends, Rena and Julie, who go "diving" into cyberspace to hunt for "Eastern European cyber-anarchists" that threaten the world-wide network. (Sounds kind of prescient, doesn't it?) A mysterious network entity named Lucie gives Alice powers to enter cyberspace and to combat the villains there. She and her friends dispatch the bad guys and return to their normal existence. And that's it. The second episode promised another adventure in Cyberland, but it's lost out there in the ether.
The voice cast includes:
- Asada Yoko (Alice) has an extensive resume in both regular and hentai anime. She played the title role in two of the Angelique series and one of the leads in Refrain Blue. She also appeared in Doukyuusei 2 Special: Sotsugyousei and D4 Princess, both Orphan releases.
- Araki Kae (Rena) played lead roles in all the Sailor Moon properties, Yuki Miaka in the Fushigi Yuugi franchise, and Ann, the female lead, in Juliet. She also played Marceau, Yawara's unexpected challenger, in Yawara! The Atlanta Special.
- Miyamura Yuuko (Julie) played the title roles in NieA Under 7 and Akane's High Kick. She also had lead roles in Starship Girl Yamamato Yohko and Those Who Hunt Elves, and she has an ongoing role in the Detective Conan franchise.
- Inoue Kikuko (Lucie) starred as Belldandy in the Aa! Megami-sama franchise, Kazami in Please! Teacher, and Doris in D4 Princess, an Orphan release. She has numerous other credits, including Cyberdoll Mami in Hand Maid May and Short(cake) in The Girl from Phantasia, both Orphan releases. She remains active and has recently appeared in Amanchu! and its sequel, The Ancient Magus' Bride, Darling in the FranXX, and FLCL Progressive.
- Nakata Kazuhiro (Information Inspector Omata) played Chiaki, one of the two leads, in Sanctuary, an Orphan release, and has numerous featured roles in his resume.
- Suyama Akio (the Cyberland monster Wolf) played Hatsuharu in Fruits Basket and Hige in Wolf's Rain. He had a cameo as Crested Serpent Eagle in Polar Bear Cafe, an Orphan release.
Moho Kareshi translated the dialog and the songs, and laalg checked it. Yogicat timed; I edited and typeset. Nemesis and VigorousJammer QCed. The encode is a laserdisc rip by Erik of Piyo Piyo Productions; it looks really good. The disc includes several promos: a preview for the non-existent second episode; ads for related CDs and PlayStation games; anda series of stills from the game. The promos beyond the preview have not been translated or typeset.
By itself, Alice in Cyberland is a frothy little bauble that comes and goes quickly, with no lingering aftertaste. But the mystery of the second episode... that lingers. What happened? As Fats Waller used to say, "One never knows, do one?" Meanwhile, you can get Alice in Cyberland from the usual torrent sites or from IRC bot Orphan|Arutha in channels #nibl or #news on irc.rizon.net.
