I: Wish You Were Here

Have you ever watched an anime and thought, wow, that’s ironic? Have you ever watched an anime, namely a decent OVA, ONA, etc., and thought this anime could have quickly gone 13 episodes? Probably not. Most fans, myself included, often observe that an anime has too much filler, too much plot, too little plot, resulting in a convoluted mess.

“I: Wish You Were Here” is an anime that I happened upon on a quiet weekend, and because both of my home teams postponed games due to Covid, I needed another outlet to quell my entertainment frustrations. Enter the streaming service that I pay for monthly but seldom watch. On its home page was a list of anime that were new to the service, and happening upon one that was only four episodes long, I said what the Hell and pressed play.

I: Wish You Were Here, also known as Anata ga koko ni Itehoshii and  Zaion: I Wish You Were Here (English), is a four-episode Gonzo (GDH) and Media Factory produced work that aired from Oct. 4, 2001, to Nov. 24, 2001. The anime only OVA was directed by Seiji Mizushima, who has been a part of several of my favorite anime, including Neon Genesis Evangelion, Generator Gawl, and 2001’s Shaman King, to name a few.

Anata ga koko ni Itehoshii is the story of a meteorite that crashes to Earth, bringing with it a spaceborne virus. The virus known as the M34 spreads rapidly at the cellular level and turns humans into mindless creatures. The virus has affected three percent of the world’s population and is linked to seventeen countries. The island of Japan is one of the countries that the virus has hit, though, besides rumors, the citizens remain unaware.

Combating the spread of the virus is the organization known as CURE (Committee of the Universal Resolution of Ecocatastrophe). The agency has created a contingent of soldiers known as NOA. These NOA are humans who have Nano Machines inside their bodies. When activated, these Nano Machines are inserted into the bloodstream creating an outer armor impervious to radiation, poison gas, and bacteria. The Nano Machine also gives the NOA soldiers heightened awareness, and they can withstand attacks from ABC weapons.

Anata ga koko ni Itehoshii brings back memories of an earlier anime, Blue Gender. While not as dark, it shares the same theme of fighting an ever-changing, seemingly unconquerable foe. The indomitable foe has slowly gained ground and is winning the war as it seems. Our main protagonist Yuuji Tamya begins to show the stress of combat fatigue and the anger of potentially dying in battle. Unbenowsted to Yuuji, CURE is working on a secret weapon that may turn the tide of war against the M34 virus.

For an anime with four episodes in length and a runtime of a little over twenty-seven minutes, I was curious if there would be any character development or if the characters would be as dry as a bone. First, I grasped the typical interactions in I: Wish You Were Here. These interactions are generally routine in anime that involves a national security issue, cop drama, scientists, or military chain of command.

If you don’t know what I mean, insert 86-Eighty-Six, SDF Macross, Any Gundam Series, World Trigger into the mix, and you’ll see what I mean. In these types of anime, there is the usual infighting between departments for one reason or another; A scientist protecting their research, a soldier who wants to know the truth, and the list goes on and on.

While on the surface, it would appear that I: Wish You Were Here is a typical mecha anime, but it is not. The protagonist Yuuji meets the new secret weapon AI. AI is unlike the NOA in that her abilities seem to be psychic and are tied to her emotional state. She can create a Being known as Diva. Diva is an energy projection capable of destroying multiple targets simultaneously or large M34 infected beasts formed when the smaller creatures combine.

She and Yuuji are drawn together for different reasons. Yuuji is considered an ace soldier though it is not initially apparent. He is, however, shown to be impulsive, ill-tempered, and moody, personality traits that hide the fact that he is lonely and is afraid of dying. On the other hand, Ai is a quiet girl who, upon arriving at Unit-i, spends her time under the scrutiny and observation of scientists.

When Misao asks her, a scientist very protective of Ai, if she “gets lonely,” Ai does not know the word. It was not until she saw Yuuji and several of his comrades walking across the campus that she had a sense of longing. She was drawn to Yuuji, and through the beauty of “plot armor,” the two would form a bond. I am not sure what to call their bond, but it is apparent that there was to be some type of romantic interest.

Like Yuuji and Ai, the supporting cast receives little to no development after episode one. Their meeting is established in the first episode, and unfortunately, their growth begins to lack emotional content in later episodes. This is unfortunate as several characters were worthy of better growth, such as Tao, the only female amongst the NOA unit.

Like the characters, the anime itself receives little development. It’s not groundbreaking in its execution; no, it’s more like someone went into the anime junk bin and pulled out a little Bubblegum Crisis, some Power Rangers, and maybe some Guyver for inspiration. They should have gone into the Blue Submarine No.6 junk been instead. Blue Submarine No 6 was an earlier Gonzo product released in 1998. It was groundbreaking in its use of 3-D and traditional animation, and it had a solid story and an excellent soundtrack.

Giving Credit where it is due, I: Wish You Were Here, did not have the best animation, and its use of computer imaging seemed out of place. The use of mixed media should have been a no-go. It should have stayed in line with Hellsing (Gonzo), released two days prior on Oct. 2nd. What does stand out is the soundtrack. Composed by Kenji Kawai, the music is a shining star, hands down.

I: Wish You Were Here is not a terrible anime; it’s just average at best. It is an anime that had a darker tone but, for some reason, strayed away. Ironically it’s an anime that needed more episodes to flesh out its story. Because of its length, the virus is the only component with a backstory. The minimum required to set the narrative; several obvious plot holes and an ending epilogue bordered on confusion. There is nothing to see here unless you need something to do between seasons of your favorite anime. Even then, there are better options.