B.B. Fish

There just aren't enough anime about scuba diving. Yes, there was Grand Blue, but it was primarily a gross-out comedy. And there was Amanchu!, but it was more a slice-of-life show. RD Sennou Chousashitsu (Real Drive) used scuba diving as a metaphor for exploring cyberspace. And there have been individual scenes here and there. Meanwhile, the excellent scuba diving manga IO has been available for adaptation for more than a decade. So when a laserdisc of the 1994 diving OVA B.B. Fish (Blue Butterfly Fish) showed up on the second-hand market, I snapped it up, and here we are.

The OVA is a teaser for Kitagawa Shou's 15-volume manga series of the same name. I have no idea where this particular episode fits in the manga, which has not been published in English. It starts in media res, with no introductions for the characters or their backstory. The story is confusing enough that one QCer asked, "What did I just watch?" But it's nice to watch.

As the OVA opens, Hayama Ushio, a free diver, and his knockabout buddies, Kumaya and Muraoka, are on a tropical island visiting the brother of Ushio's main squeeze, Sara. They are all in search of the legendary blue butterfly fish, which supposedly inhabits these waters. Ushio is a great free diver because he can, in fact, breathe underwater. He and Sara are out diving, playing with a whale shark, when Ushio spots a local girl swimming without a tank, like he can. Later, he and his buddies run into the same girl and her sister on a back road. The mysterious girl, named Aruuyu, recognizes that Ushio is a kindred spirit.

Eventually, the separate groups merge into one large party. Aruuyu is jealous of Sara's closeness with Ushio and invites her rival to go diving in search of the blue butterfly fish. Aruuyu abandons Sara inside a cave called the Dragon's Mouth. Sara is in mortal peril from the rising tide when Ushio free dives to the cave to find her. He and Sara have a mystical reunion, and it seems clear that Ushio is the legendary blue butterfly fish. Or maybe not.

Regardless of the plot, B.B. Fish is very pretty to look at. It has lovely underwater scenes, and the characters have a tendency to doff their clothes to be more graceful in the water.

 

The laserdisc transfer is pristine. B.B. Fish is widescreen, which is quite odd for an OVA. Perhaps it was intended for theatrical release. The aspect ratio is 5:3, as this uncropped frame from the laserdisc shows:

This is a change from ToyRC's version, which was encoded at 16:9. This release also includes the stills from the Production Gallery featurette.

The voice cast is small but should be well known to Orphan's fans:

• Hayashi Nobutoshi (Hayama Ushio) starred as Guts in Berserk, Nekki Basara in the Macross 7 franchise, Tasuki in Fushigi Yuugi, and Gawl in Generator Gawl. He played Shiba Ryoutarou in Nozomi Witches and Nanbara in Hand Maid May, both Orphan releases.
• Shinohara Emi (Kanazuki Sara) played B-ko in the Project A-ko franchise, Sailor Jupiter in the Sailor Moon franchise, and Angel in The Big O. She played Reiko in Akai Hayate and Android 1025 in Oz, both Orphan releases.
• Amano Yuri (Ayuuru) played the title role in The Legend of Snow White, Julia in Daddy Long Legs, Kiyone in the Tenchi Muyo franchise, and Moemi in Video Girl Ai. She appeared as Kuzunoha in Akuemon, Angie in Condition Green, Elthena in Eien no Filena, Kitagawa in Nozomi Witches, Noriko in Singles, Yuko in St. Michaela Gakuen Hyouryuuki, and in multiple roles in Fukuyama Gekijou, all Orphan releases. 
• Chafurin (Kumaya) played the title role in Barbapapa Around the World, Inspector Megure in the Detective Conan franchise, Scotch Jii-san in the Hello Kitty franchise, Isono in Sazae-san (since 2014), and Kamoda in Yawara! He also appeared in Coluboccoro (2019), Jikuu Bouken Nuumamonjaa, Yamato 2520, Ohoshi-sama no Rail, and Izumo (1991), all Orphan releases.
• Midorikawa Hikaru (Muraoka) played the title role in Sakamoto desu ga?, Softon in Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo, Heero Yuy in Gundam Wing, Tamahome in Fushigi Yugi, Shi Seiran in Saiunkoku Monogatari, Kaede Rukawa in Slam Dunk, Zelgadis Greywords in Slayers, Gen in the OVA version of MAPS, and Ryuu Hou in s-CRY-ed. He played Mars in Fire Emblem, an Orphan release. He's done numerous voices for video games and drama CDs, sung in several music groups, and written manga.
• Sugawara Masashi (Kanazuki Tatsuya, Sara's brother) played Jean Valjean in Les Misérables: Shoujo Cosette, Hanazono in Yawara!, and Ray Lovelock in the Macross 7 franchise.
• Orikasa Ai (Made, Ayuuru's sister) made her debut in Shoukoushi Cedie. She played the title role in Romeo no Aoi Sora, Fee in Planetes, Seguchi Touma (the record company president) in Gravitation, Quatre in Gundam Wing, and Ryouko in the Tenchi Muyo franchise. She also played Carrie in Ziggy Sore Yuke! R&R Band, Sara in Eien no Filena, Toryune in Al Caral no Isan,  Katchan's mother in Tako ni Natta Okaasan, the narrator in Boku no Boukuugou, and young Mars in Fire Emblem, all Orphan releases. 

The director, Hamatsu Mamoru, also helmed To-Y, Yoroiden Samurai Troopers, the Arslan Senki OVAs, B'tx, and the 2005 remake of Glass no Kamen. The excellent score is by Yoshikawa Youichirou, who also wrote the music for Oz, Green Legend Ran, Iria Zeiram, Kyou Kara Maou, and Baby Steps. Orphan has already released the original soundtrack.

The original translation was by ToyRC, with corrections (some significant) by TougeWolf and Iri. Yogicat transcribed the subtitles and timed. I edited and typeset. Nemesis, TougeWolf, and Uchuu QCed. Intrepid encoded from a Domesday Duplicator rip of a Japanese laserdisc. Even with upscaling from 640 x 384 to 800 x 480, it looks very good. The audio is FLAC. Please forgive him; he uses FLAC when the original laserdisc audio track is digital.

A biology note: There is no such species as a blue butterfly fish. Some species have blue stripes or spots, but the predominant color is yellow. And it should be spelled butterflyfish, with no space, but then B.B. Fish doesn't work.

So sit back and let the warm tropic seas wash over you as you watch Ushio, Sara, Aruuyu, and the others frolic in the currents and the waves. B.B. Fish is short, with relatively little dialog; it's a visual experience. You can catch it from the usual torrent site or from IRC bot Orphan|Arutha in channels #nibl or #news on irc.rizon.net