Okay, here's the sitch. Boy goes to the big city to learn to be a Shinto priest. He also leaves to get away from the six beautiful young alien women at home who like him (please don't adjust your monitor. There is nothing wrong with your computer. No, don't rub your eyes either! I DID write exactly what it says up there!)! The young ladies themselves don't seem to like the separation very much, and are constantly visiting him in the city! This is making his life even more chaotic than it was at home (and that's CHAOTIC, friend), even though they're only worried about him. On top of that, a young girl in his class has fallen in love with him, and hasn't any idea that there's anyone else in his life! So now he's trying to deal with his frequent visitors, and trying to hide his growing relationship with his classmate from them to avoid hurt felings. How can one boy's life get any more complicated?
Easily. A conspiracy to destroy the world is slowly taking shape, and no one is any the wiser! And the boy in question is the only one who can stop it! Will our hero find out in time to save the world...from a powerful alien child?!
This is the basic storyline of Tenchi In Tokyo, the third Tenchi Muyo! anime series. If it sounds a little odd, don't worry. Everything in Tenchi's life is a little strange. With one roleplaying game and one sourcebook under their belts, Guardians of Order has recently released the latest in the Tenchi Muyo! RPG series. All criticisms of the show aside (and Tenchi In Tokyo takes a lot of flak from Tenchi fans, deserved and undeserved), this 112-page book is a keeper.
The layout of the book is identical to that used in the original Tenchi Muyo! RPG, with spiky page borders, frequent TV-screen-shaped illos from the anime, and several full-page illos separating its four chapters. There are a few exceptions, but the majority of the illos relate well to the text they're used with. Boxes surround important points in the text (mostly game terms and new rules). The book also has several improvements over its predecessor, Tenchi Universe. For one, the pages aren't as dark, making the text easier to read. Also, lighter pages mean lighter illos. Less detail is lost in the port-over from TV screen to page. Okay, the book's still black-and-white, even with the advantages. But this book has two things going for it, in terms of the presentation. Tenchi In Tokyo used a simpler art style than the previous two shows, which works better in the black-and-white format. Also, since I was expecting a black-white-sourcebook this time, it was less of a shock when I picked up the book. The much shorter wait for the product helped, too.
The introduction describes the basics of the series, as well as detailing the differences between it and its predecessors (such as a change in theme, revised characters, and other details).
Chapter One is an episode-by-episode summary of the series. This summary is considerably more detailed than the episode summaries in Tenchi Universe, a welcome improvement indeed!
Chapter Two describes the characters of the series, major and minor, as well as adding new rules for the new elements used in Tenchi In Tokyo. Admittedly, the Alien Power character attribute and its associated Heightened Alien Power and Weakened Alien Power attributes are reprinted from Tenchi Universe, but it's better than having to run out and buy a whole other book for the sake of three attributes. This chapter's only real flaw was that the main characters could have used a bit more description (sure, they're less powerful, but that doesn't mean they're any less important). Tenchi's newly-arrived extended family and the main villains got one page each, and more than half of that is illos and game statistics in most cases. The book assumes that readers are very familiar with the Tenchi Muyo! OAV, and since Detective First-Class Kiyone barely showed up at all in the OAV, familiarity with the Tenchi Universe TV series wouldn't hurt. Then again, since the show itself assumes that viewers are familiar with the OAV characters, that's not much of a fault. The writing can also be ambiguous in places, such as the description of Yoshiaki Zumimo (the big purple cellular phone spirit. Yes, I know how bizarre that sounds!) that contradicts itself. The description claims that the monster "is neither strong nor smart" when the game statistics clearly show that it has a Super Strength score even higher than Ryoko's (for those not in the know, Ryoko can destroy a wooden stairway with one easy punch)! Okay, it isn't very tough (only 40 health points to Ryoko's 105), but any monster that can out-muscle Ryoko is quite strong indeed!
Chapter 3 seems a bit short at first glance, but that's because it only details the various machines, starships, battle armor, and artifacts shown in the series. It also details several of Washu's mad science efforts. The chapter itself is so short it makes you wonder why it wasn't just put in with Chapter Two, the way mecha, starships, and inventions were in both previous books in this line. That having been said, it's colorfully written, including a few suggestions to correct flaws in Washu's inventions (advice that the red-haired scientist would be wise to take!).
Chapter 4 is also short, describing the locations and a few organizations in the Tenchi In Tokyo world. Details are added to the descriptions in the main RPG book, rather like in the character descriptions earlier in the book. This could make for a lot of irritating flipping between books while coming up with scenarios, and even during play, when you need details. The great city of Tokyo itself is only touched upon, so a book about it would be useful for any GMs planning to set a campaign there (as would GOO's superb Demon City Shinjuku RPG, which describes Tokyo, especially Shinjuku ward, in a bit more detail). Also included in the chapter are three adventure seeds. Two could be expanded into entire campaigns, though one requires the players to play the heroes from the series. The third is a Cops-and-Robbers-style bank robbery plot that could have stood to be baked a little longer. It takes place during the series itself and uses several characters from it, but has the potential to throw a monkeywrench into the show's continuity. It could make for a funny scenario, but it's definitely a one-shot at best.
All in all, the writing of the book is clear and interesting to read, despite the problems with some of the chapters. Emily Dresner-Thornber shows promise. The book does suffer from typos and editing mistakes, though not to the extent that the Tenchi Universe sourcebook did. The information presented could have stood beefing up with regard to the characters and world, though, no matter how entertainingly described. Had it been more complete, the book's substance rating would definitely have been higher.
Tenchi In Tokyo ultimately does what it sets out to do, describe the wild and wacky world of the TV series. It's an entertaining read, and covers the characters of the show adequately. A little more setting and character data would have been nice, but the events in the TV series are described exceptionally. If you like the Tenchi In Tokyo anime, grab this book! If you like the Tenchi Muyo! RPG, grab this book! If you're looking for a campaign setting besides the basic Tenchi Muyo! setting...well, flip through this book! It might be what you're looking for. But be prepared to use the main RPG book to help flesh out the setting, because some assembly is required.
