Burn Up W(バーンナップW,Bānnappu W) is an anime OVA directed by Hiroshi Negishi and released in 1996. It was soon followed by a series version called Burn Up Excess though it occasionally lacks continuity with the series. The OVA consists of four episodes, chronicling Team Warrior through more missions. Like the original series, there is still a large amount of fan service.
Rio is Team Warrior's "Pointman" on many missions. She's blonde, very buxom, and rather ditzy, and she can't seem to keep money in her wallet. Along with that, she is always looking for a wealthy Mr. Right so she can ditch her job as a civil servant.In Burn Up W, it is unknown why or how she joins Warrior, but in eXcess she joins through a chance encounter with Warrior leader Maki Kawasaki. Unlike Maya, Rio is more skilled in hand-to-hand combat, but is known to use a firearm now and again (for example during the "Skin Dive" and "Policetown Assault" episodes). Although she won't admit it, she noticeably has some feeling towards her partner Yuji Naruo, but since the W OVA is only 4 episodes it was never expanded on.Voiced by: Yuka Imai (Japanese); Amanda Winn Lee (English)
Maya Jingu (真弥)
Team Warrior's green haired gun-toting maniac. Maya is about the same height as Rio with relatively the same body measurements. She is Team Warrior's primary sniper and gun user. She mainly joined to shoot as much as she wanted, which causes problems because she doesn't get to shoot that much, which in many cases leads her to feeling something akin to sexual frustration. To her, the bigger the gun the better; no matter whatever gun she uses she'll find some satisfaction (sexual or otherwise). Many times Maya is overheard saying that if she doesn't get to shoot more, she'll quit the police and become a mercenary.Maya is mostly paired up with Rio on missions and covers her back on most occasions. In Burn Up eXcess, it is revealed that Maya's father is the head of a crime syndicate in Osaka and because of this she is considered to be the black sheep of the family because of her choice to be a police officer.Voiced by: Maya Okamoto (Japanese); Rene Foresman (English)
Lilica Ebett (リリカ)
Lilica is the tech expert on the team. She has pink hair and is the shortest of all the Burn Up W characters. Lilica is the daughter of a very wealthy businessman, but it is unknown in the OVA who he is or why Lilica is working at Policetown anyway if she has so much money. To highlight the wealth of her father, at one point she refuses a space satellite as a birthday gift from her father.Lilica is never out in the field with Rio and Maya, instead she is at the Warrior computer with Maki as support. Although in Burn Up eXcess, Lilica is closer friends with Maya and Rio outside the office and is more computer and tech savvy in the eXcess series.Voiced by: Sakura Tange (Japanese); Kimberly Yates (English)
Nanvel Candlestick (ナンベル)
Nanvel is the resident engineer on Team Warrior. During the Vitural Idol case, Maki enlisted the aid of Nanvel who has developed the "El Heggunte" android hunter robot (which bears a striking resemblance to Unit 01 of Evangelion fame).Nanvel is a genius when it comes to robotics and cyber technology, but due to her department being totally underfunded, she is stuck in the Policetown hangar bay way below the base. Through some of Maki's connections, Nanvel's department receives more funding and we begin to see her more in the OVA.Similar to the way Maya has a gun fetish, Nanvel becomes hot and heavy about mechanical things and robots. In the last episode of the OVA, she equips Rio with a new force knuckle and Maya with a new anti-tank shotgun.Voiced by: Yuri Amano (Japanese); Carol Amerson (English)
Maki Kawasaki (マキ)
Maki is the team leader of the Warrior strike force. She is tough as nails and at times can be quite manipulative when it comes to conning her superiors into giving her team more leeway in some missions. This same social cunning is employed on Rio often, to ensure that the hot-headed blonde performs as needed during missions.Maki acts like a mother figure to the Warrior team, guiding them and giving them focus, but she seems to have more of a connection to Rio than anyone else on the team. It is rumored that the Maki of Burn up W is the same Maki from the original Burn Up! OVA back in the 80's and that Rio is acting very similarly to how the Burn Up! of Maki used to act which almost gives their relationship a passing the torch feel. In W, Maki is never in the field with Rio and Maya, but towards the end of eXcess, Maki takes up the gun and becomes active with the team against the main villain.Voiced by: Yumiko Shibata (Japanese); Tiffany Grant (English)
Yuji Naruo (ユージ)
Yuji is the token pervert in the Burn up series. He is constantly looking up girls' skirts or going into porn stores. But for all his faults he is still very lovable, he loves Rio a lot and at times will rush into danger to save her, but will wind up getting caught himself forcing Rio to save him.In W, Yuji is a pervert but he has his redeeming qualities, but in eXcess his cowardice and perversion are pumped up a bit. He is seen holding a camera most of the time or is seen acting like a full blown otaku or pervert. His W version seems to only be interested in Rio and porn, because he never makes an advance at Maya or Nanvel (even though Nanvel dresses way less than Rio and Maya). Although he takes a mostly inactive role, he is still considered a member of Warrior and pilots the helicopter and other vehicles for special Warrior missions.In Scramble, Yuji is the Police captain (and later the leader of WARRIOR) and his perversion isn't played up as much as it is in W or eXcess. Instead he makes more under-the-breath pervert comments. For example, in Episode 1 of Scramble when Yuji notices Rio for the first time and her "assets" he makes the comment "bouncy". As in W and eXcess, Yuji is in love with Rio, but unlike his previous two incarnations, Rio doesn't seem to have any feelings whatsoever. Except whenever she beats him down she apologizes in the standard formal Japanese way. What is very odd about Yuji in this incarnation is that he has a beautiful girl that wants to marry him and be everything for him, but he seems to be oblivious to it and focuses all his energies towards Rio.Voiced by: Ryotaro Okiayu (Japanese), Jason Lee (English)
Miss Ruby
Miss Ruby is the mysterious woman who works in Falcon Claw. She takes the hotel and its patrons hostage. She seems to always wear a pair of shades too and her hair is lavender colored and comes down to her shoulders (Red when wearing a wig). Ruby is also quite skilled with handling machines. She may or may not be the same Ruby in eXcess, as her name is not mentioned. She is only referred to as "Chief Terrorist".Voiced by: Katsuki Masako (Japanese); Marcy Rae (English)
Episodes
Case 1: Skin Dive(スキンダイヴ,Sukin Daibu)
Representatives from governments around the world are gathered in Tokyo for a peace forum. A mysterious woman steps into the building where the forum is being held and takes it over, taking all of the leaders and the building's occupants hostage. The terrorist group, which identifies itself as Falcon Claw, makes some strange demands. It's up to Team Warrior to save the day.
Case 2: the Virtual Idol(電脳アイドル捜せ,Den-nou aidoru Sagase)
In the beginning of the episode, two new characters are introduced. One of them, Maria, a "virtual idol" is talking with Yuji through his virtual reality helmet. She's a girl that only exists in cyberspace, but Yuji is convinced that she's a real girl. She tells him that she's going to meet him in the real world. Later that day, the police get a call from a kidnapper saying he's taken Maria hostage. Could she be a real person? Team Warrior is dispatched to find her or her program disk.
Case 3: Policetown Assault - Act 1(ポリスタウン強襲-Act-1,Porisutaun Kyousyuu-Akuto-1)
The police raid a smuggling operation and snag a mysterious virtual reality device. Then, we're given a look into Team Warrior's personal lives. Rio gets a call from a collection agency and goes to a store to sell her used underwear, where she runs into Yuji, who's looking for used uniforms from the Olympic swim team. Maya's plays target practice with a robber who's trying to get away with a bag of money. Lilica gets a call from her wealthy father who offers her birthday presents, such as a beach resort and a satellite. We're also introduced to a new character, Chisato, who is an accountant and a friend of Rio's. The next day, police headquarters are taken over by a terrorist group, which includes Wolf Head, Jackal Head and Dober Head. Team Warrior is the only group left that can re-take the base.
Case 4: Policetown Assault - Act 2(ポリスタウン強襲-Act-2,Porisutaun Kyousyuu-Akuto-2)
Team Warrior must take back the police headquarters from the terrorists. Nanvel has some new toys that will help Rio and Maya, though. She gives Maya a new gun that's light, but more powerful than a tank gun. Rio gets a weapon called the "Armored Knucklebuster". She wears it on her forearm and it gives her greater strength when she punches. Rio, Maya and Lilica must all use their specialized skills to defeat this new enemy.
