Warning: Video may cause seizures! Prolly better to watch without fullscreen.
This is definitely one of the most unexpected AMV discoveries that I’ve made, but it’s long had a place in my heart. The song is ‘Day 8: School’ by Ayreon set to the anime Gash Bell (or Zatch Bell for us who saw it on Cartoon Network). This odd combination is very exciting in spite of one huge, possibly fatal flaw that will determine whether you like or hate the video.
Early into my getting into the band Ayreon about 2 years ago, I just stumbled upon this AMV in a video search. Combining obscure progressive rock-opera with one of the kiddiest shounen action shows around (and not even that well known of one) was definitely not something I saw coming. However, the song and show fit perfectly.
The Ayreon album “The Human Equation” is about a man in a coma whose unconscious self and ther personifications of his emotions are trying to figure out why he’s in a coma and how to get out of it by searching through his past and present life for meaning. Day 8: School has the man reflecting on his troubled school life in which he was bullied until becoming a bully himself. The song is mostly sung by himself, Fear, and Agony, with a chorus by Rage (who appears almost in no other songs, so you know it was really powerful). There is an interim where Pride and Reason argue over how he should have handled the situation, but Passion ends up taking over and leading him to become a bully.
In the first episode of Gash Bell, Kiyomaro is being a hikkikomori because he is smarter than everyone else in his class and thinks hes better than them. This leads his classmates to hate him in return, and generally he has no friends. However, the arrival of Gash makes him confront his life and of course, over the length of the show, become an open person who protects his friends.
Kiyomaro and Gash end up becoming a part of the ‘mamodo battle’ (see Roze Maiden for details – they are basically the same show) and at first don’t really realize that they are going to end up basically murdering all of the other mamodo. This conflict nicely fits in with the end of the song where the duo ends up essentially becoming a kind of bully.
Now this video does a lot right, but some things… let’s say ‘strangely’. Obviously the best part is how the video clips used are directly descriptive of the lyrics in the verses and mid-section. That alone could make it an above-average AMV. Secondly, the video and sound are synched down to the note. The trouble is with how that was done.
The video is constantly fucking flashing! What the hell?! Synchronising it would have probably been enough, but for some ungodly reason the creator thought it would be a good idea to accentuate the synch with screen flashes. There are parts where this effect actually works, but a lot more where it’s just damn annoying and seems unnecessary.
My only other complaint is that the orchestra part uses a totally random battle and some pretty random scenes from that battle. Just seemed like an odd decision.
In spite of the flaws, I still like the video, and the parts where it really fits make me smile. Gash Bell is a fun show that always has a place in my heart, and The Human Equation is a splendid and equally fun album from which Day 8 is one of my favorite songs.
Almost forgot the lyrics!
[Fear] It’s time to leave your sheltered cage
Face you deepest fears
The world is against you
You’re fighting back the tears
[Me] All the kids were watching me
I felt very small
I could hear the laughter
As I stumbled down the hall
[Rage] (human) Seeking to find
deep in the trauma as it leaves you behind
(human) Bleeding it gone
into the profit of the competition
(human) Loving today,
all of the feelings are they going away
(human) Ending it now,
I’d rather hear about the where and the how
[Agony] The bigger boys they beat you up
Out here you cannot hide
No friends to help you
No father at your side
[Me] I swore that I’d get back at them
But I was just a kid
One day I’d show them
I wouldn’t rest until I did
[Rage] (human) Seeking to find
deep in the trauma as it leaves you behind
(human) Bleeding it gone
into the profit of the competition
(human) Loving today,
all of the feelings are they going away
(human) Ending it now,
I’d rather hear about the where and the how
[Pride] You’ve got to prove you are not like the rest
[Reason] There’s no need if you know you’re the best
[Pride] That’s not enough, let the other kids know
[Reason] What’s the use, go with the flow
[Pride] Be a man, give into hate
[Reason] You better learn to communicate
[Pride] Better to learn to protect yourself
[Reason] That’s not the way to get out of this hell
[Pride] See that kid, watch the smile on his face
[Reason] He’s just like you, feeling out of place
[Pride] Well I don’t care, let’s show him who’s boss
[Reason] That’s not the way to get your message across
[Pride] Be a man, give into hate
[Reason] You better learn to communicate
[Pride] Better to learn to protect yourself
[Reason] That’s not the way to get out of this hell
[Passion] Don’t rack your brain, let it all go
Savour the moment and feel your blood flow
[Me] Then I got back at them
Still acting like a kid
Then I showed them
But when I had I could not quit…
[Rage] (human) Seeking to find
deep in the trauma as it leaves you behind
(human) Bleeding it gone into the
profit of the competition
(human) Loving today,
all of the feelings are they going away
(human) Ending it now,
I’d rather hear about the where and the how
My Sword Is Unbelievably Dull 
ZAKERU!
Gash Bell is an awesome shounen show. Though I don’t think many can stomache 150 episodes of it. I’d rewatch it, since the last time I had seen it was in ’06.
I said it once and I’ll say it again, this AMV is the reason I want to watch Gash Bell.