I disagree — I watched the OVA only a few years ago and loved it. The first movie is also great, and has REALLY aged well - really, the only thing '80s about it was the music, and the lack of Moe. It can be humdrum sometimes, and won't hold up that well to really good live-action cop shows, but it's beyond fair for its day.
I might write a full review after I watch more of the franchise.
It should be noted that Patlabor is not about the Mecha or about the action; instead, Patlabor gives its Mecha a matter-of-fact treatment that is not as removed from reality as other Mecha series. As such, Patlabor gives us an introduction to the baby steps of a slightly more technically advanced future than our present state. I like to compare Patlabor with Macross Zero in a way that both are basically introducing such machines into policing and air combat respectively. Then again, Macross itself is not about their Mechas themselves.
Patlabor is a Seinen to Macross' Shonen.
'Fair for it's day.'
And more than fair for today as well. I just started watching the first OVA today, and while it's not great by any means, it's still pretty good. And from what I've heard, the franchise only gets better from there. I don't really have a problem with it.
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Fair for its day.
Patlabor was a pioneer in the thematic of realism and mundane utility in the Mecha Franchise. It was different, insightful, slow paced and more preocupied with a well thought introduction of Mechas than any sense of adventure or Drama.
But it hasn't aged well.
Patlabor is boring. After more than a decade of new works, alterations, deconstructions and reconstructions of not only the Mecha Franchise but the Slice of Life genre in the different mediums, Patlabor can come as a very slowpaced, Hype, too bland work. There is nothing new to see, what there is it has been done better (or more specifically, works created catter unique tastes) by other authors, mangakas and writters.
It was groundbreaking and a pioneer, but this doesn't mean it was superior or actually good.
It's a very especialized era type of work. Of the 90's and the new Millenium, the cynicism of the generation X, the estability in Japan after the Bubble burst, the terror of the new Millenium, the desire to create more "adult and serious" works and the introduction of the Anime to the New continent.
It can come as a slightly Values Dissonance and Seinfeld Is Unfunny. Is not a bad work by any stretch of the Imagination but remember, many of the people who would recommend this work (both in Tvtropes and elsewhere) grew up during this age, where there in the first wave of Anime exportation, where hit with its originality and its sense of deconsturction and innovation and truly suffer from Nostalgia Filter (also known as the Hardcore Original Fanbase) with this kind of works.
Give it a view and go with an open mind but don't let the reviews (including this one) to paint you an excesive nice or bleak view. You may enjoy it or consider it Torture but don't expect the Moon and the stars.
Its simply a Mecha Slice of Life with a taste of Police procedural