I apologize for not getting this posted yesterday, but the pollen of the world decided to give a massive headache along with an itchy nose, and I'm afraid to say that things may not get better, according to the big picture. While it has been great to watch all of this anime, my summer is starting to turn back towards worrying about school, which means finding tuition money and then spending time on homework or, in short, less time for anime. I don't know how often I'll be able to update from here on out, but I'll try to be as often as I feel I can.
At least I've got a few titles to get things started for now.
Code Geass: Lelouch Of The Rebellion (25 Episodes)
Code Geass: Lelouch Of The Rebellion R2 (25 Episodes)
Animation: *****
Story: ****
Music: ***
Overall: ****
Yes, I have finally finished all of Code Geass and, boy, is my brain tired. I remember when this series was first starting to get all of sorts of attention from all sorts of fans and I thought I'd give it a shot when it rolled around on Adult Swim's online video player and found myself ensnared in a tangle of plots that I could pull my eyes away from.
In an alternate but not too distant future, the Empire of Britannia (located primarily in North America) begins expanding its territory across the world, including Japan, taking it over completely and turning into Area 11. The people there are now called Elevens and treated as a lower caste by the Britannians. Lelouch is a Brittanian prince who is living as a high school student in Japan under the surname of Lamperouge in order to hide from potential assassinations. However, he still holds a personal grudge in his heart against whoever killed his mother in an assassination, a trauma that left Lelouch's little sister, who is “hiding” in Japan with him, blind. Lelouch figures that it's someone else within the Brittania family and vows to get revenge, but having been dumped in Japan, he feels powerless to do so.
Meanwhile, even though Japan has been a part of Brittania for 10 years, there are still resistance groups trying to fight for their Japanese heritage. They get wind of some chemical weapons are being transported and try to prevent the Empire from using them. Lelouch happens upon this act of terrorism and decides to follow up on what's going on, thinking that he can make a dent in Brittania. However, instead of finding chemical weapons, he finds an incapacitated girl in green hair and tries to take her to safety away from the terrorists violence. Along the way, he runs into Suzaku Kururugi, his childhood friend and native Japanese, fighting as a soldier for Britannia. Without having time to catch up, they try to get out of danger, but end up getting separated again, with Lelouch being caught by a platoon of soldiers. They fire, but the green-haired girl suddenly jumps in front, saving Lelouch's life. As the green lies on the ground, she suddenly starts talking about giving Lelouch “power.” Finding himself up against a wall, he accepts and is granted the power of Geass, where upon eye-to-eye contact, Lelouch can alter the will of anyone. He uses his power to escape the soldiers, by ordering them all to commit suicide, and begins to help the terrorists in their efforts against the Empire, later becoming their leader under the guise of Zero, a masked hero for justice. He begins to figure that, with his own cunning, his new power, and the terrorists' resources, he can finally topple Brittania and find out who killed his mother.
What happens from then on is a convoluted tale that warps between political intrigue, high school antics, supernatural powers, and personal anguish, as Lelouch and the others feel the weight of their new responsibilities and try to defeat their enemies and fears. The green-haired-girl, simply named as C2, returns as an immortal being capable of granting Geass power and willing to Lelouch with his rebellion as long as he fulfills his end of the contract, a detail that remains unrevealed for quite some time. Suzaku ends up climbing through the ranks of the Brittanian military, quickly ending up as a test subject for a special proto-type mech.
Oh, yeah. There's robots throughout the whole thing. All the battles are straight-up mecha army action.
Code Geass is a very ambitious story, trying to weave together so many plot threads and still make sense, and, to its credit, it mostly succeeds. While my head spun with each plot twist, each piece finds its resting place by the end of the long series and felt satisfied by the end. Things went well, even if I felt like everything was stumbling through mud from time to time.
The animation was incredible, not only with the vivid scenery and memorable character designs by CLAMP, but with the action and combat as well, a crucial element for mecha anime. The robots all seem to have wheels on their feet, so the battles feel like over-the-top roller derbies with guns, and somehow they made it work. The music was more of a downer. It had its moments, establishing easy-to-recognize themes when things worked or didn't work in the story, but it didn't stand out much and I felt more could have been done with it. Even the opening and ending themes were rather mediocre.
When I got a few episodes in, I gathered the sentiment that this was going to be Death Note but with mecha instead of mind games. Sunrise has had all sorts of experience with their Gundam franchise in combining a political drama with robots and so adding in this supernatural twist could make or break the series. While it stumbled around getting there, it did come together in the end, resulting in one of the most renowned series Sunrise has produced (I think it even won some awards in Japan a couple of times). In the end, my sentiment was right. Code Geass is Death Note with robots. You have webs of character relations, sudden plot twists, supernatural surprises (especially when Lelouch runs into other Geass users!), and a wealth of memorable moments that really makes this title stand out. I can now see what all of the hubbub was for and I don't regret it.
The Tower of Druaga: The Aegis Of Uruk (12 Episodes)
The Tower of Druaga: The Sword Of Uruk (12 Episodes)
Animation: ****
Story: ****
Music: ****
Overall: ****
The Tower of Druaga was an old Japanese arcade game where the heroes had to climb a 60 level tower in order to save the world. I don't think it ever made it to America, but it was quite a hit in Japan has since spawned a handful of games in the same world. In this anime series, Gonzo takes that game and turns it into a very entertaining romp through the tower and the personal struggles of those who climb it.
The story primarily revolves around Jil, a young Climber, who is sincere about getting to the top and defeating the great demon Druaga. However, the other Climbers don't want to listen because they're satisfied with how much money they can make Climbing the tower. He tries to join his older brother Neeba's group, only to be kicked out for his incompetence. He finally gets his own party, consisting of Ahmey, a female spear-wielder, Kaaya, a cheerful priestess, Melt, an eccentric mage, and Coopa, Melt's personal assistant that happens to have her own bag of tricks. They all decide to follow Jil up the tower in order to defeat the evil that lives at that top.
However, as they climb the tower, they begin to notice some of the connections between the tower and the condition of the king of the land, Gilgamesh, who supposedly defeated the tower the last time. Because it has come back and the past is slowly being revealed, the tower's true purpose becomes revealed and the heroes have to find the truth on top of it all.
While all of this is a very engaging Babylonian fantasy epic with it's own innovations (Melt's magic is swinging clubs like he's golfing, making Coopa a sort of caddy for him; it's brilliant), it is more than willing to take some time to put its tongue in its own cheek. The first episode is almost entirely a dream, spoofing itself and other action series and fantasy tropes (even going so far as a Monty Python reference and a sudden shift into Gurren Lagann mode) and not developing very much plot. Later on, the characters stumble into a series of bizarre traps that the heroes spend an entire episode walking into. They even take the time to send Jil into a life-size reenactment of the original video game, the other heroes controlling him with a joystick and buttons and having to restart every time something goes wrong. The moments of comedy brighten things significantly. Even if very little progression is made, it helps the viewers get to know the characters.
The second part of the series is much more serious, though, as things turn uglier, though it does take time to show the ski resort Melt builds within the tower. However, as it builds suspense and goes deeper into the secrets of the tower, I felt that the final showdown was rather light-weight compared to all the momentum it had been building. While I won't go into detail for the sake of those who haven't seen it, I thought there were some darker themes and heavier material into which they could have delved. Instead, they decide to pass over it and simply bring an end to everything.
The animation was great. Having many characters involved for massive battles with monsters and other Climbers went well for the most part. The biggest problem I had how the CG elements didn't blend into the 2D animation as well as it could have. It stood out and seemed somewhat distracting. Gonzo has always messed around with combining 2D with 3D, but they seemed to make it work so well ten years ago with Blue Submarine No. 6. It wasn't a major bother in Tower, but it was reoccuring. The music was nice, drawing on the themes from the video game but giving them a Lord of the Rings quality by giving them an orchestral feel. The opening and ending themes weren't bad either. Also, it should be noted that I watched this series subbed, for once. It'll be interesting how the series will sound after FUNimation dubs it.
The Tower of Druaga was a fun ride, even if it lost some steam at the end. And it's still available online (Thank you, CrunchyRoll!) so go watch it. It's worth it. It even led me to a discovery. I was in my local Hastings with some money to burn and I stumbled across the PS2 game The Nightmare of Druaga. Not only was it in the used bin for only four dollars, it was still shrink-wrapped after I tore off the used-wrap Hastings puts on its used materials. I primarily picked up simply because I was watching Druaga at the time. The game happens to be a wonderfully merciless dungeon hack that I imagine I'll be playing for years to come. I've become a fan of the Druaga series and look forward to where it'll pop up in the future.
Astro Boy (23 Volumes)
Rating: ***
Osamu Tezuka's genius has gone unrecognized lately, in my opinion. Especially in America. While I'm sure that most anime and manga fans are aware that he brought those two very mediums to the heights of popularity they enjoy now, they fail to realize that he himself is a great writer and artist, full of his own impressive ideas. Maybe some time I'll talk about his Phoenix series.
I recently finished Dark Horse's run of Tezuka's breakout hit, Astro Boy. He had some success with Kimba but Astro Boy is what got everyone's attention back then and the title propelled Tezuka to be the Godfather of Manga as he is known today. However, reading it now is a bit of a challenge. The layout and narrative style haven't aged well, coming across as very wordy and thick for a simple action series. Most of the time, Astro Boy is simply caught up in an evil plot or scheme and has to beat up the bad guys in order to save the day. General old-school superhero story-telling. This leaves the reader with a heavily episodic series that rarely refers to other stories. The particular collection that Dark Horse has translated doesn't even have the volumes in any kind of chronological or narrative order. You could pick up any volume and begin reading without having to read the others before it (except for two or three that collect a newspaper run, but even then, the story would be hard to follow).
So why do I give Astro Boy 3 stars? Well, even though Tezuka had to keep the story simple and action driven to please his editors, throughout his stories he was able to delve into more complicated material, even if it was merely subtext. The story begins with a brilliant robotics scientist named Dr. Tenma. However, he was so caught up with work that he neglected his own son. When his son got into a car accident, he felt the need to turn his life around, so he coerced the robotics department to help him create a robot version of his son and succeeded. Unfortunately, Dr. Tenma grew upset that the robot couldn't grow like a normal child and abandoned it, too, going into seclusion. Sometime later, Dr. Ochanamizu found the robot's body and rebuilt him with super powers, turning him into Astro Boy, who would eventually become the poster child for the ideology that robots deserve to have rights just like the humans.
I find it interesting that Tezuka is a contemporary of Isaac Asimov and his three rules of robotics. While they have their similarities, it's interesting to see how each of them consider the possibilities of robots with progressive artificial intelligence, and that's what makes Astro Boy such a remarkable work. The out-dated elements of the story can be compensated by the speculation and vision Tezuka offers for our future.
As for what to expect in future columns, I don't know what to tell you. I was expecting Shangri-La (which is has been pretty cool) to finish with 13 episodes but it's probably going to finish in the mid-twenties now. I do have Hyakko and Eden of the East fansubs sitting on my computer that I could finish up quite quickly. There are a couple of other anime series that I could really dive into that are just sitting around.
Another possibility may not be reviews of a specific title but a focus on broader topics within anime and manga. I'm not terribly industry savvy, but I could delve a bit into that as well. I'm just not sure. You'll just have to come back and check out what I've got to say!
Showing posts with label Dark Horse. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Dark Horse. Show all posts
6.27.2009
The Great Comeback!! FMP, Digimon, Shikabane Hime, Trigun, Dr. Slump
Boom! Hey, everyone! I'm trying to make a comeback, talking about anime like I've always wanted to. Everything's the same as before, just now I'll be hitting newer titles as they come my way. I've decided to really hit big with several titles, so let's get started.
Full Metal Panic (24 Episodes)
Animation: ****
Story: ****
Music: ***
Overall: ****
Once again, an older title, but I've got this friend who seems to think I'm missing out by not watching Fumoffu and The Second Raid, so I rewatched the original first season to get myself into the mood. I remember when I watched it before, I thought it was alright. Fun, but not much of an impact. However, I've learned that I am less critical the second time through I watch something. It's how I ended up liking the Trigun anime much more than before (more on that later!).
So anyways, the story: A certain mercenary organization called Mithril spends its time acting as a covert police force throughout the world, wiping out terrorist camps and illegal chemical factories for drugs and such. One of their major concerns is a type of person called a Whispered who, as far as I can tell, are born with an innate knowledge of something called Black Technology. Mithril goes out of its way to make sure these Whispered Ones aren't misused and/or abused by those with evil intentions, a big deal considering the major weaponry Black Technology is capable.
A Japanese high-school girl named Kaname Chidori comes to Mithril's attention as a potential Whispered, so they send a trio to watch over her. Two of them take care of basic bugging and surveillance, but the third is supposed to enroll in the school as a student and be her covert bodyguard. This third mercenary is Sousuke Sagara, a perfect military man to the nines and an ace mecha pilot but the emotions of a statue and over-assertive. The beginning mostly deals with Sousuke suspecting everything as a potential attack and making life miserable for Kaname, who turns out to be an opinionated tomboy who finds Sousuke's “antics” to be annoying to the point of insanity.
Of course, things begin to go south in a hurry as Kaname turns out to be a Whispered and thus the target of terrorists. From there, the action moves back and forth from the crazy adventures of Sousuke and Kaname to military mecha action and, most pleasantly, both at the same time.
The series is consistently fun, balancing the bone-crunching robots with Kaname crunching Sousuke's bones for humiliating her in public. This balance really creates a ranged experience not often found on other anime series and, best of all, helps set up the climactic ending that seems so satisfying when it's all over.
An early Gonzo piece, it's easy to see how quickly they wanted to integrate CG with 2D animation and, for the most part, it works. There are a few bits that seem obvious but otherwise it's fairly seamless and doesn't detract. Balance is found here as there isn't a shift in quality between big robot combat and Sousuke's involuntary pratfalls. As for the music, it works. The opening and ending themes seem rather average, but the actual score for the series feels like it came from Hollywood action flick, intensifying the action.
Now that I've had this refresher course, I can finally start on the other shows with worrying about forgetting anything and with a positive attitude. While many of the concepts individually aren't really new, they're brought together in a solid and believable way, and that's why FMP is favorite for many people.
Digimon 02 (50 Episodes)
Animation: 3
Story: 4
Music: 4
Overall: 4
Thanks to Toei and CrunchyRoll making some deals, the world has been blessed with being able to watch some of the classics of animation. And thanks to Toei's deal with FUNimation, they are spread all over for people to see. So why Digimon 02, you may ask, as opposed to Fist of the North Star or Galaxy Express 999? Well, Digimon is shorter (I haven't finished FOTNS yet and haven't even begun GE999) and it is one of my favorites.
You see, I was a Pokemon fan back in early middle school, which meant that Digimon was the weaker version of Pokemon. Same idea, but Pokemon was cooler, by some middle-school-age cool-ometer. You know how that all works. However, as the Pokemon anime was proving itself to be redundant and repetitive with no end in sight (I gave up after Orange League) I found myself more curious about the Digimon anime. So, switching over from KidsWB to the old-school Fox Kids block for a moment, I found myself at the end of the second season and completely enthralled. The climactic ending of that series convinced me to sit through most of the third season, which wasn't bad either. However, since then, I haven't had the chance to watch the whole thing from beginning to end. So when CrunchyRoll got the rights to post them on their website, I jumped at the chance.
Digimon 02 starts off like any other merchandise driven anime series: a group of kids suddenly become the “Chosen Ones” (DigiDestined in this case) and gain digimon partners to help them maintain the balance between the real world and the digital world. They fight off the monster of the day and keep the peace. Simple enough.
However, things don't stay simple for long within the series. Taking place 3 years after the first Digimon Adventure, the old crew has grown up, so the younger ones and a few new characters take over. They start taking on the Digimon Kaiser, who is trying to take over the Digital World. Then they learn that the Kaiser is another DigiDestined that had been corrupted by other powers for their own purposes, who had been corrupted by an old nemesis for his own purposes. As these twists develop, the heroes are faced with some tough decisions. Some of the returning heroes are haunted by the past, while the others suddenly feel the weight of saving the world and the costs it will have to take to do so.
I've always felt that the Digimon anime series have reached for an incredible amount of character complexity for a kids show, which is perhaps why I'm so drawn to it. The animation is standard. Toei isn't trying to blow the kids' socks off as they are making recognizable characters so they can be purchased later on. And there A LOT of transformation sequences. Be prepared to turn your brain off for a minute or two sometimes as they cycle through everyone's upgrades. The music is catchy and I found myself really liking the second ending's theme. If someone can direct me to an OST, that'd be greatly appreciated.
Watching kids' shows as an adult does take some humility, but, with Digimon 02, the payoffs are still there and the ending is incredibly satisfying (an not just because you're finished). I'll always have a weakness for Digimon and should more of it be posted online like that, I'll be there in a hearbeat. I still haven't completely finished the first and third seasons, and I know next to nothing about the fourth and fifth. And, of course, there's all the movies. C'mon, Toei! Snap, snap!!
Shikabane Hime (25 Episodes)
Animation: *****
Story: ****
Music: ****
Overall: ****
GAINAX always has a soft spot for girls with guns and Shikabane Hime is no different. While this take on the motif is quite bizarre, we're still led on a fun and engaging GAINAX-style romp that won't be forgotten soon.
Shikabane Hime delves into the world of the undead and how it relates to Buddhist monks and the world as a whole. You see, when a person dies, if they have lingering regrets, they will come back to life as a Shikabane, gaining incredible powers and generally having a hatred for humanity. However, through proper rituals, a Shikabane can be turned into a Shikabane Hime, an undead entity that assist the monks in eliminating the Shikabane from causing too much damage. Of course, with most supernatural goings on, all of this is generally kept secret from the public as a whole.
Meanwhile, a high-school-age boy named Ouri walks up in the middle of the night and follows a strange black cat to see his “older brother”, Keisei, with a Shikabane Hime (Ouri was an orphan at the orphanage where Keisei works). New to this whole side of his brother, he suddenly is thrust into the forefront of the battles and politics surrounding it all. He learns about the various relationships the monks have with their partners, ranging from deep respect to deep loathing.
Soon, Ouri develops his own relationship with his brother's Shikabane Hime, Makina. Not put off by her aggressive, tomboy disposition (or the fact that she's cold to the teach because she's dead!), he tries to get to know her, despite Keisei's warnings to not bother with Shikabane and Shikabane Hime. As Ouri digs deeper and deeper, not only does he face enormous and destructive monsters, he also learns some frightening truths about the particular sect of Buddhism that deals with these undead creatures as well as about himself. Of course, things don't get any better when a clever group of villains called the Seven Stars enter the scene.
Shikabane Hime is an anime that certainly has a lot going for it: girls with guns, gruesome monsters, inquisitive boys, crazy and bizarre villains, and great action. The animation is great, though it is obvious that they're still in the momentum that FLCL gave them. Seriously, ever since that OVA series, everything GAINAX has done has had flavors of FLCL, especially when the action heats up. Things get angular and disproportionate, showing that combat doesn't need to be realistic to be engaging, and nothing cemented that more than Gurren Lagann. Don't get me wrong, it's great stuff (I freaking love FLCL), but it does tend to stand out. Perhaps I'm more of an animation junkie, but I noticed it and it was slightly distracting.
The music is also excellent. Using a couple of Evanescence-style goth rock pieces for the opening and closing animations and carrying those melodies over into the score really lent the proper attitude for the whole series. It's another OST I'd like to pick up.
The ending, however, left a bit of a bad taste in my mouth. I understand that the series had been trying to ask some pretty deep questions all throughout, but for such an action driven story, I felt it ended before it was supposed to, like there was supposed to be one more episode before it finished. Using an analogy that hopefully won't be a spoiler, it's like watching Return of the Jedi and the movie ends just as Luke begins fighting Darth Vader in the Emperor's Throne Room. It felt weird. Certainly, there was an emotional resolution, but I don't think it makes up for the decision to stop where they did. Maybe it's just me.
Finally, I have to admit it was pretty cool being able to watch it legally just a few weeks after it aired in Japan on FUNimation's YouTube Channel and, later, their video portal. I imagine its brave steps forward has helps propel all of the simulcasts on CrunchyRoll and other efforts to bring anime to an international market, though it's doubtless that Kurokami is the most ambitious.
And speaking of FUNimation and streaming: tough luck lately, huh? First One Piece's simulcast goes down the tubes and now Phantom and FMA: Brotherhood. I've been way excited to watch One Piece and FMA online, but this really is a turn for the worse. Good luck to FUNimation on getting all of that turned around.
Trigun Maximum (14 Volumes)
Rating: ****
It's finally over!! After we all saw the anime, picked up Dark Horse's first two graphic novels, things slowed to a crawl as Nightow's publishing schedule went haywire and we didn't know when the next installment would come. Finally, we get to see just how this great saga comes to a close, and what an ending it was.
Trigun (for those who have been living under a rock) is a sci-fi/western action series that takes place on a desert planet that humans have been trying to colonize for several decades. In the midst of this recreation of western America is a man named Vash the Stampede, an outlaw with a massive price on his head and a horrible reputation. People say that he wiped out an entire town, but no one was killed. He wears a red coat and is an amazing sharp-shooter and a walking disaster zone.
Enter Millie and Meryl of the Bernadelli Insurance Company. Their job is to find this Vash and make sure that he doesn't wreck any more insured houses. What they find is a happy-go-lucky party animal who seems to be the least dangerous man alive. All about peace, love, and donuts, this supposed human hurricane spends his time wandering from place to place, eating and drinking as much as possible, and playing with kids. Is this really Vash the Stampede?
Things become clear as Vash's complex and haunting past comes to light and he has to stop his brother from destroying all of humanity. Only time will tell if Vash's message will hold out as he faces opponent after opponent and situation after situation, testing his physical and moral mettle to its limits.
Sorry if that sounds like a commercial, but I really loved this series. I picked it up and found myself engrossed with the characters, especially Vash. Pushing moral limits of a seemingly pure character is always fascinating (to me, anyways) and the Trigun series does that very well.
Trigun Maximum is actually a continuation of the original Trigan manga that had a short run before the magazine that was publishing it went under. The name was changed for the new run and it has finally finished.
Personally, I'm a fan of the art in this series. I know there are other people who find Nightow's work to be convoluted and hard to follow, and I have to admit there were times I didn't really know what was going on, but for some reason, I'm fine with that. To me, it carries the same spirit as a lot of the independent American comics of the ninties. Not necessarily reinventing the wheel for its basic concepts, but on how they were presented. Basically, it just shows that Nightow is a huge Todd McFarlane/Spawn fan. (When a Vash figure as proposed by McFarlane toys, Nightow blew a rod, as recorded in his omake.)
The ending is an interesting one. There is resolution, but things have been left open. Instead of concluding everything by tying all the knots, Trigun comes full circle with its characters almost picking up where they left off before the whole thing got serious. The homage to Dr. Slump is interesting as well (on the inside of the cover), also proving that this whole thing really wasn't meant to be taken all that seriously. And that's just like Vash, when you think about it.
And speaking of Dr. Slump, guess what else just finished?
Dr. Slump (18 Volumes)
Rating: ***
The work of Akira Toriyama has been crunching in America from the beginning of this decade. His world-wide phenomenon Dragon Ball has become on of the greatest franchises in entertainment's history. Seriously, I think it's now bigger than both Gundam & Star Trek combined. It may even rival Star Wars!!
However, before all of that, Toriyama was making a name for himself for a completely different reason. Back in 1980 (four years before Dragon Ball), he created Dr. Slump, a manga about a genius, yet lecherous, inventor, Senbei, and his female android, Arale. The misadventures of these two and the reoccurring cast of Penguin Village's citizens quickly became popular, extending the story all over the place and eventually becoming an anime series that ran for 200+ of its own episodes before Toei picked up Dragon Ball.
It's hard to really describe a comedy manga in terms of story, especially as non sequiter and self-referential as Dr. Slump. Toriyama, his assistants, and his editor make several appearances, either shamelessly moving the story along themselves or outright admitting they really have no idea of what's going on. In fact, the characters themselves are so spontaneous that they appear in Dragon Ball for a short while when Goku needs Senbei to fix the Dragon Radar.
While the comedy itself is fun, it's also rather forgettable. Driven by cheap gags and low brow humor, its entertaining, but I doubt I'll read these again. So why does it get three stars? To be honest, it was through Dr. Slump that I really began to appreciate Akira Toriyama's art style. Dragon Ball really doesn't offer a great variety of things to be seen, but Dr. Slump goes all over the place, including Star Wars. It's easy to see just how good of an artist Toriyama was (and still is).
While Dragon Ball will probably keep Akira Toriyama out of the streets for the rest of his life, he never would have gotten the chance to tell the story of a monkey-tailed boy from outer space if it weren't for the success he had with Dr. Slump.
And speaking of that ridiculously huge franchise, I've been watching the new Dragon Ball Kai (mostly out of curiosity; if they can cram all of DBZ into 100 episodes, I'm in) and I'm surprised that FUNimation hasn't licensed it yet. It may not get television ratings, but I'm sure its more compact storytelling will draw in new-comers who may have missed the glory days of Toonami.
Well, how's that for a comeback, folks. Now let's see if I can keep this up! Currently, I'm making a run on both Dragon Ball Z and Naruto (yes, I'm going to watch ALL of the filler episodes). I expect to be done with DBZ by the end of summer as well as Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle (man, the anime is weeeeiiiirrrrd). I've also got Code Geass R2 almost done and could be finished with a few others quite soon. In short, I have no excuse to keep reviewing anime. I certainly haven't stopped watching it.
Full Metal Panic (24 Episodes)
Animation: ****
Story: ****
Music: ***
Overall: ****
Once again, an older title, but I've got this friend who seems to think I'm missing out by not watching Fumoffu and The Second Raid, so I rewatched the original first season to get myself into the mood. I remember when I watched it before, I thought it was alright. Fun, but not much of an impact. However, I've learned that I am less critical the second time through I watch something. It's how I ended up liking the Trigun anime much more than before (more on that later!).
So anyways, the story: A certain mercenary organization called Mithril spends its time acting as a covert police force throughout the world, wiping out terrorist camps and illegal chemical factories for drugs and such. One of their major concerns is a type of person called a Whispered who, as far as I can tell, are born with an innate knowledge of something called Black Technology. Mithril goes out of its way to make sure these Whispered Ones aren't misused and/or abused by those with evil intentions, a big deal considering the major weaponry Black Technology is capable.
A Japanese high-school girl named Kaname Chidori comes to Mithril's attention as a potential Whispered, so they send a trio to watch over her. Two of them take care of basic bugging and surveillance, but the third is supposed to enroll in the school as a student and be her covert bodyguard. This third mercenary is Sousuke Sagara, a perfect military man to the nines and an ace mecha pilot but the emotions of a statue and over-assertive. The beginning mostly deals with Sousuke suspecting everything as a potential attack and making life miserable for Kaname, who turns out to be an opinionated tomboy who finds Sousuke's “antics” to be annoying to the point of insanity.
Of course, things begin to go south in a hurry as Kaname turns out to be a Whispered and thus the target of terrorists. From there, the action moves back and forth from the crazy adventures of Sousuke and Kaname to military mecha action and, most pleasantly, both at the same time.
The series is consistently fun, balancing the bone-crunching robots with Kaname crunching Sousuke's bones for humiliating her in public. This balance really creates a ranged experience not often found on other anime series and, best of all, helps set up the climactic ending that seems so satisfying when it's all over.
An early Gonzo piece, it's easy to see how quickly they wanted to integrate CG with 2D animation and, for the most part, it works. There are a few bits that seem obvious but otherwise it's fairly seamless and doesn't detract. Balance is found here as there isn't a shift in quality between big robot combat and Sousuke's involuntary pratfalls. As for the music, it works. The opening and ending themes seem rather average, but the actual score for the series feels like it came from Hollywood action flick, intensifying the action.
Now that I've had this refresher course, I can finally start on the other shows with worrying about forgetting anything and with a positive attitude. While many of the concepts individually aren't really new, they're brought together in a solid and believable way, and that's why FMP is favorite for many people.
Digimon 02 (50 Episodes)
Animation: 3
Story: 4
Music: 4
Overall: 4
Thanks to Toei and CrunchyRoll making some deals, the world has been blessed with being able to watch some of the classics of animation. And thanks to Toei's deal with FUNimation, they are spread all over for people to see. So why Digimon 02, you may ask, as opposed to Fist of the North Star or Galaxy Express 999? Well, Digimon is shorter (I haven't finished FOTNS yet and haven't even begun GE999) and it is one of my favorites.
You see, I was a Pokemon fan back in early middle school, which meant that Digimon was the weaker version of Pokemon. Same idea, but Pokemon was cooler, by some middle-school-age cool-ometer. You know how that all works. However, as the Pokemon anime was proving itself to be redundant and repetitive with no end in sight (I gave up after Orange League) I found myself more curious about the Digimon anime. So, switching over from KidsWB to the old-school Fox Kids block for a moment, I found myself at the end of the second season and completely enthralled. The climactic ending of that series convinced me to sit through most of the third season, which wasn't bad either. However, since then, I haven't had the chance to watch the whole thing from beginning to end. So when CrunchyRoll got the rights to post them on their website, I jumped at the chance.
Digimon 02 starts off like any other merchandise driven anime series: a group of kids suddenly become the “Chosen Ones” (DigiDestined in this case) and gain digimon partners to help them maintain the balance between the real world and the digital world. They fight off the monster of the day and keep the peace. Simple enough.
However, things don't stay simple for long within the series. Taking place 3 years after the first Digimon Adventure, the old crew has grown up, so the younger ones and a few new characters take over. They start taking on the Digimon Kaiser, who is trying to take over the Digital World. Then they learn that the Kaiser is another DigiDestined that had been corrupted by other powers for their own purposes, who had been corrupted by an old nemesis for his own purposes. As these twists develop, the heroes are faced with some tough decisions. Some of the returning heroes are haunted by the past, while the others suddenly feel the weight of saving the world and the costs it will have to take to do so.
I've always felt that the Digimon anime series have reached for an incredible amount of character complexity for a kids show, which is perhaps why I'm so drawn to it. The animation is standard. Toei isn't trying to blow the kids' socks off as they are making recognizable characters so they can be purchased later on. And there A LOT of transformation sequences. Be prepared to turn your brain off for a minute or two sometimes as they cycle through everyone's upgrades. The music is catchy and I found myself really liking the second ending's theme. If someone can direct me to an OST, that'd be greatly appreciated.
Watching kids' shows as an adult does take some humility, but, with Digimon 02, the payoffs are still there and the ending is incredibly satisfying (an not just because you're finished). I'll always have a weakness for Digimon and should more of it be posted online like that, I'll be there in a hearbeat. I still haven't completely finished the first and third seasons, and I know next to nothing about the fourth and fifth. And, of course, there's all the movies. C'mon, Toei! Snap, snap!!
Shikabane Hime (25 Episodes)
Animation: *****
Story: ****
Music: ****
Overall: ****
GAINAX always has a soft spot for girls with guns and Shikabane Hime is no different. While this take on the motif is quite bizarre, we're still led on a fun and engaging GAINAX-style romp that won't be forgotten soon.
Shikabane Hime delves into the world of the undead and how it relates to Buddhist monks and the world as a whole. You see, when a person dies, if they have lingering regrets, they will come back to life as a Shikabane, gaining incredible powers and generally having a hatred for humanity. However, through proper rituals, a Shikabane can be turned into a Shikabane Hime, an undead entity that assist the monks in eliminating the Shikabane from causing too much damage. Of course, with most supernatural goings on, all of this is generally kept secret from the public as a whole.
Meanwhile, a high-school-age boy named Ouri walks up in the middle of the night and follows a strange black cat to see his “older brother”, Keisei, with a Shikabane Hime (Ouri was an orphan at the orphanage where Keisei works). New to this whole side of his brother, he suddenly is thrust into the forefront of the battles and politics surrounding it all. He learns about the various relationships the monks have with their partners, ranging from deep respect to deep loathing.
Soon, Ouri develops his own relationship with his brother's Shikabane Hime, Makina. Not put off by her aggressive, tomboy disposition (or the fact that she's cold to the teach because she's dead!), he tries to get to know her, despite Keisei's warnings to not bother with Shikabane and Shikabane Hime. As Ouri digs deeper and deeper, not only does he face enormous and destructive monsters, he also learns some frightening truths about the particular sect of Buddhism that deals with these undead creatures as well as about himself. Of course, things don't get any better when a clever group of villains called the Seven Stars enter the scene.
Shikabane Hime is an anime that certainly has a lot going for it: girls with guns, gruesome monsters, inquisitive boys, crazy and bizarre villains, and great action. The animation is great, though it is obvious that they're still in the momentum that FLCL gave them. Seriously, ever since that OVA series, everything GAINAX has done has had flavors of FLCL, especially when the action heats up. Things get angular and disproportionate, showing that combat doesn't need to be realistic to be engaging, and nothing cemented that more than Gurren Lagann. Don't get me wrong, it's great stuff (I freaking love FLCL), but it does tend to stand out. Perhaps I'm more of an animation junkie, but I noticed it and it was slightly distracting.
The music is also excellent. Using a couple of Evanescence-style goth rock pieces for the opening and closing animations and carrying those melodies over into the score really lent the proper attitude for the whole series. It's another OST I'd like to pick up.
The ending, however, left a bit of a bad taste in my mouth. I understand that the series had been trying to ask some pretty deep questions all throughout, but for such an action driven story, I felt it ended before it was supposed to, like there was supposed to be one more episode before it finished. Using an analogy that hopefully won't be a spoiler, it's like watching Return of the Jedi and the movie ends just as Luke begins fighting Darth Vader in the Emperor's Throne Room. It felt weird. Certainly, there was an emotional resolution, but I don't think it makes up for the decision to stop where they did. Maybe it's just me.
Finally, I have to admit it was pretty cool being able to watch it legally just a few weeks after it aired in Japan on FUNimation's YouTube Channel and, later, their video portal. I imagine its brave steps forward has helps propel all of the simulcasts on CrunchyRoll and other efforts to bring anime to an international market, though it's doubtless that Kurokami is the most ambitious.
And speaking of FUNimation and streaming: tough luck lately, huh? First One Piece's simulcast goes down the tubes and now Phantom and FMA: Brotherhood. I've been way excited to watch One Piece and FMA online, but this really is a turn for the worse. Good luck to FUNimation on getting all of that turned around.
Trigun Maximum (14 Volumes)
Rating: ****
It's finally over!! After we all saw the anime, picked up Dark Horse's first two graphic novels, things slowed to a crawl as Nightow's publishing schedule went haywire and we didn't know when the next installment would come. Finally, we get to see just how this great saga comes to a close, and what an ending it was.
Trigun (for those who have been living under a rock) is a sci-fi/western action series that takes place on a desert planet that humans have been trying to colonize for several decades. In the midst of this recreation of western America is a man named Vash the Stampede, an outlaw with a massive price on his head and a horrible reputation. People say that he wiped out an entire town, but no one was killed. He wears a red coat and is an amazing sharp-shooter and a walking disaster zone.
Enter Millie and Meryl of the Bernadelli Insurance Company. Their job is to find this Vash and make sure that he doesn't wreck any more insured houses. What they find is a happy-go-lucky party animal who seems to be the least dangerous man alive. All about peace, love, and donuts, this supposed human hurricane spends his time wandering from place to place, eating and drinking as much as possible, and playing with kids. Is this really Vash the Stampede?
Things become clear as Vash's complex and haunting past comes to light and he has to stop his brother from destroying all of humanity. Only time will tell if Vash's message will hold out as he faces opponent after opponent and situation after situation, testing his physical and moral mettle to its limits.
Sorry if that sounds like a commercial, but I really loved this series. I picked it up and found myself engrossed with the characters, especially Vash. Pushing moral limits of a seemingly pure character is always fascinating (to me, anyways) and the Trigun series does that very well.
Trigun Maximum is actually a continuation of the original Trigan manga that had a short run before the magazine that was publishing it went under. The name was changed for the new run and it has finally finished.
Personally, I'm a fan of the art in this series. I know there are other people who find Nightow's work to be convoluted and hard to follow, and I have to admit there were times I didn't really know what was going on, but for some reason, I'm fine with that. To me, it carries the same spirit as a lot of the independent American comics of the ninties. Not necessarily reinventing the wheel for its basic concepts, but on how they were presented. Basically, it just shows that Nightow is a huge Todd McFarlane/Spawn fan. (When a Vash figure as proposed by McFarlane toys, Nightow blew a rod, as recorded in his omake.)
The ending is an interesting one. There is resolution, but things have been left open. Instead of concluding everything by tying all the knots, Trigun comes full circle with its characters almost picking up where they left off before the whole thing got serious. The homage to Dr. Slump is interesting as well (on the inside of the cover), also proving that this whole thing really wasn't meant to be taken all that seriously. And that's just like Vash, when you think about it.
And speaking of Dr. Slump, guess what else just finished?
Dr. Slump (18 Volumes)
Rating: ***
The work of Akira Toriyama has been crunching in America from the beginning of this decade. His world-wide phenomenon Dragon Ball has become on of the greatest franchises in entertainment's history. Seriously, I think it's now bigger than both Gundam & Star Trek combined. It may even rival Star Wars!!
However, before all of that, Toriyama was making a name for himself for a completely different reason. Back in 1980 (four years before Dragon Ball), he created Dr. Slump, a manga about a genius, yet lecherous, inventor, Senbei, and his female android, Arale. The misadventures of these two and the reoccurring cast of Penguin Village's citizens quickly became popular, extending the story all over the place and eventually becoming an anime series that ran for 200+ of its own episodes before Toei picked up Dragon Ball.
It's hard to really describe a comedy manga in terms of story, especially as non sequiter and self-referential as Dr. Slump. Toriyama, his assistants, and his editor make several appearances, either shamelessly moving the story along themselves or outright admitting they really have no idea of what's going on. In fact, the characters themselves are so spontaneous that they appear in Dragon Ball for a short while when Goku needs Senbei to fix the Dragon Radar.
While the comedy itself is fun, it's also rather forgettable. Driven by cheap gags and low brow humor, its entertaining, but I doubt I'll read these again. So why does it get three stars? To be honest, it was through Dr. Slump that I really began to appreciate Akira Toriyama's art style. Dragon Ball really doesn't offer a great variety of things to be seen, but Dr. Slump goes all over the place, including Star Wars. It's easy to see just how good of an artist Toriyama was (and still is).
While Dragon Ball will probably keep Akira Toriyama out of the streets for the rest of his life, he never would have gotten the chance to tell the story of a monkey-tailed boy from outer space if it weren't for the success he had with Dr. Slump.
And speaking of that ridiculously huge franchise, I've been watching the new Dragon Ball Kai (mostly out of curiosity; if they can cram all of DBZ into 100 episodes, I'm in) and I'm surprised that FUNimation hasn't licensed it yet. It may not get television ratings, but I'm sure its more compact storytelling will draw in new-comers who may have missed the glory days of Toonami.
Well, how's that for a comeback, folks. Now let's see if I can keep this up! Currently, I'm making a run on both Dragon Ball Z and Naruto (yes, I'm going to watch ALL of the filler episodes). I expect to be done with DBZ by the end of summer as well as Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle (man, the anime is weeeeiiiirrrrd). I've also got Code Geass R2 almost done and could be finished with a few others quite soon. In short, I have no excuse to keep reviewing anime. I certainly haven't stopped watching it.
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