Fullmetal Alchemist and Spriggan!

Welcome to Summer! I was able to survive finals week and still able to finish one of the greatest anime saga's of all time while simultaneously discovering a really awesome film! That can't happen that often.

I obviously need to focus more on blogging once a week again. Things have been pretty hectic, but I won't bore you with my life. Onto what's important!

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Fullmetal Alchemist (51 Episodes)
Story: *****
Animation: *****
Music: ***
Overall: *****

This saga is one of my favorites, and having just finished it again, I remember why this show is so awesome!

If you don't know already, Edward and Alphonse Elric are two brothers that are prodigies of alchemy. However, in an effort to trasmute their dead mother, Ed loses a leg and Al loses his entire body. Ed then sacrifices his right arm to get Al's soul into a suit of armor. From there, they realize what is dead is dead, so they go on a quest to regain their lost body parts. This, of course, involves the legendary Philosopher's stone, capable of creating matter outside the laws of alchemy, something these brothers desperately want.

Enter the conspiracies, as the dark past of the Philosopher's stone is revealed to the Elric brothers. The story takes them all over, and as things develop, motivations shift and change, leaving only the brothers' desire to stay together. While it may be a bit annoying that you have to watch the following movie to get the rest of the story, it is worth going through it all. By the time you finish the 51st episode. You can hardly wait for the movie. This really is a well written story!

The animation is also very spectacular. Bones really outdid themselves this time. The action and alchemy flows together perfectly, the goofiness is consistent, and not out of place at all. And their whole world seems so real. Bones for Bones!

The music is a bit of a low point. It's decent, but nothing to go find the soundtrack for. Yes, the opening themes are good, but the rest of the soundtrack succeeds in supporting the show, and really doesn't stand on its own very well.

Overall, this is one of my favorite series. The characters and story are everything in this show, and that really makes the difference for me. It is shows like this that make me say anime is awesome, capable of create a story that isn't just special effects or goofy nonsense, but it still has a lot of those things as well. This isn't a saga easily forgotten.

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Spriggan
Story: ****
Animation: ****
Music: ****
Overall: ****

A spriggan is a guardian, protecting humanity from ancient technology too powerful to be discovered. Enter Noah's Ark. As people learn more about it, they begin to discover its true powers. Through some attacks on his friends, the spriggan Yu Ominae gets involved and travels to Turkey on an adventure to find out what's going on and to stop those who would exploit the ultimate power of Noah's Ark.

When I saw this title around, I thought it would be fun and I did discover it was all that and more. Seriously, this is a show worth seeing. The whole James Bond/Indiana Jones feeling is perfect for such a movie. While Yu does seem like Son Goku at times, the story still is very engaging, proposing some pretty neat things.

The animation is also really neat, capable of just as much action as any James Bond movie. The sweeping landscapes and detailed enviorments really throw you into Turkey and deep within the Ark. Great stuff.

The music was fun, giving a bit of an ethnic feel to the whole show, just as any other adventure film should. This is a soundtrack worth picking up!

Overall, it's just good fun, like Indiana Jones or anything similar. The dub by ADV is done really well. The thing is, while I may not have any major criticisms, this isn't spectacular on any level. Awesome, neat, but nothing really ground-breaking. However, it is definetly worth seeing, so go see it!

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Well, I hope to post more often during the summer. I don't have a job yet, so I've got the free time to watch anime and review it! I plan to review at least the FMA movie, and maybe the Silent Mobius manga that I've just barely gotten to. We'll have to see.

SORRY!! Here's Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz and Fruits Basket

I have been so horribly busy, it's unreal. And now that Final's week is approaching, I hope I can stay on top of it all without spontaneously combusting! NEVERTHELESS! This does not mean I can go without my duties to watch anime with reckless abandon. I personally have gotten into One Piece like you would not believe. People criticize it for being silly and not that great of a series, but that's because they're comparing it to Fullmetal Alchemist, Evangelion, and other giants. I'd like to think I see One Piece for what it is: laid-back entertainment. I like the jokes, the action's not bad, and it's just fun to watch. It's great to have that kind of diversion amidst finals.

But I am not here to review One Piece (especially since it hasn't even finished yet!) Here we go!

Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz (Movie Version)
Story: ****
Animation: *****
Music: *****
Overall: *****

I know I've ranted about Gundam Wing before, and this movie is no different. I love this show.

The story takes place after the TV show, but it is not dependant upon it, like Fullmetal's Conquerer of Shamballa. Some unsatisfied people try to set up war in the peace everyone has worked so hard to create, so the Gundam Pilots and other familiar faces pull together to stop them. While the plot isn't bad, I don't think it is as put together as the TV series was. Thus, only 4 stars.

However, as much as I like what goes on, seeing the stellar animation is incredible. The battles are articulate, and everything just looks so pretty. No frames were reused here.

And the music is great as always. While I am a sucker for Two-Mix, I also love the inspiring orchestral soundtrack.

I know I am biased on this, but Gundam Wing really is an incredible show, and this movie wraps everything up nicely, leaving you with good feelings at the end.

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Fruits Basket (26 Episodes)
Story: ****
Animation: ****
Music: ***
Overall: ****

I know this is a bit of a turn around from what I've mostly reviewed before, but I finally got around to watching this series, and it's been a good stretch.

Tohru Honda is a girl who has lost both of her parents and doesn't have a lot of money, but she doesn't let that get her down. In fact, you could almost say that her good attitude is infectious. So when she comes upon the house of Shigure Sohma, she feels that she's imposing when Shigure invites to stay with him and his relatives, Yuki and Kyo.

However, a curse runs through the large Sohma family. Certain members change into an animal of the chinese zodiac when overly stressed or hugged by a member of the opposite gender outside the Sohma family. But that is just the surface. Beneath all of that is the deep tragedies that seem to run through every member of the family. When Tohru comes to meet each member, it is like a shaft of sunlight comes into their lives, giving them the hope they need to go on. However, the head of the family is not necessarily pleased with what Tohru is unintentionally doing.

In spite of all that, this show runs mostly like a light-hearted comedy. As you learn more about the characters, the more you laugh. That's how it works with this show! It's only at the end does the laughter step aside, allowing for a touching end.

The story all in all is pretty neat, but the episodes could almost be watched in any order because it is so episodic. The other problem is that the story only goes so far. Having read the manga, I know that there is so much more to tell, and that Akito, the head of the Sohma family, isn't that easily defeated. I would have loved to see the school play animated. It was hilarious.

The animation is good. While there isn't a whole lot of action, the editing and the silly little things make up the difference. It has been pleasant, considering the things I've seen Studio Deen do before, mostly being Mon Colle Knights, Soul Hunter, and Rave Master. I guess this means they're improving.

The music is just okay. It sets the proper mood, but it doesn't magnify anything.

I mostly enjoyed this show as a light comedy with touching moments dispersed throughout. It may not be up the alley of action fans, but there is a lot of heart in these characters and you can't help but laugh at how they interact (or fail to). The ending was interesting, considering that the manga wasn't finished when they ended it.

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Well, I hope that covers it for you. I'll try and post again next week. I think I can finish rewatching Fullmetal Alchemist by then. I don't know what I'll put it with though. We'll have to see. But right now, I've got to get studying. These finals aren't going to get A's themselves!

What a week! Gundam Wing and The Place Promised In Our Early Days

Yowza. This week as been good for me and my anime watching. Or at least yesterday as I finished Gundam Wing and then watched Place Promised. Both of these shows are incredible, and I highly recommend them, as you will see.

Gundam Wing (49 Episodes)
Story: *****
Music: *****
Animation: ****
Overall: *****

Ever since I first watched Gundam Wing on Toonami, I have been a fan of mecha anime, and now that I've gone out of my way to own all of the DVDs, I decided to watch through them again.

And what a great series it is. The story is engaging, rolling all over the place. Governments change, people die, and major questions are asked. The greatest thing I think is that the bad guys really aren't bad guys. Both Miliardo and Treize have honorable agendas, even if their methods aren't pretty.

For those unfamiliar with it, the story goes as follows. The people of earth have built space colonies to send people to, but the Earth decides to invade the colonies for their own benefits. Enter the five Gundam Pilots, sent to Earth to take down the organization called OZ which is the Earth's source of military power. However, things get sticky from there, as OZ takes over the earth, then goes for space. I hate to go into more details because it would take several pages. The story moves quickly and quite often, if you miss an episode, you miss a lot.

The music is just as impressive. The whole orchestra-with-electric-guitars thing is awesome, and makes me think of bands like Kansas. And the themes by Two-Mix are just as good.

The reason why the animation is only 4 stars is because they reuse a number of frames for their battle sequences, which is reasonable. Trying to come up with new scenes with so many robots would be quite challenging. Nevertheless, the action is pretty awesome.

I guess I'm biased. I watched this show, knowing that I was going to love it and why I loved it. However, I believe this is one of the best Mecha shows out there, if not the best. (I still haven't finished Gundam Seed, so we'll see). The story, the characters, the music, the mecha, the whole nine yards deserves my 5 stars.

The Place Promised In Our Early Days
Story: ****
Music: ****
Animation: *****
Overall: *****

Be it known through the universe that Makoto Shinkai is a genius. This guy, who did Voices of a Distant Star BY HIMSELF, has created a masterpiece. While he had a lot of help this time, and it shows, this movie is spectacular.

The premise is simple. In an alternate Japan, two guys and a girl make a promise together, to fly to a far off tower on the northern island of Japan. However, war starts up and complicates their situations, separating them. The story is how the three come together and fulfill their promise to each other.

And then there's alternate dimensions.

It's a pretty crazy story, but it all fits together in a nice, warm-fuzzy kind of way.

The thing to watch here is the animation. The freaking backgrounds are gorgeous, and the use of color is almost unparalleled. It almost feels real, just by watching it. The characters blend into the environment so well, you sort of forget this is animation. My jaw just drops as I watch this. The art alone is reason enough to see this movie.

The music is also fitting. As flight is a major part of the film, the music captures that, especially at the end for the climax, which isn't intense, but definetily cinematic.

Again, I watched this show, knowing I was going to love it. But when my jaw still drops, even though I've seen it before, that's a sign. This show is awesome. The visuals are unreal. Go see this one if you haven't already. And if you have, see it again.

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Well, this has been a good week. I doubt I'll ever have such a great lineup again. We'll have to see. For next week, I'll definetly get to Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz, but what else, I don't know. You'll just have to wait and see.

WELCOME!

Welcome to Josh Waters Anime Guidepost. The ultimate reasons for this blog is to have a space to rant about anime and/or manga as well as give reviews online. It'll be good experience for me.

Anywho, I hope to update about once a week, usually talking about one show or another, often rating it on my personal system I've created. I hope that my remarks will help you get an idea of what's out there to watch and what isn't worth watching.

But to begin today, I'd just like to introduce myself a little and give an idea of what I do like. My name IS Josh Waters. I'm from Logan, Utah, USA, and I am currently a student at Utah State University with no major. (Technically, I'm computer science, but that'll change soon.) Of anime, I tend to like action and mecha series, though there are a few others that do crop up as favorites. Recently, my friend has got me watching Elfen Lied, a truly bizzare and intense series, so when I finish that, I'll review it for you guys. Some of my favorites, just so you know, are Bleach, Gundam Wing, Fullmetal Alchemist, and I'm way excited for Death Note.

As for manga, I'll read just about anything, but some of my favorites are Azumanga Daioh, Angelic Layer (anything by CLAMP, really), Rurouni Kenshin, and Oh! My Goddess.

In any case, I'll try to update again this week because this really isn't a review, just an introduction. And if there is a series you would like me to review, just email me! bj_waters@hotmail.com I'll try to watch/read it (if I can find the time) and review for you. In the meantime, try to be patient. This semester has been stressful and I also have a part-time job. But I think this will be an enjoyable experience for all of us. Okay?