Showing posts with label anime. Show all posts
Showing posts with label anime. Show all posts


Image result for kobayashi's dragon maidI'm usually not a huge fan of slice-of-life anime such as this. Cute girls doing cute things can only hold its luster for so long before I begin to lose interest. At the start of Kobayashi's Dragon Maid, however, I knew this one would be different. Different in that, unlike some other anime of this genre I've seen, this one takes its bizarre concept and stays fairly grounded – for the most part. It definitely surprised me with how clever it was, despite it only getting me to laugh aloud a few times. This isn't a gut-busting, heart-palpitating comedy. It's more subtle than that but was able to keep me engaged throughout the entire journey. And its setup, though strange, definitely hooked me.

Kobayashi is just an ordinary adult woman living an ordinary adult life. She gets up, makes herself breakfast, goes to work, comes home, has a few drinks, and goes to bed. A very simple, yet boring, life. One night, however, she has a few more than a few drinks and ends up wandering up onto the mountain where she ends up saving a dragon named Tohru. The following morning, Kobayashi having lost all memory of the events of the night prior, is greeted by Tohru at the door of her small apartment. Apparently, Tohru has agreed to be Kobayashi's maid as penance for saving her. Then life with a dragon-maid starts!

Eventually new human and dragon characters get added to the roster. A young wide-eyed dragon-girl named Kanna; a video-game addict and recluse dragon named Fafnir; a very, shall I say, well-endowed and wise dragon named Lucoa; and the inconsequential-to-the-plot-but-still-best-girl dragon Elma. Along with some other human characters they go about their days trying to live among and adapt to humans.

Image result for kobayashi's dragon maid tailAs was previously stated, Kobayashi's Dragon Maid is a slice-of-life anime first and foremost. There is no grand narrative nor some epic evil to overcome. Instead the episodes are dedicated to Tohru and Kobayashi trying to prepare Kanna for school or Tohru attempting to prepare dinner for Kobayashi. We're not dealing with serious stuff here. With that being said, however, I did really end up feeling for these characters. Slice-of-life shows in particular tend to be popular for their love of the mundane but Kobayashi's Dragon Maid tends to take the mundane and add some kind of twist. For example, there is a running joke in the anime where Tohru tries to feed Kobayashi her tail (spoiler, she never succeeds). Or a dodge-ball match with a bunch of bullies getting out of hand when Tohru and her friends crush them with their superior dragon-strength.

This leads me to my first problem with the anime. It never follows through to the end. I was hoping by the end of the show one of these running jokes or “isms” that the characters have would get resolved and, though we are left with an emotional final episode, it never broke through to me like I thought it would. During the last episode I was hoping that Kobayashi would finally take a bite of her dragon-maid's tail or something to that effect. Don't get me wrong, the ending was still satisfying but it didn't quite get me to where I would have wanted.

One other minor issue I had was with the critically underutilized Elma. Obviously-best-girl Elma doesn't appear until episode eight and after that she only gets a few scene transition jokes to herself. She never becomes a truly vital part of the group which pains me to my very core. Hopefully a second season will fix that. I'll just have to be patient.

Image result for kobayashi's dragon maid gif elma

Truly, I wasn't expecting much of the music from this show but it is a delight through and through. Its opening is visually confusing and off-the-wall but the song is bouncy and definitely got me pumped for the upcoming episode and all of its music is able to keep a grin. It's also very uncommon that I commend Japanese voice acting (simply because I'm not too informed on the industry) but Kobayashi's Dragon Maid's voice performances are consistently great. The animation is also very good. The character designs are all very distinct and the color choice is fantastic. What really amazed me was the actions scenes, few and far between as they may be. Though it is just the dragons' way of 'playing' it is still astounding to look at. 

Image result for kobayashi's dragon maid fight gif

Kobayashi's Dragon Maid truly surprised me. Its characters are all very well-developed (with exception of Elma) and, though the ending of the series didn't quite do it for me, I will still look back on it fondly. Despite the problems, it still had a lot more heart than any other anime that I've seen in a long time. 

Kobayashi's Dragon Maid is a fantastic time from start to finish. 
Saturday, May 20, 2017
This spring season of anime was a little disappointing to me on the whole. I didn't get around to every show this season but the ones I did get to didn't really grab me. About four weeks in to the season I went on MyAnimeList to see what the most popular ones of the season were and I was surprised at just how much praise that My Hero Academia was getting. I didn't get on the band wagon right away because I've gotten really bored of super hero films and shows but I thought I would give this one a try. I was not disappointed. My Hero Academia is clever, fun, and really gripping right from the start but still not quite what I wanted from it.
Art by DeviantArt user corphish2
The premise alone originally got me into the show. At first it may seem like a generic super hero romp but it is surprisingly more than that. In this world the superpowers are known as Quirks and, contrary to most other hero tales, the ones who don't have a power are the odd-ones-out. This is interesting. I've seen enough X-Men to be able to sympathize with the ones who are considered freaks with their powers. In this world the ones who don't have a power are considered outsiders. After the first episode I wanted to see where this story would take me considering the differences that it fundamentally has with other super hero stories of today. In that aspect, I was disappointed. I suppose it's my fault as the name of the show is My Hero Academia - with an emphasis on 'Academia.' If I had taken this in mind I could have predicted that it would have the generic "school of heroes" set up. That set up, though not special, appeared at first to be uninspired but dang I just love these characters so much.

I've always been a believer that the setting doesn't carry much weight as long as the characters are relatable. This brings me to our main character, Izuku Midoriya. Izuku is quirkless i.e. he doesn't have any powers but he still strives to be a hero and even idolizes the so-called 'Symbol of Piece,' All Might. Because of his powerless position the other students make fun of him and he even develops a rivalry with a bully with a fire-based quirk, Bakugo. Izuku wants to take the entrance exam to the highest ranking hero-training school available but he can't pass without a quirk. This all changes, however, when All Might himself saves Izuku from a villain which leads to the discovery of All Might's grand secret - he can only do hero work for three hours a day. All Might explains to Izuku that he is looking for someone to hand over the reigns of 'Symbol of Piece' to so, after some rigorous training, All Might gives Izuku his powers of super strength and sends him on his way to take the entrance exam. You could consider this entire paragraph as a spoiler but this all happens in the span of the first four episodes.

The animation of My Hero Academia isn't the best I've seen this season but it is still very good in its own stylistic way. Thick lines and varied character designs make for a very memorable art style that accentuates the themes that the show is going for. The designs of the different heroes are especially great. There is a certain hero that goes by the name of Mt. Lady who only shows up in a couple scenes in the very beginning but her character design is so memorable even all these weeks later after finishing the series. All of the students eventually get their own hero costumes that do a good job of making them look cool while also giving them a lot of personality, not that they didn't have any before. I especially loved Asui, a frog-girl with (you guessed it) frog powers; Momo, who's powers were never fully explained; and Ochako, who has the power to make any object she touches lighter. One character that I was really hoping had a great design was Bakugo. The suit that he ends up with does fit with his explosive personality but it looks stupid. He just put grenades on each of his hands and, at least to me, it looks uninspired.

The music... I can't say much for. I think I liked it but I couldn't pick out a certain track over the others. Such a shame considering how great both the OP and ED are. The OP, THE DAY, is an aw-inspiring anthem that pumps me up for the show every time. The ED, Heroes, is always a good ending for almost every episode. Overall the sound isn't great but it does what it needs to which I can appreciate.

My Hero Academia is probably my favorite anime of this season with its good action, great characters, and wonderful designs and art.

My Hero Academia is thrilling!
Sunday, June 26, 2016
I'll be honest, it's not easy for me to pick favorites. It just might be tacky to say this, but my favorite anime of all time is Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood. The original 2003 series showed me the possibilities of what anime could be but Brotherhood solidified the idea that anime, just like everything else in this world, could be art. With that in mind, I simply cannot review this piece of art without spoiling the original series and at least a little bit of this one. So let this be known: Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood is one of my all time favorite things that exists and very well may be the best anime of all time. With that out of the way, I can talk about what makes this show so special.

For my first paragraph I would usually run down the general setup of the world and the characters and their motivations. I don't feel that I need to do that here. If you truly do need this then I recommend you read my FMA 2003 review. For this post, however, I am mostly just going to go over the differences between the two series.

For starters, the humunculi have changed slightly from their 2003 counterparts. The biggest change is their creation. The 2003 series had the humunculi being created from the people that had tried the taboo of human transmutation. I did like this idea because it gave each humunculus a connection to the characters but it didn't capitalize on this fact like I hoped it would. Brotherhood gets rid of this problem completely by having each of the humunculus being created by Father, who is a way more sinister bad guy than Dantes from the original series. Some of the humunculi's names and forms have been changed as well. Instead of Sloth being a liquid version of Ed and Al's mother, he is now a gigantic monster who is actually quite sloth-like. Pride is no longer the Fuhrer. Instead, the Fuhrer takes the name of Wrath.

I feel like these changes, even though they existed first through the original manga, are welcome as their names correspond more to their individual desires. In the 2003 series, Pride wasn't very Prideful, Sloth wasn't slothful, and so on. With these new identities, they each have to deal with the fact that they are based on the seven deadly sins and it makes me even feel bad for them at times. Especially Pride, Wrath, and Greed who all get more screen time then I ever would have expected.

The first twelve episodes of Brotherhood are equivalent to the the first twenty-four episodes of 2003. I have heard this as a complaint as some characters like Hughes and Shao Tucker don't get enough screen time but, to be fair, they don't get a whole lot of time to develop in the manga either. After the first twelve episodes, Brotherhood takes off into a whole new never-before-seen arc and introduces two new Brotherhood-only characters: May Chang and Ling Yao. If you've seen 2003 as many times as I have, these new characters and new surroundings come as a breath of fresh air. Later in the series we get even more characters and even more buildup to the eventual epic battle with Father.

In my FMA 2003 review, I mentioned on how amazingly emotional the soundtrack was. I am very proud to say that Brotherhood does not disappoint as it breaths new life into the music that the series is known for. We don't have the same standout tracks like Bratja but we do get a lot of new and unique tracks to take their place. With that being said, I do like 2003's soundtrack more because of Bratja. That one song is enough to tip the scales for me personally and I do truly wish that Brotherhood had included it at least once in the series.

I didn't mention the English voice acting in my 2003 review, but dang is it impressive. Every single voice actor does their absolute best in Brotherhood. Most of the talents reprise their roles. Alphonse's voice actor was too old for the part so Funimation went for a female actress and Scar's voice actor was replaced for one reason for another. Honestly, though, it's hard to tell. Al's very first line of the show is very noticeably a girl's voice but by the fourth episode sounds exactly like the actor from 2003. Scar sounds exactly the same from top to bottom. And, of course, Vic Mignogna returns as the voice for Edward Elric in quite possibly my favorite performance in any animated show ever.

As for the animation of this new re-imagined series, it is leagues better than anything that 2003 had to offer and I already thought that show's animation was really good. There are just so many moments of pure sakuga in this show. Any battle that involves Ling and the entirety of both the fourth and fifth seasons are just astonishing to look at. The one thing that I do think the show lacks, however, is its color palette. It seems like 2003 knew exactly what it was doing one-hundred percent of the time regarding the lighting and palette of each of its scenes. Brotherhood, on the other hand, wasn't as good. It is still far better than most shows out there even today, though.

Go watch Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood. Just do it. It is my favorite anime of all time and I know that so many others feel the same.

Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood is breathtakingly and believably beautiful.
Wednesday, June 15, 2016
The original Fullmetal Alchemist anime adaption is one of my favorite anime and shows of all time. Despite the alterations from the manga it has still held a special place in my heart all this time. The story was great and the ending was a perfect bittersweet experience. This sequel film continues from the series and is surprisingly great, from its themes to its story.

At the end of the 2003 FMA series, Edward and Alphonse Elric are split from each other and Ed is now on our Earth. Back in the Fullmetal Alchemist universe, Al has been training to become a great alchemist and find his brother despite him losing all memory of the past three years of their adventure to find the Philosopher's Stone. Edward is in our universe in 1920s Germany right after WWI and while Hitler is rising to power. After having some run-ins with the Thule Society, he has to stop them from invading Al's universe and thus clinching the victory of the next war. What a great idea! The original series only touched on the time period of Ed's new existence but Fullmetal Alchemist the Movie takes that setting and has it intertwine with Ed's struggle with this new world. 

It's not just the concept of this movie that is good. The film has a strong story of Ed trying to come to terms with this new world, Shamballa's version of Al inadvertently helping the Nazi's plan, and the original Al trying to find Ed. The only problem then? It is only one hour and forty-five minutes. Because of the short running time it doesn't have a whole lot of time to balance all the stories it is trying to tell. If the movie was longer or even a miniseries than there could've been plenty of time to flesh this world out, even though it is our own. Even though it could be better, The Conqueror of Shamballa does do a surprisingly good job of keeping itself in line. 

The visuals and music are what you would expect: great. The animation is as top notch as the show ever got and the music by the same composer, Michiru Oshima, is different but still fantastic. The musical style takes an even more European approach with large chunks of the soundtrack being played by the Moscow Ochestra. I can't really compare it to the soundtrack of the show though as the style is just so different but I do love it. The only problem I have with the animation is its use of 3D. I'm sure it looked great in 2003 but now it just looks dated. 

Despite all the praise I've given this show, there is just something that bothers me about it. Maybe because its the product of something so different than its original source material or maybe because I just feel anger that there are two versions of this great story. I can't quite explain it. Besides my personal beef with the film, Fullmetal Alchemist the Movie is a really good finale to the original 2003 adaptation and, though the ending isn't to my liking, it does a whole lot right from the animation and music to the story itself.

The Conqueror of Shamballa is great!
Saturday, June 11, 2016
At the time of writing this I have completed 50 anime according to MyAnimeList. Out of all of the anime I have seen, I have never been so divided on ERASED. It seems like the entire anime community is also divided as I have seen scores ranging all the way from one to ten. My score? Well for me it's a little more complicated than that.

ERASED, from the start, is a time-travel anime... kind of. The main character, Satoru Fujinuma, has the power to go back in time, usually from five to fifteen seconds. The catch is that he cannot do it at will and is instead willed to do so whenever somebody around him is going to be killed or greatly injured. He has been keeping this power of his a secret from everybody as, obviously, no one would believe him. It is established very earlier on that Satoru's past is a very dark one in which three murders in his home town. One of the murders was one of his good friends at the time and, though the police are convinced they have caught the killer, Satoru thinks otherwise. The man they have, Jun Shiratori (or Yuuki), was friends with a ten-year-old Satoru before the murders happened and the Satoru of today doesn't believe that he could have done it. Everything changes for Satoru when the killer from his past murders his mom for knowing his identity and, when the police are about to bring Satoru in for custody, he is whisked back to 1988 about two weeks before the murders start. From here on out it is up to him to catch the killer and ultimately save the day.

Let me just make it clear from here on out that I believe ERASED is a very subjective show and one's enjoyment of it all relies on how the individual can suspend their disbelief and accept certain scenes. For example, it is made very clear from the start of the show that Satoru can only go back in time when someone is in danger so it doesn't make much sense that he is brought back to 1988 after his mother dies. What the viewer thinks of this is completely up to them. I can really go both ways on this. If he was brought back before his mother died then Satoru wouldn't have a reason to find the killer that he suspects killed her. Throughout the rest of the series there is a number of plot holes that, though aren't too major, tended to slightly take me out of the experience. I can't dive into spoiler territory but I can say that there is a lot of cut content from the manga regarding secondary characters.

Damn, Yuki Kajiura. Calling back to my Sword Art Online review, I stated that, though the story sucked, the soundtrack was pretty decent. ERASED soundtrack is pretty great. I've only seen a handful of anime with Kajiura's works (mostly the Fate/Stay Night series and SAO) but from what I've heard she has greatly stepped up her game in the past year and I tend to agree with that statement after this anime's soundtrack. Though not every track is good there are a lot of stand-out pieces like "Only I Am Missing" and "Show Me Your Smile" and a bunch of others. She did some great work on this score.

I have a strong belief that it isn't about the end but about the journey. Though ERASED has a number of plot holes and plenty of cut content from the manga and the ending is lack-luster I still had a great time with it. To me and a lot of others the big picture is what counts for this show and its short comings are just a little too short to really matter. After I finished the show on MyAnimeList I gave ERASED an 8/10. The day after, I changed it to a seven. At one point I even brought it down to a six but then immediately raised it again to an eight. I am still torn on the series but I believe that it is at least worth the watch if you haven't seen it yet.

ERASED is whatever you want it to be. 

 Personally, I had a great time with it. 



Wednesday, June 01, 2016
AI is a fascinating subject. There are some films that do a great job of presenting the subject in interesting ways like in Ex Machina and then there are films that don't like Chappie. But we don't talk about Chappie. I don't think I've seen any anime tackle this subject until Ghost in the Shell and, though the film doesn't dive as deep as I would like, it does present a very interesting AI-enhanced future with its great animation and directing.

Ghost in the Shell's world is one of the most fascinating animated worlds I've seen. In the near future, a majority of the human race is interconnected over a vast network by the use of cybernetic bodies called 'shells'. These shells are inhabited by the person's soul called 'ghosts'. Motoko Kusanagi, or 'The Major', is... well... a Ghost in a Shell. She works for the Public Security Section 9 where, in this film, she is given the responsibility of tracking down the cyber-terrorist known as The Puppetmaster. Motoko and her whole team are good characters but I wish I knew more about them. All I know about Motoko is that she has some sort of messed-up past but her teammates are really a mystery. The Major is a complete bad-ass. She only has a few short action sequences but they are all awesome to look at and do a great job of showing off her abilities. The villain, The Puppetmaster, is also a very fascinating one but it never shows him being much of a threat. Sure the characters say that he is but there isn't really any proof to get me to believe that he is. The world, characters, and villain are all just good. At the end of the day I just wanted to see more of each of these characters and was left a little disappointed.

The animation of Ghost in the Shell is top-of-the-line. It had a very nice blend of CG and cel animation that was really nice to look at all the way through. There were a few moments of CG where you could really tell that it was made by a computer but that is really just a sign of age and not really the filmmakers fault. The soundtrack is too well done for its own good. I enjoy listening to the OST on my own once and a while but the way the tracks are incorporated into the film feels kind of lazy. I love the overall mood of it and it fits the film but the film doesn't go as far as the OST wants it to (if that makes any sense at all).

Ghost in the Shell is a very good sci-fi anime with a lot going for it but I felt that it never went far enough with its characters, visuals, or themes. I had high hopes going into the film because I had heard a lot of fantastic things but to me it was only good. No more, no less. To my delight, however, there are a lot of other series and movies from the franchise so at least the road doesn't end here.

Ghost in the Shell is unique but seems very restrained.


Wednesday, May 18, 2016
Have you ever seen an anime that is so over-the-top and insane that you just need to turn your brain off to fully enjoy the series? Kill La Kill is that for me. It does have very apparent problems but just the general excitement and joy I feel watching it makes the whole experience seem perfect, even though the show is far from it. The explosive fight scenes and scenarios and dumb fun of the show tend to overpower but the lack-luster story and villain. And I'm okay with that.

The story of Kill La Kill is pretty stupid. If you are going into this anime expecting deep themes with interesting plots than you are in the wrong place. Ryuko has been tracking down her father's killer for an unseen amount of time and she believes that the criminal is Hounouji Academy's class president, Satsuki Kiryuin. Armed with her trust Scissor Blade and a magical talking uniform named Senketsu, Ryuko must fight her way up the ranks of the Academy's school clubs in order to avenge her father and find the other half of her blade. We've seen this plot a million times and it doesn't do anything new in this case but the show isn't about the story. Rather, it's main focus is on the relationship between the characters. As soon as Ryuko arrives at the Academy she befriends a no-star student ("Star" referring to power level) named Mako and during the series we even get to learn a lot about Satsuki's underlings. Every character has their own energy and finesse that I can appreciate, even though some of them can fit into archetypes. I also like how--- ugh, I can't take it anymore. This show has way too much fanservice than it needs to have. I don't mind it as much near the beginning because when Ryuko transforms she becomes embarrassed with her appearance which suppresses her power but once that hurdle is overcome the fanservice seems like it is there just to be fanservice. To the show's granted, however, a third of the way through we are introduced to a group of totally-to-almost nude men that one can argue balance it out but I felt it wasn't needed in the first place and just could've been an over-the-top anime. Maybe the fanservice is part of the show's nature, then? I don't know. Just something to think about.

Speaking of the characters, I absolutely love their designs and color pallets, fanservice aside. Ryuko usually wears black and red but can occasionally sport a "white-knight" type outfit that fits with the metal state of her character at that given time. Even Mako gets a variety of designs to show off her general craziness. I especially love her "fight club" outfit. I feel like the characters' various outfits were designed and then the writers wrote the story because of just how well they mesh with the tone of whatever story they might be on at the moment.

Before I started watching Kill La Kill I assumed a little too much from the animation. Sure it's good but from the screenshots and short clips I had already been privy too, it ended up feeling lack luster. It does have a few border-line Sakuga moments near the
beginning of the series but it seemed to take a dip in quality during the last six or so episodes. This is one of the most hype soundtracks I've heard in an anime recently. I absolutely love the militaristic style of "Blumenkranz" and "Before My Body is Dry" is just amazing all around. The only problem is how the show uses these tracks - that is to say too much. Every time Ryuko does something remotely cool I hear the chorus of "Before My Body is Dry" and Satsuki's theme is good but I can only stand it so many times! The constant abuse of these amazing tracks forced me to turn down my TV volume a number of times when they would play. Such a shame to pound such a great OST to the ground.

 Kill La Kill is one of the weirdest but funnest anime I've seen in a while. It does have a lot of problems which tend to bog down the experience but if you just turn off your brain while watching you won't mind the flaws all that much.

Kill La Kill is explosive.
Wednesday, May 11, 2016
Though I haven't seen a whole lot of productions by Studio Trigger, the are still one of my favorite anime studios. I think my love for them started with Kill La Kill. They are especially good at character designs and the use of colors. You can see this clear-as-day in Kill La Kill with the differing designs of Ryuko and Satsuki. Though that show didn't have a whole lot going for it story-wise, it was still a fun time with great animation and a great soundtrack. Needless to say, when I saw the promotional art for their Spring 2016 series, Kiznaiver, I needed to get my very own ticket for the Trigger hype train! A brand new interesting world with great character designs and (hopefully) over-the-top fight scenes! But does Kiznaiver live up to my expectations?

Kiznaiver takes place in a fictional city, Sugamori, in the real-life country, Japan. It stars a colorful cast of characters that so far are mostly stereotypes that we've seen in anime before. We have Agata, or Kacchon, who is a lonely downer with a strange ability not to feel pain; his best friend, Takashiro, who is turning out to be a tsundere who constantly tries to give Kacchon life advice; Nico, the fairy-loving oddball; Tenga, the rough-and-tough jock of the team; Yuta, the popular kid with an embarrassing past; Maki, the mysterious jerk; Hisomu, a pain-loving newcomer; and finally, Sonozaki who is the - from what I can tell - the antagonist of the series. Though none of these character have had a whole lot of development, besides maybe Agata, their personalities are interesting and entertaining enough that I can see where development could take place. And, of course, the character designs are great. I especially like Tenga's design. His bright-yellow shirt and slick-red hair explain his personality perfectly and all of the other characters' designs follow suit.

I didn't know what the story was going in but I was pleasantly surprised. The gist of it is that these seven individuals have been kidnapped and, after being released, realize that they now all share pain with each other. Whether falling down stairs, spraining a wrist, or even jumping off a bridge, the pain of their experiences are split between the seven of them - kind of. You see, as mentioned earlier, Agata doesn't feel pain. Though this ability hasn't been explained yet, it does give him a very interesting backstory which helps me find him interesting because otherwise I just wouldn't. The mysteriousness that each of the characters hold is one of my favorite things about the show so far and already, only three episodes in, I am learning more about each of them. The only question is what they will do with the story. Usually after the first two or three episodes of a series I can generally tell where it is going to go but with Kiznaiver I have no idea. At first I got the impression of a grand mystery that would focus on Agata but near the end of the third episode I was getting a 'fight against the establishment' vibe. This is two parts exciting and one part terrifying as Sword Art Online also kept me guessing and some may know what I think of the show.

I've already mentioned the character designs but the animation is especially top-notch. Though there haven't been any crazy fights yet, which is disappointing, the colors and overall amazing animation is still very interesting to look at. However, this does make me afraid that the budget wasn't meant for action and now I'm second guessing whether this will be an action-oriented series at all. At the time, I have no idea where the show is going to go.

So far Kiznaiver is a fantastic looking and wonderfully designed show with characters that, though not particularly interesting right now, have a lot of room to grow. So far this entire anime season is great and I can't wait to see what it has to offer.

Kiznaiver looks promising!
Tuesday, April 26, 2016
I usually don't actively seek out comedies to watch. I generally don't find western comedy enjoyable and I've just assumed, wrongly, that eastern comedy was generally the same. I have seen anime with comedic tones in the past, like One Punch Man, but at the time I had just thought these were exceptions. Watamote has taught me differently and I can't thank it enough. Some comedic scenes in this show were so spot on that they almost had me in tears. The show would be nothing though without its character and it has plenty of it.

Tomoko Kuroki is a first-year at her new high school and she has the inability to socialize at all without some kind of companion with her. In middle school, her companion was her best friend Yuu Naruse but she has since gone to a different high school, thus leaving Tomoko with only herself to try to make it in, what she sees, to be a cruel world. The main and only character with a big role is Tomoko herself. She is the lifeblood of Watamote as the show is seen through her expressionless eyes. I say expressionless but really it only seems like that to someone who isn't Tomoko. In fact, she is exceptionally expressive and will hammer the audience with exactly what she is feeling by even relating her situation to other recent anime. She mentions Parasyte, Tokyo Ghoul, and many others. There is even a scene that parodies Studio Ghibli's Whisper of the Heart. This show really doesn't care about the fourth wall but that's where some of it's charm comes from. Most of the aspects that I love come from Tomoko, however. The comedy doesn't come from the situations she gets herself in but more from her reaction to those situations. Because the show is episodic in nature, being that Tomoko creates a new plan to become popular every episode, the writers can really take her character to many extremes. Overall, Watamote's story is one focused on comedy so there isn't a whole lot of growth but it isn't void of it either.

It is sad to say that Watamote doesn't have that memorable of a soundtrack. It isn't bad by any means and I really enjoy the OP and ED but everything in between is relatively bland. The animation doesn't stand out but it accomplishes what it said out to do. It does have a very great way of showing Tomoko's character. When she feels alone and invisible, she might become completely gray or even invisible with a thin outline. On the flip side, if she feels stand out and awkward everyone else will become gray and part of a mass of judgement that makes Tomoko look very awkward and uncomfortable. Again, nothing special but fine.

Watamote is a comedy that took me completely by surprise. Because of my past with comedies in general I was wary at first but am glad that I watched it. I do hope there is a Season 2 soon, though, because the ending wasn't quite what I wanted.

Watamote is hilarious and interesting. 
Wednesday, April 06, 2016
I wasn't expecting much with Fate/Stay Night UBW. I knew that there was a whole universe to the Fate series and a lot of fans to the anime and visual novel alike but I didn't realize that it would be this good. Not only is the animation amazing but the characters are well fleshed out, the story keeps you on the edge of your seat, and the lore is given to you in an easy to digest, but not boring, manner.

First of all, the animation in this series is absolutely fantastic. I can't say the same for the other Fate series' but in Fate/Stay Night Ufotable did an amazing job. Their animation style is so fluid and fast yet easy to follow that I never once had to rewind the episode in wonder of what just happened. There is a term used in the anime industry, though not frequently, called 'sakuga'. The term itself literally means 'drawing pictures' but in the industry it says so much more about the actual quality of the animation being presented, at least of that which is really good. You can see examples of this in anime such as FLCL (which I still have not watched in full) but more recently it can be attributed to Studio Madhouse' 2015 success One Punch Man. Fate/Stay Night UBW doesn't ooze with this term like One Punch Man does but it does perform at about the same level during its fight scenes. The characters all have a certain weight to them that can only be described as 'real'. I say this because when the characters aren't using magic to enhance their acrobatics or do crazy powerful moves, the way they fight is just like what you would expect to see. The sword fights especially are very great but the fights between only magic users can seem a bit lacking at least for me.

The story, though not perfect, is very good and well deserving of all the praise given to it. All the characters are relatable in their own sense but still have a mysterious factor about them that makes them intriguing. The mysteries to the story is really great in this anime. It seems like there is a perfect balance of our heroes, Rin and Shiro, solving mysteries as well has finding new mysteries to be solved. When trying to solve a problem the two characters also have great chemistry that makes them all the more relatable and not forced. Not all the characters are this well done, however. There is a certain young mage who only gets an episode of backstory. Though this seems like a lot because of the overall length of the show I feel that she needed just a bit more explanation. The same goes for some of the side characters. There is a character by the name of Sakura (of course) who seems to just disappear after the first season and is only seen again in the very last episode. The only reason it bothered me is because, in a way, she is directly involved in the plot.

Fate/Stay Night: Unlimited Blade Works is a fantastic work of animation with a great story to boot.
Fate/Stay Night UBW is great.
Friday, March 11, 2016
I have a lot of mixed feelings about this film. On one hand it is really enjoyable especially because I'm a sucker for mid evil fantasy stories but on the other hand it does absolutely nothing special. Though Tales From Earthsea doesn't do much that is spectacular, it's opening is great. Right off the bat you see an old ship in dangerous waters, two dragons fighting, and wizard accompanying the ship's crew. This screams mid evil fantasy and I love it when movie intros set up the setting so seamlessly. Right after this scene, however, is when the problems with the film are introduced. We see our first glimpse of the main hero, Arren (yes, that's how it's spelled), as he does a spoiler-free bad deed and receives a mysterious and magical sword out of it. This brings forth the problem with Arren. Until the end of the movie, his feelings about the bad deed he has are only slightly mentioned by the directing. Movies are supposed to show and not tell but at times I feel that the movie isn't showing enough of the character's emotions which make some of them come out at times bland and uninspired. I believe this isn't because of the writing or characters themselves. Rather, it is because of the slow pace of the film. Ghibli's films have always been slow paced but in Tales From Earthsea it seems like the pace is more of a hindrance to the experience rather than part of it. A way, I think, this could have easily been fixed is if the movie was given more action. The reason Princess Mononoke wasn't boring was because it had action sequences during the sections that could have been downtime. In this film, though I enjoy relationships between some of the characters and therefore enjoy some of the downtime, there is just too much of it. What I do love about the film I love. The music, though nothing groundbreaking, is very good and fits with the setting quite nicely. The varied environment are also very nice. The bustling town, the windy desert, and the farm by the cottage. All of these are very nice to look at and don't linger too much before the story progresses. Again, I am very torn on Tales From Earthsea. It is a fun adventure with good characters but the pacing can blind the average viewer from a lot of the good that this movie has to offer.

Tales From Earthsea is not great but worth a look. 
Monday, February 08, 2016
I don't love Howl's Moving Castle. The film has a lot of problems that some may see as nonredeemable to the movie as a whole. I agree with some of the complaints. First of all is the story or what one can assume is the story. Sophie is a young hatter who is turned into a ninety year old women by the evil Witch of the Waste. In order to reverse the curse, she sets off into the waste to find the witch and demand her vitality back. While in the waste, she comes across Howl, and infamous wizard; the power source of the castle, Calcifer; Howl's apprentice, Markl; and a wandering sentient scarecrow dubbed Turnip-head. When Sophie finds herself in Howl's moving castle, she decides to convince them to let her stay by pretending to be their new maid. They quickly accept her and their 'adventure' ensues. This is when the movie stops. Sophie wants to get back to normal but she seems perfectly content with her new life throughout half of the movie. Because of her acceptance in being a ninety year old non-paid maid of a wizard, I don't have any real feelings toward her character. After this point subplots just seem to happen. In my eyes, the film doesn't have a whole lot of focus. I know that most of the Miyazaki's films are just adventures with "things happening" but in his other films they happen mostly because of the main characters' ambitions. In Howl's Moving Castle no one has a whole lot of ambition. This doesn't mean I dislike all the characters; I don't. Calcifer is a lot of fun and Howl's backstory, though not shown a whole lot, is interesting. That's about it though. The Witch of the Waste is boring and her motive doesn't make a whole lot of sense and Sophie is simply a bland character. I know what the movie was trying to do with her: physically show her gaining more confidence by having her grow young the more she has. I did like this aspect of the movie but I didn't really like Sophie as a character. Turnip-head was really cute and fun until the end when (spoilers) he turned out to be the panacea for the entire war. I don't completely dislike the movie. The soundtrack is one of my favorites of any Studio Ghibli production and the visuals are absolutely gorgeous. Howl's Moving Castle is a good movie at heart that seems to get lost in itself very easily. The plots are everywhere and only some of the characters are likable but I kind of love it only for the Miyazaki quirkiness that it provides and Joe Hisashi score.

Howl's Moving Castle is a magnificent mess.
Sunday, February 07, 2016













I don't know why I haven't seen this one until now. It is, to put it lightly, a fantastic movie. Not my favorite Miyazaki film or even my favorite Studio Ghibli film, but a great film none-the-less. Princess Mononoke has a certain type 'heroes journey' feel to it. Other works by the same company also have this same feeling but the messages of those movies didn't strike me as being the main theme like this one is. The story follows the plight of Ashitaka. A young warrior who lives in a small village and is one day attacked by a giant demonic boar. Ashitaka takes down the boar but has his arm cursed by it as he strikes it down with his trusty bow-and-arrow. After this unfortunate event, he is told that he must leave the village and never come back as the curse will slowly spread throughout his body and kill him. Ashitaka decides to look for the Forest Spirit who may be able to cure his ill but instead comes across two groups at war: a small mining town who is ruining the neighboring forest in their search for iron and the forest spirits who are lead by the one and only Princess Mononoke. This brings me to my first reason why I love this movie. Ashitaka doesn't take sides. The film doesn't say that we should 100% protect the nature and not continue developing nor does it say that we should bend nature to our will and mine it dry. Ashitaka is only entangled in this for one reason at the start: to cure his curse. This creates a scenario where he needs to find a way to appease both sides without insinuating any more violence. Because Ashitaka has to not take too much to either sides he ends up befriending both Princess Mononoke and most of the mining village's people. This is firstly a story of compromise but I think it is also a tale of how you can take things too far and get wrapped up in things that can hurt your cause. Princess Mononoke is one of those Ghibli movies that really makes you think about the morals that it is trying to present. For that it is a really great film.

Princess Mononoke is fantastic!
Sunday, January 31, 2016
From what I usually expect of movies and what I want good movies to do is not fall in the trap of clichés and predictability. Studio Ghibli's Whisper of the Heart falls into both of these traps. For some reason, however, I still love this movie immensely. I believe the reason for my affection is the characters and of how real the story feels. The story revolves around Shizuku, a junior high school student with a passion for writing. After trying to rent out a book from the library that has been rented before, she finds out that the one with the same interest in books as her is a boy named Seiji, who she hates from past experience. This plot point I could see coming from a mile away but am given enough time with Shizuku as an individual that I can relate to her in some way and enjoy her curiousness for storytelling. This boy is also set up as sort of a rival for her as he plans to follow his dream of making violins and move out of the country. This pushes her to write an entire novel before he gets back. Kind of cliché and it's very predictable, yes, but the atmosphere and the lovable characters make the movie. I say atmosphere mostly because of one location: the antique shop run by Seiji's grandfather. You can tell that this particular room had a lot of effort put into it. The times that Shizuku is in the antique shop, you can pause the movie at any time and spot all sorts of knick-knacks and curious items. One of these items like the suited cat, the Baron, gets his own movie in the future. The Baron does also play a big role in the story as Shizuku's novel is about the Baron's adventure to get his wife back which parallels Seiji's grandfather's life. Everything about this movie involving plot I should hate because it is as predictable as can be, but the characters, environment, and message are just so good that I honestly just don't care.

Whisper of the Heart is very good.
Tuesday, January 26, 2016
My Neighbor Totoro is the movie everyone thinks of when they hear the names of either Miyazaki or Studio Ghibli. Even if you're not a fan of Japanese animation or of Ghibli's films, you have probably seen this film. There is a reason that Totoro is Studio Ghibli's mascot. It's because it's a good movie. It has good characters, a good story, and a great atmosphere. Notice that only one of those things were great. That's because from my point of view My Neighbor Totoro is just a good movie. As a person I love the film but as a critic I can't say it's any more than good. The main reason for my "cynical" perspective is that I don't feel there is enough time put into the main characters. The film is only an hour and a half which isn't uncommon for the studio but their other films that have a similar length are filled to the brim with a lot of character development. That's not to say that the characters in My Neighbor Totoro are bad characters; they're anything but that. The older sister, Satsuki, is very relatable and the younger sister, Mei, is cute and fun but it never really explores past that. Totoro, however, steals the show for when he's in frame. He's cute and mysterious which gives the film a very unique type of atmosphere all of it's own. I especially enjoy the scene where Satsuki and Mei are stuck in the rain and Totoro just kind of shows up. Satsuki hands Totoro her extra umbrella and the group just kind of stands there for a little bit. This scene somehow portraits a lot of emotion through little to no movement almost the entire time. It's a solid minute of the girls interacting with Totoro through the means of not interacting with him. It's borderline genius. Again, the film isn't bad nor is it great. It's just fun and relaxing and I can come back to it over and over again and enjoy it for different reasons. From the atmosphere to the big fluffy guy himself...

My Neighbor Totoro is a good time!
Monday, January 18, 2016
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