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Jan 7, 2024
Hayao Miyazaki, the man, the myth, the legend, the movie he's worked on for apparently 7 years, so much so that people in Ghibli got bored of waiting and made the abomination known as Earwig and the Witch (though, that movie has merits for Studio Ghibli's first attempt at a full CG/3D animated film), How Do You Live? is the renowned director's final magic trick.
In a world post-Covid, in the advent of what I call, the "Sakuga Renaissance" of Anime, that boomed in 2021, how does a master like Miyazaki compare to his younger peers in the anime industry? I ask you this, no answers
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first, because the key to this question is how you feel about the man, his myth, and the legend of Studio Ghibli. Which means what exactly? Well, my response is that whatever you are thinking, I feel it too.
Is it good? Great? Bad? Ugly? None of that matters. What matters is how you felt after seeing Hayao's last show.
If you know anything about Miyazaki, if you know his legacy, his flaws, if you know his beloved friend, Isao Takahata, if you know what The Boy and The Heron represents, if you know anything about Ghibli, this film will change that...or reaffirm it.
The tower of Babylon. The season finale of any show. The final phase of a butterfly. The end of an amazing sakuga fight scene.
You've felt this before.
Cherish it.
Reviewer’s Rating: 10
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Jul 29, 2023
Trigun is what I would call, and I say this affectionately, a western gone anime. And, it does not shy away from it.
On the surface, one look at Trigun and people might assume that it's the quintessential western we've all been waiting for. It has guns! Sand! And gun-slinging action! And it has a decent amount of that in its runtime. But, what we didn't expect is for those same things we see in Western to be the show's antithesis, especially for our main protagonist, Vash, who does not want anything to do with a gun ever. Period.
It's done in such a comedic fashion
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too that we never truly anticipate for the show's tonal shift halfway through. Like Meryl Stryfe, perhaps most of us didn't really get it till it was hammered into us later on. And, it's quite anime. It's anime in the sense that I don't think anyone like Vash could be that much of a pacifist. Like seriously, he puts Aang from Avatar: The Last Airbender to shame. Vash takes on bullets and asks questions later. This man was built like an armored tank. But, he refuses to ever take a life.
Coupled with the stark contrasts of cool and funny, with some drama, and Trigun manages to deliver its message straight home. Albeit, a bit too far from home run at times. It does not once shy away from its medium of anime to deliver that sheer level of exaggeration to all aspects of its show. It bleeds style! But, it also knows when to slow done, to go in circles, and when we need to let it all out.
I personally never got over some of the biggest moments in this show. Whether it was hilarious, or outright gut-wrenching, the anime manages to deliver a story worth investing on.
That is Trigun.
Because, at the heart of this series, Trigun is, unapologetically, a human drama. A drama taken out of human proportions, yes, but explored sentimentally nonetheless. It's as if Vash was one of us, even though canonically, he isn't. Vash embodies an ideal so absurd, one could almost envision him to Jesus Christ, if we really stretch it to that degree. But it's true. Think about it. Both are treated as if they're god-like and embodiments of humanity (At different levels though lol). Both are pacifists to an extreme degree. And none of them ever spared their ideals in the face of reality.
But anyway, enough of the religious stuff. Because that's not really what Trigun is.
What Trigun is, is a subversion of the western genre. It is also one of the only two Sci-Fi Western anime shows in existence. The other one being Cowboy Bebop, which coincidentally, if one were to look this up, also aired around the same time as Trigun in Japan.
Both being aired at 1998. And much more in the month of April! THAT VERY SAME WEEK! It's insane that we missed out on that, but regardless. It must've been the peak of western-genre anime back in the day. Because, apart from that, I'm not aware anymore of any other western-genre anime from that time. I know of some from recent times, but they tend to be far removed from being "pure Western". And let's be fair, both Bebop and Trigun are also sci-fi. But that could've been the byproduct of the 90s anime era, still somewhat railing in from the success and explosion of sci-fi anime (apart from the mecha genra, because they've been around way longer). Both series needed that sci-fi appeal to hook in its otaku audience, before Bebop and Trigun reveled in its Western decadence.
Both Trigun and Bebop are good Westerns, should a fan ever want to know Japan's take on the genre. And they both give different perspectives on it, with vastly different styles. And I mean it once you've seen both.
Trigun manages to take that "Rule of Cool" approach and deliver the nuance and depth which makes Trigun have its substance. Worth the watch, if you're ever itching for an old anime.
However, that's all from me about Trigun.
I watched Trigun this year but only got to review it now so let's see how this holds up to memory. I honestly thought Trigun was a cool show with very very cool characters. Some of them I think were revolutionary for its time. I'm referring to Meryl and Milly. They were so cool! Both are such a fresh air for anime female characters. Wish we could've gotten more of them. There's already enough Vash-es and Nicholas-es in anime. And no, don't say any of the "Ghibli Princesses", we already know. Well, I do. But, anyway, might watch Trigun: Stampede soon. If I get the time.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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Nov 14, 2022
Do you like vampires? Do you like the legacy of Castlevania? Does gothic impress you and its various nuances (gothic literature, gothic architecture, and gothic fashion)? Do you like retro anime and violence? Then this movie's for you!!!
Vampire Hunter D: "Bloodlust" is a standalone spiritual successor to the original VHD movie, bringing us tons of romanticism, gothic, and philosophical poetic-like whimsies of the mind. Often said is that this film is gorgeously beautiful, hauntingly even, but what is often unsaid is that this film is also dreamlike and static. Yes, what I fell in love with when watching "Bloodlust" is the fragility of its characters
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and world, often fringing between immortality and mortal sentiments. Time flees as if its momentarily, but it means everything to these people. It's what the vampire genre excels so well at portraying in recent literature; that feeling of suffering at the very peak of immortality. And it is executed quite remarkably, almost novel-like in its portrayal. And though this film is foretelling of its ending, which can quite be poignant but also frustrating if you've seen the first film, it still bleeds of steady development and alot of its signature styles is kept in Bloodlust, but significantly upscaled for more exploration.
This is what peak VHD could look like if we get an anime series for this, since, quite surprisingly, the light novel is still ongoing to this day.
What this film has to offer is all-round deep-thinking sentiments of vampires, life, and a static yet harrowing world filled with humans and monsters. There's not much more to ask.
P.S. Slightly biased review, but I was typing this to the sound of gothic ambience music (hahaha), which really got me in the zoneee!
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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Sep 27, 2022
Cyberpunk 2077 might be a bit too controversial as a game, but the anime, is something else entirely...
Edgerunners is a collaboration between CD Projekt Red's Cyberpunk 2077 and Studio Trigger. And I tell you now, the anime is clearly a passion-driven project. The result between the two is an anime oozing with style and personality, not just from Trigger's explosive approach to storytelling and stylistic flair, but also adding in Cyberpunk's amazing dystopian-esque high-tech low-life world, fully reimagined in anime! I might add this might be the potential that Cyberpunk 2077 wished to achieve. And, as an outsider to the game, this anime singlehandedly redeems
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the former's hiccups, so to speak. But, what was supposedly the surprise collaboration didn't do much until...the anime also proved itself as such...A F*CKING BANGER OF ALL BANGING SURPRISES!!!
With only 10 episodes in its runtime, Edgerunners is filled to the brim with Trigger's signature animation, memorable characters (both in design and heart, yes!), great story direction, and an OST (mostly coming from the game) that competes for the top spot of 'having the most diverse music genres in one show'!
If you're still reading till this point, WHAT ARE YOU DOING! Watch the show now! You won't be disappointed.
Here's my score overall and individually since MAL's reviewing section changed:
Story - 9/10
Art - 10/10
Sound - 10/10
Character - 10/10
Enjoyment - 10/10
Overall - 9/10
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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Jun 7, 2022
Story - 4/10
Art - 9/10
Sound - 8/10
Character - 5/10
Enjoyment - 5/10
Overall - 5/10
This movie had been highly anticipated this year due to its stellar animation, and much more its stellar staff. If you think it'd meet the hype it built up, then you're pretty much setting yourself to be disappointed. Because, a short answer I can give is that this film was pretty mid.
Mild spoilers ahead...
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An animated project that was fun to work on, I'm sure of. But, for it to be entertaining? It took itself too seriously at times. A pretty animated movie dialed down with a haphazard, sometimes generic / bland plot, and a romance and gimmick that were just as weak as the intentions behind it were.
The waifu that was supposedly marketing this film was also dull and flat. Empty, mind you. Which makes sense at times, but at most, the approach was terrible, or rather rushed.
Mamoru Hosoda's Belle, also, did the "my life is paralleled to a children's story" better with their depiction of The Beauty and the Beast. So yeah, that's that.
The only saving grace this movie had was in its stellar animation, which was, to say the least, worth having eyes for. The parkour competitions and the post-apocalyptic bubble-filled Tokyo were truly this film's memorable moments. And, honestly, if one were to turn their brain off watching this movie, I think they'll have a decent time. Not the best time, nor the "I had fun watching this" time, but you'll get something out of it, I'm sure.
My only desire is that they could've at least strengthened either one of their core narrative points, whether that was the romance, the lore of the bubbles, or the point of having a huge cast of parkour gangs. Because, those were all wasted to arrive at a somewhat decent ending
in an ample amount of screentime. *sigh*
Reviewer’s Rating: 5
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Mar 9, 2022
"Even if you have someone to pave the way for you, a loser is still a loser!" - Gyutaro, Upper Moon Six
"I'm gonna slash you! I'm gonna behead you!" I'm not giving up!" - Tanjiro Kamado, just some shonen protag
Rating:
Story - 7/10
Art - 10/10
Sound - 8/10
Character - 9/10
...
Enjoyment - 10/10
Overall - 9/10
Demon Slayer Entertainment District Arc is a continuation of the much beloved Shonen series giant, now set in, as you guessed it, the Entertainment District! We get to see our main cast again, Tanjiro, Inosuke, and Zenitsu. But, of course, if one's been watching the tv version of Mugen Train, it's like they've never left. So, as a continuation, the emotional weight and narrative of Mugen Train still looms heavy around our main cast, especially Tanjiro, who understands their loss is immense. And for him, it was probably their first major loss, both physically and emotionally, on this Hashira named Rengoku.
And, the show efficiently ties those narrative threads to a close, as a new arc sets in, almost masterfully, with the use of Tanjiro to deliver the emotional narrative, and Inosuke and Zenitsu as the show's shounen co-protagonists, whenever Tanjiro is not on screen or on site, so the story carries on.
The rest, well, as they say, is history. If you've seen the show, you'll know.
Now on to the review proper...
Let's start with the strengths of "THE" Demon Slayer 2nd? 3rd Season? Eh, we'll just call it Entertainment District Arc!
The Entertainment District Arc easily builds upon the success of its first season and movie turned tv series arcs of the show. Since they've built upon the world of Demon Slayer earlier on, even establishing all the Hashiras, and Tanjiro's "vague but super essential to the plot" backstory, it's now so easy to set up shounen fights between the main cast and the hashiras with the demons of the show. This is to the delight of the studio behind the show, ufotable.
Studio Ufotable knows what they're doing with their animation, visual effects, and compositing. They've definitely mastered it too! And while the original manga of this anime has been quite simple, nothing too grand in design, Ufotable definitely saw this as a gold mine, a rush of opportunities to elevate the story to crazy levels of spectacle!
From the character's kimonos / robes, to the entertainment district's sliding doors art, the title cards, down to the geishas, there is so much care to the aesthetic of its anime. Especially in a very Japanese-esque location, a certain distinct Demon Slayer style is imbued and easily recognizable. These are the lesser regarded bits of the show, and yet we must not forget that the love and care for this fictional world is given justice. And when we get to the highs of Demon Slayer, like their fighting sequences, choreography, use of camera, visual effects, and storytelling, know that it all comes from a place of love and care for the show. Even if at times, Ufotable's distinctly dark and drab 3D environments can feel suffocating, it's easily contrasted by their colorful cast of characters, who are anything but drab!
So yes, animation work, character design, and even Demon Slayer's narrative setup all are this season's greatest feats!
Let's now go to the show's weaknesses...
Unlike other shounen anime, Demon Slayer, as a series, and especially the anime, manages to fix a lot of the problems that previous entries have normalized in shounen culture. We're talking, power scaling (Enemies that seem to get more overpowered, along with the main protag as well), size of cast (with each arc adding twenty new characters), and annoying MCs (think of Luffy, Naruto, Goku, Asta, Eren, Ed, etc.). We even have our first empath Shounen protagonist, Tanjiro Kamado, who contrasts Deku from My Hero Academia, who is an intellectual (or mostly just informative, ehem, nerdy). Tanjiro instead embodies emotional intelligence, a rarity in shounen, trust me. He's easy to love, and a great contrast with the rest of his friends, Zenitsu and Inosuke. His empathy and deep love for life seems to rub off of them and kickstart their character development.
However, outside Tanjiro as the main lead, there are many shounen tropes, storytelling gimmicks, and plot bs that the show throws to be 1) inoffensive, and 2) artificially raise stakes in anime. We're talking characters that instantly bounce back, injuries that mean nothing sometimes, abrupt comedic scenes, sometimes awkward, and sudden boosts of power from nowhere, but one's emotions! We know these gimmicks before. We've seen it from other shounen, from other anime, sometimes even in Hollywood movies or your country's own soap opera shows. It's the telltale old story of mainstream storytelling. As much as one hates it, it works.
Besides that, the show doesn't have that much weaknesses, if I'm being honest. The Entertainment District Arc is living proof that ufotable is always willing to deliver, especially with its latter half just being about small consistent cinematic fights, evolving into a grandiose conflict of epic scales. And in hindsight, the sound hashira and the upper moon six demons aren't even the strongest during the fight's setup, nor is the arc anymore about the escalation of demon slayers and demons trying to one up the other. It's all elevated by the studio's work into its animation, visual effects, and compositing that raises this simple story into a spectacle worth its mainstream appeal.
So yeah, just your typical good shounen, ain't it?
I'm kidding please-
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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Feb 22, 2022
Cencoroll Connect is a one-hour film that expands on Cencoroll's part one story, with part two being two-thirds of this film. It offers a great continuation of the first OVA/Movie. The movie spares no time introducing new characters and Cencos? Cencorolls? Octo monsters. Yeah. Its fluid animation and nonchalant almost deadpan characters are its strongest points, with Cenco being the most exemptional aspect of the series. Like, what is a Cenco? Why are they so oddly adorable? Like a bulldog, or Gudetama-ish type of kaiju (almost). Its appeal, at least for me, is mainly how the OVAs vibe like Sonny Boy. If you've seen the
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show.
Story - 8/10
Art - 10/10
Sound (or lack thereof) - 7/10
Character - 10/10
Enjoyment - 10/10
Overall - 9/10
I've had this screaming thought in my mind that Cencoroll existed so that Sonny Boy could pop off, and now Cencoroll is back with a part 2, and soon to be part 3 this year (hoping). That really says something about experimental anime mediums where the characters are pretty chill. But, I don't know what. I just think it's cool.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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Jan 18, 2022
Cencoroll
Story - 7
Art - 10
Sound - 9
Character - 10
Enjoyment - 10
Overall - 9
Cencoroll is a very unique animated short done by one man back in 2009. And for the time, I believe this is one of anime's best-kept secret gems. It vibes a lot like Sonny Boy, and that they're both extremely experimental in its themes, storytelling, animation, characters, and its world. Plus, they both vibe like uhmm...let's just say, indie. Yeah, you know...lofi, bedroom pop, indie, alt-rock, "I like sadboi music" kinda vibe yeah? Yeah.
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Cencoroll has very apathetic characters, but they're also flawed and motivated. And, nothing about the story is dull, it's extremely interesting. And sometimes, even grander than the scope of its runtime. This much is true, since there's a part 2 and an upcoming part 3 in the works. But yeah, Cencoroll is amazing. It's not for everyone though, but if you're up for a one-of-a-kind anime fix / show that is experimental and daring, then this is the one.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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Jan 18, 2022
Colorful
Story - 10
Art - 10
Sound - 6
Character - 10
Enjoyment - 10
Overall - 10
Colorful is a wonderful movie about second chances and forgiveness. The movie's direction is done very tastefully, despite all the mature and dangerous topics this movie tackles. I'll be honest, this movie starts quite slow. It builds up its premise with character interactions and the slow looming threat of an angel bullying its main character to do something, anything. But with that said, it pays off later when emotions get high. The melodrama is quite rewarding. It's a drama that heals you. It's strange really, but the drama isn't there to make characters
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feel stuff, it's there for conflicts to be resolved. And, I believe most movies don't do that. Colorful hits those sweet spots of redemption; everyone's beautiful, everyone's normal, no matter their flaws.
And that's Colorful for you.
WATCH IT WHEN YOU'RE FEELING DOWN IT'S SUPER MAGICAL. PLS!
THE BEST SCENE WAS WHEN THEY [REDACTED] AND HE WAS LIKE [REDACTED] AND THEY WERE LIKE [REDACTED]...yeah.
It has that same healing power as A Place Further Than The Universe.
Reviewer’s Rating: 10
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Nov 6, 2021
Mamoru Hosoda's most ambitious movie yet! Visually beautiful and narratively packed to the brim with life! This movie evolves at a breakneck speed that commands attention with every scene! It's that good if you can forgive the Beauty and Beast parallels...
Story - 10/10
If you know Mamoru Hosoda and his films, you know what you're getting from watching Belle / Ryuu to Sobakasu no Hime. His films always had heart, and this movie has plenty of it. It's pretty good at selling you its core story, which is all about Suzu's adventure through grief and acceptance. But of course, it's anime! They gotta give that story
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ten different layers of context and all sorts of narrative twists to make the story as fresh as ever. And it works! You'll forget the Beauty and Beast aesthetic pretty quickly as you realize it's as anime as any anime out there. And, Hosoda will make you remember that!
Art - 10/10
I feel like Mamoru Hosoda's really come to his own when making this film. All of his strengths are shown front and center of this movie. He has polished his character drama-esque plots and his internet / digital world aesthetic to a degree like no movie before. His ability to convey emotions in 2D and 3D with simply small details is such a wonder to see! Goes to show all his heart went into the production of this film.
Oh, and also, there's a lot of cool scenes in this movie! Like flying whales, and Belle's flower dress, and vaporwave-like sunset sky, and U's world is very much alive and detailed! Oh, and you get your standard (?) Japanese city and countryside background art (which is, always appreciated!). It looks clean and highly produced and all that. What else is there to lose?
But honestly, the digital world was Hosoda's playground to experiment with! He went all out with the medium, giving us a lot of style and expression that we've never seen before since his work on Summer Wars.
Sound - 10/10
This movie shines because Suzu's VA is also a well-talented singer. She sings with so much emotion, it almost makes me compare her to Aimer! But honestly, she's so good, it's the best feeling ever to experience her talent in this film! Since this movie relies so much on the fact that Suzu is a famous popstar, then the talent behind her has to carry that same vibe through and through. And honestly, the direction they went with the sound/music of this movie is soooo great. It made me shed a tear. You'll know what I mean when you get there.
A lot of the songs in this movie were sung by Suzu, without having different VAs to fill up the character's voice range. That's honestly so goat coming from the VA!!!
La, la la la, la, la la la, la la, la la (if you know, you know.)
Character - 9/10
Mamoru Hosoda's characters are always so refreshing to see on screen. They're normal, but not bland. Just unique characters who are normal human beings! Who would've thought! No need for any "dere" stereotypes or anime powers for this one. Seeing these characters interact reminds me a lot of why I loved Hosoda's previous works. They're all so real and lovable, so nuanced and quirky. And that's that.
I gave it a 9, just because I feel like Mamoru Hosoda could do better. Room for improvement, if you will.
Enjoyment - 10/10
This is a given! And, if you let Belle take its time to develop its story at the beginning, then the payoff is so worth it! The movie becomes a spectacle halfway through. You'll get to see your favorite (soon-to-be) idol come from 0 to 100 in a flash! It's beautiful. It's painful. It's everything you can experience, especially if you relate with following a singer from their start till their grand concert debut in a world stadium, or something like that. It's great. Go watch Belle!
Overall - 10/10
Love it or hate it, this movie has a lot to say in its runtime, without even stating it. That just goes to show this movie speaks for itself.
*** Note: Read after this point once you've seen the film. ***
Okay so, that's out of the way...
How the hell does "U" work?! How come everyone can be online and in real life at the same time while living their lives? That's like being self-aware twice. Like honestly...wow.
*** Note: Food for thought only. ***
Reviewer’s Rating: 10
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