[This is the text version of this review. For the video version, visit Ember Reviews on YouTube]
Pokemon is probably one of the most basic and clean-cut examples you can find of an episodic adventure series. Ash wants to be the greatest Pokemon master in the world and he refuses to stop until he achieves his goal, and every episode in between is something that either helps him achieve this goal, impedes his progress, or has a lesson to teach him or one of his friends that will aid them in the future.
Of course, this kind of structure also means that most of the enjoyment gleamed
...
from this series comes from the strength of each individual episode, which is, unfortunately, very hit and miss. Don’t get me wrong, there are a lot of really good episodes and even some fantastic ones that are better than some of the adult anime titles I watch now. However, there are also quite a few episodes that just fall into repetitive patterns with wholly uninteresting side characters, and when a long stretch of episodes like this shows up, which happens several times in seasons 3 and 4, it can be a pretty tedious watch. Fortunately, there are definitely a lot more good episodes than bad ones, and when longer story arcs do come into play, the emotional beats they hit are really solid.
A lot of my favorite episodes though are ones that put a side character at the center of the plot seemingly just for giggles, such as when Togepi accidentally steals one of Team Rocket’s tanks and they have to stop it before it runs into a populated area, or when Wobbufett is carrying a key to a box that Pikachu is locked in, but he keeps getting tossed around a city in the most cartoonish ways possible. The really weird episodes also tend to stand out either for being extremely creative like having all the Pokemon’s lines being translated for us or having Ash get turned into a Pikachu, or for going about an emotional arc in a unique way, like trapping everyone inside Larvitar’s mind in order to soothe his fractured psyche.
Pokemon also has the advantage of pulling ideas from an inherently creative source material, giving it a ton of room to craft new ideas for each episode. However, instead of a straight adaptation of the Pokemon video games, the games’ worlds and structures are there simply as outlines for the writers to create their own story, and, in my opinion, this makes Pokemon the best adaptation of a video game I’ve seen to date. By not forcing an adaptation of a story structure that’s not directly translatable to the TV medium, the series has room to craft its own story and a tone that matches. It still retains the badge collecting plot from the games to serve as a progression marker for Ash’s journey, but many other points have been altered or omitted entirely, such as changing the Pokemon League’s Elite Four challenge into a simpler tournament-style championship.
This also gives the series more leeway when constructing its characters, and man do we have some characters. Even without my nostalgia kicking in, I can honestly say that Ash is one of the most fleshed-out and multi-faceted anime characters I’ve ever seen. He dreams of being the very best like no one ever was, but he has to claw his way up from the very bottom to get there. He has a huge stubborn streak and can get really hot-headed at times, especially when goaded on by his rival, Gary, but he’s still a good person at heart who loves and cares for his Pokemon and will go out of his way to help someone in need. He’s not the most intelligent person, which can get a bit infuriating when Team Rocket’s schemes are so blatantly obvious and when he makes amateurish mistakes in battle, but his ingenuity and ability to think on his feet are usually enough to get him out of most situations. When it comes to children’s anime, my favorite kind of main character is an imperfect, relatable role model that always tries their best, and Ash fits the bill to a T while also throwing in a dozen more details to make him feel even more like a real person, and I’d be hard-pressed to write this much about another anime character, save for this next one.
Meanwhile, Misty as the female lead is nothing to scoff at either, and she still stands as one of my favorite role models for young girls in any fictional medium. Instead of filling out a traditional feminine stereotype or deliberately going against the grain as an all-out tomboy, Misty treads the less-traveled path of walking straight down the middle. She’s strong-willed and loves to battle, but she’s also into beauty and other feminine ideas. She’s hot-headed and stubborn enough to hang with the boys, but she’s still afraid of bugs. She’s independent and has her own goals to strive towards, but she can also act very motherly and take care of others when she needs to. Many people have been led to call her inconsistent or nonsensical over the years because of this dual nature, but this just makes her an even more interesting character and a better role model for young girls. To me, Misty’s character is saying “you don’t have to be this or that, but you can if you want to be; or you can be both, neither, or a varying balance of the two,” and for a children’s show, that’s a pretty amazing feat.
Brock stands up well as a slightly older member of the crew and acts as a strong mentor to Ash when he needs it, though his romantic mishaps can become rather annoying at times, and, unfortunately, there’s really nothing else to his character besides those two things, though to be fair I am comparing him to characters that I just wrote two massive paragraphs about. As for other side protagonists, I don’t have time to talk about them much in detail, but while most of them are there more for Ash’s story to progress, there are a select few that become interesting in their own right and are strong enough to become recurring characters throughout the show.
And, of course, what would an adventure series be without some villains, and Team Rocket members Jessie, James, and Meowth fill this role nicely. Again, the repetitive nature can become a bit burdensome at times and that ends up decreasing how threatening they can be in a given situation, but for the most part, they stand up as antagonists to Ash’s progress fairly well, while also adding a ton of comedy to the series as the bumbling idiots that they are, though I think my favorite aspect of them is that they aren’t really evil other than in name. We’re given many glimpses into their pasts throughout the show and how many other things they’ve tried and failed to do, and by the end they come across as villains who are only villains because they need the money to eat instead of some generic puppy-kicking bad guys, and that very subtle blurring of the good/evil dichotomy is a great lesson for both kids and adults.
The animation by OLM is, unfortunately, pretty much what you’d expect from a kids’ show. While the bright colors and unique Pokemon designs that adapt Ken Sugimori’s original concept art excellently are still there, the actual animation is about as bare bones as you can possibly get, complete with whooshing backgrounds that anime has used for decades as a cheap way of conveying speed or intensity. While the battles themselves can be pretty exciting at times, it usually not because of stellar fight choreography, so the series has to rely on its creativity and the strength of its story to carry the action sequences through. Pokemon is also one of the few anime that changed over from cel-animation to digital within a single season instead of waiting for time off to make the switch, and you can definitely see that they needed a little more time to adjust to their new tools.
With the soundtrack, Shinji Miyazaki does a great job of adapting Junichi Masuda’s themes from the original video games, while also adding in his own tracks for more variety. Additionally, though I can’t find out who it was, some tracks were replaced by another composer for the dub release, and this becomes very apparent when John Loeffler’s tracks from Mewtwo Strikes Back end up being implemented in seasons 4 and 5.
I would say that now it the time for the debate over subs or dubs, but let’s be honest: if you really need a reason to stay away from this dub in particular, then you really don’t need me to tell you that. It’s definitely not the best acted dub ever and there are some pretty awkward script changes, as well as some laughable translation errors, but, to me at least, not hearing Veronica Taylor, Rachel Lillis, and Eric Stuart plays these parts would be even more jarring for me than the awkward acting, which I actually experienced while watching the banned episodes that were never dubbed.
Overall, if you’re looking for me to say that Pokemon is worth a nostalgia trip, then I can respond with a wholehearted “absolutely.” Adults with enjoy the creativity and heart that this series has to offer just as much as they did when they were younger. If you’re looking for advice on whether to show this to your own kids, then I can say yes to that as well, especially if they’re already Pokemon fans, as the fun and excitement of it all will draw them in while also feeding them strong moral values like respect for others and never giving up. Of course, it also goes without saying that if you never saw this series while growing up, or if you’re not really a Pokemon fan at all, then I’d be hard pressed to recommend it, though I do think there is some value in it as a standalone work.
In regards to my thoughts on each season individually, there is definitely a lot of credence to the prevailing idea of season 1, The Indigo League, having the highest concentration of great episodes. However, my personal favorite has always been season 2, the Orange Islands, as I found breaking away from the game’s story entirely was both a bold move and a great way to get even crazier with some of the ideas. Season 5, Master Quest, also has a ton of episodes that sit towards the top of my favorites like the Larvitar arc, Baby Lugia arc, the Whirl Cup, and the Johto Silver Conference. In terms of which is the weakest, I’d say season 3, Johto Journeys, just barely edges out season 4, Johto League Champions. Both of them only had maybe one of two really great episodes like Hour of the Houndour or The Wayward Wobbufett, but Johto Journeys definitely had a higher concentration of bad episodes. I had actually never seen the episode where Ash catches his Chikorita until my most recent viewing of the series, and, in hindsight, I might have preferred for it to stay that way, as it was easily one of the worst episodes of the entire series.
As a brief note, however, if you plan on only watching the first five seasons as I have and not continuing on to Pokemon Advanced, I would suggest skipping Episode 276 “Hoenn Alone!,” as it feels more like the first episode of season 6 than the last episode of season 5. As for my reasoning on why I stopped there for my review, I consider Pokemon Advanced the start of a long decline in both writing and animation quality for the Pokemon TV series, not just because of nostalgia bias, but because this marks the point where Takeshi Shudo, the lead writer responsible for creating the main character cast and the overall direction of the writing as a whole, stopped working on the series. After this point, the writing became more and more formulaic, repetitive, and completely lacking in the emotional punches that the first few seasons were so effective at doling out, so I really can’t recommend continuing on after season 5, at least until I get around to finishing X&Y.
Pokemon is licensed by Viz Media and the first five seasons are all readily available for purchase, though they do not contain the half dozen or so banned episodes like Electric Soldier Porygon or The Ice Cave. Additionally, the Pokemon TV website cycles through batches of episodes every week, so check them out to see if your favorite episode is up right now, though I did notice some definite audio problems while using their video player.
Final Score: Light 7
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Nov 29, 2016 Recommended
[This is the text version of this review. For the video version, visit Ember Reviews on YouTube]
Pokemon is probably one of the most basic and clean-cut examples you can find of an episodic adventure series. Ash wants to be the greatest Pokemon master in the world and he refuses to stop until he achieves his goal, and every episode in between is something that either helps him achieve this goal, impedes his progress, or has a lesson to teach him or one of his friends that will aid them in the future. Of course, this kind of structure also means that most of the enjoyment gleamed ...
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Jan 3, 2016 Recommended
Man what the hell do I even say about this one?
This is an anime that works much more solidly on a thematic and symbolic level than it does on a basic plot level, with most of the actions and scenarios set up for meaning rather than for story. This isn't necessarily an inherently bad way to go about constructing a series, but it will absolutely put off any viewers that aren't prepared for this kind of narrative. Personally, this is the kind of anime that I've been craving for a lot as of late since I've been looking for shows that break the mold of what ... the current industry has become, so I found Alien Nine to be quite thrilling, but in a much more unnerving and unsettling way, which is another style that I've been craving a lot lately. Perhaps the ending of Berserk has finally broken me, but that's neither here nor there. This anime delves into a lot of themes relating to puberty and the general discomfort and fear of growing up, with some scenes being nice and subtle, and other quite literally bashing you over the head. While this might appear as having a sporadic and uneven tone to some, I think it actually fits the allegory for adolescence quite nicely. It's also a horror anime in the sense of what I mean when I talk about true horror, in that there is something outside of your control bearing down on you, digging into your weak points and dragging you through some truly dreadful experiences. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if someone told me that Gen Urobuchi had seen this anime at some point and let some of its themes influence his work on Madoka Magica. This is purely a hypothetical conjecture obviously and I'm not in any way suggesting that Alien Nine had a direct influence on Madoka, but they do seem rather similar to me when it comes to the terrifying circumstances that both casts have to deal with. However, I do have to knock off a few points for almost wrapping up the ending nicely, but then throwing in a scene at the very end that leaves a gaping hole in the conclusion that desperately needs more content that will never be animated due to lack of popularity. Much like the story, the characters operate on a much more symbolic level than a logical one, and because there's a lot of implicit meaning behind their actions that isn't openly stated, a lot of what these characters do may come off as irrational and just plain stupid sometimes. I did find Yuri to be an excellent youth protagonist, though a tiny bit annoying sometimes, and watching her struggle with the aforementioned themes, and even just her daily school life, made the peak moments of terror all the more traumatic and unnerving. The animation is handled by J.C. Staff, and while I'm not gonna pretend that the animation holds of really well (this is an OVA from the early 2000s after all), I am surprised by how much detail went into both the environments and the alien designs. There's also a fluidity of movement that you don't see very often outside of the experimental OVA field and I wish I could see more often in regular TV anime, though I believe it would be more accurate to say that I wish there were more TV anime with darker, more emotional themes and experimental storytelling methods that can push the boundaries of what a visual medium can do. The character designs are fairly simple and do their job in creating unique and memorable characters, but the consistency does leave a lot to be desired. There's also some pretty nasty CG that pops up constantly, which put a big damper on some of the more important scenes. As for the soundtrack, I've noticed that a lot of the most striking soundtracks come from works that have less of a need to stick to a traditional classical or rock sound, and that is certainly the case with Kuniaki Haishima's work on this anime. There really isn't a selection of words or phrases that I could describe this soundtrack with other than bizarre, with a lot of different styles and sounds crashing together to create some extremely unsettling and agitating tunes, and I will definitely be coming back to this soundtrack in the near future. Overall, if you're not one to stray from traditional storytelling and dialogue, then you will probably have a lot of difficulties watching this anime, but if you're like me and feel that you can get suckered into this strange world, only to have your heart slump down awkwardly in your chest as the fear and anxiety wash over you, then give this one a try. I was a bit indecisive about what kind of rating I wanted to give this one, but then I remembered that I completely ignored my dinner just so that I could finish the series, so I guess I have my answer.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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Oct 10, 2015
Boruto: Naruto the Movie
(Anime)
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Like many anime fans of my generation, I began my life as an anime fan through Cartoon Network's Toonami block, featuring shounen classics such as Dragon Ball Z, Yu Yu Hakusho, and Rurouni Kenshin. However, for me personally, I was on the tail end of those shows' airtime, only catching the Majin Buu saga and reruns of the first few episodes of other shows. I didn't come in at the beginning, so it wasn't like starting a brand new adventure, and it wasn't until around 2005 that I first got to experience the start of a brand new story, and that story, of course, was
...
Naruto, an epic reinterpretation of ninjas combined with the superpower action/adventure style of DBZ and other shounen tropes, though of course I had no idea what shounen was at the time. Now, after over a decade of popularity in the US, and half a decade more in Japan, the last story in the Naruto-verse has finally been told.
Several years after the Fourth Shinobi World War, Naruto has finally become the Seventh Hokage, and a time of peace and prosperity has descended upon the Leaf Village. However, this time our focus is not on Naruto, but on his son, Boruto, a young ninja desperately seeking the attention of his father, who has become overwhelmed with his duties as Hokage and barely has time to spend with his family anymore. Through his trials in the lead-up to the Chunin Exams, as well as a mysterious new villain making an appearance, Boruto attempts to garner his father's attention and force him to recognize his exceptional talent as a shinobi and give him the attention he so desperately craves. Much like Naruto: The Last, we've moved past simply adding a new villain for our favorite characters to fight against, and instead the main focus of this movie is on the emotional turmoil that Boruto and Naruto have to work through in their strained father-son relationship. This part of the story is pretty straightforward and basic, though that's really all that it needs to be. Naruto doesn't have time to spend with his son, so Boruto gets angry and hates his dad's guts, yet still tries his best to get his dad to notice him. In terms of the franchise's history, Boruto is actually a fairly weak-willed main character at times and gives up a lot more easily than his father ever did, though this still seems to work because, rather than not having anyone in the first place like Naruto, or having his family taken from him like Sasuke, he instead feels abandoned by a father who is still technically there but doesn't pay enough attention, causing him to essentially lose hope that his situation will ever get better, and when he does finally start seeing reassurance from his father after Boruto starts making more headway in the ninja world, he subconsciously rebounds and does everything he can to keep his dad's attention, even if his methods start to deviate from the shinobi way. In a way, this sort of echoes Sasuke's history, which kind of makes sense since Sasuke is Boruto's mentor for a good portion of the film, and at times it almost feels like Boruto sees Sasuke as someone to fill the void left by his barely-there father, though this idea isn't explored too much in the film. The overall arc of Boruto's character is probably the best part of this film, as it reaches a satisfying conclusion in the final act. As for Naruto, this is probably the most difficult part of the story to convey to the audience, since they have to make Naruto look extremely busy without making him act like a douche to his family, and with the exception of a few lines, they manage to do that fairly well. You can definitely see that he's become overloaded and exhausted from his work as Hokage, and also that he's still trying to find time to spend with his family, although failing miserably. There are a few moments in the beginning though where the strictness he's adopted as the Hokage seems to be a bit too forced for his character and ends up making him look a bit uncaring, which is hardly the kind of trait you would expect from Naruto. As for the rest of the cast, most of them are fairly solid. I ended up liking Sarada a lot more than I thought I would since she ends up being an interesting support character for Boruto in sharing similar elements of their parental situations. I do wish they had explored her more in this movie, but I suppose that's what Seventh Hokage and the Scarlet Spring is for. The rest of the characters fill out their own fan service and nostalgia roles pretty nicely, and I didn't really expect any more than that since it would end up clogging up the main story line. The main villain, unfortunately, is pretty much as generic as they come. Again, anything super-complex would have bogged down the character drama between Boruto and Naruto, but this guy's about as plain and standard as they come. They try to work him into the already existing shinobi history, which worked out fine in Naruto: The Last, but it feels like too much of a stretch in this case and a lot of the details feel a bit jumbled and rushed. The new technology they introduce in this film was also a bit odd at times. I've always felt that Kishimoto has struggled with balancing how much advanced technology is used in the Naruto universe, and this movie almost fixes that problem by basically showing this giant leap forward in technology, and it even seems to address the debate of whether hard work and willpower or technology and cutting edge tools with spearhead the future of the shinobi world, but it's still just a tad too jagged and uneven at times. As for animation, this is definitely one of the best-looking Naruto films thus far, though I'm not quite sure I would call it the best. The character designs are about as refined and polished as they've ever been, though I did notice quite a few draw distance issues. Perhaps this was more a problem with the theater I saw it in...amongst many other problems I had with my particular theater viewing, that will eventually be fixed by the time the Blu-rays come out, but it's still something worth noting. To my delight, this film does not rely nearly as much on CG environments as previous movies have done, though there are still a few whiffs of that pungent CG stench hanging around. As for the action scenes, once again, it does a lot of things right, and a lot of things not so right. When it gets into the huger scale of things, the choreography and particle physics are outstanding, with tons of vivid colors and unique attack designs, and watching these massive explosions and earth-shattering jutsu go off in everyone's faces is spectacular to watch. On the other end though, a lot of the smaller, hand-to-hand choreography is a bit disappointing, especially compared to the previous film. There are a few moments where the hand-to-hand gets pretty awesome and some of the more complex strategies and jutsu are fun to watch, but these moments largely fall by the wayside in exchange for a “whoever has the biggest jutsu wins” competition like the latter half of the main Naruto storyline fell into. The very end of the battle did have at least some smartness to it though, so I wasn't dissatisfied by the ending to a significant degree. Despite its flaws though, this is some of the better work that Studio Pierrot has put out so far, and it's a great way to view the shinobi world for one last time. On the soundtrack end of things, it's pretty much the same as it's always been: an epic combination of orchestral and rock compositions with that extra Eastern flavor of shamisen, taiko drums, and bamboo flute that has shaped the Naruto soundtrack's identity for the past thirteen years. The ending song played during the credits was provided by Kana-Boon and gives us that last burst of excitement as what is most likely the final chapter in the Naruto world comes to a close. Oh by the way, make sure you watch the after-credits scene because it is absolutely something that you do not want to miss. Overall, if you go into this movie thinking it'll be the big final hoorah of the Naruto franchise and that it's the best story yet, you'll probably be disappointed. To me, the final climax of Naruto was in Naruto: The Last, if you couldn't tell from how often I brought it up during this review, and Boruto is more of a fan service/second generation side story that serves as more of a dessert dish rather than the last bite of a spectacular main course. Despite that, though, I still highly recommend that you see this movie if you are a Naruto fan because, despite all its flaws, it's still probably the last major project that Kishimoto will make for the Naruto franchise, and that's...kinda sad for me. Even though there are so many other, much better anime out there, Naruto is the one that, for me and thousands, possibly millions of other anime fans, shaped how we viewed anime as we were growing up, and to know that the story is now completely finished is kind of depressing. Sure the TV anime is still going...for some reason, but the manga's story is completely finished and now there's this void left behind from a series that's been a massive part of my life for so long that I can't even remember what life was like without Naruto. From the first volume to the last, from Ninja Clash in the Land of Snow to Boruto, and the dozens of side stories in-between, this has been one hell of a ride. Knowing that there's a future without more Naruto is really weird for me, and, in time, perhaps a new franchise will take its place...but, that's a story for another day. For now, I say "Sayonara" to a franchise that, despite its flaws, means more to me than others can possibly imagine.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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Oct 8, 2015 Recommended
I honestly don't know what to say about this one that hasn't been said countless times already, but I'll give it a shot.
Despite its anime adaptation's less than stellar reputation, this manga truly is something to marvel at. The story is incredibly well-crafted and captivating, often surprising me with revelations about their world 400+ chapters in that completely change how I view events that I've known to be a certain way for so long, and yet rarely does it ever feel forced or unnatural. Almost everything feels planned out perfectly. The only part where I feel the progression is a bit unnatural was the beginning ... of the very last story arc, since it kind of feels like Kishimoto had no idea how to defeat the main villain. My only other notable complaint story-wise is the lead-up to the Fourth Great Ninja War, mostly because it introduces a barrage of new characters from all different villages a bit too quickly, and because neither Naruto nor Sasuke are present for a dozen chapters at a time to keep the character dramas pressing forward, causing the story to slow to a crawl for a bit. However, only having two complaints from 700 chapters of content more than speaks to the value of the writing. The world building is absolutely fantastic as well. From the minute details of chakra (superpower life force of the week) control to the entire history of the shinobi (ninja), this world feels almost like a high fantasy in how incredibly rich and detailed it is. Any time a new piece of world building came up, I could barely tear my eyes away from the page. While the overall plot is fairly simple (save the world X number of times), it's the characters that truly drive this story forward. While sometimes too simplistic in his ideals, Naruto himself has grown to be one of my favorite shounen protagonists, will his undying will and pursuit of his dream becoming damn-near awe-inspiring in the latter chapters. He also becomes the prototypical example of an outcast youth striving to prove himself and gain the acceptance of his peers, and watching his journey from orphaned punk to savior of the world was absolutely incredible. The pain that he felt at his absolute lowest moments is so palpable that I actually cried a little bit. As for Sasuke, I've gained a huge appreciation for his character by switching from the anime to the manga, as the full weight of his incredibly dark and depressing situation is much more focused and poignant. His path to revenge is one paved with hate, deceit, and breaking of bonds, and his descent into darkness is quite compelling. I actually cared when he did the wrong thing and strayed from the noble path, and, at times, I almost agreed with his actions because of his motivations, even when those actions were rather horrendous. My body shivered at the absolute dread that he experienced through his years of suffering, unwanted revelations, and growing malice towards what destroyed his once happy life. Because of how exceptionally well-crafted both Naruto and Sasuke are, the way they play off each other is just a tad shy of writing genius. Their conflicting ideals and differing backgrounds shape them into perfect foils for each other to grow off of and inspire surprisingly engrossing debates of what makes a true shinobi. I could go on for days about the rest of the cast, but I think it will suffice to say that there isn't a single character that I adamantly dislike. I will say though that Kishimoto's genius does shine through in his foils and reflections of Squad 7 (Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura) through the generations of past shinobi (The Legendary Sannin, Kakashi's squad, and Pain's group in particular), and by slightly altering the events that happen to these characters, it creates drastically different outcomes for the same character archetype and spawns a character study that almost feels like an academic study of character development at times (in a very good way). The artwork, while not the most richly detailed or awe-inspiring that I've seen, still manages to be not only consistent and pleasant to view, but also decisively unique amongst its shounen peers, from the different designs of eye jutsu (techniques) to the Tailed Beasts that terrorize the ninja world. Unfortunately, once again, I must complain about a shounen manga having unclear and cluttered action scenes. It doesn't happen all the time, and when it's clear what's happening, it's extremely compelling, but when the frame gets filled to the brim with different actions and jutsu, it's almost impossible to tell what's going on. Overall, Naruto has been an absolutely fantastic read that I highly recommend. However, I also realize that I do have a lot of complaints about the series as a whole, and it caused me to question how high to score this series. Then I asked myself: do I want to go back and reread it right now? ... Yeah. I think I do.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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Sep 18, 2015
Yuri Seijin Naoko-san (2012)
(Anime)
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[Note: this is a review of both episodes of this franchise]
This was quite a surprise for an OVA with only two episodes (6 min. and 28 min.) Story-wise, there's not much that happens; in fact, the first episode sort of just drops you into the middle of everything and you don't learn any back story until the second episode, so it relies more on its comedy and bizarre surrealistic sensibilities to hold your attention, both of which are almost always on-target. It isn't technically a yuri title, but it does use that theme for a lot of its comedy, and as someone whose enjoys that ... kind of humor, I got quite a few laughs out of this anime. It also has a very deadpan style of humor that doesn't need extreme character reactions to tell you that something was funny. All of the characters were really funny and also kind of endearing by the time the series was over. With animation, however, there's a lot more going. I absolutely adored the aesthetic that this anime carried with its barely-outlined character, striking character designs, and just barely muted color palette. The animation also had an extremely fluid and free moving style, another aesthetic that I really love seeing and wish I could see in more anime. Most of this, of course, is due to Tetsuya Takeuchi's heavy involvement with the series (director, script, storyboard, screenplay, key animation, character designs, AND animation director; plus he was also involved in End of Evangelion, R.O.D., Love Hina, and Nodame Cantabile). You can really tell that this guy has a truly unique vision and it comes through beautifully in this anime. Oh by the way this was animated by ufotable. Yeah, THAT ufotable. I also liked the editing style a lot as well. It's a lot slower than the norm and not even close to being as spastic as more modern comedic series, and the longer takes and fewer cuts let the bizarre comedy and surrealism shine through without being interrupted by constant cutting, which I appreciated a lot. Music was very minimal, but when it did show up, it added the perfect touch of strangeness to an already strange environment. Overall, this is a highly underrated gem that I definitely recommend. It only takes about 35 minutes to get through both episodes, so time commitment is a non issue. Even if it was, I'd still recommend this series, and I hope to see more from this series and from Takeuchi in the future.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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Mar 27, 2015
Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso
(Anime)
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For those who aren’t familiar with me personally, I have a very strong connection to the world of music, and I actually spent my first two years of college as a Music Performance major, and even though that dream eventually came to an end, I’ll still be graduating with a general Music degree, as music is still an absolutely vital part of my life. So, naturally, the music genre is one of my go-to’s when looking for new anime to watch. Sadly though, music anime are not only very few in number, but the music aspects often seem to be more of a crutch to
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gain more viewers, rather than actually be a central theme that the entire anime revolves around. However, when I do find an anime that actually focuses on the music and how it affects the characters, the results are almost always incredible, and today, I’ll be talking about one such anime.
As I mentioned, I was previously a performance major, meaning that I was pursuing the same path as these characters are, and it’s still amazing to me how perfectly this anime captures not only the ways musicians act, but how they see the world and everything in it. These are characters that are completely obsessed with their craft, and so practically everything is shown through the lens of music and how it affects, complements, or reflects the different situations and emotions we encounter in our lives. It also did an amazing job of showing that while music can be an unparalleled source of joy and strength, it can also be a source of unbearable pain and suffering, especially for those who practice it and try to perfect it, and yet despite that, these characters refuse to give up on music because it defines who they are. No matter how much pain it puts them through, they keep pushing themselves well beyond the edges of their abilities because they want their music to reach someone, or they want to prove their worth, or simply because they can’t ever forget what it feels like to look out into the audience after a performance and get bombarded by the roar of an ecstatic crowd. Despite its heavy reliance on music for conveying its story, you don’t really need to have an in-depth knowledge of music to feel how powerful this story is. It certainly helps to have this knowledge, but at its core it’s an intense drama that relies on themes of drive, motivation, and inspiration to push its characters forward. That being said though, it also never sacrifices its music content for accessibility. Practically everything that happens in this series comes about as a result of the characters’ relationship with music, even with the characters that aren’t musicians. I know there were some complaints about the second half being too much about the romance drama, but again, even that gets fed back into music and how the world of music is consuming so many aspects of their lives, even when they don’t want it to. But, again, there always seems to be two sides to the music, and while it’s often portrayed as this unseen source of pain, it’s also shown to be the only source of salvation for each characters’ suffering. Music is often portrayed in other works as being this super-holy, divine, everything-is-awesome entity, but other shows rarely ever talk about the pain and hardship that comes with living that kind of life and striving towards those near-impossible goals of perfecting one’s art, and the fact that Your Lie in April understands this duality that exists within music makes it all the more incredible. Even aside from the music aspects, this show is one of the best dramas I’ve ever seen. This was an unbelievably emotional series; I’m talking Clannad: After Story level sadness, especially towards the end of the series. Of course, the key to any drama is making the situation feel believable, and practically all the situations in this show feel like things that we either have already encountered or will encounter at some point in our lives. Overcoming past demons, coping with death, young romantic love, trying to achieve an impossible standard set by a role model, and so many more themes create this massive ball of drama that keep building and building onto itself until everything comes to a head in one of the greatest and most emotional final episodes I’ve ever seen in an anime that had me flat-out crying by the end of it. It was so unbelievably powerful on so many different levels. The writing in general was also really solid, and the literal script itself for this series was incredibly well-written. It almost comes off as reminiscent of a pseudo-art house film in terms of how descriptive and complex the internal monologues of these characters are, and you can definitely tell that every single word was scrutinized and hand-picked to have the biggest impact possible, mostly through very subtle exchanges. I think one of my favorite small details about the series was how Kaori would use quotes from the Peanuts comics throughout the series. I don’t know how many of you have actually just sat down and read a book of Peanuts comics before, but among the hundreds of light-hearted and humorous strips, there are a few that are shockingly deep and introspective, and that kind of tone fits this anime perfectly, creating this very subtle undertone of serious thought and introspection that slowly builds over the course of the series. Of course, a drama is nothing without its characters, and the cast of this series is one of the most vibrant and lifelike I’ve ever seen. Kōsei, being our main character, gets the most fleshing out, and from the very first episode, we can see glimpses of all the different levels of confliction and psychological torment that he’s endured in the time since his mother’s passing, as well as the time leading up to that. The show also does a superb job at getting us into Kōsei’s mind and allowing us to share some of the pain that he feels. There were some moments where I felt genuinely uneasy and unsettled by how Kōsei reacted to certain objects or sounds, especially certain pieces of music, and he ends up becoming the quintessential example of the “suffering artist.” In contrast to Kōsei, Kaori seems to be practically bursting at the seams with light and hope, almost as if she were crafted from music itself. You can feel this unending sense of vibrancy radiating out of her at almost every moment, and this attitude is perfectly reflected in her no-holds-bar style of playing that captivates all who hear it, especially Kōsei, whose machine-like style of perfection and mimicking the score exactly stands as the complete opposite to Kaori’s style. Through her aggressive and out-of-control style, she spends most of the show trying to draw Kōsei back into the world of music. While she does appear at the beginning to be the stereotypical “quirky love interest trying to get the main character to open up,” Kaori quickly evolves into something far beyond that, something that can only be defined as the personification of the goals of everyone who’s every picked up an instrument and spent their lives honing their craft. She constantly speaks about wanting to live within the hearts of her audience and not wanting to be forgotten, again reflected in her bombastic musical style, and she also carries quite a lot of her own problems with her as well and puts them on display for everyone to see in her performances. Together, over the course of the series, Kōsei and Kaori use each other to grow into musicians and human beings far beyond what they could have accomplished on their own, and the dynamic between them is one of the most captivating and intense struggles for purpose that I’ve seen in a long time. Their interactions also end up reversing a lot of the usual clichés associated with romance dramas, creating a sort of student-teacher role between them that gets flipped around several times rather than a boy pursuing the love of a girl. You really get the sense that these two need each other not because of love or intimacy, but because as musicians, they need each other and their musical souls in order to survive. While the rest of the cast doesn’t get as much development as Kōsei and Kaori, they’re still far more developed than simple side characters. From Kōsei’s childhood friend Tsubaki, who may or may not be in love with Kōsei, to the adults who used to be part of Kōsei’s life before his mother’s death, every single character brings a new dynamic to this series, again through their relationship with music. I was especially fond of two of the musicians that Kōsei competes against throughout the series, as both of them displays qualities that I’ve experienced myself as a competitive musician: the desire to catch up to someone you see as a goal to be achieved, and the need to pour your feelings into every note so that they reach the person you look up to the most. There was even a point where they introduced a brand new character after two-thirds of the series had already passed, and she still felt like a vital part of the arcs for all characters involved with her. This is simply one of the best character casts I’ve ever seen in an anime. The animation was produced by A-1 Pictures, and I gotta say, it’s really nice to see them putting their Sword Art Online and IDOLM@STER money to work in a show that’s actually good. One of the standout features of this show’s animation is how much they focus on the lighting. Almost every scene has a very specific set of lighting and shadow effects that lend even more credence to the idea that this anime feels like an art house film, and because of this, it’s very rare for a scene to have any flatness to it. Character design and animation are also really well done, especially with close-ups on a character’s face. Kōsei and Kaori’s expressions in particular are excessively detailed, with every line on their faces projecting an entire palette worth of emotion. The animation for when someone is playing also creates this sense of awe and wonder, and it’s one of the few times where I found CG to actually help an anime, and the intricate details and inner mechanisms of the piano and violin are simply breathtaking. The only time the show ever really deviates from its extremely high levels of animation is when it breaks into the semi-deformed style used for the comedic bits that we see in other shōnen anime, so it never actually feels like the quality has decreased for the worse at any point. There is no dub for this series yet, though I sincerely hope that Aniplex and Bang Zoom! recognize how well-loved this series is and put enough effort into it to make a good dub, because I’d really like to share this series with as many people as possible, even non-anime fans, and having a dub is one of the easiest ways to do that. The soundtrack for this series consists of two parts. The first is the different classical pieces that are used throughout the series. Most of the pieces consists of piano compositions from different parts of the Romantic Era such as Chopin, Saint-Saens, Ravel, and Tchaikovsky, but we also get a few Classical and 20th Century Era inserts as well, from Beethoven’s piano sonatas to Kriezler’s violin solos. I think my personal favorite addition though was Debussy’s “Clair de Lune,” not only because I have personal connections to the piece, but because it seems to be one of those pieces that every musician has a different experience with, and thus takes on a multitude of different colors and meanings. I also want to give special praise to Tomoki Sakata and Yūna Shinohara, who provided the outstanding piano and violin performances given throughout the series, each one filled to the brim with a tapestry of colors, shades, and emotions that bring this soundtrack to life in so many different ways. The second half of the soundtrack consists of the new incidental music composed by Masaru Yokoyama, also known for his work on Arakawa under the Bridge and Joshiraku, and his expert combinations of piano, violin, string choruses, and the occasional ambiance effect creates an undulating soundtrack that both holds the scene in a time all its own, yet constantly pushes forward without cessation. Some of the more atmospheric pieces were also exceptionally good, especially during some of the darker moments of the series. There was one track in particular though that I was extremely found of, which I believe is called “Yuujin A-kun wo Watashi no Bansousha ni Ninmeishimasu,” which took one of the other pianos themes from the soundtrack and had it grow and swell into this giant mass of triumphant piano, strings, winds, and electronic effects that reminded me a lot of some of the Maslanka pieces that I’ve played in the past. As for opening and ending themes, all of them are very well-written and add quite a bit of weight on both ends of the emotional spectrum, with the first opening “Hikaru Nara” by Goose House being an exceptionally catchy and upbeat track whose piano, acoustic guitars, horn lines, and seven different vocal parts meshed together into a song that feels like the entirety of a musician’s soul pouring out into a single track. Overall, Your Lie in April is an absolutely astounding anime. Intense story arcs filled with emotion and pain, complex characters that are created, broken, and reformed into something greater through their interactions with others, incredible animation that pushes the boundaries of what an animation studio can do artistically with a TV series, and a soundtrack filled with an unparalleled level of performance and composition. This is one of those anime that only comes along once every few years or so; one that’s not only exceptionally well-written and well-animated, but also has that living, breathing quality of art that tugs at your heartstrings and leaves you with memories and emotions you won’t be forgetting any time soon. Is it because of my personal connection with music that I think so highly of this anime? Maybe, but maybe that’s the only reason I need. Longfellow once said that music is the universal language of mankind, and I cannot think of a better example of that than this anime. This isn’t just about music. It’s about personal connections, and communicating with others through a universal mode of expression we share, and how everything is interrelated to everything else through some kind of common denominator, and it’s this intensely realistic idea that has allowed me to have a deeply emotional and heart-wrenching experience with this anime. For me at least, this anime transcends mere entertainment, and becomes a true work of art, something that musicians, animators, writers, and others the world over search for with every breath they take, waiting for those moments of pure catharsis. Your Lie in April is, without a doubt, my favorite anime of all time.
Reviewer’s Rating: 10
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Jan 16, 2015
Durarara!!
(Anime)
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Strangely enough, it's not really that common for a novel or manga writer to have more than one of their works adapted into an anime series. Most authors only get their one brief glimmer of TV spotlight, though whether this is due to the quality of their writing or the fact that they simply don't write many different stories is another matter entirely. However, when a writer with a very distinctive style does get that long sought after second adaptation, it might come as no surprise that they carry over a lot of the same
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themes and styles from their first work. So, is it fair to judge a series based on the author's previous work, especially when that previous work is widely regarded as a masterpiece?
I find this anime somewhat difficult to review on its own simply because of its origins. Narita is a rather prolific light novel writer who is also well-known for the anime adaptation of his very first light novel series, Baccano!, and I find myself almost constantly comparing Durarara!! to Baccano!, not just because Baccano! is the first series that I ever gave a perfect 10, and not just because they're so similar in writing style, but because they also have practically the exact same anime staff: same director, same writer, same animation studio, and ever the same soundtrack composer. In staff alone, Durarara!! is essentially a Baccano!-style story set in present-day Japan rather than Prohibition-era New York, and this idea comes with both astounding potential and unavoidable flaws. With that in mind, I found the overall story to be incredibly exhilarating. Once a certain story line got going, it had this ability to continuously pick up speed and intensity and eventually became a whirlwind sprint towards a massive and exciting conclusion. Like Baccano! (hopefully I won't exhaust this phrase too much during this review), we see tons of details interwoven into different scenes that feed into an overarching plot that grows in complexity as the story progresses, though unlike its predecessor, Durarara!! is told in chronological order for the most part, rather than skipping around the timeline like Baccano! did. However, because Durarara!! contains more than one story arc, it does have a tendency to lose a lot of its steam during the transition between arcs, especially after the halfway point, but fortunately it does still manage to get the ball rolling again and build up the same intensity that it had before. Like Baccano!, Durarara!! touches on a lot of philosophical themes and motifs, though the ones in this series seem much more grounded in human psychology and life itself. Themes like perspective of reality end up pushing the plot forward a lot more than one would expect, and the series also dabbles in usage of modern technology like the Internet, chat rooms, and media sensationalism in a way that seems like the writers have a fundamental understanding of how these things really affect communication rather than including them because "that's what the kids are into these days." I was also a huge fan of how the chat room specifically was used as a framing device for the story's narrative, as different people from around Ikebukuro discussed the current events of the city. Also like Baccano!, this series uses a large amount of supernatural elements to keep certain sections of its plot going, though rather than have the entire story be based on these supernatural elements, they exist more to introduce new ideas and new possibilities into the story. Again like Baccano!, this anime has an absolutely massive character cast, with practically every character getting more than enough screen time for us to fall in love with them. Mikado starts off as the standard "blank-slate good guy" protagonist who's trying to get used to the city and make new friends, but the ways that he becomes involved in the events of Ikebukuro, either by his own doing or because of someone else, cause him to grow in ways that let us get more attached to him as the default "main character." His best friend, Masaomi, comes off as a lovable goofball playboy who knows the ins and outs of everything about Ikebukuro, but we also get hints about his mysterious past with the city that grow more intense and powerful as the story progresses, especially in the second half of the series. Rounding off our main character trio is Anri, a rather shy girl at Raira Academy that Mikado and Masaomi grow very close to, and she provides not only an interesting character to ponder over, but also a somewhat different take on romantic relationships. Speaking of romance, Durarara!! relies quite heavily on romantic relationships between characters, and each relationship seems somehow off-kilter and odd in some way that breaks away from a lot of the standard anime relationships that we're used, both for better and for worse. The rest of the character cast also manages to be incredibly lively and fascinating as well. From Kyōhei's group of friends who provide tons of comic relief, to the superhuman bouts of rage courtesy of Shizuo Heiwajima, the cast of this series brings Ikebukuro to life in ways that almost make the city itself feel like its own character. We even get a supernatural character in the form of Celty aka the Black Rider, a headless figure that strike fear into the hearts of evildoers in Ikebukuro, and her arc in the first half of the series was incredibly compelling. However, the one character that stands out the most by far is the info broker Izaya Orihara, whose fascination with human interactions and his almost horrifying grip on the entire city makes him one of my favorite antiheroes of all time. Unfortunately, I will say that this series doesn't really have as strong a cast of antagonists as Baccano! did. There aren't really any Slizard Quates or Ladd Russo kinds of antagonists (though Shizuo does feel like Ladd in some regards), and street gangs just don't have the same prestige and power that mafia thugs have, so it ends up being more of a flaw with the setting rather than the writing. The animation was produced by Brain's Base, and we get yet another fantastic treat for the eyes as this studio brings its A-game once again. The character designs are incredibly unique and appealing, the cityscape is drawn beautifully and almost feels like it comes to life sometimes, and the action is visceral and exhilarating, with each punch having tremendous impact that can almost be felt through the screen. The production crew also inserted a ton of Easter eggs from different anime throughout the series, from superstar shows like Toradora! to underground artsy works like Le Portrait de Petit Cossette. We even get a few cameos of our favorite dynamic duo from Baccano!, as well as a plethora of other references to the series. I also found it rather interesting how they drew certain background characters. Many times, background characters in anime are often drawn as simple gray silhouettes, and while this often comes across as lazy in other works, Durarara!! actually manages to stylize this in a way that provides visual accents to the series, from highlighting a single person in a sea of faceless people, to making the different color gangs of the city more distinguishable. On the topics of dubs, this might be one of the best dubs that Bang Zoom! has ever produced, which should throw up a few flags for my regular readers, as I am usually very quick to rip this company's throat out for shoddy dub work. Michelle Ruff gives a stellar performance as Anri, and Bryce Papenbrook, a voice actor that I have not tried to hide my disdain for, gives his best performance yet as our playboy Masaomi. Admittedly, Darrel Guilbeau as Mikado is definitely the weakest member of the cast, which is rather unfortunate because his forced acting comes up so often. However, any dub that has Steve Blum (Kyōhei), Johnny Yong Bosch (Izaya), and Crispin Freeman (Shizuo) in the same anime and at such a high level of captivating performances should not be missed even by the most avid dub haters. The soundtrack was composed by Makoto Yoshimori, and he brings the same jazz-infused cacophony that he gave to the Baccano! soundtrack. Almost every track adds weight to the scenes that they are assigned to, be they spastic jazz trumpet solos or heartwarming piano melodies. The openings themes "Uragiri no Yuuyake" by Theatre Brook and "Complication" by ROOKiEZ is PUNK'D provide adrenaline-pumping rushes to play us into each episode, while the ending themes "Trust Me" by Yuya Matsushita and "Butterfly" by ON/OFF play us out with some chill pop numbers. While it is unfair to constantly compare this series to Baccano!, practically every problem that I had with Durarara!! was something that its predecessor did excessively well. Nevertheless, Durarara!! is still an exhilarating ride that I highly recommend seeing as soon as you can.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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Jan 7, 2015
Digimon Adventure
(Anime)
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Note: This is a review of the English language version of the series. As such, any discrepancies between it and the original Japanese script will not be taken into account unless I feel it is necessary.
Normally, when I review an anime series or movie, I judge each series by the same general merits, as any story should be able to provide an excellent level of entertainment regardless of length, genre, or intended audience. However, there is one demographic that this rule changes for, and that would be for shows aimed at a child audience. Of ... course it would be ridiculous to rate the quality of a kids' show the same way I would rate Cowboy Bebop or The Wind Rises, so, rather than rate it solely on its storytelling and animation, I've instead approached it from a different angle: if I were to have a kid in the future, is this something that I would want him or her to grow up watching? As I brainstormed what I thought were the most important elements of a preferred TV show for my possible future child, the first thing that came to my mind was some sort of lesson or message that he or she can take away from the series, and in that regard, Digimon Adventure is almost always on the ball. The show is practically built upon lessons regarding friendship, hard work, kindness, and learning to see the perspectives of others, all of which are invaluable lessons for a growing child to learn. That being said, there were certain times where it felt like it was laying it on too thick, such as a line early in the series where an evil Digimon says "I can't believe they've already learned the power of teamwork," though this may just be the fact that I'm viewing this as an adult and I'm fully aware of the lessons that it's teaching. In the end, the lesson itself is still powerful despite its extremely direct method of conveying it. While Digimon could have simply stopped there, it also goes on to tackle a lot of problems that children might have in their daily lives, some of which end up going a lot deeper than you would expect. Topics like divorce, parent-child relationships, and much more are explored just enough to be able to relate to children in similar circumstances, but not so much that it beats you over the head with it and burdens the actual story; in fact, it often becomes an integral part of the story and pulls it off rather well, and for a series whose primary purpose was to serve as a marketing platform for merchandise, that's an astounding feat. Apart from the lessons it teaches, I feel that it's also important to understand what my future child would want from this series, and the answer for that is quite clear: a vast, open world to explore and discover that's filled with a variety of colorful characters and creatures to interact with, and Digimon has that in droves. From the expansive Digital World to the hundreds of different Digimon to meet, this series is a child's proverbial dreamland. Additionally, another, more subtle element that adds to a child's viewing experience is the sense of independence. Alongside other kids' anime like Pokémon, Digimon places its characters in a position where they are living and fighting independently of their parents, and this sense of freedom is highly valued by its target audience. However, that isn't to say that the parents are shunned altogether. In fact, the main children's parents seem to serve as an emotional core and drive for them; they want to grow strong enough to be able to protect the ones they love, which also ends up serving as yet another underlying message to be taught. Finally, of course, when designing a show for kids, you can't forget the action as well, and there's a heavy load of the stuff throughout the series to keep the kids entertained when the story elements die down a bit. All of that aside, I do need to address the writing quality of this series. Yes, I am aware that the target audience for this show probably wouldn't notice it, but there are a ton of facepalm-worthy moments throughout the English script. This series has a tendency to make a lot of really bad jokes, some that even a kid probably wouldn't laugh at, and it also has moments where the writing doesn't make any sense at all. However, there were also some moments that actually had me laughing a bit, so the writing level does tend to fluctuate by a huge margin. As for the ending, I honestly felt like the last two episodes weren't necessary at all, and it was a bit obvious that they had been told to pad the series out a bit more, but the final scenes of the series still had an acceptable resolution to them. The characters in this series comprise a gathering of several different stereotypes: Tai is the bold and brash leader, Matt is the exact opposite and gets into fights with Tai a lot and also has a little brother to look after, Sora is the tomboy who still cares a lot for everyone, Izzy is the computer whiz, Joe is the klutzy one, Mimi is the pampered one, and TK is the "little kid" type and is Matt's younger brother; additionally, we later get introduced to the "perfect little sister" character in the form of Tai's sister, Kari. While most of these characters were inoffensive and likable, some to the point of me getting excited just by them being on-screen, there were a few that I had problems with. Matt was probably the source of the most irritation throughout the series (though perhaps that's because I grew up inspired by Tai's personality the most), and he often ended up lashing out at others for no reason other than being upset by something, though they do usually show him owning up to his mistakes later and finding new resolve inside himself. In fact, practically every time a character makes a big mistake and hurts one of their friends, we get to see them go through the process of understanding what they did wrong, and this is something that I love seeing in children's shows, as it gives them a chance to fully understand concepts of right and wrong and why certain things help or hurt other people. As for antagonists, the majority of them are your standard Saturday morning cartoon villains with no redeeming qualities to them, though there was one character towards the end of the series called Cherrymon that ended up being surprisingly devious and psychological, though it's a shame that he was only in the series for about two episodes. The animation was produced by Toei Animation, and, as I've said before, Toei isn't exactly known for its stellar animation quality. Toei's always been much more about style over quality, and the fact that this is a kids' show with a limited budget makes this even more apparent. While the designs for both the Digimon and the main children characters are both memorable and appealing, especially to a younger audience, the actual quality of animation is extremely low. This is especially apparent any time a character or object moves across a frame, as it has a tendency to drift in a straight line like the object has been lazily layered onto the background. There's also the matter of the "Digivolving" sequences, where Digimon grow more powerful and change form, and while most of the latter stage Digivolutions looked fine, those for Greymon and Garurumon were done completely in CG, and I think most of us would like to forget what low-budget CG in 1999 looked like. All of that aside, the show does look "cool," and I'm sure that a kid would have no problem getting into its design. Normally I would take this moment to talk about the dub, but since that's the only feasible option for a young child to view it in, then there's not much point. I will say though that some of the voice acting in this series was surprisingly good, while other parts were not-so surprisingly bad. The soundtrack was composed by Takanori Arisawa, also known for his work on the Sailor Moon soundtrack, and the music in this series is perfect for a young audience: exciting and thrilling enough for them to get pumped up, but not too extreme and complicated so they can hum along to it. And, of course, we have the iconic Digimon theme song, which is more than catchy enough to get the kids running towards the TV. Overall, I feel that Digimon Adventures is an excellent source of entertainment for children, and even adults who grew up with the show. Heck, I actually found myself on the edge of my seat at times for episodes I didn't remember seeing while I was growing up with the show, and I think that speaks volumes about how even a show created for marketing toys can still be transformed into an exciting viewing experience that can capture the heart of young children from all backgrounds.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Dec 31, 2014
Tsukimonogatari
(Anime)
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Much like with western entertainment, there are certain TV series and movies that stand out not just as promising installments of new or existing franchises, but also as popular events that a large portion of the community with wait in massive anticipation for. In the world of anime, the "events" that captures the most attention are new additions to the Monogatari series, an anime that began back in 2009 and is continuously pumping out sequels to this day. However, during the past year, the formula for how new entries into this franchise are premiered has
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changed drastically. Rather than being part of the regular seasonal lineup, new Monogatari arcs are now released in large chunks, with one entire story being contained in each of these chunk. So, does the newest entry into the Monogatari franchise live up to its household name?
Before diving into the actual story, I want to briefly give praise to Shinbo and Studio Shaft for finally recognizing a formula that works best for Monogatari, and that is giving us a single adaptation of one of the novels all at once. With a story as complicated and complex as Monogatari, pacing out each story over the course of four to six weeks felt incredibly prolonged and not very engaging because it practically requires a recap every time a new episode came out. However, by releasing it in feature length film-sized chunks, we can get the entire story all at once, making the loss of certain details over time less acute. This might sound like a very minor detail, but presentation is hugely important, especially with something as eclectic as Monogatari, though I can't say with zero reservations that I would be all for continuing this formula for the rest of the franchise, as it would also mean that the hype levels would fluctuate uncontrollably over the course of releases. Getting back to the matter of Tsukimonogatari specifically, I wouldn't say that this is one of the worst stories to come from the franchise, but coming off the heels of Hanamonogatari last summer makes it feel a bit weak by comparison, though there wasn't anything necessarily wrong with the main story of this arc. My biggest problem, however, lies in the introduction. While I did very much enjoy the beginning scene that contained a prolonged philosophical discussion about the nature of life and "not" life, despite taking up the entire first five minutes of this four-episode series, my true problem lies in what happens once the story actually begins, as we are treated to nearly fifteen minutes of what I can only describe as a self-congratulatory revel in Monogatari-style fan service. To put it bluntly: Araragi is messing around with his sisters' naked bodies again. While I wouldn't say that it reaches "toothbrush" levels of perversion, it still reminded me of a lot of things that I didn't like about Nisemonogatari. Once we get into the meat of the story, however, Tsuki immediately kicks it into high gear, and we spend the rest of the series enveloped in the "talking heads"-style intense discussions and schemes of Araragi and the other characters. This one isn't so much a character study like Hana was, but instead has more emphasis on the actual story, and the thrill of following Araragi and the others as they plan and debate over the most minute of details is just as thrilling as it was way back in Bakemonogatari. While the characters don't necessarily take center stage for this arc, there's still quite a bit of interesting development that occurs. Araragi surprisingly ends up getting more development than he's gotten since Nekomonogatari, as we watch him struggle with the changes in his vampiric powers and how that's affecting him on both a strategic level and an emotional one. Yotsugi Ononoki also takes on the main character role once again, and while I initially didn't really see them being able to do much with a character that wasn't very interesting in the first place, she ends up being surprisingly compelling, both for herself and for Araragi, and discussions centered around her that focus on what constitutes true life and the difference between true and artificial life give this series its trademark introspective edge. As for new faces, there is one new character named Tadatsuru, and while I can't go in detail into how he plays into the plot due to spoilers, I will say that despite his short appearance on-screen, he ended up being rather fascinating. Finally, we have Ougi Oshino, whom the series has been continuously teasing us with since the beginning of Second Season, and while her appearance is rather brief this time, much like in Hana, she still manages to interject a new perspective into the discussions being had. As always, the animation was produced by Shaft, and, to be honest, there's very little need for me to discuss the animation by this point, assuming that those of you still reading are up-to-date on the series. The massive contrasts in color, surreal CG that manages to fit rather well despite being very obviously CG, random "black screen" cuts, and as many head tilts and you can snap your neck at are all still present, though in terms of symbolism, I still think Hana, while still a bit on the blatant side, did a much better job with attempting to convey the overall message of the story. There is still no dub for this series, and, once again, this series stands as one of the few that I think would be significantly hindered by a dub, simply because of how much talking there actually is. The soundtrack seems to be firmly stuck in the hands of Kei Haneoka now, who took over for Satoru Kōsaki starting with Hana, and while I wouldn't say that the soundtrack has changed significantly from its usual eclectic nature, it did feel a bit more "traditional" and less overtly stylized. I can't really complain about any of the tracks specifically, and some of them were actually rather moving, but I would certainly hate to see the usual Monogatari style soundtrack disappear completely. The opening theme "Orange Mint" was performed by Saori Hayami (VA for Ononoki) and opens with a techno-inspired song with the usual Monogatari flair that puts it a step above the average, while the ending theme "border" by ClariS plays us out with their usual energized J-pop sound. Overall, while I wouldn't say it's one of my favorite stories from the franchise so far, Tsukimonogatari is yet another welcome addition into the franchise, though to be honest everything I'm saying right now is rather pointless when you think about it. If you like Monogatari as much as I do, then you probably already finished watching this new story before I could even post this review, and if you don't like Monogatari, then this is certainly not going to change your mind because it really is just more of the same.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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Dec 29, 2014
Shingeki no Bahamut: Genesis
(Anime)
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It's always rather interesting to see what sort of direction a new animation studio takes. Being fresh onto the anime landscape gives you a ton of options to choose from. Will you take the easy path of cute girls and slice of life, or will it be the hard road of heavy action and grandly designed set pieces? As of now, after the three main titles from our latest studio to be born, I'm very happy to say that Studio MAPPA has chosen to take the high road, and the possibilities for their future are
...
only looking brighter every day. So, what sort of work has this budding studio produced lately?
On the surface, the story seems like a fairly generic setup for a high fantasy adventure, and that's because it is, but there's so much diversity and life brought into this world that it has definitely become a standout setting amongst a backlog of complex high fantasies and Lord of the Rings imitations. There are so many different aspects to this world that are mentioned as either key plot points or just passing glances, and it really helps to create a deep and vibrant world for the characters to interact in. All of this came together to create what I felt was one of the strongest starts to an anime this season. That being said, the story itself still feels a bit generic sometimes and ended up being a bit more predictable than I would have liked. Some moments definitely felt like they were starting to check their high fantasy storytelling guidelines a bit too much. There were also quite a few moments where there was actually too much going on and it was a bit hard to focus on the relevant details, and a lot of them ended up getting lost in the shuffle of back and forth tradeoffs of mythological terminology. However, I did find that I was able to overlook a lot of that because this series truly becomes a spectacle to watch. Sure there's a ton of complicated back story going on somewhere, but a good deal of the series is focused solely on its spectacle of epic chases and grandly orchestrated battles. The main group of characters, while fairly standard at first, do become endearing enough for me to actually care about. Favaro is our slacker-funnyman bounty hunter charged with escorting Amira to Helheim, and he also seems to take the usual path of being reluctant at first and then gradually warming up to her, but he's such an energetic and colorful character that his generic nature hardly ever shows up. Amira also manages to transcend the quest item/damsel in distress role and actually turns out to be an incredibly powerful fighter, though this is more so due to the fact that she's actually a demon. Kaiser also stands out as our typical white knight character with a grudge against Favaro, but the emotional torment that he goes through on this journey still makes him incredibly likable and endearing. However, the minor characters end up being a bit weak by comparison, though that's mostly due to the fact that there are so many of them, with most of them being deities of some sort with either a heavenly or demonic leaning. While some do exist as characters in their own rights, most of them are there simply to advance the plot and are swiftly dropped from the story when they no longer become relevant. Furthermore, I'm not really sure how the Japanese view western mythology and biblical characters, but to have three completely separate characters named Beelzebub, Lucifer, and Satan was extremely confusing for a good portion of the series. As previously mentioned, the animation was produced by Studio MAPPA (Terror in Resonance, Garo the Animation), and as a spectacle of gigantic set pieces and grandly orchestrated battles, this anime was an incredible sight to behold. Everything about this series felt immense in size and really helped to push the hype for the series forward. The character designs were also incredibly detailed and original, adding a much needed refresher to the usual fantasy character tropes. However, I do have to point out that there is a massive amount of CG in this series, and a lot of it didn't look as good as it could have been. It's understandable that the scope of this series is so massive that you have to save time and render certain objects in CG, but there were still some moments where it just looked really bad. As for Bahamut himself, I found myself feeling a little bit disappointed. Yes, he certainly felt very threatening, but again, the CG work wasn't all that it could have been, though thankfully it did not give me any flashbacks to the original Fate/Stay Night. There is currently no dub for this series, though a FUNimation dub in the distant future isn't out of the question. The soundtrack was composed by Yoshihiro Ike (Ergo Proxy, Karas), and this is definitely one of the most massive-sounding soundtracks I've heard this season. Huge, bombastic orchestration combined with grandiose choirs and pounding percussion drummed up a huge level of excitement for each battle, but there were also quite a few more adventurous themes, particularly the music associated with Favaro, which actually had a bit of a bullfighter flair to it. The opening theme "EXiSTENCE" by SiM blasts into each episode with a massively metal "Engrish" track, while the ending theme "Promised Land" by Risa Shimizu (VA for Amira) plays us out with a rolling ballad. Overall, while the spectacle aspects of Rage of Bahamut were incredibly exciting, a good portion of the story and characters were rather difficult to follow, and the massive amount of unrefined CG took away from a few of the bigger moments.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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