Category: Reviews
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Love will tear us apart
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/ ReviewsRead More →: Love will tear us apartTrue Tears. I liked it. A lot.
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A tribute to Soul Eater 18
Read More →: A tribute to Soul Eater 18It’s been a long time since my last foray into Soul Eater. Too long, really. And it’s easy to forget just how fun it is, how exciting, how damn awesome. I mean, there are certain things that will always stick out, launch it above other series, and these two episodes were no different. Consider the…
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Actually, Blassreiter is quite good
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/ ReviewsRead More →: Actually, Blassreiter is quite goodWhen Blassreiter started airing in April, I suppose I wasn’t the only one to ignore it, but why is that? Wait, isn’t it obvious? Just two damn words are all it takes. Studio Gonzo. In recent years, despite the odd exception, their name has become synonymous with bland, conventional, boring anime. Hence, somewhat unfairly, I…
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A romantic interpretation of Kaiba
Read More →: A romantic interpretation of KaibaI was always going to like Kaiba. Even before it started airing, I had, somewhat dangerously, convinced myself that it would be good. After all, with someone like Masaaki Yuasa directing, I had to expect it would special and well, some five months later, here we are again, I just finished Kaiba this weekend. Lets…
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Bitter sweet school days; All About Lily Chou-Chou
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Read More →: Bitter sweet school days; All About Lily Chou-ChouBack in June, I reviewed a Japanese live action film called Linda Linda Linda. It was a great movie, so great, in fact, that it encouraged me to dig deeply into the depths of Japanese cinema. Since then, I’ve been working my way through the recommendations in the comments of that post. It has been…
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Turn off your mind, unwind and see how high the cloudy sky. Xam'd, naturally.
Read More →: Turn off your mind, unwind and see how high the cloudy sky. Xam'd, naturally.Should I say Xam’d: Lost Memories is good? It’s better than good, and I know it’s not enough to say just that, but I have to be careful. Because I’m about ready to explode. Yes, there’s too much to say. This is what anime is capable of; it’s why I’m writing an anime blog. Ironically,…
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One Piece and why a man is only as good as his word
Read More →: One Piece and why a man is only as good as his wordBrook: “He may think that we’ve betrayed him, but if he’s waiting even now, how miserable must he be? […] I can’t help but think that he’s believed in us all this time.“ Luffy: “Your nakama may be dead, but from now on I’m your rival!“ I love One Piece. I love how it can…
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Batman: Gotham Knight isn't as good as The Animatrix
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/ ReviewsRead More →: Batman: Gotham Knight isn't as good as The AnimatrixDesigned to replicate the success of 2003’s The Animatrix, Batman: Gotham Knight is another anime anthology riding on the crest of a trendy movie franchise that seems destined, by virtue of Hollywood’s dollar, to be seen by many more people than your average Planetes or Gungrave. Like it or not, it’s exactly this kind of…
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Bokurano: … I really wish I could've died on the Earth I grew up on.
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/ ReviewsRead More →: Bokurano: … I really wish I could've died on the Earth I grew up on.I finished Bokurano this weekend, just as planned. 24 episodes in 5 days isn’t bad at all, as I’ve never been one to enjoy marathoning through anime. After all, I ended up needing nearly 2 whole years to catch up with 300+ episodes of One Piece, so, starting and finishing Bokurano in a matter of…
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Linda Linda Linda; slice of life done good
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Read More →: Linda Linda Linda; slice of life done goodWhile I’m fairly confident that I’ve built up some decent knowledge of anime over the past few years, I can’t say the same for Japanese live action. Sure, I’ve watched many of the cult classics; Audition, Azumi, Battle Royale, Ringu, to name but a few, and there’s no denying that they are cool movies (albeit…
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I'm one of his twenty faces too
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/ ReviewsRead More →: I'm one of his twenty faces tooWhen its first episode finished, I suspect a lot of people probably dropped their interest in The Daughter of Twenty Faces (a.k.a Nijuu Mensou no Musume) right there and then. Going off of first impressions, it’s not flashy at all. The colour palette is subdued, there’s no sensational fan-service and no eccentric personality winking at…
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One does not care to acknowledge the mistakes of one's youth
Read More →: One does not care to acknowledge the mistakes of one's youthHere is a fair warning; if you have issues with self-loathing, save yourself the agony and don’t watch Otaku no Video. It will depress you.
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Ok! Let's do this in a cool way! Soul Eater!
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/ ReviewsRead More →: Ok! Let's do this in a cool way! Soul Eater!There is no denying it; for Soul Eater and me, it was love at first sight. Bursting with an adorable “look-at-me” style and eccentric attitude, it’s probably the coolest looking anime I’ve clapped eyes on since Gurren Lagann. 6 episodes in and every single one of them has been weird and wonderful, just one surreal…
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When bunny boilers attack
Read More →: When bunny boilers attackAhh, my saviour is the weekend! I know my last post wasn’t exactly beaming with enthusiasm for all things animated, but with two more weeks under my belt, the gloom has lifted and I’m now tucking into tasty helpings of spring stuff on an almost daily basis. Surprisingly, there’s a lot of new series I’m…
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The meaning of life, according to Ghost Hound
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/ ReviewsRead More →: The meaning of life, according to Ghost HoundThe suggestion that there might be a level of consciousness beyond the physical realm has fascinated people for thousands of years. Are we tied to these bodies forever, or, could this vague concept of “we” be a mere illusion; a solid container that our ‘ego’ is ready to transcend at any given moment? Science has…
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First impressions of Kaiba: big surprise, I loved it
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/ ReviewsRead More →: First impressions of Kaiba: big surprise, I loved itApologies, I know things have been quiet around here of late. While everyone gets so excited about all this new anime airing in Japan, I just get tired of it. There’s too much to watch, too much to read and too much to say. It tires me out just thinking about it, so, despite having…
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Never knows best; my 'review' of FLCL
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/ ReviewsRead More →: Never knows best; my 'review' of FLCLWriting this now, I’m reminded of people (some of them anime fans) who will often say that watching these funny Japanese cartoons isn’t “hip”, isn’t something to be proud of, but watching this show, I’m ready to call that bull-****. Anime can be stylish, hip, cool, fun, trendy and everything else under the sun, and…
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The light of dawn always comes right after the deepest darkness
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/ ReviewsRead More →: The light of dawn always comes right after the deepest darknessWriting an anime blog is frustrating. Either through lack of time or energy, I just haven’t felt the inclination to set aside an afternoon to write about something. I guess that’s more a reflection on my recent viewing habits than anything else, because since finishing with February’s Ookiku Furikabutte, I’ve not been able to immerse…
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Time to champion Ookiku Furikabutte
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/ ReviewsRead More →: Time to champion Ookiku FurikabutteLiving in ol’ Blightly, we aren’t taught the delights of baseball. For us, it’s either cricket or rounders, and the latter’s enjoyed mostly by girls anyway. So I sat down to watch Ookiku Furikabutte knowing basically zip all about the game, except that the Americans (especially Bobby De Niro) are mad about it. Why bother…
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8-bit impressions
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Read More →: 8-bit impressionsInstead of spending hours writing about just one series, this week I’ve dragged myself in the opposite direction and reflected on four of my current favourites. There’s no real reason for the Tekkon Kinkreet image above, except to say that it’s one of the finest examples of fan-art I’ve clapped eyes on; tobiee is an…
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Musical memories of Gurren Lagann, recalling a whimsical dystopia
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Read More →: Musical memories of Gurren Lagann, recalling a whimsical dystopiaNot sure how I missed this, but the full soundtrack for Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann was released recently; that’s 51 tracks of epic, exciting, heavenly music, and even better, it contains the one song I’ve be longing to hear since late-July. I’m talking about track 13 on Disc no.2; the translated title is “The Days…
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Basking in the inferno of Cloverfield, remembering Blue Gender
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/ ReviewsRead More →: Basking in the inferno of Cloverfield, remembering Blue GenderHead-spinning, stomach-turning and mind-racing are a few of the adjectives I’d choose to describe how I felt when I stumbled out of the cinema last night, having just suffered through Cloverfield. To say I’d been looking forward to this film would be an understatement, and even though I’d only discovered its baffling trailer in early…
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Digging up backlogged gems, like Great Teacher Onizuka
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/ ReviewsRead More →: Digging up backlogged gems, like Great Teacher OnizukaIf MyAnimeList has taught me anything, it’s that for every merely-good new anime series airing right now, there are many more excellent but old (and therefore, forgotten) gems just waiting to be found. Since I joined that site, I’ve spent countless hours trawling through their hefty archives of anime, trying to build up a well-structured…
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Spiralling into insanity, looking at Junji Ito’s horror manga Uzumaki
Read More →: Spiralling into insanity, looking at Junji Ito’s horror manga UzumakiI’ve been reading a lot of manga lately. In the past, I’d go through brief fits of reading the stuff, but it always felt temporary, like a fling while my romance with anime hit the buffers. This time, it’s totally different; I’m ready to devour as much as I can find. By and large, anime…
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Another step Toward the Terra, circa 1980; old or not, it's still great
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/ ReviewsRead More →: Another step Toward the Terra, circa 1980; old or not, it's still greatBe it 1980 or 2008, To Terra…. is just a wonderful story, a timeless one, even, that I can always watch or read and be completely lost in imagination.
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The world is not beautiful, therefore it is; introducing Kino’s Journey
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/ ReviewsRead More →: The world is not beautiful, therefore it is; introducing Kino’s JourneyI quite like subversive fairy-tales; the suggestion that there is something ugly and unknown shifting beneath a veneer of superficial beauty. This is precisely why I so admired Princess Tutu, because lurking behind that familiar style of magical girl characterization was insecurity and doubt; supposed heroes and villains stalked by emotions betraying their cliche destinies.…
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This anime fan forever looks back on 2007
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Read More →: This anime fan forever looks back on 2007Jesus, it’s the end of another year. I’ve had fun in 2007; being a part of the anime blogging community and writing for you, dear reader. I’m not sure I’d last long if it wasn’t for your comments, but here we are, almost two years on and still talking, ranting, in love with anime. Back…
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Naruto Shippuuden: The return of Orochimaru, stuff happens
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/ ReviewsRead More →: Naruto Shippuuden: The return of Orochimaru, stuff happensThere is perhaps no anime I want to love more than Naruto. I’ve been following this story since 2003 and even if it drags on for another decade, I’ll still be camped out all night waiting for its end. I know full well it’s far from perfect, but by now I’m too caught up in…
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Immortals and non-Immortals both Enjoy Life Equally, so says Baccano!
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/ ReviewsRead More →: Immortals and non-Immortals both Enjoy Life Equally, so says Baccano!It bothers me to say I took a while to realize the quality of "Baccano!". Aside from boasting no less than 18 main characters, the Pulp Fiction-esque narrative would constantly fracture and leap back and forth in time. I didn’t like that I had to make an effort to constantly focus and be forced to…
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Sex, violence and samurai; introducing Shigurui
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/ ReviewsRead More →: Sex, violence and samurai; introducing ShiguruiPlease note this post is heavy on images of an “adult nature”; though I understand many of you might be unsettled by such blunt depictions of sex and violence, the truth of Shigurui lies not in words alone, but its unrelenting presentation of old Japan’s institutional depravity. Basically, you’ve been warned.
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Don't cry… it was Only Yesterday
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/ ReviewsRead More →: Don't cry… it was Only YesterdayIn a very profound way, our memories define who we are; their sudden recollection can be empowering or haunting, yet we can’t control what we remember or the sudden feelings they conjure inside. The emotions we feel at these times, the memories we recall; they are often so insignificant, not our greatest successes or even…
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Princess Tutu will dance her way into your heart
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/ ReviewsRead More →: Princess Tutu will dance her way into your heartWhen I realized I had the opportunity to spend this most precious of weeks working my way through a long-ignored anime series, I could have wasted ages agonizing over the decision, yet it was quite the opposite – two elegant words immediately jumped (or should I say, danced?) to mind: Princess Tutu.
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Reflections on Seirei no Moribito: dull or delightful?
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/ ReviewsRead More →: Reflections on Seirei no Moribito: dull or delightful?An (evil) part of me will always demand an epic train-wreck, a sensational massacre of violence, death and angst, but deep down, I always knew it would never happen with straight-laced Seirei no Moribito – it was certainly predictable; morally as straight as an arrow, and that’s not necessarily a bad thing.
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You need to be watching Dennou Coil
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/ ReviewsRead More →: You need to be watching Dennou CoilIn this so-called modern age, the thousands of miles that separate countries are irrelevant; a shrinking distance covered by mere flickers of electricity. Obviously, our world is merging and cultures are overlapping, yet the distance between you and I remains the same. Though we may have transcended the physical landscape, the emotional complexity of human…
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Creepy horror manga? The Enigma of Amigara Fault is the answer
Read More →: Creepy horror manga? The Enigma of Amigara Fault is the answerHalloween is fast approaching and it’s time to indulge in some frightful Japanese horror. Sadly, it’s not a genre that translates well to anime and manga, but having recently discovered the abnormal works of manga-ka Junji Ito, there may well be hope for us yet. This time I’m talking about the claustrophobic “Enigma of Amigara…
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The hyperbole of Mononoke
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/ ReviewsRead More →: The hyperbole of MononokeHaving been seduced by its eccentric visual style and the positive word-of-mouth, this past weekend was spent haplessly indulging in seven episodes of Mononoke’s surreal feast. To you, I present these humble findings. Mononoke is good.
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The end of Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann
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/ ReviewsRead More →: The end of Tengen Toppa Gurren LagannYet as the dark of night finally drew in and the stars twinkled with an ephemeral beauty, the sea of emotion raging inside this blogger fell suddenly calm in anticipation of the end. That is, the end of Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann.
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"It stopped, the rain. Wanted to check my tree, the apple." Review of Tekkonkinkreet
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/ ReviewsRead More →: "It stopped, the rain. Wanted to check my tree, the apple." Review of TekkonkinkreetComing from the dream combination of the emphatically cool Studio 4C and much admired manga-ka Taiyou “Ping Pong” Matsumoto, Tekkonkinkreet is a movie I’ve long waited to see. Based on those two names alone, you should expect several things – let’s start with moody and stylish visuals; almost-surreal art that gleefully shuns fan-pandering anime conventions…
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I Accept Your Dying Wish! Gurren Lagann 25
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/ ReviewsRead More →: I Accept Your Dying Wish! Gurren Lagann 25It’s a disservice to myself and to you, dear reader, because while I’ve tried to keep a lid on it, Gurren Lagann just keeps getting better, and right now I’m oh so close to claiming it as my favourite anime of all time. So, pulsing with spiral energy, mine rippling rantage on episode the 25th…
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Turn A Gundam and our attraction to self-destruction
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/ ReviewsRead More →: Turn A Gundam and our attraction to self-destructionAs of writing, I’ve managed to sit through 28 episodes of Turn A Gundam; satisfied that I’m just over half way there. I won’t lie – it feels like an achievement because I’ve struggled through the series; at one point I literally had to stop an episode half-way and take an energy boosting nap, such…
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Naruto Shippuuden rises from the ashes! A dramatic return to form!
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/ ReviewsRead More →: Naruto Shippuuden rises from the ashes! A dramatic return to form!I relapsed like a hungry junkie and gobbled up the last dozen episodes of Shippuuden… Why does it feel so wrong, yet taste so good? My name is bateszi and I’m a narutard!
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Is it the Franky or the beans? One Piece 321
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/ ReviewsRead More →: Is it the Franky or the beans? One Piece 321It sounds superficial, but something as stupid as a smile goes a long way; after a tiring week, it’s just a lot easier to relax in front of anime that’s pleasant and funny with happy characters who cheer and smile — that’s a big reason why I love watching One Piece. It’s just so colourful…
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"If I told you that I came from the future, would you laugh?" Review of The Girl Who Leapt Through Time
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/ ReviewsRead More →: "If I told you that I came from the future, would you laugh?" Review of The Girl Who Leapt Through TimeIf a good movie is hard to come by, surely a good anime movie is like one in a million; what a relief then, because for now, my long search is over – The Girl Who Leapt Through Time is that one in a million. Dubbed in some quarters as the anti-Ghibli, it offers a…
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Demonic rumbles as claymores get squished in episode 21
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/ ReviewsRead More →: Demonic rumbles as claymores get squished in episode 21I’m really digging Claymore at the moment and each episode is ending on the kind of gut-wrenching cliff hanger that so tempts me to gorge on manga spoilers. Episode 21 is no different; Ligardes is one of the coolest awakened beings yet — his intimidating part-lion transformation perfectly emphasizes his quite unfathomable strength and speed;…
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From rambling to first impressions of Turn A Gundam
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/ ReviewsRead More →: From rambling to first impressions of Turn A GundamMoans about anime blogging that somehow lead into my first impressions of Turn A Gundam. Yes, you read that right, please try to contain your excitement!
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Please embrace the brilliance of Toward the Terra
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/ ReviewsRead More →: Please embrace the brilliance of Toward the TerraI’m writing all this because I’m falling for Toward the Terra.
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A movie about Ping Pong, can't be good, surely?
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Read More →: A movie about Ping Pong, can't be good, surely?One of my favourite films of all time; a charming and philosophical portrait of human nature painted by an eccentric quartet of characters in love with ping pong. Here’s why.
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By way of episode 15, analyzing the appeal of Gurren Lagann
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/ ReviewsRead More →: By way of episode 15, analyzing the appeal of Gurren LagannI watched episode 15 of Gurren Lagann last night. Put simply, it was awesome; the best episode so far, I can’t emphasize that enough. I wanted to blog it right there and then, but threw in the towel after two hours worth of typing had produced little more than a couple of paragraphs lined with…