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Am I looking at the sky, or the sea?
Read More →: Am I looking at the sky, or the sea?Though it borrows from the mythos of the (very real) city of Venice, there’s something pleasantly unreal about Aria. Rather, not unreal so much as there is a disregard for the idea and constraints of reality. Perhaps Aria seeks not to undermine reality as we know it, but in its ‘New Venice’, create its own…
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The heavens are angered
Read More →: The heavens are angeredThe Twelve Kingdoms feels very much like a shoujo anime, but it’s more akin to Utena and Toward the Terra than Escaflowne, and by that what I mean to say is, while there are no melodramatic love triangles here, The Twelve Kingdoms is all about exploring and externalising the feelings of its characters; that’s girly…
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I was made to hit in America
Read More →: I was made to hit in AmericaBeck: Mongolian Chop Squad. Talk about a mouthful. The name may be a tribute to the author’s favorite band, Red Hot Chili Peppers, which also has four words in its name. In any case don’t be scared away by the name, this series about a rising rock band is a treat even for non-music fans.
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Beauty prevails
Read More →: Beauty prevailsAmidst such despair, beauty prevails. Be it in the soft, ever falling of snow, the golden lanterns casting shadows against the concrete walls, or the way the moonlight defies the night. There is a sense of life to be felt; a real, honest human touch, that’s warming to the heart.
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The art of fading into the scenery; introducing Megane
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Read More →: The art of fading into the scenery; introducing MeganeThe only way I can think to describe Megane is “a movie for B-type personalities”. It ambles along at a pace that – to the outside observer – seems foreign, but somehow fascinating. Other than that, it’s hard to pin down. The film builds its own internal language of keywords and signs, yet offers the…
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Childhood's end: Naruto and Pain
Read More →: Childhood's end: Naruto and PainTo compare Naruto now to the naive kid he was when this series began tells us of how much he’s grown since. He’s now the person he always dreamed of becoming, and it’s a joy to behold.
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Cherry picking in autumn 2010
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Read More →: Cherry picking in autumn 2010It’s autumn again, and with it comes dozens of new anime series to get excited about. From these, we’ve picked a few that we’re particularly interested in. Marvel at our impeccable taste and insightful opinions! I was thinking you’d come up with something better than that for the introduction. Evidently my expectations were too high.…
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Farewell Satoshi Kon
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Read More →: Farewell Satoshi KonIt’s difficult to express the disappointment I felt when I learnt of Satoshi Kon‘s passing last week. Since then, many heart-felt tributes have been published and half-way through writing this, I started wondering whether it was worth posting at all. Alas, what is blogging if not personal? I liked his films and, at the risk…
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Can you make a giant killing happen inside of you?
Read More →: Can you make a giant killing happen inside of you?This is a show about football (out of respect to Bateszi I’ll avoid using the word soccer…). The featured team, East Tokyo United (ETU), is dysfunctional. ETU’s fans are running away, the team keeps losing managers and players and worst of all, they just can’t win. At this point in the summary, anyone who has…
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The town where nothing ever happens: FLCL & I
Read More →: The town where nothing ever happens: FLCL & IFrankly, I lack the words to talk about Satoshi Kon’s passing; there are others who have said and will say things more eloquently. Instead, I offer you a diversion: FLCL. I meant to write this post a while back, but never go around to it. Somehow, it’s been a very long, and a little bit…