Anime Review Roundup

Manga Twits Ahoy!

Yup, another announcement via Twitter. In this age of global communication and information diaspora, it seems that we are following a trend towards a lack of communication skills and soundbite hell.

No matter. Someone at UK Anime News has deciphered that Manga Entertainment will be releasing the Evangelion 1.0 remake movie sometime in 2010. They also have the D Gray-Man series coming in the same year.

Your next anime news announcement will be revealed on Inarticulate Caveman Grunt.Com…

Funimation's Back Baby!

I've been waiting for this bit of news with unseemly anticipation. The Funimation Video Portal is back online for UK viewers, and they have been busy in the couple of month's hiatus, in which they apparently secured UK online broadcast licences for all of their properties. Unlike Crunchyroll, it seems as if we can see all of their content still, although I haven't clicked on everything to check.

At the time of writing, there are 77 anime properties represented on their site, many shows are ongoing, with new episodes each week, many series are up in their entirety, and just a few are represented by a couple of sample episodes alone, or trailers.

Shows that have made their debut during the eight or nine week interlude include…

Baccano (brilliant)
Bamboo Blade
Burst Angel
Darker Than Black
Dragonaut: The Resonance
El Cazador De La Bruja
Heroic Age
Guyver
Hell Girl
Linebarrels of Iron
Nabari no Ou
Samurai Champloo
Sgt. Frog
Slayers Try
The Count of Monte Cristo: Gankutsuou

I'm sure I've missed out half a dozen more. Note that the site is still in beta, their new security protocol means that there are plenty of kinks to be ironed out. You may need to reload the page several times before an episode starts to play, and there is a risk of a random freeze a few minutes in, requiring another reload and a skip forward. But give them time.

I'll be sure to check some of these new shows out, once I get my extra 20 hours in a day life extension. Until then, I'm going to be catching up on Full Metal Alchemist Brotherhood, and Phantom: Requiem For The Phantom. I've put the links to these two up on the right, I've also put up the link to Baccano, which you simply must watch. Now go away and don't bother me!

EDIT: AND IT'S BLOCKED AGAIN!!!

I don't know why I bother! Funimation's PR is obviously handled by monkeys. This last time I even waited four days before posting the news, just in case they had a glitch. Their trained PR chimp obviously takes pride in turning my words to ashes. If it comes back again, I may mention it, I may not. Now tell me more of these fansubs you speak of, Dr Evil!



Come Back! Silly me, I've forgotten to do the reviews. It was Stuart's turn first, as he was eventually cajoled into giving Blue Dragon a second try. By the end of his review of the first two-disc set, Stuart's 'get up and go' had 'got up and went', but ever the trooper, he gave this Naruto-Pokemon-esque adventure series aimed at the younger anime purchasing demographic a second look. Blue Dragon: Volumes 3 & 4 are reviewed in the clickable link, and you can see if apathy has turned into mild interest.

















It was my turn next, as I cast my beady gaze over Noir: The Complete Series Collection. 'Girls with guns' is the usual immature sobriquet. I prefer to think of it as a smart and sophisticated series about emotionally complex female assassins, but your mileage may vary. But you do get a cool dogtag in the m-lock case! It's Studio Bee Train's first venture into this genre, and many would say it's their best, with great characterisations, and a story with depth and intelligence. See if I am one of the many by clicking my review.

















Animation, live action, it's all the same to me. It's the rapid display of still images to give the illusion of motion in any case, but some people make the distinction. If all that anime wearies you, try some live action, in this case Ichi, the latest film to come from Director Fumihiko Sori. He's the man behind the lens of eye-candy extravaganza Vexille (there was an anime link there somewhere), and he more recently turned back to live action for his take on the blind swordsman genre so typified by the Zatoichi films. His particular twist is that the blind swordsman is in fact a blind swordswoman.
















Stuart started, so it's fair that he gets to finish. His last review of the week turned out to be the Gravitation Box Set. This gathers the three volumes of the series, and the OVA release, in one convenient collection. I've reviewed the individual discs elsewhere, but this is your chance to read Stuart's reaction to shonen-ai. Young boys in love, in a tale designed for early teenaged females. It's all heartbreaking melodrama, set in the cutthroat world of the pop music business. Will Stuart agree with my opinion of the show? More importantly, does he share my taste in music? Find out by clicking the link
















Blue Dragon: Volumes 3 & 4 was released a couple of weeks ago by Manga, and can be purchased from just the sort of shops that stock ADV's Noir boxset, which was released last year. Looking forward, Ichi will be released by Manga Entertainment on the 24th of August, on both DVD and Blu-ray. Meanwhile MVM released the Gravitation Boxset earlier this month. Now… go away and don't bother me.