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    Anime Review Roundup (Article)

    Unique ID Code: 0000117760
    Added by: Jitendar Canth
    Added on: 29/6/2009 15:57

    Changes made to Anime Review Roundup

    Revision 3

    Created on Monday, 29th June 2009, 16:18
    Change Submitted by Jitendar Canth

    List of Changes:

      • Change #1 - <newline> <newline>[i][bb][i]Ris
      • Change #2 - radiso[/b][ii][/b] <newline>This
      • Change #3 - Fox.[/i][/i]

    Revision 2

    Created on Monday, 29th June 2009, 16:15
    Change Submitted by Jitendar Canth

    List of Changes:

      • Change #1 - i] <newline>[/i][/i]This is something a little more grown up, definitely aimed at a more mature market, and the animation style may put people off a tad. It’s worth sticking with though. A young girl heads to the big city to find her estranged mother, only to wind up working in the restaurant that her mother’s husband has opened in her honour. It’s a slice of life, character study, with just a hint of the reverse harem. The restaurant’s staff have been carefully selected to cater for a certain fetish, that of older, tall men with glasses. The employees are all elegant and refined, and all have a story to tell. 3/5[i][i] <newline> <newline>[b][i]Hayate the Combat Butler S2[/i][/b] <newline>[/i][/i]This is one of those shows that are designed for the anime fan in particular, a harem parody with so many references and winks to the audience that a genuine otaku would faint from the strain. It’s also devilishly funny and subverts the genre with abandon. It takes a while to grow on you, but once you’re hooked, it’s an absolute delight. Unfortunately there is no sign of Season 1 legally online, I know, I’ve looked. 4/5[i][i] <newline> <newline>[b][i]Natsu no Arashi[/i][/b] <newline>[/i][/i]The best show of the season (legally available, that is). If you like James Bond, you’ll love the opening sequence. It’s another of the shows that diverts from the usual animation style, often looking awkward, but it’s brilliantly animated by Shaft, from the creator of School Rumble, and with a cast of eclectic characters and an engrossing storyline. It’s the story of one summer in the life of a boy named Hajime, when he met a ghost from the Second World War named Arashi and together they went travelling through time, when they weren’t working a summer job at a café. I love this show and can’t get enough of it. It’s a good thing they announced a second season due this autumn. 5/5[i][i] <newline> <newline>[b][i]Saki[/i][/b] <newline>[/i][/i]A show about Mah-jong? It doesn’t seem likely, but Gonzo animation have managed to provide entertainment from a venerable Chinese board game. I know nothing about the game, not the rules, not how it’s played, or even what any of the tiles are, but it doesn’t seem to matter with this entertaining story of a National High School tournament populated by a host of intriguing characters. It doesn’t hurt that one of the main characters has a cleavage that requires structural engineering to provide adequate support, and there is just a brief frisson, a little lesbian subtext to be going on with. That’s called fanservice, and that’s what Gonzo excel at. 3/5[i][i] <newline> <newline>[b][i]Shangri-La[/i][/b] <newline>[/i][/i]The second Gonzo show is perhaps the finest action sci-fi story they’ve created in years. It is what they do best after all, but standards have been slipping of late with shows like Blassreiter under-whelming and under-performing. Shangri-La is a timely reminder of why they are so good at this, with excellent animation, and a compelling storyline, set in a future where the world has succumbed to global warming, and the survivors have a brave new world to deal with, while the powerful continue to play their manipulative games. It’s replete with the usual clichés, and some stereotypical characters, but also exhibits a long absent freshness and originality. Well worth a look. 4/5[i][i] <newline> <newline>[/i][/i]Aside from the first two, all the other shows are at Crunchyroll. Kigurumikku and Time of Eve are updated when they are updated. School Days and Fairy Musketeers are up in their entirety, while Natsu no Arashi, Saki, Ristorante Paradiso, and Hayate are coming to, or have come to the end of their simulcast runs. Shangri-La on the other hand is just halfway through and gets one new episode a week. Unlike Manga or Kadokawa, you don’t have to worry about the episodes disappearing in a few days or weeks[i][i]. <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000117103"][imgml=0000212050.jpg][/url][/i][/i]Back to the DVDs now. It turned out to be a bumper week last week, with five reviews of anime and anime related goodness to be going on with. It started with Hayao Miyazaki. You can’t go wrong with that name. Is what I want to say, but [url="http://anime.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=117427"]Panda! Go Panda![/url] comes from 1972, long before Studio Ghibli, and long before classics like Kiki’s Delivery Service and Spirited Away. This is something a lot more unrefined and basic. It still has a certain charm and innocence to it, and more than a couple of hints of Totoro. Read the review for more.[i][i] <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000117475"][imgmr=0000212332.jpg][/url][/i][/i]David is a recent addition to the ranks of MyReviewer, and he took a look at [url="http://anime.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=117478"]Streetfighter: The Legend of Chun Li[/url] on DVD early last week. I’ve managed to avoid the anime, (although Manga UK have released a five disc boxset this week collecting the existing releases), I’ve managed to erase the Jean-Claude Van Damme movie from my head after years of therapy, but I do have fond memories of the original Streetfighter II arcade game. Jumpers for goalposts, hmm? I know next to nothing about this live action film, except that whatserface from Smallville is in it. Click on David’s review, and then guess if I’ve bought the US DVD yet.[i][i] <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000117191"][imgml=0000212114.jpg][/url][/i][/i]It was my final visit to the Enohana bathhouse next, as I took a look at [url="http://anime.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=117514"]NieA under 7: Volume 4[/url]. You’ve heard this before I’m sure, that it’s a criminally underrated Yoshitoshi ABe show, that cruelly remains absent from UK shop shelves, and I can’t understand how, despite being deleted for years in the US, new copies still remain available on the warehouse shelves of online retailers. One final time I shall urge you to support this fine series, and if you won’t, I shall hold my breath until I turn purple.[i][i] <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000117225"][imgmr=0000212146.jpg][/url][/i][/i]Bleach has a movie due. Actually overdue really, as we’ve had to wait for the TV series to catch up with its episodes. Movie adaptations of long running action series rarely come up with the goods, usually offering little more than well-animated filler, designed to sate the appetites of pre-teen male audiences. Not so with [url="http://anime.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=117609"]Bleach the Movie: Memories of Nobody[/url], which actually has a decent story beneath the eye-candy, as well as layered characterisations, and a truly memorable guest character. <newline>[i][i] <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000117193"][imgml=0000212115.jpg][/url][/i][/i]I wrapped up a week of reviews yesterday with [url="http://anime.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=117724"]Slayers Next: Volume 3[/url]. It’s a role-playing game of an anime, heavy on the comedy, and surprisingly entertaining, given its rough and ready production values and age. Again I’ve said this all before, but that’s what happens when you’re reviewing one of these discs every month. We’re getting all penultimatey with volume 3, setting up for a series conclusion, but not before we have a hilarious collection of stand-alone episodes, including the traditional cross-dressing show.[i][i] <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline>[/i][/i]Manga Entertainment release Panda! Go Panda! and Bleach the Movie: Memories of Nobody on July 6th, while MVM release Slayers Next: Volume 3 on the 13th. NieA under 7: Volume 4 was released by Pioneer in the US when I was still in short trousers, while Streetfighter: The Legend of Chun Li comes out tomorrow in Region 1 land, courtesy of 20th Century Fox.This is something a little more grown up, definitely aimed at a more mature market, and the animation style may put people off a tad. It’s worth sticking with though. A young girl heads to the big city to find her estranged mother, only to wind up working in the restaurant that her mother’s husband has opened in her honour. It’s a slice of life, character study, with just a hint of the reverse harem. The restaurant’s staff have been carefully selected to cater for a certain fetish, that of older, tall men with glasses. The employees are all elegant and refined, and all have a story to tell. 3/5 <newline> <newline>[b][i]Hayate the Combat Butler S2[/i][/b] <newline>This is one of those shows that are designed for the anime fan in particular, a harem parody with so many references and winks to the audience that a genuine otaku would faint from the strain. It’s also devilishly funny and subverts the genre with abandon. It takes a while to grow on you, but once you’re hooked, it’s an absolute delight. Unfortunately there is no sign of Season 1 legally online, I know, I’ve looked. 4/5 <newline> <newline>[b][i]Natsu no Arashi[/i][/b] <newline>The best show of the season (legally available, that is). If you like James Bond, you’ll love the opening sequence. It’s another of the shows that diverts from the usual animation style, often looking awkward, but it’s brilliantly animated by Shaft, from the creator of School Rumble, and with a cast of eclectic characters and an engrossing storyline. It’s the story of one summer in the life of a boy named Hajime, when he met a ghost from the Second World War named Arashi and together they went travelling through time, when they weren’t working a summer job at a café. I love this show and can’t get enough of it. It’s a good thing they announced a second season due this autumn. 5/5 <newline> <newline>[b][i]Saki[/i][/b] <newline>A show about Mah-jong? It doesn’t seem likely, but Gonzo animation have managed to provide entertainment from a venerable Chinese board game. I know nothing about the game, not the rules, not how it’s played, or even what any of the tiles are, but it doesn’t seem to matter with this entertaining story of a National High School tournament populated by a host of intriguing characters. It doesn’t hurt that one of the main characters has a cleavage that requires structural engineering to provide adequate support, and there is just a brief frisson, a little lesbian subtext to be going on with. That’s called fanservice, and that’s what Gonzo excel at. 3/5 <newline> <newline>[b][i]Shangri-La[/i][/b] <newline>The second Gonzo show is perhaps the finest action sci-fi story they’ve created in years. It is what they do best after all, but standards have been slipping of late with shows like Blassreiter under-whelming and under-performing. Shangri-La is a timely reminder of why they are so good at this, with excellent animation, and a compelling storyline, set in a future where the world has succumbed to global warming, and the survivors have a brave new world to deal with, while the powerful continue to play their manipulative games. It’s replete with the usual clichés, and some stereotypical characters, but also exhibits a long absent freshness and originality. Well worth a look. 4/5 <newline> <newline>Aside from the first two, all the other shows are at Crunchyroll. Kigurumikku and Time of Eve are updated when they are updated. School Days and Fairy Musketeers are up in their entirety, while Natsu no Arashi, Saki, Ristorante Paradiso, and Hayate are coming to, or have come to the end of their simulcast runs. Shangri-La on the other hand is just halfway through and gets one new episode a week. Unlike Manga or Kadokawa, you don’t have to worry about the episodes disappearing in a few days or weeks. <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000117103"][imgml=0000212050.jpg][/url]Back to the DVDs now. It turned out to be a bumper week last week, with five reviews of anime and anime related goodness to be going on with. It started with Hayao Miyazaki. You can’t go wrong with that name. Is what I want to say, but [url="http://anime.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=117427"]Panda! Go Panda![/url] comes from 1972, long before Studio Ghibli, and long before classics like Kiki’s Delivery Service and Spirited Away. This is something a lot more unrefined and basic. It still has a certain charm and innocence to it, and more than a couple of hints of Totoro. Read the review for more. <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000117475"][imgmr=0000212332.jpg][/url]David is a recent addition to the ranks of MyReviewer, and he took a look at [url="http://anime.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=117478"]Streetfighter: The Legend of Chun Li[/url] on DVD early last week. I’ve managed to avoid the anime, (although Manga UK have released a five disc boxset this week collecting the existing releases), I’ve managed to erase the Jean-Claude Van Damme movie from my head after years of therapy, but I do have fond memories of the original Streetfighter II arcade game. Jumpers for goalposts, hmm? I know next to nothing about this live action film, except that whatserface from Smallville is in it. Click on David’s review, and then guess if I’ve bought the US DVD yet. <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000117191"][imgml=0000212114.jpg][/url]It was my final visit to the Enohana bathhouse next, as I took a look at [url="http://anime.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=117514"]NieA under 7: Volume 4[/url]. You’ve heard this before I’m sure, that it’s a criminally underrated Yoshitoshi ABe show, that cruelly remains absent from UK shop shelves, and I can’t understand how, despite being deleted for years in the US, new copies still remain available on the warehouse shelves of online retailers. One final time I shall urge you to support this fine series, and if you won’t, I shall hold my breath until I turn purple. <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000117225"][imgmr=0000212146.jpg][/url]Bleach has a movie due. Actually overdue really, as we’ve had to wait for the TV series to catch up with its episodes. Movie adaptations of long running action series rarely come up with the goods, usually offering little more than well-animated filler, designed to sate the appetites of pre-teen male audiences. Not so with [url="http://anime.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=117609"]Bleach the Movie: Memories of Nobody[/url], which actually has a decent story beneath the eye-candy, as well as layered characterisations, and a truly memorable guest character. <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000117193"][imgml=0000212115.jpg][/url]I wrapped up a week of reviews yesterday with [url="http://anime.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=117724"]Slayers Next: Volume 3[/url]. It’s a role-playing game of an anime, heavy on the comedy, and surprisingly entertaining, given its rough and ready production values and age. Again I’ve said this all before, but that’s what happens when you’re reviewing one of these discs every month. We’re getting all penultimatey with volume 3, setting up for a series conclusion, but not before we have a hilarious collection of stand-alone episodes, including the traditional cross-dressing show. <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline>Manga Entertainment release Panda! Go Panda! and Bleach the Movie: Memories of Nobody on July 6th, while MVM release Slayers Next: Volume 3 on the 13th. NieA under 7: Volume 4 was released by Pioneer in the US when I was still in short trousers, while Streetfighter: The Legend of Chun Li comes out tomorrow in Region 1 land, courtesy of 20th Century Fox.[/i][/i]

    Revision 1

    Created on Monday, 29th June 2009, 16:09
    Change Submitted by Jitendar Canth

    List of Changes:

      • Change #1 - oo. <newline> <newline>[Ib][i]The Mel
      • Change #2 - zumiya[/Ii][/b] <newline>I sho
      • Change #3 - 5/5 <newline> <newline>[Ib][i]Gurren
      • Change #4 - Lagann[/Ii][/b] <newline>Or Te
      • Change #5 - 3/5 <newline> <newline>[Ib][i]Time of
      • Change #6 - of Eve[/Ii][/b] <newline>Just
      • Change #7 - ad. <newline> <newline>[Ib][i]School
      • Change #8 - l Days[/Ii][/b] <newline>NSFW,
      • Change #9 - 3/5 <newline> <newline>[Ib][i]Fairy M
      • Change #10 - eteers[/Ii][/b] <newline>Here’
      • Change #11 - 2/5 <newline> <newline>[Ib][i]Kigurum
      • Change #12 - umikku[/Ii][/b] <newline>If al
      • Change #13 - <newline> <newline>[I]Ristorante Paradiso[I] <newline>This is something a little more grown up, definitely aimed at a more mature market, and the animation style may put people off a tad. It’s worth sticking with though. A young girl heads to the big city to find her estranged mother, only to wind up working in the restaurant that her mother’s husband has opened in her honour. It’s a slice of life, character study, with just a hint of the reverse harem. The restaurant’s staff have been carefully selected to cater for a certain fetish, that of older, tall men with glasses. The employees are all elegant and refined, and all have a story to tell. 3/5 <newline> <newline>[I]Hayate the Combat Butler S2[/I] <newline>This is one of those shows that are designed for the anime fan in particular, a harem parody with so many references and winks to the audience that a genuine otaku would faint from the strain. It’s also devilishly funny and subverts the genre with abandon. It takes a while to grow on you, but once you’re hooked, it’s an absolute delight. Unfortunately there is no sign of Season 1 legally online, I know, I’ve looked. 4/5 <newline> <newline>[I]Natsu no Arashi[/I] <newline>The best show of the season (legally available, that is). If you like James Bond, you’ll love the opening sequence. It’s another of the shows that diverts from the usual animation style, often looking awkward, but it’s brilliantly animated by Shaft, from the creator of School Rumble, and with a cast of eclectic characters and an engrossing storyline. It’s the story of one summer in the life of a boy named Hajime, when he met a ghost from the Second World War named Arashi and together they went travelling through time, when they weren’t working a summer job at a café. I love this show and can’t get enough of it. It’s a good thing they announced a second season due this autumn. 5/5 <newline> <newline>[I]Saki[/I] <newline>A show about Mah-jong? It doesn’t seem likely, but Gonzo animation have managed to provide entertainment from a venerable Chinese board game. I know nothing about the game, not the rules, not how it’s played, or even what any of the tiles are, but it doesn’t seem to matter with this entertaining story of a National High School tournament populated by a host of intriguing characters. It doesn’t hurt that one of the main characters has a cleavage that requires structural engineering to provide adequate support, and there is just a brief frisson, a little lesbian subtext to be going on with. That’s called fanservice, and that’s what Gonzo excel at. 3/5 <newline> <newline>[I]Shangri-La[/I] <newline>The second Gonzo show is perhaps the finest action sci-fi story they’ve created in years. It is what they do best after all, but standards have been slipping of late with shows like Blassreiter under-whelming and under-performing. Shangri-La is a timely reminder of why they are so good at this, with excellent animation, and a compelling storyline, set in a future where the world has succumbed to global warming, and the survivors have a brave new world to deal with, while the powerful continue to play their manipulative games. It’s replete with the usual clichés, and some stereotypical characters, but also exhibits a long absent freshness and originality. Well worth a look. 4/5 <newline> <newline>Aside from the first two, all the other shows are at Crunchyroll. Kigurumikku and Time of Eve are updated when they are updated. School Days and Fairy Musketeers are up in their entirety, while Natsu no Arashi, Saki, Ristorante Paradiso, and Hayate are coming to, or have come to the end of their simulcast runs. Shangri-La on the other hand is just halfway through and gets one new episode a week. Unlike Manga or Kadokawa, you don’t have to worry about the episodes disappearing in a few days or weeks. <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000117103"][imgml=0000212050.jpg][/url]Back to the DVDs now. It turned out to be a bumper week last week, with five reviews of anime and anime related goodness to be going on with. It started with Hayao Miyazaki. You can’t go wrong with that name. Is what I want to say, but [url="http://anime.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=117427"]Panda! Go Panda![/url] comes from 1972, long before Studio Ghibli, and long before classics like Kiki’s Delivery Service and Spirited Away. This is something a lot more unrefined and basic. It still has a certain charm and innocence to it, and more than a couple of hints of Totoro. Read the review for more. <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000117475"][imgmr=0000212332.jpg][/url]David is a recent addition to the ranks of MyReviewer, and he took a look at [url="http://anime.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=117478"]Streetfighter: The Legend of Chun Li[/url] on DVD early last week. I’ve managed to avoid the anime, (although Manga UK have released a five disc boxset this week collecting the existing releases), I’ve managed to erase the Jean-Claude Van Damme movie from my head after years of therapy, but I do have fond memories of the original Streetfighter II arcade game. Jumpers for goalposts, hmm? I know next to nothing about this live action film, except that whatserface from Smallville is in it. Click on David’s review, and then guess if I’ve bought the US DVD yet. <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000117191"][imgml=0000212114.jpg][/url]It was my final visit to the Enohana bathhouse next, as I took a look at [url="http://anime.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=117514"]NieA under 7: Volume 4[/url]. You’ve heard this before I’m sure, that it’s a criminally underrated Yoshitoshi ABe show, that cruelly remains absent from UK shop shelves, and I can’t understand how, despite being deleted for years in the US, new copies still remain available on the warehouse shelves of online retailers. One final time I shall urge you to support this fine series, and if you won’t, I shall hold my breath until I turn purple. <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000117225"][imgmr=0000212146.jpg][/url]Bleach has a movie due. Actually overdue really, as we’ve had to wait for the TV series to catch up with its episodes. Movie adaptations of long running action series rarely come up with the goods, usually offering little more than well-animated filler, designed to sate the appetites of pre-teen male audiences. Not so with [url="http://anime.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=117609"]Bleach the Movie: Memories of Nobody[/url], which actually has a decent story beneath the eye-candy, as well as layered characterisations, and a truly memorable guest character. <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000117193"][imgml=0000212115.jpg][/url]I wrapped up a week of reviews yesterday with [url="http://anime.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=117724"]Slayers Next: Volume 3[/url]. It’s a role-playing game of an anime, heavy on the comedy, and surprisingly entertaining, given its rough and ready production values and age. Again I’ve said this all before, but that’s what happens when you’re reviewing one of these discs every month. We’re getting all penultimatey with volume 3, setting up for a series conclusion, but not before we have a hilarious collection of stand-alone episodes, including the traditional cross-dressing show.i][b]Ristorante Paradiso[/b][i] <newline>[/i][/i]This is something a little more grown up, definitely aimed at a more mature market, and the animation style may put people off a tad. It’s worth sticking with though. A young girl heads to the big city to find her estranged mother, only to wind up working in the restaurant that her mother’s husband has opened in her honour. It’s a slice of life, character study, with just a hint of the reverse harem. The restaurant’s staff have been carefully selected to cater for a certain fetish, that of older, tall men with glasses. The employees are all elegant and refined, and all have a story to tell. 3/5[i][i] <newline> <newline>[b][i]Hayate the Combat Butler S2[/i][/b] <newline>[/i][/i]This is one of those shows that are designed for the anime fan in particular, a harem parody with so many references and winks to the audience that a genuine otaku would faint from the strain. It’s also devilishly funny and subverts the genre with abandon. It takes a while to grow on you, but once you’re hooked, it’s an absolute delight. Unfortunately there is no sign of Season 1 legally online, I know, I’ve looked. 4/5[i][i] <newline> <newline>[b][i]Natsu no Arashi[/i][/b] <newline>[/i][/i]The best show of the season (legally available, that is). If you like James Bond, you’ll love the opening sequence. It’s another of the shows that diverts from the usual animation style, often looking awkward, but it’s brilliantly animated by Shaft, from the creator of School Rumble, and with a cast of eclectic characters and an engrossing storyline. It’s the story of one summer in the life of a boy named Hajime, when he met a ghost from the Second World War named Arashi and together they went travelling through time, when they weren’t working a summer job at a café. I love this show and can’t get enough of it. It’s a good thing they announced a second season due this autumn. 5/5[i][i] <newline> <newline>[b][i]Saki[/i][/b] <newline>[/i][/i]A show about Mah-jong? It doesn’t seem likely, but Gonzo animation have managed to provide entertainment from a venerable Chinese board game. I know nothing about the game, not the rules, not how it’s played, or even what any of the tiles are, but it doesn’t seem to matter with this entertaining story of a National High School tournament populated by a host of intriguing characters. It doesn’t hurt that one of the main characters has a cleavage that requires structural engineering to provide adequate support, and there is just a brief frisson, a little lesbian subtext to be going on with. That’s called fanservice, and that’s what Gonzo excel at. 3/5[i][i] <newline> <newline>[b][i]Shangri-La[/i][/b] <newline>[/i][/i]The second Gonzo show is perhaps the finest action sci-fi story they’ve created in years. It is what they do best after all, but standards have been slipping of late with shows like Blassreiter under-whelming and under-performing. Shangri-La is a timely reminder of why they are so good at this, with excellent animation, and a compelling storyline, set in a future where the world has succumbed to global warming, and the survivors have a brave new world to deal with, while the powerful continue to play their manipulative games. It’s replete with the usual clichés, and some stereotypical characters, but also exhibits a long absent freshness and originality. Well worth a look. 4/5[i][i] <newline> <newline>[/i][/i]Aside from the first two, all the other shows are at Crunchyroll. Kigurumikku and Time of Eve are updated when they are updated. School Days and Fairy Musketeers are up in their entirety, while Natsu no Arashi, Saki, Ristorante Paradiso, and Hayate are coming to, or have come to the end of their simulcast runs. Shangri-La on the other hand is just halfway through and gets one new episode a week. Unlike Manga or Kadokawa, you don’t have to worry about the episodes disappearing in a few days or weeks[i][i]. <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000117103"][imgml=0000212050.jpg][/url][/i][/i]Back to the DVDs now. It turned out to be a bumper week last week, with five reviews of anime and anime related goodness to be going on with. It started with Hayao Miyazaki. You can’t go wrong with that name. Is what I want to say, but [url="http://anime.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=117427"]Panda! Go Panda![/url] comes from 1972, long before Studio Ghibli, and long before classics like Kiki’s Delivery Service and Spirited Away. This is something a lot more unrefined and basic. It still has a certain charm and innocence to it, and more than a couple of hints of Totoro. Read the review for more.[i][i] <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000117475"][imgmr=0000212332.jpg][/url][/i][/i]David is a recent addition to the ranks of MyReviewer, and he took a look at [url="http://anime.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=117478"]Streetfighter: The Legend of Chun Li[/url] on DVD early last week. I’ve managed to avoid the anime, (although Manga UK have released a five disc boxset this week collecting the existing releases), I’ve managed to erase the Jean-Claude Van Damme movie from my head after years of therapy, but I do have fond memories of the original Streetfighter II arcade game. Jumpers for goalposts, hmm? I know next to nothing about this live action film, except that whatserface from Smallville is in it. Click on David’s review, and then guess if I’ve bought the US DVD yet.[i][i] <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000117191"][imgml=0000212114.jpg][/url][/i][/i]It was my final visit to the Enohana bathhouse next, as I took a look at [url="http://anime.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=117514"]NieA under 7: Volume 4[/url]. You’ve heard this before I’m sure, that it’s a criminally underrated Yoshitoshi ABe show, that cruelly remains absent from UK shop shelves, and I can’t understand how, despite being deleted for years in the US, new copies still remain available on the warehouse shelves of online retailers. One final time I shall urge you to support this fine series, and if you won’t, I shall hold my breath until I turn purple.[i][i] <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000117225"][imgmr=0000212146.jpg][/url][/i][/i]Bleach has a movie due. Actually overdue really, as we’ve had to wait for the TV series to catch up with its episodes. Movie adaptations of long running action series rarely come up with the goods, usually offering little more than well-animated filler, designed to sate the appetites of pre-teen male audiences. Not so with [url="http://anime.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=117609"]Bleach the Movie: Memories of Nobody[/url], which actually has a decent story beneath the eye-candy, as well as layered characterisations, and a truly memorable guest character. <newline>[i][i] <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000117193"][imgml=0000212115.jpg][/url][/i][/i]I wrapped up a week of reviews yesterday with [url="http://anime.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=117724"]Slayers Next: Volume 3[/url]. It’s a role-playing game of an anime, heavy on the comedy, and surprisingly entertaining, given its rough and ready production values and age. Again I’ve said this all before, but that’s what happens when you’re reviewing one of these discs every month. We’re getting all penultimatey with volume 3, setting up for a series conclusion, but not before we have a hilarious collection of stand-alone episodes, including the traditional cross-dressing show.[i][i] <newline> <newline>
      • Change #14 - <newline> <newline> <newline> <newline>[/i][/i]Manga En

    Initial Version

    Created on Monday, 29th June 2009, 15:57
    First Submitted by Jitendar Canth