Episode 96, "Combine Our Power! The Mightiest, Final Kamehameha"
*****SPOILERS***** Synopsis: Gohan resigns himself to death as Cell powers a Kamehameha which will destroy the planet. However, from the afterlife, Goku encourages him to strike back. Gohan fires a one-handed Kamehameha and the two beams meet. Gohan struggles to overpower Cell. Piccolo, Kuririn, Tenshinhan, and Yamucha all attack Cell, but it does little to stop him. Suddenly, when all seems lost, Vegeta attacks, giving Gohan an opening to finish Cell off. Gohan’s beam finally overtakes Cell and he dissolves in the blast. Gohan has won the fight and saved the world. Comments: Ah, the long Kamehameha duel. I’m actually fond of this part. I know that it takes up a lot of time, but I don’t feel like it drags on. I feel like it gets the time it needs, given the gravity of the situation. It gets the right build up and ends with the proper catharsis. By the time it ends, the viewer is ready to pass out from the intensity, same as Gohan. You get a real sense of victory from what happens. I seem to remember Z proper overextending the bit where Goku’s allies all chip in to try to wear Cell down. Whatever the case is, I was dreading having to see Piccolo et al thrown back for a half hour. But it’s all very compact. Their loyalty to Goku, and Gohan by extension, is really touching. They know they can’t defeat Cell, but they owe Goku so much, they can’t just stand by. Vegeta delivering the last blast before Gohan overcame Cell was a good part as well. Vegeta must’ve had to overcome his pride to help out. Naturally, Piccolo was the first to jump to Gohan’s aid. I really liked what Yamucha and Tenshinhan’s thoughts on the matter, their lives having been touched by Goku to a great extent. Gohan finally overcomes Cell and destroys him. My favorite character will probably always be Goku, but I have a great affection for Gohan, too, and was glad to see him as the hero here. One of my favorite parts is right after he collapses, when the fight is finished, and we see Gohan breathing hard on the ground as the Earth and Goku are also shown and Gohan and Goku are thanked by the narrator. It gives a real sense of passing the torch. (Though with the Buu arc, it didn’t turn out quite that way.) What I was really impressed with, besides some of the reworked art shots, was Shunsuke Kikuchi’s score. Sometimes its placement in Kai makes it awkward. Too few pieces are used, and the ones that are used are used too often. But here there’s the perfect economy and each piece suits the scene it’s in perfectly. I especially liked the use of movie 9’s music, it being my favorite musical suite in the franchise. This episode has the perfect use of every piece. It’s a fantastic episode. Overall Score: 4.5 out of 5Reviews
Dragon Ball Kai – Episode 95 Review
Episode 95, "Bye Bye, Everyone! This is the Only Way to Save Earth"
*****SPOILERS***** Synopsis: Cell declares his plans to self-destruct and take the Earth out with him. He gloats over his apparent victory. Gohan regrets not finishing Cell when he had the chance. Goku thinks hard, then finally says goodbye to his friends, teleporting over where Gohan and Cell are. Goku places his hand on Cell and teleports away with him to Kaio’s planet. He apologizes to Kaio as Cell begins to explode. The explosion destroys Kaio’s planet and takes Goku with it. Back on Earth, Gohan dispairs over his father’s demise. In the afterlife realm, a dead Goku apologizes to the dead Kaio. But they notice that Cell isn’t there. On Earth, a beam cuts through an enormous cloud of smoke, piercing Trunks. When the cloud breaks, Cell appeaers, in his Perfect Form again. Cell reasons this is because of the Saiyan cells in his system, which cause him to be stronger whenever he returns from near death. He also knows Goku’s teleportation technique. Gohan powers up, happy that he can repay Cell back for his father’s death, and vowing to kill him. Vegeta is so enraged by Trunks’ death that he attacks Cell, but it’s of no use and Cell injures him. Gohan takes a beam for Vegeta which damages the left side of his body. Cell decides he’s had enough of the fight, and prepares to charge up a Kamehameha to finish Gohan off. Comments: Okay, so, wait. Wait. Why didn’t Goku teach any of the others how to use Instantaneous Movement? I mean, there was all that time training and he didn’t think that it could be useful if somebody else besides him could use it? Somebody who was a little more expendable? Imagine if the person who sacrificed themself was Oolong. Yeah, I went there. Teaching Oolong to teleport. Well, that might not be the best idea, since he’d just be using it to get into women’s changing rooms. Then again, I guess it would ultimately result in the same thing. Somebody sacrifices themself, Cell explodes, Cell comes back. But maybe they could have teleported him out sooner or something. It seemed like Goku was thinking awfully hard about what to do before he decided. In that same time, he could have teleported Cell away and returned, too, but he wasted time saying goodbye. I know that this sort of takes the air out of the sacrifice, but Cell coming back did that on its own. Speaking of Cell coming back, what’s the deal with that? He says that because he’s a Saiyan he grew stronger from being near death, thus his return in Perfect Form. Okay, I guess I can buy that, but wasn’t his whole being blown up? Before it was said as long as he has a single cell in his brain he can come back, but his entire body blew up. Then there was that time earlier when Goku blew off his head. Maybe it’s that there has to be AT LEAST that cell in his brain. It all seems a bit convenient for Cell to come back his his Perfect Form, but there’ve been more convenient things in the show before. I guess. I remember when I first saw Goku’s sacrifice, back in the Toonami days. I must’ve been real emotional around that time, because I was actually tearing up. And this was when Sean Schemmel’s Goku sucked and the Bruce Faulconer music was being used. So even with the impediments it made me sad. In fact, I think it was around this time of year, too. Wow. This episode marks where Kenji Yamamoto’s music is first replaced by Shunsuke Kikuchi’s. It feels a little weird hearing Kikuchi’s music in Kai after so many episodes with Yamamoto. Apparently, though, Toei aired on the side of caution when it came to the big plagairism kerfuffle. Instead of just not using the offending tracks, they didn’t use any of them, and went to Kikuchi’s stuff. It’s good music, mind you, but the placement isn’t always great. Overall Score: 4 out of 5Dragon Ball Kai – Episode 94 Review
Episode 94, "The Perfect Form Breaks Down! The Super Iron Fists of Rage Explode"
*****SPOILERS*****
Synopsis: Everyone is impressed by Gohan’s power except Cell. Cell powers up to his full power, but Gohan is unmoved. Gohan takes a punch from Cell but is unharmed. He delivers a sharp blow to Cell’s mid-section, then one to his chin, knocking Cell down. Cell is angered by this. He tries hitting Gohan, but Gohan blocks and delivers a kick that sends Cell flying and crashing into the ground. Cell uses various techniques, but to no avail. Cell can’t believe he’s actually feeling fear and retreats into the sky. He fires a powerful Kamehameha, intending to destroy the Earth, but Gohan fires his own, overpowering it and sending the beams hurdling towards Cell, hitting him. Cell is greviously injured. Goku urges Gohan to finish Cell off, but Gohan disagrees, wanting to make Cell suffer. Cell once again regenerates. Angry, he amps up his body, but is too slow to keep up with Gohan. Gohan kicks Cell so hard that he throws up Artificial Human 18 and his Perfect Form breaks down. Cell transforms back into his Semi-Perfect form. Enraged and devestated at losing his perfect form, Cell tries to strike Gohan, but can’t. Completely outmatched, Cell puffs up his body to enormous proportions, telling Gohan it’s the end.
Comments:
Gohan continues to be totally badass in this episode. Cell is completely overwhelmed by his power and speed. Especially the speed. The key difference between Cell and the rest of the fighters is that he’s extremely fast, so even if they had enough raw power, they’d be too slow. Trunks learned that a while back when he found his ascended Super Saiyan form was no match for Cell. But Cell makes the same mistake Trunks did in his fury and loses his Perfect Form because of it.
The art is a bit inconsistent in this episode. There are times it’s decent, even pretty good, but then you get moments where the characters seem a little off. I do especially like all the shots of Gohan glaring at Cell. My favorite shot, though, is Gohan smirking, taking pleasure in Cell’s plight. It’s a pretty scary sight when you think about it. I always liked the sparks the Super Saiyan 2 form makes, the effect is really good.
Another scene I really liked is Cell’s Kamehameha being destroyed by Gohan’s own. We all know that they’re getting into a duel with Kamehamehas in a bit, and a lot of people overlook this. Gohan easily counters Cell. Cell is just completely outclassed. Returning to Semi-Perfect form, he’s actually no longer a match for several of the others. Cell’s pride is smashed.
An excellent episode, despite the art flaws.
Overall Score:
4 out of 5
Gundam AGE Episode 04 Review
Episode 04, "The White Wolf"
*****SPOILERS*****
Synopsis: Mobile suit ace Woolf Enneacle awakens on the Diva and is assigned as the head of mobile suit forces on the crew. He desires to pilot Flit’s Gundam, but Flit objects. The two decide to have a duel contest to see who’s a more fit pilot. The two are attacked by the UE and team up to escape. The UE’s cloaking technology leads Grodek Aiona to the knowledge of who they really are.
Comments:
The episode introduces mobile suit racer (?) star, Woolf Enneacle, who ends up being a rival of Flit’s. He’s arrogant and likes to hit on women. He challenges Flit to a contest whose winner will decide who pilots the Gundam. Who does this remind you of? If Woolf were also a heavy drinker, he’d be Bernard Monsha from Gundam 0083. In fact, this episode reminds me of episode 3 of that less than stellar OVA. Only Monsha isn’t a kitten eared pretty boy, so I guess he’s a totally different character? Well, actually, Woolf doesn’t come across quite as bad as Monsha, but at the same time, isn’t as fun a character.
I wonder what the "grand prix" spoken of is indeed a speed race between mobile suits, maybe something like IGPX. I’m already more interested in Woolf’s past than his present. As head of the mobile suit forces, you’d think the most powerful suit would go right to him, contest or not. You’d want to get the most out of your best weapon, so giving him to the best soldier is a smart move. But I guess Flit knows Gundam better than anyone. Really, though, it’s because he’s the main character that he’ll get to keep using the Gundam. It might have been different to see Woolf get it for a little while and end up not using it as well, or something along those lines. The "rivals working together dissolving their differences" route is a little played out.
The Unknown Enemy’s big ship (more ugly CG) uses cloaking technology. You don’t see a lot of this in Gundam. For some reason the captain gets an idea about who they really are, so maybe we’ll know by the end of the next episode. I haven’t really thought about it. I just figured they were a secretive group, but are human. I’m still hoping the spoilers I read about this show are wrong.
I’m still not impressed.
Overall Score: 3.5 out of 5
Three Episodes In – Last Exile – Fam, The Silver Wing
Last Exile – Fam, The Silver Wing is a sequel to the 2003 series Last Exile. Featuring Gonzo’s terrible CGI and Range Murata’s iconic character designs, the original went onto become beloved by many. Fam, The Silver Wing takes place after the original with a few direct ties. The synopsis from the Last Exile wiki, To the Sky…
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Set as a sequel to the original Last Exile that aired in 2003, Last Exile -Fam, The Silver Wing- (ラストエグザイル～銀翼のファム～, Rasuto Eguzairu Ginyoku no Famu) is a story about great air battles with flying machines, powerful armies, and mysterious organizations. The main character is Fam Fan Fan, a fifteen-year-old girl who gets caught up in a war between two nations. Ades, the antagonist, wants the princess of Turan dead. With the help of Dio Eraclea, Fam and her friend Giselle Collette try to thwart the efforts of Ades. |
So how does Fam look after three episodes?
It’s been a long while since I’ve watched the original Last Exile, Fam may be the catalyst that gets me to dust off the box set. One thing I remember is that the story wasn’t exactly the simplest things to follow. As I understand it, the series takes place on a giant space colony meant to house the inhabitants of Earth while it rejuvenates. Certain elements on the colony seek access to Exile, which turns out to be a large spaceship meant to ferry folks from this space colony back to Earth. Fam, as far as I can tell, takes place further in the future where Earth has once again become populated by those who left (and they’re at war with those who stayed). Up in the night sky they can see five crescent shaped moons, which are apparently other exiles, including the original (which is apparently still making round trips).
Three Episodes In – Guilty Crown
I wanted to take some time to talk about the new anime series, Guilty Crown, whose third episode just aired in Japan. While this little review doesn’t contain much in the way of spoilers, I suppose it’s geared toward those who have already seen an episode or two. For those who haven’t, here’s the synopsis, straight from Wikipedia…
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Guilty Crown’s setting begins in 2029 when an unidentified "Apocalypse Virus" spreads and plunges Japan into a state of emergency in an chaos known as the "Lost Christmas". An international organization known as the GHQ intervenes with martial law and restores order to Japan at the cost of its independence. |
Watching the first couple episodes I felt that the show had a Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex feel to it, and no wonder. Guilty Crown is another beautiful looking series by Production I.G. Thus far the episodes have been featured incredibly detailed designs, most noticeably the backdrops. It’s almost oppressive and distracting in a sense. While Tiger & Bunny’s detailed backdrops faded into the background those in Guilty Crown seem to lack that same sort of depth.
Thought beautiful, the potential for overwhelming is not my main concern when it comes to the animation. Instead, it’s the sustainability. The third episode seems to show the structure crumble just a bit. Random shots here and there come off as pretty plain in comparison to highly detailed shots just few seconds prior. Maybe it’s just me, but I wonder how long it can last (Tiger & Bunny hasn’t left a good mark).
Gundam AGE Episode 03 Review
Episode 03, "The Twisted Colony"
*****SPOILERS***** Synopsis: The crew of the Diva begin to tow the colony core filled with evacuated citizens while Flit takes on more UE mobile suits. While taking on the enemy, Flit notices Yurin’s strange abilities. When the core is pinned down, with no options left, Command Bruzar sacrifices himself to save the colonists. The final UE MS retreats. While the ship tows the colony core, a mysterious figure wakes up on board from cold sleep. Comments: As expected, the Nora colony is a goner, much in the same way Side 7 and Heliopolis. Well, they were creative in the saving of colonists, using the colony core. I had thought they would be doomed before the end of the episode, but it looks like they’re out of danger for the time being. The colony still exploded, though. I’m sure this has come up before, but Yurin seems very similar to Tiffa in Gundam X. Sort of shy and a little detached seeming, and has special intuition. Tiffa is a Newtype, so maybe Yurin is one, too. The way he seems unafraid to take on the UE mobile suit, Flit seems to be taking after Garrod or Judau Ashta. The captain already dresses like Jamil Neate. Im guessing Yurin will be Flit’s love interest, but it’s a little early to call it. I still think Emily will be in the Friend Zone, or else end up with the chubby kid. Flit has a history of looking to the Gundam as being a savior, and he was determined to protect the colonists. I think a bit more of his personality is emerging, but he still hasn’t quite stepped out of the shadows of the truly iconic Gundam characters. It feels like we’re only getting development as flashbacks, so instead of forward development, we’re given his past to add dimension to him. It’s working right now, but they’ll have to follow it up in the present situation, or he’ll remain just "okay" as a lead. I liked the core towing idea used here. It was certainly the first of its kind in a Gundam show. Just when I was thinking there wouldn’t be much new. However, based on some rumored spoilers, I may end up disliking developments that are a little too creative for their own good. Overall Score: 3.5 out of 5Some Thoughts On: Dragon Ball Kai (English Dub) Episodes 53-66
As Goku’s fight with Freeza wraps up and the coming of the Artificial Humans begins, the script accuracy begins to falter here and there. In episode 55, there’s a scene in which, in Japanese, Bulma wonders if Vegeta has ever worn the type of clothing they (she and other Earthlings) wear. In English, Bulma instead asks if it’s possible Vegeta would hold her and her friends hostage to get Goku to return from space. The change irks me for two reasons. One, that’s not what Bulma said in the Japanese version, or even close to it. And two, it doesn’t make any sense. Vegeta would have to know where Goku is to inform him that he’s taken his friends hostage, and she knows he doesn’t. The only way Goku would know is if he returned from space, which would negate his need to take hostages. Bulma isn’t stupid, and you would have to be to say something like she said in English.
Batman: Year One Review
Batman: Year One
****SPOILERS*****
Synopsis: Billionare Bruce Wayne returns to Gotham City after being gone for years. Meanwhile, Jim Gordon arrives in Gotham, becoming a police lieutenant in the corrupt force. Wayne trains himself to fight crime, donning a bat suit to strike fear in criminals. When Gordon is blackmailed for having an affair, he has to admit it to his wife. Mobsters and policemen alike try to take down the Batman, but he avails, and Wayne even saves Gordon’s son. Batman forms a bond with Gordon.
Gundam AGE Episode 02 Review
Episode 02 , "The Power of AGE "
*****SPOILERS*****
Synopsis: The Unknown Enemy continues to attack the colony of Nora. Federation soldiers disagree over what action to take involving evacuation and the ship Diva. Flit tries to help a girl, Yurin, who is at first afraid of the Gundam. Deputy Commander Grodek Aiona takes command of the Diva, which launches into space. Flit launches the Gundam into space but has difficulty fighting. The "AGE System"" is activated to provide Flit support. Flit uses the DOTS Rifle to engage an enemy MS, destroying the enemy easily. But then more mobile suits arrive.