anime – Page 71 – OtakuRevolution

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ANIME TOP TEN (LIST #1) – #3 (TIE): Fullmetal Alchemist (2003) and Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood (2009)

Director(s): Seiji Mizushima (2003), Yasuhiro Irie (2009)

Script: Various (for both… okay, the list is too long to list)

Music: Michuru Oshima (2003), Akira Senju (2009)

Alright, so I cheated here. But both Fullmetal Alchemist series hold a special place in my heart. The first one, though varying from the manga, has such a great focus and powerful emotional punch to it. The story of these brothers who would (and do) sacrifice everything for each other is so moving, it restored my faith in anime. I’m aware of some of the niggling flaws with certain plot elements, but to me the first series is all about emotions, and narrative, while good, is secondary. A fantastic Japanese cast and Michuru Oshima’s soundtrack really help to color this heartfelt epic. The second series, Brotherhood remains more faithful to the manga source, and has a very well-constructed, consistent world and concepts. I may have found certain decisions from the author poor, and Edward (Romi Paku) and Alphonse (Rie Kugimiya) seem to disappear into the background for too long, but the story is still powerful, with its elements of comradery and responsibility played out very well, with solid direction throughout the presentation. The characters are colorful, the action is exciting, the concepts solidly built and themes thoughtful. Fullmetal Alchemist is the my favorite title of the last decade. I can’t choose a favorite of the two shows and you can’t make me.

by Penguin Truth•February 6, 2012March 9, 2025•0

Reviews

Gundam AGE Episode 16 Review

Episode 16, "The Gundam in the Stable"

*****SPOILERS***** Synopsis: Many years have passed, and Flit Asuno is an adult and a Federation commander, still vowing to fight and destroy the Veigans. His son, 17 year old Asemu Asuno, is in a mobile suit club at school with his friends Shawee and Macil. On his birthday, his family, including Emily (mother) and Unoa (sister), gather to celebrate. Flit passes the key to the Gundam AGE to his son. A new transfer student, Zeheart Galette, joins Asemu’s school. One day while working on a mobile suit, Asemu and his friends hear the evacuation alarm and see that the Veigan are attacking the colony. He discovers that his father had been hiding the Gundam for such an occasion, and decides to pilot it. Asemu is able to destroy the enemy mobile suits. Comments: This first episode of the new section of Gundam AGE gets off on the right foot. Flit has become a bit of a hardened man, swearing unending vengeance against the Veigans, still not even considering them human beings. His adjunct makes a note of this when we first see him, now rocking a mustache and beard. He doesn’t seem particularly close to Emily, who is now his wife. I wonder if their marriage was just one of convenience. Their children appear to be well-loved, at least, but Flit has instilled in them his own outlook and wants Asemu to be a soldier so he can carry out his mission in life. Asemu, for the most part, seems pretty on the ball. He has an interest in mobile suits, but he also has somewhat a social life, even if it’s mostly with his MS-loving friends. He seems perfectly capable of jumping into action when necessary, showing little or no hesitation. He even pulls off some cool moves in the Gundam in his first time piloting it. I’m guessing his love interest is Romary (guessing? It’s blatant!). Zeheart shares the last name "Galette" with Desil and it’s not shocking when we see he’s working with the Veigans. My question is, will he be an enemy or ally of Asemu? I can envision them becoming friends, but not quite knowing what each other are up to. I can also see Asemu sympathizing with the plight of the Veigans through Zeheart while Flit is angered that his son is "siding with the enemy". These are just guesses I’m making based on years of anime watching, though. Anyway, so far, so good! This show has been on a roll lately! Overall Score:

4 out of 5

by Penguin Truth•February 5, 2012

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ANIME TOP TEN (LIST #1) – #4: Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam (1985)

Director(s): Yoshiyuki Tomino

Script: Akinori Endo, Hiroshi Ohnogi, Miho Maruo, Minoru Onoya, Tomoko Kawasaki, Yasushi Hirano, Yumiko Suzuki

Music: Shigeaki Saegusa

Zeta Gundam my favorite Gundam– no, favorite mecha anime- of all time. Why, you ask? Well, first of all, it outclasses the original series in quality of storytelling and concepts. You get the feeling you’re watching a real, fleshed out tragedy. No Gundam title does as good a job as Zeta does in showing how truly desperate people are in a war situation. All of the characters lash out to fulfill a sense of helplessness or to control the world around them through others’ helplessness. This means the characters are all predators or prey. In a swirl of desperate madness, the characters play outo a tragedy that claims lives and chews dreams, and spits the characters out broken, flawed, but intensely interesting. The characters are tempered in raw desperation, raw despair, which makes some of them heroes and some of them monsters. Now, I know there are flaws. Some awkward, unnatural dialogue, characters who act irrationally with little reason to, plot elements that seem to crop up at inopportune times. But I think the pluses far outweigh the minuses. In the end, you understand the tremendous price to be paid for a better future.

by Penguin Truth•February 5, 2012March 9, 2025•0

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ANIME TOP TEN (LIST #1) – #5: Mobile Suit Gundam (1979)

Director(s): Yoshiyuki Tomino Script: Hiroyuki Hoshiyama, Kenichi Matsuzaki, Yoshihisa Araki, Yu Yamamoto Music: Takeo Watanabe, Yuji Matsuyama Like Space Battleship Yamato, Yoshiyuki Tomino’s Mobile Suit Gundam didn’t fare so well in the ratings at first. It was during the second run that it garnered the great popularity that the franchise enjoys today. In some ways, it’s not particularly surprising that it didn’t do all that well at first. It’s animation is horrible and art is inconsistant. However, despite their simplicity, the characters are all charismatic and have a presence of spirit that separate this series from many of its younger bretheren. An Amuro Ray (Tohru Furuya) or a Char Aznable (Shuichi Ikeda) comes onto the screen with vigor and creates a lasting impression without having to go overboard. There are little moments of humanity that mark this drama about a war, like soldiers helping a civillian try to find her hometown, or a young spy hugging her siblings before going off for a mission. There’s a lot of character to the show, which shows its age easily, but just as well its heart. The movie trilogy probably handled the Newtype element better, however.

by Penguin Truth•February 3, 2012March 9, 2025•0

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ANIME TOP TEN (LIST #1) – #7: Baccano! (2007)

Director(s): Takahiro Omori Screenplay: Noboru Takagi Music: Makoto Yoshimori Wow, what fun Baccano! is. It’s just an extremely, undefinably compelling romp through a world of colorful characters. I have to admit, at first I wasn’t so sure about the series. It wasn’t until a few episodes in that I really got the hang of things, but once I did, I was blown away. The narrative skips in time on regular basis, but there are clearly three different arcs (a fourth in the direct-to-video episodes) that have their own heartbeat. I get a full glee high watching Ladd Russo (Keiji Fujiwara) or Claire Stanfield (Masakazu Morita) brutalize, Isaac (Masaya Onosaka) and Miria (Sayaka Aoki) bumble, or Jacuzzi (Daisuke Sakaguchi) and his gang get swept up in the thick of things. In this show you’ll find Prohibition-era gangsters, sadistic immortals, crafty informants, and one hell of a train ride! The English-dubbed version is excellent, as well, one of my favorites (especially Bryan Massey as Ladd). I like pretty much every aspect of the show from the themes of friendship to the twisted philosophies of its denizens. It’s a must-watch.

by Penguin Truth•February 1, 2012March 9, 2025•0

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ANIME TOP TEN (LIST #1) – #8: Now and Then, Here and There (1999)

Director(s): Akitaro Daichi Screenplay: Hideyuki Kurata Music: Taku Iwasaki Now and Then, Here and There is an exhausting series. I mean that in a good way, though. It’s emotionally exhausting. The themes of war, indoctrination, and perserverance are explored in ways which squeeze everything out of the characters and viewers alike. The indomitable (and sometimes annoying, frankly) optimism of main character Shu (Akemi Okamura) in the face of harrowing odds and painful life lessons is the wellspring of thoughts and emotion pouring out from this show like water from Lala Ru(Kaori Nazuka)’s pendant. Some might label the show as "melodramatic" or "depressing", but the narrative is unapologetic in examining the principals set forth by the creative team. I may not always agree with the positions, but I appreciate the thoughtfullness in which they are examined.

by Penguin Truth•January 31, 2012March 9, 2025•0

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ANIME TOP TEN (LIST #1) – #9: Neon Genesis Evangelion (1995)

Director(s): Hideaki Anno

Script: Hideaki Anno, Akio Satsukawa, Mitsuo Iso, Yoji Enokido, Yoji Enoto, Shinji Higuchi

Music: Shiro Sagisu

Neon Genesis Evangelion is more than an anime title, it’s a far-reaching phenomenon. It won the first Animation Kobe Award in 1996 and it’s consistently on top 10 lists throughout anime fandom. It’s not a perfect show. It’s actually a little overrated. The main narrative can be schizophrenic and there are elements left out you can only get information on through secondary sources. However, it’s conceptually solid. What Evangelion is really about, past the giant bio-androids, the giant monsters, and the often weird visuals, is communication. The problems the characters face are all due to poor communication, by being separate entities who have to make an effort to reach out, making themselves vulnerable to each other. Shinji Ikari (Megumi Ogata) is a boy who has trouble communicating what he means, and so he shies away. Asuka Langely Sohryu (Yuko Miyamura), on the other hand, compensates by being outwardly social, but inwardly insecure, looking always for validation. I watch Evangelion as more of a character study than anything else. The action can be good from time to time, but it’s a secondary quality. Evangelion is a concept-driven show more than anything.

by Penguin Truth•January 30, 2012March 9, 2025•0

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ANIME TOP TEN (LIST #1) – #10: Space Battleship Yamato (1974)

Director(s): Leiji Matsumoto, Noboru Ichiguro

Screenplay: Eiichi Yamamoto, Keisuke Fujikawa, Maru Tamura

Music: Hiroshi Miyagawa

The brainchild of producer Yoshinobu Nishizaki and Leiji Matsumoto, Space Battleship Yamato is considered a classic, and with good reason. It’s groundbreaking in the way it sells its themes and characters and fleshes out its concepts. The story of a humanity on the brink of extinction, driven to desperate measures when a sudden hope appears, hunted by a deranged enemy that is perhaps no so unlike us, the spaceship Yamato cruises the sea of the stars in search of a cure to a diseased future. The point of view is mostly through the combat team leader Susumu Kodai (Kei Tomiyama), a brash youth whose family has died, who has little else but his own skills as a pilot. But he’s far from the only character: the fatherly captain, Okita (Goro Naya), the cooler headed pilot Daisuke Shima (Shuusei Nakamura), the bionic scientist Shiro Sanada (Takeshi Aono), and Kodai’s love interest Yuki Mori (Yoko Asagimi), the crew’s seemingly sole female, also compliment the story. A story of triumph and tragedy, perserverance and humanity, Yamato soars above other works of science fiction with grace and nobility.

by Penguin Truth•January 29, 2012March 9, 2025•0

Reviews

Gundam AGE Episode 15 Review

Episode 15, "Those Tears Fall In Space"

*****SPOILERS***** Synopsis: Grodek’s team infiltrates Ambat. Yark Dole pilots a giant mobile armor called the Mucell. Flit, in the Gundam, encounters it on the way to the base’s core. With Woolf’s help, Flit is able to destroy the mobile armor, but Dole escapes. Flit gives chase, catching up with him in the control room where Grodek and the others are. Grodek reveals that Yark Dole led the UE into the colony his (Grodek’s) family were in, despite it being a peaceful colony without a Federation base. Grodek wants to kill Dole for revenge. Dole reveals that he and his comrades were part of the Federation’s Mars colony project, a failure that claimed the lives of many of its participants, due to a Mars-born disease. The remaining colonists were abandoned by the Federation. They formed their own nation, calling themselves Veigans. Flit threatens to shoot Yark Dole, but Grodek does it before he can. However, before he dies, Dole activates the base’s self-destruct mode. The Diva crew escape the explosion. Later, Grodek is arrested and imprisoned by the Federation. Comments: Though it was short, I thought the fight with the Mucell was one of the better combat scenes in the series thus far. I especially liked the part at the base’s core. It’s too bad Yark Dole did almost nothing aside from that in the whole episode. Even self-destructing the base was just doing what the Diva crew were trying to do to begin with. Flit was pretty badass in this episode. He easily destroys all the UE MS in the core, destroys the Mucell, and nearly guns down Yark. His chase after him felt a lot like the end of the original Mobile Suit Gundam, when Amuro and Char were fighting it out without mobile suits. He probably really would have shot Dole, too, if Grodek hadn’t done so first. When Flit is angry he’s a pretty interesting character. I think we’ll see in the next "generation" of the show, though, that he’s still damaged from what happened to Yurin. Amuro Ray never fully got over what happened to Lalah, after all. It makes me feel bad for Emily. Obviously the next generation main character is her and Flit’s son, so she ends up with him, but it seems like he overhwhelmingly loves Yurin and is completely devestated by her death, even after the UE’s defeat. So Emily’s doomed to forever being Flit’s silver medal. I feel bad for her. Finally, it’s revealed who the UE are. I actually quite like where they went with it. The UE, the Veigans (vegans? Do they have vegan psychic powers like in Scott Pilgrim?) are the survivors of the Mars colonies disaster. It’s no wonder that the Federation was trying to cover it all up, pretending there were no survivors. However, don’t you think they took denying it a little too far by not even going after the UE, whose mobile suits were killing innocent civillians? The Federation must be awfully corrupt to ignore the UE problem just because they would look bad if it got out who they were. It looks even worse to let them go on killing people. What was with Grodek telling the Blue Desil that his life will be tragic? Thanks for rubbing in the fact you killed his father, asshole. Anyway, the first part of the series is over, and I have to admit the past few episodes have finally made this show worth watching. However, I get this sinking feeling that it will take just as long for the second part to get going. Let’s hope I’m wrong. Overall Score:

4.5 out of 5

by Penguin Truth•January 29, 2012