Yuruyuri – Review

In the medium of manga and anime, the term Yuri is implemented in material contained a lesbian context. Interestingly social attitudes towards homosexuality in Japan are (to put it politely) frowned upon, considering same-sex marriage/civil partnerships are not permitted under the law. But apparently twelve year old schoolgirls having lesbian fantasies are considered perfectly normal and not at all creepy. Not in the slightest. Go figure.

Typically the depiction of Yuri will tend to differ depending upon which gender the medium is primarily aimed at. Yuri aimed at a male audience will often play up the relationship for gratuitous purposes whereas Yuri aimed at a female audience will perform the opposite, downgrading the relationship to a natural platonic phase. And here is where Yuruyuri seemed to get its wires crossed. On the one hand the premise – four middle school students try to reform the tea ceremony club – has all the hallmarks of a watered down K-ON. The principle cast are bright, bubbly and shojo-ingly moe, complete with all the expected archetypes, Akari is the klutz, Kyoto is the lazy one, Yui is the straight-man and Chinatsu is the super-duper moe one. Did I say archetypes? I meant one-dimensional clichés. Nevertheless this done-to-death gimmick with stereotypical characters Yuruyuri is pedalling does appear relatively harmless. That is until the panty jokes begin.

Much like the recent A-Channel, another school girl, slice-of-life series, Yuruyuri could have been an interesting anime if not a decent one, had it even engaged remotely rather than relying on the lowest form of humour – panties, boobs and nosebleeds. The jokes are bad, repetitive and ultimately go nowhere. For example, one prevailing non-sexual gag is that Akari, the supposed main character leaves no lasting impression on the cast or the audience. Does anything actually become of this? Nope. Talk about wasting the potential of the one genuinely inventive joke. Not forgetting of course, how unsubtle the remaining sex jokes are. This is neither cute nor charming. This is disturbing, very, very disturbing. In the long run it raises the important question of which demographic Yuruyuri is primarily aimed at, young girls or older men? Presumably it’s the latter. This is fanservice, pure and simple.

Go watch K-ON! Or Lucky Star instead.

Rating: 4/10

Blood C - Review

Blood C is supposedly the latest spin-off of the prominent Blood franchise – Blood: The Last Vampire, Blood+ and Blood: The Last Vampire live action, rather than an actual continuation. Really it’s little more than an alternative rendition of the Blood universe with only the title character in common. Just in name mind you. Based on this premise alone, Blood C is the kind of anime that will be loved or loathed depending on how well acquainted fans are with the Blood franchise. Having watched a good portion of Blood+, I’m not overly impressed with this little stand-alone slasher flick.  

                                                        

Saya Kisaragi (Otonashi in Blood+) is portrayed as the trademark kind-hearted, likable but clumsy schoolgirl who moonlights as a Furukimono (giant, non-descriptive, man-eating monsters) slayer. However not content with the drastic alteration of her personality in order to shoehorn the generic shojo heroine prototype – granted there is at least an explanation given, Blood C radially changes the character’s physical appearance. Whereas Saya Otonashi was simple, sleek and lifelike, Saya Kisaragi is a kawaii overload of implausibility. And with character 180, comes the redesign of the iconic image of the blue sailor uniformed girl wielding a katana. In Blood C, Saya supports a red and black school uniform with a chain (I kid you not) around the collar. This is pretty fucking stupid. Blood is a franchise about vampires, there is absolutely no need to ‘Goth-up’ the heroine in such a blatant manner. With hindsight it starts to become clear that the writer started out with this image of a gothic schoolgirl hunting monsters with a katana and decided to slap the name Blood onto it to attract a wider fan base. In case you’re wondering Blood: The Last Vampire, Blood+ and Blood C were all written by different people. I think this adds weight to my theory.

To the shows credit, Blood C panders to a different kind of horror, specifically the gory violent kind. Which does start off surprisingly well, as one by one her friends, classmates and even general bystanders are all brutality murdered right before a helpless Saya. This ability to create a sense of suspense and peril is perhaps the best aspect of Blood C. Unfortunately the effect is quickly diminished by how routine the attacks become. Monsters show up around Saya, Saya vows to protect her friends, her friends die and only then does Saya go batshit and kill the monster. When we reach the school battle, the charm is somewhat lost since we know Saya is capable of killing the monster but only after she has witnessed her friends die gruesomely. Once we’ve reach this point, the gory factor just seems superficial.

As for the twist ending, it creates more questions than answers. While the initial notion of trying to change Saya’s personality to see what characteristics are innate, is an interesting idea and I imagine could be a good story if handled better, it just raises the question of why? What is the villain’s motivation? What does he actually gain? I mean aside from screwing with Saya and producing a massive body count? The final battle is one of the most gratuitous and pointless sequences I have ever seen. How is slaughtering an entire village not going to attract mass attention? And why do it anyway? Oh yeah right, “evil”. I keep forgetting.

However the underlying problem with Blood C is that there is very little backstory and the audience is never privy to the true Saya since her entire performance was a farce. Even to the extent that the audience never learns what Saya is – a vampire hybrid. This is problematic since the anime attempts to stand on its own and that would probably have been for the best. Nevertheless it can’t even manage that since Blood C requires at least some background knowledge for the audience to have a clue what is going on half the time. In particular there are references made to Saya’s monstrous true nature, something that is never explicitly shown and so there is never a chance to be invested. If we never see the monster Saya, how do we know Saya Kisaragi isn’t the real Saya?

In short Blood C would have flare much better if it had dropped the pretence of being a Blood spin-off and just accept being a Blood knock-off.

Rating: 5/10  

For fans of: Highschool of the dead

Loveless - Review

From the point of view of a guarded Western, Japanese sensibility towards paedophilia and incest (predominately sibling incest) is almost akin to entering another world. The subsequent expression of idealistic and erotic ‘beautiful boys in love’ is known as the Shonen-ai (boy-love) genre. Loveless is one such confusing and uncomfortable anime, introducing a potentially paedophilic relationship between protagonists Ritsuka (12 years old) and Sobi (21 years old). This certainly raises the issue of appropriateness (not to mention several hairs on the back of my neck). Nevertheless Loveless is primarily concerned with the loss of innocence in the symbolic sense rather than the physical.

Ritsuka comes from a troubled background. His elder brother Seimei was recently and horrifically murdered, his personality has radically changed, and he suffers memory loss and has an abusive mother steadily becoming unhinged to the point of denouncing Ritsuka as her son. This leads Ritsuka to experience insomnia and social anxieties that require him to meet with a therapist. This is a rather excellent rendition of grief and family turmoil after a significant loss. Having a child come to terms with the reality of death is perhaps the most traditional but also momentous method of losing the innocence of childhood. Loveless is largely concerned with reintegrating Ritsuka, with his growth and self-discovery.

Sexuality and intimacy are subservient but imperative themes. Loveless takes place in an alternative world, inhabited by kemonomini- humans possessing cat-like features (ears and tails) as an open display of their virginity. These features will be lost after their first sexual encounter, acting as a visual separation between adults and children. With regards to the relationship between Ritsuka and Sobi, there is an element of mentorship rather than lover (keeping with the tradition of which this springs from). Sobi’s love for Ritsuka does not come from genuine desire or attraction. Instead it is the express command of his former master Seimei. In this way we can view Sobi as a surrogate brother, an anchor of support rather than a sexual predator (sort of). Though Sobi is portrayed as non-threatening, it’s hard to get around his most inappropriate actions such as outright kissing Ritsuka.

The storyline is one that is intrinsically complicated. On the one hand there are some great fantasy elements with the notion of true names binding people (typically same-sex couples) as fighters and sacrifices (soul-mates in effect) and are trained at a secret school to do battle with one another. While this might give the impression of a rich, multi-layered concept, it should be made clear that none of these elements are nearly fleshed out enough to be satisfactory. This is certainly understandable considering that the manga had only published four volumes at the time the anime was released. Still it does limit the overall enjoyment as Loveless never reaches a gratifying conclusion of any kind. To make matters worse the last episode reveals a shocking revelation regarding the death of Seimei. Needless to say this is a tad frustrating.

Regardless there is something about Loveless, something beautiful, something captivating that will mesmerize its audience and make them want to learn more about this strange little world. Well, so long as they can overlook the creep factor.

Rating: 7/10

For Fans of: Kuroshitsuji, Gravitation, Yami no Matsuei 

Justice League Unlimited - Review

Justice League Unlimited was a clear continuum of the original series. It was also a highly ambitious project, one that didn’t always pay off. While its predecessor indicated that change was on the horizon after the destruction of the Watchtower and the departure of Hawkgirl, DC really has to learn that rebooting a franchise is not necessarily change for the better. Justice League Unlimited seemed to get lost in the idea of quantity over quality. It featured a much more diverse team at the expense of character development, aside from a select few, the majority of the new cast felt one dimensional and boring, lacking a lot of the charm and whimsy of Justice League.

The series ran for two seasons one comprising of 26 episodes and one shorter 13 episode season tagged on at the end. While the first season adopted an episodic format there was an underlying story arc which came full circle, the second season felt rushed and lacklustre, almost as if they were running out of ideas, not to mention Superman villains’. The show took a darker direction than its predecessor through paying homage to an interesting idea tossed around in the original series. Ultimately this ended up convoluted and unnecessary since it didn’t go anywhere new. The heroes turn up, save the day and suddenly everyone remembers why they like the Justice League! Well duh!

What was memorable about the Justice League for me, were the seven founding members, as I briefly mentioned in the previous review. This is where the series came into its own. The cast were incredibly well developed and complex throughout Justice League and played off each other wonderfully. Whereas Justice League Unlimited (as the name implies) wanted to expand the league and rapidly increase the number of characters by creating a secondary cast, an extra cast and a background cast, to varying degrees of success.

The secondary cast consisted of Green Arrow, Supergirl, Black Canary, The Question, Huntress to name a few. As reoccurring characters with relative contributions to the major plot line, these characters were fleshed out enough not to feel contrived. They were even capable of holding down episodes largely absent of the founding cast members, in particular the Birds of Prey saga. The writer Gail Simone might have had something to do with that. The extra cast were little more than the guest cast of a filler episode – Captain Marvel, Zatanna, Hawkman, Hawk and Dove, Booster Gold, and these were among the worse episodes of the series. It shouldn’t be enough to just have these characters present. The writers have to do something with them other than an extended cameo appearance. And here we reach the crux of the show; it could be downright sloppy at times. The background cast were the background, superheroes that never spoke and were never named. They were simple padding. They were a waste of animation.

The overall problem with Justice League Unlimited is that it never when far enough. It relied far too heavily on the original series to the point that very little progression was made on the already set up cast members. Opting instead to introduce as many new and unfamiliar faces as possible but rather than establishing who they were and most importantly why we should care about them, Justice League Unlimited would immediately return to its comfort zone – the DC trinity. Perhaps if the series had gone the whole route and turned each episode into a one-shot dedicated to an entirely new character, the series would have actually felt unlimited.

In short Justice League ended on a high. Justice League Unlimited began on a low and only got a little better with time. Unfortunately DC seems to be repeating their mistakes with Young Justice.

Rating: 6/10

For fans of: Justice League, Young Justice, The Avengers; Earths Mightiest Heroes 

Justice League - Review

After the success of Batman: TAS (the animated series) and Superman: TAS, DC wanted to expand its newly created “DC animated universe”. So of course the next logical step was to complete the holy DC trinity and produce Wonder Woman: TAS. Nope. Naturally Wonder Woman has yet to receive her own animated series, I imagine it will manifest sometime after her film debut (so never). Interestingly in both instances Wonder Woman has been passed over for the Green Lantern, Hal Jordon, Green Lantern. I’m sure it will surprise no one that the five DC heroes to feature in their own full length animated series were all male. Batman and Superman, unsurprisingly dominate the board. I can understand Green Lantern, but Aquaman and Static Shock? I mean why are these characters deemed a priority over Wonder Woman? Then again, considering that one of the worse episodes (in my humble opinion) centred on Wonder Woman, this was probably a wise decision.

Justice League aired in 2001 and ran for two seasons, 26 episodes a piece. Aside from a stand-alone Christmas special and three extended episodes, each story was presented in a two-part episode arc. The primary cast remained the same throughout the two seasons, Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, Flash, Martian Manhunter and Hawkgirl, seven recognizable, reasonably well-known superheroes combined into one DC powerhouse. Few secondary characters were introduced but the most significant would have been Aquaman and Dr.Fate. Personally this is how a successful superhero outlet should be with a fixed main cast and a reoccurring guest cast. Considering how vast the DC universe is, focusing on only seven was no small feat.

There are several reasons why I enjoy this type of format. The most important is that it allows for stronger character development. A limited cast means that there is much more room to create characters with distinctive personalities, unique powers and identifiable appearances. It also means that once the foundation is set, the characters can be expanded upon. Ultimately they can change and grow, the most prolific of which was Hawkgirl. As with any superhero team genre, the real dynamic is in how the members interact with one another and this was where Justice League came into its own. It effectively captured seven exceptional individuals who contrasted and complimented one another without having to resolve to archetypes such as (though it pains me to admit) Teen Titans.

And now time for the feminist rant. Since the team consisted of two female cast members (one of them being Wonder Woman), a girl power / straw feminist plot was pretty much inevitable. However the ‘sisters are doing it for themselves’ gimmick is not in itself a bad idea – take the episode ‘Grudge Match’ in Justice League Unlimited. It’s all in the execution, namely the straw feminist approach. For those that are not aware, a straw feminist is an exaggerated caricature of feminism (Sarkeesian, 2011) most notably represented in the media promoting radical ideas – like all men are evil. In the episode Fury, the adopted Amazon Aresia develops a plague that will wipe out the male population, leaving Wonder Woman and Hawkgirl alone to stop her. Wonder Woman immediately rejects that this is the Amazon way however Hawkgirl asserts that Aresia is just taking the Amazon dogma to its next conceivable level. At the end of the story Aresia learns that she in fact owes her life to a man but that the Amazon Queen Hippolyta never told her because she did not think he was important. Rather than just portray Aresia as a rogue Amazon with radial ideas, the show deliberately suggested that there was innately something wrong with the Amazonian society and how it devalues men.

This is a classic example of how not to write Wonder Woman because it just undermines the character and her culture. It oversimplifies the Amazons and discredits the all-female society notion as a whole. Writers are often preoccupied with turning the Amazons into a race of man-haters who existed in a world of gender equality. In the beginning of the episode Wonder Woman does help a woman from a rude male driver, but that of course does not constitute an act of sexism. As with many animated universes institutionalised sexism, racism or homophobia is non-existence. The problem of course is that Justice League is aimed at a young audience which would make it difficult to accurately depict any form of prejudice in a manner that is both effective and sensitive. It’s far easier to create a gender balanced world with crazed man-hating Amazons.

Aside from this minor lapse in judgement, the remaining episodes were consistently enjoyable even by today’s standards. Amazingly Justice League hasn’t aged at all. The animation is still wonderfully sleek and even a little reminiscent. The stories are intriguing, imaginative and well-paced, if a little goofy and corny along the way. Not to mention that it served as a platform to introduce new DC characters that might not have generated enough interest by themselves to support an entire series. The only possible downside is that they did tend to rely on Superman/Batman villain’s the majority of the time, which was a bit of shame but not to a large extent. Overall it leaves me with a positive reaction. I recall watching Justice League when it originally aired and not being overly fond of it. Ten years on and I’ve officially changed my mind.

Rating: 7/10

For Fans of: Young Justice, Avengers: Earths Mightiest Heroes, League of Superheroes. 

Ikoku Meiro no Croisee - Review

Taken out of context, Ikoku Meiro no Croisee or Croisee in a Foreign Labyrinth is a perfectly charming historical adaption of life during the second half of the nineteenth century. The anime explores cross-culturalism in a manner which is both reverential but also understated. While Ikoku Meiro no Croisee never explicitly crosses the border into racism, it does however paint a rather rose tinted view of the time period, especially considering that racial prejudices were rife during the era – i.e. Social Darwinism.

However the strength of the anime is in its characters, succeeding in a cast that are dynamic and also endearing to behold. Despite the primary emphasis on Yune, she is a relatively unremarkable character. Her concept is one that is often overused in the depiction of Japanese girls in which ‘cute’ and ‘doll-like’ are the only conceivable traits. Fortunately Yune is a little more refined and well-rounded than most and her character is surprisingly well suited. Nevertheless when compared with the scope of the cast, Yune feels flat and one-dimensional, almost an object rather than a person.

On the other hand, the male protagonist Claude is an adept straight-man with a fleshed out backstory and plenty of personal development within a relatively short amount of time. Significantly Alice provides the right balance of annoyance and fangirlism to make for intriguing melodrama. While Oscar and Camille are excellent secondary characters, each adding a sense of stability and insight into the complex constrain of society.

Still when put into context, the plot of Ikoku Meiro no Croisee really falls apart. A young girl travels to the other side of the world with a complete stranger so that she can work as a maid in his grandson’s poorly performing business. The immediate question is why? Was this a regular occurrence at the time? Amusingly Camille points out that Claude knows very little about Yune, not her family status, not her age, nothing. The crushingly disappointing aspect of this series is that it never addresses who Yune is. We never learn why she wanted to come to France, if she did at all. We never learn how she and Oscar met. We never learn how a young Japanese girl became fluent in French. In fact the only thing we ever learn about Yune’s backstory is that she has an older sister who went blind. Granted this is a pretty touching and elegantly told but it makes even less sense. Why would Yune leave her blind sister (of whom she feels responsible for) alone while she runs off to Paris for an unspecified amount of time?

This is the only real flaw of Ikoku Meiro no Croisee. It demands the temporary suspension of reality in that the audience only focus on the moment. If you do, Ikoku Meiro no Croisee offers a heart-warming, slice-of-life tale with a beautiful cultural twist. Just don’t ask it too elaborate…

Rating: 8/10 

For fans of: Gosick, Rozen Maiden, Hourou Musuko

Dantalian no Shoka - Review

I have to admit, this one was a bit of a doozie.

Dantalian no Shoka or alternatively Bibliotheca Mystica de Dantalian (The Mystic Archives of Dantalian) is certainly a peculiar one. At a mere twelve episodes the series is pretty easy-going and fits nice and tidily into the Victorian/Edwardian mystery niche that the Japanese are so fond of. On the other hand, it’s lazy and unsubstantial. It seems to almost pander to said niche rather than seeking expansion or development. And there are plenty of animes that handle this cliché better and manage to have a resolution.

Set in England after the First World War, Hugh “Huey” Antony Disward (voiced by none other than the black butler himself, Daisuke One) inherits his grandfather’s massive estate and underage demon/doll/library-girl, Dalian as well. The plot focuses on the duo as they recover phantom books, objects which offer the reader non-specific magic powers. As an episodic series, Dantalian no Shoka is entertaining enough, through the initial premise – Dalian is a library – is never actually explored or explained. It’s just accepted. Much like Huey and his new role through he really has no obligation to. And yet at no point does Huey display any resistance nor does he ever question Dalian regarding her origins or how her powers work. He just accepts it, which is not how a normal human being would behaviour but there you go. This is a prime example of poor character construction. Sure Huey can get shot in the stomach, bleed out, get up and carry Dalian as he jumps out of window then run away from a pack of hungry zombies but ultimately does that give him a personality? Nope. It just makes him a bland, one dimensional hero archetype. Needless to say Dalian’s character or lack thereof isn’t any better.

Admittedly Dantalian no Shoka reminds me a lot of Gosick – same time period, same moe-girl and older guy couple, same preliminary mystery premise, same sleek animation. It actually surprised me that the two were not made by the same company. Ironically what wore thin with Gosick is what gives Dantalian no Shoka its strength and vice versa. For example whereas Gosick didn’t work as an episodic series and the bigger picture was much more interesting, it’s quite the reverse for Dantalian no Shoka, which seemed content to shoehorn something resembling a main storyline very last minute and I do mean last episode last minute. The effect was pretty disastrous. It felt rushed, half-hearted and completely unintended, like the producers had planned for a longer run but ended up stopping mid-point just as something new and exciting was occurring. Ultimately this pulled the series down.

Rating: 6 /10

For fans of: Black Butler, Gosick, Rozen Maiden 

Mawaru Penguindrum - Review

There are animes, there are art forms and then there is Kunihiko Ikuhara, the director of iconic magical girl animes Sailor Moon and Revolutionary Girl Utena. Evidently Ikuhara is well versed in cookie-cutter shows as well as breath-taking breaking the mould shows. So you’ll either get exactly what you want or exactly what you didn’t expect. Nevertheless both Sailor Moon and Revolutionary Girl Utena deal with a similar platform (not to mention virtually identical animation); Mawaru Penguindrum takes a fresh and entirely different approach. The concept is a little hard to pin down as the genre(s) is less shojo-romance and more mystery/comedy/sci-fi. And there are penguins. Lots of penguins.

The series centres on three siblings, twins Shouma and Kanba and their terminally ill younger sister, Himari. Initially Himari dies but is immediately reanimated into a penguin princess during one of the most spectacular magical girl transformations I’ve ever witnessed. The new and improved Himari demands a penguindrum in exchange for their sister’s new found health. What is a penguindrum? The princess doesn’t say, nor do we really find out until the very last episode and even then it’s still a little ambiguous.

The characters are all first rate. It’s near impossible to dislike any of them. Shouma and Kanba serve as superb protagonists, challenged with the heart-wrenching task of trying to save a loved one, a task that eventually leads them apart and seeking conflicting paths. Himari appears cute as a button one moment, than high-and-mighty princess the next, both roles are electrifying. One potential problem is the incest, fortunately that is resolved in the most satisfying conclusion, it’s not incest (major spoilers). Even Ringo, who is principally introduced as an annoying, single-minded stalker, has such stark revelations about her past, that the character is renovated into someone relatable and ultimately likable.

Mawaru Penguindrum is very much a character study in the sense that all of the primary cast have a rough upbringing and are in some way scarred, allowing for plenty of growth and development. One minor setback of the traumatic childhood is the over use of the lonely/abandoned child complex. This leads to great effect in some situations, namely the horrendous child broiler scenes which really work to drive home that there is something underlying evil with this society and not so much in others, chiefly the Masako storyline. Despite what I said early, this is one character that we didn’t get to see utilized to her full potential. She and her brother Mario were mostly padding for a shocking plot twist. Interesting enough, but perhaps not quite on par with the rest of the cast.

The storyline is impeccably well-crafted. From the outset, this is set up to be a tragedy. The beginning is (naturally) deceptive as the light-hearted, whimsical romantic-comedy element is gradually lost and replaced with a much colder ascetic. Mawaru Penguindrum is also a masterpiece of symbolism and surrealism that will certainly require several views in order to soak up all the references. Clearly nothing has been left to chance, or fate as is more relevant.

Mawaru Penguindrum is nothing short of magnificent. The sheer level of depth, of detail that has gone into the shows meticulous design is quite frankly staggering and the outcome is simply flawless. The devotion of the siblings as the core motivator is pretty powerful and the ending is incredibly satisfactory if a little open ended. Kunihiko Ikuhara is a true visionary and hopefully this will be the shape of more things to come from this wonderfully talented director.

Rating: 9/10

Recommended. 

Ultimate Spider-man: First Impression

In prior reviews I’ve probably made it abundantly clear that I am a marvel girl, one hundred and ten per cent. However there is one superhero I loathe above all others and he happens to be a marvel creation, none other than Spiderman. The core problem of this franchise is that it is a singular protagonist show, unlike say x-men or the avengers. If (like me) you don’t like the primary character, if (like me) you think the explanation for his superpowers is a little far-fetched/completely stupid, then you probably should avoid the entire product.

And then along came Spectacular Spiderman. The success of this rendition was truly in its character department (ironically enough) and keeping the action as low key as possible. The decision to focus almost exclusively on the teenage life of Peter Parker and his relationship with his peers was to the shows credit, compared with other teenage heroes – x-men evolution, Teen Titans and Young Justice, in which the interaction as regular teens can be limited and sometimes entirely absent. Spectacular Spiderman chose the other rout and ultimately this made the character more likeable, it made his school-chums more three dimensional, it made me rethink my position on Spiderman.

Unfortunately Spectacular Spiderman was cancelled after a mere 24 episodes and we were then gifted with this monstrosity, Ultimate Spider-man. It’s like everything that ever was or ever could be bad about Spiderman has been squeezed into 24 minutes. Peter Parker is an annoying, obnoxious douchebag who blunders about the set, spamming the audience with the obvious and the unfunny. I mean how are we supposed to invest in a character that’s its nearly impossible to like? Take the episode Doomed for example. Spiderman = total douchebag.

Whereas the characters in Spectacular Spiderman are what made the show so special, the characters in Ultimate Spider-man are what make it so flat and one-dimensional, regardless of how many marvel cameos we receive. Also neato that we’re back to the one girl per two/three guy’s ratio, talk about progress! Hey maybe we could even have Mary-Jane and White Tiger exchange a single line with each other, wouldn’t try be edgy? And nice job stereotyping Nick Fury as the angry black guy!

As for my understanding of the premise of Spiderman, isn’t he supposed to be a lone hero, a self-taught vigilante shouldering the burden of his uncle’s death? Sure the idea of Shield offering Spidey a job/training is interesting, but so far it only uses this premise to point out what a lame pussy Spiderman is. Fuck it, I’m only watching this for Agent Coulson and the eventual Loki & Quicksilver cameos.

Initial Rating: 5/10 

Tiger and Bunny Review

The core concept behind Tiger and Bunny isn’t exactly new and/or original. The superhero as a celebrity aspect has been paraded around before, most notably in the Iron Man films. Tiger and Bunny simply takes this to the next conceivable consumer level, the superhero as a reality TV star. As a self-confessed marvel geek, this very notion is contradictory to what constitutes as a hero, which is a well-held running theme. What is so controversial about this premise is the notion that the superheroes fight crime in order to win brownie points as oppose to their personal sense of moral justice. In fact the only character that really maintains old skool hero values is our primary protagonist, Tiger which initially results in his low ranking and often become more of a hindrance.

The secondary protagonist, Bunny has a tragic backstory more in keeping with the classic superhero roots, pretty blatantly a Batman rip. Fortunately the writers have the good sense to spin a new angle and make the character mainly concerned with solving his parents’ murder as oppose to becoming a vigilante. However we don’t learn much about the other heroes and when we do it often exposes their all too human motivations, pressure from parents, wanting to stand out or in the case of Blue Rose, wanting to become a teen idol. In the long run it renders the characters human and flawed, which is not what heroes are supposed to represent. Yet by grounding them in a sense of reality, it actually gives them a greater depth rather than having them portrayed as saints taking on societies responsibilities just because they were born with super powers.

Having said that there are a few minor hiccups, the most notable is in regards to Tiger and his conflict as both superhero and single father. While it’s a nice twist to have a single father superhero, in this particular anime which re-writes the superhero genre, it’s never really explained why this division is necessary. Since his identity is kept secret and the rest of his immediate family already know, why hide it from his pre-teen daughter? Doesn’t he want her know? Wouldn’t that make his life easier? Wouldn’t she be more sympathetic with his absentee parenting? Or he could just quit and raise his child full time, which should actually take priority. In all it seems too contrived and too forced, not to mention almost out of context with the show.

What really intrigued me about this show was the collaboration between cultures. The notion of the superhero, the overt commercialization and especially the setting right down to the dollar currency system are grounded in western ideologies. Even the genesis of the superheroes has a lot in common with another popular American franchise, the X-Men. Yet later on when Tiger leaves to visit his daughter we’re transported to a rural Japanese backdrop. This element of harmony is made none the more clearer than between the two protagonists, Tiger is obviously Japanese and Bunny is western, presumably American. Interestingly there is a similar congruence with the futuristic technological advances whilst being set in 1978 (according to the Christmas clock). Overall this blend mingled well with the plot, adding an extra creative boost along the way.

As everyone should know, every good superhero requires a nemesis. While Tiger and Bunny did deliver a big bad towards the end of the series both with an unexpected twist and the potential for a much greater threat, this paled in comparison to the anti-hero, Lunatic. The character was introduced in small intervals allowing the audience to connect the dots while the protagonists remain blissfully unaware. It was almost a shame that Lunatic wasn’t utilized more.  Still, there is plenty of room for a follow up series and even talk of a movie.

Rating: 8.5/10

First Impression DC vs. Marvel

Young Justice Invasion 

It’s no secret that I’m not a DC girl. For me, DC tends to miss the mark more often than it hits it. The same is true for their animation. Aside from Batman the Animated Series which is sheer awesome and the comedic anime-styled Teen Titans, I’ve not given DC a second glance. I do remember watching Justice League, later Justice League Unlimited as a kid and being unimpressed with the level of corniness. Then along came Young Justice and it was finally a show that DC seemed to have the right balance of silliness and maturity. Despite a relatively young cast, the show was surprisingly dark (in comparison to other superhero shows comprising of teenagers – Teen Titans or X-Men Evolution for example). The original season was clever, concise and had plenty of character development. The second series is a different matter.

Season two is set five years after the events of the season one finale (which only aired last week). Not that this is made clear as to why, it’s only briefly referenced by Batman. So in the initial episode we learn that Kid Flash, Artemis, Red Arrow and Aqualad are no longer part of the team. Wow, I mean that could be quite a kick to the teeth to their fans. Zatanna and Rocket have also left but we still do see them briefly as members of the Justice League. Replacing them are Robin (Tim Drake), Blue Beetle, Beast Boy, Batgirl, Wonder Girl, Bumblebee and Lagoon Boy. Disappointingly none of these new characters actually makes an impression, their personalities pale in comparison to the original cast. Whereas season one gradually introduced its protagonists and even continued to expand up until the very end, season two completely jumps the shark by creating an entirely new line-up. Of course the biggest frustration is the break-up of Superboy and Miss Martian. During the original series their relationship was crucial to either character in order to gain stability and strength and ultimately to be able to accept themselves. It’s seems almost undignified that they should break-up off screen. Or that Miss Martian should be with Lagoon Boy (already top of the annoying list). I suppose the writers wanted the inevitable Superboy/Wonder Girl hook up to be less complicated.

In all, Young Justice: Invasion sure does have its work cut out. I mean in order to forgive tossing away five freaking years; it has to pull something beyond amazing out of its hat. I feel the need to explain to DC that fans get attached to characters. And fans don’t like change. We like characters with interesting personalities and experiences and we like watching them grow throughout the course of a series. We don’t like them being expendable or interchangeable.

Initial rating: 6/10

 The Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes.

Much like Young Justice, The Avengers had a killer first season with subtle hints towards an alien invasion in the next season. Unlike Young Justice, The Avengers is smart enough not to uproot its prior cast for an entire new one. Instead new characters/members are gradually introduced, notably Ms. Marvel, making her the second female to join the team, progress!

The second season spares no time in plunging the team into a new conflict with a new villain, none other than Dr. Doom. As well as introducing a new alliance, the Fantastic Four. The following episodes are primarily filler, exploring possible future story arcs, for example Maria Hill discusses superhero registration which would unavoidably lead into the notorious civil war scenario. The strength of The Avengers is in its awareness for what fans want to see. It doesn’t overload us with too many characters resulting in extended cameos, it takes its time to start on a smaller scale and build around the primary cast. This obviously allows certain characters – Iron Man for example more screen time, but more importantly is that it allows other characters the opportunity to develop within their own stories and solo adventures. For instance, Thor has not yet returned to Midgard, yet we have seen him and are aware a big bad Asgardian villain will pop up some time in the future. This is why I think Marvel has the upper hand as the creative staff seem to know less is sometimes more.

Initial Rating: 8/10 

Steins;Gate Review

In terms of plot, Steins; Gate is a remarkable accomplishment. It handles an interesting premise with an original and thought-provoking manner. As a time-travel-theory novice I can’t vouch for the accuracy of the physics involved, nevertheless the context is pretty heavy-going, enough to indicate the writers have a vague idea over the subject matter. Or at least enough to make the utterly absurd sound plausible i.e. the microwave that sends text messages to the past. Unfortunately this is one of the few drawbacks, the overtly technical side. Understandably it can be a bit overwhelming especially in the beginning and factoring in the speed at which things progress, it’s not easy to digest initially. 

Steins; Gate takes it time to introduce the cast, the setting and the science, all done to the anime’s credit, before plummeting full throttle into a magnificent thriller that becomes the focal point. Despite a relatively repetitive sequence of events (literally), the storyline itself does not become repetitive. Quite the opposite actually, it becomes grippingly addictive. This is in no small part due to the unravelling of the complex, multi-layered plot and the fascinating exploration of trying to twist it back together.

For the most part, the characters are crafted wonderfully. Okarin as the primary protagonist and self-proclaimed mad scientist experiences the most character development largely down to the emotional roller-coaster he endures and thus is the most three dimensional. Whereas his immediate companions, Mayuri and Daru are essentially stereotypes or stereotypes, yet are delightful enough. Kurisu the female protagonist and blatant love interest is a little more challenging. On the one hand her interactions with Okarin provide enjoyable conflict and on the other her personality weakens in the context of the backstory. However it’s the secondary cast, cat-girl and the girl-guy who are an eternal source of annoyance. At first I took them for throw away characters and I wasn’t strictly speaking wrong. As plot devices they’re integral, as characters they’re not.

All in all, Steins; Gate is an incredible feat, one that’s rarely seen these days. Yes, it’s not perfect, there are flaws primarily in the character department, but these are so minimal in comparison to the shows ultimate triumph, it practically re-writes the sci-fi genre. High recommendations.

Rating: 9/10

First Impression: The Legend of Korra

Technically Avatar the Last Airbender and its successor The Legend of Korra are not strictly speaking animes since neither are Japanese, but what is transparently clear is the inspiration behind both is. No surprise Avatar has been dubbed the American Anime.

 Set several unspecified years after the events of the original series with the primary cast presumably dead, so far the only member of the first series we know for sure is alive is Katara, as she quite literally passes the torch to the new avatar, a water tribe girl called Korra. Existing in a time of alleged peace, Korra has a completely different task ahead of her, finding her place in the world as the Avatar. It’s really interesting that whereas Aang had a destiny that he was trying to avoid, Korra is without a destiny despite really wanting one. This leads her character to make impulsive and often ill-thought out plans. Despite Korra’s ever so slight arrogance in her abilities and her title, the writers have done a brilliant job of not making her an annoying teenager trope. It could have so easily gone horribly wrong. However the greatest aspect of this new series is without a doubt the bad guy and his anti-bending movement. In this modern era the warfare of Avatar the Last Airbender is not just seemingly outdated, it is also a hindrance, resulting in the scapegoating of benders as the problems of the society. The Legend of Korra has the potential to be a more in depth, more historical commentary than its predecessor but at the moment I’ve not given into Korra fever. In its defence The Last Airbender had three terrific seasons. It’s too soon to decide whether Korra is on par yet.
 
Initial rating: 8/10

Hana Saku Iroha - Review

Hana Saku Iroha was somewhat of a bumpy ride, producing varying reactions along the way. In the end it had a wonderfully well written arc that result in a solid and satisfying climax that shined over prior calamities. I think the main problem was that it was good at what it promised, a slice of life, coming of age, the daily on-goings of a traditional Japanese Inn and appallingly bad at the unexpected – the outlandish comedy and romance triangle.  In both these areas characters and situations didn’t feel natural and interrupted the general flow – for example the perverted writer who writes explicit porn involving the underage girls at the inn, when discovered he kidnaps Ohana and later attempts suicide. Giving him a job at the inn is obvious the workings of a rational, sane mind. Yet this character becomes the perverted comic relief for the remaining series. Despite the fact I can’t imagine any teenage girl finding this situation comfortable. 

As for the romance section, the Minko-Trohu-Ohana triangle is expectedly, but even so the latter part appears almost out of nowhere. It certainly doesn’t come across as a genuine love interest, more or less like a plot device to create tension between Minko and Ohana. It does serve one good purpose, with Minko unjustly on the war path with Ohana; the ever-annoying Ohana is given a sympathetic light and thus becomes more endearing. As for Ohana, the primary protagonist the series did a fantastic job overall of making an overtly optimistic teenager, likable and compelling. In context this is a girl who quite literally has her life turned upside down and placed into a familiar environment, but what makes her relatable is the moment she begins to challenge her mother in favour of the inn. This is when Ohana stops being the archetypal heroine and becomes an average teenager.

 Rating: 7/10 

Ao No Exorcist Review

Developed from Dragonball, the shounen formula is a fairly consistent style of anime, considering the most well-known and popular shows tend to adhere to pattern – Naruto and Bleach for example. This is not without its drawback. Shounen animes (fighting ones in particular) are often long and overtly drawn out, having fighting sequences that can span for multi-episodes, which is especially tedious if they are unimportant to the major storyline, for instance a secondary or even a third-rate character fighting an inconsequential side villain. Not to mention the tedious and endless filler arcs.

Ao no Exorcist is not a radical leap from the shounen formula, not by any stretch of the imagination, in particular if you address the similarities between it and Bleach (which I will later on). Nevertheless there are several remarkable improvements to the tried and test formula. The most prominent is reduction of long-winded fighting scenes. Aside from the big bad square off during the final three episodes, most action is tamed to one or two episode parters and fights do not exceed themselves needlessly. Ultimately this means the audiences is not overloaded with violence, deterring away from the plot, which results in genuine tension since we are invested in the characters. As much as I like Bleach and Dragonball, Ichigo and Goku are fairly bland archetypal protagonists. Right from the get go we know if beaten both will eventually return stronger, even if killed (in the case of Goku).

A shorter, more concise series is beneficial to the filler episodes as well. Since in Ao no Exorcist these are singular, stand-alone episodes and therefore don’t come across forced. It’s actually pretty favourable to observe characters during their ‘off-days’, despite the limited use of the school backdrop. It really was a shame that the anime didn’t make full use of the school outside of the Exorcist classes. Of course this is comparable to Bleach and Dragonball, where the protagonists often leap from one epic adventure straight into another, living filler episodes (as mentioned prior) empty and forced comic-relief. Take the impending epic battle between Cell and instead of training Goku’s wife decides she wants him and his green alien training buddy Piccolo to learn how to drive. Really? I mean is that even a priority? It just seems so silly and out of place.

Onto the tropes! Unfortunately in the character department Ao no Exorcist does not excel, since it opts out for the safe approach. We have our main character, Rin, the son of Satan and like most protagonists, his birth right feels like the weight of the world on his shoulders. Nicely this is even pointed out plenty of times since Rin is often running head first into danger on his own. This is in part due to his heritage the need for secrecy but is a habit Rin finds hard to break. In comparison Ichigo (Bleach) has actually very little reason to the main protagonist. He only gets involved with the conflict after his two potential love interests are kidnapped, yet that seems enough to declare Aizen his enemy and take on the responsibility of stopping him. Whereas Rin’s reasoning is much more simplistic and holds more realism. Satan killed his father, Rin want’s revenge. It’s no wonder vengeance is such a high motivator; it effectively brings the conflict to a more personal level.

The secondary characters are where things don’t quite gel. We have the rival archetype Ryuji, doubling as potential love interest and healer archetypes Shiemi, the smart but haughty girl archetype Izumo, the shamelessly big chested-little clothing teacher archetype Shura (more common than you think, the good guy on the wrong side archetype Arthur August Angel and the mysterious, has additional motives archetypes Mephisto. While most of them are pretty harmless and even do a good job upholding their stereotype, others are woefully grating and just extend into plot devise territory – take Arthur August Angel as an prime example.

What gives Ao no Exorcist a real boost is the additional of Rin’s twin brother, Yukio. This enables the plot to reduce the pressure placed on Rin as primary protagonist and even at the end have a more balanced resolution. By getting rid of this lone-wolf complex, the anime enables a brotherly bond to be beautifully created and developed over time. There are one or two hiccups along the way, the sudden jerk as Yukio rapidly changes character feels a little stiff but this is quickly turned around.

On the disappointing side, the main villain was a colossal let down. The series spend a good deal of time introducing Satan as a bad arse and portraying him as a major player, then suddenly right at the end we received some crucial information that is supposed to flesh out the character from standard bad guy archetype – he’s got a I’m so lonely, I just want to be loved side. It doesn’t work, primarily because it flat out contradicts not just the original premise of the character but also their immediate actions. Making your character do a complete 180 is not adding depth.

Despite the ups and downs, Ao no Exorcist is a very strong show and has potential to be next big shounen anime. Alas there seems no secondary season in sight, through a movie is in the works. Perhaps this is for the best, let the manga develop first than have a second season. No filler seasons!

Rating: 8/10

A Channel & DOTSO Review

A Channel - Review

A show about the daily lives of four school girls might not seem very interesting on paper but in practice it’s moderately successful. This is because the anime focuses efficiently on the protagonists and on developing them as distinctive but not radically difference individuals. Of course this is not without flaws. Run, the resident cute airhead is borderline retarded. This is demonstrated numerous times but the clearest example is the instance in which Run nearly falls out of a three-story window whilst waving at her friend. That’s just natural selection surely? Or the time when she forgets to put on her underwear and flashes her friend, I mean how does this girl function in the real world? Evidently the creators are incapable of decipher between naïve and dumb. Another problem takes the form of not knowing who the target audience is. On the one hand the non-threatening female characters and their mini-escapades into the joys of friendship and growing up would suggest primarily young girls are the intended mark. Yet the often uncomfortable and somewhat sexualisation of their cuteness (take the underwear episode or the teacher with a crush on Run’s forehead) would suggest an older male demographic. Fortunately these are few and far between. In short if you want an enjoyable, simplistic, non-challenging anime to pass the time, A Channel delivers.

Rating: 5/10

Denpa Onna to Seishun Otoko – Review

With a name like Electromagnetic Wave Woman and Adolescent Man, you know this is going to be awesome right? With a premise of a young girl who is a self-proclaimed, futon-wearing alien, having been missing for half a year and later recovered floating in the sea; this isn’t going to be a chore to seat through. Well you’d be wrong on both accounts. DOTSO is just another cute-but-somehow-inept-female meets boy-void-of-personality. Rather than utilize the premise to its full potential, the anime prefers to exploit Erin’s backstory merely as a device to make her childlike and helpless, thus dependent on her male cousin. But perhaps the most insulting part is that we never learn what did happen to Erin, not even ambiguously. It’s never addressed, which renders the entire premise utterly pointless. The writers could have substituted a less outlandish backdrop – Erin was bullied at school and thus became a shut in, you could still have exactly the storylines. If fact that would make people’s reactions to her more convincing. Presumably the knowledge of her disappearance/reappearance was well known, any person with common sense would determine that the girl is suffering amnesia due to some form of trauma and take that into account before treating her like a social leper. Oh no, Erin generally fears returning to school and has trouble finding employment because people find her ‘weird’. Why? Erin wraps a futon around herself. Why? Because she is mental/emotionally traumatised! Why? Because she was missing for half a year! Or the brain-dead mother who doesn’t see fit to put her daughter in therapy, apparently she thinks Erin is going through a fad. Or maybe she is waiting for some generic male relation to come in save the day with optimism! And how does this marvellous series end? With an entire episode dedicated to a baseball game, which our hero is absent from as he has been sent on a random quest to locate the father of one of his miscellaneous friends. A filler episode! It ends on a filler episode. No, the entire series is a filler episode.

Rating: 4/10

Deadman Wonderland - Review

My first anime review of 2012 and it’s something that’s been on the backburner for quite a while. Deadman Wonderland is on the meh side of okay, despite being one of the few anime’s I’ve actually managed to finish since returning to the bustling university lifestyle. I chalk that up to the crisp animation more than the storyline, which I’ve had the most problems with.

Primarily Deadman Wonderland makes no sense. The story is inconsistent, its chief aim is to take the protagonist Ganta, a fourteen year old high school student out of the comfortable life his lead so far and screw around with him as much as possible. For instance, we are initially plummeted into a horrendous mass murder in which Ganta is the number one suspect. How do the authorities reach such a conclusion? He was the only living survivor. Yup, that’s it. I mean they don’t even wait for him to regain consciousness and give his sole survivor eye-witness account before putting him in handcuffs and charging him. Sloppy police work or part of a larger conspiracy? We don’t know because it’s never addressed. Nor is the fact that the warden of the super prison is moonlighting as Ganta’s lawyer; now surely that’s a conflict of interest? Or maybe the warden is in on the conspiracy? Nope, never addressed. Once Ganta is in the prison and this plot point has done its job, off it goes, never to be seen or heard from again.

Instead we’re introduced to Deadman Wonderland a prison/theme park/battle royale game. Complete with poisoners collars that kill off the prison population unless they eat the antidote (candy) every three days. Admittedly this is an interesting twist, because it gives the prisoners a reason to partake in dangerous sports, it’s quite literally a matter of life or death. But does the prison have a never ending supply of generically ‘bad’ criminals who are expendable? Surely this raises eyebrows? Nope, since the spectators think its fake, no one seems to question the body count. Convenient since it won’t be addressed again.

Half way through, the story takes its final leap into disbelief when Ganta discovers a secret prison underneath his own. One where people (like him) with special blood killing powers are pitted against each other semi-mortal kombat style, all the while shadowy agents watch. This just raises even more questions than it answers. Why do they have these powers? Why were they caught if they could clearly use they own blood as a weapon? Perhaps more importantly, can’t we think of better things to do with them rather than cage fight? Nope, not gonna answer these either.

Undeniably the latter half is the most exciting and feels the most organic, in that this is where the plot wanted Ganta originally. But it could have moved along much better and cleaner, instead of being wishy-washy. Unfortunately the series is only 12 episodes long and I have a feeling that many of the unanswered questions would have been brought up later in the show. Too bad there isn’t a season two in sight.

Rating: 6/10