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Player No. 3
Joined: 21 Jan 2010
Posts: 209
Location: San Antonio, Texas
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Posted: Sat Feb 26, 2011 6:45 pm
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Putting off watching Ayakashi: Samurai Horror Tales since I found the bundle DVD at TSRI. Probably the closest I'll get to owning Mononoke.
Anyways, I'm streaming Moribito finally. I'm past the half-way point, and this show has greatly impressed me. Balsa is now one of my favorite anime characters; the amount of ass she kicks mixed with her warm demeanor is, frankly, 10 types of awesome. Even the filler episodes have very good character development. Really don't know why I didn't start watching this show earlier.
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CrisGer A.A.
Joined: 26 Feb 2011
Posts: 170
Location: 世田谷区 Setagaya Ward
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Posted: Sat Feb 26, 2011 7:04 pm
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Bleach as the new dubbed eps are aired, it remains a classic and is back to the main story now. Black Lagoon as a break from some more serious study, Xam'd Lost Memories at Ep 20 after a long break to get ready for what I am sure are evil things that the writers intend for Haru who is my chosen main female character, Lupin III all the series, bit by bit, Genshiken for the second time, and the related Kujibiki Unbalance OVA and series, about to do Clannad...because i am looking for good school series, and was glad to see the After Action dub is about to come out, which I am very grateful for, working thru GITS bit by bit, can't do too much of it at a time, ditto working thru Miyizaki also can't do too much of him at any one time, going to do Conan Future Boy soon.
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Errinundra
Moderator
Joined: 14 Jun 2008
Posts: 6532
Location: Melbourne, Oz
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Posted: Sun Feb 27, 2011 12:24 am
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Just finished a re-watch of Canaan - this time the dub, which isn't bad at all.
Some of my opinions remain the same; others are altered. Liang Qi didn't come across quite as obnoxiously as she did first time around and her final scene is surprisingly moving. (I especially like what happens in the end to her would be lover, Cummings.)
The low brow comedy elements and the cutesy female characters, Maria and Junjun, undermine what is otherwise an adult story.
Although the plot is frequently wobbly the episodes rush by, thanks largely to the compelling action scenes.
The other characters are a mixed bunch but a special mention must go to the taxi driver who is suitably crazy whenever called upon by Maria or Mino. The chief villain is unusually complex and ambiguous for anime. Unfortunately, she's too much so and, even at the end, I didn't entirely understand what she was on about.
The show is always at its best when Canaan is on screen. The way she looks and the way she moves are always a treat for the eyes. Better yet, I always appreciate characters that can convincingly portray opposites at once: Canaan is both resilient and helpless; ruthless and full of doubt. Her relationship with Maria would have been sensational if the latter had been written less childishly.
Anyway, I'm about to start Ghost Hound.
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CrisGer A.A.
Joined: 26 Feb 2011
Posts: 170
Location: 世田谷区 Setagaya Ward
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Posted: Sun Feb 27, 2011 2:02 pm
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Canaan is one that I have not had time to watch yet, I did recieve a BluRay copy of it, i will have to try it out, it sounds intriguing, and the crime/occult/suspense/thriller genre is one that I have not seen enough of for sure....thanks for that info.
The animation style does indeed look very nice. too.
And Player no.3, sorry i did not see your post before just now, Moribito Guardian of the Spirit is one of the very best anime series I have ever seen, the art, the characters, the story and the overall experince is superb, even the design and presentation of the case for the collectors edition is a work of art. It is true in spirit to the original story, I only wish they did more of the story for it continues..maybe someday.
And I agree about Balsa the Spearwielder, she is one of the most interesting and real female characters I have seen yet in any form of fiction and any media. She is strong and fully evoked without being at all cutesy, she is female yet powerful, humane yet also human in her feelings and limits, and there is a lot more about her that I wish we could explore and see. She is a marvel and a true work of genius, and as a role model unparelleled. When you compare her to say for instance Miyazaki's female characters who are appealing often but none of them have Balsa's depth or power....it is no contest at all.
I am very glad you found it, the intro music and scenes are superb too and really set the mood ...and as a view of historic culture in a remote time, it is an unrivaled glimpse of life at every level of society.
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wanderlustking
Joined: 18 Jun 2008
Posts: 449
Location: Bozeman, Montana
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Posted: Sun Feb 27, 2011 2:34 pm
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I'm watching Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica, and loving it. It's like Goeth's Faust mugged Shugo Chara! behind a liquor store, but only got about halfway through the wallet before Marilyn Manson beat it over the head with a crow bar; now it's sitting in a bathroom stall in a 7-eleven trying to stay conscious, but that's a lot of blood.
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Unicorn_Blade
Joined: 18 Jul 2010
Posts: 1153
Location: UK
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Posted: Sun Feb 27, 2011 4:59 pm
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Just finished watching Basilisk. Awesomeness to the power.
I think after all that action, i will be looking for something more quiet
Except for two flashback episodes the pace was excellent, the characters interesting, the atmosphere realy good. It was hard not to watch another episode, and another, and another. One could argue that you can kind of foretell what will happen, well, you kind of can, which still did not ruin the pleasure of watching.
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Dorcas_Aurelia
Joined: 23 Jul 2006
Posts: 5344
Location: Philly
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Posted: Sun Feb 27, 2011 5:11 pm
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Neo Tokyo. I don't even ... it makes less than no sense. Maybe there's some sort of symbolic meaning spread throughout?
The first bit (Labyrinth Labyrinth) with the girl and the cat and the clown was just... I don't even know. The complete absence of a narrative structure makes it clear that's not what I should be trying to judge it on, but the imagery revealed nothing to me.
The second part with the racing and the psychic powers and explosion and death had a narrative structure, but inter-cutting between the race and the (dead?) guy in the chair while the reporter looks at him confused me. The couple bits of monologue did give this section a theme, but I don't think I fully understood what it was trying for.
The third part (Order to Halt Construction) did have a full narrative arc, although it omitted a lot of details as to the why behind the action.
Then after that finished it went back to the girl and the clown and more things I don't pretend to understand happened. Then it ended.
Visually, the whole thing was incredible, but I don't know that I got anything else out of it. That can't be all that it was intended for, right?
Also saw Cyber City Oedo 808. Ah, early 90s OVAs. One guy I watched with it joked about making a drinking game for everytime someone swore. Everyone else said we'd be dead already if we did.
So, a few criminals with 300+ year sentences are recruited to work for an extra dangerous branch of law enforcement. Considering the length of their incarceration, they were actually pretty decent human beings, it seemed. You know, for hardened criminals.
Visually it seemed to hold up pretty well, despite being about 20 years old. There were three episodes, one focused on each of the cons, and they weren't spectacular story-wise, but interesting enough. The third one, though, had the guy (who looked like a woman) fighting a psychic vampire. It was incredible.
Also, I loved the robot companion who always replied very matter-of-factly to the main characters constant vulgarity-infused commands and requests. At one point it went into about a minute-long analysis of how it couldn't physically [screw] itself.
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Wrathful
Joined: 08 Mar 2010
Posts: 372
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Posted: Sun Feb 27, 2011 8:09 pm
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Unicorn_Blade wrote: | Just finished watching Basilisk. Awesomeness to the power.
I think after all that action, i will be looking for something more quiet
Except for two flashback episodes the pace was excellent, the characters interesting, the atmosphere realy good. It was hard not to watch another episode, and another, and another. One could argue that you can kind of foretell what will happen, well, you kind of can, which still did not ruin the pleasure of watching. |
Wow, hard to believe that it was enjoyable. When I watched it, I thought it dragged on for too long, I couldn't watch any longer. While the characters seemed alright, the plot was loosely based on Romeo and Juliet type of story but with ninjas and supernatural elements. I thought I would enjoy it for sure. Maybe I'm just not a fan of romantic story and I felt the anime would have a subpar ending.
I'm watching Witchblade. It's lot more enjoyable than I thought. It has that surprising light-heartedness despite the art that seems a gloomy. It has a lot of fanservice but for some reason I like this anime a lot. I also enjoyed the music so far. I'm up to episode 11 and I think the pacing is great and animation is fantastic.
Still watching Monster, maybe it's just most characters except Dr. Tenma are dodgy, stingy and apathetic towards the whole situation, it's a bit annoying to watch. I mean I know Germany at that period were probably prejudiced. As for Johann Liebert, he hasn't made too many appearances to make any sort of impression.
Bakuman is also on my list. This is actually my ideal kind of anime.
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braves
Joined: 29 Dec 2007
Posts: 2309
Location: Puerto Rico (but living in Texas)
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Posted: Sun Feb 27, 2011 8:25 pm
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Dorcas_Aurelia wrote: |
Also saw Cyber City Oedo 808. Ah, early 90s OVAs. One guy I watched with it joked about making a drinking game for everytime someone swore. Everyone else said we'd be dead already if we did.
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That only applies to the Manga UK dub, though. They went overboard on the fifteening. The original JP track has less than a handful of swears throughout the series from what I remember.
I watched it earlier this year after hearing about it on AWO. I enjoyed it quite a bit. Up there with Ninja Scroll and Wicked City for my favorite Kawajiri works (obviously for different reasons). Though, I actually thought at times the commentary track with Kawajiri and Maruyama was even more interesting to listen to.
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SgtMustang
Joined: 05 Feb 2010
Posts: 158
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Posted: Mon Feb 28, 2011 1:48 am
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Dorcas_Aurelia wrote: |
Neo Tokyo. I don't even ... it makes less than no sense. Maybe there's some sort of symbolic meaning spread throughout?
The first bit (Labyrinth Labyrinth) with the girl and the cat and the clown was just... I don't even know. The complete absence of a narrative structure makes it clear that's not what I should be trying to judge it on, but the imagery revealed nothing to me.
The second part with the racing and the psychic powers and explosion and death had a narrative structure, but inter-cutting between the race and the (dead?) guy in the chair while the reporter looks at him confused me. The couple bits of monologue did give this section a theme, but I don't think I fully understood what it was trying for.
The third part (Order to Halt Construction) did have a full narrative arc, although it omitted a lot of details as to the why behind the action.
Then after that finished it went back to the girl and the clown and more things I don't pretend to understand happened. Then it ended.
Visually, the whole thing was incredible, but I don't know that I got anything else out of it. That can't be all that it was intended for, right?
Also saw Cyber City Oedo 808. Ah, early 90s OVAs. One guy I watched with it joked about making a drinking game for everytime someone swore. Everyone else said we'd be dead already if we did.
So, a few criminals with 300+ year sentences are recruited to work for an extra dangerous branch of law enforcement. Considering the length of their incarceration, they were actually pretty decent human beings, it seemed. You know, for hardened criminals.
Visually it seemed to hold up pretty well, despite being about 20 years old. There were three episodes, one focused on each of the cons, and they weren't spectacular story-wise, but interesting enough. The third one, though, had the guy (who looked like a woman) fighting a psychic vampire. It was incredible.
Also, I loved the robot companion who always replied very matter-of-factly to the main characters constant vulgarity-infused commands and requests. At one point it went into about a minute-long analysis of how it couldn't physically [screw] itself. |
Neo Tokyo, thats the movie w/ the Order to Halt contruction, been trying to find it, I thought it was in Robot Carnival. Forgot Neo Tokyo was a short stories collection. Thanks.
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Unicorn_Blade
Joined: 18 Jul 2010
Posts: 1153
Location: UK
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Posted: Mon Feb 28, 2011 2:15 am
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Wrathful wrote: |
Unicorn_Blade wrote: | Just finished watching Basilisk. Awesomeness to the power.
I think after all that action, i will be looking for something more quiet
Except for two flashback episodes the pace was excellent, the characters interesting, the atmosphere realy good. It was hard not to watch another episode, and another, and another. One could argue that you can kind of foretell what will happen, well, you kind of can, which still did not ruin the pleasure of watching. |
Wow, hard to believe that it was enjoyable. When I watched it, I thought it dragged on for too long, I couldn't watch any longer. While the characters seemed alright, the plot was loosely based on Romeo and Juliet type of story but with ninjas and supernatural elements. I thought I would enjoy it for sure. Maybe I'm just not a fan of romantic story and I felt the anime would have a subpar ending.
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A lot of people compare it to Romeo and Juliet, and all I was thinking was... Shakespeare was by no means the first and only writer who wrote about lovers that could not be together, and then, the family issues would really be the only parallel. Regardless if you have seen/read Romeo and Juliet, it really does not make any difference to the plot. Then, Romeo and Juliet had a lot more romantic elements in it, while romance was such a tiny part of Basilisk that was dominated by fighting. I really can understand comparisons to Ninja Scroll, to R&J? Not necessarily. For me is just seemed I got a lot more episodes than there were in fact, because of the fast pace.
One thing that did make me wonder was why female ninja all seemed to obsess over men and ultimately lost as a result of not being able to maintain composure after loosing a lover. Every single one. Well, except for Ogen. Men on the other hand did not seem to be affected by it at all...
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Emorie
Joined: 20 Feb 2011
Posts: 3
Location: Chicago, IL
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Posted: Mon Feb 28, 2011 7:36 am
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Tower of Druaga: Sword of Uruk English Dub atm. This anime isn't what I expected from watching the preview, but I'm happy with the result. One of the funniest I've seen in awhile.
Next, I plan to re-watch Gun X Sword. I remember that I really enjoyed it the first time through, but its been a couple of years and I've forgotten a lot of elements to the plot.
Recently I stopped watching the second season of Neo-Angelique Abyss. This was my own fault as I went looking for spoilers and saw that the end of the series looked kind of lame :X
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Lucky_Smrt
Joined: 27 Feb 2011
Posts: 37
Location: Bijeljina, Bosnia
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Posted: Mon Feb 28, 2011 9:53 am
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I'm currently watching Blue Gender. I love sci-fi gerne in general, expecially if it has horror elements. You might guess I'm a Alien/Predator fan, which is true.
Blue Gender also has that setting which reminds you of StarShip Troopers franchise (it kinda is StarShip Trooper copy, no offense).
Add to it some really well packed romantic story (SST doesn't have that, has it?) and you get a sure win of an anime.
Also following Bleach as well. Kubo has finally decided to slower the pace
Oh, I finished watching Myself, Yourself a while ago. Loved it
Anyone who has ever heard words ''Slice of Life'' MUST watch it. Seriously.
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SgtMustang
Joined: 05 Feb 2010
Posts: 158
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Posted: Mon Feb 28, 2011 11:43 am
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checkin out the dub of summer wars, only a few minutes in but seems pretty dang good
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Zin5ki
Joined: 06 Jan 2008
Posts: 6680
Location: London, UK
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Posted: Mon Feb 28, 2011 1:47 pm
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Dorcas_Aurelia wrote: | Visually, the whole thing was incredible, but I don't know that I got anything else out of it. That can't be all that it was intended for, right? |
The sequences within the first and section parts of Neo Tokyo impart certain moods, in a manner of speaking. The quaint blend of childish wonder and surreal eeriness of Labyrinth Labyrinthos both bewilders and enchants, whereas the tension and ultimate horror of The Running Man alarms and excites.
Now, I say this as somebody who, as a result of the film's audiovisual composition alone, came to react to it in various emotive manners. I don't propose that this was the result of a hidden narrative or anything akin, and as such I doubt that you'll be able to come to appreciate it from a repeat viewing. This may be the upshot of the brute difference in the ways we react and the experiences of which we each approve.
Whilst I apologise for my bluntness, I would also recommend sampling Memories to see whether it satisfies you to a broader extent.
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