october 2012 anime (part 2)
Tudou has become very difficult to access as of late and so I haven't been getting onboard with Japanese dramas even though there's quite a few interesting-looking ones out. The sociopathic female surgeon one rated really well, and considering I'm starting my surgical term in 2 weeks I really want to be able to have a laugh at it.
Gintama
Every time Gintama resumes it picks a very clever place to do so. Last time was the crazy hiatus chapter where everyone (except poor ol' Shinpachi) changed their personalities or characteristics or jobs or...genders.
This time it picked the excellent Kintoki arc to start on. The only drawback is that the Shinsengumi doesn't appear for any of this arc. The comedy timing continues to be as hilarious as it's always been. I'm looking forward to the movie.
Zetsuen no Tempest
Written by the author who penned the deeply wistful Spiral ~ Suiri no Kizuna, this is a sci-fi affair full of interesting personalities and unexpected twists. And as I remember, the author is not afraid to kill people off. Though that in itself doesn't qualify for literary excellence (ahem Gantz), it makes for a suspenseful read when the author carefully builds up the character until the heart-rending end.
The original manga and the anime are littered with Shakespearean quotes. This prompted me to upend the room looking for my old Hamlet text and I'm sad to report I still can't find it. The story is set in a pseudo-future where magic and science co-exist, the magic granted by the "Tree of Beginnings" to a princess who has been stranded by her clan on an island to curb her magic powers. However, through a clever wooden doll, she was able to form a contract with an embittered teenager whose step-sister and parents were murdered in mysterious circumstances.
The anime is another high quality, glossy affair: pretty enough to pass as shoujo, but the action is fluid enough to be shounen, a perfect balance for its story. I highly recommend this anime, if only for the mindblowing revelation about a girl first introduced as...well, dead.
BTOOOM!
Ever since the disturbing Battle Royale made it famous, gruesome survival games have become a feature in popular media, from the gore-fest Gantz to the slightly more cerebral Hunger Games. Even Bakuman made a feature of it in one of its manga plots...or am I getting it mixed up with something else?
BTOOOM is a little too similar to the above-mentioned for a variety of reasons: a survival game set on an abandoned island where competitors try to kill each other with bombs. The ones who get thrown onto the island tend to be the scum of society, or nominated by those who spite them. The main character is a Freeta who escapes to the online gaming world to hide from his real life financial helplessness. His companions include a girl who ran away while her friend was raped and an abused boy who takes pleasure in killing.
The production value is not bad, but I was distracted through the whole of the first episode by Kanata's monologue. It's not that he's bad...but I'm just distracted by the fact it's him. Unfortunately with this anime preceded by the abovementioned franchises, it's hard not to feel like this is a retread that is precariously Gantz-like in its gratuitous sex and violence.
Gintama
Every time Gintama resumes it picks a very clever place to do so. Last time was the crazy hiatus chapter where everyone (except poor ol' Shinpachi) changed their personalities or characteristics or jobs or...genders.
This time it picked the excellent Kintoki arc to start on. The only drawback is that the Shinsengumi doesn't appear for any of this arc. The comedy timing continues to be as hilarious as it's always been. I'm looking forward to the movie.
Zetsuen no Tempest
Written by the author who penned the deeply wistful Spiral ~ Suiri no Kizuna, this is a sci-fi affair full of interesting personalities and unexpected twists. And as I remember, the author is not afraid to kill people off. Though that in itself doesn't qualify for literary excellence (ahem Gantz), it makes for a suspenseful read when the author carefully builds up the character until the heart-rending end.
The original manga and the anime are littered with Shakespearean quotes. This prompted me to upend the room looking for my old Hamlet text and I'm sad to report I still can't find it. The story is set in a pseudo-future where magic and science co-exist, the magic granted by the "Tree of Beginnings" to a princess who has been stranded by her clan on an island to curb her magic powers. However, through a clever wooden doll, she was able to form a contract with an embittered teenager whose step-sister and parents were murdered in mysterious circumstances.
The anime is another high quality, glossy affair: pretty enough to pass as shoujo, but the action is fluid enough to be shounen, a perfect balance for its story. I highly recommend this anime, if only for the mindblowing revelation about a girl first introduced as...well, dead.
BTOOOM!
Ever since the disturbing Battle Royale made it famous, gruesome survival games have become a feature in popular media, from the gore-fest Gantz to the slightly more cerebral Hunger Games. Even Bakuman made a feature of it in one of its manga plots...or am I getting it mixed up with something else?
BTOOOM is a little too similar to the above-mentioned for a variety of reasons: a survival game set on an abandoned island where competitors try to kill each other with bombs. The ones who get thrown onto the island tend to be the scum of society, or nominated by those who spite them. The main character is a Freeta who escapes to the online gaming world to hide from his real life financial helplessness. His companions include a girl who ran away while her friend was raped and an abused boy who takes pleasure in killing.
The production value is not bad, but I was distracted through the whole of the first episode by Kanata's monologue. It's not that he's bad...but I'm just distracted by the fact it's him. Unfortunately with this anime preceded by the abovementioned franchises, it's hard not to feel like this is a retread that is precariously Gantz-like in its gratuitous sex and violence.