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Baccano
Anyone who tries the first episode of Baccano! will immediately notice one thing: the immensely huge cast of characters. I could be wrong, but this can very well be the 13-episoded series with the biggest amount of characters ever. While it’s incredibly hard to make a story with so many characters that stretches over three different timelines come together, the creators of Baccano! actually pull this off. And how!
Basically, Baccano! combines immortal alchemists with the American Mafia in 1930. It works quite well, because there are so many different characters, they just have to go beyond the clichés in order to prevent characters who look too much like each other. This results in the quirky thieves of Isaac and Miria, the psychotic Ladd and the charming Luck. While it’s of course impossible for the character to reach the same level of depth as, say, Toward the Terra, but the creators did manage to give every important character (if I had to guess, there’s about thirty of them) an identity, a clearly defined role, a small piece of development and an actual personality.
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Bakuretsu
Tenshi Bakuretsu Tenshi is an anime about 4 mercenary women who take on dangerous missions from a mysterious contractor named Barren. For Jo, Sei, Meg and Amy it is the norm to fight extraordinary battles with various villains from large heavily armed mechs to mutated humans. But for Kyohei, a simple young man in a culinary school trying to become an awesome pastry chef in France, it's a pretty intense and dangerous world. The girls hire him to be their private cook as they are pretty incapable of feeding themselves anything other than junk food. The series follows them as they go on various missions and adventures meeting a vast amount of enemies and allies. When things get really out of hand, the team of girls also has a secret weapon, Jango, a large mech that Jo pilots when things get sticky. With this lethal setup of dangerously attractive women clad in revealing outfits and a stellar cook to feed them, will there be any challenge they
can't take on?
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Bamboo
Blade
In a kendo club where there is only one second year student (and the captain) Miyako, she is faced with a completely out of sorts advisor in Toraji. Ishida Toraji decided to improve his little penniless life by having a bet with his senior. His senior has a group of excellent kendo students, and they have a bet on a free year supply of food as the reward. With that, Toraji became much more committed, surprising even Miyako as he needed to find four more female members. However, he chased away some male students who are interested in joining kendo. Nakata and Eiga, friends of Miyako came over to look.
Just when Toraji was about to reject them, Miyako gave him a swift shot and they were forced into the kendo club. In the streets, Miyako and Toraji was hoping to have a talented student to join them, and Miyako wondered if they could do a test of throwing tons of things at a person and getting her to parry. As they said that, things started to fly toward them and a small loli-like character parried them with a broomstick. However, she said she was not interested to join the club. It seemed that Tamaki learnt Kendo in her dojo as part of her family work, but she was not interested at all.
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Banner
of the Stars Banner Of The Stars' plot concerns the logistical build-up, planning, and execution of a major battle revolving around a key strategic point from the point of view of several different levels of personnel involved in the operation. While at first that might sound like it would only involve just episode after episode of battles, the show's tight emphasis on character work keeps the central most important focus on the developing relationship between Lafiel and Jinto while also fleshing out the world of the Abh a bit more in detail by introducing new characters and developing some of the characters already introduced in Crest Of The Stars in more detail. While lacking the scope of a show like Legend Of The Galactic Heroes, Banner Of The Stars still does a superb job of depicting the different concerns and actions of people involved in a major galactic battle.
Solid dialog and strong character interaction are one of the core strengths of Stars franchise, and this title generally is generally not disappointing in this area. Though the show is a bit Abh-centric (though that is like saying All Quiet On The Western Front is too German-centric), it develops the society in much greater detail such as by giving more insight into the relationship between the Abh/Lander world relationship and introducing non-Abh human characters who serve in the Imperial Navy. The expository segments are actually integrated and reinforced by events in the individual episodes a bit more effectively than in Crest Of The Stars giving them a sense of much more immediate relevance to the immediate plot rather than simply serving as historical background as they previously did.
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Basilisk
In 1614, 73-year-old Shogun Ieyasu Tokugawa needs to choose a 3rd successor to the shogun. Unfortunately, both of his grandsons are engaged in a bitter rivalry with each other and any attempt to end the feud diplomatically will fail.
To determine who should be the successor, Ieyasu enlists the help of two rival ninja clans now bound by a peace treaty. His plan is to break the peace treaty between the two and set up a ninja battle with each clan fighting for one of his grandsons. The Kouga clan, lead by Danjo Kouga, will fight for Kunichiyo while the Iga clan, lead by Ogen, will fight for
Takechiyo.Danjo and Ogen were lovers when they were younger but their love was not meant to be. When Danjo's men attacked Ogen's village and killed the village Elder - going against Danjo's orders - she felt betrayed and the two have been enemies since.
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Bastard
Despite its popularity, I have to say that I don't think the Bastard!! is anything particularly special. As a fantasy action series with a quirky sense of humor, or perhaps even a subtle send-up of its own genre, it isn't bad, but there is too much missing for me to say I enjoyed it as much as I could have.
Something like a much sleazier version of Slayers, Bastard!! starts out like a raunchy fantasy take on the classic Pioneer formula: Serious plot but enough humorous atmosphere to border on a parody of more serious fantasy shows. Fans of old fantasy role-playing games will probably get a kick out of all the familiar stuff--beholders, effreets, and hydras (although I never remember encountering a slime that only eats clothes, and slowly at that).
For the most part the action and story are serious, except Dark Schneider (funky name, eh?) keeps throwing out annoying wisecracks and refuses to take the situation seriously. The series also springs a few amusingly unexpected jokes smack dab in the middle of an otherwise serious scene (great example: During one dramatic scene, a character throws an off-handed remark directly at the audience). These bits of clever humor and some rather lowbrow potshots set Bastard!! apart in the crowded fantasy genre.
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Berserk
In a world where mercenaries are used as soldiers and can be fighting for
one faction one battle then against it in the next. Where monsters and
magic meddle in human affairs toppling the odds there is a band of
mercenaries above the rest. Lead by a dangerous man only motivated by his
own goals, to have his own kingdom named Griffith, the Band of the Hawk
where a force to be reckoned with. When they come across a young man using
one of the biggest swords in anime, 2nd only to Sagara Sanosuke's sword
from Rurouni Kenshin, fighting as a lone mercenary. After a battle has
ended some of Griffith's men see the loner traveling along a trail, with
the knowledge that he would have just gotten paid for his last battle,
they decide to jump him. The young man named Gatts is happy to accept the
challenge and defeats the attackers until he challenges Griffith who
easily handles the big swords powerful swings. Gatts looses consciousness
from blood loss only to wake up days later with a beautiful naked woman
laying on him (for warmth, I don't believe it either). Griffith has taken
a liking to him and has decided to keep him. Gatts vows to server under
Griffith until he has the strength to defeat him. And so begins a great
journey of many bloody battles, betrayal, conspiracy, and yes even a
little hanky panky.
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Black
Blood Brothers Black Blood Brothers is definitely more than ‘just some shounen show’, as many would probably brand it without giving it a watch. For a start, none of the characters are
high-schoolers, and there is no world saving (just yet). Although there is action, it’s always short and concise, and never is there fighting just for the sake of fighting.
Instead, the main draw is in the story. The mystery that surrounds Jirou and the Kowloon Child drives the show forward, as information are fed to the viewers in small, bite-sized pieces. Each piece gives enough to hook the viewer in without leaving the viewer completely stranded and confused, and it looks like it’ll be a lot of fun waiting for all the pieces to reveal themselves so you can complete the puzzle.
Apart from that, there seems to be a lot of potential for some serious drama. The conversation between Mimiko and Jirou in the cafe has some pretty good chemistry going on, and I’m always a sucker for stories about racial differences. By taking place in the Speical Zone BBB doesn’t overplay the xenophobia aspect - that has been flogged to death in many other places - but the covert operations of the suppression teams in the first two episodes show that there is still antagonism between the two races.
The OP of the show, both the song and the sequence, is typical shounen stuff. Nothing exciting here, and, to be honest, I don’t like the singer. The ED song, on the other hand, is a haunting tune accomapnied by satisfactory vocal. The animation is almost non-existent, but what is there suits the mood perfectly.P.S. It’s really hard to write opinions on an episode when you’ve already watched the next 5. Thus, the next BBB post will be for episode 3 to whatever episode I’m up to when I write it.
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Black
Cat Actually had to try hard to make this anime sound like some cliche'd run-of-the-mill action show, something that certainly isn't the case here.
To be blunt, I didn't like the opening episode. With the exception of the assassination, which introduced us to one of our main characters -- a character that may very well sport the dumbest name in the history of anime (with the possible exception of
BOBOBO, but that's another story) -- there isn't much I remember from that episode. It turned me off the anime altogether, and it took some convincing from a few of my friends to give this show another go.
Maybe it was because the gang wasn't gathered yet that was the cause for my dissent. That, and the show pretty much waited until the next couple of episodes to introduce us to what would eventually lead our group together and start off the main story of the show.
Black Cat is a quite nicely animated show. Since there are many battles, often with supernatural powers involved, this is an important issue. Battles flow smoothly, and, despite the crazy mix of powers involved, it is kept at a fairly realistic level. The settings themselves seems to be some odd kind of mishmash between western surroundings coupled with various futuristic elements like huge laboratory setups and the occational computerized add-on. Even one of the main characters is an example of that, but more on this later.
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Black
Jack 21 One of the things that stood out most for the first series of Black Jack was the fact that you could take each episode individually and enjoy it, without the need of backstory or continuity concerns. Each episode was self-contained and enjoyable all on its own. There were no cliffhanger endings, no conspiracy plots ... and not really many clear-cut antagonists.
Well, welcome to Black Jack 21, a Black Jack series for the 21st century ... so the previews boast. Filled with action and suspense, the series picks up the pace as we learn that the explosion that altered Kuro's life forever was in fact not an accident. Based on several of Tezuka's original series, it is still too early to say whether or not the series will stray too far from the original storyline. Only three episodes have aired at the time of this review, and there is a much more serious, slightly darker tone to this series. The supporting cast takes a back seat as Black Jack takes a rather unapologetic approach to his past, as he learns that the explosion might not have been a freak accident after all.
Black Jack and Pinoco are uprooted from their quiet home off Yamanote and Seibu, and they must flee as some mysterious organization sets their sights on the doctor for their unknown purposes. Over the years Black Jack has made his share of enemies along with those who owe him their lives. But what happened so long ago that someone would go so far as to want Black Jack dead?
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Black
Lagoon This great series has finally come to an end, but I’m rejoicing, because instead of a proper conclusion, its only going to take a short hiatus before the second season comes back up, in full speed. These 12 episodes of Black Lagoon have been awfully engaging, and kept my level of interest even when the subs were coming out so slowly. The purpose of this post is not to pimp Black Lagoon. If you are looking for something like that, you can find it everywhere. Black Lagoon can cater to the casual viewer, but it provokes incisive watchers into meaningful thought as well. Black Lagoon’s success is attributed to its powerful action and decent animation. Non stop action with fluid animation and little stock footage makes for a very good anime already. But the producers brought it further, by actually fleshing out the characters. What really appealed to me in Black Lagoon was the complete imperfectness of every main protagonist. By the same notion, enemies are never one-sided evil; they contain a mixed bag of good and bad, some with very powerful assholic indexes. What this creates is a story where everything is played along a grey area. There is no good, and no bad. There is only a case of perspective, and how one justifies his or her actions to be the morally correct one. Its like trying to define which grey is blacker than the other. Futile, but interesting nonetheless. Philosophies of life are very well explored in this 12 episoder series. In fact, there is nothing more obvious than the marked distinction between Rock and Revy in the beginning of the show.
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Bleach
When you first hear the word "bleach," you probably think about disastrous washing experiences. But the series Bleach is anything but disastrous. Tite Kubo (the creator of Bleach) proves that even an old formula can be a huge success if you just add a few original twists and some hilarious comedy. However many people argue that Bleach is simply another "all about the fighting" anime. I will argue against that.
Bleach is the story of a young man named Ichigo Kurosaki who is suddenly thrust into a world of Death Gods, ghosts and Hallows, where the rules are complex and deadly if broken. Death Gods send the "good souls" to be purified in Soul Society and cleanse Hallows. However, Hallows are much more dangerous than they look and one day a Death God named Rukia is bested and forced to give up her powers. To save Ichigo and his family, she offers her spirit ability to Ichigo. In an act of desperation to save his family, Ichigo accepts the transfer.
The story following is that of Ichigo trying to come to terms with suddenly being the hero, and the responsibility that is a requirement of that job. Several other characters are introduced, all with varying views of Death Gods and powers of their own. Eventually Ichigo's adventures take him to Soul Society itself, where he battles to save one of his dearest friends.
Yes, the fights are a huge part of Bleach. But the characters are what drive the story on. Ichigo's the rebel, but with likeability that no one can resist. His personality is a perfect contrast from Rukia's serious and smart one. The dialogue between them is absolutely hilarious, making for many a great situation. (Especially when Rukia starts living in his closet.)
The wide variety of characters create a funny and lovable cast, from the ditzy Orihime to the silent Chad, to the dorky Ishida, to.... a stuffed animal named Kon? Between them all, it's impossible not to like at least one and keep cheering for them episode after episode.
The soundtrack is well done, too. It adds to the humor, but also to the mystery that surrounds a lot of the plot. The animation has some interesting techniques, blending colors together to create a more "water-color" look, at least in the first few episodes.
This is a wonderful anime that deserves a fair chance. It's not your average fighting show. Go Bleach!
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Blood+
Along the lines of US action films like Blade and From Dusk Till Dawn, this is Japan's animated contribution to the vampire-action-flick genre that has been popular in recent years. And it is a fine contribution to say the least. Smooth animation, well-planned and executed (no pun intended) action scenes, expertly rendered CG effects (you barely notice them!), and tons of dark brooding atmosphere make Blood an instant action hit.
From the very beginning, the production quality of the film is top notch. The sound quality and musical score alone set it apart from the pack. As with a lot of the more recent anime, the inking and shading has been done with computers, and many of the backgrounds and environments the characters move through and interact with are actually CG models that have been flawlessly composited into the animation. The small TV I was forced to watch this on, even with its stereo speakers simply did not do this film justice.
Although short for a full-length film at only an hour and a half, the pacing and plot are guided smoothly from scene to scene in a way that makes sense and keeps you interested even though many of the main players are never fully described. It's an action movie, in concept and pacing, pure and simple, and thankfully doesn't suffer from "Akira Compression Syndrome" where 800+ pages of manga get smashed into an incomprehensible two and a half hours.
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Blue
Drop For me, Blue Drop was one of the major series to watch out for for the Fall-season. In the end, I can’t really say that this is among the best series of the season, but yet there are enough reasons to give this one a shot. It’s basically about the captain of a ship that’s part of an alien-invasion who is on a reconnaissance-mission on an all-girl high-school, and the people she makes friends with.
The best thing about this series is definitely the cast of characters. The overall pacing is rather slow for a thirteen-episode series, but because of that it has enough time to not only flesh out and develop the main characters, but also the side-ones. At the end of the series, it feels that every character on the good side has gotten enough attention to be more than just a one-dimensional cardboard box. There’s a lot of angst in this series, but because the characters are fleshed out so well, it really works turning this series into an excellent tragedy.
I wish I could be so positive about the alien-subplot, though. It lacks fleshing out and explanation, and for some reason one huge outer-space-battleship can be piloted and maintenanced by just one person, which doesn’t really sound that realistic to me. Most of the aliens and especially the major villain also seriously lack development and aren’t fleshing out enough. In the end, it just feels incomplete, and the only positive thing I can say about it is that it provides enough dramatic tension for the characters to work with.
Thankfully, the characters don’t get dragged down along with the alien-subplot, though it remains a nasty thorn for this series. The music, while alone not that spectacular, does fit the overall mood perfectly, and there’s also enough eye-candy in this series. The ending also doesn’t leave a bad taste, so there are enough good points for this series. Too bad about the bad ones.
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Blue
Seed In the opening moments of Blue Seed, a young woman enters a cave filled with writhing plants. Hundreds of soldiers and policemen surround the site as a few individuals beg her to come back, insisting that the fate of Japan is in her hands. But, claiming she has to seek her own destiny, she disappears in a flare of white light.
It takes much of the 13-hour body of this series to put that dramatic, oblique opening into context. The girl is Kaede, one of the twin descendants of the mythical Kushinada line that began when the god Susano-O slew an eight-headed dragon and wed its would-be victim. The dragon, like all the myriad goblins, ogres and spirits of Japanese folklore, was actually an Aragami, an alien plant-based creature that spawns via parasitic "blue seeds." Kaede and her twin Momiji, as the current Kushinadas, can destroy the Aragami by sacrificing their lives.
The director of the Terrestrial Administration Center adopted Kaede and spent years using her blood and body to develop technological analogs to her powers. But when she disappears, Momiji has to be called from her countryside home and informed for the first time of her true lineage and powers. As the only one capable of averting an impending Armageddon, she becomes the target of monsters and government agents alike. In the end her only duty may be to die to protect her country. But is the polluted, secular modern Japan really worth it?
What do you add to the series that has everything? It's Legend of the Overfiend without the gore and sex. It's Neon Genesis Evangelion without the downtime and the monster-of-the-week syndrome. Simply put, Blue Seed is a fantastically well-integrated and complex series that incorporates ancient Japanese tradition and mythology, modern environmentalism and futuristic science fiction seamlessly and beautifully.
The central conflict between Kaede (representing despair and world-weary cynicism) and Momiji (representing youthful, often-naive energy and hope) is shaped by so many complex factions and factors that it's easy to forget this is another teens-vs.-monsters series. With ordinary Japanese citizens demanding Momiji's death, while the Aragami are often forced to protect her for their own preservation, it's rarely clear who, if anyone, is in the right. Writer Yuza Takada (3x3 Eyes) further clouds the issues with compelling arguments for Japanese rebirth and purification in the wake of the profit-seeking greed that has consumed the country's land and beliefs. Kaede offers that purification--at humanity's expense. Momiji would fight to save her race--and preserve a corrupt and evil system.
This serious dynamic keeps Blue Seed fresh throughout. But there's lots more to watch for here--martial-arts-vs.-monsters action, cute romantic squabbling, big explosions, skillfully developed characters, giddy, over-the-top humor, a quick education in Japanese myth, a bubbly soundtrack, and bright, razor-sharp animation. This series is beyond stellar--it epitomizes nearly everything that makes anime unique. Even panty jokes.
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Bobobo-bo
Bo-bobo Reading Bo-Bobo is a lot like spinning around in place with your eyes closed and then stumbling around and laughing afterward. It's mindless fun for a little while, but it's basically guaranteed to make you nauseous. This ruthlessly bizarre, over-the-top manga is wildly popular in Japan, having spawned a series of games and a long-running TV series, which recently saw its debut on American television. The first English volume (which is actually volume 9) is a one-shot by Viz, a test to see if the manga arm of the franchise has an audience in the States. Frankly, after reading a solid 250 pages of this brain-numbingly hyperactive parody, it's hard to tell if it will or not.
Rather than starting at the top of the story, Viz has elected to pick a choice volume from the middle of the series—which was probably a good idea, since this volume gives the reader a much better general picture of what this series is like and features far more action (and a lot less run-of-the-mill origin story) than the first volume would have. You're given a brief introduction as to what the heck is going on and then tossed right into the middle of the story. It's not very difficult to figure out exactly what's happening, since Bo-Bobo follows a very routine shonen storyline (intentionally, of course, so it can skewer genre conventions along the way). Honestly, though, the story doesn't really matter. It's a waste of time to discuss the characters, since they're written to serve the jokes, rather than the jokes serving the characters (not to mention we have no idea how they've developed, since this is volume 9). Bo-Bobo is all about the comedy… which is precisely what will make or break this title for most people. Bo-Bobo is unique in that nearly every panel features a gag of some kind, be it slapstick humor, satire, silly parody, toilet humor, or whatever else you can think of. Comparisons to Excel Saga are bound to come up, but it's important to note that Bo-Bobo is even shriller than that series was; this is literally a joke a second, and if you thought Excel Saga was too much, Bo-Bobo will give you a heart attack. There is no subtlety. The humor isn't dry or sarcastic. There are occasional bits of self-reference—Sawai frequently criticizes his own skill at drawing—but mostly this is very straightforward humor on fast-forward. It's like being beaten in the face by comedy.
Virtually every frame in Bo-Bobo features someone shouting, spewing blood, overreacting to something, doing a wild take, or getting kicked, punched or otherwise smashed around. It's all done in the name of comedy. Imagine someone dancing around in front of you for an hour screaming jokes right in your ear and you'll get a pretty decent image of what it's like to read this thing. Either you can tolerate it or you can't, and you'll know which category you fit in within the first 50 pages.
Sawai's art style matches his tone very well; he's very good at drawing extreme expressions and rendering chaos. Overall, though, the artwork simply isn't very impressive. The characters are routinely drawn off-model and sometimes it all looks really sloppy and rushed. It'd be easy to chalk up the sometimes extremely rough line work to the tone and pacing of the series, but really, it comes across as being amateurish and unfinished. Still, more often than not, the visuals match the story very well.
By the end of this volume, Bo-Bobo has defeated the bad guy and presumably will go on to face more ridiculous villains, take shots at shonen cliches, make snot jokes, and beat up his companions. Viz deserves credit for choosing a later volume that manages to tell a contained story, one that doesn't require a lot of outside explanation and also gives the reader a very accurate representation of what the series is like. If you find yourself enjoying the series, then this is a particularly fulfilling installment, and might even encourage you to write to Viz and tell them you'd like to see more, especially since no future volumes of Bo-Bobo are currently planned for production. If you didn't like it, well, you'd have tossed this book out the window somewhere around page 38. Bo-Bobo is, without a doubt, something you're either going to love or hate. There's really no grey area here; it's a visual assault on the senses from cover to cover, a chaotic comedy storm that never lets up. If that sounds appealing, then you're going to love
Bo-Bobo. Otherwise, you'll probably set it down before you finish it.
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Bokusatsu
Tenshi My initial assessment after watching the first couple of minutes of.... THIS.... is that this just has to be a parody work of sorts. And it would hardly be the first parody show I've seen. Excel Saga. Puni Puni Poemi. Elf Princess Rane to a certain extent. And I guess you can include Bobobo as well.
Bokusatsu Tenshi Dokuro-chan, however, is the first show that actually proves that there can be too much parody -- too much crazy stuff happening. I barely lasted two episodes of this show, which sets a new precedent on how quickly I have given up on anything I've watched. And even the completely, unrepentantly insane Bobobo didn't manage that.
Now, go ahead and read the synopsis again. You noticed that I mentioned blood splattering all over from Sakura's partially decapitated head, right? Well, that's the kind of humor you have to prepare yourself for if you really plan on watching this despite my warnings. You see, Dokuro-chan is VERY short tempered, and wastes no excuse in whipping out that death-bringing bat of hers. In fact, she's so eager to use it, even Violence Jack would go "Hey, don't you think that's a bit too much?" Well, the show certainly don't agree, so expect to see Sakura being bludgeoned to death several times, strangled until his face turns an ugly blue, prodded with shock rods containing lethal charges and god knows what else. In fact, Bokusatsu Tenshi Dokuro-chan is nearly as violent as Elfen Lied, but in a "comical" sense. See, she resurrects him afterwards, so it's just comedy. Um ... yeah.
I could probably have lived with it if that's all that it was. But no. This show just HAD to throw a curveball at me -- and you better believe this show actually CAN throw a curveball despite the lows it has sunk into already. It proceeds to introduce ANOTHER angel, Sabato-chan, who is apparently from the same ... er, AGENCY ... as Dokuro-chan, and no less violent. She tricks Sakura into removing Dokuro's halo without telling him that apparently an angel's halo is as sharp as a razor blade, leading to MORE "hilarious" bloodshed and the knowledge that an angel without her halo will suffer from chronic and explosive diarrhea (thankfully kept offscreen.) Oh, Dokuro-chan... will the fun and laughter never end?
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Boys
Be Boys Be... certainly brought tears to my eyes, but not always in a good way. The use of CG here is shameless and very obvious with lines sharp enough to cut. The makers must have had a wonderful time with the huge palette of colors available to them. But this is the not the major gripe point seeing as how the use of computers to add colors is the norm nowadays; think Card Captor Sakura and Sakura Wars. The major problem I had was in the art of the main female character, Nitta Chiharu. She is not very consistently animated and at certain angles she looks almost like a different person.
Technical details aside, Boys Be... details the romantic aspects of the lives of six students. Each episode can pretty much stand alone, highlighting a different couple each episode. Although Boys Be... abounds with pretty girls (especially in the box art), the main characters who actually undergo development and mature are the three leading male cast members: Kanzaki Kyouichi, Kurumizawa Makoto, and Yoshihiko Kenjou. Hence the title Boys Be...
The majority of the story is narrated and told though the point of view of gentle artist, Kyouichi, who has an on-and-off relationship with Nitta Chiharu that does not resolve itself until the end, although the first story involves them. Kenjou is the restless, don't-have-a-care-in-the-world superb baseball athlete who is trying to find his direction in life. Makoto is the self-professed 'Lady Killer' who carries around a palm-top that stores bios and statistics of beautiful girls in the school, especially those of upperclassmen. He comes across as rather childish, lusting after females that don't so much as give the briefest glance in his direction. I won't spoil it but he'll end up with the unlikeliest girl in the show!
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Busou
Renkin Those who know me well, are probably aware of the deep affection I feel for Nobuhiro Watsuki's brilliant masterpiece Rurouni Kenshin. I adored the manga,and let's just say I was very unhappy when it finally reached the end of its North American release in July, 2006.
Viz, always looking to profit, announced it had the rights to distribute an English version of Watsuki-sensei's Buso Renkin, and the first volume was released this month.
Now, I had my reservations. I wasn't overlly impressed by the preview that appeared in the final volume of RuRoKen. The dialogue seemed sloppy, and the art seemed to lack the cohesion of the Kenshin series.
Buso Renkin first appears to be very different from Rurouni Kenshin. RuRoKen is a beautifully constructed historical manga set in the Meiji Era with stong undertones of romance, morality, and redemption. It's a very mature series. Buso Renkin is set in modern day, with high school students. It's aim seems to be for a younger audience.
If you're going to read Buso Renkin, you have to leave your disbelief at the front cover. The first volume opens with the "death" of protagonist, Kazuki Muto. This somewhat silly "space cadet" is then pulled into a world of monsters and monster hunters that exists within our own. Sounds typical, yes? Did I mention that the root of these monsters isn't paranormal, but scientific? Rather, as "scientific" as Alchemy ever is in Japanese comics.
Watsuki has jumped on the Alchemy craze that swept through Japanese comics—started by Full Metal Alchemist, no doubt.
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