All about Anime

[toy_brain]

toy_brain- were you watching this one? I vaguely remember you posting about this or the other Bandai series, Planetes. If you're watching Planetes, is it any good?

It was Planetes - which is an awesome show! Seriously I love it.
What really raises Planetes above all other Sci-Fi anime is that it takes a realistic approach to things. If you've ever watched a documentry about NASA space missions and the kind of problems they encounter - and found it to be more interesting than watching giant robots fly about - then this is a great show to pick up.
It also has that Dai-Guard element of being on the lowest rung of office-politics, so there is a lot that someone like me can relate to.

I'll probably pick up Mars Baybreak as well a it sounds like a decent show and I was considering it anyway - but I cant stress enough how much Planetes is a cut above all other Sci-Fi anime I've ever seen.

 

[slerch666]

It was Planetes - which is an awesome show!

I plan on checking it out eventually, but I recall there being some kind of issue with the packaging or some shit? What was the issue? I wasn't buying the show when the thread started over it AOD.com, and now I can't be bothered to go look it up...

 

[toy_brain]

I plan on checking it out eventually, but I recall there being some kind of issue with the packaging or some shit? What was the issue? I wasn't buying the show when the thread started over it AOD.com, and now I can't be bothered to go look it up...

Ummm, cant see any problems with the DVD's I got.
Each disk comes in a partially-transparent plastic slipcase. The slipcase is the 'bulk' of the cover (containing most of the information -especially on the back) with the regular insert making up the background.
There are no extra bits of paper within the DVD case - though they are all double-disk sets so that more than makes up for it.

Everything seems fine to me -I've no problems storing the DVD's on my DVD rack (the slipcase dosent make the packaging that much bigger) and the slipcase is easy to get off for opening the DVD case.
The only fault I can pick is that the 'flap' on the slipcase on my Vol.3 disk is glued on the outside rather than the inside - which looks a little untidy. I'm not sure if its something I could fix myself, but as its not noticable when its stored on my DVD rack I probably wont bother.

 

[slerch666]

Ummm, cant see any problems with the DVD's I got.

I think it had something to do with the packaging. Of course, you know how whiny people can be over there, so who knows what it was...

Anyway, I had Grenadier 3 w/ box R1 turn up today, and promptly watched it. I'd been waiting for this one rather anxiously.

Anyone that doesn't like this series, well, whatever. I thoroughly enjoyed it because I liked the characters.

The conclusion wraps the show up rather nicely, but does so in a way to avoid fucking with the Manga story line, as it was still running when the show was being made (and may still be running, I haven't checked).

Is the show a "gotta think about the deeper meaning" while viewing? No. It's good, no thought required fun. Does that mean it sucks shit? Hell no.

The animation may not be all that smooth, but it's rather nicely detailed and still manages to look good.

As far as the DVDs themselves, I have to say I fucking LOVE MB's DVDs these days! They've put a lot of care into the release and it shows. The encode, at least during the show, is pretty spotless in terms of problems, at or close to an R2 JPN release. The extras suffer from some compression issues here and there, but you really need to watch for them to see them.

Then that brings me to the extras themselves. MB managed to fit EVERY Japanese video extra into this release, including the entire Reload DVD's content. Well, let me rephrase that, they have the Reload documentary, not sure if the other stuff is included in the other releases or not.

MB, other than the mono issues, has made a massive turn around and at this point I can honestly say I wish they'd license any and all shows I want to see. If I had to pick a company I feel that would be the best in terms of quality and presentation, it'd go to MB. Geneon does a lot of things right, but also has issues with various things, like their scrolling credits. Bandai gets all the extras (most times) but seems to rely more on the pack in extras over the content to sell a show. Their releases are generally pretty high quality as well. FUNimation has come full circle, and including as many of the R2 extras, as well as making R1 specific extras, is pretty nice, but I still have the bad encode taste in my mouth. Animeigo, well, they're Animeigo. They've come a long way as well, too bad their Anime releases are few and far between. They should be called Samuraigo. Manga, well, we won't go there. I like Keith, the big black guy who I see at Otakon every year, it's just too bad their Anime is big on action, low on meaty content. Viz sucks. 3 eps a disc, glacial release schedules, poor encodes (decent enough, but could be better, especially at 3 eps a disc) and no public relations at all.

 

[Now Loading]

Tuned into The Mars Daybreak vol. 1 this evening. After sitting on it for a couple months (including the time it took to send the first tin I got back to TRSI thanks to some fucking in the mail... which was funny because there was one spot they had to hit in order to dent the tin, and wouldn't you fucking know it, they did!), I'm thinking I should have thrown this in sooner.

First, Now Loading, your girl, Houko Kuwashima plays Vess, the leading lady (or as close to a single leading lady as there has been thus far).

The story goes that Mars now has water on it. Gram is living on a colony ship (a giant boat) and lives day to day. The first thing we see is him getting fired from his job, as the econony on Mars is shit. After turning down a shady job for a shifty guy, he winds up getting dumped in the ocean and picked up by the pirates who were attacking the port.

Vess is a childhood (?) friend who has a thing for Gram, the problem is that she works for the military and her group is after the pirate ship Gram is on.

Animation is top notch. Voice acting is top notch. Story is great. Damn good show so far, though I've only watched the first 5 eps. I have the second disc and may throw that in tonight as well.

The Mars Daybreak is definitely a show to check out.

I loved that show until it was licensed and the fan subbing stopped. It was about that point I started watching raws exclusively.

But yeah, it's set in the same universe as Gunparade March, and Gunparade Orchestra-which is airing right now-is also really good. What a coincidence!

 

[Shawn Carr2o]

My sister and her husband bought me the SteamBoy anime movie for the PSP for my birthday.

 

[slerch666]

Watched a few things yesterday (including Jaws, which I hadn't seen in a long time LOL).

I watched Samurai Champloo vol. 5 and 6 yesterday. I had Vol. 6 show up a week or 2 back and when I went to look at it, I realized I had never received vol. 5. So I checked my TRSI orders, and somehow it was never ordered. LOL

The eps on this set run the gamut. To avoid spoilers, out of all the eps I've seen so far (1-23), I have to say the 2 parter with Sara, the blind woman, were 2 of my favorite. I didn't like the way it ended in terms of it being handed to you with no follow up. This set of eps also had the baseball eps on it. I'm definitely not a fan of baseball, but I could definitely enjoy a game or 3 if they were played like that! Mugen kicks ass.

Then I watched Munto. Everyone, do yourselves a favor. NEVER, EVER buy this title. It's rare for a Japanese language track to be piss poorly acted, and this is one of those instances. I honestly debated switching to English on this one, it was that painful. The animation was meh at best. I believe this may have been one of Kyoto Animation's first projects, or at least I HOPE it was, as they've come a hell of a long way since then. The show itself is about a girl who can see a heavenly kingdom in the sky. The kingdom is falling and only she can save it. The relationships between all but the 3 main female characters felt totally forced. And Suzume and Kazuya? WTF was that bullshit? Anyway, stay FAR FAR away from this disc. If you can get it for $2-$3, and don't mind wasting 50 minutes of your life, buy it to see how bad it is.

The last disc I watched was Mars Daybreak vol. 2. Now I can't wait to see the next disc. We started getting into what I expect is the real meat of the series, as we've found out about Gram's pendant and all that fun stuff. I believe this may be a sleeper hit for the year, as I'm not sure how many people are checking it out, yet it's damn good.

That's it for yesterday. I'm sure there will be plenty watched today.

 

[YO-YO-Boy]

i dont know if this has been asked already but why did ranma tv show end so lame? and anynew ranma shit coming out?

 

[Ely13]

I haven't watched a series since FMP - TSR ended, but a friend of mine just got me hooked on Noein - Mo Hitori no Kimi e -.

(I would recommend not reading the summary)
http://www.animenfo.com/animetitle,2973,sjvkvd,noein___mo_hito.html

I know the premise sounds a bit wonky, but I'm really enjoying it. Gorgeous animation, great soundtrack, and it's done by SATELLITE (responsible for Chikyu Shojo Arjuna, Geneshaft, HELLSING OVA, and Sosei no Aquarion... and yes, I know, Sosei no Aquarion sucked badly, but the animation was great).

 

[slerch666]

i dont know if this has been asked already but why did ranma tv show end so lame? and anynew ranma shit coming out?

The Manga wasn't finished by that time, and the ratings were low, so they ended it the way they did. If you want the real ending, you have to pick up the Manga.

And no, there will never be a proper ending to it. Takahashi Rumiko's works were done by Kitty Films for Urusei Yatsura, Maison Ikkoku and Ranma. Her works are now being done by Sunrise/Kyoto Animation if I'm not mistaken. The Ranma property will likely never be resurrected because of this fact.

 

[YO-YO-Boy]

The Manga wasn't finished by that time, and the ratings were low, so they ended it the way they did. If you want the real ending, you have to pick up the Manga.

And no, there will never be a proper ending to it. Takahashi Rumiko's works were done by Kitty Films for Urusei Yatsura, Maison Ikkoku and Ranma. Her works are now being done by Sunrise/Kyoto Animation if I'm not mistaken. The Ranma property will likely never be resurrected because of this fact.

weird since the manga is like 40 books & the anime is 150+shows & started 2years later|
u think the the manga would have been already done!

why were the ratings low? to much of the same old stuff & not going anywhere with the story?

so does kitty own ranma show rights & manga rights? i also heard kitty went out of bisness. what does vizvid do?

 

[slerch666]

weird since the manga is like 40 books & the anime is 150+shows & started 2years later|
u think the the manga would have been already done!

why were the ratings low? to much of the same old stuff & not going anywhere with the story?

so does kitty own ranma show rights & manga rights? i also heard kitty went out of bisness. what does vizvid do?

Not weird. That's how it works. Ranma 1/2 Manga ran from 1987 until 1996 in Weekly Shounen Sunday. The Japanese tankoubon (collected Manga stories from the weeklies) are 38 in number.

So Ranma 1/2 Manga ran from '87 until '96, and the Anime ran '89-'92. The story definitely wasn't finished by then.

You have to remember this is a Takahashi Rumiko Manga. Her shit runs FOREVER, and then 3 more issues. That's what she does. She finds a concept and milks it, then milks it for some more, until the life is completely drained from it, then starts the next process. Ranma 1/2 was the '90s series. InuYasha is the series now, what with it's 167 episodes, up to 41 tankouban in Japan. And guess what? The Anime also has... NO FUCKING ENDING! Woohoo! I'm so glad I got into this one... not.

I'm not sure why the ratings dropped. It could also be that they caught up with the Manga, which, considering they were doing a new show a week I think, wouldn't be too surprising. The last OVA eps was released in '96. 9 years later I can't imagine them resurrecting the property.

Kitty may have gone out of business, but I'm guessing some company has retained the Anime rights to the series. It could also be that there is no interest in Japan in finishing the story in animated format.

Viz is just the American company that releases the DVDs (originally VHS). They also do the American distribution for the Manga. They have nothing to do with the Japanese releases of the show (though now that they've merged with Sho Pro, perhaps that won't be the case. Sho-pro is a subsidary of Shogakukan, which is a rather large publisher in Japan. So it's not Viz Video/Viz anymore, it's now "Viz Media."

 

[slerch666]

Yesterday I watched a few things.

First up was the phenomenal Shingu disc 5. This volume wraps the series up and does so in a very explosive manner. The story is left semi-open ****SPOILER**** in that the Earth doesn't choose either organization, but it's closed in that the 2 other sides will leave Earth alone to choose which to join, if at all. ****END SPOILER****. Nayuta indirectly makes her choice between Hajime and Muryou. This is definitely a sleeper hit of the year, and I highly recommend it to anyone who is looking for a semi complex story with some great characters and good animation. Highly recommended.

Next up was Shadow Star Narutaru vol. 3. This is a rather weird series. The character designs are goofy. They treat the main characters like shit. It's not very up beat. I'd hazard a guess and say anyone that likes Alien Nine, will likely enjoy this one as it's in a similar vein. I don't know if I'd highly recommend this one, though it's OK to watch once. I'll finish the series today with vol. 4.

Then I watched Panda-Z vol. 2. Anyone looking at getting this series, I'm going to say, don't bother. It's OK, but nothing special. Bandai has a real problem with the opening animation. There are several places of severe compression blocking. Chris over at Anime On DVD is fucking blind as a fucking bat if he doesn't see it. That Bandai's authoring company can fuck up a THIRTY MINUTE show, and have 4.3 GBs of space to play with, is rather sad. The show itself is a set of little skits, each having a different theme. This disc wasn't nearly as fun as the first.

Then finally, I watched Ah! My Goddess TV vol. 2 on R1 DVD. What can I say? This series is great, and anyone looking for love comedy/drama with awesome characters, needs to check this one out. Media Blasters continues the tradition of an awesome transfer with few, if any, video issues. The quality of MB's releases are some of the highest quality around, definitely not something I'd have said just 2 yrs ago. BUY THIS.

That's it for yesterday. I also watch Close Encounters of the Third Kind and Deliverance, but they aren't Anime so they won't get reviews.

 

[slerch666]

Oh, and the other day I won this on Yahoo Japan:

Ginga Testudo 999, or Galaxy Express 999. The TV series. I still need the TV specials box, and the movie box, but I'll leave that until after I watch al... 29 DVDs. 113 eps. One nice thing about the 113 eps of this one, I get it all in one shot and it's not being released Viz/FUNimation (the old FUNi) style at 3 eps a disc.

It's going to be fucking AWESOME. Too bad I can't pay for it until the end of Dec, so I won't be seeing it until the new year at least.

 

[toy_brain]

I watched the remainder of Angelic layer t'other day.
It wasnt too bad really, the episodes were a bit samey (basically all just tournament fights) save for a few at the end which had them throwing a celebration and going to the beach, but the final climactic battle did manage to send a shiver of 'blimey thats pretty awesome-ness' down my spine.

The problem with the series is (and this could count as a SPOILER)
Hikaru/Misaki only ever loose once - and thats pretty early on. So basically you have these really cool (and well animated) fights that just arnt interesting because it quickly becomes apparent that Misaki is never going to loose any of them - not even against the top-level, toughest-of-the-tough competetors.

I also got sick of hearing the phrase "I'll do my very best" about 12 times in every episode.

Angelic Layer is basically just inconsiquential fluff that you can sit back, watch out of one eye while eating your dinner (well thats what I did), and just let it wash over you. Its engaging enough to make you want to see the next episode, but not so excellent that you'll treasure it forever. And the basic formula of a tornament is one I've come across too many times in anime to find engaging, and also one that is too restrictive in scope to allow characters to grow and develop properly (the romantic element thats introduced near to the end feels so crowbarred-in its almost painfull).

Anyway, with that out of the way I was going to move on to Kaleido Star.
I was going to, but after I'd watched the first 5 eps I decided I needed a break from hearing the phrase "I'll do my very best" repeated quite so often - so I went with Eden's Bowy instead.
Which turned out to be a good decision as this is a really neat little show. Its set in that kind of messed-up 'Medievil' world that also features robots and flying vehicles whenever the story feels like it (Y'know, like Scrapped Princess, Saiyuki, Gokudo and Slayers), has a good blend of action and comedy, and so far has done an excellent job of finding the perfect balance between pure comedy episodes, pure drama episodes and ones that are a mix - which helps keep things fresh.

Basic plot? Young kid is attacked by unknown enemy one day because he is the 'God Slayer'. Middle-aged swordsman and young magical-girl come to his aid, and togeather they set off on a journey to.....somewhere (sorry, cant remember the name). Along the way, forces from 2 rival floating cities try to kill/capture the kid.

Everything about this show is supprisingly good.
The plot is supprisingly good, the jokes actually work, the animation is nothing special but gets the job done, the pacing is spot-on too. Even the dub is supprisingly fun for such a minor show.
My only gripe is that ep3 suffers from ADV's 'too much trebble' condition on the english audio track. I've only seen up to ep10 so far, but none of the other episodes are affected, so fingers crossed.....

I seem to remember someone in this thread mentioning how much they liked it, cant remember who, but I'd like to thank them for the recomendation.

 

[Kristian Meller]

I also got sick of hearing the phrase "I'll do my very best" about 12 times in every episode.

It would be less annoying if you didn't insist on listening to retarded English dubs.

 

[Neco_Coneco]

.

I loved Angelic Layer and Edens Bowy is one of my all time favorites. Wait untill you get to see more of the other god hunter and his strugles, everything flows nicely and connects. My only gripe was the ending but i wont say anymore

It would be less annoying if you didn't insist on listening to retarded English dubs.

i think dubs get an unfair rap still. I know they were awful before but i feel adv and other companies now do a great job finding the cast. Evryone always seems energetic and up for the task. To me it adds alot to actually hear and understand the dialog. If you can understand Japanese more power to you

 

[toy_brain]

It would be less annoying if you didn't insist on listening to retarded English dubs.

Jessica Boone plays the part of Misaki very well, her voice is a perfect fit for the character and she delivers her lines with a lot of energy, and she just sounds so adorably cute! - its the script thats the problem.
I havent checked the subtitles to see how close the dub track stays to them, but given David Williams' (the ADR director) previous track record, they are usually very close - so its either I listen to crap dialogue or read it.

So, just how many ways are there to say "I'll do my very best" in japanese? Is it like Ekimos and snow?

 

[Kristian Meller]

To me it adds alot to actually hear and understand the dialog. If you can understand Japanese more power to you

I make use of a little thing called 'subtitles'. I don't need to be able to understand all of the Japanese that is spoken. Hearing and understanding the dialogue means squat when the dialogue is retarded. That'll just detract from the overall impression of the show. Like on Jubei-Chan 2. It's funny how so much noise is made about how dubs have improved. JC2 is a recent show. When I sampled the dub track because it was the only one available on the sampler I have, I couldn't stand it. I really tried, but I had to turn the thing off after 14 minutes. It was unbearable. It sounded like the 'actors' could hardly spell their way through the scripts.

 

[Kristian Meller]

So, just how many ways are there to say "I'll do my very best" in japanese? Is it like Eskimos and snow?

Listening to a Japanese seiyuu saying 'ganbarimasu' (or whatever way you'd romanise it) would be a lot less annoying than listening to a half-assed English actor saying "I'll do my best". Even if it would have to be done a thousand times. Reading subs has nothing to do with it as you're not forced to hear the annoying voice in your head...

And fuck Eskimos and snow. They don't even have any more ways of saying 'snow' than we do. It's a myth.

 

[RAINBOW PONY]

A great gem of a series is Samurai Troopers. Currently halfway through my Bandai DVD boxset right now. A plus is it not only has the whole tv series but all the OVAs as well. Great fucking show, they don't make em like this anymore, great action, designs, voice acting, storyline, characters, armor, weapons.

 

[toy_brain]

Listening to a Japanese seiyuu saying 'ganbarimasu' (or whatever way you'd romanise it) would be a lot less annoying than listening to a half-assed English actor saying "I'll do my best". Even if it would have to be done a thousand times. Reading subs has nothing to do with it as you're not forced to hear the annoying voice in your head...

Fucks sake, I thought this thread was done with dub-bashing. Hell I thought the online anime fan community as a whole was done with dub-bashing, sadly I seem to have been mistaken.
I swear to God, sometimes I'm tempted to just pick a few Japanese VA's at random and rag on them at every opportunity I get - just to be an asshole and piss people off for no good reason.

I happen to like Jessica Boone's voice (dammit I already said that in my previous post), its the script I have a problem with, and it makes no difference to me wether It's read or heard, its still a crap script that repeats the phrase "I'll do my best" way too often.
Yes I know the concept of doing your best and working your hardest - regardless of wether you win or loose - is something that is important to Japanese culture, but dammit Angelic Layer really likes to bang the point home over and over...

And no it would not be less annoying to read it rather than hear it, at least with the dub I can turn away and shovel noodles into my gob during moments of tedious dialogue and still keep track of the story.

And fuck Eskimos and snow. They don't even have any more ways of saying 'snow' than we do. It's a myth.

I was being sarcastic - hence the

 

[Kristian Meller]

Fucks sake, I thought this thread was done with dub-bashing.

You were complaining about something that could easily have been avoided by not listening to the English dub.

And if my post about JC2 helped get your panties in a twist, well, just suck it up. It was a post criticising (not bashing when it's fair) a specific dub, not dubs in general.

 

[toy_brain]

You were complaining about a something that could easily have been avoided by not listening to the English dub.

How many times am I going to have to repeat the word SCRIPT before it gets through your thick skull?

 

[Kristian Meller]

I don't agree. The SCRIPTZ0RZ may not be different, but listening to 'I'll do my best' in Japanese is most certainly different to listening to the same sentence in English.