Author: Lenlo

Vinland Saga – 19 [United Front]

by Lenlo, posted in Vinland Saga

Another week, another fantastic episode of Vinland Saga. If last week dialed in on Canute, then this week was all about Thorkell and by extension Thors. And boy did I enjoy it. As Vinland Saga dives into their shared history, Thorkell’s regrets and Canute’s future. So without further ado, let’s dive in.

Before we get to the meat however, like always, PRODUCTION. WOOOOO TECHNICAL STAAAAAAAATS. Everyone’s favorite I know, but it’s something I love, so I am gonna keep talkin about it. Once again, Vinland Saga gave us two ends of the spectrum this week. From the fantastic animation of Thorkell’s short fight with Thorfinn, to the CGI boats on the ocean. Now to be fair, the CGI boats actually weren’t the bad. The pan out really helped hide the lack of detail, and there was enough going on on screen to distract you while they were there. The same can’t be said for the CGI soldiers in the background for a number of scenes, but hey. At least they were standing still so it might pass your notice if you weren’t paying attention. For the most part though, I enjoyed the picturesque visuals of it all. Now onto the meat! Continue reading “Vinland Saga – 19 [United Front]” →

Dr.STONE – 21 [Spartan Crafts Clubs]

by Lenlo, posted in Dr.STONE

Welcome one and all to Dr.STONE and my first post on the new site! I hope its working well for anyone, and if you have any issues, please leave a comment somewhere. We want to make it the best we can. That said, let’s get into the episode.

So really quick, lets run through Dr.STONE production this week. There were a number of picturesque scenes throughout I feel. From the Christmas tree to the dawn of the New Year. Like always, I think Dr.STONE pulls these off well. Instilling a good amount of emotion into what are otherwise pretty basic shots. Something about the music, the framing and the characters all comes together to make them greater than they otherwise would be. The big thing though from this week I think is actually how the science is presented. As we are starting to get into very small things, science which requires precision. Unlike the water wheel or the generator or even the ramen stand, the lightbulbs and such are to small to really show off building. At least to do so easily I feel. So I think Dr.STONE did a fine job depicting scale and precision here. Continue reading “Dr.STONE – 21 [Spartan Crafts Clubs]” →

Neon Genesis Evangelion – 3 [The Silent Phone/A Transfer] – Throwback Thursday

by Lenlo, posted in Neon Genesis Evangelion, Throwback Thursday

Another week, another episode of Neon Genesis Evangelion, possibly the last one before the site move. A nice dash for finality, I think. As this week Evangelion continues to explore Shinji’s mental state, what living in this world is like, and a dash of exposition. Lets dive in!

Starting off, this was the first episode of Evangelion to not wow me. Don’t get me wrong, it looked fine, but compared to the first two it was pretty static. For instance we saw the general 90’s explosions of simple circles overlaid onto the object itself. Or the same repeating image of the Angel in the fight at the end. Flashing back and forth as the characters count down. Or Shinji’s face during it all, with heavy red filters and such. I understand the attempt, what it was going for there, but for me it felt almost… overdone? At least when combined with the screaming and other noises going on at the time. Still, its not like it was bad, there is still a good amount of direction and decent cuts going on here. It just feels like all the good cuts will be limited to the Eva is all.

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Vinland Saga – 18 [Out of the Cradle]

by Lenlo, posted in Vinland Saga

Ah it’s good to be back after a weeks break, as Vinland Saga gives us another fantastic episode. This week sees Thorfinn fight for Askeladd’s life. Meanwhile Canute kills the boy so that the man may live. Lot’s to talk about, so let’s dive in!

Starting off, I have to comment on how Vinland Saga looked this week. It was downright fantastic, both in terms of animation and style. For the first bit we of course had Thorfinn vs Thorkell, with some Bjorn on the side. There is a lot to love here and only so much space, so lets rattle some off. There was the use of slow motion throughout the fight, combined with the snow. Or the dynamic animation throughout, or the effects of snow and wood. Clearly Wit knew how important this episode was, similar to episode 14. On the artistic side we had some beautiful landscapes and framing throughout Canute’s segment. With the sky and snow being rendered fantastically, and when combined with Vinland Saga’s backgrounds, becomes stunning. I think the “perfection in death” sequence is one of the best examples of it here. Still this is all obvious, onto story.

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Dr.STONE – 19/20 [To Modernity/The Age of Energy]

by Lenlo, posted in Dr.STONE

Hello all, to this double feature of Dr.STONE, as this lazy bones plays catch up. Apologies for missing last week, but a combination of factors made getting the post up in time… difficult. Enough excuses though, onto the episodes!

Starting off, since I missed two episodes, let’s talk about the production for a second. As in these two episodes we saw both what Dr.STONE does poorly, and what it does really well. For the first, the obvious answer is of course action. Quick, fluid movements, simply don’t play well with Dr.STONE’s visual style. Nor does it really fit the series itself. For as I have said time and time again, Dr.STONE is not an action series. However what the series does well, in my opinion, is filling tiny scenes with large emotions. Scenes that, in the grand scheme, mean nothing yet Dr.STONE fills them with human emotion. The easy example of this being Homura and the cotton candy in Episode 20. A simple thing, meaningless in the greater story, but to me it speaks of Dr.STONE’s true strength. That being its portrayal of humanity.

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Neon Genesis Evangelion – 2 [An Unfamiliar Ceiling/The Beast] – Throwback Thursday

by Lenlo, posted in Neon Genesis Evangelion, Throwback Thursday

Hello all and welcome to week 2 of Neon Genesis Evangelion! I know a lot has been going on lately, what with the site scare, but don’t worry. A lot of work is going on in the back and we have plans. In the meantime, how about we just jump into this week’s episode of Giant Murder Robots?

Starting off, Evangelion continues to look good. There were some really nice shots this week, both in terms of direction and animation. For the first, I actually want to look towards the aftermath of the opening battle with the Angel. And how Evangelion really sells us on the scale of everything, not forgetting a single detail. What with the guns the size of buildings, and the bullets the size of cars. All with humans in the same shot, it establishes the scale of the conflict really well. For animation, I need look no further than the brutal fight itself. From the destruction of the arm to the almost fluid movements of the Eva. Most of all though, it was the impacts on the skull that sold it for me. Perhaps in the future this will become a bit much, but I think it sets the tone well this early.

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Neon Genesis Evangelion – 1 [Angel Attack] – Throwback Thursday

by Lenlo, posted in Neon Genesis Evangelion, Throwback Thursday

Welcome all to the next series of Throwback Thursday, Neon Genesis Evangelion! Apologies for the late start, I sorta lost track of time this week. Won’t happen again though, because after this I am excited to keep going. Because if nothing else, I know it’s going to look good. Let’s dive in!

Starting off, we need to talk about production, because Evangelion looks gorgeous. I had seen a few clips or screenshots prior to this, but always assumed those were one-offs. Or came from the movie, End of Evangelion. However this entire episode looked really good. From the explosions to the almost organic movement of metal during the Angel’s introduction. Of course its the first episode, so this could easily go downhill from here. But visually its a very strong start. This of course goes for the background art as well. The opening shot of tanks along the bridge is beautiful, as are many of the backdrops. Really, Evangelion is showing off the best of what Cell animation can do. With bright popping colors, all of it with the imperfections that make hand-drawn anime beautiful. Something that is often lacking in modern digital series, sometimes to perfect for their own good.

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Vinland Saga – 17 [Servant]

by Lenlo, posted in Vinland Saga

I’m a bit split on Vinland Saga this week to be honest. On one hand, the story continues to be top notch and one of my favorite of the year. On the other hand, the production was a mix of iffy and pretty good. Either way, let’s dive in.

Starting off, the aforementioned production. There were a number of good shots this week of course, Wit did what it does best. Such as Thorfinn charging in against Thorkell, or Askeladd’s fight for his life. Some of the good shots even included things like the CGI sled. In fact, in general, the CGI was pretty cleverly used throughout the episode. Very little of it actually felt intrusive. However, as is the curse of an anime adaptation, I can’t help but compare it to the manga. As there are a number of scenes that just fell short comparatively. The number one of course being Thorkell’s confrontation with Torgrim, which just lacked the impact the manga panel did. As if they just copied over the character model from a sheet and put him in, rather than the passion Yukimura put into the panel. You can see what I mean down below.

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Dr.STONE – 18 [Stone Wars]

by Lenlo, posted in Dr.STONE

Welcome one and all to another week of of Dr.STONE! Normally this is where I do a whole spiel, about what happened this week, etc. However this episode really solidified that I am just not into it. That Dr.STONE is really starting to lose steam with me. It has moments of brilliance there, as we see the science play out. But as a whole I just feel it doesn’t work as well as the manga. The gags last to long, the pacing much to slow compared to the manga. Meanwhile, I am realizing my nostalgia for reading the manga so many years ago was misplaced. Perhaps it was the magic of seeing a non-battle shounen anime. Or just the excitement of seeing Boichi’s art once again. Regardless, that magic has worn off, and the flaws are showing through.

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Vinland Saga – 16 [History of Beasts]

by Lenlo, posted in Vinland Saga

Apologies for the lateness on this, I let my break with Mononoke affect Vinland Saga to and got a bit to relaxed, haha. This week Askeladd’s band starts to fall apart, meanwhile Thorkell finds his playmates and auditions for the Olympics. Let’s dive in!

Starting off, this was a bloody week for Vinland. If episode 14 wasn’t enough, this week we continue to see just how far Askeladd is willing to go. Quite literally torturing a man to get information on those coming after him. What impressed and surprised me though was just how willing Vinland was the actually show it. I suppose after some previous episodes, I shouldn’t have been. But something about those bloody stumps in the snow was just so… raw. It was one of those scenes I think the anime nailed, truly representing the manga in a way that most anime never reach. On top of this, we are also starting to reach the main “combat” bit of the series. With perhaps the only major fights that actually exist in what is not a “combat” series.

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