Author: psgels

Hashire, Melos! Review – 82,5/100

by psgels, posted in Anime Reviews



Interestingly enough, Hashire, Melos! has already been adapted into an anime once before (twice, actually, but here I’m focusing on the 1992-movie), so while waiting for the final instalments of Aoi Bungaku, I figured that I might as well check out a completely different interpretation of the classic story by Osamu Dazai. It of course isn’t as good as Ryousuke Nakamura’s version, and it even seems that the entire part of the author writing this story was completely new. But nevertheless, this movie shows that even the original story without this interplay between author and fiction had a lot of potential.

Because of the different ages, direction, themes and focuses, you really end up with two completely different stories that just happen to have some of the same characters. The dialogue in the movie isn’t as complex as the Aoi Bungaku version, nor is it an as big of an emotional roller-coaster, but it does allow for much more time to flesh out Melos and Celine, the two lead characters. And it’s in these two that the power of this story lies.

They’re both two men with their own strengths and weaknesses, and my favourite part of the movie were their reasons for doing the seemingly stupid things that they did: they’re well-backed up and powerful motivations. The ending is a bit rushed and predictable, but it’s not what’s important to the story at all; heck, even the movie realizes this by telling how the story ends right at the very first scene.

The music isn’t anything special, but the animation is really what you’d expect from a movie: very smooth and detailed with a real minimum of still frames. Despite again, this animation being not as expressive as Ryousuke Nakamura’s version I still very much recommend this movie because it really has its own points where it shines, and despite my rather repetitive complaining, I didn’t feel like watching a copy of something that I already watched once before at all. This movie adds quite a bit of depth and colour to the already interesting characters of Melos, Celine and Dionysius.

Storytelling: 8/10
Characters: 9/10
Production-Values: 8/10
Setting: 8/10

Kara no Kyoukai – The Garden of Sinners – A Study in Murder (Part 2) Review – 82,5/100

by psgels, posted in Anime Reviews, Kara no Kyoukai



The seventh and final Kara no Kyoukai Movie is another long one, clocking in at two whole hours. This really gives more than enough time to properly give attention to the story that explains the rest of the mysteries that the previous six movies have left behind. And really, these past seven movies have been a real treat. They’re all different and don’t try to rip off each other, contrary to what you might expect. They’re a great recommendation for any mystery-fan, though do note that the seventh movie isn’t the best.

I’m pretty surprised with some of the flaws that actually managed to slip by in the second part of A Study In Murder. The focus this time is the shock-factor: there is a lot of gore, even more disturbing than in the previous movies, and it also touches upon a big taboo in anime: drugs. While I applaud this series for actually going there, I do think that they could have spent a bit more time making them work out right. Bluntly said: this is the most unrealistic of all the Kara no Kyoukai movies.

The gore really is gruesome, but there are times when it’s overdone a bit too much. Characters who are badly wounded (even those without any sort of supernatural powers) just walk away without even flinching (or bleeding, for that matter), and not to mention Shiki’s ingenious “handcuff-escape-trick”. hello? You have a mechanical arm! What was the point of giving her that anyway? The effects of drugs on people also didn’t seem too well portrayed. Especially for a movie of this caliber, I expected a lot more detail. This also was the only movie in which the CG didn’t blend in well with the other graphics. While most of the movie looks as gorgeous as ever, the CG saliva just looked way off, and some of the goreish flesh-wounds had this as well. Really, what happened?

But despite these, does it have enough to make up for it? Plenty. The interplay between Shiki and Mikiya in this movie adds a lot of depth to their characters and it provides a satisfying closure to the questions that were asked throughout this series of movies, mainly in the second one. It’s pretty unpredictable as well: before starting this movie, I had a completely different image of the true culprit.

The direction is also as solid as ever, and the double length really allows the story to play out like it should have. It’s just a shame of the above-mentioned flaws though. In the end, my favourite movie of the seven remains the fifth one, closely followed by the fourth. This one hovers somewhere in the middle: still very good, but hampered by strange flaws and a story that just isn’t as strong as some of the others.

Storytelling: 8/10
Characters: 8/10
Production-Values: 9/10
Setting: 8/10

Kuchuu Buranko – 09

by psgels, posted in Kuchuu Buranko



At this point, it’s pretty clear what the general message is that this series wants to convey: nobody is perfect, not even your role models. So instead of trying to be perfect, you should try to live with who and what you are. Overall, these past nine episodes did a good job in showing the ins and outs of this: from the more extreme to the less extreme ones: you should just accept what you have to live with your entire life. overall, pretty well done, if I say so myself.

The general message that I got out of this particular episode however, is something completely different: Japanese TV-shows are weird. To think that people are actually willing to put morons on the screen who do nothing but smile cheesily over and over. And I thought Dutch TV was bad…

I’m surprised how little crossovers this episode had, though. Where the previous episodes threw references with heaps at the time, I don’t think that I spotted any reference to a past episode in this episode other than the usual bucket of syringes. I think that because of that, and how I had absolutely no interest in the subject material this time (child stars and variety-shows… *yuch*) that it disappointed a bit compared to the previous ones.
Rating: (Enjoyable)

Konnichiwa Anne – 37

by psgels, posted in Konnichiwa Anne



Well, there’s no denying that this episode had cheese, but it’s of the good kind. After all of the badly written episodes in this series, it’s at least good to see a heart-warming bitchfight between Anne and Edna that works reasonably well as long as you suspend your disbelief. Thank god Edna wasn’t another one of those stereotypical side-characters, but instead got a bit of depth to her. Even though her mother is the umpth mother who suffers from the “useless and sick mother”-syndrome.

Thinking back, it’s definitely been interesting to blog such a flawed series as this, mostly because while there were plenty of cringe-worthy moments, it never derailed completely: there always was something interesting going on that gave me plenty of inspiration to write about, compared to other rather one-sided shows as 07-Ghost, Valkyria Chronicles and some of the other shows that were a pain to blog for me. It’s really been a joy to blog Konnichiwa Anne throughout the past three seasons, despite it’s large share of problems. In the end, where this series truly shined was right after Henderson left, up to the point where Anne arrived at the Hammonds: these episodes were absolutely amazing, and the rest of the show really was hit or miss. I’d really say: crew Anne, Bert is the best character in this series. It’s not like Anne is the Anne of Anne of Green Gables anyway. Try saying that three times.

But yeah: there still is that matter of the two final episodes. The final episode will be fine. I’m not worrying about that one. My biggest worry is about the next one: the Amy Thompson episode. The creators have been hinting towards her quite a while now, but she never had her own episode yet, so there’s no doubt what next episode’s going to be about and that has me worried a lot. This show has a really nasty tendency to ruin perfectly fine characters with one-sided and shallow development.
Rating: * (Good)

Full Metal Alchemist – Brotherhood – 36

by psgels, posted in Full Metal Alchemist - Brotherhood



Whoa, this really was one of the best FMA episodes we’ve seen for quite a while now. It’s great to see this series fired up again. There were a lot of great things that happened in this episode.

First of all: Hohenheim’s background. We learn that he put forth that scary look of his on purpose. It’s interesting that he didn’t realize what kind of effect this would have on Ed. Why he did that, I’m not yet sure, but I think it’s pretty obvious right now that he holds some sort of Philosopher’s stone. In fact, I believe it to be created from those children we saw him with during the recap episode. What’s also interesting is that he actually discovered Father’s plans, while Ed was spying on him, thinking that he was just busy with another one of his experiments. But there’s still so much about this guy that still needs to be revealed, though. I’d love to see an episode dedicated to when he met his um… wife. (Did they ever get properly married anyway?)

The part where Olivia killed off Raven was also really well delivered, it’s amazing how good of an actor Olivia turned out to be, although it’s a bit of a shame that they had to resurrect Sloth in order to get the right information out of him, but at least she now has confirmed that the military is up to something huge.

Also, Wrath is getting more and more scarier in the way that he keeps using Winry as a hostage, when he actually invites her to Briggs in this episode, as his way of saying “don’t try anything stupid”. I must say, that even though I disliked her at first, this is a very plausible reason for her to get involved with the main plot. Instead of the first series in any case, in which she just… appeared and never really left for God knows which reason?
Rating: ** (Excellent)

Cross Game – 37

by psgels, posted in Cross Game



Oh god, I should have known that the creators would update Momiji’s little bit at the start of every episode a Christmas theme. One thing that bothers me though is why she’s still portrayed as a six-year old. I mean, saving budget is one thing, but if you’re going to bother to give her a Christmas outfit, then why not redraw her entirely?

In any case, this episode really was as good as ever. Aoba’s accidents brought forth so many subtle developments in so many different characters, and on top of that some of the other relationships that didn’t have anything to do with her also developed. To think that Akaishi finally tried to make a move on Akane. It’s a shame that he chickened out later, though: I guess that he still doesn’t want to betray Kou in this way. Oh, but we do have ourselves a proposal with a ‘certain’ other couple.

Also, if the girls’ baseball tryouts really were anime-original, then I really have to congratulate the creators of the anime: I didn’t notice a thing until people pointed it out. It’s great to see that the creators know how to adapt a story, but also to add a bit here and there, where they see a chance for improvement, and to actually integrate this seamlessly with the main storyline. I loved the way how this episode blended the new scenes of Aoba, failing to make the selection due to her illness, together with the Azuma, who feels guilty about what he did (especially considering his brother), and Kou, at whom the creators still throwing hints that he’s really caring for Aoba.
Rating: ** (Excellent)

Turn A Gundam Review – 85/100

by psgels, posted in Anime Reviews



Those who have been reading some of my past mecha series reviews will probably know that I’m not the biggest fan of the Gundam franchise. These series often degenerate in strings of random fights that hardly ever resolve anything, and the storylines are way too often taken over by angsty and emo teenagers (or in Gundam 00’s case: angsty and emo young adults). However, this isn’t the case for Turn A Gundam!

I’m really glad to see that Turn A Gundam, directed by Tomino himself, manages to keep a solid direction and focus throughout the series. Okay, it’s a bit of a flawed direction here and there, but at least the plot is continuously moving. Something very impressive considering the complex, detailed and imaginative world that this series has to work with.

While on one hand, Turn A Gundam doesn’t escape some of the big clichés of the mecha-genre (a teenaged lead-character who just “happens” to find the “superpowered mecha of awesomeness”; “fighting is bad, so I will fight for these ideals!”), it makes up for it with its attention to detail: the cast for this show is huge, but Tomino manages to create lots of different fractions, all with their own ideals and morals. It has a carefully constructed setting, and the attention to detail for each of the mechas, airships, hovercrafts and spaceships is very impressive. I personally loved how at random times, Tomino liked to subtly flesh out random nameless soldiers, as they reported some news right next to a very important queen that everyone looks up to.

The large focus on politics is also one of the highlights of this series. While there are of course plenty of mecha-battles, a major theme of this series can also be found in the continuous peace negotiations, and how things like this that are so seemingly easy and obvious can be hampered by bad luck, just two or three people, or just plain bad planning and coordination.

As the show moves into its second half, it does lose a bit of steam, though. While definitely not bad, the second half of Turn A Gundam is inferior to the first. For that, I blame the series’ major villains: Agrippa has just way too little airtime and therefore makes no impact, while Gym Ghignham is just a plot device who continues to shout cheesy one-sided ideals. The two of them really put an evil side (and subsequently turn the lead characters into somewhat stereotypical good guys) to a series that had such a fine blur in morality, in which nobody really belonged to the good or bad side, and drag this series down.

Because of the lesser second half, I can’t quite call this show top-notch, but there is a lot to like in it nevertheless. Yoko Kanno has really worked her magic on the soundtrack, and the direction is strong under Tomino, with his trademark fast-paced dialogue that will keep the viewer on his toes. I’ll continue to raise eye-brows at teenagers who somehow end up piloting the most important military weapons in a single war, but hey: the rest of this show has enough other stuff to offer.

Storytelling: 8/10
Characters: 8/10
Production-Values: 9/10
Setting: 9/10

Letter Bee – 11

by psgels, posted in Letter Bee



Ah, such a shame, Letter bee is back to its regular cheesy stories about random people. Get back to the main storyline dammit!

And sure, I can understand the point that this episode tried to make: Lag’s ability isn’t always handy. However, creators: if you want to illustrate this, use a real example, not such a half-hearted one as this episode was. Show Lag what his powers can really do to people if used wrong.

Letter Bee is now at the point where it’s beginning to test my patience. I’m not going to drop it because I know what it’s good at: the main storyline. The problem is the random stories. Letter Bee’s thankfully aren’t as bad as with Konnichiwa Anne, but they’re too one-sided, moralistic and stereotypical. Also, imagine what would have happened if Lag didn’t choose this particular day to deliver that letter to the old woman: a Gaijuu would have jumped up to her, destroyed the bridge and she would have died. I mean, it’s fine to play a bit around with coincidences and all, but that’s really stretching it!

And the panty-jokes in this episode… just… who the hell thought of that? I have to admit that these were some of the most original panty-jokes I’ve seen, but really… there was something very disturbing about them.
Rating: – (Disappointing)

White Album – 24

by psgels, posted in White Album



I have no idea what exactly happened with this series. The first season was so incredibly cringe-worthy. And yet the second season is so good! It basically took everything that was good in the first season, and left everything that was bad behind. This episode yet again showed what a great series this turned into, both in terms of plot and romance.

Oh, and this show is so cruel in its cliff-hangers. I can’t believe it took me twenty-four episodes to figure this out. Every cliff-hanger makes you expect the worst, and yet in the next episode things progress naturally, rather than what people would be doing in a soap opera. Akira didn’t die, get into a coma, or anything. Instead, he just has to spend a few days in the hospital, and the development from this accident is mostly subtle, rather than really angsty and cheap. This episode too: Yuki walked in, in an emotional state, at Touya’s house. While he has Menou sleeping over. I was really looking forward to see how she’d react… and then the credits rolled. Even now, I have no bloody clue how the creators are going to progress this in the next episode. After all, we’ve only got two episodes left!

But yeah, this episode did mark the beginning of the end: you can see that the creators are working towards the ending of this series. The scandals surrounding Eiji (it was about his picture, wasn’t it?). It really looks like is agency is done for, and if this is the case then things are also looking pretty grim for Yuuki.

There are quite a few series that are going to end in the next two weeks. And really: aside from Aoi Bungaku, White Album’s ending is the one I’m looking forward to the most. Heck, I can’t help it. The build-up has been so good throughout the entire series. I have absolutely no idea how the creators are planning to end this thing. Out of all the upcoming endings, White Album’s is the biggest mystery to me. Again, aside from Aoi Bungaku, but that one’s special because I don’t even know what kind of stories it’s going to animate.
Rating: ** (Excellent)

Kemono no Souja Erin – 48

by psgels, posted in Kemono no Souja Erin



This is really why long series rock: they can really take their time in building up and give their characters enough time to prepare themselves for the upcoming climaxes. The key in these sorts of things is making the build-up count, and that’s something that this series has become really good at: the past three episodes were in no way inferior to the more fast-paced and plot-twist heavy episodes so far and they formed a very good build-up for the upcoming climax while keeping its atmosphere.

The big question now of course is: will the creators be able to pull off a good ending? There have been many great shows like this one with a great pre-ending build-up, but with just a rushed or dull ending. It’s a shame, but Damya still is just a stereotypical evil villain. I was really hoping that the creators would delve more into his character, but all they did throughout the series was make him more and more evil, rather than dynamic. This could pose a very serious problem for these final two episodes.

What I want is an ending that doesn’t just resolve the major themes of the series, but also progresses them in some way. It’s one way to just have the final two episodes full of pointless battles that eventually end up killing Damya and bringing peace back to the country, but that’s just lazy storytelling. Since the novels progress after this point, this is going to require input from the creators of the anime themselves. They NEED to have put some serious thoughts into how to let this end in the best way possible. If they can do that, then congratulations. This episode really was excellent in its atmosphere. This series really has put forth some great themes, characters and settings. It DESERVES a good ending to accompany them!
Rating: ** (Excellent)