The sixth Kara no Kyoukai movie is called “Oblivion Recorder”. Unlike the fifth movie, it only takes up an hour of airtime, and tells about another supernatural mystery case in which Shiki becomes involved. While it doesn’t match the standard that was set by the movies 3, 4 and 5, it nevertheless is a nice little movie.
In this movie, we learn that Mikiya has a younger sister. This movie shows her, as she tries to solve a murder mystery that took place in her school, helped by Shiki. The storyline this time is simple but effective, and there’s a nice layered mystery behind a seemingly straight-forward murder. The build-up is pretty well done, and overall this makes for an enjoyable movie.
Where this movie fails to live up to in comparison to its predecessors is that its scenario and execution lack polish. Mikiya’s sister turns out to be yet another girl with a brother complex. I dunno, I think that the creators tried to appeal to taboos, but that doesn’t really work when this trope is already used by tons of other anime. And overall, as much as I appreciate that we got to know more about Mikiya this way, as a main character for a KnK movie, she fails to stand out and is among the least interesting ones.
On top of that, the dialogue also feels rushed and uninspired for a movie. There are a number of conversations that clearly lack a bit of polish here and there, and there are quite a few plot-holes left open at the end of it, most of which I don’t think are going to be answered by the seventh movie. This movie simply doesn’t have the deep characters nor the addictive storytelling of the third, fourth and fifth movie.
What it does have, however, is the best CG during an action scene out of the six movies so far. Mikiya’s sister’s magic is very flashy and the creators make really good use of it during the action scenes. As a standalone movie Oblivion Recorder would have been fine, but the standards of the Kara no Kyoukai movies so far have become higher than average after all.
| Storytelling: | 7/10 |
| Characters: | 7/10 |
| Production-Values: | 9/10 |
| Setting: | 8/10 |
Okay, so I finally managed to check out this movie. My big fear before I started watching it that, now that he’s almost reached his retirement, Hayao Miyazaki would have lost his touch by now, especially considering how his previous movie (Howl’s Moving Castle) was arguably his least impressive work. Nevertheless, these fears were ungrounded: Ponyo shows that the old master still has plenty of tricks left up his sleeve. And then some.
Miyazaki’s movies that he made for Ghibli can basically be divided into two categories: epic and down-to-earth. With Ponyo, he tries to combine the two by creating a charming little story about a five year old boy who meets a goldfish with magical powers, and yet creates enough opportunities to show off some amazingly creative visuals and animation that you wouldn’t expect in such a down to earth movie. The result really works and it’s become a movie that’s suitable for any age to enjoy.
The animation really shows how much work went into this movie. Even though CG is the norm in today’s anime, Ponyo is entirely drawn by hand, and contains a record number of 170000 hand drawn pictures. This series really shows how much you can do with just animation: in an industry of anime in which the norm is to cut corners, this movie is full of life with an amazing attention to detail in even the slightest moves, and there’s hardly any frame in which something isn’t moving. The amount of eye candy in this movie is also amazing, and even though the art style is simpler than in some of his previous works, the visuals still rank amongst his most impressive.
This movie also excels in its portrayal of five-year-olds. I read somewhere that Hayao Miyazaki lives right next to a kindergarten school or something similar, and so he’s had plenty of opportunities to fully study how little kids behave. Kosuke is a bit timid, but a very likable young lead. This series doesn’t have much character-development and background (only a few side-characters have a serious change of character), but considering the story and situations they were thrown in, they didn’t really need to: it was fun enough to watch them as they were and extra focus to get some character-development or background in would only have gotten in the way of what’s really important.
My problems with this series lies within some of its messages it attempts to teach to kids. With the environmentalist that Hayao Miyazaki is, I expected that he would show the bad implications of major floods. Instead, a flood in this series just appears, puts an entire landscape under water for a few hours and then disappears without ever leaving a trace. Oh, I’d wish that reality were this simple and convenient. Or how about people who’ve lost their ability to walk, and suddenly are rid of their problems due to magic. Yes kids! If you have some sort of incurable ailment, just hope that a person with magic will arrive and wave these problems away!
Anyway, it’s been more than a year now since I watched all of Miyazaki’s major movies. Looking back, his movie that turned out the most memorable for me was Porco Rosso, which probably was his most mature movie. Ponyo, his least mature movie, probably isn’t going to take that place, but yet it is a very charming movie to behold and definitely worth the watch unless you absolutely can’t stand childish stuff.
Oh, I love how incredibly subtle this series can be. This episode again was simple slice of life while it developed the various romances around. It’s your average Cross Game episode, but I just can’t get enough of it.
A lot of this episode was spent on Kou vs Mizuki vs Aoba, as Kou kept bickering with Aoba, and get jealous of Mizuki, Mizuki tried very hard to make his advances on Aoba while looking down in a superior way on Kou and Aoba who kept bickering with Kou and never seemed to realize that Mizuki has her eyes on her.
I especially loved the way the creators showed the bond that exists between Kou and Aoba: at the end of the episode, Mizuki invites Aoba to see a movie. Aoba picks a rather romantic movie which doesn’t seem to suit her tastes, and yet while watching it she’s touched by the storyline. I first thought that this reflected the feelings about Kou she might have, but no: it turns out that that was Wakaba’s favourite movie. Yet, in the end it turns out that she forgot about most of the movie aside from one particular scene. Later, we learn that Kou also went to see the movie when he was a kid (along with Wakaba, obviously), and he too only can remember one scene: the exact same one that Aoba just quoted.
They obviously say these things when they’re not together. During the times that they do run into each other, they were constantly trying to out-wit each other throughout this episode, resulting into a bunch of hilarious situations, like Kou mysteriously hanging out at the Four Leaf Clover while Aoba was around (in the end, he was waiting for Aoba’s sister for her napolitan dishes), or the practice match in which Aoba, while often letting people hit her pitch made sure no point made it through, while Kou, who handled the final four innings ended up giving away one point.
In other small things, I’m surprised that a rivalry is developing not between Kou and Azuma, but instead between Azuma and Akaishi, who are both meant to be batters, and yet Akaishi’s track record is far from perfect. The romance between Azuma’s brother and Ichiyou is also developing very nicely.
Rating: ** (Excellent)]]> 
“David Production may be a new and young animation company, but they’ve really proven themselves so far. They’ve got their own identity already and they’ve produced nothing but well written series. They’re definitely a new company to look out to.”
Yeah, I wish that I could write that right now, but DOGS is so hilariously bad that it’s a miracle that the producers even agreed to release it. It’s basically a 4-episode OVA (based on the DOGS manga apparently), but it’s so badly produced and written that I don’t think that anyone is going to be able to take it seriously.
The biggest of its flaws is its hopeless overacting. Every single character tries to look as cool as possible, but they overdo their coolness way too much. The result is four episodes full of incredibly cheesy and overacted drama whose only merit is that it’s so hilariously bad that you’re bound to have a laugh or two at how ridiculous it is. There are of course also a lot of emo faces that only make things even less believable, considering how little build-up every story has.
Another problem with this show is that it’s based on a much larger manga, and this series does absolutely nothing to hide it. That’s why the four episodes are just a bunch of random chapters animated, without bothering at all to try and fill us in about what’s going on, why things are happening, who the characters are, and they simply cut off when their time is up, leaving a massive amount of plot-holes open.
Of course, it’s not like this series isn’t enjoyable. This OVA is best watched along with a bunch of friends and liquor; it’s a great way to pass an hour. Obviously, that just doesn’t warrant any kind of praise or high review score. The only praise I can give this series is that the art is pretty decent: it looks crisp and clean and while nothing amazing, you can see David Production’s influences. And of course the Engrish curses were awesome.
I know that this series was based on a much larger manga and all, but that’s no excuse. Hitsuji no Uta for example was also based on a large manga, and yet it did succeed in condensing its story into only four episode, with some amazing results. If that series could do it, then why couldn’t DOGS?
Aah, I hate this effect. Do not get me wrong with this entry: this episode still was a really good one, but at the same time I do believe that the creators have jumped the shark a bit and moved away from what made the first five episodes so incredibly good. This effect started at the last episode, but back then I was focusing too much on details that didn’t really matter.
But let me first start with the good parts: it really was a good lesson for Yuki and Mirai this time that they shouldn’t be wandering off at every occasion. Now that they’ve gotten a good night sleep and the initial shocks are gone, they’re starting to get a bit more of their energy back, and so they start to act more child-like. The rain was also nicely preluded with the dark clouds coming up.
As for the robots, they’re an interesting idea, but they could have been made more practical in my opinion. If they were made to scout around for survivors, they should have been made faster and smaller. Otherwise they could have just been replaced by a rescue worker on a bike. Still, it does seem logical to use robots like these if they’ve been sufficiently tested and fail-proof: this way the rescue workers can act more efficiently and don’t have to waste unnecessary energy to search around for survivors, and instead can concentrate on rescuing.
Anyway, my “problem” with this episode was that the creators are trying a bit too hard, which takes away a bit from this series’ realism. And really, Yuki’s sunstroke would have been a great ordeal for the characters to overcome, but it just feels cheap right after Mari succumbed to anemia. It’s nearly like the characters are taking turns in getting sick here. The creators instead should have just focused at the three of them trying to get home.
I realize I’m complaining a lot, but I’m just rather unhappy that the past two episodes didn’t manage to uphold the amazing standards that were set by the first five episodes. It’s in a way like Now and Then, Here and There: the second half there was still really good, but it wasn’t as gut-wrenchingly sad as the first half. This episode also took the focus away from everyone else, in the favour of focusing more on Mirai and Yuki, and while it would have been an excellent episode for most other shows, I just know that the creators could have done better here. The boy with his fascination of robots was also nice and all, but it felt too much like he was reading a script rather than telling about his life.
Rating: * (Good)]]> 
Oh boy, this series has been nothing but awesomeness since the start of the Tokyo Arc. Sure, it’s true that Cal’s body grew a bit too much over two years, but if you blame puberty it could have happened. It’s not really something to be overly obsessive about, because I don’t think that it really gets in the way of the rest of the series.
Even though this turns out to be the adaptation of a H-game, I was quite surprised with how honest Reiji was about Cal. In your average anime you’d guess that for some bit of extra tension the characters would just keep these secrets from each other, but then again: this series already has enough tension as it is. No need to be melodramatic at all, because the characters have reached the point where they are more than able to carry the series along. Cal busting up the rivalling gang for example, was nothing short of kickass. This does show that Scythe has some sort of strange methods of getting the best potential out of his Phantoms.
I was actually hoping for this episode to delve a bit more into the Cal vs Reiji, but it seems that the creators are still saving this for later. Instead, this episode’s end showed the next best thing: Cal vs Helen. Next episode surely is going to rock!
If the rest of the finale continues to be as good as this, Phantom is definitely going to be my favorite Bee-Train series since .Hack//Sign, and out of the shows that premiered during the past spring season, it’s pretty likely that this series is going to end up as my favourite. Sorry Shangri-La, but this series has simply gotten that good.
Rating: *** (Awesome)]]> 
Hell yeah! I’ve been waiting for this for more than four months, but Birdy the Mighty Decode’s OVA is finally here. While it’s not exactly what I expected it to be, I don’t care. It’s always awesome to see more of your favourite series of the year.
So yeah, basically this episode takes place between the first and the second season, and ties both seasons together. We get to see Capella as she gets picked up by the old hag, we get to see what happened to Nakasugi after the end of the first season, and we get our first glimpse of Natoru, who would become such an amazing character later on. A lot of the time in this episode was spent on slice of life, and Shion had to give a concert at the same place that Nakasugi stayed at, so she paid a little visit to her. There also was some marionette after her because some aliens feared that she still had some traces of Ryunka in her, but that also was more meant to flesh out the setting rather than to create some sort of climax. Still, I don’t care. I’m glad enough to be able to watch some more of this amazing series, and this episode only contributed to it.
It’s great to see how Senkawa developed from the annoying brat in the first season to that likable side-character he became in the second one, and this episode really showed his transition. He’s so much more mature now, and let Shion approach her, instead of going after her himself. Also, I’ve heard people getting annoyed at Arita Shion’s typical voice, but I think it’s hilarious. Especially along with Capella and the old hag, the comedy becomes utterly priceless when the three of them are in the same room.
I’m also intrigued. The final frame showed the following lines. Now, I’m not sure whether that meant the second season or whether it was referring to something else:
“bye-bye
and
To be continued…”
If it turns out to be referring to that “something else”, and that “something else” turns out to be what I think it is: HELL YEAH!!!!!!!!!!
Rating: *** (Yes I’m biased!)]]> 
Oh boy, even more questions are asked throughout this episode, but at least the premise of this series is starting to become a bit clear now. It’s indeed a series very much like Higurashi, but the whole iterations are much more similar and the whole ghost world around it has a much bigger role here than it had in Higurashi. I’m not sure yet whether or not the endings for each arc are going to be the same, but who knows?
In this arc, it was pretty clear that some of the scenes are viewed by ghost Beatrice and ghost Battler, while others aren’t so much and are rather a speculation of how Beatrice would make Battler believe things went. Otherwise I can see no way to explain Beatrice suddenly summoning walking bunnies and two of the seven sins to kill a bunch of people. Also, Battler never mentioned the deaths of Kanon and Jessica even though he was very much trying to explain the deaths of the first six corpses.
Speaking of which, he’s really been reasoning with the assumption that Maria had nothing to do with the murders, but she’s been acting so evil that she’s turning into some sort of reverse red herring. I mean, for a girl with a bipolar disorder who doesn’t seem to think it weird that blood is everywhere, I wouldn’t be surprised if she did turn out to be the killer in the end. A lot of things would make sense if this was true in any case.
In any case, this episode destroys the theory that one of the six people who were murdered first might have prepared a fake body. Instead of Maria’s mother Rosa, Natsuhi got killed off this time, Shannon stayed alive in exchange for Eva and Gouda wasn’t killed in exchange for Hideyoshi. This could mean that Shannon, Rose or Gouda did use the trick of the fake body in the first episode, but this time decided for a different strategy.
Another big difference with the first arc is that the killer showed some of the gold. This is going to bring actually finding the gold as a much more important goal than it was in the first arc. On top of that, the second set of sacrifices is also going to be different this time. Who know, perhaps this arc is going to end in an entirely different way.
Oh, and when discussing this episode: please refrain from mentioning events that happen after this point in the visual novel.
Rating: * (Good)]]> 
Here’s another one I haven’t heard anyone talk about, or even mention for that matter. Kaze no Youjinbou is an obscure series that aired back in 2001, but seems to have become nearly forgotten over the past eight years, which is a bloody shame because it’s a really good series. Recommended for anyone who’s into a good mystery series.
This series is about criminal gangs in a small mining town, and the street-punks, corrupt politicians, villagers and police officers around them. Street-punks and yakuza in anime are very often incredibly stereotypical. They’re either a bunch of screaming and evil paper bags who appear just out of random and attack the lead characters in order to insert some random tension, or they’re portrayed as those cheesy thugs with a heart of gold and a strong sense of 
This entry starts with a spoiler so you may want to look away if you’re skimming through this paragraph. Holy crap, they actually broke up, and this doesn’t look like they’re going to get back together at this rate. It’s a bit of a shame though. It’s a bit predictable that Fumi is going to end up with Akira after all, since I really liked how originally this series didn’t seem to go down the clichéd road of childhood friends becoming lovers. Nevertheless, this was yet another truly excellent episode for Aoi Hana.
Anyway, I have no idea what’s going to happen with this series. Everyone says that this series is only going to last for 11 episodes, but I really doubt this. The reason why Michiko e Hatchin and Ristorante Paradiso had so few episodes was because they had a really strange broadcasting policy: Ristopara had a bunch of hiatuses in the beginning, while Michiko e Hatchin had one of the weirdest broadcasting policies I’ve ever run into when it kept getting to hiatuses one week and air double episodes the next. With Aoi Hana however, every episode aired like it was supposed to, and I find it really hard to believe that it’s already going to be over in three weeks. Speaking of which, is it already known which series is going to be the next one to fill in the Noise time-slot, or is that even unknown? Because in the case of the latter, we might have ourselves a 26-episode series here….
Anyway, what struck me the most in this episode was the incredibly cold way in which Yasuko talked to Kyouko, who found out that Fumi was dumped through Akira. That was absolutely nothing like what I expected from her. She must have been really upset with her sister marrying the teacher that she was in love with, and so she vented all of her frustrations on Fumi and Kyouko. In that way, she’s even worse than Fumi in her sulking about her past crush. And it took me a while to realize how similar the two of them are. It’s really a huge shame that they broke up, but unfortunately it really seems that Fumi has lost her feelings for Yasuko.
Also, the drawings and animation in this series are incredibly good when two people are touching each other in some way, whether messing with each other’s hair, hugging, or just holding each other’s hands. Those are the scenes that you can almost feel coming to life.
Rating: ** (Excellent)]]>