2017 Winter Anime Season Preview

It’s that time of the year again. With snow on the ground and Christmas lights about but that’s not what we are here for. Anime be my bread and my wine, and my presents if luck be true. I am lamenting over not being able to get the Spice and Wolf Collector’s edition book. Living in Europe can be quite troublesome sometimes but hey at least I got a Fullmetal Alchemist Collector’s edition that has a replica of the gate which just looks beautiful. Who knows, maybe I might even get around to watching that stockpile of Blu-ray anime i have sitting in my room. After the steam backlog is done i will have time…hopefully. Moving on to what really matters, a new anime season is coming up and forgive me if this sounds uncharacteristic of me but this season is looking very promising. We got second seasons of great shows along with Trigger saving anime again and even some pretty interesting shows in the lineup. I got my eye of a few here and while we got the usual lineup of straight to trashcan anime, there’s quite a lot of good to make up for potential bad tidings to come. 2016 certainly ended on a ominous note.

Same rules apply as before. The poll below will be used to gauge what you readers want us writers to cover this season. Vote for as many shows as you like. In regards to opinions on most sequels, if you liked the previous season then by all means continue. As usual I have checked out every source I can find, read manga, light novels, played video games…If I can get my hands on it then I will look at it to get a better idea of what the anime can offer.

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What will you be watching this spring?

Once again thanks to Mario for gathering the images. With that let’s get this show on the road.

 

The sequels/prequels I don’t care about

Gintama(2017)

Reikenzan: Eichi e no Shikaku

Rewrite / 2nd Season Moon-Hen/Terra-Hen

SUPER LOVERS 2

Yowamushi Pedal: NEW GENERATION

Tales of Zestiria the X 2

 

Series I don’t look forward to

 

AKIBA’ S TRIP: THE ANIMATION


Studio: Gonzo

Director: Hiroshi Ikehata

Script/Series composer: Kazuho Hyodo

Akihabara, a broad-minded neighborhood where everyone from beginners to masters are welcomed. Even when you’re alone, if you go to Akiba, you’ll find someone who understands you. It’s a neighborhood where anything is possible, where anyone can do seemingly anything; a place where you can lay bare your body and soul. In this neighborhood of Akiba, which has everything including anime, games, maids, idols, secondhand parts, and cheap food, battles are fought against the “Bagurimono,” and a steadfast “boy meets girl” story begins!

Let it never be said that I am not through and to get an idea for what we are in for I bought Akibas’trip Undead and undressed on steam and played through it. Admittedly the story of this anime isn’t related to the story of this game as it’s the second game of the series and I see none of the characters in the promo art. But it does give me an idea of what we are in for. I was really surprised by how much the story of the game took itself seriously. The characters treat the whole idea of stripping vampires to expose them to the sun with a surprising amount of righteousness. However unlike Keijo which shines in not recognising the utter ridiculousness of it’s concept, Akibas’trip just becomes another supernatural battle story when it disregards the whole stripping aspect. It also feels like a tourism ad for Akihabara at times. In fact that description up there is more endorsement of Akihabara than saying anything meaningful about the show. I truly don’t expect much for this and having Gonzo at the helm doesn’t make me think this is going to change my expectations. Director is a newbie and the series composer worked on Relife and that’s about it.
Continue reading “2017 Winter Anime Season Preview”

Berserk(2016) – 12 [Those Who Cling, Those Who Struggle]

I am truly sorry for the delay. I know I know … these excuses are becoming exceedingly homologous of a young student who has been procrastinating on his homework, but I give you my word, for at least what it’s worth, that this is certainly not the case. I have been preoccupied with my pet’s medical condition, and that has taken a toll on my time, wallet, and the ability to focus and attempt to give somewhat of a fair analysis. I thank all of you for your patience and support, and finally will attempt to dive right into the first cour finale, titled ‘Those Who Cling, Those Who Struggle’.

The episode picks up right where the last one left off, with our heroes torch in hand ready to brave the encroaching horror that is engulfing Albion. Down by the courtyard we get one of the last scenes of Luca comforting Nina and once again endangering herself to shelter her. Nina has the bulk of her growth in this very episode, which basically adds up to her accepting her weaknesses and choosing to follow her destiny; wherever that may lead her.

Now we head back over to Guts and company on the ramparts, attempting to ward off the encroaching phantasm. I took extra note of Isidro’s remark regarding the fact that if the miasma is powered by human suffering, then how come the whole world is not already engulfed by such a conglomerate? However, the fact of the matter is that Isidro is still unaware of the significance of the event unfolding at the tower at this particular night; which has rendered the boundary between the physical realm and the astral world especially uncapacious.

Farnese’s whimpering has also become rather grating by this point, but thankfully this will be the turning point for her. What is refreshing though is her newfound admiration for Guts. This follows a trend that has been steadily developing, but as I will explore in my season review this still doesn’t necessarily lead to her becoming a more compelling character in the future. I liked Guts’ remark about not wasting time on prayer, as she will need both of her hands for fighting. This is on the surface referring to the physical gesture of holding hands together during prayer, and also insinuating that any preoccupation with faith and prayer will only detract in a real battle.

At the top of the newly-formed Godhand tower the Egg of the New World is about to hatch. Puck remarks that the mass of souls are all screaming in unison. It is implied that the spirits are all pleading for some form of salvation to come and free them from their hellish existence. Griffith reborn as the Hawk of Light pierces the darkness, and seemingly offers respite to the damned souls; albeit the truth is far more sinister than what meets the eye. Upon the completion of the reincarnation ceremony the tower crumbles and all the ghastly tide retreats back towards the depths of the Vortex.

We get a brief introduction to Schierke, her master Flora, and the female elf Ivalera, as the percussions of the ceremony are felt throughout the land. This is a very significant event in the world of Berserk, and it can be argued that everything since the Eclipse has been leading up to this moment. The new series has also been emphasizing this, by creating a momentum through its pacing that has steadily marched towards this encounter. For such a long build-up and implied preeminence, this moment was handled rather poorly. Any gravity that is present here is mostly achieved through the viewer’s familiarity with the world and the characters, while the contributions of the actual show add up to bot all that much.

The gang’s reunion is interrupted by the appearance of Silat and his Bairaka clansmen. He uses the term “Krishna Sena” to refer to Gut’s party, which upon some research seems to roughly translate to ‘God’s Legion’. This might be a reference to the perceived supernatural circumstances that Silat has come to associate with each of his prior encounters with Guts. We get another action scene, which while short-lasting is still done more competently than some of the previous ones. We get Guts cutting through a whole squad with a single slash, as usual, while Serpico utilizes an interesting triple Remise to neutralize three opponents (this is a fencing move that is achieved by rapid thrusts without withdrawing the sword after each attack). Jerome, Isidro, and even Azan join in the fray, and for a moment we get a glimmer of the harmony that the original Band of the Hawk displayed during the Golden Age.

This continues until Zodd makes his re-entrance. They translated one of the soldier’s remarks regarding Zodd as “Bada”, which I can only assume is a stand-in for the word ‘beast’. Seeing Zodd can only mean one thing: that Griffith is not too far behind, and right on queue- here comes the bride! Guts is about to go full berserker, but seeing the distress in Casca reminds him once again of his priorities, signaling a growth in character that has taken him far past his Black Swordsman days. The Skull Knight also drops in to make this a proper family reunion.

The final section is dedicated to tying up some loose ends, and establishing Guts’ new fellowship. Luca is found to have survived by falling/hiding in a well. This serves as a clear parallel to the old lady who survived the atomic blast in Nagasaki by accidentally tripping into a well, as illustrated by Fred Weiner’s famous 1978 World War II documentary The Unknown War.

We proceed to set up each character’s objective, and this serves as a segue into the inevitable second cour. All in all, this finale was not as bad as I thought it’d be, but to be fair my expectations were very stunted by this point. The whole thing was true to the source material and quite serviceable, but also devoid of much real joy and excitement. Not all of this is the fault of this series however, and I will soon delve into all of that with much more detail in the upcoming season one review. I am already working on that, and aim to make it the most critical and literary analysis of the show as a whole. Thank you for your time and continuous patronage, and stay tuned for a comprehensive look at Berserk 2016.

~Bam~

Re:Zero -Starting Life in Another World – 25

Well it’s over and what a ride it was. Betelgeuse is defeated, everyone is saved and Subaru gets to confess his love to Emilia to leave the series off on a hopeful note. Only thing that would have made it better is more Rem but let us be frank, there is never enough Rem. I did wonder just how Subaru was going to stop Betelgeuse from possessing his body but the way he did it was the ultimate way to take him own. By bringing Sattella out while Betelgeuse was possessing him, he gives Betelgeuse a chance to meet the witch he so desperately loves only to have Sattella herself reject him. He’s crushed, the person he has adored and worked for all this time bashes him out of Subaru like batting away a cockroach. What little sanity Betelgeuse had left is surely gone now but what I find most interesting is the words he shouts to Subaru as he chases him in his new demonic form.

“I haven’t forgotten a single moment of all the things you did for me. Even if you have forgotten.” This words sound oh so very familiar. In fact they sound exactly like that of what Subaru said to Emilia. To a strange degree, Betelgeuse’s and Subaru’s objectives may indeed be the same. Though Subaru wishes to save and repay Emilia. While Betelgeuse wishes to save and repay Sattella. Perhaps Betelgeuse is also someone who was taken from his world and thrown into this one. He may have even had return by Death at one point as he speaks of Sattella not remembering him. Perhaps what Subaru is going through right now is some sort of rite of passage for an Archbishop of sin. Perhaps he is pride after all.

While Subaru’s intentions are for the best, I feel he is being somewhat rude to Emilia in how he planned to keep her out of this as much as possible. It goes to show that he has not got over his issues yet but it is surprising that Emilia took being deliberately removed from the equation so well. Even setting her up with the kids to insure that she didn’t do anything reckless. I seen it a bit in the last episode as well where Emilia seems disappointed in the fact that everything had already been worked out without her involvement. But it seems that any misgivings will not be addressed in this finale. As finales go this was somewhat predictable but not unwelcome as Subaru is given a last minute mission to reach emilia before the bomb he forgot about in the last run explodes. With Betelgeuse chasing after it gives Subaru a moment to shine before the end.

Particularly like that Otto redeemed himself for his actions before and even the oil he bought is put to use as Subaru uses it to set Betelgeuse on fire. Still it was interesting that Subaru kept sidestepping telling Otto what exactly was chasing them as he likely remembers what Otto did before to save his own hide. Subaru save Emilia and confesses his love to her with admittedly some words he outright stole from Rem’s confession. Got to admit that was a really scumbag move to use the words of the girl you rejected to snag the girl you wanted. But C’est la vie. They went overboard on the brightness at the end that it was near blinding but still it’s a good note to go out on.

Overall I see this a very solid ending though I do see there is those lamenting that White fox left out the full ending of Arc 3. Having spoiled myself on what exactly that is I wholeheartedly disagree as if they did go with that ending I would have had to buy a plane ticket to japan, visit White Fox and hold them at gunpoint till they made a second season. This ending at least gives Subaru a happy finale for now and while there are loose story threads at least if this turned out to be the only season of this show we get then this makes for a fitting end. Plus it’s not a filler ending so I believe White Fox can pick up right where this left off with no trouble. So we get a satisfying ending that leaves room to make a sequel so all and all I believe this to be a perfect end point for now. A second season is pretty much guaranteed considering the popularity of the series but when we get it might take a while. After all Attack on Titan is still waiting on it’s second season. For now I would like White Fox to confirm that a second season is planned. It’s highly likely but just having the confirmation would put my mind at ease. Though one thing we can take into account is just what Re:Zero’s success could mean for the industry as a whole.

Chances are that more web novel adaptations are coming our way and there’s even one about to be announced for a Knight’s & Magic web novel series.(Not confirmed but they said they have an important announcement and whenever something has an important announcement, it’s an anime.) Considering that web novel is pretty much trash that doesn’t make me too happy and this does have me concerned that an abundance of utterly terrible web novel adaptations are coming. I mean I wouldn’t turn away a Rising of the Shield Hero or Mushoku Tensei adaption but let me say if you think light novels are horribly written self indulgent power fantasies then web novels are going to be so much worse for you. I hate that a good show like this could lead to a worsening effect on the industry as a whole and thus garner unjust hatred towards this series. Let us hope that is merely pessimism speaking on my part and that doesn’t happen.

2016 Fall Anime Season Preview

There are times when I think that time hates me. After all my work hours go by so slowly that one would think time has stopped. Yet my spare time flies by that I look at a clock and one minute later look again to see an hour has gone by. I barely feel this season even started and yet it’s already ending and we got a whole new lineup to see. I previously said the current season looked to be a rather weak one but it has brought a number of surprises. The question is whether that will happen again as this season is looking potentially weaker. The large amount of original shows certainly increases the chances of a number of hidden gems so you never really know until it’s over.

My usual method of checking out every bit of source material I could find didn’t fair too well this time due to the large amount of anime original and untranslated works. But if I could get my hands on it, I checked it out. This season we are doing something a bit different. My usual way of doing this has become a bit outdated not that we have a number of authors on the blog. So instead of the poll below being used to decide one of the shows I will cover, we will use the poll as a means of figuring out just what you want us to cover. Basically it will be more or less the same but the top pick may not be covered by yours truly. Feel free to vote for as many shows as you would like.

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What will you be watching this winter?

Once again thanks to Mario for gathering the images and the others for inputting their two cents on certain shows. Let us get started.

 

The sequels/prequels I don’t care about

12-Sai. Chiccha na Mune no Tokimeki 2

AJIN 2

Bubuki Buranki: Hoshi no Kyojin

BUNGOU STRAY DOGS 2

Cardfight!! Vanguard G Next

Digimon Universe: App Monsters

Haikyuu!!: Karasuno Koukou VS Shiratorizawa Gakuen Koukou

Hibike! Euphonium 2

Kaitou Joker 4

SHOW BY ROCK!! 2

Kidou Senshi Gundam: Tekketsu no Orphans 2

Uta no☆Prince-sama♪ Maji Love Legend Star

ViVid Strike!

 

Series I don’t look forward to

 

Bloodivores


 

60 years ago, a strange case of insomnia struck the population, forcing them to stay awake for more than a full week. The victims, completely sleep deprived, all went mad. To cure this illness, a new medicine was produced, but the side effects turned the patients into vampires. Humanity went to war against this new species and triumphed, but some of the vampires managed to survive. Born from a Human and a Vampire, the main character Mi Liu, “The Child of Hope”, is to represent the new hope that will connect the two species. Ringleader of a bank robbery, Mi Liu is arrested and transferred to a special prison of the National Defense Agency that monitors Vampires. Trying to break free with Anji, Mi Liu is attacked by strange monsters and he finds out that the prison location corresponds to the birthplace of Vampires, the old capital “Blue Town.” Why are Vampires trapped in Blue Town? What are those strange monsters attacking them? Our heroes must fight to solve those mysteries.

Studio: Creators in Pack TOKYO

What happens in the backstory of this show sounds much more interesting than the show itself. A world driven made by insomnia? That is actually a pretty interesting concept. But nope, it’s just backstory to justify vampires. Really gotta hand it to the scientists that somehow managed to turn people into vampires when trying to cure insomnia. Anyway we have no staff information and it might surprise some that this is an adaption of a Chinese web comic originally called Space-TIme Prisoner. Based on what little I read it’s really nothing to write home about. Fairly mediocre, much like The Outcast series airing in the summer season. I quite like that anime is being created of non-japanese works but I really wish they could pick something a little more worth it.
Continue reading “2016 Fall Anime Season Preview”

Berserk(2016) – 11 [Shadows of Ideas]

The cold opening retreads the ending of the previous episode, with Casca being set on the pyre. In the spirit of the last few ones, this episode is also quite a fast-paced and action heavy. We have a very brief reintroduction of Zod, which serves more as a cameo than anything of substance. After the opening the series has officially moved unto volume 21 of the manga, covering the final stretch of the Incarnation Ceremony.

We see the Egg Apostle climbing the Tower of Conviction in preparation for becoming the Egg of the Perfect World. It stumbles upon the Demon Child, and resumes to take it in itself out of pity. This chapter delves a lot into the topic of social outcasts, and the alienation that sets in them due to the ostracization. We see this with Mozgus’ elite torturers, Luca’s gang of mistresses, The Egg Apostle, and to some extent the Demon Child itself.  Suffering is a recurring motif in the Berserk saga, and the aforementioned subject is one that comes up quite often. It was a central theme in the Lost Children chapter, which much to fans’ dismay was omitted from this adaptation, as well as the steward of the mansion featured in episode 3 of the tv series.

Isidro proves himself as one of the less useless characters of his stature, actually managing to save Casca from the lynch mob. Diving down that height with a non-elastic rope will realistically result in his spine being snapped in half, but given some of Guts antics this comes off as a really minor gripe. There are a lot of characters featured here that do nothing but stand around and gawk, and with the exception of Jerome and Puck to some extent, Isidro at least manages to be active in the proceedings.

Guts cuts through the soul phantasm and makes his way to the tower, and the effects here are again of especially low quality. The bigger the soulmass gets, the uglier the CG looks. We also see Mozgus transform to his true apostle spawn form, which similar to his regular model is quite unremarkable. The Dragonslayer CLANG! does make sense here, but they really should’ve recorded some more sword sound effects. The entirety of the sound mixing of the series is very sub-par, and only the voice acting is of adequate quality. We hear the Skull Knight’s voice-over during the first part of Guts and Mozgus’ battle, and this also comes off as unnecessary since it’s just a reiteration of the same thing he was telling Guts in their earlier encounter.

We see the masses praising Mozgus as an angel who will deliver their salvation, and throughout this whole episode their sheepish nature is highlighted over and over again. I was never a big fan of this trope, and it just happens to be a quite reoccurring theme in anime. Speaking of tropes, Mozgus is saved by his bible, but the somewhat interesting point here is that he is not evil for evil’s sake, but a very misguided true believer. What is absurd however, is that Mozgus is not only adept at using his brand new apostle form and its abilities, but has also somehow managed to name his moves in the little time that he’s had. Guts finishes Mozgus off in a resourceful way, and it was good to see that they included the little detail of him guarding against the explosion the very last second.

Nina continues to be annoying, and I was glad that she was quickly written out of the episode. Guts and Luca are the only characters who remain reasonable throughout this chapter, and their dialogue is pretty much the only interesting ones. This is a problem with the manga as well, and another sad reminder of the superiority of characters and writing during the Golden Age Arc. On that front, there is a sad tender embrace between Guts and a reluctant Casca, which manages to be a brief but poignant moment, although admittedly not by virtue of execution, but rather relying on the backstory of the characters.

Down by the bottom of the tower Azan is engaged in a brave but foolish struggle, and after Mozgus’ demise the ceremony is now well underway. We see that the gang equip themselves with torches, and Farnese finally moves to reassure us that she hasn’t turned into a complete CGI statue. This part is just developing her disillusionment with her faith, and the payoff doesn’t arrive until after the ceremony. There is a quick mention of Serpico not being too fond of fire, which is a nice little nod to later in the story.

This was a fast but utterly unremarkable episode, since the action sequences in the series are not at all handled proficiently. The next episode is “Those Who Cling, Those Who Struggle” and appears to be the final episode of this cour. It is not clear if they are going for a continuous 24 episode season or two separate cours, but I am guessing that there will be a break after the next episode. Well at least things will be a bit clearer by next week, so we’ll have to wait and see where we are headed.

~Bam~

Berserk(2016) 09 – 10 [Blood Flow of the Dead & Hell’s Angels]

Greeting my fellow Berserkers. I know it’s been quite a while since the last post, and it is understandable if you thought that the series has been once again dropped from the blog. But I gave my word that I will see this to the end, and well intend to keep that promise. I originally planned to cover every single episode with its own separate entry, but after completing episode 9’s review came to the realization that due to the action-oriented nature and fast pacing of the episode it became a much shorter post than the previous ones. Hence I planned to do a multi-review that covered both episodes 9 and 10. But between the premier on Friday and tonight I had a series of setbacks that caused another unforeseen delay, and pushed the whole thing back over a few days. But better late than never I guess, so here’s the review to at least catch us up before the release of the semi-final episode.

The Ninth episode starts off with the high priest informing Farnese of her orders to withdraw. We get the Vandimion namedrop yet again, and aside from backstory, this also serves to illustrate the great influence of her family in both the affairs of Midland, as well as the Holy see. The Vandimion family is a noble house of Vritannis, which happens to be the seat of the Holy See.  Their standing with the church allows her father to demand her return from the perceivable dangerous situation in Albion. She is hesitant of leaving, and snaps on Serpico, who she rightfully believes to have spied on her on behalf of her father. She hates losing control, and relieves her stress by going off on the only person who would unconditionally follow her.  Yet as events unfold she won’t get the chance to comply to her father’s will, even if she was convinced of doing so.

As mozgus tries to “cleanse” Casca in the iron maiden, all hell breaks loose within the basement of the tower, prompting everyone to flee towards the higher levels. The CG used here for the animation of the ectoplasm is actually effective, as it gives the entity an unnatural ghastly quality. It also features a violet hue, which admittedly lightens up the scene quite a bit. Guts, having just entered the tower, kidnaps the only person of authority which he happens to recognize right away, and Farnese is forced to come face-to-face with the source of her misery. It’s strange how Serpico would miss this, given his established sagacity up to this point. Guts doesn’t give Farnese much time to ramble, and again showcasing his ability to make any scene more enjoyable by vicariously carrying out the sentiments of the viewer.

Next we get the displeasure of another scene with Nina wallowing in her misery. These are taken directly from the manga, and although the series has been keeping them brief, they always come off as slightly irritating, to say the least. And then again on mark, Luca comes to her rescue, surely making everyone wish they had someone like her to care for them. At least Nina is aware of her undeserving kindness, making her a bit more sympathetic. She might seem like a hopeless failure, but to be fair, who wouldn’t despair faced with such dire circumstances. Jerome is featured here as well, serving as a reminder that not all knights of the Iron Chain serve the same unreasonable sadistic ideals. Berserk is a mixed bag of characters who inherit different levels of depth and likeability, but at least they are not all made of the same simple mold.

Down in the basement we see that Mozgus is not being so rational, and challenging the creeping phantasm with a ‘come at me bro!’ level of bravado. There’s a quickflash of the Egg Apostle, as he stings Mozgus and his elite torturers with the protruding stingers. I’ve noticed that some viewers had various degrees of confusion regarding this, so I try to clarify the point: Mozgus and the torturers were not apostles. They were just ruthless tools of the Holy See, and it is this quick instance of injection that sires them to the level of Apostle Spawns; similar to the Great Goat of the cave cult. The next scene features a pillar of flame that blasts thru the gate of the cell, which much to my surprise, was animated traditionally.

Luca’s sacrifice of letting go in order to spare Nina, is just one more attempt at resurrecting the proverbial horse so it can be beaten to death once again. Her rescue by the Skull Knight might be a nice surprise to tv viewers, and hence a nice little development. The term she actually uses to describe Skull Knight is ‘Shinigami’, which they translated to “death” in the subs, but most anime fans will recognize to actually mean the Japanese entities known to be gods of death, comparable to the western grim reaper. Given his visage and abilities, I don’t really blame her.

Episode 10 starts off with Guts facing off against the newly-transformed Mozgus party. We’re now starting volume 20 of the manga, again reminding us of how fast the new series has been adapting the manga. I always enjoyed the designs of the Mozgus Apsotle Spawns, but the CG depletes a lot of that charm by obscuring details and making all models simple and symmetric. The undertone of evil beings with angelic features is one that has a longstanding tradition within the Berserkverse, and quite frankly one of the more interesting and subversive aspects of the original manga. This has somewhat been diminished by time and latter imitation, yet it is a testament to the potency of Miura’s iconic style.

After a quick scuffle between the Egg Apostle and the Skull Knight, we see it retreat while managing to snatch Luca at the last moment. I feel that Skull Knight’s hesitation to follow is due to the desire of tracking its lair, and reassuring of its purpose. The Apostle brings Luca to a creepily romantic candlelit vigil by the foot of a Hawk idol made from disposed bodies. It then proceeds to confide in her his backstory as a rejected feral child, that upon coming into the possession of a Behelit, offered the world as a sacrifice in exchange of becoming the Egg of the New World. I personally envisioned him as a twisted child, so it was a bit jarring at first to hear Hiroyuki Yoshino’s voice coming out of him. If he sounds familiar it’s because you have most certainly heard him as a VA in one series or another; given that you’ve watched more than a few anime series. He has done everything from Meow in Space Dandy, to Favaro in Rage of the Bahamut. It doesn’t take long to get used to this however, and instead intrigued by the peculiar order of events that has led to this moment. There is more than just coincidence at work here, and I will hopefully get much deeper into that in the following reviews. Last thing of note in this sequence is the Skull Knight swallowing the Behelit, which comes into play at a crucial moment much further down the line

Next we are taken back to the Tower of Conviction, as a heated battle is taking place between a lonesome Black Swordsman and the entirety of the Mozgus party. This is old news to Souls fans, but I’ll take the moment to note that the original inspirations for the Titanite Catch Pole, Saw Cleaver, and the Logarius’ Wheel are all featured here within the same shot. The choreography is actually nice, but again the editing does its best to make the fight as incomprehensible and disjointed as possible. I will give credit however, that in this one instance the infamous Dragonlayer CLANG! Is used in the right situation for once, as the blade violently clashes against the breaking wheel. The beating that Guts endures after that is frankly quite ridiculous, as that places his durability even beyond some of the Apsotles that we’ve seen in the series, let alone an already beaten up human being. Guts has been brutalized so many times that an X-ray of his chest will resemble that of a suitcase full of dog-treats under the airport’s luggage scanner. Unfortunately this will only get worse as the story continues. The use of the handcannon although predictable, is always satisfying. I however was incredibly disappointed at their portrayal of Guts’ signature canon-spinning-slash, which was damn near impossible to discern through the horrible editing.

Finally, we get to see the camp dissolve into chaos, as the encroaching evil makes it a hellscape that holds back no punches. This escalating horror and familiar imagery is a clear indication of what is about to take place here. We see Mozguz boasting about his powers that he deems as ‘divine’ and calls out for Casca’s burning at the stake to uproot the evil. Unfortunately the CGI phantasm looks much less pleasing here, as the bigger size stretches the textures to a bare minimum. Mozgus says he will be granted a “miracle to defeat the Hawk’s power”. I saw people confused about this line, since the Holy See idolizes the Hawk as a sign of the divinity. They have done a poor job at explaining, but the religion believes in the duality of good and evil, and envision a Hawk of Darkness that stands in opposition to the will of the Hawk of Light. That is what Mozgus is referring to in this instance.

The episode comes to an end as Guts realizes the nature of what is about to happen, and slashes past the augurs of the Godhand to rush and save Casca. I was lucky, as these two episodes were of very equal pacing, content and overall quality. The tone has slightly improved, but continues to be hit-and–miss, with great disparity in quality from scene to scene. I still believe that the use of traditional animation has been on a steady rise, but this only makes the switch to basic CGI models that much more jarring. The next episode is titled “The Shadows of Ideas”, and appears to be the first half of this cour’s finale. This would be a good chance at another dual review, but due to the tardiness of my last few posts I will cover the next episode separately as soon as possible. Expect things to heat up even more, as we move towards the climax of this entire arc. Let’s all hope that it manages to surprise us, and shine a redeeming glimmer of light on the show, instead of further derailing its quality.

 

Berserk(2016) – 08 [Reunion in the Den of Evil]

Episode 8 starts with a cold opening that retreads the fateful rendezvous of Guts and Casca. I actually thought that this was a good move, as this is a very big moment in the overall story of the last few arcs. After the Golden Age section we get very few deep character moments, and a lot of the pathos of the story has been replaced by mere action. I’ll take the time to reiterate my opinion that the Golden Age Arc is quite honestly the very best part of the story. The focus on the characters and their relations, combined with the world building which masterfully portrays a dark fantasy realm that borders close to our own, yet at the same time concealing an inundation of supernatural evil slithering under the surface, are what have made Berserk the masterpiece that it is. After the events of the Eclipse a lot of that imperative was washed away, and replaced by a revenge story which is heavy on plot, yet slim on thought-provoking ideas with deep emotional impact. This little scene of reunion hearkens back to those glory days, even if ever slightly so.

All that said, after the opening we are thrown right back into the action. The fight choreography is taken directly from the manga, but turned up a few notches. As intricate and detailed as Miura’s drawings are, it’s still sometimes hard to follow his action panels. Compared to Tezuka, or the more contemporary mangaka such as Naoki Urasawa and Takehiko Inoue, Miura’s panels seem to be displaying the key frames, and leaving out the dynamics of the action to the readers’ imagination. So at least here we get a more direct interpretation of the fight scene, which while completely sufficient, fails to really enhance on its source, as say a studio like Ufotable would’ve managed to do. We even get the near miss of Guts almost losing his only functioning eye, but he manages to use a little bit of strategy to neutralize the Goat before resorting back to brute force and finishing the job.

We next get to see Farnese using the situation to try and kill two birds with one stone, and coercing the troops of taking care of Guts along with the rest of the ghouls.  Azan tries to be the voice of reason, but is soon shut down, and being well aware of his rank, simply continues to follow the orders. Azan reminds me of a certain knight in Final Fantasy IX named Steiner, who while taking himself seriously, is still relegated to comic relief; although both characters aren’t exactly push-overs.

It’s brought to Farnese’s attention that Serpico is missing. This leads in to our next action set-piece, which proves to be a bit more personal. This duel has been long in the making, since although Serpico has no qualms with Guts, his devotion to Farnese compels him to remove the threat that has been plaguing her mind. There also seems to be a bit of a clash of egos at work here. Serpico is a pragmatist, using the best tactic to set up the match to his advantage, with no apparent regard for honor. He has always somewhat reminded me of Griffith, and I think the parallels are too striking to be completely coincidental. The fast fighting style, the cunning calculation, the pride, all point to a resemblance in their world-view and personality.

The narrow landing prevents Guts from drawing his sizeable weapon, but he isn’t particularly new to being in the corner either, and starts the face-off with a flurry of arrows and explosives. Serpico manages to regain his footing and then precedes to send a wave of rapid thrusts. Guts catching the rapier’s blade with his hand is again reminiscent to the surprising way he caught Griffith off-guard by biting the edge of his sword. Looking at the hilt of Serpico’s rapier, it resembles a German Pappenheimer, which means contrary to common belief the blade is not only pointed for thrust attacks, but also edged for slashing. It’s also somewhat historically accurate that such fine rapiers were often quite brittle; making the shattering of it not much beyond the realm of possibility.

Down in the valley we have Farnsese going off on her men. The prospect of Guts surviving is taking a toll on her, and we see her scabbard-smashing her men in front of a concerned crowd of knights. On the other side we see that Guts nearly pushed to the same limits over Isidro losing Casca, but he manages to subside his rage. I feel that this is in part due to what took place at Godo’s house, and how this situation was quite similar to his unwarranted outburst against poor Rickert.

At the end, the gang heads towards the Tower of Conviction, as the Skull Knight vague ramblings foretell an ominous encounter. Inside we get a glimpse of Nina and Casca, and a small window into Uncle Mozguz’ House of Terror.  The stage is set, and the pieces are assembled. The next Episode is titled Blood Flow of the Dead, so I’m guessing that it will be the first part to a double, or perhaps triple, episode, that will be covering the main part of the chapter we’ve been waiting for. These recent episodes have been following the manga extremely closely, and all the while moving at quite a rapid pace. My only issue is still the execution, and how the show has yet to go beyond what they are directly drawing from. One could only hope that there is some budget being set aside for a more memorable finale, and at least now we can anticipate the trajectory of the rest of this cour. Until next Friday and more Berserk, stay tuned my friends.

~Bam~

Berserk(2016) – 07 [The Black Witch]

I apologize for this very late review, but due to circumstances I didn’t have the means of watching the episode, and hence the week-long delay. I’ll try to at least leave a notification in case of such issues in the future, but otherwise will try to keep the posts steady. So let’s get right to it, shall we?

We get a recap of the ending scene of last episode, with the Demon Child warding off the spirits, and in turn making Casca the hailed princess of the cult. It appears that in these times of desperation, the cult members cling to anything that they can praise as a deity. The noteworthy thing here is that Casca shows a maternal instinct for the Child, as she tries to reach for it before it disappears. This stands as a stark contrast to Guts, who sees the child as a curse and an ugly reminder of his past.

Next we have a scene at the camp, with Luca being brave and assertive as ever. I always disliked Nina’s characterization, but she appears to be even more annoying in this series. Her selfish ways are highlighted here in an attempt to create some sort of a character arc for her in the future. The duo’s discussions are interrupted, as they are notified of an impending trial of another one of their compatriots.

Looks like we have ourselves a classic witch hunt here. Not unlike such similar occurrences in reality, these hunts are more about silencing unrest and class warfare than anything else. There are few tools more effective in oppression of a population, than an appeal to divine authority. Thankfully the masquerade is cut short by the sudden appearance of a certain Black Swordsman.  Guts has well established himself as the king of entrances, and this instance is not any different. I really do enjoy his no-nonsense approach to information gathering, and when pushed he proceeds to lay down the authority very swiftly. Fans often forget that Guts is truly an antihero, with his mercenary background defining his sense of morality. He is single-minded in his approach, and not afraid of taking any necessary measures to achieve his goals. I like to note that the digital blood splatters were bearable in this scene, and did little to distract from the action.

Next we have a rush back to the campsite in order to fetch Casca. There is a quick overview of the state of constant fear that has enveloped the camp, as people are quick to sell each other out in order to avoid punishment. The knights’ preoccupation with the situation in Albion can only mean that the news of the full-scale Kushan invasion has not reached their ranks yet. This is exacerbated by the show jumping the gun, and expediting the assault on Windham as early as four episodes ago.

Nina proceeds to panic when Luca doesn’t make it back to the campsite, and makes another stupid decision to seek refuge in the cave of the cultists. I guess this can be excused, since from her perspective the chance of Luca being caught by the knights is actually very high, and this decision is made out of pure desperation. I never liked the “princess is in another castle” shtick, but here it serves to move the plot towards the eventual encounter.

I never fully understood the mechanics of Puck’s visibility to mortals. It was implied that those of closemind and narrow worldview would find it harder to see him, but here we are told that larger crowds further hide his presence. I guess things are more easily concealed when there is more commotion. There is also a shallow attempt at explaining Isidro’s backstory, but given the rapid pacing of the episode this can be excused, as it would’ve bogged down the flow if it was given too much focus. He might be a silly kid, but at least he’s honest and to the point. From his view it definitely seems as if he’s found himself quite a master in Guts, and there’s safety in being under his wing. Little does he know how much of a magnet Guts truly is to danger, and considering that he learned his skills firsthand in a mercenary camp, Gut’s utility as a sword instructor is at the very least highly questionable. Nevertheless, he pursues Nina and Casca towards the cave.

Next there is the reappearance of Joachim, as he spills the bean about the location and activities of the cultists. A soldier also breaks the news of Guts to a visibly shocked Farnese, as the main thing she was trying to avoid has finally come to find her. Her reluctance in facing Guts definitely plays a part in their decision to give priority to hunting the cultists. There is some irony in the fact that the gravitation of the common people to these cults is directly related to their struggles under the Holy See’s oppression. The tighter the grip, the heavier the backlash against it.

We’re welcomed back to the cave, and it seems that this episode has given it a livelier look, as a bright magenta color palette prevails the tone of the scene. There also appears to be some improvements to the textures, with the ground and the cave walls having a more detailed look to them. I personally always enjoyed the symbolism of the crown of thorns that they place on Casca, although I admit that it is more for show than pertaining to anything deep. Nina is being prepared to be sacrificed for the union of the Great Goat and Casca, who as we remember is being worshiped as an idol of the cult. The world of Berserk heavily revolves around the concept of sacrifice. The cave seems to be located within a certain interstice, as a place where the barrier between the physical world and the astral realm is particularly weak. This is further intensified by the presence of Casca, which yet again summons the ghosts of those who were sacrificed to possess the cultists.

Next we get a full-on zombie brawl, as the Iron Chain Knights converge on the location of the cave. Well, in reality it’s more of a slaughter than an actual battle. I like to take the time to say that I really enjoy the design of the visor on Farnese’s helmet, here portrayed with an even more exaggerated length than the manga. Isidro proves his worth, as he buys some time until Puck can fly and get Guts. It is revealed that the Great Goat is not really of any supernatural essence, but just a man donning a ceremonial goat head. This quickly changes as the Egg Apostle sires the Great Goat, and makes him a true apostle-spawn. I’ll be getting into the Egg Apostle’s story in later reviews.

I seriously thought that what ensues will be toned down, but lo and behold, we are greeted to yet another demonic rape attempt. I guess after the infamous Rape Horse I should be expecting the series to stick close to these specific elements of the source material. Here we have some familiar workaround female nudity, as well as a peculiar censorship of some violence. I think this is a good place to delve a little bit into the strange censorship laws placed on the Japanese media. The regulations regarding anime censorship are strangely specific, with varying levels of rationalizations. There is much leeway in the graphic portrayal of violence when the subject is considered “otherworldly”. This means that a zombie, monster, or any evil creature can be shown to be straight ripped apart, while human victims need to be toned down to either simple stabbing or details being subject to black bars and omissions. There are similar laws regarding nudity, and more specifically the male reproductive organ. As Toshio Maeda of Urotsukidōji fame came to realize back in the 80’s, a regular human penis can under no circumstance be portrayed in media, while any phallic or “penis-like appendage” is completely acceptable under article 175 of the Criminal Code of Japan. And hence, the inclusion of the snake penis.

As things seem to be reaching a critical level, we are greeted to another badass Guts entrance, this time in the form of what can only be called a ‘Batman moment’. He emerges from the shadows, swiftly maneuvering down to the pit, and making mince-meat out of the possessed cultists. The Dragonslayer dances with little resistance, as the cavelight gives a Sword of Moonlight blue hue to its blade. As we get passed the nasty goat circumcision, we are thrilled by a much-awaited reunion of our two estranged lovers, as their meeting gaze speaks much more than anything that could be uttered here.

Overall this one was a faster, denser, and dare I say better episode than the last few that we’ve had in Albion. There are many confrontations in store, and the stage is nearly set for one of the most iconic moments in the history of Berserk. I have my work cut out for me, as I’m jumping right into the next review as soon as this one is posted. Stay tuned for more, as I rush to make up for lost time.

~Bam~

orange – 06

What a development! It turns out that Sowa’s also receiving letters from the future as well, presumably his future self (there’s no way the future Naho would send him letters, right?). From the look of it I think the entire cast receives letters from their future self too, the way they act very supportive lately. Does this development work? I don’t know, it all depends on the direction it goes from now. Personally I would prefer that Naho asks for their help, and then tell them herself about the letters. That twist makes me questions every actions from the group back then, and if those actions are ‘genuine’ genuine (like Suwa’s selfless actions last week). If it turns out those kids behave the way they did just because of someone telling them already what would happen, then I feel a bit manipulated. But there must be some good reasons to make that twist, right? For now, I will reserve my comment to see how all this play out. I guess after all we just finished the first phase (Naho and Kokeru dating together) and proceed to the second phase now (the group try to help Kokeru out of his attempt suicide). Naho also points out in this episode that there are two things that she couldn’t follow the advice from the letters, and those lead to unchanged consequences. The first being the group asked Kokeru out on the ceremony day, which directly lead to the suicide of the mother. The second time she couldn’t talk to him how she felt face-to-face, and Kokeru decided to date Ueda. Although the letters become less and less relevant, it seems that the outcome of those important events doesn’t always change, which makes me wonder if they can really save Kokeru from committing suicide. But I have a feeling they gain too much information from the letters which give them somewhat unfair advantage, like how Naho already know the time and place of his dead. Whatever you do orange, just remember that relying too much on those letters to progress a story is a dead wrong decision. Those letters can’t solve everything; it needs to be from the characters themselves.

This episode further highlights the insecurity of Kokeru. Several times in this episode, he asks Sowa if it’s really okay for him to date Naho, not because he fears that would hurt Sowa (maybe a little), but because he fears that dating Naho would turn out to be a disaster and he will bounce for more regret. Moreover, he always feels guilty about his mother’s death. But really, he should understand that moving forward is way better than don’t do anything at all, and he shouldn’t blame himself on the death of his mother. It is really a good call from Naho to ask him about the mother, because this guy needs to share it to his friends. Keeping it to yourself and the pain will never go away. The two lead’s chemistry is engaging and intimate so far, kudos to the fireworks scene, which for me is a bit cheesy but overall effective.

This episode is also a return-to-form quality in terms of production values. As mention above, the firework sequence is animated very well, and I love the shot’s choices of many scenes. Many of the shots focus on the pair with their backs on us, either when them watching the fireworks, or later when they sitting in a park, it creates their very own atmosphere: just the two of them witnessing things together, but perhaps never really see things eye-to-eye. I also like the shot when Kokeru needs sometimes alone and sits in a different chair. The shot (included in the screenshot above) really establish the distance between them and moreover the isolation of Kokeru. To conclude, this episode marks the end of the first half and wheels forward to the latter stage in which the group attempt to save Kakeru from committing suicide. I’m overall happy with the first half and hope it continues to be a rewarding ride. But seriously Naho, get rid of that hairpin. It brings you no luck at all.

~SuperMario~

Thunderbolt Fantasy – 05

This week’s Thunderbolt Fantasy runs a much slower pace compared to last week, which has only one main development: Sha Wu Sheng the Screaming Phoenix Killer agrees to join the band, as we can probably figure out last week. That’s my only complaint though, because the episode still provides a lot of gold moments. I can’t help but laugh at the ridiculous “it is already a sitting fight before the sword fight” situation or campy lines like: “I thought as much. I knew you’d be the one who come”, because when you really think about it, our main character is the LEAST likely person who would’ve come. It will be more reasonable if Gui Niao pays a visit to the guy, or the three who fought him in last episode. Even Dan Fei would make more sense if she’d come. Prior to this episode, we see the story through Shang Bu Huan point of view- a somewhat ‘normal’ guy, compared to an eccentric cast around him, and I come to really love his stunning reaction whenever something absurd happens. The world around him is too crazy for him to comprehend, apparently. But it’s nice to see that he has a lot of room to develop this episode, and he actually turns out to be a very sincere guy at heart who decides to turn up because he doesn’t want to see his new friend getting killed the next morning. At first I thought he and the Screaming Phoenix Killer knew about each other, judging by the way they already anticipated the moves of the opponent, but it was not the case. Shang Bu Huan hints that he come from Xi You (the other side of Wasteland of Spirits), which apparently is impossible to cross over. Well, at least we know now that he is not an ordinary guy, his skills are even on the same level as Sha Wu Sheng. The fighting scene, although brief and anti-climax, is still very impressive.

You see, the band heading to the Seven Sin Towers with very different goals in minds; Dan Fei has to achieve the legendary sword; Xing Hai the demon necromancer concerns about that sword that might affect her world; Juan Can Yun the spear wielder wants fame. Sha Wu Sheng wants revenge and Shou Yun Xiao the archer follows the gang because he just wants to help out Gui Niao (I know it’s a lame reason but in the world of wuxia, where you are skilled and you have nothing to do beside screwing around, make yourself useful by helping your friends out surprisingly makes a lot of sense). It’s the more dangerous that we don’t really know the motive of Gui Niao. Seriously, he’s the worst allied friend you could ever wish to have in your team. He really needs to keep Shang Bu Huan on the team to the point of offering his head to the Screaming Phoenix Killer, despite that our main guy doesn’t have much role on the plan. But in fact, everyone here pretty much has pretty solid purpose in this journey: The demon girl for The Village of the Dead, the archer for The Valley of the Doll, the Screaming Phoenix Killer for Labyrinth of Darkness; Dan Fei retains a part of the sword and Juan Can Yun for killing the enemy guards. What role would it be for our main character then? My guess would be Gui Niao needs him to be the one who control and wield the legendary sword when the parts are finally in place; so that he could kill the main antagonist and everyone on the way, including Sha Wu Shang and save his head at the end of the day. Sounds sinister, right? But it might not be as far-fetch. Next episode is called “Seven Comrades”, which will be about our seven characters head towards the Seven Sins Tower, and we will have seven days to wait for that journey; and now I’m head off to drink Seven-Up.

~SuperMario~