HTF Anime Discussion Part VII - Page 97

I actually am interested in Gantz. I have never seen any, but I just saw a trailer for it, and it looks pretty intruiging. You enjoy?

I've only watched the first disk but I like Gantz.
Wonderfully weird.

For those who haven't seen Gantz I will warn you it is pretty bloody and gory. There are also strong sexual themes as well as nudity. But if that doesn't bother you then get off the net right now and go buy the DVDs. You'll definitely thank me for it.

Brion

Well after much deliberation I finally threw out my Mezzo Forte disk. I'll order the cut version at some point.
As bad as Gantz is supposed to be I'm assuming it doesnt approach Mezzo Forte levels? As far as blood and guts though - bring it on!

In other news, I watched the first 5 minutes of my "V4" Dreamworks replacement disk for Ghost In the Shell 2: Innocence.

All I've got to say is WOW and more WOW. Just plain awesome. Can't wait to watch the whole thing - just need to get back my GITS Special Edition disk I lent out last week.

I want to do a CyberPunk marathon with my brother:
GITS
GITS2
GITS SAC
Armitage III OVA

Anyway - now for something completely unrelated but kind of cool - I have a new addition to my home theater! I bought an eliptical machine and placed it behind the primary seating facing the component closet. I added a small, cheap 17" Westinghouse LCD TV on the wall next to the closet. Being so close to the closet it was easy to wall mount and run all the cables. Now I can utilize the 7.1 system, CATV and the DVD players without having to fire up the projector. Less heat in the room that way too.

So I'm exercising to Robotech and CNN . Man sorry to say I really hate Robotech. Barely fit to exercise to. Being a "fit" home theater junky is a dream of mine. Talk about incompatible objectives! I've got a good 20 lbs to drop but so far so good. No food in the theater for a week and 4 consecutive nights of exercise.

Sorry for the babbling

Woah! That is indeed awesome~

Hmm no room for exercise equipment where I live, but I really really really should go to the gym. Though I'd rather recommend the Macross Box Sets, Southern Cross, and Mospeada instead of just Robotech ^_^; (NOTE: I do not own any Robotech.)



Well, I finally sat down and watched Onegai Teacher (Please Teacher) #1, and it's a fun series so far. Interesting characters, though it's a bit bland for my tastes. Maybe it'll heat up some more, with even more fanservice (as the next episode is a Beach Episode (which are on par in anime with the Onsen/Hot Springs Episodes for fanservice purposes)). Since I have the rest of the series, I'll work on that for the duration of the week...

Alanna:

Here's a link to where I get my ThinPaks:

http://www.tapeandmedia.com/detail.a...THINPACK-CLEAR

The only difference is the thickness of the spine, so you won't have to do too much alteration. The only caveat is that you have to by them in lots of 65 (1 case), but I've found that they end up being a lot cheaper that getting them in a B&M.

Woo:

Onegai Teacher definitely picks up .

Rob:

Funi must have gone and talked to Viz .

All:

I was under the weather yesterday, so I stayed home from worked and watched some of my recent purchases. I'm much more excited about Fullmetal Alchemist after watching volume 2, than I was after volume 1. It'd be nicer if Funi would release the next volumes more quickly...I also watched a non-anime movie, Takeshi Kitano's Zatoichi. Highly recommended, although some of the CG wasn't as sync'ed as it could have been. I also picked up Nadia - The Secret of Blue Water Collections 1 and 2 on Tuesday, but haven't had a chance to watch any of it yet.

John.

ToddMcF, I've never seen Mezzo Forte but I can tell you that Gantz is censored in its home country. What we get over here is the uncensored version. For once I feel sorry for the Japanese.

Brion

JohnAD:

Nadia is old but an awesome Gainax series. Full of imagination, cuteness, fanservice, but generally less crazy and more dramatic than Gainax's recent titles. Long but great series.


Hmm I really should avoid the habit of avoiding seeing anime movies. My anime movie backlog is growing, but I am just such a sucker for the TV series...

Woo:

It was one of those 'circumstance' purchases. I saw that they had Collection 2, and then (on another shelf) that they also had Collection 1. None of my other potential purchases where going anywhere ( a lot of series lacking disk 1 ), so I decided to go with Nadia. I got to clear one of the older (in terms of residence on my list) series that I'd been meaning to get.

John.

Heh - please weigh in with your review of Nadia whenever you manage to finish it ^_^;

Hmm I need to get FMA disc #1 at some point, and disc #2.

And my sister, who really isn't much for anime (falls asleep to it if I ever have it on) really enjoyed Paranoia Agent. She was wondering when I'd get the next one ("What? You don't have all of this yet??" Blechh. Women -_-; )

Did your Nadia collections include the movie? Just curious...

Woo:

Will do. Here's the breakdown of the collections:

Collection 1:

DVDs 1-5
Soundtracks 1 & 2

Collection 2:

DVDs 6-10
Movie
Soundtrack 3
Movie Soundtrack

The CDs come in sleeves, since I don't think they make 7 & 8 disk bricks . It's cool that your sister is into Paranoia Agent; the last disk comes out May 10 (w00t!).

John.

Someone has a problem with a little bit of sex (gratuitous it may be), but has no problem with blood and guts? Whatever..

Personally, if I felt strongly about it, I'd probably edit mine myself and burn it to a new DVD. Not really worth me rebuying...

Jason

Jason,

There is a reason Hentai/Porn has its own commercial category but violent animes/films do not. I won't even go into the rape angle of Kite and Mezzo.

There isnt an anime I'm aware of - Elfen Lied included, that is more violent or bloody than a typical Tarantino or Verhoeven film. People don't typically watch films like 'Gladiator' because they like the costumes.

Also I doubt I could edit and apply the MPEG compression during a burn that would be acceptable on large displays, but truthfully I've never tried.

Stacey B:

Sorry, didn't answer you sooner about Koikaze. Yes, it is my official recommendation. Most of my recommendations are pretty spot on. Geneon has released the R1 disc of this beautifully romantic show. However, due warning, it concerns a taboo subject. To give a hint, it is about unrequited (aka illegal) love. ;P *wink wink* 'Nuff said. Soooooooooo goooooooooood. Based off a manga which is still going so don't expect a great conclusion but the overall series is great.

In addition, kimi ga nozomu eien (based off a hentai PC game) is licensed already accordingly as I have heard. But the R2s are very nice indeed. Pretty expensive and 13 eps span over 7 discs (the first printing limited editions are awesome too!). This is THE BEST adaptation from hentai PC game to anime EVER!! Most adaptations are piss poor. The screenplay writer really got the story right and spot on.

Oh, elfenleid was recommended by my friend who said it was one of the best horrofic, dark series he has ever watched. And he is someone who hates watching this type of genre. So says something about this anime (based on the manga).

Everyone else:

I still hold my recommendation on Gankutsuou (loosely) based on Dumas' The Count of Monte Cristo. Directed by Maehiro Maeda of Last Exile fame. This is his show. Soooooo goooood. A definite must watch.

My club is showcasing the anime tv series Sexy Commando (I forgot the whole name of this show). It is cornballish and funny but damn the art is poor. LoL. I only recommend this if you have a morbid sense of humor. ;P

Another show my club is showcasing that I think the club has really taken a liking to is called Rozen Maiden. A pretty great dark drama about small dolls with powers. My recommendation on this show as well.

Oh, btw, ADV will be releasing Princess Tutu soon to the U.S.. Although I hate supporting ADV, but I will support Princess Tutu. A definite must watch and you must survive past the first 3-4 episodes of the show which is semi-fluff (aka so magically girlie). Each episode grows darker and darker and is a total sleeper hit with fans. At first you'll be like WTF and then the story will place a big knife in your back and twist it in circles. Yes, you will all succumb to Princess Tutu. Muhahahahaha. ;P

Oh, and Miyazaki's Howl's Moving Castle R2 DVD will be released in July of this year. I am pre-ordering mine right away.

R2 Stuff....Cardcaptor Sakura was re-released again in boxsets. New box design and everything. Will be available in 3 boxsets costing sooooo much money (about $400-500 each). As you are aware, Cowboy Bebop was re-released with 5.1 DD in Japan but this time in 7 DVDs (rather than the 9 DVDs it was originally released as with no box...::shock:

(My brain is dying today...I shall update more tomorrow).

Still at work. Yes, it's that kind of week for me.

;_; ;_;

That said, I've seen bits of Sexy Commando Masaru-kun, and it is mind warping corny and bizarre. Can't think of anyone but the Japanese who'd create such a series. And yes, the art in it is pretty dreadful, as I've heard on the 'Net that it had a low budget (and oh, does it show). Don't expect that series to be released here anytime....

Woo:

You gotta admit, it has one morbid sense of humor. I thought the humor was even more morbid than Hale nochi Guu TV series and OVA series combined.

Don't do it. It really isn't worth getting...at all. Captain Planet could kick Edward Elric's little ass any day of the week.

Hey Kong! Long time no see. Perhaps you, or anyone else of course, can answer a couple quick questions:

- Which is the better series - Samurai 7 or Gankutsuou? I think I heard S7 is futuristic, but I get the feeling it still might be the setting/style I enjoy.

- FMA is going to be 13 volumes, right? Is that the whole series, or just the first season?

- Regarding Elfen Lied...is this hentai-ish or just very violent? I know it's a strange distinction to make, but I personally don't enjoy hentai but the summary I've read about EL has me curious. How long a series is it as well?

Thanks in advance, and if I think of more (and I always do), I'll be sure to ask.

James: From the first episode I've seen of Elfen Lied it has lots of nudity in it but not used in a henti way (think Mahoromatic and the boobs!). I read a review where they said there was too much nudity but...eh, what's too much? hehe... The violent part is definitly there, that first episode rated at the top of the most violent anime I've ever seen at least...I've got the box ordered...

Kong: I will pick up KoiKaze then! I like your recommendations. I had downloaded er...aquired..(hehe) all of Kimi ga nozomu eien and really, really enjoyed it. Has it been liceansed in the US yet or just in R2? I saw it over there but when I saw the price of the disks I just couldn't bring myself to do it, I was tempted though!

All: Amazing feats by RS this week, my Scrapped Princess box shipped out yesterday! This doesn't come out till what, the 28th? Amazing....! Now, watch it get lost in the mail or something...hehe, I've been waiting for this show forever!

A little lax in my Twelve Kingdoms marathon there. Dave and I have been obsessed with watching Buffy and Angel lately. I do have that Nausicaa disk staring at me everyday, just begging me to watch it...maybe tomarrow. Before I go see Sin City.
Stacey

I'm definately looking forward to Elfen Lied. There is a nice layout in the April NewType. Looks nice and creepy.

So I watched the first 3 Wolf's Rain last night. Man I love Bones Studio. I thought Rahxephon was pretty incredible and Wolf's Rain has the same serious feel to it.
Nice concept - animation superior to Rahxephon.

Can't wait for the box set!

Tony-B:

Heh but I hear it gets really really good about a third/mid way in. It's fifty-one eps total too, so I can't burn through these so easily ^_^;

James Kiang: I'd recommend both, as both have a completely different but oh-so-cool feel to them. (I know, I know - no help for you here ^_^; ) Samurai 7, unlike Samurai Champloo, is pretty serious through out, and is chock of of action and drama. Gankutsuou is just damn cool show, so I'd not miss that. Sad to say of the two clubs I go, I don't think they've shown Gankutsuo in a while. Though Yakitate! Japan was awesome...

All:

Dammit, my tiredness got the better of me last night as I watched Onegai Teacher 2 and 4 (and not 3) >_<;;;; ) At the begining of four, I saw flashbacks of things I hadn't seen, which should have tipped me off. I'll rewatch 3 and 4 sometime this weekend. Started on Nurse Witch Komugi-chan but fell asleep (it was like 1:20 am or something, so nyar).

By going to the Animeigo Website, I found out that I am completely behind on Urusei Yatsura by Seasons 6-8, and the OVAs. Man, I really need to finish acquiring old series before new ones.....

EDIT: added a list of series to finish collecting..
Series I need to finish off:

Aura Battler Dunbine (need disc 12)
Arjuna (need Disc 4)
Tiny Snow Fairy Sugar (need disc 4 and 6)
HeatGuy J (need 5-7 - may thinpack the series in the first season box...)
Twelve Kingdoms 7-10
Last Exile 6-7
Card Captor Sakura 12-18, movie 1

Things I need in seasons
Urusei Yatsura 6-8, ova box.

New series:
Onegai Twins
Cromartie High School
Samurai Champloo
Full Metal Alchemist
Tenjou Tenghe
Noir Complete Box set
Full Metal Panic

Woo:

Go for FMA. So far, it hasn't totally blown me away, but it is definitely worthy of watching. I've got some collecting work for myself, too:

Inu Yasha - disks 10+. I'll probably pick up disks 10-18 (season 2) from DDD in the next couple of months.

Tenchi in Tokyo - disk 7 and 8. I'm finally making progress on this one .

Saiyuki - disks 5-12. My local store hasn't had volume 5 in for the last couple of months. Nothing is more frustrating than seeing volumes 1-4 and 6-12 on the shelf week after week. Grrrr.

John.

I've seen bits of FMA and it was quite interesting.

Besides, a coupon for FMA disc 2 that gives me extra Suncoast Reward Points makes it all worth while... But to get that I need to go to Bestbuy to get #1 first.

That said, I'd say get those discs of Saiyuki and just order #5 from DDD. ^_^ (/otaku enabling mode)

By the way tony-b, Captain Planet - while fun - was WAY WAY cornier and campier than FMA, at least what bits I've seen of it. Not to mention animation wasn't as pretty ^_^;

Woo:

I just checked over at DDD, and I think I'll be getting Tenchi in Tokyo vols. 7-8 and Saiyuki vols. 5-6 from them late next week or early the week after that. I had some work-related book purchases I wanted to do, but they can wait.

John.

James Kiang:

Hi James...yeah it's been awhile. I haven't been on due to an addiction to MMOs...lol...

Anyways, to answer your question, you should get both because both are quite different.

Samurai 7 is based on Akira Kurosawa's Seven Samurai (shichinin no samurai) movie. The setting of the plot is a furistic medieval Japan. The series follows the movie very well but adds a few additions to fill out 26 episodes worth. Basically, if you have seen the movie, you know who dies in which order.

Gankutsuou is a very stylish presentation by Mahiro Maeda...very akin to Soultaker, yet you can tell what is what, as well it has a much, much, much better storyline because well, it is a loose adaptation of Dumas' The Count of Monte Cristo which centers around one person's revenge. Btw, Geneon licensed this series. Go Geneon!!!

As for Fullmetal Alchemist, it is a 50 episodes series spanning over 13 volumes. I think Funimation will use the R2 DVD count (hopefully they got the same encoding masters). It's the full series.

elfenleid, according to my friend, says the 1st episode is the most goriest and horrific thing he has ever seen for an anime televised show/series. But he watched all 13 episodes of it and really liked it a lot.


Stacey :

I was told kimi ga nozomu eien was licensed but I really don't know. Maybe I'm thinking of another series that was licensed. Anyway, the R2s are expensive but so worth it at 5800 yen each volume. Great show. I think you will like koikaze, not for the subject matter, but for the twisted romantic relationship involved.


Todd :

You may get disappointed with Wolf's Rain over time because Studio Bones put more money into Scrapped Princess than Wolf's Rain when both were being produced at the same time. SP is very well done all the way to the ending. WR had such a great starting premise that fell short. But I still like WR. Just wished that Bones would have put more time into it. Oh well...

I second that Rob...Kimi ga Nozomu Eien is one of my favorite series to date and I'm still smacking myself for deleting it from my computer, thinking it would be released in the states soon. Little did I know...I had read something about the fact that it wasn't being released because of the subject material. Too dramatic for Americans, subject matter was too 'intense' for us. lol....yeah.

BTW: I got my Scrapped Princess disk today w/ the figure. Wasn't it supposed to have a box though? The only box it came with was this flimsy cardboard box that the statue was in. That's not the box, is it? If it is..it sux! But the statue is awsome, stand like a foot tall, felt like I was a kid changing the barbie heads again...hehe. Very cool. I'll watch it tonight!
Stacey

Watched "Please Save My Earth" today and loved it. Only thing is it ends too soon.