HTF Anime Discussion Part VIII - Page 8

I picked up last night at Best Buy....
Azumanga Daioh v.4 - $6.99
Azumanga Daioh v.5 - $6.99
Azumanga Daioh v.6 - $11.99
Please Twins LE BOX v.1 - $19.99

sweet.

You just made me think of Clerks.

There are a number of interesting "A" list series that have not gotten any US exposure here yet.

NOTE: Make sure you load all *.asx trailer files in the official Windows Media Player, not Windows Media Player "Classic" like many of us use.

Basilisk (GONZO)
Looks like fantasy Samurai - like Ninja Scroll.
http://broadband.biglobe.ne.jp/strea...01442_500k.asx

Speed Grapher (GONZO)
Looks like a seedy horror about a photographer getting caught up events. Great trailer here (case sensitive link):
http://www.earth-alliance.org/Mement...eedGrapher.avi

Kenran Butou Sai: The Mars Daybreak (BONES)
Underwater mecha adventure. You can find a 2 minute trailer here:
http://anime.kenran.net/meta/kenran_pv_high.asx

Eureka 7 (BONES)
Another mecha type - looks pretty interesting.
You can find a long 1Mbps trailer here:
http://mbs.jp/eureka/bb/pre1m.asx

Le Portrait de Petit Cossette
Oh boy - this looks AMAZING
http://www.wowow.co.jp/stock/anime/c...tepromo500.asx


Other mentionables:
Samurai 7
(sorry no trailer)
Sousei no Aquarion
http://www.earth-alliance.org/Mement...s/Aquarion.avi

Just watched the 1st disc of Samurai Champloo. It was a bit strange with the mix of action and humour but theres enough for me to check out the next disc. I must have been really tired because I found myself hitting the back button numerous times to re-read subs which is unlike me.

Boy, you get sick for a day, and you miss so much polite interaction .

Anyway, I spent my under-the-weather time constructively by rewatching a few disks:

Magical Shopping Arcade Abenobashi vol. 4: A fine end to a fun series, with a little more depth than you might imagine.

Someday's Dreamers vols. 1-2. My favorite series from last year. This series has just been a pleasure to watch, and I'm looking forward to finishing it up tonight.

John.

Any thoughts on the Trigun anime? I glanced at the manga at the bookstore last night - reminded me of Cowboy Bebop with the western gunslinger theme on the inside cover page.

I'm on Trigun Episode 9, still waiting for it to get a pulse. Some have said it picks up later.

If you are looking at older Geneon titles and somehow you missed it - Hellsing is great from the get go.

I'll second Hellsing. It's a worthy purchase for your hard-earned cash. The story doesn't follow the manga very closely, but as I mentioned earlier, Geneon is working on a Hellsing OVA that is supposed to be a lot closer to the manga.

John.

Oh yeah, sorry about mixing up Kong and John - must have been reading too fast and got confused.

I watched 3 (or 4?) episodes of Hellsing - it was quite amusing seeing the Pope send a bloodthirsty Catholic "exorcist" gleefully slaughtering people left and right.

Hmmm, I really should find that videostore that had it for rent - they moved a couple of years ago and I forgot about them!

No pulse on Trigun at episode 9? Weird. Well, I hear something similar about Gasaraki - slow going supposedly.

I enjoyed Trigun almost from the very first episode.

Starting at about Episode 12, the tone of the series starts to change.

Jason

Um, avoid Mars Daybreak...yeah it is Studio Bones production but this is their WORST show they have ever done....I think worst than Wolf's Rain in terms of storyplot goes. Very childish and belittling intelligence. I have no idea why they created such a mess. After half the series, I gave up, quite contrite and boring to boot. I kept yawning watching this show and wished it was over faster.

La Petite Cossette is a gothic lolita drama. If you are into goth (goth in Japan is not like goth in America...goth in Japan is very much a darker version of Renaissance look with an abundance of colors...but everything goth in Japan is pretty and not butt ugly black like it is in America) and have a lolita complex, this series is right for you.

Speed Grapher is actually quite good for the 1st 3 eps so far. It delves into the world of cults and fetish occults (think of Eyes Wide Shut with all the sex intact and not obscured out for stupid American puritans). Good intro song...lol...Duran Duran's Girls on Film song. It makes me laugh listening to it but it works because it is about a photographer who really tries to delve into this cult, and a girl who is the so-called "goddess" of the cult.

Woot! Eureka 7 mecha designs are by Kawamori Shoji. LoL, the opening is done by the Jpop boyband, FLOW. LoL. Actually FLOW is really popular now too. This, being a Bones series, may be good or childish like Mars Daysbreak, so we'll see. Although the concept of a mech on a surfboard reminds me of Silver Surfer in someways.

And btw, I never liked Samurai Champloo. When comparing this to Samurai 7 when both came out at the same time, most of us agree that Samurai 7 way outdid Samurai Champloo in every category by far

Man, nice episode of FMA tonight on CN.

Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)

Jason

Yeah, that is a very good episode!

>> La Petite Cossette is a gothic lolita drama

I've read some reviews and that seems to be the case. It apparently doesnt cross any lines though from what I've read - its a "16+" title - for violence apparently.

>> Um, avoid Mars Daybreak...

I've only seen the first 5 Wolf's Rain episodes but I absolutely love what I've seen. I still want to check this one out. You're warning is noted though.

I've got the first few Eureka 7's but I havent watched them. I'll try to check them out this weekend and report back.

Not much going on with me, but reading manga. I've been reading Rurouni Kenshin (restarted as it's been a while) and so far at volume 10, it's very very comparable to the excellent anime. In a few ways, it's better - less filler, more blood (even though there is a bit of superdeformed action, a LOT less than the anime). I have 5 volumes to go. Can't wait until it hits volume 18, where the Jinchuu Arc starts, and we get to see what happened after Kyoto. (FYI, volume 10 is where Kenshin meets Chou, the Sword Hunter. So far, so good...)

For me, I really do enjoy the bulk of the Shonen Jump releases as they are action packed, and fun to read. I'll have to look into Del Rey stuff - behind on getting Negima (at least by 5 or more volumes, only have upto 3) and others that Kong mentioned.

Hellsing - at least the first two discs are quite fun. Purchased it two years ago at Otakon and haven't regretted it since.

Trigun - The manga that Dark Horse released is quite good. Anime has a LOT of filler in the beginning. I'd say get the two volumes out by Dark Horse, then start Trigun Maximum. It plays out a bit differently from the anime as well so it's a good read (damn, I haven't read anything since Maximum #2).

Todd:

I've really enjoyed Wolf's Rain up to now, and I'm looking forward to completing the series later this month. I recommend getting the rest of the series, although you can probably avoid volume four. All the episodes on that disk are recaps, although even those were better than average.

Woo:

How is Negima? Is it as good as Love Hina and A.I. Love You?

All:

I finished up Someday's Dreamers last night. What a great show. Highly recommended.

John.

JohnAD:

Haven't read it yet. Have only read Love Hina manga upto 3, and haven't even started AI Love you at all, so I can't say. (That's probably because I was sorta burned out on the Love Hina anime. But I promise I'll restart it soon). But I think it is good from what I've heard others speak of it. If you can leaf through it in a comic shop or some other B&M store, go ahead, and decide if you want to take the plunge.

I am mostly following Shonen Jump titles (Bleach, Naruto, Rurouni Kenshin, Prince of Tennis) and some Dark Horse titles (Hellsing mainly) , and recollecting some series too. Fruits Basket, GetBackers, and KareKano are the main ones I am collecting - behind a crapload on the latter (read FB 8 so I am up to date on that. But only upto volume 2 on GB, volume 3 on KareKano.) GTO has one more volume out (25) to complete it.

I blame my behindness on manga/anime into two categories:

Mainly MMORPGing (FFXI - curse you ) and work (been busy)

Hey ChrisDAC:

Just so you know, the first 1/2 (3 eps) of Nuku Nuku OAVs are probably the best of the series (at least the OVAs, if not TV and Dash combined.) Second half ain't bad either, but is more "filler"-ish and has a more silly and less dramatic story...

Dumb question, but how far behind is the DVD release of Full Metal Alchemist as versus what's airing on Adult Swim (i.e. Cartoon Network)?

Edit: It looks we are around 2~3 dvds behind assuming an episode count of 4. Oh well...

Woo:

That's no problem. I was just curious. I probably will get around to picking it up one of these days. I'm so behind on the ones I'm collecting now, but I think I'll probably go down to Uwajimaya/Kinokuniya on the 17th to get some.

John.

FMA:

Cartoon Network is on episode 24...

The DVDs are on episode 8.

So the series is 4 DVDs ahead on Cartoon Network.

Rob Lutter:

Your katakana is wrong on your website. **sigh** It is supposed to be ƒGƒŠƒ`ƒXƒbƒg or ƒGƒŠƒeƒBƒXƒbƒg (either should work). Please change it ^^


Woo:

Woo! Where is the love for Hikaru no go??? Show me the love! Read Hikago!!!! ^^

Hahaha, although I hate Melody of Oblivion series which is co-done by Gainax and some other studios, episode 21 had an interesting, shall we say, borderline Hentai episode...something of a "fetish" episode. Weird raunchy episode.

But yeah, stay away from Melody of Oblivion. Utter crap fest of sheer boredom. Just as bad as Lost UNiverse and houshin engi (aka Soul Hunter, ADV title). /shudder

Err Kong, sorry - I am eagerly awaiting HnG Volume 4 at some point this month or next. I believe it's a Shonen Jump title as well... If not an action title. I am also reading Bastard!!. I am also STILL collecting Ranma 1/2 (currently at volume 29).

What can I say. I am Viz's bitch (sorry, no offense to teh ladies of the forum.)

Nuku Nuku is a fun little show. I love cat girls and she was definitely a fun one. The first episodes were great but it kinda got boring in the latter parts.

Someday's Dreamers really disappointed me after it was hyped here so much. One of the few things I have been disappointed in really. Maybe the hype was just too much for it. Good ideas and charming characters but it never really sucked me in.

Why the hate for Wolf's Rain? Along with Kiddy Grade, they are my two fav shows from last year. Neither I have completed yet I must admit but am on the way to finishing up Kiddy Grade now. Although its been too long between volumes and I don't remember it as clearly as I used to.

As for Soul Hunter, I've had the brick for awhile but can't bring myself to watch it. It just kinda...sits there. And looks at me. I look back. I don't watch it though. In fact its in the "shamed anime" area which is on top of the rack instead of actually being displayed on it. Kinda shoved to the back and the side. Maybe there's a reason I am never interested in it? Can feel the suckiness from here I guess.

Well, everyone's tastes differ. Life would be pretty boring, otherwise.

John.