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ローゼンメイデン 
February 29, 2004 | 
3 Comments
This series seems to be larger and more epic with each episode and it especially shows in these three episodes. It is also obvious by now that the series intents on developing the supporting characters we have met thus far beyond their one-off appearance. It's nice to know, for example, that even though Chris is not travelling together with Pacifica and the others, he is actually as involved as the Casulls in the entire Scrapped Princess matter. This is achieved by intersecting his investigation with the current adventure that Pacifica and her foster siblings go through as they travel from one area to the next. In more ways than one, Chris' investigation supplies additional informations that we otherwise won't get if we only follow the Cassuls' adventures.
February 24, 2004 | 0 Comments
There's a nice-looking trailer for the live action adaptation of popular manga called Shinzo Ningen Casshern (Robot Hunter Casshern). Visual-wise the trailer looks awesome and definitely makes me to know more about this film. Some of the imageries remind me of The Matrix while others look like a live action version of the Metropolis anime. Check out the entire web site for the film while you're at it as well.
February 23, 2004 | 18 Comments
Yikes, I've been too focused on getting the 26th February issue of Shounen Ace (which hopefully will contain a new chapter of Evangelion) to the point that I forgot that there is a new chapter of Fruits Basket inside this week's Hana to Yume. So thanks to those of you who reminded me about it. This chapter turns out to be as thick as the last one and that can't be a good thing as far as I know when it comes to manga chapter releases. Normally a thick chapter is followed by either a very thin chapter on the next issue or no chapter whatsoever. In Furuba's case this time around, there won't be any new Furuba chapter until April 5th, 2004. Well, at least we know when to expect the next chapter. I wish I can say the same thing about EVA and X.
February 22, 2004 | 9 Comments
Well, I'm glad to know that this series has finally stop moving in circles, especially in regards to Himeno and Hayate's romance as well as the identity of Saihi. I felt that the second DVD volume wasn't going anywhere much, as far as the plot is concerned. Thankfully, this particular volume seems to throw many revelations to the viewers to make up for it. Although admittedly, one of the revelations is not that much of a surprise since the show already gave quite a lot of hints earlier in the series and because the DVD cover turns out to be such a spoiler.
February 20, 2004 | 3 Comments
It looks like IGN.com has managed to obtain the Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children new trailer that is included inside FFX-2 International + Last Mission. Unfortunately, it looks like unless you're a subscriber, you can only download the Windows Media Player version and not the Quicktime version of the trailer. Anyway, it doesn't look that different from the first trailer that you can download from the official site above but it does show some additional footages which include a glimpse of Barett and Vincent. It is also accompanied by Aerith's Theme which gives the trailer a rather melancholic feel to it. To be honest, I'm not really sure what this particular straight to DVD film can tell as far as storyline goes. I've always felt that the original game had a rather conclusive ending. But I suppose we won't really know for sure until this upcoming Summer.
February 17, 2004 | 7 Comments
I finally get to watch this new Yoshitoshi ABe/Chiaki Konaka's series and what an interesting show this one turns out to be. The opening animation itself is already quite unusual for an anime series due to its frantic and disorienting graphic. In addition to this, the use of Juno Reactor song, Guardian Angel gives the opening a rather creepy tone the first time I saw it. The series unfortunately has been getting some negative reviews from viewers who were turned off by the first episode, which some claimed as undecipherable.
I have to disagree with them because I think this series is far more easier to follow than Serial Experiments: Lain or Boogiepop Phantom. So if you are a fan of those series, please give Texhnolyze a try. Having said that, I do realise that this may not be the series for everyone. So if you require your anime to be light and fluffy, then you may want to stay away from this one since Texhnolyze contains mutilation, some sexual situations (often mixed with mild violence), and features gloomy and depressing atmosphere.
February 15, 2004 | 0 Comments
There is a brand-spanking new trailer for both Silent Hill 4: The Room and Onimusha 3: Demon Siege on the IGN website. I have to say that Silent Hill 4 trailer creeps me out, especially when those 3 headed babies crawling its way to the screen. I can't wait for this game to come out. Onimusha 3's new trailer looks equally good, especially with "Requiem Mass Dies Irae" (Mozart ver.) song playing in the background. And while the full opening trailer featured full-on CGI, this new trailer features the gameplay graphics and mechanics. Also, if you're interested, Konami has 'pre-opened' their official Silent Hill 4 website. It looks empty at the moment, but they have the same trailer that is posted on IGN website in various Windows Media Player format.
February 14, 2004 | 5 Comments
Okay, I think I'm starting to really like this anime despite the fact that all of the episodes that I've watched thus far consists of mainly fillers and more fillers. I think this mostly because I find Nina to be a sympathetic characters and I want to see what's in store for her. I even managed to tolerate the opening song, 'Kagami no Naka' which at first pissed me off to no end because it reminded me of one of those US teenage shows theme songs. I do hope that the plot is going somewhere very soon though because I don't know how many more filler episodes I can watch.
February 12, 2004 | 0 Comments
Heh. I've just found out that there'll be an anime series based on the popular manga called Midori no Hibi. I've had a chance to read Vol.3 and 4 of the manga and I have to say that I really like this series and find it to be really hillarious. It's basically about a guy who one day finds out that his right hand has somehow been replaced with a miniature living, breathing girl. I can't wait until the anime series is screened in Japan this upcoming April 2004. The original manga still runs in Shounen Sunday magazine and so far there are already 4 volumes of the manga.
February 11, 2004 | 4 Comments
Boogiepop and Others is basically the feature film that proceeds Boogiepop Phantom anime. In general, it's good to know that there are some elemental consistency between the movie and the anime. For example, remember the opening theme for the anime called "Evening Rain"? Well, that particular song is actually the ending theme of this film. The song was also heavily used for the multitude trailers that were created for this film. The same can be said for the haunting Boogiepop whistle that is normally heard when Boogiepop is nearby. In addition to these, the look and feel of Shinyo Gakuen/Academy, Geo City, and other locations seem to have been preserved quite well from the movie to the anime.
Remember when I said that this series doesn't seem to take itself seriously? Well, I was wrong. Big time. Not only this series starts to take itself seriously starting from episode five, it also starts to feel a bit like the typical magical girl plot which kind of disappoint me a bit. There's nothing wrong with the story or anything bad like it. It's just I feel that I've seen this kind of story beforehand and in a much better shape and form. I was hoping that Pretear will somehow twists the story of Snow White and its breathen rather than following it closely while slightly modifying its storyline.
February 7, 2004 | 18 Comments
Well, this is one thick chapter. Basically we know get to see the Cinderella school play after the wacky hijinks of last chapter's rehearsal. As mentioned last week, due to the clash between the personality of the players and the personality of the characters that they play, the play committee decided to change the script of the school play. In doing so, they have created one hell of a weird but unbelievably funny version of 'Cinderella'.
Some horror-related game news here. The first one is probably old news to some but since I've got so many people looking and hungry for some "Siren PS2" news, I figure I'll mention this one here just in case some of you didn't know about it yet. There's actually a European official site of the game available to look at now. This is one interesting site which basically forces you to live out the experiences of the characters in the game. As a result, surfing the site turns into the creepiest web surfing experience I've had to endure. However, if you're patient and careful enough in navigating their Flash-based site, you'll be rewarded with a cool screensaver. You'll also get to be amused and creeped out by the atmospheres that the site creates.
I've been wanting to make some kind of a generic outline of this anime's basic plots. Mostly because I really like this series and also because I'm about to obtain a R2 DVD of the Boogiepop Phantom live action film (DVD obtained, 11 Nov). If you are interested in reading this and haven't seen the series, please be aware that this entry will be full of spoilers because this is an attempt to recall the entire Boogiepop events in chronological order instead of in fragmented style like in the series. And I think if you haven't seen the series, you will find the fragmented nature of the series to be far more interesting than if it was told in linear style like what I'm about to do.
When I first started watching this series, I found the world of Last Exile to be quite peculiar. For example, fresh water is quite the rarity in this world to the point that most people treat it like some expensive alcoholic beverages. At first, I found it amusing when the characters in this series going to the bar and order an expensive fresh water to celebrate a special occasions. Upon reflection, however, I realise that this situation is not that different from our own world where, in some countries, obtaining fresh water is not very easy. In some ways, Last Exile works quite well as a precautionary tale to remind us not to take our water supply for granted.
