Forum: Anime, Manga and Video Game Reviews

OK, so what exactly was I watching? Interstella 5555 begins on a planet of blue people where a band is giving a concert which everyone enjoys. This is sort of strange in that the music really sucks. Anyway, a group of soldiers invades, kidnaps the band, wipes their memories, paints three of...

Well, it looks like the vampires are back. But here come the Jaegers to save us. That’s Jaegers with the European J, which sounds like a Y. The team is led by Professor Willard, and includes sexy Dorothea, muscleman Fallon, and hot-headed kid Phillip. But let’s not forget the star of our show,...

Five convicted murderers from around the planet, all super-strong masters of the martial arts, escape and travel to Japan to meet in a no-rules duel with five other muscle-bound, super-strong masters of the martial arts. Their real mission? Try to develop some interest in an anime series which...

OK. Here we go again. Once more the remnants of the human race, here called The Iron Tribe, faces extinction at the hands of their enemy, here known as the Silver Tribe. No particular reason. But the bad guys have some nasty space bugs. Need I go on? Might as well. Heroic Age takes a...

Care to read about a gritty crime anime? One full of gangsters, mob bosses, and corruption? The you’d better go somewhere else, because Back Street Girls is not that anime. The premise of Back Street Girls is pretty simple. Three yakuza screw up and anger their boss. So as punishment, they...

As the Youis attack, only the Ayashi can save us. Anyone know who will save the Ayashi? Ghost Slayers Ayashi is the story of Yukiatsu, a former son of nobility turned vagrant, who joins up with a team of Ayashis. There is Abi the mountain man, Edo, a priest who dresses as a woman, and Saizo,...

This is it. The finale of the anime Godzilla trilogy. Part three supposedly closes the book on the tale of humans trying to reclaim Earth from that big reptilian monster. But Godzilla: The Planet Eater does suffer in the end with a rather confusing ending. Though after the credits role, one...

They could have so easily gone overboard on the sci-fi, but they didn’t. Hero Mask concentrates instead on the police drama side of the story. Monica Campbell is murdered investigating corporate corruption for the DA. Her protégé, Sarah Sinclair vows to get justice for Monica. Now let’s meet...

So the first question is exactly what audience is Gad Guard targeted for? The heroes are all kids – young teens actually. So I guess this is a kids’ anime? Though there is a bit of blood and violence, not to mention the occasionally half-dressed, big breasted sexy female. And why the hard core...

First of all, I have no idea what to call this series. Netflix Streaming has it listed as Last Hope, but the opening title has it as Pandora. Maybe Last Hope Pandora? Also, this is supposed to be the first season, but I have the feeling I stepped into the middle of the story. Maybe this is...

Flavors of Youth is a quiet little gem. This joint Japanese-Chinese production consists of three short films taking place in China. The first of the three is the weakest offering. The Rice Noodles is a young man remembering his youth through food. Nothing really special. His loved his...

Music has the power to inspire, to draw people together, and to heal. And then there is Lost Song. Finis, a beautiful but simple, and somewhat absent minded and innocent noblewoman, has the power of song. Her music can bring about great magic, healing – and destruction. Engaged to the...

OK now, where did we leave off? Season one of Castlevania was a warm up. Now the action really starts. Trevor Belmont is going after Dracula, aided by Sypha, a young women magician from The Speakers, and Dracula’s half-human son Alucard. Meanwhile, Dracula has gathered his vampire...

If Forest of Piano seems a bit familiar, it should. It certainly brings to mind Your Lie in April, though from a bit of quick research I learned that the Forest of Piano manga is about 20 years old. Both raise the question of a composer’s original intent versus the creativity and imagination of...

Hisone Amakasu is a young woman; well, more girl than woman; seeking a career in the military. She has a lot of growing up to do. A bit too honest, Hisone has a habit of thinking out loud and saying things she knows she should not say. She doesn’t mean to be abrupt. She does have a good heart,...

Previously, I described FLCL Progressive as being everything FLCL is – only less. Much less. Well, FLCL Alternative is everything FLCL Progressive is – and you guessed it. Less. Much less. The pace of FLCL Alternative is not so slow when compared to your average anime series. But there is...

Do you think your parents expected too much from you? You have nothing on 14-year-old Amamiku. Her parents put her in stasis for 90 years, and then instructed her to plant the seeds of DNA which will revive life on Earth. Only she is stuck underwater. But soon she meets up with some of the few...

Checking up on this film, I was surprised to learn Only Yesterday was originally released in 1991. The lifelike animation is so ahead of other anime I have seen from that era. But again, I would expect no less from Studio Ghibli. Only Yesterday was not released in the US, however, until...

You think your family parties are weird? Well, twins Aya and Aki Mikage have you beat. For their 16th birthday, everyone is going to grandpa’s house for a big surprise! They are going to kill Aya! What fun! OK, a bit of background. Ceres Celestial Legend is a fantasy about a young girl...

Dee and Ryo are two New York detectives on vacation in England, where everyone speaks Japanese -- at least in the original dub. They stumble upon a murder, but soon the story turns and becomes a comic, gay love story. Eventually we get back to the murder, but not before we the audience yell at...

If you look below, you will see my review of Godzilla: Planet of Monsters. Now it’s time for part two of the trilogy, Godzilla: City on the Edge of Battle. Haruo and the survivors of the battle with Godzilla find themselves the not too willing guests of a race of primitive humanoids called the...

Looking ahead for a few months, I expect someone will start a thread, for the third straight year, asking for suggestions on a good Halloween anime. Assuming one would want an anime which could be watched by all in one evening, I would stay away from a series and stick to a movie. The one which...

When we last left Gai, he was a Chrysalis trying to keep from becoming a Busoma. The Busoma are the bad guys, trying to destroy mankind. As season two of Sword Gai gets started, things are not going any better. So Gai commits suicide as Sayaka, the girl who loves him, watches. Yeah, right. ...

With the latest Holy Grail War to end all Holy Grail Wars coming to an end, mankind can now reach for other goals – such as journeying into space. But guess what? That old Holy Grail just won’t go away. So we now have Fate/Extra: The Last Encore. Just watching season one, only ten episodes, the...

I have to make this quick. Then again, this is a pretty quick anime. I thought Angel Sanctuary was an anime movie, but it is a three part OVA. Unlike most OVA’s, the plot is fairly well developed in that it does not glance over details leaving holes for the viewer to fill. Then again, the plot...

Saint Seiyai: The Lost Canvas is an anime series with almost non-stop action. That is not necessarily a good thing. When every fight seems not too different than the last, and when the action does nothing to advance the plot, just like the periods of endless dialog, things can get pretty boring....

So you have this guy named Jin who is traveling to the moon with his family, when the shuttle explodes. Only Jin survives since when he fell he hit the ocean. At least that is the official story, and they are sticking to it. The truth comes later. OK, so Dragonaut: The Resonance gets off to a...

I just watched the sixth and final episode of FLCL Progressive. I had mixed feelings going into the series. On the one hand, sure I was looking forward to it. On the other, I had my doubts if the FLCL magic could be recreated. My final conclusion? FLCL Progressive has everything FLCL had –...

And now for a bit of a tearjerker. In This Corner of the World is the story of Suzu. We meet her as a little girl growing up in the Japan of the 1930’s, who has a love and talent for drawing. Time passes quickly, and soon Suzu is 18 and entering into an arraigned marriage. She must now adjust...

Retsuko is an adorable little bear. Or maybe a dog. Or a cat? I’m really not sure. But Aggretsuko may initially have the look of a kiddie show, this is really an adult satire. There are ten episodes, each a bit more than 15 minutes. So it’s an easy watch to fit in. Retsuko is in her...