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Psyren vol. 14 (manga review)

Posted by :Patches On : December 22, 2013
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ItemDescription-76Title: Psyren vol. 14

Author/Artist: Toshiaki Iwashiro

Distributor: Viz Media

American Release Date: Jan. 7th, 2014

Format: Manga

Genre: Action, Supernatural, Comedy

Publisher Age Rating: T+ for older teen

Overall Personal Rating: B+

Synopisis:

Ageha and the others battle the Scourge, an experimental elite battle corps engineered by W.I.S.E. Ageha must now learn Nova, a new power that enables him to manipulate gravity, if he’s got any hope of saving his friends and his world. At the same time they have figured out a way to open the cloud deck that just might give them an edge. Or will it?

Meanwhile, the ailing Elmore sees a vision of the future that terrifies her and leaves her more fragile than ever. The thing is that Elmore passes on some additional words of wisdom and the other seem to take the words to heart. Will her vision of the future end up coming true or will these youngsters that she helped raise and train find a way to divert any potential doom?

Commentary:

As we approach the ultimate battle things are starting to heat up. This volume of Psyren not only aids in moving the series along, but it also help solidify the characters and give more meaning to who they are and what they have become. This not only gives the series a little more meaning, but also helps bring things together. I found that this volume has taken a series that could have been very confusing and started to focus us on the final battle. Of course there is the obligatory final power training mode that the hero must go through in order to take on the bad guys.

The writing in the volume of Psyren falls into the classic shonen archetype. There are moments that it would be easy to transpose Psyren with almost any other shonen manga. The way that the protagonists are pushed to their limit just to pull something extra out of thin air to stop the onslaught. The super secret hidden power that is now a technique that the hero must learn. And of course the antagonist who is about to change the world in a way that spells an end to humanity as it is known. Although things feel rather stereotypical there are other aspects to the this volume that helps to give hope to a newer vision on an old storyline. I would be more direct, but I don’t want to spoil anything for anyone. I do love to see some of these guys fight, their powers have come a long way and things are looking good.

There are a few twist to this typical archetype that help Psyren move forward and feel too stale. I think that is what helped this volume take a step in the right direction.

Overall Grade: B+

Psyren 14 is action packed and full of interesting infomation. Things manage to take some rather typical turns but there are a couple twist that just might be the big difference in the end. If feels like things are starting to move quickly toward the end and the final battle. If the remaining volumes follow this path they will be very entertaining and make the entire series worth while. So for things look very good and volume 14 does a fine job setting things up. I ready bring it on.

Aesthetica of a Rogue Hero: the Complete Series (anime review)

Posted by :Patches On : December 22, 2013
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Aesthetica of a Rogue Hero

review provided by TJ

Title: Aesthetica of a Rogue Hero: the Complete Series (anime review)

Director: Rion Kujo

Author: Tetsuto Uesu

U.S. Distributor: Funimation

Release Date: Dec 17, 2013

Format and Length: DVD/Blu-ray; 12 ep; 300 min

Genre: fantasy, romance

Industry Age Rating: TV MA

Overall Personal Rating: B+

Similar Series: Tenchi Muyo; Aquarion

Synopsis:

Akatsuki Ousawa has just returned to the normal human realm after being bestowed the title of “Rogue Hero” in a realm called Alayzard. He saved the realm by defeating the Dark Lord there. The Dark Lord’s last request was that his daughter be taken care of by the one who should kill him. So Akatsuki brought Miu back with him to the human world. It seems that people being spirited away to this world is not an uncommon occurrence and that when and if they return, they have amazing magical abilities. Because of this, those who do return are immediately taken by the military to a training school to learn how to use their new abilities for their country’s military. However, Akatsuki and Miu throw the school’s faculty for a loop when Miu show’s that she already has a knowledge of magic combat and Akatsuki shows that he does not know magic, but instead practices what he calls “Linked Energy Manipulation.” Linked Energy Manipulation is basically the control of Chi in order to strengthen the body for either a solid defense or a devastating physical blow. Under the guise of brother and sister, Akatsuki and Miu begin to become acclimated to their new life at the military school. But just as the two are beginning to enjoy their situation, another powerful hero returns from Alayzard with two goals: to kill Akatsuki and bring Miu back to Alayzard for a public execution.

 

Commentary:

Aesthetica of a Rogue Hero surprised me. It is a very ecchi series filled with fanservice, and yet, unlike most ecchi series, it has a really interesting story with deep character development and an actual plot that is exciting to watch. I was even impressed with how they made a lot of the fanservice relatively relevant to the context of the situation. As relevant as fanservice can be anyways. Unfortunately, there were quite a few scenes that just felt like the nudity was there just because. Most of the just because nudity was just weird as well. I am not sure if it was mostly cultural difference between Japan and the United States, or if it was just the creator’s personal fetishes but some of the scenes that are supposed to be fanservice just come off as weird and a little bit creepy. For example, at one point Miu and two other girls end up trapped in storage closet. They all end up having to relieve themselves and because they are locked in, there is nowhere to do that. So they end up making a mess on the floor and all three of their reactions just look orgasmic.

One thing that I really liked about this series was that they made many references to other popular anime series. Akatsuki even makes an “over 9000” joke at one point.

Overall the plot was surprisingly well thought out and the story was very interesting and enjoyable. The fight scenes were fun to watch, especially the final conflict.

 

Overall Grade: B+

Aesthetica of a Rogue Hero has a good story that is interesting and enjoyable to watch. However much of the fanservice is really strange and sometimes on the verge of creepy.

Other similar titles to check out might be Tenchi Muyo or Aquarion

 

Girls und Panzer: The Complete Series (anime review)

Posted by :Patches On : December 20, 2013
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Girls und Panzer: The Complete Seriesreview provided by Andrew and Katie

Title: Girls und Panzer: The Complete Series

Director: Tsutomu Mizushima

Studio: Acras

Author: Reiko Yoshida

U.S. Distributor: Sentai Filmworks / Section 23

U.S. Release Date: December 3, 3013

Format and Length: DVD / 12 Episodes / 300 Minutes

Genre: Action, Comedy, School, Military

Industry Age Rating: 14 and up

Overall Personal Rating: A

Similar Series or Titles to Check Out: Strike Witches

 

Panzer Vor!

Synopsis:

We have all heard of kung-fu, but the girls at Oarai High School practice something completely different. They practice Sensha-do, the martial art of operating armored tanks. It is seen as a dignified martial art that helps girls hone their grace and femininity, one fire of the tank gun at a time. Miho Nishizumi hails from a family that is famous for their skill and knowledge of the art. She is a new transfer to the school, choosing it because they do not have a Sensha-do program. However, on the first day, the president of the student counsel, and her lackeys, approach her ‘advising’ her that they have restarted the program, and that her participation is expected, due to her family’s history. Though reluctant, due to past experiences, she does join, being the only person with any knowledge of the art on the team.

Commentary:

There’s a well justified stereotype fans tend to place on “cute girls doing cute things” type animes, hastily dismissing the potential it can have. This is one of those animes, that if you are quick to judge, you will miss out. Cute girls driving historically accurate tanks is what Girls und Panzer is all about but it also goes much deeper than that. Girls und Panzer first follows Miho Nishizumi as she begins attending Oarai High School and the conflict she goes through when deciding to join the Sensha-do team. Miho is the only character in the entire anime that has real development and background as a character. The remaining characters do tend to fall into standard stereotypes, and do have individual personalities, but not a lot of time is spent on developing them. It would be hard to do so with only twelve episode, time is precious, and developing the massive number of characters (3-5 girls per tank, 5 or more tanks depending on where you are in the story, and all the opposition schools’ girls)  in this anime would take all the time. This by no means, detracts from the series.

Girls und Panzer is very much a fun, silly series to watch. It never takes itself too seriously, and in fact, ingeniously plays on its own faults the genre inherently has. I did find the music to be catchy, but truly nothing impressive. The art was kind of the same too, not to fancy or impressive, except for the details in the tanks, which were near perfect. As a student of history and the art of war, I had great appreciation for that, even when the little white flag pops out of the top, or even the bottom of the tank… You will see what I mean. It was for a good laugh. If you like tanks in history, it is worth a watch, because there are much more than Panzers and their variants. They included Japanese, Russian, American, and various European built tanks, ranging from early pre-WWII to modern M4-A1s and T-85s. The battles were well choreographed, and someone had put some thought into the individual teams’ tactics and strategies. The excitement incited during the tank battles is enhanced by how silly and fun the different girl’s personalities are. This anime is great for the simple that it took a serious thing such as tank battles and made it fun and unserious.

The definite pluses for me were the tanks, the overall idea of the story, and the girls’ personalities do grow on you. Also much to my surprise and enjoyment, there was little to no fan service, which is different from a lot of the “cute girls doing cute things” genre. They tend to use fan service excessively to compensate for lack of an interesting story.  I do have a couple of small complaints. One thing I did find kind of cool, yet a little annoying at the same time was the flashing into first person view from the tank cockpit. It was a cool view, but utilized too much CG to make it work smoothly. The other thing was the small edits. In episode 8, opposition team Pravda School enters the battle leading off with a real cute song the girls sing in Russian. I was disappointed to see it was edited out by Sentai. If you want to see it like I did, you can always find it on YouTube though.

Extras:

Girls und Panzer: The Complete Series includes character introductions, Japanese Promos, Japanese TV Spots, Clean Opening and Closing Animations, and Sentai trailers as special features. The audio is available in English and Japanese with English subtitles.

Overall Grade: A

Drew and I finished Girls und Panzer in one night. You cannot help but get sucked into this anime because the tank battles are so intense and awesome and the girls are just too cute.

 

Pet Girl of Sakurasou: Collection 1 (anime review)

Posted by :Patches On : December 20, 2013
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Pet Girl of Sakurasou: Collection 1review provided by Katie and Andrew

Title: Pet Girl of Sakurasou: Collection 1

Director: Atsuko Ishizuka

Studio: J.C. Staff

Author: Hajime Kamoshida

U.S. Distributor: Sentai Filmworks

U.S. Release Date: December 17, 2013

Format and Length: DVD / 12 Episodes / 300 Minutes

Genre: Comedy, Drama, Romance, School Life

Industry Age Rating: 14 and up

Overall Personal Rating: B+

Similar Series or Titles to Check Out: Toradora!, Honey and Clover, and Ai Yori Aoshi

 

Synopsis:

Sorata Kanda’s life has gone to the cats since he was banished from the normal dorms for adopting stray cats. Now he has been placed in Room 101 in Sakura Hall, the notorious dorm full of troublemakers, geniuses, and weirdos that is affiliated with Suimei University of the Arts, or Suiko as it is also known. Sorata is eventually charged with caring for Mashiro Shiina, his teacher’s cousin, because she is so unfocused and dysfunctional that she needs a full-time keeper to survive day-to-day life as she studies to become a manga artist. No one else will step up and care for her and now he is stuck with Mashiro-duty 24/7. Hilarity ensues once Mashiro meets the other residents of Sakura Hall. Hopefully, Mashiro will learn to care for herself but you will have to watch Pet Girl of Sakurasou: Collection 1 to find out.

Commentary:

Pet Girl of Sakurasou: Collection 1 surprised me because I really did not like the beginning of episode one but I gave it time and eventually everything came together and made sense. This truly is a “do not judge a book by its cover” anime because you do not expect what happens to actually happen. Pet Girl of Sakurasou breathes fresh life into the romantic comedy genre because it brings a sense of realism and slice-of-life aspects that turn it into a wonderful drama. It will rope you in once you get past the first half of episode one. I also liked that there was not a lot of fan-service; sure there is some but you have to expect it since a high school girl needs a caretaker.

Twelve episodes in, I believe that the character development is pretty good. Sorata is your normal male lead type for romantic comedies but his character gets more depth as the series goes on. Of course, he is very mature from the start but he finally sees what he wants to do with his life half way through this collection. The rest of the residents of Sakura Hall include Misaki Kamiigusa, who draws anime and manga, Jin Mitaka, the resident playboy, Nanami Aoyama, a voice actress in training, Ryuunosuke Akasaka, an expert computer programmer and hermit, and Chihiro Sengoku, a teacher at the school who oversees the students at the dorm. Mashiro Shiina is a world famous artist who transferred into Suiko to learn how to draw manga and eventually publish her manga and have it be a success. She is so focused on her art that she cannot even pick out her own clothing to wear for the day. As you can see, Pet Girl of Sakurasou offers a large and diverse, albeit cliché cast that provides much humor.

The storyline moves smoothly through each episode and the pace is spot on, it is not too fast or too slow. It really is the ‘Goldilocks’ of anime. However, the setting for Pet Girl of Sakurasou is not the typical setting such as a group of friends or an after-school club. Instead, everyone lives in the same dorm and each has their own set of friends and hobbies. I love how Pet Girl of Sakurasou shows evolution of the friendship between the dorm-mates and them working together to put on a show for the Cultural Fair at school. It seems as if they are turning into a real family. The opening and closing songs were catchy and well done. I found myself humming along with the music by episode five. The rest of the music was also wonderful. The voice acting was spot on and well delivered to the audience. The art was well drawn and brought Mashiro’s manga to life. Plus there were chibi’s and those are always so cute and funny.

Extras:

Pet Girl of Sakurasou: Collection 1 has Japanese Promos, Japanese TV Spots, Extended Episode Previews, Japanese Premier Event, Clean Opening and Closing Animation, and Sentai trailers as special features. The audio is in Japanese with English Subtitles.

Overall Grade: B+

Pet Girl of Sakurasou has the makings to be a wonderful series if things continue like they are into the second collection. I can really see lots of potential for a second season because the characters are far too shy for the romance part to be wrapped up in another twelve episodes.

“In The Radius”:

If you enjoyed watching either Toradora!, Honey and Clover, or Ai Yori Aoshi then you will more than likely enjoy Pet Girl of Sakurasou: Collection 1.

Pokemon the Movie: Genesect and the Legend Awakened (anime review)

Posted by :Patches On : December 19, 2013
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Pokemon the Movie: Genesect and the Legend Awakened (anime review)review provided TJ

Title: Pokemon the Movie: Genesect and the Legend Awakened 

Director: Kunihiko Yuyama

U.S. Distributor: VIZ Media

Release Date: Dec 3, 2013

Format and Length: DVD; 70 min

Genre: action/adventure

Industry Age Rating: TV Y7

Overall Personal Rating: C

Similar Series: Other titles in the Pokemon universe

Synopsis:

A group powerful ancient Pokemon has been resurrected by Team Plasma.  The Genesect escaped and destroyed the Plasma laboratory and flew off in search of their home. But what they once knew as a pleasant lake had, over the years, turned into a cold mountainous region.  Believing they had been deceived by other living things, they fly off to find a place they can call home, ready to destroy whatever may already be there.

Back in the City, Ash, Iris, and Cilan arrive at Pokemon Hills. Professor Oak had gotten them in to take a tour before it opens to the general public. Wandering around the facility, Ash comes across a Pokemon that he had never seen before. Discovering that the Genesect can talk, and that all it wants is to go home, Ash promises to help it find its home. The other Genesect show up and, believing Ash to be a threat, immediately attack him. Mewtwo arrives just in time and protects them from the blast.

It seems the Genesect that Ash found was there because there are flowers in Pokemon Hills that bloomed around its original home. Because the flowers are the only thing they found familiar, the Genesect begin running out all the Pokemon in Pokemon Hills and begin building their nest there.  Because the Genesect leader refuses to believe that anyone else wants to help it, a fierce battle between it and Mewtwo ensues that will determine the fate of the Genesect and Pokemon Hills.

 

Commentary:

I really wanted to like  Pokemon the Movie: Genesect and the Legend Awakened. I wanted it to be like the Pokemon movies that I grew up with and loved. But there were so many places where it just fell short of being good.  The biggest example is the setting of the movie. It was never made clear what Pokemon Hills actually was. The way it was talked about made it sound like a zoo, but they always refer to it as “the facility.” So is it a zoo? Maybe an adoption center? Or even a Pokemon retirement home? What is it that Ash is trying to save?

Other than that, there were three major problems with this movie. The first is the dialogue. The dialogue was awful. It is a Pokemon movie and it does deserve to be cut some slack for being a children’s show. But it is really hard to look past the fact that there were only around ten lines of actual dialogue and everything else was just a character stating things that were blatantly obvious.

The second problem with  Pokemon the Movie: Genesect and the Legend Awakened is Team Rocket. They just did not need to be there and it really seemed like they were put in to fill time. They almost had a purpose: they end up dropping a Rocket launcher into Pokemon Hills. Half the movie later, it gets knocked loose and starts falling and Pikachu saves a Genesect from being hit by it. The weapon gets knocked into a hallway and it seems like that would come into play later. Its a Rocket Launcher in a zoo. That is a huge firehazard. But no, it never comes up ever again.

The final problem is the lack of continuity. There is no mention at all of the huge events Mewtwo caused back in Pokemon the First Movie. Yes, that movie was fifteen years ago, but if the same iconic character is going to be used, shouldn’t there be some mention that it and the protagonist have met before? At the Pokemon Center Nurse Joy even states that she has never heard of Mewtwo. Even if it is in a different region, the events surrounding Mewtwo’s first appearance threatened the entire world, everyone should know about Mewtwo. It would have been simple to fit at least one mention of it into the movie, the backstory they gave Mewtwo in Genesect and the Legend Awakened just barely conflicts with how the First Movie ended. Just minor tweaking would have fixed this entire problem.

One thing that was enjoyable about  Pokemon the Movie: Genesect and the Legend Awakened was the music. It was lighthearded pop music about friendship, but it was bouncy and it would make a great karaoke song to just belt out and have fun with and embarrass yourself.

 

Overall Grade: C

There was too much wrong with  Pokemon the Movie: Genesect and the Legend Awakened to call it good. Between awful dialogue and no cartharsis relating to Mewtwo, the redeeming qualities the movie has just can’t save it.

 

Case Closed vol. 49 ( manga review)

Posted by :Patches On : December 18, 2013
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Case Closed 49Title: Case Closed vol. 49

Writer/Artist: Gosho Aoyama

U.S. Distributor: Viz Media

U.S. Release Date: Jan. 14th, 2014

Format: manga paperback/184 pages

Genre: Mystery, Comedy

Publisher Age Rating: T+ for older teen

Overall Personal Rating: A-

 

Synopsis:

The Men in Black are back – and they’ve got a political candidate in their crosshairs! After eavesdropping on their plans, Conan teams up with the FBI to stop the assassination. But if the Men in Black realize they’ve been bugged, their next target will be Richard Moore’s home!

Can Conan save the politician without putting Mr. Moore and Rachel in danger? Only if he can decipher the code words the Men in Black use to plan their hit! Then he and the school detectives are put on the case of the missing girl. It leads them down a winding path with the strange possibility that a substitute teacher just might be a men in black agent sent to do some more dirty deeds. Will they be able to solve the mystery in time and what is up with this odd substitute teacher?

 

Commentary:

One thing that I have to say right out of the gate is that Case Closed is one of the very best in juvenile detective series ever made. It makes the Hardy Boys or Nancy Drew seem like they only get the easy ones and when compared to Scooby Doo it just isn’t even worthy of the mention. Of course Case Closed doesn’t have the silly humor of Scooby Doo and that makes it even better. The overall quality of the writing is wonderful and for a younger reader the complexity might be a little tough at time but it pushes them to stretch a little and maybe ask a few questions.

The pacing of the stories was rather nice. It didn’t feel to slow or too quick in solving the next clue. There was also the added possibility of failure built into each case. The beginning with the Men in Black closed off a little too pat, but the fact that it was such a close call made it much more enjoyable. With the missing girl and the last case of the love affair gone, bad they both ran their corse but at the same time didn’t feel forced. They managed to use different groups and show a rather analytical side of this master detective that makes him one of the best out there.

 

Overall Grade: A-

I would love to see Case Closed find a wider market share in the U. S., but I have a feeling that the days of fun detective stories may have seen their peek some time ago. Now a day the hero needs to have some crazy super power and a uber dark person to be the hit. Case Closed is a wonderful series that provides a slick, fun story line to tell some interesting mysteries. They can be from a few pages long to several volumes, but Case Closed holds your interest and keeps you wondering what is next without making the answer too easy even when in the end it appears to have been rather strait forward all along. I am very much looking forward to volume 50 and would recommend this series to any 10 year old boy or girl who loves a good mystery.

Nyan Koi! Complete Collection (new english dub) anime review

Posted by :Patches On : December 17, 2013
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Nyan Koi!Nyan Koi!Nyan Koi!Nyan Koi!Nyan Koi!Title: Nyan Koi! Complete Collection (new english dub)

Director: Keiichiro Kawaguchi

Studio: AIC

U. S. Distributor: Sentia Filmworks / Section 23

U. S. Re-Release Date: Dec. 31st, 2013

Format: DVD / 300 minutes / 12 Episodes

Genre: Comedy, Harem, Supernatural

Age Rating: TV 14

Overall Grade: C+

 

Synopsis:

Saying that Junpei Kosaka’s allergic to cats is something of an understatement. Just thinking about cats can make him sneeze – a fact that seems to be lost on his mother and sister, who both ADORE cats. And if that wasn’t bad enough, when Junpei inadvertently damages a statue of a cat deity, he becomes cursed with the ability to understand felines. Now Junpei must perform one hundred great favors for cat-kind or face the fate of being turned into a cat himself!

Life quickly becomes a purrfect hell as every cat in the neighborhood starts sending Junpei their list of “requests.” But it’s not just the cats: the local Yakuza’s daughter is playing cat and mouse, the monk’s daughters are acting catty, Junpei’s childhood best friend is ready to use him as a scratching post, and the girl he has a secret crush on is as cat crazy as the rest!

 

Commentary:

Nyan Koi! starts off strong with the simple premiss of a unlucky boy who ends up gaining a strange curse just because he tries to kick a soda can into a trash can. With him discovering that he can now understand cats and being allergic to them it sets up s wonderful play between him and the cats that ends up being somewhat of a lost leader later in the series. This uncomfortable connection proves to add some fine laughs early on and just as he is embarking on his journey to fulfill the favors for the cats in order to lift the curse. It did’t begin to loose its charm until the focus turned to the women. The focus moving to the girls and the typical high school boy and his girl crazy imagination. That is where it lost its way and became just too much like a stereotypical harem.

Nyan Koi! felt a lot like AiYori Aoshi but they just don’t live together and the main two are not together, but they want to be. It just seems as though every time things are looking somewhat up for Junpei he gets put in a situation where he comes across as nothing but a prevue. This is funny a few times but it becomes rather redundant and it looses its charm.  The best times of the story are when he is helping and interacting with the cats. It works well and you can tell that the original extent of the story was to put some person in that cursed situation. The rest of the harem aspect is nothing but a added distraction.

 

Overall Grade: C+

 

In the world of Harem anime Nyan Koi! is mediocre at best and in the world of strange curses it is fun and entertaining. Unfortunately the harem tends to weigh down the rest of the series. The animation is rather standard for AIC and there is nothing special about the voice acting, with the level of writing being both the strength and weakness of the series it is clear that someone got to the creators and talked them into watering down the central idea with a classic harem subplot. I would love to see this remade and only have a simple high school romance as a side story. I bet there could be some very funny and wonderful option of ways he would have to help cats. I also noticed how much more effort was put into creating interesting cat characters over the human characters. I is proof that this series wasn’t meant to be aimed at the 15 to 20 year mail population but rather a wider audience how would enjoy a simple comedy about a guy who has to fulfill 100 cat request before he turns into one himself.

Even with the harem getting in the way Nyan Koi! was funny at times and easy to watch. I have a feeling plenty of people will like this and be very happy with the outcome.

Natsume’s Book of Friends 15 Review

Posted by :Joann On : December 16, 2013
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Natsume's Book of Friends 15“The Radius”

Title: Natsume’s Book of Friends volume 15

Writer/ Artist: Yuki Midorikawa

U. S. Distributor: Viz Media

U. S. Release Date: January 7, 2014

Format:  Manga

Genre: Supernatural Slice of Life

Age Rating: T

Overall Personal Rating: A-

There is always risks to getting involved.

Synopsis:

Natsume gets drawn to a house where Natori is investigating the strange things happening. It is the home of his mentor, Mr. Takuma, who unfortunately can not see yokai any more. As they all work together to solve the situation, Natori hears a yokai asking Natsume about the Book of Friends. He is determined to figure out what it is. Natsume has been keeping this a secret, he is aware of its power and how dangerous it would be in the hands of an exorcist.

Natsume meets a pitiful little yokai who is trying to follow his old friend Lord Shuon, a yokai who is incredibly noble and powerful. Basically the little spirit is unworthy but never gives up hope and tries to do his best to get closer.

The last story of the book is about Shigeru and Toko, the couple who had taken him in to live at their home. It starts a bit earlier before the series and how Shigeru first heard about Natsume, and then their decision to invite him to become part of their family.

Commentary:

Natsume’s Book of Friends is one of my favorite manga series. I tend to like romances, but this has none at all. It is more a slice of life, but one that just happens to involve the spirit world. There is something interesting going on, but there is never any just because someone is doing something stupid, or causing problems just because they won’t speak up. The main character, Natsume, is written as a really wonderful ( and believable in context). He seems to be a gentle old soul, but has to work out how to live this life that has been thrust upon him.

Only the first story in this volume has the series moving forward. With Natori wanting to know about the book of friends, this can really change things between him and Natsume. Even though he basically seems like a nice guy, he has always held something back. There is no resolve on this point in volume 15, but it really set it up for something big later on.

This volume brings up a really interesting idea. What happens when someone can no longer see and communicate with yokai after it has been a part of their life for so long. Natsume’s childhood was made miserable because he could see them, and now as he is learning to deal with them and the troubles they often bring, would he be glad to be separated from their world?

As good as ever, even at book 15, the story and characters are still strong. That’s yet another reason to like Natsume’s Book of Friends.

 

Overall Grade: A-

“In the Radius”: 

 

 

Kokoro Connect OVA DVD Collection (anime review)

Posted by :Patches On : December 15, 2013
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Kokoro Connect OVA DVD CollectionKokoro Connect OVA DVD Collection

Director: Shinya Kawamo

Studio: Silver Link

U. S. Distributor: Sentai Filmworks / Section 23

U. S. Release Date: Dec. 10th, 2013

Format: DVD / 4 Episodes / 100 Minutes

Genre: Supernatural, Coming of Age, Romance, Drama, Seinen

Age Rating: TV 14

Overall Grade: A

Synopsis:

They’ve already had their bodies swapped like musical chairs, had their ages changed at random, and experienced their deepest desires taking control of them without warning, but if you thought Heartseed was finished with Taichi, Iori, Himeko, Yoshifumi and Yui, you’ve got another think coming! Now there’s a new affliction going around, and the name of this peculiar bug is emotion sickness. As in, suddenly your emotions jump out of your body and sic someone else!

Needless to say, that’s more than simply awkward if you’ve got a deep-rooted phobia like a fear of men or repressed emotions that you’ve been trying to keep hidden, but in some situations it can literally be deadly! What is Heartseed up to this time, and why is he making our heroes involuntarily share their innermost dirty laundry?

Commentary:

Finally a series that left us in the lurch has come back and closed the door. Just as the series deals with these personalities the OVAs do the same. In fact I see these as just an extenuation of series rather than a OVA collection. In many ways it is too bad that these episodes were not included in with the original episodes. These OVAs/episodes are a smooth tradition from one ending to a finally. Of course there needs to be one more trial placed on them by Heartseed and this time he or it hits the mark.

Kokoro Connect is one of those series that manages to explore relationships in a personal way that is on one hand very poignant and at moments very uncomfortable. I think that may be the brilliance of the series itself. The ability to push the boundaries of who we are and at the same time make some of our more personal secrets feel very natural for everyone who spends time with others.

Overall Grade: A

Kokoro Connect has found it’s way into a top pick of mine for the 2013 U. S. releases and with the addition of these 4 episodes / OVAs it is clear that it is now more than deserving of that list. I loved the way the series explores relationships without turning it into a silly redundant body swapping series. With the added emotion swapping that goes on in these OVAs it gives us another level of complexity and asked the question “how do we hide our feelings from our friends”? Funny thing is that we have all gone through this but not at this level of stress. The way that it is approached is both interesting and painful, but at all times it still keeps us grounded in both the characters humanity and the humanity of the viewers. There are plenty of other series that explore relationships such as Anohana or even Clannad, but Kokoro Connect does something that even they don’t do and that is touch a nerve that is so universal and at the same time so personal that they almost never come up and are almost never discussed among friends. To place young coming of age kids in the position of having to experience what others feel and all the while be bonded together through both friendship and the fact that they are all placed in this position without their consent. These simple factors make the series powerful for what it is and with the added awkwardness of those highly personal secrets rolling out from time to time makes Kokoro Connect something very special.

If you are looking for a series that makes you look at yourself and your friends in a new light then Kokoro Connect should be high on the list.

Fairy Tail Part 7 (anime review)

Posted by :Patches On : December 13, 2013
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Category: Reviews

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Fairy Tail Part 7 “The Radius”

Title: Fairy Tail Part 7 Blu-ray/DVD Combo

Director: Shinji Ishihara

Studio: A-1 Pictures, Satelight

Distributor: FUNimation

American Release Date: Dec. 10th, 2013

Genre: Magical Adventure and Comedy

Format: DVD/Blu-ray Combo, 300 minutes, 12 episodes

Age Rating: 14+

Overall Personal Rating: B+

Synopsis:

When an unstoppable force descends upon Magnolia and Fairy Tail, the entire town is transported to Edolas, a world where magic is in short supply. There, a power-hungry kingdom plans on draining every last drop of magic from the captured guild – unless someone can stop them fast. As Natsu and the few left behind search for their friends, they discover a parallel plane where a tough-as-nails Lucy runs a bizarro version of Fairy Tail, and Erza is a ruthless enemy who hunts down rogue wizards.

Meanwhile, Carla and Happy stumble upon a cat-filled land where their shocking origins are revealed and a terrible betrayal comes to light. Will Natsu’s team be able to save the guild when they can’t even trust each other?

Commentary:

Well, things are making a strange turn and once we get past the filler episodes the world of Fairy Tail is turned upside down. This series of episodes show both the worst and the best of the Shonen Jump franchises. The worst of it is the tireless filler episodes that permeate through these logger series. It almost feels like they are just milking us for more money. The best comes in the for of the story twist and this one is wonderful. A full flip of personalities and a all out save them all situation puts the new phase of the series looking like it is going to be a blast.

I fouled some of the personality reversals a lot of fun and a few of them annoying. Gray is often bothersome but the the other world Gray is really over the top. That utter change in all of them is going to be the key to this arc. Fairy Tail does a great job of being fun and entertaining, but it also does a superb job of telling a story that is full of adventure and honest emotion and friendship.

The bond between these stranger people is once again at the heart of a arc. It sustains the story in the goods time and bad, but with this arc there the times are just down right odd. I have a feeling that there will be plenty more of unusual situations and plenty of fun.

Overall Grade: B+

Moving into a new acr can be great and awkward at the same time. I would have to say that the transition into this arc was more awkward than great. Once they got to where they were going things turned around.  I still find Natsu very distracting and rather tiresome, he is also fun to watch. The rest of the cast really makes this series worth the time. I am really looking forward to how it develops and how Natsu and Lucy end up saving the rest of Fairy Tail. Keep it coming.