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Bit of a mixed couple of days. As noted on several blogs already, it seems that the last 6 minutes of the next installment of Code Geass was leaked to the public.
According to bandai, it was an error which occurred while they were testing out a part of their bandai channel streaming system. Luckily, for all the Geass fans, it doesn’t seem that it has affected the broadcast schedule so ep 3 will still air this weekend, with only a few minor things spoiled. For example, Rollos Geass is time freeze.
Aside from being a pretty big hax, I expected something like that since watching Ep2. Afterall, a geass does not affect the actual user but allows them to influence others. A geass also doesn’t have any effect on anything mechanical so when the Vincent showed off it’s “teleport” maneuver, the first thing I thought of was “The World,” The stand of the main antagonist in Jojo’s bizarre adventure.
Afterall, it makes more sense that a geass could affect a person and cause him to stop moving temporarily as opposed to a whole knightmare frame teleporting to a safe distance.
And in other news, the next Super Robot Wars game has been announced!!! YAY!!!!!!!!!
Dubbed Super Robot Wars Z (no word if it stands for the last letter of the western alphabet or zeta yet), The game will most likely be the last game for the PS2. Rather fitting considering SRW alpha gaiden was also one of the very last PS1 games to be released.
I’m also glad that they stuck with the PS2 as I would be rather annoyed if they jumped on the wii bandwagon purely because it was the “in thing” like some other franchise (yeah I know they cited high development costs as the reason for jumping ship but then please explain to me why they would start developing a heavily online focused game like monster hunter for a console with by far the worst online system?).
Series confirmed for this outing are:
Overman King Gainer (karaoke, standby!)
The Big O (Woo!!)
The Big O Second Season
Zambot 3
Daitarn 3
Xabungle
MS Z Gundam
Char’s Counter Attack
Gundam X (YES!!!)
Turn A Gundam
MS Gundam SEED Destiny
Mazinger Z
Great Mazinger
Getter Robo G
UFO Robo Grendizer
GOD Sigma
Sousei no Aquarion
Eureka Seven
Orgus
Baldios
Gravion
Gravion Zwei
I’m probably in the minority here, but I’m looking forward to beating Shinn to hell and back. I don’t have any love for Kira Yamato but damn I hated Shinn…
And, unless realize comes back as the theme for the seed units, the King Gainer theme is going to be played on a loop while I play!! I mean, come on!!! It’s one of the greatest OPs ever!! It did the “dancing anime characters” bit long before it was considered “cool” in shows like Haruhi and lucky star.
More screens can be found
Finally got round to watching Code Geass R2 episode 1 last night and I must admit that I was severely underwhelmed. Everything was there, the animation quality was acceptable and safe but it really didn’t grab me as I watched it.
One of the reasons was possibly because it was pretty much a rehash of the first episode of season 1, right down to the dead bodies at the end and Lelouche commanding the soldiers to kill themselves!
I was also annoyed by the fact that the series wasn’t really connected to the end of the first season. The show ended with a mountain of questions and we didn’t get a single answer or hint from the first ep of R2. It was almost stand alone. In fact, all it did was raise even more questions!!!! All I can say is, there had better be answers and damn soon!!! I mean, how can Lelouche conveniently forget that he is zero and lose his geass powers? How can Karen now accept Lelouche as Zero so readily when, at the end of the first season, she was on the verge of a breakdown when she found out?! And how the heck can Suzaku say to the emperor that he will kill zero when he couldn’t do it when he had a gun pointed at point blank range???!!!!
Still, there were some consolations…
I have no doubt that geass will pick up later but I wish the writers did a better job at linking things together instead of leaving so many loose ends all the time! But the sooner they change the OP and ED the better as they were awful!! Even the second OP from season 1 was better than this crap! Orange Road should be ashamed!
(EDIT: After watching ep 2, we actually DO get to find out what happened in the cave at the end of season 1!! and it lasts all of a few minutes!!! Seriously, couldn’t this have been put into the first ep? They also threw in a few more questions but at least they gave some answers this time. Though I still don’t understand how Karen can so readily accept Lelouche as zero given her actions and reactions in the cave. And the OP and ED still suck!)
As for Frontier…
True to their word, Gonzo have released the first episode of their 2 shows, the tower of Druaga:The Aegis of Uruk and Blassreitter on several streaming video sites with english Subtitles. And Decent subs at that!!!
Having watched both, from first ep impressions Druaga would seem to be the better show. I was laughing all the way thru the show with it’s parodies of all the generic set pieces such as the prelude to death sections and the tentacle monster!
However, I’m doubtful that they will be able to maintain that sort of structure for the whole show so we’ll have a better picture of what the show will be like within the coming weeks.
In that sense, Blassreitter was a much more standard fare with the first ep giving you a basic idea of the world the show is set in and what to expect in later eps. It was a little disappointing (Gonzo over reliance on CG was evident here) but it seems interesting enough to keep up for another few weeks. So the streamed release with english subs were a success, Shame the same can’t be said for the downloading process.
Crunchyroll are providing avi files for download for those who want it with a “name your price” system similar to what radiohead did with their last album “in rainbows.” A good idea, afterall, no matter how convenient the streaming is, the quality will always be pretty damn poor. With the chance to download the file, viewers get the chance to watch the show in decent quality and keep a copy for themselves!!
At least that’s what supposed to happen!!! I tried to download the first ep of Blassreitter and it’s been a nightmare. Problems with paypal donations meant that I had to use my own card, which I would have preferred not to and after jumping through hoops, I got a download link to get the file, which DIDN’T WORK!!!
So at present, I have no file to watch!! I’m donating to thank gonzo for the show but if it was to donate soley for crunchyroll then I don’t think I’d even go to the site again, let alone donate! More testing should have been done to make sure that problems like this shouldn’t happen. I makes their site look really bad and it also reflects poorly on gonzo, even though they have nothing to do with the issue.
Gonzo, if you’re reading this (not stinking likely, but hey) next time you have a good idea like this one, make sure you partner up with people who can do this thing properly!!!!
For readers who want to donate and download the eps, DON’T!!! Wait it out until the problems are all fixed, if ever.
Shame really, if it went off without a hitch, this could have been a big step in the right direction for western anime distribution.
Yay! I finally have internet again!! Actually, I had it at the later half of last week, but I needed time to prepare new posts and, as luck would have it, the winter season just finished so here are my personal rankings for last season and what I will most likely be watching for the next. I normally write this a few weeks after the new season so I get a feel for the shows but I thought I’d make a change. Just this once.
Best Show: Shigofumi
OK, lets get this out of the way first, The winter season was a sea of mediocrity. the quality of shows varied but by the end of them all, there was not a single one which truly stood out or were particularly memorable.
Shigofumi is no exception. However, due to it’s, frankly, incredible first few eps and interesting talking points, it stands above the rest. In fact, it was the closest to giving me the “must watch the next ep” feel out of all the shows (excluding Gundam 00 which wins outright on the basis of having mecha) .
Shigofumi was a really strange show which had some of the worst elements of storytelling (independent episodes) and made them work. In fact, the stand alone eps were often better than the ones which pushed the main storyline along! The rather cynical “look at the dark side of humanity” idea is nothing new (Hell Girl comes to mind) but i felt that Shigofumi did a better job than the other shows using the same angle. I felt a little personal affinity for the characters in ep6 (the bullying ep) and the first 2 eps really were quite an incredible bit of storytelling.
Yet the eps which explained Fumikas past didn’t grab me like some of the other eps, which is why the show started sliding into mediocrity. How could it sustain itself if the main story felt weaker than the rest?
Nevertheless, there were some real gems in the 13 ep series which is why I call it the show of the season. It gave me the first “WTF!!??” moment I have had in a very long time, and that was in the first episode. I can honestly say that I did not see the end of ep1 coming. And that says a lot!!! Heck, I was able to predict most of the last 1/3rd of Mai HiME but that had me stumped! In a good way mind you, not the Mai Otome ” actually this girl is the missing princess. We pointed you towards this other character for most of the season but there was this major piece of evidence which negates all that and proves that our girl is the princess. BTW, we’re showing that evidence after the revelation!”
Man, that pissed me off…
Runner up: Gundam 00/Shakugan No Shana II
Several Sites have already pointed out that a teaser trailer for the upcoming second season for Code geass has made it’s way onto youtube
Looks pretty good and a fair few people are already salivating over it. Myself? Well, I intend to watch it but it’s taken a distant second to a rival show which will be shown during the same season (though not necessarily the same time slot).
You may have heard of it, it’s called MACROSS FRONTIER!!!!!
Another new season is here so I thought I would just post my watch list for this season as well as the impromptu awards for last season!
The Awards!
Best Show: Minami-Ke
No outright winner this time round and the shows were more contested but none really hit the high point like Gurren Lagann did before it.
Minami-Ke wins overall simply because it was consistently fun to watch.
Runner up: Bamboo Blade.
Yeah, I know I said there would be no updates for christmas but then it’s not quite christmas yet, and I’ll probably forget by the time I find a moment to write this up again.
In any case, Some kind folk have already subbed the first episode of macross Frontier!!
I won’t go into the whole “how the subs are” issue, I’ll leave that to others but how was the show? pretty DAMN COOL!!
But this is only the first ep and Kawamori is at the helm so caution is advised (yes, I just dissed Kawamori, I could write a separate post about the more recent shows he’s been involved in and how they just became nonsensical at the end after some promising starts (*cough* Macross zero, Aquarion *cough*) If anyone want to moan, please direct it to the nearest brick wall!)
And after that item which was perilously close to a rant, the good…
- The fight, although being TV budget CG, was really well done! It still stood out quite a bit so you can really tell it’s CG, but I really didn’t care!
- Music is awesome! I personally think that ppl give Yoko Kanno too much credit (basing a show around her alone is just asking for trouble. I’m looking at you , wolf’s rain), but she does some excellent work, no doubt about that!!
- Character relations are already set up and feel more fleshed out than those seen in M7 or even zero!!!
- Back to the fights, they really felt like a cross between macross zero and macross plus, but given that the dogfights in zero were the best parts, I’m not complaining!
As I said before, it’s too early to tell if the show is going to be any good, and I am cautious of any “humans ruining the planet” themes which are turning into a Kawamori main staple or any weapons based on “music energy” but I’m really digging what I’ve seen so far.
Also, as an added bonus, the end theme was was a remix of Ai, Oboitemasuka? (Do you remember love?) Nice touch!!
For those interested, english subbed ep can be found here
A quick flash of really minor news. Zero No Tsukaima has been confirmed to have a 3rd season in the works!
I’m sort of looking forward to this so why did I label it as minor news? Because it was really obvious from the ending that something was in the works. Either that or the writers should never get another job again! Now all that’s needed is a confirmation of a second season of Kaze no stigma. That had a massively open ended final ep as well.
On another note, Higurashi is also getting another season. Word it that it will cover side stories and perhaps contain the ending from the PS2 version of the game.
Also, new info suggests that the second season of Haruhi will follow the events from the 4th book, “the disappearance of Suzumiya Haruhi”
(source: Anime news network)
I’ve managed to get through several eps of various shows now so I have a good idea on what I think is worth watching and what isn’t. Similar format to last time. There are 3 Tiers, Must watch, Entertaining and Why am I watching this again?? There are also some shows from last season which I have yet to finish. They are:
Claymore (still going strong but slowly. Picked up some of the later manga chapters tho…)
Denno Coil (getting wierder but still fun)
Hayate No Gotoku (getting less funny. Probably because I have read ahead in the manga so the impact is lessened. May drop this)
Sky Girls (yup! Still going!)
Higurashi Kai (it’s not over yet)
But enough about the old shows, here’s the new list!
Must watch
Gundam 00
A no brainer here, since a mecha show is always in my “must watch” pile and this is pretty much the only one this season. Nevertheless, it has marked itself as being very different from previous gundam shows in that it pays far more attention to the politics of the world stage as opposed to a single side or faction. This has both good and bad points but it still makes the show feel a little refreshing.
The pace is also relatively quick, since it’s going to be 2 26 ep seasons as opposed to 1 50~something eps. I just hope that the plot doesn’t suffer because of it.
Minami-Ke
This show is just damn funny. No other reasons needed to enjoy this show, right? The best thing is that the humour manages to stick on the good side of slapstick. The characters do some really stupid things, but you get the feeling that you were like that as a kid too. The humour is also universal, something lucky star failed quite amazingly at!
Shakugan no Shana second
Bringing up the rear we have shana II. Admittedly, it’s a lot weaker than the first season and while it is still entertaining, I’m not sure if it’ll keep the “must watch” status. Early eps just seem to drag the story on without allowing it to progress. The OP and ED songs are great tho!
I know there are probably quite a few ppl out there who have been waiting for this!! The official macross website has recently been updates with *drumroll*
A PV for Macross Frontier!!!
http://macross.co.jp/?id=special,2007111001
Follow the link and prepare to wait for a long time as this PV takes an age and a half to cache! Best go get a drink or whack out any handheld system to kill time.
Once it loads, we are treated to high quality shots of megaroad ships, brief views of characters and a snippet of action from the newest member of the Variable fighter, the VF25, including it’s transformation sequence!!
*edit* Lower quality youtube video now up for grabs!
The good
- Damn, the quality of the animation looks top notch! The battle sequences suffer a bit but the new city ships look amazing
- Not a single trace of mythology, musical weapons, vampire aliens or random mumbo jumbo. Just character interactions and cool action sequences. I know it’s too early to tell, but I dare say if they keep the feel of the PV, Macross is BACK!!!
- The music. Yoko Kanno is always good.
The Bad
- While there are not Vampire aliens, the main enemies getting beaten up in the promo are definitely extra-terrestrial. Also, given that the overall director is Shouji Kawamori, I fear that it’s only a matter of time before the feared random mythology and general stupidity will be involved somehow. We just haven’t seen it. I know I said good things about the feeling i get from the show in the above remarks, but let’s be realistic…
- The VF25. While the individual modes are pretty nice to look at, the transformation was very flimsy. People looking forward to the inevitable expensive Yamato toy will probably have to be extra careful when they get theirs. It also gave some really big aquarion Vibes. Not sure if that’s a good or bad thing…
In any case, I hope that the good points from the PV shine and we get zero Kawamori mumbo jumbo when the series finally airs.
Out with the old and in with the new! Guess I would do a little roundup of some of the shows which have just finished and the ones which have begun!
Best Show of last Season
Gurren Lagann
No contest here, Gurren Lagann walks away as the best show last season and I think it’s the same for many anime watchers out there! Heck, it was even a gainax show without a completely lousy ending!!! You don’t see many Gainax TV shows which do that!!
More Awards and the new watch list after the jump!
Gundam 00 started in japan today and already, there are fansubs for it. Well, being a gundam show, it was already highly anticipated, but was it any good?
I have to admit that I think that the opening is very strong for a gundam series. We got to see all the gundams in action to some degree and some basic introduction to all the factions. You also get the impression that the setting and backhistory of the world is going to play a bigger part in this than it did in Seed. As expected, the gundams look much better in movement than in lineart and we are even shown why they all have “washing machine chests!” Who would have guessed that it actually has a use besides being ugly and simply being a part of the engine that sticks out! The Show wasn’t without flaws tho.
One thing I disliked somewhat, was the blatant disregard for physics. Yes, I know this is an anime so physics are usually ignored but in previous shows, they at least baked up some psuedo-science to explain some of the more ridiculous elements, but Gundam 00 Just ignores it all with it’s perpetual energy engine. I can forgive the zero gravity flight system but infinite energy?? Otherwise, the show itself looked pretty solid and I look forward to seeing how things will progress. I just hope that splitting the show into 2 halves to make way for code Geass season 2 won’t adversely affect the plot or pacing of gundam 00. And for those who are interested, here’s a youtube vid for the OP and ED sequences for the show
I think the L’arc-en-Ciel song is quite good but somewhat unsuitable for an action show like Gundam 00. It’s nowhere near as bad as wing of words in Seed destiny tho… And I just dislike the ED song in general.
Just read up on the school days ep 12!!!
and it looks like my wish had been answered, in a most original and brutal fashion. I won’t spoil it, but it looks like they combined several bad endings into 1.
Check out the summary by Random Curiosity if you want to find out more. Definitely not for the squeemish. Man, that was pretty grim…
I really should have posted this yesterday but I was tired.
It would appear that the last episode of school days was cancelled at the last minute and replaced with some nature show! It was later confirmed that the ep was pulled due to news of the girl who killed her father with an axe… Most other channels which were due to show the ep have also stated that they will not show the episode, so it’s looking increasingly like we’ll have to wait for the DVD release to find out what happens. On the plus side, this pretty much guarantees that we are looking at a “bad” ending which makes my suffering through the earlier eps seem worth it.
From the looks of the penultimate ep, I think we are looking at the Sekai bad ending “To My children,” Though I’m still hopeful for a “bloody conclusion” ending!
Check out the school days wiki for a little more info on the bad endings. Sufficed to say, the bloody conclusion is probably the most (in)famous…
Danny Choo has uploaded a video on youtube of the latest Gundam 00 trailer which was shown at charahobby. Nothing to note about it other than a small glimpse on how the fights are going to be handled (basically, more towards the SEED way of doing things) and some shots of new characters. The Opening song by l’arc-en-ciel is also played.
In other news, There was a macross concert in Japan today where they formally announced a new macross title, tentatively called macross frontier.
No solid news on the the staff yet, other than Kawamori being involved as director and mecha designer, Yoko Kanno as co-composer and newcomer Megumi Nakajima playing the female lead. I don’t know about you, but after Macross 7 and Macross zero, the franchise leaves me rather cold. I’ll still watch it, but at present, even gundam 00 has me more interested…
Picked up a few more shows so I thought I should update this list to reflect that. Similar format to last time. There are 3 Tiers, Must watch, Entertaining and Why am I watching this again??
I’ll Simply list the ones which were added last time without a blurb and pic so you can see where it was last month. However, I will put a blurb and pic in if the show goes up or down a tier. Well then, On with the show!!
Must watch
Last month
- Tengann toppa Gurren Lagann
- Heroic Age
- Seto No Hayanome
No real changes at the top spot. Gurren Lagann maintains the very top spot and goes from strength to strength (hurrah for RAWs), Heroic age remains consistant and Seto keeps going up and down but remains very entertaining.
*NEW*
Murder Princess
To be honest, if this was a full blown tv series, it would probably be just entertaining but since it’s a 6 part OVA, the plot goes at a frightening pace. And since the plot never gets stuck, it’s easy to look forward to each new ep. I’ve been watching this since the beginning, but Forgot to add it to the last listings because of the long gap between eps. oops…
Zero No Tsukaima: Futatsuki no Kishi
Tsundere? I’m sold. But seriously, this was a guaranteed must watch for me. I really enjoyed the first season and this is pretty much more of the same. Saito eyes other girls, Louise gets angry/jealous, Beatings!! A little has been lost as the other characters, notably Siesta, are not pursuing Saito as strongly as before since the events of the end of season 1, but we get new characters like Louise’s older sisters and the royal guards which should liven things up.
The rest after the jump
I have now bought my first revoltech! All Hail Saber!!!!
Orbital Manga had a few in stock and the revoltech line has always intrigued me so I went for the plunge. (still waiting for my Revoltech Dangaioh tho. *nudge*)
On the subject of Japanese renditions of all things British, I also watched eps 24 and 25 of Code Geass last night! Without putting in any spoilers, They really milked the fact that there is a second season for what it’s worth. The ending wasn’t too bad but it did feel like they were milking the fact for all it was worth!
In any case, more pics of Saber and more Geass goodness (with spoilers) after the jump!
A 30 second trailer for gundam 00 has been uploaded on youtube, for those of you who don’t know.
Not much is shown but you do get to see a glimpse of what the standard “grunt” mecha will be and they look very different to what you would expect, in fact it reminds me of the mecha from the show Flag (which I don’t have fond memories of…).
From what I understand, the Gundams in gundam 00 vastly outperform the mecha available to other factions, which gives me a rather bad Wing vibe. It doesn’t really help that the the main character acts cool and emotionless and is a part of a team which gives off some serious gay vibes…
Nevertheless, I will still watch it regardless simply because it is a mecha show!
As reported on various blogs and forums, Newtype seems to have a couple of pages this month saying that a second season of Haruhi has been confirmed.
Take it with a bit of salt for now, at least until other sources confirm it too…
*Edit* I should have put this up much earlier but meh. The official haruhi site was updated yesterday with a 22 minute flash video depicting certain events of the 3rd book. It was done in live action so it’s not a guarantee that there is a season 2 but given the lengths KyoAni seem to be publicizing this, It’s pretty safe to say that a season 2 is definitely in the works.
The video can be found in nicovids for ppl with accounts (like myself) or you can find a torrent in tokyotosho. It makes for a pretty dull watch though. I won’t spoil it for those of you who haven’t read the book but it is an event which was hinted at in the first season and will play a part in later stories. You can see a couple of shots in the bottom of the first pic below.
Clannad also appears to have been pushed back to 2008 as well so we may see Haruhi season 2 as soon as Autumn 2007, i.e. next season!!!!
Click on the pics for bigger ones. As far as I can tell the 2nd pic mostly has info on the 2 recently announced games. Nice touch having Konata from Lucky Star jumping over the news of the new series on her monitor.
The official announcement should be on July 7th so I guess we’ll know for sure then.
Well, with the new season of shows starting very soon (or in some cases, have already begun), I thought I’d go through the shows I’m currently watching and rate them. I’m not really for a “mark out of X” rating so I’m going to put them into 3 headings. “Must watch,” “Enjoyable but m’eh” and the ” Why the Hell am I watching this?”Anyways, without further ado…
Must watch!
Tengann Toppa Gurren Lagann:
The first show in a long time which I occasionally watch raw, or without english subs. Normally, I wait till subs come out as I really have to concentrate without them in order to understand what’s going on, which lowers my enjoyment. But this show is so fun and enjoyable that I really don’t care that much. That’s how good it is!
Heroic Age
I will openly admit that I am a bit of a Xebec fanboy. From Nadesico, to Stellvia and even Fafner, I have really enjoyed the shows which this company pops out and this one is no different. While it doesn’t have the sheer enjoyment factor of Stellvia or the whole “Did they just do that?” of Fafner, Heroic age, for me, is solidly entertaining and I look forward to seeing how things will pan out.
Seto No Hanayome
Yes, the jokes start getting stale after about 5 eps (esp the Masa-san one, You know it if you watch it…) but even with the repeat jokes, they add enough to each ep to make it pretty damn funny each time. Later eps with Luna and her terminator dad are brilliant!
Plus Natsuko Kuwatani as Maki is always good Desu~
Famitsu have posted some full body pics of the new gundam units appearing in Gundam00 as well as a look at the model kits that will accompany the show.
From the top left clockwise, we have Gundam Exia, Dynames, Kyrios and Virtue. Personally, these designs have left me a little cold. The heads and limbs are fine, even the virtue thunderthighs don’t bother me much but the chests…
Only Kyrios gundam seems to have a more regular design. I’m sure ppl out there really like them but something about those round sections bother me. But at least these won’t be accused of simply ripping off old designs and will be far less controversial than turn A. Guess I’ll have to see them moving to see if they can sway my opinion.
And here are the art pics and famitsu link, after the jump… Read the rest of this entry »
Bit late but I’ve been out all day. In any case, The next Gundam tv series has been announced as Gundam 00 (pronounced Double 0)
The promo can probably be found on youtube by now and various other blogs have written stuff up so I won’t dwell on it.
Personally, I’m feeling somewhat indifferent to the whole thing since the last 2 series didn’t really impress me much (Less said about destiny, the better and stargazer was ok but not great). Nevertheless, I will watch this when it airs in October based purely on the fact that it has mecha in it. (yes, I can be very shallow at times…)
