12.12.07
Posted in Mahou Sensei Negima, Manga at 4:18 pm by RexRox
So the only way back to the real world (or ‘Old World’ as I suspect mages made this New World to escape persecution or something like that) is via the only gate that wasn’t functioning at the time, as Fate and Co. did something that caused a flux destroying all the gates to the real world. WTF kind of power do they have to pull that off?! Conveniently though, the National Fighting Tournaments are held in Ostia, where this gate is. My next bet is that due to the connections being broken, time passes at different rates and the months that Negi and Co. spent in the Magic World turn out to have only been just the right time before Summer Vacation ends. Shounen manga’s convenient like that. :) In any case, the climax of this arc’ll be the massive tournament which will involve everybody fighting and showing off their awesome skills they’ve all learnt somehow - this will then be followed by another encounter with Fate and the actual ’story’ part of the arc. Sounds familiar, but at least this time we will get story.
And the mysterious stranger looks to be the big muscle dude with the sword in the Crimson Wing. Maybe we’ll finally find out exactly who the last dude of the Crimson Wing actually is? Though I wonder how he’ll introduce himself, be it via normal means (actual normal) or by fighting against Negi in the Tournament (highly likely but too similar to how Negi met Al). In any case, he almost certainly holds the key to Negi becoming stronger (unsurprising given his apparent status in the Crimson Wing).
Negi Beam was funny.
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11.21.07
Posted in Shakugan no Shana, Anime at 7:37 pm by RexRox
Finally got around to watching the movie, and I must say that it bloody awesome. It removes all the parts of the Friagne arc that were annoying or superfluous and adds in some much more awesome battle sequences. That means: less annoying Shana; a Yuuji that acts less like an asshole or an idiot; a much more badass Friagne (who doesn’t lose his mind for no reason and actually fights pretty damned well); a totally kickass appearance by Alastor; and finally a much less confrontational encounter with Margery.
The first 40 minutes or so are essentially the first 2.5 episodes of the anime, then when Margery shows up, things take a radically different turn - Margery destroys the Torches in place of the old man (who doesn’t appear), and Friagne then shows up during the talk between Shana and Margery. Friagne does more than simply absorb attacks and uses a nifty group of dolls combined with a Hougu (Dance Party - can blow up things), which means that he lines up a lot more with his reputation. Later during the big fight against him after he kidnaps Yuji, he also uses another Hougu (Trigger Happy - anti-Flame Haze weapon; causes the uncontainable power of the Crimson Lord to burst forth, killing the Flame Haze). We get to see an awesome fight sequence, with Friagne giving his all and holding the two off pretty well. He reveals his goal is to destroy the city, and Yuji figures out that Dance Party plays a role in this. Marian sacrifices herself so as to give Friagne a chance, but just as he’s about to finish off the city, Yuji casts a Fuzetsu, blocking the connection between Dance Party and the city. Shana gets shot by Trigger Happy though, but this results in Alastor bursting forth and pwnzing Friagne. We then have the nice scene between Shana and Yuji on the rooftop, but remarkably more cinematic.
My favourite thing with the movie is the removal of the annoying parts and the really awesome battle sequences. Friagne was simply awesome in the fights, and I wish that there could be more movie adaptations, similar to how Hellsing has the Ultimate OVAs to follow things more faithfully. I was already a fan of Shakugan no Shana, and this movie wipes away most of the misgivings I had about the early half of the series (I was bored with the series until episode 10 or so). I give the movie a 9.5/10. Stellar production.
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11.19.07
Posted in Mahou Sensei Negima, Manga at 10:09 pm by RexRox
Summary: The bad guy’s beaten up by the teddy bear lady, but he shocks the group first - causing Ako to collapse. They learn that Ako can’t be freed easily due to the owner’s influence - so they decide to do the prize fighting mentioned two chapters ago. They first have to beat up a really tough fighter before they can enter - the guy that Negi floored in a single punch last chapter. Takamichi and Mana arrive in the Magic World as well - their purpose a mystery.
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I expected the prize fighting to show up and I was right, though the thing with Vargas was funny. Akira’s reaction to the whole magic thing was hilarious, same with Chisame’s response. Kotarou also showed off some really funky facial expressions that really don’t fit into Negima. Overall, it was a pretty nice chapter with some good humour and Akamatsu’s shooting through the story.
The real addition to the plot was Takamichi and Mana though. Obviously Donnette is having trouble convincing the Mages that Negi didn’t do this, and she hopes for them to help. Takamichi’s pretty predictable, though he might do something odd if he thinks it relates to the Crimson Wings. Mana on the other hand, is chaos - she might take some money to round them up or she might choose to side with Negi (presumably because of money from Takamichi). It’ll no doubt be a few chapters before we see anything more on them, but it’s still rather ominous, especially given how they entered.
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11.18.07
Posted in Goshuushou-sama Ninomiya-kun, Anime at 11:14 am by RexRox
We finally return to school, and find out that Mayu is behaving towards Shungo exactly like all the other girls in his glass (at least, not in the sexually harassing events). Mayu also shows some jealousy for Shungo. And a guy that wants to steal Mayu away from Shungo appears. But that stuff’s all irrelevant to the actual episode - what is important is the fact that we saw Mayu in a Nurse Outfit!
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Posted in CLANNAD, Anime at 10:51 am by RexRox
No summary, as I’m sure everybody’s either read it somewhere else or have watched the episode.
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Definitely much more serious than before, with the characters becoming very emotional (the scene right after they find out that Fuuko’s dying had even Tomoya becoming a little watery). The episode makes use of a little humour, but mostly logs what they thought was going to be the home stretch in helping Fuuko, until it hits a little snag near the end and Sunohara reveals a very harsh complication. Given the next two episode titles, and what Sunohara said, I really don’t think we’ll be getting a happy ending for Fuuko - everybody’s forgetting her, and thus she likely won’t be able to get everyone to celebrate her sister’s wedding. At the very least, she’s allowed for the wedding to happen, but it’s still troubling. What’s more is the possibility of Tomoya and Nagisa forgetting her, making things even worse.
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11.16.07
Posted in Impressions, Anime at 5:13 pm by RexRox
So the Fall Season’s at its halfway mark about now, with most series airing their sixth or seventh episode recently. It’s been a strange season, just like last season, with no really obvious excellent shows (beyond CLANNAD). I’ve been watching quite a few of the series (far from all) and feel like giving some basic comments on them all (seeing how I’m too lazy to blog them all individually). But first, some basic awards (for comparison purposes):
Best Show Overall: CLANNAD
- This was a real no-brainer. No other show has this level of comedy, characters, plot, hype, presentation or animation quality.
Best Comedy: Minami-ke
- This was a toss-up between Goshuushou-sama Ninomiya-kun and Minami-ke. In the end I went for Minami-ke because it has a more consistent and less clichéd type of comedy.
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Posted in Myself;Yourself, Anime at 4:30 pm by RexRox
Shuuri & Shuusuke’s household life turns out to be rather bad, with an estranged father and hated mother (at least for Shuuri). Nanaka gives the Kotonoha-gaze, though I doubt this’ll take the School Days path. And the Granny furthers her deranged plot and kills an innocent cat.
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Nothing really happened this episode, as per usual, but the drama is still good. The most confusing thing is where exactly they’re going to take it - they could go off the deep end like School Days; they could buff up the drama by soaking in the love triangle; or they could continue on this mystery/drama angle like they have been doing so (though there really is no mystery beyond Nanaka - which is only a mystery due to lack of clues). I’m curious as to where they’ll take things, just like many others.
I still stand by my deductions about Sana having attempted suicide and the Granny killing the pets so as to try to resurrect her dead granddaughter via a wish (which will no doubt involve Nanaka and her past in the end).
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11.15.07
Posted in Catch-up, Myself;Yourself, Anime at 7:11 pm by RexRox
Catch-up’s the section where I post basic opinion on things I haven’t blogged due to various reasons despite the fact that I should have.
Good ol’ drama romance shows - theyalways air at least one of them and they’re usually pretty good (in different ways). M;Y has impressed, despite strange diversions from the main plot. For those wondering, I haven’t watched the 7th episode yet, so I won’t comment on it.
The most surprising thing about this series is how clueless everybody seems to be to the blatantly obvious ‘mystery’. Murder? WTF, the guy’s timid as hell, he sure ain’t gonna kill anyone and someone else killing somebody doesn’t satisfactorily explain the watch (memory of loved one doesn’t explain not removing at pool). Look at the OP’s MP3 player - it says ‘BYE’; he wears a wristwatch which he refuses to take off; he acts very depressed in the beginning when not near others and is still rather solitary now; he suffers a panic attack when he sees a bloody kitchen knife. If you can’t put the clues together then you’re an idiot - he obviously tried to slash his wrists, but did it the wrong way (it’s down the street, not across the road) and survived. He might have been sent back to his hometown as his being away might have been the cause of his depression or his mother might not have been able to cope (maybe something else).
Nanaka’s a very different and harder mystery but it obvious involves her violin, her parents death by fire and the man in the fire in the OP.
The series is well done, despite some annoying seiyuu (*shudder* Aoi), and definitely makes up this season’s drama fix (which is good because School Days sucked due to Makoto’s ridiculous level of FAIL).
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Posted in Catch-up, Shakugan no Shana, Anime at 7:01 pm by RexRox
Catch-up’s the section where I post basic opinion on things I haven’t blogged due to various reasons despite the fact that I should have.
This is a series that I haven’t blogged or watched more than one episode of as I haven’t watched it due to a lacklustre opening episode. I recently watch it, and whilst it was far from perfect, it was still pretty good.
The animation’s certainly up a notch from last season - particularly given I’m watching h.264 this time in 720p. The increase to HD has severely increased the detail in the art, and despite some disappointing villains, I’m impressed. Especially with the new fuzetsu art.
The VA cast are exactly as I remember them, with Kugimiya much less annoying in Shana’s role than in Louise’s particularly.
Nothing really new on the characters - and I really mean this. Ike’s yet to actually try to compete for Kazumi’s affection - though he’ll be trying next episode (I accidentally spiled myself in regards to this, so I’m rather peeved and sad about this) . Shana’s just like usual - ignoring her confession and her feelings. Yuji’s the same - though with more power and knowledge than before.
The current arc is dragging on too long with Fumina (lol Hecate), and I really wish they’d actually try to develop the plot some time soon.
Overall, I’m enjoying this, but it’s nowhere near as good as I might have hoped currently (kind of like how I didn’t enjoy the first 10 episodes of the first season) so it’s on the very bottom of my priorities.
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Posted in Catch-up, Anime at 6:47 pm by RexRox
Catch-up’s the section where I post basic opinion on things I haven’t blogged due to various reasons despite the fact that I should have.
This is definitely my guilty pleasure of the season - an utterly absurd and stupid comedy that’s completely shameless. I love it to death despite the iffy animation. The characters are fantastic, if somewhat clichéd. Mayu’s a moe-blob; Shungo’s an oblivious, kind, not-quite-GAR protagonist; Reika’s the tsundere and Ryoko’s the Haruhi-like slave-driver. They all work well together and deliver potent humour (again, chances are you’ve seen it before, but it’s still very well done). The OP and ED both capture the spirit of the show very well (the songs aren’t that great themselves IMO but they work well with the videos). The side characters are awesome as well, with Hosaka being a constant barrel of laughs as well as an awesome plot device; similar situation with Mayu’s brother.
I’m definitely enjoying the series, but whether I bother to blog it is a different matter. After all, I’m not blogging the series I enjoy even more, like CLANNAD and Minami-ke.
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