What a coincidence that these two idiots, both going to law school, can't read a map and meet each other stalking two girls who "seem to know the way" to the college. That slight lapse in logic aside, Tada seems stuck between new friend Mitsuo and new friend's supposed fiance Kaga. What comes from here can most easily be described as "hijinks ensue." After said hijinks, Tada, now alone, gets mobbed by literally every club at the school. A scene described in the show as a war zone.
The premise as outlined by Crunchyroll was not even touched on until 20 minutes into the first episode, which raises huge questions. Like, "Why would you hold off on bringing up the premise of your show until 20 minutes into the first episode?" That's easily something that could be teased in the first scene or brought up earlier or done anything with at all.
Golden Time's very premise interests me, but only slightly and not if it's going to be like this. One thing happened in the episode in regards to the plot, and it took a long time to get to that point. The characters, however, were set up pretty well. At least Kaga and Mitsuo were, disregarding their current stereotypes. Kaga is the haughty woman who wants it her way or the highway, but will likely turn to pudding if the right guy comes along. And Mitsuo is the hapless guy trapped in the relationship with the haughty girl, trying desperately to get out. I imagine the rest of the series won't be so slow, but we'll see. I'm tentative about the next episode.
It was at the moment Ichika said, "What? What is she mad about?" after Laura invited him to go to a festival with her that I realized I was done with this.
I watched Infinite Stratos 1 during either dead week or finals week, which for me was a time where I didn't really want my entertainment to make me think. And think I did not during Infinite Stratos, because it's full of bubbly moe girls that clamber over themselves to get the attention of Ichika.
But I guess explaining the premise in brief is that there are these robots that only girls can pilot...Except Ichika! For reasons I can't remember, he can pilot one. I think it was because his sister (of course, a prodigy in every way and an attractive mid-30-something) invented the robot technology.
The show is complete fanservice fluff. While I was into that during finals and maybe two years ago, not as much now. Stuff like Kiniro Mosaic and Love Lab are a bit different, since it's girls hanging out, and I guess I haven't grown tired of that yet. But these harem shows are just too much for me now.
My own feelings aside, almost nothing happened during the episode. The whole thing was Ichika trying to tell everyone about a festival he wants to go to with them. The parts that weren't that were showcasing Laura and Charlette's skills as fighters, which was actually pretty cool. But not enough to carry an entire episode. The one glimpse of plot, of which I remember almost zero from the first season, amounted to about two and a half minutes of air time.
Coppelion skirts around a disaster that happened in a Japanese metropolis, but it's not yet addressed directly. Sources say that it was a nuclear meltdown in Odaiba, which is what Wikipedia is telling me about the manga plot. The show was originally due to air in 2011, but the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster held it up. Nonetheless, the show's disaster setting is absolutely gorgeous in its bleakness.
The best parts of Coppelion lie in its setting, which is rich in promise and will be undoubtedly built upon , adding layer upon layer of social complexity to an already hot topic in contemporary media. The three main characters, Ibara, Aoi, and Taeko, are set up pretty well throughout this first episode. Thankfully, the show only focuses on these three in its first episode. A wise decision, since you don't want to introduce a glut of characters only for none of them to be memorable.
Ibara is kind of your typical shonen action hero, who will save everyone. But as a stereotype, she works well and her subtle leadership skills throughout the episode are great. Little things like injecting herself with nutrition supplements, seeing that Aoi is (very visibly) bothered by Ibara not eating, and then later eating one of her rice balls was a cool little thing. Aoi is the timid girl who serves as a sort of audience surrogate because she (as she should be) is horrified by this landscape and all it encompasses. She's definitely the most outwardly compassionate, and emotive, of the three and will likely provide good emotion later on.
What I loved about the series was how they referred to the girls as puppets (the technical term being Coppelion, the manga and the show's namesake), because they really are puppets. Since birth, they were literally genetically engineered to live through a nuclear wasteland (they just say "these conditions" in the show) and to be other types of special. Taeko was engineered to have heightened senses, like an animal. While the other two's abilites (if any - though Ibara seems to have some sort of super human strength) have yet to be revealed, they're likely the same kind of subtle enhancement rather than electricity bursting out of their hands or something.
There have only been four shows thus far in the season, and Samurai Flamenco and Kill la Kill have yet to be released, but Coppelion is undoubtedly the standout of the four. Its first episode showed nothing but promise and that could go one of two ways: 1. Amazing show or 2. Disappointing show. I'm leaning, tentatively, to the former.
Akihito is an immortal and a half-youmu. And if that isn't generic enough, there's a (cute!) girl that's trying to kill him because he's half-youmu. Kuriyama, the girl is rather interesting, though. She fights with a sword made out of her own blood, which is kind of creative. The plot of everything else (of course) is that youmu inhabit the world and there are spirit warriors that fight against them.
The setup, the description, and the promotional art that I've seen all seem really generic and I was not looking forward to watching Beyond the Boundary. But, after watching it, the execution of a good portion of things is actually pretty good. It's Kyoto Animation and, while I haven't seen them do action shows, their "action" animation in Free! was great and it continues to be pretty good here. But I think the best part about the show is the cues, which are pretty much spot on. Everything happens just as it should and the show doesn't feel rushed or like a drag.
That said, the dialogue in the show is super spot on. In the first narration, Akihito is trying to convince Kuriyama to not commit suicide (which, by the way, made me groan internally pretty loudly). The execution here was really poor and definitely the weak part of the show. And in a television show, your dialogue cannot be as bad as Beyond the Boundary has been thus far. There's lots of on-the-nose lines and, while the acting itself is alright, the scripts need work.
For now, I'll chalk it up to being a first episode and trying to get as much information out as possible. It doesn't make it any less poor, but I'll give it a pass for now and watch the next episode soon enough.
Diabolik Lovers (with a k instead of a c, because that's edgy) is the latest from ZEXCS, who did Flowers of Evil. Now, I loved Flowers of Evil's animation. It was brilliant. But this...I guess the animation is...of quality. It isn't so awful that I have to turn it off, but it isn't anything spectacular.
The show's premise is that church girl Yui Komori is moving into this giant mansion with a whole bunch of boys. In concept and execution, a lot like last season's Brothers Conflict. But while BroCon seemed to be a lot of pampering the main character, this one seems intent on abusing Yui. She was completely abused by the six brothers living in the house, one of which keeps calling her Bitch-chan.
Oh, and they're all vampires.
I think the only thing more repelling than this show is if Yui secretly wanted to be eaten or sexualized by the vampires. I wish I hadn't watched it, but I told myself to write my own preview guide. You know, for practice. And I typically watch all the first episodes anyway. But AVOID THIS LIKE THE PLAGUE. Unless it gets better, and it likely won't, you'll just be insulted.
It's merits include its character designs, which are nice albeit generic, and its run time. It's mercifully 14 minutes.
When I first heard that some new Ghost in the Shell was
being announced, I threw my hands up in the air in celebration. Ghost in the
Shell is one of my favorite anime helmed by two of my favorite directors
(Mamoru Oshii and Kenji Kamiyama). A new director’s spin on things is going to
be awesome! As I heard more coming down the pipeline, like that it was a
completely separate timeline from either Oshii’s or Kamiyama’s, I got a little
more excited and when I heard that it was going to be a prequel, I got a little
less excited. But all that aside, Ghost in the Shell Arise certainly delivers
on every level I’d have wanted it to out of a first episode.
Ghost in the Shell Arise is a prequel to Shirow Masamune’s
original Ghost in the Shell comics. However, I don’t believe that it is stand
alone. Everything would feel so distant without any introduction to the series
(whether that be Masamune’s comics, Oshii’s films, or Kamiyama’s series). But
don’t let that be a detraction from an otherwise great work.
Production I.G puts in their A-game in terms of animation
here. It blends a modern-style of character designs (done by Kazuchika Kise,
who worked on xxxHolic and Legend of the Galactic Heroes of all things) with
Oshii’s original feel of the films (a bleaker, dirtier cyberpunk vision
compared with Kamiyama’s sleeker look). Kise’s also directing these OAVs and he
certainly proves that he can do it. He’s previously worked extensively as a key
animator and an animation director, but this is his first time in charge. The
direction isn’t bad, but it’s nothing outstanding either. The action scenes
were really cool, but they weren’t nearly as dynamic as Oshii’s films.
The scripts are helmed by Tow Ubukata, a longtime contributor
for Production I.G (he worked on Le Chevalier D’Eon, Heroic Age, and Mardock
Scramble). The scripts are much better than Kamiyama’s as they feature much
less stilted dialogue and everything flows much nicer. I’m not sure what
Kamiyama was doing in Ghost in the Shell, because his Moribito and Eden of the
East scripts were fine.
The music was pretty cool in here too. It’s hard to follow
after Kenji Kawai and Yoko Kanno, but Cornelius does a stunning job. It’s
nothing I’d listen to recreationally (and I’d listen to Kawai and Kanno’s stuff
ad infinitum), but it really fits the mood of the series. The opening in
particular provides a great door to the rest of the series. This is the PV, but the opening plays in it.
Arise begins with the familiar Major, now noticeably
younger, returning to Japan after a stint somewhere (it’s not brought up, nor
is it of particular importance). Still a little wet behind the ears compared to
what Oshii or Kamiyama’s versions portrayed, she’s in Unit 501 and her
commanding officer has just died.
The things she fights in the first scene we see her in are
reminiscent of the dolls from Ghost in the Shell: Innocence, but they’re
anything but. They’re actually walking mines that’ll explode upon a good
gunshot to the anywhere. The doll thing is actually inside of the coffin that’s
supposedly holding Kusanagi’s commanding officer’s body (and intact
cyberbrain).
What the show fails to do immediately is inundate us with a
familiarity with the characters, which is why I wouldn’t suggest these OAVs to
a Ghost in the Shell newcomer. I’ve seen Oshii’s films and Kamiyama’s series
(but not Masamune’s original comics), so I’m quite familiar with the Major and
her typical antics. In Arise, she’s noticeably different. She acts a little
more rashly and she’s a little shorter tempered (and she wears more clothes).
What the show succeeds in is what Ghost in the Shell has
always succeeded in: Creating an interesting world with an interesting story
involving political intrigue. These OAVs are revolving around the aftermath of
the last World War, in which Japan threw seemingly all their money into
cybernetics research. Now that the war is over, they have to find a new purpose
for people like Kusanagi, who are fully cybernetic. It also poses a problem
that never existed in the previous anime adaptations: Kusanagi’s body is
technically the property of the army, not her own. In addition, the army is
considering implementing a rule for people with full cybernetic bodies similar
to a labeling system. They would have to register their body and get approval
for basically any action they take. Kusanagi, of course, is against it.
But that’s a very interesting concept that hasn’t really been
brought up prior. There’s been a blur between what’s human and what’s
cyborg—the first Ghost in the Shell film was about that. But there’s never been
anything dealing with prejudice against fully cybernetic bodies or any desire
to control those with them. Since Ghost in the Shell’s concepts and stories
have been so intriguing, I haven’t considered it, but now that it’s brought up,
there’s been a missed opportunity until now.
The bulk of the story, though, is trying to find out how and
why Kusanagi’s superior officer, Lieutenant Colonel Mamuro died. In this
process, Kusanagi finds something happens to her that happened to a random
garbage man in the first film: Her memory is altered. Kusanagi’s memory is,
mercifully, fixed. But until then, she’s seeing things she shouldn’t be and not
seeing things she should be. It’s not until the third act when she syncs her
vision with the Logicoma that she sees things as they truly are.
From beginning to end, we get drops of people from the
franchise, most prominently thus far is just Aramaki. Batou (still a Ranger at
this point), Pazu, and Togusa (still a police officer) make their small
appearances. While they’re important to the plot, they don’t serve much purpose
as characters. Its obvious Ubukata is working in their pasts into Kusanagi’s
just so they can meet up, but with a prequel story, it’s bound to happen. It
isn’t done awkwardly and everyone gets their fair amount of screen time.
However, these OAVs are about Kusanagi and not much spotlight should be placed
on anyone else.
The cast is completely replaced on the Japanese side of
things. Maaya Sakamoto (the only “returning” cast member) plays Kusanagi, a
role she once did in Oshii’s film and the Laughing Man OAV as a young Motoko.
Kenichirou Matsuda, Batou’s actor, hasn’t done much, but he’s tackling this big
character well enough. In comparison, Tarusuke Shingaki as Togusa has much more
under his belt, most notably Kariya Mato in Fate/Zero. One of the stand outs is
Ikkyuu Juku as Shinji Aramaki who, again, hasn’t done much else. But THE stand
out is Miyuki Sawashiro as the Logicoma and don’t let anyone else tell you
otherwise. She brings her usual charm into a mix of veterans and newcomers and
fits the Logicoma perfectly to the Tachikoma.
The OAVs promise more than they give thus far, and the
ending is of course going to be the formation of Section 9 as we know it in
other anime media. It looks like the mystery behind Lieutenant Colonel Mamuro
isn’t fully solved yet and Kusanagi is still on the fence about joining up with
Aramaki. Or at least, that’s what she wants Aramaki to think. Internally, she
sounds excited for the opportunity, and so am I.
I’ve been striving to write more reviews for my blog, just
to get my own words out there. Now, I’ve had five beers, but throughout the
film I’ve been drinking water and I’m pretty much out of the proverbial woods
of inebriation now.
Recently, I’ve had a lot on my plate and not enough time to
do it. Reviewing anime and manga part time is becoming too full time and it’s
only my own fault for that! But I’m glad to be doing it, because I like doing
it. But for today, I’m reviewing Barefoot
Gen from back in 1983 and 1986.
There’s something insatiably interesting to me about media
from a country that lost a war. In the 50s, America got a lot of comedy out of
its entertainment media because we didn’t want to think about what we just went
through (not that Americans went through more than Japan, but both countries
gave up a lot). But Japan comes from a very interesting perspective. Japan is
the country that lost the war—in fact, Japan surrendered unconditionally.
Germany and Italy are the other two big powers that lost the war, but I don’t
think they’ve created nearly as much entertainment media as Japan has over the
years and certainly not as much about the war as Japan did.
Japan’s creators were influenced by the calamity they went
through, moreso than Germany and Italy or any of the Axis powers. People like
Akiyuki Nosaka, Keiji Nakazawa, and Shigeru Mizuki were so profoundly affected
by the war and the post-war aftermath that they couldn’t help but write about
it. And I couldn’t be more glad they did.
Grave of the Fireflies
is the other well-known anime film about post-war Japan. Grave of the Fireflies follows Seita and Setsuko as they simply
attempt to survive after their parents are killed. It’s about survival more
than anything else.
While Barefoot Gen is
undoubtedly about survival, it also takes a deep and dark look into what
exactly an atomic bomb does to the people it hits. Having not lived in the era,
never been through war, and been as detached for hardship as I almost possibly
could be, the experience of simply watching it play out had a profound effect
on me.
-----
I kind of went off the rails for a few days, and while these
previous paragraphs were written Friday night, it is now Sunday afternoon and I
have forgotten the flow I was in during the sleepless stupor at 3 in the
morning Friday (technically Saturday). Let’s continue.
Barefoot Gen doesn’t
attempt to romanticize war, as we in the US often do in our film media. It
doesn’t try to tell a sob story about the war-torn Japan. It tries to depict
life as it was in the aftermath of Hiroshima/Nagasaki. Not only this, it
achieves something more. The Japanese are a proud people and when Japan didn’t surrender,
the film depicts the people not directly affected by the bomb praising this
decision (and even some affected by the bomb praising it). They didn’t want to “conditionally
surrender.” They wanted to continue fighting as a country that had already lost
its way and the war. Its people were suffering, but TWO atomic bombs had to
stop it. That’s part of this depiction, of Japanese nationalism and loyalty.
Some Japanese were ashamed, even after Hiroshima and Nagasaki, that Japan
surrendered. They can’t be seen surrendering, they need to be annihilated
honorably (just read Mizuki’s Onward
Towards Our Noble Deaths for that depiction). But Gen, his father, and his
family all agreed that if you discard honor for the sake of the life of people,
it would be worth it.
That kind of selflessness is a running theme throughout the
film. When they meet a burn victim later, Gen licks the burns and says, “These
aren’t dirty at all.” These same burns that she’s been ridiculed about since
she received them, Gen was embracing and accepting. It’s these kinds of acts
that make the film so indelible.
But the film is about tragedy, and tragedy strikes Gen more
than just Hiroshima. His sister is born in the ashes of the bomb, and his
mother and he struggle to provide sufficient nourishment to her. Everything
finally seems alright when Gen and newfound orphan and “brother,” Ryuta Kondo,
care for a rich man’s brother, badly burned from the bomb. They received 100
yen and use it all to buy milk. But when they get home, they find that Gen’s
sister has already died from malnourishment. These depictions of the war are
what emphasize not just the immediate aftermath, but the aftermath days and
months after the bomb hit. No one in Hiroshima or Nagasaki was able to recover
except the rich, and everyone else was pushed to the lower class and given
rations of rice porridge they were happy to have.
The one ray of hope Gen and Ryuta have is the wheat that’s
starting to grow despite the fact that grass isn’t supposed to grow for 70 years
after the bomb.
The second film picks up three years after the first, and
features the aforementioned burn victim girl. The aftermath is only emphasized
with the poisoned rain and lingering radiation sickness.
A striking part is the anti-American sentiment that the
Japanese had after the bombings. This is, of course, to be expected after
something like an atomic bomb, but it’s not something you immediately think of
when you consider everything that surrounded Hiroshima/Nagasaki. The adults
would look at their occupiers with scorn and wonder why they even needed to be
there. Schools would teach, monotone, the rules of Japan’s unconditional
surrender. And while the Americans likely got all the resources they needed,
Japan’s struggling middle and lower classes were still starving.
Of course, the film can’t be complete without another
tragedy. Gen’s mother, suffering from her own malnutrition and cancer, ends up succumbing
to it all. Gen is now without any family left, and is kind of listless for a
while. It’s only his orphan friends that allow him to grip reality again and
continue on living.
These two films are some of the best depictions of a
war-torn country I’ve ever seen, and one of the best World War II films I’ve
ever seen. They’re also among the paramount anime of the 1980s. They’re a
must-see for any anime fan interested in good cinema.
