Monthly Archives: November 2009
Anime Review: Afro Samurai
Having heard many good things about the series, I decided to give Afro Samurai a try. This is definitely not a typical anime series for me, so I didn’t know what to expect. However, despite this not being my kind of anime, I enjoyed it quite a bit!
Afro Samurai tells the story of the appropriately named Afro on his quest for revenge. When he was a child, his father was killed right in front of his very eyes. Many years later, Afro has become the #2 samurai in Japan, and eagerly anticipates the day he will face #1, his father’s killer. The story constantly flashes back to when Afro was a child, telling the story of how he became the #2 samurai and his obsession with getting his revenge. Overall, the story is pretty weak. It’s your basic Kill Bill-style quest for vengeance story, so it’s not all that original. The pacing is also slow at times, which can cause some episodes to drag on for a bit. However, since the series is only 5 episodes long, this isn’t much of an issue.
Presentation is what Afro Samurai is all about. It’s bloody. Very bloody. The fight scenes are astonishingly well-animated. Few corners were cut in the production of this series. The exciting fight scenes deliver nothing short of a bloodbath every time. The visual style is unique as well, and it’s certainly different from what I’m used to. I was initially turned off by the gritty character designs, which just goes to show that one should never judge a book by its cover.
The voice acting is nothing short of superb. Samuel L. Jackson takes the lead role as Afro, which shows that FUNimation went all out in producing this series. Afro is accompanied on his quest by Ninja Ninja, also voiced by Jackson. Afro is very silent, so Ninja Ninja does most of the talking for him while also serving as the comic relief character. Both characters are excellent, and their voices match up to that standard.
At only 5 episodes, Afro Samurai is a very well-produced series that no one should pass up. It does have its weak points, but overall it makes for a very entertaining 2 hours of hack-and-slash action. The title is available on both DVD and Blu-Ray, so if you so desire, you can experience this blood-splattering beauty in 1080p glory.
Afro Samurai is currently on sale for DVD and Blu-ray and is licensed and distributed by Funimation Entertainment. Official series information is available at its official site.
ENJOYMENT – Great if you love nice visuals
RECOMMENDATION LEVEL – Highly recommended
REWATCH VALUE – Probably not
FUNimation Licenses Some Cool Stuff
At Anime USA, FUNimation announced that they have acquired some interesting new titles. Tetsuwan Birdy Decode, Sekirei, Full Metal Panic! and Full Metal Panic? Fumoffu. I haven’t seen any of these series, so I’ll just post my thoughts based on what I’ve read.
Obviously, I’m most excited for Sekirei, which is an ecchi harem series. This is always a good thing. It’s nice to see FUNimation broadening their horizons a bit as of late. I’ll definitely be taking a look at this when it comes out.
Tetsuwan Birdy Decode is a sci-fi series that seems pretty weird. It’s about a guy who… dies… and in order to stay alive, he has to merge his body with another’s. I’ll give it a whirl.
Unfortunately, I’ve never seen any of the Full Metal Panic! series, so I can’t be too excited for this announcement (which is actually a license rescue from ADV). I’ve heard very good things about FMP though, so I will be sure to try it sometime. If they release a box set with all the seasons, that would certainly give me great incentive to buy it.
Anyway, good job FUNimation! Glad to see these exciting announcements.
Anime Review: True Tears
Ah yes, another one of those moe slice-of-life anime series. While many may consider this to be an overdone and stale genre, every once in a while we get a series that stands out above the rest. True Tears is one such series.
Originally a Japanese visual novel, True Tears received its anime adaptation in 2008. However, the anime bears no resemblance to the original work, as it features a different story and characters. While fans of the visual novel may be turned off by this, some may consider it a blessing, as direct visual novel adaptations of anime quite often suffer from pacing issues. This is certainly not the case in True Tears.
The series centers around Shinichiro Nakagami, a high school student with a passion for art. He lives with his parents and his childhood friend Hiromi, who moved in after her father passed away. Despite being a childhood friend, Hiromi has acted coldly towards Shinichiro since she moved in, and the two of them hardly converse. Her attitude at home is in direct contrast to how she acts at school, where she is very outgoing and cheerful.
One day at school, Shinichiro meets Noe, a strange girl he finds sitting on a tree branch. After helping her down from the tree, he discovers that she is caring for some chickens in a nearby coop. When one of the chickens is killed by a raccoon, Noe does not shed a tear. When Shinichiro questions her about this, she says that she “gave her tears away” when her grandmother died, and hasn’t cried since.
Shinichiro frequently spends time with his friend Miyokuchi, who is currently dating Aiko, a girl who helps run a nearby restaurant. Hiromi, Noe, and Aiko are the heroines of this story. Through a series of dramatic and sometimes shocking events, they must face everyday challenges in order to realize where their true feelings lie.
Okay, I know what you’re thinking. There’s not much original about this story. Been there, done that, right? Not entirely. One thing that sets True Tears apart from other series of its type is its pacing. There’s almost always something going on to keep one interested in the plot. The characters are very well-developed, and just like in Toradora!, I really felt emotional for the characters. Any series that can do that to me is ranked very high on my list.
Another thing that sets True Tears apart is its presentation. The visuals, animation, and music did an amazing job at keeping me interested and emotionally invested in the series. Even the background music is very well done. The animation is certainly a step above most other anime as well. While it may not be on the same level as Kyoto Animation’s work, the quality is indeed noticeable.
True Tears is a wonderful series that any drama, or slice-of-life fan will certainly enjoy. While the story may contain common clichés that we’ve all grown way too tired of, its presentation is what indeed makes this anime a true gem. A DVD box containing all 13 episodes is available from Bandai Entertainment, and it’s definitely worth investing money in.
True Tears is currently on sale and is licensed and distributed by Bandai Entertainment.
ENJOYMENT – Interesting, enjoyable, all around excellent
RECOMMENDATION LEVEL – Highly recommended
REWATCH VALUE – Definitely
The ConBlog: Zenkaikon 2009
Zenkaikon is a small anime convention located in King of Prussia, PA (what kind of town name is that??). This was my first year at the convention, and unfortunately, the experience was not pleasant. This ConBlog post isn’t going to follow the same format as my previous ones, simply because I don’t have much to talk about.
I took the two-and-a-half hour trip to Zenkaikon with my friends Ernie and Krissy from Out-Of-Time Productions. Getting into the con went pretty smoothly. The staff were very helpful in getting us our press passes with virtually no wait.
However, it went downhill from there. The first thing I noticed upon entering the con was the severe lack of space. All the rooms were very small and the hallways were cramped. There were no wide open areas at all. The Dealers Room was about as big as a classroom, as was the Main Events room. Needless to say, the con got very crowded very quickly.
Clearly, Zenkaikon staff did not expect a large turnout. How they failed to see this is beyond me, since they did get Johnny Yong Bosch, and he’s kind of a big deal. They should have known that many people would be coming just to see him, and plan accordingly. Instead, the con reached its attendance cap very quickly, and guests who had not pre-registered were told to come back the next day. People who had taken off from work, booked hotel rooms, and traveled to the con in hopes of meeting the star of Bleach and many other noteworthy titles, were simply told they couldn’t get in. In addition to this, there were weddings going on in the very same building. According to Zenkaikon staff, the weddings were booked after Zenkaikon had reserved their space, and there was nothing they could do about it. So, while it’s not Zenkaikon’s fault, it was still an annoyance.
Almost every panel or event I wanted to go into was virtually inaccessible because of the massive overcrowding. The Dealers Room was barely navigable, and contained very few items of interest.
Overall, Zenkaikon was plagued with poor planning and uninteresting events. The staff messaged me on Twitter and stated that “more space is definitely in the plans.” Let’s hope so, because if there’s no bigger venue next year, I see little chance of this con surviving for long.
Update 11/16: From looking through forums and reading comments posted by Zenkaikon staff members, it’s come to my realization that much of the con’s problems were caused by the hotel staff being inhospitable to the convention staff. In addition to the wedding issue, there were several other issues as well. The hotel set up the registration booths in the wrong area, which caused the con staff to change their plans at the last minute. There were also many issues with the hotel staff blocking off parts of the con, not fulfilling their promises, and various technical issues.
Game Review: Shin Megami Tensei – Persona 4
After being positively blown away by Persona 3, I didn’t waste any time in starting up the next game in the series, Persona 4. 105 hours later, my expectations were exceeded, and I was more than satisfied.
STORY
Just like most RPG series, the Persona games aren’t directly tied to each other. Persona 4 is a story independent of that of Persona 3, although there are some references and vague connections.
You play as an unnamed character who has just moved to the small town of Inaba. Shortly after moving there, you hear rumors of a strange TV program that comes on at midnight when it rains. In addition, a series of mysterious murders have been occurring in town. It’s up to you to unravel the mystery behind these murders, and to determine what connection these may have to the TV program.
While the story doesn’t really pick up until near the end of the game, it is still very well paced, and constantly introduces new characters and subplots to keep your attention focused. Unfortunately, the story is not without its faults, as some parts could eventually start to feel very repetitive.
GAMEPLAY
The gameplay is almost identical to that of its predecessor, and that’s not a bad thing at all. There are many enhancements, however. Persona 4 corrects many balance issues that Persona 3 had, both in developing Social Links and in the battle system. Instead of having to raise three characteristic stats (Academics, Charm, and Courage), you now have five (Intelligence, Diligence, Courage, Understanding, and Expression). Although this may seem like more work, the game presents more opportunities in which you can raise these stats, so they go up faster. Talking to people, reading books, answering questions in class, paticipating in activities, and many other things will all affect how these stats grow. These stats are necessary in order to develop your Social Links, which are the relationships you form with the people you meet. Saying different things to different people will affect your Social Link with them, which in turn indirectly affects your performance in battle.
When it comes time to do battle, the gameplay becomes much more linear. There is no enormous tower to climb this time. Instead, you are now presented with a series of different dungeons that you must progress through in order. Each dungeon has its own unique style and its own story behind it.
Persona 4 continues the tradition of a turn-based battle system, but with major improvements. All of the balance issues I mentioned in my Persona 3 review are nearly non-existent, making the game much less frustrating. Unfortunately, not all of the annoyances are gone. If your character falls in battle, you’re done. Even if your allies are still standing and have full health, it’s game over. Because of this, perhaps the most useful item in the game is the Goho-M, which allows you to immediately return to the entrance of a dungeon, where you can heal up and save your game. Upon reentering the dungeon, the game is kind enough to let you resume at the floor you left off at, shaving off a load of time and effort you would have to put into retracing your footsteps.
Enemies have different weaknesses that you can exploit to gain a large advantage in battle. But only through trial and error (or through the use of a handy strategy guide) can you discover these weaknesses. There is no free scanning; you simply have to try different spells on different enemies and pray for the best. Fortunately, once you discover an enemy’s weakness, the game will remember it for you. Exploiting these weaknesses is the key to victory, but it’s not always so easy. Some enemies have no weakness at all. Many times you will encounter a combination of different types of enemies, all with different weaknesses. When this happens, those handy “attack all” spells aren’t so handy anymore.
The gameplay of Persona 4 is a very well thought out and executed formula that works. There’s no need to worry about which path is the “correct path,” as the game offers plenty of leeway to prevent you from reaching a standstill. As long as you spend your time doing something, you’ll be fine.
VISUALS & SOUND
Persona games like to do everything their own way. The stories & gameplay are both very unique, and the music is no exception. Instead of employing the use of the traditional fantasy RPG style classical tunes, Persona 4 has J-Pop. That’s right, J-Pop. And it’s awesome. Initially, one may think this kind of music is very unfitting for an RPG, but it actually works quite well. The entire soundtrack is a masterpiece of both vocal tunes and the instrumentals.
The graphics & visuals are very impressive. Some of my friends have, at first sight, even thought it was a PS3 game. That’s how impressive the graphics are. The character art is more anime-styled this time around, which I personally like much more.
OVERALL
A spectacular game from a spectacular series. Fresh presentation, gameplay, and story make this game an absolute winner. If you’ve never played it before, you’re missing out on a lot. So, do yourself a favor and pick it up. You won’t regret it one bit.
Also, this.
Janai
Antz
OtakuAnthony
jaysteevee
vtine
matty
machineslife
Nyanman
