As much as I like Pokemon movies, I did not like The Rise of Darkrai. Starting with the good, Darkrai was the best part of this movie. Every scene involving Darkrai was great, partially because Darkrai has a cool design, but mostly because Darkrai was the most interesting character in the movie. Darkrai had a great backstory, and the production team did a great job of showing the audience that Darkrai was not the monster everyone else believed him to be.
Other than Darkrai, the movie doesn't have a lot going for it. I think the biggest reason for this is that the main cast
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Aug 31, 2017 Recommended
What does puberty feel like? It is a part of life everyone will inevitably has to go through, and there are variations in each individual going through it. Yet the general experiences of weird emotions, awkwardness, and finding oneself seem to be present in almost everyone who has gone through it. Double all of that and run it over with a yellow vespa, and there is general premise behind the 2001 OVA, FLCL (Fooly Cooly). In its short six episodes, FLCL encapsulates the zany story of an adolescent as he starts his journey to grow up, and all of the utter insanity that follows.
(Before reading ... any further into this review, you really owe it to yourself to at least watch the first 5 or 6 minutes of FLCL. It’s a good representation of exactly what you’ll be getting into. It’s free to watch subbed on Funimation’s Youtube page, and I’ll post the link. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lhUyc6Tsclo&t=369s ) FLCL centers around Nandaba Naota, an angsty sixth grade by who tries to act cool and pretends like he does not care about anything. Naota spends much of his time hanging out with his brother’s girl friend, Mamimi. He lives in the town of Mabase, where Naota claims nothing abnormal ever happens, and that he feels something ominous from the smoke of the Medical Mechanica factory, as if the smoke is closing him off from the rest of the world. This all changes when a pink haired girl comes to town in all of her yellow vespa riding, guitar smashing glory. Haruhara Haruko takes a great interest Naota, and she becomes the reason for a slew of the ludicrous situations that the show is known for. Unfortunately, the story of FLCL is its weakest area, though it is not as bad as some claim it to be. The links between each episode, though definitely present, are notably weak. However, this does not pose a huge problem, as a strong sense of plot progression is not necessarily needed for this type of show. The shows main problems is that it does not take the time to completely develop all of its plot points. Many of the plot points in the show are never explained, such as why Haruko wants (spoiler), why is Medical Mechanica’s goal to (spoiler), and why there are (spoilers) coming out of Naota’s (spoiler). This lack of an explanation is most likely due to the shows six episode run. Though the short length of the show does make it much more accessible for people to watch, it does come with the drawback of such plot points going largely unexplained. Aside from this, the plot serves its purpose, and plot hardly matters in a show of such high caliber insanity. The show’s animation style is actually a mixture of several other animation styles, and it switches between each of them with little to no warning. These styles can range from its usual crisp animation, to a cheaper looking animation used for comedic effect, to Matrix style camera panning, to manga slides, to literal South Park style animation (not even joking). All of these animation styles are handled very well and the sheer variety of them add to the madness of the show. One other thing that worth mentioning about the animation and art is its freudian symbolism (if you don’t know who Freud is, be cautious while looking it up). The series uses a lot of sexual symbolism in its jokes in imagery, and some symbols are much less discrete than others. Whether or not one will enjoy these gags is entirely based on one’s personal sense of humor. One of the greatest aspects of the FLCL is its music. The music to the series was entirely done by the J-Rock band, The Pillows. All of their songs fit each of their scenes so perfectly that many (myself included) can just hear the song, and instantly think of that respective scene. Who can forget the melancholy of “One Life” in the beginning of the first episode, the sensation of individuality whenever “Little Busters” played, or the ride that “Ride on Shooting Star” gave them in each end credits. Every single song on the soundtrack is absolutely perfect (my favorite being “Last Dinosaur”), that it makes a VERY strong argument for the best anime soundtrack of all time (it’s my favorite, anyways). The series does not even have an opening theme, but with songs as great as these, it does not even need an opening. (I suppose it’s only fair to talk about FLCL, but It’s hard to do so without spoiling anything, or doing it in a formal fashion. So I’m going to talk about it briefly within these parentheses. So skip this section if you care about spoilers. When I say FLCL gets weird, I mean WEIRD. It’s best for you to just watch the show and see for yourself, but I’ll describe a few here. For example, there is a scene in the beginning of the very first episode where Mamimi is “coming on to” Naota. There’s another scene where Naota’s dad gives Haruko a massage using his chin while Haruko makes sexual sounds, and they follow it up by eating an egg together from both ends. All that, and I STILL haven’t talked about what comes out of Naota’s head each episode, and nor will I.) Lastly, and most importantly, are the characters. The three main characters are Naota, Mamimi, and Haruko. Naota is very well written as a protagonist. He is a little kid who tries to act like a grown up, despite very definite insecurities and flaws. He sees the immaturity of “adult” figures around him, but he himself is blind to his own immaturity. However, he does begin to develop through his various escapades, which inevitably will give him (as well as the audience) some wisdom about growing up, as well as a satisfying personal conclusion for him at the end of the series. On the other hand, Mamimi is Naota’s brother’s girlfriend. Ever since Naota’s brother left to play major league baseball in the USA, Mamimi has become clingy to Naota. She is also somewhat of a rebel, as she usually skips school and lives on her own. Of course, one cannot talk about FLCL without mentioning Haruko. Haruko is a pure ball of energy that does whatever she wants, with no regard to the fact that it puts Naota in increasingly embarrassing situations. Despite her usual careless demeanor, Haruko does have an actual goal, and she is willing to do nearly anything to accomplish it. However, this is where the series begins to fall short in the character department. Haruko’s goal is not initially apparent, and even when it is revealed, her reason for it is vague at best. Another area where the characters other than Naota fall flat is that neither Mamimi nor Haruko receive satisfying conclusions. This really is a shame, because the characters had strong personality traits and characterization. Mamimi’s was especially poorly done, since she was originally a driving factor for Naota, but she played a relatively small part in the last episode. This links back to the series short length holding back a little bit, as the show simply have the time to add to either of these characters without taking away focus from Naota. So though the characters were well developed and interesting in their own right, the fact that only Naota received a conclusive ending truly is a shame. Despite some of its shortcomings in the character and plot department, FLCL is still a widely entertaining and enjoyable series. Though only being six episodes long does have its shortcomings. However, this makes it reminiscent of literary short stories (like the ones I had to read in english) where the main purpose is to try to push just one encapsulating theme. In this case, that thematic center is puberty. However, FLCL does not settle for just emulating puberty. FLCL is awkwardly talking with girls, FLCL is having embarrassing experiences in class, FLCL is wondering who you are and where your place is in the world. Above all else, FOOLY COOLY IS PUBERTY, and it is a puberty is worth going back through just one more time.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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Jul 19, 2017
Yuu☆Yuu☆Hakusho
(Manga)
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The 80s and 90s was a special time for manga. It was a time when Shonen manga was at its peak popularity. Everyone knew titles like Dragon Ball, Fist of the North Star, and Full Metal Alchemist, while the likes of Naruto, One Piece, and Bleach were only just beginning. Among all of these other, action packed series, stands a true gem, and that gem is Yu Yu Hakusho.
Before I begin to talk about the story, I would have to recommend that you read the first chapter of the series yourself before continuing with reading this review, as I believe it is the greatest first ... manga chapter of all time. I would not like to spoil what happens for anyone, so please do that first, as I'm about to talk about the the basic premise, and I don't want to spoil the beginning for anyone. Yusuke Urameshi is seen by everyone as a delinquent. He regularly skips school, is reprimanded by his teachers constantly, gets in fights on a daily basis, receives neglect from his alcoholic mother, is avoided by most adults, and has almost no real friends. The only person who he has any real relationship to is his childhood friend, Keiko, and she also nags him to start caring about his own life. So Yuusuke is basically a loner who no one expects anything good to ever come from… until he saves a child from being hit by a car, which kills Yusuke instead. Yusuke, now a spirit, meets Botan, the guide to the spirit world (afterlife). She reveals that Yusuke died in vain, as the car would have missed hitting the child. However, now the spirit realm isn't prepared for him either, as they did not expect him to accomplish anything, especially not a good deeds like this. So Yusuke is given the chance to earn back his life through helping others, and the story takes off from here. The beginning section of Yu Yu Hakusho is actually rather slow, as it deals mostly with Yusuke helping others, and has little to no action in it. However, it is clear that the writer, Yoshihiro Togashi, decided to take the series in a different direction after the initial part, and the series quickly develops into the action packed series that is to be expected from a Shonen. It's mostly the typical Shonen affair, with increasingly powerful villains, supporting characters defeating the main villain’s underling, and tournament arcs galore. There are only two problems with the story. The first problem is there are A LOT of time skips. Though time skips can be useful to bypass long periods of training, Yu Yu Hakusho uses this plot device far too often in order to justify character power ups. The second problem is that the final arc felt like it rushed to end as quickly as possible. It seemed as if Togashi finally got bored with the series, and wanted to just move on to something else (Hunter x Hunter). Other than that, the story is good, but it is definitely not the main focus of Yu Yu Hakusho. The artwork of Yu Yu Hakusho is one of its finest aspects. Every character design sets itself apart from others. Even minor characters are given very memorable designs. This is especially impressive, as there are plenty of characters in Yu Yu Hakusho who make no reappearance after they are first introduced, and yet even they are usually distinguishable from those around them. Perhaps more impressive is the fluidity of movement during fights. Togashi has a way of giving fights a certain flow to them, and he does it with such an expertise that the reader is actually able to pick up on the character’s movements and attacks throughout a fight. Togashi does this better than most artists of his time, arguably even better than the great Akira Toriyama (coming from me, that's saying something, because I love Dragon Ball). A good example is Yusuke vs Shu, which is able to create an intense set of movement within a VERY restricted space. No fight ever feels dull or like it's just a rehash of a previous battle, even if it's a complete blowout. This makes the fights and art of Yu Yu Hakusho another amazing trait. Finally, and most importantly, is the characters of Yu Yu Hakusho, and the main cast is great. The main cast of Yusuke, Kuwabara, Hiei, and Kurama are the standout of course. One trait (cliche)holds true about all of them (as well as the main villains who I shall have to use every ounce of self restraint from talking about for spoiler purposes): don't judge a book by its cover. I already mentioned Yusuke, the one who seems like a delinquent, but feels lonely deep down and wants to prove himself. Kuwabara, at first glance, seems to be a complete idiot. However, once the reader gets to know him, they see he is rather prideful, and how his quick thinking and strategies often allow him to win difficult encounters. Hiei takes the case of a reformed villain, and is seen as fairly evil when he is introduced. However, we also learn that Hiei is actually much like Yusuke, as he he is prideful and always looking for a stronger foe. Kurama seems to be the most calm and level headed of the group. However, he also has a dark and sadistic side that is linked with his past. These four, along with many of the villains (must… not… spoil… younger… Toguro) all display incredible amounts of character depth, and are very well written. Unfortunately, this cannot be said about the supporting characters. Unfortunately, they show fairly little depth. I can look past this for characters like Botan, Yusuke’s mom, Koenma, as they were never truly meant to have the greatest impact on the series to begin with. However, I cannot give the same excuse for Keiko. Throughout the entire first portion of the series, she was shown to be the only person Yusuke had in his life that was worth living for, but she receives very little character development. To make matters worse, when the action starts to become the focus of the series, she is completely sidelined. This is the only real disappointment I have in the character department, and it does hurt my views on this series, but only slightly. Like I said before, Yu Yu Hakusho is a true gem among Shonen manga. For fans of the genre, the fast paced and well illustrated battles will not leave your dissatisfied. However, even if you don't like Shonen, I believe you may also be able to enjoy the depth of its main characters. Unfortunately, Yu Yu Hakusho is not flawless, as it has a slow begins segment, too many time skips, and some poorly developed supporting characters. Though this may slightly decrease the value of reading this, I still believe it is worth checking out by all.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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Jul 16, 2017
Shinseiki Evangelion
(Anime)
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This is it. This is the big one. This is quite possibly the most controversial anime of all time. Not only that, but it is also likely that no other anime has created such a monumental (third) impact on the medium as a whole (except possibly Akira). This... Is... Neon Genesis Evangelion. Though when examining the every individual aspect of the show, the series may seem flawed. However, when one looks at the series as a whole, the absolute perfection that is Neon Genesis Evangelion shines through.
The one of the most important aspects of NGE is its story. NGE serves as a deconstruction of the ... mecha genre, choosing to focus on the mentality of those who pilot the Eva units, as well as the people in command of procedures and operations. The first part of the series is fairly standard for the genre with it usually introducing a new Angel (the monstrous enemy of mankind) each week for the pilots and command to find a new way to beat it. Though the series has a more depressive tone than its contemporaries, nothing seems out of the ordinary for the genre. However this changes with a big reveal at the end of episode 15, and by a complete tonal shift in episode 16 that is solidified by episode 18. From here, the show turns almost completely into the psychological narrative the series is now known for, which is one of its best parts. However, there are still flaws to the story. There are many cases of events not being thoroughly explained, which can lead to some confusion when trying to follow the story. There are also many cases of many plot points never being described at all, or never reaching a conclusion. Though this may help the series to maintain its longevity, it can be unsatisfying to not have the closure. There are also some minor plot holes, though nothing that ruins the overall story. Ultimately, the flaws of the story do little to diminish the series as a whole. The production value of NGE’s animation is also another notable aspect, though perhaps its least appealing. Animation involving the series mechs is always crisp and has a constant standard of quality. As the series names take, this would be only just. The same cannot be said for the animation of general character interactions. As many already know, Gainax (series producers) struggled to properly balance their budget throughout the series. This mostly reflects in their character animation. Corners were cut especially for dialogue, as many characters deliver their lines either with their mouths covered, or off screen. This does make the series feel rather cheaply done at times. However, one thing is rather odd about this laziness with animation: it can occasionally work in the series favor. Some scenes were enhanced by this lack of animation quality. An awkward scene between 2 characters in episode 3. is suddenly extended longer than it should be, making the audience feel awkward is well. A scene of dramatic tension in episode 24 is elongated, keeping the audience on the edge of their seats for over a minute. Then there's the ending to the series… but more on that later. So though many scenes do fall flat, others actually obtain unprecedented success from low quality. The series audio quality is mostly great, and the music is a real treat. One cannot mention NGE without talking of the series superb opening, “A Cruel Angel’s Thesis”, which sits on many anime fans’ favorite openings list (it’s number 1 on mine). The song handles each of its transitions perfectly, starting with an eerie chorus, to upbeat trumpets, then builds up into the rest of the song. Perhaps the most impressive transition it makes is how it morphs from coinciding with the series, to contrasting it by the end. The ending theme is a cover of “Fly Me to the Moon” by Frank Sinatra. Though it is catchy, the “engrish” can be annoying. The singer also switches, and not all share the same level of high quality. The rest of the music for the series is very well done. The instrumentals are all high quality, and help to enhance each scene. “Decisive Battle” creates the rush of preparations to stop the oncoming threat, while “Rei I” creates the creepy image of a seemingly empty character. Best of all is “Thanatos”, which is really a testament to the series. It starts with depressing music of the violin (at least I think it's the violin. I don't music), then is completely uplifted by the flute into a hopeful tune,m. This really speaks to the series tone as a whole, almost as if the song itself is saying no matter how bleak life seems to be, there will always be hope. The only thing that bothers me on the soundtrack is cicadas. Often times in outdoors scenes, a track is played of cicadas chirping in the background. There are a lot of outside scenes, meaning a lot of cicada chirping, which annoys me. As for the Japanese voice actors, they all did extremely well for their roles, and were able to perfectly deliver the characters’ emotions. I haven't watched the English dub, but I've heard that it is pretty low quality. Finally, the most important part of Neon Genesis Evangelion, without a doubt, is its characters. The Eva pilots consist of Shinji (main character), Rei, and Asuka, and other important characters include Misato and Gendo. Shinji Ikari is the depressed main character of this series, and his depression results from the absence of his mother since childhood, and the neglect of his father, Gendo. Along with depression, Shinji has also developed Hedgehog’s dilemma and a severe aversion to pain. Because of this, Shinji struggle to develop meaningful relations with others, as he both fears hurting them, and being hurt by them. This only continues to feed his depression. Perhaps the most interesting feature that sets Shinji apart from other anime protagonists is his inability to grow as a person. Because of this, many people often dislike Shinji and see him as a pathetic weakling. However, this is what actually makes him such a compelling character. More importantly, it makes him a HUMAN character. People aren't superhumans that can do anything, and people don't always move on from their problems, and Shinji embodies that perfectly. Next is Rei Ayanami, the (best girl) cold, seemingly empty shell of a person. She has basically created her own character archetype through her generally silent and emotionless demeanor. Rei and her origins remain an enigma throughout most of the story. The only thing that is known about her is that she has a very close relationship with Gendo, and is willing to do anything for him, even at the cost of her own well being and her life. However, though it is very subtle, Rei begins to change due to her interactions with Shinji. She begins to shift what bonds she had with Gendo to him, and slowly begins to wonder what her own true purpose is. The reveal of what she actually is gives a reasoning to her strong ties with Shinji and Gendo, as well as to her emotionless nature. Saying anymore would be spoilers, so I'll end the (best girl) Rei discussion here. Asuka Langley Soryu is the third and final Eva pilot. She is definitely the most lively of the pilots (although there's not much competition), but also the most narcissistic and arrogant. She is brash, always wanting to do things her own way, and craves constant praise for her actions. She wants nothing more to receive special treatment and attention for everything she does. However, this spawns from a massive skeleton in her closet, which reveals her actions to seem more childish than originally perceived. Because of her past, she requires praise in order to feel a sense of self worth and fulfillment. However, as she begins to realize that Shinji is becoming more successful than she is, she begins to lose her confidence, which leads to her downfall. Miss to, though not carrying the weight of the pilots, is the one who really holds everything together. Like everyone else already mentioned, she has her own personal problems (Electra complex). However, Misato does her best to try to hide these for the well being of the other pilots (even if she must often resort to her alcoholism to do so). Like Asuka, she is also a strong female character, and finds herself in leadership roles when things take a turn for the worst. She is also not afraid to speak her mind to her pilots when they are careless, nor is she afraid to try to help them through their life problems. Gendo is another very interesting character, and my personal favorite. As the audience knows, he has no relationship with his son whatsoever, and has no desire to bond with him. Gendo’s has one sole purpose in his life, and will do anything in his power to obtain his goal, even if that means manipulating others. In this regard, Gendo is actually much like his son, as neither him nor Shinji demonstrate the ability to move on with their lives. Though the series originally presents Gendo negatively, it actually begins to build him up as a better person than we preconceive. Even Shinji starts to see some good in his father, before these notions are completely torn to shreds again. The last characters worth mentioning are the Eva’s themselves. Though they do seemingly little more than hold the pilots, they actually each reflect their pilots. Eva-00 is blue, representing Rei’s calm, but cold personality, and its single eye shows that Rei is only viewing life by the single aspect of serving Gendo. Meanwhile, Eva-02 is red, showing Asuka’s brash, arrogant personality, and the 4 eyes show how Asuka tries to take on as many challenges as possible, even though that this many viewpoints may cloud her visions. Finally, Eva-01 is purple, which is a fusion of red and blue, symbolizing Shinji’s own inner turmoil that prevents him from really being collected like Rei or confident like Asuka. It's 2 eyes show it's humanity, while also the inhumanity of what happens to the pilot. Usually I wouldn't focus on the ending in a review, as I don't think an entire day should be judged by the quality of its sunset. However, NGE’s is worth mentioning, if only for the controversy surrounding it. It is true that Gainax ran out of funds for the last 2 episodes, and that its art style doesn't really reflect the series. It is understandable if those looking for a secure ending would be disappointed. However, as I “briefly” mentioned before, the characters are the most important part of Neon Genesis Evangelion. Since the last 2 episodes stand as a psychological breakdown of the characters, I think it actually works very well as an ending. However, if you want true closure, then watch the alternate/parallel ending to the series, “End of Evangelion” (though that might not give you complete closure either). To conclude, Neon Genesis Evangelion is far from perfect. Pacing, plot, animation, and several other issues are present throughout the shows 26 episodes. However, every piece, whether it's as broken as the characters’ lives or as perfect as Gendo’s pose, created the closest thing to a perfect anime that the world has ever seen. However, whether you think you'll love the series or hate it, you NEED to watch Neon Genesis Evangelion. It is a right of passage for all anime fans. To quote Fuyutsuki, “Your truth can be changed simply by the way you accept it. That's how fragile the truth for a human is”. That is basically what this series is. Now it's your turn to watch it, and form your own truth on Neon Genesis Evangelion.
Reviewer’s Rating: 10
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