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Dec 19, 2019
Sho Futamata's story NANBAKA tells the tale of Nanba Prison, considered the most unbreakable facility in the world. This prison is populated by a host of colorful characters, both the prisoners that have been contained there and the warders who are employed to contain them. Each of these residents have their own distinct history,
The animation is beautiful to see, and the characters are pretty and interesting with enough character depth to gain interest. Also, there are some numerical jokes in the story (for instance, Nanba means "number") that give the story a clever touch.
However, one major problem the series suffers from is too slow writing.
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The first season had decent pacing and was enjoyable, but the second season drags on for too long. The manga comic has already moved on beyond what the show brings up, and if a third season will ever be made it's going to need major effort to be brought up to date with the events of the manga.
It'd be a fascinating tale with an equally fascinating cast, if it wasn't imprisoned by too slow writing.
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
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Nov 25, 2019
Anime’s most popular robber, Arsene Lupin III, continues his escapades with this new show. And while he reaches fifty years, changing times have not changed his enthusiasm for impossible thefts. With that said, the world has evolved and become tougher for him.
This adaptation puts Lupin against the current world, specifically the aspect of information technology that has become so much of current culture: cellphones, social services, digital money, hacking and surveillance. It’s a long way from Lupin’s origins in the late 1960s, when all he seriously needed was his wit. The challenge is whether he can still hold up, after all these years. To
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his credit, Lupin realizes he needs a tech-savvy ally and brings in Ami Enan, a hacker who wants to experience the world.
The story isn’t a simple tale of the old guard dealing with tech, as Lupin has dealt with computers before. It goes beyond that: the series’ main villain: Enzo, is a perfectionist IT surveillance officer who seeks to prove his system is perfect by targeting and bringing down the world’s best thief. It’s a battle to preserve Lupin’s reputation and legend (marked by the show having one-episode adventures of Lupin from different eras). There’s no fear, though: at fifty years, Lupin proves himself as still unstoppable and entertaining an outlaw, and so do his close friends. They do need a bit of time to reflect on their long history (a few episodes touch on this), but on the whole they’re still ready for thrills and excitement.
It’s worth noting that the show has a few boring moments, and perhaps more seriously there are some colorful characters who debut on this show who deserve more time than what they got. Particular attention is for Albert D’Andresy, Lupin’s rival who’s set his eyes on stealing nations through political strategies. Albert, who debuts in this show, is a fascinating character who deserved more time to explore his history with Lupin and his grand schemes. But what little we saw of Albert was good enough to guarantee him a possible appearance in the future.
This show stands out as a commemoration of Lupin’s legend, a bit faulty in some places but otherwise a fun ride for both fans and non-fans.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Nov 14, 2017
This is a music video that pays tribute to the manga group Clamp, famous for its elegant charming illustrations and its various stories. This is the second video made to commemorate Clamp’s works (the first one was made in 1994) and features all the Clamp characters created from 1989 to 2007 (the time this video was made).
The animation is just as pretty as the first video, but is a bit more varied with the use of digital elements (a sign of progress). The music is an upbeat romantic track about the beauty and wonder of fantasy worlds, in a similar vein to the first video’s
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music.
A major difference to note is that this video is a lot longer and has more characters compared to its predecessor, as Clamp had created more works since then. The video also maintains a slight story structure, featuring a crew travelling through the many worlds of Clamp. However, in my perspective, these changes make the video feel heavy and overcrowded, as if it was striving for a Clamp crossover event but couldn’t manage it with enough time (this is a music video after all, so maybe it shouldn’t have been too ambitious).
For the most part, it’s still a Clamp video and it can still please the fans. But I would recommend seeing the other video first.
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
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Nov 12, 2017
This is a simple but enjoyable music video that pays tribute to the manga group Clamp, famous for its elegant charming illustrations and its various stories. The video features all the Clamp characters created from 1989 to 1994 (the time this video was made).
The song is the best part about the video. It has a nice upbeat and romantic atmosphere to it. More importantly, it ties the video together through its message of entering a whole new fantasy world filled with beauty and adventure. The video has no real story and is just a well-animated montage of Clamp characters, who generally come from different tales
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(an Alice in Wonderland comedy, a trio of magical schoolgirls, an apocalyptic superhuman battle, and so on), but the song successfully manages to collect and unite these varied stories into Clamp’s distinct and unique wonderland.
All in all, it’s a great tribute to a fine group of artists. Fans both casual and dedicated will appreciate the appearances by their favourite Clamp characters (including a special appearance by Jouta Kujo, a fan-made character inspired by the classic action manga Jojo's Bizarre Adventure).
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Jul 22, 2017
I'm not sure why this is on MAL, because it's not a feature but an opening credits sequence constructed for a Jackie Chan film.
Still, by itself it's a pretty fun montage. The whole sequence is reminiscent of Monkey Punch's crime caper comedy Lupin III, with jazzy music, adulterous animation and the characters carrying out gags to each other.
Lupin animation is a curious choice to use for a martial arts comedy, but since he was really popular around the 1980s it's not really surprising this animation would be used for a popular martial arts feature. But as I said, the animation is adulterous,
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and Lupin was only like that in a few serials, so that can put a few people off.
It's enjoyable by itself, and for Lupin fans it's great fun to look at.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Jun 2, 2017
This film was touted as the final instalment in the Yamato saga, a space opera franchise that began in 1974 and had completed ten years. At this point, the Yamato crew had gone through so many adventures in space on the edge of peril that this one comes out as a relatively above-average adventure for them. Bringing back a beloved but long-dead character through some contrived means, only for the said character to give it up for his crew, also sets the story and its drama back in terms of plot.
However, the film makes up for its problems by being one big space adventure,
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with the epic action and scale it deserves: glorious space vistas, fantastic planets and spacecraft, and fantastic action sequences, all backed up by incredible animation that still looks great today and grand orchestral music that captures the intense atmosphere of the scenes. Even if the plot is rather average, this film provides a wonderful spectacle to see.
In the end the film marks a grand finale to the original Yamato show; it would later undergo a remake in 2012. The film does the Yamato saga great credit and honor, and it’s an enjoyable watch for any fan of Yamato or space operas.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Mar 2, 2017
When you are trapped in a virtual reality game, the natural thing to do is to find a way out. But when your VR persona is that of the most powerful demon sorcerer ever, that’s when things get interesting.
The whole show is carried on the shoulders of the title character, the Overlord. Satoshi Hino gives a terrific dual performance as the mage demon master Ainz Ooal Gown and as the human player Momonga providing a monologue and narrative. Ainz serves as the anti-heroic character who strives to conquer the world for his own desire, and Momonga is the simple player who only wishes to
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locate other gamesters like himself in the new world. It’s a fascinating character and Hino does him great credit with his voice.
Beyond the Overlord himself, the rest of the cast are not as developed, but they get enough time and character to stand out; Yumi Hara in particular makes a lasting impression as a passionate demon who gets emotionally carried away frequently. The animation and music is also above average and complements the story well.
The show, however, is far too brief to tell its story adequately, and so is confined to introducing its characters and the world and only a brief space to show them off, and then ends on a cliffhanger. This is an incredible story that deserves more than 13 episodes, and its being cut off so early makes the whole fantasy tragically disappointing. Thankfully, the story is carried on in the manga that runs in parallel to the show, so if you want more you should check out that comic.
As brief as it is, the show is still a fantastic saga that deserves a lot of love and makes for a great watch.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Dec 4, 2016
Lupin III, the cops-and-robbers saga that began in the late 1960s, has gone through several iterations in its long history. This new series is the most contemporary one to date, with the ambition of using past iterations of the saga (notably combining anti-heroic and chivalrous Lupin) in a new format to provide a blend of new thrills and old favourites.
The show is fully set in the land of Italy, which has a unique culture (from the seedy Mafioso to the glorious Renaissance) that makes it a great setting for the Lupin cast to caper about. The show also presents two new characters: the thrill-seeking
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billionaire Rebecca Rosselini who marries Lupin for the challenge she presents to him, and the secret agent Nyx who frequently crosses paths with Lupin while he goes about his work. Both characters are well-developed and present a refreshing foil to Lupin’s rivals Fujiko and Zenigata, making things more unexpected and exciting. There is also one character that sets in motion a grand plan involving all of Italy...
However, the show is still vintage Lupin, and there are a fair amount of episodes that are dedicated to individual adventures starring Lupin or his acquaintances. These episodes do not take away from the main plot and are pretty enjoyable, presenting a wide variety of escapades from an assassination plan to a pet dog running off. These stories do justice to the Lupin cast in the modern era; they were always slightly anachronistic due to their 60s-70s origin, and these stories enable them to adequately manage contemporary times with their unique attitude and style. Speaking for myself I find these stories to be the best part of the show, Lupin is best enjoyed in such tales. And special mention must be made to bringing back Lupin composer Yuji Ohno, who not only revives the iconic Lupin theme song but adds some beautiful atmospheric Italian tunes to the show.
The show has its problems, though. The aforementioned secret character and his plan are basically inspired by the mastermind of the 1977 film, which can reduce the appeal for those who know the Lupin history. As I said above, Lupin is best enjoyed in small-scale episodic adventures.
I also find the artwork to be slightly extravagant; the artwork is definitely beautiful, but the character design tries too hard to replicate the special work of Lupin artist Hayao Miyazaki. Lupin’s artwork is primarily sketchy and cartoonish, which helps to enhance the fun and noir-esque element of Lupin. To be fair, the previous Lupin show THE WOMAN CALLED FUJIKO MINE had beautiful artwork that set a difficult standard to match; this show just barely manages to be as good.
And on a personal level, I dislike how serious Zenigata was in the show; it was a matter of improving him from a comical but tenacious inspector into a policeman who could be taken seriously, but I do miss the comical antics Lupin and Zenigata carried on with each other.
In the end, the show proves to be a successful modernizing of Lupin, and a worthy watch for both old and new fans of the unstoppable thief.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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Jan 23, 2016
This sci-fi feature was screened at a science fair in 1985 Japan as a means to promote learning about space and the universe. Nowadays it’s little more than a 1980s space fantasy feature, but it still makes for an interesting watch.
Anybody who knows sci-fi anime writer Leiji Matsumoto and his works can recognize the hallmarks in this piece: an elegant long-haired lady, a young boy companion, a world torn apart by conflict, a journey through space, a cosmic phenomenon, and a prayer for peace. However, it’s done in an original and interesting manner and the story carries enough dramatic and philosophical weight to tie
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things together. It has the potential to be a better story if it could have lasted longer.
The animation is above average, given that it has some adequate computer graphics (in the 80s such VFX were still unrefined). The music is the main draw here, with two vintage 80s songs that are great to listen to.
All in all, it’s a brief but curious little relic that represents the 1980s and its love for space fantasy.
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
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Jan 17, 2016
In the 1980s, the Christian Broadcasting Network produced two anime shows, SUPERBOOK and THE FLYING HOUSE, as part of a campaign to spread Christianity in Japan. The shows both centered on a group of children, who were taken through fantasy means straight into the midst of the Bible’s fables, where they (and the viewer) would experience these tales in person and gain an understanding of their morals.
Both shows stand in the vein of “religious sci-fi” and are equally enjoyable, but personally I would say this show had the better format of the two: one show was getting sucked into an enchanted Bible in search
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of a missing friend, while this show was actual time-travelling to the times of the Bible; thus the travelers have a little more involvement and impact on the tale (carefully done so that it doesn’t really change the original Bible tale). The animation and voice acting are fairly above average for a 1980s show, and is nice enough to support the stories and make them a worthwhile watch.
Speaking for myself, I grew up in a home that respected all religions, and so I was able to enjoy this show and found it neither offensive, nor over-preachy or self-glorifying (which admittedly a lot of religions tend to be). The stories in this series are presented as fairly simple tales of hope, faith, kindness and grace, qualities we could all do with in the world. On the negative side, a show like this may only be enjoyable if you’re a Christian or a relatively religious person.
If you’re prepared to give a chance for God and morals, then you can take a look at this show. I can promise that you won’t be disappointed, it's a very nice and enjoyable Christian anime.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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