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If you come into this hoping for the standard sword & sorcery, historical/fantasy shounen adventure fare, you're probably going to be disappointed.

I rather despise that genre, because they're all the same. Once you've seen one, you might as well have seen them all. They re-use the same tropes and devices, and don't much original fare to offer.

This series takes those tropes, and irreverently plays with them, providing parody and lots of unexpected content. And trolling. So bad it hurts. I haven't had so many laughs over an anime since "Daily Lives of High School Boys" (which, incidentally, has the same director; who's ... also the guy who did Gintama).

The princess isn't a sexy teen girl (she's not even cute enough to be a loli) and the sexy teen girl isn't actually even….
The cute animal mascot (which EVERY hero group must have), is at war with the hero.
And, erm, "crotch problems" take center stage. It's all about balls here, folks.

Basically, you can watch it without knowing quite knowing what's going to happen next. Except that it's not going to quite turn out the way it's "supposed to", or at least, not the way we've been conditioned to expect.

This is a comedy that's given me lots of healthy laughs so far; I've watched through half the episodes, and look forward to seeing what curve'balls' are thrown at me next.

[slightly edited from the review I posted on Crunchyroll]

Somebody, write me an anime.

Have it be a sci-fi that's totally hilarious, where the main character is a gorgeous guy who is a deadpan utter jerk. And he knows it. Oh, and ALIENS! Let there be aliens who wish to mate with the human race. Let there be aliens who try to protect earth at the cost of their lives, and who get strokes and ulcers in the process. And let it have cheesy homages to Super Sentai. Make it so I'll laugh and sometimes feel a little sad. The Twilight Zone on another level. Let ... it be delicious and utter chaos. Throw a curveball every 30 seconds. Make me befuddled. Strike me dumb.

And let the animation and music be decent.

Oh, wait, somebody already DID write one. And it's called "Level E."

This series is my crack-up. This is my ha-ha. The one that I realize I've been grinning all the way through because my face hurts when it's over.

But don't watch this JUST because the guy who wrote the manga also wrote this other inconspicuous little series called Hunter x Hunter. After all, the mood and art are totally different. But they are both brilliant. The way that two sides of a gold coin are equally shiny, even if the pattern is different.

I'm picky about my comedy shows. Gintama makes me yawn. My Bride is a Mermaid is amusing. Beelzebub at least gets me grinning. This….this makes me bellylaugh for its utter unexpecititivity. It's like, no anime would get away with something so DUMB, so it's funny. Nobody else dares to try it. Comedy of its own caliber.

And how many animes have retro-era alien music? Totally awesome. And melodramatic piano that keeps looping through my head, darn it. Oh, the OP. One of the few OP's I watched consistently every episode. It itself is like a tribute to...cheesy awesomeness, while being cool at the same time. Campiness galore.

It's only 13 episodes, but you can break it up into 6 or 7 arcs, each being 1-3 episodes long. Do not fear that we leave Yukitaka after the first arc is over. We see him again at the end. But meanwhile we have to swim through the woman-eaters, mermaids, schoolkids-turned-color-rangers, RPGs, lesbians, snowmobiles, and grasshoppers. And did you know that aliens like baseball? That's why they keep earth safe. It's the only planet with baseball.

For those with dirty minds who can only laugh at dirty jokes, and can only drool over ecchi: stay away. You won't laugh here. Not much for you.

I would give it a score of 10 in this review if it weren't for 2 episodes that weren't funny: there was one color ranger episode too many, and the baseball episode. I guess they included it because it was in the manga.

Except for that, the comedy stays fresh. I've watched it through twice, and re-watched individual episodes several times. And for some reason it's STILL funny.

Watch it....FOR THE ALIENS ARE AMONG US!!!!!!!

*cue eerie sci-fi music from the 50's*

A masterpiece of sci-fi. An intelligent bromance. A suspenseful dystopian story. Or so it could have been.

Unfortunately, it's waterlogged with confusing and improbable assumptions, and the thing it does best is the angst. But having two teen boys bicker like a bitter middle-aged couple gets tiring after a while. I have a sneaking suspicion that the writer (of either the original novel, or of the anime script) is a 16-year-old who thinks bromance angst is the coolest thing, and added some random sci-fi and fantasy and a few tropes to make it look cool, because that's just…….cool. Who cares ... if it makes any sense.

We start off in a utopian society, known as "Number 6." Our main character, Sion, is just a young kid, but is on the fast-track for a great future. But then he smashes that when he decides to tend the wounds of a boy named Nezumi, who stumbles into his house one night. Nezumi is an escaped convict. But Sion, in the goodness of his heart, treats him anyway. (The amazingly smart kid "knows the theory" of stitching wounds, fortunately.) As punishment, Sion and his mother are kicked out of the smarty-pants district, and into the area of No. 6 that is for common people. And now they both have to work for a living.

Then comes the insect infestation! A few people start to suddenly age, drop dead, and have bee-like insects crawl out of their age spots. Yuck. This happens to Sion's co-worker. And since everyone in this story assumes the obvious, Sion is arrested for murder. But, lucky him, Nezumi comes to the rescue of our damsel (er, lad) in distress and takes him to the land outside of No. 6, which is a giant garbage dump, and which lots of people call home. Including Nezumi. Sion wants to go back to No. 6 and help find a cure for the carnivorous bees. But Nezumi doesn't want him to. Because he hates No. 6.

That's about as far as the plot makes sense.

I know animes often don't explain everything. Many of the "art house" series make it a point to be vague. But this one isn't trying to be artistic. Rather, it seems like someone tried to follow a template for success.

Lots of stories try to do that. Like a harem anime has certain kinds of characters (the loli, the little sister, the peppy girl, the nerdy girl, the lusty girl, the tsundere girl, etc.) and certain kinds of situations (a visit to the beach, guy tripping and landing on top of a girl with a hand on her……you-know-what).

This one tries to do something like that too.

Having two main characters who are polar opposites is cool? Let's do that.
Having them argue, wrestle, shove each other around, and kiss a couple times will excite a certain segment of fangirls? Let's do that.
Tragic past? Check.
Leader of an underground resistance movement? Check.
Terrible plague/infestation that the main character nobly wishes to remedy? Check.
Kidnapped childhood friend? Check.
Mysterious goddess-spirit of nature? Check.
Grand climactic ending? Check.
Partner in misery? Check.
Bad guys in suits? Check.
Evil laboratory? Check.
Noble death? Check.
White hair? Check.
Body scars? Check.
Blood? Check.
Action? Check.
Animals? Check.

Now, none of these things are bad. If you know how to use them; if they work together to make a cohesive, compelling story. But here they don't. They're all tossed together like a salad, and even if you liked the original ingredients, somehow they don't taste good together.

Like I said before, it seems immature.

Notice I gave this a rating of 7, which is still fairly high. The OP and animation are nice. The sci-fi slightly-in-the-future setting is interesting, and the characters are generally non-stereotypical. It feels unusual. Dystopian series seem mostly reserved for mature audiences, and girl-appealing sci-fis are not common. It's OK for a light weekend splurge if you don't know what else to watch, and you want to see if you are the one who will finally crack the puzzle of this anime. And maybe there is a good solution and resolution, and it can be understood by the brilliant. I will give it the benefit of the doubt. Like with Moby Dick, rumor has it there are people who "get it."

But I think the people who will still love the series by the time they get to the end will be hardcore yaoi fangirls. Because yaoi animes are scarce, and they have to take what they can get. (No, this isn't a yaoi, but certain scenes will make them say it's close enough.) Oh, it starts out good. Nice animation, interesting setting. It had all the makings of an interesting story. But it doesn't maintain it. It just keeps throwing things at you, trying to convince you that it's intelligent and cool.

It keeps adding more and more things to thicken the plot. And I kept waiting for them to pan out or be explained. Finally, I got to the last episode, and figured everything would finally be explained. But the most it did was throw even more confusing stuff at me.

Sorry folks, that's not cool.

Apothecarius Argentum tries to cleverly disguise itself as a shoujo. But it’s not fooling me. It might fool some at first with it’s girly art and handsome male lead. But …you see, shoujos are SUPPOSED to have stereotypical characters. They’re SUPPOSED to have a female lead who’s either clumsy and fretting, or constantly chipper. The male lead is grouchy and/or blunt, or utterly suave and charming. The lead girl is SUPPOSED to constantly revel in angst, and wonder how she feels about her love interest, and how he feels about her. The storylines are SUPPOSED to be ... about short-term goals like...making edible chocolates for Valentine’s day. Beloved characters are NOT supposed to die. There should NOT be discussions of controversial topics (like, say, abortion). All the important characters SHOULD be under the age of 30. Everything SHOULD be black and white and obvious.

But this series doesn’t want to do that. It revels in complex characters, perplexing situations, thwarting the romance between our two leads, and constantly turning the story setting completely upside down. Not to mention *gasp* politics! It keeps reminding you that real life is tough, and miracles rarely happen. What usually happens is what you wish didn’t, but, too bad, that’s the way reality is. If you like your shoujo the way it’s SUPPOSED to be, stay far and clear of this series! You’re warned. Don’t you dare come crying to me later.

The setting is in an 18th-century-European-like country by the name of Beazol. There’s no magic, no fantasy. Our male lead is a fellow by the name of Argent. Why “Argent”? Well, of course you all know that the word argent is the Latin root for “silver,” which fits him because his hair is white. No, the white hair is not simply a trope to make him look more handsome. It’s because when he was enslaved as a little child, he was gradually fed poisons until he became immune to them (remind you of Dokuhime?). One side effect was that his hair turned white. He was then sold to the king of Beazol to serve as a poison-taster for the king's only child, Princess Primula. Being a slave, he was not allowed to get too friendly with her. And physical contact was absolutely forbidden because his entire body was saturated in poison, and a touch from him could do harm or even kill.

Princess Primula is our female lead. She’s fond of food and swordfighting, and wants very much to be friends with Argent. When the story starts, he is a free adult, and working outside of the palace as an apothecary. That job is perfect for him, because of his unfortunate familiarity with the qualities of various plants, and his immunity to any poisons they might have in them. He is recalled from his hut in the woods to become the official court apothecary, and tend to the illnesses of those in and outside of the palace.

That’s how the story starts. As I warned, the status quo never stays status for very long. Argent constantly goes in and out of grace with the king. His location of work keeps changing. And the romance. Ah, the romance.

The oft-hidden core of the story is the potential romance between Argent and Primula. We, as the reader, know that each party totally digs the other. But, they both acknowledge the two little problems of class difference, and not being able to make skin contact. Though the first problem could potentially be hurdled the second...the second will be a sticky wicket. Trying to have kids would probably mean death for Primula. So, what to do? Primula will have to marry at some point, as the sole heir to the throne. I don’t want to hand out any spoilers regarding what happens along their bumpy road of romance. I can only assure you that there are lots of ups and downs. And things that will make you want to wring your hands in frustration at the unfairness of life in this world.

There’s also the politics. Being a ruler, and holding onto the throne, means that you have to do a lot of harmful, hateful things. Case in point: the king of Beazol. At some times, he seems like a kindly, wise, fatherly king. At others, he seems like a bloodthirsty murderer. Argent’s doings sometimes go against proper politics, thus making him a persona non grata. Primula has to take on the responsibilities of a ruler, and fulfil the needs and expectations of her people, even if that is difficult or distasteful to her.

And then there's the pharmacy business. First off, mithridatism (becoming immune to poisons) is not necessarily as effective in real life as it is in the story. But the purposes of the plants which Argent works with, for the most part, seem fairly accurate (by the way, these are real plants, not fantasy-world plants). There are extra pages at the end of each volume, with facts about the uses of various plants. But the author continually cautions you not to go medicating yourself with them! Leave that business to Argent and other experts. So if you have a liking for plants and their uses, you might find this interesting.

Speaking of the extra pages, in some volumes (all?) there is a running extra gag story, about “Rice-bran Argent” and all the exploits of “Rice-bran Argent.” It’s funny. Read it.

As for characters, our two leads are loveable, if imperfect. Primula is hasty and often is inconsiderate as a pampered palace kid. But she earnestly wants to see the people of Beazol happy. And to seduce Argent. She devises ways to get him close to her. Which he keeps parrying, knowing that his touch is harmful. While he understands he must repect her, the king, and all the members of the court as people in a high position, at the same time he wrestles with his pride as a human, and as a man. He is not simply namby-pamby and perfect. He will fight and brawl and argue, and think of ways to keep his freedom and maybe, just maybe, get a shot at romance.

But Argent and Primula are not the only important characters. There’s quite a wide cast. Some are friends, some are traitors. Most live, some die. But most are fairly complicated. They don’t just behave predictably. After all, they live in a complicated world, and that means that complicated decisions have to be made, and unfortunate factors considered. I am trying as hard as possible to explain without giving away any spoilers, because the political moves and upheavals constitute some of the most shocking parts of the storyline. And you like to be shocked, right?

Now to the issue of maturity. For perhaps the first volume or so, it seems that it’s suitable for 10-year-olds. After all, what little violence there is isn’t particularly graphic, and the poison symptoms look like a mild case of chocking. You ask, “Why did CMX [the US publisher] rate it for older teens?” Well, a little later in the story, we tackle some darker themes (like killing kids for political reasons). And even later, we get full and fairly frank discussions regarding sex. It’s not graphic, but it’s talked about a good bit (the story includes prostitutes, abortion, and issues regarding the inconveniences of Argent and others like him).

The art was a bit annoying to me at first. I admit to being picky about art. It was a style I haven’t seen a lot, which looks more firm than fluffy. And all the characters seem to have rather strong jaws (Primula could totally look like a boy if she dressed like one). And it’s somewhat remarkable for not having much in the way of sparkly or flowery screentone...but ah, silly me, I forgot for a moment that this is only a FAKE shoujo.

Now, now, I don’t mean you to take this as a shoujo-bash, if you like shoujo. Where did I say shoujo is bad or unlikeable? Its genre exists for a purpose, and there is lots of it out there because....lots of people like it and read it! And I understand that not all shoujos are the same...some are dark and dramatic, unlike the norm. But those are exceptions to the big class people think of when they think "shoujo." If you’re looking for a cute and happy story, this is NOT it. I’ve seen lots of people comment on this series to express their dissatisfaction at how it’s “Not like shoujo.”

My personal yakkity yak: I really, really like this series. I'm always on the lookout for the unconventional, and the genre-bending. I only discovered this series by browsing through my library catalog, starting with the manga that began with "A." The first volume felt a little bland, but Argent's intriguing situation was what made me try out more...and then I realized that I was reading a fairly unusual series, placed in a fairly complex and well-thought-out world. I always like it when the world in the story feels three-dimensional, and that it extends beyond the frames on the pages. I like it when these are characters I can believe in, and expect to be surprised by, not bound by stereotypical expectations. My rating for the series slowly rose from 7, to 8, and finally 9. While I don't expect it to get brilliant or beloved enough for a 10, it has given me thorough satisfaction, and holds high re-read potential.

If you like genres besides shoujo, and keep in mind that this is different, I do recommend you try it. With all my glowing comments on how this is “Not like shoujo,” I don’t mean that this has any sort of thriller-esque or intrigue-riddled tale for the most discerning of tastes. In fact the pace is rather slow. As slow as the transport of the era. It’s simply a political-historical-drama-romance with some sweet and sour twists. But, ah, how enjoyable I found it to be.

Blue servant penguins! And they will kill your cockroaches for you! Penguin queen hat that will possess your precious little sister! Power up into the subway! This is all for the sake of survival!

Well, this anime doesn't make much sense either. In a bipolar fashion, in fluctuates between tender or intense drama, and crackup comedy or impossibly bizarre situations. A shoujo aesthetic and intensely droolerific colors make it a pretty treat to look at. Loveable and hateable characters start off as cliches, but seem to round out into something more.

There seems little point in providing a ... summary, since everything is so off the wall. But it starts off with the tragic [cliche situation] of three adolescent orphaned siblings. The two older (and very bishounen) brothers do all they can to support themselves and their little sister who has a dreadful terminal illness. Wanting her to enjoy every last moment of her brief life, they take her to the zoo. But, that was a little too much excitement, and she drops dead. Boo hoo.

BUT, fortunately, there was a hat they bought from the gift shop, and it magically re-animates her! It is some....unknown creature, and it will keep sis alive, but in return the boys must complete certain missions that it asks them to do. First job: find the penguin drum!


Why would you enjoy watching this?

BECAUSE IT'S PRETTY TO LOOK AT!!!
(If you're tired of pastels and flat colors or want some cute bishounen to rest the eyes, look no further!)

BECAUSE THERE'S NOT ENOUGH SHOUJOS OUT THERE ALREADY!!!
(There's always like a 15-to-1 ratio of shounen/seinen to shoujo/josei every season. Well, maybe this isn't shoujo...but I wouldn't call it a shounen.)

BECAUSE THE DRAMA IS GREAT!!!
(Aww, c'mon, you'll love at least one of these characters! And you'll surely empathize with all.)

BECAUSE IT'S SO DARN HILARIOUS!!!
(If this doesn't make you laugh at least a little, then you are jaded to all humor.)


The three blue servant penguins that are sent to the siblings don't speak, but are constantly on the move, either being helpful or getting into trouble. They provide a running comedy routine going on in the background. The boys work forward to find the penguin drum...though they have no clue what it looks like. That, and try to support their little family of three in their colorful little shack. The sister keeps getting possessed and gives fresh orders to the boys; or, a kick in the pants.

Before I give a blanket approval to it, I'll say there is a little crudeness, perhaps to draw male viewers. One of the antics of the penguins is to peep up girls' skirts and such. However, it's far less than the ecchi that you see in the average shounen anime. (Some may be put off at what seems like a little, erm, incest, at the end of episode 1. But it doesn't seem to resurface, so don't drop it right away because of that!)

It's hard to say much more, since there are only a few episodes out so far.

Perhaps to screw in the final nails, I'll compare it to one other anime it reminded me of: Star Driver. (Not that I particularly endorse Star Driver, though.) If you've seen it, you know that it's about all these people very intently working toward this goal that we never really understand the purpose of, but it's very important to them. Similarly, in Penguindrum we don't really understand the importance or significance of the missions the boys (and others) are working towards. SD also tried to draw in both male and female viewers with eye candy and fanservice for both sexes. While this is not as extreme, there is definitely an attempt to cater to both. They also share very intense coloring, nice animation, and long "magical transformations." But Penguindrum ups SD with more intense drama and comedy.

This has become one of the most talked-about animes of the season, and with good reason. I can imagine giving it a higher rating if it keeps up the interest.

I read the compelling crime-drama josei manga “Himitsu” long before I tried the anime version. The manga was shocking, yet gripping. Steeped in mystery, crime, and violence, the horror was offset by high drama and Shimizu Reiko's beautifully drawn, lucid artwork. Never had skinned corpses looked so exquisite. And amidst the sacrifice of mind and even body, was a story of camaraderie: A small band of people supporting each other, clinging to what small shreds of sanity and human decency they could manage to keep.

I was afraid the anime would not communicate the strongest points of this powerful manga. I ... was afraid that shoddy animation, and cheap filler dialog would destroy its beauty. Fortunately, my fears were unfounded, and I was pleased that this anime did justice to the manga, and with excellent animation and storytelling, is certainly on par with it.

If you have not received ample warning already, THIS ANIME IS STRICTLY FOR THOSE WHO ARE AT LEAST 16 YEARS OF AGE. I will not be held responsible for anyone who is mentally traumatized by reading my review or viewing the anime.

---------------

The mind is the last bastion of human freedom. Devices can peer into our houses; governments can monitor our Internet and phone use; we can be held responsible for what we say or write. But our private thoughts are safe. Or so they were, until the invention of MRI: Memory Reproduction Imaging. Note that it is “imaging,” and so can only reproduce visual memory. But that is often enough. Take the brain of a dead person, put it in an MRI machine, and you can see every sight their mind ever registered. Look through the eyes of the murderer, and see if they were properly convicted. Look through the eyes of the victim, and you can see their killer.

The group who uses this machine are part of the police force, known as the infamous Section Nine. They are tasked with viewing the images that are extracted, and thereby discover or confirm facts about crimes. They could be considered a branch of forensics. But unlike forensics which only views the aftermath of crime, these people see it play out. They are forced to watch the knife slice flesh, follow the frenzied gaze of a victim in the process of being killed, and repeatedly see assault and crime in all its vivid brutality. The members of Section Nine, though often lampooned for invading the privacy of the mind, continuously sacrifice their own mental health for the sake of seeing justice done, and saving lives.

But they don’t only see crimes. In more complicated cases, they must search through day by day memories, and see everything the deceased saw. EVERYTHING. The victim’s point of attention becomes theirs, the naked body of a lover as much as fine attention paid to the slicing of a vein.

Aoki has been recently accepted into Section Nine, for his lip-reading skills. Being the naïve and open type, he wants to immediately make friends with everyone, including the Director, Maki. Despite his boyish looks, Maki is very cold, even savage, and has little patience for Aoki’s shock when he begins reviewing the MRI projections. Aoki also runs into a lot of baggage, since he resembles a former Section Nine member, Suzuki. It seems there was a complicated history between Suzuki and Maki, which may be affecting how Maki treats him. But despite his icy shell, Maki may just be the most vulnerable of them all.

Uncovering the mystery within Section Nine is only part of the drama. Section Nine deals with the living as well as the dead. Begging the family of deceased victims to allow the memories of their loved ones to be probed by strangers. Trying to prevent crimes before they happen. Investigating possible criminals. Navigating red tape. Uncovering national secrets. Sometimes providing hope and happiness to those left behind. But do they even have the right to do what they do? Does this work disregard human dignity?

At one point, Aoki realizes that even a lustful gaze can be detected via MRI, prompting him to curb his own illicit glances. All the members of the section are painfully aware that their own minds may be the subject of examination one day, should they ever be killed. For that purpose, Maki always carries a handgun. To blow his brains out should he ever be in danger of death.

Gripping and addictive to watch, this anime does have its faults, which warrant the rating of 9 instead of 10. Most obvious is the sound design. The animation is luscious and realistic, and does not cut corners, but for some reason they did not do so well on the music. It is as if they made two or three tracks for the whole series, and placed them randomly throughout, regardless of whether it was appropriate or not. I was annoyed several times when they placed peppy music during parts that were supposed to be sad and emotionally moving. I was also a bit annoyed at the choice of voice actor for Maki. He is a rather small fellow, but his voice is very deep. Granted, small people can often have deep voices, but somehow it doesn't seem to sit right for him.

Another complaint is the degree of violence and disturbing content. While the violence is there for a reason, and is necessary for this particular story, I do not think that we viewers needed to be as traumatized as Section Nine is. The camera does not shy away as a man slices his own throat with a knife. When a young man jumps off a rooftop, we see his body splat on the pavement. We see a scalpel slice into a woman’s bare breast. While the gruesome bodies were finely drawn in the manga, somehow they are not as attractive in full-color as they were in black-and-white. Rape, incest, creepy stalkers, and nightmarish phantasms bred in disturbed minds round things out.

But just as much as this anime is "adult" in terms of disturbing content, it is also adult in the un-childish way it presents the story. The emphasis on workplace drama, and a small, handsome, even tsundere Director may make it a little more attractive to female audience. But we are expected to ask questions related to moral dilemmas, dig deeper than the surface, and accept that while some crimes may often have a deep rationale behind them, some criminals kill for darker reasons. There is little happy-go-lucky. The human soul can be a very dark and dirty thing. Sometimes there is no "good guy." Even the strongest mind can be wrecked, and suffer mental breakdown. Sometimes relationships have no happy ending, straddling you with regret for the rest of your life.

I also was fascinated by how the manga (and anime too) explore how the mind might retain visual memories. Here, even hallucinations are seen through MRI, since that is what the mind "saw." Memories might be swayed by the mind, portraying a loved one as more beautiful than in reality, or a hated one as a monster. Even dreams form memory. In one case, we view the irrational yet useful world of dreams.

Now, I have to admit that I didn’t watch every episode. This series is not licensed in English, so I had to make do with watching fan-subbed versions. There were a number of episodes which were only available with improperly-timed subtitles, which, for me, rendered them unwatchable. If you ever find a place that offers all of the episodes properly subtitled, let me know, and I will be very grateful!

I’ve only touched on some of the things that make Himitsu great. Watch it for yourself, and see how much greater it is. Although, it is not for the faint of heart.

Zankoku na Kami ga Shihai Suru. "A Cruel God Reigns," in English.

Some call this a "Boys' Love" series. But that's a lie. Because there is no love. This is not a fluffy bunny shounen-ai or yaoi. This is a chilling, horrifyingly realistic story of long-term sexual abuse. It is the life inside a nightmare.

Never has my blood boiled so much in anger while reading a manga. Greg, the man who came from abroad to marry Jeremy's widowed mother isn't just interested in her. He's also interested in Jeremy. A two-for-the-price-of-one marriage. He says he loves ... Sandra wholeheartedly. And he tells Jeremy that he loves just as much: he tells him as he rapes him.

Jeremy's sense of intimacy is shattered, and sex is now a dirty thing. He is shocked and dismayed when his girlfriend tells him that his way of kissing has become strange. When she wants to have sex, he is frightened, and afraid of the touch of skin.

And he has no one to turn to for help. His girlfriend would feel betrayed if she knew he'd been intimate with another person, and an older man at that. Sandra, his mother, has several screws loose. She is very mentally fragile, and had attempted suicide several times in the past. She has no skill in reading people's moods, and is utterly selfish. There is no way he can tell her that her adored husband is having nightly trysts in her son's room. Greg also holds her over Jeremy's head, threatening to tell her about their "relationship" if he tries to protest or run away.

Greg takes Jeremy and Sandra from their home in New England to his mansion in Britain, where live his two younger sons, he being a widower. As Sandra continues to smile and enjoy the happy illusion that all is well, Jeremy begins to have suspicions that Greg's former wife was murdered. People are hiding something. Could Sandra also be in danger?

As I said, this series made me very mad. Not mad at the author. Mad at Greg. At Sandra. At Greg's son Ian who doesn't put two and two together. At the woman who knows what is going on but does not stop it. Angry about this terrible situation that this boy is being forced into. I want to smack Greg, and kill him slowly, excruciatingly. He is a monster. He is insane. And the story feels all too horribly realistic. The tone feels very real. Sexual abuse by parents and step-parents happens all too often. I felt like I was watching real events being enacted. I felt sick.

The abuse is not depicted graphically, thankfully. But you can see enough to make a good guess what's going on. The shock, fear and helplessness comes through vividly. What I wouldn't give to see Greg with his cruel hands locked in a prison forever, and Jeremy taken somewhere where he can be safe, and never threatened again.

This is an older story, which began publication in 1993, by Hagio Moto, considered one of the "Founding Mothers" of the Boys' Love genre, and author of the 1974 work "Heart of Thomas." The art style is a little bit old-school, but not very. I'm very picky about my art, and detest a lot of the older shoujo styles, but hers I like. It is very expressive, and the characters have variety and…well, character. Also, because of her roots in early shounen-ai, may explain why she is careful to craft a good story, unlike most modern yaois, which have unrealistic settings, stereotypical characters, and are all about idealized sex.

The characters are all exceptionally-made. Jeremy is just a normal boy. He has a girlfriend, is attached to and protective of his mother as his only family member, and does things normal boys do. After his crushing experiences, he reacts as a person can be expected to. Sandra is a high-strung woman (who doesn't deserve her son) and has the immaturity of a young girl who dreams of a romantic prince coming to sweep her off her feet. And she constantly makes inferences about people, accusing them, something high-strung people really do. And her demands cause people around her to try to keep her happy, and keep her mind at peace. Greg is a filthy old pedophile, who can finagle anyone into doing anything, lying to himself, saying that what he does is "true love." He is one of those awful people who would do the world a favor by dying, yet they still life prosperous lives, leaving a wake of tragedy behind them.

I had heard of this manga a lot before I tried reading it. I generally don't read yaois, and I after reading the synopsis I thought it would be graphic and gratuitous and all about giving sadistic yaoi fans a "high." But I am glad to say I had sadly underestimated it.

This is a good story. A very good story. But it is very cruel. It won't make you very happy--if it does, something is wrong with you. But it is good. Good in the way anything is when it presents an excellently-crafted story, believable characters, and a high tone of realism. I think anyone who is a fan of good manga will appreciate this.

Moribito is one of those animes that would seem to be gender-neutral in regards to audience: too much action to be just for the girls, and not enough ecchi to be just for the guys. But at the end of the day, I think this is one for the ladies. While guys might be able to enjoy the (excellent) action scenes, sympathize with Chagum's plight, or appreciate Balsa's strength of character, they will probably not be able to understand the most important theme in the story: Motherhood.

This story is really about mothers, and what it means to be a mother. And if ... you're a guy....I don't think you will be able to have that "gut instinct" that will help you understand and empathize with the roles of the characters. First is the queen, the mother who gives up her beloved son. Then Balsa, who becomes an adoptive mother. Finally Chagum, who, though a boy, must take on the role of a surrogate mother (more on that later).

And neither would you as the audience be able to share that fear related to a child in peril. Wasn't your mother always telling you to not do something dangerous? Probably all women share the same instinct to protect a child in danger, whether or not it is their own. And most of the story revolves around a young boy who is in constant danger of being killed. Balsa feels this instinct. And female viewers will probably feel it too. We'll probably have a strong attraction to this boy who we feel must be protected at all costs.

The world of the story mostly seems like it's set someplace in historical Asia, but some fantasy elements pop up now and then (nymphs, demons, parallel worlds). Balsa is a seemingly emotionless woman who carries a short spear wherever she goes--and she knows how to use it. After saving the life of a local prince when he nearly drowns, his mother the queen requests that she become Prince Chagum's bodyguard, and take him away from the palace. Within the prince's body is what is believed to be the egg of a water demon, and if the egg should hatch, it would bring disaster on the kingdom. Since the egg cannot be removed, the only way to prevent calamity on the nation is to kill the boy. Of course, as a mother, she cannot leave her son to that fate.

Balsa takes the job, saying that it will be her way to pay back a debt she has to save the lives of eight people, and flees the palace with the prince in tow. The story continues from there, with Balsa and Chagum on the run from palace warriors sent out to kill the boy. On their way, they seek the truth about the egg within his chest, and Balsa tries to turn the spoiled palace brat into "real man."

The action in the story is excellent. The sword and spear fights are quite thrilling. But they do not happen often. If you start watching and get the idea that there is tons of great action, you will be disappointed during the middle of the series when there are long quiet stretches full of drama. But in my opinion, it is better to have just a few excellently animated action sequences, then to have a pathetic action scene in every episode. When they show up, they are really worth watching. If you look at the story overall, the pacing is rather slow. There is lots of talking, and long discussions at the palace, and dramatic parts (though they're good). Maybe that helped make the ending all the more climactic. Because the last few episodes were pretty thrilling, and they had me on edge.

If you haven't gotten the clue already, there is a fair amount of gender bending. This is a fantasy world, so maybe that's why the men in the story are not very shocked at the idea of a woman warrior--though she is the only one we come across in the story. Balsa's personality and carriage also seems rather mannish. She has a deep voice, and usually seems heartless and emotionless. But at a few times she betrays her feminine instinct and true feelings, usually as they relate to Chagum (though even he thinks that she doesn't care about him). Chagum is a boy, but he carries an egg. It may sound a little weird, but Chagum develops an affection for the egg, and pets his chest much like a pregnant woman pets her belly, and speaks of the egg fondly. Tanda, Balsa's long-time friend, is our one and only love interest. The poor fellow keeps dropping hints to Balsa that he wants to go deeper than their current platonic relationship, but they seem to all go over her head. Tanda is a medicine-maker, and generally takes a passive roles in events, particularly when it comes to fighting. It is he who stays at home like a worried wife, and frets when Balsa goes out with her spear to battle enemies.

Chagum has to go through the most character development. He has lived his whole life as a pampered prince, with a loving mother and older brother. Suddenly, his life is in danger from his cold father, and he is sent off in the night with a strange woman who is strict and never shows him any sort of affection. It is only in the times he "sasses" or disobeys her that we see just how Balsa feels: That she really wants to do what is best for the prince, and help him grow. He is put under particular stress when he discovers his frightening fate in regards to the egg, and turns on Balsa. Only then, in the heat of the moment, does Balsa reveal her true affection for him.

Fortunately, the fantasy does not overbear on the story. In certain respects, it resembles one of those fantasy animes with "RPG worlds," full of clichés. Fortunately, it does not really fall into that category, and we are spared from magic battles with mages and hulking warriors who hurl spells and swing their swords while shooting fire. For a long period I even forgot that we were in a fantasy realm, it seemed so close to a historical world. That makes the supernatural all the more mysterious, such as when we get a few brief glimpses into an almost eden-like parallel world. And while it may have some cliché "magical" characters, such as the medicine-woman or the star-reader, overall it does not feel stereotypical.

The animation and character design is good, though perhaps a little unusual. While the character design style is overall realistic, it is a little on the "cute" side, even for the male characters. The eyes are small, looking realistic, but the rest of the features are softened and rounded. With an overwhelmingly male cast, I think that again, it will appeal more to a female audience. There is even a "long-haired bishounen" type character (the star-reader) who at least beats that sterotype by being plump-faced like everyone else, instead of pointy-chinned. The prince and Tanda are pretty cute, as well as some of the dreaded warriors out to kill Balsa. What female characters we have betray no ecchiness. Unlike many female-warrior characters, she does not reveal much skin, and we almost never see any cleavage on her. Even the one bathing scene in the show is not exploited for fanservice.

So there you have it: a fantasy-historical series about a woman who almost doesn't seem like one, but who in her own way discovers what it means to be a mother, and support her child who carries a heavy destiny. Well-animated, with lovely music to boot, it is an engaging story alternating between action and drama, that has left me with that very satisfied feeling deep down inside. And one I'd want to watch again.

I'll have you know that I'm rarely a fan of hardcore shoujo. But this is one has cunningly wrapped itself around my heart.

Young Tetsuta is at that precious age when parents are the most important thing in a child's world. That age where he is not ashamed of them, when he wants to spend time with them, and likes to have a good-night kiss as he's tucked into bed.

So Tetsuta is rather disappointed that his father spends so much time at work. His mother passed away a few years ago, leaving behind him and his little sister Aya. Now dad, you ... see, is also very affectionate toward his kids, and to help make up for his not always being there for them (and not being able to cook anything decent) he decides to hire a babysitter to help look after them. This babysitter is dad's kouhai from high school: the very beautiful, very graceful, very cheerful, and VERY MALE Aki-chan.

Since Aki doesn't have any family himself, he ends up moving into Tetsuta's house, and taking on a very motherly role for the household, and cooking, cleaning, and looking out for the kids (when he's not at his job as a kindergarden teacher).

Now, now before anyone starts thinking that this is a yaoi, I assure you that it is not. I kept wondering of it was going to turn into a yaoi or a shotacon (after all, everyone in here is very, VERY affectionate) but it never crosses that line. Everything stays familial.

This rather unusual shoujo series is all about family relationships: siblings, parents, cousins, and adoptive family members. What lengths should you go for the sake of family? What constitutes a family? When do you help, and when do you draw back? It's often melodramatic and over-done. But it still gives you a sweet cuddly feeling deep down inside.

As you might guess, there's a bit of gender-bending. At first I wondered why they bothered to make Aki male instead of female. But I guess if Aki was female, it would have meant a possible romantic interest, and I guess that the author wants to keep this light and fluffy. Aki-chan looks like a woman, and almost thinks like a woman too. Sometimes guys try to hit on him. Aki doesn't appreciate that, and always seems so surprised that guys see him that way. I want to tell him to cut his hair. It's all because of that long hair.

As I said, it's not a yaoi, but there's still a lot of affection between guys. Dad and Aki act very familiar and "huggy" together, making me wonder what kind of relationship they had during high school. But never mind that....what those two care about are the kids! They'll do anything for Tetsuta and Aya; even crossdress!

The art is actually pretty good for a shoujo. The only complaint I have is that in the first couple chapters, Tetsuya is drawn inconsistently. Sometimes he looks like he's 4; at other times he looks 12. But overall, it's not bad.

If you want some potentially addictive, light lovey-dovey-ness, and lots of affection, and LOTS of melodrama, put this at the top of your list!

Before it came out, I saw the title and a poster art, and I figured it would be Playboy-esque. Or about Mafia. Then on a fansub site, I saw it tagged as a shounen mecha with action and comedy. Now I was confused. But whichever it was (about Mafia or mecha) it wasn't gonna be good.

Then I saw that episode 1 was on Hulu. HULU? Was this legitimacy? OK, so I watched it. It was not what I was expecting. It's not about Mafia or mecha. It's about SUPERHEROES! Why couldn't somebody just come ... out and say so? But mind you, this isn't like the other Japanese superhero animes that are re-makes revolving around American-made characters. This ain't Wolverine or Iron Man, folks. No, this is good stuff. GOOOOOOD. Just count how many times I use "awesome" and "cool" in this review.

Here we have bright and saturated visuals, comedy, some pretty sweet action sequences, loveable characters, and enough drama and melodrama to keep a sieve full. And an interesting twist on athlete sponsorship.

SYNOPSIS:

This is Stern Bild, the bright city of the (American) future, where citizens are kept safe by the troop of the city's resident heroes. But these heroes aren't freelancers or government employees. No, they're privately sponsored. After all, it takes big bucks to get those suits done at the dry cleaners. But that sponsorship doesn't just mean they get corporate logos slapped all over them like a biker or racecar. No, they have to let camera crews follow them around, to broadcast their feats in reality-TV style.

Our main character is one of these heroes, Kotetsu, whose hero name is Wild Tiger. Back in the day, he was cool. But now he's older, and has lost his shine. And his tween daughter thinks he's an absolute dweeb.

When his current hero company goes under, he gets transferred to another, where they aren't too thrilled about having an old has-been hero. So they make the unusual decision to partner him up with another hero, and sell them to audiences as a team. They pick one that has the exact same superpower as Wild Tiger. And it happens that this guy's everything that Kotetsu is not: fresh, new, young, arrogant, no sense of humor, dutiful to the sponsors, and he uses his real name for his hero work. Everyone knows that heroes are supposed to have a secret identity! Young upstart.

So Kotetsu's partnership with Barnaby Brooks Jr. gets off to a rough beginning. And it stays that way for a loooooong time, while Kotetsu keeps trying to loosen "Bunny-chan" up. (Yes, Barnaby is the 'Bunny' in Tiger & Bunny.) But Bunny isn't a hero just to do good. He has a specific goal in mind, and he won't let Kotetsu's goofiness distract him.

It turns out they will both need to learn a lot about each other to get this partnership to work.

MOST EVERYTHING ELSE:

I tried a few minutes of some of the animes based on Marvel characters. I didn't like them. And judging by their low MAL ratings, most other people don't either. But this is an original story. Fresher, brighter, and with no comic book (or manga) to compare it to. But you can still see classic superhero roots, in the villains particularly. They're generally very flashy, unlike real criminals. And hey, we even get a mad scientist.

Even though Tiger and Bunny are our main characters, there is a whole cast of heroes that they work alongside: ice-caster Blue Rose (who has a crush on Tiger), the fire-shooting Fire Emblem, wind-warping Sky-High, hunky Rock Bison, tomboyish Dragon Kid, and Japanophile Origami.

And there's non-hero characters. Kotetsu's daughter Kaede, his mom, his former boss Ben. His suit-maker, Saito, with the quiet voice (he gets his own subtitles, since apparently Tiger is the only one who can hear him). Agnes, the producer of HERO-TV, the reality show that follows the heroes around. Legend, the hero that saved Kotetsu as a kid, and encouraged him to become a hero himself. The rogue Lunatic, dispenser of vigilante justice, who I think most people wanted to get more screentime. (I wanted to see more of him too; after all, he's the only guy whose suit had bell-bottoms. BELL-BOTTOMS.)

It has a couple of story arcs. Some are as short as one episode, and give us a close-up look at the life of one of the heroes in the story. Other arcs span several episodes, as our heroes battle the villain of the moment. But there are clues scattered throughout the series that are used later.

The action scenes are generally pretty cool. There isn't one every episode, but when they come, they are, like, AWESOME!!!!

There's comedy aplenty, of the light kind.

But what's at the core of the show is DRAMA. Lots of it. If the scene involving the little boy and the trading cards doesn't impact you some way, then you should just stop watching, because that's the melodramatic slant in this show. There's the drama of a dad trying to get his kid to say he's cool. Promising to meet with her, but then having to break his promise because he has been called to an assignment. There's the drama of a man whose goal is to take revenge for his parents who were murdered. You almost wonder if Barnaby suffers from depression, since he keeps getting bogged down in melodramatic angst, and takes it out on anybody who tries to get close to him. And the one who tries to do that is our very own Kotetsu. Barnaby is in serious need of some professional counseling.

Incidentally, there is a bit racial variety. Which is unusual for anime, but was probably obligatory since the story is set, after all, in a place much like the United States. We have a couple of black characters: The mayor of Stern Bild (à la Obama, I'm sure); Ben, who is Kotetsu's former boss and current mentor; and Fire Emblem (a lot of viewers chew out his character because he is the cliché gay character you see a lot in anime; oh well, the makers are still Japanese after all). And Kotetsu and his family, and Saito are Asian...or more specifically, Japanese. No other kinds of Asians around apparently. And all the other characters are probably white.

The animation is very awesome. The setting is often the sparky-lit city at night. Outlining is done in brown instead of the usual black, so the everything looks "warm" and alive. Action scenes are done well. And there's lots of CGI. Which makes some purists mad. The suits are where you see it most. Some people squawk at this, which isn't fair, because it's usually done pretty well, especially for the chunky suits that Tiger and Barnaby wear. The only place where it doesn't work very well is Fire Emblem's skin-tight suit. Though his cape with the creeping-flames pattern is cool. I'd want one of those myself.

Style. There's lots of style. There's something about this that almost says "superheroes are a fashion statement." Well, that and the fact that Tiger and Bunny almost ALWAYS wear the same clothes. It's just begging for people to cosplay them. And the music seems to fit in with the style. The music is cool. Awesomely awesome. It varies from jazz to opera and places in-between. I would be remiss if I didn't mention the Pixar movie "The Incredibles." Something about that retro-esque heroes-in-real-life feels very similar to this.

MAKE SURE to watch after the ED in each episode. Often, there's a little bit of extra story at the end before the previews roll. And by then you might as well watch the previews too, since they're usually narrated by either Tiger or Barnany, and begin with him saying "Hi, I'm Tiger, the member of Tiger and Bunny who wears a beard!" or something else idiotic. Also, the episode titles are all in English, and based off some proverb. Tiger doesn't even try to say the next episode title, but Barnaby does, and sound pretty horrible. Some people said it was worth it to watch each episode just to hear Barnaby's Engrish at the end.

Some viewers felt that the final arc in the series was a bit lame. I wouldn't say it was terrible, but it definitely did go for the cliche situations of "superhero meets the big boss" and more. Not necessarily bad, but it raised the bar pretty high for itself by then. But fans are waiting to see if there will be a second season….

WHAT IT'S NOT:

It's not primarily action. We don't get a full-blown action sequence every episode.

It's not primarily comedy, unless you want to laugh at Barnaby's childish attitude, or Kotetsu's blunders. Which ARE funny.

There's very little ecchi. Unless you count Blue Rose's costume.

There's little romance. Blue Rose obviously has a thing for Kotetsu, even though he's a generation older than herself. (It's OK Blue Rose, I sorta do too.) Yaoi fans may be disappointed that nothing goes on between our two main characters. (Though that hasn't prevented scores of Yaoi doujinshi from being made.)

It's also not hugely….intelligent. I have to say this for people who are expecting an amazingly intricate and solid plot. While the story overall is good and throws a few cureveballs, there are some mental goofs. But that is all forgiven because the drama is SOOOO feel-good, and the characters are so loveable.

CONCLUSION:

I can say I'm very happy to see this show as popular as it is. I wrote a review after seeing episode 4, when the show's MAL rating was below 7. Now it's above 8. I'm happy it's getting love.

Unlike most shounen series which are primarily about an action or suspense-driven story, Tiger and Bunny's partnership, or attempt at a partnership, is the main draw. You care about them, and the other characters. You REALLY CARE. You might even say this is meddling in seinen territory. Which is probably why this attracts viewers from all sorts of demographics. If you like drama, and a little action, comedy, nice music and animation, and an interesting setting, please, please give this a try. But beware. You might just get hooked.