Back to NightTimeRadio's Profile NightTimeRadio's Profile

I usually avoid dubs but this is one of those dubs I can't ignore.

This review is merely for the dub, the show by itself with subs is rather meh. It didn't do well in Japan and once it was slated to be dubbed the script was severely edited. The dub is almost like an abridged series, a lot of references for around the time the dub was made to some younger guys might not get all the references to certain celebrities and what not.

The show itself like I said is meh. Characters are pretty bland, but the dub makes them have different personalities. It's amazing ... what a funny script can do for a show that was originally pretty lukewarm. You should watch the dub merely for the hilarity factor.

The real Rocky if you ask me, in fact the manga is older than the Rocky films. By far the best sports anime of all time that tells the story of Joe, a troubled teen that has been dealt a bad hand by fate for most of his life but as a result of being homeless with no family or friends to go to he's learned to survive and fight as well. For most of his life he has drifted as a juvenile trouble making vagabond, but one day an old washed out boxer that has nothing in life but booze comes across Joe fighting ... a bunch of criminals and their encounter would forever change both of their lives. Joe begins a journey of hardship, success, happiness, and the dark tragedies many boxers face. This anime is a real motivator to, and it's been a while since I shed a tear last one before this was Clannad After Story.

Story: The story is long, but not to complex. Best thing about the story is that it's not stagnant things can turn over pretty quickly and the foreshadowing is often vague but sometimes that element is more apparent than in other episodes. There is a lot of lessons to be had about the realities of boxing, and what many boxers have to go through in this brutal sport and how it can effect their lives outside of boxing as well. The story is very dark but there is a lot of motivation and strife to be found in it that can inspire others.

Art: For the era it's pretty decent, there is often detail within fights, and has it's share of gore at times but not Elfen Lied levels of gore. I enjoy the character styles and to be quite honest I was never a big fan of brightly colored anime hair in more modern anime. It looks and feels Japanese and more often than not has traditional Japanese references within the art. There isn't many hiccups in scenes they seemed to put a lot of attention to detail with the animation it even rivals some anime that were made around the 70s and 80s and even into the 90s.

Sound: I enjoy a lot of the OST and it feels very Rocky, especially Rikiishi's theme. Traditional acoustic and for the era that's to be expected you won't have many grand budget studios for amines in the 70s and 80s. I feel a lot of it could have been better but it served it purpose and the OST is used the right way when it comes to the emotions the anime expresses.

Characters: We don't got many cookie cutter characters here, a lot of the boxers have their own back stories and personalities they feel like actual people that would be in the sport of boxing. It doesn't suffer from the modern era of anime with to many generic characters. A lot of people don't like Joe, in fact he is probably one of the biggest A holes you'll ever meet but he changes through out the show but still keeps that certain flavor about him. Characters go through stages and the story progresses some begin to rise and fall, they effect Joe's life many times permanently in both good and bad ways from interactions with the other characters. Joe is far from the standard sports hero and there aren't many heroes to be had in this anime most characters are far from Saints.

Even if you hate sports anime I still recommend watching Ashita No Joe from start to finish. Read the manga to. Only truly bad thing I can say about watching Ashita No Joe was not watching it sooner.

Fumoffu did comedy right. A lot of these side specials and comedy episodes in other anime usually are not as funny but this collection by itself is great even without the main seasons. Very comical, it's basically a more standard slice of life scenario going on with some action but none of it is actually serious. Tense situations always end up comical compared to how they usually would play out in the main story line.

Each episode is it's little own story for the most part, and there is really no main story going on here just some little stories that are like comedy skits. I ... didn't hate any of them the writers did a good job making sure each episode wasn't dull at all. Usual comic relief you'll see in the other seasons is enhanced ten fold in each episode.

Ah fighting, watching this anime brought back flash backs of my middle school and high school days of hitting and getting hit. Each sound and break I saw in this anime sometimes made me grind my teeth with pain... but it also reminded me of how much I actually miss it as well.

This anime is great motivator for anyone trying to reach something, even if it isn't entirely sports related. From start to finish, watching the main character grow and become stronger will make even the fattest of lards want to get a gym membership.

Story: The main thing this anime does well is build up, ... you got two stages usually which are preparation and the actual matches. Preparation as the time implies is when Ippo prepares for a match this is also the time when we get a slice of life feel in the show, with all the friendships and character building that comes with it. The matches themselves are pretty cruel and intense but that's boxing for you, the man that makes the manga obviously knows a lot about boxing well if you look into his background you can see why. Matches aren't just slug fests, a lot goes on within a fight more than just hits, you see the effects, you see the mental aspects of each boxer within the match, and the audience is there as well to be part of the match through commentary. Ippo's fights are far from boring and seeing him develop is a great motivator.

Art: It's normal for it's time, but delivers pretty good effects for fights and shows the power of hits and moves. Art representation of injuries is also apparent from breaking bones, to internal injuries. It displays what's going on with each match well.

Sound: The openings are amazing, especially Inner Light. The music is suits a fighting atmosphere and sound effects are fluid and have impact. I can hear crunches, shattering bones, each hit against flesh, etc. Attention to detail with fights is apparent here.

Characters: Most of these characters are interesting, even ones that only show up for a small amount of time have their own story, their own reasons for boxing. They balance out comic relief characters and more serious characters that add to over all plot without much flooding over of each. Ippo himself is an interesting character, he isn't what you expect of a boxer, he is kind but has a fighting spirit of a train. Ippo isn't even always the main focus sometimes other characters get their time, and we learn a lot about them as the show progresses and they seem more like individuals than props in the background for the main character.

This anime is a great motivator, already was doing stuff with my life but this gave me an extra push. Even if your not a fan of boxing I believe everyone should give this a watch.

**warning minor spoiler**

"I do not think humans are foolish. I have respect for people who live fulfilled lives." -Decim

This anime's OP is very misleading, and even the title would imply the nature of this show to be a bit different but it's a pleasant surprise it involves both life and death. This show explores, morality, aspects of life, and understanding not to take life for granted.

Story: Most episodes have their own little stories of certain characters, and goes in depth pretty well with most of them. The main characters don't really get much of their own episodes explaining their past and it's fed to you ... pretty slowly but it needs to be that way for this anime don't expect to know much about the two main characters till later. Main characters find more within themselves through the stories and fates of other characters in more of a observation environment through the main characters. Exploring the lives of people, the choices they made, and what characters learn from their lives is usually what happens in each episode, eventually all these experiences change the main character as he gets a taste of the feelings and life of people that he himself will never experience.

Art: The atmosphere in this anime is very detailed, and it's got a running theme of a other worldly place (that disguises itself as a bar with a bigger purpose). Very polished and I don't find any horrible examples of what I'd jokingly call "quality". Most animation isn't rushed, production value put into some of this was probably top tier. I'd like more modern anime to follow by example of how this show artistically constructs it's environment.

Sound: Some anime doesn't pay attention detail like this one has. The OST has a collection of great songs, the OP itself is one of the best I've seen. OST works well with the artistic representation of the bar theme, the two blend perfectly.

Characters: Most characters aren't bland side shows, they have their own stories, their own lives, and many times serve ultimately to help Decim a rather emotionaless character come to conclusions for himself that he wouldn't be able to without the help of his new assistant, The black haired woman. There are some characters that don't serve to much of a purpose but most are essential for the story.

I like being reminded of the beauty of life, sometimes I get wrapped up in a day to day flow, with trials and tribulations I go through which makes me forget the blessing and privilege I have to exist, live, and breath on this Earth. This anime is a reminder of what life is to me, and to value it more than ever. Rather than get wrapped up in things, it should be a priority to live a fulfilled life, because you never know when your time will be up.

Overlooked classic I never watched lived up to it's fame and a OST I fell in love with.

Story: Bounty Hunters in space, while this isn't something that has been touched in fiction before I feel it does it the best. At times it's vague, which it doesn't need to be detailed with certain characters past not being completely explained till later adds to the mystery of some of them and the over all events that lead them meeting each came together pretty well. Had the right amount of comic relief and tension not many shows I feel do it this well no over zealous comedy ... and it was serious when it needed to be.

Art: For it's time the art is top notch, the environments are well designed, characters aren't all copy-pasted templates they are unique looking. Gives a nice mixture of the wild west, and space mashed together.

Sound: I loved the OST so much I ended up getting it for myself. I'm a fan of jazz, and Cowboy Bebop does it well. The opening song is pretty spicey and smooth got to say it's one of my favorite Opening OSTs to date. Tank, Rush, Space Lion, etc never get's old listening to them.

Characters: The main characters work well together, from the chaos to the sad moments it feels like one of the better choices for bunching them together. Even a lot of side characters weren't dull and many times I was wishing I would see some again.

Probably the best space bounty anime there is, and it left me wanting a little bit more feeling it ended to quickly.

I got mixed feelings about this anime, it isn't great but it isn't garbage either.

Story: Could have been done better, the characters really don't seem to just be props half the time for the crazy loli protag and the it feels like the only truly alive person is her. The concept of the story is nice, I haven't seen it touched before in anime but unfortunately it's potential isn't reached.

Art: I have to say it is good at some points but most of the time it's god awful. The girls in the anime don't look decent at all, the protag herself sometimes has a ... Donald Duck lip thing going on, however art of urban areas and during battles isn't half bad. I can't over look the fact some of the minor side characters look better than the main ones which is quite sad.

Sound: The OST is pretty good, I like the opening and the flow of music runs good with most situations through out the anime. Though for the running theme I dare say it would have fitted better if it sounded more German.

Characters: They very mediocre and overall I'll forget about most of them a month or two after I'm done with this anime. The protag herself isn't to bad but the wasted potential is noticed.

It's worth a seasonal watch for 2017, but I wouldn't pick this up again at the rate it's going... overall I feel there is a lot wrong with this anime that can be easily fixed and in other areas like the story should have been given more detail.

Completed LOTGH heroes, this anime has something rare, usually shows start losing quality after episode 50 if they go further than that but LOTGH remained great from episode 1-110.

Story: The story of LOTGH covers many other stories that diverge into each other, you have characters from each side of the war and even ones in the side lines that have interesting perspectives and in many cases you could make an anime from some of the side characters alone.

Art: The art quality is pretty good for it's time but it's not the best, there are some times when you got "quality" tier events but usually the ... art is smooth least what you can expect from the era of anime it was made in. However character design and running theme designs for the factions is great, I especially love the space opera feel of the Reich.

Sound: As usual space opera OSTs are usually great and LOTGH is no different. Seems the OST levels out good with certain situations while at times I do feel it's lacking more of a tense feel when is needed but it doesn't fail to deliver for most situations and characters.

Characters: A lot of the side characters could have their own series, a lot of them are very interesting and add well to the universe of LOTGH. Stories of how they became who they are and their different views/perspectives of the universe they live adds to the overall story, other stories of characters webbed together like a refined spiderweb linking to a center the main story.

Fans of Space Operas this is a must, and is probably the best political drama anime.

A goof and chaotic anime involving aliens, a perverted dad, and bushy brows. It's an example of good clashing of different art styles and over the top animation scenes.

Story: The explanations for the plot and back story of certain characters was rather short and lacked any detail but for a anime like this I don't feel the story needed to be well thought out. The show doesn't take itself seriously and nor should you take it seriously more of a chaotic bundle of fun with some elements that someone coming of age can relate to.

Art: The mixing and mashing of art styles was superb and ... the animation for it's time is pretty well made even though at times a lot of it wasn't detailed but that's part of the charm. The art styles matched very well with the goofiness of the anime.

Sound: Not a fan of 90s and early 00s are rock but the OST fits the theme and clashes well with many scenes. For what it is and what it does working along with the animation it's rather well orchestrated even while not always taking itself seriously which it's not a serious show like I stated before.

Characters: There were a few characters that really stood out but many kinda were just there, the protag himself isn't anything special but the characters work together to create the more goofy aspects of the anime and only one can really work well by herself who often steals the spot light from the others characters half the time. Without her the show probably wouldn't be as enjoyable as it is.

Definitely worth a weekend watch and anyone that enjoys anime that doesn't take itself seriously and wants a few laughs than pick it up when you have some down time.

By far my personal favorite, no other anime yet has been more enjoyable to watch than SEL. SEL is a acid trip in a way the best way I can describe it without spoiling anything. Based in a future where a fictional version of the internet exists, AI and software has evolved far more advanced than in the real world. Story involves elements of somewhat on a supernatural level much I can say without spoiling much.

Story: First few episodes are slow, kinda a decent introduction to the protagonist and other minor characters. Development is steady, and for as short as it is the story is ... told efficiently. Though many people don't get the story you might have to watch it again or just discuss it with others on the meaning.

Art: Wish this art style was used in more anime, it's less cartoonish compared to most it's not to realistic not to cartoonish. Lot of it is very dream like at times which enhances the theme of the story, in the theme of what is normal and abnormal about it.

Sound: This OST is one I come back to almost every week to listen to, very cyber in fact I say it's probably the best cyber OSTs in anime. Never was there any error with it used through out the story from the innocent moments to the dramatic.

Characters: The characters besides the protags do have roles but their rather overshaded half the time but the development of the protag makes up for it, one of the best journeys for a main character I've seen in any story ever told while she seems a bit average and not that all interesting that's the clever thing they did when telling this story, last person you'd expect to be very abnormal compared to everyone else on Earth.

This is one you shouldn't pass by and it isn't very long, it's considered a treasure among anime in the 90s and hasn't aged badly compared to older animes.