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Sep 14, 2013
Cowboy Bebop is a show that I can best describe as an anime that dares to mix genres. On the surface it looks like your typical Space Western, but once you delve into the real meat of the show you will find everything from romance, action, comedy, philosophical themes and spirituality. The fact that the show manages to round so many corners in its 26 episodes, while still stringing together a coherent story, supplemented by an amazing cast of colourful characters, with heroes, villains and everything in between, makes it one of the most enjoyable anime I have seen in my entire life.
Cowboy Bebop is
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an episodic anime. Each new episodes deal with a new story, with the exception of the character driven episodes scattered in between, that sometimes span over several episodes. The actual plotline is solid and engaging, leaving you hungering for more answers every time you learn a little more about one of the characters. It is the life that these characters have lead up until the point where the viewer meets them, that really help flesh them out and stop them from becoming one-dimensional stereotypes.
The artstyle in Cowboy Bebop is detailed, creative and fitting. Mostly dull metal and earth tones are mixed with neon colours and really help drive home the feeling of both the loneliness and grandeur that can be experienced in a galactic spanning civilization. One episode you might find yourself in the dusty streets of a Martian colony, the next in a colourful floating casino located in orbit around a planet.
The soundtrack is one of the many high points of Cowboy Bebop. Everything from tribalistic drumbeats to snazzy jazz tunes and even modern electronic music are to be found within the series and all of them help set the mood perfectly. In an anime that is as broad as Cowboy Bebop, a good musical score is immensely helpful in setting each episode apart from another and Yoko Kanno has done a fantastic job.
Now I will touch upon the characters of Cowboy Bebop, who in my opinion are what ultimately manages to carry this show into near perfection. The calm and collected Spike Spiegel, the grumpy and life-hardened Jet Black, the seductive and devious Faye Valentine, along with resident nutball "Ed" and her hyper-intelligent laboratory dog "Ein" make up the main cast of the show. Every single one of these characters have a story to tell and they are all interesting, action-packed and in some cases, heart-breaking.
These characters come together as Bounty Hunters in an attempt to escape the ghosts of their past. Most importantly the show doesn't forget about this. These characters aren't your typical goodie two-shoed heroes. Ultimately they are in it for the money and while they do have a working moral compass, they aren't shy when it comes to getting their hands dirty.
Overall Cowboy Bebop provided some of the most entertaining episodes of a TV-series I have ever had the joy of experiencing. Some episodes more suspenseful and thrilling than others of course, but all of them can hold their own and is almost guaranteed to provide constant entertainment.
Unfortunately I cannot give this show a full score across the board. The show does deal with some clichés that at times are a little bit uniteresting, not to mention that with the episodic build-up, some of the less relevant episodes can end up feeling redundant at times. Still very much entertaining, but not really adding anything to the characters or the story and while they are very, very few, they are there.
That being said, Cowboy Bebop is rock-solid from start to finish and raises the bar in terms of soundtrack and characters, earning it a fantastic 10/10.
Reviewer’s Rating: 10
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Aug 22, 2013
Admittedly I ended up watching "Tantei Opera Milky Holmes" due to a clip I saw on the internet which was sourced to this anime. In other words, I went in with literally zero expectations.
The ride was definitely a bumpy one.
A short summary of Tantei Opera Milky Holmes would be something along the lines of: A cute and somewhat entertaining little anime, that has a tendency to be about as non-sensical and generic as can be. If you want a good storyline, good characters and a satisfying ending, you'll definitely want to look elsewhere. If you want a whacky, zaney and non-sensical anime with cute girls,
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please stay and read on - But prepare to hit the off-switch on your analytical brain however, because this show makes no sense.
The story itself is not something that is going to blow your mind. It is straightforward, is cemented from episode one and onwards and doesn't really take any twists and turns down the line. The story works for the anime and its cast, but other than that it really doesn't deserve any particular spotlighting.
The art is mediocre at best. What I mean by this, is that while certainly not bad or lacking in any means, it is also not particularly beautiful, fluid or unique. Colourful is about the only real compliment I can give it. That being said, it doesn't take anything away from the viewing experience either.
The sound averages out at a "fitting, but forgettable". It certainly won't be a distraction whilst watching, but it certainly won't stand out to you either. I wish I had more to say here, but the soundtrack really is forgettable. Both the opening and the ending are bland, and I'd dare say they're borderline bad.
The characters is where Tantei Opera Milky Holmes starts pulling a bit ahead of the other anime in the deep moeblob ocean. The main cast is about as generic as they come, with your token airhead, tomboy, quiet bashful girl of course the "semi-responsible" girl. It is the "villains" however, that add some flavour to it all. The "Gentleman Thief Empire", made up by the four Phantom Thieves: Twenty, Rat, Stone River and Arséne are downright hilarious to observe at times and the banter between the main cast and this group of Phantom Thieves is surprisingly very entertaining.
Not to mention the fellow "Fighting-for-good" group of the show "Genius 4", who despite being on the same side as Milky Holmes end up in constant arguments and fights with each other.
It is this character interaction, combined with the shows tendency to pull completely over-the-top and ridiculous scenarios out of its pocket, that allows Tantei Opera Milky Holmes to pull ahead of the curve, even if it is by a tiny amount.
Tantei Opera Milky Holmes is generic and downright stupid for the most part, but still somehow manages to string together an interesting mix of characters, earning it a decent 6/10.
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
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Aug 21, 2013
The premise of "Girls und Panzer" was what lured me in to watch the anime in the first place. On paper it seems so ridiculous, that you kind of want to see how the studio responsible actually handles it.
To sum it up quickly, Girls und Panzer is a lot of lighthearted fun, which actually manages to come to a suspenseful and entertaining, if a bit predictable, conclusion. If you're looking for an anime where you can switch your brain off, just laugh along with the cast and enjoy cool tank battles, then this is definitely going to be for you.
The story of the anime is
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nothing to write home about. It is a classic case of "Underdog rises to the top". Unfortunately, I have to pick a bit on some parts of the story, because alongside the main plot, we are introduced to some side stories that revolve around a few of the main characters personal lives. These had some potential to make the viewer care a bit more for the characters, but instead they end up adding nothing more than pointless melodrama. They have no real effect on the story nor the characters and their development and instead end up feeling pointless and a little bit like filler content (Which is impressive in a 12-episode long anime).
The art of the anime is one of its finer points. Production value isn't through the roof, nor does the show have a super-unique style, but it is packed with solid animation and excellent 3D segments. The tank combat is a joy to watch in every single episode. If you are a fan of tanks in general, I can guarantee that you will enjoy seeing many of the old classic vehicles animated into action (Even if some of the tricks and stunts they pull off are practically impossible).
The soundtrack is another thing that helps drag Girls und Panzer up from the land of mediocre anime. It manages to incorporate catchy military marching tunes from across the world, such as "Panzerlied", "The British Grenadiers", "The US Field Artillery March" and the Russian-inspired "Katyusha". All of these are catchy and fitting of the show and their respective factions.
The characters of Girls und Panzer are cute and that is about the extent of it. With the anime being as short as it is, it doesn't leave a lot of time to develop the cast, considering how many tank crews that are present. The main cast are of course given a bit more development time, but the only character really worth mentioning being something out of the ordinary is the tank-crazed Yukari Akiyama who has an absolutely infectious personality.
At the end of the day, Girls und Panzer boils down to being an anime about "Cute girls doing cute things"... In tanks. As such it is impossible for me to give it super high score. The only thing out of the ordinary here is the premise and at the end of the day, with only 12 episodes, the premise alone can't drag it all the way up. At the same time, Girls und Panzer is cute, entertaining and suspenseful when it wants to be, helping it stand out in the vast sea of "Slice of Life, Moeblob, School Yard" anime.
And with that said, we come to the conclusion of this review, with Girls und Panzer receiving a very solid 7/10.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Aug 4, 2013
Hotarubi no Mori e is a relatively short movie that attempts to portray the developing relationship between a young girl and a spirit who stumbles upon said young girl in a forest.
Unfortunately, the movie suffers greatly from being as short as it is.
With that said, the movie does have some appeal to it.
First of all the artstyle of the movie is good. By no means will it blow your mind, but it is definitely drawn with care to it and it is detailed. There is no particular scene in the entire movie I can strike down upon and say "The animation faltered there".
Secondly, the music
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of the show brings about a decent atmosphere while you are watching, swinging from very calm and relaxing to more solemn and lonely tunes. It fits the movie and never goes beyond the limits of the different scenes. That being said, it is not a soundtrack you will immediately recognize upon re-listening to a couple of months later.
Where the movie begins to falter is in its story and in its characters. The story itself is rather basic and not at all unheard of. The main premise of the relationship between the two characters is established fast and leads the viewer to quite easily being able to predict an outcome of the story.
The characters are not dislikeable, but they are definitely not anything beyond the ordinary.
Not only that, but because such a long period of time of the main character's life passes over the course of ~40 minutes, it became hard for me to immerse myself with the character and her emotions, making the movie feel a bit dull, for the lack of a better word. Her emotions are understandable to me, but I completely failed to relate and the movie in its entirety didn't really invoke anything emotional for me.
My last big gripe with the movie was the inclusion of the supernatural. It felt very forced. What I mean by this, is that this same story could quite easily have been told without the inclusion of the supernatural. We are introduced to several supernatural beings during the movie, but nothing about them is ever really explained. To me it felt like a boring cop-out in order to add drama to the relationship of the two main characters (Making one of them a supernatural being).
Overall, the movie is not bad and I feel like if it had been longer, with more time to explain the world of the two characters, it could have actually been great. However, for me it was nothing to write home about.
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
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