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Feb 2, 2018
If there was ever a perfect movie, Princess Mononoke has to be it. An epic tale of the clash between men and gods, of the love between those intertwined by fate, of man's drive to do both good and evil, Princess Mononoke is just one of those films. I cannot stress how much this movie moves me. This is, of course, in large thanks to Joe Hisaishi's masterful score, but Miyazaki proves again he has an unrivaled touch in painting a lush world of not only magic and beauty, but rot and decay. Above all else, however, is his undying faith in the goodness of
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men, that though we may lose our way more often than we find it, at our core we seek to do what is best for those we love. I don't really want to write much about this movie, because going in blind IMO is the best way to experience the majesty within. Know this: Princess Mononoke is as good a film as you're ever going to see. It is epic, it is beautiful, it is sad, it is horrifying, and it is above all incredibly cathartic. Please watch it.
Reviewer’s Rating: 10
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Nov 26, 2016
The World God Only Knows had a great run. While it's unlikely we will see a fourth season of the anime- as sales were less than stellar for the third season- the impact the manga and the anime have exerted over the medium is certainly palpable. Starting as an incredibly entertaining episodic manga, the story progressed into a genuinely unique and interesting saga which consistently drew upon past events in the plot to further develop the narrative. The Goddesses arc, which the third season of the anime covers, was the beginning of this (for the most part). Herein we find Keima and Haqua (Ellie is
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tragically absent for most of the season) embark on a conquest bonanza, as Keima must woo a selection of his previous lovers to save the day. Its a thrilling ride from start to finish, full of laughs and even the occasional tear.
If you're an anime only kind of person, you're gonna be in for a real rude awakening. Goddesses starts off well after the last anime episode, and unfortunately skips two incredibly important conquests: Yui and Tsukiyo. The beginning of episode 1 tries its best to make up for this by providing a brief summary of both, but missing out on both of these arcs, in particular Yui, is going to really dampen the viewing experience. Break out your glasses and give them a read (Tsukiyo 43-46, Yui 81-89). Another important arc missed was Tenri/Diana, but lucky for you illiterates, they made them into an OVA series, so check that out.
The Goddesses arc comes at just the perfect time in the series to freshen up what was becoming something of a stagnant plot, drawing upon Keima's past conquests to provide fuel for a much more focused and high stakes story. To combat a dark and mysterious splinter cell in New Hell, which seeks to restore the evil days of old, Keima must find and awaken 6 Goddesses, all of whom reside in his old conquests. The problem? 7 of his previous conquests seem to still hold feelings for him, even showing signs of remembering the conquest. Using this as a base, Goddesses builds WGOK's most developed narrative, very effectively weaving in and out of Keima's separate efforts with the girls to advance the increasingly tense New Hell subplot. Barring one, each of the girls is given a well put together "after story" type narrative. In each, Keima builds off of the past conquest's themes, developing with each girl a deeper connection and understanding. Its really remarkable to see what was previously a completely episodic plot switch gears so seamlessly.
Keima himself becomes the show's complete focal point, bearing the load of what was previously shared between Elise and himself. Haqua takes over Elsie's traditional role, but the chemistry and general cuteness Elsie provides is noticeably missing (though Haqua is undeniably endearing). Perhaps it is fitting some of the past seasons' brevity is missing, as Godesses' is to some level a much more serious narrative effort. Keima isn't the Lelouch-parody he once embodied; he takes on a completely serious role. While there is still plenty of humor to go around, Keima's got the serious pants on. He has moments of genuine desperation and concern, and its increasingly evident the revolving door of girls he must juggle is beginning to wear on him. Bear in mind, there are 7 girls, and 6 goddesses; someone is getting the ax.
The girls themselves continue to be endearing. While I certainly had a horse in the inevitable best girl competition, I, barring one, found myself liking every single heroine. It is unfortunate one of the strongest of the group is turned into more of a plot device than anything, and one deemed minor enough to bother giving a full arc. However, everyone else is given, as stated before, a convincing progression on their previous conquest. Also rather refreshingly, Goddesses manages to avoid the standard harem sexualization of the girls. While there is nothing implicitly wrong with this, it is nice to see a show handle its heroines with a some poise.
AV-wise, Goddesses doesn't do much to improve or regress from previous seasons. It retains the same stellar score, which I've already heard a thousand times but still don't get sick off. Props to whoever was handling sound direction. The art and animation continues to go with the setpiece-emphasis, seeking to dazzle the viewer less with the animation quality and more with the overall product. There's plenty of scenes that just look great, but the animation itself isn't anything to write home about. The OP continues the WGOK tradition of being awesome, and I honestly prefer this one over the first season's legendary opening. The ED isn't anything special, but a nice tune nonetheless.
Overall, it would be greedy to ask for anything better than this from Manglobe. This is a great anime, taking the pure enjoyment of previous WGOK ventures and giving it a new purpose. The focused narrative helps flesh out Keima's more complex character, and spending more time with his conquests allows for a deeper appreciation of their character as well. This is a show that manages to create more likeable heroines than shows with half the cast. It really is a triumph. Now go read the manga you dopes, my girl wins.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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Mar 30, 2016
There exist few franchises as divisive as the Haruhi series. When the initial anime adaptation came out back in '06, the anime community either hailed it or loathed it. Then came a 3 year hiatus until the second season was finally released. Now this time just about everyone hated Haruhi, mostly because Kyoani thought it smart to adapt the endless eight short story from the light novels (this story being one of MANY in a rather small book, just bare that in mind) into an eight episode monstrosity of an arc, where the same thing happens in every episode with extremely minuscule changes in dialogue.
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Naturally, people dropped the show outright. Only the wonderkin that was the movie adaptation of the Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya managed to keep the idea of a Haruhi season a somewhat realistic possibility. However, we have yet to see a proper continuation of the series, and so we have The Disappearence of Nagato Yuki-Chan, an adaptation of a spin-off manga where the rather enjoyable sci-fi aspects of the series are cast aside for the traditionally trope school life romance anime. The only thing really keeping the show fresh and interesting is the combination of my own nostalgia for the series and a decent "twist" arc that manages to incorporate some aspects of the old Haruhi franchise. But in all reality, the show is overall a weak offering.
Story wise, Yuki-Chan doesn't really manage to pick-up to around midseason. We start off with our protagonist Yuki Nagato, a shy video game playing introvert who shares none of the original Nagato's traits or mannerisms. She's in the literature club, and thanks to the recent additions of Kyon and Ryoko Asakura, the club is finally safe from being shut down. Now she's free to never read a book in the club room ever again. Woot. Anyways, the show's story leads along an extremely trodden path. Its all your standard fare slice of life show, with just enough blushing and stammering to slap a romance tag on as well. The only reason I found it enjoyable was only due to its virtue as a Haruhi spin-off. I love Haruhi and its characters, and seeing them interact in this way was pretty much only enjoyable on a fan-service level. So pretty much, unless you're a Haruhi fan, you're like not to enjoy this. The best part of the story is still only enjoyable if you're familiar and fond with the OG show. So in short, story is cliche but its fun if you wanna see Haruhi and Kyon have a basic ass romantic moment together and then see it go nowhere.
Every single character in this show is the OG show's basic vanilla ass counterpart. Kyon isn't nearly as snarky or funny as he usually is. Itsuki is not mysterious and two-faced, he's just overly kind and rigid. Haruhi is a little less of a bitch, but she's still manic, pushy, and overly energetic (still bae). Mikuru is exactly the same, but she can't say "That's classified" anymore so that kinda sucks. Yuki is no longer quiet because she just doesn't talk much, she's quiet because she's the shy, mousy girl now. We already have one of those already (the m in mousy is for Mikuru), but hey, party on guys. Their interactions are fun to watch, if only for the reason I stated above. So yeah solid enough, if cliche as heck.
Art/Sound wise the show is different from the original in some major ways. Due to the production house swap, artistically Nagato Yuki-Chan differs greatly from its elder show. Its a much more cutesy style, in a way, emphasizing less the "cute" aspects of the situation and characters for a more calm and soft feeling. The show looks and feels like a warm blanket. I like it. Animation is low budget, unfortunately, being just good enough to be satisfactory.
The voice actors tapped for Yuki-Chan are, praise be, the original cast in both Japanese and English. This is one show I (emphasis on I) love dubbed. Crispin Freeman, Michelle Ruff, Wendee Lee, Johnny Yong Bosch, the gangs all here kids. Japanese dub is good too, I just use english for nostalgia reasons. So still dope. Finally, the soundtrack unfortunately pales in comparison to the OG show, and fails in its own right. It just lacks any memorable tracks. The OP and ED are nothing of note either. Really here its just poor to average.
All around, Nagato Yuki-Chan kind of sucks. Its not bad, but standing as its own show rather than a fanservice-y spin-off of Haruhi causes everything to fall apart. So end judgement; Nagato Yuki-Chan is a somewhat below average slice of life romance offering that only offers nostalgia value. It's really just-
6/10 Fair
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
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Aug 15, 2015
Every so often there comes a show that just works. It doesn't necessarily have to try too hard, it doesn't have to present complex themes, unique characters, or a well written story (or even a story at all.) No sometimes simplicity is perfect in its own right.
Nichijou is one of these shows.
I'm not going to mince words here; Nichijou is a bare bones experience. It has no story. It has no character development. It has no overarching themes or messages it intends to convey. Its sole purpose is to make you laugh, and I'll be damned if it didn't make split my sides at points.
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Nichijou manages to touch all the comedic bases at once while maintaining its fresh style and humor throughout, and is all around a supremely enjoyable experience.
Nichijou translates to something around "My Ordinary Life". While there is no story, we can find a somewhat discernible "arc" around the character of Nano, a robot built by the child professor Hakase. We see her attempting to fit into an ordinary life despite the massive key lodged in her back, along with the other various accouterments she possesses as a robot. But in all reality, Nichijou is a series of comedic skits and set-pieces, some of which are connected. The skits are always (at the least) funny, if not gut busting endeavors that still amuse me to no end now. The humor here ranges from high to low, and I am sure if I actually understood the jokes that play on Japanese experiences, I would find it even more entertaining. I still love it though; its a sketch comedy show at its finest.
Character wise the show has a multitude of figures fleshing out the cast. The main characters (Nano, Hakase, Sakamoto [talking cat], Yuuko [best girl], Mio [other best girl], and Mai [really they're all best girl]) take up the "Nichijou" segments of the show, which can be considered the main act in this sketch adventure. Other colorful and fun characters are as bountiful as they are colorful (I wont spoil the fun of experiencing all their quirks for the first time by going too into detail) , and you'll come to enjoy, in time, the segments diverting away from our main cast that focus on the seminal cast of secondary figures. It's one menagerie of excellence, let me tell ya kiddos.
Art and sound wise the production quality holds up remarkably well to the quality of the show's writing. At times the animation is actually pretty damn amazing, which it doesn't really need to be considering it's a slice of life comedy show. The soundtrack is also light-hearted and fresh, perfectly complementing the show when it needs to. Really its the perfect compliment to an already perfect show.
Maybe Nichijou isn't as objectively brilliant as some of the more traditional classics out there, but there's something to be said for a show that does everything it sets out to do perfectly. It might not be necessarily original, but it most certainly is funny as all heck. I love this show. Nichijou is truly a-
10/10 Masterpiece
Reviewer’s Rating: 10
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Dec 1, 2014
Nisekoi is among the chief disappointments that I have read. What started out as a rather funny and enjoyable love triangle manga has become an extremely bloated and needlessly long marathon in which we see a dopey protagonist somehow steal the heart of every hot girl in the series. Now why I judge Nisekoi so harshly is because I know what it can be. At its height I thoroughly enjoyed the series, and part of me still legitimately cares about the story. But at this point the actual story is becoming a faint memory, replaced with extremely repetitive filler in which nothing is accomplished. Gravely
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disappointing to say the least.
Nisekoi's story is simple enough: Raku Ichijou is the heir to a yakuza gang, and is forced to "date" Chitoge Kirisaki, the daughter to the don of a rival gang. The reason behind it is to "keep the peace" between the gang and the yakuza. The only problem is that Raku has feelings for fellow classmate Kosaki Onodera. And from there we have our story. Now the premise for Nisekoi may be severely simplistic and cliche, but does little to ruin what is an enjoyable first third. It is nothing revolutionary or genre changing, but it is rather funny, light-hearted and cute. However, everything changes after a certain event in the story. After this point, story and character progression quite literally grinds to a halt. Since this point the readers have been forced through several filler arcs and many more "false flag" arcs, or arcs with seemingly important story implications that turn out to only be extremely short or entirely worthless. Now for many this may be tolerable, even enjoyable, but for many including myself Nisekoi is a shadow of its formal self. It may of been cliche, but it was enjoyable. Now its cliche and increasingly frustrating. A very poor mix indeed.
Character wise the manga was never anything to speak of, even before the aforementioned event. Raku is a standard romance protag: boring and devoid of real personality other than being "nice" and "hard-working". This is of course to allow reader immersion, creating a blank slate for all to impose themselves on. The girls are all neat and tidy stereotypes, ranging from the cute dopey one to the tsundere one to the energetic one to Haruhi (Chitoge). Before the "event", as i'll call it, there was a decent amount of character progression, with certain characters, or should I say character, noticeably treating others differently, signifying change and growth in personality. Since the "event" however, this has also ground to a halt. As is standard for filler, characters go through the motions every chapter, only to disregard the events of said chapter when they are next called upon. In this particular genre, character development is hard to find, but I've seen bad shoujo that do it better than Nisekoi.
Nisekoi's art is one of its strengths. While sloppy in bits early on, there are moments of great quality and for the most part is fairly consistent. As the manga progresses, the art grows continually better. The designs, though rather uninspired, are all neatly drawn and distinctive, so that no character looks the other. A fair job all around, not much to complain about here.
While I rag on Nisekoi immensely, a small part of me earnestly wishes for its return to quality. I still clock in every week to see what the manga has dished out. The only problem is that, for what seems like ages, I am always disappointed in what I find. Nisekoi is a manga that I will continue to read, but at this point its only to see how it ends, not because I take any particular enjoyment out of reading it. Yes, Nisekoi is truly-
3/10
Poor
Reviewer’s Rating: 3
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Aug 8, 2014
Historical fiction is often a hard subject to tackle, especially for anime/manga. The pandering nature of the medium somewhat limits the spectrum of takes on historical events in a fictional retelling, usually falling into the comedy "parody" or shonen-action genres. Vinland Saga is not either of those. It's everything historical fiction should be. It’s fun, it's sad, it's epic, and it's thoughtful. High adventure, fast paced action and political intrigue are abound in Vinland Saga, balanced out by an equal amount of philosophical introspection and character development. All around, it's an uncommon masterpiece.
Vinland Saga, as stated before, is historical fiction, and set in a uncommon
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era for the medium, and especially uncommon for anime/manga. Touching off during the Danish invasion of England in 1013, we follow Askeladd, a mercenary leader and Thorfinn, a vengeful youth serving Askeladd only for the opportunity to avenge his father's death at Askeladd's hands. Vinland Saga’s story possesses this amazing and tantalizing sense of grandeur and epic scale to its conflicts that makes every chapter feel fresh and exciting. For every chapter with adventuring and warring this is another for plotting, thinking and contemplating. And for every moment of triumphant victory there is a moment of bitter defeat and death. It’s a fantastic ride, and continues to be.
Character-wise, Vinland Saga is not lacking in the slightest. The cast is a mix of fictional characters loosely based on Nordic legend and real historical figures. Thorfinn starts off seeming like some bitter, whiny, revenge obsessed shonen protagonist, but he quickly comes into his own. His development takes off as the story progresses. Askeladd is nothing short of my favorite anti-hero in all of manga. He's ruthless, cruel, and bitter, but at the same time he possesses a sort of charm about him. He takes no pleasure in his actions, with his motivations shrouded in mystery. He’s just overall a great character. But, the crown for character development in Vinland Saga has to go to Cnut, one of the aforementioned real historical figures. He goes through transformation through transformation, and always accompanied by serious philosophical pondering and questioning. These parts are an absolute joy to read. Surrounding these three pivotal characters is a retinue of side and minor characters, from the real life Thorkell the Tall to the not real members of Askeladd's company. Each character retains a certain aspect that makes them unique and likeable, all adding flavor to an already fantastic plot; It’s just more excellence on top of excellence.
Vinland Saga started off with a somewhat simplistic art style. It was still good, but there were no great details to characters faces or anything to really write home about. Keyword started off. As the manga progressed, the art becomes darker, more refined, and much more detailed. Wrinkles on character's faces become apparent, creating some awesome panels of badass men being badass. The action sequences are very fluid and a blast to look at, and the grand panoramic scenes are nothing to scoff at either. As it stands now, the art is very impressive and a feast for the eyes in spots, acting as an excellent supplement to a great premise.
At the time of this writing, Vinland Saga looks like it is only gearing up for its main act, which baffles me considering the quality of its apparent preamble. It’s a story of adventure, of war, of politics, and of men seeking paradise. So just do yourself a favor and read it. I promise you won't be disappointed, because Vinland Saga truly is a-
10/10
Masterpiece.
Reviewer’s Rating: 10
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