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Sep 17, 2011
There isn't really a lot to say about Uroboros no Wa. No one takes chain letters seriously anymore. Can you do that for a manga about them? Well, let us elucidate a few things first.
First of all. it's not six chapters. It's two volumes, of six chapters each. Each volume is a stand alone story, with a single character connecting those two. Secondly..Horror? You'd be disappointed. Shoujo? Why, yes. Especially the second volume's romance is rather decent.
Talking about the first volume, you can't really expect some real character development in a six chapters story. There's a girl surrounded by bishounen's. She's into her friend who's
...
always there for her, but she isn't too reluctant to make out with -someone- else in the meanwhile. There are people who get jealous. And there is a cursed letter. If you receive it, you should pass it on to a couple of friends; or you'll be cursed, and this time it's real. Personally, I would have liked the teacher character to be the voice of logic, instead of readily accepting the existence of such things as curses, but oh well. You don't need me to spoil what lies beneath the cursed letters. If you've seen any japanese horror movie (or something like that), you should know.
The second volume takes us a year later. This time around, Masami-kun, the youngest of the three bishounen brothers, is the main character. He's still the headstrong teen that will go after the girl he likes, no matter what. The artwork is the strongest point of this manga. And Shiori, the girl with the overprotective male around her, is really pretty. As Masami and Shiori get drawn together, they will have to deal with another curse. Only this time, the curse isn't used to fail in scaring us. It is making us sympathise with the young lovers instead. It is emphasising their feelings for each other, and Uroboros no Wa inches further closer towards the shoujo genre. Hooray.
Is it enjoyable? Sure, if you like short stories that involve romance, love triangles, some bullying. As for the "scary" moments? It will be as easy to forget them, as it is to delete a chain email.
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
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Sep 14, 2011
What have we here? The story of your neighbourhood shota. Kou-chan is the 13 year old schoolboy all the best-looking girls want. But it's Natsuki, the four years older beauty that we care about the most.
Ane Doki! is quite predictable. Most of the cliches of the genre you can think of, are there. Kouta, our protagonist, is a pre-teen who's completely clueless when it comes to his feelings, as well as those of others. Natsuki, our sexy female lead, randomly decides to devote her life to serving this kid. The convenient absence of parents? It's here, times two. The occasional clumsiness that leads to erotic
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sights can't be missing. And since there's a girl moving in to a boy's house, of course another girl will decide to move in, to "keep an eye on them". Check.
The twist here is supposed to be the age gap between the two; a point of interest should be the moment Kouta's cute classmate starts having feelings for him. Thing is, the dilemma "sexy versus cute" is actually non-existent. The role of alternative love interests is demoted to people that exist merely to help Kouta realise he's fallen for the older hottie.
The characters are visually attractive and nicely drawn. We get a whole lot of fanservice like girls in their underwear or accidental groping, but nothing too extreme. In fact, there is but a single kiss throughout this manga. While Kouta's feelings for Natsuki do delevop, and we get some interesting insight on his thoughts and expectations, Natsuki remains the girl who happily helps and praises him the whole time, something rather shallow.
With only 26 chapters, Ane Doki! remains interesting. That is, if you want to live out the honorable fantasy of the boy who aims for the older, ridiculously hot girl.
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
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Sep 3, 2011
666 Satan and Naruto share the same relationship that their respective authors do. They are siblings, with one of them living under the shadow of the other. For a reason? Make no mistake, this brother has his own story of bonds to tell. Friendship, love, ambition, loneliness; these are universal truths. Who is to decide whether you can write a story about those or not, just because it has been done by others as well?
Those looking for similarities, won't have to try hard to spot them. There's Jio Freed, a boy who grew up alone, hated because he had the Kyuub-, I mean Satan sealed
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inside of him. There's the Akatsuki, err, these organizations, trying to capture the tailed be-err, the Angels and Devils. And so on, and so on. Similarities aren't necessarily a bad thing. There's more to 666 Satan, though.
To be honest, I was contemplating dropping this after some chapters. No matter how I looked at it, it was just another Frankenstein of a manga. A mixture of many different popular ideas, which doesn't come up as charming as initially hoped. Also, fanservice is one thing. Having a naked neko hacker giving her explanation of the Big Bang, made me question myself for reading this.
And then, there was the recipe that never fails. Dragonball taught us how to love fighting tournaments. All kinds of different fighters and techniques, competing with each other, with the occasional drama too. Ever since that point, 666 Satan is a non-stop fun ride; a ride never to slow down, as one fight just leads to another, with more and more interesting, powerful characters showing up while the secrets of the Kabbalah unfold.
The amount of time it takes to get to this point is certainly not neglectable. But after this point, there's no reason not to love this. There's non-stop action. Sure, hot girls, hot guys, too. Implementation of more popular "techniques", by skipping some four years, and having these characters "level up"; then you have these brats, turning into some pretty cool looking guys. Some quite emotional side stories, especially towards the end. Some gruesome monsters, which will send body parts flying around. Drawings that keep getting better, too. And more old-school influences; I couldn't help but think of NGE, during this guy's grasp of Armageddon.
Fair or not, when it comes to the unavoidable comparison with Naruto there are three kind of people, the way I see it. Most Naruto fans should effortlessly enjoy their favourite manga's little brother. Even if there is a slim chance for haters to like this, I don't think they would have the patience to get to the point when things get interesting. And, ah, there's a third category too. My favourite. Those who just -have- to be "alternative". "You crazy? I h a t e Naruto, but I l o v e 666 Satan!" I'm sure you do, but instead of arguing about why similarly tasting food tastes similar, let us get back to the point.
Here is a collective of some genuinely interesting characters.This guy's not bad. His intentions are good, and honest; never hiding his influences, and keeping superfluous chapters to a minimum. Personally, I will be looking forward to future works.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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Aug 4, 2011
God modders of the world unite.
I will keep this short, since I don't want to squeeze words out of something that should be really dry. Toaru Majutsu No Index was a very average show for me, with a few memorable characters. Actually, to express the way I feel about this show, I even think a few bullet points would suffice.
Time should be an absolute judge. What will I remember from this show, a year from now? Well, after asking myself, I'd say:
+The opening themes. Nice songs, nicely done.
+A bunch of cute girls. Some very cute, at that. In fact, Biri Biri turned out to be
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a blessing for this show.
+Some antagonists. Ever dreamt about being someone who should never lose, to anyone (unless your script writer strangely decides so)? Live out your fantasies with TMNI! There's two for you to choose. A guy that changes the vectors of anything he touches, and a guy who can turn his thoughts into reality! Oh yeah.
+Some things that made me laugh. Angel Fall. The sisters' speech. Index biting onto..that guy.
What I will not remember:
-The ending themes.
-That guy. The protagonist. The definition of boring. His face is boring, his punch line is boring, his personality is boring. His abilities? He punches people. Yeah. He wins against people that borderline godhood, who should slaughter him in a second, by throwing a punch at them. And don't think he's on Ippo's, or some other boxer's level. He ends the fights with a single punch, because he can. Even when, he can't. Oh wait, I forgot. He has the ability to negate any kind of power his right hand touches. Yeah, I have a very original idea for a protagonist too. He has the ability to defeat bad guys.
-Any sort of dramatic climax reached with the ending. Err, if it was there, I just missed it. The "final" arc, could easily exchange places with some of the previous arcs.
That's about it. I didn't really have a bad time watching this show. It didn't leave me with anything to think about, either. Nothing too elaborate, story-wise. A light hearted, average show, with likeable characters. Would I watch the second season, given that there's a spin-off if I wanted to get more of Misaka? Only if someone I know insisted I should.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Jun 25, 2011
Lately, there appears to be no end to shows that wink at incest. This show is an adaptation of a PC adult game, with a relationship between siblings as its central point. These two facts automatically mean there are certain things to expect and to not expect from Yosuga no Sora.
Well, let's face it. You decide to watch Yosuga no Sora. Chances are, you're here to see how different this particular approach on this taboo of a relationship will be. Yosuga no Sora is not Kiss x Sis. And I'm not talking about the blood relation. You don't have this constant, mindless jumping into smut.
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Yosuga no Sora is no Koi Kaze either. Here, fan service is an important ingredient of the show, and the psychological approach of the matter isn't as deep, apart from some meager attempts of the male protagonist to resist his urges.
So what is there to expect of Yosuga no Sora? Expect..Highly polished graphics. Nicely drawn, attractive characters -it's a 2010 production after all. Expect some nice opening and ending themes. In fact, I enjoyed their visual aspect more than the actual songs, but still. While watching them expect some recurring visions of symbolisms like...trains. The world outside the window. Pure white. The feeling of being sick.
Following the nature of these games, expect four different arcs, where all the different "paths" for Haru, the male protagonist, are explored. Expect some voice acting by Sora's seiyu. I can't find the right words to express it right now. She's lazy, needy, clingy, spoiled. This fever she's running, it's in her voice too. The rest of the voice acting was indifferent to me. Expect...To be honest, I didn't expect the OST to be this good. These piano pieces can be very sentimental. It was the music, and the direction at times too, that created this constant feeling that..something wicked this way comes. It's a feverish condition, that they're bound to give in to in the end. Of course, expect lots of sexual tension through out; And some funny comedy clips at the end of the episodes, which are being honest about this too.
Now, what is there not to expect. The sexual tension to be there all the time. And I don't mean this in a good way.
Three episodes for each arc keep things short, which can be good and bad at the same time. Paths you don't find interesting don't last long. But it doesn't leave enough space for development. Sora is meant to be the star of this show though, and the Haru-Sora arc progress through out, with the little things we learn about them.
The first arc kept my interest, since I wasn't aware of this "path" structure of the show. Still, can't miss the weaknesses. They've drawn an attractive girl. They made her rich, so she's that stereotype, who is bound to have family issues too. But she needs something more to be special. Oh, I know. Why not just..throw a violin in there.
Then we have the second arc. Which, to me, was more like a chore, than the work of chemistry. The feeling I got was "Alright, we have to try this pairing too. Let's get this over with". That's how shallow it was. But it was during the third arc that this show shone...as a comedy.
It's not easy to be so funny. I don't know where to start. From this "Ohai. I'm a preteen. I'm sad. What do I do about it..! I know! I rape another preteen!" attitude? From these ridiculous smiling sex faces, which destroy any intentions of sensuality? The part where the girl is supposedly devastated afterwards, walking away in a slow, dramatic way - which resembles watching a retarted zombie walking instead? And how can I not find it hilarious, how can I not pause to laugh, when Nao and Haru decide to search for Sora? Aren't you going overboard when you have the GIRL looking MANLY when she runs, and the MAN running with his hands going left and right, in this famous girlish depicting of running?
Am I being too harsh? Actually, I'm being too lenient. I wondered whether I'm exaggerating over small things, that others wouldn't notice. But no. This is not a child's show; It shouldn't be at least, with a thematology like this. Haru is sky(=Sora)-bound, but people uninterested in some specific themes are unlikely to be captured by this one.
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
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Jun 12, 2011
Would you trust me if I said that a manga about a guy who's good at..masturbating is one of those stories that you won't be able to put down until you finish them?
What a catchy title. It's impossible to avoid getting those funny faces when I tell people about this really interesting manga I read, named Masturbation Master Kurosawa. At first glance, Kurosawa is one of those typical, lost kids. He is somewhat intelligent, but appears to be introverted, cold and cynical. In his mind, he is punishing the popular girls of his school by..locking himself in the women's toilets and masturbating there while he
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fantasizes about them.
This still sounds like some fetishistic story, but no. Lust, love, hate, friendship, guilt, fear, anxiousness, betrayal, anger, pain, sympathy, loneliness. All these things, all these feelings are here. And they are very, very intense. The characters around Kurosawa include the typical cliches of popular schoolgirls, which become his targets. The bullies. The otakus and the simple, energetic popular guy. But those who have the greatest impact on him are three. The afro-haired otaku, with an infinite amount of optimism; he is literally a saint, and for unknown reasons, he insists on trying to be friendly towards our bitter antihero. The school idol that manages to invoke in Kurosawa feelings of affection that he hadn't felt before. And the aloof, weak-willed girl who resembles a squirrel and silently endures the caprices of the bullies.
They say that nothing can't be kept secret under the sun forever. Kurosawa's secret, even though meant to be kept inside that dark, confined toilet cabin, was bound to be found too. When Kitahara, the squirrel, finds out, a strange duo is formed. She wants his "punishment" to become more..direct towards the ones that bully her. It doesn't take much effort to persuade Kurosawa, who appears to have found a twisted sense of purpose in his hobby. Drunk on her new found "power", Kitahara asks Kurosawa to "defeat" more and more of her opponents. Together, they're both alone. Until the point is reached, where it is shown that Kurosawa is aware of his weakness.
Who decides which doors must be opened and which should stay closed? It is cruel, having to witness what you desired for the most getting taken away, just when you started believing it was within your grasp. How strong was that scene! Just when a door to a new world was opened, having that important image in your mind soiled. Having to feel empty, as if - like it was accurately described - you're floating. Does that mean that door should have stayed forever closed? Maybe it's possible for some to forever keep running away.
Another option is to move on, to change. Kurosawa was so lost and sick, that I found myself feeling sympathy for him, when he had to face the consequences of his actions. Another really strong scene. And it's here that Onani Master Kurosawa shows that he is not beyond redemption. He had the power to change. The power required to endure and reach salvation. Still, this is a story about loneliness. Not everyone has that power, squirrel being an example. Even Kurosawa, despite the inner strength he finally shows, he wouldn't have made it on his own. Kids can be the cruelest creatures of all. Kids can be forgiving, too. With the helping hand of a couple of saints, Kurosawa could master that much of a resolve. The importance of having friends to open up to, of closing the distance between each other, is one of this story's absolute truths.
There's a cost to achieve salvation, but after opening that door, Kurosawa entered a new world. A whole new world, which is constantly expanding as they enter a new age. Bullies and bullied can both change, they can even become attracted to each other. All it takes is the will to change. And a helping hand. Then, even a squirrel, can gradually come to be less scared of a harsh world. Still, some hints of closeness between certain people left me wondering, "what if..".
Kurosawa's "fights" and this..strange "weapon" of choice is comical in itself, but there's a duality in these feelings. Any tendency to laugh at some situations subsides, since Kurosawa is a sad, sad little loser. There was so much more to this manga, to actually care about those references to Death Note, Code Geass, and other popular anime/manga. The drawings improve drastically through out, a little bit more crude at the first chapters, always enjoyable though. Takigawa's eyes draw me in.
Read Onani Master Kurosawa. Witness these characters change and grow. Even though this subject is something you'd hardly find yourself relating to. It's original. By sinking into its small universe and witnessing this string of interactions between its characters, it will make you think. Think about the importance and complexity of human relationships. The despair of loneliness, and the beauty of salvation. It will put you through a maelstrom of feelings. And after the darkness and negativity is cleared, you will smile. Who knows, maybe, maybe, a small change will be found in you too.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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Jun 4, 2011
True chemistry is something hard to find. Is it acceptable to dwell on things like..height difference and being comedy partners to ignore it?
I watched this show after a person with similar taste suggested it. The first impression I got was that it was going to be..a romance/comedy show, with the oxymoron of having the roles reversed, height-wise. Risa, our female lead, is really tall for a girl. This is often exaggerated, with her really slim members, to make her look like a giantess from time to time. Our guy, Otani, is good looking, a basketball star, but..he's really short for a guy. Can these two
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overcome these facts, and start to see each other as more than friends, even though they've been making others laugh forever, getting nicknamed as the All Hanshin Kyoujin comedy duo?
So, I expected this to be about the sweet heartache of having to wonder whether he/she likes you or not. Having to deal with rivals appearing. Trying to deny true chemistry. After a few episodes, I asked myself. Is Lovely Complex what I expected? Well, partly yes, but not exactly...Is this a bad thing? Well, not necessarily...
Personally, I found this show to have a higher comedy value than romance value. I've laughed through out this. I've been disappointed with several aspects of the romance though. It's all a matter of personal aesthetics, of course, but for me, this was too one sided a romance for far too long to move me.
I just don't like it when someone is taken for granted forever. Some might argue that this was realistic at first, you can't change your feelings and stop seeing someone as a friend in the blink of an eye. But if it drags on for too long, like it does here, you're just being spoiled. Beyond that, persistance can be admirable, and having to work for love is something that happens often, sure. It is because it happens often that I'm more interested in things that happen -naturally- . To me, something more rare is more special, more worthy of being told as a story. And then...Whatever happened to privacy, people?!
Sometimes, you have to give your friends a little push. But here..Everyone is butting in the whole time, I can't understand this. Even in moments that really should be private, it is presented as natural to have another four guys join. Then, it's more than just a light push; isn't it awkward, to have everyone forcing one onto the other, having to apologize for not wanting to be with someone, like you owe it to people? And then, what's with lecturing your rival about how she shouldn't give up on your boyfriend ?! Seriously now?
Yes, it is supposed to be funny. But the female lead gets ridiculed too much for me. Watching that second kiss hurts my eyes. Risa's been saying this "I'm through with liking you" a thousand times. But then again, who's been a teenager and hasn't done that? And their feelings do develop through out the series. Risa is the driving force; her actions and persistance lead, while Otani's reactions to them are the catalyst. These guys deserve each other, and they do look good together. The part with Risa going to that concert seriously annoyed me, but I guess it was the creator's idea of outgrowing the forementioned one sided phase. Oh, Nobu-chan is a star.
The graphics remind me of a lot of other shows. The characters are quite fashionable, changing attires often. The music was nothing special, but I rather liked the voice acting. I think it made the characters memorable, the All Hanshin Kyoujin duo with their "Kimoi!" 's, Nobu-chan with her "dah-ling", and uh..that giant going "Moo".
Lovely Complex has been quite funny, and it did have its cute moments. It's just my personal belief that a better balance between these two aspects is achievable.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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May 28, 2011
Samurai Champloo is a funky train. It's gonna take you up and down, all over a parallel Edo period Japan.
The train conductors? Two extremely skilled swordmen, two completely different styles. There's Mugen. A loud, rather simple man, with a more unorthodox fighting style. There's Jin, the refined, quiet type, closer to your idea of a samurai who earns the respect of others. Both of them have to carry their own weight; be it that of coming from a tough place, or that of being too skillful for others to stand it. Ah, there's Fuu too. She's there, being all cutesy and stuff with her
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``Mo!`` 's and ``Uso!`` 's. Don't you dare look down on her though. She is the link that holds this chain of unlikely travellers together, after all. And well, you've seen a lot of girls with huge appettites in anime before, but this one WILL turn fat after eating a lot. Her desire to find ``The samurai that smells of sunflowers`` was what gave the reason for their journey to begin. And what a journey it was.
It's the little things that made Samurai Champloo special to my eyes. A little touch of realism, where actually our characters more than often do have to worry about things often skipped as trivial; like having to earn money for food and lodgings. How the creators constantly turn on the style. How the characters move so smoothly, the fights are quite a treat with the fluid motions and the polished choreography.
I was a bit doubtful about the suitability of this music genre for a story about samurai. Needless to say, I found it hard to skip the opening theme after a while. It is one of those little somethings that add to the charm of the show. Same goes for the ending theme, earning you a bit of nostalgia as it sees you off, before you hop onto this train again, heading for the next station. Through out the show the music is just so good. Be it gritty, chill out tunes, or hauntingly sad songs like Obokuri Eemui.
What is there not to like in Samurai Champloo? Well... Most "arcs" are two episodes long, at the most. There's no typical structured built up, where a group of powerful villains exists, and everything seems to lead to the final confrontation with them. Mugen is a streetwise antihero himself anyway, slashing officials without a second thought if they happen to get in his way. It's understandable that not everyone finds this approach appealing. For the rest, travelling with two strangers in pursuit of something as vague as ``the samurai who smells of sunflowers``? It's enough reason in itself. Here it's all about the journey. The places you see, the people you meet, the things you taste.
So the three travellers will traverse Japan for a clue on the man that Fuu has to find. They'll work, steal and fight for a taste of the local delicacies, Fuu will momentarily turn chubby when she overdoes it. What about the people they meet? Any memorable journey requires a sequence of meetings with extraordinary persons. Our trio will meet a Dutch man searching for..something different. A housewife whose beauty radiates too brightly to be blurred by her husband's failures. The troubled young men who take the wrong path in life and, cruel as it might be, have to pay. Lethal, beautiful women. Your occasional powerful opponents. More lethal women. And umm..remember the forementioned realism? Scratch that when you witness a tribute to the zombie culture; or when eager..US navy officers choose as the deciding factor for the invasion of Japanese coasts a game of..ninja baseball, quick to turn into a massacre; finally, keep an eye for the references and the various legends making cameo appearances in a Forrest Gump-ish manner.
Still, there's an end to everything, and eventually for their journey to be meaningful, they'll have to find ``the samurai that smells of sunflowers``. After each of the three travellers takes care of what they have to, this train can briefly stop. It's only Death and Rebirth after all, right?
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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May 10, 2011
Sometimes, a title is enough to get your attention. Footprints in the Sand brings a lot of things into my mind. Summers that were fun, summers that slipped away. Ephimeral warmth, or even lost chances. Which one of those was it that H2O kept in store?
Followed by a pretty opening theme with folk elements (I found the ending theme as enjoyable too), I didn't expect that to be the last thing I liked about this show. Visually, the show was alright. Not too bad, nothing exceptional either. It was (the lack of ) character depth and plot that ruined everything for me.
H2O revolves
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around three characters, maybe four if you take Otoha into consideration. There are more, who serve as mere comic relief or fanservice. The problem is, this story has been told a thousand times before. With more natural characters, too.
Kohinata is the only one who has some depth, compared to the others at least. She's hated, for some reason she's willing to take on that hate, she tries to keep her distance. Hinata, is just a girl trying to deal with her own family issues. Takuma, a weaklin..err, a blind shot..err, a kind hearted boy, struck by fate? No, he is a weakling with an annoying voice to me. The superficial nature of the characters and their interactions made up for cheap drama and any attempts to make me sympathize with him a failure.
So, how does this show try to keep us interested? For 1/3 of the show, we witness how much Kohinata is hated, but Takuma for some reason refuses to ask why! So we must keep watching, to find out why, right? Great.
So this is supposed to be about whether Takuma is going to change those around him, as well as himself. Once again, even if this is your cup of tea, this story has been told time and time again. In much better ways. They do manage to offer a surprise in the end though, if you stay with them.
These footprints were quick to fade from the sand. Just like they were supposed to.
Reviewer’s Rating: 5
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