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- BirthdayJul 19, 1987
- JoinedApr 10, 2010
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Oct 22, 2022
This is a very good one, however not an anime I probably would have enjoyed watching in my teens or even my early 20s. There are some obvious low-effort artworks and animations in the episodes. At times the plot does not seem to move along fast enough. Also there are points when the expected plot development fizzles out somewhat. Yet, I loved it. I love to find that there are anime shows like these for someone at my age.
This show consists to 4 episodes, with 4 short-stories as plots for each, with central characters all women.
If you are past the age to watch
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anime shows targeted towards teenagers or YAs, give this a try.
Yeah, I know... there are not many you get to watch and re-watching old favourites can be tiring at times.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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May 22, 2021
Revisited this anime after over 10 years. Now that I'm a quite a bit older, wiser(?) and with early male-pattern baldness... maybe I could express what I think of this particular show?
They should've marketed this as seinen.
This doesn't always move in a reasonable pace, leave too much unexplained, demands a bit much from the viewers. But the visuals & sounds? Those could be enjoyed by almost anyone, irrespective of their age or preferences. Definitely worth taking a chance on.
You see, anime and manga fans tend to have a particular set of preferences. Preferences which don't necessarily match up in other entertainment media or forms. That
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is a strong reason why you might struggle suggesting something to an uninitiated from this world. Also the same reason why people tend to drop these once they grow older.
Yet there are manga and anime that tries something ambitious, tries to stand out. Those tend to stand the test of time much better, if not to the wider world, then at least to the viewer him/herself.
"Bounen no Xamdou" is certainly one of them.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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Jan 9, 2018
Writing a review for a Nihei Manga is kind of tricky. Do you draw comparisons with the his previous works like Blame!, Biomega etc? Or do you come up with something that may capture the imagination of some other fellow readers to go out and buy the manga?
The story starts like any other generic sci-fi storylines.... it is an unforgiving world, where the people living on the surface are subjected to brutalities and hardship to the extreme. And our unlikely protagonist rises by a chance and he must travel far to defeat the enemies one by one, gathering power and allies incrementally. Very formulaic, right?
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So what makes it different?
It is the Nihei touch. It is that artwork, the death and fatalities shown in the most soul-crushing way and the transitions on the scenes with measured jumps. You feel both detached from the harsh reality of that world, at the same time be drowned by the darkness it submerges itself in. Violence of massive proportions get omitted on the next page and you just see the resulting doom and destruction in incredible details. You reach the depth of you imagination to visualize what may have happened. Yet there's a fluidity in the story here. Even if you feel lost or struggle to fill in the gaps, the rhythm feels uninterrupted. Take a deeper look and you may realize there's a master behind the art.
And our author has probably made larger strides in character development, they serve a higher purpose than to just continue the story. You can relate and tax your imagination a bit further with the characters, this is a great catalyst for the reader's appetite. Yet that trademark minimalism hasn't been lost in any way.
So that's what this manga is. It carries forward the celebrated qualities and skills of the artist, at the same time it expresses Nihei's desire to produce a "Tezuka-level mass appeal".
This might end up to be his most polished work till date.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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Oct 24, 2016
[The same review of the prequel I've posted]
There is a chapter when Waroo explains why he doesn't cut his hair. Why he stopped caring how his hair looks. And that made me tear up, at that point I realised... how emotionally invested I was in this manga.
This is a beautiful piece of work. The art, monologues, story....everything is simple & minimal. But as we all know, the heaviest impact isn't done with overcrowded art. I wonder if that caricatured & childish self-representation of Waroo in those panels gave the author some form of relief and refuge while painting his own memories and experiences.
We all
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have nostalgia about our childhood, the lost sense of wonder. Too often we adults realise the implications of each action and words we have now. Or how often we keep reminiscing the happy memories, or memories that left us with a sense of incompleteness. How much would you change if you could go back in time? Don't you often have the urge to share something unremarkably amazing? These days, you don't even have to put a simple thought in documenting you experiences, your smartphone's camera, the social media apps do take care of almost everything. All your creativity zipped and simplified within 140 characters.
And that's when I envy the author of this manga. I'd give anything to be able to put out my own experiences & memories in such way.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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Oct 24, 2016
There is a chapter when Waroo explains why he doesn't cut his hair. Why he stopped caring how his hair looks. And that made me tear up, at that point I realised... how emotionally invested I was in this manga.
This is a beautiful piece of work. The art, monologues, story....everything is simple & minimal. But as we all know, the heaviest impact isn't done with overcrowded art. I wonder if that caricatured & childish self-representation of Waroo in those panels gave the author some form of relief and refuge while painting his own memories and experiences.
We all have nostalgia about our childhood, the lost
...
sense of wonder. Too often we adults realise the implications of each action and words we have now. Or how often we keep reminiscing the happy memories, or memories that left us with a sense of incompleteness. How much would you change if you could go back in time? Don't you often have the urge to share something unremarkably amazing? These days, you don't even have to put a simple thought in documenting you experiences, your smartphone's camera, the social media apps do take care of almost everything. All your creativity zipped and simplified within 140 characters.
And that's when I envy the author of this manga. I'd give anything to be able to put out my own experiences & memories in such way.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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Jun 12, 2016
Our favourite cyberpunk artist has finally gone mainstream, dumbed his latest work down to a level that we mere mortals can consume & digest without difficulties.
Nihei Tsuomu's works are very unique. 'Blame!' was a manga you had to re-read a few times to actually realize the plot. The magaka refused to narrate even the most critical things. Compare that to the typical manga/anime with text-bubbles, notes & what-nots... you were left with your own devices(imagination, wit & interest) to parse the story. Yet the story was complex, layered and you were free to come up with your own interpretations. But, whatever your impression was
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based on his previous works, you had to admit one thing:
That his works were utterly, massively, absolutely cool.
One definite improvement is the artwork. There's now a unprecedented clarity, unseen on Nihei's previous mangas. Now the human are drawn with equal grace & fluency as he did with the cyborgs, monsters & robots before. Although there's the issue with generic human faces. But seeing the author's depiction of conflict on a grand-scale & mind boggling mega structures, there aren't many manga with better artworks than this. Characters in this manga are designed & developed in a traditional way. Now there are conversations, multiple panels are dedicated on clarifying a character's intentions or actions. Not many things are left to imagination. Some of the fight scenes are a bit confusing maybe, but the anime will help you up on that. Multiple readings are not required to finally get to the bottom of the story.
If you were expecting a gritty, dark story without any emotional fat & shallow story-telling.... you might be disappointed. Although "Mecha" is not a genre that can naturally produce anime/manga with actual depth in the story-line. The basic idea of human shaped fighting machines doesn't scream 'grown-up' in the first place. Yes this is tagged as "seinen", but not for the right reasons.
Truth is, this manga(and anime adaption) is & will continue to be a bigger success in Nihei's career compared to 'Blame!' or 'Biomega'. If you are a mecha/space-odessy fan, you must give it a go. There aren't many better ones than this.
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
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Dec 15, 2014
There is something unique about this manga, that brings me back to it. It definitely is different than most of the "slice of life" works. The initial impression can easily be as mundane, slow-paced, too realistic or simplistic. But read a bit further & you may as well find something rather special.
The story does not stand out much. Its more like the narration of the daily life of the main characters. But it touches some intricate details, the nuances of the conversations can be quite fulfilling. The art could have been better, sometimes it feels like there's a lack of consistency or proportion in
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the characters. But the apparent lack of fluency somehow adds to it's charm. Also it is quite detailed. The characters probably are the strongest point to this manga. It is quite easy to feel attached the the main character Rikuo, or the strange girl with a pet raven on her shoulder.
I would say this manga is lot more closer to reality, when it comes to romance or the daily life of an average person. Romance, just like life, at it's truest form is complicated, far from what our fantasies & imaginations made us hope. It never turns out the way you expect it to be. This story may not be the most remarkable one, but would stay with you for a long time.
Let's hope the author keeps continuing the beautiful story for a while longer.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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