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All posts for the month April, 2011

Steins;Gate Episode 4

Posted by Alex on April 27, 2011
Posted in: Steins;Gate. Leave a Comment

Rendezvous of Abstract Fluctuation

Alex: So, Christina has daddy problems and is actually 18. I didn’t expect that. Her, of all people to have daddy issues. Sadly, it looks like they’re focused on a mad pursuit of science. A bit like Okarin. Who’s focus has shifted into obtaining an IBM5100 in order to crack the code he obtained last week and become one step closer to saving the world, whilst bickering and making friends with Christina.

I never noticed, but they did a good job on Christina. She’s got the good elements of a tsundere typed character, but they’re done so well and so in balance with the rest of her that it seems to just…fit her. Now, I must be off to find Mayuri’s cries of “Doo-da-doo” in a .wav format for my phone.

Also, i’m busy this week so all other posts  delayed. Sorry ’bout that.

GOSICK Episode 14

Posted by Alex on April 24, 2011
Posted in: Gosick. Leave a Comment

A Malicious Frill Denounces a Farting Newt

Alex: I might say that my wellspring of wisedom tells me things when everyone around me is being stupid.Last week was a really good mystery setting episode, too…
SO BY LOGIC,  this week we’re playing with a love triangle and the inspecter has bugs in his hair whilst Avril and Kujo frolic around doing nothing worth talking about. Goddammit, this show really tests my patience.

What’s the weather like out your window, anyway?Sunny?

Mimi: -nodnod- It’s a very lovely, sunny day… :3

Deadman Wonderland Episode 2

Posted by Alex on April 24, 2011
Posted in: Deadman Wonderland. 1 comment

Antidote


Alex: I’m not gonna blog [C]. It’s great and all, but its one of those series which will be a pain to blog weekly. So, if Mimi doesn’t have any objections, I’ll take Deadman Wonderland instead. Anyway, Happy Easter. :D

So…why did I pick this series over Noitamina’s creative genius anime? I think its the guts of this series, actually. That, and well, the sheer adrenaline I got from this episode. It doesn’t even try to pretend its real anymore, which was my problem with the first episode, and it doesn’t bother making a secret of how Shiro is so mysterious she’s obviously got to be either the child of a higher up, a childhood friend or that “Red Man” from episode 1.  But…it’s got guts to push such an unbelievable storyline so far. I’ll admit that…and the whole “theme park” gig was done pretty well.

I dunno, i’m not sure what to think of [C] or Deadman, but Deadman seems like less of a pain to talk about weekly.

EDIT: I saw episode 3, and this isn’t the right thing for me to talk about weekly. I’ll leave it for Mimi…^.^

Ano Hi Mita Hana no Namae o Boku-tachi wa Mada Shiranai Episode 2

Posted by Alex on April 22, 2011
Posted in: Ano Hi Mita Hana no Namae o Boku-tachi wa Mada Shiranai. Leave a Comment

 Menma the Hero

Alex: I wasn’t really very sure on how this story was going to tell itself. The first episode was so open and so vague that it didn’t look like there was one clear path through the story. So I was actually quite pleased to see that they’re using the whole “childhood wish” as the device to bring everyone together. The one thing i’m not sure on is if they’ll move onto another character next week, now that Jintan and Anaru patched things up. The whole “romantic interest from years ago” is a cliche I was hoping the series would avoid, so well…i’ll be interested to see how it plans to work it all out.

It’s clever, though. The way that they took Pokemon (Be honest, who’s never played that when they were kids? Pokemon Silver and Gold were the best) and used it in what looks to be an anime about growing up and maturing was well…a really nice touch. It just seemed a little too obvious that this wouldn’t be Menma’s wish, I mean…why would she come back to haunt people for a Nokemon?

Review: Mahou Shoujo Madoka★Magica

Posted by Alex on April 22, 2011
Posted in: Anime Reviews, Mahou Shoujo Madoka★Magica. 5 comments

Puella Magi Madoka Magica

Alex: So yeah, as you all know, Mimi’s graduating, so less time = no time to write this review. Which means the burden falls onto the always reliable partner ^.^. Anyway, since we both have the same opinions on this brilliant show, there shouldn’t be a problem. And i’ll just bold this. I WILL BE DISCUSSING SPOILERS. DO NOT READ THIS REVIEW IF YOU DON’T WANT TO BE SPOILED.

Mahou Madoka (for short) is simple in premise. It’s a magical girl anime about people who hunt evil witches to protect the population. That’s what it appears like on the surface. But it’s so much more than that it’s hard to describe, so i’ll start with the visuals and the sound. If you couldn’t guess from the screenshots, it’s done by SHAFT. That means trippy visuals, and they go so well with the dark, unique undertone of this series. The musical score…well, me and Mimi both have the 6 tracks currently out on our iPods, it’s just that good. It’s well…a masterpiece on its own, and it’s coupled with this amazing series. The OP and the ED are also wonderfully done, and one could actually think of them from viewpoints of a character, because the lyrics…well, the lyrics fit so well into the show it’s almost like the creators wrote the song.

The show itself focuses on 5 girls and one “magical pet”, as you’d expect from almost any magical girl anime. I remember seeing a funny youtube video about the girls of Mahou Madoka, and how accurate the descriptions are. Mami got ahead in life, Sayaka needs a shrink, Madoka needs some self esteem, Kyoko eats to escape her troubles, and Homura is plain weird and needs a boyfriend. Badly.
It may be slightly rude of me to completly agree with everything there, but…well, yeah. The characters start of charming, yet slowly descend through the madness created by Incubator, and turn out utterly insane, even going to the point where one of them commits suicide to make sure another doesn’t feel alone anymore. It’s hard NOT to get attached to the 5 girls, if i’m honest.

If it isn’t clear by now, Mahou Madoka isn’t any other show.It’s a breakdown of the Mahou Shoujo genre, and a scary, dark look at what it means to be a magical girl.Yet, where I think this anime really puts itself above anything else on the market is the storytelling. It’s dark, haunting, gripping, and always keeps you guessing. For the first 9 episodes, I was always making theories in my head about Homura, and when her past got shown and everything slots into place, suddenly the whole series was turned on its head. This is one of those series where you can actually turn the whole thing around, yet keep a perfectly sensible storyline going. That said, the whole “alternate time lines” route is a very dangerous route for any anime to go down, so i’m not expecting everyone to agree with me on this point. It may be sheer coincidence that me and Mimi both liked it, or it may be that the storytelling hinted towards it the whole way.

Mahou Madoka is one of those “You gotta see it to believe it” shows. With jaw dropping action scenes, luscious visuals, the best villain to ever grace anime and one hell of a storyline, everyone needs to try this show.( ◕‿‿◕ )

Alex’s Score: 10 Meeps out of 10 (Masterpiece)

Mimi’s Score: 10 Meeps out of 10 (Masterpiece)

Dusk’s Score: 10 Meeps out of 10 (Masterpiece)

Hyouge Mono Episode 2

Posted by Mimi on April 22, 2011
Posted in: Uncategorized. 3 comments

Fantasy of the Tea Room


Mimi: I was just about to go to sleep when I noticed this episode’s release pop up in my RSS Feed. >.< And so I conclude my blogging (for a couple weeks) with this great episode of the oh-so-underrated Hyouge Mono. Compared to the first one, this is actually a lot more serious. We’re briefly introduced to Sauske’s family, and it’s surprising to see Sauske getting romantically involved with his wife, although he’s only feeling turned on because her physical characteristics resemble that of a tea bowl. =P Most of this episode delves into politics, which I loved, but it’s a little hard to follow when you’re not familiar with any of the names.

From what I gather, Sasuke’s brother is a vassal to Araki Murashige and Nakagawa Kyohide, and they both suddenly rebel against his lord, Nobunaga. It also turns out that Sauske’s wife is Kiyohide’s sister. This, of course, creates a lot of tension for him, and he sets out to make his brother return to his side. And how does he do it? Why, he pretends that he’s going to kill his wife right in front of him! That moment was…intense, and it actually looked like he was going to slip up. I really didn’t think he had that in him. Fortunately, his brother and Kyohide surrender, and now all that’s left is to capture Araki. At this point, Sasuke is motivated to be a more dedicated warrior and give up being an aesthete…but not for too long! When he discovers Araki in the middle of his escape, he drops some awesome tea bowl and Sasuke gets all goggle-eyed over it! Noticing this, Araki lets him keep the bowl in exchange for his escape. Mission failed!

Later on, Sasuke is hanging out with Master Senno in some sacred tea room, and what do you know…he has a bowl just like Araki’s. This shocks Sauske, as he begins to suspect that Senno knows what he did…which wouldn’t be too good, I guess. Sheesh, what a tense ending. Anyway, I just find myself loving Hyouge Mono more and more, and the OST is the best I’ve heard this season. I really…don’t know what is going to make up the next 37 episodes (just wars and rebellions?), but seeing as this show can also be pretty serious, I have high expectations for what is to come.

Okay, sleepy time…

Mahou Shoujo Madoka★Magica Episode 11 & 12

Posted by Mimi on April 22, 2011
Posted in: Mahou Shoujo Madoka★Magica. Leave a Comment

The Final Sign Left

&

You Were My Best Friend


Mimi: Madoka Magica, which seemed to come out of nowhere and blow all our minds away, and was painfully delayed for weeks, finally ends with a bittersweet, beautiful, Disney-esque ending. Some people are going to hate the fluff, and some people are going to think it’s perfect. I fall somewhere in the middle. I like the ending, but it didn’t grab me as emotionally as the previous episodes, oddly enough. Maybe that’s because of the gap between releases, or the predictability of the ending, but anywho!

There’s not much to say about the majority episode 11; it spends a surprisingly good amount of time fleshing out Madoka’s mother and teacher, which felt like a waste of time. Madoka also gets in another lengthy discussion with that psychopathic stuffed animal about human emotions and so on. The best part is really just the last few minutes when Homura goes all out to fight Walpurgis. Seriously, that was epic.

Going into the final episode, it’s pretty obvious what Madoka is going to do. She forms a contract with Kyubey and wishes to erase all of the witches before they were ever born, from every world, past and future, with her very own hands. That means she is stuck doing this for eternity, saving magical girls by absorbing the dark energy from grief seeds so that they don’t become witches (jeezus, there was no other way?). So she alters the rules of the universe, ultimately becoming God, and I particularly liked the scene of her saving other magical girls. That’s why I call this a bittersweet ending; it’s sad that Madoka has to go on like this, and what’s more is that everyone will forget her, and she will cease to exist like she used to…but despite all that, she’s happy. The only person who hasn’t forgotten her is Homura because of her time-travel powers, and they have a sweet, close, and tearful moment that is going inspire hundreds of new MadokaxHomura fanfiction and fanart tomorrow…

Of course, Madoka Magica can’t end without a freaky twist! The magical girls might not be fighting witches anymore, but now they fight…demons. This isn’t exactly well-explained, but it’s still awesome, and it’s amusing to see Kyubey wrapping his head around the possibility of a world with witches. Overall, I think that Madoka Magica is a masterpiece, and it is the only anime that hit my Top 20 while still airing. Despite that I only feel okay about the ending, it’s still a good one to an unforgettable series, and the characters will be missed for quite some time. Alex is going to review the entire series tomorrow, so look forward to that~ =D I’m curious to know what he’ll think of the ending too…

Kaiji: Hakairoku Hen Episode 3

Posted by Alex on April 21, 2011
Posted in: Kaiji: Hakairoku Hen. 2 comments

Shards of Fate

Mimi: Gyah! This episode is just painful to watch. It’s finally Kaiji’s turn to play as the dealer, and Ohtsuki and some other guy bet the highest amount that is permitted in the game. Naturally, this freaks Kaiji out, and he finally sees Ohtsuki for who he really is—a slimy bastard who tempts fellow workers with food and drinks until they spend all their cash, drags them into a game, and breaks them. If Kaiji goes into debt now, he’ll have to pay back even more from his second paycheck, so it’s all or nothing!

So how does Kaiji fair as the dealer? Well, he actually wins the first round and starts acting like the most delirious baboon anyone has ever seen. At that moment, he doesn’t realize that he has to be the dealer twice thanks to Ohtsuki screwing the rules. So how does Kaiji fair the second time? Epic fail. It’s so epic that he nearly faints on the floor. In the end, he’s worse off than before he started this stupid game. *sigh* When is this poor fool ever going to learn? But don’t worry Kaiji..we still love ya.

Alright, I’m ready for a different game or something. Or rather, I’d like Kaiji to master Zen meditation so he can avoid all the temptations and evil people and get outta this dump faster. And I’ve been wondering about who that creepy woman/man is in the ED for a while now…

Digimon Xros Wars Episode 33

Posted by Alex on April 21, 2011
Posted in: Digimon Xros Wars. 8 comments

A Chill down To the Spine! Moonlight General of Vampire Land

Mimi: Upon arriving at Vampire Land, Taiki and Nene meet Lopmon (one of my favorite Digimon, squee~!), who tells them that his kind has been snatched and brought to a castle by a group of LadyDevimon. They work up a plan to infiltrate the castle, disguised in horrible Halloween costumes, and trick the guard into getting inside. There, they encounter the second death general, Neo Vamdemon; meanwhile, Kiriha is fighting off a wave of Devimon just outside of the castle. After the pesky minor Digimon are taken care of, they all focus their remaining energy on fighting Neo Vamdemon, but something goes horribly wrong. Just when they thought things couldn’t get any worse, Neo Vamdemon Digixrosses with MetalGreymon…leaving a very devastated Kiriha.

At first, this was just a cute, cheesy episode of everybody getting spooked out and Kiriha clashing with the team again, but the ending had a very interesting turn of events. Now they’ll have to weaken Neo Vamdemon just enough for MetalGreymon to escape that form, I guess… The next general should Digixros with all the best Digimon from Xros Heart and squash the humans before he might lack control. >:3 Well, that’d be more appealing if they were you know who.. *protects Kiriha* ;A; But anyway, as much as I’d love to jump right into episode 34 next week, I probably won’t be able to blog it (or anything else) until after I take my final exams on May 5th. Just giving a heads up, because the next two weeks are going to be insanely busy for me. x_x -sigh- Anyways..it’s nice to see Digimon Xros Wars getting better and better. ^-^

Steins;Gate Episode 3

Posted by Alex on April 20, 2011
Posted in: Steins;Gate. 1 comment

Paranoia of Parallel Process

Alex: So we finally get to hear Steins Gate mentioned on the screen, and..it turns out that it’s just the mad scientists nonsense words again. But ya know, that aside…this is really starting to interest me now. “Z-Program”, the revelation that the microwave can time travel, and Karisu’s breakdown after hearing that it’s a time machine…it’s all building up to a very interesting story, actually. And the best part is that it’s told with the dialouge instead of with a cheesy method, it’s been a very long time since such a diaglouge heavy story has interested me this much.

Then again, I would be lying if I said that this isn’t the perfect kinda series for me…dark, mysterious and sci-fi. The only annoying thing is that they wasted too long dancing around the whole “You’re a pervert for touching me!” “No, you’re a pervert for thinking naughty things about bananas!” scenario at the start.