Bones animation studio delivers with their new anime "Soul Eater" one of the best animated shows of this season. Even if the plot is somewhat typical for a shonen series (group of kids fighting against some kind of evil, while trying to become stronger), I really enjoyed watching the first episode: there's comedy, there's action, and even a bit of drama from Maka's part. The OP also suggests that many mysteries await ahead, and I want to meet the other two technicians: Black Star and Death the Kid! (I'm personally looking forward to see Death the Kid in action, with his two guns and that bad ass attitude! And he's voiced by Mamoru Miyano!).
By the way, the OP is really good, both the music and the scenes they have chosen to synch with it.
I won't write anything else about Soul Eater right now, because there are plenty of other bloggers commenting it, and you'll find pretty good reviews almost everywhere.
The three technicians or meisters, from left to right: Death the Kid, Maka and Black Star.
Maka wielding Soul, who has transformed into his scythe form.
Well, here you have a summary about the two first episodes of xxxHolic Kei:
Episode 1: Spider web (Kumo no su)
One night, Watakuni has a strange dream in which he meets Himawari -chan, but for a strange reason, he can't see with his right eye. The morning after, as he walks to school he passes by Doumeki's temple and Doumeki asks him to help him to clean the yard. As usual, Watanuki starts complaining, but he eventually helps Doumeki. While they are cleaning, Watanuki mentions he's staying at Yuuko's shop and Doumeki seems to be surprised by this. Then, Watanuki's arm gets trapped in a spider web and Doumeki lazily breaks it, not knowing what his action actually means...
Later that day, Watanuki is having lunch with Himawari when Doumeki turns up, scratching his right eye. Watanuki asks what's wrong, but Doumeki replies that he just had something in the eye. However, while they are returning home, Doumeki reveals to Watanuki the truth: his right eye seems to have been "eaten" by a spiderweb! Watanuki suggests going to visit Yuuko, but Doumeki refuses, saying that "he won't enter that shop".
Watanuki rushes to Yuuko's shop and tells her everything. Yuuko explains that, by breaking the spiderweb, Douemki attracted the spider's hatred towards him, and therefore he will at the end lose his eye. Watanuki replies that that's unfair, since it was his fault that Doumeki broke the spiderweb, but Yuuko says that resentment is unfair. Then, Watanuki makes a decission... That night, a strange wind enters Douemeki's house and his right eye is cured!
The day after, Doumeki sees Watanuki going to school and tells him about how his eye was suddenly cured. Watanuki keeps on walking, and Doumeki tells him to wait, but Watanuki ignores him. Doumeki grabs his arm and makes him stop, only to discover that Watanuki is wearing a patch over his right eye. Douemki removes the patch and discovers the truth: Watanuki sacrificed his own eye in order to save Doumeki's! Doumeki orders Watanuki to go call Yuuko.
Doumeki and Yuuko meet at the park, and Doumeki asks Yuuko to tell him how to recover Watanuki's eye. Yuuko says that there isn't a way, and that it was Watanuki's wish to sacrifice his eye. Then, he asks Douemki if he's angry at her, and Douemki replies that he isn't. Then, she asks him if he's angry at Watanuki. Doumeki doesn't answer, but Yuuko tells him that's it's all right if he's angry at Watanuki, because that boy hasn't understood yet that sometimes, we hurt others with our actions, even if they are well-meaning.
At school, Watanuki is seen asking Himawari if they can return home together, to what Himawari agrees, making Watanuki the happiest man on Earth! Himawari then asks Watanuki to give a book to Doumeki, since Douemki's temple is near Yuuko's shop and Watanuki is going to work after school. Watanuki gives the book to Doumeki, who's at the temple's yard carrying a pile of books. They seem quite old, and they belong to the temple's library or something. Watanuki notes that some of the books are about curses. At work, Yuuko tells Watanuki about her conversation with Doumeki and Watanuki realizes part of the meaning of his actions...
Episde 2: Left eye (Hidari me)
Doumeki is seen reading some books in the temple's library. It's late at night, and he hears someone approaching the doors. He asks who's there and... it turns out to be Watanuki, carrying a bento box for Doumeki!
After eating the bento, Watanuki discovers by pure coincidence a book hidden in the stairs, that may tell them how to recover his eye.
However, while they are reading the most important part, Himawari's book starts to move, and a creature emerges from it, devouring the letters on the paper! Right then, Yuuko comes out of the blue and traps the "Book insect" (as she calls it).
The morning after Watanuki returns the book to Himawari and apologises, since almost all of it is "erased" due to the Book insect. Himawari tells him not to worry, and comments she would have liked seeing that Book insect, but Watanuki tells her it was kind of disgusting. Then Watanuki thinks about what Yuuko said about Himawari not being good luck to him. While walking in the street later that day, Watanuki has a creepy vision on his right eye.
When the vision stops, he meets a strange girl with cat's eyes that catches a flying fish and then proceeds to eat it! The girls notices Watanuki looking at her, and tells him playfully that he's the main topic of conversation in "that world", and comments something about his eye (that I didn't really atch, sorry!) to what Watanuki replies he dosn't understand what she wants to mean by that. He can't ask her anything else, because the girl then leaves. chasing after another flying fish. Yuuko tells him that the girl he saw was "Nekomusume " (the cat's daughter). By what Nekomusume told him, Yuuko deduces that, unless Watanuki acts quicly, he will lose his eye forever.
The day after, while returning home with Himawari, they talk about scary things, and Himawari says that she has seen a girl on TV called Kohane who can see ghosts. Watanuki seems a bit confused by Himawari's love of supernatural topics, but he still thinks she is quite cute anyway. When they part ways, Watanuki has another strange vision, this time involving a woman. Right after that, he witnesses a car accident. He doesn't have time to help, because those strange surfing guys, the Karasu tengu, that is, the guardians of Zashiki-warashi, appear. They say that "it is Watanuki's fault" (Watanuki doesn't understand what they want to mean) and order him to take them to Yuuko's shop. There, they tell her that their master is in trouble and ask for help. Yuuko demands a payment (in the form of some kind of fan). She is ready to send them to where Zashiki-warashi is, but then one of them complains, pointing out again that it is Watanuki's fault. Watanuki then decides to go with the Karasu tengu and Yuuko proceeds to use her magic powers. When both the Karasu tengu and Watanuki have departed, Mokona wonder if it's all right that he didn't go with them, but Yuuko replies that there's something Watanuki needs to understand...
Wooah, this a long entry, I may say!
I just love xxxHolic Kei, andthis two episodes have proven me that there are still some good animes out there. I expect they keep the good work in next episodes, beacuse the upcoming arc is really interesting.
Well, any complains (you know, my japanese isn't perfect yet, so I may have made some mistakes while writing the entry), comments, etc. are welcome!
I gave Vampire Knight a try, and well, it was fun to watch!
So, let me see, plot revolves around a girl (Yuki) who was saved by a handsome vampire when she was little. Afterwards, she was adopted by the headmaster of an odd school, in which vampires and humans live in harmony, divided into two classes: The Day Class and the Night Class. Day Class members don’t know that Night Class guys are vampires, though, and Yuki has to keep an eye on them to prevent certain mayhem. Yuki has the hots for Kaname-senpai, her vampire savior, but shares her house with another hot guy, Zero, a vampire hater, who was also adopted by the headmaster some years ago.
Well, the first episode introduces all the main characters, so here we go:
Kaname-senpai: I don’t like him. Yeah, he’s cool, has that mysterious aura around him and treats Yuki really well. But it’s clear that he’s up to no good! The only positive point I give him is that at the beginning of the episode he killed that evil vampire using some kind of spear hand technique that reminded me of Seishirou’s (Tokyo Babylon, X). Actually, Kaname pierced through the guy’s throat (and not the heart), so it was kind of odd (wouldn’t it be easier to aim for the heart?) but well... Let’s see how he behaves in the next episode...
Yuki: she’s your classic shojo heroine: kind hearted, positive, energetic and a bit innocent. I like her character more than I thought, and at the very least she seems to have some brains. By the way, Yui Horie does a good work as her voice actress.
Zero: Emo guy, anyone? Yeah, Zero is the most emo character I’ve seen so far this season (if you don’t count Suzaku, of course). He spent like three quarters of the show in emo mode, and as expected, he keeps a dark secret about him... anyway, I prefer him as a pairing for Yuki rather than Kaname-senpai. I enjoyed watching how he interacted with Yuki, and I expect some development in their relationship as soon as possible.
And guess who’s in this show too? (I’m referring to a Voice actor... Well, I’ll let you try to figure it out. If you just give up, take a look at the screenshots!)
Other characters:
The headmaster: funny guy, although he seemed a bit creepy to me. I mean, I’m sure he’s also up to no good, creating a school for vampires and humans... that’s suspicious, if I may say. He reminds me of Haruhi’s father (Ouran High School Host Club) and no wonder! He’s voiced by the same guy! And they behave just the same, lol!
Hanabusa Aido: haven’t guessed yet who voices this guy? It’s really easy! Well, Aido is really stupid, and I have the feeling he’s in love with Zero or something (He’s obssesed with him!)
And here come the screenshots (with some random cmmentaries, )
Yeah, he’s a vampire, and of the dangerous type!
Yuki: This guy is cool, and hot, and owww (faints)
Zero: Don’t you EVER touch my dear Yuki again, you dirty vampire!
Zero: I’m in emo mode now!
Yuki: You bastard! He was about to ask me out!
Zero: Your daughter wants to date a vampire!
The Headmaster: That would certainly make me happy! Let’s plan the wedding NOW!
Dear Zero, you were adopted!
Girl has an useless stick as weapon...
While guy has a cool gun...WHY? That’s unfair!
Zero: Did you drink something yesterday? Yuki: You pervert! Get out of the bathroom!
And here its is! The mysterious VA is.... Jun Fukuyama!!! (A.k.a. Lelouch, a.k.a Watanuki, a.k.a. that guy from Special A, a.k.a. any other character you can think of) Seriously, they are going to start making jokes about him!
Well, Code Geass is back, and thus our favourite megalomaniac *drumroll* Lelouch!
Oh my, I didn’t remember how much over the top this show is until I watched the last part of the first episode, with Lelouch waving his hand like if he were some kind of crazy flight attendant, trying to look all cool and mighty at the same time, lol! I mean, I can’t take him seriously, but that’s the magic of the show, I suppose, and Jun Fukuyama does a great work as his voice actor, making Lelouch sound as a dangerous brat. And behold! Now Lelouch has a new brother that comes out of the blue! How’s that? They never mentioned he had a brother in the first season! And what happened to Nunnaly, if I may ask? And by the way, what kind of name is Lolo?
And don’t forget emo Suzaku, more emo than ever and now ready to kill Lelouch/Zero for good. The shonen-ai vibes are back!
This first episode was ok, with most of all the main characters back (the pizza lover witch C.C., kick-ass Karen, the guys from the student council, the emperor, etc. We still have to see if Cornelia managed to survive, and they also have to properly introduce the new characters, because apart of Lolo and that chinese guy voiced by Hikaru Midorikawa, Suzaku’s new friends didn’t have a single line in the first episode)
Really, I want the writers to explain what happened during that year gap they introduced in the storyline, and why Lelouch was amnesic at the beginnig of the first episode, because this seems like complete madness to me.
Anyway, I may keep on watching this, just for the laughs. And yeah, you may have noticed I don’t really like any of the characters that much, so please don’t throw me stones if I make fun of your dear Lulu from time to time.
Lelouch: Oh, I think I have something in my eye, wait... it’s that Geass stuff again, oh noes! By the way, note Lelouch’s royal pose, lol.
Lolo looks kind of innocent, but I hope he turns out to be some kind of dangerous crazy boy.
Lelouch: Emergency exits are located at the rear of the plane... C’mon, what kind of pose is that? Who does he think he is, an Evil Overlord?
Emo Suzaku is back, yay!
Kamui?! No, it’s Lelouch! CLAMP made the character design for Code Geass, and now the ED of the second season. Damn you, CLAMP, finish X now!
New anime season! It is time to get our brains ready for all the new shows that either have already started airing or will be airing soon!
And here’s a list of what I may be watching (that depends mostly on my mood and how busy I am):
xxxHolic Kei: That is, the second season of xxxHolic. Based on the manga by CLAMP, I’ve recently been hooked by its storyline and characters. The first episode looked all right, and it seems they are following the manga closely, so I may give this show a chance.
Code Geass R2: you know, I started watching Code Geass’ first season, but I dropped it because it was so ridiculous! That megalomaniac Lelouch was too much for me, and all that Britannia stuff, meh! But since I’m a bit crazy, I’m going to watch the first episode of the second season, just to see if it is as over the top as the first one. And, by the way, the voice cast is really good (they have the guy voicing Keiichi Maebara (Higurashi no naku koro ni), and also the VAs of Zelgadiss (Slayers) and Mikuru Asahina (Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuuutsu).
The Tower of Druaga: The first episode was hilarious, with all the parodies and stupid characters! I laughed at all the RPG references and cheesy lines. And the OP was kind of great too. Let’s see how the second episode turns out...
Special A: Weeeell, the voice cast for this show is also kind of good, but the plot is not that original and I’m a bit tired of all those shojo shows that are essentially the same. And I don’t care if they say that it is like Ouran High School Host Club. Ouran was really fun to watch, but I doubt Special A will be as good. Anyway, I’ll give it a chance.
Vampire Knight: Another shojo, this time of the supernatural kind, with vampires and cool looking guys saving a delicate girl, and blah blah. Okay, if there’s action, and the romance is at the very least interesting, I’ll watch this show.
Other shows that attract my attention: Allison and Lillia, Kure-nai, Itazurana Kiss, Nabari no Ou, Soul Eater, Kyouran Kazoku Nikki.
By the way, and on a different note, I finally received my Tokyo Babylon OVA DVD! I’ll post an entry about it as soon as possible, with some nice pics.
Lelouch and Suzaku, childhood friends and enemies.... wait, I think I saw that in another manga/TV show, one with a very short title ... Anyway, this pic by CLAMP is really nice.
Yeah, that’s right! I’m turning into a Tokyo Babylon fan, after watching X TV series, and then TB OVA.
Seishirou and Subaru! (I don’t consider myself as a fangirl, but, oh well... *fangirl screaming*)
What can I say about Tokyo Babylon? I think that what I like the most about it are the main characters and the impossible/ tragic romance between Seishirou and Subaru (well, at first I found it a bit disturbing, since Subaru is underage....wouldn’t that be something like shota complex? But well, they never get into anything serious in TB actually, so I suppose it is all right...)
For those who have never heard about TB, here you have a short summary:
Subaru Sumeragi, a young onmyoji from the Sumeragi estate, moves to Tokyo in order to fight curses and other evil stuff. His twin sister, Hokuto, follows him, and shortly after they meet a young veterinarian, Seishirou Sakurazuka. Seishirou seems to be a nice person, but different details link him to the Sakurazukamori clan, a family of powerful murderers...
Seishirou claims that he deeply loves Subaru (to Subaru’s great embarrassment), and Hokuto is always thinking of a way of bringing those two together. After a certain event, Subaru realizes that he actually loves Seishirou, but then, events will take a dark turn...
Subaru and Seishirou are also featured in X, where they fight each other, as a dragon of heaven and a dragon of earth respectively...
I must say that I’m not a yaoi/shonen-ai/BL fan (well, Tokyo Babylon is described as a shojo). One of my favourite anime tv series, Gravitation, is actually a shonen-ai (man, I’m not sure which term I should use! Yaoi? Shonen-ai? BL? I know there’s a difference, but...). So, it is not that I dislike yaoi, it is just that it is not my cup of tea, if you know what I mean.
Anyway, now I’m waiting to get my hands on the Tokyo Babylon OVA DVD I recently purchased!
After finishing AIR, and not exactly knowing what to watch after, I decided to give "X/1999" a try.
Some of you may be right now screaming your head out, wondering how I could have missed this masterpiece, but´ve never been a great CLAMP fan, and even if I had read some of their mangas, I never considered watching "X/1999". I knew about the storyline, but meh, I tought it would be some sort of conventional shonen.
How wrong I was.
I started watching the TV series, and what did I find? A trhilling plot, deep characters, great battles and on top of that, an epic, greek-drama like story.
In short, "X/1999" deals with the apocalypse, the end of the world, and the Final Battle, in wich the seven dragons of heaven will face the seven dragons of earth. The seven dragons of heaven want to save the human kind, while the seven dragons of earth want to destry it, in order to save earth from certain destruction by men. And the key to the last battle is a young boy called Kamui, who will have to choose wich group he joins. Kamui, following his mother´s last will, returns to Tokyo after six years. There, he meets his childhood friends, Kotori and Fuuma. Even if he tries hard not to involve them with his fate, at the end Kamui won´t be able to change what has already been foreseen...
What I like the most about "X/1999" is both the characters and plot. Kamui starts off in the story as a bad ass guy, ill mannered and arrogant, but we later learn why he behaves that way. Also, after a certain event, Kamui realizes that his attitude wasn´t the correct one and changes.
One of the main issues of "X/1999" is fate. Can the future be changed? Can we avoid painful events? What is the price of our decisions?
"X/1999" started as a shojo manga in the ASUKA magazine, but due to its bloody nature and violence, a new chapter hasn´t been published since 2003, thus leaving the story incomplete. However, both the film and the TV series provide an alternative ending.
Kamui (standing) and Fuuma. Childhood friends and... enemies?
.::Taste the difference! Anime shows come in all colours and shapes!::.
Long time no see!
Lately, I´ve watched some anime shows that were really interesting. Let´s see...
Murder Princess
This 6 episode OVA was kind of cool, with a bad ass princess trying to save her kingdom. Well, I should mention first that the princess started out being a regular princess, until she swapped bodies with a dangerous bounty hunter! After that, she became the most deadly princess on Earth. Animation wise, the quality is not that good, but the action scenes are well animated and the voice cast is awesome. If you can get the manga, don´t hesitate and give a try! It is very well drawn and the plot is a bit more consistent.
Princess Alita, ready for action!
Princess Princess
More princesses? Well, I daresay they look like princesses but... they are all guys! Yep, Princess Princess is the story of young Toru Kouno, who enters a school only for boys. There, due to his looks, he is asked to act as a princess in order to cheer up the rest of the students. He is not alone in this task though! There are two more princesses: Yujirou Shihoudani and Mikoto Yutaka. Yujiro doesn´t mind acting as a princess, and he turns out to be rather good at it, while Mitoko completely hates his job and tries to runaway everytime. Great comedy scenes and loveable characters, make of Princess Princess a nice series I really enjoyed watching.
Lovely ladies? I´m sorry guys, but NOT!
AIR
Well, I actually haven´t finished watching AIR yet, but I LOVE it! The plot is interesting, and all the characters seem to be well developed. And I love Yukito´s hairdo! So spiky! He he. I wonder how the story will turn out in the end, but I expect some plot twists and loads of emotional stuff. I may even cry a bit, who knows...
AIR tells the story of Yukito, a traveling wanderer who searchs the "girl in the sky". One day, he arrives at a town by the sea and tries to earn some money since he is starving and wants something to eat. Then he meets Misuzu, a gentle girl who helps him (she buys him some kind of repulsive peach nectar, he he) and takes him to her home. As the story progresses, Yukito meets two other girls, Kano (who seems to have magical powers) and Minagi. One of the them may be the "girl in the sky"...
Misuzu and Yukito. By the way, did I mention that the story takes place during summer? Aww, how I miss the sea, and the waves, and that usual gentle breeze, and... well, enough!
.::Take my revolution::. Finished "Shoujo Kakumei Utena"
Well, I finished watching Utena, and now... what´s left? Utena may be an old TV series, but I daresay it is one of the best TV shows I´ve ever watched. Plot-wise, the story is very well built up and they manage to focus on all the characters and their particular feelings or traumas.
While watching Utena, I thought about how anime has changed in the last couple of years. We have witnessed the arrival of "Moe", and nowadays it is difficult to find anime TV series starring strong female characters like Utena.
Utena is not only a reinterpretation of traditional fairytales, turning upside-down the roles of the prince and the princess (just by watching the first minutes of the anime you realize there´s something odd about the plot... a girl who wants to turn into a prince?) but also a reflection on the changes everyone undergoes during adolescence, as well as the importance of a true friendship (even if some people regard Utena´s relationship with Anthy as something a bit "more serious", as also suggested in the film).
Just discovered Shojo Kakumei Utena (Revolutionary Girl Utena). It is kind of an old anime, but I just love it!
I had read some reviews, and I finally decided to give it a try... man, it was mind blowing!
From the plot to the characters, everthing in Utena is so... odd. It is supposed to be a shojo anime, but I would find it difficult to describe Utena...
Well, the plot goes as follows: Young Utena Tenjou lost her parents when she was a little child. She was saved by a prince, and from that day on Utena decided to... turn into a prince herself! However, she refuses to lose her feminity, and even though she wears male costumes and speaks like a man, she considers an insult to be called "boy". Utena attends the Ohtori Academy, and there she meets Anthy Himemiya, a misterious girl...
One day, Utena sees a guy harassing Anthy, and defies him to a fight. The guy accepts, and Utena finds herself fighting in a strange battle to win the "Roses´s bride", who turns out to be... Anthy!
Well, this is a overlook of Utena´s plot, but really, if you haven´t watched this series, you don´t know what you are missing! Action, mistery, well developed characters, etc.
My favourite character is Utena . Seeing her fighting in the opening is priceless! She is such a strong character for a shojo anime, and all she wants is to protect the person she really cares about.
The main characters of Revolutionary Girl Utena. Utena is the pink haired girl and Anthy the purple haired one. Background people: the guys from the student council.
And, TADA! Here I bring you a modified version of the opening. Enjoy it!
Himawari then asks Watanuki to give a book to Doumeki, since Douemki's temple is near Yuuko's shop and Watanuki is going to work after school. Watanuki gives the book to Doumeki, who's at the temple's yard carrying a pile of books. They seem quite old, and they belong to the temple's library or something. Watanuki notes that some of the books are about curses. At work, Yuuko tells Watanuki about her conversation with Doumeki and Watanuki realizes part of the meaning of his actions...
and traps the "Book insect" (as she calls it).
) 
... Anyway, this pic by CLAMP is really nice.
. Seeing her fighting in the opening is priceless! She is such a strong character for a shojo anime, and all she wants is to protect the person she really cares about.