Anime Sunday: Izetta Episode 01 Impressions

This week for Anime Sunday I’m covering another Fall 2016 series. It’s my Izetta Episode 01 Impressions!

Plot Synopsis: Set in an alternate Earth on the eve of the 2nd World War, the story follows Finé a princess of the tiny Alpine country Eylstadt and her friend Izetta.

Plot: The plot of this first episode is pretty intense from start to finish, and while I really enjoyed it opening with a shot of Finé running in a forest with a Corgi that single scene is probably as peaceful as the entire episode gets. After that everything is incredibly tense.  I won’t spoil any more than that, but I’ll just say I’m hooked thus far. As long as the story keeps up this quality I’ll be watching this series avidly.

Characters: We really only get to meet Finé in this episode, but it’s enough to learn a lot about her as a character. I have to say I enjoy her quite a bit, but I’m looking forward to learning even more about her and Izetta’s relationship. The rest of the cast is good, although I’m expecting we have only touched the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the cast.

Art: The art is great, personally I thought I was watching something animated by A-1 Pictures, the studio who did Sword Art Online among many other series. However I was surprised to see that it was a studio I haven’t heard of before, Ajia-do Animation Works. They did great work in this first episode, and while it’s not close to ufotable quality work, it is leaps and bounds ahead of anything Studio Deen could make.

Music: The musical score fits this series perfectly and while we really didn’t get to enjoy the theme songs I’m looking forward to hearing them in future episodes. We’ll see if it can meet the standard that the score set with this first episode, because they did a great job with it.

Overall: If you want a new spin on World War II, or just want a great Politcal/Military series Izetta might just end up being the show to watch this Fall 2016 season.

For those who like: Politics, Military, World War II Stories, Alternate History, Fantasy, Action, Drama, Excellent Plot, Fantastic Cast of Characters, Great Artwork, Amazing Musical Score.

Not for those who don’t like: Any of the above.

 

Retro Game Friday: Crimson Skies

This week for Retro Game Friday is a game I loved back in the day. It’s Crimson Skies!

Plot Synopsis: The Crimson Skies universe is set in an alternate history of the year 1937. According to the game’s backstory, factors such as the growing strength of the “Regionalist Party,” the division between “wet” and “dry” states, and a quarantine caused by an Influenza outbreak resulted in a general shift in power from federal to state and local levels. After the Wall Street Crash of ’29, states began seceding from the U.S. A number of independent nation-states form from the fractured United States; hostilities between these sovereignties eventually escalate into outright war.

Plot: The plot was interesting, and while not super ingenious was still clever and original enough for a ten year old me to enjoy immensely.

Characters: Nathan was a roguish character ala Han Solo and i loved it. The rest of the cast was very fitting for the story.

Gameplay: The gameplay took dogfighting and made it fun as hell, I haven’t had as much fun in a dog fight until sequels to Rogue Squadron were released.

Art: It’s aged poorly, but I’d love to see a remaster of the game. It’d sell like hotcakes!

Music: Don’t remember much, but it did fit the game perfectly.

Overall: A great game, marred only by the fact that the graphics have aged poorly. Worth a play at least once.

For those who like: Planes, Roguish Main Characters, Interesting Cast, Great Gameplay.

Not for those who don’t like: Any of the above.