Movie Monday: Metropolis

This week for Movie Monday I’m covering a move inspired by a Manga that was in turn inspired by a 1920’s Sci-Fi German film. It’s Metropolis!

Plot Synopsis: Humans and robots coexist in the futuristic city of Metropolis, although robots are discriminated against and segregated to the city’s lower levels. A lot of Metropolis’ human population are unemployed and deprived, and many people blame the robots for taking their jobs. Duke Red, the unofficial ruler of Metropolis, has overseen the construction of a massive skyscraper called the Ziggurat, which he claims will allow mankind to extend its power across the planet.

Plot: The plot is okay, but frankly it’s got too much of the Dystopian genre in it for me to really say I even remotely enjoyed it. While my utter hatred for that genre is a topic for another day and column, it doesn’t mean that this was a total bust. One of my roommates in College made me watch the movie so it’s got quite a bit of a cult following and it definitely has a very classic Anime feel due to it being inspired by a Manga from the father of Manga and Anime Tezuka Osamu.

Characters: The cast is okay, but like I said above I really didn’t enjoy this movie’s plot. That being said Shunsaku is probably my favorite character of the movie.

Artwork: Heavily inspired by Tezuka and animated by Madhouse the artwork is really the only thing that I enjoyed about this movie.

Music: The music is very fitting and absolutely perfect for this movie. That being said it’s not super memorable either.

Overall: An okay movie, but much too Dystopian for my tastes.

For those who like: Cult Classics, Sci-Fi, Drama, Dystopia, Action, Excellent Artwork.

Not for those who don’t like: Any of the above, particularly the Dystopia part.

Anime Sunday: CCS Clear Card Episode 01 Impressions

This week for Anime Sunday I’ve got the first episode of the sequel to a classic series. It’s my Cardcaptor Sakura: Clear Card Episode 01 Impressions!

Plot Synopsis: This picks up the story almost exactly where the ending of the original Manga series ended. Syaoran has just returned to Tomoeda and is now attending Middle School with Sakura and her friends. But things don’t stay peaceful for long….

Plot: This is very much Cardcaptor Sakura’s sequel, and that’s both a good and bad thing. It’s good for those who are the intended audience, which is to say much younger than most of my usual audiences. It’s bad for the exact same reason, if you are expecting anything, except a Magical Girl series you will be severely disappointed.

Characters: We don’t get introduced to anyone new, in fact everyone is pretty much the exact same as we left them at the end of the original series. That should be changing in the next few episodes, but as I only watched this series on a whim to see if my little sister might enjoy it as a addition to the original series I have no intention of seeing if that becomes true. However I’m 99% sure that I’m correct in that assumption.

Art: This is animated by Madhouse, famous for some really amazing adaptations including One-Punch Man. So it’s got plenty of excellent animation sequences while still staying true to the original material’s designs.

Music: The music is also pretty good, although I didn’t look up the theme song singers due to me having to rush to get this ready for posting.

Overall: This is looking to be a good fit for the intended audience, but probably won’t be a fun time for anyone older than 14.

For those who like: Cardcaptor Sakura, Magical Girls, Drama, School Life, Excellent Art, Good Musical Score.

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

Anime Sunday: Winners of Winter 2017

Hey all! This Anime Sunday I’m back with my pick of winners for the previous season of Anime, and yes this post has been highly delayed. Sorry about that, but circumstances and my decision to post on an every other day schedule for a while have only let me do a few Anime Sunday columns since I started posting again. Anyways it’s my Winners of Winter 2017!

Youjo Senki: This was a great show to watch and I highly enjoyed watching a villainous protagonist. Sure it might have been a tad too gory for my tastes, but it was a fun show to watch nonetheless.

Dragon Maid: This was an absolutely hilarious show, and I enjoyed watching it thoroughly. If you enjoy some off beat comedy, Dragon Maid was the highlight of the season in my opinion.

ACCA-13: This was a surprisingly fun show to watch, with plenty of political intrigue and drama. It’s art style was also pretty neat.

Honorable Mentions:

Tales of Zestiria the X: The second half of the Tales of Zestiria adaptation, I never got to watch it, but I’m happy ufotable was able to create something that took the story of both Zestiria and Berseria and wove them together.

Naruto Shippuden: This had it’s final episode in this season, and while the “sequel” has started with Boruto, it still deserves a mention.

That’s it for this week’s Anime Sunday!

Anime Sunday: All Out Episode 01 Impressions

This week for Anime Sunday I’m covering a series I wasn’t expecting much out of! It’s my All Out Episode 01 Impressions!

Plot Synopsis: In rugby, there is no ace striker, there is no number four batter, so who is the star of the team? The story begins at school entrance ceremony of Kanagawa High School where Gion Kenji, a small but gutsy go-getter joins the rugby club.

Plot: I wasn’t expecting to enjoy this series at all when I first started watching it, but I ended up enjoying the hell out of it because of how much it reminded me of Eyeshield 21, one of my favorite Sports Manga of all time. That isn’t to say it’s a carbon copy except with Rugby instead of American Football, it isn’t at all. In fact the series are quite a bit different, but it had enough in similar to make me enjoy it. Mostly because of the crazy Captains, although I’m not expecting Sekizan to turn into Hiruma. That would be a bit too ridiculous.

Characters: Gion is a shorty, something I can relate to myself as I’m fairly short compared to most of my family members, so I enjoy seeing him blow up every time someone makes fun of his stature. That being said Gion isn’t a completely flat character and I’m looking forward to watching him learn and play Rugby. Iwashimazu on the other hand is a pretty deep character, and I’m looking forward to seeing him grow as well. Hachiouji and Sekizan are the last two characters we meet, and they are pretty good. That being said I’m expecting more backstory in future episodes or they’ll become a bit flat compared to Gion and Iwashimazu.

Art: Considering that this series was animated by Madhouse and the fact that I kept having flashbacks to watching the Hunter x Hunter 2011 reboot I’m expecting great things from this series. Seriously though it has the same animation style almost exactly and it is very entertaining to watch.

Music: The musical score was pretty good, intense in the right moments and light hearted when needed. The themes weren’t my absolute favorite, but they weren’t absolutely horrible either.

Overall: If you enjoy Sports series, you’ll definitely need to watch All Out.

For those who like: Sports, Rugby, Action, Drama, School Life, Awesome Plot, Excellent Cast of Characters, Fantastic Artwork, Great Musical Score.

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

Anime Sunday: Alderamin Episode 01 Impressions

This week for Anime Sunday I’ve looking at another new series from this latest season! It’s my Alderamin Episode 01 Impressions!

Plot Synopsis: The mighty Katjvarna Empire is currently embroiled in a war with the neighboring Kiorka Republic. Within an unspecified corner of this empire, a certain young man was reluctantly preparing to take the High Grade Military Officer Exam owing to mysterious circumstances. His name is Ikta. As a man, Ikta abhors war, is slothful by nature, and worships the female form.

Plot: The plot is pretty great, although it starts off fairly slowly, I don’t have a major issue with it. I haven’t read the original source material, shocking I know, but I’ve got hopes for the series. I might be wrong in terms of pacing, but so far I don’t have an issue.

Characters: Ikta is an awesome male lead, a man with a nature not unlike myself. However I think Yatori, our female lead, is an even better character from what little we know so far. Granted that we know very little, but given that she doesn’t take Ikta’s crap I already like her quite a bit. The rest of the cast isn’t bad, but I’m hoping they get some serious character development in terms of maturity.

Art: Madhouse is doing the animation, and while I normally love their work, I don’t love the art style they chose for this series. But that’s more a personal preference rather than any fault with the actual art. It’s great, but I just don’t think the style fits the series properly yet, maybe I’ll change my mind later.

Music: The music is awesome, and Kishida Kyodan and the Akeboshi Rockets performs the opening and I’ve always appreciated their work before.

Overall: An excellent start, although the pacing of the story may be off, any military buff will love Alderamin.

For those who like: Military Fiction, Fantasy, Action, Drama, Excellent Plot, Great Cast of Characters, Fantastic Music, Good Artwork.

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