Ever since my last entry, I've gotten PM's asking me about what "Death Note: Epilogue" is. Rather than type the same thing over and over and over, I thought I would just put up a blog for it for all to read.
"Death Note: Epilogue" follows 17 year old prodigy Simon, who comes across the Death Note in a similar fashion as Yagami Light. Similarly, he uses this weapon to erase evil, but later becomes conflicted when he sees the effects it has on the ones he loves. After the police of the world see that this mysterious force cannot be stopped on their own, they turn to the world's top bounty hunters to track down Kira and bring him to the courts. As the crime rates continue to drop, everyone slowly begins to wonder if catching Kira is the right thing to do.
I have a website being built to host the episodes,with an obvious disclaimer that gives the proper credit to the original creators of Death Note. Depending on whether or not the show is a hit, we will go on to create a second and third season (but no more than three), with each season spanning 10 episodes. We may also have behind-the-scenes features for the site, such as interviews with the cast and crew, and possibly a blooper reel. We do not have a big budget, this is purely for fun and is amaturely shot.
Welcome to another exciting edition of Japanese Word of the Week! This may get to be a rather complicated lesson, but I trust that you're up to the challenge. Many of you may have heard the word kami. If you've heard kami, chances are you've heard it translated as "god." But there's some confusion surrounding what looks like such a simple word, and I'd like to clear that up for you. [Warning: This may actually end up confusing you more. I'd like to apologize in advance.]
First off, my dictionary lists five distinct kanji that are read as kami. There are even more uses of the word, but for my own sake, I'll only touch on a few.
I totally forgot this site had these, so I figured that in honor of what this site provides, I'd post an old video of me ranting about the shit series that is called Inuyasha.
This video was made when the manga came to an end several months ago and it was done way before I knew about the Nostalgia Critic. Hence why I have the ending spot, mainly because I didn't know how to just rant and leave it at that (it was mainly done so people wouldn't shitstorm me with flame e-mails).
In ThatDudeInTheSuede's video on Top 11 Anime Villains, he mentions that when people talk negatively to him about anime, they usually mention one of three words: childish, weird, or creepy.
The fact that some people find anime weird is both surprising, and totally expected at the same time. I'm so used to the oddities found in anime that I can sit through pretty much any show and not find it strange. But when I take a step back and think about it I have to admit there are some things that are just plain weird. That being said, I wonder what other people are comparing anime to in their minds when they call it weird.
I've met plenty of fans of American comic books who think Japanese manga are strange.
Comic Fan: "What's with the big eyes? It looks weird!" Me: "Why does Superman wear his underwear on the outside?"
Ah, heros, they stand for the good inside everyone of us and usually we should try to identify us with them and their behavior, but sometimes it's the villains that truly fascinate us, because they are cool, creepy or just really evil. There are a lot of villains and it wasn't easy to decide, but these are the TOP 10 most evil villains in Manga(at least in my opinion). Why TOP 10? Because I can narrow it down to just 10.
10: Askeladd(Vinland Saga) A character I really like and he would have been much higher on the list, if it was completely clear, that he is a villain. It seems like he is only a bitter old man, who actually just wants to help, but I think there is more to it. He hates the Vikings(even his own crew), the English, the Danes and seems to only like his own people and is ready to do everything to gain power over England even if it means bowing down to an incompetent king. You could argue, that he is not really evil, so he is only number 10.
9: Yakushiji Tenzen(Basilisk) This whole character just screams out „evil“. I mean he allows all his opponents to kill him, just to surprise them and kill them afterwards when they are confused, because they don't get, that he is immortal. That's just cocky and that's why he is number 9.
8: Sosuke Aizen(Bleach) The main villain of the Bleach series. At first he is a charming and nice guy, there is actually no reason not to like him, but then it turns out, that he was using nearly everybody in Soul Society against each other. So much, that Rukia nearly gets killed. His swords ability is hypnotising and that way he tricks all of them.
7: Makoto Shishio(Kenshin) Shishio is just badass. He wants to fight Kenshin to prove that he was the stronger assassin. He takes on Kenshin then Aoshi, Sanosuke and Saito and he beats all of them. In the end, this is the only villain Kenshin couldn't really beat. I'd say it's a tie, because Shishio still got up even after Kenshin used his strongest attack on him. He is so evil, that he even tries to take control over hell.
6: Naraku(InuYasha) I'm sure a lot of people will disagree with me on this one, but he just had to be on this list. Right from the beginning he tricks Kikyo into sealing InuYasha to a sacred tree, just because he can't have her for himself. All over the series he is just evil and damn arrogant, because he is so sure that his plans will never fail.
5: Kira(Death Note) This one should be no surprise. Everybody knows he is bad and you have to give him credit for actually killing the good guy. I don't think I have to explain much mor about this character.
4: The Wolf(Rabbit Doubt) Doubt is a really great manga, because you are wondering right from the start, which one of those teenagers is the wolf. All the time he is just toying with the „rabbits“ until they all start suspecting and even attacking each other. If you haven't read this manga, do it!
3: The Major(Hellsing) The Major from Helsing just HAS to be on this list. He is just SO evil ;) . I mean he is a Nazi and he was even in the SS and his only motivation for fighting is just for the fight's sake. He doesn't act because of an agenda or politics or to gain anything, he just wants to wage war, because he loves it so mach. He makes his life unnaturally longer, just so he can fight one last giant battle with his enemy. For this reason alone he kills hundreds of people, be it soldiers or civilians. For a life lead only to kill in battle and to be killed in battle he deserves to be the number 3 on this list.
2: The Stalker(Zashiki Onna) I doubt that many people know this manga, but it's the creepiest manga I've ever read, honestly. If you are a nice and helpful person right now, you won't be after you read it. You will never again trust someone you meet outside your apartment. That's the effect the stalker has on you. While I read the manga there were times when I just had to look over my shoulder to see if there was someone standing right behind me. You just have to see her face and you can guess how creepy and evil she is.
1: Griffith(Berserk)
Berserk is a classic an the villain just has to be great, but this guy is just pure evil. He will do everything to accomplish his dreams even if it means to sacrifice all his companions. His only real weakness as a human was his complete trust into Guts, but as a god he is invincible. He even makes everbody believe that he and his demon warriors are fighting for a righteous cause. Combine this with his freakishly evil smile and you have the most evil villain.
I hope you enjoyed my list and you will probably have a different opinion, but that's fine. You can find this and other great Manga and Anime articles at http://mikesmangablog.blog.com!
Hello, I'm Y Ruler of Time. Welcome back to 'This Is Awesome, Why Aren't You Talking About It?' In the history of animated media, there have been a lot of weird ideas that have become really popular. Going back to the very earliest cartoons at the beginning of the 20th century, the focus of animated works was how it was possible to make the impossible come to life: humanoid animals partied around while shoving every law of physics in Newton's face with one hand and a cream pie with the other. Yet about a hundred years later, people look at animated works with weird premises and shy away from them - judgments are passed based on the appearance of the front cover. For this reason, today I'd like to talk to you all about fairly new anime series that started airing in Japan earlier in the year, and is already being dubbed and released here in America (I myself don't prefer this version, but you're welcome to check it out if you like). What is the weird premise in this case? Well like how the talking animals bit got old and had additional hooks attached to it - like Mickey Mouse being a sorcerer's apprentice in Fantasia, or Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles in general - most shows with gimmicks sometimes inspire or spin off other works with the same gimmicks, and additional gimmicks on top of them. The work I'm going to discuss this, did so by turning from a series which solved everything with card games to a series which solved everything with card games on motorcycles. Sounds pretty weird, right? Well that was seriously the entire premise of the fairly new series Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's.
Those of you who are at all are familiar with the Yu-Gi-Oh! franchise will probably notice visual cues in this promotional poster that are very reminiscent of the original series - particularly the main character's weird hair and the battling monsters in the background. The addition of motorcycles to the process of 'dueling' (playing a game of 'Duel Monsters', the series' identical equivalent of the Yu-Gi-Oh! collectible card game), is the new standard to make a show about card games look awesome. Yes, giving characters gravity- and genetics-defying hair, surrounding them with over-the-top lighting and sound effects, and making them trash-talk each other while making all of their hand motions hilariously exaggerated, and having the fate of the universe rest on the game's result just wasn't cutting it anymore. Now they have to do it all while racing at average speeds of 160 km/hr.
Before you walk away, let me say this - despite all of the criticism I just laid on the series for its premise, it's a really good anime. The visuals are far more impressive than its predecessors, the characters are cool and interesting, and the plot is incredibly gripping, not to mention the soundtrack is just epic. For comparison I want to bring up the anime series (plural) that preceded 5D's.
For some reason, every form of fandom seems to attract crazy people. The anime crowd is certainly no exception; in fact, it could make an excellent case-study for the abnormal psychology department at any university. Of those scary people infecting the anime fandom, there, laying in wait, are the fantards and the haters.
First let me say, despite what a lot of people will try and tell you, there is no right or wrong way to be a fan of something. Some people want you to think that to be a true fan you have to have seen x-number of episodes, read x-number of chapters, cosplayed x-character, own x-amount of merchandise, worship the show and hate everything else. The only purpose this serves is to get a lot of use out of an otherwise underappreciated letter of the alphabet. Setting parameters to define "true" fandom is as impractical as it is inaccurate. I say, screw that! No one gets to call you stupid for what you like! No one gets to tell you how to be a fan! Okay, they can say those things, but you don't have to listen!
Despite all the idealistic blabber just now, fans can get a little scary. Fantards are those who have taken fandom to the extreme edge, and then fallen off the edge into an endless chasm from which no person can return with their brain intact. I think we've all had some version or another of this experience:
Fantard: Oh.Em.Gee! Did you see the new episode of Naruto last night?! Wasn't it sooooo awesome?! I almost died when Sasuke did that new jutsu! He's so awesome! You: Er... I don't really watch Naruto... Fantard: OMGWTF! How can you hate Naruto?! It's the best show ever! Sasuke is the hottest anime character ever conceived by man! I loooooooove SasuNaru! People who don't like Naruto are stupid! You: O.O;;
Franken Fran is easily one of the better manga series I have read in the three short years I have actually been reading manga. The promise of the series is that this crazy ass scientist was able to make, for all intents and purposes, a living teenage girl out of dead body parts, and that girl happens to be Franken Fran, or simply Fran. If there was ever a reason to support necrophilia, Fran is that. Then again, is really still necrophilia if the dead body was reanimated? Such questions are the bane of my existence and have resulted in many a sleepless night for me.
Ah, Anime. That weird and unusually popular cartoon style from the far east. What is it all about. Why is it so popular. I'll try to delve into these matters as I take you on a tour through anime and anime culture.
What is anime? Anime is basically cartoon, even though some people may take up arms defending the claim that it's not. But that is just a common misinterpretation of people that think that cartoons are just for kids and who don't like to be caught watching it. Is watching anime or cartoons something to be ashamed of? No. If cartoons were actually meant for kids alone, then the same would apply to comics as well. And I for one, have witnessed many of these people read Donald Duck, Lucky Luke or some other comic.
When simplified, cartoons and anime are animated comics. The drawing style may differ, but basically there is little similarities between Frank Miller's Sin City and Walt Disney Donald Duck either. Before the Internet became the sewing thread that connected the world together, west had its own style of cartoons and comics, and the east had their own. After the Internet, the boundaries started to overlap and now the two styles have their own names to avoid confusion: West has the traditional cartoon, and east has anime. In the near future, I think we will start having western made animes, so the boundaries have started to crack a little.
The difference between Anime and Cartoons? Now to the heart of the issue. As I stated in the previous chapter, anime is an eastern style animation, while traditional cartoon is western style. Then why is anime considered for adults while cartoons are for kids? The reason lies somewhere in the culture. Japan never made anime just for kids alone. Each anime that was made, was made for a specific target group. They realized early on that anime that was made for kids, were also watched by adults. So anime that was directed towards more mature audience also started to appear.
it seems that there is alot of anime blogs and videos on thatguywiththeglasses.com so i have decided to add a video that i made on the 3rd of September from my youtube account ( http://www.youtube.com/waveofthefuture819 )
*note* these are my personal favorite anime openings NOT the best and most of them are on here because they where either the 1st animes i ever saw and some are on there because they are my favorite at the moment
There are a lot of great things in Anime and Manga, but there are those certain moments when there are chracters, you really connected with through several volumes and just started to love, taken away from you. These deaths make you realise how great the Manga (or Anime) really and these are the TOP 10 - in my opinion- saddest deaths in Manga or Anime:
***WARNING: MAJOR SPOILERS!***
10: Tae Kojima(Gantz) Kei Kurono's girlfriend. You might ask 'How can such a minor character be in the TOP 10?', but her death is so tragic and sad, i just couldn't leave her out of the list. The relationship between Kei und Tae starts as an unimportant subplot, but during one of the fights against Aliens she gets involved and takes a picture. Now the Gantz-Team has to kill her and Kurono has to fight his friends to protect his girlfriend, but fails in the end.
9: L(Death Note) I had a really hard time deciding wether i should put L or Light on the list, but in the end i chose L because he is the good guy and Light is the main villain, so it can't really be that tragic if he dies.
8: Tomoe Himura(Kenshin) Kenshin Himura's wife and her death is the cause of all his pain and grief. Their whole relationship is just one big tragedy and it'd take too long to write it down here. Everybody who knows the OVA, will agree with me and those who haven't watched it, yet, should watch it right now! ;)
7: Gennosuke/Oboro(Basilisk) I could make a whole list only with Basilisk characters, but i had to narrow it down to one. I still couldn't decide wether Gennosuke's or Oboro's deaths are sadder, but since they practically die at nearly the same time, I just put them both on the list.
6: Wolfgang Grimmer aka The Magnificent Steiner(Monster) Many people don't know this Manga even though it's one of the best Seinen. Wolfgang Trimmer is haunted by his childhood memories and as a defense-mechanism he 'transforms' into the Magnificent Steiner, his favorite hero as a child. As Steiner he is incredibly strong and violent and kills whatever is in his way. Grimmer on the other hand wants to live a normal life as a good person and in the end dies, because he gives his life to defend a small town.
5: Kikuchiyo(Samurai 7) One of my favorite Anime and also a great character. Here goes the same as Basilisk, but Kikuchiyo has by far the saddest death of all the 7. Just shortly after he promissed Komachi, he would mary her, he just gives his life without a second thought to save the village from the Nobuseri.
4: Jirayia(Naruto) Naruto is imo the most overhyped Manga of them all. I know there are many people who love it and i loved it, too,but after the chuunin-exams it all started to get worse and worse. So I'm not a big fan of the series, but i still love Jirayia. Not only is he the funniest character, but he is also one of the strongest. His death was so sad, because his former disciple killed him and he gave his last breath to deliver the information how to beat Pain to Naruto.
3: Spike Spiegel(Cowboy Bebop) This shouldn't be a big surprise, right? Yeah, we don't really know he's dead, but i think it finishes the story in a better way. The last 10 minutes of the series are just awesome and it all develops to the showdown between Spike and Vicious. As he walks down the stairs after he killed Vicious, he forms a gun with his finger and after a 'Bang', he collapses. Spike Spiegel is one of the greatest Aime characters of all time and his death is just as great.
2: Nicholas D Wolfwood(Trigun) Also an old and classic Anime. Wolfwood is from the beginning a very mysterious character and you are always a little suspicious of him. I mean a Preacher who fights with a giant cross with a machine gun and rocket launcher in it, wow. His death is really close to number 1, just not as sad. After all he went through to become a good person and after he developed a relationship with Milly, he gets shot by his own mentor, who is being controlled. He then draggs his body to the church and after he prays to god to forgive him for all his sins, he dies. The scenes after his death are so incredibly sad. You see Milly crying and screaming out loud and Meril and Vash are crying, too. Wolfwoods death is the last thing needed to push Vash into complete despair.
1: Maes Hughes(Full Metal Alchemist) And here is the saddest Anime or Manga death. Hughes is a great character, that everybody just loves. He is Roy's best friend and he is kind of a father for Ed. He shows everybody all the time pictures of his cute little daughter und always wants to help everybody. You just gotta love him. And still his death is the most tragic of them all. He discovers the Fuhrer's evil plot and on his way to tell Roy he gets attacked by Envy, who can change his shape to any person he wants. Hughes fights him, but as Envy takes the form of Maes' wife, Hughes can't attack him anymore and Envy shoots him. He couldn't kill his wife an that's what got him killed in the end.
I hope you enjoyed my list and you will probably have a different opinion, but that's fine. You can find this and other great Manga and Anime articles at http://mikesmangablog.blog.com!
The manga Luno by Toume Kei is about a boy called Tete, who lives with his mother in a small town. His father died a few years back in a war and his sister went into the city and has most probably died there, too. He is all that's left for his mother and therefore not very adventures, but reads a lot at home instead of going out with friends. But his calm life changes dramatically when he befriends the young girl Geeta, who lives under a bridge of the town. When he learns about her tragic past and the people who are after her, he is determined to help her. But who is the strange old man who moved into the run-down house on the town's hill and who are the people in white robes who suddenly appear in town?
With Luno, which has only one volume, I'm reviewing a pretty short manga, and why not? Those short ones tend to be often overlooked, while much too long mangas are stretched out until there is nothing left that even resembles a plot. Luno is a nice manga, I liked the drawing style very much, even though it's kinda minimalistic and the characters were very sympathetic. I normally don't like manga about small children too much, but this one was pretty good. Even though the characters are just small kids they have already serious problems, and deal with them in a pretty comprehensible fashion.
The whole atmosphere of the manga is pretty sad, from the beginning to the ending, and if you only like happy little manga this one definitely isn't one for you to read. But if you can appreciate some tragedy and sadness in a story you will definitely like Luno. Just check it out ;)
If you want to see more reviews of manga, just check out my blog http://mikesmangablog.blog.com/
Right now, you might be wondering; "Hey, this isn't a game. What the hell?" Well I say get over it. I'm allowed to write about a DVD if I want to.
For those that don't know, Gotham Knight is a DVD of 6 short stories, done in various art styles and by various directors, similar to the Animatrix. This was released just before The Dark Knight was released in theaters, and I for one was a little excited.
OK, I know that there's at least more than one of these already on the blogs, but as some will say there's no official sign up sheet, and even though I hate repetition in TGWTG.com's blogs I still feel like posting this as I feel mine offers a more opinion based list and less an excuse for discussion, and is more for parody than to be taken seriously.
When it comes to big blockbuster Batman movies, we couldn't give a damn about the caped crusader. Generally we assume it will be the same actor as the last movie or it's announced around the same time as the film, and in the end they always play the same character: A cocky millionaire whose voice suddenly and inexplicably becomes deepened when he dons a bat suit. As well as you can play that role, it honestly doesn't matter, because the show is always stolen by the polar opposite: The villains.
Think about it. In every Batman film, the film always revolves around the villain, one in particular. The original Tim Burton Batman? The Joker, played by Jack Nicholson. Batman Forever? The Riddler, played by Jim Carey. Batman and Robin? Mr. Freeze, played by Arnold Schwarzenegger (unfortunately). The Dark Knight? The Joker again, this time played by the late Heath Ledger. The exceptions would be Batman Returns, where the villain hold is more spread out, and Batman Begins, where it actually revolves around Batman, who'da thunk it?
Not that I expect you to remember that far back, but when the blog feature was first launched one of the first blog's to arrive was my Death Note review. I praised the first film, which boasted great acting, good character development, brilliant CGI, good pacing and only really fell short on tiny nit pickets like over dramatic heart attacks and a slightly anti-climactic ending. Whilst I chose to review the first movie as a movie and not as a Manga adaptation to add variety in all other DN reviews, for the second movie many plot points, notably the ending, and character actions are changed so it's best to review it as a recreation of the Manga.
Well for UK viewers Death Note: The Last Name got once again a small but cherished cinema run, and let me tell those who thought going to London to see it was indeed too much effort: You were wrong. Death Note: The last name is easily better than the first movie. The performances are great, the errors of the last film are sorted and overall I couldn't think of a more enjoyable film to watch with subtitles.
Please, comment after reading. It would be greatly appreciated.
The transition that an animated series takes from being a Saturday morning cartoon towards turning into a cinematic live-action feature is most always a rocky one. Horrible efforts like Mr. Magoo and The Flintstones in Viva Las Vegas have left fans of those beloved 1960's characters with anger, this reviewer included. With Speed Racer, Andy and Larry Wachowski have succeeded in creating a big-screen version of a cult cartoon series worthy of being called an adaptation. The clichéd plot of the film is saved by interesting and funny characters, fun-filled action sequences and some of the most kinetic and fascinating visual effects work put on film. The former directors of The Matrix, a film which I personally dread, understand that they are essentially making a big-budget cartoon with live actors and do not take themselves seriously. And therein lies the fun that Speed Racer holds.
The final episodes (or at least one of the several versions of them) of the iconic anime mech series 'Neon Genesis Evangelion' by Hideki Anno, this film acts as the (now physical) final chapter in the Earth's desperate struggle against the alien race the angels.
This film had a lot of expectations to meet. After massive backlash from the fanbase over the psycologically and budget cut challenging ending of the TV series, people were desperate for a more resolved ending. To add to this, the first Evangelion movie: Death and Rebirth, only offered little more than a preview for the series final chapter, meaning fans had to wait yet another four months for a true ending.
So how does End of Evangelion begin? Well simply the main character (Shinji Ikari) cries over the comatose body of his fello pilot (Asuka Langley) only to pull some of the covers off her, prompting him to jerk off. A bit turned off? Well it's undeniable that in some ways End of presents itself as more visually shocking than the original series. As well as the prementioned scene, others of extreme violence and sadistic killing are also present, however these co-exist with the series' usual themes of psycology, religious icongraphy and the apocolyptic recreation of mankind, all of which create a unique experience that today still creates endless debates.
So how does the film play out? Well quite differently depending how far you watch into it. The first 'episode': 'Air', is far more action orientated, as the members of NERV face off against a desperate government force. This is the far less surreal episode, instead of messing with our minds it enforces one of Eva's two standings: As a mech anime. It's a well animated section, the eva fight is exhilerating and the action feels tense and full of desperation.
The second episode begins with the human intrumentality project activated, and here the focus shifts to the more bizarre and psycologically challenging. Nothing here is simple. Shinji doesn't simply approach mankinds fate with a yes or no, instead it's far more complicated. And even if you feel you can't appreciate the deepness of it you can still appreciate how unique and powerful it is. Character monologues, bizarre images and live action shots make a strangely involving sequence that requires applause. The CGI used in the subsequent scenes (and generally the whole movie) is very impressive, with Anno's unique directing just adding that polish on it.
In a way this isn't really the end of Evangelion. The bizarre (for lack of a better word) ending still creates endless internet debates today, and now with the whole series being remade as a set of new films, it's optional to accept this as Eva's end. Though many will have appreciated a less abstract ending, and though it may require a second viewing and a scan of it's wikipedia page to understand the film, it's easily a classic that will remain in your memory, and one you'll be happy to return to.
Just to add further praise, the music is a stunning collection of new scores and classic music, and both the Japanese and American (surprisingly) dub is brillaint, with all the actors from the original seriess reprising their roles.
End of Evangelion easily gave the fans the closure they wanted, and more besides. Fans of conventional anime and those who haven't been introduced to Eva maybe won't appreciate it, but then, hey their loss eh?
Anime has a lot of negatives within its many genres, subgenres and traditions and some of these are generally not even a fault of its own.
Take for example, dubtitiling. This is when an anime distributor gets lazy and releases a DVD with English and Japanese audio, but only releases subtitles for the English sound track. This means you have to watch the Japanese dub with the subtitles for the English dub, which means there's sections with dialogue and no subtitles, subtitles with no dialogue, American slang that looks out of place and in some series gratuitous swearing that wasn't present in the original. All these combined render the Japanese dub unwatchable for regular watchers of anime, and ultimately ruin the purchase if they didn't like the English dub. Manga entertainment released the entire second season of Naruto with dubtitles, and thus I missed a good chunk of the story.
anime
Ah, Anime. That weird and unusually popular cartoon style from the far east. What is it all about. Why is it so popular. I'll try to delve into these matters as I take you on a tour through anime and anime culture.
