Blog Archives

Full Metal Panic (2002)

(from , dir: )
Posted on January 25, 2006 by James

After watching the first four episodes of Full Metal Panic, like Kaname I have no idea what is really going on. Often leaving things unexplained, FMP’s mysteriousness is probably its best asset. Unanswered gaps in the story (bad guy Gauron’s motives, Mithril’s provocative ethics, the Whispered’s identities and powers) compelled me to either (a) kick-in the TV set, or (b) think about what I was watching with a little more cognitive application than usual. I’ll try to make some … (read more)

Comments Off on Full Metal Panic (2002)

Rurouni Kenshin (2002)

(from , dir: )
Posted on January 25, 2006 by Deni

Possibly the longest awaited anime series known to Western shores, and has the wait been worth it? Well if the first two DVDs, eight episodes in all, are anything at all to go by, then hell yes! Kenshin is cool!

Based roughly on a real-life, feared swordsman of the Meiji period, Kenshin Himura is the ultimate hero. Deferential and likeable (hell sometimes even cute) one moment, a cold, lethal killer the next. He’s the kind of hero you want to … (read more)

Comments Off on Rurouni Kenshin (2002)

The Big O (1999)

(from , dir: )
Posted on January 25, 2006 by Andy

The Big O is certainly a staggering mix of influences. The opening credits feature the thumping strains of Big O set to Queen’s “Flash Gordon’s Theme” over a silhouetted giant robot. From there you are thrown into a shadowy, thirties, art deco world clearly labelling Paradigm as sister city to Gotham City and the square-jawed features of Roger Smith mark him as a not-so-distant cousin to Bruce Wayne. These elements do not so much recall the Batman Animated series but … (read more)

Comments Off on The Big O (1999)

Bubblegum Crisis: Tokyo 2040 (1999)

(from , dir: )
Posted on January 25, 2006 by Andy

Bubblegum Crisis 2040 is based on the classic Bubblegum Crisis and Bubblegum Crash, a Blade Runner-styled series from the late eighties/ early nineties. This new chapter is what used to be described as a remake, but these days that lacks the requisite syllables and is now termed a ‘re-imagining’. The major elements from the originals make a return: the original biker chick and surly rockstar, Priss; Sylia their slightly crazed coordinator and of course the, ‘when good robots … (read more)

Comments Off on Bubblegum Crisis: Tokyo 2040 (1999)

Berserk (1997)

(from , dir: )
Posted on January 25, 2006 by Deni

Berserk is not anime for the faint hearted, in more ways than one. Yes, it’s violent, and probably you will have expected that, anticipated eagerly even. After all, what is one supposed to think about a series whose main character is called Guts? One look at that cleaver that passes for a sword he carries is enough to tip off anyone; that is if his scarred, torn and inherently violent demeanour wasn’t already setting off all the alarms within a … (read more)

Comments Off on Berserk (1997)

Blackjack (1997)

(from , dir: )
Posted on January 25, 2006 by Deni

Blackjack was and continues to be for me in many ways a definitive anime film. It doesn’t have the distinction of being the first anime ever made, nor the first I ever saw. The manga it is based on isn’t the first ever written, although it comes directly from the body of work by Osamu Tezuka, the ‘God of Manga’. It’s not as action packed as anime in the vein of Akira, nor has it the psychological depth of … (read more)

Comments Off on Blackjack (1997)

Fruits Basket (2000)

(from , dir: )
Posted on January 25, 2006 by Deni

Seen the Fruits Basket trailer? Wondered what the hell it was all about? Well, the first thing I need to say is, forget the trailer. Don’t know what they were thinking when they cut that one. Maybe it was an issue of how to represent a series like Fruits Basket (affectionately nicknamed Furuba by its Japanese fans for its Katakana syllables) in thirty seconds or less, because it’s definitely one of those series difficult to categorise. On one hand it’s … (read more)

Comments Off on Fruits Basket (2000)

Biohunter (1995)

(from , dir: )
Posted on January 25, 2006 by Jonathan

“A mix of the bizarre, noir… hyper-real, fusing mythical lore with earthly science to tantalize fears of both.”

– akadot.com on Biohunter

I wept when I read that quote on the DVD cover, for I knew, even before I watched Biohunter, that I would never be able to write anything so… so… straightfaced about the film. And I was right to weep — within a minute of pressing ‘PLAY’ on my DVD remote, I’d seen a man’s hand chewed … (read more)

Comments Off on Biohunter (1995)