List of Animated stuff for Chris and others. by Fremdfirma

Last Exile has caught my eye...

Thanks, dude.

The laughing Chrisisall

NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Thursday, January 28, 2010 2:52 PM

NVGHOSTRIDER

Huge thanks. Always looking for good flicks, animated or otherwise.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
The country is making a big mistake not teaching kids to cook and raise a garden and build fires.
-Loretta Lynn
Smarts are the brains that make America think.
-Will Sasso as Steven Segal, MadTV

NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Thursday, January 28, 2010 3:45 PM

What about Superman: Doomsday? I LOVE that flick! Have you seen it Frem?

The laughing Chrisisall

NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Thursday, January 28, 2010 6:41 PM

Umm, no - given that I've considered DC and Marvel the spawn of the devil ever since they thought selling comics was more important than making them entertaining, and the recent inclusion of contemporary politics to already horribly contrived storytelling didn't do the quality no favors...

And those soul crushingly bad movies which one of my cohorts has properly dubbed "The Mighty Marvel Reach Around" ain't helped my opinion one bit.

That said, Iron Man weren't half bad, and the TV Animated Batman was surprisingly good, but those seem exceptions rather than the rule.

On another note, if you do wind up dealing with Amazon, two things to know, especially when dealing with new/used anime.

Do NOT deal with "pieceofmindmedia" - even if it *IS* fulfilled by Amazon, what they did is relabeled a bunch of low value stuff by putting a sticker over the barcode and sold it off to amazon as higher value stuff, I had to return both items ordered from them because of that, and there's no question of it being deliberate - while the process is fairly streamlined, dealing with a (I kid thee not) call center rep in india who didn't speak hardly no english didn't help my patience with the matter whatever.

Amazon made good on it, even tossed me the difference in price as credit so I could just order from them, but it was still a hassle.

On the other hand, "GoHastings" is a pretty good source, with extremely fast shipping, but they have a few bad habits, one of which is listing quality as "very good" regardless of actual quality, and once they shipped me a used item that had been listed as "new" (that seemed accidental and it was in almost pristine condition).

So far they've been pretty solid though, which given how much chicanery exists among anime sellers, that says a lot.

Stay AWAY from FoxAnime, GreatAnime, YesAsia, etc etc - generally found at the top of search engines and shopping "reccommendations", they're all prettymuch the same group of pirates, and IF you get it at all (instead of them running to the bank giggling with your credit card number) you'll probably get a cheesy bad transfer that may be in the wrong language or not even work.

If you want real dirt cheap, and plan to buy a boxfull, hit up RightStuf
http://www.rightstuf.com/rssite/
They have a HUGE bargain bin where you can pick up many individual DVD's for as low as $3-6 USD, and I've nailed a couple full box sets for $12-20 USD.
(In fact there's where I got Slayers/Slayers NEXT, for $13 USD a set)
They also have free shipping on larger orders and weekly specials.

Good luck!

-F

NOTIFY: N | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Thursday, January 28, 2010 7:20 PM

BLUESUNCOMPANYMAN

I enjoyed Death Note.

NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Thursday, January 28, 2010 7:52 PM

HAKEN

Likes to mess with stuffs.

In case anyone is interested, there is now a Live Action Yamato movie coming out in December.

In the US, it went by the title Star Blazers. Along with Macross (Robotech) and Akira, sparked my interests in Anime and the subsequent loads of Manga that I have read over the last couple of decades.

Here's the Yamato trailer.

NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Thursday, January 28, 2010 9:57 PM

*droools*

Oh man, thanks for the headsup, Haken - dude, you rock!

I actually climbed on the roof and hand built a seriously cracked brained antenna to pull in channel 43 all the way in PA (from central MD) just so I could watch that show, hell yes.

Re: Death Note.

Didn't see the Anime, did read the Manga, good stuff, though a *very* sharp slide in storytelling quality towards the very end, with a lot of obvious plot railroading - still pretty good though, and from clips I've seen of the Anime it's likely not bad neither, only Mello can make the act of eating chocolate both scary/creepy AND awesome.

And if you liked Death Note, you'd prolly Loooove Code Geass - very much a similar work in tone, on a much broader scale.

ETA: Ryuk + Keith Richards, distant cousins, or seperated at birth ?
Me, I'm not quite sure..

-F

NOTIFY: N | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Monday, February 1, 2010 8:17 AM

Why do the interesting threads only happen when I'm up to my eyeballs in work and on a 48-hour deadline?

*bumps*

Sticking to series ('cause movies are easy to find), and looking for the not-widely-known gems and must-see-prerequisites, here's a not-at-all comprehensive list of some of my favourites:

Non-Anime:
Disney's Gargoyles:
Easily the best animated series to come out of Disney studios in. . . ever. It's a Saturday morning series, but it gleefully references Shakespeare (several characters read and quote the Bard, and we actually get flashbacks to the events of Macbeth, and Macbeth himself, Oberon, Titania, Puck, and the Wyrd Sisters are recurring characters), Westerns, and Film Noir alongside meta-references to Disney's own canon (Beauty and the Beast imagery around Goliath and Elisa). It also features my two favourite "Princesses:" Elisa Maza, an NYPD detective (who kinda reminds me of a certain transgenic with an attitude

), and Demona (explicitly identified [in a kids' show] as Goliath's ex-lover, and mother of his child, and one of the series' Big Bads). And the Big Bads. . . There are no "Good Guys" and "Bad Guys" here. The heroes are rough, vengeful, and tragic, slaves to their deliberately Shakespearean passions, and the "villains" are all "justified" (to themselves, at least), all fumbling along their roads to redemption.

Avatar: The Last Airbender:
From Nickelodeon, the series that overthrew Gargoyles in my heart as the single best animated series ever produced anywhere. Words can barely express how eye-bleedingly, gut-wrenchingly, heart-breakingly AWESOME this show is. A planetary romance (a "fantasy" set on another world), set on a world divided between four nations, the Earth Kingdom, the Fire Nation, the Water Tribes, and the Air Nomads, each with its own culture, traditions, and a proprietary style of magic called "bending." The Earth Kingdom is based around Han China, and uses Kung Fu-based Earthbending, the Fire Nation are a blend of Korea and Japan, and use Firebending based on Northern-style Shaolin, the Water Tribes are Inuit, and Waterbending is based on Tai Chi, and the Tibetan-looking Air Nomads use Bai Guai to Airbend --all drawn from actual martial artists performing for the animators. At the centre of all of this sits the Avatar; Master of all four elements, continually reincarnated, duty-bound to preserve balance. Long ago, all four nations existed in harmony --then the Fire Nation attacked. The Avatar was killed, and Air Nomads were wiped out. A hundred years later, a Water Tribe girl and her brother discovered Aang: the last Airbender, and the reincarnated Avatar --if he can master the other three elements before the Fire Nation manages to conquer the entire world. There's also the Fire Nation prince, in exile, desperate to regain his lost Honour (yet struggling to define what Honour is). The series is broken into three "books" (Water, Earth, and Fire), each increasingly breathtaking. The animation, the character dynamics, the writing, the story. . .

Transformers Animated:
Yeah, I know what you're thinking; the "Transformers" brand has been slapped on a lot of crap over the years, from sub-standard, incoherently-written, horribly-dubbed anime to Michael Bay's shakeycam-and-pee-jokes, but Animated is when we've been waiting for since the 80s. It is hilarious, epic, dramatic, exciting, and creative, with human characters who are actually interesting, Transformers with actual complex personalities, and even Autobots who are not cardboard cutouts of Heroism. They even talk about PTSD and abandonment issues in a children's cartoon. There's no need to be a fan; this is a completely new universe, with an Optimus Prime who isn't leader of the Autobots, but just the captain of a battered old repair ship, with a crew of wash-outs, has-beens, and outcasts, who gets destiny dropped into his lap and rises to the occasion over three long (yet all-too-short) years of struggle. There's ongoing character development, effective villains, and serious consequences for bad decisions.

W.I.T.C.H.:
A European series (I think; the show's development history and distribution is a bit odd --it seems to be French [based on a French comic], but is distributed in English by Jetix), around five girls (Will, Irma, Taranee, Cornelia, and Hay Lin) who turn out to be the Guardians of the Veil --the boundary between Earth and another (Lord of the Rings-esque) world, called Meridian, ruled by an evil prince whose sister was "abducted" to Earth 14 years ago to keep her out of his clutches. The Guardians are a generational group (not unlike Slayers), and what happened to the last five. . . wasn't pretty. And even though it's ostensibly a girls' show, the guys aren't tuxedo-clad prettyboys. They actually get to save the day a few times. It's like a cross between Sailor Moon and Buffy --the dialogue is almost Whedonesque (one of the producers/writers is Greg Weisman, who also created Gargoyles), complete with characters named Will, Cornelia, and Caleb (who leads a rebellion and wears a dashing brown coat

Oban Star Racers:
Technically an anime, created by a French production team who packed up and moved to Japan because they would only settle for the Best of the Best --this was a labour of love, and it shows. A rag-tag group of humans competes in the Great Race, held every 5000 years, and featuring teams from every spacefaring planet in the galaxy. It seems like it should be straighforward, but it isn't: the lead character was abandoned by her father when she was five, and is currently a fugitive from her Dickensian hell of a boarding school. The team manager? Yeah, it's her dad --who doesn't even recognize her or particularly care about the kid he once had (but who turns out to be as deeply wounded and as much a victim as his daughter). And one of the alien racers is the. . . being that killed the lead character's mother. Plus Earth is about to be invaded by an overwhelmingly powerful alien race (who is also competing in the race, and is cheating to win by any means necessary) --and it turns out the whole thing's being orchestrated by an ancient conspiracy. THe show also has one of the best romance arcs I've ever seen (it doesn't just plateau, it actually has ups and downs throughout the series). Available in English, French, and Japanese, with all dub scripts overseen by the creator himself (he actually wrote the Japanese and French scripts for each episode, so I presume he just vetted the English).

Anime:
Ghost in the Shell: Stand-Alone Complex:
A cyberpunk police procedural, set in a world where pretty much everyone is "cyberized" to some extent (ranging from a cyberbrain to ocular and muscular implants to a full "cyborg" body that has no remaining organic parts). Mindbendingly cerebral, it delves into psychology, philosophy, 'net culture, and politics (though it's still more accessible than the two GitS movies). The Stand-Alone Complex continuity involves two series (i.e., seasons) and a movie (SAC, 2nd Gig, and Solid-State Society), and has a reasonably good dub (everyone's a little level-toned, but that's true in the Japanese version too, so I assume it's deliberate --the most emotional characters are the fully-AI Tachikomas).

Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood:
http://www4.funimation.com/video/?page=show&b=280
Currently only available from Funimation's website (official subs are streamed for free about five days after the Japanese broadcast; the English dubs will be along later this year). This is a new version of the story: the original FMA series was written when the manga was just starting, so it went off on its own. This version is deliberately following the manga story as close as possible. The first one was good, this one's better. It's a steampunk planetary romance (set in a world where alchemy works like magic, and there're cyborg prosthetics called automail), it's about two brothers who lose their mother and try to bring her back to life. They fail and almost die, ending up grievously maimed (one loses his arm and leg, the other loses his body and ends up with his soul fused to an empty suit of armour), and get a glimpse of Something Not Meant to be Seen. They then go on a quest to discover the Philosopher's Stone and restore their bodies --and end up uncovering a massive conspiracy, nightmarish atrocities, and widespread corruption within the military/government. The show manages to whiplash between heart-rending tragedy and laugh-out-loud comedy, just like the best of Joss' writing.

Beck: Mongolian Chop Squad:
A story about a band, and required viewing for music lovers. It's about this group of kids who form a rock band and end up climbing up the charts. It's a fun, occasionally hilarious "summer movie" slice-of-life piece, and it really goes into detail about putting a band together (sometimes a performer who isn't the best singer is better than a gifted singer who can't work the crowd), what it takes to make it (even at the garage-band level, this is a business and needs to be run like one), and even a quick-and-sloppy primer in rock history and culture (from Elvis to Dylan to Hendrix to Van Halen). It has a really great dub, thanks to Greg Ayres (who actually does sing), and thanks to many of the Japanese songs being either covers or deliberate acts of engrish (the dub rewrote them just enough to make sense, and frankly Greg Ayres just sings better than Takeru "drunken slur" Satoh).

Eureka Seven:
Going by the adds, this might look like a giant robot show. It isn't. It's a very sweet, funny, heartwarming coming-of-age romance that happens to involve a couple of robot pilots. And surfing and hippies. It's like the early-60s (before everyone got all disillusioned and cynical) on another planet. There's also a gang of misfits, rogues, military deserters, hippies, and fringe-types who'd be right at home aboard Serenity. Mal and Holland would probably get along like old friends. There is some violence and blood, and a bit of a mind-frell toward the end, but watching the characters grow through their adventures is worth it.

Macross Frontier:
The original Macross was one of the series spliced together to create Robotech, which was my introduction to sci-fi, and thus has a special place in my heart. Macross became huge in Japan and spawned a long string of sequels, leading up to this: the 25th Anniversary series. It has everything that made me fall in love with Robotech: fighter pilots, giant robots, music, epic space combat, aliens, love, hope, death, betrayal, redemption, war, peace, triumph. Even if the lead character is a moron who doesn't recognize a once-in-a-lifetime perfect goddess when she's right in front of him (yeah, I'm a little smitten with Ranka

). There's no dub and there's never likely to be, given that Macross' rights are tied up in knots thanks to Robotech, but you can find fansubs online if you know where to look.

Lovely Complex:
If you're looking for wacky fun, you won't find anything wackier than Love*Com. It's this insane, cartoonishly ridiculous romantic comedy (which manages to be both romantic and really really funny) about a high school girl who falls for her best friend. The relationship goes back and forth repeatedly, since a 27-episode series can do romance so much better than a 2-hour movie. There isn't an episode that won't have you howling with laughter. This one's really obscure, so a dub isn't likely, but the whole series is on the Tube of Yuu.

K-On!:
Basically a Shoujo comedy version of Beck; a bunch of schoolgirls form a "band" (actually school club). Things don't go as planned (of the four founding members, one is a shrinking violet, one's a slacker, one just joins 'cause it sounds fun, and one. . . makes Jayne seem normal --and the faculty advisor is a closeted Metalhead), yet somehow they end up making it work. The whole series is hilarious, mainly through Mio's periodic freak-outs, Yui's raging idiocy, and Ricchan's. . . Ricchan-ness. Also, the music is awesome (all five seiyuu are actual musicians, and the "character song" singles tend to rule the Oricon charts). The show's too new to have a dub yet, so subs are your best bet.

-----
We applied the cortical electrodes but were unable to get a neural reaction from either patient.

NOTIFY: N | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Monday, February 1, 2010 11:27 AM

I've actually seen a couple episodes of K-on, and did like it, while none of the concepts are new, it has a sweetness - but then I liked Azumanga Daioh too, which a lotta folk find boring.

The draw for me was Osaka, who's wiki-walk thought process is enough like mine to amuse me greatly, and Yui from K-on is a lot like that too.

The one that laid me on the floor was the "censorship" of Mio's little "wardrobe malfunction", it woulda been funny enough as is, but how they carried it off left me on the floor clutching my stomach, hehehehe.

-F

NOTIFY: N | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Monday, February 1, 2010 12:06 PM

TRAVELER

"Majo no takkyubin"

English title: Kiki's Delivery Service

An acquired tsate.

http://www.imdb.com/mymovies/list?l=28764731
Traveler

NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Tuesday, February 2, 2010 5:31 AM

^ Yeah, anything with Hayao Miyazaki's name on it is must-see. The guy's called "The Japanese Disney" for a reason.

Quote:
Originally posted by Fremdfirma:

I've actually seen a couple episodes of K-on, and did like it, while none of the concepts are new, it has a sweetness - but then I liked Azumanga Daioh too, which a lotta folk find boring.

Yeah, the whole "slice-of-life" genre can take some getting used to; there's just nothing like it on North American TV, let alone in animation.

The closest we get is prime-time dramedies, and they all have to be live-action (and thus with 30-year-old "high schoolers") because of the Animation Ghetto.

-----
We applied the cortical electrodes but were unable to get a neural reaction from either patient.

NOTIFY: N | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Tuesday, February 2, 2010 7:41 AM

Yes, Kiki is next to Nausica on my DVD rack, but being aimed at a somewhat younger audience I didn't list it - I did however give a copy to my niece, much to the horror of her ultra-religious inlaws.

One worth a mention, but good luck finding it anywhere, is a german animated flick called Felidae.
The animation is poor, voice acting iffy, but what carries the piece is that the characters actually act a hell of a lot more like cats than little furry humans - which should clue you in right off that you do NOT wanna show this one to the kids...

It's pretty cool though.

-F

NOTIFY: N | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Friday, February 5, 2010 6:33 AM

Bumping with news:

For those of you in The Country, Cartoon Network's Adult Swim will be premiering the English Dub of Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood on the 14th at midnight.

http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2010-02-04/adult-swim-to-debut-fu
llmetal-alchemist/brotherhood

Quote:
The new anime retains the same main cast from the earlier anime's English dub, except for two recasted characters and one all-new character. Maxey Whitehead replaces Aaron Dismuke as Alphonse Elric, and J. Michael Tatum already replaced Dameon Clarke as Scar in the Fullmetal Alchemist: Premium Collection video spinoff. Bryan Massey plays the new character Isaac McDougal.

The ANN article doesn't note it, but Aaron Dismuke will be involved, as the voice of new character Lan Fan (he just couldn't do Al's voice anymore because he hit puberty).

-----
We applied the cortical electrodes but were unable to get a neural reaction from either patient.

NOTIFY: N | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Friday, February 5, 2010 8:40 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by Fremdfirma:

LAST EXILE. (Heroic Adventure)
http://www.funimation.com/lastexile/

Okay, I officially asked for this for my upcoming birthday.

We just saw My Neighbor Tortoro the other night, Ponyo in the theatre, Nausica last month when I got the DVD...

Turnin' Japanese
I think I'm...

The laughing Chrisisall

NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Thursday, February 11, 2010 12:16 PM

Hey Frem, I was wonderin' what you thought of these:

Wicked City*
Akira*
Spirited Away
Princess Mononoke
Metropolis
Cowboy Bebop*
Ghost In The Shell*
Ninja Scroll
Fist Of the Northstar*

* I saw & liked a LOT, but not as much as Nausicaa.

The laughing Chrisisall

NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Thursday, February 11, 2010 1:30 PM

An "I'm tired of RWED" bump

NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Thursday, February 11, 2010 1:39 PM

Of those...

Spirited Away and Princess Mononoke, I would reccommend especially.

Cowboy Bepop (and to some degree Outlaw Star) is a solid reccommendation to fans of Firefly, of course - believe it when I say River and Ed must be related.

Not so sure about the others, although some consider Akira and Metropolis to be "classics", with Ghost in The Shell more cult-classic.

I did recently (as in finished 15min ago) watch a retro, of amazing quality in storytelling, and for it's time, damned impressive animation.

The Area 88 OVA set
http://www.amazon.com/Area-88-Original-Kaneto-Shiozawa/dp/B000FII248

Rightstuf carries it for ten bucks, as a bargain bin title.
http://www.rightstuf.com/cgi-bin/catalogmgr/3n5AJnfvHTjL8XfwHM/browse/
item/69943/4/0/0
(seriously, free shipping for orders over $49USD, and prices of $3-$10 for DVDs, with the occasional box set at $12-15, positively encourage me to raid the everliving hell out of their bargain bin)

So I bagged it up and I was seriously impressed with the quality of animation for an Anime produced in 1985 - the animators had a lot of fun with the gloriously brutal demise of aircraft, and did a pretty good job of giving the "feel" of a dogfight without either blowing the budget, or resorting to lame tricks such as still panel dragging or shaken screen shots.

The story is kinda tragic though, and I'd not reccomend it for kids, except maybe older ones, I'd say PG-13'ish.

Music was pretty impressive, and overall a solid piece of work at a real bargain price.

This is one of the openings used (not used in the version I watched and am posting though) for it, which will give you a good taste of it's general "Flavor".

Of course, I have a little bias here, since I used to be very fond of Origin Systems Strike Commander - an old DOS game, which had a certain awesomeness that Area 88 kinda speaks to for me.

-Frem

PS- *snicker*
While only a passable ultralite jockey in the real world, heaven help you if you run up against me online, cause I "been doin this 'n worse longer than you been ALIVE, rookie!", heh heh heh.

NOTIFY: N | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Thursday, February 11, 2010 1:40 PM

Me too bump!

-F

NOTIFY: N | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Thursday, February 11, 2010 1:50 PM

Wicked City was actually pretty cool:
http://www.bing.com/videos/watch/video/wicked-city/849896BD083EAA11CFF
8849896BD083EAA11CFF8

About equal to Akira IMO, but more cult-y.

The laughing Chrisisall

NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Sunday, February 14, 2010 12:07 AM

PARTICIPANT

Quote:
Originally posted by chrisisall:
What about Superman: Doomsday? I LOVE that flick! Have you seen it Frem?

The laughing Chrisisall

Frem is a Japanophile. You would be lucky to find anything on his pull list that doesn't have those pre pubescence animated girls with big blinking Pokemon eyes

That's what people like FremFirma do. They only recommend purely Japanese stuff approved by Japan Inc

I like the odd J-animation like Akira or G.I.T.S but I'm not obsessive about the genre. The fanboyish attitude and Japanophilla following Japan's animation industry is what turns many people off the genre.

You pick up a movie like animated Wonder Woman or the animated A-Bugs-Life, Monsters vs Aliens then you experience entertainment and what you see is what you get
you don't need to educate yourself with a trilogy, quintology, or septology of japan movies to get the message and as bad as Disney etc can be when you sit down in the theatre to watch one of their movies at least the movie is family friendly and you don't have to worry about the kids being inflicted with subliminal tentacle pornography messages.

NOTIFY: N | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Sunday, February 14, 2010 8:34 AM

Yanno, I had thought we could have a nice discussion outside of RWED about animation without your friggin hatred, racism, nationalism and intolerance for just ONCE - and here you are bringing it out here as a personal attack, without even adding a blasted thing to the discussion but obvious lies and personal attacks.

You wanna do crap like that, you do it over there, do NOT be coming out here and inflicting it on the rest of the site users - there's been a longstanding unspoken agreement about that sorta thing, and you've just crossed the line, mister.

For that alone you oughta be tied to a chair and forced to watch Snow Fairy Sugar over, and over, and over again, jerk.

Doubly ironic that I was comin here to question the "classic" value of an anime that most certainly didn't impress me.

But we'll get to that in a moment - to refute your idiotic trolling, I can quite easily point out that there's quite a few anime works I consider little better than filler, like Naruto, Pokemon, Inuyasha and Bleach, for example, Appleseed, despite the hype, was especially jarring in it's awfulness.

Plus you'd have to go pretty far to find something less fitting to your supposed description than Black Lagoon, which you'd know if you actually read through the thread instead of coming here for no purpose other than sheer nastiness, and might I point out to you that Monsters, Inc happens to be done in much the same style you're flaming here despite being an american-CG animation, but as usual facts have no place in your petty little games, do they ?

You know, facts like Felidae being german, or the TV Animated Batman, Gargoyles and Avatar: Last Airbender being american-made.

Or the fact that I have cultural *issues* with japanese society which I would be happy to discuss at length somewhere more appropriate than here.

So it's obvious to anyone and everyone you came here only to be nasty and make personal attacks, which you'd be best advised to be takin somewhere else in a hurry, it's as inappropriate here as it is unwelcome.

That said...

I just got to watching Armitage III - and wasn't all that impressed by it, while the animation and soundtrack quality was passable, the story itself wasn't carried too well and came across in a very disjointed fashion, as if large parts of it were missing, and it does a poor job of exploring the questions about the nature of humanity that it seemed intending to do.
That was the signature series variation which runs about 2hr 20min.

The Poly-Matrix version is even worse in that respect because while they did try harder for the voice acting, and cleaned up the animation, they did so at a cost of hacking out even more of the story to cram it into 90min resulting in the "movie" making no sense whatever.

The follow-up, Dual-Matrix, seems slightly better in story, but at a terrible toll on the animation quality, full of still panel drags, static backgrounds and screenshot panovers, so overall I wasn't exactly impressed by any of it.

Only one part of it spoke to me at all, though powerfully, when Armitage asks the question behind the tears of every mistreated child there ever was.

"If you did not *want* me, then why did you MAKE me ?!"

That question itself answered instantly what she was, cause only someone "human" could ask it, regardless of their form.

But really, save your money on this one, you ain't missin much.

-Frem

NOTIFY: N | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Sunday, February 14, 2010 10:50 AM

A couple of my recent favorites...

PLANETES
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Planetes

Dennō Coil
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denn%C5%8D_Coil
I really love this Russian tribute video...

NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Sunday, February 14, 2010 5:13 PM

OUT2THEBLACK

Quote:
Originally posted by Fremdfirma:
...Only one part of it spoke to me at all, though powerfully, when Armitage asks the question behind the tears of every mistreated child there ever was.

"If you did not *want* me, then why did you MAKE me ?!"

-Frem

I have to tell Folk at every opportunity , 'cause there's so little awareness of it in this world...

" There are NO illegitimate children , only illegitimate PARENTS..."

NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Sunday, February 14, 2010 5:40 PM

Lookin' forward to Halo Legends in a few days!
My Son LOVES the game.

The laughing Chrisisall

NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Sunday, February 14, 2010 8:22 PM

HAKEN

Likes to mess with stuffs.

In my younger days as a tween, way before Bleach, Naruto, Gundam, and loads of other Anime, I really liked Kimagure Orange Road.

At the time, I had this thing for females who were like Ayukawa Madoka.

Incidentally, years later, I actually ended up with someone like that and married her.

NOTIFY: N | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Sunday, February 14, 2010 8:30 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Haken:

At the time, I had this thing for females who were like Ayukawa Madoka.

Incidentally, years later, I actually ended up with someone like that and married her.

Way to go H!

The similarly happy Chrisisall

NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Sunday, February 14, 2010 8:37 PM

HAKEN

Likes to mess with stuffs.

Oh, btw, I just started watching an older series I haven't seen.

Fist of the Blue Sky.

I was a big fan of Hokuto No Ken (Fist of the North Star), but never saw this series.

Also, I'm surprised no one mentioned Rouruni Kenshin.

And, of course, Ranma 1/2.

And since we're on the subject

InuYasha: The Final Act started back up last October to finish off the series.

Anyone else watching that?

NOTIFY: N | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Monday, February 15, 2010 4:54 AM

I would (as I am Rumiko Takahashi's b*tch), but I'm in The Wrong Country and have to wait for the dub to come out on DVD.

-----
We applied the cortical electrodes but were unable to get a neural reaction from either patient.

NOTIFY: N | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Tuesday, February 16, 2010 2:34 AM

HIXIE129

I agree with Cybersnark about Avatar The Air Bender.

It is awesome... and a movie is coming out in July,
non-animated.

NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Tuesday, February 16, 2010 5:27 AM

I have low expectations for the Shyamalan version. Even beyond the "cramming three seasons of a TV series into a trilogy" thing, there's the whitewashed casting and the fact that fake-Zuko and fake-Iroh don't even look vaguely right (Zuko's "hideous scar" looks more like a black eye, he's got a full head of hair, and Iroh is far too young, fit, and serious).

-----
We applied the cortical electrodes but were unable to get a neural reaction from either patient.

NOTIFY: N | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Tuesday, February 16, 2010 6:12 AM

HIXIE129

I agree but I am still glad that they are doing a movie, the TV series was so good... Maybe this will
bring back a sequel to the TV show..

NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Tuesday, March 16, 2010 11:21 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by Haken:

I was a big fan of Hokuto No Ken (Fist of the North Star),

Was the series very different than the movie?I used to own the movie on ancient VHS, and found it to be shockingly entertaining.

The laughing Chrisisall

"I only do it to to remind you that I'm right and that deep down, you know I'm right, you want me to be right, you need me to be right." - The Imperial Hero Strikes Back, 2010

NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Wednesday, March 17, 2010 8:53 AM

GOTTHAMMER

Legend of the Galactic Heroes

The only real problem w/ this series: it was never officially translated (i.e., fansubs only)...
There was an estimated price for the set, IF it ever came out, and I think it was nearly 2,000 USD.
(it's a 'movie' followed by 110 20+minute episodes, plus side stories)

NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Wednesday, March 17, 2010 4:20 PM

A recent pickup (got it on the cheap) that I found bloody hilarious, pun intended, was "Magical Witch Punie-Chan".

It's a stripped down sub-only release and missing the four shorts, but given how niche the market for it would be, it's kind of surprising there was a release at all since it was more a running joke than an actual production series - it's very short for this reason, and that there's not so much you can *do* with the basic concept.

It requires a rather seriously twisted sense of humor to enjoy (I think Mikey would love it) but for them that would like it, it certainly delivers.

Here's one of the better reviews.
http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/review/magical-witch-punie-chan/sub.dv
d
"There is no kindness in Punie's world. Contrary to initial impressions, Punie is no dream-filled innocent, she's a cold, calculating death machine with all the human warmth of dagger in the back, and her homeland, despite its gaudy magical trappings, is an autocracy maintained by raw power. Selfishness and ambition underlie even the most seemingly innocent actions, and frilly cuteness is merely one of many tools of oppression."

Black humor delivered in a boxers flurry while totally, thoroughly, skewering the magical girl genre in every way possible, what's not to like ?

Here's a trailer.

Heh heh heh.

-F

NOTIFY: N | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Thursday, March 18, 2010 3:46 PM

CL, Planetes is great (ep 5 so far), the best anime series I've ever seen (or maybe just the most "western" in feel)!!
Although Fee need to quit smoking...

Thanks again for the recommend.

NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Thursday, March 18, 2010 9:15 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by chrisisall:
CL, Planetes is great (ep 5 so far), the best anime series I've ever seen (or maybe just the most "western" in feel)!!
Although Fee need to quit smoking...
Thanks again for the recommend.

Hey, WOW! That's nice to hear! You're very welcome, Chris!
Take a look at the manga if you have the chance.

NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Thursday, March 18, 2010 10:14 PM

Oooooh! I forgot all about Yukikaze!!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yukikaze_%28anime%29

NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Friday, March 19, 2010 3:14 AM

Looks fairly amazing.

Ever see Blue Submarine #6? Sounds cool from the description...

NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Friday, March 19, 2010 3:50 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by chrisisall:
Ever see Blue Submarine #6? Sounds cool from the description...

Ooooh, yeah! There's another great one I forgot about!

NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Friday, March 19, 2010 6:03 AM

Fair warning: Yukikaze is kinda a mind-frell toward the end. Great OVA, but it'll leave you going "huh?"

There's also Rideback, which is a beautifully-animated show about ballet, motorcycles, and robots. It's. . . A lot cooler than it sounds. Unlicensed so far, so you'll have to check "alternative" sources.

Over on Anime News Network's (free and totally legal) video site, you can also catch the English dub of Jyu-Oh-Sei, which is a really cool space-opera (well, it's mostly planet-bound, but getting off the planet is the overarching plot). Chimera is a really cool presentation of an alien planet --a completely different biosphere with a six-month solar cycle (six months of unbroken sunlight in which everything on the planet wants to kill you, then six months of complete darkness which turns the world into an ice age). It's also a prison world ruled by survival of the fittest (obviously, this one is not for kids [violence, gore, murder]).

ANN also has El Cazador de la Bruja, a western/spy/supernatural series (set mostly in Mexico, featuring a bounty hunter, a government conspiracy, and a secretive order of "witches"). It's a little fan-servile (mainly through Nadie's stripperiffic outfit, Ellis' unselfconsciousness, and the vaguely-implied "closer than sisters" LesYay), but there's nothing really objectionable, aside from the inevitable gunplay. Also available on DVD.

Also from ANN is Heroic Age, a sweeping space opera/mecha/superhero series, involving the destiny of the Five Tribes: the Tribe of Gold (the Old Gods), the Tribe of Silver (the would-be Heirs), the Tribe of Bronze (slaves of the Silver Tribe), the Tribe of Hero (the Nodos, of whom only 5 survive), and the Tribe of Iron (humanity, on the verge of being exterminated by the Tribe of Silver). Also available on DVD.

And, my sole non-anime recommendation this time: StarCom. This is an older series, from the 80s, and centres on StarCom Space Force, a military/peacekeeping agency (American, since, as we all know, that's the only nation that counts

). The series was aimed both at advertising the toys and at inspiring future NASA astronauts --it's basically a guided tour of a (mostly-accurate) solar system, dressed up in sci-fi action/adventure terms. Fiction, but fiction that took the time and effort to get the science as right as possible. Odds of a DVD release are slim to none (the company that owned it no longer exists, so the rights are probably in limbo), but the whole series is on Youtube.

-----
We applied the cortical electrodes but were unable to get a neural reaction from either patient.

NOTIFY: N | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Friday, March 19, 2010 10:27 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by cljohnston108:

That looks astounding.
I sold some DVD's & ordered it new for $11.41 on Amazon.
I dig subs & end-of-world stuff!!!

Another thanks is in order.

NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Friday, March 19, 2010 11:15 AM

Hey guys, is it any coincidence that the music on Planetes recalls the score of Firefly? AND no sound in space? & a main character who has lost faith in life and people?

No wonder this series is growing on me so fast.

NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Friday, March 19, 2010 3:47 PM

The Moon ninja ep was so funny!!
And strangely moving.

NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Saturday, March 20, 2010 3:12 PM

Okay, I'm totally LOVIN' Planetes... I expect to freak off of the short-but-sweet Blue Sub #6 when I get it, but still, Nausicaa is my favourite anime of all time (thanks Frem).

The updating Chrisisall

"I only do it to to remind you that I'm right and that deep down, you know I'm right, you want me to be right, you need me to be right." - The Imperial Hero Strikes Back, 2010

NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Saturday, March 20, 2010 4:15 PM

Ohhh, if only they'd release Dennō Coil on DVD.
You'd be totally lovin' that one, too!

NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | TOP | HOME

Saturday, March 20, 2010 4:36 PM