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Links & Reviews For Other
Anime
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Anime News Network-
A good place to keep up-to-date about what has gone commercial,
quality of releases, etc.
These are in no way all the anime I've viewed... but it's a nice
start, ne?
Mamotte Shugogetten
Viewed subbed. Billed as "Ah! My Goddess meets Tenchi, on crack"
by a friend, this series definitely falls under the "bizzarre"
category, and is thoroughly enjoyable. A boy named Tasuke receives an
artifact in the mail from his archaeologist father-- and it brings
forth a moon goddess, Shugogetten Shaorin (Shao), into his life. At
her service are tiny little star gods, hoshigami, some of which run
around in little cannons blowing things up. Rishu is a kawaii little
one who speakth with a lithp, and Shao sends Rishu to school with
Tasuke, without his knowing it. His classmates wonder that that
little "thing" is clinging to the back of his head... Shao decides to
follow anyways, and by the end of the episode, has managed to
demolish Tasuke's school. The next day, his father sends him a rod
which brings forth Shao's rival, a sun-goddess named Keikoniten
Ruuan, who brings inanimate objects to life. (If it's a couch, it
runs around saying, "Sofa! Sofa!"; if it's a bookcase, it runs around
saying, "Shelf! Shelf!". Heehee...) Needess to say, by the end of the
second episode, Tasuke's house has been demolished, too...
Mamotte
Shugogetten!- A good page still in the works, with promise.
Character info, episode list, etc.
Maze TV series
Viewed subbed. It's a good series, but not one to try to introduce
a newbie with. Still, very interesting. A great clash between shojo
and shonen, because the title character-- Maze-- lands unexpectedly a
la Wizard of Oz-- in a strange world where mecha and magic coexist.
Maze herself finds herself the master of many different types of
"Folm", a magical power, but is loth to use it, for fear of hurting
someone. But this is only in the daytime. At night, however, she
turns into a he, and the male Maze has no qualms about mowing down
legions of enemies with his Folm powers. The Female Maze loves
Princess Mill (whom she had saved with her house's timely crushing of
her enemies) in a motherly, big-sisterly way. The Male Maze is
interested in Princess Mill to give him a powerful position in this
new land. Aster and Solude, who become outlaws while saving Female
Maze and Princess Mill, are both romantically interested in the
Female Maze. Much to their surprise (and disappointment), when Solude
makes a move on her, it is in the middle of the night... and the Male
Maze is certainly receptive to her advances, but if She's a He,
Solude's just not interested anymore... this type of situation leads
to a lot of ecchi humor, but nothing that would prevent it from being
viewed by an anime club. It's fabulously convoluted, and my favorite
part is contrasting the two Mazes together. They have some
interesting mental clashes in SD form... give it a try.
Maze
the Mega-Burst Space- Has character descriptions for some of the
main characters, and offers a spoiler which will probably help you
figure things out much more easily. ^_^
Marmalade Boy
Viewed subbed.Yes, I finally got around to watching this... as
soon as I saw the opening credits, I burst out laughing. I'd
heard "Kodomo no Omocha (Child's Toy)" dubbed as "Marmalade Boy on
crack", and after comparing the character designs, I have to
wholeheartedly agree. Although I think Marmalade Boy has a certain
amount of crack in itself.... you have Miki's parents and Yuu's
parents, who go to vacation in Hawaii, meet each other, and decide to
do a partner swap. But they can't get remarried for 6 months, so they
end up living all together in the same house. Yuu kisses Miki; Miki
is torn between her feelings for Yuu and Ginta. Ginta is interested
in Miki, but was unable to tell her when Miki expressed her
feelings to him, two years ago, due to a misunderstanding. Arimi,
Yuu's ex-girlfriend from his old school, shows up on the scene and
pretends to have a relationship with Ginta so Miki will get jealous
and go back to Ginta, leaving Yuu free once more. Oh, yes, and Miki's
best friend, Meiko, is in love with Namara-sensei, their teacher. And
that's just the first sixteen episodes... *L*
Master Mosquiton OAV
Viewed subbed. This anime was dubbed "Dracula meets Tomb Raider,
on crack" by a friend of mine, also very accurately. Mosquiton is the
vampire (1/4 human) who has a habit of dying frequently, but can
easily be revived with a drop of blood. Probably the cuddliest
vampire out there, unless he's drunk some blood... then he can go on
a rampage, defeat the enemy, turn on Inaho, and get killed. Revive
him with blood, and poof! He's cuddly again. Honoo and Yuki are
Mosquiton's servants, who usually look around 12 years old-- unless
they need to use their powers (of fire, for Honoo, and of ice, for
Yuki)... or unless they need to raise money to buy a stateroom in a
ship. Then, they transform into older-- and much better
developed-- versions of themselves. Inaho is the young girl who
originally wanted to stay 15 forever, and has now reached the
frighteningly old age of 17, and can feel the terror of grannyhood
right around the corner. She drags her "Mo-chan", Honoo, and Yuki
into a quest for the "O-Parts", which she's sure can give her eternal
life...and eternal youth. Not the brainiest of women, and has a habit
of referring to herself in the third person... ("Inaho only wants
to stay young and beautiful for her Mo-chan forever..."). About 3
episodes into the OAV, you meet Inaho/Camille, Mosquiton's lovely
vampire wife from 300 years ago. Very one-track-minded when it comes
to Mosquiton, much to Inaho's displeasure. A great show, lots of
humor, and good for quoting. Of course, there's the classic dialogue
when Inaho wants to drag them into a passage in the pyramid
(Inaho- "Wow! A secret passage!" Mosquiton- "Wow! We'll probably
all die!") but the Anime Club's Quote for the Night that evening
was definitely Mosquiton- "Aiiii! Don't bite the vampire!"
when Inaho confronts him about Camille's role in his past life, and
he responds a little too enthusiastically and a little too
honestly. ;oP However, the ending of this OAV leaves you
hanging... it's probably cleared up in the TV series, but with the
current ending, you'll probably feel like throwing something at the
screen. ^_^
Sarcasm's
Very-Small Master of Mosquiton Shrine- Probably the first shrine
out there dedicated to this great OAV. ^_^ Also information on the tv
series.
Maze TV series
Viewed subbed. It's a good series, but not one to try to introduce
a newbie with. Still, very interesting. A great clash between shojo
and shonen, because the title character-- Maze-- lands unexpectedly a
la Wizard of Oz-- in a strange world where mecha and magic coexist.
Maze herself finds herself the master of many different types of
"Folm", a magical power, but is loth to use it, for fear of hurting
someone. But this is only in the daytime. At night, however, she
turns into a he, and the male Maze has no qualms about mowing down
legions of enemies with his Folm powers. The Female Maze loves
Princess Mill (whom she had saved with her house's timely crushing of
her enemies) in a motherly, big-sisterly way. The Male Maze is
interested in Princess Mill to give him a powerful position in this
new land. Aster and Solude, who become outlaws while saving Female
Maze and Princess Mill, are both romantically interested in the
Female Maze. Much to their surprise (and disappointment), when Solude
makes a move on her, it is in the middle of the night... and the Male
Maze is certainly receptive to her advances, but if She's a He,
Solude's just not interested anymore... this type of situation leads
to a lot of ecchi humor, but nothing that would prevent it from being
viewed by an anime club. It's fabulously convoluted, and my favorite
part is contrasting the two Mazes together. They have some
interesting mental clashes in SD form... give it a try.
Maze
the Mega-Burst Space- Has character descriptions for some of the
main characters, and offers a spoiler which will probably help you
figure things out much more easily. ^_^
Mononoke Hime
Viewed subbed. Ashitaka is the prince of a village, which is about
to be attacked by a rampaging wild boar. It's not just any boar--
it's a boar god who's turned demon, and is covered with writhing
purple worms. He kills the boar, but his right arm gets caught by the
worms. Not only is he infected, but he's cursed. He must leave the
village and find the reason for what has happened.
The animation is spectacular. (It's Ghibli... what do you
expect???) The score is pretty nice, and the characters are so...
human. In most anime, the bad guys are bad guys right down to the
core. The good guys are good guys, no matter what. Yet here, the
lines are blurred. The gods themselves feud. The wolf-gods,
monkey-gods, and boar-gods all think they have "the right" plan to
rescue their forest from Lady Ehoshi and her Iron Town. The woman,
Lady Ehoshi (?), who is responsible for angering the gods (by taking
over the boar-god's mountain and injuring him) is strong, and
stubborn, yet she has found a place for lepers to work and treats
them well. She takes women who have been sold into prostitution and
gives them a better life. This movie is more like real life... things
don't always go perfectly. People have their good sides and their bad
sides. There are no good stopping points. Definitely worth giving it
a try.
Nuku Nuku TV
Outlaw Star
Viewed subbed. One of those anime which revels in cliffhanger
episode endings... meaning, if you have, say, only the first tape, or
the first three tapes, you're probably going crazy trying to figure
out "Oh no! What's going to happen???" Gene Starwind (whose libido
isn't quite up to Ryo's in "City Hunter", but it's still up there)
and his little brother Jim (a smart, mechanically-gifted little boy)
run into trouble with Outlaws, Space Pirates, Tao Magic, and the
MacDougal Brothers, when a disguised Outlaw named Hilda hires Gene as
bodyguard. Along the way, they acquire a cyrogenically frozen girl
who acts as the piloting computer program for the spaceship Outlaw
Star. An interesting series that pulls you into it.
Ruroni Kenshin Movie
Viewed subbed. A great movie, and a must-see for any Kenshin fan.
There is a plot afoot! A certain group wishes to destroy the current
government. Kenshin is faced with people from his past... a woman
whose brother he killed. A man, Shigure, was a friend of his and took
his sister under his wing, while plotting the revolution. Yahiko,
Sanosuke, Kaoru, and Kenshin get drawn into the problem and try to
prevent the revolutionaries' certain demise. But too late. This movie
probably contains my favorite Kenshin scene-- Kenshin is finally
provoked enough to revert to his Hitokiri form! Absolutely priceless
scene...
Ruroni Kenshin OAV
Viewed subbed. Another must-see for any Kenshin fan. I've heard
varying reviews of it... some don't like the redesigned characters
(yeah, Kenshin actually looks like a guy... *^_^*); some don't like
the amount of blood (not as bad as "Berserk", but still present...
he's an assassin... go fig); some don't like the lack of humor that
the TV series has (no, I don't see Tomoe beating up on Kenshin like
Kaoru does). But to be perfectly honest, I love it. Sure, this
Kenshin looks different from the TV Kenshin, but I think he's
still well-drawn. (Much better than the character redesign they did
for "Tenchi in Tokyo"... ick. ^_^) Yes, there's blood, but it's not
gratuitous. He doesn't smile; he merely does his assassinations as
he's told to, and stays away from the inner politics of it all. He
says himself that he's no good as anything but a killer.You see him
be so cold and distant to everything... so far away from the cheery,
dishes-doing Kenshin of the TV series, who makes rice balls that
look like bunny rabbits. It's really a fascinating insight into what
the TV Kenshin was, and not just why he changed, but how he changed.
I'd definitely recommend it to anyone.
Ruroni Kenshin TV
Do I even need to write a synopsis of this series? A
wonderful, fabulous anime which I'm currently (slowly) working my way
through, but find thoroughly enjoyable. The main characters include
Kaoru-dono, who runs the dojo her late father left behind... Yahiko,
the son of a samauri, whose parents both died, and he was taken into
a gang which his father had obtained a loan from. He worked as a
pickpocket to try and pay off the debt, but even long after the debt
had been paid, the gang let him think he still owed them. He was
rescued from their clutches. Then there's Sanosuke... Sano, eveyone's
favorite stubborn, loudmouthed fighter who has great strength and
even better stamina. At first, he fought with his Zanbatou (a sword
used for cutting down horses), but after that was broken, his weapon
o'choice is his bare fists. He was formerly a member of the
Sekihoutai, a group of civilian soldiers who were used and then
destroyed. Only one other member is alive. Then, of course, you have
other characters, such as Saitou, and Megumi, and Aoshi, and lots of
others. Ooo... am I forgetting someone? Could it be... um.... Kenshin
himself? ^_^ Formerly known as the Hitokiri Battousai, he was once a
feared assassin. After his government obtained power, he disappeared,
sick of the life he was living. Fourteen years into the future, he is
merely a wandering samauri, a ruroni. He carries a sakaba sword-- one
with the blade on the wrong side. He runs into Kaoru, who lets him
(tells him to? makes him?) stay at her dojo, in 19th c. Tokyo. He can
cook! He can do laundry! Who would think that the feared Battousai
would turn into such a puppydog? Yet you get glimpses of his former
self if you get on his wrong side...
Slayers NEXT
Slayers TRY
Those Who Hunt Elves
Viewed subbed. One of those animes which drops you right into the
middle of the story, and proceeds to tell it to you backwards, and
then forwards. ^_^ The basic premise is that a movie star (Airi),
your usual anime muscle-guy (Junpei), and your anime
schoolgirl-with-a-sniper rifle (Ritsuko), and a T-74 tank arrive in a
magical world. When an elf attempts a spell to bring them back, she's
distracted and the spell goes flying in 5 pieces, landing on 5 random
elves. It's up to the 3 to search down and strip various elves to
recover the spell. Of course, that's before the tank gets possessed
by a cat spirit....
Trigun
Viewed subbed. This is one of those anime where the Japanese seem
to think that the Old West still exists. (Think of how San Antonio is
depicted in "Lupin III: From Russia With Love" ^_^) "Vash the
Stampede" is a wanted criminal. He is known to destroy towns
singlehandedly. Because of this mass destruction which follows in his
wake, two women are sent by their insurance agency to capture him or
at least change his ways. The first glimpse you have of Vash (with
the yellow sunglasses and billowing red coat), you think, "Oh, NO.
Not another of those guys." You know who I'm talking
about... the kind of anime hero who can dodge several hundred bullets
at once, roll to safety, and systematically shoot down all of his
enemies, never taking more than a single bullet for each (and
occasionally using the same one on three or more Bad Guys). And in
the end, nary a hair is out of place. Yet by the end of the first
episode, it seems pretty clear that this initial impression is
completely wrong. Vash seems to be more of a Victim of Circumstance
than deliberately destructive. After all, all the town-leveling seems
to be committed by his would-be captors. (In the first episode, there
are 3 different groups Out to Get him.) A funny series, and worth the
watch!
Vampire Hunter D
Viewed dubbed. The thought behind it is good. It has potential as
a remake. If the psychological aspects of it were better developed--
you have the Count's daughter who is obsessed with her own bloodline,
but is devastated when she finds out that her mother was what she
despises the most. You have D himself, who is half-vampire, with
Dracula as his father, and yet he refuses to come to terms with it
and instead, alienates himself from the rest of the world and
focusses his life on killing vampires. Not to mention he has to
actively prevent himself from biting the very girl he's supposed to
be protecting...You have the villager's terror of the Count,but no
real explanation as to their interrelation...
There wasn't much dialogue, and the animation wasn't good enough
to stand on its own. The character design isn't the best in anime,
and I've seen shows with better continuity and information, but if
you like panty shots and action, you'll probably enjoy it.
Violinist of Hamelin Movie
Viewed subbed. A cute movie, worth the watch just to see Hamel's
costumes and hear his music. Not to mention see his giant violin.
Some of the characters are named after musical instruments-- "Flute",
"Oboe". Raiel has a golden piano strapped to his back. Sizer just has
an attitude. ^_^ I hear that the TV series is much darker than
the Movie, but it was a good watch.
Yawara!
Viewed subbed. Yawara is the granddaughter of an 8th-dan judo
master who has won championships and written books on the subject and
become generally a judo legend. And he wants Yawara to surpass even
his own acheivements. But Yawara would rather be an ordinary girl
than try to win a gold medal at the Barcelona Olympics. Then Yawara
suddenly develops a love interest in her opponent's coach... A fun
series.