[Anime Reviews]
04 Aug 2008
Posted by Martin [Tags: Soul Eater]
After the disappointing excuse for a post last time, I wanted to write about one of my currently-watched series that I really look forward to every week and feel inspired by; given that I hadn’t posted a word about Soul Eater since my First Impressions post, I think it’s long overdue a mention.
OGT made a point of stating that Soul Eater is not a Shounen Jump serial over a Bateszi’s blog, which I think is an important distinction to make. While it offers both the things I appreciate and the things that put me off animated adaptations of the magazine’s output for roughly 99% of the time, SE also offers more. A lot more in fact.
I was going to use this pic instead here, but decided against it when I couldn’t think of a witty caption for it, out-of-context or otherwise
If you take those long, drawn out battles that are padded out to the majority of an episode with macho dialogue and melodramatic panning and zooming, superhuman exhibitions of withstanding physical injury and humour that’s aimed at young teenage boys (or at least those with the mentality of one), then SE really does fit in with the SJ mould on occasion. It does of course share the genre’s positive aspects too: decent no-holds-barred action, heroes trying to act heroic and storylines that gain enough momentum to be truly epic over time for instance. I’m not trying to bash SJ here by the way; I’m merely pointing out that those of us who can enjoy the more positive aspects of SJ-style stuff will find there’s plenty to keep you happy in Soul Eater. The great thing is, almost as a bonus prize for more hard-to-please individuals such as myself, it takes those concepts one stage further and adds neat asides like, y’know, proper character development and storylines and stuff.
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[Anime Reviews]
23 Apr 2008
Posted by Martin [Tags: First Impressions and Retrospectives, Macross Frontier, Soul Eater]
Yes, I know I haven’t posted my thoughts on Kaiba yet, nor have I watched Kanokon (before you ask: in regards to the former, I’m waiting for ep #2 to be subbed. In regards to the latter, “Don’t knock it until you’ve tried it,” still applies so I’ll watch the first two before allowing myself to rip it to shreds). In accordance with Peter S’s recommendationn I’ll try out Kamen no Maid Guy purely for giggles. Because wake-up call + hosepipes + cleavage == lulz. Maybe. At any rate, my schedule is filling up fast but my .mkv playback issues appear to be resolved. Huzzah. Onwards then, with Golgo 13, Soul Eater and Macross Frontier in glorious 1280×720 widescreen. *_*
Golgo 13
I have to admit that the movie didn’t impress me at all, even though it was given a bit of credibility and sophistication thanks to the involvement of Osamu Dezaki (I still can’t believe he did the Clannad movie too…that’ll be interesting). The TV series is pretty much the same, although it deserves credit for its gritty and realistic take on the crime thriller genre; the music kinda rocks (particularly the 80-tinged op and end themes) and the artwork isn’t bad either. There isn’t much around like it at the moment, so if you dig solidly-animated hard-boiled action fare, or indeed if you enjoyed the feature film, this might be up your street.
Get up (get on up), stay on the scene (get on up), like a sex machine
My beef with Golgo 13 is still the fact that, even though his adversaries are despicable criminals, there’s nothing to like about the hero either. Unlike, say, Hei from Darker than Black or Guts from Berserk, Togo has no depth, no vulnerability and no interesting background, which makes him deathly dull. For sure, he’s a big, tough and badass sex machine of a hitman but I can imagine things will grow boring long before the episode run finishes because the outcome is always a foregone conclusion. Even when he’s on the case or in bed with a hooker his expression NEVER changes…although I did notice his eyes widen a little in one scene when his plans were nearly undone by a pesky cat. I’ll watch one or two more for the lulz but not even the Huerrgh! factor is enough to make this one worth tuning in for.
Chances of continued viewing: LOW
Macross Frontier
I’ve already given my first episode rave but after the second I’m not sure how non-Macross fanboys and fangirls will react to it because we’re still at the stage where the main characters and the ways in which they’re connected are still being introduced. Personally, I was in my element and can’t give an objective view on it because the first five minutes were a pure edge-of-your seat adrenaline rush, echoing back to the original series with the daring rescue of Ranka. At that point I asked myself “What would Hikaru Ichijyo do?” the answer being of course “Get the girl, pwn the alien and make it home in time to catch last orders at the bar with Roy Focker.” Except in this case the reaction for Alto’s heroism amounted to “You saved my sister’s life but I’m going to punch you to the ground for damaging my plane.” I guess that’s the pugnacious Zentran side to Ozma coming out there. Better luck next time, eh, Alto?
What would Hikaru Ichijyo do?
Cheryl shows a bit more personality in the second ep though, which is a relief considering the A.I. idoru Sharon Apple had more charisma, and she was a bloody hologram. Overall I’m finding the characters to be pretty engaging though - not nearly so much as Plus or Do You Remember Love? but certainly more than Zero. If nothing else, it appeals to me in a way that Gundam 00 never did and gives that curiosity as to what happens next. Perhaps the reason why I’m enjoying Macross Frontier more is, as IKnight once suggested, that it doesn’t take itself quite as seriously as its rival; even when the Macross franchise is dealing with personal drama, the morality of war or racial issues it is still fun to watch. This lighter approach is somewhat evident in Frontier as well so I’m hoping that when the meat of the story and characterisation comes along, it will deal with all that in its characteristically light-hearted way as in previous outings.
The power of music as an inspirational force is a particular trademark of the franchise too, which ought to come across as cheesy, but in this case at least it doesn’t (Yoko Kanno helps there, of course). I must admit that in the Cheryl/Ranka scene towards the end I was grinning a little when Ranka recognises her heroine. There are other nice touches such as the little litter-picking bots that hark back to the old series and movie, the Skull Squadron insignia and a college building that’s built in the shape of the Macross itself; whether newcomers will appreciate it any more because of these details I’m not sure, but they’re fun for existing fans nonetheless.
The bottom line is, I’m a Macross fanboy so I’ll be overjoyed if Frontier is handled well: I’m in my comfort zone here so there’s no reason not to continue with it.
Chances of continued viewing: HIGH (did you even need to ask?)
Soul Eater
My first thought was, “Is this Bones or Gainax?” The reason why I’m asking is that, aside from the Bones trademark of bold, bright colours and consistent presentation, this looks like something Kazura Tsuramaki or Hiroyuki Imaishi would come up with. Indeed, its energetic rock soundtrack is also scored by Taku Iwasaki, but the Gurren Lagann-esque vibe that had me wondering is also evident in the frenetic action, cheeky fan service, slapstick comedy and marvellous show of imagination; pure win in other words.
First mission is accomplished
I mean this in a complimentary way, of course, because Soul Eater is an absolute blast. It has some Shounen Jump moments which irked me though - Black Star is I’m guessing supposed to be the Naruto-style irrepressible wannabe hero but he just irritated the hell out of me (and will continue to do so if his character develops as little as Naruto’s seems to have done). The length is also daunting - I’ll be writing my Third Anniversary blog post before finishing it, so I don’t know how much mileage Soul Eater’s premise will have before it loses momentum.
With these niggles aside, I think I’ll be enjoying this one for a while yet. The bold, stylised character designs (complete with an anthropomorphised sun and moon grinning down from the sky) ooze a sense of cool and I really dig the Tim Burton-esque gothic aesthetic. Crucially though it takes the time to examine the characters and highlights how their success (or lack therof) depends on understanding their respective partner’s strengths and weaknesses; hopefullly the art style and character dynamics will keep my interest if the storyline becomes repetitive and fillerish.
Chances of continued viewing: HIGH (for now)
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