Taberu Dake

What is it about Japanese dramas that make the so unusual? Unlike the omnipresent rich-man-poor-girl trope of Korean dramas my experience of Japanese dramas is much more diverse. I've seen dramas about High School Host Clubs, music school students, elementary students with precognition and monster-fighting magical girls. This time around, I've found a drama about eating. No, it's not about cooking, it's about eating.

Katanagatari

Have you ever heard of Naruto? Of course you have! It's extremely popular, but I can't stand it!! Know why? Because he makes Ninjas look totally stupid with his bright orange outfit and 'sexy jutsu', it's so uncool! For the same reason, I don't like Katanagatari. Whether it be the characters, the plot, the art or anything else, I loathe it all!
Allow me to elaborate: Katanagatari is based in Japan's Edo era where Strategian Togame is tasked with obtaining the '12 Deviant Blades'. However she's too frail to collect them herself and she's already been betrayed by ninjas, so Togame seeks the help of Shichika - a highly trained martial artist - to be her sword.

Kill La Kill

I came across this anime in a very abnormal circumstances! I read a news article about a cosplayer who drew the attention of the police at an anime event in Singapore. Apparently an older woman was offended by the cosplayers 'underboob' and an arguement ensued. After digging around a bit I became quite intrigued by the costume. So, when it came to deciding what to write about for this weeks review, the answer came about too easily!

Yowamushi Pedal

Summer 2013 bought us Free!, the swimming anime. But now we are in the Fall season, how can sports anime follow up a hit like Free!? With a cycling anime!! ...Perhaps. Yowamushi Pedal relates the story of Sakamichi Onoda, the wimpy otaku who just really wants to join his high school's anime club. However, to his great disappointment, the anime club has already shut down! However he was spotted by professional Imaizumi as he cycled home and managed to impress this serious cyclist. Then he met Naruko-another professional cyclist. After riding alongside these two great cyclists Onoda found a passion for cycling and joined the cycling club.

Kamisama no Inai Nichiyoubi

"The Sunday Without God", a world were God is a foolish being whom haphazardly grants peoples wishes before abandoning the world completely. Thus the world is littered with humans who have been granted powers and nobody dies. Even if you chop some one's head off, they won't die. Unless you have a gravekeeper bury your body. It's in this strange little world that we meet Ai; a young gravekeeper from a secluded village. Her father ran off before  and her mother recently passed away leaving her in charge of gravekeeping.

Turning Girls

So my dad requested a review of Inferno Cop, but I'm going to go above and beyond that and instead review Turning Girls the 2013 ONA (Original Net Animation) from Otsuka Masahiko (producer of Inferno Cop).
Just like Inferno Cop, is a collection of funny skits with a total running time of only half an hour. Neither are properly animated or have a proper plot. In Turning Girls, there's 6 episodes, each lasting about 5 minutes. They explore the lives of 4 young Japanese women each with their own... 'quirks'.

From Up on Poppy Hill

A fairly new addition to the Studio Ghibli collection (2011) that my dad managed to find on Love Film. We watched the dub -which I must admit I rarely do- but more on that later. Set in 1963, it's a tale of pure yet troubled love. When a school's clubhouse (the Quartier Latin) is set to be demolished, Shun (passionate member of the newspaper club) performs an outrageous stunt that captures the attention of Umi a young neighborhood child. Umi begins helping out in the Newspaper Club and the two begin to fall for each other. But things aren't that straightforward! Umi's mother is studying abroad in America and her father was lost at sea. When Umi shows Shun a picture of her father he starts acting strange and avoiding Umi. What's preventing the two from being happy together? You'll have to watch it to see!

RWBY

I was so conflicted about whether or not to review this series, it's not an anime as such; it's a web series, produced by an American company! However, after consulting CrazySaki, she encouraged me to publish this slightly abnormal post. So basically what I mean is: if you don't like this review, blame Liz!

It's based in a fantasy world with it's own fictional past where humans had to discover a mystical power source ("Dust") to combat the "creatures of Grimm".

.hack//The Movie

One of the first manga I bought was the .hack// Legend of the Twilight and I immediately fell in love with THE WORLD and the .hack// franchise. I watched the legend of the twilight anime, then bought the sign anime and my only light novel is a .hack// one! So when I heard there was a .hack// movie, I jumped on it with eager eyes!!

Now for those of you who don't know about the .hack// franchise let me tell you  all that you've been missing out on! Based in world more advanced than ours is a MMORPG called THE WORLD and extremely realistic world and some kind of calamity. In this movie it's based around Sora who is at first reluctant to join her friends in THE WORLD, but with some pushing from her friends she timidly begins an adventure into her first MMORPG. Whilst she's still trying to understand the basic game-play, she stumbles upon a mysterious, ghost-like girl who gives her a strange item. Soon after users of THE WORLD begin to fall into comas and Sora is told that she is the one to save them.

MCM EXPO SPECIAL: Oct. 2013

It's been awhile hasn't it! Last year I wrote a special post about MCM expo and I think it's time I wrote another one, this time with a more personal account on how I spent my day. Enjoy!

Chronicles of the Going Home Club

In Japan after school activities are a big part of high school life. All kinds of clubs are available to students and if they're not satisfied by the selection they can always form they're own club!  But for those not interested in clubs there's always the 'going home club', a phrase used to refer to those who'd rather not stay after school.

The Heirs

There's been a lot of hype around this drama since April because of it's all star line-up! Lee Min Ho (Boys Over Flowers and Personal Preference) Kang Min Hyuk (Hearstrings and drummer for CN Blue) and Park Shin Hye (You're Beautiful and Heartstrings) all feature in this drama alongside many more big actors and idols. about the love and friendships of some very rich high school student. In fact, given my great anticipation to watch this drama I've broken my 5-episodes-for-a-review rule so I can tell you about this drama only 4 days after it's premier.

Petal Dance

I decided to watch a movie this week because as a general rule, movies are easier to review. Looking at recent releases lead me to Petal Dance, I was prepared to watch the movie, review it then return to my stack of homework. Alas, that was never meant to be as Petal Dance is not the straight forward movie I was anticipating.
It's deep and thought-provoking and needs much more attention than I gave it! The plot is sparse and is quite a minor part of the film. It's a very basic tale of life and friendship which is a lot like a slice-of-life without the joy. It takes place over a matter of days when best friends Jinko and Mokoto hear that their former class mate has been hospitalized after an attempted suicide. Unsure of what the best course to take is, they decide to visit her for the first time in 6 years. But before they leave Jinko damages her hand in an attempt to stop some one jumping in front of a train. That some one was Haraki, although she just lost her job she didn't intend to take her own life but after realising Jinko can't drive with her bandaged hand, Haraki elects to be their driver instead. On the long journey to their friend, the three friends bond by talking poetically about bent trees (it's all straight over my head) and when they get there, Miki is surprised by their visit. However they agree to all go to the seaside together so they can talk about wind and draw.

Sukitte Iinayo

This anime marks the end of my long list of suggestions. So be sure to send your recommendations to me because I'm too lazy to chose the anime for myself!!

I've discovered another over-used trope in romantic anime: popular guy falling in love with the unpopular girl. It's very similar to the 'rich man poor girl' theme but with added low self-esteem. It's an idea I absolutely loved in Kimi Ni Todoke, but now it's just a bit boring. Which is unfortunate for Sukitte Iinayo!
Sukitte Iinayo (Say 'I Love You') centers around Mei Tachibana who was blamed for something trivial in primary school and consequently spent 16 years in solitude. But after she kicks the most popular boy in school down the stairs thing begin to change. Kurosawa Yamoto begins bothering her, apparently he fell in love with her when she kicked him (masochist?) and he will not let her go. However after saving her from a stalker, he does get through to her and he reignites her trust in other people. It's also one of those terribly cliched 'troubled past' stories were every one has their history told in a most awkward fashion.

Yami Shibai

I've got something very different in store for you. I'm hesitant to class it as anime but have nothing better to call it, even so: I think this is the best thing to come out of this season of anime and definitely deserves more recognition. But I would say that the less prior knowledge you have: the better the show will be.

Free! Iwatobi Swim Club

The big thing in this season's anime: Free! Iwatobi Swim Club. Full of swimming and pretty boys. I was hesitant to review this one despite all the fuss it's kicked up but I have succumbed to peer pressure! The plot is very straight forward: pretty boys swim togethers and never wear tops.
Ok, so it's not that straight forward. Haruka, Nagisa, Rin and Makoto all have two things in common: they all have feminine names and love to swim. In fact the four were very close in their elementary swim club and won a relay race in a tournament before the four went their seperate ways. Makoto and Haruka stay together in highschool but later meet up with Rin and Nagisa. But Rin's cold nature towards his three friends convince the boys to set up a new swim club at their school: the Iwatobi Swim Club. With new recruit Rei (another boy with a feminine name) they decide to enter a swimming tournament to be able to swim alongside Rin. But actually it's just an excuse to have lots of pretty shirtless boys.

House of Flying Daggers

At the 2004 Cannes Film Festival, House of Flying Daggers reportedly received a 20 minute standing ovation. From big time director Zhang Yimou and starring the beautiful and talented Zhang Ziyi it's no wonder it got so much hype. But what is it all about?

Set in China 859 AD we see the decline of the Tang dynasty. Government is losing control as rebel groups spring up across the country. Most prominently, the House of Flying Daggers, an elusive group who steal from the rich and give to the poor. They've devised a scheme to wipe out the generals best men using Mei (Zhang Ziyi). When police officers Jin and Liu hear that the new dancer may be a member of the Flying Daggers which they've been ordered to annihilate! So Jin is sent to investigate and when he discovers that Mei is blind and shows hatred towards government officials he's lead to believe that she is the daughter of the old leader and a prominent figure to the group. They decide to use this information to track down the Flying Daggers and hopefully slay their leader. Jin is sent undercover as 'Wind' to 'rescue' Mei from prison and have her lead him to the House of Flying Daggers. But on their journey Jin is seduced by Mei's beauty and Mei finds herself falling for Jin's valour and courage. There could be a happy ending for these two lovers, however things are not always as they appear to be...

Super Mario 3D Land

Hello!  As Alex managed to break her computer and is so unorganised that she didn’t have any other reviews ready, Liz is here instead to bring you the weekly review!

Super Mario 3D Land, as you can probably guess, is a 3D Mario game on the 3DS. Like many others in its series the storyline is that Princess Peach of the Mushroom Kingdom has been kidnapped by the evil Bowser and it is up to Mario to travel through eight worlds to save her. The opening cut scene is not very long and doesn’t actually show Peach getting kidnapped but instead shows Mario and some Toads (cute little mushroom head guys) finding a letter with a picture of Peach in a cage while a Bowser roar is heard followed by Peach’s signature annoying “MARIOOOOO” scream. The adventure then kicks off with Mario at world one.

Gatchaman Crowds

I've been so busy lately I almost forgot to write today's post! So if this review sounds rushed, it's because it was! Sorry, hopefully it will still be entertaining to read!

In 1972 anime had their own western-style superhero show: Science Ninja Team Gatchaman. Focused on environmentalism and responsible use of technology the series centered around five superhero ninjas who needed to fight off a terrorist group who wanted to take over the world. Skip to 2013 and the Gatchaman Franchise is producing it's fifth production based Science Ninja Team Gatchaman.
Set in the near future of Japan Legendary heroes known as Gatchaman are responsible for protecting the world from aliens whilst simultaneously keeping their existence a secret. Hajime is chosen to become a Gatchaman with her senpai from school Sugane and several others to form the G-Crew. But Hajime isn't interested in destroying aliens, she's more concerned about 'updating' the world, a concept introduced by the GALAX program. GALAX is a mobile 'game' where people have to complete missions in the real world. It unites people who all want to improve the world and help each other it's an amazing concept which I'm finding a lot more interesting than fighting aliens!

Brothers Conflict

After the discomfort caused by Oreimo you would've thought that I'd have learnt to stay away from anything remotely incestual. So I thought Brothers Conflict sounded like a good idea. No. I shan't even try to make this sound good!

Ema doesn't appear to have a mother-or at least she really doesn't care for her biological mother. So when her famous father remarries it doesn't bother her. Well, she hardly see her father anyway, the tragic neglected motherless girl. It breaks my heart! No one cares. But her life's going to get a lot busier now that she's made the decision to move in with her new family: 13 step-brothers. Seriously? Who manages to have 13 boys in a row like that? 13! I mean honestly, did she drown the girls? Was she building her own personal harem!?

Blood-C

I was hesitant to review this anime when it was announced that CLAMP were putting out a new anime fans expected a lot from the new addition to the 'Blood franchise'. After it was aired, Blood-C became the most talked about anime of Summer 2011, for all the wrong reasons!
Saya Kisaragi, clumsy, oblivious, father-obsessed but kind. She's a shrine maiden in a little town and is taught Kenjutsu by her father. When the man-eating elder bairns attack Saya uses her swordsmanship to fulfill her promise to protect everyone. The plot is just piles up more and more unanswered questions with out really advancing the plot. The elder bairns speak of a covenant between them and the humans and Saya has parts of her memory missing. I can't tell whether this is supposed to be suspenseful because in reality it's just stupid, the plot has no direction to it, it just suddenly reached an end with out any kind of warning!

My Little Sister Can't Be This Cute

Based off a Light Novel by Tsukasa Fushimi, My Little Sister Can't Be This Cute (Oreimo for short) is about a brother and sister relationship that's bordering on incestual. Kirino is s.mart, athletic and pretty and totally overshadows her older brother, Kyosuke. As such, the two have never really got along. But Kirino does have a secret behind her model student exterior: she's actually a hardcore otaku with a preference for magical girl anime and little sister eroge (erotic games). Kyosuke finds out about his sister's 'hobby' and being the kind brother that he is decides to help Kirino sort the rift between her personal life and her love of anime. Kyosuke continues to take unreasonable measures to help out his sister and she continues to abuse him. It's just a silly comedy.

Kotoura-san

Haruka was abandoned by all her family and friends as a child because of her psychic ability and she's now given up on building relationships with people. She pushes away her classmates' insincere attempts at friendship. Until she's approached by Manabe who's honesty and laid back nature means that people can tell what he's thinking with out psychic abilities. Manabe's aloof nature attracts him to Haruka with out him really knowing why and (thanks to Haruka's psychic ability) the two quickly form a love line. Haruka is then introduced to the ESP research society where the club president has a few secrets up her sleeve. Haruka needs to overcome her past trauma if she ever wants to make friends comfortably and that's not something that can happen overnight. But it's not all serious! Haruka's a klutz and Manabe's a big pervert! Whilst the plot might sound serious the show itself is full of laughs and is not to be overlooked!

Monstar

A group of out-casted teenagers each with their own tragic back story are put against the odds to make the best musical performance they can. As they form their bonds they find their talents and find that they can heal their psychological scars through music. But the love lines formed don't quite match up and rifts are formed in the group! Will they still be able to make their performance the best and win the competition? No, I'm not talking about Glee! They don't have instruments in Glee, after all!
Yoon Seol Chan is a member of the idol group Men In Black. After receiving some bad press his company decides that the best way to change his image is to send him to school. Also new to school is Min Se Yi who transferred after spending time in New Zealand talking to sheep. The two become desk mates and are joined by a silent gangsta, the 'cool' class president, a bullied nerd with a passion for singing, a tough bully and the token fat girl to form a band. They're blackmailed by they're teacher and must cooperate to get their performance ready in time.

RDG: Red Data Girl

"Red data girls are girls in danger of extinction. The term is based on the Red Data Book which contains data on endangered wildlife. They are beings who hold a unique, mysterious power so great that all of humanity seeks to own them."
Suzuhara is slow clumsy and shy and finds it very hard to get a long at school. She is a Red Data Girl whose is set to succeed her mother as host to the Goddess. Raised as a shrine maiden in the country side she is easily scared by other people and destroys most the technology she touches. After an encounter with a God of the mountain Suzuhara decides to take her fathers advice and enroll in high school in Tokyo along with her childhood friend Sagara. Sagara is from a family of warriors whose fate is to protect people like Suzuhara but Sagara is repelled by Suzuhara's timid nature at first but as they spend more time together at school and Suzuhara breaks away from her shyness bit by bit.... Well it's a romance do I need to spell it out for you?

Golden Time

Golden Time or 'Golden Hour' refers to the vital period of time where the doctors medical treatment determines the life or death of the patient. Min-Woo is well aware of that, medical drama junkie and country side doctor encountered a traumatic incident lost him a patient and his confidence in his work. Still unsure of why he wants to become a doctor, Min-Woo returns to a city hospital to complete his residency in ER. Working alongside him is Jae-In. The complete opposite of Min-Woo, Jae-In is determined to become a doctor so she can support herself while helping others. The drama and stress mounts up quickly on interns in ER though and if he wants to survive Min-Woo needs to take control of his wispy emotions and get his priorities straight because when a moments hesitation makes the difference between life and death there is no room for the uncertain. It aired just last year and it's my first ever medical drama. So be sure to read on!

Tiger and Bunny

Based in a futuristic world heroes are given commercial value and a points scheme to make them kind of idols. People with superpowers are known as NEXT's if they choose to be a hero they'll feature on HERO TV and be in with a chance to be crowned King of Heroes but they could choose to use they're powers for evil in which case it's the heroes job to arrest him. The show focuses on the first of it's kind 'hero team' Tiger and Bunny. The team consists of old-timer 'Wild Tiger' and rookie hero Barnaby (nicknamed Bunny). But 'Wild Tiger' - or Kotetsu - is stuck in his old-fashioned ways and can't accept Barnaby's new ideals making it difficult for the two to get a long. Meanwhile Barnaby has finally found a lead on the crime syndicate Ouroboros who killed his parents in front of him when he was just a child. Wild Tiger and Barnaby have to team up successfully if they want to uncover the mysterious Ouroboros and stop the villainous NEXT Lunatic who is blowing every thing up.

Animal Crossing: New Leaf

The UK release was last week and I really wanted to review it then but I was so busy! So apologies about that. Alas, I still have to review this game just so if any one wanted to come visit the town of Ooo and meet Alex they have my friend code: 4983-5552-0467. Be sure to add me and leave your friend code in the comments below!!
Now onto the review.

I've been anticipating New Leaf ever since I got my 3DS and it had to deliver something good because I've played every version of Animal Crossing since the Gamecube game in 2004! However, I have felt like each rendition has been less exciting than it's predecessor. The wii game 'Let's go to the City' was put away quite quickly and the DS 'wild world' was good but it never reached the obsessive excitement of the Gamecube game. Maybe after playing 3 versions of the same game there was nothing more for the series to offer me. Or maybe I've just grown out of quaint games like Animal Crossing... That was a thought too sad to bear!

Karneval

From the same company who bought us Deadman Wonderland comes a totally different style of anime! Gareki lives a solitary life of stealing and travelling but that soon changes when he meets Nai, the young and eccentric boy who is searching for Karoku. Originally taking Nai along with him to earn some more money Gareki is quickly charmed by Nai's innocence and positive outlook on life and ends up caught up in Nai's search for Karoku. However, the two attract some less than welcome attention and end up under the protection of Circus, the nations ultimate defense. Circus only accepts the most capable fighters and after performing raids, capturing criminals and solving crimes for the government they will put on performances for the public as an apology for scaring them. Although seemingly sweet and harmless, Karneval is so much more than a silly children's anime!

A Werewolf Boy

Highly acclaimed Korean movie, "A Werewolf Boy", directed by Jo Sung-hee for his commercial debut. It quickly reached 4.12 million admissions making it the most successful Korean melodrama of all time! But is it really worth all the hype?
As an elderly woman Kim Suni receives a phone call about the sale of her old family home out in the country side and decides to pay the place a visit with her grand daughter Eun Joo. From there she reminisces back to when she was a teenager and her and her mother escaped to the country side. Kim Suni was suffering from a lung problem and it was believed that the country air would do her some good. Not long after arriving Suni finds a feral boy who can't read, write or fully understand what people are saying. Despite his unruly nature Suni's mother is kind enough to adopt him and name him Chul-Soo; for she, like all the other villagers, believe he was one of the many children which were orphaned in the Korean War. Unsatisfied by the way that Chul-Soo behaves, Suni starts to 'tame' him using a dog training book. Every time he acts accordingly Suni will pat his head and from these acts of kindness a bond is formed between the introverted girl and the lonely boy.

Miyakawa-ke no Kuufuku

In 2005 the manga world was shaken by Yoshimizu's 4-Panel manga. When two years later said manga was bought to television it quickly became an international hit! That's right, I'm talking about Kyoto Animation's brilliantly funny: 'Lucky Star'. Ever since it found it's way to England the lovable characters and relaxed pace have made a name for themselves at conventions. So when I was informed that a Lucky Star spin-off manga is being adapted into an anime I had high-expectations; I can't say I'm happy with it though.

Love Rain

Expo was Yesterday!!! But I was more in the TV shows scene this time (Adventure Time, Teen Wolf, etc.) so I won't clog my blog up with a post about that!! Instead, enjoy this review while I get on the train to go to my mum's! :)

Love Rain is a masterful drama that depicts a cycle of misfortune starting in 1970's and repeating itself in the present. It starts when Seo In Ha falls in love with beautiful and kind Kim Yoon Hee, and she falls in love with him. However Seo In Ha's best friend Lee Dong Wook falls in love with the very same girl making Seo In Ha choose between the two. He tries to escape by enlisting in the army and Kim Yoon Hee has to move to America to get treated for her illness. After a long time with no news, every one assumes that Yoon Hee passed away and Seo In Ha tries to make a family for himself but when he finds her in Korea again he's determined not to let her go again. Although not as sweet when they're middle-aged, their love is so pure that you just have to wish for their happiness but with In Ha's ex-wife involved, no-one's going to be allowed happiness. A parallel story of love and pain occurs when Seo Joon and Jung Ha Na meet. Joon falls for Ha Na's cheerfulness and quickly wins her over with his undeniable charm however it's not that simple because Seo Joon is Seo In Ha's son and Jung Ha Na is Kim Yoon Hee's daughter. It's so tragic because no matter what happens you know it's going to end badly! No matter how much you wish for both couples happiness you know it's not possible so through out there's this feeling of dread that almost makes me not want to reach the end!

Chuunibyou demo Koi ga Shitai!

"Chunibyo patients" or people who suffer from "8th grader syndrome": a phenomenon which causes many 8th graders to suffer an utterly embarrassing year of school. After spending a year pretending to be "Dark Flame Master" Yuuta goes out of his way to choose a high school were no one knows him just to escape from his embarrassing memories. But memories of his past still haunt him when he meets Rikka - his cute neighbour and classmate - who is still suffering from 8th grader syndrome. She takes on the pseudo of 'Wicked Eye'. After she discovers Yuuta's past she forces him to join her club along with a senior who loves to nap; the class rep who has her own embarrassing secrets and Rikka's equally eccentric 'Servant' from the year below.  As more of Rikka's life is revealed Yuuta begins to find her demands less and less of a chore and slowly their friendship grows beyond the 'contract' that Rikka inflicted upon him.

There is a certain amount of this which really reminds me of another anime. Eccentric girl drags a mostly normal guy around and makes a club. That's right, there's definitely some Haruhi in this anime. They even have a moe senior!! So if you don't like Haruhi just turn away now.

Mawaru Penguindrum

So my dad suggested this anime a pretty long time ago and I'm finally reviewing it! (I never ignore suggestions!) It's a show about the importance of family and penguins. It all begins when Himari Takakura passes away on her trip to the aquarium but she is resurrected by an alien spirit in the form of a penguin hat. It's unclear quite what said spirit is doing in a penguin hat in the first place and I doubt it'll ever be explained because that's how things roll in this show! Anyway, in exchange for Himari's life the penguin spirit demands that Himari's twin brothers, Kanba and Shoma, find her penguin drum. No one knows exactly what the penguin drum is but the spirit thinks that Ringo has it. Ringo is an incredibly disturbed girl who stalks Mr. Tabuki claiming it's her fate to be with him. With the aid of three penguins who are only visible to the three siblings Kanba and Shoma have to find the penguin drum to ensure theirs sisters safety.

Psycho-Pass

In a not-so distant future, every body is kept under strict surveillance. Even their mental stability is measured by a 'Psycho-Pass' making it possible to detect criminals sometimes before they commit a crime! The series focuses on Akane a young over-achiever who joined the police force as an Inspector. An Inspector's job is too hunt criminals with a team of Enforcers whose mental state has been deemed too unstable for society. They use automated guns which read a person's mental state or "Crime Coefficiency" and will only fire on people who are unstable. It's a fish-out-of-water type tale where Akane is constantly shocked by the way things work in her department. Fortunately Enforcer Kogami is always around to explain things to her but she can't grasp the concept of killing criminals or keeping her distance from the Enforcers even after she finds out that Kogami used to be an Inspector. In one particularly cruel case Akane and Kogami must find the criminal responsible for dissecting young girls' bodies and turning them into disturbing pieces of 'art' and putting them on display.

Jang Ok Jung

After LOENENT released a MV for Dream On You I was captivated by those beautiful scenes of cherry blossoms and Korean History so I had to look into the drama! It's based in Joseon, a state in Korea between 1392 and 1897. It's a pinnacle point in Korean History not only for the great technological advancements but   it's traits from this era (etiquette, language, cultural norms, etc.) that have most influenced modern Korea. It is commonly used as the best example of traditional Korean culture and has become a somewhat romanticized time period. Much like the Victorian age for us Britons! Even better, the characters are based off real historical people! My knowledge does not extend far enough to tell you how historically accurate it is, but it does add a whole new level of realism.
Now you're probably wondering when I'm actually going to start reviewing! The answer is: right after this synopsis!

Ace Attorney (movie)

Requested by a desperate anon is a movie based directly off the Phoenix Wright games. Whilst this isn't the first Phoenix Wright related media, it is the first live-action.The plot is based on the first game (Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney) when Phoenix Wright first becomes an attorney we see that he struggles to solve a case on his own. After winning his first court case Wright's mentor, Mia Fey, is struck dead and a witness accuses her sister, Maya Fey, of committing the crime. Wright now has to defend Maya against his rival prosecutor and childhood friend Miles Edgeworth. But when Edgeworth himself becomes a suspect in a murder Wright puts his differences aside and puts all his energies into proving Edgeworth innocent even if he has to go against Manfred von Karma who hasn't lost a single case in 40 years! In a world with a 3 day court system Wright has to gather evidence quickly and with help from his new found ally Maya he has to prove the innocence of friends and put the real criminals behind bars.

Sword Art Online

When Nerve gear release their first fully-immersive MMORPG masses flock to buy the revolutionary game that engages all the players senses and is controlled by thought. However, after logging on the players soon discover that there is no way to log out, they are informed that if they wish to leave the game they must clear all 100lvls of the game. But they must do so without dying as death in the game equals death in real life  as the Nerve headset microwave their brains. The story follows Kirito a swordsmaster who had played in the beta and was actually the best beta player out there. After witnessing several people's death within the game Kirito is determined to complete the game and rescue every one from the game. Although at first shunned for the apparent advantage he had over normal players he eventually befriends Asuna, an equally powerful swordsmaster! Together they fight on the front lines to try complete the game but during there time fighting a love line starts to form!

Tamako Market

Dera is a royal bird from an island in the South and he's been given the mission to find a bride for his Prince. But when he bumps into Tamako, the mochi makers daughter he decides to join the many occupants of Usagiyami District. Talking birds aside, Tamako is living a normal peaceful life. Growing up is never easy yet Tamako still fills her days with fun with all the occupants of Usagiyami  District. With her two best friends, Midori and Kanna, Tamako goes to school and Baton club while at home she makes mochi with her sister Anko experimenting with new flavours for her family's mochi shop. Also, just across the road is the rival mochi shop "Rice Cakes Oh! Zee" and home of Tamako's childhood friend Mochizou. But more than childhood friends, Tamako is Mochizou s crush!  But basically every episode tells the tale of Dera causing nothing but trouble while Tamako organises all manner of events to encourage more customers.

Tsubasa Chronicles

I've wanted to watch this anime for ages!! Not only is it by the legendary CLAMP but it also uses the same characters from Cardcaptor Sakura. That might sound a bit lazy of them since this is in no way sequel, but I love the Cardcaptor Sakura characters and I was so sad when the anime ended that I'm really happy to be able to see them live a new life in this anime. However this anime would strike a chord with any CLAMP fan as I am informed that it is the combination of all of CLAMP's series.

The plot follows Syaoran who was following his father's dream of being an archaeologist  But when Sakura, princess of his kingdom and childhood friend loses her soul Syaoran gives up his ordinary life to find her memories that have been scattered across many world's in the form of feathers. However in order to travel across the worlds Syaoran has to give his most important thing: his relationship with Sakura. As such, no number of Sakura's feathers will make her remember him. You wouldn't believe how sad it was when she woke up and just had no idea who Syaoran was!! 

The series starts extremely lighthearted and comedic but quickly focuses more on the action and fight scenes.  But I think over all the balance is right. Albeit I think they spend too long in one world. It'd definitely be more exciting if they switched it up more often.

Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon

If you haven't heard of Sailor Moon then I advise you stop living under a rock! She's the most iconic girl in the magical girl world and the anime is such a classic! But I'm not here to tell you about the amazing 200 episode long anime that EVERY ONE should watch, Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon is the live action sailor moon. All the characters that you know (or should know) and love but as real people! The plot is obviously very similar to the anime but there is still a lot of difference. After Usagi Tsukino finds the magically talking cat plush named Luna (yes, it's a plush and not a real cat) she's transformed into sailor moon to fight the evil youma. She quickly finds Ami Mizuno, Rei Hino and Minako Aino to fight along side her as Sailor Mercury, Sailor Mars and Sailor Jupiter. Now they fight together as the Sailor Soldiers of Justice. Although the first few episodes seem almost identical to the anime it's after Sailor Jupiter joins in that the there are some major plot difference. They have to find the Mystical Silver Crystal before the enemy and the story place a lot more importance on this crystal than the anime does. And also, it's more character based then the anime so there is a lot more depth to the characters. There's lots of extra stories for friendship bonding and character development which were definitely missing in the anime. It;s really interesting and every episode gives you something new: about the mysterious Tuxedo Mask, the even more mysterious Sailor V or about the origin of the Sailor Soldiers. Although the whole plot is a lot more condensed (only 51 episodes!) it somehow feels like there's a lot more in it! But then, it is only the first story arc.

Ride Back

Based in a future world ride back is a unique kind of mecha where the robots are actually motorcycles. Our heroine, Rin Ogata was well on her way to becoming a top ballerina however after sustaining an injury and losing her mother she decides to quit when upon entering College. However she soon finds a new passion for said motorcycle/mechas (called Ridebacks) and her excellent balance and reflexes makes it easy for her to  ride with much skill. This all rather sweet, Rin finding a new dream to pursue almost a 'finding yourself' tale but her skills do get her into trouble with the new government  When Rin's best friend (Shoko) get's taken hostage in a terroist attack Rin knows she has to save her. But breaking through the government's barrier causes all sorts of knock on effects.
This is fine as well, a bit of government and politics making you question society and all that. I think it's even handled with enough maturity to be entertaining but still quite intellectual. But I'll tell you what's not okay in this very layered plot: Rin and her special rideback. The rideback that chooses it's rider and all that silly business that makes me dislike this genre. Machines should stay as machines, they shouldn't be given free-will or personalities it just takes the story to a whole new level of unbelievable.

Dog Star

Man is this film depressing! It's like Macbeth or something!It's all about Shiro, a dog for the blind, who is caring for a veteran boxer. Within the first 10 minutes of the film the ex-boxer drinks too much and gets hit by a car. That's just a start to the deaths in this film! So apparently this blind boxer wasn't a very nice man because he is sent back to earth as a ghost who needs to perform a good deed or two to be allowed into heaven. Hence he visits Shiro like some kind of Genie and offers to grant Shiro one wish. Shiro wishes to be a human (he can't talk mind you, so this scene was quite amusing) and naturally Shiro's ex-master uses his celestial and gives Shiro the body of a man who had just killed himself (yes, that's another dead person).
Shiro choose this wish out of a desire to find the family who raised him as a puppy. Although most the family died in a plane crash (that's another 2 or 3 dead bodies) he manages to sniff out Haruka's scent and begins to stalk her. A few more deaths later and Shiro finds out that he's old for a dog and that it'll soon be his time to die so he tries to distance himself from Haruka. But there's a chemistry between the two which makes it impossible for the two to part. Alas, it's a love that can never be, and Shiro has to return to his doggy form.
Through out the film, Shiro's former owner appears to offer guidance or consolation (usually quite bad). Sounds quite sweet but in reality he's just an invisible old man who just gets in the way. True, it would be weird if he didn't hang around but his presence really doesn't add anything to the film.

Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann

This is an anime I was told to watch aaaages ago for it's utter madness and it definitely matches to that. In the distant future humans are forced to live underground and must constantly drill deeper to avoid the slowly decending ceiling. But Kamina isn't like every one else, he's been to the surface with his dad and now he's determined to get back, with Simon's help. However after their plan fails another means to get to the surface arrives and Simon and Kamina are free to roam the surface with Yoko, the sharp shooter who enables their escape. Now their on a mission, to stop the mechas called Ganmen at the very root to save the underground villagers from the earth quakes they cause. Simon controls the head of a Ganmen named Lagann while Kamina controls a body called Gurren. To fight off the Ganmen Simon and Kamina must combine to form Gurren Lagann with their fighting spirit to produce any number of drills. It's all one big joke really. But it has the boobs and the mecha to interest a large number of males even with the ridiculous speeches, pointless transformation scenes and inconsistent plot.

Who Slept With Her?

Who slept with her? Sirasoni saw the student teacher doing the deed with some one and he won't rest until he finds out who! Children, advert your eyes now.

Kim TaeYo, Jae Sung and Ahn MyeongSeop attend a conservative Christian boys school where discipline is strong. But when the extremely attractive student teacher Ji Young joins it's only natural that all her pupils want to get into her pants. Ji Young is put in charge of organising a performance for the school; as such, she spends a lot of time with Kim TaeYo, Jae Sung and Ahn MyeongSeop. In fact it was just after this that the Head of discipline (Sirasoni) looks into a classroom window to see a couple embracing and her a woman moaning. By the time he gets into the class, the couple are gone leaving just Ji Young's red stilettos behind. So, if Ji Young was the woman: who slept with her? Sirasoni has three suspects: Kim TaeYo, Jae Sung and Ahn MyeongSeop. Flashback a few months to when Ji Young first joined (I loved the use of flashbacks in this film) and we see why Sirasoni suspects these people and finally, what happened that night after the performance! It's such a brilliant plot, incredibly funny! It is very weird at first, but once everything's explained at the end it's just pure genius! I loved the ending SO much that I REALLY want to tell you what happens... but that would spoil it for you, so go watch! I think the plot was really well devised and so entertaining. Just.... Just watch it, yeah?

7 Billion Needles

So today covers the last of my Christmas presents!! Starting next week I'll be looking through your recommendations and also I'll try keep you up to date with some of this seasons anime and stuff!! Look forward to it!!

Hikaru is a reclusive teenager. She doesn't talk to any of her class mates and they don't want to talk to her because she always has her headphones on. But her life is turned upside down when she becomes involved in an intergalactic games of cat and mouse: the 'cat' being the entity known as Horizon and the 'mouse' is the intergalactic murderer Maelstrom. The plot successfully combines sci-fi battles with an emotional teenagers story which is especially good for me because sci-fi isn't a genre I really get excited about. The book starts with the lead character dying. That's right, on the 5th page Hikaru is being blasted to pieces by a meteor! Next thing you know Hikaru is having psychic conversations with Horizon who is currently living in her blood stream. This transition could have been dealt with a lot smoother, nevertheless, there is a certain flair with which this is written.

Japanese food collection

So one of my Christmas presents was a big box full of genuine Japanese food! There was a brilliant assortment! Alas, I could not deem it possible to write a worthy review on just a snack so I've decided to combine them altogether in one super awesome food post!! So I present you with a whole box of food!

Squid Girl

Ok, so this wasn't my Christmas present. It was actually my sisters but anyway, it's February and I'm still getting through Christmas presents? Stay tuned though, the anime you've recommended will be reviewed! Time for some anime now.

Squid Girl or 'The Squid Girl: The Invader comes from the Bottom of the Sea' is a short comedy about a squid-girl hybrid who wants to conquer the earth. Strangely she never gets a real name and instead is always referred to as 'Squid Girl' she has powerful tentacles and a solid motive; she wants to rule humans because she's fed up of all the pollution and littering we cause. I assumed that the anime was going to give loads of green peace messages through out, but boy was I wrong! When she first comes to land she decides to take the nearest beach house as her mission headquarters but she accidentally breaks the wall and ends up being tricked into working there instead. I would be hard pressed to call it a slice-of-life anime because slice-of-lifes are supposed to be about everyday occurrences and personally I haven't heard of many encounters with squid girls, but it is without much development. It's extremely funny though and that's the main point. Me and my family were in hysterics at all the fishy puns like 'inkvasion', they are pulled off very well. Everything is so ridiculous to the point were you just have to laugh so I would definitely call this anime a win!
The art is really cute! They made squid girl look like a child and not intimidating in slightest, and they still got the features of a squid in there! Her silly hat that vaguely resembles the head of a squid and her blue tentacle hair, it's adorable really, but you can tell she's a squid! The humans however, all look a bit funny. I think it's the hair, it kind of defies gravity it almost makes me think of Pokemon with the ridiculous hairstyles! But yeah, it's a very simplistic art style just like most "slice-of-life" anime (they call it that on ANN so I'll just go with that). I do really like squid girl's design though!

A Bride's Story

Still going through my Christmas presents! But don't worry, I will get to every one's recommendations eventually!

It is exactly as the name implies: it's a bride's story. Set in Asia, 19th century comes the tale of an old bride who marries a boy from another tribe. The bride is Amir and she is extremely skilled in archery and horse riding but upon reaching the age of 20 her tribe sends her off to 12 year old Karluk of a very different tribe. This book is more educational and informative than a story as instead of any particular plot the book focuses on the daily life of the tribe members portraying many traditions and different ideals. There's a whole chapter about wood carving that's really exciting and points on fashion, medicine and food. There's also lots of marriage traditions throughout. In the afterword the author does say that she done a lot of research of this time period, so we can assume it's accurate. But there is a bit of plot which I assume is going to be carried on in the next book: so basically Amir comes from a semi-nomadic tribe but they need to marry into another tribe in order to claim land for winter (or something like that). But the only woman they have to offer is Amir, since they never got anything Karluk's tribe for their marriage so they insist that Amir be returned. However, Karluk's grandmother lies saying Amir is pregnant and as such can't leave putting a certain amount of strife between the two families. But this is an extremely under-developed plot that's completely overshadowed by all the every day life stories.

Kimchi

So another one of my Christmas presents today! I don't think I mentioned I got food for Christmas did I? Well it certainly was a surprise! Kimchi is Korea's national dish and Koreans eat kimchi with pretty much anything. It's basically pickled vegetables, usually the main ingredient is Cabbage but there's many other varieties. Mine was a cabbage and was seasoned with radish, red pepper powder, Korean leek and fermented anchovy and fish sauce among other ingredients (full list of ingredients here) to give it a rather alarming red colour. I done a bit of research and came to the conclusion that kimchi can be cooked with pretty much anything so I just gave my dad free reign on how he wanted to present the kimchi to me. In the end I got to try it three different ways!

Oh! Edo Rocket

"It's a show about fireworks & aliens!" says the large font on the back of my complete series box set. Not a combination I'd ever put together but I guess it works. Edo (Tokyo's former name) is under strict  rule by a magistrate who has banned practically anything that's fun, that includes fireworks. Which is a problem for Seikichi, firework maker. As he tries to create the best fireworks in the his life is bombarded by the sudden appearance of Sora. She comes to Seikichi to request that he builds a firework that can reach the moon. Why would she request this? Because Sora is actually an alien and wants to return home, almost reminiscent of E.T now that I think about it! Meanwhile Ginjiro is in cooperation with the 'men in black' trying to fight the mysterious 'Sky Beasts' who are killing young women by sucking out all their blood. Hard to see a connection between these to stories but what ever. It is definitely odd, and also quite hard to keep track of but I wouldn't necessarily call the plot bad. Thing is, I can never tell if they are trying to serious or humorous  there are jokes and there are serious bits but they kind of blur together so I end up not taking any of it seriously. But then, I never take aliens seriously.