Golden Boy (Anime Corner 2nd Anniversary Review)

Kintaro Oae, Age 25.  After studying law at Tokyo University, he mysteriously dropped out but only after he completed all of his required coursework for graduation.  He now travels as a “student of life”, taking on odd jobs across the country side.  Riding his trusty mountain bike, the Mikazuki 5, he’s always on the look out for new knowledge and adventure.  And who knows, just one day, maybe, he just might save the world.

Wow, has it really been 2 years since I started writing these reviews?

You remember those days when you were a young Anime fan?  When all you could watch was what was on TV and it was edited big time for a younger audience: no blood, no swearing, no nudity?  Remember when there were those titles out there that weren’t Sailor Moon, Dragon Ball Z or Pokemon that you just wanted to watch?  You know, the adult titles you’d grown up hearing were awesome like Akira, Ninja Scroll and Vampire Hunter D…but you were young so your parents wouldn’t let you watch em.  Well one Anime on that list of “for mature audiences only” was Golden Boy.  To me, it was only a name.  I had heard a joke or two but nothing with exact context.  And id heard it was the funniest thing many had ever seen.  WELL…it only took a couple of decades.  But I finally managed to catch this one at Katsucon 2016…and I was then enlightened.

There is no deeper way to talk about it.  Golden Boy is the funniest Anime I have ever seen.  It seems so simple in it’s story but so much more in execution: a wandering man travels from place to place and gets into adventures with the locals and he also happens to be a huge pervert.  And while this set up does repeat itself every single episode, what keeps it from getting stale is Kintaro himself.  He’s a carefree spirit who longs to learn as much as he can from life.  This stems from the littlest of factoids to the most depraved manners of how to please a woman.  The episodes vary in their setting and cast.  Kintaro is never on the same job twice.  Much of what he does during his short time in these particular spots is very much the same.  He always feels up a toilet (yeah that’s a thing), he always causes some form of trouble and works like crazy to fix it, resulting in a, more or less, happy ending for all.  There’s no end to Kintaro’s likeability.  He’s the horniest human being on the planet, but he has a heart of gold.  He comes off as a total wanna be submissive love slave, but he is one of the smartest people in existence.  It’s impossible to hate him. 

I LOVE the English Dub of this Anime.  The cast (from ADV, I think this was one of their big titles) is having an absolute blast translating this and giving it their own spin.  While it does kind of date itself, “I opened up a can of WHOOP ASS,” it’s still entertaining as hell.  Of course, this also leads to one of my absolute favorite moments of the whole series, maybe even of Anime of all time.  When Kintaro’s well endowed Computer Tech boss tears his prized notebook to pieces, Kintaro’s loveable good side drops and he gets darkly serious.  He proclaims that his notes are more important than his life.  He then proceeds to raise his torn notebook to her and shout proudly, “Money can’t replace that kind of knowledge.  THOSE NOTES WERE PRICELESS!!!” Unaware that the tearing has revealed to his boss the sketches of the sexy staff he drew while trapped in the womens locker room…an awkward pause and growl sets in.  And then Kintaro realizes in his head, “OHHHH S***”.  I die…everytime…turn that moment on for me and I am on the floor laughing like a madman.  Other moments are equally as good but hardly ever as legendary as this bar setter.

Stepping into that viewing room at Katsucon to catch Episode 3 of the series, I didn’t know what I was getting into with Golden Boy.  And I left knowing that I had made such a mistake never getting to it until now.  It’s not as good as FLCL (no Anime will ever touch that one) but Golden Boy does in six episodes the same amount of goodness FLCL did.  It left you wanting more at the end.  At the same time though, the shortness adds to the lasting legacy and the need to appretiate what’s happening on screen while you can.  Kintaro may be a pervert with the dirtiest of desires.  But he’s also the student of life we all want to be: traveling the country side, getting into life changing adventures and making the world a better place, one town or beautiful woman, at a time.

(I HEAR THE SOUND OF A WOMAN SCREAM!!! TO ACTION!!!)

So yeah, I had to pick this title to be my big 2^nd Anniversary review for the Anime Corner.  And to everyone and anyone who is reading…thanks.  I’m not sure how many are actually stopping by on a regular basis.  But even a short visit and peek at my long selection of titles makes me happy.  Even if this blog was being read by no one, I’d still keep it going.  Talking about Anime and reviewing it is my lifes goal.  Will it go beyond this blog, maybe.  But until then, I’m gonna keep watching, I’m gonna keep reviewing…and just keep doing what I love most.

Thanks for 2 years and hopefully more to come.

Golden Boy gets a well deserved

10/10

T5W#33-Top 5 Favorite Giant Robot Anime (That Aren’t Gundam)

Recently I just finished up Aldnoah Zero on Netflix…yeah, strange would be Gundam series.  The mech designs are cool, if not a bit clunky.  The characters are either too difficult to tell apart or are too annoying to care about.  And the ending…probably one of the biggest letdowns I’ve seen from a series in a while.  Not that I should have been surprised given how the second half of the series progressed.  But I’m not here to talk about Aldnoah Zero.  I’m here to talk about other Giant Robot series that I enjoy that don’t involve Mobile Suits or Gundams.  There’s a lot of them out there, and these are my Top 5.

 

#5-Patlabor Trilogy

Giant robots in everyday life.  Now that is more possible future scifi than any other title on this list (maybe…then again maybe not).  Mamoru Oshii’s original trilogy was a smart, mystery filled thrill ride (even though he didn’t work much if at all on the third one) and I covered them all last fall in order.  Patlabor 2 is still my favorite of the bunch and it has the least amount of giant robot action.  This is smart scifi storytelling with a setting that is totally believable for it being a world of fiction.  Just think Law and Order if Jesse L Martin was catching criminals in a giant robot.

 

#4-The Macross Franchise (Super Dimensional Fortress Macross, Macross II, Macross Plus, Macross 7, Macross Zero, Macross F and Macross Delta)

I’ll be honest here, I haven’t seen the original version of Macross save for what I saw from Robotech.  Still, this wide universe of transforming mecha flying across the stars is still one of the key pillars of the Giant Robot Genre.  The love triangles, the rivalries, the intergalactic throwdowns, the transforming battleships, and, of course, the music.  Each entry of the Macross Franchise boasts a stellar soundtrack, with Yoko Kanno providing the game changing soundtracks for Macross Plus and Macross F.  Music is the key uniting force of this universe.  And sometimes it outshines all the flashy mechs.  I cant wait to see how the Macross Universe continues to grow when Macross Delta premieres later this year.

 

#3-Martian Successor Nadesico

This was an Anime that honored the Mecha Genre while also poking fun at it.  A pilot who’s dream is to cook.  His childhood friend is a beautiful but ditzy commander.  The most serious person of the whole crew is a 12 year old girl.  And there’s an avid love for Anime amongst some of the crew (a few of whom were even voice actors?) Throw all of them into the middle of an intergalactic conflict and give them the key to the most advanced battleship known to man and you’ve got a very funny and very heartfelt ride.  Nadesico is a title I haven’t watched in a bit and I would love to review it for this blog sometime.  Might have to change up some plans later in the year.

 

#2-Neon Genesis Evangelion

This was one of the first titles I reviewed on the Anime Corner and it’s still a staple of my Anime experience.  The giant robots are almost an after thought to all the human drama unfolding on screen.  Will Shinji ever man up and save the world?  Will he ever appreciate having not one but three key women in his life, all of whom are total hotties (though one might be his mom which is pretty creepy…)  The answer to those two questions is no.  But Evangelion is still a series that is required viewing for every Anime fan.  And if you’re not 100% satisfied with the original series, or its theatrical finale, then the Rebuild of Evangelion series might just be for you…until you get to Evangelion 3.33…man 4.44 has a lot to accomplish if it wants to save this project.

 

#1-Rahxephon

This one is actually the next on the docket of titles to review once Bamboo Blade has wrapped up.  Evangelion showed us the darker side of mecha.  Rahxephon went deeper but made it a bit less depressing…even with all of the end of the world shenanigans going on.  The cast is much more likeable.  The animation is gorgeous.  The mecha look so unique (yes even the Moose Gundam that is the Rahxephon).  And it’s just such an attention grabber.  You wont realize you need to take a break until you’re more than five episodes in.  I think this series gets a bit of neglect, with many labeling it an Eva Clone.  Well Rahxephon is an experience that shouldn’t be missed out on.  And I’ll be sure to explain why in more detail in the next couple of weeks. 

Bamboo Blade Part 5 Episodes 14-17

With their team complete, the Muroe High Kendo Team continues the journey to Nationals.  Each team member is growing in strength and confidence thanks to the inspiration that is Tama.  Even the Machido girls, reuniting with the Muroe Girls for a training camp, cant help but notice how much stronger their friendly rivals have become.  But with growth comes new challenges.  Kirino has a hidden emergency that threatens to derail her progress in Kendo.  And when Muroe goes up against Tozyo High, Tama encounters an opponent of dark intent.  When pushed to the limit, how far will Tama go to get justice against the evilest opponent she has ever faced…and will Kojiro be ok with her actions?

This week saw the return of my favorite Muroe Frenemies and some interesting drama, some more unnecessary than others.

I could’ve sworn that Azuma on the team was a sealed deal last week.  Nope, I was wrong.  And that I think resulted in a little time wasted (we even got another Rami appearance and I think she’s the most pointless character in the series so far).  Really, I think we could have skipped that episode all together and gone right to the training camp.  The return of Ishibashi and the Machido Girls was as fun as I expected.  I’m still waiting on their inevitable spin off story.  You had to love Tama a lot though.  Her death glare to her father should he touch her Anime recordings was hilarious, as was Tama’s fire eyed good morning stare to her teammates and guests (FEAR THE POWER OF TAMA THE OTAKU!!!...but actually more on that in a sec).  In addition to the Machido Girls, we got a couple of sweet scenes between Kojiro and Ms. Yoshikawa.  Could there be more going on between those two?  She’s certainly cute enough to warrant being a potential love interest.  And she’s an old school gamer, def Kojiro’s kind of girl (Genesis over SNES though? I think not).

The second half of the set got started with some unnecessary drama, well unenecessary given the general tone of this show.  It was scary to see Kirino’s mom unconscious.  But given how laid back Bamboo Blade usually is, it was kind of underwhelming to see that Kirino’s mom had overworked herself silly and that Kirino had to take her place at the shop for a bit.  Seriously, it’s called a phone Kirnino, CALL SOMEONE!!!  Still, Saya’s worry of her best friend was touching.  What drama was surprisingly effective was what happened when we got to the Prelims. 

Tama faced the ultimate opponent this week, the commander of Tozyo High, Koishi.  What a real piece of work: doing anything necessary to win, including hurting an opponent before a match even starts.  And she does it with such sincerity and false sense of modesty.  That cat eyed smile made me sick that such a girl was even allowed to hold a Bamboo Sword.   But again, beware the power of Tama the Otaku.  Though if Kojiro’s reaction is anything, Tama might have gone too far.  Is it because of the throat strike she used, or her not telling anyone about her injury?  Either way, Koishi’s plan backfired in the worst way when Tama went all out…and then happily offered to help her up. Guaranteed, Koishi wont ever be the same after that match.

After a little bit of forced tension this week, it looks like we’ll get some nice fallout from this match.  Not that I don’t like the humor (I love it) but fake outs like with Kirino’s mom are kind of cheap.  The stare off between Kojiro and Tama is going to offer some good character growth im sure.  Catch ya next week for more Bamboo Blade.

FIF#5- Fate/Kaleid Liner Prisma Illya

Illyasviel von Einsbern has always dreamed of a world of magic.  Little does she know, it’s closer to her than she thinks.  When two bickering magical guardians, Rin and Luviagelita, lose their magical wands, and their mission in the process, Illya and a mysterious girl named Miyu, get the chance to take their place as Magical Girls.  With their sentient wands, Ruby and Sapphire, along with Rin and Luvia (them begrudgingly) guiding them, Illya and Miyu must collect seven magical cards holding seven heroic spirits for the wizard Zeltech.  It could be a fun adventure…if tempers, rivalries and actual magical threats don’t kill Illya and her new friends first.  You think you know Fate/Stay Night?  Wait til you see it with a dash of Magical Girl wonder.

Cutesy character designs, talking magical wands with a sales pitch about becoming Magical Girls, Sailor Moon transformations, a mission that smells of Dragon Ball…uhhhh yeah…this is about as far from Fate/Stay Night as you could possible get.

In my mission to take in as much Fate/Stay material as I can, I stumbled across this little title.  I know what it looked like when I saw it.  But there’s a difference between expectation and actually witnessing it with your own eyes.  I almost figured this was sort of like the 5 min comedy skits that were featured in the Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood OVA Collection.  Nope, this is a full fledged Fate/Stay Night parody.  It’s taken the characters we know and love from the main storyline and throwing them into the most outrageous scenario possible.  Anyone who’s ever wanted to see the femme mages of the Fate/Stay universe powering up as Magical Girls will be very pleased.  As for a more recent newcomer to the franchise…this was just weird. 

Even the first episode was a little bizzare.  It was easy to recognize everyone: Illya, Shiro, Rin, Illya’s two bodyguards.  I could even remember Luvia from her brief cameo at the end of Fate/Stay Night: Unlimited Blade Works.  But seeing them all…not chibi-fied but rather cutesy-fied was strange.  Actually no, it was the talking wands that took it for me.  Illya’s wand, Ruby, is at the forefront of things and she’s just a bit too much camp, playing up the fairy godmother angle like nobodys business.  It makes me miss Kiro from Cardcaptor Sakura.  At least I can take a tiny talking stuffed teddy over a spagetti moving like wand who sounds more like Captain Ginyu trying to focus more on style points than actual training.  Poor Illya, her mind was as confused as mine. 

Now there was a little to like.  Being a big Rin fan, anytime she was on screen, I was invested.  She’s played a mentor role in each version of Fate/Stay thus far for Shiro (who here is more Illya’s would be love interest).  And here, save for a little more attitude than usual (mostly cause she lost her want to Illya), she’s still at it, guiding the poor newbie along the path thrust upon her without much choice.  I’d be lying if I said I didn’t chuckle a little bit at all of the nonsense happening on screen.  This is, more or less, a parody after all.  This is just an outlet for the Fate/Stay cast to have some fun outside of life or death Holy Grail War.  If you want a more normal/serious take, stick with the core Fate/Stay series (FSN and Unlimited Blade Works).

For all it’s strangeness, Fate/Kaleid is pretty short, only ten episodes.  So after clearing two episodes, and only barely making it to this Miyu character yet, I guess I’m willing to stick with it, maybe pop it in every once in a while and see where it goes.  Whoever thought Fate/Stay Night and Magical Girls would make a good combination probably had one of the most bizzare fantasy dreams of all time.  Still, with all the costumes we see for Illya, Rin and Luvia, I’m shocked I havent seen these looks at more conventions. 

Dragon Ball Z: ROCK THE DRAGON Marathon Part 7

(Welcome, one and all, to the Dragon Ball Z: ROCK THE DRAGON Movie Marathon, here at the Anime Corner. For the next couple of weeks, I’ll be posting reviews for all 15 Dragon Ball Z movies, from Dead Zone to Resurrection F.  A couple of notes to remember about these movies: For the most part, these are not series cannon (those that are, I will point out when I get to them).  They don’t fit into the series at all.  There isn’t even a need for backstory.  Everyone’s favorite fighting warriors club is thrown into a life or death situation with a villain of the flick.  That’s all the basics there.  You may see some familiar faces that may confuse where they fit into any timeline.  But just treat them all as what they are, stand alone, mini universe tales.  Everyone good?  Ok, let’s summon the Eternal Dragon and get these thoughts shared.)

Part 7

Movie 14-Battle of Gods (God and God)

After a slumber that’s lasted an eternity, Beerus, God of Destruction, has awoken.  Upon hearing that his long time nusciance, Frieza, has been slain by a Saiyan, Beerus seeks the one who finished him.  Traveling to Earth with his aid Weiss, Beerus encounters the Z Fighters and their families during Bulma’s birthday.  When the trouble begins, Beerus proves worthy of his name as none of the Z-Fighters, even Goku or Vegeta, are a match for him.  Goku’s going to have to take it to a whole new level, beyond Super Saiyan, if he wants to save the world this time.  To battle a God...Goku will have to become a God himself.

Battle of Gods was kind of a big deal for the Anime community.  It had been 18 years since the last Dragon Ball Z movie (Wrath of the Dragon).  Could Dragon Ball Z still measure up with a slew of imitators, imposters and successors all around it?  Well…for the most part no.  Battle of Gods was as far removed from the older Z-Films as you could get.  It seemed more focused on humor than action and at times, it was downright cringe worthy.  Seeing Vegeta have to dial up the clown factor to appease Lord Beerus was so sad, it was like they were trying to turn him into a more adult version of Goten and Trunks (though he was redeemed during his freak out when Beerus struck Bulma.  Huh, I guess he does care).  And why the hell is Emperor Pilaf here with his cronies?  They served their purpose a long time ago and don’t really matter in this age of Dragon Ball.  This slows the movie down to the point where, for a moment, I didn’t want to finish it, even with the prospect of a new level of Super Saiyan to be discovers (SUPER SAIYAN GOD!!!).  But once the action got going, things got a lot better.  Beerus and Weiss, for all of their laid back laziness, are both pretty fascinating and fun additions to the Dragon Ball universe.  The fact that Beerus is able to go toe to toe with Goku as Super Saiyan 3 and defeat him is nothing to scoff at.  He does feel like a credible threat that none of the Z-Fighters can defeat.  I would have liked this film better if they’d dumped most of the comedy and skipped right to the action.  I would have even been more ok with everyone getting defeated right away if we’d started things sooner.  Either way, Battle of Gods isn’t the triumphant return of Z I was looking for, even with familiar faces I grew up back once again.  I can only hope things get better from this point cause there’s good ground work for more.  Just…less humor, more fists flying, please?

Oh and yes I know Beerus is supposed to be modeled after an Egyptian Cat diety…but those ears make him look like a bunny to me and that will never change.

6/10

 

Movie 15-Resurrection F (Resurrection of F)

For the last few years, Goku and his friends have dealt with powerful enemies: The Androids, Cell, Majinn Buu, Lord Beerus.   Peace seems like it can last a lot longer now.  But others have been waiting for this cadre of enemies to be cleared out as well.  With the power void of evil temporarily empty, long time servants of the tyrant Frieza use the Dragon Balls and their own technology to resurrect the evil overlord.  Frieza is not about to let the same mistakes happen again.  Taking time to train, he returns to Earth stronger than ever before and he is dying to settle the score with the Saiyans.  Will personal training from Lord Beerus himself be enough for Goku and Vegeta to slay their oldest and deadliest enemy once again?

Now THIS is what Battle of Gods wanted to be.

You know how you never truly know how much you’ve missed something until it shows up again?  Well that’s how I felt when Frieza returned.  That arrogance, the smugness, the drop of a dime decision to kill any expendable soldier.  Since I came into Dragon Ball Z around the second season, Frieza was the first villain of Z for me.  He was a threat, he was fierce.  And even if he never truly comes off as such in this movie, it’s still great to see him again.  Now what do I mean by “never truly comes off as a threat”?  Well, even with his new level of strength, the way Frieza battles Goku is a lot like an afternoon spar for the Saiyan hero.  Heck, the two are trading jabs like friendly old rivals, though Frieza still fully intends to kill them all.  I cant explain it, but I was fine with this, even more than the full blown comedy routine that was the first half of Battle of Gods.  In a way though, this was the essence of the older Z films: a simple or familiar villain, conquer the world ambitions, long fight with the heroes.  Resurrection F doesn’t try to do anything really different, probably making the nostalgia factor a bit high for me.  What made this more fun is, even if the scene did go on a bit long, we got a Z-Team that could handle their own.  Goten and Trunks were (Thankfully) left out of this one so we could get a solid Gohan, Piccolo, Krillin, Tien and freaking Master Roshi reunion.  Even Vegeta finally gets his Frieza beatdown he’s been waiting for his whole life.  As for that weird Jaco character, I’m guessing he’s from Dragon Ball Super but his presence didn’t really matter to me, he was pretty forgettable.  I even liked Beerus and Weiss a lot better here than in Battle of Gods, and they were my favorite part of that one.  All in all, this is a good bookmark for the Z Film Franchise.  This definitely isn’t the last we’ll see of this universe or these characters.  Good (Dead Zone, Resurrection F), Bad (Lord Slug, Battle of Gods), or totally horrific (Brolly Second Coming, Bio Brolly), it’s always an exciting time when our first heroes of Anime return for a visit.

8/10

And that at last concludes this little Pre-Easter special on the Anime Corner.  What more is there to say than what I said above right there?  Dragon Ball Z is still a key pinnacle in the lives of many an Anime fan and always will be, especially for this writer here.  I hope that it stays that way and that a whole new generation will find the joy in a special Japanese intro song that goes something like, “CHA LA HEAD CHA LA!!!!”

Anime Corner’s back to its normal routine next week with new Bamboo Blade on Monday; a new T5W Wednesday and FIF on Friday.  Oh, maybe not fully normal.  I forgot, a special day is next week.  What occasion might this be?  Well…it’s a surprise of course but I think the choice of title I’ll be looking at will more than suit the special event.  See you around everyone. 

T5W#32-Top 5 Favorite Anime Duels

So the mother of all UNECESSARY throwdowns arrives this Easter weekend.  To describe how unexcited I am for Batman v Superman would take an incredible amount of time and explanation.  BUT this is an Anime blog, I’m not here to talk about that.  What I am going to talk about, are my five favorite Anime duels.  These are the battles that happened for a reason, that we’d been building up to for 26-52 episodes or more.  They weren’t shoe horned in just to get the fanbase divided.  There was purpose and there was pay off, unlike…you know what, let’s just get to this list before I start cursing one of the potentially worst comic book movies ever (the reviews haven’t been kind already and it’s hilarious).

#5-Amuro vs. Char (Gundam: Char’s Counterattack)

This was one of the longest running and most developed rivalries in all of Anime.  It was tough to choose between which final battle between these two should have had a place on this list.  In the end, I had to go with Char’s Counterattack.  With Axis on it’s final approach to Earth, Amuro’s Nu Gundam and Char’s Sazabi enter on final duel.  When the blasters and funnels and beam sabers fail, it comes down to fists and man does Amuro throw down.  It’s strange to think that Amuro and Char could have been friends.  Their hearts are in the same place but their methods are far different.  And there’s the fact that their shared romantic interest was killed in the middle of one of their battles.  These two may have never found true peace.  But their long war ended here and it was a glorious ending to a key chapter in the Gundam Universe.

 

#4-Ichigo vs. Byakuya (Bleach)

This was during the section of Bleach I think is still the best (the second and third seasons).  Ichigo had pushed himself to the limit fighting Lieutenants and Captains non stop since he arrived in the Soul Society.  But it was all leading up to the fight with the man who took his friend, Rukia.  The man who was willing to let his sister die to see justice done, Byakuya Kuchiki.  Here, we saw Ichigo’s bankai in action and Byakuya actually threatened by it a little.  We even saw Ichigo’s dark side emerge for a bit of fun.  In the end, this was another fight of ideologies and ways of life.  In the end, Ichigo came out the winner.  But Byakuya was changed as well.  He may have remained calm, stern and borderline emotionless for the rest of the series.  But he was always kinder, more appretiative of Ichigo and his comrades.  And best of all, he fought to save the only family he had left, Rukia.  That’s a victory in and of itself.

 

#3-Kenshin vs. Saito (Rurouni Kenshin)

This was the opening fight for one of the most beloved arcs of the Rurouni Kenshin Anime (and the manga for that matter).  After a decade long absence, Kenshin’s old rival, Hajime Saito, returns to his life.  He has a mission but after a couple of minutes in the same room, Saito’s willing to put his duty aside to settle an old score.  The situation gets more intense with each passing second.  The more Saito lays into Kenshin, the more the Rurouni’s Battosai persona returns.  Soon, Kaoru and the others are looking at a duel straight out of the Bakumatsu that solidified the new Japan.  This duel ends in a draw, having to be called off by Saito’s superior.  But this left no doubt in our minds that no one, even the main arc villain Shishio Makoto, could bring out Kenshin’s dark side like Saito could.  I only wish we could have seen this fight reach a proper conclusion…even if it meant the end of one of two of my favorite Anime characters.

 

#2-Shiro vs. Gilgamesh (Fate/Stay Night: Unlimited Blade Works) (SPOILER WARNING!!!)

I’ve talked about this fight before in a prior T5W, so I’ll be brief.  I had been waiting for two separate series (Fate/Zero and Fate/Stay Night: Unlimited Blade Works) for Gilgamesh to get what was coming to him.  His arrogance, his over powered Noble Phantasm.  I was so sick of him everytime he opened his mouth to look down upon others.  Shiro did a good job cutting him up.  But just when it seemed like Gilgamesh was going to be a sore loser and pull Shiro to Hell with him…BOOM HEADSHOT!!!!  I have never cheered or gone F*** YEAH so loudly watching such a moment in Anime in a long time.  Ahhhh…satisfaction.

#1-Kazuma vs. Ryuhou (S-CRY-ed)

I remember sitting in a friends dorm room watching this fight on Adult Swim.  These two had been rivals and even unlikely allies before the end of the series.  But one matter always needed to be settled, who was the stronger between Kazuma and Ryuhou.  What happened next was amazing.  First, both used their powers at all levels.  And then, when they had depleted their special abilities, were so tired and werery, they started punching each other.  Neither refused to go down.  It was like watching the Anime equivalent of Rocky and I could not look away.  The final victor was undecided, there’s even hints this fight went on much longer than what was shown in the episode.  For a decent Anime action series, it got one helluva legendary finale.

Dragon Ball Z: ROCK THE DRAGON Marathon Part 6

(Welcome, one and all, to the Dragon Ball Z: ROCK THE DRAGON Movie Marathon, here at the Anime Corner. For the next couple of weeks, I’ll be posting reviews for all 15 Dragon Ball Z movies, from Dead Zone to Resurrection F.  A couple of notes to remember about these movies: For the most part, these are not series cannon (those that are, I will point out when I get to them).  They don’t fit into the series at all.  There isn’t even a need for backstory.  Everyone’s favorite fighting warriors club is thrown into a life or death situation with a villain of the flick.  That’s all the basics there.  You may see some familiar faces that may confuse where they fit into any timeline.  But just treat them all as what they are, stand alone, mini universe tales.  Everyone good?  Ok, let’s summon the Eternal Dragon and get these thoughts shared.)

 

Part 6

Movie 11-Bio Brolly (Super Warrior Defeat!! I'll Be the Winner)

What looks to be a fight for easy money turns deadly quick.  A scientist seeking revenge of the Z-Fighters has recreated Brolly, the Legendary Super Saiyan, from DNA cells left over from his previous fight on Earth.  But this isn’t the Brolly from before.  He is now a bio morphic mess, insane, and incapable of stopping his destruction.  On their own with no back up, Trunks, Goten, 18 and Krillin are all that stands in Brolly’s way.  Can they put the Legendary Super Saiyan down for good?

Dear God in heaven…DID ANYONE WHO EVER WATCHED DRAGON BALL Z EVER WISH FOR GOTEN AND TRUNKS TO TAKE OVER THIS FRANCHISE???!!!!!  I swear, between this movie and Brolly: Second Coming, the anger levels this “Next Generation of Z” produces are enough to make me go Super Saiyan.  But possibly the worst of this monstrosity is how far Brolly has fallen himself.  He was once one of the most dangerous and terrifying Dragon Ball Z villains ever.  Now?  He’s just…a joke.  Yep, that’s what he is, that’s what these last couple of movies have been.  They’re a far cry from the Dragon Ball Z I knew.  And if I didn’t know things were going to get better, I’d say Dragon Ball Z was dead to me.  Crappy story, a waste of Android 18 (that’s two films now that squander good female protagonist potential infavor of tweedle dumb and tweedle dumb ass (seriously the fact that Goten probably cant read infuriates me)), and the lowest of the low points for any good villain…yeah this might be worse than Second Coming and I didn’t think I could rate any movie lower than that…but I have.  Dragon Ball Z: The Movie-Bio Brolly is now the proud holder of a place here in Anime Corner history.  The recipient of the very first…

0/10

 

Movie 12-Fusion Reborn (The Rebirth of Fusion!! Goku and Vegeta)

An act of negligence leads to a mass takeover of other world.  The demon Janemba emerges in the chaos and frees many of Earth’s old evils.  While Gohan, Trunks and Goten try to keep things under control on Earth, Goku goes to fight Janemba.  Outmatched, even as a Super Saiyan 3, Goku finds help in an unlikely ally, Vegeta.  The long time rivals realize that if they are going to win this time, they’ll need to fight as one…literally.  When the fusion dance ends, will Gogeta, the fusion of two of the universe’s mightiest warriors, be enough to restore peace to the afterlife?

Talk about a bounce back.  This is my absolute favorite of the Dragon Ball Z movie series.  Even some of the things I despise about this era of Z somehow manage to work.  That could be because I think Hitler is the only enemy Goten and Trunks are capable of fighting and not messing things up.  Maybe it could be because it was cool to see Frieza and Cell back…and dispatched just as quickly.  Maybe it’s because the animation looks better than ever, especially the CG teleportation.  In the end, it’s my big two.  Goku and Vegeta teaming up to stop a foe they can’t beat on their own…though Super Saiyan 3 Goku does get some nice hits in.  Their fusion, Goteta, is the epitome of cool.  Sure Janemba isn’t totally fleshed out.  But like the Inuyasha movies, the villains aren’t meant to be memorable.  They’re there to give the good guys an enemy to fight, that’s it, all basics.  Still, as far as these movies go, this is a step in the direction of how good, how REALLY good, a full length Z film could be.

8/10

 

Movie 13-Wrath of the Dragon (Dragon Fist Explosion!! If Goku Can't Do It, Who Will?)

The saving of an old man may end up meaning the downfall of the Z-Fighters.  At his request, the Dragon Balls are gathered to open a mystical music box.  Within is Tapion, an ancient warrior who takes a shine to Trunks.  But more was unleashed as well: a monster called Harudegan.  With Tapion unable to face his long time foe, it falls to Goku and the others to save the day.  And Goku’s got a brand new technique in store that he’s been saving for just such an occasion.

Wrath of the Dragon addresses some of the most interesting issues with Dragon Ball Z as a whole.  For starters, there’s a lot of untapped potential in the individual storylines.  Also, the group fights that all end the same way.  This is Trunks’ movie.  His bond with Tapion produces some of the best character beats he has gotten since I first saw his annoying younger self.  He grows and it’s great to watch.  Plus we actually get an origin for his famous sword wielded by his Future self (the timeline taking on it’s own version of events I suppose).  Trunks could have easily taken down Harudegan if he had the chance to go Super Saiyan and use his sword.  But here’s where we get to the other problem…to quote Team Four Star, “Goku is a kill stealing M**********r.”  Now the movie is named after Goku’s bad ass Dragon Fist Technique so it had to pop up somehow.  But still, this was a win Trunks needed more than anyone, why did Goku have to come in and take it?  Ugh, it just bugs me.  Ok time to wrap this up.  Wrath of the Dragon looks great.  It would be a fun double feature to watch Dead Zone then this one just to see how far the animation has come for these movies.  Otherwise, if this was to be the last Dragon Ball Z movie ever, I think it should have gone out with a higher note on things.  Leave things for the next generation Goku and quit hogging all the kills or at least share them like you did in Fusion Reborn.

6/10

Luckily for us, this would turn out to NOT be the last Dragon Ball Z film.  And we’ll get to those two next.

Dragon Ball Z: ROCK THE DRAGON Marathon Part 5

(Welcome, one and all, to the Dragon Ball Z: ROCK THE DRAGON Movie Marathon, here at the Anime Corner. For the next couple of weeks, I’ll be posting reviews for all 15 Dragon Ball Z movies, from Dead Zone to Resurrection F.  A couple of notes to remember about these movies: For the most part, these are not series cannon (those that are, I will point out when I get to them).  They don’t fit into the series at all.  There isn’t even a need for backstory.  Everyone’s favorite fighting warriors club is thrown into a life or death situation with a villain of the flick.  That’s all the basics there.  You may see some familiar faces that may confuse where they fit into any timeline.  But just treat them all as what they are, stand alone, mini universe tales.  Everyone good?  Ok, let’s summon the Eternal Dragon and get these thoughts shared.)

Part 5

Movie 9-Bojack Unbound (The Galaxy at the Brink!! The Super Incredible Guy)

When Cell destroyed the King Kai planet during the Cell Games, a seal was broken.  This seal held in a prison, The Space Pirate Bojack and his crew.  Now free, Bojack heads to Earth to destroy the planet Kai holds most valued.  The Z-Fighters are already participating in a World Tournament when the threat arrives and leap into action.  But this is a strong crew of buccaneers and Gohan has not fully mastered his new Super Saiyan 2 abilities.  With Goku now dead and unable to help, how can the Z-Fighters get out of this one?

This wasn’t bad at all.  While Bojack is more of a one note, try to take over the world villain, it’s still a treat to see everyone in the Z line up participating in this one.  And how cool was it to see Tien and Trunks fight each other in a tournament?  Sure Trunks won but Tien was a great sport about it.  Not to mention, we get one of the best versions of Gohan from this era of Z: at his prime with his Super Saiyan 2 powers.  Sure he and the others get knocked around (Krillin’s taken out wayyyy to early on and why were Tien and Yamcha even around).  But that’s kind of to be expected at this point.  What is interesting is how little time Goku has.  For once the saving of the day isn’t left to just him.  Hell even Trunks manages to get a kill in.  This was a good direction to take the Z Film franchise in.  Leave in to the next generation, THIS GENERATION.  Even the humor with Mr. Satan wasn’t too bad…ok it did drag on a little longer than it needed to but it never distracted too badly.  This was the last time we’d see this group in this time period.  So while the villain may have been utterly forgettable, a step back from the terrifying Brolly, this was still a fun Z-Fighting fest and one of the best watches in this marathon.

8/10

 

Movie 10-Brolly: Second Coming (The Dangerous Duo! Super Warriors Never Rest)

It seemed impossible.  But the impossible has happened.  Brolly, the Legendary Super Saiyan, has survived his battle with Goku and the Z-Fighters.  And now he’s coming to Earth to finish off the Saiyans once and for all.  With Goku dead, Brolly seeks the next best thing: his sons Gohan and Goten.  The sons of Goku, along with Trunks and Videl, leap into action.  And just this once, it looks like Goku might have to break a few afterlife rules to help his family survive Brolly’s revenge.

So…this was where Dragon Ball Z was starting to become bad in my eyes.  Making Gohan a grown up ended up being one of the worst executed decisions ever.  The appearance of Goten and Trunks only served to aggravate me to no end, especially since Trunks as a kid was the most annoying brat ever, a far cry from his more bad ass Future Predecessor.  What makes this all relevant?  This is a Goten and Trunks movie and it is downright horrible.  From the stupid piss jokes to the fact that Brolly is even here to begin with, this is one Dragon Ball movies across all generations that never needed to exist.  The action is tiresome, the characters don’t do much except piss me off and nothing happens for the first half until Brolly shows up.  We get a Dragon Ball hunt with Goten, Trunks, and poor Videl (who was one of the best but most underutilized female characters this show could have done a lot with)…NO ONE WANTS TO SEE THAT!!!!  Is there anything good Brolly: Second Coming?  Only credit I can give it besides giving Videl some movie screen time is seeing the triple Kamehameha courtesy of Goku, Gohan and Goten…that’s a cool image.  Otherwise, pass this one up or kill it with fire…the choice is yours just don’t watch it.

3/10

Bamboo Blade-Part 4 Episode 11-13

 

The mission to find the elusive fifth member of the Muroe High Kendo team is well underway.  No section of the school is safe from Kirino and Saya’s frantic search.  Even if they can find her, will this Azuma Satori really want to join?  She might have to when Muroe enters a joint practice with Seimei High School.  And what happens when the happy go lucky Muroe team comes face to face with an instructor so fierce, he makes Kendo seem scary?  Speaking of scary, who’s this strange stalker girl who’s got Miyako of all people fearing for her life?  It wouldn’t be a day at Muroe High without a little bit of crazy.

As promised, I present to you Part 2 of yesterdays intended update.

It only took 12 episodes but we finally got our fifth team member.  Azuma is a very welcome addition to the cast.  Fallible but also likeable, she’s the only person who has a chance against Tama.  If Kojiro can work out an arrangement with the (quite lovely) Yoshikawa as to helping Azuma balance Kendo and school, she’ll be a great asset to the team.  You had to love Kirino and Saya’s never ending battle to get Azuma to join the team.  They pretty much turned into kidnappers at one point.

We got to see a whole other side to Kendo training with the guest appearance of Seimei High School.  Their instructor, Hayashi, was a very disciplined and tough teacher.  It was a very different look to how training goes compared to the more laid back style at Muroe.  For a moment, I thought Hayashi Sensei would speak out loud against the over energetic Muroe team.  But low and behold, he ended up being impressed.  While he vowed to keep teaching his way, it’s good to see he’ll take his visit to Muroe to heart and make things a little more fun. 

Hayashi wasn’t the only one blown away by Muroe’s performance.  The Seimei girls practically wanted to steal Tama away from the team by the time their stay ended.  Tama took on the role of instructor and inspiration this time.  She managed to convince a young first year to stay on the Seimei team just by demonstrating the power of her strikes.  Tama makes this sport look so cool and many people she comes across aspire to be just as good as she is.  Overall, Tama once again stole the show, not just as the golden girl of the practice meet, but also as that lovable Otaku.  While the Rami episode was pretty forgettable, Tama’s heartfelt description of a famous Anime creator is probably the happiest and most enthused Tama we’ve seen yet.  And that carried into her teaching the Seimei Team and reawakening Azuma’s fighting spirit. 

As I said, the Rami moments were kind of out there for me.  Her stalker storyline had a loop thrown when it showed that she was virtually in love with Miyako and not seeking to end her.  Still, it felt like a waste of time.  This was especially true in the fact that we had a whole episode dedicated to this instead of going right for Azuma.  Again, 12 episodes without a full team, that’s kind of pushing things.  Sure Miya continues to lose her cool when Rami’s around, but the joke wears thin quick for me.

With Azuma all but confirmed, our little troupe finally has a full team.  Not sure what lies next, it’s a long way to Nationals.  But we’re halfway done with this series.  It’s time to see our five noble female warriors fighting together at last.

See ya next week (no interruptions this time, promise).

Bamboo Blade Part 3 Episodes 8-10

Following their narrow victory over Machido High, the Muroe High Kendo Team continues its training under Kojiro’s guidance.  While the battle might be over for now, there are battles to be fought outside of the Kendo Dojo.  Tamaki seeks a part time job to attain a much sought after Anime collection.  Kojiro winds up in a war with an old hag that could cost him his job at Muroe High.  And incase everyone has forgotten, the team is still down a fifth female member.  That won’t stop Kojiro from entering the team in a new local tournament to ensure his team gets more experience…and that he can keep his job if they should win.

I have to make a minor apology before I get started with the next review.  It’s been a rough week for a number of personal reasons.  Because of that and work, I haven’t been able to get all of the episodes for todays set watched in time.  So I’m working a compromise.  I’m just going to split this set down the middle and review 3 episodes today and I’ll review the other 3 tomorrow.  So sorry again.  This may work out a little down the line for the final six episodes but I’ll figure that out when I get to it.

Anyway, onto the review.

So after a Kendo heavy set of episodes, it makes sense that it was time to step back and take a breather, reflect on a few things, and figure out where the team was to go from it’s victory over Machido High. 

Turns out, almost everyone got their own little adventure outside of the Dojo.  The most entertaining was Tama’s quest to obtain a special Anime DVD box set, “With a nice set of special features.”  I love that Tama is a full blown Otaku, something I know many can relate to.  I also like how she determines the best way to get her item is to get a job.  Here we got to see a whole new side to Tama.  Put a bamboo sword in her hand and she’s a beast.  Put her behind a store counter in a cute outfit and she’s shaking like a leaf.  It’s like real social interaction is almost her kryptonite.  It didn’t help matters that her boss (who seemed nice enough) looked spooky as hell and was carrying what looked like a riding crop with her at all times.  Thank God it was a duster and not some creepy 50 Shades of Grey toy.

 

Kojiro’s life hit a bit of a slump, well more than he was already in.  His epic store clash with the big lipped old woman was hilarious.  He just couldn’t catch a break with this lady.  Plus she had to find a way to keep ahead when it looked like Kojiro might win a tiny battle in this out of nowhere war.  The slow motion, lullaybe melody shout out between them put a smirk on my face.  I was just simply entertained.  Sadly, her connections to the school put Kojiro in such jeopardy, he was a ghost during practice that no one could see (an equally hilarious moment).

A couple of arc weren’t as good this set.  Miyako’s mysterious stalker reappearing in her life was more “huh?” than entertaining.  Sure it took away the sweet and innocent routine and her evil dark side out of the equation for a bit.  But is Rami going to add anything to the story or is she there just to rile up Miyako in an unexpected way?  Either way, it wasn’t as fun as Tama and Kojiro’s stories.  Oh and yeah, WE’RE 10 EPISODES IN AND STILL NO TEAM MEMBER #5!!! That shouldn’t irk me.  Important characters are introduced all across the map in an Anime series, even 2-3 episodes before the end.  There was hope though.  Whoever this Azuma is, let’s hope she’s as good as her classmates hype her up to be…and that Kirino can remember her name and track her down.

Much like K-ON, this series doesn’t need the topic it’s centered around to be a fun watch.  In the dojo or outside of it, I’m having fun watching these characters in their various adventures.  And there was growth to, particularly for Tama, for Kojiro…I guess?  Plus, we’ve got a new end goal in mind: Nationals.  Let’s hope we get Azuma in and up to speed before then.  Who knows what she’ll add to this already quirky clan of underdogs.

And you’ll find that out…tomorrow when I post the second half of this set.  Sorry again about the delay but I’ll do my best to keep going at it, roadblocks and all cause this is what I do, especially when times are rough: Watch Anime, review it, smile.  Simple as that.