T5W#339-Top 5 Thoughts on Mobile Suit Gundam: Cucuruz Doan's Island

After a couple of years of setbacks and delays thanks to the Pandemic, the Mobile Suit Gundam Franchise is coming back in a big way.  Sure we did get Gundam Hathaway last year but in 2022 we’ll be getting a brand new TV Series, Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch of Mercury, as well as another new movie (remember when there was an almost 20 year gap in between original theatrical releases and now it’s one every 3-4 years?).  This new movie, however, isn’t 100% new though.  The announcement of a film based on Cucuruz Doan’s Island got my attention the second I heard it and now that new info is coming to light…I have some thoughts to share, and I’ve narrowed them down to five.  Ergo, todays Top 5 Wednesday will cover my Top 5 Thoughts on Mobile Suit Gundam: Cucuruz Doan's Island, which is currently due out in Japan in the Summer of 2022.

Say, I Love You Part 1 Episodes 1-4

As a young girl, Mei Tachibana experienced friendships so toxic, it’s caused her to hate the very thought of making friends.  Now in High School, Mei is a social outcast, walling herself off and making herself one of the most despised girls in school.  That all changes when she accidentally strikes Yamato Kurosawa, the most popular boy in school.  Yamato finds himself drawn to the isolated Mei and wants to become her friend.  It’s been years since Mei’s had anything resembling a positive friendship.  Could Yamato break that spell…and could more blossom from this newfound friendship?

Well we’ve crossed into February, aka the Month of Love and Romance.  This year, I’m already set to look at the mega popular hit Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai…but at the request of a good friend of mine, I’m gonna tackle another romantic Anime as well and this one…hmmmm this is definitely outside my wheelhouse.  I’d never even heard of Say, I Love You until my friend kept bringing it up in conversation.  Seeing as how I had some empty review slots to fill (thanks in part to me not doing Katsucon this year) and I haven’t done a review request from this friend, why the heck not.  So, Say, I Love You…interesting premise for sure.  How does a romance work between the most popular boy in school and the most anti social girl in existence?  The answer…is complicated.
 

Toonami Flashback Friday Episode 5-Going All In

By the Summer of 2000, Toonami had multiple Anime hits in their rotation.  Dragon Ball Z, Sailor Moon and Gundam Wing had taken America by storm and offered a little bit of something for everyone on Toonami.  The action block had become THE place to be Monday-Friday and by the Summer of 2000, the block had been given an extra hour due to its popularity.  While other non Anime series found their way into the fun like Reboot and Cartoon Networks own The Powerpuff Girls, Anime was now more at the front of Toonami’s arsenal than ever before.  Today on Toonami Flashback Friday, I’ll be looking briefly at 5 of those offerings.  I’ve reviewed most of them here on the blog already, one is in the process and the other…well who knows what the future holds.  Onto the collection.

 

Trese Part 2 Episodes 4-6

For some time now, Alexandra Trese has been receiving ominous warnings of an oncoming storm that will shatter the fragile peace between Humans and the Monsters of the Underworld.  Enemies from Trese’s past combine forces and soon all of Manila is under attack.  When one near fatal encounter hits too close to home, Trese finds herself thrown into the greatest battle of her life.  Between betrayals and revelations and in desperate need to call in every favor she has, will Alexandra live up to the expectations of her families lineage?  Or will all out war consume her city and possibly the world?

 
In many ways, I wish Trese was a series longer than 6 episodes and I wonder if more is planned in the future.  If not, the second half of the series definitely amps up the action and intensity and offers plenty of chilling and disgusting dark imagery to satisfy the action/horror fandom.  Sadly, little of this and the continued expansion of the amazing world of Filipino Folklore helps make the lead heroine any more likeable than last time.  Sure, some actual emotion does shine through from time to time but those moments are fleeing as Trese remains in one mode 24/7, “Ready.  Always Ready.”
 

T5W#338-Top 5 Final Fantasy VII Theme Songs

On January 31, 1997, the world of Video Games was forever changed with the release of a title that is still widely regarded as one of the greatest Video Games ever made (fans of VI will go to war over this for all time but that’s neither here nor there): Final Fantasy VII.  The game broke new grounds for JRPGS and thanks to a highly successful run on the original Playstation, it put Final Fantasy on the map in a big way, making each subsequent entry an event to watch out for.  Why did VII get so much praise?  Where to start?  The timeless story, the unforgettable characters, the gorgeous graphics, that heart shattering death scene…or all the above really.  For me and others, one critical element is the music.  Longtime Final Fantasy composer Nobuo Uematsu returned for his 7^th straight score for the series, creating tunes that have remained iconic staples of the entire franchise.  Today on Top 5 Wednesday as my offering to FFVII’s 25^th Anniversary, I’m counting down my picks for the Top 5 Final Fantasy VII Theme Songs, songs any hardcore gamer, JRPG fan or just fan of good music in general should have on a playlist somewhere.