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Michael Kerpan
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Re: Anime

#426 Post by Michael Kerpan » Sun May 02, 2021 8:47 am

Odd taxi is one of the 20 or so (!!!) shows I am following this season. It is indeed pretty intriguing -- though, at this point, I haven't a clue what is going on. Really great voice acting (in Japanese).

Only one show of the 20 is a candidate for dropping so far and, because it is on a day with little else on, it might linger on a bit longer than it might otherwise. Probably at least 10 of the shows will wind up ranking as "loved" or "liked very very much". A lot of the shows I'm watching are outside my normal range of interests -- but look and sound very good, so I can't break free.

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Re: Anime

#427 Post by colinr0380 » Sat Jun 05, 2021 6:12 am

Some interesting news in this month's Neo Magazine: apparently Manga Video as a brand name has now been retired. Manga Video had existed as a subsidiary of the US Funimation brand since it was bought in 2019, but now the rebranding has moved to the UK and so Manga Video is now being replaced by the unified Funimation one. Which is a bit of a shame to think that Manga Video was so dominant as a name in the retail VHS scene in the 1990s is no more. But as Jonathan Clements says in his article about the issue, Manga Video itself had a bit of a moribund 2000s after its 90s heyday, and there may be some hope that the logo and name may still retain a nostalgic cache enough to turn up again in the future. For now it might be best to celebrate its role in bringing so much anime to the UK from its first release of the English dubbed version of the First of the North Star movie to Akira, Legend of the Overfiend, Macross Plus and so many OVAs to VHS and eventually DVD and Blu-ray, as well as perhaps even more significantly contributing around a third of the budget for the original 1995 Ghost In the Shell film.

There's a great compilation of the 90s trailers here, starting off with the montage trailer that used to head up every tape (in the middle of the compilation there is also the great 'should be iconic' montage trailer for Tartan Video's 90s titles too! And I had forgotten until watching through that collection of trailers that Manga Video had co-produced with the BBC that Jan Svankmajer-esque harrowing mix of claymation and live action film The Secret Adventures of Tom Thumb!). I also particularly like that the Fist of the North Star trailer rather amusingly mangles a Winston Churchill quote with "never before have so many been killed so quickly by just one man!", and that lengthy Fist of the North Star trailer is particularly interesting when you know it is only really covering the first dozen or so episodes of the series and that Shin is only the first in a long, long series of antagonists! It also mixes up the two different main female characters of Julia and Mamiya, which is actually interesting as Ken in his grief, albeit briefly, sees Mamiya as being almost a twin of Julia.

____

I don't think we have mentioned it too much on the forum yet, but Neo Magazine keeps noting that the Demon Slayer film Infinity Train (which follows on from the first two seasons of the anime) has become the biggest grossing film in Japanese box office history, outgrossing the previous top titles Spirited Away and Your Name. There appears to be an Inception-style aspect to it, with the main characters being put to sleep by the demon they are tracking and then both tempted and subject to invasion inside their dreaming worlds. Which of course is a recurring theme in anime itself (Paprika and Urusei Yatsura: Beautiful Dreamer immediately come to mind, but with the train element I'm thinking about Nights On The Galactic Railroad as well. Whether any of that has any bearing on Demon Slayer: Infinity Train I have yet to find out of course!)

And they have a big article this month about the UK release of Goro Miyazaki's latest (albeit aesthetically quite different, as it it fully CGI) film Earwig and the Witch, which is based on a Diana Wynne Jones story, as Hayao Miyazaki's Howl's Moving Castle previously had been.

___
Oh, and MVM released Satoshi Kon's Paranoia Agent series on Blu-ray in the UK for the first time completely uncut this month (apparently the previous DVD release by MVM back in the mid 2000s had a few small edits made to its suicide scenes in episode 8)
Last edited by colinr0380 on Fri Aug 20, 2021 2:52 am, edited 2 times in total.

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Michael Kerpan
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Re: Anime

#428 Post by Michael Kerpan » Sat Jul 03, 2021 9:34 pm

Anime finished in June 2021 (comments on request) ;-)

New seasonal shows:

Koi to Yobu ni wa Kimochi Warui , literally “It Feels Bad to Call This Love” (Koikimo) (Naomi Nakayama, 2021) (Tokyo – Shibuya, Setagaya, Ebisu, etc.)

Joran: Princess of Snow and Blood (Susumu Kudō, 2021) (Mostly early 1930s Tokyo)

Sayonara Watashi no Cramer (Farewell, My Dear Cramer) (Seiki Takuno, 2021) (Warabi, Saitama)

Sayonara Watashi no Cramer: First Touch (Seiki Takuno, 2021)

Higehiro: After Being Rejected, I Shaved and Took in a High School Runaway (Hige o Soru. Soshite Joshi Kōsei o Hirou) (Manabu Kamikita, 2021) (mostly Tokyo, and near Sapporo, Hokkaido)

Mars Red (Kōhei Hatano & Shinya Sadamitsu, 2021)

Super Cub (Toshiro Fujii, 2021) (Hokuto, Yamanashi, trips to Kamakura and Kyushu)

Seijo no Maryoku wa Bannou Desu (The Saint's Magic Power is Omnipotent) (Shōta Ihata, 2021)

Dragon ie wo kau (Dragon Goes House-Hunting) (Haruki Kasugamori, 2021)

Odd Taxi (Baku Kinoshita, 2021) (Tokyo)

Yakunara Mug Cup Mo (Let’s Make a Mug Cup Too) (Jun Kamiya, 2021) (Tajimi, Gifu)

SSSS.DYNAZENON (Akira Amemiya, 2021) (All around Tokyo metropolitan area)

Mashiro no oto (Those Snow White Tones) (Hiroaki Akagi, 2021) (Tokyo, esp. Yanaka. Taito; Tsugaru, Aoyama)

86. Eighty-six (Toshimasa Ishii, 2021)

Shadows House (Kazuki Ōhashi, 2021)

Ijiranaide, Nagatoro-san (Don’t Toy with Me, Miss Nagatoro) (Hirokazu Hanai, 2021) (Hayama, Kanagawa)

Bishounen Tanteidan (Pretty Boy Detective Club) (Akiyuki Shinbo & Hajime Ootani, 2021)

Fumetsu no Anata e (To Your Eternity) (Masahiko Murata, 2021)

Osananajimi ga Zettai ni Makenai Rabu Kome, literally "A Romantic Comedy Where a Childhood Friend Absolutely Will Not Lose" (Osamake: Romcom Where The Childhood Friend Won't Lose) (Takashi Naoya, 2021) (Hannō, Saitama)

Vivy: Fluorite Eye's Song (Shinpei Ezaki, 2021)

Other:

Wave, Listen to Me! (Nami yo Kiitekure) (Tatsuma Minamikawa, 2020)

Uchoten kazoku, season 1 (Masayuki Yoshihara, 2013) (Eccentric Family) (re-watch)

Kids on the Slope (Sakamichi no Aproron) (Shinichirō Watanabe, 2012) (set in Sasebo, Nagasaki)

Typhoon Noruda (Taifū no Noruda) (Yōjirō Arai, 2015)

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Re: Anime

#429 Post by colinr0380 » Mon Aug 02, 2021 1:27 am

Mars Red sounds interesting Michael! Is that a sci-fi series?

Beyond Ghibli talks about Jin-Roh: The Wolf Brigade taking in the earlier (later set in the narrative) live action films and the Korean re-make. Though he is right that you don't need to look at all of the surrounding media to appreciate Jin-Roh as a standalone piece of art.

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Re: Anime

#430 Post by Michael Kerpan » Mon Aug 02, 2021 2:37 pm

Mars Red is alternate history + vampires. So it is sort of a blend of SF, fantasy and horror. Atmosphere and visuals are great, story can be a bit confusing. Joran is similar (but not involves demon blood not vampires) and also visually striking.

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Never Cursed
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Re: Anime

#431 Post by Never Cursed » Thu Aug 12, 2021 12:36 pm


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dwk
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Re: Anime

#432 Post by dwk » Thu Aug 19, 2021 1:45 pm

Neon Genesis Evangelion Limited edition set has been announce. Early order price is $274.99 until December 7th when it goes up to $349.99
The NEON GENESIS EVANGELION: Ultimate Edition was created by fans as the definitive celebration of one of the most important and influential anime series of all time, featuring exclusive artwork, merch, a 156-page book, and over 7 hours of bonus features. Spread over 11 discs, this set contains the Official Dub and Subtitled versions, and bonus Classic Dub and Subtitled versions.

Strictly limited to 5,000 copies for North America, and sold exclusively through the GKIDS Store, with a limit of 1 per customer.
Featuring

Limited Edition Artwork
Bonus Classic Dub and Subtitled Versions
156-Page Book
Art Boards
Sachiel Resin Paperweight
NERV ID Card w/ Lanyard

The international re-release of NEON GENESIS EVANGELION does not contain "FLY ME TO THE MOON" in any of its home video editions.
A standard editions will be announced on the 30th.

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Re: Anime

#433 Post by Boosmahn » Thu Aug 19, 2021 4:49 pm

It's something of a miracle they were able to get the classic dub and subtitles.

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Re: Anime

#434 Post by Calvin » Thu Aug 19, 2021 5:21 pm

I've pre-ordered the UK equivalent, but it's the compromise I was expecting but not what I was hoping for. It seems to only have the director's cuts of episodes 21-24, nothing from the Archives of Evangelion, and only Death(True)2 with no other cut of Death and Rebirth. Doesn't seem like there's anything in the way of critical extras either (even in written form), despite Evangelion being maybe the most analysed and overanalysed works of pop culture ever. The contents were obviously dictated by Khara though and I'm sure GKids and Anime Limited had little say in the matter.

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Re: Anime

#435 Post by colinr0380 » Fri Aug 20, 2021 2:55 am

Its really strange that even with this announcement those long out of print ADV Films DVD sets from the mid-2000s still remain the definitive presentation of the Neon Genesis Evangelion series in the West.

EDIT: And since we're on the subject, here's "Evangelion But Only When Pen Pen Is On Screen"!
Last edited by colinr0380 on Thu Oct 07, 2021 1:30 pm, edited 2 times in total.

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Re: Anime

#436 Post by RIP Film » Wed Sep 08, 2021 4:44 pm

Anyone excited for the Cowboy Bebop Netflix series? I know they have a pretty terrible track record with adapting anime, but I want to believe this one will succeed if only based on the casting. John Cho was an inspired pick. I know some people were criticizing a 49 year old playing Spike, but the character always seemed like an old soul to me. My only concern is that some of these publicity stills look dangerously close to cosplay.

Image

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Re: Anime

#437 Post by Boosmahn » Wed Sep 08, 2021 7:22 pm

I'm approaching it with cautious optimism. John Cho looks great as Spike, though I'd always imagined him to be white and Faye Asian.

As for anime I've watched recently, I just finished Beheading Cycle (Zaregoto). It's a solid adaptation despite Ii getting less development and the absence of some important conversations. Also features some of SHAFT's oddest visuals to date.

Before that was The Garden of Sinners, whose films ranged from staggeringly dull (Fairy Tale) to wonderfully complex (Paradox Paradigm). The series is almost worth it just for the fifth movie.

Before that was When the Cicadas Cry, or just Higurashi, a series that subverted my expectations completely. It might be hard to believe from the first few arcs, but it's a wholesome series about trusting your friends. The characters were also much more layered than I thought they would be. I'll watch the new seasons once Sotsu has concluded.

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Re: Anime

#438 Post by Michael Kerpan » Wed Sep 08, 2021 9:38 pm

Boosmahn - re Higurashi sequels -- last year's Gou and currently-airing Sotsu

These drastically subvert -- and then re-subvert (and I hope will re-re-subvert) expectations yet again. Sotsu especially has been incredibly brutal -- both visually and (even moreso) psychologically. Not certain how many more episodes there will be to this -- but right now I can see no path to any sort of "happy ending". I keep hoping, however.

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Re: Anime

#439 Post by Michael Kerpan » Wed Sep 22, 2021 11:42 pm

Heike Monogatari, Naoko Yamada's new series (for Yuasa's Science Saru studio -- rather than Kyoto Animation), looks pretty stunning based on its first two episodes. Its viewpoint character (a young, orphan, biwa-playing girl named Biwa) is "outside history" -- but it looks like the show will otherwise follow its (at least) 800 year-old source fairly closely. I find it hard to imagine that any other show of this new season will outclass this.

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Re: Anime

#440 Post by Michael Kerpan » Wed Sep 29, 2021 7:23 pm

Princess Principal (Masaki Tachibana, 2017)

High school girls as spies in a turn-of-the-century steampunk, alt-London. Seems sort of like a goofy idea -- but it worked quite well overall. The story is told in a somewhat scrambled order -- which often doesn't work well -- but mostly did here. Oh, this also borrows from Prince and the Pauper (albeit a princess here) -- who get stuck in their switched-for-a-day roles because a revolution breaks out on that same day.

Watched in part because Hidive is leaving VRV (tomorrow, I think) -- and I wanted to check out a couple of shows there before this happens. The main characters were mostly quite good -- and the only spy that needed to occasionally act as a seductress was actually a 20 year-old pretending to be high-school-aged. I wound up liking this quite a bit -- and am glad to see that this will be continued in the form of 6 50-60 minute movies (first is already out -- and looked even better technically).

Recommended.

Tokyo Magnitude 8.0 (Masaki Tachibana, 2009)

Unlike Yuasa et al's Japan Sinks 2020, which covered the whole nation and involved a sizeable cast of major supporting characters, this had a narrower focus (a middle school girl, her little brother and a good samaritan helper -- and set in Tokyo only). This had at least as much emotional impact as Yuasa's series -- and was a lot more realistic. It involves lots of devastation and heartbreak.

The main action starts with a trip to Odaiba by the girl and her brother to see a robotics exhibition (he's a fan, she's not, and she does this under protest, so to speak). As they are finishing, a massive earthquake strikes -- basically isolating Odaiba from Tokyo proper. Luckily for them a woman (worried about her little daughter and her mother back in Sangenjaya) effectively adopts them. The series traces their attempt to get back to their homes. Not going to provide any details -- as I think people really should watch this one.

Highly recommended.

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Re: Anime

#441 Post by colinr0380 » Fri Oct 01, 2021 3:46 pm

All The Anime is bringing the 1978 TV series Future Boy Conan to Blu-ray in the UK in 2022, which is an early work from Hayao Miyazaki (and has a couple of episodes directed by Isao Takahata as well). Although it does not appear that it was Miyazaki's (or Takahata's) debut as stated in that trailer as they both directed episodes of the Lupin the 3rd series in the early 1970s.

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Re: Anime

#442 Post by Calvin » Sat Oct 02, 2021 3:38 am

I do believe that it was Miyazaki's solo directorial debut and his co-direction on Lupin III Part I was credited to 'A Production'. Before Conan, he also directed the short pilot for Yuki's Sun that never made it to a full series.

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Re: Anime

#443 Post by colinr0380 » Sat Oct 02, 2021 5:27 am

Ah, that makes sense then!

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Re: Anime

#444 Post by Calvin » Sat Oct 02, 2021 7:22 am

I've been asking for this from pretty much every anime-adjacent distributor since I saw the fansubbed version a decade ago. There were rumours that there was some sort of international block on it from the estate of Alexander Key, who wrote the novel The Incredible Tide that Miyazaki based it on, but I've never found any concrete evidence to substantiate that. Conan is a fantastic work in its own right but it is also fascinating as pretty much the Miyazaki urtext. One might say prototype, but Future Boy Conan has a lot more to offer than being a mere blueprint for what was to come. A great deal of the themes and images that would preoccupy Miyazaki's career are already fully formed at this early stage - an anti-war message, a love of aircraft and flight, a strong female message, a surprisingly prescient concern for environmental issues. Even the character designs seem remarkably similar to future Ghibli works, Laputa in particular.

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Re: Anime

#445 Post by Michael Kerpan » Sat Oct 02, 2021 1:16 pm

I wonder if Future Boy Conan will get a matching US release?

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Re: Anime

#446 Post by paulm » Sat Oct 02, 2021 2:24 pm

Michael Kerpan wrote:
Sat Oct 02, 2021 1:16 pm
I wonder if Future Boy Conan will get a matching US release?
You're in luck.

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Re: Anime

#447 Post by Michael Kerpan » Sat Oct 02, 2021 3:44 pm

paulm -- Great news. I finally can retire our R3 set from Korea (with only Korean and Japanese subtitles). Now, on to Akage no An....

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Re: Anime

#448 Post by OldBobbyPeru » Sat Oct 02, 2021 5:03 pm

A question: How is it that Japanese animation all seems to be animated on threes? I love the art, especially on the Ghibli stuff, but the animation style makes everything look like Speed Racer--the motion is jerky. Most animation in the west has been on twos since forever. It shouldn't be a budget thing, because some of these films have been big hits. Normally, the whole Japanese approach is to seek excellence in all artisan type crafts. This is kinda weird.

Anyone know the history of how this came to be? I know some people like it, and think it's part of what makes it distinct, but I find it distracting.

If you didn't know, animation on twos is repeating a frame twice, so at 24 FPS, you're moving the image at 12 FPS. Threes is repeating the image three times, thus you're animating at 8 FPS. You can see this easily in VLC media player. The 'e' key advances one frame at a time.

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Re: Anime

#449 Post by RIP Film » Sun Oct 03, 2021 9:51 am

It almost surely started as a budget thing but then took on aesthetic considerations. As an animator you use every tool you have, and the amount of frames on screen has a psychological effect. Lower frames have a more sedative, hypnotic naturalism and higher frames are more “real”. I can’t imagine a film like Spirited Away, with its mix of monotony and magical action sequences, being a consistent 24 frames like a Disney film. Same with Princess Monoke. Though Miyazaki seems to be experimenting in the other direction for his last film How do you Live?, which is taking so long because it is being drawn with more frames.

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Re: Anime

#450 Post by colinr0380 » Wed Oct 13, 2021 5:42 pm

This looks like an interesting project - a Kickstarter primarily to fund the first English dub of the 26 episode 1985 Dirty Pair TV series on Blu-ray. Though there is a pledge tier that collects not just that TV series with the new dub and existing Japanese soundtrack but also bundles them together with the pre-existing dubs and subs of the two movies, the 10 episode OVA series from 1987 and the 16 episode 1995 Dirty Pair: Flash series. It is Region A Blu-ray only but does ship internationally.

This is coming with the proviso that I have only ever read a few manga stories involving these characters (I think back when they were serialised in Manga Mania magazine!), so I cannot speak to the quality of the anime, but it seems a good way to get acquainted with the series. I seem to recall that the premise is that our heroines Kei and Yuri are trying to make a name for themselves as space adventurers for the "World Welfare Works Association" and want to be known as the plucky duo the Lovely Angels, but unfortunately a lot of the assignments that they get involved in may get solved but also have a tendency to cause a lot of collateral damage (sometimes on a planetary scale!) with the enormous bill for damages in the wake of the widespread destruction lending them their double-entendre laden nickname from those unfortunate enough to cross their path!
Last edited by colinr0380 on Sat Oct 23, 2021 8:52 am, edited 3 times in total.

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