I just finished the mind-blowing experience that is the feature-length near-future sci-fi Anime feature film Summer Wars voiced in English dub by FUNimation's best and brightest cast members. With strong female lead voiced by the amazing Brina Palencia...
In fact, the only reason I knew about this title at all was hearing Brina mention it on her most recent appearance of That Anime Show with hosts J. Michael Tatum (who plays Brina's character's favorite uncle) and Terry Doty...Brina let fans in a little insider knowledge...namely that when she was recording in the booth she focused mentally on her personal very close relationship to her own grandmother, and for the death and grieving scenes for her character, those emotions you hear, her crying, her sobs, everything are 100% genuine. A lesser actor might've lost it entirely, but Brina was able to pull up those raw emotions from deep within herself and transfer them to the character and push through the scenes and the lines, delivering them spot on in one take.
The story is set in the very near future and is a cautionary tale about becoming too overly reliant on the virtual world at the expense of the real world.
It is an epic, heroic tale that will make you laugh, cry and cheer...and it is a very Japanese story about honoring one's ancestors, remembering the lessons of history, and staying true to your values.
I honestly would've been completely entertained by these characters if all it turned out to be was a romantic comedy farce, which is the hook in the beginning...but then it veers quickly off course into a simply AMAZING story....
The only thing I can compare it, and my emotional response to is the series Eden of the East. I have yet to view the feature-length Eden of the East movie, but I have seen the complete TV series season that starts off that story. If you liked Eden of the East you will definitely like Summer Wars and vice versa. The visuals of both are quite impressive, though the Oz sequences of Summer Wars is a little CG heavy and very almost Western cartoon animation in style, and that can be a bit jarring. The main AI villian at one point reminded me of one of the tougher alien levels in Gantz and kind of freaked me out a little, too. Flashbacks, man, flashbacks.
(Gantz is excellent but a freakin' gruesome show)
Kudos all around to the English voice cast of this show. I always watch my Anime with the English subtitles on, even if I'm watching the English dub. I like judging the differences between the more exact translation of the raw Japanese and the adaptive English scripts. These really are some of my absolute favorite FUNimation voice actors to listen to and the best part is, none of them are cast as bad guys, though J. Michael Tatum as the adopted son of the family matriarch is a bit of a dark horse anti-hero until the very end.
The disc I rented from Netflix of Summer Wars had a trailer for the Eden of the East feature film, reminding me I need to watch it to finish out the story which I *love* so much. It also had a trailer for the relatively new series Black Butler that I have heard of but realize I need to get around to watching as well...don't think I can call myself a proper otaku if I don't. I've already heard J. Michael Tatum (who plays Sebastian) gush about this show, and the trailer was very impressive. It looks dark and twisted but also deeply entertaining. I like a lot of "dark" shows in Anime, actually; seem to have developed an acquired taste for them through the years.
Anyway, I've been very lax with my Anime blogging but hope to resume it more regularly, as I've been consuming lots of it more recently, and also I am now a regular enough listener to things like ANNcast, the podcast of Anime News Network, and Anime World Order (AWO) with host Daryl Surat, who is a writer for OtakuUSA Magazine, which I have an ongoing 2 year subscription to at the moment. OtakuUSA is now the last in-print magazine in English devoted to Anime/Manga arts and culture. Shonen Jump has gone all-digital, so I've recommended my local library that they subscribe to OtakuUSA as a replacement as I think their patrons still will want the tangible, physical media that is OtakuUSA Magazine. At long last I listen to ANNCast with enough frequency that I never miss an epsiode, AND, I've actually become more tuned in to the world of Anime that I actually know what they're talking about more than 50% of the time now and sometimes I even agree with them. AWO posts less frequently but I always enjoy their discussions as well. I also have to say thanks to Anime Nation podcast, sometimes with John flying solo, putting out that Anime news and keeping me in the know. Thanks also to the Ani.me app on my iPhone that I frequently read at lunch. The Ani.me website itself is great, but I like having it on my phone for quick and easy access anytime...how else to stay on top of breaking news in the Anime industry, am I right?
Thanks also to the Houston Anime Meetup for hooking me up with other individuals nearby who share my interest and passion for these art forms and who bring all sorts of expertise to the table each and every meeting.
Anyway, Summer Wars is a great way to spend two hours being thoroughly entertained and emotionally satisfied. I honestly did not know what to expect, and that is probably the best way to enjoy this movie.
