English: Monty Oum at the Penny Arcade Expo East 2010 in Boston, MA. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
This is pretty much a straight up narration of the press release posted to the Rooster Teeth website a few days ago, with original intro and outro narration written by yours truly. Here I press Emma (UK) and Grace (Australia) into service to do the narration, in response to RT's call to "do something creative" to honor Monty's untimely passing at age 33. This one's for you, Monty.
Wakfu (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Although my favorite entertainment medium is Japanese anime, I'm also attracted to other animated shows that show a heavy influence of Japanese anime, from Teen Titans to RWBY to the recent French cartoon Wakfu, which is based upon a videogame franchise. It's now streaming on Netflix (and was apparently on American television some time back) and has an English dub, and a Spanish dub (which I sometimes watch) besides the original French audio. The characters have definitely grown on me, especially Evangeline, the coaxing blonde female elf that every male character goes gaga for, even more so than Princess Amalia herself, who's definitely pretty too but also a "prissy princess", personality wise, while Evangeline ("Eva" for short) is a no nonsense archer & bodyguard. They are members of main character Yugo's traveling party, along with Az, Ruel, and Percedal. Wakfu is basically the in-world term for "magical energy", sort of like the Star Wars "Force" of this fantasy realm. It flows throughout the world and only those specially attuned can summon up and use Wakfu to create magical spells and manipulate matter and energy. Not unlike the Anime Fairy Tail, this world emphasizes the outsized importance of specifically Dragon Magic. Yugo is the Eliatrope brother of little dragon Adamai. In fact, Yugo is the last Eliatrope still living as far as anyone knows.
They oppose the evil Xelor who calls himself "Nox", a being who builds terrifying clockwork automata that wreak havoc upon the countryside. He has ambitions of capturing all the world's Wakfu and remaking the world anew.
It's definitely worth watching. The characters are likeable and engaging.
Heck, I watch it mainly for the Evangeline & Amalia fanservice...no no, it's not THAT anime, e.g. no panty shots, jiggling boobs, etc. It's just these characters are really easy on the eyes is all...
I finally finished Nickelodeon's THE LEGEND OF KORRA, Season 1. I was able to do so because I was supplied a download copy from a friend and was able to view it on my home PC, which was hooked up via HDMI cable to my TV, so actually I watched it on my full sized flat screen TV with the sound coming from the computer speakers, which was an acceptable compromise.
Like AVATAR: The Last Airbender, while it is not technically an Anime, it is very much inspired by and influenced by Anime style and tropes. KORRA was originally pitched as a short mini-series and this is obvious from the way Season 1 has such tight storytelling and wraps up all its loose threads by the final episode. The creators were prepared to do "one and done". What they did not anticipate, however, was the enormous popular success and ratings of the show, which prompted interest from Nickelodeon in more seasons.
Besides being an engaging tale in its own right, we get to see (through flashbacks) the story of the adult lives of Avatar Aang, Toph, Sokka, and Katara (who is the only one of the original band still alive in Korra's world, albeit quite elderly, and the mother of Tenzin, the most current Air Bending master). There is so much of the tale left to tell that one hopes there will be more room to explore these avenues in future seasons of KORRA.
Like Katara, Korra hails from the Southern Water Tribe and is beautiful and immenently likeable, if a bit of a hot head; She is not wholly unlike Prince Zuko in her impulsivity and impatience. At a tender age, she managed to master the arts of not only water-bending but also earth and fire-bending as well. Her only stumbling block is Air Bending, which she seems to lack the finesse and above all patience for.
At the heart of AVATAR: The Last Airbender was the love story between impish Aang and more mature Katara. KORRA does not forget this secret of AVATAR success and gives Korra a love triangle (love trapezoid?) to contend with as well. The artwork and animation in KORRA is quite beautiful and visually arresting. The dub also brings in the talents of veteran Anime voice actor Steven Jay Blum in the role of the central antagonist of LEGEND OF KORRA, namely the "Equalist" cult leader, Amon. Steve brings the right level of presence and gravitas to the role, in the same way that Darth Vader is inconceivable without the deep bass voice of James Earl Jones.
I would like to take a minute to gripe about Nickelodeon's failure to re-run LEGEND OF KORRA, Season 1 in the "off season" while waiting for Season 2. This was, I think, a mistake. Likewise, the only legal/legitimate venue for LEGEND OF KORRA has been iTunes, where the digital version is very much overpriced. I have subsequently put down money on pre-order via Amazon for the DVD release of LEGEND OF KORRA for actually *less* than the digital version costs. This is just not right. If the price-point for the digital version of LEGEND OF KORRA were more reasonable, like from $5-$7, I might have bitten my toungue and gone for it. But at a price in excess of $20 USD for digital-only release? Forget about it. And even though I ended up resorting to slightly shady means to watch it the first time, this did NOT hurt the publishers because I opted to buy physical media at the end of the day anyway.
I am hopeful for future seasons of LEGEND OF KORRA, though I am a bit anxious because of how neatly self-contained Season 1 ended up being; I'm unsure where they intend to go from here and hope they do not screw it up.
I am watching a whole host of various Anime shows (even some non-Anime cartoons) via Netflix streaming. I actually enjoy watching a lot of shows via my iPad2 with the Netflix "app". Somehow I feel less guilty sneaking in a few more episodes past my bedtime, curled up with my iPad2 under the covers and finally, reluctantly, putting it on my nightstand and dozing off to la-la land once I'm completely exhausted. I don't think the visual quality suffers much watching on the iPad2, and listening to the audio via headphones means I don't disturb my other family members sleeping downstairs.
Anyway, I am currently very deep into Season 3 of Avatar: The Last Airbender. While actually a Western cartoon and not an Anime show, it shows very deep Anime influences. I thoroughly love this show and its characters, and am very much emotionally attached to all of them now; it's even brought a tear or two to my eyes now and again, too. I'm told I should view the live-action film for comparision; In fact, I'm told I should have probably watched it *before* I started the Nickelodeon cartoon series. I had heard the movie wasn't very good, so that's why I went straight for the cartoon, but I will see about the live action film later this year or early next.
I am also trying out the classic anime series Trigun, from the late 1990s, after having recently watched the Anime feature film Trigun: Badlands Rumble. That was a good movie, but really, for me, it condenses the best of Trigun in a neat little package...having started the series it was based upon, it's okay and all, but I probably enjoyed the movie more having been completely unfamiliar with its original source material. I'm in no hurry to finish Trigun and mainly use it as filler to watch when taking a break from more emotionally "heavy" shows like...
Shikabane Hime (Corpse Princess), for example. Spoilers follow so you know the drill; skip to the next section, etc.
I positively LOVE this show, love its main characters, especially Makina Hoshimura (星村 眞姫那 Hoshimura Makina?) [pictured above], voiced by the always lovely and talented Luci Christian.
Luci is a true veteran voice actress and this is probably one of the most emotionally intense roles I've ever seen her play. If you are unfamiliar with the show and want to know what kind of character Makina is, imagine Luci's portrayal of Kaname Chidori from the Full Metal Panic franchise, only imagine a Kaname Chidori completely at the end of her tether, who has lost absolutely everything, including Souske...full of raw emotion and rage and consumed by revenge...that's a little taste of what Makina is like.
Makina has a very special relationship with her contracted Monk, Keisei Tagami (田神 景世 Tagami Keisei?), whom she secretly loves more than life itself. She first met Keisei Tagami (田神 景世 Tagami Keisei?) [voiced by J. Michael Tatum] as a little girl and has been attached to him ever since. Keisei Tagami (田神 景世 Tagami Keisei?) is a very likable character, but his untimely death is heavily foreshadowed in the series and you'd have to be completely dense not to pick up on it very early on. Makina's attachment to Keisei transcends the grave (his and hers) and initially causes difficulty in her forming a bond with Keisei's surviving (adopted) kid brother, Ouri Kagami (花神 旺里 Kagami Ōri?), voiced by Aaron Dismuke. But they continue to work through it and take a potential liabilty and make it a positive. They both loved Keisei very much, and Ouri accepts that Makina will always love Keisei first and foremost and would sooner be destroyed than sever her bond with Keisei. Makina slowly learns to befriend and accept Ouri Kagami (花神 旺里 Kagami Ōri?) as her new earthly contracted monk, out of respect for Keisei's dying wish.
I'm pretty far into the series and it was very addictive at first, but this is one of those shows that I admit has become very emotionally "heavy" and impactful and I can now only handle it in limited doses before I need to turn to lighter fare.
I've also been enjoying the quirky FUNimation remake of the 1990s OVA series Birdy the Mighty, now titled Birdy the Mighty: Decode and available on Netflix streaming. This I started watching based on a friend's recommendation. I have not seen the original series and would probably have otherwise given this one a pass, but I'm several episodes deep into Birdy The Mighty: Decode and so far I really like what I see:
The heroine, Birdy Cephon Altera, the Space Federation Special Agent who on earth lives undercover as ditzy Japanese pop idol sensation Shion Arita, is voiced by Luci Christian, opposite male protagonist and accidental collateral damage victim of Birdy, Tsutomu Senkawa, voiced by Micah Solusod, better known to fans of Soul Eater as the voice of titular character Soul, partner of Maka Albarn (voiced by Laura Bailey).
Anyway, the series is mainly a sci-fi mystery but also has a lot of physical comedy as well as slice-of-life elements insofar as the male protagonist is an ordinary Japanese high school student.
Birdy and Tsutomu have a special relationship insofar as, well, to put it bluntly, Birdy accidentally kind of killed Tsutomu...she sliced his body in half with an energy ray and had to transfer his "soul" into her body so he could survive and so that Tsutomu's original body can be sent back to Birdy's Federation for repair. They are two people sharing one body, namely Birdy's. However, Birdy has the power to quasi-shape-shift at will. Tsutomu can, with Birdy's permission, assert his will and transform Birdy's body into his own, complete with functional penis, presumably...and Birdy retreats into Tsutomu's mind as a second consciousness. Tsutomu in this transformed state looks precisely like he did pre-mortem, only he now has perfect vision because so does Birdy.
Anyway, Birdy chases down dangerous intergalactic criminals, while Tsutomu does his best to try and get back to having a normal high school existence. He has a crush on a girl but thinks she's out of his league, but actually she seems to like him a lot, too. The love interest, Sayaka Nakasugi, is voiced by Brina Palencia. She is depicted as being of frail health and hails from a very wealthy family. She has a nearly fatal auto accident from which she experiences a miraculous recovery that seems out-of-this-world (and is).
It's a fun show and much more emotinally light than Shikabane Hime (Corpse Princess).
Birdy is kind of a ditzy airhead (and exaggeratedly so in her alter-ego identity as Shion Arita) but also hardworking and loveable. She's kind and compassionate and feels deeply sorry for having nearly killed innocent bystander Tsutomu. She is risking having her consciousness merge with Tsutomu and losing herself completely as a living being by sharing bodies with Tsutomu, but she feels its a risk she must endure as a means of making things up to Tsutomu whom she has wronged.
Another series I'm watching on Netflix, and yet another Luci Christian vehicle as I think about it, is the strange, bio-mechanoid based sci-fi adventure known as Xam'd: Lost Memories
Spoilers follow, so be warned, yada yada.
Luci plays Nakiami, a mysterious red-headed alien girl who is a lone-wolfish crew member of a Postal Delivery airship. She flies the larger airship's forward scout/patrol ship. The main female lead is actually played by Monica Rial, who, as Haru Nishimura (西村 ハル Nishimura Haru?), is the human female love interest of main character Akiyuki Takehara (竹原 アキユキ Takehara Akiyuki?) [pictured above, with Nakiami], voiced by Blake Shepard.
Shelley Calene-Black voices tough-as-nails Ishuu Benikawa (紅皮 伊舟 Benikawa Ishū?), the captain of the International Postal ship Zanbani. Akiyuki is the victim of a strange terrorist attack that leaves him not only wounded but transformed into a bio-mecha type creature known only as a Xam'd (prounced "Zammed", rhymes with damned). He seems really effective at battling the so-called "Humanform" weapons, which are giant dinosaur-like creatures created by taking over human host bodies and transforming them, then unleashing them to cause havoc and destruction upon the earth. The story launches without clear explanation of who is who and who is responsible for what and who is against whom. It's the sort of thing I'm still piecing together about 8 episodes in. Anyway, after Akiyuki's strange transformation into Xam'd, he is shanghai'ed by Nakiami and brought aboard the Zanbani to work involuntarily as a new crew member. Nakiami tells Akiyuki that he can never go back to being fully human and must instead to learn about what it means to be Xam'd and then fulfill his destiny. Captain Benikawa doesn't especially like having Akiyuki on board her ship but tolerates his presence. She also frequently clashses with Nakiami and there is obvious tension between these two strong female characters. Benikawa treats Nakiami like a rebellious, wayward adopted teen daughter. Benikawa is much respected but also much feared by the crew of the Zanbani. She is single-mindedly devoted to her mission of seeing the mail delievered no matter what. Akiyuki is learning to fit in as a crewman and also misses Haru, whom he left behind on Sentan Island. He is after many months finally able to get a letter posted back to Haru letting her and his parents also know that he is alive and well but unable to return to Sentan Island. Haru resolves to join the military in the hopes the she will be posted to forward bases where she will be in closer contact to Akiyuki. Haru is able to pull this off, and is overjoyed to reunite with Akiyuki during an ostensible training mission; however, the reunion is cut short and made bittersweet by circumstances beyond their control.
That's about where I'm at in this show now on Netflix streaming, with more twists and turns no doubt ahead. I blew off Xam'd for the longest time as it just didn't look appealing to me but I've been pleasantly surprised by the show and rather like it and I'm glad I finally decided to give it a try. I liked the opening theme song Shut up and explode so much I acquired a copy for my iPod as soon as I could.
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.
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