Month: June 2012

Major: The Ball of Friendship

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I really enjoyed the first season of Major and so now we’ve finally continued on with Goro’s journey. Though this film actually didn’t come out after the first season, it takes place in between seasons one and two so we’ve decided to watch things in chronological order as best we can. That also means this isn’t a movie for jumping into the series, it makes no introductions.

Also, while there is a specific baseball that starts Goto thinking about his past at the beginning of the movie, calling it The Ball of Friendship is just odd. This movie doesn’t really have anything to do with making friends and being there for each other. Friendship doesn’t get Goro through in the climactic last game.

The ending of the first series was a whirlwind of changes at the end. The first season ends with the huge bombshells that are dropped on everyone in Goro’s penultimate year of elementary school. When the second season begins they have jumped ahead to junior high and there are even more significant changes that took place. This movie bridges the gap by explaining how many of those changes came to be from the first season to the second. In a way this is the secret history of Major: The Little League Years.

But as Narutaki said there is not pity for anyone who is not a Major fan. Heck the movie starts in the middle of Goro’s professional career. There is just a little refresher material at the beginning to bring you back up to speed after the intro but it is only there to jog the memory of people who already watched the first season. But other than that your on your own. This movie was made for the hardcore to see what happened in that missing gap. It is more a gaiden than anything else. But a vital one in reflection.

Just a quick note: The movie starts with a lot of awkward English to the point where you might assume you got an old dub. The story just starts in America with native English speakers who are clearly not voice actors. They jump back to Japanese quickly enough but I know it threw Narutaki and I for a loop at first.

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All Points Bulletin: Maybe Prometheus is Keeping People From the Theaters

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If you have any suggestions for what to highlight on an APB drop us a line via email or Twitter.

Narutaki’s picks:

  • New Cowboy Bebop . . . Figures
    I’m rather impressed that the two figures Play Arts Kai are leading with doesn’t include Faye. I will definitely be on the look out for Spike and if he can really stand in that kicking position they show in the photos that would be cool. Not sure about the face, doesn’t really look like him. Now I’m conflicted about the figure!
  • The Ultimate Troll?
    If you are a fan of The Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes cartoon, then you may have heard the rumor that the show is being canceled. Turns out it may be an elaborate plot by a really angry Spider-Man fan.
  • Game of Thrones Attack Ads
    There is a lot of politics in Game of Thrones. There is also a lot of political ads going on right now for the upcoming U.S. Presidential election. So naturally these two things had to meet. No, sadly our presidential hopefuls are not using GoT in their own ads. Instead the war in Westeros is being wagged through SuperPac television ads now!
  • Guess I Won’t See You at the Movies
    Movie attendance just gets worse and worse and The Avengers stands as an anomaly. I personally love going to the movies but have to pick and choose carefully because ticket princes in NYC are $13-15 for non-3D showings! But apparently even the relatively lower prices elsewhere don’t encourage people.
  • 8-Bit in 8-Minutes
    Okay, fine, it is just under 8-minutes. This is a quick little documentary from PBS about the evolving artform of 8-bit art be it paintings or music.

Hisui’s picks:

This person does amazing A Song of Ice and Fire (Game of Thrones) fan-art. This picture I’m posting is full of spoilers from the books so be aware.


Fate/Zero S2 TV #012: That Could Have Gone Better

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This is normally the part where I mention that all’s well that ends well but then you must remember that this was written by Gen Urobuchi. So that means mountains of tears, Pyrrhic victories, and broken bodies and dreams at the end of the journey. Anyone who has played Fate/Stay Night knows that it could not have ended on a positive note or there would be no story to tell later on. But that does not make the ashes taste any better in your mouth. Still there is some hope at the end. A few golden glimmers that there still can be a better tomorrow.

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