Category: Detectives

Ongoing Investigations: Case #023

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Has anyone played the original Higurashi sound novel? I am curious what the fan-service levels are in the games. I ask this because I don’t remember the Higurashi anime being the fan service bonanza that the manga or the art books are. They really like the semi to fully lesbian fan-service shots in the artbooks. It’s like they were drawn by male fujoshi. Despite the abundance of fan-service in the Higurashi manga it is a pretty faithful adaptation. Yen Press went all out with color pages in the front and middle. The manga has yet to even give me close to the chill that anime did but it is still enjoyable. However, I don’t think it’s going to win any new fans to the franchise.

So I sort of did the Gurren Lagann suggestion made by our friends in their review, which was to watch the last 7 episodes and not worry about the rest. Well, I had already watched the first 9 but I did skip the next 12 and watched the end. I was entertained by its ridiculousness and was also able to grow fond of a couple of characters in that short span at the end. It goes full-throttle giant robot as robots start hurling entire universes. As for why I decided to skip so much, that would be a major spoiler. However, I can say that there is a missing piece of the puzzle and the show for me was incomplete without it. My overall feeling was the show was good, whereas the first 8 episodes were great. It was hilarity to the max.

I enjoyed Gurren Lagann for what is was, an over the top giant robot show about believing in courage and guts. I enjoyed it more than Boxingoctopus and Lothos because that is all the expectations I went into the show with. Therefore I never felt let down. I for one enjoyed the middle part of the series although not as much as the beginning or the end. Certain parts of Gurren Lagann seem like Gainax’s response to Evangelion. Simon is like Shinji Ikari in both of them spiral into the abyss but Simon is able to rise out of it where as one of the major points of Evangelion is Shinji’s inability to connect to others and find a way out. I can’t say for sure if it’s partially reactionary to their older work or it is less intentional and more the natural comparison by viewers despite any active agenda. I also really liked the very Japanese concept of circular belief. Circular belief being the idea that there is someone who you believe in that believes in you when you can’t do that yourself. I suppose I have always wanted someone like that myself. I also think the fact that Simon and Nia grew on me helped a considerable bit. They would never ever be as cool as Kamina or Yoko but then again who could be that cool.

Read Nightmare Inspector volumes 2 and 3, I am glad to see this series establishing little bit of a running narrative along with giving Hiruko and Mizuki some backstory. Though I just makes me want to know more since we’ve only gotten crumbs. They have also introduced a humorous tenant who moves into one of the rooms on the upper floor of the tea house. He isn’t in it too much so the somber and melancholic feel of the series stays in tact but he does throw a little spice in the mix now and then. This manga-ka always puts in some funny bonus stuff including a song written by Hiruko about how much he loves soda.

I have been playing Chrono Trigger for the DS. It stands up well in retrospect. The game play is solid, the story is still fresh, the amount of little changes you can make on the plot are still well done. Playing this reminded me of a conversation with my brother about Final Fantasy 7. We were discussing how flat characters in RPGs are today but they were even flatter back in the day. You were more willing to fill in the blanks in your mind back then. I remember the characters of Chrono Trigger being much deeper than they actually are. They aren’t bad characters if they were I would have never remembered them so well. It’s just the amount I had to fill in from what was implied had become actual fact. Still it’s great to be able to go back and play this again now only it’s portable. If I had a PSP I would be sorely tempted to play an emulated Chrono Cross on it like David Riley is going to do. Even though the prevailing logic is Chrono Cross is the devil’s spawn by most fans.

Finished the xxxHOLiC novel AnotherHOLiC. I have to say putting the first story in FAUST was a good move, not only did it make me interested in the novel but it was also the better story of the three and it doesn’t require me to know about the manga. The second story seemed too similar to the first, but also easier to figure out. And since those stories were back to back it made me wonder where Watanuki’s brain was. As for the third and final story, since I haven’t read the manga it didn’t help establish anything about Watanuki for me. I didn’t really understand his reasoning. Oh and the other guy in the story was super annoying.

I assumed this story happens early in the xxxHOLiC storyline but I can’t say for sure. Although it is never outright stated, one of the reasons Watanuki works at the store is Yuko is training him either as a her student or her outright successor. So it seems like the part of the story where she is no longer by his side on jobs but he has still not learned enough that she has taken of his training wheels. I thought that the first two stories bookend each other well enough so that they made a point when the third story came along. I just hated hated hated the eye theory guy in the last story. NISIOISIN is talented at making original characters that are annoying jackasses. This is not a compliment. He a good writer but he has to start cutting back on shrill, nasty characters in his work.

I made an entry for the Anime News Network 2008 Holiday Logo Contest. This is my first year entering. I had some extra time before my vacation so I thought, why not?

The best way to cap off Reverse Thieves completion of Gurren Lagann is with a piece of Gurren Lagann fan art:

Special Screening: Death Note the Last Name, aka The True Ending

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With the love-love that is nigh palpable from Narutaki, there was no way were going to miss the big screen showing of the second Death Note movie. Instead of going to the theater in Union Square we went to Clearview’s Chelsea which was significantly less crowded. If they continue to get anime movies at that theater, I think I will go there from now on. It was a nice place and they had an awesome waffle shop across the street. I myself had some good chai bubble tea. There was a closed shop called Burgers and Cupcakes which I am sure could have been saved by Narutaki if only he knew of its existence before.

Wow, what a big difference between two theaters that are just a few blocks from each other. Our experience at Union Square, while not sold out, was still packed and we were stuck with crummy seats. This was a whole other story, sadly there were only about 10 to 15 people besides us at the screening. However, compared to the number of people in total at this theater that night, that doesn’t seem like bad numbers. The theater was really nice and clean, I will definitely be picking this place over Union Square.

The first Death Note movie ended with L and Light meeting face to face for the first time. The second movie then takes the remaining books and and combines them into 1 movie. This means a whole bunch of extraneous characters, plot lines, and one very controversial plot point got the ax. We get a greater disparity between the movies and the manga than the first movie. I know this leads to some rather strong opinions towards either the manga or the movies.

While the first movie was different from the manga, it still kept some of the major plot lines and interwove them just a bit differently. The second movie starts pushing it in a very different direction. Where the manga stumbles through some of its shifting plot, the movie removes altogether. Afterall, there is only this one movie to wrap up the story so inevitably a lot of things will go missing. To create a solid ending for a series like this in just 2 hours was a challenge that was handled really well.

The movie begins with Misa Misa gaining her own Death Note and becoming the second Kira. L tries to prove that Light is in fact Kira while also trying to catch the second Kira. Light is as always trying to kill L and mold the world to his vision. The plot then follows the manga in a condensed manner up until the Yotsuba Arc. We get a thankfully short version of the arc and deals with one other new Kira. Of course, no Death Note adaptation would be complete without the most infamous line in the series, “exactly as planned.”

The cast carries over from the first film and that is much to its credit. These actors, especially Kenichi Matsuyama, really brought great things to these characters in the first film and continue at the same pace here. You read an in-depth view in our review of the first movie. But we have a few new additions to discuss, namely Misa Amane, Rem, and Kiyomi Takada. Misa starts off our tale and follows rather closesly to her path. Light proves how easily he can manipulate women though never to the misogynistic extent of the manga. Kiyomi is sort of a mish-mash of characters from the manga. She helps exhibit that desire for power present in Light but not seen in Misa. I thought she did an excellent job portraying how easily one can fall into it. The character also solidified my feelings that Light, while a genius, doesn’t have ideals that are new or even unique.

The original Kiyomi Takada from the manga was Light’s girlfriend in college that eventually becomes Kira’s mouth piece as a news announcer. In the movie she is an aspiring news anchor who is a closet Kira supporter. She eventually becomes more involved with the Death Note due to Light’s schemes. Kiyomi Takada works fine in her role. I can’t say that she was extraordinarily gripping but I don’t think she was supposed to be. She is supposed to be a person who feels she has grand designs but really just has very petty schemes especially compared to the machinations of Light and L. Misa Misa is now is now fully integrated into the movie so her full force of annoying is apparent but thankfully has a shortened appearance. Less Misa Misa is always better. Rem is generally the same as she was in the manga but they never make note that Rem is in fact female.

The dub as per the first film makes people giggle at inopportune times. Though Ryuk didn’t seem nearly as out of control. Once again we talked a bit about this in the first film review. Everyone basically stays on target. Though I always miss not hearing Kenichi’s voice just because I like him so much.

I don’t really think about dubs anymore being a subtitle person. I don’t hate them but I just don’t think I pay attention. Therefore someone has to stand out as being really good or really bad for me to notice. The Death Note dub did not have anyone standing out for better or worse. I, like Narutaki, did notice that people were sometimes laughing at the wrong times but it was not anything that negatively effected my viewing experience. Then again I wonder if I really notice anyone being anything other than extraordinary for better or worse in Japanese.

Well, thank goodness someone realized how crappy the extras for the first movie were. They certainly stepped it up a notch with this release and had the actors talking about their roles and working together. It also had some fun scenes of each one performing their final lines for the film and then being given flowers!

I also think the directors insights into the movie were a little more interesting because he was doing more than simply adapting the manga. He was making it his own. It was interesting to see what all the principal actors thought of their roles.

A lot of things about this shorter version appealed to me. Biggest of which was the intensity, the manga became so enormous that it couldn’t hold on to that edge. It started to become too sensational, but with the movie you stayed glued exactly as long as a person can. L also always stays a focus, as he should. He is the perfect foil to Kira and the only one suitable for this life or death game with Light. Plus, strangely, I don’t have enough time to hate Misa in the movie because she is never there for any exorbitant amount of time bumbling things. And if you couldn’t guess it has the ending as I always wanted it.

The Death Note movies are the definitive version of Death Note for me. The second movie takes the best of the middle and end of the manga and condenses it into a climatic ending. The director has the ability to use 20/20 hindsight and take the best while tossing away the chaff.  I felt the manga went on for far too long due to its popularity and lost much of its focus in the middle.  The movies also have the ending that I feel a majority of fans wanted from the start. I know it has the ending I much prefer. You could say they basically ended up in the same place but I feel both conclusions leave a different taste in your mouth.

Top 5 L quirks
5. No shoes
4. Great tennis player
3. How he holds a phone
2. Making pastry shish-kebabs
1. Crouched sitting position

Ongoing Investigations: Case #015

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Samurai Deeper Kyo 30 was very Samurai Deeper Kyo. We got some villains named after playing cards thrown at us. I keep waiting for a group of villains named after popular fast food chains. Though we at least get some good back story on Hotaru finally. And with the return of Kyoshiro and the discovery of Kyo’s body we may just be entering the final arc of this series. I am very grateful.

GTO: The Early Years 7 and 8 are entertaining as always. I sort of miss the raunchy buddy comedy of the earlier chapters. The sex comedy parts occasionally appear from time to time to break up the action but it has mostly turned into a Bosozoku fighting manga. I had been waiting see the story of the original Midnight Angel Masaki who is so important in the finale of GTO. Without reading Shonan Junai Gumi it seems sort of random for this character to suddenly be mentioned out of nowhere and then be so important to Onizuka. Now we finally get to see who he was and how he effected Onizuka’s life. This makes his appearance in GTO a cool little nod to those who have been reading Tohru Fujisawa’s works since the beginning. Also man, oh, man could fujoshi go to town on this series if they wanted to (and possibly did). The amount of unintentional homoerotic subtext you could read into the predominately male cast interactions are hysterical if you think about it.

Ah, my shojo love is returning! I mentioned a few weeks ago I was in a bit of a shojo slump but thanks to Mixed Vegetables and now Monkey High! I feel my spirit reawakening! Monkey High! is a very funny and sweet romantic comedy about an unexpected relationship. Haruna has just transferred schools and thinks all the kids at her new school are a bunch of monkeys; they are rather loud and wild. And the ring leaders are best friend duo Atsu (tall, handsome, charming) and Masaru (short, cute, goofy). Now you are probably thinking, “Oh I know where this is going.” But you are wrong! She totally starts crushing on silly Masaru and essentially ignoring Atsu’s antics and advances. Not only that but they start dating before the end of book one. And we are off on a ride of fun, non-angsty, new love. The setting is very typical but the characters are well written and charming. I was also quite relieved to see the problems that crop up in shojo manga, like misunderstandings, not linger on for too long. They were put out there, explored, and resolved in a easy manner. Masaru is hard not to love, he remind me a bit of Otani from Love*Com, but not such a curmudgeon about his height. I’m am excited to pick up the next book in this series.

I read Del Rey’s Phoenix Wright: Official Casebook volume 1 manga. It is not the proper Phoenix Wright manga but a doujinshi anthology much like Galaxy Angel Party. So it is gag stories rather than new cases which I am sure is a disappointment to some people but just fine by me. I always like to see different artists takes on established characters. Plus the stories are short so if you don’t like someone’s art style or interpretation you are on to the next before you know it. I was overall happy and nothing was eye or brain meltingly bad. It is no substitute for a new game but it is certainly not a bad supplement while you wait. Also I am slightly surprised that there was not one appearance of Ema Skye. I wonder if this was produced before she was added as a character in the series. I am also curious if Del Rey ever plans to get the main Phoenix Wright manga. I assume they are waiting to see how well this does before they fork over the cash for the main series.

Finally got around to watching the first five episodes Code Geass and really enjoyed it. It has a great and diverse cast. So much so that I can’t dislike any of them, atleast not yet, and certainly can’t pick a favorite. Lelouch’s descriptions didn’t do him justice, I needed to experience this character. The dichotomy of his personalities is fascinating and at this point he hasn’t killed any civilians. The opposite side of the coin, Suzaku, is an equally good study of the differences in the human condition. They really are after the same things but are going about them in completely different ways. So far I am impressed.

I see why some people draw comparisons between Code Geass and Death Note but it is mostly looking at apples and oranges. They have more that is different about them than in common. It does suffer the Sunrise robot show curse of taking several episodes to get up to speed. I know everyone we were watching with was really only sold on the show after episode three. I feel everyone should give Code Geass a shot to shine or fail on it’s own merits and flaws. I can’t say that I have picked the Lelouch or the Suzaku camp as of yet if I even wind up picking either. If I had to pick anyone to root for it would be Euphemia li Britannia, if for nothing else my predisposition to support girls with pink hair. I did want to watch Gundam Seed just to see what was up with Lacus and if she was cool or not. Euphemia seems like a cool character but she was hardly in it enough for me to make a solid choice.