Category: Ongoing Investigations

Ongoing Investigations: Case #085

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hisuicon In the Reverse Thieves time-honored tradition we watched Detective Conan Movie 1: The Time-Bombed Skyscraper out of order. Actually we were going to watch the 5th movie but then about 10 minuets into it realized that it was making reference to the first movie. In a somewhat Encyclopedia Brown-style moment the movie begins with Conan solving a case unrelated to the main story. After this intro we soon discover that a good deal of explosives were stolen recently and several acts of arson have been committed. The person behind both crimes tries to contact Shinichi to challenge him to find the bombs he has placed around the city. This felt like a standard episode that was forced to be a movie’s length. The whole affair with the criminal giving Conan clues to where the bombs are mostly seemed there just to stretch the length of the premise. It was an entertaining movie but so far the weakest of the movies we have seen.

The first Detective Conan movie feels like the first. You can tell they don’t quite know what to spend the hour and a half on, the pacing is a bit off, there aren’t enough suspects, and the climatic action happens after the culprit is caught. I find this only a little odd because they had produced very good one hour specials prior to this feature. Though I did find the ending scenes in the skyscraper with Ran and Shinichi (Conan behind a wall using his bowtie voice changer) properly tense and sweet. Since we accidentally knew the identity of the bomber thanks to starting the 5th movie, it is hard to assess whether this mystery was properly difficult to solve. But I think it is one of the few that you can really grasp who it is as well as their motive long before Conan cracks it. There are still a few twists like how the bomber knows Shinichi and what he learns about him and uses in his scheme. This movie isn’t bad by any means but it isn’t especially memorable.

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Ongoing Investigations: Case #084

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We received a review copy of Twin Spica from Vertical books. Twin Spica’s first volume is charming almost immediately and grips you with an attachment to Asumi and her story with ease. I felt warmth and real human spirit starting with the scenes between her and her father about her decision to attend space school, the emotion portrayed is taken throughout the volume. Asumi is a bit eccentric, but the major problem she must overcome is her small stature. This isn’t particularly unique, but it is done in a believable manner and you get the feeling that while it will certainly be a hindrance at times, her small size may come in handy at some point. The friendships that begin to form in this book are well-earned complete with determination, egos, teamwork, and arguments. Everyone learns some lessons and starts to build some trust all of which they will need because this doesn’t look to be an easy trip to space. While there is a still an element of fun and whimsy to the series, the space school itself seems tough as nails and I don’t have the slightest inkling what kind of test they’ll be put through next nor whether all the characters we’ve met will get their chance in space. My only issue with this volume comes from the bonus chapters which remove much of the mysteries of the series, just seemed a bit early and loses a bit of tension in the story. However, those secrets are about the past and not the future so I’m anxious for another volume. Twin Spica is a story that will appeal to young and old alike, a real gem from the new line of Vertical books!

hisuicon Twin Spica is the series for people who want more Planetes in terms hard sci-fi space travel stories and quality manga in general. It is the story of Asumi Kamogawa who wishes to join the Tokyo Space Academy and become an astronaut despite a tragic past involving space travel. She is encouraged by a ghostly apparition she calls Lion-san whose face is hidden behind a Lion mask and seems to be linked to the tragedy as well. But the competition is tough and she seems to have more drive than natural ability. The art is a simpler seinen style that while consistently solid will not impress anyone. But it is great at conveying the emotional impact of all the important scenes which is vital as the story and the characters will consistently draw you in a keep you reading. Every chapter hooks you on Asumi’s struggle to be an astronaut while balancing between making things too bleak or too sentimental. Despite having the ghostly spirit of Lion-san everything else in the series is very hard Sci-Fi. Asumi’s first test to get into the Tokyo Space Academy set the bar pretty high for the rest of the series in term of how well it mixes develops the characters while keeping the story exiting and captivating. But the manga also excels at being able to keep us engaged during the less frenzied sections as well. I am sold and and look forward to reading the rest of this amazing narrative.

First it has to be said that the simulcasting of House of Five Leaves is indeed a feat and one that I am personally very excited about. The styling of the characters will hit you immediately, this lends a lot of expression to them even when they aren’t talking or doing anything. The visually striking pieces don’t stop there either as the use of light and shadow is lovely as well as the angles. It’s unique and certainly won’t remind you of most anime design. The way this story is told is very somber, there is action and there is drama, but the overall feeling I was left with was one of quiet melancholy. Akitsu is a talented sword fighter but more than a little mousy, while that sounds probably familiar the way he is portrayed is not. I can’t quite put my finger on it, but much of the characters are gave me this feeling of both old and new. I’m sorry this show is so hard to explain, it was almost dreamlike. I give up, watch it, I will be.

hisuicon House of Five Leaves is a refreshing show on a variety of levels. The anime captures Natsume Ono’s unique and expressive art style very well while adapting it to a TV animation format possibly even better than they did with Ristorante Paradiso. Also this is a story of mature characters on the fringe of society of historical Japan which is a refreshing change of pace. It centers around Akitsu Masanosuke who is an extremely meek but proud ronin who keeps getting fired because he does not exude samurai spirit despite having unsurpassed swordsmanship. When he accepts a body guarding job from Yaichi he quickly gets involved in the criminal syndicate the Five Leaves. Akitsu is both repulsed by the seedy nature of the group but also drawn in by Yaichi’s charisma and complex motivations. Although there is some action the main draw is the intriguing character studies and interactions on display. It seems like another great noitaminA that you can watch legally streaming.

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Ongoing Investigations: Case #083

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hisuiconKimi ni Todoke reminds me that although I may associate Production I.G with smart action shows like Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex and Le Chevalier D’Eon they can do all type of shows really well. The series just gives you a warm feeling throughout. It is a fabulous series to pick you up and reassure you of the good things in life. We learn more about everyone as they learn more about each other as well. And we want to learn these things because these are delightfully positive characters.  Everything we said about the first episode remains true throughout. If you liked the first episode you will be just as happy with the last episode. I never felt any of the story dipped in quality which is great. If you need an utterly conclusive ending that says, “This is where we stop” you have to hope the manga gives you that. The anime picks a good place to end where you can imagine where everything is going and be happy but if you got a second season you would not feel it was tacked on. The best series of the fall season and a wonder anime to hook a certain type of new anime fan as well as satisfy an old hand as well.

Kimi ni Todoke was always an especially bright spot in my weekly anime watching, it really has an uplifting feeling that is followed by a satisfied sigh. As the story takes a close look at friendships and love it creates an incomplete, but no less fulfilling, picture about growth. Few people could hope to be as endearing as Sawako, however, no one would ever know that had she not decided to come out of her shell. This is one of the many reasons I listed her as anime woman of the year for 2009, she is afraid but she moves forward and succeeds. I love Kimi’s ability to make you believe (or in my case remind me of what I have always known) that people change everyday, for many different reasons. I found the development of Chizu a surprising extra to the series, as well as how much I enjoyed Kurumi, Yano’s reveal of being somewhat of a mastermind, and how deeply I felt Ryu’s love. Each character added something to the mix never coming off as extraneous side characters in a love story about Sawako and Kazehaya. But that love story is wonderful, subtle, and fits in along side all of the other slow and sweet relationships that develop in Kimi ni Todoke. The shy quality that comes over the otherwise outgoing Kazehaya and the utter freaking out of Sawako are touching and hilarious as is the knowledge that they will end up in the right place someday, one small step at a time. Kimi ni Todoke deserves a spot as of one of the best of 2009/2010.

hisuiconThe next stop on the trip through the iterations of Cutey Honey was Re: Cutey Honey or as I like to call it Re: Super-Obvious-Lesbian-Sub-Text Honey. Re: Cutey Honey was made by Gainax as a companion to the Hideaki Anno movie. Once again Honey Kisaragi must battle Panther Claw after they killed her father. The biggest difference is now instead of Seiji Hayami being her love interest with a good deal of lesbian subtext to her adventures they outright have Natsuko Aki as her love interest. Also Honey is now an office lady instead of a student. Overall the formula is still the same one I mentioned on The Speakeasy and it does it well. The fan service is sort of off the hook in these OAVs. There are naked breasts all over the place and the racy material you expect from a Go Nagai work with a modern Gurren Lagann feel. The action is also rather well done and the fights are exciting and amusing. I’m actually quite surprised this has not been picked up. It’s only three episodes, the animation is quite good, and it delivers on all fronts that U.S. fans usually like.

I went to see the play Enjoy by Toshiki Okada translated from Japanese over the weekend but it struck me as almost more of a conversation rather than a production. The narrative revolves around a bunch of part-time workers at a manga cafe in Shinjuku. There is virtually no set or props to speak of so the crux of everything hinges on the stories they are telling to each other and the audience, often speaking directly to you the viewer. The speech used is worth noting because it really is street level, repeating yourself, stopping and starting, skipping things, filler words, very “real.” There is a bit of a divide in the cast, some are 30 (or just turned so) and the others are between the ages of 22-27, everyone makes frequent mentions of this. Much of the conversations revolve around societal pressures about jobs and relationships, but more to the point is this close look at a phenomenon of college grads who only work part-time and still live at home without being able to move on to the next stage. I found this concept an easy one to see in American culture as well. There is a presence of humor certainly in the quirkiness of many of the characters in the first half, but also a melancholy that gets more pronounced in the second part. In fact, while even some characters recognize their flaws throughout the play, it never really feels like they will move forward because of it. But in this way and others the characters are very tangible, you know these people or are/have been these people, you want to hear their story, sympathize, listen, encourage, advise, and talk to them. Enjoy doesn’t really come off as positive or negative, and is certainly never preachy, it is a play about what goes on, what is, and it succeeds in making you mull over all that you saw.

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