Category: Reviews

In the Project X Zone

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hisui_icon_4040 I remember looking at screen shots of Namco × Capcom and thinking that we would never get the game here in the United States. I really wanted it but games with so many properties involved are notoriously hard to license. It turns out that was not a bad assumption as we still don’t have an official English release of Namco × Capcom. (Side note: I never remember that Reiji Arisu and Xiaomu are from Namco × Capcom. They always seem like Endless Frontier characters to me.)

Then in 2008 something shifted slightly. It was Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Ultimate All-Stars. A fairly well-regarded fighting game for the Wii with a lineup of Tatsunoko and Capcom characters from all over the map. And it has a legitimate US release. It did not open the flood gate for every crazy cross over game from Japan but it did signal that maybe with a bit of luck some titles that were previously just in the realms dreams and fan translations were possible.

And so when I saw the Project X Zone movie I was super excited in general but not very optimistic about it chances. But then people kept telling me that there were rumors that it was coming out in English. And soon enough those rumblings were a reality. Apparently it was a bit of a pain in the ass to get all the necessary licenses. But it was here. The game I asked for.

So I had to put my money were my mouth was. I pre-ordered the game and got a 3DS for my birthday. So was it worth all the times I mentioned in the APB?

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Fate/kaleid liner Prisma Illya #009: Mother & Daughter Skinship

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I still love you Shiro! hisui_icon_4040  It is time for the return of the Queen. (Which once again makes me think of Kaoru Akashi. Making this the second time she has come up in a Fate/kaleid review post. You think I would be making more Nanoha Takamachi references.) If anyone is going to get this show back on track it is none other than Irisviel von Einzbern. Now that she is not dying of magical anime disease (Holy Grail version) she can finally flex those full motherly muscles like she was always meant to. But at the same time Miyu gets to show off some solo fighting ability. So there is more to this episode than bath time fun. I know some people are saddened with that news. Hopefully they do not read this blog and instead just stick to Sankaku Complex or something equally vile.
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Manga of the Month: Ranma ½

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Ranma ½ (らんま½)
by Rumiko Takahashi

hisui_icon_4040 Ranma ½ is a lot like Akira.

Wait, wait, wait. Put down those torches and pitchforks. Let me explain for a second. It will all make sense if you just give me a chance.

They not the same when it comes to content. I meant that in the sense that at one point in time it was almost inconceivable to think that anyone who was any sort of casual anime fan had not seen at least a little of either. People tended to either love or hate either title and of course that led to lots of “overrated” and “overexposed” being thrown around about both. But even if you your opinion was in the middle of the road about it you were expected to have an opinion about both. They were an integral part of the framework of fandom conversations.

And then time passed and luster fell off both titles. Neither of them are forgotten. They still randomly appear on top 10 lists. They still influence people. They still get brought up in conversation. They are just no longer the essentials they once were. You can bring them up at a convention and if half the audience has not seen either of them you’re not too surprised.  And so at some point both of them went out of print.

Viz announced at Anime Expo that the Ranma 1/2 manga was going back into print in a new format. Then at Otakon they announced the same for the anime. With this classic coming back into the consciousness (and store shelves) soon I decided this was a good a time as any to talk about this series.

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