Legend of the Galactic Heroes Gaiden 2: Spiral Labyrinth

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Warning: We assume that you have watched the main series of Legend of the Galactic Heroes (the original 110 episode OVA) before reading this. We will not spoil anything major in the Gaiden series but everything and anything in the main part is fair game.

I don’t know how many introductions I can write for Legend of the Galactic Heroes without constantly repeating myself. It is the best of the best when it comes to Space Opera and the side stories follow in those footsteps.

The first Gaiden series of Legend of the Galactic Heroes centered solely around Reinhard’s rising through the ranks with a minor guest appearance by Schenkopp and an even smaller cameo appearance by Yang. To make up for it the longest arc in this second Gaiden series is a look into Yang’s early career. And that is a decent recompense for his overall secondary status as a protagonist throughout the series. Of course we get more of Reinhard climbing of the ladder but the Blonde Brat has always had greater ambition than the simple living historian. Yang always tries to get away from complications in his life while Reinhard lives for them. Continue reading →

AnimeNEXT 2011: Panels

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When it comes to panels AnimeNEXT has its own draw as a mid-sized convention. While they will not accept any darn panel they are pretty fast and loose with what they accept as long as you make a convincing argument. It makes it the perfect place to test out new panels, play with old ones, or try radially unusual topics. All four panels we ran were either new panels or majorly overhauled from the last time we ran them. At the same time the convention is big enough that most panels get a good draw no matter how esoteric. But don’t let me fool you into thinking AnimeNEXT is the amateur hour. There are some great high-level panels as well as wildly popular clip show presentations. AnimeNEXT has a solid enough panel lineup so that you always have something do.

AnimeNEXT is a place of familiar faces, even if you’ve never spoken to them directly. This is never more true than when attending panels. You get a variety of veterans who run a number of panels old and new. I like to think we are included in that bunch by this point as well. But there are also new people throwing their hats into the ring.

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The Speakeasy #018: Ghostbuster, A Kekkaishi Introduction

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Anime 3000 presents The Speakeasy Podcast:
Drink #018: Ghostbuster,
A Kekkaishi Introduction

As impossible as it sounds there is actually a shonen fighting anime and manga that goes overlooked despite the fact that it is really good. That series is Kekkaishi. As a show with a protagonist with a power and personality that is outside the norm, a strong female lead with skills different but equal to the main character, and an actually developed romantic subplot that is constantly in the narrative but not overwhelming, it is sad to see it so overshadowed. With the manga ending, the anime finishing its run on Adult Swim, and the box set finally coming out in English it seems like the perfect time to do a little analysis on this series and what sets it apart from the pack. Stop complain about shonen fighting and support something that actually approaches the genre well!

(Listen)

And now your helpful bartenders at The Speakeasy present your drink:

Ghostbuster

Shake with ice and strain into a highball glass.