I just finished Full Metal Panic (here). I couldn’t stop watching even though I’ve seen the show before. FMP is simply a terrific show with a great cast of characters. I’m glad there is a sequel (2nd raid) and also Fumoffu!, which I’ve seen already but if a box set exist I’m soooo buying it. ...(more)... Also, I would sign up for the military if Tessa was my commander. Okay, this isn't an
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FMP? FUMOFFU reaches its end with three full-length episodes that feature down-and-out yakuza, a dubious school club challenge and misplaced biological weaponry...a normal day at Jindo High School for Sousuke and Kaname, then. With only three episodes on this disc and the individual stories taking up the entirety of each one, there's a slight feeling of being short changed in terms of quantity of material on offer here. To its credit though FUMOFFU is, and always has been, pretty consistent in terms of q...
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You know, popular media has portrayed all kinds of fictional superpowers for decades from flying to superhuman strength to walking on walls but I never found any of these powers fascinating…until Read or Dream came along!Welcome to the world of paper users!StoryThe show is based on a manga written by Kurata Hideyuki and illustrated by Ayanaga Ran. The manga spans four volumes. The story is about three Chinese sisters who are not blood related; Anita King (the youngest), Maggie Mui (the middle one) and Michelle Cheung (the oldest). The three sisters run a detective agency in Hong Kong. The three are also expert “paper users” which means they can manipulate the physical structure of paper so that it forms into any shape they want and so that it strengthens to any degree they want. That way they can use paper around them as extremely versatile tools like weapons, planes or support structures. The three sisters are hired as bodyguards for a Japanese author called Sumerigawa Nenene by her editor Lee Linho (who is Chinese). Nenene is an author who has been in a slump for four years and as such hasn’t written any new books during that period. I will not give details about the reasons of this slump but I can say that it is related to her past. Her editor finally convinced her to start writing a new book. The show basically follows the life of Nenene and the incidents she has to go through as she is protected by the three paper sisters.The story in this show is basically a continuation of the OAV story but with the addition of a few new characters. As far as I can tell, the story in the series is only loosely based on the story in the corresponding manga with JC Staff applying a bit of literary liberty.I should say that the idea of using paper like paper users do excites me a lot. I’m a book worm (not as bad a Maggie and Michelle but I still love reading) and I also like Origami. My chosen discipline is also greatly involved in the paper manufacturing process. I also love manga which is printed on paper. In short, I love paper and can’t imagine the world without it! To have an anime show about paper is like a dream come true.The story is a well balanced mix of drama, action, comedy, political intrigue and fantasy.The action is very well done and this can easily go down as one of the best action shows in anime history. The tactics employed by the three sisters during their battles are quite clever and Michelle assumes the role of leader and strategist most of the time.The series is choke full of excellent drama. The drama focused episodes typically used a laid back approach which made them very memorable. The relationship between Nenene and the three sisters was the main focus initially. The first few episodes explored how Nenene’s attitude towards the three sisters who were freeloading at her house changed from complete irritation because of their continuous goof ups to complete acceptance of their presence as an indispensable part of her new life. Watching them develop this relationship was an absolute joy. The series later explores the relationship between the three sisters themselves and gives insight about their past. It then explores the relation between Anita and her friends at school. The second half of the series mixes a lot of intense drama with action because the story moves into the conflict stage and we get to see some really emotional scenes of love, hate and betrayal.The comedy is absolutely great. The comedy in this show is not of the slapstick type that you find in real anime comedies but I found the low key realistic humour far more enjoyable than jokes in shows like Love Hina or 2x2=Shinobuden. Most of the comedy originates from the interaction between the three sisters and Nenene and amongst the sisters themselves. The scenes involving Michelle in particular are very memorable.The politics is an interesting aspect of the show. At first, I thought it was way over exaggerated and corny at times but it started to make much more sense later on. The thing that changed my opinion is the character of the president. Initially, I thought the guy Joker called “Mr. President” was just the head of the British Library but I later found out that he is actually the US president. Now, Read or Dream the TV series and the manga were both released in 2003. If you take into account the world events that have occurred in the past 5 years and the fact that the US has a great deal of influence over much of the world since it is the last remaining superpower; it becomes obvious that the show is also trying to deliver a covert political message and the political aspect of the show starts to make sense. There are still some overdone aspects but they can be forgiven since the show overall was excellent.I think the overall conclusion was satisfying. While it’s not the best of anime endings out there, it still managed to tie all the missing links.Characters & Voice ActingOne of the most appealing aspects in this show is the cast of interesting characters.Michelle is the eldest sister and effectively the leader of the group. Now before I continue any further, I just want to say that MICHELLE IS AWSOME!Now back to our story. Before watching the show, my first impression of Michelle, based on the images I’ve seen of her, was that of a calm and confident woman who is always ahead of the game and knows what she is doing. I was really surprised to find out that she is completely the opposite. I was even more surprised when I realised I like her even more now!Don’t get me wrong. Michelle does in no way have a bad personality. It’s just that she is a weirdo! She is calm indeed and always manages to remain optimistic no matter what. She cares deeply about her sisters. She is a money pincher but that’s not because she loves money but because she wants to save enough money for her favourite hobby (and dare I say life blood); buying books. She knows no limits when it comes to books; she would easily read 50 books in one day and has bought the entire stock of multiple bookshops at times. It is no wonder then that the owners of bookshops in Jinbōchō consider her, along with Maggie and Yomiko Readman, as their most prized customers and there is an official agreemnt amongst the book sellers there to always give those three the VIP treatment!During battles, she usually calls the shots and behaves in a very serious manner. While her paper abilities are not as powerful as her sisters, she still manages to come up with solid tactical plans. Her specialty is paper archery. When she is not in battle mode, she tends to be very laid back and clumsy. She is quite celever though but her intellect only shines during battles. She is also very fond of cute boys and girls (scary!!) and is the source of a lot of comedy in the show.Her voice actress, Kikuchi Shoko, delivered an excellent performance and her voice siuts Michelle’s playful laid back personality perfectly.You have to be heartless not to like Maggie. She is the second sister and is the tallest amongst the three. She prefers to dress in men’s clothing unlike Michelle. She doesn’t talk very much and likes reading as much as Michelle does. She and Michelle are both big fans of Nenene’s works. She admires Michelle and cares deeply about her and about Anita. In fact, she risked her life many times to save Anita and would sacrifice anything for the sake of her sisters. In a way, she serves as the link between Michelle and Anita who are the absolute opposite of each other.She has the odd habit of reading in cramped places as this for some reason makes her feel at ease. Her crying is the silliest that I have ever heard (it sounds like a pigeon call) and Anita often makes fun of that. Battle wise, she is probably the most powerful amongst the three sisters and her specialty is creating moving paper creatures.Hirata Hiromi did the voice of Maggie. Her calm low toned voice was perfect for Maggie’s character.Anita is the youngest of the three and is often called Chibikko by Nenene (which annoys her a lot). The relation between Nenene and Anita didn’t start off very well but it improved with time. Nenene likes to tease Anita a lot but I think she does that because she likes her (and she enjoys seeing Anita getting mad) (^_^;;) I don’t know if Nenene realised it but I think she and Anita are very similar to each other personality wise.Anita is more of a tomboy. Unlike her two sisters, she doesn’t like reading and actually hates books (the reason for that is revealed later in the show). That’s why she feels like the stranger in the group as she is living with two extreme bibliophiles and an author. She likes to collect frog dolls and has a very hot temper (which Nenene likes to exploit for her own amusement). She may have the occasional argument with her two sisters but deep inside, she really loves them and would feel devastated if she was to separate from them.For a young girl, Anita has a lot of guts. Her specialty is suing paper cards as cutting tools in close combat. She has done some very daring moves and operations throughout the series.The voice actress behind Anita’s voice was none other than Saito Chiwa. A perfect and expected choice since Chiwa has monopolised the roles of young hot tempered girls in anime over the years. Her crying voice is still quite sharp though.Nenene’s personality is more or less similar to Anita except she is more mature. One striking aspect of her character is her guts; she’s got tons of it!! She is more than willing to stand up for what she believes no matter who her opponent is. She often gets into heated arguments with the sisters over their misbehaviour but she learned to accept them with time.She is considered Yomiko’s closest friend and the friendship between the two is explored in this show.The voice of Nenene is done by Yukino Satsuki who is well know for her role as Kaname Chidori’s voice in Full Metal Panic and its sequels. Another perfect choice since Nenene and Chidori’s characters are not that different from each other.I’ll refrain from talking about other characters since this might be spoilerific.MusicThe opening is a dramatic tune with no lyrics which fits the nature of the show perfectly. It actually reminds me of the music you hear in James Bond movies. Of course the three sisters are far more superior than Bond since Bond is nothing but a bastard.The ending is a nice melody that conveys a sense of nostalgia.The background music is also well done. The piece that plays when the sisters are in action always excites me and I can’t seem to get enough of it.Animation & ArtThe people at JC Staff must really enjoy what they are doing; otherwise they would not create such great shows like Read or Dream. The animation is top class as to be expected from JC Staff. The fighting scenes in particular are very fluid.The background art is very detailed and a lot of effort has been made to make the urban details of Tokyo and Hong Kong as realistic as possible.The character designs are very similar to the ones in the manga (the manga designs are more cuter). The designs are generic but likable. My only complaint is Junior: with his hair down, Junior looks too much like girl. Ironically, he looks more like a boy when he ties his hair in a pony tail style!And there you have it. The show has been licensed by Geneon Entertainment. You can also find a lot of extra information (and images) about the show and the related manga in this website. Some screenshots and short episode reviews can be found at Momotato’s blog and at Sea Slugs.
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Okay, I admit it; this post is mostly just an excuse to try out my new digital camera. I ordered Kino’s Journey and Full Metal Panic last week and they arrived early yesterday. I’ve been indulging in a little FMP. I had forgotten how much the first few episodes totally rocked! As for Kino’s Journey, I’ll probably wait until I have time to marathon the entire thing, or maybe a half/half stint.
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Kino’s Journey is a show that tries to answer this philosophical question and it does it in a philosophical way:“The world is not beautiful, but that in a way lends it a sort of beauty.”StoryThe show is based on a series of novels written by Keiichi Sigsawa (9 books have been published to date as far as I know). The story is about a young girl, Kino, who travels in her fantasy world with her talking motorcycle who is called Hermes. She visits one country after another and always stays for 3 days in each country, no more and no less. She has often said that her dream is to continue travelling forever which is why she never stays more than 3 days in every country she visits; she doesn’t want to emotionally attach herself to any land because she might stay there for the rest of her life if that were to happen.The story in Kino’s Journey is of episodic nature. Each episode is about Kino visiting one or more countries on his journey’s path. That means that there are new characters in every episode who will never appear in other episodes.Now Kino is one weird show. The show is extremely philosophical in nature and it can even be surreal at times. Unlike many other philosophical shows however, the wisdom each episode tries to deliver is pretty straight forward. The show never tries to go around in circles. I guess the show can’t afford to go around in circles since each episode is a stand alone story.Kino is more than inept at using fire arms and she always carries a pistol and persuader with her for self defence. I should point out though that she has used it many times and yes, there were fatalities as a result. In fact, many people die throughout the show for various reasons and their deaths can often be of violent nature so if this is not your cup of tea then don’t watch it.In a way, Kino’s Journey reminds a lot of the voyages of Sinbad the sailor from the Arabian Nights except Kino’s story takes place in a semi European setting. Just like Sinbad, the fantasy world of Kino tends to manifest itself in an extreme and exaggerated manner (the land of books and the land of adults for example) but that also helps to highlight the ideas of the story better.The show deals with many concepts like war and peace, censorship, value of work, revenge, democracy and forms of government, war between classes and religious beliefs.I should say that the conclusion of the story is satisfying. I will not reveal any details but I will only say that it is one of the most memorable conclusions that I’ve ever seen.The details of the time Kino spent with the woman she calls “master” are not shown in the TV series. Instead, they are revealed in the movie Life Goes On which is just an extra episode.Characters & Voice ActingBecause of the episodic nature of the show, the only recurring character throughout the show is Kino and his motorcycle Hermes.Kino has developed quite a different personality from her original one after the time she spent with “master”. Her new personality is that of a calm cold girl who doesn’t seem to have a sense of fear and who has forsaken all for the sole purpose of continuing her journey. This personality has helped to confuse many viewers and lead them to believe that Kino is a boy. Indeed, Kino has rarely shown any signs of feminine behaviour throughout the show. She is a girl who is not afraid to use a gun to defend herself and has indeed used it many times. That definitely gives her a scary image but that is not the whole picture. She would often just observe the lifestyle of the people of each country she visited without interfering in any way but there were instances where she decided to interfere for her own reasons. Her reasons for interfering can sometimes be for moral reasons and sometimes for pure curiosity. This brings up another philosophical debate as to whether outsiders are allowed to interfere in a foreign culture even if just for pure ethical reasons. The debate still continues in our real world to this day.Hermes, being a motorcycle, doesn’t play a big role in the events of every episode apart from providing transportation for Kino. He has an interesting sense of humour though and his comments can be quite cheeky at times. His attitude and comments whenever Kino is captured by an enemy tend to be sarcastic and that has puzzled me a lot; I still don’t know whether he doesn’t care what happens to Kino or whether he is more than confident Kino will manage to escape danger quickly and defeat her opponents!Out of all the remaining characters, two were more memorable than the others: Nimya who appeared in episode 8 (land of magic) and Sakura who appeared in the last episode. Nimya was a clever girl full of energy who worked very hard to build a flying machine. She came across many hurdles (including financial and personal) but her optimistic nature always managed to overcome them and carry on with her life. Sakura was a sweet young girl who helped her parents run an inn. She was also full of energy and had a cute voice and appearance. In other words, she was the epitome of innocence.I think what made those two characters more memorable than others is the fact that they were the main characters in the episodes in which they appeared in while Kino took a back seat in those episodes. I consider episodes 8 and 13 to be my favourite episodes.I have no complaints whatsoever about the voice acting as every character had a voice suitable to his / her personality. Kino’s voice actress, Maeda Ai, also performed the ending song for both the TV series and the movie. Her voice for Kino was calm and cool and it was more of a boy’s than a girl’s voice to be honest which further increased the confusion regarding Kino’s gender.MusicI love both the opening and ending music. The opening has exciting tunes and vocals while the ending is more on the sad side. The background music is very sparse but what there is of it is quite pleasant. Most of the background music uses a flute like instrument (which kind of reminds me of zampona music) and that was to my liking.The opening song was performed by Shimokawa Mikuni who is more famous in the anime world for performing the openings and endings for the hit series Full Metal Panic and its sequels.Animation & ArtThe animation studio that did this, Studio Wombat, doesn’t have a long history like other animation studios in Japan but it managed to provide consistent animation quality throughout the show. I didn’t notice any drop in animation quality as far as I can remember. The background scenes in particular were beautifully done and this applied to both the TV series and movie. Even the opening and ending animation were a real visual treat.Character DesignsThe character designs are very simplistic and there is a heavy emphasis on using rectangular lines to draw many of the character’s faces. I can’t say that I like them but in a way, I think they suit the abstract nature of the story. An interesting point I should mention is the character design of Kino herself. Because of the boyish nature of Kino’s design, I had a difficult time convincing my self that she is actually a girl. It doesn’t help when her name is more of a boy’s name and she also carries a gun!! For those people who haven’t watched the show yet and are unfamiliar with the novels, rest assured that the hero you are watching is a girl.And there you have it. The show has been licensed by ADV Films. If you like philosophical shows that make you think then by all means watch this. You can also find a lot of extra information (and images) about the show and the related novels in this website.
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Is it me, or is Full Metal Panic getting more and more mo
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Okay, this post isn't really anime or gaming related, but...oh well. We're finally nearing the end of the 2006 World Cup. Controversies, hilarious refereeing and some outstanding goals (probably due to the new Adidas Teamgeist design and 'lightness') have marked and marred this years World Cup. The quarter-final dust has settled and the four countries left standing more or less merit their places in the semis. Germany, the hosts, were of course expected to pull through, as they have quality and the nation behind them. Italy, who faced Ukraine in the quarter-finals, should be red-faced if they didn't make it.Jubilating Frenchmen, and deservingly so.The real surprises and controversial faces in these semis are of course, Portugal, and the seemingly aging France. Let's talk about France first, shall we? When I watched them in the opening games, I didn't just feel...but I KNEW this team were going home. There was nothing in their play to even hint that they were more than what the world was calling them, a group of has-beens. Zidane, Thuram, Makelele, even Barthez...they lacked the spark, they lacked the quality even. But how things can change. France scraped through to the 2nd round, sparking a series of inspiring performances to first down the then impressive Spanish, and then vanquish the Gods of Football themselves. Yes, Brazil were completely stifled by the French, with Zidane producing probably the performance of his life at that age to humiliate even the highly-touted Ronaldinho. The Brazilians created nothing, and even the rotund Ronaldo could not save them.Oh bother, looks like I'll have to cancel that countryside tour.The end of an era, the end of David Beckham.Then, we have Portugal, who defeated the ever-underachieving English, albeit in a penalty shootout. I actually felt it was best England left the competition then, because if they scraped through another round, it would be all the more painful for the players and the fans when they eventually, and ultimately fall at the next hurdle. England's performances have been close to abysmal, but maybe God is an Englishman. After all, with uninspiring displays, toothless attacking, the Three Lions made it through their group, went on to beat the quick and pacey Ecuador, before losing in controversial manner to the Portuguese.If you watch the World Cup, you know what happened in that match. Rooney, and Cristiano Ronaldo, both players from a club I support, losing it and causing chaotic reverberations in the world of the satanic tabloids and press. Rooney, either cynically or accidentally, stomped on the...crotch area of Ricardo Carvalho, a Portuguese defender. A foul was called. Ronaldo rushes up, for whatever reason, and starts complaining about the foul. Rooney gets pissed, as he always does, and pushes Ronaldo. Referee produces red card, Rooney is off, and Ronaldo is becomes England's enemy No.1.No mate, not THOSE balls! The other one!More like a soap opera than a football match.From what I watched, I cannot believe that Ronaldo would do this to a clubmate of his. But even if he did complain, he had every right, because then and there, on the pitch, his loyalties were to Portugal, not to Wayne Rooney or Manchester United. I've been to a few football forums, read a few articles, and many an England fan blames Cristiano for their team's eventual demise. I say, STFU and take off those rose-tinted glasses. The incident aside, England were a better team with 10-men and held on to force a shootout. Commendable. But both England and Portugal screwed up their penalties. It's just that England 'effed' their penalties even worse. The bottom line is, Rooney should not have lost his temper in the first place, and failing that, Lampard and Gerrard, usually reliable in every situation, should have done more than scuff their shots straight into Ricardo's arms.I feel this makes it worse for my favourite club, which is probably No.1 in the most supported and most hated charts, lol. Sir Alex has not made any significant changes to a team with an ailing midfield, and with Van Nistelrooy's impending departure, this little incident does not bode well. What can we do? On to happier things. Michael Schumacher won his first race in...errr 5?6? at Indianapolis last Sunday. Whoopee. At least now there's some life in this year's F-1.On another note, I just managed to collect a few of my backlogged figures this weekend. Good Smile's Ono Kanako, Bome Vol.12 and Alter's Sei. Well, it is my birthday today (cue embarrassed cough), so it was a nice 'personal' gift. Lol. =)Left to right: Sei, Kanako, Chidori and Tessa.Um, the back.Kanako is loads hotter than what I've seen of her in the manga, which was what made me buy the figure. And I don't care if it's a crime to say only nice things about stuff you like, but Kanako is awesome. I haven't taken her out of the box yet, but from early looks, this doesn't disappoint. Had to get an acquaintance of mine to pick up the Full Metal Panic Bome from Japan though...the entire KL was out of stock, and I wasn't prepared to get mine online. Sei isn't the most interesting figure ever...but she looks quite like in the anime, and I've always liked the mask, and her. Anyway, I've got Meg, I want to get Jo, so what the heck, Sei and Amy will just have to be bought too. ;PTerrible reflection here, didn't notice till I uploaded it.Ye gawd...lol, it's still visible, right?I really wanna do reviews on these figures, but that will just have to wait for now. I'm partially broke but there's just so much more to get, lol. Ignis...especially the lovely Ignis...so....pretty...need....air....>>> Football, MiscellaneousTags: Blog, Blogs, Blogging, Football, Soccer, World Cup, England, PVC Figure, Good Smile Company, Tenjou
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By my not so recent review of the anime, you would know that one thing I liked about Fate was the music. It was really immersive, something slightly different from what you hear in your everyday anime series. Well, just skimmed through the new Fate animation original soundtrack, and it doesn't disappoint (well, not me, that is ^^).Gotta love the art.Back Cover.Released in Japan on the 28th of June, this soundtrack is really something. Containing every song and instrumental score heard in the series and renditions from the PC game itself, there is a really balanced blend of dark, moody music and peaceful strings and woodwinds (um, it may have been done by a synthesizer, I dunno). There's even a Fuji-nee theme, which sounds just like her. =) Most of the songs have a melancholic undertone to them, so avoid if you like normal 'Inuyasha' J-pop.There are 40 tracks in all, about 70 minutes of play time. More bang for your buck I say. Composition is mostly by Kenji Kawai and the songs are sung by Sachi Tainaka and Jyukai, both of whom I don't know but sound really good. I really liked the opening and ending of course, but stuff like track 14, Fuyu no Yousei, and La Sola were really soulful and well, peaceful. It felt really different from say, Full Metal Panic: TSR's soundtrack. Meaning you can listen to the entirety of this and feel that you're actually listening to normal music and not anime music. Okay, I admit it's not for everyone. If you hated the show, then don't even bother. If you're a metal or rock fan then this may not be your cup of tea either. Anyone else should really pick it up. Cool card. Collectible, I guess. No, it's not this huge. =) Wish they'd made one of Rider.Great just for a listen, late nights, driving (=P), or wanting to feel really sad, haha. Heck, some tracks wouldn't be out of place at a funeral. Lol. Anyway, if you're interested it can be found at Play-Asia and Cd Japan, just to name a few places. This isn't really a review, but I'll give it a rating just for the sake of it.My Rating: 8/10>>> MusiqueTags: Music, Anime Music, Original Soundtrack, Fate/ Stay Night, Kenji Kawai, Sachi Tainaka, Jyukai, Tenjou
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Is it really already the end of June? And the summer season gets started tomorrow? Things have been going by much too quickly for me to keep up recently (^^;) Anyways, news, news...Studio Fantasia's New Anime (MOON PHASE) Studio Fantasia and director Tetsuya Watanabe -- that would be the director and studio that did Kimi ga Nozomu Eien -- team up to bring a new original anime this fall titled 奏光のストレイン Taikou no Sutorein. Mankind has advanced into space, but has split into two warring factions. Sera@Ayako Kawasumi, a member of the Union, finally sees her older brother Ralph again, but he's a part of the opposing army. Even so, Sera forces herself to fight -- will her feelings reach her brother? GuessI'll be looking forward to this one ;) Hidamari Sketch Anime (MOON PHASE) The 4-koma by Ume Aoki that's serialized in Manga Time Kirara Carat (Hidamari Sketch on Hatena) will be made into an anime this fall. I know I've read about Hidamari Sketch somewhere before... it'll be going on my list to pick up next time I grab stuff from Amazon :) Shouji Gatou and Nagaru Tanigawa Discuss Haruhi (MOON PHASE) Nagaru Tanigawa (author of the Haruhi novels) and Shouji Gatou (Full Metal Panic) discuss Haruhi in this month's The Sneaker. Apparently Tanigawa-san himself is the one who suggested bringing "Asahina Mikuru no Bouken" first, shuffling around the episodes in the anime, and also ending with Yuuutsu. According to an interview with the director, he'd like to make more of Haruhi into an anime, but as of now absolutely nothing is set. I'd be very surprised myself if a second season of Haruhi isn't made considering how successful it's been (pretty much a license to print money). I'd like to see a second season with Suzumiya Haruhi no Shoushitsu as the main story, being a Yuki fan and all ;)
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I was at a friend's house the other day, and somehow, someway, we ended up watching a few episodes of Ikki Tousen. Which provoked two responses, laughter, and slight bemusement from those who hadn't seen it before. It's not just because Ikki Tousen requires a total shutdown of neural activity to enjoy, but the gratuitous, blatant and ultimately (after about an episode...hey we're guys after all), boredom-inducing boob/panty/ass shots.Fan service in anime terms usually has no deeper meaning beyond the inclusion of racy or sexual content designed to titillate (pun intended) us lonely guys sitting in front of our computer or TV screens. Other types exist, but the racy kind is my little topic here. There are exceptions to the situations (comedic, sexual, action sequence), but none in the execution. Almost every freakin' anime has SOME sort of fan service in it, and it's just something we have to accept. The question here isn't really whether fan service should be included in animes...'coz we're gonna get it whether we like it or not...but whether it should be done at the right times, or without any direction like some erratic, inefficient assassin.There are the exceptions of series wth no story and purpose whatsoever relying on fan service to pull them through...after all sex sells, even if it comes in a trash can of a show. I won't be talking about that, though. I don't hate fan service, most definitely. Like any warm-blooded male, I get a kick when I see fan service from a character I have grown to like over the series, and if its done stylishly and at unsuspecting moments. What irks me is when it's done tastelessly. I think fan service can be divided into 3 categories: i) brainless fan service done just for the hell of it...ii) the "we have a story here, we really do...but we think you'd like more panty shots no?" kind, and iii) the well-executed fan service that actually does a job at rounding out the situation and amusing/entertaining the viewer.Falling into the first category would probably be the likes of Ikki Tousen and Najica, the former consisting of martial arts in short skirts and ripped tops and the latter having ample human and 'humaritt' chicks and maids with guns. In shows like these, all girls apparently have cameras fixed between their legs, on their feet and right above the cleavage resulting in rather 'interesting' scenes. If executed slightly better, both these shows could have been 'not bad'. But, if you're like me and don't feel anything from repeated underwear flashing, the shows are just lame. Then there are those that don't do it so much, but are still guilty of it...the Onegai Series, Tenjho Tenge and Vandread come to mind. And there are those which include fan service but in a way where it's actually believable that those scenes were part of the show and not so much stuffed in for sensationalism purposes. Ghost in the Shell, Ranma 1/2, Evangelion, Love Hina (not the OVA), Kamisama Kazoku and Fate/ Stay Night are just the few popping into my head.That last part there shows that there IS a good side to fan service. I wouldn't have enjoyed Love Hina if Keitaro didn't always inadvertently walk in on the girls bathing/changing like an idiot, or wouldn't have laughed as hard if Samatarou's mom and sisters didn't have the 'bloomers athletic meet' in Kamisama Kazoku (god bless that, oh, he did, lol), and it was certainly amusing watching Haruhi 'inflict' fan service on herself and Asahina with the bunny-girl costumes. I guess what I'm trying to say is, when there is a solid plot or direction, then fan service is definitely welcome. So, why is it that if these shows can pull off fan service in this way, others choose to have nothing but that on their shows? Maybe the animation studios are low on fund and this is the only way they'll pull in money and viewers? Maybe the animator is just a pervert. I don't know.What about the blatant, full episode of fan service stunt that many animes with any amount of pretty girls have pulled over the years? Holidays, beach visits, onsen visits and a whole lot of other excuses to strip the babes. Like I said in my recent review, doing it in something like Burst Angel not only felt out-of-place (although the show was screaming for an episode like that), but for god's sake, the girls didn't have to get boob-jobs for it did they? I think these sort of things should be done in the vein of Full Metal Panic, where there was a whole Fumoffu? arc/side-series for this sort of thing. Who could ever forget the little hot spring scene with all the girls from the show? However, it was believable and more importantly, tastefully done, to a certain extent. Watching Fumoffu? after a whole first season of quality was enjoyable, as it should be. Right, I have been ranting and raving at the same time, I guess. There isn't much to draw from this except that fan service is here to stay, but I hope animators at least have a storyline in hand before deciding the colours of the various underwear the bishoujos will don. So yes, in my opinion, fan service should be included when suitable, at the right times, not brainlessly to provoke reactions, or to entirely dominate a series. Come to think of it, that ain's so bad either...Argh!>>> Animania Tags: Animation, Anime, Japanese Animation, Manga, Fan Service, Fanservice, Ikki Tousen, Tenjou
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