Sasuke es engullido por las bombas asesinas de Deidara. Juugo, Karin y Suigetsu se temen lo peor y se dirigen hacia allí. Mientras, Naruto y los demás siguen buscando a Sasuke. Se dan cuenta de la enorme explosión que se produce. Van hacia allí, donde Kiba detecta el olor de Sasuke y se disponen a buscarle. Mientras, lejos de allí, en la aldea oculta de la Lluvia, Pain y Konan, miembros de Akatsuki, interceptan a una persona inesperada.
Ah Tokyo, this large metropolis seems to be a magnet for all types of natural disaster. Well, it’s also the center of attention for supernatural catastrophes as well as a strange anomaly dubbed as Hell’s Gate appears in Tokyo destroying life, wreaking havoc on the landscape, and replacing the sky with it’s own roof over the world. Along with this epic event strange individuals started appearing that displayed bizarre powers called contractors, but these powers have a price each time they are used… the cost of their own humanity. Hei, is one such contractor. Taking on the appearence of a kind-hearted man from China while “off duty”, Hei is actually the masked assassin named The Black Reaper working for an unnamed organization simply known as The Syndicate eliminating any target set before him using the power of electricity mixed with his own quick reflexes. Along with fellow Syndicate members Yin (the spirit medium) and Mao (a talking cat), both working together to finish jobs assigned to them under the supervision of Huang who, unlike his team-mates, is not a contractor. Though through Hei’s most recent assassination assignments his past and the mystery of Hell’s Gate catches up with him dragging what few friends he has into the turmoil.
Reviewer: Endosanity Number of episodes watched: 26 (25 + 1 OVA)
Review:
Trench coat wearing assassin dude with a mask named The Black Reaper that appears after something called Hell’s Gate has opened. Sounds pretty cool huh? Well… it is. Darker Than Black doesn’t waste any time in getting the audiences attention with it’s cool looking protagonist and slick stylized battles with other contractors that posses some strange ability. But, after a couple of episodes of that, Darker Than Black knows that it already has your attention and can start presenting some of the more subtle elements of the story while keeping your attention at the same time. And this works, to a certain point. Eventually, you’re going to start missing the energy that the first few episodes came across with which does return to some degree but what we’re given just sort of feels that it’s not enough. Luckily, Darker Than Black’s mysterious plot line helps to replace that gap left by it’s own introductory episodes to pull you along and find out just what they hell is going on in the world today. But, while you will start to learn about Hei the series will also branch off and start delving into each characters past which can get downright boring. Hey, I’m usually all for character development but it’s usually if the people onscreen are interesting but here we’re looking at… a talking cat, an autistic acting young girl, and a short fat dude with a big-ass nose. Sorry… not interested. Well… okay, Yin’s story (the girl who’s a medium) was a little interesting but it didn’t clear up any mystery about her at all and the episodes spent showing you her past give you a conclusion that you already figured out on your own. For everyone else, what you have to sit through really isn’t all that interesting and is just wasting time.
Darker Than Black, an anime that puts itself at a fork in the road and took the wrong path. Instead of working a bit more on the mysterious plot it presents itself with it opted for character development instead. Usually, that’s the best option but with the level of complexity behind the story here this anime should have worked more on that than trying to explain it’s lackluster side characters. In the end, I gotta admit, you’re left wanting more because you will feel as if Hell’s Gate wasn’t explained enough but is that because of poor storytelling or the series just wasting too much time on unappealing characterization. Well, I guess that’s what 2nd seasons are for which Darker Than Black has had it’s announcement of. Will that explain what we really want to know? Who knows, as it is Darker Than Black is a decent series but don’t be surprised if you’re left with an empty feeling just because it was spending too much time showing you things that… you just didn’t care about, leaving the more interesting parts rushed with no real sense of closure.
Darker Than Black (opening)
Recommendation: |Average|
*Note – Well I’ll be damned, no typos from FUNimation in the subtitles and they stopped using that idiotic angle option of the DVD player. Too bad it’s wasted on an average series that doesn’t deserve more than a rental.
Una tormenta a base de “gomu gomu”s tiene pinta de ser. Menudo último capítulo de One Piece. A pesar de que mucha gente echaba de menos a Luffy por mi parte la verdad es que con lo que nos está mostrando Oda tampoco me importaba si tardaba un poquito más en aparecer. Pero no, ya ha dado suficiente margen para que se luzcan Barbablanca y sus tropas, los shichibukais, los almirantes y demáses, ahora Luffy pide protagonismo.
Y cómo? Pues nada, no se le ocurre otra forma de llegar volando con toda su tropa en todo el meollo. Se aceptan apuestas de qué es lo siguiente que pasará, pero pueden darse algunas situaciones divertidas:
-Buggy VS Doflamingo: el payaso reclama popularidad, y qué mejor que cargarse a un shichibukai, el cual el poder que tiene a priori es inutil contra Buggy?
-Luffy aterriza encima de Sengoku: La que se puede liar es gorda, si ya tiene Luffy hasta los cojones a Sengoku sólo hace falta que le caiga en toda la cabeza. Y ya de paso como se cargue del impacto el puesto de ejecución y liberando a Ace en el proceso ya puede ser apoteósico.
-Luffy cae al lado de Barbablanca: Otra escena cachonda. Barbablanca no conoce a Luffy, pero si que puede reconocer su sombrero de paja, que era de Shanks. Además, seguro que el hombre más poderoso del mundo crea indiferencia ante Luffy, total, seguro que ni sabe quien es. (Luffy: “eh?¿ Y éste viejo quién es?”)
Veremos que nos ofrece Oda la semana que viene, pero la cosa está más interesante que nunca.
When I first started watching TM 8.0 I was struck not by the inventive storyline, or any sort of stunning new levels of animation quality but by how true the main characters felt. In TM 8.0 you won’t find any fourteen year old piloting multi-billion dollar mecha, or any eleven old espers, or adults that are dumber than the children that surround them.
Basically, TM 8.0 is told and experienced from the perspective of Mirai is your typical 13-14 year old girl, she’s at the point in her life were she’s trying to come to grips with her identity, she’s not a little girl any longer in physical terms but neither is she a young woman in emotional terms. Mirai feels frustrated because she knows she not a child any longer but she thinks that she’s still looked at as being a child, so in affect she thinks the world sucks and nobody understands her, she’s a typical normal young teen aged girl. In TM 8.0 Mirai represents the self, but a self that is disconnected with those around her and her responsibilities to family and society.
Along for the call to adventure is Mirai’s younger brother Yuuki, and he’s your typical energetic and lively young boy, Yuuki rushes forward with enthusiasm to the objects of his interest. In TM 8.0 Yuuki represents innocence, but not just is own, he also represents Mirai’s innocence. The third member along for the call to adventure is Mari, she’s in her late twenties to early thirties, and Mari serves as mother and guardian to both Yuuki and Mirai. In TM 8.0 Mari represents what us adult might aspire to be in that situation by protecting and guarding the weak.
When Tokyo was devastated by the 8.0 earthquake Mirai, Yuuki, and Mari became travelling companions on a journey of survival where they experienced devastation, loss, and suffering but they also learned a lot about themselves. The greatest personal growth was experienced by Mirai, before the earthquake she was pretty self-centered and oblivious to her roles, to her friends, to her brother, to her parents, and to the greater society. But, as the group travel through the devastated landscape Mirai began to notice the sufferings of others, courage in the face of loss, and normal citizens doing their best to help others and she found herself lacking. What makes the turn of events even more heart rending is that at the moment Mirai vows to be a better sister, a better daughter, and help when she can her world is turned upside down by the loss of her brother, when Yuuki died so died Mirai’s innocence.
With Yuuki death his backpack and the bridge take on tremendous symbolic importance, Mari offers to carry it but Mirai declines says that it’s her brother’s, so she’ll carry it. So, the pack takes on the meaning that Mirai now has to live her life by paying off the obligation she owns to her dead brothers spirit for the love she received from him and sometimes didn’t repay in kind. In Asian and Japanese culture family roles and obligations are of extreme importance, in affect, Mirai must live her life as good person honoring the memory of her brother. Also, under the principles of Confucianism names have importance; Mirai’s name can mean the future, and Yuuki’s name can mean strength, or courage but it can also mean tender hope or gentle hope. So, when Mirai crosses that bridge she must begin a new phase of her life and move forward towards the future with tender/gentle hope as a better daughter, a better friend, and a person connected to the world around her.
Now this is major speculation on my part, I also think that the backpack might also include Yuuki’s remains, with the high rate of deaths normal Japanese/Buddhist funeral procedures were probably suspended and Yuuki was probably cremated right away so Mirai was telling the truth when she told Yuuki that she would get them home.
Sleep pretty darling do not cry
And I will sing a lullabye
Golden slumbers fill your eyes
Smiles awake you when you rise
Sleep pretty darling do not cry
And I will sing a lullabye
Once there was a way to get back homeward
Once there was a way to get back home
Sleep pretty darling do not cry
And I will sing a lullabye
Boy, you’re going to carry that weight,
Carry that weight a long time
Boy, you’re going to carry that weight
Carry that weight a long time
I never give you my pillow
I only send you my invitations
And in the middle of the celebrations
I break down
Boy, you’re going to carry that weight
Carry that weight a long time
Boy, you’re going to carry that weight
Carry that weight a long time
Oh yeah, all right
Are you going to be in my dreams
Tonight?
And in the end
The love you take
Is equal to the love you make
References for this article.
Cultural Experience in Japanese Death Legends-Michiko Iwasaka & Barre Toelken
Michai jest emerytowanym płatnym mordercą, powracającym do miasta, w którym się wychował, by zmierzyć się z przeszłością. Badou zajmuje się “zbieraniem informacji” i sprzedawaniem ich, niejednokrotnie pakując się w kłopoty i brak papierosów – to drugie jest znacznie gorsze. Naoto to dziewczyna wychowana i wytrenowana przez człowieka, który osierocił ją na jej oczach, przy okazji zapewniając też niezbyt piękną bliznę na piersi. Heine wreszcie jest mutantem, starającym się ignorować podłość otaczającego go świata, choć pewna przypadkowo spotkana dziewczyna zmieni nieco jego podejście do życia. Czwórkę tą praktycznie nic nie łączy… na razie.
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To krótkie wprowadzanie to z jednej strony trochę za mało, z drugiej jednak – o wiele za dużo. Stray dogs howling in the dark jest bezpośrednią adaptacją tomiku mangi o tym samym tytule, będącego wprowadzeniem do dłuższego cyklu. Każdy odcinek to odpowiednik jednego rozdziału i zawiera historię jednej osoby. Ponieważ historie te nie są jeszcze splecione – choć łączą się lekko na brzegach – nie da się napisać jednego streszczenia obejmującego je wszystkie. Do tego odcinki są bardzo krótkie, w związku z czym trudno nie zdradzić czegoś z fabuły wspominając nawet pokrótce o każdym z nich. A historie są nawet dość ciekawe, jak na tak niewielką ilość czasu, chociaż czuć, że to dopiero początek i to dość skromny. Jeżeli nie powstanie adaptacja Bullets and carnage, to animowane Dogs może być co najwyżej ciekawostką na fanów lub sposobem na zachęcenie kogoś do mangi.
Dobra rada: nigdy nie stawajcie między Badou a tytoniem.
Dogs jest bardzo wierną adaptacją, więc tak jak w oryginale znajdziemy tu ciekawych i różnorodnych bohaterów, potrafiących się zaprezentować nawet przy tak niewielkiej ilości czasu antenowego, jaki im przypada. Znajdziemy też kilka świetnych scen walki – po jednej na odcinek. Znajdziemy też oczywiście nieco nagości i nieco urwanych kończyn, choć na szczęście bez zbytniej przesady. Wszystko jest oprawione niezłą muzyką, dobrze dobraną (a niekiedy odebraną) do tonu danej historii i odpowiedniej sytuacji. Niestety, muszę ponarzekać na oprawę graficzną. Wprawdzie można by się kłócić, że gładkie linie i wyblakłe kolory pasują do często melancholijnego nastroju, jednak dla mnie prawdziwego ducha serii oddawały ostre kontury i duże kontrasty czerni i bieli oryginału. Oczywiście nie spodziewałem się, że ktoś zaryzykuje czarno-białe anime (a szkoda, mogłoby być ciekawie), niemniej jednak sądzę, że żywe kolory pasowałyby znacznie lepiej.
Lepiej nie myśleć dlaczego nie ma tu jego prawej nogi...
Tytuł:
DOGS: Stray dogs howling in the dark
Tłumaczenie:
PSY: Bezpańskie psy wyjące w ciemności
Animacja:
David Production
Reżyseria:
Tatsuya Abe
Liczba odcinków:
4
ANN
AniDB
TV Tropes
In this age of convergence, it is inevitable that the various communication channels will ‘collide’ and eventually converge. I think we’ve all seen a number of examples how communication channels collide, mobile phones with camera, a digital still camera that could also shoot video, a mobile phone with GPS, laptop that can also receive TV signals among others. Well, here’s an example where print meets motion picture.
I like the cinematography of this teaser and the treatment that it gives you–a feel that it’s a marvel comics movie. Well, we all know that Disney recently acquired Marvel Comics, so I wondered whether this is an extension of that move in the Philippines?? It might sound ridiculous but that’s what came to my mind.
Apokalipto is derived from the word apocalypse which means ‘universal or widespread destruction’ ironically the teaser suggests otherwise. The child in the teaser asks ‘Apokalipto’ whether he is there to help them. Apokalipto answers “tutulungan ko kayo’ng tulungan ang inyong mga sarili” (I will help you help yourself). First concept that came into my mind-empowerment, now is this a teaser for a new NGO or a new comics superhero, a new show? Whether it came from one of the major Philippine TV stations, I’m not sure.
The end of the teaser says “kakalat na ang bagong sigla” (A new energy will spread–if I got the context right in this translation). Is it a battle cry or a new motto? Or maybe there’s a new service from MERALCO?? Well, whatever it is, Apokalipto did give us a feel of almost everything, red-hooded (Disney?), hero (a la Dragon Ball Z–anime?!) with secret identity (Marvel?). So, I think you understand now, how confused I am now but I love the video. I guess, as for everybody else, let’s just wait and see.
It was announced this morning on Anime News Network that big time anime company ADV Films has officially closed down it’s doors today and transferred all of its assets to several other companies including AEsir Holdings, SXION 23, Valkyrie Media Partners, Seraphim Studios.
You can read the full news post about this HERE.
The company has been having problems for a long tome so I’m not surprised that they finally got put out of their misery. Maybe I can get Saiyuki DVDs on sale now.
Well…one thing is for sure…I won’t be emailing Chris Oarr anymore for ADV Screening permissions. Funny that they mentioned him in that article. Thank goodness for FUNimation and Bandai. There is still hope yet for the anime world.
