Blog Archives

Tenjho Tenge (2004)

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Posted on October 14, 2006 by Deni

Tenjho Tenge is a fan-service wonderland. Or at least, that’s what I’d like to say, but the manga it’s based on actually makes the anime look like material suitable for kindergarten story time. Which kind of makes me – a fan-girl and not terribly impressed by the classic shounen fan-service cues so carelessly and frequently applied to fighting anime titles – want to respect it just a little bit. After all, it’s got to be hard to live up to … (read more)

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Twelve Kingdoms (2002)

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Posted on January 25, 2006 by Ching Yee

Well, this was a pleasantly infuriating experience — it was gripping yet so maddeningly convoluted and slow to develop that it nearly drove me to distraction. Nearly, but fortunately, not quite.

You’re reading the synopsis and thinking ‘hey, it doesn’t very sound very different from other series’ [see Escaflowne]. Youko Nakajima wouldn’t be the first reluctant anime character to be told she is the ‘chosen one’. She wouldn’t be the first to be consequently ripped from Earth, dumped into … (read more)

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Puni Puni Poemy (2001)

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Posted on January 25, 2006 by Andy

Take cover. Puni Puni Poemy is a visual and aural barrage. The scenes strobe as quickly as the director Shinichi Excel Saga Watanabe can think of anime to parody. Its lead, Poemi Watanabe, is a motor mouth whose hysterical gatling gun approach to dialog is unremitting as it is nonsensical. There is continuous parodying of anime conventions, in particular, absurdly detailed exposition of plots, transformation scenes and groups of women living together. A lead who wants to be an anime … (read more)

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Ah! My Goddess (2000)

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Posted on November 20, 2005 by Ching Yee

It’s so hard to dislike this movie even though there are a few things I’m not particularly overjoyed with. But let’s not start there…

Let’s start with Keiichi and Belldandy, the two central characters in this movie. We are looking at Keiichi and Belldandy after their first meeting — 3 years ago he dials for fast food and gets the Goddess hotline, and ends up with a goddess for life instead — how lucky is he? Very lucky. The goddess … (read more)

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