November 23, 2014

Post Upcoming

Going to do something about the Codex Alera coming up.  Probably mostly focused on Kitai and Isana who are my favorite characters in the series. 

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November 19, 2014

Fate Stay Night Visual Novel

So, finally playing it, and I just unlocked my second ending--the Good End for the Unlimited Blade Works route.  And, well, some thoughts.  I'm probably not breaking new ground with this given how long it has been around but, whatever.  If you're like me and avoided it until now, spoilers below as usual. 

Obviously, I still have another ending to unlock from UBW and I still have to play through Heaven's feel.  This little bit is solely about the Good End to UBW. 
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November 10, 2014

Fate Stay Night again...

So, I think Fate Stay night has more posts than anything else here.  Anyway, I just got the first Fate Stay Night on Blu Ray and just rewatched it in the first time since my last post about it here years ago (the sub this time as over the years my tolerance for English dubbing on shows has dramatically declined).  The emotions of that show still hit me just as strong as ever.  I cannot see that image at the end of the stuffed lion sitting on the desk without tearing up.  


I still haven't played the VN or watched Fate Zero, though I am going to watch Fate Zero at some point though I'm not sure if I'm going to wait to finish Railgun first or not.  The thing is though, that it is the characters of the show that appeal to me so I have little enough interest in a prequel.  Still, going to watch it, mostly as a lead in to the remake.  I may finally break down and see about downloading the VN since it is apparently never going to get an English release, and, well, importing a ten year old game is somewhat outside of my price range.  

The thing about finishing a work like Fate Stay Night is that the more emotional I get about a work, the harder a time I have with moving on and doing anything else.   It's the one way that my middle tier animes are inevitably better than my top tier.  I watched a bunch of Tenchi, wrote a post, and then started watching Index.  Now, having rewatched Fate Stay Night, I started rewatching again from the beginning, stopped to look up the VN, checked to see if Fate Zero was on Crunchyroll, and then lamented that I was at my parents place instead of at home so I couldn't immediately figure out how to get a hold of the VN.

Certain shows and a couple of books affect me that way(the only game to do that to me is Bioshock Infinite, by no means the best game I've ever played, but I got drawn in emotionally far more than normal for me playing a game--which just might be the topic of my next post).  I get so invested in them that I cannot then change gears.  I mope about, sad that it is over, and have to do other things like write posts like this that only I'll read, or talk them over with someone.   So...yeah...I'm going to go and try to find something to get my head straight.  

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November 06, 2014

Index/Railgun

Because I'm significantly behind the curve I've only just now gotten around to watching A Certain Magical Index and A Certain Scientific Railgun.  And having seen both seasons of Index and the majority of the first season of Railgun, I'm thinking that, thus far, at least, Railgun is probably a better show.  Despite that I think I prefer Index, just because of Index herself.  I don't think any of the Railgun characters are quite as much fun as Index is. 

I'll have a full length post on something just as soon as I figure out what I want to post about. 

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November 02, 2014

No need for continuity! A Look at Tenchi Muyo: Part 2

So in my previous post I wrote about the OVA series and Universe, but I didn't mention any of the other Tenchi properties.  I cannot speak to Tenchi in Tokyo, GXP, or the War on Geminar simply because, in the case of the later two, I've never seen them, and I haven't watched the former since high school.  I fully intend to collect and watch them in time.  The other thing I didn't speak about were the movies.  Daughter of Darkness won't really be covered here as it lies outside the two continuities I'm discussing.  But the two Tenchi Muyo in Love movies are very relevant.  And are, honestly, the high point for the  Universe continuity.  And along with OVA 3 dragging down the OVA continuity, they are what ultimately pulls Universe ahead.  

Both of the Tenchi Muyo in Love movies are excellent, even though they are resoundingly different.  Tenchi Muyo in Love is simply a fun, enjoyable movie.  The good points are numerous.  The characters are all spot on.  Kiyone is her usual competent self although she doesn't have a huge role--really all of the girls roles are decreased slightly with the extra emphasis going to Tenchi and Achika, which isn't a bad thing.  Washu is also at her best at least as far as the Universe continuity is concerned.  Even Mioshi is less annoying than usual as she doesn't have her usual massive screw-ups.  But of the girls the highlights are Ryoko and Ayeka mostly do to their chemistry together.  This is possibly the first point in the Universe continuity where you actually start to see them as friends.  They are still clearly rivals and they have their usual fights and disagreements.  But they spend the bulk of the movie in each others company, and you can see a sense of camaraderie between them.  In addition, like many of the best parts of Tenchi, Ryoko has some good moments.  Perhaps my favorite scene of the movie is towards then end when Tenchi is fighting the effects of the temporal disturbance, and insisting on doing so without the assistance of Washu's device.  Ryoko places a hand on his back as he struggles, literally, to hold himself together.  You see her concern as she lends what little support she can, but allows him to take care of it himself because that is what he wants and what he needs at the time.  I love any chance that brash, loudmouthed Ryoko gets to show her softer side, especially done here with no words.  

The one main issue with the movie is Kain.  He is a rather poor villian overall.  He is clearly a threat, there is no denying that.  But there is no depth to the character.  He hates the Jurian power and wishes to destroy all sources of it.  That is all.  He's more of a force of nature than a character.  Which I suppose may have been the intention since he isn't on screen much.  He's the threat looming over the whole thing, and not directly involved until the end.  Then again, strong villains (character-wise not power-wise) have always been a weakness for Tenchi.  Ultimately, Tenchi Muyo in Love, is the best parts of the series in a 90 minute movie.  There is a lot to like about that.

Tenchi Muyo in Love 2, on the other hand, is a massive departure from the series' norm.  Where as the series is usually a comedy with some serious action elements, Tenchi Muyo in Love 2, basically drops both of those to instead focus entirely on the drama and the characters.  I would be lying if I said Tenchi Muyo in Love 2 was anywhere near the top of my favorite things about the series.  I enjoy it certainly, but it just isn't fun the way Tenchi is.  That said, again the interplay between Ayeka and Ryoko is good, which is good because it is the bulk of the movie.  Really, the main thing that Tenchi Muyo in Love 2 offers is a conclusion to the romantic element of the series when Ayeka bows out and admits that Ryoko is the only one who can get through to Tenchi which pretty much makes Universe unique among Tenchi continuities.  Apparently the original creator has self-published works where it is made evident that in the OVA continuity Tenchi ultimately ends up marrying them all.  But as he doesn't own the rights, it means that unless another OVA series is made that's all non-canon.

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