Shiki: Part Two (A J!-ENT Anime Blu-ray Disc Review)

May 19, 2012 by Dennis Amith · Leave a Comment

The second half of “Shiki”, the roles are reversed as the humans fight back against the vampires. But which side will you be more sympathetic towards? Overall, “Shiki” has turned out to be an enjoyable, dark and violent series that fans of that genre will enjoy. Recommended!

TITLE: Shiki: Part Two

DURATION: Episodes 13-22 (300 Minutes)

BLU-RAY DISC INFORMATION: 1080p High Definition 16×9 HD Native, Dolby TrueHD English 5.1 and Dolby TrueHD Japanese 2.0, Subtitles: English

RATED: TV MA

COMPANY: Aniplex/FUNimation Entertainment

RELEASE DATE: May 29, 2012

Originally Created by Fuyumi Ono

Directed by Tetsuro Amino

Series Composition by Kenji Sugihara

Music by Yasuharu Takanashi

Created by Fuyumi Ono

Manga by Ryu Fujisaki

Character Design by Shinji Ochi

Art Director: Ichirou Tatsuta

Anime Production by Daume

Featuring the voices of:

Kazuyuki Okitsu/John Burgmeier as Seishin Muroi

Kouki Uchiyama/Jerry Jewell as Natsuno Yūki

Toru Ohkawa/David Wald as Toshio Ozaki

Ai Orikasa/Lydia Mackay as Chizuru Kirishiki

Aoi Yūki/Cherami Leigh as Sunako Kirishiki

Ayano Ishikawa as Azusa Koide (Natsuno’s mother)

Gackt/J. Michael Tatum as Seishirō Kirishiki

Haruka Nagashima as Kaori Tanaka

Haruka Tomatsu/Tia Ballard as Megumi Shimizu

Keiko Kawakami/Luci Christian as Akira Tanaka

Nobuhiko Okamoto/Chris Burnett as Tōru Mutō

Nozomi Sasaki as Ritsuko Kunihiro

Shinya Takahashi/Todd Haberkorn as Masao Murasako

Wataru Takagi/Ian Sinclair as Tatsumi

Yuko Mizutani as Kyouko Ozaki

When citizens of a secluded village begin dying off in alarming numbers, the sole hospital’s head doctor tries desperately to save his patients – but his efforts are in vain. Entire families are wiped out while others desert their homes. All hell breaks loose as the villagers discover their loved ones’ corpses are rising from the grave with an insatiable thirst for human blood. Who is safe when the urge to kill in order to survive blurs the line between man and monster?

Dark, eerie, scary…these are are words that some have used to describe Fuyumi Ono’s horror novel “Shiki”.

A story that would lead to a manga adaptation featuring artwork drawn by Ryu Fujisaki and serialized in the magazine “Jump SQ” from December 2007-2011, the popularity of the series would lead to an anime TV series in 2010 produced by anime studio, Daume (best known for “Onegai Teacher!”). The series also caught a lot of attention when Japanese rock star Gackt announced he would voice one of the characters in the series.

And now the series will be released on Blu-ray and DVD (in two parts) in May 2012 courtesy of FUNimation Entertainment.

What is “Shiki” About?

“Shiki” (which translates to “Corpse Demon”) revolves around a small town known as Sotoba.

But dark things have been happening in Sotoba of late. Many people who have caught sickness and are now dying. There was a folk tale long ago that the village had many deaths due to okiagari (vampires) but it is looked only as an old tale that people today don’t take seriously.

Meanwhile, the main doctor in town, Toshi Ozaki is growing frustrated because each person he tries to help looks like they are suffering from anemia but later grow tired to the point that they die. Why are they dying? Is there an epidemic in town?

While scientifically, an epidemic may seem plausible but when teenager Natsuno Yuuki/Koide sees a former classmate that passed away, has risen from the dead, he tells Toshi Ozaki and both believe that perhaps the town is infested with okiagari…vampires or some type of demon who feeds on the living in the small town.

But are these rumors of the okiagari shiki true? But most importantly, can anyone stop it?

In the second half of “Shiki”, after having seen the vampires (okiagari) going after humans and literally increasing the body count. We have seen a few people starting to know that there is no epidemic in the small village and also seeing the dead awaken and walking around town.

But how can these individuals such as Dr. Toshi Ozaki, Natsuno Yuki, the Tanaka siblings and others alert others that the okiagari exists. As for now, without any solid proof, it’s hard to prove. Meanwhile, Natsuno Yuki was targeted by the vampires and is now dying. With Natsuno being one of the main people in the village to uncover the secret, what will happen now?

“Shiki” features the following characters:

Natsuno Yuuki/Koide – The first protagonist of the series. Natsuno has a cold demeanor. Quiet and sometimes emotionless, Natsuno hates living in Sotoba and prefers living in the city. But because of his parents wanting a change of environment and become more creative, they moved away from the city to Sotoba for inspiration.
Toshi Ozaki – The Dean and doctor of the local hospital, Toshi is a married man but is often working late. He resigned from a university hospital to take his father’s position and despite people bringing up his father, Toshio was not supportive of his mother or his father due to them putting the Ozaki family’s reputation before anything else. He slowly starts to grow frustrated as he tries to find out what is killing the people in the village.
Sunako Kirishiki – A teenager girl who lives in the Kanemasa mansion with her family. She has a genetic disorder known as SLE and can only come out during the night time. She also exhibits these black filled eyes that resemble some of the vampires/demons.
Seishi Muroi- A priest and author, he is currently working on a novel about “Shiki” and can detect actual shiki. He is good friends with Toshi Ozaki.
Touro Mutou – The son of Takeshi Mutou, director of the Ozaki Clinic. He is the eldest in the family and he is good friends with Natsuno.
Kaori Tanaka – A naive girl who thinks Megumi Shimizu is her best friend (despite Megumi disliking her). She and her younger brother Akira are among the few that believe the area is infested with okiagari shiki and hopes people will believe them.
Tatsumi – He is the servant to the Kirishiki family but also a special vampire “Jinrou” that can withstand sunlight and is quite powerful. He leads the Shiki.

VIDEO:

“Shiki” is presented in 1080p High Definition and the anime studio Daume has done a wonderful job in character design and art backgrounds. Typically anime studios are on a time restraint and are working on multiple anime series at a time but Daume is one of the few studios that tend to put all their focus onto a single series at a time.

The art backgrounds are lush and beautiful, homes and overall village structures are well-detailed and the character designs are actually quite stylish and with colors that support the darker anime feel but also a colors that look absolutely vibrant at times.

With that being said, the anime series still has a softness (that most anime TV series has) and one should not expect OVA or film quality type of anime, but still this is a series that looks fantastic with its detail of structures and interior of homes. “Shiki” definitely looks very good!

AUDIO:

“Shiki” is presented in English Dolby TrueHD 5.1 and Japanese DolbyTrue HD 2.0. This is an anime series that primarily focuses on dialogue and if there are action sequences, the action is quick. But the series does make up in ambiance. You’ll hear like insects flying, heartbeats, wind, cars passing by and everything that one can expect in a rural village. If anything, the series utilizes a spooky ambiance and sound effects to freak viewers out. The English soundtrack has more dynamic range but when it comes to voice acting, both are well-done.

The biggest standout for this series is the music. The musical soundtrack by Yasuharu Takanashi is fantastic, especially the opening and ending theme of the series.

Subtitles are in English.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

“Shiki: Part Two” comes with the following special features:

Episode 18 Commentary – Featuring audio commentary by Mike McFarland (Line Producer, ADR Director, voice of Yuki), Ian Sinclair (voice of Tatsumi), J. Michael Tatum (voice of Seishiro) and Lydia Mackay (voice of Chizuru).
Episode 22 Commentary – Featuring audio commentary by Mike McFarland (Line Producer, ADR Director, voice of Yuki), Cherami Leigh (voice of Sunako), John Burgmeier (voice of Seishin) and David Wald (voice of Toshio).
Preview Featurette Vol. 05 – (1:46) The original Japanese DVD Volume preview for Vol. 5.
Preview Featurette Vol. 06 – (1:46) The original Japanese DVD Volume previews for Vol. 6.
Preview Featurette Vol. 07 – (1:16) The original Japanese DVD Volume previews for Vol. 7.
Preview Featurette Vol. 08 – (1:14) The original Japanese DVD Volume previews for Vol. 8.
Preview Featurette Vol. 09 – (:39) The original Japanese DVD Volume previews for Vol. 9.
Textless Opening Song – Calendula Requiem
Textless Closing Songs – Gekka-Reijin
TRAILERS – FUNimation Entertainment trailers

EXTRAS:

“Shiki: Part Two” comes with both the Blu-ray and DVD of episodes 13-22.

There have been a few dark, creepy anime that has made it to America within the last five years. And similar to the United States, even Japan has had its share of anime series incorporating vampires to a storyline.

But what makes “Shiki” so unique is that it doesn’t retain the banality of the usual vampire storyline. This is not a series about a group of teenagers unleashing a counterattack against the vampires, nor is this a storyline about a vampire or human falling in love. This is a story about a rural Japanese town in which the vampires plan to eradicate all humanity and literally turn everyone into a vampire.

Each time we were introduced to a character, you would expect that this character would be a main character in the storyline, but beginning with the first episode, viewers quickly learn that each character is essentially going to be a victim. In some way, it reminded me of “Boogiepop Phantom”, a darker anime series from 2000 that seemed every character introduced, their livelihoods were futile.

But what makes the anime series work is that we get to meet these villagers, learn of their quirks and if anything, feel comfortable with each and everyone of them…that is until the okiagari begin to target them.

The same can be said with “Shiki” as the townspeople think that people are dying of an epidemic, while very few people suspect that a new family that has moved to the area is responsible. And sure enough, when people start to see old friends who have died, walking around, what do you do? How you can fight against these reborn monsters?

The first half of the series focused on the deaths of many in the village and the discovery by Natsuno Yuuki, Toshio Ozaki and brother and sister, Kaori and Akira Tanaka discovering that there is no epidemic but deaths caused by the okiagari (vampire). And to make things worst, there appears to be no defense against them. They keep rising and they are growing by the numbers. Also, it doesn’t help that there are specialized vampires such as Tatsumi who can withstand the sunlight and literally use his charm to get people to let him into their homes and thus leading to a person’s quick death.

The second half of the series, the roles are reversed dramatically. We knew that the people of the village were starting to find out about the vampires, we knew that Natsuno and Toshio Ozaki had to do something. And that something begins with this second half of the series.

We have seen the perspective of the humans, the second half gives us a glimpse of the vampires. While some seem vicious, those of the village who were brought back as vampires struggle with their past human feelings of caring for an individual, wanting to be with a person or their family but unfortunately, because of what they are, they crave blood and when they don’t feed, that is when the vampire takes over their body and literally makes them to vicious monsters.

Unfortunately, without spoiling the series, there is not much that I can say but that everything you watched in the first half of the series and made you sympathetic towards the humans, your perspective may change as you get to see other side of things. Especially learning of the history of certain individuals. But for those who have been wanting to see humanity fight back, will then you’re going to love what happens in the second half of the series.

And if there is anything that I can say is that the violence and bloodshed will increase dramatically with each episode and for those who have a low tolerance towards blood, you have been warned… as this series gets bloodier and bloodier with each episode.

Also, don’t forget to watch what happens after the ending credits of the final episode.

As for the Blu-ray release, Daume, an anime studio who usually doesn’t rush into anime production has once again done a fantastic job with this series. With most TV series, many anime studios are typically hampered by multiple projects they have to get to a television studio but with Daume, one of the few that tends to focus on a series and thus dedicates its staff into making wonderful looking anime series. Granted, the setting is the country and a lot of the backgrounds one will see are trees, fields, forests, etc. But they manage to put quite a bit of detail on their background art and also on the actual character designs which are quite stylish. Especially with the combination of dark to vibrant colors that really pop on Blu-ray. The voice acting is well-done on both lossless soundtracks and there are a few audio commentary tracks included.

Overall, It’s been a long while since I have watched an anime series so dark, eerie and where situations are so unexpected. And from this second half of “Shiki”, all I can say is that… I enjoyed this series a lot. It’s quite violent and bloody but for those who are up to a very intense but enjoyable series featuring humans vs. vampires, will find “Shiki” to be a series worth watching.

Recommended for anime fans who enjoy violent, dark and eerie anime!

Filed Under: Anime on Blu-ray

Shiki: Part One (A J!-ENT Anime Blu-ray Disc Review)

May 12, 2012 by Dennis Amith · Leave a Comment

It’s been a long while since I have watched an anime series so dark, eerie and where situations are so unexpected. And from this first half of “Shiki”, all I can say is that… I’m loving every minute of it!

TITLE: Shiki: Part One

DURATION: 12-Episodes (300 Minutes)

BLU-RAY DISC INFORMATION: 1080p High Definition 16×9 HD Native, Dolby TrueHD English 5.1 and Dolby TrueHD Japanese 2.0, Subtitles: English

RATED: TV MA

COMPANY: Aniplex/FUNimation Entertainment

RELEASE DATE: May 29, 2012

Originally Created by Fuyumi Ono

Directed by Tetsuro Amino

Series Composition by Kenji Sugihara

Music by Yasuharu Takanashi

Created by Fuyumi Ono

Manga by Ryu Fujisaki

Character Design by Shinji Ochi

Art Director: Ichirou Tatsuta

Anime Production by Daume

Featuring the voices of:

Kazuyuki Okitsu/John Burgmeier as Seishin Muroi

Kouki Uchiyama/Jerry Jewell as Natsuno Yūki

Toru Ohkawa/David Wald as Toshio Ozaki

Ai Orikasa/Lydia Mackay as Chizuru Kirishiki

Aoi Yūki/Cherami Leigh as Sunako Kirishiki

Ayano Ishikawa as Azusa Koide (Natsuno’s mother)

Gackt/J. Michael Tatum as Seishirō Kirishiki

Haruka Nagashima as Kaori Tanaka

Haruka Tomatsu/Tia Ballard as Megumi Shimizu

Keiko Kawakami/Luci Christian as Akira Tanaka

Nobuhiko Okamoto/Chris Burnett as Tōru Mutō

Nozomi Sasaki as Ritsuko Kunihiro

Shinya Takahashi/Todd Haberkorn as Masao Murasako

Wataru Takagi/Ian Sinclair as Tatsumi

Yuko Mizutani as Kyouko Ozaki

Dark, eerie, scary…these are are words that some have used to describe Fuyumi Ono’s horror novel “Shiki”.

And now the series will be released on Blu-ray and DVD in May 2012 courtesy of FUNimation Entertainment.

“Shiki” (which translates to “Corpse Demon”) revolves around a small town known as Sotoba.

But are these rumors of the okiagari shiki true? But most importantly, can anyone stop it?

“Shiki” features the following characters:

Natsuno Yuuki/Koide – The first protagonist of the series. Natsuno has a cold demeanor. Quiet and sometimes emotionless, Natsuno hates living in Sotoba and prefers living in the city. But because of his parents wanting a change of environment and become more creative, they moved away from the city to Sotoba for inspiration.
Toshi Ozaki – The Dean and doctor of the local hospital, Toshi is a married man but is often working late. He resigned from a university hospital to take his father’s position and despite people bringing up his father, Toshio was not supportive of his mother or his father due to them putting the Ozaki family’s reputation before anything else. He slowly starts to grow frustrated as he tries to find out what is killing the people in the village.
Sunako Kirishiki – A teenager girl who lives in the Kanemasa mansion with her family. She has a genetic disorder known as SLE and can only come out during the night time. She also exhibits these black filled eyes that resemble some of the vampires/demons.
Seishi Muroi- A priest and author, he is currently working on a novel about “Shiki” and can detect actual shiki. He is good friends with Toshi Ozaki.
Touro Mutou – The son of Takeshi Mutou, director of the Ozaki Clinic. He is the eldest in the family and he is good friends with Natsuno.
Kaori Tanaka – A naive girl who thinks Megumi Shimizu is her best friend (despite Megumi disliking her). She and her younger brother Akira are among the few that believe the area is infested with okiagari shiki and hopes people will believe them.
Tatsumi – He is the servant to the Kirishiki family but also a special vampire “Jinrou” that can withstand sunlight and is quite powerful. He leads the Shiki.

VIDEO:

AUDIO:

The biggest standout for this series is the music. The musical soundtrack by Yasuharu Takanashi is fantastic, especially the opening and ending theme of the series.

Subtitles are in English.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

“Shiki: Part One” comes with the following special features:

Episode 1 Commentary – Featuring audio commentary by Mike McFarland (Line Producer, ADR Director, voice of Yuki), Jerry Jewell (voice of Natsuno Yuki), David Wald (voice of Toshio Ozaki) and John Burgmeier (voice of Seishin).
Episode 12 Commentary – Featuring audio commentary by Mike McFarland (Line Producer, ADR Director, voice of Yuki), Chris Burnett (voice of Toru), Tia Ballard (voice of Megumi) and Alexis Tipton (voice of Kaori).
Preview Featurette Vol. 01 – (2:17) The original Japanese DVD Volume preview for Vol. 1.
Preview Featurette Vol. 02 – (1:46) The original Japanese DVD Volume previews for Vol. 2.
Preview Featurette Vol. 03 – (1:45) The original Japanese DVD Volume previews for Vol. 3.
Preview Featurette Vol. 04 – (1:46) The original Japanese DVD Volume previews for Vol. 4.
Textless Opening Song – Kuchizuke – (1:32) Featuring Buck-Tick’s theme song “Kuchizuke”.
Textless Closing Songs – Walk no Yakusoku – (1:27) Featuring Nangi’s ending theme “Walk no Yakusoku”.
TRAILERS – FUNimation Entertainment trailers

EXTRAS:

“Shiki: Part One” comes with both the Blu-ray and DVD versions of episodes 1-12.

The first half of the series focuses on the deaths of many in the village and the discovery by Natsuno Yuuki, Toshio Ozaki and brother and sister, Kaori and Akira Tanaka discovering that there is no epidemic but deaths caused by the okiagari (vampire). And to make things worst, there appears to be no defense against them. They keep rising and they are growing by the numbers. Also, it doesn’t help that there are specialized vampires such as Tatsumi who can withstand the sunlight and literally use his charm to get people to let him into their homes and thus leading to a person’s quick death.

But of course, with everything looking quite dark and the viewer is left wondering if certain characters are going to survive, one can only hope there is a glimmer of light that these humans can find a way to fight back. And for that, let’s hope that things get even better in the second half of the series.

Overall, It’s been a long while since I have watched an anime series so dark, eerie and where situations are so unexpected. And from this first half of “Shiki”, all I can say is that… I’m loving every minute of it!

Recommended for anime fans who like dark and eerie anime!

Filed Under: Anime on Blu-ray

Cat Planet Cuties: Complete Collection (a J!-ENT Anime Blu-ray Disc Review)

May 10, 2012 by Dennis Amith · Leave a Comment

“Cat Planet Cuties” is a sci-fi harem anime series with fan service, well-endowed characters and plenty of action, but some may find the series too mild compared to other anime series of the same genre. Overall, “Cat Planet Cuties” is a fun and enjoyable series worth watching!

TITLE: Cat Planet Cuties: Complete Collection (Asobi ni Ikuyo!)

DURATION: 12-Episodes (325 Minutes)

BLU-RAY DISC INFORMATION: 1080p High Definition 16×9 HD Native, Dolby TrueHD English 5.1 and Dolby TrueHD Japanese 2.0, Subtitles: English

RATED: TV 14

COMPANY: FUNimation Entertainment

RELEASE DATE: May 15, 2012

Originally Created by Okina Kamino

Directed by Yoichi Ueda

Series Composition by Katsuhiko Takayama

Music by Tomoki Kikuya

Original Character Design by Noriko Morishima

Art Director: Hiroshi Kato

Chief Animation Director: Noriko Morishima

Mechanical Design by Naohiro Washio

Animation Production by AIC PLUS+

Featuring the voices of:

Haruka Tomatsu/Brittney Karbowski as Manami Kinjō

Kana Hanazawa/Monica Rial as Aoi Futaba

Kanae Itō/Tia Ballard as Erisu

Mutsumi Tamura/Aaron Dismuke as Kio Kakazu

Aki Toyosaki/Lara Woodhull as Melwin

Ayahi Takagaki/Cherami Leigh as Ichika

Fumihiko Tachiki/Sonny Strait as Yūichi Miyagi

Hiromi Hirata/Martha Harms as Maki Itokazu

Iori Nomizu/Luci Christian as Antonia

Kikuko Inoue/Staci Moon as Kuune

Minako Kotobuki/Cherami Leigh as Chaika

Naomi Shindoh/Aleisha Force as Durel

Yui Horie/Colleen Clinkenbeard as Jens (Janes)

Yukiko Monden/Jami Marchi as Jack

She’s as frisky as she is curvy – and kitty wants to play! The flirty fun begins when nice guy Kio has a close encounter with a sexy, alien cat-girl named Eris. She’s every nerd’s fantasy come true, and she and her fellow intergalactic felines are setting up base in Kio’s house. Unfortunately, Kio doesn’t have a lot of time for heavy petting. Secret agencies and enemy dog-aliens are sniffing around, hoping to get their paws on his pussycat pal’s tail! The guy’s definitely got his hands full – but with Eris jumping in his lap to purr in his ear, it’s likely Kio will land on his feet!

In 2003, Okina Kamino and illustrator Hoden Eizo and Nishieda would work on the Japanese light novel “Asobi ni Iku yo!” (Let’s Go Play). In 2006, a manga adaptation by 888 was created and serialized in the manga magazine “Monthly Comic Alive”.

With the popularity of the manga series and light novels, a 12-episode anime adaptation was created in 2010 titled “Asobi ni Ikuyo: Bombshells in the Sky” and now, the series will be released on Blu-ray and DVD courtesy of FUNimation Entertainment under the name, “Cat Planet Cuties”.

“Cat Planet Cuties” revolves around a shy teenage boy named Kio Kakazu. Kindhearted and sophisticated, Kio’s uncle pressures him about having a girlfriend and the first girl he tries to push himself on is a teenage girl with cat ears and a tail (thinking the girl is cosplaying).

The girl is actually a real alien named Eris, a Catian who has the body of a human but have cat tails and ears and also have a lot of feline qualities. Eris a 16-year-old scout and when Kio accidentally gets drunk and passes out, when he wakes up, he finds a naked Eris in his bed. Not sure what is going on, he realizes that Eris is a real alien.

When his neighbor and childhood friend Manami comes over, she wants to confront Kio about the girl that he came home with. Meanwhile, at the same time, his teacher Ms. Itokazu comes over to bring some work and both are shocked to see a teenage girl with Kio that is barely dressed. And wonder why she is cosplaying.

But Kio and Eris tell her that she is not from this planet and at first both can’t believe it but when Eris shows proof that she is an alien and news reports on television show a space ship being found, both Manami and Ms. Itokazu react with concern and both immediately leave Kio’s home.

We quickly learn that Manami is trying to become a CIA member and is a candidate for recruitment. She is excellent with spy communications and weaponry and she has been secretly listening into Kio’s conversations (as she has his room bugged) and with revelations that an alien being is on Earth, she has been assigned to target Eris.

Meanwhile, it is revealed that Ms. Itokazu is a leader of the Beautiful Contact Japan Sect. that are working on human and alien communication but want humankind to encounter aliens that are found in fictional sci-fi movies. Not a cat girl with big breasts. So, she wants to make sure that Eris is eliminated.

As for Kio’s other friend, Aoi Futaba, she and Kio share the same passion for classic films and she secretly has a crush on Kio. But while she seems shy and quiet around him, in reality, she’s a deadly killer who works for the Immigration Bureau of Japan and is among their top agents. She has a technologically advanced battlesuit and weaponry and her bosses have been working with the Dogisians and thus her job is to eliminate Kio and Eris.

But will these women kill their friend? Especially Aoi and Manami who both have a crush on Kio.

And what will happen when the Catians and Dogisians arrive on Earth?

“Cat Planet Cuties” features the following characters:

Kio Kazaku – The protagonist and kindhearted teenage boy. Kio is the first to meet the Catian named Eris.
Eris – A Catian and 16-year-old scout who is exploring Earth. She is very grateful to Kio and because she is entering her first heat, she wants Kio to be the one to mate with her.
Aoi Futaba – A teenager who works for the Immigration Bureau of Japan. While she looks like a shy girl and has a crush on Kio, she is a warrior who is excellent with firearms. She has been given orders to assassinate Kio and Eris, but her love for him may brand her a traitor.
Manami Kinjou- A childhood friend of Kio and his next door neighbor. She has had a crush on him but she keeps her emotions within her. She has been wanting to join the CIA but when she is ordered to assassinate Kio and Eris, she chooses to risk her career.
Maki Itokazu – Kio’s teacher and a leader of the Beautiful Contact Japan Sect. Her orders are to make sure that Earth meets a certain “better” kind of alien, but since Eris was the alien to come in contact with humanity, she is told to take out Eris, to erase that meeting between alien and human.
Qoone – The Catian Starship Captain known for her large breasts. She tries to establish diplomatic relations between Earth and Catian.
Melwin – The Catian Starship First Officer.
Chayka – A member of the Catian Starship Crew.
Durel – The Catian Starship Doctor also with large breasts.
Rulos – The computer AI of Eris’ personal ship.
Janes – The Dogisian in charge of relations between Earth and Dogisian. She and the Dogisians are trying to eliminate Eris and friends.

VIDEO:

“Cat Planet Cuties” is presented in 1080p High Definition (1:78:1). AIC Plus+ did a magnificent job when it came to the visual look of the anime series. Backgrounds are well-painted and detailed, the characters designs and even mechanical designs look very good and plenty of shadows and details. Overall, the series looks great on Blu-ray.

AUDIO:

As for the lossless audio, “Cat Planet Cuties” is presented with an English 5.1 Dolby TrueHD soundtrack and the Japanese version is presented in Japanese 2.0 Dolby TrueHD. Because the series features a good balance of dialogue and action, I was hoping to hear a more immersive soundtrack for the action scenes. A little more use of the surround channels, but for the most part, the lossless soundtrack is good. I did notice differences with the Japanese and English version, as Kio sounds much more younger (ie. junior high or early teens), whereas the English version, Kio sounds like an older teen. Nevertheless, voice acting is well-done on both soundtracks and the English version of course, has a been more dynamic range thanks to its 5.1 lossless track.

Subtitles are in English.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

“Cat Planet Cuties: Complete Collection” comes with the following special features:

Episode 1 Commentary – Featuring audio commentary by Scott Sager (ADR Director), Monica Rial (voice of Aoi) and Tia Ballard (voice of Eris).
Episode 9 Commentary – Featuring audio commentary by Christopher Bevins (line producer and voice director), Aaron Dismuke (voice of Kio) and Brittney Karbowski (voice of Manami).
Extra Bonus Features – (7:58) 14 previews for the next episode.
Textless Opening Song – (1:32) Textless theme song “Now Loading… Sky!!”.
Textless Closing Songs – Featuring six textless closing songs.
Cat Planet Cuties U.S. Trailer – (1:34) FUNimation Entertainmen trailer for “Cat Planet Cuties”.
TRAILERS – FUNimation Entertainment trailers

EXTRAS:

“Cat Planet Cuties: Complete Collection” comes with both the Blu-ray and DVD edition of the OVA’s.

For those wanting a mild harem anime series, you really can’t go wrong with “Cat Planet Cuties”. As one would expect, there are a lot of female characters, one teenage boy and some of these characters are more well-endowed than others, it’s a banal storyline.

In Japan, there are far too many anime series where female characters are all after the one male character and in some way, there can be comparisons with “Cat Planet Cuties” to other alien harem anime series such as “To Love RU” and even “Heaven’s Lost Property”.

The good news is that the series is beautifully animated and it was able to integrate a good amount of action and not so much focus on the fan service. Also, it’s a series that tends to cater to those who enjoy Furry type of anime series. Cats and dogs with human characteristics, these type of anime series tend to have a strong fanbase.

With that being said, the caveat is that it focuses too much on the political conspiracy and while the Catian’s are exciting to watch, the Dogisians were an uninspired antagonist. Also, I found the character of Kio to be normal and average, whereas “Heaven’s Lost Property”, its main character is a pervert and in “To Love RU”, the main character is a person who is confused of his feelings of who he likes. With “Cat Planet Cuties”, it tries to fit everything in the light novel series in 12-episodes and thus everything feels short and almost rushed. The ending, especially of what happens to Kio was like an easy way out for the writers to solve the harem issue.

Still, I did enjoy “Cat Planet Cuties” and its multiple characters and how the Catians try to get accustomed to the Planet Earth but also the “heat” problems that female cats go through to find a mate. These issues were fascinating and fun to watch but once again, as the group have their few episodes of having fun together, with only 12-episodes, it just felt too short and made me wonder how much of Okina Kamino’s storyline was missing from the animated series.

As for the Blu-ray release, I will say that the animation especially the painted backgrounds look magnificent on Blu-ray. The characters are well-designed and while you tend to expect anime TV series to be soft in colors, the overall anime production by AIC Plus+ was well done! Lossless audio was good but I was hoping for a bit more immersive audio during the action sequence. And there are two audio commentary tracks as well as bumpers and textless opening and closing themes included.

Overall, “Cat Plant Cuties” well no doubt entice the anime fans who love anime harem series, well-endowed, furry characters and also sci-fi action. But for those who want a deeper storyline or even more fan service may find “Cat Planet Cuties” a bit too mild for their tastes and that there are other better sci-fi anime harem series out there.

Filed Under: Anime on Blu-ray

The Woman Knight of Mirror Lake (a J!-ENT Blu-ray Disc Review)

May 8, 2012 by Dennis Amith · Leave a Comment

“The Woman Knight of Mirror Lake” is a very enjoyable and fascinating film that manages to honor the legacy of China’s well-known feminist, revolutionary and writer Qiu Jin and also balancing the film with plenty of action sequences in making this film entertaining for viewers worldwide.

TITLE: The Woman Knight of Mirror Lake (Jian hu nu xia Qiu Jin)

FILM RELEASE: 2011

DURATION: 115 Minutes

BLU-RAY DISC INFORMATION: 1080p High Definition, Mandarin and English, Dolby TrueHD 5.1, Subtitles: English

COMPANY: National Arts, Eleven Arts, FUNimation Entertainment

RATED: TV MA

Release Date: May 15, 2012

Directed by Herman Yau

Written by Erica Lee

Produced by Kwok Sam Sin

Executive Produced by Kwok-Hing Lee, Kwok Lam Sin

Music by Chun Hung Mak

Cinematography by Kwong-hung Chan

Edited by Wai Chiu Chung

Production Design by Raymond Chan

Starring:

Huang Yi as Qiu Jin

Dennis To as Xu Xilin

Xiong Xin-Xin as Ao Feng

Anthony Wong as Li Zhongyue

Kevin Cheng as Wang Tinjun

Lam Suet as Gui Fu

In late-19th century China, Qui Jin was many things: a defiant rebel armed with both blades and guns, a paramilitary leader dedicated to overthrowing an unjust government, a non-conformist who boldly donned men’s attire in spite of tradition, a radical poet whose words inspired the oppressed, and a heroic martyr whose views on equality altered history. Her steadfast resolve to improve the plight of women and her bravery in the face of tyranny led her to the executioner – but her determination to topple the status-quo changed a nation forever.

In China, one woman has made an impact not just in her country but also around the world. A revolutionary but also a woman known for speaking out for women’s rights. Encouraging women to gain financial independence through education and also learning various professions, so she would not need to depend on a man. But most importantly, rejecting oppression by their families (due to cultural tradition and women looked lower than men) and also at the time, the government of the Quing Dynasty.

She was known for her poetry and essays, wearing Western clothing (usually worn by males) but also being executed in 1907 (via beheading) for what she believed in.

And to this day, she is considered a heroine and a martyr and a symbol of women’s independence in China and a museum has been established in Shaoxing by the People’s Republic of China as well as statues dedicated to Qui Jin.

Needless to say, when films are created in honor of such an important person, those willing to direct a film will surely be scrutinized in China. For one, they will be criticized for its accuracy, how much they honor the actual person and most importantly knowing that certain directors try to integrate plenty of action and martial arts into their movies, will they do the same for Qiu Jin?

Assigned the task of directing this film on an important person in China’s history is director Herman Yau (“The Legend is Born: Ip Man”, “The Eight Immortals Restaurant: The Untold Story”, “True Women for Sale”) and writer Erica Lee (“The Legend is Born: Ip Man”, “King of Comedy”). And cast as Qiu Jin is Huang Yi (“Romancing in Thin Air”, “East Meets West”, “Overheard 2″) and cast as revolutionary leader Xu Xilin is Dennis To (“The Legend is Born: Ip Man”, “Ip Man”, “Ip Man 2″).

And the film did receive its fair share of controversial news stories. The film received delays in China/Hong Kong due to protests by Jin’s grandchildren who worried about the depiction of their grandmother and if they would make her more of an action/martial arts character. The film would eventually debut in October 2011 and Jin’s grandchildren would eventually watch the film at the premiere along with the director Herman Yau and actress Huang Yi.

“The Woman Knight of Mirror Lake” is a film that showcases Qiu Jin in two parts that are mixed together in order to show the influence of Qiu Jin. One part focuses on the battle between the revolutionaries that she had trained at school vs. the Qing government soldiers and events leading to her capture (and execution), as well as the capture of Xu Xilin (played by Dennis To), the leader of the revolution and the person who assassinated the provincial governor of the Anhui Province.

The other part focuses on Qiu Jin’s perspective on life from her young years, her feminist beliefs, her college years in Japan and how she became a revolutionary and worked strongly with Xu Xilin.

With a young Qiu Jin, not understanding why boys are given better treatment over girls. She also resisted in having her feet bound (a common practice in China at the time as small feet was looked at as a positive cultural symbol of beauty at the time) and unlike other girls, she wanted to learn how to ride horses, learn martial arts and swordfighting with her father and brother. It’s a lifestyle that she wanted and her father accepted.

And throughout her teenage years, Qiu Jin was critical on how women were not treated as equals to men. She began to have a perspective that a Western-style government would be much better than the Qing government that was currently in place.

But the time the life of Qui Jin was not exactly the best time for many Chinese who suffered because of the war and treatment by its government. This was during life after the Opium Wars where the Qing Dynasty fought against foreigners but then after losing, later working with them, which led to Chinese people thinking the government was corrupt. Also, the First Sino-Japanese War was also beginning to weaken the trust the people had toward its government.

While Qiu Jin, who was educated and would showcase her expressions through poetry and essays, she would often write about the weakening of China and the repression of women.

She would eventually be arranged in a marriage with the son of the wealthy Wang family, Wang Tinjun (played by Kevin Cheng) and give birth to a son and daughter. But wanting more from her husband in hopes that his influence can lead to a political position that can make a change in China, her husband was not a strong individual like she is. As Wang Tinjun wanted his wife to be like other wives, Qiu Jin was not that kind of a woman.

And through other independent women that she would eventually meet in her area, her conviction of fighting for the rights of women and a stronger government would lead Qiu Jin to leave her husband and children behind and pursue education in Japan.

And through her stay in Japan, she would also meet people who believed in the same ideals that she had, especially Xu Xilin, the person who would be the spoken leader for the Zehjiang students who were anti-Qing. Xu Xilin would establish a publishing house and a public school (which would actually be used to train revolutionaries), a school that Xu Xilin has put his trust in Qiu Jin of running.

And the two storylines come full circle as the Quing officials go after Qiu Jin, who is considered a partner of Xu Xilin and she is taken to court where she would receive a trial. While Qing court official Li Zhongyue (played by Anthony Wong) admires Qiu Jin for her writing and education, unfortunately the Qing court is corrupted and will do all they can to get Qiu Jin to admit that she is a revolutionary, even by means of torture.

“The Woman Kniht of Mirror Lake” is dramatized biography on the life of Qiu Jin, dramatized in a way that there are plenty of action sequences, such as Xu Xilin leading the revolutionaries to fight against the Qing soldiers and also a one-on-one battle between Qiu Jin vs. Qing official Ao Feng (played by Xiong Xin-Xin).

VIDEO:

“The Woman Knight of Mirror Lake” is presented in 1080p High Definition (2:39:1 aspect ratio). The film absolutely looks fantastic in HD as the scenes are vibrant during the outdoor sequences. The costume and set design were wonderful to look at and detail can be seen in clothing and structures. I didn’t notice any artifacts or banding during my viewing of the film. But for the most part, video quality for “The Woman Knight of Mirror Lake” is great!

AUDIO & SUBTITLES:

“The Woman Knight of Mirror Lake” is presented in Dolby TrueHD Mandarin and English 5.1. Dialogue and music is crystal clear but I was hoping for a bit more of an immersive mix due to the number of action sequences in the film. Surround channels are utilized, especially during music sequences but for the most part, the lossless soundtrack is good but I was hoping to hear more directional sounds and ambiance with the action sequences and the large number of crowds featured in the film.

SPECIAL FEATURES

“The Woman Knight of Mirror Lake” comes with the following special features:

Making Of – A 20+ minute featurette showing behind-the-scenes making of and also interviews with the cast of “The Woman Knight of Mirror Lake”.
Trailers – Funimation Entertainment trailers

EXTRAS:

“The Woman Knight of Mirror Lake” comes with the Blu-ray and DVD edition of the film plus a slipcover case.

“The Woman Knight of Mirror Lake” is my favorite film based on Qiu Jin’s life. It’s really difficult for Chinese/Hong Kong filmmakers to create films based on major symbols of Chinese history because viewers tend to expect action and not something so dramatic and serious for the full extend of a film.

We saw it last year with “Confucius”, which was a major challenge for the filmmakers but they managed to find a balance and not focus entirely on philosophy which may have enticed a niche of viewers but for the masses in China/Hong Kong, you need to have this action element.

While the fact that Herman Yau was directing the film and coming off the success of “The Legend of Ip Man”, I was not surprised that the film would integrate martial arts. I felt that actress Huang Yi and also Dennis To did a great job playing the characters. Huang Yi manages to give a strong commanding role as Qiu Jin but also showing that she also has an emotional side when she knows that she must separate from her family and children, but it’s that resolve knowing of the sacrifice she needs to make for the greater good.

Dennis To is known as an action star but manages to portray the character of Xu Xilin as a strong leader for those revolting against the Qing government. And sure enough, his experience in “The Legend of Ip Man” is quite evident during his choreographed martial arts sequence in the film.

But the talent and interaction that I enjoyed the most was between Qiu Jin and Qing court official Li Zhongyue (played by Anthony Wong). Wong does a fantastic job of playing the court official who respects the intelligence and writings of Qiu Jin but knows that he is powerless as a court official, despite seeing the corruptness by his colleagues. The character is so passionate about Qiu Jin’s written work to the point he has memorized it. And these interactions between both individuals were endearing and added to the depth of Qiu Jin’s character.

“The Woman Knight of Mirror Lake”‘ is a thrilling story, may it be the movie or just reading about the history of Qiu Jin that captivates you. She was an independent thinker who had strong convictions until the very end of her life. While I’m not an erudite of Qiu Jin and what is real and what is not real, I do know from what I have read is that Qiu Jin and Xu Xilin are cousins and read stories that that in real life, she was convicted for documents that show that she was a revolutionary, while in the film, she is shown as a person who was being convicted with no proof.

While the film manages to be entertaining and has a good balance showcasing Qiu Jin’s life as a feminist and the sacrifices that she made for her beliefs, the action sequences which Qiu Jin’s grandchildren actually worried about before the film was released, was also a cause of concern for me as well.

I didn’t want to see Qiu Jin flying in air, nor did I want to see the action look fake. If you want to show people fighting with swords, guns, then make it realistic. While it is known that Qiu Jin learned martial arts, part of me doubts that the real Qiu Jin engaged in such battles. And not so sure if Xu Xilin and his fellow revolutionaries were engaged in the same type of battle as depicted in the film, but I will tell you what I didn’t like, the wire work of explosions. We see people floating in air and flipping 360′s, it looked really fake considering the fighting choreography was well-done.

Granted, once again, it’s a double-edged sword of whether or not you want to see these long action sequences in a film about Qiu Jin’s life.

As for the Blu-ray release, video quality is fantastic and audio was very good (although I would have loved it to be much more immersive during the action sequences). You get one making of special feature and also with the Blu-ray release, you also get the DVD version of the film included as well.

Overall, “The Woman Knight of Mirror Lake” is a very enjoyable and fascinating film that manages to balance the life of Qiu Jin and making sure it honors her legacy but also knowing that for viewers who expect action, there is also enough action sequences to entertain audiences. With back and forth pacing, the storytelling is done well and not at all confusing. While I do feel the action sequences were over the top at times, the storyline,which may not be historically accurate, does honor Qiu Jin and the biopic is entertaining. And in the end, Herman Yau and Erica Lee accomplished their goal.

Filed Under: Asian Cinema DVD/Blu-ray, Blu-ray Reviews

Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood – OVA Collection (a J!-ENT Anime Blu-ray Disc Review)

May 7, 2012 by Dennis Amith · Leave a Comment

“Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood – OVA Collection” features four short OVA episodes that explain some of the history of characters such as Roy Mustang, Maes Hughes and Izumi Carter but also fun episodes featuring Edward and Al. Plus you get 16 hilarious four-panel comic theater episodes as well! If you are a fan of “Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood”, “Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood – OVA Collection” is a must-own release!

TITLE: Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood – OVA Collection

DURATION: 4 OVA’s (60 Minutes)

BLU-RAY DISC INFORMATION: 1080p High Definition 16×9 HD Native, Dolby TrueHD English 5.1 and Dolby TrueHD Japanese 2.0, Subtitles: English

RATED: TV 14

COMPANY: FUNimation Entertainment

RELEASE DATE: May 22, 2012

Originally Created by Hiromu Arakawa

Directed by Yasuhiro Irie

Series Composition by Hiroshi Ohnogi

Music by Akira Senju

Opening and Ending Theme by L’Arc~en~Ciel

Character Deisgn by Hiroki Kanno

Art Director: Takeshi Satou

Art Design: Kazushige Kanehira

Anime Production by BONES

Featuring the voices of:

Rie Kugimiya/Maxey Whitehead as Alphonse Elric

Romi Paku/Vic Mignogna as Edward Elric

Iemasa Kayumi/Kent Williams as Father

Megumi Takamoto/Caitlin Glass as Winry Rockbell

Shinichiro Miki/Travis Willingham as Roy Mustang

Unshou Ishizuka/Aaron Dismuke as Van Hohenheim

Ai Satou/Brittney Karbowski as Mrs. Bradley

Akemi Okamura/Cynthia Cranz as Paninya

Anri Katsu/John Burgmeier as Dolcetto

Atsuki Tani as Berthold Hawkeye

Chika Fujimura/Gwendolyn Lau as Sheska

J. Michael Tatum as Scar

Fumihiko Tachiki as Sloth

Fumiko Orikasa/Colleen Clinkenbeard as Risa (Riza) Hawkeye

Go Shinomiya as Storch

Kikuko Inoue/Laura Bailey as Lust

Wendy Powell as Envy

Join Ed and Al as they chase rumors of successful human transmutation into a web of shocking family drama and lies. Sneak a glance at hidden sides of Winry and Hawkeye’s personalities. Survive the frigid north with a young Izumi Curtis as she fights to gain a deeper understanding of alchemy. Explore the legendary friendship shared by Mustang and Hughes and watch them grow from military school rivals into hardened brothers transformed by the horrors of the Ishvalan War.

You thought you knew the whole story. You thought all the tales were told. You were wrong.

In Japan, “Fullmetal Alchemist” (Hagane no Renkinjutushi) has been a popular long running anime and manga series created by mangaka Hiromu Arakawa. The original manga series was serialized in Square Enix’s “Shonen Gangan” since 2001, while the 51-episode TV series created by BONES was shown on television in 2004 and was followed by a film to conclude the series.

The popularity of “Fullmetal Alchemist” has led to many novels, OVA’s, drama CD’s, soundtracks and video games and a lot of these releases have been distributed in various countries and its popularity is a testament of how people have come to love the series which has won many awards in Japan including being voted for the #1 most popular anime series of all time.

Despite it’s popularity, the series could have gone on longer but because the anime series was created when the manga was only several years old, the anime series only lasted 51-episodes and there were differences between what the director featured on the anime series and what Arakawa had in the manga.

So, in 2009, a new series titled “Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood” (Hagane no Renkinjutsushi: Furumetaru Arukemisuto) was created by BONES and this time around, the series would follow the manga much more closely. A total of 64 episodes were made, including a film and also 4 OVA’s. With the series and film being released by FUNimation Entertainment in the United States on Blu-ray and DVD, now the four OVA’s will be available on Blu-ray and DVD in May 2012.

To make sure that there is a difference between this series aside from the storyline differences compared to the original, the staff is different this time around as well as the character designs. The director for “Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood” would feature the following production team: Yasuhiro Irie (who worked on RahXephon”, “Cowboy Bebop”, “Macross Plus”, “Gunparade March”), series composition by Hiroshi Ohnogi (“Eureka Seven”, “Area 88, “Aquarion”, “RahXephon”, “RIN”, “Skullman”), music by Akira Senju (“Red Garden”, “Mobile Suit Victory Gundam”, “Silent Service”), character designs by Hiroki Kanno (“Angelic Layer”, “Eureka Seven”, “Ninja Scroll”, “RahXephon”) and art design by Takeshi Satou (“Mobile Suit Gundam 00″, “Ghost Slayers Ayashi”, “Please Twins!”).

What is “Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood”about?

“Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood” is a series about two young alchemist brothers named Edward and his younger brother Alphonse Eric (aka “Al”). Their father left them and several months after their father left, an epidemic hit their village and killed their mother. Grieving and alone without their mother, the two quickly tried to hone their alchemist skills and hope to bring their mother back alive by using a human transmutation (this is illegal and considered taboo by alchemist).

While performing the transmutation, a dark shadow comes and literally breaks apart the body of Alphonse and as for Edward, he is shown “the truth” but in return for doing the transmutation, there is a toll and in this case, he loses his legs and feet and his right arm. And the transmutation to bring their mother fails as Edward was only able to revive a disembodied figure. In a short time allowed before the dark shadow leaves, Edward was able to bond Al’s soul to a suit of armor but there are some consequences as Edward loses a leg and also sacrifices his arm in the process. And these consequences and guilt have plunged Edward to the lowest he had ever been and now he is determined to help his brother regain his humanity.

Both Edward and Alphonse join the Amestris military and through their investigations, Edward wants to use this opportunity and help his brother regain his body back, despite a magnificent evil group lurking behind the background of the Amestris military.

“Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood – OVA Collection” features the following characters:

Edward Elric – The oldest of the Elric brothers who manage to survive a transmutation and managed to bond his brother to a suit of armor just in time. In the process, he lost his legs and his right arm in which his childhood friend Winry has created metal prosthetics known as “automail”. He is also quite short but also very destructive as he is skillful with alchemy and the fact he survived a transmutation shocks the military. Working as a State Alchemist in order to find a way to bring his brother’s body back and possibly getting his own body back.
Alphonse Elric – Al is the youngest brother of Edward who was bonded to a suit of armor. Almost invulnerable and very strong. Often mistaken as the eldest because of his size.
Roy Mustang – The Lt. Colonel of the State Military who wants to become the next Fuhrer of Amestris. He is the one who discovered Edward and Alphonse.
Winry Rockbell - A childhood friend of Edward and Alphonse. She is also very gifted in technical and mechanical things. Often is the person who repairs Edward’s automail (metal prosthetic limbs). And always arguing with Edward, but its quite obvious that she cares about him.
Maes Hughes – An old friend of Roy Mustang’s who tries to help him with his goal to become a Fuhrer. He works in military intelligence and has a loving wife and young daughter. A family man, he lets Winry stay with them when she is in town.
Riza Hawkeye – Roy Mustang’s most trusted subordinate. The voice of reason and excellent in using firearms.
Izumi Hartnet/Izumi Curtis – The teacher of Ed and Alphonse Eric who helped them hone their alchemy right after their mother died.

“Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood – OVA Collection” features the following four episodes (each episode is about 15 minutes each) on one Blu-ray disc. Here is a basic summary of each episode:

OVA EPISODE 1 – The Blind Alchemist – Edward and Al visit a blind alchemist who was rumored to have pulled off a perfect human transmutation.
OVA EPISODE 2 – Simple People - With Edward constantly breaking his automail during battle and having Winry fix them, the Elric brothers decide to give Winry a present each time she does have to fix them.
OVA EPISODE 3 – The Chronicle of Teacher – The history of Izumi Hartnet and her training and first encounter with Sig.
OVA EPISODE 4 – Yet Another Man’s Battlefield – The story of how Roy and Hughes met each other back in military boot camp.

VIDEO:

“Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood – OVA Collection” is presented in 1080p High Definition and because this is an OVA, productions on OVA’s are much better than their television counterpart. Backgrounds are much more detailed, colors are vibrant and for the most part, the series looks fantastic on Blu-ray. I didn’t see any compression artifacts and even during scenes with a lot of red or amber, I didn’t see any banding issues.

AUDIO:

“Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood – OVA Collection” is presented in English Dolby TrueHD 5.1 and in Japanese Dolby TrueHD 2.0. Overall, the 5.1 lossless soundtrack sounds very good and there is a good amount of surround usage and its much more immersive than its Japanese lossless counterpart.

The Japanese lossless soundtrack is still good, especially if you have a receiver in which you can change the setting to stereo on all channels. I do prefer the Japanese lossless soundtrack in terms of acting. For example, the scene where Edward is screaming in pain after performing the transmutation is incredibly acted by Romi Paku, Vic Mignona did a good job but I felt Romi was much more emotional and you can hear that pain in his voice. But the English lossless of course, has a much better sound overall. So, it all comes down to preference.

Subtitles are in English.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

“Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood – OVA Collection” comes with the following special features:

FULLMETAL FOUR-PANEL COMIC THEATER – (40:30) A collection of 16 fun and hilarious four-panel comic short stories which are essentially parodies of scenes from the “Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood” TV series.
TRAILERS – FUNimation Entertainment trailers

EXTRAS:

“Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood – OVA Collection” comes with both the Blu-ray and DVD edition of the OVA’s.

“Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood OVA Collection” is a fun collection of short OVA episodes and with both the TV series and film being released by FUNimation Entertainment on Blu-ray and DVD, at least it gives fans more episodes to watch.

Prior to watching these OVA episodes, I was curious if they were going to be crazy like the previous series, “Fullmetal Alchemist” and its OVA’s. But essentially what we have with these OVA episodes are actually storylines that reveal the past of other characters.

Primarily for the third and fourth episodes feature the history of characters. We learn how Izumi (Edward and Al’s teacher) and Sig met and what she was doing before they met. And also a fascinating episode involving Roy Mustang and Maes Hughes. Two very good friends who were not as close when they first met.

But the other two episodes are just as entertaining but “The Blind Alchemist” definitely had some surprises as Ed and Al encounter another person who tried to use human transmutation, while “Simple People” actually show the emotions that Winry has towards Edward, but also a little of what Risa may have towards Roy.

While “Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood” (the TV series) is based on the manga series, these OVA’s are standalone and are not based on the manga.

As mentioned, I wondered if there would be any craziness featured on the FA:B OVA series like the original series OVA release which dabbled with super-deformed characters. And sure enough, fans will get a taste of that craziness with the 16 Four-Panel Comic Theater presented in the special features of the Blu-ray and DVD release.

Overall, “Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood – OVA Collection” has a good balance of humorous and serious episodes but for the most part, with the series completed and the film having been released in the US, this is essentially the final release for “Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood” on Blu-ray and DVD for now. And if you are a fan and have watched every TV episode and the movie, then more than likely, you will enjoy this Blu-ray and DVD release of these OVA episodes.

Recommended!

Filed Under: Anime on Blu-ray

Black Butler: The Complete Second Season (a J!-ENT Anime Blu-ray Disc Review)

April 23, 2012 by Dennis Amith · Leave a Comment

More exciting than the first season… If you are looking for an anime series that is dark, violent but also has enough humor, “Black Butler: The Complete Second Season”, along with the first season, are recommended!

TITLE: Black Butler: The Complete Second Season

ANIME RELEASE DATE: 2010

DURATION: 12 episodes + 6 OAV episodes (450 Minutes)

BLU-RAY INFORMATION: 1080p High Definition (4:3), English Dolby TrueHD 5.1, Japanese Dolby TrueHD 2.0, Subtitles: English

COMPANY: FUNimation Entertainment

RATED: TV PG

Release Date: April 3, 2012

Originally created by Yana Toboso

Directed by Hirofumi Ogura

Series Composition by Mari Okada

Music by Taku Iwasaki

Character Design by Minako Shiba

Art Direction by Manabu Otsuzuki

Anime Productions by A-1 Pictures Inc.

Featuring the following voice talent:

Daisuke Ono/J. Michael Tatum as Sebastian Michaelis

Maaya Sakamoto/Brina Palencia as Ciel Phantomhive

Nana Mizuki/Luci Christian as Alois Trancy

Takahiro Sakurai/Jason Douglas as Claude Faustus

Aya Hirano/Caitlin Glass as Hannah Anafeloz

Jun Fukuyama/Daniel Fredrick as Grell Sutcliff

Junichi Suwave/John Swasey as Undertaker

Emiri Kato/Monica Rial as Meirin

Hiroki Touchi/Ian Sinclair as Bard (Bardroy)

When last we saw dear Sebastian, he was poised to feast on the ripened soul of his young master. Unfortunately for the debonair demon, there’s a new butler in town…

Enter Claude Faustus, a malevolent manservant uninspired by the drab flavor of his own contracted master, Alois Trancy. This pedestrian lad holds no allure for Claude, so the bespectacled butler sets his sights on a finer delicacy from the menu of the damned: none other than Ciel Phantomhive. And so begins a devilish dance of death starring crow and spider.

The demonic duel rages beyond the limits of good taste, culminating in a debaucherous maze of madness pitting butler against butler. Sebastian and Claude: two ravenous rakehells filled with the power of darkness and locked in a macabre battle for the soiled soul of the young master they so long to savor/devour.

This limited edition includes an artbox sized to hold both this set and the season 1 DVD/Blu-ray combo pack.

In 2006, mangaka Yana Toboso (“Rust Blaster”) began working on his second manga that year for Square Enix’s “Monthly GFantasy” magazine. The series nown as “Kuroshitsuji” (Black Butler) would receive a large fanbase due to its bishounen characters.

By 2008, “Black Butler” would receive an anime adaptation featuring production by A-1 Pictures (“Tetsuwan Birdy: Decode”, “El Cazador de la Bruja”, “Valkyria Chronicles”) directed by Shinohara Toshiya (“Lupin III: Crisis in Tokyo”, “Gurren Lagann”, “Samurai Deeper Kyo”), a screenplay by Mari Okada “CANAAN”, “Aria the Natural”, “Red Garden”, “PoPoLoCrois”), music by Taku Iwasaki (“Angel Heart”, “R.O.D. – The TV”, “Soul Eater”), character designs by Minako Shiba (“.Hack/Sign”, “Letter Bee”, “Madlax”) and art direction by “Hiromasa Ogura” (“Ghost Hound”, “Aquarian Age”, “Appleseed”). The opening theme “Monochrome Kiss” is by SID and the ending theme “I’m Alive” is by BECCA.

And since the release of the original manga series and anime series, the popularity of “Black Butler” has led to a musical, drama CD’s, a video game and books have been released in Japan.

While the manga is still ongoing in Japan, the anime series has continued with two full seasons at 48 episodes long and now both seasons are being released on Blu-ray/DVD courtesy of FUNimation Entertainment.

What is “Black Butler” about?

“Black Butler” takes place in London (during the Victorian Era) and revolves around a 12-year-old named Ciel Phantomhive, who is from the Phantomhive noble family who is known for their toy and candy empire. A long time ago, Ciel used to be a happy boy but his happiness was destroyed when someone murdered his family.

Now Ciel wants to find the killers of his family and makes an exchange with a demon for his soul. He wants vengeance on those who disgraced him or the Phantomhive name and to find and kill the murderers of his family.

The demon approves and to stay close with Ciel, the demon Sebastian Michaelis will become his butler and protect him. But once Ciel’s duties are done as upon their agreement, Sebastian will be able to take his soul and kill him.

Black Butler Season 2

The first season concluded with Sebastian taking Ciel’s soul as agreed. And the new season begins with butler Claude Faustus who works for the spoiled and vulgar Earl Alois Trancy. We learn that Earl Alois Trancy is a bit evil to his servants, sticking his finger in the eye for one of his maids and also showing his lack of care for anyone in the world but himself and his butler Claude.

Meanwhile, his uncle Arnold Trancy, the Viscount of Druitt, suspects Alois’s legitimacy as the former head’s son and we learn that Alois had a traumatic childhood in which he was kidnapped at birth and sent to slavery. Alois was the only survivor of a plague that spread throughout the village he lived.

Meanwhile, that night, a cloaked man carrying a trunk comes to the mansion of Earl Alois Trancy and Alois desperately wants to know what is inside the trunk. Sebastian makes a deal with Alois that if Alois shows him a special black tea box inside the mansion’s basement, he will show him what is inside the trunk. But immediately, Claude attacks Sebastian and during the melee, it is revealed that Ciel Phantomhive is inside the trunk.

Alois wants Ciel Phantomhive, meanwhile Sebastian manages to escape with the special black tea box and his trunk. Inside the tea box is a blue ring, which Sebastian places on Ciel’s finger and immediately Ciel has been revived.

As the story progresses, we learn that Sebastian was not able to consume Ciel’s soul as originally planned in the contract, because Claude Faustus was able to snatch Ciel’s soul before Sebastian.

And now, because of this…there is unfinished business between Sebastian and Ciel, but most importantly between the two butler demons, Sebastian and Claude. Meanwhile, Alois continues his pursuit of capturing Ciel.

So, you get all 12 TV episodes of “Black Butler” season two and also six OVA’s featuring more lighthearted, upbeat, humorous episodes revolving Ciel and Sebastian, Elizabeth, Bardroy, Spears and Grell and Alois Trancy and his butler Claude.

The main characters of “Black Butler” are:

Sebastian Michaelis – The butler for Ciel Phantomhive and also a demon who will protect Ciel until he accomplishes his task to help Ciel find who murdered his parents and avenge the Phantomhive name. When all tasks are accomplished, as agreed by his contract with Ciel Phantomhive, he will take his soul and kill him. Sebastian has taken the form of the previous Earl, Vincent Phantomhive. Although he protects Ciel, the two have an uneasy relationship as they don’t care for each other all that much.
Ciel Phantomhive – Once a happy boy who’s life was changed when his family was murdered. Now that he is older, he tries to avenge his family’s name and search for his parent’s killer by taking part in a contract with a demon (Sebastian). The demon will protect Ciel by pretending to be a butler, but once all duties are accomplished, he will consume Ciel’s soul. Ciel has lost his eye when he was a slave and was used as a sacrifice in a cult ritual. He has become a cold person since his family’s death.
Bardroy (Bard) – The American cook who uses weaponry to make the food for the household, despite not making anything edible.
Finnian (Finny) – The clumsy gardener who has superhuman strength.
Mey-Rin – The clumsy maid who wears cracked glasses because it’s the first gift Ciel had purchased for her. She has a big crush on Sebastian.
Tanaka - The steward who has served under Ciel’s parents and now serves Ciel. When his parents were murdered, Tanaka was there and was stabbed in the back.
Madame Red – The aunt of Ciel, she is a doctor who practices at Royal London Hospital. But when she was pregnant, she was in an accident in which her husband was killed and the baby died. So now she feels hatred towards those she performs abortions on and kills them along with the grim reaper named Grell Sutcliffe. Together, they are known as Jack the Ripper.
Grell Sutcliffe – A grim reaper who decides if a dying sould should be allowed to continue living, Grell is a gay man who calls himself a woman and is infatuated with Sebastian. He murders people alongside Madame Red.
Earl Alois Trancy – Kidnapped at birth and later becoming a slave, Alois Trancy had suffered major trauma as he was sexually abused by his father. He has a contract with demon butler Claude. Alois has been after Sebastian and Ciel as Claude had told him that Sebastian destroyed the village he lived in under the orders of his master, Ciel.
Claude Faustus – A demon butler who is a perfectionist. He has a contract with Alois Trancy. Claude also has an interest in Ciel’s soul and it is revealed in season two that he had snatched Ciel before Sebastian could consume him.
Hannah Annafellows – Alois’ maid and servant, who is constantly mistreated by Alois. She is revealed to be a demon who has a contract with someone that Alois knows quite well.

VIDEO

“Black Butler” is a violently, dark and bloody anime. Anime production by A-1 Pictures, Inc. is well done as artistic backgrounds of London during the Victorian Era is painted with great shadowing and the action sequences are also well-done as we get several styles which include a serious to more fun and hilarious style of animation. The second season is a bit dark, as Alois is a vulgar individual who does some really bad things to his maid Hannah Annafellows (ie. gouging her eye with his finger) while blood drips. So, there are short moments of bloody violence.

What I enjoy about the series are the overall character designs and the costume designs. The series is very bishounen-driven but its combination of themes that are dark and hilarious actually work quite well for “Black Butler”. Also, the second season does benefit from being made two years later than the first season and there are good amount of details on the characters and art background. But it’s important for people to know that this is a TV series, so the softness that usually appears on TV series can be seen in “Black Butler: The Complete Second Season”. Neverless, for a TV Series on Blu-ray, the second season of “Black Butler” looks very good in HD.

AUDIO & SUBTITLES:

As for the lossless audio, you get a English Dolby TrueHD Audio 5.1 mix and Japanese Dolby TrueHD Audio 2.0 mix. Typically, I listen to the Japanese soundtrack but in this case, because it takes place in the Victorian era, the English voice dub and accents are done very well. The voice talent for the English dub have said that “Black Butler” is one of the most challenging anime series as the voice talent had to perfect their spoken dialect and it does give the series its own personal feel and for the most part, it works. There is also a bit more of a dynamic range when it comes to the English lossless track.

The Japanese soundtrack is also very well done especially when it comes to the more emotional moments, the voice acting is stellar. But the English dub has the advantage because of it’s 5.1 mix but if you prefer to watch it in Japanese or English, both soundtracks are excellent and should appeal to Sub/Dub anime fans.

Subtitles are in English but you are unable to switch the subtitles on or off. When you click on the Japanese lossless soundtrack, then you will get the English subtitles.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

“Black Butler: The Complete Second Season” comes with the following special features:

Episode 1 Commentary - Featuring audio commentary by Luci Christian (voice of Alois) and Jason Douglas (voice of Clause Faustus).
Episode 12 Commentary – Featuring audio commentary by Brina Palencia (Ciel) and J. Michael Tatum (voice of Sebastian).
OAV 3 Commentary – Featuring audio commentary by Ian Sinclair (ADR Director and voice of Baldroy).
Outtakes - (3:20) Featuring the audio flubs by the English voice talent.
U.S. Season 1 Trailer – (1:02) Season 1 FUNimation Entertainment trailer.
U.S. Season 2 Trailer – (1:32) Season 2 FUNimation Entertainment trailer.
Becca Musician Profile – A text info. on BECCA
Textless Opening Song – Featuring the opening theme “Shiver” by The GazettE.
Textless Closing Theme Song – Featuring the ending theme “Bird” by Yuya Matsushita and “Kagayaku Sora no Shijima ni Wa” by Kalafina.

EXTRAS:

“Black Butler: The Complete Second Season” comes with a slipcase which fits both “Black Butler” season one and two Blu-ray cases.

Butler Demon Sebastian Michaelis vs. Butler Demon Claude Faustus, Ciel Phantomhive vs. Earl Alois Trancy…. Total opposites from each other, both having suffered tragedy but this time around, both Sebastian and Ciel are the hunted and Alois and his butler Claude will do whatever they can to get his revenge!

There is no doubt that “Black Butler” has a strong fan following and is a different kind of anime series that most people are used to watching. For one, it deals with the occult and it does have its share of dark, violent moments but the series itself thrives on its darkness and humor. And for many of the female fans, it’s strong bishounen character designs.

The storyline for “Black Butler” is quite dark and like the first season, there is quite a bit of violence and blood featured. While the first season had a good number of upbeat moments, the second season of “Black Butler” has a more brooding theme, darker situation as so many things are revealed in regards to Ciel and also Alois, especially more that revolves around their backstory and also in regards to Sebastian and Claude. In someways, the two are like each other’s doppelganger but yet they are completely different in personality.

As the season does feature more darker episodes (I found the second season much more entertaining), fans who want the upbeat and humorous episodes will get them as there are six OVA’s included with the 12-episodes. For example, the first OVA is like a “Black Butler” meets “Alice in Wonderland”, OVA 2 revolves the residents of the Phantomhive Estate in a role playing game style of episode, OVA 3 features Bardroy narrating a behind-the-scenes of “Black Butler” as if it was an actual movie set, OVA 4 returns to the “Alice in Wonderland” storyline, OVA 5 features Spears and Grell training to be grim reaper recruits and OVA 6 features Alois Trancy wanting Claude to fill his room with flowers and finding a way to keep a butterfly from leaving.

The character designs, the art design are very well-done for “Black Butler” and as mentioned, the detail is well-done for this second season but for a TV series, also incorporates the softness as expected from a TV series on Blu-ray. As for the special features, you do get several audio commentary tracks and also the audio flubs. And as far as acting is concerned, the Japanese soundtrack is very good but I really have to commend the voice talent of “Black Butler” for pulling off the dialects, as I have seen many anime series that tend to fail. So, fortunately, the English dub was well-done.

Overall, “Black Butler: The Complete Second Season” is a much more exciting, darker season than the first. I do enjoy the battling demon butlers and to see Sebastian and Ciel become the hunted and seeing how the overall storyline manages to conclude with a major twist and an ending that I never expected to happen.

If you are looking for an anime series on Blu-ray that is a bit dark and has it’s crazy moments, both seasons of “Black Butler” are worth recommending!

Filed Under: Anime on Blu-ray

Dragon Age : Dawn of the Seeker – One Night Event!

April 20, 2012 by J!-ENT · Leave a Comment

On May 24th 2012, FUNimation in conjunction with Bioware & EA will host a one night only, exclusive screening event for Dragon Age: Dawn of the Seeker.
Screenings will all begin at 7pm for each respective showing with the exception of Los Angeles which will begin at 9pm.

This will be the only chance to see Dragon Age: Dawn of the Seeker on the big screen! If you’re in one of these cities you should take advantage of this opportunity since this is a VERY limited engagement.
As an extra special bonus, the first 100 people who attend the screenings will receive a FREE exclusive Dragon Age: Dawn of the Seeker T-shirt.

Tickets for all screenings are available now and may be purchased at : http://dragonagemovie.com/tickets/

See below for a list of theaters/markets:

Edmonton, AB
Canada Metro Cinema
www.metrocinema.org
8712 109 ST NW
Edmonton, AB T6G 1E9
(780) 425-9212

New York, NY Anthology Film Archives

http://anthologyfilmarchives.org/

32 Second Avenue
New York, NY 10003
(212) 505-5181

San Francisco, CA 4 Star Theatre

http://www.lntsf.com/4-star-theatre.html

2200 Clement St.
San Francisco, CA 94112
(415) 666-3488

Los Angeles, CA Downtown Independent

http://www.downtownindependent.com/

251 S. Main St.
Los Angeles, CA 90012
(213) 617-1033

If you’re not one of the lucky few in these cities, don’t fret, you can still pre-order the movie on www.amazon.com for just $15.99.

Filed Under: American Entertainment News

Sora no Otoshimono: Heaven’s Lost Property Forte – Season 2 (a J!-ENT Anime DVD Review)

April 13, 2012 by Dennis Amith · Leave a Comment

Funny, perverse and just all out crazy! “Sora no Otoshimono: Heaven’s Lost Property Forte – Season 2″ is an anime series for fans who love harem anime (and a lot of boobage and panty shots) with a sci-fi element and a high dose of raunchiness. If you want to spice up your anime Blu-ray collection, this anime series is for you!

TITLE: Sora no Otoshimono: Heaven’s Lost Property Forte – Season 2

ANIME RELEASE: 2010

DURATION: 12 Episodes (300 Minutes)

DVD INFORMATION: English 5.1 Surround, Japanese Stereo 2.0, Subtitles: English

COMPANY: FUNimation Entertainment

RATED: TV MA

RELEASED: April 17, 2012

Originally created by Suu Minazuki

Directed by Hisashi Saito

Series Composition by Yuuko Kakihara

Character Design by Yoshihiro Watanabe

Art Setting: Hiromasa Ogura, Hiroshi Gouroku

Anime Production: AIC A.S.T.A.

Featuring the following voice talent:

Saori Hayami/Brittney Karbowski as Ikaros

Souichiro Hoshi/Greg Ayres as Tomoki Sakurai

Ayahi Takagaki/Jamie Marchi as Mikako Satsukitane

Iori Nomizu/Kara Edwards as Nymph

Mina/Trina Nishimura as Sohara Mitsuki

Tatsuhisa Suzuki/Eric Vale as Eishirō Sugata

Kaori Fukuhara/Carli Mosier as Astrea

Aki Toyosaki as Chaos

Asuka Ogame as Daidalos

Shinichiro Miki/Christopher R. Sabat as Master of the Sky (Zero)

The hormonal, heavenly hijinks continue in Heaven’s Lost Property: Forte! Tomoki’s life was normal until a wish-granting angelic android named Ikaros fell from the sky and started calling him master. Things got even crazier when Ikaros’s fellow android, Nymph, came fluttering down to join the fun. With the winged vixens adjusting to life on Earth, you’d think Tomoki’s dream of a peaceful existence might finally be coming true – but you’d be wrong! With his teenage impulses and dirty mind, Tomoki’s wishes are causing more chaos than ever before. Plus, there’s a curvy new android on the scene – Astraea. She definitely looks as angelic as Ikaros and Nymph, but there’s a chance the beautiful blonde newcomer is up to no good!

In 2007, mangaka Suu Minazuki created teh manga series “Sora no Otoshimono” (Heaven’s Lost Property) which was published in the manga magazine “Shonen Ace” and is still ongoing in Japan.

With the popularity of the manga series, an anime adaptation by AIC was produced and aired on television on Oct. through Dec. 2009, with a second season that continued in Winter 2010 and a film that was released in June 2011.

With the US release of “Sora no Otoshimono” last year, the sequel “Sora no Otoshimono: Heaven’s Lost Property Forte – Season 2″ will now be released on DVD in April 2012 (Note: In order to have this anime series released early, FUNimation Entertainment has opted to release it only on DVD and not on Blu-ray).

Directing the anime series is Hisashi Saito (“Bamboo Blade”, “Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai”), screenplay by Yuuko Kakihara (“Fairy Musketeers”, “Kage Kara Mamoru!, “Persona 4: The Animation”), character design by Yoshiro Watanabe (“Bamboo Blade”, “Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai”, “Onegai Teacher!”) and art setting by Hiromasa Ogura (“Jin-Roh – The Wolf Brigade”, “Ashita no Joe 2″, “Spirited Away”) and Hiroshi Gouroku.

For those not familiar with “Sora no Otoshimono: Heaven’s Lost Property”, the series is a perverted mature-themed anime series along the lines of “Sekirei: Pure Engagement”, “Rosario+Vampire”, “B Gata H Kei: Yamada’s First Time” featuring a lot of perverse humor, fan service and sexual themes.

What “Sora no Otoshimono: Heaven’s Lost Property” is about

“Sora no Otoshimono: Heaven’s Lost Property” focuses on a young high school teenager named Tomoki Sakurai, a perverted young man (who was influenced by his equally perverted grandfather) who has panties and sexual things that are constantly on his mind. And if there is one girl he occasionally likes to check out, it’s his neighbor and childhood friend Sohara Mitsuki. Who is aware of Tomoki’s perverseness and is unafraid to give him her special karate shop and knock some sense into him.

Despite how she tends to dislike his perverseness and constantly beats him up, she knows deep inside that she is in love with him. Sohara is also aware that for some reason, Tomoki has had some unusual dreams involving an angel which tends to awaken him like a nightmare since he was young.

Meanwhile, with the start of a new school year… Tomoki meets Eishiro Sugata, a scientist who is trying to discover a “New World” and his friend Mikako Satsukitane, a buxom sadist who has a mafia background and is also the Student Body President.

One day, while Tomoki was outside, he sees something in the sky, a UMA (Unidentified Mysterious Animal) and she happens to crash land on Earth. The UMA reveals herself as Ikaros, a “Pet-Class Angeloid, Type Alpha” and together, the two are bonded by an invisible chain and Tomoki becomes her master.

In the beginning, Ikaros is an emotionless individual and because she is bonded to him and goes wherever he goes, it becomes somewhat of an annoyance for Tomoki, but at the same time, he realizes that with her abilities, it can help him make his perverted dreams come true.

Eventually, Sohara, Eishiro and Mikako learn about Ikaros and the two young women try to help Ikaros learn about how humans behave, while Eishiro tries to learn more about her programming and why she was sent to Earth, especially why she chose Tomoki. And in order to keep the activities of Ikaros private, they join Eishiro’s “New World Discovery Club” to see if Ikaros may have some tie to this new world of Angeloids and Synapse that Eishiro is currently researching.

Meanwhile, another Angeloid has appeared on Earth, and her name is Nymph, an “Electronic Warfare Angeloid, Type Beta” who can’t stand humans and is sent to Earth to confront Ikaros. But similar to Ikaros, the more time she spends with Tomoki and friends, she gets to learn about human-kindness and what a nice master that Ikaros has. Unlike Nymph, her master (Master of Synapse) is abusive, maniacal and evil…but because she is tied to him, she will do as he wishes.

It is then revealed after a confrontation between Ikaros and Nymph that she was sent by the sadistic leader “Master of Synapse” to possibly destroy human-kind, something Ikaros does not want to do…especially now that she has started to discover newfound emotions…love for Tomoki. But not just Ikaros, but also Nymph as she wishes more and more each day that she had someone like Tomoki as her master.

And now…”Sora no Otoshimono: Heaven’s Lost Property Forte”

With “Sora no Otoshimono: Heaven’s Lost Property Forte”, the sequel continues a few months later, but this time, a new Angeloid has been sent to Earth to kill Tomoki. Her name is Astraea, blond, well-endowed and is a close-combat Angeloid, Type Delta sent by Synapse to kill Tomoki, but despite her awesome power, she is very dumb. So, no matter what she does to try to kill Tomoki, due to her ability to keep falling all the time, Tomoki uses those moments to feel her up. And at first she is clueless and doesn’t like it but she starts to realize that she may be falling for Tomoki.

Meanwhile, Nymph shows Sugata that they can enter their own dreamworld. But when Sugata ventures into Tomoki’s dreamworld, for some reason certain things that can only exist in the dreamworld is also existing in the real world.

And while Tomoki and friends try to deal with Astraea, a new Angeloid named Chaos is sent to destroy Tomoki’s friendly Angeloids.

VIDEO & AUDIO

“Sora no Otoshimono: Heaven’s Lost Property Forte – Season 2″ is presented in 1:78:1 and one has to remember that this is a TV series not an OVA or film, so production is standard for what you would expected for a television anime series. But I have to admit that this series does offer a bit more when it comes to detail and shading. The fact that there are so many locations featured, the characters are featured in various outfits, hanging out all over town and the artistic backgrounds are well-painted. For the most part, this anime series is well-animated. It’s unfortunate that the second season did not receive a Blu-ray release, because there is much more action and mecha design featured in this second season.

For the most part, AIC A.S.T.A. did a pretty good job with this series!

AUDIO:

“Sora no Otoshimono: Heaven’s Lost Property Forte – Season 2″ is presented in English Dolby Digital 5.1 and Japanese stereo 2.0. It’s important to note that despite me typically watching anime series in Japanese, I chose to watch this series with an English dub, primarily for the dynamic range of the lossless 5.1 soundtrack but mostly because FUNimation Entertainment really enhanced the perverseness of the series through its dialogue.

The biggest difference is the Japanese version, while perverted is appropriate for Japanese television while the English dub really runs wild with mature themes and sexual perversion. The voice talent in the audio commentary talk about why they enjoyed doing this series and its partly because they could let loose and have fun.

But it all comes down to preference. Both versions are well-acted and I did watch it both in Japanese and English and enjoyed both voice acting, it’s just that the English version was much more perverted and the dialogue changes made the series quite fascinating and hilarious.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

“Sora no Otoshimono: Heaven’s Lost Property Forte” includes the following special features:

Episode 4 Commentary – Featuring ADR Director Christopher Bevins, Greg Ayres (voice of Tomoki Sakurai) and Trina Nishimura (voice of Sohara Mitsuki)
Episode 9 Commentary – Featuring ADR Director Christopher Bevins, Jami Marchi (voice of Mikako Satsukitane) and Carli Mosier (voice of Astraea)
Textless Opening Songs – Ring My Bell (Tomoki Version), Haato no Kakuritsu
Textless Closing Songs – Kaeru Kara, COSMOS, Kakemeguryu Seishun, Miracle Guy, ff (Fortissimo), Soldier in the Space, Kaerazaru Hi no Tame ni, Odoriko, Natsu no Ojousan, Bokyou no Tabi, Jidai Okure no Koibitotachi
Heaven’s Lost Property Trailer
Heaven’s Lost Property Forte Trailer
Trailers – FUNimation Entertainment Trailer

If you enjoyed the first season and you are an anime fan who loves perverted harem anime with scantily clad women, boobs and panty shots, suffice to say, “Sora no Otoshimono: Heaven’s Lost Property Forte – Season 2″ is for you!

There is no doubt that “Sora no Otoshimono: Heaven’s Lost Property Forte” is one of the most perverted anime series ever created that’s not a porno. Granted, the most perverted TV series still is the “Ping Pong Club” anime series but this one still ranks high up there as the character of Tomoki is a teenage boy that just loves boobs, panties and it’s in his mind continuously, so much this season that he is trying his best to calm his willy down and not have periodic hard-ons.

But it doesn’t help that a new angeloid with huge breasts, who often keeps tripping and falling down, thus showing her panties to Tomoki nor does it help that Ikaros is often not wearing much. So, for Tomoki…having these beautiful Angeloids around is not helping much.

But it’s not just Tomoki, you have Mitsuki Sohara, Tomoki’s childhood friend who acts very strict towards Tomoki, but in her dreams she can’t help but think about Tomoki being a pervert and fondling her breasts, while the gun happy Mikako has a thing about wanting to be naked in the hot springs all the time and like Tomoki, she’s also willing to partake in booby grabbing as well.

So, you get the picture…this is indeed one of those anime that lonely otaku guys will love but yet enough craziness and humor that makes it accessible to anime fans who love perverted anime.

Outside of Tomoki’s sexual fantasies, while the first season focused on Ikaros trying to become more human, this time around we see more emotion coming from Nymph as she struggles as an angeloid without wings and without a master. While Tomoki prefers her to be free with no master, Nymph still struggles of not having one, especially since she cares for Tomoki so much.

The second season also features quite a bit of action! The first half of the season focuses on Astraea, while the second season focuses on the group taking on Chaos.

So, make no doubt about it, this sci-fi harem anime series is perverted and full of sexual themes but its important to note that there is no full frontal nudity or intercourse or anything like that. Private parts are covered by hair (or some cloud) and if anything, the series is more comedy-driven through Tomoki’s behavior and of course, the harem element as we know that Nohara, Ikaros, Nymph, Aestraea (and possible more) are falling for Tomoki.

As mentioned, the series does have some of that “Urusei Yatsura” craziness but also the “Chobits” style of an angeloid who acts almost like an emotionless android but overtime, her emotions start to come into play through more exposure to Tomoki and friends. So, while the majority of the series does feature more lighthearted to crazy, wacky plots…it does has its serious and emotional elements, although the latter doesn’t last that long.

As for the DVD release, I know many anime fans wanted the second season on DVD but part of me wishes that FUNimation Entertainment would have released the Blu-ray and DVD like the first season. But hopefully, it’s something that FUNimation Entertainment considers a Blu-ray release in the near future.

Overall, “Sora no Otoshimono: Heaven’s Lost Property Forte – Season 2″ was a fun, perverse anime series. There is no doubt that this will surely entertain anime fans who enjoy harem anime series especially with that sci-fi element with a bit of raunchiness as well.

If you are into that… then “Sora no Otoshimono: Heaven’s Lost Property Forte – Season 2″ is for you!

Filed Under: Anime on DVD

Fullmetal Alchemist: The Sacred Star of Milos – The Motion Picture (a J!-ENT Anime Blu-ray Disc Review)

April 8, 2012 by Dennis Amith · Leave a Comment

“Fullmetal Alchemist: The Sacred Star of Milos – The Motion Picture” is a wonderful film with a captivating storyline, cool new characters, plenty of action and more. The Blu-ray also looks and sounds great and you get a good amount of special features as well. If you want an awesome anime film on Blu-ray, “Fullmetal Alchemist: The Sacred Star of Milos – The Motion Picture” is highly recommended!

TITLE: Fullmetal Alchemist: The Sacred Star of Milos – The Motion Picture

ANIME RELEASE DATE: 2011

DURATION: 110 Minutes

BLU-RAY INFORMATION: 1080p High Definition (1:78:1), English Dolby TrueHD 5.1, Japanese Dolby TrueHD 5.1, Subtitles: English

COMPANY: FUNimation Entertainment

RATED: Not Rated

Release Date: April 25, 2012

Original Created by Hiromu Arakawa

Original Character Design by Kenichi Konishi

Directed by Kazuya Murata

Screenplay by Yuichi Shinbo

Storyboard by Kazuya Murata

Unit Director: Shingo Natsume

Music by Taro Iwashiro

Art Director: Kazuo Ogura, Tomoaki Okada

Chief Animation Director: Kenichi Konishi

Mechanical Design by Shinji Aramaki

3D Director: Koki Ota

Anime Production: BONES

Featuring the following voice talent:

Rie Kugimiya/Maxey Whitehead as Alphonse Elric

Romi Park/Vic Mignona as Edward Elric

Toshiyuki Morikawa/Matthew Mercer as Melvin Voyager

Fumiko Orikasa/Colleen Clinkenbeard as Riza Hawkeye

Kenji Utsumi/Christopher R. Sabat as Alex Louis Armstrong

Maaya Sakamoto/Alexis Tipton as Julia Crichton

Megumi Takamoto/Caitlin Glass as Winry Rockbell

Sakiko Tamagawa/Shelley Calene-Black as Miranda

Shinichiro Miki/Travis Willingham as Roy Mustang

A fugitive alchemist with mysterious abilities leads the Elric brothers to a distant valley of slums inhabited by the Milos, a proud people struggling against bureaucratic exploitation. Ed and Al quickly find themselves in the middle of a rising rebellion as the exiled Milos lash out against their oppressors. At the heart of the conflict is Julia, a young alchemist befriended by Alphonse. She’ll stop at nothing to restore the Milos to their former glory – even if that means harnessing the awful power of the mythical Philosopher’s Stone.

When the hit anime TV series “Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood” was coming to a close, BONES wanted to make sure the adventures of the Elrich brothers, despite their adventure ending in the series, would still continue in the movies.

Set during a time when both brothers were still looking for the Philosopher stone, this is where director Kazuya Murata (“Eureka Seven”, “Figure 17″, “Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion”) and screenwriter Yuichi Shinbo (“Doraemon” films) would base the story for “Hagane no Renkinjutsushi: Mirosu no Sei-naru Hoshi” (“Fullmetal Alchemist: The Sacred Star of Milos”). The film would also feature music from rock band L’Arc~en~Ciel and the artist Miwa.

The film was announced during the final episode of “Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood” and premiered in Japan in July 2011 and screened in U.S. theaters in 2012.

For those not familiar with “Fullmetal Alchemist”, in Japan, “Fullmetal Alchemist” (Hagane no Renkinjutushi) is a popular long running anime and manga series created by mangaka Hiromu Arakawa. The original manga series was serialized in Square Enix’s “Shonen Gangan” since 2001, while the 51-episode TV series created by BONES was shown on television in 2004 followed by a manga faithful anime adaptation with “Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood” airing in 2009-2010.

What is “Fullmetal Alchemist” about?

“Fullmetal Alchemist” is a series about two young alchemist brothers named Edward and his younger brother Alphonse Elric (aka “Al”). Their father left them and several months after their father left, an epidemic hit their village and killed their mother. Grieving and alone without their mother, the two quickly tried to hone their alchemist skills and hope to bring their mother back alive by using a human transmutation (this is illegal and considered taboo by alchemist).

While performing the transmutation, a dark shadow comes and literally breaks apart the body of Alphonse and as for Edward, he is shown “the truth” but in return for doing the transmutation, there is a toll and in this case, he loses his legs and feet and his right arm. And the transmutation to bring their mother fails as Edward was only able to revive a disembodied figure. In a short time allowed before the dark shadow leaves, Edward was able to bond Al’s soul to a suit of armor but there are some consequences. And these consequences and guilt have plunged Edward to the lowest he had ever been.

With this opportunity, this gives Edward a chance to repair what he did wrong and help his brother. But as they investigate on how they can get their bodies back and investigating what is known as a “Philosopher’s Stone”, an unknown group is out there, observing the Elric brothers every move and willing to kill in order to get to Edward.

Meanwhile, a military figure named Roy Mustang is assisting the Elric brothers by giving them opportunities to find the Philosopher’s Stone but to do that, the two will be part of the military. For the Elric brothers, working together is a good idea as they hope the stone may give Edward a chance to bring his brother Al back to life and also get back his own body as well.

“Fullmetal Alchemist: The Sacred Star of Milos”

The film is set during the time Edward and Al are looking for a way to get their human bodies back.

“The Sacred Star of Milos” begins with the Crichton family who were driven away from their home. For a young Julia Chrichton, she saw her own people being gunned down but her brother Ashley trying to prevent her from seeing any of it.

Fast forward and the teenager Ashley is studying his parent’s alchemy books and his sister are together. They hear a scream which Ashley goes to check, when young Julia goes to look for her brother, she notices her parents hanging dead, blood everywhere and then someone attacking her brother Ashley and then she faints.

Fast forwards many years later and a criminal named Melvin Voyager has escaped from an Amestris prison and the Elric brothers (who are always anxious to visit new areas to find more information on the “philosopher stone”) decide to chase after the escaped convict.

While on the bus, a chimera attacks people on the bus and Melvin Voyager goes after it. Unfortunately, that causes problems on the train, so the Elric brothers try to protect the people on the train while Edward tries to go after both the chimera and Melvin Voyager, who Edward finds out is an alchemist.

Meanwhile, back at HQ, Roy Mustang and Riza Hawkeye wonder why Melvin Voyager would escape from prison when he was weeks away from being released in jail? While searching his belongings, they find part of a newspaper clip cut out and when they look at what was missing, it is a photo of an older Julia Chrichton, who was arrested for entering Table City.

At the same time, a group of people with flying contraptions have shown up and go after Julia Crichton, which Melvin Voyager is also after.

As the Elric brothers are trying to figure out what is going on, their journey leads them to the borders of Amestris and Creta and in between both countries down below is Table City, an area where people who once had their own land and forced out, were sent to live in an area which is essentially a junk yard and area where both countries deposit their waste and the city is essentially a bottomless pit.

As the Elric brothers descend into Table City, what secrets will they find and what is so special about Julia Crichton and Melvin Voyager?

VIDEO

One thing I love about anime films on Blu-ray is the fact that you know that unlike TV series, studios tend to have a higher budget, more staff and more time is dedicated in the look and feel for an anime film. “Fullmetal Alchemist: The Sacred Star of Milos – The Motion Picture” is a big example of how the film looks fantastic thanks to its beautifully painted art backgrounds, it’s 3D use for vehicles and weaponry and more.

Presented in 1080p High Definition (1:78:1), one of the biggest differences that this film would have versus the TV series and previous film is the character design. The character designs have a bit of a different style when compared to the TV series and I think that was part of the reason of the difference is to show that this is not a film derived from Hiromu Arakawa’s manga but is its own storyline featuring the Elric brothers. The art backgrounds are just heavily detailed and are beautiful too look at. In fact, the Blu-ray really showcases the detail of the CG work and the art.

AUDIO & SUBTITLES:

Another reason why I love anime films on Blu-ray is that you also tend to get a Japanese soundtrack in the same lossless soundtrack as the English dub. So, both are in Dolby TrueHD 5.1. I did notice that the English version had a bit more of a dynamic range but yet both are wonderful when it came to using the surround channels during the many action sequences during the film. Also, noticed the use of surround for ambiance as well. And for those with a subwoofer, yes, awesome use of LFE during the action sequences as well.

I watched the film in both Japanese and English dub and fans should feel great that both are done very well. In fact, as much as I enjoy watching “Fullmetal Alchemist” in Japanese, I will have to say that FUNimation Entertainment has always done a marvelous job when it came to the voice acting of this series. Vic Mignogna and Maxey Whitehead have literally nailed the voice of the Elric brothers and from the TV series to the film (as well as the other voice talents), I have always been impressed by the English dubwork, as well as the Japanese voice acting, so I had to watch the film in both soundtracks. Both are fantastic!

English subtitles were also easy to read.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

“Fullmetal Alchemist: The Sacred Star of Milos – The Motion Picture” comes with the following special features:

Fullmetal Alchemist: Making of Sacred Star of Milos - (1:04:25) Featuring the making of “Fullmetal Alchemist: The Sacred Star of Milos – The Motion Picture” hosted by Romi Park (voice of Edward) and Rie Kugimiya (voice of Alphonse) and featuring interviews with the crew. In Japanese with English subtitles.
U.S. Cast Commentary – Awesome FUNimation Entertainment audio commentary featuring Mike McFarland (ADR Director), Maxey Whithead (voice of Alfonse), Vic Mignogna (voice of Edward) Colleen Clinkenbeard (voice of Riza), Christopher R. Sabat (voice of Armstrong) . English dub fans will want to listen to this audio commentary!
U.S. Trailer - (1:03) FUNimation Entertainment trailer for “Fullmetal Alchemist: The Sacred Star of Milos – The Motion Picture”.
Web Promo - (19:13) Super-deformed version of the Elric Brothers being interviewed.
Theatrical Trailers – (4:07) The Japanese theatrical trailers for “Fullmetal Alchemist: The Sacred Star of Milos – The Motion Picture”.
TV Spot – (:48) The Japanese TV spots.
FUNimation Entertainment trailers

EXTRAS:

“Fullmetal Alchemist: The Sacred Star of Milos – The Motion Picture” comes with both the Blu-ray and DVD version of the film and special features.

When it was announced that “Fullmetal Alchemist: The Sacred Star of Milos – The Motion Picture” was being made, I was quite happy. Mainly because it gave fans a chance to enjoy the Elric Brothers and the characters once again.

With the manga series completed and the TV series also finished, despite the characters and the series being so immensely popular, it was not a long running storyline like “Dragon Ball Z”, “Bleach” or “Naruto”, nor was there a film being created every summer.

And that is probably a good thing as non-canon films that are derived from anime series are usually not that good, but in the case of “Fullmetal Alchemist”, the last film “Fullmetal Alchemist the Movie: Conqueror of Shamballa” was enjoyable but after watching “Fullmetal Alchemist: The Sacred Star of Milos – The Motion Picture”, I had a smile on my face at the very end because in my eye, I felt that this film was excellent.

While it did focus more on the Elric brothers and we didn’t see much action coming from Roy or Riza, they do make an appearance as with other popular characters such as Winry and Armstrong but the newer characters and the storyline created was so enjoyable and fascinating, and also a bit violent and kind of dark.

I loved how the film showcased both Amestris and Creta and seeing the people in Table City living in conflict and fear. This really made the viewer enjoy these newer characters such as Julia Crichton and her friends. And there are quite a bit of twist and turns, especially when transmutation starts to come into play…you know things are going to get crazy and by the end of the film, you’re left satisfied with how the story ends and how things end up for these characters.

As a film, it was enjoyable but I don’t know if I can see “Fullmetal Alchemist: The Sacred Star of Milos – The Motion Picture” as a final film, because just from this film alone, it does show that there are always potential to further explore adventures of the Elric Brothers. But with that being said, I’m sure fans would even love it even more if a future film featured the involvement of creator Hiromu Arakawa.

But whether or not this film will be the last for “Fullmetal Alchemist”, based on the film alone, I enjoyed it more than the first and I really the storytelling and the characters, especially the beautifully painted art backgrounds. Especially the stylistic choice for the film’s character design which is slightly different from the TV series.

As for the Blu-ray release, video and audio quality were great, but the making of was wonderful and for English dub fans, they will really enjoy listening to the audio commentary, especially coming from Vic Micnogna. But you do get a good amount of special features with this release.

For those wondering if they can enjoy this film without knowing a thing about “Fullmetal Alchemist”, I think they can enjoy the film as things are explained for viewers. But I can only hope that if one watches the film, I hope they enjoyed it enough to watch the TV series in order for things to make more sense.

For parents, this is not for young children. There are some major sacrificing done (ie. blood sacrifice), so there is quite a bit of violence and blood, so definitely not to be watched with younger children in the room.

Overall, “Fullmetal Alchemist: The Sacred Star of Milos – The Motion Picture” is a wonderful film with a captivating storyline, cool new characters, plenty of action and more. The Blu-ray also looks and sounds great and you get a good amount of special features as well. If you want an awesome anime film on Blu-ray, “Fullmetal Alchemist: The Sacred Star of Milos – The Motion Picture” is highly recommended!

Filed Under: Anime on Blu-ray

FUNimation Entertainment Announces New Acquisitions at Anime Boston

April 7, 2012 by J!-ENT · 1 Comment

Flower Mound, TX – April 7, 2012 – FUNimation Entertainment announced today at Anime Boston it has acquired simulcast to 3 series : Jormungnad, Lupin III and Is this A Zombie 2. FUNimation Entertainment has also acquired additional home video rights to Future Diary.

A brief synopsis for each show is listed below:

Jormungand – A ruthless arms dealer on a quixotic quest for world peace. A child soldier born into chaotic conflict. Their lives will intertwine as they journey together through the seedy underbelly of the world’s arms market. An intense action-packed series that’s sure to keep you on the edge of your seat! FUNimation has acquired both parts of the series. The first part will air April 2012, and the second part will air October 2012.

Lupin III ~Mine Fujiko to Iu Onna~- What happened when Lupin III met Fujiko Mine for the first time? Find out in the first new chapter of the Lupin III franchise in 25 years!

Is This A Zombie? of The Dead – The second season of the anime series, Is This A Zombie? Aikawa Ayumu was revived as a zombie by the cute necromancer Eucliwood Hellscythe. After the zany, madcap adventures in the first season of Is This a Zombie? ended, Ayumu thought his life might finally get back to normal, or as normal as it can be for a zombie. However, destiny has other plans for him. Some guys just can’t catch a break. Watch the second season of this hilarious comedy where anything goes!

The Future Diary – This psychological thriller, based on the manga written and illustrated by Esuno Sakae, is about Yuki, a loner who’s not very good with people. He prefers to write a diary on his cell phone and talk to his imaginary friend, Deus Ex Machina – The God of Time and Space. However, Yuki soon learns that Deus is more than a figment of his imagination when he makes Yuki participate in a battle royale with eleven others. The contestants are given special diaries that can predict the future, each diary possessing unique features that give it both advantages and disadvantages. Within the next 90 days, the contestants must try to survive until there is only one left standing. The winner will become the new God of Time and Space.

Full episodes will begin on www.niconico.com/anime & www.funimation.com during spring 2012.

ABOUT NICONICO

Launched in April 2011, niconico.com is the ultimate social media network with more than 25 million customers worldwide. By making it possible for viewers to overlay comments directly on a video stream, niconico offers the best of both worlds – real time audience interaction plus video. Considered one of the top 10 most visited websites in Japan, niconico offers a breadth of services and programming including video uploading, live user video broadcasting, live official content, and Anime simulcasting. NicoNico is currently the only consumer online network to offer the comment overlay feature.

About FUNimation® Entertainment

FUNimation® Entertainment is the leading anime company in North America. FUNimation has a proven formula for launching and advancing brands. They manage a full spectrum of rights for most of their brands including broadcasting, licensing, production, internet, and home video sales and distribution. For more information about FUNimation Entertainment and its brands, visit www.funimation.com.

Filed Under: Anime Related News