Vampire Knight Guilty Volume 2 (A J!-Ent Anime DVD Review)

September 26, 2011 by Michelle Tymon · Leave a Comment

“”Vampire Knight Guilty Volume 2″ is the second to last volume of the series and the most exciting yet. The many secrets that filled the series are finally revealed in this volume. A must see!”

DVD TITLE: Vampire Knight Guilty Volume 2

DURATION: 100 Minutes

DVD INFORMATION: 16:9 WIDESCREEN, JAPANESE & ENGLISH STEREO

COMPANY: VIZ

RATED: 16+

Release Date: May 17 2011

Original Manga by Matsuri Hino

Directed by Kiyoko Sayama

Music by Hozumi Goda

Art Direction by Kazuhiro Ito

Character Designs by Asako Nishida

Produced by VAMPIRE KNIGHT PROJECT

Featuring the following voice talent:

Yui Horie/Mela Lee as Yuki Cross

Mamoru Miyano/Vic Mignogna as Zero Kiryu/Ichiru Kiryu

Daisuke Kishio/Ethan Murray as Kaname Kuran

Hozumi Goda/Christopher Corey as Kaien Cross

Junichi Suwabe/Troy Baker as Akatsuki Kain

Jun Fukuyama/Bryce Papenbrook as Hanabusa Aido

Junko Minagawa/Dorothy Elias-Fahn as Ruka Souen

Susumu Chiba/Spike Spencer as Takuma Ichijo

Souichiro Hoshi/Steve Staley as Senri Shiki

Eri Kitamura/Carrie Savage as Rima Touya

Hiroki Yasumoto/Travis Willingham as Toga Yagari

Risa Mizuno/Colleen O’Shaughnessey as Seiren

Kana Ueda/Stephanie Sheh as Sayori Wakaba

Mariko Kouda/Michelle Ruff as Juri Kuran

Hirofumi Nojima/Tony Oliver as Haruka Kuran

Tarusuke Shingaki/Patrick Seitz as Rido Kuran

Fumiko Orikasa/Wendee Lee as Shizuka Hio

Continually haunted by visions of blood, Yuki is determined to discover the secrets of her past, but Kaname repeatedly evades her questions. Zero confronts Kaname at the Moon Dormitory, and the two end up fighting. Then Kaname advances his relationship with Yuki to an entirely new level, which has the members of the Night Class in a bit of a tizzy. But Yuki’s dreams only intensify – will her past be forced into the light at last?

“Vampire Knight Guilty Volume 2″ contains episodes 5-8 of the second season of the popular anime series by Matsuri Hino. Many secrets surround the students of both the Day and Night Classes of Cross Academy, and many of them get revealed in this volume. Yuki is haunted by nightmares where she and her surroundings are covered in blood. Soon she starts seeing these visions when she’s not asleep. Meanwhile Ichiru Kiryu enrolls into Cross Academy, with full intention of killing those who he believes is responsible for Shizuka Hio’s death, even his own twin brother, Zero. The school gets one more visitor, Rido Kuran, Kaname’s uncle who seems to be after something Kaname has been protecting from him for years…

“Vampire Knight Guilty Volume 2″ focuses on the following main characters:

Yuki Cross – Yuki Cross is one of the main characters of the series. She is a member of the Day Class and is one of the members of the Disciplinary Committee in charge of keeping the Day and Night Classes separate. She is cute and clumsy despite being a member of the Disciplinary Committee. Yuki is the headmaster’s daughter and one of the only ones that knows the identity of the Night Class. Her earliest memory is of her about to be attacked by a vampire but being saved by Kaname Kuran. She has very strong feelings for Kaname Kuran but she also deeply cares about Zero, but more as a best friend. In this volume, she is constantly haunted by terrifying nightmares where everything around her is covered in blood. She gets much closer to Kaname in this volume and is finally able to unlock her mysterious past… but what is revealed may destroy her relationship with Zero.

Zero Kiryu – Zero is a member of the Day Class. He is also a member of the Disciplinary Committee with Yuki. The headmaster brought him in four years ago after his parents were killed by a vicious vampire. Because of that fact, he hates vampires and clashes with the members of the Night Class quite a bit. He is rather cool and sarcastic, but can manage to drop a few jokes with Yuki, who he’s rather close to. Despite being a hunter who hates vampires, ironically because he was bitten as a child, he is a vampire himself. Over the course of the series, Yuki and Zero have gotten closer… but something that happens in this volume may change their relationship once and for all.

Kaname Kuran – Kaname is a member of the Night Class. He is the leader and the most powerful out of the Night Class. He saved Yuki from a vampire when she was a child and is even still very protective towards her. He has very strong feelings for Yuki even though she’s rather oblivious to that fact. For the most part, he keeps the other vampires out of trouble and is the one who helped establish this school with Kaien Cross. There is a lot revealed about Kaname’s past in this volume and what happened to his parents. His relationship with Yuki and her past is also revealed and exactly how much he really cares for her.

Kaien Cross – Kaien is Yuki’s father as well as Zero’s adoptive father. He is the headmaster of Cross Academy and a former vampire hunter. He opened Cross Academy in hopes to bring peace between humans and vampires. His personality for the most part is rather eccentric. In this volume, it becomes a bit more apparent why he gave up hunting in this volume.

Akatsuki Kain – Akatsuki is a member of the Night Class. He is a pretty calm and loyal vampire who seems to always get in trouble only because he’s around his cousin, Hanabusa who causes trouble. He never loses his temper and seems to have insight on all of his friends and their feelings.

Hanabusa Aido – Hanabusa is a member of the Night Class. He is considered an idol (which is also a pun off of his name) by the girls of the Day Class. He is cute like a child but can be very jealous and throws tantrums just like a child would as well. He is very protective of Kaname and gets jealous of anyone that gets too close to him. He is Akatsuki’s cousin.

Ruka Souen – Ruka is a member of the Night Class. She is sophisticated and beautiful and she is the idol of males of the Day Class. She has very strong feelings for Kaname.

Takuma Ichijo – Takuma is a member of the Night Class. He is from an aristocratic family and is one of Kaname’s closest friends. He is rather cheerful and friendly unlike most other vampires.

Senri Shiki – Senri is a member of the Night Class. He rarely speaks and when he does, it’s usually a single sentence. He works as a model with Rima. In this volume, we get to see a bit more out of Senri and we find out a lot more about his family.

Rima Touya – Rima is a member of the Night Class. She is petite and pixie-like and works as a model with Senri. Also like Senri, she doesn’t speak very much and is not very energetic.

Toga Yagari – Yagari is a renowned vampire hunter and is sent to Cross Academy by the Hunter Association to see if everything is running as it should be. He is also Zero’s mentor as a vampire hunter from when he was younger. He saved Zero from a Level E vampire (humans that were bitten by vampires who turned into violent monsters that thirst for blood) which resulted in him losing his right eye. Despite being ruthless in killing vampires and knowing about Zero’s situation, he still seems to have hope in him.

Seiren – Seiren is another member of the Night Class and Kaname’s unofficial bodyguard.

Sayori Wakaba – Sayori is a member of the Day Class as well as Yuki’s best friend and dorm-mate. She is kind and always worries about her best friend.

Ichiru Kiryu – Ichiru is the younger twin brother to Zero. Years ago when Shizuka killed their parents, she turned Zero into a vampire and took Ichiru. Since then, he had been serving her until her death. Even before he was taken by Shizuka, he had always held a strong grudge against Zero. Ichiru was a sickly child and even though Zero and his parents loved him very much, he always felt inferior and slowly that overwhelming love just made him resent them even more. Despite being with Shizuka, he is still human which is another reason he hates Zero. Despite being reunited with his brother, the only thing on his mind is to avenge Shizuka’s death and kill anyone who he thinks is involved, including Zero.

Juri Kuran – Juri Kuran is a pure blood vampire, Kaname’s mother, Haruka’s wife and sister, and the sister of Rido. She was also very close to Kaien and was the reason he stopped hunting. She died when Kaname was younger along with her husband.

Haruka Kuran – Haruka Kuran is a pure blood vampire, Kaname’s father, Juri’s husband and brother, and the brother of Rido. He died when Kaname was younger along with Juri.

Rido Kuran – Rido is a pure blood vampire, the brother of Juri and Haruka Kuran, Uncle to Kaname Kuran and the father of Senri Shiki. He appears at Cross Academy looking for something he wasn’t able to obtain from Juri and Haruka Kuran at the time of their death, something that is very precious to Kaname.

Shizuka Hio – Shizuka is the pure blood vampire that killed Zero and Ichiru’s parents and turned Zero into a vampire.

“Vampire Knight Guilty Volume 2” features a total of 4 episodes on one DVD. Here is a spoiler-less summary of each episode:

Volume 2:

Episode 5- The Subordinate’s Trap – Cross Academy gets a new student: Zero’s twin brother, Ichiru.
Episode 6- Fake Lovers – Yuki and Kaname are supposedly a couple now, but they seem to have completely different ideas about their relationship…
Episode 7- Kiss of Thorns – Senri comes back to Cross Academy, but seems like a totally different person…
Episode 8- Spiraling Recollections – Yuki’s true past is finally revealed.

VIDEO & AUDIO

“Vampire Knight Guilty Volume 2″ is presented in 16:9 and audio options include both Japanese and English. Just like the rest of the series, the art in this volume is pretty but the character designs are indeed Shojo so that may attract or detract viewers. But overall, the art is great and the animation is smooth and backgrounds look great. Everyone is very pretty in this series.

Throughout the series, the Japanese cast as well as the American cast both do a wonderful job. All of the voices seem fitting and don’t seem out of place. The Japanese cast includes big names like Yui Horie, Mamoru Miyano, Daisuke Kishio, Jun Fukuyama, and many others. The American cast is also full of big name voice actors including Mela Lee, Ethan Murray, Vic Mignogna, Troy Baker, Stephanie Sheh, and others.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

The only special features available on the discs are Viz Trailers and DVD Credits.

Drama, angst, revenge, and questionable relationships sum up this volume of “Vampire Knight Guilty”. If you love soap operas, then you’ll love this series and particularly this volume. Secret pasts revealed, plot twists, revenge, love triangles… (Maybe even love squares): all happen.

The main event that happens in this volume is Yuki’s mysterious past is finally revealed and that throws her relationships with Kaname and Zero into a tailspin… This is the exciting volume where everything changes.

I won’t reveal the big secret in my review, but if you’re watching this volume before any other volume: stop. Nothing will make sense and too much has happened in the story. “Vampire Knight Guilty” is the second season and prior to the four episodes in this season, there are thirteen episodes in season one. This volume starts off seventeen episodes into the whole series. This series is very story driven and for the most part the story is linear, so it’s not a series you can pick up a random volume to start watching. Not to mention there are a lot of main characters to keep track of and this particular volume reveals one of the biggest secrets of the series. If you have been watching the series, this is the volume you want to watch.

The “Vampire Knight” series pretty much has non-stop drama. The whole story is rather dramatic and serious, so I am very happy that they have the breaks with the funny little moments, which I probably enjoy the most out this series. There are a lot of great characters as well and they vary in types so most viewers can find at least one character they like and or can relate to. I personally like the banter between Yuki and Aidou as well as the moments where Zero, who is usually rather serious, can have a silly moment.

The target audience for this series will probably be mostly girls, considering it’s full of drama, angst, romance, and pretty vampire boys… (of course guys can like that too) the series does have some action in it, but this particular volume is full of drama.

This was also a very big character development volume. Yuki’s past is revealed, bringing much more depth to her character. Kaname’s past is revealed a bit more and we get to see more of exactly who he is and what exactly Yuki means to him. Zero’s self-loathing continues in this volume, but seems better when he is with Yuki… until her secret is revealed. Ichiru… still hates his brother (as well as pretty much everyone else), and is still annoying. On the other hand, one thing I enjoyed a lot was the fact that we got to see a little more of the background characters like Senri and Rima, instead of them just being in the background all of the time. They are two of my favorite characters so it was nice to see them get a little more spotlight.

As I’ve mentioned, this volume is exciting story wise, but brings to light some very, very questionable relationships among the pure blood vampire folk… I know that there are some Shojo manga series fans that LOVE this kind of stuff… but it might be a little too much for me. With that being said, if you are looking for a series full of pretty vampire men, messy love triangles, angst, revenge, drama… congratulations! You have found the perfect series for you. If you’re not looking for any of the above, this series does offer some action and quite a bit of comedy too, and the funny parts are truly funny, but the other themes are still much stronger and may be too much for some.

This volume is the final step before the conclusion of the anime series, so most of the secrets throughout the series get answered in this volume so if you have been watching the series up until this point, it’s very exciting. If you have not seen the rest of the series up to this point or know nothing about the series, I emphasize again that this volume will be confusing and full of spoilers so I definitely recommend watching the rest of the series first.

Team Kaname or Team Zero: one of them definitely takes the lead in this volume and you’ll have to watch to see which one it is. All of your questions will be answered in this volume. Be sure to pick up this climactic volume leading up to the exciting conclusion!

Filed Under: Anime on DVD

Kekkaishi DVD Set 1 (a J!-Ent Anime DVD Review)

September 7, 2011 by Michelle Tymon · Leave a Comment

“Kekkaishi Set 1″ is the first DVD collection from a fun, supernatural action series for all ages.”

DVD TITLE: Kekkaishi Set 1

DURATION: 325 Minutes

DVD INFORMATION: 16:9 WIDESCREEN, JAPANESE & ENGLISH STEREO

COMPANY: VIZ

RATED: 13+

Release Date: June 21, 2011

Original Manga by Yellow Tanabe

Directed by Kenji Kodama

Music by Taku Iwasaki

Art Direction Shigemi Ikeda

Character Design by Hirotoshi Takaya

Produced by Koji Nagai/Naohiro Ogata

Featuring the following voice talent:

Hiroyuki Yoshino/Vic Mignogna as Yoshimori Sumimura

Rie Saito/Laura Bailey as Tokine Yukimura

Takeharu Oonishi/Troy Baker as Madarao

Masanori Ishii/Wally Wingert as Hakubi

Yohei Tadano/David Lodge as Shigemori Sumimura

Mayumi Tanaka/Barbara Goodson as Tokiko Yukimura

Saya Kazuki/Colleen O’Shaughnessey as Yurina Kanda

Houko Kuwashima/Colleen O’Shaughnessey as Yomi Kasuga

Kouichi Touchika/Tom Fahn as Patissier

Masako Nozawa/Mona Marshall as Mother-san

Atsushi Miyauchi/Patrick Seitz as Masamori Sumimura

Yoshimori Sumimura is a 14-year-old student at Karasumori School. Following a tradition come down through generations, he is the 22nd Kekkaishi of the Sumimura clan. But he’s also constantly fighting with his rival, Tokine Yukimura – a Kekkaishi herself and his childhood friend – about who is the rightful heir to the magical barrier arts. Protecting people from danger and growing stronger, Yoshimori will battle the forces of evil and protect the school grounds again tonight!

“Kekkaishi” follows the adventures of Yoshimori Sumimura and Tokine Yukimura, two young Kekkaishi who are normal junior high and high school students by day, and guardians against the supernatural by night. Their families have been Kekkaishi for generations and they are the latest in both families. Kekkaishi have magical powers to form barriers (kekkai) around ghosts and demons (ayakashi) and can trap them and vanquish them if needed.

Their school happens to be in Karasumori, where various supernatural beings show up at night so it is their duty to keep the area safe. Because of this, Yoshimori can be found asleep in class most of the time. The Sumimuras and Yukimuras are somewhat rival clans, but Yoshimori and Tokine grew up together both as friends and rivals. Tokine is the older of the two and much more skilled and serious. Yoshimori is quicker to act than think which usually gets him in trouble. He is less technical, buy possesses the power and potential to become stronger. They share a brother/sister type of relationship, but Yoshimori’s feelings for Tokine may be stronger than she may realize…

“Kekkaishi Set 1″ focuses on the following main characters:

Yoshimori Sumimura – Yoshimori is a young Kekkaishi and the main character of the series. He is currently a junior high school student at Karasumori Academy. He is slightly clumsy and in general likes to act before he thinks. Tokine is his childhood friend and fellow Kekkaishi. They both go to school and live normal lives during the day and then protect Karasumori at night from any ghosts or ayakashi, resulting in him to sleep in class all the time. When they were younger, he was saved by Tokine when they were fighting an ayakashi resulting in her getting hurt. Since then, he swore that he would protect Tokine no matter what and to make sure no one got hurt in Karasumori again. His hobby is making sweets and his dream is to one day make the perfect candy castle for Tokine.

Tokine Yukimura – Tokine is another Kekkaishi and childhood friend of Yoshimori. She is slightly older than Yoshimori and the more serious of the two. She somewhat sees Yoshimori as a younger brother as well as a pest, asking him to keep his distance from her while they’re at school. When she was younger, she lost her father and at times, that still affects her. Just like Yoshimori, she spends her days attending Karasumori Academy and spends her nights as a Kekkaishi guarding Karasumori from evil. Despite feeling like Yoshimori is a pest at times, she still cares for him and sees his potential to become stronger and hopes that he sees it himself one day.

Madarao – Madarao is the ayakashi dog companion that serves Yoshimori.

Hakubi – Hakubi is the ayakashi dog companion that serves Tokine.

Shigemori Sumimura – Shigemori is Yoshimori’s grandfather and the head of the Sumimura household. He is quite loud and obnoxious, but takes his job as a Kekkaishi seriously.

Tokiko Yukimura – Tokiko is the head of the Yukimura household and Tokine’s grandmother. She is a colleague of Shigemori, however she seems to have some scorn towards the Sumimura family because of things that happened in the past.

Yurina Kanda – Yurina for the most part is just a normal girl that is in Yoshimori’s class; what makes her different is the fact that she can see ghosts. She relies on Yoshimori whenever she sees ghosts since she can’t do anything herself and she’s not able to tell the difference between a human and a ghost.

Yomi Kasuga – Yomi is a demon tamer from The Shadow Organization that is taken into the Yukimura household for a short while. She seems to have worked with Tokine’s father in the past and seems to be hiding something…

Patissier – The Patissier is a friendly ghost that had no idea that he was dead until Yoshimori befriends him.

Yumeko Hananokouji/Mother-san – Mother-san is a kind woman that acts as a counselor to spirits that haven’t passed on yet. Yoshimori always refers ghosts to her to get advice.

Masamori Sumimura – Masamori is Yoshimori’s older brother who is affiliated with the Shadow Organization.

“Kekkaishi Set One” features a total of 13 episodes on three DVDs. Here is a spoiler-less summary of each episode:

DISC 1:

Episode 1- Scars – Yoshimori gets a harsh wake-up call concerning his duties at a young age.
Episode 2- Yoshimori & Tokine – Yoshimori and Tokine have to balance being students by day and Kekkaishi by night.
Episode 3- The Beautiful Demon Tamer – The Yukimura house gets a visitor named Yomi, but she seems to have some secret.
Episode 4- Her Treasure – Yomi may lose the one thing she treasures because of decisions she made.

DISC 2:

Episode 5- The Sweet Ghost – Yoshimori runs into a friendly Patissier ghost who has no idea he died.
Episode 6- Night Blooms of Karasumori – Yoshimori’s classmates try to sneak into the Karasumori Academy grounds at night, not knowing the dangers.
Episode 7- The Best Cake in the World – Yoshimori tries to help the Patissier to move onto the next world.
Episode 8- A Day in the Life of Yoshimori – Yoshimori tries to become a better Kekkaishi.

DISC 3:

Episode 9- A Dangerous Teacher – A dangerous teacher lurks in Karasumori Academy.
Episode 10- Shikigami Chocolate Battle – Yoshimori uses shikigami to try to get the legendary chocolate cake…
Episode 11- Koya & Madarao – Something from Madarao’s past comes back to visit.
Episode 12- Sealing the Demon Dog – Madarao and Koya settle things.
Episode 13- Masamori Sumimura Chief of the Night Troops – Masamori, Yoshimori’s older brother, appears.

VIDEO & AUDIO

“Kekkaishi Set 1″ is presented in 16:9 and audio options include both Japanese and English. “Kekkaishi” is still a fairly new anime so all the animation looks great. There’s a bit of CG included with all of the kekkai being used in the series. The animation looks like what you would expect to see in a recent anime and it looks nice, but I don’t think anything makes it stand out from other recent anime.

The Japanese and English voice acting is both great and both casts are full of notable voice actors. The Japanese cast includes Hiroyuki Yoshino, Rie Kugimiya, Mayumi Tanaka, and Masako Nozawa. The English cast includes Vic Mignogna, Laura Bailey, Troy Baker, Barbara Goodson, and Colleen O’Shaughnessey. Jpop fans will probably enjoy the ending theme that is sung by Koshi Inaba from B’z as well.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

Special features included in this DVD set are: Production Art, Episode 11 & 12 Storyboard Art, Clean Opening, Clean Ending, Japanese Cast Credits, Kekkaishi Trailer and other VIZ trailers.

“Kekkaishi” is a fun action-packed series dealing with the supernatural. The anime is a total of 52 episodes and this set contains the first 13 episodes of the series.

The target audience would be teenage boys or guys in general, but I think that this series is one that a broad audience can enjoy. The rating is 13+, but I think younger kids could enjoy this too. There is some blood and violence, but nothing too extreme so far. The humor as well as the relationship between Yoshimori and Tokine could appeal to a female audience as well.

Like many other action series to come from Shonen manga, they do well with mixing action and humor together. I think so far the strongest element in this series for me is the comedy aspect of the series. The interaction between Yoshimori and Tokine is fun to watch but so far my favorite characters in the series are actually their companion ayakashi, Madarao and Hakubi. The comments that come out of their mouths are some of the best that I’ve seen so far.

Kekkaishi is a fun series, but at this point in the show, I don’t see anything particularly unique to set it apart from other shonen action/comedy series. That’s not exactly a bad thing; people who enjoy Shonen Jump and Shonen Sunday series will probably enjoy this as well. I definitely did. I think people who enjoy “Inuyasha” and or “Bleach” will particularly enjoy this show.

I do enjoy the series so far, but because I have seen so many Shonen Jump and Shonen Sunday series, I would like to see a little more development as the series goes along. I am aware that it’s still very early in the series so there’s plenty of opportunity for more plot development and so far the series is interesting enough to keep the audience wanting to know what happens next. Another minor con I found in this series is a bit more personal: I’m not the biggest fan of the character designs. The character designs aren’t the worst I’ve seen, it’s just not my favorite.

Supernatural, funny, and full of action: “Kekkaishi” is bound to entertain a huge audience. If you enjoy shows like “Inuyasha” or “Bleach”, anything supernatural or other Shonen series, definitely check this series out.

Filed Under: Anime on DVD

Vampire Knight Volume 2 (A J!-Ent Anime DVD Review)

May 10, 2011 by Michelle Tymon · Leave a Comment

“”Vampire Knight Volume 2″ is the exciting continuation of a shojo series filled with, love triangles, bishounen vampires, and maybe even a little angst.”

DVD TITLE: Vampire Knight Volume 2

DURATION: 96 Minutes

DVD INFORMATION: 16:9 WIDESCREEN, JAPANESE & ENGLISH STEREO

COMPANY: VIZ

RATED: 16+

Release Date: September 28, 2010

Original Manga by Matsuri Hino

Directed by Kiyoko Sayama

Music by Takefumi Haketa

Art Direction by Kazuhiro Ito

Character Designs by Asako Nishida

Produced by Fukashi Azuma/Tomoko Takahashi/Yumiko Masushima

Featuring the following voice talent:

Yui Horie/Mela Lee as Yuki Cross

Mamoru Miyano/Vic Mignogna as Zero Kiryu

Daisuke Kishio/Ethan Murray as Kaname Kuran

Hozumi Goda/Christopher Corey as Kaien Cross

Junichi Suwabe/Troy Baker as Akatsuki Kain

Jun Fukuyama/Bryce Papenbrook as Hanabusa Aido

Junko Minagawa/Dorothy Elias-Fahn as Ruka Souen

Susumu Chiba/Spike Spencer as Takuma Ichijo

Souichiro Hoshi/Steve Staley as Senri Shiki

Eri Kitamura/Carrie Savage as Rima Touya

Hiroki Yasumoto/Travis Willingham as Toga Yagari

Risa Mizuno/Colleen O’Shaughnessey as Seiren

Kana Ueda/Stephanie Sheh as Sayori Wakaba

Kouji Ishii/Jamieson Price as Asato Ichijo

A new teacher arrives at Cross Academy with a hidden identity and possibly deadly connection to Zero, whose suffering is driving him to desperation. Yuki’s feelings are torn between Zero and Kaname, and her determination to help Zero may lead her to betray the one she loves most.

“Vampire Knight Volume 2″ contains episodes 5-8 of the popular manga and anime series, “Vampire Knight” by Matsuri Hino. Yuki finds out Zero’s biggest secret: he’s a vampire. Because he was bitten by the vampire that killed his family years ago, he had slowly been turning but had been doing everything he could to stop the process. Since Zero has turned into the thing he hates most, he has fallen into a terrible state of self-loathing. Even after being bitten, Yuki wants to do everything she can to help Zero, no matter how extreme her solution may be.

Meanwhile the Hunter Association sends in one of the best hunters, Toga Yagari, into the school as a teacher to make sure everything is running as it should be at Cross Academy. Given Zero’s present situation, that may lead to quite a bit of trouble. However it seems that the new teacher and Zero have a history coincidentally. In this volume we also get to see more into the pasts of Yuki, Kaname, and Zero. Will Zero’s secret lead to his end or will Yuki be able to save her friend?

“Vampire Knight Volume 2″ focuses on the following main characters:

Yuki Cross – Yuki Cross is one of the main characters of the series. She is a member of the Day Class and is one of the members of the Disciplinary Committee in charge of keeping the Day and Night Classes separate. She is cute and clumsy despite being a member of the Disciplinary Committee. Yuki is the headmaster’s daughter and one of the only ones that knows the identity of the Night Class. Her earliest memory is of her about to be attacked by a vampire but being saved by Kaname Kuran. She has very strong feelings for Kaname Kuran but she also deeply cares about Zero, but more as a best friend. In Volume 2, Yuki’s affections may have shifted a little. She feels an even stronger connection with Zero and wants to do everything she can to help him out with his situation. Even if the solution she comes up with may be rather extreme…

Zero Kiryu – Zero is a member of the Day Class. He is also a member of the Disciplinary Committee with Yuki. The headmaster brought him in four years ago after his parents were killed by a vicious vampire. Because of that fact, he hates vampires and clashes with the members of the Night Class quite a bit. He is rather cool and sarcastic, but can manage to drop a few jokes with Yuki, who he’s rather close to. Despite how close they are, he seems to be keeping a very big secret… In Volume 2, it is apparent that he was bitten by the vampire that killed his family and he can’t fight off the effects anymore. Because he’s becoming the thing that he hates more than anything, his feelings of self-loathing have gotten pretty bad. His feelings for Yuki get even stronger and even though he doesn’t want the help that she is giving him, he can’t seem to hold himself back.

Kaname Kuran – Kaname is a member of the Night Class. He is the leader and the most powerful out of the Night Class. He saved Yuki from a vampire when she was a child and is even still very protective towards her. He has very strong feelings for Yuki even though she’s rather oblivious to that fact. For the most part, he keeps the other vampires out of trouble and is the one who helped establish this school with Kaien Cross. In Volume 2, it becomes a little more apparent how strong he feels for Yuki. Despite seeing into his past a little more in this volume, he seems even more mysterious.

Ruka Souen – Ruka is a member of the Night Class. She is sophisticated and beautiful and she is the idol of males of the Day Class. She has very strong feelings for Kaname.

Takuma Ichijo – Takuma is a member of the Night Class. He is from an aristocratic family and is one of Kaname’s closest friends. He is rather cheerful and friendly unlike most other vampires.

Senri Shiki – Senri is a member of the Night Class. He rarely speaks and when he does, it’s usually a single sentence. He works as a model with Rima.

Rima Touya – Rima is a member of the Night Class. She is petite and pixie-like and works as a model with Senri. Also like Senri, she doesn’t speak very much and is not very energetic.

Seiren – Seiren is another member of the Night Class and Kaname’s unofficial bodyguard.

Sayori Wakaba – Sayori is a member of the Day Class as well as Yuki’s best friend and dorm-mate. She is kind and always worries about her best friend.

Asato Ichijo -Asato, also known as “Ichio” among the vampires, is Takuma’s grandfather and a member of the Vampire Council. He holds a lot of power in the vampire community and he causes quite a stir in episode 8 when the Night Class finds out he’s planning on stopping by.

“Vampire Knight Volume 2” features a total of 4 episodes on one DVD. Here is a spoiler-less summary of each episode:

Volume 2:

Episode 5- Moonlight Festivities – A new teacher comes to Cross Academy who apparently has some connection with Zero.
Episode 6- Their Choices – Yuki decides to help Zero with his ailment, no matter what the risks may be.
Episode 7- The Scarlet Maze – Much of Yuki, Kaname, and Zero’s pasts are revealed.
Episode 8- Gunshot of Sorrow – Ichijo’s grandfather comes to visit the vampires in the Night Class.

VIDEO & AUDIO

“Vampire Knight Volume 2″ is presented in 16:9 and audio options include both Japanese and English. Just like in Volume 1, the art in the series is pretty but the character designs are indeed shojo so that may attract or detract viewers. But overall, the art is great and the animation is smooth and backgrounds look great.

The Japanese cast as well as the American cast both do a great job. All of the voices seem fitting and don’t seem out of place. The Japanese cast includes big names like Yui Horie, Mamoru Miyano, Daisuke Kishio, Jun Fukuyama, and many others. The American cast is also full of big name voice actors including Mela Lee, Ethan Murray, Vic Mignogna, Troy Baker, Stephanie Sheh, and others.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

The only special features available on the disc are Viz Trailers and DVD Credits.

Volume 2 of “Vampire Knight” is a direct continuation in the storyline where Volume 1 left off. In this volume, we see a possible shift in Yuki’s feelings, which could be leaning toward Zero instead of Kaname. We get to see a little more into the pasts of Yuki, Zero, Kaname and Kaien and are also introduced to a new character: Toga Yagari. Yagari is a ruthless hunter sent from the Hunter Association to keep an eye on everything going on at Cross Academy. My feelings about the series haven’t really changed in this volume: I still think the shojo aspects of the series are rather cliche, however I think the series is worth watching because it does have an interesting story and memorable characters. The story and the characters are still the strongest part of the series.

The love triangle between Yuki, Zero and Kaname become even more obvious in this volume. One of the best things about this volume is the fac that we get to see a little more out of the Night Class members that didn’t really stand out in Volume 1 like Ichijo, Senri and Rima. Despite not being main characters and barely ever speaking, I think I may like Senri and Rima the most out of all the characters. Even with the revelation of much about the main characters’ pasts, Kaname still remains rather mysterious. Even though Yuki is the central character of the story, there is a lot more focus on Zero and his conflict in this volume. Yagari would be a strong addition to the cast of characters and quickly jumps up in ranks as one of the better characters in the series in my opinion. It was interesting to see the nature of his relationship with Zero considering who he is and considering Zero’s issue.

The episodes in “Vampire Knight” are not really stand alone, therefore I don’t recommend watching this volume without seeing the first four episodes. There are quite a few spoilers that happen in this volume that probably wouldn’t make much sense if watched before seeing the beginning of the series. There are quite a few characters in this series and by this volume the storyline has progressed quite a bit. Even though there are quite a few characters in this series, it’s not a distraction and it’s not hard to keep track of who is who. I really do believe that the great number of characters in this series acts as a strength since most of the characters are pretty interesting.

The target audience doesn’t change in this volume: it’s mostly for a female audience. However Yagari might be a character guys could like as well, considering he may be the most masculine character despite there being mostly guys in the cast of characters.

If you liked the first volume or are a fan of the series, this volume is definitely worth watching. Despite the many shojo manga/anime cliches, the story and characters are interesting enough to keep watching to see what happens next. As I mentioned above, I recommend this series for people who already know of the series or have seen Volume 1, but I do not recommend it if you haven’t seen the first volume. Too much has happened by this volume and there are too many characters to keep track of. Even if you are not a shojo manga/anime fan, I think there are some people (like me) who could at least enjoy the series for the story and the characters. Overall, an exciting continuation of the series.

Filed Under: Anime on DVD

VIZ MEDIA CELEBRATES 25th ANNIVERSARY

May 4, 2011 by J!-ENT · Leave a Comment

25 Years of Storytelling and Pioneering New Paths in Global Entertainment

San Francisco, CA, May 4, 2011 – VIZ Media, the largest distributor and licensor of anime and manga in the North America, will celebrate its 25^th Anniversary on July 7^th, 2011. Over its 25 year history, VIZ Media has led the transformation of manga and anime from a niche category sold only at specialty retailers into a mass media phenomenon popularized on Cartoon Network, Hulu and iTunes, and available at Barnes & Noble and Walmart. Today, VIZ Media is North America’s largest distributor of anime and manga, and is leading the global anime and manga industries to their digital futures. To celebrate 25 years of pioneering new paths in global entertainment and publishing, later this year VIZ Media will be unveiling new properties, marketing programs, and distribution partnerships.

Since 1986, VIZ Media has primarily distributed titles exclusively owned by its parent companies, Shueisha Inc., Shogakukan Inc., and Shogakukan-Shueisha Productions Co., Ltd.. In 2011, VIZ Media will diversify its award-winning library further by licensing properties from other global content creators as well as creating its own content. On the digital front, VIZ Media has created partnerships with Apple, Hulu, Netflix, Google and more, leading the way to new paths for distribution of manga and anime.

“For 25 years, VIZ Media has been telling stories that resonate with audiences and fans all over North America,” said Hidemi Fukuhara, President and CEO of VIZ Media. “Even after two-and-a-half decades of explosive growth, we still see tremendous potential to adapt, grow and leverage our library of world-renowned and beloved characters. With a full slate of new anime and manga releases planned this year, VIZ Media has something for everyone.”

The VIZ Media library includes global blockbuster franchises like NARUTO, INUYASHA, POKÉMON, DRAGON BALL Z, YU-GI-OH!, BLEACH, VAMPIRE KNIGHT, and DEATH NOTE. VIZ Media’s manga titles are available at mass retailers everywhere, and through VIZ Media’s free VIZ Manga App for the iPad™, iPhone™, and iPod Touch™, the first manga-dedicated app in North America. VIZ Media anime titles can be seen on Disney XD, Cartoon Network and Adult Swim, is available for Download-to-Own/Download-to-Rent via iTunes, PlayStation^®Network, Amazon Instant Video and Zune on Xbox LIVE^®, and for streaming on the company’s own VIZAnime.com, Hulu and Netflix, and is available for purchase on DVD at mass DVD retailers.

Filed Under: Anime Related News

Vampire Knight: Volume 1 (a J!-ENT Anime DVD Review)

May 2, 2011 by Michelle Tymon · Leave a Comment

“Vampire Knight” is a shojo series with vampires… what more could you ask for?”

DVD TITLE: Vampire Knight Volume 1

DURATION: 96 Minutes

DVD INFORMATION: 16:9 WIDESCREEN, JAPANESE & ENGLISH STEREO

COMPANY: VIZ

RATED: 16+

Release Date: July 20, 2010

Original Manga by Matsuri Hino

Directed by Kiyoko Sayama

Music by Takefumi Haketa

Art Direction by Kazuhiro Ito

Character Designs by Asako Nishida

Produced by Fukashi Azuma/Tomoko Takahashi/Yumiko Masushima

Featuring the following voice talent:

Yui Horie/Mela Lee as Yuki Cross

Mamoru Miyano/Vic Mignogna as Zero Kiryu

Daisuke Kishio/Ethan Murray as Kaname Kuran

Hozumi Goda/Christopher Corey as Kaien Cross

Junichi Suwabe/Troy Baker as Akatsuki Kain

Jun Fukuyama/Bryce Papenbrook as Hanabusa Aido

Junko Minagawa/Dorothy Elias-Fahn as Ruka Souen

Susumu Chiba/Spike Spencer as Takuma Ichijo

Souichiro Hoshi/Steve Staley as Senri Shiki

Eri Kitamura/Carrie Savage as Rima Touya

Risa Mizuno/Colleen O’Shaughnessey as Seiren

Kana Ueda/Stephanie Sheh as Sayori Wakaba

At prestigious Cross Academy, there are two sessions of classes: the Day Class and the Night Class. As the school’s Disciplinary Committee, Yuki Cross and Zero Kiryu keep watch over the Day Class students, who are all infatuated with the beautiful, elite Night Class students. As Guardians, Yuki and Zero must also protect the secret of the Night Class – they’re all vampires!

“Vampire Knight Volume 1″ contains the first four episodes of the popular manga and anime series, “Vampire Knight” by Matsuri Hino. The story revolves around Yuki Cross who attends Cross Academy. Cross Academy has a Day Class and Night Class, but unlike most schools, the Day and Night Classes are completely separated… because the members of the Night Class are all vampires. The members of the Day Class don’t know this fact, other than the members of the Disciplinary Committee, Yuki and Zero, who are in charge of keeping the Day and Night classes apart. The members of the Day Class only know that the members of the Night Class are all beautiful and alluring. Kaname Kuran is the leader of the Night Class and helped Yuki’s father, Kaien Cross to establish this school. Kaien Cross opened this school in hopes of there being peace among humans and vampires.

Yuki Cross’s earliest memory is of her about to be attacked by a vampire but then being saved by Kaname Kuran. Since then, she has very strong feelings toward Kaname. Meanwhile Zero, the other member of the Disciplinary Committee, has a strong hatred towards vampires because his parents were killed by a vampire four years prior. Despite Yuki and Zero clashing about how they feel about vampires, they do their job by keeping the Day Class away from the Night Class as much as possible. However it seems that Zero has a secret… one that Yuki, the person he’s closest to, doesn’t even know about…

“Vampire Knight Volume 1″ focuses on the following main characters:

Ruka Souen – Ruka is a member of the Night Class. She is sophisticated and beautiful and she is the idol of males of the Day Class. She has very strong feelings for Kaname.

Takuma Ichijo – Takuma is a member of the Night Class. He is from an aristocratic family and is one of Kaname’s closest friends. He is rather cheerful and friendly unlike most other vampires.

Senri Shiki – Senri is a member of the Night Class. He rarely speaks and when he does, it’s usually a single sentence. He works as a model with Rima.

Rima Touya – Rima is a member of the Night Class. She is petite and pixie-like and works as a model with Senri. Also like Senri, she doesn’t speak very much and is not very energetic.

Seiren – Seiren is another member of the Night Class and Kaname’s unofficial bodyguard.

Sayori Wakaba – Sayori is a member of the Day Class as well as Yuki’s best friend and dorm-mate. She is kind and always worries about her best friend.

“Vampire Knight Volume 1” features a total of 4 episodes on one DVD. Here is a spoiler-less summary of each episode:

Volume 1:

Episode 1- First Encounter – Yuki works hard to keep the Day and Night Classes apart and Zero has a dangerous secret.
Episode 2- Memories of Blood – It’s St. Xocolatl’s Day and the Day Class is anxious to give chocolates to the Night Class.
Episode 3- The Fang of Penitence – Yuki follows Zero out of the school grounds and lands into some trouble.
Episode 4- Trigger of Codemnation – After learning Zero’s secret, Yuki tries to help him.

VIDEO & AUDIO

“Vampire Knight Volume 1″ is presented in 16:9 and audio options include both Japanese and English. The art in the series is pretty but the character designs are indeed shojo so that may attract or detract viewers. But overall, the art is great and the animation is smooth and backgrounds look great.

Like Shojo manga/anime? Like vampires? Then you’ve found the perfect series for you. “Vampire Knight Volume 1″ is full of bishounen vampires and eye candy for shojo manga fans… and it does offer more to other viewers as well.

This volume covers the first four episodes of the popular manga/anime series by Matsuri Hino. Despite there being only four episodes, by the fourth episode, a significant number of events have happened. The story revolves around Yuki Cross, a cute, clumsy girl that attends Cross Academy. Cross Academy is a rather interesting school that is split by two classes: the Day Class and the Night Class. Along with Zero Kiryu, they act as the Disciplinary Committee, making sure that the Day and Night Classes stay separated. Why? Because the Night Class consists of vampires and the Day Class consists of unknowing humans who are fascinated by the beautiful Night Class. Yuki’s earliest memory is of her about to be attacked by a vampire and being saved by Kaname Kuran, who also happens to be a vampire. Since then, she has very strong feelings for Kaname. Kaname is the leader of the Night Class and is the one who helped the headmaster Kaien Cross open this school. In contrast, Zero hates vampires since his parents were killed by vampires so he despises the Night Class. However, Zero also has a secret which comes to light by the end of the DVD and the secret will change the relationship between Yuki and Zero forever.

The first DVD pretty much acts as an introduction to all of the characters in the series and the main focus is on the relationship between Yuki and Kaname as well as Yuki and Zero, as well as Zero’s secret. There are quite a few characters, considering most of the Night Class are all pretty major characters, but after a few episodes it’s not hard to keep track of who is who.

I personally am a little tired of the current vampire trend (this may be indirectly connected but there are still pretty vampires in it…) but so far the series is interesting. There’s a good mix of cuteness, romantic tension, action, and humor. The main character is a common type of main character found in shojo series: cute and clumsy and offers some comic relief. The rest of the cast consists of mostly of bishounen characters (mostly vampires). There is already an obvious love triangle between Yuki, Kaname, and Zero and of course, Yuki is oblivious to it for the most part in this volume. Despite the cliches, the series is still interesting.

This series is undoubtedly shojo. Is that bad? Nah. For those who like shojo manga and anime, this series is already great: pretty boys, romance, humor, and great art. For those who don’t like shojo manga and anime: the humor is good, there’s a fair amount of action and the story is interesting. The characters in the series are rather strong part of what makes the series interesting. The situation that Zero is in probably is the most interesting part of the story in this volume, as it is a major conflict to what he thinks and will affect his relationship with the other main characters.

Despite how conflicted he is, even he manages to contribute to the humor so that can be fun at times. Yuki is a rather generic character found in shojo mangas as I mentioned earlier. Kaname Kuran is dark, handsome, and mysterious. He seems to want peace between humans and vampires, but he also seems to have another side to him, especially when it comes to Yuki.

Though they aren’t very big characters yet, out of the Night Class, I find the duo of Senri and Rima quite amusing. They both act indifferent to anything that happens and don’t talk much, yet can have some of the funniest moments in the series. I also like Akatsuki quite a bit as he contrasts with his rather annoying cousin, Hanabusa. Kaien Cross, the headmaster and Yuki’s father pretty much provides much of the humor in the series, but it is also obvious that he has another side to him.

I would say that the primary audience for this show would be female, and might also like “Twilight”. However as I mentioned above, the series has a bit more to offer than eye candy and vampires so it may be able to bring in a bigger audience. The story itself is rather dark with bits of humor, the cast is great both in the Japanese and English dubs, and the characters are interesting. Even though I’m not a very big shojo manga/anime fan, I’m interested to see what happens next and I believe other viewers will feel the same.

Filed Under: Anime on DVD

VIZ MANGA APP FOR iPAD PRESENTS AN ADVANCE DIGITAL RELEASE OF TORIKO VOLUME 5 AHEAD OF THE PRINT COUNTERPART

April 26, 2011 by J!-ENT · Leave a Comment

Adventure And Appetites Collide With Action Packed Results As A Gourmet Hunter Tracks Big Game For A Feast Of Wild Proportions

VIZ Media continues to revolutionize the digital manga (graphic novel) arena with its VIZ MANGA APP for the Apple iPad™ and the just-announced advance release of Volume 5 of Mitsutoshi Shimabukuro’s hit series TORIKO on Monday April 25th – before the print edition’s national release on May 3rd. The new volume (rated ‘T’ for Teens) is available for $4.99 (U.S. / CAN). The VIZ MANGA APP for the iPad is free through the iTunes Store and manga volumes are available for purchase and download in the U.S. and Canada from within the application.

In a savage world ruled by the pursuit of the most delicious foods, it’s either eat or be eaten! This is the great era of gourmet food! And only Toriko can track down the ferocious and exotic wildlife coveted by the world’s best restaurants and wealthy food connoisseurs. As a Gourmet Hunter, Toriko tracks and defeats the tastiest and most dangerous animals with his bare hands. In the newest adventure, Toriko and his friends continue their search for the Regal Mammoth and the delicious “jewel meat” found deep in the creature’s body. Toriko can handle the wildest beast that nature has to offer, but the team may be in some serious trouble when more robots from the evil Gourmet Corp. join the party.

The VIZ MANGA APP is the leading application to read Japanese manga on the iPad with an extensive downloadable library of the most popular manga series in the world. The MANGA App currently features more than 150 manga volumes across multiple genres, generally available for download for $4.99 each. Readers are encouraged to check the VIZ MANGA APP regularly, as new additions to the store and free Chapter 1 previews of other forthcoming series for the iPad are also featured.

Manga creator Mitsutoshi Shimabukuro made his debut in Japan’s Weekly Shonen Jump in 1996. He is best known for the 2001 series, A Tale of a Leader in the End of the Century Takeshi, for which he won the 46th Shogakukan Manga Award for children’s manga. His current series, TORIKO, began serialization in Japan in 2008 and is published in North America by VIZ Media’s Shonen Jump imprint. The popular adventure has also spawned an anime series.

For more information on the VIZ MANGA APP, please visit www.VIZ.com/apps/.

Filed Under: Manga News and Reviews

THE GRIPPING SCI-FI THRILLER GANTZ PREMIERES ACROSS THE U.S. THIS THURSDAY, JANUARY 20th IN A SPECIAL ONE NIGHT ONLY EVENT

January 17, 2011 by J!-ENT · Leave a Comment

Don’t Miss Two Of Japan’s Biggest Film Stars Making A Rare In-Person Appearance To Introduce Their Newest Sci-Fi Action Feature Debuting On 333 Screens Across North America

San Francisco, CA, January 17, 2011 – Don’t miss the very special one-night-only screening of GANTZ, premiering at 333 theatres across the U.S. and presented by NCM Fathom and NEW PEOPLE, on Thursday, January 20^th, 2011 at 8:00 p.m. ET / 7:00 p.m. CT / 6:00 p.m. MT / 8:30 p.m. PT (tape delayed). The sci-fi thriller, which is based on a hit anime/manga series, is opening in the U.S. nine days ahead of its wide release in Japan on January 29^th.

Tickets (for all locations except Hollywood, CA) are available at participating theater box offices and online at www.FathomEvents.com. For a complete list of theater locations and prices, please visit the web site (theaters and participants are subject to change).

As part of the release, NEW PEOPLE will welcome GANTZ lead actors Kazunari Ninomiya (Letters from Iwo Jima) and Kenichi Matsuyama (Death Note, Detroit Metal City), for an in-person appearance for the premiere of the film at the Mann’s Chinese 6 in Hollywood, CA. Immediately following the GANTZ screening, Otaku USA Editor-in-Chief Patrick Macias will conduct a live interview session with Kazunari Ninomiya and Kenichi Matsuyama that will be telecast to theatres across the country. Fans have the opportunity to submit questions for the actors at www.GantzMovies.com.

Kazunari Ninomiya, best known in America for his role in Clint Eastwood’s 2006 blockbuster, Letters from Iwo Jima, is both an actor and a singer. He is also world-renowned as a member of the Japanese boy band “Arashi,” which topped Japan’s music charts in 2009 with the three best-selling singles. Kenichi Matsuyama is currently one of the most sought-after actors in Japanese film and he has won several awards including Japanese Academy Awards Best New Actor (2007) and Most Popular Actor (2009). Matsuyama is widely recognized for his part as L in Death Note (2006), Death Note II: the Last Name (2006) and Death Note: L, change the WorLd (2008) and also for his portrayal of Johannes Krauser II in the outlandish rock and roll comedy, Detroit Metal City (2009).

GANTZ (English dubbed) is based on a hit manga series created by Hiroya Oku and tells the story of childhood friends Kei Kurono and Masaru Kato, who are accidentally killed while trying to save another man’s life. Rather than find themselves in the hereafter, however, they awaken in a strange apartment in which they find a mysterious black orb they come to know as “GANTZ.” Along with similar abductees, they are provided with equipment and weaponry and manipulated into playing a kind of game in which they are sent back out to the greater world to do battle with alien beings, all while never quite knowing whether this game is an illusion or their new reality.

About NEW PEOPLE

Based in San Francisco, California, NEW PEOPLE offers the latest films, art, fashion and retail brands from Japan through its unique entertainment destination as well as licensing and distribution of selective Japanese films. NEW PEOPLE strives to offer the most entertaining motion pictures straight from the “Kingdom of Pop” for audiences of all ages, especially the manga and anime generation, in North America. Some titles include DEATH NOTE, KAMIKAZE GIRLS, and THE TASTE OF TEA. For more information about films, please visit www.viz-pictures.com. To learn more about NEW PEOPLE in San Francisco, please visit www.newpeopleworld.com.

Filed Under: Japanese Entertainment News

Claymore 16 (A J!-Ent Manga Review)

August 20, 2010 by Michelle Tymon · Leave a Comment

”Claymore 16′ is the exciting continuation of “The Lamentation of the Earth” saga. This dark fantasy is full of action and wonderful characters. A Must Read for “Claymore” fans!”

MANGA TITLE: Claymore 16

STORY AND ART BY: Norihiro Yagi

FIRST PUBLISHED IN JAPAN: By Shueisha on May 1, 2009 (ISBN 978-4-08-874668-5)

PUBLISHED IN USA BY: VIZ Media

RATED: T+ for OLDER TEEN

PAGES: 202 PAGES

In a world where monsters called Yoma prey on humans and live among them in disguise, humanity’s only hope is a new breed of warrior known as Claymores. Half human, half monster, these silver-eyed slayers possess supernatural strength but are condemned to fight their savage impulses-or lose their humanity completely.

After Miria’s incredible revelations about the origins of the Yoma, the seven warriors split up to settle their affairs and say their goodbyes in preparation for the final battle against the Organization. Helen and Deneve fall in with a spirited young warrior of the current generation and soon find themselves confronting the Organization’s latest, most terrible weapons.

Claymore is a manga that focuses on the Claymore Clare and her small band of Claymores who are now on their own after the Organization they worked for left them for dead. Claymores are warriors created by the Organization who are half human and half Yoma and are built so they can spot and fight Yomas that hide among the humans and plague the land.

In this particular volume, Clare and the other Claymores working with Miria split up and prepare for their final battle with the Organization. Helen and Deneve run into a rather powerful Claymore named Dietrich and run into the Awakened Being, Isley as well. As they are battling Isley, they run into the newest and most gruesome threat sent out by the Organization called Abyss Feeders. Abyss Feeders are creatures without a soul with just one motive: to devour Awakened Beings and kill anything else that may get in the way…

This particular volume concentrates on the following characters:

Clare: Clare is the main character of this story. She is one of the Claymores that was left for dead after the battle of the North along with a few others. She is on a mission to find Raki who was once her traveling partner that she was separated from 7 years ago. Currently, she is traveling with Cynthia and Yuma and they happen to run into Rubel.

Rubel: Rubel is a mysterious man in black that gave Clare her orders from the Organization when she was still in the Organization. He reappears in this volume and it is actually revealed that he is a spy working against the organization to take it down.

Helen: Helen is a rather hot-headed Claymore that usually leaps before looking. Her and Deneve are traveling together currently and just like Clare, she is one of the Claymores that was left for dead and is working with Miria.

Deneve: Deneve is a rather calm and serious Claymore that is currently traveling with Helen. She usually is the voice of reason of Helen… even though that might not always work either. Like the others, she is another Claymore that was left for dead and is now working with Miria. She has great regenerative abilities.

Dietrich: Dietrich is a current Generation Claymore that Helen and Deneve run into and help from an Awakened one. She is rather skilled and strong and is loyal to the Organization. However despite her loyalty, she is grateful towards Helen and Deneve for helping her and she assists them for a little while on their journey.

Cynthia: Cynthia is another Claymore working with Miria and is currently traveling with Clare.

Yuma: Yuma is another Claymore working with Miria and is currently traveling with Clare.

Isley: Isley is a very powerful Awakened Being that has decided to hide among the humans in the town that Helen and Deneve find, however he quickly reveals himself when the two warriors come before him. Their battle is quickly interrupted though by new weapons sent out by the Organization called Abyss Feeders…

Riful: Riful is another very powerful Awakened Being. She looks and acts like a child but is incredibly powerful. She lives in a castle with Dauf and are currently trying to awaken something that they found and she is trying to get the Claymore Renee to awaken it.

Dauf: Dauf is Riful’s lover and lives in the castle with her. He is definitely more brauns over brains and follows Riful blindly.

Renee: Renee is currently the #6 in this generation of Claymores and is currently captured by Riful and Dauf to try to awaken a certain being.

“Claymore 16″ features 6 chapters. Here is a spoiler-free breakdown of each chapter:

Scene 84: The Lamentation of the Earth, Part 2 – Clare is unexpectedly reunited with Rubel and Renee tries to figure out how to escape from Riful.

Scene 85: The Lamentation of the Earth, Part 3 – Helen and Deneve run into a Claymore named Dietrich.

Scene 86: The Lamentation of the Earth, Part 4 – Helen and Deneve run into Isley.

Scene 87: The Lamentation of the Earth, Part 5 – Helen and Deneve’s battle with Isley continues.

Scene 88: The Lamentation of the Earth, Part 6 – Helen and Deneve’s battle with Isley is interrupted by the Abyss Feeders.

Scene 89: The Lamentation of the Earth, Part 7 – The battle between Isley and the Abyss Feeders concludes…

“Claymore” is a wonderful fantasy action series full of great characters and an exciting story. If you’re looking for a beautiful dark fantasy, “Claymore” would be an excellent choice. This is definitely a series for older readers though, since there is quite a bit of violence and some nudity. There is also quite a bit of the creepiness factor, especially in this volume with the Abyss Feeders.

This series is full of strong female characters, considering Claymores are mostly female. I believe that factor will attract both male and female audiences. It was definitely an appealing factor for me because I always look for strong female characters. Clare is a great leading character: strong, loyal and despite being a Claymore, still exhibits quite a bit of human emotions. A relationship I enjoy quite a bit is the relationship between Helen and Deneve. They are polar opposites, however that’s also the reason why they compliment each other so much. Helen is quick-tempered and quick to act, mostly before thinking and Deneve is calm and serious, always thinking things through. There are a few strong male characters in the series though, like Isley and Dauf. Despite being the strong male character in the series, Isley’s fate is challenged in this particular volume.

Since this is volume 16, I don’t recommend just buying and reading this volume by itself. There are so many characters in “Claymore” and so much has happened by this volume that there is no point in just trying to read this volume. You will not understand anything that is going on. This particular volume concentrates a lot more on Helen, Deneve, and Dietrich rather than Clare, who only appears in the first chapter and a little bit in the second chapter of this volume.

As I mentioned, this series definitely has a creepiness factor. Between Riful and the Abyss Feeders in this volume, it’s quite intense. Riful looks like a harmless little girl but is rather deadly and has dark intentions… which all in itself is creepy. The being she’s trying to awaken is quite creepy too… I won’t say what it is because it’d be a spoiler. The Abyss Feeders are probably one of the creepiest things I’ve ever seen. They look like female zombie creatures that are barely dressed and have their eyes and mouths sewn shut. Of course, they are definitely supposed to be creepy. This volume is full of creepy, yes… but it doesn’t lack story or great characters.

At first, I wasn’t much of a fan of Norihiro Yagi’s art. I have had the first volume of “Claymore” for quite a while and didn’t really care too much for the art then. I thought that the villagers had awkward looking faces, and I thought that the Claymores were all too long in the bodies (I’m ridiculously picky on weird things in art). However, by this volume, his art has vastly improved (just like many other manga artists, their art improves a great deal over volumes). The art has definitely grown on me. The amount of details that he puts in the environment is beautiful. Not to mention the amount of detail he puts into the individual designs of the Awakened Beings is amazing. Also the individual faces of all the Claymores are beautiful and to be honest, it’s amazing that he’s able to individualize each of the Claymores and think up so many different hairstyles for each (since each Claymore has silver eyes and light blondish hair). As I mentioned, there is nudity in the series but I don’t think that it’s used crudely or unneeded for the most part. However, that may be a minor detractor for some people. Overall, I hope people can appreciate the beauty in his art.

When I first spotted “Claymore” in Japan, the first thing it reminded me of was “Berserk”, a manga series by Kentaro Miura. I thought the art styles were similar and both are dark fantasies. “Claymore” is definitely not as dark as “Berserk”, but I believe that audiences that enjoy “Berserk” may enjoy “Claymore” quite a bit too.

“Claymore” is definitely a must-read if you enjoy action series. This series, and particularly this volume is full of non-stop action. I think this series would have a huge male fan base, but I hope girls enjoy it too. There isn’t much romance in the series but as I mentioned earlier, there are so many powerful female characters that I hope would bring in a female audience as well. This volume of “Claymore” doesn’t disappoint whatsoever and I highly recommend this volume if you have already read the rest of the series. It will definitely make you eager to read the continuation. Wonderful work!

Filed Under: Manga News and Reviews

VIZ MEDIA LAUNCHES VIZ ANIME A NEW OFFICAL WEB DESTINATION FOR SOME OF THE HOTTEST ANIME CONTENT

March 15, 2010 by J!-ENT · Leave a Comment

Optimized Technology Allows Fans To Connect And Interact And Spend Less Time Looking For The Latest Anime Episodes And More Time Enjoying Them

San Francisco, CA, March 15, 2010 – In a significant news announcement, VIZ Media, LLC (VIZ Media), one of the entertainment industry’s most innovative and comprehensive publishing, animation and licensing companies, has detailed the launch of VIZ Anime – a brand new, free-to-use interactive web destination that will become a permanent home to some of the company’s best-loved animated series as well as new content which will be added on a weekly basis. VIZ Anime is accessible at: www.VIZAnime.com.

VIZ Anime kicks off with more than 400 episodes from hit series such as BLEACH, BUSO RENKIN, DEATH NOTE (complete series), HIKARU NO GO, HONEY & CLOVER, INUYASHA (complete series) and INUYASHA: THE FINAL ACT, NANA, NARUTO (complete series) and NARUTO SHIPPUDEN as well as THE PRINCE OF TENNIS. The site will also be the future web home for many other eagerly anticipated anime series set to launch later this year!

Episodes can be streamed for free with new ones being added weekly. A variety of interactive social networking tools and features also help foster an official online home and community for VIZ Media anime fans allowing them to connect on and discuss favorite shows, and offer ratings and opinions of various episodes. New functionalities will be added regularly.

• Users can “follow” as many series as they like and choose to be notified each time a new episode is released, as well as keep track of the last episode they’ve watched. This makes it easy to stay current on series like INUYASHA or NARUTO, which feature more than 100 episodes.
• Users can comment on individual episodes and also meet and interact with other fans, invite friends to join, ask questions and debate plot twists and characters, voice their opinion on what’s happening in a particular series, and also find out what else is going on across the anime and manga spectrums.

• Users can rate their favorite episodes by using a “Like” button on each episode page. They can quickly access a list of all the episodes they’ve similarly liked to compare how other users have liked an episode.

• Users can make a personalized profile page to keep track of the episodes they’ve watched and enjoyed, the series they’re currently following, and comments they’ve made. Mail tools can also be used to send private messages between individual users. Privacy controls let users decide what information is shared publicly and who is able to send them messages.

“We’re committed to developing VIZ Anime as a premiere online destination, and hope to offer a real community for VIZ Media fans to interact with each other and share their love of anime,” says Ken Sasaki, Senior Vice President & General Manager of VIZ Media. “We will also utilize the site as a means of two-way communication to better understand what our fans enjoy most and want, and how they engage with anime and manga online. With a lot of content to select from, VIZ Anime will become a favorite site to visit again and again!”

For more information on VIZ Media or VIZ Anime, please visit www.VIZAnime.com.

Filed Under: Anime Related News

Naoki Urasawa’s 20th CENTURY BOYS vol. 05 (a J!-ENT Manga Review)

November 14, 2009 by Dennis Amith · Leave a Comment

Gripping and addictive! The fifth volume of “20th Century Boys” features the group reuniting and preparing for the war against the Friend and also a flash forward storyline featuring a teenage Kanna. If you enjoy or are curious about Naoki Urasawa’s work, you definitely have to check this series out! Highly recommended!

MANGA TITLE: 20th CENTURY BOYS vol. 05

STORY AND ART BY: Naoki Urasawa (浦沢直樹)

FIRST PUBLISHED IN JAPAN: Shogakukan, Inc.

PUBLISHED IN USA BY: VIZ Media, LLC

RATED: T for Older Teen

The giant robot has already been built and now awaits the Great Awakening… With the Friend’s identity still a mystery, the countdown to the apocalypse continues, day by day, minute by minute – for on December 31, 2000, humanity will meet its final hour.

Hoping to get as many people who knew about their group’s emblem involved in their clandestine efforts, Kenji’s crew reaches out to their childhood antagonists: The twins Yanbo and Mabo. Back when they were kids, Yanbo and Mabo terrorized Kenji and company to no end. As adults, and with a crisis looming, will the evilest brothers in history now fight on the side of good?

Naoki Urasawa is well-known in the manga industry. Having created excellent titles such as “Yawara! A Fashionable Judo Girl”, “Pineapple ARMY”, “Master Keaton” and “Monster”, his manga series “20th CENTURY BOYS” was the winner of the 2001 Kodansha Manga Award, Winner of the 2003 Shogakukan Manga Award and Urasawa was the recipient of the “Excellence Price at the 2002 Japan Media Arts Festival”.

The manga has been made into a live film, with the first film having been released as a part of a trilogy with a budget of 6 billion yen and will feature a cast of 300 people, it’s natural to say that the manga series “20th CENTURY BOYS” will definitely be a bonafide classic. And now the the fifth volume of the popular manga series has been released by Viz Media.

Naoki Urasawa’s “20th CENTURY BOYS” follows a group of friends when they were as children and the present time as adults. When these friends were children, they played a group of super heroes who would take down evildoers. But first, they needed to come up with their own storylines of the bad things the evil side would do and how they, as superheroes would have to conquer evil.

This plot of what the evil group would do was written down in a little guide which they called “The Prophecy”. As for the group, they devised a symbol of their group. But now many years later, this symbol has re-emerged as the symbol of a religious cult who may be behind terrorist activities.

Volume 5 takes place before December 31, 2000. When Kenji and his friends were young, they created a group where they would play heroes who would take on “The League of Evil”. In the book, they Kenji and friends set scenarios for the League of Evil such as the group would use deadly biological weapons to attack San Francisco and London, germ warfare used in Osaka, Haneda Airport would be attacked and destroyed and on December 31, 2000, a huge giant atomic robot would scatter deadly microbes and wreak havoc and destruction. And these kids as heroes would take on the League of Evil.

The problem is that someone took the prophecy literally and has created a group called The Friends and are enacting everything from “The Prophecy” which led to many friends and many people being killed. Since Kenji and friends created “The Prophecy”, they know that as adults, they are the heroes that must take on the Friends (who are the League of Evil) who are disguised as a savior of society.

So, Kenji and his many of his friends from his childhood must reunite quickly as the prophecy tells him that there must be nine members. With terrorist attacks by the Friend being blamed on Kenji and his supporters, and December 31st looming near, the war between the two sides has now begun!

“20th CENTURY BOYS” features the following characters:

Kenji Endo: The main protagonist of the book. Raising his missing sister’s young daughter Kana and once worked as a convenience store clerk and also once pursued life as a guitarist. As the primary person as a child who help develop the plan of superheroes vs. villains, he is now looked as the person to counter the evil created by “The Friend”.

Maruo: Kenji’s chubby friend (as a child and as an adult) who owns a fancy goods shop in the neighborhood and raises his chubby child who always wants to eat. One of Kenji’s close friends.

Yoshitsune: Another close friend of Kenji and always down on himself. Known in adulthood with his eyeglasses and low self-confidence.

Keroyon: A Childhood friend known as Froggy. Lives in Kenji’s neighborhood and the first of the friends to get married.

Mon-Chan: A childhood friend who now works overseas.

Donkey: A childhood friend of the gang who died and reunited the friends many years later. But with mysterious notes written to Kenji, Kenji has realized that his old friend was murdered by the group led by “The Friend”.

Yukiji: The strongest girl in class (a tomboy) who is now a customs officer and works at the airport with her sniffer dog. Can’t stand how Kenji had become a slacker and always had to defend him when he was a child. In the future, she has become the guardian of Kanna and has raised her.

Kanna Endo: The daughter of Kenji’s missing sister. She is now a young girl who loves her uncle Kenji (who literally raised her along with his mother). Older Kanna is featured or the first time in vol. 5.

Otcho: One of the leaders of Kenji’s group of friends who went missing overseas when he was working for a corporation. Now a fighting machine who is an expert at guns.

Yanbo and Mabo: The two big, twin bullies who would try to hurt Kenji and his friends.

The first three volumes of “Naoki Urasawa’s 20th CENTURY BOYS”, has established the characters as children, as teenagers and now as adults. “The Friend” which was seen as a religious cult in the past, has now infiltrated the infrastructure of politics and the group are now in a position of power. With Kenji confronting “The Friend” is volume 3 for the first time, the lines were drawn. Good vs. evil and “The Friend” has done all he can to have his cult kidnap Kenji’s niece, Kana and nearly murdering Kenji and his mother in the process.

The fourth volume featured Kenji recruiting some of his old friends such as Shogun and now with Kenji managing to recruit some of his friends, he needs two more. The only two that comes to mind is his enemies when he was a child, the bullies Yanbo and Mabo. But are they like the way there were when they were children or are they much better now as adults? With time approaching for December 31, 2000 and the giant robot attack which would kill many and cause massive destruction, Kenji and friends must act fast in recruiting their members.

Here is a brief summary of each chapter of volume 5 (spoiler-less summaries):

Chapter 1: Call to Arms - Kenji’s friends decide to join him but who decides to join and who doesn’t?

Chapter 2: Not Alone - As Kenji is desperate to get two more members, he must decide whether or not he should let his childhood enemies join. Yoshitsune tries to recruit them but can the two be trusted?

Chapter 3: Uncle Kenji - With the prophecy of the giant robot attack coming soon, Kenji has to make a tough decision.

Chapter 4: The Book of Prophecy - With the Friend and his minions being quiet for months, was Kenji wrong about the prophecy?

Chapter 5: December 31 - The Giant Robot unleashed.

Chapter 6: Final Round - People all over the world are dying. How will Kenji and friends stop the Giant Robot and the Friend’s attack?

Chapter 7: Reunion - Flash forward a decade later and Kanna Endo is looking for a new place to live.

Chapter 8: Memorial – Kanna goes to remember someone close to her.

Chapter 9: Detective Chono - The grandson of Cho-san (the original detective from earlier in the series who was investigating the Friends) is now a detective and confronts Kanna.

Chapter 10: Chocho – Chono and Kanna have a heart-to-heart talk.

Chapter 11: The Ambitious Duo – Kanna’s guardian, Yukiji and Kanna get into a heated discussion. Meanwhile, we learn what has happened to the Friends.

Volume 5, takes a step back from the violence that was shown in the last volume. For the first half, we see Kenji trying to recruit his friends and the second half a decade or more later with Kanna now an older teenager. For the most part, these are character driven chapters as the book tries to reintroduce Kenji’s friends into the mix but also show how his group has been used by the Friends power in making him look like a terrorist. There is a bit of violence as we see the Friends initiate their December 31st attack as was mentioned on the prophecy.

And interesting how the earlier chapters go back-and-forth with the past and present. This time it goes from the present to the future and if anything, giving us a glimpse that things may have not gone too well for Kenji and friends. If anything, no one knows what has happened yet as this volume does a major switch to older Kanna and thus teasing the reader of the bloody war but also a teaser of what happens in the future. Needless to say, I was captivated by the storyline once again and it goes to show how Naoki Urasawa is just wonderful as a writer and an artist and knows how to capture your attention.

Needless to say, readers are being setup for something huge and I definitely can’t wait for the next volume. Overall, a gripping and exhilarating fifth volume of Naoki Urasawa’s “20th CENTURY BOYS”. If you haven’t started already, if you are looking for a deep, well-drawn, well-written manga series, this manga series is highly recommended!

Filed Under: Manga News and Reviews