Friday, June 26, 2009
Vamps Album Lyrics
Thursday, June 11, 2009
The Tarot Café

The Tarot Café
Publisher: Korea Sigongsa English: Tokyo Pop
Writer: Sang-Sun Park
Gender: Horror, Romance, Mythology in comics
Volume length: 7
Plot Summary: Pamela is the owner of the tarot café- and is also a powerful clairvoyant willing to tell fortunes for a price. She carters more than your average high school student though. After midnight she reserves customers whom are far from normal. From vampires to fairies and all sorts of supernatural beings, come to her to hear their futures and reserve advice about the situations. While Pamela is good at giving others advice, she must will someday deal with her own dark secret before she can move onto the next life.
I remember hearing about this series by a manga sneak peak from Tokyo Pop back in 2005 I reserved when I bought some mangas from Son Coasts. When I read the manga in the sampler it left me hanging and wanting for more. So I ran and bought the first volume, I have to say I really enjoyed the whole series.
The story is unique and captivating, slowly revealing what is really up with Pamela. She runs a tarot café reading to both normal humans and creatures of the supernatural. In the first volume we see a blind vampire seeking advice from Pamela as to what he should do with his problem. I have to say each and every story from the costumer is unique in its own way which is not boring at all, and just when you’re itching to know more about Pamela’s past the story delivers. The manga is read from left to right which I found it quite strange to read at first (been that it was my first Korean manga I read) but that was just me.
Art wise, given that the author is Korean the art is completely and amazingly different from the Japanese counterparts. The texture of the hair is so…sparkly… Sometimes we see the surroundings like buildings and cars, as if they were pasted there from a picture, but it does not overpower the art itself. Some architecture hand drawn is neatly detailed and nearly perfect, which I liked a lot.
Overall, this was a joy to read. The story behind it, I found it quite unique and interesting. Although they do leave your in a cliffhanger in almost every volume, you don’t have to kill yourself waiting for the next volume to come out since they are already all out. (If you can’t find it at your local bookstore then like we say here “Eso son otros 20 pesos” That’s another 20 bucks)
Evaluation:
Story: A+
Art: B
Characters: B+
Overall: A
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Vamps First Album

Sunday, June 7, 2009
Saikano She,the ultimate weapon
Saikano (She, the ultimate weapon)
Studio: Gonzo
U.S Licensor: Viz Media
Writer: Shin Takahashi
Gender: Romance, Apocalyptic and Post-Apocalyptic, Fiction
Episode length: 13
Synopsis:
Shuji and Chise, two high school students. They’ve just started going out. One day, while visiting Sapporo, Shuji is caught on an air raid by an unknown foreign power. As Shuji runs through the city streets, avoiding falling bombs, a mysterious weapons appears and single handedly wipes out the swarm of bombers. The weapon? His girlfriend, Chise…What do you do when you girlfriend becomes the ultimate weapon?
(Official synopsis from the DVD)
Review:
I saw the trailer for this and I thought “Oh this looks interesting let me watch it and see if I like it” Well I have to say I was pleased with the results
Saikano has some great character growth I’ve seen in an anime. The characters of Shuji and Chise come to life as real people struggling to find a piece of happiness in a quickly changing world. I certainly love that their relationship is portrayed perfectly like a real life one. It’s not two characters who are instantly deeply in love with each other; we actually see the development and growth from ‘like’ to ‘love’. Besides just the issue of love, Chise struggles with her the nature of her new existence. It’s kind of sad, when she’s finally found the courage to take control of her life, she suddenly finds herself not completely human and a killing machine following orders.
There is very little explanation about the war and who is fighting who. Instead we see the effect of the war. We see families being torn by missing or dead love ones and living in constant fear when the next air raid will come. I look at it as what will happen today if the world keeps on going the way we are headed.
Apart from the fact that this anime has wars, and that one of the main characters is a fighting cyborg, this is not an action anime. So if you are looking for a fighting anime this one may not be what you are looking for. Saikano touches more on how the war affects people than glorifying battle. In some episodes we see Chise been call into battle but we see it from far away prespective.
In terms of animations and character design, they are fairly average. The CGI animations sometimes looked out of place but considering that it was released in 2000 – 2001 it’s pretty good.
In the music department, comparing it to Yoko Kanno is a little bit too much. The opening and endings are fairly good but what was important was the love song that Shuji constantly listens to and hums. It fits so well with the story and you hear it constantly through the series, that you find yourself humming it too.
Saikano is a wonderful character driven show that while not vast in theme and scope as some other anime do, this one does a fine job of presenting two very real people and taking the viewer into their troubles. While anguish is hardly rare in anime, the characters of Saikano are desperately trying to hold onto their happiness instead of simply falling into brief despair. That makes this title all the more moving. Important item required whiles seen this Anime is a tissue box.
If you are looking for a touching anime then this is for you, if not it’s a pass.
Evaluation:
Story: C-
Animation: C+
Art: C
Music: D
Overall: C -
Saturday, June 6, 2009
Land of the Blindfolded
Land of the Blindfolded (目隠しの国 Mekakushi No Kuni)
Publisher: Jap. Hakusensha English: CMX Manga
Author: Tsukuba Sakura
Gender: Romance Supernatural
Volume Length: 9
“If there were a land of the blindfolded, will people understand the concept of sight?... Sometimes my “blindfold” slips a little bit ” Those are the beginning words of one of the main characters in the story, Kanade Outsuka. She is able to see the future only from time to time when physical contact happens. Being the optimistic girl that she is, whenever she “sees” an incident coming, she will do anything to save the person, even if it lands her in a bad situation. When Kanade bumps into the new classmate, Naitou Arou, he reveals to her that he can also “see”, but into the past. Unlike Kanade, Arou can control whether he wishes to see or not and can also see from inanimate objects such as desks and walls. Unlike Kanade, she prefers to let things takes its course. Things only get more complicated with the arrival of Namiki Masahiro, another boy who can see the future. Unlike either Kanade or Arou, Masahiro would rather use his power for selfish reasons, such as gambling, or to watch and laugh as people walk blindly into their unfortunate futures.
On the surface, the idea of humans being able to see the past or the future is not new, but Tsukuba-san makes it an interesting, down-to-earth approach. There is no “we have to use our powers to save the world”; not even the argument on the ethics of using such powers. Instead, it follows the lives of three gifted teens as they try to balance their life with their abilities. So if you like a long list of characters and epic things happening, this manga is not for you.
On the story we have an obvious love triangle going on between the characters, but it never turns onto a dramatic play that takes up the entire story. Instead, it is almost casual, something rather refreshing compared to most romantic stories. There’s more exploration of the emotions themselves, showcasing several levels of ‘like’ and ‘love’…though much of that is spread out over later volumes. For me, it emitted a vive of hidden psychology.
Things are kept light due to the dash of humor. No single character is a comedic relief. Instead, everyone makes their own foolish mistakes, which was surprisingly nice. It is nice to see the three main characters alongside the secondary, filling various roles at random moments, sometimes it mirrors that of real life.
The art work for Land of the Blindfolded is nice and clean, although it doesn’t have anything special. Sometimes the panel argument makes it a tad difficult to know the reading order, but generally the art and panels keep a nice, flowing pace. (P.S. I might be a pervert, but the water and liquid in this manga look slightly wrong to me, but is cool.)
Overall, Land of the Blindfolded was fun to read. I really loved that this was a light manga to read. The chapters don’t leave you in a cliffhanger, you can simply read the manga, put it down, and read it again once the mood strikes. For those looking for a more down-to-earth approach to life, love, and special powers…Land of the Blindfolded is definitely worth pursuing.
Evaluation:
Story: B-
Art: C
Character Development: B+
Overall: B+
Wolf's Rain
Wolf’s Rain
Studio: BONES
US Licensor: Bandai Entertainment
Director: Tensai Okamurta
Writer: Keiko Nobumoto
Gender: Adventure, Post-apocalyptic, supernatural
Episode Length: 26
Wolf’s Rain is one of the anime series I love with all my heart. It tells the story of four lone wolves, Kiba, Tsume, Hige and Toboe. They cross paths following the scent of the Lunar flowers. They form a pack and decide to seek out the Flower Maiden (Cheza) in order to open the way to paradise. Along the way, they most avoid a fanatical wolf hunter and the nobles who wish to use the Flower Maiden to create their own paradise.
The story is set on a Post-apocalyptic world. Humans Live in what they call domes because the outside world is practically inhabitable. The story in the anime goes that when the world is at its end, as the anime puts it “From the Great Spirit was born the wolf, and man became its messenger” the wolf is the only one who can find paradise and fix the dying Earth. Except that wolves are believe to be extinct, but like everything that is not true. The wolves where clever enough to stay low and fool the human eye into believing that they too are human by assuming that form.
The anime has a feeling of melancholy and gloominess, but it touches issues like the human-animal relationship and the very real environmental destruction. Although it doesn’t have the stunning CGI’s other Animes seem to have. Wolf’s Rains delivers with clean and smooth animation and art.
As for the music goes the great Yoko Kanno composed most of the songs. She is a true genius. The music fits so well with the anime both beautiful and sorrowful. We also have music from the talented Steve Conte singing and composing the opening song Stray and Heaven’s not Enough.
The characterization is simply awesome for humans and wolves alike. The best thing is that the wolves act like wolves, not like some furry creatures. They make take human form but they are clearly not humans. However the story is not all about the wolves we also have Humans that are key character in the story. Like Cher, she was part of the research and development team in the creation of the Flower Maiden budgeted by the nobles. Quent Yaiden the ex-sheriff from a small town, in a self-proclaimed mission to eradicate wolves from Earth, due to the fact that his town was destroyed by the nobles because some wolves were hiding there, and last but not least Daicia a fallen noble who wants Cheza (the Flower Maiden) to revive and open paradise for himself and his fallen lover.
The movement of the story is good although some times the action slows down but is never boring. There are a few questionable plot elements that come up with the problem of wolves-that-look-like-people, such as when they are required to do something that would obviously require fingers (Open a door), but it's a small gripe and doesn't really detract from the rest of the show.
Wolf’s Rain is absorbing and fascinating, with interesting characters, interesting plot and beautiful music.
It’s a definite watch.
Evaluation:
Story: A.
Animation: B+
Art: A-
Music: A
Overall: A
Friday, June 5, 2009
Tramps Like Us "Kimi wa pet"
Tramps Like Us (“Kimi wa pet” lit. You’re my pet)
Publisher: Jap. Kodasha English. Toyopop
Author: Yayoi Ogawa
Gender: Comedy, Romance
Volume length: 14
Tramps like us is the story of Sumire Iwaya a journalist at a major news paper. After been dumped by her boyfriend, who had superiority complex, and been demoted at work, Iwaya’s life was going downhill fast. On her way home, she stumble on a young man sleeping in a cardboard box outside her apartment complex.Iwaya decides to take him home and feed him, as a joke she says that he could stay at her house under one condition, that he will be her pet. To her surprise he accepts; She named him Momo after her childhood pet (because his hair resembles that of the dog) and sets up some rules. Iwaya provides room and board while Momo provided unconditional love and loyalty. Sumire also says that there will be no sex in their relationship, because she only sleeps with men who have the “three highs”: higher pay, higher education and higher height.
Sumire Iwaya later learns that Momo real name is Takeshi Gouda, a classical ballet prodigy but never got the leading role because of his height. He switched to modern dance, living a semi-homeless life before meeting Sumire. When it revealed that him and Sumire know one another, Momo passes as her second cousin.
Things get complicated for Iwaya after she is reunited with the man with whom she was infatuated during her time at Tokyo University, Shigehito Hasumi. Hasumi meets all of Sumire's requirements. Now she must choose between Hatsumi or Momo.
When I first picked up this manga I was surprised by the art (the lips are huge!). It is strange but also simple and drawing. The story seemed interesting enough to read. I loved the relationship with Momo and Sumire. Sumire is not your typical successful woman instead of being attracted to what most women like, she is into Pro-weaseling, K-1, and shonen manga.
All the chapters are unique in their own way. Momo being one of the protagonists in the story somehow is also a comedic relief. He is such an adoring character you can’t help but fall in love with him. Sumire projects the outward appearance of being a totally normal working woman, but in reality she is an out of the norm person who can only express herself truly in front of Momo or her best friend Yuri.
Story:
Is very interesting, I give it an A.
Art:
The art is weird but once you get passed it it is ok. B-.
Characters and their development:
Each and everyone is unique, which I love. A.
Series Overall A-.
On a side note this series was adapted as a TV drama by the same name It runs at 10 short episode. The acting is good too but you don't get the full grasp of the story in the drama. I do love the song "Darling" by V6 (if you remember correctly the same band did some songs for Inuyasha)
Actors are:
§ Koyuki as Iwaya Sumire
§ Matsumoto Jun as "Momo" Goda Takeshi
§ Tanabe Seiichi as Hasumi Shigehito (source www.wikipedia.com)
Drama Overall: C-
Ghost Stories
Ghost Stories: Kids and ghosts. When young Satsuki finds an old book of spells from her passed away mother, she gains the power to fight ghosts that are haunting her new school. With the help of her friends, and of a really wicked devil cat, she must protect everyone around her or be haunted for ever more.(taken from www.animenewsnetwork.com)