Topic: Manga and Anime discussion

Sandland. Akira Toriyama's new anime.

Anime's Goodest Boy Arrives in Time for Christmas.

Street Fighter II: the Animated Movie - A certified classic that I haven't seen in awhile, and I'll be waiting a bit more as when I unwrapped it to take this picture it was somehow missing the damn disc. I ordered it a couple weeks ago now & I don't know how I'd get across that the disc was actually missing, so I don't know if I should fight for a refund/free replacement or just order a new one. This has never happened to me before, but I suppose it was bound to eventually.

InuYasha set 1 - Luckily this one seems to be complete. This is THE comfort food anime to me (practically being my life in middle & early high school), and whether anime or manga (through official or illicit means) I manage to go through it once every other year or so (just finished up buying/reading the entire manga on Kindle a few months ago), so I figured it was about time to start collecting it physically. I last watched it in 2020, when I binged it on Hulu in preparation for YashaHime (which kinda sucked, but let's not go there yet).

Jungle De Ikou! - Oh god, this is the most shamelessly degenerate anime I've seen, lol. Now, I enjoy a blatantly ecchi anime from time to time as a guilty pleasure (and I vaguely remember seeing at least part of this online somewhere years ago) so I decided to give this a shot, but now I know why I probably never finished it back then. It's a parody of the magical girl genre (young girl gets the ability to transform into a powerful adult form) where almost all the comedy comes from blatant sexualization & innuendo. I wouldn't have a problem with this if it was just focused on the transformed state, but they make sure to get in a lot of "loli" stuff too. Sad thing is I can't even really bring myself to really dislike it either. The humor (and fan service) can hit when the target is more palatable, and it has that quintessential 90's anime aesthetic that I absolutely love to look at. Think I'll just bury it at the bottom of the pile, lol.

Bonus: Alternate Box Art Under the SFII slip case:

Finished up Akira Toriyama's Manga Theatre this morning. A collection of one shots & mini series he'd released over his career.

The most fascinating story (though not the best) was Dragon Boy, which was clearly a Dragon Ball prototype (which had proto versions of Goku, named Tangtong with dragon wings instead of a tail, Master Roshi, same name & still had nimbus but wasn't a pervert, and Puar, can't remember it's name but it was a cat creature that could transform into different things).

While that one seemed to have influenced DB the most, some elements of the Adventures of Tongpoo (which was the next story in the collection) made their way in to. It's female lead was much more of a Bulma-like, and it introduced the idea of capsules.

Really interesting collection overall though. While they weren't all hits, I liked stories like the Elder, Cashman: Hero of Savings, & Mamejiro.

Got around to reading volume 2 of the YashaHime manga over the weekend.

There are still some issues I have with the overall premise, but this continues to be much better realized than the anime version (they really should have made the manga first, then made an anime adaptation, rather than the other way around).

The OG characters that are still around seem much more active both in terms of being interested in the girls' quest and actually inserting themselves into it as much as they're able (plus, it actually includes Koga, whom the anime completely snubbed), compared to the anime where Miroku & Sango seemed completely apathetic about the fact InuYasha & Kagome (& daughter) have been missing for over a decade (and the anime seemed to go out of it's way to make sure Moroha never met them, always excluding her from the party whenever Towa & Setsuna met Miroku & Sango).

First pickups of the year.

City Hunter season 1 - Not really planning on watching it anytime soon, as I just watched it early last year... right before I started to collect physically. As such it's the only season I didn't have physically yet & decided to use some Christmas money to round out the set.

Cowboy Bebop - I don't think this really needs any introduction (at least I hope not). Always a big part of my teenage years as Adult Swim used to have it on repeat practically all the time. So much so that I probably got a bit bored of it at the time, but it's been long enough since I last watched it to want to give it a revisit.

Project A-Ko - I've seen this online a couple times in the past. An action comedy film parodying the anime tropes of it's era, I've always found it amusing/entertaining enough.

Bonus: Alternate box art under the City Hunter slip case.

Berserk Deluxe volume 12 arrived today. Looking forward to reading the whole lot later this year!

Small addition to the collection.

InuYasha Set 2 - As THE anime for me in middle/high school, I'm continuing to slowly acquire it all. If you've seen it before, I'm at the point Kagura is being introduced.

Ghost in the Shell - A bit of a confession is that GitS media tends to elude me (Arise is said to be more "streamlined" compared to the other series, yet I kinda start losing the plot by OVA 3 for example), however the original film is the exception to the rule & I LOVE it. Super excited since it's my first 4K anime purchase as well.

Latest additions.

Eureka Seven - Another anime that I really got into on Adult Swim back in the mid 00's. It's probably been about 4-5 years (maybe longer?) since I last watched it, so it's gripping me all over again. Always such a hopeful show, even when things get down.

InuYasha the Movie Collection - I've probably talked more about InuYasha than anyone cares to follow at this point, lol. Anyhow I'm at the point in the series (in my current rewatch) where it's generally agreed the first movie feels best to watch, so I bought this physically (I've watched them many times over the years, but digitally, official means & otherwise).

In terms of manga I've recently finished reading all 3 volumes of Senran Kagura: Skirting Shadows, which is an adaptation of the first game, & pretty "meh" all things considered.

The original game actually put some effort into it's narrative all things considered, and it's very truncated here. The entire subplot surrounding Rin is completely omitted (she doesn't appear at all), while it spends a good chunk of time exploring Yagyu & Hibari's plots (& even a decent job with Ikaruga's), Katsuragi gets the short end of the stick (it completely omits the part of her looking for & finding her parents, but deciding not to make contact). In the end it seems like they just ran out of time too, as despite building up most of the girls' rivalries the final fights all happen off page with the exception of Asuka vs Homura (& it doesn't feature the big demon/monster that you fight at the end of the game).

Even in terms of the aspect the series is more well known for (over the top fan service), the manga comes up short. Sure there's still some innuendo & the like, but the art very much gives off a "this is a job, not a passion" vibe from the mangaka & it largely lacks the kind of "energy" you'd expect from the property. It does finally get there by the later half of volume 3, but by then it's too little too late.

It's all a bit of a shame, as for what it's worth I thought the anime adaptation did a pretty good job (at least the first season, which likewise adapted the first game).

Otherwise I read volume 24 of Triage X since that released last month. The series is pretty much everything the SK manga wasn't. Clearly a passion for the artist, gripping narratively, and doesn't hold back on the fan service if you like that sorta thing.

Got these in over the weekend.

Bubblegum Crisis - A bit over halfway through this now. Man, the aesthetics of it all (especially the tech) are just soooo much cooler than what we have in anime today (even if many of the bad guys are just Terminator knock-offs). That said, I thought the animation felt a bit rough & spotty at times in the first episode, but since then it's gone from strength to strength.

Kandagawa Jet Girls - A bit of a guilty pleasure buy. I remember thinking it was pretty cute the last time I watched it, & I just finished a playthrough of the game which put me in the mood for it.

City Hunter Movie & TV Special Collection - Halfway through this as well. Magnum of Love & Fate was fun in an "extended TV episode" kinda way, but Bay City Wars & Million Dollar Conspiracy were absolutely awesome. Think I now own all the City Hunter stuff.

Bonus: Alternate art under the City Hunter slip case.

Been a bit since my last update.

Angel Cop Steelbook - Last watched this last year I think on Tubi, but it was the old SD version (I think the remastered version is limited to a premium Retro Crush subscription in terms of streaming options). Looking forward to giving it another go all cleaned up.

Cat Planet Cuties - It's been a decade or so since I last watched this. Probably nothing special, but it'll be a nice guilty pleasure. Just started it yesterday

Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero - Watched it a few days ago, it was actually super fun. I was a tad worried about the CG animation going in, and although there are a few wonky moments it actually worked a lot better than I thought. Really exciting action.

InuYasha Set 3 - Have had this the longest & just finished it up over the weekend. Just working my way through an old favorite.

Lupin the 3rd: Bye Bye Lady Liberty - I had collected the "must have" Lupin films last year (Mamo, Cagliostro, the Koike trilogy, & the First), but am now looking to expand with some of the other stuff.

Robot Carnival - Watched it on Saturday morning. Absolutely stunningly animated (gorgeous in 4K), with "the Presence" segment being the standout. A lot of good stuff that ranged from fun ("the mechanized culture of the Meiji era") to artful "the Cloud"). Also some very 80's stuff like "Star Light Angel", which isn't a bad thing at all.

the Professional: Golgo 13 - A bit rough around the edges, but worth a look if you like very edgy 80's fare (very gory & lots of sex).

Project A-Ko 2 & 3 - Pretty much more A-ko, if you liked the first one you'll like these. Bright, cheery, fun 80's vibes.

Alternate box arts:

@QualityGeezer, coincidentally I was looking that one up the other day.

The Blu-Ray remaster seems to be out of print so copies look to be going between $80-$130 depending on whether or not you buy used or not, so I decided to hold off on it for now.

Forgot to upload these last week.

InuYasha Set 4 - Finished this up over the weekend, and am over half way through the series now. Although it's one of my favorites from when I was younger, I will say it's starting to drag at this point (while most fans will say the series peaks during the Band of 7 arc, which started in this set, I think it peaks before that).

Urusei Yatsura: Only You - Took a bit of a gamble on this (the only other UY media I've ever seen was Beautiful Dreamer a few years ago on Prime), but I liked it well enough. I wasn't too familiar with the cast, but it was easy enough to get to grips with the core players. Will definitely check out other stuff in the franchise.

Got these in over the weekend.

Samurai Champloo - I haven't seen this since it last aired back on Adult Swim back in the day, and even then I don't think I ever finished it (or forgot how it ended). I had a similar experience with Code Geass which I ended up loving when I recently rewatched it on BD, so hopefully this plays out similarly for me.

Memories - I absolutely loved Robot Carnival when I watched it a few weeks ago, so when I heard the forces behind it did this later on I knew I had to get it. Can't wait to watch!

Small haul over the weekend.

InuYasha Set 5 - Started this up over the weekend, and am getting close to the end of the Bo7 arc.

Urusei Yatsura: Beautiful Dreamer - Watched this a number of years ago on Prime and remembered liking it, so I decided to nab it (thinking about collecting the series in general too, as I grabbed the first film already a few weeks ago). Probably overpaid a bit for it, but it's okay to splurge every great once in awhile I guess.

I'm not sure why it took me so long but... I finally purchased my first anime series (Granted I haven't seen a whole lot either but I digress...).

(The alternate/reverse box art with just Maikse Kurisu)

I've watched it through twice before and seeing it for just shy over £20 for the blu-ray set I couldn't help myself.

I did watch the first episode yesterday both normally (English dub of course) and then with the commentary. Can't say I learnt much from it regarding the show (aside from how the recordings are done and that the Va for Okabe handled the english script too (Which I shamefully didn't notice before)) but Trina Nishimura (Makise' Eng Va) and Tyson Rinehart (Daru's Eng Va) were delightful to listen to regardless about their backgrounds and such.

I also somehow didn't know before that Ashly freakin' Burch was the english VA for Mayuri. Wow. Definitely a lot different of a role compared to Aloy or Tiny Tina from Borderlands or Millium in Trails Of Cold Steel!

Oh and to actually explain what the series is about relatively short and sweet? Time travel.

Main character Rintaro Okabe (Self proclaimed Mad Scientist) witnesses a murder and sends a text that thanks to "Future Gadget lab" invention number 8 the text somehow travels back in time a week and events get altered.

What starts off with a bit of a comedic tone to it quickly descends into more psychological thriller aspects as timelines keep changing and events get heavily altered by the use of Invention number 8 and "D-mail".

Can't recall which episode it is off the top of my head now but... There's a very hard hitting episode in particular (It might even be over two or three if I remember right) with Rintaro frantically trying to change the past over and over and over...

It's hard to describe it properly without going into detail but... It's considered one the best animes of the 2010's for a reason

Newest pickups.

Akira - Just watched it on Friday. All these years later & it still looks stunning (especially cleaned up in HD). The ending is still a bit confusing, but each time I watch it I think I understand it just a bit more... maybe.

Ninja Scroll - It's been years since I last watched this, but I remember it having copious amounts of gore & nudity, so it'll probably still be a good time, lol. Also, the slip cover has a cool shiny holographic effect on the sword which is cool.

Expelled From Paradise - Had to pay an arm & a leg to get this, but I had the means to go for it so I figured I'd jump while I had the chance. Watched it on Netflix years ago & remember really liking it.

To Love Ru complete series (To Love Ru, Motto TLR, and Darkness 1 & 2) - I used to read fan scantlations of the manga way back when, but dropped it after getting to Darkness (I think this is when it lost all inhibition when it came to the fan service & went wild with it) because I got caught up with it & never bothered checking to see if it ever finished (that, & I was a bit miffed that the decision to go bonkers with the nudity correlated with a shift away from Lala & the other older cast in favor of her younger sisters & newer cast members). Still overall liked the series though, so I figured it was time to nab the anime now that this all in one collection was released.

Bonus: Ninja Scroll & Expelled From Paradise outside of the slip cases.

I bought the entire series of Chainsaw Man whilst I was in Japan a few weeks ago. It’s all in Japanese, obviously, so if makes for some good reading practise. I’ll post pictures of them at some point, if I remember. 😅

Inject all that Power content into my veins.

@Pizzamorg She's hilarious!