I didn't hear about the Fuji Television show Game Center CX until shortly before the release of the Nintendo DS game Retro Game Challenge . RGC —having miraculously made it stateside (unlike its sequel) thanks to Xseed Games—transported players back into the body of a …Read more »
With glimpses into Japanese subculture mostly supplied by the likes of Genshiken and the future of Japan given pessimistic overtones in Eden of the East —not to mention the countless headlines in the news at home and abroad of Japan's shrinking birthrate, debt-ridden economy and …Read more »
In tribute to the passing of anime director Osamu Dezaki, I decided to pull this piece out of mothballs. Hope you enjoy the trip down memory lane. I was sitting around recently rummaging through my VHS collection when I came across an old favorite: …Read more »
“…unusually intelligent and challenging science fiction, aimed at smart audiences.” The above quotation by Roger Ebert along with its “Two Thumbs Up” rating featured prominently on the VHS—and later, DVD—packaging, convinced a substantial amount of American cinema fans and casually interested “geeks” alike to watch …Read more »
Heads up: contains some Eden of the East spoilers As we know from grade school in the U.S., a democracy is rule by the people. So how about a gerontocracy? Is that a state ruled by the old (the geriatric)? This fancy-pants term comes up …Read more »
It’s the end of an era for anime. Yet another giant of the field has left us for good… On April 17, 2011, Osamu Dezaki died of lung cancer, aged 67. The highlights in Dezaki’s filmography are legion. His career stretches back to the very …Read more »
The "premiere" of animated Toriko was technically the crossover movie with One Piece , but now that the official series has begun, we can dig into the adaptation proper and see just how it compares to Mitsutoshi Shimabukuro's Weekly Shonen Jump manga (reviewed here and …Read more »
Spring is in the air! Fat bees are buzzing! Butterflies swoop! And, best of all, a host of blisteringly hot new anime is arriving at Crunchyroll.com. Over the next few days and weeks, Crunchyroll will be announcing a slew of titles for their Spring 2011 …Read more »
Quarter after 12 AM on Sunday, March 27 the line was nearly inside the door. I heard that at its peak it reached a block and a half away, which doesn't seem that long, but even the few people standing on the sidewalk in front …Read more »
As Right Stuf has just finished releasing the last anime in the Dirty Pair universe from the '80s needing R1 distribution (namely Dirty Pair TV Collection 2 ), we thought it was time to look back at its sister series, Crusher Joe , which has …Read more »
The 2011 New York International Children’s Film Festival offered U.S. premieres of two Japanese animated features from 2010— Welcome to the Space Show and Time of Eve , both shown via digital projection in Japanese with English subtitles. One is a whimsical children’s journey through …Read more »
With Mazinkaiser SKL residing at or near the top of my “absolute must-purchase anime of 2011” list, I thought now would be a good time to reflect upon the original Mazinkaiser anime from a decade ago. Wow, has it been THAT long already? Indeed it …Read more »
When it comes to unconventional dark fantasy tales, the ladies of CLAMP have proven themselves to be excellent storytellers. From X/1999 to XxxHolic and various works in between, their stories have often featured lavishly beautiful characters facing horrible situations in supernatural settings. Magic Knight Rayearth …Read more »
After a while, Japan starts becoming the equivalent of finding out that Santa doesn’t exist. There is no denying that the halls of Nakano Broadway are full of magic and wonder, and Harajuku has rows of lolitas strutting down in their platform boots if you …Read more »
Somewhere in Japan, there’s a couple of men likely planning to add yet another intricate techno-thriller to their already impressive resume. Their most recent work, Eden of the East , has captured many anime fans' attention due to its intense plot and thrilling pace, which …Read more »
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