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Gekijouban Mahou shojo Madoka magika Shinpen: Hangyaku no monogatari (2013)
Sequel for an anime that absolutely didn't need a sequel. Yet it was breathtaking!
"Puella Magi Madoka Magica the Movie Part III: Rebellion" is a movie sequel for popular "Madoka Magica" anime series. It is preceded by two movies which retell the events of the anime. "Rebellion" is a first proper sequel with new story.
All sequels following a successful work of art are automatically suspicious of being blatant attempt on cashing in on the previous achievements. The creators may run out of ideas, get lazy or just lose interest in continuing story at original level of creativity. This is absolutely not the case with "Madoka Magica 3". I'm still surprised how good this sequel actually was.
Everything what TV anime series was praised for is present in the sequel. Soundtrack is equally good and animation style is even better - while equally imaginative it's even more psychedelic, more detailed and more stunning. The storytelling is as brilliant as it was in original series. It gradually reveals the new mysteries of the (now slightly different) world and is meant to surprise the viewers and to shatter their expectations. And yes it does shatter them! At least one of major plot twists (there are many) is of the category "Absolutely didn't see that coming!". And yet it isn't some random event pulled out of thin air - immediately after re-watching one will definitely see why it made perfect sense.
This particular plot twist is a reason why not everyone liked the movie, there were even accusations of "ruining the franchise". I can't delve into details why I find these accusations unfounded. If you like the original series you must watch the sequel to see for yourself.
Black Lagoon (2006)
Occasionally ambitious action anime
When it comes to Japanese anime there is always a question what exactly given show is trying to achieve and what genre it fits in - one obviously can't watch most anime shows as entertainment for kids. Judging by western genre conventions "Black Lagoon" is closest to action movies from 90s or to franchises like "Transporter" or "Expendables". It is full of improbable and highly entertaining action sequences and awesome characters written entirely as Rule of Cool instantiations. The plot can be shallow and at times is only an excuse for staging another shootout. And the whole show can be really cheesy. But instead of coming from western action movie formulas much of this cheesiness is of Japanese origin. As a result, if someone is not accustomed to anime quirks (e.g. underage gender-ambiguous incestuous insane killer twins! I'm not kidding..) one may find them quite refreshing.
But there are some differences which in my opinion make "Black Lagoon" a little bit better than standard action flicks. Firstly, it's the overwhelming atmosphere of moral ambiguity which pervades the whole show - the anime doesn't try to whitewash actions of the protagonists, it portrays them essentially as villains fighting other villains. Likable villains, one must give them that, but villains anyway. And, in contrast to many other similar movies, protagonists are often not even slightly more ethical than their enemies. As a result antagonists of the show tend to be better developed and much more interesting than expected (aforementioned twins and certain yakuza clan particularly shine here).
The world of the show is dark, nihilistic place inhabited by violent beings, fighting for money in criminal underworld. It happens all the time in all kind of shows, but here the series is aware to some point of its own shallow nihilism and manages to criticize it. Quite a feat for an action series, I'd say.
The other strong point of Black Lagoon is the duo of its main characters - Revy and Rock. Revy seems to be walking "chick with guns" stereotype. It's quite easy to overlook certain degree of complexity behind her sheer awesomeness and battle prowess. Below the surface she is much more flawed than typical action anti-hero which definitely makes her that much more interesting. Rock, on the other hand, as a stranger in the world of wickedness who was put there by accident, acts as a link of a viewer to the series' dark underworld and represents fading ethical ideals which contrast starkly with the place he was thrown into. The relationship between the two and its development fuels much of the series. OK one can see it through as some kind of Japanese male yuppies' collective escape fantasy. But it's really interesting fantasy, contains some serious traps and it's not as trivial as one can think.
Speaking of fantasies - one massive pitfall of the show is strongly sexualized portrayal of Revy. I wouldn't mind if she was strongly sexualized sometimes or even on a regular basis - it would be somehow justified by her character. But she is sexualized virtually always. Maybe it's just me but I really can't stand mild erotic fantasies pressed upon my face all the time. It's all the more frustrating when you notice that show is actually quite restrained when it comes to gratuitous nudity. OK, restrained at least relative to its setting.
The other flaws - the story can be at times confusing and sometimes doesn't make much sense - it concerns especially the plot of the longest arc of the show (concerning certain Latin maidservant). Additionally, some characters and events cross the border of ridiculousness by too many steps. I'm personally inclined to forgive the latter, however.
If you like action-packed movies and series but you find them formulaic and boring and you can tolerate small amount of anime peculiarities "Black Lagoon" is the ideal show for you. Exoticness and reasonable depth in both characters' development and antagonists' portrayal will come as a bonus.
Kureimoa (2007)
Mixed bag but very solid for an anime
"Claymore" is a dark fantasy anime set in medieval world in which specialized group of female characters (called claymores) fights with monsters. There is also some sort of conspiracy going on. It is in many ways similar to popular "Attack on Titan" and the general atmosphere of the series resembles "Berserk" to some extent.
I have ambivalent feelings about this anime, because it has both some significant strengths and very apparent weaknesses.
PROS
- the story starts off really well. The world itself may not be very original (it looks like a gender-inverted Witcher rip-off), but nevertheless it's interesting and climatic, claymores as monster-slaying beings with certain, significant limitations are well-constructed, viewers are smoothly introduced to them and hinted at secrets hidden inside the world
- the main character is really interesting, her back-story captivating, and the narrative does a good job in gradually revealing information about her with some minor, but unexpected twists.
- anime has almost all-female cast, yet it's virtually devoid of any gratuitous nudity and sexual objectification of women. They are presented in almost asexual fashion. Sometimes their sexuality is subtly played with but is essentially avoided. Why it is a significant pro? Because as it is originally Japanese TV series for teenage boys, one could expect absolute worst, including some teen ultra cheap erotic fantasy. Note that manga avoids it to a significantly lower extent (although it's still not as bad as most from its genre)
- there is absolutely no typical Japanese manga humor. Some people, including me, really appreciate it.
- animation is really good, and it has its own distinct toned down color palette, which I find appealing and fitting the atmosphere of the anime well
- fight scenes are vivid, spectacular, action-packed and entertaining.
- soundtrack is acceptable
- contrary to many viewers' criticism I find the depiction of relationship of the protagonist with certain boy an engaging one
CONS
- around half of the show the quality of the story begins to deteriorate and the show degrades itself into mediocre stereotypical over-the-top duel-driven anime.
- it's even worse than that. The biggest problem with the anime emerges when it gradually changes perspective - from fights of one claymore with single monster to full-fledged epic battles between multiple mega strong enemies. It isn't the problem per se, but in this case the narrative loses sight of virtually everything other than intensifying epicness of the numerous duels. OK, the show was supposed be action packed, but it ends up consisting almost only of battles.
- as a result the other appalling flaw is multiplied, namely typical for anime "talking while fighting", i. e. characters providing detailed combat commentary, live coverage of mental states of battle-participants and all sorts of annoying exclamations, emotional outbursts, trash talking, special move explaining and random philosophizing.
- the series has unsatisfying and rushed ending. As a result too many things are left unexplained. For example the hinted secrets about the world stay secret, they are unveiled later only in manga
- there are too many too similar secondary characters
- typical Japanese (or should I say comic book?) obsession with ranks and comparing different characters in relative strength is overused and annoying as hell. Another problem which started to be apparent just in second half of the series
SUMMARY
This show has many flaws, but in the end I really enjoyed it, to be honest, much more than my rating (6/10) suggests. It is that low, because I have the impression that anime didn't live up to the potential it promised in its first half. Btw - in that aspect manga isn't even the slightest bit better. But it doesn't mean anime wasn't good, on the contrary it was definitely entertaining and I'd recommend it to anyone who likes duels set in fantasy worlds.
Seirei no moribito (2007)
Surprisingly bland, non-action anime
'Seirei no Moribito' may be not the most popular anime out there, nevertheless it has gained some fame - given that even I heard about the series and I'm not an avid anime fan. It is 26 episode show adapted from the novel which is under 300 pages long. And unfortunately one can see that - many episodes felt like a filler only. But I should start by listing good things.
First of all it definitely isn't your typical teenage anime filled with over-the-top duels, excessive talking during them, fanservice panty shots (or however they are called) and other similar monstrosities. Typical anime humor is also notably absent. It has strong, somewhat interesting, capable lead female character (with rather non exposed sexuality - I know it may be considered minor but these days even show which only restrains from sexual objectification is worth praise). The fight scenes are really entertaining and well choreographed, animation is nice (however I'm not an expert on the subject and above some level I don't really care) and soundtrack doesn't annoy. And sometimes emotions depicted by the show resonate with viewer acceptably well.
But it should be strongly stressed - despite really good fight scenes it is almost entirely non-action anime. It is very unevenly-paced, but mostly very slow, even sluggish. In some episodes almost nothing interesting happens. And by that I don't mean only lack of action (because many, many episodes lack action), but also lack of any plot development, any relationship dynamics, any tangible emotions, any character exposition, lack of everything really. I'm not exaggerating, there are 2 or 3 episodes in which literally NOTHING happens. And when you add to them several in which something happens but it certainly doesn't fill up whole 20 minutes you can grasp how abysmally BORING this anime can be. This problem haunts especially the middle part of the series, the beginning and end are noticeably better - but I still wouldn't call them good in that aspect.
When it comes to the story it feels, I'll put it bluntly, stupid. Motivations of certain characters (the ones from the imperial court) are for me utterly non-comprehensible, in the result main reason for the plot "emperor wants to secretly kill his second son, because the son is possessed by dangerous demon who can cause massive drought" seems unconvincing, all the more the demon turns out to be not so dangerous and actually prevents drought. And I really can't shake off the impression that many things happen ex machina, without explanation, only to save the day or advance the plot further.
By the way most characters (apart from protagonist and maybe his underage sidekick) are completely forgettable. It is especially apparent with antagonist side - the show lacks real villain, everyone is at most gray. It could be seen as a departure from the cliché but in this case it isn't really a good thing, because it makes the forgettable antagonists even more forgettable.
To make things worse protagonists tend to do things which even inside their world make no sense at all - e. g. two main characters (which are shown to be well known) want to escape from the palace and disappear - yet they stroll inside the very city the palace they have run from is located in, they wander through streets of said city in their usual outfits equipped with accessories they are known of, stick to their original names, buy and operate the mill near this city (sic!) and don't make absolutely any effort whatsoever to hide themselves. And it's not the excuse to advance the plot - they are indeed not found for many months! Maybe it's a small detail, but very annoying one.
To sum it up - I wouldn't recommend this anime to anyone seeking action or intelligent narrative. I think there are people who can find the characters and interactions between them interesting (and can live without actual character or relationship development) or who can derive pleasure from slow-paced, well-animated depiction of simple life in medieval fantasy world with occasional bursts of fighting. But ultimately I consider this series bland and boring.
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982)
Outdated and completely unlike the first Star Trek film (which is actually a bad thing)
My views are in apparent minority but nevertheless I want to stress them out.
Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan is a film very different from its predecessor. To the point of being entirely different genre. Star Trek: The Motion Picture was somewhat dull but ambitious, lagging but visually stunning, based on quite typical, but anyway interesting premise, resembling old science fiction stories. It was the slightly poorer cousin of 2001:Space Odyssey. ST:TWK is nothing of these. It is a simple adventure movie accidentally placed in space. Its story has almost no SF elements, they are to be found only in movie's scenery. As a result it's difficult to compare both movies and I don't understand almost all such comparisons made here, on IMDb site. But personally I find ST:TMP superior in virtually all elements, including special effects and visuals (in the 1979 original one can really see the effort and its big budget).
Putting original aside, and judging ST:TWK only by modern action-adventure standards I find it an extremely dated film. The acting is weird and/or weak, the main villain outright ridiculous. Khan's motivation is unconvincing, his actions mostly unintelligent (despite film's claims of his being 'superior'), he wears rags on bare chest and looks bizarre and hilarious at the same moment. The story is full of plot holes and, in the end, is utterly boring. One cannot care for neither relate to any of the main characters, even in the supposedly most emotional moments of the film.
The Wrath of Khan may be possibly interesting for die-hard fans of Star Trek. However for SF fans, fans of action flicks and pretty much for everyone else it deserves to be forgotten.
CAUTION POSSIBLE SPOILER ALERT
Not to mention climactic "his pattern indicates two-dimensional thinking" scene, which is, as the whole movie, ridiculous. The Captain Kirk's final "three-dimensional" maneuver is as two-dimensional as it can really be. Khan is not showing two dimensional thinking, he is simply ignoring the third dimension existence! Pretty lame for a superior being of excellent intelligence.