Hi I'm Dranzerstorm
You may remember me as a regular contestant on the caption battle contest.
Welcome to Retro Retrospective, my world dedicated to the old guard of the Otaku world; expect some reviews of the old & obscure, and in-depth geeky knowledge with the occasional top ten and I now have a logo.
Little info about me
Well I'm British and I'm in to all things animated and nostalgia.
I've grown up with every cartoon going and have watched hundreds of anime.
Oh and to answer a question I was asked once, no I don't wear glasses in real life, I would wear Loke's sunglasses though.
Everyone has seen them at least once, even if you don't want to, they are the long running series that still entertain us long after the original concept became out of date, but by this point they probably should call it quits, so today I'll be showing the top 10 Animation franchise that should end.
This covers anime & cartoons, also to make it more fun I'll be putting in the year that each series started, so lets begin
10. Futurama - 1999
After being cancelled in 2003, most people assumed it would never come back but good news everyone, it did comeback in 2008. The only problem is, no one cares, in fact none of the new episodes are that memorable, so maybe it should've stayed cancelled.
9. Family Guy - 1999
Another show that got cancelled and reinstated but this show fared a little better than Futurama, but these days the jokes have gone from funny to down right stupid, South Park has been around longer and doesn't have any trouble with this as it offends everyone and is self aware that the animation is a crude showing of said victim and shouldn't be taken seriously, Family Guy cannot do that anymore and suffers as a result.
8. Pokemon - 1997
These days following Ash Ketchum seems like a chore; the franchise has seen varying degrees of fortune equivalent to the stock market and very much like the real life stock market is in permanent free fall with the only hope being it's successor (X & Y Series) to restore it's good name.
7. Naruto - 2000
What started as a charming series of ninja battles has turned into one of the most infamous anime of all time, the strain of keeping this series going is starting to show as the flashbacks seem to last forever, (we've had four in the last year) the so called big secrets revealed were worked out years ago and even a death of a certain character is less tragic, more WHAT! WHY!
6. Spongebob Squarepants - 1999
I'm starting to notice a trend here that most of these seem to have been made all around the same time but that's not entirely true, the later ones are much older. I have to wonder who this show is aimed at now; I can see why it's popular but if recent episodes are anything to come by, I'm starting to think that the show has been moldy for some time. A more terrifying thought is that according to the creator, Spongebob is 26 years old, that's right he's supposed to be the same age as me. I feel really insulted by that.
5. Transformers - 1984
Please end this franchise; stop making films, stop making horrible CGI cartoons, stop making toys and realize that the concept of the same two factions fighting each other in every single retelling of this tired story is no longer fun.
4. Scooby-Doo - 1969
This is the oldest franchise on this list, what started as a groundbreaking show about crime solving teenagers and their dog, has become the biggest zombie of the animation world, at times Scooby-Doo has had several bouts of identity crisis with Get-A-Clue and some of the more random movies skewing the formula, and urban legends are being reduced to dust with the Mystery Inc series destroying what little it has left to offer which seems to be what Warner Bros is good at these days.
3. Bleach - 2002
I've never known a series to go into such obscurity that they literally are making it up as they go along, at this point I've given up trying to follow anything it comes up with, to make things worst this franchise was earmarked for ending over a year ago, why hasn't it ended yet?
2. The Simpsons - 1987 (From the very first short)
I've come to hate the Simpsons in recent years with the writing being so stupid that I can't possibly enjoy the episode, there have been episodes so bad that I question why it was even aired, or why Matt Groening is allowing his creation to be seen in such a way. It's been on so long that they had to change the canon because apparently kids these days would consider the series too old if they found out that their favorite characters were born in the 80s. God I wish I could swear right now.
1. Dragonball - 1984
But this franchise wins the unwanted award of having it's story read so many times that I could recite every scene, but looking back, the story is terrible. Yeah Toriyama is a good artist and can do a good fight scene but his story telling is terrible. Juvenile humor, extending scenes for longer than it needed to be, unfunny jokes and allowing his series to become such a zombie that Vegeta has been reduced to doing silly dance moves.
(The youtube video containing that has been taken down)
It's not entirely Toriyama's fault but he should take responsibility for his creation and end it before we learn that Goku has a sister.
So that's your lot, if I've learned anything from this is that I worry for the health of Fairy Tail, My Little Pony & Adventure Time as they continue to entertain the masses.
Let it be said that you can learn just as much from an anime as you can anything else, so today I'll be reviewing Bottle Fairy, this won't be like the Snow Fairy Review.
The story revolves around four fairies named Kururu, Chiriri, Sarara & Hororo who live with a college student simply referred to as Sensei-San; the fairies are learning about Japanese culture with a little help from nosy neighbor Tama-Chan. There are 13 episodes that cover all 12 months on the calender along with a bonus final episode. (No Spoilers, Sorry)
Easy to follow premise, it's just your basic learning show and it is done really well; you feel at home with these fairies if your used to the likes of Lucky Star, K-On & Azumanga Daioh which also feature just a group of girls as the main cast.
A large part of the humor comes from the misinterpretations of the cultures they try to imitate, but it's entirely innocent and surprisingly human which I'll explain in a moment, the dub is passable but doesn't do the show justice as Japanese culture doesn't always translate well into English.
As for the fairies themselves you have a typical mix of female tropes, the happy one, the shy one, the tough one & the weird one; they all compliment each other nicely and create a good balance, no one really stands out as the main character so it's nice to see that the others aren't just there to support the lead.
Now to explain the human bit.
Bottle Fairy could easily pass for a young kids show as the content is easy for a child to understand but not really for anyone younger, the fairies role-playing isn't much different to playing house in real life, and their lack of understanding holds a certain innocence to it much in the same way an actual child learns a bit more each time they play, and that's where the show is at it's strongest. Very few forms of media for children show characters going through the learning experience, in fact I accuse the industry of making their characters too perfect with Nickelodeon & Disney the biggest offenders.
Final Verdict: It's a nice little series, it doesn't out stay it's welcome and you feel a little happier knowing that the fairies will succeed, just make sure you watch the subbed version for the best experience.
Having re-watched Kung-Fu Panda I've come to realize how silly the concept sounds but the film is still awesome, so this time here are the top 10 Anime Characters you should never underestimate.
Rules are that if there is more than one person in the franchise I'll judge the group instead of certain individuals. This doesn't look like a Commander of a Nuclear Submarine
10. Yurika Misumaru from Martian Successor Nadesico
A ditz will always be a ditz but Yurika makes up for much of her short falls by being tactically gifted, the fact that the Nadesico survived it's voyage is testament to the abilities of it's captain.
9. Every Gundam Pilot from the Gundam Franchise
You'd feel pretty stupid if you came back to your commander and say you've been shot down by a kid, although in the Gundam Universe if you did that exact same thing, you'd be given a medal for bravery.
8. L from Death Note
An insomniac who sits funny, eats cake all day and looks more like death than the actual death gods; worked out who Kira was straight away.
7. Sunako Nakahara from The Wallflower
Sunako's position as the loner into all things horror can instantly transform into a beautiful bad ass complete with entirely different art style to emphasize the change in emotions.
6. The Strawhats except Zoro from One Piece
If you ask an outsider to identify a pirate on a picture of the Strawhats crew, 100% of the time they'll pick Zoro as he's the only one who looks like a pirate despite not originally being a pirate at all. Those Bounties aren't just for show, they are entirely justified.
5. Negi Springfield from Negima
A 10-year old boy wizard in charge of a class of 31 teenage girls of various descriptions, can defeat vampires, high ranking wizards, samurai, demons and a hack character with a million cheat codes. (That's how Chisame described Jack Rakan)
4. Edward Elric from Full Metal Alchemist
He's short, very short, something he takes offense to on a regular basis but take off the red coat and you see the Automail arm and you'll know that this guy will take you down.
3. Simon from Gurren Lagann
When you start watching Gurren Lagann everyone will believe that Kamina is the main character until he suddenly dies. (Hardly a spoiler)
Simon has to pick up the pieces and after a Shinji moment not only takes Kamina's place but surpasses him, and here we thought we'd get another Shinji.
2. Teletha Testarossa from Full Metal Panic
She's a 16 year old with poor coordination, a childlike voice and behaves like a school girl. Yet she's the captain of a Nuclear Submarine! She dwarfs Yurika in military knowledge and is more capable than most of the Gundam cast.
1. Mitsukuni "Honey" Haninozuka from Ouran High School Host Club
Honey looks like a kid despite being the oldest of the group, he likes plush toys and cake, yet he's so strong that the rest of the world judges him as a weapon of mass destruction if he so much as release his full power.
This feature covers certain topics too small to make into a full post, the name "Endless Wardrobe" refers to my own wardrobe that housed my entire collection of anime dvds before I moved them under the bed and is now a place for videos I only keep because there is nothing to replace them with, so here begins the Endless Wardrobe.
Needless did it first
Anyone who watched the Needless anime the first time around complained about the apparent blatant ripoff of Gurren Lagann, however the Needless manga predates anything Gurren Lagann related and you'll find that Gurren Lagann ripped off Needless' unique designs. Saying that Gurren Lagann is still better.
Wrath of Tobias
Ash Ketchum has had his fair share of defeats in Pokemon Leagues over the years but by far the most controversial loss was against silver haired Gary-Stu character Tobias near the end of the Sinnoh League. He had largely no background, very little characterization and has a team of Legendary Pokemon. Even after Darkrai is finally defeated he pulls out a friggin Latios. It's unclear whether the rest of his team were legendary Pokemon or not but the point is it ruined what was a really good series but the gamers are as much to blame for this as well. Tobias represents what a lot of Pokemon Trainers get to in the games long after finishing, beating everyone with a group of legendaries and standing above all else looking down on the region with a troll like smile.
I'm guilty of this as well, especially in the first few games, I'm so confident in certain Pokemon that I get this happen when they lose.
Goku & God
Anyone still keeping up with the Dragonballz franchise is familiar with the new anime film that comes out next week in Japan in which Goku battles the god of destruction. Everyone should know the Dragonballz story by now but at this point I can't believe how much it still goes on nearly 20 years after the anime finished, not to mention how embarrassing the stories have got.
Within the last few years, Vegeta has a brother, Bardock is thrown back in time where he is actually the legendary super saiyan, a live action film happened.........And now to make sure trolls always win "Who'd win fantasy battles" argument, Goku now fights and will surely defeat a god. Toriyama please kill this franchise.
I've recovered enough to start reviewing again despite coughing up lungs as I'm typing, so I've got prepared the first of many reviews of the Sakura Wars Franchise, first up it's the 3rd OVA Ecole De Paris
Before we begin I must note that every OVA in this franchise is part of the canon of the video game series and each episode shows a particular part of the story not seen in the games and therefore each episode doesn't directly link to the last one.
We start off learning about how lead female Erica Fontaine joins the Paris Floral Assault Unit and her meeting with Glycine Bleumer. (Yes she's named after a chemical used in food additives, cosmetics and a finishing agent for metal)
We learn a lot about the clueless Erica in one episode including her trademark stage performance, her narcolepsy, her love of cake, the tendency to pray to angels spinning around her own head and getting arrested for accidentally running into Lobelia Carlini. (More on her later) Her ditzyness doesn't last long when a demon comes along and Erica & Glycine fight it, Erica proves to be remarkably capable in combat, more so than the original Floral Assault Unit on their first attempt.
We move on to Episode 2 and Ichiro Ohgami has magically arrived along with child character Coquelicot, but the episode focuses on how Lobelia Carlini joins the team. At the start we find out that she's a notorious criminal with demon like powers who every so often plays the Virgin Mary to depressed men. (It makes more sense in context)
Catching Lobelia however is a different matter, so the commander of the unit decides to trap Lobelia in a town and destroy it around her to make it hard to escape while using chess as a visual aid to display the tactics. Even that wasn't enough so the vice commander takes her down with a sniper rifle containing a paralyzing bullet. At this moment we come to my favorite quote.
"Actually my aim was off, I was trying to kill her, after all I do value my own life"
That was the vice commander's words when it was mistakenly believed that he missed on purpose. That is a lesson to all characters who mistakenly let villains live and wonder why they get their arses kicked afterwards.
The final episode features an epic battle against a rogue test armor possessed by the enemy, also Ohgami is trying to write a letter to his commander about how things are going, (Hanabi also magically joins the group) we get a bigger insight into the character's motives and personalities and it's nice to see a selfish character among the group who's only doing it to free herself from a lengthy prison sentence.
Erica & Ohgami battle the rogue armor while the others do their powers combined act to help them; I must mention the dub at this point, compared to the other dubs within the franchise this is probably the best one but doesn't lend itself well to the fight scene in the episode.
We end the OVA with an image of a giant revolver underneath the Arc De Triomphe, (let that sink in for a second) remember this and the name "Douglas Stewart" on the rogue armor for another time. (If mentioned in comments please use spoiler blanks)
This is nice OVA series but like the others it already expects you to have played the game beforehand and with no localization it becomes extremely hard to understand. Plus it's missing this scene.
No one is that perky in the morning but considering she sleeps for roughly 15 hours a day it's any wonder she's always perky.
Final Verdict: It's worth a watch but can lead to the expensive hobby of game importing, and while Japanese Dreamcasts & PS2s are surprisingly common the prices aren't.
