Review: Eureka 7 – Pocketful of Rainbows (Movie)
By: Soulsavior42 (Zeronuckols@gmail.com)

Animation: 9/10
Story: 10/10
Music: 8/10
Action: 10/10
Overall: 9/10

Length: 120 minutes
Themes: Romance, Coming of Age, Mech

Highlights:
Nostalgia Factor – For those who actually liked the series, all the same faces
Hair Factor – You get a ton of awesome scenes with Eureka’s hair down, what more can you ask for?
Fresh Factor – For those who didn’t like the series, great new story
Cheesy Factor – E7 still is its same cheesy self, not saying its bad though

All right so before I get into the actual review I’m going to say this now, I hated the Eureka 7 series, when I say hate I mean HATE. There were many different factors in my opinion and are justified in my eyes, but that’s for another review another time. That aside, I went into this movie under the assumption not reading up on anything about it, that it was going to be an alternate retelling, or a follow-up of the original series since that seems to be the going trend right now for animes. Still keeping the hope that Bones would pull out another FMA movie on us and just blow our minds away. Well I’m not going to go as far as saying that it was as amazing as the FMA movie but you cant compare two separate genres against each other. The E7 movie aside from the fact of having a flamboyant name (Pocketful of Rainbows) was really damn good, from start to finish it kept you entertained and intrigued. From my perspective of hating the series previous it was refreshing not having to deal with a lot of the emo side of all the characters along with the 3 horribly obnoxious kids from the series that have only a brief cameo towards the end of the movie with Renton’s Grandfather.

The movie is set in a universe aside from the series only really having similarities with the characters and very general plot. So other then that you can kick out all previous knowledge of E7 and enjoy watching a new movie, new story line, and somewhat new character relations between everyone, I almost want to say that besides Renton, Holland, and Eureka everyone is playing different personalities for this story, which is nice since you don’t have to deal with all the side characters no one really cared about in the series.

The movie starts out with young Renton and Eureka witnessing a flower blooming and some other events that set the stage for the story, next thing you know your in present day with Renton on the Gekko-Go who is enlisted by the military now which is explained later in the movie, since those who watched the series will know its supposed to be the exact opposite. Though dragging a bit in the middle of the movie with a lot dialog and little to no action, it stays solid for its story telling all the way through to the quite epic ending which cant be said for the series.

Animation
Well being a Bones series, everyone including myself have come to expect top quality from any of their work, be it E7, Bounen no Xamdou, or Soul Eater, which they definitely never disappoint. Pocketful of Rainbows is no exception except in one aspect which is more nit-picky then anything from my stand point. In the E7 series the animation quality was awesome, you really cant much better unless your going to be watching OVA’s or Bones movies like FMA: The Conqueror of Shambala. So obviously you expect the movie of such a well animated to be better right? Sadly aside from the final quarter of the movie the animation is basically the same thing as the series, which was a bit of a let down since, they had so long to work on the movie. Giving animation an 8 that I was originally going to while watching the movie is made up for the absolutely stellar ending battle sequences bumping it to a 9.

Story
Definitely this aspect of the movie was the strongest out of the 4 categories for me. The writing for Bones series has always been top notch but they brought it to the next level with POR. There wasn’t one part of the story that was random or wasn’t explained by the end and given a logical justification. To me this is a great stand along movie to those who never have seen the series and aside from the normal E7 shenanigans like magical mech upgrades in the middle of battle you accept it and sit back and admire all the pretty colors. A solid 10 from start to finish for sure.

Music
There isn’t anything to spectacular for this aspect, I mean the E7 music has always been good and well placed though with POR there is a significant lack of music in parts that could have added much more to the scenes then just pure silence. For the rest of the scenes that have music, its well done and fitting for the context of the movie.

Action
Well besides the fact that they didn’t scrap the idea of surfing robots, the action is pretty damn awesome, lots of explosions and very fluid. The only thing I wish is that there was more blood, but what ever, that’s definitely not enough bad to take off a point, so another solid 10.

Overall
I personally was VERY impressed with this movie, it exceeded all my expectations and gave me a newfound love for the series as a whole, even though I still think the TV series should never have been made and they just made a movie for it. For those newcomers to E7 I recommend watching the movie first, and if you like it then maybe go watch the series if you enjoy watching 10 people feel sorry for themselves for 16½ hours of your life. As for the people who have seen the series this is a VERY refreshing addition to the series and should definitely be watched and appreciated. I’ve have always loved Eureka’s character and her character design, especially when her hair is down and not some ugly buzz cut. So I got a lot of good “hair down” action in the movie, which was great, and then at the end you get to see her with really long hair, which is just more icing on this cake of awesome.

V4sh give us the Valkyria Chronicles episodes 9,10 & 11 reviews:

Since Ayako’s translator decided to screw everyone over and stop translating Valkyria chronicles they haven’t released an episode in 3 weeks. I was holding out for a release, but it seems unlikely now, so I went ahead and watched the releases by a group called “gleam” I hadn’t heard of them before, but they seem to be doing quite a number of shows with a reasonable fan base too. All in all they have a smaller file size then Ayako (at the expense of slight video quality, not noticeable unless you are watching on a big full HD monitor), but I don’t like the typesetting as much, but I can’t complain as they are releasing at least.

Well anyway  on with the review. In episode 9 we get to have a look at the Imperial side of the war for a change. Some aides from central office are assigned to Selvaria and the other two generals in order to keep an eye on them, and Maximilian is ordered back to central office for some reason that’s not really explained, but it has something to do with the slow progress he is making with the invasion of Gallia. Selvaria wants to go with him but is ordered not to, and her aide also gets in her way and prevents her from going after him. An ill conceived assassination attempt later and the aide admits that he has been sent to stop Selvaria helping Maximilian, and that his life is in danger. So back at central office cue the generic assassins who come to try and kill Maximillian, the defences hold out for a while but eventually the assassins get to him. Then Selvaria, the aide, and Jaeger show up after taking a shortcut that somehow cut half a day off their travel time, Selvaria activates her GOD MODE hax and pwns all the assassins and gets to Maximilian, who it turns out didn’t need any help at all because he had his own hax turned on. All in all a pretty good episode as it gives a different perspective on the whole thing, and give some insight into the turmoil within the empire.

On to the next episode. Its at this phase in the series when the plot of the anime starts diverting from the plot of the game a little. Remember that god sized tank that destroyed those ruins a few episodes ago? Well guess what, in episode 9 squad 7 don’t fight it like they’re meant too. Instead we get some crap about  Welkin and Alicia getting cut off from the rest of the squad by a random snowstorm (it should be long range mortars damn it!) and taking refuge in a shack, they talk, character development happens and some random Imperial infantryman dies. This is actually rather well done, as they manage to make a whole episode out of a 3 minute skit sequence in game.

Thus we get onto the final episode in this review hat trick. Yet another Welkin and Alicia centred episode I’m afraid. This time Welkin and Faldio are getting a medal from the princess of Gallia for the capturing of the Vasel bridge waaay back in like episode 4, despite the fact that Faldio wasn’t actually even in there… weird how these things work. But anyway Selvaria and Jaeger turn up in “cunning disguises” . So cunning in fact that Alicia recognizes them straight away, but when she tells other people they’re just like, meh what they gonna do? We get a little scene with with Alicia and Faldio, who gives her a blue rock that is obviously key to the plot in some way. Then a few minutes later and bang kidnap happens and Alicia and the princess are taken away. Why Alicia you ask? Well she was just in the wrong place at the wrong time, and instead of doing the logical thing and killing her the kidnappers decide to take her along too. This will no doubt prove to be a fatal mistake as she DROPPED THE BLUE ROCK! So Faldio will know something has happened and use his pimp powers to rescue them both, but that’s all in next episode, so we’ll wait and see until then.

Hmm this season reminds me somewhat of Pumpkin Scissors (oh god that was bad…). Both promised tank action but then after like 3 tank-centric episodes failed to deliver any tanks whatsoever . Hope that this series doesn’t end up that way. Also I cant actually decide what this series is for, its either a supplement to the game, OR an alternate retelling of the story. But if it was a supplement then it would stick to the plot of the game slightly more (mortars replaced with snowstorm wtf). And if it were a retelling of the story there should be more battles. Seeing as it doesn’t fit into either of these categories, I’m having a hard time figuring out what the purpose of this series actually is.

Gleam Valkyria Chronicles Episode 9:
http://www.nyaatorrents.org/?page=download&tid=69536

Gleam Valkyria Chronicles Episode 10:
http://www.nyaatorrents.org/?page=download&tid=69705

Gleam Valkyria Chronicles Episode 11:
http://www.nyaatorrents.org/?page=download&tid=70471

Kamichu!

Animation: 9/10

Story: 9/10

Music: 7/10

Action: 7/10

Overall: 8/10

Length: 16 Episodes

Themes: Fantasy, Slice of life, Coming of Age, Comedy, A little bit of romance
Original Air Date: June 2005

 Is it possible to become a god overnight? Well, in 1980’s Hiroshima, Hitotsubashi Yurie does just that. Unsure of what kind of god she has become or even what her powers are exactly, she has a lot to learn! Her friends Mitsue and Matsuri dub her “Kamichu” – a combination of Kami (god) and chuugakusei (middle school student). If life is not busy enough for Yurie being a god, she also has to balance everyday things. Do you think a god can get out of midterm exams? You’re mistaken. Not to mention she has an interest in the president of the calligraphy club, Ninomiya Kenji. Unfortunately he doesn’t seem to notice much of anything! Luckily Yurie has great friends and a supportive family by her side, and even has the help of other Shinto gods to guide her. Hey, gods need a little help sometimes, too!

Animation/Art:
The animation was very fluid and flowing, and really nice on the eyes. At times it was very detailed. For example, when they characters talked, their mouths didn’t just open and close. Each sound was visible, and as realistic as possible. Though the drawings as a whole were rounded and soft, they worked very well for this type of anime. The colors used were very soft, and were consistent with the cute/calm theme. The best part is that quality didn’t go down as the anime progressed. It remained as consistently eye appealing throughout! The opening animation was very well done, but I can’t say the same for the ending theme. Though it was still cute to look at, I wanted more detail!

Music:
While the majority of the soundtrack was pretty average, the music was fitting for the series. There were a lot of calming themes, especially during scenes when the characters were just hanging out. Even the action scenes had music with a calmer tone, but that wasn’t a bad thing! The opening song was pretty catchy, and it grew on me. Very upbeats, and once again, fitting for the series. The ending theme was catchy, and cute, but I almost expected more from it. It does not contrast the opening theme at all, and I was hoping for something a little calmer that reflected the background theme, or even just the main theme of the anime. Even so, as a whole, the music was ear candy.

Action:
There wasn’t TOO much action, but there was enough to keep you interested. There is not much I can say without spoiling some scenes. The “action” sequences were well placed, and didn’t go overboard, but I still wish I saw a little more Kamichu-ing along the way.

Overall:
Great series, and definitely worth a watch! It doesn’t take itself too seriously, and that’s what I like about it. It remained a slice of life type of story, but incorporated the fantasy element very well. The characters were believable despite their situations being full of things that just wouldn’t happen for real. Besides, there is no way anyone should think this series isn’t full of impossible happenings. As much fun as I had watching this, there were also some very touching moments that made me tear up a little (because I’m a sap!). The story was refreshing and familiar, and a nice break from much of the anime that is being shown now. There were good messages about friendship, family, courage, responsibility, love, and growing up. Give it a watch! ChuChuChuuuu~!

Soulsavior42 give us the review for Secret of the Blue Water
-SoulSavior42 (Zeronuckols@gmail.com)

Nadia: Secret of the Blue Water

Animation: 7/10
Story: 9/10
Music: 6/10
Action: 7/10
Overall: 7/10

Length: 39 Episodes
Themes: Romance, Adventure, Coming of Age, Comedy

Highlights:
Awesome Factor – This has Captain Nemo, The Nautilus, and Atlantis….Nuff Said
Emotional Factor – Series will stab you in the heart more then a few times in least expected places
Adventure Factor – Wont find a better adventure series for only 39 episodes.
Bad Factor: Horribly annoying eye catch

Brief Summary
When I first heard about this series I was surfing through a big long list of anime on Nation-Anime and just saw “Nadia”.  I heard about this series a long time ago and have ran across and though about picking it up from time to time but never have.  After researching a bit I read “Based on the Jules Verne novel 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea,” Immediately I start downloading the first 3 episodes in excitement.  Now obviously since this is an anime and having read 20,000 I already knew out of the gate that it wouldn’t be like the book.  (duh)  Nadia is loosely based around 20,000.  When I say loosely I mean that Captain Nemo and the submarine Nautilus are in anime.  So lets leave it at that.

The story revolves around our main characters Nadia, a acrobat in the circus and Jean, a young inventor in 1989 Europe.  Pretty cool setting since the industrial revolution and inventing things interest me greatly.   At first the story really didn’t interest me, I just wanted to get to the submarine and my favorite sea captain.  After some shenanigans, which I wont, disclose for your sake of needing to watch series they find themselves caught up in a battle with Neo Atlantis and the Nautilus.  Jean and Nadia end up joining the crew of the Nautilus along with some friends and thus begin the story about 3 episodes in.

Over all the writing and story telling are stellar, I wish the company that wrote this story could have giving Code Geass some pointers.  That aside, the episodes keep you very entertained whether it is some good emotional scenes with Marie, Jean, and Nadia or some hilarious scenes with Hanson and Sanson.  After a few episodes I found myself not paying attention to time or my surroundings and double clicking the next episode for at least a few hours every night.  Upon reaching the halfway point in the series episode 20 things reach a catalyst which sets up the ending of the series, now this would be grand except that for the next 10 episodes there is little to no story development accompanied by many boring and rather uninteresting episodes, I would almost go as far to say as to just skip these episodes but that’s up to your digression.   Now I bet your wondering why I gave this series 9/10 for story, well you haven’t gotten to the end of the series yet, after coming out of the horrible stretch I will dub the “desert island” episodes the story picks up speed like a Ferrari going from 0 to 60, after some twists and familiar faces the ending is right around the corner and doesn’t disappoint in the least.

The comedy and romance for this series are a bit predictable as with are some plot points here and there, but for the most part the writers keep everything well balanced for the viewer and it doesn’t get to overwhelming until the desert island episodes.

Animation
For being made in 1989 I was very impressed with the smooth motions and very well animated action sequences.  One of the biggest things I look for in older series I how much animation they reuse throughout the series, as for Nadia I noticed little to no reused animation, which was quite impressive.  The actual style  and quality that is used is outdated to today’s standards so for you super HD viewers don’t expect much in that category.  The main reason I gave animation a 7 was due to the desert islands episode stretch where it seems the animators went on vacation for 2 months and let their cousins figure out how to draw and animate things at the same time, which was quite disappointing and aggravating when the episodes are already very boring to begin with.

Music
First off the opening for the series is probably one of the catchiest openings I’ve heard in a very long time and can definitely say that over the span of 2 weeks it already has about 70+ plays on my IPod.  As for the music during the episodes, it has much to be desired, being a bit choppy and very redundant at times.  Also at some points during the series the music ruins a perfectly good moment in the story and is totally unneeded.

Action
The action for this series is pretty exciting and seems to be well thought out and has justification for some of the “ridiculous” weapons and moments for the series.  The main action for the series is a few torpedoes here and there and some very large nuclear sized explosions so for the most part the action is few and far between save the latter end of the teens and the ending of the series.

Overall
Personally, I loved this series even with the desert island episodes and some sound issues.  I was captivated through the whole series waiting to find the next clue about Nadia’s past, or the secret of the Blue Water gem.  To top it off it has the Nautilus and Captain Nemo so its tough to dislike something so golden as this series.  I definitely give this series a recommend for anyone who is interested in adventure, submarines, or a good love story.

Download:
English Subbed torrents

You heard (see) it! Is not pokemon! IS POWERMON!

…wtf I dont know… do you?

random image power!

Image from Kotaku.com

Blackshot Open Beta was released not too long ago in Japan. In the US side we’ve been waiting for almost 8 months for an Open Beta from the irresponsible guys of Outspark. I loved the closed Beta, so I got me the japanese version. With a little hiragana knowledge and pera kun(firefox translator) you can get yourself registered. Just download the game and thats it! Fun! ^^

This is the Japanese Website – blackshot.jp

If you see a “Kurosaki00″ thats probably me. Say hi!