DeathNote or a bad bromance

Yea its really good.

…

Okay fine i’ll do a real review…

The truth of Deathnote is that its very difficult to review, because anything i write is just a little pointless, as wasting time explaining why deathnote is a spectacular 400 foot dimond covered gold statue of beauty and awe (i promised myself i would not mention a certain persons hair  because i’m starting to freak myself with it),  would be like explaining why you shouldn’t drink acid.

English: Book from Death Note Español: El cuaderno Death Note de la serie homónima. Deutsch: Das Buch aus Death Note Français : Cahier venant de “Death Note” (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

It’s a good series just watch it, why should i have to explain that. It succeeds in so many points, just watch the show then we can spend time being best friends  because everyone loves this anime.

Where to begin, this is a gateway show its not so japanese that it puts off western viewers whilst not pandering to the core of mainstream anime vievers on this side of the planet.

Not that i’m mentioning any names *winks knowingly at naruto*

This is the perfect gate way anime for people interested in joining the culture, it is English enough for newcomers and casual anime fans to understand, yet also Japanese enough to satisfy to hard core otakus in the audience. Its a relatively short show and as such does not take up much time getting through, and as it is already an incredibly popular show there is no lack of discussion to be had about the show with friends.

The voice acting and audio is perfect, Brad Swailie bringing the best of his talent to portray Light Yagami, able to elegantly switch between the school boy, nervous as a nerd next to a girl and a psychopathic killer like nine months dracula and the count of monty cristo had a romantic weekend together. The pitch perfect choir adds the best emotion to each scene, some times nail-biting tension like something Hitchcock thought of when he was reading silence of the lambs, and at times cheap-as-chips cheerful like something made by Nintendo (when there not pretending they are still an legit gaming platform that is).

The plot concerns the mind games between two child prodigies the cool mysterious detective “L” and the calm seductive Light Yagami, Japanese schoolboys who look sexy and are hyper intelligent how very original, he says with voice like sarcastic marmite, oh but deathnote knows when i’m being factious for comic effect. The deathnote in question refers to a note that causes death, wow kind of a convoluted title. The plot is strange in that its undoubtedly complicated and yet easy enough to follow with out being left in the dark, however there is just enough mystery and plot turns for the audience to guauff their drinks and yell”OH DAMN!”

The visuals are incredibly crisp an clean dark and shifting colours that add an air of mystery as light descover more about the deathnote and L discovers more about the killer Kira. The animation is simple in that there is nothing overly complicated, as there are no fights what do you expect, however i feel like the money that would be spent on animating the “inconcivable overly choriagraphed fight” department was dropped into the “make everything bloody sweet” department. The movments might be simple but they are superbly well made effort is made to give L a jaunty awkward movment from the was he walks to the way he curls his toes, and Light certainly moves like the character he is, in public he is a simple efficient schoolboy, but when alone he move in a more purposeful overly dramatic gesture like the killer he is.

The final word is that its a superb series a masterpiece in visuals and audio, the plot is twisting and absorbing like an octopus made of porridge.  Deathnote it’s killer… (oh god away for three months and thats how i end the review)

School Days or Don’t be a twat, you twat!

School Days is a difficult one, the entire show makes me want to repurpose the writers skull as a tea cup, that was until the last episode where *spoiler warning* the unlikable twat that is the main character, with the help of the support character and a big knife, is converted from a twat, to a bloody stump that looks like a guy who used to be a twat.

The show is based around the relationships a twat has with several Japanese school girls, how very original if it wasn’t for every harem EVER. The story falls at the first, when you realise that all the age appropriate girls are in love with a lying cheating sleazy scumbag who is also a twat. So negative a million points on realism.

Although i’m not really one to talk about relationships, so let me check.

CliffsNotes for Romeo and Juliet (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Hey Seb is this how relationships work?

No…

Okay thanks 🙂

So yeah i’m right, the female leads allow themselves to be manipulated and mistreated, by Count Von Twatinstine yet try to convince  the audience that its all in the purpose of love, that didn’t work with Romeo and Juliet and it doesn’t work here.

Yet despite the Twat lead, the stupid support, the forgettable sound track and art design that is to being interesting what a te-rex is to stacking shelves, i have to give the show credit for killing Mr. M Twat (where M stands for More unlikable than a puppy killing strand of the Ebola virus) in a manner more satisfying than can be safely expressed.

So, as the leper said to the urinal wheres the point?

Simple, watch the last episode and none of the others, there rubbish.

And as a final word, the message of the show is this; If you don’t want to be brutally killed then Don’t be a twat, you twat!

Full Metal alchemist or The Independent Alchemist

Edward Elric (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Looking for something good outside independent platforms is like searching for diamonds in the Ganges, you may find something good but you’ll swim through lots of awful first.

Thats why FULL METAL ALCHEMIST was great, its one of those really good mainstream animes,  its popularity makes it famous enough that you don’t need to swim through raw sewage to find it.

And its honestly good, no fanboy favouritism there then, the story was simple enough to follow but not so simple that it just becomes a string to connect fights, isn’t that right Dragon Ball Z 

The characters were relatable, the story arcs and beliefs were realistic without being dull, allowing few of the cast being uninteresting, yet it doesn’t do what one piece did and make every person a walking gimmick.

And oh God the art was awesome.

“a philosophers stone i need a philosophers stone”