Akagi

Look, I'm not a Mahjong fan. Actually I don't even know how the fuck you play it. Not even after watching Akagi. They don't explain shit, so what kept me watching this show? The suspense and the main character. Akagi offers nothing special. Decent art, good but non memorable sound effects and soundtrack, a somehow passable plot. But boy did they do great on the suspense and the main hero.

It all starts with one 13-year-old, Akagi, walking one night into a Mahjong bar. He offers a man to take his place at the table in order to win the debt that man already accumulated. Although not familiar with the rules and playing for the first time in his life Akagi wins, thus the legend begins. What follows next are a couple of matches, a total of 4-5 throughout the series. Each time there is something special about the game, and each time Akagi must use his mind games to win and destroy the enemy.

The art is kind of good. Not bad, not extraordinary. They really didn't have anything to draw, as the whole action happens at the Mahjong tables. I can't comment on how well they drew the tiles or the table, so I'm going to stop here.

The characters development is weak. Extremely weak. No side plots, no background story, nothing. We don't see any action outside the bars. Nothing about the characters themselves. Just plain Mahjong. There is really no point in watching this show if you don't like board games. It's like One Outs (I think the same Madhouse department created both), but this time it's Mahjong and not baseball. Or if we put it chronologically, first they did Akagi, and then decided to do the same thing but with baseball. If you enjoyed One Outs, you should give Akagi a chance, as the suspense and the mind games are kind of similar although One Outs offers a little more consistency and plot development, but if you are looking for something ore than that, look elsewhere.


Art 7.5/10
Sound 8/10
Storyline 8/10
Characters 8.5/10
Overall 8/10

Eden Of the East

It was fun watching Eden Of the East, and with 2 movies already announced, I guess we will still be hearing from it. As I have already said in the First Look I have written about this series, the story follows a mysterious boy that doesn't seem to remember who he is and what happened to him. As he unravels the mystery, he discovers that he is actually part of a game. A rich billionaire paid 12 people 10 billion yen, and gave them the task to save Japan. Each one of them should spend the money in its own way, how he thinks he can save this country. If you run out of money, you will be killed by one of the 12 members, a so called "spectator". If you begin using the money for your own good, you will be killed. If you want to leave the game and you don't use the money at all, you will be killed. There is no escape, you have to play. You have a special phone, and a girl answering your every call named "Juiz". She will do anything you request., and by that I mean ANYTHING. You will understand as soon as you see. The phone also tells you how the other 11 players spend their money. Our main hero discovers these details during the first 4 episodes. What really bother me is that we don't get to know what the title means until late in the story. Like half-way through we are presented with what "Eden of the East" actually is. Will the boy save Japan, while trying to save himself from the other players? You will have to watch and see for yourself. The animation is beautifully crafted and the soundtrack is pretty well chosen. The characters are kind of annoying, especially the side ones. It starts as a good mystery, but looses its grip on reality. You see players ask things from Juiz like "buy a hotel" and it happens so fast that you're utterly standing there thinking "what the fuck is wrong with you people?". By the end of the series it's mainly an adventure with a little bit of suspense. If you're a fan of great animation and suspense, give it a try. But beware, you will either hate it or love it from the moment it start, as there is no place for mixed feelings when it comes to Eden of the East.

ps: 2 movies coming up *drool*

Graphics 9.5/10
Sound 8.5/10
Storyline 9/10
Characters 9/10
Overall 9/10

One Outs

After the release of the final 2 episodes, I decided to finally watch this anticipated Madhouse production. It was incredible. Although highly underrated, because of the baseball amount in the series, One Outs is a fantastic production, offering the fans everything they ever wished for in an anime: strong characters, cool graphics, amazing plot and great sound. One Outs tells us the story of Tokuchi Toua, an amazing pitcher and a gambler. He has an incredible talent in manipulating people and uses his skill to crush his opponents. He joins the team that finished last in the Japanese baseball league, because of a bet he lost with the captain of that team. He then helps the team to overcome their problems and become one of the contenders for the championship. Although it offers a great plot with some amazing twists, what One Outs actually lacks is a great ending. It leaves you wanting for more, being already trapped in Tokuchi's mind games. I couldn't believe that the 25th episode was the ending. The way it ended you would really think the series will go for minimum 10 more episodes, or at least a second season. But no, that's it. The characters, as I already said are great. The way they all participate in the plot, leaving no questions unanswered. The whole point of the series is that, Tokuchi, being a gambler, signs a secret contract with the owner of the team. He will be paid 4000$ for every out he makes, but will have to pay the owner 40000$ for every point he gives away. The owner agrees, but later, after seeing Tokuchi's mindgames, he tries to destroy Tokuchi. The music and the sounds are awesome. It is the regular stadium sound, because the series has NO moments outside the stadium, except for some dialogues and meetings the owner participates in. The graphics are also beautiful. The players and the game moments are all nicely animated. I practically didn't find any flaws. Overall it was a great anime, and although not everyone is a sports fan, I truly recommend this anime to any person that loves mind games, the thrill of a good anime that leaves you guessing what will happen next.



Graphics 9.5/10
Sound 8/10
Storyline 8.5/10 (disappointing ending)
Characters 9/10
Overall 9/10

Death Note

I really didn't want to write this review at the beginning, but I guess you cannot have an anime reviews blog if you don't review the greatest anime of all time, Death Note. TO be honest (Pokémon doesn't count) Death Note was the first anime series I have ever seen. There I was, in my bedroom, watching every episode on my computer and just being shocked that there is something so incredible as Death Note. I really didn't want to start watching anime, considering it childish, but after I saw the level of suspense, mystery and the psychological thrill Death Note offers, I jumped into the world of anime. It was the greatest anime of all time, in my humble opinion. At its core, Death Note is actually an anime that captivates you with a story fashioned around logic, trust, and betrayal. It is filled with deep characters and with intensity, it grips you from start to finish with amazing vice. The plot is mainly the story of Yagami Light, a teenager who is plain bored and hates al the criminals in the world. Purely by accident (we later found out that the note was dropped intentionally by it's owner), he stumbles upon a book called a Death Note, which allows its author to kill any person of his or her choosing by merely writing their name inside, given that they know the person's name and face. Although at first, Light didn't believe in the power of the note, he then starts his journey as the ruler of the world, the justice. Due to the nature of Death Note's story, however, it's incredibly difficult to present an accurate, detailed reflection of the plot without giving important details away. If I say anything, I might spoil it for you, and I really don't want to da that. For a series built so strongly around logic, this is definitely strength rather than a weakness. You'll find yourself gripped from the first minute until the last, carried on by numerous twists and turns that keep the story both fresh and intriguing with each installment. And what can I say about the graphics? Death Note looks amazing. It really does. If you don't believe me, just watch the AMV I prepared for you on the bottom of the post. The sound was ok, with some flaws when it came to the opening and the closing themes, which didn't actually feel like they were supposed to be there. Commenting on the characters is hard because Death Note continually builds upon itself the story progresses. Though I didn't particularly care for some of the development of a few side characters, every person to appear throughout the series has a distinct purpose. The number of characters is kept to a virtual minimum, and those who serve little purpose only appear for as long as they are needed. (and then they die)

To conclude, I was incredibly impressed with Death Note. Although, like any other anime, it does have its flaws, as a whole they are minor. Of course there are a few ups on downs (like the episodes after someone's death) throughout the course of the thirty-seven episodes, but the vast majority of time is spent very wisely. To its fortune, the series is constructed in such a way that it has a nearly universal sense of appeal, and as such should not be passed up. Most definitely an once-in-a-lifetime experience, so make sure to check it out if you have not done so already.

I know you like wallpapers, so I uploaded my Death Note Wallpapers Collection...so enjoy almost 200 original Death Note wallpapers...download here

Spiral

Two years ago the brilliant detective Narumi Kiyotaka disappeared, leaving behind his wife and younger brother with only a vague message concerning solving the mystery of the so-called Blade Children. After being falsely being accused of an attempted murder, Kiyotaka's brilliant younger brother, Ayumu, finds himself drawn into investigating the cursed Blade Children and their connection with his missing brother.



I’m gonna start this review by stating that Spiral was the BY FAR the biggest "fuck you" I have ever seen in my entire life. The champion of “this-is-the-worse-ending-ever”, Spiral offers both suspense and thrill along the story but ends with despair and disappointment. Don’t get me wrong, it was a great anime, fun to watch with nice graphics and sound effects and spectacular twists but the plot is just horrible. It’s about a genius teenager Ayumu Narumi, whose brother, another genius fucknut detective, left Ayumu, his girlfriend/future-wife and police and disappeared without a trace. Ayumu's only clue as to his brother's whereabouts is the phrase "Blade Children," the only words Ayumu could make out in Kiyotaka's final phone call. Now this dude is getting involved in some kind of crime cases and he solves them without problems, getting more and more attention from the Blade Children. These Blade Children are the central mystery of the anime, known only as cursed children that few know about and are being pursued by so-called Hunters. Why? Fuck off. Who? Fuck off. When? Fuck off. The anime doesn’t fuck around with explaining shit to you. If you wanna watch this show, you better be fucking patient and just shut the fuck up.

Wiki extract
“As Ayumu investigates them, he meets Blade Children Kousuke Asazuki, Rio Takeuchi, Eyes Rutherford, Ryoko Takamachi, and Kanone Hilbert, and is tested in various ways by them. Those who meet him eventually conclude some more reluctantly than others that Ayumu does have what it takes to "save" the Blade Children, as they say Kiyotaka claims.”

Let me translate that for you. THEY, these special motherfuckers try to kill HIM, their only hope for survival. I am not kidding. These tests almost kill him every time, but he still succeeds to pass them without problems. Now some more info about this piece of shit. The sounds were awesome. It really makes a difference when you have shitty music and a thrilling anime, but they did a great job choosing the soundtrack. The graphics are not bad, no complaints there. Spiral really had lots of potential, and could have made it to the top if it wasn’t for the fucked up plot. The thing that I don’t understand is that the manga actually explained everything and you can read it online, the story, the plot, everything. But the creators of the anime just gathered there around a table and said, “you know what, I just realized we don’t need a fucking plot..let’s just make a cool anime with lots of suspense and exciting moments but ruin it at the end so that they will remember it forever.” Well, I did. It sucked so much I’ll have nightmares about it the rest of my life. Overall it was a decent anime, but again the ending making it the worst experience you can get from an anime. If you really don't care about the plot, and are out there watching pointlessly anime, then this is the shit for you.

Graphics 8/10
Sound 9/10
Storyline 4/10
Characters 8/10
Overall 6.5/10