First Impressions: Redline
So, the Manga All-Nighter for 2010 happened overnight two nights ago in London. All in all, it was a very nice event – comfortable seats, free stimulants to power through the night, a great crowd and a few anime movies to digest.
As well as showing the first episode of Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood, the event showcased docu-anime Musashi, based on the life of famous samurai Musashi Miyamoto, a Bleach movie, namely The DiamondDust Rebellion, the new Fate/Stay Night movie Unlimited Blade Works, and a new film from Madhouse called Redline.
Musashi was very interesting, giving a view of samurai and their tactics not often seen. Despite this, I feel it’s one to re-watch in the daylight hours. The Bleach movie was the Bleach movie. Basically inaccessible to people who haven’t slogged through the hundreds of episodes already (you poor souls). Unlimited Blade Works was adapted from a route in the original visual novel, again not being the most accessible film ever. The action sequences were well choreographed, but a rushed introduction to the world and the characters dampened things a bit for me.
You’ve probably guessed from the title of this post that my stand-out favourite from the night, however, was the first movie shown, Redline.
The story is set in the near-future, where hover cars are poised to completely take over the wheeled variety. Proper motor racing is still a popular sport however, with the main event being the hotly contested Redline race. The movie opens with a fantastically animated qualifying race between a myriad of over-the-top characters in long, embellished machines.
The pure speed is emphasised by the cars literally ripping up the track and the spectator stands as they fly by at impossible speeds, all set to loud, banging dance music. I adore the soundtrack for this film, the high energy tracks fit very well with the both the racing incidents and the daring cockpit manoeuvres of the drivers. As a bit of a petrolhead myself, the racing sequences in the film are pure crack. With the commentators describing the race the whole way, it almost felt like a futuristic Wacky Races on speed.
It’s clear that the main focus for the film is on the racing action, and that the pace and plot does slow somewhat in between the set pieces. Despite this, the highly stylised animation help to bring a sense of life to the worlds and characters. The plot itself is simple – here are some people who want to win, and have always wanted to win. Quite clichéd, and it gets slightly dubious when they throw in some more antagonism near the end, when the Roboworld government attempts to stop the main race from happening. It feels like an excuse to wheel out some fancy 3D rendered enemies and ultimately distracts from the pure racing action that really should be the focus of the movie.
Despite a somewhat simple plot, the pure energy and character of this film really shine through – it’s really very enjoyable. I’m pretty sure this was the first time it was shown in the UK, so it’s unclear when (and indeed if) it will be coming out. Hopefully it’ll be soon.
Currently Watching: Sora no Woto
Now that the Winter 2009 season is in it’s winding down stage, it’s the perfect time to actually start some blogging about it. Where better to start than Sound of the Skies, or Sora no Woto (or So Ra No Wo To, to be pedantic).
This is the first anime to be born from the new Strength of Anime timeslot on TV Tokyo, clearly trying to be a pretender to Fuji TV’s noitaminA block of programming that manages to churn out some of the best stuff each season. It’s got a lot to live up to, given the pure gems that noitaminA shows (Honey and Clover, Mononoke, Trapeze, etc.).
First impressions don’t bode well here. It’s clear that A-1 Pictures (the production studio) have borrowed heavily from the K-On! school of animation with this one. The characters are animated with as little frills as possible. And why not, you might say, when people will lap it up all the more? This is true, it even gives the designs a certain charm. But this isn’t even for lack of effort, when you look at the luscious backgrounds the team have made for the town of Seize, based on the walled town of Cuenca in Spain, and even researched on location.
Looking past the character designs, the opening treats us to a Klimt-fest the likes of which we haven’t seen since Elfen Lied (note that the two series share a director, Mamoru Kanbe).
The content of the first few episodes, honestly, doesn’t take the plot of the series places, which in some ways belies it’s description – when you think of a war-time setting, it’s logical that there would be warfare, right? Instead, this series bases itself in a post-warfare setting, focusing on a platoon based in a town bordering no man’s land, not seeing much active service. I dove in with some expectations and found it jarring at first, but then settled in to the pace. The beautiful setting of Seize and the airy soundtrack gives the series a great atmosphere, and events should take on a leisurely pace to match.
The cultural references also lend very well to the atmosphere, and in the typical anime vein of borrowing (and twisting) not-Japanese culture, here we have a series based on a town in Spain, set in the remains of Switzerland, featuring a South African bird, with writing in French. I could go on.
The feel of the show so far is almost reminiscent of Haibane Renmei, and for more than just the atmosphere. Even from the first episode, hints have been dropped that something larger is going on. Rio’s bell, the story of the ‘Maidens of Fire’, the blonde woman in so many flashbacks; there are so many treats left lying around to those who would bother to look in to things. And that’s good – anything interesting that an anime does, that is different from the established, should be heavily praised. We’re stuck in a cycle of copycats that needs to be broken free from.
We’re up to episode seven now, with eight coming out around now. It seems the slow pace is beginning to quicken in the second half, with Filicia’s flashback in stark comparison to the first half of the series, showing the horror of war in more frank terms than usual. I think that despite a slow start, this series is only going to get better from here on in.
Sound of the Skies is available streaming on Crunchyroll, a week behind airing for non-subscribers, and immediately (and in higher quality) for those who paid. Higher quality video is also available from the fansubbers.
Tokyo Magnitude 8.0 09-11
So I thought I would quickly round up my thoughts on both the ending of TM8.0 and what I thought of the show in general.
Beware of spoilers in the coming paragraphs. You have been warned.
I think everyone who was watching this show knew that there were only a set number of outcomes to this story. If the initial premise is that the kids need to find their way back home, it’s likely that some of them probably won’t, just to drive the message home. And what’s the message? Earthquakes are really dangerous. So up until now, it was a question of who would survive, if anyone at all.
Would they kill the parents and finish with a “we will fight on in their honour” kind of thing? Would they kill Yuuki and/or Mirai in a sort of “your luck will eventually run out” kind of BAD END?
Well, one of the inevitable conclusions passed, but it passed in a way that I certainly wasn’t expecting for a show like this.
Currently Watching: Shugo Chara!! Doki
I’m sure we all have a few guilty pleasures when it comes to anime. After all, weirdness comes with the territory. Well, here’s mine – it’s a show about finding out all about what you want to be, it’s positive and it’s got some really cool characters.
OK, OK, it’s a magical girl show aimed at girls over ten years younger than me. But that doesn’t matter. It’s awesome.
Shugo Chara! is all about Amu Hinamori, a school pupil who is known for being “cool and spicy” (best Engrish ever) and having a very cold outward appearance, but deep down she is just a girl who wants to be loved.
Tokyo Magnitude 8.0 08
I’ve been avoiding /a/ more than usual these days, not only because it can sometimes be the cesspool of the internet, but because it likes to spoil anime. Especially this one. At the time of writing, raws for the last episode of TM8.0 are starting to make their way to a tracker/bot near you. Having seen episode 8, I can honestly say I have no clue what will happen, or who will survive.
I have a feeling it’s going to turn out badly for at least one of our protagonists though. Because life isn’t always smooth.
I thought this episode was really well done. If you think about the very premise of this show, it’s to show what a huge earthquake in Tokyo would look like, and what would result from it. It’s relatively easy to show chaos and destruction – that’s a given. But many are de-sensitised to that sort of thing. How do you really hit home that this is serious shit? Put your little brother, who you just started liking again, in a life-or-death situation. Then turn up the mindfuck and say he really is dead. With the body, complete with ghostly white face, there and all.
Tokyo Magnitude 8.0 07
Putting the knowledge we learned back in the good old days when Tokyo was in one piece to good use now, as we’re reintroduced to the all-terrain earthquake robots who search for survivors under the rubble.
We’re also introduced to Kento, the robot nerd this episode. Mirai seems to have lots of foot in mouth moments here, especially when Kento tells her his family would be dead without them, accompanied by a token flashback. But Mirai, like you’re one to talk about nerds. I mean, frogs? Really?
