Anime Review: Heroic Age

Anime Review # 001
Title: Heroic Age
Release Type: Half Season Sets (Complete Series Available Now)

Hello again my fair readers! Welcome once more to another exciting, if at times meglomaniacal, episode of Blog of a Heretical Dub Lover! I'm your Navigator Richard J.! I'm super-pleased to see I have a new follower and, in honor of that honor, I'm doing our first anime review! (Prentend I'm not a day late!)

Applause! Clap, clap.

The first and hopefull far from last anime review will be Heroic Age, a 26 episode series animated by Xebec with Argonaut Crew and Starchild Records as the Production overlords. The music is by Naoki Sato, the original story is by Tow Ubukata and the character designs are by Hisashi Hirai. (I must mention, this is the character designer for Gundam Seed! I love this character style!)

As always here at BoaHDL, we have a guest host for our reviews. Today's guest host is Princess Dhianeila her self!



Princess Dhianeila: I'm very grateful to be here on behalf of the Argonaut. It is an honor to represent humanity's quest for survival here.

Richard J.:I'm the honored one. Please, tell us what Funimation has to say about your mission.

Princess Dhianeila: Of course. The corporation releasing our chronicle uses the tag line "a boy will be the salvation of man" for this DVD release. That boy is Age, our savior, who possesses the Heroic Tribe within himself. We onboard the Argonaut searched for a long time to find him, for he is the only human to have been raised by the Golden Tribe, the great race of beings who left our universe long ago.

I wish we sought him only for peaceful reasons but alas, we need him to rescue the Iron Tribe, humanity, from our enemies the Silver Tribe and the Bronze Tribe. The Silver Tribe have great psychic abilities and consider themselves the sucessors of the Golden Tribe whereas the Bronze Tribe are a race of insects that travel through space and are subordinate to the Silver Tribe. Together with the Heroic Tribe, a race of powerful but savage beings, we four tribes alone answered the Golden Tribe's call to come forth into space.

We seek our savior on a planet outside the reach of a Star Way. He is the fifth Nodos. The other four Nodos, beings who possess the Heroic Tribe within themselves, are under the control of our enemies the Silver Tribe. Without Age's help, humanity will be overwhelmed by our tribe's enemies.

Richard J.: Thank you for that summary of your mission. Can you tell us a little about the DVD release?

Princess Dhianeila: Of course. This release has two parts. Each part is a two disc box set, featuring cover art from the original Japanese release. The images are quite lovely. The second disc of each release features Textless Songs and Trailers as Extras. The whole series has been released and has an English dub as well as the original Japanese dub. It is all uncut of course.

Richard J.: Please allow me to add some opinions. The plot of Heroic Age has a number of references to Greek myths, most prominently those surrounding Heracles and the Twelve Labors. Age has Twelve Labors of his own and the nature of these labors and what they have to do with the prophecies of the Golden Tribe become important plot points within this series. The title of the series is also a reference to Greek mythology and the names of the tribes are loosely based on the Five Ages of Mankind.

The focus of this series is mostly on great battles in space and between the five Nodos, those beings who possess the Heroic Tribe within. Each possesses unique abilities and is of a different tribe/species. Age and Yuty La, the Silver Tribe's Nodos, are the two best fleshed out in my opinion. Also of importance in the series is the epic quest aspect, as the characters move toward their respective goals, you get a sense of just how amazing it all is.

Positive elements: This series has great action, good animation quality and excellent VA work. Special praise to Cherami Leigh, primarily for her performance in the last four episodes. Scenes are stolen by Monica Rial as the twins Mail and Tail. The plot flows well and reaches a proper conclusion, so this is a very self-contained series that won't leave you going "okay, but what happens next?" While you may want to see more because you enjoy it, you won't need to see more to know how the story concludes.

Negative elements: This release lacks decent extra features. Most glaring is the lack of special clean closings for the last episode and one in the middle, which feature unique closings. While this is not a No-Buy issue, it is agravating. Also, the unusual names can make it hard to follow at times until you've learned them, especially with the Nodos who all have two names. The politcal aspects and intrigues are not as deep as some series as the focus is on the epic battles.

Princess, can you talk about some of the characters? I think that would help people.



Princess Dhianeila: Certainly. I've already said that Age is our savior. He's also very kind despite being a fierce warrior. I pray for his safety. Bellcross is the Heroic Tribe member within him. In the English dub, he is voiced by J. Michael Tatum.

I am the humble princess of the Altria system. I have psychic abilities that are unusal for my tribe but they also make it very difficult for me to be around others. Especially men. I believe I can overcome my weakness. In the English dub, I am voiced by Caitlin Glass.

Karkinos Rucan is the first Nodos Age encounters. He is voiced by Christopher R. Sabat. His Heroic Tribe member is Lernaea. He is proud and deeply protective of Yuty La.

Mehitak Bore, who is voiced by Greg Ayres, is the second Age encounters. His Heroic Tribe member is Artemia. Although he wishes not to fight, his masters the Silver Tribe send him into a terrible battle.

Lecty Leque is the third Nodos Age encounters. She is voiced by Stephanie Young and is a confidant of Prome O, a member of the Silver Tribe who is uncertain of the goal of destroying humanity. Her Heroic Tribe member is Erymanthos.

The final Nodos that Age encounters is Yuty La. She is voiced by Cherami Leigh and is the Silver Tribe's Nodos. Her appearance belies the terrible power of her Heroic Tribe member, Cerbius. She is frequently in contact with Rom Ror, the most ardent advocate of humanity's destruction among the Silver Tribe.

Richard J.: Thank you Princess. I think that covers all the most important players.

Princess Dhianeila: But I have yet to mention the crew of the Argonaut or my brothers!

Richard J.: Don't worry, I am sure that those who buy the DVD will quickly learn about them. You've introduced the two major players in this story and the Nodos the Silver Tribe controls, who can be confusing due to their double names, and I think that is enough.



Princess Dhianeila: If you believe that is enough, I will accept it.

On behalf of the Iron Tribe, the race of humanity, I ask that all of you please purchase this chronicle on DVD! My host Richard J. has awarded it a high score. Please tell them good sir.

Richard J.: I have found Heroic Age to be worthy of the following score!



Heroic Age is available at Robert's Anime Corner Store, Amazon, Best Buy, The Right Stuf and FYE.

If you'd like a review of the packaging for this series, check out Hey Nice Package!

Well, I hope this review came out okay! I'm signing out now!

Bye-ni!

Personal Update: Law School This Year?

Hey out there in blogo land! It's your Navigator Richard J., servant of some guy who keeps talking about people dying when they are killed. Funny man.

Just wanted to let everyone know that I'm preparing for a deluge of reviews in August. I had hoped to get out my first anime review this month but it looks like I'll have to push it back a bit. I applied to law school a few months back and I'm currently in the final running on the wait list for Georgia Law! (This would be the University of Georgia's Law School program, one of the best if not the best in the South.)

Had to send them some more info and discuss living arrangements with various parties today so I couldn't put the finishing touches on my first anime review.

However, tomorrow I will be uploading another exciting review! (Well, I hope it's exciting to someone!)

I'll be introducing a standard review feature as well. My personal odd version of a star meter.

And no, there are no panties.

Just thought I should give a quickie update on why you're not able to read another review here yet. Hopefully, you'll think this one was worth the wait.

In other news, a certain anime company that certainly dubs all of it's certainly awesome library of titles is kicking ass and taking market share. Gee, I wonder who I could be talking about?

At least one company is still giving this hopefully-soon-to-be-going-to-law-school-otaku what he wants!

Bye-ni!

Blood+ Part Two FINALLY COMING???

Hello once again and welcome to my blog. This is your Navigator Richard J, here to inform, infer, infuriate and generally interface with you the reader.

Well, we've heard a lot of interesting and in some cases frustrating news from Otakon this year but one thing you may not have heard about is that Sony may have fially gotten a clue about Blood+! Kai may have had something to do with it.



Everyone needs a good Clue Bat. Read here the words of Robert of the Anime Corner Store from his newsleter:

Check this out! At the AniPlex booth they were saying that Sony will be releasing the second half of Blood+ this October to coincide with the DVD release of the live action Blood movie. Now that's music to my ears, though I'll be happier when we hear it directly from Sony - aka, an announcement and a set date.

*EDIT: He's added this info to his blog.

Amazing! Simply amazing. We may finally get the rest of the series after all.

This is great news for fans of the series and the dub, which though lacking in some areas features fan favorites like Crispin Freeman, Kari Wahlgren and a personal favorite of mine Lara Jill Miller.

Now might be the time to finally pickup that Blood+ boxset you've been wanting.

Maybe Sony hasn't completely failed us yet! In fact, perhaps they always intended to tie the second release in with a related release like this and were frustrated by some delay.

Okay, that might be giving them too much credit but hey, as long as we finally get the goods!



Bye-ni!

Bandai Entertainment: NO MORE DUBS!

Welcome to another bad news addition of this blog! I'm your Navigator Richard J., the seething evil at the bottom of your sneakers has nothing on me.

So, as you may have heard, Bandai Entertainment has licensed Kannagi: Crazy Shrine Maidens. Of course, they didn't license it for you dub fans out there. Just for sub fans.

Shh, Bandai doesn't want you to know they're in financial trouble and sources say they'll be under in less than two years! (Note: Those sources are the voices in my head.)

See this article for some gibberish on the subject.

I'll summarize for you with quotes (and commentary) here:

Ken Iyadomi, President of Bandai Entertainment Inc. says the DVDs will be sold exclusively at Rightstuf.com and Amazon Marketplace. (Note: This is because they'll be producing extremely small runs, so expect EVEN MORE of disc failage as they seek the least expensive producers!)

“We hope fans will support our effort to bring this series to them on the day we announced the acquisition.”

Yeah, you're not supporting me as a fan so, I won't support you!

“This is our way of answering the challenges of a changing marketplace to see how streaming episodes helps DVD and we are making both available at the same time to beat bootleggers who are hurting the industry just as much as the illegal downloaders.”

Translation: We're desperate and we're selling legal versions of the cheaper sub-only bootlegs, hope you like our subs better than that subbing group you've been watching all along!

“North American anime companies have suffered unexpected heavy returns from general market retailers in recent years but if we can sell moderate quantities exclusively online where no sales returns exist, I believe we can acquire more anime for the US market to be released in this pattern. This is a very different business model and a new challenge."

Translation: As long as the idiots at the online retailers don't start cutting back on their orders we can. . . oh shit!

Yeah, take a moment and think about this my friends. This is literally a top officer of a company saying that they will be relying on minimal sales and orders that won't be shipped back to them. Now, take a moment and ask yourself this: What's to stop Rightstuf and Amazon from simply cutting the size of their orders? What if Bandai doesn't sell "moderate quantities?" What if the online retailers go "hmm, this companies stuff isn't selling like it used to, lets cut our orders?"

What happens to Bandai Entertainment then? Well, I'm sure Mr. Iyadomi doesn't quite know since apparently he doesn't realize sales will be even less without dubs.

Of course, I know lots of people are swooning over this move! NO MORE DUB TAX!

Those fans, of course, will largely just stick to fansubs and "imports." This is the problem, catering to fans who aren't buying already. Makes sense in an insane way I guess.

Let me run down a list of things Bandai Entertainment has done wrong lately. Not couting Bandai Visual being allowed to exist since that wasn't their choice, though it damaged their brand.

First: Inconsistent dub choices. Bandai used a variety of studios for dubbing, some favored by fans some not so much. They also changed studios for several projects related to earlier ones. For instance, the use of Ocean for the Ghost In the Shell: Stand Alone Complex compilation DVDs. Not a big deal at the time but telling.

Second: DVDs that didn't work. I think we can all remember discovering multiple Bandai DVDs that just plain didn't work. I was fortunate enough to have a simple and basic enough DVD player that I didn't have most of the problems others did. However, we remember the Code Geass DVDs that wouldn't play and that's just one series. One series with many releases. Which brings me to my next point. . . .

Third: Multiple SKU releases of the same title (Note: This is why they got so many of their titles returned from retailers.) Bandai released standard editions, limited editions and even re-releases of the same series at the same time. They flooded retail shelves at a time when anime fans weren't even sure their DVDs would play! (Also remember that the Geneon Panic was going on not too long ago.)

Fourth: LE items people didn't want. Lucky Star comes to mind instantly. Now, I bought the Lucky Star LEs because I wanted the CDs and the crayon art covers. (Wow, I got screwed in the end didn't I? No volume 6 LE at all! Thanks Bandai!) The T-shirts were horrible. I have yet to see anyone who liked the T-shirts.

And all of these things are only related to DVD releases. Behind the scenes, we know they had to absorb the financial problems of Bandai Visual when the two were merged and that Bandai in Japan is in trouble. (Note the creation of a specific department at the parent company just for Gundam. The rest of their anime will eventually cease to exist, mark my words.)

Essentially, Bandai Entertainment, in my opinion, screwed themselves and is now saying to English dub fans "screw you." Well, personally speaking, I say "no sale" to them.

Which, given the state they are in, might be a death sentence.

I admit, I'm going to be a little bit of a hypocrite and finish some English dubbed Bandai titles like Lucky Star (just volume 6, if I can't fight the urge to see it I'll DOWNLOAD the OVA! Hah! Take that Bandai!) Code Geass R2 and assorted Gundams.

I'm sad and disappointed I won't get to buy Haruhi's new episodes from them (trust me, they won't be dubbed without a TV deal unless they sold a lot better than I think they did.) I'm depressed that yet another anime company has decided to marginalize themselves.

Apparently, this dub will never talk about any anime that isn't coming out of Funimation or VIZ the way things are going. (Heck, if rumors turn out to be true, I could end up talking more about Media Blasters than Bandai Entertainment! How twisted is that?)

Well, that's it for this ranting rant of rantiness edition of Blog of a Heritcal Dub Lover. Let me know what you thought of my thoughts and if you think I'm being too harsh or not harsh enough. (Before anyone starts crying "niche is niche and must be sub-only, I point you toward Funimation. You just try and tell me Sasami Magical Girls Club is mainstream.)

Bye-ni!

Manga Review: Bamboo Blade.

Manga Review # 001
Title: Bamboo Blade
MSRP: US $ 10.99 (CAN $ 11.99)

Hello again my few and scrappy fans! I'm your Navigator Richard J., deranged and twisted as ever.

Today I am reviewing Bamboo Blade by writer Masahiro Totsuka and artist Aguri Igarashi! This one is a lot of fun and quite lovely. Here's the manga front to back!

The front cover features our heroine, Tama-chan!



The back cover does too as well as Kojiro-sensei but more on him later!



Now, on to the main event! As you know, we here at Blog of A Heretical Dub Lover like to have special guests for reviews and this one is no exception!

However, my guest reviewer is late getting here. (She probably overslept.) So I'll start us off!

First, let me tell you about this manga! Bamboo Blade is the story of Kojiro, a teacher at Muroe Private Senior High School. He's lax, not very pulled together and, as a fellow teacher describes him "an enthusiastic, sort of dim-witted teacher" who may be able to "shake things up."

Kojiro is also the comedy relief of the series. In spades.

The series starts, however, with our heroine Tamaki Kawazoe. After showing off her Kendo skills briefly, we switch to Kojiro as he makes a bet with his sempai, a fellow teacher. They will take their respective Kendo clubs' female members and conduct a match. If Kojiro wins, he gets a year's worth of free-sushi from his sempai's father's restaurant! (What does Kojiro give up if he loses? You'll have to read to find out!)

Realizing only afterward that he has only two girls in his Kendo club, the hyper Kirino Chiba and the ever-absent Saya, he quickly comes to the conclusion that it's time for new recruits! Unfortunately, his sudden EXTREME enthusiasm for Kendo scares people more than anything else but he soon learns of Tama-chan from Nakata, a boy who wants to join! She's a childhood friend and someone he's tried to get to join school Kendo clubs before.

Tama-chan lives at a dojo and sees Kendo as more of a chore than anything else. However, it's a chore she's mastered. Without breaking a sweat, she can take down anyone. Kojiro tries to gain her membership but her complete lack of interest early on may mean his dream of easy sushi might not come true!

Bamboo Blade is a well-balanced mix of slice-of-life, comedy and Kendo badass-ary. The fight scenes are extremely energetic and very well drawn in my opinion. The humorous moments with Kojiro are spastic enough to easily draw a laugh. However, what makes this series worth reading are the quiet moments.

One of my favorite scenes is a simple one. Tama-chan had tried to record a show but recorded a comedy routine instead. As she watches it anyway, she gets a little smile on her face. It's just a few panels but that smile tells you so much about her. It's also a decided contrast from her Kendo stance face, which would be at home on Musashi Miyamoto.

This is a Yen Press title so you can expect color pages. This series is no exception from the norm. Here's the lovely color page (the next page is also color but it's a table of contents, not a nice shot of Tama-chan so who cares right?)



Also, the paper quality is good, the pictures are very clear with stand out ink, even in shade and line heavy scenes of Kendo. The writing is fluid and easy to get into. Another quality product from a quality company.

The character designs are distinctive within the manga, meaning you can easily tell characters apart. More attention is given to the cute girls in this manga but don't underestimate the men. Kojiro and Nakata each get to look good and the first not-so-nice character gets multiple images of his SADIST face.

The contrast between expressions in general in this series is quite well done. The characters are very expressive, even Tama-chan in her own stoic way.

I already mentioned that the writing can pull you in. It also has a flowing plot that advances at a natural pace. The jokes don't feel out of place and the characters have plenty of personality.

Ah! My special guest has just arrived! What the heck kept you?

Yurie Hitotsubashi: Sorry. I fell asleep.

Richard J.: Why do you have a cat in your hands?

Yurie: This is Tama-chan. I thought you wanted to review her.

Richard J.:. . . .



Yurie: I'm just being silly. Please, let me start by introducing the characters now!

Richard J.: Well, I kinda did that but okay.

Yurie: Thanks! Here is Kojiro-sensei. He's in it for the sushi. He's our debt-ridden hero.



Yurie: This is Tama-chan. She's our disinterested heroine and goddess of victory!



Yurie: Here with have Kirino. She reminds me of my friend Matsuri. She's our energetic heroine!



Yurie: Oh, here's a Kendo scene from the manga.



Yurie: That's all!

Richard J.: Wait, aren't you leaving out a character? Where's Miya-miya?

Yurie: Oh. . . um. . . do I have to? I do, don't I.



Yurie: I'm glad I'm on this side of the manga. She scares me. She's our dark goddess of victory?

Richard J.: Thanks for the helping hand Yurie!

Yurie: Thank you for inviting me! Kamichu!

Will our heroine's heroic fighting spirit be awakened? Will she join the club and use her bamboo blade to kick some villain's butt? Will any other girls join? What does Kojiro's sempai want if he loses? Who is the mysterious Saya? Who is Miya-miya?

Find out most of the answers in the first volume of Bamboo Blade!

Also, check out the anime when Funimation releases it! 26 episodes of Kendo and cute girls! (You can also find more of Yurie by checking out Kamichu!, once available from Geneon but now coming at you from the same awesome company bringing us the Bamboo Blade anime!

The first volume of the manga is available now Robert's Anime Corner Store, The Right Stuf, Amazon and Books-a-Million! Don't hesitate to buy this one folks!

Oh, since no one entered, no one won the contest for the Afro Samurai Resurrection DVD.

Bye-ni!

Ani-Father's Day (Okay, Not Really) But The Contest Isn't a Lie.

I didn't have time to think out a good fun list of anime fathers like I did for Mother's Day so instead, for Father's Day, here's two things that make fun of Suzaku Kururugi from Code Geass.

As your Navigator, I apologize for failing to put together an awesome list of Ani-Dads but I got distracted by the addiction of being able to play The Sims 2 without it crashing. (Ooh, Apartment Life rocks my socks!)

First, a personal favorite scene ever:


And here's what may be the funniest damn fansubber error of all time! (My they are really so professional ;) )


You can't imagine how much laughter that one generated.

Now, since I failed to come up with a great list of Ani-Dads, how about you, my readers, tell me who I missed?

I'll even reward one lucky person! Yes, this will be the first minor prize giveaway! Yah! Banzai!

Rules: You must give me the name and series of the Ani-Daddy you think is a great father in his series. You must write at least a decent four sentence paragraph explaining why you think he's a good daddy.

I'll pick a winner at the end of the month. (I want maximum time for entries.) The Prize will be a copy of Afro Samurai Uncut on DVD.

Don't forget that Funimation themselves are doing an awesome giveaway with HipHopDX. Go here for details.

That's it for me this time folks. Go tell everyone you know about the contest please!

Bye-ni!

Lucky Star Not So Lucky.

Hello my few and faithful blog readers. It looks like I must report some very unfortunate news to those who may not have heard it yet. As your Navigator, sometimes I must do these things.

I have just learned that the Lucky Star OVA, something I personally was looking forward to very much, will be sub-only. Here is an excerpt from Robert of the Anime Corner Store's news letter addressing this harsh reality:

as well as getting a firm date for the Lucky Star OVA (though the release will be subtitled only, which has caused a bit of consternation among fans)

As an English dub fan, I am appalled by this turn of events. Recently I have become increasingly certain that English dubbing is about to become a thing of the past with Bandai, with the possible exception of very high profile series. (Even there this may not happen as recent economic conditions, which I fear will grow only worse as predictions of even greater loss of jobs are made, dictate ever weaker productions to attempt to maximize profits.)

So, I am afraid that rather than charge a little more and put out a truly worthy release, Bandai will release the Lucky Star OVA sub-only. As a fan who waited patiently for the dub and the DVD rather than watch a fansub, I feel cheated. No, more than that, I feel betrayed. Bandai shot themselves in the foot by saturating stores with multiple versions of the same series, poor replicators and production issues and now they punish fans again after reversing their plans for Hayate the Combat Butler and other series.

I personally will not buy this title now. I require an English dub to truly enjoy my anime.

Well, sorry for the bad news friends. Hopefully this trend will not engulf Funimation as well but I fear that too shall come to pass.

Sad to say bye-ni this time and, apparently, for the last time.

If I do add regular reviews, it appears that they will increasingly be only from Funimation until the end of dubs themselves.