VG: Star Command for Mobile Devices Review

By: 14thLord

Developers: Starcommand, LLC
Release: 2013
Systems: Android, iOS
Genre: Strategy, Space, Action
Retail Price: $3.00

Well getting started, this will be my first video game review so the format may be a bit iffy. Star Command is a space exploration and combat, in the fashion of classic rogue games made in the early 90's. The game features outdated and pixelated art, in a stylized manner as throwbacks to the roots that sprouted the game. The question remains, whether or not it lives up to its hype.

From the beginning, Star Command immediately gives the feel of a space combat with elements of diplomacy. Despite initial expectations of a open universe to play in, the diplomacy elements completely fall apart and devolve into immature humor that just leaves room for disappointment. While the story was lacking though, how does the exploration, customization, and action hold up?

While exploration does exist, the factor is limited greatly. If you were enthralled by the Star Trek look, expecting to send down away teams and explore, you'll be sorely disappointed. The entirety of the game focuses around the space combat which revolves around defending your ship from away teams while simultaneously keeping your ship intact and weapons manned.

Due to the never ending waves of canon-fodder attacking you, it quickly becomes difficult multitasking in order to survive in each encounter. At the same time, while the chips are always out of your favor, the game maintains difficulty without it being insurmountable. Though bewarned, if you're bad at the 3 time based mini-games you must play in order to fire weapons, the battles can go on for seemingly hours.

Overall the game while it has potential and is a step above the common game you may find on the android market, it never does fufill the limits it seems to aspire for. The universe feels surprisingly small and bland despite how many hours I spent exploring it, and the customization while large, is quite limiting.

Score: 7/10
Star Command has its amusing points, and packs a lot of fun replayability. Unfortunately it seems that it's lacking in every manner. Perhaps in a few patches down the line, we can see content that makes the game feel truly like a lone battleship treading an open universe, carving its own path.

Future Diary Review

By: 14thLord

Release: 2011
Genre: Action, Psychological, Supernatural
Also known as: Mirai Nikki, Future Journal

Ah Future Diary, also more popularly known as Mirai Nikki thanks to the low advertised release of the Funimation dub. What might have caused such a low level release you ask? Well, it could have something to do with the copious amounts of fully drawn breasts, and heavy mature elements being commonplace. Dont mistake that I'm talking about it being an ecchi, if anything it's the opposite. Be warned, if you're easily affected by mature content. This anime is not for the sensitive.

This anime is difficult to categorize into primary genres, because as it goes on, the genre mixes and changes. The tone will just as quickly go from light hearted comedy with fan service moments, to serious action, romance, and drama. In the end though, I believe it's Action, Psychological, and Supernatural that triumph for my genre categories.

The general premise of the show is Deus Ex Machina, (God of the world), decides to create a game. With 12 contestants in total, the winner shall succeed him. Each contestant is given a Future Diary, that is, their Diary now has entrees from the future. The entrees are those which the person would have eventually made within the next 90 days. Sounds simple enough, but here's where it gets interesting. In order to win, you must kill all other diary holders within 90 days. Usually these diaries were cell phones, but not always was that the case.

Yandere. If you've yet to hear of that term, let me explain it to you. Yandere is the combination of two Japanese words, Yanderu which means sick, and deredere, which means strongly and deeply infatuated. Knowing the meaning of these two words, one can simply assume the phrase to imply love sick, but it goes far beyond that, to an unhealthy obsession. It goes on to feature cute girls with blood splatter and butcher knives.

Now that you know what Yandere is, let me introduce you to the driving force of the anime. Yuno Gasai.

While not exactly the main character, few can say that Yuno doesn't drive Future Diary, from a watcher stand point or a plot point.

This is yet another anime that features what I found to be a very unlikable protagonist that is constantly making the dumb decisions that are the “moral” decisions. Please meet our central protagonist, Yukiteru Amano. A longer and more complicated name to remember to those not too faimilar with japanese names, but luckily he's often simply called Yuki. Just dont get him mixed up with Yuno due to beginning with the same two letters.

Of course Yuki's strong desire to do what's “right” often ends up with him nearly dying, before somehow surviving by chance and claiming victory. Throughout the anime, I must have called him an idiot or expected him to make a stupid choice at least once per episode. Not a good track record, Yuki.

While there exists a mystery element in who the other Future Diary holders are, it fails to take advantage of such elements and reveals things as soon as they're brought up. With the exception of the mystery behind Yuno and her love for Yuki, that is.

Such elements brought up but never utilized include the identities of the Future Diary users. Often they're revealed almost as soon as they're introduced. Oddly enough, all of them seem to know of Yuki from the beginning despite the anonymity of when they all met one another when Deus Ex Machina, god of the world, introduced them to one another. In addition, the Future Diaries are all supposedly unique to each person, but often people end up with either useless Diaries or it doesn't come into play except for awkward moments during fights. This is easily explained away due to the fact that Diary holders can just as quickly change the future, which causes the Diary updates.

Important note, if you watch this, there exists a single Ova titled Redial. This is a MUST watch, or else the ending will be a “What?” moment in a bad way. Unfortunately, Funimation has yet to dub this and there's no news of if or when it would be released.

Characters: 8/10
While Yuki is a weak protagonist, Yuno is a very strong character in and of herself. That and considering the surprising amount of depth within the other diary holders made this anime very enjoyable to watch and discuss. It's the characters that sell this piece, and how human they act when under such situations.

Plot: 7/10
The premise of this anime, I'll admit, was a tough sell. The idea of people combating each other with cell phones that could see the future did little to interest me. It felt a bit on the shallow end, and to be fair, it was. The plot doesn't do much in moving until vastly later on, but once it started going, I was hooked. I was at the edge of my seat, eagerly putting on the next episode until the climax. Unfortunately that climax ends up being quite premature as the episodes continue to drag on in an awkward manner. Despite a lot being revealed, it never captivated me as much as the episodes between 13-20 did.

Fun Factor: 9/10
Yuno sells this series and makes it very fun. She is absolutely MAD and that's a massive understatement. The series goes through fun action sequences with amazing moments of Yuno being absolutely scary and bonkers. I admit, that character alone made this series SO much more fun than it would have been had there been a normal character in her place. Throughout the series, Murmur, (Dues Ex Machina's small chibi assistant) gets into absolutely hilarious antics that had my friend and I on the ground laughing.

Music & Animation: 8/10
The animation, art, and the soundtrack aren't anything incredibly remarkable. That isn't to say it was a bore, but I won’t be eager to listen to any of the music outside of watching the episodes.

English Dubbing: 10/10
Funimation has come a LONG way since the early 00's. The voice cast was simply amazing throughout the series with very charismatic actors. You may recognize Yuno's voice actress, Brina Palencia from her work as Holo (Spice and Wolf), Ciel (Black Butler), Nina (Fullmetal Alchemist). Brina Palencia brought so much more life into Yuno, making a big selling point to watching the dubbed version rather than a sub with a more generic sounding voice actress. Special appreciation goes out to Leah Clark (Murmur), Kent Williams (Deus Ex Machina), and Ian Sinclair (Twelfth).

DVD Extras: 8/10
I figured to make a extra section where I'll briefly lay out the extras that come with the DVD's / Blurays to the curious buyer. Future Diary is split into two $40 DVD sets, the "limited edition" part one coming with Future Diary themed valentine day cards, and a bland box placeholder until you get part 2. The Box art and the DVD art itself is surprisingly bland despite the anime being nicely stylized, and I'm not too sure I'd say I personally liked it. Besides a few random Funimation trailers, it comes with a "Omake" which I didn't exactly understand, since it seems to be just the same episode as it's the "omake" of, except without the dubbing. Subs and language can be switched from the main menu, and it comes with 4 episode commentaries, each featuring 2 cast members discussing the episode and floating off topic. These commentaries were fun to watch, with my favorite being the last one which features the voice actors of Yuno and Yuki discussing things that my friends and I found ourselves discussing either later or prior.

Overall: 8/10
While the story is a bit weak and drags at points, the diverse and lively cast of real believable characters really made this anime something special. The premise itself of Future Diaries is very original and makes this a unique experience. Again, this anime is graphic and requires mature audiences that can handle these tones, which I find regrettable. Unfortunately because of the mature content, the United States distribution is far smaller than it deserves to be.

PS: Watch after the credits of each episode for amazing and hilarious moments with Murmur.

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Pokemon, Mega Mewtwo X

By: 14thLord

With Pokemon X and Y to be released within one months time (10/12/13) we've received new information on the features and Pokemon awaiting to be battled and captured. Before we get to the main topic, Mega Mewtwo X, let's talk about Mega Forms.

Matt Smith wont be bald for the 50th!

Is this true? Will we be seeing his iconic hair for his regeneration scene? The answer is

50th Anniversary Special Name Leaked?

By: 14thLord

Was there a blunder at the BBC?

7 Reasons the Wii U flopped at Launch

By: 14thLord

At last, the season is coming where Nintendo will finally be putting out strong titles in a attempt to turn around Wii U's clear failure. I know I'm personally excited for the Wind Waker HD deluxe console to come out on 9/20/13, but before things in Wii U's future gets brighter, lets go back and look at where the troubles began for Nintendo.

7. The 2011 Tsunami and Meltdown

Lets be fair. The 2011 Tsunami was a terrible tragedy for Japan, with damage estimated up in the 30 billions. It didn't help that it coincided in the release of the 3DS, massively dropping potential sales, down to a crawl, while stiffening Nintendo's ability to release quality products in a timely manner.

The Tsunami was one big disaster, but stemming from it was the Fukushima Nuclear meltdown, that still plagues Japan as a constant crisis to this day as the workers tirelessly still attempt to contain the never ending radiation leaks that has led to 83,000 civilians to evacuate the surrounding areas.

6. The 3DS

How could the 3DS be a cause to the Wii U's flop? Its thanks to the previous mentioned disaster. The 3DS sales suffered in wake of the disaster, and so did Nintendos ability to produce quality products in a timely manner, forcing teams working on the Wii U to rush into the 3DS's aid. The 3DS launch was of such high disaster, Nintendo was forced for the first time in history to sell a console at a loss, bringing the price down from roughly $250 to $180.

With Nintendo's focus on the 3DS, sadly the lineup for the Wii U suffered countless delays, but rather than delay the console as well, Nintendo went along with its initial launch date, for better, or in this case, for worse.

5. Lack of 3rd party control

Aliens Colonial Marines, Crysis 3, and Metro the Last Light, all formerly announced titles for the Wii U that had their Wii U release canceled. In addition, Rayman Legends, which was formerly promised as a Wii U exclusive went multiplication. These aren't isolated incidents, 3rd party producers all around are turning their noses up at the Wii U due to its staggering sales... from the lack of 3rd party support. Yes, just like with the Wii, the Wii U has failed to interest the 3rd party producers, and exclusives.

Why is that? Well this one has quite a few factors to it. With the Wii U rushed out in 2012 before more than a handful of games could be produced, led to slow consumer adoption. Nintendo went on record to state that the near non-existent first party was in due to giving 3rd party developers time to make sales, as with the Wii's launch, developers were upset that Nintendo hogged the market share.

Still, 3rd party developers are up in arms about sales on the Wii U being low, which often entails figures from games such as Mass Effect 3, retailing at the full sale price where at the same time they launched the trilogy collection on the other consoles. It's little question that a inferior port of a old game, will stagger in sales, but with the low sales of the Wii U, there's more to the lack of such sales than simply that.

4. Lack of Value

When Nintendo released their first console, the Nintendo Entertainment System, they created a strong sense of VALUE with the product. With it came a game, and a onslaught of accessories that made one feel that they were indeed getting their money's worth, with a trendy design to catch peoples attention. Well, trendy for the time.

With the Wii U, we've seen little comparison with the current generation competition, and many wonder if it's even better than current generation consoles. Well, it is, but consumers have little faith after the Wii being so far behind, that this console wont do the same once the rest of the big next generation consoles come out. While it came out with a "Deluxe" set and a basic, it was immediately clear the Basic set was worth far less than the $50 saved, leading to massive recalls by Nintendo.

3. Over saturation of the Market

Oculus Rift, Ouya, Gamestick, Piston, Nvideo Project Shield. These are the rival consoles hitting this generation by storm, and that's not even counting Nintendos direct competitors, with their X Box One, and Playstation 4. That's a total of 7, read that, SEVEN guaranteed consoles to be out there this generation, with words of more on the way. With tablets and smartphones featuring video games as well, people are increasingly less inclined to purchase a dedicated gaming console.

2. Poor Naming

Wii U, a very undiscriptive title that on first hearing, one might assume it's nothing more than a upgrade or extension to the current Wii, and at a market price of $300 to $350, that's a hard sale. Yes, you can say “Technically, it's only $299.99” and to you I say, you're an idiot. Yes, after tax that's worth 0.07th of a penny you saved, but I'll be frank to you, they round to the nearest penny, and 0.07th of a penny wont save you a penny in most cases.

1. Advertising

Coupled with naming that can leave the less informed confused, is nintendo's terrible performance with advertising this generation. While this list is in no particular order, this was by far the worst blunder Nintendo made this generation. How many of you have seen a advertisement for a Wii U, when you had seen one for a Wii? I know short of personally searching on youtube for their advertisements, I had never seen a Wii U ad. It's almost as if it doesn’t exist, and without a library more than 2 games to talk about nearing a year on in, it might as well not exist yet.

Their blunder for advertisements doesn’t end at the lack of advertisements unless you're a dedicated fan actively SEARCHING for them, nor their poor excuse of advertising by sending a message on people's Wii's to explain the Wii U is more than just a upgrade that no one cares about (while not giving any reason to be excited for one). Their blunder comes into the advertisements themselves.

When you saw the Wii's advertisements, they had a INCREDIBLY catchy and memorable one. Two Japanese business men drive in on a sports car to a family's home, and says “Wii would like to play.” Followed by a montage of them and the family having a immensely fun time with the controller and playing games together.

What about the Wii U advertisements? All the ones I seen thus far just has a theme song from the game playing, while you watch a person playing it on the tablet controller. While there are commercials that do more than that, I've yet to see one get me remotely as excited as the Wii's advertisements did, most bringing me nothing more than a yawn from me.

While this doesn't mean the end of the Wii U, Nintendo has a long struggle ahead to pull back from the launch disaster, and to regain the markets faith. If you disagree with any I said, or think there were stronger factors to consider, please feel free to leave a message.

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Umineko: When They Cry (No Spoilers)

By: 14thLord

Release: 2009
Genre: Mystery, Psychological, Supernatural
Also known as: Umineko No Koro Ni, When the Seagulls Cry, Seagualls: When they Cry

Ah Umineko a obscure gem, and the next installment by 07th Expansion. You may recognize the developer from its predecessor, Higurashi: When They Cry. While holding Many similarities in style, the two anime's are completely unrelated, so feel free to pick up one or the other, in either order. I personally recommend starting with Higurashi if you were to indeed watch the two.

Like Higurashi, there's little that can be said about Umineko without giving away spoilers. What I can tell you is that the plot revolves around a mystery, which may or may not be supernatural based. The story plays out like a murder mystery, while at times showing impossible things, relying heavily on unreliable testimonies.

If you enjoy unsolvable murder/mansion mysteries, psychological intense anime's, and the notion of witches, this anime may peek your interest. Immediately from the start, the show sets itself up on Rokkenjima Island, a isle. That's allegedly haunted by the Golden Witch Beatrice. Long ago, the head of the Ushiromiya family made a deal with this mysterious figure. Now the Witch has come to collect on its end of the bargain, the families fortune, and their lives.

The Anime ends with a massive cliffhanger, intentionally to allow the viewer to form their own opinions and attempt to “solve” the mystery. There also includes the visual novel series with EXTENSIVELY more detail, which has never been released stateside. Fortunately, you can enjoy the anime to the fullest, without ever having even heard of the game.

Unfortunately Umineko was never dubbed, after Funimations dub of Higurash was considered to be a flop, and their license was since allowed to expire. It's particularly upsetting as this was the event that caused Funimation to seek more conservative titles, rather than branching out to obscure gems.

Characters: 9/10
Umineko sports a large cast of memorable characters, whether it's the primary circle involving the families adult children, or the simple servants of the family. Each member of the Ushiromiya is a well fleshed out suspect, with their own reasons and motives. While some can quickly be discarded as a suspect for not being suiting to their personality, you may later find yourself second guessing that decision.

Plot: 10/10
Let no episode remain a filler. A motto this anime takes, and I love it greatly for. If you love a good murder mystery, and a anime that deliberately makes attempts with messing with the viewers head, this is the show for you. Often I found myself at edge, constantly trying to solve the mystery of Rokkenjima Island.

Fun Factor: 10/10
Again, Umineko is very dependent upon the viewer enjoying a good murder mystery. Not only is it amazing fun to watch, it continues to extend its fun in discussions with friends, as you debate on opposite sides.

Music & Animation: 9/10
The art style of the anime isn't something of particular notice, it is one of the lovelier looking anime's currently out. If you seen the initial games, the artstyle is a MASSIVE improvement upon it, but otherwise very standard.

While featuring an extensive of enjoyable songs in its soundtrack, it's the Opening and Ending themes that really catches the viewer. Immediately the anime opens with a theme that excites its viewer, but in a very suiting manner. At the same, the end song for each episode isn't typical j-pop that's randomly added, like in most anime's. Instead, the ending song does an amazing job at keeping you shocked at the end of the episode, and psyched to watch the next.

Overall: 10/10
Umineko is one of the few anime's that I'll give a perfect 10 to, and for good reason. The story is so well executed, riddled with depth. The characters all feel alive, even if they try portraying themselves as wooden in public. The only deterring factor that I can see is if you simply do not enjoy this unusual type of anime. It's an odd and difficult mix, that can easily leave the viewer confused as it attempts to combine two polar opposite genre's, one of realism, the other of supernatural.

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News: Doctor Who, Official 50th Anniversary Trailer!

It's official, and it's finally out, only a few days old. The official trailer for the 50th Anniversary of Doctor Who!

Unfortunately for us, this is the trailer for fans, desperately awaiting any news of the anniversary special, this is a trailer for the 50th Anniversary, NOT the 50th Anniversary Special, due to air in November, meaning not even ONE snippet from the new episode.

Alas, don't prevent that little tidbit enjoy you from yet another fantastic 50th anniversary trailer, even if it may come as disappointing.



Perhaps if we crossed our fingers -REAL- hard, we'll be getting the next trailer for the still unnamed 90 minute 50th Anniversary Special before long!

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Ponyo: A Fantastical Tale

By: 14thLord

Release: 2008
Category: Fantasy
Also known as: Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea

Beginning Ponyo, we're delivered a beautiful hand drawn piece, shown a underwater world filled with life and variety. We begin with a man who's somehow capable of maintaining himself in what appears to be a air bubble, doing what seems mundane tasks, at least to him. It is during these chores, that we first meet these human faced fish. While I understand it is meant to be enchanting creatures, I was horrified by it. Perhaps it was here I realized that I may intemperate this movie differently than most.

Coming a little too close to the surface, the titular character first meets Sasuke, the central protagonist of this movie, only to then go on a spree of misadventures in a brush with humanity. It is here we get to see the movies anti-human viewpoint as the trash

Finding Ponyo washed ashore with trash, Sasuke picks her up, just in time to keep her away from being rescued by her fathers minions, in a seen that sent a chill down my spine, followed by a “what the crap?”. As the wave attempts to take Ponyo back to her father, Sasuke rushes to shore, witnessing eyes in the water as it let out a moan. His response to this? “That was weird.”

Terrifying is the word I'd of personally used.

The storyline for Ponyo is very simplistic, revolving around Sasuke and out titular character, Ponyo. Bringing the human faced fish home to his mother, somehow convinced it's a simple gold fish. It isn't until a old lady takes a look that anyone even so much as bats a eye to it. Despite being completely sensible that she's startled by a human faced fish, the movie makes it come off as if she's the unreasonable one in all of this.

Alas her father rescues her and takes her back to the see, after a spree of antics, but not before it gets the craving for blood and flesh.

Ponyo, knowing the taste of flesh and blood, demands to return to the surface. Of course her father fears Ponyo's new found desire for the blood of other creatures, and leaves to request the aid of her mother who's the "Mother of the Sea." While he's gone, Ponyo makes her get away.

Escaping from her father captivity, Ponyo brings forward the apocalypse. Not even kidding. The moon is falling because of her, and the oceans are rising in a flood. Of course everything turns out all happy and whimsical by the end, but still.

Plot: 5/10
The Plot is simple, and requires no thinking. If you think about the events, it gives you a horrifying tale, while treating it as light hearted fantasy. While I'm very tempted to categorize this as Horror, it's clearly meant to be conceived as a light hearted tale of a fish learning about humanity, and wishing to become one. Similar to the tale of Disney's: The Little Mermaid. Of course, Disney was happy to distribute this in the United States.

Fun Factor: 7/10
I suppose many would say that Ponyo takes you on a wonderful journey? To me it felt very disney-esque in its story. Studio Ghibli and Miyazaki do what they're famous for doing, giving you a wonderful adventure in a bright and colorful world. Unfortunately, if you desire anything more than that, it may leave you on the opposite end of the scale for enjoyment.

Sound & Art: 8/10
The artstyle while not my personal preference, is clearly a step up compared to standard animation. The world is amazingly rich and full with little details, with near no computer assistance. The music itself is pretty wonderful as well, though nothing particularly exceptional nor memorable.

English Dubbing: 10/10
The english dubbing was done quite well. Often when doing shows with children or young / cute looking characters, american studios fall under the trap of using girls and speaking in painful falsetto tones. In Ponyo's case, new voice talents, kids under the age of 10 and other who've never done any work in anime. While never working again in anime, they've done countless other works, live and voice. Liam Neeson voiced Ponyo's father, who you may recognize as Qui-Gon from Star Wars.

Overall: 7/10
If you like to be taken on a wonderful, colorful adventure, Ponyo's the movie for you. Never does it take the circumstances too seriously. Thankfully so as the ramifications of Ponyo's actions are world threatening, and could easily turn nightmare fuel. Alas, if you've enjoyed Studio Ghibli's other works such as My Neighbor Totoro, The Cat Returns, of Howl's Moving Castle, you'll love this.

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Puella Magi Madoka (No Spoilers)

By: 14thLord

Release: 2011
Category: Magical Girl, Psychological
Also known as: "Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica" and "Magical Girl Madoka of the Magus"

Brought to us by a collaborative effort of Shaft and Aniplex, whom you might recognize for bringing us Ef: A Fairy Tale of Two, and Fullmetal Alchemist, we have Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica. Also known as Magical Girl Madoka of the Magus, or as we know it from the american release, Puella Magi Madoka Magica.

Lets talk about Puella Magi Madoka Magica. To start, what kind of name is that?! I understand when localizing, often companies would change the name of the franchise to something that sounds more familiar, but Puella Magi Madoka Magica? Yes, lets use a french word that few americans can pronounce, to make it easier for people into japanse animations to understand and say. Most people I talk about it can only remember two of the words, whether it's “Puella Madoka” or “Magi Madoka”, if they even get it correct to begin with. I wouldn't of blamed the company for at least dropping the "Magica" at the end.

Just a pet peeve of mine, its literal translation of Magical Girl Madoka Magica just seems easier to remember. Even Mahou Shojou, and this is coming from someone that actually likes it when names are localized, so I can actually try remembering them.

At last, what is there to say about Magi Madoka, that isn't spoilers. Magical Madoka definitely takes a franchise that most people know, and turns it over its head through use of an AMAZING soundtrack, compelling storytelling, and beautiful art that reminds me of the very hungry caterpillar.

What is there that I can say that isn't spoilers, to give you the idea whether or not you might enjoy it? All I can think of is saying that it's unlike any other Magical Girl anime's that I've ever seen. When I original watched it, it had somehow ended up on my big list while looking at “Psychological” anime, with how it explores the concept of magical girls.

While Puella Madoka is only 12 episodes long, it's enough for them to develop a fully fleshed out story, with a memorable cast that's difficult to forget. Best of all, each girl is color coded for your convenience.

Characters: 10/10
While initially we're treated with what appears to be a generic cast of stereotypes for a standard anime, we're quickly treated with something far more. Each character feels so alive, filled with emotion, history, wishes and regrets. While many anime's struggle with having a full cast of fully dimensional characters, Puella Magi Madoka has no problem in making every one feel alive.

Plot: 10/10
It's rare that a plot has you glued and eagerly awaiting what happens next, but not only does Puella Madoka succeed in captivating your interest, it becomes even better upon rewatching. It'll have to speculating and talking about it, hours and hours after.

Fun Factor: 10/10
The whole experience of Puella Madoka was just a blast. Whether it's the Art, Soundtrack, beautiful animations, or stylized art.

Soundtrack & Art: 10/10
The art and soundtrack of this anime, simply put, is beautiful. While it's no Studi Ghibli, it's by one of the most gorgeous anime's I ever watched. It's also one of the few anime's that I enjoyed the entirety of the soundtrack, and actively sought out just to listen to.

English Dubbing: 9/10
While initially I cringed my nose at Madoka's voice acting, I was pleasantly surprised to hear a wide range of wonderful voices from talented voice actors. While most of the voice actors have a relatively small portfolio, they've all earned my respect from this piece. After meeting Lauren Landa at Connecticon 2013, I was blown away by what a sweet person she was, and how vastly different she sounded from the character Kyoko, that she voiced.

Overall: 10/10
Puella Magi Madoka Magica was a daring project, and a massive risk from the very beginning. The Magical Girl franchise has long since been stale and fading away, few taking it seriously any longer. Whether or not Puella Magi Madoka Magica has succeeded in revitalizing the genre, remains to be seen. One thing I do know though, I'll never think of Magical Girls the same.

I HIGHLY suggest going into the anime without looking up photos or anything more on the anime, as I feel it's best to make what you will of the show yourself, without others opinions clouding your view. You can find it released on Bluray/DVD, released in sets of 4 episodes. The first two released on Bluray, both of which serve as a movie form of the events throughout the series, with the third continuing the series.

Final Note:
I'd normally not make a comment about price, but Puella Magi Madoka Magica is an expensive anime. It's split into 3 DVD/BD's, each featuring near no extras, for a retail price of $40. As there are only 12 episodes in the series, you're effectively paying $10 per episode. The "Limited Edition" box set includes a few post cards, a soundtrack, and a bumper sticker, for $75 per box! At $75 for what should be in the STANDARD edition of the DVD/BD, it's at viewers discretion if you'd be willing to spend $120 to $225 on a single anime series.

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Initial Thoughts: Attack on Titan (No Spoilers)

By: 14thLord

Release: 2013
Category: Action, Horror
Also known as: Shingeki No Kyojin, Advancing Giants

Shingeki No Kyojin, Advancing Giants, or Attack on Titan. Ah anime's will always have a fun variety of names, wont they? Beginning in April, we're witness to our newest flavor of the week. Attack on Titan is currently still airing, and as of the time I wrote this, 13 episodes have come out (not including the recap episode). By the time I publish this though, a couple more should have followed.

With a week break to recap the events of the prior episodes, I decided to get my initial thoughts out. This is the mid-seasonal break, and would serve as a bridge between Chapters, where my opinion may vastly change. I first heard about this anime in June, where my friend described it as being influenced by old European stories about giants, with them attacking human cities. I instantly pictured the old Hercules: The Legendary Journeys, a live action series from the 1990's, and was immediately disinterested.

Despite my ill opinion, the night of AnimeNext, we went on a short marathon of the first few episodes until our party members began to pass out from exhaustion. The marathon started strong as we were all blown away by a intro sequence that couldn't be described as any less than “Epic.” Perhaps one of the most engaging opening soundtracks, we're first treated with a Medieval crest. Soon we get a picture of the titans and wow, does the intro look impressive. It really starts strong and shows off the European mythology that spawned its creation.

Once the first episode begins, we're treated by the whiny, arrogant, annoying little brat that happens to be our main character. Besides Erin, we meet Mikasa, his sister who we later learn was adopted, and Armin, the blond boy. For some reason, this characters hairstyle very much reminded me of old King Arthur stories. Whether that was intentional or not, we'll see.

The first episode ends with perhaps one of the most shocking scenes I've seen. It is there that we gain full perspective of the titans that was spoken of throughout the episode, and at last, does giants come off as threatening. Perhaps its all the goofy giants in modern culture now, that made this scene so unnerving.

Throughout the next many episodes, we're again and again treated with shocking imagery, and learn to respect and fear giants once more. Understanding the weakness of giants from lore, the creators of Attack on Titan gave them quite a few tricks. Not only are these titans impossible to kill except by a surgical strike to their Cervical vertebrae, there exists abnormal Titans. These abnormal giants are capable of many unpredictable traits, making them far more dangerous than the standard mindless creatures.

While Attack on Titan starts out fast and hard, it quickly loses its momentum. Starting at episode 5, we're treated with a NINE part long chapter, “Battle of Trost District”. In this chapter, we spend whole episodes with nothing significant happening to move the story long. We literally spend the entire Episode 12, following Erin who's unconscious. Yeah.

Characters: 6/10
Erin, our annoying main character that I absolutely HATED the first 3-4 episodes. After which, I remained indifferent. Armin, a useless and afraid kid who too, is part of our main cast. Finally we have Mikasa, our quiet, yet competent character for a change. Out of all the characters, Mikasa took the greatest shine to me, making me like her even more once we're treated with her back story. Almost every character is portrayed as being extremely afraid of the Titans, and while it may work to build up the audience's fear of these creatures, after the first few episodes I was left more annoyed than anything else.

Plot: 6/10
While it's constantly wowing the audience, the more we learn, the more weird things we learn. While at the moment, it's more annoying than interesting, we'll see whether or not these questions will have compelling answers. My answer is on it either turns out bad, or is just plot holes.

Fun Factor: 9/10
The art starts out as fresh and unnerving, especially for the titans. We're taken through a fearful journey and are quickly treated with action. The anime thus far has been quite eventful, except for episode 11 and 12 which was spent with the main characters just running and sleeping. We'll see if it regains the momentum.

Soundtrack & Art: 8/10
While the art starts out somewhat surreal and attention grabbing, it has slowly been devolving into what comes off as very generic of anime. While it's still very good, only in the very beginning does it come off as attention grabbing. The opening theme though is by far one of the more amazing and “Epic” intro's that I've seen in awhile.

Overall: 7/10
Attack on Titan starts out amazing. It really does. Perhaps if it wasn't for the horrible characters, I may of enjoyed it far more, but at the end of each episode I was instead left ranting in annoyance about how much I want them to get eaten.

The first two episodes are a must watch, with each episode weaker than the last. I'll come back at the end of the shows run, and we'll see how much my opinion may have changed.

Also I swear, if this turns out to be a mecha, with humans piloting these giants, I will RAGE. I don't know why, but I've been expecting it since episode 2, and nothing has shaken that opinion.

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Heavens Memo Pad: No Spoiler Review

By: 14th Lord

Release: 2011
Category: Detective
Also known as: “Kamisama no Memochou” and “Gods Notebook”

Heavens Memo Pad, another in a short line of mystery detective animes to come out in recent years. There's few other anime's to compare the show to, taking notes from the slice of life genre, Heavans Memo Pad feels like that of a mature Detective Conan/Case Closed. Let me begin with this. If you enjoyed Detective Conan for the mystery aspect of the show, and wished it was better dubbed and had a more mature feel, this anime is right up your alley. If you hadn't gathered by that statement, this review is entirely based upon the dubbed version, as will all my anime reviews be, unless otherwise mentioned.

Beginning with Episode 1, we meet our main protagonist, Narumi. While he's presented as a generic everyman, a freshman student who happens to bump into a dubious operation in the scummy X rated district of town. After getting man handled a bit by a small man with a assault rifle and a army helmet. As Narumi's a High School freshman, that makes you ponder whether this stranger is legally a midget, or a tweeny that somehow got his hands on heavy artillery.

Well, he does continue to wear that helmet around the entirety of the anime, so that only adds more questions to how he's able to get his hands on heavy weaponry to carry in public. This clearly takes place in Japan, not America. Alas, this is only the first of the “NEET” detectives we meet, Shosa, who somehow made it to college.

While Shosa has a minor role, next member we meet is Ayaka, who happens to find Narumi as he isolates himself on the school roof. Off topic, but does anyone know If awesome rooftops actually exist on schools, or is it just anime's excuse to get the characters away from teachers and classrooms, while still being in school?

Anyway, while Ayaka is a fun and cheery girl, she's presented to be a bit on the absent minded side, often putting Narumi in suggestive positions, only to smack him and call him a pervert for it. Despite the fact that SHE was the one forcibly undressing another girl while he's in the room.

Speaking of Forcibly undressing, the poor victim of all this happens to be Alice, a small girl that has her own apartment above a ramen shop that NEET uses as their headquarters. Whether she's extremely smart or far older than she looks, I couldn't say, but I can say that she has stuffed animals bigger than her. And that's just adorable.

Last important cast member, unless you consider the woman that happens to run the ramen shop they fequent, is Soichirou. At least, I think that's his name. This mysterious yet noble yakuza crimelord is called several names, such as “The Fourth” “Yondaime” “Zone(Sou?)”, and Hina. I attempted to look this up and ended up only more confused on his name than I was to begin with. Lets just call him the White haired guy.

While Heavens Memo Pad could potentially make a good long running series, with each weak another mystery to unravel, it keeps itself short and sweet. Unlike Detective Conan, Heavans Memo Pad is a short series, only featuring 12 episodes, most of which personally involving the main cast, in a loose, story-arc light format.

Story Arcs include
Episode 1 (Stand Alone)
Episodes 2&3
Episode 4 (Stand Alone)
Episodes 5, 6, 7, 8
Episode 9 (Stand Alone)
Episodes 10, 11, 12

With only 4 episodes revolving around a “core” storyline (The first and final three), Heavens Memo Pad is easy to get into, take breaks, and finish off. Each of its story arcs are completely stand alone, and can easily be watched out of order. If you happen to start midway in a arc, its easy to figure out what happened based on whats going on, and thoroughly enjoy the episode. Unfortunately, this also means there's no truly strong and compelling storyline to speak of.

Characters: 6/10
Unfortunately for this anime, the characters are where it drops the ball. While there's hints that the characters may be interesting, only Alice actually stands out, with the rest falling under categories of character-types. Narumi's the everyman that's more capable than he expects. Ayaka is the bubbly girl that reaches out to the male lead, while at the same time being abusive and proclaiming he's a pervert for her inappropriate conduct. The rest are just plain forgettable. By no means though do I imply this means they're bad characters, perhaps with a longer season, or a second season, the characters could get a chance to grow on me more.

Plot: 8/10
While each arc is a stand alone, they all have a well thought out plot to each of them. The fact that most these stories are stretched across multiple episodes, really gives the writers room to expand and explore the situations as they come up.

Fun Factor: 7/10
If you love a detective story, you'll enjoy this. Unfortunately there's not enough clues that you might be able to guess the resolves, they do exist and if you have a imaginative mind, you might just be able to figure it out. The story itself is a bit slow, and if you're used to more excitement, it's easy to become bored while waiting for something to occur.

Sound & Art: 8/10
Heaven's Memo Pad, while nothing particularly notable about its art style in comparison to commonly produced, it is on the better looking side. As for sountracks, while most are quite forgettable, their intro piece, and the piece played when a revelation is made is very memorable.

English Dubbing: 9/10
Localized by Section23 (Otherwise known as Sentai Filmworks), Heavens Memopad has voices a large range of talented voice actors. While some of the voices can seem a little off for the characters, they are well acted, and well picked.

Overall: 7/10
While this anime's enjoyable, perhaps the greatest drawback is how short it is. I believe if given a longer run, the anime could equal the enjoyability of its rival mysteries, such as Detective Conan, or Gosick. Ironically enough, at the same time this aired, so did Gosick Like Heavens Memo Pad, Gosick features a very young and very short detective girl. If you're craving something else similar to Heavens Memo Pad, that anime might be of your liking.

The ending felt a bit on the empty side, which upon seeing that Heavens Memo Pad has had its run, leaves me disappointed. Perhaps if we see a Season 2, and this anime was given a longer chance to flesh out its ideas, it may of been so much better.

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Dictator was beyond horrible (No Spoilers)

By: 14th Lord



Alright, lets make this 2 cents quick and dirty. Dictator was directed by Larry Charles who we know from his extensive career directing movies such as.... uh.... Well.... he did do Borat. Not that I watched that. I had to do some research to discover his extensive profile directing pretty much nothing. His career started writing for Seinfeld, and started directing with Masked and Anonymous. Never heard of it either, so dont worry, you're not alone. Unless you had heard of it, then yes, you are indeed alone.

Taking a quick glance at his movie careers, Larry Charles seems infatuated by directing for over the top absurd movies. Just looking at the cover of Religulous and its cover poster involving monkeys in religious attire, one can quickly assume Dictator is well in his safe zone.



With a $65 million dollar budget, it's miraculous to me that not only did this movie break even, but it went on to earn over $177 million. Upon seeing the trailer in the theater when I was out to see another movie, I found my palm securely fastened to my face over how absurd this movie appeared. Upon first impressions, this movie appeared to be racist, sexist, over the top terrible humor. Finally after months of avoiding it, I at last took the moment to watch this train wreck of a movie and discovered my first impressions were completely correct.

No stereotype is spared, no summer comedy trope goes unused, and no racist and sexist remark goes unmade. That is the beauty of Dictator. It takes your average summer comedy movie where a bastard of a person meets new friends, realizes those he's done wrong in the past, and learns to be a better person himself before losing it all. Typical movie, well, it would be if it wasn't based on the Dictator of a african country known as Wadiya threatening nuclear holocaust. Every racist sterotype of middle easterners is taken and exaggerated a hundred folds. Building up this stereotype, the writer then follows up by of course, stripping him of his position and leaving him on the streets of New York City, where he can learn his wrong doings and become a better man while getting together with the obligatory girl love interest.

Haffaz Aladeen, the Dictator, is played by Sacha Baron Cohen, a British actor who you might know from Borat where he played the titular Borat, or Sweeney Todd where he was the self proclaimed “King of the Barbers”. Besides Sacha Cohen is Anna Faris who plays the movies obligatory love interest, Zoey. Zoey is every stereotype of the organic modern hippie rolled together, including the funny smells and lack of armpit shaving while somehow managing a organic produce store. Badly.



The comedy of this movie derives primary from satiring both politically correct and incorrect stereotypes, never once taking itself too seriously except when it's making fun of other movies for taking such scenes seriously. One instant for example comes when a woman spontaniously drops down into labor where our “hero” comes and delivers the baby in a manner most unhelpful, which involves him accidentally reaching into the wrong hole for the baby. Repeatedly. Of course this touching scene brings the two love interest together, while the woman in labor yells at the two to enjoy the moment some other time.

Characters: 5/10
The characters beauty of this movie is the characters existing as every politically incorrect stereotype. While this by no means make ANY of the characters a good character, let alone a likable character, it served the purpose of the movie without becoming distracting in itself.

Plot: 5/10
Take summer comedy movie and make it the most racist politically incorrect story about a Dictator. That pretty much sums up this plot. It's typical, and granted it's satirizing the genre, doesn't separate it from being in fact apart of the genre.

Fun Factor: 9/10
This can go either way. If you can enjoy racist and politically incorrect humor as long as it's satire, then you'll love this movie. Otherwise, expect to leave the box office in heavy rage.

Directing & Casting: 9/10
Everyone was well cast, and a movie of this tongue in cheek satire could of gone either way. To me, I felt it very carefully threaded the line of being racist and being satire, horridly, which oddly enough was perfect for this type of movie. Had this movie actually attempted going through with the trope of a jerk reaching redemption or actually tried making our protagonist with any shred of redemption, my opinion on this movie could easily be in the opposite end.

Overall: 7/10
This movie is bad. It looks as bad as the trailers and even worse. If you can enjoy this type of humor then it has my recommendation. While it's nothing particularly amazing, it's not too long, standing at only a hour and a half, while being enjoyable dumb fun.



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