Rose. Revolution. Revival.

I had all 9 Utena CDs. Even some of the first pressings. It took me a long to get them, but get them I did, and they were my most prized CDs. Why? Because I love the music to this series as much as I love the series itself. J.A.Seazer is a genius at construction pieces that are unbelievably orchestral, engaging, haunting, creepy, sensual, energetic, beautiful and captivating. Well, needless to say, I no longer have them. They were stolen along with many other personally-treasured items of mine. But I have been given a second chance.

After a two month release delay, I finally got a new copy of these recently re-released tunes. The Utena Complete CD-Box contains all the previous CDs, plus a bonus remix CD. Completely remastered for Kunihiko Ikuhara's eventual HD release of Utena, this complete soundtrack collection brings back all the memories from watching this fantastic series. And it never sounded better. Housed in a sturdy chipboard box adorned with an exclusive piece of Chiho Saito artwork, it looks great. The ten CDs are done in shades of fuschia and magenta, and are housed in thin jewel cases (with nice shine paper used for the inserts). A thick booklet completes this extremely limited set. On a side note, as this is a direct port of the tracks, what was previously missing is still missing.

It is unlikely I'll ever be able to replace the CDs I lost. They will always hold a special place in my heart. Nevertheless, its wonderful to be able to experience J.A.Seazer's fantastic work once again with this rerelease. Check out my slideshow for some (hopefully decent) pictures. Enjoy. I know I am.

From Princess to Warrior.

Its an unfortunate thing. Many have tried to produce good superheroine features. While some are more successful than others, they have never taken off (unlike their male counterparts). Well, the most popular superheroine of all, Wonder Woman, is finally getting her own feature animated movie. Have a look at the trailer. Personally, I have never been a big fan of the Amazon Princess, but I have to say ... the trailer looks absolutely spectacular! It's about time! Granted, I have yet to see Superman: Doomsday, Justice League: A New Frontier, or Batman: Gotham Knight ... I am excited for this one!

Speaking of superheroines and strong women, the 12-episode Ultraviolet:Code 044 anime is also being broadcasted in Japan. Hopefully Sony will bring it over here soon. The Opening and Ending animated sequences look good, and the songs are even better! I'll be previewing episode 1 soon, and I'll let you know what I think about it.

FUNi, the Savior.

That's the title I have dubbed the R1 studio known as FUNimation. In a surprise announcement at their AX2008 panel, FUNimation announced that they have struck a deal with (the supposedly defunct) Geneon to market and distribute several remaining titles and licenses that were orphaned. Geneon will still maintain their licenses and will oversee production of the dvds (after all, most of the materials were already completed before their sudden departure from the R1 anime market). In addition, Sojitz, an ex-partner with ADV, has also approached FUNimation. The result is that FUNimation now also owns the rights and licenses of all Sojitz titles previously held by ADV. Bad news for ADV, great news for FUNimation and anime fans out there. That is a huge number of titles added under FUNimation's wing, but I believe they can handle it. CEO Gen Fukanaga has made TONS of fanboys and fangirls wet their pants with this announcement. And AX2008 isn't even over yet! FUNimation FTW! Now the question remains on how these titles will be handled. Will they continue releasing singles for those partially-released titles? Will they just restart the whole title via boxsets? Will we have to double-dip on some titles? Regardless, now I can complete Rozen Maiden Träumend and Red Garden. I am SO excited! Can the 4th of July 2008 weekend get any better?

An influx of good stuff!

What a busy week it has been. The weather is warming up. I've been insanely busy at work, being part of a team putting together a new book for a potential new client. Its exciting, but its also time consuming. And of course, we get our due dates upped on us. Such is the course of being in the working world.

On the other hand, some good stuff has popped up during the week too. Thanks to a bidder service company, I received my Witchblade figure from Japan, and it looks absolutely stunning. Now I have both of Kotobukiya's Witchblade figures, and they look great as a pair. Yes, I know, I took them out of their boxes ... but I bought them for my personal pleasure, not to keep them sealed away so they can appreciate in value. I also received 3 DVDs (Tweeny Witches v2, xxxHOLiC v2, and the Tsubasa/xxxHOLiC Movie Double Feature). And the best thing of all was that I finally received a letter (for my Labor Certification) from one of my previous agencies that I have been requesting for a few weeks. Now the other one needs to get on the ball and get it done. Sheesh! Its a very simple letter that's already been drafted for them. What's more, its the actual truth this time, as opposed to the last time when my previous nutcase-of-an-attorney advised me to cheat the system.

Beyond that, it's looking to be a great weekend. Though its gonna be in the 100s ... so hydrate!

Mokona + Alethiometer + Straight Razor + Book of Spells = Entertainment!

So I recently got in some DVDs. Much needed. I'll post my thoughts soon.

xxxHOLiC volume 1 + Artbox

The Golden Compass Exclusive Best Buy 3-Disc Edition

Sweeney Todd 2-Disc Special Edition

Tweeny Witches volume 1 + Artbox

Uno gets published!

Having done character designs for Witchblade, Uno Makoto's style of artwork has always been quite unique. While certainly identifiable as anime, Makoto has a perchant for drawing his women with a large set of knockers. Witchblade was a challenge for him, due to Top Cow's mandatory requirements for their property, and the fact that it was basically a monster design challenge. Nevertheless, he succeeded with great success. Having said that, I managed to snag these two books, and I must say I am quite happy with them.

The Witchblade Official Visual Fan Book is a nice anthology of materials related to the anime series. My favorite is the 'Characters & Settings' section, where we get to see several designs and sketches of the characters that make up the Witchblade universe. Some of them are too small and detailed though, and should have been bigger. MUCH bigger. If I could read Japanese, I'm sure the 'Cast Interviews' section would be fun as well. Two additional sections ('Story' and 'Illustration Gallery') rounds up the book.

UNO! Uno Makoto Artworks is a collection of the artists' portfolio. Here, you do get HUGE Witchblade illustrations, including the ones from the R2 DVD packaging (missing from the other book) and that gorgeous collage of characters used in the second ending sequences. You also get great works of art from Gravion, Stellvia, Dragonaut, and even some of Uno's original artwork.

If you're a fan of Uno Makoto's excellent artwork, these books come high recommended. Get them while they're still readily available.

Someday...we'll shine together.

One of my favorite anime titles, Revolutionary Girl Utena, is getting a breath of fresh life in Japan. Director Kunihiko Ikuhara, is painstakingly doing a HD remaster for all of us. The 39-episode Tv series, stage musical, theatrical movie and soundtracks are all getting rereleased in three Box Sets. Great! But what's not so great? Well, its still on DVD and thus, R2 encoded. I'd have to buy a rerelease of this rerelease when it hits Blu-Ray. No english subtitles. And one helluva hefty pricetag, as everything will cost about U$D700+!!! I'll definitely be getting the remastered Soundtrack Box Set. But the DVDs themselves? I want to...bad! Now, one would say that I could wait for it to be released in R1 land. But I absolutely hated CPM's poor handling of the title, and I have very little faith that they will do any better if they're given a chance to. Guess I had better start saving up if I want to see any of my beloved Utena in her new revival glory.

New Artbook!

I've been watching Red Garden recently, and so far I am loving it. From the quirky art and designs to the atmosphere, mood and music, it's just ... intriguing. That being said, I managed to snag a copy of Red Garden ~ Stylish Motif from Kinokuniya. It close to being out-of-print, if it isn't already. The book contains some excellent character sketches, background art, and interviews with the 5 main seiyuus for Kate, Rose, Rachel, Claire and Lise. While I wish they included more illustrations, sketches, Japanese packaging art and coverage on the Dead Girls, I am still very happy with this book, because it's the only artbook that's available for Red Garden.

Riko ... aishiteru.

I'm pleasantly surprised and quite pleased with how this collaboration between Top Cow and Gonzo turned out. While there's definitely alot of fanservice and great action scenes, it doesn't stop there. The story and plot is fairly simple, but is made stellar with solid art direction and well-planned pacing, thanks to director Yoshimitsu Ohashi. We get a decent amount of fight scenes, but there are also plenty of story-development scenes, with the occasional comedy bits thrown in to lighten the mood. This gives Witchblade a good progression rate that's easy to swallow. Questions raised get answered as the series progress. In addition to that, an incredibly well-casted bunch of characters makes the whole story even more intriguing. This is where Witchblade shines as well. Time is spent on fleshing out the cast, giving them history, personalities, roles, and progressive development. You eventually relate to the characters and care about what will happen next. The japanese seiyuus did an amazing job of delivering the essence of the characters, bringing life and energy to them. The music score is very fitting to the mood of the show, the sound effects are spot-on, and Uno Makoto's fantastic designs just makes the series even more appealing. Add in FUNimation's well-done efforts in the R1 DVD release (including the Top Cow covers), and there's very little to not like about Witchblade. While it's not the most mind-blowing show ever done (and some may find the ending to be anti-climatic), it's a very well-done and enjoyable anime adaptation of a western comic property. And that's what anime is all about: being enjoyed.

Ma•Sa•Mu•Ne~chan ...

So far, I've been enjoying the Witchblade anime series. It's a great series that throws in a great deal of character and story/plot development, in addition the over-the-top but always funny fanservice. And of course, the Witchblade itself, and how it affects everyone. One dvd left to go. Having said that ...

Today I received a brand spankin' new toy from Japan, and I am totally thrilled! Well, a poser toy, to be exact. Sculpted by Busuji Max, Kotobukiya's 1/6 Prepainted Witchblade (PowerUp Version) is quite a spectacle. Having long been discontinued as the series aired in 2006 in Japan, I was wondering about when I happily found it in-stock at a place that previously had it as 'Discontinued' (because it was). Luckily I snagged it while it was available because 2 days later, it became 'Discontinued ' again. Their supplier must've discovered a misplaced pallet of them, or something like that. Regardless, I am stoked at having this figure. Now, I have to track down Kotobukiya's 1/6 Prepainted Witchblade, so that I can have a complementary set. While there are other figures from the Witchblade series out there, I feel that Kotobukiya's set is the best of the bunch.

PS. The shipment arrived in less than a week, and all the corners of the box was intact and not crunched-in. That's what you get when you pay more for EMS shipping: better handling, shorter shipment time, and a tracking number. When you're collecting things like this, believe me, it is well worth it.

Speaking of animation ...

... I can't wait till the new Batman: Gotham Knight dvd shows up. Think Animatrix. Comprising of six short anime segments, each directed by a different director and studio, they bridge the gap in between Batman Begins and The Dark Knight. And from the clip that WB released so far, it's gonna be awesome! Batman Begins is by far my favorite movie from the franchise. It was real, gritty, Batman wasn't a demigod and Ra's al Ghul and Scarecrow were pretty formidable. I love Tim Burton, but his takes were pretty 'phantasmagorical,' to say the least. I'm not even gonna comment on Schumacher's Batman and Robin. So, this has me excited.

Also, Ultraviolet is being given the anime treatment as well. Ultraviolet: Code 044 will be based on the movie. Will Milla Jovovich reprise her role?

More Shinkai Goodness!

The last few weeks have been crazy-busy at work. Not that I'm complaining, because being busy is a good thing, but I do look forward to the weekends. A whole two days when I don't have to work. I received my copy of 5 Centimeters Per Second, and I'll be viewing it this weekend. It is Makoto's third feature animation, and the trailer looks fantastic! Granted, Voices Of A Distant Star and The Place Promised In Our Early Days were awesome movies too, but this one looks like its his best yet! Check it out for yourself!

UPDATE. Well, I must say I'm impressed. Its very similar and different at the same time (from his previous animation projects). Tragedy is a common staple, so expect it, but in a very different presentation. Told in 3 distinct chapters of a character's journey, its impressive to see how Shinkai portrays Tono and his journey in life. All of the characters have distinct personalities, adding a sense of depth and realism to the story. You can't help but feel for them as the naturally evolve and develop over the course of the movie. At the same time, the technical production details are astounding, if not even better, to his previous projects. Colors, shadings, gradients, tints ... the realistic and highly-detailed details are amazing, something you would only expect to find in a live-action movie (because the details are carved into the damn props themselves!). There are no action scenes, per se, in this movie, but its not needed. Some sci-fi elements remain intact. Fluidity is a forte of any Shinkai project, and he often animate scenes in ways that are distinct to Japanese animation that western movies and tv series would never be able to leave intact (they're considered a waste of space, if you will. Pity). It really adds to the overall mood, value and artistic expression of the movie. The Japanese voice acting, music and sound effects are stellar as well, bringing the whole story together and evoking the emotions within you that Shinkai wants you to experience for his characters. Tenmon did a fantastic job with the musical score, as always. And yes, the story does have a closure to it. In short, Shinkai Makoto lives up to his previously set bars of expectations, if not surpassing them. Do I recommend this? You bet your your bottom dollar I do! The man is a friggin' genius! Avoid this if you must have moe, boobs, supernatural elements, guns, swords, mecha, explosions, or slapstick humor.