Archive for the ‘Portfolio’ Category
Q&A With Mick Waites of Code Monkeys
Posted by Ian | Filed under Interview, Portfolio
A few weeks ago we were fortunate enough to get the chance to ask a few questions of the developers over at The Code Monkeys about their recently released project – Manic Monkey Mayhem. This is the first WiiWare title that this legendary studio have created and they’ve managed to set themselves something of a benchmark.
The Code Monkeys are a long established British videogame creator with tons of games under their belt and more experience than the age of the average gamer as some of their titles go back to the old Atari days! Mick Waites, the Project Manager of Manic Monkey Mayhem took the time out to answer our questions.
Zentendo: Manic Monkey Mayhem is being developed on various platforms, what’s the main difference between the WiiWare and the DSiWare versions?
Mick: There’s a 2nd display on the DSi and you use touch controls rather than motion. Seriously though, there’s currently no difference between the versions so far as content goes with the exception of the graphics quality which is down to the hardware. We may not be able to include on-line play in the final DSi version, but that decision is completely out of our hands.
Zentendo: Which version of the game is the “definitive” version across all platforms and specifically on the Nintendo platforms?
Mick: It’d have to be the Wii version, really, as the game was developed around that platform and the motion controls mimic the in game actions somewhat, but with there being no difference in content between the versions it’s not really a clear distinction.
Zentendo: You’ve been developing games for longer than a lot of current generation fans have been alive for, how have you found the changes with Nintendo platforms across the generations?
Mick: As a general rule, the progression from one platform generation to the next is always a happy one as the hardware tends to offer more and therefore release a few of the restrictions present in the previous generation whether that be more memory to play around with, better rendering capabilities, more buttons available on the controllers – it all helps. The Wii was a bit of a curveball, though. You really have to think differently during the design phase about how to best make use of the new input methods.
Zentendo: How does the file size restrictions impact your development for the WiiWare?
Mick: Size isn’t everything, it’s knowing how to use it. I’ve had hours of enjoyment out of games that fit into 32K of RAM in the past. More memory/storage space just allows you more freedom with visual and audio effects. Great gameplay can be achieved with little memory.
Zentendo: What are your opinions on additional downloadable content and would you implement this on MMM or future titles?
Mick: As a gamer, I’m not particularly interested in downloadable content unless it offers something different to an existing game rather than just adding more levels. Manic Monkey Mayhem has not been designed with any plans for additional content. I wouldn’t rule it out of any future releases, though.
Zentendo: Are you planning a sequel to Manic Monkey Mayhem?
Mick: There is no plan for a sequel in motion at the moment, but I’m not ruling out the possibility. If Manic Monkey Mayhem 1 is a success, I’d be fairly certain that a sequel would be forthcoming.
Zentendo: On the WiiWare, DSiWare or on traditional retail release?
Mick: Digital distribution – it’s the future!
I’d like to take the time to thank Mick for taking the time out of his busy schedule to sit down and answer these questions.
Tags: Interview, WiiWare, Zentendo
Manic Monkey Mayhem
Posted by Ian | Filed under Portfolio, Review, WiiWare
Our primate friends are well known for their dexterous abilities, as well as their love of a certain yellow fruit and more recently their territorial disputes. The developer Code Monkeys have taken a lot of inspiration from these traits for their latest WiiWare title – Manic Monkey Mayhem.
As a WiiWare title, Manic Monkey Mayhem could be hindered by the limitations placed on file size with all WiiWare titles. At a glance, Manic Monkey Mayhem seemingly avoids these inherent issues, as the presentation is brilliant. The graphics, although a tiny bit dated, are smooth, vibrant and the textures are all unique. There’s a simple and easy to use interface throughout the options process as well.
The single player mode is divided into four different areas: Tutorial, Greatest Ape, Minute Monkey and Ape-Team. The tutorial is extensive and allows the player to become familiar with the basic and the finer aspects of controller their monkey minion. Great Ape is the crux of the title and is basically a war of attrition, Minute Monkey follows this same basic premise but adds a timer to the proceedings and Ape-Team splits the players and NPCs into teams and then it’s the last monkey left standing that is the winner.
Each monkey stands on their own platform and throws bananas and avoids being killed; there is no freedom of movement – which is something that takes a lot of getting used to. Even for fans of “on-the-rail” titles, there’s a degree of movement in terms of the character “railing” through the levels, whereas with Manic Monkey Mayhem, the character is entirely still.
In the single player mode there is no story that ties each level together, you simply play one level, complete and move onto the next level. There’s a gentle difficulty curve, so the first campaign shouldn’t take long to complete but as the single player continues, the difficulty increases and in some areas are frustratingly hard to complete. Although at some points it feels more like luck than skill when a level is over.
The controls do require a level of Wii Waggle, especially in regards to throwing the bananas at your opponents but fortunately the Wii Waggle doesn’t require a player to flail their arms and cause ABH to the nearest person in the room. There’s additional methods of controls available, such as the D pad for dodging or curving the trajectory of the throw and the Balance Board support, which is used in the same method as the Wii Remote is available throughout the single player mode.
Unfortunately something that should feel as natural as throwing a banana doesn’t always register well with the game. There’s definitely sensitivity with the Wii Remote, it’s just nearly impossible to guess how hard the player needs to flick their wrist to get the banana flying correctly. As this is a critical part of the game, the luck aspect does feel more prevalent than skill of the player.
Unfortunately regardless of how many hours are put into the single player mode, no extra characters, weapons or levels are unlocked. It really is as simple as you get what you see. However, the multiplayer is really where Manic Monkey Mayhem earns its points.
With a wide range of multiplayer modes available offline, it’s already standing up well against the single player mode. With individual and team play modes available, with score challenge games, pass the parcel and many other enjoyable, fun, almost mini-games. Although on a lot of the multiplayer games there is no scoreboard, so tracking who’s winning what is fairly difficult after several games or a night out on the tiles.
The best aspect of Manic Monkey Mayhem is it’s online multiplayer mode. Unlike many “AAA” titles, there’s an effective and usable online mode available through the Nintendo WiFi Connection. There’s very little lag, the controls remain the same and the presentation still remains top notch. In many respects it feels like the game is still offline. There’s no friend-code system, which his more than a blessing. Unfortunately there is no leader board system though, so playing online is simply for the player’s enjoyment and not for bragging rights.
Manic Monkey Mayhem has managed to squeeze an awful lot into the WiiWare package. With some incredible gameplay available, the biggest problem with Manic Monkey Mayhem is that the mantra of keeping things simple has gone too far and there needs to be more tracking of scores and a revisit to the controls of the main game.
Tags: Review, WiiWare, Zentendo
More Anime on Film4 Thanks to the Queen?
Posted by Ian | Filed under Feature, Portfolio
The head of the monarchy has a huge role to play in the UK, although a lot of what our Queen does today is ceremonial, a huge amount of ultimate power rests in the hands of her office. However, when Parliament returns from their break and the Queen’s Annual Speech is made, it’s normally just a piece of prescripted literature by the government in power at the time, outlining their vision for the future. Or in election years, as we will soon be facing, their campaign agenda.
What makes this year slightly different to the usual hollow campaign agendas is something very specific to broadcasting. Broadcasting in the UK has been suffering heavily since the turn of the year, with the recession hitting advertising revenues hard, thus impacting the profitability of ITV, Channel 4, Five and the rest of the digital channels. The BBC have managed to escape seemingly OK, with the exception of the weekly Daily Mail article that attacks their “overpaid” talent or “there’s too much management and middle management and none of them should be paid more than the Prime Minister; who, incidentally, we don’t like anyway” – this is due to the fact that the BBC is entirely paid for by the license fee. BBC Worldwide, World Service and America are all private companies funded by advertising or with the World Service actually funded by the Government directly.
ITV are private and have been hit hard with some bad investments and hit even harder with the fall in advertising revenue, although this year’s X-Factor and Katie Price appearing in I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here will help their viewing figures and by extension their bank balances greatly. Channel 4, on the other hand, is in a very unique position.
Channel 4 has advertisements on its station, that’s clear to see. Anyone who switches over to Channel 4, or any of the digital stations such as Film4, More4 and 4Music all have advertising. This is what a commercial station has to do to survive in this cutthroat world; however, Channel 4 is also partially funded by the License Fee as part of the Channel 4 charter is to provide “Public Service” programs. This year the Queen’s speech extended this remit to include film and importantly they need to back film and potentially have even more to do with the UK Film Council.
The UK Film Council are incredibly influential for British Films and are also incredibly influential about what films get additional marketing budgets, by their own definition they are:
The UK Film Council (UKFC) was set up in 2000 by the Labour Government as a non-departmental public body to develop and promote the film industry in the UK. It is constituted as a private company limited by guarantee governed by a board of 15 directors and is funded through sources including the National Lottery.
Sophie, The Witch of the Wste, Markl and HeenTo many this still means nothing and even less relevance on a UK Anime and Manga website; however, the UKFC have been supporting the anime and asian cinema scene in the UK since it’s creation in 2000, which can be seen by the table below:
Anime and Western Animation:
| Title | Distributor | Fund | Total allocated |
| Waltz With Bashir | Artificial Eye Film Company Ltd | National Lottery | £250,000.00 |
| Persepolis | Optimum Releasing | National Lottery | £180,000.00 |
| Howl’s Moving Castle | Optimum Releasing | National Lottery | £150,000.00 |
| Belleville Rendez-vous | Metro Tartan | National Lottery | £80,000.00 |
| Spirited Away | Optimum Releasing | National Lottery | £40,000.00 |
Japanese/Chinese live action:
| Film | Distributor | Fund | Total Allocated |
|---|---|---|---|
| Curse of the Golden Flower | Universal Pictures International UK & Eire Ltd | National Lottery | £300,000 |
| Lust Caution | Universal Pictures International UK & Eire Ltd | National Lottery | £200,000 |
| Mongol | The Works UK Distribution Ltd | National Lottery | £150,000 |
| House of Flying Daggers | Pathe Distribution Ltd | National Lottery | £100,000 |
| 2046 | Tartan Film Distribution Ltd | National Lottery | £80,923 |
| Zatoichi | Artificial Eye Film Co Ltd | National Lottery | £70,000 |
| I’m A Cyborg | Tartan Film Distribution Ltd | National Lottery | £20,000 |
Any anime fan will immediately see that without the help of the UKFC that the likes of Spirited Away and Howl’s Moving Castle may not have received a UK airing, or only had a very limited run. For Asian Cinema fans, The Curse of the Golden Flower, Mongol, House of Flying Daggers and Zatoichi are all amazing films and Curse of the Golden Flower would simply not have made it across to the UK without their help.
Gong Li as the Empress in Curse of the Golden FlowerChannel4 and specifically Film4 being legally required to have more to do with film and by extension more to do with the UK Film Council has untold benefits for the British film scene, but will also greatly benefit the distribution and mainstream appeal of anime and Japanese cinema in the UK. In comparison to many of the European countries, anime in the UK is tiny; it’s fans overly fussy and release timescales fairly prompt. Yet, aside from the odd murder where anime and manga is blamed, anime is virtually unknown in the UK, there are the children’s TV shows which are just orange ninjas or mystical pets attacking each other. There’s no mainstream acceptance.
Now that Film4 are legally required to have more to do with film, it’s a good bet to say that they will have influence over the UKFC. Film4 have backed many great British films and are already firmly behind Anime and the Asian Cinema. Which can be seen as recently as last week with their Asian Cinema Season and Grave of the Fireflies being aired in a few weeks time. With Film4 on board we will surely start to see an increased trickle of Japanese films. With much potential for anime films (such as Angel’s Egg, The Girl Who Leapt Through Time and if we’re lucky some of the Tenchi Muyo films) to receive real cinema releases and more TV timeslots, rather than the same tried and tested Studio Ghibli fare.
Thanks to Andrew’s blog for the figures above and for Film4’s Twitter Feed for pointing out the new law.
Tags: Anime, Feature, News-Anime.com
Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games
Posted by Ian | Filed under Nintendo Wii, Portfolio, Review
Once upon a time, a long time ago, two giants of the videogame industry were locked in a constant battle with one another. Two of the biggest mascots in history were being compared directly, and each company’s fans would attack one another. Not forgetting the advertising, which was a direct attack on the other’s system and verging on libellous.
Fast-forward to today and these two mascots and companies now inhabit very different worlds. Nintendo have managed to go from strength to strength with a few blips along the way, whilst poor Sega managed to create one of the best systems and some of the most amazing games only to fail and become a widely recognised and appreciated software developer. What was once unthinkable – Mario and Sonic in the same game, has now happened. There was a cameo in Super Smash Bros Brawl and then there was the first game that mixed Sonic and Mario characters – Mario and Sonic At The Olympic Games.
Two years ago when the original title was released to the masses, there was mixed reviews in the industry. So a title that divided the fans, the community and even the reviewers would naturally need to do the same with its sequel.
When Mario and Sonic at the Winter Olympic Games is first loaded into the system, it’s clear that presentation is key with this title. The cut scenes are brilliantly animated, the textures are smooth, flow well and the colours are vibrant and distinct. The menu screens are well planned and very easy to use, which is important for a “family friendly” game.
A lot of the criticism surrounding Winter Olympic Games was aimed at the amount of Wii Waggle that was required to perform even the most basic of mini-games. Wii Waggle is all well and good, especially when it adds to the title, but when it requires inordinate amounts of Waggle, it becomes tiresome. In Winter Olympic Games Sega have listened to the feedback and in the new mini-games, there is far less Wii Waggle.
There are various new mini-games, such as skiing, tobogganing and snowboarding, which only require the Wii Remote, although most games are compatible with the Nunchcuk as well. Most of the events require a tilt or the remote, rather than Waggling and waving of arms. This new way of working could easily be a disaster, with many of the Wii games having very laggy and unresponsive controls.
Mario and Sonic At the Winter Olympic Games does not have this issue. The controls are responsive, a slight movement is registered and the controls are not over sensitive. So when the character is veering off track, it’s very easy to move the character back on path. This level of sensitivity and responsiveness comes without any addons such as the Wii MotionPlus, making Winter Olympic Games even more family friendly and cost effective. Some of the mini-games, mostly the ones on snow, allow the user to connect their Wii Balance Board, should they own one but they do not require the use of this peripheral.
With plenty of modes to choose from such as Festival Mode, Circuit Mode and Dream Event, there’s no shortage of things to do in Winter Olympic Games. There are also various unlockable levels, which tend to be better than the standard mini-games that are available from the off.
Although, there’s no real WiFi Connection available on Mario and Sonic at the Winter Olympic Games, which in this day and age is almost unforgivable – even Animal Crossing achieved a real WiFi Connection. There’s the standard token online gesture, leaderboards and alike, but they are slow and each must be downloaded individually after each event – significantly slowing down playing time.
Overall Mario and Sonic at the Winter Olympic Games is vastly better than it’s predecessor. Sega listened to the feedback provided last time and made this mini-game collection much more interesting and easy to use. Unfortunately there is no online play, which even Mario Karts Wii and Animal Crossing Let’s Go to the City manage to achieve.
Tags: Nintendo Wii, Review, Zentendo
Desert Punk Volume 3
Posted by Ian | Filed under Anime, Portfolio, Review
In the post apocalyptic wastelands that remain after a huge disaster on the planet Earth, most of the population has been wiped out. With only the few people who remain living in deserts and ruins trying to forge out a new life with what little they have, it doesn’t take long before people try and make money in and way that they can. Although greenery might be a thing of the past, the ruthless thrill of money making is a strong as ever.
We find our anti-hero after a series of unfortunate events in Volume 1 trying to restore his battered reputation. Desert Punk was once the very best missionary that money could buy, but unfortunately for him a number of bad jobs has left that once shining reputation in tatters. To try and get some cash together to try and repay his lost jobs, Desert Punk takes on an easy job – looking after villagers. This episode is a vague and frankly somewhat poor attempt at a parody of The Magnificent Seven and the Seven Samurai rolled into one. Although this would’ve been better if it had not tried to pay homage to these over done stories.
Fortunately the successive episodes take the rest of this volume to better places. Kanta is forced to take on an apprentice, although he would rather of had an older women with plenty of cleavage for him to admire. His apprentice is actually the apprentice of the sniper who tried to kill him in an earlier episode. Fortunately for this apprentice, she is a clever being and blackmails Kanta into accepting her by what she’ll look like when she grows up. Of course this superficial attitude is not something that a parent may want to promote to their children, but in all fairness a good parent wouldn’t be letting their young children watch this type of show.
Desert Punk then kicks the humour up a gear with the next episode. Kanta and his lovely apprentice Taiko are tasked with trying to clear a cursed rock from a prominent businessman’s land. This rock has claimed the life of many-a-missionary in the past and to reclaim his once amazing reputation Kanta is determined that he will be the one to rid this businessman of this irritating cursed rock. Throughout this episode Kanta has vision of what he would love to happen and also a couple of nightmares as well. These crude dreams are well placed and are in direct contrast to the horror that Taiko is experiencing from her rational mindset.
Desert Punk Volume 2 is certainly a release of two halves. The first half of this DVD is a step away from what one might expect from the action packed first volume. Of course, the second volume of any anime is a hard one, just like that second novel is often scrutinised far more harshly than the first. However, in this case the first two episodes really do take Desert Punk in a direction that’s not necessarily where the second half was taking it.
The voice acting remains as consistent in English and it does in Japanese and although there are a few generic moments from some of the supporting cast, the main cast do a great job in English and they match the Japanese voice cast brilliantly. The animation remains as smooth and consistent as before and the washed out colours are no longer present. One big qualm is with sound quality though, be prepared to turn the volume button right up as it’s a very quiet release.
The first half of this DVD was droll, with the entire Seven Samurai plot; it makes the show feel tired and old. Of course the Seven Samurai legend is amazing, but it’s been done to death and with a basic premise (world destruction after an implied nuclear war) that’s also clichéd and overused the actual content of the show needs to be not only well above average, but delivered brilliantly to merely be passable. This is something the first two episodes do not do under any circumstance.
Fortunately the latter two episodes turn the entire DVD around and take Desert Punk back in the direction that is expected from Gonzo. They are action packed, humour inserted and appropriate and often random moments and a script quality that’s not paying homage or taking overused plots and working them into something nearly new. If it had not been for these two episodes, many would not continue with this series.
» Final Score
6
From what was a great first volume, the second volume of Desert Punk is unfortunately a bit of a let down. The last two episodes are very good, but do not make up for the first two mediocre episodes.
Tags: Anime, News-Anime.com, Review
Shakugan No Shana – Box Set
Posted by Ian | Filed under Portfolio
Every day we wake up, go to work or to school, have a busy day, go home, eat some food and go to bed. The world is a peaceful and enjoyable place, although it can be a little on the dull side. This was the life of Sakaki Yuuji until one day on his way to school he witnesses the world suddenly freeze around him. Everywhere he turns people are engulfed in blue flames, and it soon becomes apparent that there’s another world besides his own that’s in a constant battle. Just as Yuuji is about to suffer the same blue frozen fate as the rest of the people around him, a red haired youth appears calling herself Flame Haze. Unfortunately for Yuuji she’s incredibly blunt and lets him know that he’s dead and he is now Torch. Rather than sulking or becoming distressed Yuuji accepts this fact and Flame Haze becomes Shana, his friend and their whole new world begins.
The first episode sets the scene for what would be a very typical anime, with a bland lead character, a random character who comes to shake everything up and turns out to be incredibly arrogant and a world that needs saving. Nothing new and certainly not worth even switching the DVD player on for. Fortunately the second episode starts to move the plot forward a bit and throughout this episode the character develop and the show becomes a bit more than the standard “normal boy meets not so normal girl”.
From the second episode onward the show starts to take a different twist, as it soon becomes clear that Shana, although an arrogant character, is one with clear moral guidelines and is prepared to upset others to get what she wants. Although throughout the entire series she is very bratty and will demand her own way when it’s not always the best course of action. Yuuji follows at first the usual male lead role, he does deviate a fair bit from this clichéd personality, which makes him more likeable and bearable as a character.
Although a lot of the character’s personalities are a little overused, the plot fortunately takes a different course of action in comparison to the majority of the shows in its class. Unlike Naruto or Bleach the plot isn’t just one fight and adventure directly followed by another, there is character development and whereas characters in shows of it’s class seem to simply change in one sitting, characters in Shana change over time. Not forgetting the very open ended ending.
Although the characters themselves are trying to deviate from the norm, the animation style hasn’t changed a bit from any other generic anime that’s out on the market at the moment. The character designs themselves, although unique to this show, still follow the same basic trends as the rest of the genre and a lot of the supporting cast are hard to distinguish without being named by the other characters. The animation itself is of a good quality, with smooth movements and distinct characters from the background. The colours are vibrant and look good, although not outstanding.
The voice acting is of a good standard as well, the Japanese actors have clearly put effort into their vocal and on the whole each voice suits the characters very well. The same can be said for the English cast, although some of the voices do sound a little typical but overall it’s of a solid standard. Just like the music, likeable and enjoyable.
» Final Score
7/10
Shakugan no Shana deviates a little from the other titles in this genre and is much better than a lot of the alternatives around. For early teenage viewer this is a perfect title.
Kyo Kain MAOH! Volume 1
Posted by Ian | Filed under Portfolio
In a world where people are harmed, murdered, mugged and probably pillaged on a daily basis it’s one of the modern moral dilemmas what to do. Is it safe to stop and try and help the poor soul, just to end up going to prison or being sued because of the criminals “human rights” or does walking on by sound like the best option. Either way it’s highly unlikely that anything really, really bad would happen.
Unlike poor Shibuya, the protagonist in Kyo Kain MAOH! He was casually riding his bike one day when he saw someone being mugged, someone he knew, and felt morally obliged to go and help him. Unfortunately the other person did a runner and left Shibuya to face the wrath of the two muggers/bullies who were attacking him. After only offering them a pitiful 2,000 yen they decided that a good, old-fashioned “bog-washing” was in order.
Much to Shibuya’s surprise he found himself not just in the pan of a woman’s toilet, but being sucked into this chasm and after a flashback, suddenly in some new world. After a lot of confusion, and assumptions that the poor lad had fallen into a cosplaying European theme park he quickly learnt that he was not just average Shibuya. Shibuya was actually royalty from another dimension. If that’s not enough for him to comprehend, he was also a demon and was now faced with the difficult challenge of killing all humans and burning their land to a crisp in this new and strange world.
However it would appear that not all in Shibuya’s new kingdom agree with killing all of the humans, regardless of how scared some of the children may be of them. Shibuya himself has trouble coming to terms with this statement as well; after all, it is genocide. Yet the manga is not serious enough for the moral issue of genocide and just glosses over the issue for the most part.
It’s clear that this manga is meant to be humorous and it takes itself very lightly as the protagonist falling into their new kingdom via a toilet is certainly a way of keeping the atmosphere of the manga light. Although it does have an element of internal conflict, magic, training and various other themes that are expected in a fantasy manga.
Fortunately all of the characters in Kyo Kain MAOH! are very distinct, with a character design that is brilliant. Although following all industry conventions each of the characters are easily distinguished, especially as they are well drawn and attempt to go for the semi-realistic route that a lot of manga has been doing recently. Additionally the characters often find themselves in situations that they have never known before, especially the lead character. This could easily be mishandled making the characters spew over used clichés and other painful expressions; luckily, these do not occur at any point.
» Final Score
8
Kyo Kain MAOH! is an interesting opening to a series that is going to be dealing with various issues from the word go. Falling through into the world through at toilet sets the light tone throughout the entire manga, although it touches on issues that are much darker. With magic, strength, battles and humour, Kyo Kain MAOH! ticks many of the boxes that people want in a manga.
Jade Screen Volume 6 Issue 2
Posted by Ian | Filed under Feature, Interview, Portfolio
Tags: Anime, Feature, Interview, Jade Screen Magazine
Samurai 7 Box Set
Posted by Ian | Filed under Anime, Portfolio, Review
The anime industry is no different from any other in the world; it exists solely to make money. So when an executive in random anime company decides it’s time the legendary Seven Samurai needs retelling, the company gets to it. To quote the unused World War II propaganda: “Keep Calm, Carry On”. This is exactly what has happened with Samurai 7, the retelling of this already overused story has a slight twist as it’s set in an alternate future.
Many years after the Great War the young priestess, Kirara, is sent from her village to hire a samurai to protect their homes from the constant onslaught of attack that they suffer from cyborg bandits displaced after the long war. Kirara heads to the city with her sister Komachi to try and find someone to help them. Relying on the special amulet in Kirara’s possession they manage to stumble upon three samurai within minutes of arriving in the city.
Before long the Imperial Envoy is found dead with a bloody katana by his body and in an effort to find the murderer the magistrate’s decide to arrest every samurai in the town so the new heroes decide to escape the town and head back to Kirara’s village. The samurai’s make their way back to the village and find themselves up against a huge onslaught of cyborg bandits and they have to get to work immediately to try and save the village from destruction.
Throughout Samurai 7 there is an inordinate amount of sword fighting. Naturally with the show being about futuristic samurai types it’s to be expected to a degree, but the sheer number and length of these sequences leaves the viewer feeling a little dazed and frankly bored. There’s only so many times metal on metal can sound interesting, not to mention the fact that characters drawing close and then flying backwards from the sheer “force” of it can only be thrilling so many times. These extended action scenes appear throughout the entire show, and although some volumes have only a little sword fighting action, they are normally replaced with equally bizarre sci-fi affects.
Throughout there are cyborgs appearing in the towns, in the village and pretty much everywhere. They seem to contribute fairly little to the actual premise of the show and although it’s clear that they are meant to be the villains, they appear far too frequently and just look entirely out of place with the rest of the cast. Although suspension of disbelief is required in most anime, there’s only so far the viewer is able to go and unfortunately Samurai 7, with seemingly little logic to its expansive characters, goes beyond this.
We then face the weird spaceships that have been modelled on Edo architecture, which in a comedy anime would make perfect sense. Imagine seeing a flying Edo Castle in Lucky Star, or in The Legend of the Mystical Ninja – which makes perfect sense. In this seemingly serious anime it feels out of place and a little contrived.
That’s not it though; the English voice cast is awful. The character lack any form of conveying emotions and almost sound like robots themselves. In comparison the Japanese cast has managed to put on the performance of their lives with emotion ebbing through every spoken and unspoken word. So if Samurai 7 is to be watched, it requires watching in Japanese not the English dub.
The animation itself is good, the character designs are distinct and all of the characters are clearly modelled individually. The colours are brilliant and the costumes all look and feel in place. Even the out of place cyborgs and flying castles look brilliant, at no point can fault be placed on the character designs and execution as it’s first class.
» Final Score
5
Unfortunately this is one adaptation too far. Throughout Samurai 7 the plot feels clichéd, over used and in an attempt to try and be different by revisualising an already brilliant story the plot feels out of place and lacks any consistency.
Tags: Anime, News-Anime.com, Review
Claymore Volume 1 and 2
Posted by Ian | Filed under Anime, Portfolio, Review
Wizards, magic, demons, anti-demons and just general magery is a fad that died off after the final release of The Lord of the Rings a few years ago – especially in the anime world. In recent times there’s been a larger focus on fabulous titles such as Lucky Star, Haruhi, Host Club, Naturo, Welcome to the NHK, Death Note and really anything that doesn’t involve magic directly. This was slowly turned around recently and another show bucking this tread is Claymore.
The world is being devastated by a demonic beast that is able to carefully disguise itself as a human, so well that the humans around this demon are unable to detect them. The only reason these beasts; called Yoma prey on humans is due to their taste for the delicate flavours of human flesh. However, all is not lost, there’s a sect in humanity called Claymore who alone can sense Yoma and their altered physiology allows them to survive from wounds that would otherwise kill other humans.
The Claymore’s are feared almost as much as the Yoma’s by the general population, as they tend to bring disaster with them everywhere they go. When they go to fight a Yoma they transform and become similar to those of which they hunt. The more they fight, the more they become those creatures.
Following a young Claymore, Clare is one such warrior who is accepting missions to kill Yoma and defend everyone, who in turn despise her for her work. However, after she rescues a young Raki her life begins to change for the better. Raki attempts to learn as much as he can about the Claymore as possible, which for a normal “human” is very rare.
Along with this Clare is entasked to find and protect various villages, kill friends and meet up with the best Claymore to ever exist. Yet during these trying times it becomes apparent that the Claymore Organisation has anything but their best interests in heart with a human is killed involving an incident with Clare. Unfortunately Clare is the worst Claymore on the continent and can do very little about this; however a startling revelation shocks the entire Claymore people when they find a Claymore gone bad, but not just gone bad but something a little more than that as well.
Claymore could easily have turned into the cookie-cutter anime standard, where the women all have huge breasts, they all talk cutesy and there’s some bad humour on the side to keep everything jovial. Fortunately Claymore has managed to use its substantial backstory and create a show that’s different in many ways. Aside from the first, which is the nearly all female cast, of course there are many shows out there with female casts, but rarely are they so dominant, powerful and confident.
Claymore has a rich storyline, with it’s own mythology and philosophy. This is normally the cue for people to stop caring and just wish the show would get on with it. Fortunately Claymore manages to explain it’s extensive storyline throughout the plot with the characters having to deal with the turmoil of being ranked against other’s who are like them, but knowing that at some point they will turn into what they kill. Along with being despised by everyone they meet. It also deals with corruption as the very organisation that looks after the Claymore are hiding information not only from the general public, but from their own members which is discovered in a unique and strange way towards the end of the double disc set.
Throughout this fast paced show information is delivered in an easy to understand and enjoyable way. This in turn makes the viewer connect with the show on a comfortable level; it’s no art-house anime – even if it looks like one. This connection is one of the primary reasons to enjoy Claymore, as the show is walking a fine line between being interesting and being over-indulgent and data-dumpish.
Fortunately the casting is spot on between all of the characters and the English dub is enjoyable, although the Japanese cast have a slight edge over the English characters. There is emotion expressed from the entire cast and there is subtlety too, which is rare these days. The subtitles are done well as always.
The animation itself is good, the colouring looks a little washed out from time to time, but for the most part this benefits the show adding a touch of edginess to it. The character designs are good, but not brilliant. Unfortunately some of the characters do look a little samey and this is a huge shame as this show is worth of much more.
» Final Score
9
Claymore manages to mix magic and drama brilliantly. With subtle touches from the cast and a great storyline it’s a must for any collection. It’s just a shame that the character designs and the general washed out feel of the colouring lets it down.
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