More often that not, it’s easy to jump straight into playing the actual game itself and ignore
the other details. After all, these menu screens and everything else are simply a distraction
from what actually needs to be done – game playing. However, with Toy Story 3: The
Videogame on the Xbox 360, the title screen to the game will immediately pull the player
away from the real world and teleport them back about a decade with the familiar music
of “You’ve Got a Friend in me”, and make us all weep about our long-gone childhood. This
instantly recognisable music makes the player feel much more at home and although this is
a deceiving tactic, it works well for this game.

The menu screens are a breeze and it doesn’t take long before the player is able to select
the type of play they want. There are two main modes of play, Story Mode, which takes
the player through 8 levels. Each is expansive and is themed around the Toy Story 3 movie;
however, it does not follow the same storyline as the film. The majority of these worlds are
in a third person format and require the player to run around the world and collect different
items, hit certain types of switches and just generally achieve what the story’s goals are set
out to be. It’s standard gaming fare, with third party play interjected with the odd “on-the-
rails” shooter action. This occasional switch is welcome as it changes the pace of Toy Story
3: The Videogame and although the gameplay isn’t dull, it is always good to see a different
element introduced in games. The Story Mode is well thought out, with overarching plots
that move between the worlds; however, sometimes they do feel a little stretched and
some of the sidequests along the way are a bit stale and linear. Yet for the most part the
Story Mode is well considered and actually a little challenging; it is not a walk through the
park for a seasoned gamer.

The other mode available in Toy Story 3: The Videogame is ToyBox Mode, which is in its
most basic form is a free roaming game. The player is Woody, who is in control of his own
little western style town and he has the ability to go wherever he wants and do whatever he
likes. There are missions assigned to the player by random characters in the game and you
can either fulfil or ignore them. The ability to build in the town is available and the entire
game is entirely customisable. It’s a very unique experience from a movie to videogame and
it’s a welcome one.

Not to say that it is perfect, there are a few niggles with the display of the world and more
importantly the controls are fairly, especially for a child’s game. The movement around
the worlds isn’t flawless either, there’s a bit of lag or the controls simply aren’t as finely
tuned as one would like. Yet, these niggles can be put aside due to the sheer beauty of the
game. It’s been polished incredibly well and the developers at Avalanche Software and

Disney Interactive Studios have really put their all into the presentation of Toy Story 3: The
Videogame. With well-designed characters, that are bright and distinct against a variety of
equally well made levels. Not only that but they move fluidly, there’s no jerky Tomb Raider
on the PlayStation style movement, it’s smooth and a pleasure to view. It could easily be
mistaken for the film in 2D. They have also managed to secure the majority of the original
cast for the films for the voice acting work on the game, which makes a whole world of
difference.

Verdict:
8/10

Toy Story 3: The Videogame is one of the best movie to videogame adaptations ever. With a
well thought out plot, a gameplay that is well developed and a style that mirrors the movie
without copying it. It is certainly not perfect, but it’s the closest a movie to videogame
adaptation has been in a long, long time.

What happens next is every parent’s worst nightmare; Toby is killed violently by a robot with an unstable core. Grief does strange things to people and Bill opted to recreate his son rather than cope with the passing of his only child. He does this by creating the most lifelike and advanced robot ever made. To make his son even more real, Bill takes a hair from the only item of Toby’s that wasn’t vaporised – his hat – and clones his memories and uploads them into his latest bit of kit.

Any fantasy and sci-fi fan can tell you that clones, even clones that are robots, aren’t the same as the original person and if only someone had told Bill this – as before long he realises that he can’t stand Toby. Toby overhears this and manages to fly away from his father after a slight row and then is found by the President of Metro City. The President is after Toby due to his power source, the rare blue core and he thinks it will help him secure re-election. Toby is blasted by the President’s goons and he falls out of the sky and lands on the Earth’s surface. Before long he is taken in by the locals under the new name of Astro and has to deal with the complex situation of everyone thinking he’s human when he isn’t. Of course, it doesn’t take long for his secret to become known and then as it becomes known he has to battle to save not just Metro City but the entire world.

Of course, Astro Boy isn’t a direct and faithful manga-to-film transition, more of a reimagining of some of the key points from Tezuka’s 1952 work. Yet, due to this, the film manages to charm and play with what was current nearly sixty years ago and make the storyline fit into the modern day with relative ease. As this is a child’s film, the storyline is somewhat simplistic; however, the character development throughout the film is easily viewable. From Bill learning how to cope with his child’s death, to his abandonment of his reborn child to accepting him again towards the end of the film, it’s clear that the producers of Astro Boy are intent on drawing as many emotions out of its audience as possible. All of the primary characters have depth, from Toby/Astro to Astrid and the majority of the other characters in between; there are backstories to be told for each of the characters which are merely hinted at in the most meagre of ways. To a child these subtleties are well hidden, but to the adult watcher it gives the film more depth and creates a much more enjoyable viewing experience.

Naturally there are characters that are good and those that are evil and due to the way the characters are portrayed it’s very easy to get behind the protagonists and enjoy hating characters that really do deserve it. The President it one such character and although it’s very tongue in cheek, it could easily be referenced to the recent elections in the UK, where politicians will do anything that they can to remain in power. Astro Boy also opens up questions about humanity itself – is a robot with a human mind a human or a robot? This sort of question isn’t something that a viewer would expect from a shallow, Japanese action, kids film. Fortunately at no point is Astro Boy a shallow film, it touches on many elements of daily life, from fitting in with your peers to discrimination and back again. These themes are masterfully dealt with and a child will see very little of this and what they do see will be considered normal to them. It’s from an adult’s eye where this film truly comes to life.

Astro Boy is also a joy to watch, it’s CGI animation suits it down to the ground, with smooth animation and crisp corners there’s none of the “cheap” animation that’s often seen in budget shows. As the film is entirely CGI, apart from a few opening credits, the film falls straight into the Finding Nemo and Wall-E bracket of animation style, except slightly more generic. This would be fine for a standard Nickelodeon film; however, Astro Boy has more of a storyline and much more potential, therefore the inoffensive style is trying too hard to remove itself from its Japanese routes and thus removing part of the soul of the film. Fortunately the great voice acting cast manages to add a lot of soul back to the film. From the likes of Nicholas Cage, Matt Lucas and Kristen Bell, the acting is first class with no overdone moments or poignant moments that fall flat. To put it very simply, Astro Boy is a perfect family film and executed brilliantly.

8

Astro Boy is masterfully executed, with a great storyline, brilliant voice acting and a passable, inoffensive animation style for the mass market consumer. It’s a thoroughly enjoyable film and a great one for all of the family; however, purists will be immediately turned off due to the lack of cohesion to the original Tezuka work.

Yes, that’s right, the daughter has to dote on the mother as she has no memory of anything prior to the incident that shook the world and wiped her of her memory. She just appeared as a lone survivor in the rubble with a baby in her arms.  It doesn’t take long to find out why she was the lone survivor in a disaster that killed all else – she’s more than just a human. Masane Amaha is a Witchblade, which is a form of weapon that changes the very character and power of a human being and transforms them into the perfect weapon. With her daughter, Ryoko, she runs from the law in the first few episodes before she is discovered by Reiji Takayama of Douji Group Industries where she is employed to fight malfunctioned Witchblades.

During all of this a relationship starts to blossom between Masane and a photographer who helps save Ryoko in the earlier episodes of the seires. There’s a lot of death from the word go and some of the deaths in the middle episodes are very poignant as the characters are somewhat believable and it’s easy to connect with them. Then there’s the huge twist mid-way through which reveals something that is only hinted to a few times early on in the series. This clears the path for an emotional rollercoaster for the lead characters and creates just a small bit of tension.

None of this plotline is earth shattering, in fact, in many respects its little more than standard anime fare. With the end of the world just happened, or in this case, an end of a very localised world, law enforcement agencies that are either evil or just corrupt and a lone protagonist who has to save the world. Yes, Witchblade ticks all of the boxes that makes it nothing special. Then there’s the plentiful fanservice. Although tame in comparison to Daphne in the Brilliant Blue, where the lead characters wear next to nothing and then in battle wear even less, there’s still enough of it to keep any young male salivating. Fortunately Witchblade does not take itself too seriously and makes fun out of the lead characters impossibly large breasts when she’s in her “human” form. When she’s battling as the Witchblade, well, there’s jiggling a-plenty as the “enemy” Witchblades also have impossibly large boobs and tiny wastes.

Yet, what makes Witchblade stand out from the crowd are the characters. Yes, aside from the somewhat clichéd plot at times and the amount of fanservice that shouldn’t interest anyone over the age of 16, the characters are what really make this show worthwhile. There’s a fair amount of character development from the entire cast, not just the main three or four but the supporting cast members seem to evolve by the end of the series. The relationship between Mother and Daughter, between man and woman become apparent and watching relationships blossom and die, amongst copious amounts of death, destruction and sci-fi action puts Witchblade above a mere average anime.

The animation is very good on Witchblade, with characters moving at the same time, clear and distinct colours and with the odd nod to some cyberpunk and Bubblegum Crisis references here and there. The backgrounds are all distinct and at no point does the show feel like it’s recycling different backdrops to save money. The characters themselves are all very distinct and clear, even though a lot of the characters wear few clothes and have huge breasts; it’s easy to distinguish one from the other. The supporting cast for the most part look good and individual as well. The dubbing is a little off, with the Ryoko’s voice feeling off compared to the Japanese cast, but that’s by-the-by as the acting from each cast member is of a good quality and there’s only a few lines of dialogue that sound awkward.

7

Witchblade is a solid show that’s clearly had a lot of love and affection thrown at it; however, it’s let down by the need to over fanservice the characters and by a somewhat clichéd plot. A touch more originality here and there and a sprinkling of maturity rather than aiming at the teenage boy market would really set this show apart from other’s in it’s genre.

The very name causes us who are in their late teens and older to smile, that sad smile that you only pull when you’re happy but sad at the same time. The juxtaposition in feeling that causes internal conflict and to remember everything with a shade of rosé. To anyone who’s not old enough to have played games between 1991-1999 will simply laugh. Sonic has managed to loose it’s classic and perfect status that it had back in the early days of what could be considered modern gaming, with some truly hideous titles that’s left nothing but a sour taste in the players mouth.

In an attempt to pacify the concerns of the players and so that Sega know that they’ve still got a cash-cow, the developers over at the Sonic Team are doing what’s been demanded of them for a long time: 2D Sonic games. Of course, just making a game in 2D doesn’t mean it’s going to be a good, just look at Four Swords Adventures from the Zelda series to see that. Yet Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Part 1 looks like it’s going to be great and of course the marketing department over at Sega can’t miss the chance to make a bit of cash from this old, arthritic hedgehog.

Welcome: Sonic Classic Collection, on the Nintendo DS. Featuring all of the main Sonic games that came out on the Sega Mega Drive, with the exception of the Spinball and 3D games.  Of course, the majority of these games have been re-released dozens of times over the years, heck; I even own all of the main Sonic titles two or three times in different forms as it is. What makes the Sonic Classic Collection different from all of the previous editions of these games is simple – Knuckles.

In the majority of the older editions Sonic and Knuckles was added on at the end as a sidethought, that last truly Sonic 2D game before the Sega Saturn came out with all of its new thoughts, music and Sonic CD. It’s that game that a lot of people forget about – just like Paper Mairo 64. This time around though, Sega have put a lot of effort into making sure that Knuckles is recognised and that their hardwork has not gone amiss – Knuckles can appear in Sonic 2 and Sonic 3 as himself. It’s time to actually sit back and pretend that you’ve pulled that Mega Drive out of the TV unit and put Sonic 2 on top of Sonic and Knuckles and hope the cat or dog won’t run over the Mega Drive causing this precariously placed object to fall apart.

The one downfall with Sega’s attempt at DS lock-on technology is that they’ve left out one key game – Sonic 1. Sonic 1 never actually featured Knuckles in the game; however, if I were to place Sonic 1 into Sonic and Knuckles I’d be met with a memorable screen of Robotnik, or as he’s now known Eggman, telling me off. However, if I was persistent I’d be met with the random Sphere World that was playable in Sonic 3 when I’d gathered enough rings or had jumped through those Giant Rings. This is sadly missing from Sonic Classic Collection as it can and did provide hours of pointless entertainment with  nothing to show how well you’ve done, except for a strange sense of achievement.

Of course, if this was the title’s only let down it would be easily permissible; unfortunately, it’s not. The first thing that any keen Sonic player will notice is that the music is different, not changed, but different. This is due to the version of the original titles Sonic Classic Collection is using, it’s the US version. The NTSC version of all four games was faster than what we had in the UK, so it sounds odd and although it’s slightly off putting at first, it’s something that I could learn to live with. It just meant that some of my favourite Sonic tunes had gone to bad club and had an amateurish DJ just up the tempo on them.

When playing the various games, initially there seems to be very little change, which is the way it should be. These games are direct ports from the original games and as such, they retain all of the original charm, design quirks and simplicity that made them instant classics in the first place. Sonic 1, although twenty years old next year, has retained all of the glamour of the age and is as playable in one sitting today as it was in the days before saving. Sonic 2, the sequel and better of Sonic 1 has managed to keep it’s momentum going, even thought the levels have been played to death and all of the secrets are known to all. Sonic 3, the youngest brother who just isn’t as good as his older brothers shines the most out of this remake as it features the Save function it’s older brothers don’t and it also manages to recapture the Sonic magic that the first two had in abundance that’s been sorely lacking in recent years. Sonic and Knuckles the forgotten cousin once removed plays brilliantly and is as challenging and as amusing as it was the first time around.

The issue with all of these games, including the lock-on titles is the actual port from Mega Drive to DS. There is significant slow down and it’s not something that’s only spotted thirty minutes into the game either, as soon as I booted up Sonic 1 and ran and jumped to get the 10 Rings box on the ledge the slow down started, although subtle and slight it was noticed immediately. Whilst contuing to run around the various levels in Sonic 1 the slow down becomes more noticeable, it’s bareable but noticeable. Certainly nothing like the slow down that’s featured when I used to play 2 player mode in Sonic 2 and there were a dozen baddies in the same area, but slow down nevertheless. However, in Sonic 2 and Sonic 3 where there are a lot of moving background images and obstacles as well as baddies and Sonic rushing through the Zones, the slowdown becomes more pronounced and I had to compensate for it. Maybe it’s Sega trying to make old hands to the games think a little more, but I suspect it’s just not had enough attention lavished on it. Not forgetting the dodgy controls, maybe it’s just me, but you can’t push left and down at the same time on the DS and consistently as I could with the Mega Drive. The results are too varied, sometimes Sonic will roll and other times you’ve just lost 98 Rings in one go.

Yet, the very fact that these games have been repackaged and thrown into one DS cartridge shows that Sega are thinking, even if it is just a cheap ploy for some quick cash. The Sonic Classic Collection is enjoyable and although there are issues with controls and slow down, it’s not something that impacts that game to the point where it’s unplayable. The slow down can be frustrating, but it’s a frustration that passes when the rest of the game continues as these classic titles are simply superb.

Sonic Classic Collection is certainly worth purchasing, even if it’s just for the lock on technology. However, if you’re trying to introduce a younger gamer to the world of good Sonic games, then it may be better to let them play it on the Virtual Console as the slow down may impair the enjoyment for those with  less experience to the Sonic world.

Death Note is already well known to almost all of the anime community, despite only making across to the UK in 2009; it’s been widely followed, admired and discussed about for many years. Something that not many anime can achieve, it’s so widespread that there have been a number of “copycat” incidents in the media where people have actually penned their own “Death Notes” books with people they hate – naturally this has led to the mass media trying to use Death Note as some sort of scapegoat for society’s wider problems.

Death Note focuses primarily on the lead character, Light who is a teenage prodigy with a strong sense of morality and what the world should be like. Due to this intelligence he easily believes that he could play at being God, a task that is given to him in the first episode as he finds a notebook with instructions. These instructions are very sinister, write someone’s name in the notebook and that person will die.  As with most decent people, he dismisses it as something that’s disgusting but is also tempted to use this tool. He decides that he’s going to test it on someone who deserves to die – a most wanted criminal.

To his surprise it works, and to further this level of shock he is met with a Shinigami (Death God in Japan) called Ryuk who explains how to use the Death Note, mostly because he wants to see what’s going on and as he’s got an affinity with apples.

It doesn’t take long for the police to realise that someone is killing off criminals around the world and brings in someone to try and help – L. L is a criminal’s worst nightmare, with a sickly look about him and an almost Sherlock Holmes power to deduct everything from the word go and play the game at the same time he’s easily the hero of the series.

The plot itself moves around at a very quick pace, with plenty of subplots running concurrently and with an expanded but brilliantly placed cast Death Note manages to capture the viewer’s interest in the first episode. Rather than the series peaking at the start and the end it manages to keep the suspense running throughout the entire series – not an easy feat. Especially as this is a 37 episode series that’s essentially a murder-mystery show. At no point do the cast seem mechanical, forced or unbelievable. Even the characters that are seemingly perfect, such as Light or L are fallible and these fallacies are shown in the most catastrophic ways – something that would often occur to people who are “better” than everyone else.

Of course, to keep the plot moving along there are a few twists and turns that are expected a little and towards the middle of the series it becomes hard to picture how the show will continue with its momentum. It’s at this point a coup de grâce is delivered to one of the key characters and the entire show’s dynamic changes and some of the other characters start to “slip” a little, it’s at this point the viewer is able  to start predicting the end of the show; however unsuccessful they may be at it.

Death Note manages to toy with the audience throughout the entire show, with promises of scenes that do not occur but make the viewer beg for more of what was delivered instead. At no point does the show let the viewer take a back seat and simply guide them through the world, it’s shock after shock with blows to the gut that leave the audience gasping.

The characters are well designed, with all of the “other-worldly” creatures designed in a way to show that it’s clear that they are the same specie, but each are unique as humans are. The humans in Death Note also all look different – another rarity from the anime world. The support cast are all designed well and the actual colouration of the scenes and the characters is done brilliantly. A keen eyed viewer will be able to spot that the colours change throughout the show, with the backgrounds darker and lighter at different points to accurately reflect the situation at hand.

The casting of the voice actors of the Japanese cast is perfect, there is emotion and depth in the acting, and the English voice cast attempt to match this but miss but a smidgen but the English dub is still a great dub and well worth watching.

9

Death Note has clearly has many influences: it’s part horror, part tragedy and part detective drama. With the lead character being a super smart, super athletic teenager with maniacal tendencies, it’s easy to dismiss Death Note as its plot is weird and its lead character is boring. However, this would be a grave mistake. Death Note is easily one of the best anime to be released in the 2000s.

Over the years Ghost in the Shell has managed to achieve the legendary status that is normally only granted to films from Studio Ghibli. The popularity of Ghost in the Shell in the past fifteen years is such that a sequel was released nearly a decade later, Ghost in the Shell Innocence, although not a direct and before that the anime series – Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex. To further prove the popularity of this show, Ghost in the Shell 2.0 was released in 2008. GitS 2.0 is a re-release of the original GitS film, but it has been entirely reproduced, from the digital scenes right through to the voice acting and soundtrack.

It’s some years into the future, in a world that looks essentially the same as our own today. The major countries in the world still exist, political turmoil still exists and the corporate and public backstabbing that occurs through all companies and governments have intensified due to the revelation of new technologies. In these government agencies, there are an increasing number of people who used to be human and are now part cyborg with only parts of their humanity remaining – mainly their consciousness, which is referred to as the Ghost.

Two of Japan’s top agencies although to the public appear to be working together, are actually bitter enemies and only keep the façade up to ensure that the status quo is maintained and all out warfare doesn’t occur. However, they are equally as suspicious as secretive as each other and this is seen from the very first scene in the movie. Our heroine, or even anti-heroine as many would argue, is on a stakeout mission where she has to kill one of the contacts of Section 6, which she manages to do with ruthless efficiency.

It doesn’t take long for some of Section 6’s plans to go a bit astray and Section 9, the section where our heroine works, finds out and sends out the team to find out why Section 6 have access to robotic technology that they have no need for. Whilst they investigate Section 6, some truly incredible information falls into their possession around Ghosts and Ghosts evolving from nothing – something that was once thought of as impossible as part human part android people.

Unfortunately Ghost in the Shell 2.0 does not wrap everything up nicely, there’s a huge cliffhanger and this leaves a lot open to interpretation. Naturally this leaves the viewer desperate for more – a sign of a truly great film.

The characters are all clear and distinct, with plenty of questions raised on the morality of creating people and interfering in the human body and there’s loads of character development from the two main “androids”, something which a lot of anime manages to miss. The film itself is very grungy and has echoes of cyberpunk from the very start. However, this does not mean the film has been done on the cheap, or looks cheap, the backgrounds and characters are well drawn and the colours – although dark – are distinct and accurately reflect the mood of the film.

The voice acting of the English cast is brilliant, with all of the characters completely distinct and recognisable even when not looking at the screen, which is a very rare occurrence. The acting of the English voice cast is also top-notch with affection, sadness and melancholy being expressed with truth. The Japanese voice cast are also amazing, as is the actual soundtrack to the entire film.

Ghost in the Shell 2.0 is going to be contentious for many fans, those who saw the original or the Special Edition a few years ago will notice some significant differences in the films that they are watching. 2.0 has a lot more CGI, with some scenes entirely redone and unfortunately some of the CGI scenes jar painfully with the original drawn scenes that it sits next to, it’s more than just a juxtaposition, it’s a little off-putting. However, the rest of the upgrades are perfectly done, the majority of the scenes have been improved with more distinction in the characters and with more effective colours. Between the original and the remastered version the colour palettes have changed significantly as well, there’s a lot more orange and lighter hues than the original blue and greens, this update is done very well and doesn’t jar or look out of place with modern anime – although the original colours give the film a different feel.

9

The original film is going to be many people’s favourite; however, for sheer quality of transfer and the gentle revisions made in most places simply lift the quality of this film’s visual up a few levels. With a great storyline that grabs the viewer and a cast that’s the best in recent times, it’s a must have for all anime fans.

Panda! Go Panda! is an early work of Hayao Miyazaki and Isao Takahata, which predates Studio Ghibli and the pairs more famous works by many years. However, the early signs of the pair’s creativity and artistic style is very dominant throughout the film itself.

Calling this production a film is a bit of a stretch though, it’s more like a collection of extended episodes from an anime sewn together with a common theme – pandas. Not that this is a bad thing though. In the original release there were a few follow up episodes; these have all been threaded into one extended DVD with three episodes.

From the off it’s clear to see that this is not only early anime, but is also early Miyazaki work. The character designs, while distinct, lack the finesse of more recent films; however, his style has clearly been developed from this early work. This is clear to see from the resemblance between Ponyo and Mimiko for example. The pair’s work has also become famous for paying an incredible amount of attention to the scenery and being surrounded by nature, this style and theme is apparent throughout all of Panda! Go, Panda! as one is able to tell simply from the name of the feature.

The basic premise of the story is that a little girl- Mimiko has been left on her own to tend to a home whilst her Grandma goes away in Tokyo. Mimiko is a very young girl, so immediately the thought of someone of that age being left alone does strike a chord of disbelief; however, Mimiko is a very capable young girl who manages to see her Grandma off and goes home to find she’s got intruders in the house. Before she can really comprehend what’s happened, there’s a baby Panda in her home who she decides to care for with the passion of a Mother.

Mimiko is still of school age and decides to take Panpan to school with her, which understandably causes a riot as they don’t believe Panpan to be a Panda but another creature that needs attacking. Mimiko manages to secure Panpan and takes him back home only to be met by a giant Panda, Papa Panda. Mimiko takes this all in her stride and decides that they will become a larger-than-life family with a human “mother” and two Panda’s for relatives. The rest of the stories continue in a similar vein, and it’s clear that this story is a precursor to the more internationally famous Pippi Longstockings and Totoro.

Panda, Go Panda! is available in both English and Japanese. The English dub is well done, considering it’s got no Disney backing unlike the majority of Ghibli works, although Papa Panda does have a very strange, almost Jamaican imitation style voice. The subtitles are well placed and the overall quality of Panda, Go Panda! is top-notch. Considering this title is older than the majority of the people who will be watching it and as it’s clearly a “cash-cow” to try and grab some cash from a passing fad the actual animation quality and transfer to DVD is brilliant.

8

Panda, Go Panda is an amazing piece of work, for fans of Ghibli who want to see what the lead directors were up to before the creation of the Studio this DVD is a must and as it’s been out for a while now it’s going to be cheap to pick up. For people looking to try and emulate the “Spirited Away” experience, it’d be best to look elsewhere.

Part 1 of this acclaimed anime series left us on a high, Haruhi had just been through a vision roughly based around Alice in Wonderland where she was being tried for various crimes before she realised that she was in a dream. We catch up with the unlikely group of people back at school and the school newspaper is suffering from a decline in readership and need the Host Club to help them get back on their feet.

The next twelve episodes of Ouran High School Host Club mange to continue with the high quality that was experienced throughout Part 1, with fun being poked at class, gender and many facts of life for “normal people” as well as expanding into areas of emotion and divide whilst maintaining the easy going flow of the show. There is hints of a complicated storyline being developed by the latter episodes of Part 1 and Part 2 only go to expand upon that. Whereas many animes attempt to have multiple plots running at the same time end up being a mess of random episodes tied together, Host Club effectively manage these plots and subplots throughout the entire series. There are some references that only the “otaku” culture may understand, such as growing mushrooms in a dark corner, but for the most part the universal humour that was seen in Part 1 has translated through to the remainder of the show.

Granted Host Club is entirely unbelievable in almost every aspect – super rich kids essentially enslaving a poor person at a school where apparently no work is done and teachers allow half naked boys running around empty music rooms. But the character development is strong, for the entire cast, not just the two lead characters. This is a rare occurrence in any form of media, let alone anime. Based on the first volume of this series it would be easy to believe the characters to only be 2.5 dimensional, a bit flat with a tiny bit of history. This volume really fleshes the characters out from the twin’s insecurity, Kyoa’s inferiority complex, Honey and Mori’s extensive history to Tamaki’s less than pleasant relatives. These issues are also all dealt with, but in a manner that leaves other issues open for the characters to inhabit and dwell in, of course this is a comedy show and all issues are dealt with in amusing ways. Fake feuds, exaggerated worry and various other techniques are used to keep the viewers attention but keep the emotional undertones in full view.

To maintain this level of detail the script needs to be next to perfect and fortunately the same high quality writing has managed to be marinated throughout the entire series. This has led to no filler episodes and even fewer duds. As this is only a 26 episode series with nothing on the horizons for a Series 2 the writing and plot has had to be very tight and this attention to detail shines through.

The animation quality also remains very high, with every character being bright, distinct and easily recognisable. There are a few scenes where characters are doing fiddly jobs and the animation is smooth – the temptation to simply have music playing the background whilst there’s a freeze-frame on the character has fortunately been ignored.

In terms of voice acting, the Japanese cast is best; however, the US voice actors have done a superb job at getting much of the maniacal laughter and emotion across. All of the characters match their voices and it’s all performed very well – just unfortunately they’re not as good as their Japanese counterparts.

In terms of extras, well last time I managed to get a copy of the US disc and there were some amazing specials that didn’t fly across to the UK release which is a huge shame. Those extras really made the DVD super special. Unfortunately the extras again have been missed off of the second volume for the most part. Maybe next time eh?

10/10

With a gentle storyline that helps the character’s development and engages with the viewer, Host Club manages to achieve what many anime attempt and miss: an engaging, personal experience.

Twenty years ago was a very different time for gamers, it was approaching the end of the 80s, TV was awful and one of the most successful and interesting systems available was an 8-bit gaming console called the Nintendo Entertainment System. This latest frenzy had hundreds of titles created for it; some have had international success and films, such as Mario and Final Fantasy. Others have become legends in their own lifetime and will literally sell a console – such as Zelda. Others have faded into obscurity after a promising start, like A Boy and His Blob.

Move forward twenty years and this title has fallen into complete ambiguity, over the years it’s occasionally been revisited to potentially try and create a remake but each time these remakes have failed to appear. This trend has now been bucked by WayForward Technologies, who have created an updated version of this cult classic.

Although at first glance Blob could easily be an imaginary friend, he is in fact an alien from Blobolonia and has come to Earth to try and find help to usurp the current Evil Emperor of Blobolnia. He unfortunately only comes across an Earth boy, who gallantly decides to help him along the way. “A Boy and His Blob” is divided into different worlds, each with ten levels to complete. Boy will start off at his secret hideout, where a map will be consulted before moving on to actually start platforming through the levels. The crucial element of this game is the Blob. Blob is Boy’s companion and although Blob looks like a serial killer, with dead eyes, he’s actually vitally important as without him Boy would be unable to get past various obstacles and puzzles that are littered throughout the levels.

Blob, for the most part, doesn’t actually contribute much to the adventure. That is until Boy starts to feed him jellybeans. Different coloured jellybeans will allow Blob to change and have different abilities, think Ditto from Pokémon, only more helpful and won’t die immediately. In the original NES title, part of the game was searching out jellybeans, fortunately this tedious task has been removed in the Wii remake and Boy has a limitless supply of jellybeans. However, some levels will restrict the abilities available to Blob, so it’s crucial that the correct ‘bean is selected otherwise the player can easily become unstuck by the often complex puzzles.

These puzzles often have a worrying lack of faith in the player, with pictures advising what form to transform the Blob into. However, just because there’s a form there doesn’t mean it has to be followed, just like the previously set out rules of the title. Blob himself has certain abilities, such as being able to float past objects when it’s in the floating mode – except on the occasional puzzle where he becomes more solid than before. Yet for the most part the puzzle and level design is very solid, with car jacks that realign entire levels, cranks and switches that open doors, it’s a little more linear than perhaps would have been liked. Limiting the type of beans and abilities available allows “A Boy and His Blob” to be a more rounded and open title, but it does take away a slither of fun and mystery.

There are two options of control, Classic Controller of using the Wii Remote and Nunchuck. Regardless of which option is chosen the control stick is what moves Boy around. There’s no Wii Waggle at all in “A Boy and His Blob”, which comes as a blessing as this surprisingly challenging puzzle title would fall apart with a too strong gush of Wii Waggle. There item buttons are configurable as well and this contributes to the natural difficulty curve, at first the puzzles may seem a little easy for established players but the difficulty moves along at a decent pace keeping established gamers interested, whilst catering for the younger gamer.

What really sets “A Boy and His Blob” aside from many other titles is the simply astonishing graphics. The game cries out for a 2D style, which is thankfully allowed. Whereas most people assume 2D games to be pixel based and 16 bit, the cell shaded graphics look as if they’ve been lifted off of a watercolour painting. Lost Winds looks amazing, but a “Boy and His Blob” has a different type of charm and adds to the magic of the title.

Final Verdict – 8/10
This unique, challenging and innovative game is a bit of a diamond in the rough and hopefully won’t fall away into obscurity again. WayForward Technologies have captured all that was good of the original, whilst perfecting what needs perfecting. A brilliant title, with only a few, that’s fitting for any gamers shelf.