Archive for the Yuri Anime Category


Yuri Anime: Air Master, Volume 1

June 30th, 2005

I managed to get a copy of Volume 1 of Air Master at last. This series has become a “comfort” series for me – I stick it on the TV when there’s nothing else on and I don’t want to have to pay *too* much attention. But, then I end up watching it anyway and not doing whatever it was that I was slacking off doing in the first place.

I won’t beat the plot, character of yuri components of this volume to death – I have repeatedly ranted about how wonderful this anime is in several of my previous posts: From the first recommendation back in August 2003 to Feb. 26, 2004, May 21, 2005, and May 23, 2005. And that doesn’t include all the rants about the manga, either.

So, yeah, I like this anime – a lot.

And I’ve already discussed the problems with the DVD release, some of which have been addressed in the second half of the thrid volume.

What did shock me about this first volume was how utterly, horribly *BAD* the translation was. Again, I felt like I was watching a bootlegged copy. Whole sentences were completely, totally, changed from what the characters were saying, as if the translators kept assuming what they “really” meant was….I imagine that this was a dubtitle issue, but even so, there were entire sentences that were just plain *wrong.*

Oddly, the language in the first volume subtitles is much ruder than in the second, and in that way, fits the story better.

But I’ll admit, if I had bought this volume first, I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t have bought 2 or 3. So I’m a little glad I bought them first.

Story-wise, Volume 1 is not particularly strong, either – again, by going backwards I can see how much more three-dimensional the characters are only a few episodes later.

I think it really sucks that this release was so bad – there are plenty of folks that might enjoy Air Master, but who, if not already turned off by the ugly art, will just give up in frustration with the unbelievably poor quality of this DVD.

What makes even this volume worth watching is, of course, the characters and the fighting.

And Sakiyama Kaori.

Ratings:
Art – 5
Story – 7
Characters – 8
Yuri – 6
Technical Details – 3

Despite the crappiness of this particular Volume, I recommend the series. If you’re going to buy it from Amazon, look for a used copy or a cheaper copy on the Amazon marketplace. This way you won’t feel quite so ripped. Also – do not be afraid to write the distributor and express your dissatisfaction – if you don’t tell them, they can’t know.





ROD The TV, Volume 6

June 28th, 2005

ROD The TV Volume 6 was a tough watch for me – the story is amazingly good, but it will, all too soon, draw to an end. So I actually put off watching this volume for several weeks after purchasing it. I know its a little infantile of me – after all, I can watch it as often as I want. But, still….

There are so many more positives than negatives with this volume, let’s start off with the good. First and foremost – the story, the plot, the dialogue, the characters are all “Wow.” This volume is an edge-of-your-seat type of anime. Not only do we get to see how everyone handles a crisis (with some serious surprises) but we get to see how a really decent set of writers bring a complex plot to fruition. Joker’s plan is no less insane than the I-jin’s in the ROD OVA, but the writers have handled it so much better that the “whoa, fuck” far outweighs the “for pity’s sake.”

In terms of characters in this volume, Nenene wins, hands down. If you didn’t love her before, in this volume she downright shines. More mature and aware, if somewhat less supernaturally powered than her companions, she is the physical embodiment of the adage “the pen is mightier than the sword.” (And it should not be lost on you, dear reader, that now that Yomiko is back in her life, Nenene is writing like a madwoman.)

But really, there’s no bad or weak characterization in Volume 6. Everyone really peaks as a character. And Nancy has some serious shiny moments which are totally kick-ass…even if they don’t really make sense in terms of the history we’ve given her. I mean, brain tissue doesn’t spontaneously regenerate when its been removed, does it? LOL Nonetheless, watching her kick into Miss Deep mode is another great “Whoah!” moment.

Animation-wise, this volume has had some obvious post-TV touchups done. It’s especially obvious in the hair. As with the previous volumes, it helps, so no complaints from me. I just wish the original art had been tighter.

Oh, and the question you all have is, I’m sure – what about the pencil board? Well, it’s not horrible! Whee! On the one side, the usual three paper sisters and Nenene (carrying her own book) and on the other – Wendy looking rather sexy, if we ignore that her body shape really says “feed me several steaks”. The usual double-sided cover (the inside significantly better than the outside) and liner notes.

Now for the not-so-positive. Three episodes. Please. This and the next volume should have been combined for one 6-ep disk and you bloody well know it, Geneon. And the incredibly lame gag of the American President peeing in his pants is done. Move on. It was only moderately amusing the first time, it seems slighhtly stupider every time thereafter and this time it was just boring. Let’s be real – if the guy had a problem, he’d wear diapers.

But to be fair, that’s about it for the less than positive. And the writing rocks in every other way, so we can afford to be magnanimous.

Ratings:

Art – 7
Story – 9
Character – 9
Music – 8
Yuri – 6

Overall – 9, because the story and characters are both developing together, which makes this show a total win.

Let me please remind you that if you want to support yuri anime, please don’t bittorent this, or any other licensed series – buy it, rent it, borrow it, share it, but don’t steal it.

Oh – and thanks to everyone who let me know they liked the new format!





Yuri Anime: Noir, Volume 2

June 27th, 2005

I spent some time this weekend rewatching anime that I own, but haven’t yet reviewed here. It was edifying, let me tell you. There were some things that were great and some less so. I decided to start the week off with a reasonably strong entry. ^_^

Noir Volume 2, *feels* like a second volume. The art is significantly less good than the first volume, the plot sort of drops off a bit in favor of character development (sort of) and the use of repeated footage begins to grate. But otherwise it’s excellent. ^_^

On the positive side, the characters do become more than just ciphers. Despite myself, I was feeling a little for Mirielle and Kirika as they faced what, for them, were major life crises – Kirika’s lack of knowledge about herself and Mirielle’s past trauma coming back to haunt her.

We also get a glimpse of Mirielle in bed in the nude, which has carried Yuri fans for some time, as there is only one bed in the room. It would take a strong woman, so we rationalize, to sleep in the nude with someone with whom you are not sleeping. ;-) In fact, I think it’s a bit early for them, but hey, yuri goggles go a long way to building character development. ^_^

Geographically, we go from New York City to (the wildly improbable deep woods and high mountain passes) of New Jersey to sunny Sicily. For this alone, the “Intoccabile” arc is worth it. But this arc is worth watching, in general. I think Intoccabile would have made a much worthier opponent than Chloe and it was a damn shame we used her up so soon.

This volume also gives the viewer glimpses into a Kirika who is exactly as she appears – a young woman, apt to fall for a cute kitty or a good sob story. I liked that. It gives her more depth than most people assume she has. And Mirielle gets a chance to gently gloat about her superior knowledge of Russian literature. ^_^

So, yes, the second volume has problems – notably the art and repeated footage issue (and the no-wound thing, which plagues the whole production), but as far as giving the characters some three-dimensionality, this volume is fairly crucial – and actually not a bad watch.

Ratings:
Art – 5
Music – 7 (Salva Nos playing as they run through NJ’s bamboo forest is, to me, priceless)
Character – 8
Story – 7

Overall 7

Not as strong as the beginning, or the end, but a must for fanfic writers. ^_^





Battle Athletes Victory, Volume 3

June 10th, 2005

Okay, so I was going to do a review of something new-ish, or maybe some cool news, but last night I sat down to do some work to the dulcet tones of the third DVD of Battle Athletes Victory subtitled “Tragedy and Triumph.”

And by the end of the disk I was sitting there repeating, “Oh my god, this so *SO* gay” over and over and over. So I thought I’d share with you. ^_^

If you haven’t watched (or heard of) the Battle Athletes OVA and/or Battle Athletes Victory – you really should give them a try. Neither are as spectacularly wonderful as the still untranslated manga, which I reviewed previously, but still – both are about as Yuri as one can get without it being actually “lesbian.”

First the down side – the main character is more of the “idiot savant” type that I don’t care for. Of practically suicidal low-esteem, Kanzaki Akari waffles from hugely incompetent to impossibly brilliant in a way that bodies just cannot support. So forget realism. And she’s a whiner. The worst bit is, that with the beginning of each arc in the anime, we are subjected to the very same self-esteem issues and behaviors as we did in the previous one, rendering the first volume of every arc dull and irritating. But the ends, in this case, are totally worth the means. In fact I don’t own the first volume of this series and am not going to bother reviewing the second, because I have a low tolerance for whining. But from this point on, the anime gets better in many ways – and is abysmal in only a few, so it works out to be a series totally worth having.

Other than Akari, the characters in this series are mostly all strong women who are driven by the need to perfect themselves in their chosen endeavor, which happens to be sports. (In fact, I find it hard to watch this anime sitting on the couch. I have to get up and exercise while watching, or my brain explodes…).

So, where’s all the Yuri? All OVER the place. In the early volumes Akari follows her mother’s dream and enters into athletic training. She becomes friends with Ichino and, almost immediately, becomes dependent upon her. I won’t kill the plot entirely, but let’s just say this – this DVD is *filled* with Ichino and Akari longing for each other and striving to be together. The climax of the DVD, which is the climax of the this portion of the storyline, is one gigantic confession of love between the two of them – followed by a scene so romantic that Ichino’s kid brother even comments that they are acting like lovers. Trust me. No one could watch this and not see it.

There’s a side thing that will never happen between Ayla and Jessie as well, which has about 30 seconds total to spring to life, falter and fail, which I thought was brilliant. It will be echoed again later in the thing between Mylandah and Lahrri (which, amazingly, will not fail, but I get well ahead of myself.)

Because I know what’s coming up, I’m all gung-ho about watching the rest of this series again. At least Kris isn’t in the sort of denial that Ichino is – she knows Yuri when she sees it too. ^_^

Okay, so, the anime never quite will go as far as the manga, where Kris and Akari kiss in front of the whole world, but its still damn gay.

Ratings:

Art – 7
Story – 7
Characters – 8
Yuri – 8
Music – 7

Overall – 8

It’s not the greatest series ever…but oh my god, it’s *so* gay. ^_^





Yuri:Anime Stellvia, Volume 4

June 8th, 2005

You know what really sucks about Stellvia?

Nothing.

By Volume 4 of Stellvia, the whole space opera plot seems to have disappeared completely, with only the vaguest twinges of something coming in the future. So the writers are at leisure to explore the relationships between people, rather than focusing on external (and, admittedly, somewhat silly and nonsensical) threats from space. As a result, this particular DVD feels much more like a shoujo series than the shounen one it is.

All of the cadets on Stellvia now have to switch to a completely new flight system. Shima, who, with a lot of time and practice, was a decent pilot with occasional flashes of real skill, now shoots to the top of her class as a prodigy. This causes Ayaka of the “Big 4” to peg her as a rival, and to try and stop her meteoric rise. In a pretty nastly little scene, Ayaka sets out to hurt Shima in a joust, and is only stopped because Kouta gets out into space in time to save Shima. We learn that this is not the first time Ayaka has done this – she was the reason Yayoi was injured and held back a year.

This “incident” is the major conflict that drives the entire volume. Shima stresses that Ayaka hates her, even as the episode brings her closer to Kouta. Yayoi is confronted by two wildly conflicting issues – one, she can’t ever forgive Ayaka for what she did to her – and worse, tried to do to Shima – but two, she wants desperately to be able to forgive Ayaka.

In the background of Shima and Kouta’s relationship (which is so utterly, completely NORMAL and not dysfunctional, that it’s a bit disturbing…) we see the development of something growing between taciturn Akira and goofy Jojo, a hint of the space station commander’s crush on the doctor and, of course, Ayaka and Yayoi.

All in all, a very satisfying volume, really.

But let me go back and obsess for a second on Kouta. When I watched this series originally, I really disliked him – and up until now, I have maintained that dislike, because I really find idiot savant characters distasteful. Well, on second viewing I now find that I have no characters in this show to dislike. They are all so damn normal. And real. And not at *all* stereotypical Japanese dysfunctional relationship dorky. I mean, sure the guys are dorky, but like real 16 year old guys – not like emotionally and sexually dysfunctional sociopaths, like so many male characters in anime. (If *I* were a guy, I’d really protest how utterly stupid and pathetic so many male characters are…but I’m not, so I don’t care. But I digress.)

In fact, when Kouta kissed Shima I was so relieved that I almost cried. It was just like real people who do actually touch their boy/girlfriends, hold hands and kiss them and stuff. Wow! Imagine that!

But that leaves me with no one to hate. How irritating. I’m really even having a hard time disliking Linna. Darn these incredibly likable and well-written characters!

Over on the Yuri side of things, Ayaka and Yayoi’s relationship begins here, in a sense. There’s always been *something* between them, but after we learn about the the “incident”, anyone with eyes can see that that’s not all. And the end of the volume is just the beginning for them, as well as everyone else in the series.

Even the art is, for this brief moment in time, very stable and decent…sometimes almost approaching *good.*

Ratings:
Art – 7
Story – 9
Character – 9
Yuri – 7

Overall – 8

So far, Volume 4 of Stellvia has been the best of the breed. I hope that it gets better from here!