Anime Reveiw: The Heroic Legend of Arslan

For a video version of this review please go here.

Anime: The Heroic Legend of Arslan (Arslan Senki)

Genre: Action/Tactical

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

General Setup: Unlike most animes Arslan takes place in the fictional land similar to the Middle East. Arslan is the main character (his name is in the title, who would have guessed?). He is the Crown Prince of the Kingdom of Pars. Arslan gains a new perspective on life when he is taken hostage by an escaping slave. The boy is Arslan’s age and is a prisoner of war from the country of Lusitania. His views differ greatly from Arslan's. Arslan is rescued, but the slave escapes, promising to return for his countrymen. The next three years are a peaceful time for Pars, but war breaks out when Lusitania begins an invasion campaign into Pars. At 14 years of age Arslan embarks upon his maiden battle. However disaster strikes when one of Pars’ lead generals defects to the enemy's side. Arslan is almost killed, but is saved by Daryun, one of the best warriors in Pars. Together they set out on a journey to take back their beloved country (with the help of a few others, of course).

Characters: Arslan is gentle and kind and naïve. He wants to believe the best about everyone. Daryun claims that his only talents lie in protecting Arslan, but he is a very skilled warrior with a good head on his shoulders. Arslan counts on him for more things than just brute force. Narsus is a courtier who was banished by Arslan's father. He has an incredible mind for strategy and is strongly against Pars’ system of slavery. Narsus’ attendant Elam is the son of the slaves that served in Narsus’ household before he set them free. Elam is extremely resourceful. He performs many tasks, from cooking meals to gathering information. The slave that took Arslan hostage is part of the army invading Pars. He pops up every now and then. One thing I didn’t like was that the amount of generals introduced early on we're so many. Most of them are minor characters and they are a little confusing and hard to remember.

Plot: This anime has a strong plot. At first it is a little slow because it takes a few episodes to introduce all the main characters and set up the story. However there is lots of action and several plot twists. I enjoyed seeing what strategies Narsus would use and how they would work out.

Ending: I was very satisfied with the ending. The last few episodes doubled my appreciation of the anime. The ending resolved a good deal of the conflict, but left room for a second season. I am very glad that the creators took their time and did not cobble together a hurried and sloppy ending.

Things to Watch For: Be aware that there is a lot of bloodshed in this anime. It is true that there is a war going on, but some of the bloodshed seemed a little unnecessary. Most of the members of Arslan’s company are more than capable at fighting, so it seems immoral that they show no mercy. Lady Farangaris’ outfit bothered me. It is revealing, but it is also impractical. Some black magic is used by a man on the Lusitanian side who is called Lord Silver Mask.

Humor: Most of this anime has a more serious feel, but there are one or two jokes that pop through. For example, Narsus’ dream is to become a famous painter, but his painting skills are less than adept.

Sights and Sounds: Fans of Fullmetal Alchemist should notice immediately the similarity between the two art styles. That is because they are done by the same person, Hiromu Arakawa. For example, Daryun bears a strong resemblance to Solf J. Kimblee and General Shapur looks like Colonel Roy Mustang. The soundtrack for Arslan is very well written. Most of it is made up of epic ‘going to war’ marches. A couple songs have middle-eastern elements.

Moral Lessons: Sometimes leaders will use religion as a reason to justify their actions. The rightful leader is not always the one next in line for the throne. Different countries have different customs and ways of doing things, but this does not mean that they should force them on other countries. Parentage has no bearing on the ambition to make things better.

Other Media:  Originally a fantasy novel series, The Heroic Legend of Arslan was based off a Persian epic. The story was adapted into a manga that ran from 1991 -1996. A series of OVA’s were also made. A second manga adaptation was serialized in 2014. There is a second season confirmed to air.

Fillers: There are no fillers in this anime.

Length: There are 25 episodes in the first season.

Where to watch it: It can be watched on Hulu for free.
 

My anime story

     Even though I was born a few years before the turn of the century I would still classify myself as a '90's kid. My family was a little behind the times because we preferred to wait until the price went down before buying something new, especially electronics.
     As youngsters my little brother and I were no into many video games besides those made for the PC. It wasn't until 2nd grade that we got our first Game Boy Advance, at a time when the X-Box 360 was making it's debut. As a result my first video game was Pokémon Red, a game that was almost as old as me. I was officially thrust into the wide world of Nintendo at the ripe old age of eight. With my new-found interest in Pokémon came a small exposure to anime (sorry Pokémon doesn't count as a real anime in my books).
     I soon became enthralled with the manga art style and checked out books from the library so I could learn to draw manga style. However, I did not start watching anime until much later. I remember seeing merchandise from Naruto and Avatar: The Last Airbender in stores and thinking, "What is that?!". Avatar teeters on the border between anime and not-anime, so I'd have to say that my first true anime was Naruto. Thanks to my best friend and neighbor I was pulled in with no hope of return.
     Next came Bleach, which caught my brother's attention (he had also seen Avatar, but it would be a couple years before he would admit to seeing Naruto) and Full Metal Alchemist Brotherhood. Following were shows like Ao no Exorcist (also called Blue Exorcist), Fruits Basket, Sword Art Online, and  Akatsuki no Yona (or Yona of the Dawn).
     My top three anime (in no particular order of importance) are Full Metal Alchemist Brotherhood, Yona of the Dawn, and Fruits Basket. Akagami no Shirayukihime follows as a close fourth.
     If you would like, please comment below what your favorite anime are. Thank you for reading!

Anime Review: Nobunaga Concerto

Anime: Nobunaga Concerto (anime)

Genres: Historical, Action, Adventure, Comedy

Overall Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

General Set-Up: Saburo is just a high school student who couldn’t care less about history--that is until he becomes part of history. Somehow he finds himself in the Warring States era of Japan and runs into none other than great Oda Nobunaga...who is running away from his castle? After nearly being trampled by Nobunaga’s house, he realizes that he looks just like Nobunaga. Because of this he is forced to become Nobunaga, with nothing more than his high school history book to guide him.

Characters: As you can guess, Saburo/Nobunaga is not your typical main character in an anime. He gets himself into many awkward situations, sometimes forgetting that just because something is in the 21st century does not mean it is in the Warring States era. He has a wife and many retainers that are under him. All of the characters are very well written with character development and many surprises. While there are too many other characters to describe them here, they play various functional roles, from being Nobunaga's personal assistant to being a tactician.  

Plot: While the plot is well written, I would not base your history paper on it. It follows the general timeline of Nobunaga’s rule, but adds some things to it (like time travel). If you don’t know Nobunaga united a third of Japan during the Warring States Era. When he died, the successors completed his dream of uniting all of Japan, thus ending the Warring States Era. Pretty important guy.  Despite being rather serious at times, the humor does not feel out of place.

Ending: Nobunaga Concerto ends rather abruptly with only 10 episodes. The plot does not

conclude. Things are not resolved. The reason for this is that it was supposed to be a short promotional anime for the live action version also called Nobunaga Concerto.

Sound:  The music is good, switching between more modern music and music from that time period. The ending song and the animation that goes along with it is awesome and one of the best endings I have seen yet.

    There is no dub for Nobunaga Concerto, but the sub is worth mentioning. The person who voices Nobunaga also voiced Light in the subbed version of the wildly popular Death Note series. For those who are not native Japanese speakers, or who are not very advanced in Japanese, the Japanese can be hard to follow. Some of the phrases and words used in the show have fallen out of common usage. However, the subtitles on Crunchyroll are well done.

Animation: The animation is CGI, which, personally, I don’t really care for. With CGI there tends to be really good CGI and really bad CGI, with not a lot of room in between. This is one of the few shows where the CGI is not bad, but it’s not good either. However, the colors used, especially yellows and oranges, are done REALLY well.

Things to watch out for: If you do not like blood, you will not like the battle scenes. Otherwise enjoy. If this aired on American TV I believe that it would be rated TV-14.

Other Media: Nobunaga Concerto has a manga of the same name as well as a live-action TV show that will have a movie conclusion coming out soon in mid 2016.

Where to watch it: Both the anime and the live-action series are available for legal streaming on  Crunchyroll (crunchyroll.com).

Anime Review: Free!

Anime: Free!: Iwatobi Swim Club/Eternal Summer
Genre: Sports, Drama
Overall Rating: 3.5 stars out of 5

Video version:

Basic Set-up: The story centers around a group of four boys who were on a swimming relay team together when they were younger. The four have recently become reunited because their old swim club is being torn down. Three of the boys attend the same high school want to start their own swim club, while the other boy goes to a rival school known for its swim team.

Characters: There are some stereotypical character types, but it isn't overly cliché. I liked how Haru defied the cliché that the main character has to have flamboyantly colored hair and a personality to match. He is surprisingly stoic, but with a fair amount of depth. He is talented, but not arrogant. Haru’s best friend Makoto is the strong and steady character with a constant smile on his face (sometimes you gotta wonder how he doesn’t run into stuff because he closes his eyes when he smiles). Nagisa adds a bubbly contrast to their quartet. He gets excited easily and is full of energy. Rei is academic, but also appreciates the arts. He offers some deep insight multiple times in the anime that help the characters to grow. All of the characters grow and change throughout the two seasons, but Rin is probably the character who changes the most. He has lost his motivation to swim, but Haru helps him to get it back.

Plot: This is my first sports anime, so it adds a little variety to my life. The plot is simple and easy to understand. It is average, but with touching themes like friendship, hard work, and trying something new.

Ending: The ending provides a satisfying resolution with little to no unresolved conflict.

Things to Watch For: The main characters are swimmers so there are a lot of shirtless guys who also happen to be really toned. They aren’t super buff (like grotesque bodybuilders), but are surprisingly muscled and in shape for not having participated in swimming for a few years. Their musculature is emphasized almost to the point of fan service. Guy fanservice is uncommon so it was a little harder to recognize. Hopefully we will do a blog post on this topic in the near future. This anime was created to fit into a genre known as Shounen Ai (literally translated this means [romantic] love between boys). However, for the anime to be allowed to air in Japan they couldn’t be outright about it. So to an outside viewer it looks like nothing sketchy is going on. Even if the creators intended for this anime to be shounen ai the watcher can make of it what they will.

Humor: Light humor is displayed throughout. For example: one of the Iwatobi swim team members can only swim butterfly. If he tries any other stroke he just sinks.

Sights and Sounds: The animation is fun. When the characters are swimming it is really cool. Kazuki, who has been swimming on teams for 5 years says that this is the first anime that animates not only water correctly, but the swimming strokes as well. The race scenes look just like the meets that she went to. The soundtrack is average, but I thought the animation for the last ending song was really fitting as all of the characters are deciding what they want to do next in life. The animation for the first ending is funny too.

Moral Lessons: Friendships are to be treasured. Do what you enjoy with people you enjoy. don't give up. Hard work is often more important than raw talent. Be open with your friends and those you trust.

Other media: There is no manga. This anime was based on a light novel called High Speed that sadly has no official English translation.

Fillers: There are no fillers in this anime.

Length: This anime has two seasons with a total of 25 episodes.

Where to Watch: This anime is available legally for free on Crunchyroll (both seasons) and Hulu (second season only). 

Anime Review: Naruto

Naruto was my first official anime, so I thought it would only be right if it was the first anime I reviewed. I hope you enjoy it!

For a video version of this review go here.

Anime: Naruto/Naruto Shippuden
Genre: Action (w/ ninjas!), Adventure, Magic
Overall Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

General Setup: Naruto, the main character is just beginning his training to become a ninja of the Hidden Leaf Village. Ten years beforehand a giant fox attacked the village. The village leader, or Hokage, sealed the fox inside Naruto as a baby to protect the village. Because Naruto has the fox sealed inside him he is ostracized by the other villagers. Naruto's dream is to become the Hokage so he will be the strongest ninja in the village and everyone will respect him.

Characters: Naruto starts out as a slightly immature middle school-age boy, but he matures more as the show progresses. Some characters in this anime have really strong arcs, others not so much. Due to the sheer amount of characters I am just going to go over the more important main characters. Iruka is Naruto’s teacher and mentor. He is Naruto’s surrogate big brother. I think I can say that without Iruka Naruto would not have grown into the individual he is. Kakashi also teaches Naruto's along with two other young ninjas that make up Team 7. Kakashi has an air of mystery about him. He always wears a mask, so we never get to see his face. He also consistently arrives late to everything. Sasuke and Sakura are Naruto’s teammates. Sasuke is moody and vengeful (he says his goal in life is, ‘to kill a certain someone,’), but he and Naruto eventually become rivals. Naruto considers Sasuke his brother. Sakura is an interesting character in that you either love her or hate her. She starts out weak, but slowly turns into a stellar ninja.

Plot: This series takes a while, but everything connects in the end. This is my favorite thing about this anime. There is a lot of unknown history that affects things. Flashbacks are used commonly and almost in excess. 

It all goes back to the bell training!

Ending: A fitting ending to a long saga. I can't say too much because I don't want to spoil it.

Things to watch for: Some of Naruto's humor can be a little crude, but the humor is mostly clean. Naruto's mentor is a little perverted (Naruto's nickname for him is Pervy Sage). Blood and gore are kept to a minimum until Shippuden. This is partly because more characters die in the second season. (Note: The original season of Naruto is rated TV-7 for ages and up. Shippuden is rated TV-14 or even M for older teenagers.)

Humor: Like I said, Naruto can be a little crude. However, this anime has its fair share of solid jokes.

Sights and Sounds: The animation is fun to watch and the battles scenes can be really epic. Be forewarned, Naruto’s voice actor for the dubbed version can get annoying fast. I thought the sub voice actors all did a nice job (Fun fact: the voice actors who provide the voice for Naruto in both seasons are girls). The music is cool because at first it just sounds like modern music with a little funky twist, but then you realize that it has all these traditional Japanese sounds stuck in. They blend together surprisingly well. (Another fun fact: The creators of the music purposely used traditional Japanese instruments along with modern instruments because even in the planning stage, Naruto was supposed to be dubbed in English. That is why they blend together so well.) Most of the opening and ending songs are really good. The animation that accompanies these are interesting too.

Moral Lessons: Depend on those around you. Decide on your own path and stick to it. Friends are worth sacrificing everything for. Real life is better than a perfect dream.

Other Media: There is a manga and several movies out. The anime follows the manga pretty well (aside from fillers). The movies mostly follow the plot of the anime (think extended filler arcs).

Fillers: Fillers are abundant in Naruto. 40% of the anime is fillers. Some of the fillers are solid, but their abundance is probably one of the few cons of this anime. You can easily find a guide on the internet that will tell you which episodes are fillers. This will cut down on the length of the anime.

Length: The first ‘season’ of Naruto is 220 episodes long, but 89 of those episodes are fillers (that means 139 canon episodes). Shippuden has a similar episode to filler ratio, with 441 episodes total and 183 filler episodes. Many people don't want to get into Naruto just because it is so long (600+ episodes including fillers). I can see where they are coming from. But! It can be done - just ask my brother! It also helps if you don’t watch the fillers. I would recommend watching the first 20 episodes of the original series (that is just plain Naruto, not Naruto Shippuden), just so you can get a feel for it. If you are not interested by then that's fine, but you may be sucked in for the long haul!

Where to Watch: You can watch Naruto on Crunchyroll if you have a premium membership. Shippuden is also available on Crunchyroll for free. Both seasons are available for free on Hulu. Naruto and Naruto Shippuuden is on the Viz site for free as well. Also, if you have Netflix you can watch the first three seasons of the original season. 

Review Framework

This is the format that we will be using in reviews. In our reviews we try to be objective rather than subjective. This means we don't rant on and on about what we did or didn't like. We try to judge each piece of media by the quality is showed in several different categories. To eliminate confusion you can read a definition of each of the categories below. We hope you find our reviews to be helpful and constructive.

Title:

Genre:

(Some of our earlier reviews have and overall rating out of five stars)

General Set-Up: A quick description of the first few episodes.

Characters: The question we are trying to answer is: Do the characters change throughout the storyline or do they remain static? Also, we might include a description of the character's personalities.

Plot: This is not a description of the plot, but rather a critique.

Ending: Sometimes the ending can ruin a good anime. Without revealing too much we will let you know if the ending offered a satisfying resolution, made sense, or if it went off the deep end.

Appropriateness: Could you watch this anime with your little sister?

Humor: What kind of humor is present? Is this a comedy or is the tone more serious?

Some of our earlier reviews include moral lessons.
Sights and Sounds: A critique of the art and music (if applicable) in the media form.

Other Media: Is there a manga that corresponds to this anime? How similar are the manga and the anime? What other forms of media have been made using the original as a base?

Fillers: How many fillers are in the anime?

Length: How long is this anime? 
Where to Watch: A list of the places you can get this form of media for yourself.

Anime and Manga - Defined

     To some people the terms 'manga' and 'anime' are familiar. Other people may have heard about them, but are confused as to what they mean. It is possible that some of you have no idea what I am talking about. Well, if that is the case then I encourage you to read on!
     Anime is often thought of as 'Japanese cartoons.' That is correct, but not entirely accurate. Unlike American cartoons, which generally stick to a super-hero format, anime covers a wide variety of genres. Anime can be about anything from action to mystery to romance to sports. If you can think of it there is most likely an anime available on that subject! Also, anime is not restricted to Japan. There are Korean and Chinese anime too.
     Manga could be generalized as 'Japanese comics' but the same issue would arise. Not many manga's have the kind of superhero's that are so common in American comics. Manga can also be used to describe the drawing style that is most commonly associated with Japan. Most anime is based off an original manga -> the manga comes first! Manga is set up so the reader has to read it right to left. For people used to reading left to right this can take some getting used to. You will know you are a manga fan when you start picking up regular books and reading them like manga. I admit I have done it once or twice.

     I hope this helped you understand what manga and anime are. This was only a short definition so I would really encourage you to visit this blog article for a more in depth explanation. The author did a really good job explaining it. I would rather direct you there than plagiarize.
Some people might call manga and anime evil, but they are no more evil than the TV shows we watch or the books we read. Inappropriate manga and anime do exist, but keep in mind that there are also inappropriate movies and books. Just be careful as you explore new anime. Good anime does exist and it is easier to find than you think!