CODE GEASS

4.5 stars out of 5

What do you get when you have a plot reminiscent of Death Note mixed with awesome giant robot battles?  You get Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion.  Luckily for me, one of my friends forced me to watch the first two episodes one night and I just had to finish it.

FRACTALE

Majority of anime shows are for male audiences, sorry to say. How else could one explain the abundance of over-sized breasts and ... over-sized breasts? Hell, every time I watch The Story of Fujiko Mine I know there's going to be at least one boob shot, erect nipples and all. Fractale was made with the intent of countering such anime conventions, and it's hard to resist the sincere warmth the show radiates as its characters venture to save the world. There's still the mandatory allusions to sex of course, but Fractale is not at all lewd. It was a very different anime experience for me and one I sincerely appreciated.

The impossibly cute Nessa.

Musings of the Editor in Chief

With the end of my third year of college dawns another chapter of my life: summertime! It would be lovely to chill at home and do nothing but continue to review anime, but I don't have that luxury. I will certainly find work within the next few weeks, hopefully at a movie theater. But in the meantime, let me tell you guys what I've been up to, as well as divulge what direction the blog will be going in this summer.

CORPSE PRINCESS (SHIKABANE HIME)

3.5 stars out of 5

I'm not the biggest fan of most zombie related media franchises, mostly because it always seems like people manage to get eaten despite the fact that zombies are really, really slow and almost non-threatening. Resident Evil zombies are more interesting in that they've abandoned traditional zombies in favor of scientifically engineered super zombies that can feasibly rip you to shreds with little effort. With those prejudices in mind I proceeded to watch Corpse Princess, and was shown a new spin on the ever-popular zombie genre.

TIME OF EVE

4.5 stars out of 5

I like to constantly remind people that reviewing shows isn't an objective process, but a rather bemusing mix of personal opinions and facts. I'll admit that I'm partial to shows about the man-machine interface, forcing people to reconceptualize what it means to be alive and to have a soul. When my friend told me about Time of Eve, a short web series about a robot cafe, I was definitely intrigued.

The regular customers.

THE SACRED BLACKSMITH

3 stars out of 5

The Sacred Blacksmith? How do you make a show about a blacksmith? Would the audience be forced to watch the blacksmith at work, which typically involved a lot of hammering more than anything else? Despite the title, this anime wasn't really about a blacksmith at all, but instead focused on Cecily Cambell, a fledgling knight guard for the Independent Trade Cities of Housman, who just so happens to know a blacksmith.

Cecily Cambell.

PAPRIKA

4 stars out of 5

Paprika.

Narratives revolving around dreams consistently prove to be both insanely amusing and perpetually confusing; anyone who's seen Inception can agree to that notion. Paprika, which according to various sources inspired Christopher Nolan during the making of his blockbuster, is no less confusing. Then again, is anything pertaining to dreams ever lucid? We indulge them precisely because they defy logic and entertain while doing so. The makers of Paprika understood that very well.

Eureka Seven's Back!

I was pleased to find out yesterday that Eureka Seven AO (Astral Ocean) has begun production and there are already four episodes out. In case anyone is confused, Eureka Seven was originally a fifty episode series and Good Night, Sleep Tight, Young Lovers was a movie featuring the series' characters in an alternate universe. Astral Ocean seems to be set in another alternate universe, although it's too early to say if its unrelated to the original anime. I've the first two episodes on Funimation and I really like it so far. I hope everyone likes it as well; I've included a link to the show below. Enjoy!

http://www.funimation.com/eureka-seven-astral-ocean

- Elijah

A Few Thoughts on STRAIGHT JACKET

3.5 stars out of 5

Straight Jacket was actually a decent stand-alone film. I often find that OVA films feel rather incomplete, like the writrers eventually hope to extend their story into the typical twelve to twenty-four episode anime adaptations. Straight Jacket managed to imply that a more complex story can be written in the future, but without making the actual film feel incomplete.

Steinberg, a rogue Sorcerist.