Bri

It would be great if there is going to be a new Trek series someday. I do hope it will remain true to the positive approach of Roddenberry to the future of mankind and space exploration. BSG is probably more in tune to the "zeitgeist". I hope Abrams' interpretation will stay away from too much grimdark.

Loved Juan Gimenéz's fourth power. One of the great artists in sci-fi. He is most famous here for his work on Metabarons together with Jodorowski. Another master of mechanical design is Manchu. Love his space ship designs.

Currently I'd list these as my favorites, in no particular order: Enki Bilal (The Nikopol Trilogy) Roger Leloup (Yoko Tsuno) Jiro Taniguchi (a distant neighborhood, a zoo in winter) Jean-Claude Mézières (Valérian and Laureline) Virginie Augustin (Alim the Tanner)

I keep seeing this line (or something to a similar extent) pop up whenever Ishiguro's involvement with SDFM is discussed. Unless I misinterpret it, to me this line suggests a role like some sort of executive producer rather than being actively involved with the production of the show. Now I'm not questioning Kawamori's position. But I would find it hard to believe that when someone like Ishiguro is around, that the team would not have made use of his skills as a director. To refer to the Star Wars analogy, it's Lucas' baby start to finish, but Kershner's skills as a director (I'm thinking of shots, angles, close ups, pacing etc.) made Empire Strikes Back a better movie. Now I'm far from an expert but when looking at Tytania or Megazone 23 (haven't seen Logh yet) I do see some resemblances (like character shots, vehicle movements, bgm scoring, pacing etc.)to SDFM. Is there any confirmation what he actually did on the show?

This new series has impressed me quite a bit. It's easy to tell that the creative staff were also fans of 80s cartoons. Last episode reminded me a lot of the Transformers episode "five faces of darkness", were Rodimus went back in time, inside the Matrix, to learn more about their history.

I can recommend Steins gate as well. The characters are hard to describe. They are anime characters live in Akihabara in the 'real world' and as such are familiar with anime concepts. So they are kind of 'real world interpretations' of anime stereotypes like tsundere, clumsy moe etc. As shiroikaze says, the story takes a while to built up. I think it works best when viewing multiple episodes. The story requires some attention from the viewer, or maybe it's just my memory getting bad from old age At the heart SG is a visual novel adaption, the anime is one of the better attempts at integrating different character arcs to a relatively seemless whole.

I just don't understand why they use Miku for promoting Toyota Carollas overseas... In Japan maybe, but I doubt the typical Carolla customer knows (or even wants to know) what a vocaloid is.

Afaik, the "big" announcement is that there will be an electronic version of The Surprise of Haruhi Suzumiya available on July 21, and the wishes people could post will be on display in August. No information about the additional announcement at the end of July yet.

Recently rewatched Gundam ZZ. Last time I had seen it was on VHS, so the BD version was a treat. Since my memory of it was pretty hazy, I had some fears about how it had aged. Surprisingly it holds up quite well. The over the top comedy isn't as bad as I remember and the light hearted first 20 eps and something quite different after Zeta's grim finale. It also fleshed out the characters, something what ZZ's predecessors did not always have time for. I've probably been exposed to too much modern anime as Judou's simple minded, can do attitude is a breath of fresh air between all the teen angst and effeminate males. Then there is Elpeo Puru, who's silly cute antics make Unicorns' Marida Cruz's past all the more harsh. Haman Karn steals the show, but just doesn't get enough screen time. Another thing I did not remember was the massacre on the neon-zeon side, did any of them survive at all? Off course ZZ isn't one of the best Gundams, the tone sometimes switches at akward times, the harem episode just before the finale seemed completely out of place, and some plot points really did not make sense. Same goes for the mecha the ZZ's gattai like build seemed to have no purpose at all. Still some of the action was very well done and while not always practical the mecha designs do look cool. Since I was busy with ZZ, I also mixed in the DVD of Chars counter attack. Wonderful handdrawn action sequences, beautiful designs with lot of attention to detail. But why on earth did they make Quess and Hathaway so incredibly annoying? Unless I miss something, I can't sympathise with either character at all. No Sayla Mass is also a bit of a miss, especially since the anime centers on the Amuro and Char rivalry.

I don't dislike Zero and Frontier or Itsuwari no Utahime but I do find them to be more flawed in terms of balance and pacing than either SDFM or Macross 7. The latter two had experienced directors credited unlike the Satelight Macross works. Also other Kawamori directed works like Ajuna and Aquarion haven't had great ratings either. However I don't know how much influence the director has in comparison to the person in charge of the series composition, the storyboarders and the episode writers so it may not be due to any one individuals skills, but more a matter of budget or planning.

Aya is still working ongoing anime like Fairy Tale and upcoming sequels and iirc a Haruhi 3 DS game. So Aya will be available for any future Haruhi projects. Sankaku complex loves to spread/create rumours so I always take any *news* on Aya with a pinch of salt untill it gets confirmed by reliable sources. Fans love to moan about Endless Eight, but the supposedly poor sales had more to do with the DVD only release of S2 then anything else. The BD boxed set thrashed sales records. A third season is more of a question of *when* rather then *if*. Given the upcoming K-on movie this fall, I don't think we will see a third season before winter or spring 2012.

Savage Eye- Time Travellers, some funny stuff on Irish TV http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jmB1vwT_9jk&feature=youtu.be Japanese television, not quite making sense

How about a few movies, Rebuilt of Evangelion style?

Have to agree, not very likely to see two Gundam shows run on TV at the same time. Movie or OVA then. Unicorn for the nostalgia/UC-fans Gandam AGE as an introduction show for new or young fans. That leaves the otaku/fujoshi market. Seed is to old, so my guess is another 00 project, maybe a prequel?

The conversations on the financial system in C are little more then window dressing to give weight to the consequences of the game/financial district. It is not a bad show but, like the recent fractale or shiki, I don't see it fit with noitamina's non-otaku audience. As for Enma-kun, you may be right, it is a nostalgia show after all, and the makers manage to strike the same tone as the original manga. The list you gave is rather diverse, but some good anime of the last three years or so in random order: Full Metal Alchemist: Brotherhood Kara No Kyoukai: Garden of Sinners Mushishi Cross Game Toradora Angel Beats Break Blade Eve No Jinkan Baccano! Denno Coil Seirei no Moribito Natsume Yūjin-Chō

That problem has already been solved by using private corporations. Space X should be able to bring people to the ISS this year: http://www.spacex.com/dragon.php Still it's interesting to see they have salvaged as much as posible from the Orion program. Wonder what kind of plans NASA has atm for manned spaceflight that require a crew vehicle that can go beyond low earth orbit.

It's got a super robot vibe, a bit like all the retro 70s anime of late. A back to basics gundam show like 0079 shouldn't be too bad. No emo bishies is a definite plus.

Spring season 2011 has been one of the best in recent years, with loads of interesting titles. So far I've kept up to date with: Ano Hi Mita Hana no Namae wo Bokutachi wa Mada Shiranai: Show about a group of teenagers trying to complete one last wish for a childhoodfriend who has passed away. Not much wrong with this show except some minor plotholes, at times a bit too sentimental but not enough to be irritating (although it's rediculously long title certainly is). C: The Money of Possibility and Soul Control: Early reports indicated this to be some sort of political thriller or social commentary on the financial sector, but it turned out to be 'pokemon for adults with money', which doesn’t really appeal to me. Would have dropped it if wasn’t for Kimimaro and Mashu. Don’t understand why this anime was included in the noitamina block. Deadman Wonderland: A guilty pleasure. Over the top violence and rediculous plot involving a kid being framed for murdering his class. The prison he has been sent to is an amusement park that is a cover up for human experimenting. Characters are messed up in the head in a pleasant way, and the suspense is high enough to make me want to watch this show first thing every week. Denpa Onna to Seishun Otoko: Well, what can I say; the cute is strong in this one. Involving a high school girl that after a carcrash has become a shut-in who is convinced she is an alien. Her cousin tries to get her back to the real world. The concept could have been worked out better if the show hadn’t gone the easy route of relying on character promotion. Dororon Enma-kun Meerameera: Best anime of the season by far, and it has received way too little attention. A strong adaption of Go Nagai's original hot blooded ecchi horror-comedy, it combines a retro feel, slick animation and a great soundtrack. It’s like a cross between Austin Powers and Panty and Stockings. Loaded with anime and pop culture references. Bring on the filth. Hanasaku Iroha: J-drama meets P.A.Works. Great visuals and started off really strong but lost a bit of impact. Plot: Daughter is send to work for her grumpy grandmother who owns a Ryokan, after the girls mother has ran off with her new lover, leavin her to fend for herself. Still a nice show to watch and I am curious where it will lead. Moshidora: Solid and slowly built up anime on a strange mix of management and baseball. Characters are unremarkable but it’s a heartwarming show with superb finale. Nichijou: It took me time to get used to absurdist type of humor, but Nichijou slowly picked up steam. It has very high production values but still lacks a focal character to bring some structure to the randomnes. Think Azumanga Daoih meets Pany Pony Dash. Showa Monogatari: Nice anime on family life in Japan in the 60s. Animation quality isn’t that great but an anime like this doesn’t need flashy graphics. Stein’s Gate: Very interesting sci-fi story on time travel with quirky cast and impressive atmosphere. Tiger and Bunny: Superhero buddy-cop show with power armors. The concept hasn’t really grabbed me but Kotetsu is a breath of fresh air when it comes to male protagonists in anime. We need more like him.

They did. Michael Fassbender is German.

Saw it today, have to say I like it. The makers didn't overload the movie with visual effects and there was plenty of character development. The fleet, Blackbird and submarine scene worked very well. Imo best attempt at an X-men movie so far couple of other nice moments:

Oh, I'd believe that and the actual number was probably quite a bit below that. In 2003 an average anime cost 10-13 mln yen per episode. SC's 88 mins would equal 4 episodes so roughly 40-50 mln yen. That's between $370,0000 and $480,000 at the time. Even including the advertising budget and DVD production SC would probably still be quite below $1 mln. (source http://www.meti.go.jp/policy/media_contents/downloadfiles/kobetsugenjyokadai/anime200306.pdf)

FUC# you Harmony Gold. Go suc# a dic%. oh, it get's worse. HG also trademarked Macross in France and Italy and Spain. They have pretty much covered every major western country with anime licensing companies. Heck, I wouldn't be surprised if HG is spending more money on legal fees for renewing these trademarks than they spent on the production of Shadow Chronicles...

Couple of OP’s I like, bit of a mix between new and older. Random order Mashin Eiyuden Wataru ~ STEP……Late 80s mecha show for kids. Youth sentiment Keroro Gunsō ~KERO! to MARCH ……..amphibian invasion force incoming! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=omUtFZ-VUXk Lucky Star ~ Motteke! Sailor Fuku …….Fractale may have finished yamakan’s career, but he knows how to make a catchy OP. VA version Brain powered ~In my dream ……(NFSW) Impressive vocals Nichijou ~ Hyadain no Kakakata☆kataomoi-C …….Hyadain does both the male and female song parts! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q5Wk1-mlUW4&feature=related Live action video: GaoGaiGar ~ Yuusha-oh Tanjou!.......Yes, it’s over the top. And? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1w9UX_ZxAmA Urusei Yatsura~ Lum no Love Song……. First OP is still my favorite http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I4ckz6Nmxd4&feature=related Infinite Ryvius ~ Dis……Classic Magic Knight Rayearth ~Yuzurenai Negai…..Shame the anime doesn’t measure up to the OP http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=65IRCa0TJC0 Zettai Muteki Raijin-Oh! ~ Dream Shift…Early nineties sunrise mecha show for kids. It’s just unfair how many great songs Sunrise managed to find for their shows. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sc-DED_5RCw&feature=related Hanasaku Iroha ~ Hana no Iro…….distinct voice but it has grown on me, and PAworks animation is so smooth http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lNCoQWHlK74 Buso Renkin ~ Makka Na Chikai……Yoshiki Fukuyama, need to say more? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xo6GWfIQamA

Seems very likely but I don't think it was confirmed in the show, would have to rewatch it.

Just finished episodes 11 and 12 of Puella Magi Madoka Magica. Shaft got themselves a winner, this show will be one of the classics. Solid plot, great characters and perfectly paced. The finale is in the finest traditions of the word epic. The postponed episodes were worth the wait, they look more polished. The anime is a definite must-buy for me. Miyamoto, Shinbo and Urobuchi outdid themselves.