Sarex Posted January 25 Share Posted January 25 (edited) He-Man Evolution (ie. Masters of the Universe: Revolution) is so over the top that it goes from bad to "omg I can't stop watching I need to see where this goes next". They have Pokemon, they have Digimon, they have Power Ranger, they have Lord of the Rings... a little bit of something for everyone. I can't believe I'm saying this, but I'm interested in seeing where they go next with it. Oh yeah and a new episode of delicious in a dungeon is out. They are creeping along to the main story, but the side stuff is very interesting and comfy that I don't mind the pace. Edited January 25 by Sarex "because they filled mommy with enough mythic power to become a demi-god" - KP Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gorth Posted January 26 Share Posted January 26 Just a quick recap of Frieren 19, while waiting for episode 20 to show up (hopefully available tomorrow morning, local time)... The test takers for the first class mage exam, got split up into a number of groups of 3 mages each. The goal is to capture an elusive bird within the time limit (a few days, forgot the exact number). The bird is lightning fast, tough as nails, moderately resistant to magic, highly developed magic detection skills (in this universe, magic is a manifestation of "mana", some beings have it, some don't, those who can actively shape it tends to become mages). In short, a bunch of mages trying to catch a bird that is fast and elusive, spotting a mage from a mile away and making a run for it... Frierens group holds a strategy meeting... and in the end, agrees to Frierens plan (she got inspired when one of the young girls mentioned something about being able to manipulate water) The plan? "Poison" every water hold they can find with mana, so the birds will have to come to a water source of Frierens choice... I didn't make screenshots of blood and gore, but it happens too. Monsters prey on the test takers, using their corpses as bait and there are no rules that stipulates test takers can't kill each other, then take the bird from another group that may already have acquired one. Frierens group realizes all of them will be up in arms and come after them when they have cornered the market so speak, leaving only one place to catch the birds. Frieren has learnt a powerful bird binding spell, that should overcome the birds magic resistance. Problem is the spell has a 50cm range Hence why they needed to narrow down the possible locations for the bird to seek water. Frieren puts on the statue act, sitting at the pond shore pretending to be a rock The spell worked At this point, Ferns group has also captured a bird and general infighting breaks out amongst the mages and blood start flowing. Ends somewhat abruptly... and now waiting for episode 20 1 “He who joyfully marches to music in rank and file has already earned my contempt. He has been given a large brain by mistake, since for him the spinal cord would surely suffice.” - Albert Einstein Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarex Posted January 26 Share Posted January 26 Frieren episode 20. So they are really stretching this out, or maybe not, it's been a while. Either way I can see where this season will end, so that means s2 will probably have half as many episodes or they will wait a while before they make it. "because they filled mommy with enough mythic power to become a demi-god" - KP Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
majestic Posted January 26 Share Posted January 26 I followed @Bartimaeus glowing recommendation after @Sarex mentioned Delicious in Dungeon and watched the first two episodes. What a fantastic experience, my sides still hurt from all the laughing. Spoiler No, seriously, the idea of making a parody of dungeon romp video games is not bad, but this is... uh. Well, at least it is only weekly. On the plus side, the voice acting does not hurt my ears, unlike the constant screaming in Komi. What a plus, huh? 2 No mind to think. No will to break. No voice to cry suffering. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarex Posted January 27 Share Posted January 27 (edited) If it makes you feel better, it has a story and the characters get much deeper. For Komi the anime is unfortunate, the manga is good. Edited January 27 by Sarex "because they filled mommy with enough mythic power to become a demi-god" - KP Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Azdeus Posted January 28 Share Posted January 28 I stumbled across this in the background of a youtube video. https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/east-asia/japan-arsonist-who-killed-36-appeals-against-death-sentence I'm not much for death penalties, it's the easy way out, and in this case the person probably has tonnes of medical issues aswell.They ought to let him rot in jail. Civilization, in fact, grows more and more maudlin and hysterical; especially under democracy it tends to degenerate into a mere combat of crazes; the whole aim of practical politics is to keep the populace alarmed (and hence clamorous to be led to safety) by menacing it with an endless series of hobgoblins, most of them imaginary. - H.L. Mencken Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarex Posted January 28 Share Posted January 28 3 minutes ago, Azdeus said: I stumbled across this in the background of a youtube video. https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/east-asia/japan-arsonist-who-killed-36-appeals-against-death-sentence I'm not much for death penalties, it's the easy way out, and in this case the person probably has tonnes of medical issues aswell.They ought to let him rot in jail. Japan is very weird with their laws and prisons. 1 "because they filled mommy with enough mythic power to become a demi-god" - KP Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Azdeus Posted January 28 Share Posted January 28 (edited) 18 minutes ago, Sarex said: Japan is very weird with their laws and prisons. I don't know enough about it really, but I'm fairly certain I knew about them having the death penalty before this as I wasn't the least bit shocked about the sentencing. Edited January 28 by Azdeus Civilization, in fact, grows more and more maudlin and hysterical; especially under democracy it tends to degenerate into a mere combat of crazes; the whole aim of practical politics is to keep the populace alarmed (and hence clamorous to be led to safety) by menacing it with an endless series of hobgoblins, most of them imaginary. - H.L. Mencken Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bartimaeus Posted January 29 Author Share Posted January 29 (edited) Roujin Z (1991). I put this on my list years ago so when I opened it up yesterday I had zero clue what it was about. Written but not directed by Katsuhiro Otomo of Akira fame, which, of course, I also did not know until after watching it. It's a film that has some big ideas but tells them in a rather small, cute, and silly manner, which is basically the opposite of how Akira tried to do it. The film opens up with our main character, Haruko, a strong-willed trainee nurse kindly trying to take care of one of her patients, an elderly and almost completely comatose little old man who lost his very dear wife years ago. The poor guy is 'volunteered' by his remaining relatives that evidently doesn't want to take care of him to be the test subject of a new automated system that will severely reduce the need for family, nurses, and other caretakers to be constantly attending to him and others like him...you know, eliminate whatever small human element they receive in their advanced age. After all, it's expensive and there just aren't enough people to do it anyways. Things do not go quite as planned. Apparently, this film was kind of considered to be the black sheep of Otomo's early career, as it awkwardly fits between Akira and Memories and is relatively unknown even today. While I love his and Satoshi Kon's collaboration in Memories' Magnetic Rose more, I did like this way a lot more than Akira and it was a very enjoyable watch. If I had one strong criticism that was a very noticeable distraction, it's that the sound engineer was clearly asleep at the wheel, as there are all sorts of obviously missing sound effects and bad audio mixing...that, or the blu-ray audio got really funked up. Not sure. Edited January 29 by Bartimaeus Quote How I have existed fills me with horror. For I have failed in everything - spelling, arithmetic, riding, tennis, golf; dancing, singing, acting; wife, mistress, whore, friend. Even cooking. And I do not excuse myself with the usual escape of 'not trying'. I tried with all my heart. In my dreams, I am not crippled. In my dreams, I dance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gorth Posted February 3 Share Posted February 3 On 1/27/2024 at 6:06 AM, Sarex said: Frieren episode 20. So they are really stretching this out, or maybe not, it's been a while. Either way I can see where this season will end, so that means s2 will probably have half as many episodes or they will wait a while before they make it. I would say 19,20 and 21 sort of belongs together. 20 feels particularly "odd" because it has no start and no end. Like it was meant for a single 70 minute episode or something... 19 sets up the scenario, 20 is the various groups learning the nature of their target, stalking it and trying to work out how to get it and 21 is the infighting between some who has caught the elusive bird and those who wants to take it by force because they for various reasons are unable to catch their own. Also, a group can only pass the test if the group is complete. If a member dies or leaves the test area, the entire group fails the test. Around the test area is a barrier that keeps spells in and rain out (the latter being important in episode 21) My own little recap of 20... Ferns group has a run in with another group, which tries to take their bird by force. One of the mages tries to take on Fern head on. Sort of a bad idea. When one of the mages team mates asks Fern what she did to her (since she didn't come back)... Except, the Fern we all know and love is not a cold blooded killer... Fern does have quite the poker face (and dead pan line delivery) though... Fern's "special ability" is she can instantly cast a gazillion spells, offensive and defensive, hence why Frieren always let Fern deal with the monsters they encounter (it's faster and they waste less time) Looks a bit like terraforming, but it was just a poor sucker of a mage getting in the way of Ferns artillery barrage This guy starts to feel a fraction of what Stark gets exposed to on a daily basis... Frierens group also has their own problems... another group led by the imperial court mage has their eyes on the bird caught by Frierens group... The specialty of the young girl confronting them is a spell that makes her move lightning fast Frierens group is now one bird down... (will make a separate post for episode 21, which also wraps up the first test) “He who joyfully marches to music in rank and file has already earned my contempt. He has been given a large brain by mistake, since for him the spinal cord would surely suffice.” - Albert Einstein Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gorth Posted February 4 Share Posted February 4 Frieren episode 21... too many things happening to summarize in one post, so putting the wrapping up in a separate one afterwards. A word about their weird names. Whoever wrote the manga has an obsession with German words and all names, people and places (except one), that I've seen so far has been a German word that somehow summarizes it. I.e. Frieren (being cold, I assume in the meaning uninterested in the world), Fern (distant), Eisen (iron) the warrior, Heiter (cheerful) the jolly and perpetual drunk priest etc. Places that translates to the end (literally the northen end of the world), farthest away etc. Same thing goes for all the mages taking the mage test. Names that summarizes their personality. A bit jarring when you speak German Frierens team mates are the two girls Kanne and Lawine (meaning jug and avalanche, the former can manipulate existing water though she can't conjure it up and the latter specializes in ice magic). One of Ferns team mates is Ubel (mean/bad) and I don't remember the guy with the glasses name. The group Frieren is fighting is led by the old imperial court mage Denken (thinking), besides Laufen (running, the super fast moving girl) and Richter (the judge, not sure if it has other meanings when translating to English) The idea behind this particular test popped up 50 years previous, instigated by an old elf. Who just happens to Frierens masters master (Frierens master was named Flamme, i.e. "flame"). Flamme's master was Serie, who comes across as being ancient at a time when Frieren was an apprentice. She claims to know the content of almost every grimoire in existence and as a reward to those who pass the exam, she'll give each successful test taker a spell of their choice (like a genie in a bottle, fulfilling any wish you may have). Serie made the same offer to Frieren a millennia ago, but Frieren declined, finding the search for magic more rewarding than having it bestowed upon you. Having separated Kanne and Lawine (Frierens two young companions), Richter first wanted to kill one of them, to make the group automatically fail the test and seize their bird (at this point they have already stolen the bird, but they want to remove any reason for them to fight to retrieve it again). Denken orders him to not kill anyone, just keep them busy until sunset. And so he does... as mentioned in the previous post, a barrier keeps the elements out of the test area, which leaves the two girls at a major disadvantage. Richter can manipulate rock which are in plenty supply, but the barrier keeps the main tool needed by the girls away. A rather one sided affair... Old man Denken in the meantime, realizes he may have bitten off more than he can chew... Desperate measures... It was inevitable Just to establish her dominance, Frieren literally kicks his butt Seeing the old man lose, Richter decides he now needs to get serious... In the meantime, Frieren decides it's time to get their valuable prize back. She know Laufen (the fast moving girl) is hiding nearby and threatens to kill the old man if she doesn't hand back their bird. Laufen doesn't know Frieren, so she thinks she can pull off the same trick twice and snatch the old man away from her. It didn't quite work out as planned... After tying up the two mages to a tree, Frieren enacts a plan she made yesterday to help out the two young mages in her group... and destroys the barrier Serie put there 50 years earlier... Serie seems a bit bemused by that, when she senses the barrier coming crashing down Suddenly getting access to plenty of water means, the tide has literally turned against Richter... all half a million liters of it... and the sun is setting soon, marking the end of the test. Just rewards are handed out 1 “He who joyfully marches to music in rank and file has already earned my contempt. He has been given a large brain by mistake, since for him the spinal cord would surely suffice.” - Albert Einstein Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
InsaneCommander Posted February 4 Share Posted February 4 These last episodes of Frieren were pretty good. I love when they defeat an opponent or solve a problem in an interesting way. Destroying the barrier to give more water to Kanne (Lawine? I don't remember who is who ) was great. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gorth Posted February 5 Share Posted February 5 Frieren 19-20-21 epilogue/end of the first test Old man Denken didn't get to where he is just by giving up easily, so he is determined to take a bird from another group before the sun sets. Being all out of mana (magical energy), it comes down to brute force. Luck is with them and they stumble across a another team, who has lost a member (one of the dead bodies they ran into previously, killed by monsters). I.e. they have automatically failed, but still wont relinquish their bird Explaining his tactics to Richter... and what do you know?... a few bruised knuckles later, Denkens group also has a bird! Some of the other teams also get a lucky break in the dying minutes of the day... Ferns group also just hiding and waiting for the day to end now... Frierens group doing their own thing... We haven't really seen much of Stark for these last, several episodes, so we just get a glimpse of him too, getting stuff off his chest, sharing with a sympathetic tavern keeper 1 “He who joyfully marches to music in rank and file has already earned my contempt. He has been given a large brain by mistake, since for him the spinal cord would surely suffice.” - Albert Einstein Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bartimaeus Posted February 7 Author Share Posted February 7 gdgd Fairies (2011). This is the ugliest, cheapest, dumbest piece of crap CGI anime comedy series ever produced. The show format is basically these three fairies just sit at a table for most of the episode having these off the walls silly conversations about nothing much (e.g. "what're the little things in life that make you happy?"), then there's some kind of ridiculous sketch involving magic powers (e.g. "let's summon pets you wouldn't want!"), and then the episode ends with the "the animators have made some kind of random wacky CG scene not related to the show at all (usually with overweight and/or nearly naked men doing something silly), and now we want each of you ladies to do your own unscripted voice-acting like something from Whose Line Is It Anyway over it" segment. It's as lazy as it sounds, except that it's actually pretty hilarious and quite charming, and the three voice actresses for the fairies clearly had a lot of fun goofing off with it, especially during the unscripted parts. Also, the awful N64-quality art/animation is somehow a point in its favor rather than an active detriment. I don't know, it's just one of those weird things that somehow works. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go check myself into the nearest loony bin, as I've clearly lost my mind for enjoying this. Please don't acknowledge or respond to this post, I'll be long gone into the insane asylum by the time you read this. 1 Quote How I have existed fills me with horror. For I have failed in everything - spelling, arithmetic, riding, tennis, golf; dancing, singing, acting; wife, mistress, whore, friend. Even cooking. And I do not excuse myself with the usual escape of 'not trying'. I tried with all my heart. In my dreams, I am not crippled. In my dreams, I dance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
majestic Posted February 7 Share Posted February 7 7 hours ago, Bartimaeus said: Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go check myself into the nearest loony bin, as I've clearly lost my mind for enjoying this. Please don't acknowledge or respond to this post, I'll be long gone into the insane asylum by the time you read this. I was thinking about suggesting that you check yourself into the nearest mental institution after reading up until this point, but it seems that you already did. Take care man, and all the best, hope the treatment will work out. 1 No mind to think. No will to break. No voice to cry suffering. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bartimaeus Posted February 8 Author Share Posted February 8 (edited) Laputa: Castle in the Sky (1986). It definitely improved from being in Japanese over the English dub, but it wasn't nearly as strong of an improvement as which Porco Rosso experienced. I think I'm just not the biggest fan of this story (which is basically the same story as both Nadia: The Secret of Blue Water as well as Future Boy Conan) or the characters (also a lot of similarities to both of the aforementioned shows as well). There's a certain scene that makes my skin crawl in this film, which I think is intended to be humorous but which I do not find to be. But while I think Castle in the Sky is not quite totally my thing and has some unnecessary issues that take away from my enjoyment of it, I still think it's a fundamentally good children's adventure film. Princess Mononoke rates as "it's just about the best a film could possibly be except for the fact that I don't like it basically at all" for me, so Laputa obviously places above it. But the gap between Princess Mononoke, my second least favorite Miyazaki film, and Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea, my actual least favorite Miyazaki film, is quite vast. I've watched Ponyo twice, once by myself and once with small children, and I had a very bad time during both watches. I'm curious to see if I like The Boy and the Heron: from the little I've glimpsed of it, I am guessing it'll probably be another Princess Mononoke or thereabouts for me. Edited February 8 by Bartimaeus 1 Quote How I have existed fills me with horror. For I have failed in everything - spelling, arithmetic, riding, tennis, golf; dancing, singing, acting; wife, mistress, whore, friend. Even cooking. And I do not excuse myself with the usual escape of 'not trying'. I tried with all my heart. In my dreams, I am not crippled. In my dreams, I dance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gorth Posted February 9 Share Posted February 9 I was looking for something completely different on Youtube (Drachinifels coverage of the Battle of Jutland) when the algorithm gave me this... Looks like a small series of shorts made by the studio for whatever purposes. About 1 minute each and you have to manually activate subtitles. Thought it was cute 1 “He who joyfully marches to music in rank and file has already earned my contempt. He has been given a large brain by mistake, since for him the spinal cord would surely suffice.” - Albert Einstein Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
InsaneCommander Posted February 9 Share Posted February 9 Frieren 22 Frieren and Stark sleep an entire day, making Fern upset. They take her to a restaurant to change her mood. The next day, it happens again. I guess magic tests make people hungry 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gorth Posted February 10 Share Posted February 10 On 2/10/2024 at 4:07 AM, InsaneCommander said: Frieren 22 Frieren and Stark sleep an entire day, making Fern upset. They take her to a restaurant to change her mood. The next day, it happens again. ... This episode was hilarious I was rewatching an earlier episode... those noticeable ear rings Frieren is wearing, are there in the recent flashback scenes (less than 100 years ago) but they aren't there in the oldest flashback scenes (1000 years ago), but her master is wearing some conspicuously similar looking ear rings (as well as a matching pendant). Wonder if she inherited them from her master at some point in the story? “He who joyfully marches to music in rank and file has already earned my contempt. He has been given a large brain by mistake, since for him the spinal cord would surely suffice.” - Albert Einstein Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarex Posted February 13 Share Posted February 13 1 "because they filled mommy with enough mythic power to become a demi-god" - KP Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bartimaeus Posted February 14 Author Share Posted February 14 who's gonna listen to a weeb drone on and on about NGE for two hours and am i pronouncing evangelion wrong, or is he Quote How I have existed fills me with horror. For I have failed in everything - spelling, arithmetic, riding, tennis, golf; dancing, singing, acting; wife, mistress, whore, friend. Even cooking. And I do not excuse myself with the usual escape of 'not trying'. I tried with all my heart. In my dreams, I am not crippled. In my dreams, I dance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gorth Posted February 14 Share Posted February 14 While waiting impatiently for next episode of Frieren, I picked up another anime to watch. "Metal Rouge" (not a typo, it is a colour, not a profession reference). Looks a bit inspired by Bladerunner and very much inspired by the old comics by Alejandro Jodorowsky and Moebius (Jean Giraud) Very intriguing “He who joyfully marches to music in rank and file has already earned my contempt. He has been given a large brain by mistake, since for him the spinal cord would surely suffice.” - Albert Einstein Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PK htiw klaw eriF Posted February 14 Share Posted February 14 36 minutes ago, Gorth said: Metal Rouge When I google it I get a mecha bat that looks like it's from something else. "Akiva Goldsman and Alex Kurtzman run the 21st century version of MK ULTRA." - majestic "I'm gonna hunt you down so that I can slap you square in the mouth." - Bartimaeus "Without individual thinking you can't notice the plot holes." - InsaneCommander "Just feed off the suffering of gamers." - Malcador "You are calling my taste crap." -Hurlshort "thankfully it seems like the creators like Hungary less this time around." - Sarex "Don't forget the wakame, dumbass" -Keyrock "Are you trolling or just being inadvertently nonsensical?' -Pidesco "we have already been forced to admit you are at least human" - uuuhhii "I refuse to buy from non-woke businesses" - HoonDing "feral camels are now considered a pest" - Gorth "Melkathi is known to be an overly critical grumpy person" - Melkathi "Oddly enough Sanderson was a lot more direct despite being a Mormon" - Zoraptor "I found it greatly disturbing to scroll through my cartoon's halfing selection of genitalias." - Wormerine "Am I phrasing in the most negative light for them? Yes, but it's not untrue." - ShadySands Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gorth Posted February 14 Share Posted February 14 6 minutes ago, PK htiw klaw eriF said: When I google it I get a mecha bat that looks like it's from something else. That's because I can't spell My bad, it's Metallic Rouge https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metallic_Rouge “He who joyfully marches to music in rank and file has already earned my contempt. He has been given a large brain by mistake, since for him the spinal cord would surely suffice.” - Albert Einstein Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PK htiw klaw eriF Posted February 14 Share Posted February 14 6 minutes ago, Gorth said: That's because I can't spell You exposed me to Sonic erotica. 1 1 "Akiva Goldsman and Alex Kurtzman run the 21st century version of MK ULTRA." - majestic "I'm gonna hunt you down so that I can slap you square in the mouth." - Bartimaeus "Without individual thinking you can't notice the plot holes." - InsaneCommander "Just feed off the suffering of gamers." - Malcador "You are calling my taste crap." -Hurlshort "thankfully it seems like the creators like Hungary less this time around." - Sarex "Don't forget the wakame, dumbass" -Keyrock "Are you trolling or just being inadvertently nonsensical?' -Pidesco "we have already been forced to admit you are at least human" - uuuhhii "I refuse to buy from non-woke businesses" - HoonDing "feral camels are now considered a pest" - Gorth "Melkathi is known to be an overly critical grumpy person" - Melkathi "Oddly enough Sanderson was a lot more direct despite being a Mormon" - Zoraptor "I found it greatly disturbing to scroll through my cartoon's halfing selection of genitalias." - Wormerine "Am I phrasing in the most negative light for them? Yes, but it's not untrue." - ShadySands Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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