Dagger

[quote name='ckime']Hi Dagger, yes, I also post on Anime on DVD (I assume that's AoD?). Thanks for the nice thoughts about our site & trailer![/quote] Heh, I thought your name seemed familiar. I was indeed referring to Anime on DVD. [quote]With regards to the soundtrack, I'm not 100% sure, but I believe that the licensor wasn't able to clear all of the rights on all of the tracks and wanted us to do a compilation. Usually in those cases there's not much room to argue... ;)[/quote] Works for me. [quote]As for TV, we don't have anything official yet, but there's a VERY good chance it will be on TV in the late summer or early fall. Unfortunately, we can't do it earlier than that because we won't have enough episodes dubbed before then. Thanks for your support! I'm pretty sure you won't regret your purchase. Best regards, Chad.[/QUOTE] That's great news. It would be a crying shame if this show never made it to TV. And even though I always get a little tetchy when people go overboard with the Bebop comparisons, I can't help wanting to say that Champloo definitely has the same kind of broad appeal. Just one more question: will there be any pack-ins for future volumes of the show? (Speaking of which, the postcard set which came with the final Last Exile DVD was pretty amazing--one of the very few LE items I've found myself getting really excited about.) ~Dagger~

[quote name='Chabichou][COLOR=#004a6f']Can any of you possibly imagine DNA and proteins forming and phospholipids actually lining up to form a cell membrane?[/COLOR][/quote] Well, yes. It's been a long time since I so much as thought about cell membranes. However, I was under the impression that phospholipids naturally line up like that because it protects their hydrophobic tails (the hydrophilic heads face outward, coming into contact with the solution around them). Experiments have been performed showing that a bunch of floating phospholipids will automatically assume this formation without any outside aid. ~Dagger~

Welcome to OB. ^_^ It's really nice to see a rep around these parts. Do you post at AoD, too, or am I thinking of someone else? As for the first volume, I've got it pre-ordered. I'm looking forward to seeing that shiny orange/red artbox in person, and the bandana seems pretty cool-looking (if not terribly practical). Nice job on the official site and the new trailer. Is there any particular reason that Geneon ended up bringing over a compilation soundtrack instead of just releasing the three or four original CDs in succession? It doesn't make a huge difference to me (I'm not that big on music--I just wish the lovely enka song from episode 14 had been included in one of the Japanese OSTs). But I don't think I've ever seen an official explanation for this, and I am curious. Also, does Champloo have any chance of getting on American TV? ~Dagger~

Just saw the first episode of the new TV series. Apparently they've decided to start from scratch, which is good for those of us (myself included) who know very little about the movie and OVAs. As I was watching it raw, I probably missed a few key points, but the set-up seemed pretty simple. Nearly all of the episode was devoted to introducing Keiichi as a character: his bad luck in love, his bad luck in general, and his kindness. [spoiler]Belldandy came through a mirror at the very end. I was sort of underwhelmed by that scene; it could have been much more beautiful, like Manatsu's lovely entrance in Uta~Kata (she too appears by emerging from a mirror).[/spoiler] Actually, I was underwhelmed by the art in general. The character designs are fabulous, and some of the abstract CG looks great, especially during the scene in which Keiichi was dialing the help-line. There's plenty of detail and all that, and the animation is good. However, overall it just pales tremendously in comparison to, say, Uta~Kata or the first episode of AIR. I had expected really gorgeous painted backgrounds and smooth, impeccable coloring. Yet so far AMG seems to be the kind of thing that makes me feel a little nostalgic for cel animation--and I haven't even seen the OVAs! Hopefully it'll look smoother, brighter and crisper on DVD. The OP and ED themes are excellent (as is the regular music), and the accompanying clips/still shots seem well chosen. The OP did have one or two moments with really nasty CG backgrounds; fortunately, those seem to be absent from the series itself. I enjoyed the comedy (what I caught of it, anyway) and Keiichi's personality is pretty appealing. I also like the show's gentle slice-of-life atmosphere. I'm being kind of nit-picky here, so I look forward to finding out what fans of the franchise think. EDIT: If anyone's interested in seeing screencaps, I'll gladly post some. ~Dagger~

[quote name='AzureWolf][FONT=book antiqua][SIZE=2][COLOR=blue]For Gantz, the whole 2 episode per DVD for a total of 13 DVDs. For Pita Ten, the idea that the overseas people want special, undefiling care (similar to Gantz and Innocence) for the series even though all statistics and trends point to that being unwarranted and unprofitable, so it's taking a while for it to be licensed and to be released.[/color][/size'][/font][/quote] Oh, I see. I had heard about the Gantz issue (is ADV on crack or what?), but I didn't realize there was anything going on with Pita Ten. [quote name='AzureWolf][FONT=book antiqua][SIZE=2][COLOR=blue]While I agree with the rest of your post, I'm wondering why you think older shows won't get dubbed. Aren't they all (both new and old animes) going to be new in the US?[/COLOR][/SIZE'][/FONT][/quote] That's true to an extent. At the same time, really old anime get much less exposure and often don't catch the interest of casual fans (usually due to having limited/less flashy animation). This also applies to niche titles like Seraphim Call and Sentimental Journey (both of those series were recently released in super-cheap sub-only sets). If a show's main audience is inevitably going to be hardcore otaku-type fans, omitting a dub saves money and probably won't enrage anyone. At the same time, plenty of obscure or older anime get dubbed--even Maison Ikkoku, whose remaining box sets are being released through exclusively through [i]one[/i] little online store. Marmalade Boy has been coming out in pricey bundles which are clearly not aimed at Joe Suncoast, but it still has a high-quality dub. While older shows can and do receive English dubs, they are a bit more likely to come out in sub-only format. That's all I meant to say. :) ~Dagger~

[QUOTE=Chabichou][COLOR=#004a6f]Here is an example that also shows some flaws that the survival of the fittest theory also doesn't proove evolution. And the theory that humans evolved from apes also has flaws in it. Skeletons have been found of [B]humans[/B] that were as old as those of the so ape like creatures evolutionists think are our ancestors. Why would it suddenly appear out of no where like that if we evolved from apes might I ask?[/color][/quote] Did you read my post? I specifically mentioned that human beings did not evolve from apes as we know them today. There were a variety of primates way back then, some more ape-ish than others, and for a long time human beings overlapped with the more primitive human-like species which were also descendants of the same ancestor(s). Those species vanished because they could not successfully compete with humans for food, resources, shelter and so forth. It sounds like you're referring to Homo sapiens' now-extinct sister species (that's an over-simplification, but I assume you see my point) rather than a direct parent species. Of course, parent species [i]can[/i] also live alongside their "children," particularly if the newer species have settled into a different niche. [quote][COLOR=#004a6f]I'm not here to convert people, but I see so much evidence in my religion that God exists.[/COLOR][/QUOTE] I, for one, never said that evolution precludes the existence of God. EDIT: I want to respond to some of your other points, but I need to run off to a doctor's appointment. So I'll edit this post and/or type up a second reply later. ~Dagger~

Gunslinger Girl v. 1: This is one of the very few non-shounen-ai series that I'm collecting. I wish ADV would put it out faster, but I have almost no complaints with the first volume. The artwork is smooth, the story is moving (though I found the anime more shocking, perhaps because I watched it first), and the manga-ka did an excellent job of showing implied movement and action. Les Bijoux v. 1-5: The first three volumes demonstrate some promise. The last two are so awful that they temporarily shattered my faith in humanity, and forever turned me off to the boy-girl transformation genre. Gravitation v. 1-9: A fun, crazy rollercoaster ride of a manga, and my favorite multi-volume shounen-ai title, at least until Bokura no Oukoku starts coming out. Maki Murakami is a master of insane comedy. The artwork gets off to a rough start but soon improves dramatically; the characters are well-developed, and the English translation--zany and packed with pop-culture references--is simply a delight to read. Here is Greenwood v. 1: I loved the OVA, and the manga is even better. The secondary characters (such as Fukikake and Watanabe) are the best part of the series. I'll post more titles later. ^_^ ~Dagger~

Welcome to OtakuBoards. ^_^ The post quality (rather, the lack thereof) demonstrated here is rather horrifying. Please read the forum rules and FAQ before posting again; if you browse around for a bit, I'm sure you'll notice that we place a strong emphasis on making one's writing as clear and coherent as possible. This entails using proper grammar, spelling, etc. to the best of your ability. The type of posts contained in this topic are simply too chatroom-esque for OB. Additionally, keep in mind that we designate one official thread for each anime. We already have a very long Naruto topic, which can be found by clicking on the appropriate link in the Directory sticky. If you have any questions, feel free to PM me or one of the other moderators. Thanks! ~Dagger~

I have a question for those of you who despise or strongly dislike Shinji. Do you hate him because of his actions/behavior/mindset throughout the series, or because of something that happens in the last few episodes? I'm at episode 17 right now, and thus far I've found him to be a mostly sympathetic character. So I can only assume that he does something stunningly awful later on, because at this point I can't really bring myself to see him as being overly whiny or annoying or weak. Answer however you like, but please remember to use spoiler tags liberally (I've been spoiled for the TV show as well as EoE, and I have no desire to refresh my memory). Thanks! ^_^ ~Dagger~

[quote name='natetron46']I was referring to the TV cuts for the episodes. I feel that you lose some of the effect and the atmosphere of the show when somethings are cut out to make the show more "TV friendly".[/quote] I gathered that, but you also said, "The censorship is going over the top now. Half the shows end up being edited and cut out." This is simply untrue. Honestly, the level of censorship (particularly regarding anime on Adult Swim) has greatly diminished. The shows on TechTV tend to run virtually uncut, as do the shows on The Anime Network and (if I remember correctly) the International Channel. AS performs far fewer edits now than they used to. Naturally anything handled by 4Kids will be an absolute mess, but I can only think of a few anime they've done recently--Shaman King, One Piece, etc. How does that translate to an [i]increase[/i] in censorship? Back on topic: I've got a question. Do any of you find that your buying habits differ when it comes to anime and manga? I purchase nearly all of my anime DVDs online, but with manga I usually go to brick-and-mortar bookstores. Huge online discounts are a bit harder to find for manga, so there isn't a big monetary disadvantage involved in hitting up Borders or whatever. And I tend to require instant gratification when I'm looking for manga, even though I don't mind waiting ages for DVDs to ship. ~Dagger~

[quote name='AzureWolf][FONT=book antiqua][SIZE=2][COLOR=blue]Also, if I remember correctly, CN starts the episode with the opening, while FMA on DVD has a bit of the show before actually showing the opening.[/color][/size'][/font][/quote] CN does show the pre-episode prologues, including Al's usual opening narration. I've missed one or two of them due to turning on the TV too late, but so far I think nearly every episode has come with some kind of preface. [QUOTE][FONT=book antiqua][SIZE=2][COLOR=blue]So, does this mean that Ready Steady Go is a regular opening (it's definately not a bootleg opening with random episode snippets)? That still bothers me a little, heh.[/color][/size][/font][/quote] I believe so. It definitely is OP animation, as opposed to stuff snatched from the actual show. However, I'm not totally sure that they're using the proper animation for the song (although the visuals and music seem to synch up pretty well). [QUOTE][FONT=book antiqua][SIZE=2][COLOR=blue]Well, I don't think the episode in question really establishes any of that. Them being bound by sin (aka "desire to fix/heal the other") was pertty early on, even before their quest started. In this episode, that theme wasn't very strong - at least not to me. And logically, of course if the other wasn't around, their desire to fix/heal the other wouldn't be there, haha. Without a doubt, their appreciation for just having one another was made clear after the incident. However, this as well, was not established in this episode.[/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT][/QUOTE] Gah, I'm doing a really bad job of expressing myself today. Let me try again. The idea of them being tied together by sin was planted early on, as you mentioned. Their close relationship was also presented and developed from the very beginning. But for me, the emotional extremes Ed underwent in episode 8 (particularly his reaction to turning around and seeing Al toward the end) kind of galvanized all of this. Al simply stood there--calm, quietly sad, strong and supportive and yet really much too young to be playing that sort of role. The imagery then and the dialogue later, especially when Al talked about how he couldn't understand what Ed had experienced, seemed to make the bond between them very concrete. I was strongly affected by the rawness of what transpired earlier in the episode, so in a way, everything that happened afterwards was also seared into my mind. I guess that's a big part of the reason why I was so struck by what Al said and how he acted as Ed's support. EDIT: And what you said in your edit hits the nail on the head, I think. ~Dagger~

[QUOTE=AzureWolf][FONT=book antiqua][SIZE=2][COLOR=blue]Anyway, having watched the DVD versions, I'm wondering why the opening is different. It seems that Cartoon Network is airing a different opening than the one that is in the first eight episodes on the FMA DVD. Personally, I think the one on the DVDs works and fits better than the Ready Steady Go one (thank God Godel's internet isn't working). In fact, after seeing this opening, I think the one being aired is very inappropriate for FMA and is just there because the band that made the song is finally getting popular here in the US. Thank goodness Godel isn't around... O_O[/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT][/QUOTE] Haha, yeah, that pretty much covers it. I suppose this decision also gives people an extra incentive to go out and buy Funi's DVDs, which will contain all the correct openings with the correct music (they made a statement to that effect a little while back). I don't know if CN ever tried to publicly justify running Ready Steady Go in front of every single episode, but your reasoning makes sense to me. EDIT: It's not so much that I think the brothers are wholly unable to function separately, but I do believe each is driven by his desire to fix/heal the other. Right now it's more or less their entire purpose in life. Without each other, they would not have that to aim for and would be sort of lost. ~Dagger~

[quote name='RabidInuFanboy']But, I'm getting off on a tangent. Now, I believe in Creationism, but I also believe in evolution. I believe we evolve to adapt to our surroundings, but we didn't evolve from monkeys.[/quote] In the first part of your sentence, what is the pronoun "we" referring to? Do you actually believe that human beings are currently evolving, or are you referring to living things in general? To me it sounds as though you're saying that God created all the different species and so forth, but they have changed over time. Do you think that one or more new species can sprout from a single parent species, or not? [quote]That's where I draw the line.[/QUOTE] Why? I'm curious. ~Dagger~

Saint Beast is basically a stinking pile of tripe. Its animation is pathetic. The artwork veers from acceptable to overly colorful and crude. The seiyuu all seem strangely miscast, and the shounen-ai innuendo is so obviously empty fanservice that it seems almost offensive. Oh, and the plot (or lack thereof) sucks. This show deserves to burn; thank goodness that it's only six episodes long. ~Dagger~

[quote name='Sol-Blade]This "Line" premise only makes me wonder even more, exactly how creative do they get with this concept? As much as I [i]want[/i'] to go ahead and read all the summaries of the episodes...I'll refrain from doing so for now.[/quote] Nah, don't spoil yourself. The first half of the show is shrouded in mystery, and the second half contains some really great twists. Trying to figure out exactly what happened in the main character's past is part of what makes the show so involving. Without the initial suspense, I imagine that a first viewing of Tsukihime would feel rather slow. On the other hand, I've enjoyed revisiting it despite knowing what was going to happen, because I have an attachment to the characters. ^_^ I'm not totally sure what you mean by "creative." In the game, some of the characters have really incredible abilities and weapons. There's less of this in the anime, but Shiki's power is still very cool. [quote]Anyways I really want to see this show, but again due to the extreme lack of infomation (Anyone got some good sites? I [I]honestly[/I] can't find much on this show right now.), would you happen to know if this show is airing on television at the moment? If not, guess I better go hit up Suncoast and Amazon! lol[/QUOTE] It isn't showing on television (if it were going to appear anywhere, it would probably be TechTV, but the chances of that are pretty slim). On the plus side, Tsukihime is nice and short. Nearly all of the best and most shocking moments in the series take place after episode 7, but 1-6 are still quite solid. EDIT: You can view a promo for the series [url=http://www.geneonanimation.com/main.aspx?PageUID=9601231d-3d88-4737-bd61-40609e2f2426][u]here[/u][/url]. Go to the box on the lower right-hand side of the page and scroll down to "Tsukihime." The choral music playing in the background is the OP; the trailer is made up mainly of clips from the show, but has one or two shots taken from the OP animation as well. I think it offers a fairly accurate impression of Tsukihime. ~Dagger~

[QUOTE=Japan_86][COLOR=Navy]If we evolved from apes, how come the other monkeys and apes didn't evolve? If we evolve, then how come we haven't changed over 2000 years?[/COLOR][/QUOTE] Evolution does not have to be something constant; this is a common misconception. It occurs mainly in small, rapid bursts. Once a species finds its niche, there is no particular need for evolution; in the absence of some kind of heavy selective pressure, mutations simply won't offer a marked advantage. Even if harmless mutations occur, the individuals with them probably aren't going to be favored by nature. There is no specific evolutionary pressure affecting contemporary human society (none that I can think of, at any rate)--humans, therefore, are not evolving in any specific direction. Also, humans didn't evolve from "apes" as we know them today--it's not as though gorillas or orangutans suddenly developed into people or something. We share a lot of genetic material with chimpanzees and so forth, but all of the modern primates branched off from various common ancestors eons ago. Monkeys and apes did evolve--they separately evolved into their current forms, just as we evolved into ours. ~Dagger~

[quote name='Chabichou][COLOR=#004a6f']Yeah I know what you mean, there's no proof that dogs came from dolphins or anything, just a possibility according to the evolution theory. What I mean is that if we all came from one ancestor where are these wierd transitional forms that made the evolution into different species possible, whatever they may be? [/COLOR][/quote] At some point, transitional wolf/whale creatures did exist, heh. The link is not yet perfectly established, but the existence of ancient whale-like animals with either vestigial or actual legs has long since been verified. It makes sense to me: whales, dolphins and sea lions undulate their spines vertically (like land mammals) rather than horizontally (like sharks and other types of fish). ~Dagger~

[quote name='natetron46']I completely agree with you. The censorship is going over the top now. Half the shows end up being edited and cut out. Some of the best stuff from the Japanese release of the anime ends up being cut out by whatever company translates it. Its ultimately up to the people that watch it, parents need to be in control of their kids, that way there will be no need for censorship.[/quote] What the heck are you talking about? Anime on TV is often edited, but plenty of high-profile shows (such as Wolf's Rain, Witch Hunter Robin, Fullmetal Alchemist and Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex) have experienced little to no censorship whatsoever. I can think of maybe two companies that produce edited DVD releases--4Kids and Tokyopop, and Tokyopop only began doing this very recently (with Rave Master and the "tricked-out" English dub of Initial D). The vast majority of anime DVDs, and therefore the vast majority of anime in America, is totally uncensored. Even shows that were cut for TV--such as Yu Yu Hakusho, Rurouni Kenshin and Yu-Gi-Oh--have come out uncut on DVD. If anything, the censorship in manga is much worse. Viz in particular is notorious for making their Shonen Jump titles more kid-friendly. ~Dagger~

Some thoughts on episode 13... Firstly, Orihime's sudden awesomeness stunned me. [spoiler]She became slightly, uh, less awesome when it turned out that her cool wind-whipping power was being created by a bunch of mildly psychotic fairies, but I'm just happy that she has a talent in the first place. I had been so convinced that she would end up being the token useless female character. Her relationship with Tatsuki is really sweet and touching (and even more homoerotic than before, haha), and I can't help but feel fond of the red-haired girl. Is Chizuru her name?[/spoiler] Secondly, is it weird that I think [spoiler]Urahara looks very villainous? Though I do like him and his ever-present air of mystery, to me everything about him just screams "secret bad guy."[/spoiler] Maybe I'm merely getting paranoid or something. I was surprised by the borderline camaraderie between Ishida and Ichigo at the very end of the episode. I had expected them to immediately rip each other's throats out (or try, at least). I guess they do have their priorities straight, after all. And it's great to know that Ishida will receive some decent character development. ~Dagger~

Well, if my history is anything to go by, I'm attracted primarily to opinionated jerks. :p Phrased more diplomatically, that means I like people who have forceful personalities. A (good) sense of humor helps, and I've always loved long hair, assuming it's clean and relatively well-groomed. I guess I'd say that looks are pretty important in my book; it's not often that I'm strongly drawn to someone, and when I am, s/he's usually very good-looking. That's just the way I'm wired, I suppose. ~Dagger~

Sara, you are my hero(ine). ^_^ I'd say she's suffering from bad taste more than anything else. Of all the bishounen out there, she had to pick [i]Bakura[/i]? If she truly is hopelessly obsessed with this character, then you need to drop her like a sack of bricks. Alternatively, just take a gander at [url=http://www.cheep-productions.com/peachandandy/index.html][u]this[/u][/url], and be glad her that fictional-character-fetish isn't nearly as bad. That guy's site is freaking scary. ~Dagger~

Godelsensei - She has a lovely sense of humor, and I think hanging out with her would be an absolute blast. AzureWolf - He's just plain cool. Monkey_Orange - We have pretty similar tastes in anime and manga (shounen-ai, anyone?). Plus, she seems like a really neat person in general. Arcadia - She's smart, amazingly approachable and a truly incredible writer. Also, her custom title says "Fluffalicious," and that simply adds to her awesomeness. I want to be fluffalicious. Solo - Who wouldn't enjoy meeting the notorious Solo? And some others - DeathBug, Semjaza, QuincyArcher, Sciros, Hittokiri Zero, James, Sara, Shinmaru, KarmaOfChaos, EVA Unit 100, Siren... Oh, gosh. I always get a little anxious about making this kind of list, because I'm really afraid of accidentally leaving people out. So lastly, I'd very much like to meet everyone who mentioned me. If I forgot anyone, I sincerely apologize. ^_^;; ~Dagger~

[quote name='QuincyArcher']Make sure you guys support the creators of the animes and buy the real licensed dvds! not chinese bootleg sets!![/quote] I heartily second that. ^_^ Anyway, there'd be little point in going through my whole collection, so I'll just comment on whatever I've been watching/re-watching recently. [b]Texhnolyze v. 5:[/b] The penultimate volume of a fascinating show. Like the earlier discs, it's dark, creepy and brutally violent. However, the episodes on this DVD provide several important revelations, and the scenes which take place in the [spoiler]surface world[/spoiler] elevate the series to new heights of artistry and sheer weirdness. I just wish that Touyama had a more prominent role. [b]Revolutionary Girl Utena v. 10:[/b] It's probably the single best DVD I have ever seen, and one of the main reasons that Utena is pretty much my favorite anime. In a mere three episodes, the entire show is turned on its head, and is concluded in the most satisfying, heart-wrenching and beautiful manner imaginable. [b]Last Exile v. 7:[/b] I can't believe this show is over. I'm not totally happy with how some of the characters were handled--I would have preferred more closure regarding Dio, for example--but on the whole, I loved this set of episodes. Seeing Alex [spoiler]snap Delphine's neck[/spoiler] totally made my day. [b]Stellvia v. 1 with LE tin:[/b] The packaging can only be described as stunning (and saves a lot of space, to boot). As for the show itself, it's cute and shiny-looking, but not terribly gripping. I'll probably wait for some cheap bundles before buying the next seven volumes. Comments on Gad Guard v. 4 and a couple of other DVDs will be edited in later. ~Dagger~

[url=http://www.otakuboards.com/showthread.php?t=37304][u]Official Witch Hunter Robin thread[/u][/url] [url=http://www.otakuboards.com/showthread.php?t=39195][u]Official Wolf's Rain thread[/u][/url] Happy posting. Please remember to use spoiler tags when discussing the final episode of a show, or important plot twists in general. You can create spoiler tags by typing [*spoiler]text[/*spoiler], minus the asterisks. It should come out looking like [spoiler]this.[/spoiler] Feel free to private message me or one of the other moderators if you have any questions. Thanks! Thread closed. ~Dagger~

[quote name='aliryn][SIZE=1']Uh . . . sorry I went so over the top. I get so hyper . . . um I'll do my best to reign myself in from now on :worried: I'm so sorry!!![/SIZE][/quote] No problem. On a side note, I removed what you said about the manga; scanslations are illegal, and telling people how to get them is against the forum rules. Also, please bear in mind that double-posting is strictly forbidden. In the future, you should wait for someone else to reply or simply edit your original post. Thank you very much. ^_^ ~Dagger~