Shelf Life

Anime, Anime, Anime

The film is an anthem to high school and a gentle reminder that in the end, the only thing that matters is the memories you make. Taking its title from a popular song by Japanese punk band,The Blue Hearts, the movie follows a group of girls who are trying to learn three of the band's songs for their upcoming school festival rock show. Having just split with a few previous band members, and desperately needing a vocalist, they recruit the first female they see—a Korean foreign exchange student named Son. With limited time on their hands, the girls scrounge up practice time any time they can, even sneaking into the school late at night to use the equipment room.

In the end, though, it's not really about whether they succeed or not (they do, and it's an amazing moment). It's really just about being with your friends and working towards something great. As one of the characters said as they congregated on a roof after a practice session, “You know, it's these moments that we'll remember the most.” And, just like the characters are creating their own memories, the audience gets to experience something terrific, too. The cast does a remarkable job, pegging the awkward earnestness of teenage youth; by the end of the movie, you kind of wish you could be there in the gymnasium, cheering on their accomplishments.

Of course, for a movie about creating a band, it's only fitting that the soundtrack is worth waxing lyrical about. Musical nuts will be familiar with the name James Iha, whose insane list of accomplishments include playing guitar for The Smashing Pumpkins, as well as writing and singing some of their songs, producing some solo stuff, and eventually joining A Perfect Circle. He also wrote the soundtrack for Linda, Linda, Linda (here's a brief video of him talking about the experience), a soulful collection of guitar pieces that perfectly complements the lackadaisical pace of the movie.

Seriously, this movie is good stuff. I haven't been able to stop listening to “Linda, Linda” for weeks, now, and even the girls' version has a certain charm to it. For anyone who's ever tried to start their own band or been part of a team, this movie will take you back to all the good moments.[TOP]

Surrounding itself in the gritty atmosphere of the Cold War, 009-1 is all about style and attitude. The villains are maniacal, the women are packed with punch, and watching any given episode is like reliving a James Bond movie. All the episodes are standalone one-shots, at least for now, and follow Mylene as she goes through different missions.

The characters are easily the best part of the series. All of the women are a ton of fun to watch, and Mylene is definitely one of the coolest heroines ever created. She switches between sweet and sexy at the drop of a hat, and she radiates with so much positive energy that you can't help but root for her. And, given her dark and tumultuous past, her sunny disposition is really quite something.

Although the series carries the political undertones of its time, it doesn't smother you with woe or idealism. Yes, it's East versus West, but it doesn't paint either side as particularly worse than the other, and provides the perfect backdrop for a spy show where allegiances are constantly shifting. Of course, one of the downsides is that it's sometimes hard to figure out who the “good” guys are. Not because of the ambiguity between good and bad—it's largely because most of the characters look the same. All the guys are bug-eyed creeps, and all the women are svelte fembots. Since new characters are introduced in almost every episode… it gets a little hard to figure out who's who.

Still, 009-1 is a great show for anyone who can't get enough Double-0 action. If you're looking for a summer blockbuster—in episodic anime form—then this may be the show for you.[TOP]

I hated the manga. Hated it. Hated the fanservice, hated the archetypal college girls who lived in the main character's apartment complex, hated how ridiculous it was.

But, although I started the disc with a lot of eye-rolling and skepticism, I found myself rather interested by the end. For me, having the musical score and the acting and, most of all, the timing, really helped. And, luckily, the side characters really don't get that much screen time.

Highlighting the growing relationship between Suzuka, the rising star of the high school track team, and Yamato, the hapless next-door neighbor (and son of the landlady), the story plays out like a standard high school romance show. You have your over-eager guy who's jonesin' to start dating the cool, aloof athletic chick, and you have your aforementioned girl, who's slowly warming up to the guy, but not before she reveals some big character angst trait, like a dead boyfriend or daddy issues. And, of course, you have your side characters. There's also the irritating best friend who messes things up, the quiet girl who would do anything to go out with the lead guy, the sister figure, and the handful of lushes.

So really, you have all the ingredients you need for a fairly inoffensive romance. What makes Suzuka engaging to watch, though, is Suzuka herself. As confused as Yamato is about her actions and her emotions, so is the audience. Like every mean girl ever scripted, she has a sweet side, too, and probably either a dead boyfriend or daddy issues. Having not seen past the first five episodes (or read past the first volume of the manga), I can't confirm this, but something is going on. My only real concern at this moment is that the show may run out of steam within its 26-episode run. Things are fine now because it's only the first disc, but if there's not going to be a storyline outside of some guy trying to woo a girl... well, we'll cross that bridge when we get there.

Having trudged through my fair share of shonen romances, I can't say that Suzuka really stands out too much in my mind. It's like the frozen corndog of romance anime. You can heat one up whenever you're hungry, and you may even crave one in the middle of the night, but it's not exactly a delicacy. It just kind of exists, hoping you'll eat it. And you know what, you might as well eat it. It's at least worth sticking on your queue, but I wouldn't sweat bumping it to the top.[TOP]

There isn't a single thing about this show that doesn't make me jump around every time I get a new volume. The artwork is amazing, the meticulously rendered backgrounds stop my respiratory airflow, the music makes me giddy, and the story keeps me on my toes. Every single time someone says to me, “there's no good anime out,” I tell them, “Bitch, no, watch Chevalier.”

ADV has been pumping out these discs roughly once a month, and it's a good thing, too. The story has been cantering along at a fast pace, and there's yet to be a single episode after which I didn't anxiously skip forward to the next one. With the Four Musketeers in Russia, there's hardly any room to catch a breath. Within a few episodes, and after befriending the empress, thwarting her assassination, and dealing with a completely unpredicted plot twist, the characters find themselves neck-deep in a web of political conspiracies and betrayals. When it comes to good storytelling, this show has it perfected.

Somewhat surprisingly, the series has gotten to the point where the supernatural elements aren't even really noticeable anymore. They're still there, and they still play a huge part in the show, but they don't really seem “supernatural” anymore. Le Chevalier is written so well, and pays so much attention to natural dialogue and realistic artwork, that all the supernatural elements seem completely plausible. It's almost as though you could watch members of Parliament discussing a new law, have a few zombies stroll through, and it would be completely believable as a historical account.

The show is that good.

I've always been a big fan of politics and history, so for me, Le Chevalier D'Eon is a dream come true. It's a smorgasbord of historical cameos and a feast of wily political intrigue, and to top it off, all of the main characters are so richly developed that you really start to feel camaraderie with them. If this isn't on your shelf, then you need to do something to make that happen. Ask the universe for this show, then go out and buy it. You won't regret it.[TOP]

Well, now, you can have your immature humor any way you like it! Whether it's in the creatively changed English version, or the original Japanese, you can bask in the glory of green aliens, noodles, pleated-skirt-wearing men, and strange creatures that have an odd proclivity for crossdressing.

Did that last sentence just intrigue you? If it did, you should check out this show, either on DVD or on TV. Don't expect to have your mind blown, though. Its short attention span is really fun for an episode or so, but beyond that, it actually gets a bit old. There's only so much “wackiness” that someone can take before they start to grow weary of it all, and for me, my Bo^7 saturation limit is somewhere around 1.47 episodes.

But hey, if you have a penchant for scene after disjointed scene of rapidfire jokes and goofy caricatures, then by all means, eat this up with a spoon. You'll even get the joy of owning a DVD with a cover featuring some cone king with a giant ice cream turd on his neck. Good times.[TOP]