Posts Tagged ‘kelly manison’

Intro
 
Steel Angel Kurumi keeps up it’s feverish pace and officially becomes absolutely addicting!
 
The Story
 
Another six short episodes are shown on this volume. Now that the good doctor has been kidnapped and the shrine has been rebuilt, it’s time to go find him and the best place to start looking would be his secret laboratory in Izumo.
 
So Nakahito, Kurumi, Saki and Dr. Amagi all leave to go find the lab. Unfortunately, they have to stop soon after when Nakahito comes down with a bug while traveling but the doctor that they meet is more interested in studying Kurumi and learning what the secrets of her powers are!
 
At the next stop, we learn one of the hardships of living in the Taisho era is that if you want to go somewhere, chances are you only had one way to get there and if that way was blocked, you just had to wait. Well, that’s what happens to our party when they discover that a huge boulder is blocking the train tracks and no one seems to be able to move it.
 
After they get past that though, it’s smooth sailing for awhile as the town that the group lands in next is about to have their annual fireworks festival. Unfortunately, the group doesn’t get to enjoy them as much as they’d like because the lead villain (whom we still don’t know the name of) has sent three more steel angels after Kurumi and as bait they kidnap Nakahito! Kurumi must then face three powerful steel angels and I’ll tell you right now that the battle is fierce and long!
 
In the final two episodes, Kurumi experiences jealousy for the first time as she catches Saki and Nakahito in a couple of completely innocent yet compromising positions. Bad feelings arise but it comes at the worst time imaginable as yet another steel angel is sent after Kurumi! This angel is a young blonde named Karinka and she’s ruthless in getting the job done and the job in question is destroying Kurumi!
 
The Good And The Bad
 
When I watched volume 1, I found the 15 minute episodes very annoying and thought it was a pretty terrible idea. But once I finally had a chance to fall in love with the characters and really get into story, I didn’t even notice that the episodes were so short anymore. I barely noticed anything at all to be honest! Once I put in volume two, I was off in my own little world that contained only this anime! I was absolutely engrossed and couldn’t stop watching.
 
This anime has absolutely got me hooked with it’s wonderful story and absolutely wonderful characters. If the wonderful relationship between Nakahito and Kurumi isn’t the center of my attention, then Kurumi takes over by just making me laugh at her antics and innocent attitude!
 
Music
 
I am so in love with the opening theme song to this series! I swear that I’ve listened to it dozens of times and yet I never get sick of it and never once has the thought of skipping it crossed my mind. It’s a great song and just so catchy!
 
The music within the episodes is good and while at times it can be slightly distracting (such as the intro music used in the previews), overall it’s enjoyable and adds a lot more to the episodes then it hinders.
 
The closing theme is also a good theme and even though it’s no where near as catchy as the opening theme, it’s still worth listening to.
 
Dub vs. Sub
 
While both tracks are enjoyable I have to say that the dub has completely won me over. Kelli Cousins just does too good of a job as Kurumi. The voice casting is wonderful and I couldn’t even imagine Kurumi sounding any different.
 
Extras
 
Once again this DVD is absolutely packed with extras. The first of which would be the first half of a video capturing a photo shoot done with the four main actresses of the series (Hilary Haag, Kira Vincent Davis, Kelli Cousins and Monica Rial) with commentary done by the ADR director, photographer and art director. Personally, I found this really entertaining to watch (though I’m a major fan boy for at least two of the above actresses) but some of you may feel the need to skip this one.
 
Also on this DVD are some great production sketches and original Japanese artwork (including DVD/LD/VHS and Manga covers). These were good to take a look at since the artwork in this series is just so gorgeous!
 
The most informative extra on this DVD is the translator notes. While there aren’t as many notes as there were on volume one, there are still plenty to fill you in and give you lots of info about the time period.
 
The last two on this DVD would be the extended episode previews and Original US Teaser but if you have a DVD rom there is one more extra for you which would be another fortune teller that you can print out. The last one was themed after Kurumi and this one is themed after Saki.
 
Overall
 
I’m in love with this series and it has already won a place on my top ten list and very possibly within the top 5 of all time! It’s everything that I love in a series and can only get better from here!
 
Five stars and highly recommended!
 
 

Intro
 
Just when you thought that it was safe. Steel Angel Kurumi comes back with a four episode sequel OVA!!
 
The Story
 
Steel Angel Kurumi was huge when it was aired in Japan. I’m talking big! And when it came over to the US, there was no change… fans loved Kurumi! And so in an effort to capitalize quickly, the creators of this anime released four additional episodes as sort of an epilogue to the first season.
 
Four additional episodes are on this volume, all of them taking place right after the end of the first season. Now that the enemy has been defeated, what’s a group of heroes to do?? Relax at home of course!
 
In the first episode, Saki and Kirinka are both working at a restaurant as waitresses (visions of the episode from volume 3 suddenly float to mind) to get away from home simply because it seems that ever since they got home, Nakahito and Kurumi have been very lovey-dovey with each other but this is a day unlike any other as Saki is discovered and becomes the next big star of the big screen!
 
In the second episode, it’s Karinka’s turn as she receives a letter from a secret admirer. She actually is reluctant to meet up with him but after some ribbing from Kurumi, she decides to do it. At the very least, she figures that maybe it’ll help her get over her crush on Nakahito since he is officially off the market. Unfortunately, a case of mistaken identity causes problems and over the course of a day, Nakahito’s older brother teaches Karinka a valuable lesson about life.
 
The third episode is one of the best as the group gets a visit from an old friend and Kurumi decides that the reason why Nakahito still isn’t entirely comfortable with kissing her is because he isn’t as attracted to her as he is to say, A traditional Japanese woman. So, in an effort to become more attractive to her master, she changes herself and starts taking lessons in how to be a traditional Japanese woman. This unfortunately has some bad side effects on her system! This was a hilarious episode and easily my second favorite simply because it was so cute to see Kurumi trying so hard and then learning her lesson about just being herself.
 
The final episode though is the best episode of not only this volume, but the entire series! In this volume, we start off in the fallen Academy where the Angels are trying to rebuild but rumors are flying around that Nakahito has the magic kiss. One kiss from him and an Angel will become more powerful than they ever dreamed! Well, that is just too much temptation and so every single Angel in the Academy decides that they want his kiss!
 
All the Angels show up at once and then it is determined that the only fair way to decide who gets Nakahito must win a competition and everyone must compete. Including Kurumi! This episode had me absolutely rolling with laughter and I could easily watch it over and over!
 
The Good And The Bad
 
I think that it was great to see this volume. The episodes were hilarious, the writing was very good and the whole concept of getting to see what happens to the characters after the main story has ended was a great touch since this is something that you don’t get to see very often.
 
The only bad thing about this volume that I can really think of is that I would have loved to have seen more than just four episodes but I guess beggars can’t be choosers as I should feel fortunate that I got this much extra.
 
Music
 
The music was great in this volume and it even includes a brand new ending theme. Very poppy and cute, it has it’s own unique charm and while it’s not better than the original ending theme, it’s still not something to be skipped.
 
Dub vs. Sub
 
As always, both the dub and sub track were excellent but the dub track won me over a long time ago and there is no reason why this would change now. I can’t even choose a standout performance since everyone did so well on this one!
 
So this time it’s a three way tie between Monica Rial as Saki, Kelli Cousins as Kurumi and Hilary Haag as Karinka.
 
Extras
 
As always there are tons of extras on this volume to make up for the very short episodes starting with production sketches and extended episode previews. Then we quickly move on and find the clean opening and closing animations followed by Steel Angel Kurumi trailers.
 
The best extra though is the Commentary with the English voice actresses. The actresses and director decide to give their thoughts on three of the four episodes. These are always amusing and this one is no exception!
 
Overall
 
Just like the rest of the series, this volume is a smash hit! If you enjoyed the series, you’ll be laughing until your stomach hurts with this great encore OVA. 5 stars and incredibly recommended!
 

Intro
 
The final volume of the first season of this series comes to a stunning climax leaving behind the comedy that has been very apparent throughout the entire series but can it work as a drama after making us laugh for so long?
 
The Story
 
In the final six episodes, we learn the answers to all of our questions. Who are the enemies? Where do they come from and why do they want to kill Kurumi so badly? The answers might shock you!
 
Kurumi heads into her biggest battle yet against an angel with seemingly unbeatable amounts of power and it pushes Kurumi over the edge causing her to become a dark angel that no one can control, bent on nothing but world destruction. Everyone pitches in but in the end, it’s up to the young Nakahito who up until now, has dealt with problems of feeling useless.
 
The Good And The Bad
 
I was a little concerned going into this final volume because I wasn’t sure that this series could pull off such a sharp dramatic turn but my worries were soon laid to rest as after the first episode of the volume, I was absolutely hooked and just HAD to know what happened to Kurumi and Nakahito. It was then that I learned the lesson that it’s not the humor that makes this anime great, it’s the story and characters! (ug, I hate it when I learn a moral from anime.)
 
The climax builds up quickly but is absolutely incredible with how much it just sucks you in! Plus throw in the fact that the last two episodes or so are incredible tear jerkers and you got yourself a winner.
 
Music
 
As you can guess, the opening theme is actually skipped a couple of times on this volume simply because the incredibly happy and poppy tune just wasn’t appropriate for what was about to be seen within the episodes. There is some wonderful background music used though and it really helped to add to the mood.
 
Dub vs. Sub
 
Once again, the dub track completely won me over with Hilary Haag and Kelli Cousins being the ones that stood out the most. While the sub track was definitely good, it wasn’t nearly as good as the dub.
 
Extras
 
Lots of extras on this volume just like the others starting with the second part of the interview segment that was started on Volume 1 called ‘Conversations with Angels Part II’. This was an incredibly interesting segment for me, especially the part with Claudia Black as this was her first experience with doing anime dubbing (fans may know her better from her part on Farscape).
 
Next up are some very nice character bios though I found that these could’ve been better if they were placed on an earlier volume and re-written to not include any major plot spoilers.
 
After that, take a look at the Kurumi Travelogue which is a wonderful feature for those of us who want to know about the different cities that Kurumi and co. visit on their travels and what they were like during the Taisho era.
 
For the art nuts in the crowd, there are plenty of production sketches for you and for the rest of us there are the translator notes and extended episode previews.
 
And finally there is another Fortune Teller for those of you with a DVD-Rom, this time themed after Nakahito.
 
 
Overall
 
From beginning to end, this series has been nothing but funny, entertaining and approaching levels of flawlessness that is rarely seen in modern anime. The premise is good, the characters are fun and the story is incredibly engaging. I can’t recommend this series enough and I am absolutely thrilled to have seen it.
 
Four stars and highly recommended!
 

Intro
 
Steel Angel Kurumi jumps head first into it’s third volume with the biggest fight thus far in the series and also takes us deeper into the history of the Steel Angels and even shows us a darker side to Kurumi that no one knew existed.
 
The Story
 
When we last left off in this series, Kirinka had just absolutely demolished poor Saki in a fight that she didn’t see coming. Finally the group catches up to her and Kurumi and Karinka fight but this fight goes much different than anyone ever thought that it would.
 
The rest of the volume after this fight is actually spent with Kirinka joining the gang and trying to use subterfuge to pry the secret of Kurumi’s power out of her and also trying to steal Nakahito away from Kurumi. This makes for some absolutely hilarious scenes since the only thing Kurumi cares about is having her master around her to do his bidding.
 
The final episode however launches us out of comedy anime and into dark dramatic anime as finally the group reach the secret lab that they have been searching for but that night, Nakahito is once again kidnapped by a mysterious boy with a strangely hypnotic power.
 
The Good And The Bad
 
This volume started to take a real turn in terms of genre style. Up until now, it has been nothing but non stop laughs as the gang made their way towards Izumo but very slowly, this volume started to turn towards becoming darker and more dramatic with hopes that it would turn just enough to launch itself into that category at the start of the next and final volume of this series and it did a wonderful job at doing so!
 
The dramatic turn was exactly what this series needed as it has been very entertaining thus far but lacked character depth and now we’re starting to see the deeper part of the Steel Angels and learn more about their history and what makes Kurumi so special.
 
Music
 
As always, the music in this series is sensational with an incredibly catchy opening theme, wonderful music used throughout each episode and finally a closing them that, while not perfect, is still not something that I ever skip unless I’m in a real rush. This is what anime music is meant to be like!
 
Dub vs. Sub
 
Once again, I openly admit that the dub track has won me over. While the sub track is very entertaining in it’s own way, I just can’t get over how funny Kelli Cousin’s delivery of Kurumi is! Her high pitched squeals of delight just ring in my ear, long after I have taken the DVD out of the player but then again, maybe I’m just weird like that. After all, I am a grown man reviewing cartoons as a hobby.
 
The standout performance on this volume however easily goes to Hillary Haag in an absolutely brilliant and hilarious performance as Karinka. Karinka is so unlike any other Steel Angel in this series in that her personality is that of someone that doesna’t have a master. She follows orders but she’ll do them when and how she pleases. It’s quite hilarious and Hillary was the perfect choice for this role!
 
Extras
 
As with the previous volumes, there are a ton of extras on this volume and almost all of them (if not all) are worth viewing at least once. Starting with part two of the photo shoot from last volume, this time it’s the four actresses wearing rather beautiful and flattering black cocktail dresses. It’s about 20 mins long and really has nothing to do with the series but does a fan boy like me really care that much? That would be a big no.
 
After I got done drooling over that photo shoot (um did I say drooling? I meant viewing, yeah that’s it), I took a look at the text interviews with Japanese staff and manga artists. This was a really informative read as it gave you an idea of how the series was originally created and how it was transferred into an anime. It’s quite interesting to read about some of the behind the scenes stories that you would never get to hear otherwise.
 
Finally we have the same extras that have been with us since volume 1 (don’t take that as a complaint because it’s not) starting with the translator notes which are once again very informative and helpful and then the production sketches along with the preliminary character designs. If you’re into art you’ll want to check those out.
 
Lastly on this volume are the ever popular extended episode previews and for those of you with a DVD rom, there is another Fortune Teller, this time themed after Karinka.
 
Overall
 
As I’ve said before and will continue to say in the future, this series wasted absolutely no time in jumping onto my top 10 list of all time anime favorites. It’s funny, it’s beautiful, it’s got wonderful characters and an engaging story. I think the only real complaints I have about it is that it’s so very short with only 24 episodes in the original series.
 
It’s definitely worth watching though if you’re into anime that is very cute and hilarious while still being for adults only. This volume gets 5 stars (it would’ve gotten four but the performances of Hilary Haag and Kelli Cousins pushed it just barely into 5) and very highly recommended!
 
 
 

Intro
 
After watching Volume 1 of this absolutely delightful anime series, I have to say that if I didn’t understand what ‘Sci Fi Romance’ meant before‚ I sure do now!
 
The Story
 
Our story begins in the Tashio era (1920′s) of Japan with 11 year old Nakahito being drug off towards a mansion by his ‘friends’ as they are trying to get him to enter an old mansion that was rumored to be the home of a man who killed his wife in it and her head is still inside yelling out for someone to help her. Well, since Nakahito is the smallest and is also a member of a family that studies mysticism, he is the one that is elected to be pushed into the mansion and find this head and bring it out for everyone to see.
 
Nakahito isn’t exactly pleased with this but he does his best to find his way around inside only what he finds isn’t a disembodied head at all. Instead he finds a beautiful maid who appears to be completely unconscious. So, there he is in the basement of a creepy old mansion with this beautiful unconscious maid in front of him when the army above (oh yeah, did I forget to mention that the entire mansion is supposed to be off limits because the army is right outside??) causes some shaking to happen which causes the maid to fall forward and plant her lips right against our young hero’s for his very first kiss. But that one little kiss is all it takes as suddenly she is brought back to life.
 
Soon after we learn that her name is Kurumi and now that Nakahito has kissed her, he is her master and she must follow every single one of his commands! Things only get weirder from here as soon we get introduced to the doctor that made her, the army that wants her as a weapon, the rival doctor who just wants the technology and the rival maid who is a lesbian.
 
The Good And The Bad
 
When I first popped this disc into my player, I already knew that I was going to like it. I have this weird sixth sense about anime. Almost always, I can just put a disc into my player and know right away on if I’m going to like it even before I’ve watched any of it and in this case my anime instinct was right on! I watched, I loved!
 
Originally airing in 1999 (and lasting until 2000), this anime has absolutely gorgeous animation that constantly switches in style depending on what is going on in the scene and the mood that is being set by the character’s actions and words. The characters and story is great as well, I am absolutely loving Kurumi already and can’t wait to see more of her. Saki and Nakahito are also very quickly gaining love from me as they have yet to show me any real unforgivable flaws. Both characters are showing absolutely wonderful room for growth and there is plenty of time for them to do it in!
 
The biggest complaint I have about this series is that each episode is only 15 mins long! Just when they reach that big huge climatic scene of each episode that you’ve been waiting for. The ending credits roll and you gotta wait for the next episode to start. This series is already incredibly addicting and so this is incredibly frustrating for me at times but I am willing to wait because I have found a series that I absolutely adore in this one.
 
Music
 
There is tons of great music used in this series including one of the best opening themes I’ve heard in a very long time. The opening theme is called ‘The Miracle That Starts With A Kiss’ and is sung by three of the voice actresses and is done very well. I’m already getting to the point where I am trying to remember enough of the lyrics that I can sing along in my own mangled Japanese.
 
The songs played during the episodes themselves are also very well done and were a welcome addition. They were somber in all the right moments and really played up the relaxing moments when needed.
 
Another fabulous job was done on the closing theme simply called ‘Steel Angels’ which was sung by three of the voice actresses again. I’ve really enjoyed the music thus far and I am looking forward to adding them to my collection!
 
Dub vs. Sub
 
I listened to both volumes of this DVD and I really had no problems with either. I did myself a bit more entertained by the English track because of Kelli Cousin’s wonderful, enthusiastic performance as Kurumi but I did notice that there were a couple of jokes that just kind of fell flat and were much funnier in the Japanese language. So, it’s kind of a win some, lose some situation but both tracks are enjoyable and I had no problems with either one.
 
Extras
 
This DVD is just packed with extras! Starting with Behind the scenes feature Conversations with Angels. In this behind the scenes feature, we get to talk to the director of the English language version plus 5 of the voice actresses (Kelli Cousins, Monica ‘my goddess of voice acting’ Rial, Hilary Haag, Kira Vincent Davis and Claudia Black) about their characters. This feature is over 30 minutes long. If you’re into the VA’s at all or if you find yourself really liking this series and want to know more about the voices behind the characters, you’ll love this extra.
 
Next up would be a Historical background of Tashio era Japan (1912-1926) and Onmyou Information. These were also very cool to read as they provided so much background information, not only about the time period that this anime is set in but also the belief system of Nakahito’s family.
 
Then of course we gotta see the Production sketches. I do like seeing these occasionally but often times they bore me.
 
The last extras would be the traditional clean opening, extended episode previews and translators notes. These were also good to watch and I found them all entertaining and helpful.
 
The very last extra though is something that you can only look at if you have a DVD rom on your computer. It is a Fortune Teller PDF file. Remember those little fortune teller things that you would make when you were in grade school that would fit over our fingers and you would count out a little rhyme? Well, this is the same thing and it’s actually kind of cute though I’m curious to know how many people actually printed theirs out and used it since this series is obviously not meant for anyone under the age of 15 or so.
 
Overall
 
Because of the short episodes, I can only give this volume 4 stars but I still highly recommend this to anyone who likes their anime to be sweet and funny with a bit of a sci fi twist. If you enjoyed World Of Narue then I’m sure that you’ll enjoy this series as well!