Cells at Work Season 2, Black Clover Updates and Tales of Smyphonia on Crunchyroll?!

 

Ok so Season 2 of Cells at Work started earlier this month (and somehow I didn’t know it was coming). To say it’s a nice surprise for me goes without saying.

The first half of Episode 2 was a clear reference to the ongoing Pandemic in progress with the topic of it being Acquired Immunity. The disease featured was the Mumps. For those who don’t know, if you get vaccinated from the Mumps once you are set for life. This is called Acquired Immunity. The Flu Vaccine is an annual vaccine because its effectiveness only lasts about 6 months. We know the Flu Season typically runs between October and February and this is why you normally get vaccinated in the Fall months each year.

Vaccines save lives.

End of story. There’s a LOT of aggressive Anti-Vaccine misinformation that has been spread in North America for at least the last 20 years now. It’s the reason the U.S. leads the world in COVID-19 cases and deaths since last Spring. It’s shameful to say the least but I won’t digress further. I have a separate Blog for that purpose.

 

 

It was recently announced that the anime version of Black Clover will wrap up on March 30. It’s worth noting like Bleach did before it, the Manga version is going to continue.

As everyone should be aware by now, not everyone who watches Anime adaptations has access to the source medium. Black Clover is no exception. There actually was a long pause between the end of Inuyasha’s 7th Season and the release of the final arc, The Final Act. The fans demanded it and it happened. I do remember hearing a few weeks ago Bleach’s final Arc is getting an Anime adaptation so there’s that.

Time will tell if the same will happen with Black Clover. For now, the series will end on my birthday =O

 

 

 

Stop everything:

After 14 years, Tales of Symponia: The Animation has FINALLY been officially realeased outside Japan!

Crunchyroll dropped the bombshell news Wednesday morning and then released it the same afternoon along with 3 other Classic Anime. The anime initially released on Crunchyroll without subs but the problem seems to have been fixed by Thursdy morning. Horray!

For those who are not familiar with the video game Tales of Symphonia–shame on you if you’re one of them–it is only one of the greatest RPGs from a story perspective. Ever. Initially released on the Gamecube in 2003, it was since re-released first on the PS2 (Japan only), the PS3 (globally) and more recently Steam. I still have the original Gamecube version as well as the PS3 and Steam versions. The game is THAT damn good but I won’t digress further here. I have a separate blog for that purpose.

 

Anywho, the anime originally released between 2007 and 2009 across serveral arcs. The anime is 11 episodes long in total. Like Tales of Phantasia’s Anime (which I have on DVD, it’s 4 episodes long), a LOT of story content from the video game is cut mostly for time but I’ll talk about that more on my video game blog.

The fact that the anime adaptation is so short really hurt it with fans of the video game to say the least. More so given the game’s presentation is anime-like. For many people, Tales of Symphonia was the first game they played with a voiced cast. Anywho, fans were expecting a faithful retelling of the story back in 2008 but what they got instead was the same they got in Phantasia: a scaled down mish-mash with some key details cut or presented out of sequence. I will cover that on my video game blog in a separate post. Once it’s up, I will add the link to this post.

I will leave you with the lyrics to the OP for Sylverant Arc, Almateria:

 

The artist who performed the song, Eri Kawai passed away in 2008. One of the biggest mysteries surrounding this song is what language it’s in. I did some looking around and apparently three languages are used: Japanese (obviously), Latin and English.

It’s NOT a made-up language or “the language of the angels” as some people keep saying on YouTube. Anyone familiar with old Fantasy stories should already know Latin is commonly used as the “magic language” because for centuries, most of Europe knew both Latin and their native language. No way in hell would they get away with making up a language without an actual translation. I can guarantee that.

 

On that note. I do know Holy Song, which Colette sings in Episode 2 (Fiat Lux) is in Latin:

Here is the translation, pulled from YouTube:

 

~Latin~
Ne Perdatis Luces
Cantum Sanctum Nunc Accipite
Oro, Canto, Vobis
Fiat Lux

Spes, Ne Perdatis
Cantum Lucum Nunc Accipite
Dono Animam Mea
Fiat Lux

~Translation~
Don’t lose the lights
Receive the holy song now
I pray, I sing, that to you
There may be light.

Do not lose hope
Receive the song of lights
The gift of my soul
Let there be light

 

Almost the exact same 2nd and 4th lines in each verse. In general, Latin is recited or spoken slowly. That’s what the dirge sounds so otherwordly. That’s the desired effect obviously. In general, music can alter moods and your state of mind. Keep that in mind.

Getting back on topic, the anime does its job of telling you most of the major plot points. It’s still a hot mess unfortunately though. You’re better off playing the game in comparison.

 

 

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Anime Boston 2021 Officially Cancelled

I opened my Inbox today to find this email from the New England Anime Society, which is the parent company for Anime Boston. Here it is in full:

Notice of Cancellation

We at Anime Boston and the New England Anime Society (NEAS) have been closely monitoring the status of the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic and its effect on events of our size. Although the recent developments with vaccines is fantastic news, the governor’s order prohibiting larger gatherings is still in effect. With less than two months until the scheduled dates for Anime Boston 2021, it is extremely unlikely the ban will be lifted before then. As such, we unfortunately have no choice but to cancel Anime Boston 2021.

Our executive board has reviewed the possibilities of postponing the 2021 convention for later in the year or hosting an online version of Anime Boston. After careful consideration, we have decided it would not be feasible to do either at this time. We are a completely volunteer organization and all of the preparation is done on our personal time. Reorganizing the convention for later this year would be extremely difficult to achieve especially with the added uncertainty.

For our pre-registered members who had 2020 memberships transferred to 2021, by default we will be transitioning your memberships to Anime Boston 2022, set for May 27 – 29, 2022. Anime Boston is operated by the non-profit New England Anime Society (NEAS) and all revenue goes back into the operational costs of our convention and NEAS. Members who allow us to transition their membership to 2022 help us remain financially stable and cover expenses we already incurred for 2020 and 2021.

We understand that not everyone is certain if they will be able to attend Anime Boston 2022. Anyone who would prefer to be refunded for their Anime Boston 2020/2021 membership, please contact Registration Customer Service. Please include your full name and the email address used when registering. Please allow at least three to four weeks for processing of refund requests, based on the volume of requests. Please also note that refunds will be delivered by mail because it has been more than one year since the card transaction. This means that there will be a further delay between processing on our end and the refund getting back to you. A request for refund must be submitted by March 14th, 2021. Any memberships without a refund request will be transferred to Anime Boston 2022.

Hotel reservations made directly through a hotel must be cancelled through the hotel’s website or at their phone number. Reservations made via a third party vendor should be cancelled through the same vendor. Please refer to your reservation confirmation for refund information for direct hotel or third party bookings; Anime Boston is unable to intervene in these circumstances.

Participants of the 2020/2021 Artists’ Alley who have already been confirmed and completed their registration will be migrated to the 2022 Artists’ Alley. Similarly, for our exhibitors in the 2020/2021 Dealers’ Room, we will be migrating all who completed their registration to the 2022 Dealers’ Room.

Participants of Anime Boston 2020/2021 programming, such as the Masquerade, Cosplay Games, Idol Showcase, AMV Contest, panels, contests, and other events will be contacted in the upcoming weeks by their event coordinators.

We appreciate your patience and understanding while we worked to figure out a new path for Anime Boston 2021. Though we had considered cancellation earlier, we had certain contractual and financial obligations that made it difficult for us to cancel on our own before a certain time frame without jeopardizing the convention long term.

We hope you and your loved ones stay safe and healthy, and we encourage everyone to do their part in getting a vaccine when it is available to you. We hope to see you at a better time at the next Anime Boston, May 27 – 29, 2022.

 

At least this time they let people know more than a month out. As noted, red tape prevented them from officially cancelling AB2020 and AB2021 until certain conditions were met. Like last year, they ruled out postponing the convention to later this year–even in a virtual format–because their staff is 100% volunteer including their executive board. They do all the planning and preparation on their personal time.

Hopefully the third time will be the charm next year. As noted, Governor Baker’s ban on large gatherings is still in place due to the Pandemic. I don’t see that changing until the COVID-19 vaccine is widely available first and there is a huge drop in transmission second. Hopefully both of these conditions will be met by this coming Fall.

For those who may be wondering, the local pro sports teams have been playing with no fans in attendance last summer (and excluding the NBA Bubble in Orlando of course). As for the Japan Boston Festival–usually held in August–we will have to wait and see. If the current restrictions are still in plance by mid-June, that’s likely to mean it won’t happen either. I do follow news on that and if anything comes up later this year, I will provide an update.

 

 

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