Fruits Basket and Fullmetal Alchemist: Two Manga that got two different anime adaptations

 

 

It doesn’t happen often but Fruits Basket and Fullmetal Alchemist are two Manga that would each get not one but two different Anime adaptations. In both cases, both Anime ended up having huge fan followings. Both anime employ the same characters (and same voice actors) but the difference is the storytelling.

In the case of Fullmetal Alchemist, the first Anime doesn’t follow the Manga. The second anime released over 10 years later–titled Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood–is a complete adaptation of the Manga. I was able to confirm it myself when I got the entire Manga series over the course of 3 years. The second one was more well received because it followed the story from the Manga which the first one doesn’t. I am not familiar with the Manga version of Fruits Basket though I have seen both Anime. The first one leans more into RomCom but the second one leans more into Drama and is clearly more serious. The second version was promoted as “reimagining the original story” and most agree the slower pacing–and the greater emphasis on developing the new supporting characters added–helps tell a better and expanded story. The focus is shifted from the Soma Curse itself to the relationships and interactions between various people.

 

The number of Anime that deviate from the source material over the years is just way too long to list all of them. Here’s a few notable examples of Anime that deviate from the source material:

 

Contrary to popular belief, the Manga preceeded everything else. Those who are familiar with the imfamous English Dub for the original series already knows how much 4Kids, which did the English dub changed from the Japanese version. Upper Deck, which localized the trading cards in the U.S. and Konami, which localized the video games followed their lead. Did you know Dark Magician was really Black Magician in Japan? Likewise, Summoned Skull was Summoned Demon. Black Skull Dragon was–you guessed it–Black Demon Dragon. The names were changed due to concerns of blowback from Conservative parents in the U.S.–it was marketed to kids as a reminder–and more so since even with the changes, there was no avoiding the occult themes. That alone, most can understand.

What made no sense was several characters being renamed. Teala became Tea, Junnoichi became Joey and Honda became Tristan. The only change to Yugi was the spelling for his last name (Motou became Moto). THAT pissed off a lot of people who were familiar with the source material and speaking of. What was the first season in the U.S. was actually the second season in Japan. The first season that only Japan got prominently featured Yami Yugi using pranks and curses to deal with troublemakers he encountered, often in gruesome ways. Naturally, they wouldn’t have been able to get away with it in the U.S. since as a reminder, kids were the target audience for marketing purposes.

One other thing that was a major pet peeve for me as someone who played the Trading Card game–and I was pretty good back in the day–was duels in the Anime followed their own rules separate from the TCG. This created a lot of confusion especially for those who watched the anime thinking the rules were the same.

 

 

The Anime is now the longest running ever with no signs of slowing down anytime soon 23 years later. Pokemon fans have had a love/hate relationship with Ash since the beginning but mostly hate. The hate comes from the fact in each region, Ash doesn’t evolve most of his Pokemon and doesn’t catch a lot of Pokemon either. Ash leaving all of his Pokemon but Pikachu behind before going to the next region is also viewed by most as needlessly handicapping himself. Ash has racked up quite a few powerhouse Pokemon that if he used them, he would’ve dominated in some of the regions he would later visit. It certainly wouldn’t have taken him 21 years to become a League Champion to say the least.

It goes without saying the anime follows its own story separate from the games each saga is based on. At the time what’s now officially known as the Indigo League Saga first aired, Pokemon Red and Blue came to the U.S. Those games would be joined by Pokemon Yellow: Special Pikachu Edition about 18 months later. Pokemon Yellow adapted some of the story elements from the Anime such as Jessie and James replacing four Team Rocket battles from Red/Blue and Giovanni having a Persian on his team each time you battle against him. Unlike Red/Blue in which you’re forced to choose from Bulbasaur, Charmander and Squirtle you will be able to get all three of them in Yellow by the time you finish your business in Lavender Town. Why? Because Ash gets all three of them by that point in the Anime. You can find a Pidgeotto in Viridian Forest and can’t use a Thunder Stone on the Pikachu you start with in Yellow for the same reasons.

Pokemon Yellow also made some balancing changes with most of the Gym Leaders. The Pokemon the first 6 Gym Leaders were known to us by the time Pokemon Yellow dropped on that note. To help offset not having a Water or Grass Pokemon at the beginning of the game, the wild Mankey and Nidoran (Male and Female) you catch in Yellow do learn Double Kick early on so you can get past Brock’s Rock Pokemon without having to trade. Both of Brock’s Pokemon also had their levels reduced by two each. Misty’s Pokemon and levels are unchanged but unlike Red/Blue, she will not Full Heal status ailments you inflict on her Pokemon. Lt. Surge uses a single Pokemon when you face him: A level 28 Raichu with Mega Punch and Mega Kick just like in the Anime. Erika uses the same team she used against Ash in the anime (Tangela, Gloom and Weepinbell). Koga adds a Venomoth to his lineup while Sabrina uses Abra and its evolutions. Blaine’s team is unchanged while Giovanni has a Persian replacing a Pokemon in Viridian Gym (same for your other two Giovanni battles).

As folks who followed the Anime for years know, Ash is joined by Brock and Misty for the Indigo and Johto Sagas. Misty leaves after the Johto Saga and Brock leaves after the Sinnoh Saga. From the Hoenn Saga to the Kalos Saga, Ash would be joined by the Female protagonist from the game (May, Dawn, Serena) or Gym Leaders (Iris, Cilan, Clemont). It actually wasn’t until the mobile game Pokemon Masters EX that we found out the official names of Gen 5’s Protagonists (the in-game avatars you play as): Hilbert (Male), Rosa (Female), Nate (Male) and Hilda (Female). In addition, Gen 7’s Protagonists are named Elio (Male) and Selene (Female). None of them appear or are mentioned in the anime.

It goes without saying the anime follows its own plot separate from the games. There is also a reason we have not seen another game like Pokemon Yellow that incorporated elements from the Anime. Ash-Greninja (Distributed via Sun/Moon’s Demo) does not count on that note since the unique abilities Ash’s Greninja displays was for cross-promotion purposes. This special Greninja can’t be bred on that note and its special ability is nothing to call home about. The reason we have not seen another game like Pokemon Yellow either main series or otherwise incorporate elements from the Anime is simply because they are two different worlds. Pokemon Yellow proved they were meant to stay on separate tracks.

 

 

The second half of Attack on Titan’s final season begins next month and fans of the franchise have been following it from the very beginning over 5 years ago. The pacing of the release of the anime has been held back to ensure it does not outpace the Manga and that’s because the anime has no filler episodes or filler arcs. On that note. In times past, studios would develop filler episodes or filler seasons that have nothing to do with the source material due to network obligations. Not anymore. This is one of the benefits that come with a series being on a platform like Crunchyroll or Funimation.

Everyone remembers the original Dragonball Z anime from the 90s that not only had filler episodes but drastically slowed down storytelling and pacing. When the reboot Dragonball Z Kai was released first on Nickelodeon and then Adult Swim, they cut out all the filler and the difference is like night and day. By the time Dragonball Z Kai was beginning to wind down the Buu Saga, the then new Dragonball Super was well into development.

 

…Whew.

 

I think it’s become obvious by now there is a new appreciation by the industry to just stick as close to the source material as possible when making anime.  Fans are willing to wait and with streaming services, they can work at their own pace. These days, more Anime is adapted from Light Novels or Web Comics than Manga and it’s just as well.

 

 

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I recently started reading and watching “So I Married the Anti-Fan”

 

The lengths they went with the K-Drama to stay true to the source material–the Webcomic, which was adapted from the Light Novel of the same name–is why I have decided to read the Webtoon and watch the K-Drama at the same time. I finished reading Episode 24 of the Webcomic (On Webtoon) and just started Episode 2 of the K-Drama (on Viki).

Without spoiling too much, the pair is about to start filming their reality TV show in the Webtoon while the pair are separately dealing with the immediate aftermath of their imfamous exchange at JJ’s Nightclub in the K-Drama. That’s where I’m at right now with both Mediums. I plan to read the Webtoon version first, then get caught up in the K-Drama version. The Webtoon version was only recently released and was actually released to promote the K-Drama, which is a bit further ahead in the story. As a reminder, both were adapted from the Light Novel of the same name. From what I’ve read, the Light Novel was first released back in 2012 so…yeah.

 

It was easy for me to see why this series was so popular in both mediums: It gives audiences a deep dive into the Idol Culture both South Korea and Japan are known for.

 

That’s a good segway into this video:

 

Here’s the original song it’s based on by Bo Burnham:

 

The dark side of the idol industy in Japan and South Korea has been getting a lot of attention in recent years as more and more former Idols and people from the industry talk about their experiences. Basically, the purpose of your existence is to play a role until it’s no longer profitable. You almost never have time for relationships and often don’t get to see your own family much. When their American and European counterparts start to feel mental health-related burnout, they will just take time off. Not in Japan and South Korea due to cultural differences and expectations. That’s how brutal the Entertainment industry Complex is in Japan and South Korea. Your life is literally no longer your own.

I’ve read stories of Male idols basically having to meet with their girlfriends in secret for their girlfriends’ safety. Why? Because if some of the more crazy fans found out, their girlfriend’s life would probably be in danger. Yes, really. Some people literally worship JPop/KPop Idols to the point they feel their perception must be maintained no matter what. It’s even worse for Female Idols though this is more widely known. More often than not, idols are not allowed to be seen “out of character” while in public if they haven’t completely changed or disguised their appearance.

Both Male and Female Idols who find love after getting into the business is usually kept a closely guarded secret if their love interest is not a public figure or celebrity. If they found love before getting in the business, they have some leeway with both their agency and fans though. If a Female Idol gets pregnant, how the agency handles it depends on if her relationship was publicly known or not. If it was publicly known, they’ll announce it and she’ll have time off until after she gives birth. If the relationship wasn’t publicly known, they will have her take time off and will usually arrange for her to not be publicly seen for at least a year. In more extreme cases, she may even be forced to quietly have an abortion. Why? Because profits over people that’s why.

As far as most Idol Agencies are concerned, the Idol is a product of their making and they can do whatever they want with you as long as you’re profitable. When you’re no longer profitable, they show you the door without compensation. You are not even entitled to royalties. The Agencies ensure that. Some former Idols actually do find Indie success but without the backing of their former agencies, most are forced to find some other kind of work. More so if they left their former agency on bad terms. You’re nothing more than a cog in the machine. That is the Idol Industrial Complex in South Korea and Japan. It used to be like that in the U.S. too but not as much these days.

…What does all of this have to do with Anti-Fan you may wonder? Read and/or Watch and see for yourself =)

 

 

 

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Crunchyroll and Rakuten Viki are clearly gearing up to attract viewers for the Fall and Winter

…That’s probably the best way I can think of to put it right now. Before I preview what’s new, I first want to give a recap on some ongoing anime and one legendary reboot that wrapped up over the summer.

 

Ok here we go:

Digimon Adventure, which was a reboot of the original Anime series wrapped up over the summer. The reboot cut out all of the bloat so prevalent from the original series and a lot of that was because unlike the original series, the reboot only aired new episodes once a week. For those who are either too old to remember or didn’t exist at the time, look up Dragonball Z’s original episode count and compare it to Dragonball Z Kai’s.

Anywho, Digimon Adventure basically cuts right to the point. If you watched the original series, you’ll notice a few changes made to the reboot with certain characters. Most notably with Patomon having a split evolution. Aside from evolving into Angemon, Patomon gets an alternate evolution to Pegasmon. Another interesting change is the kids stay in the digital world until the end. In the original series, they are able to return to the real world after a certain point and this is how we originally meet Tai’s sister Hikari. What happens instead is she is introduced at the beginning and is later pulled into the Digital World.

For those who never saw the original series, you can just watch this instead. Prepare to binge though. At the time the original series was released, yes it was compared to the Pokemon Anime. Digimon are different from Pokemon in two ways. One is Digimon with human partners only Digivolve Temporarily in the Anime. Aside from Mega Evolution, Pokemon permanently evolve. In the case of Pokemon like Eevee that had multiple evolutions, you would need a LOT of Eevee to get all of its evolutions.

The other difference is Digimon can speak human language while almost all Pokemon can only say their name. Team Rocket’s Meowth explains he gave up learning PayDay to learn the human language as well as learn to walk on two legs (Meowth usually walk on all fours). Meowth is able to translate the Pokemon Language though. That aside, any other Pokemon that can speak to humans are almost always a Legendary Pokemon or highly intelligent. You also almost always see such a Pokemon in a movie.

 

As a reminder, the Manga turned Anime is not based on any existing game from the legendary Dragon Quest/Warrior video game series. With the new OP that debuted a few weeks ago, it seems we are fast heading towards the series finale at this point. Dai reluctantly teams up with his estranged father Baran to take on a common enemy. While the two are fighting Hadlar, Baran notices a danger that may make beating Hadlar lethally impossible. King Vearn is confident Dai and Baran will not survive their encounter with  Hadlar, who is already planning to fight to the death. It will be interesting to see how things unfold.

Hyunckel, who was nearly killed in the previous fight was considered too injured to fight anymore. That doesn’t stop him from dragging himself to the Field of Death to join Popp, Maam and Crocodine on the battlefield. Even without Dai, the unlikely friends are prepared to overcome the odds stacked against them.

 

If you passed on watching Boruto up to now because you felt the story should’ve ended with Shippuden, hopefully a major character death and a second one teased at the end of the Kara Arc will change your mind. This is a major spoiler but given the fact it’s all over the internet since the episode first aired two weeks ago, I won’t give a spoiler warning.

During the final battle with Isshinki, Kurama offered Naruto a deal that would give him a massive power boost but it would require a sacrifice. Naruto assumed it would mean death and he was right. Just not his. After the battle, Kurama reveals he only told Naruto half the story: The only one who would die would be him, not Naruto. He didn’t tell him the truth up front because he knew Naruto wouldn’t have agreed to it otherwise. Before disappearing, Kurama explains normally a Jinchuriki would die with their Tailed Beast but because of what Kurama did, Nauto’s life would be spared. The loss of Kurama means Naruto no longer has Superhuman strength and Chakra but he’s still really powerful.

Kawaki, who suffered extreme abuse and torture for most of his life gets the final victory over Isshinki by making a Shadow Clone and using it to fool his former benefactor. It was a great fist-pump moment and closure for him to say the least. Naruto offered to make Kawaki a Genin and he simply replied “I’ll think about it”. Amado defecting to the Leaf was what made that victory possible. Seeing him get a happy ending was also satisfying all things considered. Some might not agree with the fact he was able to easily neutralize the threat of Momoshinki taking over Boruto again after the emotional build to that point but all things considered, I’m totally fine with it. Both Boruto and Naruto have been through enough to that point.

Everyone in the Kara has been eliminated except for Code though based on the preview for the next episode, that loose end appears to be on the shelf for now. The next episode takes us back to the Chunin Exams which were interrupted and put on hold quite a while back. Ninja exams tend to get put on hold quite a lot in the world of Naruto, don’t they? Based on the preview, Sasuke and/or Orochimaru may be involved in the Chunin exams so we’ll see. It’s sure to be quite interesting to say the least!

 

The Second Season of Yasha-Hime: Princess Half-Demon recently started and out the gate, we get a bit more story development regarding Sesshomaru, Rin and Setsuna in particular. As was revealed in the first season, Sesshomaru pretended to ally himself with Kirinmaru to protect his family as well as Inuyasha and Kagome. We find out why Sesshomaru stopped the girls rom killing Zero in the latest episode and why she said “If I die, she dies too!”

In this case, “She” is Rin. In the latest episode, it’s revealed Zero–She’s Kirinmaru’s sister as a reminder–put a curse on Rin shortly after Jaken hid the girls. She then linked herself to Rin so that if one dies, the other would too. This basically ensures Sesshomaru or anyone who knows about the link can’t kill her. This is also why he stopped the girls from killing Zero at the end of Season 1. The reason Rin was placed in the Tree of Ages was to stop the curse placed on her from spreading. Time for her has stopped biologically. Presumably she will remain there until Sesshomaru can figure out how to sever Zero’s link with her as well as break the curse on her.

One interesting development was the revealation Riku, who turned on Kirinmaru was actually born from one of his horns. Everything Riku sees and hears, Kirinmaru can see and hear. Zero is actually the one who tells him what he really is and you can tell after he learns this, it’s likely Kirinmaru knows his every move to now. Riku turned on Kirinmaru and had been secretly helping Towa for the last few episodes. Now that he knows Kirinmaru knows everything, that makes things more complicated for him. We’ll have to wait and see how things unfold moving forward.

 

…Moving over to Asian Dramas on Viki.

I neglected to comment on this last year but Viki has moved more of their existing content to its Standand and Premium Subscription tiers. I was a little annoyed to see some titles that were Free for me before now being locked behind a Premium subscription though the ones I have in mind were dramas I already watched. I do have a Standard Subscription and though I do plan to upgrade to Premium at some point in the future, it would have been great if Viki at least sent an email to let people know a show they watch or have on their watch list is changing tiers.I  renewed for another year this past September. The Standard Tier is $50 a year while the Premium tier is $100 a year. I will always prefer annual subscripions–I have one for Crunchyroll also–because you save longterm. $10 a month is $120 a year but $50 a year or $100 a year means you save $70 or $20 a year.

I mean I get those who don’t want to be locked into an annual subscription and more so if they don’t watch much but that’s a good reason to do the annual sub: You don’t feel pressured to watch at least once a day. With an annual sub, you can go weeks without waching and with series still in progress, you give time for several new episodes to be released. With Viki, I’ve only watched shows with all Episodes available so far personally though.

 

 

 

Anyone who’s been reading the Webtoon True Beauty probably already knows about the Live Action adaptation that was released on Viki in 2019. If you’ve only seen the Live Action Drama, get the Webtoon app and read it so you’re caught up. The TV Series ends with Suho being forced to leave for Japan to attend to his father, who suffered a stroke.

If you’ve never seen the Webtoon, here’s what’s happened since then and warning, MAJOR Spoilers:

• There is a time skip of a few years. Everyone’s a Young Adult now.
• Jugyeong goes to College, majoring in makeup (obviously).
• Jugyeong and Seojun start dating (!)
• Seojun sees Jugyeong’s bare face for the first time, he compliments her for it
• Seojun enters the Pop Idol Business at Jugyeong’s urging
• Jugyeong finds part-time work as a Makeup Artist
• After rumors about their relationship spreads online, Jugyeong breaks up with Seojun (!).
• Suho returns from Japan (!)
• Jugyeong gets a Stalker but fortunately, Suho eventually steps in.
• Seojun learns Suho is back, the Frenimies pick up where they left off.
• Suho learns Jungyeong and Seojun were dating while he was away (!)
• Jugyeong learns a friend is in an Abusive Relationship
• Jugyeong, Seojun and Suho end up spending a weekend together
• Suho and Seojun come clean about both having feelings for Jungyeong and settle the contest “like Men” (they get into a fistfight), Suho wins (!)
• Jugyeong shows her two high school friends her bare face for the first time.

 

That’s where we’re at to now. If you’ve been following the Webtoon to now, this is nothing new to you. If you haven’t read it yet or haven’t read much this year, go get yourself caught up! Oh and yes, I do think there is and should be a Season 2. I would end Season 2 with Suho’s return. End with a cliffhanger for Season 3.

 

 

Speaking of.

This is another Webtoon with a Live Drama Adaptation: My ID is Gangnam Beauty. I watched the Drama in full on Viki earlier this year but only last week did I find out it’s based on the Webtoon of the same name. With True Beauty, I started reading the Webtoon first and by the time the drama came out the current story was well past where the TV Series leaves off.

…I’m gonna read the Webtoon from the beginning so I’m caught up the story. Basically, the exact opposite of where I am in regards to True Beauty. The Webtoon App is free by the way. I have it on my iPad but you can also read on your phone or computer.

 

There was more I was gonna cover but with the next post I have in mind, I decided to cut things short.

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Here’s some recent Anime that I reccommend would make decent intros to the Medium

 

When I say “recent”, I mean they were released in the last 2 to 3 years. Weather you’re new to the world of anime or you have someone you want to bring in, it can be pretty overwhelming picking one. The first thing you want to keep in mind either way when picking you “entry” anime is keeping personal preferences in mind. You or your friend don’t have to like something just because others do or because it’s super popular (or “mainstream”).

There is literally an anime for everyone and even with the 2 to 3 year limit I put on this list, it’s not too hard to name some. Before I continue, as usual I am only going to reccommend Anime I have seen myself. All of these Anime are on Crunchyroll which is free but if you want to watch new episodes the same day they become available in Japan (Free users have to wait an extra week) and watch episodes without ads (You have 2 or 3 rounds of Ads per episode to sit through on the Free version), you’ll want to get a subscription.

 

Ok here’s my list. Bold means the anime season is ongoing as of this writing. Bold Italics means the Anime is ongoing AND new. If you see Italics, that means a new season is planned or has been announced. Whatever is plain text either aired in its entirety or there are no known plans for a new season to my knowledge as of this writing.

 

• The Great Jahy Will Not Be Defeated!
• Fena: Pirate Princess
• Fruits Basket (2019-2021 version)
• Dr. Stone
• That Time I Got Reincarnated As A Slime
• I’m Standing on A Thousand Lives
• Dragon Quest: The Adventure of Dai
• Tonikawa: Over The Moon For You
• Food Wars! Shokugeki no Soma
• Rent a Girlfriend
• Ahiru no Sora
• Tokyo Revengers
• Persona 5: The Animation
• If It’s For My Daughter, I’d Even Defeat A Demon Lord
• Somali and the Forest Spirit
• The Rising of The Shield Hero
• Remake Our Life!
• 86: Eighty-Six

 

Most of these are critically acclaimed by anime fans for various reasons. I tell everyone this but don’t feel like you have to binge watch one anime before moving on to another. Feel free to jump around between a few if you want. The only listed Anime I have not actually seen yet is Tokyo Revengers and that’s because I’m planning to watch the whole season or series when it finshes, whichever happens first.

I went with a list of Anime that covers a range of genres. There’s a bit of everything in short. Take your time and just dive right into whatever looks interesting to you. Like Sports? Ahiru no Sora (Basketball) would be a good one. Slice of Life? Rent a Girlfriend is a pretty good pick. Want Isekai? I’m partial to The Rising of the Shield Hero and That Time I got Reincarnated as a Slime. Are you feelng Hungry? Get fed with Food Wars. Want something based on a video game? Persona 5’s is pretty faithful to the source material. Want to see a new type of Shonen? Dr. Stone is not only good but educational. Slice of Life? Fruits Basket. Needing Adventure? You can’t go wrong with Fena: Pirate Princess.

 

I can go on and on but…yeah. There are other anime that came out over the last 2 to 3 years of course. These are just the ones I personally reccommend. It doesn’t mean some of the others aren’t decent though. These are just my picks.

 

 

 

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I just started watching Eighty Six-86 and the moral controversy has some real world parallels that should not be ignored

 

I just finished watching the seventh episode on Crunchyroll and it is now my favorite new anime of 2021. Based on the Manga of the same name, 86 is the story of a country in the near future at war with rogue autonomous drones trying to invade the country’s far eastern boarder. The government and military boast it is a bloodless war since they claim to also use autonmous drones but the truth is much darker: In reality, the drones used by the country are piloted by people not considered human because they are not the “chosen race”. Since they are not considered human, they don’t exist as far as the government is concerned and so their deaths are never officially reported or acknowledged.

Yes, really.

This goes there and it doesn’t try to shy away or gloss over the obvious moral controversy. In fact, that is the story.

Of course, the general public is ignorant of the truth and to an extent is complicit due to the racism. Only those with silver hair and blue eyes are considered “human” while everyone else is not as far as the country is concerned. The anime is called 86 because those not considered human are confined to the county’s 86th Region on the edge of the country. These people are referred to collectively as The 86 or simply 86. They have no human or civil rights and live far from the eyes and thoughts of the rest of the Albins, which is the name of the “chosen race”.

Due to the government and media propaganda boasting “zero human casualties” in the war, officially their deaths in combat are not reported or recorded. The fact the 86 are not considered human and the battlefront is far away makes it very easy to cover up what would easily be considered human rights violations of the worst kind. Since they are not recognized as human, there is no reason or need to acknowledge their deaths as far as the government is concerned.

On that note. Episode 5 confirms what viewers were probably thinking to that point: The real plan for the country is for them to use the war to kill off all the 86. Since they are not considered human, there is no reason or need to acknowledge their involvement in the war to the public. As is revealed, 86 staying in concentration camps are basically pressed into military service with the empty promise of freedom and full citizenship if they survive 5 years of meaningless fighting. Of course, they are well aware that they are being lied to from the start and the sole purpose is for them to be killed off.

This is, of course to say nothing of the severe PTSD the 86 suffer throughout. More so knowing their death can come at any time and no one would know or care. As a reminder, the general population doesn’t know the truth and for the most part wouldn’t care about the truth if it were known. Again, since the 86 are not considered people their deaths are never officially acknowledged or counted beyond the codename “Processors”. As a reminder, the public are told unmanned drones do the fighting and so there will always be zero human casualties so…yeah.

…Sorry to veer into politics with this but some countries have a long, dark history of exploiting minority populations for military purposes since ancient times. Sometimes when a kindgom annexes another kingdom, instead of their own people they will press the people of the conquered territory into forced military service.  More recently, when ISIS carved up the Middle East 10 years ago they didn’t slaughter everyone. They gave the men a choice: “Fight for us or die”.  So, the plot for this anime is right out of the pages of history to say the least.

With everything going on in the world right now, it’s not hard to imagine scenarios like this happening again. I look at the U.S., Russia, China, The Philippines, Nigeria, India and Brazil being just a few countries that are more than capable of doing something like this in the near future. That’s based on what I’ve seen in all those countries. Is it a violation of human rights? Of course. Would the public give a damn at tthe end of the day? Of course not.

I’ll put it like this: Today, 13 U.S. Troops were killed in Afghanistan but dozens if not hundreds of Afghan civilians were also killed in the same attack. The media has almost entirely been on the American soldiers killed while the Afghan victims are basically footnotes in comparison. I’ll take it a step further. No one in the U.S. outside the military and their families give a damn about the U.S. Troops killed and injured today. I’ll just put it like that. As far as most laypeople are concerned, “Soldiers know they could die when deployed to dangerous parts of the world.” Why else do you think all the keyboard warriors are sounding off and have been since the crisis in Afghanistan blew up last week?

All that said and moving back to 86. The world has rightfully become very concerned by the U.S. government starting to rely on unmanned drones for both surveilance and combat missions more and more. Don’t get the wrong idea, no one objects to the idea of not having to needlessly risk human casualties for these things. The concerns lie in governments and by extension the people of countries that use military drones becoming desensitized to the often wanton destruction their military’s drones remotely inflict on human populations in distant lands.

It’s not really a secret the U.S., Russia and China all have Cyber Corps Divisions. Their primary purpose is defense but in the case of Russia and China in particular, they also engage in offense at the discretion of their commanders and high-ranking government officials. It’s not a stretch to assume some military bases in all three countries have computer terminals from which these cyber soldiers remotely operate drones deployed to other countries (so far).

I do know in regars to the U.S., Military Drones are replacing manned military jets for recon missions and in more cases bombing missions. No longer does the U.S. Air Force have to wait until the cover of night to do bombing runs. They can simply deploy a drone as the advance force to devastate targets on the ground, then send in soldiers to clean up afterward. No longer are fighter pilots risking being shot down in enemy territory.

So far, countries that have military drones have only been using them for either surveilance or in counterterrorism operations. You’d be a fool to not know it’s only a matter of time before two countries with military drone go to war with each other. If a country with military drones goes to war with a country without drones, it goes without saying the country with drones would be at a huge advantage. They could penetrate deep behind enemy lines and even when shot down, the attacking forces have still suffered–wait for it–no human casualties.

…You get the real world connection with 86 now?

While the drones used IRL are being remotely controlled by people, that still doesn’t take away the moral concerns with using them in an actual war. The prospect alone has been quite the derrent for the world’s military superpowers to fight each other so far but it’s anyone’s guess how long that can be maintained.

 

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Eren Jaeger takes power of the War Hammer Titan in Episode 66

 

Episode 66 not only had non-stop action from start to finish but it left you wanting episode 67 NOW. Episode 65 ended with The War Hammer Titan seemingly forcing Eren into a stalemate. Episode 66 makes it clear that this is NOT the same Eren Jaeger you knew from the end of Season 1. This Eren is older and much more calculating than the one we knew at the beginning of Season 3.

When the Beast, Cart and Jaw Titans enter the battle, it looks like the tables have been turned on Eren and the Survey Corps. The Marleyian Forces are shocked and horrified to see the Survey Corps, which has been hunting Titans on Paradis Island for generations fearlessly taking on their Titans directly. Levi gives a long-owed receipt to the Beast Titan, dropping him like a bad habit out of nowhere. Jean and Sasha pin down the Cart Titan and she ends up being severely injured.

Then, our boy Armin debutes the Colossal Titan with a bang. Literally.

 

His line after emerging from the Titan form he took from Bertoldt at the end of Season 3 sums it up: “Is this how it felt for you, Bertoldt?” For those who need a reminder, when the Colossal Titan transforms it’s basically a nuclear explosion that gets set off. This is why Armin transformed off the cost on a raft–a transformation that wiped out the Marleyan Fleet rushing to provide backup–because if he didn’t, he probably would’ve instantly killed thousands of people in the city.

He didn’t do anything beyond that and he didn’t need to. The Marleyan Army now knows Paradis Island has two Titans and they know how to use them. Commander Hange later tells Armin he seems to have become more like her predecessor, Erwin Smith. He shrugs it off, saying he hopes to be a little like their former leader. Meanwhile, Eren patiently tries everything he can think of to take the War Hammer. The owner of the War Hammer crystallized herself like Annie, the Female Titan did.

Prior to Armin’s entrance, the Marleyan Army was sure they had Eren cornered. After his arrival, this gve Eren the space to focus on taking the War Hammer’s power. “If you had anything left, you would have done something by now.” he remarks before freeing himself and transforming again. “Me, on the other hand…I’ve got plenty of strength left.” When the Jaw Titan breaches his own Hardening, Eren figures it out: He grabs the Jaw Titan, tears off his limbs and then uses the Jaw Titan as a giant nutcracker above his head to devour the War Hammer Titan’s powers. He gets interrupted before he can finish off the Jaw Titan by the arrival of Reiner, the Armored Titan.

The preview for Episode 67 announces the Armor Titan falls which is a fair assumption: Reiner told Eren he basically had a death wish so…yeah. Assuming Eren takes the Armor Titan’s power next, he will have four Titan powers (Founder, Attack, War Hammer and Armor). The status of the Cart and Jaw Titans is currently unknown but both are critically injured. We also do not have confirmation Levi actually killed Zeke yet. Excluding Armin (Colossal) and Annie (Female), all of the Nine Titans are now accounted for. All but the Female Titan, who is crystallized are in the same place right now too. Things should get real interesting.

 

 

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Episodes 14 and 15 of Yasha-Hime: Princess Half-Demon sheds light on two of the biggest mysteries to now

 

If you haven’t been following the sequel to the legendary Manga turned Anime Inuyasha because you don’t like sequels to anime you like…your loss. I’m just gonna put it like that. For everyone else, keep reading. Fair warning, there be MAJOR plot spoilers for both Inuyasha and Yasha-Hime: Princess Half Demon in this article. If you’re not caught up to Episode 15 of the latter Anime, stop here!

Ok so as the name of the new series reveals, the focus of this story is on a trio of Half-Demons who are the daughters of Inuyasha and Kagome (Moroha) as well as Sesshomaru and Rin (Towa and Setsuna) respectively. The twins are cousins to Moroha due to their fathers being brothers on that note. As was revealed in Episode 1, Towa and Setsuna were split up as children during a forest fire. Towa ended up being raised by Kagome’s brother in the Modern Era while Setsuna would be raised by Sango and trained as a Demon Slayer in the Feudal Era. As was revealed in Episode 15, Moroha was raised by the Wolf Demon Tribe, which is led by Koga. For those who don’t remember him, he was Inuyasha’s rival in the original series. It’s likely she learned how to use Divine Power from Kaede as so far she’s demonstrated the ability to use Sacred Arrows and erect barriers. It certainly helps her mother Kagome is a priestess.

Anyway prior to Episode 15, one of the biggest mysteries of the series to that point is “Whatever happened to Sesshomaru, Inuyasha and Kagome?” followed by the obvious “Who is Towa and Sesshomaru’s mother?” For the second question, if you guessed Rin you would be correct. Rin was the orphaned human girl who accompanied Sesshomaru during the original series. Kagome, who is pregnant with Moroha at the time is present for the birth of Towa and Setsuna.

As the first question, Episode 15 explains this part. Prior to this, Sesshomaru is briefly seen when the trio journey to the Feudal Era from the Modern Era. They pass through the Tree of Ages, which played a minor role in the original series. If you’ve been following the series up to now, you will know about Kirinmaru. While Inuyasha and Sesshomaru’s father Inutaisho–known as the Great Dog Demon of the West–ruled Western Japan, his counterpart Kirinamaru–originally from Mainland China–ruled Eastern Japan.

500 years before the original series, the Great Demons teamed up to destroy a comet fragment that would have destroyed Japan. Sometime after that, Kirinmaru went into a long slumber. As anyone who’s watched the series or saw the third Inuyasha movie should know, Inutaisho died saving Inuyasha, who was a newborn at the time and his wife Izayaoi.

The week after Setsuna and Towa were born, the same comet fragments returned but this time Sesshomaru and Inuyasha dealt with it. Sesshomaru is visited by Zero, a mysterious Demon and subordinate under Kirinmaru to warn him about the coming comet fragment. Kagome is tipped off by Riku, who clearly knows more than he was willing to reveal both then and since. As is revealed by Zero, Sesshomaru’s children are in danger along with Inuyasha and Moroha from Kirinmaru simply because they’re Half Demons (Quarter in the case of Moroha).

Zero reveals a prophecy from the Shikon Jewel relevant to him for viewers: At some point in the future, he will be slain by a being that is neither Human or Demon. Apparently, Kirinmaru intially laughed at the idea but that was before Inuyasha came along. It didn’t take him long to realize Half-Demons were was the prophecy was referring to and naturally, he personally hates them as well as humans in general.

Presumably acting on his orders, Zero had Homura set the forest where Towa and Setsuna were hidden. The three would meet in Episode 17 where Homoura would be consumed by his own flames. Sasshomaru’s majordomo Jaken had planned to eventually bring Rin to the place where he sealed the twins. Although Rin lies in suspended animation inside the Tree of Ages, clearly something happened that led to that. We’ll probably find out at a later time but she will be in for a shock when she is reunited with her children.

As for Inuyasha and Kagome. Sango and Miroku finally made their appearance in Episode 13 and as was revealed, Miroku sealed most of Setsuna’s Demon Blood. Shortly after Moroha was born, she was spirited away to the Wolf Demon Tribe which raised her. Joining with Kirinmaru, Sesshomaru used the Black Pearl to seal Inuyasha and Kagome in their father’s resting place, which is in another dimension. Jaken explains to Kirinmaru there may come a time in the future when they will need to Inuyasha and his Medio Zangetsuha. Satisfied with knowing Inuyasha is sealed away, Kirinmaru is ok with it.

…Whew.

It’s fair to say at this point Sesshomaru did all that he did to protect everyone from Kirinmaru. It’s also likely he figured out Towa, Setsuna and Moroha will be needed to take down Kirinmaru one day. He clearly knows all three are making names for themselves right now but is likely keeping his distance for their own good. One bit of plot that appears subtle in Episode 15 that’s easy to miss is the fact Zero can find people in their dreams. As it happens, Setsuna’s memories were taken by a Dream Butterfly and for the same reason, she is unable to sleep. Clearly there is a connection there.

There are still a few mysteries and questions the need answering such as “Whatever happened to Shippo?” but I’m sure we’ll find out in time. At the time the series ended, Shippo was planning to take the Fox Demon Exam. His absence doesn’t surprise me personally and I’m sure we’ll find out what he’s been up to at some point.

Riku clearly knows a lot more than he’s ready to reveal. We know he’s collecting Rainbow Pearls but at the same time he’s clearly not aligned with Kirinmaru. This is speculation on my part but I think he may be planning to make a new Shikon Jewel. He clearly knows about what happened to the original after it was restored and though he’s content to let the girls keep their pearls for now, no doubt he’ll make a move for them at some point down the road.

You can catch new episodes of Yasha-Hime: Princess Half-Demon on Crunchyroll Saturdays at 5AM EST Subbed. The English Dub is up to Episode 9 as of this week on that note.

 

 

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Attack on Titan’s Final Season: The Story So Far

 

All good things must come to an end. The above screenshot from the very first episode will go down as one of the most iconic moments in Anime history.

A lot has happened in in the almost 10 years since then. The Manga turned Anime spawned a spinoff Manga + Anime (Attack on Titan Junior High), several prequel manga series, two live-action movies and a number of video games. Like most Manga adaptations, the Anime was put on hiatus for a few years to allow the Manga to progress enough for the story to be adapted. I have the first 20 Volumes of the Manga and do plan to eventually finish collecting the entire Manga series once I am financially stable again.

For those who have only watched the Anime or may not have watched past the first season, you may not know a lot of the backstory that’s been revealed already. You may also be a little confused if you started watching the final season to find the focus is not on Eren Jaeger or what’s going on with the Survey Corps. The story has shifted to Marley, where the history of the Titans began.

Here’s a recap of the larger story to now:

• Sometime in the past before the start of the series, a woman named Ymir Fritz awakened as the First Titan though no one knows how or why. She founded the Eldian Empire. Those of Eldian blood were granted the ability to transform into Titans. Those with Eldian blood were also known a Subjects of Ymir. Ymir used the power of the Titans to subjegate the entire continent. Eldians forced others to have children with them to increase the number of Subjects of Ymir. This can be detected with a blood test.
• 13 years after awakening to Titan Power, Ymir died. Her power was then split into nine successors who are known Simply as the Nine Titans: Founding Titan, Attack Titan, Colossal Titan, Jaw Titan, Cart Titan, Beast Titan, War Hammer Titan, Female Titan and Armored Titan.
• Like Ymir, these Nine Titans can only live for 13 years after receiving their unique Titan power. Zeke Yaeger, who is the current Beast Titan is known to have one year left to live. Its known as the Curse of Ymir. When one of the Nine Titans dies before passing on their Titan Power it is randomly given to a newborn baby with Eldian blood regardless of status, distance or class.
• The Nine Titans are different from Pure Titans in that they retain their human intelligence. The Pure Titans are the ones you’re most familiar with: Mindless, man-eating monsters. All with Eldian Blood are capable of becoming a Pure Titan after being injected with Titan Serum, which is spinal fluid from a Titan. Abnormals are in between Pure Titans and the Nine Titans in which they retain some of their human intelligence after they have transformed.
• The Great Titan War was an earth-shattering conflict between the Nine Titans in the past. The conflict abruptly ended when King Reiss–ancestor of the Reiss Royal Family–who possessed the Founding Titan moved the capital of the Eldian Empire to Paradis Island where the first three seasons took place. He erected the Three Walls using Titans and warned the mainland to stay away or he will use the Titans to “Flatten the Earth”. The King then used the power of The Founding Titan to erase the memories of everyone in the Walled City of the outside world.
• After King Reiss withdrew to Paradis Island, Marley–a territory once conquered by the Eldian Empire–saw their chance and not only regained their lost territory but most of the Eldian Empire on the mainland. They also managed to take Seven of the Nine Titans from the Eldians.
• Having regained control of the continent, the Marleyans forced the Eldians to live in Internment Zones. One of them was in the city of Liberio where Grisha Yeager–Eren and Zeke Yeager’s father–grew up. As a child, Grisha’s younger sister Fay was killed by Marleyan Military Police when they were caught tresspassing outside the Internment Zone. Grisha’s father then revealed to him the history of their people and why they are so hated and feared by the Marleyans.
• When he grew up and became a doctor, Grisha met a man who confirmed for him what he always suspected and that was his sister had been killed and her murder covered up. Grisha then decides to join the Restorationists, a faction of Eldians in Liberio who wanted to restore Eldia as a world power. Grisha married into the Fritz family and had a son named Zeke, who would later become the Beast Titan.
• Around this time, Grisha learned the Marleyans were recruiting children to be given the power of the Seven Titans they controlled to send them to Paradis Island. Their goal was to take The Founding Titan’s power to further enhance their military strength. Grisha planned to send Zeke as a mole to Paradis Island but after he told Zeke of his plans, Zeke exposed the Restorationists to the Marleyan Military.
• Grisha, his wife and some of the Restorationists are taken to Paradis Island where they are transformed into Pure Titans one by one. Grisha pleads for them soldiers to let his wife, who has royal blood go but his pleas fall on deaf ears. The cruel irony is Grisha’s second wife is devoured by his first in Titan form many years later.
• Before Grisha can be killed, Eren Krueger–a mole disguised as a soldier–steps in and saves his life. He then transforms into the Attack Titan (Shingeki no Kyojin) and lays waste to the Marleyan soldiers, artillery and the steamboat that brought them to the island.
• Krueger decides to pass on the power of the Attack Titan to Grisha, explaining the 13-year rule to him at the same time: Ymir died 13 years afrer gaining her Titan Powers. So too do the Nine Titans die 13 years after gaining their Titan Power. In Krueger’s case, he was in his final year. He killed countless Eldians to keep his cover intact including Grisha’s sister. He felt it only fitting Grisha be entrusted with the next phase: Infiltrating the walled city on Paradis Island, gaining the Founding Titan’s power and using it to ultimately help restore the Eldian Empire.
• When Grisha arrives outside the Walled City, he is discovered by the Scout Regiment and claims to have amnesia. He is imprisoned and later freed. Shortly after beginning work as a doctor in a hospital, he meets his second wife Carla. They marry and have Eren a few years later.
• When the Titans invade Shiganshina at the beginning of the series, Grisha rushes to the Reiss Family Chapel where he reveals his is an Eldian and begs Freida Reiss to use the Founding Titan’s power to stop the marauding Titans. She refuses and so Grisha transforms into the Attack Titan. Frieda transforms to fight him but he easily overpowers her and devours her, gaining the power of the Founding Titan. He then goes on to kill everyone else present except Rod Reiss (Historia/Krista Lenz’ father) who escapes.
• Remember that flashback scene of Grisha injecting Eren with Titan Serum? Right after that, Eren transformed into a Titan for the first time and devoured his father, gaining the powers of both the Attack Titan and the Founding Titan.

 

…Whew.

When Season 3 ended, the Scout Regiment–having learned the truth about their world and the past–were preparing to invade the mainland. Four years have now passed and as of this week, an older and taller Erin Yeager has been revealed as having infiltrated Marley while disguised as an injured soldier.

For those who may be wondering, the reason the story shifted to the mainland when the season began is because the story of the Walled City on Paradis Island is now over. The cover image for the final season shows Reiner, who barely escaped Paradis Island with his life facing Eren in Titan form in a Marleyan city.

Before I forget. We have seen only Eight of the Nine Titans over the course of the series so far. The only one that hasn’t been revealed yet is the War Hammer Titan. It’s currently possessed by a member of the Tybur family in Marley though Zeke recently got them to agree to bring the War Hammer Titan to Paradis Island in an effort to gain the power of the Founding Titan.

Armin inherited the power of the Colossal Titan at the end of Season 3 and we have yet to see how his Titan form looks. Porco Galliard–the brother of Marco Galliard–gained the power of the Jaw Titan from Krista’s friend Ymir when she decided to return to Marley in Season 2. Ymir unexpectedly gained the power of the Jaw Titan by eating Marco when she was roaming Paradis Island as a Pure Titan. Everyone else gained their powers in a controlled process for the most part.

Why is everyone after the Founding Titan’s power, which is currently possessed by Eren Jaeger? Because it is the “Coordinate” from which all paths originate. The Founding Titan has two abilities: Memory Manipulation and controlling other Titans. It’s not yet known if Zeke knows Eren posseses the power of both the Attack Titan and the Founding Titan but it’s unlikely.

Remember: The first king of the Walled City use the Founding Titan’s power to erase the memories of everyone in the city. As subjects of Ymir, Eldians are basically Titans in Human form. So, memory manipulation is not all that hard to believe. With that in mind, it’s not hard to understand why Marley would want that power for themselves or why the Restorationists want it too. The Eldians want to regain their former glory so…yeah.

 

This is the final season of the Anime and it’s sure to be a must watch. Before I forget, you can legally watch the final season of Attack on Titan in the U.S. on Crunchyroll and Funimation.

 

 

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Rakuten Viki and Crunchyroll Renewed for another year; Reviews for Recently Completed Anime

 

Despite the Pandemic turning most of the world into shut-ins, I haven’t been able to spend most of this year consistently binging Asian Dramas on Viki. Such is my life sadly. Even so, I did manage to watch almost 30 shows in their entirety over the last year. With a lot of the stuff I have cued and am watching now, it makes the most sense for me to renew my Viki subscription for another year. With the things I am working on in life right now, I know I will be able to make the time for Viki in the coming year. Same with Crunchyroll, which I also plan to renew in a few months.

The majority of Viki’s offerings are from China and South Korea. There is a modest selection from Japan and Taiwan however. Like other streaming services, a lot of it has to do with licensing. If you get either of the premium subscriptions, you get immediate access to shows still airing. The more expensive subscription (Premium+) gives you access to everything the platform has to offer barring regional restrictions. When I start working, I will upgrade to Premium+ for both Viki and Crunchyroll.

Nearly a year after Funimation abruptly ended their partnership with Crunchyroll, Sony (which owns Funimation) has announced they have bought Crunchyroll (owned by WarnerMedia) for almost $2 Billion. The sale has to clear some regulatory hurtles which is expected to so the purchase is effectively a done deal.

The reactions from fans and users of Crunchyroll online has been overwhelmingly negative since the news broke on December 9. As of this writing, Crunchyroll has announced the buyout/merger on their website but no further information is available. Most likely, they don’t know themselves yet. We don’t know if Crunchyroll and Funimation’s streaming services will continue to operate separately or will be merged. We might not know until maybe next month most likely.

The funny thing is the same day as this announcement, I renewed my Crunchyroll Premium for another year. I don’t think those who are currently subscribed will be impacted without at least be offered compensation personally. I remember when Neon Alley being folded into Hulu was first announced, they offered a full or partial refund to premium subscribers if they didn’t want to switch over. I expect something like that to be offered if Crunchyroll is folded into Funimation. Of course, it’s certainly possible they will be allowed to perate separately but all we can really do is wait and see.

 

I would be remiss if I didn’t take a minute to comment on the political controversy surrounding the Live Action Mulan movie. Originally planned for a March theatrical release, the movie was released in July on Disney+ due to the ongoing Pandemic in progress. The movie has become a lightning rod of criticism because Disney thanked government officials in Xinjiang Province where the movie was filmed in the movie’s credits.

Why is that a problem?

It turns out a detention center imfamous for being used to house Muslims for “Re-Education” is located not far from where most of the movie was filmed. Disney explained they chose that region for the movie “after consulting scholars and historians”. The movie used an all-Chinese cast and crew. This can easily be handwaved away as just appeasing the Chinese government and public but some now believe the filming location being so close to the Detention Center may have been why they wanted to keep a lot of details under wraps even from Disney.

It’s not hard to believe Chinese government officials worked with the film crew to help keep Disney from knowing about the Detention Center during filming. I get Disney’s hands were tied mostly due to soured relations between the U.S. and China in recent years but that’s still no excuse. They should’ve realized something was up when they were basically told certain areas were off-limits.

Disney dropped the ball big time and not just over this. Liu Yufei, who plays Mulan in the movie expressed her support for Hong Kong Police last year. Anyone following the news involving China and Hong Kong in recent years knows how volatile things are now. Yufei, who is a Chinese-born American made the remarks on her Weibo Account (Weibo is China’s version of Twitter for those who don’t know). Many perceived her support of the authorities in Hong Kong as support of the sometimes violent crackdowns in Hong Kong by the Chinese government.

Yufei’s comments on Weibo and the Xinjiang Detention Center controversy has led to many wordwide to call for Mulan to be boycotted. Thailand and Taiwan have both banned the movie. Many in China criticized the original 1998 animated version, feeling it was too Westernized and seemed to mock Chinese history in some regards. A lot of the criticsm from within China towards the live version has to do with hand signals and gestures used during the movie’s action scenes lookng too “Ninja-like”. I would point the blame toward whoever from the Chinese government was supposed to oversee the Chinese version of the movie.

For those who don’t know, two versions of the movie were made: The International version and a second version just for Chinese-speaking audiences. Every scene was shot twice, once in English and once in Chinese. This is why the entire cast is Chinese. I do think Disney will be forced to reshoot the International version a third time because of the controversy with the lead role recast. Disney should have redid the whole movie after Yufei’s comments went public last year but I won’t digress further.

I am on the fence about watching the movie myself but I’m leaning toward not seeing it. Mostly because of how poorly recieved it’s been in China more than anything else. I just hope Disney learned from all this or they will be in trouble down the road.

Both versions of the movie is based on a Chinese folk tale called Hua Mulan, which tells the story of a young heroine who disguises herself as a man to take the place of her ailing father to fight in the Imperial Army. The first movie renewed debate in China as to weather or not this really happened. At first it was dismissed as fiction but historical records from the period the folk tale was believed to have come from seems to indicate it’s likely true.

At the time drafts only applied to sons, not daughters as the army was all Male. If the family had no sons, the father or grandfather would be drafted. The consript was given to the family which required one Male from the family to serve in the military. Anyone who tried to defy the draft risked their entire family being punished or killed. Only families that had no Males capable of fighting were excused from the draft. In the case of Mulan’s family, her father was a decorated soldier in his younger days. It’s not clear weather he was in poor health or had an injury but regardles, he accepted the conscript on behalf of the family. Mulan took matters into her own hands when she took off with the conscript and her father’s armor.

While women disguising themselves as men to get military training or fight in the miliary was not uncommon, most who were found out were sent home, executed or raped. Some like Mulan who proved themselves capable and earned the respect of her fellow soldiers were allowed to return home after serving in the military.

 

 

The last two episodes were clearly rushed but the ending was still very satisfying. It ended the same way it began prettymuch: Yukihira trying to get Erina to be honest about her feelings to him. There was so much going on in the last two episodes, they should have been split into 2 or 3 episodes each. You have Yukihira beating Saiba to go on and face Erina. We all knew that was the showdown being built towards.

Joichiro being revealed to have mentored Saiba when he was a kid explains a lot of his personal animosity towards Yukihira. Joichiro telling Saiba after the match “I will always be your father as a chef.” was pretty boss. Finding out during the credits Saiba and Erina were actually half-siblings though…that makes certain thoughts go through your head until you realize neither of them knew they were blood related until after the fact and almost off-screen. Their dad basically says “Oh by the way Erina you know that guy who wanted to marry you if he won? He’s actually your older half-brother.” That right there is a whole episode. So was Yukihira traveling abroad for 6 months after losing to Nakiri in the final match. Instead that was skipped entirely to his return for the final moments of the series.

Make no mistake Food Wars was an amazing anime from start to finish. Delays between seasons 4/5, 4/3 and 3/2 did slow momentum but not to the extent the months-long delay two episodes into the final season due to COVID-19 caused. It didn’t take away from the rest of the season though. My only real complaint is how rushed the last two episodes were. They tried to do too much in them and it came out looking sloppy to me.

 

 

 

This Anime’s lead character is a legit Mary Sue yet somehow this Anime makes it work by not making him the focus from start to finish. Instead, the focus is put world building. Somehow, it just works. The ending kinda leaves the door open for a second season but I felt like this was it.

 

 

 

Ahiru no Sora was quite the amazing coming of age anime with a bit of everything. Sure, the ending is unresolved but I think it was the safe way to close things out.

If they decide to make a Season 2, there’s plenty of material to work with now.

 

Fire Force Season 2 just wrapped up and now the wait is on for Season 3.

 

Most of Season 2 focused on character development as well as world building. The Season ended with the news all eight Special Fire Force companies as well as the Hajima Company and the Military will coming together to take on a common enemy in the mysterious White Clad and their benefactor, the malevolent Evangelist. Season 3 will presumably delve into their backstory as the stage is set for war between them and the Fire Force.

Season 3 hasn’t been announced yet and likely due to the ongoing Pandemic. All we know is there WILL be one eventually.

 

…Whew.

Folks should expect the next season for most Anime to be delayed due to COVID-19. Attack of Titan and Dr. Stone’s season premeires were originally supposed to be over the summer but they were pushed back due to the ongoing pandemic. The next season for Rising of The Shield Hero was also supposed to be around this time but it’s been pushed to sometime next year for the same reason.

Attack on Titan’s final season just premiered. I’ll do a recap of the story up to now for the benefit of those who may not have been following Attack on Titan’s story since the first season AND haven’t read the Manga. From how the final season opened, we’re going to be getting a lot of backstory that should tie up a lot of loose ends and explain where the Titans came from.

 

 

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Review: Melting Me Softly (Korea, 2019)

 

 

 

Ah, Human Cryogenics.

The summary on Viki felt underwhelming to me at a glance but I decided to give it a try anyway. This show got me hooked within the first 5 minutes of the opening episode to say the least. Ji Chang Wook is Ma Dong Chan, a TV Producer who volunteers to participate in a Frozen Human Experiment for 24 hours. Won Jin Ah is Go Mi Ran, a volunteer who agrees to participate in the same experiment for 24 hours in exchange for monetary compensation. The experiment, which was only meant to last for 24 hours ended up lasting 20 years.

I’m gonna explain an outline of the sequence of events in the next several paragraphs with some plot spoilers so if you haven’t seen it yet or started watching and do not want to be spoiled, skip to the next picture.

The experiment begins in 1999.

Ma Dong Chan (Age 32) approaches the eccentric, mysterious but brilliant Professor Hwang to volunteer to participate in the Frozen Human Project for 24 hours. Go Mi Ran (Age 24), who is jobless and looking for opportunity also volunteers after being offer monetary compensation. 22 hours after Professor Hwang puts Ma Dong Chan and Go Mi Ran in the Refrigeration Capsules, he gets a mysterious phone call and leaves the laboratory. While he’s away, the professor is nearly killed and ends up in a coma. Since he is the only person who can safely revive Ma Dong Chan and Go Mi Ran, the two end up being Cryogenically Frozen for 20 years instead of 24 hours…in 2019.

Aside from history as we know it, much has happened during the 20 years Ma Dong Chan and Go Mi Ran were frozen. Those they knew before they were frozen have aged but they themselves are physically the same as they were 20 years earlier. Ma Dong Chan, who feels personally responsible for Go Mi Ran’s lost years as well as their shared physical state commits himself to investigating what happened in the past. The Broadcast Station where he worked covered up its involvement in the Human Freezing Project after his disappearance and his father died while he was frozen. Go Mi Ran’s family learned about what happened to her from the professor’s assistant only because she requested the money promised to her be given to her family if something happened.

The world is shocked and mesmerized when Ma Dong Chan announces to the world that he is the world’s first frozen human. Go Mi Ran’s status as the other Refrigeration Capsule volunteer is later publicly revealed as well. One of the interesting things in an early episode is a talk show-style debate on which age someone who was cryogenically frozen and then revived years later would go by. Should they go by their legal age or the age they were when they were frozen? Ma Dong went from 32 to 52 while Go Mi Ran went from 24 to 44. Physically and biologically, they were still their former ages but legally and chronologically, they were their latter ages. Fortunately, they didn’t complicate it further by having either of them have kids though the third person did have a son who is now a grown man 21 years later.

Moving on. Professor Hwang suddenly awoke from his coma 20 years after they were frozen long enough to revive them before passing out again. The revival was successful but not without a major side effect the professor was aware of: Ma Dong Chang and Go Mi Ran’s body temperature have to mantain a body temperature of 31.5 Celsius (88.7 Fahrenheit), which is WELL below Hypothermia levels. A normal human body temperature is around 37 Celsus (98.6 Fahrenheit) so…yeah. I’ll get to the medical science aspects in a bit but in short, their heat tolerance is very low to say the least. The only way to have their body temperature restored to normal rests in Professor Hwang, whose past is tied to their current situation.

The problem is he suffered temporary but severe memory loss due to being in a coma for 20 years. While he was an amnesiac, he got to know Go Mi Ran’s family and bonded with her brother, who has a low IQ. Professor Hwang laments as he begins to understand the psychological and emotional pain of the families of those who are frozen for the first time. When he finally regains his memories, he sets to work developing a thermal formula to restore Ma Dong Chan and Go Mi Ran to normal. Ma Dong Chan volunteers to test the formula first and after 7 days, it is successful (WOOT!). As for Go Mi Ran, tragedy strikes the day before she would begin treatment. She is severely injured but because of her low body temperature, doctors cannot operate on her. A decision needs to be made so Professor Hwang puts her back in a Refrigeration Capsule for 3 years while he makes a new, stronger formula from scratch to thaw her quickly so that the surgery can be done. It’s decided the third person, who was severely injured before being frozen will have their body temperature returned to normal at a later time.

Ma Dong Chan and Go Mi Ran were two of six people we know of who were put in refrigeration capsules by the professor but we find out who a third is since it’s tied to a major plot point. The identities of the other three or why they were frozen is never mentioned at any point. All we’re told is only Professor Hwang knows who they are and their identities are a closely guarded secret. The one whose identity is revealed is a major plot spoiler I won’t divulge here though so go watch to find out. I will say this person who was frozen in 1998 played an indirect role in Ma Dong Chan and Go Mi Ran being frozen for 20 years.

 

 

…Whew. Obviously, I was sucked in by all the science aspects of this series!

I want to get back to the Lower Body Temperature the two leads are afflicted with for most of the series. Clearly they did their homework and what I loved about this is they did not shy away from the science around this. The Thawing Process was not perfected at the time–and as far as we know the two leads plus the identified third person were the first known people to have been revived from the Refrigeration Capsules. I mentioned Professor Hwang had discovered the problem when he did clinical trials on a Dolphin that died. He could not pinpoint the exact cause of death but it became more clear thanks to the two leads. If their body temperature rose above 32.5 C (92 F), they could die.

Since their core body temperature is lower than normal, they have little to no tolerance to heat but an abnormally high tolerence to cold. This is displayed a few times when the two are thrown in the back of a refrigerator truck as well as when they visit a Cold Room (a room with near or at freezing temperatures some spas offer). They also drink ice water a lot to help maintain their lower body temperature. A life-threatening mutation was discovered but fortunately, the professor’s assistant was able to quickly develop an antidote. When the professor finally develops a proper medicine to raise their body temperature to normal,

There is plenty of material for a season two with new characters. One of the opening dialogues for the first episode notes that it’s believed that there are at least 600 people who are in Refrigeration Capsules in Korea, the U.S. and Russia. Sadly, it looks like the show didn’t do very well when it first aired last Fall in Korea. It’s easy to see why despite the Korean celebrity cameos in some episodes. The show clearly tried too hard to be a Rom Com, Mystery and a Sci-Fi Medical Drama all at once when it should have picked one of them and stuck with it.

I must also agree with the overall consensus that although they tried hard, they came up short with the storytelling. The Science aspects wasn’t the problem but rather it was pretty obvious the producers didn’t have a clue about what kind of story they wanted to tell. Most of the supporting cast also got too much development given it was a 16-episode series, which is too much for one that short. It also shows where things are rushed or just not really given ample time to move things along.

A few things that come to mind–and there are some minor spoilers–include:

• Ma Dong Chan’s ex girlfriend and Go Mi Ran’s ex boyfriend don’t really seem to get happy endings or satisfying endings. Both wanted to pick up where they left off despite one having since married. I do think the dissatisfied endings were intended but the problem is they both got so much screentime and development.
• The third person who gets thawed was at the center of most of the story…but he doesn’t get an ending. The last we hear before Go Mi Ran gets hurt is the plan is to raise his body temperature once he’s recovered more. He’s never seen or heard from after that. You’re left to presume he recovers offscreen.
• The man who stabbed Go Mi Ran has absolutely no background story and “The boss wants one of them dead for you to be paid”. This point is highlighted by the fact he’s not seen again after he stabs her but is apparently tracked down offscreen.
• Yes, the same actor who plays Ma Dong Chan’s father in the first episode plays his brother for the rest of the series. That was actually pretty clever and the same was done with one of his colleagues. One actor playing two roles. The 20-year gap makes this discrepency easier to explain but it makes a lot more sense with his brother and father. His father died a few years earlier from a stroke.
• It’s very surprising that there are only two instances in which Go Mi Ran and Ma Dong Chan meet people who are interested in being put in Refrigeration Capsules. This makes even less sense after Professor Hwang perfects the thawing formula for there to not be a lot more folks interested in being frozen.
• Speaking the professor. Until Go Mi Ran got put back in a capsule, he states several times that other than himself, his assistant and participants, no one is allowed to enter his laboratory. This is presumably to keep certain information from being made public or falling into the hands of those who would misuse the tech. After Go Mi Ran is put back in a capsule, it’s explained many of the world’s leading scientists are working with him to develop a new thawing formula for her and his lab is like a beehive. I doubt those other scientists would have been able to help him without knowing the specifics of how the Refrigeration Capsules work as well as about Ma Dong Chan, who is restored. I also doubt they would have agreed to leave what they learned in that lab. What’s to say someone doesn’t take that knowledge with them back to their own country?
• Going with that last point. It’s stated in the first episode that about 600 people are believed to be frozen in the U.S., Russia and Korea. The actor playing Kim Jong Un in one scene remarks had North Korean known about the Refrigeration Capsules, they could have used it to freeze his late father Kim Jong Il. This was a one-off scene but it does raise the question never touched during the course of the series: Do world governments try to develop their own Refrigeration Capsules?

Those are just some things that came to mind for me. By the way there IS cryogenic freezing IRL but as of right now, only those who have already died can be frozen. As far as I know, no one has figured out a way to safely cryogenically freeze a living person. Sure, you can freeze someone in ice but they’ll die. The thing that needs to be figured out is freezing someone without killing them, causing permanent nerve damage or causing permanent tissue and organ damage. Once that can be figure out…well, who knows.

 

Overall, I give Melting Me Softly an 8/10. It’s definitely worth watching at least once. In addition to being on Viki, it was released on Blu Ray internationally (Korean Audio with English subtitles). If there is a Season 2, it would need to fix a lot of the storytelling-related problems from the first season even if it uses an entirely different cast and production team.

 

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