Death Note Anime Review

Death Note is pretty big among the Anime community. If you are a fan of anime, chances are that you've heard of it or even watched it. Death Note started out as a manga, then jumped into an anime series and has had three Japanese live action movies made after it. In 2011 North America will get a remake of the live action movies. The Japanese versions were separated into two films with a third film following one of the main characters on a side story. The Japanese films already condensed a a 108 chapter Manga and a 37 episode Anime into two films. I will be interested to how the American remake will fit so much content into one movie.

But what is all this hype about? For those who don't know the story, Death Note follows a bright high school student named Light Yagami who stumbles upon this magical note book that when a name is written down on it's pages while thinking of the individual they will die. This Death Note was dropped into the human world by a Shinigami, or god of death, named Ryuk who was looking to spice up his never ending life. He follows Light around as Light kills criminals with the Death Note to make a better world and dispense his kind of justice. However too many criminals are dying and it gathers the attention of many authorities including the Japanese police force and a mysterious independent crime investigator known only as L. L teams up with the Japanese police to find out the identity of this unknown killer dubbed by the public as Kira.

There is a reason why this anime is so popular, it really is that good. There is no gimmicks and fanservice here, just a good story that is smart and sets a moral dilemma. It's the basic good versus evil motif, but there are times when you are afflicted in deciding if Light is truly evil. Since the story follows light from beginning to end you get to really know his character.  In the beginning it seems his actions come from a good place, that he is just a bit misguided, but the power corrupts him as he spirals out of control. Though in the end I could not stop routing for him. This does not mean that you are not routing for L either. L is also a very lovable character and I found myself routing for both sides. Very little do you see that happen as too much emphasis is shown to just one side of the story having the opposite side demonized. Both characters have their shining moments, while at other times you can't believe what they are about to do next. And I think that is what makes the story so enjoyable as well as making real, believable characters as no one is ultimately good or evil.

As for the technical aspects of this anime, I think that the visual and audio are amazing.  The English voice acting was done very well, since I've pointed in the past that some anime fans can't stand most of the English Dubs. The style of it gives a very dark feeling for the most part since this is not a light hearted story. The themes and tone are very dark and serious most of the time so this anime might not be for everyone.  However the visuals and content aren't as dark and gritty as say When They Cry or Hellsing.

Overall I would recommend this to anyone. Even trying to get Video Animer's other writer to check it out since he seems put off by the hype. If that is a concern of yours, it shouldn't be. This is one anime that I can say I have a hard time finding something I don't like about it.

Weekend Watch: Hexyz Force

Weekend Watch is a new segment were we let you know about upcoming video games and animes. Let the anticipating... begin!

Our very first Weekend Watch will be about Atlus' upcoming title for the psp: Hexyz Force.  We are still a few months away from this release, which first came out in Japan November 19, 2009 and will be released in the U.S. May 25, 2010, but this game is shaping up to be one good RPG. There are two sides to this story and you get to choose between light and dark in order to uncover the truth behind what is really going on. Having two sides of the story will give you hours of play time and replay value. Each side of the story is unique with a bit of over lapping as the characters meet so you will need to play through the game twice to get the full story.

If you would like to learn more about this game then you can view the gameplay trailer below and visit it's official site: http://www.atlus.com/hexyzforce/

Eye Candy

So this blog looks pretty bland I know. In a couple of my earlier reviews for Littlebigplanet and Animal Crossing I added photos of the game to help you get a visual feel for the game as well as the review. It also brightens up the blog. But that was a special case since the games themselves had a device for taking in game pictures and saving them. I hate stealing peoples pictures even if I get permission. I like to give you guys a new perspective. So what I'm asking is what is a good device that I can buy that will hook up to my ps3, wii and perhaps even handheld games to take pictures and videos and then be able to get them onto my computer. FYI I don't have an SD slot for my computer. I also want good quality, maybe even HD, but I don't want to spend too much. I understand it won't be cheap, but I'm not looking for the highest quality either. Just something that would work for here and youtube. It also has to be relatively idiot proof. I know some about computers, but I am no expert.

Also I'm thinking of making a banner or background. What kind of ideas would you like to see for that?

New reviewer!?

I'm the new reviewer here at Video Animer Reviews. I'll try to bring new reviews here in my own perspective. Hopefully you, the reader, will find my reviews interesting and objective. I have one review already under my belt, and you can check it out below.

WitchBlade Anime Review

To start off my anime reviews I have decided to go with one of my favorite newer animes from the past couple of years.

Witchblade was based off of an American Comic Book unlike most animes which base themselves off of a manga series. There was also a television series in the U.S. by the same name. However the anime series is not based off of the original characters in the comic, but is placed in the future with a new blade wielder.

For those unfamiliar with with the story, a woman is chosen by the Witchblade to become a new warrior. In this case it's a young woman name Masane Amaha, who wakes up after a large unknown disaster in Japan losing all her memories of who she was before and carrying a baby in her arms. The actually story takes place a few years later as Masane and her daughter are trying to make a new start for themselves. However she has a hard time taking care of herself and creating a suitable environment for her daughter and the authorities step in to take her child away. After being placed in jail she is attacked by a strange mechanic monster which initiates the Witchblade for the first time. When enacted the wielder of the Witchblade gains super human abilities and an insatiable lust for battle. She is soon discovered by a company which produces weapons and they contract her to take care of a problem they have with some of their old weapons. All this happens while a rivial company has produced it's own set of Witchblades called Clone Blades. Masane must fight to help protect the ones she loves, even though it's killing her.

But this is not just a battle anime. It is filled with deep emotional connections, since the reason she fights is for her daughter. This anime is filled with emotions and has a bunch of laughter as well. You can really feel a deep connections with all the characters and it had me in tears at the end.

The style of this anime is just beautiful as well. However some of the drawings are a bit racy. The dvd is unedited, but some parts had to be covered up when it was aired. However there is no obscene images, just a lot of skin. But what can you expect when society is all about objectifying women. The guys will be sure to love that aspect of the anime as Masane has rather large breasts, which are the butt of a lot of jokes in this series, but that should not discourage female audiences as the storyline makes this a well worth anime for almost any viewer.

God of War 3 Review

God of War 3 came out last week, and after a full week of playing it, I'm ready to give my views on it and give as honest of a review of it as I can.

For those who might not know, God of War 3 is the latest big name exclusive from Sony. Coming from an already successful series, a lot of the pressure is put on the developers to make God Of War 3 to exceed its predecessors. Have they succeeded?

Story: Having ended the previous game on a triumphant note, Kratos continues his journey for vengeance on the back of Gaia, along with the rest of the Titans up Mount Olympus. With Olympus in danger, Zeus rallies the other Olympians to fight back the Titans. This results in a large, spectacular battle between the two sides. There's some unexpected twists, but the story doesn't get complicated. It plays out mostly like a Greek tragedy.
8/10

Gameplay: God of War 3 is no slouch in the gameplay department. Kratos wields multiple weapons including his signature blades to the Nemean Cestus. And whats more, the magic is revamped from previous entries. Instead of choosing magic to use individually, its now tied to what weapon you currently have equipped. Controls are nice and tight for the most part except for doing double jumps. Somehow, it feels a little hinky after the previous two games.
9/10

Graphics: Its an eye pleaser. Everything is nice and crisp, and I've never seen more real looking water. And the presentation is all top notch. Never has brutally killing Kratos' enemies feel so satisfying to look at. The real clincher are the Titans. Twice you fight on a moving Titan, and its just spectacular that it will leave you in awe. By far one of, if not best looking PS3 game thus far.
10/10

Sound: The sound effects are just amazing. Hearing bones crunch, guts splatter, sirens screaming bloody murder is just phenomenal. The music is not shabby either. It's nice to hear dramatic music when exacting your revenge against the gods of Olympus.
8/10

All in all, its a very excellently made game, with high production values, non stop adrenaline, and all the testosterone you can get. Seriously, Kratos is one certified BAMF. Final thoughts are, if you've played the rest of the God of War series, then this game is a must have. And if you've never played a God of War game before, you should check it out anyways. It does not disappoint.

Overall Score: 9/10

A Merge of Interests

As of today this will no longer be a blog for video games and like stories. I'm throwing Anime into the mix. Not much similarities there unless this was a Japanese Blogging Site, but it's not. I'm just merging two of my interests together.

I have been a fan of Anime for some time now, but recently gotten into the scene and culture around it. Also with the extra cash from working and no longer being in school has really helped me beef out my collection. I'm no where near Otaku status, but my interests in it has definitely strengthened.

So let me get right into it. The first discussion on my mind is a very popular one in the Anime community: Dubs versus Subs. Which is better? For those who don't know a Dub is the voice acting. Where an anime is done in Japan, all the voice acting is in Japanese, so to do an English Dub is to get English speaking voice actors. A sub is with the original voice acting and subtitles. This has recently come up on the NISA boards after they have decided to dive into the Anime buisness picking up 4 titles: Persona: Trinity Soul, Toradora, Pandora Hearts and Our Home’s Fox Deity. Since this is a new venture for them they don't have the cash right off to do English Dubs.

Personally I prefer dubs, but I also like having the original voice acting as an option. Why do I prefer dubs? Well here's my reasoning. The top most reason is my eyesight. I understand this isn't an issue for a lot of people out there, but reading all those subs really starts to hurt my eyes and can create headaches. I have bad vision as it is and its really tiresome to read all those subtitles.

Another thing is that all that reading really distracts you from the action. When i could be listening with my ears and watching the show, it ends up as me reading with a lot of pretty colors flashing by.

It's also nice to hear it in a language I can understand. That way I can listen to the meaning of the words more so then I can hearing it in another language. A lot of people might dispute this fact by saying that the English voice acting is usually done poorly, but I have not found that to be the case.

Now I'm not saying that if one day I learn Japanese and can understand it well enough to listen and comprehend what is going on, that I won't watch it in it's original form. I am no way discrediting original voice acting.

With that said, I will be doing a new review soon. If anyone still reads this, what would you guys like to see a review on? This can be game related as well.