I must admit I am a South Park fan. I have been enjoying the
series since season one. Sometimes I try to watch it on hulu but I must admit I
have to have more interest watching things through physical media. I have had
season 18 of the series for a long time but it has been shelved for other
things. I still don’t know how this series is continuing to go and how they can
charge anyone $30 for 10 episodes.
This season seems to be more together than the others. This
series starts off with a strange take on Crowd funding and then an even
stranger take on the Musician Lorde which ends with a social commentary on
video game commentary and the final issues with Lorde.
This season it feels different as the episodes are all
connected on some level or another. The storylines in the beginning are ever
present in some level even through to the end of the season. I have to give it
this for storytelling. I did really see a few gems in this season. South Park
is usually hit or miss overall and I must admit the hits were really on point.
I really thought that the commentary on Gluten, drones and commentary are all
very good. The best by far this season was the commentary on Freemium games
that caught my attention the most. I have to say it was very accurate and in
their own style hit it right on the head. This season is one of those that has
more good episodes than the bad.
Oh we had some bad and the bad was hard to watch. Their
commentary on Gender neutral bathrooms was confusing at best making it really
hard to see where they were coming from (which can also be the case). I have to
say in the end the worst of all was the “Cock Magic” episode. This went beyond
social commentary and became something terrible and very much disgusting…they
really needed to put the joke down and not have Randy expose himself to a party
full of kindergarteners. I don’t know about anyone else but isn’t South Park
getting much shorter season wise. I mean 10 episodes?!
In the end this is another short but very good overall
season of the show. I don’t feel it is worth the money for the content but if you
can find it for around $10 like I did this would be a good watch.
Fate can take a lot of turns in life. You find that dollar
on the sidewalk and buy a winning lotto ticket, others can be in the used DVD
store quality. I was at 2nd and Charles (by the way a fun place for
cool stuff) and noticed a rather beaten up copy of the Tokyo Ghoul, first
season on DVD for $10.50. This is an up and coming series that has a lot of
chatter on about it so I figured “why not, I can save me $30 and try this out”.
I also got lucking in a second way when my wife looked at the series and
became
interested allowing for much quicker viewing.
Tokyo Ghoul is a story about an average college student
finally able to go out with the girl of his dreams, unfortunately for him she
is a blood thirsty monster who wants to eat him. Fate intervenes and she dies
before she can finish him off giving him access to her organs in a transplant
that not only saves his life but changes it fundamentally forever. This story
examines the lives of Ghouls, humanoids who have to eat human flesh to survive
and their relationships with the numerous humans that live around them. Our
hero gets to see how very different aspects of society are changed in relation
to the ghouls living within many times at his peril as he has to learn to adapt
to the new double life he has to live.
This is a very well animated show. The movements and fight
scenes are very fluid and the colors are vibrant to the point that I wish I had
purchased this on Blue Ray (not making that mistake for season 2). The
backgrounds are very stylish and kind of have a Twin Peaks style feel to them
coming off as creepy yet garish at the same time. The voice acting for the
English cast was pretty much on point with a veteran cast (these days most
English voice actors are veterans) and good choices for the characters they are
representing. I didn’t thing at all that any of them was bored or wanted to
leave, which is good considering I have had that feeling in the past from some
series. The characters are interesting with a strong supporting cast of the
usual types: Serious Guy in Classes, Tsundere, Useless Kid, etc. Finally the
story is gripping and thrilling at the same time. It draws you in to see the
different ways Ghouls had adapted to living in human society and that not all
of them were just random serial killers. The pacing keeps you watching for
multiple episodes at a time and keeps you well ensnared in the plot.
With the above being said there are four aspects of this
series that bother me with three being minor things and the last being a major
drawback (dropping the rating I gave by 2 points). The first is with the
animation. I feel that it is fluid and at times beautiful to look at but the
fight scenes can be hard to follow and sometimes confusing at moments. The
second is where it left off. They must have been damn confident that they were
getting a second season as they left off in the friggen middle of a battle. It
was an ok drop off point but if the series had ended this alone would have kept
me from buying it. The third aspect is that I felt they underutilized many of
the background characters. There is a wealth of riches here that I feel has
been underused due to the length of the show. I can give them slack on this as
the show is only in season one but I was saddened that one of the characters
ended up dying before we could delve much into his past history. The last and
most aggravating point is the main character. This guy is Shinji Ikari all over
again (for those of you unfamiliar he is the main character in evangelion).
This guy is spineless, whiney and indecisive to the point where people end up
dying because of it. Every time this guy would go into his whiney rants about
how terrible it is that he has to eat human flesh or he doesn’t want to fight made
me feel like he was clawing a chalk board. This is the reason why I cannot give
the series one major writing boon for the internal conflict between the
character’s old life and new one because every time we focused too much on him
you just wanted to slap the guy. I am curious as to how they will treat him
come season two as the end of one brought him through some pretty significant
mental and physical changes that may end up being for the better.
In the end this is a gripping thriller (not horror, I feel
this is a hard thing to do in anime) that will keep you interested and despite
its negatives will make you want to have more even if you cannot stomach the
main entrée. The only afterthought is that you really need to keep up with the
series if you plan on watching it so make sure you have money invested.
Lets talk a little bit about Dave Chappelle. The man was a
comedy icon for a time raking in the money and the love of audiences all over.
He had a moment of clarity and became a warrior for Justice and comedic purity
which he still favors to this day. We are of course not talking about that Dave
Chappelle. We are going back to the days when he was getting himself into the
acting business doing jokes (many weed related) that got him into the industry
as a whole. We are of course talking about that defining film “Half-Baked”. I
have been meaning to watch this film for years but have unfortunately been
sidelined due to many other things. Finding a copy of this gem for $1 was hard
to resist.
This is a story of four potheads they enjoy living their
lives, getting together at the end of the day and getting high. When one of
them goes to jail for killing a police animal (you just have to watch it to
understand) they make a pact to raise the money in order to get him out of
jail. Along the way Dave Chappelle’s character gains introspective and has to
take a long hard look at the life he is currently leading and where he hopes to
be in the future.
This film does have a number of funny moments. Dave
Chappelle is on point with his acting and I can easily see where this got him
started on the boom that launched him towards stardom. I would say his
portrayal of the weed based rapper had to be one of the better moments of
enjoyment and you could easily see who he was lampooning there. I also thought
that the scene where the dog was getting high and became one of the group had a
special place. The plot was simplistic but comedy wise this is usually better
as it loses laughs when you get too wound up into plot points and twists.
The worst sin this movie committed for me is that there were
times that it really bored me. I felt that there were some definite lags that
could have been better taken care of in the writing. I also feel that they
under-utilized the supporting cast and while this put Dave Chappelle more
clearly in the forefront I don’t feel that it was a necessary move. Lastly I
wasn’t that impressed by the acting all the way around when it came to the
supporting cast. It doesn’t take much to play a dumb stoner but I feel the
basic personalities of the characters were kind of lost out after their
introductions and they just all became “dumb stoners” chuckling away in the
background (except for Dave Chappelle).
I finally feel that the plot had a lot of points but that the ending
didn’t feel right to me. I once saw an alternate ending for the film (I won’t
spoil it for you) where Dave Chappelle’s character choses differently. I kind
of think in the spirit of comedy they could have done better if they went in
this direction as the character became too serious in the end.
In truth I can seen how this film boosted Dave Chappelle’s
career, it is a basic and enjoyable stoner comedy. I do think that it could
have been done better in the end and though it may be a Gem it is one in the
rough.
I have been revisiting a lot of classics lately. I mean with
Movie stop going out of business I have gotten a lot of them for $2 or less J. I managed to get hold
of a copy of one of my favorite classic films Born in East LA. I remember last
watching this on HBO with my father as he loved anything doing with Cheech,
Chong or both. So of course we need to move this way together back into the past.
Our hero is a man living with his family and running his own
auto repair business. He has been sent to a factory to meet a family member
that had come across the border to visit. Unfortunately this is the same time
that the government has come by to raid the place and our hero, who has left
his wallet at home gets thrown in with the crowd and deported. We now start the
story of a man trying to get back across the border into the United States and
all the difficulties therein.
This movie is a classic. I love these old films, they have a
biting humor that you cannot utilize in this day and age. The laughs here are
frequent and Cheech has always been good with comedic timing. I think one scene
involving a picture of Jesus (if you have seen it you know the one) still has
me almost rolling around and laughing. Also having the character born and
raised in the united states and of course not being able to speak Spanish is a
pretty funny yet cool commentary on our education system here. The acting in
this film is passable and the casting is enjoyable. It is great to see our
friend Marv back in action in a smarter but more slimy role. The last scene in
my opinion is pretty powerful and can evoke multiple feelings in people (what
type of feeling depends on what side of the fence you are on).
This movie does suffer from being a creature of its time.
First we have the typical comedy format of the 80s and 90s which involves the
same overall formula for comedies of that time. Seeing this movie isn’t much
different from seeing others such as Delirious, Shrimp on the Barbie or
Cadillac Man, the jokes change but the overall formula remains the same in the
end. I have nothing fully against this format as it has produced many a good
comedy over the years but it is still there and therefore the freshness of this
film is not so good. Of course the jokes themselves have a hard time standing
up to the tests of time. In a society that is very much more socially aware and
politically correct a lot of the jokes come across as borderline offensive to
most and to those more opposed to immigration it would be downright terrible.
If you cannot hold back that social justice warrior within none of Cheech’s
films should be on your list as there is a lot of stereotyping going on.
In the end this is another great comedy from the 90s. It may
be showing its age but like many films of the time you look at it from the
standpoint of the time were in on its creation and can still sit back and
laugh. This is a classic I would easily recommend to any non-social justice
warrior that just likes fun comedy.
There are a number of things that get a person into a
series, seeing it on TV, TV Spots, Friends and of course there is always the
twist of Fate. Movie Stop was closing and they decided to do a sale of 75% off.
Well for $2.50 I am willing to try out a series that stars one of the major
players of Will & Grace. I must admit I am a tad burned out on Police
Procedurals but in the end it was worth the pickup.
I had been asking myself the questions over and over again
as this series dances around the line of offensive and informative. I will make
a case for the later of the two. I work with mental health and have seen series
and movies involving Mental Illness before. I will say there is no series
around that brings out the subject of mental illness pulling out a new
diagnosis every episode and many of which you don’t seen when it comes to
mainstream media. The acting is also extremely good. I must admit Eric
McCormack is a pretty good actor and he is really good at this part. His
mannerisms and the way that they present his Mental Illness draws me in and is
fairly believable, this is coming from someone in the field. The cases are
fairly interesting and one of the episodes in Season one left me a little
tearful covering how often law enforcement just loses their ability to care
when Mental Illness is involved as well as showing the terrible treatment they get. I remember a quote from the individual after they went into the hospital "The closest person to me in the world isn't real but I still miss her."
In the end this is yet another police procedural. I mean I
have seen half a dozen series about an eccentric yet gifted individual
consulting and paired with a female officer solving crimes. Elementary, Sleepy
Hollow and Lucifer are good examples of this formula. I feel it is a bit tiring
and repetitive. I must admit that there
is a part of me that is also irked by the lead character benefiting so much
from his illness and not taking medications which may send the wrong message. I must also say that the amount of benefit he
receives is exceptional as I have never encountered a case where a person has
helpful hallucinations, is aware of them while off of medications and utilizes
them to gain insight into himself. I am not saying it is impossible as I have
seen one in a million cases before but still….this part tests the suspension of
my disbelief. The other thing is that I am uncertain this would be good for anyone with Schizophrenia to see especially the last episodes of this that shows that paranoid delusions can sometimes be real. It made for interesting viewing but I didn't like the premise and the ending left me ok but still not happy in the end.
Other than this series being overdone many times over and
the potential questionable nature of the message I must admit I cannot help but
like this series. The acting is very much on form and I feel that this is definitely
worth checking out. At least I am interested in seeing Season 2 and we can see
where that takes us.
There are many odd things in this world and one of the many
for me is the type of anime in the Yaoi and Yuri type. These are types of anime
that involve same sex couples and relationships. They are an odd type of anime
as they are typically done differently than your typical Brokeback mountain
style story.I have watched many of the
Yuri variety (girl x girl) with a few that stuck out such as Kashimashi and I
have also seen a couple of the Yaoi variety mainly from curiosity such as
Earthian and Mirage of Blaze. In the end I saw a few similarities in them as
both tended to really flaunt the relationships of the characters as being Gay
and pushed them to the forefront for their target audiences (horny men and
women). This has been a turn off for me on both fronts as I am no longer a teen
and the appeal of Yuri has mostly worn off and Yaoi really didn’t have an
appeal for me any more than gay porn. After watching the initial two I did
decide to try my luck again when I found a copy of Gravitation for $20 (the
copy I have typically goes for close to $200 so if anything I could turn it
around. This of course showed me a very different aspect of the Yaoi series
that I had previously only seen from a few Yuri titles.
Shuichi and his friend are in a band called Bad Luck. They
are trying to make it on their own in the music world. Yuki is an emotionally
distant but famous romance writer. The two meet through a chance of fate when
Yuki spies and tells Shuichi how terrible his writing is. From this point a
relationship slowly forms between the two. This series from this point follows two
distinct plots from the rise of “Bad Luck” and the emotional relationship building
between Yuki and Shuichi.
First lets talk about one of the main focuses of this series
which is the muic (I know, I know the relationship is on your mind but we will
get there). I really liked that they spent time concentrating on the songs and
the musical development of the character. This series actually has a feel
similar to those similar series such as Kirarin Revolution, Full Moon or in a
lesser way K-ON. The songs for the opener and ender are a little dated but
otherwise are pretty good overall.There
is actual comedy within the otherwise serious drama that can take place within
the series. I found myself chuckling at some of the strange characters such as
the strange child-like character of Shuichi’s rival yet with some surprising
emotional depth revealed more towards the end. They did a lot of character
building for the side characters as well such as Yuki’s fiancé and her struggle
with the likelihood that her relationship with her future husband is not going
to come to fruition. The other members of Bad luck from their short tempered
keyboardist to the loyal but Charismatic friend. Finally we get to our two main
characters. Shuichi is an interesting character that is very different from the
typical submissive character seen in a lot of Yaoi types. He is typically
submissive in regard to his relationship with Yuki but shows strength
emotionally that in the end comes out stronger. Yuki is by far the more complex
character. He is the cool strong type with the sordid past and normally this
character type annoys the heck out of me (damn you Sasuke Uchiha!).Yuki is different in that he is guarded but
obviously has more depth emotionally than some of his emotionally similar
counterparts. When Yuki broke down and cried for the first time it was a truly touching
scene showing that he isn’t just the arrogant bastard you meet at the beginning
of the series but a real person.The
last part that I have to hold over is that they treat the relationship normally
concentrating on the character’s emotions so that it isn’t uncomfortable like
it was for many people seeing Yaoi or in some areas in movies like Brokeback
mountain which felt disjointed at times. You know things are going on but you don’t
feel you are watching soft core porn like with some in that category. It isn’t
just “hey look at us! We’re a gay couple!, Ain’t it hot!” (Now for those of you
who are into that I have heard that he manga is much more in that tone)
There are of course some glaring issues with this series.
The main one is the English Dub. Yuki sounds like he is dead inside but is
sounds more like the voice actor is dead tired of voicing the character and you
kind of get that from multiple fronts in the series. The series also has an
issue at times with the humor and its timingI did feel some of the jokes were forced and this was not what was
neededat the time. I must admit this is
what made Shuichi’s character a tad annoying at times. Some of the humor was
decidedly odd, which isn’t too different from most anime but still it could
turn a new fan off, such as the strange agent who constantly is walking around
with an assault rifle in Japan (such are illegal for public use) or Shuichi’s
constant costume changes. Finally I feel the series was a tad dated musically
but this can be a problem in getting us to relate to the characters. I feel we
have similar issues with series such as Bubblegum Crisis.
In the end this is not a bad series but it falls short of a
great series. It was a pretty well written romance with minor comedic elements
thrown in. The series may be a little dated in some aspects and the timing may
be off but these are by far only minor issues. Many of my fellow anime fans
have difficulty in following a series strictly because it is Yuri or Yaoi but
in this case I would say it is worth it for you to put your preconceived
notions aside and give this one a shot.
Overall Rating:7/10
PS: There are two OVA episodes I feel that this exploits the
flaws of the series a little too much and to me is unnecessary. I almost felt
like it was forced in order to add more content to meet demand. Also thought
they style took on a more manga esc look I felt like the animation quality fell
a bit. I remember watching the musical performance and it didn’t even look like
the animators and voice actors cared about synching the song with the mouth
movements and this is for the Japanese track.
