Azure Flame Reloaded

It’s a unique opportunity to be able to post this on February 29^th, which also happens to be the day when we girls can propose- possibly why they told me not to come to dancing on Fridays anymore.

Reviewed this week: Aria 8, Himawari!! 2, Kaiji 20, Persona 6, Shion no Ou 17, Shounen Onmyouji 21-2, Spice and Wolf 8, Sisters of Wellber 12

…and in manga: Elfen Lied 82, Erementar Gerad (Elemental Gelade) 27, Mozart Doesn’t Sing Lullabies 9, Nodame 107-8, Ten 1, Tsubasa 183, Twin Spica 8, Yostuba&! 53

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Reviewed this week: Cazador 18, Darker than Black 18, Higurashi Kai 5, Mononoke 2, Mushi-Uta 5, SaiMono II 17, Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei 4, Seirei no Moribito 17

…and in manga: Akagi 4, Aria 21-3, Claymore ES 2, El Cazador 2, Erementar Gerad 26, Gunslinger Girl 31, REC 32, Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei 1-6, Spiral 44-5

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This week, the new season continues to show little in the way of promise, whilst more and more swear themselves to the rising cult of Dennou Coil worship. Meanwhile, the world’s finest minds puzzle over how to get their cat to walk through a cat grooming ring.

Reviewed this week: Cazador 14, Darker than Black 13-14, Dennou Coil 7, Doujin Work 1, Higurashi Kai 1, RxJ 13, Seirei no Moribito 13, Shounen Onmyouji 16

In an unprecedented turn of events, I actually forgot about SaiMono until the last minute, and by then I was in Disgaea 2 obsession mode. It will be covered next week.

…and in manga: Emma Bangaihen 9, Erementar Gerad 25, Tsubasa 158-9

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Phantom Brave is nearly at an end, but does this mean that the ‘third’ gaming era is about to close? Far from it, for this is just the beginning of the renewed SRPG era.

In other news, I’ll probably be starting ‘SaiMono Alternative’ soon, so I can parody even in this sub-less situation.

Reviewed this week: Cazador 9, Claymore 10, Darker than Black 8, Dennou Coil 3, Nodame 19, RxJ 8, SaiMono II 9, Aquarion OVA 1, Emma II 6

…and in manga: Aria 19-20, Erementar Gerad 24, REC 30, Tsubasa 155 Continue Reading »

Gonzo may have cornered the market when it comes to messing up manga adaptations, but a quick look at Xebec’s catalogue indicates that they may not be the only studio who has problems adapting a series from page to screen (let us not forget the Negima fiasco). Do their original works make up for it, or is Xebec just an unremarkable studio in a sea of better offerings? Continue Reading »

Apologies for the sudden and unannounced hiatus; I know many of you will have experienced unpleasant withdrawal symptoms due to a lack of your daily Azure Flame, but I must assure you that this period has been equally painful for me as well. Due to a recent bout of gale force winds, some local power lines were damaged, and 2pm Thursday saw me thrust into a world not unlike the hell of Anton’s farming days. With the blackout extending as far as the local church, all I could do was sleep, listen to my mp3 player and read Kare Kano until the time came to depart for the weekend to a land of electricity but no internet access.

Anyway, if this has been posted, then obviously all is well again, and so I will try to catch up on missed posts and resume normal service.

I realise that I have inadvertently missed out on some chapters of the Higurashi manga, and that the download links for them have long since expired- due to this problem, reading and reviewing the Watanagashi and Tatarigoroshi arcssh is stalled for now.

Reviewed this week: Corda 6, Death Note 13, Kanon 15, Nodame 1, Red Garden 13, ROTK 38, SaiMono 25

…and in manga: .hack//GU+ 5, .hack//XXXX 1, Erementar Gerad 23, Gunslinger Girl 20-22, Higurashi Onikakushi 3, Nanoha StrikerS 3, Meine Liebe 6, Tsubasa 139-40 Continue Reading »

Those with the ability to recall trivial and largely useless information may recall that some time ago, I wrote an article about second seasons that directly followed on from the first, and whether they were always destined to be inferior to their predecessors. The conclusion seemed to be that, actually, despite the stigma attached to them, there was a fairly even distribution of both good and bad second seasons. Nonetheless, at the time, I promised to cover spin-offs and remakes in a separate article to see how they compared, and now, at long last, that time has come. Continue Reading »

I meant to watch the Keroro Gunso movie in time for this round-up, I really did, but unfortunately I have this mental block about watching anything longer than about 35 minutes. Yes, I could easily watch several 25 minute episodes back-to-back, and yes, I could tackle a longer feature in several sittings, but such logic cannot overcome my natural aversion to concentrating on one thing for that long.

Anyway, with that aside, a number of notable titles remain absent from the round up yet again, but the week manages to feel busy nonetheless. It is surely only a matter of time until the full deluge arrives.

Reviewed this week: Black Blood Brothers, Higurashi, H&C II, Keroro, Otogi-jushi Akazukin, Ouran, ROTK, School Rumble, Utawarerumono, NHK

…and in manga: Erementar Gerad, Furuba, Mushishi, Tactics, Tsubasa, xxxHOLiC Continue Reading »

Marie Antoinette explains the principles of advanced disguise.

If not exactly sparse, this week sees a few familiar names absent from the roster (but undoubtedly waiting for the flood of releases that I sense will occur next week). In the meantime, I’ve finally made good on my promise to catch up on a few more manga series and have also fit in all 20 episodes of Twin Spica, which will be written about when I can be bothered in due course.

Reviewed this week: Chocotto Sister, Ginga Densetsu Weed, Hanoka, Higurashi, H&C II, Kemonozume, Keroro, Otogi-jushi Akazukin, ROTK, Tsubasa, Utawarerumono, NHK (School Rumble will return next week)

…and in manga: Chocotto Sister, Erementar Gerad, Furuba, Hunter X Hunter, Mai-Otome, REC, Twin Spica, Utawarerumono Continue Reading »

Keroro is not pleased with the state of the summer season.

After the sparseness of last week, everything seems to have returned in full force in readiness for the Round-Up’s one month anniversary. In light of all the drops of previous weeks, I’ve picked up a number of new series on the anime front, although unfortunately there are still many backlogged manga chapters waiting patiently for my attention.

Reviewed this week: FLAG, Ginga Densetsu Weed, Gokinjo Monogatari, Hanoka, Higurashi, H&C II, Kemonozume, Keroro, Mai-Otome DVD Special, Ouran, SaiMono, School Rumble, Tsubasa, Utawarerumono, NHK, xxxHOLiC, Otogi-jushi Akazukin, Love GetChu!

…and in manga: Erementar Gerad, Fate/Stay Night, Fruits Basket, Tsubasa Chronicle, Utawarerumono, xxxHOLiC Continue Reading »