Death Note II: The Last Name - Movie

Earlier I posted about the first live action Death Note film and so I decided to watch the second film to see how the story would end. I am glad I did, as the second film is a flawless continuation of the first. All of the same characters and actors return, with some new ones as well.

As the first film ends, the second picks up literally with the final scenes being reshown. A character from the first film, Misa, is saved by someone using similar means to Kira and she finds a second notebook that gives her the same abilities as Kira. She soon shows that she is willing to go even farther than Kira ever did by killing anyone who dares to criticize Kira. soon the police and L are searching for the first and now this new second Kira. From here the movie goes into complex and deep story that involves L and Light engaged in an even higher stakes game of cat and mouse. Misa makes things very difficult for the police and things get even further difficult when a third Kira emerges who is more dangerous than Light and Misa.

It is difficult to fully review this without spoiling it, so I will refrain from revealing too much. The acting is again very well done and the effects are good for the film. There are times when Rem, the second shinigami, appears very cartoonish, but I felt like it was tougher maybe to capture his essence easily, as his color is stark white and thus details were easier to see. The pacing was good and the characters were enjoyable, even when they are at their most evil. Where the first film made you question who you should cheer for, this one makes it almost patently clear from the start. And yes there are twists upon twists in this one so the ending is not nearly as predictable as you might suspect.

All in all a great follow-up to first film and a great way to close out the Death Note series.

What? There's a third one? Ohhhhhh........well....heh heh....guess I'm off to see more people getting killed by the mighty pen. Until next time, mata ne!

Death Note (Part One) - Movie

So, after a brief absence I decided to sit down and watch a movie I'd been interested in for a while. That movie was Death Note, based on the manga and anime of the same title.

The premise is simple enough. A young college student named Light Yagami, who's father is a police detective, has dreams of joining the police force after college. A dedicated student and believer in the law, he comes to realization after some research that many of the criminals in society go free from prison or are not sentenced at all. This frustrates him and causes him to become disillusioned with the idea of the justice system. One night after a tense confrontation with a freed killer, Light finds a mysterious notebook in the streets simply titled "Death Note." Inside the notebook are a few rules stating that if someone's name is written in the notebook they will die within a few minutes. The rules also specify other things that are discovered through the course of the film. Of course Light finds this to be impossible, until he actually tries it with a freed criminal who is on the news. When the criminal dies suddenly of a heart attack, Light begins to experiment with other criminals (as he has access via hacking to the police database). Criminals begin dying by the dozens throughout the world and people begin to notice. Soon the killer is dubbed "Kira" (killer in transliteration) and people either love him or hate him depending on how they feel about his actions. Soon a police investigation is launched including international police and FBI support to catch the famous Kira.

As Light becomes more adept at using the notebook he meets the shinigami (reaper spirit) attached the book and while Light can see him, no one else can. The reaper serves only as a sort of counsel to Light and takes no side in the story. No one, not even his girlfriend Shiori, is aware that Light and Kira are one and the same. As the film moves forward a mysterious person named "L" joins the police investigation and speaks only through a computer terminal to the police in order to protect his identity from Kira. Soon it becomes a game of cat and mouse between L and Kira and the public soon becomes frightened of Kira. Kira begins to experiment more with the notebook and finds that he can write down what will happen with someone he names in the book and that it will happen. An example of this is when he directs inmates in a prison to cut themselves and write symbols on the wall before killing themselves, or a man being hit by a car. This places Kira into a position where he is more like a god than a man and the power soon begins to consume his personality.

I won't spoil the film but it is suspenseful, dark, and a lot of fun. The concept is interesting because the viewer is not sure who to root for after a while. In the beginning it seems easy to root for Light, but as he begins to take the lives of even good people who get in his way, that support ends rather quickly. But then, the character of "L" is suspicious enough to keep the reader in a sort of median position between the two. The film is well paced and I was on the edge of my seat at points when it felt as though the noose was about to snare Light. The effects are not the best but then, it's a TV movie and rendering a death reaper on the screen for a majority of the film might be expensive, so its forgivable. I have seen worse effects in bigger budget movies that make the theater so they aren't so bad. At least the reaper looks exactly like he does in the manga so that's cool. The acting is good and the guy playing Light did an amazing job, as did the guy playing "L."

Overall a great movie worth a watch because the interaction between the police in their chase and Light is fascinating to watch with a brilliant premise as the backdrop. Take the time, check it out and see a really cool original concept brought to the screen. Now.....on to part two. Until next time, mata ne!

Maou (魔王) - Drama Review

Before I had started to watch this series, I was a bit skeptical. Here was a show that featured two members of Japanese pop groups in the lead roles. Would they be able to pull off a solid show? And a dramatic suspense show at that? Well, I found that I didn't need to be skeptical at all. The show turned out to be quite well done and the characters were great. But before I explain what I liked, here's a brief overview.

Maou is, put simply, a revenge drama. It focuses on the two primary characters of Naurse Ryou, played by Ohno Satoshi, and Serizawa Naoto played by Ikuta Toma. Naruse is a brilliant and accomplished lawyer, who is well known for his generosity and kindness and being able to win cases. Serizawa is a police detective who is known for being brash and undisciplined. The two seem unrelated in the beginning but that soon changes. It seems that Naruse has a well-planned revenge scheme that he hatches against Serizawa and those around him, including friends and family. The reason for revenge, as shown later in the story, is that Serizawa and his friends used to bully kids at their middle school, and one of the kids that is bullied is eventually killed, stabbed by Serizawa on accident. Serizawa, who's family is wealthy and powerful, gets him off for the crime and he goes on to live his life and become a police officer. Naruse is the older brother of the boy that died in the stabbing. His mother also died of a heart attack following the younger brother's death and thus, Naruse has lived alone and bitter for the following decade. So the story is of Naruse's revenge plan against Serizawa and those around him.

How is this plan executed? It is a detailed and intricate system whereby Serizawa receives a red envelope containing some clue and a tarot card that holds some significance. Soon afterward the target would receive a similar envelope and the same tarot card. Finally, a third individual only slightly related to Serizawa or the target would receive the same tarot card and another item, usually the means to kill the target. What would happen is that the third individual would be the trigger, becoming angry at the target for some reason, pushed by the envelope's contents and then go to confront the target, who would then also become angry over the confrontation. The results would then lead to the target's death and the killer, who would have killed the target accidentally would then be represented by Naruse and released due to it being self defense. Naruse does it this way to re-enact the setting of Serizawa'a release after killing his brother before. Only the people dying are Serizawa'a friends. It seems complicated but is shown in the drama very well and there is no confusion as it is explained. As the people begin to be murdered, Serizawa and his fellow detectives move trying to identify the true killer, never sensing it could be the angelic Naruse.

Other issues emerge as the story develops: family problems within the Serizawa household; cracks in friendships; adultery between coworkers; and the truth behind the killing. I won't spoil anything but things are definitely not as clear as they appear initially. And in the midst of all of this is a young woman named Shiori, who has the ability to touch an object and see brief images of events that occurred around it in the past. She assists the police in efforts to help them in their investigation but she soon falls for Naruse, complicating matters further. As the story moves forward both Serizawa and Naruse begin to see their pasts in real terms and develop as characters. Their fates and their paths are destined to cross and it is well worth the journey to follow them on this path. Again, I won't spoil the ending or anything major...just suffice to say that the story is well told and worth the watch.

The acting is well done in this series, and by far Ohno Satoshi steals the show as the tragic and yet brilliant villain Naruse. His cold dead stare will haunt you after a few episodes and become synonymous with the deaths occurring in the story. He is one of the best TV villains I have seen and has a definitive human side that will make you root for him when you know you shouldn't be. Toma, as Serizawa, is also quite good as the emotionally tortured detective with a haunted past. As his friends soon begin to fall around him it is quite clear he is ensnared in a deadly game of which he is an unwilling participant, and the drama that emerges out of the cat and mouse game between Serizawa and Naruse is fun to watch. The supporting cast is excellent, especially Serizawa'a father and the other detectives. The story is haunting, suspenseful, and will challenge you. It is Shakespearian in tone and epic in scope. Take the time and watch all eleven episodes. It is well worth it. Until next time, mata ne!

Great Teacher Onizuka (GTO) - Drama Review

Looking at the drama Great Teacher Onizuka (GTO), it is tough to put aside its history. It was a manga in its original form, and then an anime series, and has also been produced as a live movie. So, of course, the show has a long pedigree. On top of that is the enormous hype that goes along with it. Just type into google the phrase "best Japanese dramas" and GTO appears at the top or near the top of every list. And this is a show that ran from July to September of 1998, so it has a few years under its belt. That is a lot of pressure to bear for the show as I started to watch it. I asked myself, "could it really be that good?" The answer is, yes it can. The show is excellent. But before I pour on the accolades, let me go into a brief description of what the show entails.

The show is essentially about a man named Eikichi Onizuka, played to perfection by Sorimachi Takashi, who used to be the leader of a biker gang. Onizuka, now working odd jobs, wishes to be a teacher. when presented with the opportunity, he leaps at it. Though completely unqualified, through some crazy circumstances, he is offered the job of homeroom teacher in a private school. The problem is, his students in the class are trouble to each other and to him. We have all heard the plot before, where the good natured teacher takes on a class of bad kids and transforms them through the power of symbiosis or whatever you want to call it. And it would be easy to label this in that category as well. However, the key difference here is, the teacher is sort of a troublemaker himself. Sort of? Maybe I am being too soft. Here is a man that unabashedly watches pornography with women around, dresses unlike a teacher would, is willing to strike another student if necessary, and teachers for that matter, is always looking to score money, and is not shy about eyeing any woman that passes his way. His coworkers loathe him, and his students scheme to get him to resign. His only supporters are the school director who feels his brand of teaching might spark some energy into the school, and his friend who works for the police force.

Through the course of the 12 episode series, he works to show his students that not only is he a good teacher, but that they are not quite as bad as they might believe they are. An example of his methods include having a couple of class con artists subjected to harassment from a large group of motorcycle gang members one night; another method involved bullying a student in class who was doing the same to another student, to show why it was pointless. His methods come across as extreme and yet refreshing as well. He deals with things in a very simplistic manner that feels more akin to "an eye for an eye" than mere revenge. And the students have more than deserved their punishments by the time Onizuka exacts them. Once the students learn their lesson they typically side with Onizuka and realize he isn't much different from them at all. Of course the other teachers and supervisors despise Onizuka and his methods and want him gone.They constantly work to undermine him and make his job all the more difficult. The only two coworker allies he gains through the course of the show are Azusa Fuyutsuki, the younger female teacher at the school, and the classics teacher, Fujitomi Makoto, both of whom see the good that Onizuka is doing for his students.

As the show progresses, the troubles become worse and begin to trickle out of the school and into the the media, the Ministry of Education, and as the problems grow, so does the tension and dramatic air of the show. Bear in mind that this show is a drama and a comedy. While there are funny points, especially involving Onizuka, there are quite serious moments as well. Some of the issues tackled in the show involve rape, severe bullying, the death of a classmate, prostitution, extortion, and even simpler ones such as exam pressure. Those are merely the problems the students face. In regard to the adult coworkers the problems are more political, financial, and involve specific such as stalking, marriage issues, obsession, bullying at work, and accepting kickbacks at work. That only scratches the surface of the range of subjects covered in this show, but it illustrates that this is not simply a romantic comedy or other typical drama. I found myself looking at the problems faced by the students in relation to the problems exhibited by the adults within the school and it made me reflect on the environment we provide for our kids in the world and how we raise them. And maybe that was the intent.

Notable performances from Sorimachi Takeshi (as Onizuka), Matsushima Nanako (as Fuyutsuki), Nakao Akira (as head teacher Uchiyamada Hiroshi), and of course the students, too numerous to name. Do yourself a favor and go watch this show. It's only 12 episodes long and you will not regret it. It's fun, dramatic, and has a great message about being passionate about living. What are you waiting for? Check out my links on the front page and find this show, now! Until next time, mata ne!

Akira - A Retrospective (Film)

In relation to the manga series I spent the last month or so reviewing I thought it would be appropriate to also review the film, as that is the medium by which most people are aware of the story of Akira. And I am glad that I watched it so soon after reading the series at is provides excellent contrast points by which to discuss. With that is mind, I will first discuss what I enjoy about the movie.

First, the animation is amazing, and for a movie more than two decades old it doesn't show it. The action is fluid and the coloring is fantastic. The mood is established early on with long periods of silence and an occasional drum beat is put forth to add a level of drama that is missing from the manga. The battle scenes also play out well, showing the horrors of battle and the true violence that encompasses them. It was also nice to see the characters living and breathing to a certain extent (at least as well as can be done in a cartoon). However, with that, much else is left to criticism.

I was not at all pleased with the dubbing work in English and would implore anyone watching this to seek out and watch the Japanese version with English subtitles. The English voice acting is pretty weak and some voices don't fit. In regard to the colors, while I do admire them, it felt wrong to a point. The black and white of the manga felt gritty and added to the story where here the colors sometimes overwhelm the eyes, especially when there are a lot of computers and wires. That is a minor gripe, however. My major ones involve the story itself. This movie almost felt like some bizarro version of Akira. Like, if someone threw all of the manga volumes into a blender and then told the story with the results. The introduction of Kaori's character in the film felt like a slap in the face. It lacked the heart that the manga had, as she just appears to be some girlfriend of Tetsuo early on, whereas in the manga, she shows up seeking food from Akira later in the series. Another serious issue is the death of Yamagata. In the manga this was a major turning point in the series, when Kaneda and Tetsuo truly break in their frienship and was committed with hundreds of witnesses and was a major scene. In the movie, it appears in the bar with just Kaisuke, Tetsuo and Yamagata present. It sort of cheapens the impact of his death. Even Kaneda's reaction feels canned in the film afterward.

Other issues that irritated me from the film were things like Nezu. In the manga we understand his role and why he's a slimy bastard, but in the film we only really get a small glimpse and it makes little sense. The Espers take too much screen time and have far too much dialogue. They become exposition central depositories and begin to irritate the viewer rather than endearing them as in the manga. The female Esper in particular becomes akin to a narrator, which is very annoying. The Colonel is off as well. In the manga this is a man in complete control and understands the Akira project quite well. However, in the film he comes across as ignorant and devoid of any knowledge of the Akira project. He comes across as a military guy completely, with no other skills. It just feels like a mischaracterization. And Kaneda...in the manga we grow to like and cheer for Kaneda over the course of the series. But here, it feels forced and he's really no different from the beginning. As I said, everything feels like a twisted version of the greatness that was in the manga. Then there are other things that are unforgivable to me. One is the lack of Akira. In the manga he is a real boy, alive and well. In the anime he is dead, nothing but a collection of organs in jars. Why? What was the point? And why does everyone seem to know about him if the project is so top secret? Lady Miyako appears in the film for all of about ten seconds and is killed by a falling car. That makes no sense as she was integral to the manga. It would be like taking Lois Lane out of the Superman story. The end sequence feels extremely rushed. By spending most of the movie focusing on the social unrest and protests, the movie then has to make up for it by tripping over itself in the end. The battle between Kaneda and Tetsuo is almost silly and the role of Kei is so minimized that she becomes a throwaway character in the end. The same can be said of Kaisuke.

The end sequence with Tetsuo going away is so confusing that it makes the manga read like a Dick and Jane book. It was overly confusing and while the flashbacks of Tetsuo and the Espers worked well, the rest didn't I honestly can say I was not impressed with the film after reading the manga. It is a rushed story and has very little of the heart and drama that the manga had. And I am not being overly critical. Read the manga and then watch the film. It will frustrate you to no end. In fact, this is like....if you had to settle with one Akira story but couldn't get ahold of the manga, then watch the movie. But if you have the choice, then by all means, go with the manga as your only option. It is a much more satisfying experience and you will get more out of these characters. Again, it's just my opinion, but remember, I just read the story and then watched the movie so I have a pretty good idea of what is different. Next week we switch gears and go back to the TV dramas. Until then, have a great 4th of July holiday and mata ne!

Akira - A Retrospective (Part Six)

While it might be early I am going to post this final review while the content is fresh in my mind. Volume six picks up literally seconds after the end of volume five. The various groups going into Akira's base (Olympic Stadium) to confront him and Tetsuo continue onward. From this point, 90% of the story is a very long battle between Tetsuo and Kaneda, Tetsuo and Kei, and the American military and the city of Neo-Tokyo. The Colonel strikes early on, blasting Tetsuo with Sol. While this only serves to enrage Tetsuo, the American military reveals its own weaponized satellite, called Floyd, which it uses to attack the stadium and Tetsuo. After the massive blast, Tetsuo flies to space and seizes control of Floyd, pushing it with his power toward Earth, and smashing it into the American fleet. Meanwhile what American jets are left have already commenced bombing runs into Neo-Tokyo.

The American special forces troops meet their end at the hands of Akira's followers, despite the American bio-weapons taking out a large group of the followers. Kaneda launches a direct frontal attack on Tetsuo, first using a laser weapon and then using just his fists. As Tetsuo is caught off guard it appears early on that Kaneda is winning, however this soon changes as Tetsuo's power levels are spiking throughout the story. His body mutates regularly as his power spikes, making him almost uncontrollable. As Kaneda and Tetsuo battle, Kei appears and begins fighting Tetsuo, working as a vessel for Lady Miyako and the two Espers. Kei takes the initial advantage but once Tetsuo goes to space, the group is separated. Kaneda and Joker come across Akira at one point and take care of him as he keeps muttering things such as "calling me" and others. Akira, determined to go somewhere, walks and Joker and Kaneda follow.

Through the bombing and numerous attacks, Lady Miyako's temple is devastated, leaving only a small handful of people to watch over the Espers and Lady Miyako. Miyako makes it clear to the Espers that her end is coming and that they must watch over Akira. Meanwhile, Tetsuo returns and goes to the chamber which once housed Akira way back in volume two. Akira, Kaneda, and Joker run into Chiyoko and Ryu and the five of them make their way to the chamber as well. The final battle with Tetsuo begins as Kaneda, Chiyoko, and Joker begin firing into the massive body of Tetsuo. Kei is also present but is not faring well. Kaneda is then absorbed into Tetsuo's body and we do not see him again for some time. Akira begins reacting violently in pain as Tetsuo is injured and Ryu takes Akira away from the battle. However, as the two are ascending, Akira appears to be unleashing some outburst of energy when Ryu, out of fear, fires his gun into Akira. Afterward a large metal piece appears to fall onto Ryu, killing him instantly.

Tetsuo escapes the chamber in his bloated mutated form and goes to the temple to attack Mikayo and the Espers. Miyako explains that he is drawn to power sources and as Akira was shot, her and the Espers are the remaining source he is attracted to. Miyako tells the Espers to go to Akira while there is still time and she faces off against Tetsuo. She fends him off for some time but is eventually killed in the process. The two Espers teleport to Akira and find him dying on the elevator platform where Ryu shot him. He seems coherent and when he sees the two Espers, he also begins to see the spirits of long dead children who also were Espers. These spirits are smiling and he is told everyone is waiting for him to join them. Akira seems at last at peace and smiles. The Espers ask him if he can use his power one last time. He says yes.

When Miyako and Tetsuo were battling, Kei was teleported to space where she takes mental control of Sol. She then fires it, a direct blast into Tetsuo. Tetsuo screams in pain and begins to erupt in a blast reminiscent of Akira's two previous blasts. As the blast begins to erupt, a second similar one erupts in the air above Neo-Tokyo, where Akira and the Esper spirits were hovering. This blast appears to pull the energy away from Tetsuo and soon the two merge in the air. At this point we move to Kaneda, who is moving from Tetsuo to the blast put forth by Akira. He begins to experience Tetsuo's perspective, which includes flashbacks from his time in the series and also his first time meeting Kaneda. Kaneda sees just how fragile and sad Tetsuo was in life and feels for his friend. Miyako begins explaining that the Espers and even Tetsuo were just victims of experimentation and that even Akira and Tetsuo were not really evil beings. She explains that evolution is natural and that the Espers were simply the next step (very similar to the X-Men theme). At this point we see the Espers, Akira, and Tetsuo not as villains but as victims of government manipulation. It is one of the more touching points in the series. Kei appears to Kaneda and warns him to get out of the energy transference as fast as he can before he is lost forever. While he struggles, feeling guilty about Tetsuo, he eventually does escape and the blast subsides, leaving the city in ruins, but at peace.

In the final epilogue of the story, a contingent of UN peacekeepers arrives in Neo-Tokyo with tanks, jets, helicopters, and soldiers. They bring relief and medical supplies to the people and begin moving inward to the center of the city. When doing this they are fired upon by Chiyoko and others. Kaneda emerges and orders the soldiers to leave Neo-Tokyo proclaiming that it is a sovereign nation and that it could govern itself, thanking them for the supplies. The soldiers protest but see that the citizens are armed to the teeth. Kaneda proclaims that "Akira lives!" and at this, Kei emerges on a modified motorcycle. As Kei and Kaneda ride off into the distance with others, Kaneda sees the ghostly images of his friend Yamagata (killed in volume one) riding on one side and Tetsuo riding on the other. Kaneda smiles and the riders ride into the rubble which transforms into a glistening cityscape, perhaps giving the reader a glimpse of the bright future of Neo-Tokyo.

Overall this was a satisfying end to the series. It is a bit chaotic at times but then it feels as though the reader is part of the battle. My only complaint comes in the form of the author not giving us much into the past. We get glimpses but it never fully explains things. It would have been nice to get more of Kaneda and Tetsuo's story to understand why their relationship was so complicated. Or more on the Espers and the work the government did on them. But those are minor gripes for a well-done story that was epic and dramatic. It was deep, tragic, and also offered bits of humor to give the characters a human side that is missing from many comics. The overall hero might have been assumed to be Kaneda but in actuality Kei was the true savior in my book. And a comic that creates both strong, believable male and female characters is thumbs up in my book. In the next entry (next week or later this week) I will look at the movie and see where it works and where it doesn't in relation to the manga. Until then, Akira lives!

Akira - A Retrospective (Part Five)

It should come to no surprise that things are winding down rapidly in this story by this point. Tetsuo's massive event at the end of volume four only served to create further panic and destruction to the already ravaged area of Neo-Tokyo. With this panic comes international unrest and the coming of the Americans. With scores of aircraft carriers, helicopters, jets, and soldiers poised off the coast of Japan, it is made clear rather quickly that they are there with one purpose: destroy Akira. The problem is, the military seems oblivious of the presence of Tetsuo. The scientists collected aboard the American fleet are fully aware of Tetsuo and while they continue to try and convince the commander of the forces there of his danger, the military continues to ignore Tetsuo's existence. The military, in fact, opts to ignore the reports the scientists submit and send in a small contingent of special forces troops to kill Akira, much to the disappointment of the scientists.

Meanwhile, the Colonel brings the last Esper to Lady Miyako's temple, although both he and the girl are heavily wounded, resulting from the attack in the previous volume. The Colonel and Kei meet and discuss the condition of Chiyoko, still wounded back at the ruins of the military headquarters. Kei wants to go back with the Colonel to retrieve Chiyoko and bring her back to the temple, to which the Colonel agrees. The two journey through the Tokyo wastes and the tension runs high as they are attacked by roving groups of Akira worshippers. There are points where it truly seems as though they may not make it to the headquarters but eventually they do. This does not deter the attackers, however, as they launch their last stand attack inside the headquarters. All are killed through the course of battle, but Kei is wounded and remains unconscious for some time afterward. The Colonel converts a caretaker drone to transport Kei and Chiyoko back to the temple. The transport is driven by Kaneda and his friend Kaisuke, who followed Kei and the Colonel earlier. The Colonel remains behind at the headquarters, vowing to destroy Tetsuo.

Speaking of Kaneda, he is caught up quickly with the events he missed while gone and Kaisuke introduces him to an old enemy, Joker, who once led a rival biker gang called the clowns. Joker is now working with Kaisuke to restore bikes and stockpile weapons to someday use against Tetsuo. Kaneda finds new clothing and a new bike and he and Kaisuke help get Kei and Chiyoko back to Lady Miyako. It is hinted at strongly throughout this volume that Kaneda and Kei are developing feelings of love between them. At one point, late in the story, Kei agrees to work with the Espers and Lady Miyako and face Tetsuo alone, as it is revealed she has a form of their power and can function as a medium to channel their collective powers. When she agrees to this she asks Kaneda to stay with her overnight in the temple. Tetsuo is unsure how to respond as he clearly wants to. Once he finds out she will face Tetsuo he flies into a rage and vows to protect her and states that he will face Tetsuo alone and kill him rather than risk Kei's life. He kisses her and says he will stay with her another time, which is a very touching moment in the story and it feels genuine in the face of all of the dangers emerging. Kaneda, Joker, and Kaisuke, along with others, round up bikes, weapons, and other gear and charge toward Akira's base to strike at Tetsuo. Kei asks Chiyoko to follow and help Kaneda.

At the same time, the American special forces moves into the area hoping to disperse biological weapons to kill Akira and his followers. It is hinted that if the bio-weapons fail, then the American fleet is armed with numerous nuclear missiles that can be launched. The followers of Akira get wind of the incoming American forces and arm themselves, preparing for all-out war.

Tetsuo and Akira are interesting as well. Akira mostly sleeps throughout this volume, as children often will. Tetsuo, it is explained by Lady Miyako, is undergoing a period of evolution wherein the power within him is growing stronger and more independent, desiring to break free of the body it is imprisoned in. She explains that if that occurred before Tetsuo was stopped, Tetsuo could become like Akira; that is, a being composed entirely of the power, and retaining no recognizable semblance of the true personality of the person. Throughout the volume Tetsuo appears at peace, not the raving, pill-popping madman he was in the previous volumes. He has kicked the pill habit and is clean with energy. This makes him all the more dangerous as he and Akira "play" as kids do, though within the center of the earth, creating massive earthquakes. Tetsuo also teleports to the moon and ravages it, blowing out at least a third of it in a display of raw power. Obviously this creates weather problems and tidal chaos in the oceans, further prompting the American military to move froward with their plans of striking at Akira. Tetsuo begins to unravel and mutate as the story progresses however, as his power is growing exponentially. He teleports to the American fleet and destroys a large portion of it as Kei appears as well. The two engage in battle and Kei flees after damaging Tetsuo. She acknowledges her failure to stop him but understands she must face him again.

With that, volume five comes to a close. The action is slower than in the previous two volumes, but it is a refreshing pace. Characters are fleshed out and relationships are explored that make the readers care more about the story in the long run. The collapse of Akira's followers is realistic and the sense of dread near the end as the various groups converge on Akira's base is the best way to foreshadow the climax in the upcoming volume. And the reader can see that not everyone will survive; it is obvious that some will not make it. And with that, the story is nearly complete. Following volume six I will post one final entry looking at the film and some of the differences. Until next week, mata ne!

Akira - A Retrospective (Part Four)

I am going to do something different this time and add a post to volume 4 even though I haven't fully finished it yet and then, after finishing the volume, I will edit this post, so keep your eyes peeled.

Remember that moment when you first saw The Empire Strikes Back and you felt like the Empire had won? You truly felt like, after watching that film, that there was no hope for the heroes. Well, keep that image in mind for volume four of this story. We open to a devastated Neo-Tokyo, now a water-filled crater with ruins making up the rest of the city. A rescue helicopter is coming in to deliver supplies and medicine to the millions of impoverished citizens left to their own misery inside the city limits. There is no defined timeframe between the destruction unleashed by Akira and the opening of volume four, but it seems to have been months at least. The city is wasteland, populated by the poor, starving, wounded, and sick residents who now cling to whatever will give them hope. In the case of most, this is their new messiah, Akira. The boy sits on a throne and rules without saying a single word, as Tetsuo and other new followers enforce the will of kingdom of Akira. This is a hard place to be as a reader, for we are not 100% certain that Akira is behind this. One would be safer to assume that Tetsuo was pulling the strings, but with Akira, it is difficult to fully understand his motives.

The story moves back and forth between the various characters, showing where they now stand in the story. Kei, Chiyoko, and fellow resistance member Ryu seem to be operating from the shadows, even though Ryu seems to be willing to let himself fall into a drunken oblivion. Kei and Chiyoko also give medicine and aid to the remaining two Espers, who are unconscious and ill following the attack by Akira in the previous volume. Kaneda is missing and his whereabouts are unknown. The Colonel dresses as a nomad and operates on his own. Lady Miyako operates her temple as a refuge for those who do not follow Akira and provides aid to those she can. Operating in Neo-Tokyo are American operatives as well, having snuck in through the outer edges of the city. These operatives seem to be working to gain more information Akira and the current conditions of the city. And finally, the citizens, who are now miserable and destitute; these people operate in a tribal sense, following those who provide aid and support for them. They also use a barter system of goods as the economy has completely crumbled. Outside of Japan, the world has cut off the country as it has gotten word of the Akira project.

With that setting in mind, volume four plays out as an intense chase with the heroes seemingly always on the run, with the villains holding the upper hand at almost all times. Tetsuo is particularly cruel, giving people the pills that activate mental abilities within people, always with mixed results. Some become monstrous mental thugs, and others die instantly. Akira, meanwhile plays with rocks and sleeps, not saying a word. Occasionally he creates a double helix shape with stones, but not much else. Tetsuo also collects women to rape and murder, which is shown at one point, though not shown in a brutal fashion that might disgust readers. At one point Lady Miyako tells Kei and Chiyoko that they need to bring the Espers to her. They begin this process only to be attacked multiple times by Tetsuo's soldiers who are also trying to steal the Espers to bring to Tetsuo. What ensues is brilliance as Chiyoko is shown to be a true hero, and very much in the likeness of many action heroes in film and other media. In fact, I would say that Chiyoko steals the show in this volume demonstrating a level of heroism that many comic book characters could only dream of.

Also, Lady Miyako meets with Tetsuo and explains the history of the Akira Project, much of which turns out to be a truly sad story. As this story unfolds, Miyako explains that Tetsuo needs to stop taking the pills as they are inhibiting his full power levels. Chiyoko, wounded heavily in saving one of the Espers has met up with and is now with the Colonel, while Kei and the Esper she was protecting have made it to Lady Miyako's temple. While making refuge at the temple, Tetsuo's men launch a massive attack, attempting to take the Esper, Kei, and Lady Miyako.While the forces are resisted with heavy casualties on both sides, the temple is eventually destroyed in a violent assault by Tetsuo and his men. Meanwhile, the Colonel and the other Esper are making their way toward the temple when they are also assaulted by Tetsuo's forces. The Colonel, in demonstrating his own level of coolness, unleashes a massive attack from a portable trigger, causing the satellite Sol to blast the attackers into oblivion.

The final piece of the volume is the trickiest to explain as it is very metaphysical and resembles the mental states of Tetsuo and Akira. Tetsuo, finally off the pills he has been taking since volume one, screams aloud and flies into space, not by his own doing (it is hinted that Akira possibly is responsible for this). When there he witnesses meteors and debris forming into the double helix shape and then witnesses his own birth and early childhood. When he sees an early image of Kaneda he screams and is teleported before Akira, who silently stares and then smiles at Tetsuo. The journey that Tetsuo took however, involved a massive level of destruction as a large building emerges from nowhere and falls to the ground. From the rubble, Kaneda emerges, unsure of what has happened. In the final pages we see Akira sitting on his throne, seeming more sure of himself. Bowing contritely before him is Tetsuo, who also seems content.

I know this is a long entry but there is a lot that happens in this volume and thus far it is my favorite for tone, pacing, and character development. The symbolism of Tetsuo's rebirth is critical for understanding the level of power Akira has and knowing that what we have seen of Tetsuo has only been the surface for what is to come. Of course it was also great to see the return of Kaneda at the very end foreshadowing the upcoming and inevitable confrontation between Tetsuo and him. I had mentioned in the previous post that this volume and volume three seem almost two sides of the same coin. I still stand by that. Volume four appears as a much darker version of volume three. Remember in three, Tetsuo was missing the entirety of the story, and in volume four we see Kaneda gone for the same. Anyway, enough rambling....time to get to volume five as things are getting heavy now. Until next time, mate ne!

Akira - A Retrospective (Part Three)

We open volume three some time after the climax of the previous volume. Tetsuo is missing and the city of Neo-Tokyo is now under martial law. Robotic drones patrol the streets in order to maintain control and simultaneously search for the now-missing Akira. In Lady Miyako's temple we are introduced fully to Nezu, a member of the government and member of the resistance movement. Lady Miyako informs him that Akira must be found before the military or worse can get ahold of him. As Lady Miyako distrusts Nezu, she asks a hidden child named Sakaki to move to find Akira first. Sakaki and two other children, with powers similar to the Espers (though on a lower level) are dispatched and move to get Akira before the military and Nezu. From this point the story moves rapidly.

The third volume is primarily a long chase between Kaneda, Kei, and another woman, Chiyoko, as the three work to hide and protect Akira as they are pursued by Nezu's people, the military, and Sakaki. The pace is intense and the battles are exciting. Nezu is revealed to be the weasel that Lady Miyako suspected as he is only interested in harboring Akira's power for himself. Meanwhile, the military is desperate to get Akira back and is using the Espers to hunt him down. In the face of all of this, the military leadership begins to doubt the worries of the Colonel as he seems to be dangerously obsessed with Akira at this point. Kaneda, Kei, and Chiyoko face a number of battles and hurdles in the course of the volume, losing Akira and getting him back at multiple points. Throughout this all, Akira is unconscious, though the Espers warn that soon he will awaken. The chase and battles converge at a late point in the story as the military finally orchestrates a coup on the government of Japan, as they sense urgency at the loss of Akira.

When the sides meet the battle is fierce, as homes are leveled, people are killed (including Sakaki and her two friends), and finally, Akira wakes up. The Espers are overjoyed and seem to hint at a long friendship between the three of them and Akira that had been interrupted. As one of the Espers, Takashi, is speaking to Akira, Nezu takes aim, hoping to kill Akira. He fires and misses, killing Takashi instead. This drives Akira into a rage and his psychic powers erupt in a blast that devastates Neo-Tokyo, leveling much of the city. As the destruction subsides, we have no idea what has become of our heroes; Kaneda, Kei, Chiyoko, the Espers, the Colonel, Lady Miyako...all are left to mystery. In the ensuing silence, we see a shadowy figure emerge and walk toward a small block of concrete in the waters at ground zero where Akira erupted. Sitting on that block is Akira himself, playing with stones as if they were wooden blocks.The shadowy figure is revealed to be Tetsuo, who is smiling down at Akira, who looks up at Tetsuo. With that, volume three ends.

Volume three is a rollercoaster ride compared to the pacing in the first two volumes and reads very quickly. The action is perfect and it leads to the reader cheering even more for Kaneda and Kei. In fact, the reader is so swept in the action that it is very easy to forget about Tetsuo and when he emerges at the end it is like a swift kick to the gut as you remember that he hadn't gone anywhere at all. When I review volume four it will be important to contrast that to this volume as the two are almost two sides of the same coin, like mirror images of the same story. More on that next time. Until then, mata ne!

Akira - A Retrospective (Part Two)

*NOTE: If you haven't read part one, please do so before reading this one. Thanks.

As we left our protagonists at the end of volume one, we were left with a feeling that nothing seemed to be going right for them. The military, led by the seemingly obsessed Colonel, had entered the scene and seized Kaneda and the female resistance member working with him named Kei. The Colonel had also taken Tetsuo as well, who at the end of volume one had exhibited a growing array of telepathic/telekinetic powers. When we begin volume two, we are immersed into the depth and scope of the military's role.

Volume two is essentially told in two settings: 1) The military headquarters, and 2) the Olympic Site, where Akira is held in cryogenic sleep underground. We begin at the headquarters where the children who appeared in volume one reside. These are the children who look like small children and yet have the appearance of senior citizens. These children are known as the Espers. The three of these children have been assigned numbers, branded on the hands and each has a different power and level of power. The Espers are aware of Tetsuo's presence and one of them issues a dire warning that Testuo is dangerous and needed to be stopped if possible. From here the story moves VERY rapidly, like a solid action movie. Kei, being guided by the Espers, is seeking a weapon in the headquarters that can deal with Tetsuo. Kaneda escapes his cell to go with Kei, and the two of them spend much of the first half of the volume searching for first the weapon and then Tetsuo. Tetsuo, in the meantime, becomes quickly bored with the constant testing he is forced to undergo and demands to see the Espers.

When Tetsuo and the Espers meet, the tensions are already high, and the Colonel along with the chief doctor on site are worried about potential conflict. As we see in the story, there is a good cause for concern as Tetsuo and the Espers engage in a battle of mental powers very quickly as Tetsuo learns of Akira and demands to see him. As the Colonel attempts to stop him, he soon learns that Tetsuo is beyond his control. The scenes of Tetsuo effectively crushing the Espers and the Colonel are brilliant and as they are broken up by the scenes of Kei and Kaneda working their way ever closer to Tetsuo. When the sides finally converge, the battle is quick and devastating. Tetsuo escapes by teleporting out of the building while Kei and Kaneda battle their way out against soldiers.

We then shift to the second half of the volume, the battle at the Olympic Site. Tetsuo gains entry by murdering the guards stationed there and begins descending to the underground level where Akira is held. Kei and Kaneda make their way through the sewers to try and intercept; at the same time the Colonel and hordes of soldiers come in through the main entrance to try and stop Tetsuo from descending. What ensues is a massive battle as the lift descends, with Tetsuo making easy work of the soldiers on their hoverbikes. Through the battle it is revealed that Tetsuo and Akira share some link as each time Tetsuo is stressed or in combat, the temperature in the Akira holding chamber increases. When the Colonel realizes this orders his men to stop attacking, which only serves to make Tetsuo's opening of the Akira chamber much easier. as the chamber opens, a massive blast of coolant is released killing many soldiers and the chief doctor almost instantly, and yet Tetsuo is unfazed and continues into the chamber. Inside we see that Akira is also a very small child and he goes with Tetsuo without saying a word, leaving the underground chamber through an opening nearby. The Colonel becomes enraged that Akira has been taken and orders the military super-satellite "Sol" orbiting above, to fire its superlaser on Tetsuo, with the intent to kill. As Akira and Tetsuo exit the underground facility they are soon followed out by Kei and Kaneda. At that moment Sol fires at Tetsuo and the area is obliterated. Tetsuo is enraged but still alive and is fired on again and again, as Akira is knocked away from him. Kei and Kaneda come across the unconscious Akira and Kei notices that Akira's hand also has a number, 28, on it. The volume closes with Tetsuo screaming in pain as he realizes the laser from Sol has taken his left arm.

Again, this volume reads like a great action movie and reveals a great deal about the military's role in the story as well as laying a good foundation for the Espers and Akira. The development of the relationship between Kei and Kaneda is solid and allows readers to truly cheer for someone. While the lines are still not clear, it does become obvious that we are supposed to root for Kaneda and Kei and their mission, even as unclear as it appears to be. The revelation early on of the leader of the resistance movement, Lady Miyako, being a former member of the Espers is ominous and interesting, and Otomo does a good job of only hinting at this, allowing the story to evolve naturally where it needs to. Paced well, and having exciting action scenes, volume two is an excellent follow-up to the first volume. Onward to volume three. See you next week. Mata ne!

Akira - A Retrospective (Part One)

Many American anime fans will recall the movie Akira, released in 1988, as a classic, being among the first to usher in the new era of anime fandom in this country. However, the film was drawn from the manga source material and highly condensed in order to fit six lengthy volumes into a two hour animated film. This means that much of the deeper story was lost in the transition, and while fans clamor over the film, the manga actually has a much more complete and detailed story worth reading. When considering what may have been lost, remember that the film was two hours long (125 minutes) and the manga was a six volume set, with each volume at more than 380 pages (and the final two volumes clocking in at more than 450); obviously something was lost. So for the next six weeks or so, I will be reviewing and discussing the Akira manga series, now twenty years past since the manga was completed. Katsuhiro Otomo's work was a major influence on science fiction, anime, manga, and other forms of entertainment and his masterpiece deserves a thorough reading.

Volume one picks up at a rapid pace, establishing the futuristic Neo-Tokyo setting following a devastating bombing. Very little is said initially and we see a motorcycle gang plowing past warning signs and gates that say keep out. When the gang reaches the bomb site, with the lights and skyscrapers of Neo-Tokyo behind them, we are introduced to our main pair of characters: Kaneda and Tetsuo. Kaneda appears to be the leader of the gang and Tetsuo seems shy and not very confident in how he approaches life in the gang, although he comes across as a confident rider. When the gang is returning to Neo-Tokyo, a ghostly figure in the form of a young boy (though with an old man's appearance) appears and causes Tetsuo to crash. As his friends come to his aid, a group of soldiers comes and they take Tetsuo away, raising Kaneda's suspicions. And thus, our story truly begins.

Volume one focuses on introducing us to the world, the busy streets and neighborhoods of Neo-Tokyo, which seem to co-exist with the downtrodden alleys and slums. Otomo is very conscious of this and takes time to highlight some of these bizarre dualities of technology and poverty. We also see that the military is a powerful and dangerous entity in the story, infused with power, funding, and a shadowy form of control. While we see the military appear as antagonists at times, they never seem to exist outside of that role and in fact, they never seem to be around unless they are attacking Kaneda; and yet, they also seem to have a ever-present existence within society...sort of an everywhere and nowhere presence. We see glimpses of things to come as the various groups and players in the story refer to Akira and yet, the audience gets a single ominous panel of a large domed machine with the name Akira written across it, which lies deep underground and kept in deep-freeze; we also see a group of extremely powerful children who look like old men and women and yet have extremely destructive powers of the mind; we see an obsessed Colonel who seemingly wants to form an army of those with powers; and we see the resistance group and their efforts to free the children from the army's grasp. These seem like grand concepts and feel as such in the story. The reader feels a bit like Kaneda as the story moves forward, trying to grasp onto what exactly is going on and not knowing the full story yet. And amidst these larger concepts exists the gang world inhabited by Kaneda, Tetsuo, and others.

Multiple gangs populate Neo-Tokyo, and all on bikes, which seems like an homage to the gangs that roamed the world of the film Mad Max. They wear particular clothing, and all pursue drugs, violence, and other crimes in the pursuit of a good time. Kaneda's group is no better, and Otomo makes it clear that Kaneda is not a perfect angel by any means. He is the hero, but almost by default. He is more akin to someone like Han Solo than Luke Skywalker. He's likeable but also a jerk that the reader will want to punch at the same time. His friends are similar, and in the early portion of volume one we feel as if he's not very heroic at all. It is isn't until he gets caught up with the resistance group that he begins to exhibit some heroic characteristics. And these become more pronounced when Tetsuo emerges from the military hands as a changed person. Tetsuo is darker and more violent. A more confident and controlled individual, he and Kaneda immediately clash in disagreement. Tetsuo undergoes more testing by the military as he begins to exhibit powers similar to those children seen previously. When Tetsuo escapes by murdering his guards and doctors, he joins a rival biker gang and they begin seizing power within the city from the other gangs. This prompts Kaneda and the other gangs to unite to face Tetsuo and his gang and the first volume closes following a major battle between Kaneda and Tetsuo.

While there are times the first volume moves slowly, it is forgivable as Otomo is simply establishing the story. The characters are interesting and as much criticism as I lay on Kaneda, he does stand out as the hero. Tetsuo is an excellent villain, who can be interpreted as tragic on some levels and then again, not by everyone. The dual nature of the gang world and the grand conflict between the resistance and the military; between Kaneda and Tetsuo; between the riches and splendor of Neo-Tokyo and the reality of the downtrodden; and between the powerful children and the youth who live in the criminal world.....these are elements that work well. They create a rich story and an intricate science fiction world that demands further exploration.

Next week I will tackle volume two. Until then, mata ne!

Hana Yori Dango (花より男子) - Season One

I decided to start with an easy one. Hana Yori Dango is one of the more recent famous J-dramas emerging from Japan. Originally a manga story published in 1992, it has been envisioned in different media and in different countries as well since then. The focus of this post, however, is on the 2005 drama which consisted of 9 total episodes.

A basic explanation of the plot is as follows: a teenage girl, Makino Tsukushi, attends Eitoku Garden, which is a school populated by the extremely wealthy. Makino, unfortunately for her, is not wealthy in the least. Her family is poor, but all of the families money goes to providing her the opportunity to attend Eitoku, regardless of her dislike of the school and its students. At Eitoku is a notorious group of the four absolute wealthiest male students, calling themselves F4; these four roam the school at will and terrorize anyone who crosses them. They bully, intimidate, and punish anyone they dislike, and the school allows this as their families have donated huge sums of money to Eitoku. Needless to say, that strong-willed Makino and F4 eventually cross paths and thus begins the romantic comedy of this story.

In the drama, Makino is played perfectly by Inoue Mao. Her delivery of Makino's character is sharp, effective, and hilarious. While comical (intended so as the story comes from the manga), she also comes off as surprisingly human. Others around her at times appear so cartoonish as to be absurdly funny, such as her father, mother, and brother, and even the fellow students at Eitoku seem one-dimensional; but Makino is believable and this is really her and F4's story, and so you can buy that. F4 is led by Domyoji Tsukasa, played brilliantly by Matsumoto Jun (member of the music group Arashi), and the others include Oguri Shun as Hanazawa Rui; Matsuda Shota as Nishikado Sojiro; and Abe Tsuyoshi as Mimasak Akira. The members of F4 are great in this in that they are terrible and yet, as the story progresses the audience gets to see the human side of these imperfect people. Other notable characters in the story are Domyoji Kaede who is in the running as the most evil of mothers; Makino's entire family; the manager of Makino's workplace; and Domyoji's sister. The characters in this really make it unforgettable and the actors are perfect in their execution of the material. And through all of the insanity and tension, the audience falls in love with the all-too-human and strong-willed Makino.

The settings work as well. The school, Makino's home, Domyoji's home, and the city landscapes offer a contrasting view between the absurdly fantastic world of the wealthy and the real world that Makino lives in. And sometimes those lines blur through the story which provides a canvas for some great humor and drama to come through.

Are there flaws? Sure there are. I find that there are points mid-way through the series when it lags, or reaches improbable points of silliness, but then again it is important to remember that this type of drama, based from manga, is not overly realistic and is typically akin to a comic book being portrayed on the live screen. Again, I feel that this drama is fun, and full of emotion and feeling, not taking itself so seriously as other dramas might. If you can find it online with subtitles give it a watch and you'll probably find the world of Makino and Domyoji as endearing and fun as I did.

Here's a link to the first 9 minutes. It's subtitled, so take a look and see if you like it.

Welcome

I'm glad you are taking the time to look at this blog I've started. I'm a huge fan of Japanese pop culture and there are a number of reviewers out there who look at manga and anime, but I see very few that look at Japanese films, TV, or even music. In light of that fact, this blog will maybe fill that void a bit. Each week I will review a J-Drama series, movie, or aspect of music (sometimes a group or singer, or sometimes a song or complete album). I don't pretend to be an expert, just a fan and this is my way of introducing you to some great and not so great works out of the Japanese pop culture world that move outside of the typical manga and anime box. I hope you enjoy it and look forward to your feedback and comments.