Right Stuf Releases Anime Today Episode 4!
Posted on: Friday, December 23, 2005
Episode run down:
Chad is back with what’s hot in the world of anime and manga and then Marie from Right Stuf brings us her review of the first volume of Kodocha. Next, the Dark Lord Kleckner returns with his Weekly Specials, news of a new sale that begins today, and a recap of our 12 Days of Christmas sale, which ends Sunday. Kris and Judy continue their adventure in Japan and begin to explore Kyoto in the Anime and Gamer’s guide to Japan. The production department will be talking about Boys Be... and Chad will be reviewing the first volume of Scrapped Princess. Rich calls in Judy to help with this episode's Anime Today Q&A. And Nick returns one last time to talk to you about contests and what’s new at RightStuf.com.
What's Hot?
January brings some excellent titles to a close and begins even more! Gonzo’s ultra-violent series, Gantz, finishes up with the January 17th release of the 10th volume. Kei’s done well up to now, but how well will he do against the other players?
The Berserk graphic novel series also hits its 10th violent volume in January! Guts and Casca attempt to free Griffith from his prison, but the King of Midland is mad with hatred and certainly won’t just let them waltz out safely.
Also, old-school fans will be delighted to see the first volume of ADV’s Macross re-release in early January. ADV’s gotten Mari Ijima, the original Japanese voice actress for Minmay, to perform the English dubbed voice for Minmay as well. And that has many fans very excited for this release!
And finally, a series that’s been getting a lot of attention on RightStuf.com’s Weekly Top Ten, Burst Angel! The only way for humans to evolve further is through the brain… And the body will follow suit. The 5th volume: Line in the Sand was released earlier this month and the 6th will be here in February so now’s the time to get hooked on the series that Newtype USA says, “[is] not ashamed to strut its stuff!”
DVD Review: Kodocha (Kodomo No Omocha) DVD 1: School Girl Super Star
First off, in the interest of disclosing bias, I have to say Kodocha was one of the first anime I ever saw, and the first I saw any significant portion of in its original Japanese. When I heard that someone had actually picked it up to bring to the United States, I was a little surprised and totally thrilled. That said, let’s continue.
Kurata Sana is a cheerful, hyper-active 11-year-old who makes Lina Inverse look reserved. Her mother is an award-winning author, her “pimp” drives her to school when she’s running late, and she’s an up-and-coming television star thanks to a weekly gig on an afternoon program called “Kodomo no Omocha.” Kodomo no Omocha means “Child’s Toy” in Japanese, and is often shortened to “Kodocha,” which is where the series gets its name.
Did I mention the pimp? Although this gag is toned down in the more “kid-friendly” dub, it’s perfectly intact in the Japanese track. Sana calls Rei, her manager, her “pimp” because that’s who she gives her allowance to. It makes perfect sense to Sana, if not her hairdresser.
But of course all isn’t well in Sana’s world. As my literature teachers drilled into my head for four straight years in high school, there can be no plot without conflict. Enter Sana’s classmate Hayama Akito: quiet, menacing, and the biggest contender for the “boy I’d date if I were still 11, or maybe even 13” award as judged by the entire female audience.
Hayama has recently turned Sana’s sixth-grade class into a raging human hurricane the teachers are powerless to stop. Since in Japan it’s slightly important that you don’t fall behind in your classes unless you want to be DOOOOMED forever because you didn’t go to a good high school and can’t get a job anywhere but the local pachinko parlor, Sana makes it her mission to take him down and restore order to the classroom, and the show takes off from there.
Now, the first thing you usually hear when someone talks about Kodocha is “It’s so funny!”, particularly if they’ve also seen Marmalade Boy. Well, yes. Kodocha is a comedy. The puns fly fast and furious, Sana’s ride to school puts Misato picking up Shinji at the train station to shame, characters tend to spontaneously break into raps to explain their feelings while the rest of the cast listens appreciatively, and whenever things start to get *too* bogged down Sana does a commercial dressed as a tube of toothpaste.
But (and I know you all knew this was coming), Kodocha is surprisingly dramatic. While the boys are terrorizing the classroom, they actually go so far as to dunk a girl in the pond behind the school and she swallows enough water that she’s out sick for the next day. Sana seems to be mostly made of rubber, but the rest of the characters can and do bruise and bleed. Kodocha tackles issues of child abuse, abandonment, the very real consequences of fame, and more.
Kodocha is particularly concerned with family. Sure, a chipmunk lives on Mama’s head, Rei lives in their house despite being no relation, and there’s no father in sight. But her family gives her support, lets her talk out her problems, and backs her up when she needs it. Sana knows she’s loved and has people she can always count on. Other children in the show aren’t nearly so lucky, and when Sana first realizes this she’s just as shocked as any sheltered child would be.
The pacing of the show is reflective of reality. Real Life doesn’t come in 22 minutes chunks with a tidy resolution in the last 50 seconds. Kodocha doesn’t even seem aware of time limits; it just barrels on ahead, picking up from wherever it left off three minutes ago or last week with nary a pause. (Of course, Real Life also doesn’t generally involve impromptu bungee jumping inside your school gym, but that’s neither here nor there.)
Reflective of shoujo’s character-before-plot tendencies, though, Sana does introduce the main players at the beginning of each episode via Polaroid photos. Mama writes books, Hayama is a devil, and Rei is her pimp. Really, what else do you need to know to enjoy an episode?
With so many characters so simply defined, Kodocha could have easily fallen into a mess of clichés. Hayama’s the resident bad boy, Tsuyoshi’s the smart one, Sana needs to cut back on the sugar intake, etc. But one of the things that makes Kodocha great is the way it delves into each character and sees what makes them tick. Sana discovers that maybe there’s something that would cause Hayama to want to control a classroom, a reason for Tsuyoshi’s “mother complex,” an explanation as to why Rei decided to dedicate his life to a young girl with acting ambitions. Even Mama’s odd hairstyles are given a completely logical and emotionally moving backstory. Every character is a reflection of their lives, and if a character seems flat and undeveloped it’s probably just because you haven’t gotten to their character arc yet.
For a show long considered “unsubbable,” Funimation has done a pretty good job. First, they’ve kept the honorifics in the subtitles on the Japanese track. They’ve also done some interesting things with the puns, keeping the basic meaning in the subtitles the same but choosing rhyming words that it would make perfect sense for Sana to mix up in English. They’ve even found an English voice actress who can talk just as fast as the Japanese Sana does.
In fact, Funimation’s biggest challenge turned out to be something no fan anticipated: they couldn’t get the rights to all of the music, most notably the original opening song “11 O’clock News” by boy band Tokio. This results in a few oddities. First, the second opening is used throughout the show. Since it’s just as good as the first and even contains fast forwarded portions of the dance performed by the cast in the original opening, this isn’t such a big deal. Second, and more problematic, is when the sound suddenly cuts out for a minor scene or the preview segments and you’re left wondering why.
As explained by that asterisk next to where it says “Japanese” in the language menu and which I completely skipped over in my eagerness to first watch the show, these scenes contain the original opening music or references to the band Tokio (the band originally had periodic cameos). Rather than cut them completely, Funimation has left the scenes in and simply muted the sound. Don’t worry, the subtitles will still tell you what’s being “said.”
Of course, if you’re a dub aficionado, you won’t notice a thing, and the dub’s good enough that even hardcore sub fans won’t mind watching it. I thought Mama’s voice (played by Colleen Clinkenbeard, aka Riza of Fullmetal Alchemist) was particularly well done, and if there are any Fruits Basket fans out there, you might like to know Hayama is voiced by Jerry Jewell, aka Kyo and, of all things, Barry the Chopper from FMA.
Speaking of Fruits Basket, for a particularly trippy effect, Laura Bailey, who played Tohru, voices Sana, and Akitaro Daichi directed Kodocha long before working on Fruits Basket. His style shows up everywhere, from eyes disappearing when characters are depressed to the insane comedy that infuses every aspect of the show. (He also directed Elf Princess Rane, so this kind of madness is his stock and trade.) And if you noticed some similarities in the way Mama and Shigure torment their editors, now you know why.
There’s a special extra on this disc where Colleen and Laura (again, Mama and Sana and also the Voices Directors) do commentary for episode 4. If you’ve been listening to the Kris and Judy segments in Anime Today, you have a very good idea of what Colleen and Laura sound like talking about the relative size of their apartment versus the dubbing booth, giving tips on how to voice vibrating characters, and commenting on Hayama’s various wardrobe choices.
And wardrobe choices there actually are. These characters don’t have a new outfit for every single episode (that would just be excessive), and certainly no one’s going to win any fashion awards, but they do each have a set of clothes that match their own particular style. No Doug Funny-like closet of identical sweater vests here. If you haven’t caught on by now, these characters are all individuals you could conceivably meet in real life, and there’s no aspect of the show that forgets this.
It seems strange that it’s taken me until the end of this review to mention what is one of my favorite parts of the show, but that’s because Babbit defies categorization. Babbit is a strange little bat-rabbit hybrid that serves as Kodocha’s voice of reason. Babbit admonishes viewers to never, ever do half the stuff Sana does, explains various plot tidbits it thinks the viewer may have missed, and appears on approximately 80% of the merchandise used and worn by the characters in the show. Sometimes, Babbit wears funny hats. Funimation, if you’re listening, I’m still waiting for Babbit keychains and plushes to hit the shelves.
In the end, though, you should really only watch Kodocha if you like comedy, drama, deep characterization, and chipmunks who live in hats. I award Kodocha nine muffintops out of ten, tenth muffintop contingent on the availability of a fuzzy hat bearing Babbit’s likeness.
Shawne's Specials
First of all, please let me take a second to wish you, your family, and friends a safe and happy holiday season!
On that note, just a quick reminder that we’re running towards the end of our annual ’12 Days of Christmas Sale!’ Each day for the last several days we’ve unveiled a new bargain priced item - and through Christmas day you can buy any or all of them! There’s some great items this year, so hit the banner at RightStuf.com to see the whole list! Again, this sale ends Sunday December 25, so don’t miss out!!
And to finish off 2005, we’re having an end of year clearance sale! Yes, 20% off our normal everyday prices on all in-stock merchandise in the store. Check out the In Stock Items link on the top right of our home page for a quick list. And, since we receive new merchandise pretty much daily, there’s new eligible items all week!
When you check out, use coupon code: yearend. With your Got Anime membership, you’ll save even more! This sale runs through January 2!
Now - let’s hit some highlights from this week’s specials!
First, let’s take a look at some super values - you can pick up for less than $10 this week DVDs of Assemble Insert, Ayane’s High Kick, Azumanga Daioh (with box), Dark Cat, Demon Fighter Kocho, Detatoko Princess, Both discs of eXDriver, Elf Princess Rane, Gantz DVD 2, If I See You in Your Dreams OVA, Jewel Hunter Lime BEM, Madonna, Marriage, All 4 Volumes of Miami Guns, Nightwalker, the Ninku/YuYu Combo DVD, Samurai: Hunt for the Sword, Shinesman, Space Travelers, Twin Signal, Very Private Lesson, Voogie’s Angel, and Box+1 of Yugo the Negotiator. These items are marked down heavily and some have limited quanitites. For even more bargains, check out the Bargain Bin section of the site - there’s some great values in there!
Box Sets of interest this week - the first Cardcaptor Sakura set is on sale for $71.99; you can get the thinpak set of Eden’s Bowy for $23.99; and the full set of His & Her Circumstances is on sale this week for $39.99 - you can’t pass up a great set like that for such a low price! I’ve also put on sale the 4th box of Maison Ikkoku for only $31.99! Finally - check out the box + 1 for the new Ah! My goddess TV Series at the low price of $26.99!
There are 153 other items in this week’s specials that I haven’t even mentioned here - check the whole list, who knows, you might find something you’ve been looking for!
With 2006 coming soon, we’re going to be doing our best to continue to tempt you with anime savings - look for all kinds of new and exciting happenings at rightstuf.com in the new year! Any feedback you might have for me on the store, our specials, or what we can do to serve you better - drop me a line at darklord@rightstuf.com.
Kris and Judy Part 4: Anime and Gamer's Guide to Japan
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The big staircase at the train station in Kyoto
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The garden on top of the train station
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Kyoto Tower
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DVD Review: Scrapped Princess DVD 1: Family Ties
Pacifica Cassul is known as the "Scrapped Princess." According to prophecy, she is the poison that will destroy the world on her 16th birthday. In order to avoid being killed, she must secretly wander the lands along with her two siblings who vow to protect the princess every step of the way. But being the Scrapped Princess means you must stay one step ahead of your enemy. Just how long will they journey before time runs out?
The first volume of Scrapped Princess was released by Bandai Entertainment in March of 2005. This volume is available as a stand alone DVD or in a Limited Addition art box with a Pacifica Cassul figurine. The next four volumes are currently available in a Limited Addition release with figurines as well. The sixth and final volume of this exciting series is set for a late January of 2006 release.
The following is an adaptation of a review of the first volume by Chris Beveridge of Anime on DVD dot com.
Scrapped Princess fills a hard to fill niche in recent anime. It focuses on a fairly serious storyline set in a fantasy land without relying on a number of the usual gimmicks.
Right away we’re introduced to three travelers riding a very well packed carriage. The group is led by Shannon, the elder brother of the trio, who wears a soldier’s style uniform. He is assisted by his younger sister Raquel who wears a similar style outfit. Both of them are set to protect their younger sister Pacifica, who apparently showed up in their lives only recently.
Pacifica, it seems, was born under a cursed sign sixteen years ago. She was foretold to be ‘the poison that would destroy the world.’ The story begins with the three children on the run with their previous history unknown and whose parents are presumably dead
They journey from town to town trying to keep ahead of several different forces that may be after them. This usually causes more trouble than they expect as rumors of Pacifica’s role in the world has spread and people begin to fear her. Shannon’s attempts to not cause bloodshed only make things more difficult. Raquel, with her incredible magic powers, is able to be a little more playful at protecting her siblings.
Pacifica seems to have resigned herself to the situation, but is undergoing a strong internal debate. She questions those close to her as to whether she should really be alive and if everyone would be better off is she were dead.
While fighting a group of bandits, a “valiant knight” named Leo appears. Leo provides light comic relief and his attempts to save the day lead him into many awkward situations. He instantly falls in love with Pacifica and announces his engagement to her, however this seems to go over Pacifica’s head. Although entertaining, he proves himself useful to the group. His addition isn’t forced but well blended since his own journey matches theirs at just the right time.
The most intriguing addition comes in the form of those chasing the travelers. First, there is Chris, a young man wearing an obvious soldier’s uniform with the skills to match. He is attempting to either capture or kill Pacifica. Although obviously cliché in many ways, the more he interacts with the group, the better he seems to fit. Stranger still are those from the church who have a vested interest in eliminating Pacifica whose attempts to do so go even farther than the government itself.
Visually, the show is very appealing. Its focus on the lushness of nature is very strong and provides a great backdrop for the main characters’ travels. The look of the characters themselves is also quite enjoyable. The mixture of standard fantasy clothing along with cloaks and other near-military styles is highly interesting.
Although a bit slower than usual, the show picks up nicely when action is required. There is some humor in the series, but thankfully its not outright slapstick. Leo has some goofy moments, but that’s his role. The rest of the casts’ humor is much more subtle, such as Shannon continuing to do the laundry while the bandits are threatening them. Avoiding the slapstick helps keep things much more grounded, and lets the serious nature of the plot take hold fully rather than being sidetracked by a bunch of wacky adventures.
All in all, Scrapped Princess is a straightforward and fairly serious adventure. The characters are almost instantly likeable and the premise is explained enough to gain your interest while still leaving a great deal to be discovered over the course of the next twenty episodes. Combined with great looking visuals both in characters and settings, it avoids many of the usual clichés of the fantasy genre and provides an engaging journey that may end in the death of an entire world.
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