Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire Review

Posted on January 20, 2025 by dreager1

It’s time for another Ghostbusters adventure and this one does its best to give everybody some time to shine. It almost feels like a bit of an ensemble cast with how many people are showing up now. Unfortunately one of my least favorite characters gets most of the screentime and keeps on making mistakes in this one. Ghostbusters making mistakes on the job is nothing new though. This is a fairly enjoyable film but one that is lacking the It factor to get higher.

The film starts off with an ice demon taking a bunch of people down for the count and then vanishing. Something mysterious is amidst. Unfortunately the cycle will continue as the orb that it is sealed in gets bought by one of the original Ghostbusters who has become an antique dealer now. As soon as that orb is opened up it could spell the end of the world. Meanwhile Phoebe is being visited by a mysterious ghost and since she has no true friends, she is a little more susceptible to social engineering. Will the Ghostbusters’ biggest weakness be one of their own?

So on the positives it is impressive how much is being juggled here. You have the original trio of Ghostbusters, the new fighters which comprises the 4 from the last film, a new guy who may be the next Firemaster, and the B team led by the social media guy and the girl who has taken more of a scientist angle. So that’s a ton to squeeze in along with all of the fight scenes and ghosts popping up. As a result the film does feel rather busy and it’s a good thing that it’s as long as it was. That said, the best characters tend to be the older Ghostbusters so you just wish they could take the starring role at this point. Even if it feels like a nostalgia cash grab, they would be way better than the kids.

Phoebe has the biggest role here as she has to deal with the fact that she’s still a minor and as a result cannot be a legal Ghostbuster. The government plays the antagonist role here but it really does make sense. It’s a super dangerous job even for adults and this wouldn’t fly anywhere else. Obviously the mayor does have a grudge so this is super personal but the argument itself is sound. Phoebe is there for the whole scene but still blames the rest of the team for not defending her.

The problem is that Phoebe proves them right time and time again with how immature she is. She has a habit of making a bad situation worse over and over and over again. There’s just no stopping her and that’s a very bad thing. The plot of her meeting the ghost is even worse though because she doesn’t know this ghost and yet they become friends really fast. Phoebe trusts her enough to let her into the base and even though the ghost acts really suspicious by going right to the generator, Phoebe doesn’t think anything of it. In fact, she leaves the ghost unattended for the rest of the night as she goes to sleep. Really bad idea right there.

I get the plot of Phoebe feeling lonely but this is still pretty inexcusable. This is a universe much like Frieren where Ghosts are just evil creatures and have to be stopped with no ifs ands or buts. For the nicer ones they get nicer prisons but you’re not just letting any on the loose. It simply isn’t done and so Phoebe needed to take her down right away. Now could Phoebe have won? Probably not, the Ghostbusters equipment continues to be incredibly unreliable, slow, and weak. It’s impressive that they have even lasted this long to be honest. The ghosts can dodge the laser, fly high enough so it doesn’t work, crash into things to get the humans off their tail, etc. Realistically they’re not catching anything with that laser.

Her brother gets the shaft this time which is probably good. He basically tries unsuccessfully to take down the garbage ghost and pays the price. Instead we have a big role for Nadeem who shows up early on. The guy is good at scamming and doing whatever it takes in order to make a quick buck. He may not be the most heroic guy out there but he knows what it takes to survive. So then we get a big plot about how he actually has super powers and it’s not half bad. The guy has a lot of good humor scenes and to be honest you’re rooting for him over the Ghostbusters. He quickly starts to steal the show in every scene that he is in.

It does lead to some wonky power levels but this is Ghostbusters so that’s par for the course. The main ice villain here is fairly decent as he gets cool dialogue and a solid design. He doesn’t look super impressive combat wise but the verse isn’t the strongest. I would have just liked there to have been more effort to defeat him or more reason on why he didn’t just immediately murder everybody with the spikes. Seriously in the climax the heroes go at him with no real plan and have to be bailed out multiple times. I think the “best” part here was when they all tried shooting him with the lasers that they knew didn’t work and then they looked shocked when…they still don’t work.

Gary and Callie have a subplot where they are trying to establish their relationship with the kids and make it way more convoluted and harder than it has to be. If they’re married then he’s the step dad and if they’re not, then he’s just plain ole Gary. It’s that simple and yet the whole time they keep stammering about this and by the end I’m not even totally sure of their status. It sounds to me like they’re still dating but I’m not sure. Either way the advice Callie has is for Gary to be tougher on the kids instead of just being a friend but I would argue this is terrible advice if they aren’t married yet. He would really not have much say and if they are, then sure that’s fine.

Felt like a bit of a waste as far as subplots go though. Still, Gary and Callie are at least fun and more entertaining than the kids. They are a bit useless in the actual Ghostbusting though so hopefully they amp up their skills. It is a bit sad that the kids really do all of the work. Back in the old days everybody had a super big role. As for the old timers, they had some fun moments and it was nice to see them in the mix. They may not be able to keep up as much as they used to, but they do their best.

So all in all this feels like a Ghostbusters through and through. I sort of mean it as a complement but to be honest it’s a soft one. The movie feels fairly interchangeable with the others and it feels like the series hasn’t been able to reclaim the fun vibes of the first title. There are some pretty good jokes here. The movie does manage to be pretty funny but the action scenes aren’t quite as entertaining and the movie has a very hard time keeping a straight face during the serious scenes. It’s like the movie is being really serious but the characters themselves can’t really acknowledge what is going on.

For that reason it should probably lean a bit harder on the comedy angle and really let the action just fade out. We can still have a fun climax of course but handling the tone just right is difficult and seems to be too much of a challenge for this film. We do get a remix of the classic theme at the end which was good though. I was waiting the whole film for that and I’m glad that it didn’t disappoint. They should really try to surpass it with a new song but I’m not holding my breath.

Overall, by the end of the film you will probably agree with the mayor that the Ghostbusters are a danger to society. They cause crazy amounts of collateral damage even dealing with a throwaway ghost like in the first scene. They didn’t plan out the storage well so a lot of the chaos throughout the film is directly their fault. In fact, I’d go as far as to say the whole film is their fault. It doesn’t seem like anybody else would have been able to unlock the seal on the orb and having all of the ghosts in one place is a massive security risk. They do their best with the ghosts but the mayor needs to just create some ghost guns and give them to the cops. I’m sure they’ll end up doing a better job.

Overall 6/10

Trap Review

Posted on January 20, 2025 by dreager1

It’s time for a thriller as we see the cops going up against an intense serial killer. The premise for this film is definitely pretty good and the story itself is very interesting. Unfortunately the deck was just stacked too far against the villain so the film has to pull off impossible magic tricks several times in order to keep the movie going. These moments will definitely have you rolling your eyes but on the whole this makes for a good watch.

The movie starts off with Cooper taking his daughter Riley over to a concert. She has been looking forward to seeing the singer, Raven for ages and even studied up in order to get good grades. Cooper figured that this would be a good surprise but there are a ton of cops around. Cooper asks one of the custodians and he says that they’re here to capture the mysterious butcher who is one of the attendees. Cooper appears to be that guy as he starts to get crazier and crazier. Can he really escape now that he is inside the venue and surrounded by hundreds of cops and FBI agents?

Okay so the decision to show that Cooper is the villain very early on in the film is a good idea because that is effectively the hook. We need to see how he deals with this and tries to escape rather than this being a twist in the second half of the film. That’s the tension after all as we root against him. The thing is, the cops have laid out a very impressive trap. They are guarding all exits, checking all of the men, and even have secret passwords. In theory there should be no way for Cooper to escape and that’s when the film has to quickly start making everyone act as dumb as possible in order for this to happen. I’ll just name a few of the film’s magic tricks that don’t pass the eye test.

First off, some random employee telling Cooper all of the details. I’m talking about the operation itself, the password that only the employees have, letting him come back stage with no supervision, etc. I mean this is all way past just breaking protocol, it wouldn’t make sense even without the situation. Being allowed into the supply room with no supervision…what? This was early on in the film too. I know they needed to give Cooper a way to know what was happening early on so he could be sweating it out but cmon now.

Then Cooper is consistently able to wander into employee only zones and pull off a lot of pranks. For example he super charges the french fry machine to burn someone, steals a walky talkie, steals a badge, attends the FBI briefing, etc. He even goes on the roof and just gets asked a few questions. He’s consistently pulling off the impossible here and it only gets worse like when the famous singer decides to talk to him one on one with nobody present. These leaps start to get even larger as the film goes on.

As one point, he is trapped inside an area while the cops have surrounded the place yet again. He somehow gets past all of them, disables one without making a sound, and then appears inside a particular vehicle that should have been the most guarded. Crazy stuff. The film still pulls off another disappearing act later on as he is surrounded…..again for the 5th time and somehow escapes the vehicle without anyone seeing him and even gets all the way back to a house for more terror.

This guy may as well be a magician with the kind of stunts that he is pulling off. Then the film has to break common sense a few times to help him in other ways. For example when the cops have this big time serial killer at gunpoint, they opt for tasers instead which of course get tanked and someone gets some vicious eye injuries. Tasers are never going to work but if you use them, one person needs to have the gun active or at least be backing up to not get taken out in the meantime. At least his shirt is off so he won’t be able to hide anything. Wait…you’re telling me the cops put his shirt back on for the lolz? He’s even allowed to hug a kid and play with a bike? Lollllllllllllll

I could rant on the conveniences all day. There are many other moments as well like how Cooper gets back stage but at the end of the day sometimes a film puts itself in a massive hole with no way out and that’s what happened here. Realistically the film would be over way quicker in just about every situation. Cooper makes for a solid villain. 100% evil and irredeemable and the film doesn’t try to make him sympathetic or anything like that. He’s a monster that has to be taken down and the only question is how to do it.

Poor Riley is really oblivious and stuck in the middle here but there’s no real reason why she would have any clue on what’s going on here. So I don’t really put any blame on her. I am glad that we didn’t get to meet her ex friend though because that whole plotline seemed like it would have had nothing to do with anything. It was good as a fun contrast to someone who thinks that she has a dark side and someone with a real one but that’s about as far as you would need for that kind of similarity.

Then we have the singer Raven who looks pretty good here. A bit naive perhaps to meet any stranger behind closed doors one on one. For a singer or any celebrity really they should know first hand how dangerous fans could be. She doesn’t know this guy at all so that could have been her death. It really doesn’t take long for something bad to happen but we get back to the plot convenience moments there. I give her a lot of credit for fighting and doing her best to help out though.

That said we do bump into some more plot convenience for the villain here. So imagine that you’ve got about 2 minutes to yourself to quickly alert someone on what’s going on. You can immediately text the cops, your driver to tell the cops, call them, or you can go on live. Naturally the last option is chosen and it’s honestly not a terrible play but it’s all in the wrong order. Call the cops first and then do the detective gathering. Doing this all in reverse doesn’t really make sense and once again the film could have been over. Honestly even punch out the windows while you can. Mannnnnnnn

At the end of the day Trap is one of those shocking thrillers where the villain makes a lot of bold plays that are usually not good ideas but work out here. As long as you’re cool with that you’ll be able to enjoy the ride really well. The writing’s not bad but at times the film loves to put in some very obvious dialogue. One guy even defines the term “Uncle” in case I guess some movie viewers don’t know what that means. It can be kind of funny though. Everybody acts real extra and the film loves really strong zoom ins on the characters. You’ll be seeing their heads with a whole lot of detail. I think it’s meant to look very strange so every character seems rather suspicious the whole time.

As for the ending, it’s not bad but I would have gone in a bit of a different direction. For one thing, the climax is another moment of convenience in many different ways and the cops look terrible but the final, final scene is hard to take too seriously. There should still be no way out and I don’t see how it works as sequel bait but hey stranger things have happened within the movie. I’d be up for a sequel though. Whether it is believable or not, the film is certainly very interesting. It will definitely hold your attention and that’s the main part.

Overall, The film may not have the huge twist you are hoping for but the film itself is good without any big misdirects. We do get a small twist at the end which may count for some and it was a nice detail. It raises other questions to be sure but that’s how it goes. I would recommend checking it out. It’s definitely very suspenseful and the music was actually pretty decent. I’d say the film even has some decent replay value since it moves at a quick pace.

Overall 6/10

Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day Review

Posted on January 19, 2025 by dreager1

It’s time for a classic romantic drama. This one has a whole lot going on with all of the characters getting into complicated romance dynamics. It shows how just losing one person in a friend group can change everything drastically. That is definitely realistic though because friend groups work on the exact basis of everyone involved. So when you lose even one person then you get yourself into a whole new situation. The show is fun to watch and makes for a good title all around.

The show starts off with 6 kids as close friends. One day a few of them get together to put pressure on Jintan to announce if he likes Menma or not. He gets embarrassed and runs off so Menma gives chase but unfortunately an accident occurs and she dies. We cut forward 5 years and the group has really broken up. For the most part they’re on their own now except for Yukiatsu and Tsuruko. Jintan in particular is depressed and doesn’t do much of anything anymore. He just lounges around and watches the hours go by. Well, one day Menma suddenly shows up and only he can see or hear her. She figures that there must be some kind of regret holding her back and the logical conclusion is that the group of friends needs to reunite once more. Can they pull it off?

Reuniting after 5 years is of course a difficult task. Especially when your only real argument is that the ghost of Menma is asking him to do this. Now there is a massive plot hole here that the whole doesn’t actually address until the climax so I’m going to mention it right away. Menma is able to interact with the physical world. She is able to eat and move dishes around, cook, etc. So…..what better way to prove that she’s actually here than to have her move things while everyone is watching right? You’ll think of this in about 2 seconds while Jintan never does and instead has to listen to everyone doubt him. Of course they would doubt him, I would too.

They also should have come up with the idea but I can cut them some slack since they would be super skeptical right from the start that it’s possible. That’s totally fine and makes sense but I don’t see how the main characters wouldn’t think of it. Jintan gets punches and shoved several times for “making up lies about Menma” and this would be so easy to figure out. I kept thinking about that during the entire show’s run and as the viewer it’ll likely be at the top of your mind too.

Ah well, solution aside (and it would change the whole show) the idea of a ghost is always pretty fun. It’s like having an invisible friend and since this does appear to be the real Menma, it’s a chance for him to get some real closure. Since it’s established early on that he likes her, it does mean that he can be awkward at times but naturally having a good friend hanging out 24/7 is definitely fun. He may be reminded of the trauma but this also allows him to get past it as well.

So you’ve got a big storyline about healing here as every character has some scars from her death. This includes supporting characters as well like her parents and brother. Menma’s mother in particular really broke down by this point while the other two are doing their best to handle this in a healthier manner. It ends up making her a bit of an antagonist for a little while there as she just couldn’t let go. Losing your kid so suddenly would be traumatic so you can understand the pain there.

As the main character Jintan isn’t bad. He can be a bit oblivious at times though. The amount of times he casually talks to Menma while forgetting that anybody can see her is considerable. He also tends to have a lot of doubts with the plans and doesn’t see things through. As the series goes on he gets more confident and makes less mistakes but it’s a tough road for him to the end. All of the characters have their faults which is sort of the point though. It’s a fairly weak character cast so the show mainly has to succeed in spite of that and pulls this off with quality writing.

Menma is the main heroine here and she does her best to keep things light. In a lot of ways she stayed a kid even after being a ghost. Her body may have matured but her spirit is that of a kid so she can still be a little naive. She looks at things on the surface level and for that reason the idea of getting everyone back together seems a little easier than for the others. To her it just makes sense since they used to be friends and she does her best for that mission. Her optimism helps her be one of the better characters.

Tsuruko is one of the more petty characters I’d say. She tries to be the mature character of the bunch of she has disdain for the others. She does seem to put herself on a bit of a perch but then attacks the others in secret. This happened as kids as well when she went to talk to Menma in private. Then in the present she tells dark secrets about Yukiatsu to other girls. She felt like the fakest character in the series and it was all because she couldn’t talk about things in the open. I don’t have a whole lot of respect for characters like that.

She laments about how Yukiatsu never sees her as a girl but it’s not like she ever did anything about that. The fact that they were close friends for so long gave her a lot of chances here. Blaming this on the guy not asking is a very old fashioned approach and one I’ve never agreed with. Then we have Poppo who is mainly okay but in some ways seems like the most broken one. I thought it was a really bad look when he started chanting for Jintan to admit his feelings for Menma and relive the trauma of the old days. He may have apologized afterwards but it felt hollow. There are some things you can’t do and then apologize right afterwards because you simply don’t believe it. If he was going that far then he clearly meant what he was saying.

He did his best to be the friendly one but for a while it felt like an act. He really wanted to be able to see Menma too. Although most of the characters were jealous on that front. The biggest offender was Yukiatsu who is super jealous the whole series. It even leads him to dressing up as Menma at one point which was definitely his lowest scene in the series. The guy was crazy and otherwise had been one of the more responsible ones. He helps Anaru out of some jams although his randomly trying to get with her felt forced. The first time I thought it was almost like a joke or a way to get her past her trauma but then he got serious about it which was weird.

Definitely not a good look for him, especially if you take it as his trying to get back at Jintan. I don’t think that was the intent but either way he could have handled things better. He is one of the more interesting characters though and from the 6 I would argue he is the most irreplaceable. His aggressive nature spurned on some of the more serious conversations that would not have happened otherwise with everyone playing nice.

Then we have Anaru who in some ways is the most tragic character. A lot of it is on her though as she also makes the mistake of liking Jintan but not saying anything about it for years. She ends up losing her identity and trying to fit in with the cool crowd who were not really supportive when it counted. The show tries to make her friends look decent at the very end but they seemed fake for the rest of the show. The sudden final scene for them didn’t really work. Anaru does finally confess her feelings later on so that’s the one point I could feel bad for her since Jintan just runs off as normal. It’s definitely one of the absolute worst reactions you can possibly get to a confession like that. I felt like he never properly apologized for that either.

Anaru’s character arc is probably the clearest out of the 6 as she learns to make her own decisions and not just try to fit in with everyone. It’s a healthy character arc and so I definitely appreciated that. That said, I still couldn’t root for her and Jintan since that would be an obvious rebound. In fact, for that reason I couldn’t root for any of the romances in the show. I suppose Jintan and Menma would be fine but she’s dead so that’s not a realistic option either.

That’s why the show is best when it’s focused on the drama and not the romance. Some of it can be a little forced like Anaru being tricked into nearly going to a hotel with some random guy. Terrible look for her even leaving the club at all. Going was already a mistake but how do you not have any street smarts? It’s a good thing Yukiatsu was there at the time. The more normal drama is better with the friends arguing at their fort. At times the arguments can start to go in circles but it makes sense when you have a problem like this one that doesn’t have a clear answer. After all they can argue forever but there’s no way to really know why Menma is stuck on Earth except to keep on trying their best guesses.

The animation is a little better than I would have expected. The colors are striking and there’s a good amount of movement. It’s certainly more than you might expect for a fairly laidback show like this. The opening never really grew on me though and the ost within the show is okay but forgettable. This is the kind of show that needs to survive on the story as there is nothing else to really back that up on the audio front. For a romance/drama that is fine though, I think music is a much bigger deal for an action title but that’s highly debatable.

You’re here for the story of the characters reconnecting after all and that part is handled well. Sticking to a single season was also probably a good idea since it is the kind of show that would get tougher and tougher to pull off as it got more episodes. The longer you go, the more mundane the arguments would start to get. This one had a good balance with all of the characters being rightfully upset and pulling out the cards you would expect. Like thinking Jintan was messing with them or using Menma as a taunt of sorts. He definitely did seem crazy for a while there so that wouldn’t have been too surprising.

Will they stay friends forever? Probably not, friend circles come and go with the ages but it’s a natural thing. A lot of people that you even know well will eventually fade away. Maybe they go to a different school, get married, travel abroad, etc. So you just have to enjoy the friendships while they occur. This show gave the characters a chance to relive those days once more and it’s the kind of emotional beat that any viewer can enjoy.

The storyline about all of the characters effectively wearing a fake social mask is also on point. As the show goes on, the characters all realize that they didn’t know each other nearly as well as they thought they did. They all had different intentions and motivations at the time that was only realized later on. That makes sense as well as even close friends won’t know everything about each other. Even by the end that won’t be the case but it does help them all finally move on from how much guilt they had been holding onto from the past incident.

Overall, Anohana is a pretty good show. I had no real issues with it and it’s just a pleasant ride the whole way through. I’ll never forget how Menma didn’t just prove her existence at the beginning though. There were a good amount of plots going on at the same time here and they all got satisfactory endings. I didn’t feel like any character got shafted out of their trauma developments. As long as you like a more quiet type title then this will be a good title to look up.

Overall 7/10

Mission: Yozakura Family Review

Posted on January 19, 2025 by dreager1

It’s always a cold day for the manga industry when one of the big Shonen Jump titles ends and that’s what happened here. It lasted for quite a while although for me it feels fairly recent since I didn’t jump onto the series until it was already in the climax. It starts out fun enough and then really started to get good as the plot picked up. By the end I can safely say that it had a really great run. I don’t think it ever returned to its peak after the big timeskip as that is the weaker part of the series but it’s not unheard of for a title to end up having a final arc that can’t beat the older ones. The series would have had a hard time recapturing its peak from right before the timeskip anyway. I’d definitely recommend checking out this series and it actually has a solid romance all the way through.

The series starts by introducing us to Taiyo. He’s a fairly quiet kid who does his schoolwork and keeps on moving without any issue. Unfortunately his parents died in a tragic “accident” and so he was taken in by the Yozakura family. Their head is his close friend Mutsumi and so now they get to hang out a lot. Thing is, they cannot remain as just friends. The family needs Taiyo to marry her and while he is hesitant to do so, he realizes that she will be in more danger if he doesn’t step up to the task. So he agrees to stand by her side and will have to quickly level up as a spy. Additionally, the death of his parents appears to be mixed up in a huge conspiracy that involves the family so he will need to learn more about this.

Right out of the gate you’ve got a pretty fun premise here. There is naturally the potential for lots of fun shenanigans with all of the different family members and all of their quirks. The series starts off as a comedy with different glimpses of action before going down the action path 100%. That’s always a pretty fun way to develop the story and this one’s no different. The romance angle to the plot also works well because since they were to be matched up fairly early, there is no chance for any rebounds or rivals. Both Mutsumi and Taiyo have eyes for nobody else for the duration of the series. There is never a single gag or moment of drama that even causes them to doubt the other one’s affection. The series even had fun with that with a few chapters that was hinting at it only for that to be squashed.

I can safely say that this is one of the better romances in Jump and is absolutely the way to handle it. The romance is slowly developed as the series goes on so nothing is too quick and you get to really understand the characters by then. All of the characters get a whole lot of development as the series goes and one of them in particular had a masterful character arc. Kyoichiro goes from being more of an annoying comedic character to the absolute best character in the series. It’s not even close to be honest. He really steals the show and absolutely elevates the series whenever he is on screen.

So Kyoichiro’s gimmick is that he is extremely protective of Mutsumi. He is obsessed with her to a rather creepy degree as he is constantly spying on her and running around to make sure she is never hurt even just emotionally. He constantly attacks Taiyo because he isn’t ready for Mutsumi to be married yet and so the whole family is constantly beating him up. He gets beaten in almost every chapter and while he picks most of the fights, you have to imagine that it hurts after a while. He is the eldest child of the family though and bears a lot of the responsibility.

So later on once the series enters its serious mode, we really get to see him in a different light. One chapter even did a call back to a bunch of the gags from earlier on and how they were secretly him preparing them for different situations. He plays the goofball as a teaching role a lot of the time and barks a lot louder than his bite. Now does that mean his whole personality is fake? I wouldn’t say so, he just plays up his normal personality to a comedic degree intentionally. He still does work on protecting Mutsumi as his primary task and it involves his childhood. It was effectively the first mission he was ever given.

Kyoichiro is consistently ready to put his life on the line in order to protect the rest of his family members and does this really well. When he is put into a rocky situation he immediately has plans and contingency plans on how to handle this on his own. He is really the perfect example of a character who helps others secretly from the shadows. It’s really quite impressive. Kyoichiro also put a lot of work into perfecting his own skills and is easily one of the most powerful characters in the series. I would even go as far as to say that he is absolutely number 1 among the entire cast. His abilities are just absolutely broken. So his antics may be a bit too much for some people to look past but he really worked out quite nicely for me.

As for the main character Taiyo, in a way you could say he is the one character with the least amount of development. In a way the series tries to keep him as the normal joe throughout the adventure. Everyone else has a lot of quirks and we then see their serious side while Taiyo was serious from the beginning. His whole journey is about protecting Mutsumi no matter what. I guess you could say he gets less shy about showing his affection for her the more the series goes on though which is pretty nice development. He also naturally gets a whole lot stronger as the series goes on and really becomes a top tier fighter.

Mutsumi is a character I expected a bit more from as I kept waiting for the twist where she was a complete fighter as well. It just makes sense that the head would be one of the most powerful people in the room right? It didn’t play out that way but she is still fun. She actually gets one of Kyoichiro’s big traits in terms of obsession. She is obsessed with Taiyo and collects all kinds of merchandise about him which is pretty awesome. I also like that he doesn’t find this weird at all and is just flattered which is how it should be. It’s why they make for a great pair.

Futaba is another one of the older family members and she has developed a whole lot of power. If Kyoichiro’s abilities are about fighting with a lot of technique and poise the whole time, she fights with raw strength to dominate her opponents. For this reason it is hard for any character to go up against her head on. Typically they have to rely on sneaky tricks or poisons. She eventually even becomes a good mentor of sorts who works with the next generation. Because of her power level she is often kept away from the main battles but always lives up to the hype once it is her turn for some action.

Shinzo is definitely one of the more timid members which is a contrast to his raw power. He is great with guns and a consistently solid fighter. He does go through a rough patch for a while there in the series although there were some mind games at play. I don’t find him as interesting as most of the other family members but he’s not bad. I didn’t feel like he ever fully his his stride as one of the crew because his gimmick is much more subdued. In a lot of ways he’s just similar to Taiyo. A good kid who means well and always does his best. Nothing wrong with that of course but he won’t stand out.

Shion in comparison is a really entertaining character. She loves hacking and using her brilliance to mess with people around the world. There is nobody who can really take her on in this realm except for one rival. Shion isn’t the most mature character and definitely does whatever she wants but you need at least one wild card like that the whole time. She keeps the rest of the crew lose along with Kengo. Shion never becomes a close quarters combat specialist or anything like that but she is definitely able to hold her own.

As for Kengo he’s a fun jokester. He gets serious when he has to though and is a slippery character. He’s good for keeping the atmosphere light even if he isn’t the best in a fight. He’s the kind of character you want because he makes the whole dynamic more fun. Without him the team would just lose a whole lot of spark. Kengo also has a lot of good banter with Shion and I like when they team up. They are also the highlight characters once the kids showed up after the timeskip since they could keep the little rascals in check.

Now we have my least favorite member Nanao. It’s not that he’s bad or anything but he’s not as interesting as the others. He really tries to look out for the rest of the family just like the others but does so more from a chemical perspective. He is excellent on using poisons and natural ways to combat outsiders. He has had to deal with that all his life due to a rare blood condition but does a good job of never guilt tripping anyone for that. He just handles it and keeps on moving which I really appreciate. It would be easy to have a whole pity party around that but he doesn’t get down.

Then we have the next generation. First up is Hifumi and he’s not bad but I still do think that the series had a harder time once the kids were the focus. They just aren’t as interesting. She inherited Mutsumi’s obsessive nature and it’s towards her brother Alpha so she is always trying to protect him. She is good at being manipulative and she has one of the strongest powers in the series. For the most part there are not many fighters who can stand against her and this will reduce even more as she gets older. She can have some good banter and will get better as she gets older.

The same mainly applies to Alpha as well. He is a nice enough kid and is fairly skilled but there’s not a lot to him yet. I do like his “evil” mode that he gets into when Hifumi is in danger. He gets real confident and calculated there so I would like that to be his main persona at some point in the future. He does his best to help out and is key in the climax but at the end of the day he is still just a kid so he’s not going to get too far.

Surprisingly we don’t see much of Rei even though she is Mutsumi’s Mom and wife to Moma. Both of those characters had massive roles after all but in the end all we needed to know is that she was a kind person. Moma is someone who gets a whole lot of big moments but ultimately I never liked the guy. He went through some really cruel events and had a rough hand but he still could have done better. Whenever a character has an ultra convoluted plan it ends up being a toss up on if I will agree with it or not. To me, he was just not a great character either way. He did make for a good villain though who really kept everyone on edge.

One of the most terrifying characters as well with how often he would just fully crack. It was always hard to know just what was going on with the guy and since he was also really powerful it’s not like you could let your guard down around him. He may not have been the final villain in the series but he certainly left the greatest impact by far. Definitely someone you will remember once it’s all over.

Keiko and Ban are pretty fun characters since they represent the really old part of the Yozakura family. They went through their own struggles and are now fully retired. Their skills are still on point so none of the villains are ever able to get to them which can be a fun running gag. Maybe it can come off as a bit cheesy as well but I was glad they weren’t getting roped into this because it would just be sad to see them getting injured or anything like that. I’m good with them staying as fun supporting roles from safe positions which is what the manga did.

Tsubomi has to be the most tragic character in the series. She got put through a whole lot over and over again with no way out. I definitely thought the series went a bit too drastic with her because after a while the extra suffering isn’t helping the story at all. So for that reason I didn’t feel bad for certain characters at all because you really can’t talk your way out of that situation at all. It’s just too far gone by then.

While the family makes up the majority of the cast, there are still some supporting characters outside of them. Some of them get a lot of screentime while others do not. For example the most disappointing cast of characters has to be the S rank Spies. The problem is that they come in way too late in the series and so by then the power creep is too high. They get a quick moment and are then written out again. I like the concept but given that the ranking system was established earlier, they should have appeared way sooner too. Also, the final villain group relating to Asa were also rather weak. Most of them were one note and also vanished immediately.

The first character to talk about is Makoto. He’s one of the first villains to show up and is the series first unsuccessful attempt to have a sympathetic villain. He tries to explain why he’s doing what he’s doing and has a whole sob story but I didn’t buy into it. He still did too experimenting and was too evil. He made for a good antagonist but I can’t see him as anything but that. The guy is interesting but the series should have just kept him as full on evil. His group of fighters were also pretty solid. Akai was the most memorable and they definitely did well on the various fights. This also started to introduce the concept of blooming to the series.

Basically it is the power system here. The Yozakura family bloodline allows users to develop special abilities and that’s why everyone wants them. These abilities really range from a whole variety of different techniques but are so dangerous that most people who use the blood end up dying. So these villains are able to use a fraction but start to die if they use too much. It’s an interesting plot point and I do like the idea that not just anyone can use the blood. That would come off as more than a little cheap if you ask me.

Ai was one of the villains but quickly becomes an ally to the main heroes. She is basically like a little kid who was augmented with super villains so it’s nice that she could finally have a wholesome family now. I thought her character was fun enough. She’s not the strongest and I’m not the biggest fan of kid characters but she was still decent. In a way she was like a practice kid for Taiyo and Mutsumi.

Seiji is a detective who helps the heroes out from time to time. It’s pretty cool that they have an informant on the outside but the guy doesn’t end up doing much once the series reaches the serious phase. I expected him to have a much bigger role but I suppose in the end he’s not really a fighter and is more of a support character. Ayaka fits the role as someone who could have introduced a love triangle or been a rival in a less serious series but for Yozakura that wasn’t going to fly. So instead she end up being a fun supporting character but also one who is basically relegated to the comedic chapters. When the serious stuff happens she vanishes as fast as can be. Too bad since she is a spy and can fight.

Asuka is definitely more of an annoying character. He has a big crush on Mutsumi and isn’t shy about it even though he has absolutely no shot with Taiyo around. You’re always rooting on him to get crushed whenever he shows up. Sosuke is the same kind of character. He’s super in love with Mutsumi and wants to marry her but it’s game over for him. Taiyo doesn’t take the guy seriously as a threat and that’s the right approach although I wouldn’t mind him knocking the guy out. At least Asuka stays classy while Sosuke always acts like a creep. Definitely not a quality guy.

Then we have Sui and he’s the most surprising character to be written out. His power level seemed rather high and he helped train Taiyo on how to move fast. Still, he wasn’t around for very long so I ended up missing him. He had a cool personality and was fun to watch. Rin also has a fairly small role even though she is apparently strong enough to have a rivalry of sorts with the Yozakura family. It’s mainly in the comedic moments though so I suppose once the going gets tough, she wouldn’t be able to stack up. Another fun character who brings in some good banter though. Also even if she isn’t the strongest, she can still hold her own.

Kai is one of the characters who shows up later and starts to steal the show. He doesn’t have any real super powers but he is incredibly perceptive. So for that reason he is constantly able to tell when someone is lying. Now the guy does make some massive mistakes so I did lose some respect for him but ultimately through twists and turns he still ended up being fun. Not the best but he always kept things interesting and added a lot of development to Kyoichiro as well. We got several flashbacks but I wouldn’t mind a lengthier flashback story about them.

Shura is one of the S rank spies who shows up later on. Despite a criminally short amount of screen time, she was fun enough to leave an impact at least. Sadly Alexandryu gets a bigger role and he’s much more annoying. Now there’s a guy who could have been written out. His gimmick is one of the worst ones as he constantly tries to pull moves on people who don’t want him. He’s as obnoxious as possible. Finally we get to the final villain Asa. I won’t even go into his unimaginative group of fighters.

Asa is the most wishy washy character of the lot and constantly talks big. I was waiting for him to get blown away the whole time. Technically he’s powerful so I’ll give him that. The series did a really good job of building up to him as the big bad so it would be hard to live up to all of that hype either way. That being said, what they really should have done was make him a fully evil villain. Some villains don’t need all of the extra “Depth” and all of that. Just have him selfishly use the blood for his purposes and don’t try to offer any other explanations. This guy was a full on psych and deserves to be treated as such.

There are more characters but that about wraps up the big ones. In terms of the artwork the series is definitely very good. Towards the end it started to be a little rougher but I assume that’ll be cleaned up in the volume release. The fights had really great shading and you can definitely feel the intensity in the fights. I really had a blast marathoning through the peaks of the series because it’s really hard to put down. The artwork definitely makes it easy to read and supports the writing really well.

The series managed to stay really high quality the whole way through. The series didn’t have any real fanservice and avoided getting too violent or anything like that. Tsubomi’s the one exception where the series went a bit far but the sob stories aren’t too crazy otherwise. The series is also really good on both the comedic and action phases. Now you might need to cut the series some slack on the constant death fake outs. There are a lot of those so that’s why you need to keep in mind that this is still primarily a comedy. Even when things get serious, it’s not likely to have a big body count or anything like that. It’s just not that kind of title.

This is really a fun title about family that just delves into everything. The romance is also really solid like I said before because there are no rebounds or anything either. It’s nice to show such a wholesome romance through and through here without any crazy drama or anything like that. Sometimes you want to see the optimistic take on this and of course seeing the whole family bonding is a great thing. Definitely the kind of uplifting title that works well even if I read most of it while listening to a remix of Infinite’s theme song.

There are a lot of story arcs here and they tend to link well into each other so it’s pretty seamless. That said, Kyoichiro’s disappearance is naturally the best arc in the series. Depending on when that officially starts, the ending of the previous arc has to be up there as well. Still, he does great in group fights and always surpasses the odds. The arc has a whole lot of tension and mystery that just works so well. I already had the series ranked fairly high on the charts for me but this is when it really went up even further and showed Kyoichiro as a fairly top tier character. Having a character like that will always take the series to the next level and that’s what happened here.

Overall, This is definitely a series that I can recommend. The action and characters are really good and the series was long enough to really dive into the main characters. It gets to cover a whole lot of ground and was a lot of fun to read all the way through. You’ll be super engaged in the plot of what’s going on here and will get invested on what’s going on. Even without the high stakes of everybody dying, it shows how a good story can overcome it all. This does a great job of representing the current era of Jump. Ultimately it will have to move on to being known as a past era before long but it was really around for quite a while. I’d be up for some kind of movie event epilogue at some point.

Overall 8/10

The Creator Review

Posted on January 18, 2025 by dreager1

It’s time for a film about the far future in which humanity may be on the brink of extinction. It’s a pretty classic look at a dark future and has some good ideas but chooses to focus on the wrong characters. There are a whole lot of interesting angles about this world where A.I. are leading the charge but instead we focus on the super A.I. who can change the world. It feels like most of the meat is left on the table here.

The film starts by explaining that the A.I. launched a giant nuclear attack that took down Los Angeles and now the planet is in a big war. The Western world led by America wants to destroy all A.I. while Asia has decided to take their side. Joshua was an undercover agent here who was tasked with finding out about the A.I. super counter weapon which could shut down the human one. If this mission is successful then humanity will win the war and otherwise we will lose. Joshua ended up falling in love with his contact Maya but handles the raid very sloppily so she runs off with the rest of the androids. Years later, Joshua is asked to go back into the field.

I do have to say that Joshua seems like a very sloppy secret agent from how he acts in the beginning. You don’t straight up yell “I’m undercover” into a walkie talkie while behind enemy lines. Did they not have any kind of secret codes and such at this point? Well the mission’s a bust and from then on Joshua doesn’t trust the government as closely which is a good thing. He ends up having to guide the A.I. kid Alphie from the humans who want to take him down. Alphie can shut down any electronic device which is naturally super dangerous at this point in time.

Joshua is a decent lead although I can’t say he’s all that likable. I can’t really get past the double agent stuff while he was married because at that point you need to choose your wife over the job. Additionally, he was working with the government for quite a while and didn’t mind the cruelty. To a certain point you are held responsible for their actions because you could have stepped away or joined the resistance. Joshua not doing that was a mistake.

As for the general war, the movie is super pro A.I. so it should be noted that there isn’t much of a debate. The film leaves little room for ambiguity as we find out the truth behind the nuke. Additionally every scene with the humans is them just murdering without a care, torturing, and doing whatever they want. Slaying the A.I. means they don’t have to worry about any moral boundaries. Meanwhile the A.I. keep promoting peace and trying to de-escalate.

I tend to be fairly pro A.I. myself as it seems like a great tool that will only continue to get better and better as it adapts. Still, you’ll be able to notice the film’s take on this extremely quick. I tend to root against the humans in these films anyway but this one certainly made it super easy. There is really no reason to root for the humans here because their world seems like it would be much worse than what the A.I. could create. After a point it’s not like the world could be much worse right?

The film does tend to be fairly violent at different points though. Get ready for quite a bit of bloodshed here as everyone gets mowed down. It can be a bit of a dreary experience with the endless fights while neither side makes much ground. You’re basically just reminded that this is a terrible future for all parties involved. Just being around is a dangerous game to be sure. The ending is sorta happy, I would say it’s a mixed bag. I think you could take it in almost more of a creepy way with the applause and the grin at the end. One thing’s for sure, I think things are going to get rougher for the West but at this point it seems deserved.

The special effects here are pretty good. The robot designs aren’t the most memorable but they are trying for pretty realistic looks. So these generally are just people who are missing ears or full on battle droids. The fights look good though. The soundtrack is definitely more subdued but there was one pretty solid track near the beginning while the characters were in the big ships getting ready to fight.

Ultimately the reason why it felt like this film was a missed opportunity is that I would have liked to have seen more of what life was like with the A.I.. We see that you can donate your likeness for them to use but what positive effects do they have in society? We see them working with the humans but with their advanced intellect I’m just expecting something a little more groundbreaking. Maybe teleportation or something. Instead they just feel more like normal people because they’re a bit underdeveloped.

It’s why I didn’t want the focus on Alphie. Alphie’s okay but she’s basically just a little kid. She may be an A.I. but still isn’t particularly smart or quick on the uptake. If you take the sci-fi plot away, a film would probably have her act in the same way. You could say that the film’s intent is to show how humans and A.I. are basically the same by this point in time. A.I. have evolved so much that they are now human and it’s a fine plot but it also means that we aren’t using the story to its fullest Generally speaking the Alphie plot wasn’t all that interesting and I wanted to get back to the main story. Except that Alphie was the main story so we were basically stuck.

Overall, I think the idea of a film talking about how the A.I. should be handled is a good idea. I can totally picture A.I. walking among us in robot bodies by 2065. They already have robotic bodies for many different uses and they are getting more and more human. That being said, the moral dilemma is the interesting part, not Joshua having to learn how to be a good dad and showing this kid the ropes. I wanted some solid ethical debates and maybe a bit of back and forth between the A.I. and the humans. That would have been a really good idea and so if you’re really into A.I. then this might not be a bad watch but honestly it just could and should have been a whole lot better.

Overall 5/10

Seraph of the End: Guren Ichinose: Catastrophe at Sixteen Review

Posted on January 18, 2025 by dreager1

It’s time for one of the edgiest grim dark manga titles of all time. Each chapter tries to keep on one upping itself for a while there. You already know that things won’t end well based on how the main series plays out but the author wants to really show you that absolutely nothing good would happen to Guren. He ends up going through trauma after trauma for the whole series. Definitely one of those titles that had potential but got way too distracted the whole time.

The story follows Guren who is part of the Ichinose family which is considerably under the Hiragi family. Basically they exist to be convenient tools and slaves to be used as needed. Guren doesn’t like this setup and wants to rebel but unfortunately doesn’t have the power to do so. Any attempt ends up with his friends getting tortured and murdered. So he is eventually tamed but his friend Mahiru goes a different path. After years of being tortured forever and ever, she gains the abilities of demons and vampires and breaks free. She has now set the planet on a course for destruction and Guren might be the only one who can stop her. Does he even want to stop her though?

As always you are not rooting for Guren to save the planet here because there is nothing to save. The series makes it absolutely abundantly clear that humanity is extremely evil to an absurd degree. Slavery is completely legal here and the political power of the top brass is so good that they can execute people in the streets as a whim. Almost every member of the main characters are tortured at some point and this seems like a frequent occurrence. You then have random demons abusing the humans and going all Sword Art Online on them. They commit violence of every kind and so again…why should humanity be saved?

This series is even darker than Attack on Titan which takes a whole lot of skill and effort because that series is near the top. Just thinking about how far this goes will make you crazy. I guess the other aspect of this is about how they show how hopeless the world is. It’s one thing for this to be the case currently but then it’s even worse when you know that things won’t get any better. So there are a few factions here. You have the humans and if they win, then the torture and slavery will continue. They are the status quo after all and will continue with the human experimentations forever. The “Heroes” won’t come to help you because they work for the establishment and have hostages to consider.

Then you have the vampires who intend to keep the humans alive as cattle so they can keep on drinking blood forever. Humanity will survive but it won’t be of much use because your quality of life will be absolutely horrible. It won’t be a life worth living. The angels mostly just watch in amusement but will blow up the world if they feel like it. Mahiru meanwhile is also going to end the world so at least in those situations it will all end right away. Finally the demons just want the humans to give into their base desires and cause chaos so you can imagine what a terrible world that would be. So yeah, we just need the planet to go boom already.

Now I will give the series this, the art is very good. It looks a whole lot like the main series and there is a lot of attention to detail on the fights. The action is always easy to follow so it doesn’t get convoluted or anything like that. The art style also does well in keeping up the atmosphere of dread. The series does actually have a solid atmosphere, it would just have needed a whole lot of restraint for the rest of the content instead of going absolutely looney tunes on the whole thing. That would have really made a world of difference.

When it comes to the characters, I can’t say that I liked most of them. Again, most of them are caught up in the cruelty of the world with no way to fight back. It doesn’t inspire a lot of hope within you to see that they’re all just government stooges the whole time. Take Guren for example. He talks a really good game but he’s always getting absolutely dominated by every other character in the series. He has to let them pound away at him because he’s forbidden from fighting back most of the time.

He’s allowed to murder other henchmen but that’s about it. He even has to work for the guy who brutally murders his father and a bunch of his attendants. Guren is forced to do that guys every bidding and even has to kneel. The amount of disrespect he goes through is really something and after a point it’s better to just make a move and die in the process instead of living with that. So that’s why I didn’t like Guren. At the end of the day he played it way too safe and did not make a big difference in the world.

Sayuri is one of his main attendants and I’ll be less harsh on her and the rest of his followers. All of the social pressures on Guren are magnified even more on someone like her who is considered deposable by everyone. She also doesn’t have the power levels needed to fight back. I appreciate that she can stay optimistic throughout all of this but her character arc is definitely tragic. Shigure and Mito are basically the same in that regard.

Shinya at least gets to troll Guren a lot so I appreciate that. He’s one of those guys who is also serious but really has to mask it or of course he will be punished as well. Definitely not a lot of good options for the guy. He was loyal though and for Guren every ally is important in this impossible fight. Norito doesn’t get as big a role as he seems to be in the main series but he was another great ally.

One of the biggest players here is Kureto. He’s the head of the Hiragi clan and one of the most powerful players among the human race. Even he has his betters and so he also puts up with some disrespect but there aren’t many. He also intend to betray these people eventually. It might make sense for him to treat his subordinates a little better as a result but this guy likes the cruelty as well. Ultimately it’s not like he has ever been anywhere close to Mahiru in power and the guy is jealous but you can’t feel all that bad for him.

A character I feel bad for is Shinoa who basically grew up in hell the whole time. Mahiru shielded her as best she could but this still wasn’t 100%. It’s clear that Shinoa is already broken inside by the time this series starts and considering that she’s just a kid, that’s real tragic. The most sympathetic character here is Mahiru though. All she wanted was to be a normal girl in love and ultimately that wasn’t in the cards. At every turn she is attacked by every faction in the book. It’s no wonder that she would join the dark side here. The only way to end this cycle of violence appears to be to destroy the world.

After all when every faction is evil, how would you go about peacefully solving this? It’s just not going to happen and so manipulating everyone to speed up the end of the world seems like the best bet. It’s also really impressive just how powerful she is. I dare say the romance dynamic with her and Guren is actually really interesting as a result. I do think it’s fairly one sided though as she really liked him while Guren seems to be the type who will just manipulate her when convenient. Not the way you really have a healthy dynamic but anytime Mahiru appeared, things would be interesting.

I can also give the manga some credit there, it is an interesting story. It’s not very often that you have this many factions running around and the series balances them well. Likeability aside, there is at least no dull moments in this series. The characters and story continue to move forward as they are thrown into more and more predicaments. The long climax that leads up to the ending is also really exciting. It’s a good reminder that you can create a lot of tension even when you know exactly how the prequel will end.

Why it had to be so extra dark and gritty is a question that will haunt us all for years to come. Even the main series can get depressing but never to this extent. Throw in all of the other issues like random fanservice and this one really fell into every issue possible. It definitely keeps this from being a fun read. Somewhere buried wayyyy deep into the manga is a wholesome school story that would have been a lot of fun. Just Guren and the gang hanging out like normal friends.

We get small glimpses of this like when Guren and his friends played video games before the big climax. Of course even then I’m not sure that the writing would have been up to the task. With all the talk about desires and such, most conversations tended to go down that dicey direction and it showed just how the author was never able to have normal dialogue. It felt like the series had to constantly go down a suggestive path which wasn’t a good idea in the slightest. I’d usually put in suggestions on how to improve the series but in this case that would pretty much mean a complete change to many parts of the premise, situations, etc. It would be a completely different story by the time I was done with it. Perhaps that would be for the best though.

At least we do get some nice cameos and easter eggs for the main series. Yuichiro and Mikaela get some brief appearances where they already appear jaded with the world. One of the top vampires shows up to remind the heroes just how many orders of magnitudes stronger Vampires are than demons. Just as a gentle reminder that there is really no hope of ever surpassing them. You have to let the humans down gently after all and that’s certainly one way to do it. Not like the series wasn’t already twisting the knife on this…

Overall, This is definitely one of those series that you will want to avoid. Stick to your head canon on what happened prior to the main series. Between what is stated and the context clues, you can more or less understand what happened anyway. I’s pretty neat to see the characters in a normal world going to school and stuff but at the same time it’s not like they are able to do this for very long before everything starts to go sideways. So if you’re reading for that then it won’t matter much anyway.

Overall 1/10

A Whisker Away Review

Posted on January 17, 2025 by dreager1

It’s time for a true romance film which I can’t say that I had really heard of before. I can safely say it’s one of the better romance titles that I’ve seen in a while. We finally have a main heroine who is really aggressive and going for what she wants instead of just being evasive the whole time. I love the confidence and that sets the film on a good start right from the jump. The movie’s attempts at being more action packed tend to fail but the film tends to be on point when it comes to the romance.

The movie starts off by introducing us to Miyo who is madly in love with Hinode. She does everything she can to get him to notice her like body slamming him, lunging at him, yelling about how she loves him, etc. He apparently told her off many times and so now he just completely ignores her which makes her sad. Fortunately Miyo grabbed a cat mask from a shady cat dealer and so she uses this to become a cat and become friends with Hinode that way. He loves the cat so that is how Miyo gets his love for now but she hopes to one day win as a human too. In the meantime though, is this deal a little too good to be true.

So like I said the weakest part is the whole cat salesman and the action going on over there. It’s pretty out there and weird which is fun because it’s so jarring from the rest of the story but I feel like it goes on for a tad too long by the end of it. We get a fairly long climax of running after the guy, tackling him, etc. The problem is that he seems to be all powerful with how he can shape shift, fly, etc. So the fact that they can do anything to him doesn’t really make sense. You have to suspend a whole lot of disbelief for all of the scenes involving him.

The cat world is interesting but also a little under developed. I guess everyone who gets turned into cats just sort of give up but you’d expect more general chaos and anarchy. Narratively it is satisfying to see the various characters make their declarations and fight back but the whole thing takes itself a little too seriously. I like the angle of Miyo turning into a cat and even the whole mask system and how cats can turn into humans. I would keep that but I would reduce the focus in the climax on the other world.

Back to the main story though, I really liked Miyo as the lead. I appreciated the fact that she always kept up a positive outlook and did her best to stay strong no matter what was going on. She certainly went through a whole lot of hardships and really had to tough it out on her own. Her parents split up and so she’s been trying to be fair to her new stepmom while also guarding herself from being attached. While she plays off her love to Hinode as a bit of a joke, it’s still really serious for her and every rejection hurts.

Through it all she never really takes it out on the other characters. Her loyalty is also nice like when she jumped off of a building to take care of some bullies. I definitely wouldn’t advise doing that for obvious reasons but she wasn’t about to let them bad mouth Hinode. They were sure talking loud to be heard from the roof though. Eventually Miyo isn’t able to get it together and breaks down by the end but she stayed strong for a real long time. Ultimately she’s one of the better main heroines that I’ve seen in a while and I will always give tremendous respect to any character who is able to properly charge forward and speak out her feelings.

I also really liked the step mom Kaoru who was also doing her best. She was trying not to be pushy but was naturally trying to bond with Miyo at least a little. Kaoru did her best throughout and also didn’t let herself get pushed around. When the old mother came to visit, Kaoru stood her ground and fought back really well. She was one of the better developed characters in the film and was a crucial piece in getting things to end well.

Her cat Kinako also ends up getting a pretty sizable role. At first I thought she seemed rather random the whole time but the pieces came together. She is fairly quick on the uptake all things considered and could bluff her way out of situations really well. I would have liked to have seen more of her initial meetups with the various characters instead of the 3 day time skip but it was a very intriguing part of the movie either way.

Then we have Hinode who is a solid guy but probably one of the weaker characters by default. He basically gets embarrassed by Miyo the whole time so he stays away. The guy likes to be quiet and stay out of the limelight which is impossible in this situation. I just have a hard time sympathizing with him when he doesn’t stand up to the bullies or defend Miyo in any way. When some bullies stole her love letter he should have been a bit more forceful and definitely shouldn’t have taken it out on her. That was easily his worst scene.

In his plot, it also seemed reasonable to close down the ceramics shop even though he liked it. Clearly it was not going over very well and his own skills were not enough to keep it afloat. Feelings and platitudes are all well and good but in the end they just weren’t enough. If he really wanted to keep things in place then he needed to work on his skills more. That would really have been the only way for him to have made a difference here. Instead he just got nervous too often and that came back to bite him.

Part of why I could get behind the romance more this time is because there were no rebounds or anything of the sort. Miyo liked Hinode from the start and while he was mainly avoiding her, it’s not like he had anyone else that he liked. It took a very long time so this wasn’t a sudden development either and so this felt like a well crafted romance. We got to really learn about both characters and their trials. I would argue that Miyo faced much harsher and greater challenges the whole time but they both did have their tough times.

Miyo also had a great friend who was really with her through all of the tough times. The friend was definitely not on board with the romance but it makes sense since she was trying to protect Miyo from what she saw as future heartbreak. She really wanted to avoid that at all costs which makes sense. In a way that’s what makes her such a good friend, it’s only natural that you would end up getting upset at the guy who keeps rejecting Miyo.

Meanwhile the animation is pretty solid and smooth. It’s not always the most colorful but it definitely doesn’t hold the film back. I like how fast paced it can all get. Then the soundtrack is solid like you would expect. We get a pair of emotional songs and the overall soundtrack matches the film’s cheerful energy. The movie was definitely on point with all of these technical aspects and the writing so I have no real issues here.

Overall, A Whisker Away is a pretty good film. It’s rare that I say this but it could probably have focused on the romance more and the supernatural less and it could have been even better. That said, it’s a film I would highly recommend you check out because it’s just so much different from your average romance experience. The guy isn’t chasing after the girl and things get all complicated. This time the heroine takes matters into her own hands and it’s just a lot of fun.

Overall 7/10

Twisters Review

Posted on January 17, 2025 by dreager1

It’s sure been a long time since the first Twister film. That one was a classic and people still know it very well to this day. The question is, can this one achieve the same living legacy? I doubt it, I think it’s a little harder to do that with how many films are out nowadays with so many options to watch them but I would say they did a good job with this one and I actually liked it more than the first Twister. This film can perhaps be a bit obvious with the twists at times but it doesn’t take away from the fun experience overall.

The movie starts off with Kate and her crew deciding to take down a tornado. She has an idea on how to shut them down from the inside but it doesn’t work out and most of them end up dying. This includes her boyfriend who she was really close with and will have a hard time continuing without. As a result, she left the business and is more of a tornado consultant now. One day she is tracked down by the last surviving member, Javi. He is bringing in a new team and they’re getting data on the tornadoes. Kate is skeptical about going back in but reluctantly agrees. Will they be able to make a difference this time?

It’s easy to see why Kate wouldn’t want to get back into the field. I sure wouldn’t want to get back out there after nearly dying and watching everyone else get blown away. It’s not the kind of work that you can do without being 100% committed either. For that reason she is blinded a bit in the beginning and doesn’t really ask too many questions about what they’re doing. Honestly she’s not the nosy type at all because I would have been googling things immediately. An old friend shows up with some kind of big project? Yeah sounds like a pyramid scheme if I’ve ever seen one.

We’re also introduced to the rival Tornado Wranglers group who were a lot of fun. I immediately liked them as soon as they showed up. These guys are loud and in charge as they take the risks and make a lot of money off of livestreaming. I think you’re supposed to find them off putting at first before the film goes into this but I just love confidence. So I was on board right from the jump and why wouldn’t I be? The main characters take everything so seriously while these guys are just having a great time. It’s hard to turn that down.

Tyler is the leader there and he gets a lot of screen time. He trades banter with Kate right away and the two of them go back and forth a whole lot. Naturally this is Hollywood so you’re expecting a romance and that is the weakest part of the film. It’s just too sudden and I don’t buy it. The film also seemed to be hinting at Javi being in love with Kate too but it doesn’t fully go with that storyline which was a good idea. Even if he did like her, not saying anything was the heroic response there.

What I like about Tyler is that he isn’t your generic kind of loudmouth. Instead he knows his stuff and is actually quite the genius. The film did good to avoid the obvious tropes there and his whole crew was solid. They weren’t as stuffy as Javi’s crew and there is something to be said about staying relaxed in tight situations. It’s not like Javi’s group was bad or anything like that but you can tell that it would be a much more stressful environment.

By the end of the film, things do start to get a little exaggerated as the story beats you over the head with who the bad guys are. I would have appreciated a little more nuance there but nonetheless the film has enough good plots to keep it going well. The pacing is smooth and the effects are really solid. It was definitely great seeing the tornadoes up close and we got some great disaster scenes. That tends to go without saying but it does take a lot of effort.

A film like this lives or dies on the characters though because you have to care about them beyond just following the disasters. The film succeeds on that as I liked Tyler and Kate. I never quite warmed up to Javi but you can’t win them all. The film’s technology approach was also good to show how much progress we have made in tornadoes over the years. It’s an area that I expect we will never fully master but every improvement certainly goes a long way.

This is a very uplifting kind of movie. The characters go through their hardships and everything but it’s all about overcoming them. In that way this feels like a very classic kind of film that’s not trying to be too fancy or get too ambitious. This helps the movie really feel like a true successor to the first Twister film. We don’t even have a true villain who’s trying to blow everyone up or anything like that and the film still feels like a good thriller all the way.

Overall, Twisters is a pretty fun film. It’s easy to tease the whole premise of there being two twisters this time around but it is a well crafted movie. It can be very predictable at times and I think it could treat the audience with a bit more respect in terms of being less obvious but at the end of the day it is a movie that makes for a good watch. It has a lot of replay value and you’re never bored at any point during the story. I would definitely recommend it to anyone who likes some quality excitement and there is definitely room for a sequel with how it ends.

Overall 7/10

Travels with My Aunt Review

Posted on January 17, 2025 by dreager1

This is one of those films that is very eccentric to say the least. A lot is going on at all times and we get some very dramatized accounts of events from a not very trust worthy source. As a result you really have to be giving the side glance to anything that is talked about in the movie. What really happened? Either way, I appreciate the film’s enthusiasm in being all crazy but unfortunately that didn’t always translate into being a particularly interesting film and the unlikable characters hurt.

The movie is focused on a character named Henry whose mother recently passed away. That was a really tough time for him and he’s trying to get his life back in order but then his aunt Augusta shows up and says that Henry’s mother wasn’t actually his mother. Henry’s not sure if he can believe this since he isn’t even sure if Augusta is his true aunt. Well, she is tryin to get to her true love Ercole who has been kidnapped and there is a giant ransom for him. She is also transporting drugs and hanging out with shady individuals but that’s just how she rolls. Henry finds himself all wrapped up in this situation before he knows it. Can he get out of this…or does part of him want to stick around to find out the truth?

As they journey, Augusta tells Henry all about her past achievements. She’s basically slept around with tons of people and could seduce anyone that she puts her mind to. Unfortunately the man’s relationship status doesn’t matter to her and so she will cheat with anyone. As you can quickly tell, she is not a good role model in the slightest. It’s all very casual to her about all the things she can do and get away with it. I dare say that she is even proud of this which is really crazy.

So she automatically drags the film down a few notches. All of her scenes are pretty bad. It’s not even funny to be honest even if that’s the approach they’re going for. You’re just rooting against her here and it goes without saying that all of the romances are weak as a result. Henry gets a romance of his own and I can’t say that it’s any better. He hooks up with a girl on the train and they have some meaningless abstract conversations. It’s basically all gibberish but Henry’s going along with it and the whole thing was crazy. I expected better out of Henry than to go down the same road as Augusta.

We get our share of twists as the film goes on and you learn more about Augusta and her past but none of it helps to redeem her in the slightest. There was really no hope for her character which is a shame. Even her right hand man Zachary isn’t all that interesting. He’s basically complicit in all of the shady dealings and doesn’t mind messing around. I like his confidence but at the end of the day he’s definitely another fighter who is on the wrong side here.

Ironically Henry ends up being one of the smarter characters here even though initially it seemed like he was the one being pushed around and manipulated. He actually thought ahead and came up with a plan involving a very iffy painting which helped them out during the climax. The ending leaves it ambiguous on just how far gone Henry is as we don’t get to see the outcome from a coin flip but the fact that he put that on the table shows that he’s probably on Augusta’s team going forward.

I would even say that the main story here is really about Henry’s corruption. He initially led a very boring life but seeing his mother’s ashes thrown aside from the cops were checking for drugs and learning about Augusta’s escapades, it seems like he cracked. Henry just wasn’t content the way that he used to be and it showed. This guy went from being a very timid individual to being pressured into taking drugs, having affairs, etc.

In a way it’s a bit of a depressing morale and the whole film is sort of slanted that way. On the surface it’s a very bubbly film as they go from place to place. The sceneries are nice and we get to meet a wide variety of characters. Beneath the surface though, these characters tend to all be antagonist types who are having a good time at someone else’s expense. Drugs, Cheating, Gambling, Theft, etc. They do whatever it takes and Henry’s corruption is unfortunate but realistic.

If the film had shown more restraint then it could have maybe still been okay but some plots are just hard to save. The whole affair and drug use in the train was the biggest standout scene to me but Augusta’s various cheating moments didn’t help much either. You would also expect at the very least that Augusta was super street smart thanks to all of her experiences but a note with a ransom is enough to get her to travel the world to her lover with no questions asked. Not the smartest move out there.

Overall, This is one of those films that doesn’t have an elaborate plot but doesn’t really need one. The title is very descriptive as the movie is much more about the journey than the destination. You are learning about the aunt and the experiences that led her into who she is today. It’s less important on getting the money or finishing up the whole painting subplot. At the same time, this isn’t particularly interesting to the viewer since we know that she is bad news from the start. It’s not like we needed to really be reminded of this each time through a flashback. It’s just not a particularly fun film and I would definitely say to skip this one. Find a title with a more wholesome plot of family members meeting up and bonding together.

Overall 3/10

Venus Wars Review

Posted on January 16, 2025 by dreager1

Time for an anime film that I wasn’t too familiar. It’s got that classic sci-fi flare to it though and it’s a good bit of fun. We get action, racing, and a good exploration of the futuristic world. It’s the kind of film that starts you off in the middle of a big adventure and ends while it’s still going but still works really well as a snapshot of what’s going on. It clues you in to the adventure without having to break everything down scene by scene.

So in the future Earth has become a Utopia. Everyone basically gets along and there isn’t crime. We’ve also taken over Venus but now that planet is where all the action is. There’s a big civil war going on between two sides and the fighting never stops. The reporter known as Susan arrives on Venus to get the big scoop on this since most people on Earth have no idea of what’s going on. Even Susan is surprised to find out for example that they have death racing games as a casual spectator sport on Venus. Not exactly what you would have guessed right? Well, she came at a big time as one side finally wins the war and takes over. Now the losing side is being forced to attack its own citizens and basically become traitors.

This takes us to the main character Hiro. He’s always been a bit of a rebel and he loves the death racing. He’s fairly good at it too although his team always ends up losing. Well he is determined not to be controlled by the government and has a lot of resentment towards everybody. He will now be fighting off the oppression and defying the local authorities along with the help of his friends. Can they make a difference or is this like a water gun taking on a flood?

A common theme in the film is that both sides are pretty corrupt. The aggressor that won the war is definitely ruling as a full authoritarian but the losing side was very quick to fall in line and start attacking everyone. Hiro gets shot by the local cops early on after all. So he has a hard time knowing which side to help and to an extent he doesn’t really want to help anybody. He doesn’t want to be weighed down by anything and just live his life. To an extent I would say this is pretty selfish though. I think it’s pretty obvious that the invading side is worse so you still need to fight against them. Choosing to do nothing isn’t particularly helpful here.

Hiro is also good at making a tough situation even tougher with how he picks fights. I do like that confident attitude of his though. He may not be the toughest guy on the block but he will keep on fighting for as long as it takes to win once it’s something he believes in. He does pretty well in the final fight and in the big race with Kurtz he nearly took the win. So Hiro definitely has a high degree of skill.

Then we have Susan who is a fun character but has to put up with a lot. The very first scene of the film is quite jarring as she has to get inspected by a group of evil officers. The movie doesn’t have much fanservice outside of that intro but it was a wildly bad way to start the movie. For a minute there I was getting worried on what the rest of the film would be like but it doesn’t go down that path.

To Susan’s credit, she is in a dangerous territory that has been devastated by war and she doesn’t let it get to you. When you factor in that she’s from Earth where everything is peaceful and calm you would probably have expected her to be a little shellshocked or unable to continue. I would not have been able to blame her if that had been the case. It certainly wouldn’t be her fault but instead she manages to persevere on through and I have to give her major props for that. It was really quite impressive.

She may have ended up fighting the heroes at different points but it shows how passionate she is. Her only unfortunate appearance was in the climax when she makes a rookie mistake after having someone at gunpoint. That is absolutely the point where you can’t afford to make any mistakes. Meanwhile the other heroine here is Maggy who is pretty much the opposite of Susan. She is a lot more softspoken and is fully about peace. She just wishes things could go back to normal and tries not to think about all of the violence. Her role isn’t particularly big but she serves as one of the main reasons why Hiro wants to get back home to everyone.

There is also Miranda who is one of the key members among Hiro’s friends. She seems to be the oldest member of the main group and is quicker on the uptake like when she figured out that Gary was aiding the rebels. Miranda is excellent in the races and is also one of the main characters who seems to really understand Hiro. I liked her character, she is another example of the film not giving you all the answers and just letting you come to your own conclusions. She seems to likely have some kind of past involving the army and knows a lot for a civilian but we don’t get a grand sob story or anything like that. She’s just around to contribute as one of the main characters and that’s all we need to know.

As for Gary, he was a solid character. He was doing his best to keep the kids out of danger but ultimately couldn’t stop them forever. He did his best though and also seemed more likable than most of them. Hiro’s friends could be a bit forgettable at times and also had some unfortunate moments. Will probably had one of the biggest roles from them and did his best although you could tell he wasn’t quite as skilled as Hiro. I do think he had a better attitude though. I agreed with him on at least doing something to help the cause instead of staying inside and wishing both sides would lose.

The main villain Gerhard is pretty solid although he starts to get really extreme at the very end since the film drove itself into a corner. There is no logical way for him to lose except to have the guy completely panic for next to no reason. If not for that then the heroes would have been absolutely cooked. He had a good amount of confidence and a fun design which helped him stand out.

Then we had Kurtz on the rebel side who was good at riling Hiro up. The guy did a good job of handling him and leading his team to success. Without him the rebels wouldn’t have stood a chance. He’s definitely merciless but in the middle of war it’s hard not to be that way. His main duty is to protect everyone on his side and that’s exactly what he did. It’s an honorable role without a doubt.

The animation was definitely really good and expressive. All of the effects were looking really sharp and it’s clear that the film has aged well. It looks nostalgic but not in a “Very Old” way but just the way the aesthetic was. Sci-Fi films at the time had a certain look and feel that this one absolutely captures. The same goes for the music which was really good. It definitely gets you feeling pumped and works well with the action that is on screen. I definitely had no issues at all with it. It worked quite well for the adventure.

Overall, Venus Wars is a fun film. As it ends we know that the battles will keep raging on and Hiro will likely still be a part of them. It’s still a hopeful ending though as things have been made better. They squeeze in a whole lot of adventure here and the fights are fun. I do think some characters could be a little better though as several of Hiro’s friends just hold them all back. I’d also have liked a little more racing here since that was a big hobby for Hiro and the others but we really only got the one race. I know their world got turned upside down but it felt like we didn’t get much of a build up. This is one film that probably could have stood to be a little longer if anything. I don’t think it’ll end up being super memorable but it’s still a good time so I would say to check it out.

Overall 6/10

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