Tracklisting:
1. Sweet Oblivion (Yasahi Bokyaku)
2. Sweet Oblivion -sonority-
3. Sweet Oblivion -sincerity-
4. Sweet Oblivion~Dreaming of One Day (Yasahi Bokyaku~Aru Nichi no Yume)

The original lyrics for this song were written by the original writer for the series: Nagaru Tanigawa and modified by the usual lyricist for the records: Aki Hata. The music was composed and arranged by the ever so wonderful Satoru Kousaki.

Now is the perfect time to inform everyone of a little spoiler about the Vanishment opening and ending. Vanishment opens with a reminder of where we’ve come from: the first opening of the series: “Bouken Desho Desho?” It ends with Sweet Oblivion being sung a capella (meaning voice only) by Minori Chihara. I’ve been debating which track on the single will be the a capella version, but my best guess would possibly be track 2. Tracks 1 and 2 have lyrics, composition, and original lyric credits while track 3 adds arrangement for Kousaki-san. Track 4 appears to be instrumental since it is only composed and arranged by Kousaki-san (who has been really busy lately). The only thing that will tell us which track is which is the one thing we dread most: time spent waiting. Sweet Oblivion can be bought from many online stores, and if you would like to sample the title track, click on the video to the right.

Tweet This Post

Kamen Rider DiEnd vs Kamen Rider Decade

Then came the Haruhi DVDs. I bought the Bamboo Leaf Rhapsody DVD and became addicted to the Haruhi set. I just knew that I had to have the original 8 as well. They would make an absolutely spectacular Christmas present for myself, and once again I used her services to get them. I didn’t get just the first 8 DVDs though. I got the ones with cool special edition post cards and a binder from Toranora on Yahoo Japan auctions. Right now my Haruhi shelf looks like this:

Currently I’ve got an open order for the Vanishment/Disappearence OST, Theme song CD, ENOZ album, and Gensou DVD with her. That’s why my reviews on them will be slightly late. I could’ve ordered them from an online store, but there was a special campaign in Japan where if you bought the Vanishment OST and Theme song CD from specific stores, you got a special B2 reversible poster. I have a soft spot for posters, so of course I wanted to get it. EX said no problem and they’ll be on their way either at the end of this month or next month.

So where can you too use the services of EX Japan? On her official store website at Yokattaweb.com.  She only charges a middleman fee of 700 yen per transaction from a store and 700 yen plus 10% of any auction bid if you go that route. So if you’re tired of seeing exclusives such as apparel and saying “Rinkya will rip me off if I order it”, then just think “thank goodness for EX Japan!”  (author note: “yokatta” means “thank goodness” in Japanese)

Tweet This Post

You can see lots of people lining up, merchandising everywhere, some cosplayers here and there…

The only thing that remains is the long wait for the movie to appear on DVD and Bluray!…Ah the excitement!

Tweet This Post

“Just as expected. Wonderful” (Running out of Ikebukuro)
“Such a long movie in a blink of an eye” Twitter account
“Just as expected. Music was great” (Ichikawa)
“Good work. Great satisfaction” (had read novel previously)
“More amazing than I expected”
“The character animation was strong. The whole thing moved slickly. Music was absolutely fantastic. I wanted the soundtrack. The film was like the newer episodes animation wise. The middle moved slowly. Nagato acted cutely.”
“Much better than I thought”
“The series will never get this high again” If that doesn’t say how well this movie was received, nothing else does.

And what’s a premiere without pictures and videos: (linked to my photobucket account since they were already there and to save ToonLeap some bandwidth)

I would really like this poster!

I think it’s safe to say that Kadokawa made a great decision to make this novel into a movie. Now the long wait for fans overseas begins.

Tweet This Post

If you’ve read about or seen this one you probably also noticed the similarities to the K-ON anime. A slice of life story set in, what at first glance seem to be, World War I. Communications are limited to wire phones and trumpets, and also weapons seem to be of the same era.

Or at least that is what it looks like, but fact is that the background story has much more to it.

War has tired many nations, and it seems that there is a truce in effect. The story is set in the city of Seize, a city much inspired by Cuenca (Spain) if not fully identical.

And there isn’t much more background story you get to see early in the anime. The scenery looks stunningly beautiful and the town and its people really makes you want to be there. As the story goes on you get to hear and see stories of the town and its traditions.

The main story follows Sorami Kanata, a young recruit in the army. Her goal is to actually become a musician, more specially to be able to play the trumpet (I’m sure she would be interested in any instrument because of her ability of almost instantly recognizing notes). She is assigned to stay with the a platoon in Seize, Trois, as ordered by the Republic of Helvetia’s army headquarters.

The platoon is merely consisting of 4 other girls, wherever that is a coincident or intentional is unknown. However the first episodes tells us about one of the traditions in Seize, and that is of the Maidens who protect the city. And the OP(OP first aired on episode 2) seem to refer to the platoon as this generations current Maidens, you’ll hear about of the maidens and the tradition as early as the first episode.

It’s mystical indeed, and it draws you in depending on your interest. But if that doesn’t draw you in, you might be interested in the military technology. Sure enough i mentioned a World War I setting, but you surprisingly get to see a very advanced tank in the first episode. It is being put together by one of the platoon members, and it is even said that it is an old generation machine.

It’s hard to believe that the story is set in World War I as you see this vehicle, but it also brings up so many questions. What is going on in the outside world? Who are they defending themselves against? And whats up with those tanks?

Later you get to see what they call a no mans land, and that’s exactly what it is. Destroyed tanks and possibly even mechas appears on a flat wide open desert that stretches beyond the horizon.

The anime makes you question the background story much more than the main plot itself, and that makes it really interesting. Now about the main plot, there seem to be none really. It merely seems to be about Kanata’s goal to become expert on the trumpet. But this is a slice of life story, and as such that is what you get.

And the humor seems to be somewhat similar to just about any slice of life anime, it resembles K-ON in very ways indeed. Guitars are replaced with trumpets, high school with military and peaceful scenery with a mysterious town in the middle of a war torn world. Clearly the most obvious similarities are with the characters, but it shouldn’t bother you too much.

The real positive thing that carries on from K-ON (intentional or not) is th theme of music. Trumpets seem to be the focus but there are other instruments as well, but mostly there is just instrumental pieces and some vocals. Don’t expect rock and concerts. The music is very well done, i especially love the OP.

Final Words

You may wonder how far this anime might go as to the war part. Will they put the characters in the heat of battle? It’s hard to say, but i can tell you the chance is small, very small. Don’t expect much fighting in this one. I’m not one to make conclusions, but just saying it to those who are only looking for the action. 

Overall very well presented anime so far, everything looks amazing and sound great. There is not much to complain about other than the lack of male main character, but they clearly don’t want any in the main character pool.

Again as said this anime might make you view it more because of the background story than the main plot and characters. But a K-ON fan that doesn’t mind girls in military uniforms might be pleased as well. Even Yuki, from Suzumiya Haruhi Universe, fans might find it interesting that she is part of the main character pool, she does resemble her a lot in many ways.

It’s currently airing in Japan, on its 5th episode currently, every Monday.

Sorry to displease the K-ON fans, no season 2 here. But if you haven’t heard about the K-ON VOA(Episode 14) you better check that out!

Question for the viewers, would you like to have a episode by episode review on Sora no Woto? Leave your answers in the comment section :>

 Gallery:

Tweet This Post

The guitarist is Susumu Nishikawa, who helped compose the first ED for Fullmetal Alchemist and played on a couple of tracks in the .Hack anime. On Bass are Takeshi Taneda (from Crush 40, a band famous for Sonic the Hedgehog songs) for the final three tracks and Katsuhiko Kurosu (worked on the first OP for IDOLM@ASTER: XENOGLOSSIA and the second ED for Gurren Lagann) for the first three tracks.

For drums, on the last three tracks is Yutaka Odawara (Helped in Y’s, the video game) and on the first three tracks is Yasuo Sano (played drums for Cowboy Bebop and Wolf’s Rain). I seem to be forgetting something…Oh! The cover art!

Finally, the tracklisting for the album. Aya Hirano has three new songs just for this album.
1. Star way to heaven (new)
2. Secret of sensation (new)
3. When I was in love (new)
4. God knows… (“Live A Live” Insert)
5. Lost my music (“Live a Live” Insert)
6. First Good-bye (“Sound Around” ED)

The album runs for 2700 yen and can be bought in a variety of places including Amazon Japan, CD Japan , or Ami Ami. I’ll have a review up in about a month since I have this ordered with a special gift that’s going to be quite hard to find. When the B-track for Sweet Oblivion becomes known, I shall update with that information. Can’t wait to hear both CDs!

Edit: Look forward to some news coming out soon since some theatres are selling the Vanishment Theme Song CD before the movie. We may get a nice listen to the CD before it officially comes out.

Tweet This Post

The Japan Foundation, a government-affiliated body set up to promote cultural exchange, has opened an English-language website that helps users better understand Japanese expressions used in manga and anime.

“Japanese in Anime & Manga” (http://anime-manga.jp) carries expressions used in four genres–love, school, ninja and samurai–and by eight typical characters.

A vocabulary quiz is available for three levels of proficiency.

Meanwhile, Tokyo’s Nerima Ward, which bills itself as the birthplace of Japanese anime, is currently running a 15-second clip from Galaxy Express 999 on its website (http://www.city.nerima.tokyo.jp).

The popular anime was created by Leiji Matsumoto, a manga artist who lives in the ward.

Source: Asahi

Well, this is another way how the japanese government can promote anime and anime…However, the technique is not new…I learned Japanese thanks in part to Anime and Manga…

Tweet This Post

The CD set has two discs. One of the discs contains 23 tracks with all the BGM from the movie. The other CD only has 7 Gymnopédie tracks, including the song from the already well known first trailer. The CD jacket does not have screenshots of the movie…Only the well known images We have saw previously some posts ago.

Tracks 1-4 were composed and made by Satoru Kousaki (1-3) and Keigo Hoashi (4) with one set of staff, but the remaining 19 tracks on Disc 1 were performed by the eminence orchestra from Australia.

There were four composers on the set, Satoru Kousaki (who does the music in the TV Anime) on tracks 1,2,3,9,11,12,13,15,22,23, Ryuichi Takada (who did the Soul Caliber II and III soundtracks and THE iDOLM@ASTER specials last year) for tracks 5,6,14,and 21, Keigo Hoashi (who composed the Tekken 6 and Katamari Damacy Tribute OSTs) for tracks 4,7,8,16,17,19,and 20, and Kakeru Ishihama (who helped on the Tekken 6 OST and composed the Mushihimesama Double Arrange Album) composed track 10.

Erik Satie composed the Gynopedias (1-18 and tracks 1,2,3 on the second disc). On the second disc are the three Gynopedias and the three Gnossiennes as well as the final track “Je Te Vuex” (French for “I want you”) all composed by Erik Satie in the late 1800s – early 1900s.

1. Itsumono Fuukei Kara Hajimaru Monogatari (The story begins with the usual scenery)
2. SOS dan Kurisumasu partei (SOS Brigade Christmas Party)
3. Dotabata ・Taimu (Noisy Time)
4. Nichijou no Sakini Machiukeru Mono (Everyday Things that lie Ahead)
5. Asakura Ryoko Toiu Josei (The Woman named Ryoko Asakara)
6. Fuan Kara Kyoufu he (Fear from Anxiety)
7. Uragirareta Kitai (Betrayed Expectations)
8. Kodoku Sekai no Hirogari (Lonely World’s Spread)
9. Kankyouhenka no Zehi (Pros and Cons of Environmental Changes)
10. Suzumiya Haruhi no Tegakari (The trail of Haruhi Suzumiya)
11. Hayaru Kokoro to Maeni Denai Ashi (Popular Spririt and Feet that won’t Leave)
12. Tsunagatta Kioku (Memories tied together)
13. SOS dan Futatabi (SOS Brigade Once Again)
14. READY?
15. Ano Nichi no Kioku wo Oikakete (Chasing the memory of that day)
16. Michibiku Josei no Kataru Kotoba (Having words with the Female Guide)
17. Mirai heno Sokuseki (Footprints from the Future)
18. Jimunopedei Dai 2 Ban (Gymnopédie no. 2)
19. Nagato Yuki no Kokoro Niarumono (In the Heart of Yuki Nagato)
20. Jikoishiki no Kakunin (Awakening Self-Conciousness)
21. Rekishi no Tenkan Ten (Converging Point of History)
22. Futatabi Deae ta Dan’in-Tachi (Meeting Brigade members once again)
23. Itsumono Fuukei de Owaru Monogatari (The story ends with the usual scenery)

Naturally, considering this is a movie with a good budget, the music is really good. It delivers the mood that happens with each of the events in the movie. From comedy to drama, all songs conveys those feelings of Melancholy, Despair, Relief…and the list goes on. One track that I really enjoyed was number 5…Asakura Ryoko sure has quite an entrance in the movie…and the song along express the moment. I can imagine somehow what Kyon is thinking.

You can get the idea once you hear the music in the trailer. You can also hear samples of the CD here and here too!

If someday you watch the movie and loves the music, you are a Suzumiya Haruhi fan and loves instrumental music, this is the OST you will enjoy. Thanks a lot to Ultimatemegax for all the additional background and translated titles of the CD. Truly an Haruhi fan!

Tweet This Post

There is a spoiler part in this review. But it is clearly marked at the end, if you do care about spoilers, mind yourself when scrolling down that part and into the comment section

Tons and tons of games exists that depict their version of World War II. It’s hard to deny the joy of being part of the fight in a game or to watch it. And only 2 years ago, april 2008, a video game was released with quiet an interesting view on the second world war.

With colorful water painted inspiring graphics we were shown an alternative version of what a second world war looked like. It was hard to believe such a colorful game with such a cartoon-ish feel would be able to take the theme of war serious. The game wasn’t received too well in the west, not because of the game being bad, but because of the game being forgotten among more hyped titles such as Metal Gear Solid 4.

Those who found the game, I being one of them, can see themselves as lucky to be able to have played this game. And i do recommend playing it.

A year after its release, the game spawned an anime. And with an open mind i went on to watch it.

Review

Story:

The story is in general the same, with only a few changes to make the anime be different from the game. Certain events are new and some old events placed in somewhat different order.

We follow a protagonist named Welkin Gunther, twenty two year old university student, and his fight against the Imperials in the east. It’s very easy to see the reference to the axis in the second world war, and it surely is intended.

In general, the whole universe in Valkyria Chronicles is very similar to our own during the time of the war. Guns, tanks, cities and to some extent clothing is similar (well, i don’t think anyone wore a skirt in battle during the war ). They even present the  oppression of a large group of people, named darcsen in the game and anime, also referred to as “the dark haired people”.

The major difference in “realism” is the valkyrias, spear and shield wearing maidens who shoot blue lazors across the battlefield and they make up for the “anime fighting action” like scenes. Their existence in the series makes it a little more spicy, and mysterious at the same time. And the producers do this well by not overusing the powers of the valkyrias, it makes you respect them for when they actually are on the screen owning stuff.

Also something that is special to the story is Ragnite, a mineral used for powering almost everything; tanks, cars and whatnot. In the game they are even used as a way to heal comrades.

Welkin lives in the fictional country of Gallia, a country stuck between the the fighting of the west and east. It didn’t take too long before the Imperials noticed the amounts of Ragnite that were inside Gallia. And as the Imperials invade Gallia, the anime (and the game) begins.

Presentation:

There isn’t much bad to say about the animation, in fact it’s really well done for an adaptation. They cleverly use 3D to present tanks and vehicles most of the time, while leaving the rest in traditional anime style. The overall presentation is very well done.

Tanks, being a central part of the fighting, look and move realistically across the battlefield. And the sound of everything from the tanks and guns are well done, inf fact many of the sounds comes directly from the game.

Being on the subject of sound, i must say the soundtrack is one of the best I’ve heard so far in an anime. Sure they pretty much stole it from the game in added a few track like the OP’s and ED’s, but once you hear the music during the battles and whatnot you will come to admire the music. If you are one of those people who judge something by its soundtrack (something i do often) you will find this anime interesting.

The OP’s and ED’s reflect the mood in the anime, the first episodes building up the action and having a lot of comedy in between the battles. And about halfway, when the OP’s and ED’s chang, the anime becomes a lot more serious in terms of drama.

Most of the comedy is between Welkin and Alica, the heroine of the series.Welkin usually seems to speak alot as if he is an idiot and Alicia often picks on him for that. Welkin also have ALOT of interest in animals and nature, and his seriousness about is also makes up for some humor. Alicia also seems like a bit of a airhead being anti against Welkin, much more than she was in the game in fact. Wherever that’s comedy or not it’s for you to decide .

Not to ignore other characters in the anime of course and their part in comedy and the story. The game had around 50 characters in total all chooseable by yourself to either be with you in combat or not. In the anime they take some of the characters with them and leave the rest out. And it’s a large pool of of characters to keep track of, but as you view the anime you don’t feel a need too, they’re just part of Squad 7 (Welkin’s Squad).

The humor and action is most of the time separated, but sometimes it makes you wonder how they can pull of a joke in the heat of battle. It’s an anime after all, you’ve got to expect some silliness

Action

Being a war story, fighting is a central part of the story. And the presentation of that is usually good, and as they use 3D to show tanks moving around that is what you mostly will see. The game focused  a lot on tactics since it is a turn based game. And as much as i wanted the tactical aspect to continue into the anime, it didn’t. The “tactics” usually are presented before engagement in the anime, and after that its just them running around and shooting until the battle is over.

This isn’t too bad but as a fan of the game, i cannot avoid to downgrade this aspect of the anime. There is no excuse to not be able to show changes in tactic during combat, since for example Code Geass cleverly shows use of tactics (until season 2 at least).

Drama

Sooner or later, people will die in war. The anime does not overuse blood effects upon death, in fact it rarely is shown blood during fighting. The focus is not to show dramatic deaths, but instead on the morals of fighting and the consequences of war. It is inevitable that some characters will suffer a lot from the war, and this picks up about halfway through the anime. Things like reasons for the fighting, fates of characters and the oppression of the darcsens picks up at this time. Character’s personalities change in a realistic way to the things that are happening around them, and it isn’t too hard to imagine how it feels like.

The Parallel Story

Aside from the story about Welkin and Squad 7, we are also shown the story as seen from the Imperial side. This was something that also was used in the game but not near as much, and its an good thing that makes the anime more interesting special for those who have played the game. The story revolves around Selvaria, general and a valkyria in the army serving directly under the prince Maximillian, the one in charge of the conquest of Gallia. It adds something more to the story instead of just portraying the Imperials as bad people, and the parallel story has its own comedy, action and drama.

Summary

As a person who played the game first before the anime i can still highly recommend watching this anime, it’s a very interesting story about an alternative and fictional World War 2. It is well animated and the voice acting is flawless, the only thing i can complain about is the differences between the game and the anime, like certain plot changes and things alike. But aside from that the anime is enjoyable and I’ve watched it several times already. The ending settles things perfectly, it surely does make you want more. And for all i know there is only an upcoming PSP game, Valkyria 2. We can only hope to see an anime adaptation for it soon enough.

SPOILER WARNING, this part will contain spoilers. Read at your own risk.

These are the things that set the game apart from the anime in a bad way.

• The Fate of Selvaria

In the game, her death was more dramatic in a way that she sacrificed herself with no reason left to live. And i couldn’t get that feeling in the anime. And also she made sure that no one in Squad 7 was nearby when she blew herself up, and that meant something.

• The Fate of Isara

Isara’s death was shocking in both the game and in the anime, and there isn’t much to complain about how she died. It was just that in the anime it felt as if Welkin was fighting solely for Alicia’s sake and love. Sure he did this in the game as well, but in fact he fought a lot more to justify the death of Isara and her sacrifices to Squad 7. Also, Welkin was already with Alicia quiet early in the game since Faldio was never really with Squad 7 as he was in the anime. So a lot more focus was on Isara’s fate and how to justify it.

• Faldio being more active in the anime

It made for an interesting change surely, but it could annoy you since Welkin had to focus more on trying to get Alicia from Faldio. And in the end it also took away focus from Isara’s death.

• Welkin’s confession

This came as late as actually in the ending episode of the anime. Something that felt really cliche for me, in the game he confessed before the Imperials charged into the Gallian city with their massive tank. And he then made sure to tell Alicia to not use her powers as a valkyria since it could kill her. Again when this happened so late Isara’s death wasnt the main focus.

• Alicia as a Valkyria and the new opening

This was the only major thing that made me somewhat upset. The OP spoiled the part about Alicia being a Valkyria around 5 episodes before it was announced, it felt somewhat stupid. The OP is amazing in general, its just weird they had to spoil it so early. Also Alicia was exploited a lot more in the anime as a valkyria then in the game, Welkin made sure to stop them from using her early on. And the way Alicia suddenly thought she was an outsider felt silly.

Spoiler End

What do you think about the anime? and if you have played the game and watched the anime, what are your comments on the changes in the plot and what not?

Tweet This Post

I can barely sleep at nights because I have to change diapers and give powder milk to the baby…You will notice some delays on anime posts from Me, but I hope the situation will improve once my wife gets better. Sorry for this brief Hiatus…

Tweet This Post