Tuesday, February 27, 2007

Kyoushirou to Towa no Sora ED Single - Madoromi no Rakuen



Title: Kyoushirou to Towa no Sora ED Single - Madoromi no Rakuen
Artist:Ceui
Street Release Date: February 21, 2007
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Tracklist
1. Madoromi no Rakuen
2. Qualia
3. Madoromi no Rakuen (instrumental)
4. Qualia (instrumental)

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Click here to Download

Monday, February 26, 2007

Gakuen Utopia Manabi Straight! Original Soundtrack 1



Title: Gakuen Utopia Manabi Straight! Original Soundtrack 1
Street Release Date: February 21, 2007
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Tracklist:

DISC 1
01. A Happy Life TV Size Ver.
02. Asa no Fuukei
03. Seitokai Shoki, Inamori Mika Shirusu
04. Manabi Straight!
05. Regret
06. intermission
07. Ukigumo
08. Odayaka na Nichijou
09. Ever Green
10. Seirei no Odori
11. Rainy Blue
12. Todoka nu Negai
13. Aseri
14. Dounaru, Seiou Seitokai
15. Yume no Ato
16. Yawaraka na Hibi
17. Junbi Kaishi
18. Nakama
19. Seiou Seitokai, Fight!
20. Akirame nai
21. Massugu Go!
22. Lucky & Happy TV Size Ver.


DISC 2
01. Massugu Daisakusen Trance Mix
02. Seitokai Shitsu REVOLUTION Shiokaze Fukikomi Seitokai Shitsu Version
03. Funwaka Orange Funwaka House Mix
04. school days Electronic Pop Version
05. Tomodachi Kuraija Mono-tan Nice Chef no Kimagure Regeton Mix
06. Hero Style Gypsy na Style de Version
07. Rule de MY Chisujo Swing Version
08. Shiawase no Wakka Blitz Garage Version
09. Nemu Nemu Documentary Nemui no ni Get Up & Dance! Mix
10. Mainichi ga Merry Go Round Ultimate Mix
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Nodame Cantabile OP Single - Allegro Cantabile



Title: Nodame Cantabile OP Single - Allegro Cantabile
Artist: SUEMITSU & THE SUEMITH
Street Release Date: February 21, 2007
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Tracklist:

1. The Time "SUIEMITSU" Met "NODAME"
2. Allegro Cantabile Sound
3. Sonatine
4. La Chanson De L'adieu
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Click here to Download

Saiunkoku Monogatari 29

Sorry for late update. I was on my holiday for past 10 days. And now I'm back~ :)

Shadow Dreams was released ep 29 of SM few days ago. and here you are!

clicky

Tuesday, February 20, 2007

Review on Ayashi no Ceres...

Ayashi no Ceres Title...
Ayashi no Ceres is an anime that had been recommended to me a number of times, and when i finally got my hands on it, i decided to watch it. Now i can see why Ayashi no Ceres was Such a Recommended anime... I Finished iT in ONE DAY!!! The Whole Series Finished on the 2nd of January 2007, while i'm writing the review on the 3rd... =)

Info on Ayashi no Ceres from AnimeNFO.com...
Title : Ayashi no Ceres
Japanese Title : 妖しのセレス
Other Names : Mysterious Ceres, Unearthly Ceres, Ceres Celestial Legend
Total Episodes : 24
Genres : Fantasy, Action, Adventure, Love-Romance
Year Published : 2000
Studio : Studio Pierrot

What Ayashi no Ceres is about...
Based on the manga by Yuu Watase (the same Mangaka as Fushigi Yuugi), Aki & Aya are twins, Aki the elder brother, while Aya being the younger sister. They lived their normal happy lives. On their 16th Birthday, They are called to their family home to have their Birthday Celebrated. They were wrong thinking it was a Birthday Party, it was really a test, which Aya was found to possess the reincarnated spirit of the Angel in a Particular Legend they knew about.

Aya found herself immediately isolated from her beloved & Happy Family, seperated from her twin brother, her parents, and not even knowing what is going on, Aya is hunted by her Family. A Very sad 16th Birthday, All these were Destined & Fated, Now What will Become of Aya & Aki? Will they ever Clear Her Name? Will they ever Reunite?

Characters...
There are MaNy Characters in this anime, but i shall put the 2 main characters...
Aki & Aya...
Aki, the Elder brother, & Aya, the Younger Sister are Twins. They definitely did NOT have a Very Nice 16th Birthday... What will become of these Twins?

My Review on the Anime, Ayashi no Ceres...
Note: Ayashi no Ceres contains some nudity & quite Bloody Scenes. Similar to Elfen Lied, but less... If you can't stand the sight of nudity, the blood or gore, you might want to close your eyes in some of the episodes of this anime.

Ayashi no Ceres has Decent Animation. The animation is quite detailed, though never reading this manga before, but ever Reading Fushigi Yuugi, another of Yuu Watase's works... Knowing the style of art, i think that the animation and character design are very well done & quite decent. Though the animation looks really bad when comparing it with modern animes like Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuutsu. Still, the slightly old animation style is quite fitting for this anime as it deals with history and legends quite a bit.

The OP song, "Scarlet" was very nice. I Liked the melody & i think that it is very suited for this anime. though i didn't really enjoy the First Ending theme. Most of the episodes either ended in sadness or in mystery, and a lively Rock Music comes up and quite spoils the mood. Similar to Elfen Lied, which coincidentally had a very unfitting Ending theme... Other than that, I have to say, The Seiyuus were REALLY GOOD & they Did a very GooD JoB... =)

About the Story...Since the anime started, the storyline of Ayashi no Ceres moved very quickly. Yes, So Quickly that i found myself watching another episode each time the episode ended. Comparing to the normal slow-paced shojo animes that i watch, i felt like the pace of the storyline in Ayashi no Ceres, was like watching 2 episodes in 1, making it felt like i must have watched about 50 episodes of a normal anime, just because the Plot moved Very Fast, & So Many Things were Told in a Brief amount of time. Every Episode was Exciting & I Couldn't stop Myself from watching the next episode each time. However, the flaw of having such a fast-paced storyline was the comedy couldn't really be enjoyed. For Me, i was still in my On-the-edge-of-the-seat mood, & a Joke comes up, and i couldn't enjoy the comedy cause i was still in that mood, even though the jokes were quite original and would be funny.

Ayashi no Ceres is a VERY Meaningful Anime, even though it dived into history & Legend & Magical Beings, the Relation of all those and humans made the Whole Anime very Meaningful & Understandable. There were also many understandable conflicts being put in this anime. For example, Getting Stuck choosing the Right Guy when Both Guys are Nice, Sincere & Honest, & Trying to Get Back Together with your Family after going through ALL THat Aya has gone through, Etc. etc. There were a lot of Character development going on as well, & Many Different Point of Views, & A LOT OF EMOTIONS...

i'm finding it very hard to explain my opinions of this anime.

Well, Many Things Happened Very Quickly in the 24 Episodes of Ayashi no Ceres, & some details might be too quick for the viewer to have understand or heard, but in my opinion, I think the Story was Really Well-Made, and Very Complete, leaving no Plot-holes that i can think of. With Full of Suspense, Excitement & Surprises, I Always Found myself on the Edge of the seat, Always Hoping the Characters can Survive Each Time & Can have a Happy Ending in the end. Ayashi no Ceres was NOT Cliche at all, & in my opinion, I think Ayashi no Ceres was ReaLLy Well Made & Well Planned.

Ayashi no Ceres also does a good job in trying to make you cry, by watching the characters develop, & letting you understand all the Different Characters' Qualities & Faults & Flaws, & The Close Bonds & Relationships between them all, & When finally a tough situation happens to the characters, all the emotions and thoughts going through their heads were ToTaLLy UndersTanDaBle!!! Ayashi no Ceres did quite a good job in Showing the Viewer all those Great Moments, & thus, Making this anime Quite Emotional & Some might Cry Buckets.

Ayashi no Ceres is simply, a Very Human Anime... I can't seem to explain it any further than that. With Many Emotions of Love, Jealousy, Hatred & Bonds... Happiness & Sadness... Ayashi no Ceres is a GREAT ANIME!!!

So Let's get to the rating... =)

My Rating...
9
One StarOne StarOne StarOne StarHalf Star...

Animation: 8
Comment: Decent & Good, the old but quite smooth animation style is fitting for this anime...

Music/Sounds: 8.5
Comment: I Liked the Sounds, but didn't really like the First ED theme, the Seiyuus did a vERY GOOD JOB!!!

Story: 9.5
Comment: Fast-paced, & containing some comedy which lightens up the usually-serious mood. Like i said, The Story, i have to say is Very Complete, leaving no Plot-holes i can think of, & FuLL of Suspense that I was Constantly on the Edge of my Seat, Hoping the Best for a Happy Ending... The Story is Very Well Made & Well Planned. =) But somehow i can't give it a 10... probably because the anime was a bit too fast-paced for me to enjoy some of the comedy... x(

Characters: 10
Comment: THE BEST ASPECT of this Anime, Containing Very Relatable & Understandable characters, they each have shown their problems & have shown development and ways of solving their problems. The Characters were Very well made & each have done a GooD Job, showing each and everyone have their Qualities & Flaws. After watching the end, You'd Even Think about trying to Forgive the Big Bad Guy. =)


Tear Factor:
One Tear...One Tear...One Tear...One Tear...Half Tear...
Comment: Mind you, this anime gets Very Emotional, Expecially when you grow attached to the characters after watching them develop, and understanding their qualities & Human Faults, Ayashi no Ceres Excels quite well in making you Emotional & Cry...

Comedy Factor:
One Laughter...One Laughter...One Laughter...
Comment: Yes, Ayashi no Ceres has some Good Comedy, but like i said,sometimes i couldn't enjoy the comedy because i was still in my on-the-edge-of-the-seat mood...

Excitement/Suspense/Surprising Factor:
One Excitement...One Excitement...One Excitement...One Excitement...One Excitement...
Comment: DEFINITELY FULL OF SUSPENSE & EXCITEMENT!!! I'm glad i didn't read the Manga first, cause it would probably have spoilt me, but Ayashi no Ceres was TOTALLY FULL OF SUSPENSE, & EXCITEMENT, Especially Boosted with the Fast-moving Pace of the Storyline. I always found myself on the Edge of the Seat, Always Hoping that the Characters can Survive each time & Can have a Happy Ending. I do not think this anime is cliche at all, as it seemed like there were many choices or things that could happen to each character.

Meaningful Factor:
One Meaning...One Meaning...One Meaning...One Meaning...One Meaning...
Comment: OH MY GOSH, Ayashi no Ceres TOTALLY Excels in this Factor. as i said, Ayashi no Ceres is a VERY Human Anime, with Extremely Relatable & Understandable Characters, Situations, & Conflicts, they bring you into their point of views which is Understandable & Able-to-Relate to As WeLL!!! I'm ABSOLUTELY AmAZED by The Way the Story of Ayashi no Ceres was made...

Overall, Ayashi no Ceres deserves its popularity, & I Recommend it myself to those who are looking for a nice Emotional Anime, which will bring you to another person's/being's/creature's Point of View of Humans, Human Faults, & Human Feelings...

Click Here to See Legend...

Screenshots...
Okay, So I'll just add ONE Screenshot from the anime as i can't exactly think of any good ones to add...
Screen shot from Ayashi no Ceres...
A Cheerful Scene between the Twins, Aki & Aya... It's nice to have such a nice Family... =)

I don't have to repeat myself about how Good Ayashi no Ceres is... So if you're into Emotional animes, GO & WATCH IT IF YOU HAVEN'T ALREADY!!! =)

Note: Mmm... I've read a couple of other reviews on AnimeNFO.com in which quite a number of them said they puked, seeing the forced feelings, emotions and storyline of Ayashi no Ceres, So you might probably puke like them, but i accepted all of the emotions,plots and situations, and i quite liked Ayashi no Ceres at its Whole, i didn't even think that the emotions and stuff were Forced. So this review might be bias-ed because of that...

Till my Next Review...
JoeL Un... x)

Sunday, February 18, 2007

Review on Kono Minikuku mo Utsukushii Sekai...

My review on the anime, Kono Minikuku mo Utsukushii Sekai...

Kono Minikuku mo Utsukushii Sekai Logo...
An Anime of a title that i have heard, i came across this anime & decided to try it out. After all, the title had a pretty interesting feel, so I couldn't resist testing it... x) Throughout this review, i will shorten it to "KMmUS"

Info on KMmUS from AnimeNFO.com...
Title : Kono Minikuku mo Utsukushii Sekai
Other Names : This Ugly Yet Beautiful World,
This Ugly And Beautiful World
Japanese Title : この醜くも美しい世界
Total Episodes : 12
Year Published : 2004
Studio : GAINAX


What KMmUS is About...
Takemoto Takeru is a teenager with a tough past, best friends with Ninomiya Ryou. One day, Ryou was riding on Takeru's Motorbike, & they see a star that came into Earth, split in two & crashes at two different places. They went to one of the crash site and found a girl there. Takeru helps her and names her Hikari. Suddenly, a Huge Monster tries to attack them, What will Takeru do? What can a normal Mortal do to fight back a Huge Monster with Far More Superior Powers than any Human? Who is Hikari & What is she? What & Where IS the Other Part of the Star that had Splitted Earlier?

Characters from KMmUS...
With Many Characters in this anime, I shall take some time to put in details of the few main or big supporting characters...
Takemoto Takeru...
Takemoto Takeru, a normal Teenage High School student. Best Friends with Ryou, He also has an interest in motorbikes. He lives with his uncle & aunt & cousin, Mari...

Ninomiya Ryou...
Ninomiya Ryou, Takeru's best friend. He has a little sister & them two live alone in their house. What happened to their parents? Typical nice guy, many girls admire and like him because of his niceness.

Mari...
Mari, Takeru's cousin, a fierce teenage girl who goes to the same School as Takeru. She is quite bossy & complains a lot about Takeru's irresponsible behaviour. But it is obviously seen that she has a crush on him.

Hikari...
Hikari, Named by Takeru after seeing the Light Emitted by the Shooting Star that had crashed where they found Hikari. Who is she & what is she? Why was she found at the Star's Crash site? Naked?!

Jennifer Portman...
Hot, Clever, Sexy Professor that has come to Japan from Overseas. During her stay in Japan, she is living together with Takeru & Mari. She drinks a lot, but is very clever, as she comes up with a lot of hypothesis and theories that are quite accurate. She is the person who's always explaining about the things that has been happening based on her Hypothesis and Theories, which are never-the-less, never wrong...

My Review on Kono Minikuku mo Utsukushii Sekai...
Kono Minikuku mo Utsukushii Sekai AKA This Ugly Yet Beautiful World. Now you've learnt some Japanese words. ;)

The Animation is very good. Very Clear & Pretty, Character Designs are very nice & the sceneries are well done. Even the Monsters are drawn and animated Very Well. No Problems with Animation, Even the Opening & Ending theme Animation was Very Pretty, they must have had a lot of money in their budget. But in the opening theme, there is a scene of Hikari in a field of Sunflowers, I can't help comparing it with the scene in AIR TV's Opening theme, where the main character was in a field of Sunflowers as well. It just reminded me of AIR TV's Animation which was even Nicer, More Detailed & Beautiful than KMmUS's. But I have to say, the animation is fit of the Standards for an anime made in 2004. =)

About the budget, I seriously think they had a lot of money to spare, Because even the OP & ED Theme songs were very nice, the OP theme fitted the mood of KMmUS quite well, & the Animation that went together with it was very WeLL Done, & the ED theme was a very nice Happy-go-Lucky Cheerful Tune. Which fits the innocent mood of KMmUS, however, it was a bad point when sometimes the anime ended in a sad or distressed situation, and this cheerful music comes and annoys the mood. The Seiyuus were pretty good as well. I have no Complaints as both the Animation & Sounds were Very Well Done.

Now, the story of KMmUS, it seems like this storyline (or at least part of it) has been re-used over and over, again and again. Someone who will decide the Destruction of the World, suffers from amnesia or not being able to remember anything about their past before, lives together happily with the main character, usually the opposite gender, and with more another person in the same house. It's like Elfen Lied but with a mix of some Science Fiction of Space, the World, & It's Evolution on Earth & It's Destiny.

Well, It is After all, This Ugly Yet Beautiful World, so i guess it did a decent job in showing the different point of view. How beautiful the World was, & how Ugly it is in another view... After all, everything HAS a Good side & a Bad Side, that can't be helped. But somehow, the story seems quite cliche, you can probably predict what would happen, it's like i've watched something like this before. But then again, I suppose KMmUS wasn't exactly thaaat bad of a show either. It was pretty decent. But nothing Fantastic Either. It may provide some laughs, & has it's emotional times. Well, after all, the comedy is there to show the Cheerful, Light Hearted Times, & the Emotional Times are to show the Deep, Feelings & sometimes Negative emotions. However, they were just decent, & nothing Excelling.

I Suppose you can say that KMmUS has a lot of fanservice, It shows a lot of Naked Bodies, & a Lot of Girls with Good Proportions, & a lot of Pervert Times or Accidental Moves that make the Characters Tomato-Red Embarrassed. Well, i didn't really mind and they served as good comedy for those "light-hearted" times... =)

The Characters are pretty much characters you have seen before in other animes. The Character Designs & Characteristics are just Not really Unique enough and it's like they're being re-used in this anime, Ryou looks like a Taller Version of Minoru from Chobits, The rich intelligent kid(fyi), also sharing the same quiet, nice guy personalities, except Ryou is a bit more open. Hikari looks quite alike to Mikuru from The Melancholy of Suzumiya Haruhi, The Mascot of SOS Brigade. Mari's green hair and personality is very alike to Midori, the female lead in Midori no Hibi. Stuff like that, the character designs & characteristics are those you would most probably have seen from other animes. Then again, it might be nice to see the characters from those different animes living with each other.xD. If this is the first anime you are watching, then you probably would think the characters are very different & probably unique.

Oh yeah, & I found it really strange how the main character, Takeru could Fall in Love and already vow-ed to protect a mysterious girl he just met, and don't even know where she came from. It seemed like this anime was also trying to rush quite a bit. Another Example is, The Situation which usually happens in the Middle (usually episode 10 + )or at the end of an anime, where the girl runs missing and guy has to find her and bring her back home, it only happened in the 2nd episode, which gave me the feeling KMmUS was ReaLLy Rushing things to Develop Emotions for the Characters at a Faster Rate. Though it wasn't really that good of a work, & it was quite hard for me to believe it anyway (with common sense and such)...

Is there anything else i can say about this anime?

It's a pretty decent anime. It's probably worth a watch, but nothing extremely wonderful or outstanding from other animes. I won't be surprised if you love this anime if it is the first anime you are watching. But if you're someone who have watched a number of animes already, you would probably think this is an average anime.

I Praise KMmUS for its Wonderful Animation & Great Music, it has a decent Storyline & decent Characters, the character development and plot was good to watch and interesting in its way. But like i said, Nothing Excelling either.

If You're Bored, you could probably give Kono Mimikuku mo Utsukushii Sekai a watch.

If you have a List of other animes to watch, you could probably put this at the bottom of your list. Since you won't be missing out anything extremely good...


My Rating...
7.75/10
One StarOne StarOne StarHalf Star...No Star...

Animation: 9
Comment: Very Nicely Done, they must have had a lot of money in their budget to produce such Splendid animation. But too bad such good animation wasn't used to its potential. If the Story had MORE in it, the animation is definitely worth being so nicely done. =)

Music/Sounds: 8.5
Comment: Nice OP & ED Themes, & Seiyuus did a Good Job. Nothing Disappointing about this aspect either.

Story: 7
Comment: A Decent Storyline with Decent Comedy & Emotional Scenes, Sadly, Nothing Excelling, but they were good. The only disappointing thing is that the storyline couldn't have had MORE.

Characters: 6.5
Comment: With Character Designs & Characteristics that have been seen throughout many other animes and being re-used in this anime. The character development is decent, but thinking about how they couldn't have made the characters more unique in their own way was slightly disappointing...

Tear Factor:
One Tear...One Tear...One Tear...Half Tear...
Comment: It does a Decent Job touching you, but nothing that makes you cry buckets.

Comedy Factor:
One Laughter...One Laughter...One Laughter...Half Laughter...
Comment: Satisfying Comedy that Does a Good Job in Lightening the Sometimes-serious mood.

Excitement/Suspense/Surprising Factor:
One Excitement...One Excitement...Half Excitement...
Comment: Nothing that i can say surprising. But the feeling of suspense while you're waiting to find out what would happen to the Fate of the World was Pretty interesting.

Meaningful Factor:
One Meaning...One Meaning...
Comment: Meaning. Not Much Meaning i can gather from something so Out-of-the-World. But then again, it probably gives you a fresh look at the world, looking at the world through the eyes of someone who has never seen it before. Letting you appreciate the little but beautiful things that you can see and have Only IN THIS WOrld...

Overall, KMmUS is a Pretty Decent Anime with Nothing Excelling. But Worth a watch though, if you're interested in this genre. =) & you probably might like it if you're the kind that likes looking at Naked Anime Girls...

Click Here to See Legend...

Screenshot...
The Split...
The Splitting of the Shooting Star...

The Crash...
One of the Parts crashed in the forest, and as you can see, the two characters, Takeru & Ryou were there. & went to check out the Crash site...

Takeru Saving Hikari...
Takeru Saving the Mysterious Girl. & already promising to protect her with all his might. If you used your common sense, you'd most probably think "How Can they Develop such Feelings when they've just BARELY MET?!"

Oh Well, Kono Minikuku mo Utsukushii Sekai is Worth a Watch if you're bored & have nothing to do. Should this be the first anime you've watched, you'd probably love it. But if you've watched many animes before, this is probably a normal decent anime. Nothing Disappointing, Nothing Excelling... x)

Till my Next Review,
JoeL Un...x)