Welcome 2 our place where we share our passion and thoughts on all things movies, shows, & books. As a mother & daughter bloggers, we enjoy a variety of genres, such as: fantasy. sci-fi, paranormal/supernatural, horror, & so many more. Not only that, from time to time, we attend a variety of events, and we will share our fun & fan experiences on our site. So, thank you, in advance, for visiting our site.
Inside the human body, roughly 37.2 trillion cells work energetically 24 hours a day and 365 days a year. Fresh out of training, the cheerful and somewhat airheaded Red Blood Cell AE3803 is ready to take on the ever-so-important task of transporting oxygen. As usual, White Blood Cell U-1146 is hard at work patrolling and eliminating foreign bacteria seeking to make the body their new lair. Elsewhere, little platelets are lining up for a new construction project.
Dealing with wounds and allergies, getting lost on the way to the lungs, and bickering with similar cell types, the daily lives of cells are always hectic as they work together to keep the body healthy!
Cells at Work! is the information about your body that you didn’t ask for, but you get it anyway, and it’s all bundled up in an adorable thirteen-episode anime. While watching Cells at Work, the anime repeatedly introduces the different cells, bacteria, and functions of the human body. Each episode has its own little story to tell for the daily life of cells at work. Cells at Work gives cells face, humanoid form, and personality, wherein each of these aspects play on common anime stereotypes. For example, Red Blood Cell AE3803 is optimistic, clumsy, hard-working, and depicted with an ahoge or a strand of hair sticking out of the head to denote a foolish or clumsy character. White Blood Cell U-1146 is a serious and stern officer with very little facial expression and platelets are adorable, little children with few other personality traits. The anime is imbued with elements common in shonen anime, such as comedic and exaggerated faces, battle scenes, and light-hearted humor. It focuses on the collaboration between characters, their friendly relationships with each other or their rivalries. In the summer of 2018, Cells at Work was one of the most hyped anime of the season, but due to its short-lived nature, Cells at Work doesn’t leave a lasting impression. It is a short and cute anime for entertainment and for anyone looking for something easy to watch.
Chise Hatori, a 15-year-old Japanese girl, was sold for five million pounds at an auction to a tall masked gentleman. Abandoned at a young age and ridiculed by her peers for her unconventional behavior, she was ready to give herself to any buyer if it meant having a place to go home to. In chains and on her way to an unknown fate, she hears whispers from robed men along her path, gossiping and complaining that such a buyer got his hands on a rare "Sleigh Beggy."
Ignoring the murmurs, the mysterious man leads the girl to a study, where he reveals himself to be Elias Ainsworth—a magus. After a brief confrontation and a bit of teleportation magic, the two open their eyes to Elias' picturesque cottage in rural England. Greeted by fairies and surrounded by weird and wonderful beings upon her arrival, these events mark the beginning of Chise's story as the apprentice and supposed bride of the ancient magus.
I’m alive! When was my last post? July? Well, now I’m here to talk about The Ancient Magus’ Bride. The Ancient Magus’ Bride is set in rural England, where one masked magician Elias Ainsworth, lives. Chise Hatori, a fifteen-year-old Japanese girl, “sleigh beggy,” and our main heroine is quick to call his cottage her home. The mood that the story brings with magical creatures is oddly amplified in the countryside, where fairies, animals, plenty of flora, nature, and a few humans can interact. Here, in the countryside and other prairies later seen in the series, Elias introduces an entirely new world to Chise. She meets the fairies of the woods, other magic practitioners, her familiar who she names Ruth, and the series’ antagonist Cartaphilus. It is the perfect place for our two protagonists to grow their relationship as a student-teacher and future bride and groom. The countryside gives The Ancient Magus’ Bride an airy, dreamy vibe where the two can freely express themselves and practice magic without the hustle or cramped streets of a city. Elias can get all the necessities for Chise to become his apprentice in this area, but on those off occasions where they need to the city, all it takes is a walk to the nearest train station and a ticket to board. So, if a random passerby sees a commercial for The Ancient Magus’ Bride, they would see stunning visuals, animation, and plenty of glitter but that doesn’t mean Ancient Magus’ Bride is all about the magic and sad backstory. Included in the series is comedy, chibi animation, and slice-of-life. As a weekly viewer, I saw characters simplified facial expressions, dramatic shadows, and breathtaking scenery. Some people who have read the manga, claim to have not been disappointed. The art is magnificent, I must say.
The characters in Ancient Magus’ Bride are well written to display the subtle changes and character development throughout the series. For example, whether Elias realizes or not, by simply calling Chise “family,” he has found someone to spend his years with. Chise in return grows from being a hopeless and lonely child, ostracized and abandoned by her blood relatives in Japan, to a mature young woman that is trying her best to adapt to the world of magic. The characters’ flashbacks and pasts are limited and made me want to learn more about the character. With Chise being one of the main protagonists, much of her past is revealed with flashbacks that show us her mother’s suicide, her relatives abandoning her, and her lonely childhood that led her to give herself up to human auction. From all her past trauma, Chise finds a place to call home and becomes more determined to maintain her place of belonging. On the other side of our protagonists, Elias seems cold and callous, but he is not only Chise’s magic teacher, Elias is also Chise’s student to better understand human emotions and human customs. He becomes more open with Chise and others the more he spends time with her. It’s not only the viewer that watches Chise and Elias grow fond of each other, but other characters notice their development too. Chise and Elias’s friends become an extended family and their world continues to grow.
As for the series’ antagonists, a few people show up and become allies such as Mikhail Renfred and Alice Swayne, but one stands out as an ongoing threat to Chise and Elias. Cartaphilus, in the body of a boy named Joseph, continually interrupts the peaceful atmosphere of Chise’s life. He is mostly seen as a necromancer, who experiments with the dead so that he can live his eternal life without pain or suffering. Cartaphilus/Joseph wants to use Chise’s body as his own because of Chise’s innate ability as a sleigh beggy to both generate and absorb a large quantity of magical energy and therefore heal herself. On a larger scale, Cartaphilus is a minor villain in comparison to other anime antagonists with a desire to destroy the world order or antagonists with armies. He is sympathetic to a point because while some people would want to live forever, the condition of one’s body still rotting from old age and injury is not so appealing.
Everything in The Ancient Magus’ Bride becomes a beautiful masterpiece but some criticism is expected. The ones that I have come across are “Chise is too young for Elias (who is a magical being that can outlive anyone)” and “Chise is useless. She relies on Elias too much.” I can see these as valid points because Chise is fifteen at the beginning of the series and had a depressing gloomy, “I don’t have a reason to exist” personality. In the despair of her circumstances, Chise made the conscious decision to become his apprentice and future bride. Elias also takes it upon himself to protect and shelter Chise. From the very beginning, it’s expected of the plot and character development for them to grow fond of each other. The Ancient Magus’ Bride is a charming story of two individuals that are learning to become mentors, friends, family, and eventually a married couple… a story where all their friends take note of how Elias and Chise already argue like a married couple or even mother and child. Since the manga is ongoing, Elias and Chise have plenty of time to let their feelings for each other grow and the anime has a chance to expand on their relationship for the future.
With all that being said, if I have ever recommended any other series, movie, book, or manga to you, I now say, “put that on the backburner…” with maybe the exception of Kimi no Na Wa, that movie is beautiful. I’m giving all the people who read this review a new recommendation. It’s heartwarming, especially the scene where Chise finished her staff and flies back to Elias. In that scene, I could see Chise’s freedom. She can choose her family, friends, and the future ahead of her. I can also see how grateful she is to have met Elias and everyone else in the story. I think it has a beautiful soundtrack, visuals, and an enchanting story. I love The Ancient Magus’ Bride just as much as Naruto or Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso.
Production I.G, Dentsu, Mainichi Broadcasting System, Pony Canyon, Kodansha, Mad Box, Shingeki no Kyojin Team, Pony Canyon Enterprise
Plot Summary:
For centuries, humanity has been hunted by giant, mysterious predators known as the Titans. Three mighty walls—Wall Maria, Rose, and Sheena—provided peace and protection for humanity for over a hundred years. That peace, however, was shattered when the Colossus Titan and Armored Titan appeared and destroyed the outermost wall, Wall Maria. Forced to retreat behind Wall Rose, humanity waited with bated breath for the Titans to reappear and destroy their safe haven once more.
In Shingeki no Kyojin Season 2, Eren Yeager and others of the 104th Training Corps have just begun to become full members of the Survey Corps. As they ready themselves to face the Titans once again, their preparations are interrupted by the invasion of Wall Rose—but all is not as it seems as more mysteries are unraveled. As the Survey Corps races to save the wall, they uncover more about the invading Titans and the dark secrets of their own members.
Shingeki no Kyojin, in English known as Attack on Titan, is an anime and manga of the same name and has just finished airing its second season. The first season didn’t leave me with any long-lasting impressions, other than the pretty graphics and art style. It isn’t until I was encouraged to watch season 2 that my interest rose to a fine peak but first a brief commentary of season 1. Season 1 left the impression of another simple shounen anime wherein the main protagonist, Eren Jeager, becomes a part of the Survery Corps and gains numerous power ups. The designated heroine, Mikasa Ackerman, is someone of interest and arguably someone to look up to as a soldier but as a normal person she has a one-track mind focused on Eren, his survival, and a strongly hinted romantic interest. The assumption of Eren being a stereotypical shounen protagonist wasn’t necessarily wrong but season 2 delves deeper into the rabbit hole. Season 2 continues where season 1 left a large cliffhanger. While the characters are a bit placid in development there are exceptions such as Reiner Braun, Krista Lenz/Historia Reiss, Annie Leonhart, Bertholdt Hoover, and Ymir.
The plot thickens as we, the viewer, learn more about the Walls (Maria, Rose, and Sheena), the spies that have infiltrated the Survey Corps and with the appearance of a Beast Titan with human comparable intellect the necessity to find out what lies outside of the Walls becomes greater. Life inside the Walls is stagnant and suffocating because humanity is trapped in fear by titans but in season 2 we learn there is an outside world in which Reiner, Berthholdt, Annie, and Ymir were a part of. Attack on Titan becomes more than just a dystopian, fighting anime and manga where humanity cowers in the corner with a knife in its hand. Reiner is the Armored Titan, Bertholdt is the Colossus Titan, we should already know Annie is the Female Titan, and Ymir is a Titan. The three aforementioned characters have their own joined agenda for being in the Walls while Ymir is fixated on Krista, real name Historia. Each of them have a mysterious past that is waiting to be revealed, although Ymir’s past was explored. Never mind “what’s in Eren’s basement” anymore.
There are still mysteries to be unfolded and season 2 ends with Ymir, Bertholdt, and Reiner escaping to the fallen Wall Maria and Eren vowing to become useful to humanity with his titan powers. While season 1 felt stagnant, season 2 makes me curious about the events that will unfold in season 3 which is scheduled for a 2018 release.
Young Adult/New Adult Action/Adventure, Game, Shounen
Rating:
PG-13 or older
Run Time:
2 hrs 15 minutes
Release Date:
April 23, 2016 (JP)
January 27, 2017 (US)
Directed by:
Satoshi Kuwabara
Character Design and Story by:
Kazuki Takahashi
Studio:
Studio Gallop
Producers:
TV Tokyo, Nihon Ad Systems, Shueisha, Konami Digital Entertainment
Synopsis:
Set six months after the events of the original Yu-Gi-Oh! manga, Yugi Muto and his friends are in their final year of high school and are talking about what they will do in the future. Meanwhile, Seto Kaiba has commissioned an excavation to retrieve the disassembled Millennium Puzzle from the ruins of the Millennium chamber. The item had previously housed the soul of his rival, Atem, whom he hopes to revive in order to settle their score. The excavation is interrupted by a mysterious man, who faces Kaiba in a game of Duel Monsters and steals two pieces of the recovered Puzzle. What is his ulterior motive? The stakes have never been higher; the rivalries never as fierce; the risks never so great.
It was more like a simple action flick but worth it for any Yu-Gi-Oh!fans. ~( ^^)~ I don’t recommend Yu-Gi-Oh! The Dark Side of Dimensions to everyone. Sure; there were a few drawbacks I could nitpick at, such as the cliché good versus evil theme or some friendship message, but it wouldn’t be the Yu-Gi-Oh! I know and love without those elements. With so much hype since I attended the Yu-Gi-Oh! Panel at SDCC, the trailers that have been released since then, I can say I wasn’t disappointed. Although predictable, I chose to pay attention to the journey taken in this movie rather than the result.
This was beautiful as I felt that The Dark Side of Dimensionswas good for closure. “How’s Atem doing on his afterlife throne? What’s everyone up to these days? What are they doing with their lives?” As an excited member of the audience and a fan of the Yu-Gi-Oh!Franchise since I was a kid, it was fulfilling to see the first-generation characters finish their last year in high school and seeing how they had matured, even if it was just by a little bit. It may not have been much in terms of character development but I felt it brought Duel Monsters full circle and allowed the gang to (completely) move on from Pharaoh Atem’s departure, thus pushing them to seriously look at their futures. Except for Kaiba… because he practically has it all and he still wants to duel Atem… and satisfy his wonderfully inflated ego. No sarcasm intended.
Its drawbacks lie with the “good versus evil” theme and I’m pretty sure everyone can figure out the ending. I wish the villain had more depth but what can you do? There’s only so much Kuwabara and Takahashi can put into a 2 hour and 15-minute movie. Nevertheless, I was smiling the entire time. Probably because I was too busy focusing on Kaiba and the clean-cut imagery. The CGI for monsters was also a nice touch because it added extra detail onto monsters that the original anime did not have. The Blue-Eyes White Dragon was actually White! That’s always bothered me when I watched the anime.
Yu-Gi-Oh! The Dark Side of Dimensions was fast paced with vibrant animation, fan favorite characters returning, awesome duels, brilliant voice acting, and kick ass new monsters. More like kick ass new monster designs, but it’s still beautiful. A note on the monsters: effects and special summons for days. And are they actually playing by the real game rules? Shocking. It kept me on the edge of my seat seeing what cards will be played next and what effects would benefit the turn player while causing the opponent disadvantage.
Square Enix, Silver Link, Sentai Filmworks, Watamote Production Committee, Good Smile Company
Plot Summary:
Fifteen-year-ld Tomoko Kuroki believed that she would become popular upon entering high school because she'd become well-versed in the world of otome games. In reality, she finds that she has become an unsociable loner and she is force to take a long hard look at herself for the first time in years. The story follows Tomoko as she attempts to improve her social status as she progresses through high school.
Watashi ga Motenai no wa Dō Kangaetemo Omaera ga Warui! OrWatamote for short doesn’t resonate well for those who are deep thinkers. I guess I ran into that one, considering this anime is considered a comedy and comedy isn’t my forte. The anime seemed more sad or homely rather than comedic. However, I do see this anime gained some popularity. At first this anime interested me because of the appearance of the main character, Tomoko Kuroki, as seen numerous times on Facebook or other anime/manga sites. To start off like a regular episode, the opening theme is representative of the main character: chains in which she breaks free from, a dark or gloomy atmosphere, and angry music, all symbolizing a need for change or growth. The main character herself is very much like a shut in and the unpopular girl not even I would notice but somehow she can be relatable such as when she is awkward speaking to others, sleeping at 3 am in the morning, or taking interest in 2D animation, particularly Otome Games/Dating Sims. An animation detail done by the studio is that all other characters are nothing but grey figures with little detail done on them. The only ones with color are Tomoko or others that she notices; for someone who is unnoticeable, she is forced to be noticeable as she is the main character. To be honest, I couldn’t really relate to Tomoko very much and although I liked her scruffy appearance I actually found her annoying because at least I have the social capability of ordering a cappuccino or asking for a pencil. There’s also some mild controversy over the portrayal of social anxiety and the life of an “otaku,” Japanese for “no life,” in which case this anime has portrayed it to an extreme. Tomoko takes it to the extreme to the point where it is hard to see future in her. While this anime filled an empty time space, it was a waste compared to other anime choices.
