An American Writer's Thoughts on Japanese Animation

Equivalent Exchange – Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood Spoiler Review

In history, the “Magnum Opus” or “Great Work” was a term for the alchemical pursuit of the protoscience’s greatest goals, particularly the Philosopher’s Stone and the process it would make capable, turning base metal into gold. It was thought to be a process of iterative refinement, not just for the raw materials that would be worked into higher forms, but spiritually for the alchemist himself, becoming a purer being closer to the divine with each step, the creation of the stone and the betterment of the self inexorably intertwined with the causal link unclear.

Take what you will from that factoid, it’s time to look at Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood.

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Seasonal Selection – Endo and Kobayashi Live! The Latest on Tsundere Villainess Lieselotte Episode 1

Comedy is subjective. Well, there are some parts that do have objective qualities, but not everyone is going to react to the same comedy in the same way. What one person finds laugh-out-loud funny another person can find absolutely torturous or downright offensive. For instance, I absolutely loathed “Don’t Toy With Me, Miss Nagatoro” to the point where I had to bail after just a single episode, making it to-date the only show that I absolutely could not get through even to review it.

I mention because this season’s show, Endo and Kobayashi Live! The Latest on Tsundere Villainess Lieselotte is very much a comedy. One that in its first episode I have found to be darn funny, even as it promises, somewhat, to have a little more of a plot.

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Dante’s Gate – Fullmetal Alchemist (2003) Spoiler Review

“Humankind cannot gain anything without first giving something in return. To obtain, something of equal value must be lost. That is Alchemy’s first law of Equivalent Exchange. In those days we really believed that to be the world’s one and only truth.”

That one little speech is, for many Anime fans of my age, one of the most emblematic of their early experience with the medium. The 2003 Fullmetal Alchemist anime isn’t just a classic; it’s notable as a pioneer and gateway for tons of fans. And so, it was inevitable that I would have to delve into it on this blog some time.

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The Perils of Purgatory – Angel Beats Spoiler Review

Happy Boxing Day everybody! It’s time to talk about a favorite few topics this time of year: Heaven, “Feel Good” material, and Animes that I personally have some degree of spite towards. Every year, somewhere around the Winter Solstice and that other regional holiday I’m sure nobody celebrates, I take a look at at least one show that really grinds my gears. This year, that show is Angel Beats.

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The Cutest Battlebots – Angelic Layer Spoiler Review

I’ll be honest, fighting games have never exactly been my scene. I’ve played a fair bit of Smash Bros., and that’s about it. I can see the appeal, I’m just no good at them. On the other hand, at least as a spectator, I was big into Battlebots at one point, so I can appreciate the idea of sending custom rigs into a sort of competitive combat.

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