I'm going to try again with my difficult question...this is for all you anime experts out there.

Hmmm...QK2Rusty, you're a bad luck poster. You spilt this over into the 13th page....

Anyways, I found this at http://home.earthlink.net/~jhendrich/anime_history.htm

"During the war with China in 1937, animation took a military look. The works weren't creative in many aspects and basically were created as propaganda to help the public support the army. In 1943, during Word War II, the Imperial Government had an artist, Mituyoseo, create a short Anime film. His team created the first animated feature in Japan, Momotaro's Gods-blessed Sea Warriors"

I guess that was the first one that was actually given a title.
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My grandma says that she watched Hello Kitty and she's like 70 somthing years old and she says her older brother liked Astro Boy....

Speaking of 08th MS team, I just saw that today. I really like what ive seen so far, its nice to see "new" style animation linked to a UC Gundam series. And it was cool to hear some of the more familiar "new" voice actors in this series.

Ive been on a UC kick recently, I watched the movies and im starting to watch the Zeta I have. Char truly is one of the best characters!

(Referring to a bunch of earlier posts)...
The Gundam 08 MS Team series is due out on July 1st.

Hey, everyone, quick little question:
Who here watches Ranma and or reads the manga?

Hmmm, I guess nobody cared about the anime quiz idea.

Oh well, moving on. I've watched the first two seasons of Ranma 1/2 and I'd say it's probrably one of my favorite series. It gets a little frustrating watching it after a while since Ranma and Akane always get so close to expressing their feelings to each other, but are too stubborn to admit them. So basically their relationship never really gets anywhere.

As for the Ranma 1/2 Manga, I've got the first issue that viz released in 1992. The series almost follows the manga word for word, with just very minor changes. So if you like the show, your basically getting the exact same thing in the manga.

Ranma 1/2 is ok, but I like Inu Yasha a lot better, anyone here read/watch it?

Speaking of Ranma the gashapon set should be out soon, Japan has it already, so the online shops should get them soon. Im still wating on my pre-order...

Random anime news: "Starship girl" Yamamoto Yohko has been picked up for commercial release by I belive "right stuff"

I was just wondering who watches it around here. So far I've seen 2 movies, 4 subbed eps, and read vol. 3 of the manga. If I didn't already have to finish Bebop, Wing, Tenchi, and 0083, I'd be buying Ranma stuff like there was no tomorrow.

Best of Ranma 1/2? Oh, right, I remember. Saw an add for them in Animerica (along with a nice article on Akira). I'm half tempted to pick up the Ryoga set I saw advertised. Unfortunatly, I'm waiting for the DVDs because I'm an idiot and will gladly pay money for another language and some extras. That and the lack of previews. I always hated seeing previews, becasue I didn't know what would be shown (Ninja Scroll for example. This dsoen't apply to Ranma, just VHS tapes in general).

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Friendship.
Trust.
Desire.
Hatred.
You all carry too many unnecessary burdens.
Only. One. Thing:
Absolute devotion to Him,ought to be all you need.
-Legato Bluesummers, Trigun

Ok, top 5 anime episodes. I'll start:

5. "Underneath the Sky So Blue" Trigun Episode 26
4. "Paradise" Trigun Episode 23
3. "Sin" Trigun Episode 24
2. "Farewell, the Strongest Men" Rurouni Kenshin Episode 11
1. "Ballad of Fallen Angels" Cowboy Bebop Episode 5

Im still watching Gundam 08th MS Team, Ive gotta say I really love this "series". Its great to see new style animation hooked to a UC timeline Gundam anime. It's great to seee Zeons again! Has anyone else seen this? cause ive got quesitons but dont know if I can post them cause I might spoil something.

Also some new UC Gundam figures are out. I saw:

-Gog
-Char's Z'gok
-Z'gok
-Shiro Amada's Gundam (08th MS team)
-Char's Gelgog.

Why, Legato? Why must you make me choose my top five favorite episodes, you madman?! Anyways, here they are (in no particular order):

Bubblegum Crisis
OVA 6: Red Eyes

Slayers
Episode 26: Victory! I Will Allways Be The Winner!

Outlaw Star
Episode 26: Back Into Space

Tenchi Universe
Episode 25: No Need For a Showdown

Dragonball Z
Episode 191: Fight For The Future

If I wasn't limited to just five:

Bubblegum Crisis Tokyo 2040
Episode 26: Still Alive and Well

Trigun
Episode 26: Under The Sky So Blue

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, I present to you:
ANIME'S 500th POST!!!

I'm amazed that this topic has gone on for so long, so I just want to say, thank you to everybody for contributing your anime fandom and anime knowledge to this board.

And Insane called me a madman...HA! Get it! Someone named "Insane" called me a madman! OHHOHOHOHOHOHO! The irony kills me!

*ahem* Moving on...can't think of anything. Crud.

THIS THREAD WILL NOT DIE! Anyone, can you think of ANYTHING to talk about!? Maybe a continuation of the Top 5 Episodes?

All right... You guys asked for it...

What can anyone here add to the subject of "Live Action Anime"? Yeah, some of you I'll bet are cringing, and some of you might not actually know what I'm referring to. (To those of you who wish tro keep your innocence on the subject matter, skip on down... But you'll know sooner or later.) Well, as with almost any sub-genre of film, I have mixed feelings about the whole situation.

The first Live Action Anime I ever got my hands on was Fist of the North Star. Yes, that's right- Not the cartoon version steeped in bloodshed and starring such Japanese Seiyuu as Kamiya Akira, Torishou Furukawa and Kenji Utsumi- No, this was a movie made by an American film crew and filmed in Hong Kong- mostly for budget contraints. In this version, our stars are Gary Daniels, Costar Mandylor (How God, HOW could you let this happen!?), Chris Penn (!?), and even Malcom McDowell. I actually drove for over an hour to finally see this film, and the end result... Well, I'll get to that in a moment.

Hokuto no Ken was NOT the only anime/manga to have a movie based off of it- Far from it, actually. Many of you by now have seen, or at least heared of the Japan/Hong Kong Co-production of "Dragonball: The Magic Begins" (As released by Tai Seng). I found it to be a fun, amusing, if a rather strange children's Hong Kong flick. The thing that scares me is that in some ways, this is closer to Toriyama's work than the FUNimation English release... Though a few events were changed considerably, to make it a stand alone story. The film follows the original manga, if not word for word, then in spirit. However, be sure you have plenty of crackers and wine while watching this... You'll have more cheese than you know what do do with- Particularly if you watch the English Dub.

*Please note that from here on out, I'll only use the English/US titles to avoid any confusion. I'm not familiar enough with many of them to really feel I'm allowed to do otherwise.

Sanctuary was given a simmilar treatment, though I know nothing about either the live action film or the original story. An English dub was offered a few years ago, but I really don't know anything more than that.

The live action Kekkou Kamen (Pretty Mask) trilogy by Japan's number one bad boy himself, Go Nagai, was an interesting switch; The live action film came *before* the anime. I still haven't been able to track this movie down, try as I may... But I warn you, if gratuitous nudity to a point where there's actually very little clothed skin in the film bothers you, or rather lewd acts from the basically nude superheroine (She wears a mask, a scarf, go-go boots, super heroine-ish gloves, and a Nunchaku... Need I really say any more?) uses to take care of her opponents, don't bother. On the other hand, if this sort of thing strikes you as funny, go for it! (I have yet to hear anything from the supposed US release for this year... We'll see, I suppose. If "Sailor and the Seven Ball-Z" can get a DVD release, anything is possible.) Oh- Did I mention there is a guest appearance by Violence Jack, or that she oil wrestles Lum herself? I have yet to see this trilogy- But feel free to bet your spleen I will.

Another classic in this sub-genre is The Wicked City. It can be considered a sequel to the anime of the same title, but it could also merely be considered a new interpretation of the same story. This is really a Catalogue III film at it's best- It's certainly NOT a kids film. Another I have yet to see, only because I have yet to pick up the Chinese/English DVD yet. This looks like a good one for a Hong Kong anime based horror, even if they do use Black Light antenne on occasion. (Don't ask... You'd have to see it for yourself.)

There were a pair of Guyver movies made in the states- No, not McGuyver, the Bio-Boosted armor stuff. I've seen the second film on the Sci-Fi channel countless times over the years, but I've yet to see the first. It should be fun, if nothing else, on the grounds that Mark Hamill, Luke Skywalker himself, plays the lead. The second was low budged US Sci-Fi at it's best, such as it is... If you're a fan of Dai Kaiju films or the guyver series in general (I have yet to see it myself), it's worth a rental. Don't be surprised if you hear thr occasional curse or see a little blood- It was given an R rating, even if it was made for TV.

Jackie Chan became Kamiya Akira... Go figure. Chan starred in a live action City Hunter movie, and it sounds like one of the wildest rides Asian cinema has to offer us. I mean, come on- Jackie Chan talks to Bruce Lee on a movie screen AND gets to dress up like the cast of Street Fighter, all in teh course of one movie! I'll give you a fair warning though- The US version was cut, but the only thing removed was some rather blatant and moderately offensive homophobic humor. If you don't mind jokes at the expense of someone gay, get the import. If you're a bit more PC than I am with you're viewing, get the US release.

Perhaps one of the most intriguing Live Action Anime I know of (And still haven't seen >.< ) is an French "Crying Freeman" film, shot in English, that was never released. It seems the film is very close to the original manga, but for one reason or another, was never released in the US. (I've heared it's incredibly violent for a film of it's type- That could have been the reason, in some odd way.) Bootleg copies aren't too hard to find for those curious, and I know I'll track one down eventually... (Hey, $20 for a movie based off of a manga is always worth it, even if it is embarassing.)

My personal favorite is a film that has no equals... Not even a rival for what it is, save perhaps Shogun Assasins. (I haven't seen that yet, so I won't judge.) In 1992, Hong Kong released a film that was based off of a spoof manga, one that playfully dealt with Post Apocalypse stories- Violence Jack, Hokuto no Ken, things of that nature, as well as Kung Fu films in general. The manga was called Rikki Ou, and the Hong Kong film was released as 'King of Strength', aka Story of Ricky. This movie is the silliest, goriest, most entertaining piece of film I've ever seen in my LIFE from Hong Hong- And while I've not seen all that many films, I am a fan of the overall style. If you've got a weak stomach for gore so over the top it's actually funny, skip on by. However, if movies like "Evil Dead 2" and "Braindead" (aka Dead Alive) are your cup of tea, and you enjoy Bruce Lee clones punching THROUGH their opponents in silly, spashy, gory detail as much as I do, you'll LOVE it. Just be sure to bring some Nacho's... It's good cheese. (Also, it might help to understand many of the jokes to have read the first English 'Fist of the North Star' manga by Viz. Many scenes from it are spoofed directly.) Be warned, though- The gore in the film is silly, and very hard to take seriously with the mile over the top presentation, but it is right up there with Braindead...

I've heared rumors of a Live Action Hokuto no Ken (Fist of the North Star) movie, Hong Kong style... But I haven't heared of it in a long time. Maybe it was only a phantom rumor, or perhaps it's the legendary HnK TV movie... I just don't know, and maybe I never will. *Sigh*

*HOWEVER*, I own the live action 'Fist of the North Star' movie. Any Malcom McDowell fan should see it at least once for his scenes as Ken's father Ryuuken, and if bad Mad Max rip offs are your idea of a good time, you'll probably love it. Chris Penn makes a wonderfully scuzzy Jackal (A cross between Jackal and Jyagi of the original manga), and Downtown Julie Brown doesn't come off nearly as bad as I thought she would as the village leader. (Now... Where did they pull her out of? Sorry- She is NOTHING like Mamiya.) On the other hand, Costar Mandylar was JUST PLAIN WRONG for this movie. Sure, he can play a forbiden love kind of guy, if you like those movies, but A) He can't fight, B) He's not evil in the slightest, and C) He's so effeminate I doubted his version of Shin was heterosexual anyway. Yes, Shin had to be a pretty boy- A BLONDE pretty boy, something the film makers didn't catch aparently- But come on, we went from Torisho Furukawa, Piccolo himself, to this!? On the other hand, Gary Daniels as Kenshirou, despite the fact that the man couldn't act his way out of a moist paper bag, was decent. His body language was right, and he looked quite a bit like Ken- and most importantly, he could fight. If Van Damme had been Ken, I would have destroyed the tape- Even if it was a rental. I just didn't like his accent, that's all. If he was going for a Japanese accent, he just screwed it up horribly... I think it was just supposed to be a standard 'I'm a US action star and now I need to sound European' thing going on. Ah well, Kenshiro had minimal irritating dialouge (What dialouge he did have wasn't half bad... It's just when he's trying to sound 'Nice' that he gets on my nerves...) and maximum whupass going on anyway, so I really can't complain. Now if only it had more gore, more than 90 seconds of gore, I would have been at least content... But, despite the cheese and the sometimes painful rewriting of MY favorite show (Shin didn't kill Ryuuken, and when he did die, he WAS NOT shot with a gun, he was killed in the dojo with his own North Dipper style... That was the biggest thing that bothered me about the film- That they could change such an important battle), it had high production values for a low budget film. (Good sets, gorgeous costumes, neat lighting, great slow motion battle scenes, etc.) It's worth watching... Just expect a somewhat artsy version of Mad Max with a lot of Kung Fu with Chris Penn beating up kids and Costar Mandylor being, well, lame. I don't use that word often, but that's what it is; Lame. It's not a bad movie, really, it's just Gary Daniels beating up WWF's Vader in an attempt to be Kenshirou versus Heart that shows the downfall of it all... They tried, they really did, but they just weren't very good at doing it.

I won't even get into the Live action La Blue Girl series. After all, I know what it is, and I'd wager the vast majority of you guyys do too. It's something you would either love and laugh with or be appaled by. It just depends on how jaded you are... And as you all must have guessed, I'm quite jaded. Either way, they're out there... Let's not bring them up again, hmmm?

So... What does everyone else here think about 'Live Action Anime'?

One thing I tend to like about anime is the energy. Pure, fast and filled with energy...

I've seen few live action movies that were able to portray the above requirements.

Matrix could have passed off as a convincing anime if I squinted my eyes and pretended I saw speed lines...

I can also see Crouching Tiger passing off as a live action anime.

Other than that, I'm hard pressed to think of any movie that has been able to truly transfer anime to film...

I was going to go on longer about this topic, but I gots a craving for sloppy joes...

mmmmm.. sloppy.

I've seen tons of Hong Kong movies, but the only one I can remember right now is part three of A Chinese Ghost story trilogy. It's not really an anime, but there is a hong kong produced cartoon of it made by Kung Fu movie director Tsui Hark. It's a pretty good movie with lots of anime type antics, and the humour is pretty good. The special effects are quite terrible though, and the monsters that appear in the film come off as sort of low budget muppets.

I was bored today and posed my Wolfwood and Vash figures in a "yaoi" type pose. All I did was put Vash's arm around Nick. I didnt think it was too yaoi but me friend thought so....

There aren't really any good live action anime transfers, since up until now, the technology was never there. And most of them suffer from low budgets. A good anime film can be made now if given the right treatment. Matrix borrows a lot from anime, much of the plot and mood of the film is in fact borrowed from Ghost in the Shell. X-men, isn't an anime, but it was almost perfectly transfered to live action. One of the reason it worked is because the director decided to go with a more realistic look, rather than be 100% faithful to the comic.

To tell you all the trust, I wasn't all that impressed with the 'New Wave' of Anime styled movies... In some ways. Now before everyone gets upset with me, please let me explain my views.

The Matrix... It was a good movie, I must admit. It had great special effects, it had Keanu Reeves, it had Yuen Woo Ping martial arts, it had Bio Feedback type craziness, it had a fun plot, it had some disturbing Bio-mechanical effects that looked like an H.R. Giger dream sequence, and it had Rob Zombie, Marilyn Manson, and Rage Against the Machine on the soundtrack. Now THIS is a movie... The thing I disliked about it is that it chnaged the face of movies forever. Need proof? Let's turn to exibit B...

X-men. I miss the cartoon, and I always liked the comics when I coudl find them before I turned 10 and moved on to things like Spawn and The Maxx, but I always enjoyed the story, the feeling, the "Wow! That was cool!" aspect of it all. So then we get the movie... Okay, nto bad. But let's face it- The effects sold the movie. The fight on the Statue of Liberty proved it to me- Every other shot was a Matrix-esque 'Have somebody do something cool while the camera moves'. I can't STAND this. If the stunt is impressive, let the stunt carry it on it's own. In The Matrix, when Trinity jumps, is suspended in mid air while teh camera spins around, and kicks the Police officer in the opening... Who cares? She's just SITTING there in the air. If she were spinning and the camera was going the opposite way, fine. If we were watching everything move around her while this occured, I could have forgiven it. But she's JUST SITTING THERE FOR 10 SECONDS. I know they were going for an "Iron Monkey" kind of feeling, the gravity defying stunts made in Hong Kong films (See Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, Exibit C), but it just comes off as boring. The fight with Keanu reeves and Lawrence Fishboure in the dojo isn't all that great... Sure, it's certainly a Yuen Woo Ping masterpiece, but he's done 2 dozen of them in each film he's ever made.

What I want to know is; When did it reach a point where an Action Hero didn't need to do a thing and just let the CGI do the work? Jackie Chan is from the Old School of Hong Kong movies, and does all of his stunts as you see them- It's Him, doing it himself. No CGI, this guy's gonna' stick to it. Jet Li often does his own stunts, and only uses CGI where it's needed. (Think "Romeo Must Die"... And who the heck picked that title out of a hat!? Anyway- think the scene where he walks through the flames.) Back in Hong Kong, the 1970's, you weren't hired unless you could actually do something- A thing most people don't care about anymore in movies. Go rent 'Return of the Dragon' (Really "Way of the Dragon") and watch the scene where Bruce Lee jumps straight up and shatters a lamp on the celing by kicking it. That's all the man did- Just straight up, kick a light bulb, and break it. Today, this scene would require Yuen Woo Ping for 3 weeks, 30 yards of cable, and more CGI than all of Jurassic Park 2. But you should Rent Way of the Dragon anyway- Bruce Lee rips off a chunk of Chuck Noriss' chest hair and blows it in his face, not to mention Bruce Lee doing fart gags. That's worth $2 right there, and you know it. (Yes, I know Tom Cruise did a few of his own stunts in MI:2... But I'm still mad at him for what he did to Lestat.)

Exibit C, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. WOW. Now THIS is what I call a movie! Chop Socky action with no visible wires, more swordplay than the average Shaws Brothers flick, gorgeous locals, genuinely likable characters evened out with a few you want to see get theirs, pretty women, fights in trees and Christ-like water walking, and Chow Yon Fat in a monk haircut. (I still say Jet Li looked better in it- But oh well.) I'm willing to say this movie really does have it all- Even if Non-believers will scoff at the way the characters fly. This movie is as tragic as it is beautiful, and more importantly, as beautiful as it is epic. This is the style that Legends should be presented in, because you only have to half believe them... You should be enchanted and afraid and in love all at once. And for once, it WASN'T dubbed at the drive-ins, something even Bruce Lee could never achieve in the 70's. This is how Chinese movies- Nay, Movies everywhere were always meant to be...

Now that I think of it... Does it scare anyone else that they tried to talk T.F. Maus into finding a role for Chow Yon Fat in "Man Behind the Sun"? It's just wrong, I tell you...

And this proved that you can make beautiful epics without basing them on comics and animation (Therefore, manga and anime). Certainly, it's always fun to see a Live Action comic book... And sometimes, the mere style of a comic gives it new meaning (For example, Sam Raimi's "Darkman"). Sometimes the line is so blurred between Comic and Live Action film even I don't know what to think... "Tank Girl" for example. But the fact remains that it's possible to make an Anime styled film without basing it off of an actual manga or anime... And while this is a true feat unto itself, I don't feel it should be in the same cattegory at all.

But I don't think Italian Zombie movies and Italian Cannibal movies should be in the same cattegory either, proving I'm WAY too anal about this kind of thing.

I dislike modern action films mostly because they just don't feel exciting. Sure, we have bigger explosions and more death defying stunts, but an action film has to touch you, somehow. It has to make you feel pity or joy, or make you laugh or cry, or make you cheer or cringe in shock. Action films don't do that anymore.

Some anime would be a nightmare to make as a Live Action... "Akira" would be nearly impossible. Some would be difficult, but plausable; "Pretty Soldiers Sailormoon" (Classic) is a good bet in my book, as long as you have a compitent film maker. Some are just asking for it in theor own ways... I haven't seen any of Rurouni Kenshin yet (I'd like to...), but if Ridley Scott can make Gladiator, then Steven Speilberg can make The Wandering Samurai. And as for Devilman... Keep it away from Charles Band, that's all I have to say. After all, if a man gives a chimp a gun, and the chimp shoots someone, you don't blame the chimp.

However, the only way I can see another Live Action Anime happening any time soon is if they're low budget independant films relying on creativity rather than any sort of budget. Marvel may be doing just fine with it's own Comic based movies, but I don't think any American film company would touch anything from Japan with a 10 foot titanium poking stick. It's both a nice and a horrible thought at the same time... All I can say is give me 3,000 and hald a dozen actor,s and I can give you an 8 minute film on the Super Saiya 2 transformation at the Cell Game. It woudl suck, yes... But It would have a complete opening and ending credits with a Japanese score and an acurate script. That's what happens when someone makes a movie because they actually want to, and not to make money.

I already have the whole thing planned out, and that's what scares me the most...

People claim Film Making is hard. I say to them 'Kiss my Camera Lens'. Get a camera. Film something with it. Now you've made a film. As to how good you can make it, and hoiw respected a film maker you become, is limited only by how much you want it. Don't believe me? Peter Jackon's film "Bad Taste" took him 3 years to complete, and much of it was financed out of his own pocket. No film company would touch his idea of a "Gory science fiction comedy" where teh lead villian was named Lord Crumb, so he did it himself... And now he's doing the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Scary, isn't it? Sam Raimi wanted to make a horror film for his College film project. He ended up shooting "The Evil Dead", and establishing himself as the Velveeta Cheese Movie King of the last generation. Now he's doing Spider-Man. Good for him, and chances are, good for us. Ruggero Deodato made 3 Cannibal films, including the legendary Cannibal Holocaust and Ultimo Mundo Canibal- And the often unmentioned Man From Deep River... And he never did move out of exploitation films and into mainstream audiences- Though he's loved by fans of sleazy Italian films. (I mean, come on, his next film was 'House at the Edge of the Park', an extra sleazy remake/rip-off of 'Last house on the Left'!) Well... 2 out of 3 isn't bad.

Personally, I would like to track down the rest of the Live Action Anime films, along with their aniem counterparts. This is certainly far more easy to say than it is to do; Many of the titles, Live or Anime, are out of print. (The animated Rikki Ou was never released in the states, and the Crying Freeman was never released at all.) The Guyver anime is only available dubbed, meaning I will probably not get them, though the manga is a possibility. (Does anyone know if VIZ translated all of it, or only some of it?) The Crying Freeman OVA series has been out of print for a long time, meaning my only option is a Cantonese VCD set- something I'm not personally against whole heartedly, but I would still rather have them in Japanese. (Another title I might just get the manga for... Anyone have a clue why the first several books became 'Perfect Collections' and the final book is still in 2 parts? I never will understand VIZ...) City Hunter is a series I'm bound to get- Mostly because I'm a bg fan of Kamiya Akira, voice of Saeba Ryou (Along with Kasumi Kenshirou in Hokuto no Ken/Fist of the North Star and Tomoe-Sensei in Sailormoon Super, not to mention Garlic Jr in the first Dragonball Z movie... Oooh, he was Kisagiri-Sensei in Cutey Honey F, too!), and the chance to see Jackie Chan in a Street Fighter 2 outfit isn't something I'm about to miss. I've been a fan of Wicked City (I know, I know, Demon Beast City... I still haven't bought the DVD yet, so I'm going by the English version... Hey, it wasn't the worst thing Streamline ever did o.o'), so a chance to see the same story Live Action is something I'll probably do eventually. I already own Dragonball and Fist of the North Star as Live Action, though I'm considering the DVD releases... *Sigh* I need professional help. And Sanctuary... Eh, if it ever strikes me... I'm very fickle.

The 'La Blue Girl' live action series is on my list as soon as I can figure out how to smuggle them in... Let's leave it at that.

So yes, I'm a fan of a great many things. I can stomach any kind of cheese known to the human race- And that imncludes cheesy live action anime movies. I enjoy them, actually... I think they're a disgrace to their original manga for the most part, but at least they're entertaining in their own way. That's something a lot of movies can achieve on a lot of levels, but often not on the good ones. If I had never seen the anime for Hokuto no Ken, I would have thought that Gary Daniels and Malcom McDowell in Fist of the North Star was one of the greatest Post Apocalypse Kung Fu movies ever made, despite the villian being REALLY boring.

Kulilin, ladies and gentlemen. *Sigh* If only we could teach those same things Kulilin said to Paul Anderson (director of way too many bad movies, including Event Horizon, the upcoming Resident Evil movie, and the soon-to-be direct-to-video release of DBZ- the Live-Action Movie [just kidding; heaven help us if this guy gets his hands on filming rights to any other video game properties]).

Some of what Kulilin said is quite true (for me, at least). I could easily think up a basic plot for a movie (although it would have to be based on a pre-existing property). The scary thing is, though, that I was actually envisioning making Art of Fighting 2: The Movie (the first movie was an anime, and a rather lousy one at that) just the other day. But enough about that. Here's my anime fact for this week:

Paul Anderson. *Sigh*

To think George A. Romero, the KING of Zombies, wrote a script for Resident Evil (Biohazard). What happened? Capcom didn't like it. He kept it as close to the game as he could, and made only a few minor changes to the plot. But Capcom thought it was Bad, and so let Paul Anderson write it- Hey, he was going to firect it either way.

What's the matter Capcom, too much like your own game?

The only Paul Anderson movie I've ever seen (And yes I own it) is, what else, Mortal Kombat. I fel that on it's own merrits, Mortal Kombat was a fun flick. The special effects work was nothing short of impressive, the martial arts is not sped up wire work, and the plot- though formulamatic- makes sense. On it's own, it's a wonderfully fun kung fu romp with lots of neat effects, and that's all you can hope for in any martial arts movie; particularly an American martial arts movie.

Let's get this out of the way first; Mortal Kombat: Anniahlation, sucked. Period. I can't possibly say enough to show you how much I disliked this movie. I generally like bad movies, but this one was just... Well... Unlikable.

The Mortal Kombat movie was pretty good on it's own terms, but it deviated from the Video Game far too much for my tastes. For one, it mixed elements of the first 2 games, making the story far more involved than it really needed to be for a kung fu movie. Several of the character's origins were changed around, in particular Scorpion and Sub-Zero being turned into zombies of Shang Tsung. (!?) Also, the kung fu traditions and trademark NC-17 rated gore from the video game was sadly missing, something I think would have improved the film greatly. Sure, Sub Zero doesn't HAVE to rip a guy's head off while the spine dangles from the throat, but let's be honest- That's what catapaulted Mortal Kombat in to the spotlight.

Generally, movies from video games just do not work. Super Mario Brothers is a good example. So is Double Dragon. And Street Fighter. Heck, almost all of them are.

The only one I'm curious to see on possible GOOD merrits is "Parasite Eve". Yes, that's right- A Hong Kong/Japanese co-production made a two hour film based off of the game of the same name, and the movie does look promising. As of yet there has been no US release, but any sleazy bootlegger who has things like the anime Ricky-O and Sailor and the Seven Ball-Z or the Live Action Crying Freeman is bound to have it. (Sorry, but I refuse to offer links to these guys, as they offer some stuff even I refuse to watch...) I really can't say much more, other than I know the film exists.

As for the upcoming Final Fantasy movie... Well, I'm worried. You have to keep in mind that I was introduced to the original US release of teh first game, a sword and sorcery epic on the NES that has yet to be equaled in some ways. It was an excellent game with faceless characters that unfolded like an aincent song of heroes and villians in a very basic, though entertaining way. If Final Fantasy is yo be remembered as a film, I would hope it would return to it's roots, and go with the original game plan in a cel animated feature film... But instead we get aliens and spaceships 100% CGI. Ah well, it could still be worse...

Ah well, I'm going to go watch Return of the Dragon one more time before I have to bring it back to the video store. To Jigoku with Paul Anderson, this is what kung fu flicks are all about. Don't get me wrong, I like Robin Shou, but I'd rathet see Ho Sung Pak return as Liu Kang. Ah well, I suppose it's for teh best... I've seen Ho Sung Pak 'Act' before, and it makes me greatful Shou took the role. It's obvious Anderson wasn't helping things too much.

I'm just far too synical... Wish me luck on my adventures through Boston's Chinatown next Wednesday. Chances are I'll return with something anime related... Perferably something tacky, at that. Ah well- Who knows...

Thanks for the follow-up, kulilin. Anyways, here's a new topic to think about:

What pre-existing property would you like to see as an anime?

I'll get the list started:

The King of Fighters (OVA series)
Art of Fighting 2 (movie)
Final Fantasy VII (epic OVA series)
Marvel vs Capcom (OVA series)
Soul Edge/Calibur (OVA series)
Blade of the Immortal (TV series)
Samurai Spirits (OVA series)
Street Fighter Alpha 3 (TV series)
Dead or Alive 2 (movie)
Gunsmith Cats (TV series)
Plastic Little (TV series)
Ninja Cadets (OVA series)
The Big O (TV series)

I think Rival Schools would make a pretty cool anime tv or OVA series.

Ive seen the Parasite eve movie, it was actually pretty cool, watch it before you play the game and it should help understand the actual game a bit more (it helped me). I believe some company has the rights to distribute it here.

After 4 days in Canada, I hath returned! And with me comes a bunch of random thoguhts and info:

First off, WHAT A HAUL!!!! I was able to pick up a great Bruce Lee street drawing, volumes 2 and 4-10 of the Ranma 1/2 manga, and Volume 1 of the No Need For Tenchi Manga, DB vol 5, and DBZ vol 3-4. Top class manga in my opinion, too.

Second, on a very sad note, I just found out that the seiyuu for Goemon (Lupin III) and D (Vampire Hunter D) passed away some time ago. A moment of silence please...

Third, there is only one existing franchise I can think of that should be an anime: Xenogears. With a plot as convolted and thoughtful as NGE, great characters, adn the coolest viliian this side of my namesake, Id, this deserves to be an OVA. I'll rant about it later though.

Fourth, my offical stance on Trigun yaoi. With the possible exception of Legato, nobody in that series is a bugger. Cept maybe E.G. Mine (HOW IN THE HELL DID HE MACK MONEV AND DOMINIQUE!!!!). Also, if I catch anyone saying Midvalley is even slightly yaoi, I will do bad, bad, things to their spinal cord. Midvalley is not gay! Also, I despise and openly oppose NC-17 MillyXWolfwood (where do people come up with some of this crap!?. "Milly" and "NC-17" do NOT belong in the same sentance.

While browing through the Canadian book store Indigo's extensive manga section, I came across a guide to anime. Flipping through, I saw it had no pictures within, a usual detrement for me, based on the nasty content usually contained within. My happiness was destroyed when I came upon the color picture section, or more specificly, the picture of tentacle rape (why do those things have to always go in the poor chick's mouth!? Guh, the mere thought of having a slimy tentacle in my mouth makes me want to puke), and a little kid being vaporised in the Hiroshima blast. Imagine a burnt up little child with an eye hanging out of it's socket. Yu know, it seems to be my karma to find VERY unwanted knowledge and images. *Sigh* Shigata ga nai, neh?

And for now, I shall bid you farewell. Tomorrow is the begining of my strenuous training in mind and body. Anyone who wants a list of what I have to do, E-mail me at Midvalleys Sax@aol.com

Kaneto Shiozawa....

I actually mentioned his death SEVERAL months ago here... But it was a different time, a time before curiosity seekers and regulars would touch my posts with a ten foot pole... Nobody replied. I also mentioned that I was positive the Voice Actor in the states who played Piccolo in "Final Bout" also played Jyagi in the Hokuto no Ken movie dub... I don't think anyone here was ready to admit a direct connection between Fist of teh North Star and Dragon Ball Z, as they are in the states. Or maybe I'm just reading too much into it again.

Either way, Shiozawa Kaneto will be dearly missed. He died last november, though I'm unaware of the circumstances. His roles I'm most familiar with were D himself (Vampire Hunter D) and Rei, Kenshirou's badass buddy for the second season and theatrical movie of Hokuto no Ken. Of note was the fact that he also played San Shinlon, the third Evil Dragon in the final saga of Dragonball GT. I can't tell you what other roles he has played, simply because these are the series I know him from. Yes, I'll watch any film at least once- But that doesn't mean I'm guaranteerd to buy it to hear a favorite Seiyuu, I'm afraid.

'Saraba da, Rei.'

For any fans of Shiozawa-sensei, I would recommend picking up the Vampire Hunter D special edition DVD from Urban Vision. It has a tribute to him, in the form of a 'Making of' segment that hasn't been seen since Vampire Hunter D was released on LD in Japan several years ago. It includes interviews with Shiozawa, and something I was pleased with on an entirely different level- An interview with the director, Ashida Toyou, lead director for the Hokuto no Ken. Besides, any fan of horror or adult themed (But non-hentai) anime should see this film on DVD anyway- The presentation is nothing short of spectacular, with more extra's than I can shake a shinai at, and for teh first time ever in the US, it's available subtitled. The only downside is it used the Dub visuals entirely, and so we lose our title cards, and as I understand it, one shot in the final battle was trimmed by 2 seconds, though I could be wrong on this. (I'm still debating why this cut was made, and if it was, if it's in this version or not. I think it would have to be for the Japanese audio track to not go out of synch.

All in all, the Vampire Hunter D DVD is really the best tribute to it's staff available. It includes the 'Making of Vampire Hunter D' with the interviews with Shiozawa, it has the Japanese video trailer for the OVA, it includes a wonderful art gallery by Yo****aka Amano (Character designer for the original novels, and the character designer for Final Fantasy 6 onward, among other series), previews for the new Vampire Hunter D PSX game and the Theatrical Movie that we SHOULD be getting sometime in the next year or so... *CoughYeahSureCough* Overall, this, along with "Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz" is about as good as presentation gets.

Wow, that was a tangetnt if I ever got off on one. I'll miss you, Shiozawa. You'll always be D to me. Your character introduced me to the world of anime, even if it was poorly dubbed the first time around. Goodbye, hero of heroes.

For once, I really don't have much to say... Not that I have the time to type, I'm afraid. If you feel the need, picture me with my fedora and suitcase in hand as I type this. Is it really nessicary? Well, it couldn't hurt...

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Kulilin, please. You're killing me.

I had no idea Shiozawa also did Rei. Wow. Truely, the anime community has lost a great man. Goemon was just an interesting character to watch, a samurai fighting against guns and winning. Any Lupin fans, does anything ever devlop between Goemon and the female Chinese cop from the Lost Gold of Babylon flick? As for Rei, I have always enjoyed randomly yelling at my friends "My name? My name is Rei, Master of the South Dipper Waterfowl school!" The fact that he's slicing up villians during this line is what makes it, IMO. Rei has one of the best oufits in HnK, if not the best. And, his fight with Yuda was exelent and gave birth to one of the neatest figures ever: the Rei in the water varient. Shiozawa will be missed greatly.

*Fresh Info* I have just heard that Shiozawa died of a concussion at age 46.

[ 06-18-2001: Message edited by: Legato Bluesummers ]

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Ryoga Hibiki: Taking the roads less traveled. Weather he wants to or not.