My Top 10 Anime of All Time! (Right Now) Part One

Remember the Japanime features I've have written up before, one on Bleach, and the other for Lelouch of The Rebellion? Well, since I'm very limited as far as Internet access right now, I can't give detailed writeups of awesome anime like I would want to. However, it doesn't stop me from giving you some small blurbs.

If you don't know by now, I'm a huge anime nut, bitten by the bug in 2001 by exposure to Cartoon Network's Toonami Block. Thanks to the awesome anime store in town, I was able to move beyond Sailormoon and Dragonball Z, into Those Who Hunt Elves, Rurouni Kenshin, Sorcerer Hunters, Project A-ko, and Ranma 1/2. Nowdays, I'm in danger of burning myself out with this obessession!

So, I decided, hey, lets put down my top 10 anime of all time, graded basically on concept, character development(in some cases), and story/plot(as it can be debatable with some people). Really, anime fans, check these babies out if you haven't already. Some anime, such as Inu-Yasha, Naruto, One-Piece, and Bleach are not included, because they are extremely long(I think Inu-Yasha is about what, 400 episodes?) and they are the constants in many an anime fan's library of choices.

Instead, the selections on this list are usually short...probably about 20-50 episodes at the most. These selections are not in any order, they are all equally awesome. So, without further adieu, my top 5 of awesome anime of all time:

• Gungrave: Can you believe this anime is based on a video game? Of course, the game in question was created by Yasuhiro Nightow...yes, that Yasuhiro Nightow. The game itself is pretty cool...short, but cool. The anime is...is an awesome exercise of character development, as two best friends, originally homeless young men fighting for scraps in the street, rise through the ranks of the powerful criminal organization Millennium...only to have one friend betray the other. If you've played the game, the various boss characters and the main villian are developed beyond the max in the anime...you get to see how and why these characters chose their paths in life...and how the main hero got to where he is at the start of the story, a gunslinger from beyond the grave!! Now I warn you...this anime takes you to a very dark place...its a tearjerker and violent in some parts. But these characters are developed in such a way that you forget that they represent the villains of society!
• Black Lagoon: John Woo meets girls with guns meets...hell, Gungrave. The girl on the cover with the short shorts? That's Revy. You do not want to f*** with her. Messing with her is like drenching yourself in flammable liquid and walking to hell to stand in the hottest furnace. Like Gungrave, the protagonists of this anime are essentially the bad guys of society...Lagoon Company is a crew of pirates and mercenaries who smuggle goods in Roanapur, a Thailand criminal haven that could be described as hell on Earth. Revy is the psychotic gunslinging muscle of the quartet of main characters, with Rock, the Japanese salaryman abandoned by his company(which led to him "joining" Lagoon Company) as the audience surrogate. If you like those classic John Woo films, or you like a good combination of criminal protagonists and gunbattles, look no further. Seriously, you got nuns with guns, maids with guns, and even a hot Chinese chick with...knives as elements here. But the best element of this anime? Characterization. Reasoning behind these criminals' viewpoints and actions. Wonderful stuff!
• Fullmetal Alchemist: There is a new Fullmetal Alchemist anime out, one that is closer in manga translation than the first series, which I am referencing here. Any American who wants to complain about how ANY animation is for kids...I dare them to find anything on television that is as powerful emotionally as this. You have two children who, while trying to bring back their mother, nearly lose their lives in the attempt. Basically, these two brothers go through a journey of maturity and life, learning from their experiences as they try to find a way to return to normal. Seriously, awesome stuff.
• Tengho Tenge: I'm telling you, that theme song will get to ya! Think of YuYu Hakusho, but instead of taking the supernatural route, it was simply a straight-forward fight anime. That's what you have here, although there is more to simply fighting than that. I'm reluctant to suggest this anime, as it doesn't really finish with its 26 episode...but then again, Black Lagoon did not finish either(although it did have a definite ending of sorts...as in "until next time"-type ending). Basically, the main character and the black character are delinquents who usually beat up students in various schools. However, when they get to the school in the anime, they find out that the students attending here are all badasses. Remember that scene in Kung Fu Hustle when Steven Chow's character found out how bad everyone was in Pig Sty Alley? Like that. And yes, the kid turning into a hot chick? That's Maya Natsume...and that SHAZAM thing is one of her martial arts techniques.
• Ikki Tousen: Fanservice. Few will admit that they actually like it. I f**** love it. I don't care. But the beauty of Ikki Tousen is that the fanservice is simply an element of an awesome story about accepting destiny/avoiding destiny, reincarnation/history repeating itself, and brutal martial arts battles, all centering on the Romance of the Third Kingdoms era of Chinese history. Basically, its Dynasty Warriors meet school fighting anime. Seriously. Famous characters/historical people from that novel and/or period in history are reborn as various schoolgirls and schoolboys, and schools fight each other across Japan to rule them all. Once you get past the panty and breast shots, a wonderful story unfolds about a clueless female warrior who struggles against her destiny, a repeat of her previous Romance of the Third Kingdom's incarnation's death.

I will return with more later!

Guilty Pleasure: Attack Girls' Swim Team Versus The Undead

Awesome. In one word, this movie was simply awesome. Watching this with my brother and pending brother-in-law was the real treat, though. Watching this with any audience is where the bulk of the fun lies, although the movie is over-the-top enough to be enjoyed alone as well. I picked this up from my anime video store, and instantly fell in love with the cover. There are hot Asian girls. In swimsuits. With weapons. Versus the Undead.

And who says marketing doesn't work?

It seems that there is a new label and/or distributor in America called Switchblade something, which is distributing the film to us. The other offering is some military flick with hot Asian chicks...but i find the swimsuit-wearing monster killers very much more enticing.If you don't know by simply reading the title, Attack Girls' is B-movie cheese at its best.

The story is summed up in the title, although its more like Aki(the main character) Versus The Undead...as the bulk of the Swim Team is easily dispatched by a hot Japanese English Teacher zombie with a kitana in the span of five minutes...and that is no exaggeration.The story is about a new girl in school called Aki...the silent, brooding type, who, upon mere minutes on setting foot on school grounds, is pushed into a pool by the girl who would be her future best friend.

Meanwhile, the Swim Team of the title is preparing for a meet, and many of the students around the school are suddenly getting sick. The coach, a reject from Rival Schools with his hamtacular look and kendo stick, smacks(yes, i'm not kidding) a ill girl around, trying to force her to prepare for the meet.Anyway, a vaccine is issued out at the school, and most of the students are innoculated. Meanwhile, Aki takes a shower(showcasing her lovely assets in the process) after her involuntary dive into the pool. Sayaka, the girl that pushes her, begins to bond with her...in more ways than one, if you know what i mean. They become best friends initally...then lovers.

My mouth literally dropped when i saw just how far these two "enjoyed" their friendship. Meanwhile, the sickness assaulting the school escalates...and soon, students and teachers are transformed into zombies. Watch one teacher, while lethargically explaining a math problem, turns into a samurai zombie of death...but instead of kitanas, this guy is using a metal ruler to cut off his students' heads. When he confronts Aki later on, this scene has to be seen to believe: the guy juggles two rulers and an apple, easily catches the rulers and take a bite out of the apple.As the zombies rampage, Aki, Sayaka, and a few of the Swim Team Girls confront them.

We learn at a tender moment(before Sayaka and Aki make-out) that Aki is a trained assassin...a "water assassin", trained by a guy who kept her as a sex slave and could manipulate her sex drive with a flute. This explains Aki's sharpened combat skills(even though, being Japan(where the martial art schoolgirl is a stock character), I thought it wasn't necessary) which figures into most of the major battles in the movie.As i mentioned before, the title should be Aki versus The Undead...The Swim Team barely lasts more than five minutes, and they aren't even named or developed. It's like watching Transformers(the 2007 movie), and instead of Optimus Prime, Bumblebee, and the other named and developed Autobots fighting the Decepticons, we get Optimus doing all the work, while the other Autobots are rendered scrap by Frenzy of all things.

But when they finally make their appearance, it is fun and funny at the same time: they essentially rip off their clothing, dub their swim uniforms their "battle uniforms" and rush out for kick zombie ass. Of course, as i mentioned before...they were easily jobbed by the English Teacher with a kitana.

Besides Zombie Samurai Teacher and Crazy Zombie English Teacher, another twist happens introducing another villain to the tale. This is where we finally get to see Aki don the "battle uniform". And man, this fight has to be seen to believe: razor-sharp nose guards and flippers with blades in them are Aki's choice of weapons in battle.I found this movie to be entertaining, and fun. Disappointed at the lack of screen time and development for the rest of the "Swim Team", but Aki's and Sayaka's "friendship scenes" as well as the very crazy things at the end makes up for it.

Here is the trailer(WARNING:Contains mature content):
http://www.gomorrahy.com/images/joshikyouei_hanrangun.wmv