Bleach and Naruto Fanart

Top 5 Slasher Villains

My second top list and I have decided to do it on my top five slasher villains! I am a massive fan of slasher films, I remember times where I have stayed up throughout the night watching them so in the future I will review those films. The reason it is five is because I cannot think of ten.

5. GHOSTFACE

 

Love the whole Scream franchise and Ghostface was a formidable slasher for the protagonists; he has a great mask and costume and the guy can take some punishment. Not to mention he has a love for horror films and likes to reference them. However the reason that Ghostface is fifth is because the identity of Ghostface constantly keeps changing and that is something I do not like. Not only that but his incarnations in Scream 2 – 4 have never been as great as the one in the original Scream.

4. FREDDY KRUEGER

 

The Nightmare on Elm Street film; a series that was so creative yet declined with every new film they released, the only ones I liked where 1 (of course this one!), 3, 4 and Freddy vs. Jason (If that counts). However something they did get right creating such an iconic character like Freddy; the burnt, knife fingered dream invader. This guy can really dread going to sleep however as the series declined so did he and they just made his murderers silly instead of creative since he could do anything in a dream. But I do not blame Robert Englund for this because he is one hell of a slasher actor!

3. NORMAN BATES

 

One of the first ever slashers to grace the screen and I am talking about the Norman Bates from Alfred Hitchcock’s masterpiece not the remake. This guy is creepy as hell and I am not talking about when he dresses like a woman and kills women in the showers, even when he is not in his mother disguise there is just something unnerving about him. I am sure anyone who has watched the film remembers the scene where he is talking about taxidermy.

2. JIGSAW

A quite unique villain for the fact that he does not just straight up kill his victims with a knife; instead he creates many elaborate traps and make his victims kill themselves. Another reason is that he is not doing this out of pleasure or revenge (like some of his apprentices do), he has suffered in the past and his suffering with cancer so he knows how precious life really wants his victims to know that as well.

1.      JASON VOORHEES

 Now my favourite is the deformed serial killer from the Friday the 13^th series. Sure he has a bit of a mother obsession and he was not even the killer in the first film but he has become an imposing, un – killable behemoth. His signature machete and hockey mask have become so iconic and out of all of the killers on this list I really don’t want to be chased by him. I also really like all of his films and all of his portrayals; I even really like Jason X and the Friday the 13^th remake even though I know they were not well received.

 

References:

http://static2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20131103072806/h__/halloween/images/6/60/Ghost-face-accessory-mask-large.jpg

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/44/Freddy_Krueger.JPG
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/c/c0/Norman-bates.png
http://crimson.fit.edu/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Jigsaw-puppet.png
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/0/05/Jasonf.jpg

Drawing Fanart Again!

As you can see by these uploads I am drawing again, I will upload them here not along with my reviews.

Anime Review: Sword Art Online

Back now with another anime review and this one is about an anime I have recently watched and one that I know is really popular; Sword Art Online. Now I know you are probably tired of reading this next part again but I have to say it; there will be SPOILERS, especially near the end as Iwant to go on a rant about a certain part of the anime.

The anime is about a young teenager named Kazuto Kirigaya (Bryce Papenbrook), also know as Kirito, an avid gamer of MMO games and has recently purchased the most recent and most popular game on the market; Sword Art Online. Unlike typical MMO games this put you right in the virtual world by providing the gamer with a special helmet which allows him to control his avatar in the fantasy world. Shortly after entering the game however Kirito and the thousands of other players are transported to the beginning area where the creator of the game Akihiko Kayaba (Marc Diraison) appears as a massive hooded figure. He tells them that all of the players have had their log out option removed and that they are trapped forever within this virtual world and that if you die he your real body dies. However there is a way to escape and that is by clearly the games one hundred floors each one becoming more and more difficult and having its own boss at the end. Even though Kirito is trapped in this world like thousands of others he has an advantage that only a few have; he is a Beta Tester (Beater), someone who has played the demo version of this game before its release meaning he has advanced knowledge of this world. Kirito puts this to good use and we follow his adventure of trying to reach to the hundredth floor.

Now I really like this story because like the anime Btooom! this is based on video games but unlike Btooom! the action and feel of this is more fantasy than realistic. This is shown with its typical MMO elements like monsters, guilds, item drops etc. Overall this kind of reminds me of my favourite RPG series Final Fantasy in some ways and that is a really good thing in my book. However one thing that did bug me in this however was the pacing of this anime because in between the episodes there are massive time skips, the players have even spent two years in the game before we reach episode ten out of this twenty five series and they also skip a lot of floors and boss battles as well. I know they could not show every floor and every boss but it is really off putting, a more detailed reason for this I will explain further down. Another thing I liked about it is how it tackles the theme of death so many times because unlike normal video games you cannot use another life, in this if a person dies they die for real.

As for the characters most are really great; the main character Kirito may be a bit of a loner because he does not join guilds but he opens up a lot as the series progresses and he is such a badass because of how good he is at this game. The main female lead, Asuna Yuuki (Cherami Leigh), is great as well because like Kirito she is one of the best players in Sword Art Online, even becoming second in command of the Knights of the Blood Oath, the most powerful guild there is. She is also Kirito main love interest eventually becoming his girlfriend and even his wife in the game. There are also plenty of others characters these two come across throughout the series, each with their own stories and skills and most I have found to be very likeable.

The animation is excellent throughout the series, I do not think there is a single time that I did not like it, and the battles are so well done; the movement is really fluid and fast paced. However as for the music there is really none that I found that stood out much. Not that I am saying that soundtrack is bad because it is really good and suits the settings and mood well.

IN DEPTH SPOILERS NOW

Now if I was to end this review here I would say something like ‘This is one of the most epic and unique ones I have seen and has instantly became one of my favourites’ unfortunately I won’t be saying that because after episode fourteen in this anime it take a massive turn for the worst. Episodes fourteen onwards introduces another antagonist, Nobuyuki Sugou (Todd Haberkorn), who is one of the worst anime characters there is. I find a good villain is someone who the audience can like as well but there is nothing like able about him at all, he just irritated me with his story, attitude and plan to marry Asuna. A very disappointing villain for the second half of the series which is a shame because he is voiced by one of my most favourite English voice actors. Another pain is Kirito’s cousin, Suguha Kirigaya, who is in love with him and is just really annoying about it; I just could not stand her at all.

Another thing that bugged me about the second half is that it is set in another MMO which has fairies, it looks like an interesting world but far just not as good as the Sword Art Online world. The reason they move to this world is that Kirito finds a way to beat the game in episode fourteen on floor eighty five and they have just beaten a floor boss that almost killed all of them. I was really excited to see what the other floors where like, their bosses and the ruby palace that was on the hundredth floor but NO they skip all of that so they can go somewhere else for the second half.

That is what I was going on about with the pacing of this anime; if it where up to me the two years they spent in Sword Art Online would take all of the twenty five episodes and the second half would not exist at all.

Another reason I did not like it was how serious the second half was compared to the first; there may have been the threat of death if they died but it was really fun to watch. Examples of this was when Kirito meets Silica (Christine Marie Cabanos) a beast tamer and they try to find a way to resurrect her defeated pet dragon or when Kirito and Asuna go on their honeymoon and they help that guy fish a monster or when they have an adopted daughter. Sure it is not like I want the anime to be all warm and fuzzy but it had a light hearted tine the second half lack, I mean the last fight has Nobuyuki Sugou trying to kill Kirito with a knife in the real world, not exactly an epic last fight for something that is supposed to be a fantasy game anime.

In the end I was massively disappointed with how this anime ended, if it was just episodes one to fourteen I would have been happy but no it had to be longer and because it has those more episodes I can not even watch the first half anymore without being reminded of the second half. This is a real let down for me because the first half was SO GOOD and would have been really high on my list of favourite anime when I get round to making one. Overall all I can really only give this anime just over half in the score because I only like just over half of the story.

SCORE: 6/10 

Film Trailer Review: Transformers Age of Extinction

My first review of a film trailer and I have decided to review a recent trailer; Transformers Age of Extinction.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3pmvkR3NbGM

Now let me first start off by saying, even though I might get a bit of hate from it, that I really life the Transformers film series despite some of its flaws. Does Michael Bay seem to care more about special effects and explosions; yes, does it seem to focus a bit too much on humans than the transformers; yes and does every film has a very useless female lead; definitely yes.

However despite all of that I have found enjoyment in the film, being a fan of the original animated series I do like seeing some of my old favourites in a modern film (even though they barely look like their counterparts).

Also since I have attached the link to the trailer on this post I am not going to go over what happens in it, I am just going to pick out two highlights.

To start off it looks like Megatron is back in this film, he is one of my favourite transformers and I really don't want him to be Galvatron just yet. Also it looks like he can finally, and I mean finally, transform in to a gun. Sure it is just his head but it is close  and I was annoyed that in the previous films he transformed in to trucks and jets. In the original animated film I really liked that he transformed in to a really small but incredibly power pistol for his Decepticons to use (mostly Starscream). The reason for this is because I found it funny that the leader of the good guys transforms in to a really big truck while his evil counterpart is a gun, it was not even anything close to it or an opposite.

Better late than never they are finally featuring the Dinobots in the film and I say that it is about time. We only see Grimlock but he was my favourite Dinobot and he looks great in this. We only see his dinosaur mode in this and I guess that is enough for now, I know the Dinobots relied more on their animal modes put I do hope they have humanoid forms as well like everyone else. Also we get to see Optimus riding on his back carry a badass sword which was one of the best part of the trailer.



Now I know that they have humans in this but I really don't want to talk about them right now (maybe when a full trailer comes out I will) because I just think I am not going to be that interested in their stories.

Overall it may have been a quick glimpse of the film but it looks like this good be the best one yet and I am looking forward to the release of another trailer so I can see more transformers.




References:
http://www.digitaltrends.com/gaming/transformers-age-extinction-super-bowl-trailer-rolls-dinobots/
http://tfwiki.net/wiki/Transformers:_Age_of_Extinction_(film)

Top 10 Characters in Gantz

For those who do not know Gantz is an extremely violent science fiction manga by Hiroya Oku. It recently ended earlier this year and it is one of my favourite mangas. Here is the list of my top then characters from the series (Spoilers for those who have not read the series).

10 – Oka Hachirou

Legendary member of the Osaka team and has cleared the game seven times. Oka definitely deserves a place on my list for being a complete badass to have survived the games that long. He also introduces much of the new equipment to the series such as the hover bike, heavy suit and mecha. His fighting style is mainly close quarters using hand to hand with the heavy suit and the gantz sword when it is destroyed. He is a very imposing individual and he always goes after the strongest aliens in the hunts, such as his epic battle with the Nurarihyon. The reason he is so low however is because we don’t know much about him due to lack of screen time and for being so legendary he gets killed off screen by being sliced in half.

9 – Kenzo Sakata

Member of the Tokyo team and managed to clear the game once, using his points to bring back Sakurai, though it is hinted he may have been in the game before. The psychic of the team he prefers to use his powers and crush the alien’s hearts or brains which I always found to be cool. Like Oka he is lower on this list because we do not get much back story and also because I think he could have had a better death scene.

8 – Hojo Masanobu

Member of the Tokyo team that was killed during his second mission against the Buddhist statue aliens. I like Hojo mainly because of his funny interactions with his stalker and that everyone acts weird around him because he is gay. He fights with a mix of close quarters with his fists and mid range with the x – gun and he did have some really cool moments when fighting. Also his death scene against the thousand armed statue was one of the coolest in the series.

7 – Hikawa

Leader of the vampires and one of the coolest characters in the series. Has a very cool design too with his tuxedo, hair style and constant smoking. Hikawa is an enemy of the gantz players and is responsible for killing several of them, his most famous ones being Izumi of the Tokyo team and the sadistic trio of the Osaka team. He is always shown to be very calm (even after having his finger sliced off) and is also a sadist that is shown through his sword fighting style. Could have been higher in the list but he has real conclusion to his story and is not shown at all except the end in the Katatrophe arc.

6 – Kazuo Kuwabara

Veteran member of the Osaka team and has cleared the game three times. Kazuo is without a doubt the biggest pervert in the series and is known to rape the aliens in the missions. He has a very cool design and is noticeable that he only ever wears half of the gantz suit. He prefers using the gantz sword his scenes are very cool when using it but he is also known to use the z – gun. One of the funniest parts I think of the series is when Kazuo gets caught by the Nurarihyon when it transforms in to a golem of naked women but when he breaks free he rapes its head lol. Survives the mission but chooses to exit from the game.

5 – Kei Kurono

The main protagonist of the series and victor of the final battle against the giant aliens. Kei is definitely one of my favourite characters because of how much he has done and been through to survive the games. I also liked his character change from someone who only cares about himself and his points to someone who wants everyone to survive the games. He has no real fighting style because he prefers to use all of the gantz equipment and weapons.

4 – Kei Kishimoto

Member of the Tokyo gantz team who unfortunately dies during her third mission before she could even clear one game. She is mostly known for her large breast size and for being naked in a lot of the chapters she is in. However I do like her character for more than just that because she really has been cool in the fights she has been in and her naïve attitude when she was staying with Kurono was really funny. She was not in it for long but I think she was one of the best written characters, I really wished she could have been revived later on in the series.

3 – Reika Shimohira

Member of the Tokyo gantz team and at one time its unofficial leader. Like Kishimoto she is mostly known for her large breast size and for her nudity but this is mostly excused by the fact that her occupation is a model. She is this high on my list is that because unlike Kishmoto she survives a lot longer and has been really badass in all of her fights either with the gantz swords or guns. Disappointed by her death however because like Oka it happened off screen.

2 – Joichiro Nishi

Veteran member of the Tokyo gantz team and one of the coolest characters of the series. Despite being only 14 years old he has killed both aliens and people and has a lot of knowledge about gantz even though he barely shares it. Only cares about himself and his points and his willing to use the lives of his team mates to be the best there is. His preferred fighting still is using the controller to become invisible, waiting for the alien to become distracted (Even if it is slaughtering his team mates) then moves in for the kill. His fate is left unknown because he is last seen stranded on the alien spacecraft.

1 – Shion Izumi

Veteran member of the Tokyo gantz team and had cleared the game at least two times, he is also my favourite gantz character. The first time he won the game he chose to leave but had the burning desire to go back even though he lost his memories of it. After receiving a message from gantz for more players he paints himself as a black man and goes on a massive killing spree, killing hundreds before entering the games again. He cares for none of his team mates and usually goes off after the boss alien for the highest score possible. He was the first one to use the gantz sword and is the best when wielding it. Killed by Hikawa which is a shame because it would have been interesting to see him interacting with the Osaka team or fighting the giant aliens.

So there you have my list, what do you think?            

Game Review: Final Fantasy XIII

Back to do another game review and I have decided to chose one that has caused a lot of controversies since its release; Final Fantasy XIII. The Final Fantasy series is my favourite series of game ever however I will try not to be bias with XIII.

Final Fantasy XIII is set in a fictional world called Gran Pulse however floating above Gran Pulse is an artificial floating world called Cocoon, which is based on a Dyson Sphere. People live on both worlds and for centuries they have hated and warred with each other, helped by godlike beings called the Fal’Cie. These beings have immense power and play a specific in the running of the world they belong too, for example there is a Fal’Cie on Cocoon that acts as its sun. They can also turn humans in to beings called I’Cie; they have powerful magic abilities granted to them but they are also given a Focus, a vague mission that they must complete. If they do not complete it they will turn in to monster but if they do complete it they turn in to crystal, so it is a no win situation. The game’s protagonist Lightning, a member of Cocoon’s Guardian Corps, along with several others are dragged in to this long lasting war between Cocoon and the world below and eventually discover a plot that can destroy both worlds.

Now I shall first start off by saying that this game is very, very story focused, I think they spent longer on it than any other part of the game. While this can be seen as a good thing some have said that it has sacrificed the game play element of it and I will come to that in a bit. I for one love this story; it is one of my favourites in the Final Fantasy series, it is just so thought out and rich in history and detail. The worlds, the war, Fal’Cie, l’Cie – I like all of it.

As for the game play, though it works overall for this game, there are several issues I have to address. Firstly there is almost no backtracking in this game at all which is a downer, beautifully thought out areas such as the Vile Peaks and Sunleth Waterscape can never be revisited again unless you start a new game. This was frustrating to me; the game is just like walking in one big straight line however I loved the story and experience of it so much that to me it is one damn good straight line!

When it comes to battle however XIII is again one of my favourites for it. I really liked the Paradigm Shift to change job class because it adds a lot of variety to the fight and each character has their own strengths and weaknesses with them. Apart from that the rest battling should feel really familiar; wait for bar to fill up and select what move you want to perform.

When it comes to levelling up they use Crystarium System, were you collect CP points off monsters and power up your character, it is kind of like the Sphere Grid in X but this is a lot more straight forward and you can not stray from your path and you have to wait for the System to level up at certain points to advance further. This might seem annoying but I liked it because it made sure I did not over power my characters, I am not usually one to grind in Final Fantasy but sometimes I accidentally do and the boss and enemies are then easy, at least when they stop you in this you and the boss seem to have an equal chance (of course since I have finished the game multiple times now I know all of the strategies so that doesn’t matter)

One other thing that did annoy me however was the lack of side quests and the after game missions. There are a lot of monster hunting mission, and I mean A LOT of them, and I enjoyed them all but that was all there was.

For the cast of characters in this game I really like most of them and they all fit well in to the story. Lightning is has a no nonsense, serious personality but but is not heartless and helps those who need it. She is a great protagonist, the first lead since VI and is one of my favourite female Final Fantasy characters. Then there is Snow who is the complete opposite of Lightning in terms of personality and the self proclaimed ‘Hero’ of the game. Snow is my favourite character in XIII, I just like his attitude and the way he never gives up. As for the rest we have Sazh, someone who comes off as the comic relief but has a lot more depth to him than that, then there is Hope a young boy trying to find his inner strength and wants to be stronger and Vanille, a spirited girl who never seems to get sad at all. Now there is another character and that is Fang and I have to say that I hated her completely (even though I know she has a strong fan base). The reason for this is because I just can not stand her personality and attitude to the other characters and the world. I don’t how many time she mentioned that Vanille is more important to her than anything and what she would not do for her and I really wanted to tell her to shut up. Also she is not in the game for a while, which is great, but when she does she some how has to make everything to do with; she is a bloody scene stealer in my opinion.

The graphics in this game is really something to look at; there is so much detail in everything they created from the character designs to the backgrounds. As I said before however there is no backtracking so for most areas you can only appreciate it once until you start new game again. And since there is no revisiting the same can be said for the music; the background music for areas are perfectly done but you can not go back to hearing it again. As voice acting it is my favourite out of any Final Fantasy game so far (even though they have only been doing it since X) but then again anything that has the voice talents of Troy Baker (Snow) will always be great.

Overall this is a Final Fantasy game that is not for everyone, those who like the previous games for its massive amount of game play content will be disappointed here but that is not to say I won’t recommend it. Sure I, like most, am frustrated by the lack the backtracking and things to do but to play a game with a story with so much depth with characters that are so amazing is an experience I have not regretted. I myself still have my copy of XIII and I still start new game on it, I think since I got it near the end of 2010 I start and finish it at least twice a year (I might have even fit in a third playthrough but I do have other games to play). Why you might ask? Because it is one damn good straight line from start to finish.

SCORE: 7/10