Bleach Review: Marching out the Zombies 4

Bleach took a break last week, but it is back with Marching out the Zombies 4!

The chapter begins immediately after the events of the last chapter with Mayuri saying he has tons of medicines he wants to test on the zombie Toshiro. Toshiro wastes no time and strikes at Mayuri however he dodges the blade and tries to trap Toshiro in some sort of net that shoots out from the sleeves of his robes (probably the same thing that saved Charlotte last time but to me it looks like Spiderman's webbing!). Toshiro dodges this however and they both clash with swords for a while before Toshiro tries to knee Mayuri who blocks it with a jelly - like shield. The shield attaches itself to Toshiro's leg and explodes leaving it a bloody ruin however Toshiro merely covers the wound with ice and activates his Bankai, slicing Mayuri down the middle and stabbing him through the heart. However it then cuts back to the very beginning of the chapter with Mayuri saying to Toshiro that he has tons of medicines he would like to try on him. Toshiro notices this but simply goes in for the kill again, activating his Bankai sooner and freezing Mayuri whole who then shatters. However it cuts back to the beginning of the chapter once again and Toshiro, now very annoyed, asks Mayuri what is happening. Mayuri is glad that Toshiro has finally noticed and says his drug has allowed Toshiro to "see through the future". Toshiro's short term memory is being affected and that he will be trapped in an endless loop each time he kills him but if Toshiro chooses to do nothing Mayuri says he will just kill him (It's a win, win situation for Mayuri!). He also says that the drug has some serious side effects and whenever someone goes through this loop of battle ten times (we only see three but I guess seven more has passed for Toshiro off screen) their sense of balance with be disrupted and they will collapse for thirty seconds, which Toshiro does. With Toshiro immobile, Mayuri advances on him with his sword drawn, asks of Toshiro if he ever noticed when he gave him the drug, before slashing his sword down.

This was a great chapter however it was not as good as Marching out the Zombies 3 and may not have been worth the two week wait. I will go in to why soon but first I want to go over what I really liked about this chapter.

Firstly it is great seeing Mayuri enter the front lines of battle once again (it has been ages since the last time) however this time he actually makes a more psychical effort by actually clashing swords with his opponent. His fights are always really interesting because he likes to prepare much before hand, like with Szayelaporro and here as well too, but it is great seeing him fight someone properly. Also zombie Toshiro is again better than regular Toshiro because he is such a complete badass and fights like the regular one should have all along. Like I mentioned in my previous review zombie Toshiro uses his ice moves in a more better and hard-core way and in this chapter he doesn't spam the Bankai like regular one does. We got some great cerography in the fighting, with some great art to compliment it like Mayuri's face at the end.

However there are a few things that bugged me; while the drug that Mayuri infected Toshiro with was interesting a lot panels in this chapter was repetitive. While this was a great battle chapter it just felt really short because it kept going back to the beginning again which could have been used for some more fighting. Also the effects of the drug is never fully explained; I mean this time travel? is this all in Toshiro's head? And the last thing I want to point out is that we get no shots of Giselle or the Arrancars this chapter, I really hope that Kubo uses the Arrancar more soon.

Overall this was a good chapter and follow up to the previous one but it felt really short and the repetitiveness and explaining of the drug could have been replaced with more action.

SCORE: 7/10

As for predictions it is possible Mayuri doesn't succeed in stabbing Toshiro at the end because we didn't actually see it, maybe Giselle or one of her zombies got in the way? However if Toshiro is really down for the count now I don't really mind because Kubo has been keeping the pace of this last arc really fast and I don't want him to slow down. As much as I have enjoyed March of the Zombies, I do want to see the other Sternritter fights, also I really do hope that Toshiro stays dead!

Guess I got the prediction of a new Bankai wrong :(

Anime Review: Eden of the East







Back with another anime review, this one on a favourite of mine; Eden of the East. This review will be spoiler free.

On Monday, November 22, 2010, ten missiles strike Japan, but there where no casualties and no one accepted responsibility. When the after effects of it died down and nothing else really happened, everyone just moved on and the event was labelled "Careless Monday". Three months later Saki Morimi, a university senior, visits Washington DC during her trip to America but shortly gets in trouble with the local police. She is saved however when a mysterious Japanese young man appears before her completely nude and holding a pistol and a cell phone. This young man has no memory of his past but takes the name Akira Takizawa and soon discovers that his phone carries ¥8.2 billion in digital money and can use that money for absolutely anything. We join Saki and Akira has they try to find out about his erased past, why his phone can do the things it can do and about a group called Seleção.


I knew I was going to like this anime before I even watched it because it is written and directed by the genius who brought us the Ghost in the Shell anime series; Kenji Kamiyama. He knows how to write a gripping story and Eden of the East had me hooked after only the first five minutes. As you can guessed from the plot description above this is mainly a Mystery anime which focuses on following the clues to uncover Akira's mysterious past and you will be eager for the answers just as much as Saki is too. Every episode gives you a little more insight in to Akira's past; we are given just enough each episode but leaves enough out that I eagerly watched the next one straight away.
However probably one of the biggest highlight of this show is the seemingly magic phone that can grant any request to Akira as long as he has enough digital money. It is also his main weapon to use against the many foes he encounters as the series progresses so it is interesting to see what kind of requests he asks for each time.

Despite the unlimited things that the phone can do, Akira trying to recover his memory and sometimes paranormal, crazy and just plan weird events that happen in the series it is still has a very grounded feel to it. It just feels very realistic maybe this is because it focuses a lot on todays technology or it because a big plot point is on NEETs, the state the government and jobs in Japan or Akira's constant movie references, but this is just one of the elements that really pull you in because you can still relate to the characters and events in the series. Overall it is kind of like Jason Bourne (and may have been inspired by it) but it is more light hearted and (in my opinion) has a lot more depth in its overarching story.







We also have a great cast of characters like Akira who, despite losing his memory, is a really positive guy from the get go. He doesn't go in to depression or sulks, he simply goes with the flow of things and takes each new discovery of his past with a lot of enthusiasm. This makes Akira a really likeable main protagonist because as I mentioned above he likes to stay positive so the show doesn't become a downer. We then have the main female protagonist, Saki and while the story begins with her she is not the main focus of the anime but is no less important. She supports Akira throughout the series and has a great side story where she encounters the difficulties of finding a job in today's society and we can all relate there.
There is also a lot of interesting side characters such (and not spoiling anything because you will notice in the first five minutes of the first episode) as the others who have phones just like Akira. It is really interesting seeing characters from all walks of life possess the phone and their own reasons and ideologies for using the money. There is also Saki's friends from university who run the Eden of the East website and, while they do provide comic relief, are great supporting characters.

As for the animation it really is quite unique from what I have seen before. There are a lot of bright colours involved, especially with the characters, but it is the backgrounds that really stand out. They are really beautifully done, everything from the streets of Washington and Japan look really realistic. As for the voice acting there are lot of my favourites in the cast who I have no complaints with and music that they used for the first opening was great, shame they had to change it though. The soundtrack throughout the series really sets the mood well either it during an investigation scene or something light hearted.

Overall Eden of the East is a anime I highly recommend, perhaps the most highly recommended anime I have reviews so far. There is something in this anime for everyone and will keep you interested throughout its eleven episodes and its two movies as well.

SCORE: 10/10



TV Series Review: Falling Skies Season Three

After this one I will be finally up to date on all for reviews for all the TV Series.

Season three takes place seven months after the arrival of a new alien race; The Volm. The Volm have been fighting their own war against the Espheni across the galaxy and have offered their help to the humans in the form of help technology and better defences against the Skitters/Mechs. Tom Mason has been elected the new President in Charleston and has managed to make a thriving community and with the help old and new allies, they are finally holding their own against the Espheni. However there are many who are unsure about the true intentions of the Volm and the Espheni have invented more subtle ways to strike.

This was a great season and I thoroughly enjoyed every episode and the stand out in this season by far is the Volm. Cochise (Doug Stones) has quickly become one of my favourite characters because of his helpful nature for the humans and the already friendly relationship with Tom. Unfortunately we barely see any other Volm apart from him throughout the season but luckily Cochise more than makes up for it and every time he and the other Volm had some screen time I just really wanted to see even more of them. We get a lot of background information and insight as the series progresses in why they help the Espheni, why are they helping the humans and their big overall plan but even I still questioned in whether or not they could really be trusted because even the Espheni try to turn Tom against them.

The old cast is just as good as ever, when I first heard that Tom was President I thought he would take a back seat but no he is still in the thick of it and Pope is still my favourite!! A great addition to the cast is Roger Kadar (Robert Sean Leonard) who is the resident scientist.

Now I want to go over several parts of season three that I think need to be addressed, some good and some bad. SPOILERS.

Episodes "Search and Recovery" and "Strange Brew": Two stand out episodes which are also two of my favourite. The first one mainly focuses on Tom and Pope who are stranded in the woods and need to make it back to Charleston. What I really liked about it was that we get to see a lot of interaction between Pope and Tom which I think they haven't had since season one and I think this was the start of them finally forming some sort of friendship (Which they seem to be now in episode three of season four).
The second episode is where Tom is trapped in an almost Matrix like reality where he is still a history professor before the invasion, his wife is alive and his friends are all teachers at the school he works, however the Espheni are using it to extract info from Tom. I really like episodes like this (like the one with Aaron in Revolution) because they are always a fun watch and we finally have Tom get some closure with the death of his wife since they barely brushed the subject in the previous seasons.

Hal the traitor: As seen at the end of season two Hal has been implanted with an insect that puts him under the control of the Skitters and they fully take over in episode six. Now this was a great episode but I really did not like how they dealt with it in the end. Hal almost commits suicide during it and there was a chance the removal of the insect could have killed him, neither of which happens. This really was a disappointment because I think the death of Hal would have had a major emotional impact on Tom which I think could have been great for creating a more darker tone for the show.

Think of it this way; out of everyone in Falling Skies, Tom's life has been alright in all these seasons. Sure he lost his wife but he still has his sons, he is President, remarried with new kid and he and his family always seem to make it in bad situations. Weaver seems to have had more than his fair share of loss during the invasion and I think Tom's character needed a big tragedy. Matt may have been to young to kill off, Ben is far too interesting but I think Hal has been developed enough that they could have sacrificed him. I do like his character but imagine the impact it could have had on Tom if he made the wrong choice during the operation.

Alexis: If I am honest I really like the Alexis as a little kid in this far more than what she has become in season four. Sure she had powers in this but they didn't go overboard and turn her in to some sort of stupid crazy cult leader yet. Would have been better if in season she stayed young like she is in this season instead of skipping a lot more years and they didn't have that sanctuary in Chinatown.

As for everything else about the show it was one really great season however the Skitters and the Espheni do take more of a back seat in favour of their insects doing to work for them. It is a shame because they introduced a new Mech design that looked really cool however the final two episodes where full of action and very fast paced, probably my favourite finale so far in the show.

Overall season two of Falling Skies is slightly better than season three because of it's more darker tone but it is still a very strong season and. I just think it should have had the guts to kill of Hal and I wish we saw more of the Espheni besides from Karen because like I mentioned before she is just not very good. However the Volm are a welcome addition and the clear stand outs which make up for some of this season's let downs.

SCORE: 8/10

Top Ten Voice Actresses

Thought I'd do another top ten but this time focusing on my top ten voice actresses (voice actors to come later). To qualify in this list they have to be mainly anime voice actresses, I have not put in any that have just focused on video games. This is only a quick list so I will just include a list of at least three of my favourite roles they have been in next to their names.




10. Colleen Clinkbeard: Trinity Blood - Esther Blanchett
                                 Rin - Daughters of Mnemosyne - Rin Asogi
                                 Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle - Yuko Ichihara





9. Leah Clark: Eden of the East - Saki Morimi
                    Soul Eater - Blair
                    Sekirei - Homura/Kagari





8. Michelle Ruff: Bleach - Rukia Kuchiki
                         Chobits - Chi
                         Girl's Bravo - Miharu Sena Kanaka




7. Laura Bailey: Soul Eater - Maka Albarn
                       Final Fantasy XIII/XIII2 - Serah Farron
                       Fruits Basket - Tohru Honda





6. Stephanie Sheh: Girl's Bravo - Kirie Kojima
                            Bleach - Orihime Inoue
                            Naruto - Hinata Hyuga






5. Wendee Lee: The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya - Haruhi Suzumiya
                        Bludgeoning Angel Dokuro Chan - Dokuro Chan
                        Bleach - Yoruichi Shihoin






4. Tara Platt: Buso Renkin - Tokiko Tsumura
                   Monster - Eva Heinemann
                   Bleach - Lisa Yadomaru






3. Cherami Leigh: The Sacred Blacksmith - Cecily Campbell
                          Sword Art Online - Asuna
                          Soul Eater - Patty Thompson






2. Monica Rial: Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle - Princess Sakura
                          Speed Grapher - Kagura Tennouzu
                          The Sacred Blacksmith - Lisa/Lisa Oakwood






1. Jessica Calvello: Queen's Blade - Nanael
                      Problem Children Are Coming From Another World; Aren't They? - Black Rabbit
                                Girl's und Panzer - Saori Takabe


There you have it my top ten however I watch a lot of anime so there was a lot, and I mean ALOT, of voice actresses I wanted on this list but I had to narrow it down.

Bleach Review: Marching out the Zombies 3

A fan art on what his bankai could look like if he get a new form in zombie mode

Got another review for Bleach and like I said during my last one I will now be review the chapters as they come out.

This chapter begins with everyone surprised to see Toshiro Hitsugaya as one of Giselle's zombies however they quickly get over that as Toshiro springs in to action. He choses to fight Yumichika and Ikkaku first but quickly overwhelms them by delivering some deep slashes and freezing a large area. Ikkaku loses his leg and his stabbed in the back before he can do anything else and then Toshiro finishes off Yumichika as well. Mayuri figures out that Toshiro is different from the zombie Bambietta in that he has no conciseness, Giselle confirms this by telling him that she turned Toshiro in to a zombie before he ides so he is easier to control. Mayuri asks what the fun is in controlling someone with no conscious thoughts while Giselle replies that she is a sadist and doesn't care. Charlotte then steps in to fight Toshiro but is quickly cut down but Mayuri intervenes before he could he can do anything else. Mayuri says that he dislikes this form of control and that he has tones of new medicine he would like to test on him.

Great chapter this week, it mainly focuses on the newly arrived zombie Toshiro overpowering his opponents but it was just so awesome. Those who have read my previous reviews know that I am not a big fan of Toshiro, his fights are alright but he mainly relies on his bankai and convenient ice based moves for victory so much that it became annoying. However the fighting style of zombie Toshiro is the kind of fighting style I wanted to see from him all along; rushing and overpowering his opponents with swordplay combined with his ice moves. He was completely brutal with Yumichika, Ikkaku and Charlotte and I hope he keeps this up when facing Mayuri.

There isn't much else to say about this chapter since it is all about Toshiro rushing the battlefield however Giselle mentions that he turned Toshiro in to a zombie before he died. I really, really hope that this doesn't mean that Toshiro will turn back to normal because as I mentioned in my review of Marching out the Zombie 1 + 2, Kubo really needs to start killing off some of the good guys and Toshiro was such an unexpected choice.

If I had to pick one thing I did not like is that Charlotte was taken out quickly by Toshiro when I wanted to see him fight more. From what Mayuri said it sound like Charlotte can't die but he took so much damage that I don't know if he will be re-joining the fight anytime soon.

SCORE: 9/10

At the end of this chapter it looks like Mayuri has personally stepped in to the battlefield but it sounds like he may try to take out Toshiro in a similar matter he did Szayelaporro, so while that will be interesting to see I hope he does more this time round. Also I want to see more of the Arrancar but maybe they can focus their effort in taking out Giselle now.

TV Series Review: Falling Skies Season Four (Episodes 1 - 3, my thoughts so far) SPOILERS!

Hey everyone I know I have yet to review season three of Falling Skies, however I have been watching the season four and in the UK they have made it to episode three. There are several story arcs and I just wanted to quickly express my views on them, what I want to see in the future and what I haven't liked about it so far. I know that they are on episode six in America (I think) but I only wait to watch a series when it premieres in the UK so I don't know what happens farther than episode three.

Tom Mason story arc: By far the best subplot of the entire season four and this is helped by the fact that he also has the best characters with him; Pope, Weaver, Hal and a new character Dingaan Botha (Treva Etienne). What I really liked about this arc was Tom acting as a vigilante in the detainment camp while secretly planning a massive break out and this also had the most action, especially in episode three when they successfully implement it. It was great to see Pope working together with everyone else and by the look of it at the end of the episode he and Tom have settled their differences. SCORE: 5/5

Anne Glass story arc: A good watch but its just fairly straight forward were it is Anne leading the remains of the Second Mass to find her daughter. It doesn't have has much screen time as the others and it looks like its over now at the end of episode three. Not much to say about it but the nightmare Anne had was really good and I like those she is with but she herself was a tad annoying. SCORE: 3/5

Matt Mason story arc: This one hasn't been that bad but it is not all that interesting either. As I have said in my review of season 2 I don't like that so much screen time is being given to Matt because I find him the least likable of all the Mason children. While the Nazi - like brainwashing camp is original it has been done to death in other shows and films and I find it unnecessary since the Espheni have harnesses to control children. SCORE: 2.5/5

Lexi story arc: By far the weakest of the storylines this season and that is because I absolutely hated this whole cult thing the place has going on. I find the character of Lexi herself to be annoying as well has Lourdes and Maggie (but they where always annoying) and it just seems so out of place with everything that has happened on Falling Skies so far. I do want to find out more about Lexi being a hybrid and even though I really like the characters of Ben and Roger Kadar, I just want this one to be over. SCORE: 1/5

There you have it a quick run down on my thoughts of the current story lines of Falling Skies, it has some great ideas but it really needs to drop some of the more boring elements.

Also two things I didn't like was that Charleston base that play a massive role in seasons two and three, an impressive stronghold of humanity that I really liked, is completely lost in the first five minutes and the same goes for the rebel Skitters who are turned in to flying drones.

Now here is a list of some other parts I think where good and I want to see in future episodes:

• More Volm: Cochise is one of my fav characters and we need to see more of him and his allies soon.
• Kill off Lourdes: When I review season three I will talk about a character who should have been killed off but for season four Lourdes has to die. It is understandable in season three that they didn't kill her because she was being controlled but there is no excuse for her acting like the crazy cult fanatic she has been now and the way she has been treating other characters like Ben, Kadar and Maggie. I do not think she could make it up to them especially after episode two when she screamed and freaked out about taking Lexi's blood.
• End the Lexi cult story line: As I said above it is the most boring part of Falling Skies, we could have explored more about her powers and what she is without the need for a crazy cult.
• More action: Now that Tom and the group are free and Anne's and Lexi's group have met up we need some major offensives against the Espheni.
• Let see some super soldiers: The Espheni Tom talked to mentions about created an army more powerful than the Skitters, so lets see and hear more about this!

So that is it for now then and while I am enjoying the new season of one of my favourite shows right now there is a lot in it I want changed or added.

TV Series Review: Falling Skies Season Two

Back with the review of Falling Skies Season Two, this review will contain a lot more spoilers than my review of season one.

The story picks up three months after Tom Mason boarded the Overlord ship and things are not looking too good for the Second Massachusetts. They have lost over half of the group, can not get in touch with any of the other Mass's and are constantly on the run from the Skitters. However Tom suddenly appears out of nowhere with barely any memory of what happened aboard the ship. The group continues to move on but hear of a well organized group of humans have set up a base at Charleston and journey there experience many hardships along the way.

Guess I will just come out and say it that this season is definitely better than season one! They have improved on a lot of things this season and I guess what has mostly helped is the darker tone they have this season has. Whether it is mass executions of Humans, character deaths or the constant feeling of desperation the Second Massachusetts has against the Overlords. I guess one thing that I criticize the first season for doing is having the school as a base of operations for the majority of it. While having a base is good for a post - apocalyptic genre I much prefer when the characters are constantly on the move and we get to see the ruined world (like I mentioned in my Revolution reviews)

Now when I said earlier that this season has a more darker tone than the original I definitely meant it because in this one they have the deaths of several characters, the most notable being Dai and Jimmy. While they are not major characters they were never just background characters either and their deaths were done really well. Also a lot more action and violence as been added probably to make up for the lack of much in season one; one of my favourite parts of this season for example was when the group decided to stay at a hospital for a while on the way to Charleston. Some great scenes were the Second Mass are defending themselves against the Skitters, Mechs and a new insect like enemy that attacks the insides of people. Overall the sense of safeness that the Second Mass had in the first season was almost gone in this one. Also as mentioned above the action is just overall bigger now than ever, straight from the first episode to the very end we get some great scenes of explosion and excellent gunfights .

Another one of my fav parts was near the end of the season and the group makes it to Charleston only to discover that it is not the haven they thought it was. Sure it is well organized and secure but one individual and old friend of Tom's, Arthur Manchester (Terry O'Quinn), thinks it is best just to hide from the enemy. In my opinion this replaces the dilemma presented in the first season of Soldiers vs. Civilians and was really interesting in seeing how the characters deal with the conflicting views.

As for the characters and Skitters I like them just as much as I did last season (Pope still being the best!) and I even like Weaver more in this since he works more with Tom than against him and realises that the civilians are not a bother to the Second Mass after all. However I really did not like the character Karen for the voice of the Overlord and I found the episode when she tricked her way in to Second Mass to be pointless and annoying. I also hated in that episode when she tired to pit Hal and Ben against each other because with all that is going on they can both be fooled like that. Also the Skitters got a lot more interesting in season when we find out that many are resisting the harness affects and want to overthrow the Overlords, creates a lot of infighting in the group on whether they could be trusted or not (got me wondering as well).

For stuff I did not like about this season, besides Karen and Maggie (as always!), I did not like the episode were Weaver found his daughter with a group of kids. I just do not like when I group of kids can manage to survive for ages in a post - apocalyptic environment and causes the Second Mass a lot of trouble, which they did at the end of the episode. I am also finding Tom's youngest son Matt to just keep getting more and more annoying because for some reason they are deciding to give him a more prominent role.

Overall this is a definite improvement over the last season in terms of more bigger action, darker tones and more expansive story such as getting to Charleston, dealing with Tom's arrival and destroying the massive Overlord weapon at the end. It is only let down by some annoying characters that luckily don't distract from the majority of the show and the lack of a major character death (will talk more in to this in my review of season three because there is some stuff about Hal I want to talk about, those who have watched it may know what I mean).

It also left the audience on a cliff hanger even more better than the end of season one; just when we think the Overlords are the only thing the Humans have to worry about a new species appears. That ending shot of the alien walking out of the pod in that arm was just so cool!

SCORE: 9/10