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Something to Watch: DVD’s, 16Jul13

Not a great week for movies, with the remake of Evil Dead being about the only new film out there. And without Bruce, I just don’t see the point. We do better in TV, with Alphas: Season Two continuing the story for our team of special powered investigators. Unfortunately Syfy cancelled it, so it didn’t get a season 3, which means this is it for this series. Also this week the excellent BBC America original series Orphan Black: Season One hits the shelves. If you haven’t seen this one yet put it on your must-watch list and join the Clone Club.

In anime, Naruto Shippūden rolls out box set 15, bringing us up to episodes 180 through 192. The latest episode to stream out of Japan is 320, so we have a ways to go to catch up yet, but you can watch them on either the Viz or Hulu web sites. There is a re-release I am excited about this week, in the form of Patlabor (The Mobile Police) TV Series; Collection 1. Giant Robots, sociopaths, madmen waving guns – these aren’t just the problems the Mobile Police have to deal with every day, these ARE the Mobile Police! is a truly apt description, even if it is part of the current ad copy. This wonderful series is directed by Mamoru Oshii, who later went on to do Ghost In The Shell and many other excellent cyberpunk anime stories.

Something to Watch: DVDs 9Jul13

The movie The Host was a surprisingly enjoyable story of alien invasion, sort of Heinlein’s Puppet Masters redone as a fem-centric YA story with an ending based on collaboration rather than conquest. Which makes sense, since it is also a romance, but much better done than the authors other movie series with all the sparkly vampires.

In TV we have season 4 of Warehouse 13, a fun little series full of artifacts with strange powers. Too bad Eureka isn’t still around to go with it, I loved the crossover episodes they did.

In Anime, Blue Exorcist: Complete 1st Season is the ultimate in inter-generational infighting; Th son is becoming a world-class exorcist going after demons. The father is Satan, infiltrating his minions into the world of humans. Gyo: Tokyo Fish Attack! is more scientific, with mechanically augmented sea creatures attacking the land dwellers. Our protagonist leaves Okinawa and heads to Tokyo to see if her boyfriend is OK, only to discover the city overrun by the mechanized monsters.

Something to Watch: DVDs

Top movie selection this time around absolutely has to be Tai Chi Hero, the sequel to the amazing Steampunk Tai Chi Zero. This film series is very hard to describe properly, but it is a world of fun, and I recommend it highly. 6 Souls might be interesting as well, I suppose.

I didn’t find any TV series this time around, but Anime did slightly better with three entries. Horizon in the Middle of Nowhere: Season Two continues the national maneuvering for power and position, and I mean that quite literally. It looks like we finally get to see the Armor of Deadly Sins in action this time around as well. Natsume’s Book of Friends: Season 4 finds our protagonist still tracking down the Yokai (monsters, spirits) listed in his grandfathers book and giving them back their rightful names. But now he must also consider his future, and make some hard decisions. Finally, Ruin Explorers is a 4 episode OVA about two highly trained magic users who can’t spell right (I am pretty sure the pun is intentional) in a race to collect three artifacts before their opponents beat them to it. This one looks pretty amusing for old school Anime, it is vintage 1995.

New Ghost In The Shell: Arise!

It is true, there is a new Ghost In The Shell project with an all new series of videos and a new story line. This one is called Ghost in the Shell: Arise! and it is made up of four 50 minute episodes. It looks like it will bring all our favorite characters back together again in that same cyberpunk universe we have enjoyed so many times before. Episode 1 hit the big screens in Tokyo last week, but I figure it will be at least the end of July before the DVDs get released here and we get to enjoy them. There may be a few rare theaters that will throw this on the big screen in the US, but I haven’t found any yet. If you find one of them, give me a shout; I would really like to be there!

Something to Watch, DVDs 25Jun13

The fantasy film this week is a re-release of 1965’s Beatles Help!, but since this is the first time ever a fully restored version will be available on Blue Ray, perhaps it could be counted as a new release. Also, while not exactly genre, The Incredible Burt Wonderstone is a fun film with more than a tip of the hat to the magically inclined.

In TV, Todd & the Book of Pure Evil: The Complete Second Season is finally being released in the US. It has been available on streaming for a while through various paid streaming services, but this will be the first opportunity to add it to your permanent collection in this country. Meanwhile, the cast and crew have been trying to raise the funds to get a third season going; read about it at their web site.

In Anime, Heaven’s Lost Property: Forte is season 2 of the series and continues the trail of havoc the wishes of the high school protagonist creates as his android angels (or angelic androids, they are a little unclear on that point) carry them out. Juden Chan: The Complete Series is about spirit girls from another universe who charge up the depressed so they can live their lives, and what happens when they meet a boy who can see them.

Another spirit girl is a shinigami called Momo: The Girl God of Death, who does her best to help the spirits of the no longer living she guides to the other side. Helps so much she herself winds up in trouble, in fact. This is more of an OVA than a series, since the entire thing is only six 25 minute episodes long, but all of them are here.

Old school anime from the late 80s, Saint Seiya Movies 1 & 2 are being re-released together, with the 3rd and 4th movies in another box set. I couldn’t find a link to the official web site, so I linked one of the TV series instead, where you can watch episodes and get an idea of the program.

Something to Watch: DVDs, 18Jun13

The prime movie this time is Jack the Giant Slayer, where Jack accidentally opens a gateway to a land of giants, who immediately invade the world they were driven out of long ago and attempt to take it back. Also coming out is The Ghastly Love of Johnny X, aliens exiled to Earth for delinquency who just keep getting in trouble once they arrive. This one is campy silliness with some fun musical numbers and several surprises in the cast you might enjoy.

In TV, Wilfred: The Complete Season Two brings more strangeness between a man and his neighbor’s anthropomorphic dog. In both TV and western animation, Kung Fu Panda Legends of Awesomeness: Good Croc, Bad Croc is the first release of the Panda-centric TV show. The production house changed, the original films were a joint production of Disney and Chinese animation works, and most of the voice actors are different than the films as well, but there is still some good stuff here.

In Anime, last year’s Kill Me Baby brings a truly bizarre series of events to a normal high school filled with anything but normal students. Things like escaped bears, several separate groups of assassins, a family of ninjas, voodoo curses, and killer mosquitoes, to name just a few.

Saiyuki: The Complete Collection brings 50 episodes of Demon fighting goodness. Long ago demons and humans lived together in peace, but now some renegade demons are trying to manifest a great evil. A small group of disparate souls come together to oppose them, and the fight is on! This classic anime series is from 2000, and if you shop around to can pick this one up at a decent price. Finally, Chrome Shelled Regios has been released in a S.A.V.E. edition, so you can pick up the entire series for just around $20.