This is the week we get to see the newest installment in the Riddick franchise, and it looks like it will be quite the ride. This is either the 3rd or 4th film in the series, depending on whether you count the animated short that was released direct to DVD. Vin Diesel is still Riddick, with Katey Sackhoff and Karl Urban along for the party this time.
In movies, Studio Ghibli’s From Up on Poppy Hill brings us another Hayao Miyazaki presentation, directed by Goro Miyazaki. It is based on the 1980s Manga of the same name, and like the majority of Studio Ghibli films, it is family friendly. So family friendly in fact they are usually distributed in the US by Disney, although this time they went with GKids. Now You See Me is almost genre, bordering on the fantasy side of life, but you need to bring your brain to this one and pay attention if you want to really understand what is going on. And the winner this week in the Silly Concepts with Bad Production Values category is Sharknado.
The top selection in TV this week is Haven: The Complete 3rd Season as far as I am concerned. The story line just keeps getting more interesting each season, and Audry’s life (whoever she actually is) just keeps getting more twisted. As usual, the timing is impeccable, bringing it out just in time for you to re-watch it before season 4 starts on September 13th. The Vampire Diaries: The Complete Fourth Season finally makes it into senior year, with Elena and company looking for the Vampire Cure. And here I always thought that was a stake through the heart; the new season starts October 3rd. Revolution: The Complete First Season is also out this week, and it also got a second season.
In Anime, I already mentioned From Up On Poppy Hill, but the next quality choice is We Without Wings: Season One has two gangs, a girl with a uniform fetish, a lot of random humor and fan service, and an alternate universe with a medieval civilization for our protagonists to deal with. AKB0048: Season 1 has the classic J-Pop Idol Band defending music in all the planets of the galaxy from anti-music forces. One Piece releases season 5 part 2, bringing us episodes 276 through 287.
The Painting is the most interesting movie this week, a French animation (the language; the country the animation was made in was Belgium) about three different castes of painted characters. The animation approach is unusual, although it does remind me of A Cat In Paris, another French animation (this time both the country it was made in and the language) with a distinctly Impressionistic look to the artwork.
In TV, season 1 of Elementary, a modern interpretation of the Holmes stories with Lucy Liu as Joan Watson. I have only seen a few of them so far, but they look quite good. Not as good as Sherlock, the UK modernized interpretation now on season 3, but still good. Also season 3 of The Walking Dead hits the shelves, for those who can’t get enough zombie action.
In anime, Guilty Crown: The Complete Series is released in 2 boxes, parts 1 and 2, but at least they both come out the same day so you don’t have to wait 6 months to find out what happens next. A meteorite carrying a lethal virus crashes into Japan, killing a major chunk of the population. Some of those who survived the infection, including our protagonist Shu, gained some strange powers as their body mutated to survive (shades of Wildcards!). Now he has to decide if those powers should serve the secret government agency or the rebels led by the rock star goddess. Here is a hint: Shu is a high school boy.
Medaka Box: Complete Collection only has 12 episodes, so it fits into a single box set. Medaka was just elected Student Council President, and instituted a suggestion box proposal thinking the students would be looking for help with studying or dating advice. It turns out there is a lot more going on at the school then she ever suspected, things quickly get wild and deadly, and only the special powers this brings out in the student council are holding back total destruction. Now she has to solve the mystery before everything goes to hell… literally.
Onimusha: Dawn of Dreams starts as a historical epic, telling of the downfall of the warlord Nobunaga Oda at the hands of Jubei, and the rise of Hideyoshi Toyotomi to power in the late 1500s. Then on June 29th, 1596, a mysterious red star appears in the sky, and Emperor Hideyoshi becomes evil while Japan is rocked by natural disasters. Some of what follows is close to historical fact: the capture of the Spanish vessel San Felipe (it was shipwrecked, but the rest of the story is true) and the execution of its crew, along with the banishment of all foreigners from Japan and the persecution of christian religion. The raising of armies of Demons and attempting to conquer the world with them, not so much. At this point in its history, Japan was a very insular place, and wanted little to do with the rest of the world. It stayed that way until the 1800s. But this epic fantasy does bring some very interesting twists to the true story of those times. And yes, this anime is based on a game, as you no doubt already figured out. The game creators started with history, while the anime creators started with the game.
I became a fan of Orphan Black about 5 minutes into the first episode, and am very happy it is coming back for a new season in April. Of the projects specifically made for BBC America, it is my favorite so far. This video is just one of several from Comic Con, hit their web page for a bunch more.
Matt Smith and Jenna Coleman shared a few small factoids about Doctor Who at Comic Con this year that are worth being aware of, so here they are. Also, a heads up: The guy who created and wrote Misfits, Howard Overman, has created a new series for the BBC. Atlantis is being made by the producers of Merlin, and will occupy its old time slot on Saturdays. BBC America is co-producing it, and will be carrying it this fall, also on Saturdays.
There are a couple of great choices this week. The film Mortal Instruments: City of Bones actually hits the big screen on Wednesday, the 21st. Based on the YA series of urban fantasy novels by Cassandra Clare, Sony is no doubt hoping for the same kind of audience reaction earned by the Twilight and Hunger Games franchises. There are 5 more books already written and ready to turn into films, as well as 3 Steampunk prequels set in the Victorian era, so if this does well expect to see more. Then on Friday, The World’s End completes the Cornetto Trilogy, which started with Shawn Of The Dead and continued in Hot Fuzz.