3+ Years and Still No Swat Kats

Was cleaning out my laptop of old files as I am transferring stuff to my desktop when I stumbled across these pics from the Swat Kats Revolution Kickstarter. The pics were dated in 2016 (the day I DLed them), which hinted it's been that long since I last heard of Swat Kats.

Decided to check out their Kickstarer and as of 2018 they received over $100k in pledges. But beyond that, nothing. While I haven't thought about Swat Kats until now, I do feel bad for those who pledged for this revival with virtually no news about it.

Twelve Forever Production Complete

Twelve Forever was a animated pilot short created by Julia Vickerman (Supervising Director for Clarence and Animator for Yo Gabba Gabba), which premiered in 2016 as one of many potential shows to be given a full series order by Cartoon Network. Twelve Forever was sadly cut, though Vickerman continued working on Cartoon Network as writer for the Powerpuff Girls Reboot. Twelve Forever would find a new home on Netflix, when the latter announced the series order in 2017.

Shadi Petosky, who is currently one of the writers for the Netflix series, has made tweets that the show has completed production and it's all up to Netflix as to its eventual release date. 

The story of Twelve Forever is of Reggie and her friend Shane engaging in adventures within Reggie's created outer world, where she is seen as the superhero Twelve.

Gen: Lock Episodes 1-2 Review

"It's unlike any mecha we've seen before."

This was the slogan Rooster Teeth (of RWBY fame) is using to promote their now airing series 'Gen: Lock'. Creator and series director Gray Haddock cites the works of Gen Urobochi (Thunderbolt Fantasy, Madoka Magica), and mecha/sci-fi shows like Gundam and Ghost in The Shell as inspirations. Having said that, the mecha community ridiculed the series over its slogan and its trailer, myself included, as there wasn't much in it that distinguishes itself from other mecha shows like Gundam, or Macross, or others such as Code Geass or Getter Robo. And given the reputation sites like Polygon have, it's hard to take their reviews of Gen: Lock seriously.

Another is a more personal reason - I never really liked RWBY. While I am aware of the critical and commercial success it has made over the years, it's one of those that for one reason or another, I could never jump into and enjoy (Clone Wars also comes to mind). I also have this mentality that promoting an animated series or film by having a celebrity do voice-acting is more of a marketing ploy to get people to watch it, rather than picking them because their voice-acting is as good as when they do act on camera. So as I begin diving into the first two episodes of Gen: Lock, I have low expectations of it.

Truth be told, it’s not bad so far. There are still a number of issues it has though. For the purpose of this review, I will compare it with other mecha anime that I’ve seen over the years, from Astro Boy, to the original Mobile Suit Gundam, to Darling in The Franxx.

The one thing shows like Gundam and Macross have done so well is that when it comes to a war between two or more factions, they give you a quick glance as to what is going on before we are introduced to the main cast. But for the first two episodes of Gen: Lock, we don’t get anything as to what’s going on. Instead, we are introduced to the protagonist Julian Chase (Michael B. Jordan) and his relationship with Miranda Worth (Dakota Fanning) before he gets shoved into battle with a faction known as the Union, gets killed, and comes back years later as part of a secret project on piloting experimental mechs known as Holons. And after two episodes, we STILL don’t know what’s up with the war between the two factions other than one of them being portrayed as the bad guys.

Now let’s talk about these ‘Holons’. They are your typical Real Robot-type (mechs used mainly for warfare) combat units found in Gundam and Macross. The difference lies in that there is no human pilot, and instead the pilot’s own consciousness is uploaded to the Holon to control it (think James Cameron’s Avatar). I’m guessing this is what the show’s slogan meant as I personally cannot recall a mecha series with a similar concept. The closest would be Tetsujin 28 (Gigantor in the US) where the title mech is controlled via remote control, and the first of its kind.

I wasn’t too keen with the mecha designs of the Holons as they look more like the Armor Slaves found in Full Metal Panic. That said, the Opening Animation that reveal the Holons will be upgraded with unique abilities and weapons. So there is some promise the Holons will look good in combat. The other mechs found in Gen: Lock are mainly generic and none of them stand out or even memorable.

As for the characters, the first two episodes didn’t bring much reason for me to actually care for them. Again, like Gundam and Macross, we are given protagonists who are given a reason to fight, with enough character and charm to connect to them as soon as possible. Chase lacks such characterization that I don’t connect with him at all. Hopefully the later episodes explore his character, as will the rest of the cast. The performances of the celebrities aren’t bad.

One voice actor that really surprised me was the inclusion of Koichi Yamadera as Kazu Iida, one of the 5 Holon pilots who hails from Japan (the series has a diverse cast). Anime fans know Yamadera as the Japanese voice of Spike Spiegel from Cowboy Bebop, and more recently as the voice of Beerus in Dragon Ball Super. Unless I’m mistaken, this is Yamadera’s first participation in an American produced series. His character doesn’t speak English, though for some strange reason, he understands it when spoken to. It’s just as weird that he speaks Japanese and everyone gets it.

There really isn’t much for me to say with regards to the animation since it used the same style as found in RWBY. I’ve pretty much grown accustomed to it thanks to Knights of Sidonia, and more recently with Netflix’s Godzilla Trilogy.

Within all this slew of animated shows, Gen: Lock will have to offer something more than what it currently has to stand out from the rest of the crowd. It hasn’t done so yet. But it does have plenty of episodes to prove itself. On a scale of 1 to 5, I give the first two episodes of Gen: Lock a 2 out of 5.

re: ANN's Ep 4 review of The Rising of The Shield Hero

This really shouldn’t surprise me, but Theron Martin, who gives reviews for The Rising of The Shield Hero on ANN, is really downplaying the series with each episode review - quite contrary to its community score that is averaged at 4.5. Each time I read his reviews, I find the context to be less a review of the series and more of bashing it over his (and by extension ANN itself) social and political views. It is the new norm, whether anyone likes it or not, that sites like ANN would inject their bias in their journalism, while under the banner of an established entity that provides “fair and truthful” reporting.

While I’d simply just ignore his reviews and rate Rising in my own way (of which you may know I really loved the series so far), I do want to respond to some of his commentsfrom the series’s 4th episode, which came this week.

With regards to Motoyasu (the Spear Hero), Theron quoted as saying:

“...this episode shows that Motoyasu (aka Spear Guy) has enough of a blind righteous streak that he's easily susceptible to the machinations of a sly-minded pretty face. He's as out of his league with Myne as Naofumi was, regardless of their differences otherwise.”

If I were to say this in another angle, Motoyasu is the White-Knight in this series, in that he is over-privileged to do anything in the name of his obviously poor sense of justice. As such Motoyasu is obligated to ‘rescue’ Raphtalia from Naofumi because of this over-privilege, Myne’s influence, and of course hopefully adding her to his already harem party.

On Myne (or Malty as her real name was revealed in this episode):

“…she still comes across as a malicious soul who gets her jollies at Naofumi's expense simply because she has a twisted personality, which doesn't make her an interesting character.”

Malty isn’t supposed to be anywhere likable. The hate doesn’t come from Malty being a very bad character in the series. She’s vilified for her actions against Naofumi. She is a lot like Griffith in Berserk and what he did makes him such a hated character. Imagine Malty as a heel wrestler and you boo her because of her heelish actions. It’s different from booing her period because she’s a horrible wrestler. What she’s done in this narrative of Rising is the former.

Lastly, this one big paragraph on Naofumi as the protagonist:

“The big turning point is also fairly expected, when Raphtalia demonstrates that her loyalty to Naofumi has nothing to do with the master/slave relationship in such a way that even the other two heroes recognize her sincerity. The last two episodes have done a sufficient job establishing why she would see things that way, but this scene still didn't seem to achieve much emotional impact, because of how irritatingly heavy-handed the series continues to be about Naofumi's persecution complex. Almost none of Naofumi's issues stem from his own mistakes or inadequacies. He's being portrayed purely as a victim, which isn't a good angle for future character growth unless the intent is to show him casting off his victim mentality in some interesting way.”

This sounds more like he sees Naofumi as playing the victim rather than being one. Imagine being in Naofumi’s shoes. You’d have to be a total saint not to be cold and bitter to everything around you after what you’ve been through. Naofumi continues to fall into such despair that it did activate the Curse Series in his shield. We can see from the OP animation that this is something that gives Naofumi a huge power boost, but at the cost of own humanity. Raphtalia serves as his moral compass and to keep him from falling off that cliff towards the dark side. While trope-ish in that Raphtalia is devoted to Naofumi, at the very least, the execution makes her devotion legitimate. There was a slight change from the novel and manga in the episode’s ending in which those two versions had Naofumi kissing Raphtalia on the cheek. I find it a good choice not including that scene in the anime version, as that would’ve been quite awkward.

The next episode will be an introduction to the newest member for Naofumi’s party. It also appears to be a bit more light-hearted than what we’ve seen so far. It’s a good change of pace and something I’m looking forward to. As for this episode, if you couldn’t tell from it already, I really liked it, especially with Raphtalia’s progression as a character. ANN can pretty much shove it with their views on The Rising of The Shield Hero. But I’ll still go to them for Anime News.

Who Wants DBZ's Narrator To Do Video Packages for All Elite Wrestling?

Kyle Herbert, narrator for the American dub version of Dragon Ball Z, is interested in being the narrator for video promos for All Elite Wrestling.

Herbert also played as the adult Gohan and the Ox King in the series. Besides Dragon Ball, Herbert also provided the voices of Kiba in Naruto, Aizen in Bleach, Kamina in Gurren Lagann (where he is named Best Voice Actor in 2009), and the official English voice of Ryu in Street Fighter.


 
FYI: All Elite Wrestling (AEW) is an upcoming US wrestling promotion founded by the Khan Family (owner of the Jacksonville Jaguars). Among its roster are members of The Elite (The Young Bucks, Hangman Page, Cody Rhodes), SoCal Uncensored, WWE's Chris Jericho, and PAC (aka Neville).

AEW's first major show "Double or Nothing" is set for May 25th at the MGM Grand Arena in Las Vegas.

The Rising of The Shield Hero Episodes 1-3 Review

I was originally planning to review The Rising of The Shield Hero once I’ve seen all the episodes. However, it’s not so often in my time as an anime/cartoon fan that a series got me super hyped after the first few episodes that I want to openly talk about it while anticipating what happens next. Imagine an episode of Dragon Ball Super or Steven Universe where nothing really happens, yet you get so hyped about it anyway. It’s the same with The Rising of The Shield Hero (or I’ll call it as simply ‘Rising’), except there’s a number of reasons why this series got me hooked.

I personally never read the original Light Novel or the earlier manga adaptation. But Rising got under my radar when news reports from places like ANN and Sankaku Complex came on the controversy surrounding the series pilot. For context, let me give you the rundown:

The series begins with one Naofumi Iwatani, your typical NEET or modern day hermit who spends most of his time on anime and gaming, never goes to work, and gets his money from his parents. In one of the rare occasions he decides to leave his home, Naofumi visits the local library and opens a book where he is transported into a fantasy world. He meets three other people, who also arrived on similar circumstances and learn that they are all summoned because the locals believe they are the Four Legendary Heroes that would save their world from the Wave, a catastrophe where various monsters come down wrecking everything in their path.

The four receive their respective weapons as heroes with the exception of Naofumi, who only gets a shield. As the Shield Hero, Naofumi is magically forbidden to equip any weapons, as he is exclusively for defense. Add that, like a typical RPG, the heroes need to gain experience to be able to fight off the Wave, and Naofumi becomes ridiculed for his inability to fight, with several adventurers not interested in joining party save one – a woman named Myne, who guides Naofumi in everything he needs to get started.

This is where the controversy comes in. Naofumi was later arrested on accusations of raping Myne, with planted evidence that he has done the deed. We then learn that Myne made up the false rape accusations to avoid being pinned for stealing all of Naofumi’s gear and money, and has joined the party of the Spear Hero. As Naofumi is still vital to stopping the Wave and can only return to his world once the threat is fully neutralized, Naofumi is let go but is shunned by everyone, and his character changed drastically as a result. He still needs to level up, somehow and fight off the incoming Wave.

The above controversy gave Rising a lot of bad press even from places like Anime News Network, who lambasts it for reasons that you, the reader, I assume already know. It’s not that long ago that Goblin Slayer also received flak for similar reasons. Both also receive negative reviews over those scenarios. Yet in spite of all that, Goblin Slayer and Rising receive a lot of praise from anime fans as they are actually quite good shows. And I tend to agree with that.

Personally, Myne’s actions are similar to that of Lupin III’s Fujiko Mine. Both use their charms to seduce their men, and then run off stealing the goods while leaving them in the dust. The difference mainly is that Fujiko never uses a false rape or similar accusation against Lupin, since she occasionally gets him into a lot of trouble, anyways – and in many cases, intentionally.

One of the factors that made me love Rising was Naofumi. Similar to characters like Naruto, Naofumi starts off as weak and not much love from everyone around him. This trope is deviated further in the restrictions applied to him as the Shield Hero. Rather than try to clear his name and gain the acceptance of the people, Naofumi doesn’t care about it anymore and tends to prepare to fight the Wave by any means necessary. It’s like when a babyface wrestler turns heel for a shot at the world championship belt and win it, even if it means cheating his way through. Naofumi does this so well he becomes a likable protagonist, while still in a very underdog-like position.

Another is the appearance of the series’s secondary protagonist, Raphtalia. As a raccoon-dog demi-human, she’s a young girl who Naofumi takes in as his slave and trains her to be his swordsman in combat. While appearing harsh on Raphtalia as he needs her to ready to fight the Wave for him in a short amount of time, he does care about her and treats her like a daughter-like figure. This results in quite the chemistry between the two that it’s great seeing them together. Raphtalia has quite the charisma in her design and character that, as a viewer, you would want to protect her, while also train her to be your sword. I am also surprised that the slave concept in this series isn’t that frowned upon unlike the false rape scenario.

The anime adaptation of Rising is produced by Kadokawa, who has produced a lot of anime under their belt and a number of them received high acclaim recently, among them are Made in Abyss, Kemono Friends, The Boy and The Beast, Your Name, and Mirai (which is nominated for this year’s Oscars as Best Animated Feature). You can see how Kadokawa is quite serious in terms of production quality in their works, and Rising does not disappoint one bit. It’s also worth noting that the pilot episode was an hour long (if you add in the commercials), an single anime episode with that kind of runtime is rarely seen these days, and it does work to establish what the Rising is about and getting people like me anticipate the next episode.

So yes, The Rising of The Shield really impressed me and I am glad that this series will run for 25 episodes. And I got hooked so much I just can’t wait for the next episode. As long as it doesn’t falter later, I would make it an early pick for Anime of The Year for 2019. So for the first three episodes of The Rising of The Shield Hero, on the scale of 1 to 5, they all get perfect scores.