Tokyo Ghoul: Review

Tokyo Ghoul :re has just been released today!  The 3rd season to Japan's hit series Tokyo Ghoul.
I recently caught up to Tokyo Ghoul and honestly I didn't think I would be into this series but as it turns out I got quite into it that I ended up binge watching it!
Here is a quick review synopsis so you can hopefully get into it too and start watching the new season!

Ken Kaneki is an average university guy who likes to chat it up with his friend Hide, the anime starts with them at a cafe called Anteiku where Kaneki reveals that he has a crush on a girl that likes to frequent the place.  He finally gets the guts to ask her out and they arrange to go on a date.
His date,  who goes by the name Rize, seems to have a lot in common with Kaneki as they are both book worms, towards the end of the date she reveals that she is scared to walk home because Ghouls have been attacking near where she lives so she asks Kaneki to walk her home.
Little does Kaneki know that Rize is a Ghoul and is after him.  Sure enough she lures him into an alleyway and starts to take a bite out of him, however Rize is not able to eat her prey because some construction beams fall on her and crush her to death. 
Kaneki is taken to the hospital where he nearly escapes death when the doctor decides to take the organs from deceased Rize and transplant them on Kaneki in order to save him. 
Of course you can only guess what happens...yup this transplant has turned Kaneki into a Ghoul.

Kaneki's life takes a huge turn, he denies he is a Ghoul at first, but human food doesn't taste good to Ghoul's because Ghoul's feed on human flesh.  with Kaneki's hunger getting worse he has no choice but to look for food.  As much as he doesn't want to he runs into an alleyway where another Ghoul is eating, and unfortunately he runs into more Ghouls.  But lucky to him he ends up finding a soon to be ally in Touka who stays in an apartment above Anteiku. 
We learn that Anteiku is actually a safe place for Ghoul's who are just trying to survive and are not what we would refer to as evil.

I'll leave the review here, trust me it gets good, Kaneki adjusting to his life as a Ghoul, discovering powers he didn't know he had, and joining in on the Ghoul turf war.
Like I said I really enjoyed it, found myself binging through this, and I can't wait to start the new series! 

In This Corner of the World: REVIEW

If you are in the mood for a good historical drama anime this is a good one to check out as long as you don't mind crying your eyes out once you grow attached to the characters.

This movie is set up around the young life of a girl named Suzu before, during, and right up until the end of World War 2 in Hiroshima and nearby Kure, Japan.

Some may think this may be a movie like Grave of the Fireflies, yes it takes place around the same time, but this movie offers a completely different perspective .

The movie starts with young Suzu as a child running an errand because her brother is sick. She and another boy nearly get kidnapped by some monster man but they are able to evade capture. The story moves ahead to Suzu in school, we learn about some of her friends and her family. The movie takes another fast forward to when a boy she doesn't even know asks for her hand in marriage. She ends up getting married to him and moving in with his family away from Hiroshima to Kure, which is basically a naval base town with battleships in the harbor and constant air raids.

Suzu slowly learns the ways of being a young wife in war times, picking up food rations, and figuring out ways to make them last for a family of 4, which soon becomes a family of 6 when sister in law Keiko and her young daughter Harumi come to live with them. At first it seems like Keiko doesn't like Suzu but we learn she is just harsh because she has had a very tough life.

I don't want to go much further into the story but I highly recommend this one for the history buffs out there, anyone who likes Japanese culture, and if you want to enjoy a good rollercoaster of emotions in an anime. The art animation style is beautiful, the music is soothing, and the story will tug at your heart strings.   This movie is actually available on Netflix in the U.S. as of March 15, 2018.

ALL-CON 2018

Last weekend was ALL-CON Weekend here in Dallas, TX.  This was my first time attending this convention where all fandoms are welcomed! 
This year the convention took place in the Renaissance Hotel (Previously the Intercontinental Hotel).

This convention was really interesting, lot's of activities that catered to many fandoms, anime, science fiction, star wars, ponies, cosplay, maid culture, burlesque, and more!  Some of my favorite activities were the craft room where you make a craft and keep it, the maid contest, and the Burlesque show was really entertaining too! Parking was a little bit of a hassle due to the small size of the parking lot. But other than that it was a fun time! Here are some fun pics!

Anime Review: Trigun

What if humanity lived in a desert planet modeled after the wild west with outlaws and guns and a hint of steampunk?

Milly and Meryl

Well that's the world you get in Trigun.  At first glance this anime seems like it may seem like the type of anime you would pass up, because what's so great about two insurance girls looking for an outlaw to assess his damages right?
This story actually goes in deeper though, just have a little patience.  All the episodes are actually quite enjoyable, there's only about 26 episodes too so its a pretty quick anime to binge through.

Vash and Wolfwood

Short synopsis goes like this, two damage insurance girls, Meryl and Milly,  are sent to go assess damages after an outlaw known as Vash the Stampede, the Humanoid Typhoon, he received this name after rumors had it that he alone destroyed an entire town. With this reputation Vash has a bounty on him of $$60 billion double dollars!  At first they can't believe that this klutzy type of a man is actually Vash, but as the series progresses they learn to accept who he is an grow fond of him. They also come to realize that he is not a bad guy after all, as he friends a gun wielding priest named Wolfwood whom they also come to know and love. 
But little do they know that Vash has an even deeper secret that no one knows about. A secret that dates back over 100 years ago in space, and who is this other man who looks just like he could be Vash's twin?!!!
You're going to want to stick around for all 26 episodes of this 90's classic anime.

Anime Review: Handa- Kun

Wanted to take some time to recommend a fun little anime about a student name Sei Handa who is a calligraphy prodigy, who feels like a total outcast.  Or is he?  
Even though Handa-Kun feels like a loser, hated by all his peers, its kind of all in his mind. In reality his peers see him as the most popular kid in school, he is adored by fans, feared by bullies, and regular guys just want to be him!  All the adoration, however, in Handa's point of view is just his schoolmates being bullies to him, mocking him.  
Quick example is when he received a love letter, he thought it was a challenge letter for a fight, because in his mind he is a loser and everyone hates him. What will happen with the poor girl who supposedly challenged Handa to a fight?!
You will not regret it, just watch the first episode its absolutely hilarious! 

Anime Review: Initial D

Wanted to Review an oldie but goodie, I am talking about the original Initial D anime series that came out in the late 90's and went to the early 2000's.

Back in 1998, before anyone even heard of The Fast and the Furious, Japan had a little gem of an anime called Initial D.
This anime was seriously awesome, packed with fast paced pumped up eurobeat music to get your blood moving throughout your body, as you watch the intense street race between the underdog new guy in his old school car and the fancy "experienced" drivers.   This anime was great for everyone, even if you knew nothing about cars, because as you have it, the main protagonist didn't know anything about cars at the start of the anime either!
Not only does this anime have great battles with street racing cars, but there's also great slice of life situations, and even some romance is thrown in because even street racers need a little romance.

Initial D anime arose in 1998 and went to fifth stage and final stage ended in 2014 with a compilation movie.  Other films include two extra stage special episodes focusing on other characters, 3 movies with the title of Legend 1, 2, and 3, and a live action movie featuring Taiwanese singer Jay Chou as the main protagonist Takumi Fujiwara.

The main story starts with Takumi Fujiwara and his friend Itsuki who are both high school seniors, Itsuki dreams of one day joining the Akina Speed Stars and becoming a street racer. While Takumi knows nothing about cars but works at a gas station alongside his buddies who are both petrol heads.
Little do his friends know that Takumi has been delivering tofu at night in his dads AE86 "Panda Trueno" for the past 5 years and Takumi is one hell of a driver on the downhill of Akina pass.  This is clearly shown as one night he is delivering tofu and encounters a street racer that Takumi effortlessly ends up passing.    The rest is history as Takumi joins the street racing ranks and becomes Akina's #1 downhill racer! This anime is one ride you will love to come along for.