FINAL FANTASY Mascots Accessory Case
Square Enix Official Online Shop
$24.99

This tokidoki inspired accessory bag would be perfect for the nerd chic gamer in your life. It features the four iconic Final Fantasy mascots; Chocobo, Moogle, Cactuar and PuPu. Would be ideal as a makeup bag, or for school or art supplies.

https://ssl.square-enix-shop.com/SqEx/us/ShowDetail.action?productId=1173

FINAL FANTASY VII ADVENT CHILDREN Folding Fan (Sephiroth)
Square Enix Official Online Shop
$29.99

This lovely fan features the colors and symbol of Final Fantasy VII’s villain, Sephiroth. It would be a lovely piece of wall decor, and a welcome, yet subtle alternative to the wall scrolls most anime and gaming fans find their decor confined to.

https://ssl.square-enix-shop.com/SqEx/us/ShowDetail.action?productId=1127&sid=1323120348946r2cJ6sClcf

FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST Trading Arts vol.2
Square Enix Official Online Shop
$39.99

This lovely, blister boxed set of figures features some of my personal favorite character from the series; Olivier and Alphonse, in addition to fan favorites, Roy Mustang and Envy. Square has gone above and beyond in both their Play Arts and Trading Arts, and this set of figures is no exception.

https://ssl.square-enix-shop.com/SqEx/us/ShowDetail.action?productId=693&sid=1323120886123ScvJB8sYJB

FINAL FANTASY XIV Stuffed Moogle -Kuplu Kopo-
Square Enix Official Online Shop
$24.99

Although Final Fantasy XIV as a game might not be where it should, it does little to diminish the adorableness of this plush Moogle. Little Kuplu Kopo would be a wonderful present to find under the tree for Final Fantasy fans of any age.

https://ssl.square-enix-shop.com/SqEx/us/ShowDetail.action?productId=1041&sid=1323120886123ScvJB8sYJB

Spice and Wolf: Season One [Blu-ray]
Amazon.com
$17.49

Lawrence, a traveling merchant searching for profit, finds girl with the ears and tail of a wolf asleep in his cart. Her name is Holo – a harvest goddess with an untamed beast lurking inside who longs to return to her beloved northern home. These two very different traveling companions begin a journey through the wild countryside. Along their path, the riches of happiness shall be reaped, even as the bankruptcy which dwells in the human heart is exposed.

http://www.amazon.com/Spice-Wolf-Season-One-Blu-ray/dp/B0050UEVNC/ref=sr_1_13?ie=UTF8&qid=1323122381&sr=8-13

Game Characters Collection Mini Princess Crown & Odin Sphere Trading Figure
Play-Asia.com
$7.00

These miniature figures feature characters from a little known favorite PS2 game of mine, Odin Sphere. (Which is also available on Playstation Network.) Characters are chosen randomly, and one would certainly hope to get one of the three heroines of Odin Sphere; Gwendolyn, Velvet or Mercedes.

http://www.play-asia.com/Game_Characters_Collection_Mini_Princess_Crown_Odin_Sphere_PrePa/paOS-13-71-92-49-en-70-48oq.html

Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia, Shanoa Messenger Bag
EKnightMedia.com
$27.39

This awesome messenger bag is something I personally own, and would make a fantastic gift for any Castlevania fan. It’s quite large and would be great for a laptop carrying case as well. It features a monochrome of Ecclesia’s bad ass heroine, Shanoa.

http://www.eknightmedia.com/bag-castlevania-order-of-ecclesia-shanoa-messenger.html

Code Geass Wallet – LeLouch
EKnightMedia.com
$15.92

A more practical gift for the anime fan in your life. This dark brown anime wallet features compartments for credit card, cash, etc, with a metal Geass logo insignia, and a chain for your belt as well.

http://www.eknightmedia.com/catalogsearch/result/index/?p=4&q=code+geass

Here at Gaming Angels, we all wish you a happy and healthy Holiday season. And most of all, a frugal yet generous shopping experience for the rest of the month! Try to retain your sanity!

The main character is a guy who is looking for a job at Fuji TV headquarters in Odaiba. Known as a resort and tourist attraction the island of Odaiba is home to an Aquacity an enormous shopping mall, a high tech multi-plex cinema and a gourmet zone which is the largest in Japan. The major attractions of Odaiba are mentioned in the manga as the characters make their way to the Rainbow Bridge. In real life a large fire broke out near the port of Odaiba in Japan after this years massive earthquake as it did in the manga too.

While at the famous TV station the college senior attended a recruitment orientation. By chance he becomes thrown together by the earth quake with Nanako Okano. The girl who dresses as a gothic lolita was about to attend a concert. The two find each other and discover that they were junior high classmates. It is their efforts to survive, face the horrors they witness and make it out out of the ruins which forms the plot.

It has a stark outlook that draws the reader into the character’s perspective. The visceral fears, panic and anxiety radiate off the pages of Kanojo wo Mamoru 51 no Houhou. You’ll find yourself wondering if the romance will blossom. It has drama, violence and suspense. It was a skeptical look at the future where the worst was brought out by fear and greed. It’s a cautionary tale that we hope is far from the reality that is taking place now around the world as many communities are dealing with the disasters from global warming.

SOIL is a parapsychological mystery by Atsushi Kaneko. It begins with a story that seems to be about two detectives and the disappearance of a family. Set in weirdly named “Soil New Town” (New Soil Town?), which seems to be a sleepy pastoral community, of course appearances are deceiving.

As it is presented, you may empathize with the female police detective who has a face like Alfred E. Neuman named Onoda. She is continually insulted and sexually harassed by her boss. As the series progresses you find that everything in it is connected, and happens for a reason. The boss, whose gruff exterior conceals his concern for his co workers until very late in the series, might not be a character that you would relate to, or find as a likely paranormal investigator.

The offbeat art style looked like a comic to me rather than a manga, even had a Denny’s Restaurant. Do they have those in rural Japan? Much of the furniture was western styled. Instead of the fine lines and detailed artwork of manga, this one has the bolder thick lines that resemble art in American graphic novels. But there the similarity ends.

If you are a fan of Japanese horror films, you know that the plot is never spelled out for you, and the chronology is played around with until your head spins. I’ve never had to backtrack through a book as much as I did with this one. Turning back to the page before to make sure I was following along, “Say what now?”, aloud.

Things begin to get very weird very quickly in this page turner. I am thankful that I didn’t get into the series at the beginning because waiting for the unanswered questions in this kooky mystery would drive me crazy.

Bizarre occurrences, mass murderers, rape, aliens, and disaffected teens all play a part in this convoluted tale. While being a definite departure from other more popular manga Soil shines as an unusual, but decent read. It has had critical acclaim, and part of it was made onto a drama. There are many twists, and though as readers we are privy to more of the clues, we aren’t very far ahead of the characters. The suspense is a tangible force throughout the story. If you get into Soil, I guarantee that you will be absorbed by it.

As it is presented, you may empathize with the female police detective who has a face like Alfred E. Neuman named Onoda. She is continually insulted and sexually harassed by her boss. As the series progresses you find that everything in it is connected, and happens for a reason. The boss, whose gruff exterior conceals his concern for his co workers until very late in the series, might not be a character that you would relate to, or find as a likely paranormal investigator.

The offbeat art style looked like a comic to me rather than a manga, even had a Denny’s Restaurant. Do they have those in rural Japan? Much of the furniture was western styled. Instead of the fine lines and detailed artwork of manga, this one has the bolder thick lines that resemble art in American graphic novels. But there the similarity ends.

If you are a fan of Japanese horror films, you know that the plot is never spelled out for you, and the chronology is played around with until your head spins. I’ve never had to backtrack through a book as much as I did with this one. Turning back to the page before to make sure I was following along, “Say what now?”, aloud.

Things begin to get very weird very quickly in this page turner. I am thankful that I didn’t get into the series at the beginning because waiting for the unanswered questions in this kooky mystery would drive me crazy.

Bizarre occurrences, mass murderers, rape, aliens, and disaffected teens all play a part in this convoluted tale. While being a definite departure from other more popular manga Soil shines as an unusual, but decent read. It has had critical acclaim, and part of it was made onto a drama. There are many twists, and though as readers we are privy to more of the clues, we aren’t very far ahead of the characters. The suspense is a tangible force throughout the story. If you get into Soil, I guarantee that you will be absorbed by it.

Stephanie Herrera: When I made the game I was a lot younger than now and the differences just came out of thin air, I didn’t plan them at all, just made whatever came to my mind. I think the innocence of the moment also helped and the stuff I was going through in my life at that certain point, such as becoming a self conscious woman.

What art your art style influences?

In that time I liked manga and anime a lot, probably you can tell from the images, lol… But now I’m older I have much more influences in my style, most of all come from cool conceptual art in films and videogames, and the range of styles is infinite, so you can use the stuff you like and combine all the aspects of different design forms.

How hard was it getting your art to become a game?

Actually I was really lucky, I was searching for a freelance job at that time and suddenly Adam appeared out of nowhere, told me he had seen my art and wanted to do a game with me. I never imagined it would become this big within internet gaming.

Was it a lengthy process?

Back then I was exploring my techniques of work as well, so yeah, I was a bit lengthy, but it was very cool process. First I did the sketches, then I put ink by hand, scanned and colored digitally.

Did you begin yiur career with a video game App in mind?

Nope, I never thought this game would become of such proportions. When Adam told me the game had been played more than 20 million times… I was shocked!!

The game tells a story without using words, why did you choose to go that route?

I didn’t chose it to be that way, but I’ve always liked the way someone can tell a story without words. That means the communication level has to be higher to make a story understandable. Now I know it’s better to do games without words, it’s more globalized that way.

Is this your first video game project?

Yes it is I did other small stuff for Adam before Dreams, but nothing as mine as Dreams.

What were you doing before working on Dreams?

By that time, let’s see… I think I was starting with my studies at the university or maybe just finishing high school. I’ve always liked art and drawing and painting, so probably I was doing that as well, lol..

Are you going to make more games?

I already finished some more difference games with Adam that soon will come out, and right now I’m finishing a Pinnochio twisted fairytale in a comic style that I hope people will like a lot too.   Part from that, it’s always been my dream to become a recognized woman in the videogaming world. A lot has been lost in the way of making new games, seems like somehow everybody forgot what is like to really think and use your head to win a game.

What games do you enjoy playing yourself?

I enjoy playing games that are not made for dummies, games that are not just about killing a bunch of dudes and massive special effects, but games that actually require you to use your head and present you an interesting new story and new ways of gameplay.

VIZ is kicking off their 25th Anniversary Celebration with with a special Heroes of Manga reading kit, for librarians to share with their patrons! Sign up by June 8th to receive the FREE kit at http://www.surveygizmo.com/s3/541378/Heroes-of-Manga-Reading-Kit-Offer!

Manga is one of the most requested categories in libraries today, and helps promote a love of reading, especially for reluctant readers! Our library kit features some fun giveaways for readers of all ages, featuring popular properties classic & new, including NARUTO, FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST, NURA: RISE OF THE YOKAI CLAN and more! The kits include:

50 book covers
300 assorted bookmarks
50 buttons featuring NARUTO
5 assorted VIZ Media tote bags
1 Heroes of Manga literacy poster

For more information, check out www.vizmedia.com

VIZ Media Announces Product License for Hit Action Anime TIGER & BUNNY!

VIZ Media is now the exclusive product licensor for the hit new crime-fighting action series TIGER & BUNNY! It’s unique blend of comedy and over-the-top action is perfectly suited for a range of merchandising options across all categories!

The TIGER & BUNNY anime is currently simulcasting on the free-to-use VIZAnime.com and on Hulu the SAME DAY it debuts in Japan (currently up to episode #10). In Japan, a wide variety of toys, collectibles and other products are already licensed; the Blu-ray discs are #1 on Amazon Japan!

TIGER & BUNNY follows veteran hero Wild Tiger on his fight against crime for corporate superheroes group NEXT, all the while being filmed by superhero reality show HERO TV… But a tendency to destroy public property while protecting the lives of the innocent has earned him the nickname “Crusher for Justice”… Now, under orders from his new employer, Wild Tiger finds himself forced to team up with rookie Barnaby Brooks Jr., aka “Bunny”… Will these two polar opposites be able to work together to fight crime?!

TIGER & BUNNY is directed by Keiichi Sato with original character designs by series creator, Masakazu Katsura.

For more information check out www.VIZanime.com.

Otakon 2011 announces Johnny Yong Bosch

Otakon proudly announces Johnny Yong Bosch as a featured guest for Otakon 2011! If you’ve played a video game or watched anime in the past few years, you have certainly heard him before;

His first major voice acting role was Vash the Stampede in Trigun. He will later go on and play the voices of Kaneda in Akira, Renton in Eureka Seven, Claus in Last Exile, Clair in Heat Guy J, Sakaki in Witch Hunter Robin, Mike in Please Twins, Albert in The Count of Monte Cristo, Kiba in Wolf’s Rain, Itsuki in The Melancholy of Haurhi Suzumiya, Ichigo Kurosaki in Bleach and Lelouch Lamperouge in Code Geass.

Johnny’s voice can also be heard in numerous video games. He voices the main character Nero in Devil May Cry 4 and performed voiceover work in Valkyrie Profile 2: Silmeria, .hack//G.U., Persona 4, Star Ocean: Till the End of Time, Xenosaga, Wild Arms 4, Disgaea 3, Tales of Symphonia, Tales of the Abyss, Eternal Sonata and Bumblebee in Transformers: War for Cybertron.

Check out www.Otakon.org to register for the event.

Recieve 20% Off Digital Manga with new VIZ Manga App Promotion

World’s Most Popular Ninja Goes On Sale For A Limited Time Only For Digital Download For iPad, iPhone And iPod Touch!

VIZ Media has just launched a special digital promotion for its NARUTO manga (graphic novel) series. Digital versions of Volumes 1-27 of the classic action adventure story are available via the VIZ MANGA APP for the Apple iPad™, iPhone™ and iPod Touch™ for only $3.99 – 20% off the normal MSRP. The promotion kicks off today for a limited time only and ends Friday, June 17th at midnight PST.

Maiden Japan Announces License of Glass Maiden

Maiden Japan is a new anime label, who’s premiere release was a fan originated, cult hit called Papillion Rose.

Maiden Japan today announced its acquisition of Glass Maiden, the 12 episode science fiction/detective anime series directed by Mitsuko Kase (SaiKano, MS Gundam 08th Team: Miller’s Report) with character designs by Hisashi Kagawa (SaiKano, Pokemon 3.) Created specifically for broadcast, Glass Maiden fuses elements from a wide variety of genres as a small detective agency finds itself aiding a series of intelligent weapons built into feminine forms fight for their independence against a force that intends to enslave them.

Shu’s a detective, the brooding, enigmatic type with an eye for the ladies. Together with his kid brother Akira, and ‘the girls’ Manami and Ayaka, he runs an investigative agency that takes on odd cases. But when the oddest case of all comes through: a ‘package’ intended for ‘delivery,’ it turns out to be a lot more trouble than expected. Shu’s always considered himself a quick study (he can see through most lies in a second), but when he goes head on with a girl who doesn’t even know who she is, he’ll be seeing through more than he ever imagined seeing through. Unfortunately, there are other people who want Sara back and they know a lot more about who, and what, she actually is than she does! Old fashioned detective work meets the latest in modern weapons technology as sci-fi meets private eye in Glass Maiden!

Maiden Japan will be distributing Glass Maiden in conjunction with home video distributor Section23 Films (Clannad, High School of the Dead, Appleseed,) with the entire series to be released in both English Subtitled DVD and Digital Formats.

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March Story is a new Manga series released in Fall of 2010 by VIZ, which is author Hyung Min Kim’s first piece of work as a Mangaka. Illustrated by the brilliant Kyung Il Yang, who also works on the on going series Defense Devil, his work is very reminiscent of Takeshi Obata’s work, the artist behind Death Note. Rated “M” for Mature, March Story is very dark and not intended for younger readers.

“Things that should not be touched by humans somehow find their way into this world. That’s why you should never, ever touch anything that is foreign.”

In March Story, we are introduced to our titular character, March, a somber yet kind and remorseful young man who hunts demon’s known as “Ill.” As an Ill hunter, also known as a “Ciste Vihad,” March searches for beautiful relics and artifacts in which Ill reside. Ill hide away within these items, awaiting a human to find and touch them. They can then possess the human who found the item through entering their eye, and take control of them [permanently when they take a human life.] Becoming privy to the desires and fears of their host, these demons callous cause harm and destruction for whomever they encounter.

Our main character is someone who actually fell prey to this (a Ciste Vihad as mentioned above), but in a unique twist, learned to control/master the Ill within him, utilizing the abilities gained to destroy said artifacts, and subsequently the Ill inside of them before they can harm humans. He bears the distinct Ill horns all of these demons sport, but wears a hood to conceal this through his travels. When an Ill’s horns become stained with blood, they’ve taken over their host permanently, and it’s too late for March to salvage the soul of the human the Ill compromised.

Chapter 1 opens in 18th century Europe, with March’s arrival to track down an Ill contaminated artifact–albeit too late to save the human who came into contact with it. As indicated by March, the human possessed by the Ill can no longer be recovered after the Ill has taken a life, staining their horns with blood. The center panel on the first page will immediately catch your eye, a scantily clad, blood covered Ill sittings amongst the bodies of those she just murdered. The beautiful item containing the Ill is a crescent moon shaped earring. After dealing with it’s inhabitant, March sets out to track down the other earring before the same thing happens again.
The earring winds up in the hands of a young circus performer, giving us more insight as to how the Ill bond with the humans they come into contact with. Tapping into the girls’ insecurities, the Ill complacently guides the girl into a dangerous situation, that could be fatal, but thanks to March’s intervening along with the girls’ father, our chapter ends on a happy note.

“Once they are touched, there is no turning back. And yet somehow, people cannot resist the temptation of their sweet words.”

Our second chapter begins with March somewhat forced into service by a young woman who makes masks. The young mask maker pleads with March to save her friend from the Ill who has consumed him; This particular Ill whisks anyone in their town not wearing a mask into the air, dancing with them, before dropping them to their death below. I found this story particularly striking in terms of writing quality and illustration. The imagery is particularly haunting, too—the splash introduction page opening with a beautiful young woman falling to her death, her body impaled on the spoke of a roof. And in accordance to the rules, since our Ill has taken a human life, he is beyond saving. In a very touching, yet heart wrenching ending, we see March—who inherited the mask contaminated by the Ill moving on to his next destination.

Chapter 3 begins to round out the deeper elements of the story more nicely, whilst introducing us to a comedic side of this very dark series as well. We meet Rodin, a handsome and clever antique shop owner, and Jayque, a fellow Ciste Vihad who looks like she came straight out of a Miyazaki film with her comedic, exaggerated appearance. This section of the story is a bit different, and we discover something very important about March. It has a light hearted, comedic tone to it exemplified by the ridiculous drawings of the characters it surrounds, while also showing us that not all Ills are malevolent—a select few are more benign in nature. This specific, forgetful-in-nature Ill requests March to help him fulfill a promise.

“Beautifully crafted items give birth to small creatures called Ills. Ills crave everything that belongs to humans. He said he came here to hunt them… and identified himself as a Ciste Vihad—an Ill hunter.”

In Chapter 4, we learn a great deal about March’s origins, in lieu of what we discovered during Chapter 3. This particular section is incredibly dark. We discover how March became a Ciste Vihad, in an extremely cryptic, Elizabeth Báthory styled chapter. We discover what an unchecked Ill is really capable of over a long span of time, the story is deeply gut wrenching and sad, which is all I can really say without spoiling much.

When I started March Story, I honestly didn’t expect much from it. But I was thoroughly impressed by not only the writing, and the quality of the art, but by it’s unique approach to demon’s—a concept pretty overused now in anime and manga in general. You really can’t judge a book, or in this case, a manga by it’s cover, and I would definitely encourage manga fans looking for a refreshing, yet dark experience to pick up March Story. You will not be disappointed. This VIZ Signature volume will not do you wrong.

Developer:

RENT

Last year publisher Koei and developers Omega Force released Fist of the North Star: Ken’s Rage.  The game is a spin-off of the Warriors series based on the manga by the same name. The story of the game happens during a nuclear war where the world is left in violence and despair.  The strong took over and slaughtered the weak for supplies. Humanity never gave up hope and held on to the ideal that someone would come to the rescue in their time of misery. In the middle of that, a hero emerges by the name of Kenshiro.

Kenshiros story:

The successor of Hokuto Shinken and the youngest of the four Hokuto Brothers, Ken wanders the land in search of his love, Yuria, who had been kidnapped by his nemesis, Shin.  After a great battle, Kenshiro defeats Shin, but is unable to find Yuria.  However, with his companions, Rin, Bat and Rei, Kenshiro matures as the heir to Hokuto Sinken.  Together they battle against the other Hokuto Brothers and Nanto Masters.  Ultimately, they triumph over their greatest enemy, Raoh the eldest Hokuto Brother.

The game is a simple “beat them up” game.  The screen has all the information divided into sections.  Your common spirit/spirit reserve, focus, armor, block and life gauge; hyper signature move markers, karma points, boss life gauge (if you are fighting one), mission bonuses, and a mini map to tell you where you are.  This makes it very simple to just start the game and fight. The game feels extremely on rails, you can’t roam freely through the narrow hallways they send you through.  At times this  is extremely frustrating, as you are trying to get from point A to point B, but the game has you going through A.2, A.3, A.4, etc.  You find yourself in an area where pillars start to crumble down and you are trying to get away.  Of course it is not that simple, so they tossed in a mob of bad guys to fight as well.  Kenshiro, with his unnerving rippling muscles and veiny body, cracks his knuckles to get the fight started.  At this point I thought the game would play more like N3.  Leave the brain at the door, gear up, and just watch the combos rack up as you push buttons without rhyme or reason.  I pressed the first button and I was amazed at the fact that I was wrong.  There is no combo to rack up, there is no fluid combat, but instead I was forced to watch Kenshiro punch the air, over and over again, because his punch combo animation was not done.  The enemy standing on the sidelines was perhaps wondering the same thing I was, “When is Kenshiro going to punch him?”  “Hello? Kenshiro we are over here!” I thought to myself, imagining what the enemy would say if they could talk.

Speaking of the enemy, apparently in Fist of the North Star, after a nuclear war, inbreeding and/or mutation happens rapidly where every enemy looked exactly the same.  Some would have a helmet or a Mohawk, some didn’t, but I am 99.9% sure they were all related.  Sadly this highlights the lack of creativity when it came to character design for the guys you are going to see more often.  The bosses were one thing, but the mob of enemies you have to fight over and over again got extremely repetitive and weary to the eye.  I wish I could say that this only plagued the character design, but it did not.  The levels also suffered from the same amount of repetitiveness.  So much so, that on one wall made out of 8 panels, it only had 2 textures: almost broken and broken wall.  This made navigating the map even more difficult, since everything looked the same, no matter what turn you took.  At one point I clicked the mini map off by accident and I was so lost, that it felt I was just walking in circles.  When I found how to activate the mini map again [by pressing the select button], I confirmed my initial thought… I was running in circles.  You would think that a game that is heavily on rails would make it nearly impossible to get lost, but somehow Fist of the North Star manages to do both very well.

The music of the game was repetitive, annoying and felt out of character.  It was some sort of heavy rock that only had, perhaps, 5 notes total in a loop.  I went through the menu and disabled the music right away.  It was in here where I found one good thing about the game:  I am a fan of Asian games based on manga and anime that allows you to use the original soundtrack and voice track.  Most games are able to get the original actors of the anime to do the voice for the game.  For example, I could not stand the Naruto fighting games because, “You better believe it!” was going to cause me to turn green and go “HULK SMASH” against my Gamecube.  So when Naruto adventure games came out and you could switch to the original voice track, my Xbox sighed in relief and the Gamecube came out of its hiding place.   Fist of the North Star was about to suffer the same fate and I could see my 360 shake in fear.  With the original voice track, the repetitive taunting, was not annoying.  It also made Kenshiro more manly and less boy like, which was unsettling since he is such a big dude.  “Hulk Smash” disaster was happily adverted.

The game also suffered from really slow loading times between the chapters: once the game was loaded, no other section lagged or needed to load; so that was a benefit, but one that only matters if you are a complete explorer of a zone.  I did not try to install the game to my hard drive to see if the speed would improve, since I did not have a measure of how long it was taking the game to load from the disk.  All other games I played that night, loaded without a problem, this particular one had a major delay.  Objects in the game could be destroyed, but only a few.  This was also irritating since there were tons of burned out cars that if allowed to punch them, they would give you karma points.  Some items in the world could be punched and they would reveal +life, + spirit, + health items or Karma points.  So what is the point to load up your maps with items that can’t be destroyed?  I wish I had an answer for that one, besides that they possibly did it because it looked cooler or the area was less bare.

I did find something amusing about this game.  Kenshiro, at the end of a boss fight, would enter into a sequence of punches and animation, heavily on a button combination from your part. It was entertaining to watch.  Very much a la Goku from Dragon Ball Z, they were elaborate but ultimately satisfying.  Kenshiro’s move, “Hokuto Fist of Penitence”, is guaranteed to make you laugh, depending on where it lands on a boss.  Not all bosses are the same size, but they did not adjust for this, so some landed on their heads, some on their chest and some on their stomach.

Fist of the North Star allows you, once you have played enough chapters, to play as any other characters. The more you play the story, the more of them you’ll open.  Different styles of fighting and powers to try and finish the same section you had already cover with Kenshiro.  The game allows you to change your gore settings, and in my opinions it needs it cranked up to 11, ala MadWorld style.

This game felt flat on is back.  It comes from a very rich world fill with manga and from a story that is actually fun and entertaining, yet the game only brings back key moments.  So if you are a fan of the manga/anime, you might like playing this game to relive those moments, but only if you are a diehard fan of the series.  Otherwise, rent it for the achievements points.  You can get a good portion in a short period of time.

Seen as an embarrassment by some, there is an influence to clean up anime. Its place in Japanese media, can cause cultural misunderstandings when anime is often seen as sexually promiscuous and degrading towards women. What they really want to get rid of are the ones that sexualize underage young girls.

Criticism has come about now due to the vagueness of how the bill was written. An over broad description of what is taboo could mean that anime in general could have to become more censored.

Ishihara and the new law are feared to be a ticket to anime’s demise. Like video games in the USA which are trashed by people who never play them, it would seem that stereotypes against anime exist inside and outside Japan. Some people believe that anime is just cartoon porn. In reality anime covers just about every age group and type of interest.

Anime that contains sexual content is usually called hentai. Lately more sex has been used to dress up thinner story lines to get it to sell. Because sexual content has been crossing the line between mainstream anime and hentai, it has drawn the attention of politicians like Ishihara. As boundaries continue to be pushed and sexual subject matter increases, there is certain to be a battle between both sides on the issue.

February is the month of love, and what better way to celebrate than with two shojo manga debuts on the VIZ Manga App for the iPad: fantasy fairytale Merupuri, and supernatural adventure Natsume’s Book of Friends!

In Merupuri, by Matsuri Hino (creator of Vampire Knight), an occurence of fairytale proportions threatens good girl Airi’s dreams of a cozy home and a loving husband!

In Natsume’s Book of Friends (on the YALSA Great Graphic Novels for Teens booklist!), Takashi has learned to hide his gift of sight from other people… But when he moves back to the small town his grandmother grew up in, he discovers that he’s inherited more than just the Sight from the mysterious Reiko – a book of power containing the names of spirits & demons, many of who now want to reclaim their names… by force if necessary!

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The Bunraku “Nihonjin No Wasuremono” or the “Forgotten Japanese Spirit” is a fine natural Yamahai Junmai Saké. It feels as though a precious genie is in the bottle that I don’t want to let out.

More than just being about getting drunk, the making of rice wine is still an almost sacred, and revered process. It involves the purest of cool water as it comes from the mountains. This one was made in the Saitama Prefecture. It is a Yamahai, which means that the brewer uses native yeasts, those just floating in the air of the brewery. It is a very tricky process which not many modern brewers use any more.

There are various “paths” or “ways” in Japan for mastering a discipline. Such as the tea ceremony, Ikebana flower arrangement, traditional archery, or working with incense. Shudo or the “Way of Sake” appeared at the end of the Ashikaga Shogunate around the fourteenth century.

Sake can be works of art. The Way of Sake has a special path each month, said to purify the soul. It is an elegant way that the flowers and the seasons are incorporated in a ritual – like fashion. Even the cups and the method of pouring has significance, and the beauty of such gestures is said to enhance the experience, elevating it from merely intoxicating to enchantment.

Shudo for February is called the “month of reviving plants,” in the lunar calendar. In February in the old Japanese calendar, ume sake is made with Japanese apricot blossoms which were in bloom at that time. According to the Japanese traditional calendar, February 4th is the first day of spring.

In the manga xxxHolic they celebrated by drinking sake and floating chrysanthemum petals, on September the ninth. That sake is for wishing for longevity and exorcism. The delicate fragrance infuses the sake’ with chrysanthemum flowers.

The mystical confluence between people and bacteria is brought to life in the anime called Moyasimon: Tales of Agriculture. Where the “Forgotten Japanese Spirit” is the Saccharomyces cerevisiae, an air borne bacteria which creates alcohol out of sugars.

Tadayasu is a gifted boy who has a type of clairvoyance that allows him to see the little micro organisms. He goes to the university with his good friend Kei Yūki whose family runs a sake brewery. There he is able to witness the magical process of dancing bacteria that everyone else would need a microscope to see.