"Jama wa Sasenai" - Slayers Next Ending Theme

 The ending theme of Slayers Next, "Jama wa Sasenai" by Okui Masami is a classic to me. I've heard it so many times, it's one of those songs I can play again and again in my head. The singer, Okui Masami, is a fairly prolific anime theme song singer, as she's done several for Slayers along with Hayashibara Megumi (sometimes together), and is also well known for the Utena opening. But looking at this song, we have another upbeat song, which is typical of Slayers.

"Jama wa Sasenai" has a pop rock sound, and Okui's voice is very good. I really like how she sounds, so much that I have a couple of her CDs. The background features the main characters, still images sliding across the screen. Nothing really special about it, but it's a good backdrop. Overall, this is up there as one of my favourite anime ending themes.

Here's the ending sequence. Sorry about the intro to the video, as this was the best quality video I could find.

Let me know what you think of this song!

"Give a Reason" - Slayers Next Music

 The opening theme of Slayers Next is a song I have heard hundreds of times, and it never gets old. "Give a Reason" is sung by the voice of Lina Inverse, Hayashibara Megumi (I use Japanese order for names on this blog). She's probably my favourite voice actress, so you can probably guess how much I like this song. It's one of my favourites of hers, actually. The entire Slayers series of TV series, movies, and OAV series is full of great music by her.

This song has a very upbeat pop sound that gives you a lot of energy. It really sets the tone for Slayers Next. This is arguably my favourite Slayers TV opening. The animation is very characteristic of Slayers and features all the main characters, antagonists, and Xellos, whatever he is. Great opening for a fun show! Watch it below:

What do you think of this opening? Let me know in the comments!

Slayers Next Episode 8: An Unexpected Turn!

 I have probably seen Slayers Next three times. The first time was when I was a member of an anime club in the 1990s, then when I had the series on VHS. Yes, VHS. And now this is my third time. It's been a long time, so a lot of it is a very fuzzy memory. But I do remember this episode somewhat. There are some spoilers in this review!

We start off with our group (plus Xellos) arriving in Seyruun to look for the Claire Bible. However, they discover that Amelia's father, Prince Philionel has died. Amelia's Uncle Christopher and Alfred are there to deal with the aftermath. So now we have the premise set up. It's a mystery. And this is probably one of the most serious episodes of Slayers I have ever seen. Who did it? Why? And who is this mysterious character that looks like he's dressed like Batman? Seriously, the colours are the same as Batman!

As we go along, we find out what happened to Phil and discover that there is a new enemy. But who is this enemy? All we know is that he's a monster. This episode shows Amelia's strong bond with Phil, Lina's impatience, Gourry's usual obliviousness, and Zelgadis' annoyance. There isn't much to say about most of the main characters other than Amelia. And Xellos is off doing whatever. Funny episode? Somewhat. Not laugh out loud funny, but there are humourous moments. But where this episode shines is how it sets up a new story arc, which may be a rather serious set of episodes. I'm looking forward to seeing what happens next, even though I have seen this entire series before. Again, it's been about 25 years since I watched it.

The nostalgia factor here is fairly high, and I am enjoying. What did you think of this episode?

The Music of Rurouni Kenshin: Opening and Ending #1

 One of the biggest hooks for me in anime is the opening theme. I find that sets the tone, and gets me hyped up for the show. Sometimes, you have a great opening and a terrible show, or an incredibly dull opening and an incredible show. It doesn't define it, but I find that it does contribute to my enjoyment. I will be looking at the theme songs for each series I'm reviewing as I watch the episodes, and will include the first opening in full reviews.

This time, I'm looking at Rurouni Kenshin's first opening and ending. Keep in mind that this is for the 1996 TV series.

First up is the opening, "Sobakasu (Freckles)" by Judy & Mary. This is a very upbeat song that almost seems out of place with the theme of the show. But somehow it works with the tone of the show, which is often lighthearted. However, I'm not a huge fan of this style of music. It almost feels too childish, if you know what I mean. The animation shows the main characters effectively, and is fairly high quality, especially for 1996. Watch the opening below.

And now for the ending theme, "Tactics" by The Yellow Monkey. This is an upbeat rock song that feels more in line with the kind of show this is. I would definitely say that this works better than the opening, and I enjoy it quite a lot more. The imagery of the ending credits is a bit darker than the show is, but fits the song well. Below, you can watch the ending.

While the first theme songs are decent, the ending is the best so far. As I go through the series and others, I will be including any new openings and endings with the episode review. What do you think of these theme songs?

Rurouni Kenshin (1996) Episode 8 Impressions

 At the beginning of this episode, it was pretty lighthearted, and gave me a smile. But seeing as this was Rurouni Kenshin, things would get more heated. Of course, we are introduced to Takana Megumi (Doi Mika), a mysterious woman who doesn't give away her motives. Enter Takeda Kanryu (Tobita Nobuo) and the Oniwabanshu, headed by Shinomori Aoshi (Yasuhara Yoshito). The former is a criminal businessman, while the latter is head of a ninja group. And this sets up the battle in this episode. I won't go into details, but I will mention that this is a strong episode that created a lot of tension in more than one way, and I was thoroughly invested in the story and action.

The core characters continue to grow closer together, and it's nice to see Sano's loyalty to Kenshin grow. Kaoru's trust in Kenshin appears to grow in this episode, as well. And then there's Yahiko, who is his usual self, though always positive. Megumi is very questionable, though we are definitely going to be seeing more of her, as we are entering a new fight with a new enemy. This episode also introduces the characters Beshimi (Matsuno Taiki), Hyottoko (Iizuka Shozo), and Hannya (Nojima Akio). I'm looking forward to seeing how they all play into the coming episodes.

Episode Reviews?

 As I watch anime titles, I thought I would do something to make it a bit more interesting. After every episode I watch, I will write a very brief post about the episode. I don't want to give away any spoilers, but I want to talk about my thoughts and feelings about the episode. I think that will allow me to post more content on the blog while I write the full reviews.

Some of the series I am most of the way through or at least part of the way through. I will be starting with the episode I'm currently on. So, expect to see a post on Rurouni Kenshin (the original series) episode 8 very soon.

I am also going to be finishing three series very soon, including Planetes, Ah! My Goddess, and Tenchi Muyo Ryo-ohki series 1. I'm going to include the special episode 7 in this review, as it is related.

Upcoming full reviews are for Macross Plus, Dirty Pair Flash I, Slayers, and Shamanic Princess, all of which I had watched long ago, back in the 1990s. The only series I am currently watching that I had never seen any of before are Planetes and Sousou no Frieren. I had seen a little of Rurouni Kenshin and Stellvia, but I'm already beyond the episodes I'd seen before. I had also seen around 40 episodes of Ranma 1/2 and about 8 of Maison Ikkoku, so I'll be watching "new" episodes of the former very soon.

I would like to get into watching recent or current series, as well. I do plan on starting the new Ranma 1/2 series when it starts on Netflix in October. But I would like to figure out some others I may start. I don't want to increase the number of series I watch at once, though. Ten is enough! Let me know if you have any recommendations for new series.

A Focus on Voice Actors

 Way back when I was watching anime regularly, I developed a liking for various voice actors (seiyuu). I enjoyed a lot of shows starring Megumi Hayashibara, Aya Hisakawa, Kikuko Inoue, Hikaru Midorikawa, Kappei Yamaguchi, and more. There are so many I've forgotten, too. And now, I have an interest in Sumire Uesaka, though I have never watched anything she's been in. Why then? I knew her. When I lived in Japan, I was her English teacher. And no, I don't have any interesting stories about her. She was fairly quiet and polite.

Enough of my personal stories with voice actors. What am I going to do about them here? For each anime I review, I will be listing the voice actors at the end of the review, and will have another page that lists voice actors by name, and links to their own pages. The pages will have links to the reviews I have done with them being actors. I will likely miss some, as there are some very minor roles that voice actors take, but I will get as many as I can.

When will I start posting the reviews? Now that I know exactly what I want to do for the reviews, they will be coming very shortly. I am also updating the Upcoming page as I finish each episode I'm watching. I'm nearly finished several series now, and will be starting new ones soon. Most of what I've been watching is me reminiscing about old series I watched, but I do have one new series going (Sousou no Frieren).

I do have a question for you, though. Which newer series do you think I should watch? Let me know below.