The Second Barrage is not so much a sequel, as a second season. The episodes are numbered from thirteen, implying a direct continuation from the original. But is it as good as the first series? Has the energy been kept? Has it grown a brain? Read on.
Typically, the third series slot at the club is reserved for comedies, or animes that balance out the extremes of the first two slots. Black Lagoon, as a largely action driven series was a controversial choice. Here’s what I thought of it.
Whilst on its maiden training flight, the small planetary nation of Kibi’s new technologically advanced warship, the Amaterasu, receives word that the much larger planetary alliance, referred to as “The Kingdom”, has invaded their space. Kibi’s government surrenders immediately, and all the senior officers aboard the Amaterasu are ordered off ship, leaving the crew of trainee cadets in charge of the ship...
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to be a god? This is the dilemma faced by average junior high school student Yurie Hitotsubashi, who wakes up one morning to the realisation that she is a god (Kami). No explanation is given for this miraculous event, but when she shyly tells her close friend Mitsue over school dinner in the opening scenes of the anime, her friends reaction is to calmly give her an offering of a sprig of parsley as a joke....
Now, there can't be many anime fans who haven't at least HEARD the name Full Metal Alchemist. Backed by a ruthless advertising campaign, there are very few who aren't aware of Ed and Al's plight to find the philosophers stone....
Some people just can't catch a break. Take Gene, the plucky protagonist of this game. Beaten up in a fight, the thugs involved decide to slice off his arm. Left for dead and relatively 'armless, you'd think that was it for our hero. But you'd be wrong! ...
I have to state my bias upfront about this one. I first saw this when I was in the target audience, aged six, and I consider it most directly responsible for my status as a mecha fanboy. Writing a review of this has been a battle of wills between my inner child and my inner cynic. While its animated by Toei, its not technically anime, so I was in two minds about posting this to the club website. Still, I know the club consists almost entirely of 80’s kids, so perhaps you’ll appreciate this.