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Persona 3 the Movie #4: Winter of Rebirth.

Fantastic, and probably my favourite of the 4, though I'd need to marathon all of them to be absolutely sure. The ending didn't hit me emotionally quite as hard as it did in the original game, but is still a stellar adaptation. Really pretty as well, the colour palettes and lighting make for some really amazing looking shots.
 
Persona 3 the Movie #4: Winter of Rebirth.

Fantastic, and probably my favourite of the 4, though I'd need to marathon all of them to be absolutely sure. The ending didn't hit me emotionally quite as hard as it did in the original game, but is still a stellar adaptation. Really pretty as well, the colour palettes and lighting make for some really amazing looking shots.

I've only seen the first movie, but I've beaten the game, and I'm wondering if they still use Memories of You as the credits song? Would be a crying shame if they didn't, it's probably the best song in the game.
 
Hidamari Sketch Hoshimittsu-Episode 12 (Complete)

Another wonderful addition into the Hidamari Sketch franchise. Given I only have 4 episodes left of HS before I run out, Sentai really need to hurry up and release Season 4 on Blu Ray!
 
Devilman: Demon Bird Sirène (1990)

Not as memorably weird, nor quite as lovingly animated as the first instalment, but still a worthy continuation of the gory horror saga. It feels like a lot has been missed out from the manga that might give the story more context (it's nearly all action and not much else), but the film just about gets away with it - given the surreal imagery on show, its broken narrative logic makes it feel even more dreamlike.
 
Gunbuster-Episodes 1-3

Episode 1: Really quite enjoyed this first episode. The robot training school was kind of a fun concept that I don't think I've seen before, and I'd have liked it if the show spent more time here, which I assume they're not considering how the episode ends. However, I understand they only have 6 episodes, so maybe it's for the best. Noriko seems like a very likable main character, and it's hard not to get a little bit of a Shinji vibe from her in one or two scenes, although weather they'll go as far as Evangelion did with him here is another matter. I like the art and animation a surprisingly amount considering I'm not too fussed on the look of shows before the late 90's. The music also stands out as being really quite good.

The only thing I will say, which has nothing to do with the show itself, is that the UK DVD release is pretty poor. It looks like it's been ripped straight off a VHS tape, hardcoded subtitles and all, and the subs themselves are slightly mistimed. Granted, the DVD is old as hell, but still. Weirdly enough though, I can't help but feel it kind of adds to the whole retro vibe the series has. Like, this is as close as I'll ever get to experiencing the VHS era of anime, so it's a little interesting to see how anime was back then. I'll likely buy the US set, which, according to Amazon, is remastered. That's assuming I enjoy the rest of the series, although I'm sure I will.

Episode 2: Not a whole lot really happening in this one. I do wonder how much Noriko's dad will play in the forthcoming events. There seems to be a pretty big focus on him, and this episode in particular highlighted this with her reaction to seeing the remains of his ship. Obviously this is good character development in general, so it's fine even if it doesn't have some part in the story, but it would be nice to have some pay off.

Episode 3: One part I loved about this episode was the sortie. The direction and editing were superb, with the bright red lighting of the mech, the fast editing rhythm, the clostphophic closeups and the almost John Carpenter-esque music, the scene created an excellent sense of panic and tension that put the audience right in Noriko's shoes.
 
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Episode 2: Not a whole lot really happening in this one. I do wonder how much Noriko's dad will play in the forthcoming events. There seems to be a pretty big focus on him, and this episode in particular highlighted this with her reaction to seeing the remains of his ship. Obviously this is good character development in general, so it's fine even if it doesn't have some part in the story, but it would be nice to have some pay off.
I have a question about this episode, did any of it get cut by the BBFC? Specifically the nudity in the bathing scene? I'm kinda curious if that made it through or not tbh. Not that I expect Lemon would be able to answer having nothing to compare it with and all.

But glad you're enjoying it, it's really a favourite of mine.
 
I have a question about this episode, did any of it get cut by the BBFC? Specifically the nudity in the bathing scene? I'm kinda curious if that made it through or not tbh. Not that I expect Lemon would be able to answer having nothing to compare it with and all.

But glad you're enjoying it, it's really a favourite of mine.

Yes, they did censor it. At least, I assume they did. They kept cutting to this pan up of a space station or something in the bath scene. It was incredibly jarring, so assume it wasn't like that originally. However, a breif flash of Jung nipple did sneak by.
 
Yes, they did censor it. At least, I assume they did. They kept cutting to this pan up of a space station or something in the bath scene. It was incredibly jarring, so assume it wasn't like that originally. However, a breif flash of Jung nipple did sneak by.
Huh, that's a bit crap.... Wonder if that US set has everything intact (not that I'm some kinda perv or something....)

I just looked it up and apparently 36 seconds were cut (are cut and censored the same thing?) so now I wanna see the UK release version to compare.....for science of course.
 
Huh, that's a bit crap.... Wonder if that US set has everything intact (not that I'm some kinda perv or something....)

I just looked it up and apparently 36 seconds were cut (are cut and censored the same thing?) so now I wanna see the UK release version to compare.....for science of course.

Well, if you ever need someone with a UK copy to compare with, give me a shout! :p
 
Gunbuster is the best. Get the tissues ready :)
Truer words were never spoken!

I have a question about this episode, did any of it get cut by the BBFC? Specifically the nudity in the bathing scene? I'm kinda curious if that made it through or not tbh. Not that I expect Lemon would be able to answer having nothing to compare it with and all.

But glad you're enjoying it, it's really a favourite of mine.

Yeah the UK DVD has a couple of cuts that are done kinda weirdly, screen just goes black or rapid panning or something. The US Bandai set keeps everything (bar some of the music?) in as far as I'm aware, Jung springs more full frontals than Gundam Unicorn.

Pleased to see everyone enjoying it though, it's my favorite series for good reason.
 
Yeah the UK DVD has a couple of cuts that are done kinda weirdly, screen just goes black or rapid panning or something. The US Bandai set keeps everything (bar some of the music?) in as far as I'm aware, Jung springs more full frontals than Gundam Unicorn.

Pleased to see everyone enjoying it though, it's my favorite series for good reason.
How annoying. The whole reason I actually asked was because I noticed it was a PG in the UK which I kinda though was a bit odd, although I'm not really sure how much nudity that's not really sexual impacts such things anyway.
 
How annoying. The whole reason I actually asked was because I noticed it was a PG in the UK which I kinda though was a bit odd, although I'm not really sure how much nudity that's not really sexual impacts such things anyway.
I feel like it goes towards characterizing Jung as being totally brash/confident in those scenes, whereas Noriko tends to shrink away in the same scene. So it's a shame it did get cut, and while it's not a massive loss, little traits like those stack up to build a believable character.

But I'm possibly overthinking it, and the people making it just wanted to draw boobs.

Knowing Gainax, it's probably the latter and the BBFC probably thought that too.
 
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