More from Commarine:
Black Lagoon
Premise: My name is Rokuro Okajima. The majority of my school life consisted of me busting my ass to get a good recommendation for my resume. At work, I did long hours, menial jobs, and was constantly harassed by my prick of a boss with the only thing to look forward to was to be promoted to the same prick boss status. I always thought this was going to be my life, that is until I took a business trip . See, I was supposed to deliver a data disc to some of my company's patrons in the South China Sea. It seemed like an easy enough job until a mercenary group known as the Black Lagoon raided the ship I was on, stole the data disc and kidnapped me to get a ransom from my company. Unfortunately, the disc contained stolen nuclear information that my company was going to sell to a terrorist nation. Now that it was stolen, they figured to cut their losses, proclaim that I died and attempted to destroy the disc and me along with it. A fire fight and a near death experience later, I had no life to go back to in Japan. So now I am a member the same mercenary group the kidnapped me and take dirty work in the South China Sea. Funny what could happen in just a few days.
Main Characters
Rock: Rokuro, former business peon, now hapless mercenary.
Dutch: The boss and leader of Black Lagoon.
Ben: Mechanic and all around tech head
Revy 'Two Hands': One tough bitch and accomplished life repossession specialist.
Black Lagoon: The boat; armored and packing serious heat.
Why I like it: It's the extreme fish out of water story. A man destined to live his life in a cubicle, is thrown into the ultimate no rules life of mercenary work. It's a strange combination of Apocalypse Now and a popular CIA spook graphic novel series by Vertigo known as The Losers. Though Rock chose to accept his new life, he is hard pressed to leave his corporate sensibilities behind (he still wears a suit and tie). This leads to some very hard learned and entertaining lessons. What I most like about this story is its focus on what I try to make aware to American people: the world is not like the insulated environment that is the United States . Before his trip to the South China Sea, Rock lived an isolated life in Japan. He never really felt the harshness of life and as such became soft and subservient without provocation. As a mercenary he sees the real world outside his former bubble and it is hard. It takes a harder, tougher person than the soft one he was conditioned to be in his former life to survive in the real world. One of the reasons I joined the Marines was that my somewhat privileged life as an honor student and an American has made me soft and with little to no self esteem. My trial by fire in the Marines has made me more confident in myself and has hardened me to be able to withstand the harshness that life sometimes throws at me. Rock's story parallels this trail by showing how he evolves and becomes harder as he progresses through the missions of Black Lagoon. I also like the supporting characters because their colorful personalities give me a sense of nostalgia of the many Marines I met in my tours of duty.
My verdict: Cool story, great (and familiar) characters, and a great portrayal of the mercenary life outside our borders. If you're into stories about the escape from mediocrity or you're into a little bit of the old ultraviolence, this anime is your round in the chamber.
Solty Rei
The world is encased in an electromagnetic field known as the Aurora Shell. Ten years ago, the shell touched a building creating a large bolt of lighting that destroyed the building and the destroyed many lives within. This tragedy was known as the Blast Fall. Roy Revant a former cop, who lost his wife to cancer, devastatingly lost his daughter Rita to the Blast Fall. He now searches for her as a hunter in the company run by Miranda Maverick, a former friend of Roy's wife. On a fugitive hunting mission, Roy encounters a strange greened haired girl with amnesia and immense power. Though Roy attempts to distance himself from her, the girl's strange attachment to Roy forces him to adopt her and give her the name Solty. Roy reluctantly does missions with the always optimistic Solty and on the side, searches for his long lost daughter.
Main Characters
Solty Revant: Superhuman girl of unknown origin.
Roy Revant: Stoic hunter in search of his daughter.
Miranda Maverick: Roy's boss and a friend of Roy's wife.
Kasha Maverick: Miranda's daughter and a friend to Solty.
Rose Anderson: Thief with a mysterious past who shacks up with Solty and Roy in attempt to convince Solty to become a thief like her.
Why I like it: This anime does something I rarely see in these types of stories: It shows tragedy. Though most animes like this has a tragedy in the beginning of the series, the subsequent story gives the characters a better life with a happy ending. This story has no such pretension. Solty Rei reminds me greatly of a Greek tragedy. A flawed hero who attempts to do everything right but fails through circumstances outside his control. Though this sounds depressing, think of the many great animes the grew to legend because it broke out from the common story lines. Dark stories like Evangalion and Cowboy Bebop show that if done right, a story like this can surpass good and become amazing. Though I have seen only the first three DVD volumes of this anime, I have already witnessed a scene that can rival the death of Nicholas B. Wolfwood (from Trigun) in its impact on the story and personalities of the main characters. When I first watched the anime, I believed it wass going to be another run of the mill sci-fi action series that wasn't worth finishing, but as the episodes progressed I grew to like the characters and really became invested in their futures. The investment really hit home later in the series as I felt their anguish when events in their lives turn tragic.
My verdict: Plenty of twist, and great characters who are worth being invested in their lives. It may not become a milestone anime, but it's definitely worth watching.
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Fate Stay Night
Once every generation, the Holy Grail arises to grant a wish to a magi and his or her legendary hero. Now in Fuyuki City, seven magi and their legendary heroes must fight to the death in an attempt to win the Grail and have their wishes come true.
Main characters
Magi: Mortals with magical power who are chosen to compete for the Grail. If they win they get one wish with no restrictions.
The Legendary Heroes: When the contest begins, a hero from the past is reincarnated in the form of a specified fighting class (ei, saber, lancer, assassin, rider, bezerker, etc.). They attach themselves to a magi to create a team to quest for the Grail. If they win the heroes also get a wish aside from the magi. Though people can tell what class of fighter they are, their true identity is usually kept secret to prevent opponents from knowing who they are and their inherent weaknesses.
Shiro Emiya: A normal high school boy with no knowledge of coming from a family of magi until his legendary hero appeared to him before the tournament. With little knowledge of magic, he and his legendary hero must create a duo effective enough to be able to win the Grail or a least survive.
Saber: Shiro's legendary hero. A blonde-haired, blue-eyed girl, she is a true threat due to being the most powerful class of fighter: a saber.
Rin: Schoolmate to Shiro, she is also a powerful magi who inherits Archer as her legendary hero. Though at first enemy to Shiro, they decide to team up to be able to confront their opponents with a better advantage.
Sukura: Another classmate of Shiro. After Shiro's dad died, Sukura has gone to Shiro's house to help with the chores. She seems to have a crush on Shiro and it becomes apparent when she finds out Saber is living with him and later when Rin moves in with Shiro.
Taiga: Shiro's English teacher and supervisor of the archery club, she became Shiro's unofficial guardian. She is mainly the comic relief of the story due to her rowdiness and lack of discipline that is usually expected for teacher. She begins to berate Shiro when she finds out he has two girls in his house which lead to funny arguments with them and Shiro.
Why I like it: I love fighting stories, from American movies like Bloodsport and Highlander to video games like Steetfighter and King of Fighters, I always loved stories about people from all over the world with different styles of fighting coming together in one place to slug it out in order win the ultimate prize or just to see who is top dog. Fate Stay Night does add a twist to the fighting story I have not seen before, the introduction of fighter classes more common to fantasy RPGs. At first, I thought this was a weird add-on that has a good chance of becoming too 'Ren Fair' for my tastes. But it quickly assuaged my apprehensions when I noticed the the story focused more on fighting strategy and the will of the human spirit. It also keeps me interested by keeping the identities of the legendary heroes secret. I am thoroughly enjoying trying to figure who are the reincarnated heroes and why they fell into their specific class. Saber for instance has yet to reveal her identity, so trying to figure out which famous historical female warrior she is has been very interesting. The other magi are also very interesting. Most enemies in fighting stories just show the opponent , give a short history and make them disappear as fast as they appeared. Fate Stay Night delves into the histories of the other magi and actually show a human side. There where times in the anime where the opposing magi actually encounter Shiro and have a conversation that show their human side. This in uncommon in fighting stories who opt to have the opponents act cold, hard, and/or sadistic to emphasize the difficulty of the incoming conflict the hero will have to endure. It's refreshing to show that not all opponents that the hero comes across are not simply monsters to overcome, but real people with their own problems and flaws. To me, this is more realistic.
My verdict: Great story, awesome characters, and good fight scenes. If you're into the tournament style fighting anime, this is the benchmark.
