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Summer Wars
Anime DVD Review by Brian Cirulnick
 I have seen the future and it is Summer Wars. A powerful, mind-blowing film, this film is both a richly detailed, touching story full of enjoyment and also a stern warning; that we depend too much on the interlinked technologies that we have developed. As Facebook brings us all together, it only takes one mistake to rip it all apart and send the world into chaos.
Kenji is a math genius, but your typical loser. He has a dull job doing maintenance for OZ, an online world that is a sort of combination Nintendo Online, Facebook and Second Life, and it would make them all envious. Everything is tied into it. Read More...
Black Butler
Anime Review by Brian Cirulnick
 No, we're not talking about Benson from Soap (who wound up getting his own series as a spinoff). Taking place in Victorian England, Ciel Phantomhive is a twelve-year-old orphan who now rules one of the most powerful houses in the country. But Bruce Wayne he is not.
Although it sounds like the set up for this kid to become a British Batman, (his parents were brutally murdered in front of him, and Ciel himself was abducted and tortured) he was instead allowed to make a contract with the devil and sold his soul for a chance at vengeance. Read More...
Chrome Shelled Regios
Anime DVD Review by Brian Cirulnick
 Well, you know, I really gotta hand it to them. They tried. And they did something I thought couldn't be done. They managed to combine every trope in anime and it becomes, not a genre-busting moment as it was in the outrageously brilliant 'Project A-ko', but almost a death-scream for anime itself.
Taking place in a presumably post apocalyptic world, domed, mobile cities travel around the planet, trying to avoid huge nests of bugs the size school-busses. We've all seen this before, if you've ever seen Blue Seed or Nausicca, and the mobile cities remind us plenty of Howl's Moving Castle. Read More...
Sekirei
Anime DVD Review by Brian Cirulnick
 Looking at the character design emblazoned on the DVD itself, I immediately guessed (judging from her tremendous and impossible chest proportions), that this TV series would be about one thing and one thing only: fan service. And right I was; as she managed to get herself naked, or nearly so, about a dozen times in the first episode alone! Oh sure, there's a story here, but it's a prop on which to hang the fanservice.
The plot is after all, about girls that fight. And when they fight, clothing gets ripped. Sound familiar? It's been an on-going theme in anime for about the last decade. Let's dig a little deeper and find out if there's anything here new to add to this particular trope. Read More...
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FemiSapien Humanoid Robot Personally, I'm waiting for one that looks like Chii from Chobits. But until then, there's Femisapien, the latest in the Wowwee line of humanoid robots. Sophisticated and independent, her advanced design and AI allow her to move in distinctly fluid ways. She is intelligent and interactive, speaks her own form of Femmish and responds to user gestures, touch, and sounds with her own. FemiSapien is a real 21st century robot; entertaining, dynamic, and classy. But can she cook? And just wait until her AI discovers shopping!
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Arisa
Manga Review
by Linda Yau
 Growing up, and going to school are normal things, bullying and ostracized are really not what anyone would want happened, though it happens. An undisclosed number of children commit suicide in Japan, due to the factor of unable to cope with bullying at school. Japan is well known for being a cohesive group, and has the issue of not being individual enough. How then should a society or family/friends cope with the shortcomings of a group mentality then?
Read More...
.hack // Alcor
Manga Review
by Linda Yau
 ".hack" is already a successful series that has influence in many anime relevant industries. So when the main story is over, there are spin offs, and other stories that utilizes the World as the setting, and fleshes out what a story already established. So for readers to pick up this book, there are two type of readers, one, a reader already familiar with this world, two a regular video gamer, three a person who wants to read of a familiar teen age story line. Read More...
HaruHana
Manga Review
by Linda Yau
 One of the many things that are plentiful in Tokyo, Japan is the amount of themed cafes. There are the maid cafes, butler cafes, neko cafes, or even specific themed cafes. Many of them provide age appropriate entertainment, and services. For a specified cash amount, customers are allowed to request the café to provide them with a service. Read More...
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