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PapaKiki!
Anime Review by Karen Gellender
 Somehow when we weren't paying attention, the theme of sudden-onset parenting became an anime fad. While a lot of trends quickly become tiresome, if future shows in the "Guess what dude, you're a parent now!" subgenre are as good as 2011's Bunny Drop and now 2012's Listen to Me Girls, I am Your Father (otherwise known as PapKiki!), we're certainly not complaining.
Nineteen-year-old Yuuta Segawa is minding his own business when his married sister, the vivacious Yuri, asks him to babysit her three daughters while she and her husband Shingo are on vacation. Two of the daughters, fourteen-year-old Sora and ten-year-old Miu, are from Shingo's two previous marriages, but the adorable three-year-old Hina is Yuuta's blood-related niece. Read More...
Hanamaru Kindergarten
Anime Review by Karen Gellender
 Cute is its own justification. Just looking at the promo art for Gainax's Hanamaru Kindergarten is enough to make most anime fans go "awwww!" and judged simply on its ability to be adorable, this twelve-episode series does not disappoint. In terms of plot, there's still something to be desired, but will that matter when you're re-watching Anzu and friends do the "Panda Cat" dance for the eighty-fifth time because it's the cutest thing you've ever seen? Probably not.
What's unique about Hanamaru Kindergarten is that it's something of a bait-and-switch. The first episode hints at some massive taboo-breaking that never really happens. Anzu, a precocious five-year-old, develops a crush on her rookie teacher, Naozumi Tsuchida, on the first day of kindergarten. Read More...
Kill Me Baby
Anime Review by Linda Yau
 Socialization with people is vital for enriching a person's daily routine. What happens though if your best friend is high trained assassin, and your classmate is a skilled ninja? These are people that Yasuna interact with on a daily basic. She is a dim-witted yet lively girl who wants to have fun. She often tries to get Sonya the assassin involved with what she's doing. Though her actions backfire on her, and end up causing Yasuna to look like the classic buffoon.
As an assassin, Sonya is a dangerous individual, who doesn't react well to sudden taps on the back or anything she perceives as dangerous to her health. These negative responses often injure Yasuna, who wants to learn how to protect herself and counter the next time Sonya makes a move. Following the advice of Agiri, the ninja does not work at all.
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Battle Royale
Japanese Cinema Review by Brian Cirulnick
 Have you seen "The Hunger Games" yet? Or read the book? Now you should see the film that may be its inspiration, or at the very least, what may be considered it's cultural predecessor.
"Battle Royale" is a Japanese film from 2000 based on a novel by the same name by author Koushun Takami, which tells essentially the same story as the Hunger Games, and certainly features EXCATLY the same premise; teenagers forced by an oppressive government to fight to the death. And of course, this being a Japanese action film, you can bet this version is considerably more violent, with lots more gunplay and sword-slashing, and certainly more gore (definitely not for the younger ones, who may find that they are going to have nightmares afterwards).
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Anime "Eye" Glasses
For cosplay, or to just freak-out your friends, these glasses give you anime-sized eyes. At only 6 bucks, it's a cheap way to make an impression! Slipping these on allows you to mimic the large eyes of anime characters whether you're doing cosplay at Otakon or just talking to fellow fans of Death Note via Skype. Buy a bunch and you and your friends can act out your own anime and post it on Youtube.
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Animal Land
Manga Review
by Linda Yau
 Childhood is a significant time for learning and growth. For a healthy individual to survive, they bond with mother caretakers. However in the wild when survival of the fittest is vital, how does this equation fit with two different species of creatures? Do the rules still apply? In Makoto Raiku's Animal Land, common sense is thrown to the wind, as a tanuki and a human baby embark on a parent-child relationship. Read More...
Bloody Monday
Manga Review
by Linda Yau
 Espionage, femme fatales, government agencies terrorism, and hackers. Life is not boring for Takagi Fujimaru, a teenage genius hacker known as Falcon. He walks a fine grey line of cyber mischief for justice. Taking a step back into real world, real life hackers who are caught serve prison time, or can make enemies out governments for exposing secrets. In hacker terms, Fujimaru can be a self-serving Black Hat or an ethical White Hat. Read More...
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