That name knows no borders, we all watched him back in the 80s and many of us remember Grendizer foundly. Recently while traveling I came across this Grendizer model I picked it up right away without a second thought. This is larger model and I was happy that I saw when I picked it up, it fit perfectly next to all the other ones currently on my shelves.

When I saw Grendizer I remembered the theme song playing in Arabic and remembered watching it on the TriColor Sony TV we have back in the 80s. Kuwait TV Channel used to be so advanced back in the day, they dubbed the best shows and we all loved them. I hope that they restart the franchise again like they did Mazinger Z & Mazinkaiser.

Plot Summary: Vampires exist. It is the duty of Hellsing, a secret organization sponsored by the British government, to hide that frightening fact and protect the blissfully unaware populace. Along with its own personal army, Hellsing has secret weapons. Alucard, an incredibly powerful vampire, has been controlled by Hellsing for years. It is unclear how he feels about being a servant to the Hellsing family, but he certainly enjoys his job as a vampire exterminator. Seras is a fledgling vampire and former police woman. Although reluctant to embrace her new self, she is a valued member of the organization. Integra Hellsing, the current leader, is usually fully capable of fulfilling her duty, but lately, vampire activity has been on the rise. Unfortunately, the cause is more alarming than anything she could have imagined. A group long thought dead has been plotting in secret since their apparent destruction over 50 years ago. Plotting to plunge England, and perhaps the entire world, into war.

Not for one with an uneasy stomach, this is one of the more gory anime out there and a very good story. I first watched Hellsing back in 2004 and then a few years later this came out which was a little more intense and a crazier story. For those who enjoy anime this is one of the better ones out there and you will enjoy Alucard the main vampire in the story, he redefines evil.

Link: AnimeNewsNetwork
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Anime music is usually from mainstream Japanese bands and I listen to a few of them. The Shamisen is a traditional Japanese instrument which is used with classical music from what I have seen or dramatic moments. But the Yoshida Brothers are Shamisen Virtousos and turned this musical instrument into a modern tool and I do like their song.

Soldiers … heroes … outlaws. On the run after being accused of crimes they didn’t commit, six young G.I.s battle to clear their names — and expose the real bad guys, COBRA Industries. The world thinks this giant corporation is the good guys, but it’s really run by evil people who want to rule the planet. It’s up to these renegade Joes to stop COBRA and save the world — and themselves.

I stumbled onto this show by mistake on iTunes, I wasn’t expecting to see a new animated tv show for G.I. Joe and the moment I saw I purchased the whole season, I didn’t even think about downloading it on torrents, I just downloaded right away on my iPad iTunes. For any G.I. Joe fan this show is a new twist on the story, you have young G.I.s who are blackmailed by Cobra and fight to show Cobra’s true colors and clear their names. It has been mordernized for the today’s audience and even old fans will really enjoy it, I’m loving and especially Snake Eyes. The animation of the show is pretty good too, its done in 2D but uses 3D to give the background depth, so the characters feel drawn but certain elements are done in CGI to give it that depth of movement like helicopters or their vehicle, I like this style of animation and its making it even more enjoyable to watch. Its at 15 episodes at this point I’m enjoying every one of them, I can’t wait for the story to develop more. Hasbro is doing a good job of investing in their different productions, I just hope the quality remains as good as it is.

Link: Wikipedia

I have been talking about the Thunder Cats reboot any time I hear a piece of information or picture, and with the release of the trailer I can’t wait to see the anime. Its taken some time but I hope it gets released this year.

Now this is an interesting development, first it was Iron Man, then they were working on Wolverine, and it seems that X-Men have joined the Anime bandwagon and it looks pretty good. I love that they are catering these cartoons to adults, and from the 30 seconds from the Japanese production company Madhouse its looking good.

Plot Summary: Two brothers lose their mother to an incurable disease. With the power of “alchemy”, they use taboo knowledge to resurrect her. The process fails, and as a toll for using this type of alchemy, the older brother, Edward Elric loses his left leg while the younger brother, Alphonse Elric loses his entire body. To save his brother, Edward sacrifices his right arm and is able to affix his brother’s soul to a suit of armor. With the help of a family friend, Edward receives metal limbs – “automail” – to replace his lost ones. With that, Edward vows to search for the Philosopher’s Stone to return the brothers to their original bodies, even if it means becoming a “State Alchemist”, one who uses his/her alchemy for the military.

Now this is an anime to be remembered, the first part of Full Metal Alchemist ended on a high note, and then there was the movie. I didn’t know there was a full series that was going to be released, and it was even better then the first part. Full Metal Alchemist Brotherhood picked up where the first one ended and there were some filler episodes to help people remember what was going on. Then it just went into a crazy plot where they are fighting the homunculi while trying to find the cure for their bodies, they start uncovering a deep story and plot related to the character called “Father”. Even with all the odds against them they team up with people they have met over their lives to try to fight this insane foe. I can’t describe how good the story was but if you have any inkling for anime this should be at the top of the list.

Link: AnimeNewsNetwork
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Warner Brothers has at last announced the new images of Thunder Cats that they have been working, and I really like where this is going. A lot of shows are going the Anime way to give it the more adult like look rather then cartoonish look. And the way this is going I think they are working hard on it to get the story right and to perfect the animation for a show that so many of us hold so dear. I’m hoping it comes out soon, but for now I’m enjoying a good amount of animated shows and other then my usual anime line up.

Link: io9

Supernatural is a crazy show in the first place but transforming into an anime is GENIUS! I understand a little bit of the trailer but without subtitles I’m a little lost, since I know the Supernatural storyline pretty well I can somewhat understand whats going on, the best part is that they are using the same soundtrack which is one part that makes the show great. They can go even farther and darker then the show has already done with Anime. Its a production by Madhouse who are behind Paprika, Batman: Gotham Knights, and The Animatrix. I’m going to enjoy watching these season one shot and now I have the animation to look forward to.

Link: Blastr

I always wonder what an Anime production company’s office looks like and this time there is a look into Production I.G. Thankfully Danny Choo has gone into this Anime Company and taken a look at their offices and how they work. Production I.G. have made some well known anime and one of my favorite being Sengoku Basra, and they are currently making Sengoku Basra 2 which I am very much looking forward to watching as soon as its out. I always thought that it would be very cool to work in an Anime Studio

They are also responsible for one of the greatest anime movies of all time, Ghost In the Shell! I even remember watching it on a Manga Video when I bought it from Tower Records in Whiteleyes in Bays Water, London. That used to be my main source for videos back in the early 90s, I would walk to the basement and pile up some videos from the anime section. They even have their own cafeteria so I’m assuming the company is doing pretty well. I wish they would sell some of those art cels, I would buy them in a heartbeat, they would be very cool on a wall, I have seen one restaurant with anime cels and I wish I could take them off the wall.

Link: Culture Japan

Transformers: Prime is a computer-animated television series that premiered on The Hub on November 2010 with a five-part mini-series, which will be followed by a full season in February 2011. There are 26 episodes scheduled for the first season and another three seasons have been outlined by the screenwriters.

For a CGI animated cartoon it turned out much better then I expected, and they don’t waste any time and jump right into the thick of the story. Optimus Prime at the throat of Megatron with a lot at stake. This is part of the continuing storyline and I hope more autobots show up, I enjoy when they kick Decipticon ass. The first five part miniseries was a lot of fun, I’m going to be looking forward to the upcoming season.

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