Mike SHEPHERD

Shelf Life - Cake Boss
This week, the French Revolution is finally upon us! But in the meantime, here are some cats, some ceramic pots, and people who are forced to eat against their will.
- Darker Than Black: Gemini of the Meteor
- Everyday Tales of a Cat God
- Rose of Versailles pt 2
2013-06-17

The Mike Toole Show - ADV, Unreleased
Mike wonders aloud about what happened to all that ADV Films stuff that never made the jump from VHS to DVD. 2013-06-16

The List - 7 Mostly Harmless Dirty Old Men
Dirty old men are a dime a dozen in anime, but at some point, an unspoken rule was established that the level of perversion is greater than or equal to grandpa's fighting prowess. 2013-06-15

HENNEKO Episodes 1-7 Streaming
A kind of modern moe fairy tale where characters are built from prefab personality traits that can be swapped in and out like customizable car parts. Surprisingly fun, actually.

The Last of Us
The Last of Us is about the thick skin we've built for ourselves and, underneath that, the places where we secret our hurt.

Lagrange: The Flower of Rin-ne Blu-Ray
This first season is unlikely to blow anyone away, as it is competent in most respects but neither exceptional nor original in any of them, except perhaps in casting the mecha battles as pretty boys on one side vs. cute/sexy girls on the other.

Remember Me
Underneath all the explosive polygons and proper nouns, Remember Me is a game that has no idea what it's actually about.

The Princess and the Pilot [Premium Edition] Sub.Blu-Ray
A half-breed pilot is tasked with secretly transporting a future Empress across thousands of miles of open ocean in this 2011 movie from Madhouse. Its simple, straightforward tale offers some great highlights.

Tiger & Bunny Blu-Ray 2
Interesting character developments and comic book-style twists are the norm in this generally fun second half. Some may find the plot twists to be irksome, but they don't keep it from being entertaining.

Jormungand GN 11
The ending of Jormungand has something important to say ... but never figures out the actual message.

Sunny GN 1
Sunny is an interesting glimpse into the lives of children who feel that the world has forsaken them and how they manage to cope with the help of an old car and a little imagination.

Missions of Love GN 2
Ultimately Missions of Love still reads like a sexy book for middle schoolers. Yukina is far from a likeable heroine, neither Shigure nor Akira come off as particularly desirable male leads, and the less savory elements of the story detract from its romance components.

Dengeki Daisy GN 11
Dengeki Daisy began as a romance with some computer crimes thrown in and has morphed into an action story with some romance thrown in. What remains true, however, is that Kyousuke Motomi has created an interesting, fun story with memorable characters who do their best, whether it's for good or ill.

New Super Mario Bros. U
The addition of the Gamepad functions may seem like an innocuous change, but in practice they allow the subversion of every Mario rule since there was a Mario in the first place. That it is Nintendo-sanctioned makes these subversions feel no less naughty, and all these tricks and techniques are inarguably more "new" than any animal costume or flower projectile.