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Shelf Life - Drill Bits and Dead Leaves


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Kagemusha



Joined: 20 Feb 2004
Posts: 2783
Location: Boston
PostPosted: Sat Oct 09, 2004 12:38 am Reply with quote
Must..get..Dead Leaves...
My computer didn't play the sceening on the web very well, so I decided to wait for the DVD. But from what I saw its a classic. In any case great column, in my opinion one of the few good anime review articles on the web.
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GATSU



Joined: 03 Jan 2002
Posts: 15279
PostPosted: Sat Oct 09, 2004 1:34 am Reply with quote
At least I know that the only reason you hyped Blood was because Manga used your review in their promotional material.
But there's no excuse for Dead Leaves, except lower standards. It exemplifies the worst elements of American animation(gratuitous violence and lack of narrative), and doesn't even execute those elements effectively. I usually don't agree with Chris Beveridge, but I'll make an exception to Dead Leaves. It's the only anime I've seen thus far which makes that Kill Bill sequence look appealing.
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Nani?



Joined: 20 Jul 2003
Posts: 632
PostPosted: Sat Oct 09, 2004 2:23 am Reply with quote
Unfortuatly I come down on the side of Gatsu.
I rented Dead Leaves tonight. All I have to say is, when the worst Anime ever topic comes up again it will get serious consideration. Plot, oh,we have have a little of that don't we to justify the violence? Never mind the most unappealing character designs ever.
I say this having really enjoyed Blood.

Respectfully,

Nani?
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jmays
ANN Associate Editor


Joined: 29 Jul 2002
Posts: 1390
Location: St. Louis, MO
PostPosted: Sat Oct 09, 2004 2:27 am Reply with quote
GATSU wrote:
At least I know that the only reason you hyped Blood was because Manga used your review in their promotional material.

C'mon now, you know better than that. Incidentally, Chris's Blood review was harsh at times, and I don't think Bamboo even reviewed it.

EDIT: Oops, too many folks named Chris. I meant the one who wrote ANN's review.


Last edited by jmays on Sat Oct 09, 2004 2:38 am; edited 1 time in total
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Kagemusha



Joined: 20 Feb 2004
Posts: 2783
Location: Boston
PostPosted: Sat Oct 09, 2004 2:33 am Reply with quote
Well, I'm suprised to see so much negativity. Personally I can't stand Beveridge's reviews, so I'll just have to watch it.
And how does DL have the worst character designs ever? What, just because they are a bit unconventional and original they suck? From what I saw of them, they're great and unlike most things that come out. And Blood sucked big time. Nothing but a technical showpiece with a plot that was probobly thought up in five minutes. I hope DL doesn't turn out like that.
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GATSU



Joined: 03 Jan 2002
Posts: 15279
PostPosted: Sat Oct 09, 2004 2:53 am Reply with quote
Kagemusha: Blood would've been better if it was produced with double its original running time. Hopefully, I.G. will be ready
to make a sequel, now that they have to bail out Innocence's
Japanese box office.
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lianncoop
Past ANN Contributor


Joined: 28 Jul 2003
Posts: 1705
Location: Indiana
PostPosted: Sat Oct 09, 2004 3:04 am Reply with quote
GATSU wrote:
At least I know that the only reason you hyped Blood was because Manga used your review in their promotional material.
But there's no excuse for Dead Leaves, except lower standards.

Anime cry I cry because I'm just imagining how I'd feel if I read something like this. Seriously, is there a reason for personal attacks when the point is basically that you didn't particuarlly care for the show?
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GATSU



Joined: 03 Jan 2002
Posts: 15279
PostPosted: Sat Oct 09, 2004 3:20 am Reply with quote
Actually, it's not personal. Bamboo opens her review with, "If you’ve been bored with the anime scene lately, Dead Leaves knows just how to shake it up." And even when she heaps praise on it, Bamboo inserts negative comments such as, "...It sounds weird, but after a few minutes, you won’t really know what to think anymore....Clocking in at only 50 minutes, the story races by at a breakneck speed, managing to cram in so many random plot twists and “what the f—?”s that it takes all your brainpower to keep up. When it comes down to it, Dead Leaves isn’t so much spectacular as it is truly bizarre. Tottering between grotesque and hysterical, it’s something worth buying just for novelty’s sake...."

So it sounds like she's implying that it's a last resort kind of thing, not something actually worth seeing. The "Rental Shelf " anime actually had more favorable reviews. At least Zac was honest about Tamala not being for everyone. Dead Leaves, OTOH, is given "Shelf Worthy" status, even though it's not really for everyone. Hell, there are hentai and mainstream titles which don't make it to "Shelf Worthy" with so-so opinions like the one given to Dead Leaves. [/i]
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extralife



Joined: 16 Jan 2003
Posts: 14
PostPosted: Sat Oct 09, 2004 4:42 am Reply with quote
I wrote a review of Dead Leaves.

For this very website, even!

The problem is that I can't send it to who it needs to be sent to. The e-mail was bounced back to me. So. No Dead Leaves review for ANN, for the time being at least.

Here's an exclusive sneak peak, featuring the best line in the whole review that does not spoil the review itself:

"The other is Pandy, an even-keel, chic death maiden that might come off as a nihilist were you to sit her down over a cup of coffee."
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Mohawk52



Joined: 16 Oct 2003
Posts: 8202
Location: England, UK
PostPosted: Sat Oct 09, 2004 11:02 am Reply with quote
Quote:
Gravitation Vol. #3 - One Million Copies?!

This show is largely hit or miss for most people. If you love seeing pretty boys in love, or melodramatic bishounen whining over paltry problems in the idol industry, then this is right up your alley.
Oooaarrh, missus! He just wouldn't let it lye, would he? Twisted Evil
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Jadress



Joined: 08 Oct 2003
Posts: 807
Location: Seattle. It purdy and nerdy!
PostPosted: Sat Oct 09, 2004 1:07 pm Reply with quote
I usually agree with Bamboo's reviews, but I was sad to see My Dear Marie in Perishable Items! I remember seeing the fansub of that "back in the day," and thought it was damn amusing. I don't think one is supposed to take the plot seriously. Then again, I haven't seen it in years, so maybe it'll be worse than I remember, but I recall it being pretty funny.

As far as school mascots- you want crappy mascots? In elementary school we started as Hares.. that's alright for little kids.. in middle school we were Dragons, which is hard to top.. and then in high school, that's right, we were Maple Leaves. Yes, I was a frikkin' leaf. And no, I'm not Canadian either!
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jfrog



Joined: 21 May 2004
Posts: 925
Location: Seattle
PostPosted: Sat Oct 09, 2004 1:25 pm Reply with quote
I can beat all of you. My school's mascot is the Dead Rat. And no, I'm not making that up.
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Kagemusha



Joined: 20 Feb 2004
Posts: 2783
Location: Boston
PostPosted: Sat Oct 09, 2004 1:27 pm Reply with quote
GATSU wrote:
Kagemusha: Blood would've been better if it was produced with double its original running time. Hopefully, I.G. will be ready
to make a sequel, now that they have to bail out Innocence's
Japanese box office.

It probobly would have, but that doesn't change the fact that it was made too short. The manga was mediocre too. I was under the impression that they wanted to do a short series for the character.
But don't you think that IG was expecting Innocence to do poor, considering the first movie also did poor? I think they made it counting of DVD sales in the US and England (plus, wasn't the DVD pretty big in Japan recently?) to make a profit.
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R.G.



Joined: 16 Nov 2003
Posts: 683
PostPosted: Sat Oct 09, 2004 1:35 pm Reply with quote
Personally,I find the whole Gravitation series (in any language) to be a perishable item.
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v1cious



Joined: 31 Dec 2002
Posts: 6199
Location: Houston, TX
PostPosted: Sat Oct 09, 2004 1:46 pm Reply with quote
BOOURNS! i personally love Dead Leaves, and can't see why so many people hate it. i mean come on, is it suddenly out of style to just make a fun movie? what rule said every anime movie has to be like Ghost In The Shell?
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