Shiki

Reviews: "I was dumbfounded by how much I loved the ending of Shiki." -Japanator.com

Retail price: 90.00$

Watched on: Justdubs.com

DVD release date: 2010

Aired: July 8 2010

Program Run Time: 600

Genre: Horror, Supernatural, Suspense, Psychological, Vampire, 

Language watched in: English

This story starts off in Sotoba village, where the people are old fashion, and cut off from the outside world. With a population of 1 300, this village is run by the two heads of the town the town junior monk Seishin and the village doctor Toshio. After the Kirishiki's western style mansion was built on the outskirts of the village, the villagers started dying left and right. Was this a start of an epidemic brought to Sotoba by the Kirishiki's or was it something more?

There are quiet a number of characters who's stories are told in this anime, we see the struggle, the joys, the tragedies that different characters and group of characters go through.

Megumi; the odd out of place girl who dreams to one day move to the city, and live a "normal life". She has an unhealthy obsession with Natsuno.


Natsuno; the reserved and quiet cold high school student from the city, who moved to Sotoba with his parents. His hopes are to one day move back to the city and escape the small village life. Even though he wasn't looking for a friend one found him, Tohru.





Tohru; an all around good guy who could have his pick of the crop, but decided to befriend Natsuno. 


Seishin; the town junior monk and childhood friend to Toshio and Mikiyasu. He believed that you could always choose your own path in life, that nothing was predetermined. Eventually he became a monk, even though he truly wished otherwise.


Toshio; the current town doctor of Sotoba, running the clinic which was passed down from generation to generation. In charge of all the lives in the village, the only thing that could possibly disgrace his family's name would be villagers deaths. He takes it as his personal duty to make sure that the villagers are safe.


I've got to admit that there are many more characters in the anime. I'd love to write about the main Shiki characters, but I'm afraid that I might spoil some of the story.

This is honestly one of the best anime's I've seen in quiet some time. It has all items to make it an unforgettable anime, characters you can relate to (I'm not saying all but you'll find one), suspense, conflict, great animation, and human nature. I honestly cried near the end, feeling both sympathy and loss for both the humans and the shiki. This is a great example of human nature at its worse. I rate this anime 5 stockings out of 5.

The original post was posted on my other blog ;)

Romeo X Juliet

Reviews
"... effectively dramatic, sometimes beautiful, and occasionally even emotional."
                  -Animenewsnetwork.com

Retail price: 35.99$
My purchase: 17.99$
DVD release date: 2007-07-27
Program run time: 600 minutes
Genres: Romance, Drama, Tragedy
Language watched in:                                                               English

Juliet the last survivor of the Capulet family falls madly in love with Romeo de Montague the son of the prince who murdered her entire family when she was but a child. Will she bring back her family name to power or forsake it all for the one she loves.

In this adapted version of William Shakespeare's  Romeo and Juliet, it is so very loosely based on the original story that although most would think that in its result would butcher the story, it actually made it all the more tragic. One of the major things that made this anime extremely enjoyable was the fact that I could name off which Shakespearian play the characters names derived from. When Lancelot died I clicked in to the fact that the name Lancelot came from the Merchant of Venice and not Romeo and Juliet. This is about the time I made of game of it, taking all the names that were mentioned and matching them to the play.

Although this story and the play have hardly anything in common it is just as much a tear jerker and a must have to anyone's collection. Have you ever done the "I'm going to cry face"? The one where you purse you lips in a way that contorts your face. Well my dear readers, I must have contorted my face in so many different shapes, especially on disc 4 during the last episode I let it out. To be specific 7 tears.

The fact that you experience this lovely tragedy by Juliet's side, instead of Romeo's makes it all the more appealing to me. Another thing I must point out is the fact that unlike the three day "Love, Marriage, Death" of the Shakespearian play, the anime has a longer timeline which to me makes it all the more desirable. Don't read into what I'm telling you too much, I love the original Romeo and Juliet story and am saying that Romeo  x Juliet is not better then the original. Considering all the differences between the two I say that the anime is in a league of it's own.

Originally I was going to rate Romeo x Juliet 4.5 stockings but I'm going to give it 5 stockings because it did it's job. They took a world wide known and put their personal twist to it, which brought hope and made me cheer on in hopes the outcome would differ.