ANIME: 進撃の巨人 (Attack on Titan)

Also known as Shingeki no Kyojin (which is the romanisation of the Japanese)

Image from IMDb

At a glance: action, anime TV series (24 episodes, each ~20 minutes), Japanese, non-English, recommend 18+ (gore, & language [if the subs are to be believed])


Summary

A long time ago, a strange breed of giant humanoid lifeforms called the Titans came into existence. They stand from 3 feet up very high up ^^", often don't show signs of intelligence, and do not seem to have to eat or perform any other biological functions. There is also only one way to kill them, which is by slicing off a piece of flesh at the back of their neck. Their sole purpose seems to be to devour humans.

Due to their size and obsession and resistance towards being killed, they're incredibly dangerous, and the last of humanity now live within the safety of walled cities while the Titans roam the rest of the world.

But then, one day, a previously unknown type of Titan breaks down the outermost wall of the city, causing many casualties and forcing the rest of the citizens inside second wall. Eren loses his mother to a Titan, and from then on focuses single-mindedly on joining the Survey Corps and killing all the Titans he can lay his hands on.


Luna comments

The overview, and warnings of blood and gore, really didn't make me very interested in the series. And I'm generally not very interested in these sorts of premises. But then after hearing everyone in the anime circles talk about it, and then getting it recommended to me by my most reliable sources, and also having nothing else to watch, I gave it a shot.

And now I'm a fan too.

There still isn't much to talk about for the plot. They do make little discoveries, but they're so few and far in between that that's not really what makes the story interesting. For me, this story really hinges upon its characters. Oh, and the action scenes. They use what's called '3D Maneuver Gear' which consists of a pair of grappling hooks mounted on a complicated contraption that the user wears around their waist. This is their primary method of movement in a fight within the city walls. Despite my lacklustre description, surely it sounds awesome =D

Back to the characters. Here's a picture of the graduates from Eren's trainee squad.

Image from Shingeki No Kyojin Wiki
Eren is the 6th from the left.
Mikasa (his adoptive sister) is on his right and the top of the class.
Armin (his friend from childhood) is the 4th from the left.

I really like the the characters, even though I don't necessarily really like some of the characters themselves (most notably: Eren). They're a diverse and well fleshed-out bunch. Even though some of them don't have much screentime, they have the presence of a full-blown character rather than an 'extra'. They give the feeling that they have their own thoughts, emotions and lives somewhere off-screen.

As a group, the series does well in showing the characters' transformations. They start as trainees who may not even be in it because they want to fight titans (some are in it for the glory; particularly, if they graduate in the top 10, they are allowed to join the Military Police and move inside the innermost wall, to live among and move in the circles of the highest levels of society). They know that that's what they'll be doing if they graduate, but even then it's clear that the reality and horror of the situation doesn't hit home. They train hard, and the instructors warn them that not everyone survives even the training stages. These trainees make it anyway.

But then they encounter their first titan and watch as their friends and colleagues get killed. The show doesn't skimp on the visuals either, so these moments have quite an impact. Over the course of the series, they lose more and more members, and have to come to a decision about whether they really want to be risking their lives for the role they've trained for. The levity and playfulness of some of the trainees disappear over the course of the story. It's sad, but very fitting.

Anyway. Eren is very angry, rash, impulsive, and it doesn't take much to make him blow. He can act a bit uncaring and callous even towards his best friends, even though he does care very much for them. He's just a very angry person. Even before his mother was killed by a Titan, he showed a tendency to get angry, but this was exacerbated by that traumatic event. His emotions easily take over his rational thinking. So I don't find him very likable, but he's actions and personality are well-justified.

All the other major and recurring characters are pretty awesome, though =D

Movie version

They're making a movie version of this, which apparently cuts out some very important characters & adds in other new ones.

I think it's very funny that no one (including me) is complaining that cast is completely Japanese, even though Mikasa is the only known Asian. =P But I'm not complaining or anything. I just find it funny in light of the comlaints against the Avatar: the Last Airbender cast (yours truly, of course, being a complainant too).


Closing

Hmm. Give it a try someday. Nice action & cool characters =] 

ANIME: サイコパス (Psycho-Pass)

Unit One - Image from Wikipedia
From left to right: Kogami, Tsunemori, Ginoza, Kagari, Kunizuka, Karanomori, Masaoka

At a glance: futuristic, dystopian, mystery, cyberpunk, crime, sci-fi, some NSFW scenes, recommend 18+


Summary

In this highly developed world, people's mental health and tendency for crime are measured by the Sybil System. Of the most interest to this story is the measurement of the Crime Coefficient, which when too high indicates a person has a high probability of committing a crime. Such people are rehabilitated, or failing that, locked up or killed.

Akane Tsunemori is a newly-appointed inspector to Unit One of the Public Safety Bureau's Criminal Investigation Division. Soon, a certain pattern of deaths emerges, all pointing at a man who's criminal tendency cannot be measured by the Sybil System and so goes unpunished for his crimes. It is then for Unit One to go after him and capture him.


Luna comments 

I will be referring to all characters by surname.

I'm been putting this off for so long (about two weeks now) because there's so much I could say about this anime. I was at a complete loss over where to start, because there was so much I liked about it. Usually, I'm squeamish about the sort of violence & gore that's in this, but the concept, plot, setting & characters ultimately meant that I stuck to it.

In the meantime, I also watched Psycho-Pass 2, but I'll keep this review strictly for Psycho-Pass.

The setting of the world is rather easy to explain - it's technologically advanced, holograms are everywhere, & a centralised system makes measurements ('Psycho Pass') of all citizens, which include things like their Crime Coefficient, their Hue, & then data analysis on the history of their measurements. I really liked how bits & pieces of the world are revealed throughout the series, & I like how the technology is woven into every aspect of their lives, from holographic room designs & clothing changes, to the various hi-tech stuff they do inside the Public Safety Bureau. There's always something to serve as a reminder that it's a different world.

I thought every single character was done really well, or as well as they could have been given their screentime. I chose the picture above in particular because it features the members of Unit One, all of whom are awesome. I can talk about their awesomeness forever, so I'll restrain myself & talk only about the three most important ones.

Tsunemori is an awesome character. She has a lot of positive aspects - so many that, had the story been poorly written, she could easily have been a Mary Sue. But she doesn't give off that feeling. She starts off as a newly appointed inspector, innocent & naive & presumably blissfully ignorant of the violence & brutality that she eventually encounters throughout the series. She's the bordering-on-typical incredibly good character, in that she doesn't want to kill anyone no matter what the circumstances are. In the first episode, she acts in a way that simultaneously shows her potential while also casting doubt on her ability to pull off her role in public safety. But over the series, she becomes a seasoned & capable inspector. In hindsight, I think that her character development is done very very well.

You may now think that Tsunemori looks like a stereotypical character. I'd say that she plays a stereotypical role, but not necessarily a stereotypical character. & perhaps she is a stereotypical, but the way she's been characterised makes her quite different, or at least a distinct character in her own right.

Continuing on with being stereotypical - there's Kogami! The broody, silent, intelligent, observant one with a certain dark spot in their past & an obsession stemming from that. Someone who almost seems to have lost their purpose in life (except for that obsession) until, one day, some special person (Tsunemori) re-ignites a spark in them. Despite being so much like a character out of a YA novel, he's much more interesting than that - or maybe, as a general rule, his kind of character is interesting by default, no exceptions. I ramble. So much of the plotline revolves around some detail of him that, ultimately, I felt that he was the real centrepiece character of the anime, despite his relatively pitiable screen-time.

Another reason was that I felt he represented the dilemma of the world of Psycho-Pass. He's obviously one of those 'good characters with a dark side'. What do you do with a someone who's quite capable of squishing you like an ant? Are you sure you're comfortable with leaving your life or death at the hands of someone like that? Are you sure you're comfortable knowing that you'll live as long as they're happy to let you?

The villain, Makishima, is probably the most interesting, at least out of these character descriptions. He loves old literature, frequently quoting from them. He's also extremely twisted, & seems to commit crimes (read: murder) out of a cold, detached curiosity of human behaviour - it's like a game to him - how would you react if I did this? He's also charismatic & super-intelligent. All these things work together to make him very...creepy, for lack of a better word. Makishima is an interesting villain because he is so scary & so capable.

On the flip side, I found his character a bit weird. Maybe he's just so twisted that I can't work him out - I find him very intelligent & logical, & yet some of his decisions are hard to square with his sort of character. Even in the end, considering everything, I wasn't sure if I understood what it was that he wanted. So he's an interesting one to puzzle over.

Although the individual characters are awesome, what I liked most about Unit One is the feeling of family. It's hard to explain, but despite their roles & the fact that we only really see them at work, their interactions give off the feeling that their relationships are not merely professional - they actually do care for one another in a personal way. Which I liked =]

The plot is very good. Not only is the story engaging, but it also highlights the far-reaching effects of having a society stabilised by the Sybil System, even though it only ever deals with the police's point of view. The pacing is quite fast, & most if not all episodes end not necessarily on a cliffhanger, but somewhere that makes you (me) want to watch the next episode immediately. (Isn't it good that all the episodes are out?) Some of the criminals are pretty twisted, even more so than the twisted criminals you may see in contemporary police dramas & series. As the story goes on, you can see that that, too, is a side effect of the effectiveness of the Sybil System.

Initially, the story starts off as 'just' police detectives tracking down suspects using technology & intelligence, but when Kogami is pitted against Makishima, the battle of the brains becomes more intense & suspenseful. Things get ugly, people get hurt.

I really like how things all came together in the end - the plot, setting & characters - & contributed to the bigger picture of what is the Psycho-Pass society.

My favourite parts

•  I LIKED EVERYTHING...though I wouldn't have minded if it was less gruesome in places. (Also I can't do this without risking spoilers)
  

  

Closing

Watch it! It's really good!

It raises some interesting questions about what sort of choices we want to make about our lives - the sort of society we want to live in, the trade-offs we make to live a stable life sufficiently free of uncertainty, a person's nature against their free will, the value & necessity of negativity, & what exactly is the point of 'crime', 'law' and 'law enforcement'.

So, ultimately, a very thought-provoking watch. Highly highly highly recommended! For those old enough, anyway.