Author: admin

Amish Otaku, Nintendo, Video Games, Wii

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess

What else can I say about the new Legend of Zelda other than “Wow.” This is director Eiji Aonuma’s third Zelda title to date and with this installment in the series he has truly lived up to the work of Shigeru Miyamoto’s Ocarina of Time.

For the first time in the series we have a very realistic looking Link exploring much more realistic looking world. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve always been pleased with the art direction and character design of the Zelda series – I loved the look of Wind Waker – but this game out does the lot of them. In fact, this is the first Zelda title to have a T for Teen rating instead of an E for Everyone due to the animated blood and violence.

It just looks and feels the way it was always meant to be played. The Wii imbues the game with a new sense of verisimilitude both with the Wii remote and the graphics. Continue reading “The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess”

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Amish Otaku, Features, Kosher Kuts, Manga, Viz

Kosher Kuts: Eyeshield 21

Japanese manga and American football: can two different tastes taste great together? Both forms of entertainment have their rabid devotees and people who indulge in fantasy scenarios with their favorites, but the similarities basically end there. Well, Riichiro Inagaki and Yusuke Murate apparently felt the gap should be bridged between the two mutually-exclusive fanbases and created Eyeshield 21. It began publication in Weekly Shonen Jump in 2002 and has since come stateside courtesy of Viz Media. There is also an anime version of the running that is sponsored by NFL Japan. There is no information yet about the anime coming to the United States.

The focus of Eyeshield 21 is Sena, a freshman at Deimon High School who tends to get bullied into running errands for people. Apparently, this constant harassment since childhood has provided Sena a pair of “Golden Legs”. Sena’s speed gets the attention of the school’s only two regulars of the high school’s football team, who recruit him on the spot as a running back. In order to mask Sena’s identity from rival teams and his over-protective friend, it is suggested that he wear an eyeshield with his helmet to completely cover his face. Sena is given a uniform with the number 21 on it and the saga of the Deimon Devil Bats football team begins.

Continue reading “Kosher Kuts: Eyeshield 21”
Joshua Goldberg
Amish Otaku, Comics, Devil's Due

The Legend of Drizzt: Bane of the Spider Queen

 
 

Originally published in 1990, R.A. Salvatore’s Dark Elf Trilogy set in the Forgotten Realms shone like a beacon in the fantasy genre. It was, and still is, comparable to Tolkein’s Lord of the Rings and Margaret Weiss and Tracy Hickman’s Dragon Lance series and – like those – is still being sold in nearly every major bookstore today.

Then, in 2005, Devil’s Due Publishing (traditionally known for their G.I. Joe and Transformers comics) began releasing a comic adaptation of the story with a script by Andrew Dabb and wonderfully detailed pencils by Tim Seeley. Continue reading “The Legend of Drizzt: Bane of the Spider Queen”

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Amish Otaku, Comics

Wanted: No More Heroes

The super-hero comic is something I normally stay away from. Maybe I just got bored with all the spandex, good intentions and the fact that you almost always knew the good guys were going to win. But a comic about super-villains? Now that I’ll give a chance.

Mark Millar’s Wanted is the story of 24 year old Wesley Gibson. He’s an average, under-achieving, timid loser. He goes about his life getting picked on by his boss, spit on by his neighbors and cheated on by his girlfriend (with his best friend no less).

But everything changes when he finds out he’s the son of one of the world’s most feared assassins and super-villains “The Killer.” And if that’s not enough The Killer’s been killed and Wesley stands to inherit everything – the name, the millions and his father’s place in the world-wide criminal fraternity – if he can fill the shoes. Continue reading “Wanted: No More Heroes”

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Amish Otaku, Comics, Vertigo

Pride of Baghdad: Ain’t No Pride When You’re Dead

By Dave Ginolfi

When this book was first given to me to check out i was excited but for some reason it lay stagnant in the back seat of my car for months. There it lived amongst cd’s and empty bags of fast food from late night hunger raids. What a diamond in the rough it truly became.

I was in a position where I desperately needed reading material. I was in the waiting room at a dentist’s office. With nothing but 101.3 The Rose and the smell of old people to occupy my time I decided to get sucked into a colorful world that reminded me of the Lion King with a twist of Steven King.

This book was so vivid if read fast enough it seemed to come to life. That’s also it’s only flaw – its length. Although it’s short, it’s also very fulfilling but getting close to the characters is hard as it comes abruptly to an end. Continue reading “Pride of Baghdad: Ain’t No Pride When You’re Dead”

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Amish Otaku, Comics

Top 5: Best Comics of 2006

By Andrew Goletz

5
Ultimate Spider-Man

This series has been on my “best of” lists since its inception, and this past year proved the book showed no signs of aging. The creative team of Brian Bendis and Mark Bagley broke Marvel Comics’ record for longest duration of a creative team on a superhero book with their 103rd issue last month. Consider that creative teams jump ship every six issues or so. Or how about the fact that this series would be more likely to come out twice a month instead of the all-too-familiar late issues plaguing books today? The same creative team, almost never late, working together for more than 5 years.

Ultimate Spider-Man is a retelling of the story of Spider-Man, updated with current sensibilities. The series doesn’t invalidate Marvel’s other books featuring Spider-Man, but offers a separate take in its own “Ultimate” universe free from decades of historical and continuity constraints and is an ideal book for those who are new to comics. Continue reading “Top 5: Best Comics of 2006”

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ADV, Amish Otaku, Anime

Full Metal Panic: FUMOFFU

By Louis Klapper

Start with boy meets girl, boy has secret, girl has secret, they have an adventure for five episodes, have some feelings for each other that they don’t admit, toss in some filler episodes, add another five-or-six-episode adventure, follow with filler, then a longer plot arc, then more filler, and chase with epic conclusion.

Sound familiar? This recipe accurately describes many anime, including the first “Full Metal Panic!” series. But what if much of that filler was taken and expanded into a second “sequel” series? Perhaps you would entitle it “Full Metal Panic? FUMOFFU”? Continue reading “Full Metal Panic: FUMOFFU”

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Amish Otaku, Manga, Viz

Saikano

By Ed Kidhardt

Imagine if you will, dear reader, you are a high school senior living in a tiny town in Japan. You’ve just started dating a clumsy (yet cute) girl who apologizes for everything she does, like walking slow or reading comics. You truly have feelings for her, but every time you try to tell her you end up yelling at her, eventually making her cry.

After three awkward weeks of this, your town is attacked by an unknown air force. During the strike you run outside and who should appear from the sky but your girlfriend – her arm transformed into an automatic rifle and metal wings sprouting from her back.

You slowly embrace your destroying angel, and she starts to cry. Continue reading “Saikano”

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