Magical Girl

Magical Atelier Global Version Launches Tomorrow 4/14/2022

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The Harry Potter Inspired Lineplay Looking Simulation and Crafting Free To Play Gacha Mobile Game Hit is finally getting an English translation. I am not sure if it will be in the USA app stores, but an English version is definitely coming. Here are some key indicators of this fact.

An Official Announcement here:

English Youtube Videos On Their Official Youtube Channel Here:

I just started playing the korean version and on the same day, I discovered the global version and I did in fact pre-register… but now I am a bit concerned because it says on the official site it is not available in this country (when accessing it on my PC) – so I may have been logged into one of my many other Apple IDs, such as my korean Id or Singapore ID or Japan ID. But none the less, soon an English version will be available somewhere in the next 24 hours. read more

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Alice Closet Anime Dressup Mobile Game Review

Title: Alice Closet

Cost: Free

Platform: IOS or Android

Genre: Anime Dressup Game

Release Date: 06/17/21

Language: English

Where To Download: https://www.alice-closet.com/

I recently shared news of the launch of Alice Closet, a new free mobile game with anime artwork by famed manga artist Arina Tanemura. Arina’s works include Full Moon Wo Sagashite, Phantom Thief Jeanne, and Time Stranger Kyoko, just to name a few popular shoujo manga by this artist.

I have been playing the game since launch and I am loving it so far. I did purchase some of the cash items admittedly, but the game is free to play and the cash items are totally optional. read more

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3 New Free Anime Dressup Games Coming This Summer In English

It’s a great time to be a girl gamer. We are seeing a huge influx of anime otome dressup games. These 3 are all coming in June and July of 2021. Be sure to Pre-register for amazing gifts.

1.) Shining Nikki

Finally, an English release of Shining Nikki! This is the 3D version of Love Nikki. It has been out in Asia for about 2 years already. I was beginning to wonder if we would ever see an English version. I played the Asian versions for a bit and it’s very fun to see Nikki in 3D and animated and moving. She’s even cuter now. Sign up now at https://nikki4.playpapergames.com/m/home Get ready to play Shining Nikki when it launches on July 8, 2021. read more

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Pop in Q Anime Movie

Pop in Q Anime Movie Review

Pop in Q
Pop in Q

Title: Pop in Q
Length: (approx) 1.5 hours, feature length film.
I hear there is a 2nd film in production as well that will finish telling the story. *hint: Keep watching after the credits of the first movie*
Genre: Shoujo, Magical Girl, Fantasy, Idol, Musical, Slice of Life, Drama
Studio: Toei Annimation
Release Date: December, 2016

Score Card:

Geeky 1/5 – There is a bit of action later in the film, also some nostalgia to anyone who grew up watching shows like Digimon. But largely, this is pure shoujo aimed at very young girls. Afterall the girls themselves are middleschool students in this film.

Sweetie: 5/5 – This anime is utterly adorable!!! The Popin look like Sanrio characters. The girls are young and have round faces and big eyes. The music is catchy. Idol culture is always kawaii AF. The backgrounds have a nice painterly style. And the story actually has some depth to it, especially towards the end and the small preview of the next film.

 

Story 9/10 The story is basically the same as nearly every shoujo series. Which isn’t a bad thing. A group of young girls who don’t believe in themselves (or other people), come together, find their own inner strength, and learn to trust each other and work together. The basic plot of Pop in Q surrounds 5 girls each with different regrets as they prepare to graduate from middle school. They escape to the magic world where they meet the Popins, loveable cute mascots who are responsible for the flow of time. The girls do not want to return to their own world until tragedy threatens both worlds and forces the girls to make some difficult decisions.

 

Characters: 10/10 – 10 out of 10 just for how cute they are. Plus I like how every girl is given ample screen time and has a rich back story. This reminded me a lot of sailor moon or magic knights rayearth, or to a lesser degree card captor sakura. It also has a hint of love live or aikatsu stars because of the idol elements. But the cutest thing of all are the Poppins!

 

Artwork: 4/5 I deducted 1 point because some of the 3D scenes are not animated that well. However, the character designs are so cute. The 2D parts are adorable, and the background environments have this lovely painterly style with heavy brush strokes. This creates a beautiful storybook like feeling.

 

Voice Acting: 4/5 – The voice acting is cute and suits each of the girls. The poppins also have cute voices. Only reason I didn’t give it a 5 was that it wasn’t that memorable.

Music: 5/5 – There are tons of vocal tracks, obviously as music plays a central role to this story. Luckily all of the music is quite catchy. I also liked the instrumental tracks, especially highlighting some sad and touching moments.

 

Overall: 38/45 84% B+ “Very Good Anime for Girls”

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Minion Forest

The Best Upcoming & New Release 2018 PC Games for Girls

Back in the 90s I barely played PC Games, because so few existed that appealed to my tastes. There were exceptions of course, Torment, Fallout 1 and 2, Baulder’s Gate, Icewind Dale, King’s Quest (and other Sierra titles), Ever 17 (and anything else by Hirameki International), Petz, Black and White, Creatures, Graduation 95, and a handful of other gems that weren’t available on my consoles.

But largely, console gaming was the highlight of my childhood. That’s where all the anime games or JRPGs or story rich games were, especially in the 16 and 32 bit eras, which still remain my favorite gaming period of all time. Genesis, Sega CD, SNES, Saturn, PS1, PS2, and Dreamcast, the majority of my favorite games, still to this day, lived on one of those great consoles.

But nowadays, I barely play console games anymore. Occasionally there may be an exclusive that catches my eye, such as Persona 5 on PS4, or Tokyo Mirage Sessions on the Wii U. I even bought a Wii U just for that game in fact.

But now, so many games are cross platform, and so many people like me, who grew up in the 16 and 32 bit eras are making their own indie games now such as To the Moon, Always Sometimes Monsters, Rakuten, Undertale, etc. This completely changes the gaming landscape. Now PC is by and far my preferred gaming “platform” of choice.

And where once, JRPGs reigned on Consoles, they now thrive on the PC or even on mobile devices, and in the past 5 years we’ve seen a huge explosion of visual novels and Otome games as well on both PC and mobile – and barely any of those have been released (at least in English) on consoles.

Where once the PC had almost no games that appealed to my tastes, now suddenly, more and more each year, I find the PC to offer so many games I want to play that I don’t have the time, nor money, to possibly play them all! I have over 700 steam games already (and a handful on Origin, and about 50 more on GOG, and then of course my old CDs from the 90s which have yet to get released digitally.) And that’s not taking into account the PC’s ability to emulate the console games I own (probably around 300+ games there too). And emulation is perfectly legal as long as you own the original games, which I still do.

This puts the number of games I can play on my PC right now today, without buying a single thing, at well over 1,000 games! — How many of those games I’ve actually played, is probably around 25%, and how many I’ve beaten to completion / all endings etc, is probably like 5%. lol. But the point is, there has never been a better time to play girl games on your PC. If you’re a girl, there’s plenty of games that you should check out on PC. This wasn’t the case 20 years ago; my how the landscape has changed!

Here is a list of games due out in 2018 that are on my radar! I’ve selected these games for one of the following reasons: Decisions Matter, Branching Plot, Multiple Endings, Cute/Kawaii Graphics, Excellent Story, Innovating (or at least really fun) Gameplay, and Customization. If you look for the same qualities in your games, check out the list below. Warning, it’s long.

This list is not in any order – largely it’s sorted by release date, because that’s how I was browsing the games while researching this post.

Sea Dogs

Our first recommendation reminds me of Horizons New Dawn, one of my all time favorite super nintendo games.

Sorcery Jokers

This visual Novel Has Some Beautiful Graphics

Til the Dawn, Waiting

This looks sad, and also features animals, a powerful combination to tug at any heart strings

Franky the Bumwalker

Super cute and colorful adventure game that probably doesn’t take itself too seriously.

Dragon Cliff

This indie RPG features an extesnive crafting system and city building aspects as well as cute retro graphics.

Stunt Corgi VR

If you’re lucky enough to have a VR headset you might like this title that lets you create obstacle courses and watch a cute corgi try to navigate the courses you create.

Project Bits

If you like rhythm games, you might like this one with cute anime artwork. Plus it’s free to play.

The Mind Hero

An anime visual novel where you help 8 different characters overcome their trauma. It aims to teach psychology inside a video game. It’s also free and features a comic book style.

Katyusha

This looks to be a very emotionally engaging and beautiful pixel retro style RPG. The developers have said that the game uses real-life world war 2 letters that were written by soldiers to their families.

Battletech

The ability to customize everything about your mechs and the appeal of mecha genres from decades of anime such as macross, robotech, go lion, voltron, evangelion, gundamn, etc, make this appeal to me, despite the more dark realistic graphics. The gameplay looks fantastic. And who doesn’t love giant robots?

In The Valley of Gods

Explore pyramids in this narrative adventure.

Villages

This game aims to balance the skills and economy of its players so that they are forced to work together. Sounds promising. Let’s see how that works once the game releases.

Grow Bot

This just looks so utterly adorable!

Boyfriend Dungeon

With a name like Boyfriend Dungeon, how could this not make our list? It’s an otome dating sim and hack n slash RPG adventure, where the boys are weapons.

The Iron Oath

I am beyond excited for this game! True, it doesn’t have the visual aesthetic that I like, but nearly everything about the gameplay appeals to me greatly! Decisions matter, the guild management sounds fun, every character has a back story. Characters die / perma death, you recruit new characters, I’m ready to play this awesome looking tactical RPG.

Living the Deal

Business Management and Life Simulation Game. This one is high on my wishlist (despite how hideously ugly the characters look lol).

Wolf Gang

Play as cute wolves chasing cute sheep in a game which promises unlockable content and character customization.

Freedom Planet 2

Furrie fans and fans of old school Sonic games still love the original Freedom Planet, and soon the wait is over for the much anticipated sequel.

The Forgettable Dungeon

Co-op Action RPG that you can play with up to 15 friends.

Next Up Hero read more

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Sekai Project Humble Bundle

Sekai Project Visual Novels Featured in New Humble Bundle

Sekai Project is one of many companies localizing Visual Novels into English. And for the next 2 weeks you can get 17 Sekai Project Visual Novels for $12. That’s less than $1 a game. (or pay less and receive less games) And it supports charity too! Feel good and score some awesome Visual Novels with the new humble bundle.

https://www.humblebundle.com/sekai-project-bundle

Pay just $1 to receive:

Fault Milestone 2
KaraKara
NekoPara Vol 0
Ame no Marginal – Rain Marginal

Beat the average (currently $10.16) to receive:

All of the Above PLUS…
NekoPara Vol 1
Idol Magical Girl Chiru Chiru Michiru Part 1
Marcissu 10th Anniversary Anthology Project, Plus Season PASS DLC
Fault Milestone two side:above
Sound of Drop -fall into poison
Highway Blossoms (a Yuri game (girl x girl game))
Japanese School Life

Pay $12 to receive it all:

All of the Above PLUS…
NekoPara Vol 2
Wold End Economica – Complete Edition
Idol Magical Girl Chiru Chiru Michiru Part 2
Memory’s Dogma Code:01
Robot Double – Before Crime After Days Xtend Edition
Sunrider: Liberation Day – Captain’s Edition

That’s a whole lot of visual novels for not a big price! I only had 3 of these currently in my collection (and almost all of them wishlisted). I am super excited about this bundle and can’t wait to start playing.

Robot Double sounds incredibly interesting to me from the brief description. It states that unlike traditional Visual Novels, there are no clear cut choices, but instead you control the story purely through your emotions.

If you’re interested in grabbing this bundle for yourself, check out https://www.humblebundle.com/sekai-project-bundle.

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aikatsu photo on stage review

Aikatsu Photo On Stage English Review

I just recently discovered and began watching “Aikatsu! Stars”. Aikatsu! Stars is a sequel of an anime called Aikatsu! The anime is based on a card / arcade game by Bandai. The arcade card game involves dressing up idols with cute kawaii clothes and accessories to help them achieve a higher score. — From the success of these arcade machines, as well as the success of the anime (which I believe has about 6 seasons now), and the success of the other media related to the Aikatsu franchise — Bandai then introduced Aikatsu! Photo on Stage, a mobile game which is kinda similar to Bandai’s other Idol Collecting / Rhythm Games such as Idol M@ster which I’m just learning now, and Love Live School Idol Festival, which I’ve been meaning to also review, but haven’t really gotten around to just yet.

The main difference in Aikatsu! Photo on Stage compared to Love Live School Idol Festival, is the way in which the rhythm game is actually played. Love Live School Idol Festival displays characters’ faces in a half-moon arc like shape scattered around the screen. As a song plays, music notes, indicated by a ring shape, float out to one of these characters. Pressing on a character at the right time will score higher points. You “chain” “perfect” time presses for the highest score possible.

A photo posted by jenilee (@xenokitten) on

In Aikatsu! Photo on Stage, the rhythm game is completely different (and in my opinion more challenging). This time, you see your selected characters standing on a stage, and over top, overlaying these characters, you see a various number of boxes, outlined by white squares.  As the song begins, these squares begin to fill, with what I would describe as playing cards. Spade, Diamond, Club, and Heart symbols begin to fill each box. Pressing when the shape has filled in the white outline the fullest will result in better scores. The number of squares, layout of squares, and speed with which they fill, varies not only from song to song, but within different parts of a single song as well. Some squares, indicated by a golden color, can be spammed over and over before they fade, letting you chain dozens of notes quickly. Often multiple squares appear at once and while playing which you can either press simultaneously or in rapid succession.

A photo posted by jenilee (@xenokitten) on

You may also unlock combos and abilities of your girls; This seems to be determined by who is in your team. When the song begins, there’s a lengthy animation showing your girls, and they “Pair off” It seems like certain cards when “paired together” will activate different abilities “together”. Sometimes a girl will also activate a single ability. All of these abilities will act as huge score multipliers for the duration that the ability is in effect.

A photo posted by jenilee (@xenokitten) on

The other significant difference is that Aikatsu! Photo on Stage has never been released in North America. This means the game is in Japanese. My time spent with Aikatsu Photo on Stage has amounted to probably an hour, spread over the past two days. I cannot speak or read Japanese, and am not an expert by any means on this game. In fact, twice now I’ve accidentally clicked things and wasted my stars (in game currency used to summon new idols).

There are people and places to get much better information on this game than what I’m about to share with you. I just wanted to share my love for the game and show how cute it is, and tell you you should be playing this game. You should also watch the anime, at least Aikatsu Stars! because it is super kawaii (cute). It’s like Harry Potter crossed with Love Live School Idol Festival. It follows a young girl as she enrolls in a special academy just for idols. She is given a phone and badge and even taken to pick out a special outfit. And it was discovering this anime that sparked my interest in the game. I thought WOW this would make such a fun game! I want to go to a school for idols too! Then I thought “I wonder if there is a game based on this anime already” There are numerous Nintendo DS games, and then there’s this mobile game (and of course the original arcade/card game).

Once again I’m no expert and the following info may not be 100% correct or accurate. I will include some resources at the end of this article that will probably prove more helpful.

A photo posted by jenilee (@xenokitten) on

First here is how to get the game if you use IOS (iphone, ipad, etc).

From a PC, log out of your Itunes account. In the bottom right corner you should see a flag to change your country/region. — If you don’t see this or if it has moved, don’t worry I’ll show you how you can change regions midway through this process later.

You need to decide which version of Aikatsu you want to play. I chose the Japanese version, but there’s also Korean and Chinese versions. The Chinese version for country code MO even looked like it was in English??? I can’t confirm that though as I chose the Japanese version believing it to be the most updated and least likely to close down later.

So if you want to play the Japanese version, select to change your region to Japan now.

Once you’ve selected your region, search for Aikatsu! – you’ll see a lot of anime and music here, you can narrow your results to just Iphone or Ipad apps to make it easier to find.

Once you find the Aikatsu! Photo on Stage app, click the “+Get” button.

You will then be prompted to create a new itunes account.

Here is where you can change your country if you didn’t already do so. It will say something like “If your billing address is not in the United States, click here to change regions” You can then search again for the Aikatsu app and click the +Get button and be prompted again to set up a new Itunes account.

The important thing is that you select the app and use the +Get Button BEFORE MAKING YOUR ACCOUNT. SUPER IMPORTANT DO NOT IGNORE THIS STEP.

Assuming that you followed this advice, the payment should be set to “None” by default.

Ignoring that step and trying to either change an existing Itunes account region, OR creating a new account before clicking the +Get button will result in you being asked for payment details even for FREE apps! And it will only accept Japanese credit/bank cards or Japanese Itunes Gift Cards. So It’s really important to remember to FIRST select the app, and THEN create your account.

You will then need to finish filling in your details, an email address that is not associated with any other Itunes account, you may need to create a new email address, which you can do for free on sites like hotmail, gmail, yahoo, etc. Then fill in your secret hints and select a new password.

You need a Japanese address, I have read that you can use a university address, your mileage may vary. My understanding is that as long as the Prefecture, city, and zipcode all line up, the rest of the address doesn’t matter.

You can use a US cellphone number.

You are now the proud owner of a Japanese Itunes Account. Congratulations!

Your app should begin downloading automatically after entering your password or thumbprint.

To get your app to your Iphone: Now from your Iphone, go to settings, and under the “Itunes & App Store” select sign out, and select sign in to use the new account you just created.

Now when you browse the App store you’ll be browsing the Japanese app store.

You can switch back at any time by going to settings and again signing out and back in to your US Itunes account.

My team Just started playing #Aikatsu and watching #aikatsustars wish #bandai #namco would make English version #kawaii #cardgames

A photo posted by jenilee (@xenokitten) on

Aikatsu! Photo on Stage will not Work on any Rooted Devices, so if you Jailbreak your Iphone it will no longer work for you. This also means Aikatsu! Photo on Stage will not run on android emulators such as Bluestacks. So I am not sure how Android users can enjoy this game. I think it involves using a VPN and Tunneling service, but then I don’t know if that would “flag” the “Rooted Device” warning signal, so unfortunately I can’t provide help or directions to get the app on Android.

But assuming you’re an IOS user, you’re now ready to Play Aikatsu! Photo on Stage. And I’m now finally ready to review it for you 🙂

Title: Aikatsu! Photo on Stage

Where to get: https://itunes.apple.com/jp/…

Publisher: Bandai Namco

Genre: Rhythm Game / Idol Simulation

Overall: 68/90 76% C “Good Game for Girls”

A photo posted by jenilee (@xenokitten) on read more

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Sailor Moon R Promise of the Rose

Sailor Moon R Movie Promise of The Rose Subtitled Theatrical Release Review

A few days ago, I got a chance to go see Sailor Moon R in theaters, again for the 2nd time. The first time that I saw it, they were showing the Sailor Moon R English Dub, which I reviewed here. The dub was good, but I always prefer to watch my anime subbed, because quite often so many things get changed when they dub an anime. Even though, this time it was “uncut” there were still some changes that I noticed.

This review is going to be a little bit different. I’m going to start by pointing out the changes between both versions, some thoughts on the overall experience of each version, and then, my more traditionally formatted review near the very end. Hope you enjoy my review; and if you get a chance, go watch this at the theater. It’s a once in a lifetime experience for you as a fan, and it may help to bring us more Sailor Moon movies, series, and merchandise!

Onto the changes between each version.

For starters, there’s a scene where the girls are sitting around planning their next move and Usagi is feeling nervous about the nature of Mamo and Fiore’s friendship. In both the Dub and the Sub the girls begin to tease Usagi. However, in the Sub, they also begin to tease Ami and it’s a very cute moment. In the Dub that Cuteness is Lost. Here is an overview (from my memory) of how it goes in each version.

Dubbed Scene:

Usagi: “Am I overthinking things?… But they sure seemed like more than friends to me”

Ami: “I guess Mamo is popular with the guys too”

(I think it was ) Mako: “Well I guess it’s fine if you’re born that way”

(I think it was) Rei: “There’s even a few couples like that at my school”

(I think it was) Mina: “What, Really?!” read more

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Sailor Moon R the Movie

Sailormoon R The Movie Theatrical Release Uncut English Dub Review

Update: I recently had an opportunity to see the film again, subtitled this time, and just completed my review for the subtitled version here. If you’re curious about the differences between the two versions, or just want to see the subtitled review, you can check it out here. Otherwise, continue reading below here for my original review of the dubbed version.

I just got back from seeing Sailor Moon R the Movie at Cedar Lee Theater in Cleveland Ohio. We saw the uncut English Dub with the new Viz voice cast (that they have been using for a few years now for their re-dubbing of the DVDs and Blu-ray TV series). The movie is prefaced by an interview with the new cast. The interview is then followed by an animated short called “Moon Power Makeup” which is mostly just a string of flashbacks of season 1 which help to introduce the scouts to perhaps those who have not watched the first season. Also they give you a fancy looking black envelope and inside you will find art of one of the 5 original sailor scouts. We got Sailor Jupiter and Mars. You’ll also find some promotional inserts trying to encourage you to buy the TV series Blu-rays and Manga.

It drew a huge crowd last night, nearly selling out a large, several hundred seat theater. Before making the 3 hour drive to go see the film, I checked to ensure there would be tickets available. It said over 200 seats were remaining. By time the film started, much of that total had sold – plus who knows how many sold before I even checked the website. The theater was near max capacity. We had a large crowd to both the immediate left and right of us. The entire balcony area behind us was completely full, and all throughout the floor level, there was scarcely more than 1 or 2 empty seats beside each other, here or there.

Watching it on the big screen was quite an awesome experience. The colors seemed so much brighter and richer compared to when I watched the original VHS – but that may very well be due to some “HD Remastering” or retouching. Either way, seeing Sailormoon on the big screen was pretty awesome, and seeing the huge turn out of Sailor Moon loving geeks and fans in their Sailormoon shirts, hats, etc all gathered in one place, was really awesome too. Of course I wore a Sailormoon Geeky Tshirt too. :).

My thoughts on the actual movie itself are below. Enjoy my review, and if you get the chance, make sure you get out there to support our Sailor Scouts!

Title: Sailor Moon R the Movie (uncut English dub version)

Release Date: January 2017

Publisher: Toei Animation, Eleven Arts, and Viz Media

Geeky: 5/5   High points for Nostalgia, and excellent animation for the date/time of the film.

Sweetie: 3/5  Although I love Sailor Moon, the movie is a bit weak in the character development and romance areas when compared to the TV series.

Overall: 45/55 82% B- Very Good Anime for Girls

Concept: 10/10 Seeing Sailor Moon on the big screen is awesome no matter how good or bad the movie itself is. It’s something I’ve literally dreamed of doing ever since I was a child. And, as the English cast points out, rarely do you see anime in a US theater, especially anime that is now, nearly 30 years old. It was truly a once in a lifetime experience… and judging by how many tickets the theater sold, perhaps Viz and Eleven Arts will treat us to re-releasing the other Sailor Moon movies in theater format in the future as well.

Story: 8/10 There is a lot of action and almost no character development in this film. Also, unless you’re a fan of the series (but then again, who isn’t a fan of Sailor Moon?), you may feel a little lost or confused even with the inclusion of the Mini-cartoon that re-introduces the scouts and explains their strengths and weaknesses and about the silver moon kingdom and their rebirth on earth. — And although Chibiusa is included in the Mini-cartoon and actual movie, her past and history and relationship to Usagi is actually not explained at all.

The story is also unbelievably cheesey. I don’t know if it’s quite so bad in the subtitled version. I would love to go again to the second and final showing this week which is subtitled to compare how much was just a cheesey plot by the Japanese staff, and how much was cheesey from poor translation choices and poor voice acting from the US staff. There were several scenes that were meant to be serious which caused 300+ people to burst out laughing instead.

Those two small complaints aside, the story is actually very cute and gives you a unique look at Mamoru’s childhood. Also, in this uncut version, they more clearly explain Mamoru’s relationship with the new villain. I remember when the movie was announced a few months ago, I got into an “argument” with someone on facebook who made a comment when I shared the news post. They argued that the relationship was more than platonic, and I counter argued, that they were just close childhood friends… but after seeing the uncut version, I have to concede, and agree, the relationship is definitely 100% romantic.

The Sailor Scouts even joke about the questionable nature of the relationship, quipping things such as “I guess Mamo is popular with the guys too” “Well I guess it’s fine if you’re born that way” “There’s even a few couples like that at my school” and Usagi is stressed/worried and says to herself “It sure seemed like more than friends”. Which comes as no surprise, because by the next few seasons, almost everyone in the Sailor Moon universe is openly exploring their sexuality, with Uranus x Neptune, Uranus x Moon, and Chibiusa X Saturn… and that’s not even mentioning Sailor Stars, which are essentially gender-neutral, or transgendered Women who were born in Men’s bodies when they re-incarnated and transforming back to female when they take their Sailor forms. So Sailor Moon is no stranger to dealing with these topics. It was actually quite revolutionary for its day and time, back in the 90s, when even live-action TV shows were still shying away from tackling such relationships.

If your favorite part of Sailor Moon is the action and fighting scenes you will probably really enjoy Sailor Moon R the Movie. It is way more action heavy compared to the TV Series. It opens right away with a lengthy and fairly violent fight sequence.

The story is also full of comedy… Shortly after that fight sequence, there’s a scene with Usagi and Chibiusa that builds and builds the same joke for what seems like forever, but it was effective. I don’t laugh out loud easily… and even that elicited a chuckle from me (and uproarious laughter from the huge audience).

Despite, at the core, the story being about Mamo and Usagi and the new Villain, it’s actually not very Romance laden. They are on a date at the opening of the film, but once again comedy comes in to foil any chance of romance for the two of them.

Characters 8/10: As mentioned, character development is really pretty much non-existent. You could easily skip watching this film and not miss anything earth-shattering in developing the scouts or Mamo as characters. You’d miss out a lil on Mamo’s backstory but it’s mostly stuff that’s been glossed over briefly by the series anyways.

The scouts are featured heavily in the film and so if you’re the type who complains that one of the weaknesses of Crystal is how it’s all about Mamo x Usagi, (this seems a common complaint), then you’ll like how prominent each of the scouts are in this film, and a decision that Usagi makes near the end of the movie, showing how much she loves and cares for the other scouts. Though this too is not surprising if you’ve seen the 90s TV series you know the focus was more on Usagi and the Scouts and less on the Reincarnation / Romance bits.

If however, one of your primary draws to Sailor Moon is the character development or romance, this movie may very well disappoint you.

But you should still go see it, because it’s Sailor Moon :). How long have we waited to see this cast of characters on the big screen? And if we want to see the other movies, a re-run of the dub, or airing of the new Viz dub, or a new season of Crystal, or perhaps a continuation of the series even beyond Stars, or more Sailor Moon merchandise and collectibles, then, you know as they say “Money Talks”.

Also, as you know, the characters in Sailor Moon as very diverse, with almost someone for EVERY girl out there to look up to. How many TV shows or Movies can claim such a wholesome cast full of role models for young women?

Sailor Moon teaches us about friendship, love, respect, and kindness. Moon is the quintessential loud/ditzy/friendly outgoing girl, Mercury is the smart/brainy/shy girl, Mars is the mysterious/quiet/serious/beautiful girl, Jupiter is the “tomboy” type girl (who also secretly has a soft side and loves to cook, and falls in love easily), Venus is the “best friend” or “girl next door” type of girl.

With so many different personalities, there’s bound to be a superhero that your kids can look up to, which I think is one of the reasons for the series continued success and popularity.

Artwork: 4/5 This is the old 90s style animation, and it shows… There’s some really bad CG effects later on in the film… and the characters have that unique 90s style to them… However, I was surprised by how bright and vivid the colors were and how crisp, clean, and clear all of the animations looked. There are also some lovely backgrounds too.

Music: 4/5 I was surprised to see they kept the Japanese music with the English dub. This worked fine 90% of the time… Except for two occasions… One in the Mini-cartoon before the featured film, in a flash back Rei is singing… in Japanese… after seconds ago speaking in English… this felt disjointed, jarring, and just out of place…. The other occasion is perhaps debatable, but you can form your own opinion… My opinion is I would have loved to hear the old English version of the Sailor Moon opening theme — Or to have at least seen subtitles of the Japanese lyrics when the song played at the start of the movie.

Other than those two points of contention, which I admit are perhaps not a commonly shared opinion, the music in the film was quite enjoyable, adding to the suspense, action, and drama of the film. The soundtracks to Sailor Moon have always been among my favorites. I owned many of the imported Japanese CDs, as well as some of the English cassette tapes and equally loved both the Original Japanese music, as well as the old 90s stuff too.

Voice Acting 3/5 – I do not normally like to watch dubs. I went to the dubbed movie, simply because it was playing on a weekend, while the subtitled version is playing on a weeknight. I do not follow the North American Voice Actors, so I have really no clue who these people are (other than I do know they are not the original cast, and are the new cast put together by Viz).

I will say it is super nice to see an Asian American playing the lead role, when so many other anime movies (such as the live action Ghost in the Shell) are being White Washed by movie producers. Of course, one Asian with a cast of almost entirely white folks, still isn’t that great, but it’s a start.

Now as to the quality of their performance… it does take some getting used to, if you’re a fan of the original 90s cast, you will notice distinguishable differences which might seem jarring at first. Overall though, I feel the cast did a wonderful job.

There are a few… either… ill acted… or poorly written lines…. The most notable of which was at the end of the movie when the new villain says “It’s all over now… Mamo has thrown a flower at me” — He is so overly dramatic… and the words chosen make it seem … so…. cheesey… The entire theater erupted in laughter for pretty much 10 minutes straight… followed by a scene shortly thereafter where he reverts to his childhood form and tumbles off silently into space.

But perhaps… that cheeseyness is part of Sailor Moon’s charms. The cheesey lines are when the theater laughed the most and had the most fun. 90s anime IS very cheesey… so I don’t know if this is necessarily a bad thing really! But it was… probably…. not intentional — because it was supposed to be a serious, dramatic, and even slightly sad scene.

I also noticed several instances where Sailor Jupiter used a cuss word. I am fairly certain that this was a liberty taken only in the dub, because in Japan the anime was intended for preschool children, also Japanese as a language I don’t think has direct swear words such as that.

It was so jarring that I began counting the number of swears… There were 3 or 4 of them that I noticed… all from Sailor Jupiter as she was fighting. It’s a minor swear word — but still… It just did not seem to fit the spirit of Sailor Moon as a franchise.

I do appreciate that the script was “uncut” — and if that swearing was in the original Japanese script, then I’m glad they left it in. To edit it would be sad because it would mean they were back to trying to make a child friendly show or care about ratings more than care about doing an accurate translation.

So I’m on the fence as to if the swearing was “good” or “bad” – if part of the original script, it’s “good” that the script wasn’t altered to be more “kid friendly”; however, if it was as I suspect, a creative liberty taken by Viz staff then “bad”. A simple clicking of the tongue, or a Tch sound could have replaced the one syllable swear word, and seemed more “at home” in such a child-friendly show.

But overall, the voice acting was good for the most part. The scouts really showed their personalities and had voices somewhat similar/close to the 90s cast (Jupiter has a deep husky voice in both the 90s version as well as the new Viz cast; Sailor Moon has a ditzy and bubbly voice, Mercury a very calming/soothing voice, etc.) Therefore, largely I feel the series is well cast and the deliverance of their lines, mostly, pretty solid (though there were some notably cringe-worthy moments as well (such as the one with the new villain which I referenced above). Thankfully though, the cringe-worthiness was the exception and not the norm throughout the film.

Overall: 45/55 82% B- Very Good Anime for Girls

Overall, the experience of seeing Sailor Moon on the big screen, the hundreds of moonies who turned out for the event, and the movie itself, made for an enjoyable and nostalgic night of entertainment.

Sailormoon R The Movie Theatrical Release Uncut English Dub Review Read More »

Sailor Moon Officially Licensed Merchandise in February 2017 Qbox Kawaii Shoujo Anime Monthly Subscription Box

Qbox Sailormoon Subscription Box Now On Sale – Shipping Begins February 2017

Qbox is a mystery box that features a different kawaii theme each month. The theme for February is Sailor Moon! They did another Sailormoon Qbox back in 2015.

To me the quality of the items in previous Qbox seems low – just judging from other peoples’ box opening photos and videos I’ve seen online.

If the Sailormoon Qbox was around 18-23 bucks (including shipping and handling) I’d probably pick this up myself. However, sadly, that’s not the case.

The Sailormoon Qbox is around $32 (with shipping), for 8 (or more) sailormoon items. They say the items are officially licensed and from Japan. So that may add some value. But judging from what I’ve seen it seems like small cheap plush, stationary, scrapbook materials, and etc. — While all of those things are kawaii, to me they aren’t enough to justify the price of the box which I feel is about $10 overpriced right now.

If you’re a sailormoon fan and interested in checking out Qbox then hurry because Qbox have a history of selling out!! Go here to get your own Sailormoon Qbox! http://www.getqbox.com/-qshop/februarybox This is a one time box and not a subscription.

Qbox Sailormoon Subscription Box Now On Sale – Shipping Begins February 2017 Read More »

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New Cardcaptor Sakura Anime is “In the Works”

Crunchyroll shared news lastnight that a new Cardcaptor Sakura anime has been announced to coincide with the 20th anniversary of the Cardcaptor Sakura manga. Earlier this year it was reported that a new Cardcaptor Sakura manga would be released that would continue the adventures of Sakura and her friends as they enter into Junior High.

No information is available at this time as to if the new Cardcaptor Sakura anime will follow the newly announced manga, or whether it will be a series or stand-alone movie, or perhaps a reboot or remake of the original series (for example, taking the route of fellow magical girl Sailor Moon and what she did for her anniversary with the new Sailor Moon Crystal anime), or perhaps this new Cardcaptor Sakura anime will be something new entirely. Also no release date or voice actor cast or further info has been released just yet, which indicates it may be well into 2017 or even 2018 before we actually get to see this new anime.

Crunchyroll currently has all of the original anime to view on their site. I personally need to sit down and marathon them all at some point. Over the years, I’ve seen a dozen or so episodes and at least 2 of the movies, and from what I’ve seen it’s a very cute show! Just so much to watch and so little time that I never “got into it” as much as I would expect to be into a magical girl romantic comedy / fantasy adventure such as this.

Now that the new show has been announced that motivates me to want to hurry up and watch the original episodes 🙂 I know what my plans will be this weekend lol. Anyone else?

New Cardcaptor Sakura Anime is “In the Works” Read More »