Animated
Record of Ragnarok Opens Strong with a Flawed but Entertaining First Season
Record of Ragnarok is one of those absurd animes that leans into its premise and revels in its absurdity. It takes place entirely during a tournament- and it’s not just any tournament. Thirteen gods and humans go up against each…
Trese Brings Filipino Mythology to Life in First Anime Based on a Filipino Komik
Adapted from a Filipino komik of the same name, Trese is the first anime series originating from the Philippines. It presents a rich, intriguing lore of supernatural creatures and mythical beings, bringing to mind the likes of Supernatural and The…
Eden is a Standard Environmental Parable with Great Visuals and a Robust Voice Acting Cast
Eden, Netflix’s latest original Japanese anime, doesn’t exactly try to reinvent the wheel. Adapted by the manga of the same name written by Tsuyoshi Isumoto, it tells a last-human-on-earth tale in a world populated by robots. The environmental aspect is…
Netflix’s Love, Death & Robots Volume 2: Half the Episodes, Half the Heart?
Netflix's 2019 anthology series Love, Death & Robots stands out with innovative visuals, artistry in every frame and its short story-esque narratives, some adapted from well-known science fiction literature. The show's first season made the audience laugh, cry, and think…
Castlevania Delivers a Series Finale that is Emotional and Uplifting, Despite a Slow Start
Castlevania is one of those rare triumphs of video game adaptations. Loosely adapted from the game series, it has weaved its own engaging tale, leveraging its characters and lore to build a fascinating, grim world. However, it did face a…
Yasuke Squanders its Narrative Potential by Creating a Middling Plot with Mish-Mash Sci-Fi Fantasy Elements
Netflix’s original anime content has been very hit-and-miss. For every Devilman Crybaby, there’s also been something like Neo Yokio. Yasuke, unfortunately, falls into the latter camp, despite having a prestigious studio like MAPPA attached to do the animation and a…
Invincible Manages to Stand Out as a Superhero Story, Despite its Intentionally Standard Premise
Superhero fatigue has been talked about for years, but this is the first time I am experiencing it myself. Sure, there are some excellent adaptations out there such as The Boys, Doom Patrol and Umbrella Academy to a degree, but…
Attack on Titan Season 4 Part I Review: A War for Survival Where Both Sides are Flawed
“You can't change anything unless you can discard part of yourself too. To surpass monsters, you must be willing to abandon your humanity.” – Armin Arlert. With rumors of confirmation of the last ever part of the widely critiqued and…
DOTA: Dragon’s Blood Dives Deep into its Source Material’s Lore in a Densely Packed First Season
The problem with adapting such a lore-heavy property like DOTA is that you can quickly lose the audience by trying to service too many plot threads. As of now, DOTA 2 has 119 playable champions, each with their own backstory.…
Pacific Rim: The Black is A Grim, Slow-Paced Take on the Cheesy Action Franchise
Pacific Rim: The Black is not only the franchise’s first foray into animation, it’s also a marked departure from the films. The films were mostly cheesy affairs, optimistic about the heroes’ chances at defeating the kaijus and fending off the…
