Anime
Knights of Sidonia (Episodes 6-12) Complete
I'm not sure that I can really add anything more to my thoughts on this series after finishing off the first season the week - all the negatives and the positives of the show have pretty much stayed par for the course in the second half of the season. It is a very easy show to watch in large chunks but it all seems very too much style over substance, I mean it's all fluff that while might look great it's never enough to truly satisfy your needs. I was never really pulled into the world of Sidonia and therefore there was no weight to the story or the character arcs; I just wasn't invested at any point during the show, not to say that I was ever bored really, but it seems quite telling that a show that seems so light on meaning and a well crafted story, spent a lot of time repeating itself in the opening scenes of each episode. Knights of Sidonia is hardly offensive but that's really not the greatest of compliments and to be honest with such a rich choice of anime at your fingertips on Netflix - I can't say that this would be anywhere near the top of my list of anime recommendations, while it might appeal more to a different audience, for me this was a show that tame swings and hopes for the best.
5/10
Avatar: The Last Airbender Season 1 (Episodes 1-20) Complete
Well well well, whilst not strictly Anime per-se being as this is an American created family friendly animated TV series that first and foremost is aimed towards the younger generation; but being a fan of Dragonball Z and more appropriately with regards to American animation - Star Wars: The Clone Wars, I thought that it was about time that I'd check out Avatar: The Last Airbender and while some of you might have already guessed by the fact that I've managed to steamroll my way through the entire 20 episode first series - I absolutely loved this show. It was so wonderful to see an animated show that is obviously heavily influenced by Japanese anime, but has also spent a lot of time within the writing room to create such a well thought out story with well rounded characters that develop as the series goes along at such a brisk pace yet never ever feeling a sense that their rushing towards the end. This first series has been a joy to watch and with the combination of mythical use of the four elements with martial arts that creates some really impressive action set pieces and some creative single combat choreography. In many ways I feel like Avatar and Ang as a character in the show share many traits from Dragonall and Goku, but never in the sense that this feels like a knock off - but more thematically and in the sense the whilst the show is essentially for children it also has such a well crafted story that tackle a number of issues that the show is actually fun for the whole family and given that I'm now a 30 year old adult watching this show for the first time and get that same feeling that I got when I used to watch Dragonball Z as a kid growing up - it's a sign that an animated show can still appeal to us as adults and not purely based on a sense of nostalgia of our youth; If you are a fan of anime or animation in general or if you have kids of any age - then I can strong recommend that you check out this show as it is well and truly and wonderful show and I'm so excited to now work my way through the next 2 seasons.
9/10
TV
Sense 8 (Episodes 1-3)
From the minds of the Wachowski's (The Matrix) comes a new Netflix original series based centrally around the idea that there are 8 people out there in the world that are able to share their thoughts, visions, feelings and experiences with each other - somehow all connected through this birthing sequence from a mystery woman that we are exposed to in the very opening of the show. Having only seen the first 3 episodes it really is still very early days to judge the show; yes there is certainly potential here, but at this moment in time the show just feels like its being clever for the sake of showboating a visual style and editing together sequences from across the world into one complete amalgamation of the bizarre to the erotic. Colour me unimpressed as of today, but I'm more than willing to give this show some time, there's has been basically next to no storytelling done at this point with regards to the explanation of the powers that these 8 individuals have and the purpose behind them, but then again given this is a show on Netflix maybe this is a chance for the Wachowski's to clearly develop something over a longer format that will actually add up to something substantial of which I'm not sure they've been able to achieve since The Matrix. Although the whole transgender - bisexual/gay/lesbian angle in the show does feel rather hamfistedly rammed into our faces and all too personal with regards to one half of the Wachowski siblings - hopefully this part of the show will blend better as the show goes on and doesn't feel preachy as it does at this moment in time - or at least to me anyways.
Daredevil (Episode 13) Complete
Oh my what a week that it was to endure, having to wait so so long to finally catch up with the season finale to Daredevil - was it worth it in the end? Well yes and no - as a standalone episode itself, it was just as fantastic as the rest of the series has been to date, but then again it didn't really have that cliffhanger type of ending that leaves you eager for more and laying in wait for that second season to come out - instead the finale feels like it was written under uncertain terms of whether or not that a second season was going to be green lit - we had moments shared between our key players in which we have well rounded closers that could act as a way of putting a lid on a chapter of their lives incase we don't get the opportunity to come back to the world of Hell's Kitchen. On a whole though this show has be nothing less that hard-hitting, no punches pulled dark drama that in much the way that The Dark Knight did for comic book movies - Daredevil has managed to do the same for the genre on the smaller screen; it has set a new benchmark that future shows really have to live up to and it's rather humorous to think that the dark gritty stuff is coming from Marvel and not DC considering the direction we have seen on the big screen from Hollywood in recent years. This show is without doubt a recommendation to all - even if you aren't a comic book fan I would still wholeheartedly say that Daredevil is a must see for all - it's well crafted and the world and everything on the show feels grounded in a reality that you can really buy into and not feel like you are being subjected to some pulled straight off a comic book spread. And if nothing else you get to see Private Pyle (Full Metal Jacket) become all kinds of crazy again.
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