Mango

This is a debut. This is the first mobile app to be "reviewed" here, at POPinions. Mango is relevant to me and somehow makes its way to this blog because it allows me to read my favorite manga.

Mango is a multiplatform app, available to Android and Blackberry devices. It is not available at the Play Store and the only way to get it's to download it at it's developers site (http://mango.leetsoft.net/). Believing in the developers the app is used by over 15000 users every day, and I'm one of them. I really do not like to read mangas or books in the computer so I prefer to use an app in my tablet. After trying many apps, Mango was the chosen one.

THE (+) THINGS:

•  It has 9 different sources to read from.
• It has hundreds of manga available.
• Clean look and simple to use.
• Pre-loads the next pages to avoid loading times when you change a page.
• Favorites system that saves your progress and allows you to continue where you stopped.
• Option to create a library and to easily download chapters to read offline.
• It's free.

 

THE (-) THINGS:

• Slow animations in the page transitions, I had to turn them off.
• When online, there are ads at the beggining of each chapter.
• As far as I know, it's impossible to read anything besides what it's available online by the app.

Using a Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 7' I can read without any problem but I wouldn't mind to have a bigger screen with a better resolution. Anything smaller than 7' makes almost impossible to use this app.

For me, Mango is the best app to read manga in an Android device. I give it 4/5.

Sonic R

Sonic R was originally released in 1997 for the infamous Sega Saturn that almost killed Sega. Eventually Dreamcast was the last nail in the coffin for SEGA consoles but that is a subject to be talked later, maybe in a post of its own. It was also released for PC, Playstation 2 and the Nintendo Game Cube.

When we think of Sonic we think of speed. When we think of speed we think of races. So, in the paper, this game was like peanut butter and jelly. Problem is...it didn't went that well. Which is funny because I don't really like peanut butter with jelly that much.

The game, incrediby, has a story. The game focuses on the characters effort to win a series of races to prevent Dr. Robotnik from getting the Chaos Emeralds and enslaving the world. I discovered that today as I was researching for this review. I now know why Dr. Robotnik is an unlockable character.

 In a way this game was the predecessor to Sonic & All-Stars Racing which is a really good game (I really did not liked Sonic Riders). This 3D experience had its flaws but it showed that a Sonic racing game in 3D could be something really good.

Graphics - 2/5 

Sonic R aged horribly. Still, it's Sonic. The main problem are the Saturn famous polygons which are light-years away from the rival Playstation. This is a powerful 2D machine that just happened to manage to render 3D too.

Gameplay - 3/5

Incredibly has an intersting mechanic to it because you have boosts that cost coins, many routes and bonus to get during the race. Easy to learn but you have to prepare every lap very well in order to make the best time possible. It's not an easy game unless you're used to race games or a lot of practice in Sonic R. It has clunky controls that seem to don't do exactly what you want, they should have done better in a Sonic game. It's a very fun game to play despite its problems.

Sound - 3/5

Typical techno\soul mix from the 90's, it's not something you would say you like but still it sticks in your head. You get so used to the music that you eventually will like it.

Longevity - 2/5 

It has 4 tracks when you begin. You can unlock 1 track when you win races in all the other 4 tracks. You have 4 characters when you begin, You can unlock 1 character by beating the 5 tracks which you can easily do in about 30 minutes. There are 4 more characters to unlock by collecting 5 special coins, beating the race and then beating the new character in each of the first 4 tracks. And 1 last character to unlock by colleting the 7 Chaos Emeralds in the first 4 tracks in which you have to win the race, its Super Sonic so its worth it. The game higly benefits in lenght by the Vs mode, tag mode and balloon catching mode.

 
This is it. This is Sonic R. There is not much more to tell about it. It is incredibly small, flawed but fun to  play. I've spent several hours just trying to beat my own records (I remember to have a near perfect time lap time in the first track, just under the 17 seconds). Sonic R gets 10/20.

South Park - The "Black Friday" Arc

Today is a review/resume of the most recent "arc" in the series South Park. The Black Friday Arc. 

I call it an arc because it is 3 episodes following the same plot. For those familiar with the show, very rarely the story continues to another episode. The first time it happened was in the first season finale "Cartman's Mom Is a Dirty Slut" continuing to "Cartman's Mom is Still a Dirty slut" leaving the cliffhanger on who was Eric Cartman's dad from one to another. One of the best episodes are in Season 11 when we have the "Imaginationland" arc with 3 episodes, Imaginationland 1, 2 and 3. For those who watched these episodes, you probably never thought that any other episode, or string of episodes, would beat it. Until now.

Season 17 episode 7 "Black Friday". This episode starts the arc, Black Friday is coming (pun not intended) and the children conclude that they must join forces to buy 80% off next gen consoles. But they must face a dire choice: PS4 or Xbox One? That would determine who would be playing with who, and if they could lend games to each other. During a make believe in the genre of Game of Thrones they turn into two factions, one for each console. Then like the show that is the web of conspiracy and betrayal ensues. Butters is a newcomer to the show and he is always perturbed about the number of penises in the show. Cartman is most of the time seen in a garden talking about betrayals with another character, while an old man always shout to stop talking abut betrayal in his garden. This becomes one of the most funny running gags in the arc.

In meanwhile Randy is doing a part-time job at the mall security, using the excuse for some holiday cash, but his plan is to be inside the mall before the doors open to gain some advantage. As the time to open doors becomes near, the leader of the security is killed by a custommer revolted about lining for Black Friday, and so Randy becomes the captain of the mall security, and decides to stand guard for his pride, instead for a big ass flat TV.

Every book of A Song of Ice and Fire

The news of a console war in colorado reach the Sony CEO, who makes a special bundle for selling the PS4, the "Brack Friday Bunduru", which includes four game controllers, a map of Japan, a $100 rebate, and the ability to pre-order Metal Gear Solid V. The episode ends with Princess McCormick, Kenny plays a princess in the make believe world, who was in the Xbox One faction turning to the PS4 one, catching the viewers off guard with the cliffhanger, in a Game-of-Thrones-esque way.

Then follows the "A Song of Ass and Fire" episode, more and more customers make line at the mall, as Randy stands as Captain of Security. Cartman refuses to accept Kenny as a princess and enters contact with Microsoft's CEO Steve Ballmer, who refuses to take part in the console wars, and wishes a more peacefull way to sell the consoles. This plan quickly falls into ground as Bill Gates murders him and takes control of operations. He allies with Channel 9, as a bloody black friday would make great views for the channel. One of the reporters betrays Bill Gates and informs the Sony CEO of the plan, so it would make even more blood, and a more great piece of news. The Sony CEO then goes to Kenny, and give him a brooch, making him a Japanese Princess.

 No one saw that coming. 

In the meanwhile Cartman sends Butters to George R.R. Martin house to know future plots, as a way to defeat Kenny. Eventually they met, but Martin only talks about penises. Black Friday is also delayed one week, and has 96% off for the first 100 customers, makin the crowd outside the mall grow even more.

I recall more boobs, must be selective memory.

The final episode is called "Tities and Dragons" and is the conclusion of the arc. Cartman bow to Kenny, as he can't win the wars. He comes with the plan to rent the adjacent Red Robin for a wedding, as it is linked to the mall. This is just a plan to betray the Ps4 faction and lock them inside the Red Robin. Stan comes to know of Cartman's plan while in a walk with Cartman on the old man's garden, and the old man shouts Cartman's plot as revenge. Cartman gets Stan grounded so he can't attend the wedding. Kyle talks to Stan, and Stan breaks they're friendship. Eventually Kyle tells everyone of the PS4 faction and the betrayal is stopped. Then Bill Gates and Sony's CEO appear and get into a fist fight, with Gates winning, and as such, he wins the console wars.

During the wedding, the opening cereminy of the mall is made by George R.R. Martin who starts to talk about his penis, eventually showing it, instead of opening the doors. This makes a custommer slice his pennis off. The raging mob enters the mall as Randy's forces try to protect the mall.

Maybe it would make him write faster

At the aftermath, there's a sea of blood in the mall, as the kids go and get their Xboxes. In the end the kids can't forget about the image of Sony's CEO head being bashed into a wall and think "why do we need videogames? We can use our imagination" as he grabs a stick, an ad for the upcoming game South Park: The Stick of Truth appears, ending the story.

These are probably my favourite episodes of South Park, as I read all the A Song of Ice and Fire Books, and watched the 2 first seasons of the show. The betraying, Kenny as Daenerys like character, the alliances, the Security Mall as the Night's Watch, The Red Robin Wedding...there's so much references and puns about that universe that is hard not to like it if you know George Martin's series. In my opinion even if you don't watch South Park, but you are a fan of Game of Thrones, you should watch it. Like now, or now. Now is probably best.

Art - 4/5 - The usual art of South Park, but during the third episode  it's also used shoujo manga like art, wich made me laugh hard.

Soundtrack 5/5 - It is used music like Game of Thrones during the arc, japanese mahou-shojo like themes, and of course the weiner version of Game of Thrones opening sequence.

Excitement - 4/5 - The episodes are good. Between the second and third it took 2 weeks and it seemed like years, as the expectation was high.

Plot 5/5 - I don't know how but South Park never disapoints in plot, and joining Game of Throne's web of betrayal and deceit, made it even better.

Black Friday Arc gets a 18/20 bunduru.

Metal Gear Solid

Up until last week I had never played Metal Gear Solid, and now I deeply regret I haven't done it earlier.

Launched in the distant year of 1998 this action-adventure stealh game developed by Hideo Kojima and distributed by Konami has gained the status of a groundbreaking title. Metal Gear Solid was very well received by the critic, and is recognized by many as one of the best and most important games of all time. Selling more than 6 million copies, Metal Gear Solid made the stealth genre popular which led to sequels, prequels, spin-offs, remakes, radio drama, comics and novels.

Truth be told, Metal Gear Solid is actually a sequel to the MSX2 games titled Metal Gear and Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake. The MSX2 was a Japanese Home Computer known for its limitations, for instance the impossibility to have more than 4 enemies at the same time in a screen. Kojima was a newbie and didn't really know much about programing, after all he took economics course in college, but he had the dream and desire to make games that looked like movies, and when Konami ordered Kojima to make an action game for the MSX2T Kojima's creativity led to Metal Gear. He surpassed the limitations of the MSX2 and came up with the idea to make a game focused on the goal of not being seen rather than confronting hordes of enemies like most games at the time

Solid Snake sneaking upon an enemy inside a cardbox. An iconic prop in the Metal Gear series.

Metal Gear was released in the western market as a port for the NES system, without any envolvement by Kojima. The game has some differences over the original game, one of them critical...the robot that is the reason for the game (Metal Gear, a kind of mobile tank aka a Mecha) does not appear in the NES version which is simply ridiculous. Nonetheless Metal Gear was a success in the US which led to a sequel (Snake's Revenge) for the NES which, once again, wasn't developed by Kojima. He himself did not knew that a sequel was being made and was during a train trip with one of the delevopers of that game, who had previously worked with Kojima, that he discovered that. His former co-worker asked Kojima to develop a real sequel and that's what he did, by the next day Kojima had the idea of the game almost complete. Snake's Revenge was a success and was never released in Japan, Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake was only released in Japan and was considered even better than his predecessor, but due to only being released in the MSX2 led to a low number of units sold.

Solid Snake running away from Metal Gear Rex.

Up until today Kojima despises the NES versions and considers them to be garbage due to have significant diferences over his original vision of the game. Snake's Revenge is considered to be non-canon on the series.

So what is Metal Gear Solid about? The game follows Solid Snake, a soldier and main protagonist of the previous games, who infiltrates a nuclear weapons facility in an island on Alaska known as Shadow Moses in the, at the time, future year of 2005. The goal is to neutralize the terrorist threat from FOXHOUND, a renegade special forces unit. Also, Snake must rescue three hostages, the head of DARPA, the president of a major arms manufacturer and Meryl Silverburgh, which is the niece of Snake's commanding officer Roy Campbell.

The main antagonist and leader of FOXHOUND is Liquid Snake. This special force has specialized members like Revolver Ocelot, a gunslinger, Sniper Wolf, a sniper, Vulcan Raven, a heavy-gun specialist, Psycho Mantis, a psychic and Decoy Octopus, a master of disguise. Liquid Snake threatens to launch a nuclear attack if his demands are not fulfilled which might cause a new World War.

Graphics - 4/5 

Being a release to the Sony Playstation game console, Metal Gear Solid is the first entry in 3D of the series. Now we might think that the graphics are a little dated, but the thing is that an HD version of the game would not make a big difference, because it still looks good, and if we think that it was released 15 years ago they look really awesome. A remake for the GameCube using the game engine of Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty was released, titled, Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes but still I've played the Playstation and looked as good as some Playstation 2 titles.

Gameplay - 5/5

This is where Metal Gear Solid excels. The top view is, in my opinion, the best way to play any Metal Gear Solid game. I've tried the Playstation Portable titles and found them less enjoyable due to the camera view.
The game has several ways to be played. You can either be extra sneaky and refrain from killing enemy soldiers or just being sneaky and cleaning everything that comes in your way using the various methods you are allowed to use. You can knock on walls to lure the enemies to traps. You have to use cigarettes to be able to see lasers in some rooms. One particular enemy predicts what you are going to do and the way to trick him is to plug your controller in the player 2 slot. Using a cardbox to avoid being detected or letting dogs pee on it to prevent them to attack you later. The details are awesome and encourage the player to look for different ways to reach the goal.
The boss fights are among the best ever in the gaming history and that is to say a lot about it.
Another great thing about the game is the storytelling, it is a great story that is told by playing the missions and by the many cutscenes that are simply awesome. I think that at the time nothing has been done like that, the game truly looks like a movie. The game takes about 2-3 hours to complete but the cutscenes extend the game for 3 more hours more or less.
It doesn't get much better than this.



Sound - 5/5

Immersive. That is the perfect adjective to describe the soundtrack of this game. The sound becomes part of the action, thrills the player and can either make you feel safe or in danger.
The voice acting is also superb.



Longevity - 4/5

As said before the game isn't very long, but due to the many ways to complete the game, the two different endings and the bonus items that are given by the end of the game (like a bandana that when equipped makes you to have infinite bullets) when you complete certain goals add a great replay value. Also there are the VR Missions which, despite not having any story, are also interesting to play.

Truly a masterpiece, a must have and must play. If you have not played it yet I urge you to do it. I give it a SOLID 18/20.

The Wolverine

Today is reviewed one of the summer's blockbuster movie: The Wolverine.

The main character needs no introduction. The most famous X-Men, James ''Logan'' Howllet ,a.k.a Wolverine, gets his second solo movie after the disappointing Wolverine: Origins.

This time it takes place after X-Men 3, and Logan is living a life of reclusion. In the beginning of the movie we see a flashback of Logan's life, during WW2. As the planes bomb Nagasaki, we see Logan saving a young japanese soldier from the explosion, revealing his mutant healing powers. The soldier becomes very grateful to him, despite seeing his monstrous powers. Then back to the present, the same soldier sends a subordinate, Yukio, to get him. Its seems that the soldier Logan saved, Yamada, is a succesfful business man in Japan, and wants to say goodbye to Logan. Then in Tokyo he meets with Yamada, as he says that he can make him mortal (by mortal, loosing his healing powers), Logan declines and Yamada dies. While attending the funeral logan saves Mariko, Yamada's grand-daughter, but soomehow his healing powers are minimal, so he doesn't recover from wounds as usual. Then the story between Mariko and Logan ensues taking a romantic note, and he keeps the entire movie protecting her, until the final when he takes on the bad guy.

The plot of the movie is real simple, and is loosely based on an arc from the comics, and when I say loosely....it's really loosely.

THE BAD THINGS:

1. Even without healing powers, logan's claws don't make him bleed. Witchcraft!
2. The fight on the Shinkansen is one of the most lame action scenes I've seen to date.
   
   


3. Harada somehow isn't the Silver Samurai, and is a ninja servant for Yamada...who uses bows.
4. The Silver Samurai is now an adamantium giant robot. What?
5. The romantic relationship between Mariko and Logan happens too fast. Of course in the comics it happens, but in the movie felt forcefull.
6. A high-tech tower on a classic japanese village. Wooden houses and Hight Tech Metal Tower.
7. The ''two-handed sword" scene.
8. Viper. Probably the worst sub-villain in a Marvel movie. I don't even know why she is with Yamada, as originally she is a HYDRA official. Oh well, fuck logic.
9. Despite being without healing powers, Logan gets shot by a shotgun and barely flinches, and continues like it was nothing.

THE GOOD THINGS:

- Logan beying tormented by killing Jane.

- The after credits clip introducing the X-Men: Days of Future Past (which I reccomend seeing the movie's site)

- Hm.....

The movie overall is bad. Once more they kill a character from the Marvel Universe, as if Deadpool wasn't enough. The story and the action scenes are so bland it hurts. It makes me afraid of watching another movie with Wolverine in the title. I just hope they don't make one with Daken, as I still want to like him.

The judgment:

Plot - 2/5 - Almost nothing from the original story went into the movie version, wich is bad since in the ads it said "Based on the aclaimed comic arc". Which is not. C'mon you just wanted to shoot on Tokyo.

Soundtrack - 2/5 - it's that bad, yes.

Visuals - 3/5 - It has some nice effects. I like the tower despite all that was wrong with it.

Performances - 2/5 - They're bad from the beggining to the end. I just don't have words to describe it.

The Wolverine gets 9/20.

Space Brothers

Today I review this slice of life anime, Space Brothers.

The latest opening for the anime, my favourite until now.

This anime, as the titles suggests, is about two brothers, Nanba Hibito and Nanba Mutta. This review will start by presenting the two main characters:

 Nanba Mutta - Most of the anime follows the older brother Mutta. Mutta was born October 28th of 1993, during the Agony of Doha, when japan failed to get into the football world cup and all the country sighed, the older brother was born. Himself considers to be very unlucky because of this event. Before starting the journey to become an austronaut, Mutta worked in a car design company. Easily gets lost in his imagination, usually overthinks things over and always expects the worst coming his way. It's a very intelligent individual, usually thinking outside the box. Despite considering himself to be unlucky, he may be the most lucky one in the anime, being saved by luck a ton of times.

Nanba Hibito - The succesfull astrounaut, the younger Nanba Hibito. Nanba Hibito was born September 17th of 1996, Nomo earned a MLB no-hitter shutout, and while the nation yelled in euphory, the younger brother was born. Hard working and straightforward, Hibito quickly rose in Nasa ranks, in part by his extraordinary talent as an astronaut, to become the first japanese in the moon, and on the first team to live in the moon base. He's more serious than Mutta, and sometimes can be very airheaded, but at the same time he's a role model for a lot of people. He's very popular in the USA, receiving the nickname Samurai Boy.

The story starts July 9th of 2006,while the world was fixated int he  football world cup final in Germany, and while Zidane headbutts Matterazi, the two brothers are exploring they're neighborhood while making an audio log. During this trip, they saw an UFO on the sky sparking the dream of being astronauts. The story then jumps to 2025, Hibito is on the crew for the lunar base, a tryout for creating colonies in Mars, and also becoming the first Japanese to go to the moon. Meanwhile Mutta is...being fired from his job as a car designer, for hedbutting his boss for talking trash about Hibito.

Zidane!

Then Mutta starts job hunting, but Hibito makes their mother send his resume in secret to JAXA, the japanese space agency, and he gets selected to the astrounaut tryouts. While crying and smiling at the acceptance paper, his journey to space begins. The story is most of the time about Mutta, and the hurdles he has to pass to become an astrounaut, and when he eventually becomes one, the hurdles to get to space. It's well written and I find myself waiting for more.  During the series Mutta gains more friends that also compete for reaching space, being the 2 most important the following ones:

Makabe Kenji - Kenji meets Mutta on the first day in JAXA and quickly they become best friends. Kenji is the oposite of Mutta, self confident, quick decisions, anything you can name it he aces it. He has great talent when comes to being an astronaut. He always lends help to Mutta when he needs the most, and they have the perfect teamwork.

Itou Serika - Serika also meets Mutta on JAXA in the first day, and quickly Mutta falls for her. She was a doctor before enrolling in the astrounat tryouts, and wants to get into the ISS to develop new medicines, in hope to create a cure to the disease that killed her father. Her favourite thing is food, and frequently has his stomach growling and eats by two, despite that she's thin.

The characters are easy to like, and have always consistent background and lovable personalities. There aren't a so called villain, as the focus solely focus on rivalries, and surpassing one's shortcomings. There isn't a single one with bad intentions, and that's a fresh thing, as it's common to have someone spoiling the main character advancements, but in this case there isn't none. The anime also has a lot of pop culture references, Zidane's headbutt, Ramos shooting the penalty over the bar, the Terminator's "I'll be back" and others.

The soundtrack is the level expected for a show like this. The openings and endings are very good and catchy, and the soundtrack is average. In my mind there's only one that sticked:

Art - 4/5 - the art is different what one's used to, and that's always a good thing.

Plot 4/5 - it's well written, and the exams and space training feel real.

Soundtrack - 3/5 - for the reasons stated before.

Excitement - 4/5 - The series has a medium pace, but when you get caught in it you'll be craving for more. It isn't exciting as a shounen anime, but Mutta's character is easy to relate to, and it's hard not wanting to know what will happen to him next.

Space Brothers gets a 15/20 launch!

Sword Art Online

This is my first review ever about an anime so I will try to introduce it the same way it was introduced to me without spoiling all the fun about it.

In a near future MMORPG's have evolved to be VRMMORPG's. Virtual Reality is now a dominant feature in the genre so that the player could be immersed in fantasy worlds with a sense of reality like never before thanks to the Nerve Gear, a head gear that stimulates the users senses via their brain. And when it comes to games there is one that is more antecipated than any other...Sword Art Online. The world of Sword Art Online is a giant floating castle in the clouds called Aincrad, which has 100 floors and a medievel theme to it. The beta for this game was highly restrictive and very few players were able to test it, and all that have talked about it said that this was the best MMO ever made so, upon release, the expectation was so high that it sold out. People rushed to their homes to play it and that is when we meet the main character of the story...

Kazuto Kirigaya (a.k.a. Kirito) - The main protagonist of our story. A nerdy guy who keeps everything to himself, seems to be a little bit awkward or childish but he can be a total badass when it comes to fighting and a heartbreaker for the girls. He lost his parents and lives with his uncles and his cousin. He played the beta version of Sword Art Online and bought it as soon as it came out.

During day one players get to notice that the logout option is not available so they just kept playing waiting for the problem to be fixed. Soon they are summoned to the Main Square to where they are informed by Kayaba Akihiko, the creator of Sword Art Online, that they would be not able to log out of the game. The only way to do so was to complete the game, to clear all levels and bosses. If anyone in the real world tried to pull the Nerve Gear off, the player would die, and also, if they die in-game, they would also die in real life. Sword Art Online is the ultimate VRMMORPG.

Soon players began to create guilds but Kirito decides that he would be better all alone. Having the knowledge of playing the beta he uses that to outrun players playing quests and grabbing items before anyone else. Another reason to do so is that some people start dying and the new players start blaming the beta-testers for those deaths, because they had not shared their knowledge about the game. Still, Kirito has to gang up with some other players to clear the first floor boss and this is where he meets the co-star of the story. The story develops to tell the tale of this two players.

Asuna Yuuki - In the real world, Asuna is a girl trying to keep up with her parents expectations, for that, she lives a very stressful life and that is why she played the MMO, to escape to a world she could be free from all of that. In the game she starts also as a lonely player and looking to be somewhat weak which she proves not to be at the boss fight where she teams up with Kirito.

The story takes place for a long time, around two years, so many players start to settle to live the rest of their lives in game. They decide to give up on the goal to beat the game and become what we might call NPC's. They open businesses like weaponsmiths, restaurants, hotels and things like that. Some however take the guilds way too serious and fight for their territory and rule them as if they were countries, imposing their laws, others take on almost suicidal quests in order to beat the game. There is a little bit of everything, from thieves to bounty hunters, honest workers and corrupt ones, good and bad people just like in real life.
 
I will not say more than this about the story because, anyone who hasn't seen it, should be able to be amazed as I was by this anime.

One last remark goes to the soundtrack. If you do have a moment to appreciate it, please, do it. It is not very common to have a soundtrack as rich and fitting as this one. The only flaw I could point to it is that it lacks a strong "single" like many other animes have, something that sticks to your mind for days and months to come.



Art - 4/5 - Even though it is an anime we get that feeling of a JRPG which is the mood and credibility it should have. I would play Sword Art Online without a doubt...well if I didn't die by playing, because I suck a little bit at them.

Plot - 4/5 - If the idea of an ultimate MMORPG is not enough for you I don't know what it could be. I myself cannot think of anything more awesome than this. Still, the plot takes a turn around the middle of the anime that I didn't enjoy that much, but still, it was good.

Soundtrack - 4/5 - I found the two intros pretty good. The soundtrack is also pretty interesting as it is a very good companion for the setting.

Excitement 4/5 -The fast pace of the anime sometimes seemed to be too fast. The action scenes are awesome, it has its plot twists and it gives us the thrill to just see the anime in one sitting.

Sword Art Online is one of the best animes I have seen and, obviously, one of the best in the recent years, it gets a slashing 16/20.

An Adventure in Space and Time

In the awake of the 50th anniversary of Doctor Who commemorations, there were many special features (including a special episode, already reviewed at POPinions by Tiago Gonçalves) to celebrate the event. From documentaries (like the Doctor Who Ultimate Guide) to the object of my review today, the biopic An Adventure in Space and Time, I already watched most of what BBC put out in the days around November 23rd. Some better than other, today I will bring you my thoughts about a short movie (about 85 minutes long) about Doctor Who's first steps.

Doctor Who original logo, back in 1963

An Adventure in Space and Time was written and produced by a long time collaborator of the regular Doctor Who show: Mark Gatiss (writer of episodes such as The Unquiet Dead in 2005 or Victory of the Daleks in 2010; readers may also recognize his name as creator and actor in well-known shows like The League of Gentleman-a personal favorite of mine-and Sherlock-also highly recommended). The film narrates the story of how what is now known as the First Doctor was cast and the show was produced and focus on two vital characters for this to happen: William Hartnell and Verity Lambert.

William Hartnell (on the left) and Verity Lambert (on the right);
they were vital, as the first actor to play the role and the producer
of the show to make Doctor Who the long-lasting success it is today.

Hartnell (played by another well known name, David Bradley, that readers may know from the Harry Potter movies as the unfathomable Mr. Finch) is a seasoned actor worried about typecast after his last role. Against all odds, a young, but fierce producer, a impeccable Verity Lambert played by Jessica Raine (of Call the Midwife fame), cast Hartnell to a new show on BBC, an educational science fiction show for everyone at home, from children to elders. The film then depicts how, being a grumpy old and progressively sick man, Hartnell goes from being hated by the original cast, to being loved by them and to being hated by the cast that comes and goes, with him being the only constant in the show. I have to say that it can be a heartbreaking film when you realize that Hartnell, at first suspicious of the show and not sure at all of its ability to be successful, ends up being the only one sincerely caring about it. All of this while he fights against himself, as his health makes it difficult to him to memorize lines and being at all aware of small slips on camera.

David Bradley as William Hartnell; not only they resemble
each other, but Bradley delivers an amazing performance.

All in all, it is my opinion that An Adventure in Space and Time stands by itself in the midst of the paraphernalia being produced for the 50th Anniversary of Doctor Who, and it is a good film to watch on a rainy evening: warm, interesting and compelling.

Plot - 4/5
An Adventure in Space and Time is a biopic, but explores really well the story behind the story and it is compelling.

Visual - 4/5
The action takes place in the 60s and the visual is on line with that; on top of that, the usual quality one can find in a BBC production.

Sound - 4/5
The most interesting thing in the sound department is also a plot device: the audience is guided to the process of generation the familiar sounds on Doctor Who (the same happens with the visuals, were we follow the creation of the sets); apart from it, nothing relevant to point out, except that none of the sounds, either music or sound effects, dragged me out of the film.

Performances - 5/5
The high point of the film, specially when David Bradley is on screen.

 
Final Score - 17/20
An Adventure in Space and Time is a good way to celebrate the anniversary of your favorite time traveler and maybe even be a interesting film for someone completely unaware of Doctor Who. We, here at POPinions, definitely recommend you to go watch it.

Doctor Who 50th Anniversary Special: The Day of The Doctor

"Great man are forged in fire... it's the privilege of lesser man to light the flame...whatever the cost." - The War Doctor.

Today is reviewed the most anticipated episode of this series. Today I have the previlege of reviewing the Doctor Who's 50th Anniversary Special: The Day of The Doctor.

November 23rd 1963, one of the best shows in television history begins: Doctor Who. The most famous police box appears for the first time in the episode titled "An Unearthly Child" with William Hartnell as the very first Doctor. 50 years and 11 Doctors after, we get this special episode, featuring David Tennant as the 10th Doctor, Matt Smith as the 11th Doctor and John Hurt as the War Doctor. David first appeared in the Christmas invasion episode after Eccleston leaving the show, and quickly became a fan favourite, among the best Doctors to travel in the TARDIS. When it was announced that Matt would be his replacement, and that the 10th incarnation would regenerate in the episode "The End of Time", everyone was sceptic as would someone fill the void left by David. After 3 seasons the answer is: yes, and well filled it was, as Matt's performance was brilliant. It's the second appearance for John Hurt as he appeared in Series 7 finale, "The Name of the Doctor" just for a brief moment in the end, so it would be the first time he would be an incarnation of Britain's most famous time traveller. There was a lot of expectations about his role, as he would be the filling gap between Paul Mcgann's 8th Doctor and Eccleston's 9th, but maybe I'm getting ahead myself. Let's talk about the story.

From left to righ: Matt Smith, David Tennant and John Hurt

The plot starts with UNIT taking the TARDIS as they had orders from Queen Elizabeth I for him. They show him a painting of Gallifrey during the time war, a special one that's actually a fragment of time in a frame. Then we switch to Gallifrey during the Time War against the Daleks and the War Doctor appears, and steals the most destructive weapon of the Time Lords. A weapon that the interface is sentient, and can judge even it's user. When the War Doctor activates it, it gains the form of Rose Tyler, aka Bad Wolf, as it finds the most suitable form for presenting herself for the Doctor, and offers to show him what will be his future and opens a time rift, and a fez falls from it.

Billie Piper as the interface

We switch again to the 11th as he reads the letter Elizabeth wrote to him and then a painting of her and the 10th is shown to him. We jump to the past, as 10th is on a stroll with Queen Elizabeth I. Then it's shown that the Zygons want to replace themselves with Elizabeth I, and a time vortex appears on front of the 10th and also a fez falls out from it, and eventually the 11th also jumps to it, and eventually the War Doctor, and the 3 are together and the rest of the story develops, showing the War Doctor how his actions will save millions of innocents in the future, and that his own future is safe. As the War Doctor is about to destroy Gallifrey and Skaro, the other two Doctors appear and will aid him to use the weapon, as this time he doesn't have to be alone to do it.

Then they come to a conclusion: this time there's three of them and they come up with another solution: trapping the entire planet on a pocket universe, like the paintings shown before, and the Daleks would self destoy in the cross-fire. As they go to Gallifrey, all his incarnations show up and they successfully put the planet on pocket space. As Galiffrey is safe the War Doctor tells his future selfs that he feels as he is the Doctor again, even if he will not remember it, as the timelines will sync and he will forget the events. As he goes away in his TARDIS, the War Doctor starts to regenerate into the 9th. The tenth also says his goodbyes, and the 11th is left alone in the museum, to talk to the curator. Then Tom Baker makes his appearence, and we get a very confusing dialogue with the 11th, where we are left wondering if it really is the 4th Doctor, or jut a simple curator. Quoting him: 

"Who knows? Who-nose?"

THE GOOD POINTS:

1.  David and Matt's performance is just brilliant, their Doctors complement each other so well we find ourselves wanting more and more.
2. David wearing a Fez.
3. John Hurt performance is astonishing, as he portrays an old and tired Doctor, that feels lost about the future. He also get so well with Matt's and David's performance and is such an interesting version of the Doctor that I felt sad that he regenerates at the end. He could have stayed a bit more.
4. Matt wearing a fez.
5. Finnaly the unveilling of the time war and it's conclusion, as it has been eluded us since 2005. Like the truth, Gallifrey is out there.
6. The comedy is well made, and as in the series, the Doctor is just the Doctor, independently of wich incarnation it is.
7. It gives a sense of direction for the series, as I found series 7 without an objective in the end.
8. David high-fiving the tardis

THE NOT SO GOOD POINTS:

1. 76 minutes lenght only.
2. Clara was most of the time a stand in.
3. John Hurt didn't wear a fez.
4. Billie Piper as the interface. I can find a the logic behind the interface chosing Rose Tyler as the guide for the lost War Doctor, as she was the one who calmed the anger that the 9th had, and turned him into the more merry 10th incarnation. I liked it, but it felt a bit forced.
5. 76 minutes lenght only
6. The Zygons had more screen time than the Daleks. The time war was between the Time Lords and the Daleks, and the Zygons get more air time than both.
7. The bits of the 9th Doctor were archive footage. It wouldn't hurt to put it him in it even if it was just for 3 seconds.
8. 76 minutes lenght only
9. Capaldi's cameo felt forced too, but I personally liked it.
10. Tom Baker at the end felt more forcefull than Billie and Capaldi put together. The scarf on the scientist girl would suffice.
11. Again, why didn't John Hurt wear a fez? WHY??

The judgement:

Plot - 4/5 - It was a great episode, truly beffiting the 50th anniversary.

Visual - 5/5 - The monster characterization continues excellent, and in this special the effects were a lot better than in the series. It was brilliant.

Soundtrack - 5/5 - the same of the series, so it is the excellent themes we are used to.

Performances 4/5 - The 3 Doctors steal the show completely, and leave few for others to shine. It was expected as it was the 50th but I would had liked more from other characters such as Clara.

Doctor Who: The Day of The Doctor gets a Timey-Wimey Wobbly-Bobbly 18/20.

Also this:

Football Manager 2014

Alongside with the FIFA/PES war there is a title which has no rival, Football Manager. Football, because it is played with the feet and a ball instead of the hands and an egg. And it's older than the American cousin too.

Every year since 2004, Football Manager has been the king among the football managing simulators. Nothing extraordinary because Sports Interactive was responsible for Championship Manager up untill then. With the brand Championship Manager being explored by someone else and SI keeping the formula that brought them a dedicated fanbase this was the expected result.

 

It's hard to talk about this game without talking about the whole series and in many ways this is an upgraded version of the previous title, so just this time I will individualize the review by each cathegory.

Graphics

Being a simulator that relies on statistics, stat points, informations and news on most of the time it is easy to say that the game does not look pretty. It has a 3D match engine that has been upgraded since it was released but it's far from looking as good as FIFA, which is, in my opinion, the reference when we talk about football and graphics, but nonetheless it does not look bad, it's reasonable.

I also have to say that the windows never tire you, and you can even change the layout due to the skins available in almost every site and forum about the game. You can change the color of the stats, add facepacks and add logopack, it has a great costumization value which is a good feature to compensate for other flaws.

Comparing to the 2013 version the game looks better but still it's not great. I give it 3/5.

Gameplay

Being a game that is launched every year, the question everyone who hasn't played is the same: "Isn't it the same every year? What's new besides new rosters?"

And that is a plausible question that is better answered by playing. Every year there are many new features that make the player feel like they really are in control of their team. Every year something is introduced and refined to the point you just cannot remember how did were you capable to play the game without those features. Each new title looks and feels like the better instalment yet. And "yet" is a very important thing because every Football Manager knows that, somehow, next year this game is going to improve.

I've been playing the Manager series since 2000 and I've never read the manual of the game. It's so intuitive that you just learn how to play it by yourself. You can easily discover how to do anything due to the easy interface that the game offers or you can play the tutorial, and you also have a help system that you can use to ask anything.

If you don't know, the players have stats just like in a RPG and you have to manage the players, tactics, finances, transfers, training and many more things. Football Manager 2014 just might be the most intuitive version ever.

So, as gameplay is concerned, Football Manager is as easy as it is satisfying to do things well done. It's easy to play but it's not easy to be great at it, that balance is crucial to the success of the series. I just cannot imagine it to be any other way. It's only boring for those who have not played it.

I give it 5/5.

Sound

This is where Football Manager falls short to many. The only sound in the game is during the matches. You hear the crowd cheering, the referee and the ball being kicked. Nothing more but it's a managing simulator, in my opinion any more than this would make it repetitive. For me this is enough but they could add real chanting to the supporters in the stadium. Just to make it more like in real life.

I give it 3/5.

Longevity

Dozens of countries, hundreds of divisions and thousands of teams. To be the best you want to win everything. I easily play more than 20 hours in any save I start because it's easy to get addicted on taking your team to the top. On Football Manager 2003 I've spent more than 130 hours at it. There are not many games that are as lasting as this one. It's 5/5.

Final Score

In conclusion, if you not own any Football Manager game, I highly recommend you this title as it is the most  refined version ever. If you do own Football Manager 2013, I still recommend it because the changes made to the game make it a new challenge. Every new instalment made me feel like a noob and this was no exception.
Football Manager 2014 scores 16/20.

Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance

Today we slash and dice the most recent entry on the Metal Gear series, Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance. I still haven't finished the game, but I am close to it. So here's my thoughts so far.

Most of you are already familiar with the Metal Gear Saga. Political and warfare conflicts, sneaking and being evasive, with a great narrative from his creator Hideo Kojima. Well, forget about all that, because Metal Gear Rising is completely different from what you are accostumed within the franchise. As in Metal Gear Solid 2, you control Raiden (yes I know what it may sound but bear with me). Here's a little resume from Raiden's history:

Raiden - Real  name Jack, is a Liberian-American Mercenary and former special operations soldier. He was a child soldier, and used by the Patriots for the S3 Plan at the Big Shell. Later he joined the Paradise Lost Army, the anti-Patriots group, but was captured and had his head and spine excised from his body and planted on a cyborg one by the Patriots. He then escaped and aided Solid Snake in the Liquid Ocelot's insurrection on Metal Gear Solid 4 events. After that he joined the PMC (Public Mercenary Company) Maverick and the events of the game start.

The story isn't as deep as in other Metal Gear titles, and it's easier to follow. There are some references from past games but, if you didn't play any of it, you'll still can enjoy the game's story, as it is disconnected to all the conflict and web of schemes from the other series. After the fall of the Patriots, PMCs split up in minor groups, and turned to cyborg technology as a mean to power up their forces. The story starts in a unnamed country in Africa,  Maverick is doing a job of security for the Prime Minister N'mani, a pacifist working for peace in the continent, as a PMC named Desperado Enforcement LLC attacks them and tries to kill N'mani, in a way to keep the countries in Africa fighting and so they can still make profit. Raiden goes to the rescue of N'mani only to be utterly defeated by Samuel "Jet-stream Sam" Rodrigues, a master cyborg swordsman working for Desperado.

Jet-Stream Sam, the most brazilian badass since BlanKa.

In a future mission, Raiden encounters again Desperado and starts investigating it, leading to the events of the game that follow that, and that I won't spoil.

The gameplay is also very different from past titles. In the past there was more of a focus on stealth unlike this one. The stealth is still present, but they give more focus to the battles than avoiding them. As Platinum Games took a more "gore" approach to the game, you can litterally have blood flowing everywhere as you cut through the enemy cyborgs (they say its mecanical fluids and artificial blood, but I like to think otherwise). In the PS3 version you press square for light attacks and triangle for heavy ones, and you can chain both as you please. Pressing X will make Raiden jump and circle for activating a lot of stuff. If you press circle behind an enemy it will be a silent, but not less gory, takedown. R1 gives you the "ninja run" (actual name!), you will run faster and deflect bullets automatically, to parry normally you have to press the light attack button and the direction of the enemy attack. It's hard at the beggining but I found it very interesting. The most interesting is the Blade mode that you enter by pressing L1, time slows down and you can slash at very high speeds, and if the target is damaged enough, you can cut some parts of the body and if you have the skill bar full, you can detect the auto-reparing unit of the cyborg, pull it and smash it to assimilate it and recover yourself. This is called a Zandatsu in game, and Zandatsus are awesome! You get ranks in every chapter and gain Battle Points to enhance Raiden's body and skills. Even Weapons from the bosses. This is a different take in the series. With both Snakes more peacefull approaches were encouraged, in this one it's exactly the opposite. Even the stuff around the level is destroyable, having even happened being needed to cut a bridge to fight a cyborg that was on top of it. Sure the cardboxes are still around, but this game makes you want to slice everything that is around you. And the bosses, oh the bosses, are just epic gameplay.

The visuals, as in every game of the franchise, are simply stunning. From the epic boss battles, to slashing normal enemies everything is so well made it's hard to find flaws. Everything feel futuristic, and the game delivers what you are expecting of a ninja cyborg can do. Even the soundtrack is amazing, being a personal favourite. I haven't heard a soundtrack as good as this in a long time. I have it on my laptop and I can't stop hearing it.

It also has some easter eggs from the previous games, such as the man that hide in cardboxes in every scenario for you to find, to the DLC themes for Raiden. My favourite is the US gamestop pre-order (included in every copy in Europe) Gray Fox skin and his blade. Unfortunatelly as I have the digital copy I don't have it. It's a shame that the only skin in the DLC section for Raiden is the MGS4 look he had. There's also 2 DLCs for playing with Samuel and Blade Wolf, but I'm waiting to complete the game to get them. 

Gray Fox, the original cyborg from the first Metal Gear Solid

This game made me like Raiden, and that's a hard thing to do! (Kojima why didn't you make him like this in MGS2!!??)

Story 3/5 - Not the masterpieces of previous entries but still very good.

Soundtrack 5/5 - Fits perfectly the game and the feeling it gives.

Gameplay 4/5 - It's entertaining, and blade mode is awfully fun to use.

Longevity 4/5 - Despite being a short game, it makes want to clear it in lots of difficulties, and unlock all the good stuff and weapons at Raiden's disposal. There's also a awful lot of trophies to unlock, so it gains a lot of replay value.

Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance gets a 16/20.

Borderlands

Welcome to Pandora!

This is where Borderlands is set. The world of Pandora (it has nothing to do with Avatar's Pandora) is a mining colony sponsored by the Dahl Corporation where the player is a scavenger in search for an ancient alien vault. Another of this vaults was found in the nearby planet of Prometheus (it has nothing to do with the movie Prometheus) and was filled with alien weapon technology wich allowed the Atlas Corporation (not to be confused with the Dahl Corporation) to overtake their competitors and in the world of Pandora it's all about the weapons.

There is a really good story that you by follow doing the missions in which you get to know more and more about what kind of world this is and it is a really interesting one but it isn't something you really care about. You care about the humor of the game (it's a really funny game) and the loot. Borderlands is mostly known for having a massive amount of different weapons. According to some official information there is a little over 3,5 million different weapons in the game, well...kinda. There are some base weapons which get different stats and different traits like having a scope or elemental damage and that's how they've turned several dozen weapons to 3,5 million, still...it's very impressive.

Visually the game has a bold cartoonish style which most hardcore FPS players do not like but Borderlands is not a game for the hardcore FPS player. The RPG elements that were put into the game made it different from the other titles, and for some it made it different for better. I know a couple of friends who do not like FPS that cleared the game. Still, it's a beautiful game with maps that are a joy to explore.

You have the standard leveling up that doesn't require you to have the trouble of selecting which stats you want to update, that you decide in the beggining when you select one of four characters which have different atrributes, and they are the Berserker, the Siren, the Hunter and the Soldier. What you can do is to equip up to 4 different guns, a class mod, a shield and a grenade mod that suits the better your playing style. I went for the Soldier and prepared myself to take a lot of hits but to shoot even more. I finished the main game and 2 DLC's this weekend and I think that it worked great for me but I'm tempted to return to the game with a different character. Either that or to take on the playthrough 2 mode which is to repeat everything but with the stats you already have, the enemies get tougher to match you and the loot get even better. I'm more of a solo player but you can also have co-op in the game. I've spent more than 25 hours in the game and I feel like I could easily spend another 25 or 50 hours in it.

One problem with the game is the backpack size. Even though you can expand it by completing side-quests or saving items in the Mad Moxxi's DLC, you always feel that it's not big enough. Many times I've found a crate of weapons and had to leave thing behind to take the new items. You will rarely buy weapons but you do have to sell a lot of them to buy ammo and health packs. I understand that the size you have is most likely the better but I'm a hoarder and I could always use a little bit more space.

The music in the game pumps up the adrenaline for the tasks ahead of you. I really enjoyed it. Sometimes it seems like asian and western music met and had a child. The cutscenes are different and for better.  Overall, not being great it's up to the job and flows nicely with the game.
 

To wrap up this review I have to say that I'm definetly going to buy Borderlands 2 and I do not understad why the success of Borderlands was unexpected to the developers because this is something to be proud of. I highly recommend you to buy the Game Of The Year edition of this game and to try it out for yourself. I had a blast killing hordes of enemies in the game and laughing because it is hilarious. You gotta love Claptrap, that's all I have to say.

Graphics - 4/5

Gameplay - 4/5

Sound - 4/5

Longevity - 5/5

Final Score - 17/20

Baccano!

"-This train is cursed. It's going to be terrible.
-Is it your sixth sense again?
-Has it ever been wrong? A lot of people are going to die. The only ones to survive will be those with extraordinary good luck...and probably...those that aren't human"

- Old Couple at Chicago's Station, at the Flying Pussyfoot departure.

My review today is the adaptation of the light novels of the same name: Baccano!

The best I got. It was this or a version filmed with a potato in 244p.

Baccano! is a hard anime to describe. To get the feeling of this show maybe I'll describe how it starts. 

Gustav and Carol

The story starts with a talk between the Daily Days, a journal and information shop, Vice-President Gustav Saint Germain with his assistant Carol. They talk about where did the story start, and imediatly we're thrown in disarray. We get that they're talking about the story about some people that can't die, the immortals, and when they start talking about dates we get even more lost. They also show us some of the characters die, and get ressurected even before they were introduced. In a way this can make even more avid fans of this kind of animation give up immediatly because of the jumping plot in time, as I admit that did it myself the first time, but to those that stick to it and don't get overwhelmed by this introduction, the reward is one of the best animes that have been released.

The plot doesn't get described in a straight way. The only story that is continuous is the one that occurs in the year 1931 aboard the Intercontinental Train Flying Pussyfoot. While the story starts to develop we get flashbacks of the year 1930, and some flashforwards to the year 1932, sometimes without telling wich year it is so the viewer has to piece the pieces of story together, and it only comes to a full understanding at the very last episodes. There are a lot of characters, and I mean a lot, and only in the opening 17 of them are introduced. And yes, there are more. So to get a feeling of the story I'll divide it by groups in the years that the events occur.

1931: The Flying Pussyfoot, the intercontinental train, leaves from Chicago to New York, with a very peculiar set of passangers. This is were most of the action takes place.

The Flying Pussyfoot

Aboard are the following groups:

Miria Harvent and Isaac Dian- A dynamic couple of thieves that are on the train to meet Ennis on New York. They are a straightforward, energetic, happy, simplistic naive airheads. Always take action by impulse, and think their thoughts, most of the time very far from what's really happening, out loud. Despite being thieves they are very nice people, being most of their crimes petty and ridiculous crimes, like stealing candy or stealing an entrance to a museum 'so anyone couldn't enter'.

Chane Laforet, member of The Lemurs

The Lemurs - a terrorist group that plans to take the passangers as hostages, being that a family of a senator is there. By this they plan to negotiate the release of their leader Huey Laforet.

"Don't you think is cool to wear white? That way you can see the blood stains of the people I've killed" - Ladd Russo

The White Suits - Comanded by the assassin of Chicago's Russo family Ladd Russo, they are on the train just to make everyone hostage and kill half of them. The reason Ladd does it? Literally for the lulz. Ladd is a psycothic character, that looks like an excited children when there are killing and blood envolved. He often gets overexcited talking about his plans, and how he likes to kill people that think that are safe. He usually rambles about in a loud voice.

The Hoodlums - a group of young delinquents leaded by the sword-tatooed faced Jacuzzi Splot. They board the train to make an heist and steal all it's cargo. By coincidence they have a grudge against the Russo Family and Jaccuzi has a bounty placed by them. Jaccuzi is always apologizing and crying, even if isn't he that is at fault, but when it's time he pulls through as a leader. The most important partner of his is Nice Hollystone, a bomb maker.

Chezlaw Meyer - A young children that is travelling to New York to meet an acquaintace.

While in the dining car, the thieves duo meets Jacuzzi and Chezlaw, and Isaac tells them about a legend, the Rail Tracer, a monster that appears on trains and make people disappear. The story starts moving when the three major groups try to make their moves exactly at the same time. But after that, people are disappearing mysteriously, and reports of a crimson monster start to spread. Has the Rail Tracer come for them?

1930 - This part of the story is occur in New York, and envolves mostly Mafia Families.

Isaac Dian and Miria Harvent - The dynamic duo is in New York plotting to make their biggest heist yet: steal from the mafia to atone for their past deeds. That eventually leads to meeting the other characters, making them the link between all of the stories.

Berga, keith and Luck

The Gandor Family - one of the most important mafia families in New York. Their leaders are the Gandor Brothers: Berga, Keith and Luck. They are involved in the disapearence of Dallas Genoard. In the year of 1931 they are waiting for their most skillfull assassin to arrive in the Flying Pussyfoot. They have good ties with the Martillo Family.

Firo Prochainezo and Maiza Avaro. 

 The Martillo Family - An ally of the Gandor family because of the close ties of Firo Prochainezo, a just nominated executive, and the Gandor brothers. The more notorioous are Firo and Maiza Avaro, because of their connections with the Gandor family, and because of Firo searching for Ennis after meeting her. Carol also describes Firo as "the most main character like".

Dallas Genoard - A troublemaker delinquent, head of the Genoard Family. Always getting into trouble and being beaten. He disappears mysteriously at the end of the events of this year.

Szliard and Ennis

Szilard Quates along with Ennis, his assistant, are searching for the Cure-All Elixir that grants immortality, being stolen of a servant of his after the laboratory caughts fire. He has a ruthless personality and can be considered the biggest antagonist of the series.

1932 - also taking place in New York

Eve Genoard - The younger sister of Dallas Genoard. After the disappearance of her brother, she gets all of the estate and is searching for him with the help from the Daily Days.

As if this isn't enough, the story doesn't quite start here, but I let that for you to watch in the anime.

After the 13 episodes there are 3 specials that give some closure and background to some characters. And also introduce one of my favourites. This takes place in 1932.

Graham Specter - He comes to New York to meet Ladd Russo, his boss, and gets involved with Chane and Jacuzzi. As Ladd, Graham is also a psycopathic person, but bipolar. He always is ranting out loud, getting very philosophical about life, and get depressed and excited in extreme ways. He's dressed with a blue mechanic suit and is always with a giant monkey wrench. Voiced by the great Sugita Tomokazu (Gintama's Gintoki) that really suits his erratic train of thought.

This anime gets good because of all the characters and stories, despite being all disconnected, get all tied in mysterious and sometimes fun and unexpected ways. It's not an easy anime to see, as you have always to be putting together what happens and when, but in the end is a rewarding experience. It has one of the most interesting stories I've seen and how its presented it's impossible to stop watching.

The soundtrack is also beautiful. Most of them are Jazz beats, which fit perfectly the setting of the mafia world, and the feeling the anime gives. The opening is one of the best I heard so far, and it's also hard to forget, even if you don't watch the anime for years.

The soundtrack just for you. You're welcome.

Art - 4/5 - The art is very good, but when they get zoomed out very far, is usually used only the outlines of the characters. The animation of the immortals being regenerated is also very well done, and the backgrounds are excellent.

Plot - 5/5 - This is what this anime is for. I say again that putting it together is one of the most rewarding things I have seen on anime. The characters are good and lovable (I can't get enough of the dynamic duo, Ladd and Graham) and it never gets dull.

Soundtrack 4/5 - As I said before the Jazz theme is the perfect choice for this anime. Any other genre would have spoiled it.

Excitement 5/5 - It's impossible to stop, as every episode ends with a cliffhanger, and there's questions from the beggning to the end of the show.

It's an anime that easily gets put aside, but if you give it a chance, it's one of the most beatiful works of art in this genre.

Baccano! gets back to life with a 18/20.