DEATH NOTE / Random Musings / Shakugan no Shana / Yamada Tarou Monogatari

Random Musings – DEATH NOTE: R and Miscellaneous Notes

  • NTV aired a three hour special of DEATH NOTE today that covered pretty much the entire L arc with some added material. It started out with a scene of a Shinigami approaching Ryuk wanting to know about the human world because he’s gotten tired of the Shinigami world. Ryuk proceeds to tell him about a man who tried to change the world and become god, and this sets up the recap through the first arc. Most of it was stuff we’ve already seen in the original series (they even included the potato chip scene), but there were some additional scenes too, (highlight to read) including L meeting Light in a theater, everyone visiting L’s grave, Light declaring his victory over L’s grave (after everyone else leaves), and bloody shots of the deaths of members of the Yotsuba group. The episode ends with Ryuk looking at how Light’s name is written in his Death Note and commenting on how Light wasn’t a god back then.
    If you’re a big fan of the anime, you might consider watching it, but for the most part, I didn’t think this was worth it if you’ve already seen the entire series.
  • There was no episode of Yamada Tarou Monogatari aired today because of a track and field event. Episode 09 airs next Friday.
  • Several people have asked me for the Shana II commercial, so here’s the download: Mirror 1, Mirror 2, Mirror 3.
    • Miscellaneous

    Random Curiosity Power Rankings – August 2007

    Here are the August rankings – the summer shows are cranking along at full speed, and the carryovers from spring are coming through for the final stretch. Speaking of which, hasn’t the previous week been SPECTACULAR for anime? There’s been some amazing episodes across the board – it’s great to see that everything’s really kicking into gear to finish strong. As I noted last month, there was a good chance that we could have a new show at the top spot – well, that much was right, but it wasn’t the one I was expecting!

    August 2007 Rank (LM) Title Comment
    1 (12) School Days And the new king of the rankings has been crowned – School Days has gone from pretty good to being possibly the best shounen romance anime ever. Every second oozes perfection, from the gripping suspense to the overbearing guilt, from the precise fanservice to the impeccably timed insert songs. SD is the zenith in the evolving formula of shounen romance, and has set a new standard which all subsequent shows will be compared to.
    2 (1) Gurren Lagann GL went from being crazy good fun to being a real show that also happens to be crazy good fun. With the introduction and flawless execution of the new plot twists, not to mention a little side trip with Yoko, we’ve been thrust headfirst into a new conflict that’s every bit as intense as the first, but on a much larger scale. And what other show is this freakin’ cool? Too bad it’s almost over – can he rescue Nia in such a short time?
    3 (NEW) Code GEASS So how about that ending, eh? While people may have different views on how the last scene was handled, I think we can all agree that the final two eps lived up to the lofty expectations; but at the same time, didn’t really exceed them. Still, it was a fitting end to (the first season of) a crazy series, and its constant twists and OMG moments never let up. The stage has been set for the second season – how long will they make us wait?

    More after the jump….