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REVIEW: Corpse Princess Part One DVD


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Ian K



Joined: 18 Dec 2008
Posts: 250
PostPosted: Thu Dec 02, 2010 1:53 am Reply with quote
I found this review pretty spot-on, with a couple of quibbles:

1) I didn't find the action scenes (with one or two possible exceptions) that interesting. They seemed to be of a wash, rinse, and repeat variety: Maka shoots shikabane, shikabane doesn't die. Maybe, if it's a special episode, she runs and shoots. When it's the end of the episode andtime for the shikabane to die, Maka will jump into the air while she shoots it, and this time hit whatever vital thingy she has to to kill it. However, it was quite a while that I saw this show, so maybe I'm being a little hard on it.

2) Corpse Princess isn't a zombie show (despite whatever FUNI's marketing may have one think), it's a youkai-hunt show. It borrows from the aesthetic a tiny bit, but to even use the word 'zombielicious' is I think misleading. It suggests that whatever the show's flaws, if someone really, really loves zombies, they'll find something to like. In actuality, they're the people I would expect to be most disappointed with this show, considering how absolutely lame (and completely un-zombie like) the enemies are.

But those are minor quibbles, otherwise I found this about as expected from the anime reviewer I have the strongest mind-meld connection with. It's good to hear that the dub turned out so well, I hope the people who are Corpse Princess fans dig it.
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Megiddo



Joined: 24 Aug 2005
Posts: 8360
Location: IL
PostPosted: Thu Dec 02, 2010 1:58 am Reply with quote
Hope wrote:
Most importantly of all, the story chose its main character poorly. Neither Makina nor her companion monk Keisei are the focus here, despite the fact they are solid foils for each other and compelling in their own right. No, the mantle of protagonist is carried insufficiently by the tween brother, Ouri, and a ghost-cat of unknown nature that follows him around and speaks in riddles. Even as the so-called lead, Ouri is edged out by a plethora of one-note characters that hog half an episode before awkwardly inching aside as if to apologize for taking up space…and they are still more interesting than him.

This takes the words right out of my mouth with this show. I watched about 5 or 6 episodes, but the bland main character received far too much focus than he earned. If the show had focused on his brother, or the Shikabane-hime herself, I think (at least the 5-6 episodes I saw) would be a lot better.

I'm not sure whether to fault the original manga source for this choice of perspective, or if it was one of Gainax's weird changes they sometimes make to their adaptations.
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toyNN



Joined: 18 Jun 2010
Posts: 252
Location: Seattle, WA
PostPosted: Thu Dec 02, 2010 2:57 am Reply with quote
I'm blind to all criticisms.

Totally love this anime, but I'm clearly in the minority. Just something about it took me in - perhaps there are a few really well done scenes that will often make me give a pass to the negatives.

Music I think is some of the best - part one - Aka - is something I listen to all the time. Really amazing stuff by Norihito Sumitomo. Of course the OP/ED by angela are very good, including the special ED Beginning for ep 13 (I think).

Even with my positive feeling for this anime I was very surprised with Funi releasing a full dub. I'm glad they did.
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Fronzel



Joined: 11 Sep 2003
Posts: 1906
PostPosted: Thu Dec 02, 2010 4:31 am Reply with quote
Sounds like the poor relation to Ga-Rei Zero.

I'll have to try it out, but Gainax do have a talent for turning in turds when they aren't turning in something amazing or at least interesting.
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Blood-
Bargain Hunter



Joined: 07 Mar 2009
Posts: 23787
PostPosted: Thu Dec 02, 2010 6:59 am Reply with quote
toyNN wrote:
I'm blind to all criticisms.

Totally love this anime, but I'm clearly in the minority. Just something about it took me in - perhaps there are a few really well done scenes that will often make me give a pass to the negatives.

Music I think is some of the best - part one - Aka - is something I listen to all the time. Really amazing stuff by Norihito Sumitomo. Of course the OP/ED by angela are very good, including the special ED Beginning for ep 13 (I think).

Even with my positive feeling for this anime I was very surprised with Funi releasing a full dub. I'm glad they did.


Make room in the minority for me. I feel exactly the same way about this series. The only reason I don't own the DVDs yet is that I'm a cheapie who is waiting for the inevitable complete set (and then for that to go on sale).
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ishmael



Joined: 21 Jul 2006
Posts: 128
PostPosted: Thu Dec 02, 2010 8:10 am Reply with quote
Looking at the encyclopedia rating, the minority is not so minority, although that proves nothing... I ordered it the other day, it seems good, hope I won't regret it!
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vashfanatic



Joined: 16 Jun 2005
Posts: 3489
Location: Back stateside
PostPosted: Thu Dec 02, 2010 9:30 am Reply with quote
I'm just glad a review so bluntly pinpointed the weakest link of the series: Ouri, and his voice actor. And it only gets worse in the second half, when spoiler[Keisei is dead] and his role gets even larger. I couldn't last more than a few episodes into "Kuro" in large part because of that (the rest was the awkward transitions between the dark subject matter and the raunchy humor, the two just did not mesh well for me).
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jmfsilenthill



Joined: 31 Aug 2009
Posts: 1863
Location: Chinese cartoons are srs biz
PostPosted: Thu Dec 02, 2010 12:12 pm Reply with quote
I watched the first couple of episodes on Funiamtion's video portal. It just didn't do it for me, but I should probably give it another shot, purely for the Gainax fan in me Laughing .
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wandering-dreamer



Joined: 21 Jan 2008
Posts: 1733
PostPosted: Thu Dec 02, 2010 2:52 pm Reply with quote
Quote:
practically her lips tremble

Erm, think we're missing a verb here, although the message still got across. And I guess this is another show to pass on, I'm just not that impressed with the sorta-kinda zombie anime shows that are popping up these days.
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toyNN



Joined: 18 Jun 2010
Posts: 252
Location: Seattle, WA
PostPosted: Thu Dec 02, 2010 5:36 pm Reply with quote
Blood- wrote:

Make room in the minority for me. I feel exactly the same way about this series. The only reason I don't own the DVDs yet is that I'm a cheapie who is waiting for the inevitable complete set (and then for that to go on sale).

Felt the same way and I waited as long as I could. Have an order on the way from TRS!, their Black Friday sale was lowest so far for the two seasons of Shikabane Hime. Figured I better show my love and get them purchased.

I'll put them right next to Figma 028 Makina Hoshimura.....
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DarkRoseFairy



Joined: 31 Oct 2009
Posts: 271
Location: Alberta, Canada
PostPosted: Thu Dec 02, 2010 8:04 pm Reply with quote
Megiddo wrote:

I watched about 5 or 6 episodes, but the bland main character received far too much focus than he earned. If the show had focused on his brother, or the Shikabane-hime herself, I think (at least the 5-6 episodes I saw) would be a lot better.

I'm not sure whether to fault the original manga source for this choice of perspective, or if it was one of Gainax's weird changes they sometimes make to their adaptations.


Ouri didn't show up until volume two of the manga series; the first volume was all about Makina and Keisei.
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ZipZapZopTitania



Joined: 18 Sep 2010
Posts: 132
PostPosted: Thu Dec 02, 2010 8:25 pm Reply with quote
I watched the first few episodes, and, personally, I'm craving more...I loved it~ I found the fight scenes to be sick and fist-pump worthy, but maybe that's just because I love watching chicks with guns pwn everything into a bloody pulp.

Also, I personally found it to be...just so wonderfully creepy. Episode 2 was McAwesome on that front---Hikaru coming baaaack (Laughing), Makina walking through the ravaged hospital with Ouri trailing her, and spot-on music that genuinely put me on edge. Not only that, but they added a thunderstorm, which worked~ *Titania approved*

I even like Ouri. xD Yeah, I wish there was more focus on Makina and Keisei, or that Ouri would get off his kind, caring, softie butt and do something awesome, but I most certainly don't dislike him. And I missed Aaron to death~ (Can you guess why? Here's a hint: I squeal every time he happens to say the word "brother." xD I'm such a nerd...)
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vashthekaizoku



Joined: 30 May 2009
Posts: 261
Location: The House of Rat
PostPosted: Thu Dec 02, 2010 10:58 pm Reply with quote
This sounds like something I'd watch streaming first, then buy if I like it. Gainax has quite a few good products, and then they have things like Panty and Stocking with Garterbelt and Orochuban Ebichu which, while I watch them because they're Gainax, I feel like I've developed a brain tumor by exposing myself to them. It's ok though, I'm nothing if not resilient. I have a high tolerance for the lowest common denominator. So I'll support it with the ad revenue, but this doesn't sound like a "must own."
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Greed1914



Joined: 28 Oct 2007
Posts: 4433
PostPosted: Thu Dec 02, 2010 11:57 pm Reply with quote
I'd say I agree with the review in that the show would get into a lull where I was only semi-interested, and then something awesome would happen and I'd think, "That's why I'm still watching this show. I want more."
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R315r4z0r



Joined: 30 Aug 2007
Posts: 717
PostPosted: Fri Dec 03, 2010 12:27 am Reply with quote
I was originally up in the air about this show. I watched episode one on FUNimation's website and thought it was pretty good. So I bought the DVD set and later bought part 2.

Overall, I liked the show. I just thought it had kind of a dumb ending. I don't think it did a good job of really concluding the overall character arcs between Ouri and Makina. Especially since they had a final episode that was just a "what happened between episode X and Y" (I forget which ones)... I felt like that last episode was wasted.

As for the concept itself, it's a bit unorthodox and really doesn't make much sense... if this Shikabane world is hidden from the rest of humanity... they sure are doing a poor job of it. How many hundreds of people died or came in contact with a Shikabane throughout the series? Don't you think that these sudden mass deaths would attract SOMEONE's attention? I'm pretty certain that if just one person spots a zombie in real life, it will be world wide news the next day.

...But like the article says, it's better to just leave it be.
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