Hige Vs. Otaku

Site Move!

2006-04-19T13:00:00.000+01:00

Ooh, HVO is all shinny now...New site URL: http://hvo.typepad.comPlease update your links (all of which I completely appreciate). Apologies for the inconvenience!

xxxHOLiC Ep. 1 & 2 Review

2006-04-15T15:48:00.000+01:00

Director: Tsutomu MizushimaProduction: Production I.G.Fansubs by Kyuu (1), Mishicorp (2)After the wonderfully bizarre movie from Production I.G. I can't help but feel a little spoilt with my expectations for the TV series of xxxHOLiC. The film was excellent, really capturing the feel of the manga and gave Production I.G. an imaginative platform to show their peerless flare for animation.

Ergo Proxy Ep. 4 & 5

2006-04-13T23:16:00.000+01:00

Director: Shukou MuraseProduction: Geneon Entertainment, Inc.Fansubs by Anime Jiyuu (4), Yoroshiku (5)These two episodes concern themselves predominantly with Vincent and Pino as they experience life outside of Romdeau in a small settlement of extradited citizens called the commune. And, evidently, life outside of Romdeau ain't pretty; a barren wasteland with bleak, unchanging skies and the dregs

Naruto Chapter 302 Review

2006-04-10T22:37:00.000+01:00

Author: Masashi KishimotoScanslation: Chikusho Scanslation Group[SPOILER HEAVY]In this chapter Sai is introduced to his lovely new suite at Chez Orochimaru, and it comes with the small fee of his freedom as Kabuto locks him inside in a show of obvious mistrust. Uncharacteristically, Kabuto also leaves a document of a shocking nature, or so we assume from Sai's expression as he furiously reads

Saikano Vol. 7 Review

2006-04-05T12:38:00.000+01:00

Author: Shin TakahashiPublisher: VIZAll Chise ever wanted to do was fall in love. But things never worked out for the cute high school girl. Once she accepted her destiny as Japan's ultimate war machine, she never had time for stuff like boyfriends and promise rings.Now, with the war almost over, Chise begins to realize that her last chance for happiness is slipping away forever. Desperately

Ergo Proxy Ep. 2 & 3 Review

2006-04-04T15:23:00.000+01:00

Director: Shukou MuraseProduction: Geneon Entertainment, Inc.Fansubs by Anime Jiyuu'Raison d'être' - French for 'reason for being' and quite apt in summarising these two episodes, whose focus on the previously maligned Vincent goes a long way in unraveling the continuing mysteries of the show and reflects much upon how we as people strive to find a place in the society we inhabit. I had a hunch

Naruto Chapter 301 Review

2006-04-03T22:56:00.000+01:00

Author: Masashi KishimotoScanslated by Naruto Bunshin Scanslation Team[SPOILER HEAVY]This week Naruto, Sakura and Yamato start their pursuit of Sai, Orochimaru and Kabuto, and, they hope, Sasuke as a consequence. Sakura and Naruto decide that they'll really save Sasuke this time and Sai has an interesting conversation with Sasuke.Much like 300, this is another narrative-heavy chapter. We witness

Monthly (chuckle) Editorial #2

2006-04-02T12:00:00.000+01:00

For accuracy's sake these posts will be called 'Editorial #' following this one. I was still young and naïve when I thought I could write one of these every month, let alone update the web site, so let's acknowledge the hard truth of the matter and move on. I'm willing to deny all knowledge of defeat if you are. <3But other than the lack of consistency, I'm really enjoying this. It's good to

Ergo Proxy Ep. 1 Review

2006-03-31T20:01:00.000+01:00

Director: Shukou MuraseProduction: Geneon Entertainment, Inc.Fansubs by Anime JiyuuIt's amazing what a bit of slap-on can do for a girl. Lil's blue eye shadow is something of an obsession for me in Ergo Proxy. From those initial screenshots to the subsequent trailer, my greedy little eye for the aesthetic was impressed and impatient for a better example. And with this I get a thirty minute sized

Witches Chapters 1 & 2 Review

2006-03-31T00:38:00.000+01:00

Author: Daisuke IgarashiScanslated by Manga ScreenerThe first and most immediate impression you'll get from 'Witches' is that the artwork is not of a conventional manga style. There are hints of the 'traditional' around the eyes, but Igarashi takes a much more organic, sketchy approach to his art and it works beautifully. The vista and background of both rural and urban settings are sprawling and

Naruto Chapter 300 Review

2006-03-29T18:12:00.000+01:00

Author: Masashi KishimotoScanslated by Ketwaroo[SPOILERS ABOUND]Something of a new territory for HVO, I've decided to start reviewing the weekly releases of Naruto that have been scanslated by the unrelenting workforce of the Internet (god bless every one of them). The reason for this is mainly because I feel the most recent chapters would serve as an interesting contrast to VIZ's drawn out

Monster Vol. 1 Review

2006-03-28T15:40:00.000+01:00

Author: Naoki UrasawaPublisher: VizAn ice-cold killer is on the loose, and brilliant Dr. Kenzo Tenma is the only one who can stop him! Conspiracies, serial murders, and a scathing indictment of hospital politics are all masterfully woven together in this compelling manga thriller. Tenma risks his promising medical career to save the life of a critically wounded young boy. Unbeknownst to him, the

Catching up

2006-03-28T03:33:00.000+01:00

Neglect, neglect, neglect. Outrageous, really. But I've tidied things up and I intend to update with a more abbreviated style (to match my current budget) soon.In the meantime, here's a We Love Katamari review I wrote a few months ago. Keep an eye out for more things promptly. x

Xenosaga Episode II Review

2005-12-23T22:44:00.000Z

Developed: Monolith SoftwareProduced: NamcoPlayStation 2 PALPlot & CharacterisationFor Xenosaga these two areas of discussion are more important to it than any other game you’re likely to play for a while, let alone the oft-story/character driven genre of RPG. Xenosaga relishes in its cut scenes and this is the key area of Xenosaga 2 where you’ll gain most of your enjoyment, or not, of course,

Neon Genesis Evangelion Platinum Box Set (Thinpak) Review

2005-12-20T22:53:00.000Z

Director: Hideki AnnoPublisher: ADV, Star ChildDVD NTSC Region 1Package DescriptionThis boxset features six volumes encased in the extra-thin style DVD cases, each featuring the spangly new cover artwork by Sadamoto seen on the original NGE Platinum releases (except for volume seven’s Kaworu due to the obvious lack of a seventh volume). The box itself is similar to the original box set container

Monthly Editorial #1

2005-09-10T20:33:00.000+01:00

A brief summary of how HVO is getting on and my future plans and ideas.I’m a week early for it to be an ‘official’ month, but I thought I’d write this now to break up the time between my next manga and anime purchases (which might be a week or two as I’m waiting on my student loan to come through and breathe life into my now very flaccid bank account) and thus, reviews. As far as reviews are

Aim for the Top 2! (aka. Gunbuster 2) Ep. 3 Review

2005-09-09T11:08:00.000+01:00

Director: Kazuya TsurumakiProduction: GAINAXFansubs by Lunar AnimeStory and CharactersEpisode three of Aim for the Top 2! actually came as quite a shock when I first viewed it. There was a definite sense that I had missed a couple of episodes in between this and the last episode I believed to be #2. Everything felt more robust; comfortable with its setting, purpose and characters, and the genuine

Macross Zero Eps. 1 – 5 Review

2005-09-06T23:23:00.000+01:00

Director: Shoji KawamoriProduction: Bandai Visual/Big WestFansubs by ANBU & AnimeOneStory & CharactersMacross Zero focuses around the protagonist Shin, your typical tunnel-visioned pilot out to avenge the murder of his parents with every bogie he shoots down. We don’t actually know how or why his parents were murdered, or even if the blood splattering across the cabinet in the same flashback

Bambi and Her Pink Gun Vol. 1 Review

2005-09-01T02:08:00.000+01:00

Author: Atsushi KanekoPublisher: Digital Manga Publishing (DMP)“The word is out on the streets: a reward of five million dollars to the opportunist that wastes the courier calling herself Bambi and returns her living cargo. Chainsaw swinging psychos, gold-toothed Elvises, Derringer-packing grannies and all the other scum in these badlands could care less whether Bambi is kidnapping this toddler

Aim for the Top 2! (aka Gunbuster 2) Eps. 1 & 2 Review

2005-08-30T23:42:00.000+01:00

Director: Kazuya TsurumakiProduction: GAINAXFansubs by ANBU & SolarStory & CharactersIn these first two episodes I found it extremely difficult to shake the feeling of FLCL in pretty much every aspect of the story and characters (as well as the animation and design, but that, unlike this, is a great thing). Of course Aim for the Top 2! has the exact same core production staff of FLCL, the same

Pocky Impressions

2005-08-29T23:56:00.000+01:00

Note: Okay, this is a bit of a joke review, but I thought I might stick it up while I’m writing other proper things just to keep everything ticking over. Plus, it was quite an experience! And they are Japanese! By way of Thailand!All right, time for a mini Super Snack anecdote!I recently visited my local Chinese supermarket to stock up on [decent] instant noodles and I had somehow managed to

Naruto Vol. 7 Review

2005-08-24T21:45:00.000+01:00

Author: Masashi KishimotoPublisher: Viz"Deep within the Forest of Death-the site of the second stage of the Journeyman Ninja Selection Exams-Naruto, Sasuke -and Sakura are still reeling from Orochimaru's attack... and now they must battle this unrelenting monster's minions, the mysterious Sound Ninja. As the fight rages on, Sasuke struggles with the strange force growing inside of him-spreading

BLAME! Vol. 1 Review

2005-08-21T20:29:00.000+01:00

Author: Tsutomu NiheiPublisher: Tokyopop"Killy is a man of few words. He wanders, seemingly endlessly, through a lonely, gargantuan labyrinth of concrete and steel, fighting off cyborgs and other futuristic nightmares, searching only for something called Net Terminal Genes. And he has a very powerful gun, which he uses without hesitation whenever anything resembling danger rears its ugly head."

Trigun Maximum Vol. 6 Review

2005-08-21T01:30:00.000+01:00

Author: Yasuhiro NightowPublisher: Dark Horse"A lot of the Gung-Ho Guns have fallen victim to defeat and therefore death, but not by the bullets of the reluctant hero, Vash the Stampede. But even if the "Guns" seem to be dwindling, that doesn't mean there's a lack of violent freaks tearing up the planet. In Gunslinger Vash is running into all sorts of weirdos with guns. All the while, Knives and

xxxHOLiC Vol. 1 – 5 Overview

2005-08-19T16:00:00.000+01:00

Author: CLAMPPublisher: Dey Rey Manga"Watanuki Kimihiro is haunted by visions of ghosts and spirits. Seemingly by chance, he encounters a mysterious witch named Yuuko, who claims she can help. In desperation, he accepts, but realizes that he’s just been tricked into working for Yuuko in order to pay off the cost of her services. Soon he’s employed in her little shop—a job which turns out to be

Introductions

2005-08-18T19:00:00.000+01:00

Welcome to Hige Vs. Otaku, my first foray into the world of anime/manga/Japanese-thingies blogging.The main aim of this blog is to rationalise my burgeoning obsession with Japanese culture and explain that no, I'm not just a rabid Japanophile -- it's all completely justified.These Japanese people know what they doing; anime & manga are legit art forms with many important things to say; Japanese