Blood Lad - Anime

If there’s one thing I enjoy watching it’s the antics of other otaku because let’s be honest that’s always a hilarious treat, especially when it’s depicted in anime and other media. One such anime recently caught my attention and it was quite an interesting watch though I have to admit it let me hanging there at the end.

Blood Lad was an amusing anime that had me curious from the introduction of an otaku-vampire in the underworld. It became even more interesting once I watched the plot unfold and I saw that there was more to the obsessed leader than met the eyes. The story follows Staz, the leader of the east region, who lived his life like your average obsessed otaku as he dreamed of the human world and all its wonders. One day he comes across a human girl who has unwittingly stumbled into the underworld and into his territory. As you can imagine Staz is excited to see the human, while also being quite attracted to her blood.

However, before Staz has the chance to suck her blood she is eaten by some random Venus plant destroying Staz’s opportunity to enjoy the human fully, thus poor Fuyumi turns into a ghost, which turns out to be very uninteresting to our otaku leader. Still determined to own the human he sets out on a quest to revive Fuyumi all so he can ravish her human flesh.

Things get interesting as they travel between the human world and the demon world in search of the answer to Fuyumi’s resurrection. Things also become complicated as Staz slowly begins to change his reasons for reviving Fuyumi.

The anime is quite interesting, though I feel like it lacked progression in terms of the main plot and the reason I say this is simply because once you get to the end of the anime you basically end off right where you started. It’s slightly frustrating, even if they throw in some good fighting scenes. For me, the anime felt like it lacked any sort of conclusion. I can understand if the manga isn’t finished and that prevents the anime from actually having an ending, but even then some form of closure would be nice. Of course I suppose if you’re going to have a second season that wouldn’t be necessary, but in a world where things can get so easily cancelled and cut short, it’s still would help a lot to properly sendoff even one season.

Would this be an anime I recommend? Depends on all sorts of things, like whether or not you like being frustrated. If the answer is no, then it’s probably best to steer clear of this one, but that’s only my opinion. Who knows maybe you’ve been waiting for this to be an anime and wouldn’t mind being slightly disappointed? All to his own I guess.

Ajin: Demi-Human - Anime

It’s always good to try something new, whether it is new food, new places or in this case new types of anime. As an otaku I won’t lie and say I haven’t gotten used to a certain type of animation, due to my preference no doubt. However, recently I have come across a different style of animation that, though uncomfortable to view at first, turned out to be quite an experience. One I don’t regret. Just goes to show one shouldn’t be too set in their ways if they ever want to fully enjoy the world.

Ajin proved to be quite an interesting anime as it slowly grabbed my attention and forced me to enjoy its brilliance. The story follows Nagai Kei, a teenager just living and hoping to be a good human being, despite his rather cut throat way of looking at things. One day however, his life gets turned upside down as he gets run over by a truck and revives in front of many witnesses. This incident confirms him to be what the world has branded as demi-humans, immortal beings that have been introduced to the world a few years ago and are not necessarily welcomed with open arms.

Hunted by the government for heinous research purposes and sought after by the average human simply for the high rumored reward, we see as Nagai goes on the run for his life in search of a peaceful and quiet life. Though he gets help from various individuals along the way it becomes clear that his ideal quiet life is something of a distant dream and it doesn’t help as he gets unintentionally involved in what turns out to be an Ajin revolt by other immortals who are basically tired of living in fear and on the run.

The anime is really very interesting as you see various similarities of terrorist groups and a theme of acceptance that is sought after by the Ajin, while the world refuses to acknowledge them as anything human or worthy of human rights. Sporting a dark and somewhat graphic atmosphere, it makes for an interesting watch as you observe the curious personality of the protagonist who isn’t created as lovable as you would expect.

It creates an interesting world to observe, one that has many unfortunate similarities to the real world where acceptance isn’t always just handed out freely and people disregard the rights of those they view as ‘different’. These themes are quite difficult to confront but the anime does it relatively well as it tries to show us the ugliness of humanity in an artistic way. That isn’t to say it doesn’t have its drawbacks as it stumbles with the story just a tiny bit, being almost too predictable at times, but oh well, the idea is there.

So with an interesting type of animation and delicate subject matter the anime does prove to get better the more you watch and I admit to looking forward to the second season they promise at that end. I can imagine there are others like me who find the animation just a bit rough to get used to, but I can say the story helps overlook any discomfort you might feel. If it helps any, I recommend watching past the first few episodes, or better yet just watch the movie, Ajin part 1: Shodo, that combines the first few episodes for easy viewing. If you aren’t hooked by then, I suppose it’s just not your cup of tea.

Healer - KDrama

Sometimes when you have nothing to watch you find yourself digging into the backlogged list of things to watch and low and behold you find pieces of gold that have been sitting unwatched waiting for your eyeballs to grace its glory upon. Such is the case with the recent drama I finished and I must say, save for the ending, it was an enjoyable ride I wouldn’t mind repeating. And one should mention that such rides are not so often found, especially in these times where people cater more to the quick fix for the short attention spans instead of catering to the long and in-depth and well-crafted storylines that we all secretly crave.

The drama I speak of is Healer and you wouldn’t have to stray very far in the kdrama world to find a few fans praising its awesome. Of course it should be expected when you deliver such an intriguing story with so many intertwining parts that draws your attention and tugs at your heartstrings while also giving you some truly interesting characters to both drool and hate on. The cast is diverse and the episodes leave you breathless and wanting more as it takes you on a rollercoaster ride of action and conspiracy while slipping in some romance and drama.

The plot follows a night courier who has made a name for himself in the business as he runs his latest errand for his customer but it turns out he’s taken on the wrong kind of client as things get messy and he’s framed for murder. But that doesn’t stop him from doing his job and taking on another errand from a famous reporter in the meantime, one that has him tailing another, lessor known, reporter. Things get even more interesting as he discovers that the two jobs might just be connected and he investigates things further opening up a whole can of worms that has not only the dirty secrets of a politician coming out but that of his own parents whom he knew little to nothing about.

Following the epic stunts pulled off by our lead, Seo Jung-Hoo is really a treat for any action loving fan and the troubles faced by the one who calls on our action hero, Kim Moon-Ho, makes for some heart rendering scenes as you sympathize with the troubled man who has kept so many secrets locked away for too many years and has one hell of a story to tell. 

Of course you can’t forget our female lead that brings out the soft side to our supposedly cold and isolated night courier and makes him more human as the drama progresses. Chae Young-Shin does a good job of running the story along as she connects a few plot points while being herself oblivious for most of the drama. You can’t help but fall for the chemistry that the two leads bring to the table, making it all the more worth it to watch.

But there is one more character that must be mentioned, the ahjumma that makes things interesting and honestly worthwhile watching for a lot of reasons other than romance as she brings in the tech and gadgetry. Jo Min-Ja, the recluse ex-detective who has decided that her hacking skills are best left to the night world makes things enjoyable and brings in the comedy and epic banter.

There are more characters I could mention but that would take too much time and create too much spoilers, instead let me say that this drama brings to the table some lovable and utterly despicable characters you will either enjoy or pass over. Obviously the impact of their performances must be thanks to the actors and actresses who played them and made the roles their own as they brought their A+ game. I have nothing but respect for them. The same goes for the writers who created these characters and the story.

One thing I will say though is that ending….that ending could have been different. For so many reasons that ending could have been different, but I guess perfection would have been too much for one drama to go for. And that is all I’ll say about that.