For the second year in a row, readers of the magazine Travel + Leisure have voted Kyoto the best city to visit. One might ask the question, why? Kyoto is a country overflowing with history. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan for over one thousand years, the city is filled with artifacts from days of old. Filled with shrines, temples, and museums, some of which designated by UNESCO to be World Heritage Sites, Kyoto is definitely a great travel destination for history freaks and geeks. For those not too into history, Kyoto is also known throughout Japan for its food and cuisine. The city also hosts four main festivals throughout the year, the Gion Matsuri being only a few days away.
Robots Are Taking Over.... Haneda Airport?
It seems like almost every issue of AA Weekly has something to do with robots. This week, we're covering the introduction of robots at Tokyo Haneda International Airport. The company Cyberdyne has agreed to outfit the airport's terminals with a few robots to assist in the moving of luggage, cleaning the facility, and heavy lifting. The Japanese government has been funding not just this, but multiple ventures in robotics over the past few years in hopes to showcase these advances at the upcoming Tokyo 2020 Olympics. The government is hoping to triple the nation's robotics market to over $22 billion in the next six years. Deployment of the three types of robots is set to complete by the end of this year.
Tokyo 2020
Most of you already know that Tokyo is going to be hosting the 2020 Olympics; however, many of you likely don't know that the Olympic stadium design, with its sky-high budget, has led to many disagreements within Japan over its construction. Following a massive budget cut in 2014, Zaha Hadid had to scale down the stadium's design. Despite being renowned the world over for his beautiful designs, such as the award winning London Aquatic Center used in the London 2012 Olympics, the Tokyo Olympic stadium redesign has led to criticism from many Japanese citizens, with some likening its appearance to a bicycle helmet. This criticism and disapproval has since increased in its frequency, especially after the budget for the Olympic stadium has been doubled and is now at £1.3bn. Despite disapproval from a large percentage of the Japanese population, the design is here to stay. It's still five years away but the Olympic Committee organizers have deemed that it is "too late" to try to find a different design.
AnimeTime [New and Improved AnimeDownloader] by ZylexVII
A new Anime downloader has creeped onto the surface made by ZylexVII! Want to come check it out? Need them juicy downloads? Poke your nose riiiiiiiiiiight here.
Discussions
[AA] Post Your Desktop Thread! by Taiga
Seems like Taiga's thread has resurfaced onto AA once again. let's try keep it going shall we? Show off your current desktop here, it's okay, don't delete those folders on your desktop. We won't judge.
Mobile Suit Gundam by Sōsuke Aizen
Calling all Gundam fans here! Yes you! If you're old school enough, you'd know what Sōsuke Aizen is talking about. Join the discussion.
Recommendation Threads
Modern supernatural anime [Need rec] by Mad Scarecrow
Mad Scarecrow is looking for some supernatural Anime raining in modern animation. Help a fellow AA member out, throw some recommendations at him. At his face. Make it hurt.
Brandon Thompson, also known by his stage name, Akira Complex, is a US and Japan based producer and sound designer. The young prodigy began his journey three years ago with his remix for the producers DJ Shimamura and NO+CHIN on their "Step Into the Future" EP. Shortly after this release and his self-release of the single "Astral", well known DJ and Game Composer Kosuke Saito, better known as Kors K, took notice of his work and signed him to his record label S2TB. Since then multiple releases have surfaced with his name on the record label such as the singles "Foresight" and "Odyssey". After refining his skills along the way, years after signing with S2TB, Akira Complex announced his debut album "The Synthesis Collective". The album featured 11 tracks in total with remixes from familiar names such as Au5 and once again, DJ Shimamura. The album was released in early 2015 with widespread success and since then has Akira Complex has gone on even to produce music for shows such as Sex and Violence with Mach Speed. Although lots has happened, we can't help but feel this is only the beginning for the rising producer.
By now, you've all probably heard of Hatoful boyfriend. The dating sim about birds. For those who haven't heard of it, read that last sentence again. It's about dating birds. This strange dating sim has made its way into many people's favorites with humble bundle even selling a limited edition Hatoful boyfriend body pillow at one point but now it's due to get a console release and to be honest, no-one seems to be complaining...
I can't really say much about this story as I haven't played the game myself and I don't really have any intention of doing so. I can however, show you the features list that they posted with its announcement.
Quote:
Features:
An Avian Love Story: Chat with birds of every feather from narcoleptic school instructors to pigeon biker gangs on your way to flirty encounters potential suitors that set your hear aflutter. Spend time with the ones that strike your fancy and ditch the birds that prove to be a bore!
New Scenario and Ending: Series creator Hato Moa has created an all-new scenario and ending to discover in this exciting update for fans of the original game and brand-new Hatoful Boyfriend players!
Replayability to Fall in Love All Over Again: Build your own nest of intrigue within the St. PigeoNation’s Institute with genre-bending intertwining narratives, hidden stories, surprise paramours, and multiple endings sure to send you back to the start to try a new path and a different love interest.
Attend Class and Level Up: Choose elective classes like gym and art class to raise your character’s stats and bend suitors to your will by mixing charisma, vitality and wisdom. Get wise and you’ll pass your classes. Getting fit might save your life!
Fowl Twists and Turns: Not everything is as it seems at St. PigeoNation’s Institute! Uncover dark conspiracies, unexpected twists, and hellish fiends bent on bringing on the apocalypse. Pick your dates wisely, and you’ll flap off into the distance with your one true love. Take the wrong turn, and you might just end up murdered in your bed.
Sensual Birdfeed: Purchase delicious beans as a gift for your potential love interests and wow your feathered crushes with Calm Corn, Country Millet or Bitter Black Beans.
Tokyo Xanadu trailer released
I don't know why I picked out this story as, to tell you the truth, there isn't actually that much to tell. Tokyo Xandadu is an “urban myth action RPG” for PS Vita by Falcom that looks really good. For a vita game the graphics look brilliant and the gameplay looks interesting enough that it won't feel like just another game trying to catch some of the more popular games in the genre. This trailer is important though as it's some of the first gameplay that anyone has gotten the chance to see. It has quite a range of characters from what I found online and I'm interested to know what they mean by “urban myth action RPG”. This is one Japanese game that I think I'll be looking out for.
Satoru Iwata passed away
Ok, so there is not much I can say about this other then may he rest in peace. He has done so much for the gaming world.
We are still looking for someone to take over this section permanently but for now, I'm glad to be writing it.
I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I did writing it.
This week we have weisa cosplaying as the enigmatic Rize Kamishiro of the popular series Tokyo Ghoul. I don't know about you guys but I feel like cosplaying as the voracious "Binge Eater" is no simple task and not only does weisa take on Rize's persona, she absolutely nails it. Everything about this cosplay screams a glutenous ghoul, from the crimson eyes to the blood smeared on her hands to even the flowers that seemed to accompany Rize in all of her flashbacks. She fits into Rize's mysterious and beautiful character almost frighteningly well, so well it seems as if she could even feed on the photographer if she was to be overcome with hunger.
Mew is unavailable this week, so I'll take over his section for now muhahahaha. This week's pick is Nisekoi, one of those generic shows where a guy is tangled up with a misunderstanding with a bunch of drop dead gorgeous girls.
Dragon's Pick Marika Tachibana
WHAT? Not Onodera or Tsugumi? No, you third-rate mouth breathers. My pick is Marika Tachibana. Docile, polite, and kawaii as fuck, she's sure to stay by your side. Just don't forget who she is. Tachibana is initially introduced to Raku, just like most of the other main characters, as a transfer student in school. Outgoing, polite, and feminine, she immediately catches the attention of all the girls in class, including Raku. Much to his surprise, however, she recognizes him. And not just recognizes him, but is also his fiancée! Despite her usually calm and composed demeanor, her attitude takes a complete 180 once she's angered. Her accent changes, and her calm composure fades, instead giving way to a girl who is spontaneous, vulgar, and in short, scary. I like this characteristic of her a lot. She is a very cunning, sly, and capable individual, who was, at one point capable of controlling her entire school in the shadows. She was also able to devise a plot that allowed Raku to openly shout out that he "loves" Marika. And if her intelligence, cuteness, and outgoing personality isn't enough, she's quite perverted, as well. :)
Above all else in her mind is "Raku-sama." She loves him and cherishes him very much and is very open about her love for him. She continues to go to great lengths to impress him, much to the chagrin of many of the other female characters. Yet despite all of this, she holds no ill-will toward any of the heroines in the series.
Angel's Choice Seishirou Tsugumi
When you bring up the topic of Nisekoi, sooner or later someone's going to pop the big question, "who is Nisekoi's best girl?" Now this wouldn't be such a tough question if Nisekoi's female cast wasn't completely filled with lovable characters (except Chitoge). Even though I find every girl from Nisekoi to have some extremely redeeming qualities (except Chitoge), one girl stands above the rest, and for me that girl is Seishirou Tsugumi.
When she was initially introduced, Tsugumi was mostly portrayed as serious, focused, and somewhat mild-mannered. However, she reveals a more feminine and emotional side after befriending Raku. Furthermore, Tsugumi is a shy individual and becomes greatly flustered and embarrassed (her embarrassed face is genuinely one of the cutest things I have had the pleasure of witnessing) as shown when her mistress would resort her to wear more feminine clothing or when confronted by praise or compliments (especially Raku's). Oh, and did I mention she always carries a fully loaded arsenal of all sorts of weapons ranging from explosives to fully automatic weapons?
I truly believe that Tsugumi's only downside is her extreme loyalty towards Chitoge and the Bee Hive Gang. Due to this loyalty, she'll never be able to truly act on her feelings for Raku as she would never do anything to betray Chitoge's relationship. It would honestly warm my heart if there was even a sliver of chance for Tsugumi and Raku's relationship to develop romantically, but we all know that will never happen.
Synopsis
The series takes place in the near future, when it is possible to instantaneously measure and quantify a person's state of mind and personality. This information is recorded and processed, and the term "Psycho-Pass" refers to a standard used to measure an individual's being. The story centers around the "enforcement officer" Shinya Kougami, who is tasked with managing crime in such a world.
In the future, it is possible to quantitatively measure a person's emotions, desires, and every inclination. In this way, it is also possible to measure a person's criminal tendency factor, which is used to judge criminals.
This is the story of a team of policemen dedicated to maintaining public order. Some of them work in the Enforcement Division, responsible for the apprehension of criminals, while others belong to the Supervisory Division which oversees their colleagues in Enforcement.
Characters Shinya Kougami (狡噛 慎也)
Shinya Kougami is an enforcement officer who is tasked with managing crime. Shinya has a high criminal mentality, but because of his skills as a detective, he was released under the condition that he becomes an Enforcer for the Public Safety Bureau, Unit 1.
Despite his natural grudge towards Makishima, they are actually somewhat alike, as shown in Shinya's ability to foresee Makishima's actions.
Akane Tsunemori (常守 朱)
The main female protagonist and the newly assigned Inspector of Unit 1. Considered a model citizen due to her ever calm demeanor and for passing the exams with the highest score for employment on several public sectors and private corporations. She decided to join the police due to being the only place where no one obtained a score as high as hers, thus she believes to be able to do something there that no one else can.
Shougo Makishima (槙島 聖護)
A humanist who is hopelessly in love with cruelty, savagery, and all the worst aspects of human nature, Makishima is a manipulative anarchist who is just as ruthless in his schemes as he is in physical combat. A born evangelist, he possesses both an uncommon charisma and a true gift for narrative. Makishima is fond of books, as shown in his tendency to quote from famous literature. His weapon of choice is a barber's razor with engravings on its handle.
Synopsis and character descriptions taken from MyAnimeList.net
Review
Who made the legal system? Is it of the people, by the people, for the people, or does the government control us and our everyday life? Psycho-Pass delves deeper into the theory that the government controls everyday life and puts on a facade of peace and prosperity when in actuality they're just avoiding the problems. In the year 2113, people are judged by what is known as a "Crime Coefficient" (number scale, the higher the number the more unstable) or a "Psycho-pass" (color scale, the more cloudy, the more unstable) that apparently can judge the mindset of a human and determine if they are capable of becoming a violent criminal, and if the system determines they can, they are thrown into a treatment center which is more like a prison, and is supposed to help lower the persons crime coefficient and psycho-pass, but rarely anyone walks out of there with a clear psycho-pass. However, by isolating people who are deemed to become criminals out of the public, the illusion of total peace and harmony takes place. This anime also does a very nice job of illustrating the people who want to change that, and face the problems head-on.
Story
The anime sets the dramatic tone very early in the first episode. For some people it may catch you off guard. The anime's story does a very good job at reeling people in to stay. With the visually stunning artwork and the well developed setting, it is almost certain you will want to what one episode after another. No episode fails to deliver a captivating portion of the story that will leave you speechless. This anime shows how sometimes emotions and personal vendettas can cloud your thinking and your rational judgement.
9/10
Characters
We all know the characters can either make, or break, an anime. It could be the best anime in the world but if the characters are undeveloped, flat, and have no characteristics, then the story could be garbage. Lucky, though, that's not the case with Psycho-Pass. Clearly every characters story is a little different. They all have their own personalities and express themselves uniquely. As they say, you can never judge a book by its cover, and that certainly applies in this anime. It's not the cliché anime where you can guess this and that about a character without actually knowing them. When they talk and what actions they take might surprise you because you may not have even thought that about them. The characters also develop and progress very nicely from the beginning to the end of the anime. There is at least one character that you can most likely relate to. We have probably all felt one way or another relating to these characters.
9/10
Art
Sometimes the art can be off-putting to some viewers, and sometimes the art can make the viewers want to watch. The art in this movie is really captivating from every aspect. From the assortment of color schemes to the minor details this anime does a very good job at showing off their captivating artistic skills. Maybe this kind of art isn't your cup of tea? Well, don't let that put you off. I guarantee you will like this style almost as much as anything.
10/10
Sound
The voice acting and sound in this anime is decent. Even the English voice actors are pretty good, but that's mostly because Funimation does the dub. You can really hear the emotion in the characters voices, which is always a very nice plus. The overall sound on this anime is very decent as well because all of the sound effects and such really enhance and magnify the intensity of the scene, and keep you in your chair excited to see more. The sound quality is also very clear, crisp, and top of the line. All of the sound effects and such are in the best of places, and only there when needed. No more unnecessary loud explosion sound effects for small fireworks. Very nice job.
8/10
Enjoyment
I am a fan of psychological thrillers such as this one. I love to think deep and hard about things and connect it to our normal life. There isn't much anime out there that can match the kind of enjoyment I got out of watching this. There are bits and pieces of comedy but there is also a solemn more stern tone to it too. It's a great anime to follow and enjoy if you love this kind of thriller anime or you're looking to get into one. This would be a great anime to start with. The story is never slow, and has a very nice pace to it. Not too fast, not too slow, but just enough to keep you enticed and interested in what happens next. That's how an anime should be. You don't want to force the problem on someone or rush it, but you also don't want it to drag out slowly and have the viewer lose interest. Very nice job on their part. The story also keeps you extremely entertained as the producer throws "curve-balls" that you may or have may not seen coming.
9/10
Overall Rating:9/10
This anime to be was very good. The pace was really good and the character development and progression was extraordinary. The story behind this is a very good one, which I am sure anyone would like, whether you enjoy watching psychological thrillers or not. This anime is definitely worth a watch, no matter what kind of anime you're into.
Title - Ibitsu Title in Japanese - イビツ Genre(s) - Horror, Seinen Chapters currently released - 15 Author(s) - Haruto Ryou Artist(s) - Haruto Ryou Released - Oct 2, 2009 to Jun 4, 2010 Status - Completed
Synopsis
A boy went to take his trash out late one night, and found a strange, creepy, lolita woman sitting amongst the garbage bags. She asked if he had a little sister, and he answered her, hurrying afterwards back to his apartment. When he looked out the window, she was gone. Who is the strange woman, and why does she give him such a bad feeling?
Characters
If you saw this then why on earth would you go closer?...
The Strange Lolita
Not much is known of the Strange Lolita, but if you see her at night then she will ask you a question... "Do you need a little sister?". Do not answer. If you say yes then you will surely end up in a bad way. Do not say no as she will kill you on the spot and whatever you do, DO NOT SAY YOU ALREADY HAVE ONE. This is the worst thing you can say. If you tell her you already have one then she will kill your family and try and force you to accept her as your little sister instead then you will still meet a terrible end...
Mate, you're a moron. Don't just stand there...
Kazuki Itou
Itou Kazuki is a normal high schooler with an untidy nature who relies very much on his younger sister to keep his cleaning in check. As a result, when his younger sister is threatened, he stands up for her. When the strange lolita begins to stalk him and his sister, Kazuki shows himself to be brave and determined character but she soon begins to get under his skin...
Vandie’s Opinion
Although I'm not really affected by horror (in any medium), occasionally I'll pick something up that will make me want to go cower in a corner. Ibitsu is that something.
As someone with younger siblings who lives in a small town, that gets very dark at night, I can only picture how the main character must be feeling when he sees the lolita girl sitting by his trash in the dark, and I can only imagine what would be going through my head if I had been asked if I "needed a little sister" by said lolita girl. Ibitsu is an extremely warped and disturbing physiological manga that picks at one of our most primal fears...the safety of our family. I'm not going to say that the story was enjoyable, because it was not. Not even slightly. It was disturbing, it was creepy, but in no way was it enjoyable. The only way I think someone could find it enjoyable is if they were a completely mad masochist (the complete opposite of myself). The problem with reviewing such a story is that you're not sure if that's what you want to be rating it for. People like to be scared and I understand that (somewhat) but I'm not sure if you would count that as enjoyment because, as I said before, you would have to be rather masochistic in order to have that mindset.
For what it is though, it does well. Because of this, the story gets an eerie 9/10
Although the manga was really rather short, I think that all of the characters got a decent amount of progression and depth. Even those that didn't last very long got their own bit of personality. The lolita girl herself, probably got the least amount of explanation as that what was given was all vague and nothing was ever truly ever explained. I'm not going to say that was a bad thing either as it kept the character more disturbing as you had no idea of her motives. Due to how short the manga is, I have to be very careful what I say here so as to avoid major spoilers about the characters. What I will say is that the main character is a bit of an idiot but then again when has a horror story had an intelligent lead? The characters get a dark 7/10
The art looked more like rough sketches than any finished product although I do understand that this is to help with the unnerving style of the whole thing. I can't say I see the effect of such an art style but I roughly understand the point of it. One of the best pieces in the manga is in the first few pages when the Lolita girl is first shown (I think I'll include that in the character profile section if you want to see that) as it really sets the tone for the rest of the manga. So the art wasn't brilliant but was fit for the story. Because of this, the art gets a slightly better than average 6.4/10
Overall Ibitsu is a manga for people who like to be scared. It does what it was meant to very well and for that I applaud it. It does have a few things that let it down (such as the art) but mainly it was a good manga. I find myself saying again that it is not enjoyable because as I stated previously, it's unnerving and not in a good way. It really does put you in the shoes of the main character and make you want him to survive but its definitely not something you want to read if you're looking to enjoy yourself. Go read a slice of life comedy if that's what you want. Overall Ibitsu gets a 7.4/10
Remember guys, I write this for you. That means if there is any manga you want me to cover, just shoot me a pm and I'll be happy to take a look.
Kanade has commited to doing these every other week, I hope you guys understand how long it takes to complete a VN. Doing it every week is a hard task while dealing with other personal things during the week. Please appreciate the time he spends and be patient!
Viper has had a few account issues but he is back now, Interviews will be back next week, but a chance of skipping interviews the week after since he is going on a trip to Japan.
I would like for all the readers to know that AA Weekly is something written by AA members, for AA members. Everything is done for you guys, if you would like to see something new, or want to write something, just send me a message and we can discuss. We are currently in need of writers, so don't be shy! If you do not like something about the news, feel free to leave a comment and we can work around it. We really do need some new writers.
Our new Anime Reviewer is ℒitecoin, so if you have any suggestions for him, feel free to leave a comment or PM him personally.
Ohh so great to see Rize's cosplay.
& while I wasn't here I didn't notice my discussion thread became quite active for a while.
Great work as always guys.
Angel-senpai, your section was an icing on the cake.
The airport transportation think is pretty cool.
The Rize cosplay is pretty on point if you ask me 8^)
And i'm glad to see Psycho-Pass rated highly. I'm going to take a look at that Manga. Looks pretty good.
Great issue as usual.
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