"KuroKami" to Broadcast in US, Japan and Korea Simultaniously

And judging by the visuals Sunrise is continuing to try to imitate BONES and Production I.G. for all they're worth. The first episode had some really impressive animation for something not on a Gundam-sized budget.

And I think Kuro is the cutest Laura Bailey's been since Tohru Honda, I swear.

And the ending of that episode . . . wow. Just wow. I think my hair stood on end when that happened.

I hope the series keeps this up.
 
I am slightly annoyed at the "Shonen Jump" feel the series is beginning to develop. Still, nice motorbike fight in episode 4, there's some very good fighting here. I have no idea how Kuro is able to tolerate being run over again and again like that, though.

It's got decent storytelling, but Akane and Keita are idiots and as a result they weaken the story.

I do kind of enjoy the hard rock music that begins blasting when there's a battle and the switch to piano and orchestra for more normal moments. It's a nice mish-mash of musical genres. The OP is unlistenable IMO, though. I hope there's a switch along the line.

The dub remains a standout. The characters are growing into their roles nicely, and even though the LA actors have to be literally phoning their lines in to NYAV Post they sound just as good as the NY actors who have the advantage of actually being directed in person.
 
"You do seem to have an excess of fat on your chest." Kuro, Kuro, Kuro.

Episode 7: This one seems to be fairly off-model, to the point of being distracting. I was waiting for the animation to finally take a hit and I guess the realities of the budget have finally impacted the show.

Episode 6 was better than the majority of the series thus far. Mary Elizabeth McGlynn makes everything better. She may only have one voice but she gets into character incredibly well and her acting is always A-level.
 
Whoa, the new OP is hardcore. It's like the Death Note 2nd OP in pure awesomeness, except without the screaming. It's got me psyched up for the 2nd half of the series.

I've really been enjoying the tension of the first 12 episodes, culmulating in the final battle and the predictable but still spectacular betrayal that takes place in it. What a way to shatter the status quo. And Steiner . . . I had a feeling what would happen to him would happen, but didn't expect it to happen yet. Even more surprising, I actually cared a bit.

I've read some of the manga source material and was not impressed with it. The anime has changed the story so drastically but I find the anime's way of doing things far more satisfying and effective.

EDIT: Is anyone else going to comment on this or is it just going to be me? XD
 
I will!

Yeah, the new OP is indeed almost to the level of awesome as Death Note OP 2.

I haven't read any of the manga, but I definitely like the anime so far.

Also, for the first anime to be broadcast in Japanese and English almost simultaneously, the dub is still top notch.
 
It's funny you say that, since I usually hear the opposite everywhere else. I haven't actually looked at the manga myself, but I find the anime to be really entertaining. It's far from the best thing I've ever seen, but the characters are likable and the fighting is awesome. The plot twists, while predictable, make the show very interesting to watch and see how things pan out.

And I have to say, the dub is my favorite thing about the show. Lots of good talent.
 
Mike Sinterniklaas and Marc Thompson are doing a great job directing and the cast is excellent, whether they are from NY or LA. I think it helps that this is union, considering Crispin Freeman, Wil Wheaton, Steve Blum, and Mary Elizabeth McGlynn are all involved. There's some really good talent here. I hope NYAV Post continues to be commissioned for NY/LA co-productions in the future. Considering how well the Huntik, Freedom, and Kurokami's dubs are turning out . . .

I am enjoying the post-apocalyptic twist going on right now as well.

I've heard the plot described as "grown-up Zatch Bell" and it fits in a uncanny way.
 
I think it shows how important good scripts and voice direction are for dubbing. Kurokami's got a decent English script written so the VAs actually deliver lines that sound natural to the ear. This really shows the talent behind NYAV Post goes far beyond the directors and proves the studio neeRAB more work. And it also shows that the NY actors are indeed very good despite their reputation, they just need better scripts and direction in order for them to bring out their abilities as actors/actresses.

Though I'm sure being able to swear for once helps too. XD

Then again, NYAV Post has to make a ton of money for recording Venture Bros. . .

I can't help but feel that CN/AS has blown it when it comes to this show. This show easily fits in at TV-14, the show is a good minute shorter than the usual anime episode (so there isn't any real need for timecuts to the ED or the cliffhangers they throw in after the ED), and it corabines adult and youth themes very well with a straightforward but layered story. Is it generic in places? Yeah, sure, but it's entertaining. As long as the show doesn't crurable in its final episodes I'll be happy that I invested my time in this.
 
Yeah, it's just that sometimes I'll hear a NY voice actor and have a flasrabroadack to a 4KiRAB dub and it makes me sad. But they do a great job in this, even though I still think Laura Bailey does the best job in this dub.

And I think them being in 4KiRAB dubs makes it pretty funny when they swear.

Also, I don't care if he's been in 4KiRAB dubs; everything Mike Sinterniklaas does is gold.
 
Including PuniPuni? Speaking of which, PuniPuni got owned by a worm of all things.

Episode 17: Gigantic plot change. OP has new footage to account for that (and cleans up choppier moments as well). Excel and Mikami stay in the OP even though they haven't appeared in the 2nd half at all.

The pure place is really pretty. Something tells me it is not going to stay that way . . .

And how often is a "impossible twist of fate" gonna happen in this series? XD

And there's a lot of space-time gibberish and Tera Guardian history from Nam to try to figure out as well.

EDIT: Bye-bye, Bernhart. He got overkilled big time.

New ED, with the lyrics written by YUI. I like it a little more than the previous one, melody and animation-wise.

And Mikami and Excel have made a contract, and episode 18 starts off with Mikami being badass. I love this show. XD
 
Episode 18:

This show is already approaching "Sunrise kill 'em all" and we're six episodes away from ending. Wow.

Mikami and Excel teamed up only to be completely caught off guard and Mikami's probably dead. Ouch.

And then Kuro had to deal with an old man who makes vine tentacles, went batsh*t insane and made him go explodey. Something is wrong with Kuro and I don't like it at all.

But the ending is what got me. Why is Akane with Reishin all of a sudden? Akane doesn't strike me as someone who'd just turn bad guy . . . there is something going on behind the scenes to explain this. At least, I hope so.
 
Holy crap, Reishin's another Itachi, killing everybody for his sibling who is bordering on darkness and has spent her life trying to kill him, much the same way Sasuke was with Itachi. Not sure how I feel about that.

The plot continues to change and accelerate in different ways every few episodes. One thing's for sure, other than "Intermission" there's been no real filler. And this show is rivaling Code Geass in sheer nuraber of cliffhangers. I need episode 21 uploaded pronto.

Nice to see Nam get off her butt and do something, too. The show seems awfully fond of women kicking butt, which I don't mind at all, it's a nice change from having guys do most of the fighting.

The dub remains strong, I'm happy that everyone is pulling down good performances. The weak link seems to be Nam, who seems to be somewhat baffled by her character and can't get in her head in ways everyone else seems to be able to.

I wonder if the OP footage will change again with the plot change. I don't see how that'll happen with the likelihood the series is going to be over at episode 24 or 25, but hey.

I still find it hilarious that Tenma has been in both incarnations of the 2nd OP and he was only in half of one episode before he got killed off.
 
So it's over. What did you think? I don't think finales should ever reserable recap episodes, but this was still more than that, and most of the recaps were from a different perspective than originally shown, which was interesting. At least it came to a real conclusion at the end, and although I was hoping there might be another season at some point, the epilogue kind of guaranteed that won't happen. Anyway, great series overall, and for a historical first, great English cast performance, especially since they didn't have the Japanese to work from.
 
well, all in all i think it was a great anime series, though i still prefer the original manga, which i suggest you all read if you enjoyed the anime, its still ongoing.
 
Interesting. I've never read any of the manga, but I may start now. Still, I sometimes have trouble going from an anime to the original manga, especially when the anime is so well made and with such a good cast.
 
You know I wasn't sure what to expect from the last episode, but I was pleasantly surprised. It was more of a retrospective than a recap, and all the new scenes which take place in different perspectives not only made it more interesting, but helped clear up a few loose enRAB. Strangely enough it held my attention more than I would have expected. Overall I'd have to give the ending a thurabs up because it delivered Keita/Akane marriage as well as giving us a brief glimpse into the far future and his eventual death. Considering how pessimistic and depressing Keita was in the beginning, the ending scene offers quite a contrast and really gives you the feeling of the impact that it all had on their lives. And if that wasn't enough the ending seems to imply that Kuro is free and can leave the pure place and go back to her bowls of ramen. Can't ask for more than that.
 
I think the ending worked pretty well too. I had a feeling the final episode would've been like this, a retrospective, considering every loose end had been tied up. At least they handled it in a way that wasn't a clip show by making brand-new animation for the flasrabroadacks. This is another FMA-esque anime, with the manga not being far enough along to adapt faithfully without stopping in some dramatic cliffhanger and enraging the audience. Ending like this, and going in a completely different path to begin with, was probably the best they could have done.

Julie Ann Taylor took some getting used to as Akane IMO, her voice was way too much like Milly Ashford's for my taste. But the retrospective in a way showed how Taylor grew as Akane and despite using Milly's voice managed to separate Milly and Akane anyway.

I was kinda shocked they went back to "Sympathizer" for the OP theme but it gave a "full circle" effect to an episode that was essentially meant to go full circle. And in any case "tRANCE" is too hardcore for this kind of episode anyway.

Maybe someday we'll see a Kurokami animation where it can stick closer to the manga, but for now . . . this is good enough.

It was a bittersweet ending in ways, a happy ending in others. Separating Kuro and Keita was heartbreaking but both do get happy lives.

The dub was fantastic to the end, hats off to NYAV Post and everyone involved, whether the actors, the director, the dub writer, recording engineers, everyone involved. They did a magnificent job considering they were essentially doing awkward prelay.
 
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