pip-7

Based on the old samurai film made by Japan's legendary filmmaker Akira Kurosawa, Samurai 7 is probably the first remake ever to be fully approved by the Kurosawa Estate after years of being 'unofficially' spawned into several versions by other international filmmakers.

This animated TV series tells the story of a maiden and her friends who seeks for the seven warriors who are willing to protect the rice fields in a faraway village from the bandits (basically, the premise is almost the same as the original, albeit with different arrangements and settings). Despite the fact that the show's anachronistic nature (humans and robots roam in this industrialized-world of feudal Japan) seems to be ripped off from a Final Fantasy game, it still retains the crucial themes and its dramatic storytelling that make the original Seven Samurai a legend among film buffs. It's an entirely new realm, everyone may admit, but hey, it's still worth the price of its complete DVD collection.

Let's start off with the animation flow: generally, it's really good but no, it's no Miyazaki (and it's not even up to the par with the giants like Cowboy Bebop and Evangelion) but its butt-kicking action scenes are undoubtedly impressive anyway. The only thing that ticks me off is the 3D robot designs and stuff: they seem to be way too obvious and easily distract viewers from enjoying the story in its entirety. If only they were designed as they were on any Gundam shows (and hey, some of the giant mecha samurai DO resemble of Gundams, only stiffer) Characters develop nicely throughout the show, with some valuable info slowly coming out into the light, revealing the main reasons behind the feudalistic atmosphere and yes, there are some hidden pasts behind each of the characters that will augment only the story's thematic plot.

There are so many reasons why Samurai 7 is both loved and hated by not only fans of Mr. Kurosawa but also anime buffs as well. But I'll leave this up to you. For me, it's one of the best stuff everyone can expect in terms of its visual feast and enticing storyline.

Well, I did make a critical comment on Seed Destiny on IMDb prior to this (and yeah, I still don't like the first Seed) but after watching it on later episodes, something tells me that Destiny really seems to capture the core essence of this mighty mecha-based franchise, and it all shows in some of the most intense battle sequences ever made on TV. So it's pretty fair for me to pull back those crude words I uttered for the sake of all Gundam fans.

Though there are so many changes since the first show (truthfully, you'll be stuck in the woods if you don't follow its trail), it's still pretty much about the conflict between ZAFT (for dummies, space guys) and the forces of Earth, just like its predecessors. OK, I really miss lots of episodes in Seed (cause I don't really like it at all), so I have no idea the whole premise here but there's one thing I know about its characters: not one single person wants to prove to be heroic nor evil in this show because they are just doing what is right in their own eyes. And makers of the Gundam shows get smarter these days.

Despite its melodramatic nature, frequent uses of flashbacks (doggone these stuff) and the fact that the 'save our country from the enemy' conversations can become really annoying, the major highlight (and the main reason I watch Destiny) is the grand mecha battles: every single Gundam, including the famous one-eyed bots, make their appearances on (this time) both sides of the battlefield. Unless you know the show well, viewers will be virtually confused with their affiliations. Aside from improved 3D effects (and they blend really nicely) and character animation, one of the greatest thing that I realize recently is that most anime have 3D robots these days: the Gundam series, like Mr. Miyazaki himself, instead defy them by using the old-school methods (hand-drawn, that's for sure) and the result is impressive. In fact, I think these hand-drawn mechas look more versatile and exciting (nostalgia is the perfect word) compared to the rest of the 3D robots, which is a wonder why most recent mecha shows suck.

Like all anime stuff, there are some J-Pop songs specially produced for Destiny: mostly are varied in quality, ranged from awesome and memorable to the state that makes you think 'WTF?'. Just check them up, listen and you'll see what I mean.

And here is my analyst of the later episodes of Gundam Seed Destiny and yes, I admit it's really good. If you don't like its convoluted storyline, you'll be still enticed by Destiny's mecha battles, and they're all worthy of its parent name.