Naruto 360
January 18, 2009
When I finally scrounged up enough dough to purchase Naruto: Rise of the Ninja, I promptly popped it into my Xbox 360 and did not play it-I wandered it. In this game is a fully realized Konoha Village, the hometown of the spiky blonde ninja that has won a fair share of hearts around America and abroad. The game play is rather Read more
Kung Fu Blockbusters
January 17, 2009
The martial arts drought is temporarily over, and the art of kung fu is once again playing a central role in two destined blockbusters this year.
First of all there is of course the highly anticipated Forbidden Kingdom which features the two top contemporary martial arts heroes in the world, Jet Li and Jacky Chan. Watching Chan and Li locked in battle is Read more
Obon, Lotus, and Tamales
January 16, 2009
Living in Los Angeles means living in a place where all sorts of cultures intersect, coexist, and mingle. Global reality is especially apparent with the different summer festivals that spring up around downtown every year, and this past weekend I was able to enjoy the festivities at two long running Asian Pacific American events: The Lotus Festival and Zenshuji’s Annual Obon Carnival. Read more
Appleseed Ex Machina
January 14, 2009
When the Appleseed Japanese anime film directed by Shinji Aramaki came out in 2004, it was a jaw-dropping animation and computer graphics experience. It had a unique texture of cartoon animation blended with the depth and fluidity of computer graphics. Thanks to the magic of Blu-ray technology, a 1080p high definition Read more
‘Legend of the Seven Monks’ And ‘Naruto: Rise of the Ninja’
October 13, 2008
Last year, a Japanese movie was released in the U.S. with the promising title of The Legend of the Seven Monks. It sounded like it was going to be a cool epic with some decent martial arts action.
My expectations rose even further when I saw that Sonny Chiba and Yasuaki Kurata were the stars: I knew Chiba from his role as the conquering Chinese overlord from classic Chinese wu xia (martial arts heroes), Read more
Anime Expo 2008
July 21, 2008
In video game terms, this year’s Anime Expo 2008 seriously leveled up by moving its location to the Los Angeles Convention Center in the heart of a downtown area that is undergoing a massive makeover and revitalization.
The Masquerade, a contest for cosplayers and one of the hottest events at AX, was held in the newly constructed Nokia Theater along with the AX Idol Singing and Voice Acting contests. This year’s winner for Read more
The Revenge of Donnie Yen
April 21, 2008
Donnie Yen is a staple in the world of good quality kung fu movies. His major fight with Jet Li in Once Upon a Time in China II is one of the best fight scenes around. He’s shown off some awesome moves as the father of the celebrated Wong Fei Hung in Iron Monkey. When Michelle Yeoh played pupil to the legendary woman warrior Wu Mei in Wing Chun, Yen was the love interest that was powerful and skilled enough to be worthy of her affections. Another fight Read more
‘Tekkonkinkreet’
March 29, 2008
A new spin on yin-yang
Yin and yang, day and night, the balance of opposites — this idea has been so overused that it has become an eye-rolling cliche in modern media expressions, despite its profound and ancient roots.
However, Michael Arias’ adaptation of Taiyo Matsumoto’s graphic novel Black and White into a feature-length anime film called Tekkonkinkreet has breathed new life into this Read more
Jabbawockeez, Unmasked
March 13, 2008
MTV’s hot show America’s Best Dance Crew has been raging along, and now only four dance crews are left of the original 12 finalists. Yet most people still don’t know how Asian American-dominated this competition is. Read more
J-pop Teen Titans
March 8, 2008
When fans of Japanese anime turned on the tube to check out the Teen Titans, an anime-influenced animated series based on the DC Comics superhero team and produced by Warner Bros. Animation, they raised their fists in protest, calling the series a sad imitation of the genre they loved so Read more
Read or Die
January 26, 2008
Wolverine’s got adamantium, Superman’s got strength and the Hulk’s got green, radioactive rage. Yomiko Readman, however, has the power of paper. That’s right. Paper.
As the lovable main character of the manga series and Read more
Manga: The Complete Guide
December 28, 2007
Akira is considered a legendary work of comic art, referred to by many as a masterpiece of manga, or Japanese graphic novel. Copies of this creation by Katsuhiro Otomo can be found sitting benignly in the graphic novel section of public libraries, where youth often gather in packs to devour the hot new medium. Read more