Latest Column Entries

Oscar Predictions 2010
Written by David Beckett

As I had finished my Master’s in September I was free this year to spend more time in the cinema and see all of the contenders possible.  There are a couple that haven’t been release or shown around here – The Blindside will only hit UK cinemas after the ceremony(!) and A Serious Man is obviously considered too niche for the...

Becoming a film addict
Written by David Beckett

For many people, a love of film and cinema was developed from a very young age with weekly (or even more frequent) trips to the local picture house with parents or other relatives. Others may have picked up that habit from friends and relatives at home with VHS or Betamax. I managed to get to the age of 14 without owning a...

Anime Review Roundup
Written by Jitendar Canth

D.Gray-Man Competition Results Last week the D.Gray-Man competition closed, and the Reviewer hat-picker-outer went into overtime searching for deserving winners. Two doves, one startled rabbit, and a mouldy toupee later, I can proudly announce that D.Gray-Man Volume 1 will be wending its way to… Andrew Craig of Putney...

Anime Review Roundup
Written by Jitendar Canth

Just two reviews for you this week, and one of them is a live-action film at that. Since it was adapted from an anime and manga, it ought to count anyway. Besides, with all the CGI and green screen work, it’s half animation in itself. I’m talking of course about Casshern, one of the raft of digital backdrop films that were made...

Anime Review Roundup
Written by Jitendar Canth

Since you got a dose of news on Saturday, I think I’ll dive straight into the anime reviews this week, and fortunately there’s more than just a single review to point you to. First up was Fate/Stay Night: Volume 2, in which the fantasy battle genre still crosses with the harem comedy genre, and somehow manages to work. In this...

D. Gray-Man Competition and Manga News!
Written by Jitendar Canth

First The Competition It’s been a while since we’ve had a competition, but we can belatedly kick off 2010 in some style, as we have three copies of Manga Entertainment’s latest shonen acquisition to give away. D. Gray-Man is the story of an orphan turned exorcist who battles to keep the world safe against those nefarious...

Anime Review Roundup
Written by Jitendar Canth

Let’s round up last week’s reviews. Naruto. That’s it, you can go home now. It’s not my fault, honest! Late Naruto filler is enough to put anyone off anime for life. I’m just glad that it dimmed my enthusiasm for only a week. Actually, Naruto Unleashed: Series 8 Part 2 wasn’t as bad as I was expecting after the previous...

Anime Review Roundup
Written by Jitendar Canth

Gundam Free For All The big Gundam event has begun in preparation for the simultaneous worldwide release of Gundam Unicorn on Blu-ray. From now until the end of April, several classic Gundam series will be available for streaming from various sites in both dub and sub flavour. It’s your big chance for UK viewers to see what...

FB campaign to make Ultravox's Vienna number 1 by 04/04/2010...
Written by Si Wooldridge

Back in 1981, the second and most successful incarnation of Ultravox released their seminal single Vienna to critical acclaim.   This rather moody and epic electronic ballad was set to provide the band consisting of Midge Ure, Billy Currie, Chris Cross and Warren Cann with the ultimate acclaim of public approval.  Alas it was...

Anime Review Roundup and BAM Update
Written by Jitendar Canth

Slayers Revolution Has Been Dubbed For those of you who have been watching the Slayers releases from MVM, you will no doubt be aware that MVM also have the rights to the latest series, Slayers Revolution, and Slayers Evolution-R. You will also be aware that following the breakneck monthly release of the three older series,...

Anime Review Roundup
Written by Jitendar Canth

Begun, the Summer Wars Have There weren’t any anime reviews to round up last week, hence no review roundup, but this week it’s back to normal service, with three reviews of anime new and old for you to peruse. But I guess I missed out on mentioning last week that Manga Entertainment have licensed Summer Wars. This is the...

The Thought Criminals...
Written by Si Wooldridge

Its been a long time since the last blog entry, I didnt realise just how dedicated you need to be in order to keep the level of entries up.  Still, thought Id try and reboot it in the grand tradition of Hollywood blockbusters and this is my first attempt.  Ive decided to try and put up regular pieces that reflect my musical...

Anime Review Roundup
Written by Jitendar Canth

I’m still digesting turkey, which means I can barely summon the energy to type, let alone come up with anything substantial for the first anime review roundup of the year. So just the reviews then, beginning with Solty Rei: Volume 6. It’s the conclusion of another Gonzo futuristic mystery action sci-fi series. It’s usually the...

Anime Review Roundup
Written by Jitendar Canth

The final Anime Review Roundup of the year, and I’m too afflicted with turkey bloat to put any effort into this. Don’t blame me, blame Bernard Matthews. This week I’ll just do a quick recap of the reviews, although news wise I can tell you this. Bandai Entertainment are dropping Haruhi hints like crazy, the ASOS Brigade are...

Bexley Anime and Manga Festival and Anime Review Roundup
Written by Jitendar Canth

Ghibli Adapt Another Story From The Mystical West It seems to happen a lot nowadays, with studio Ghibli opting to adapt stories from around here, to be made into anime from over there. I guess it helps with the globalisation of anime, and doesn’t hurt at awards season either. Following hot on the footsteps of movies like...

Anime Review Roundup
Written by Jitendar Canth

Manga and Beez have been Twittering again I still think it’s a horrible way to release news. If I did it that way, this report would already be ove… But both Manga and Beez have been delivering news and non-news this week, and you can read more about it at Anime UK News, or not. It is taken from a twitter feed after all,...

Anime Review Roundup
Written by Jitendar Canth

It’s getting close to that time of year when the Jingleduke atop his mouse-drawn carriage, dispenses poultry to all and sundry around the world. Or something. Now it’s either distributors concentrating on retailing their wares, or it’s me concentrating on emptying retailers of said wares. There either is no news to report, or I...

Anime Review Roundup
Written by Jitendar Canth

Witchblade Competition Results Let’s keep it short and sweet this week shall we… First, the winners of the recent Witchblade competition. As more than 99% of entrants knew (and I really thought I had a headscratcher of a question this time), the actress who played the role in the live action version was Yancy Butler....

Anime Review Roundup
Written by Jitendar Canth

More Beez Anime Legends It’s only been a week since the first announcement of Beez’ long awaited budget line, and already there’s more good news to celebrate. Andrew Partridge of Beez has confirmed on several forums that Beez aims to release two collections a month, and HMV have already listed February and March’s output....

Anime Review Roundup (Updated with Competition)
Written by Jitendar Canth

BAM BAM BAM! Both of today’s news items come from Anime UK News, and the first isn’t the Flintstones revival if that’s what you were thinking. BAM stands for Bexley Anime and Manga, and if you are in the vicinity of South East London come February 2010, you’ll be able to partake of a whole month of fun, with cinema...

Train2Game Spammed My Inbox
Written by Robert John Shepherd

So yesterday, I got yet more spam in my inbox, amongst the usual crap pretending to be from banks I have no accounts with, and Nigerian scams (it is quite sad to have a type of scam named after an entire country, I feel for the innocent populous there) I got an unsolicited email from a company called Scienta Data Ltd, under the...

Anime Review Roundup
Written by Jitendar Canth

Susan Boyle Sings Anime No, pinch yourself, you are awake. Check the calendar, it’s not April. Susan Boyle, she of the angelic voice, and the less than 21st Century telegenic demeanour, who wowed the Britain’s Got Talent judges, and then wowed the world, is taking on anime. She will sing the theme tune for the forthcoming...

Anime Review Roundup
Written by Jitendar Canth

I got an early start on Christmas last week, as I began by taking a look at the long delayed Always My Santa. This should have been here last Christmas, but through circumstances beyond Manga’s control, it had to come out this year instead. It’s just the sort of thing you’re looking for if you have an appreciation for all...

My Top 10 Favourite Horror Films
Written by David Beckett

In the spirit of Halloween I’ve decided to go through my collection and try and work out (in the style of High Fidelity) my top ten all time favourite horror films.  I’ve had in mind those that would go into the list and have been slowly reviewing those films for the site but this article is the culmination of hours of thought. ...

Halloween Horrors 2009 Part 2
Written by David Beckett

As Halloween gets closer, I continue my roundup of some of the horror films on the shelves that may grace your screen on Saturday night.  As has become traditional, I’ll be watching, amongst others, John Carpenter’s Halloween (not the pointless remake by Rob Zombie).   The second batch of DVDs from Brain Damage Films only...

MCM Expo News and Anime Review Roundup
Written by Jitendar Canth

MCM News First It’s that time of year again, when people in the East End of London are confronted by men with spiky blonde hair, big red coats, and unfeasibly large guns (do people still cosplay as Vash the Stampede?), when they are accosted by people offering free hugs, when they have to avoid the dreaded yaoi paddle (don’t...

How Losing Our ADSL Broke Our Websites
Written by Robert John Shepherd

This is a cautionary tale, ladies and gentlephones, one which begins either late Friday night, or early Saturday morning, a few weeks ago, the exact timings are unclear. It may not be the most exciting story, nor is it the sort of revolutionary epic which inspires a new generation to rise against the hypocrisy of its government...

Anime Review Roundup
Written by Jitendar Canth

These are X clips, these clips are deceased, they have kicked the bucket… Today, X The TV Series makes its UK DVD debut, and to mark the occasion, we have two more clips, courtesy of MVM for you to partake of, and tantalise those taste buds with. Click below for two reasons to open your wallet. Clip 1 Clip 2 Diving...