Episode 3, Page #1 - "THEM!"
Aoi Notes: 05/28/2007
I watched Highlander: The Search for Vengeance over the weekend and it ranks up there as one of the worst anime titles I've ever watched (and I've seen some horrible anime titles). Every second of this 85-minute franchise killer is excruciating to sit through with absolutely nothing redeeming about it... sans for the fact that it isn't set on Planet Zeist. But that's little comfort because it STILL ends up being set in the future and taking all the wrong cues from Highlander II.
Bad dialogue that's crippled some of the worst one-lines ever written, a jumbled mess of a plot filled with random scenes that are ripped straight from other films, cussing and nudity that's forced into the film for absolutely no reason at all (HBO's Spawn series had that problem...), and annoyingly lame characters like a token black kid named Joe that carries a freaking slingshot for no reason at all, that insanely god-awful druid guy that wishes he were anywhere as cool as Ramerize... and that horrible addition to the MacLeod family tree that is Colin. Yes, Colin's other animated counterpart (Quentin) was pointless, but Colin takes the cake for being the black sheep of the family. He's unlikable in every way.
Is this animated feature film worse than Highlander 2? Oh, hell yes. It's a travesty that actually brings down the Highlander franchise and gives anime a bad name doing it. Every anime cliche you can think of from violence, cussing and sex to the whole post-apocalyptic future angle are all present. Imagine Akira, Demon City Shinjuku, Ghost in the Shell and Ninja Scroll all being ripped off in one movie and that's pretty much what you have here. It's that bad.
By the way... Kayla, Armitage III called and said she wanted her costume back.
You want to know the saddest part, though? The fifth live action movie--the direct-to-video Highlander: The Source--was released in Russia on Region 5 DVD earlier this year and it's even WORSE than this craptacular movie. The Highlander franchise has officially been run into the ground. It's a very sad day...
On a totally different note, I got my limited edition of The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya DVD set over the weekend and it was so worth every penny I spent on it. The box is exceptionally well made and it comes complete with some really nice extras... namely a soundtrack, Haruhi's headband, an iron-on and a pencil board (and, obviously, the DVD). It's a complete must-have and will probably get snatched up pretty quickly, so don't miss out on your change to get one.
The dub is also really well done and it's obvious that they really tried to stay true to the characters and the tone of the show. I've seen the series fansubbed, so hearing it in English that was true to the original actually helped me enjoy the series all the more. That's a good thing because Haruhi ranks up there as one of those landmark series that every anime fan basically owes it to themselves to see. It's just that good.
Well, if you're in the States, then enjoy your Memorial Day and Shiei and I'll catch you back here on Wednesday. See you then!
-Adam Arnold
P.S. This month's new vote incentive is a non-logoed versions of the cover art for the upcoming Aoi House in Love! Vol. 1. So be sure to show your support for Aoi House over at TopWebComics.com (B&W sketch version) and BuzzComix.net (color version) so you can get those images!
