Over the past couple of months I’ve made a few comments on blog posts about what I consider to be the worst force in personal opinions: nostalgia. Nostalgia, coming from the greek words nostos -returning home and algia -longing) is something that is present in nearly everyone. There are many times where we remember something and think about the good emotions that are associated with that memory; that would be a classic case of nostalgia.
Breaking up the “favorites” posts to talk about something I’ve pondered lately. As the anime industry has become more reliant on production companies, more shows have been produced from other alternative works with the goal of either highlighting or heightening the work to a new audience. It’s not limited to anime as dramas and movie on both sides of the Pacific ocean have been using original works to draw in likely audiences.
Sorry for the long break; I got obsessed with translating over the weekend and put this post off for too long.
From episode 10 of To Aru Kagaku no Railgun onward I became a big fan of the character Ruiko Saten.While she wasn’t featured in the main part of Index I and very much in the original manga, she became a huge hit with the fans in Japan.
Back in June it was announced that To Aru Kagaku no Railgun would receive an Original Video Animation to be released in fall 2010. After falling in love with the show, it was a certainty that I would get this set. It’s a reminder that the girls of Railgun are waiting for another series to come.
The OVA comes on DVD or BD (BD of course was my selection), and the first pressing came with a special booklet and sleeve to match the rest of the set. Continue reading
So with the final volume of To Aru Kagaku no Railgun released, it’s time to discuss the whole of the first season. I hope to cover both the positives and negatives throughout the season in this look back (and it’ll also work as a look forward to To Aru Majutsu no Index 2). Similarly to my review of the first arc, I’ll be putting images of the whole set of Blu-Rays throughout this editorial.
The first fact of note that should be mentioned about Railgun is that not only is it an adaptation of an ongoing manga series, but that itself is an adaptation from the original Index light novels. At the beginning of this season, there were only one arc that was complete compared to several novels of Index. That was the Level Upper arc seen in the first 12 episodes. The following manga arc is still ongoing (the Sisters arc from Misaka’s POV) so it could not be adapted due to that constraint. Continue reading
Yesterday, the final volume of To Aru Kagaku no Railgun was released in Japan to complete the first season of the anime adaptation. This set contains the final three episodes and finishes the series…. until the OVA is released in two months.
As usual, this volume contains one Blu-Ray disc, one CD with four mp3 tracks containing the final four episodes of To Aru Radio no Railgun, a 12-page explanation booklet, and a short story. Continue reading
Since the manga for To Aru Kaguku no Railgun only has about 2 main arcs currently, JC Staff and Project Railgun had to create their own original arc to finish the 24 episodes of the anime adaption. The latest Blu-Ray Volume released in Japan begins this original arc, and what better way to start than by introducing a new character only seen in the anime (to-date)!
On the cover for Volume 7 we have Uiharu and her new roomate Erii Haruue sharing some cake. Continue reading
Sorry for the long delay between reviews, all I can say is that it’s been quite busy for me lately. Hopefully I’ll be able to get the next volume’s review up quicker. It comes out Friday, so I should get it really soon. That being said, this volume of To Aru Kaguku no Railgun focuses on the background characters that typically don’t get much focus in many shows.
Volume 6 contains the same extras that the other sets did: the main volume BD, a special CD containing 4 episodes of the radio show in mp3 format, another short story from Index, and another 12 page booklet. Continue reading
When we last left the series To Aru Kagaku no Railgun, Saten-san had just recovered from the Level Upper incident and Misaka-san learned that not being super powered doesn’t mean you don’t have your own share of problems. That was the final episode in the first coup of the series and the final episode that took material from the manga (with the manga finishing the next arc just last issue) so JC Staff had to improvise for the next 12 episodes. Their first priority:
Yes, Volume 5 features the infamous fan service episodes and starts the minor characterization episodes. Included on this set is the standard BD, CD, 12 page booklet (with swimsuit character art), and another volume of Index SS. It is also housed in the special box for the final four volumes! Continue reading
Since To Aru Kagaku no Railgun was a show that aired for two coups (two seasons at once) in Japan, the story had two big arcs and with my Volume 4 review, we have finished the first coup/arc: Level Upper. In place of screencaptures this will have pictures of the completed coup interspersed throughout.
So the Level Upper arc helped introduce us to the main story characters and show their motivations. Misaka Mikoto is a complicated young woman. She’s always wanting to prove herself moreso than anything. She’s headstrong and stubborn, but she knows when she’s wrong and works to help solve most of the problems she causes (the electrical outage in the end of episode 8 wasn’t one of those instances). A tomboy to an extent, but she still has a heart like a child. A good choice for a main character. Continue reading
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