Sarazanmai is a series that is hard to explain; however, I will try anyway. After a series of very strange events, the three eighth grade boys—Kazuki, Toi, and Enta—are transformed into kappas and forced to prevent zombie kappas from endangering the world. They do so by removing a fictional organ called the shirikodama from a… Read More Newman’s Nook: Secrets Revealed
An early 90s nostalgia trip, Hi Score Girl is an anime series about hardcore 2-D fighting game enthusiast, Haruo Yaguchi, and the two girls he meets at the arcades. The first is Akira Oono, who is one of the most popular girls in school. Akira gets top marks in all of her classes and will… Read More Newman’s Nook: Haruo’s Passion in Hi-Score Girl
I like anime and manga. New anime. Old anime. New manga. Old manga. However, I find myself distracted from time to time by the new hotness, be it a new anime series that strikes my fancy or a fresh manga series of which I can’t seem to get enough. Something always finds a way to… Read More Newman’s Nook: Old Classics vs New Hotness
Goku’s tenacity, desire to defend the helpless, and incredible strength make him one of anime’s most admirable characters. But not everything about Goku is so praiseworthy, specifically not his parenting skills. Throughout the Dragon Ball manga, Goku appears to care for and love his family—however, he’s constantly absent from his children’s lives. He missed most… Read More Newman’s Nook: Goku the Absent Father
Although we all accept Saiyans as part of the Dragon Ball universe now, it’s easy to forget that this whole concept, and the fact that Goku is not human but of this alien race, is introduced right at the start of the Dragon Ball Z. Mind you Goku had a tail, super strength, and could… Read More Newman’s Nook: Redemption of Vegeta
I recently finished reading the Dragon Ball manga. Yes, I know, I’m nearly 35 years late on reading it…and I know Dragon Ball and its sequel series are a ubiquitous part of anime culture. Well, I’m just starting it, so bear with me… Anyway, early on in the manga, we’re introduced to a turtle hermit… Read More Newman’s Nook: Roshi the Pervert and the Hero
In the first completed arc of Fist of the North Star, Kenshiro’s primary enemy is Shin. Shin was a former friend of Kenshiro’s who, due to his obsession with Yuria, the latter’s fiance, turned on Kenshiro and gave him the seven scars upon his chest. Shin then used the power of the South Star style… Read More Newman’s Nook: King Shin, the Saul of the Post-Apocalypse
Two weeks ago on Newman’s Nook, I spoke of Hanesaki from HANEBADO!. This time, I want to take a different view and talk about Nagisa Aragaki. A fantastic badminton player, Aragaki is the first to the practices and last to leave. She lives and breathes badminton, thinking of almost nothing else as an incredibly focused athlete.
When I first started watching HANEBADO!, I was expecting a sports anime similar to Haikyuu!! but with a predominantly female cast. In some ways, that’s what I got. In many other ways, it is nothing like that at all, the primary difference being the main character, Ayano Hanesaki who’s anger and jealousy define the series… Read More Newman’s Nook: The Anger and Jealousy of Hanesaki
In Episode 6 of Fist of the North Star we are introduced to…God Army. What is “God Army?” It’s a group of soldiers who believe that they are doing the will of their god. Their god is revealed in a later episode, but what they basically believe in is power over all else. They take… Read More Newman’s Nook: The God Army