Annnnd Asterios Polyp is easily one of the most amazing comics I’ve read in recent memory. This is also one of the shortest reviews I’ve written in recent memory, mostly because I find that language is failing me in my attempts to tell you just why this book is amazing. Besides, it’s always easier to ramble on about why I dislike something than why I like something. There are more synonyms for negative words than there are for positive words. Asterios Polyp been nominated for four 2010 Eisner Awards, and if it doesn’t win at least one, then by golly, the Eisners must not mean much anymore.

(this review contains no spoilers)

Asterios Polyp starts with the titular character at the end of his luck. His home burns down and he’s left with nothing but the money in his pocket and the clothes on his back. What follows is a journey backwards into the life that led him there and a journey forward towards some kind of enlightenment and some kind of peace. Asterios is a man obsessed with dualities and who sees the world in black and white. Things either are, or they aren’t. He is highly intelligent, self-assured and egocentric. Naturally, most of his conflicts are with other people — of both similar or opposing natures — and most of his problems lie within himself. Asterios is a very specific and three-dimensional character, but there is a universality to him and his problems that makes him easy to relate to and easy to sympathize with.

Hana, Asterios’s wife, is his foil in every way. Where he is rigid, she is soft. Where he is blunt, she is subtle. But there’s more to her than just playing out his opposites. She changes and grows alongside her husband, but most importantly, she is the catalyst and begins changing him from the moment they meet, even if he doesn’t realize it. Their relationship is representational of many marriages, making the characters even more accessible. All the other characters are also delightfully realistic and utterly believable. From Stiff and Ursula Major, with whom Asterios works for and lives with after the fire, to Willy Ilium, who employed Hana’s talents for a time (and makes a ton of inappropriate remarks along the way), all of the people Asterios encounters feel like people I could meet as well.

In addition to dualities and opposites, Asterios Polyp has thematic roots in Greek heritage, clashing cultures, and various philosophies. The story itself is still pretty straightforward, but there are so many surrealist and modernist elements to the storytelling and art that the journey becomes much more involved and personal for the reader. Comics as a medium already offers a beautiful blend of writing and art, but to see the art convey the story’s themes so literally is a rare, metaphysical treat. Story and art in this graphic novel compliment and accentuate one another perfectly.

The core style of the graphic novel has a very retro, cartoonish feel to it. Colors are very limited with most sections conforming to a two- or three-tone palette; a notable dream sequence near the end is monochromatic. Characters are simple and flat, easy to distinguish, and wholly unique. This in itself sets it apart from most other comics on the shelves today, but Mazzucchelli hardly stop there. Panel layouts flow with what is being told, rather than conforming to any specific aesthetic. Some pages are crammed with a dozen panels of the same size, shape, and colors. Others sprawl with an endless assortment of visual styles, all of which collide together poetically. This may sound chaotic, but Asterios Polyp never loses itself. Flip to any page in the book and you will be assured that it’s still the same book, no matter how different the page is from the one you were on previously.

Occasionally, Asterios is portrayed as a figure made of blue geometric shapes while Hana is portrayed as a mass of sketchy red. He is mechanical. She is organic. That they’re opposites is more than evident even without this visual representation, but the depiction never feels over-the-top or jarring, even when it’s a sudden jump from the previous panel.

Mazzucchelli hand-letters all of the text in Asterios Polyp. I’ve always found hand-lettering in general to be very charming. The slight imperfections that make each letter unique make the words more personal and more connected to the art. It’s distracting when lettering doesn’t suit the feel of the artwork, and unfortunately, that isn’t an unusual phenomenon when it comes to digital lettering. Hand-lettering avoids the problem completely because the letters and the art are created by the same hand. And here, Mazzucchelli creates a specific script for each character, setting them apart in their dialogue as well as their physical representation. And the scripts all have personality. Asterios has a traditional, sans serif, all-caps script. Hana prefers a more natural, handwriting script. The narration, offered from the point of view of Asterios’s dead twin brother, is in a strong, bold script similar to Asterios’s, but not quite.

This book really is a piece of work, especially considering it’s David Mazzucchelli’s first original graphic novel. He had previously worked on a brilliant adaptation of Paul Auster’s City of Glass, which is stylistically similar in both art style and storytelling (and which I also highly recommend), though it isn’t nearly as bold in its experimentation. But otherwise, his comics portfolio is grounded in the mainstream with titles like Daredevil and Batman: Year One (not that these are inferior titles by any means). Asterios Polyp isn’t necessarily a title one would expect out of Mazzucchelli, but he does an amazing job, and everyone needs to check out this book. (Right now.)

You know, I really dislike self-entitled albums. They kind of make mentioning them in a [band]‘s [album] format awkward. Moving on, despite being a fan of hyde, I was never really that interested in VAMPS. I mean, I adore hyde’s work with L’Arc~en~Ciel, and his one-time collaboration with Gackt for “orenji no taiyou” was also amazing, but his solo work leaves a lot to be desired (especially in his third solo album, Faith), and that’s what K.A.Z. had previously worked with him on. And as VAMPS’s debut US tour did not visit any city I was remotely close to, I felt even less compelled to familiar myself with the music.

Additionally, the overt-vampire references in all of this — in the band name, the album name, the label name, and pretty much all of the song names and imagery — kind of made me facepalm. I would expect it from Gackt, who only recently came out as a mere mortal and has a long history of vampire and goth sound and imagery. But, well, I guess it really isn’t that big of a surprise coming from hyde either… considering the fact that he’s acted as both a vampire and a ghost, songs like “Midnight Celebration,” various photoshoots, and a lot of his fashion and accessory choices. Well, whatever brings all the fangirls to the yard, right?

And in the end, hyde is hyde, and I knew it was only a matter of time before I eventually decided to pick this up. So here we go:

TRACK 01: BITE
Thirty-second opening track! Starts off with some very classic horror elements — swanky TV noises in the background, creeking door, clock striking, howling, a woman moaning sensually and a scream! Classy.

TRACK 02: LOVE ADDICT
Now some rockin’ guitar with a very catchy beat. hyde’s vocals start rough and excitedly, a welcome throwback to some of his older work. Lyrics are in Engrish and they are hilarious as usual, so I’m not going to try too hard to decipher what he’s saying. Melody is pretty negligent as the song progresses, but the guitars carry a steady beat, so there’s at least that to tie things together. End of the first chorus has a weird break before hyde comes back in slowly, in a lower voice. K.A.Z. (I guess?) providing some backup vocals here and there, but nothing really substantial or interesting. I think the repeated lyrics near the end are “right on time, let’s go,” but it could also be “let go.” It frustrates me sometimes that hyde has spent so long singing in English, but it rarely seems to get more understandable. Guitars fade out to the end. Not a good song, not a bad song.

TRACK 03: COSMOS
Rockin’ guitars again. Another sort of classy opening, takes it’s time getting to the vocals, which start… nostalgically. hyde’s vocal quality here reminds me a lot of SMILE-era L’Arc~en~Ciel though the guitars and melody are very different. I’m so glad he’s singing in Japanese here; I was afraid for a bit that the whole album would be Engrish. Some nice sustained notes in the first chorus, but the longer notes in the verses sound a little strained. Oh, a nice falsetto in the second chorus. Glad he’s not abandoning that talent of his. Some decent guitar and drums in the bridge, accompanied by distant vocal echos. Guitar leading into the final chorus are pretty nice as well. Still haven’t come across anything that’s wowed me, but this second track makes me more optimistic than the first. I really want something memorable and catchy; the first part of “BITE” was catchy, but it get too repetitive too fast. What were the singles leading up to this album?

TRACK 04: SECRET IN MY HEART
Spacey kind of intro; would have been more appropriate for the previous song. Guitars rock in very quickly and hyde’s lyrics are back to Engrish though they’re a little less haphazard. The vocals are rather relaxed despite the breakneck speed of the guitars… but both get lazier come the chorus. Vocals start feeling strained again and the guitars aren’t very impressive until the short break between the chorus and the second verse. The vocals don’t seem to compliment the guitars very well again — it almost seems like they’re fighting for the spotlight rather than working together. Gah, I hate it when that happens. Second chorus feels a little better, but now I’m starting to feel like the melody’s very pretentious. Not sure. Some parts of the melody are very reminiscent of classic vampire-themed music and there are some slight screeching sounds that promote that imagery. I guess I need to stop holding that sort of thing against this album though, since that’s obviously its theme. Outro is a bit too long for my taste. Ends with a whimper, not a bang.

TRACK 05: EVANESCENT (YouTube it)
Boring sort of intro. Opening vocals are rather plain as well. Lyrics are back to Japanese. A guitars in the back sound like they’re from another song I’ve heard whether from this band or another. They just aren’t distinct. I think if I were sampling this album at the store, I would have given up on it by now. Chorus and beginning of the second verse remind me of another song. I feel like I’ve heard most parts of this song before, just not pieced together like this. Just wanna zone out and do something else…

TRACK 06: VAMPIRE DEPRESSION
Back and forth guitars and some interesting synth and distortion work. Finally! Something that actually seems intriguing? Vocals start dark and dramatic; hyde’s voice is low and brooding. Lyrics are in Engrish. Oh, nice, a measure of piano for a really nice creepy effect. Chorus has hyde screaming melodramatically and it’s pretty hilarious, but not terrible. Still diggin’ the mix of guitars and distortion as we go into the second verse. It maintains a nice mood, even if it’s a bit over-the-top. It works. hyde’s screaming is less entertaining the second time around, but the guitars and drums carrying into the bridge make up for it. Dramatic lyrics before the final chorus are pretty nice sounding even if I still can’t make out what he’s saying. Screaming is even less amusing the third time around, but they don’t last long and we go back to the guitars and distortion for an outro that’s just the right length. Best song on the album thus far. Perfect timing too, after the tedious track before it.

TRACK 07: REDRUM
More dramatic guitar. Feels like a really awesome movie action scene should be starting right about now. Another Engrish song and hyde’s vocals feel very American as they start off, even if his pronunciation still leaves a lot to be desired — the style he sings in just feels very familiar. Guitars and drums are really going at it here; they do a good job keeping me interested in what’s going on here. Post-chorus guitars are especially neat. hyde’s doing a lot of sustained yelling in a rough sort of voice in the verses here; more singing in the choruses. After the last song, the yelling is borderline annoying, but once again, K.A.Z.’s guitar and their power chords are keeping things together. Haha, the bits of the lyrics I’m picking up are hilarious melodramatic, but I know I can’t expect anything else. Song ends rather suddenly, but it’s definitely on par with “VAMPIRE DEPRESSION.” If the rest of the songs sound like this, it’ll get a little repetitive, but at least it won’t be boring.

TRACK 08: DEEP RED
A change of mood for the intro — a twangy sort of beat and a more diverse mix of sounds. It’s the music leading into a chase scene. Vocals are dramatic but well-controlled. hyde seems like he’s holding something back though and… it doesn’t really seem to release in the chorus. Voice gets a bit deeper and rougher around the edges though. Lyrics here are a mix of Japanese and Engrish. K.A.Z.’s guitar oscillates between high-pitched lines and a steadier background accompaniment here; it compliments the vocals well though and it’s a good break from the hard rockin’ of the previous two songs. I think I’m finding the chorus kinda catchy actually — “something something in search of blood”? Bridge is pretty interesting as well, and I noticed the weird bass lines for the first time. Last two or three choruses go on for a while, but I don’t really mind. I think the reason I like the “blah blah in search of blood line” is because hyde’s vocals finally don’t sound forced or strained or too deep or too rough. They’re more natural and it’s nice.

TRACK 09: I GOTTA KICK START NOW (YouTube it)
Rockin’ guitar again. Sounds like the opening of another song I’ve heard on this album already? Vocals and the continued start and stop of the guitar remind me of some classic rock song I’m not familiar with because I’m not big on classic rock. Guitars aren’t too interesting, but hyde’s voice still sounds very natural here, more casual and less pretentious. Even with the Engrish lyrics, it doesn’t feel too unnatural — he’s just slurring all the words! That’s all! Some of the short pauses in the guitar feel awkward, but it does keep you interested in the beat because it’s somewhat unpredictable. Oh, guitars in the bridge are nice though. I had a brief vision of BECK: Mongolian Chop Squad. I go back and forth from feeling that “I gotta kick start now” sounds weird and feeling that it’s fine. Consequences of listening to too much Engrish. :P

TRACK 10: TIME GOES BY
Soft acoustic intro? Slow intro vocals and it feels like a ballad coming on. …Nope! Guitars come in harder and the melody picks up quickly; vocals somehow retain a “I’m singing to you under your balcony” sort of feel though. Really enjoy the little break between the chorus and the second verse. The mix of Engrish and Japanese lyrics is nice too. Second verse again starts off deceptively slow before picking up. Melody is reasonably catchy and I like the energy and feeling of sincerity in this song. And falsetto! I never know how much I miss it until it comes back all of a sudden! Lovely guitars in the bridge and a rockin’ return to the chorus — more falsetto! Outro makes me feel nostalgic again. This might be my new favorite song on the album!

TRACK 11: SWEET DREAMS (YouTube it)
Piano intro! Very unexpected. Falsetto opening vocals! Also unexpected. Difficult-to-understand Engrish lyrics! Not so unexpected, but hyde sings slow and sweet. A really mixed bag in the background accompaniment — it feels a little scattered, but comes together okay by the time we get to the chorus. Some self-harmony in the vocals sound a bit strange as well… Back to straight up falsetto for the second verse. Engrish sounds mad awkward for a bit, but then he thankfully swaps back to Japanese. Falsetto starts to feel a little strained, but it goes into the second chorus soon after that. Seems as soon as something starts feeling awkward in this song, it changes and goes away. Not bad, I guess, though it’d be better if it never got to the awkwardness in the first place. Random phone dialing and ringing in the bridge? What? Some generic sounding strings with a prominent violin… Tired of the chorus already, but we go back to the nice piano for the outro. Mixed feelings about this song; it’s all over the place.

TRACK 12: HUNTING
Some fun guitar rifts in the opening, but not that exciting… oh, wait, okay, it gets more exciting as it goes on. Punctuated yelling starts off the vocals. hyde sure does do a lot of yelling on this album. :o I think he’s saying “Hi! Ho! Let’s rock!” but I’m probably wrong… haha… What, is that it? Okay. A two-minute song of uninspired guitarring and hyde yelling. I mean, I guess it’d work okay for the intro to a concert to get the crowd riled, but as the second-to-last track of an album? Come on. Maybe it’d be too much to put it at the beginning along with the “generic horror sounds” track, but in that case, just pick one or the other? We don’t need both. :\

TRACK 13: SEX BLOOD ROCK N’ ROLL
Oh, back to the sensual moaning then. Fun-sounding guitars and drumming though. …Ew, distorted vocals. hyde, your Engrish is hard enough to listen to without it being distorted too! Eh, I can see why “HUNTING” would precede this track, but… blah, I’m so conflicted about this song. The guitars and especially the drumming are a lot of fun, but they’re not innovative or particularly original and the vocals are borderline pissing me off. Especially combined with the random noises and cooing and warbling. The chants of “sex blood rock n’ roll” are annoying as well and… then it’s over.

OVERALL: On one hand, I feel that maybe I wasn’t in the right sort of mood walking into this album. I should have known that there would be a lot of cliche and silly vampiric elements, but they bugged me all the same. I didn’t want to listen to unoriginal vampire-themed music. As always, I wanted to listen to everything that made me a fan of hyde’s voice in the first place, and that’s L’Arc~en~Ciel (though to be honest, Laruku’s most recent album also left a lot to be desired). VAMPS is not Laruku. hyde’s singing style and vocal quality is almost completely different from what he uses for his other projects and K.A.Z.’s guitar is certainly different from ken’s or hyde’s.

Listening to VAMPS while wanting L’Arc~en~Ciel is just a bad idea, but regardless of my bias, VAMPS still seems to utilize a lot of tired rifts and generic punches in the vocals. With a name like that and a debut album like this, I’m left wondering whether VAMPS will continue churning out songs with such forced themes and melodramatic ties to a specific subgenre. A few songs like “VAMPIRE DEPRESSION” and “DEEP RED” are energetic and fun in that they don’t seem to be taking themselves too seriously, and “TIME GOES BY” stood out to me for being very different from the rest of the songs on the album, but pretty much everything else is forgettable and disappointing.

The periodic trailers and behind-the-scenes looks released for the Princess and the Frog all looked amazing. The character designs felt like they would have fit in well with the Disney movies of the early 90′s and the animation was similarly nostalgic. In addition to being a throwback to the animated features I grew up with, I was happy to see another film focused on a slice of American history and culture, in this case, the French Quarter of New Orleans before and after World War I. The music and musical style were less of a concern for me since movies like Tarzan, Lilo & Stitch and the Emperor’s New Groove worked perfectly fine without much, if any, bursting into song. Still, the last Disney musical was Mulan, and Mulan was all kinds of amazing, so anticipation remained extremely high for this film. I finally got to see it yesterday.

STORY - Walking into the movie, I knew I was going to be in it more for the technical aspects than anything else. The princess movies had never been amongst my favorites of what Disney had to offer and I wasn’t expecting to be wowed by the story in Princess and the Frog. As such, it was no surprise that the movie’s plot was basic, cliche and a bit predictable: girl has dream, girl works hard to achieve dream but it’s just out of reach, girl then gets caught up in some crazy nonsense, falls in love with boy and somehow this results in the dream also getting realized. It’s a typical, romanticized children’s tale storyline. But despite that that was pretty much what I had expected, I was still a little disappointed.

Part of it was because the villian(s) aren’t nearly as prominent and the obstacles the protagonists faced weren’t nearly as dangerous or thrilling as they could have been. Tiana and Prince Naveen spend very little time actually facing the bad guys. The main, immediate problem the protagonists struggle with is the fact that they’ve been cursed into frogs. Sure, there is the Shadow Man that put the curse in place, but neither protagonists spends all that long with him. Instead of fighting him directly, they journey through the Louisiana swamp looking for another voodoo capable person to help them. Almost all the characters they meet along the way are friendly and work to help them along. And there is no build up to an epic final fight because there really isn’t a final fight. Compare this with the various hurdles Jafar sets for Aladdin. And their final fight. Pretty disappointing.

It wasn’t all bad though. I was very impressed at how the classic tale was reworked to fit the setting and characters. 1920′s New Orleans isn’t the first place you’d think to set an adaptation of a princess story, just like 1980′s New York isn’t the first place you’d think to set an adaptation of Oliver Twist, but damn if Disney didn’t make it work. Obviously, there were no real princesses in that time and place, but the Princess and the Frog played around and made it work in an almost tongue-in-cheek fashion; I was especially pleased at how the traditional princess and curse-breaking tropes were toyed with at the end. It made me smile.

CHARACTERS - The movie’s main protagonist, Tiana, is very much the archetypal strong-willed woman. She knows what she wants and is hyperfocused, working single-mindedly towards her goal. She isn’t easily threatened, but can be distracted by the intensity of her own dreams. She is quick-witted and adaptable, as well as sympathetic and a good role-model: the ideal character to lead a movie like this, but really not that interesting to an older viewer like myself, especially since she doesn’t really change during the course of the movie. She just falls in love. (In like, two days.)

Prince Naveen is similarly stale, though he’s also accompanied by some unfortunate logical flaws. Growing up as royalty, he was spoiled and never had to do anything for himself. For some reason though, he desired “freedom” (from what?) and for some other reason, he was disowned by his family (why? Wikipedia has some reasons, but I don’t think the movie ever said anything specific), so he ends up in New Orleans penniless and intending to marry a wealthy girl for money (and thereby grounding his own freedom again? what?). Predictably, Naveen learns a bit of humility and gains a little usefulness during the course of the movie. Predictably.

Dr. Facilier, also known as the Shadow Man, had the potential to be the most interesting character in the movie, but this is hindered by not quite enough screen time or backstory. He has a few lines of complaint here and there, but there doesn’t seem to be a point in his past where he was morally offended by something or someone that spurred him to want domination of New Orleans. His interesting relationship with people “on the other side” is also never fully explained, which was supremely disappointing considering their awesome musical number together. There were so many things that could have spiced up both Dr. Facilier and his collaborators’ roles, such as giving some of the shadows (aside from Dr. Facilier’s own) personalities and giving Lawrence, Naveen’s backstabbing servant, some ulterior goals.

The secondary cast was not particularly notable; they were there, occasionally humorous, but too simple to be called good or bad. I saw the movie with several people though, including a New Orleans native who was apparently upset at some of the stereotypical characters portrayed in the movie. Personally, I don’t think the portrayals were necessarily unfair since all regions have their stereotypes and most of them are grounded in some sort of reality, including the bumbling backwater hicks. I doubt anyone will really come away with a negative impression of the area, in any case. I mean, I wasn’t offended by the hilariously stereotypical gender roles presented in Mulan since you know, they’re kind of true.

ART & ANIMATION – Everything was gorgeous, just like I thought it would be. Seriously, you don’t realize just how different 2D animated characters look until you go a while without seeing them and are suddenly sent back. Disney was amazingly successful at recapturing a number of styles it had left behind, and Princess and the Frog included several short sequences animated in a simpler, blocky color, storybook style, such as for the song “Almost There.” But while all the characters were animated traditionally throughout the movie, most of the backgrounds had been painted digitally and there were some digital special effects. This was really fine though, especially since it allowed for some really visually interesting scenes involving Shadow Man’s shadow and shadowy minions. The digital backgrounds complimented the characters fine and didn’t detract from the film in any way.

The character designs were pretty standard. Tiana is pretty much what anyone might have thought of given the prompts “African-American” and “Disney princess.” Prince Naveen is just the next in a long line of Disney princes, though his frog form reminded me a lot of Warner Brother’s Michigan J. Frog. In contrast, Dr. Facilier actually has a pretty fun design and reminds me vaguely of a cross between Jafar and Jack Skellington. This compliments the uniqueness of his character, but while his personality and backstory aren’t really given the attention they could had have, Facilier’s design is bold and has many clever little elements, such as his skull mask. Like their personalities, the secondary characters didn’t leave a big impression visually either, but despite that, I was very pleased with both the art and animation in this movie.

MUSIC - As with the animation, the Princess and the Frog attempts to capture the musical success of its 90′s predecessors with music by Randy Newman and lyrics by Glenn Slater. Maybe I’m just a little out of touch with musicals, but some of the film’s songs felt a little awkward and forced. As a sort of opening song, “Down in New Orleans” wasn’t too bad, but the beginning of Tiana’s first solo, “Almost There” didn’t seem to mesh very well with the scene it was placed in. Thankfully, as the song progressed, the tune became catchier and more attractive and the end of the song seemed to suit the scene much better. Dr. Facilier’s solo, “Friends on the Other Side” was probably the best song in the movie; it was a lot of fun both lyrically and visually and is one of the main reasons I wish the character had gotten more attention than he received. “When We’re Human” seemed like a pretty typical Disney song. “Gonna Take You There” and “Ma Belle Evangeline” were both fairly decent and more nostalgic feeling in mood and style. “Dig a Little Deeper” reminded me somewhat of the “Morning Report” song Disney inserted into some DVD re-release of the Lion King… which is not a compliment.

I really don’t feel like Princess and the Frog benefited from being a musical, but I guess it really didn’t detract from it that much. Either way, Anika Rose’s “Almost There” won’t be the next Elton John’s “Can You Feel The Love Tonight” or Christina Aguilera’s “Reflection.” Newman’s general score for the movie was pretty okay, but come on, Alan Menken would have been a much better choice of composer.

OVERALL - If an older someone were to watch the Princess and the Frog after all the Disney feature films of the 90′s, they might be dismissive and unimpressed. As a simple movie aimed at children, it’s very solid, but even then, compared to the previous decade’s most popular hits — Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, the Lion King, and Mulan — and Disney’s beloved classics, the Princess and the Frog is really nothing spectacular, especially in terms of story and character. The cultural aspects are fun though, and animation is surely on par. I actually really like that they still included digitally painted backgrounds in their highly anticipated 2D revival. Disney’s demonstrated that traditional animation can still be used, but further suggests that they’re still experimenting with different ways to animate and to cartoon. Their upcoming Rapunzel movie for 2010 is a testament to this as they’re trying to make a CG movie not look like a CG movie. I look forward to it, but I do hope that Rapunzel’s struggles will be a little more interesting storywise than Tiana’s.

I put off watching the last two episodes for a while just because the first two were so… underwhelming. It’s fairly rare for me to discover a manga before a corresponding anime is made since I watch a lot more than I read, but honestly, it’s probably better that way considering how annoyingly purist I tend to be about adaptations. I don’t want to feel this way! This feeling of burning injustice when something turns out much less amazing than you’d like — when something doesn’t seem to do the original justice at all. The strange thing about the DOGS anime is that it doesn’t really seem to be its fault that it sucked (well, aside from the shitty animation). I feel like the format just didn’t suit it. DOGS is just something better read than watched, even if the voice actors all do great jobs and there are lots of action scenes.

Then again, maybe the anime only proves that underneath all of Shirow Miwa’s beautiful artwork, his story and characters aren’t that interesting after all. Maybe that’s what pisses me off the most. Nobody wants to be shown that something they loved isn’t actually that awesome. Is the love that comes from blinding nostalgia enough? The manga marches on, so I guess I’ll keep seeing what Miwa’s really made of. Viz’s release of the first volume of DOGS: BULLETS&CARNAGE came out earlier this month and I’ll be picking it up soon; might do another semi-review, but we’ll see.

Here is the review, and here is the MAL mirror.

Reading it was very hard in the beginning. Sixteen pages in and I could already relate absurdly well with both Meiko and Taneda, and hell, all their friends as well. It was depressing, but it got easier the further I progressed because they became their own people, rather than just ghostly representations of myself and people I knew. The story is how they choose to live their own lives, one path in a forest of many. Theirs aren’t the best choice, nor the worst. It isn’t an answer, but it’s there. Highly recommend.

It blows my mind how quickly Ayumi Hamasaki seems to come out with new music, especially considering the number of tracks she puts onto each album, the number of remixes on each of her singles, and her slew of remix albums (holy crap, this woman loves remixes). I first became a fan around when her Memorial Address mini-album was releasing and it seems not so long ago that My Story came out in 2004. Since then, I can’t say I’ve been very good about keeping up with her releases, partially because my interest shifted to j-rock and indie for a while, but her contribution to Dragonball Evolution piqued my interest again, even if I didn’t think Ayu had any chance of saving a destined-to-be-terrible movie. “Rule” was a pretty fun single, and I thought it suited the energy of the subject matter pretty well (or, well, it suited the source material). It wasn’t super impressive, but I think it was only a matter of time before I went and checked out this album. The name NEXT LEVEL is also pretty Dragonball-ish, don’t you think?

TRACK 01: Bridge to the sky
Calming intro for all of a moment, then an uprising steady beat that grows into an ensemble of various sounds backed by a nice techno beat. Lots of sustained vocals and a gradual crescendo seem to be leading into something big. The techno gets more pronounced and then– silence. Clearly, this is an intro track for the rest of the album. Honestly, I’ve never been a huge fan of intro tracks because they’re awkward when you don’t play them with the rest of the album in album order (like when you put things on shuffle), but when you are listening to the album straight through, they’re pretty nice.

TRACK 02: NEXT LEVEL (Youtube it)
Starts off with a confident piano soon to be accompanied by keyboards and the stray guitar. Vocals start rather unimpressively and I’m kind of more interested in the background music than the lyrics or melody. Gets better as she leads into the chorus, which has some nice energy. I’m a sucker for when lyrics roll together smoothly, like there are no real breaks in between the words. Some nice keyboard and guitar in the break before the second verse. The beginning of the second verse is again less interesting, but it recovers faster this time. The melody for the chorus is definitely the best part of the song thus far, though I don’t think this is a good example of Ayumi’s vocal prowess; her voice sounds rather plain in this, honestly. Bridge and final round of choruses don’t change much — outro is the same piano, keyboard, and stray guitar, and it slowly leads to the end.

TRACK 03: Disco-munication
Weird buzzing intro followed by what sounds like a traditional Japanese instrument and video game noises, like you’re leveling up or something (lol, get it?). Lots of distortion and techno sounds: pretty fun stuff. I swear that’s the Mario leveling up sound. Oh, hm. Then it ends. This is another super short track (1:32) and is all instrumental. Kind of jarring really; I wasn’t expecting that. Okay.

TRACK 04: EnergizE (YouTube it)
Percussion intro accompanied by more video game and spacey sounds. Vocals start off in English — hey, Ayumi’s English has gotten a lot better since I last heard it! That didn’t sound nearly as accented and awkward as I remember! First chorus is very energetic and catchy and I like the tempo. Leads into the chorus really well. The cymbals in the chorus are a lot of fun; hell, the percussion and background in this is great in general. Hm, her vocals seem less energetic in the second verse, especially compared to the music itself, but it recovers in the second chorus. Bridge is a mishmash of electronic sounds and distortion — kind of a trippy, weird, even foreboding mood. Third chorus makes me think of DDR all of a sudden. This would be a good song to dance to. More English leading out to the end. Good song.

TRACK 05: Sparkle (YouTube it)
“Sparkle” was on the same single as “Rule,” but I don’t think I ever listened to it. Starts off slowly and rather menacing. Vocals are low and quiet before exploding suddenly with noise, power, and energy. Ayumi sounds particularly badass here: kind of awesome. Second verse is quiet again before next chorus, which adds more distortion and chaotic background noise. Actually, this would be a great song for some kind of action movie. Quiet portions remind me of cops or detectives sneaking around in the dark of a alleyway before everything explodes into a gunfight. Bridge is even more foreboding and the “no, no, no”s definitely add an extra punch. Just noticed that the lyrics in this song are pretty fun too. Wow, this is a pretty long bridge — can’t say it’s not awesome though. The extra distortion makes the lead-up to the final chorus even more exciting. Final chorus distorts some of the vocals as well and the “no, no, no”s carry it to the end.

TRACK 06: Rollin’
Quiet intro. Pause. Silence. Cue techno intro. Love the electronic sounds here, and there’s a howling rising in the back as well. Distorted vocals sound very robotic. Less distorted vocals sound oddly spacey. Chorus is buried behind lots more distortion and keyboards, but it sounds really interesting. The odd howling crescendos to the space between the chorus and second verse. Hm. This song is pretty hard to follow along and describe; the distortion is very strong throughout and goes back and forth between overlapping the vocals and diving under them. It’s a very sci-fi song and encourages very spacey imagery, like someone escaping an exploding space station or something while getting shot at by bots. I really like it. :P Weird outro!

TRACK 07: GREEN
Huh. I feel like I’ve heard the melody in this intro before. That’s weird. Classic Ayumi vocals start the first verse accompanied by oddly naturalistic percussion in the background. This song feels a lot more like her older works, I think, though the melody and her voice aren’t nearly as delicate feeling. Chorus feels like its narrating some kind of epic: some old guy climbing over a mountain to come home. Verses feel like they’re detailing the down portions of the story, all the little things before the final stretch. Bridge also gives a rather epic feeling. Third chorus is earnest but forceful, re-emphasizing the protagonist’s feats once more. Outro repeats one of the verses and fades out — nice and effective.

TRACK 08: Load of the SHUGYO
Kind of a menacing or dark intro. Percussion sounds like its punching someone. Brief silence… then some rockin’ guitars and a much more energetic melody, though its still rather “dark” feeling. I feel like we’re sneaking into some kind of ancient temple where warriors are training. More guitars. Then silence. Oh, it’s another short track. Man, these things really throw me off! I’m not really paying attention to track lengths, oi. Still, this track might me my favorite of the shorts thus far; it’s very exciting.

TRACK 09: identity
Creepy sort of intro, but it breaks very quickly into what I feel is video game music — classic arcade fighter. Specifically, it reminds me of Guilty Gear. Vocals are confident and forceful, commanding attention. Chorus feels like a challenge: very strong and well, challenging. More video game-sounding rifts lead into the second verse, which holds a swaggering sort of melody though there’s also a note of anticipation and unease. Bridge is electronic and distorted in a tensioned way. More electronic noises and vocal distortion lead into the third and fourth choruses. This really would make a good fight song, lol. Lots of loud, noisy guitars take us to the end.

TRACK 10: Rule (YouTube it)
Harsh sort of opening, this has. I’m not particular fond of the melody or the quality of the opening vocals, which sound kind of strained and airy. The distortion put on it in the first verse don’t really help either; I get the impression that she’s forcing it too much. Lead up to the second chorus (the song starts in chorus) is kind of flimsy as well though the energy is definitely there. Distortion in the second verse feels a little better. Build-up to the third chorus also feels more genuine… I think I just don’t like the choruses? They’re the weakest part of the song. Bridge is fun: lots of energy, feels like there’s lots on the line — definitely suits Dragonball. I’m fond of the guitars near the end, simple as they are.

TRACK 11: LOVE ‘n’ HATE
Odd intro… starts with a quiet, mysterious kind of mood then changes into a very distorted and kind of dark countdown that skips from seven to zero. Oh… really like the vocal intro though. It’s fast-paced and the lyrics are strung together very nicely. The electronica in the background is a lot of fun and mixes really well with the vocals. Countdown resumes before the second verse — really drives an uncomfortable (in a good way?) and urgent mood into the song. Bridge and ending choruses are really catchy if slightly repetitive. Countdown resumes again near the end and it fades out just before the very clear “zero.”

TRACK 12: Pieces of SEVEN (YouTube it)
Feels like another video game intro — a quieter stage. Reminds me of the hilly or creepy mystical levels of the classic, 2D Sonic games. Haha, actually, the title of this song suits that — seven Chaos Emeralds, amirite? Intro leads into some keyboards that sustain the mystical and mysterious mood. This is followed by some more electronic techno and more high-tech imagery; it starts getting more and more urgent and face-paced. Looks like we’ve leveled up to some of the roboticized and technologically conquered stages, eh? Ah, another fully instrumental track, though this one is the longest of the lot — probably the last of them also. Maybe this one will be my favorite over “Load of the SHUGYO” though the Sonic-related imagery I got might have something to do with that.

TRACK 13: Days
Calming sort of keyboard/piano intro.. leads into a more dramatic melody. Feels like one of those “end of the movie” tracks. Vocals are very sincere and urgent sounding. Lyrics are pretty sweet as well… I feel like I’ve heard this before, though I think it’s just that the feeling I get from the melody is very reminiscent of many other love songs. Not that that’s a bad thing, really — it’s just a very classic feeling. Reminds me again of the older Ayu songs I’m still so fond of. I like the word repetition in the verses: feels good. Bridge is conclusively dramatic; it definitely feels like the end of a romance, though I can’t tell if the it’s a happy or sad ending. It just feels conclusive, kind of bittersweet. The melody and vocals are really powerful, which is pretty different from every other song on this album, which is heavily electronic. Nice song all around.

TRACK 14: Curtain call
Another quiet piano intro accompanied by calming vocals that doesn’t sound all that much like Ayumi actually… might have something to do with the tempo. Even the previous song wasn’t this slow; it’s interesting. Piano is very prominent here and sometimes sounds more interesting than the vocal melody, which wavers a lot. Bridge and third chorus start getting more epic with a steady rise of sustained voices in the back. Piano and tentative vocals bring it to the end. I’m not sure I like the melody much here, but the mood and piano really was a great way to end an otherwise super energetic album.

OVERALL: This was actually a lot better than I thought it would be. “Rule” was the first Ayu song I’d heard in a long time and since it didn’t particularly impress me, I wasn’t expecting all that much from this album. But there are so many great songs here! All of the short instrumental tracks, while unexpected, were great and catchy, especially the latter two. Many of the tracks including “Sparkle,” “Rollin’,” and “GREEN” offered great imagery and were pretty darn exciting songs in themselves. Honestly, any of them would probably have made better movie theme songs than “Rule,” but I guess it’s just as well that a lesser quality song should accompany a lesser quality movie… not that any of Ayumi Hamasaki’s songs deserve to be compared to Dragonball Evolution. >_> NEXT LEVEL also rounded out things nicely with the last two tracks; “Days” and “Curtain call” were both sweet songs that balanced out the scores of techno and electronic in the other songs. It’s a good demonstration of Ayu’s two greatest strengths, and I’m glad that the whimsical love songs of old haven’t been drowned out completely by the distortion. Regardless of whether you’re an old fan or a new fan, I’d definitely recommend checking this album out. Totally worth it.

I think definitely think it’s one of those movies that I’ll need to watch again to fully appreciate, but as usual, I like to convince myself that I don’t have the time. I will check out that book of concept art from the movie again if I get the chance though — a lot of the environments ended up not being as complicated as I remembered, though the concept art also included a lot of diagrams and floorplans for the outpost and things that might not necessarily have been animated. Funny thing about the animation though, for it being so important that the characters are perceived as young, I never really realized just how young we were really supposed to think they were. From appearances alone, I would place Kannami and Kusanagi anywhere between fifteen and mid-twenties, a good decade of leeway. Behavior-wise, they seemed closer to mid-twenties, I would think, but everyone insisted on their persistent childhood. How young is too young to fight an endless war? Is there really an age where such things are appropriate? When does anyone really stop being a child? I’m not sure whether the age ambiguity in the designs was intentional or whether stylized anime in general has just ruined my age perception permanently. Everyone always looks youthful.

RURUTIA is one of only a handful of artists that I wasn’t introduced to by the “usual means,” which are 1) exposure via anime or related media and 2) direct recommendation from friends. Until recently, I was so negligent of radio and other such random discovery tools that I only learned of new English-speaking artists via AMVs, which is kind of sad? Now that I’ve found a nice plugin to read in Pandora’s outputs into my last.fm (thus, satisfying my OCD), I’ve been giving that a spin, but that really has nothing to do with RURUTIA, whom I discovered on my own a few years ago. Though her style and genre is quite a ways apart from my usual rock, pop, and alternative, the mysterious quality of her music has always drawn me in.

The echoey ambience of RURUTIA’s voice is haunting and airy, perhaps other worldly; the emotion always feels very sincere, very innocent, very hopeful. Her melodies also have a lot of classical influence, which is always a huge plus for me. Unfortunately, I’ve only heard her first couple of albums, so I’m not sure how her style might have evolved over the years. The most recent album of hers I’ve heard is Meme from 2005, and I haven’t really been keeping up with her singles either. This should be interesting then, huh?

TRACK 01: Seirios (YouTube it)
Quiet, but dramatic, piano opening with electronic distortion in the tempo. Vocals are slow and eerie… every syllable is enunciated very clearly. Chorus picks up the pace and the sound is a lot more forceful, stronger, and very desperate sounding. Her pronunciation of “Seirios” is recognizable, which is kind of surprising since she doesn’t often sing in English (if at all?). Second verse echos the first, slow and haunting. It builds very steadily and the second chorus erupts really nicely from it. Ooh, really beautiful high notes here. The emotion is really touching; the melody is really awesome. This would be great music to accompany some kind of final struggle. There is no bridge or final chorus, but the outro is a quiet (but still dramatic) piano interlude with the distortion to keep you on your toes until it fades out to silence.

TRACK 02: サイレントプレイヤー(Silent Prayers) (YouTube it)
Brighter, more cheerful sounding opening. Twinkling sounds lead into more electronica and hesitant violins. Vocals start mysteriously; sounds more like speaking than singing, but that changes fairly quickly. Chorus is rather typical RURUTIA — lots of gorgeous high notes presented in a very airy way; it’s a very unique sound. Second verse has more of the speaking-singing, but it’s more forceful and pressing now. More urgent. Second chorus sounds more cheerful, but I’m not sure that that’s the right word. It’s more “bright.” I can imagine this illustrating some crazy colorful garden scene with a ton of butterflies, but I might just associate butterflies with RURUTIA in general since one of my first and favorite songs is “Lost Butterfly.” I don’t think it’s unfitting though. Bridge has more of that “bright” feeling — the melody has that “magical” air to it. It’s a nice instrumental. Final chorus leads out to the same instrumental, which ends without fading.

TRACK 03: Opus
“Opus” was a track on an album of the same name and a ballad version of (presumably) the same song also appeared on another album, but I haven’t heard either of them so I’m not sure if this “Opus” is the same song or related at all. Intro has some quick bass strings and then a haughty-sounding viola (I think? I’m bad at recognizing strings). Vocals are calm and slow, very casual-feeling, or as casual as RURUTIA gets. The chorus brings back the classic sound though: voice becomes very airy and there are some nice overlaps. Second verse feels a bit more forced and kind of confused, like it’s caught between the mood of the first verse and the chorus. Chorus feels more and more generic, like this could be the chorus of any number of RURUTIA songs. Oh, damn. Beautiful piano interlude! It’s very soothing and peaceful. A bit short, but the final chorus feels less plain because of it. Airy high notes fade out to the end.

TRACK 04: オーロラ飛行 (Aurora Hikou)
Very epic and dramatic-sounding intro. This would make a great movie theme of some sort. Vocals feel kind of misplaced at the beginning though, and the mood is difficult to pinpoint. An awkward sustained note leads into slower lyrics with no background music and a weird uncertainty. Verses and chorus are hard to pick out here, but what I assume is the first chorus brings back the epic/dramatic feeling from the intro. The mood feels like the end of the world now, perhaps before some big final battle where everyone is expected to die. The mood doesn’t really escalate though — the quiet desperation doesn’t change or grow, so the song kind of stagnants by the second chorus. Still, it’s all very pleasing to the ear. Like ALI PROJECT though, I think RURUTIA has a lot of songs that fall into the same sort of sound and feeling so it becomes difficult to distinguish between them. Also like ALI PROJECT though, I know there are plenty of gems amongst that heap; this just isn’t one of them. Still, outro to this is pretty unique, if a bit clashing with the rest of it.

TRACK 05: 流光 (Ryuukou) (YouTube it)
Generic violin opening. Awesome sustained note though… vocals start off brisk and confident. Tempo and background beat is very nice; fits in very well with the voice. This song apparently also previously appeared on the album Opus. First chorus sounds really awesome — energetic, but not over the top; not quite urgent, but still important-sounding. Well placed high notes too. I really love the melody and sound of the verses; it’s mysterious in a different way, like it isn’t really trying to be haunting, but is anyway. Lyrics are pretty interesting as well. Bridge sounds a little airy and a little desperate, but the confidence isn’t that far off either. It’s a strange blend. I love the “mada mada”s, but I’m a sucker for repetitions as long as it doesn’t get ridiculous. This might be my favorite on the album thus far, though Seirios was really nice too…

TRACK 06: 無憂歌 (Muyuuka)
Energetic piano opening, but it eases up gradually. Vocals start off nicely and make it sound like a simple ballad, but I don’t mean that in a bad way. Voice is very soothing and calming. Moves into the first chorus very smoothly; sounds and feels very much like an earnest love song. RURUTIA sounds particularly sincere here. There’s really not much to say beyond that, haha, but this really is a sweet song.

TRACK 07: LAST DAY
Moderate violin opening with a cheerful little keyboard in the back (or a pipe instrument? Hard to tell!). Vocals are… very normal sounding? That’s not meant in a bad way either, but I’m not sure how to describe them. The mood feels very much like a “this is a good day” kind of thing, if that makes any sense. Chorus is more familiar-sounding — urgency and quiet desperation and an airy, haunting quality. Eases up into the second chorus, but it retains much of the darker aura. By the second chorus, I feel like the theme of the song is trying to reach something but not being able to. Or protecting something, as I think the lyrics imply. Bridge has a nice melody and leads into a sincere-sounding interlude before the final chorus. Not a bad song overall.

TRACK 08: 氷鎖 (Hyousa)
Dramatic piano opening with hushed whispers in the accompaniment. This song apparently appeared on a mini album of the same name. Vocals start off simply, calmly, though it doesn’t take long for the desperation to creep back in. Dramatic pause before the chorus, which sounds particularly tragic at first, but eases into something rather generic-feeling? Second verse brings more of the same, but I like the piano a lot. I think I also actually like the pause before the choruses, but the chorus itself feels a bit out of place, like the melody doesn’t really carry between it and the verses. Bridge feels similarly strange, but the hushed voices from the beginning return for the outro.

TRACK 09: 夢蛍 (Yume Hotaru)
Trilly piano intro. Eerie and energetic (?) at the same time. Suddenly stops for some particularly haunting piano before the vocals begin. The off-keys in this song really accent the ghostly feel; the piano does a great job in helping as well. Chorus felt kind of weird, but the second verse is just as eerie as the first, though perhaps a little more cheerful? I think the main reason that the chorus is kind of disorienting is because it has more background music and a stronger tempo, which is kind of clashing. Bridge has some interesting guitar, which almost sounds out of place amongst the more classical instruments and distortion. Next chorus is less jarring and leads into a distant and echoy verse/chorus, which gradually fades out. Hm.

TRACK 10: VOID
Intro immediately makes me think of the ending of some kinda movie, perhaps a click flick or a family film — something with a predictably happy ending. Vocals immediately counter this thought by sounding completely unfitting for such a scenario. Lyrics are slow and RURUTIA’s voice is drawn out and rather awkward instead of eerie. Very hard to keep track of verses and choruses in this song; everything kind of blends together… oh, the second verse kind of sets itself apart there with a preceeding pause. Tone and everything sounds the same though; another one of those forgettable songs, perhaps? Lots of sustained notes, some pretty, some awkward. …Yeah, kind of a forgettable song, though I think the slower tempo kind of contributed to boring me.

TRACK 11: 星と羽 (Hoshi to Hane) (YouTube it)
Spacey kinda intro. Appropriate, I guess (“Hoshi to Hane” = “Stars and Feathers”). This is yet another song that’s also appeared on the Opus album in 2007. Vocals also start off kind of spacey. Some ooh-ing and soft sustained notes with a twinkling triangle or something in the background. And then, a piano! With purposeful static. Sounds rather nostalgic, but I have mixed feelings about it. Huh, piano goes on for quite a while. Vocals return rather abruptly along with the spacey-ness. Not really sure what the mood is supposed to be for the song, but everything feels very distant in one way or another. Ooh-oohs fade out gradually along with some odd percussion.

OVERALL: Seirios doesn’t feel all that different from the RURUTIA albums I’m familiar with, though I’m not sure I like the changes I do spot. The classical influences seem more diminished and I think there are less songs that really stand out and more that blend in with her general sound and vocal quality, which is particularly disappointing. I was surprised at the number of tracks that have apparently already appeared on previous albums, though none from the ones I’ve heard. Opus and Hyousa were both mini albums (though at eight tracks each, they’re really not that far off from full albums), but it does seem kind of cheap to have so many repeating songs. The title track and “Ryuukou” are definitely my favorites here; “LAST DAY” and “”Hyousa” probably follow that, but the rest are pretty plain. It might not be a bad album for newcomers to start off with, but those already well versed with RURUTIA’s sound might be disappointed.

(this review briefly mentions minor spoilers for HP1-5;
spoilers for HP6: Half-Blood Prince are contained under spoiler tags)

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

STORY & PACING — The main goal of Half-Blood Prince is to serve as a bridge between the previous installment and the final installment. That sounds incredibly obvious, but all the same, I don’t think most people realize it. Order of the Phoenix ends with the Wizarding community finally acknowledging Voldemort’s return, and Deathly Hallows is, of course, the final journey and confrontation. Thus, HBP serves to provide further proof of a dark uprising, but more importantly, it serves to provide Harry with the knowledge and tools necessary to take on his inevitable task: the backbone of HBP is Dumbledore teaching Harry about Voldemort’s origins, his past, his habits, his ambitions, and his weaknesses. Harry’s understanding of what he needs to do is essential. Dumbledore says so himself.

And that is where the HBP movie failed.

It isn’t really even a matter of comparing the book to the movie, though it’s impossible for me to pretend I’m not using the book as reference. The movie refuses again and again to clarify its intent and direction. It jumps around, occasionally acknowledging the darkness-swept community and widespread panic, but mostly focusing on the hormonal subplots, though I can’t say I’m surprised in the least. Hormones sell movie tickets, especially to enthusiastic shippers. The romantic storylines aren’t uninteresting or unnecessary per se, but the storytelling didn’t feel very balanced, and I felt that Dumbledore’s purposes and goals were lost in the insurmountable drama — especially since Dumbledore himself seemed to commentate all too frequently on the romance (or lack thereof, for some)! Yes, hormones and puberty still happen in times of war; the book was very clear on that as well, but there still needs to be a sense of purpose beyond whether or not Harry will be able to win Ginny from Dean and whether Ron will get with Hermione after it became obvious two or three books/movies ago that they liked each other.

It didn’t help either, that the few scenes we do get involving Dumbledore, Voldemort’s past, and Slughorn were strangely ordered and altered for no particular reason. I don’t expect a movie to be a perfect line-by-line adaptation of a book; that’s impossible. I expect things to be cut and changed, but there always needs to be a reason something is changed, and I can’t see many justifications here. In particular, Slughorn’s introduction felt unnecessarily abbreviated and Dumbledore sending Harry to buddy up with Slughorn without first telling him why just doesn’t make sense, nevermind that it’s completely contrary to the book. Skipping over the first couple of memories shared in the Penseive is forgivable, but failing to emphasize Voldemort’s habits and magpie-like tendencies is not. It might feel like a minor detail, but it isn’t, not if you consider that HBP’s entire purpose of teaching Harry about his enemy, but I guess David Yates forgot that part. The coming-of-age thing doesn’t really come across very well either; it’s just puberty.

This paragraph contains spoilers for HBP; kind of ▼

The most relevant secondary storyline involves Draco Malfoy’s various suspicious activities and the further questioning of Severus Snape’s true allegiance. Though considerably different from the book, most of the scenes concerning them are actually pretty good –  the audience is able to get a good grasp of what’s going on and they probably even have a higher chance of guessing what’s happening since the movie divulges many more details than the source material in regards to Malfoy. Unfortunately, as well done as those individual scenes are, they feel short and choppy in the grand scheme of things. Everything meshed poorly with the rest of the movie and scene transitions were almost always awkward and sudden (though the lengthy ones were also awkward). That, along with the movie’s general lack of backbone and direction, made it feel like yet another poorly paced slideshow. Things happen. More things happen. Characters react, kind of. More things happen. All of the movies since and including the third one have been this way, and HBP is no exception.

This paragraph contains spoilers for HBP ▼

CHARACTER & ACTING — The most redeeming factor about the entire film is the fact that most of the character portrayals and interactions are downright hilarious — whether they’re hilarious in a good way or a bad way is up to debate, but either way, it’s still hilarious. Undoubtedly, the overt romantic shenanigans played a large part in it, but if you can’t fight it, then you might as well enjoy it. I guess? Consider that the hormones and drama were my least favorite part of the source material… that’s why I was less prone to caring just how they handled it. If the romance felt rushed, over-the-top, and sloppily done in the books, then it was certainly more rushed, over-the-top, and sloppily done in the movie. But it was still funny.

Ron and Hermione’s drama begins with little preamble in the movie, so despite pre-existing hints and tensions, it still feels rather sudden in the context of the self-contained film. Both Cormac McLaggan and Lavender Brown’s silver screen portrayals are exaggerated from their ink and paper forms, but the result is acceptably humorous, even if they occasionally invite facepalming. Rupert Grint and Emma Watson both do a swell job with their roles as Ron and Hermione though; even if the scenes they’re set up in are a bit ridiculous and also rather exaggerated, the acting is solid enough and the emotions are well expressed. If anything, it was disappointing to see that their roles in the HBP movie were limited to the romantic drama — they never actually do anything important — it would have been interesting to see whether the good acting carried over to more story-intensive or even action scenes.

Unlike Ron/Hermione, there is very little build-up in the previous installments in regards to Harry/Ginny, making the pairing seem very sudden and particularly contrived. This was bad enough in the book, but the movie took the liberty of inserting even more awkward little moments that highlight the more-than-obvious fact that Harry has a thing for Ginny even though they haven’t really spoken to each other in the last three movies/books. Still, there are several movie-only scenes that are especially amusing (“she has nice skin” / “Harry seemed to really enjoy dessert”) and not entirely out-of-character. It was very teen drama-ish. I was surprised at just how many bones were tossed out to the Harry/Hermione shippers though; there were little tidbits here and there, details that weren’t in the book and so on. Sometimes it seemed almost canon! I wonder if H/Hr is Yates’ OTP? I’ve never cared for Bonnie Wright as Ginny, and really, despite her prominence in the romantic subplots here, there seem to be very few scenes where Wright actually does any notable acting; she is generally very plain and unimpressive. In contrast, Dan Radcliffe’s acting is very solid (infinitely improved from his acting in OotP), but his most brilliant and memorable scenes were those involving the Felix Felicis, rather than anything with Ginny. Still, for the serious matters (especially around the end of the movie), Radcliffe’s progression as an actor really shines through.

Rounding out the romance, Tonks/(Spoiler), mercifully, wasn’t very prominent in the movie, but what was there was even more random and awkward. Bill/Fleur was completely absent, which makes me wonder about how their wedding will be handled in the next movie (if at all). Draco/Pansy was also cut entirely, but that’s without much consequence. Luna’s role and the subsequent gossipy silliness is lessened (there is no “Potty lurves Loony!” line much to my brother’s disappointment), but I still love her actress. Luna’s character is wonderfully quirky and her portrayal remains one of my favorite book-to-movie transitions. Other minor roles include Helena Bonham Carter as Bellatrix, Helen McCrory as Narcissa, and Alan Rickman as Snape. I enjoyed Carter as Bellatrix in the previous film, but her expanded role in this one felt unnecessary and her portrayal of Bellatrix only gets more and more stereotypical. McCrory’s lack of blondeness put me off, but I guess there’s no point in being picky about appearances when Radcliffe’s Harry still doesn’t have green eyes. Her portrayal of Narcissa was still disappointingly calm, though I suppose it could be the script’s fault that she was out of character for her single scene. Rickman as Snape is the same as always (quiet and brooding), though it’s surprising to see just how little a role he plays the entire movie, all things considered.

More important secondary roles include Michael Gambon as Dumbledore, Jim Broadbent as Slughorn, and Tom Felton as Draco. Admittedly, I’ve never warmed up to Gambon’s Dumbledore, and even though it’s been a while since I’ve seen the first two movies, I stick by the notion that Richard Harris was much, much better. Part of it is appearances, yes: Harris was just a physically more accurate portrayal of Dumbledore down to his immensely long and very white beard and frail, thin appearance. But Gambon’s Dumbledore has just always seemed… too serious for me. That isn’t to say that Dumbledore is never serious — of course he is, especially in these later installments — but he is always described as being very serene, very calm, and frequently smiling, in spite of everything. Gambon doesn’t really capture any of those qualities, so I’m never quite convinced. Broadbent as Slughorn worked well enough though. Physically, he could be balder and fatter, but demeanor-wise, I’d say it was a pretty good job.

And then there’s Felton, whom I’ve always felt was a mediocre actor that could only emphasize the most stereotypical qualities of his role. HBP has helped his case tremendously by showing that he can indeed act without shouting ridiculous taunts every other minute, probably because Draco doesn’t actually say much in this movie. Still, all of the scenes with Draco in the Room of Requirement are poignant and suspenseful (even if he pulls the curtain off the cabinet one too many times), and his frustration prior to his fight with Harry comes across as very sincere and emotionally complex with a dramatic mix of anger and fear. His final scene at the end of the movie is also relatively convincing, even if the script cut out a lot of the discussion.

ART & ANIMATION — Usually, this is where I exchange the negative for the positive because things of questionable quality storywise often make up for it on the technical side. However, I didn’t find HBP to be all that impressive visually — probably because there just really weren’t that many scenes throughout the movie that called for impressiveness. Quidditch and the score of everyday spells were standard, etc. I actually really disliked the portrayal of Death Eaters since, in addition to being visually boring, I found it to be confusing with previous portrayals of Dementors, which were conveniently glossed over here. (A more purist note: Fenrir Greyback is also a Death Eater, but he is only a werewolf and not a wizard; thus, it doesn’t really make sense that he should be able to fly around randomly.) There was a distinct lack of things that made some of the previous movies nice to look at — no basilisk, no hippogriff, no dragons, no big fight at the Ministry.

Dumbledore’s storm of fire near the end was great for the scene and the moment, but it really wasn’t that notable or amazing, especially compared to the aforementioned. The Dark Mark was also kind of neat, but nothing spectacular. I’m surprised that HBP is the most expensive movie yet — I have no idea what they spent it on because it really wasn’t much to look at.

MUSIC – To be honest, I didn’t notice much in the way of music in this film. I’m a huge fan of John Williams’s excellently composed theme, but derivative tunes don’t really impress me as much and I was too busy whispering agitatedly and being an altogether annoying movie-goer to really pay much attention to Nicholas Hooper’s original compositions for HBP. I found his work for OotP pretty average though, so I think it’s safe enough to assume the quality is the same here.

OVERALL — It was better than I thought it would be, if only because much of the character and romance nonsense ended up being genuinely amusing. The actors all seemed to have a much better handle on their roles than usual, and many of the movie-only scenes were actually pretty entertaining. If Half-Blood Prince was supposed to be a romantic comedy, then I guess it was all right. Unfortunately, the movie was also tasked with being part of a much larger story, but as a bridge between Order of the Phoenix and Deathly Hallows, HBP was a poor attempt. Some specific scenes are good and accurate to a point, but they are strung together haphazardly, and ultimately, not enough is explained or revealed about what Harry needs to do, which doesn’t particular bode well for the seventh book’s two-parter movie. Yes, I’m irritated that there are a lot of things from the source — debateably important things — that did not make it into the film, but that would annoy me a lot less if I thought the film still somehow drove the main point home. It didn’t. It didn’t present them in the way the book did, and it didn’t cleverly create unique situations where the same points could be covered. It just ignored them or forgot about them and focused on the teenage romance instead, magnifying the book’s lesser points to the point where they take over completely.

Here is the review! (MAL mirror is here.)