Recommended Anime/Manga?

[BIL]

Speaking of Berserk games btw, I'm strangely compelled (perhaps by a black bible?) to post this gif of Ninja Five-O (GBA), whose endboss is simply the best 2D Guts that never was. These guys coulda made a helluva Berserk sidescroller.

[Skykid]

Just read the first 40 chapters of Hokuto no Ken. I feel as though my testosterone levels have doubled.

I'll repeat my earlier request for Seinen recommendations though (because I got no response). Please don't tell me you're all knee deep in yaoi.

[Squire Grooktook]

I'll repeat my earlier request for Seinen recommendations though (because I got no response). Please don't tell me you're all knee deep in yaoi.

I'm not too clear on genre definitions, but I started on Bastard!! Heavy Metal Dark Fantasy a little while ago (which is classed partly as such on wikipedia), and so far it's pretty fun. charmingly ultra campy heavy metal themed violence + t&a fest. The protagonist is a fun guy. I like the art quite a bit too.

[soprano1]

I'll repeat my earlier request for Seinen recommendations though (because I got no response). Please don't tell me you're all knee deep in yaoi.

I'm not too clear on genre definitions, but I started on Bastard!! Heavy Metal Dark Fantasy a little while ago, and so far it's pretty fun. charmingly ultra campy heavy metal themed violence + t&a fest. The protagonist is a fun guy. I like the art quite a bit too.

Doesn't get any better than a protagonist called Dark Schneider.

[Xyga]

The Baki franchise, especially 'New Grappler Baki' (second series chronologically).

It's martial arts with heavy typically japanese testosterone drama.
Absurds amount of OTT muscle and violence with hilariously far-fetched backstories to explain why the characters are so superhuman and batshit crazy.

It's not yaoi, but you know, after all it is almost exclusively about athletic men.

[Squire Grooktook]

I'll repeat my earlier request for Seinen recommendations though (because I got no response). Please don't tell me you're all knee deep in yaoi.

I'm not too clear on genre definitions, but I started on Bastard!! Heavy Metal Dark Fantasy a little while ago, and so far it's pretty fun. charmingly ultra campy heavy metal themed violence + t&a fest. The protagonist is a fun guy. I like the art quite a bit too.

Doesn't get any better than a protagonist called Dark Schneider.

Or being a wizard and naming all your spells after heavy metal bands

[BIL]

Just read the first 40 chapters of Hokuto no Ken. I feel as though my testosterone levels have doubled.

You know I'm a stern curmudgeonly critic of HG101, but their crack "my friend refused to read the HNK manga because she was worried it'd get her pregnant" is quality.



The Classic Japanese Story of Strong Men Resolving Their Complicated Relationships Through Empathy And Body-Exploding Ultraviolence

[EmperorIng]

Does Go Nagai count as seinen? But you probably plumbed the delightfully depraved depths of Violence Jack or Black Lion or Devilman ages ago.

[Squire Grooktook]

I need to read Devilman. Seems right up my alley from the brief snippets I've seen.

[EmperorIng]

The two-episode OVA is also really good. A little trashy, but less so than all of Nagai's other works. It even has an emotional core, sometimes!

[KAI]

Read My Name is Nero, Golden Kamui and Wolfsmund Skykid, they are fucking awesome.

[soprano1]

I need to read Devilman. Seems right up my alley from the brief snippets I've seen.

Original manga is incredible.

[soprano1]

Does Go Nagai count as seinen? But you probably plumbed the delightfully depraved depths of Violence Jack or Black Lion or Devilman ages ago.

It's a Jump series, so it's shounen. 80's shounen.

[soprano1]

Just read the first 40 chapters of Hokuto no Ken. I feel as though my testosterone levels have doubled.

I'll repeat my earlier request for Seinen recommendations though (because I got no response). Please don't tell me you're all knee deep in yaoi.

Read the first volume, i'm in for the ride.
Anyone played the 2005 Atomiswave/PS2 game by Arc System Works?

[KAI]

Anyone played the 2005 Atomiswave/PS2 game by Arc System Works?

Love HNK's FG. All that armor and clashes <3 one of my fav games from arcsys, by far the best game adaptation of the series.


I'm about to finish Seirei no Moribito. Good shit, not even a single boring moment so far, 100% recommended.

[Skykid]

Just read the first 40 chapters of Hokuto no Ken. I feel as though my testosterone levels have doubled.

I'll repeat my earlier request for Seinen recommendations though (because I got no response). Please don't tell me you're all knee deep in yaoi.

Read the first volume, i'm in for the ride.
Anyone played the 2005 Atomiswave/PS2 game by Arc System Works?

It's my favourite arcsys game and by far the best HNK game (although I did get some good exercise with Konami's arcade effort too).

Thanks for the recommendations. I've tried Baki and didn't get into it much. Go Nagai's stuff similarly. I have a very good track record with Kai's suggestions, so after the burly pressure point madness I'll queue some of those.

[soprano1]

Billy Bat just ended. Another strange ending just like Pluto.

[NTSC-J]

I'll repeat my earlier request for Seinen recommendations though (because I got no response).

Cyber Blue may be worth a read. Tetsuo Hara manga that's basically HNK with guns and cyborgs. It features a robot sidekick that cusses a lot and a villain modeled after Prince who sits on a throne made of naked women and uses their ample bosoms for armrests.

[soprano1]

Ten HnK volumes down, what the hell is up with Yuria? She's got four men who are in love with her.

[atheistgod1999]

Oh yeah, I wasn't really thinking earlier. What I meant by "light" in "light and funny" was "not a complex plot" or "not deep". I didn't mean "lighthearted" or "not dark". Just clarifying.

[soprano1]

Ten HnK volumes down, what the hell is up with Yuria? She's got four men who are in love with her.

OK, question for people who read it all: Is it worth reading from volume 17 onwards? Volume 16 seemed a worthy ending, will it be like Dragon Ball past 23rd Budokai/Namek arc?

[BIL]

HNK kind of gets into a holding pattern in its second half, as Ken's development levels off and he takes on more of a mentor/guardian role to a succession of new characters. It's not as great as the classic first half, but still worth reading imo - definitely keeps the same raucously violent yet soulful tone. The setting changes a bit... the recovering post-apocalyptic world has developed from pre-historic to a more feudal setting. This parlays into to a few interesting scenarios befitting of Ken's increased stature, though the ensuing lack of wasteland wanderings might be a double-edged sword.

It's been almost a decade, but my main criticism would be the backstory of Ken/Toki/Raoh and Hokuto Shinken getting a little overly involved. Only relatively speaking though - it's still pretty spartan. I had fun with it.

Cyber Blue may be worth a read. Tetsuo Hara manga that's basically HNK with guns and cyborgs. It features a robot sidekick that cusses a lot and a villain modeled after Prince who sits on a throne made of naked women and uses their ample bosoms for armrests.

Sounds good. I've wanted to read more Hara stuff, but IIRC there wasn't too much non-HNK translated at the time. Actually HNK itself had a chunk of volumes untranslated back then (2007 or so).

[BryanM]

For a moment there thanks to fake dyslexia (fakelexia) I thought we were talking about Welcome to the NHK.

Which would be one hell of a crossover, here.

[Xyga]

I'm about to finish Seirei no Moribito. Good shit, not even a single boring moment so far, 100% recommended.

I didn't know there was manga of it, only saw the anime about a decade ago. really good with top tier animation.

[EmperorIng]

I watched the OVA Dragon's Heaven last night.

Fabulous art direction and mech designs:

Spoiler

Also has a really bitchin' soundtrack.

After a 5-minute model-porn shot of the two main mechs in LIVE ACTION, it's a 25-minute barrage of gorgeous shots and occasionally cool action scenes. I genuinely laughed at the fact that they gave the main mech the personality of a prudish middle-age man. Like, why is a robot ashamed of seeing a girl naked? The way he brushes off said girl's "well the other robot is way hotter than you" with a "yeah yeah, whatever" is weird and endearing.

Unfortunately, it really lets itself down by not having a climactic finish that it seems like the extremely short ova was building up to. There needed to be more scenes of Ikuru actually inside the mech and working to take out the evil Brazilian robots. I wish they would have traded the 5-minute model porn (really cool though it looks cheesy; worse than Robot JOX) for a 5 minute final fight between these two robots. The ending happens and you're kinda let down.

It's hard to get too worked up over a 25-minute OVA. It's gorgeous to look at, but unlike California Crisis, another terminally short plotless OVA, this one makes you wish for a more satisfying conclusion, if only because the designs are so cool.

Might watch Dream Hunter Rem next. Not huge into bursts of cute-girl-slasher stuff mixed liberally with soft-core (formerly hardcore) porn, but I am hoping the bizarre premise and "anything goes" plot direction will more than make up for it.

[Squire Grooktook]

Fabulous art direction and mech designs:

Spoiler

Oh fuck this is cool.

I need to show this to Hagane when he gets back. Those are the kinds of designs I was thinking for humanoid enemies in my shmup.

[Skykid]

I'll repeat my earlier request for Seinen recommendations though (because I got no response).

Cyber Blue may be worth a read. Tetsuo Hara manga that's basically HNK with guns and cyborgs. It features a robot sidekick that cusses a lot and a villain modeled after Prince who sits on a throne made of naked women and uses their ample bosoms for armrests.

Sounds rad.

[soprano1]

Gave up on HNK's second part, didn't catch my attention as the awesome first 17 volumes. Think i'll go for Cyber Blue for more Tetsuo Hara goodness. Only 4 volumes, so should be cool.

[lilmanjs]

Samurai 7 has been added to my collection today. Watched the first 2 episodes and really enjoyed the heck out of it. Seems that it gets better from the reviews I've been reading. Good choice to spend the money on the blu-ray?

[soprano1]

Samurai 7 has been added to my collection today. Watched the first 2 episodes and really enjoyed the heck out of it. Seems that it gets better from the reviews I've been reading. Good choice to spend the money on the blu-ray?

If you like it, be sure to watch the Kurosawa movie the series is based on.