L’Arc~en~Ciel New Album “Butterfly” Release Date Announced

For fans of Japanese band  L’Arc~en~Ciel, I can confirm that their new album, titled “Butterfly”, will be released on the 8th of February 2012.  A tracklist for the album is also available and can be seen below:

01. CHASE
02. XXX
03. Bye Bye
04. GOOD LUCK MY WAY -BUTTERFLY Ver.-
05. BLESS
06. shade of season
07. DRINK IT DOWN
08. wild flower
09. SHINE
10. NEXUS 4
11. Mirai Sekai

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*Credit to Edohsama.blogspot for the info*

Naruto Chapter 568 – The Four Tails: The Sage King of The Apes Review/Thoughts

So yes, the chapter came out later this week due to the Christmas holidays hence the late post, but anyway, about the chapter itself.

I was actually expecting Naruto and the Kyuubi to work together for Naruto to escape from the Yonbi (aka Four Tails), but that’s not how things went. Initially when reading through the chapter this week I honestly expected Naruto to absorb/take the Yonbi’s power to not only help him escape but also help in his fight against Tobi and the other Jinchuriki, though of course it wasn’t the case in the end.

I did laugh a bit at Kakashi’s comment about running low on Chakra, if only because he always seems to run out of it faster than anyone else in the series which has become somewhat of a joke to his fans. That said, his Raiton chains were pretty damn badass and it was nice to see a new technique from him, and maybe we will get to see a little more before Naruto inevitably reappears to save the day.

Anyway, I am going to try and be a bit more brief now unfortunately this week, so I will just list the best and worst things about the chapter:

Best:

Flashback showing Madara using the Sharingan to control the Kyuubi, while also showing Hashirama and the previous Kyuubi Jinchuriki

Finding out that the tailed beasts all do in fact have actual names (even though I did laugh at Son Goku haha)

Worst:

Looking worryingly more like at some stage Naruto will gain control over the tailed beasts, or at the very least over the Kyuubi which pretty much ruins it’s character.

Naruto using a short version of TnJ against the Yonbi

So that’s about it, it was a pretty good chapter overall but nothing too special. I was also disappointed by the lack of Sasuke again so soon after he appeared again last week, hopefully we won’t have to wait another 40 or 50 chapters for a one panel showing of his this time though.

Watch SID Fuyu No Bench PV

Yes indeed, great news for fans of J-Rock band SID – their latest single Fuyu no Bench now has a PV available to watch!

The single is officially released on December 28th

Here is the PV:

Fuyu no Benchi PV from JMusicMaxcaz on Vimeo.

Naruto Shippuden Anime Schedule For January 2012

Normally I probably wouldn’t bother wasting time posting a schedule for Naruto here, especially with the recent months of filler. Honestly I haven’t even watched Naruto since shortly after the canon of the Kage Summit Arc ended, but thankfully not only will it be returning to canon in January, but it also consists of some of my favourite parts from the Shippuden story. For those Anime only watchers,  just know you are in for a treat come January.

Anyway, the full schedule is here:

January 5, 2012 –  Episode 243: Landing! Paradise Island?

January 12, 2012 – Episode 244: Killer Bee and Motoi

January 19, 2012 – Episode 245: Naruto VS Nine-Tails

January 26, 2012 – Episode 246: The Orange Sparkle

The Top 5 Best Anime Openings of 2011

Since this year is nearly over, I thought a post on what I consider to be the 5 best Anime OPs of 2011 was a nice idea. Admittedly I don’t watch as many series as some people, but still more than enough to make fair judgements I feel.

If you want to post your own favourites then please feel free to do so in the comments below!

Anyway, here are my 5 favourites for 2011:

5 – A Whole New World God Only Knows  (The World God Only Knows Series 2 OP)

4 – Hacking to the Gate (Steins;Gate OP)

3 – Lovers  (Naruto Shippuden OP 9)

2 – Harukaze  (Bleach OP 15)

1 –  Kuso Mesorogiwi  (Mirai Nikki OP)

SID Fuyu no Bench Live Preview

Following on from my previous post on SID’s upcoming single Fuyu no Bench, there is now a longer performance of the song that was performed live recently. It is still not the finished article, but until the PV comes out then it will probably be the best version available.

 

 

Naruto Chapter 567 – The Jinchuriki of Konoha Review / Thoughts

Last week we were given a brilliant end to the chapter that promised us an awful lot, and although not perfect (but then again when is anything perfect?) I feel the latest chapter did not disappoint.

As you can see from that lovely picture above, Sasuke was in this chapter, albeit only briefly. That said, I was just glad to see him again and also that he was what the chapter started with so recieved the colour page treatment.

Anyway, aside from Sasuke, we go back to Tobi and his Edo Jinchuriki vs Naruto, Bee, Kakashi and Guy. One of the things that disappointed me slightly with this chapter is that instead of facing Tobi, Guy and Kakashi instead only helped fight the Jinchuriki. While normally this wouldn’t be a bad thing, I can’t help but think it’s a waste of Tobi who for the most part stands still and doesn’t get involved. It was interesting to see one of the tailed beasts turn against Tobi, though he could easily stop it and not recieve any damage, with the Tailed Beasts apparently disliking the fact one of their own kind were suffering, at least that’s what the 8 tails claimed.

While it was nice enough seeing Bee, Naruto, Guy and Kakashi against the Jinchuriki, I was ideally hoping to see Tobi fight properly for the first time in his current form. However, with Sasuke’s appearance and Tobi’s lack of action, it does make me think that my earlier prediction in my last post about Sasuke soon facing Tobi will be correct, and that in itself will be fantastic. Don’t get me wrong though, while it’s true most of this post has been pointing out the negatives, there were also positives too and the Jinchuriki fights were good in their own right, I guess I was just expecting a different kind of chapter than what Kishi had in mind.

Overall it was a fine chapter packed with action, and the end was done nicely in that it hints we may see either the Kyuubi cooperating fully with Naruto at last, or else we will finally find out what “that” jutsu is referring to.

SID New Single Fuyu No Bench To Be Released 28th December

Yes, as the title says, Visual Kei band SID will be releasing their new single “Fuyu no Bench” on the 28th of December.  As a fan of the band I am glad to hear that their next single has come so soon after their previous one (Itsuka), as there was a long break after Ranbu no Melody before Itsuka was released back in September.

In the meantime, for anyone who wants an idea of what the new single will be like, there is currently a 7 second preview clip on Youtube

Naruto Chapter 566 Review / Thoughts

Now I admit, after reading the last chapter I expected Naruto and Bee to basically blitz through the other Jinchuriki Edo Tensei, so the fact they are having trouble dealing with them pleases me. Being able to transform in to their tailed beast form is a great way to give them a power boost and stack the deck further against Bee and Naruto who until now have had everything going there way, while it was also nice to see Tobi playing his part while hiding underground as it shows he is not merely stationary and watching the battle.

The ending is what I really liked though, the chapter was decent anyway, but I loved the way it ended. Tobi about to capture Naruto only to be stopped by the sudden appearance of Guy and Kakashi? Yes please!  I haven’t felt so pleased with an ending to a Naruto chapter for a very long time, and it’s because of Kakashi. I have been a huge fan of his since I started the series, he’s always been my favourite character but in Shippuden he has rarely had the opportunity to get a proper full battle for himself, and thus panel time has been lacking for him.

With him and Guy arriving, hopefully now this will change. Kakashi and Guy vs Tobi would indeed be a fantastic fight, and that’s what I am hoping will play out as Bee and Naruto deal with the other jinchuriki by themselves.

I have also been thinking recently about Sasuke’s lack of appearances, since his EMS was revealed and he took down Zetsu we are yet to see him again, but I think that will change soon. I get the feeling that a possible scenario will involve Tobi being pushed in to a bad position by Kakashi and Guy, and then as things are looking bad for him Sasuke will appear. Tobi will of course be happy to have some backup and will probably arrogantly boast about how the tables have turned, but instead of helping Tobi I think Sasuke will finish him off for good.

It would actually be quite a logical move as it gives Sasuke the opportunity to show off his new EMS powers, while also at the same time tying in nicely with the type of person/character Sasuke is. When you think about it, he used Orochimaru to gain power, and then when it was time for him to return the favour, he killed Orochimaru without hesitation because he had no further skills or power to gain from him. So we know Sasuke has no qualms about that sort of thing, and with the help of Tobi he has gained enormous power, but realistically now has nothing else to gain from listening to him since he aquired the EMS. Also, the fact that Tobi was still a part of the Uchiha massacre probably doesn’t sit too well with Sasuke. We know he blames Konoha for that, but he did also swear to kill the other person involved when Itachi first told him he had an accomplice, and later on he aimed a Chidori straight at Tobi with no hesitation when he tried to stop Sasuke heading to Konoha after finding out the Killer Bee Sasuke captured was a fake.

 

Of course that’s just my opinion on what might happen, so if you have any ideas of your own on the matter then feel free to leave a comment below. Overall then it was a pretty damn awesome chapter this week, and the potential of Kakashi’s upcoming fight has me feeling excited about the series once again.

Code Geass Stage Play Greenlit in Japan

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The official website for Sunrise‘s Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion television anime series announced on Monday that a stage play adaptation has been green-lit.  Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion: Sōran Eve Matsuri (Riot’s Eve Festival) will run for 13 performances at the Mozart Hall at Tokyo’s Katsuhika Symphony Hills from April 7th to April 16th. More details and advance ticket pre-orders will be available on December 25th.

Code Geass producer Yoshitaka Kawaguchi said last year that he and director Goro Taniguchi would be interested in a stage or musical version of Code Geass.

 

*Credit to Anime News Network for the info*