#overall a flashy broadcast of death

[smol-stardust]

Being the silly lil guy he is, I have a premonition that Nikolai is out here broadcasting the entirety of the meursault shenanigans and giving commentary as it unfolds on live TV. He’s just too invested and pumped up by everyone trying to kill each other that he had to share with everyone

[adrasthee]

All questions for Armena

🌟 When your OC loses all hope, who do they turn to first? What helps make them feel better? What calms them down and reassures them? Why?

Usually she’ll turn to her husband first and foremost, after all they are platonic soulmates and they do usually manage to make each other feel at ease simply by being there. She mostly feels like that because she knows she doesn’t have to keep the “level-headed” royalty appearances around him.

☀️ What makes your OC genuinely happy? A person, an item, their hobby? Where is the place they’re happiest, or most at home? What is the happiest they’ve ever been?

Her kids, she loves them to death and nothing makes her happier than to know they exist, they’re happy and they love her.

🌙 If your OC could have one wish come true what would it be and why? Would there be consequences to this wish or would they regret it once they get what they want? What would they give in return for this wish to come true?

I honestly don’t think Armena has any wish in particular? Being royalty has its perks to be honest and there aren’t that many things she can’t do.

❄️ What makes your OC sad, so sad that they can’t help but cry all day? How do they cheer themself up? Does their sadness upset any of their loved ones too?

I don’t think Armena knows it herself, because she tends to just shove it all away and hide it until she gets to the point where it’s too much and breaks down in her husband’s arms and cry for hours. Usually when she blows up it’s about something really small, which makes her kinda feel like an idiot. She can’t do much until she cried it out though.

🔥 If your OC known for having temper tantrums? If not, what gets them really angry? What makes their blood BOIL? Is there anyway to calm them down or are they unstoppable? What are they like when they’re angry? Do they take it out on their loved ones?

Not at all, Armena is rather calm and level-headed. She can and will get incredibly angry when people put others in danger for dumb reasons or fuck up everything she worked for, but it still takes a lot of that for her to get angry, if the way I’m saying it makes sense. She won’t get angry over something that wasn’t intentional either, especially if the other one looks or seems to feel guilty.

❤️ What would your OC’s ideal lover be like? Appearnce, personality, voice? Would their family approve or would it be civil war?

Well Armena is aromantic, so no ideal lover there.

🕊️ Would your OC ever get married or are they already wed? If they’re married, describe what their wedding was like! If not, describe their ideal wedding (or do this if you feel like it anyway!)

Well, Armena is married because royalty, ya know, but thankfully for her, the man she married ended up being her platonic soulmate and, while he’s still looking for a lover, both of them are actually rather happy in their platonic relationship. Being a royal wedding, their union was rather flashy and broadcasted all around, which, frankly, Armena wasn’t the biggest fan off, but whatever, she could deal with it if it was for the good of her people. 

🍼 Does your OC have any children or want children? What names would they pick? Are they good with kids or a complete disaster?

Biologically speaking, Armena only has a daughter, now children in general… she has adopted and raised more kids than anyone before, thanks to gryffons’ incredibly long lifespan. She’s a fairly good mother, very understanding and trying hard to ensure every single one of her kids happiness and success (well, what they define as such) in their lives.

☕ Give us one (or more if you feel like it) of your OCs deep dark secrets! Why do they keep it hidden? Spill the tea!

She has had officials killed. She’s not very proud of it nor happy, but it was, at the time, the only solution she could find to some problems and as such, she had them assassinated for the good of her country.

🍂 What are their opinions on the different seasons? Which one do they hate and which one do they love and why?

Armena is a big fan of winter because she genuinely prefers her winter coat to her summer one, it just make her feel more true to herself.

🦋 If your OC could change everything (or just something) about their life would they? What would they change? What do they think would happen if they did? What would their loved ones think?

Armena is actually very happy with her life, so nah, she wouldn’t change much.

💐 Does your OC like flowers? What are their favourites? Do they keep a garden of some sort? What flowers would they use in a flower crown? (and if you like, research the meanings behind those flowers!)

She,,, doesn’t have any favourite flowers per say, she’s pretty neutral towards them all in all. Her only garden would be the one that used to belong to her father, which is still being taken care of by her husband. If she were to wear a flower crown, it be made out of Dahlia (Royalty), Thyme (Power), Violet (Kindness) and Amarillys (Pride).

🌼 Write a short drabble from your OCs POV meeting their LI (or if they don’t have a love interest, their best friend. If you don’t want to do a drabble, describe their first meeting instead!)

I’m a bit too tired to write a drabble, but Armena met her husband when their parents forged an alliance by marrying them. They were two teenagers and he absolutely loved to get all up in her bubble just to get on her nerves. I feel like I should specify that, while they did get married because a royalty and needing heirs, Armena never fell in love romantically for him; to this day, they simply are platonic partners and won’t ever be more.

🥀 Has your OC ever been hurt by someone they love? Ever been betrayed? Abused? Attacked? Give me the angst! (if you’d like, write a short drabble about it!)

Her first best friend had a crush on her and didn’t take well to getting rejected. They cut all contact with her and it honestly crushed her heart because she did wish them to be her platonic partner.

🏞️ If your OC could travel to anywhere in their world where would they go? Why? If they could live there would they?

Armena can already sort of travel all around the world, but she’s more often than not, not allowed to go to places with poorer people and away from big cities in countries that aren’t hers. As such, she’d love to go see those places, because the best way to understand a country is to understand it’s smallest people.

🏡 Describe your OCs ideal house! Give us a tour around! What’s their garden like? Their bedroom? Kitchen? Where is it and how many people live there?

It would probably be a small house, something very simple and very normal. She might not mind all the fanciness, but Armena definitely prefers the simple things.

🔪 Has your OC ever killed someone? Ever had to defend themselves against violence? How did this make them feel? Or, alternatively, has your OC ever attacked someone? Seen someone die?

While Armena never killed anyone directly, she did order many assassinations, so I guess one could say she was indirectly responsible of many deaths.

💎 Does your OC collect anything? Is there a reason? When did they start and is it beginning to turn into a little bit of a hoarding issue? What do they do with their collection?

She doesn’t really collect anything since she can literally have anything she wants. It feels just… pointless.

📚 If your OC was given some kind of forbiddon knowledge, what would they do with it? Would they tell anyone? Use it for evil or good? How would it change their outlook on life, if at all?

As a member of royalty, but also as one of the most powerful people in the word, Armena already knows some stuff that his forbidden to most. In the case she was, however, to learn something no one else could have ever known, she would keep it a secret and pretend nothing was different on the outside, yet keep it in consideration for every single new decision she’s going to make. Depending the dangerousness of the secret, she might tell her husband or not, but no one else if she can avoid it.

🌗 Early mornings or late nights? What do they spend their time doing during these hours?

Early mornings and late nights. Since Armena wants to get as much time as she can get with her family, while at the same time do her Queen job properly, she’s often going to start working around 6 am on “late days” and end up around 1 am. By splitting her work either in the morning or in the night, she manages to usually get her afternoons free to spend with the kids.

👑 If your OC was made royal (or is royal) how would they use their power? Are they a good leader or bad? Do their subjects like them or is it ‘off with their head’? Do they enjoy being royal?

Armena is a pretty good leader, one of the best, even, though she sometimes gets a little hated by other leaders because she’s doing everything she can to ensure the best for her people, which sometimes means figuratively middle-fingering some outside powers that wish she’d do what they want more often. Overall, she doesn’t enjoy being royal per say, but she doesn’t mind it either. She’s conscious of her privileges and does her best to not let them affect her judgement.

💕 How is your OC like with physical affection? What are their boundries? Do they enjoy being touched or is that a no-go? Is there any reason behind this?

She enjoys physical contacts and hugs from a very particular set of people that is mostly composed of her family. Considering her tendency to adopt a lot of orphans, one could think it’s a lot of people, but it’s not that much? If you’re not family or very close friend, it’s simply a no.

☁️ What’s something your OC wishes they could forget? Why is this? Or, what is something that your OC has forgotten? (or do both!)

She’s lived for a very long time and there’s a lot of things she wished she could forget; most of them are wars she witnessed, but what scarred her the most was the first time she saw an successful assassination she had ordered. It was… not pretty. Whenever she has a nightmare to this day, it’s most likely of that.

👀 Describe your OC through the eyes of another person! (bonus + specify who)

“You know that archetype of badass, cold hearted, ruthless queen that takes no shit? Yeah, that’s what she wants you to think of her, but deep down, Armie cries about puppies walking for the first time. She’s a real sweetie in denial.” -Her husband that will need a name soon probably.

❓ A random fact or short drabble! Or make up your own question to ask the OC!

If she could have chosen her job, Armena would have either ended up working in a daycare or as a kindergarten teacher.

[ckret2]

Okay time for some Actual Thoughts about Detective Pikachu, particularly the villain. Spoilers below.

In This Essay I Will compare and contrast the game’s villain to the movie’s villain, explain why I like one better than the other, and then talk about something that bugs me about both and tbh about a lot of action movie villains.

I liked the movie villain more than the game villain, for one specific reason: I thought the game villain’s motive was dumb for the game. Not dumb overall for a villain to have, but dumb for him.

Quick overview of the game villain: this hotshot rising star in a news station has been secretly using a chemical to make Pokémon go berserk; and every time they do, he just so happens to have a couple of his reporters on the scene, to cover the carnage. A couple years ago the station was sinking fast. Since he’s joined—and since they’ve started airing broadcasts about Pokémon going berserk—the once-struggling station has flourished. Now, they’ve got an exclusive deal to cover a huge Pokémon parade... where the station exec is planning to unleash a monstrous supply of this chemical, sending every Pokémon in the parade on a rampage.

Why, you ask, is he doing this? If you said, “Because he’s a corrupt, sleazy exec, who’s manufacturing emergencies and sending people to record them to boost the station’s reputation and make himself rich,” you’d be wrong!!

No, he wants to take over the world. Sssomehow.

It’s over-the-top, it’s out of nowhere, and it doesn’t line up with what he’s actually been doing the whole game. He hasn’t even taken over the station yet, and we’re supposed to believe he wants to take over the world?

And it’s unsatisfying. The fun from taking a villain down comes from stopping them just before (or even just after) the culmination of their master plan. We stop the exec just before he ruins the parade and films it all. If his goal were to make his station rich and famous by filming disasters, then we would have narrowly thwarted his master plan! Except, it turns out, it wasn’t his master plan after all. It was step 1 in his 20-step master plan. We thwarted his ambitions before they could even get started. He was nowhere near taking over the world when we stopped him. Where’s the satisfaction in that?

In contrast, take the movie’s villain: the father of the aforementioned news station exec. (The station exec who gets framed in the movie, to great effect. I’d suspected the dad was lying, but I’d thought he and his kid were in cahoots—I did not catch on to the sunglasses. brilliant.) He’s a rich idealist futurist, kinda Tesla-esque in a way—he struts about boasting about grand ideas for the future and throws a lot of money at making them happen. The city that practically the whole movie takes place in is in fact his own pet project. It’s so much his personal project that visitors to the city are treated to a video of him talking about how and why he made the city: it was a response to his concerns about his own ailing health, and it was a realization of his dreams to bring humans and Pokémon together in a way they never had before.

When we find out his master villainous plot, what is it? It’s both a response to his concerns about his own ailing health, and a realization of his dreams to bring humans and Pokémon together in a way they never had before.

The motivations line up perfectly. Everything we need to understand what he’s doing—from the method itself to the breathtaking scale of it—is presented in the little promo video where he talks about his utopian city. It doesn’t show you what’s going to happen, but once you know, you can see how it was coming. Ryme City is step 1 in his master plan. Fusing humans and Pokémon is step 20.

The method also perfectly fits his character. The game villain? Not so much. A TV exec should have a TV exec’s evil plan, not a burgeoning dictator’s. What kind of evil plan would an unhinged idealistic billionaire have? Something unhinged, and idealistic, and expensive.

In real life, you might see the absurdly rich postulate that the solution to starvation and disease is spreading to Mars rather than paying their own lowest-level employees enough to eat and go to the doctor, or that the solution to traffic is self-driving cars instead of having less cars on the road to slow each other down. The movie’s villain sees a problem—the frailty of humanity, the sickness and weakness that comes with disease and aging—and, instead of solving the problem in a mundane but realistic way, like pouring more funding into health care, he reaches for a lofty, flashy, futuristic ~Solution To Everything~: human/Pokémon gene therapy—no!—human/Pokémon FUSION!! And, just like similar flashy futurist plans from the absurdly rich in real life: it’s not a solution that anybody asked for; it either solves a problem too far outside normal people’s real lives for them to care about or else doesn’t do a thing to solve any real problem at all; and the rich dude with the funds to make it happen is going to pursue making it happen anyway, whether or not anybody wants it.

(To be fair to irl useless billionaires, at least self-driving cars and spaceships don’t actively directly ruin anybody’s lives like fusing humans with animals would, and in fact are actually cool if you don’t think about all the things not being done with that money; but then, irl useless billionaires aren’t over-the-top movie supervillains, so the point is moot.)

His motive makes perfect sense, character-wise. The scope and shape of his plan fit perfectly within the type of character he’s been presented as. Unlike the game villain, the movie villain is thematically cohesive. He’s MUCH better put together.

... Except, the thing is, his evil plan is “make a bunch of Pokémon at a parade go berserk with Mewtwo’s genes, put Mewtwo itself in a berserk state with its own genes, and use this berserk state to control Mewtwo and then use Mewtwo to dissolve humans and put them into Pokémon bodies to pilot, which is, apparently, a power that Mewtwo, just, has.”

And it’s all kind of... silly.

In contrast? The grand plan of the game villain—not taking over the world, but what he was actually doing—was “make a bunch of Pokémon at a parade go berserk with Mewtwo’s genes... and put the incident on the news. Eventually build up to conquering the world from there.”

It kind of makes a lot more sense. Like, it’s a very workable plan. It doesn’t rely on giving Mewtwo supernatural powers that go beyond the scope of the drugs-and-gene-splicing we’ve seen in the movie up until now—venturing out of sci-fi into what looks like straight up magic. Sure, the plan fits the villain, but it’s... a bit too much.

That’s the thing that bugs me the most about both villains—and, quite honestly, a lot of other villains in a lot of other movies. By all means, villains SHOULD be over the top, they SHOULD pose a big threat, and they SHOULD be at their most dangerous during the climax; but if the rest of the movie has been about elevating the threat from 1 to 20, and then at the end instead of more naturally jacking the threat up to 40 or even to 100 it blasts off to 1000, it’s... it’s a bit disproportionate, you know? “This villain has been all about drugging Pokémon and filming them, because that’s what he does, he’s a TV exec... but now he wants to take over the world, that’s a bit much, isn’t it?” “This villain is a big, powerful billionaire who’s channeled normal fear of aging/death and love of human/Pokémon companionship into an overzealous Pokémon gene therapy project with a dangerous drug byproduct... but now he’s magically sticking humans in Pokémon bodies, that’s a bit much, isn’t it?”

It’s not just a problem with Detective Pikachu. The first time I can recall going “isn’t that a bit much?” at a movie was with Iron Man: the main villain, for most of the movie, was a greedy sleazy corporate exec who was making immoral business deals behind the hero’s back and alternating between trying to get the hero killed and trying to get him kicked out of his own company so that greedy exec could take over it. Buuut at the end of the movie, after very carefully keeping his hands clean and keeping himself coldly distant from all the violence he’s helping perpetuate, suddenly he’s ready to climb into a double-sized Iron Man suit and brawl with the hero directly? Instead of, as he did the rest of the movie, paying some mercenary to fight his fight for him? Isn’t that a bit much?

I get that the urge is there to go for the biggest possible threat they can squeeze out of their villain. But there are a lot of movies where it feels like, in the final act, the threat is disproportionately large, or fantastical, or out of character for the villain they’ve written and the story they’ve told. The biggest possible threat feels unwieldy if it’s bigger than the story that they’re telling.

I wouldn’t mind a few less explosions and slow-motion punches and previously hands-off villains who are suddenly inexplicably fighting their own battles, if in return it meant less action movies and the like where it feels like in the last twenty minutes the villain and/or villainous plan have suddenly been replaced by something a couple orders of magnitude bigger and grander than what we’d been following up until then.

[recentanimenews]

10 Live Action Adaptations of Anime You Might Not Know About

Anime is no stranger to the formula of live-action adaptations. Filmmakers and showrunners in both Hollywood and Japan have been bringing classic and popular anime stories to life for years. Whether you love them or hate them, they’ve been around for longer than you might think, and will continue to make their way to the big and small screens.

But outside of the recent hit Detective Pikachu movie, a Ghost in the Shell adaptation that received tepid critical and fan response, and the upcoming continuation of the Rurouni Kenshin films, there are plenty of adaptations of anime that you might not know about. These include plenty of Japan-only TV series, movie franchises, and even some dramas that you can view on Crunchyroll right now! Without further ado, here's a list of live-action anime adaptations that you may be surprised actually exist!

Mob Psycho 100 (2018 Netflix series)

The wildly-popular psychic action anime has a 12-episode series on Netflix. It tells the same story of Shigeo “Mob” Kageyama, a young boy trying to live a normal life and learning to understand his emotions while keeping his immense psychic powers at bay.

Though the show takes a few narrative liberties with some characters, including involving Ritsu in Mob’s fights with Dimple and Teru, the drama remains largely faithful to the entire first season of the anime. It even features some flashy effects-driven fights that benefited from impressive stunt coordination rather than traditional animation.

One of the more notable aspects of this adaptation is its cast, which is comprised largely of alumni actors in tokusatsu franchises such as Kamen Rider, Super Sentai, and Ultraman. The eponymous Mob is played by Tatsuomi Hamada, who played the titular main protagonist in 2017’s Ultraman Geed, which you can watch on Crunchyroll now! His self-proclaimed master and conman Reigen Arataka is played by Kazuki Namioka, who portrayed a villain in Kamen Rider Gaim in 2013. Kasumi Yamaya, who played president of the school Telepathy Club Tome Kurata, had a major role as Kasumi Momochi/MomoNinger, the pink ranger in 2015’s Shuriken Sentai Ninninger. Anyone who dabbles in tokusatsu may want to take a second look at most anyone else in the cast, because chances are you’ve seen them using fancy toys to transform into superheroes before!

Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure: Diamond is Unbreakable (2017 film)

  Right as part 4 of Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure was airing, Warner Bros. and Toho announced a live-action adaptation of Josuke Higashikata’s adventures. The first movie was released in August in Japan and was planned to kick off a series of films that would adapt the whole story. The film told a largely abridged version of the original story, either splicing together various plot points or removing them altogether for the sake of brevity. These included placing Koichi’s Stand awakening during one of the original arc’s earliest fights with Keicho Nijimura, and Sheer Heart Attack replacing Red Hot Chili Pepper’s debut. The film was highly anticipated, but mixed reception left the future of the series in question.

The film stars award-winning Japanese actor Kento Yamazaki as Josuke, who coincidentally stars in several live-action adaptations. But more on him later. The true hero of the film might be Yusuke Iseya, who portrayed Jotaro Kujo in the film. A short-lived meme that emerged during the film's promotion revolved around just how Iseya achieved Jotaro’s signature hat-hair blend. The meme, which showed actor Asano Tadenobu with a large shaven bald spot in the middle of his head, suggested that Iseya might have had to do the same for his own hair in order for the hat to form around it. If true, that would make him one dedicated actor!

Death Note (2015 drama series)

You might have heard of the series of live-action movies in Japan from 2006 that adapted the Death Note story. Perhaps you also caught wind the Netflix adaptation, a movie that sparked casting controversy and received some negative critical response. But did you also know about the 11-episode drama in 2015 that you can stream on Crunchyroll right now! This show tells a shortened version of Light Yagami’s story, but still adheres to his goal of using a magic death-dealing notebook to save the world.

In trying to condense a 37-episode story into 11 hour-long segments, the drama trimmed the narrative and made several interesting changes. This included introducing Near as a detective and L’s protege in the very first episode, making Mello into Near’s violent alternate personality, and a drastically different ending for L. A few changes were made with other pre-existing characters as well, such as making Misa Amane a pop idol instead of a model.

Already a noteworthy actor in his own right, the aforementioned Kento Yamazaki received praise for his role as fan favorite L. In 2016, Kento Yamazaki won the 39th Japan Academy Prize for Newcomer of the Year for his role in Orange, a film adaptation of a slice-of-life romance manga. Shortly after his work on Death Note, he coincidentally found roles in other live-action adaptations. Aside from JoJo's Bizarre Adventure and Death Note, these include a lead role in Saiki K., a starring role in a 2020 adaptation in Wotakoi, and a certain piano-playing high school student who we’ll talk about in just a bit.

His co-star and lead actor Masataka Kubota, who played Light Yagami, has also seen work in live-action versions of Rurouni Kenshin, Tokyo Ghoul, and Gintama to name a few. He also won Best Actor in the 86th The Television Drama Academy Awards for his role as Light.

Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon (2003 series)

As a worldwide cultural phenomenon, Sailor Moon has seen three movies, an anime remake in Sailor Moon Crystal, re-releases, stage musicals, and yes, a tokusatsu series in 2003. While it remains faithful to the overall plot of Usagi Tsukino and her friends transforming into Sailor Soldiers to fight evil, this 49+ episode show featured several plot points that are distinct from both the manga and the original anime, becoming its own unique story in the long run.

While originally, Minako Aino is a regular girl who dreams of fame, the live-action Minako balances an idol life, a school life, and being a Sailor Soldier. As Sailor Venus and a veteran Soldier, she’s notably harsher on her fellow Soldiers as she tries to make them understand their duties. Sailor Moon also has an exclusive super form called “Princess Sailor Moon,” a powerful yet dangerous form that combines Usagi and her past self.

The show also introduced two completely new characters in the form of Dark Mercury and Sailor Luna. A short arc in the show saw Ami Mizuno being brainwashed by the Dark Kingdom and turning against her friends. This caused her to take on a new, more evil Sailor Soldier form. Sailor Luna, on the other hand, came about after Luna gained the ability to become a young human girl (albeit with her feline nature still intact). Designed by Naoko Takeuchi herself, Luna replaces Chibusa/Sailor Chibi Moon in the story, as she starts living with Usagi as a human and transforms into a childish Sailor Soldier. Her design takes cues from both Sailor Chibi Moon and Luna's original human form as depicted in the manga and the Sailor Moon S film.

  An amusing footnote of the series was Luna and Artemis often being portrayed with cute plushies during various scenes!

Your Lie in April (2016 film)

Kento Yamazaki continued his trend of working on live-action adaptations by portraying Kosei Arima in an adaptation of everyone’s favorite tear-inducing piano drama. This rendition came hot off the heels of the successful anime that ended in March of 2015.

    Though certain characters were omitted from the adaptation, the movie was able to tell the same dramatic and emotional story in its entirety. The film placed at number 3 in the Japanese box office during its initial release, trailing after the Japanese release of Warner Bros. Suicide Squad and the infamous Makoto Shinkai film, Your Name, which maintained its number 1 spot in its third week in theaters. The theme song for the film, “Last Scene,” was performed by Ikimono-gakari, who are known for their work on Bleach and Naruto: Shippuden theme songs.

Tonari no Seki-kun (2015 mini-series)

A hilarious short form anime in its own right, Tonari no Seki-kun saw an eight-episode mini-series. It stayed true to its original story of a schoolgirl sitting next to a classmate who does all manner of ridiculous activities on his desk except pay attention in class. The series stars the actress formerly known as Fumika Shimizu, who previously appeared in 2011's Kamen Rider Fourze and in the first Tokyo Ghoul live action film.

The short segments aired alongside another comedy called Rumi-chan no Jishou. Coincidentally enough, both shows starred girls named “Rumi” as main protagonists.

Ouran High School Host Club (2011 drama)

The popular romantic comedy about an androgynous young girl who gets caught up with the handsome and flamboyant boys who run her school’s host club was adapted into a live action series in 2011. The adaptation's popularity earned it a feature length movie in 2012 that took place after its broadcast, as well as a spin-off miniseries.

This 11-episode drama adapts a number of the anime episodes faithfully, with each character remaining true to the source material. But the show actually goes a step further to include plotlines from the original manga. Characters like Ayame Jounouchi are featured more prominently than they were in the anime, and the show’s final episode more closely adheres to the manga than the anime did. The 2012 film also uses a manga-only arc as its plot, while also taking creative liberties with its characters. If you wanted to check out the show for yourself, you'd be in for a fresh Ouran experience!

Much like the live-action Mob Psycho 100, this adaptation also included a considerable number of Kamen Rider and Super Sentai alumni actors in its main cast, as well as one who would move on to Sentai. Tamaki Suou was portrayed by Yusuke Yamamoto, who was previously known for his role in 2006’s Kamen Rider Kabuto as Tsurugi Kamishiro/Kamen Rider Sasword. Yamamoto also had a role in a 2012 live-action version of Great Teacher Onizuka.

The Hitachiin siblings were played by twin brothers Shinpei and Manpei Takagi, the latter of whom played Retsu Fukami/GekiBlue in 2007’s Juken Sentai Gekiranger. Shinpei Takagi had brief roles in Super Sentai history as well! The bunny-hugging Mitsukuni “Honey” Haninozuka and the gothic, photophobic Umehito Nekozawa were played by Yudai Chiba and Ryo Ryusei respectively, each of whom portrayed red Sentai rangers in their careers. 

Future Diary: Another World (2012 drama series)

This version of the violent survival game anime is a vastly different take on the source material. While it borrows a few details from the original story, there are notable alterations throughout. Seven people (as opposed to 12) are given cellphones that predict the future and are thrust into a dangerous game where the last person standing can create a new future.

The protagonists of the original series have counterparts in the live-action characters, but with different names and personalities. A major example includes Yuno Furusaki, the counterpart to yandere mascot Yuno Gasai. Furusaki retains her stalker-like affection for protagonist Arata Hoshino and immediately resolves to defeat anyone who would do him harm, but she does not initially display any of the hyper-violent tendencies that her anime portrayal is infamous for. As its own original narrative, it's certainly worth checking out to see how unique it is from its predecessor.

Gegege no Kitaro (2007-2008 film series)

Gegege no Kitaro has seen several anime revivals and films over more than 50 years, including its most recent weekly-airing adaptation. It should come as no surprise that two live-action films came about in 2007 and 2008 (not to mention a live action drama in 1985). Portrayed as a young man rather than a boy as he is traditionally shown, Kitaro works with his yokai friends to defend the human world from evil yokai that would do them harm. Using this “monster-of-the-week” format, the live action movies were able to tell noticeably original stories, albeit borrowing from some of the franchise’s classic arcs. The first film reportedly earned more than 23.4 billion yen throughout its theatrical run.

Kitaro was portayed by Eiji Wentz, an American Japanese singer who also performed the theme song for the first film. Kitaro's father, Daddy Eyeball, was voiced by Isamu Tanonaka, who had voiced the character since 1968. He is known for voicing the character in almost every Gegege no Kitaro adaptation throughout his lifetime!

Black Butler (2014 film)

The demonic butler, Sebastian Michaelis, made a silver screen debut in 2014 with a live-action cast. He was portrayed Hiro Mizushima, who also co-wrote and co-produced the film. He is best known for his starring role in 2006’s Kamen Rider Kabuto. He also starred in the live action adaptations of Gokusen and Beck.

The overall plot remains the same, wherein a young child’s soul is bound to a demon in exchange for its eternal servitude, but it diverges from the source material in multiple respects. The film is set in a modern nation in the year 2020, a far cry from the anime’s original setting in Victorian-era London. Main protagonist Ciel Phantomhive became Shiori Genpou, a female descendant of the Phantomhives who disguises herself as a male descendant to retain her stake in the Phantomhive legacy. Characters like Angelina Dalles and Mey-Rin see Japanese name changes in their live-action counterparts. The film debuted at number 3 in the Japanese box office during its weekend premiere.

Live action adaptations are something of an institution in the anime world. The adaptations listed here are far from the only ones out there, and they'll likely be around for years to come. With adaptations Cowboy Bebop and Your Name on the horizon, it'll be interesting to see how they'll stack up to the original works!

Have you checked out any of the live action anime adaptations listed here? What anime would you want to see receive the live-action treatment? Let us know in the comments!

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Carlos is a freelance features writer for Crunchyroll. Their favorite genres range from magical girls to over-the-top robot action, yet their favorite characters are always the obscure ones. Check out some of their satirical work on The Hard Times.

Do you love writing? Do you love anime? If you have an idea for a features story, pitch it to Crunchyroll Features

By: news+feed@crunchyroll.com

[thediegeticworld]

Local Television (KCBS) in the Reagan Era

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UQ1flG5a6vs

KCBS-TV is a Southern California television station owned by CBS Corporation.  In 1931, the television station first aired as W6XAO, under Don Lee Broadcasting. Within six years, the station was on the air six nights per week, which included broadcasts of live talent and movies.  W6XAO obtained a commercial license in 1948, but changed its call letters to KTSL.  Following the death of Thomas S. Lee, son of Don Lee, the company’s assets were sold to General Tire and Rubber, who decided to sell KTSL to CBS.  By 1951, all of CBS’s programs were broadcasted through KTSL. Since CBS wanted its television station to correlate with its radio station, KTSL’s call letters were changed to KNXT.  Years later, KNXT became known for its news programs, which earned it the highest ratings for newscasts in Los Angeles.  On April 2, 1984, the station changed its call letters to KCBS-TV.  

During the 1980s and 1990s, KCBS produced various local television programs and newscasts, including, CBS Evening News, The Howie Mandel Show, and Woman 2 Woman. The station also broadcasted The Young and the Restless, Jeopardy!, and Wheel of Fortune during the 1980s. In 1982, KCBS produced the series, 2 on the Town, a local news and entertainment program.  According to an article published on LA Times, KCBS received 56 nominations with 16 nominations for 2 on the Town in 1988.  The article stated that the show was out of production and would not be on the air past the summer (of 1988).  2 on the Town received more Los Angeles Emmy Award nominations than any other series (Weinstein, 1988). The series was hosted by Melody Rogers and Bob Chandler. Melody Rogers was a part of 2 on the Town for eight years and won four Emmy Award’s for the show.  Bob Chandler hosted the show for three years.  Prior to his KCBS career, he worked as a color analyst for NFL on NBC. In 1987, an episode of 2 on the Town included a Swimwear Illustrated Magazine special titled, “Bikini II: The Saga Continues,” which features women modeling swimwear and a bikini contest hosted by Bob Chandler.

Influenced by the ideologies of the Reagan Era, the episode reflects postmodernism and American consumerism during the 1980s. The style and form of “Bikini II: The Saga Continues” resemble a long advertisement for Swimwear Illustrated Magazine, while the excessive editing and music resemble a variation of music video forms. The episode lacks a narrative, which suggests that style is more important than a narrative.  The schizophrenic images, fast editing, and commercialization presented in the episode correlate with the theories of postmodernism and consumerism of the Reagan Era. The opening title sequence of 2 on the Town was specifically changed to adapt to the episode, “Bikini II: The Saga Continues”.  The altered opening title sequence features a model wearing a bikini, laying down in front of a fire place and says to “press record now”.  Immediately after, the shot is cut to an automated voice saying “I got a brand new tape.”  The opening title sequence consists of half-naked models running in slow motion and the two hosts, Bob and Melody, individually shot in between two models.  At the end of the sequence, the television breaks because it could not handle all of the fast changing images of the models. According to Jameson, postmodernism transforms reality into images by communicating through a schizophrenic form.  Past, present, and future are incoherent through the postmodern schizophrenia of images (Postmodernism, or The Cultural Logic of Late Capitalism, 72). The episode relates to Jameson’s theories because throughout the episode, the audience is unable to unify the relationship of time and space. According to John Caldwell, televisuality was related to America’s economy in the 1980s (Televisuality, 10).  The excessive style was due to competitiveness as more networks were entering the market.  At this time, networks had to compete with MTV, one of the highest rated networks.  KCBS may have changed its image in order to increase market share.  KCBS’s logo for the episode was also altered and consisted of flashy, neon-colored letters, which was similar to MTV’s logo.

The hosts claim that they are hiding away in a cabin until the press in Los Angeles calm down from the bikini show that Bob hosted.  In the scenes with the hosts, Bob and Melody are watching the special as the viewers are watching the episode. Bob whines, “You give them what they want and they turn around and they call you a skin-monger, a sexist, you know one of those S words.” Bob is worried that people will be upset at him for hosting a bikini contest, but it is implied in a light-hearted matter, attempting to justify his intentions and guilt.  When the hosts receive a phone call, Bob fears criticism and tells Melody to tell whoever is on the phone that he is busy making a “children’s show”.  This dialogue implies that Bob Chandler is apprehensive to pushing away from the conservative ideologies of the 1980s. The show continues to cut back and forth between scenes of the hosts, the models, and people being interviewed. 

During the 1980s, political and cultural changes influenced ideologies communicated through television.  Multiple instances within the episode reflect and contradict Reaganism.  The American consumer culture influenced by Reagan is reflected within the episode.  Swimwear Illustrated Magazine differs from other swimwear magazines because people can purchase the swimsuits advertised in the issues.  The overall purpose of the episode is to promote consumerism by advertising the magazine and swimsuits to the viewers. The episode promotes the magazine, swimwear, and the female image. By promoting the magazine and swimwear, Swimsuit Illustrated Magazine is able to increase its sales, while boosting the networks ratings.  The format of the episode is similar to MTV’s format, which incorporates various images and music to attract a younger audience.  

The hosts receive a phone call from the head of CBS and explains how CBS’s stocks are rising due to the popularity of the swimsuit episode.  The scene then changes and shows men who are eager to purchase stock.  Another example that reflects consumerism is the 2 on the Town pictorial calendar that features models in swimsuits.  The sequence in the episode shows a clip for each month, which consists of models wearing bikinis with props and at locations that are consistent with the month. The host narrating the episode states that calendars like these turn into one thing: money.  Half way through the episode, Bob starts to contemplate if he should go back to Los Angeles and start a new, “clean” family show or a travel show in Nebraska.  Immediately, the devil appears on his shoulder and states “girls like that spell big ratings” as he points to two bikini models. Then an angel appears on his other shoulder and says “You know you’ll burn for this. Cheap thrills are the easiest road to your demographics hearts.”

The episode contradicts Reaganism by advocating women’s sexual liberation.  Throughout the episode, the female host, Melody Rogers, justifies why Bob Chandler hosted a swimsuit competition. For example, after close-up shots of the women, a 15 second background on the company, and a quick interview with a model, the scene cuts back to the hosts.  Melody Rogers tells Bob Chandler, “Now who’s gonna hate you for that?”.  The dialogue between the hosts encourages women to support the episode and magazine through female empowerment.  Even the narrator of the episode has to justify why he is one of the 250,000 magazine subscribers.  His explanation is that he is an investigative journalist and it is his “job”.

“Bikini II: The Saga Continues” was aired prior to the third-wave of feminism. The third-wave of feminism in the early 1990s confronted issues regarding sexuality.  Reaganism shifted back from social changes that were established during the 1960s and 1970s.  This ideology shifts away from conservatism during the Reagan Era when straight-males were “hostile” towards women’s liberation.  The episode also pushes away from conservatism by not presenting family values, which is usually seen in American television during this time. Although 2 on the Town is a news and entertainment program that is targeted to a broad demographic, the swimwear special is targeted more towards a hyper-masculine audience.  Swimwear Illustrated Magazine is a magazine intended for women, although, it is promoted towards men.  The episode and magazine are contradicting because they both are targeted towards men, but encourage women to buy the products.  In the episode, a man who works for Swimwear Illustrated Magazine is being interviewed and states that women are interested in the magazine because it “gives them inspiration to get in shape, be attractive, and offers them ideas of sexy suits”.  

By the end of the episode, Bob and Melody leave the cabin to go back to Los Angeles.  Bob sarcastically says he feels “ashamed” for hosting a bikini contest and he will never let Melody talk him into a show like that ever again.  The overall purpose of this special was to attract a larger audience and promote Swimwear Illustrated Magazine.  Although the content within the episode leans more towards liberalism, Bob Chandler still has to justify the episode, which suggests the networks concern of how viewers may interpret the text. The criteria of the episode meets the theories of postmodernism.  The relationship between cultural and political ideologies and the episode highly reflect postmodernism and consumerism of the 1980s.  

http://articles.latimes.com/1988-04-22/entertainment/ca-1865_1_lead-emmy-derby Weinstein, Steve. "KCBS, '2 on the Town' Lead Emmy Derby." Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles Times, 22 Apr. 1988. Web. 01 Mar. 2017.

http://www.wikiwand.com/en/Bob_Chandler "Bob Chandler." Wikiwand. N.p., n.d. Web. 05 Mar. 2017.

http://www.nourmand.com/agents/15706-Melody-Rogers-Kelley "Melody Rogers-Kelley." Nourmand & Associates. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Mar. 2017.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KCBS-TV "KCBS-TV." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 03 Mar. 2017. Web. 06 Mar. 2017.

Caldwell, James Thornton. Televisuality: Style, Crisis, and Authority in American Television . N.p.: n.p., 1995. Print.

Jameson, Fredric. Postmodernism, or The Cultural Logic of Late Capitalism. N.p.: n.p., 1991. Print.