The Fantastical World of Coiling Dragon (Chinese Novel Review)

Spectacular magical beasts. Immortal martial artists. Magical treasures beyond your wildest dreams.

Enter the spectacular world of Coiling Dragon filled with endless possibilities. Where 10,000km-sized sacred beasts lurk deep within the hidden depths of the lands. Where a single punch from a seemingly haggard old man could rip a hole through the fabric of space itself. Where mysterious and extraordinary treasures lay hidden all across the world for anyone lucky enough to find them, containing vast riches and inexplicable powers.

You get the point.

There’s a lot that happens in this exciting world, and if you’re a huge fan of adventure fantasies (as am I) and have nothing on your watchlist right now, why not enter the world for yourself. Have a first-hand look at the fantastic world of Chinese Martial Arts Fantasy novels where, anything goes really.


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Japan Sinks 2020 — A Disaster Series Destroyed by its Disastrous Writing

Haven’t we all ever wondered what it would be like if the world we once knew completely and suddenly falls apart? As if on a different planet, a place where we are no longer bound by the same rules and constrictions of modern day society? Where the true nature of humanity is tested in a world that is brought back to its most primeval form? Such is the world that Japan Sinks 2020 tried to create, albeit in poor fashion.

Japan Sinks 2020, at a glance, comes off as a story that intends to portray the powerful devastation nature is capable of through the post-apocalyptic survival genre. Where the catastrophic extent of Mother Nature is portrayed in full, and the struggles and the threnody of the people who suffer in its wake are brought to light. Much like its predecessor, Tokyo Magnitude 8.0, Japan Sinks 2020 gave me the initial impression of a similar woeful story about how the world as you know it, out of nowhere, could instantly and abruptly be turned into chaos and ruins. How then would people continue living when their entire world has been turned upside-down?

Unfortunately, Japan Sinks 2020 was nothing what I had hoped it to be, nor was it nearly as good as its predecessor. Perhaps I expected too much, but by the end of it all, I was left feeling disappointed at what the anime had turned out to be, and how much better it could have been.

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Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun (Anime Review) – One of the best light-hearted comedies

When it comes to the genre of Comedy, a sucker for laughter like me could simply never get enough. My endless pursuit of comedic anime has led me to binge countless anime that has had me grinning till my cheeks hurt. So of course, I would’ve already stumbled upon this anime title.

Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-Kun is one of the most common titles to appear when searching for “funny anime”, and that’s a huge compliment considering how one of the other mainstays of the “funny anime” search results is the unrivalled epic comedy Gintama. Any version of myself from the past 6 years would never have been able to understand why an anime like this kept appearing in lists of funny anime. I mean, how could I? I hadn’t even been able to get through the first few minutes of the very first episode.

It wasn’t until recently that I was finally convinced to sit through an entire episode of the show. Much to my amazement, the anime was everything I would’ve wanted and more.


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A Good Doctor Review (KDrama) – Understanding and Respecting Differences

So after many weeks of struggling to watch anime, I stumbled upon this gem of a show after finding out that the English Series version of “The Good Doctor” was actually inspired by the Korean Drama version titled “Good Doctor“. I decided to give it a try, and ended up finishing all 20 episodes in slightly over 3 days.

Was it good? Definitely. How good? Well, read on!


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NEW Death Note: Special One-Shot (Spoiler Free Review)

A few days ago, Shonen Jump released a free and accessible “one-shot” manga special of Death Note! Starring Ryuk and his new owner, the story takes place 10 years after Kira (Light Yagami) ended his reign.

As a huge fan of the genre and franchise myself, of course I wasted no time the moment I found out about it. If you want to check it out yourself (which you should), click on that link in the tweet. It’s nothing too spectacular, but if you loved Death Note, then you won’t want to miss this.


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Just A Brief Review of Naruto

Ask any anime fan if they’ve heard of Naruto and 9 times out of 10 they’ll reply you with a yes. The remaining 10 percent that didn’t probably just didn’t feel like talking to you. No hard feelings.

For over 20 years, Naruto has actively been involved in the anime scene, with its manga first being published in 1999 and an ongoing sequel today. It isn’t easy for a show to still be relevant such a long period of time after its inception. So what exactly is so special about this work? 12 years later, I’m finally ready to write about it.

In case you were wondering, this review doesn’t include Shippuden. I’ve still got 500 episodes to go on that one.


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Dr. Stone (Anime Review) – Ten Billion Percent Concentrated Power of Will

There’s always an idiot who’ll try anything, and the shiny monkeys will inevitably create a technological civilisation.

Senku

That’s right, we’re the shiny apes (monkeys have tails). Apes that decided for ourselves that we wanted more. Apes that had the curiosity to think on our own and the will to discover the unknown. Curiosity may have killed the cat, but it damn sure didn’t kill us. Well not all of us, at least not yet anyway.

And that’s what we see in Dr. Stone. A civilisation reduced to nothingness, putting mankind millions of years back to the stone ages. But as long as there are the curious, as long as there are the thinkers and as long as there are the strong willed, anything can happen. Thus ensuing the exciting adventure in Dr. Stone and a journey to rebuild and recover what humanity had once possessed.


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Sword Art Online: Alicization – War of Underworld (Anime Review)

Sword Art Online (SAO) has always been the most powerful fantasy RPG show to have moved me, with Hai to Gensou no Grimgar falling short despite it being in a class of its own. Needless to say my love and obsession for the series and its genre runs deep. And yet, I’ve never taken the time to write about it even though I’ve always felt strongly toward the show. But the reason for this is pretty straightforward — my feelings toward SAO are much stronger than what I believe my writing is capable of. Therefore, deciding to write a review of Sword Art Online: Alicization – War of Underworld was not an easy decision, but I definitely do not plan to slack off in writing a review of one of my favourite series.


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Shirobako – Anime Production Is Not Easy

  • Title: Shirobako (White Box)
  • Genres: Comedy, Drama
  • Studios: P.A Works
  • Episodes: 12 – 24min (Completed)
  • Date: 9 October 2014 — 26 March 2015
  • Source: Original

Summary

It all started in Kaminoyama High School, when five best friends—Aoi Miyamori, Ema Yasuhara, Midori Imai, Shizuka Sakaki, and Misa Toudou—discovered their collective love for all things anime and formed the animation club. After making their first amateur anime together and showcasing it at the culture festival, the group vow to pursue careers in the industry, aiming to one day work together and create their own mainstream show.

Two and a half years later, Aoi and Ema have managed to land jobs at the illustrious Musashino Animation production company. The others, however, are finding it difficult to get their dream jobs. Shizuka is feeling the weight of not being recognized as a capable voice actor, Misa has a secure yet unsatisfying career designing 3D models for a car company, and Midori is a university student intent on pursuing her dream as a story writer. These five girls will learn that the path to success is one with many diversions, but dreams can still be achieved through perseverance and a touch of eccentric creativity.


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Kemono Michi: Rise Up – A Cute Show If You’re IN LOVE With Animals (Not Really)

  • Title: Kemono Michi: Rise Up / Hataage! Kemono Michi
  • Genres: Comedy, Fantasy, Shounen
  • Studios: ENGI
  • Episodes: 12 – 24min (Completed)
  • Date: 2 October 2019 — 18 December 2019
  • Source: Manga

Summary

Professional wrestler Genzou Shibata sports the body of a mountain, but beneath his hulking appearance is a man with an extreme affection for animals. Facing off his opponents in the ring as the legendary “Animal Mask,” Genzou wins the hearts of crowds everywhere with his iconic tiger persona.

During the bout for the title of World Champion against his greatest rival, the Macadamian Ogre, Genzou is suddenly summoned to a fantasy world by a princess. With her kingdom being threatened by a monster infestation, she pleads the wrestler for assistance—to which he answers by knocking her out with a German suplex! Escaping the castle and finding himself stranded in a mysterious land, Genzou decides to begin his career as a beast hunter to capture and befriend creatures far and wide. Joined by the wolf-girl Shigure, the dragon-girl Hanako, and the vampire Carmilla Vanstein, the professional wrestler pursues all kinds of dangerous requests for the sake of fulfilling his dream as a pet shop owner.

(Source: MyAnimeList)


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