Miki D.

I really think I need to go watch the original, animated Mulan just to clear my eyes and mind of this disappointment. This was bad in almost every aspect, from the CG to the romantic subplot. Right from the beginning, there was a misstep. In the original, Mulan fails at the matchmaker's, but her father is quick to assure her that it's alright and that, "The flower that blooms last is the most beautiful of them all." On the other hand, this live-action Mulan parts from her dad on shaky terms. They have a fight over dinner about her poor performance that day, along with his sudden conscription to the army. This conflict is never really resolved, but rather forgotten and swept under the rug. This is a huge thematic misstep which foreshadows how poorly the themes of the original movie are upheld in this remake. Indeed, in the original ending, when Mulan returns home and presents gifts from the Emperor to her father as proof of honoring their family name, he throws them to the ground in favor of embracing her, showing that his love for his daughter is more important to him than anything. In the remake's ending, it seems to take this turn (which made me cheer, for it appeared to be one of the few things the remake got right). But then as father and daughter are embracing, the Emperor's army shows up and presents Mulan with a sword to honor her family, and it just completely kills this idea that love within the family is more important than any family honor BS. Can I also just say that Mulan's soldier buddies turned out to be an enormous disappointment? My interest in this remake was piqued when Mulan first entered the barracks. I was interested to see how the dynamics would turn out, especially since they were changing her love interest. But as my dad said while watching the movie, "Why does even she like that other soldier? He hasn't shown a single bit of his true character yet." To say nothing of how they butchered the beloved trio from the original... and the villains were not fleshed out at all. We are given two baddies instead of one, but quantity at the expense of quality. Frankly, Mulan had more chemistry with the witch woman than with her canonical love interest. Sigh. The casting was actually good, IMO. The main actress' performance wasn't great but with better writing (or directing? I can't even diagnose the source of the problem accurately since everything was just so bad), I think it would have been fine. So much potential wasted, I felt like half of this movie was a Pantene hair commercial. The other half was just bad CG. I'm off to rewatch the original animation now; hopefully I'll have forgotten about this remake by the time the day is over.

This anime is a must watch. First I will say that there is shounen-ai in this series. I do not consider myself a BL fan at all (nothing against slash pairings, but I just find yaoi to be too fetishized usually). However, the romance in No. 6 is done really, really well. I would say it's one of the best I've seen in any anime, and that includes all the shoujo ones that are specifically catered to be romantic. In No. 6, the bond between Nezumi and Shion is essential to the show, but it does not overshadow everything else. The plot is fascinating by itself, and the supporting characters to the main two are very likable. Each one is fleshed out nicely and none of their backstories are cliché. I've taken a look at both the novel and manga after finishing the anime. In my opinion, the anime is the best of the three because of how all the characters are designed and portrayed, as well as how the anime organizes and presents the story. People who like the novel and/or manga better may feel that the anime was rushed, especially towards the end. I agree that it is not perfect, by any means. However, the anime never feels boring. Every episode kept me riveted. Nearing the end of the series, I had wondered how they would manage to tie up a somewhat ambitious plot in 11 episodes, but upon watching the ending, I felt very satisfied. No. 6 has become one of my favorite anime, maybe even *the* favorite. I'm a big fan of dystopian stories, as well as romance which is well-done and complementary to the plot-at-large. For anyone who is hesitant to watch No. 6 because they've heard that it is BL/yaoi, I will say that it's really not the main focus of the series. Plus, even though I'm a girl, I've enjoyed plenty of fiction which has shoujo-ai in it. IMO, if it's done well and respectfully, not in a fanservice-y way, then I'm all for it. On a final note, I really love the opening for this show. The ending is good too. Please give No. 6 a chance! It's a hidden gem in anime, and I hope more people will discover it and enjoy it.

To me, the original Kingdom Hearts is the best entry in the franchise. The plot is simple but sweet and very charming. It doesn't make too much sense if you think too much about it but, unlike the other entries which followed KH1 in the franchise, this game does not attempt to explain the strange parts of its story. In other words, it doesn't take itself too seriously. The combat is very satisfying and IMO, holds up very well under today's standards. The UI is also surprisingly modern for a game made in 2002. Some of the cutscenes are quite nicely animated. The game has a few issues like a clunky camera but it's manageable. The story is also a bit slow during the first few worlds, but it improves as you play on. The characters are one of the strongest aspects of this game. The designs of the main trio are iconic and lovable — I would say they are definitely some of Nomura's best work. Even if the game itself isn't your cup of tea, you will probably come out of KH1 liking Sora, Riku and Kairi. This game should be played on PS2 — at least not the remaster on PS4. Some of the character models look strangely washed out in the remaster. It's especially noticeable on Sora. IMO, Final Mix doesn't really add that much to the game except a few additional cutscenes. KH1 is definitely worth a playthrough. If you don't like the story, you'll like the gameplay. If you don't like the gameplay, you'll like the characters. There's something in this game for everyone to enjoy.

I've been following this series with my mom as it airs. She is a big Xiao Zhan fan, which is what drew her to this show in the first place. I don't really care for him, but I do like watching things with her, so I thought I'd give this show a try. Even though we are only on episode 18 at the time of my writing this review, I can safely say that this series has the most tropiest, most cliché, most predictable and unrealistic plot I have seen in fiction for a long time. And that's saying something, because I read fanfiction. Basically, any romantic trope you can think of, this show has it. Sharing an umbrella, taking care of each other when they are sick, playing music together, becoming next door neighbors, the jealous ex, etc. — it's almost unbelievable how shameless this show is about being cliché. I understand that people like to watch this show as an escape from every day life. Fiction serves the purpose of fulfilling personal desires which we cannot attain ourselves. However, in order for escapism to be successful, the story has to retain some semblance of reality, i.e. plausibility. This show breaks the illusion of fantasy every few minutes by introducing a scenario which is completely unrealistic. It requires extreme suspension of disbelief to immerse oneself in this show and live vicariously through the characters. I am giving it two stars instead of one because I like the secondary couple, who actually has chemistry and whose romance does not feel forced, but actually interesting. Watch this show if you either (a) like Xiao Zhan or (b) don't care about how unrealistic a story is — you just want to enjoy some fluffy romance. Otherwise, if you're like me, steer clear away.