Funimation upped the maturity level across the board for their titles this month. There's not one kid-friendly recommendation in the bunch despite such titles as A Sister's All You Need and Kumamiko: Girl Meets Bear appearing in this list. The good news is that you don't have to screen the adult material from the kids shows this time around, but the better news is that there are some bonkers offerings here that might just satisfy that weirdly specific anime itch you're looking to scratch. Check out our latest reviews below.
For the uninitiated, Funimation is a U.S. company known for their dubs and domestic distribution of Japanese anime. So all of the reviews you’re about to check out are for the dub version of each anime, though some Blu-rays/DVDs have a Japanese audio option as there are some exceptions to the rule. Below, you’ll find the official synopsis for each movie and series, along with a link to pick up your own copy at Funimation’s online store, should my review convince you. Sometimes, it’ll be an easy thing to suggest you buy it, other times, it’ll be just as easy to go in the other direction.
Check out my rundown of Funimation’s home video selections from this winter season, and be sure to take a look at their 2018 summer selections, fall favorites, and winter titles as well. Plus, 2019 is starting off strong with these early (and rather randy) selections. You might just find a favorite you overlooked or a new addition to your catalog you might have missed.
The following reviews of titles from Funimation’s February catalog are presented below for your weeb needs:
Black Clover: Season 1, Part 2
Black Clover: Season 1, Part 2
Asta’s hard work is gaining him recognition from the Wizard King and he’s given a new task—investigate a magical dungeon! Together with Noelle and Luck, he’ll learn they weren’t the only ones sent to explore. Yuno and his Golden Dawn teammates are also after the secrets. But their race to the treasure takes a dangerous turn when they come up against mages from the Diamond Kingdom.
If you're up for another round of Asta screaming like a lunatic over every little thing, then this is the series for you. I was really hoping it would calm things down a bit in this second installment, but it just doubles down on the character's eccentricities. I will say, however, that there's some great payoff here in a big battle between the Golden Dawn and the Black Bull against Mars, a powerful mage of the Diamond Kingdom. That and the continuing rivalry between Asta and Yuno make this a story worth watching, minus the extensive filler.
7/10
Garo: Vanishing Line I
Horrors teem in the shadows of Russel City, where something sinister has awakened. Seeking to vanquish this darkness is Sword, the legendary knight in golden armor, with simple desires and a reputation for getting the job done. When a headstrong teen named Sophie comes along in search of her missing brother, she and Sword get caught in a twisted fate. Banding together, they chase their only clue—El Dorado.
This thing starts off with a bang: Sword, the latest to wield the title of Garo the Golden Knight, brawls against a horror made entirely of breasts. After power-bombing the beast into submission, Sword apologizes to his large-breasted girlfriend for making her wait, plugs his skull ring Zaruba into his motorcycle's ignition, and rides off into the night. It's a fantastic start to set up what you're about to get into, and the action just ticks up from there.
Sword, a massive man who prefers bare-knuckle brawling to donning his golden armor and wielding his sword, ends up protecting a young girl who's being preyed upon by a particularly nasty horror as part of a "monster of the week" framework. For folks who love the insanity and creativity of Jojo's Bizarre Adventure, this feels like a sister series (and is the one I prefer, personally.) There are quite a few homages and prayer rituals to big-breasted women in this crazy series but somehow Sword's earnestness and gentlemanly behavior keeps it on the funny side of pervy. Bolstered by a solid English voice cast, killer soundtrack, and spot-on direction, this sort of anime version of Supernatural will keep you on your toes as you watch the story unfold. And despite some oddities, like a 9/11-derived side story, the only downside is that this collection of episodes ends halfway through the run without so much as a cliffhanger.
9/10
Kino's Journey: The Beautiful World
Kino's Journey: The Beautiful World
In this imperfect world, the stories are what make it beautiful. Journeying the land and visiting the unique countries is Kino and her talking motorcycle, Hermes. Together, they travel from place to place but only stay three days. Just enough time to gather stories and memories before continuing on. But not ever land is pleasant, and Kino will face some with darker and more sinister lifestyles.
Kino talks to their anthropomorphic motorcycle Hermes to start the story, waxing philosophical about the road and their journey ahead, and what they'll need to do to keep going, at any cost. That's the theme that continues throughout this incredibly unique story that sees the unlikely duo entering new countries in each and every episode, encountering all sorts of interesting and multidimensional characters along the way.
Spending an average of three days in each country, Kino and Hermes experience a land where murder is legal, but frowned upon; a country where bloody tournament battles determine the law of the land; and even a countryside completely overrun by homicidal sheep. With a strong Douglas Adams vibe to the whole thing, Kino's Journey is silly on the surface but incredibly imaginative, inventive, and meaningful once you peel back a layer or two.
Extra: An Interview with Keiichi Sagawa – Keiichi talks about the joy of having his story turned into an anime and then the surprise of seeing it rebooted for this modern anime series. He also shares how he came up with Kino’s story in college and during his struggle to find work after graduation. Keiichi promises to write more stories and make more anime that people will love to buy, read, and watch.
8/10
Angel Links
Within the stars lie space pirates ready to take out unsuspecting vessels. Working to defend the transporters who can’t afford escorts is a company known as Angel Links. Led by the 16-year-old Meifon Li, they work to keep the stars safe for those just trying to do their jobs—and free of charge! But Meifon’s past is about to catch up with her and give them a hell of a time.
When I heard that this story was a spin-off from Outlaw Star, I was understandably excited. Unfortunately, Angel Links is just a lot of big-breasted heroines and drifting cameras that linger on cleavage shots and short hemlines with very little story to build around it. The animation is rough (especially the CG effects) and the story is half-baked; the voice-acting is just as bad and everything has a really clunky feel to it. It's a lot to ask viewers to connect with a big-chested, uber-rich 16-year-old CEO who also happens to run a private security force, but the ultimate reveal of her origin story might just be enough to keep people watching.
6/10
Extras:
Commercial Collection
- Three 30-second TV spots advertising the show in their original Japanese language with male and female narrators.
Launch Clips
- "Day Version" and "Night Version" of the ship's launch sequence (which is reused in numerous episodes), but without any dialogue.
Secrets of the Angel Links
- A "behind-the-scenes" featurette led by a chibi Meifon Li and Taffei who walk viewers through concept art, manga art, and sketches of Angel Links, explaining the ship, its construction, and its many abilities and weapons.
- The featurette really goes to great lengths to talk about all aspects of the ship and its outer space base, as well as other ships like "Carrier Dress."
Twin Star Exorcists: Part 3
The imbalance between worlds is traced back to Sae, and to save them all, the ray of sunshine that lit their hearts must now return to her roots. All hands are on deck as the beastly Basara continue to plague the land, and time is of the essence as the Twin Stars put heart and soul into saving their city in a battle that brings them closer than ever before.
By Part 3, the story feels a lot goofier than last I remembered. The characters have all grown up a bit and, for those who haven't met in the series so far, are all introducing themselves to each other, so there's a lot of tension (romantic, rivalry, and otherwise). The Twin Stars are out working while the rest of the exorcists hang out at home chatting. It takes a bit to get going, but when it does, Twin Star Exorcists delivers some of the familiar action beats fans are used to seeing from the earlier episodes of the series.
While there's some very silly fan service in this season, it somewhat serves the characters and their story. Unfortunately, that story is slow and clunky and not very engaging, so watch this one as long as you can to enjoy the fantastic music (especially the intro theme song) and a few good moments between the title characters.
7/10
Code: Realize - Guardian of Rebirth
Code: Realize - Guardian of Rebirth
Cardia Beckford is a monster—or so she’s been called due to a deadly poison dwelling in her body. Unable to touch anyone or anything, she is locked away in her home and abandoned by her father. But one fateful night, she’s swept away by the dashing phantom thief, Arsène Lupin for a brand-new adventure!
Beautifully animated with a kind of steampunk design and setting, this adaptation of the otome "maiden game" PS Vita game follows a dangerous woman and her collection of suitors/protectors who watch out for her. It's kind of a flip on the usual harem style of anime stories but with a literary twist.
Arséne Lupin and Impey Barbicane are just two of the protagonists in this story who are inspired by literary figures from 1800s and early 1900s fiction. More famously, Victor Frankenstein also makes an appearance as a wanted terrorist while Abraham Van Helsing is a bounty hunter of sorts. All of their paths cross with the dangerous and mysterious Cardia Beckford at the center.
Essentially, the boys protect Cardia while she tries to figure out what her part to play is in the whole thing, and what her father’s intentions were all along. The issue is that I lost interest as the story focused more on relationships than the show's mythology. It would, however, be interesting to see a follow-up story where Cardia actually has some agency and gets to decide her own path.
Extra: “Chapter 13 – Set a Thief to Catch a Thief” – One month after the calamity, the gang gathers to have some fun at a local celebration/festival. (All done in its original Japanese audio.) It’s a fun additional story but doesn’t give Cardia a chance to do anything at all.
7/10
ReLIFE Final Arc
As the school year begins to wrap up, Arata and Chizuru must face the end of their ReLIFE experiment. While they have plenty to keep them busy, their feelings for one another become stronger and they find themselves becoming closer! Will they follow their hearts or will the fear of forgetting kill their growing romance?
Unemployed 27-year-old Arata Kaizaki opts to become a tester for ReLife, an experimental project that makes him appear 10 years younger and sends him back to high school as a student in order to, essentially relive his adolescence and sort his life out. At the same time, Chizuru Hishiro's own experiment is coming to an end and she finds herself drastically changed for the better. The problem is that the meaningful relationships they each forged along the way
Unless you’re into high school drama, this one isn’t very compelling, though it does focus on the final few episodes of the story so far. It's rather well done for a high school drama story, however, and it's got a cute Your Name/Fireworks vibe to it with a similar hook. This wasn't my cup of tea, but it's a well-told tale for those of you who enjoy this sub-genre.
Extras: Internal Secret Files – Hidden Camera and Date (cute little vignettes from the ReLife lab and support division techs); Japanese audio only.
7/10
Blood Blockade Battlefront & Beyond
Blood Blockade Battlefront & Beyond
Having saved the city from the King of Despair, Leonardo Watch is now a full-fledged member of the crime-fighting organization known as Libra. But things won’t be easy. No matter what new monster plagues this metropolis of mayhem, every talented misfit at Libra will go to the sky and beyond to maintain peace.
“The noisy city where the abnormal is normal.” This one starts off running with a pretty crazy opening and all sorts of unexplained nonsense happening all around Leo(nardo), our protagonist. It would help immensely if I had seen the first season, title Blood Blockade Battlefront, but the show does a decent job of explaining just what the hell is going on in an alternate New York City, now dubbed Hellsalem's Lot thanks to the existence of a netherworld portal. But honestly, when a big bruiser dressed in a suit by the name of Klaus Von Reinherz dispatches a massive demon with an even more massive blood cross, I don't need to know what's going on; I'm in!
BONES is behind the animation in this one, which explains why it looks so crisp and packed to the brim with insanity. We follow along with the peacekeepers of Libra as they attempt to clear the streets of trouble and prevent the horrors of this city from spreading to the outside world. But it's not just wall-to-wall craziness; there are some decent two-part episodes that delve into character exploration quite a bit and really get viewers to connect with even supporting players.Fans of Hellboy and R.I.P.D. should check this one out.
Extras:
Video Commentary – Episode 10 (BRATATAT Mom) with ADR Director Mike McFarland, and returning cast members Stephanie Young who plays KK and J. Michael Tatum who plays Steven A Starphase. Young talks about balancing her home life with two young children and her professional life; this episode offered a perfect story to capture that.
8/10
King's Game
A class of thirty-two high school students receive texts commanding them to complete strange tasks. Nobuaki Kanazawa has played this game before and knows that these demands must be met. But until penalties for failure become lethal, no one is ready to step out of their comfort zone. As orders and punishments become more and more gruesome, the worst in people manages to tear its way out.
This title should definitely come with a trigger warning about bullying, suicides, rape, and sexual violence, but since it doesn't, consider this your warning for it.
Protagonist Nobuaki awakens in a strange place and gets a text saying that he and his classmates are now in a fight to the death; whoever survives is the winner. It's revealed over the course of the series that Nobuaki knows more about this deadly and sadistic "King's Game" than he's initially letting on, but the ultimately reveal is worth watching this series. It doesn't take long for the action to tick up and away from your standard high school drama to something much more serious stakes. Picture SAW meets Lord of the Flies with a dash of I Know What You Did Last Summer thrown in.
Unforunately, Nobuaki isn't alone in his familiarity with the game; someone else in the group is playing people against each other to save their own skin. But what makes this compelling isn't the gruesome deaths or the extreme violence towards one another, it's the lengths to which these characters will go to either save themselves or save the ones they love and care about.
King's Game tries to be as cerebral as Death Note but doesn't quite get there. The story becomes a little too convoluted for its own good late in the telling and loses some momentum, but it’s worth watching through to the end to see how it all shakes out and for a tease of what might be next …
7/10
A Sister's All You Need
Itsuki Hashima is kind of a disaster. Between struggling to meet deadlines for his novels and being constantly bothered by his friends, he has one oddity that makes life even more difficult—he’s obsessed with little sisters! Luckily, he has his younger stepbrother, Chihiro, to look out for him. But there’s a secret that could completely change their relationship.
This title is WTF right off the bat. If you can make it past the first few minutes where the protagonist, straddled by his completely naked 14-year-old sister Alice, washes in her bath water, dries his face on her bra, and eats a breakfast composed of her eggs (stick with me here) and breast milk, then A Sister's All You Need might very specifically be for you.
The saving grace here, just slightly, is that this setup is all played for gags ... more or less. The story actually centers on successful author Itsuki, who has an obsession with little sisters. The obsession is so bad that he actually has a younger step-sister who hides her gender (pretending to be his younger step-brother instead) in order to sidestep his infatuation. Itsuki has found success with his "little sister heroine" stories and seems perfectly happy to be pigeonholed in that particularly perverted subgenre.
But for me, A Sister's All You Need is decidedly not what I need. Itsuki's friends are either irritatingly pretentious or laughably horny; one friend tells him he can, and I quote, "fuck her face", while the girls in the group decide to undress and feel each other's breasts "for research." The fan service is beyond the pale here. Once Itsuki and his artist start talking about shark dicks, I bailed…
5/10
Tales of the Abyss
Based off the popular game, Tales of the Abyss will take you to a fantastic world where fate is written in Fonic Stones and the will to defy it lies in those who are mere replicas. Pampered prince Luke fon Fabre is suddenly thrown from his life of luxury into an adventure unlike any other. Together with a group of magic-users, he’ll learn about his world and the dark truth about his existence.
This sort of story is much more my speed, a traditional tale of a hero of prophecy thrown into a dangerous world. It's got an original angle on the "bratty privileged kid who has to come to terms with his prophecy to save/destroy the world", mostly through pairing him with people outside of his royal circle and literally throwing him out of his comfort zone. From the outset, Luke fon Fabre is sought after by all sorts of people who believe that he's the one spoken of in the prophecy known as The Score, so it's up to his own skills and those of his newly formed allies to keep them alive long enough to solve the mystery of their intertwined destinies.
The story is a pretty common one but there are some cool new wrinkles thrown into the mix here. The characters are dynamic and likeable despite their questionable stance when it comes to the prophecy, and there's a great bit of mythology that introduces a musical magic to the world, known as Fonic Hymns. Additionally, the storytelling of every episode features great cliffhanger endings that will have you pushing "Play" again and again.
8/10
The Silver Guardian
Suigin and Rei both play the MMORPG Dungeon Century. But after adventuring together for weeks, the game’s servers shut down to make way for the latest world-altering title. Grave Buster—a video game proclaiming “reality beyond reality” hits the shelves, and Rei is pulled into it by forces unknown. Now it’s up to Suigin to rescue her from the virtual world, no matter the cost.
Sometimes, a great theme song is all you need to get into an anime series even if you know nothing about the series itself; The Silver Guardian has some rockin' music, so enjoy that for starters. But if you need a little more to go on for this Tencent production, the story centers on a hard-working video game player named Suigin who finds his skills tested in very real battles against demonic entities. And while Suigin is more than up to the challenge when we first meet him, the story actually begins a year earlier ... after a little bit of fan service in a girls' dorm sleepover, of course.
Suigin, a poor student who works a dozen part-time jobs, falls for the rich and beautiful heiress Riku Rei. In the real world, their lives are miles apart, but in a virtual world of a game they both love, Suigin has the upper hand as an accomplished warrior and hero. What starts out as a nice love story soon morphs into "heroic guy saves the helpless girl" tropes quite a bit, doubling down on the fan service as well. That's a shame, as is the fact that it also changes into a rather generic fantasy story.
6/10
Crest of the Stars
A massive, highly advanced alien civilization called the Abh Empire invades the human-inhabited planet of Martine. Outclassed, outgunned, and in an effort to avoid bloodshed, the standing president willingly surrenders the world in exchange for a place among the Abh aristocracy. Seven years later, his son meets a spirited Abh princess who will guide him through an impending intergalactic war.
This slow-burn, politically charged, and deeply character-driven anime series feels like a product of the 80s but actually arrived in manga for starting in 1996 and was adapted into an anime series in 1999. The more traditional art style for the space-based series has similar visuals and aesthetics to shows like Star Trek and Battle Star Galactica but also shares some DNA with Gundam. (Oddly enough, both Crest of the Stars and Mobile Suit Gundam Wing hail from Sunrise, and though Mobile Suit Gundam Wing arrived 4 years earlier, it feels much more polished.)
In a far-flung future where humanity has colonized space thanks to a mysterious energy source, human worlds soon meet the ever-expanding Abh Empire of Mankind. Unlike the aforementioned sci-fi stories, Crest of the Stars isn't about humanity's heroic fight against an alien invader, not exactly. It's much more about political dealings, like the handover of the human-occupied Hyde Star System to the Abh rulers in a non-violent takeover. As part of the deal, the system's president sends his son Jinto to live and study among the Abh at a military school in preparation for him taking over his leadership position some day. The story picks up with Abh meeting his escort, an Abh girl by the name of Lafiel. They teach each other the particulars of their cultures and learn to rely on each other, a good thing too considering a galactic war is about to break out.
While the English dub is pretty bad in this, the story is worth a watch; I switched over to the Japanese audio rather quickly and was glad that I did. The slow and methodical storytelling throughout the season is a refreshing change, but it might be too slow and thoughtful for some. Things get uncharacteristically wacky by the final episode, but it's worth a watch for the relationship between Jinto and Lafiel, a story that continues in Banner of the Stars.
8/10
Banner of the Stars
It’s been three years since the Abh Empire went to war with the Triple Alliance. And at long last, Lafiel commands her own assault ship with Jinto by her side. But as the likelihood of frontline combat increases, uncertainty weighs heavily on the young captain and her crew. Can they fulfill their duties to the Abh fleet, or will they buckle under the pressure?
The first episode of this follow-up series, which includes two seasons, includes a solid recap of Crest of the Stars for those who need a refresher. And whether you see the first season of the space-based saga or not, it's best to know that the story really revolves around the relationship between Lafiel and Jinto with intergalactic war as a backdrop. The English dub is better this time around and the entire series is worth watching if only for the touching conclusion to the star-crossed lovers' story.
Season 2 Extras:
OVAs "Re-encounter of the Stars" and "Family Table" - There's much better animation in these tales which continue the story and provide some closure to the characters' tales. Jinto gets to set things square with his old family friend Teal, now the Prime Minster, but faces an impossible choice between defecting from the Abh Empire (and Lafiel) or to leave his homeworld behind forever in order to stay with Lafiel and the Star Forces.
8/10
Kumamiko: The Complete Series - Essentials
Kumamiko: The Complete Series - Essentials
Machi has spent her entire life in a small mountain village with no reception, no asphalt, and a whole lot of nothing. She also happens to be a priestess that lives with a talking bear named Natsu-typical country life! But now, she's ready to venture out into the big city and Natsu isn't so sure she's ready. Can she bear the grizzly trials he has planned to prepare her for city life?
We'll close this group of recommendations out with an unexpected bit of strangeness. You'd be forgiven for thinking that this "Girl Meets Bear" series would be a cute little story about a young girl and a friendly bear, judging from the title and the cover art alone, but it's decidedly not. Okay, it's kind of like that, but it's definitely for an older audience. (It's also Japanese audio only, FYI.)
With a kid-friendly animation style that boasts orgeous watercolor backgrounds with bright and colorful character designs, the relationship between Machi, the young girl who tends a local village temple, and Natsu, a friendly talking bear, is surprisingly adult. When a group of kids visit the temple with their teacher, there's soon talk of whether or not Machi and Natsu have had sex, as is told in the temple's founding mythology. (We also learn that Natsu is neutered for what it's worth.)
Overall, Kumamiko is a rather silly, cutesy (and very Japanese) anime with some adult themes throughout. It's pretty pervy, and Natsu switches between a protective parent and a Pedo Bear at times, but it's a cute and very weird coming-of-age story for young Machi who dreams of heading into the big city as she outgrows village life. The animation is stellar and includes some fantastic style switches throughout, similar to Aggretsuko in quite a few ways. And thanks to a satisfying conclusion for Machi's story, it's worth a watch if you know what you're getting into.
Extras:
- OVA 1 "Day of the First Snow" – A young Machi and Natsu play hide and seek in the forest when it starts to snow. Machi ends up nearly freezing to death but Natsu finds her and spirits her home.
- OVA 2 "Natchan’s Shocking Debut!" – Seems to pick up at the end of the main series with Machi performing her ritual for a massive crowd. Natsu gets hauled away for a mascot performance rehearsal. At the end, Machi reveals she has plans to go to Tokyo.
7/10
