Loot Post: Oh God not again.

Yep, another loot post.  Been playing too much FFXI lately and haven’t really dug into much.  Certainly hasn’t stopped me from adding to the backlog though.  I’ll have some more real posts soon though, promise!  See the horrifying full contents of my recent orders within.

First off we have books:

Clover Omnibus – read some of this when Tokyopop released it the first time, never got to finishing it, but that’s ok because neither did CLAMP!

Biomega vol 1-2 – I guess this is supposed to be a prequel to Blame or something?  I’ve been told it’s architecture porn, and I do like me some detailed backgrounds.  Also one of the main characters is a hook handed talking bear.  I don’t think it’s possible to be more awesome than a hook handed talking bear.

Gunsmith Cats Burst vol 1-5 -  If you’re reading this you may have noticed I am a fan of Gunsmith Cats, so naturally the sequel was high on my list of stuff to flip through.  I’ve only read the first volume so far, but it seems to have lost a bit of it’s “punch” for lack of a better way to describe it.  Needs more sex.

Pluto vol 7-8 – Finally completed Urasawa’s take on Astro boy.  Absolutely phenomenal read.  I was a little disappointed in the shift in focus and direction towards the end.  I feel it kind of abandoned the original mood and pacing and went for a cheap thrill ending.

The Boredom of Haruhi Suzumiya – Haven’t actually gotten to the first book yet, but I keep grabbing these hardcover editions as they come out.  I’ll barrel through several at once when the mood hits me.

MW - My first real Tezuka book.  Looked to be one of the more interesting ones Vertical released so I jumped in.  Have not gotten to this yet.

And then DVDs:

Toradora vol 1 premium edition (Pictured above) – One of the more enjoyable cartoons of it’s type I’ve seen in recent years.  It’s a romantic comedy that covers some interesting ground with it’s character motivations.  I’m holding off on the re-watch till set 2 is out and NISA issues replacements.  There are a bunch of interlacing and ghosting issues and they are offering a fix.  Packaging is otherwise phenomenal although unconventional.  The hardcover book that comes with it is really nice, and chock full of art, interviews, and episode summaries and things.

Gurren Lagann (Pictured above) – Been waiting for this ever since Bandai announced it’s acquisition.  Waited long mostly because of space concerns (One case instead of six?  Yes, please.) and for the oddball release pattern to sort itself out.  Looking forward to checking out the dub.

The Big O & The Big O II – Never got to see the end of the second season, very much looking forward to it.  The original opening is bizarrely removed from this edition and replaced with a different song, but left the opening video the same.  Apparently it sounded a little TOO much like a Queen song after all.  Shame, that was part of the charm.

G-Gundam – I don’t really think this needs explaining.

Gundam Wing & Endless Waltz – Haven’t seen this since the original cartoon network airing back in the day.  It get’s a lot of undeserved flack I think.  Gonna check it out in Japanese this time since I never did get to see it all in the original language.

Shingu – I’ve had my eye on this one for a while and found a good price.  I’m attracted to the atypical character designs and some of the production staff (Tatsuo Sato.)

Ghost in the Shell Stand Alone Complex – Replacing the individual dvds with the smaller collection to save shelf space.

Fullmetal Alchemist: Do Over Edition – I never finished the original series, I just didn’t care for the direction it took very much after a certain character was killed off.  I don’t follow the manga at all, so I have no idea what to expect.  I absolutely adore the choreography on the first opening theme.

Blood: The Last Vampire – 45 minutes of good bloody fun.  Decent upscale.

Baccano – Not nearly as exciting as folks would have you believe.  It hits a really high point in the middle of the show and then never really reaches for those heights again.  Really tapers off at the end, but still worth a watch.

Madonna - A young female teacher gets stuck running the delinquent class and the rugby team, great 80′s hilarity ensues.  Features Norio Wakamoto as himself.

Venus Wars – Yas!  Kinda disappointed this is letterboxed.

Simoun – Watched this raw as it aired, though it’d be cool to understand it this time.  Beautiful watercolor backgrounds in every shot.

The Gokusen – Kind of a wannabee GTO with far duller teeth.  It was amusing enough, I don’t really want my time back or anything, but it could have been a lot better.  Also, Norio Wakamoto makes yet another appearance here as himself.

Shamanic Princess – Chalk another one off the “I saw this on VHS ages ago I wonder if it’s still good” list.