Mickey Mouse is an cartoon character co-created in 1928 by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks.
Spider-Ham (Peter Porker) is a superhero appearing in Marvel Comics. The character is an anthropomorphic pig and is a parody version of Spider-Man. He was created by Larry Hama, Tom DeFalco, and Mark Armstrong.
Kaneda, the leader of a motorcycle gang in Katsuhiro Otomo’s classic anime feature AKIRA (1988).
Daffy Duck was created by Tex Avery for Leon Schlesinger Productions. He has appeared in cartoon series such as Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies, in which he is usually depicted as a foil for either Bugs Bunny, Porky Pig, or Speedy Gonzales.
When Cowboy Bebop concluded in 1998, viewers waited eagerly to see what Shinichiro Watanabe would do next. After directing two short films for the anthology feature The Animatrix in 2003, he released the broadcast series Samurai Champloo in 2004. It was worth the wait. Although it was a science fiction series about a “space cowboy”/bounty […]
In the first two minutes of Anime-Gataris (literally “Talking about Anime,” 2017), the filmmakers offer a hilarious send-up of Gundam, Sailor Moon and the component series of Robotech. If the rest of the show never quite meets that admittedly impressive bar, it’s still very silly, very meta and a great big inside joke for anime […]
Fresh off winning Best Independent Animated Feature at last Saturday’s Annie Awards, Mirai writer/director Mamoru Hosoda is heading to the Oscars. This visionary film is a well-deserved Best Animated Feature nominee. Mirai was my favorite animated film of last year – and #2 on my 10 Best Films of 2018 list. When I told this […]
When Dragon Ball creator Akira Toriyama continued his franchise with the movie Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods (2013 Japan; 2014 U.S.), he introduced a character whose powers exceeded our Super Saiyan hero, Goku. His name: Beerus, god of destruction. Woe to those who rouse his temper. With but a wave of his claw, a […]
The 13-episode broadcast series ReLife (2016) felt like it ended prematurely, with the main characters’ stories unfinished. The four-part Final Arc OAV (2018) brings the story to a satisfying conclusion. Arata Kaizaki (voice by Micah Solusod), had been a promising high school student. Warm and caring, he brought out the best in the people around […]
The 13-episode broadcast series ReLife (2016) felt like it ended prematurely, with the main characters’ stories unfinished. The four-part Final Arc OAV (2018) brings the story to a satisfying conclusion. Arata Kaizaki (voice by Micah Solusod), had been a promising high school student. Warm and caring, he brought out the best in the people around […]
