FILM: Mass Effect: Paragon Lost Teaser (News)

The video game franchise MASS EFFECT from Bioware/EA is slowly spreading its wings outside the realm of just gaming. There have been novel and comic book releases over the years and now they are stepping into the world of animation.

Titled MASS EFFECT: PARAGON LOST, the animated film comes from Funimation and serves as a prequel of sorts to MASS EFFECT 3 in that it focuses on the early career of Alliance Marine James Vega, one of the main squad members of the last game.

Synopsis:

Vega leads an elite Special Forces squad into battle against a mysterious alien threat known as The Collectors. Stationed at a colony in a remote star system, Vega and his soldiers must protect the civilians from a ruthless invasion determined to capture the population for unknown purposes.

FILM: Trigun - Badlands Rumble Trailer (News)

Coming to North American theaters this summer is TRIGUN: BADLANDS RUMBLE from Funimation Entertainment. The film debuted in Japan back in April 2010 and became a long running hit movie there. It is a followup to the twenty-six episode 1998 anime series and the first original TRIGUN animation in over a decade.


Synopsis:

Vash the Stampede is a gunslinging, red-trenchcoat-wearing drifter with a giant bounty on his head. His biggest threat, however, may not be law enforcement, but an outlaw by the name of Gasback. Twenty years ago, Vash accidentally interefered with one of Gasback's robberies, and now the villain's back with a score to settle. Gasback has come to Macca City in hopes of stealing one of their major installations, and Vash has just coincidentally arrived at the same spot. Also involved in this caper are a beautiful lady with a grudge, a couple of insurance agents, and Vash's old buddy Wolfwood. At first it seems that Gasback has succeeded, but one can never underestimate Vash's legendary abilities-not to mention the secrets that his allies have up their sleeves.

TVonDVD: Case Closed Season One (Review)

Case Closed: Season One
1996/2004 (2009) - Funimation
Released on DVD on July 14, 2009

# of Discs: 4
Runtime: 600 minutes

Solving crimes can be a dangerous and deadly occupation but no one knows the detective game better than Jimmy Kudo. With a confidence grown from having no one outsmart him, Jimmy runs head on into a situation that finds him poisoned by a dastardly duo. Instead of death however, Jimmy finds himself shrunk back to his childhood body. Using a new persona, Conan Edogawa, to hide his identity, he finds a home with his best friend, Rachel Moore and helps her father, Detective Richard Moore solve crimes all the while trying to find more about the men in black that poisoned him.

Highlights of the season include the very first episode, "The Big Shrink", where the show introduces Jimmy Kudo, his brilliant deductive mind, his relationship with Rachel and ends with the series plot twist of how he becomes Conan Edogawa. The third episode, "Beware of Idols", introduces pop idol Yoko Okino to the series as well as Conan's voice-changing bow-tie that Conan uses to emulate Richard's voice when saving crimes and in that episode uses it to call Rachel as Jimmy and calm her worries.

The first two-part story of the series comes nearly midway through the season, "The Moonlight Sonata Murder Case", that has Conan, Rachel and Richard heading to Moon Light Island thanks to a letter from a famous pianist that has been dead for twelve years. There is another excellent two-parter near the end of the season and in a nice change of pace of the usual routine there are also episodes where Conan and his Detective League friends dominate the story, like "Kidnapped: Amy" where the three boys have to race across town chasing a car to save their girl friend from what seems to be a deadly fate.

Unfortunately when most anime series are put into season sets, nearly all of the extras - both on the discs and packaged with the single volume cases - are left out of the products. That is just one of the breaks with going for the affordable price of a season set over purchasing several single volumes. Outside of trailers for other anime series Funimation offers, the only "extras" in the set are a character and gadget spotlight on Conan Edogawa and his Super Sneakers. The spotlight is a very basic text summary along with an image, not much to talk about.

Fans of animation that also have a taste for mysteries or police shows will enjoy and be used to each episode having a new case to figure out with Conan along with the occasional two-part story. There is not much about the men in black in the first season but most of the main characters of the show are introduced in this initial set of episodes and the foundation that the rest of the series builds upon (still ongoing in Japan) is created. One of my favorite anime series by far and definitely at least worth checking out.

Look to buy the Case Closed Season One DVD set over at Amazon for only $18.99.
Check out GeekPlate's Tumblr for today's Case Closed/Detective Conan themed picspam.