Françoise CADOL

The Fall 2008 Anime Preview Guide
The fall anime season has begun, and Anime News Network's famous 24-7 preview guide returns! Check back daily over the next two weeks for our critics' takes on the latest shows from Japan!

Reviews Available Now:
Kemeko DX
Bihada Ichizoku
Yozakura Quartet
Shikabane-hime: Aka
Ga-Rei Zero
ef - A Tale of Melodies
Tales of the Abyss episode 2
Kuroshitsuji
Macademi Wasshoi
To Aru Matjutsu no Index
Kyo no Go no Ni
Tales of the Abyss
Gundam 00 Season 2
Kannagi
Rosario + Vampire Capu2
Linebarrels of Iron
Casshern Sins
Hyakko!
Akane-iro ni Somaru Saka!
Clannad ~After Story
Toradora!
2008-10-04

The Otaku's Guide to Building a HTPC
Home Theater PCs seem like the ideal way to watch all different kinds of media on your shiny new HDTV. Unfortunately, they're also the most frustrating thing you'll ever use. 2008-10-09

Anime News Nina! - 10-08-08
Nina's questions about action anime are finally answered. 2008-10-08

The X Button - Complete Control
This week finds Todd examining a Claymore DS game, Nintendo's dominating 2009 lineup, and an obscure RPG linked to an even more obscure anime series. 2008-10-08

Hai Fidelity - We Love Cyndi
Rachael dons her neon pink sweatbands and snap bracelets and rocks out to this Japanese tribute to 80's icon Cyndi Lauper, with songs by Puffy AmiYumi and more. 2008-10-07

Chicks On Anime - 2008-10-07
What would an anime convention look like from a newcomer's point of view? Our guest shares the ins and outs of being a producer, and being thrown into the con culture. 2008-10-07

Shelf Life - Jars of Claymore
There are tons of little girls this week, but only one of them will grow up to become a deadly Claymore. The rest will just squeal really loudly.
- Claymore v.1
- Kanon v.6
- Lucky Star v.3
- Negima?! Spring/Summer
2008-10-06

Strawberry Panic Sub.DVD 4
It casts no new light on, nor redeems, the uneven, often impressively idiotic content preceding it, however at times during this volume, Strawberry Panic is damned near a good series. Amazing.

Don't Blame Me GN 1-2
Even though it is one of her earliest, Don't Blame Me, nearly ten years later, continues to be one of Yugi Yamada's best. Highly recommended to anyone who likes slice-of-life manga…particularly to those who do not normally read BL. Yamada stretches the genre to its limits, and the results are simply not to be missed.

Short-Tempered Melancholic GN
An unflinching dose of cute, designed to awaken the heart-fluttering schoolkid in all of us ... just don't expect too much.

Galaxy Angel AA DVD 1-4
The Angel Brigade is back for another round of 27 half-episode stories. Despite the occasional serious episode, it generally remains a delightfully and consistently funny piece of fluff which requires no long-term commitment or prior familiarity.

Bleach DVD 12
This volume can only be described as down-time, but it's pretty good down-time for all that. Just beware the extended flashback at the end.

Astro Boy 1&2 GN
Read Astro Boy for fun or for history—not for philosophical enlightenment packaged as classic manga.

Laya, the Witch of Red Pooh GN 1-2
The two-volume Korean manhwa series Laya, the Witch of Red Pooh is one of the most appealing titles you will ever have the privilege to flip casually through…and one of the most appalling titles you will ever have the misfortune to actually read.

Gundam SEED Destiny TV Movie II
The central movie of the Gundam SEED Destiny TV series compilation project may actually improve upon its source material because its editing actually limits or eliminates some of the series' key weakness. Not good, but not bad, either.

One Piece DVD Season 1 Part 2
A build-up-heavy slice of a steadily improving shounen adventure, the second part of One Piece's first season isn't revolutionary, insightful, or even particularly smart or original. It's just massive fun.

Pumpkin Scissors DVD 4
Begins as slack as the last two volumes, but soon picks up with a story arc that returns to the themes of reconstruction and postwar readjustment that set the first volume apart, all while ramping up the action quotient.

Gundam: Char's Counterattack DVD
...stands out as fine example of what makes this series so special.