Thijs VAN AKEN

The Gallery - Omar Dogan
Street Fighter comic artist Omar Dogan stops by The Gallery this week to chat about the struggles involved with becoming a professional comic artist, as well as the characters he's helped bring to life. 2009-01-24

Hey, Answerman!
This week, Answerman tackles a bunch of questions about getting your music into an anime series, how much Japan relies on R1 sales, your answers to last week's Hey Answerfans and the banner contest rolls on! 2009-01-23

Girl's High #6 - Watch it free on ANN!
A fight between the girls? A terrible rift forms when Yuma's calculating little sister Momoka gets too close to the group. But what's really going on under the surface? (TV-14, USA/CAN only) 2009-01-22

Buried Treasure - Megazone 23 Trilogy
Who knew that a sequel to an ambitious-but-dumb giant robot/motorcycle OAV could speak so much about the way the world is today? 2009-01-22

The X Button - Terms of Robot Warfare
This week sees new Final Fantasy XIII characters, a new Super Robot Wars game, new remakes, new chapters of .hack, and one really old shooter that Todd loves to no end. 2009-01-21

Anime News Nina! - 2009-01-21
Nina's optimism is - briefly, at least - broken, by live-action Pokemon. 2009-01-21

The Story of Saiunkoku Season 1 Part 2 DVD
Intricate scheming, politicking, power plays, and prospective romance are the norm as this rescued Geneon title delivers twelve more episodes of delightful entertainment. Despite its heavy shojo trappings, this series deserves a broader audience than it will probably ever get.

Ral Ω Grad GN 3
Ral pretty much has a full RPG party now—but if this is how the series is transitioning into the main storyline, it doesn't inspire a whole lot of confidence.

Negima!? DVD Season 2 Part 1
There is more separating Negima!? and Negima! than just a question mark. Though billed as Season 2, Negima!? isn't a sequel so much as it is a complete re-imagining.

Fushigi Yûgi -VIZBIG Edition- GN 1
If you have not yet read Fushigi Yûgi, now is the perfect time to explore the Universe of the Four Gods. And even if you have already been there and back, you may discover that VIZ Media's new 3-in-1 omnibus edition is compelling enough an invitation for a nostalgic return trip.

Devil May Cry DVD 3
It's no coincidence that this volume features more extras for the Devil May Cry 4 game than for the series proper. After all, the game is the only thing the series has going for it.

Kujibiki Unbalance GN 2
Weak storytelling that's too straight-up to enjoy as parody and too clichéd to enjoy straight-up.

07-Ghost GN 1
Take a close look at the cover of the first volume of 07-Ghost. Needless to say, it is sublime truth in advertising, and if the illustration doesn't leave you drooling like a St. Bernard for more, don't bother with this manga for another second.

Princess Princess DVD Complete Collection
Men are from Mars; women are from Venus. Or so says the title of the famous self-help book. But in Princess Princess, men and women might as well be from different solar systems altogether, and needless to say, this animated television series is as phony as the gender relations it depicts.

Maria Watches Over Us DVD Season 2
The second installment in the popular shojo-ai franchise is in some ways the weakest. The other installments being great fun and weak being a relative term, that isn't actually much of a criticism.

Sasami: Magical Girls Club DVD Season Two
Although Sasami: Magical Girls Club continues to be a highly derivative take on the magical girl genre and once again there are no big surprises, it is good, mindless entertainment that you will not be embarrassed to share with the whole family.

The Wallflower DVD 2
The series continues to strike gold by poking fun at Goths and pretty boys in a light-hearted fashion. Despite a couple of slightly weaker episodes, it never fails to be terribly funny for long.