Ciel in Wonderland review: Otaku Trauma

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Today on Otaku Trauma I’m reviewing Ciel in Wonderland, because, lord knows, the creator and fandom loves putting Ciel into dresses.   Also news for your [otaku] life!

There are some animes you watch because they are intellectually involving.  Some you watch because they are gorgeously animated.  Some for the over the top humor or violence.  Then there are the animes you watch because the ridiculousness is addicting (this is called “crack”).

Kuroshitsuji, or Black Butler here in the States, is that kind of anime for me.  After the Jack the Ripper arc in the first season, the anime went in an off the wall direction that had almost nothing to do with the manga.  There’s still some debate on how the creator, Yana Toboso, felt over this.  Especially the second season.

That has nothing to do with this.  Ciel in Wonderland is (almost) straight crack.  Based on sketches that Toboso did herself, and a concept she had a hand in, it’s what would happen if Ciel gets bored in his dreams, Sebastian gets really sadistic, and Lewis Carroll did doujinshi (fan comics).  In fact, Sebastian’s signature line “I’m one hell of a butler” is changed to “I’m one hell of a rabbit” (which makes less sense since the original line is a play on the kanji of “demon” and “butler,” but, whatever, it’s kind of cute).

For the most part the two-part OVA (original video animation–the shorts were bundled with the season 2 Kuroshitsuji DVD’s) manages to convey the Alice in Wonderland theme while still incorporating the antics of the Kuroshitsuji cast.  My experience with the actual book by Carroll is limited–it terrifies me, even more then bugs–but from the various movies I’ve seen this matches pretty well.

Interesting things happen–such as when Ciel is (ahem) talking with the Caterpillar, we see a momentary time of Ciel as an adult without the eyepatch (or contract mark).  Ciel then becomes a child from before he got the contract and then back to his present self.  Strange way to foreshadow…or Toboso messing with the fans’ heads?  Probably both, honestly.

The OVA takes a seriously dramatic turn around the last ten minutes of the second part.  Before Ciel–as Alice–transverses Wonderland, meeting his past associates in their Wonderland personas (which I think speaks a lot about his subconscious, that he put certain people in certain roles)while  looking for the White Rabbit.  We come to Alice’s “trial” with the Red Queen, who is played by Madame Red, and we see that the crimes against “Alice” are numerous and not true in a twisted taken out of context way.

This was meant to be a fun way to explain some of Ciel’s goings-on between the end of Season 1 and Season 2.  Its advisable to watch this only after watching the first season, as it spoils quite a few of the plot lines throughout the season.

Trailer News

Gantz: Perfect Answer (the live action movie part 2) has a full length trailer!  It’s to be released April 23, 2011, in Japan; no word yet on the American release.  Which is a little perplexing, since why would they release the first part in American theaters, but not the second?  Some spoilers for the first movie are in the movie poster (though it’s the only one they’ve released so they must not care too much), and, of course, part 1 spoilers are in the trailer itself.  Haven’t found subs for the trailer yet, but they’re basically angsting over what to do.  If and when I see this movie, I’ll give a review.

Makoto Shinkai’s new movie Hoshi o Ou Kodomo: Children who Chase Lost Voices from Deep Below has a teaser trailer subbed!  Shinkai is well known for his movies Voices from a Distant Star, 5 Centimeters Per a Second and Place Promised in Our Early Days.  For hose unfamiliar, he uses lush scenery and character-driven plots based on a simple emotion expanded.  His previous works have been sci-fi related (Voices and Place) and contemporary (5 Centimeters), and this looks to be more fantasy-oriented.  The movie is due out in Japanese theaters in May 2011; no word yet on an American release.

source: Anime News Network

Live Action Drama News

Hana Zakari no Kimitachi e (Hana-Kimi) is getting a new Korean drama based on it.  16 episodes of gender-bending fun!  Previously I’ve seen the Taiwanese version (for which my friend calls me ‘Re Xie’), and I caught parts of the Japanese version.  Let’s see how this plays out (Hana Kimi is the new Hana Yori Dango, which was also made into multiple live action shows across Asia).

Source: Anime Nation

Bokura ga Ita (We Were There, being published by Viz Comics) is set for a live action release in 2012.  This is rather exciting news for me!  Preliminary cast announcements and such are set to be in the May issue of Betsucomi (due out April 13).

Source: Japanator

Domestic News

Kodansha USA will be releasing Sailor Moon again, along with the companion/prequel series Code Name Sailor V. The two series will be published using the condensed format from a few years ago (that I spent almost $200 to buy and ship from Japan, but I won’t complain).  Word is they’ll be getting brand new translations (Tokyo Pop previously had translated the series to some…consternation amongst fans), plus be jam-packed with extras–translations, notes, and artwork that was previously not (officially) released in America.

The publication schedule is for a bi-monthly schedule starting September 2011.  Considering I own four complete sets of this manga already (the Tokyo Pop version, original Japanese version, new condensed version, and Chinese version), I probably should resist the urge…except it’s a new translation!  Won’t it look perfect on my shelf?