well i heard it could stand alone and i wasn't really lost at all. sure i missed a lot of backstory, but the opening monologue i think caught me up with the general plot. i would have liked to see the developing relationship with Briareos and Deunan though and do wish this one explored it a little more as well, perhaps i will find the old and get it, but i hear it is a lot rougher than Ex.

there was actualy ep. 49 of Blood+ on Cartoon network late last night. i know i missed all previous and i did see the ep that came with "30 Days of Night"...didn't really do anything for me. i think the more like Appleseed the better i will like this anime stuff.

so what does "Ex Machina" mean?

iirc, deus ex machina is commonly referred to an "easy way out" of a storyline. i remember it as "the hand of god" coming in to save the day, or something like that.

i think its translated from latin as "god in the machine".

i havent seen this new appleseed and the previous one ive seen prolly 2 years ago, so i have no idea what "ex machina" means in terms of appleseed.

hope i didnt confuse you too much

I wonder if they'll ever continue with Berserk's story line in anime form. I might just have to pick up the manga.

I think Deus ex Machina roughly translates as "god of (or from) the machine" so ex machina would be of/from the machine.
The original use was Greek theater, when, in order to resolve the play in the final act, Zeus (or whatever other god applied to the story) would be lowered down on a machine from the roof/ceiling/above the stage and slay the wicked/reward the mighty. Now, like hindolio said, it's the "gimme", easy way out, especially when it wasn't really expected or wasn't introduced earlier, such as where the person struggling for money to save the school or whatever, wins the lottery in the last two minutes of the movie even though you didn't even know his state had one.
Students of Greek literature/theater, please correct me where I'm wrong.

Requisite OT portion:
I just finished Full Metal Panic Fumoffu. Definitely not the same as the first series, but I enjoyed it a lot. I was in the mood for something funny, that I didn't have to invest a lot of energy in learning the characters/universe. Even though it was humor, Pony was a little creepy. Have to admit, though, I did laugh out loud a couple times, and even though I knew most of the episodes centered around "Sagara misinterprets something mundane in a military/terrorist fashion", it didn't wear out its welcome to me. Being 13 episodes helped, though I liked them all, often times by the time I get to 26 episodes, I'm just ready to finish the series. 18-20 episodes would probably be my optimal max, ie, the point where my attention starts to wane.
What's next? I've been working my way through Heat Guy J, but it's just not really attracting me. Someone suggest my next series to watch: Ai Yori Aoshi/Daphne in the Blue/Doki Doki School Hours/Excel Saga/Galaxy Angel/Galaxy Railways/Godannar/Someday's Dreamers/Witch Hunter Robin. I know I've done this before, but I'm really indecisive. I'm leaning toward Doki Doki for some more light content, but am open to suggestions.

Black Lagoon! That's what I suggest you to watch next. It has 2 seasons, but we only got 1 season (13 episodes) - thank to Genon's collapse.

Sorry, I cannot help it... One thing I really liked about Black Lagoon is one character named Revy. She's much similar with Sagara, but not with large armor like Sagara use in Full Metal Panic! series.

Anyway, I look at your list that you might watch next... I only saw one of them - Ai Yori Aoshi. Ai Yori Aoshi is pretty long and slow series, not exactly my cup of tea, but I laughed several episodes - mostly contains Tina.

My vote would go to Galaxy Railways. Partly because it is a very good series IMO, and partly because it is the only series in your list of choices that I have seen.

thanks hin and dt for clarifications! not confusing at all.
i just ordered the 1st "Appleseed" so i will be up to speed before long and i am sure will add to my enjoyment of Ex Machina.

The only one I have seen and can recommend is Excel Saga. And hopefully you don't have the thinpack version. One of my favorite aspects was the pop-up extra. For one they help give the jokes context and I enjoy the throwback to VH1's pop-up videos.

Be aware that Funimation is coming out with a Full Metal Panic-The Second Raid box set on May 20 and is required viewing. As for your list, I've seen them all and have enjoyed them all. If I had to pick just one, I would go with Witch Hunter Robin with Ai Yori Aoshi as a close second. If you like Aoshi, then make sure to check out the Enishi series as well.

dt, all your choices for consideration on what to watch next are good ones.
I originally picked up Witch Hunter Robin as a blind buy and really got into it. If I were to summarize the plot, I'd describe it as "Ghost in the Shell" meets "Blood - The Last Vampire." Great artwork, too.

sorry if it's dumb question but my gf is a big anime fan but doesn't have that many dvds so i'm thinking about getting her the complete Evangelion series, is the platinum collection the best edition out there or is there a better one?

Platinum is it currently.

The Platinum is the only way to go. Much improved PQ, sharper colors and most importantly, the jittery picture on the Perfect Collection has been fixed. Best Buy will have the thinpak on sale for just $28.99 starting this Sunday.

Yes, I've got the fullsize Excel Saga box set. I don't mind thinpaks, and some extras I don't mind losing, but when they're actual useful/informative features (and entertaining as well), that's definitely a loss. I was surprised they took those out for the thinpak.

FMP: Excellent, that's been an all around good series, I look forward to it.

I started Galaxy Railways, I like it so far except for...the fact that it's a train. Apart from being able to carry lots of civilians back, or to act as carriers for 'jet' type spaceships, I don't really see the point of its being a train other than as allegory or something.
I'll probably start Excel Saga on my 4:3 screen, I've been looking forward to watching that again (I watched the first couple disks then got the boxset, then never got around to continuing). Thanks for the tips and of course to everyone for the ongoing info.

Speaking of FMP, AOD reported this morning that the first Full Metal Panic! series will be getting a Blu-Ray release in Japan in June. Hopefully the price won't be too outrageous when it hits North America.

Fullmetal Panic Goes Blu (08:13 AM EDT): Though specs are still scant at the moment, another full series appears to be going to Blu-ray in Japan this year as the Fullmetal Panic Blu-ray Box has been announced for a 06/27/2008 release for a measly 35,112 yen.

My FMP series on standard DVD is good enough for me! But it's good to know that they're going to release on Blu-Ray.

That's $350!!!!

Fuck. That. Shit.

Damn, that Best Buy sale on anime is pretty good. I spent 80 bucks on four sets.

I'm now watching Chrono Crusade (first disc) and is that series was created by same makers of Fullmetal Alchemist?

No, Chrono Crusade is Gonzo and Fullmetal Alchemist is BONES/Aniplex. And as far as I can tell, none of the indivual staff are the same for both shows.

Maybe you are thinking of Full Metal Panic! which was also done by Gonzo.

Perhaps. The reason I asked, Chrono Crusade characters has similar facial expression as Fullmetal Alchemist and also drawing - yeah, FMP has similar drawing, but not same facial expression as CC does.

I have so much to learn on Anime universe.

An invaluable resource-


http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/

Slightly more details posted by AoD

It would be nice if ADV starts releasing on Blu like they claimed they would...

I hope ADV does get in the Blu-Ray business. $380-$500 for 1 season of anime on Blu-ray is insane. Funimation needs to get with the program and stop releasing poorly cropped crappy DBZ movies in high def. The only thing I could see topping the failure is Shin Chan on Blu-Ray.

I really do find it strange how anime gets cheaper when its translated, but manga gets more expensive. Manga is pretty much a two person job (translator and typesetter). They even have photocopiers now that will translate & typeset for you.

Anime however takes a lot more effort as you need to (for most cases) find someone to translate, timeset the subs, and not to mention find a cast of people to do the dub (who dont work for free i'd imagine).

My guess is that since the anime industry is huger in japan, they can get away with charging $70 for 4 episodes of a show. Bandai Visual seems to have tried this in R1 and they're about to join Geneon on the unemployment line from the news i've heard. They need to take notes from their counterparts at Bandai Entertainment and start releasing bricks with a $40 SRP.