Living in the database: the appeal of the unreal
Ever since the Wachowskis repackaged the themes and imagery of Masamune Shirow’s cyberpunk staple Ghost in the Shell for western [...]
Quickfire editorials
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The influence of Star Wars is written large on the Dragon Ball franchise, coded into its visual aesthetic and space opera storytelling. For all of the shared tropes and [...] -
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Anime poetry
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God-like and fragile, the boy Shun gave his lips to man and woman, whose touch he knew but couldn’t handle. Spectral in darkness in wait, him awake and slumbered, living yet lifeless, nothing and other. Brave Shun behind his white mask, [...]
Reviews
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Ten years after Negima?! abruptly ended little Negi Springfield’s magical training, UQ Holder! picks up eighty years on in the anime’s timeline. Instead, his grandson Tota Konoe steps into his mage’s shoes and joins the UQ Holder, a secret organisation of superheroic immortals. A simple enough set-up, but it nonetheless requires several convoluted plot strands and reams of exposition before the titular group can even come together. At the very least, this sequel to the series based on Ken [...] -
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Essays and editorials
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Ever since the Wachowskis repackaged the themes and imagery of Masamune Shirow’s cyberpunk staple Ghost in the Shell for western audiences in 1999, the notion of living in a virtual world has become something of a fascination among creatives, consumers and conspiracy theorists. The most frightening aspect of The Matrix was in how perfectly the illusion recreated our own existence so that no one thought to question it. And yet, in 2016, in an ever increasing milieu of virtual reality and [...] -
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In the spotlight
Dragon Ball’s enduring generational appeal
The influence of Star Wars is written large on the Dragon Ball franchise, coded into its visual aesthetic and space opera storytelling. For all of the shared tropes and visual cues, it’s the family saga facet that unites these two properties more [...]
