RoboCop (1987)

RoboCop

Directed by: Paul Verhoeven
Starring: Peter Weller, Nancy Allen
Distributed by: Orion Pictures
Country: United States
Rating: MPAA: R (US), 15+ (KR)

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RoboCop is a 1987 science fiction film directed by Paul Verhoeven. Set in a crime-ridden Detroit, Michigan in the near future, RoboCop centers on a police officer who is brutally murdered and subsequently re-created as a super-human cyborg known as "RoboCop". In addition to being an action film, RoboCop includes larger themes regarding the media, gentrification, corruption, and human nature. It has spawned merchandise, two sequels, three television series, a television mini-series, video games and two comic book adaptations.

The film features Peter Weller, Dan O'Herlihy, Kurtwood Smith, Nancy Allen, Miguel Ferrer and Ronny Cox.

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Synopsis

In a dystopian future, the city of Detroit, Michigan is on the verge of collapse due to financial ruin and unchecked crime. The city brings in the mega-corporation Omni Consumer Products, or OCP, to solve the problems. OCP promptly privatizes the police force. OCP makes plans to destroy "Old Detroit" to replace it with the utopia of "Delta City."

The OCP Chairman (Dan O'Herlihy) recognizes that the human law enforcement is insufficient to stop the crime spree and seeks other opportunities. Senior President Dick Jones (Ronny Cox) offers a "law enforcement 'droid," the ED-209, but when the demonstration kills one of the other executives, the President of OCP turns instead to the "RoboCop" program to create an augmented cyborg, led by junior executive Bob Morton (Miguel Ferrer). Jones becomes bitterly jealous of Morton, as Bob Morton's accomplishment with Robocop allows him to move up on the ladder of success in the OCP ranks.

Veteran police officer Alexander James Murphy (Peter Weller) is transferred to a new precinct and partnered with Anne Lewis (Nancy Allen). On their first patrol, they chase down a team of criminals led by crime boss Clarence Boddicker (Kurtwood Smith) to an abandoned steel mill outside town. Murphy and Lewis separate, and Boddicker's men capture Murphy, sadistically murdering him by shooting him many times with shotguns before running off. Murphy is pronounced dead at the hospital, but OCP takes his body and uses it to create the first RoboCop. RoboCop is guided by three law enforcement tenets written into his programming, called Directives: serve the public trust, protect the innocent and uphold the law.

He is able to single-handedly deal with much of the violent crime in the city, causing the rest of the police force to become worried they may be replaced. However, RoboCop still retains memories of his life as Murphy, including brief glimpses of his wife and son, and the action of spinning his gun before holstering it, a trick Murphy had done for his son. Lewis recognizes these elements from Murphy's mannerisms, and tries to learn more from RoboCop, but he remains silent on the issues. Because of Robocop's success, Morton is promoted to become one of OCP's Vice Presidents.

Morton's success and arrogance leads Jones to have Boddicker, secretly in his employ, kill the junior executive. An armed gas station holdup by one of Boddicker's men allows RoboCop to track down Boddicker to a cocaine bunker. RoboCop bursts into the facility and a shootout between him and the bandits ensues. RoboCop then apprehends Boddicker and forcefully makes him reveal his alliance with Dick Jones. RoboCop then visits Jones at his offices at OCP, showing him Boddicker's statement and prepares to arrest Jones. However, as RoboCop does so, a previously unknown and secret fourth Directive activates that prevents RoboCop from acting against any senior executive of OCP. Jones boasts to RoboCop about the Fourth Directive, which he added, and his role in Morton's murder, and then sends an ED-209 against RoboCop. RoboCop, handicapped by his neural network, engages the machine. The ED-209, though possessing impressive advanced technology proves incapable of descending a stairway. When Robocop gets outside, the police SWAT team is waiting for him with orders to destroy him, but Lewis, having followed RoboCop, saves him.

Lewis tends to RoboCop's injuries at the same steel mill where Murphy was killed, and discovers that there is still some of Murphy present despite the cyborg augmentation. Meanwhile, the police launch their long-threatened strike, sending the city into chaos. Jones arranges for Boddicker and his men to be released from prison and funds them with new cars and Cobra Assault Cannons capable of puncturing RoboCop's heavy armor. Boddicker's team converges on the steel mill using a tracking device provided by OCP. RoboCop and Lewis defend themselves and kill the whole gang, though Lewis is severely wounded.

RoboCop returns to OCP headquarters and uses one of the Assault Cannons to destroy the ED-209 guarding the building. Arriving in the middle of an executive board meeting with the president, Jones, and other executives, RoboCop plays back Jones's confession to Morton's murder and explains his inability to arrest OCP employees. Jones quickly grabs a gun and takes the president hostage and begins making demands. The president, in response to being taken hostage and enlightened by RoboCop's explanation of the Fourth Directive, fires Jones, invalidating his protection under it. After thanking the president, RoboCop promptly shoots Jones, who then falls out of the window to his death. As the board room recovers from the crisis, the president commends RoboCop for his skill and asks for his name, to which he replies, "Murphy".

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RoboCop

Oh My Goddess! (ああっ女神さまっ, Ah! My Goddess!)

Oh My Goddess!

Oh My Goddess! (ああっ女神さまっ Ā Megami-sama), also known as Ah! My Goddess!, is a Japanese seinen manga series written and illustrated by Kōsuke Fujishima. It premiered in the September 1988 issue of Afternoon where it is still being serialized. As of December 2009, the individual chapters have been collected and published in 40 tankōbon volumes by Kodansha. The series centers on the relationship between college sophomore Keiichi Morisato and the goddess Belldandy.

As the manga's popularity increased, a five-episode original video animation (OVA) was made based on it. With the OVA's success, the stage was set for two TV series and a film to follow.

Plot

Keiichi Morisato is a good-natured, yet hapless and girlfriend-less college freshman who is often imposed upon by his elder dorm-mates and brow-beaten into taking phone messages and doing miscellaneous chores for them. One day, while alone in his dorm, he accidentally calls the Goddess Technical Help Line and a beautiful goddess named Belldandy materializes in his room. She tells him that her agency has received a system request from him, so she has been sent to grant him a single wish. Skeptical and thinking someone is playing a practical joke on him, he wishes that she stay with him forever. To his surprise, his wish is granted. Belldandy must stay with him, but as his dormitory is strictly male-only, they are both forced onto the street.

They set off on his motorcycle to find alternative shelter, eventually seeking cover in an old Buddhist temple. In the morning, they are greeted by the temple's sole inhabitant, a young monk, who welcomes them and gives them permission to stay until they can find permanent lodging. He immediately puts them to work maintaining the temple grounds, but when he sees Belldandy use her powers to save Keiichi from injury, he begins to fear that she may be a demon or sorceress. He is eventually convinced of Belldandy's intrinsic goodness when he witnesses her solicitous care of the temple premises and her perfect meditation ritual. When he decides to go on a pilgrimage to India, the priest gives the couple permission to remain in the temple so long as they continue to maintain it.

Oh My Goddess! Universe

The Oh My Goddess! universe is fashioned quite loosely around the Norse mythology. At least three worlds are apparent, including heaven, hell, and earth. However, it has been stated that many other worlds exist as well. Heaven is the realm of the Lord and goddesses; while Hell, the Daimakaicho and demons. Earth is the realm of the humans, and until recently, is largely unexposed to the presence of either goddesses or demons, as they can unbalance the happiness in the world. Reality is controlled by an enormous and complex computer system, named Yggdrasil, similar to the tree of the Norse mythology.

Each goddess has a certain designation and may or may not have an accompanying angel, depending on their skill and power. Belldandy is a Goddess First Class, Second Category, Unlimited License. Class refers to precision and power level. Second category, for example, is a commercial license; and the limit indicates what you are permitted to do. Urd is a Goddess Second Class, Administration, Limited License. Skuld is a Second Class, First Category, Limited License. Other categories include the Combat division, to which the Valkyries belong. Goddesses may be penalized for dereliction of duty, which includes suspension of their licenses. A typical suspension can last anywhere from a week for the first infraction to 50 years or more, though attending a study hall in heaven can reduce this term. A Goddess using her powers during suspension will have her license permanently revoked. The licensing division is under the Goddess Assistance Agency.

Young goddesses often do not have angels, but are given an angel's egg. When their power matures, the angel's egg hatches and the angel becomes the lifetime companion of the goddess. The angels obey the goddesses no matter what, as they are reflections of the goddesses' inner self. The angels are generally born fully mature and cognizant of the world around them. Furthermore, the goddesses typically have three blue markings on their face, two on the cheek and one on the forehead; while demons are marked similarly with red markings. More powerful beings may have more complex designs to these markings.

Despite having phenomenal powers, the Goddesses wear power limiters. It is said that a first class Goddess at full power can easily destroy the Earth. Belldandy's power limiter is the second clasp on her left ear. Goddesses also possess particular proficiency in certain magical domains; Skuld uses water magic, Belldandy uses wind, and Urd uses fire magic, though both Belldandy and Urd are capable of using lightning magic. Furthermore, Urd is ascribed to the past; Belldandy, the present; and Skuld, the future. Goddesses may also need to recharge their power via various means, especially in the case of a system malfunction: Belldandy by sleep, Urd by drinking Sake, and Skuld by eating ice cream. Their repertoire of magical skills may vary as well. The goddesses can have various means of transportation: Belldandy by mirrors, Urd by television screens, Skuld by water, Peorth by camera lenses and Lind by windows. Moreover, it's probable that these are only the preferred ways to move (apart from Skuld, as she has less experience with magic) especially for long distances. We can see a few cases in which they show alternative methods of transportation: Urd, Peorth and Marller (or Mara, in some English translations) simply appear and disappear (they probably transported themselves to nearby places) and Urd again by water. Finally, the inability to lie appears to be part and parcel of being a first class goddess.

One interesting power demonstrated by the goddesses is a form of psychometry. By focusing their powers, a goddess can identify the aura of a goddess in contact with an object previously and replay the events surrounding that time.

The lifespan appears to differ quite a bit from humans. Their childhood seems to match that of a human, but their adulthood may last hundreds of years. However, the exact measurement of time is unclear, as time in heaven can pass much slower than that on Earth. As such, it is possible that in fact they do age at the same rate as humans, just appearing slower, because they live in a different realm. So, what seems like fifty years to us, maybe be only five days to them. Furthermore, old age has not been demonstrated in the series, so their elder years are unknown. In a chapter in the manga, it is stated that they do not grow old in the human world, and they witnessed various deaths already. The goddesses' metabolism also can vary from humans and from goddess-to-goddess as well. Belldandy, for example, becomes drunk on cola, something not experienced by humans or Skuld and Urd. They do seem to be able to eat all the same foods as humans, however.

The goddesses' purpose is to bring happiness to everyone around them. Toward that end, heaven has created the Goddess Relief Agency (The Goddess Technical Help Line in the manga), designed to bring happiness to the people of Earth, especially those with great virtue but terrible misfortune. A competing institution, named the Earth Assistance Center, also is staffed by goddesses. In most scenarios, a goddess appears before one that the system has deemed worthy and grants him or her one wish. The wish must be approved by the system, after which a contract is created between the human and the goddess and stored on the Yggdrasil system as a file. The wish contract file is protected by a passcode known to the Goddess. As demons work toward the opposite end, the total happiness on Earth must remain in balance. Heaven and hell strictly abide by an agreement to work through contracts and never kill each other.

Demons have similar class and license restrictions, and are accompanied by familiars instead of angels. A seal exists between the demon world and Earth, named the Gate to the Netherworld. It was "created by the gods and can only be broken by an instrument of the gods." As such, demons require a catalyst to manifest on earth. The demons possess a system similar to Yggdrasil, named Nidhogg. Both demons and goddesses possess the power to seal beings away. The demons also operate in a fashion similar to goddesses by creating contracts with humans and offering them wishes, but often at a price.

Other elements in the Goddess universe are programs that can be constructed by either the goddesses or the demons for any number of purposes. One example is the Ultimate Destruction Program, a program written by demons to create a world for demons by destroying humanity. Countermeasures include directly destroying the program or using a vaccine, a program specifically designed to nullify its target program. Programs designed to destroy systems and with self-replicative abilities are known as viruses, much like the computer viruses in the modern world.

Other creatures that exist in the Earth plane are a multitude of spirits that are responsible for almost every aspect of life. These include the spirits of Money, Wind, Engine and such. More specific entities include Earth spirits, which are guardians over a specific area of land. Morgan le Fay, a villain from the movie, is probably a high ranking Earth spirit (or a being from another dimension, but that is less likely because her tragic love story with a human must have happened on Earth) who demonstrates great strength fighting Belldandy and Urd, even though her powers are less potent than the ones of goddesses of their level.

References to Norse mythology

In creating Oh My Goddess!, Fujishima has borrowed extensively from Norse mythology.
The main example of this can be found in the names of the three heroines of the story — Urd, Belldandy, and Skuld. These are the names of the three Norns, the beings in charge of twining the thread of fate for all living beings. Urd, Verdandi, and Skuld represent the past, present and future in traditional Norse and the domains of the three goddesses match accordingly.

In English translations, Belldandy's name is not written as "Verthandi" or "Verdandi" as would be expected if it were a transliteration from the original Old Norse (Verðandi). This is because the spelling and pronunciation of the name were derived from the Japanese language transliteration used in the manga, not from the original Old Norse. The Japanese transliteration came about as a result of the phonology of the Japanese language. First, there is no [v] in Japanese, and so it is rendered /b/. Next, there is no [ð] in Japanese, so it is rendered as /d/. Finally, due to the fact that the phonotactics of Japanese only allows syllables to end in vowels or /n/, an epenthetic /u/ was added after the /r/. All these changes meant that the original name "Verðandi" was transliterated as, ベルダンディー -, Berudandī. This was then in turn transliterated into English as "Belldandy". In the Swedish translation of the manga, her name is Verdandi.

The other major example of Norse reference stems from Yggdrasil, the tree that holds up the world; the Norns are said to work at the foot of this holy tree. In Oh My Goddess, the power of the goddesses is regulated by the Yggdrasil system, a physically giant, hopelessly complex computer system. The Yggdrasil system is used to access and process wish requests transferred by the Goddess Technical Helpline and the Earth Assistance Hotline, as well as to enforce the implementation of the accepted wishes. This system is so important to the dimension inhabited by the goddesses that, when it breaks down after an attack by the Lord of Terror, the goddesses are not able to successfully fulfill their basic life functions. It is during this story arc that readers learn that the Yggdrasil system is also used to convert energy gathered from the earth into that which the goddesses can then use to function. This particular use of Yggdrasil is meant to add dramatic color to certain storylines, and is not strictly held to throughout the rest of the series, as the system seems to be working fine most of the time.

Other examples include the periodic cameos made by Sleipnir, the heavenly steed, and Belldandy's use of Norse runes throughout the storyline. Also, it is revealed later in the series that the demons have a counterpart system to Yggdrasil — the Nidhogg system. In Norse mythology, Nidhogg is the name of the dragon that is wrapped around the base of the Yggdrasil tree, continually gnawing at its roots.

Additionally, Peorth is named after one of the runes. Peorth is the mysterious fourth goddess who is employed by a rival agency to Belldandy's. Not much is revealed about her past, except for that she and Belldandy worked together at the Yggdrasil debugging station. However, readers get the direct impression that Peorth is a fun-loving risk-taker who will stop at nothing to achieve her goals. Her name makes sense, then, as the Peorth rune is classically interpreted as risk-taking and mystery. Tied to Peorth is her use of the Vanir bird to refresh Belldandy's memory. The Vanir are another set of Norse gods tied to fertility and peace — the Vanir bird's function is to reveal the past, and thus bring peace between friends.

Hild, the CEO of the infernal realm, is named after one of the Valkyries, the battle spirits who take the ghostly spirits of fallen soldiers to Valhalla. According to several sources, Hild means "The Battle."

In the most recent installments of the manga, a fifth goddess is introduced into the character set. Her name is Rind, and she is a member of the Ah! My Goddess version of the Valkyries — special agents who are trained in the ways of battle. In traditional mythology, Rind is an ice giantess who becomes pregnant with Odin's child. In the English translation, her name is Lind.

Skuld's second android invention is given the name Sigel by Belldandy after a story arc revolving around the question of whether machines are alive. Sigel wants very much to be alive, and so her name is also appropriate — the Sigel rune is the rune of life.

In the Lord of Terror arc Mara utilized the urn Mao Za Haxon, which contained the Ultimate Destruction Program's bootup protocol, which eventually led Urd to summon a huge dog-spirit named Fenrir. In Norse mythology, Fenrir or Fenrisulfr is a monstrous wolf, the son of Loki and the giantess Angrboða, who is destined to kill Odin at Ragnarok.

In another installment an exorcist in training accidentally summons Garm. In Norse mythology, Garm is a huge dog which guards Hel, the land of the dead, alongside of Hræsvelgr. Garm was the greatest of all dogs and lived in a cave called Gnipahellir.

In the movie adaptation of Ah! My Goddess, Peorth is given the order to nullify the threat to the world-tree by using the eradiction spell Gungnir. Gungnir is the name of the enchanted spear used by Odin, the king of the Norse gods.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oh_My_Goddess!

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Clash of the Titans (2010)

Clash of the Titans (2010)

Directed by: Louis Leterrier
Produced by: Basil Iwanyk, Kevin De La Noy, Lynn Harris
Studio: Legendary Pictures
Distributed by: Warner Bros. Pictures
Release date(s): April 2, 2010
Running time: 118 minutes
Country: United Kingdom, United States

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Clash of the Titans is a 2010 fantasy film and remake of the 1981 film of the same name. As with the 1981 film, the story is very loosely based upon the Greek myth of Perseus. Directed by Louis Leterrier and starring Sam Worthington, the film was originally set for standard release on March 26, 2010. However, it was later announced that the film would be converted to 3D and was finally released on April 2, 2010.

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Plot

The film begins with a narration that explains the three Olympians who battled the Titans long ago: Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades. Hades provided their means of defeating the Titans with his creation, the Kraken. After the Titans' defeat, Zeus created humans and ruled them while Poseidon ruled the sea, but Hades, having been deceived by his brother Zeus, was forced to rule the Underworld, learns an alternative way of gaining power from humans different from his brothers receiving theirs from human prayer: through fear.

Millennia later, a fisherman named Spyros finds a coffin adrift in the sea, discovering a baby, Perseus, and his dead mother, Danaë, inside. Spyros decides to raise Perseus as his own. Years later, Perseus and his family are fishing when they witness a group of soldiers from Argos destroying a statue of Zeus as a declaration of war against the Gods. Hades appears and commands harpies to massacre the soldiers before he himself destroys Perseus' family's fishing boat. Perseus tries to save his family, but to no avail, the surviving soldiers take Perseus back to Argos. During a feast for the returning soldiers, King Cepheus and Queen Cassiopeia of Argos compare themselves and their daughter, Andromeda, to the Gods much to their daughter's dismay. After convincing his brother to let him loose on humanity to punish Argos for its defiance, Hades appears in the courtroom before killing the remaining soldiers while Perseus is unaffected. Revealing Perseus to be the Demigod son of Zeus, and aging Cassiopeia to death, Hades threatens that if Princess Andromeda is not sacrificed to the Kraken, Argos will be destroyed in 10 days. Hermes, the messenger God, approaches Zeus on Olympus, revealing the location of his son Perseus. While Hermes suggests offering Perseus sanctuary, Zeus declares that he shall be left to his fate, along with the other infidel mortals.

The king seeks the help of Perseus after he is beaten and threatened to be thrown in a fire pit. Perseus initially refuses and gets locked in the dungeon, until he meets Io, a woman who does not age as punishment for refusing to be seduced by the God Ares. Io then reveals her conception was a punishment conducted by Zeus on Acrisius, the former king of Argos who was married to Danaë, for his actions against the Gods.Zeus sneaks in disguised as an eagle. Zeus copulated with Danaë and, as Acrisius came in, escaped. When Acrisius sets Danaë and the baby Perseus adrift in their coffin, an enraged Zeus struck Acrisius with lightning, leaving him hideously disfigured. After learning that killing the Kraken would allow him to have his revenge against Hades, Perseus accepts as he and Argos' finest soldiers embark on a quest to find the Stygian Witches with a pair of Persian monster-hunters named Ixas and Kucuk, and Io following. To counter this turn of events, Hades enlists Acrisius, now called Calibos, to kill off Perseus by imbuing him with superhuman powers.

While in the woods, Perseus and his men discover a sword forged in Olympus that will only display power if it is wielded by Perseus. While separated from the group, Perseus encounters Zeus' sacred herd of flying horses, the Pegasus. However, Perseus refuses both the sword and the pure-black Pegasus that the Gods were offering as assistance, as he does not wish to be a God. Calibos attacks the group and tries to murder Perseus, killing several soldiers in the process, but Calibos is unsuccessful, losing his hand before escaping. However, Calibos's blood forms giant scorpions from the sand that attack Perseus and his group. Though they slay several scorpions, most of the group are slain, and the survivors are surrounded by more of the monsters. They are saved by the Djinn, a band of shamans once human, who have turned themselves into the Demons of Arabian mythology by replacing their earthly flesh with ash and stone; thus making them immortal. The mysterious beings are able to hypnotize the scorpions into submission. Though not trusted prior to healing Perseus's wound, the Djinn leader, Sheikh Suleiman, joins Perseus's group as his kind wish to see the Gods wish for destruction to fail.

The heroes arrive at Garden of Stygia, learning from the Stygian Witches that the head of the Gorgon Medusa could kill the Kraken, but that Perseus and his group will die in the process. After leaving the witches, with the hunters taking their leave, Perseus is visited by Zeus who offers him asylum on Mount Olympus, but he refuses. Zeus gives him instead a golden drachma, which Perseus later learns is a means to bribe Charon for passage into the Underworld. While Io remains outside Medusa's lair, due to a spell that forbids any woman from entering the area, Perseus's remaining soldiers fight hard to stay alive, turning to stone one by one by her gaze. But with Suleiman self-destructing himself and Draco's sacrifice, Perseus manages to behead Medusa. Perseus emerges in time to see Calibos stab Io from behind. Perseus engages Calibos in combat and kills him using the sword from Olympus, turning him back into Acrisius in human form. With his final breath as Hades's power leaving him, Acrisius tells Perseus to never become a God. Perseus stays with the dying Io until she passes on and flies away in gold dust to Olympus. He then rides Pegasus back to Argos with Medusa's head to find some of Argos's citizens have formed a Cult of Hades and are planning to sacrifice Andromeda to the Kraken against the king's wishes. By then, Hades reveals to Zeus the destruction of Argos will give him enough power to overthrow the other Olympians; when Zeus reveals Perseus is still alive in Argos, Hades leaves his powerless brother to ensure his victory.

Perseus returns to Argos, but Hades sends his harpies to stop him. Perseus defeats the creatures sent by Hades and uses the head of Medusa to turn the Kraken into stone as Cepheus is killed by the cult leader, who is then crushed under the shattering Kraken. Hades appears and sneers that Perseus cannot kill him, since he is a God. Perseus retorts that while Hades can live forever, it will not be in the world of men and uses the sword with Zeus' lightning bolt to banish Hades back to the Underworld. After saving Argos from destruction and Andromeda from drowning, Andromeda herself suggests that Perseus will become king and rule Argos at her side, but he declines. On the broken statue of Zeus, the God of Olympus appears before Perseus again and offers to make him a God, but for a second time he refuses. Zeus warns Perseus that Hades will return to rule the world in darkness when he amasses enough fear from mankind. Since Perseus is intent to stay on Earth, Zeus resurrects Io, and the two embrace while Pegasus flies above them.

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Cast

Sam Worthington as Perseus main protagonist, and son of Zeus
Liam Neeson as Zeus, the leader of the Gods of Mount Olympus
Ralph Fiennes as Hades, God of the Underworld and the primary villain
Gemma Arterton as Io, a woman cursed with agelessness who guides Perseus in his quest and narrates the Titanomachy at the start of the film
Alexa Davalos as Andromeda, the princess that will be sacrificed to the kraken
Izabella Miko as Athena, Goddess of Wisdom and Knowledge
Mads Mikkelsen as Draco, leader of the Praetorian Guard
Jason Flemyng as Acrisius/Calibos
Danny Huston as Poseidon, God of the rivers, oceans and seas
David Kennedy as Cepheus's General
Tamer Hassan as Ares, God of war and battle
Pete Postlethwaite as Spyros, foster father of Perseus
Polly Walker as Cassiopeia, Queen of Argos
Vincent Regan as Cepheus, King of Argos
Luke Treadaway as Prokopion
Luke Evans as Apollo, God of the Sun, Poetry, Truth, Art and Healing.
Nathalie Cox as Artemis, Goddess of hunting and animals
Nina Young as Hera, Goddess of women and marriage and a wife of Zeus
Kaya Scodelario as Peshet
Nicholas Hoult as Eusebios
Ian Whyte as Sheikh Sulieman, The Djinn who assisted Perseus and the praetorian guards of Argos
Agyness Deyn as Aphrodite, Goddess of love, sex and beauty
Paul Kynman as Hephaestus, God of fire
Alexander Siddig as Hermes, Messenger of the Gods
Charlotte Comer as Demeter, Goddess of the Earth and agriculture
Jane March as Hestia, Goddess of the hearth
Natalia Vodianova as Medusa, The mortal Gorgon
Hans Matheson as Ixas
Mouloud Achour as Kucuk
Liam Cunningham as Solon
Ross Mullan as Pemphredo
Ashraf Barhom as Ozal

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Creatures

Stygian Witches - Three women with gray skin and only one eye they share amongst them. They have a taste for human flesh, as their "knowledge demands payment".
Giant scorpions - Scorpions born from the blood of Acrisius; hypnotized by the Djinn.
Gorgon - Medusa the gorgon appears in the film as a giant, half snake, half human creature. She is beheaded by Perseus, leaving the rest of her body to fall into a lava pit.
Djinn - spirit beings living in the desert with magical powers.
Kraken - an enormous sea monster who defeated the titans and was turned to stone by Medusa's head.
Harpies - Winged demons who come from the body of Hades.
Pegasus - The winged horse that Perseus uses to ride to the confrontation with the Kraken.
Bubo - The mechanical owl from the 1981 film makes a cameo appearance early in the film.

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Sequel

It has been stated that a sequel will be developed. Director Louis Leterrier will not come back to direct but will be an executive producer on the project. Clash of the Titans II has a tentative 2012 release date.

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Greek mythology in popular culture | English-language films | American epic films | Films based on Greco-Roman mythology | Film remakes | Warner Bros. films | Legendary Pictures films | American fantasy adventure films | 3-D films | D-BOX motion-enhanced films | 2010 films

Girls Bravo

Girls Bravo

Japanese TV Ani (Season 1: 12 episodes + Season 2: 12 episodes)
Ratings: 17+ (15+, Japan)

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Girls Bravo (GIRLSブラボー Gārusu Burabō) is a bishōjo manga series, created by Mario Kaneda, which ran in Shōnen Ace beginning in December 2000. In 2004, AIC produced an anime adaptation, which originally ran on Fuji Television before switching to WOWOW for the latter half of the series. The anime series is licensed and distributed in North America by Geneon Universal Entertainment, while Tokyopop publishes the manga. In Singapore, the manga is published by Chuang Yi.

Story

Girls Bravo features a young male student named Yukinari Sasaki who was teased and bullied by girls to the point that he developed an allergic reaction, breaking out in hives whenever he comes into contact with a female. One day, when he comes back from school, he gets kicked into his bathtub by Kirie and is transported to "Seiren", a mysterious world with a mostly female population. While Seiren is featured in several episodes, the majority of the series takes place in Japan.

Characters

Major characters

Yukinari Sasaki (佐々木 雪成 Sasaki Yukinari), the series main character. Because of his small stature and generally meek disposition, Yukinari has been bullied by girls his entire life and therefore suffers an allergic reaction that causes him to break out in hives whenever he comes into contact with a woman. (in 2 instances he loses concioussness after being hugged/and or touching a girls breasts.) One day, he is knocked into his bathtub and is transported to the alien world of Seiren, a planet where men comprise less than 10% of the population. Upon arriving in Seiren, Yukinari meets a young girl named Miharu who for some reason does not cause him to break out on contact. Yukinari has a bad habit of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. This, along with other 'close encounters', gets him kicked, punched, and otherwise beaten up by Kirie. He lives alone in the anime.

Voiced by: Mamiko Noto (Japanese), Yuri Lowenthal (English)

Miharu Sena Kanaka (ミハル·セナ·カナカ), a pink-haired resident of Seiren who pulled Yukinari into her world and later followed him back to Earth to live with him. She has a mark on her forehead shaped like three dots in a triangle, which provides her with several powers, such as the ability to transfer between Seiren and Earth, and the power to create explosions whenever she's in emotional distress. She is also the only woman who can touch Yukinari without triggering his allergy. Miharu has an outrageous appetite and an impossibly rapid metabolism. She spends most of the series questioning her friends whether something is edible or not (like butterflies), and her continuous misunderstandings about Earth (such as believing that April Fools' Day means that everyone on Earth lies for one day) is the title's primary source of humor. Despite this, she has a heart of gold, an explorer's fascination with Earth and a genuinely open affection for Yukinari. She is an extremely innocent girl who does not show any discomfort with being partially or fully naked in front of Yukinari, and she does not lose her temper even when made the target of Fukuyama's lecherous actions, unless in the process he eats or otherwise ruins whatever she happens to be eating at the time.

Voiced by: Ayako Kawasumi (Japanese), Michelle Ruff (English)

Kirie Kojima (小島 桐絵 Kojima Kirie), Yukinari's neighbor and classmate who takes care of him from time to time. She's especially well-endowed, which makes her a natural target for Kazuharu Fukuyama's perverted actions. However, due to her physical aptitude and martial-arts abilities, she always manages to turn the tables on him. She also sometimes punishes Yukinari for his 'perverted' actions, although they are accidental on Yukinari's part. Kirie accidentally sends Yukinari to his first arrival into Seiren when she slugs him for unintentionally peeping on her when her shower wasn't working correctly and she used Yukinari's instead, which led him to fall into the bathtub. Despite their somewhat turbulent relationship, it's hinted many times that she has much deeper feelings for Yukinari, and possibly towards Fukuyama, describing him as 'my type of idiot' in the last episode. Because of her strong character, Kirie seems to attract a large number of admirers among the boys in her high school. In the anime she also attracts female admirers, specifically Kosame and Ms. Hijiri, much to her chagrin, although in the manga Kirie was accosted by an alternate version of Lisa when she entered a parallel world through an enchanted mirror in Fukuyama's house. A running joke throughout the series is Kirie's complete lack of cooking skills which result in the creation of food that's not only inedible but hazardous as well. In fact, Fukuyama once ate a bento lunch prepared by her and fell ill. Kirie suffers an overwhelming fear of ghosts and the paranormal, and despite her tomboyish character enjoys collecting dolls.

Voiced by: Chiwa Saitō (Japanese), Stephanie Sheh (English, credited as Lulu Chiang)

Kazuharu Fukuyama (福山 和春 Fukuyama Kazuharu), a classmate of Yukinari and Kirie and the series primary antagonist. Fukuyama is rich, powerful, and perverted and while he often chases girls and picks on Yukinari (who he nicknames "chibi-nari", or "puny-nari" in the English dub) he does show a serious, caring side in critical situations. He is a severe androphobe to the point that he's developed an allergy that causes him to break out with a rash whenever he comes into contact with another male. Extremely stealthful, he has the ability to suddenly appear without the others noticing until he announces his presence, whereupon he either gropes or strips the girls of their clothing, which always earns him a severe beating from Kirie. Despite his own lecherous behaviour, Fukuyama is highly protective of his younger sister, Lisa, and strongly objects to her affections for Yukinari.

Voiced by: Ryotaro Okiayu (Japanese), Liam O'Brien (English)

Lisa Fukuyama (福山 リサ Fukuyama Risa), Fukuyama's slightly insane younger sister. Lisa is a master of black magic, which has caused more than a few problems throughout the series (infesting her family's mansion with ghosts, summoning a giant octopus in the school swimming pool, causing an explosion within a shopping center). Lisa is constantly accompanied by Hayate and Kosame, who cater to her every whim such as gathering intelligence or even kidnapping. She develops an infatuation for Yukinari after his appearance matches a description in her horoscope for her soul mate and often employs her magic to get closer to him—with predictably disastrous results. Although she considers Miharu a rival, she is very fond of Ebi, who reminds her of the pet cat she owned when she was a little girl. In the anime, Ebi's girl form reminds her of the beloved doll she used to spend her days with, which she was reunited with later on in the series.

Voiced by: Yuki Matsuoka (Japanese), Hunter MacKenzie Austin (English)

Koyomi Hare Nanaka (コヨミ·ハレ·ナナカ), a resident of Seiren who suffers a paralyzing fear of men. Her phobia is only made worse by being one of Fukuyama's favorite targets; in the manga, this results in her keeping a diary of the many times he's accosted her. Originally sent to Earth on a mission from the Space Travel Agency to 'retrieve' Miharu, she later moves into Yukinari's house on a prolonged mission to find a husband for Maharu, Miharu's sister. Of course, her male phobia makes the act of even talking to a man nearly impossible. In the anime, Koyomi is also searching for her long-lost father, a native of Earth, whom she later reunites with at the series' end. Koyomi's favorite pastime is reading, and she has a natural talent for table tennis. In the anime she's even won the Seiren tournament five years in a row. Koyomi's mother possessed a Seikon mark like Miharu, and Koyomi herself possesses a dormant form of Seikon, which allowed her to create a portal to Seiren after Miharu was kidnapped in the anime. Koyomi in the anime also adopts a large python as a pet after being tricked into wearing it over herself during Fukuyama's Cosplay Mahjong game, which is ironic considering her fear of men and snakes being a phallic symbol.

Voiced by: Masayo Kurata (Japanese), Carrie Savage (English)

Tomoka Lana Jude (トモカ·ラナ·ジュード Tomoka Rana Jūdo), a resident of Seiren who was sent to aid Koyomi in finding Maharu a groom after Koyomi's less than productive efforts. Although a child, Tomoka deeply resents being treated as one and insists that she's as mature as anyone else, despite frequent actions by her which prove otherwise. Unlike the other female characters, she gets along fairly well with Fukuyama (presumably because she's too young for him to have any sexual interest in), whom she refers to as "big-brother," and the two occasionally team up to obtain some mutual objective. In the anime, Tomoka frequently uses Ebi as a makeshift club for hitting almost anything and anyone. Tomoka can also use transformation magic, and in the anime becomes friends with Lisa after conceding defeat in a magical duel. She is also obsessed with Poyon, her favorite TV show character. Because she's a child, Tomoka is able to have contact with Yukinari without triggering his female allergy. She also looks up to Kirie as a "big-sister" ("onee-chan" in the original dub). For example, she follows Kirie's example of drop-kicking Fukuyama right in the face. In the manga, Tomoka is later revealed to be a genius capable of instantly answering a complex math equation from a college entrance exam.

Voiced by: Ayaka Saito (Japanese), J-Ray (English)

Ebi (えび), a rare and magical creature from Seiren. Ebi in the manga was accidentally summoned by Miharu during a bath, whereas in the anime she was accidentally brought to earth in Tomoka's luggage. In both versions, Miharu adopts her as a pet, although in the anime she originally wondered if Ebi would taste good. She resembles a plump miniature seal with the face of a cat and a pair of large bobbing antenna, which causes Miharu to claim she resembles a shrimp and is where her name came from (ebi being the Japanese word for shrimp). Ebi in the anime suffers a great deal of torment at the hands of Tomoka, who uses her as a flail, fishing bait, a handball, etc. On one occasion, Tomoka transformed Ebi into a small green-haired girl to show off her magical knowledge, although in the manga Tomoka only did it briefly, as Yukinari and Kirie paid more attention to the transformed Ebi than to her. Ebi is surprisingly intelligent, and during a Mahjong match in the anime, she thought through the entire play in her mind. Unfortunately, Tomoka was a novice and Ebi couldn't speak human language, rendering her plan fruitless. Ebi in the anime is also able to shoot a powerful beam attack (called the E-beam by Tomoka) from her mouth.

Voiced by: Tomoko Kaneda/Fumihiko Tachiki (Japanese)

Minor characters

Maharu Sena Kanaka (マハル·セナ·カナカ), Miharu's well-endowed older sister. She is very determined and won't hesitate to use violence to get her way. Although initially jealous of Miharu's relationship with Yukinari, she later gave her blessing for them to be together. Much to Yukinari's dismay, that does not stop her from flirting and fondling him whenever she gets a chance. Due to Seiren's low male population and the fact that she's inching dangerously close to 30, Maharu assigns both Koyomi and Tomoka to find a man of her own on earth. Though flirtatious, she is, in fact, quite picky by Seiren standards, rejecting Fukuyama immediately upon discovering his perverted nature. In the end of the anime she asks Hayate if he would like to get married, but an answer was not given.

Voiced by: Sayaka Ohara (Japanese), Megan Hollingshead (English, credited as Karen Thompson)

Hayate (疾風), one of Lisa's attendants. While he only makes a handful of appearances in the manga, Hayate in the anime forms a strong rivalry/friendship with Tomoka, and the two occasionally battle one another in friendly duels. Hayate is a very calm, loyal, and serious individual who will go to great lengths for his mistress, Lisa; this usually involves doing some sort of research or private investigating. Tomoka nicknames him "ninja" because of his stealthy ways, only revealing himself when attending to Lisa, or to attack.

Voiced by: Takanori Hoshino (Japanese), Patrick Seitz (English)

Kosame (小雨), Lisa's second attendant. She has only a small role in the manga but in the anime, after a battle with Kirie, becomes completely infatuated with her. Her obsession is so strong that just being in Kirie's presence is enough to make Kosame either grope or make some other pass at her, which usually requires Hayate to rein her in. When not fawning over Kirie, Kosame is as stoic a figure as Hayate and frequently uses her gun to either pry information out of others or to force them into doing her bidding. In the anime she is also a considerably stronger fighter than Kirie.

Voiced by: Nozomi Masu (Japanese), Robin Rhodpa (English)

Mamoru Machida (町田 守 Machida Mamoru), a classmate of Yukinari's who is obsessed with cleanliness and dons an alter-ego, Lightning Squadron Mamo Ranger, (a parody of Super Sentai or Power Rangers in the US) in the pursuit of his passion, although at first glance his 'squadron' consists of only him. Extremely accident prone, he tends to cause more problems than he solves, whereupon his deluded sense of reality causes him to blame his "villainous opponents." In the manga, he later drafts the others into the Mamo Rangers, although they want absolutely nothing to do with it. In the anime, Mamoru becomes an apprentice to Lilica which turns him from a mild annoyance into a serious threat to public safety.

Voiced by: Hiroyuki Yoshino (Japanese), Sam Riegal (English, credited as Sam Regal)

Lilica Stacy (梨々花·ステイジー Ririka Suteijī), Kazuharu's chief maid. She is even stronger than Kirie, having fought in military operations in Bosnia, Somalia, Chechnya and Afghanistan. Lilica is highly intelligent and is often seen with a laptop, which serves various purposes, such as operating the mechanical devices within the Fukuyama mansion and deploying surveillance software from a spy satellite orbiting earth. (This is how Fukuyama constantly finds Koyomi and the others.) In the anime, Lilica took on Mamoru Machida as an apprentice after being impressed by his desire to protect the world from grime and dirt. She is also occasionally hinted to be in love with Fukuyama.

Voiced by: Natsuko Kuwatani (Japanese), Wendy Tomson (English)

Nanae Kuh Haruka (ナナエ·クウ·ハルカ Nanae Kū Haruka), Koyomi and Tomoka's superior in the Space Travel Agency. Nanae is in charge of the missing persons department and assigns agents to find and retrieve residents of Seiren who have accidentally been transported to Earth. At the end of the anime, she helps Maharu contact Yukinari so that the others can rescue Miharu.

Voiced by: Yukiko Iwai (Japanese)

Hijiri Kanata (彼方 ヒジリ Kanata Hijiri), a very strict teacher at Yukinari's high school. In the anime, she was actually a spy for Yukina, whose mission was to observe and eventually kidnap Miharu. Hijiri had been obsessed with Miharu since they were both children, and Yukina promised to give Miharu to her in exchange for helping her achieve her goals. After being defeated by Kirie however, Hijiri forgot about Miharu and began to lust after Kirie instead, something that neither Kazuharu nor Kosame took very lightly.

Voiced by: Aya Hisakawa (Japanese), Erica Shaffer (English)

Yukina (ユキナ), the ruthless head of Seiren's Space Management Bureau's Special Forces Division, who also has the power of Seikon like Miharu and Koyomi. Because of her slight build and her Seikon markings that completely cover her body, Yukina felt that no man would ever love her and thus developed a condition that causes her to break out in hives upon contact with men, similar to Yukinari and his allergy to women (hence her name being similar to his). Her illness and anti-masculine prejudices are what cause Yukina to determine that if she couldn't be loved by men then no one in Seiren would. At the end of the series, Yukina has her lieutenant Hijiri kidnap Miharu and bring her back to Seiren so Yukina could steal Miharu's power and use it to permanently seal the gateway to Earth and make Seiren a "women-only paradise". But after being shown kindness by Yukinari, Yukina returned Miharu and even fell in love with Yukinari the end of episode 13 season 2 Miharu is scene waking up Yukinari telling him what they're having for breakfast and when she lifts the covers she sees Yukina snuggling with Yukinari who's allergic reaction has returned and then Yukina declares that "Yukinari is my one true love and I will never leave him". Yukina is first revealed in the second season episode 13

Voiced by: Sakura Nogawa (Japanese), Elise Baughman (English)

The Boss, an anime exclusive character. The Boss is a tall and heavy set man of few words dressed in a Hawaiian shirt and is usually accompanied by a loud-mouthed sidekick in a blue leisure suit. He and his companion cross Yukinari and the others' paths throughout the series, but the Boss does not speak until after Miharu is kidnapped. He then helps Yukinari realize that the only way to get Miharu back is to fight for her with everything he's got. When his sidekick later asks why he never spoke before, the Boss shrugs and replies that he simply never had anything to say.

Mrs. Sasaki, Yukinari's mother who appears only in the manga. As Yukinari kept Miharu a secret from her, Mrs. Sasake began to fear that the strange occurrences in her house were due to a ghost, but eventually decided not to worry about it since all the "ghost" did was eat all the food. She is not seen past the manga's first volume.

Hakana, a ghost who appeared at Fukuyama's private hot spring when Yukinari and company paid a visit. Her actual name is only mentioned in the credits. She was attacked by a peeping tom one night, and died when she slipped and hit her head while chasing him. Now she wants to cross on to the afterlife, but to do so, she must fulfill her revenge against a pervert. Yukinari, the dubbed pervert in question, was nominated to fondle her while she inhabited one of the girls. Lisa attempted to be the host, but it failed, and Kirie was possessed instead. Kirie's subconscious tried to resist the groping, and Hakana realized it was because of her feelings for him. Then, the two hugged, and Hakana passed on.

Voiced by: Ai Shimizu (Japanese), Tara Platt (English)

Television anime

The anime version of Girls Bravo ran for two seasons: the first season with 11 episodes and the second season with 13 episodes. The TV broadcast of season 1 became infamous due to its relatively conservative broadcasting; most of the objectionable content was censored with shadowing, steam, and digital editing. The TV broadcast of season 2 and DVD versions of both seasons did not have the censoring. The series ran mostly at very late nights due to the sexual content.

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Girls_Bravo

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Manga series | Anime series | Anime of 2004 | Anime of 2005 | Bishōjo games | Fantasy anime and manga | Geneon | Harem anime and manga | Japan-exclusive video games | Lantis | Manga of 2000 | Shōnen manga | Tokyopop titles | Visual novels

How to Train Your Dragon (2010)

How to Train Your Dragon

Directed by	Chris Sanders, Dean DeBlois
Produced by	Bonnie Arnold, Doug Davison, Roy Lee, Michael Connolly, Tim Johnson
Written by	Adam F. Goldberg, Peter Tolan, Dean DeBlois, Chris Sanders, Cressida Cowell (Story)
Narrated by	Jay Baruchel
Starring	Jay Baruchel, Gerard Butler, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Jonah Hill, America Ferrera, Craig Ferguson
Music by	John Powell
Editing by	Darren T. Holmes
Studio	DreamWorks Animation
Distributed by	Paramount Pictures
Release date(s)	March 26, 2010
Running time	98 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

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How to Train Your Dragon is a 2010 computer-animated fantasy film by DreamWorks Animation loosely based on the 2003 book of the same title. The film stars the voice talents of Jay Baruchel, Gerard Butler, Craig Ferguson, America Ferrera, Jonah Hill, T.J. Miller, Kristen Wiig, and Christopher Mintz-Plasse.

The story takes place in a mythical Viking world where a young Viking teenager named "Hiccup" aspires to follow his tribe's tradition of becoming a dragon slayer. After finally capturing his first dragon, and with his chance at finally gaining the tribe's acceptance, he finds that he no longer has the desire to kill it and instead befriends it. The film was released March 26, 2010, to very positive reviews.

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Plot

Hiccup is the only son of the Viking Chief, Stoick the Vast, on the island of Berk, which is beset by dragons which raid their stock of sheep. Hiccup works as an apprentice to the blacksmith, Gobber the Belch.

During a raid, Hiccup shoots down a rare dragon called a Night Fury with a bolas cannon that he made, but no one believes him. Attempting to get proof, Hiccup goes to the woods and finds the downed dragon, but cannot bring himself to kill it. He frees it and it flies off to a canyon.

Stoick enrolls Hiccup in dragon training with the other village youths and leaves with a search party of Vikings to find the Dragon’s Nest, in order to wipe them out and finish the war. After being told that dragons are vicious and will always "go for the kill," Hiccup returns to the forest, wondering why the Night Fury didn't. The Night Fury is still trapped in the canyon, and is missing a part of its tail from the previous crash landing, leaving it unable to fly properly. Hiccup decides to befriend the dragon, which he names Toothless, and eventually fashions an artificial tail wing and control harness. While helping Toothless fly again, Hiccup gains an extensive appreciation of dragons. With this knowledge, Hiccup is able to progress in dragon combat training to the amazement of his classmates and the jealousy of Astrid, who becomes strongly suspicious.

Stoick and his army return battered and tired, without having found the nest. However, Stoick's spirits are lifted when Gobber and others begin congratulating him on Hiccup's rise as a formidable warrior. Feeling a chance to bond with his son, Stoick honors Hiccup with a Viking helmet made from half of the breast plate of Hiccup's late mother.

When Hiccup earns the right to kill a dragon as a graduation rite, he decides to leave Berk with Toothless to avoid performing such an act. Astrid follows him to the hideout and discovers his friendship with the dragon. She tries to run back to the village, but Hiccup and Toothless stop her; Hiccup asks for a chance to explain, and they take her for a ride. In their flight, they get caught in a herd of dragons carrying food and follow them to their nest. There, they discover that the dragons steal food to feed a much larger, parasitic dragon that eats them if they do not provide enough food. After they leave, Astrid wants to tell the village of the nest's location, but Hiccup decides against it in order to protect Toothless. Astrid agrees to keep quiet for the night.

The next day, during Hiccup's graduation battle, he throws down his weapons and tries to show everyone that dragons are not as bad as they seem. Stoick shouts to stop the battle before Hiccup can continue, and the agitated dragon attacks Hiccup. Toothless hears Hiccup's screams and rushes to save him. He quickly overpowers the dragon, the Vikings sent to capture him, and finally Stoick. He opens his mouth to kill the tribe leader, but at the last second Hiccup screams "No!" Toothless backs off and becomes tame and docile, and is quickly pinned by Vikings. Stoick confronts his son angrily at learning about his son's friendship with a dragon. Hiccup accidentally tells him that he has been to the nest, and Stoick decides to use Toothless to lead them there, ignoring his son's desperate warnings about the nest's true danger.

The Vikings set sail with Toothless, leaving Hiccup with Astrid. He notes that this situation would not have happened if he had killed Toothless in the first place, but he also discovers that he was merciful towards Toothless because of compassion, not weakness. Invigorated, Hiccup decides to use the dragons the Vikings use for dragon fighting practice to fly to the nest to help his tribe. Astrid gathers Tuffnut, Ruffnut, Fishlegs and Snotlout to help, and all mount the training dragons and set off after the Vikings.

As the Vikings arrive at the nest, all the dragons flee the island in the resulting attack and the roused giant dragon sets all the boats on fire, including the one to which Toothless is chained. Hiccup and the others arrive, and, while he goes to free Toothless, the others try to distract the giant dragon. As the boat is sinking, Hiccup tries to free the still-chained Toothless but nearly drowns. Stoick saves both his son and Toothless.

After an aerial battle, Hiccup and Toothless kill the giant dragon. Hiccup is knocked out and falls into the explosion, and Toothless dives in to save him. Stoick searches the rubble for his son, but only finds Toothless; at first, everyone thinks Hiccup has died in the explosion, but Toothless reveals that he saved Hiccup by wrapping him in his wings.

Hiccup reawakens in his home some days later, to find Toothless by his bedside. As he is getting out of bed, he realizes that his left foot was lost in the fire and has been replaced with a prosthetic made by Gobber, in contrast to the artificial tail wing he created for Toothless before; outside, he sees that the Vikings have invited the dragons to live in the village. Hiccup is welcomed back as a hero and receives a kiss on the lips from Astrid. Hiccup and Astrid ride their dragons through the newly-reformed Berk, signifying a new beginning for both worlds.

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/How_to_Train_Your_Dragon_(film)

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English-language films | 2010 films | American animated films | Computer-animated films | 3-D films | Animated films | Films about dragons | Films based on children's books | Animated features released by DreamWorks SKG | Animated features released by Paramount Pictures | DreamWorks Animation films

Kick-Ass (2010)

Kick-Ass (film)

Directed by	Matthew Vaughn
Produced by	Matthew Vaughn, Brad Pitt, Kris Thykier, Adam Bohling, Tarquin Pack, David Reid
Written by	Matthew Vaughn, Jane Goldman, Mark Millar (Comic book), John Romita, Jr. (Comic book illustrator)
Narrated by	Aaron Johnson
Starring	Aaron Johnson, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Chloë Grace Moretz, Nicolas Cage, Mark Strong
Music by	John Murphy, Henry Jackman, Marius de Vries, Ilan Eshkeri
Cinematography	Ben Davis
Editing by	Pietro Scalia, Jon Harris, Eddie Hamilton
Studio	Marv Films, Plan B Entertainment
Distributed by	Universal Pictures, Lionsgate
Release date(s)	26 March 2010 (United Kingdom), 16 April 2010 (United States)
Running time	117 minutes
Country	United States, United Kingdom
Language	English

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Kick-Ass is a 2010 superhero film based on the comic book of the same name by Mark Millar and John Romita, Jr. The film was directed by Matthew Vaughn, who co-produced the film with actor Brad Pitt, and co-wrote the screenplay with Jane Goldman. The film's general released was on 26 March 2010 in the United Kingdom and on 16 April 2010 in the United States.

El Cazador de la Bruja (エル・カザド)

Genre: Yuri, Adventure, Comedy-drama, Western

El Cazador de la Bruja (エル・カザド, Eru Kazado, Spanish for "The Hunter of the Witch"), is an anime television series directed by Kōichi Mashimo and animated by Bee Train studio. It is a spiritual successor of Noir and Madlax and the final installment of Bee Train's "girls-with-guns" trilogy. The series was aired on TV Tokyo from April to September in 2007. A manga adaptation began serializing in the Champion RED Magazine in March 2007, and is releasing chapters monthly.

The series was announced for international release by FUNimation Entertainment on February 19, 2009. It was released in two complete season sets in early December 2009 and re-released as a complete set in March 2011.
The series made its North American television debut on March 22, 2010, when it started airing on the FUNimation Channel.

Heroes: Wonder Woman

Heroes: Wonder Woman

Najica Blitz Tactics

Najica Blitz Tactics

Alternative Title(s):
Najica, Najica Dengeki Sakusen, Najica missions éclair, 나지카 전격작전

Genre: Action, Adventure, Science Fiction, Comedy, Shoujo, Shounen
Studio: Studio Fantasia

Najica Blitz Tactics (ナジカ電撃作戦 Najika Dengeki Sakusen) is an anime television series by Studio Fantasia. It premiered across Japan between October 4, 2001 and December 27, 2001. The show is similar to that of Agent Aika—both being directed by Katsuhiko Nishijima and animated by Studio Fantasia—with much of the same content.

Though Najica was later adapted into a manga by Takuya Tashiro (田代 琢也 Tashiro Takuya), the majority of the difference in content were in the context of the missions and especially the ending.

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Story

Najica Hiiragi is a noted perfumer for CRI Cosmetics, famous for being able to identify over 500 scents. As the series began, she is struggling to finish "The Day Series" (a series of scents modeled after the days of the week), trying to find the perfect scent for the final perfume, "Sunday".

Secretly however, Najica is actually a field agent for CRI's Intelligence Bureau, an agency unknown to the public (and even to most of its own employees for the sake of their own protection). She is an expert markswoman with her preferred weapon; the Stechkin APS, an old Russian firearm with selective fire (auto and semi-auto) and a wooden holster that doubles as a shoulder stock. The twenty round magazine is loaded with non-lethal plastic bullets.

Najica is also an expert helicopter pilot, and she has a custom-modified Mil Mi-35 Hind assault helicopter with remote control and advanced avionics.
Najica's first mission in the narrative is to recover a Humaritt (android) codenamed "ZZZ" and referred to as "Lila", Najica becomes suspicious when CRI Intelligence is contracted by Shinba Industrial to recover more lost and possibly rogue Humaritts; especially since most of them are in the hands of criminals, revolutionaries, guerillas or terrorist groups. Her suspicions increase when Lila is assigned to be her partner, even though Najica insists she be allowed to continue working alone. As time goes on however, Najica begins to trust Lila, even if Lila's lack of social graces make her wince. Soon however the two's bond is tested when they face the creator of the Humaritts and her ultimate plan...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Najica_Blitz_Tactics

Anime series | Manga series | Action anime and manga | Adventure anime and manga | ADV Films | Anime of 2001 | Ecchi anime and manga | Manga of 2002 | Science fiction anime and manga

Future Boy Conan (未来少年コナン, Mirai Shōnen Konan)

Future Boy Conan (未来少年コナン, Mirai Shōnen Konan)

TV anime
Director: Hayao Miyazaki
Studio: Nippon Animation
Original run: April 4, 1978 – October 31, 1978

Anime film: Mirai Shōnen Conan Tokubetsu Hen-Kyodaiki Gigant no Fukkatsu
Director: Hayao Miyazaki
Studio: Nippon Animation
Released: March 11, 1984
Runtime: 25 minutes

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Future Boy Conan (未来少年コナン, Mirai Shōnen Konan) is an anime series, which premiered across Japan on the NHK network between April 4 and October 31, 1978 on the Tuesday 19:30-20:00 timeslot. The official English title used by Nippon Animation is Conan, The Boy in Future.

Spanning a total of 26 episodes, the series was produced by Nippon Animation and featured the likes of Hayao Miyazaki (director, character designs, storyboards), Isao Takahata (storyboards) and Yoshiyuki Tomino (storyboards). It is an adaptation of Alexander Key's novel The Incredible Tide.

A video game version of the series by Telenet Japan was released in 1992 on NEC's PC Engine console. The game was released on the Super CD-Rom format and was only available in Japan.

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Story

The story begins in July 2008, during a time when mankind is faced with the threat of extinction. A devastating war fought between two major nations with ultra-magnetic weapons far greater than anything seen earlier brings about total chaos and destruction throughout the world, resulting in several earthquakes and tidal waves, the earth thrown off its axis, its crust being rocked by massive movements, and the five continents being torn completely apart and sinking deep below the sea.

An attempt by a group of people to flee to outer space failed, with their spaceships being forced back to earth and vanishing, thus shattering their hopes. But one of the spaceships narrowly escaped destruction and crash landed on a small island which had miraculously survived the devastation. The crew members of the spaceship settled there, as if they were seeds sown on the island.

Amidst these survivors, a boy named Conan was born, bringing a new ray of hope to the earth. After several years, during which most of the other survivors had died and the only people left on the island were Conan and his grandfather, he meets a young girl named Lana, and their adventure begins.

Between the different islands left in the world: Industria, High Harbor, Rambent, and others, the group travel and conflict rises between good and evil.

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Characters

Conan (コナン Konan) Seiyū: Noriko Ohara
The main protagonist of the series, Conan, is an 11 year old boy who grew up on the island and was raised by his grandfather. Conan is very strong, and can even hang from a ledge using only his toes. Conan is friends with Lana.

Lana (ラナ Rana) Seiyū: Mieko Nobusawa
Lana is the first non-Remnant Island inhabitant, and the first girl Conan sees. Lana is the granddaughter of Dr. Lao, and Lepka wants to use her to get Lao to tell him the secret of solar power. Lana is referred to as possessing ESP, allowing her to communicate with a seagull 'Tikki', as well as sense the presence of her grandpa. She comes from High Harbour.

Grandpa (おじい Ojī) Seiyū: Masato Yamanouchi
Conan's elderly grandfather, who's alive after their spaceship crashes on the remnant island in the first episode.

Monsley (モンスリー Monsurī) Seiyū: Rihoko Yoshida
A young commander of Industria's armed forces, Monsley is the second non-Islander Conan sees. Piloting the flying boat Falco, she follows Lepka's orders by helping capture Lana, and eventually leading the invasion of Industria to conquer the High Habor. Ultimately after the lost battle in the High Harbor, Monsley renounces Lepka's ambitions, and joins with Conan against him.

Jimsy (ジムシー Jimushī) Seiyū: Kazuyo Aoki
A wild boy living alone on the first island Conan arrives at, Jimsy quickly becomes Conan's first 'companion', helping him rescue Lana. Jimsy is a master hunter, and motivated by his stomach.

Dyce (ダイス Daisu) Seiyū: Ichirō Nagai
Dyce is a citizen of Industria, and the captain of the ship Barracuda. He was ordered to kidnap Lana prior to the start of series, but let her escape due to his obsession with his captive. Dyce is initially a comedic villain in the show, but eventually becomes one of Conan's allies .

Lepka (レプカ Repuka?) Seiyū: Iemasa Kayumi
The head of administration of Industria, Lepka technically serves under the Industria High Council, a group of scientists. However, over the course of the series, he becomes the sole dictator of Industria, and the primary antagonist. Lepka desires to extract the secret of solar power from Lao to power his weapons, allowing him to rule over what remains of the world.

Dr. Lao (ラオ博士 Rao-hakase) Seiyū: Masato Yamanouchi
The grandfather of Lana, the main scientist responsible for the development of solar power for both civil and wartime usage. Originally a member of the Industrian High Council, he defected after he learned of Lepka's ambitions. He believes that the people of Industria must be taught to discard their weapons, and begin new lives. For this reason he escapes, bringing with him the secret of how to access the orbiting solar power station from pre-war times.

Umasou
Umasou is Jimsy's piglet, "unmasou" which means "Look Delicious" in Japan.

Orlo
The coward and the traitor of the High Harbor, he follows the Industria and has an evil plot to become a leader of High Habor then he gives a demand to everyone to give up Industria.

Tera
Orlo's younger sister, she's injured by a rocket from Industria's soldiers and is the second leader of Orlo's men.

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Anime

Future Boy Conan first aired across Japan on the NHK TV network between April 4 and October 31, 1978, during the Tuesday, 7:30pm timeslot. It has been regularly broadcast across Japan on the anime satellite television network, Animax, who have also later translated and dubbed the series into English for broadcast across its respective English-language networks in Southeast Asia and South Asia, under the title Conan, The Boy In Future.

The series was also translated into numerous other languages, including Cantonese, Mandarin, French, Spanish, Italian, Catalan, Basque, Portuguese, Korean, Turkish and Arabic, being broadcast across Europe, Latin America, the Arab World, and numerous other regions.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Future_Boy_Conan

Anime series | Anime films | Nippon Animation | Future Boy Conan | Adventure anime and manga | Drama anime and manga | Science fiction anime and manga | Anime of 1978 | Anime of 1984 | Bandai Visual | 1978 television series debuts | Steampunk anime and manga | Steampunk television series