Next Club Meeting: April 20, 2024, at the Fountaindale Public Library in Bolingbrook from 11:00 am - 5:00 pm

The Animatrix Network is an anime & manga fan club located in the Southwest suburbs of Chicago, Illinois. We usually meet on the third Saturday of each month (except when holidays or conventions coincide). The meetings are free and open to the public. Join us for a day filled with anime.

This site provides news, reviews, commentaries, and previews of the world of anime and everything it inspires, such as live-action films, comics, music, art, and other weird things to enjoy and contemplate.

Thursday, August 2, 2012

Anime Viewing Schedule for August 4, 2012

Glen Ellyn Public Library
Meeting Room B, 10:00 am to 4:30 pm
"I'm going to the meeting! Don't try to stop me!" 
Saturday, August 4, 2012
10:00 - 10:25    Accel World 4
10:25 - 10:50    Haiyore! Nyaruko-san 1

10:50 - 11:15    Space Brothers 3
11:15 - 11:40    Rinne no Lagrange 4
11:40 - 12:30    Mirai Nikki (Future Diary) 19-20
12:30 - 1:20     Sakamichi no Apollon 7-8
1:20 - 1:45       Fate/Zero 9
1:45 - 2:45       Club Meeting / Announcements
2:45 - 3:35       Space Battleship Yamato 2199 1-2

3:35 - 4:00       Another 5
4:00 - 4:25       Shinryaku! Ika Musume 10


10:00 - 10:25   Accel World 4
"I belong in this virtual world! I am its king!"
Accel World
[Source: Wikipedia] In the year 2046, Neuro-synchronization, a technology system that allows humans to manipulate their five senses, has become widespread where people can access the internet and enter virtual worlds. Haruyuki "Haru" Arita is a short, fat boy who due to constant bullying has low-self esteem. To escape the torment of real life, he logs-in to the school's virtual world network where he plays squash alone and always gets the highest score. One day Haru attracts the attention of the Student Council Vice-President Kuroyukihime who offers him Brain Burst, a secret program which allows a person to make time appear to stand still in their surroundings by "accelerating" their brainwaves in the real world. Unfortunately, there is a limit to how many times a person can accelerate due to Brain Burst points and the primary way to get more points is to fight and defeat other Brain Burst users in the program's virtual reality massive multiplayer online (VRMMO) fighting game. However, if a user loses all of his/her points the Brain Burst program will uninstall itself and block all re-installation attempts, thus permanently removing the user's ability to accelerate. Kuroyukihime wants Haru's help as she wishes to reach Level 10 and meet the creator of Brain Burst to learn its true purpose. But in order to do that, she must defeat five other Level 9 users who just so happen to be "The Six Kings of Pure Color", the leaders of the six most powerful factions in the Brain Burst world. For helping him, Haru agrees to help Kuroyukihime not only to repay her but to overcome his weaknesses.
Episode 4 "Declaration": As Haru chooses not to meddle with the backdoor to avoid detection, he finds Kuroyukihime starting to act strangely around him when he mentions how close he had gotten to Chiyuri. When Haru is interviewed by a pair of gossip club students, they hint that Kuroyukihime legitimately likes him, which he refuses to believe. As Kuroyukihime and Haru walk together that day, Haru resigns himself to just being a pawn, prompting a slap from her. Just then, an out of control car heads straight towards Haru and Kuroyukihime, prompting them to go into the Accel World. As Kuroyukihime confesses to Haru that she is in love with him, she uses a powerful move which causes her Brain Burst to drop to lower levels, allowing her to manipulate her body in the Accel World to push Haru out of the way of the car, leading to only her being hit. As Kuroyukihime is taken into intensive care, Haru comes to realise that if she was to be attacked by a Burst Linker now, she would be completely vulnerable, and so chooses to stay the night. As the morning comes, Haru spots Takumu coming into the hospital and comes to realise that he is the true Cyan Pile. With just a split second to act, Haru rushes to challenge Takumu to a Brain Burst match before he can challenge Kuroyukihime.

10:25 - 10:50   Haiyore! Nyaruko-san 1
"Yoohoo! Cthulhu! Come out, come out, wherever you are!"
Haiyore! Nyaruko-san
[Source: Wikipedia] The story of Haiyore! Nyaruko-san centers around Nyaruko, a formless Cthulhu-deity of chaos (Nyarlathotep) who can take on the shape of a seemingly ordinary silver-haired girl. Mahiro Yasaka is a normal high school boy who is being chased by a fearsome black alien one night, until Nyaruko saves him. She explains that the creatures from H. P. Lovecraft's works are actually races of aliens, and that she has been sent to Earth to protect him from being kidnapped by an alien trafficker. Eventually, Nyaruko and two other Lovecraft-creatures, Cthugha and Hastur, end up being freeloaders at Mahiro's place.
Episode 1 "Like a Close Encounter of the Third Kind": Mahiro meets Nyaruko when getting chased by a monster and says she will protect him. He gets more than he bargained for. 

10:50 - 11:15   Space Brothers 3
"To fly amongst the stars is my ultimate dream."
 
Space Brothers
[Source: Wikipedia] When they were young, the brothers Mutta and Hibito promised each other they would become astronauts. Now, in 2025, Hibito has followed his dream to become the first Japanese on the moon, but Mutta has just been fired from his job. His brother reminds him of their childhood promise, and Mutta decides once again to aim for space.
Episode 3 "The Man with the Advantage and the Running Female Doctor": Medical exams begin and Mutta feels a bit of pressure with everyone thinking he has an advantage being Hibito's brother. Later that evening, Serika takes an interest in Mutta when she spots him peeking inside an astronaut suit's helmet, reminding her of her father. The next day, Mutta and Keiji spot Serika doing the exact same thing. 


11:15 - 11:40   Rinne no Lagrange 5
"I lied. Woof is not an official Earth greeting, so you can stop saying it."
Rinne no Lagrange
[Source: Wikipedia] Madoka Kyouno, a schoolgirl from Kamogawa, is the sole member of the Jersey Club and always ready to help others out. One day, she is approached by an alien named Lan who asks her to pilot a robotic aircraft to defend mankind against an evil force.
Episode 5 "The Man Who Came to Kamogawa": A man named Villagiulio comes, who Muginami reveals is an ally of sorts. However, Villagiulio soon turns against Muginami for taking the Vox unit for herself, causing Madoka to become angry.

11:40 - 12:30     Mirai Nikki (Future Diary) 19-20
"Close your eyes! I've got a big surprise!"
Mirai Nikki
[Source: Wikipedia] Yukiteru "Yuki" Amano is a loner who never really interacts with people and prefers writing a diary on his cell phone with his only companion being an imaginary friend named Deus Ex Machina, the God of Time and Space. However, Yuki soon learns that Deus is real when he makes Yuki participate in a battle royale with eleven other people. Within this "Diary Game", the contestants are given special diaries that can predict the future, with each diary having unique features that gives them both advantages and disadvantages. Within the next 90 days, the contestants must try to kill each other and survive until there is only one person standing, the winner becoming the new God of Time and Space.
Episode 19 "Delete all Messages": The mayor of the city, John Balks, passes a motion to have Kamado's orphanage shut down. He then attends Deus' meeting, where Yuki and Yuno, having deduced his identity, expose him as the Eleventh diary holder. Uryu relays these news to Nishijima, who reveals he's been reassigned as Balks' bodyguard. Furthermore, he's discovered that Yuno was adopted. Yuno theorises that Balks wants to seize Kamado's Future Diary server, so she has Yuki form an alliance with her. Yuki, Yuno, Kamado and her apprentices ambush Balks' car on a country road, but he uses a jammer to sever connections to Kamado's server. Yuki and Yuno, who anticipated this, betray Kamado and slaughter her defenseless apprentices. Kamado flees in Balks' car, while Yuki and Yuno give chase. As Yuki and Yuno corner Balks and Kamado, Uryu appears with Aru. Aru reveals he's retrieved Yuno's umbilical cord from her orphanage and that its DNA matches the third corpse's, meaning that the real Yuno Gasai is dead and the one Yuki has known all along is actually an imposter. 
Episode 20 "Data transfer": Despite Aru's revelation, Yuki declares his trust in Yuno. Balks connects Kamado's server to HOLON, a supercomputer which holds user accounts of every citizen of the city, making them his apprentices. Uryu tries to attack Balks, but his diary lets him turn the tables. Nishijima, who's fallen in love with Uryu, comes to her aid and destroys the supercomputer. However, it turns out to be only one part of the whole, and Balks' plan is put into motion. As Aru sends Hinata, Mao and Kousaka to help Uryu and Nishijima destroy the remaining parts of HOLON, Uryu figures out Balks' diary can read the predictions of all other Future Diaries. Deus reveals to Uryu that Balks helped him design the Future Diaries, wishing to grant divine power to the human race. Uryu, Nishijima, Hinata, Mao and Kousaka storm HOLON's location, overwriting their diaries' predictions to confuse Balks. In response, Balks makes use of his secretary's diary and manages to capture Hinata, Mao and Kousaka, as well as injure Uryu and kill Nishijima. Uryu is saved by Yuki and Yuno, who've used her as bait to get to Balks. 

12:30 - 1:20     Sakamichi no Apollon [Kids on the Slope] 7-8
Music transforms lives. It also transforms hearts.
Sakamichi no Apollon [Kids on the Slope]
[Source: Wikipedia] The beginning of summer, 1966. Because of his father's job situation, freshman high school student Kaoru Nishimi moves by himself from Yokosuka to Kyushu to live with relatives. Until then, Kaoru was an honor roll student who tended to keep to himself, but meeting notorious bad boy Sentaro Kawabuchi starts to change him. Through his devil-may-care classmate, Kaoru learns the attractions of jazz and finds the first person he can call a “friend.” He also discovers how much fun it is to play music with a pal. Other characters include Sentaro's kind childhood chum, Ritsuko, who is the daughter of a record shop owner; the mysterious upperclassman, Yurika; and Brother Jun, the much-admired leader among their peers.
Episode 7  "Now's The Time": Kaoru continues to give Sentaro the cold shoulder at school. Sentaro goes over to Yamaoka's house along with Maruo and Seiji to practice rock music. Sentaro stops by the record store, where he runs into Yurika. Sentaro takes Yurika to the basement and tries to kiss her, but is interrupted by Junichi. Yurika runs away, and Sentaro punches Junichi. Kaoru and Ritsuko are nominated to work on the executive committee for the school festival. Sentaro shows up to sign the rock band (named 'The Olympus') for the school festival. Kaoru tries to talk to Sentaro about Junichi, but isn't able to. The Olympus puts on a performance at the school festival, but the amplifiers for their electric instruments stop working halfway through. While searching for the cause of the problem, Kaoru secretly overhears Sentaro saying that he joined the rock band to help Seiji fulfill his dream of becoming a rock star and support his family, but only for this performance. Kaoru plays the piano to keep the audience from leaving, and Sentaro joins in on the drums. They play a medley of songs, including "My Favourite Things" (from The Sound of Music), "Someday My Prince Will Come" (by Bill Evans), and "Moanin'" (by Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers). Their performance draws in a large audience from all over the school. After they finish playing, Sentaro grabs Kaoru and the two of them run out of the school.  
Episode 8 "These Foolish Things": Kaoru's new-found popularity among female classmates after his performance with Sentaro causes Ritsuko to question her true feelings for him. Yurika comes upon Junichi and follows him back to his new apartment where she confronts him about a kiss they had shared at the record shop. Junichi unsuccessfully attempts to scare her away. Yurika's stubbornness, even going so far as to cut her hair to prove her point, forces Junichi to remember his regrets during his time as a member of the Japanese Communist Party in college, and accepts her support. At school, Sentaro overhears students talking about Yurika's change in behavior and appearance and he assumes that Junichi had done something to her. He goes to Junichi's apartment to confront Jinuchi, only to discover Yurika is also there. Sentaro shouts at Junichi and leaves in tears. Back at the record shop, Sentaro tells Kaoru about what he had seen, and Kaoru scolds him for not being aware that there was already someone in love with him. Sentaro soon realizes that the person Kaoru had been talking about was Ritsuko.

1:20 - 1:45     Fate/Zero 9
"Beware my blade!"
Fate/Zero
[Source: Wikipedia] Fate/zero takes place 10 years prior to the events of Fate/stay night, detailing the events of the 4th Holy Grail War in Fuyuki City. The War of the Holy Grail is a contest in which seven magi summon seven Heroic Spirits to compete to obtain the power of the "Holy Grail," which grants a miracle. After three inconclusive wars for the elusive Holy Grail, the Fourth War commences. Founded by the Einzbern, Matō, and Tōsaka families centuries ago, the Einzbern family is determined to achieve success after three successive failures, no matter the cost. As a result, they have elected to bring the hated magus killer, Kiritsugu Emiya, into their ranks, despite his methods and reputation as a skilled mercenary and a hitman who employs whatever he can use to accomplish his goals. Though Kiritsugu had once wanted to become a hero who could save everyone, he has long since abandoned this ideal upon realizing that saving one person comes at the cost of another's life. For the sake of humanity, he will ruthlessly destroy anything and anyone who threatens the peace of others. However, Kiritsugu finds himself deeply torn between the love he has found for his new family - his wife Irisviel and their daughter Illya - and what he must do to obtain the Holy Grail. Meanwhile, Kiritsugu's greatest opponent appears in the form of Kirei Kotomine, a priest who cannot find any sense of fulfillment in his life and sets his sights on Kiritsugu as the possible answer to the emptiness he feels.
Episode 9  "Master and Servant": Kayneth wakes up with his body tied to a bed. Sola tells Kayneth that his Magic Circuits were destroyed by Kiritsugu's bullets and he can never use magic again. At Sola's mercy, Kayneth has no choice but to relinquish Lancer's command to her. Despite Sola becoming his new Master, Lancer wishes to remain loyal to Kayneth, but Sola convinces him to keep fighting with her, using Kayneth's honor as a pretext. Kiritsugu decides to hunt Kayneth down despite Saber and Iri's wishes to stop Caster. Meanwhile, Waver and Rider manage to find Caster's lair, where they are horrified to see the mutilated bodies of his victims. Before setting Caster's lair on fire, Rider kills an Assassin targeting Waver and drives off two more. With Waver and Rider now knowing their secret, Tokiomi orders Kirei to send his Assassins to spy on them. 

1:45 - 2:45     Club Meeting and Announcements

Otakon 2012
-  San Diego Comic-Con Convention Coverage
-  Animation News from around the world
-  Cosplayers/Skits/Masquerade
-  Anime Music Videos
-  And other weird, interesting stuff...
See the awesome costumes of San Diego Comic-Con
 

2:45 - 3:35    Space Battleship Yamato 2199  1-2
"We're off to outer space! We're leaving Mother Earth...
To save the Human Race! Our Star Blazers!"
Space Battleship Yamato 2199
The basic story of Yamato 2199 is the same as the first Yamato anime set in 2199, but Yutaka Izubuchi, who worked on mechanical designs and science-fiction concepts on some of the earlier projects in the franchise, is serving as chief director.
Review: This is essentially a remake of a much beloved anime. It's as if fans of the original were given a chance to improve on their favorite show by not only updating the animation through CGI but also to clarify certain events in the storyline. Episode One is much like the original except it carefully establishes the reason for Captain Avatar's willingness to risk the entire remaining star fleet as a diversion for the messenger ship from Iscandar to travel secretly into the solar system undetected by the Gamalon forces. This gives more credence to the sacrifice and hardship of all those brave soldiers who gave their lives in order for humanity's last hope, the Cosmo DNA, to be brought to Earth and cleanse it of all the radiation killing the planet.

3:35 - 4:00   Another 5
"Invite the dead for the day. And that's where they'll stay."
Rinne no Lagrange
[Source: Wikipedia] In 1972, a popular student named Misaki who was in class 3-3 of Yomiyama North Middle School suddenly died partway through the school year. Devastated by the unexpected loss, the students and teachers behaved like Misaki was still alive, leading to a strange presence on the graduation photo. In Spring 1998, a 15-year old boy named Kōichi Sakakibara transfers into Yomiyama's class 3-3, where he meets the peculiar Mei Misaki, who is seemingly ignored by her classmates. The class is soon caught up in an epidemic where students, or people related to class 3-3 students, are caught up in mysterious deaths. Learning these deaths have something to do with the mystery of 1972, it is up to Kōichi and Mei to discover the cause of these mysterious deaths and figure out how to put an end to it before it puts an end to them.
Episode 5 "Build limbs": Kōichi looks at the Class 3-3 photo of 1972, finding his mother Ristuko. While Kōichi is being interrogated by the police regarding Sanae's death, Class 3-3 has an emergency meeting. Upon his return, the classroom is empty. Izumi appears and, for no obvious reason, apologizes to him. He runs into Yūya and Ikuo Takabayashi on his way home and asks them for answers, but Ikuo has a heart attack and dies before he can respond. The following day, Kōichi is completely ignored by his classmates. As he tries to understand what's going on, he receives a note from Yūya, telling him to ask Mei for details. Later on, he visits the doll shop once again, which is revealed to be Mei's house. Mei explains to Kōichi that she does exist as a living human being—she just doesn't exist to the members of Class 3-3. She explains that the actions of Class 3-3 in '72 made their class closer to death; starting in '73, the number of desks in the class decreased by one, meant for the "dead person" in the class. With both records and memories altered, no one could confirm who the "other one" was. Then, in 1988, someone developed a solution to prevent the calamity from starting: "to treat one person as if they didn't exist." Mei explains that the class is now treating Mei and Kōichi as nonexistent in a vain attempt to stop further deaths.

4:00 - 4:25   Shinryaku! Ika Musume 10
"I'm going to conquer the surface world for all squid-kind!"
Shinryaku! Ika Musume
[Source: Wikipedia] Squid Girl, a girl from the sea who possesses squid-like tentacles for hair, vows to invade mankind as revenge for its pollution of the ocean. Her first task is to make the Lemon beach house, owned by the Aizawa sisters, her base of operations. However, when she accidentally breaks a hole in their wall, she is forced to work as a waitress to pay off the damages, although she soon comes to think of them as her friends and vice versa.
Episode 10 "Isn't That Teru Teru Bozu?": On a rainy day, Squid Girl exhibits a talent for art, though the depictions of her friends are somewhat scary. Later, Eiko tells Sanae that she should give up on her crush on Squid Girl and try to become proper friends with her. However, holding herself back proves to be harder than Sanae thought. Later, when Kiyomi's baseball team falls short one member, Squid Girl decides to help her out. Though she initially has trouble with the game, her tentacles soon come into good use.

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