Finished watching Record of Lodoss War

Finished watching Record of Lodoss War (1993, Madhouse, 13 epi) on 1/11/2018.

Parn is a young man traveling the land of Lodoss with a diverse group of allies such as Deedlit the elf, and Ghim the dwarf. Together they plan to oppose the forces of a witch bent on political chaos between the kingdoms of Lodoss so as to preserve the land by keeping any one faction from taking central control. 

This was a beautiful show based on a series of novels about a land of magic and mystical beings. I'd love to own an HD copy of this show because I'd watch it again in a heartbeat. Seriously, it's got that beauty that good anime shows in the 90's used to have and the animation is pretty awesome too. The story though is a little bit slow at times, despite the small number of episodes, and sometimes it gets a little jumpy. There's only so much character development going on too, but not to say that the character's themselves weren't interesting, because they were fun to follow. And the soundtrack isn't too shabby. It's got some memorable tracks here and there, specially the opening and ending themes. Speaking of which, the opening for this show is a beautiful piece of art all on it's own, the song only makes it an even more memorable experience.

Also, apparently there's a top-view MMORPG by the same name. Here's a Portuguese video by a friend showcasing the gameplay:

8/10 - If you're into Lord of the Rings then there's a good chance you'll enjoy this baby.

Finished watching Legend of the Galactic Heroes Gaiden: a Hundred Billion Stars, a Hundred Billion Lights

Finished watching Legend of the Galactic Heroes Gaiden: A Hundred Billion Stars, a Hundred Billion Lights (1998, Artland, JC Staff, 12 OVAs) on 1/9/2018.

March 794 of the Universal Calendar. Galactic Empire forces under Gregor von Mückenberger command are stuck in a stale-mate with Alliance Forces, commanded by Lasalle Lobos in the Van-Fleet Starzone. Mückenberger orders the Grimmelshausen Fleet to reorganize at Van-Fleet 4-2, a satellite of the fourth planet orbiting Van-Fleet. But the Imperial forces biggest obstacle in Van-Fleet 4-2 might just be a group of experienced ground forces known as the Rosen Ritter.

This was a bit longer Gaiden arc than usual, but also just as entertaining. Lots of man to man battles on this one as opposed to the usual space stuff. But also a good focus on some other Alliance characters that aren't Yang's direct friends or subordinates. A liked how Grimmelshausen was a bit of a crazy old-coot. I almost lost it when he tried shooting himself in the head during a mission briefing meeting because they wanted to put his fleet in the the rear lines where he couldn't affect much of the battles. Talk about a passive-aggressive tantrum. And then there's Reinhard of course. He just couldn't stand the guy, but the way he reacted to him was funny.

8/10 - Definitely another fun arc.

Finished watching Legend of the Galactic Heroes Gaiden: Dreams of the Morning, Songs of the Night

Finished watching Legend of the Galactic Heroes Gaiden: Dreams of the Morning, Songs of the Night (1998, Artland, JC Staff, 4 OVAs) on 12/23/2017.

April 793 of the Universal Calendar. Reinhard and Kircheis visit their Alma Mater in Odin during some downtime as they await their next assignment. After finally receiving their new posts in the Imperial Military Police, the two friends are summoned back to the school where they must investigate the apparent murder of Karl von Reifeisen, a student who died the night before.

Just some more bonding between the dynamic duo of LoGH as we continue on with the Gaiden series.

8/10 - D'awwww! Look at them sitting under a tree watching youthful boys play soccer and solving a case at the same time.

Finished watching Legend of the Galactic Heroes Gaiden 2: Retriever

Finished watching Legend of the Galactic Heroes Gaiden 2: Retriever (2000, JC Staff, 4 OVAs) on 12/19/2017.

December 792 of the Univeral Calendar. Half a year has passed since the Fifth War of Iserlohn. Reinhard von Müsel, now captain of the Hässliche Entlein cruiser receives a secret task to seek and apprehend Count Herxheimer, a defect of the Galactic Empire who escaped with a stolen Seffle Particle Generator prototype. However, the Count's escape has to be kept under wraps, and so Reinhard must carry on this mission with only his cruiser and no reinforcements.

Not much new to say about this arc of Gaiden 2. Though it is one of those uncommon instances where you get to see melee combat. I find the combat suits from both factions really interesting. Specially the empire ones. They're kind of creepy and remind me of the Crimson Knights from .hack//sign.

8/10 - Kircheis is an angel.

Finished watching Macross 7

Finished watching Macross 7 + Macross 7 Plus + Macross 7 Encore (1994~95, Mainichi Broadcasting System, Studio Nue, 49 Epi + 3 OVAs + 11 Shorts) on 12/17/2017.

Nekki Basara is the lead singer of Fire Bomber, a somewhat popular rock-band aboard the space colony ship, Macross 7. During one of their outdoor concerts, Macross 7 is attacked by a large number of mysterious enemies piloting heavily-modified Valkyries. Named Protodeviln, these enemies attack opposing pilots by stealing an energy called Spiritia, leaving them seemingly brainwashed. Owning a modified state-of-the-art red Valkyrie of his own, Basara takes off mid-concert to engage the enemy... with his own fighting style; playing music.

So, usually when I get into an anime franchise I tend to be a completionist (to some extent) by watching all the episodes of all the different series and spin-offs by either release date or story chronology. Macross 7 however was a bit of an exception for me. When I first researched the franchise, I often heard that Macross 7 was skippable or it was a silly series, not to bother with it, etc. Others however loved it, and apparently it was very popular in Japan. Or at least the music was, I heard. After watching Delta, I had gotten used to watching Macross and sort of needed one more hit, that's when I decided to give 7 a try. And boy, what a ride I was in for. It really was as I had been advised. Silly, over-the-top, corny, ridiculous, confusing. But it was good! It was also fun! I think having gone into 7 with the expectations put forth by other fans was what sort of eased me into enjoying 7. I knew it was going to be different from what I had seen so far, and so with that open-mind... I found myself singing with Basara outloud as he battled cringy alien monster designs and even when he wasn't battling and his band needed a helping-hand! And Basara, oh, Nekki friggin Basara, that man is quite the work-of-art. Not only do I think he's pretty awesome, but also a complete ass butt to his friends. He can be such a selfish little toad! Aside from that... I really enjoyed the music in this one, and they really make the show about it. There's always two or three songs that get played by episode, but they're so catchy and awesome that I don't really get tired of them. In fact I look forward to it. The variety of songs keep it from getting repetive... well, to an extent. Aside from that the show could really be more coherent. Some episodes feel a bit filler-y and the enemy designs, like I mentioned are just not that great. They seem a bit generic for my taste.

7.5/10 - Really love the music!