A weekend-long Final Fantasy party >>>
Friday, May 29
Dissidia Final Fantasy NT brawls its way onto PS4 in 2018: watch the trailer
Epic 3v3 team battles >>>
RWBY Volume 1 Blu-ray review
Rooster Teeth are known for their Halo animations Red Vs Blue and became a gamers go-to company for gameplays and funny skits. Back in 2013 the much loved and well known Monty Oum – creator of the classic Final Fantasy and Dead or Alive crossover series, Dead Fantasy – created a new series titled RWBY. It hit the animation scene with such force and created a whole new genre of anime to come from America.
The story follows a young girl by the name of Ruby Rose who goes to an academy known as Beacon, all so she can train to become a huntress warrior who fights the dark creatures of their world. Throughout the series she picks up some new friends – Weiss Schnee and Blake Belladonna. Along with her half-sister Yang Xiao Long, the girls must work together to graduate from Beacon. If you haven’t guessed already, their names make up the team name RWBY. Obviously along the way their differing personalities get in the way for some light comic relief.
There are some really good fight scenes throughout the first season. The portrayed movement in the scenes are rough yet believable and true to the animation style. Keeping original and completely different from other animation available online, RWBY opted for that ‘pre-game release’ look instead of the pristine well formed figures. This adds to the effect and beauty of the story being told, as well as keeping an unexpected freshness for the viewers.
There are a few hiccups within the animations, like the rigidness of the characters when nothing else is going on and although compared to the online version there have been some changes made to the lip- syncing, there are a few moments when characters are talking but their mouths are closed. Whilst watching Volume 1 of RWBY, you will notice just how much detail has gone into the character deigns, fighting animations and even the scenery in the background. Not to mention the attention to detail in the music and script construction.
When you receive your Blu-ray you will be greeted with all of the main characters that make the RWBY group as the front cover. The art style is different to that in the series, slightly more realistic and traditional. The fun starts when you play the Blu-ray. There are many features to chose from, starting with the option to watch the whole of Volume 1 as a movie, with no breaks in between each episode. Or you can pick individual episodes through the “Watch by Episode” title, which would then include the episode’s opening and ending. If you like a particular fight so much you can pick a specific scene with the “Scene Selection” title.
Rooster Teeth have not flaked out on the special features, with a director’s commentary, cast commentary, Red trailer, White trailer, Black trailer, Yellow trailer, behind the scenes, fan art and RWBY cosplays. They have taken fan interaction to a whole new level and included fan support within the Blu-ray. The last option on the menu screen is “More from Rooster Teeth” title, which shows their past and future work, such as The Best Of Red Vs Blue, The Best Of RTAA, The Best Of RT Shorts, Red Vs Blue Season 11, A Simple Walk Into Mordor, Slow Mo Guys, The Best Of Fails Of The Week – All of which are available on the Rooster Teeth YouTube channel.
Easter eggs within releases are a nice touch and RWBY has a few to offer as well, starting with animated versions of the Achievement Hunter team as a poster in Ruby’s room (which are based off the real posters that are for sale in the Rooster Teeth store). There is also a homage to the Slow Mo Guys with the use of their sound effects throughout some key moments within the first volume. There are a lot more Easter eggs throughout the menu screen, which include a special “Ursa Dance” and a few behind the scenes cell shots.
In whole, the RWBY Blu-ray is definitely worth a look, with its large scale character development, comedic relief, intense soundtrack and crude yet enticing visuals – RWBY is everything you want it to be, and more.
RWBY Volume 1 is released on 29 June on both DVD and Blu-ray by Animatsu Entertainment.
MCM London Comic Con guests reveal their favourite cosplays and more
Having recently been unveiled on the MyM Buzz Facebook page, we are now pleased to announce that our latest video from MCM London Comic Con is also available on our YouTube channel.
This video features the convention guests talking about their favourite aspects of the event, as well as their favourite cosplays seen during the weekend. Featured guests include: John Noble (Fringe & Sleepy Hollow), Felicia Day (Supernatural, The Guild, Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Geek And Sundry), Jessica Nigri (Cosplay Idol), Iain De Caestecker (Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., The Fades), Nick Blood (Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.), Renee Felice Smith and Barrett Foa (NCIS: Los Angeles), Emily Wickersham (NCIS), Ali Hillis and Mark Meer (Mass Effect), and Tyler James Williams (The Walking Dead, Criminal Minds, Everybody Hates Chris).
Click play below to watch the video. You can also see more videos and photos from the weekend on the MCM Buzz YouTube channel and in our Facebook photo galleries.
Videographers – Jordan Bragg and Jacob Cooper.
Audio/Video Editor – Jacob Cooper.
Crew provided by Southampton Solent University and Jack Tindall.
Gideon Emery Interview at MCM London Comic Con
Gideon Emery returned to MCM London Comic Con this weekend for the first time in a few years. Despite trying to pace himself for the intensity of the event, he warned those of us in the press room that his voice was already worn out, probably from the two-hour meet-and-greet he’d just done with his many dedicated fans.
The request Gideon most frequently gets is to repeat his favourite phrase from the parts he’s played, but he said it’s one of the most difficult questions for him because when he finishes a project “it’s gone” from his mind and he’s “onto the next one – not in terms of the experience, but the script is forgotten, and sometimes I feel like I’m letting people down because I can’t remember”.
As an actor with quite a portfolio in both voice acting and TV, he expressed how he used to get frustrated with always getting cast as villains in TV. He doesn’t want to be pigeon-holed, he wants to show and experience a range of characters. However, while his TV career tends to be sinister, he often gets cast as ambiguously heroic figures in video games, such as Balthier in Final Fantasy XII and Fenris in Dragon Age II. He hopes that at some point casting directors might realise “Ah, if he can be this type of character just with his voice, maybe he can be like that outside of voice acting…”
Speaking of Balthier and Fenris, Gideon went on the say that a number of directors have told him to, “think of Balthier’s voice and think of Fenris’s voice and make something in between,” – an odd request, he feels, since both voices are practically his normal, everyday voice. This is partly why Balthier is one of his favourite characters: as well as being his first major role, the part didn’t require adjustments in terms of accent and tone.
He confessed a love of dubbing projects, which not all voice actors enjoy because of how difficult it can be to lip-sync English phrases with Japanese mouth movements. “I guess that’s maybe from doing ADR, or camera work of my own, but it’s kind of fun for me to try and match a phrase with mouth flaps.”
With a kind last word to those of us gathered around the table, the session was over all too soon, and Gideon was swept away to recover his voice and no doubt prepare for Saturday’s panels and MyM stand signings with Alix Wilton Regan, who plays the lady Inquisitor from Dragon Age: Inquistion.
Sachiko Yumi: Cosplay interview
Sachiko Yumi
Ashley Spence (AKA Sachiko Yumi) has been cosplaying since 2007 where she attended the London MCM Expo as Gunner Yuna (Final Fantasy X-2). Ashley has a great amount of skill when it comes to making costumes, having made detailed dresses such as Zelda (Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess) as well as beautifully crafted armour with her Lightning cosplay (Final Fantasy XIII).
Q: Hi Ashley, Thanks for agreeing to participate in this interview. Firstly, could you let me know what cosplay means to you?
Ashley: It allows me to dress up and be someone I’m not. Essentially bring a character to life all the while doing something I enjoy and love.
Q: What was it that made you want to start cosplaying?
Ashley: Browsing YouTube when I was younger I came across some skits of cosplayers ‘acting’ like the characters or doing segments from the game/anime/movie. Kids always love to dress up so I immediately looked it up and found it was called cosplay. I ended up buying a few costumes from the internet until I decided take my hand at trying to make my own. I discovered a passion for it and 26 costumes down the line I’m still going.
Q: Do you prefer making your costumes to buying them?
Ashley: Most definitely, I’ve only bought one costume and that was alright but you can never whack making your own.
Q: What skill do you prefer when making cosplay? For example, do you prefer sewing, prop making, wig styling etc?
Ashley: I prefer the wig styling and prop making. Prop making is really interesting and you learn so many new skills out by doing so. Wig styling… well I love messing around with hair so it’s fun to be creative and even better when taking on a big wig project.
Q: What have been the hardest challenges you have come across and explain how you overcame them?
Ashley: Wig’s that have to be tied up into ponytails or armour. I got over the wig situation by looking into wigs a bit more, realising that to make a wig go up into a ponytail the weaves had to go up as well and not down like they originally do. So I did that, unpicking the wig and sewing it back up the way it needed to be. Results were as good as I had hoped and it was kind of rewarding to know a new technique.
Armour, well that’s a whole different kettle of fish. Tackling armour was hard to get the hang of at first, being it had to fit your body and getting something straight to bend to the shape you want isn’t as easy as it looks. But by practicing I got there in the end, now I have the hang of it (to some extent).
Q: What advice do you have for those wanting to start making cosplays?
Ashley: Advice I’d give to those who are wanting to start cosplay is to not take it too seriously. If you can’t get something right or you’re not sure on how to do something, then that will always come with practice and also to use the internet for ANY questions you have on materials or tutorials. Overall cosplay is a hobby you can excel in but also have fun while doing so.
Q: How do you learn the skills needed to make cosplay?
Ashley: A lot of it is due to the internet, trial and error and asking about things I’m unsure about. But most is due to personal experience. Even though this is the case, I did study Fashion and Textiles for a year which did help me a tad when working with material.
Q: Would you like to progress a career in costume making or do you see it as just a hobby?
Ashley: I would love to pursue a career in costume making or some other aspect involving cosplay, but for now it still remains a hobby!
Q: Are you attending MCM Expo in October? And if so, what are your cosplay plans for it?
Ashley: I sure am attending MCM Expo in October! My plans were originally; Friday – Porrim Maryam from Homestuck, Saturday – Liara T’soni from Mass Effect 3 and Sunday – Korra from Avatar: The Legend of Korra.
Q: Do you have a dream cosplay? And if so, what is it?
Ashley: My dream cosplay would most likely by Liara from Mass Effect, although they come and go. Yuna used to be my first, then it was Lightning and now Liara. I guess I’ve never really had a set dream cosplay.
Thank you Ashley for giving us the chance to interview you and we’ll see you at the next London MCM Expo in October.