Category: Anime

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Anime Art Comics Japan Manga

Shrouded Whimsy: The Art of Peach Momoko

Peach Momoko is one of the most prolific and popular comic book cover artists around, and it’s easy to see why.

Her art is gorgeous and immediately striking. Often highly stylized and sometimes surrealistic, her creations combine softness and a delicate touch with atmospheric, evocative depictions of characters that convey emotion simmering beneath the surface.

She’s done hundreds of covers featuring a wide variety of subjects, including numerous of personal favorites of mine such as Psylocke, Emma Frost, Silk, and many others. I adore the way she uses colors, shapes, and shadows to make truly stunning, impactful art that lingers in the memory of the viewer.

Like a lot of artists I collect, I was first exposed to Peach Momoko’s art through sketch cards. Specifically in this case the incredible sketch cards she did as part of Upper Deck’s Marvel Black Diamond set.

I then found out a full anime inspired Marvel card set had been done featuring her art, and began to seek out select cards from that set and others she had participated in. The anime set was a great showcase of Momoko’s stylized versions of numerous Marvel characters.

Limited signed versions of the base cards were a great chase subset and some of my favorite variants.

The follow up set Anime 2 featured different artists, but also had a really unique subset of “woodblock echo” cards that revisited Momoko’s art from the first set in outline form on wooden cards.

Collecting her art through cards of course led me to her comic work, sometimes in amusingly direct fashion like when the art from her Spider-Gwen Flairium card was later turned into a comic cover.

Momoko did not stay confined to covers with regards to her comic book work. As both writer and artist on her acclaimed Demon Days series she provided an excellent, haunting reimagining of Marvel’s superheroes through the lens of Japanese folklore (and would continue that approach later in Ultimate X-Men).

She’s also brought her vision to the Star Wars universe similarly in both comic stories and numerous covers.

I was lucky enough to meet Peach Momoko briefly at New York Comic Con (NYCC) a few years ago and get a few comics signed directly, including a depiction of Emma Frost matching her amazing original cover art I’d previously gotten.

The variety of art in both subject and tone Momoko has done is astounding. Many of her more straightforward depictions still have a certain edge to them, which gets even more pronounced when her work veers into the macabre and horror inspired pieces (which are outside the scope of my collection so won’t be pictured here but are well worth seeking out for those interested).

More information about Peach Momoko’s art can be found on her various social media pages. She will be back at NYCC this weekend participating in a number of signing sessions and other events.

The volume and quality of art she’s made over the years has been incredible, and I hope she’s able to continue for a long time to come.

Thanks to everyone who’s given this a read. Derailments of Thought currently updates sporadically as I am able.

If you enjoy the blog any support is appreciated, including shares on social media and simply continuing to read. If you happened to be inclined and able to help out monetarily please see my  Ko-fi page. Every little bit helps.

Categories
Anime Film Japan Reviews

Labyrinth Review

After Shiori’s bad day gets her the internet fame she’s craved in ways she doesn’t want, she finds herself trapped inside her phone watching a charismatic doppelgänger take over her life.

I was lucky enough to catch Labyrinth during its limited theatrical release last month. While I’m an anime fan in general, this movie was primarily on my radar for a different reason altogether.

As mentioned in the blog before, I’m a huge fan of a Japanese music group named Atarashii Gakko. A few months ago I checked out their newest song and found out it was featured in an upcoming animated movie.

I adore the song and have listened to it incessantly, which ended up adding layers to my viewing experience. Sailor, Sail On isn’t just a song that they did for this movie. It’s THE song of the movie, used in numerous variations throughout. Recognizing the faint melody right away and knowing what was being built to musically as the film progressed provided additional resonance I quite enjoyed.

Beyond Sailor, Sail On, Atarashii Gakko has another strong tie to the movie as their lead vocalist Suzuka voiced Labyrinth’s main character. While dubs have improved drastically in recent years, I prefer seeing anime with the original Japanese audio and English subtitles over seeing dubs in general. And in this case I was even more interested in checking out the sub due to Suzuka’s involvement.

So I went into Labyrinth with high anticipation, and as the movie got underway I was intrigued with the developing themes. The underlying concepts in Labyrinth faintly echo topics explored in some of my favorite films, albeit from completely different directions and examining different aspects. And, to be perfectly frank, not as subtly or deeply. Still Shiori facing a direct manifestation of the struggle between being yourself and all that entails positive and negative versus letting the public veneer you show take over and how fame can twist it all is an engrossing premise.

Some films weave their message subtly throughout with teases and whispers. This is not one of those films. Labyrinth applies its lessons with a sledgehammer, repeatedly outright stated in a direct manner.

In addition its whole setup necessitates a fair amount of isolation of conflicting characters, leading to a significant amount of conversational exposition. Concepts, world building, and a few key story elements are delivered in a much more tell than show manner with a ton of exposition that can drag a bit at times.

None of which bothered me personally overall by the time the movie was finished however. The themes are worth exploring, and perhaps being direct with a message about denying aspects of one’s self is appropriate. The world’s interesting enough to justify the info dumps, and the story and characters engaging. There was more potential in the character arcs and certain plot elements, but judged on its own merits the story was satisfying.

The atmosphere was well established and maintained. I liked the animation and the contrast shown between the bleak labyrinth and the more vibrant real world. Suzuka, and the rest of the vocal cast for that matter, did a great job. I’d figured out where things were going pretty early on, but the ride was still compelling.

I’ve seen mixed reviews for Labyrinth and certainly concede that its perhaps not what it could have been. But I found what is here engaging and an enjoyable watch. Pretty easy recommendation overall. It’s not without its flaws, but I loved it by the end.

Thanks to everyone who’s given this a read. Derailments of Thought currently updates sporadically as I am able.

If you enjoy the blog any support is appreciated, including shares on social media and simply continuing to read. If you happened to be inclined and able to help out monetarily please see my  Ko-fi page. Every little bit helps.

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Anime Art Cards Comics Japan Wrestling

That Card Collectors Podcast Appearance Follow Up

Short spotlight here where I’m going to let the pictures do most of the talking.

During my appearance on That Card Collectors Podcast I showed a handful of cards and discussed many more. Here’s a look at many of the cards and pieces of art mentioned.

A previous post I did with more details about that appearance, including where to listen or watch and links to several mentioned blog posts, can be found here. Please check the podcast out for more context on the wonderful cards and artists featured below.

A variety of chekis from BBM’s Women’s Wrestling sets:

Joshi wrestler PSC collection:

The first art commissions I ever got from Juri Chinchilla:

Dizzy, Millia Rage, and  Jam Kuradoberi from Guilty Gear
Kasumi and Ayane PSC by Juri Chinchilla.
Nonoka Seto PSC by Miki Okazaki.

Best of luck to everyone with whatever shape your collection takes.

Thanks to everyone who’s given this a read. Derailments of Thought currently updates sporadically, but more regular posts will hopefully be on the way soon.

If you enjoy the blog any support is appreciated, including shares on social media and simply continuing to read. If you happened to be inclined and able to help out monetarily please see my  Ko-fi page. Every little bit helps.

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Anime Art Cards Comics Japan Wrestling

That Card Collectors Podcast Appearance

Quick bit of cross promotion in case anyone’s interested.

I recently chatted about my card collection with Ian and Josh on That Card Collectors Podcast. See that page for links to the episode on Spotify and iTunes, and find it (audio version) on YouTube here.

A video version where a lot of the cards we discussed were shown is also up on their YouTube channel here.

It was a fun time chatting with them about collecting. Please check it out (and see related blog links below).

Nonoka Seto PSC by Miki Okazaki.

We talked a bit about this blog and a number of card related posts I’ve done, including articles about specific card types and sets as well as spotlights on some incredible artists. Here are those posts for easy reference if anyone’s interested in further details.

Artist spotlights:
Sean Pence 
Achilleas Kokkinakis
Miki Okazaki 
Lydi Li 
Veronica O’Connell 
Yappy
Juri Chinchilla
Juri Chinchilla 2
Juri Chinchilla 3
Juri Chinchilla 4

Card type features:
printing plates 
metal cards
comic cuts
minis & chibis

Card set spotlights:
BBM Women’s Wrestling 2024
BBM Women’s Wrestling 2025 
Perna Studios (overview)
Perna Studios APs
Perna Studios Witchcraft
Perna Studios Elementals

Ghosts of Christmas “Box Topper” Wooden Sketch Card AP by Juri Chinchilla

Best of luck to everyone with whatever shape your collection takes.

Hikaru Shida cheki.

Thanks to everyone who’s given this a read. Derailments of Thought currently updates sporadically, but more regular posts will hopefully be on the way soon.

If you enjoy the blog any support is appreciated, including shares on social media and simply continuing to read. If you happened to be inclined and able to help out monetarily please see my  Ko-fi page. Every little bit helps.

Categories
Anime Art Japan Manga

Delicious in NYC: Ryoko Kui Exhibition

October 10-26, 2025
Chelsea Walls

Featured in NYC for a limited time is a combined exhibition spotlighting both early works of Ryoko Kui and her big hit Delicious in Dungeon. I’m extremely limited in my ability to go out nowadays but was lucky enough to catch this.

It’s a mid sized exhibit space spanning a couple of long hallways with two small offshoot rooms, but the walls are covered with a sizable number of art and displays providing an extensive collection of things to look at.

One thing I particularly adore in exhibits like this is when preliminary and concept art are displayed next to corresponding finished art. There was a good amount of that here and it was all really cool to take in. Original volumes of her early manga were also on display to be looked through with a couple even having a translated volume to read (all unobtrusively tethered to keep them by their designated spots).

I’m mostly familiar with Delicious in Dungeon by reputation, having just watched the first episode so far. But that was enough to understand the appeal and I still thoroughly enjoyed looking through everything on display.

Delicious in Dungeon has become incredibly popular in part due to its unique core concept and visually stunning depictions of the monster based food central to the show.

The section of the exhibit dedicated to this aspect is particularly great. Explanatory posters with an ingredient list and a bunch of pictures were displayed above well done plastic replicas of dishes from the show.

There was a large variety of merchandise available at the store on the way out, including shirts, random pull magnets/pins/keychains, acrylic standees, manga volumes, and so on.

Visitors get a free random (of 8) postcard for attending and can get another (from a different pull set) for posting on social media while there. Pictures are allowed (which admittedly is blindingly obvious this far down in this post) but no video.

I was done in about an hour, but it was still well worth it. This is an extremely well done pop up experience that’s exactly advertised: numerous displays of cool replicas of art and items from the works of Ryoko Kui.

This exhibition is in NYC for just another couple days. Definitely worth a look if you can fit it in. Tickets must be purchased in advance for their their Eventbrite site, but availability permitting it can be done right before going in.

Thanks to everyone who’s given this a read. Derailments of Thought currently updates sporadically as I am able.

If you enjoy the blog any support is appreciated, including shares on social media and simply continuing to read. If you happened to be inclined and able to help out monetarily please see my  Ko-fi page. Every little bit helps.

Categories
Anime Film Reviews

Perfect Blue 4K Remastered Review

“There is no way illusions can come to life.”

Mima Kirigoe is about to leave being a pop idol behind, but her past might not be on board with her new life and new image…

I feel fair warning is needed to start off here. Perfect Blue is officially Not Rated, but let’s be clear it would likely be NC-17 if it were given one.

So for anyone who still equates animation with children’s cartoons: you are very much in the wrong place. It’s a medium that, like live action, can be used to tell a wide variety of stories in any genre. Perfect Blue is a full blown psychological thriller with horror elements and extremely graphic treatment of horrible situations.

It’s also easily one of the best movies I’ve ever seen, and one of my all time favorites.

And yet I’ve only watched it a handful of times over the years because of its intensity and subject matter. I adore a good psychological thriller, in part I’m sure because of the impression this left on me, but horror and gore aren’t my thing at all. The graphic nature of this film is beyond what I’m usually able to handle, but the medium, the execution, and the sheer quality of this film make it the exception.

I first saw Perfect Blue pretty close to when it was initially released, an astonishing 28 years ago now. I was still early on in being an anime fan, and it completely blew me away. I spent the majority of the movie trying to keep up and wondering what on Earth I was watching as the film broke my brain, but in the final ten minutes or so it all seems to fit together in incredible form and makes everything that came before click into place.

This was director Satoshi Kon’s first film. He had a small but impressive list of other movies plus one tv series before his unfortunate death in 2010 at the age of 46. Everything in his catalog is well worth watching, and varies wildly in genre and subject matter.

It’s been near a decade since my last watch, and the opportunity to see the remaster in a theater made this the perfect time to revisit this masterpiece and see how it held up.

Perfect Blue is a visually stunning film, and the restoration did it justice. Everything popped in the right ways and the detail put into it can be appreciated as never before. It simply looked great.

There’s a kind of stylized realism to the film, which made certain elements really stand out when that realism was pushed aside a bit both narratively and visually. Kon was willing to make some characters look unsettling and/or ugly, which adds a lot to the visual depth and overall atmosphere.

Mima’s story was every bit as gripping as when I watched it for the first time, and knowing the key reveals didn’t detract from the building tension at all. The themes of personal choice and identity, the pitfalls of fame, the commodification of celebrities, and so on still resonate.

The pacing is exquisite, as the film knows when to hold a scene for impact and to create unease. There are several times when disturbing scenes and moments are held, creating an oppressive sense of dread.

There are several sections where time is played with and scenes are intercut together. I’ve never seen the technique put to better use. Mima’s world is falling apart, and the film’s use of parallel moments and framing to convey the fragility of her reality is incredible.

It’s a minor thing but the time period specific stuff, like the main character needing to learn what the internet is and how to navigate it, was presented really well. The film doesn’t feel poorly aged because it was from a different time, as it clearly and naturally gives the viewer just enough of a frame of reference for what era it’s in.

The entire film left a mark on me and still had as much impact this time around. One particular moment, a stunning illustration of taking full advantage what can be done in animation, blew me away and is always what I think of first when I remember this movie. It’s a split second thing, but my jaw dropped again all the same when I saw it on the big screen.

This was an instant classic when it was released, and absolutely holds up near three decades later.

Perfect Blue Remastered will be playing in select theaters for about another week. Highly recommended, with a reminder warning that this is an intense, often disturbing watch.

Side note: Perfect Blue is an adaptation, and I read and reviewed the translation of the book it was based on a few years back. The short version is while the book is solid, there were some major changes made to the film that added depth and nuance and for anyone interested in this story the movie is definitely the way to go.

Thanks to everyone who’s given this a read. Derailments of Thought currently updates sporadically as I am able.

If you enjoy the blog any support is appreciated, including shares on social media and simply continuing to read. If you happened to be inclined and able to help out monetarily please see my  Ko-fi page. Every little bit helps.

Categories
Anime Books Reviews

Perfect Blue: Complete Metamorphosis Review

Pop idol Mima Kirigoe is considering a change to her well established pure and innocent image in order to take her career to the next level. But not everyone is ok with her changing…  

 

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Perfect Blue is one of the best movies I’ve ever seen. It’s graphic and uncomfortable in parts, but it all serves to enhance the atmosphere of this incredible psychological thriller. So I was quite interested to read Complete Metamorphosis, the novel the film was based on.

The prologue is extremely disturbing and sets the tone for the coming tale as unflinching when it comes to subject matter. Looking back I’m not sure it was needed, but it wasn’t completely out of place. Be warned though, this novel pulls no punches. A good pace and writing style through most of the book does help immersion and brings all the story elements, both compelling and unsettling, into harmony. The writing/story also holds up surprisingly well, with little outside of a few dated technology and movie references to indicate it’s over 25 years old.

As mentioned above the movie is a psychological thriller, with deepening mystery and heavy themes as reality unravels around Mima. The film is brutal and extremely graphic, but is a step back from horror.

In contrast the book is suspense that turns to horror, with a well done building feeling of impending dread but very little of the nuance of the film story-wise. The characters, setup, and certain other aspects are the same, but there are major differences in how things play out, themes, etc. Also, Complete Metamorphosis goes way over the top towards the end. I’ll avoid further details due to spoilers, but this is a different experience than the movie.

I’m going into depth in the comparison to provide the appropriate context. Adaptations don’t have to be (and in most cases shouldn’t be) exact, and each form should be judged on its own. But speaking as someone who loves a good psychological thriller but generally doesn’t enjoy horror, that subtle but significant difference is important to highlight. The book is an exploration of obsession, and as such is largely successful. The movie does transcend it though in my opinion, expanding into even deeper and more varied territory.

On its own Perfect Blue: Complete Metamorphosis is a solid read (although the end isn’t quite the equal of the buildup), and furthermore is interesting as source material for the film. But if anyone’s interested in Mima’s story I personally recommend WATCHING THE FILM INSTEAD/FIRST. It took this decent tale of obsession and turned it into a masterpiece.

 

* A small note on the translation. Names are left in what English speakers would call last-first style. Personally I find this jarring when reading in English and feel a good translation should use certain style conventions of the language being translated into. In this review I have used the more traditional English first-last format.

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Anime Art Cards Comics Manga Video Games Wrestling

Beautiful Dreams 3: More Art of Juri the Dreamer

It’s been a year and change since my last spotlight on the work of my favorite artist, and I’d like to share and talk about more of her incredible work and some of the inspirations behind the pieces. See Beautiful Dreams and Beautiful Dreams 2 for more about Juri H. Chinchilla’s art, including past pieces I’ll be mentioning in this write up.

 

Aoi Kizuki PSC by Juri H. Chinchilla.
Asuka PSC by Juri H. Chinchilla.
Dash Chisako PSC by Juri Chinchilla.

 

Juri’s Personal Sketch Cards (PSCs) have been a great opportunity to request particular subjects and design elements. One of the more unique requests I’ve made was a card featuring one of my favorite professional wrestlers, and I adored it so much that I’ve followed up with several more since. Juri’s done an AMAZING job depicting these previously unfamiliar to her subjects and these are in many ways the pride of my entire art collection. See Another Wonderful Way Pro-Wrestling is Art 2 for more about the above works featuring WWE’s reigning Smackdown Women’s Champion Asuka, Sendai Girls’ phenomenal high flyer Dash Chisako, and the recently retired Happy Maker Aoi Kizuki.

 

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Misaki Ohata PSC by Juri H. Chinchilla.

 

Another favorite of mine also retired in 2018, and Juri’s strikingly posed Misaki Ohata with a wonderful background of venue lights is a great keepsake.

 

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Reika Saiki PSC by Juri Chinchilla.

 

Tokyo Joshi Pro’s Reika Saiki is known as the “Muscle Idol,” and all aspects of her strength and charisma as a wrestler, idol, and body builder are gloriously highlighted in Juri’s drawing.

 

IMG_3515
Mitsuru Konno PSC by Juri Chinchilla.

 

The last wrestler in this batch was also the first of all. Juri’s first rendition of Mitsuru Konno from Gatoh Move for me featured a great action pose capturing and combining Mitsuru’s strength, determination, grace, and beauty in a remarkable rendition. Equally wonderful is Juri’s quite different recent depiction, featuring Mitsuru in her newer wrestling outfit with a palpable sense of celebration and excitement captured.

With the exception of Dash doing her trademark frog splash, I didn’t specify poses and the layouts, details, and way Juri captured each subject are just wonderful. I couldn’t be happier with how these all turned out.

 

 

Juri’s work have are as diverse in creation method as they can be in subject matter. I’ve added a pair of wonderful paintings of hers to my collection, including a striking abstract and an atmospheric, haunting image of night in Rainy Gotham.

Another unique piece is Aquatica, which shows off Juri’s wonderful use of color in a gorgeous image of an original character.

 

 

As always Juri’s work for Perna Studios‘ high quality card sets is pitch perfect for the subject matter. I was lucky enough to get some Artist Proofs (APs)  from her for their most recent sets. For Witchcraft, I requested a female grim reaper from several artists, and I adore the delicate yet powerful feel Juri brought to her version. In the past I got a witch from Juri with some amazing ravens, so loved the idea of getting Celtic goddess Morrigan for her Classic Mythology III metal AP. Rounding out this group is a graceful moonlight scene featuring my favorite Greek goddess, Artemis, with just a touch of lurking menace as she hunts.

 

A very different Morrigan was part of one of the Personal Sketch Cards I got previously from Juri, an incredible depiction of the Darkstalkers character with her “sister” Lilith. Morrigan’s an old favorite and one of my most played fighting game characters ever, so I was thrilled to add this larger, equally amazingly done drawing of her to my collection.

 

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Continuing the video game theme are three new PSCs from some of my favorite game series. Makoto from Persona 5 joins my previous PSC of Elizabeth from the third game in that series, with a bold red background complimenting the deep blues of the other card. The wonderful balance of a sense of motion while still posing is a wonderful touch not only in the two Persona cards, but also accentuates Juri’s drawings of Fire Emblem’s Tharja, and Valkyria Chronicles 4’s Riley, as well as the Bombshells version of DC’s Raven and Clare from the manga/anime Claymore. Finally for this time around is a beautiful depiction of two of Juri’s original characters. The cards are all excellent and unique works showcasing Juri’s attention to detail and mastery of color in their own different ways

 

 

More information about Juri’s art can be found on her artist page. I hope to continue to follow and collect her wonderous creations for a long time to come. 🙂

 

 

 

Categories
Anime Models Reviews

Studio Ghibli Papercraft: Porco Rosso

I recently put together my first “papercraft” model: an excellent depiction of an iconic image from my favorite Studio Ghibli movie. There are various types of papercraft, with some looking like “traditional” plastic or wooden models as 3D representations of their subjects. This type is instead a series of flat, different colored sections with designs cut out that create a layered image when placed one behind the other with small spacing between the layers.

 

 

The envelope for this comes with directions and several mini sheets of sturdy paper with designs cut into them. Some models are marked with “English instructions included,” but this one only had Japanese instructions. But the pictures show all the pieces needed at each step and the pieces are labeled on their punchcards with the “layer” they belong on so there’s sufficient guidance provided to complete the model even with the language barrier.

 

 

I did look up English directions for a similar papercraft and the only thing that would have been overlooked otherwise is a wise suggestion to apply glue the “non-visible” side of whatever is being glues together (so to the base layer if attaching a piece to the back of the layer, and to the back of the piece if it’s being glued to the front of a layer), and the suggested tool list which I’ll discuss below.

 

IMG_2102.jpg

 

To achieve minor visual details that really bring the image to life some of the pieces are TINY and admittedly quite difficult to cut out, keep intact, and paste together. So while for the first few pieces it seemed I’d be ok just using my hands and the hobby glue bottle directly, the additional recommended tools of an exacto knife (for removing the small pieces from the punchcards), tweezers (to hold and position pieces), and toothpick and/or small glue brush (for applying glue) are essential. One or two pieces were so small and delicate I almost destroyed them, but it all worked out in the end and wasn’t difficult to put together overall with some patience and care. It took me about an hour and the result looks fantastic.

 

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While the model is nice and stable once together and doesn’t require a case, they are available and I’m happy with having a bit of protection against both damage and dust as well as how it looks. I got a light up version for this one and the soft, alternating color lights poking through the tiny exposed areas in the completed piece looks amazing.  Really pleased with this and will likely try more in the future.

Categories
Anime Reviews TV

The File of Young Kindaichi Returns First Impressions

Hajime Kindaichi, grandson of a famous detective and no slouch in that area himself, travels with his best friend Miyuki who is recruited to perform in a fashion show in Hong Kong in place of a model who she bears a striking resemblance to that’s gone missing. Unfortunately the missing model is only the first to disappear, and worse things are on the horizon. 

 

kindaichi

 

I’m a huge fan of the Kindaichi Case Files manga, so was quite interested in checking out this anime adaptation. A nice bonus for me is that this adapts one of the later Kindaichi series, so the mysteries will be new to me.

So far I’ve watched the first case, told over the course of the first four episodes. That seems exactly the right length to properly let the mysteries unfold. The Hong Kong Kowloon Treasure Murder Case provides a decent introduction to Kindaichi and the formula, approach, and atmosphere of his adventures.  It seems to have the same general classic mystery feel and structure as the manga, and this opening mystery has good hooks and twists (and the coincidences the plot is based on are too amusing to really hold it against the story).

The pacing is decent, although the exposition heavy setup and solution portions are less cumbersome when reading and drag ever so slightly in animated form.  There’s also a little bit of handwaving and stretching of suspension of disbelief with certain developments (which also occurs in the manga at times), but importantly not in the mystery related parts so no real complaints.

Vital context is kept hidden until the end, but the mystery plays fair and key parts are solvable (if requiring some big leaps of logic). This is one of the things I love most about the Kindaichi stories I’ve read, and I’m particularly happy to see this aspect continued here.

Overall I enjoyed this quite a bit and will be continuing to watch when I can. I do recommend reading the original manga series first if you can, if only to appreciate the cameos, have a better sense of the main characters, and because the written stories are a little deeper. But as I mentioned before this initial arc does provide a good introduction to Hajime’s world, and should be extremely accessible even with no prior familiarity.