Black Lagoon FC

[Vizard_King]

With Movie refrences aplenty and more Cussing than most rated R movies
Black Lagoon is one of the coolest Non-supernatural Modern Day Anime I have ever seen.
The Godfather meets Pirates.
GoodFellas Meets the Wild Bunch.
and so on and so forth.
And lets not forget the hard rocking Opening Song.
Just so you all know, I'v seen the Anime up to the Third DVD.
Still goota see Season 2.
I prefer the Dubs.
Characters:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Black_Lagoon_characters
http://img.mp3sugar.com/album/cover7250_50501.jpg

Posters made by Me:
http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g253/Seanvampire/poster32681011.jpg

http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g253/Seanvampire/poster61990603.jpg

http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g253/Seanvampire/poster58446648.jpg

Owner:Vizard_King
Co-Owner:Spartan27

Members:
Avi
.Nez|
Cheez
Ruffy GEAR 2
Kurosaki|Ichigo
Fly
Deadly Rukia
Jebba-Chan

[negativzero]

Sign me up, nothing gets better than crazy cyborg maids and bisexual incest loli assassins...!!!

[Vizard_King]

Welcome aboard

[Spartan27]

Already talked about it in the anime forum, so I might as well come over here and sign up for the FC.

[Vizard_King]

Nice to see you again,Spartan. Welcome to the crew

[Avi]

Sign me up please :D I <3 Revy!

[Spartan27]

Wow, when did I become co-owner? I guess that makes me what first mate or something? Hey Vizard_King better watch out I think I am now first in line to take over as captain or boss if we mutiny or something, better rule with an iron fist like Balalaika.

[Vizard_King]

Nah she just rules Other Mafia with an iron fist. She actually treats most of her men as equals
And anyway, wont ruling with an iron fist Case a mutiny?

[Spartan27]

Thats most likely the key, be nice to your men, but don't be afraid to show who's the boss every once and while.

[cheez]

Can I join?
Black Lagoon is my favorite anime. The animation and action is some of the best I have seen, and the writing is superb.

[Vizard_King]

Welcome Aboard the Lagoon,Cheez!

[Spartan27]

One of the great facets of Black Lagoon are the secondary characters, the ones that the crew meets in their adventures, who is your favorite secondary character, mine personally is my is Legarch the Pot smoking Irish getaway driver. Anyone that can smoke that much weed and drive that crazy yet good has earned my respect, also he has some of the funniest lines in the anime, and he's Irish I love the accent.

[Vizard_King]

Legarch and his partner whos name I forget. But she kicks ass and she uses Sword.
My Dream Girl.

[Spartan27]

I know what you mean I have the name on the tip of my tounge, but I can't remember how its spelled, its like Shinhua or something like that. We do know one thing about her she "real Taiwanese" and she will cut some meat off your ass if you forget it.

[Vizard_King]

Hell yeah. I love that line.

[cheez]

Yolanda who cant love a senior citizen one eyed nun who's church is actually a front for guns and drugs smuggling, and can accurately fire a desert eagle one handed.
Masahiro Takenaka the atheist who co-lead the Protectors of the Islamic Front. his character being the polar opposite of all the other terrorists and his only reason in life was to be an enemy of the state I found interesting.
Wentzel Ahbe the captain of the doomed Nazi U-boat. It is rare to find positive portrayals of Nazi soldiers.

[cheez]

One of the best aspects of Black Lagoon I find is that even with all the quality animation it is really the writing that carries the story along and offers some of the most exciting moments.
Other aspects of Black Lagoon that I like is the lack of a set of morals express through out the series, and that the protagonists and antagonists are not identifyed as being moral/good or unmoral/evil rather they had conflicting interests.
The common theme of alienation caused by conflict, along with references to conflicts such as WWII, Soviet-Afghan war, Vietnam war, Lebanese Civil war, Japanese Red Army, Columbia Civil war, Romanian Revolution is my favoriet aspect of Black Lagoon.
Sorry if this post is a little long I just really like Black Lagoon :)

[Spartan27]

Hey who cares how long your post is, I love long posts as long as they contribute.

The writing is very good, its even better in the Dub, and it offers an assortment of situations and adds a variety to anime that you just don't find that often. One of the things that sometimes bugs me about anime in general is that it often doesn't offer a lot of variety in its views or its settings, for instance when the US or really americans in general there always seems to be a general view that we are going to end up being the evil ones in the show, here there seems to be a view that anyone can be good or evil. Not even that there is good and evil, more that everyone is painted in a gray color, there are no real good sides or evil sides.

[cheez]

I have only heard some of the dub, I liked Benny and Rock's voices but I wasn't too fond of Dutch and Revy's voices.
There is no real sense of good and evil in the series. I think the main reason for this is that the society is built mainly on power, self interest, and survival. All things that are commonly associated with morality such as law and religion carry no real influence with the police being unashamedly corrupt, the church a front for smuggling drugs and guns, and the Buddha statue riddled with bullets.
In all most all other animes violence is associated with being abnormal and dangerous to society and this is demonstrated by the main antagonist craving violence while the protagonist refrains from violence. Where in Black Lagoon violence has a sense of normalcy and is necessary for many people to function such as Revy, Eda, and Balalaika.

[Spartan27]

I think what I liked about the dub is the writing, it felt like to me they actually increased the atmosphere of being an underworld of crime. Your right the society is mainly built on power and survival, and its one of the reasons why I like it so much. Its so unique compared to other animes, because in most action oriented animes we have a hero who fights for good against evil, even in shows like Cowboy Bebop or Samurai Champloo where we have this somewhat free society, there is still somewhat of a good side and bad side, in Black Lagoon everyone has their own motivations which mainly come down to their own self interest, even when someone does something good, its almost always because it serves their self interest.

[cheez]

I haven't heard much of the dub yet, so I probably haven't given it enough time.
One of the strongest parts of Black Lagoon for me is that I can identify with it even though I don't want to. Most animes are presented in times, areas, circumstances that the audience can't identify with, but instead they have the audience identify with morals and chararistcs of the protagonist, this allows most watchers to not have any connection with the antagonist. Black Lagoon presents the opposite, it is set in modern time, in a fictional yet modern city, and has circumstances we can understand, violent conflicts have affected these people so much that they have allienated them selves from the rest of society and now live violent lives ruled by power and self interest. Then there are no characters that you want to identify with except for Rock and Benny but they still witness killings with no or little emotion most of the time, so viewers are forced to see similarities between them selves or people they know in characters who have few to no redeeming qualities. This shocked me as I got further into watch Black Lagoon, there are real people who are like this, there are real places where these people thrive, and it is possible for any body to fall into the circumstances that may lead to this type of person.

Other people may interperate this show differently but I think this aspect makes Black Lagoon one of the best animes out there.

[cheez]

I was pretty tired while writing this so please tell me if anything dosn't make sense.

[Spartan27]

I also like how this show tends to deal with subjects that seem real, so much of what is on deals with either magical powers, or they are set in times that we can't identify with. That doesn't mean we can't identify with some of the characters but it seems a bit detached. I personally don't feel a connection with these characters I think as much as you do, because it does seem like another world to me, but I can see how anyone could be pulled into this world, the perfect example being Rock and Benny who appear to be real people like you or me, yet they have been drawn into this world. I guess what it comes down to is that I like this show because it feels much more set in the real world then a show such as Bleach or Gundam or even something like Gantz, because all of those shows seem to be unreal in a way. I still like all of those shows (not as much Gundam), but Black Lagoon gives me something a little bit different.

[Vizard_King]

Yeah That is one of the things I loved about Black Lagoon. It's one of the most realistic Anime I've seen. I mean,Yeah Sometimes Revy gets a little superhuman, No one can fire a Grenade Launcher with just one hand, but still.
And I've always loves Movies like The Goodfellas.
To me, BL is like The Goodfellas meets The Wild Bunch.
I love that.

[cheez]

The twins Hansel and Gretel were some of my favorite characters. Leave it to Black Lagoon to make two of the most sadistic characters children :)
As sadistic as they were their deaths were two of the saddest in the series. Through out most of arc they were mainly presented as just sadistic killers, but at the end they started to act more like children such as Hansel crying after getting shot, along with their childish reasoning behind their violence. Their background was one of the more tragic backgrounds that I've heard of, because you realize they never had a chance in life.
Their haven't been many times I've been saddened by the deaths of sadistic killers, but I think Black Lagoon did a great job portraying them both as killers and children.

[cheez]

Has anybody read the manga also? I have read up to the 13th chapter so far, I can't find any site that has any translations past chapter 13.
For those who haven't read it yet the anime follows the manga faithfully except it changes the order of the arcs.

[Vizard_King]

Nope no Manga yet. I haven't even seen the Second Barrage. But I know who your talking about.
I'm waiting for the English version to come out.

[cheez]

Sorry :(
I would recommend the subbed especially since the dubbed is not out yet.
Do you know when the second will be dubbed?

[Vizard_King]

I wish I knew. Last I heard it should be out by now but it isn't

[Spartan27]

First off, the Hansel and Gretel story arc was the darkerst that BL undertook, I mean you can't get more darker then taking children who were used in child porn, and then make them into gruesome killers who also have an identity crisis, at the end I didn't know whether to mourn their deaths, or to be happy that they finally had a release, but this is what BL does so well.

As for the dubs, I already said in the anime fourm that Geneon is bankrupt and there is no real date for when the second barrage is going to come out, I would recommend to you Vizard_King that you go ahead and watch the subs, because I think it might be a while before you have the opportunity to watch the dub, just be prepared to listen to some horrible Engrish, especially from Revy. Revy is supposed to be american, heck she's from New York, but here it sounds like a dog trying to talk while eating peanut butter, its really bad, but a bit funny at the same time.

[Vizard_King]

Yeah I heard She uses alot of English but the one who told me hates Dubs.
I belive you more than him now.
I usually dont have access to a computer because my laptop F*cked up again so I gotta buy a new one.
Luckly I got this Comp all week, can one of you send me a link to the episodes? Starting with the Vampire Twins episode?

[cheez]

Some good sites for streaming videos are
http://www.veoh.com
http://www.animethat.com
http://www.animevenue.com
http://www.crunchyroll.com
All four of these sites are streaming Black Lagoon seasons 1&2. Veoh and crunchyroll might require you to sign up, but the others should not.

[Spartan27]

If you want dowload links than you could go to a number of places such cyber12 or animea.net. but the above links should get you streams, but I think you already knew that. You will have to search a little for the episodes but it shouldn't be that hard.

How old was your labtop? was it due or was it unforseen events that made you suffer?

The Second Barrage is a bit interesting since it gives a variety of episodes, but there are only 3 arcs, the last one is pretty long like 5 or so episodes. The thing with Revy, was that it was soooo bad that I didn't understand why they even had it, I mean it just didn't feel right, if she could have spoke clearly then it would have been I think really cool, but it sounded like how an American would have sounded like if we had one our VA's do their whole lines in Hungarian or some other god forsaking language that we have no experience in.

[cheez]

I didn't mind the english speaking too much although it was hard to understand at parts, and overall the last arc was my favorite so I forgave them, and knowing that its was designed for Japanese audiences and not American.

[cheez]

One of the highlights of the show (I think this show has many highlights :) ) I think is that it looks at the reasons for peoples actions instead of the actions them selves. Not passing moral judgement and rather looking into the motivations for characters actions allowed an objective look at certain groups and events that you rarely ever see especially in western media. The best example of this were the scenes in the German U-boat. The U-boat scenes showed the two main motivating factors behind German soldiers. The SS officer who was a Nazi party loyalist and was so disillusioned in the Nazi beliefs that he cared more a painting he thought Hitler made than for his family, the other main motivation you rarely see in western media and that was Captain Wentzel Ahbe who hated the Nazis but fought for glory of Germany and his family.

[Spartan27]

The Nazi U-boat episode is interesting since it depicts nazis not in a bad light, so often we see enemies such as the Nazis, Japanese, or perhaps even now middle easterns as being these inherently evil people who eat babies and have no morals whatsoever, in reality many of the people that fight for these evil leaders are not bad people, many times they are fighting for their people, or the idea of their home.

This episode reminded me of the film The Thin Red Line where there is a scene where the Americans assualt a Japanese camp, they decimate the camp, and proceed to killing most of the soldiers, throughout the process we see the horror and inherent humaness of the Japanese soldiers. I love these types of films, because they show that in war there are not always good people and bad people, on the actual battlefield we can all become evil, we are all essentially human, and just because someone's leaders have inherently evil ideas that doesn't mean that all of those who fight for that country are evil, most are human just like you or I. the U-boat episode is great since it shows the difference between a normal person and someone who is indoctrinated by the evil concepts of the leaders.

[Vizard_King]

True. I actually met a German Soldier who fought in Russian in WW2.
He was a good man too. Near the end of the war he made sure not to be in too many fire fights with his men and the Allies. He made sure all of his men came back alive to be with their families. He had no clue what was going on at home. He was just a Soldier following orders.

It's the few crazies we gotta look out for,man.

[Spartan27]

I agree there are very truly evil people out there, but I feel bad when our mass media sterotypes an entire group of people to be evil, when really its just the people that lead them.

[Vizard_King]

That's why I only watch 'Oreily.
I love it when people accus his of being racist or steriotypical on a
subject he was just talking about, even though he said the polor opposite of what they are accusing him of.

But Back to Black Lagoon.
Is Mr. Chang awesome or what? Who would have thought someone was better than Two Hands Revy?

[cheez]

Mr. Chang is awesome. My favorite scene with him was when the grenade was thrown at him and he just stopped it with his foot and kicked it back, all while talking to Revy. His relaxed attitude just makes all the more awesome.

[cheez]

I wished they had more scenes with Mr. Chang but they had many characters that I wished had more scenes. I normally don't like it when shows go over 24 episodes, but I do wish they made a third season of Black Lagoon.

[Vizard_King]

Yeah That was amazing.
And I love his Sarcasm.
"You have guests and you don't make coffee for them? That's cold Dutch!"

[Spartan27]

Mr. Chang is awesome, he has the most style of all the gangsters, the way that he just calmly kicks a granade back at the enemy was so made of win. He was actually a lot cooler in the sub than the dub. Also the password he gave in the sub is a lot better as well, "The triads are super cool" instead of the "may the force be with you"

They need to make a third season of BL just to save anime in general, I wouldn't mind there being no third season except for the fact that there hasn't been a show that has taken its place as an action/gritty anime. I hate this season right now, and I don't see much on the horizon in terms of cool anime. All I'm watching right now is Bleach, Ghost Hound (which I really like), and I'm kinda of watching Gundam, D.Gray-man is actually all right now that its past the fillers, but my point is that we used to have shows like Black Lagoon, Death Note, Darker than Black, Claymore, heck even Gurran Lagann that satified my thirst for either smart shows, or were action oriented, now we have suffer through this moe and harem crap that I can't stand, I mean I don't get it, how did we go from such awesomness to such crap, heck I wouldn't even mind something like Pumpkin Scissors just something that isn't about either troubles of high school relationships or something about magical girls. We do have Code Geass to look forward to, but I thought it was a bit overrated, I also don't like the america bashing that goes on there. Rant over.

[Vizard_King]

I like "May The Force be with you"! It was amazing.
And being a slight Star Wars Nerd it made me laugh.
And I think they should too. Or at least an OVA or Movie. Those'll work too

[cheez]

I love the contrast between the characters lead by idealistic beliefs and the characters that have become disillusioned in their beliefs/purpose. The characters lead by their idealistic beliefs became disillusioned to reality these were the neo nazis who believed that the painted they were after would helf bring back the Their Reich, Ibraha who was convinced that it was god's will to destroy Israel and the west, the twins who believed that if they killed others then they would be immortal, and Yukio who believed that she could lead the Washimine group against Hotel Moscow. The characters who became disillusioned in their belief and focused on reality were Roberta who became to think of the FARC as just drug cartels, Masahiro who after the Japanese Red Army fell only joined up with other rebel groups to be an enemy of the state, Sir Alfred vowed not to be a Nazi idealist and prepared for the worst, Balalkia joined the military partly out of honor for her family, and Revy because of experiences in her childhood lost faith in god and people.

All of the idealistic characters meet the same faith and thats death. The neo nazis all die trying to protect the painting, the leader even tries to kill Dutch after it is clear he has lost, Ibraha ends up getting killed by Masahiro to stop him from leading the forces against a US military base, the twins believing they are immortal take on Hotel Moscow when they just could have escaped, Yukio ends up taking her own life when she realizes that her war with Hotel Moscow is futile and that she has now way out. The characters that have abandoned their idealistic beliefs for more realistic ones tend to fair better (they live).

The deaths of the idealistic characters I believe symbolizes the fall of communism (stay with me). Communism has in some way has affected the lives of the majority of characters, all of the conflicts mentioned were part of the Cold War like the Vietnam war, Soviet-Afghan war, FARC's war in Columbia, Six Day war, Romanian Revolution, then WWII which lead to the Cold War. Communism its self is an idealistic form of government that failed.

This is what I think so far, I will probably up date further. What do you think? I am pretty messy when typing my thoughts so tell me if anything dosn't make sense. Enjoy:D

[Spartan27]

Hmmm, I think you have some good thoughts there, I'm not sure that all the deaths symbolize the fall of communism, I mean for instance I don't know if I would put Yukio as a part of that, I think a lot of the issues surrounding the fall of communism instead show a change in the world order, people that had had their place in during the cold war had to adapt to a new world, hence the changes taking place in the underworld.

I think it has more to do with idealism vs. realism, the idealistic characters can't adapt to the new world and thus they suffer and eventually go away sometimes peacefully (roberta) sometimes in a bang (Ibraha). It is interesting how communism plays a huge part in Black Lagoon, whether its the changing criminal world (Hotel Moscow's emergence) or specific examples of how the fall affected people (Hansel and Gretel, Roberta, etc.).

[cheez]

I agree Yukio death was a stretch, but if you ignore her my idea still holds :D. I think the large showing of communism has to do with the fact that it was one of the leading causes of conflicts before the Cold War ended. Communism is its self an example of idealism failing to adapt to a changing world, and eventually being beat out by capitalism.

[Vizard_King]

I agree with you totaly Cheez. Comunisum was an Idealistic form of Government that would be fine if it worked but it never does.
Comunisum and Sociolism are both at the bottem of the "Governments that work" list.
Democracy over all is fairing the best.
Monarcies are ok if you have someone good leading you.
Anarcy only works in the Demon world.
And in some cases, although cruel, Mafias can make a rather nice rule. They are cruel to their victoms but they also keep a nice order and usualy bring money to the community.
And I just saw American Gangster (Which was a good Gangster movie along the lines of the old 30s and 40s based mafia movies. THOSE are REAL gangsters. Not this Rapper crap.)
I like how Black Lagoon has all the great elements of the classic Mobster Movies and mixes it with Action and Piracy.
Violant fun for all!

[Spartan27]

It depends how socialism is developed, many western European countries are doing fine, Sweden is a example of how socialism can work, it gets a lot harder though when you are dealing with multiple ethnicities as well as a lot larger population, but then I think you and me have very different political beliefs which is cool, which is fine, since we can both agree on the greatness of BL as well as other things.

Back on topic. One American Gangster is a great film, as you said a true gangster film which has been lacking since I think it might be Road to Perdition with Tom Hanks, but these two are also very different, but as you said none of the gangster crap that has clogged our media. I like how we see the balance and relationships between the different mobs, this actually becomes a even bigger them in the Second Barrage so I don't think you have seen this, but it get even better in opinion in terms of the mob politics.

[cheez]

I really like the politics between the different criminal organizations. I also like how each organization represents its group as a whole, with Hotel Moscow being the most violent, and having its orgins from the Russian government and military, the Triad being more descrite and prefering to settle matters through talk, and the Italian Mafia boss being flamboyant.

The whole governmental structure of the city seems to represent a modern form of tribal rule. The main groups are still separated along the lines of ethnicity, and culture but not to the same extent as true tribal societies. The tribes are replaced by the criminal organizations that serve to keep order and are the sources of business and the economy. The police have no real power and all serious matters are settled between the four main crime bosses.

[cheez]

I have always viewed Black Lagoon as an intellectual action show, however I have found my self alone in this feeling for a while. I was glad to find this forum when I joined BA because I haven't been able to find many other forums discussing Black Lagoon and no others that have good discussions going on. So many of the forums and reviews about Black Lagoon that I'v read have only described it as a one dimensional action show with nothing serious or thought provoking to offer, even a lot of people I'v talked to personally have described Black Lagoon like this. While the action and animation is great and easy to get lost in. I feel that a lot of people who have watched it have completely missed the central themes of alienation caused by conflict, idealism vs realism, and looking at a characters motives rather than actions. I found these aspects of Black Lagoon very thought provoking, and far more interesting than the action. This could also speak to Black Lagoon's greatness, as it can be enjoyed on multiple levels, either as a simple action show, or as a complex show with relevant topics about the world that has kick ass action also.

I really enjoyed how the show did not use a central plot to tell the story. Instead they broke up the series into smaller arcs that were connected by the central themes. Discovering the themes and meanings behind Black Lagoon was one of the reasons I enjoyed it so much. While Black Lagoon is not an intellectual show in the traditional sense I feel calling it only a action show with good characters a huge understatement.

[Spartan27]

Cheez I hate to say it like this, but I think one of the things that I get frustrated with in anime is that many people do not really look for smart interesting shows, they either want one of three things, blood, fan service, or sillyness, now we have shows out there that are smart, have good writing, and are developed well from a story standpoint. One of the most obvious examples is Death Note, personally I wish there were a lot more shows like this one, as well as Black Lagoon. Black Lagoon can be a very intellectual show, but you need to look past the shooting, bravado, and the blood, and look at what is actually talked about, what actually motivates these characters into taking the actions that make your jaw drop. Unfortunatly it seems that the industry is beginning to go back to safer shojo and harem shows, I would recommend Ghost Hound if you are looking for a smart show that is airing right now.

I am also really glad that we have this little FC to talk about the intricacies of the show even if it is just you, me, and our captain of the ship Vizard_King

[cheez]

It would be nice if their were more shows like Black Lagoon and Death Note. I like fun shows like Bleach but I need shows with thought and meaning also. I personally can't stand shows built around fan service. I only saw one show built around fan service and I will never see another one. I don't mind a little fan service but too much just becomes dumb and sad.

It would be great if there was a show like Black Lagoon in the US. With all of conflicts and potential conflicts the US is in right now it would be great if their was a show that could tell multiple points of view like Black Lagoon and be entertaining as well. Occasionally Hollywood makes a good thought provoking movie but you have to sift them out through all of the crap their making. Occasionally Law & Order makes a good episode but other than that their are no other real thought provoking shows. Oh well I guess we just have to cherish gems like Black Lagoon when they come around.

I saw Black Lagoon about a year ago and since then I haven't had any body to talk about it with. Most of the people I know either don't watch anime or haven't had the time to see BL.

[Spartan27]

Actually one show has done some of this thought provoking work, surprisingly its Battlestar Galactica, its done things ranging from genocide, to dissention, suicide bombing, a bunch of other stuff as well. I feel like a bit of geek for watching it, but in my opinion its one of the best show out there, then again there isn't much out there these days, shit I was looking at the TV guide yesterday and realised that on local tv (non-cable) the only things I wanted to watch that week was either sports, or stuff on PBS, thats how sad the industry has gotten.

I would like to say that we as fans should demand better shows like Black Lagoon, Death Note, and the like, but really I think its a case where it costs a lot of money to make great shows like BL and other action shows. The other thing is that most of the time these shows target at the 17 and up demographic, its a lot safer to make a show like Gundam which is action, but is also accessable to kids like 13 year olds, the other thing is that to make great animation like Black Lagoon you need a big budget for the animators, and again it probably costs too much to make shows that are so detailed, and instead it's easier to make a bunch of schoolgirls with big eyes.

If the industry had the money, I think we would see a lot more of these types of shows, for instance I bet you Gantz would have survived longer, here is a manga that has a lot of material, and would have made a great anime if they had given it more time, but because the budget is so high to animate the detail intensive action scenes we will never see it again, it is also why I doubt we will see another Black Lagoon even if the ending leaves the possiblity for a third season.

[cheez]

I should check that show out, I don't usually deviate from Animal Planet, Discovery, History, or PBS those are pretty much the only stations I can count on to have good material.

When the second season ended they nearly caught up with the manga. There probably isn't enough cannon to last a whole season now. It is a shame, there are a lot of other conflicts they could have mentioned. They rarely covered any African conflicts, they only hinted at Executive Outcomes with the mercenary group in the first two episodes. It would have been interesting also if they could have covered other major criminal organizations like the gangs of India, the rising Mexicans cartels, and Albanian crime lords.

[Spartan27]

The African conflicts would be perfect for Black Lagoon, that or perhaps something in the Balkins (Romania's close but not really). I think the other thing that would be interesting is to observe how Revy went from New York to southeast asia, that's quite a trip, also knowing Revy as well as the general past for all the characters, its probably a very interesting one as well.

Totally agree with your choice of TV, I'm a little lucky in that I'm a sports nut, I watch anything from Baseball to football, to american football (yes real football is soccer, and I'm an american), so sometimes I watch a football game at 5:00 in the morning, and then watch a college basketball game at 8:00, especially if Liverpool FC and the mighty Ducks of Oregon are playing on the same day.

[cheez]

The Balkins would have been interesting espically if they covered Albania or Kosovo. It would have been nice if they covered the Chechnya conflicts also, or the conflicts between Turkey and the Kurdish Workers Party since they all have times to communist Russia and its fall. They could have tolled some really interesting stories about the conflicts in Africa. Revy's past would have been interesting also, and so would have Dutch's and how he chose to become a pirate after the war.
lol which is sadder the number of conflicts were think of or that their is only one mass appealing show that deals with them. Besides the occasional movie like Blood Diamonds, or Hotel Rwanda you rarely hear of African conflicts besides Daufer and look how long it took for us to notice that. Hell we hardly hear of the two Congo wars and they were two of the largest conflicts since WWII.

[Spartan27]

The reason why you don't hear about it is because of three things, one is that we (United States) don't have any interests in the region, two we don't like hearing about depressing stuff, and three other then the News Hour on PBS there aren't any real news programs out there, I mean how often do you hear about international news on our news programs? You simple don't hear about what is going on in the rest of the world, its one of the reasons why this country is so hated, its because we are so ignorant of the history and issues that are going on in the rest of the world. I mean how many Americans had heard of Myanmar/Burma before the democratic protests that went on earlier this year? I bet about 10-20% of american had even heard of the country, even less know about the military Junta that rules there.

Dutch's history could be interesting, one thing I have a problem with him is that he doesn't seem old enough, he looks like he's about 35-40 years old, they need to add about 10 years to face and his physique.

[cheez]

Dutch dose look young for his age and with all of his smoking and stress from being shot at he should look older than he is. In the manga I think he looks even younger than the anime. Also Revy has a more Chinese look about her than in the anime.

That is true we don't like hearing bad news, heck even though we are in a major conflict right you hardly know with the exception of pro and anti war rallies and the news its that easy to distract your self from it. Even though Daufer is getting needed attention we are still mostly oblivion to the dire situation in Somalia, I read a recent report that said the situation in Somalia may be worse than in Daufer.

lol you know you have a great show when you can discuss movie references, action scenes, and the worlds neglect of Africa.

[Spartan27]

I've only read a little of the manga, but you're right on all accounts, i think I like the look of Revy a little more in the manga, in the anime you can't really tell she's chinese other than when she talks about herself being a chinese bitch.

I can't believe we haven't discussed this, but what is your favorite fight in Black Lagoon, personally I like the Bowling alley fight with Revy and the samurai guy (can't remember the name), that one had a lot of great lines, some comedy, some great gun and sword play, lots to like, the only problem was that it was a little one-sided, second place is the final one between Revy and said samurai man, I thought it was great final fight, lots of drama, lots of blood, lots of great gritty Black Lagoon style.

[cheez]

Well I can't say all of the fights cause that would be cheating. The last battle of season one where they were driving away from the Protectors of Islam. The scene where Revy and Shenhua were playing rock, paper, scissors to see who got to fight first was fantastic. Then the scene where Shenhua takes out all those guerrillas with one swing of her knives, then the crashing of veheles and explosions just added to the awesomeness of that scene.

The shoot out in the church during the second season was awesome just by the absurdness of all these so called religious figures firing guns. When the elder nun Yolanda pulled out her desert eagle, that was one of the greatest scenes in all of anime for me.

The whole battle with Roberta was fantastic also because I didn't know what was going to happen next, along with Hotel Moscow getting organized for the first time. The Roberta arc was a overall fantastic arc.

All in all I can't really say which fight I liked to best because they were all so different. The fighting style was different in all of them and so was the atmosphere.

[Spartan27]

Oh god you are so right its impossible to say any fight is the best, they all were interesting and exciting in their own way. Almost all of them have a great sense of atmosphere, great animation, heck they all have a great sense of humor, whether it be the rock paper scissors scene, or the scene where Rotton the Wizard makes his grand apperence only to be shot 2 seconds later (I spit some water out when I first saw that one), or all the lines Revy says in english while in Japan.

[cheez]

Rotten was great especially since most characters who had grand entrances were usually good, so when he was shot and fell I was like WTF! that is all we get from him!? I also love how the church shoot out started by Green Back Jane coming to the church which was really funny by its self, Then Eda telling her that god wasn't their but on vacation in Vegas was great.

[Spartan27]

I love how Revy and Eva drink in the church. They just kick back, drink to their hearts content, Revy talking about how muggy and hot it is, Eda asking Revy if she had screwed Rock yet, great fun.

The Rotton part was funny how he ended up being fine, because he is the only one in the whole anime that wheres a bullet proof vest, then we have that wierd scene where he talks to Shensua about going to the hospital, and taking the Sawyer the cleaner with them.

[cheez]

How the gun fight in the church was fantastic with the one shot hitting Revy's rum. Then Revy and Eda being more pissed about the rum being gone than being shot at was great.

The nazi massacre was great, that whole scene was so dark and gloomy. Until the nazi fight the other fights had been high octane where Revy was jumping all around and you had a hard time always knowing what was going on, where this had mostly had a predator hunting prey feel, Revy had a very slow and precise motion to her, and she was emotionless, the whole scene reminded me of a lion stalking prey. That was the first time I saw the protagonist do such a calculated a merciless killing.

[Spartan27]

The massacre was scary just because of the ease of it. There are all these big burly men running scared trying desperately to kill or stop this cyborg like chinese chick, who is just methodically wiping them out. Although I did laugh when I saw her shoot the second in command, after he goes on and on about how big his gun is, that was pretty funny

[cheez]

Her killing the second in command was funny, I kept on thinking she should just shoot him while he was talking. I loved the scene of her walking and leaving behind the bloody foot prints. The scenes of Revy slowly walking to each room and firing in were fantastic, the nazis were powerless to stop her and all they could do was wait in their rooms for her to kill them. The ending was great when Lord Alfred was telling the leader that they had no one else to blame but them selves for dying, and that they should have recognized their low level of skill and not attempted the painting recovery. Alfred's talk with Dutch was I think one of the best conversations in the series. Both men applauding and deploring at the same time was really funny and interesting I thought.

[Vizard_King]

Indeed. the entire few episodes where classics.
I love Dutch and Revy's "Game"

[cheez]

Revy - I bet on black
Dutch - That's not much of a bet, I bet a black to. (if I remember correctly)
That was a great line.
The fact that the leader still tried to kill Dutch at the end after the nazis were clearly defeated was great. I think it really showed how racism can disillusion a person from reality.

[cheez]

I was wondering how everybody got into watch Black Lagoon. I was watching random amv's on youtube one day and I ran across a rather good amv of Black Lagoon. Around then I was looking for new animes to watch and I just got done finishing Elfen Lied so I was in the mood for a violent and more adult anime so Black Lagoon fit in perfectly. After seeing the opening I was excited and after the first few episodes I was hooked, and finished the series in three days.

[Spartan27]

Huh? I can't really remember, I think I saw a thread about it perhaps, I know I saw it real early in its production, It could have a been a poster I saw on some website, I can't remember. All I know is, I'm glad I got the word however I did.

I'm surprised, after watching Elfen Lied I would think even the most blood thirsty barbarian would like to watch a nice comedy, or perhaps some confidence builder like Gurren Lagann, anything to get away from blood soaked females. I loved Elfen Lied by the way, great emotional show.

[cheez]

I like darker shows, the darker and more disturbing the better :) This is probably a personality flaw, but if significant characters don't die in a action/drama I tend to be disappointed. I also just got into anime around that time, and I started out with the popular stuff like Naruto, Bleach, and InuYasa. They were nice but I needed something different than the same noble hero that never gives up story lines.

[Spartan27]

I agree for the most part, animes like Elfen Lied, Black Lagoon, Death Note, Claymore, or other more darker shows are the one that I gravitate to the most, my favorite manga is Gantz and everyone including the main character is able to die at any moment, to me these shows along with other more mature shows have a lot more to offer, than some silly show where everyone ends up happy and content, I like my shows to show a much harsher reality. I like more adult interactions, I like adult relationships. One show that I would give for having more adult interactions is a show called Seirei No Moribito, this was a show where there was child as one of the main character, but most of the show revolves around adults, I found this very interesting because the characters are developed, they have pasts. I miss shows where the characters are more than just ackward teenagers. I really need to stop actually because I am really tired right now, and I don't really know if I am making sense, see ya later.

[Vizard_King]

I love dark shows with darker humor.
Hellsing and the Hellsing OVA are both amazing examples of a Dark anime with Humor.
I mean what line could be better than:
"Tell those assholes they're saposed to bomb the other guys!"
"Inbreed MotherF*ckers don't give a Sh*t! They got 12 sisters at home to knock off!"
"That dosn;t sound too bad. That's 2 a day if you don't count Sundays."
Classic.

[cheez]

The dark humor in Black Lagoon is great, like when Dutch said that Revy had "Whitman fever" I laughed so hard when I heard that. In episode 11 when Mr. Chin was joking how the guerrilla informant was willing to talk after he threatened to cut his balls and send them through a garlic press, or when he complained to Balalaika about walking home after his men were killed by the twins. Many others but I can't think of them right now.

[Spartan27]

Black Lagoon is one of the masters of dark humor. One reason is that as opposed to many other dark shows, this one doesn't invest as heavily in seriouness, not to say there isn't any, but really its never a situation where innocent people could be killed, or some world wide catastrophe, instead its about finishing the job, and really when you think about it a lot of people joke around during work.

[cheez]

Your right the atmosphere of normalcy associated with the violence allows for most of the humor, like at the end of episode 3 when Balalakia asked Dutch if he wanted to hear something cool and then precedes to blow up Mr. Chen.

[Vizard_King]

Yeah, I like how it's about what normal (Pirates) do every day.
There are no heroes in Black Lagoon, only Badasses

[cheez]

This hasn't been discussed yet but I loved the chemistry between Revy and Rock. I'm not a big fan of romance but their interactions always had me wishing they would get together. I loved the little interactions they had like their cigaret "kiss" at the end of episode 7, episode 11 when Rock went to wake up Revy, and their interactions during the final arc. I loved how they started the series with Revy kidnapping Rock, trying to kill him on two occasions, but oddly complementing each other quite nicely as the series went on. I'm just wondering what everybody else thought about their relationship.

In case if anybody hasn't and wants to read the manga hears a link for online scans. http://www.onemanga.com/Black_Lagoon/
It is only up to chapter 13, I'v looked for the other chapter translations but 13 is as high as I can find. I don't normally download chapters so I haven't really looked at downloading sites.

[Vizard_King]

I love the RevyXRock relationship.
http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g253/Seanvampire/poster32681011.jpg
I'm not that into romance but this kicks ass,man

[cheez]

I love that "kiss" it was able to show some of their true feeling for each other, while a real kiss would have been out of place given what happened earlier and the situation they were currently in. The RockxRevy interactions were a nice break from the constant violence, while at the same time they weren't detached from the overall atmosphere of the show. I love how the nature of the show and the characters, allowed for large acts of caring while not appearing romantic or noble. The last arc of season 1 is a good example, Revy saving Rock after he got kidnapped even though she all ready had the documents, it really showed how much she cares for him. In any other show it would have been typical for her to rescue Rock, but the dark nature of the show and Revy's personality would have made it very unlikely that any rescue attempt would have been made if it had not been Rock.

:yay 100th post!

[Vizard_King]

((Congrats on post #100, Cheez))
I agree. I love how Revy acts after she hands over the documents.
"I'm never gonna save your ass again, got it?"
Heh, BullSh*t

[cheez]

That last line was great. The rescue was also great because in episode 8 she claimed that she wouldn't rescue him if he got captured.

[Spartan27]

I love how Eda keeps asking Revy if she had screwed Rock yet, everytime they go out drinking it seems like at some point Eda drops this question, I also love how Revy never really responds to the questions

I'm still waiting for Llama to answer my question if we are going get a bit more diversity in here, actually I'm also still waiting on my squirrel fishing question as well

[Vizard_King]

Sometimes Llama takes awhile to answer.

I havent een that far in the show yet, but that sounds great.
I can't wait to see it

[cheez]

I think at the end of the series they fucked because Revy looked a little embarrassed when Eda asked, where she wasn't embarrassed earlier in the season. I loved Rock and Revy's interactions during the last arc. Revy pretending to get shot in front of the kids, then getting embarrassed when Rock saw her was cute. They had a lot of other scenes during the final arc, but I can't remember them right now. I have to re-watch the series again, well I'm heading home tomorrow so I'll have time then, :yay finals are finally done!

Yea it would be nice to have more members, were one of the smallest groups last time I checked, but give it time, I think more people will come. We also have one of the most active threads compared to the number of posters :D I'v had a hard time finding many Black Lagoon fans, and this was the only active forum. I think over time more people will realize the greatness of Black Lagoon and join us, we just have to be patient and keep active :) that shouldn't be a problem.

Every one join! You know you want to :p

[Spartan27]

I'm not that worried actually, we have a good thing going right now. As for whether they actually did the dirty deed, I don't know, I mean Revy didn't really respond, she more or less tried to avoid the question. I think its more of a situation where she wants to, but she doesn't want to admit it to herself, especially since Rock isn't exactly the most manly figure, I do admit he has his moments.

Their scenes in Japan are great, I thought the scenes where Revy played with children tell a lot about her, in that she does have her kinder moments, but then again the world has made her into person she is. For instance she had no patience for the Lovelace kid, but she did have some for the Japanese kids, due to the setting, this doesn't mean that Revy is some kind caring angel on the inside but it did show another facet to her character.

[cheez]

Yea we do have a good thing hear, thats why over half of my total posts are hear :) The last arc was so good, part of that reason for me was that we got to see how Revy and Balalaika functioned in normal society. I don't think the arc showed us any new side of Revy personality, I think it showed how her personality is in a normal society. The arc showed Revy's playful side in a positive way, the show always showed her playful side but that was while she was killing people. Even though Japan allowed Revy to have a peaceful play side she was still quick to anger and resort to violence, like in the festavile where Rock had to physically restrain her after the game owner refused to give her the prize, or when she broke the kids gun because she was embarrassed Rock saw her playing.

I loved how Balalaika was protrayed, it really showed how alienated Roanapur is. In Roanapur Balalaika is one of the most powerful people, but no more dangerous than the Triad or the Cartel. In Japan Balalaika was unstoppable because nobody was expecting her ruthless tactics, nor was anybody equipped to deal with them. In Roanapur her tactics were ruthless but nothing out of the ordinary, but in Japan she was portrayed kind of monstrous because her personality was so far beyond the norm even for the criminal world.

[Spartan27]

I actually need to rewatch that last arc its been a while for me. You're right that it showed how Revy acts in normal society, but to me that's a new side to her, since we never really saw how she acted. I loved that scene at the festival, I lmao at Revy yelling at the vendor in broken english, with the vendor yelling at her to speak japanese, I was thinking "yes Revy speak fucking Japanese so I can understand you".

[cheez]

Yea I need to rewatch most of the arcs also. Its been since last spring since I watch a complete arc. I still got to check out the dub also. When I'm back home I'll introduce the series to a few of my friends, I got at least one interested :)

[Spartan27]

I saw the first season in dub, so I got caught up on that stuff, but the second season still comes in a little hazy in terms of really detailed stuff.

[cheez]

I need to find a place that sells the dvd, I have most of the episodes on my computer, but I would like to get on dvd when I get the chance. I can't ask my parents for it either, they mean well but they'll end up getting me either the creature from the black lagoon, or some random anime like naruto or bleach on dvd.

I'v found some nice pictures of BL, I decided to post them hear since we don't have many pictures. I'll post some more pictures when I find them.

http://img138.imageshack.us/img138/9579/snapshot20080115202625wg1.png

[Spartan27]

I actually got the first DVD at the local Borders, the other times I got it from a local Suncoast.

[cheez]

Here's another picture, if I can find any other good ones I'll put them up. Sorry for their small sizes, I'm not good with moving files :) Hmm I never check the dvds at Borders, I'll check when I'm getting gifts.

http://img443.imageshack.us/img443/666/tmp6198nu8.jpg

http://img443.imageshack.us/img443/2481/tmp4608jx8.jpg

[Vizard_King]

I saw all 3 DVDs for Season One at Best Buy. I think I'm getting them for X-mas. And I hope that Season Two well be out soon

[Spartan27]

I still haven't heard anything on season 2, unfortunatly I think its going to be a while until its available, I don't think anyone has gotten the license for it yet.

[cheez]

I haven't heard anything about dubbing season 2 either and I'v been looking around.
One of the things that is so great about Black Lagoon is that it was able to keep the entire series exciting, not just the action scenes. Some of the most exciting parts of the series have been dialog. The scene with Rock and Revy at the restaurant after the Nazi arc was one of the more exciting parts of the series. I really liked that scene because Rock finally showed some balls, it also showed much of a force Rock could be with words alone, and how he easily rattled Revy.

[Spartan27]

I have heard taht Funimation has been looking at picking up the license, the question is if the VA's would be changed, which would be a shame because the quality is excellent. As for Rock's stand at the restaurant, it was a impressive display of courage by Rock, what make it even better I think, is that this display came right after he used diplomacy to work out the problem with Church of violance.

[Vizard_King]

Yeah, his Stand came after his diplomatic resolution at the Church.
Was one of the first times Rock really cussed too.
It was pricless,man.

[Spartan27]

Umm, I wanted to get the 100th post in here, so I guess, uhhhh, Black Lagoon rocks, there I think that's enough, right?

[Vizard_King]

Ah! Bastard!
Damn It Butthead!
Ah well, here is a little Milk and Alcohol for ya:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ySdocMeBW8&feature=related
A good Pub Rock song for Black Lagoon

[Spartan27]

I have a lot of alchohol in me right now, so I don't know if I need any more. I have to admit, I have keeping an eye out for that 100th post, blame cheez, when he mentioned that he had made his 100th post, I first thought he meant on this FC, but then I realized it was only the 91st or something like that, ever since then I have aiming for that 100th post. I admit, I cheated.

[Vizard_King]

Nah, that ain't cheating.
But listen to the fuckig song, dude.
I can hear it at the Yellow flag Pub. I think that's the name of the bar....

[Spartan27]

Alright I listened to the song. You were right I could certainly see that being played in the background at the bar, that is exactly the kind of song that I could see being played while some bar fight tears the place apart for like the 20th time or something. There's a question how often doest that bar owner have to rebuild it, I'm saying he has to have major rennovations every 1 1/2 months.

[Vizard_King]

More than likely yeah.
Sucks to be him,man.
He most likely has all the tables Armor plated or something so they can withstand more bullets.

[cheez]

The Yellow Flag was completely destroyed twice in a year, and those were only occurrences with Lagoon Company, there is no telling how many other times the bar got destroyed by others. Insurance must be awfully high in that town, with all the bullets and bombs going off in that town.

[Vizard_King]

Well, Luckly when Roberta blew it up Hotel Moscow covered the cost.
And I love what Revy says about Roberta's Umbrella-Gun
"Dutch, I know what I want for Christmas"
Heh, A festive thing to say this time of year

[cheez]

The Roberta fights were great. I loved it when she took out the Cartel. I loved the details of the fights, like the bodies being blown back after the shot gun blasts, or the Yellow Flag exploding. The car chase scene was great also, espically when Roberta drove off the building and crashed into the Lagoon companies car.
The fights were also great because until then there was nobody who rivaled Revy's fighting ability. In the previous fights with the EO, the other pirates, and the Nazis, they stood no chance, where in the Revy vs. Roberta battle I wasn't sure who would win.

[Vizard_King]

And technically Roberta won. Revy got knocked out cold.
The one thing I didn't like was Roberta's indistructability during the Chase.
I mean, She Punched out the Window and Glass of the Car with ought even ripping a glove. She got a little more Human when Revy came back into play though.
I like how Realistic Black Lagoon was up till then

[cheez]

Roberta's indestructibility didn't bother me. Roberta did complete superhuman feats such as being fine after both car crashes, but Revy had her share of superhuman feats also. The boat fight in episode 3 had Revy making superhuman jumps, the rate that Rock and Revy ascended from the sub would have likely killed them.
Technically you can say that Roberta won, but both women couldn't leave under their own will after the fight, so I consider it more of a draw.

[Ruffy GEAR 2]

Hi, as far as now I read the first 4 volumes of Black Lagoon and I must say it kicks a**es!!!

Can I Join?

[Vizard_King]

Of course, Welcome aboard.
You should watch the Anime too, the Dub is Fantastic

[cheez]

Welcome it's always nice to have new members.
I'v read up to chapter 13 (haven't found any sites with subs past 13 yet). The anime is very good, it changes the order of the arc's, but it dose the manga justice, subbed and dubbed are both good.

[Spartan27]

Llama was fucking right!!!! All hail the all knowing Llama.

Welcome aboard

Yes I would recommend the anime, both sub or dub, you can't go wrong with either one, I would recommend the dub, due to it being a little more extreme as well as realistic in terms of language and accents, but really the sub is fine too.

[cheez]

I found a sit that has the manga raws up to volume 6 and chapter 57. I don't understand Japanese but I still found the chapters enjoyable.
http://zin-seinen.vnmanga.com/series/black_lagoon
Black Lagoon has been removed from this site

I personally prefer the subbed over the dubbed. The second season isn't dubbed. I found it easier to stick with the subbed, that way you don't have to deal with drastic voice changes with the characters between seasons, and going from understanding them to not understanding them. The dub is still very good quality and when it comes out for the second season I will probably prefer the dubbed.

[Spartan27]

I've only been able to find the first 12 chapters or so translated, so that's a good find. I'm actually surprised that there hasn't been a translation team that has gone after this one, I would say that if Gantz has one, I would think Black Lagoon would have one. I've been trying to find translations of Elfen Lied as well, but that one has only gotten up to chapter 77 and I think there is something like 110 or so chapters total. The fact that there are so many chapters in the manga gives me hope that there could be a third season, but I won't hold my breath.

[cheez]

I did find a translation team, but I can't find them right now :o They just recently added BL and they only finished the first chapter last time I checked. The reasons for a lack of translations I think is because Black Lagoon is not that popular so there isn't a big demand for it, even the web site hosting the scans is only for obscure mangas. As I'v stated before I'v found relatively little talk or knowledge about BL outside of this thread. Around 57 chapters have been released so far, but the anime covered up to around chapter 43 and the manga is still on the same arc so I won't expect the anime to continue, but I will still hold out hope.

[cheez]

I found the scanlations now (I should have bookmarked them).
This one is Akatsuki Manga, they have the first two volumes and chapter 13 done.
http://akatsuki.chupatz.com/projects.php

This one is Sora Scans and they started on Black Lagoon recently.
http://www.sorascans.com/index.php?page=projectbinfo

Hope these help, enjoy :)

[Vizard_King]

Thanks for sharing,Cheez

[cheez]

Thanks Vizard_King I'v visited these sites before but I didn't think of posting them until Ruffy Gear 2 mentioned reading the manga. I hope everybody enjoys the scans. I find it interesting that the anime changed the order of the arcs, but I understand why they did it.

While the anime followed the events in the arcs pretty strictly, they changed the order of the arcs dramatically. I think this is one of the best examples of the anime making the story its own while remaining faithful to the manga. The anime changed the order of the arcs that worked better for a 24 episode series divided between two 12 episode seasons. The Roberta and the Islamic Front arcs worked well with each other even though the Roberta arc was originally after chapter 1 while the Islamic Front arc is in the upper teen chapters. Even though the Roberta arc occurred before the Nazi arc in a 12 episode season it made more sense to show the Roberta vs. Revy fight near the end and use the Nazi arc to show Revy's power.

[cheez]

Some friends of mine have been messing with my posts so sorry if anything doesn't make sense, I'v tried to clean every thing.

The opening for the series was one of the better openings I'v seen. The high energy metalish song along with the opening gun scene immediately got me into the show. The rapid different screen shots of the newspapers reports of violence and the censoring of the gun were great also. The opening screen shots of the blood stain on the wall followed by the dollar bill really gave a great indication of what the show was about.

[Spartan27]

I didn't see the last post so I can't comment on that, but you're right that the opening is a great indicater of what the whole show is about, the lyrics also seem to fit the show, to top it off the sound is just right as well.

[cheez]

That is good, I didn't really see what they were writing, but I was sure it was no good lol.

The lyrics of the song fit the show really well, I never read them before now lol. The beat and sound really fit the show. They did a real good job coming up with a song that matched the atmospher of Black Lagoon and making it catchy also. The music video with the entire song is nice also, well it fits my music taste :D. I did like the music video but I though that the song went better with the BL opening.
Here is a link with the lyrics and a link to the music video. Hope you enjoy :D
http://www.animelyrics.com/Anime/blacklagoon/blacklredfraction.htm

[PB|Ichigo]

I'd really like to join the FC, just tell what to do, it's my first time joining one, hope you let me join ;), cause I'm a huge fan of the Series especially the manga.

[cheez]

Unofficial welcome Kurosaki|Ichigo :D, it will be official when Vizard_King comes. The manga is great, feel free to discuss anything about BL here, how far along in the manga are you? Akatsuki Manga released chapter 14 recently heres the link, enjoy :)
http://www.akatsuki.chupatz.com/

[Spartan27]

Alright one more crew member, welcome aboard!

[cheez]

I forgot to post it before but, heres a link for anybody who wants to read chapter 14 online.
http://www.onemanga.com/Black_Lagoon/

I find it interesting how the anime differs from the manga but remains truthful to it. The anime changed the order of the arcs greatly, it also added and removed several scenes, but the changes never seemed out of place much unlike some shows (you know who you are :hm). I think this is one of the best examples of the anime making the story its own while remaining faithful to the manga. The anime changed the order of the arcs so that the story worked better for a 24 episode series divided between two 12 episode seasons. The Roberta and the Islamic Front arcs worked well with each other even though the Roberta arc was originally before the Nazi arc while the Islamic Front arc is after Bloodsport Fairy Tales arc. Even though the Roberta arc occurred before the Nazi arc in a 12 episode season it made more sense to show the Roberta vs. Revy fight near the end and use the Nazi arc to show Revy's power. Also it was better to end the first season on the positive ending Islamic Front with Revy saving Rock, and have the Bloodsport Fairy Tales begin the second season.

[Spartan27]

ya, Black Lagoon has been spared from the list of bad manga to anime, which there are many including three of my favorites, Claymore, Full Metal Alchemist, and Gantz. Both of those series started out good but the endings were bad, for some reason Black Lagoon was able to end on a good note, while still leaving room for third season (please let there be a third season), Gantz and FMA tried anime original endings that brought closure to the series but they didn't work, Claymore tried an ending which diverged from the original but still left the door open, and that turned out horribly.

Black Lagoon was lucky in that there wasn't some big battle that had to take place, or some mystery that had to be solved, thus we have an ending that seems satifying, yet leaves the door open to new stories such as Revy's past. I like how the structured the arcs, it seemed like to me it worked out for the better, considering they needed to have that Revy-Rock conflict to happen earlier than later.

[cheez]

Writing the manga in stand alone arcs really helped for a great anime adaptation. You can change around the order of stand alone arcs a lot easier than a continuous story like most mangas are. You also have to give the anime directors a lot of credit for recognizing that it was better to change the order of the arcs to fit with 24 episodes. It was much better for the anime to end with the Japan arc than with the Greenback Jane arc. The Greenback Jane arc was great and funny but it wouldn't have been a good arc to end the season on, it didn't have the closure that the Japan arc did, and the end of the Japan arc was over all better to end a series on.

[cheez]

Ok while BA was down I found some interesting things.
Below is a link for a scanlation of volume 6. It doesn't say who did it anywhere and it was posted on 4chan so I have no idea who did it. Volume 6 contains all of the Greenback Jane arc and the first 3 chapters of the El Baile do la muerte arc, the arc where the animation stopped. Now I know its quite a jump from chapter 14 to chapter 38, but I haven't been able to find any other scans other than up to chapter 14 and volume 6 lol. It's a stretch to jump from chapter 14 to 38 but the arcs are stand alone so nobody should be at a loss, if they have seen the series, only seeing season 1 is fine also. One of the most bad ass characters makes a return in the current arc so I highly recommend reading it :D and at its probably going to be a while before anybody else gets to scaning volume 6 ;)
http://www.rapidshare.com/files/79555327/Black_Lagoon_v06_english.zip.html

I found some other sites with raws
Raws of the first seven volumes.
http://zsource.blogspot.com/2007/09/black-lagoon.html

Has translated chapter 1 through 14 and raws up to volume 7 you just have to type in Black Lagoon and search :)
http://www.gotlurk.net/?action=dosearch

I hope these sites help and you enjoy volume 6. I'v read volume 7 and even though I don't know what their saying it still kicks ass.
Oh yea Bao confirms that his bar has been wrecked 15 times and destroyed 6 times :rotflmao

[Spartan27]

I think when I say this I say it for everyone, good job on those finds, BL is not that easy to find, at least I have trouble finding it.

[cheez]

Thanks, it did take a while to find all of those sites. The Black Lagoon thread at MangaHelpers was a lot of help, I found most of the sites on that thread. I was really glad I found the sclantion of volume 6 although I wish I knew who to give credit to. I hope somebody scans volume 7 because the current arc looks the most interesting with Hotel Moscow, Triad, and the Church of Violence all playing a part and also Roberta


I'v decided to post some of the volume covers up just because guys are awesome :cool:
And because I finally figured out how to lol.

http://img178.imageshack.us/img178/3766/tmp9363ol3.jpg[/IMG]

http://img178.imageshack.us/img178/4770/tmp4006uk5.jpg

http://img178.imageshack.us/img178/6634/tmp7089uv9.jpg

http://img178.imageshack.us/img178/1195/tmp9090zw9.jpg"]http://img178.imageshack.us/img178/3766/tmp9363ol3.jpg

http://img178.imageshack.us/img178/4770/tmp4006uk5.jpg

http://img178.imageshack.us/img178/6634/tmp7089uv9.jpg

http://img178.imageshack.us/img178/1195/tmp9090zw9.jpg

[Spartan27]

oh, I haven't seen that last one.

As for that last arc

[cheez]

There's a really funny part involving Shenhua
Rotten and Sawyer now live with Shenhua

One thing I find interesting is with all of the fighting, Boris the second in command of Hotel Moscow has never really fought. Balalaika showed something of what she could do with killing Tsugio Bando and throwing Rock, but Boris has never done any fighting besides shooting a few people in Japan.

Here are the last of my photos, you can find these photos a lot of other places, but I just wanted to post some here.

http://img50.imageshack.us/img50/3753/tmp867gt3.jpg

[Spartan27]

Hey cheez, do you think we are beginning to run out of characters to claim, I was dissapointed when I didn't claim Manslayer Ginji, the guy freakin cut a bullet in half without any superpowers or anything. The key of course is to claim charactes who are cool or are funny like Rotton. I'm just happy I got Mr. Chan and Legarch, smooth style Triad gun slinger and drugged out Irishman FTW

[cheez]

I'll share Ginji with you if you want. Ginji was a awesome character. The first time he fought was great, just walking into the resturant and taking care of all of those Russians in a matter of minutes. The first time he cut the bullet in half was great, I had to rewatch that scene a few times, the animation for that was amazing. Ginji was a tragic character also. Only wanting the best for Yukio, and he did that by supporting her in all of her decisions, but that ended up causing both for their demises.

I think all of the strongest characters have been claimed so far, but I can think of a few more characters I like, I just have to get around to claiming them.

I need to find some one the translate volume 7, cause I want to know what their saying :yell

[Spartan27]

no that's fine it doesn't matter to me that much, I just saw it like a back and forth type thing. The manslayer was pretty cool, that last fight with revy was definently one of the better ones.

[cheez]

His fight with Revy was cool, the setting on the dock was nice with the passing traffic. The fight was really well done, espically with Ginji dodging all of Revy's bullets and looking natural while doing it. Although the fight was kind of sad cause you knew what was going to happen. The last arc overall I thought was like the style of a classic tragedy, there were so many chances for it to end well, but they never happened.

[cheez]

Ok VIZ has gotten the rights to Black Lagoon (the manga at least, not sure about the anime) but you won't find BL on their website which kind of makes me mad :mad: In response to VIZ picking up BL Akatsuki Manga has stopped Scanlations of BL :cry
http://chupatz.com/kareha/index.html
I read some rumors that VIZ is planning to release volumes of BL in the summer but nothing that can be confirmed so nobody quote me on this. So now only Sora Scans are the only scanlation group working on BL right now. So either way its going to take a while for scanlations of BL to come out, and even longer until volume 7 becomes available :cry :mad: Well if you can't tell by my smilies I'm very upset about this, why is such a awesome manga not being scaned :yell The random scanlation of volume 6 had given me hope that I could find volume 7 but to no avail after much searching :cry
Well I'm mainly posting to vent my anger because I have the raws and while they are enjoyable I want to know what their saying.
Anyways I'm going to stop typing so I don't sound more emo because the Black Lagoon thread should not be emo :yell

[Spartan27]

uggh, that sucks big time, I don't understand how this manga could not be scanlated, I would have thought that there would be someone to get us caught up, I remember when Claymore came out, and people started to get into that, and what happened was that there were a couple groups that came out and caught up to the current manga in no time flat, for some reason that never happend with Black Lagoon. Oh well I guess there isn't anything we can do about it, hopefully something happens to change all this but I certainly won't be holding my breath.

[cheez]

Yea I don't get it either, I know its not the most popular manga, but it certainly has a devoted following of fans that have seen the anime and want more. Well I just hope the VIZ releases it sometime soon because fans are interested now, and the longer they wait the more people might forget about BL, I know I won't but knowing that it won't be released some time soon I'm not going to be looking for it. So VIZ should take advantage of the existing fan base right now because until the second is dubbed BL probably isn't going to be getting any extra attention, and VIZ will have to work that much harder at generating interest in BL.

Anyways I'm wonder who are the most attractive characters. I'm a big fan of Roberta and Iglesias because I like their maid outfits, then their is Revy for obvious reasons, and Eda I didn't pay much attention to her before the Twins arc and all I could think to say was wow when I first saw her with out her nun uniform on.

[Spartan27]

Eda has a bit of a hot southern hillbilly thing to her, she's certainly dresses like it in the twins arc. As for the maids, Iglesias is definently the hotter of the two, not a fan of Roberta's hair. As for Revy, for some reason that is one tat that I like on a girl, she definently wins in the attire department, and well I guess you could say she would be one wild women to hang out with, you know she could certainly handle her booze, for that matter I want to see Revy and Roberta have a different kind of standoff, I want to see who would win in a drinking contest, after you hear that Roberta downed a whole bottle of Tequila in one go.

[cheez]

I like Iglesias since she is the only fighting character that is able to be cute also. Eda dose have some hillbilly qualities, but that makes sense since she's from Virginia. Eda's character interests me since she is either current or former part of the CIA.

This is kind of a random topic but one of my friends was watching an episode of BL and was upset by the constant smoking, she thought it was a bad message to send :headscratch she's kind of weird, out of all of the things that are shown in BL to be upset by the smoking lol :headscratch Well I started explaining how the smoking was homage to the old gangster films, then I started thinking that the excessive smoking might also symbolize the deadness surrounding the characters. All of the main and most side character have either described themselves or been described as dead and Roanapur has been described as the city of the dead. The excessive smoking dose go with the lack of concern about the future especially the none immediate future. I think the best example of this is in volume 7 when after Revy was done working out she immediately when for a cigarette (after the shower scene :eek:) in any other situation the cigarette would of made no sense, but in BL it shows the focus on the present while no care about the future.
I'm just rambling right now and I'm tired, so I hope this ramble makes sense.

[Spartan27]

Eda's originally from Alabama I think but she's CIA as well that's why she mentioned Langley VA

The smoking's cool I think, I mean who's gonna start smoking because some fictional anime character does it. Also its called being realistic, a lot of criminals smoke.

[cheez]

Oh yea I forgot that Eda was origonally from Alabama, although I only watched that arc a week ago so I should of remembered.

Yea my friend is weird she thinks smoking should be banned from all tv shows, so BL is no exception to her. Smoking defiantly adds a cool and serious atmosphere to the series. One of the best smoking scenes was on the Neo Nazi ship when Dutch confronted the Naizs the first time and the puff of smoke going over his face before he started firing was great. Mr. Chang looked better when smoking more than any other character, for some reason his attire and relaxed attitude just worked with him smoking. Then again Mr. Chang is arguably the coolest BL character, not my favorite but the coolest. My favorite character is probably Rock.

[Spartan27]

I love Mr. Chang or as I have also seen it Mr. Chan either way he definently has the most style of any of the gunslingers. I would love to see a episode that focuses on the Triads, we have seen episodes that deal with the cartels and Hotel Moscow, but really it was just the Middle East arc that got some Mr. Chang action the twins part was just too little. Anyway I want a lot more action coming from Babe.

[cheez]

I'v heard his name pronounced both ways, but its spelled Chang in the Bloodsport Fairytails arc and on Wikipedia so I go with Chang. He is playing a major role in this recent arc which is one of the reasons why I want it translated.

I found scans of the volume 3 omake on facebook
http://newhaven.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2220439997

http://img179.imageshack.us/img179/3968/snapshot20080123151133yk5.jpg[/IMG]

I finally got those pictues uploaded Image shack was being gay and not letting me upload images for a while.

Where have you gone Vizard_King, you've been missing in action for a while now, come back!

http://img184.imageshack.us/img184/6524/snapshot20080123151026gg0.jpg

http://img297.imageshack.us/img297/127/snapshot20080123151103nc3.jpg

http://img297.imageshack.us/img297/2066/snapshot20080123150924ze3.jpg"]http://img179.imageshack.us/img179/3968/snapshot20080123151133yk5.jpg

http://img184.imageshack.us/img184/6524/snapshot20080123151026gg0.jpg

http://img297.imageshack.us/img297/127/snapshot20080123151103nc3.jpg

http://img297.imageshack.us/img297/2066/snapshot20080123150924ze3.jpg


I finally got those images uploaded. Image shack was being gay for a while and not letting me upload images.

Where have you gone Vizard_King, you've been missing in action for a while now. Come back!

[cheez]

:yay Volume 7 is scaned :yay
Here is the link its on mangatraders and you have to regester to download, but it also has volume 6 also.
http://www.mangatraders.com

You have to put in a search for Black Lagoon and register to download but this has been the only site that I've to have volume 7 translated.

Ok I found another a rapidshare file for volume 7 heres the link. You don't have to sign up for this one ;)
http://rapidshare.com/files/86467847/black_lagoon_v07_english.zip.html
Enjoy :D

I pretty much gave up searching for it also I just ran across it on accident. So people are translating the manga but Sora Scans is the only website I know of and volumes 6 and 7 don't have credits so I don't know who did them.
Volume 7 is all knew since it wasn't animated. In my opinion volume 7 is fucking awesome :yell it has lots of Mr. Chang/Chan some nice shots of Revy, lots of politics between the different mobs, and the protagonist is interesting (well they all have been) :D
Read it :yell

[Spartan27]

cheez you are the freakin man! thank you for the update, I'm going to download right now. BTW again I think you will like Gantz, I love it even more than BL (the manga, not the anime)

[cheez]

Thank you. I was shocked when I found it because I wasn't expecting anyone was translating it and that volume 6 was just a fluke, but I am pleased that their is one person or persons who are translating it right now. I found out some information about who is translating Black Lagoon. They call themselves anonymous spore and their on 4chan, ok so that only tells us their name and nothing else lol. So more scans of recent chapters (currently volume 8) may come but I don't know when, so I'll just keep on looking. But volume 7 is pretty interesting.

[cheez]

My last post had a link to the wrong file so I appolgize for that and here is the correct link, hopefully :)

Here are the omakes of volums 3, 4, and 5.
http://rapidshare.com/files/87790773/black_lagoon_v03-05_extra_only.zip.html

Also heres the raw for chapter 60
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=G4HLKE13
I found the raw on a site called raw-paradise

Even though I can't read it it has a few great scenes
A person who goes by the name Anonymous Spore did the translations of the omakes, along with volums 6 and 7, so we all owe Anonymous Spore a big thankyou. Anonymous Spore operates on 4chan so I won't post the link here, but anybody who wants it can PM me.
Enjoy :D

[Vizard_King]

IIIIIIIIIII'M BAAAAAAAAACK
http://www.fanfiction.net/s/4053102/1/Lagoon_Club
With a Black Lagoon Fanfic of mine to boot!
It's an experiment so I dunno If I'll continue.
Depends on the feedback

[cheez]

Welcome back Vizard_King
I liked your fan fic. I think you should continue I want to know how the fight club goes.
I like how Rock started the fight, and Revy doing to dishes because Dutch told her to was funny (I can never see her doing that though). I would have liked to hear more detial about the fight, but it was good you should write more.

[Spartan27]

Wow, I thought you had died or something. I was starting to wonder if in a few more weeks I would have asked cheez to take over the FC.

Welcome back my captain. You have missed all of cheez's great finds on the search for the manga.

You should join Team Gasm with me and cheez, and join in on the epic winning.

[Vizard_King]

Very well then. I shall join team Gasm

[Spartan27]

I don't mean to be an ass but you do know what I'm talking about, the win thread and all.

Hey how have you been?

[cheez]

Ok so VIZ will release Black Lagoon Volume 1 some time in August you can even preorder it if you want to. Heres to hopeing the VIZ dose a good job with BL.

Vizard_King have you seen the second season yet? Also volumes 6 and 7 are released and they are very enjoyable. Mr. Chang plays a major role with all of his coolness.

Back to discussions. The co-leader of the Protectors of the Islamic Front Masahiro Takenada was one of the more interesting characters, I espically liked his talk with Rock. I enjoyed his character because he was the polar opposite of most other protagonists espically in Black Lagoon, he was sociable, friendly, and light hearted which you saw in almost no other character. His talk with Rock was interesting because it explained his real motivation for his terrorist actions. He genually wanted to make a world a better place and wasn't willing to give up even though he knew his vision of a better world would never come true. Although his methods and logic for making the world better were faulty, that didn't take away from his genuine belief that he was doing good. I enjoyed that greatly because you don't hear about that type of thinking from protagonists espically from a terrorists. Its fairly common for the media to give logic behind actions of "enemies" but these motives are always anger or hatred based. Masahiro Takenada partner Ibraha represented the terrorists motivated by anger, and a understandable anger also but missplaced. Masahiro Takenada broke almost every sterotype of an Islamic terrorists (by western media anyway) he wasn't of Middle Eastern decent, and he wasn't of the Islamic faith, heck he was an athiest.

Wow I haven't had a long post in here for a while. I need to work on organising my thoughts better also :D

[Spartan27]

Yes hopefully Viz will do a good job, I kind of hoped that Dark Horse would have picked it up since they wouldn't have skimped on the language but hopefully Viz will do a job that stands up the awesomeness that is Black Lagoon.

I liked Takenada he was certainly an entertaining character, you don't see many Japanese terrorists, especially those that work with middle easterns. I found him to be very interesting in that he seemed to not be off his rocker like many other terrorists, he did want to make the world better. I wonder if we will see him at some point in the manga since he didn't die.

Hey VK I know how much you liked the dub, you know I did as well, but I really think you should just go ahead and watch the second season, since I think it will be a long time until the second barrage comes out on DVD

[cheez]

Yea I hope VIZ just labels it as mature and shrink wraps it and doesn't do any editing. If they do edit then I'll me mad and send them an angry e-mail (maybe). Though the content of BL is fairly graphic so they'll probably just rate mature, they better :hm

So I was wondering who are your favorite characters, I know side characters were all ready discussed but this is for all characters main and side. Mine is Rock, I'll go into detail later.

I can't concentrate right I had the intention of writing more but I just can't concentrate right now sorry.

[Spartan27]

I'll do the same and say mine as well but talk about it later, I guess really I would say Revy, but really I like all 4 member of the crew, I guess I like Benny the least, but really there isn't a character that I dislike.

[cheez]

I should of wrote this earlier sorry
Rock is my favorite character for a few reasons and I'll try to explain them the best I can. I really like his progression through the story, he was able to remain truthful to his character while adapting to the harsh criminal world he was in. Rock went from being unable to accept that he was put in a position for being kidnapped and shot to at, to accepting that he's in a criminal world, but still tries to hang on to some of the morals he has from the business world.

To me Rock is the character that really makes Black Lagoon great, Rock is the one who is constantly questioning the motives and philosophies of the people around him and him self also. Rock is also the most relatable character especially during the first episode when he was describing his mundane job, his fear and dislike for violence also make him more belivible as a character from the normal world. For me Rocks comments and thoughts bring a real world sense to the violence and doesn't let me get too detached from the violence and killing.

Rocks decent into the criminal world brings him into conflict with his morals and the norms he was used to in the normal world, and its interesting to see how he deals with them. During the painting U-Boat salvage Rock didn't have a problem with taking the painting but had reservations about taking the medals of the dead soldiers, and when he was kidnapped by the terrorists he wasn't willing to admit that he was like Takenada even though they are both criminals.

Even though Rock doesn't like fighting he's among the most fearless characters when it comes to looking at him self and confronting other characters motives. Rock admitting some dysfunction in him for praising Revy's slaughter of the other pirates in episode 3 was interesting because that in a sense spoke to everybody who enjoys watching violence.
Rock confrontation of Revy, calling her a coward who had the same mentality as corporate bosses was great. In most other shows and other instances the tragic hero/heroine is looked on with sympathy and its used as an excuse for current actions, but Rock called Revy out and said that Revy was a coward who only used her tragic past when it was convent and when she couldn't deal with the present situation.
Rock anger at the world for how the Twins ended up was interesting and with Benny's help realizing that even though it wasn't fair for them there wasn't anything any body could do for them now.
Rock confrontation of Balakia during the Japan arc was nice especially when he admitted when his sense of justice was a hobby just like her want for destruction. Rock admitting the his sense of justice was only a hobby since he only argued it under certain circumstances was a big step for him because his justice is one of the things that still keeps him himself (if that makes sense lol) Being able to admit that something you hold high and fight for is nothing more than a hobby takes a lot to be able to admit.

Anyways I hope what I said makes sense :D Its late here, I'm tired, and I know I'm not good at organizing my thoughts.

[Vizard_King]

I'm BAAACK
Welcome Kurosaki|Ichigo!
Sorry for the wait.

Did I share my BL Fanfic yet?

[cheez]

Thanks for the update Vizard_King
You all ready shared your fanfic here, I liked it. I wrote a little more about it on the previous page.

Heres the link for the raw of chapter 61
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=IG423CKL

Some of the old links don't work anymore so I edited those posts.

[Vizard_King]

Thanks for the Chapter,man.

[cheez]

Your welcome Vizard_King
Now if only some group would translate it :D

As I said before Rock is my favorite character, but Black Lagoon has so many great characters. That was one of the things I kept noticing through out the series was that the new characters were always interesting and you knew why they were there. There were so many characters introduced through the series, all of them were connected, yet they were all different. Almost all of the characters were connected by how they got the way they were by conflict and/or idealist thinking, yet characters didn't seem to get reused as the story went on.

With all the characters you can pick out memorable scenes and individual personalities which can't be said for many other series. Even very minor characters like Leigharch and Rotton had memorable scenes.

[fly]

I'm joining this FC, so welcome me :hm

I am loving that the people in this FC are such great people with such great insights...

[cheez]

:yay welcome Fly :hug
And forgive my long, rambling, and poorly thought out posts here :D

[Spartan27]

Hooray for new member, fly I hope you enjoy your time here, I didn't know you were a fan of the show, you should see the first season, great stuff.

[cheez]

Well to get back to discussion who is your favorite character?
What about Black Lagoon appeals to you?
Any more discussion topics are welcome :D
I have lab soon.

[Vizard_King]

Welcome aboard The Black Lagoon,Fly!
Please keep all Guns,Bombs,Sword Cutlesses and Crazy Psycho Bitches away from the windows.
Thank You!

[fly]

What, you expect me to shoot you, VK? Fortunately for you, i'm not that skilled :D

Thanks for the welcome :D, and looks like i'm the only girl around. Hope that doesnt officially tag me as the most violent female in BA. :hm

Well to get back to discussion who is your favorite character?
What about Black Lagoon appeals to you?
Any more discussion topics are welcome :D
I have lab soon.

Well, i have to admit that it's coincidental that i got into BL. How exactly? A random DVD from a friend. However, i only watched the second season :D

It's the unconventional traits of BL which appeals me, and the plot of which you are made to emphatize with the bold and the brash instead of the kind and the gentle. My favourite character is Revy, and i have a soft spot for Balalaika (because she's a powerful woman)...

I cant think, need sleep. Will post more later :p

[cheez]

I wouldn't worry about being tagged as violent and besides Saint Sea Hat is a members also, so your not the only female :D

Thats interesting on how you got into Black Lagoon Fly, I got into Black Lagoon by watching a random amv on youtube, a well made amv also, but I can't find it now, I think the person who made it took it down. I originally got into BL because of the great action and Revy. I came to truly appreate the show for its ability to show uncovential philosophical ideas along with social statements, while at the same time being a great action anime. Black Lagoon can go from high energy action one episode to philosophical discussion the next episode (usually to justify ones violent actions).

Black Lagoon is one of the few shows that I dare say is original. For the reasons that Fly mentioned the lack of good (and morals in general) doesn't give you anything morally appealing to identify with.

Black Lagoon has a sense of normalcy with the violence, that in some ways is used to tell the story also and describe characters. The violence is part of their society, the characters don't try to separate them selves from it and in many characters violence has become a part of them, like Revy and Balalaika. When characters die there is usually not that great of an emphases on their death, the other characters who were close to them move fairly quickly.

The diversity of the fights I love also. None of the fights were ever the same. The diversity of settings from boats, to jeeps, to bowling alleys and weapons being used always made for new and interesting fights.

In the end Black Lagoon can be enjoyed on multiple levels. You can enjoy it for its action and grittiness , its realistic style, and its unconventional philosophies.

Another thing that I like about Black Lagoon is that when characters die they stay dead :D
Its an odd thing to like but I do get tired of series that when you think a character is dead but then they turn out to pull though later or characters are revived so they are never truly gone.

[Spartan27]

Well I found something pretty interesting, I've found the myspace pages for the Black Lagoon crew, It's pretty interesting, apparently Geneon decided to do it as a promotion type thing.

Anyways on the ANN page for Black Lagoon you can find the links to them,

here you go
http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/anime.php?id=6159

[JebbaChan]

Black Lagoon is one of my top fav series! Join!

[cheez]

That's a nice find thanks Spartan, there profiles were pretty humorous I thought.

Welcome JebbaChan, its always nice to find more Black Lagoon fans :D
Feel free to discuss anything here :D

[JebbaChan]

Not sure if anyone has seen these...BL fanart... Revy OOC, but still cute lol


http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q22/astridstarr00/Black%20Lagoon/IMG_000282.jpg
http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q22/astridstarr00/Black%20Lagoon/RR-mono002.jpg
http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q22/astridstarr00/Black%20Lagoon/IMG_000277.jpg
http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q22/astridstarr00/Black%20Lagoon/IMG_000202.jpg
http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q22/astridstarr00/Black%20Lagoon/IMG_000195.gif
http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q22/astridstarr00/Black%20Lagoon/IMG_000193.jpg
http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q22/astridstarr00/Black%20Lagoon/IMG_000170.gif
http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q22/astridstarr00/Black%20Lagoon/IMG_000151.jpg
http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q22/astridstarr00/Black%20Lagoon/IMG_000135.jpg
http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q22/astridstarr00/Black%20Lagoon/1197133743675.jpg
http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q22/astridstarr00/Black%20Lagoon/1196089392953.jpg
http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q22/astridstarr00/Black%20Lagoon/1196077057405.jpg
http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q22/astridstarr00/Black%20Lagoon/070209top02.jpg
http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q22/astridstarr00/Black%20Lagoon/070127RR.jpg
http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q22/astridstarr00/Black%20Lagoon/070108top.jpg
http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q22/astridstarr00/Black%20Lagoon/061209top.jpg
http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q22/astridstarr00/Black%20Lagoon/060429_bl.jpg

there needs to be more black lagoon fanart! ;_;

[DeadlyRukia]

jebba-chan i love it... ur pics r really good^^
can i join this xOO

[JebbaChan]

Thanks DR!! And unofficial welcome!

[DeadlyRukia]

xD ...

[JebbaChan]

I'm glad we have so girls in the FC! Didn't want people thinking I was weird :cry

[DeadlyRukia]

lol why would people think that xD... only cuz u post funart O.o... thats preaty cool u know^^
and i think black lagoon is better for girls xppp [no ofence boys u can see at same xDDD]

[Spartan27]

Wow so many new people, it was just me, cheez, and V_K for sooooooo long.

Welcome to the newcomers.

[cheez]

:yay for new members :yay
Welcome DeadlyRukia :D

That's some nice fanart JebbaChan, thanks for adding them :D

[DeadlyRukia]

=D thanks for the welkome x3

http://i169.photobucket.com/