Hi everyone! Can you believe it’s August already? In just five more months we will be saying goodbye to the year 2019, and we will see 2020 knocking on our front doors. Well, sort of anyway. But that’s still a long way off, and today I want to share with you some of my plans for this month. Or in other words what can you expect from this crazy Dutch guy blogwise in August. This might become a somewhat regular feature as I think it’s a nice way to make you (hopefully) excited for some of the things you can expect in a certain month. To say that I have been enjoying myself ever since I came back from my hiatus is an understatement. And that is mostly due to all the awesome people of this community. Yes: YOU guys and girls! I want to thank each and every one of you who has left a like, provided me with a comment, or just took the time to read some of my posts. I have felt very welcome since my return, and it really has been truly heartwarming. So really, thank you! Now, let’s go and see what I have in store for you all!
Anime
Anime will always remain a big part of my blog, and lately I have really been watching quite a lot of different shows. And since there is no such thing as too much anime I’m not going to run out of new/old series to watch any time soon. One of the animes you will be seeing a (long overdue) review for this month is Schwarzes Marken (Yes Scott I know but hey it’s almost here!). August will also see the return of The Worst/Best Anime you (might) not have seen yet feature, which will be putting Vanishing Line Garo in the spotlight. Last, but certainly not least is my review for the first season of Is it Wrong to try to pick up Girls in a Dungeon? The second season I am currently watching as a part of my Seasonal Anime.
Movies
It’s been a while since I last featured a movie review on my blog, and you would almost think my love for movies is over. To that I say: Yeah right! Of course that is never going to happen, and in August it seems the theme is reboots and remakes as by sheer coincidence all 3 films are either a reboot or a remake. The Predator and the Mummy fall into the first category, and both films were to be honest a little bit disappointing. But more about that when my reviews for those two movies will be published. A film that I have always wanted to write about on my blog is my third favorite movie of all time: Heat. You can expect a review where I will try to be objective, but where I will in all likelyhood fail in the attempt.
Asian Dramas
As you all know I love Korean dramas, but the observant reader will have noticed that the header for this paragraph reads Asian dramas. Well, there is a perfectly easy explanation for that: I’m currently watching my very first Chinese drama! I came across the trailer for Novoland: Eagle Flag by pure chance, and I have included it below because seriously it’s one of the most epic trailers I have ever seen for an Asian tv series! The series will have a whopping 54 episodes, and is currently running on Viki. I don’t know if it will be finished in August, but if it will be, you can expect a review for it! But of course the month will not be complete without a Korean drama, and for that you can expect yet another long overdue review: Voice. (Sorry Kay for the long wait!). Oh, and as promised here is that (awesome) trailer I mentioned:
Books
For all you book lovers out there I will have two reviews that can’t even be remotely compared to each other. First up is a review for the 9 part Manga series Monster. I’m already letting you know this in advance: this is the one of the best stories I have ever read in my entire life. Why exactly that is, is something that you will just have to wait for until you read my review. Another first this month is a venture into the world of Warhammer Fantasy. Where I already had explored the far future of Warhammer quite a lot, this time I will be taking a dive into the past with the horror novel Drachenfels.
Boardgames
Yes, I still play boardgames, and yes this month I will also be reviewing some of those as well. The popular video game Resident Evil 2 now has it’s own boardgame. When I was a gamer I used to absolutely love that franchise, and I was delighted to find out about this! Whether or not it is actually a good game or not, I will not yet reveal. You don’t always want to play very complex games, or games that require a long set up time. Sometimes you just want something simple, and that is where Encounters: Shadowrun comes in. It’s a nice, small, easy to learn but fun push-your-luck dicegame.
Other Stuff….
Whew! That already is a lot of stuff isn’t it? Well I’m thinking there is always room for more, so what else is coming up in August? Ofcourse Retro Raist will return, this time featuring an old 80’s classic action movie called Cyborg, with mr. Van Damme kicking his way through a post apocalyptic world. Speaking of Retro Raist, the winners of the Retro Raist: Competition will be announced later this month. If you haven’t yet entered, there is still plenty of time as the competition will be closing on the 14th of August. So click on the post for that, and if just as long as you follow the rules, don’t hesitate to enter! Last but not least Raist’s Collection will come back with part 2, where I will be showing you some of my Sword Art Online collection. Well, that’s about it! There might be some other things that I will throw into the mix as well, but as usual that will depend a bit on how much time I will be able to spend on blogging. We’ll see how it goes! Anyways, hope there are some things that strike your fancy here! Let me know in the comments section what you are looking forward to the most (well, that is if there ARE some things that you are looking forward to!). Hope everybody will have an awesome month!
Raistlin0903 
Oh, man! I’m stoked to read your Monster review! That manga/anime series is so slept on. When I made my Top 7 Underrated Anime Villains list on Iridium Eye, my #1 pick (SPOILER ALERT!) was Johan Liebert.
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Man, I can tell you that manga is so, so incredibly good! I loved it from start to finish! I’m probably going to start watching the anime for this one soon as well, probably in September.
As for Johan Liebert: what a piece of work that was. Definitely support your nr 1 choice of Underrated Anime Villains! 😊
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I know, right? Monster really puts people on the edge of their seats. Definitely check out the anime, too.
Thank you! If you’re curious who else made the cut, here’s a link: https://iridiumeye.wordpress.com/2019/03/26/top-7-underrated-anime-villains/
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Just read that post! Awesome😊
As for the anime, yes I am definitely planning on doing that. September will in all likelyhood be the month where I will start on that one 😊
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Thanks, Raistlin! Very sweet about you checking out the anime. That’s one series that needs to be talked about more often.
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You’re going to be very busy! I am looking forward to all of it, in the full knowledge I won’t have a clue what you’re on about! 🤣
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Haha, well…honestly, pretty much all of these posts, except for two are already written. But that gives me time to work on stuff for September already so there is that 😊
Lol…haha, not everything this month is anime so, some other cool things here as well 😊😊
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🙂 good to stay ahead, I try to have 2 posts scheduled but mostly only manage one 🙄 and then I forget to get the next 2 ready and end up posting late 🤣 I don’t mind reading your posts about anime, I’ll become an expert on it without even seeing any!
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Well, I made sure before me return to have a lot of posts already written. In that way I would have enough of a back up for weeks when I knew I would be busy, and would not have much time to write😊
I know what you mean though…it’s always hard to keep things going lol 😂
Well…maybe I should write a post titled: The animes Fraggle should watch 🤔🤔🤔😊😊
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Lot’s of great stuff seems to be coming our way then.
Did not know there was a Shadowrun game you could play without a bathtub full of dices. Having tried the Shadowrun tabletop RPG, I am still finding dices every after three years xD.
Didn’t mind the Predator nearly as much as the Mummy, but they the latter killed a franchise before it even began. Still looking foward to your reviews!
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Haha, I have never played the Shadowrun tabletop RPG, but I did see that it uses a lot of dice! If you like Shadowrun (awesome by the way that you know Shadowrun!) you might also want to check out Shadowrun Crossfire which is a deckbuilding hame, and a lot of fun to play! (I wrote a review for it two or three years ago, and it’s still one of my favorite games).
Yeah, Predator and the Mummy both were a bit of a letdown. I was prepared for the Predator (as quite a few people warned me about it), but the Mummy I excected a bit more of. Oh well…we will always have the classic films still😊
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I see Kim Newman write that book. He used to be an excellent film reviewer. Maybe he still is?
Your first Chinese drama? I can recommend a lot of great Chinese films, but it looks as if you won’t have time. 🙂 🙂
Best wishes, Pete.
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I didn’t know about that fact about Kim, but I do know he is pretty good writer as well, as I most certainly quite enjoyed this novel.
Well…as for the Chinese drama: let me clarify: I have seen a lot of Chinese movies, but never a Chinese series. And this is the first Chinese series that I am now watching. As K(orean)-dramas are called that, I’m assuming Chinese series are C-dramas 😊
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Ah, Chinese series, that explains it. 🙂
As for Kim Newman, I found these.
https://www.bfi.org.uk/people/kim-newman
https://johnnyalucard.com/category/reviews-2/
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Ah…well, seems he is still writing reviews then! 😊😊
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I look forward to your Predator review. I reviewed it back in February, and disappointed definitely fits for the most part.
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Yeah….I watched it last weekend, and it’s a real shame. It could have been so much better, but the juvenile humor it sometimes contained almost made it into a kid’s movie, despite the hard R-rating lol 😊
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Aye. I disliked all three endings they filmed too, which didn’t help.
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Wow! So much good stuff to look forward to! Of course, I will particularly be looking forward to that MIA Voice review (you’re calling it that, right? 😉 ) Seriously, though, so glad to see you back in action on the blog!
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Haha…I might be calling it that yes lol 😂😂
Well, you will be glad to know it will be out next wednesday 😊I’m definitely very happy to be back myself as well, and I really have been enjoying myself quite a lot! 😊
Oh…just so you know: I’m on episode 8 now for Novoland and it’s……….well…erm…🤔🤔🤔 TOTALLY AWESOME😊 I haven’t seen anything this good in quite a while. The first three episodes or so took their time, but it’s all for building up the world and the characters. And what a world it is. I feel like I am immersed in a world that is incredibly lifelike, and I just want to keep spending time in it😊 The sets are amazing: I have no idea what kind of budget this show has, but it must be enormous. Seriously this one heck of a show, and one you definitely don’t want to miss!
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I’ll mark my calendar for it 🙂 Oooh, making your way right on through Novoland! I’m so glad to hear you’re loving it 🙂 This was a really anticipated drama, so I’m sure the budget was quite large. Happy it’s showing through on the final product. I’m definitely intrigued with this one. You’ve got me wondering where I can work it in!
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Oh…like you wouldn’t believe. I almost didn’t want to go to work this morning because I was watching another two episodes. It’s sooo good. Yes it started off a bit slow, but now I’m loving it. Everything about this show is just so well done. So much details, the costumes, sets, everything. Knowing your taste in shows, I’m pretty much convinced that is totally your cup of tea😊😊
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Oh those are the best kind! I’ve watched lots of amazing dramas recently, but it’s been ages since I was really glued to my screen and just wanted to binge watch a show.
I’m really curious about this one. I tried a Chinese historical fantasy earlier this year, and it was amazing in almost every aspect except I just found it so draggy like I do most cdramas. Wondering if Novoland can break the curse, hehe
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Yeah it’s I don’t know how to describe it what exactly it is that makes this show so good. But one of the things is definitely it’s characters and the world they have created.
I of course remember what you said, and when I watched the 2nd and 3rd episodes that conversation about the draggyness certainly sprang to mind. But then it all changed and since then I have been glued to my screen as you say lol 😂 I really hope it will, because I pretty much am sure that this is a series you would absolutely love 😊
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I think it’s quite normal for the first few episodes to be slower. Most historicals have to introduce a lot of information and build up the world, so that takes time.
I usually just find that the manner in which cdramas tell their stories comes off as slow to me. They’re just not as punchy as kdramas most of the time. Even the few cdramas I’ve completed still had that problem, but the story and characters were good enough in those cases to pull me through. I’m always looking for that next cdrama to pull off the same feat and keep me engaged. This one does sound promising 🙂
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The scope of this is just gigantic. It feels like an epic movie of old. You know those big, huge Roman Empire feels they had back in the days. I have now seen 12 episodes so far, and it’s only getting better and better. I’m going to slow down a little bit now, seeing that I only have two more episodes to go right now, as the rest haven’t yet been translated😅
But yeah….this one though, certainly not slowing down even remotely 😊😊 I really hope you are going to enjoy it😊
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Oh yeah, those were the best kind of grand shows way back when! Haha, you plowed through and have about reached the dreaded caught up point. At least cdramas usually put out eps fast, and it’s just a matter of getting them translated. So maybe a little waiting, but hopefully not too long 🙂
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August is gonna be great. I have Drachenfells book 1 and 2 on my shelf👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻. I plan to read it in Oktober. Resi Evil boardgame??? Dude i want in on that! You have come back with quite a bang bro. I’m pumped for august!!!💪
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I am really looking forward to it myself. And the good thing is, except for two posts, everything is already written so have time enough to work on the posts for next month 😊
Drachenfells was a pretty good book, and quite a unique one at that. I haven’t yet started in on part 2 yet because well I had a bunch of angry Chaos Marines on my doorstep that insisted I continue with the Horus Heresy lol 😂😂
Yeah…the Resi Evil boardgame! It’s pretty good I can tell you that much. More on that probably in the first or second week of August! Thank you so much for the kind words! Always appreciate it! 😊😊
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Where in HH are you now? Im thinking of reading eisenstein this month. Will be sleeping on what books im gonna read in august. Will be diong a post tomorrow about reading plans
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I haven’t made much progress yet with the current novel (nr 30 the Damnation of Pythos as it’s been a bit of a busy two weeks) But I’m hoping to have a little bit of a reading weekend! 😊
I will be doing a Raist’s Collection post for the Horus Heresy in September😊 Cool! Looking forward to reading what you will be erm reading in August! 😊😊
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Sounds like you are going to have a busy month ahead of you and I am looking forward to seeing a lot of these posts.
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Haha, well…that’s the fun part: except for two posts, everything is already written😊 So I can quietly work on some new posts for next month already (and I have a vacation coming up in September where I am planning to write even more😊) Lol, I might be enjoying myself a little bit too much 😂😂
Thanks though! It’s nice to hear you are looking forward to it! Hopefully the posts won’t disappoint😊
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Particularly looking forward to the review on Monster. I have a few volumes, and a need a push to start searching for the rest!
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Well, you will be happy to know then that Monster is the first post to be published for August and it will appear on monday! It’s really a wonderful and terrific manga. You will love it! 😊
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Looking forward to reading all the good stuff ahead!
I should try to rewatch Heat first I haven’t seen it in so long but remember really loving it. And anime recommendations are always appreciated!
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Thank you! I hope it will all be an enjoyable read😊Heat is a film that I literally watch every two years or so. It’s one of my alltime faves, and one that never gets old for me.
Haha, well plenty of anime heading this way that’s for sure 😊
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This is quite the month you have planned. It’s so wonderful to have you back!
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Thank you so much! I’ll be honest, I’m having a blast so far! The good thing is that pretty much all of these planned posts are already written, with two exceptions 😊
Thank you so much Kim, for the support and the kind words! 😊
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Hell yes for an epic month filled with content by the one great Michel! Looking forward to all of these, especially those movie reviews! 2 bad movies with 1 classic, I can work with that! 😀 😀
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Lol…this comment made me smile so much! Thank you! I’m definitely looking forward to this month myself as well. It will be nice to rewatch Heat again, but there are a lot of other fun posts too 😊 Thanks again for the great comment! 😊
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Wow, so many great posts for August I can’t wait 🙂 I think I’m most excited for another volume of Retro Raist, I really liked the first one. Those cards were very cool and the game sounded like so much fun 🙂 I’m also excited about the Resident Evil board-game. I love playing the video games and can’t wait to see what the board game is like and your thoughts on it 😀
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Thank you so much! I’m very excited about this month myself as well! Retroraist will be week in probably the third week of August! As for the Resident Evil boardgame: That one is coming up on monday! The game is pretty good I have to say! 😊 Thanks again for another great comment: I appreciate it ! 😊
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I look forward to yur Schwarzes Marken review. I thought the series was alright. A 3/5 show. A tad more depressing that the other Muv Luv anime I have seen. The other series had a love triangle of sorts and swimsuit episodes on a desert island.
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Well…then you are in luck, because it should come out this week: on Thursday in all likelyhood. I honestly really enjoyed it quite a lot. Something I didn’t expect at all 😊😊 I actually quit the previous show, so this was quite a surprise 😊
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