In the anime world there are as many villains as there are heroes, or protagonists. If there is any trope that we otaku are familiar with when it comes to the battle between good and evil, it is the “tragic backstory” trope that is common in some anime titles (as well as many comic books and North American cartoons). Depending on the series or character sometimes this trope is good, and sometimes it could use a little improvement in the execution department. However there comes a time in a fan’s life when they come across that one villain who’s a little more ‘exotic’ in terms of personality, physicality, and the reason why they took the road of darkness in the first place.

For this filler post we’re going over the five things you didn’t know about Danganronpa’s ultimate mastermind, Junko Enoshima. FYI, if you’re familiar with the Danganronpa franchise (games and anime series), then you’re probably well aware of the story behind the Ultimate Despair. If not, then get ready for this!

5. She’s The Most Unique Villain

When it comes to villains or supervillains we usually look for a tragic or sad backstory that made the individual (be it guy or gal) turn heel in the first place. That’s not the case for Junko; in fact the developers of the franchise thought that Junko shouldn’t have a tragic backstory as to why she became so despairingly villainous, she just was! We eventually found out the real reason for her ‘heelism’ (I know, that’s not a word but it should be) was because of her analytical talent – which bored the hell out of her. This caused her to create multiple personalities (including her Monokuma one) and switch between them just to keep her entertained.

She truly believed despair was the one things that would save her from boredom, and that the rest of the world should experience that with her. The scary part of all this is the fact that she has no real reason to commit the actions that she committed, which is why out of all the anime villains, she’s the most dangerous and unable to reason with.

4. Her S-Ranked Analytical Skill

When it comes to planning schemes and diabolical plots, she’s a hundred steps ahead of the game! Junko’s skill is the fact that she can analyze any situation and come up with a solution to it faster than you can say “Damn, that was fast!”

3. She’s in the Guinness Book of World Records (Cosplay Division)

We couldn’t believe it either, but let it be known that Junko Enoshima is the most popular character cosplayers have ever cosplayed as, for any anime or video game convention in the world! Quiet as kept she even beat out D.Va in this cosplay popularity division, but don’t tell Overwatch fans that – unless then know already. >.<

2. She Mentioned She Used to be Homeless (Game-Only)

Even though we don’t possess a copy of the Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc video game, during the free-time event(s) with Junko Enoshima, she’ll mention that she used to be homeless at one point and time in her life. We assume that this happened before her modeling career took off but we’re unsure – because we don’t have the game, just youtube videos.

1. She’s Good at being Bad

Okay, we kinda already knew this because of the anime series and video game installments. As we said before, Junko really doesn’t have a true reason for being this way, that’s just who she is. In fact during her youth she was at the beach with her parents and sister, and the sand castle she built was destroyed; causing her to cry in the process. It was later revealed (by her) that Junko destroyed her own sand castle by herself, which may indicate that her thirst and obsession for despair started at such a young age. When the Apocalypse happens, just know that Junko did it. XP

That’s all we’ve got for this post, stick around for more coming up soon! 🙂

Wow, it’s been five years since the once great video rental store giant went belly up. I’m talking about Blockbuster, one of the best video rental stores in North America (as well as across the world). Back when I was growing up in southeast Baltimore County (Baltimore, MD) my mother would take my brother and I there every Friday night. Any movie that I saw in theaters during the 90’s and early 2000’s I rented from Blockbuster the moment it became available to VHS, and eventually DVD. The same can be said about every game I bought for every system I had; NES, SNES, N64, GameCube, GBA, and Nintendo DS – which I still have by the way.

Blockbuster was a key part of my childhood growing up, and if you’re a 90’s kid like A. Goldman and I, then I’m pretty sure it was a part of your life too. I would go there religiously every Friday night to see what new video releases were available. I think the last time I’ve been in Blockbuster was about ten years ago, right around the time I graduated high school back in 2008 – which was 10 years ago (*laughs*). By the early 2010’s Dish Network brought out Blockbuster in order to try and keep up with digital age (as we all are) and remain relevant, but with rise of RedBox, Netflix, Hulu, and others, the once great video rental giant couldn’t keep up.

By 2013 they filed for bankruptcy and closed down the last 300 stores in the U.S. however thanks to Dish Network and their franchise agreements with Blockbuster, there are only a small handful stores that are left. I’ll admit; talking about my 90’s childhood does make me feel a little old, much like seniors talk about how they used to be and what they did during their youth. (Of course our timeline and theirs is totally different.) Blockbuster is and will forever be a part of my childhood, and will go down in history as everyone’s favorite video rental store!

From Super NES to the Wii-U (pre-Nintendo Switch and post-Nintendo 3DS era), Mario Kart is known as one of the best racing games crated from the Super Mario franchise! Whether you’re a 90’s kid or a part of Generation-Z, we’re pretty sure you’ve played one of the installments of this awesome video game, and if you haven’t – PLAY IT! When Super Mario Kart first came out for the SNES back in the 90’s, it was rather challenging to stay on track – literally. Enter the Nintendo 64 with Mario Kart 64, and to this very day in 2018, it is still an instant classic among millennials such as ourselves.

Then when the GameCube made its debut, the Gameboy Advance made its appearance, and the introduction of the Nintendo DS (and 3DS), you got games like Mario Kart Double Dash, Mario Kart DS, Mario Kart Super Circuit, and Mario Kart 7! (Don’t forget Mario Kart Wii and 8 for the Wii-U!) No matter what version or installment you’re playing, there are five things within this game that no player wants happening to them. So from us to you, we’re gonna highlight the five woes from the Mario Kart franchise you don’t want happening to you right before you cross the finish line.

5. Lightning Strike on the Final Lap!

Have you ever been so close to the finish line of a big race? Like say, a big race at 150cc (or 200cc if you’re playing Mario Kart 8)? Only to find yourself getting hit with a lightning bolt just 30 feet from the finish line, as Wario or Bowser bursts past you to claim the golden crown of 1st Place? Yep, we’ve been there.

4. Hit From Behind by a Red or Green Shell!

This is totally dodge-able in one of two ways; if you have a banana peel or banana peel combo item in your item box, keep it behind you and let the shells hit their mark. The other is to drive in front of another racer or try to out run it (them if there’s more than one shell after you) entirely. Red shells are heat-seekers while green shells are more ‘free-willed’, so if you got one chasing after you, better stock on bananas or mushrooms.

3. Slipping on a Banana Peel or Crashing into a Fake Item box!

Okay, this is also totally avoidable – unless the holder of the fake item box or banana peel is DIRECTLY IN FRONT OF YOU!

2. Hit From Behind by an Invincibility Star Driver!

Ugh, nothing worse than hearing that all-too-familiar tune speeding towards you just before you cross the finish line…

1. Falling Prey to the Almighty Blue Shell…of Death!

This is a BIG deal to every fan and player of the Mario Kart franchise. There is nothing worse than being less than 30 feet away from the finish line in 1st Place, when the whooshing sound (or siren sound in MK64) of the Almighty Blue Shell, is heard in the background. Nothing will save you from its destructive wrath, as it targets the driver who is the head of the pack, and causes an explosion that covers a 20-foot radius. If you’re within that radius, then you’ll probably catch the explosion too! When it comes to the Blue Shell of Death, it’s better to be the one throwing it – than the one receiving it! That’ll do it for our filler post for now, but don’t worry, because we got more fun comin’ your way! Stick around! 🙂

So we’ve reached the second weekend of the new year, and by now we’re pretty sure that you’ve gone to at least one or two anime conventions by now. Hopefully last year was a blast for many of you guys and gals who’ve gotten the chance to showcase that cosplay outfit that you’ve been working so hard on for the last six months. The Winter weather may be a bit crazy right now, but it’s a good thing that convention season is year-round. If your New Years Resolution is to cosplay at an anime convention, or perhaps even go to one for your very first time, don’t hesitate to check out some of the cons that we’ve got listed on our Cons Near U drop-down page.

Our home base anime convention Animore is less than a week away, as we’ll be making our third appearance there! The convention tour that we did for 2017 was pretty awesome – despite a couple of ‘hiccups’ along the way. This time around for 2018 we’re taking a more direct approach with our fanbase by submitting Q&A and other fan panels to anime conventions, so that you guys can not only see us in action, but to also give you a chance to know us on a personal level too. (i.e. our favorite food, what kind of girls we like, etc.) We’re also hoping that this time around we get to go to an anime convention…in Canada. To all of our Canadian anibloggers who have seen and read our blog, we thank you so much for helping inch a little closer to our ultimate goal each day. (And we’re hoping we get the chance to go to a convention out there this year, or next year!)

If you’re in need of any tips on cosplay as well as how to plan for an anime convention this new year, just click on this link for convention tips, and this one for cosplay. We’re so excited to see what 2018 has in store for us on the D&A front, so start saving up and working hard on your cosplay now, because before you know it Spring and Summer will be here, and when that happens con season will be in full throttle! We guarantee it! 😉

Hello to all. Hopefully the first twelve days of 2018 have been good to you thus far, in spite of the fact that many of us got sick (or caught the flu) right after New Year’s Eve. Okay, if you’re just hearing this juicy tidbit of info for the first time, then prepare yourself! Chris Sabat (aka Vegeta in DBZ/Super) has officially challenged Sean Schemmel (aka Goku in DBZ/Super) to a Super Saiyan Showdown on the upcoming DBZ video game known as Dragonball FighterZ!

At first we thought it was just a friendly twitter back-and-forth rivalry, but BOY were we wrong. The hype behind this has so ecstatic, that FUNimation is not only promoting the event – but live streaming it as well. The gameplay and battle mechanics of Dragonball fighterZ resemble that of the Marvel vs. Capcom series. Combine that with game graphics so detailed, that it matches 95% of the anime graphics, and you got yourself an all-new Dragon Ball Z game that you won’t be able to put down! The game is on PS4, Xbox One and Microsoft Windows and will be released January 26, 2018.

Next on the list is blog nominations. Although we don’t necessarily have a big speech prepared as to why we should be nominated for a blog award, we can pretty much say this about our blog. D&A is much more than just an anime blog where we talk about fan-favorite titles, we also like to help out other blogs, fellow bloggers and fans any way we can. We’re now in the process of writing sponsorship letters to up-and-coming anime conventions, as well as our North American Anime distributors. (Crunchyroll, FUNimation, Sentai, etc.) We also would like to get the chance to launch an original podcast where the fans are the guests entitled “The Fancast”. However we’ll need just a little bit of help and some donations to our Patreon page in order to make that happen. (patreon/daanimeblog2016)

That’ll do it for us on our end with this little filler post announcement we have for you tonight. Check back in with us every so often, because we’ve got more-more-MORE awesome stuff comin’ your way! Stay true, and stay golden anime fans! 🙂

Normally we don’t do any kind of video game walkthroughs due to the fact that we’re an anime and manga-based blog, but since this is a filler post we’ve got a little bit of leeway action here. From the standpoint of Yours Truly (D.J. Lewis), Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door will without a doubt be known as one of the best installments of the whole franchise. It took everything that was great about the first one and jacked up its cool factor by 11! (Once again, this is only in my case so results may vary.)

Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, I wanna talk about a certain dungeon that only a few hundred have conquered, but many a thousand have failed (somewhat). Yes you guys, I’m talking about the Pit of 100 Trials. 12 years ago on this day, Yours Truly faced this dangerous pit with many helpful items and power-brewing badges at my disposal. One thing you should know about the pit is that it’s completely optional, although going through it might net you some awesome badges along the way. (Again, this is completely up to you.)

Before making the decision to head down to “The Pit” there are a few things that you must know. There are no save blocks, no recovery blocks, and not even a comfy bed to sleep in to fully replenish your energy. (Damn, talk about hardcore. >.<)

There are also some crucial things that you must do before entering “The Pit”. So to help you out a little bit I’ve listed the points down below…

• You’re at Level 30 or higher
• You have at least 90 HP and 40 FP (though higher is better, but this is the minimum)
• You’ve got some power badges equipped (All-or-Nothing, P-Up D-Down, etc.)
• You’ve got some good items in your arsenal (Ultra Shroom, Jammin’ Jelly, etc.)

First Attack and Bump Attack badges won’t save you from the evils that lurk down below, so make sure to take them off before making this perilous journey. I’m not gonna go into heavy detail about each level of “The Pit” specifically, but I’ll tell you what you’ll be in for every ten levels. One good thing about the trials is that the tenth level of every ten-level set is a “safe zone”, meaning no monsters to fight against. You can even skip a few levels thanks to some “movers” that are located on certain levels, but make sure you’ve got enough coins to cover the move, and don’t even dare buy items from any of the merchants down there, their prices are high as hell!

Here’s what waits for you on Levels 1-9…

• Gloomba (7 HP, 3 ATK, 0 DEF)
• Spania (3 HP, 1 ATK, 0 DEF)
• Spinia (3 HP, 1 ATK, 0 DEF)
• Fuzzy (3 HP, 1 ATK, 0 DEF)
• Dull Bones (1 HP, 2 ATK, 1 DEF)

The first set of ten levels is probably going to be the easiest, so just use some Jump or Hammer attacks and that’ll get the job done. You shouldn’t take too much damage from these guys if you know how to Guard and Superguard, of course that only works if the enemy is attacking you directly.

Score of Difficulty: 1.8 / 10 Stars

Here’s what you’ll be in for on the second set of ten, that being levels 11-19…

• Paragloomba (7 HP, 3 ATK, 0 DEF)
• Pokey (4 HP, 3 ATK, 0 DEF)
• Pider (5 HP, 2 ATK, 0 DEF)
• Cleft (2 HP, 2 ATK, 2 DEF)
• Dark Puff (3 HP, 2 ATK, 0 DEF)

The second set is still kind of easy, so like the first just make sure you use your Jump and Hammer skills. (Only this time put a little more power into them.) Again the damage factor is still pretty low, so continue to use Guard and Superguard.

Score of Difficulty: 2.5 / 10 Stars

Levels 21-29…

• Spiky Gloomba (7 HP, 4 ATK, 0 DEF)
• Bandit (5 HP, 2 ATK, 0 DEF)
• Bob-omb (4 HP, 2 ATK, 1 DEF)
• Boo (7 HP, 3 ATK, 0 DEF)
• Lakitu (5 HP, 2 ATK, 0 DEF)
• Spiny (3 HP, 3 ATK, 3 DEF)

Only a small fraction of difficulty has been added to this set of ten, but it should still be fairly easy to get through these levels. Jump and Hammer you way through, but throw in a few tricks for good measure. As always, Guard and Superguard if you can.

Score of Difficulty: 3.1 / 10 Stars

So what’s on levels 31-39…

• Shady Koopa (8 HP, 3 ATK, 1 DEF)
• Hyper Cleft (4 HP, 3 ATK, 3 DEF)
• Buzzy Beetle (5 HP, 3 ATK, 4 DEF)
• Flower Fuzzy (5 HP, 3 ATK, 0 DEF)
• Parabuzzy (5 HP, 3 ATK, 4 DEF)
• Dark Koopa (8 HP, 4 ATK, 2 DEF)

You might need to step it up in the power department if you plan on getting through this set of ten. Jump, Guard, Hammer, Superguard. Add some power and that’s it!

Score of Difficulty: 4.2 / 10 Stars

Okay, levels 41-49…

• Spike Top (5 HP, 3 ATK, 4 DEF)
• Spiky Parabuzzy (5 HP, 3 ATK, 4 DEF)
• Lava Bubble (6 HP, 4 ATK, 0 DEF)
• Bulky Bob-omb (6 HP, 2 ATK, 1 DEF)
• Shady Paratroopa (8 HP, 3 ATK, 1 DEF)
• Dark Paratroopa (8 HP, 4 ATK, 2 DEF)
• Poison Pokey (8 HP, 4 ATK, 0 DEF)

Once again, step it up in the power department. Jump, Guard, Hammer, and Superguard.

Score of Difficulty: 4.8 / 10 Stars

Levels 51-59…you tired yet?

• Red Chomp (6 HP, 5 ATK, 3 DEF)
• Ice Puff (9 HP, 4 ATK, 0 DEF)
• Badge Bandit (12 HP, 5 ATK, 0 DEF)
• Moon Cleft (6 HP, 5 ATK, 5 DEF)
• Dark Boo (8 HP, 5 ATK, 0 DEF)

Now is not the time to punk out! If you didn’t escape at level 50 when you had the chance, then tough tennis balls, maggot! Jump, Hammer, Guard, and Superguard your way to victory! your drill Sargent will thank you.

Score of Difficulty: 6.4 / 10 Stars

Levels 61-69…are we there yet?

• Dark Wizzerd (10 HP, 5 ATK, 2 DEF)
• Dry Bones (8 HP, 5 ATK, 2 DEF)
• Dark Lakitu (13 HP, 5 ATK, 0 DEF)
• Dark Craw (20 HP, 6 ATK, 0 DEF)
• Sky-blue Spiny (6 HP, 6 ATK, 4 DEF)
• Frost Piranha (10 HP, 5 ATK, 0 DEF)

If you’re unlucky enough to have four Dark Craws to fight against, then God bless your soul you brave fool! Power yourself up Jump and Hammer-wise and for the love of God, keep the damage factor to a minimum!

Score of Difficulty: 7.3 / 10 Stars

So, levels 71-79…you still alive?

• Wizzerd (10 HP, 6 ATK, 3 DEF)
• Swoopula (9 HP, 4 ATK, 0 DEF)
• Phantom Ember (10 HP, 5 ATK, 0 DEF)
• Dark Koopatrol (25 HP, 5 ATK, 2 DEF)
• Chain Chomp (7 HP, 6 ATK, 5 DEF)

Two words: POWER UP! Keep the damage factor to a minimum and don’t DIE!

Score of Difficulty: 8.2 / 10 Stars

Levels 81-89…one more set to go!

• Arantula (16 HP, 7 ATK, 0 DEF)
• Dark Bristle (8 HP, 8 ATK, 4 DEF)
• Piranha Plant (15 HP, 9 ATK, 0 DEF)
• Spunia (12 HP, 7 ATK, 2 DEF)

Power up! Keep the damage factor down! Don’t die!

Score of Difficulty: 8.9 / 10 Stars

Levels 91-99…the final set!

• Amazy Dayzee (20 HP, 20 ATK, 1 DEF)
• Bob-ulk (10 HP, 4 ATK, 2 DEF)
• Elite Wizzerd (12 HP, 8 ATK, 5 DEF)
• Poison Puff (15 HP, 8 ATK, 0 DEF)
• Swampire (20 HP, 6 ATK, 0 DEF)

Every single enemy now has a double digit HP, so power to the max and beat them down!

Score of Difficulty: 9.4 / 10 Stars

If you managed to make it through the previous 99 floors of “The Pit”, then kudos! Don’t celebrate just yet because now you’re on the 100th floor, and now you face the sibling of both Hooktail and Gloomtail. Power up to the max and keep the damage low! After you beat him, take your new badge home and get the hell outta there!

Yep, that’s pretty much how to get through the Pit of 100 Trials. Stay tuned for my next anime-related filler post my awesome fans! 🙂