The Time Masters: the weird, beautiful French sci-fi I’m finally revisiting

I first saw Time Masters (Les Maîtres du temps) in my early teen years, and it grabbed my attention immediately.

Not simply because of the visuals, or the title, but because it was different. Very different...

It looked nothing like the cartoons I’d grown up with on TV or in theaters. This was before I’d even stumbled into Akira, Nausicaä or Robotech—back when “animation” mostly meant one familiar lane: Disney, Warner Bros. or Hanna-Barbera. And then this showed up, looking like it came from a completely different universe.

So this past Christmas, I did what any reasonable middle-aged guy does when nostalgia starts tugging at his sleeve: I put it on my wish list. A few days ago, it finally landed in my hands. I wasn’t sure what I’d find. Was the magic just nostalgia doing its thing? Or was the film really as special as I remembered?

Either way, I hit play.

I wasn’t disappointed.

Looking back on Arcane and the experience of watching it together

We’ve always had a family tradition of watching animation together — Studio Ghibli was our starting point when the kids were little — and Arcane naturally found its place in that same rhythm. Season 1 pulled us in from the start — the MiniCKs and me, all equally curious about where it was heading. The art, the pacing, the characters; everything felt richer than we expected. When we started watching Season 2 at the start of the year, my eldest and I decided to continue watching it together. We went back to Season 1 partly to enjoy the story with fresh eyes, and partly because we’d forgotten more than we realized. By episode three of Season 2, the number of pauses we were taking made it obvious we needed a full rewatch of the first season.

(No actual spoilers here — just reflections on the experience. But you may want to wait to read until you're done with both seasons.)

Watching the show again only reenforced our appreciation for the mesmerizing visuals: Arcane’s quality isn’t an accident. The animation is breathtaking in a way that makes you want to print still frames as paintings. Fortiche didn’t just animate a story; they built a world that breathes. There were scenes where I found myself thinking, I’d hang this on a wall. That doesn’t happen often with television.

But beyond the visuals, it’s the characters who carry everything. Vi and Jinx, especially, sit at the heart of the show. Their relationship is complicated, painful, and believable, and it anchors both seasons. Even when the story branches out into politics, mysticism, and the deeper mechanics of Hextech, it always comes back to the people affected by those forces.

Monday night spotlight: The Lost Tower — A quiet, haunting gem of Blender sci-fi

I’m kicking off a new Monday night spotlight series. Think of it as a weekly dive into animated (and occasionally not-animated) short films that punch way above their runtime. Little cinematic gems. World slices. Those “wait, why isn’t this a full movie yet?” moments we all love. I have a bunch of old ones I'll need to dig from my archives of liked videos. 

And for the very first entry, I had to start with something that recently grabbed me instantly.

That something is The Lost Tower, a Blender short by concept artist Florent Lebrun.

A pilot, a plane, and an ocean full of ancient secrets

The premise is almost meditative, a lone pilot gliding above uncharted waters, searching for one of the fabled Lost Towers. No narration. No lore dump. Just atmosphere thick enough to bottle.

Lebrun’s painterly touch is everywhere: soft haze, massive structures half-buried in mist, and that beautiful tension between loneliness and discovery. It feels like a keyframe from a forgotten French sci-fi graphic novel… the kind you’d find wedged between Moebius collections and some obscure out-of-print RPG manual.

It’s not action-packed; it’s evocative. And that’s exactly why it works.

Why Blue Eye Samurai cut so deep & why I can’t wait for season 2

Every once in a while, a show slices through the noise and reminds you why you fell in love with animation in the first place. Blue Eye Samurai did that for me.

From the very first frame, that painterly Edo-era Japan bathed in blood and moonlight, I knew this wasn’t just another revenge story. It’s an emotional blade honed to perfection: sharp, purposeful, and heartbreakingly human. Mizu isn’t a hero; she’s an instrument of fury shaped by a world that refuses to see her as whole. And yet, beneath every duel and dismemberment, there’s this quiet ache, the question of what’s left when vengeance burns everything else away.

It’s Kurosawa meets Kill Bill, but with the moral complexity of Andor and the tragic beauty of Princess Mononoke. The choreography is poetry. The dialogue cuts like truth. And the craftsmanship (the light, the pacing, the music, etc.) it all screams that animation can be cinematic, adult, and profound without needing to apologize for it.

Season 2 can’t come soon enough. Not just to see where Mizu’s path leads, but to watch this creative team keep redefining what “animated storytelling” can be. 

If Season 1 was the strike, Season 2 feels like it'll be a reckoning.

Anyone else feel like this show reignited their faith in what animation can say?

Finally diving back into Arcane: Season 2 Begins!

Finally got the chance to start Arcane Season 2 last night. Back when Season 1 first dropped, the kids and I watched it together—and, like most viewers, we were completely blown away by the storytelling, art style, and everything in between.

This time, it’s just my daughter and me diving into Season 2. 

We’ve only made it through two episodes so far, but once we're done, I’ll share my thoughts!

The Official Teaser for "Secret Level" is out, and it looks amazing!

As Amazon Prime Video gears up to launch its anthology series Secret Level, it feels like a dream come true for anyone who's ever lost themselves in these worlds we've poured hours into. If you're anything like me - a gamer with a love for the narratives that have captivated us, and one who's been collecting "The Art of" books from his favourite games for years - this show is bound to be an immersive experience.

Secret Level promises to pull us into the universes of our favorite games, but with the added magic of cinematic storytelling. Each episode dives into a different game world, offering a nostalgic trip down memory lane for some and a fresh perspective on modern classics for others. It's not just a showcase of the mainstream hits; the series also highlights some underappreciated gems, making it a treasure trove for both casual and hardcore gamers.

Ben Hibon's Codehunters [VIDEO]

Via @ShurikenMonkey. Thanks Bro!

Friday Video: Vexille, the evolution

I grew up watching Robotech during the 80s at the crack of dawn on week-ends, and fell in love with Japanese animation, as well as manga. Some of my favorites are films like Patlabor, Detonator Orgun, Ghost in the Shell, as well as Nausicaä. Each are very different styles and stories, yet all caught my interests. Which is why I was truly excited when I cam across Vexille. And though the story wasn't up to par with the visual quality of this anime, it was still well worth my time! Here's the trailer!

Vexille Official Trailer

World War CG Animation Video

OK, this being Wednesday, we all need a little push to get us through the rest of the week. As such here's something to entertain you for a few minutes. The World War animation film below, was created by Vincent Chai for his final degree project, while studying 3D Animation at the University Of Hertfordshire, UK.


World War - 3D Animation @ University Of Hertfordshire 2008
from Digital Animation Herts Uni UK on Vimeo.
You've got to admit that the guy's got talent. It looks great, the humour is great and the action keeps you on the edge of your seat.

Good luck Vincent, wherever you may end-up, I know you'll do great things!

EVE Avatars: get your EVE character portrait animated

I recently got contacted by a fellow EVE player Copter Pilot, who runs a nice little business animating our EVE Online character portrait. I must say I was surprised at the quality of the work and the results. It's almost freaky! Check out Treenara animated expression in the sidebar.


If you're interested in seeing a great example of his work, head to over to The Stoned Hippies Corp and you'll see a flash animation with voice over - very impressive. Looking to get your avatar animated? Head over to EVE Avatars and get yours done. Copter "charge[s] 20 million isk to capture and animate a player's portrait and return to him an avatar package consisting a single animation in 4 default sizes: 125x125, 100x100, 85x85, and 65x65 to use as forum avatars on all their favorite forums." It's a great way to add some fun to that static character portrait.

Skyland Episodes 1 & 2, and lastest poll

A few weeks back, I ran a poll to know if any of you would be interested in buying the Skyland animation series if it ever came on DVD. Well it seems that quite a lot of you would, so you'll be happy to hear that the series is being released in France this fall, though there is no news on the North-American market or elsewhere. Guess we'll just have to wait for that. If you have any news on it, please let me know.

Back to the poll results now. So here are the results after running the poll over a 2 weeks period:

• What the hell is Skyland? - 13% (2)
• Maybe, if the price is right - 13% (2)
• Maybe, if the rest of the series is as good - 13% (2)
• Most likely - 13% (2)
• Definitely - 50% (8)

Looks like this would be a hot item! I do realize that I did not have the choice to say that you would not be buying the DVD series at all. What can I say, this whole polling thing is new to me! I will next time I promise.

Finally, I've had quite a lot of emails and posts asking me where one could get the first two episodes of the series. As I mentioned in this post a few months back, Nicktoons had made available the initial two episodes. But for some reason, they removed them. Lucky for me (and you), I downloaded both back then. And so, I was able to email them using Pando to a few of you. But, the demand has been so great that it no longer is convenient for me to use that utility.

Last week I came across Box.net, a great site that offer online storage. And so over the week-end I uploaded both episodes, and you can now download them yourselves! One thing though, I've to subscribed to the service ($5/month) in order to be able to upload the episodes which are about 130Mb each. The five bucks a month gives me 5Gb of space and 20Gb of bandwidth monthly. As write this, I have no clue as to how quickly I'll go though that. We''l just have to see. So here are the two links:

• Skyland Episode 1 (QuickTime - 127.3Mb)
• Skyland Episode 2 (QuickTime - 128.3Mb)

Please let me know if you run into any trouble trying to download either of them. You can also drop me a comment or an email to say thanks and Hi!

Hope you enjoy!

A Skyland Poll: would you buy the series if it came out on DVD?

As many of you know, besides EVE Online and Battlestar Galactica, another interest of mine is Skyland. I've been watching the series lately and I'm really enjoying it. It's still visually very impressive, with a few moments each episode where you just gasp at the beauty of the work done by these French artists. And except for a few weak episodes here and there (The Great Wall comes to mind), so far I like the direction the series is heading.

If this keeps up, I might eventually want to buy it if it comes out on DVD. Which brings us to this week’s poll: How likely are you to buy the series if it releases on DVD? Head over to the poll to let me know. And when you're done, drop your thoughts in the comments — I'd love to hear what you think of Skyland so far.

For those of you who don't know Skyland, see my previous posts here, here, here, and here. Also check out my Skyland blinklist, which I update whenever I find something good.

For those discovering Skyland for the first time, here are a few videos to whet your appetite:

Skyland Teaser



Skyland – The Making Of

If you wish to discuss the poll, feel free to use the Comments section.

Skyland: starts on TELETOON, April 22nd

Set your TiVo or DVR, program your VCR, or block off your Saturday night, Skyland is finally here! This upcoming Saturday, April 22nd at 7h30 pm, TELETOON will finally air the series. The big question is will they be reruns of episodes 1 & 2, or will this be new material.



As soon as I have word from my source, I'll let you know. In the mean time, enjoy the 2nd episode (in French since it also aired on France 2). I can't wait to see what happens next!

Skyland: pushed back to April

Well it seems we won't be able to know what happens to Mahad and Lena anytime soon! The show was supposed to air in early January on Nicktoons and later that same month on TELETOON, but as per Nicktoons' Skyland website, the premier has now been pushed back to April.

If you've got any news, please let me know!

Skyland: the first two episodes available!

So this morning I was looking up the "recent keywords" activity of my blog, using StatCounter (it's the best free site statistics I've come across), and "skyland" comes up regularly. I always research keywords to understand how you guys get to this blog and what you searhed for to get here. Through StatCounter, you can link to the search page (98% of them being Google) with the keywords they (that's you) searched under.

I did just that this morning, and doing so, came across a French site which had posted the links on NickToons to the FULL first 2 episodes of Skyland in Quicktime!!

So without further ado, here are the links.

• Episode 1 (127Mb)
• Episode 2 (128Mb)

Enjoy!

[Edited 5 April, 2006] It seems Nicktoons has removed both episodes - I'll try to find them elsewhere. Drop me an email if you still interested in getting them or if you have new links to them.

Craving Skyland...

Since in last aired on TELETOON, I've been craving some more of Skyland. And there isn't much to be found, except for the same bits of information on the same sites. The only new site I found screenies on, was Laurent Pierlot's site, showing his portfolio where you can see some captures. Enjoy!

Otherwise, checking TELETOON's TV schedule, we learn that the next episode (same as the first 2?) is on December 31st, and the next one is next year, on January 29 same time, 19h30, every week-ends. Looking at this, December's showing is more then likely a rerun.

Skyland, tonight on TELETOON!

I don't remember the last time I got excited about animation. Probably back in highschool when I used to get up at 7:00 am in the morning on the week-ends to watch Robotech. Man that was good anime and it brings back lots of fond memories. I remember the feeling of having come upon something few of my peers knew about at the time, and how excited I was.

Well earlier this week I had the same feeling! On Thursday night I watched an amazing new anime series called Skyland. And I'm really excited about it. It's visually stunning, hell I'll even go as far as say it's breathtaking. The setting is very interesting, even if it's a bit deja vue. But I enjoyed it so much, that I'll be watching it again tonight when it airs on TELETOON at 7:00 pm, here in Canada. I think it airs an hour later in the states, but I can't be sure. Skyland is an international production between France and Canada, and is being aired in the USA, UK, France and Canada. Tonight's 2 episodes are a sneak peek at the series which will start in January 2006.

This is the synopsis of the show:

In 2251, the earth shattered into millions of blocks that now float in orbit around its core. These blocks remained suitable for living, and life resumed on them. Water is now the most precious resource. The Sphere, a council of leaders assembled from all over the world, has installed a dictatorship that controls water distribution. Their immense army is composed of robots, called Brigadiers, and is led by an elite force, the Guardians.

Marcus and Mila, a married couple who spearhead the pirate resistance movement, seem poised to fulfill an ancient prophecy telling of Skyland's rebirth, thus raising the hopes that the Sphere will be toppled. They have a dangerous but happy life, bringing a son, Mahad, into the world soon after their union. Shortly before the birth of their second child, Lena, Marcus and most of the pirates disappear during a major offensive against the Sphere. With hope for the freedom all but collapsed, Mila decides to raise her children under a new identity: as a Mansa farmer on a quiet block called Babylonia. Mila is kidnapped by Oslo, the evil leader of the Guardians. Her children manage to escape, and find refuge living near an eccentric savant, the Vector, in Porto Angel, a port led by the pirate Aran Cortes. Mahad and Lena will try to free their mother while Oslo tries to capture Lena, who is the key to absolute power. At first, Oslo thought that the prophecy spoke of Mila and himself, but now he's convinced that Lena is the "light" that will allow him to dominate Skyland.

The resistance movement believed that the prophecy spoke of Mila and Marcus. When Marcus disappeared, this interpretation was forgotten. Very few people now believe in the prophecy. This is a major dispute between the Vector and Cortes.

Mila has learned that her daughter is 'the light' spoken of in the prophecy. She decides to keep this from her children until they are adults, so they may have a normal childhood. They learn about the prophecy and Mila's past soon enough.

The Sphere leaders do not believe in this prophecy. The inhabitants of Skyland believe that the prophecy speaks of human beings, referring to Mahad and Lena.

But seriously, words cannot due justice to this series (well anyways to these first two episodes). You have to see it. So check your local listings and if you miss it, it airs again on Sunday. In the mean time, read up on it at the following sites:

• Welcome to Skyland (Official site)
• TELETOON (check the Skyland section)
• Nicktoons Skyland
• Blogs:
• Blog of Nuke
  
• fps magazine
• Trailers from Nicktoons
• Trailer 1
• Trailer 2
• Trailer 3
• Trailer 4
• Global Promo Sneak Peek
• Original Pilot from Attitude Studio who worked on the 3d rendering

Speaking of Attitude Studio, here is an interview (in French) with one of the 3d Graphic Designer who worked on the series. Adds a different perspective, and there are great screen captures.

Enjoy!