Author: psgels
Ghost Hunt – 23

Short Synopsis: Naru still is out for the entire episode, while more people end up injured and wounded. There even was a suicide-attempt.
Good: Great cliff-hanger!
Bad: The evil grin on the spirits looked a bit fake, but this is just a minor detail.
Overall Enjoyment Value: 8/10
You know what? I liked this! đ
Seriously, though. Now that Naru-chan is unavailable for this arc, Mai doesn’t have anyone to rely on or to drool over, so she’ll start acting for herself. The first half of the episode already shows this when she finally gives a good description of the dream she had. The things that happened in the dream of the previous episode are checked, and they all appear to be true. Not very exciting, but it’s definitely necessary.
I personally loved the second half. It starts with another one of the family-members being attacked (this time on his arms). The two children show themselves, and then it really becomes apparent that they’re possessed, as they’re actually disappointed that the guy didn’t die. They escape for that time, but Mai runs into them again later when she tries to give everyone a protective charm. They obviously run away, but Mai then finds out that they’ve been trying to kill various members of the household. What happened afterwards was very interesting.
Okay, so Mai made a mistake. Big deal, she almost threw her life away in the haunted school-building. But never has she actually put the lives of others on the line! She tries to catch the two children, but the boy escapes. The spirit then threatens to kill the boy if she doesn’t release them. He’s about to jump, and the only chance for Mai to stop him is by using the trick Bou-san taught her, despite his warnings to never use this on a human being.
The children ended up with some deep cuts in their back. They were lucky to have survived. But not only that. Mai didn’t only hurt the children, she also made the spirits even angrier than they already were. It’ll be very interesting to see how she actually is going to take responsibility for the things she did, as the end of the episode showed some signs that people actually died. In other words, Mai’s carelessness actually indirectly killed a couple of people. Finally she’s getting interesting! Woot!]]>
Death Note – 23

Short Synopsis: The climax of the Yotsuba-arc.
Good: Finally the Yotsuba-arc is over.
Bad: The second half of the previous episode was better; A deus ex machina? Death Note, I thought you knew better.
Overall Enjoyment Value: 8/10
Those who have been reading my blog know that I’ve been annoyed with the Yotsuba-arc. It was basically one huge joke, in comparison to the Misa-arc and the Naomi-arc. Still, I’m glad it’s over, and I’m glad that it actually managed to end well. The past episode and this one have been excellent, but they once again show that Death Note is a shounen-anime, where the pattern of good and bad episodes is almost predictable.
SPOILER for the manga up ahead. Beware!
What will happen next could be very interesting, in theory. Still, I’ve got a problem with it: the fanbase of the manga. It seems that after Higuchi got caught, the manga featured a huge plot twist. The problem with this is that the people who read the manga found this twist so amazing, that they kept dropping way too obvious and unsubtle hints about it. It’s almost impossible not to get spoiled by the fact that [SPOILER]L is about to die[/spoiler]. It’s just like the fact that I won’t be able to really enjoy Starwars and Final Fantasy VII, due to the fact that their plot twists also have become famous. The anime now has to deliver something really good in order to make up for this.
Anyway, about the episode, it definitely was good, but the previous episode, as mentioned above, was better. Nothing much changed with Higuchi. He just was trying to find ways to kill Matsuda, and the huge change from calm to desperate in the previous episode never really found its equal. The police-cars at the climax also came from nowhere, what were the creators thinking of putting a deus ex machina at that point?]]>
Master of Epic – 11

Short Synopsis: No real theme of this episode, the girl from episode two returns and the Waragecha finally manage to defeat their enemies. For now, at least.
Good: The cooking-contest; Waragecha; The rather strange beginning-sketch.
Bad: What!? Only one more episode left!? Nooooooo!
Overall Enjoyment Value: 8/10
Dammit, this series only is going to take 12 episodes! That means that next week will be closing off this series. Dammit, I so would have loved to see more of this series. But then again, by keeping the series short, the creators did avoid this series from dragging on. But still, I want more!! Rawr!!
Sketch one: is it me, or was even the voice-actor trying to keep his laughing down? Really, it seemed he could burst out laughing any minute now. But what do you expect, when Bukotsu suddenly does such a ridiculous dance? XD
Sketch two: probably was the sketch who introduced the most new character-designs of any sketch so far. It’s a cooking-match, and both the contestants as the commentators as the audience have never appeared in the show before, apart from Bukotsu perhaps. The scene was really hilarious, as not only did the participants try to sabotage each other, the commentators also had some strange conversations on their own. One of them (a version of Bukotsu with actual hair. :P) even went as far as describing his own sad history. Hilarious sketch. XD (Notice when Juliano seduced the female members of the audience, the commentator also reacted to this? XD)
Sketch three: the news. Another beauty. The reporter is out to interview Philippe as he’s attempting to run for a long time: 922 hours. He’s already been running for three hours. When the reporter asks him for the reason… well, there isn’t. It just seemed like a nice idea. XD
Sketch four: we finally learn the names of the Newtar and the female Pandemos he has a crush on! Tatsuya and Minami. While I usually hate these kinds of scenes, it’s great to see them parodied like that. As usual, Tatsuya keeps goofing off, and in the end he promises her something he could never do: give her a gattling gun. XD Oh, and we see the main character again! Yay!
Speaking of that main character, she’d better have a big role in the final episode!
Sketch five: the girl from the second episode returns. She’s still searching for a way not to fight. Let’s just say that that doesn’t work. XD
Sketch six: the producers finally are defeated in a very humorous way. I kept wondering why the roundy thingies on the robot looked like speakers. Well, this episode showed that they actually are speakers. The Waragecha defeat the duo by unleashing the terror of their theme-song on them. XD I loved how they realized how it’s quite pathetic that their own theme-song is such an effective weapon. XD
I really wonder what the final episode will be like. With a show like this, you’ll never know. I never thought I’d say this for a comedy-show, but I’d love to see some more serious scenes. That scene in the previous episode made me hungry for more. It’s interesting to see that in a comedy-series as this, such a serious scene worked out so awesome. It’s probably because the creators really made me curious for each different character. I keep hoping for certain characters to appear again, and it of course it’s a treat to see these hopes come true.]]>
Red Garden – 22


Short Synopsis: The Semi-ending of Red Garden, and what an ending it is. Let’s just say that lots of people die.
Good: The final scene of HervĂ© and Anna. God, that was so good, I actually cried, and that doesn’t happen often.
Bad: 8!? August!? That long till the OVA comes!?
Overall Enjoyment Value: 8.5/10
Oh boy, that surely was an awesome episode, as it marks the end of the struggle between the animus and the Doral. Still, the characters who really stole the show were Kate and most especially Hervé and Lula. The episode starts with Kate and Hervé yelling at each other, which clearly shows that he lost it, due to his concerns for his sister. Still, that was just an introduction of the following events.
First of all, Lula sacrificing herself to mortally hurt HervĂ© was amazing. Right before she hit her, I could really see in her eyes that she was trying to avenge her brother. Well, she didn’t necessarily kill him, but what she did do was erase all HervĂ©’s chances of success. So sad.
But the definite highlight of the episode, and quite possibly the entire series, was HervĂ© dying himself. I don’t cry often, this probably happens once a month or something, but that scene did it. Seeing HervĂ© kill his own sister, whom he cared about so much was just way too sad. The ending was a bit strange, though. But then again, you can’t really call that the ending of the series, with an OVA coming in august. I wonder what it’ll be about, actually. Everybody apart from Kate, Rose, Claire and Rachel died. Will it show two episodes of them, living with their memories lost? While that would be awesome, I think that there’d be some kind of twist included. But can the creators really do so much in only two episodes?
Still, looking back, and not taking the OVA into account, I have to say that Red Garden appeared to be the best series that arrived in the Fall-Season. It may never had episodes with a rating of 9/10, but those who’ve been keeping an eye out at my episode ratings have noticed that Red Garden has been getting the most consistent and yet high ratings. Nearly every episode since episode 15 has gotten a 8,5/10. Asatte no Houkou was great, and Bakumatsu is great, but they havenât really reached the heights of Red Garden yet. Death Note stood a chance of beating it at one point, but it destroyed this chance due to the rather bad Yotsuba-arc. Ghost Hunt turned out disappointing, while Jigoku Shoujo is quite fun at the moment, but again, it can’t just reach Red Garden yet. At least, unless its final three episodes turn out to become really awesome. :)]]>
Red Garden – 21

Short Synopsis: If there ever was a “calm before the storm”-episode, it’d be this one. This episodes showcases the final interactions Kate, Rose, Rachel and Claire have with their surroundings.
Good: Even though no major events happened, this was a heart-warming episode. Red Garden just continues to deliver.
Bad: Ooh, let’s hope it won’t have a screwed-up ending. *crosses fingers*
Overall Enjoyment Value: 8,5/10
I’m going to be quick with this review, as I can hardly wait to see the next episode. Like mentioned above, this episode showed the last interactions the girls have with their friends. It’s slow, it’s quiet, but it works perfectly. Every scene just has some kind of deeper meaning. I just loved Rachel, as she was in the cafetaria, all alone, drinking coffee. I just loved Claire, as she sees her father in a car next to her, and has trouble speaking. I just loved Rose, as she covers her siblings with a blanket. I just loved Kate, who was given some make-up by Paula. And I can continue for a while, weren’t for the fact that I’ve got episode 22 waiting on my hard-disk.
There was no tension at all. Except perhaps with the only scene Hervé appeared in, in which he watched his sister, and the ending of the episode, but the huge number of hidden meanings in the different scenes made this episode just as enjoyable as the previous ones.
Also, a total irrelevant, but nevertheless interesting fact: JC’s real name is Jeremy Charles Ferhlan.]]>
Red Garden – 20

Short Synopsis: Okay, so Kate doesn’t die. Instead, others do. Quite shocking at this point of the anime.
Good: Kate just continues to be an amazing character; The Deaths were awesome.
Bad: So, the series is going to end at episode 22, while the final two episodes will be released on DVD? I don’t think I can wait that long!
Overall Enjoyment Value: 8.5/10
Oh god, that was an amazing episode! First of all, Kate was awesome when she was in the building. I haven’t seen many characters which acted so genuinely at those points as she did. And can you blame her? I mean, she has been abducted, she wakes up, half-drowsy and then she suddenly sees Lise, whom she thought to have died long ago.
Claire and Rose meanwhile continue their own stories with their fathers a bit. Especially Claire was heart-warming when she found out that the reason her father was in Europe while Randy committed suicide was because of Randy himself. Her father finally has the courage to speak his mind to Claire, and this has some great results.
And then the deaths! Emilio, HervĂ©’s uncle and the main researcher just die like that. Especially HervĂ©’s uncle was something I SO didn’t expect at this point. HervĂ© then makes use of the confusion in order to make himself the head of the Doral. Lise, meanwhile, hit the limit, and transformed into the beasts we’ve been seeing.
The final explanation of the story is also given at the end of the episode. Doral once stole one of the cursed tomes from the animus. This caused the leaders of the animus to be frozen in time, unable to move, only speak. They’ll be able to die when the stolen cursed tome is obtained.]]>
Otogi Juushi Akazukin – 37

Short Synopsis: Oh God no! Not the brainwashed main character!
Good: Well, at least Souta’s out of the picture for most of the next episode.
Bad: Oh God no! Not the brainwashed main character!
Overall Enjoyment Value: 6.5/10
No! No! No! Hansel and Turude were interesting, because the two of them were well-developed. But Souta just got converted and reverted back in only one episode. That’s way too short in order to allow for good development. It’s a shame. He was a near-perfect character to be watching from the side-lines. He was brilliant when he just observed and commented the stories of the others. But the fact remains that he’s way too dull for a main character.
Ack! I hate this. My once favourite show of the time suffers from the bad-ending-virus. Ah well, at least the next episodes show promise, as Akazukin is going to do what she’s good at: kick ass!
Still, what I’m really hoping for is a BIG role for Ringo and Randagio. Especially Ringo. I’ve been longing for a bit more screentime of her. She was such a major character in the beginning of the show. I’d love to see her back.
I guess I have been fearing this. I didn’t want to admit it, but basic storytelling just has to include the two main characters in a clichĂ©d situation, unfortunately. Please, let at least the final two episodes be worthwhile!
For the past few episodes, I’ve also been waiting for the subs for this show by TV-Nihon, as at one point, they just released their files two dais after the original airdate. Unfortunately, they’ve been releasing in batches again. Luckily, it’s batches of two, instead of four or five. Still, I’m going to be watching the final two episodes raw. This anime showed me that watching raws does have a certain charm above watching the subbed version, even though some of the dialogue goes past me.
Perhaps this is because the raws allowed me to give my own interpretations to the story, instead of TV Nihon’s version. I never really realized this before, but a lot of the meaning of a show does get lost when I watch the subs as well. With the subs, it’s just the minor details that never reach me, while with the raws it’s the major details.]]>
Otogi Juushi Akazukin – 36

Short Synopsis: Turude’s identity is revealed. Souta’s mother doesn’t last long afterwards.
Good: Finally a bit of background-info about Souta’s mother.
Bad: What? No twist?
Overall Enjoyment Value: 7/10
To be honest, this episode disappointed me a bit. I’m beginning to fear that the pre-ending episodes showcased the best of this series, and now the mysteries are solved, the series is going to finish rather dull. I sure hope I’m wrong in this, but it seems like everyone already played his or her part.
At least, except one person…
Ringo!!! Please tell me that you’ll return to being a major character and actually save this show from ending mundanely. This show doesn’t deserve a bad ending, this series was brilliant from episodes 23 till 35. Don’t let all of this go down the drain with the final episodes! Aagh! I hope I’m right about the small hint the creators dropped in her little conversation with Hameln, right before they entered Cendrion’s castle. I was hoping for her to do something while Souta awakened, but all she did was not move a muscle.
Honestly, this show is too awesome to destroy!]]>
Seraphim Call Review – 78/100

After Sentimental Journey and Human Crossing, the only natural next step would be Seraphim Call. This one tells the story of eleven girls between ages 12 to 25. I expected it to be similar to Sentimental Journey, but surprisingly, the romance-element is no central theme in this anime, you can only see it in two or three cases. Each of these girls has her own unique story to tell, some of them have worries, some of them have a rather strange quirk, some try to fool themselves, and some are just telling about something that happened to them.
But can Seraphim Call call itself equal or perhaps even above Sentimental Journey and Human Crossing? Well, for one, it was definitely enjoyable, but it had its bad points. While Human Crossing was consistently good, Seraphim Call had a few cases which weren’t as good as the others. The first two episodes also were goofy, while the following episodes were serious. I had trouble getting used to that. The music also lacked a bit. Sentimental Journey featured a great soundtrack which just screamed “eighties”, and Human Crossing’s OST wasn’t bad either. But I just didn’t really notice the soundtrack for Seraphim Call. The only interesting thing to point out is that every episode has a different ED, but for some strange reason I caught myself with the highly addictive ED from Sentimental Journey stuck in my head after watching this. The way this anime ended was also a nice idea, bringing all eleven girls together, but there is only so much you can do in a single episode. The final bad point is that about 50% of the character-designs just don’t look right. The hair is way too unnatural, not to mention that nearly every colour of the rainbow is represented in our eleven girls.
Still, you have to hand it to Seraphim Call, in terms of creativity, it really managed to beat Sentimental Journey and Human Crossing easily. There are some episodes which showcase some brilliant ideas. One of the best ones is showed entirely through the eyes of a stuffed animal, ingeniously named “Margarine von Half-Calorie”. Another one showcases a girl, and nothing but this girl. We never get to see or even hear the people around her. Another brilliant piece was episode 7, which starts playing with time and paradoxes. Episode five and six are incredibly subtle. They nearly show the exact-same footage, just with a few scenes swapped, and some few subtle differences added. And episodes 1 and 8 are just plain weird.
Nearly every case also seems to have a deeper message behind it. The stories are told, and while it’s told, it’s trying to give the viewer some sort of idea or message, which works quite well. There’s also a good deal of symbolism used at times. I’m also glad to see that this anime actually succeeds where Human Crossing failed, in terms of episode endings. Human Crossing just had to end its stories on a good note, while Seraphim Call just tried to make the endings as natural as possible. Heck, one episode doesn’t even have a conclusion, while other episodes are only halfly-solved. Still, this prevents the endings from being rushed, forced or incomplete, and they work really well, in my opinion.
Overall, it may have bad points, but if you liked Sentimental Journey and Human Crossing, you’ll definitely like Seraphim Call. Also, if you liked Seraphim Call and Sentimental Journey, you’ll probably like Human Crossing as well, and of course if you liked Human Crossing and Seraphim Call, you’ll like Sentimental Journey as well. Ah well, they were some great series. Next up are some more “normal” series.
(Note, don’t pay too much attention to the rating. I’m currently trying to find a good rating-system, as I caught myself handing out way too many ratings between 80/100 and 90/100. This anime was just as good, if not better than Sentimental Journey.)]]>