Persona 4 The Animation
Short Synopsis: Our lead character is a transfer student with special powers.
Seeing as how this was the most hyped up series of the new season… it felt oddly disappointing. I’m not referring to the characters, although that pee-moment certainly didn’t help, but what striked me the most is that the storytelling was completely off. In particular, this episode didn’t seem to care much about timing or build up. It didn’t seem to know how to create an atmosphere, it jumped around way too much instead of establishing things, and everything happened way too quickly . This episode had a very short attention span, which really hurt any attempts on drawing in the viewer: one moment the main character is in a shop, the next he dives in a tv. It just doesn’t flow well and there were a lot of anti-climaxes in this episode. Was the game really that long, forcing such a fast pacing? Oh, and this is just a small detail, but I consider it very important too: the show had what sounded like a great soundtrack, but it didn’t seem well used at all. There were lots of scenes with no background music at all, and it only started playing at the most predictable moments.
OP: Funky
ED: Again, funky. If only the rest of the soundtrack was like this.
Potential: 60%
Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai
Short Synopsis: Our lead character is surrounded by cute girls.
For a while, this episode actually avoided the usual warning signs. When it was just the main male and female together, this show avoided fanservice, the female lead was eloquent, rather than stupid, and about the only big cliche was the deadpan snarker male lead. Then the second female lead arrived, the girls turned tsundere and they wasted no time in making boob jokes. This show… when I first read that it’d be about people who are bad at being friends, I thought that this would be a show about outcasts. Instead, the main cast consists out of two people with foreign looks, suffering from Japan’s xenophoby, and another character who refuses to talk to others because of… arrogance I guess. That was not what I expected. Strangely enough, these people didn’t seem to suffer from insecurities at all. Instead, the emotion that prevailed here was annoyance for not being able to make friends. It doesn’t have the biggest cliches: aside from the boob jokes this episode refrained from beating any dead horses, but it has relatively little that it can call its own. The xenophobia was probably this episode’s biggest asset, but that was handled very one-sidedly: everyone is afraid of the main characters, aside from the really good-looking girls (yay for subtlety!). This was neither the worst moe show of the season, but it also certainly wasn’t the best.
OP: FANSERVICE!
ED: Why the nuns?
Potential: 40%
Chihayafuru
Short Synopsis: Our lead character plays card games.
This had the best animation of the new season so far. Seriously, Madhouse made this series look absolutely gorgeous. The use of cg is excellent, while it completely lacks the acting problems of Madhouse’s usual series. The shots are all creative, the animation is smooth and life-like. It would be awesome if the creators could keep it up like that. The rest of the episode also was wonderful: instead of most series about games, the female lead Chihaya isn’t a complete rookie at the start: she has been playing the card games (and seriously, they’re not what you think: this is miles away from Yugioh) for a few years now. In fact, this series series shows how she got introduced to it when she was still a grade schooler. What especially caught me however was how well it used its animation to portray the game. The soundtrack is also exceptionally well used. This is one to keep an eye out for: rock-solid… though it’s a shame that it’s a manga adaptation. Of a manga that isn’t finished yet.
OP: A bit generic, but certainly not the worst of the season.
ED: Simple, but very pretty visuals, with a decent ballad.
Potential: 90%]]>
Category: Series which were Dropped
Some Quick First Impressions: Digimon Xros Wars – Toki wo Kakeru Shounen Hunter, Fate/Zero and Hunter X Hunter
Digimon Xros Wars – Toki wo Kakeru Shounen Hunter
Short Synopsis: Our lead character gets a digimon for himself.
I keep hoping for the good kiddie shows to come back, but after Nippon Animation’s demise and how bad the sales were on the WMT revival series, I’ve pretty much given up. This episodes introduces a new low for the digimon franchise. Before, you could still give it credit for originality. With this though, it has given up all pretense and just flat out stated that it aims to be a pokemon rip-off. I could still get behind the first Xros Wars as an experiment, but with this, the creators came with an even more blatant premise, an even dumber male lead and no semblance of progress whatsoever. The worst part of this episode was where the male lead saw a random digimon walking around, and killed it. Yes, kids: randomly attacking strangers is good! The sole salvation of this is that the animators had their moments. Just too bad that they have to work with bland and uninspired character designs.
OP: Bland pop tune, but at least the visuals aren’t bad.
Potential: 0%
Fate/Zero – Again
Short Synopsis: Our lead character is still going to fight in a war for the holy grail.
Erm. Okay. So yesterday when I watched Fate/Zero, I forgot that it was supposed to start with a double episode, and I accidentally ended up watching a version of this episode that just contained the first half. That was a headdesk moment. In any case, now that I watched the second half of this episode, things fall even more into place, because the end of this episode had an actual climax that fitted well: the summoning of the servants. In any case, the second half of this episode pretty much continued in the same style of first wanting to set everything up correctly, rather than start with a huge climax immediately to draw in viewers. I haven’t watched Fate/Stay Night beyond a few episodes, so the only character I recognized was the younger version of a very annoying tsundere, but apart from that the main cast has a lot of potential, and they’re in no way as annoying as from the Fate/Stay Night anime.
ED: Bland J-rock. The visuals are actually well animated, but seem a bit undirected and chaotic. Also, why did you spoil the identity of the seventh magus when the episode tried to be all mysterious about it?
ED2: Just a black screen with credits. The lack of vocals makes it better than the first ED, but still unimpressive.
Potential: 85%
Hunter X Hunter
Short Synopsis: Our lead character wants to become a hunter
I may have been bitching about this series, but don’t get me wrong: if this gets done right, it can easily be the best shounen of the past years. The problem is that we won’t know about the intentions of the people who are tasked with adapting this thing until the Yorkshin arc arrives, especially because this series will be aimed at a younger audience. The big question is: do these creators believe that kids are idiots, or will they actually put in effort just like what studios as Nippon Animation do? Now, this episode was definitely faster-paced than the first season, and because of that it didn’t have as much detail in it as well. The hunter that Gon runs into, who tells him about his father? Completely gone, which is a bit of a pity because it gave the first season a unique start. Still, the creators put in effort here. The characters are true to themselves, and especially the captain, who was definitely made to appeal more to kids, actually worked well as this old sea captain. The voice actors do have their issues: Gon yells a bit too much, while Leorio’s voice actor didn’t know whether he should use Leorio’s voice of the first season, or just stick to his own. It definitely was a fun episode. The big challenge for this series seems to be its pacing: this series wants to go fast, which inevitably will lead to some things getting cut. Do not cut the best parts!
OP: Cheesy J-pop and running.
ED: Hisako?!
Potential: 75%]]>
Some Quick First Impressions: Hakuouki Hekketsu-Roku, Shinrei Tantei Yakumo and Ore no Imouto ga Konna ni Kawaii wake Nai
Hakuouki Hekketsu-Roku
Short Synopsis: Our lead character is surrounded by the Shinsengumi.
I watch these first episodes of second seasons of series that I originally dropped, in order to check whether or not I missed something: did they actually improve through their course? How have things progressed so far? In the past, I have revisited a few series that I originally dismissed this way. So, what does Hakuouki do? A recap; perfect. I dropped Hakuouki after episode five, and after watching this recap, I have to admit that I probably dropped it at its weakest episode. This episode just kept the twists coming here, which were actually quite interesting. They were a bit cheesy, and I saw little change in the villains, but the story turned out better than I expected: this is not like Vampire Knight which devolved into nothing more than angst and bishies. This second season also promises to be a lot more varied here. I still have two problems, though. The first is that this recap episode nearly worked a little too well. It perfectly summarized twelve freaking episodes in just twenty minutes. These pacing issues also were part of my issues with the first episode: it was just so damn slow at times, with little to make up for it. The second problem is the female lead. I like her premise, but the creators forced her too much into the harem role: she has to be everywhere, she has to be involved with everyone, and her whining holds back scenes that she has no business in whatsoever. For me to actually finish the second season of this series, I demand two things: make every moment count, and develop Chizuru significantly.
ED: Decent.
Potential: 40%
Shinrei Tantei Yakumo
Short Synopsis: Our lead character is a detective who can see spirits.
Yeah, you don’t want to watch this series as a murder mystery. At that area, it’s nowhere near as good as series as Ayatsuri Sakon: the introduction moves too fast, the culprit is revealed way too soon and at no point does it try to make the viewer wondering what’s going on, or unravel clues. Instead, this show is more of a thriller and character study. When looking at it that way, the fast pacing is going to be interesting for the future of this series, it will be more able to concentrating on “why is everything happening”, rather than “what’s going on”, and with the right execution it will be a good way to spend its limited time of 13 episodes on its characters. Koichi Mashimo’s absence on this Bee-Train series hurts, though: I’m really missing his characterization here, and that’s what worries me the most about this series. Still, even though the characters could have been better portrayed, I’m not denying here that this wasn’t a good episode: it started off slow, but it steadily got better and better, resulting in a great climax for a first episode that really made me intrigued, especially when it got all artsy with the buildings and the random people. The soundtrack is not as good as usual Bee-Train series, but nevertheless it’s among the best of the season when it finally shows its real colours.
OP: Quite intense, and surprisingly varied in tone and atmosphere for an OP. Works well.
ED: Beautifully sung. I like the concept of combining pictures from the pasts of the characters.
Potential: 80%
Ore no Imouto ga Konna ni Kawaii wake Nai
Short Synopsis: Our lead character has a weird sister.
There is a new male lead cliche that has been emerging during the past number of years to join the ranks of “your typical loser”. I’d like to call him the “Kyon-clone”: neither a loser nor too popular, he snarks himself through the series and tries to be the voice of reason amongst a cast of weird people with his voice acting having nowhere near the charms that Kyon had. It’s a cliche I see quite a while used in harems, and it’s starting to get annoying. Ore no Imouto has another one, and he does little to set himself apart. In any case, I was really fearing this series, though THANK GOD it’s not as abysmal as KissXSis was; there was little fanservice and the two siblings didn’t seem to be in love. Instead, it’s more like Nyan Koi: occasionally able to raise a chuckle, but most of all boring. For now, at least, because I have one HUGE problem with the way this episode portrayed the lead characters’ little sister: she’s a freaking tsundere! I appreciate this series for including a bit of wit in its dialogue and all, but they really weren’t subtle with those hints!
ED: It’s more like some insert song than an ED, but it’s generic J-pop anyway.
Potential: 10%
Hakuouki – 03
Okay, so now it is getting a bit annoying to see the lead character run everywhere, only to get protected. You can see that she really wants to help, and I can very much understand that she’s not going to get good at swordsmanship in order to be able to take on a number of adults, but when she runs into a building in which there are ton of angry guys waiting to kill everything that has to do with the Shinsengumi, she just jumps into the realm of the stupid.
In any case, with this episode it’s pretty much clear that the creators just plan to use the setting of the Shinsengumi for their own story: apparently Shinpachi Nagakura and Toudou Heisuke died of their wounds later on. Here, they pretty much survive. I doubt that the characters are actually going to Ezo at this point, but who knows. With the sub-par acting, it’s really going to depend on the character-development and the series’ ideas for its plot.
I didn’t like how the unnamed members of the shinsengumi are pretty much just cardboard cut-outs. Seriously, they don’t do anything; they just stand there and play for furniture that can draw swords. For the main plot, I really do want a bit more depth on the villains at this rate. At this point I’m still struggling a bit with the believability of this series: with some series it’s apparent that the creators did their research. Here it is not. It’s also the way in which the characters heal within like what? A week?
However, damn, that soundtrack was really good! When you just look at the pacing, then this episode was quite good. This is one of those series that you shouldn’t watch for its fights, but for its atmosphere, but that one was really good. The voice acting is bad at times, but the characters are getting fleshed out by their dialogue. This is one of those series that could get really good later on. Or it can just remain forgettable and a waste of time.
Rating: (Enjoyable)
Kaichou wa Maid-Sama – 03
[Images will appear later due to Imageshack having issues]
Well, so far so good: now that the introduction is over this series keeps its balance between the funny and serious parts pretty well, with both parts actually working pretty nicely. The comedy feels used wisely: not too little and not too much, and the jokes so far still fall pretty good, with Usui’s abuse becoming possibly even funnier.
This episode also descended into shounen-territory for a bit. It’s interesting to have a shoujo-series with such a premise that allows it to make fun of these shounen stereotypes. The parodies were pretty standard, but quite amusing. Right now this series needs to take care in not repeating its stuff too much, but if it goes on like this, it should be fine.
As for the non-funny bits: I liked how we got to know a bit more about some of the different side-characters, like their siblings and stuff. This series has overdone it a bit with its setting, where the creators try to push too much for Misaki to overcome, but what they did get right was how the cast is pretty balanced in terms of strengths and flaws. The female schoolgirls are bright and cheerful, but also way too naive, protected way too much by Misaki. (as shown by that weak confession in this episode). The guys in the meantime are portrayed as complete morons, but at the same time they’re creative, come up with a new ideas for every one that Misaki turns down.
Misaki is of course the huge exaggeration in this, having huge strengths (her independence, leadership) and huge flaws (her short-sightedness, on top of that she seems very emotionally dependant based on the few affectionate moments she had with Usui). Usui on the other hand is glad that he chose a person to develop a crush over with some tolerance, because some of the things he says would have scared off most of those stereotypical moe girls. Especially for Japanese standards, they’re very direct.
Standalone, they’re indeed nothing interesting, but I have to admit that together, they’re forming quite an enjoyable Smörgåsbord of a cast. What the writers now need to do is deliver them properly: it’s no use having these interesting characters if they take a quarter of an eternity to get anywhere: it will become way too boring in the process. The past few episodes have been nice and all, but I’ve seen a lot of shoujo who started off with a bunch of strong opening episodes, only to derail completely and never get anywhere after six or seven episodes, so I’m really hoping that this series will be able to avoid that.
Rating: (Enjoyable)
EDIT: After a bit of thinking though, I decided to drop this series in favour of Rainbow. Blogging both this series and Kimi ni Todoke has shown me that the shoujo high school romantic comedy series isn’t that interesting to blog for me, especially when I have no idea how it’ll turn out. That’s not to say that I’m completely boycotting the genre, of course. I will blog such a series when it’s really, really good. But to me, Maid Sama just isn’t going to be amongst those series, just like nearly all of the similar series that aired during the past ten years.
Hakuouki – 02
As for the series I’m not going to blog:
– Lilpri is ridiculously stupid, but it has its heart at the right place: you can see that it’s really trying to do something. It just fails horribly at times, but it’s ridiculously entertaining for both the right and wrong reasons. However, me blogging it? Nah.
In any case, I was in a lot of doubts about whether or not to blog Hakuouki. I intended to fill this slot by either one of the three bishie-series this season (Uragiri, Rainbow and this one). While I can’t say anything about Uragiri yet (if that one does turn out awesome I may have to drop either this one or Angel Beats), but the thing with Rainbow is that while it’s got an awesome concept, the acting is utterly terrible. On top of that, I actually doubt that Madhouse is willing to spend enough time to fully animate all of the novels. Normally I love Madhouse, but they have made their share of flops, and the director of these flops is now in charge of that series.
Hakuouki on the other hand is just annoying: it’s one of those series with those few hints of potential that might or might not hint at something better. But I’m deciding to give it a chance, because if it does manage to get everything right it has the potential to become awesome. The biggest reason for this is the dialogue: it really tries to flesh out the characters with it. While the voice acting itself isn’t that special, with that kind of dialogue we really have the potential to get to know our characters. It’s now all going to depend on how the characters are going to develop.
However, do note that I WILL drop this series as soon as I find out that there are only going to be 13 episodes. With these kinds of premises, you really NEED those 24 or 26 episodes to really get somewhere. At this point it’s too late for this series to really stand out if it’s just going to run for one season: it’ll just end up as another forgettable samurai adventure with a bit of random action.
Speaking of the action, that was one of the other reasons that this series caught my eye: it’s damn tense! Well built up, and they’re short but powerful. Most of the time Studio Deen’s animation wasn’t anything special in this series, but that scene in which that guy charged on Yukimura was really well animated. At the same time it shows what the creators are capable of, and yet it’s not one of those cases in which they obviously blow all of their budget in the first episode. Speaking of Yukimura: she has a lot of potential IF (and only if) she manages to grow. At this point, she’s still that typical useless lead who can’t do anything. However, this episode just kept dropping hints that “you know what? This girl is going to develop into a dependable woman.” What I got from her was a strong urge to learn and understand everyone. Standalone, this is just useless, pointless and rather annoying. With development however: ah, the potential.
Rating: * (Good)
Kaichou wa Maid-Sama – 02
I’ve been thinking a lot about whether or not to blog Kaichou wa Maid Sama. Basically, the big reason I hardly ever blog Shoujo romantic comedies is because the genre has evolved in such a way that it’s a bit impossible to really tell whether they’re going to be awesome or not, just based on its first episodes. Ten years ago it may have been different (I mean, one look at Kodocha and His and Her Circumstances would tell that they were going to be awesome), but nowadays, I find it very hard to determine whether a shoujo romantic comedy is going to be another Ouran or Yamato Nadeshiko Shichi Henge. Just take Itazura na Kiss, for another example: hilarious in its first few episodes, but completely falling apart after that.
But you know what, I decided to have faith in this series. It’s perhaps not the funniest series this season, but I like its sharpness. The drama is awkward to watch, but in a good way. This isn’t just a series about the romantic adventures of two random teenagers, but it’s also a bit of a battle between the sexes, and it also focuses a lot on freedom and its limits. It lacks subtlety in this department, but that’s one thing that made the drama and the parts in which Misaki forced down her biased opinion on all of the guys in the school. Even though I’ve often seen comments on how this series has nothing original, that kind of drama taken seriously is something I have yet to see in a shoujo series, and because of that I’m giving it a chance.
On top of that, I also have a lot of faith in the director, Hiroaki Sakurai. This guy has really shown that he can be hilarious, while also really good at drama (heck, he co-directed Kodocha and directed Les Miserables, for goodness’ sake). A lot is of course also going to depend on the manga, but this guy is going to be able to get its full potential out of it. And it really shows so far. The past two episodes have been well paced and calculated, with just a right combination between comedy, drama, chemistry and those awkward moments.
Rating: * (Good)
Some Quick First Impressions: Giant Killing, Hakuouki and SD Gundam Sangokuden Brave Battle Warriors
Giant Killing
Short Synopsis: Our lead character is a famous football coach
Now this is why I love anime. There just are those times when these series come around, who completely exceed my expectations. This season was already full of these series, but Giant Killing takes the cake. It’s been ages since Studio Deen really came out with a new and fresh premise, so I wasn’t expecting much of them at this point (as shown by Hakuouki, which pretty much was them and their bishies again). And here this episode comes, and it’s SO WELL made. The characterization is by far the best of all the first episodes I’ve seen this season so far. It’s only one episode, and the creators have already shown that they know and understand their characters. The chemistry between the hugely varied cast was just awesome to watch. And on top of that, they actually portrayed English football fans really well, INCLUDING actual English, that gets spoken in full sentences, rather than your usual lazy Engrish. The animation also is just awesome: finally we have another series that attempts to experiment with its own style. The football matches are animated really smoothly. At first I thought that Ookiku Furikabutte would naturally become this season’s best sports series, but damn. It’s got some serious competition. And really: this season rocks because we haven’t even gotten to the best stuff yet!
OP: One of the best OPs of the year so far. J-Polka. What brilliant mind thought of that?
ED: Fun and exciting.
Potential: 90%
Hakuouki
Short Synopsis: Our lead character gets involved with the rather shady business of the Shinsengumi.
Another show, that while it has its problems, also has a ton of potential. Let me get these problems out of the way first: this series does suffer from the harem syndrome: the creators pulling a really far-fetched plot twist just to put the main characters amongst a group of bishies/moe cute girls. The reason the creators pull here is simply one that asks: why hasn’t this happened before? The acting also leaves a lot to be desired. The characters aren’t as well portrayed as they could have, and the characterization for all of the bishies feels kind-of bland. However, this episode focused a lot on characters, just interacting and talking to each other. The script did make up for the sub-par acting, and while the dialogue was nowhere near Amatsuki-levels, it still was surprisingly interesting (speaking of which, Deen: when is that second season going to arrive?!), not to mention that this series has got a pretty interesting back-story that verges on horror during the tense parts. The lead female is also surprisingly likable as well. And I guess that that’s one thing that female lead harem characters often have in favour of male leads: while male leads are often made to be as bland and uninteresting as possible, female leads always have some sort of story behind them that defines their character much, much better and Hakuouki is no exception.
OP: Slightly catchy.
ED: Surprisingly good ballad.
Potential: 60%
SD Gundam Sangokuden Brave Battle Warriors
Short Synopsis: Our lead character is the umpth incarnation of the lead character of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms novels.
Sunrise… why? Just… why? This premise is awful in every single way. It’s the ultimate of all cheap cash-ins, combining the popularity of the Gundam Franchise with the one of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms franchise. So why the heck did you find it a good idea to give this show so many excellent background artists, and such a good soundtrack? These are COMPLETELY WASTED on such a silly script. Seriously Sunrise, is it that much to ask for you to go back to the way you were around ten years ago, in which you just kept delivering awesome premise after awesome premise, trying out new things?
ED: Cheesy J-rock
Potential: -20%
Some Quick First Impressions: Ichiban Ushiro no Daimaou, Ookiku Furikabutte – Natsu no Taikai-Hen and Kaichou wa Maid Sama
Ichiban Ushiro no Daimaou
Short Synopsis: Our lead character is a teenaged future demon lord.
Again: better than expected. On one hand we have horrid character-designs, some of the most pointless fanservice I’ve seen this season (seriously… why?) and an entire cast of teenaged mages. On the other hand, it’s quite well animated actually plays around with the tropes of its genre. Generic male leads often get confused into pointless misunderstandings. This show takes these to the ridiculous, and plays around with their irony. It actually made me laugh a few times. But yeah: this has the consequence that everyone in this series is a complete moron and just acts how the plot demands it. The jokes also often just fall flat, and are trying too hard. The classroom scene was hilarious. The peeping scene was horribly dull and predictable.
ED: Boring J-Rock
Potential: 40%
Ookiku Furikabutte – Natsu no Taikai-hen
Short Synopsis: Our lead characters continue to participate in the regional baseball tournament.
When comparing to Cross Game, it’s perhaps a bit hard to see, but Ookiku Furikabutte also has truly excellent slice of life, though in a completely different way. This episode showed that more than ever. The creators really managed to show all of the characters as they are, with inspired dialogue as they analyze and talk about the previous and next matches that they’re involved into. On top of that, it turns out that it had no intention to just forget past characters: the opposing team whose match filled the majority of the first season returns in this episode as well, in which we see two of its members (the captain and that first year that never got to participate in the match) deal with what happened at the climax of the first season. A-1 show that they can very much animate three series at the same time with some excellent animation that may not be the smoothest, but is really well directed and inspired, bringing the characters to life. This second season is looking very promising at this point.
OP: Decent enough J-Rock
ED: A bit of a boring song.
Potential: 90%
Kaichou wa Maid Sama
Short Synopsis: Our lead character
works at a maid cafe.
Romantic comedies are one of my least favourite genres in anime. But in this season, they’re either really bad or really good. My favourite opening episodes so far are from those romantic comedies. Again, Kaichou wa Maid Sama has elements that have been beaten to death in attempts to pander to otaku. And yet it gives a fresh look at the genre with well written dialogue and characters. Like B Gata H Kei, the creators really know their characters, and this episode did a great job of not just establishing the characters, but also exploring who they are, what drives them and a bit about their pasts, already slightly developing them. The lead character suddenly feeling ill was a bit forced I guess, but the rest of this episode was a delight to watch.
OP: Nice animation, decent song.
ED: Boring J-rock.
Potential: 80%
Some Quick First Impressions: Letter Bee, The Sacred Blacksmith and Shugo Chara! Party!
Letter Bee
Short Synopsis: Our lead character delivers packages and fights monsters.
Usually, series have a tendency to start out with a bang. Letter Bee however, is different, and instead very much takes its time. The scope of this episode is very limited: we just see three characters: a postal worker with a magic gun, a kid who lost his parents, and the postal worker’s dog. This episode progresses very quietly as the two of them meet and travel together, learn to deal with their differences, and explore each other’s problems (a very convenient power of the lead character seems to be that when he uses them, anyone can look into his heart). So yeah, because of that this wasn’t the most exciting episode of the new season, but if it picks up in the future it could be something interesting. The storytelling was solid, the characters are all fleshed out. Now all that’s left is the creators, making use of this.
OP: The song has nice vocals but fails to stand out otherwise, visuals are pretty basic foreshadowing.
ED: Again an impressive singer, but not really an impressive song.
Potential: 60%
The Sacred Blacksmith
Short Synopsis: Our lead character is a rather incompetent teen-aged warrior.
Ah, I hate it when these series come that can really go anywhere. This series has absolutely gorgeous graphics and monster-designs, a snappy direction that really brings the best out of the different sword-fights that for once aren’t just focused on just slashing swords around, but also concentrate on the quality of each weapon. The characters are far away from stereotypes as well, and seem to have well-motivated back-stories. But yeah, on the other hand the lead character remains a moe teen-aged tsundere, and her love interest is a genius swordsman and blacksmith, despite also being a teenager. While on one hand, the lead character strikes me as an ambitious girl who takes initiatives, there’s also so much potential for this to turn into yet another one of those generic fantasy-series that never really goes anywhere, where she’s stuck as the eternal damsel in distress that always needs to be saved. The execution really rocks, but if the rest of the story doesn’t go anywhere then it’s just a waste to put such a powerhouse as Manglobe behind this series.
OP: Mostly just standard J-Pop with cheesy Engrish parts thrown into it.
ED: Again very generic J-Pop and the animation attempts to be cute but ultimately isn’t.
Potential: 60%
Shugo Chara! Party!
Short Synopsis: Our lead character gets bugged by an overmoralistic elementary schooler.
I figured that I might as well check out what became of the extremely fillerish series that I once considered as something with potential, but oh my god. WTF have they done with this series!? The creators successfully brought the target audience down with six years with this episode, this now has turned into a series that you show to four-year olds. The entire first half of this episode was nothing more than the voice actresses for the different cute mascots of this series as they “attempted” to talk to their audience throughout the TV. Heck, Sesame Street is more mature than this… thing. The second half was actually animated, but there too you can see that the creators are going for an entirely different target audience this time, when they introduce an elementary schooler who is probably going to hog Amu’s place as a lead character with her powers to talk to X-Eggs. I disliked this series for having too many fillers, but this is a treatment that it definitely doesn’t deserve!
OP: THE proof why live-action should stay FAR away from anime. Cheesy J-pop at its worst.
ED: The live action! It burns! At least the song didn’t.
Potential: -50%