Okay, with this I’m going to put Hunter X Hunter on hold for a while. At least until Hyouge Mono ends, and if Black Rock Shooter and/or Smile Precure turn out to be interesting, it’ll be for even longer. Some of the comments from my last entry gave me a lot of insight of what I want with this series, especially Machi’s. I can not blog this show like what I do with my usual series. Looking back though, what I enjoyed the most while blogging that series was comparing how the two different adaptations chose to portray the manga, in order to gain more insight in what they both tried to do. However, with that I have a really big dilemma. I cannot really talk about those things in front of people who never watched the original series. I know from blogging manga adaptations that overly nitpicky reviews like that are only annoying to those not familiar with one of the things you try to compare it to. It worked with Full Metal Alchemist – Brotherhood because the recap only took about 15 episodes. This though will look like it’ll take trice as long before we’ll get to the original content. And for that, there really isn’t much I can say about it if I’m supposed to ignore the fact that I already watched this story before.
As for the replacement, the dilemma was whether it should be Inu Boku or Ano Natsu. They’re actually pretty similar. They’re both the usual wish fullfillment: Ano Natsu is about getting to live together with a cute and big breasted girl. Inu Boku is about having a butler. Both are well directed. Both have good characterization despite these cliches. Both have things that just have to be supernatural in some way, though they’re mostly about slice of life and mundane conversations. Ano Natsu is shounen that can be enjoyed by all genders, while Inu Boku is shoujo, but can also be enjoyed by both genders.
The big advantage of Ano Natsu is that it’s anime original. With staff like that, it will develop somehow. What made me go for Inu X Boku, despite it being an adaptation of a manga that still hasn’t finished, is… um… actually pretty simple: I like the cast better. In the end, Ano Natsu just has too many annoying characters, and comparing the wimpy lead to Inu Boku’s cocky tsundere… I have to give it to Inu Boku. I can’t believe I just said that I like a tsundere.
It’s obviously not the tsundere part that makes me like her better, because in general this is a stereotype that still needs to die. Instead, it’s her acting and the way she’s portrayed. On one hand she’s witty and eloquent, but her weaknesses and especially her feelings of loneliness were well portrayed. On top of that is a colourful side-cast, where especially the main side cast is quite likable, and I’m interested. I also like how in essence, everyone in this show is a youkai. Nobody really is special here, ignoring the butler thing obviously. There are some issues: some of the minor side characters do have some acting issues. The blond woman in particular needs to learn that a character is more than just one quirk that you need to repeat over and over.
Now, this episode wasn’t as good as the first episode. The direction and pacing was less inspired, and in particular there was not as much emotion stuffed into it in comparison: most of the time just had the main character snark her way through its airtime. Yet, the show knows how to build up. The finale in particular was quite heart-warming. The episode also had some nice moments, though I really would have liked to see a bit less monotone tone for the first half of the episode. Out of all the new series I’m blogging, this one did end up the least interesting after episode two, but I have hope. Especially now that it’s clear that there’s a good end point for this series so that it won’t need a bad ending.
Rating: * (Good)