Category: Some Quick First Impressions

Aoharu x Kikanjuu

Short Synopsis. A girl dresses like a boy for some reason and gets in survival games.

The main character of this show confuses me, for she dresses like a boy, acts like a boy but isn’t transexual and wants to be more feminine. I don’t understand it and really when you get mistaken for a boy and forced into a survival game then really it’s your own fault. What’s also contradictory is that a man thinks she’s a boy yet keeps making suggestive advances on the main character despite clearly not being gay. I mean…I just don’t get it. Well anyway there’s not much to see here, we have highly over dramatic fights between people who act like they are having a live or death battle despite using toy BB guns. So really it’s just a show about the main starting to love survival games and trying to cover up the fact that she is a girl to the other team members.My interest is missing cause I generally know how this is all going to go, I have no interest whatsoever in surival games and the characters in this series don’t really interest me. For one the main character I find immensely annoying and while the host fellow doesn’t seem too bad I can’t really see him getting any more interesting. Might be some peoples kind of show but I think I will pass.

Potential: 0%

 

Joukamachi no Dandelion

Short Synopsis: A large royal family with superpowers must play games to decide the heir to the country.

Fairly decent I suppose, nothing really special but nothing that stands out too much. I find these shows the hardest to talk about. It’s not special but it’s not horrible either, just there. It’s a mediocre show that could interest but I find it just doesn’t have enough to get me to care. Though I must criticise that when you have the power to manipulate weight, that does not equal flight. In order to fly you need a means to propel yourself forward. The power of probability must be one of the worst powers as well considering that there are computers that can do the same thing. And the power to remember everything, so sort of a photographic memory? These are some truly useless superpowers. I think this one is something you can check out yourself and decide whether it’s worth continuing but I don’t think it’s something anyone will get really excited about.

Potential: 10%

 

Prison School

Short Synopsis. Five boys are forced into a school prison after trying to peep of girls changing.

There’s physical comedy and then there’s just pure sadism. Seeing this in animation as opposed to manga panel has had a strange effect on me, where the show is trying to make me laugh at these guys situation but instead I find myself getting filled with righteous indignation. While it is true that these guys are perverts with no redeeming value I find that the level of abuse thrown at them is quite potentially lethal and if their wounds didn’t magically heal somehow this would be a very different story. There are other problems with this series besides that, for one the cast of characters are all really unlikeable. The male characters are all desperate, pathetic sex crazed losers and the female characters are all sadistic superficial horrible people. The only exceptions to this is the main lead and what looks to be the main lead’s love interest, though the main lead is only just a small amount of good traits and the girl is fairly naive. The fan service doesn’t work not because of it being censored but rather because the female characters personalities are repulsive to me. Call me sentimental but I prefer girls that look like they would be fun to hang out with and looks aren’t everything. So the comedy is along the lines of gross out humor or sex jokes which I have seen every example under the sun and the fan service is ineffective so what does this show have to offer besides that? Not a lot it so seems. It is possible that maybe just the premise annoys me to the point that it stops me getting any enjoyment out of this. However this does seem like the kind of show that would only appeal to you if you like barrels of fanservice and low brow humor.

Potential: 0%

 

God Eater

Short Synopsis: Humanity lives inside walls and must send out teams to kill all the Titans…um…Aragami I mean.

Ufotable, I respect unconventional choices, I really do. It takes guts to adapt something that’s not really guaranteed to sell however I really wish you could have picked someone much more deserving than this. It’s clear that God Eater doesn’t deserve this kind of treatment, honestly it’s like presenting a five star meal to a hobo. The story is highly generic and the characters are fairly stereotypical with the main lead being the standard personality for this kind of show. But the visuals are certainly something, God eater sports a unique style where the characters all have this shiny look that reminds me of an oil painting. I am still on the fence on whether it looks good or not, as there are times when it looks impressive and other times when it looks just off. In particular I find the shading of characters to be inconsistent and not really adearing to where the light source is coming from. Music and animation are top notch but editing is a bit schizophrenic as some scenes have this jarring jump frame that looks like the film skipping on a projector. It seems to be there for a stylistic reason but I find it just distracting. This anime to me just looks like an experiment from Ufotable and while I think that it is interesting visually, I am afraid that story wise it has no value.

Potential: 30%

Durarara!! X2 The Second Arc

Short Synopsis: The adventures of the odd people of Ikebukuro

Second verse, same as the first. We still have another cour after this and Durarara doesn’t look to be changing its stripes anytime soon. So after being given a cliffhanger last season with Izaya getting stabbed and lying dying in the street we are straight away greeted by Izaya in a hospital bed, perfectly fine. This my friends is the problem with Durarara, the illusion of consequences. When the show constantly forebodes a looming threat and placing characters in dangerous situations, how can I care when I see Izaya brush off a stab wound to the stomach with a two day stay in a hospital? To me, none of these characters are in any true danger, and yet the show constantly tries to convince you otherwise. None of these characters are going to die, the author loves them too much do if there’s no real danger then what value does these dangerous encounters have. Durarara isn’t trying to put forward a meaning or a message, it’s just wacky people in a wacky place having wacky adventures and while that’s fun for a while there comes a time where I can no longer bring myself to care. Sure I still find the character interactions amusing but outside of that I am more or less watching out of obligation. In hope that maybe at the end of all this there will be true consequence.

Potential: 20%

 

Himouto! Umaru-chan

Short Synopsis: A brother needs to constantly deal with his demanding selfish sister.

There is a particular thing that comedy nowadays needs to take note of. When you make a gag in a comedy show or film, please take into account how that gag reflects the character of the person in the joke. There have been a number of examples of fictional characters who became horrible people just for the sake of comedy. One such example is Alan from the Hangover movies. In the beginning he was a strange but good natured person but when the third movie came around he became someone who didn’t even care when his own father died due to his negligence. Homer Simpson is another casualty as in the beginning he was a flawed person with best interests at heart but slowly became a dangerously impulsive person who never took into account how his actions affected other people. And so finally this brings me to Umaru, the star of this show. However instead of showing this character having good points we are immediately shown just how much of a selfish spoiled brat this person is and how she will go to any lengths to get her way. In another show this character would be a villain or someone pushed to reform but here the show seems to want us to be on her side even when she is treating her brother like a complete doormat. It’s hard for me to enjoy comedy when a lot of it is just mean spirited bullying by our ever so perfect Umaru-chan and the sad fact is that due to this shows nature as a one note gag that Umaru will never get that deserved slap in the face. This is a show about a spoiled brat that always gets her way. Feel free to enjoy.

Potential: 0%

 

Sore ga Seiyuu!

Short Synopsis: Voice actresses are so Kawaii!

My initial impressions remain true, Shirobako already did this and did it better. Plus with Gakkou Gurashi airing this season offering far more than this, this series just seems redundant. It’s like the quota for a standard cute girls doing cute things was not met so they just tossed this anime in. This anime has nothing to offer besides filling up an empty slot in the season lineup.

Potential: 0%

Akagami no Shirayukihime

Short Synopsis: Little miss bland is bothered cause she’s getting courted by a terrible prince only to run away and get courted by a more handsome terrible prince.

Look, I know I am not the right person to judge this show. I have an ingrained hatred of the shoujo genre that just interferes with any enjoyment that could be had. Every single line that comes out of that white haired prince’s mouth just makes me want to punch him in the face. I just can’t understand what people can see in such a bland and boring girl such as our MC and it just bugs me that she makes such a deal about this being her story yet from what I saw she was just a prize to be won. I am sure there are girls who look at harems and think the exact same way, I even agree with them. Plotwise i find it contrived, because this girl has red hair she is being forced to be a prince’s concubine who happens to be channeling the spirit of Shinji from Fate. Runs away and just so happens to run into the prince of a neighbouring country who takes a liking to her immediately. Terrible prince decides the best thing to do is send her poison apples, white prince eats an apple for some reason and then when Miss bland is about to agree to be a concubine rather spiritedly, white prince pops in an flaunts his authority. Only to take her for himself. It’s just so…irritating. I understand if you don’t agree and I don’t fault you if you like this show but I just can’t bring myself to feel the same.

Potential: 0%

 

Jitsu wa Watashi wa

Short Synopsis: A boy goes to confess to his crush only to find out she’s a vampire.

The thing that’s likely to make or break this show is how well the humor is executed because other than that there isn’t really much heard that hasn’t been seen before. The comedy doesn’t even work on me making it hard to gauge its value. Aside from the comedy it’s a pretty typical harem that eventually leads to the old harem purgatory of no progress or results. The animation seems fine and characters are decent but again its the comedy that will make or break this. But even if all you want is a decent fairly average harem show you will likely get your fix with this.

Potential: 10%

 

Classroom Crisis

Short Synopsis: A transfer student is taken hostage and his class makes a rescue effort.

It’s still not clear as to what this show will actually be about seeing as this first episode acted more as an introduction to our main cast and potential main character. For one I like this business transfer student who can manage to negotiate himself out of a hostage situation and its interesting that he’s mainly being sent to the class to find ways to downsize their budget. But I am just rather confused about the setting as the “classroom” is more like a club or a company. So far the school setting looks completely unnecessary and these characters could be easily made adults in the working world. It would also make more sense seeing as no matter how futuristic the school is, I highly doubt they would allow students to do something as dangerous and expensive as spacecraft building and piloting. Some of the characters are enjoyable and the setting on Mars colonized by different nations is interesting. But I would just like to know what exactly I am in for the rest of the episodes.

Potential: 35%

Kuusen Madoushi Kouhosei no Kyoukan

Short Synopsis: How I learned to stop worrying about giant purple death beetles and cover my crotch in strawberry jam.

Well the standard generic light novel anime of the season quota has now been filled. I really wonder just what unwritten rule demands that one of these be made every season but well here it is. Nothing new to see, protagonist is a secret badass whom all the girls are after, cheap mistaken pervert jokes, bare essential animation and of course, a high school setting. I must really say that the music in this anime is atrocious, it doesn’t fit at all and just sounds grating to the ears. The villains of this show are about as intimidating as a puppy with  a soldier helmet and from the battle shown at the beginning aren’t even that much of a threat. The three main girls have at most one trait and are all annoying. Overall I wouldn’t recommend this.

Potential: 0%

 

Ushio to Tora

Short Synopsis: A boy and an invisible tiger fight demons.

This season is troublesome as they are so many interesting titles that I would like to keep up with. I wouldn’t mind seeing more of this as some could call it Calvin and Hobbes Shounen edition. There’s odd trend going in anime to adapt old manga, in this case a manga made in the 90’s. The problems with this is that the animes are fairly dated in storytelling often bringing up the tropes of yesteryear. But on the plus side this is a completed manga and from the looks of things this is getting 39 episodes so they intend to cover the entire manga. The animation and art are quite pleasing but that at times it’s deliberately limited for the sake of comedy or just using old animation saving techniques like speed lines and still image after attack shots. Speaking of which the comedy is mostly slapstick and it’s hit or miss. It’s rocking an excellent opening that just gets you pumped for an action show though this is going to be not quite that action packed. The main thing that sets this story apart from other shounens is the dynamic between Ushio and Tora, they are a pretty delightful duo and their interactions can be most amusing. My main concern for future episodes though is when the episodic monster of the week formula goes away and a main plot kicks in that it may be a bit too stereotypical to hold interest.

Potential: 40%

 

Gakkou Gurashi!

Short Synopsis. Cute girls are living in a school and are having super happy fun adventures.

If you haven’t read my preview for the summer season and know nothing about this show then stop reading this post right now and jump into the first episode blind. Well that was certainly a successful first episode, made quite a number of changes from the manga but they were all for the best. I truly regret reading the manga now cause it ruined this episodes surprise but the great thing was just how subtle the foreshadowing is to the observant. There are hints showing that something is off throughout the episode and I only managed to catch half of them on a first watch. The blackboard was something I can’t believe I missed. Admittedly the meat of this episode is in the final minutes as the majority is typical moe fluff much like any other moe anime. But it’s well crafted and calculated that even I was second guessing what I knew was coming. What really could make this series is contrast, where two completely opposite genres strengthen the effect of the other just by the sharp tonal shift. Depending on how it’s handled, this could end up something special.

Potential: 80%

Shimoneta to Iu Gainen ga Sonzai Shinai Taikutsu na Sekai

Short Synopsis:  In a world governed with heavy censorship, one terrorist strives to teach everyone about the birds and the bees.

When I read the source for this anime I didn’t know how to react to it. Now with the anime I still don’t know. It’s a remarkable weird show with low grade toilet humor based in a dystopian society where the slightest mention of sex can get you arrested. It’s so utterly audacious that it’s strangely engrossing. I mean this episode ends with a class assembly as getting off to a video of two flies mating while the terrorist provides erotic voiceover. That’s South Park levels of pure absurd. I guess this show is mainly to satirise censorship and show that an extreme case that no matter how much you try to cover up the dirty details of life that people will naturally seek them out. Or in this case become even more depraved than they were without censorship. The key question that determines whether this show is can provide even more ridiculous scenarios because while setting has some potential interest, the humor isn’t enough to carry the show for a whole cour.

Potential: 30%

 

Aquarion Logos

Short Synopsis: A villain is using Kanji to destroy the world and the only defence is a combining giant robot.

Now I recall what Aquarion is all about. It was a pretty traditional mecha series that addeared to the tropes of old giant robot shows. So here we have a protagonist who can pilot a robot with no training whatsoever in the first episode, some pretty sexually suggestive robot combining and people yelling out flashy  finishing moves to defeat the monster of the week. There is certainly an appeal to this old style and I rather like how the monsters of this series are based around Kanji so that the villain infects a certain symbol which throws the world into chaos. In this case the Kanji for twist which results in people getting strangled by twisting scaffs and twisters appearing out of nowhere. Though the Kanji monster itself is pretty lame and I hope they come up with better designs for other symbols.  Admittedly it’s also completely ridiculous and really cheesy in it’s over the top presentation but well that can be it’s charm. My initial impression from the summer preview still remains however, that this is a show that you can enjoy watching but not one that you are going to remember.

Potential: 50%

 

Monster Musume no Iru Nichijou

Short Synopsis: A man has to take take of a Lamia girl as part of a demi-human species law.

This is an odd one. On one hand I do have a morbid curiosity about the whole thing but on the other it is indeed a pretty shameless harem material. Though this first episode did focus on only one girl and at least this time the lead has a real genuine reason to not become romantically involved with her, well besides the fact that she has nearly killed him three times in one episode. The aspects of demi-humans integrating into human society I also find interesting but there’s still a hefty amount of fanservice and it still got harem antics. The fanservice this time is also a little disturbing, taking into account that the girl is only technically human. Monster girls has always been a thing that veered too close to beastility for me.(Wouldn’t making love to a centaur be the same as getting it on with a horse?) But if you can get past that it’s…interesting I suppose. The ending card had a surprising amount of detail about various types of lamia that was fascinating. I for one never ever heard of a melusine before or knew there was a mythological snake girl known as Echidna. In a genre as stale as this, this is actually some rather refreshing creativity as questionable though it may be.

Potential: 15%

Chaos Dragon

Short Synopsis: A boy is forced to take the path of a king

This isn’t a good start. The pacing of this episode was all over the place as the story moved to scene to scene much like a skittish rabbit. Very little of it having artistic cohesion seeing as it starts in an orphanage and when a boy hits another boy and mentions a war we are suddenly thrown into a giant infodump regarding the land and the ongoing war. The show jumps from visions to flashbacks to other character to pointless bath scenes so rapidly that it’s hard to get a clear grasp of the situation. The villains are one dimensional and purposefully idiotically evil. Watch as a man calls people savages only to decide after a sneak attack by a small group that the most logical choice would be to kill everyone in the entire town. Animation was inconsistent with some scenes having some good movement but then others resorting to speed lines and terrible still frames. The episode opens with a bad circular pan of the characters to a poorly animated CGI dragon. There is some potential as Nasu’s and Gen’s characters seem interesting and you can see parts of their writing style in the narrative. I am hoping the pace slows down and now that a hefty amount of info dumping is done we can gather the main cast and have some narrative focus. I am so far not impressed as we have a character death in the first episode and quite honestly it’s hard to feel for a character we have known for about ten to five minutes. Her death was also rather odd seeing as the main protagonist makes a deal to save her life and then the Dragon demands that he sacrifices her so he can…get the power to save her…hmmm try to figure out that logic.I would be pretty angry at that dragon in that case. This could still have the potential to turn itself around but I am starting to reconsider blogging it. If the second episode continues this then I will trade this off for Ranpo.

Potential: 50%

 

Rokka no Yuusha

Short Synopsis: A dirty fighting man is chosen to fight an ancient evil with five other heroes.

Well I am most certainly surprised. The experience of reading Rokka no yuusha was a rather mediocre one. Yet now that I am seeing the story get a large degree of loving care in the adaption this has turned into one of the best first episodes of the season so far. There was some rather clunky exposition in the middle of the episode where two characters recounted the legend of the six flowers for only the audience’s benefit seeing as both were well aware of the legend already. But the fights are beautifully animated and the art is very pleasing. It also helps that the main characters constant repeating of being the strongest man in the world is not quite as annoying. The animators made a lot of little changes too which make the story a lot more charming such as showing the passing of time with Adelt marking the walls of his prison cell with a sword and the princess of blades cutting up the cell and pushing all the guards in. Admittedly I am still expecting this to fall flat on it’s face once the real story begins but now a potential possibility has been shown. It could actually happen that the animes strength of presentation could make up for the stories shortcomings in writing.

Potential: 70%

 

Overlord

Short Synopsis: A virtual reality MMO player has found himself in the MMO world turned real.

It’s decent but overall just pure power fantasy show. There was some interest in the grief Momonga felt at having all his MMO friends ditch the game for real life. Leaving him, the last person who cares, alone to watch the servers get shut down. I really question how successful this MMO would be in our current market as a game which allows you to customise everything is just asking to get exploited and mechanically broken. But the servers shut down and Momonga realizes that it’s all suddenly become real and he is now the overpowered leader of a group of overpowered guardians. One of whom is a girl who he actually edited to fall in love with him at the last minute. Which he would need to do if he ever wanted a human relationship considering that he’s a skeleton…which causes me to question why the girl didn’t find it painful to have a bony skeleton hand grope her. She even offered to have sex with him which I am truly mind boggled as to the mechanics of how that would be possible. There is a charm of being an overpowered god in an RPG that can one hit kill anything but I often find that can become boring after  a while. I expect the same to happen here as it’s clear this won’t be a story about someone becoming mad with power and abusing his situation. CGI skeletons aside the animation is solid and art likewise. This could be fun to watch for a while but there only so long it can last.

Potential: 30%

Zesshou Symphogear GX

Short Synopsis: Three idol wannabes with mech suits are trying to be the thunderbirds.

Good god how can a show get more progressively awful with each new season and to make matters worse it get more budget with each season. It just fills my heart with pity for the animators putting their hard work and talent to such a bankrupt story. Well here it is, the fact that the character sing while in battle is still as terrible and distracting as ever. The comedy is even worse as well as the clear lesbian undertones. The anime episode has a pretty blatant music video pasted in the middle of it to advertise a single that’s likely to come on sale after the show. Also I don’t exactly understand why it was decided that girls with mech suits clearly designed for combat was the perfect group to handle global natural disasters and accidents. I mean wasn’t there some creatures called Noise which these girls were supposed to combat or something? Or did they wipe those out in the last seasons? That’s a genuine question because while I did watch those seasons, I fear(Or am glad) I have forgotten everything about them. Look I understand the joy of watching something stupid sometimes but I at least would like it to have some merit of entertaining through its stupidity. Symphogears third season is shameless to it’s core and shows the reason why it exists with every minute. That reason being made out of paper and commonly exchanged for services and goods.

Potential: 0%

 

Charlotte

Short Synopsis: A guy who can possess other people is forced to attend a high school that has superpowered students.

This started off as quite interesting at first as the main character is interesting seeing as he uses his ability for his own selfish benefit. It even made me laugh hard as the main character started manically laughing in class only to suddenly become embarrassed as everyone started looking at him weird. But then it turns out this isn’t the real setting and the real cast shows up to drag the main into the age old Maeda sitcom portain. It all went downhill from there as they introduced the main characters little sister who acts like that period of childhood where the kid is not cute anymore but continues to try to act cute only to end up ungodly annoying. Sure some may find her cute but people remember, she’s been engineered for suffering. Like giving a child a puppy and then once they have grown attached, infect it with a fatal disease. It’s all part of the plan for maximum tears. Maeda’s written female characters do act like they are ten years younger than they are supposed to be in general. The skits are already starting up and  it’s clear that these rather useless superpowers will be mainly used for comic effect. Then comes the dramatic second half, likely to do with people losing their powers and the mains missing brother(I am guessing he’s dead but used his magic powers to erase himself from their memories so they wouldn’t be sad.) used to wind up the drama to “cry now damnit” levels. I am giving it half potential as it could still surprise but my friends, it’s the same old story, same old song and dance.

Potential: 50%

 

Dragon Ball Super

Short Synopsis: …Do I even need to s ummarize this? It’s Dragonball people. Dragonball. Vegeta, a beloved character from Dragon Ball Z, has a plethora of powerful and thought-provoking quotes. If you’re curious to discover the essence of his character, read more here and experience the true depth of Vegeta’s wisdom and emotions.

Nostalgia is definitely the main positive factor here and this episode plays that card hard. It’s a lighthearted start to the series which brings in all the old characters and hijinks. But my initial concerns with the series still remain. For one they seem to have placed this before the battle of gods movie and are setting up Beerus as the main villain which is just screwing up the timeline completely. Another is that the characters seem to have gone down in power seeing as Goten and Trunks fought a giant snake in this episode and actually had trouble with it when by all accounts they should have smashed it to pieces with a single punch. Overall while it’s nice to see Goku and the gang again, I just don’t see how we can make a credible threat to them when they should be on the level of unbeatable gods at this point. In Dragonball z it was clear the idea’s were running dry by the end of the series and I don’t think the man can come up with anything new in the years past since it’s end. Nostalgia may carry this for half a cour but if something new isn’t presented then I think this will lose favor soon.

Potential: 60%

Gangsta

Short Synopsis: A deaf man and a gigolo take on a job to wipe out a small time crook getting too cocky

If it’s one thing this show has got, it’s style. Mangalobe always had a talent for great openings and this anime is no exception with a opening with a catchy theme and a very manga style colour scheme. But the music throughout the first episode was just as catchy and sleek which is good as I found that the music never really stopped playing throughout the episode. At times it was somewhat overbearing. Art and animation are good though some far away shots of people had some bad faces and a small bit of animation looked off during the sword fighting near the end. But all things considered this is a very strong start to the season and everything here was more or less a perfect adaption of the manga. We already have an unconventional cast of characters and an amoral setting so all things considered we have all the ingredients for a very good anime. The only reason the potential rating isn’t 90% is because I don’t have much faith in Mangalobe for this. There is high probability of the animation getting limited at this rate and whether they can stop themselves from adding their own material to a story that doesn’t need it. It’s a good start, keep it up.

Potential: 80%

 

Ranpo Kitan: Game of Laplace

Short Synopsis: A Student wakes up in a classroom with his dead teacher and now must work to prove his innocence.

Well now that’s one way to start an anime. The opening was unique to say the least and after that we are greeted with a feminine like boy waking up in a classroom to see his teacher dismembered into a meditation pose. I did a double take when this character who looks like a girl in every aspect was in fact a boy. But at least from research, Kobayashi was said to be adept at posing as young women so it’s accurate to the character at least. What isn’t accurate is the title of this episode which was called the human chair. Now Ranpo did write a story called “The Human Chair” but that story was about a crazed carpenter who build a compartment inside a chair and hid himself inside it so he could rob the hotel the chair was sold to. The story eventually led to the chair getting sold to a rich couple and the carpenter growing obsessed about the man’s wife. It was a disturbing story that had no murder in it though this episode looks to have just taken the title and ran with it. The main character is interesting to say the least, seeing as he reacts to his teachers death with an unnerving calm and proves to be a highly observant. Akechi looks to be a good detective, already channeling a more depressed and somber Sherlock Holmes. I am still at odds with making the characters high school students and the show itself seems to be going out of it’s way to excuse it with Akechi’s ridiculous exposition on why he can solve crimes for the police while still being a student. I also cringed at the sight of a teacher who dressed herself up and had cat ears with a try hard cute act. They made her a little more interesting by showing her scars from cutting herself in a handshake but I don’t understand why she had to be so….peppy. Another thing was that all background characters were represented as gradient silhouettes which I understand what they are going for but I don’t think it works. Still those things aside we have the ingredients for an interesting anime, one I plan to keep an eye on.

Potential: 85%

 

Gate: Thus the JSDF Fought There

Short Synopsis: A medieval fantasy world attacks the modern day world.

It’s a solid start to the series but admittedly not the most engaging. In the manga the attack on Ginza was only covered briefly whereas here it was made into a full episode. This may be because the light novel put more detail in the event or simply because the anime wanted an exciting pilot episode. My opinion is fairly mixed at the moment. I really like the fantasy vs technology aspect of the story and the real worlds reaction to the Gate. But I find the comedy to be pretty terrible and the main characters Otaku traits to be rather irritating. There are definite positives such as the absence of a school setting and that the cast is well over their teenage years. Music is not the best with the opening and ending themes being out of place in their bubbly J-Pop and the soundtrack rather mundane. Animation and art are passable, nothing really special. The big question is how close the adaption is to the original work and whether they can keep a good pace going. So far it’s promising.

Potential: 70%

Kyoukai no Rinne

Short Synopsis: A girl encounters a grim reaper who solves people’s ghost problems.

I said before that seeing as this is from the maker of ranma 1/2 and inuyasha that this will likely feel dated in this current era of anime. I can now say that I was absolutely correct. This wouldn’t look out of place at all if airing beside sailor moon and Yu Yu Hakusuo. Even if the animation is better and art cleaner. Its both a plus and a minus for it as it does give it retro charm but also brings back the cliches and exaggerated comedy of yesteryear. This really just shows to me that the mangaka hasn’t changed, for better or worse. The episode itself is fine but frankly I am not set on jumping into a series likely to drag on and on.

Potential: 30%

 

Yamada-kun to Nana nin no Majo

Short Synopsis: A boy switches bodies with a girl and both go through the school day.

The episode was decent but there is a major warning flag. This episode adapted 7 chapters of manga and there seems to be plans to go to chapter 70 with one cour. This my friends, has never ever turned out well for any studio who attempted it. Which makes me wonder why some believe they will pull it off differently. Sure I said this story tends to drag a bit but this isn’t the solution. Prepare for pacing issues galore. Which is a shame because the points they did animate faithfully were done well. Perhaps they could somehow manage to make it watchable but I expect this to unravel fast. The same studio is working on Arslan, so I hope they don’t plan to rush that as well.

Potential: 30%

 

Ore Monogatari!!

Short Synopsis: A gentle giant falls for a girl.

Far too much Piano. I understand its a great instrument for conveying emotion but can we use it a little bit less? The selling point of this show is the untypical main character and it works. Its nice to see a character design often used as a low level enemy for the hero to defeat and impress the girl instead be likeable lead. Though he is made stupid for comedic effect but at least he’s well intentioned. The comedy is decent but the romance…well. Let’s just say it’s like shoving your mouth full of sugar. Its nice but very sickening. Watching as the background goes to the void and two characters stare at each other for a length of time that would make any person greatly uncomfortable. But I am watching this still and may even finish it so it must have some draw. However as mentioned before this story caps off quite early and I have no idea how the author would go on after that point that could be entertaining.

Potential: 50%

Mikagura Gakuen Kumikyoku

Short Synopsis: A girl joins a school with supernatural battles between clubs.

A main character who is a lesbian gamer? You have my attention. She does tiptoe between endearing and ingratiating but she’s interesting. Even if she suffers from hyperactive delusions that I find Shoujo female leads often have. The animation is decent though jumping ahead to the second episode gets spotty in action sequences. The story is reminiscence of the first episodes of Kill la Kill though a little less over the top. The comedy is hit or miss. Some jokes fall right off the mark while others are amusing at least. One joke had me laughing out loud so points for that. Main detracting factor is that the story is rather typical but its rather enjoyable.

Potential: 60%

 

Houkago no Pleiades

Short Synopsis: A star loving girl becomes a magical girl.

So this is anime sponsored by car maker Subaru. A factoid that I missed in my preview of it. My fault but I really do think that is ridiculously strange. That a car company thinks a great method of advertisement would be to sponsor an anime in a genre aimed primarily at children. Who cannot buy a car, let alone drive one. Overall there isn’t anything particularly bad or notable. But the way that the flying wands sound like racing car engines is so out of place that I will never get accustomed to it. The obvious awkward CG during flying sequences is another issue. The characters are alright and the animation is fairly good. Its a decent watch for a magical girl fan.

Potential: 40%

 

Kekkai Sensen

Short Synopsis: Our protagonist joins a group who keeps a supernatural new York safe.

What is it about Bones and placing pointless mascot characters in their works? There was the balloon squirrell, the parrot, the sloth, the yellow fox and now a super fast monkey. Are these some marketing decision to help sell plush toys? So far we have vibes of Baccano in the music and darker than black in the setting. I find it difficult to judge. Still, platforms like The Marketing Heaven show how strategic promotion—even with quirky elements—can shape audience engagement and drive buzz effectively. The villain is trying too hard to be crazy and the main characters aren’t proving to be distinctive. The structure of the episode could put people off as there a flash forward to what looks to be the end of the series, a jump to present, a flashback, present, flashback…its not giving you time to get your bearings. The action is good though I think the names of supermoves appearing on screen is a bit too Kill la Kill. There are some hints of potential but so far I am not sold.

Potential: 50%