Star Crossed Anime

Kuutei Dragons

Short Synopsis: A ship of vagabonds hunts dragon for food and money.

Amun’s review:

This is a terribly hard anime to find, but if you can find it….it’s not really worth your time.  I’m even willing to forgive whoever valiantly tried to sub it, despite having a mastery of neither the English nor Japanese language.  No, the real problem here is the jerky 3D animation and the thinly veiled analogies to whale hunting which don’t really translate well to steampunk/dragon fantasy.  Hopefully the staff will learn enough here to become full fledged animators in their own time – this just isn’t going to be their breakout project. With ironically flat characters (except their thighs for some reason) and subpar visuals, I think everyone can safely pass on this.  

Potential: 10% 

Mario’s review:

Unlike Amun, I can say I have a good tolerance with full CG shows, well… some of them. I can’t be bothered with the new clunky CG in Berserk or Ajin for example (the latter is from the same company of Kuutei Dragon), but I did enjoy shows like The Magnificent Kotobuki last year or Ronja the Robber’s Daughter. So, which spectrum does Kuutei Dragon fall into? I’m happy to report that I enjoy the whole lot of it (well, terrible sub aside). The CG character models look bland, true, but I got used to that very quickly. The CG fares better when it concerns the ship and the dragon models. Add to that, I like the worldbuilding of dragon hunting just for food, like a good mix of whale hunting and the love for delicious food. Its easy humor and tongue-in-cheek nature reminds me a good deal of Magnificent Kotobuki, and if that is the case, I know I am in a good company. Just give me a decent enough subtitles.  

Potential: 50%

 

ARP Backstage Pass

Short Synopsis: A behind-the-scenes look at a male idol group.

Mario’s review:

Right off the bat, the CG live performance stands out like a sore thumb and things only get worse from there. This is apparently based on a real (maybe virtual?) band, and all we see in this episode is a little bit of them in school. It functions more like a promotion for that art school and the ARP director (whatever ARP means) than putting effort to tell any story. To give this show some credit, the dance routine of one team member is surprisingly inspiring, and it is in traditional hand drawn style. When it switches to the CG (especially the after credit where it doesn’t need to be) it becomes soulless. Soulless is pretty much how I’d describe this show.

Potential: Soulless

 

Plunderer

Short Synopsis: A girl walks around in search of the Chosen One.

Mario’s review:

Just like what Amun said back in the season preview, Plunderer is indeed terrible. The concept of a world run by “counts” is not a bad idea, but they mishandle everything else completely. There is not a single likeable character, and the show goes borderline offensive with its sexual harassment jokes and cringe worthy humor. Girls are treated like dirt in this show, especially the main girl who is so dumb that despite living in that world she doesn’t know one bit about the rules – how does she survive until now? Congrats Plunderer, you beat Ishizoku Reviewers as the worst premiere of this season.

Potential: TERRIBLE. HORRIBLE

A3! Season Spring & Summer

Short Synopsis: The acting troupe Mankai Company scrambles to recruit new members to avoid losing their theater.

Amun’s review:

This isn’t really my kind of show. There, uh, was some acting and a reverse harem thing going on. And the guy napping the bulldozer was funny, I guess. Also….no one in this show except for the guy in black can even spell the word “business.” Pretty obvious he’s trying to give all the second chances possible. I also sorta spaced out halfway through to be honest. The shot of jumping over the fence was cool. But yeah, nothing about this even remotely interested me.

Potential: 0%

Wooper’s review:

As far as bishounen series go, this one was okay. The implausibility of the script is perhaps its main issue, as the main characters seem to be able to convince people of things just by speaking in elevated tones. The acting troupe at the center of the story has precisely one member, yet the owner is able to persuade their landlord not to turn this laughably unprofitable theater into a bar. There’s not an ounce of believability to this story, as the landlord is a major prick, plus he’s just watched the troupe perform for a whopping audience of two people (including himself). Nevertheless, our heroes venture into a sparsely populated city that seems built entirely around the theater industry. They recruit two people by 1) being attractive and 2) quoting Shakespeare, and return to show landlord-san what they’ve accomplished – which is virtually nothing. Has anyone in this series heard of a business plan? Did all of their mothers play motivational tapes when they were in the womb? This level of strained optimism makes it impossible to take the show seriously, but hey, let’s give it the same grade as the female idol show from the last post. Gender equality and all that.

Potential: 15%

 

Dorohedoro

Short Synopsis: A crocodile head has a human inside his mouth, and he goes around biting evil sorcerers, who are just trying to fill their evil quotas.

Lenlo’s review:

One of the weirdest things I’ve looked at so far, Dorohedoro had me going “wtf” from the start. Yet, part of that “wtf” has made me curious. Where is this bottled insanity going? Why is there a person inside the lizard? Why does everyone look like they just came off of a 16 year old’s first Punk Metal album design? No idea, but I kind of want to find out. Don’t get me wrong, the CGI is terrible and sticks out like a sore thumb. Dorohedoro is not a good looking show. Not by any stretch. But maybe it can pull a JoJo and keep me interested by sheer absurdity.

Potential: 40%

Amun’s review:

I’ve seen a few shows now that are using 80s/90s retro designs and style. I don’t like it. Also, this slum world just ends up looking dirty and dingy…I guess you can say that’s by design, but it makes the inevitable blood splatters just look overdone. I guess I’m marginally curious where this story goes, but honestly I haven’t seen enough content to keep me going. I guess the worlds and doors are neat, but the characters so far are meant for shock rather than sympathy. This is a pass from me.

Potential: 10%

 

Ishizoku Reviewers

Short Synopsis: This is ecchi. There’s also some kind of story and a hermaphrodite angel.

Mario’s review:

Here comes the trashiest show of this season. A human and an elf make it a mission to bang everything that moves, meet a bi-sexual loli angel and let him/her join the club: reviewing all the red-light district girls they have been sleeping with. Should I say any more? Oh yeah, the fact that the show makes a “hilarious” twist that other species find 50-yo call girl more attractive than old elf? I actually watched the whole thing so that I can inform you to avoid this show like the plague.

Potential: my mind hurts

Amun’s review:

This is atrocious. Like someone actually put significant effort into this. So instead of reviewing this, I want to list some shows that could use a second season, since these animators are clearly misdirected. Kamisama No Memou-chou. Hunter x Hunter. Angel Beats. Literally a brick wall.

Potential: No. Just no. It doesn’t have any.

Boku no Tonari ni Ankoku Hakaishin ga Imasu

Short Synopsis: An irritable high schooler must deal with a delusional classmate after they’re put into the same study group.

Wooper’s review:

This isn’t the worst premiere I’ve seen so far this season, but it’s certainly the one from which I gleaned the least enjoyment. Shows like number24 and Infinite Dendrogram were, at the very least, so bad that I could amuse myself by criticizing them. “A Destructive God Sits Next to Me,” as this series is titled in English, didn’t make me feel a single thing. Despite its decent production and plentiful reaction faces, it’s somehow less tolerable than last season’s Chuubyou Gekihatsu Boy, which was another show about guys with eighth-grader syndrome. Destructive God’s protagonist is a “normal” guy, but he’s so aggravated by the delusions of his chuuni classmate that watching him becomes a chore. It’s like he doesn’t want to be in his own show, which certainly isn’t a good attitude to give your main character if your goal is audience retention. There’s no story to speak of, unless you count MC-kun experiencing endless frustration at his classmate’s game of pretend. This show has so thoroughly sapped my energy that I can’t be bothered to craft a closing sentence.

Potential: 1%

Lenlo’s review:

Bland. Blaaaaaaaand. BLAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAND. This is the blandest premiere I have seen so far. I just finished watching it, and if you asked me questions about it, I wouldn’t be able to answer them. It’s like your most basic comedy sketch show, with a character that doesn’t want to be on it. And if the character doesn’t want to be on it, why should I want to watch it? Nope, sorry, this gets a solid:

Potential: Bland%

 

22/7

Short Synopsis: Eight girls are summoned to a zoo and informed that they will become idols in a week’s time.

Lenlo’s review:

ALL HAIL THE WALL! AS THE WALL COMMANDS AND SO SHALL IT BE! BRING ME YOUR YOUNG WOMEN WITH LITTLE TO NO MUSICAL TALENT. BRING ME YOUR DAUGHTERS WITH SKIMPY SKIRTS. BRING ME YOUR SHY AND DISILLUSIONED MC’s. THEY SHALL BECOME IDOLS FOR THE WALL. WHY? DO NOT QUESTION THE WALL, IT DEMANDS ENTERTAINMENT. YOU WISH TO WATCH GOOD ANIME? THE WALL DENIES YOUR REQUEST. THERE IS NO ANIME BUT THE WALL AND YOU SHALL ENJOY IT YOU FILTHY PEASANTS. ALL HAIL THE WALL! THE WALL! THE WALL! THE WALL! THE WALL!…

Potential: Wall%

Wooper’s review:

22/7 is the latest in a new breed of idol series from this season, come to inform us that idols “laugh at stupid things, wear frilly outfits, and shake their butts for their customers.” That’s a direct quote from the show’s main character, and it’s not a point of view that’s magically reversed by the episode’s end, either. The lead girl is anxious and lonely, and she only agrees to become an entertainer because she loses her part-time convenience store gig. Why does she lose her job? Because it’s the will of “The Wall” that she become an idol. What is The Wall? It’s an inanimate oracle of sorts, which provides guidance to a fated group of girls from an underground idol training facility. Why was this extravagant subterranean facility built to serve just eight young idols-in-training? Because it’s the will of The Wall that they become idols.

This show is dumb, to be sure, but its skeptical attitude towards its chosen industry is interesting – especially because the eight girls I mentioned earlier are voiced by members of the real-life idol group 22/7. All of their performances are unpolished; a few are believable in their roles, but most of them aren’t. When you factor in its rough art and animation, this show appears to be an easy skip… but something about its bizarre mythology and unconventional leading lady has me curious about where it’s headed.

Potential: 15%

 

Kyokou Suiri

Short Synopsis: Girl who mediates disputes between yokai seeks help from man who ate their flesh as a child.

Amun’s review:

Several seasons ago, I was head over heels for the first episode of a show called Kyoukai no Kanata. It had great visuals, great chemistry, wonderful character designs, the works. I felt it was destined for greatness…when in reality, the pinnacle of the show was an idol routine that ended in a…sliming (yes, that’s a verb). I say all of this to express my reservations on the excellent first episode from Kyoukou Suiri – I will not be tricked again! With a main girl who reminds me the world of Charlotte and a bland, over-powered MC, I must resist my yokai sympathies and temper my expectations for what surely will be another letdown…actually, I’m super hyped, this is AOTS for me, I’m sure of it this time!

Potential: 1000000000%

Mario’s review:

Overall, I enjoyed this episode. It takes a while for the true plot to kick in, but it carries through by a solid chemistry between the two leads. This premiere has long but engaging dialogues, and how their conversations lead into the show’s main themes work well for me. The backstory of the girl being a mediator for weak yokai, for example, is intriguing, but I can’t say I’m that impressed on the boy’s story. Her backstory, in addition, lacks suspense, consider that she was kidnapped and lost her eye and leg in the process. On the production side, Kyoukou Suiri has a pretty solid animation, but I am not at all a fan with its muted color palette. So far, it’s the intriguing themes and the solid character chemistry that serve as main strength to me, and I am happy to recommend it as the one to look out for in this Winter season.

Potential: 60%

Runway de Waratte

Short Synopsis: A short high school girl who wants to be a supermodel teams up with her aspiring model design classmate.

Lenlo’s review:

This is a weird one for me. You see, I am typically not the “cute girl anime” sort of person, I often rail against them. Most of the time that’s because they lack any real story or are just fan-service bait. Yet Runway interests me, because for once the girls being absurdly cute is relevant to the story. You can’t be a fashion model without being good looking after all, and it’s a nice excuse to get them in a bunch of different outfits. Meanwhile its also another “Follow your dreams, fuck people who say otherwise” sort of story, and I like those. If I had to say what my major complaint with it all was, it would have to be that it’s moving too fast though. In 1 episode we see Chiyuki go from “It’s impossible I’m too short” to “I’m now a professional and fully contracted model”, with a similar route for her friend. It’s like we setup and blazed past this first hurdle, when I was expecting it to take all season. Going through amateur fashion shows, with the boy making her clothing all the while. Figuring out their style and what works best on her, etc. Instead success is sorta just handed to them on a silver platter 5 minutes from the end and its like… Great, we just skipped an entire seasons worth of possible content to get straight to what could have been a season finale payoff. It feels like a lot of wasted potential. So while I enjoyed it, and I like the concept and the art, though the OST is pretty basic, the writing leaves me worried. All that said, I do want to watch more. So I have to give it a solid score.

Potential: 60%

Mario’s review:

Runway lost me in the first few minutes when it tries too hard to address Chiyuki’s height issues, but thankfully it picks up after that. The main strength is the main girl right now with her outspoken attitude that I find rather refreshing, especially in regards to her situation. The way she dodges the question regarding her dress is gold to me. Wannabe designer-kun personality is not as bold, but he serves well as a foil to Chiyuki, and I’m quite surprised to see the show’s focus on his siblings this early in the game, whom I reckon that we will see more from later on. Also I suspect parts of make Runway so appealing is that it has a clear goal to clear, and clear obstacles for our duo to overcome. Speaking of their chemistry, they handle it in a believable way, and outline their trust for each other. There isn’t a lot of time spent on the actual progress though. After all, I still don’t see why he’s inspired to make that dress for her, or even see him actually making it. Runway seems to head into the right direction, though, so I am fully on board with it.

Potential: 50%

 

Rikei ga Koi ni Ochita no de Shoumei shitemita

Short Synopsis: Two scientists prove love through formulas and science.

Amun’s review:

Rikei ga Koi ni Ochia no de Shoumei shitemita is Dr.Stone meets Kaguya-sama: Love is War.  Which is pretty funny if you find statistics amusing and not terrifying/triggering PTSD.  If higher maths and logical proofs give you a headache, this is not for you. The character setup so far  is the same as Kaguya: two idiots, one straight-man/woman.  I think the obvious pitfall for this show is focusing too much on the experiments/proofs and not enough on the character relationships – literally the main plot point.  For the first episode, I definitely chuckled, but I could see how it might get tedious after a while – pretty much how most discussions of statistics go, actually.

Potential: 50%

Lenlo’s review:

Amun was much more generous in their description of this show than I would have been, but they aren’t entirely wrong. It’s basically just another romcom, but instead of ecchi jokes its science/social ineptitude jokes. If nothing else, that puts it above most romcoms of the last few years. The jokes were novel for the most part and the core conceit something I hadn’t seen before. Still not my style of show, but it looks like a good time for those that enjoy the genre. At the very least I plan to check out the other 2 that were released at the same time to see if it holds up across multiple episodes.

Potential: 40%

 

Oda Cinnamon Nobunaga

Short Synopsis: Oda Nobunaga and other historical figures are pet dogs.

Amun’s review:

Thief Amun, sneaking into another blurb he didn’t sign up for!  I don’t really understand Japanese (anime in particular, but also live-action television) obsession with Oda Nobunaga.  I guess it’s a pretty good story, but it’s been retold more times than the U.S.’s Little Women.  So if you’re a historical buff, you’ll have your own opinions, but I’ll judge Cinnamon aside from that.  Having taken care of Shiba Inu’s myself, I definitely chuckled at this episode. This really isn’t a full anime, but a collection of shorts – but I think that medium fits these simple skits.  Light hearted, not terribly complicated, and plenty for dog-lovers (normal ones NOT furries, like the other THREE, that’s not an exaggeration, THREE shows this season) – Oda Cinnamon Nobunaga is good fun.  Will it get tiresome or keep me interested for the whole season? Who knows! Arf!

Potential: 30%

Lenlo’s review:

I can’t… I don’t know… what? Why? I don’t understand why this exists. Who thought this was a good idea, was something that needed to be animated? It’s just so absurd it took me a good 10 minutes to wrap my head around the fact that this was real. Then after that another 10 minutes to realize the implications of whatever this show could do with its characters. Now on paper, having Oda Nobunaga lead a dog based uprising against the humans could lead to a lot of comedy throughout. Especially as more historical figures are added. On the other hand, its just so fucking stupid and the comedy so out there and one note that I just… I can’t see this going anywhere or doing anything novel for more than like 2 episodes, tops.

Potential: 10%

Uchitama?! Uchi no Tama Shirimasenka?

Short Synopsis: A bunch of anthropomorphic cats and dogs go on adventures in their neighborhood.

Wooper’s review:

What is this, the third show about human/animal hybrids this season? Was there a pet cafe boom in Akihabara last year or something? Whatever the case may be, Uchitama’s origins predate this modern trend, as it’s based on a set of characters created by Sony in the 80s. You can see those original designs during this premiere, which flashes back and forth between boldly outlined cartoon animals and more typically “anime” cat and dog-eared people. The show manages these design swaps pretty well, but there’s not a great in-universe reason for them to take human form – it just makes the characters more marketable. Uchitama is broken into multiple 5-ish minute stories of little consequence, which focus on the friendships between all the dogs and cats in a peaceful Japanese suburb. That’s probably the best narrative approach they could have taken, but the real selling point is the production. The backgrounds are well-illustrated, and the lighting was applied with a deft hand. This is a show that knows how to set a scene at 6:00 PM without slapping an orange filter over the entire screen and calling it a day. Uchitama looks good, and it’s got a feel-good vibe to it, but it doesn’t offer much beyond that.

Potential: 30%

Lenlo’s review:

Christ, is the furry population on the rise in Japan or something? I swear animals are the new hotness in anime recently, from Kemono Friends to Beastars to Nekopara. Of those, Beastars was easily my favorite, being a character drama with some pretty solid themes. After that though I would have to give it to Uchitama, because while its not my style, there is absolutely nothing offensive about it. Uchitama is, perhaps more than anything else I have seen so far this season, a “feel good” show. You turn it on, and you feel happy. You don’t have to worry about character drama, or politics, or ecchi, or any of that crap. Its just animal boys doing animal/boy things around a town in Japan. Is it particularly ambitious? God no. But I see no reason why someone couldn’t enjoy this after a long day, after they get home and just want to relax to some anime. Suffice to say, Uchitama is the comfort food of anime, and there is nothing wrong with that. It won’t win any awards, but hey. Not everything has to. Read Wooper’s post if you want a more in depth look into how it does things. I’m just here to call it like I see it.

Potential: 25% (Inoffensive, unambitious, but incredibly comfy)

 

Oshi ga Budokan Ittekuretara Shinu

Short Synopsis: A female otaku obsesses over her favorite member of an underground idol group.

Lenlo’s review:

Let me be clear: I hate Idol shows. I think the idol industry is, for the most part, a blight on many poor young women’s lives. I hate CGDCT shows. I was not a fan of Yama no Susume, Slime or Hoshiai (Looking at you Wooper). And yet, Budokan was pretty damn funny. As a sarcastic jab at the inherent absurdity of the idol industry, I loved it. It’s the most unconventional show of the season I have seen so far, taking the Idol anime we normally see and just taking one tiny step back to the audience. Showing the love these fans have for them, just how fucking creepy that can sometimes be yet how it isn’t totally malicious. My hope is that it dives in to the topic a bit more deeply moving forward, taking a look behind the scenes at the idols and ribbing on some of the shittier sides of the Idol industry. Even if it just keeps this light hearted and surface level view throughout though, it’ll no doubt me my favorite idol show of the year. Low bar, but still, when do I talk positively about Idol shows of all things?

Potential: 50% 

Wooper’s review:

Eight Bit is making a quiet run as one of the best unsung studios in the anime business. Yama no Susume has long been a favorite of CGDCT fans, Slime Isekai was one of the best-looking shows ever to emerge from its genre, and Hoshiai no Sora gave them some big name director clout – even if it didn’t end spectacularly. Now they’re back with Oshi ga Budokan, one of the least conventional idol series I’ve ever seen. OshiBudo stars not a particular member of an idol troupe, but one of their biggest fans, a girl by the name of Eripiyo who worships the group’s least popular member. The show’s best trick is finding humor in her borderline-neurotic behavior, while also using it to comment on the absurd structure of the idol biz. As someone who finds that industry to be deceptive and exploitative, I hope OshiBudo dabbles in the headspace of both disillusioned fans and performers. Even if it goes for a lighter tone, though, as suggested by the final scene, the show has lots of things going for it. 2D dance sequences, washed-out environments that bring levity to otherwise challenging moments, and a great voice performance from lead seiyuu Ai Fairouz are all reasons to check this one out.

Potential: 60%

 

Jibaku Shounen Hanako-kun

Short Synopsis: Wish-granting school ghost turns out to be a boy!

Amun’s review:

It always worries me when the word toilet is in a title (to be fair, it’s only in the English translation – literal title is actually a little weird, Bound Boy Hanako?).  That said, Hanako surprised me by being more than just a B-tier supernatural show; it’s a B-tier supernatural show with a twist.  That twist is taking a common troupe, luck in love, and having an actual, mature outcome.  So at least the writing isn’t atrocious. The visuals remind me of Danganronpa or Samurai Brides: heavy contour and outlining of characters to mask pretty simple settings and faces.  I don’t see this winning any animation awards, but the writing seems okay so far and the setup is decent. I tend to have a soft spot for B-tier supernatural shows, so I’ll probably stick this one out – wouldn’t blame anyone if this wasn’t their cup of tea, though.

Potential: 65%

Mario’s review:

One strong aspect that works in Hanako-kun’s favor is its lush and distinctive visual style, especially towards the backgrounds (Lerche’s signature panel-like scenes are present). The character designs are a bit hit or miss for me, as most of the time I find it gorgeous, then in some parts the big eyes take me right out of the story. Story-wise, I will need to see more of the material to see whether it’s for me or not. What I can say is that this premiere is inconsistent. It juggles light-hearted tones (with mixed results), thriller/horror in the earlier part (which it completely fails) and a hint of drama with supernatural twist (which is quite decent). The inconsistencies are not strictly in tones, but in the way it structures its first episode as well. The twists are handled very well, especially when exploring its own folklore. There’s a hint that Hanako-kun is not your typical apparition, for example. But these twists are often undercut by the ineffective comedy, or more conventional approaches (like the whole matchmaking situation). At the end though, I do feel like the introduction episode nails its main characters and their bound together, so yeah, I’ll stick with this one too, but more cautiously than Amun.

Potential: 50%