Natsuyuki Rendezvous – 10

by psgels, posted in Natsuyuki Rendezvous

Natsuyuki Rendezvous! That was amazing! This is what a penultimate episode should be. It’s finally time to see where all that build-up went.

I love the twist in this episode. For a long time we just saw Hazuki interacting with various versions of Rokka acting as various fairy tale figures. Only for it to turn out that that indeed was the subconsciousness of Atsushi, resulting in Hazuki really trading places with him and becoming a helpless ghost himself.

The moment in which he found out what all happened was wonderful. His reaction was priceless. I really admire how the creators pretty much pulled him away from all action for so long. Right now a ton of stuff has happened outside of his knowledge (including that new look of his, but also the change in feelings from Rokka), and it’s awesome to think how he’s going to react and adapt to all that.

And as for that final episode, Rokka’s final like is just the perfect lead up to that. This is where she addresses her worries for Hazuki, and very likely it will become clear that Atsushi has done something with him. It’s going to be a perfect climax for all three of them together. All at a place in which nobody can bother them and which has a huge value for both Rokka and Atsushi. The ending I’m looking forward to the most this season definitely belongs to Natsuyuki Rendezvous.
Rating: 6.5/8 (Amazing)

Uta Koi – 10

by psgels, posted in Uta Koi

Dressing up like towers… I get that kind of symbolism. The silly fifth episode had a great point to make. But why, dear god WHY, did you stuff Fujiwari no Teika in a tutu and make him perform bad ballet? Just… what was the meaning of that?

After that the episode started, and I actually found it among the better episodes of Uta Koi. It still is about Sei Shonagon (probably the last at this point). Whereas two weeks ago we saw stories from her past, and last week we saw her own romance, this episode shows some stories from after that, and how she dealt with the death of the important people around her. I like how this was all told from the perspective of yet another poet.

Especially the second half of the episode had some very good chemistry between Sei Shonagon and this poet, which can be attributed to both very good dialogue, and a very good delivery from the voice-actors, combined with some of the best tracks of the series. It’s here where the storytelling brings all of those together. If only the show had a bigger budget then it would be even better.
Rating: 5.5/8 (Excellent)

Rinne no Lagrange – 21

by psgels, posted in Rinne no Lagrange

So, I thought that at this point, Rinne no Lagrange would dive straight into its climax like what happened with Mouretsu pirates. Instead we get a calm before the storm episode. While I did not expect this, it’s a very good calm before the storm nonetheless.

It’s basically an episode that looks to the future: the three aliens who pretty much haven’t had anything to do in the second season are finally all going their own ways, with two of them returning back to their home planet. Even though their characters at this point are pointless from a plot perspective, it’s still nice to see what’s going to happen with them.

Beyond that this episode also addressed Madoka’s refusal to change. It’s interesting, as she hasn’t really changed over the series, even though everyone around her has, and with that she’s about to be left behind when the series closes off. I liked how both Lan and Muginami decided to return back to their home planets when everything is over.

Overall though, I do have to say that out of the three big mecha-series that debuted in the past Winter-Season, Rinne no Lagrange probably will end up with the least impact, unless something amazing happens in these final few episodes. The best ended up without a doubt Mouretsu Pirates with how it completely changed as it lead up to its finale, and Aquarion Evol also for me holds a candle above this one due to its plot twist. Of course, the characters of Rinne no Lagrange are much better written than Aquarion Evol, and possibly even Mouretsu Pirates, but there is one thing that I am still missing in this series: something that makes them stand out and memorable. I guess that that’s the frustrating part: this show has the wonderful ingredients. The characters are really well fleshed out at this point. They just don’t come together as well as the other series. Unless Tatsuo Sato has something in store for us for the ending, of course.
Rating: 5/8 (Great)

Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita – 10

by psgels, posted in Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita

And here it is! The long-awaited first chapter of the story, showing the first mission that Watashi had to undertake. And interestingly it is a bit of a semi-sequel to the previous episode as well, keeping with the format of having two-episode arcs in this series. This episode’s purpose was to explain what went on last week, and on top of that it was really cute to see Watashi first laying contact with the fairies.

Like last week, this episode was meant to show a bit more about the Fairy civilization. The collective theme seems to be that when a lot of them are together, and they’re triggered somehow (often with candy), they rapidly recreate human history: building huge cities and advanced structures and technologies, only to collapse again afterwards. These two episodes show more than any other episodes so far that indeed: humanity has declined.

Now, the question is how on earth are the creators planning to end this? I mean, there are two episodes left, and that will likely be the climax for this series, but for some reason I see no build-up to an ending whatsoever. This episode of course was the first episode in the series so it was a bit hard to do that, but still. Are the creators just going to end with a random story like the others? In that case, they’re going to have to make these final episodes count. Make them memorable in a different way from these previous ten episodes.
Rating: 5.5/8 (Excellent)

Hyouka – 20

by psgels, posted in Hyouka

You know what? There is one volume of the light novels left, right? And it’s one continuous story, right? With this episode something dawned to me: Kyoani could be toying with the idea of making a movie for this show, couldn’t they? I mean, I’m not sure how their policy with movies is after they made one for Haruhi, K-On and… Munto, but Hyouka would actually work perfectly in movie-format with its slow pacing. I mean, I’d love to see it, but they’re not going to do a climax of only two episodes.

As for this episode, the mystery in it was completely different from any other episode so far. Oreki didn’t have to solve something weird that was going on, but rather he had to find something to get the attention of a specific person. His final solution was quite creative. It was also a realistic look at symbolism: what kind of symbols would someone understand if one spotted this randomly, and which symbols would just be too obscure?

But this episode was really there to flesh out the cast some more. Oreki and Chitanda got to spend a lot of time together, and Satoshi finally was useful for something. The whole set-up of this episode was also great and down to earth, in the way that everyone had different agendas throughout the whole episode beyond just the main plot. Touches like this show once more that the rest of the cast also have lives and things to do.
Rating: 5/8 (Great)

Uchuu Kyoudai – 22

by psgels, posted in Uchuu Kyoudai

Okay. So perhaps it was obvious what the outcome of this episode was going to be. There wouldn’t be much of a series left if Mutta didn’t pass in some way. But the way in which the creators did it was magnificent. This is really where the slow pace of this series came fullest to its right, because this really was an episode which needed to let its twists wink in.

The first half of the episode was dedicated to show how everyone has become friends after the whole ordeal and how they immediately decided to meet again. Especially Ya-San and Fukuda were great in how their accepted their loss. The previous episode already showed this a bit, but this really sunk in today.

And I also really didn’t think that the creators would go so far… but Kenji didn’t make it. It’s an excellent twist here to show that despite his talents, he still didn’t make it and still lacked something. And in his case, it’s perhaps even for the better since he now has the time to dedicate himself to his daughter, which eh would not have had if he made it.
Rating: 6/8 (Awesome)

Sword Art Online – 09

by psgels, posted in Sword Art Online

This was actually really good. Thew best episode of Sword Art Online since the first, and the creators are starting to use the build-up provided by the earlier episodes. Due to showing these episodes first, at least we did get a good feeling of who the characters are, rather than jumping right in and this episode made really good use of that. I just have to ask one thing here:

Kirito, for god’s sake stick with Asuna. Become a couple. I really liked that part in this episode, however it will become rather pointless if he’s going to be flirting with another girl next episode. I mean, he can still interact with them and all, but I’d hate to see more and more girls falling in love with him. just focus on his relationship with Asuna. The problem with these earlier episodes was that they showed Kirito developing a relationship with a girl, then moving on to the next, and then to the next… and it just wasn’t written well enough to make all of them count. With more time given to Asuna however, they did a very good job of showing the relationship between them develop.

One thing I missed here was a look into the mindset of that one commander who just showed up from out of nowhere on a place he had no business being on. Him just charging into battle seemed very out of character based on the description that was given of him just a minute earlier. He would have been completely dead by now if he always acted like in this episode.

Oh, and Yuki Kajiura came with a background tune that sounds actually different from her previous works. It’s still choirs and strings like her trademarks, but the choirs were very different from the ones she used in the past few years, and just that touch gives these songs a very different atmosphere that to be honest, fits this show much better.
Rating: 5.5/8 (Excellent)

Summer 2012 Kaleidoscope – Week 35

by psgels, posted in Summer 2012 Kaleidoscope

#1: Natsuiro Kiseki OVA: Oh my god. This OVA was just seven minutes long, so not a lot of stuff happened in it. But I really have to say to every fan of Natsuiro Kiseki: WATCH THIS. You’ll understand why once you do. – 5.5/8 (Excellent)

#2: Nazo no Kanojo OVA: You know what? This actually was a better conclusion that the one of the TV-series. whereas Milky Holmes below was just a random alternative story, this one continues where the series left off and develops the characters even further. It does introduce a bunch of ghosts from out of nowhere, which was a bit out of place, but the effect it had on the characters made it worth it. – 5.5/8 (Excellent)

#3: Kokoro Connect – 08: This was the best episode of the second arc so far. Up till now things were just build-up with a lot of angst, but this one carried it further to the people around the main cast, and the characters started thinking on how to solve their problem and deal with it, rather than running away from it. It definitely made all characters stand out more, even Yui, who didn’t make an appearance. – 5.5/8 (Excellent)

#4: Phi Brain – 46: With this episode we really have a side-cast in which the members all stand on their own. They’re no longer part of that group of side-characters standing between the male lead and the main villain, but they all developed differently throughout the series. I have to say, after how repetitive this series used to be, they definitely made up for it with these latest episodes and their variety. – 5.5/8 (Excellent)

#5: Polar Bear Cafe – 22: This really was another hilarious episode. The first half had Polar Bear at his trolling best, while the second carried the Penko story further, and both really made me laugh. Polar Bear Cafe still misses something at this point, though: a great ending. If they can manage that I’ll be entirely happy with this series. – 5.5/8 (Excellent)

#6: Space Battleship Yamato 2199 – 02: Oh god, no: not another Supernatural that releases batches of six episodes at once! That’ll be a pain to cover. Anyways, this was great build-up. The storyline is still the same as the original Yamato-series, but with a ton of stuff added and updated to modern standards. Think of a bunch of new characters, extra detail in showing how everyone prepares for such an epic journey ahead. Oh, and the soundtrack is still godly. – 5/8 (Great)

#7: Saint Seiya Omega – 21: In this episode Mars reveals his evil plans: he wants to recreate the world because it is rotten. It’s a bit unfortunate that he doesn’t explain exactly why it is rotten… Either way this was a training episode that was meant to bring Kouga on his feet again and at the very least the atmosphere of this episode was rock-solid. I have no idea who that cameo was, but he definitely convinced me that he was what was needed to get Kouga to stop angsting. – 4.5/8 (Good)

#8: Dantalian no Shoka OVA: I’m not sure why, but this week has a lot of OVAs released. Dantalian no Shoka’s OVA is the most conventional of the bunch: it’s just another episode indistinguishable from the TV-series. It’s neither the best nor the worst story of the series, and the atmosphere still is as good as I remember it to be. So yeah. It’s a nice watch if you liked the series, though not really a must. – 4.5/8 (Good)

#9: Kyoukai Senjou no Horizon – 20: I just realized: did Tori actually do anything this season? I mean, his charm in the first season was that he was completely different from the rest of the cast, yet was forced to stand in the center of everything. Here he just runs around naked while everyone else solves all of the problems. – 4/8 (Enjoyable)

#10: Tantei Opera Milky Holmes – Alternative One: Wtf… just, wtf. I was looking forward to this one, being a fan of the TV-show and all, but this one really took me by surprise: it actually takes itself seriously. Honestly: this episode was what Tantei Opera Milky Holmes would have been if they didn’t put effort into making a premise that stood out, and if they didn’t throw in that hyperactive nonsensical storytelling and just went with a conventional direction. There now is a male lead as well, for some bizarre reason. This just shows how easily Milky Holmes could have sucked, with a clichéd set-up, stupid mysteries and unremarkable dialogue. This OVA definitely was not good, but it reminded me why I became a fan of the TV-series. – 3/8 (Mediocre)

Edit: ah, that explains: the creators for this short are completely different. This episode didn’t have the original director, but instead we have the director of Kaitou Tenshi Twin Angel. Things make a lot more sense now.

Hells Angels Review – 80/100

by psgels, posted in Anime Reviews

I’ll get to Kyousogiga later today. First I want to talk about a sort-of similar production: Hell’s Angels; a 2008 movie that I finally managed to track down. Like Kyousogiga, it’s got a ridiculous amount of style, and even though it’s not as well directed as the former, it does have its charms to watch.

To get an idea of the style of this movie: it is animated by Madhouse and the character-designs have been done by Nakazawa Kazuto, the character-designer of Sarai-ya Goyou, Ashita no Nadja and Samurai Champloo. Pretty much one of the top 5 character-designers out there. The result is a really colourful cast with a lot of different and rugged looks. It’s not the best character-design work of this guy, but still: it definitely looks good. But what about the rest?

Well, right from the start this movie has one very apparent problem: it doesn’t care about dramatic build-up. It just goes from scene to scene to scene without any sort of introduction or slow moment, it just pulls scenes out of its ass and completely disregards trying to create a good flow in its storytelling. When characters need to be together, they just pop up completely from out of nowhere, even lacking scenes that hint that they might be nearby or are about to arrive. This is a very jarring problem for the first half of the movie. The second half of the movie gets more epic, and this problem disappears a bit, making place for a lot of cheesy dialogues. The strange thing however was that despite being cheesy, I was actually sold on this in that second half.

The plot ended up being surprisingly interesting, taking a few biblical stories and giving quite an interesting spin to them. On top of that, the it knows how to deliver an entertaining climax and i had a lot of fun watching it. The characters really had some troubles fleshing themselves out in the beginning,but thankfully they manage to fix that as the movie goes along (it IS nearly 2 hours long). It is a shoujo story, so there are quite a few clichés, but they’re creatively used.

So yeah, this is a good movie for if you’re having a movie night and want something light that looks good. This series has the style to keep you interested, and it has enough substance to not make this get boring within 10 minutes. It entertained me and even though it’s not among the best movies, it set out and did what it intended to do.

Storytelling: 7.5/10 – Throughout the movie, it becomes clear that the creators need to follow a few courses of screenplay 101, because there are a few basic technical issues with how this show jumps around way too much. Later on this gets better and it becomes quite entertaining, even though it can get a bit cheesy.
Characters: 8/10 – Good and likable characters. The female lead is a bit of a Mary Sue, but within the context of this movie it does fit. The cast of characters is also quite diverse.
Production-Values: 8.5/10 – Lots of style; great camera-work and character-designs.
Setting: 8/10 – Neat twist on biblical themes here.

Suggestions:
– Kyousogiga
– Alice in the Country of Hearts
– Hoshi no Umi no Amuri

The Manga Experiment – Week 35

by psgels, posted in Manga Experiment

Hotel – Ch.05: The fifth and for as far as I know last chapter of Hotel is only 16 pages long, and unlike the other chapters seems just like a place in which Boichi wanted to tell a short joke (comprising the first two pages) and draw some really pretty images (the other fourteen pages). The latter in particular are done in full-color and they are stuffed with eye candy. The storyline itself is nothing noteworthy, but it definitely looks nice.

Coelacanth – Ch.04-05: These two chapters form the middle part of Coelacanth (unless the manga is still on-going). The two main murder mysteries are now introduced, and these chapters mostly consisted out of character-development and hints that link the two together, albeit quite subtly. The author likes to weave contrasts together: the two seemingly unrelated murders, combining mystery with romance, involving both teenagers and adults. And then there is that sheep.

Shingeki no Kyojin – Ch.06-07: Holy crap this is intense. However, while reading these two chapters, there was something that bugged me: this series is about total despair, and then there is a character like Mikasa. Level-headed, the top of her class, and just about the only one who can consistently kill giants without putting in effort. She was too perfect and needed flaws, which thankfully sowed up at the end of chapter 7, followed by one heck of a plot twist that shows that things haven’t even begun yet.

A Lollipop or a Bullet – Ch.07-08: These two chapters continued this series’ streak of amazing chapters. Seriously, this is some haunting look on child abuse and neglect and I’m really quite shocked at the events here. And the great thing is that this wasn’t because of some plot twist, but rather because of the things we learned about the characters: realizing the terrible situations they’re in and how they’re trying to sustain themselves and trying to cope with it. Oh my god please tell me that the rest of this manga can be found translated somewhere.