Sasami Mahou Shoujo Club is another one of those highly neglected anime which doesn’t deserve that kind of lack of attention. To give a small indication, even the RAWS stopped appearing at a certain point. When you compare this to series like Zaizen Jotaro, you have to wonder whether something’s wrong. In any case, like the title suggests, it’s a mahou shoujo, focusing on Sasami, better known from the Tenchi Muyo series. Luckily, it has absolutely no harem-elements.
This series definitely shines in its middle part. Episodes 5 till 19 are filled with some awesome character studies, a couple of very successful chaotic episodes and some extremely funny moments, all extremely well balanced into the episodes. It’s at these points where the characters become extremely touching. The first four episodes serve as an introduction. Nice and all, but nothing special, that’s not really a major flaw, though. The main problem is that this series starts to loose a bit of its flame after episode 19. It becomes more predictable, and characters aren’t as touching as they were before. Luckily, the final two episodes become worthwhile again.
Still, there’s one thing that’s consistently good over the entire anime: the graphics. Especially the use of CG is brilliant in this anime. The art of the different characters also is extremely cute. Not what you’d expect from the promo-art. The music also offers an excellent selection, though this anime makes the mistake of overusing one or two tracks a bit too much.
Overall, Sasami has been a very good example why I love neglected shows so much. They either turn out very good or very bad. In this case, it’s the former. It’s a pity. While anime like Haruhi Suzumiya get hyped to death, shows like this one get left in the shadows.]]>
Sasami Mahou Shoujo Club – 26
Ah, and so ends Sasami Mahou Shoujo Club. Seeing as it’s the final episode, it’s time to get critical again, as I’ve seen lots of awesome anime who rather screwed up with their ending. Let me first start with some things I really liked about this episode:
– Sasami as a little child. Seriously, the episode started with such an immensely KAWAII shot of her young version, playing and discovering her own powers, and that for the first time in the series.
– Sasami and Ami-chan at the first half of the episode. The two of them are just not involved in the fighting at all, they’re just with the two of them. Surprisingly touching.
– Washuu. I’m glad that she’s back to her chaotic self, seeing her hysterical screaming was as hilarious as always. I wish she had a bigger role in the Misao-arc. It would have made them a great deal better. She really is a brilliant character when she’s in her element. ^_^
– The CG. It was of the same high quality as always.
There was one thing I didn’t like: the five girls from the magical world. It felt like the creators couldn’t find a good role for them for the final episodes, so they just sent them after Misao and the others. A short fight follows, and they let them go without any problems. The only time we see them back is at the end of the episode, as normal schoolgirls.
But what about the ending itself? Well, it was decent. I liked how Sasami never really fought, even though she’s the main character, and the strongest out of everyone. Ami-chan’s way to sacrifice himself was decent, just was the fact that he didn’t wake up. The moment right before Sasami made her speech also was interesting. Though ultimately, the ending itself didn’t capture my interest. After the main climax, Ami-chan makes a short trip, in which everyone is happy and smiling, and in the end, nothing really remains of Keura.
Overall, it’s been a fun show. I hope someone’s going to sub this. Still, there are better cute mahou shoujo around. It didn’t manage to beat Akazukin in the end, and now that I’ve seen a number of episodes of Futago Hime, I also have to say that that’s a better show. Still, that doesn’t mean that I didn’t enjoy it. Especially the middle part was awesome.]]>
Some quick first impressions: Shuffle! Memories, Manabi Straight and Hidamari Sketch
Shuffle! Memories
For all the Shuffle-fans who were looking forward to this episode, don’t get your hopes up too high. This first episode was basically a recap episode, in which Rin introduced the different characters yet again. We see fragments of everything which didn’t have anything to do with the main story from the first season, with your occasional fanservice. Seriously, I almost fell asleep while watching this. To this day, I still wonder why I managed to watch Shuffle! till the end. Okay, the latter half was decent, though the first half was just pure garbage. Really, if the next episode doesn’t have anything decent, I’m never going to touch it, no matter how good the rest of the series might end up being.
Manabi Straight
Whoa, this anime definitely has energy. It takes place in an all-girl-school, and it focuses on five girls who probably are going to bring some kind of revolution with the almost limitless amount of energy they have. Especially the main character. So far, it’s been quite fun, though it has its flaws. I’m especially getting a bit worried when the first episode already starts off with a pool-episode. Also, this anime is supposed to play in 2035, but apart from the flying skateboard, I didn’t see any differences with 2007. Still, those are just minor details. I think I’m going to keep watching this, as long as it doesn’t degrade into a pure slice-of-life series (I want to see some challenges for Manabi). The graphics are also quite interesting. It seems that this show has been granted with a considerable budget in this department, and it fully utilizes that. The animation looks great, and the creators also decided to try out some new things in the graphical department. So far, these really work, apart from one detail. The cat-like mouth of one of the characters just doesn’t work. Also, one final point, the insert song was more annoying than it was interesting. Unlike a show as Red Garden, it hurt the show more than it contributed.
Hidamari Sketch
Ah, a slice-of-life series. Not exactly my favourite genre, and indeed, the first episode wasn’t bad or anything, but it really bored me to tears. If this were a comedy, it would have been a great one, though instead of that, the show keeps a slow pacing and at times it inserts a small joke, which in the end, isn’t that funny. Miyo could have been an interesting character, but this show is just too slow to bring out the full potential of the character. It tries being cute and funny at a very small pacing, which just doesn’t work for me. It’s ironic that the OP was the best thing of the entire anime. Unless you’re a slice-of-life fan, I wouldn’t recommend this one.]]>
Soukou no Strain – 10
And finally, Soukou no Strain continues after its new years break. This episode was all about Ralph and Emily. It explains why Ralph did what he did, and the secret behind Emily. Ralph also did something incredibly reckless. Especially Ralph and Emily’s backgrounds were very interesting to see.
Again, with this being the raw version, I didn’t manage to pick up everything. What I think happened was that there once was an alien race, aka Emily. It consisted out of a number of girls which were exactly alike, and basically, they were all linked with each other. (As in, when one feels pain, the others do as well). This explains why Emily felt the same as Emily.
Anyway, the Emilies were quite advanced, as they had the technology to build spaceships. Then, at one point, they were discovered by the humans. Since humanity is evil, it realized the potential of the Emilies, and started to experiment with them. If I’m not mistaken, it’s because of them that people were able to build Mimics. In the end, the Emilies were totally controlled, and used to power certain variations of Strains. I’m not sure why this ended up to be Ralphs enemy, but the fact remains that he was sent on a mission to defeat an enemy base, full of these sorts of Strain-like things. Obvioulsy, he knew nothing about it, and when he found out, the shock drove him crazy.
It seems that all of the Emilies were there, killed by Ralph, except for two of them. One Emily was being stored in the school we found Sara in during the first episode. The second one had her mind transferred in a mimic, to later become the doll Emily. Her purpose was forgotten, and she was discarded as a useless Mimic. For some reason, she ended up on the same spaceship Sara was in. When Ralph killed the last one of the alternative Strains, it broke and revealed the girl. She begged him to save one of their remaining sisters, aka the Emily on earth. I’m not sure what he did after that, but it made him end up with Deague. If I had to guess, it was to get his hands on a special type of Strain which would make it possible to attack the place where Emily was kept. What Deague gained from it still beats me.
In any case, Ralph went to rescue Emily, with perhaps a bit extreme methods. He had been so emotionally wrecked that he stopped caring for human life, other than that of Emily. We see that during this episode as well, when he’s even starting to get problems not killing Emily herself. Still, I’m not yet sure what was behind his attacks in the third and fourth episode. Based on the later episodes, he didn’t know that Emily was so special, otherwise he would have just taken her in episode 8. Also, what are these goals he’s been after that required such intricate planning? Is he planning to destroy humanity because of the things they did to Emily? (I hope not, by the way)
In any case, in this episode, something similar happens when Melchisidec starts experimenting on the Mimic-Emily. Of course, this would evoke bad emotions with Ralph’s Emily, so she starts begging for him to save her. In the end, he kills off the entire crew of Deague. Quite reckless indeed. He’ll be screwed if some technical failures suddenly turn up.]]>
Amazing Nuts!
Ah, finally Studio 4C releases something again. This time, it’s a collection of four music videos, Global Astroliner, Glass Eye, Kung-Fu Love and Joe and Marilyn, all combined in one package of Amazing Nuts! After watching this, I really have to say that the people behind this were simply brilliant. If these were actually anime, they would have been awesome. It’s such a huge pity, seeing as Studio 4C is an amazing studio, though they spent most of their time on music videos, instead of a compelling anime series.
Global Astroliner has a real urban feeling. It features pointy and shady-looking character designs, and portrays the relationships between corrupt officials and people from the street. It’s the only video which doesn’t feature a love-interest of some sort. I’m quite fond of the art-style here, think Tokyo Tribe meets Gorillaz with a high amount of imagination. All characters look quite unique this way. I wish more anime would follow this example. ^^;
Then comes Glass Eye, with a totally different focus. We see a girl who’s probably suffering from an overdose of some kind of drug, in the middle of a street. While Global Astroliner was more stylish and funky, this is more sad and touching. This girl then meets a boy, all surrounded by some great CG and animation. The characters themselves also look to be completely made out of CG, but not as crappy as the usual 3D series you see. This actually looks very good. Glass Eye really had a dreamy mood, when you combine the great CG, character designs and background art with each other.
Then Kung-Fu Love comes, and this is the first time we have a bit of a descriptive title. It once again is entirely different from the previous one when it features a kung-fu girl, taking on various opponents, and eventually running into a boy she loves. Qute standard, though the thing I really loved in this one was the art and animation. This anime has a greatly colourful style. Perhaps the closest to Studio 4C’s original art style. Each of the characters look beautiful, especially the main character looks gorgeous. The only real disadvantage is the music in this one. While none of the songs really fit my taste, Global Astroliner and Glass eye managed to capture my interest with some very interesting songs, though Kung-Fu Love comes with a cheesy pop-song. Could have been much better.
Joe and Marylin was the worst of the four, though. This time, we have a ballad between two loved ones, one of them being a singer. And well, that’s basically what happens. It features some strange 3D-animation, which unfortunately doesn’t really work. Also, the attention to detail we saw in the previous three movies is also a bit lacking, apart from a beautiful cloudy background, perhaps. The music also didn’t really do anything to improve this, it tries to create a romantic feeling, though Glass Eye was far better in this.
Overall, if you’re bored, and looking for some eye-candy, this is definitely one to recommend. Though the fact remains that we’re just talking about a bunch of music videos here. They would have rocked if they were genuine anime-series, though right now, they’re all a bit lacking in the story and character development department. Still, this does prove that Studio 4C haven’t lost their touch. I’m therefore looking forward a lot to their upcoming releases of Tekkon Kinkreet and Genius Party. And with a bit of hope, they’ll start on another tv-series in the future. I’m really hoping for that to happen, as their talent is just too big to waste.]]>
Night Head Genesis Review – 86/100
Night Head Genesis is an excellent arc-based mystery-series. It focuses on paranormally gifted people, with as main characters to seemingly special ones: Naoto and Naoya. When they were children, they were been locked up inside a research laboratory. The researchers may have had good intentions, it still doesn’t feel good to be locked up, especially as a child, so Naoto and Naoya came to hate that place. So then, fifteen years later, they finally get a chance to escape. After that, they get involved with numerous psychic incidents.
This anime has some great points, but at the same time, it gets held back by a few potentially bad points, but first, let me say that it’s got an awesome soundtrack. Night Head Genesis comes accompanied by a highly atmospheric OST, which really contributes to the overall mood. Ranging from the OP to a couple of very sad but simple tunes, the background music is totally amazing.
Now that that’s out of the way, in order to be able to watch and enjoy Night Head Genesis, you must be aware that Naoto and Naoya are quite close as siblings. Especially the first half is filled with “Naoto!” “Naoya!” “Naoto?” “Naoya”. While it’s not necessarily a bad thing (I didn’t mind this myself), I’ve seen a lot of people who became too annoyed with this to continue the series. It’s a shame, as it turns bloody awesome in the end.
Well then, this anime is divided into three parts. The first part takes up the first 12 episodes, Naoto and Naoya get involved with a few rather heavily subjected cases, with themes such as suicide and child abuse. This part starts out amazing, though it gets a bit worse with each episode progressing, and especially the last few episodes in this part aren’t really that enjoyable to see. Then the second part starts, and the good stuff really begins when the cases start to involve both Naoto and Naoya’s history and background, and they start to reference back to previously dealt with cases.
But the really good part starts with the third part, which starts at around episode 18. In there, the show works towards its final goal, which gets accompanied by some amazing scenes. A few annoying moments here and there, a few unexplained moments there, but overall, these episodes were greatly developed and very enjoyable. This also is one of the few series with an actual good and interesting ending.
Overall, Night Head Genesis has been an amazing series, though be aware that it has quite a few moments which can and will get on your nerves. If you can sit through that, you’ll be rewarded with a great mystery-series.]]>
Night Head Genesis – 24
You know what? I’m surprised to say it, but that actually was a great ending. It’s strange, as I expected this series to fall into the pit of predictability, like so many other series did before it, but no. This actually is the second series, after The Third, that introduces a whole new arc in its semi-final episode, and actually pull off a great ending. Why did these shows avoid the thing that strikes almost every series?
I think a major point is the building up, as strange as it may seem. Usually, a show has one big climax, where the final bunch of episode work towards. Side-characters are sacrificed in order to focus to the main character, tension builds up, and things are starting to look really bad. And that’s where the problem lies. It’s so hard to make something new and fresh out of that, when these three things have already been decided. You really need a series of the calibre of Noein or Utena to really make something worthwhile out of it. Most shows, obviously, don’t have that calibre.
The thing that made Night Head Genesis so fresh was that this ending focused on some newly introduced characters, instead of the usual main characters. Naoto and Naoya are just there, doing their thing to save the world, nothing more. By making the stakes in this episode higher than ever, but focusing on something other than Naoto and Naoya, the creators did make sure that this was an appropriate ending for this anime.
The fact remains that usual endings are just way too limited. Most of them exist to show how much certain characters have grown (Good Witch of the West, for example, or Makai Senki Disgaea). Others show one major character, usually a protagonist, who has some serious issues and threatens to do something stupid (Ouran High School Host Club, NHK ni Youkoso, Magikano). The thing is that this character has to be brought back to senses, in one moment, when the climax is at its highest. That’s obviously not an example of good character development. These things take time. And there is of course the ending where the great evil has to be defeated. The problem here is obvious: the great evil has to be defeated, otherwise the ending won’t be conclusive. It becomes way too predictable. These endings have to rely on how well developed and emotional their characters work. Like I said. That’s difficult.
I loved how this episode didn’t make the worst possible scenario come true. Naoto did his thing, he made sure that the earthquake wouldn’t trigger other earthquakes, and he did this in advance. When the earthquake comes, okay, things rumble a bit, though the tension isn’t as high as when something unexpected happened which would trigger even more earthquakes, but it’s so much more realistic and enjoyable. And not to mention that the creators found another way to provide a nice twist in the ending. Not by having a main character fight for his life, but by actually killing off one of the newly introduced side-characters. Even though he’s been introduced on such short terms, his dying words were great.
And god damn, Shoko. Only now I realize that the creators really “killed off” one of my favourite characters. She really isn’t coming back. That is SO sad for her. While this ending doesn’t beat the endings of Noein, Utena or The Third, this one definitely goes into the file of “succeeded endings”. I’m glad to see that this anime avoided the pitfall that strikes almost every other anime. I’m glad to have seen this series, even though it doesn’t enjoy much popularity.]]>
Otogi Juushi Akazukin – 27
Okay, so the castle was a fake. Still, that doesn’t mean that I didn’t love this episode. I think it’s better this way, it makes things less predictable.
Quite a lot of things also happened this episode. A quick list:
– Souta found out Cendrion’s identity.
– Jedo-sama and the Lycans betrayed Cendrion after they found out that he’s Erde’s key.
– Ferdnando is Fandavale’s key. When the two keys come together, I’m suspecting that Cendrion will be freed.
– Hameln returns again.
– Jedo lost about half of his army.
– The story Souta’s mother used to tell him was actually part of Cendrion’s dale.
– Cendrion actually revealed her real location. I’m not sure whether that was on purpose or not, but she used a mirror to transport herself to the castle, in the background of that mirror, some broken thingies also were seen. It seems that those are only found in one place, which somehow has to do with the wizard we saw in episode 20.
I’ve also been wondering… what happened to Cendrion’s second glass shoe? And what have Hansel and Turude been up to for the past few episodes?]]>
Otogi Juushi Akazukin – 26
What the hell? What is up with raw providers and mahou shoujo? First Sasami Mahou Shoujo Club, and now even Otogi Juushi Akazukin! I honestly believed that this show was taking a small winter-break, just like all other shows around there, but in fact, it just continued. A quick peek into Share also revealed that episode 27 has also been released. I’m downloading that one right now, it should be in soon, though Share isn’t really the fastest download program out there.
Anyway, rants aside, this was an awesome episode yet again. A great parody on the suspicious guy who arrives, and you know is evil, though every character seems to trust him. Throughout the entire episode, I believed this. A random bishounen appeared and seduced Shirayuki, in the town where Cendrion’s minion who took over Shirayuki’s country came from. Of course that’s suspicious, though nobody seems to notice! At least, that is what I thought. ^_^ The climax was brilliant, when it seems that Shirayuki had been acting all along.
Maren (apparently named Marleen, according to TV-Nihon) also is getting more interesting with every mention. This time, we get to see how she formed her army. It’s not something you’d expect, seeing as most anime take this fact for granted. Seeing how Marleen turned the Bell of Hope into the Bell of Darkness makes her story so much more believable. The extra bit of depth added to her character also is greatly appreciated.
Still, the bell got destroyed in the end. You would expect Cendrion to be angry, as her whole town full of minions got converted back. Still, she’s smiling. That means two things:
1. She’s up to something
2. Hansel, Turude and the others did not escape from her power.
Regarding the second point, this must mean that she found another way to manipulate people after using the bell. I’m suspecting that this has something to do with the mirrors. Seeing as there wasn’t any mirror in the town, it must mean that the townsfolk got all of their powers from the bell, while Hansel, Turude and the witch who took over Shirayuki’s country have been manipulated with the mirrors as well.
Regarding the second point, something’s telling me that the next episode will feature a major plot twist. After all, Cendrion’s castle is reached at episode 26 of 39. If I had to guess, this is going to be one of the major turning points of the series, in which Cendrion gets freed and Hansel, Gretel and Randagio turn to Souta’s side. If that’s going to be the case, what will the role of Jedo-sama be? I love speculating about this series. If I can say that about a series, it means that it’s got some great mystery. ^_^
I also love how this series, even though it’s getting more serious, didn’t lose its comical note. In fact, there were lots of random cute moments. Ringo and Baru’s reaction to Dudo’s flirting, for example. Or the reason why Shirayuki bought a couple of earplugs. Oh, and Shirayuki looked so cute in Dark Shirayuki-mode without glasses. Not as cute as chibi-Shirayuki, though.
Also, why did Marleen know about Shirayuki?]]>
Some quick first impressions: Himawari!! Second Season, Master of Epic and Les Miserables – Shoujo Cosette
Himawari!! Second Season
Haha! It’s just as I hoped. The second season is going to be even better than the first one. While the first season focused on the development of the main characters, the second season introduces some actual antagonists, and thank god it didn’t lose its comical note. Heck, this episode was probably the funniest one of the entire anime. I mean, how many other anime can make something worthwhile out of someone who uses gum as a weapon? That surely was a great fight, and I’m glad to see that the quirks of the different character are getting funnier and funnier. I’m not sure how the rest of this anime will go, but if it’s going to be the same as this episode, I was right to give this anime a second chance. 🙂
Master of Epic
What a fun show! This definitely is my favourite show of the winter-season so far, and that with series like Deltora Quest and Himawari!!. Still, I can imagine that everyone else will rant about how they hate this anime, how it’s bad and all, but I don’t care! I love the way this show is directed. It’s basically a collection of clips, which don’t take themselves too seriously. In each of these, something incredibly strange happens. So, what if they’re cheesy, I loved it! This definitely is on my list of blogged shows. ^_^ *fanboys*
Les Miserables – Shoujo Cosette
Ah, the infamous adaptation of Les Miserables. The question, of course, remains: is 52 episodes the right format for such a story? So far, this anime is heading into the right direction, with an excellent first episode. It really took its time to start the story, and tell how Cosette got separated from her mother. She’s quite touching, I like her as a character. Jean Valean, or the major and the boy he gave some bread (Aran, I think his name was) also are a couple of interesting characters to start this first episode with. There’s a very good chance that I’m going to watch this right through to the end of this. I’m not sure whether I’m going to blog this yet, considering the huge spring-season coming up. Ah well, I’ll decide after the second episode.]]>