Asatte no Houkou – 03 – Small Shoko is so Cute. ^_^

by psgels, posted in Asatte no Houkou

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The episode starts out surprisingly light, when compared with the previous one. It features Karada and Shoko shopping for the things they need. Shoko needs a new pair of glasses, and both of them need new clothes, as their sizes aren’t the same to wear each other’s clothes without any problems. Especially Shoko was so CUTE in this. ^_^

Karada may have wished to become an adult, at heart, she’s still a child. She does have to cope with responsibility, and she must learn to do things on her own. It proves to be harder than she thought, and so, Shoko has to help her in this. Both of them have huge difficulties in playing their parts. Still, Karada isn’t as hopeless as in the previous episode. It seems that she managed to stuff her feelings inside of her, and she actually makes food for Shoko.

While the previous episode was focused on Karada, this episode focuses on Shoko. The result is a totally different episode than the previous one. It’s still full of emotions, but totally different ones. Shoko may have been an adult, she still is bothered by the fact that she changed. Especially when she runs into Hiro, and he doesn’t recognize her. In the end, she lies that she’s Shoko’s little sister.

Because of this, the climax of the show was exceptionally good. Shoko gets a bit sick of Hiro who doesn’t recognize her, so she runs away. In the end, she confesses to him, and brings him back to her apartment, in which she reveals that Karada has grown up. How Karada will react to this, we’ll see in the next episode.

We also get a bit of background information, regarding what happened to Shoko, Hiro and Karada before this anime started. Karada actually isn’t Hiro’s real sister. That, or they didn’t live together at a certain time. When their parents died, Hiro was asked to come over to America, where Karada was living, in order to take care of her. Because of this, Hiro spent all his free time with Karada, and ignored Shoko. She, eventually left the town, only to come back a number of years later. It’s interesting, as it shows why Hiro was so devoted to his sister. He never knew her, and he probably didn’t want her to have any more lonely memories. If the two were siblings who already lived together during the death of their parents, I can imagine that things would have gotten resolved in a totally different way, seeing as how the two already knew each other, so that they knew what would be best for the other.

Even though during the episodes, not a lot of things happen, I’m loving this series. I like the way that this series really takes its time in telling its story. Not to mention the cuteness of Shoko. (^_^)

Sasami Mahou Shoujo Club – 16 – Surprisingly Dark Story

by psgels, posted in Sasami Mahou Shoujo Club

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Okay, this story just keeps getting more and more interesting. And remember that we’re only at episode 3 of 13, which means that there’s still a lot that has to happen. This was another episode with difficult dialogue, so I didn’t pick up everything. Especially the plans of the magic people are still a mystery to me, though by the looks of it, they plan to actually use Sasami and the others for their goals.

We start the episode with Sasami’s father revealing that he actually does come from the magic world, or that he can at least use magic. He definitely wants to save Sasami and the others, and comes up with a plan. We then switch to Sasami and the others, along with Itoki and the others. There’s its demonstrated what the power of the members of the mahou shoujo club combined can actually manage. Quite an explosion follows.

Misao, also, is changing. More than anyone else. For one of the first times, she actually has people who care for her, and give her attention. She’s also been progressing more than any other because of this. This issue definitely will get worse as the anime progresses. Last episode also showed that she’s growing way from Sasami more and more. Her broken ring, which breaks during this episode, is only more proof of this.

Sasami’s father’s plan: Washuu and Daimon go and rescue the girls, while he himself goe to check up on Amitabu. I’m not sure what his link is in this, didn’t manage to pick that one up. Meanwhile, it’s become evening, and Sasami hears Amitabu’s harp again, so she heads out. Ryouki meanwhile acts as bait, while Washuu and Daimon sneak into the dormitories. They wake up the four remaining girls, and urge them to leave the magical world, not stating their reasons. Misao refuses in the beginning, seeing as everyone has been treating her so kindly. In the end, Washuu pushes her to go anyway.

We then switch to Sasami’s father, who arrives at a huge tree. In this tree, a second Amitabu has been captured in thorns. That means that there are two of them, one who’s been dancing with Sasami and who met Sasami’s father at the beach, and the one who’s been caught in thorns. Just what is the meaning of this. Has it already been revealed, or is it supposed to be a mystery? (*kicks lack of Japanese*)

Sasami, meanwhile, runs into the other Amitabu, playing on his harp again. The meeting started very cute, but took a surprising twist when Amitabu learned of Sasami’s father. (Apparently, he’s named Ginji). He suddenly turns serious, grabs her and flies off.

After this, Washuu really came in her element, when she guided Tsukasa, Anri, Misao and Makoto back to the entrance of the human world. She looked almost freaky in her desires to keep the girls safe. She meets up with Ginji, who discovers that Sasami’s gone. The latter then goes to look for her and sees Amitabu fly through the sky with Sasami in his arms. Sasami, however, isn’t scared at all. She’s after all, still in love with him, and actually falls asleep in his arms.

I think that in the past, Ginji and Amitabu had some kind of history, in which they were close friends. Ginji then did something along the lines of abandoning Amitabu. That’s what made him so happy when he saw him again, though I think that Amitabu still has a grudge against him. But what does this have to do with the bridge from the magical world to the human world? And what role do the demons have in this picture?

I absolutely loved the following scene. Washuu and the others have to jump off a considerably high cliff in order to flee to the human world. Washuu tries to act all brave, though when she attempts to catch the jumping Tsukasa, she most probably made some miscalculations. Whent hey almost reached the gate, the other witches arrive. Ginji, meanwhile, caught up with Amitabu, who confirms even more that he was left alone. But for some reason, this Amitabu speaks in third person.

Washuu, meanwile, uses a strange grenade which creates another link to the human world. Ginji, Amitabu and Sasami arrive as well. The head witch tries to stop them, though for some reason, she doesn’t want to go against either Ginji or Amitabu. Washuu, Daimon, Ginji and the girls then head to the human world, and Sasami says goodbye to Amitabu, who flies off afterwards.

We end the episode at some kind of witch council. It’s surrounded by white trees, and a strange voice sounds. He keeps calling certain persons traitors. He also says something completely inaudible.

Death Note – 03 – Shinigami’s Eyes

by psgels, posted in Death Note

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An intermezzo. Both Light and L are preparing some plans, but no real conflicts happened. Light’s father happens to be the inspector of police, in charge of the search for Kira. I’ve got a few problems with this. I mean, isn’t it too much of a coincidence that out of all the millions of people who live in Kanto, his father is the one who is one more important people who are after him?

In any case, Light uses this convenience to his advantage when he makes clear to L that he’s got contact with the police. He figures that by doing this, the police and L will end up cooperating less and less because of doubts from the police’s side. They then probably investigate on L’s identity as well, after which Light snatches his life away. Still, I have a feeling that it won’t go this easily. L, meanwhile, has found out that Kira is most likely a student of some sort, due to the fact that the times all happened at times when normal students have a bit of free time. If you combine this with the fact that Kira has some kind of connection to the police, then I think his next step is to look for sons or daughters of police officers. It’s probably what the shady guy who’s been following Light at during the second half of the episode is up to.

Ryuk also makes a very interesting deal with Light. There are two major differences between shinigamis and humans who use the Death Note. The first is that whenever a shinigami writes a person’s name in the Death note, the remaining life-span of that person gets added to the life span of the shinigami. That means that you can’t kill a shinigami, unless they’re really lazy (I loved the parts in which Ryuk states the obvious(^^)). It makes you wonder, though. Why do shinigami exist? What’s their purpose? Do they just live to scribble names in their Death Note every ten years or something?

The second difference is that whenever a shinigami sees a person, the name of this person, along with his lifespan appear on top of this person. Well then, Ryuk is willing to trade his eyes, which make Light do his job more accurately, for the half of his remaining life-span. We all know that Light is going to say yes, but what’s up with the cliff-hanger at the end of the episode? Also, this brings up an interesting question. Something that also came in Night Head Genesis on the table: will these estimated life-spans be 100% accurate, outside of the Death Note? What if Light looks at himself in the mirror? Doesn’t that mean that he’ll know exactly when he’ll die? That’s indeed great for a strategic element.

Red Garden – 02 – I like the character designs. ^^

by psgels, posted in Red Garden

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I am LOVING the direction this anime is going. In almost every other anime I’ve seen, whenever characters are put in front of unexpected danger, they’re surprisingly calm. They run away a bit, think quietly about the situation, drink a cup of tea, experiment a bit with their new-found powers and the enemy’s gone. Though in Red Garden, this is not the case. The girls really have to struggle for their lives, they’re scared, they shake. If this keeps up, Red Garden is going to be awesome. ^^

I love the diverse cast of characters. There’s only one girl who really has had experience in fights. The others clearly have never fought at all. Target tries to run away, though her courage fails her at times, especially when she’s the monster’s target, Kate tries to help others and ends up getting bitten and Rose is just plain hopeless with situations like these.

Another thing I really like was the singing scene. For what seems to be one of the first times ever, plain high school girls don’t suddenly have the same singing voice of a J-Pop idol. And their voices actually sound full of despair. It’s a great job done by the voice-actors. Still, a lot of people seem to be turned off by it. Is it that important to hear J-Pop idols sing all of the songs? Same with the graphics. The reason most people don’t check out this series is because the art is out of the ordinary. I find it beautiful, though I’ve read on a fair number of other blogs that the art was a major turnoff. Do characters really have to be the same style for every anime out there?

Especially the aftermath was great to see. Four normal girls are actually being forced to engage in life-threatening situations. They seem to have special powers, but they don’t have any experience at all. If they refuse, their lives get taken away for certain. The looks on their faces when they heard this was amazingly beautiful.

Still, I’m wondering how the series will be continuing. If I recall correctly, Red Garden will have 24 episodes. It’s clear that over time, the girls will get more and more experience, and learn to use their powers better. I’m wondering how the creators will manage to keep this anime interesting, as the girls will probably end up getting used to the fact that they’re being used.

(Edit: urgh… this will be another one of those horrible anime to screencap, as most of the interesting scenes seem to be playing at night… )

A few thoughts and rants about series who make almost no chance at all to get fully subbed

by psgels, posted in Special Articles

I don’t write that much articles, but I felt like I had to say something about this issue. Those who frequent my blog probably should know that I’ve been annoyed with this issue for a long time.

Yesterday, I saw the first episode of an anime called Rakugo Tennyo Oyui. Ever heard of it? Nope? That’s what I thought. I missed it as well. It’s a series which aired during this year’s winter season. I originally thought that the creators delayed it, and that it never aired in the first place. Guess what? It did air, it finished after 12 episodes and only one sub has come out so far. But as that one was entirely neglected, the fansubbers gave up after only one episode. Well then. Does Rakugo Tennyo Oyui deserve to be neglected so much? Is it really so bad that people don’t want to even touch it? Of course not. It’s a perfectly fine light-hearted mahou shoujo with comedy elements. There were only one or two annoying characters, apart from that, the rest of the characters were very interesting to see. Especially the way they interacted with each other.

Rakugo Tennyo Oyui isn’t the first anime to be so horribly neglected. I originally thought that Makai Senki Disgaea was ignored, but at least this series got all its episodes subbed. There are much worse cases of ignored anime. Sasami Mahou Shoujo Club, for example. It’s a truly excellent series, but almost nobody could find out, as only one episode has come out subbed. Himawari? An actually nice, inspiring slice-of-life series about a ninja academy. It’s few attempts at comedy also were very good and the series sparkles in character development.

Shoujo Yang Geum no Yume? great adventure series about a girl who loves cooking. This one also just got one sub. Kirarin Revolution? A semi-serious story about a girl chasing down her dreams to become a pop idol. Nothing wrong with that. Despite its annoying elements, I enjoyed watching the only two subs which came out. Hime-Sama Goyoujin? A perfectly fine comedy anime about idiots acting stupid. Great if you don’t want to think about anything. Yoshinaga-Chi no Gargoyle turned out to be hilarious, but because there were only two subs which came out, this series got horribly neglected as well.

My point is, that each of this series ranges from good to awesome. None of them deserves the treatment it’s got. Now, let’s take a look at the really bad series, shall we? Coyote Ragtime Show was fully subbed, almost right after it aired and id had three fansub groups working on it. It’s the same with Zero no Tsukaima. Yoake Mai Yori Ruri-Iro na got its first two episodes subbed right after they aired by two fansub groups. Mamoru-kun ni Megami no Shukifu wo also has two groups working on it. Shounen Onmyouji also got subbed in less than a week after it came out. Same with Tokimeki Memorial, Gift and Love Dol.

Now, let’s take a look at the popular series. Both Kanon and Death Note have a massive SIX fansub groups, working on them at the same time. It doesn’t matter whether they’re good shows or not good show, six fansub groups is way too much. Two would have been more than enough. And there are more series like this which get way more fansubbers working on them than is actually needed (Zero no Tsukaima, .Hack//Roots, Coyote Ragtime Show, etc).

Notice this trend? The popular shows get oversubbed and because of that, the ignored shows get no chance of being fully subbed, in order to get the attention they deserve. And the annoying thing is, that it’s very easy to actually solve this problem. Take Death Note, for example. Live-Evil and Toriyama World can just continue to bring out Death Note at a steady pace, so that C1 can tackle, for example, Himawari. Desuno can focus on Shoujo Yang Geum no Yume, SOY can work on Sasami Mahou Shoujo Club and Animanda can sub Kirarin Revolution. Same with Kanon. SS-Eclipse and Sprocket can continue with Kanon, so that Shinsen-Subs can work on a show like Jigoku Shoujo or Marginal Prince. A.F.K. can try to handle Rakugo Tennyo Oyui, AQS-Anime can try to sub Yoshinaga-chi no Gargoyle and AnimeU can give Hime-Sama Goyoujin a try. And voila, a lot of problems would be solved. This, of course, is just an example.

I’m not trying to attack, flame or troll the fansubbers in any way. You’re all great people, who bring anime to the non-Japanese community. But I felt that I just had to say something about this. It’s been a trend for a while, and I’ve been getting more and more annoyed at it. Especially when the solution is so simple.

Popolocrois 2003 – 18 – Finally we have an actually great episode. :)

by psgels, posted in Popolocrois 2003

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Seriously. The previous episode was nice and all, but it was also rather boring and dull. It really ruined my mood for the show a bit, and I was about to give up hope…

Then this episode started. Seriously, it was the best episode so far! The creators were very sneaky in this. The first minutes start out mediocre again. The Moon drop has to be found, and it’s located on the altar of the moon, which only appears during the full moon. The Dakart arrives right at the moment of a full moon, so they’ve only got less than a day to find its location, or they have to wait for a full month. Basic and convenient.

Then, when Pinon and the others actually arrived in Popolocrois, this episode actually started to get funny when it seems that Paanya has a very convenient power: mimicry. He can even copy all of the powers of the person he copies. It’s great to finally see a bad guy who tries to actually use a strategy to get to his goals. Especially because Paanya’s just a big goofball, and he screws up easily. He demonstrates his powers with a little play between Pietoro and Narcia, as he’s just waiting in Popolocrois castle for Pinon and the others to return, and he’s really bored to death. XD

His plan is simple: hide Sabow and Lulu in a closet, and pretend to be Sabow, in order to find out the location of the moon drop. His plan was so obvious when you looked at things as a viewer. It was great to see him pretend to be Sabow, without being found out. The crew of the Dakart then goes to search the castle, with lots of references to events which happened earlier in the series. I especially loved it when Aina found a picture of Pietoro and Elena when they were young and started fangirling. (^^;)

Of course, it doesn’t take long till Paanya gets discovered and the location of the temple of the moon gets found. Paanya retreats, preparing his second plan. The Moon Drop is located on the small island behind the castle, the one with the dragon temple. When Pinon, Luna, Marco, Elena and Aina walk in the forest, Paanya executes his second plan: lure Marco away from the others and pretend to be him. This plan seems to work, and he does get hold of the Moon Drop, though then Marco catches up with them again, so he’s forced to drop it. He flees and prepares for his third plan, and boy, he works fast.

In the time it takes for Pinon and the others to get back to the castle, he overpowers the crew of the Dakart, moves all the statues away, stuffs them into a closet, ties the members of the Dakart to them, and prepares himself to pretend to play for Pietoro. By this time, things really get serious when Paanya pretends to be both Leona as Pietoro as Narcia. This really does something to both Pinon and Marco. Especially the former gets incredibly happy when he sees his mother alive. So cute. (^^) Still, Paanya acquires the Moon Drop, and flees.

Things get even worse when Zephys sends out a giant crab to set the Dakart to flames. Paanya then heads for the island of petrification, which is said to resolve the spell which binds Zephys. Pinon, Luna and Marco are after him, and they reach the beach. Until they’re attacked by the same crab who destroyed the Dakart. Pinon and Luna go after Paanya, who ends up cornered. He then uses his powers to try, confuse and beat the former.

Right before the climax, something very interesting happens. Zephys, in the form of Luna’s mother appears, and takes the lunar drop from Paanya. Luna finds out that her mother is in the complot, Elena finds out that her Dakart is destroyed and Zephys heads off to the island of petrification.

The great thing about this episode is its combination between comedy and drama. The drama just keeps building up. The episode starts with a few serious scenes, which increase in intensity during every climax. During the first three quarters of the episode, there’s also lots of comedy, despite the seriousness. When the comedy stops, and some awful facts get revealed (the lunar drop being stolen, Luna finding out about her mother and the Dakart being gone in this case) they work out greatly.

IF this show can keep up with THIS level, we’re IN for something AWESOME. 🙂

Some quick first impressions: Bartender, Kekkaishi and La Corda d’Oro: Prima Passo

by psgels, posted in Some Quick First Impressions

It’s an interesting batch this time. Each of these series has the potential to become great, but each of them has one or more major flaws. It’s interesting to see how these three turn out. Also, with this, I think I’ve managed to cover the largest part of the autumn season. All that’s really left to get subbed is Jigoku Shoujo (seriously, I can hardly wait for it) and a Spirit of the Sun. Oban Star Racers seems to be aired at some kind of special location, as no raws have appeared at all. It was the same case with FLAG, I think we need to wait for the Japanese DVD’s to come out in order to see it. Same with Silk Road Boy Yuto. Master of Epic seems to have delayed its anime a bit, such a pity. And Bikkuruman Hikkariden will probably never really get enough attention to even get its own raws. Next up is waiting for shows like Souko no Strain, Tokyo Tribe, Freedom and Afro Samurai.

Bartender
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I’m a big fan of the various episodic case-based anime (Mushishi, Jigoku Shoujo, xxxholic), so I was looking forward to this anime. It follows a bartender who can make the god’s glass, a way to people’s hearts. Unfortunately, the first episode has yet to display anything special. It follows a stressful bar designer, but the entire story lacked emotion. Still, I’m probably going to end up blogging this. Jigoku Shoujo and Mushishi showed that you have to warm up to stories like these a bit for them to become really effective.

Kekkaishi
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I have to admit, when I read the premises, I feared the worst. It’s a nice surprise that this shounen series actually turned out above average. It’s still got the cliché of having a fourteen year old brat as main character, but he’s been given unusual character depth. Especially the part when he was just a nine-year old boy was pretty impressive. If this anime loses the fourteen-year-old brattiness, things actually could get pretty good. I just hope that the creators manage to actually bring the love relationship between the main male character and main female character in a good way. Right now, all signs point to the fact that the main female character will end up being a simple damsel in distress. If this anime can avoid this, we’re in for something worthwhile.

La Corda d’Oro: Prima Passo
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There’s one thing that always annoys me with anime like this: the important characters are the only ones with obscure hair colours. Anyway, this anime is sortof like learn to play the violin, the lazy way. We’ve got our main character who seems to be the only one who can see a special fairy because of no reason. The fairy then grants her a special violin which can make anyone play beautiful. Yeah, sure. I think that this anime doesn’t want to be taken seriously. Both the main male character as the main female character are as standard as possible, though the side-characters can prove to be interesting. Of course, our main character ends up winning the music competition, but seeing how the side-characters will face of against each other will probably be worth it. At least, if the creators give them a chance for this. Overall, it’s not exactly a bad anime. It’s just got some hugely annoying flaws which sortof ruin the mood. At least let the main character be someone who’ll work hard to achieve her goals.

Popolocrois 2003 – 17 – Decent scenes which scream potential

by psgels, posted in Popolocrois 2003

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It’s annoying! Each episode has one or two moments which just scream potential, surrounded by mediocre scenes. This episode was the same: Luna’s worries about her mother were very sincere, but Zephys’ complot seems very basic: “I turned the people of Popolocrois to stone because now I can blackmail you into delivering the Moon Drop to me”. The adventures in the lunar castle were rather boring.

But the fact does remain that the pacing is currently huge in comparison to the first half of the anime. Everyone got turned to stone in episode 14, which seemed like a major plot event. Still, the lunar castle was reached within three episodes, and Pinon and the others only remain for just half an episode inside the castle. Next episode, it seems like they’ll be back in Popolocrois again, to look for the Moon Drop.

Popolocrois 2003 – 16 – Test Of Courage

by psgels, posted in Popolocrois 2003

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And Gamigami has returned. I still have to get used to the fact that his character has changed. He’s now eccentric in a totally different way. Previously, he was just a crazy genius who only cared about Narcia and later Hyuu, but now he’s more like a father. Having kids surely changed him. Still, I liked the old Gamigami better.

This episode was mostly meant for a bit of character development from Momba. The previous two episodes showed that he didn’t really like his new companions, and he still bears grudges against them. This episode, he takes Pinon to a ghost ship, for a test of courage. His arrogance made him suspect that Pinon would come running towards him after a few seconds, begging to take him back, but Pinon’s courage proves otherwise.

In the end, the ship actually appears haunted and a huge monster comes out. When Pinon defeats it, Momba acknowledges him. The fight actually was pretty interesting, mostly due to the character design of this monster. He looked scarier than anything we’ve seen so far in Popolocrois 2003. Still, most of this episode just remained average. But what was Zephys doing behind Luna’s mother?

Eureka 7 Review – 91/100

by psgels, posted in Anime Reviews


When I saw the first episode of this series, I immediately dismissed it. Every direction pointed to a standard shounen series. Pubescent male, check. Female love interest, check. Sudden huge unexplained outburst of power coming from main character, check. At that time, I saw absolutely no reason to continue this show.

Boy, was I wrong. Thank god I got curious when I saw Maya‘s entries about the series, and managed to catch up with the series. I’m so glad I did that. Yes, it remains a shounen series. But one heck of an incredibly well developed shounen series. The romance between the main character (Renton) and main female character (Eureka), which I initially gave no chance of success, turned out to be so well developed and fleshed out. This really is a must see for anyone with a bit of patience.

Basically, the series consists out of four part. The first part is the most boring and misleading. It’s mostly meant to introduce the cast of characters, and covers about ten episodes. The second part suddenly starts introducing a huge lot of mentally disturbing scenes. Boy, that was a huge surprise. By the end of this part (episode 28) I really was hooked to this anime. The creators made perfect use of the fact that Renton was just an idiotic boy. He just keeps causing troubles to his surroundings, and Eureka as well, because of his naivety.

Then, starting from episode 29, the third part begins, and all of the disturbing scenes just stop, and the series enters a season-long intermezzo. It’s mostly meant in order to develop the different characters and flesh them out a bit, with the emphasis on Renton and Eureka, though it may be a pain to get through. Then, at episode 40 the series picks up pace again, and at episode 44, the fourth part of the anime begins, attempting to finish the anime. The fourth part turns amazing again. It fully utilizes the basis that the third part set, and delivers six episodes of pure awesomeness. These episodes were so incredibly sad at times. Unfortunately, the creators had set their mind on an epic ending, which threw this anime into the pit of predictability again, unfortunately.

The second and fourth part make this anime incredibly worthwhile, in their own way. The second part focuses on conflicts, while the fourth part focuses on trust and faith. Emotions skyrocket during the many climaxes and confrontations. Unfortunately, the fact remains that the first and third arc are rather essential for this anime, even though they remain boring. At times, Renton also acts like an annoying brat for comic relief, that wasn’t really exciting to see.

The story of this anime, indeed, is one huge adventure. But what else can you expect with a fifty-episode anime? The story focuses around an interesting world, created by the creators of this anime. The plot is very complex and multi-layered, and this anime does a fine job introducing the different elements. Still, there are a few unanswered plotholes left at the end of the episode. Our main character’s sudden outburst of power never really gets a decent explanation.

Overall, this anime has great characters. During the right parts, they really shine like no other. If you’ve got enough time for a 50-episode series, I’m definitely recommending this.