Some Quick First Impressions: Ultraman, Konoyo no Hate de Koi o Utau Shoujo YU-NO and Fruits Basket (2019)

Ultraman

Short Synopsis: A superpowered space officer and his son are called to save the Earth from a familiar-looking villain.

Lenlo’s review:
Having never seen the original series, I had no idea what to expect going into this one. But I must say, I was pleasantly surprised. The CGI was off putting at first, but Ultraman really commits to it and by the end, I barely even noticed it. I was all in, and it looks just enough like the cheesey live action of original Super Sentai series for me to enjoy it. On top of that, the story itself actually appears to be quite new to the genre! Instead of being episodic, this is more like a coming of age Western super hero story, like Spiderman. There definitely appears to be some influences from there to my eyes. That it follows the original series as a sequel of sorts also plays in its favor, as Ultraman isn’t forced into the originals mold, its free to be its own thing. The series could easily take a turn from this, the actual city and interiors showing some cracks in the facade, but from what I saw in the first episode, Ultraman is a Netflix series worth your time.
Potential: 60%

Wooper’s review:
I think I’ve been spoiled by Polygon Pictures’ 3D anime offerings, because series like Ronja and Seikaisuru Kado looked much better than this. Ultraman moves slightly away from the traditional influences of those series and edges towards more sophisticated lighting and shading, plus more CG involvement in its background art. This pays some dividends, as in the bit ripped straight from Spiderman where Shinjiro tests his powers on the roof. His weightless leaps from building to building are given some life by the way he gels with the sunlit scenery, which is great. There’s much more to be disappointed in, though; the oppressively geometric layout of every single interior scene, the total lack of environmental damage from massive impacts, and the photographed trees that appeared as glorified sprites were especially ugly. On top of that, we have CG anime’s usual stumbling blocks of stuttering pan shots and Botoxed facial expressions to yank us out of the story. Speaking of story, Ultraman 2019 is another superhero tale that promises to comment on power, morality, and human potential in the same way hundreds of others have done in the past. The characters might have been able to carry the half-baked setup if not for Shinjiro, the sort of MC who ponders how many “points” he’d score by rescuing a cute girl from a trio of delinquents. That girl also happens to be a pop idol, who will almost assuredly become his girlfriend because wouldn’t that be awesome? It’s a shame the “next generation” feeling is so prevalent here, because Shinjiro’s father (the original Ultraman) is a fabled Adult Protagonist, despite being a wet blanket himself. Pretty disappointed with this one on the whole, especially since Kenji Kamiyama’s name is attached (hopefully he’s putting all his effort into next year’s Stand Alone Complex sequel).
Potential: 15%

Konoyo no Hate de Koi o Utau Shoujo YU-NO

Short Synopsis: A high school boy whose father just disappeared still goes to school, meets girls with big boobs before gets transported to an alternate timeline.

Lenlo’s review:
Let’s see, mystery transfer student, CHECK. A load of established harem members, CHECK. Weird McGuffin with no explanation, CHECK, and a clearly evil authority figure, CHECK. Hmm… yup, from my diagnosis YU-NO has a clear case of the “Tropes”. While normally not fatal, and occasionally beneficial in a series, I fear this is an advanced case. All originality has been used for a singular perverted MC gag that wasn’t even funny. I fear there is little to be done for the series but to sit back and watch the train wreck. If you like watching something die a slow and inglorious death, YU-NO might be for you. However if you value your time, my recommendation is to avoid like the plague, so you might be spared the terrible affliction.
Potential: 0%

Mario’s review:
UNBEARABLE PROTAGONIST, ACT 1

Yu-no is, in a word, a throwback anime. There are many tropes and styles of humor that bring you right back to the 90s aesthetic that you don’t see often today, at least not to this extreme. Right at the first bit of dialogue, “panty” and “something hard” are thrown to our faces, and it’s getting worse from there. Just look at the screenshot to see the level of unabashed foolishness Yu-no contains. It also has a typical issue when anime tries to adapt a Visual Novel material: it introduces way too many characters before the main plot kicks in and to be frank, none of them is that interesting. Worst among them is the titular naked girl who kisses this horny MC and vanishes into thin air like an acid version of beautiful mermaid. The bad guy screams “villain” from Day 1, and like Steins;Gate 0, his evil seed is a whole bunch of crap. And then we have the lead who has a bit of hormonal issue (or is his own words: is he in that day of the month already?). The hook is solid, though, but with the ensemble cast this cringy, and the humor this dated, Yuno, you know, isn’t worth your time.
Potential: 10%

Fruits Basket (2019)

Short Synopsis: Girl meets several boys in their home and decides to stay there with them.

Mario’s review:
Overall it’s decent start that we have here. The strongest component in this episode is how the show fleshes out all the characters just about enough, especially the main girl with her own struggles and personality. The visual department, however, is sadly unremarkable. It looks “old”, not due to its intention, but more because of its lack of polishment (the worst bit is the distracting CG smoke). The story, while goes through many shoujo tropes (the Prince type, her friends), still remain quite solid because each character has their own voice and there’s much more opportunity to flesh out these characters. It’s true that Fruit Basket is much more interesting when it focuses one characters’ drama, not romance. Another thing that could tamper this adaptation is the pacing, given at one point (where her tent is buried under the snow) passes so quickly and abruptly. For now, I have my reservation regarding the production, but given the strong material it has, there’s still heaps to look forward to.
Potential: 65%

Lenlo’s review:
Let’s cut right to the chase here, its Fruits Basket. Most of you should already know what you are getting into. It’s been almost 20 years since the original afterall. That it’s getting a remake after so long, and is already a successful established series, tells you all you need to know. For myself, my only experience is with the English dubs, and so beyond this first episode I am going to be waiting for those myself. Can never get enough Laura Bailey. For those who don’t know what’s up, Fruits Basket is one of the landmark rom-coms of the late-90’s/early-00’s. As someone who largely despises the genre, it is one of the only series in it I look back on fondly. It’s filled with tropes and stereotypes abound, though an argument could be made that Fruits Basket helped establish them. I have often wondered, because of this, if that fondness was just nostalgia. Well this first episode made me realize it wasn’t, at least not totally. There is a mystery established behind all of the romance and jokes that pushes the story forward, so it doesn’t have to rely purely on the romance. I will still have to wait and see how much I have changed since my youth, but I feel comfortable saying I will enjoy this one.
Potential: 50%