Yozakura Quartet – Hana no Uta
Short Synopsis: Our lead character is human.
Yozakura Quartet, congratulations. You have beaten the entire Autumn Season so far. No other series came close to the creativity you showed in this episode. The characters were incredibly likable, the soundtrack is fantastic, and the animation. Oh god the animation! There are plenty well animated series this season, but this show really takes this one step beyond. This episode featured a festival for example. Take a look at all of the characters in the background: the creators made sure to give all of them a unique look, and they tried to animate all of them as much as possible. Kill La Kill stood out, but it did so in just one way and one style. Kyoukai no Kanata just had a ton of inbetween frames that brought its characters to life. This series however really puts thought into its animation: it toys around with camera angles, it actually moves its camera dynamically, characters physically interact with each other and their environment beyond just swinging swords, punching or firing beams, and it’s all incredibly diverse: the animators experiment with a ton of different stuff here. Especially the second half of this episode was chock full of neat ideas, experiments and really creative movements. There perhaps isn’t as much animation as with the OVAs, but that was to be expected, and there is still plenty to like. This really is a series that excels at showing what’s going on. The only other series that can even get close to it will probably be Kyousogiga.
OP: Oh, the animation. The awesome animation!
Potential: 100%
Gingitsune
Short Synopsis: Our lead character can talk to a fox spirit.
Too… many… great series… this season! I was hoping that Gingitsune would just be one of those forgettable youkai series without much ambition, but no. They just had to make this one incredibly charming series. It’s still a really simple show: a girl suddenly lives with her father at a shrine and suddenly she sees a fox spirit who can talk with a god. She’s the only one who can, and so she becomes its spokesperson. That’s all, nothing special, and similar things have been done many times before. But that fox. I LOVE that fox. He’s all sorts of adorable. He’s this big cuddly teddybear who is this old fart and suddenly realizes he has to be commanded around by this bratty teenager. He’s just wonderful to watch and he synergizes with all characters he’s able to interact with. The female lead, she’s not bad either. She’s bratty, but she too is developed and she learns of her mistakes. She’s engaging enough as a female lead and as the spokesperson of that awesome fox. I know my taste is weird!
OP: Strange animation choices, but I see here enough hints to know that this show will have enough material for 13 episodes.
ED: Awww.
Potential: 85%
Walkure Romanze
Short Synopsis: Our lead character likes horses.
I… just…. what did I just watch? Sigh, dear Walkure Romanze: if you want to have fanservice, fine. Find some way to add it naturally or something. Do not throw in a horse that has a craving for young girl’s skirts. I’d really wish that I didn’t have to tell you this, but unfortunately these series still exist. This entire episode felt like a slap to the face to be honest. The entire setting doesn’t make any sense, as it seems entirely devoted to jousting, and nothing else, and it throws in this inconsequential romance subplot featuring an entire cast of characters with the IQs that many horses can beat easily. The horse was the most bizarre part, due to how well it was drawn at times. Heck, the creators even emoted this animal, with the result that it looked even more rapey than it already was. This really is one to pass up here…
OP: Bland in every way.
ED: Yeah yeah, just give any more obvious hints that this is going to be a harem by putting the entire female cast in wedding dresses…
Potential: 0%
In regards to hearing about that horse thing I don’t know whether I should be horrified or morbidly curious/fascinated.
I heard Gingitsune is supposed to be 21 episodes.
Walkure is apparently an adaptation of something that was made by the same people as Princess Lover. That should tell you everything.
And yeah, the amount of good anime this season is amazing. It’s one of the best things to happen this year! Sometimes we all worry about the general decline of anime, but seasons like this give us all hope and joy.
This anime season is trying to kill me, unless I cut my precious sleep time, otherwise, it’s impossible to follow so many series weekly!
uhmmm first impresions so far… I think Kill la kill, copelion, magi 2 and log horizon (best opening also). But this seasson look very promising. Strike the blood 0%??? seriously…Yosakura i dont say nothing not particulary impressed by this one.
Yozakura Quartet – Hana no Uta, so what is actually about?
and where did you download it? I cant find it anywhere
he probably watches them raw as his early reviews usually contain immense praise of the art and angles and nothing about the story 😛
Please psgels, don’t ever talk about animation anymore. You clearly don’t know anything.
kiavik if anything contains weird and overly flamboyant animation or completely butchered animation ( aku no hana ) its a immediate favorite for him 😛 you should know that much if you come to this blog 😀
Please tell me what you know. I would like to be educated by you on it.
Just finished watching Walkure Romanze. It’s really seems like a lot of wasted talent. It’s really pretty, and at times I feel they juiced the story for %100 of what it’s worth.
Unfortunately the story, especially the painfully annoying cliche female characters, is something akin to sewage, so juicing it just leaves you with sewer water.
I’ll probably give it one more episode crossing my fingers that it’s something that just makes a TERRIBLE first impression.
While i do disagree that Yozakura no Quartet had the best animation of this fall season, it does have creative fight choreography and there is definitely a lot of movement going on in scenes to keep the show very lively and expressive. Sound quality is also great. This is definitely a slick looking series with some great animation effects.
Walkure… I thought I had seen stupid, but this one seems to reach to a whole new level.
Hey Psgels, I have a suggestion : could you create a category for all your first impression posts, with a link in the top bar of your blog ?
I would be interested in reading first impressions from long ago.
There is always that approach to animation… let’s butcher the character designs, so we can have fluid animation with 4-bit colour no shadows and highlights, blured ‘shopped backgrounds, etc.
The mangaka of Yozakura Quartet drew some of best (and detailed) panels, complimented by a decent and easy to follow (for the mainstream) story. The first anime butchered the story, but the OVA and the current TV series massacre his godly artwork 🙁
I wouldnt say he massacred the artwork; YnQ has some great animation; it isnt the most lavish, but its definitely kinetic, flashy, exuberant, dynamic, and consistent. Things dont get terribly off-model. If there was anyway to capture the energy and eccentricity of the manga, this is the way.
So for a newbie to anime like myself, should i start watching from the OVA or will i not understand without the first season?
DON’T START WITH THE OVA!!!!! It will make no sense without having read the manga.
I guess the current TV anime, however much the character designs are atrocious is the best way to get into the story, characters and setting. The manga of course is the best, provided you can live without great, lavish, kinetic, flashy, exuberant, dynamic, and consistent animation of 4-bit colored silhouettes resembling the human form 😉
I wouldn’t say godly though either. It isn’t THAT good from what I read.
@Razors: From what I recall this Yokazura show is a reboot so you’d be fine I imagine to go ahead and watch.
Yozakura is directed by the same guy who is behind some of the most outstanding fight scenes in Birdy the Mighty Decode. That’s something for me to hang around for.
Oh boy. I can’t wait for the pointless squabbling to go into overdrive as usual, just because someone didn’t animate some relatively obscure manga with the budget of a blockbuster mainstream title. Just being happy that someone’s adapting an anime isn’t good enough anymore, it seems.
Walkure Romanze looks like its going to be the best anime ever. Can’t go wrong with some hentai horse! 😀