General Anime

[Nicο]

I feel like it's high time we try something like this again. Mostly for the obvious titles that don't really get a thread to stick around, if one is made at all. Where even if it's not something you can exactly comment on every episode, if it can happen a decent number of times, this might actually be a really good idea. Comments of various anime could potentially get others interested, or you it's spoilery enough make sure to tag appropriately, and others may possibly join in on the conversation. At least, that is definitely the idea that can happen. 

 

And, what this could especially be good for, is older anime. I know my first comments to get the thread started, as well as the next 2 episodes I'll watch on Friday, will be from The Idolmaster.

 

Episode 17 just became my favorite episode and just as I thought, there's no way Makoto is not going to end up my favorite character. Like I said in that idol performance tourney, I knew she was gonna be a little tomboy, but that voice still really surprised me. Actually getting to know her, on the other hand, kind of blows that out of the water. So I'm kinda surprised I like her just that much, but not really. Rin is one of my Love Live favs.

 

I have watched episode 18, and [spoiler=Well I guess I should spoiler this in case anyone really doesn't know anything about the series yet]I am sad that Ritsuko isn't going to stay an idol. I suppose that's actually why I find her so much more interesting than Azusa, but still.

 

[Susie]

This is fuckin sweet, never really did communicate that much in the Anime discussions since im more of a late 90s-early 2000s kinda guy when it comes down to my anime viewings. Ill just start this out by giving a little quick run down on a few things that ive sat through recently because fuck if I know what else to say for a first post.

 

Kara no Kyoukai 6 - Easily the worst installment of this series of films. It had its moments with a cool idea, beautiful animation (Which is to be expected from KnK), and some decent scenes but it overall feels kinda like nothing interesting ever happens, like it doesnt take itself far enough with its plot n stuffs. Not a bad film but its really disappointing and underwhelming which is heightened even more by the fact that the 5th film had exceeded all previous 4 installments in quality. Ive heard that the final film is better than the 6th one so I hope everyone is right.

 

Katte Ni Kaizou - Short little OVA series with a charming concept not the funniest execution however it does work fine for what it is. Its directed by Akiyuki Shinbo so theres some really aesthetic-y visuals in it. Apparently ive heard that this was sort of like the prototype for a full-time show that came out later on so ill probably look into that one once I remember the damn name of it. Overall its good and solid and worth putting in if you want a quick little popcorn fix of an anime.

 

Detroit Metal City - One of the things that my secret santa on MAL recommended to me but I never got around to finishing it until now. This is a pretty dark and raunchy comedy but thats the kind of humor that I live for, it does a really great job at mocking the stereotypical image of Death Metal and the whole double life that the main character is trying to live and keep hidden makes for some hilarious scenarios. Kind of was expecting there to be more references towards actual Metal bands however there wasnt really any at all which is kinda sad because they couldve done some really cool stuff, but hey the show itself is still pretty great and so long as youre into this kind of humor I think its recommendable to anyone even people who hate Death Metal could get a kick out of this show. Not an all time favorite but definitely a solid comedy, which isnt usually something I tend to gravitate towards.

 

Chi's Sweet Home - Cute cat does cute stuff for 110 short episodes. Nothing much to say. The majority of it is cute and fun and nothing special but there were a few parts of it that actually grossed me out, ya know immature humor in some areas, but those are easy to look over because its only like 15% of the show. Nothing id write home about but it doesnt try to be that so I say its satisfactory and will please you if you like neko anime.

 

Berserk - A masterpiece. What else would you expect me to say? Its Berserk one of the classics of anime. The only thing I regret about watching Berserk is not watching it earlier in my life. I really needa read the manga sometime soon.

 

 

And thats just about it.

[mitchermitcher]

Kara no Kyoukai 6 - Easily the worst installment of this series of films. It had its moments with a cool idea, beautiful animation (Which is to be expected from KnK), and some decent scenes but it overall feels kinda like nothing interesting ever happens, like it doesnt take itself far enough with its plot n stuffs. Not a bad film but its really disappointing and underwhelming which is heightened even more by the fact that the 5th film had exceeded all previous 4 installments in quality. Ive heard that the final film is better than the 6th one so I hope everyone is right.

It's generally agreed that the 7th film is around the 5th film's level, and whichever you prefer more really depends on personal taste. You already made it past the worst film(really the worst adaptation, the corresponding novel was a bit darker and thus, not quite as bad) so you only have a good film left to go through. And a really confusing epilogue episode too I guess.

 

They also made an 8th film, which was a nice epilogue thing but wasn't quite good enough to be considered an essential part of the story imo.

[Shradow]

I brought this sort of thing up in a status awhile back and had a good discussion on it, glad someone actually went and did it since I forgot about it in favor of taking care of the Anime Announcement Thread.

[Nicο]

On that idol grind.

 

Ep 19:

Well that sure ended in a somewhat less impact-full way that I expected, but just as absurd as I thought. Those jerks should quite that shady jerk company.

 

Ep 20:

They addressed it. They totally addressed it. I was thinking for quite a while there that Chihaya's one character trait just did not come across as very... real. Now it does. For that, I applaud. I applaud vigorously. Sad sheet is just not always going to bump characters up on my favorites list, my overall tastes and the way they handle every little character quirk is what matters the most, and if anything, I like Haruka all the more for it. But Chihaya really did improve drastically as well.

[Nicο]

It has been 24 hours, so how about thoughts on airing crap that I'm not totally completely behind on?

 

ChäoS;Child Ep 11

This could end one of one two ways, but it's already leagues better than ChäoS;HEAd. I feel pretty confidant now in saying that this is a pretty sub-par series. At least the villain is technically more interesting. The lead probably annoys less people, too. Kazuki is probably the one character I have seen do literally nothing for a series with how much screen time (and a name) she gets. There are female MCs in otome adaptions like Amnesia or Arcana Famiglia where they mostly let s*** unfold, but at least them being there has meaning to the story. Like damn.

 

Gabriel DropOut Ep 11

Satania X Mutt OTP... oh no... OH NO. It's still hilarious how much it actually tugs at my heartstrings. Also hamster. Pfft.

 

Miss Kobayashi's Dragon Maid Ep 11

I do always get a kick out of the whole kotatsu thing. Who knew one man made object could make someone lazier than... than... well I can't all too well say games after see Fafnir again. He made another one!? Maybe I can. 

 

The Idolmaster Ep 21

Apparently Scum's Wish got delayed or something? So now we watched an extra one of this. I guess I'll say that I predicted something from this episode. Which, while it seems like that's definitely been happening more often recently, there are still a lot of other things I can't quite predict, even when I totally should.

[Nicο]

Gabriel Dropout

Would have been the perfect sequel hook, damn. Still amazed that they set that up only to just barely have the time to crash it down. Definitely a stand out of teh genre, especially with the unique hook being why they have the personalities that they have. Or rather, why the [expletive] demon world don't they have different ones?. Gonna really hope for a digital release of the manga (and that I even can bother with it), already following too much physically, but I'll have faillen just like Gab if I don't support it. 

 

The Idolmaster Ep 22

Merry birthday! (*^▽^*)

[spoiler=Ep 23-24]

What I wanna know is, who leaves a gaping hole in the stage when you're not using it?

 

 

[Nicο]

Scum's Wish

Still never actually liked any of the characters. Just fascinating watching something like this unfold, it was obviously their intention.

 

Miss Kobayashi's Dragon Maid

Has turned out better than I had originally thought. But I mean, lesbian dragons, so how could I have expected less? 'Nuff said.

[Susie]

So I watched a show ive been meaning to watch for a long time, Gregory Horror Show. I only got through the first volume of it but I loved it. The jumpscares and comedic parts are all pretty bad (though admittedly there was one short scene that I giggled at) but the jumpscares dont actually take you out of the feel and the comedic elements are distracting but its easy to get back into being invested. Its box looking CGI animation is not for everyone but I found that it added to the weird and surreal feel to it. I also really loved the way that the ending happened but I wont spoil it.

[Fusion X. Denver]

 

Scum's Wish

Still never actually liked any of the characters. Just fascinating watching something like this unfold, it was obviously their intention.

 

Miss Kobayashi's Dragon Maid

Has turned out better than I had originally thought. But I mean, lesbian dragons, so how could I have expected less? 'Nuff said.

 

I didn't like or dislike the characters in Scum's Wish. They definitely weren't great people, but I liked getting into each of their heads. Even if they make dumbass decisions. Still can't believe Cuckold-sensei...

I really liked Kobayashi, I didn't expect to enjoy it as much as I did. One of the better iyashike shows out there.

 

It's been a couple weeks, but I caught up with the Monogatari series besides the Kizumono movies, waiting for the 3rd one to be released. Pretty crazy story overall, but it's got a lot of style. There's some major highs and major lows throughout the different seasons, but the overall series comfortably sits around an 8.5/10 for me. Also a very entertaining cast, even if they're funking weird. Almost all of them are a hoot and a half, Senjogahara two hoots.

[Nicο]

Being so behind on Winter stuffs (that I watched by myself) and actually kind of nearing the end, I decided it would be best to finish up the episodes of what would take highest priority (AKA most enjoyed). These would be first. 

 

Urara Meirochou

The half-serious-cute-girls-doing-cute-things-while-sometimes-doing-their-job is just what the doctor ordered. Well, I say job, but really they're in school for it, so it's all good. From my stupid experience being in school, at least. So never quite mind. Also, being just that carefree most of the time while still having a very important goal, idk, Chiya the feral diviner just about made it to the best girl of the season for me.

 

Akiba's Trip The Animation

Perfect for when the mood's for parody, totally pointing out what's wrong with most of the things it does while doing it. Kinda upset that this is all I screenshot from it. All in good, dumb, ridiculous how ridiculously enjoyable it is fun. Honestly, Pyuko best girl.

 

I thought about it, and maybe I'd give a rating for the ones I finish. With enjoyability being by far the biggest factor for me, probably more so than some people at least, these both sit at a very solid 8/10. 

 

The Idolmaster too, I've mostly got just the movie to go before moving onto Cinderella Girls. A lot more basically about how the industry actually works (though you can say a lot more optimistic, it actually did show how nasty the industry could be), unlike for instance, middle schools for idols, mecha action entertainment ban, guy crossdressing to help out his crush, etc. All kinds I totally enjoy just as much, if not more even, it's the particular idols that just love to make their fans smile that really get me into it all. 

[Susie]

Forgot about this thing. Im assuming that its still okay to post on this since its still on the first page despite the amount of time its been since the last post. So ill just give brief summaries on what ive been watching.

 

BLAME! movie

Its pretty good actually. The movie was produced by the same studio behind Ajin so you have to tolerate 3D animation. I know that CGI is a little infamous in the anime community however I think it was a wise choice to adapt BLAME! with CGI. The manga is known well for its large cyberpunk architectural structures and 3D is certainly a good way to go with it and it sure does show because the designs look great not as atmospheric as the manga is but still pleasant to the eye. Ill admit that the sometimes the characters movements are a bit robotic and can have off looking facial design however none of that is as distracting as youd expect it to be. Ive only read the first few chapters of the manga however even after that I can tell that they really werent subtle at all with things theres not much build up to the world and they just show off what Killy really is right off the bat. However im guessing that this is due to the movie taking place not at the start of the manga which is understandable as its kind of hard to pack that much atmosphere into one less than two hours movie. Still great and worthy of checking out if youre interested in a dark dystopian cyberpunk. 8/10

 

Higurashi

This one I actually got gifted to during the Secret Santa thing on MAL but wasnt able to get to because my santa gave me three other things to watch plus I had Durarara from my Secret Santa here to finish off so it got pushed aside. From what I remember back in the 2000s it was Higurashi and Elfen Lied that ruled the anime fandom as the pinnacle of disturbing shows. Funny thing is I used to love Elfen Lied as a kid and was off put by Higurashi now im older and looking back on Elfen Lied it was pretty awful and its hard to imagine that it was once in the Top 50. Higurashi unlike Elfen Lied certainly has aged a lot better its creepier, darker, and manages to meld its ideas together in a way that is much more orangized. Its interesting to see the different routes being taken by the main character and how each one peels back another layer of the story and what the fuck is really going down in town. I havent finished watching it yet but as it is now im predicting that ill give it an 8 or a 9 depending on whether it will really get to me at the ending.

 

Wolf's Rain

This is one show that ive been meaning to watch for a long fuckin time because its one that I know id love and as of now yeah im loving it. The show does follow a typical "oh look at these misunderstood ppls outcasted from society" and blah blah blah but its actually well done and it manages to make you feel sympathetic for the wolves without any sort of melodrama or being too manipulative in its emotions. The wolves are incredibly inhuman in how they act and feel however youre still able to understand that they are not bad which is not always an easy feat to accomplish. Ontop of that we get great side stories from the human characters and an emotionally engaging soundtrack. Also Darcia is a great villain hes just as easy to sympathize with as the wolves are and fits perfectly in the show one of the best usages of a villain that you can feel sorry for. As of now its probably gonna get a 9 out of me and potentially a spot in my top 10. Maybe even a perfect 10 if it wows me even more than it already has.

 

The Skull Man

Yeah theres an anime adaptation of that old as funk manga that influenced Kamen Rider which came out in the 2000s, kind of weird that it got made but I wont complain about it. This show has a slow as funk start however the slow start is worth it when things finally start getting serious. I dont wanna talk too much about this one because theres some pretty cool reveals and unexpected things however I will say that so far everything is great. Cant give an approximate rating since I only just got up to the parts where good things happen. To be honest im not bothered by the slow moving start and I was still interested in it at the beginning but a lot of people seemed to have trouble getting engaged with the start of it.

[Fusion X. Denver]

^cool reads. I was curious about Blame since it's the same creator behind the Biomega manga that had gems like this.

 

I've been meaning to watch Wolf's Rain at some point. It's one of those titles I heard about early on when I got into anime, but never got around to. Which segues into why I came in to post:

 

I recently started watching the Toaru series. I remember this was crazy popular back in 2010-2011 because Index II had come out and this was before light novel adaptations became stigmatized. It was crazy big on YCM too, there was a whole trend of naming yourself after an Index/Railgun character (pretty sure that was your crowd Nico, can't remember who you were though).

So I've always been curious about it, but just kept getting distracted and the episode count kept getting bigger with OVAs, Railgun S, and I was either focusing on writing a fic or doing college stuff.

 

Anyways, I like it so far. Very solid 7.5/10 right now for Index S1. Took me a while to get invested, things got interesting when we got to Mikasa's arc and she's currently the main draw for me watching Railgun (5 eps in). Bit too much tsun going on though between her and Index...

Part of me wishes I watched this earlier in my anime days because I've got a much more discerning eye now and I feel like 2010/11 me would've been all over this show. But still a fun romp and I plan on finishing the whole thing. 

I also think Touma's fine, sure he can be preachy sometimes but I think the criticism I heard against him's a little overblown. I like his blunt nature too where he'll say something insensitive without thinking about it and he doesn't do that chivalry bullshit about hitting evil girls. 

 

tl;dr-Nice recs Moog and I'm finally watching Index after years of holding off.

[Nicο]

Index is tsun...? I feel like a lot of people don't even notice because of just how blatant Onee-sama (yeah, way back then I was Kuroko, and when the fad actually came, ended up as Saten) is, but yeah, I little bit... well, the good news is Index makes like 1 cameo in Railgun, and Touma doesn't even show up that much for her to really show the big tsun-idge except for those occasions. Maybe S was different since I think you know it's another take on that sisters arc, but I still thought that was even more well done, so hope that's another enjoyment for ya.

 

So I was gonna say something else while I was at it, but I found that difficult to express while I'm still watching, so here's a couple things I finished yesterday:

 

Magical☆Shopping Arcade Abenobashi

It was definitely fun to go through essentially different genres every episode, and most were a blast, but my god did that ever kill the consistency. This is also different from the characters just getting a happy ending, I don't want to go into any specifics since I'm too lazy to make a spoiler, but well, they kinda killed the lesson they were building up towards right at the very end. Like... why? Still, was all in all an interesting take on Isekai 4 years before Zero no Tsukaima, which itself came before the genre even got super popular (but for sure started the climb up). I'm just so conflicted as to what it did that I guess 6/10 is a little generous, but at the same time, what an experience.

 

Seiyu's Life!

While the main characters are quite outlandish, just... wow. Okay, I appreciate the craziness at times, Hata Kenjirou did illustrate the source. Ichigo go-go-go. But I mean, this portrays real seiyu in a more realistic, frankly humbling (okay, for some reason I decided to search that word now, and the first few definitions (thankfully not all of them) paints it as something negative, a way pretty much nobody uses it for now) way. I mean, they are shown to be a lot more like the fans, and I mean dang. From the ones I knew a little about, they seemed a lot more on point when you'd think (maybe you wouldn't, but I kind of did) they would rather be portrayed in a more I dunno, extravagant light? Yet there were even more surprises here and there, to the point that yeah, of course they are real people, and they feel so out of place compared to a Yuki Nagato rip off that doesn't know she's doing a bit better than she thinks, a "princess from planet strawberry" who wants to be an idol seiyu that sings and dances, and a middle schooler who doesn't know how to do a middle schooler voice because she's been acting for 10 years. Yet, for some reason, it all just blends together so much more consistently than Abenobashi. It is a big treat for anyone who might have heard the tiniest bit of more relatable info about seiyu (and of course, that likes more surprisingly grounded comedies in the first place). That, and this seiyu that made the story herself, sure has love for her sensei I guess, LOL... "Ryouko Shiraishi... I love her in that butler anime I always watch" cue obvious shot of Hayate is obvious. I give it 8/10