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Anime of the Year 2008-I Winter - Ookami to Koushinryou
kivandopulus posted a blog entry in Anime of the Season
Ookami to Koushinryou is the only bright spot in this short season. 1. Ookami to Koushinryou Spice and Wolf 狼と香辛料 [Imagin] (Finished 13/13) Tags: Adult Cast Adventure, Fantasy, Romance Holo is a powerful wolf deity who is revered in the small town of Pasloe for blessing the annual harvest. Yet as years go by and the villagers become more self-sufficient, Holo has been reduced to a mere folktale. When a traveling merchant named Kraft Lawrence stops at the settlement, Holo offers to become his business partner if he takes her to her northern home of Yoitsu. The savvy trader recognizes Holo's unusual ability to evaluate a person's character and accepts her proposition. Now in the possession of both sharp bargaining skills and a charismatic negotiator, Lawrence inches closer to his goal of opening his own shop. However, as Lawrence travels the countryside with Holo in search of economic opportunities, he begins to realize that his aspirations are slowly morphing into something unexpected. I really enjoyed it when I first watched it, but I don't want to watch it anew as it's just medieval low fantasy SOL romance without conceptual plot or normal ending, and thus lacks excitement. Overall Rating: 7/10 2. Rosario to Vampire Rosario + Vampire ロザリオとバンパイア [Gonzo] (Finished 2/13) Tags: Shounen Harem, School, Vampire Comedy, Fantasy, Romance, Ecchi Youkai Academy is a seemingly normal boarding school, except that its pupils are monsters learning to coexist with humans. All students attend in human form and take normal academic subjects, such as literature, gym, foreign language, and mathematics. However, there is one golden rule at Youkai Academy—all humans found on school grounds are to be executed immediately! Tsukune Aono is an average teenager who is unable to get into any high school because of his bad grades. His parents inadvertently enroll him into Youkai Academy as a last-ditch effort to secure his education. As Tsukune unknowingly enters this new world, he has a run-in with the most attractive girl on campus, Moka Akashiya. Deciding to stay in the perilous realm in order to further his relationship with Moka, he does not realize that beneath her beauty lies a menacing monster—a vampire. Rosario to Vampire is a supernatural school comedy that explores Tsukune's romantic exploits, experiences, and misadventures with a bevy of beautiful but dangerous creatures. Don't like harems, vampires and ecchi, so without serious plot it was a lost case from the start. Overall Rating: 6/10 3. True Tears [P.A. Works] (Finished 5/13) Tags: Love Polygon, School Drama, Romance Shinichirou Nakagami was living the life other boys from his grade could only dream of—staying under the same roof as prodigal student Hiromi Yuasa. However, the bright and cheerful Hiromi has been depressed and cold at home ever since her mother passed away. While he is the subject of the ignorant jealousy of his peers, rumors begin to spread when Shinichirou meets Noe Isurugi—a girl known for cursing classmates, curses which always end up becoming reality. Noe curses Shinichirou as well, but two pits are created when you curse someone, and her curse on Shinichirou comes back to bite her in the form of a raccoon to her beloved chicken, Raigomaru. Despite this, she does not shed a single tear; Noe had had her tears stolen. For Noe to be able to cry again, she would need the tears of another, and Shinichirou knows a person whose tears he wants to take away. An OK romance , but characters have strange personalities and do strange stuff which may seem fresh from the start, but looks more and more like disorders later on. And watching crazy people dating does not look fun at all. Overall Rating: 6/10 4. Mnemosyne: Mnemosyne no Musume-tachi Mnemosyne-ムネモシュネの娘たち- [Xebec] (Finished 2/6) Tags: Gore Action, Girls Love, Horror, Sci-Fi, Supernatural Immortality is something many people would wish for. But would it be such a coveted ability if people knew they would be subject to countless attacks because of it? Such is the case for Rin Asougi, an immortal private investigator, because there is no shortage of people who want her dead. Over the centuries, she has met many grisly ends, but each time, she returns to life as if nothing had happened. In 1990, while looking for a lost cat, Rin runs into Kouki Maeno, a man who feels that his memories are wrong. Agreeing to help him, Rin discovers that Kouki is not what he seems, all the while drawing closer to her true enemy. This adversary knows Rin and her kind all too well, and if she dies by his hand, she may stay dead permanently. This kind of gore is nauseating, so I just can't tolerate if for long. And since concept is all about constant dying and sadism, that's a skip. Overall Rating: 6/10 5. Zoku Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei 俗・さよなら絶望先生 [Shaft] (Finished 1/13) Tags: Shounen Gag Humor, Parody, School Comedy More crazy antics abound as Nozomu Itoshiki (a.k.a Zetsubou-sensei), who is the worlds most negative person, tries to teach class 2-F about how life is filled with despair and darkness. A harder task than it first may seem, with his students being far from ordinary themselves, including the likes of the most positive girl he has ever met, his very own stalker, a foreign exchange student with split personalities and a perfectionist acting class president, due to the fact the real class president can't be seen by anyone, among others. Sequel. Overall Rating: 6/10 6. Aria the Origination [Hal Film Maker] (Finished 1/13) Tags: Shounen Iyashikei Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Slice of Life In the 24th century on the planet Aqua, three girls—Akari Mizunashi, Alice Carroll, and Aika S. Granzchesta—continue to work hard toward achieving their goal of becoming Prima Undines: professional tour guide gondoliers. Luckily, the girls have the guidance of the three best Prima Undines in Neo-Venezia—Alicia Florence, Athena Glory, and Akira E. Ferrari—who are known as the "Water Fairies" in honor of their skill. With their help, the young apprentices train hard and work to overcome any situations that they find themselves in. Aria The Origination follows the hardships and daily lives of these three young girls, who are doing their best to improve as tour gondoliers in Neo-Venezia, a terraformed replica of Venice. Sequel. Overall Rating: 6/10 7. Kimi ga Aruji de Shitsuji ga Ore de They Are My Noble Masters 君が主で執事が俺で [A.C.G.T.] (Finished 1/13) Tags: Harem, Parody Comedy, Romance, Ecchi Due to family troubles, Ren Uesugi and his sister, Mihato, leave their home. They end up moving to the city but find themselves with a lack of money. Somehow they are able to find work in the form of the Kuonji family's mansion, being employed as servants to the three sisters of the Kuonji family: Shinra, Miyu, and Yume. Being a servant also associates Ren with the mansion's additional servants and the Kuonji sisters' friends. I really wanted to watch this to the end, but it is just silly people behaving in silly ways, so it's a too big hit to my sanity to go on. It's nothing but nonsense parody, can't even call this humor - freak circus is more appropriate. Overall Rating: 5/10 8. H2O: Footprints in the Sand [Zexcs] (Finished 12/12) Tags: Harem, School Romance Takuma Hirose is a blind young male high school student, though the cause for his blindness is undetermined. In order to heal his medical condition, he is sent to live in a village with his uncle. There, he meets several girls, three of which stand out more than any of the others. They are Hayami Kohinata, Hinata Kangura, and Otoha. Otoha temporarily heals his blindness and Hirose uses his sight to help others. He finds out that, for some reason, Hayami Kohinata is hated in the village, and he tries his best to help her out. Meanwhile, many sad secrets unfold in the village... Resembles nakige as it's deliberately light for the most part and deliberately heavy by the end dealing in disability, abuse and different personal problems. Unfortunately I did not like any of the characters, and there are filler episodes. Overall Rating: 6/10 9. Shigofumi Shigofumi: Letters from the Departed シゴフミ [J.C.Staff] (Finished 1/12) Tags: Psychological Drama, Fantasy, Suspense There are some things that people are unable to say while they are alive; for these, there are "shigofumi," letters carried from the world of the dead to the world of the living. When a person with strong emotions dies, they are able to create a shigofumi, whether their feelings are of love, longing, or resentment. It is the quiet and mysterious Fumika's job to deliver these messages from the departed. Along with her talking magic staff Kanaka, she ensures that each shigofumi reaches its intended recipient, even if that person does not want to face its contents. Fumika witnesses the tragedies of people, both dead and alive, and sees their deepest secrets revealed. What is unclear, however, are the details of Fumika's past. Who was she before she came to be a carrier of shigofumi? Another anthology of different stories, not to my taste. Overall Rating: 6/10 10. Persona: Trinity Soul ペルソナ 〜トリニティ・ソウル〜 [A-1 Pictures] (Finished 6/26) Tags: Super Power Action, Sci-Fi The stage is Ayanagi City, a city near the Japan Sea. It is a futuristic city that was built to carry out the recovery from the calamity caused by the "Apathy Syndrome" ten years previous. High school student Shin Kanzato with his little brother Jun, meet with their elder brother Ryou, who is the chief of the Ayanagi City Police, again after ten years. At that time, a series of strange incidents happen in Ayanagi City such as the crew of a submarine that suddenly disappears while in their submarine, or a spiritless symptom which disturbs the world after ten years, or the case of the inside out corpse where a student took on a cruel appearance. Ryou tracks down the organization behind the string of incidents, and having become involved in the incidents, Shin awakens the "Persona." So far I hated every single Persona game and anime that I encountered for primitiveness and artificial behavior... Overall Rating: 5/10 11. Minami-ke Okawari みなみけ~おかわり~ [asread.] (Finished 13/13) Tags: Seinen CGDCT, School Comedy, Slice of Life The second season of Minami-Ke. It picks up where the first season left off, and just like the first season, it's about the daily lives of the three Minami sisters, Haruka, Kana and Chiaki, and their school friends. Sequel. Overall Rating: 6/10 12. Major S4 メジャー (第4シリーズ) [SynergySP] (Finished 1/26) Tags: Shounen Team Sports Having finished high school, Gorou Honda sets his sights on becoming a professional baseball player. His dreams are much more ambitious than becoming a Japanese Baseball League player, so he instead decides to move to the birthplace of his beloved sport, America, in order to play in the Major League. However, Gorou finds that the Major League players are much faster, stronger, and more driven than he is. Nonetheless, he is eager to catch up with them. In order to do so, Gorou must first conquer the ranks of the Minor League, where numerous skilled players compete in the grueling rise to the Majors. Gorou learns that he will have to adapt to the stark differences of American culture and push himself to new extremes as his race to join the Major League begins. Sequel. Overall Rating: 6/10 13. Gunslinger Girl: Il Teatrino ガンスリンガー ガール -IL TEATRINO- [Artland] (Finished 1/13) Tags: Military Action, Drama, Sci-Fi When the Social Welfare Agency investigates the disappearance of an operative, their inquiry leads them right into the lair of their rival, the Five Republics. The assassin Triela infiltrates the hostile organization, but her search is cut short when she finds herself staring down the barrel of a gun... The magic of the first season is gone here - no good soundtrack or tender revelations of girls. Story becomes retarded as super terrorists without any written motivation show up, and they are even stronger than cyborgs while staying human. It feels that story is forced in artificial manner. Overall Rating: 6/10 14. Hatenkou Yuugi Hatenkou Yugi 破天荒遊戯 [Studio Deen] (Finished 3/10) Tags: Josei Adventure, Comedy, Drama, Fantasy, Romance "See the world" With these words, Rahzel, the daughter of a rich family, is kicked out of her house and sent on her journey. Along the way she meets up with Heat and Alzeid, two men with very different personalities but very similar journeys. Rahzel is a clever, stubborn, and confident girl, who, with the powers of her magic and mind helps the people she runs into on her journey to discover the world. It's basically reverse harem, just with only two bishounens. And I started blocking that tag for a reason. Overall Rating: 5/10 15. Ayakashi アヤカシ [Tokyo Kids] (Finished 12/12) Tags: Action, Fantasy, Horror, Sci-Fi As a child, Yuu Kusaka made a vow upon a shooting star that he would stand on the side of justice and defend the weak. However, the death of one of his friends robs him of the desire to live up to that vow, and he turns a blind eye to the misery of others, using the mysterious power he possesses as a means of making money instead of helping those in need. His days of living only for himself continue, until he's forced to fight for his life against another classmate with powers similar to his. He's saved by a mysterious girl named Eimu Yoake, who also has strange powers. Eimu reveals that his powers stem from a creature known as an Ayakashi, a parasitic being that grants the user special abilities at the price of slowly draining the life of the host. She helps him fully awaken his own. Now aware of the ayakashi he possesses, Yuu must live up to his childhood vow, putting his ayakashi to use and fend off those who would use their own for evil, all while unraveling the mystery behind the death of his friend. Good shounen with superpowers, but not exceptional. I think I compared anime with visual novel in game review. Overall Rating: 6/10 16. Bus Gamer [Anpro] (Finished 3/3) Tags: Action One day, Toki Mishiba receives a letter in the mail promising him a large sum of money if he participates in a game. Initially dismissing the message, Toki becomes intrigued and decides to sign up after noticing fine print that says players' safety will not be guaranteed. It is not long after that he meets Nobuto Nakajou and Kazuo Saitou—the teammates assigned to him in the "Business Game," also known as "Biz Game." The members of the trio quickly form a shaky alliance and call themselves "No Name." Bound by nothing but their shared desire for an obscene amount of money, the three step into the dangerous world of the Biz Game, where they must fight against other teams over a data disk containing vital corporate secrets in order to advance and survive. It has the looks and some vibes of shounen ai, Survival game is half of the show, but it ends with pretty much nothing, which means that it all was about relations that constituted the second half. Overall Rating: 5/10 17. Hakaba Kitarou Graveyard Kitaro 墓場鬼太郎 [Toei Animation] (Finished 1/11) Tags: Horror, Supernatural Kitarou is a youkai boy born in a cemetery, and aside from his mostly-decayed father, the last living member of the Ghost tribe. He is missing his left eye, but his hair usually covers the empty socket. He fights for peace between humans and youkai, which generally involves protecting the former from the wiles of the latter. This version of the Kitarou story is based on the original Hakaba Kitarou manga, the manga which inspired the popular Gegege no Kitarou series in the late 60's. Sequel. Overall Rating: 6/10 18. Yes! Precure 5 GoGo! Yes! プリキュア5 GoGo! [Toei Animation] (Finished 1/48) Tags: Mahou Shoujo, School Action, Fantasy Nozomi and friends are back, their role as Precure far from over. The girls are given new powers by the mysterious Flora, who awaits their arrival in a place called the Cure Rose Garden. But to reach that garden of legend, they have to use a magical relic known as the Rose Pact. Problem is, our heroes don't know how to use the thing. This leads them to seek help from the four monarchs of Palmier's neighboring countries. Not to make things too easy, dark forces are afoot once again. An evil organization, Eternal, is keen on adding the Rose Pact to its ever-growing collection of treasures. To make matters worse, the director of this dastardly museum seems to have a vested interest in the Cure Rose Garden. Fortunately, a new story brings with it new allies. Enter Syrup, the courier boy with a bad attitude. His desire to reach the Garden is pure, but who exactly is he? And for that matter, who's the new girl in town and why does she smell like roses? Sequel. Overall Rating: 6/10 19. Wellber no Monogatari: Sisters of Wellber Zwei Sisters of Wellber Zwei ウエルベールの物語 ~Sisters of Wellber~ 第二幕 [Trans Arts] (Finished 1/13) Tags: Historical Adventure, Fantasy, Romance The loquacious sentient tank, Gyrano De Borgerac seems very busy being pampered by solicitous maids. The fairy Sherri, too, is enjoying the luxury of the court's life. And for Rita, time has come to face her duties as princess of Wellber. But Tina is resolute: she wants to continue her search for the Man with a tattoo of Bee the Death, the devil who exterminated her family. An unspeakable feeling of sadness fills the hearts of the two girls, who shared so much and are now about to say farewell to each other. And then, on the day of Tina's departure... A new journey that will take Tina walking through the still sore scars of the Great War that wiped out entire cities ten years before, until the unsuspected truth about her nemesis! Sequel. Overall Rating: 5/10 20. Yatterman ヤッターマン [Tatsunoko Production] (Finished 1/60) Tags: Parody Adventure, Comedy Remake of the Yatterman series. Remake of borderline childish series. Overall Rating: 5/10 21. Porphy no Nagai Tabi The Orphans of Simitra ポルフィの長い旅 [Nippon Animation] (Finished 3/52) Tags: Historical Drama Porfy, his younger sister Mina, and their parents live a humble but happy life in the Grecian countryside. They've just started running a gas station, much to Porphy's joy, and it seems like only good things are in store for their future. However, a huge earthquake changes all that, leaving Porfy without a home or a family -- sans Mina, who seems to have disappeared in the commotion. Now, Porfy is determined to find his sister and be able to live together happily again. World Masterpiece Theater... but at least something relatively modern. Still it does not mean I'll tolerate travel blog for 52 episodes in search of the sister with pace so slow that three episodes aren't even enough for premise separation scene. Overall Rating: 6/10 22. Noramimi のらみみ [TMS Entertainment] (Finished 1/12) Tags: Childcare Comedy The anime is based on Kazuo Hara's comedy manga in which mascot characters live and work among humans. Agencies have been set up to train mascots to babysit children and then to place the mascots within families. Noramimi is one such mascot at the Hello Kids branch office #59. Unfortunately, no family wants to adopt a mascot born from a demon (oni) family, so he is stuck living at the agency. Crude nonsense comedy for kids. Overall Rating: 5/10 23. Petit Petit Muse 쁘띠쁘띠 뮤즈 [KBS] (Finished 1/26) Tags: Mahou Shoujo Fantasy Two twins, Ara and Ari, aspire into the world of fashion. Ara wants to become a fashion model, while her sister, Ari, wants to become a fashion designer. They meet a man named Yorang, who is the fashion designer in Heaven. Not translated to English. But from what I see it's a typical Korean imitation of mahou shoujo series like Precure, put more primitive. Overall Rating: 5/10 24. Kite Liberator KITE LIBERATOR (カイト リベレイター) [Arms] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Gore Action, Drama, Sci-Fi In the previous series "Kite," a killer—Sawa—suddenly disappears after she avenges her parents' death, and no one knows where she is. Several years later, a figure dances airily on the dark side of a big city. She is an angel of death, killing her victim gracefully and disappearing. Monaka is a normal high school student, though this quiet and modest life has a darker side. An angel of death is Monaka's other persona. Original was marked as hentai, so could not include it although it was memorable. Never heard of this sequel movie, so rather intrigued. It's a high quality epilogue that shows where Kite works in everyday life and how she still occasionally takes part in operations, and parallel story starts afar, but develops into a really dangerous mission. So I just can't treat it as a real sequel and evaluate it highly. Overall Rating: 6/10 25. Yotsunoha よつのは [Hal Film Maker] (Finished 2/2) Tags: School Romance Based on the game by Haikuo-Soft. A story about the reunion of 4 childhood friends, Yuzuki, Matsuri, Nono and Makoto, in their deserted old school campus, Mochitsuki Academy. 3 years ago, they buried a time capsule under a tree inside the school and made a promise. A promise to meet again after exactly 3 years from that day. And the day of promise has finally arrived. Original was just a light cute sekkuhara comedy, and the gist has not changed in adaptation. Overall Rating: 6/10 26. Shinran-sama: Negai, Soshite Hikari 親鸞さま ねがい そして、ひかり。 [-] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Historical The life story of Shinran, founder of Joudo Shinshuu. Did not what Joudo Shinshuu is, so was a bit curious, but it's just competition between buddhist temples and pacifism miracles, nothing big. Overall Rating: 5/10 27. Kara no Kyoukai Movie 3: Tsuukaku Zanryuu The Garden of Sinners Chapter 3: Remaining Sense of Pain 劇場版 空の境界 the Garden of sinners 第三章『痛覚残留』 [ufotable] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Action, Drama, Mystery, Supernatural, Suspense On a solemn night in July 1998, teenager Fujino Asagami is mercilessly raped by a street gang in a dilapidated bar. No matter what physical or sexual abuse they deal, however, the girl regards her captors with the same apathetic expression. The next day, mangled bodies are discovered in that same building, so torn apart that investigators find it infeasible to even consider the culprit human. Elsewhere, a client request reaches Touko Aozaki's detective agency, tasking Shiki Ryougi with either capturing or killing the perpetrator of last night's incident. But soon, word spreads that a single survivor escaped the slaughter, and now the murderer is plowing down everything in their path to locate and exterminate him. A brutal race against time begins, pitting Shiki against a dangerous foe imperceptible even to her legendary eyes. Detective supernatural mystery is what I can understand well... but I dislike that. Overall Rating: 5/10 28. Sugai-kun to Kazoku Ishi The Movie 菅井君と家族石 THE MOVIE [DLE] (Finished 10/1) Tags: Parody Comedy The Japanese animation production company Animax announced that Kaeruotoko-Shokai's second theatrical Flash-animated film, Sguy and The Family Stone the Movie, will open in a limited engagement in Japan on February 16. Not found. Overall Rating: 0/10 -
Gyakkyou Burai Kaiji: Ultimate Survivor , Minami-ke and Genshiken 2 are all considered minor masterpieces by me, but two of them had some representation earlier, so only Minami-ke is fresh new. 1. Clannad [Kyoto Animation] (Finished 23/23) Tags: School Drama, Romance, Supernatural Tomoya Okazaki is a delinquent who finds life dull and believes he'll never amount to anything. Along with his friend Youhei Sunohara, he skips school and plans to waste his high school days away. One day while walking to school, Tomoya passes a young girl muttering quietly to herself. Without warning she exclaims "Anpan!" (a popular Japanese food) which catches Tomoya's attention. He soon discovers the girl's name is Nagisa Furukawa and that she exclaims things she likes in order to motivate herself. Nagisa claims they are now friends, but Tomoya walks away passing the encounter off as nothing. However, Tomoya finds he is noticing Nagisa more and more around school. Eventually he concedes and befriends her. Tomoya learns Nagisa has been held back a year due to a severe illness and that her dream is to revive the school's drama club. Claiming he has nothing better to do, he decides to help her achieve this goal along with the help of four other girls. As Tomoya spends more time with the girls, he learns more about them and their problems. As he attempts to help each girl overcome her respective obstacle, he begins to realize life isn't as dull as he once thought. First season is actually decent though nothing exceptional, but the problem is that afterwards comes the second season that is absolutely depressing, so I'd recommend to skip Clannad in entirety. Overall Rating: 6/10 2. Gyakkyou Burai Kaiji: Ultimate Survivor Kaiji: Ultimate Survivor 逆境無頼カイジ Ultimate Survivor [Suspense] (Finished 26/26) Tags: Seinen Adult Cast, High Stakes Game, Psychological, Strategy Game After one of his coworkers fails to repay a debt, apathetic bum Kaiji Itou is pressured by loan sharks to settle the large sum of cash. Since Kaiji has little money and no future prospects of his own, he is unable to return what his colleague borrowed. Faced with massive financial burdens, Kaiji is given an offer to board the illustrious Espoir—it is said that "one night aboard the ship, and all of your debts will be paid." What seems like a simple night of gambling quickly turns into a game of strategy and betrayal. With the losers of the tournament being subjected to a backbreaking life of indebted servitude, Kaiji must choose his actions—and allies—carefully. However, this is only the beginning of a series of gambles that will wager Kaiji's life, testing the full extent of his wits and will to survive. I could not enjoy Akagi, but Kaiji first season was an absolutely shocking experience when I first watched it. But as concept gets crystalized, impression dulls a bit during such a long runtime, so can't give it super high scores as I don't have incentive to watch any its iterations. Overall Rating: 7/10 3. Shakugan no Shana II (Second) Shakugan no Shana: Season II 灼眼のシャナII –Second– [J.C.Staff] (Finished 24/24) Tags: Mahou Shoujo, School Action, Drama, Fantasy, Romance Denizens from the Crimson Realm continue to infiltrate Misaki City and steal life energy from humans. To combat this threat, Flame Hazes are tasked with saving humans from losing their existences. But while it is a Flame Haze's duty to protect humans, Shana—the "Flame-Haired Burning-Eyed Hunter"—seems to be focusing her attention on one human in particular: Yuuji Sakai, a teenage boy who was unwittingly dragged into the fight between Crimson Denizens and Flame Hazes. Since her first encounter with Yuuji, Shana has started to see him as more than just a friend. In fact, Yuuji wonders if Shana might have revealed her feelings to him once before, but it is difficult for him to confirm due to her hot-and-cold personality. Nonetheless, their days pass like any other, until a new transfer student arrives at their high school—one who bears a striking resemblance to an old enemy. Yuuji and Shana have no time to dance around their feelings for each other; while their adversaries from the Bal Masqué organization plan their next attack, the two must keep their guard up as they explore the origin behind the coveted magical object within Yuuji's body, the "Midnight Lost Child." Since I rated first season as 7, just following my regulations to take away a score point for sequels of masterpieces. Overall Rating: 6/10 4. ef: A Tale of Memories. ef - a tale of memories. [Shaft] (Finished 12/12) Tags: Drama, Mystery, Romance On Christmas Eve, Hiro Hirono runs into Miyako Miyamura, a frivolous girl who "borrows" his bicycle in order to chase down a purse thief. After Hiro finds his bicycle wrecked and Miyako unconscious, the two unexpectedly spend their Christmas Eve together, and when they discover they go to the same high school, their accidental relationship develops even further. This sparks the jealousy of Hiro's childhood friend Kei Shindou, whose pure approach to life catches the eye of Kyosuke Tsutsumi, a womanizing photographer searching for the perfect shot. Elsewhere, Renji Asou, a boy who dreams of being a girl's knight in shining armor, has a chance encounter with Kei's twin sister—the overly shy Chihiro Shindou, who spends her time reading alone—at an abandoned train station. The two quickly become friends and eventually decide to write a novel together. However, when Renji discovers Chihiro's secret, a disability that causes her to have an eternally ephemeral memory, his childish ideals will be put to the test. Guided by two mysterious adults, these youths' relationships intertwine in a heart-rending tale of love, rejection, acceptance, and memories. I remember starting it several times and inevitably falling asleep, so no idea if I ever finished it before. Now I realize that it's just a very hysterical girl with daily repeating amnesia harassing a masochistic boy. This is boring, constantly repeating, unsubstantial and just bad. Overall Rating: 5/10 5. Kidou Senshi Gundam 00 Mobile Suit Gundam 00 機動戦士ガンダム00 [Sunrise] (Finished 4/25) Tags: Mecha, Military, Space Action, Drama, Sci-Fi In the distant future, mankind's dependence on fossil fuels will lead to their complete depletion, an energy crisis unlike anything the world witnessed. Out of retaliation and fear, humanity began focusing at an alternative source of energy: solar power. Different nations have united together to form three major factions—the Union of Solar Energy and Free Nations, the Advanced European Union, and the Human Reform League. Each of these sectors has access to a solar power generator, which gives them limitless energy. As a result, countries that were once dependent on the sale of fossil fuels are now plunged in poverty, leading to years of warfare and internal strife over the control of solar energy. Amid this chaos, an unknown paramilitary organization appeared identifying themselves as "Celestial Being," aspire to end all warfare through armed intervention by using mysterious and technologically advanced Mobile Suits known as Gundams. Mobile Suit Gundam 00 follows the story of Celestial Being's Gundam Meisters Setsuna F. Seiei, Lockon Stratos, Allelujah Haptism, and Tieria Erde. These four dive into the devastating battle between the three superpowers to accomplish their goal of changing the world. I come to every Gundam open-minded, and after Code Geass expected borrowing its elements, and it actually happened as new super organization attacks both parties with new Gundam models. I praise this iteration for actually being watchable though inheriting many of the flaws from Code Geass, but I did not call even that a masterpiece, and Gundam 00 is of a lower general quality level. The best entry point to the franchise still as previous seasons were strangely mechanical. Overall Rating: 6/10 6. Shugo Chara! しゅごキャラ! [Satelight] (Finished 3/51) Tags: Mahou Shoujo, School Comedy Amu Hinamori is a shy girl who struggles to make friends in part due to the rumors spread around school about her "cool and spicy" personality. Wishing that she could show everyone her "would-be" self, Amu wakes up to the presence of three colorful and ornately decorated eggs in her bed. Each of these "Hearts Eggs" houses a "Guardian Character"—manifestations of someone's would-be self and their dreams. With the aid of Ran, Miki, and Su, Amu now finds herself able to express who she truly is. However, things do not always pan out in her favor. The sudden appearance of Amu's Guardian Characters prompts the Seiyo Elementary Guardians, a student council-like group with each member possessing their own Guardian Character, to take notice of her. As someone who has multiple Characters, Amu is roped into being the Guardians' "Joker," tasked with helping them find X Eggs—corrupted versions of one's Hearts Egg. As she becomes entangled in the Guardians' quest, Amu begins to uncover more about these mysterious Characters, the X Eggs, and the organization that seems to be at the center of it all. A pretty normal and typical mahou shoujo at school, maybe with better humor than usual. Overall Rating: 6/10 7. Myself; Yourself マイセルフ; ユアセルフ [Doga Kobo] (Finished 3/13) Tags: School Drama, Romance In the peaceful little town of Sakuranomori, a group of young friends are about to bid farewell to one of their own. Due to his parents’ business plans, Sana Hidaka has to move away from his quiet childhood home to the boisterous city of Tokyo. Though it pains him, he must say goodbye to his precious friends—the kind-hearted Aoi Oribe, the spunky Wakatsuki twins, Shuri and Shuusuke, and the cheerful and upbeat Nanaka Yatsushiro. But even though he is reluctant to leave them behind, he believes that no matter how far apart they are, they will always cherish the memories of their friendship. Five years later, Sana, now a 16-year-old high school student, returns to his hometown with the hope of restoring his old life. However, he quickly realizes that although his town may not have changed drastically, the friends he left behind are not who they used to be. Unsettling shadows loom over Sakuranomori as his friends hold new secrets and bear burdens that threaten the bonds they once shared. Older PS2 visual novels are kings of banality and some distorted cuteness. It's painful to watch... Overall Rating: 5/10 8. Minami-ke みなみけ [Daume] (Finished 13/13) Tags: Seinen CGDCT, School Comedy, Slice of Life The Minami residence is home to three sisters: the strict and diligent eldest sister Haruka; air-headed and lively Kana; and the youngest, Chiaki, whose sharp tongue spares no one. Living without adult supervision, the sisters share the workload of cooking and laundry, as well as the occasional romantic adventure. From combating chronic laziness to hanging out with friends, there is never a boring day in the Minami household. Loving Minami-ke for the unique sense of coziness. Only going to highlight first season, though, as further seasons are very similar. Overall Rating: 7/10 9. Shinreigari Ghost Hound 神霊狩 GHOST HOUND [Production I.G] (Finished 3/22) Tags: Psychological Mystery, Supernatural, Suspense Strange things are happening around the town of Suiten. The daughter of a priest begins to see strange visions, spirits have started to roam the mountains, and Tarou Komori is having unsettling dreams. Due to the trauma of being kidnapped 11 years ago, he has repressed most of the memories that could shed light on what really happened all those years ago. But they return in his sleep, combined with encounters beyond the realm of dreams. As the supernatural and psychological collide, three children struggle to face their demons and repair the breach between the spiritual and corporeal worlds. Suspense makes everything worse. What I see is super slow development and loads of anti-science psychotherapy techniques. Information dumping may be nice at times, but it is dull more often. I do not enjoy the process and not interested in mystery, so see no point continuing. Overall Rating: 6/10 10. Kodomo no Jikan (TV) こどものじかん [Diomedéa] (Finished 12/12) Tags: School Comedy, Drama, Ecchi 3rd grade teacher Aoki Daisuke didn't expect the first class he ever taught to be one of the toughest obstacles of his life. After getting off on the wrong foot with the entire class, a moment of kind-heartedness instantly convinces one of his students, Rin Kokonoe, to make the ill-fated Aoki-sensei her lover. But what exactly are Rin's intentions for wanting to actively seduce Aoki-sensei, and will Aoki-sensei be able to help her to deal with them? A very weird lolicon series. Watched it in the past and not going to repeat that experience. And not going to recommend either... Overall Rating: 6/10 11. Goshuushou-sama Ninomiya-kun Good Luck! Ninomiya-kun ご愁傷さま二ノ宮くん [AIC Spirits] (Finished 2/12) Tags: Harem Comedy, Fantasy, Ecchi Shungo Ninomiya is just an ordinary, run-of-the-mill high school student who lives at home with his older sister Ryoko—at least when she's not away doing her job as a mercenary. However, Shungo's life ceases to be normal the moment a cute girl named Mayu Tsukimura descends into the middle of his school's campus in a military-grade helicopter. It turns out Ryoko sent this girl, along with her older brother Mikihiro, to live at the Ninomiya household. But the newly-arrived siblings are a little special: Mayu is, in fact, a succubus and her brother, an incubus! And as if the circumstances are not problematic enough, Mayu is crippled with androphobia—the fear of men—and it's up to Shungo to help her overcome this at the behest of his sister. Ryoko plans to force Mayu to be closer to Shungo, and to do this, she’ll employ some questionable methods such as having them share the same bed and even take baths together. The situation further complicates when student council president Reika Houjou arrives as the new maid of the Ninomiya family, and she will stop at nothing to thwart Shungo and Mayu’s sexually-geared training. With the sudden arrival of all these oddities, Shungo's ordinary life is about to be thrown into utter turmoil. Just a variation of ecchi about starting to live together with a girl, can't say it's special or anything. Overall Rating: 5/10 12. KimiKiss Pure Rouge KimiKiss: Pure Rouge キミキス pure rouge [J.C.Staff] (Finished 4/24) Tags: School Drama, Romance Kouichi Sanada and Kazuki Aihara's childhood friend Mao Mizusawa has returned after living in France for a couple of years. Kouichi is surprised to learn that, since her parents are remaining overseas for the time being, his mother has agreed to let Mao stay with them. The three friends help each other deal with the ups and downs of high school romance. PS dating SIMs are usually very banal. Quality here is higher than average, but that's it. Overall Rating: 6/10 13. Bamboo Blade バンブーブレード [AIC ASTA] (Finished 4/26) Tags: Seinen Combat Sports, School Comedy, Sports Kojirou is the kendo instructor for Muroe High School and he's totally broke. But then an unexpected chance is given to him: his team must win against his senpai's team and the prize is: free meals for a whole year! Now, the only problem left... where to find girls skilled enough and willing to join the kendo team? Good kendo comedy with cheerful cast. But the fact that I started it at least three times and inevitably dropped says that I'm not enjoying this. Overall Rating: 6/10 14. Genshiken 2 げんしけん2 [Arms] (Finished 12/12) Tags: Seinen Parody Comedy, Slice of Life The Society for the Study of Modern Visual Culture, otherwise known as Genshiken, is now under the charge of a more confident Sasahara. Things have changed in between semesters, and the otaku club now has a new otaku-hating member named Ogiue. Sasahara's initial goal of starting a doujin circle and selling those fan-made magazines at the next Comic Festival becomes a reality, but reality is a cruel master... who apparently crossplays. Afterward, the club is abuzz with talk about Tanaka and Ohno's relationship, which takes a hesitant step forward. Sequel. Overall Rating: 7/10 15. Dragonaut: The Resonance Dragonaut - The Resonance ドラゴノーツ-ザ・レソナンス- [Gonzo] (Finished 3/25) Tags: Mecha Action, Drama, Fantasy, Romance, Sci-Fi Twenty years prior to the story's beginning, an asteroid headed for Earth destroys Pluto. Due to Pluto's destruction, the asteroid, which is dubbed Thanatos, becomes temporarily stagnant. Now, in order to avoid Earth's impending destruction, the International Solarsystem Development Agency (ISDA) works on the "D-Project", and creates the "Dragonaut" after finding a dragon egg under the ocean. This weapon's primary purpose is to destroy the asteroid when the time comes. However, they soon find out that the asteroid is not their only threat, as powerful dragon-like creatures, which are bent on destruction, appear on Earth. After witnessing a murder by one of the creatures, Jin Kamishina, a lonely 18-year-old boy who lost his family in a shuttle accident two years ago, gets involved in the mysteries of the dragons and becomes the chosen pilot of the Dragonaut. Helping him on his journey is Toa, a mysterious girl who saves him from falling to his death after the creature attacks him. As they get deeper into the mysteries of the dragons, they encounter new friends and enemies, and also begin to develop a closer relationship. Bland characters and execution destroy all the potential it had. Overall Rating: 6/10 16. Moyashimon もやしもん [Telecom Animation Film, Shirogumi] (Finished 11/11) Tags: Seinen Anthropomorphic, School Comedy, Gourmet, Supernatural One could say that freshman college student Tadayasu Sawaki has a wide range of vision. He has a peculiar ability that allows him to see microorganisms with the naked eye. Sawaki can see all sorts of microbes, from the fungi that cause athlete's foot to the yeast used to make alcohol, with him perceiving his little friends as cute chibi creatures. Attending an agricultural university, his talent piques the interest of numerous professors, including Professor Itsuki, who specializes in fermentation. Sawaki starts school indifferent toward his ability, choosing an agricultural school in Tokyo. However, with the help of the eccentric community around him, he slowly learns to appreciate these visible microbes and his talent. The whimsical cast of professors and classmates attending the university almost makes Sawaki seem normal despite his ability. First bacteriological weapon anime. There's no story and humor is weird which most of the times means poor. Characters aren't outstanding either, so waste of time if you don't like this humor. Overall Rating: 6/10 17. Majin Tantei Nougami Neuro Neuro: Supernatural Detective 魔人探偵 脳噛ネウロ [Madhouse] (Finished 2/25) Tags: Shounen Detective, Mythology Yako Katsuragi is an acclaimed high school detective, who, despite her young age, has solved many cases. In fact, there seems to be no case that she can't solve, or any culprit that escapes justice. But within the walls of her detective agency lies the secret to her prolific crime-solving skills: the cases are actually solved by her assistant, Neuro Nougami. However, to call Neuro an ordinary man would be incorrect. In reality, he is a demon, who came to the human world in search of the ultimate mystery, having already solved every mystery in the demon world. With Yako as his proxy, he feasts on the negative energy released by humans when they commit crimes. Thus, he promises to help Yako solve the mystery of her father's death. But to do so, he must avoid drawing too much attention to himself, which is why Yako plays the role of the detective. Majin Tantei Nougami Neuro follows this unlikely duo as they solve case after case to satisfy Neuro's ravenous appetite and Yako's desperate search for the truth of her father's death. My hate for detectives is strong, for supernatural shounen ones even stronger. Overall Rating: 5/10 18. Rental Magica レンタルマギカ [Zexcs] (Finished 6/24) Tags: Fantasy, Mystery, Supernatural Due to his father's disappearance, Itsuki Iba has to take over the family business: a magician dispatch service. Their family employs countless magicians and other supernatural beings in order to send them out to help those who need magical assistance. As a leader, Itsuki now has to be tough, commanding, and reliable, but there's one problem, he's a coward. Also, in order to run a successful business, he must connect with his employees, which is more difficult than it seems due to his personality. But not only does he have to deal with his own employees, he also has to deal with those who threaten the family business. Typical superpower shounen and quite cringy at that. Lots of empty characters only confirm this idea. Overall Rating: 5/10 19. D.C.II: Da Capo II D.C.II ~ダ・カーポII~ [feel.] (Finished 3/13) Tags: School Drama, Romance, Ecchi The undying Sakura Trees return. Based on a PS2 sequel of the original DaCapo game, the story once again takes place on Hatsunejima, but is set 53 years after the events of D.C. and D.C.S.S.. Although some characters will probably look a bit familiar to the initiated eye, the cast is a new one. The new main protagonist is Yoshiyuki Sakurai, who lives next door to the Asakura sisters Yume and Otome, who are the granddaughters of Junichi and Nemu from the first season. Sequel. Overall Rating: 5/10 20. Night Wizard ナイトウィザード [Hal Film Maker] (Finished 13/13) Tags: Adventure, Fantasy Night Wizard. A term given to those whose mission is to protect the world from impending darkness. Renji Hiiragi is one such Night Wizard, who is constantly called on missions, even though all he wants is to be able to go to school and graduate. However, his latest order was to protect Elis Shiho, who is a new transfer student at his academy. Being dragged into the Astronomy Club by Renji's childhood friend, Kureha Akabane on her first day at school, Elis soon realises that she too, has the power to become a Night Wizard, after possessing one of seven secret Jewels, the Jewel of Kindness. Along with Renji and Kureha, Elis now begins her fight and her new life as a Night Wizard. As most anime based on some game, generic typical boring action with weak cast. Overall Rating: 5/10 21. Shion no Ou The Flowers of Hard Blood しおんの王 - The Flowers of Hard Blood [Studio Deen] (Finished 3/22) Tags: Strategy Game Drama, Mystery, Suspense Defying the odds, middle school student Shion Yasuoka is becoming a rising star of the professional shogi world. Despite losing her family at a young age and being unable to speak due to the trauma, in her loving adoptive family and at the shogi association, she has found the necessary emotional support to move on with her life and very demanding career. Her talent attracts the attention of Satoru Hani, a successful businessman and brother of the current "Meijin"—the title given to the defending champion of Japan's most prestigious shogi tournament. He decides to organize a tournament open to both men and women, including professional and amateur players, and urges Shion to participate in the competition. However, Satoru seems to know a lot about Shion's troubled past, and his actions bring suspicion from Shion's friend Ayumi Saitou and the police—who are still investigating the death of Shion's loved ones. As the end of Satoru's tournament approaches, Shion starts remembering events related to the night when she lost everything and will have to show her mental fortitude to defeat her opponents and foil the plans of the culprits who ruined her life. Shogi looks same gibberish as mahjong to me as I don't understand and don't want to understand rules and even figures. It resembles Hikaru no Go a lot for tension buildup and same ridiculous game turning moves, but it's darker and more twisted, even more advanced and realistic now, still a long way to go till Sangatsu no Lion. Totally watchable and recommended to try, but I personally don't find it interesting and do not intend to finish it. Overall Rating: 6/10 22. Blue Drop: Tenshi-tachi no Gikyoku Blue Drop BLUE DROP ~天使達の戯曲~ [BeSTACK, Asahi Production] (Finished 1/13) Tags: Drama, Girls Love, Sci-Fi Five years ago, something horrifying happened on Kamioki Island. Something so nightmarish that it stripped all memory from Mari Wakatake's mind even as it left every other human on the island dead in its wake! Now enrolled against her will at an isolated girl's academy, Mari is unaware that hidden eyes are watching her, waiting for her memory to return. Buried in her psyche is the most terrifying secret of all: while Mari was the only human who lived, she may not have been the only survivor! As something in a female skin invades Kaihou Academy, Mari's only hope may lie in a strange girl to whom she is inexplicably drawn yet cannot trust. Serious girls love and protagonist is a rebelling against all the world girl with amnesia, so it's drama pretty much out of nowhere... definitely not to my taste. Overall Rating: 5/10 23. Sketchbook: Full Color's Sketchbook ~full color's~ スケッチブック ~full color's~ [Hal Film Maker] (Finished 13/13) Tags: CGDCT, Iyashikei, Visual Arts Comedy, Slice of Life To Sora Kajiwara, the world is full of wonderful and adorable things she wants to draw—cats being a popular object of her affection. Even though there are some things that can't be captured with a pencil and paper, she still brings her sketchbook wherever she goes. Her love of drawing eventually leads her to join her school's art club, despite her shy and childish personality. Just like herself, all of Sora's fellow art club members have their own vivid imagination and personality to match. Through her interactions with the rest of the club, Sora begins to break out of her shell and see more of the world around her, taking every opportunity to sketch whatever is on her mind or in her heart. A slow relaxed SOL with sketchbook true in both meanings - as having to do with arts club and as anthology of sketches. And it's not great. Overall Rating: 6/10 24. Juushin Enbu: Hero Tales Hero Tales 獣神演武 - HERO TALES - [Studio Flag] (Finished 4/26) Tags: Shounen Action, Fantasy For citizens of the Ken Empire, justice is a myth. Lord Keiro, the deranged Shogun of the Imperial Army, blazes a trail of terror across the countryside in search of the sacred sword that will make him a god. Standing in his way is Taito, an omnipotent star reborn in human form—a young hero who vows to use his celestial strength to avenge those slaughtered by the villainous Shogun. Taito's mystical powers steer him toward a violent showdown with Keiro, and if used recklessly, his newfound abilities could shred the very fabric of his being. To master the art of control and become a heroic martial artist, Taito must seek the guidance of others like him: the seven star-born warriors with the strength to shatter a corrupt empire. The good thing is that this time Chinese mythology historical story is not nauseating. But that's among the very few positive sides here as it's generic and not particularly interesting. Overall Rating: 5/10 25. Prism Ark プリズム・アーク [Front Line] (Finished 3/12) Tags: Action, Comedy, Drama, Fantasy The Sablum Empire has been attempting to take over the kingdom of Windland for many years, and are now plotting with the mercenaries Sister Hell and Darkness Knight to start a new offensive using powerful magical beings called Angels. Hyaweh, a carefree yet talented swordsman, and Priecia, who just might be the lost princess of Windland, are enrolled at the Knight's Academy in Windland to hone their skill at swords and sorcery. There they meet many friends and allies who can help them protect their homeland from the impending invasion. Original game was RPG, so filler fighting action is inevitable here, some fanservice is also expected while some girls love and baka humor were not. It's full of cliché from early 2000s, and there's even own Azumanga sensei. Nonsense cuteness-focused comedy is hardly what I can enjoy. Overall Rating: 5/10 26. Mokke もっけ [Madhouse, Tezuka Productions] (Finished 6/24) Tags: Iyashikei Mystery, Slice of Life, Supernatural This is a story about two sisters: Shizuru, is a high school student who is able to see ghosts while her younger sister, Mizuki, is haunted by these apparitions. Frustrated by their abilities, their parents decided to entrust the sisters into the care of their grandparents who live in the countryside. As they adapt to life in the countryside, Shizuru and Mizuki begin to learn about the importance of coexisting nature with these apparitions. Each episode is a story about different iyashikey happening around two sisters percepting spirits, and I don't like both episodic format and iyashikey and village SOL with quite normal characters. Overall Rating: 6/10 27. Suteki Tantei Labyrinth Fantastic Detective Labyrinth 素敵探偵☆ラビリンス [Studio Deen] (Finished 1/25) Tags: Shounen Mystery, Sci-Fi In a forgotten town known as the old capital of Tokyo, strange and mysterious crimes are progressively occuring. These supernatural occurances are beyond comprehension and bring fear and terror to the people. Only one person is not intimidated by the evil underlying these occurances and is willing to challenge them: Hyuga Mayuki, a young boy detective who holds a special insight power that allows him to uncover the real truth behind these occurances. Mysterious crimes... detective labyrinth... genius shounen... not interested. Overall Rating: 5/10 28. Taiho Shichau zo: Full Throttle You're Under Arrest: Full Throttle 逮捕しちゃうぞ フルスロットル [Studio Deen] (Finished 4/23) Tags: Seinen Adult Cast, Detective, Workplace Action, Comedy Miyuki Kobayakawa, fresh from forensics training in the United States and Natsumi Tsujimoto, from completing Japanese Self-Defense Force (JSDF) ranger training return in the long-awaited 3rd season of the highly popular series. This time, the duo rejoins active duty at Bokuto Police Department, fighting against crime using their wits and brawn, plus having some misadventures along the way. Sequel. More or less the same direction. Overall Rating: 6/10 29. Ryuusei no Rockman Tribe Megaman Star Force Tribe 流星のロックマン トライブ [Xebec] (Finished 1/21) Tags: Adventure The second series is to follow the events of the second video game, focusing on the lost continent of Mu. The ancient civilization vanished ages ago, and a few of its remnants still exist as myths and legends called UMAs (unidentified lifeforms). The UMAs begin merging with humans in order to search for the treasures of Mu, the powerful ooparts, which will give them the power to revive Mu. After Subaru and War-Rock encounter several unusual enemies, they meet a professor named Doctor Orihime who sends them on a quest to find the ooparts and stop the UMAs. Using the ooparts, Rockman is able to take new forms, including Thunder Berserk, Fire Dinosaur, and Green Shinobi. Sequel. Overall Rating: 5/10 30. Moonlight Mile 2nd Season: Touch Down ムーンライトマイル 2ndシーズン -Touch down- [Studio Hibari] (Finished 1/14) Tags: Space Adventure, Drama, Sci-Fi The second season of Moonlight Mile. Sequel. Overall Rating: 6/10 31. Tensai? Dr. Hamax 天才?Dr.ハマックス [Trans Arts] (Finished 0/12) Tags: Comedy - Not found. Overall Rating: 0/10 32. Tokyo Marble Chocolate 東京マーブルチョコレート [Production I.G] (Finished 2/2) Tags: Romance Serious and generous, but a bit shy, Yuudai has been unsuccessful with the opposite gender. Chizuru is an energetic and cheerful girl, but when it comes to boyfriends, she's been unlucky and clumsy, and never had a steady relationship. This is the first Christmas the couple spends together. Chizuru loves animals and Yuudai plans to give her a rabbit in a box, but it turns out to be... a mini donkey?! As the funny creature escapes, Chizuru goes after it, and Yuudai loses sight of them both! The time that should have been spent together... The important feeling that should have been revealed... Small, but precious things that tend to be buried in every day life. What answer will the two youngsters find while separated from each other? Yuudai and Chizuru—their feelings and the time they spent far from each other are delicately unfolded in this double-sided pure love story told from two different perspectives! A short simple romance story can't surpass decent score. Overall Rating: 6/10 33. Strait Jacket ストレイト・ジャケット [feel.] (Finished 3/3) Tags: Action, Fantasy, Sci-Fi It is the world where magic and science coexist. Rayotte Steinberg, a lone wolf "tactical sorcerist", fights against monsters. They used to be human beings, but they had overused forbidden power, "magic", to turn into monsters. What he wears is "mold", the straight jacket that keeps him being a human. What he holds on his hand is "staff", a magical wand that explodes everything. If he casts magic, he moves one step to be a monster. If he doesn't, he will be killed. Among the harsh battles, he will face a sin he had committed in the past. A short fighting monsters action lacking actual story. Overall Rating: 5/10 34. Koharu Biyori Indian Summer こはるびより [Daume] (Finished 3/3) Tags: Comedy, Sci-Fi, Ecchi Set in a near future, a time where robots are common workers for their owners. Takaya Murase has just purchased a maid robot from a robotic doll distributor, MaidWorks. Ready to live a normal cleaning, cooking, and serving life to her owner, Yui is purchased, by Takaya but he has other plans for her...like dressing her up in dress-costumes of his fantasies and more. A collection of ecchi maid android sketches. Overall Rating: 5/10 35. Yawaraka Sangokushi Tsukisase!! Ryofuko-chan やわらか三国志 突き刺せ!! 呂布子ちゃん [Chaos Project] (Finished 4/4) Tags: Comedy, Ecchi Ryofu Housen (Lu Bu) is a powerful general from the Three Kingdoms; alongside Chinkyuu (Chen Gong), Ryofu suddenly finds himself falling to Earth, and landing... in the body of an elementary school student?! With their new lives as flat-chested, women-loving children, Ryofu and Chinkyuu follow their hunger and their desire to get back to their old lives somehow; but it will be difficult, given the variety of obstacles in their way including old enemies, epic monster battles and the most important thing of all, trying to get their hands on Eri-sensei's mammoth F-cup breasts! Weird and not really good echi comedy. Overall Rating: 5/10 36. Mahou Shoujo-tai Arusu the Adventure Tweeny Witches the Adventures 魔法少女隊アルス the Adventure [Studio 4°C] (Finished 6/6) Tags: Isekai Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy "Tweeny Witches" The Adventure created by Studio 4C in collaboration with "Garo" creator Keita Amemiya. Includes the Alice chapters "Sakana ni Natta Maho Shojotai" and "Fuin Sareta Kokoro," Sheila chapters "Yosei Hakusho" and "Kori no Majo to Hien no Taki," and Eva chapters "Dragon House no Himitsu" and "Shippu Doto no Maho Shojotai" on three DVDs. Remake. Overall Rating: 6/10 37. Pyuu to Fuku! Jaguar Blow the Flute Jaguar! ピューと吹く!ジャガー [Kaeruotoko Shokai] (Finished 0/3) Tags: Shounen Gag Humor, Music Comedy Based on the gag manga written and illustrated by Usuta Kyousuke that ran in Shuukan Shounen Jump from 2000 to 2010. Not found. Overall Rating: 0/10 38. Kara no Kyoukai Movie 1: Fukan Fuukei The Garden of Sinners Chapter 1: Overlooking View 劇場版 空の境界 the Garden of sinners 第一章『俯瞰風景』 [ufotable] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Action, Mystery, Supernatural, Suspense A series of eerily similar suicides occupy newspaper headlines in late '90s Japan. Amidst all the bizarre resemblances, there is one detail that stands out above the rest: the victims have all taken their lives by leaping from the Fujou building, a run-down abandoned structure rising high above the city. Shiki Ryougi, a cold-hearted girl living in an empty apartment, suspects that these sinister events have a supernatural cause. Possessing a mystical power herself, Shiki works to investigate the incidents alongside Touko Aozaki, a doll-making detective specializing in magic, and her friend Mikiya Kokotou who works as Touko's assistant. Shiki unravels the mystery as she ventures through an enigmatic world to uncover the dark secrets surrounding the strange phenomenon. Lots of talking and building up something, a bit of action. As a part of the series, I've still no idea where it's going to, but it's definitely not a masterpiece as of now. Overall Rating: 6/10 39. Kara no Kyoukai Movie 2: Satsujin Kousatsu (Zen) The Garden of Sinners Chapter 2: A Study in Murder - Part 1 劇場版 空の境界 the Garden of sinners 第二章『殺人考察(前)』 [ufotable] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Action, Mystery, Romance, Supernatural, Suspense In the winter of 1995, Mikiya Kokutou passes a young woman during a late night stroll in the snow. Clad in a striking white kimono and bearing an enigmatic gaze, Shiki Ryougi smiles at Mikiya who stares back with curiosity. Later that spring, Mikiya notices Shiki at his high school entrance ceremony, and they become acquaintances through lunchtime conversations. As Shiki begins opening up to him, Mikiya learns about her unique upbringing. Meanwhile, a series of unprecedented murders takes place across Mifune City. Seemingly related, these murders are particularly brutal and warrant a large scale police investigation. Because of his cousin's work as a police investigator, Mikiya is given insight into the investigation. Concerned for Shiki's safety, Mikiya decides to monitor her actions, but in doing so, he stumbles upon a truly frightening discovery that changes his life forever. Sequel that's still going nowhere. Overall Rating: 6/10 40. Appleseed Saga Ex Machina Appleseed: Ex Machina エクスマキナ [Digital Frontier] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Mecha, Military Action, Sci-Fi Deunan, a young female warrior, and Briareos, a veteran cyborg-soldier, are both partners and lovers. As members of E.S.W.A.T., the elite special forces serving Olympus, they are deployed whenever trouble strikes. The two fighters find their partnership tested in a new way by the arrival of a new member to their ranks—an experimental Bioroid named Tereus. Sequel. Overall Rating: 6/10 41. .hack//G.U. Trilogy [CyberConnect2] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Video Game Action, Fantasy The Movie will be placed in the storyline of each .hack//G.U. games trilogy. The story follows Haseo, a player in the online MMORPG called The World:R2 at first depicted as a PKK (Player Killer Killer) known as the "Terror of Death", a former member of the disbanded Twilight Brigade guild. Haseo encounters Azure Kite (believing him to be Tri-Edge and blaming him for what happened to Shino) but is hopelessly outmatched. Azure Kite easily defeats Haseo and Data Drains him, reducing his level from 133 to 1 and leaving him without any items, weapons, or member addresses. He is left with a mystery on his hands as to the nature of the Data Drain and why Azure Kite is in possession of such a skill. Eventually Haseo gains the "Avatar" of Skeith. Acquiring the ability to call Skeith and wield his abilities, such as Data Drain. With Skeith as his strength, Haseo begins the quest for a way to save Shino. He is seen seeking out a PK (Player Killer) known as Tri-Edge, whose victims supposedly are unable to return to The World after he PKs them. Haseo's friend, Shino, was attacked six months prior to the events of the game by Tri-Edge, and the player herself, Shino Nanao, was left in a coma. Short CG work unifying three bigger pieces had no chances for a decent score from the start. Overall Rating: 6/10
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Anime of the Year 2007-III Summer - Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei
kivandopulus posted a blog entry in Anime of the Season
Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei , Stranger: Mukou Hadan and Piano no Mori all got minor masterpiece scores from me. Don't want to choose, so series wins over movies. 1. Baccano! バッカーノ! [Brain's Base] (Finished 13/13) Tags: Historical, Organized Crime Action, Comedy, Mystery, Supernatural During the early 1930s in Chicago, the transcontinental train, Flying Pussyfoot, is starting its legendary journey that will leave a trail of blood all over the country. At the same time in New York, the ambitious scientist Szilard and his unwilling aide Ennis are looking for missing bottles of the immortality elixir. In addition, a war between the mafia groups is getting worse. On board the Advena Avis, in 1711, alchemists are about to learn the price of immortality. Based on the award-winning light novels of the same name, Baccano! follows several events that initially seem unrelated, both in time and place, but are part of a much bigger story—one of alchemy, survival, and immortality. Merging these events together are the kindhearted would-be thieves, Isaac and Miria, connecting various people, all of them with their own hidden ambitions and agendas, and creating lifelong bonds and consequences for everyone involved. Baka no? Baka da yo! This is a more suitable title for this eclectic gore filled silly detective mystery anthology mess. It combines so many elements that I detest that I absolutely can't understand its appeal, but I never liked Darker than Black as well. Overall Rating: 5/10 2. School Days スクールデイズ [TNK] (Finished 1/12) Tags: Harem, School Drama, Romance High school student Makoto Itou first notices Kotonoha Katsura at the start of his second semester, freshman year. Immediately, he becomes entranced by her beauty, but his bashfulness doesn't allow him to approach her, even though they ride the same train every day. Instead, he snaps a photo of her in secret and sets it as his cell phone's wallpaper: a charm that, if kept under wraps, would supposedly help you realize your love. However, classmate Sekai Saionji spots the picture, but instead of ratting him out, she offers to help set him up with Kotonoha—going so far as befriending her just for him. Thus, the trio begins a rather impromptu friendship. School Days follows the lives of these three teenagers as they traverse the joys and hardships that come with being a high schooler. In a story alive and brimming with romance and melancholy, the tale of these three students will linger in memory long after the momentous conclusion. Remake. Overall Rating: 5/10 3. Zero no Tsukaima: Futatsuki no Kishi The Familiar of Zero: Knight of the Twin Moons ゼロの使い魔 ~双月の騎士~ [J.C.Staff] (Finished 1/12) Tags: Harem, Isekai, School Action, Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy, Romance, Ecchi Revered as heroes for their role in defending Tristain, Louise Françoise and her familiar Saito Hiraga face heavy pressure to continue protecting the Kingdom. With an uneasy peace now established within Albion, the newly crowned Queen Henrietta must deal with a political struggle brewing on the horizon. To make matters worse, a new villain has begun plotting in the shadows against the Crown. With the continuing threats that face the Kingdom, Louise and Saito are compelled to work together once more. No longer "Louise the Zero," the young mage's newfound aptitude for Void magic gives her enough power to wipe out an entire village; however, wielding these abilities comes with its share of challenges. As more conflicts arise, the idea of placing honor above oneself is put into question—regardless of their answer, their only choice is to see it through until the end. Sequel. Overall Rating: 6/10 4. Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Kai Higurashi: When They Cry – Kai ひぐらしのなく頃に解 [Studio Deen] (Finished 1/24) Tags: Gore, Psychological Mystery, Supernatural, Suspense In the small village of Hinamizawa, Rika Furude and her friends live together in relative harmony. Beneath this mask of peace, however, lies a hidden darkness, one that Rika understands all too well. In this eternal summer, she has been witness to unspeakable horrors. Every time the clock resets, Rika must try to find the villain behind these senseless deaths before tragedy strikes again. However, trying to decipher a mystery when only half the clues are present proves time and again to be disastrous, and each time she believes that things will change, she inevitably fails. As the annual festival approaches, Rika begins her descent from hope to despair in her struggle to break the chains of fate entangling them all. Sequel. Overall Rating: 5/10 5. Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei Sayonara, Zetsubou-Sensei さよなら絶望先生 [Shaft] (Finished 12/12) Tags: Shounen Gag Humor, Parody, School Comedy Nozomu Itoshiki is a high school teacher so pessimistic that even the smallest of misfortunes can send him into a pit of raging despair; some of these "catastrophes" even lead to suicide attempts. Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei is a satirical slice-of-life comedy set in the modern day, covering various aspects of Japanese life and culture through Nozomu and his interactions with his students: Kiri Komori, a recluse who refuses to leave the school; Abiru Kobushi, an enigma who frequently arrives to class with severe and mysterious injuries; the hyper-optimistic Kafuuka Fuura, Nozomu's polar opposite; and several other unusual girls, all of whom are just as eccentric as their teacher. I think I watched all seasons, but never grew to like it after initial novelty charm was gone. But still first season can actually be called borderline masterpiece. Overall Rating: 7/10 6. Mononoke モノノ怪 [Toei Animation] (Finished 3/12) Tags: Adult Cast, Historical, Mythology, Psychological Fantasy, Horror, Mystery, Supernatural The "Medicine Seller" is a deadly and mysterious master of the occult who travels across feudal Japan in search of malevolent spirits called "mononoke" to slay. When he locates one of these spirits, he cannot simply kill it; he must first learn its Form, its Truth, and its Reason in order to wield the mighty Exorcism Sword and fight against it. He must begin his strange exorcisms with intense psychological analysis and careful investigative work—an extremely dangerous step, as he must first confront and learn about the mononoke before he even has the means to defeat it. The Medicine Seller's journey leads him to an old-fashioned inn where Shino, a pregnant woman, has finally found a place to rest. The owner has reluctantly placed her in the last vacant room; however, as she settles in, it quickly becomes clear that the room is infested by a lethal band of mononoke, the Zashiki Warashi. With his hunter's intuition, the Medicine Seller begins his investigation to discover the Form, the Truth, and the Reason before the Zashiki Warashi can kill again. Ever wanted to watch a psychedelic aquarelle geisha fantasy with spirits? I did not... Overall Rating: 5/10 7. Devil May Cry デビル メイ クライ [Madhouse] (Finished 12/12) Tags: Gore, Mythology Action, Fantasy Patty Lowell—the lost heir of a prestigious family—is found at an orphanage, and J.D. Morrison brings her to his acquaintance Dante, the owner of a business called "Devil May Cry." Dante takes on so-called "odd jobs," and at Morrison's request, he agrees to become a bodyguard for Patty. Begrudgingly, he sets out to deliver Patty to her family, though he is a bit annoyed with a job that essentially amounts to babysitting. While Dante seems like a lazy good-for-nothing, he is actually a prolific demon hunter, which comes in handy when demons begin pursuing Patty. Soon enough, Dante realizes that there is more to this case than meets the eye, and he makes use of his particular skill set in order to keep Patty safe. Only familiar with the game series by reviews, so anime is a good opportunity to delve into. I'd say anime is done at a minimally accepted level. Fashion, fighting action, coolness, supernatural elements - nothing unexpected. Overall Rating: 6/10 8. Zombie-Loan ZOMBIE-LOAN ゾンビローン [XEBEC M2] (Finished 11/11) Tags: Shounen Action, Horror, Supernatural Do you know when you are going to die? Michiru Kita does, as she has the ability to see a "ring of death" on the necks of those around her—and the darker the ring, the closer one is to death. One day, she notices that two boys in her class, Chika Akatsuki and Shito Tachibana, have completely black rings. Seeking to warn them of their impending demise, she stumbles onto their secret: they are already dead, but are kept alive due to a contract with Zombie-Loan, a mysterious loan office. Of course, nothing comes without a price, as the boys must hunt down and kill zombies in order to pay off their debt. And once they learn about Michiru's "Shinigami Eyes," they drag her into their crazy world. Despite seemingly fresh concept the essence is quite normal - some comedy, some fanservice, some fighting. Characters are better than average, but plot is not conceptual despite the weak attempts by the end, so watching for plot is a waste of time. Overall Rating: 6/10 9. Shigurui Shigurui: Death Frenzy シグルイ [Madhouse] (Finished 12/12) Tags: Seinen Adult Cast, Gore, Historical, Martial Arts, Psychological, Samurai Action, Drama At the beginning of the Edo Era, when people enjoyed a time of peace, Lord Tokugawa Tadanaga holds a fighting tournament. In the past, matches were fought with wooden swords. This time, real swords will be used. One-armed Fujiki Gennosuke and blind Irako Seigen will fight each other in this match. Both are disciples of Iwamoto Kogan, who is known as Japan's greatest swordsman. Each of them are determined to prove himself the successor of Iwamoto's school. However, there can only be one champion. So begins a story of intertwining fates, conflict, and strange destinies. The first of a kind samurai horror as it gathers all the dirt and gore and prejudice possible to find in that environment. It's so sickening that not a glimpse of enjoyment is possible for me here. Overall Rating: 5/10 10. Wangan Midnight 湾岸ミッドナイト [A.C.G.T.] (Finished 1/26) Tags: Seinen Racing Action The story gets its roots from the actual street racing that occurs on Tokyo's Shuto Expressway, one stretch of which is known as the "Wangan", literally meaning "bay side" (although it is generally used to refer to the freeway), the longest, straightest road in the entire country. Of course, there's also lots of traffic to contend with, including a fair number of heavy trucks. Because of this, the action is inherently hazardous, and wrecks are common. Blown engines are also a frequent hazard, especially with the extreme-high power engines. One day, Akio Asakura, a third year high school student, is driving his Fairlady Z (Z31) and is challenged by Tatsuya Shima, a doctor, in his black Porsche 964 Turbo (nicknamed the "BlackBird"). With a friend in the passenger seat and two girls in the back, Akio pitifully tries to win, but is defeated. Determined to become faster, he goes to the junkyard to buy parts for his car, when he sees a pristine, unscratched midnight blue Fairlady Z (S30) in the junkyard. Intrigued as to why such a machine is about to be junked, he buys it. He soon finds that the car is unnaturally fast due to a tuned L28 engine, bored and stroked to 3.1 liters combined with twin turbos, which produces 620bhp. He also finds that all of the car's previous owners had unfortunate accidents in it, starting with the first owner's death. The manga follows Akio's various encounters, though the central plot revolves around his constant battle with the BlackBird for superiority. Old racing series adaptation that diligently mimics Initial D as if made specially for its fans. Overall Rating: 6/10 11. Kenkou Zenrakei Suiei-bu Umishou ケンコー全裸系水泳部 ウミショー [Artland] (Finished 3/13) Tags: Shounen School Comedy, Sports, Ecchi Kaname Okiura, a student of Prefectoral Umineko Shougyou High ("Umishou" for short), joined the school's swimming club in order to learn how to swim, but the club is filled with weirdos, let alone who can teach him swimming. Then, a sunny, happy-go-lucky girl named Amuro Ninagawa who transferred from Okinawa joined the club. Her extraordinary underwater speed and unorthodox swimming style (plus her personal habit of nude swimming—a powerful magnet to teenage boys) surprised every club member, especially Okiura, because she reminds him of a mermaid-like creature he saw only once in his early childhood. It's rare for ecchi to have something besides fanservice, but this title at least tries to play in comedy and romance, so it's better than the bulk of similar ones. Overall Rating: 6/10 12. Tokyo Majin Gakuen Kenpucho: Tou Dai Ni Maku 東京魔人學園剣風帖 龖(トウ) 第弐幕 [AIC Spirits, BeSTACK] (Finished 1/12 Tags: Martial Arts, School Action, Drama, Fantasy, Horror, Mystery The battle against Tendou Kodzunu is over, and the Magami Five begin to look forward to their senior graduation, hopefully planning for their adult futures. However, life in Tokyo is not at peace... The underground assassin group known as the Twelve Heavenly Generals of the Martial Fist begin to move against those protecting the city from demons. Normally rumored to kill criminals that the mundane law was unable to bring to justice, the Martial Fist now set their sights on Tatsuma Hiyuu, Kyouichi Houraiji, Aoi Misato, Komaki Sakurai, Yuuya Daigo, and Hisui Kisaragi. What is the purpose of this cruel turn of events? And who ordered the hit? New threats emerge as others awakened to powers unleashed by the Ryumyaku seek out the Magami kids - and old friends now return as enemies. Destinies will collide as the Stars of Fate begin to merge; Yin and Yang will meet. And soon the shadowy figure pulling the strings will reveal himself, in an effort to raze Tokyo to the ground and awaken the Vessel of the Golden Dragon. Sequel. Overall Rating: 6/10 13. Moetan もえたん [Actas] (Finished 3/12) Tags: School Comedy, Ecchi Ink Nijihara is a girl in high school. Unfortunately her crush Nao Tezuka barely recognizes her. To make matters worse, she is very short. Now Ink meets a duck and becomes a "mahou shoujo" and teaches Nao english in disguise. Moe... humor is so-so, still amusing enough. Overall Rating: 6/10 14. Doujin Work Dojin Work ドージンワーク [Remic] (Finished 4/12) Tags: Otaku Culture Comedy, Slice of Life Doujin Work follows the life of a young girl named Najimi Osana and her exposure into the doujin world. She was first tempted into becoming a doujin artist after seeing how much one of her friends can make at a convention. Najimi loves to draw, though soon learns contrary to what she expected that this new world is anything but easy. As she attends more conventions and meets more people, Najimi eventually manages to find a group of very interesting friends. These friends already have some experience in the field and help her out along the way so that she can someday make a name for herself creating doujinshi. Yonkoma source usually means good comedy and less integrity, and that's true here as well. So it's momentarily forgotten as is made just for some laughs. Overall Rating: 6/10 15. Sky Girls スカイガールズ [J.C.Staff] (Finished 4/26) Tags: Mecha, Military Sci-Fi In the near future, Earth is at war with aliens called Worms. The war leaves the population of Earth decimated, with young men the main casualties. The Worms were beaten back but their re-emergence heralds the creation of a mecha unit called the Sonic Divers, piloted by 3 young girls to counter this threat. Four episodes in, and girls are still only learning to control mecha. With this kind of pace, I won't be surprised if they don't master it even by the end of the season. Overall Rating: 6/10 16. Nanatsu-iro★Drops ななついろ★ドロップス [Diomedéa] (Finished 3/12) Tags: Mahou Shoujo, School Romance Tsuwabuki is a normal student, though not very social. One day he meets a new transfer student, named Sumomo Akihime, and another girl, both the only members of the gardening club. Tsuwabuki is forced by a teacher to join this club. But then he bumps into a strange guy with dog ears, switching his drink with they guy's by mistake. Drinking it, he is turned in a stuffed animal. The teacher tells him that the only way to turn back to normal is to find the chosen girl and let her catch the seven stardrops. This girl is Sumomo, that accepts to help him, though she's not allowed to know the animal's true identity. For some reason anime on visual novels always stand out for its super slow pace and lots of beating around the bush. Typical fluffy romance anime with some mahou shoujo tilt, but at least execution is rather good, so would stand out back then, yet by today's standards too cliché. Overall Rating: 6/10 17. Code-E [Studio Deen] (Finished 3/12) Tags: School Comedy, Romance, Sci-Fi Chinami Ebihara is girl with a strange ability to generate electromagnetic waves when her emotions run high. However, since this "ability" affects anything electrical, it resulted in her having to transfer from school to school when she was younger. As Chinami, now 18 years of age, transfers to a new school, she once again affects the electronic devices in the school, but this time, when another student, Kotaro Kannagi, sees her do this, he becomes obsessed in studying her "TYPE-E" ability. Synopsis is far from exciting, and no miracle happened. Overall Rating: 5/10 18. Mushi-Uta ムシウタ [Beat Frog] (Finished 12/12) Tags: Action, Fantasy, Sci-Fi Mushi-uta's story takes place in the near future. Ten years before the story's opening, strange insect-like creatures known as "Mushi" began appearing. The Mushi are able to consume peoples' dreams and thoughts in return for supernatural powers. At the end of episode one, protagonist Daisuke "Kakkou" Kusuriya encounters a young girl named Shiika Anmoto. The two, in time, become quite close. However, unbeknownst to Kakkou, Shiika is an escapee from a secret prison known as GARDEN where those posessed by the Mushi, known as the Mushitsuki are held. GARDEN's military force, the Special Environmental Conservation Executive Office, dispatches its finest killer to track down Shiika. However, they are faced with resistance from the Mushibane resistance organisation, led by the secretive "Ladybird." What a bunch of weirdos as characters. Unexpectedly, it turned out to be melodrama genre rather than anything else. Unique and not bad, but definitely not a masterpiece. Overall Rating: 6/10 19. Potemayo ぽてまよ [J.C.Staff] (Finished 2/12) Tags: Seinen School Comedy Sunao Moriyama finds a strange but cute creature that he names Potemayo. Potemayo starts following him everywhere, usually riding on top of his head. His discovery becomes the center of attention in his class at school. Soon after, a similar creature appears, and is named Guchuko by one of Sunao's classmates. However, Guchuko doesn't seem to be as good-natured as Potemayo. That's cuteness overdose for me. Can't rate it too high though, as with only situational humor and no conceptual humor it tires me way too fast. Overall Rating: 6/10 20. Buzzer Beater 2nd Season BUZZER BEATER 第2期 [TMS Entertainment] (Finished 3/13) Tags: Action, Sci-Fi, Sports After being drafted into the Earth Team, a basketball team comprised solely of humans, street-punk-turned-pro Hideyoshi couldn't be more cocky. The team is still up against the Gorons, a physically superior race of aliens who have dominated the game for some time. New challenges and problems stand in their way. Hideyoshi is unhappy with the team and the Gorons have new tricks up their sleeves. Sequel. Overall Rating: 6/10 21. Tetsuko no Tabi 鉄子の旅 [Group TAC] (Finished 2/13) Tags: Seinen Comedy, Slice of Life The "story" is that a manga artist is asked by her boss to accompany him and a travel-writer on various train trips around Japan and draw a manga about it. The kicker though, is that it's completely non-fiction —the creator really did go on all these trips, and the manga simply records what happened, with no embellishment. There's a little disclaimer at the front that says "This is non-fiction, so I apologize for the lack of drama," and indeed, it mostly is just about them riding trains from place to place, waiting on platforms, etc. The "travel writer" turns out to be a super train-otaku who has vast knowledge of the train network, but also micro-manages all their trips, planning every detail down to the second. He cares mostly about following the schedule and successfully achieving his planned goals (e.g. visiting all stations on a line in a completely bizarre order to accomodate infrequent trains). The mangaka doesn't really care about trains; she's cynical, sarcastic, and rather lazy (she mainly just looks forward to the next eki-ben); he's completely gung-ho as long as he's following the schedule, and the inevitable conflicts are pretty entertaining. Throughout, though, it feels real —if you've travelled by train in Japan it will all seem very familiar, not just the scenery, but also the atmosphere and feel— and the artist does a great job of pacing and applying little tweaks to keep it consistently entertaining. In an additional bit of recursiveness, some of the characters who show up in the manga (who of course are real people, who really did show up) do so because they (really) read previous episodes of the manga! In addition of course, you can learn about various out of the way and interesting Japanese train lines and stations; some of them really do look cool. There's always this vague sense of surreality about it however, the trips are all planned by the train-guy (goal: visit all 9,843 stations in Japan) who seems to consider everything as part of a checklist rather than an experience to be enjoyed. You learn a bit about train-otaku culture too; there's really only the one guy in the story, but train-otaku culture is a sort of constant peripheral presence. A whole series about trains... is this for real... and I thought OVA about train travels was crazy. Overall Rating: 5/10 22. Iblard Jikan イバラード時間 [Studio Ghibli] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Fantasy Much like looking through a window, Iblard Jikan explores the fantastic and beautiful world of Iblard by panning through art created by Naohisa Inoue. Iblard shows itself to be nothing short of amazing and will wash serenity over your mind. Just succession of mostly still aquarelle pictures. What's even to evaluate here... Overall Rating: 5/10 23. Evangelion: 1.0 You Are (Not) Alone ヱヴァンゲリヲン新劇場版:序 [Khara] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Mecha, Psychological Action, Award Winning, Drama, Sci-Fi In a post-apocalyptic world, the last remaining human settlement in Japan is the heavily fortified city of Tokyo-3. Fourteen-year-old Shinji Ikari is brought to the headquarters of NERV, an underground organization lead by his estranged father, Gendou. He requests that Shinji become a pilot of an "Evangelion," a colossal android built to fight against monstrous and destructive alien creatures known as "Angels" that wreak havoc on the planet and threaten the survival of the remaining human race. Although initially reluctant, Shinji is swayed by the idea of reconciling with his father, and agrees to aid in mankind's perilous endeavor against its alien threat, as the pilot of Evangelion Unit-01. Thrust into the midst of a dangerous battlefield, Shinji must find the necessary courage and resolve to face against the Angels' incursions before it is too late. Another retelling, now for first half or so... after a movie that was already a retelling... only holds value for those who never saw the series... Overall Rating: 4/10 24. Stranger: Mukou Hadan Sword of the Stranger ストレンヂア -無皇刃譚- [Bones] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Historical, Samurai Action, Adventure In the Sengoku period of Japan, a young orphan named Kotarou and his dog Tobimaru steal from unsuspecting villagers in order to make ends meet. However, Kotarou is forced to remain on the run when he finds himself being hunted down by assassins sent by China's Ming Dynasty for mysterious reasons not involving his petty crimes. Fortunately, the duo run into Nanashi, a ronin who has taken refuge in a small temple, when Kotarou is attacked and Tobimaru poisoned. Although the samurai saves the helpless pair from their pursuers, he feels that there is no need to help them further; but when offered a gem in exchange for his services as a bodyguard, he reluctantly accepts Kotarou's offer of employment—just until Tobimaru is healed and the two reach their destination. As the three set out on a perilous journey, it soon becomes evident that their path is riddled with danger, as the Ming Dynasty has now sent a terrifying swordsman after them to capture Kotarou and fulfill a certain prophecy. A nice samurai movie almost for family watch if cut limbs don't count. Can't say it's too advanced, but it's entertaining enough for a borderline masterpiece. Overall Rating: 7/10 25. Piano no Mori The Piano Forest ピアノの森 The Perfect World of Kai [Madhouse] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Seinen Music, School Drama Piano no Mori tells the story of Shuuhei Amamiya, a transfer student, and Kai Ichinose, a problem child from the rough areas of town. Upon transferring to Moriwaki Elementary and telling the other kids about his talent for piano, Shuuhei quickly finds himself as the victim of bully Daigaku Kanehira. Daigaku dares Shuuhei to find and play a cursed piano in the forest, which leads him to meet Kai, who claims to be the owner of the piano and the only one who can play it. Intrigued, Shuuhei follows Kai to the hidden piano in the forest and listens to him play a beautiful medley. Earning the respect of not only Shuuhei but school music teacher Sousuke Ajino as well, Kai now finds himself formally learning how to play the piano. Not a work to my taste, but can't deny it's serious and good, so see no reason to deny it a decent score. Overall Rating: 7/10 26. Genius Party ジーニアスパーティー [Studio 4°C] (Finished 7/7) Tags: Mecha, Music, Psychological Action, Avant Garde, Fantasy, Romance, Sci-Fi A collection of seven individual and unique shorts which range from touching to downright bizarre. With each story different from the last, we encounter monsters going to school, a man who has a hard time dealing with himself, and a child who learns the hard way about the circle of life, as well as many other unique characters and experiences. A journey through the minds of the most prolific artists in Japan, this compilation truly is the setting of a Genius Party. You know how I like nonsense anthology stories... Overall Rating: 5/10 27. Vexille: 2077 Nihon Sakoku Vexille ベクシル 2077日本鎖国 [Oxybot] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Military Action, Sci-Fi In an alternate 21st century, the robotics industry undergoes a period of rapid advancement worldwide. By the year 2050, Japan has firmly established itself as the leader in robotic technology and manufacture with Daiwa Heavy Industries. As the technology evolves to include robotic enhancements to the human body, the blurring of the line between man and machine triggers a sudden shift in world opinion. In response, the U.N. passes a unilateral ban of further research and development on robotics in 2067. Japan fiercely objects to this ban, but is unable to prevent its passage. In protest, Japan withdrew from international politics and chose to pursue a policy of high-tech national isolation. While only trade continues, Japan disappears from the world scene. Ten years later, a series of bizarre incidents lead the American technology police agency SWORD to believe that Japan has concealed extensive development of banned technologies through the use of the RACE network. SWORD dispatches a unit of special agents to infiltrate Japan and gather intelligence on the country. Vexille, a veteran agent among the group, uncovers the horrifying truth behind the ten years of isolation. 3D sometimes looks nice here, but more often ugly. The most important element is story, and it's ruined here failing to come out of dualism limitations and becoming something decent. Overall Rating: 6/10 28. Kappa no Coo to Natsuyasumi Summer Days with Coo 河童のクゥと夏休み [Shin-Ei Animation] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Mythology Adventure, Award Winning, Fantasy Kouichi Uehara is a fourth grade student living in the suburb of Tokyo. One day, he picks up a large stone which turns out to be a fossil of a baby "Kappa" who has been sleeping underground for the past 300 years, and names it "Coo." They become good friends and Coo starts living with Kouichi's family. However, Coo has a hard time adjusting to life among humans and misses his kind. What a cringy and rather unappealing kappa story, also super long. Overall Rating: 6/10 29. Dai-chan, Daisuki. 大ちゃん、だいすき。 [Tama Production] (Finished 1/1) Tags: School Drama, Slice of Life Main character in this film, Mai, has a handicapped brother, who is totally deaf, called Dai-Chan. He is like a younger brother for Mai yet he is actually her older brother because Dai-Chan always asks Mai to hold him up with smiling all over. One day, an elementary school Mai goes to and a handicapped school Dai-Chan goes to start to communicate each other. And then, Mai's class mates started to make fun of Mai and draw a funny portrait of Dai-Chan on black board in the class. Mai gets shocked and hurt at that mischief. And moreover, their mother gets sickness at the same time. That's why Dai-Chan should enter in an orphanage for handicapped children; however, Mai really wants to take care of him by herself, so she tries to stop it. This story is written about a love of family, close bond, and relationship between human and human. We definitely have a common warm heart and a moment we have to use it with honest feeling. This film could remind us some important things we should never forget about our life. I don't like works about disabled people, can't do anything about it. Overall Rating: 6/10 30. Bogeul Bogeul Bomulseon 보글보글 보물선 [-] (Finished 0/1) Tags: Adventure, Fantasy A bunch of dreamers and treasure hunters go hunting for a legendary dragon treasure. Not found. Overall Rating: 0/10 31. Tetsu no Ko Kanahiru 鉄の子カナヒル [-] (Finished 0/1) Tags: Fantasy There came a time when iron vanished from Okinawa. A Cana baby called Kanahiru arrived at the shores of Okinawa. He was from a far away land called Iron Hills. A place far beyond the seas. He was baffled by the deformity of Gana Hill, even teased the citizens, but he decided to stay. Years later ferocious demons capture Gana Hill and take Kanahiru to the demon island. Not found. Overall Rating: 0/10 32. Miyori no Mori Miyori's Forest ミヨリの森 [Nippon Animation] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Drama, Fantasy, Slice of Life After being deserted by her parents, 11-year-old Miyori shuts her heart from the rest of the world and denies any form of human relationships. She was entrusted in the care of her grandmother who lives near a forest. Miyori will take a walk in the forest where she felt a strong sense of loneliness in the forest which seems to have nothing. However, she soon encounters unbelievable things and gradually realizes that the forest is more than what it seems... A rather childish story, though not as much as my neighbor Totoro. Essence is lacking and execution is average, so need to at least like all this youkai stuff. Overall Rating: 5/10 -
Anime of the Year 2007-II Spring - Lucky☆Star
kivandopulus posted a blog entry in Anime of the Season
I was going to never rate comedies highly, but Lucky☆Star is more than a comedy, it's a meta-comedy and is enjoyable on many layers. Claymore is only slightly behind. Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann and Bokura no definitely deserve a mention, but these are more flawed works. 1. Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann Gurren Lagann 天元突破グレンラガン [Gainax] (Finished 27/27) Tags: Mecha Action, Adventure, Award Winning, Sci-Fi Simon and Kamina were born and raised in a deep, underground village, hidden from the fabled surface. Kamina is a free-spirited loose cannon bent on making a name for himself, while Simon is a timid young boy with no real aspirations. One day while excavating the earth, Simon stumbles upon a mysterious object that turns out to be the ignition key to an ancient artifact of war, which the duo dubs Lagann. Using their new weapon, Simon and Kamina fend off a surprise attack from the surface with the help of Yoko Littner, a hot-blooded redhead wielding a massive gun who wanders the world above. In the aftermath of the battle, the sky is now in plain view, prompting Simon and Kamina to set off on a journey alongside Yoko to explore the wastelands of the surface. Soon, they join the fight against the "Beastmen," humanoid creatures that terrorize the remnants of humanity in powerful robots called "Gunmen." Although they face some challenges and setbacks, the trio bravely fights these new enemies alongside other survivors to reclaim the surface, while slowly unraveling a galaxy-sized mystery. I considered Gurren Lagann to be a perfect masterpiece after first watch (or rather first drop as I understand now). Now I start to see some irritations in Kamina behavior and even occasionally in Yuna behavior. Plus, can't call this anime intellectual as it's rather counter-intellectual with constant praising of legendary stupidity. After first several episodes pace seriously slows down with couple episodes bearing primarily fanservice. And it turned out that my memories were either flawed or not regarding complete series as I remembered Kamina as one of protagonists, something like in Fullmetal Alchemist , and I had no recollections of two structural parts like some Code Geass. Now I understand that second half of Gurren Lagann came before second season of Code Geass and thus could be inspiration for it... which is a very unsettling thought. I hope I tackled slippery spoilers road well enough. I'm greatly disappointed in the second half of Gurren Lagann, and that's to put it mildly. Guess Gainax wanted to squeeze everything out of the concept and preferred that to a decent place in history. Gurren Lagann is still a whole head more talented than Code Geass . Overall Rating: 7/10 2. Darker than Black: Kuro no Keiyakusha Darker than Black Darker than BLACK -黒の契約者- [Bones] (Finished 15/25) Tags: Super Power Action, Mystery, Sci-Fi It has been 10 years since Heaven's Gate appeared in South America and Hell's Gate appeared in Japan, veiling the once familiar night sky with an oppressive skyscape. Their purposes unknown, these Gates are spaces in which the very laws of physics are ignored. With the appearance of the Gates emerged Contractors, who, in exchange for their humanity, are granted supernatural abilities. In the Japanese city surrounding Hell’s Gate, Section 4 Chief Misaki Kirihara finds herself at odds with an infamous Contractor codenamed Hei. Called "Black Reaper" in the underground world, Hei, like his associates, undertakes missions for the mysterious and ruthless Syndicate while slowly peeling back the dark layers covering a nefarious plot that threatens the very existence of Contractors. From the mind of Tensai Okamura comes a sci-fi thriller taking the form of a subtle exposé on a war in which political positions and justice have no sway—a war waged exclusively in the shadows. Mystery genre is a poor excuse for disjointed unfocused story with many short arcs and different set of characters. I never grew to like both this world with superpowers and conspiracies and its inhabitants. For me it's just anthology that tries to seem bigger than it is. Overall Rating: 6/10 3. Claymore クレイモア [Madhouse] (Finished 26/26) Tags: Shounen Gore Action, Adventure, Fantasy When a shapeshifting demon with a thirst for human flesh, known as "youma," arrives in Raki's village, a lone woman with silver eyes walks into town with only a sword upon her back. She is a "Claymore," a being manufactured as half-human and half-youma, for the express purpose of exterminating these monsters. After Raki's family is killed, the Claymore saves his life, but he is subsequently banished from his home. With nowhere else to go, Raki finds the Claymore, known as Clare, and decides to follow her on her journeys. As the pair travel from town to town, defeating youma along the way, more about Clare's organization and her fellow warriors comes to light. With every town cleansed and every demon destroyed, they come closer to the youma on which Clare has sought vengeance ever since she chose to become a Claymore. It was always a perfect masterpiece for me, but having rewatched it now I sense lack of world details and focus on duels mostly. It may be just nitpicking as I don't a see a way to improve it, but it's not perfect. Overall Rating: 9/10 4. Lucky☆Star らき☆すた [Kyoto Animation] (Finished 24/24) Tags: CGDCT, Gag Humor, Otaku Culture, School Comedy Lucky☆Star follows the daily lives of four cute high school girls—Konata Izumi, the lazy otaku; the Hiiragi twins, Tsukasa and Kagami (sugar and spice, respectively); and the smart and well-mannered Miyuki Takara. As they go about their lives at school and beyond, they develop their eccentric and lively friendship and making humorous observations about the world around them. Be it Japanese tradition, the intricacies of otaku culture, academics, or the correct way of preparing and eating various foods—no subject is safe from their musings. Don't really want to search for flaws deliberately. It's inventive and hilarious. Overall Rating: 10/10 5. Lovely★Complex Lovely Complex ラブ★コン [Toei Animation] (Finished 8/24) Tags: Shoujo School Comedy, Romance Love is unusual for Risa Koizumi and Atsushi Ootani, who are both striving to find their ideal partner in high school—172 cm tall Koizumi is much taller than the average girl, and Ootani is much shorter than the average guy at 156 cm. To add to their plights, their crushes fall in love with each other, leaving Koizumi and Ootani comically flustered and heartbroken. To make matters worse, they're even labeled as a comedy duo by their homeroom teacher due to their personalities and the stark difference in their heights, and their classmates even think of their arguments as sketches. Lovely★Complex follows Koizumi and Ootani as they encourage each other in finding love and become close friends. Apart from their ridiculous antics, they soon find out an unexpected similarity in their music and fashion tastes. Maybe they possess a chemistry yet unknown, but could love ever bloom between the mismatched pair? All the height and manzai duo jokes don't look funny to me, and they make the bulk of the series. It's not advanced enough. In the end I can't enjoy it and just don't want to go on. Overall Rating: 6/10 6. Kaze no Stigma 風のスティグマ [Gonzo] (Finished 6/24) Tags: Action, Romance, Supernatural Kazuma Yagami is a user of "Fuujutsu," the ability to control the wind. He returns to his old home, the noble Kannagi household, after being banished four years ago for his inability to control fire and his subsequent defeat in a duel at the hands of his younger cousin, Ayano Kannagi. Returning after such a brutal exile already gives rise to many conflicts, but to make matters worse, several Kannagi family members have recently been murdered with Fuujutsu. This leads the Kannagi family, including the hot-headed Ayano, to suspect Kazuma as the culprit. Now, Kazuma must not only clear his name, but also aid the family he shares a mutual hatred with, in order to discover the true identity of the killer. Fiery shounen with disjointed story. Feels typical and average. Characters are especially underwhelming. Overall Rating: 6/10 7. Afro Samurai アフロサムライ [Gonzo] (Finished 5/5) Tags: Gore, Samurai Action, Adventure When he was a young boy, Afro witnessed his father be cut down in a duel at the hands of a man known only as Justice. After taking the life of Afro's father, Justice cast aside his Number Two headband and took the Number One to claim its godly powers as his own. Years later, having obtained the Number Two headband which grants him the right to challenge the Number One, Afro moves forward in his hunt for revenge on the man who murdered his father. There is just one thing that stands in his way—everyone else in the world! Though the Number One can only be challenged by the Number Two, the Number Two can be challenged by anyone. As his enemies gather to try and take the title of Number Two, Afro must fight through a myriad of foes and obstacles if he hopes to reach the Number One and claim vengeance once and for all. Good Gonzo action. Not enough everything else. Overall Rating: 6/10 8. Seto no Hanayome My Bride is a Mermaid 瀬戸の花嫁 [Gonzo, AIC] (Finished 3/26) Tags: Shounen Organized Crime, Parody, School Comedy, Romance During his summer vacation, middle school student Nagasumi Michishio travels to the Seto Inland Sea. One day, while swimming at Mio Sun Beach, his leg suddenly cramps. No one is close enough to notice his desperate screams for help, and so he sinks into the ocean, where he is left to drown alone. Just as he loses consciousness, however, a mermaid appears and saves his life. That night, Nagasumi is visited by his savior, a girl who introduces herself as Sun Seto—a mermaid from a yakuza family. As it turns out, under mermaid law, a mermaid whose identity is revealed to a human must be punished by execution. To avoid this harrowing outcome, the Seto family propose a solution: Nagasumi must marry Sun or die at the hands of Gouzaburou, Sun's father and boss of the Seto clan. Faced with no other option, Nagasumi takes her hand in marriage. Now, the newlyweds face the difficult task of keeping their relationship secret. Between Gouzaburou's unending attempts on Nagasumi's life and the eccentric antics of a slew of antagonists, a genuine and innocent love blossoms between the pair as they adapt to their new life. The concept of secret marriage while at school is quite widely used, so it all depends on execution as it works for me only with a realistic or sophisticated development. Seto no Hanayome is neither, but rather a typical parody romcom. Overall Rating: 6/10 9. Hayate no Gotoku! Hayate the Combat Butler ハヤテのごとく! [SynergySP] (Finished 1/52) Tags: Shounen Harem, Parody Action, Comedy, Romance According to Murphy's Law, "anything that can go wrong, will go wrong," and truer words cannot describe the unfortunate life of the hard-working Hayate Ayasaki. Abandoned by his parents after accumulating a debt of over one hundred fifty million yen, he is sold off to the yakuza, initiating his swift getaway from a future he does not want. On that fateful night, he runs into Nagi Sanzenin, a young girl whom he decides to try and kidnap to pay for his family's massive debt. Unfortunately, due to his kind-hearted nature and a string of misunderstandings, Nagi believes Hayate to be confessing his love to her. After saving her from real kidnappers, Hayate is hired as Nagi's personal butler, upon which she is revealed to be a member of one of the wealthiest families in Japan. Highly skilled but cursed with the world's worst luck, Hayate gets straight to work serving his employer all the while trying to deal with the many misfortunes that befall him. From taking care of a mansion to fending off dangerous foes, and even unintentionally wooing the hearts of the women around him, Hayate is in over his head in the butler comedy Hayate no Gotoku! Sequel. Overall Rating: 6/10 10. Seirei no Moribito Moribito - Guardian of the Spirit 精霊の守り人 [Production I.G] (Finished 26/26) Tags: Action, Adventure, Fantasy On the precipice of a cataclysmic drought, the Star Readers of the Shin Yogo Empire must devise a plan to avoid widespread famine. It is written in ancient myths that the first emperor, along with eight warriors, slew a water demon to avoid a great drought and save the land that was to become Shin Yogo. If a water demon was to appear once more, its death could bring salvation. However, the water demon manifests itself within the body of the emperor's son, Prince Chagum—by the emperor's order, Chagum is to be sacrificed to save the empire. Meanwhile, a mysterious spear-wielding mercenary named Balsa arrives in Shin Yogo on business. After saving Chagum from a thinly veiled assassination attempt, she is tasked by Chagum's mother to protect him from the emperor and his hunters. Bound by a sacred vow she once made, Balsa accepts. Seirei no Moribito follows Balsa as she embarks on her journey to protect Chagum, exploring the beauty of life, nature, family, and the bonds that form between strangers. Concept is to run away and waste time till spirit hatches, after first turbulent episodes things settle down and anime starts to waste our time with eventless episodes. I watched to the end only to see if it ends with a filler as well. And of course they needed to finish the water beasts plotline, but the total amount of content is not enough even for one season... let alone two... Overall Rating: 6/10 11. Bokura no ぼくらの [Gonzo] (Finished 24/24) Tags: Seinen Mecha, Psychological, Survival Drama, Sci-Fi As fifteen children at a summer camp enjoy their carefree vacation together, they stumble upon a small cave near the beach. The group finds a mysterious room deep within its caverns, where they meet a strange man who calls himself Kokopelli. The man invites the children to play a game that involves taking turns controlling a robot to protect the Earth against aliens. Thinking it might be an interesting computer game, all but one of the children sign a contract agreeing to play. Later that day, the giant robot appears in person and the children are teleported into its cockpit, where they find Kokopelli, who pilots a fight against a similar robotic creature that has appeared nearby. After winning the battle, Kokopelli tries to apologize but is interrupted as the children are teleported back to the ground in the midst of the carnage. As the bewilderment following the fight settles, the robot suddenly disappears and the children are left scared and confused. Despite seeming like a harmless game at first, the children never anticipated the stakes of this game and how their pasts would intertwine with their decisions going forward. It had a pretty traumatic impression on me long ago, so I refuse to rewatch it now, but it's a really memorable mecha that deserves a highlight. Overall Rating: 7/10 12. Romeo x Juliet ロミオ×ジュリエット [Gonzo] (Finished 1/24) Tags: Historical Drama, Fantasy, Romance On the floating continent of Neo Verona, the Montague family slaughters the entire Capulet family and seizes control of the kingdom. The true heir to the throne, Juliet Fiammata Asto Capulet, manages to escape the onslaught and is hidden away by loyalists for 14 years with hope that she may one day overthrow the cruel Montague regime. Despite having forgotten the murder of her entire family, Juliet now secretly protects the oppressed citizens of Neo Verona as a vigilante called the Red Whirlwind. During one of her escapades she meets Romeo Candorebanto Montague, the kind and selfless son of the tyrannical Prince Laertes Montague, and without knowledge of each other's background, they both fall in love at first sight. Unfortunately, however, their destiny is a cursed one: not only does each of the two families wish to obliterate the other, but an ancient secret hidden beneath Neo Verona also threatens their undying love for each other. Will they be able to defy the stars, or is this truly a love that can never be? I can't stand it when old works are distorted just because lack of talent to invent something own. All I see here is typical mindless extension without much talent put into it. Overall Rating: 5/10 13. Dennou Coil Den-noh Coil 電脳コイル [Madhouse] (Finished 3/26) Tags: Adventure, Award Winning, Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi In the near future, augmented reality has become a key part of daily life. A gentle middle school girl named Yuuko "Yasako" Okonogi and her family have just moved to Daikoku City despite rumors of people disappearing. There, her grandmother, nicknamed "Mega-baa," runs a shop called Megasia that specializes in illegal tools which interact with parts of the virtual world. Mega-baa also hosts an unofficial detective agency called "Coil," a group of children around Yasako's age who find and handle corruption of the virtual world. Yasako gets involved with the group when Fumie Hashimoto, a playful member of Coil, helps rescue her cyberdog Densuke after getting trapped in virtual space while chasing a mysterious virus. Also investigating these corruptions and viruses is an abrasive hacker named Yuuko Amasawa, who the others take to calling Isako. Can Coil discover the truths behind the mysterious viruses and corruption, and if they can, at what cost? Yet another 26-episode show that does not have enough content. Protagonists are more young than desired. There's deliberately no cuteness. I remember I enjoyed it substantially over 10 years ago, and it's one of those rare anime that I'd recommend children to watch, but for adults not that great. Overall Rating: 6/10 14. Heroic Age ヒロイック・エイジ [Xebec] (Finished 3/26) Tags: Mecha, Military, Space Action, Sci-Fi When the Golden Race invited other races to join them in the stars, three sentient races answered their call. The Goldens called them the Bronze, Silver and Heroic Tribes. Just before the Gold Tribe left to travel to another Universe, a fourth race appeared, traveling to the stars on their own accomplishments. The Golds named the human race the Iron Tribe. During the passing of time, humanity suffers at the hands of the more dominant races and is now facing extinction. Following a prophecy left by the Gold Tribe, Princess Deianeira sets out to search for the powerful being who might be able to save humankind. She meets a wild haired boy on an abandoned planet—a fateful encounter that will not only change the fortunes of Humanity, but also the fate of the universe. Xebec has a long history of making surprisingly boring shows of which I liked exactly zero. This one is no exception and reeks of averageness and simplicity even despite somewhat more inventive synopsis that usual. Overall Rating: 5/10 15. Bakugan Battle Brawlers 爆丸バトルブローラーズ [TMS Entertainment] (Finished 1/52) Tags: Strategy Game Action, Fantasy Mysterious cards came down from the sky one day. Capable of summoning powerful creatures from another dimension, they became the centerpiece of a new game called Bakugan. The game gained instant popularity among children and teenagers, with the best of them competing in a worldwide ranking. Meanwhile, war for domination over Vestroia, the homeland of Bakugan cards, rages on. Invaded by the White Dragon Naga and his servants, the Doom Beings, the realm becomes increasingly destabilized. Dimensions begin to merge and many Bakugan players come to realize that their pastime is not merely a game. Danma Kuusou, one such Bakugan player, intends to become the World Ranking's leader someday. However, during one of his fights he experiences a vision of a clash in Vestroia. The fight suddenly moves to Earth, where Danma comes into possession of a talking, mighty fire Bakugan, Pyrus Dragonoid. He soon gets dragged into the conflict, and together with his Bakugan Brawlers team, must traverse the dimensions and restore balance in a ravaged world. How come this variation of card pokemon is not marked as for kids... Overall Rating: 5/10 16. Nagasarete Airantou ながされて藍蘭島 [feel.] (Finished 3/26) Tags: Shounen Harem Comedy, Fantasy, Romance, Ecchi Ikuto Touhohin just had a fight with his old man, one that led him to make a rash decision to run away from home. He boards a ship, deciding to take a vacation, but the ship is suddenly hit by a huge storm—one that sends Ikuto overboard! When he regains consciousness, he realizes he is still alive on some island. An isolated island. An isolated island with nothing but girls. Beautiful girls. Stranded on an island with only girls, no electricity, gas, radio, television, like he was back in the stone age. A light harem setting for light mood. Overall Rating: 6/10 17. Sola [Nomad] (Finished 3/13) Tags: Drama, Romance, Supernatural Yorito Morimiya is obsessed with the sky. He especially loves taking pictures of its array of different faces—sunrises, sunsets, clouds. On one of his early-morning excursions to photograph the sunrise, Yorito meets a strange girl engaged in an argument with a vending machine. By the time that Yorito forces the girl's tomato juice out of the machine, she's vanished without a trace. Sola follows the story of Yorito, his sister Aono, and their childhood friends Mana and Koyori Ishizuki, as well as that of a mysterious girl who appears and disappears, and who seems to harbor a dark secret. In a world where magic and the supernatural are never far below the surface and no one is who they seem to be, love and loneliness vie for supremacy beneath Yorito's sky. An OK love triangle with some supernatural. For me it's too typical and stale, both in dialogues and characters. But it should satisfy basic demands well if expectations aren't set super high by modern romance anime like in my case. Overall Rating: 6/10 18. Ookiku Furikabutte Big Windup! おおきく振りかぶって [A-1 Pictures] (Finished 1/25) Tags: Seinen Team Sports Ren Mihashi was the ace of his middle school's baseball team, but due to his poor pitching, they could never win. Constant losses eventually lead to his teammates bullying him and reached the point where his teammates no longer tried to win, causing Mihashi to graduate with little self-esteem. As a result, Mihashi decides to go to a high school in a different prefecture where he has no intention of playing baseball. Unfortunately, upon his arrival at Nishiura High, he is dragged into joining their new team as the starting pitcher. Although unwilling at first, Mihashi realizes that this is a place where he will be accepted for who he is; with help from the catcher Takaya Abe, he starts to have more confidence in his own abilities. Abe, seeing the potential in Mihashi, makes it a goal to help him become a pitcher worthy of being called an ace. All I can say is better than usual spokon, but better ask elsewhere. Overall Rating: 6/10 19. Kaibutsu Oujo Princess Resurrection 怪物王女 [Madhouse] (Finished 3/25) Tags: Shounen Vampire Action, Comedy, Horror, Supernatural When Hiro Hiyorimi tries to save a beautiful young woman from certain death, he ends up a dead hero himself! However, since the drop-dead girl is Hime, daughter of the King of the Monsters, his "reward" is to come back as a not-quite-living soldier in her honor guard of horror! That means helping fight off the army of supernatural monstrosities Hime's siblings are unleashing against her in hopes of moving up the ladder of succession. And if facing off with vampires and zombies isn't bad enough, how can anyone be prepared for the REALLY weird ones, like were-sharks, pandas and killer dumplings? This sure as hell isn't the afterlife Hiro was hoping for, but the really sad part is that Hime is the good girl in all of this... or at least as close to good as you can come when you're on the wrong side of the gates of hell! From the synopsis it's clear that there can be nothing serious, but in reality it's mediocre in every field unless some character catches attention. Protagonist gets protected from different attacking monsters, and that's the bulk of it. Overall Rating: 5/10 20. Terra e... (TV) 地球へ… [Tokyo Kids, Minami Machi Bugyousho] (Finished 1/24) Tags: Shounen Military, Space Action, Drama, Sci-Fi When humanity realized that the Earth, or Terra, had been polluted beyond fixing, the planet's governments united under a unique authoritarian system named Superior Domination (SD) and started to colonize space. Centuries later, mankind has given up its freedom in favor of the AI Grand Mother; when someone reaches the age of 14, their memories are wiped and they are automatically assigned a new role in society. Jomy Marquis Shin, a sensitive young man raised by loving parents, is saved from this grim fate by Soldier Blue, the current leader of the Mu race—a new species of human beings blessed with psychic abilities. However, in the eyes of SD, the existence of people like Jomy threatens the new paradigm of humanity. Hunted down by the hounds of the government, Jomy finds solace in the welcoming arms of the Mu, who hide aboard the spaceship Shangri-La. Now the leader of the Mu resistance years later, Jomy embarks on a journey toward Terra to escape from SD's manhunt led by Keith Anyan, an ambitious and ruthless rising star of humanity. Will Jomy and his people manage to reach the cradle of humanity before Keith destroys their last hope? I never liked old esper OVA, but it was a short memorable story to watch. Remaking it as 24-episode drag is just inhumane. Literally everything irritates me here. Overall Rating: 5/10 21. El Cazador de la Bruja エル・カザド [Bee Train] (Finished 6/26) Tags: Adventure, Drama, Mystery Nadie is a bounty hunter with an attitude, and she's got a lock on her next target: Ellis, a young amnesiac girl who is a suspect in the murder of a famous scientist. Nadie manages to apprehend Ellis, but on a whim, decides to accompany her to Wiñay Marka, a place which supposedly holds the key to unlocking Ellis's memories and her mysterious past. However, Nadie cautions Ellis that this does not mean she will go free—once Ellis has found what she is looking for, Nadie will turn her over to the authorities. With Ellis's connection to a gemstone called the Inca Rose as their only guide, the two set off on their journey south through Mexico to search for the mysterious "Eternal City" of Wiñay Marka. Mystery, bounty hunter, amnesiac girl and travelling... so many elements that I dislike. This is another representative of the genre "wasting time" as nothing ever develops while sunk in tons of generic situations. Overall Rating: 5/10 22. Blue Dragon ブルー・ドラゴン [Pierrot] (Finished 1/51) Tags: Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy, Supernatural As Shu's village was being attacked by an unknown enemy, he and his friends, Jiro and Kluke decide to defend their home. They soon meet warrior Zola and receive the powers of Shadow, an ability that let's them transform their shadow into a powerful monster. Shu receives one of the most powerful monsters, Blue Dragon, and they all set out to defeat their enemy. A mix between dragon quest, digimons and first dragon ball, it's for kids and a bit older children. Overall Rating: 6/10 23. Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha StrikerS Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha StrikerS 魔法少女リリカルなのは [Seven Arcs] (Finished 1/26) Tags: Mahou Shoujo, Super Power Action, Comedy, Drama Set 10 years after Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha A's, Nanoha, Fate, Hayate and the rest of the crew are now working full time in the Time-Space Administration Bureau. Nanoha is a combat instructor, Fate is a special investigator, and Hayate is a commanding officer. They must unite once again to save the dimensions. Introducing new characters as well: Subaru, Teana, Caro and Erio. Stand by. Ready. Set up! Sequel. Overall Rating: 6/10 24. Kamichama Karin かみちゃまかりん [Satelight] (Finished 3/26) Tags: Shoujo Mahou Shoujo, School Comedy, Fantasy, Romance Thirteen-year-old Karin Hanazono feels like her life can't get any worse, Her parents died when she was younger, leaving her with an aunt who doesn't hesitate to call her stupid and useless over her poor grades. Her only friend, her cat named Shii-chan, passed away recently, leaving her completely alone. All she has left of her parents is a ring given to her by her mother, which she treasures dearly as the sole thing left of her past. Kamichama Karin begins the moment her life takes a turn for the better, when she is approached by Himeka Kuujou, a cute girl who has also lost her parents, and Kazune Kuujou, her cousin who finds girls to be troublesome, both of whom are searching for a goddess. Her mother's memento ring shines brightly in their presence and fills her with its radiance, making her smarter, faster, and capable of granting wishes. It turns out that her ring allows her to become the very goddess they were looking for, and now that she has awakened that power, others will come after her for it… Cute mahou shoujo comedy, but rather generic in other aspects. Humor is not bad, so it's easy to watch even for me, just don't expect much conceptuality out of it. Overall Rating: 6/10 25. Over Drive オーバードライヴ [Xebec] (Finished 1/26) Tags: Shounen Racing Sports Mikoto Shinozaki is a high school student lacking in social awareness. In addition, due to his untidy appearance and low self-esteem, he is an easy target for bullies. Regardless, any misfortune that falls upon Mikoto is partly his own fault—at least, that is what Yuki Fukuzawa, the most popular girl in class, believes. With this assumption, Yuki invites Mikoto to join the school's bicycle club, in hopes he can improve himself and gain new friends. Motivated by feelings he has for Yuki, Mikoto has no reason to decline her offer—except for the fact that he does not know how to ride a bicycle. Despite his lack of even the fundamentals, Mikoto cannot get over the image of himself on a bicycle. Eventually, he succumbs to his curiosity and sneaks into the school grounds at night to practice. This begins Mikoto's journey as he pedals his way through the vast world of cycling, where the scenery of his life changes in ways he never thought possible. The whole world of cycling opens up! Or some kind of similar spokon nonsense. Incredibly irritating beginning. Overall Rating: 5/10 26. Shining Tears X Wind シャイニング・ティアーズ・クロス・ウィンド [Studio Deen] (Finished 13/13) Tags: Isekai Action, Adventure, Fantasy Mysterious disappearances are occurring one after the other in Tatsumi Town. Kiriya has a vision from a mysterious beautiful girl with pointy ears. A book talking for an alternative world is found. And Mao searching for her long lost friend, Zero, comes to our world. But what she didn’t expect is to find Souma and Kureha, and even less, to accidentally take them to her world. Now, Souma and Kureha have to find a way to come back. But other forces are playing their part in the darkness and Souma with Kureha will find that going back is harder than they first anticipated. Wow, old isekai RPG adaptation is something that I need to experience. And it sure is cringy. As expected, boring, typical and rather simple, though extensive. Overall Rating: 5/10 27. Skull Man The Skull Man スカルマン SKULL MAN [Bones] (Finished 3/13) Tags: Super Power Action, Mystery Otomo City: where freedom and justice have atrophied to the bone; where conspiracy rules the day and death stalks the night... Death in the form of the Skull Man, a literal Grim Reaper whose skeletal grin presages grisly mayhem and murder, even to the monstrous mutants that haunt the city's underworlds! To investigate a bizarre slaying, journalist Minagami Hayato and photographer Kiriko Mamiya must stalk this ultimate predator, through a festering cadaver of a city where the corruption flows in rivers as deep and foul as the sins of the reigning elite, and unearth a secret so shocking that an entire city has been turned into a tomb to contain! In a nightmarish necropolis where nothing is as it seems, vengeance comes in the form of a living Death's-Head! Investigation murders mystery with monsters and tortoise pace getting to the roots and bigger conspiracy. We've seen it countless times already, really dull. Overall Rating: 5/10 28. Shinkyoku Soukai Polyphonica Polyphonica [Ginga Ya] (Finished 5/12) Tags: Music, School Drama, Fantasy, Romance Phoron Tatara's no ordinary musician. As one of the rare Dantists who can summon elder spirits using music called Commandia, his gift is so strong that his spirit partner is none other than the infamous Corticarte Apa Lagranges. Sure, she may look like a young girl in her human form, but you don't get nicknames like "The Crimson Annihilator" and "The Bloody Duchess" for sitting back and watching the daisies grow. Now, at the behest of the Tsuge Divine Music Player Office, this dynamic duet travels the continent of Polyphonica on Phoron's combination motorcycle/organ, following the song of the open road, orchestrating rescues and generally fixing whatever's baroque! Some musicians wait for a muse to hit them, but Phoron makes his work for scale! Music and spirits seems to be a weird combination to put together... and it really is. Defeating monsters with music always feels cringy. Episodes feel disjointed and random. Overall Rating: 5/10 29. Eikoku Koi Monogatari Emma: Molders-hen Emma: A Victorian Romance Season Two 英國戀物語エマ ~メルダース編~ [Ajia-do] (Finished 1/12) Tags: Seinen Historical Drama, Romance In the faraway village of Haworth, a new chapter in Emma's life has begun. Now employed by the wealthy Molders family, Emma has resolved to put the past behind her. She'll have to adjust to a new house, a charming (but eccentric) new mistress, and a host of fellow servants, some with buried pasts of their own. Meanwhile, back in London, William is doing his best to uphold his father's wishes as the Jones family heir, but try as he might, he can't forget Emma. Yet, whenever he feels at his worst, Eleanor is always there to comfort him with a warm, shy smile. Could the answer to his broken heart be right before his eyes? Sequel. Overall Rating: 5/10 30. iDOLM@STER Xenoglossia アイドルマスター XENOGLOSSIA(ゼノグラシア [Sunrise] (Finished 3/26) Tags: Mecha Action, Comedy, Sci-Fi 107 years ago, the Moon was destroyed in a massive cataclysm that shattered Earth's former satellite into 81 quintillion tons of orbital debris. However, thanks to super-science, the Earth itself was saved and today no one really thinks much about that century-past disaster. Which is why when teenage Haruka Amami auditions for something called the Idolmaster Project, she THINKS she's trying out to be a singing idol. Instead, Haruka finds herself at a secret school run by the Mondenkind Agency, living with a group of other girls who have also been selected as candidates to pilot an iDOL - an advanced robot specifically designed to intercept falling chunks of moon rock. Except, the people who run the Mondenkind Agency aren't exactly knights in shining armor. And then there's the question of whether the iDOLs are really JUST robots. Because from almost the first moment, Haruka starts to feel emotions resonating from within the iDOL called Imber. What will happen if idols from a game are added to mecha anime by Sunrise? Nothing good, obviously. Overall Rating: 5/10 31. Kono Aozora ni Yakusoku wo: Youkoso Tsugumi Ryou e この青空に約束を― ~ようこそつぐみ寮へ~ [Artland] (Finished 3/13) Tags: Harem, School Romance One morning, Wataru Hoshino found a sleeping girl—in nothing but her underwear—in his room. When she woke up, she quickly escaped by jumping out of the window, but not without punching Wataru in the face first. This girl, Rinna Sawaki, ends up being a transfer student of Wataru's school, as well as the new roommate of Wataru's dormitory. Wataru lives with four other girls and their school teacher, but due to Temizugawa Heavy Industry's cancellation of their aviation branch—South Sakojima Island's major company—the families involved with the corporation have to be evacuated in one year. As a result of this, the four girls have to leave the island in one year's time. Knowing this, Rinna refuses to become friends with Wataru and the other girls, because of the pain that she might experience as a result of their eventual separation; however, Wataru disagrees with her, and over the course of the year, tries to convince her otherwise. I don't remember any really good stories about school that's going to be closed up, although general level is traditionally higher compared to normal school anime. This title tries to be psychological and cute and crafty in romance situations, but due to harem format and fast switching girls with episodes often does not even succeed at that. Overall Rating: 6/10 32. Hitohira ひとひら [XEBEC M2] (Finished 2/12) Tags: Seinen Performing Arts, School Drama, Romance A transfer student Asai Mugi is a painfully shy girl. She is so shy that she can't speak when she becomes seriously nervous. However, for some reason, she is spotted and recruited as a member of the drama club. Story about overcoming oneself relies on characters a lot. Designs are mediocre, humor is generic silly from 2000s, characters are ok, but nothing outstanding. Compared to modern school anime it fares really poorly unless you're ok with SOL from 2000s. Overall Rating: 6/10 33. Touka Gettan 桃華月憚 [Studio Deen] (Finished 3/26) Tags: Drama, Romance, Supernatural Touka Gettan is set in the land of Kamitsumihara, where traces of magic and legend can still be seen. The land has been under the protection of the Kamiazuma clan since it was founded. The story revolves around Touka Kamiazuma, the main protagonist, and his encounter with a young girl named Momoka Kawakabe who comes to stay with the clan. Their meeting sets off a chain of events that will bring an ancient legend to life. Touka Gettan is mystery by design as it mostly runs in reverse order. It's a big mess or tragedies that are not even interesting to investigate. Overall Rating: 6/10 34. Oh! Edo Rocket 大江戸ロケット [Madhouse] (Finished 3/26) Tags: Historical Comedy, Drama, Fantasy, Sci-Fi In Edo in the mid-1800's, fireworks maker Seikichi Tamaya and his friends struggle to live under the harsh morality laws imposed by the strict city councilor, which ban all luxuries, including fireworks. One day, a strange girl stops by Sekichi's shop with an equally strange request: she wants Sekichi to build a firework that can reach the moon. As you can see, it's mostly nonsense, and not the kind I could like. Overall Rating: 5/10 35. Moonlight Mile 1st Season: Lift Off ムーンライトマイル 1stシーズン -Lift off- [Studio Hibari] (Finished 3/12) Tags: Space Adventure, Drama, Sci-Fi After scaling Mt. Everest, mountain climbing partners Saruwatari Gorou and "Lostman" Jack F. Woodbridge see the ISA Space Station, and each vows to make the trek into outerspace. When Helium 3, a new energy source, is discovered on the moon, NASA forms a new project named "Nexus" to harness that energy for use on earth. This is the story of the two and the paths they take to see their dream become a reality in the quest to harness the next-generation energy source. Space romanticism is something that's alien to me. Training to become astronauts is even worse. Protagonist is some tech genius and some other characters are ok, so feel free to try if you're up to some SOL in space . Overall Rating: 6/10 36. Kiss Dum: Engage Planet キスダム -ENGAGE planet- [Satelight] (Finished 6/26) Tags: Mecha, Military Sci-Fi In A.D. 2031, humans are enjoying a prosperous existence until strange life forms called Hardians appear. They suddenly begin to multiply and assault the human population. As a countermeasure, mankind organizes the N.I.D.F. to investigate the Hardians and protect themselves. A fighter pilot, Aiba Shu, begins to become involved in the battle against the lifeforms. Rurika Yuno, one of Earth's foremost scientists, investigates the Hardians and hears rumors about the "Book of a Dead Man." What is the secret of this tome, and what relation does it have to the Hardians? Now, the fight for mankind's survival begins. It's an average action with a rather disgusting concept. All those necropowers look repulsive at best. And to even approach the aliens origin we need to survive through very generic protagonist and characters behaving in very typical ways. Overall Rating: 5/10 37. Wellber no Monogatari: Sisters of Wellber ウエルベールの物語 Sisters of Wellber [Trans Arts] (Finished 3/13) Tags: Historical Action, Adventure, Comedy, Drama, Fantasy 10 years since the great war, tensions were mounting within the country of Wellber, which was barely capable of keeping peace, as war could commence at any time with its neighboring country, Sangatras. In order to avoid warfare, the king of Wellber, Haidel planned on marrying off his daughter, Princess Rita, to Sangatras` Prince Guernia. However, Rita stabbed her groom to be and ran away. Infuriated, Sangatras` King Ranbahnhof threatens to wage war unless Rita is captured and publicly executed within 14 days. In order to avoid the worst case scenario, Rita decides to head for the neutral country of Greedom. Meanwhile, the woman thief Tina sneaks into Castle Wellber, seeking its treasures, when she happens to witness the stabbing of Guernia by Rita. Whether it be by coincidence or necessity, Tina receives information that the "Wasp Man" she was after is in Greedom, her sworn enemy who took the life of her parents. Tina agrees to become Rita`s bodyguard as they head out to Greedom. Shouldering their fate and destiny, the two meet, leave, and set out on their journey. What awaits them is war or peace, vengeance or death... What will happen if murderer princess, fairy, phantom thief and robot tank come together to prevent war? Answer is this anime ... It's very messy, as you can see, plus there's no substance, so we just travel around and face some adventures. I really don't want to encourage such lousy attempts. Overall Rating: 5/10 38. Koutetsu Sangokushi 鋼鉄三国志 [Picture Magic] (Finished 4/25) Tags: Historical Adventure The Imperial Seal has been passed down through the generations since ancient times. It confers great power unto the warriors that it chooses. This is the story of those warriors. It is a time of chaos and of civil war. It is a time when great armies clash in titanic battles and great heroes carve their names in history. It is also a time of death and destruction, when the people of the land live in constant fear of the sword. Onto this stage steps the reluctant Rikuson (Lu Xun), whose family had been the guardians of the Imperial Seal up until it was stolen by Sonsaku. At the behest of his mentor Rikuson offers his services to Sonsaku with the intention of confirming the will of the Imperial Seal. However, assassins strike down Sonsaku and the Imperial Seal is lost. So begins, Rikuson’s journey to recover the Imperial Seal and discover his destiny. Opening looked fishy like boys love, and in reality it turned out to be shounen ai, so, no, thank you, and it should be developing more and more towards the end. And can't say that it's well done compared to most stories taking part in ancient China. Overall Rating: 5/10 39. Kaze no Shoujo Emily 風の少女エミリー [TMS Entertainment] (Finished 1/26) Tags: Shoujo Historical Drama Based on the Emily of New Moon novel by Lucy Maud Montgomery. Emily is an orphan who gets sent to live with her relatives on Prince Edward Island, after her father dies. In New Moon she lives with her Aunt Elizabeth, Aunt Laura, and Cousin Jimmy, and learns to adapt with the help of her imagination and new friends. It's very much in the field of World Masterpiece Theater in substance, so not my plate, although quality is quite high for such kinds of historical SOL. Overall Rating: 6/10 40. Saint Beast: Kouin Jojishi Tenshi Tan セイント・ビースト~光陰叙事詩天使譚~ [Tokyo Kids, Yuhodo] (Finished 1/13) Tags: Fantasy A long time ago, Zeus, the great god, created a three–tier hierarchy of angels, top, middle and lower, although they were supposed to be equal. Also, Zeus appointed 6 angels as Saint Beasts who govern the animals of Earth. They were: Go, the seiyu; Shin, the genbu; Rei, the suzaku; Guy, the byakko; Yuda, the kirin; and Ruka, the hooh. However, Kira, the shooting star, and Maya, the fuga, didn’t attend the selection tests and left for the Earth. The six angels fulfilled their tasks faithfully. However, because of Zeus’s increasingly tyrannical acts, they begin to mistrust him. Another Boys Love Shounen Ai not marked properly, now even with deliberately bishounen designs. Overall Rating: 5/10 41. Kishin Taisen Gigantic Formula 機神大戦 ギガンティック・フォーミュラ [Brain's Base] (Finished 4/26) Tags: Mecha Sci-Fi 2035 A.D. The heads of ancient giant idols were excavated all over the world. Using those twelve stones statues, Humanity had barely overcome the threat of extinction called the "Equatorial Winter". But the stone statues had forced Humanity to construct colossal suits of armor as their bodies and demanded that the humans fight each other. Mecha on the better half of the genre, but rather generic EVA clone, with slow development and not particularly interesting characters. Still, characters are good enough to attract someone, and to go on that's needed as background stories and flashbacks take a lot of time. Overall Rating: 6/10 42. Koutetsushin Jeeg 鋼鉄神ジーグ [Actas] (Finished 1/13) Tags: Mecha Sci-Fi Kotetsushin Jeeg takes place fifty years after the original and features a new cast of characters—primarily the new main character Kenji Kusanagi, a high school student who becomes Kotetsushin Jeeg to fight the sudden reappearance of "Haniwa Genjin" ("Haniwa Phantom Gods", or clay robots) from the Jamada Empire ruled by Queen Himika. Other characters include Tsubaki Tamashiro (grandaughter of Miwa Uzuki); and Kyou Misumi. Other main characters from the original series also appear. Sequel. Overall Rating: 5/10 43. Gegege no Kitarou (2007) ゲゲゲの鬼太郎 (2007) [Toei Animation] (Finished 1/100) Tags: Comedy, Fantasy, Horror The classic tale of Gegege no Kitaro told yet again. The story is the usual in the Gegege no Kitaro series. Kitaro is a boy living in the Gegege Forest/Cemetery (lands where many Yokai roam) with his mostly dead father (who survives only in his eye), Sunakake Babaa, NekoMusume, and Konaki Jiji. One difference between this Kitaro and all of the others that came before him, is that this one has brown hair instead of the standard grayish silver. Sequel. Overall Rating: 6/10 44. Spider Riders: Yomigaeru Taiyou Spider Riders: Resurrected Sun スパイダーライダーズ ~よみがえる太陽~ [Bee Train] (Finished 1/26) Tags: Mecha Action, Adventure The battle against the Insectors to save the Inner World rages on, as Hunter Steele and the Spider Riders defend Arachna. With the help of his friends—Igneous, an intelligent young royal officer of Arachna's military; Magma, a foolhardy warrior; and Corona, a kind-hearted girl—crisis has been averted—but not for long. News of the Kingdom of Nuuma being attacked by the Insectors is soon brought to the attention of the Spider Riders, who are reluctant to leave Arachna undefended. But past favors need to be repaid, so they decide to travel across the Inner Ocean to protect the Kingdom of Nuuma. Entrusted with finding four of the Oracle's keys locked away by the leader of the Insectors, Hunter and his friends strive to bring about peace once and for all. Spider Riders: Yomigaeru Taiyou is the epic conclusion to the Spider Riders series. Will the four Oracle Keys find their way to Hunter and the Spider Riders, or will Mantid and the Insectors finally have their wish granted, conquering the Inner World for themselves? Sequel. Overall Rating: 5/10 45. Taichi Senjimon Tai Chi Chasers 太極千字文 [Toei Animation, JM Animation] (Finished 1/39) Tags: Action, Adventure, Fantasy After a strange and devastating attack on his home, a young boy named Rai is shocked to discover he's a secret descendent of the Tigeroids: an ancient race of peaceful beings locked in a struggle with the ruthless and cunning Dragonoids. In a parallel universe called Suhn, the Tigeroids and Dragonoids are battling furiously to recover 500 lost tai chi characters. Whoever retrieves these precious and potent symbols will possess the ultimate power to rule their realm…and destroy their enemies. As Rai hones his innate tai chi skills to fight the Dragonoids, he must find the lost tai chi and battle to become one of the champion Tai Chi Chasers! Another card collection and competition mediocrity. Overall Rating: 5/10 46. Revbahaf Wang-gug Jaegeon-soelgi ルブバハフ王国再建設記 [Studio Kaab] (Finished 1/26) Tags: Comedy, Drama Three people are hiding out in a cabin by the foothills. Van is the prince from the now-defunct Revbahaf Kingdom, Kona – his hand maiden, and Sian – his philosopher and tutor. Chased by enemies, these three individuals earn the kindness of Aaron, who feeds them at the cabin. By helping out with Aaron’s chores, the former royal family learns to live a peaceful life getting by, rather than plotting a revenge on the neighboring country which invaded them. Together they try to rebuild the Kingdom of Revbahaf. Shoujo that's made as borderline childish and typical despite adult protagonists. There's some ok humor, but it all does not feel serious and going anywhere. Overall Rating: 6/10 47. Tales of Symphonia The Animation: Sylvarant-hen テイルズオブシンフォニア THE ANIMATION シルヴァラント編 [ufotable] (Finished 4/4) Tags: Martial Arts Action, Adventure, Fantasy Two worlds exist, both unaware of the existance of the other. In order for one world to flourish, the other will have to perish. On the perishing world, a Chosen one is sent on a journey to restore that world's mana by awakening the Spirits and becoming an angel. Colette Brunel, the Chosen of Sylvarant, sets out on her journey accompanied by her best friends Lloyd Irving and Genis Sage. As they travel further they meet more friends and even more enemies, while they learn more and more about the truth behind the World Regeneration. Never liked Tales of Symphonia games due to horrible mechanics. Tried anime within the series several times, but it's inevitably RPG-like stretched, slow and inevitably boring in the end . Overall Rating: 6/10 48. Ice ICE - アイス - [PPM] (Finished 3/3) Tags: Military Action, Girls Love, Sci-Fi By A.D. 2010, all men have died off quickly due to a dramatic change in the environment and an unknown contaminant. The population decreased to the lowest number ever seen...until only the women were left alive. They live huddled in small corners of a world mostly reclaimed by nature. There are those who accept their inevitable extinction and live a carefree life... There are those who try to continue on the race with the help of science... It is a society of constant conflict over their differences of principles and policies. The story takes place in the center of Tokyo. It is one of the places left for them. The conflict over the specimen of "ICE" and the chance it may provide to save humanity begins. A very strange girls love with a lot of gore and mess. Overall Rating: 5/10 49. Sekishoku Elegy 赤色エレジー [Toei Animation] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Romance A legendary masterpiece of love comics, SEKISHOKU Elegy brought baby-boomers to tears for its depiction of the heart-rending sorrow of cohabitation symbolizing young Japanese couples in the 1970s. The famous painter Seiichi Hayashi, well known for his work in Koume Chan candies and Sendai's renowned confectionery Hagi No Tsuki, draws the animation as the original writer and also directs it. Hayashi also teams up with folk singer Morio Agata for the first time in more than three decades. Agata enjoyed a huge hit with a song originating from the comic. New renditions give new life to SEKISHOKU Elegy as a work of Ganime. Legendary revolutionary new way of storytelling turned out to be animated manga strips... Overall Rating: 5/10 50. Crayon Shin-chan Movie 15: Arashi wo Yobu Utau Ketsu dake Bakudan! 映画 クレヨンしんちゃん 嵐を呼ぶ歌うケツだけ爆弾 [ TV Asahi] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Seinen School Comedy, Ecchi A slapstick comedy on a bomb uproar, and a touching story about the ties between the Nohara Family and their dog Shiro. A film in the musical style including the scenes with inserted songs. When the Nohara Family enjoy a trip to Okinawa, a strange object like a flying saucer becomes stuck with Shiro's bottom. That is a special bomb dropped by "The Only Buttocks Aliens," and it has the power to destroy the whole earth. The space monitoring center "UNTI" (Unidentified Nature Team Inspection) begins to pick up the bomb, but a female terrorist group "Hinageshi Opera Company" tries to get the bomb and disturbs UNTI's work. Found nothing good in here, so rather mediocre. Overall Rating: 5/10 51. Furusato Japan Japan, Our Homeland ふるさとJAPAN [WAO World] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Historical It was the spring of 1956, roughly 10 years after the end of the Pacific War. A new teacher named Rieko Sakamoto is assigned to an elementary school in Kiba, downtown Tokyo. At the same time, Shizu Miyanaga, a transfer student from Kobe, joins the class #4 of the 6th grade. Shizu is a bright, pretty girl who dreams to become a singer. Blessed with both athletic and academic abilities, Shizu quickly becomes the center of everyone's attention in the class. Akira, the son of a joiner and also the class president, starts to develop a special feeling for Shizu... It's just SOL from the poverty life of the 1950s and soothing songs. Can't say it's useful unless you want to cry or something. Overall Rating: 5/10 52. Shin SOS Dai Tokyo Tankentai 新SOS大東京探検隊 [Sunrise] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Adventure "While packing for a move, elementary school student Ryuhei finds his father's old school notebook detailing a search for a treasure in Tokyo's vast network of underground passages. With his little brother tagging along, he and three friends from an online chat room gather and set out on a quest to find the treasure. What they discover instead is an entire underground community composed of assorted eccentrics, including a senile old soldier still performing a World War II-era mission." Drawing is awful and some pseudo-CGI is used or the like. Concept is just bad. Waste of time, as for me. Overall Rating: 5/10 53. Yongshi Warrior 勇士 [Shanghai Animation Film Studio] (Finished 0/1) Tags: Historical, Martial Arts Based on a Mongolian folklore, the story begins with a young warrior Barter coming to Balin Grassland. He rescues a young girl from a herd of running horses and finds out she is the daughter of the wrestling coach working for the grassland lord. Barter starts learning wrestling while working for the grassland lord as a coolie. Barter falls in love with the girl he saved. However, there is a reason for his coming to the grassland – he is looking for the man who killed his father. Not found. Overall Rating: 0/10 54. Wu Kong Dazhan Er Lang Shen The Big Fighting Between Wukong and God Erlang 孙悟空大战二郎神 [-] (Finished 0/1) Tags: Action, Adventure Based on a few early chapters of classic fantasy novel Journey to the West, the story tells how the Monkey King rises against the heaven and has a horrific fight with Er Lang Shen, the nephew of Jade Emperor, who rules the Heaven. The film features puppet live action, about 30% of the movie, with animated 3D backgrounds and characters. It was nominated for the Asia Pacific Screen Award for Best Animated Feature Film at the 1st Asia Pacific Screen Awards. Not found. Overall Rating: 0/10 -
Anime of the Year 2007-I Winter - Nodame Cantabile
kivandopulus posted a blog entry in Anime of the Season
Nodame Cantabile is the only masterpiece in this short season 1. Naruto: Shippuuden Naruto Shippuden -ナルト- 疾風伝 [Pierrot] (Finished 1/500) Tags: Shounen Martial Arts Action, Adventure, Fantasy It has been two and a half years since Naruto Uzumaki left Konohagakure, the Hidden Leaf Village, for intense training following events which fueled his desire to be stronger. Now Akatsuki, the mysterious organization of elite rogue ninja, is closing in on their grand plan which may threaten the safety of the entire shinobi world. Although Naruto is older and sinister events loom on the horizon, he has changed little in personality—still rambunctious and childish—though he is now far more confident and possesses an even greater determination to protect his friends and home. Come whatever may, Naruto will carry on with the fight for what is important to him, even at the expense of his own body, in the continuation of the saga about the boy who wishes to become Hokage. Sequel. Overall Rating: 6/10 2. Nodame Cantabile のだめカンタービレ [J.C.Staff] (Finished 23/23) Tags: Josei Adult Cast, Music Comedy, Romance Shinichi Chiaki is a first class musician whose dream is to play among the elites in Europe. Coming from a distinguished family, he is an infamous perfectionist—not only is he highly critical of himself, but of others as well. The only thing stopping Shinichi from leaving for Europe is his fear of flying. As a result, he's grounded in Japan. During his fourth year at Japan's top music university, Shinichi happens to meet Megumi Noda or, as she refers to herself, Nodame. On the surface, she seems to be an unkempt girl with no direction in life. However, when Shinichi hears Nodame play the piano for the first time, he is in awe of the kind of music she creates. Nevertheless, Shinichi is dismayed to discover that Nodame is his neighbor, and worse, she ends up falling head over heels in love with him. I enjoyed it when I first watched, but question is to what extent and how much it lost over time in comparison with newer titles. And I've grown much more skeptical over time. Overall Rating: 7/10 3. Tokyo Majin Gakuen Kenpucho: Tou Tokyo Majin 東京魔人學園剣風帖 龖(トウ) [AIC Spirits, BeSTACK] (Finished 3/14) Tags: Martial Arts, School Action, Drama, Fantasy, Horror, Supernatural Something evil is stirring in the shadows of Tokyo... During the spring of his senior year in high school, quiet Tatsuma Hiyuu transfers to Magami Academy in Shinjuku. The mysterious boy's "outsider" status and his profound skills in martial arts quickly earn him the friendship of class delinquent Kyouichi Houraiji. Through an uncanny connection and a happenstance challenge, he also meets Yuuya Daigo of the wrestling club, the captain of the girls' archery club, Komaki Sakurai, and Aoi Misato, the Student Council President. During their encounter, there is a sudden, harsh disruption of the Ryumyaku (literally Dragon Pulse, otherwise known as Dragon Vein or Dragon Stream), the flow of arcane energy. The surge awakens within the five teenagers a latent power, giving them each a supernatural ability. Enlightened to their newly acquired gifts by Hisui, the young heir of the Kisaragi Clan who maintains his family's antiques shop - as well as their duty to protect Tokyo from Oni (demons) - the Magami students decide to use their power to protect the city from the onslaught of dark forces. Battling the demons alongside Hisui Kisaragi, the five unlikely friends discover that they may have to face a greater threat to Tokyo other than destroying a few malevolent, random monsters. The Ryumyaku had been disrupted by force, from someone invoking the Dark Arts - and that person has a wicked desire to unleash a long-dead evil. Can the teenagers overcome their own fears and flaws to fight against the Dark Arts? And soon they will also have to face their own destinies as they discover their Stars of Fate. This anime is based on a manga, which was based on the Nintendo role-playing video game originally released in 1998. Demon hunting is one of the most basic concepts, so details are important here, but Tokyo Majin does not suggest anything new - nice girls, cool guys, little information possessed. What especially irritates is that everyone tries to boss around and no one ever wants to be bossed around, so we're in constant quarrels over authority... It may eventually lead to something good, but I'm not enjoying the process. Overall Rating: 6/10 4. Ikkitousen: Dragon Destiny 一騎当千 Dragon Destiny [Arms] (Finished 1/12) Tags: Martial Arts, School, Super Power Action, Ecchi The fierce confrontation among the Kanto high schools reaches new heights with the awakening of dragons in the Kyousho and Seito Academy's leaders, Moutoku Sousou and Gentoku Ryuubi. However, the power balance between these two institutions and their main opponent, Nanyo Academy, is jeopardized when Shimei Ryomou seizes a mysterious dragon orb in China. It is said that the orb grants its strength to a dragon wielder, and Shimei hopes to save Nanyo Academy's leader Hakufu Sonsaku from the adverse effects of her unstable gift. Meanwhile, Moutoku's powers completely consume him, and he loses control over his own body to the Demon King's soul, whose unlimited ambitions endanger the stability of the region and the safety of his allies. In the face of growing tensions to claim the dragon orb, Hakufu and Gentoku will have to put aside their differences and work together to thwart Moutoku's demonic plans. Sequel. Overall Rating: 5/10 5. Hidamari Sketch ひだまりスケッチ [Shaft] (Finished 2/12) Tags: CGDCT, Iyashikei, School, Visual Arts Comedy, Slice of Life Ever since she was young, Yuno has always had an interest in art. Now that she has been accepted to Yamabuki Arts High School, it means one thing—moving out. Living in a dorm at Hidamari Apartments alone, Yuno meets her neighbors: the hyperactive Miyako, the self-conscious Hiro, and the mature Sae. Despite their different personalities, they go to the same school, spend time together, and develop a strong friendship. Yuno's life won't be so lonely after all! Hidamari Sketch revolves around the antics and day-to-day lives of the girls living at Hidamari Apartments. Cute enough girls do stuff and fool around. And it's not funny, not super cute, not amusing, not conceptual. It's just a collection of yonkomas and empty dialogues, something like Azumanga at dormiitory on Saturdays. So affinity is a matter of experience - those who never seen anything better will like it, but I can name a handful of much better similar SOL works, so Hidamari Sketch pales in comparison . Overall Rating: 6/10 6. Major S3 メジャー (第3シリーズ) [Studio Hibari] (Finished 1/26) Tags: Shounen Team Sports Having bid farewell to his former teammates at Kaido High School's baseball club, Gorou Honda returns to his hometown eager to continue playing. Attending a new high school proves to be more difficult than he initially expected, as Tetsufumi Egashira's merciless slandering of his name prevents Gorou from being accepted into any school with an existing baseball team. Left with no other options, Gorou joins Seishuu High School, where his childhood friend Kaoru Shimizu also attends. However, Seishuu has always been an all-girls school until two years ago, so there is not yet a dedicated men’s baseball team. But nothing will stop Gorou in his pursuit of Koshien. He must now create a baseball team from scratch with the seven male students at Seishuu, but all of them are complete amateurs! He decides to train the incompetent team up to nationally competitive levels, but such a feat is easier said than done. Will Gorou once again perform miracles? Or will he give up on achieving his goal of defeating Kaido with his own team? Sequel. Overall Rating: 6/10 7. Gakuen Utopia Manabi Straight! がくえんゆーとぴあ まなびストレート! [ufotable] (Finished 4/12) Tags: CGDCT, School Comedy, Slice of Life Manabi Straight! follows the lives of a group of young high school girls living in the year 2035 while they attend the all-girl Seioh Private High School. Since the birth rate has dropped dramatically, schools are being closed down due to the sheer lack of students available to teach. Morale in schools has dropped dramatically, and Seioh is no exception. The story begins when the main character, Manami Amamiya, transfers to Seioh. After some initial hijinks involving a futuristic scooter and a swim meet, followed by an inspirational school song performance, she is inducted as the student council president. The story that follows pertains to Manami working with Mika Inamori, the only other student council member, and three other classmates named Mutsuki Uehara, Mei Etoh, and Momoha Odori, in student council matters. After some remodeling of the student council room, Manami and her friends set forth to plan for the upcoming student festival. I like character designs and CGDCT emotions here. I find humor to be good here... when it comes. But most of the time it's just some situation that's developing and being discussed - it's not funny or entertaining. Compared to Ichigo Mashimaro, there's a lot to learn. Overall Rating: 6/10 8. Kyoushirou to Towa no Sora Shattered Angels 京四郎と永遠(とわ)の空 [TNK] (Finished 1/12) Tags: Shounen Drama, Romance Kyoshiro to Towa no Sora revolves around the life of Kuu Shiratori, a seemingly normal high school girl who enjoys her school life in the giant city Academia, which is thought of as a symbol of recovery for humanity since already ten years have passed since the greatest disaster mankind had ever seen, occurred. Kuu has recently been having a recurring dream where a prince meets her and takes her away. One day, while all the students at her school are preparing for the upcoming school festival, the prince, whom she has met several times in her dreams, appears. The prince, Kyoshiro Ayanokoji, requests of her just as he had done in Kuu's dreams, "Let's go... together..." Main heroine who dreams and waits for prince on white horse considering herself special... is not a good heroine, to put it mildly. Finding a giant mecha spontaneously and being attacked by more and more enemies for some reason is beyond simple as concept. Too much cringe to even advance past first episode. Overall Rating: 5/10 9. Shuffle! Memories シャッフル!メモリーズ [asread.] (Finished 1/12) Tags: Seinen Harem, School Comedy, Drama, Fantasy, Romance, Ecchi A recap of the Shuffle world, set ten years in the future. Gods, Demons, and Humans freely visit the other worlds as if traveling overseas, and romance is in the air. Demons, Gods, And Humans together have been falling in love and creating new families, breaking down the wall that once seperated them. Past memories are visited by Rin Tsuchimi and the events that occured between him and Lisianthus, Nerine, Kaede, Asa, and Primula. It's not even a sequel, but a recap... guess Navel can join Key in that special layer of hell where creators of remakes on totally fine existing anime reside. Overall Rating: 4/10 10. Venus Versus Virus ヴィーナス ヴァーサス ヴァイアラス [Studio Hibari] (Finished 2/12) Tags: Drama, Romance, Supernatural Venus Versus Virus follows regular schoolgirl Sumire who's had the ability to see ghosts since a young age. She tells friends and family about this fact and they just dismiss it, thinking she's a liar. A chance encounter with a broach flying out of nowhere, a monster and gothloli clad monster killer named Lucia leaves her with a life changing decision to use her ability and fight against these "viruses" feeding upon the human race. Fighting demons is overused, so need some strong elements to back it. And I did not discover any strong sides here. Overall Rating: 5/10 11. Les Misérables: Shoujo Cosette レ・ミゼラブル 少女コゼット [Nippon Animation] (Finished 1/52) Tags: Historical Drama In 19th century France, a struggling single mother, Fantine, leaves her three-year-old daughter Cosette in the care of her new acquaintances, the Thernadiers. Unfortunately, Cosette's caretakers prove to be anything but loving, and the poor girl is subjected to repeated abuse and forced servitude. Still, she endures the torment in the hopes of seeing her mother once again. One night, while doing errands for her host family, Cosette is assisted by an honorable stranger named Jean Valjean. After a brief conversation with the young girl, Jean acknowledges her as the type of person he has been seeking and rescues her from the clutches of the Thernadiers. They make their way to a nearby town where Cosette enjoys a new life thanks to her savior. Under Jean's guidance, Cosette promises to help others with her newfound freedom. She pledges to heal the nation, ensuring that no one else suffers her fate. Though the road ahead is paved with tragedies left by the French Revolution, this idealistic girl will not rest until France is freed from poverty and suffering. World masterpiece theater... for those who likes child abuse! If not, why this is repeating over and over in every second its work... Anyway, I'm just not a fan of this series. Overall Rating: 6/10 12. Yes! Precure 5 Yes! プリキュア5 [Toei Animation] (Finished 1/49) Tags: Mahou Shoujo, School Action, Fantasy Yumehara Nozomi, a regular student, finds a magical book called the Dream Collet in the library and meets Coco and Nuts, two creatures from the Palmier Kingdom. They plead with Nozomi to restore their world, which has been destroyed by an organization called the Nightmares, by completing the Dream Collet and finding the 55 Pinkies to make any wish come true. Meanwhile, the Nightmares are moving into the real world. Once Nozomi agrees to help, Coco and Nuts transform her into the magical girl Cure Dream and turn four fellow students into her Pretty Cure team. Sequel. Overall Rating: 6/10 13. Rocket Girls ロケットガール [Mook DLE] (Finished 2/12) Tags: Space Adventure, Sci-Fi When Yukari Morita decided to look for her missing father who disappeared in the South Seas, she had no idea how far her journey would take her. Just traveling to the Solomon Islands is a long way for a high school girl to go on her own, but then Yukari runs into an astronaut from the Solomon Space Association, which has been trying to build a rocket powerful enough launch a man into space. Upon meeting the petite Yukari, however, SSA director Nasuda realizes that she's small enough to go up in a less powerful rocket the SSA has already built! So he offers her a deal: if Yukari agrees to become their astronaut, the SSA will help find her missing father! Will Yukari have the right stuff to blast off in the wildest space quest ever? Don't remember any any about rockets that I'd like (Wings of Honneamise is more of a honorary old title), because they are always slow and eventless - some train while some build. Rocket Girls actually manages to create a nice alive world. But it still aims at space travel romanticism, something that I lack. Overall Rating: 6/10 14. Reideen ライディーン [Production I.G] (Finished 3/26) Tags: Mecha Action, Sci-Fi Saiga is a normal high school student with a gift in mathematics. His daily routine is disrupted when his family gets news that his Father's remains have been discovered—a noted archeologist and researcher who had gone missing while exploring a site many years before. Among his remains were notes and artifacts that needed to be identified by the family near a notable triangular mountain in Japan known as "Japan's pyramid", a place suspected by some to be man-made. A meteor containing a strange robotic lifeform falls from the sky and begins to cause destruction, putting Saiga in danger and causing a mysterious bracelet from his father's research to activate and merge him with an ancient robot burried within the pyramid—a robot the runes describe as Reideen. It is now up to Saiga and guardian Reideen to fight against this unknown alien threat from the sky. Reideen is a franchise that dates back to 70s as most mecha, so elements are basic and generally simple. 3D mecha fighting looks decent, but it's always about being overpowered and finding more and more inner reserves in Reideen to flip the table. Only for mecha fans. Overall Rating: 6/10 15. Himawari!! Himawari Too!! ひまわりっ!! [Arms] (Finished 1/13) Tags: Comedy, Romance Himawari is back in all her comical ninja mischief. The sequel to Himawari continues with the many odd and hilarious adventures of Himawari, Hayato and her ninja classmates. Season two delves into Himawari and Hayato's past. Will new secrets be revealed? Will Himawari finally find out about her past and the mysterious ninja that saved her when she was little? Sequel. Overall Rating: 6/10 16. Getsumen To Heiki Mina 月面兎兵器ミーナ [Gonzo] (Finished 4/11) Tags: Parody, Super Power Action, Comedy, Sci-Fi, Ecchi An animated spin-off from the Densha Otoko (Trainman) TV drama. In the drama, actor Itoh Atsushi plays the otaku Yamada, whose main love in life is the Mina anime, a cutesy busty heroine with floppy rabbit ears and carrots sticking out her rear. Mina itself is a character homage which triggers back to the Daicon Animation done by GAINAX where a similar nameless bunny girl appeared. Densha Otoko futher featured an opening with scenes which were appearing back in the Daicon Animation. Busty girls fight huge aliens that show up the same place the same time, and it's all broadcasted on TV. It's a lively and amusing parody. But there's also a lot of stupidity and time wasting along the way. The initial fuse is enough for several episodes, but eventually it becomes an aimless hassle. Overall Rating: 6/10 17. Saint October セイントオクトーバー [Studio Comet] (Finished 2/26) Tags: Adventure, Fantasy Whether it is the future or the past it is the world of fantasy and horror hiding in the shadow of the demon city. In the city, consecutive mysterious incidents that cannot be solved by science have occurred. To solve the incidents, they gather three girl detectives possessing special abilities. Hayama Kotono. She is an orphan living in a convent. Shirafuji Natuski. She is Kotono's classmate and a pop idol. Hijiri Misaki. She is a mysterious girl who fights against nightmares of her previous life. Those who want to bring the Judgement Day to the world. Those who want to save the world. Which is justice, and which is evil? When Kotono encounters a boy who lost his memory, the wheel of the story begins to move but slowly. Then, solving the mysteries, the three girls will confront the fate that will influence the existence of the human beings. Absurd mahou shoujo with Galaxy Angel coming to mind as a close comparison. Parody humor is all right, but deliberate conceptual shifts and slipups is something I can't bear. Overall Rating: 6/10 18. Juusou Kikou Dancougar Nova 獣装機攻ダンクーガノヴァ [Ashi Productions] (Finished 1/12) Tags: Mecha In the 22nd century, there are no longer any world wide wars. Instead, small scale wars break out all over the Earth. Meanwhile, a large robot appears who protects the weak. It is called "Dancougar Nova". Some even call it God. However, no one knows the reason for its existence - not even its pilots. Then, another robot, beyond anyone's expectations, reveals itself as the true enemy and begins its attack on the Earth. Dancougar Nova retaliates against this enemy with a power that was kept secret until now. Will Dancougar Nova be able to save the Earth? The prelude to this explosive confrontation rings out. Another modern take on old mecha. Concept is not sophisticated enough for anyone but mecha fans. Overall Rating: 5/10 19. Master of Epic: The Animation Age マスター オブ エピック The Animation Age [Gonzo, Palm Studio] (Finished 3/12) Tags: Video Game Comedy, Fantasy Over millions of years, there have been many ages - war, gods, and future to name a few. Each of these was infinitely less exciting than the current Animation Age! In this RPG-esque existence, becoming stronger is paramount to one's survival and leveling up is a must. From pacifists to news casting, from fishing woes to love advice, there's nothing the Animation Age can't show or teach us about life in a game world! Armed with healing spells, changes of clothes and plenty of summoned familiars, the characters of Master of Epic will do what it takes to level up and live to fight another day! I was really intrigued by description, but in fact it's just gags around different MMORPG mechanics shown on example of some five different casts. Humor can be nice, but in majority cases it's not, and there's nothing but it. Without actual plot I definitely can't recommend it. Overall Rating: 6/10 20. Qin Shi Mingyue: Bai Bu Fei Jian Qin's Moon: Hundred Steps Flying Sword 秦时明月之百步飞剑 [Sparkly Key Animation Studio] (Finished 2/10) Tags: Historical, Martial Arts Action, Fantasy Set during the Qin Dynasty in ancient China, a brave assassin attempts to kill the Emperor to save his homeland. However, the assassin fails and in retaliation, the Emperor sends his troops to kill his eight year old son. A highly skilled swordsman intervenes and rescues the boy. After their escape from the forces of the Emperor, they embark on a journey to change the destiny of the empire while encountering several friends and foes along the way. Some poor machinima in Chinese. Visuals are in no state to be watched. Story is shounen in Chinese mythology with historical references, so not appealing to me at all too. Overall Rating: 5/10 21. GR: Giant Robo GR -ジャイアントロボ- [A.C.G.T.] (Finished 1/13) Tags: Shounen Mecha, Military Adventure, Sci-Fi The year is 20XX. Mysterious huge robots called "Giant Robo (GR)" started to appear all over the world and destroy cities. The earth was covered with fear. And their next target is Japan! The hero of this animation Daisaku Kusama, who works in a diving shop, encounters a mysterious girl, simply called V who leads him to make a contract with an enormous robot "Giant Robo 1 (GR1)" at the ancient ruins (Minami Yonaguni Island) in Okinawa. He made a contract with UNISOM (good guys) and was approved to be a commander of GR1. Thus his battle has begun against GRO (bad guys) and creates a lot of dramas. Before long, Giant Robo of the 21st century will ask the world the true meaning of its power. Third old mecha reinstallation within a season. And this version widely uses 3D and sharp drawing, so original might be more preferable... Overall Rating: 5/10 22. Murder Princess マーダープリンセス [Bee Train] (Finished 6/6) Tags: Action, Adventure, Fantasy After a sudden coup d'etat by the court scientist Dr. Akamashi results in the king's death, Princess Alita Castilia Arago Forland is forced to flee the capital. During her mad dash for survival deep into the forest, Alita collides with the brutal and temperamental bounty hunter Falis, which causes the two women to magically switch bodies. Using her original body as collateral, Alita convinces Falis—and her henchmen Dominikov and Pete—to help take back the capital from the treasonous scientist by pretending to be the real princess. However, while the plan was initially successful, the only diplomacy Falis knows is with her sword. Alita must now work hard to make sure the kingdom is not trading one royal scandal for another, all while the two displaced women look for a way to return to their original bodies. After pilot episode things settle down and we're supposed to enjoy yuri-ish relationship of two heroines and occasional attacks. It's a nice fighting action with nice characters, but that's it, nothing exceptional. Overall Rating: 6/10 23. Ichigo Mashimaro OVA Strawberry Marshmallow OVA 苺ましまろ OVA [Daume] (Finished 3/3) Tags: CGDCT, Iyashikei, School Comedy, Slice of Life Based on Barasui's manga series, Ichigo Mashimaro follows the life of Nobue Itou, her younger sister Chika, and her friends. The basic premise of the show can be summed up in "cute girls do cute things in cute ways", be it trying to quit smoking, going outside to play, celebrating a holiday, or doing school work. This OVA picks up where the series left off, continuing the adventures of your everyday life, only cuter. Hilarious concentrated gags, even more advanced than in original. Can't give the derivative the same score though, plus it's only one hour long. Overall Rating: 6/10 24. Byousoku 5 Centimeter 5 Centimeters Per Second 秒速5センチメートル [CoMix Wave Films] (Finished 3/3) Tags: Drama, Romance What happens when two people love each other but just aren't meant to be together? Takaki Toono and Akari Shinohara are childhood friends, but circumstances beyond their control tear them apart. They promise to stay in contact, and although the progression of time widens the distance between them, the chain of memories remains ever-present. Byousoku 5 Centimeter is a romantic drama that focuses on the mundane and harsh reality of long-distance relationships. Stuck in the past and unable to make any new memories, Takaki and Akari cling to the hope of seeing each other again. They live their everyday lives half-heartedly, both hurting themselves and the people around them. First story is typical Makoto Shinkai with whispers and remote relationship, but at least no one is terminally ill, a huge step forward. Second story is surprisingly more lively with only whisper commentaries. Third one is basically non-existent as as it's mostly a clip explaining the title. What can I say, as usual, nothing deep, but it demonstrates the capabilities of visual quality and is probably good to watch for couples. Overall Rating: 6/10 25. Highlander: The Search for Vengeance ハイランダー [Madhouse] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Action, Horror, Sci-Fi Colin MacLeod, the immortal Scottish Highlander, travels with the wise-cracking ghost Amergan in search of the immortal despot Marcus Octavius, who killed Colin's lover on the Celtic plains centuries earlier. The once great city of New York is now submerged under water, with only one dominant fortress towering over the sea, the fortress of Marcus Octavius. MacLeod is torn between saving the survivors of New York and hunting down his nemesis. Highlander franchise puts a lot of limitations, but it's totally fine as fighting action movie with revenge pursue through the ages. Overall Rating: 6/10 26. Cheonnyeon-yeowoo Yeowoobi 천년여우 여우비 [Sunwoo Entertainment] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Drama, Fantasy, Sci-Fi Yobi, The Five Tailed Fox revolves around a kumiho, a nine-tailed fox that can assume different forms including human. Kumiho are familiar figures in Korean folk tales, and they are usually depicted as magical creatures that take female form to lure and prey on humans. This time, however, our protagonist is a young, kind-hearted fox with only five tails, instead of nine. After losing her family to fox hunters, five-tailed Yobi lives in the forest with some shipwrecked aliens, far away from the humans. When one of her alien friends gets captured by a villager, Yobi has no choice but to adventure into the human world to rescue him. At the village, Yobi meets many humans, including Geum Yee who studies at a school for maladjusted children. Interested in Geum Yee, Yobi joins the students and revels in the fun of human life, but both a fox hunter and a mysterious shadow man are on her trail. First high quality Korean anime movie, but when it does not depict humans. Story reminds kids' movie Pom Poko by Studio Ghibli a lot, but with the opposite direction - to accumulate with humans rather than to be left alone. And that makes it childish as well. Overall Rating: 6/10 27. Oshare Majo Love and Berry: Shiawase no Mahou オシャレ魔女 ラブ and ベリー しあわせのまほう [TMS Entertainment] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Idols (Female), Music A movie based on the popular fashion card and arcade dance game aimed at young girls. The movie features the magical Princesses Love and Berry, who posess Fashion Magic. While Love and Berry are best friends, they become rivals for attention when they're on the dance floor. Not translated. Barbie crap about dress-up cards and horrible 3D dances. Overall Rating: 4/10 -
Death Note as new title takes the upper hand over sequel Black Lagoon: The Second Barrage . But I can also name a number of minor masterpieces - Hataraki Man , Genshiken OVA , Paprika 1. Death Note デスノート [Madhouse] (Finished 37/37) Tags: Shounen Detective, Psychological Supernatural, Suspense Brutal murders, petty thefts, and senseless violence pollute the human world. In contrast, the realm of death gods is a humdrum, unchanging gambling den. The ingenious 17-year-old Japanese student Light Yagami and sadistic god of death Ryuk share one belief: their worlds are rotten. For his own amusement, Ryuk drops his Death Note into the human world. Light stumbles upon it, deeming the first of its rules ridiculous: the human whose name is written in this note shall die. However, the temptation is too great, and Light experiments by writing a felon's name, which disturbingly enacts his first murder. Aware of the terrifying godlike power that has fallen into his hands, Light—under the alias Kira—follows his wicked sense of justice with the ultimate goal of cleansing the world of all evil-doers. The meticulous mastermind detective L is already on his trail, but as Light's brilliance rivals L's, the grand chase for Kira turns into an intense battle of wits that can only end when one of them is dead. Probably the most known anime, but it was always passable for me and definitely not a good entry point into anime in contrast to many such suggestions. Despite mind games being in focus, can't rate it a 9 since it's not the title that I'd want to ever rewatch as it's dark and unpleasant, and once plot is known, there's nothing to do here anymore. Overall Rating: 8/10 2. Code Geass: Hangyaku no Lelouch Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion コードギアス 反逆のルルーシュ [Sunrise] (Finished 25/25) Tags: Mecha, Military, School, Super Power Action, Award Winning, Drama, Sci-Fi In the year 2010, the Holy Empire of Britannia is establishing itself as a dominant military nation, starting with the conquest of Japan. Renamed to Area 11 after its swift defeat, Japan has seen significant resistance against these tyrants in an attempt to regain independence. Lelouch Lamperouge, a Britannian student, unfortunately finds himself caught in a crossfire between the Britannian and the Area 11 rebel armed forces. He is able to escape, however, thanks to the timely appearance of a mysterious girl named C.C., who bestows upon him Geass, the "Power of Kings." Realizing the vast potential of his newfound "power of absolute obedience," Lelouch embarks upon a perilous journey as the masked vigilante known as Zero, leading a merciless onslaught against Britannia in order to get revenge once and for all. Another well known anime. First time I watched it, I actually liked it despite some really poor twists and unbelievable behavior. But afterwards only read bad stuff about it. Overall, I don't believe that Sunrise can pull out original scenarios well. They end up amateurish or disintegrated or straight up boring. I see Code Geass as an attempt to make action with twists that could not be called boring. But the other flaws remained intact. First season is basically Death Note copycat and thus bears some value. Second season only lingers on desire to just learn how it ends as it's straight bad. I've got a huge number of complaints against Code Geass from plot holes to treating females like furniture, but there must be all kind of analysis already on the matter. It's controversial Deus Ex Machina and not a masterpiece. Overall Rating: 6/10 3. D.Gray-man ディー・グレイマン [TMS Entertainment] (Finished 5/103) Tags: Shounen Mythology, Super Power Action, Adventure, Comedy Losing a loved one is so painful that one may sometimes wish to be able to resurrect them—a weakness that the enigmatic Millennium Earl exploits. To make his mechanical weapons known as "Akuma," he uses the souls of the dead that are called back. Once a soul is placed in an Akuma, it is trapped forever, and the only way to save them is to exorcise them from their vessel using the Anti-Akuma weapon, "Innocence." After spending three years as the disciple of General Cross, Allen Walker is sent to the Black Order—an organization comprised of those willing to fight Akuma and the Millennium Earl—to become an official Exorcist. With an arm as his Innocence and a cursed eye that can see the suffering souls within an Akuma, it's up to Allen and his fellow Exorcists to stop the Millennium Earl's ultimate plot: one that can lead to the destruction of the world. I'm shocked with the low quality of this anime. No depth, no exposition, no composition of episodes - only same chewing gum of something actiony. And I've got a friend who was very enthusiastic about it and watched all seasons of D.Gray-man only to find that story is not finished and deteriorated greatly by the end. I'd personally call it an ordinary shounen. Overall Rating: 6/10 4. Katekyo Hitman Reborn! Reborn! 家庭教師ヒットマンREBORN! [Artland] (Finished 3/203) Tags: Shounen Organized Crime, Super Power Action, Comedy There is no putting it lightly—Tsunayoshi Sawada is just no good. He is clumsy, talentless, and desperately in love with the school idol Kyouko Sasagawa, a girl so completely out of his league. Dubbed "Loser Tsuna" by his classmates, he seems to be the very personification of failure in the guise of a middle-schooler. Tsuna's boring life takes an extraordinary twist when he encounters the mysterious Reborn, who happens to be a hitman... and shockingly, a baby! Sent from the strongest Mafia family in Italy, Reborn is assigned the daunting mission of preparing the dull middle schooler to succeed the ninth boss of the notorious Vongola family, who is on the brink of retirement. The dull boy has a grueling road ahead, but with the help of his new criminal affiliates and his peculiar home tutor, perhaps even Loser Tsuna can achieve greatness. Tried watching it in the past, of course, but first episodes never broke out of averageness, and I fail to understand why ordinary school comedy with superpowers should be stretched to 16 seasons. Of course with such length some arcs can be crafty and inventive, but this anime does not even provide worthy characters to go on. Overall Rating: 5/10 5. Black Lagoon: The Second Barrage [Madhouse] (Finished 12/12) Tags: Seinen Adult Cast, Organized Crime Action Rokurou "Rock" Okajima has joined the Lagoon Company, a pirate mercenary group which operates out of Roanapur, Thailand. Despite his initial protests, this filthy slum of depraved souls and merciless criminals now serves as the former salaryman's home. Stranded, with nothing left of his past life but the clothes on his back and his inner morality, Rock is forced to perform jobs alongside the other members of the Lagoon crew. Berated for his lack of spine as he wades through the underbelly of society, he must decide whether to continue on amidst the gunfire and ruthlessness or risk everything he has in an attempt to be free. Whether he chooses the comfort of a familiar land or the freedom of being an outlaw, his decision will have lasting consequences on the crew who gave him a home. Sequel. Overall Rating: 8/10 6. Shijou Saikyou no Deshi Kenichi KenIchi: The Mightiest Disciple 史上最強の弟子 ケンイチ [TMS Entertainment] (Finished 4/50) Tags: Shounen Martial Arts, School Action, Comedy Whenever he is not getting pummeled in the karate club after school, high schooler Kenichi Shirahama can be found with his head buried in one of the many self-help books he carries with him every day. One day, on the way to school, Kenichi accidentally frightens the new student in his class, leading her to throw him down onto the ground. After apologizing for her violent reflexes, she introduces herself as Miu Furinji and asks Kenichi to be her friend. Later that day, after karate club practice, Kenichi is given an ultimatum by one of the other club members: they will fight next week and the loser has to quit the club permanently. While lamenting his imminent defeat in the upcoming fight, Kenichi witnesses Miu fend off three thugs easily. Fed up with being perpetually bullied by those more powerful than him, he asks Miu for tips on how to become a better fighter. She directs Kenichi to her grandfather's dojo, Ryouzanpaku, where several skilled—albeit strange—masters of extreme martial arts have gathered to hone their abilities. Miu promises that Kenichi will become significantly stronger, but only if he manages to stay alive. With those ominous words looming in his mind and the appearance of a criminal martial arts gang known as "Ragnarok" threatening the safety of those around him, Kenichi takes the first step on his journey to become a world-class fighter and a defender of the defenseless. Male version of Fighting Beauty Wulong or something. It's stunningly bad in everything - humor, characters, story. It tries to be Hajime no Ippo of martial arts, but I'm actually ashamed of even putting those two titles alongside. Overall Rating: 5/10 7. Kanon (2006) Kanon カノン (2006) [Kyoto Animation] (Finished 1/24) Tags: Drama, Romance, Supernatural As a young child, Aizawa Yuuichi had often visited his cousin in the city; however, something drastic happened to keep him away for seven long years. Now, Yuuichi returns, his memories of those days are simply gone. Settling into the wintry town, Yuuichi comes across several young girls, all of whom are connected to his past. As he befriends them and continues to interact with them, the long forgotten memories from his childhood begin to resurface... Freaking remake to help remake of the game sell better to help original game sell better to help anime of the original game sell better, because no amount of milking is enough for key industry milkman. It must the first case in anime history when remake is made not because original got technologically old, but ... just out of egoism as original is perfectly fine. Overall Rating: 4/10 8. Ghost Hunt ゴーストハント [J.C.Staff] (Finished 1/25) Tags: Horror, Mystery, Supernatural While at school, Mai Taniyama and her friends like to exchange ghost stories. Apparently, there is an abandoned school building on their campus that is the center of many ghost stories. During the story, they are interrupted by a mysterious male figure. The person turns out to be Kazuya Shibuya, a 17-year-old who is president of the Shibuya Psychic Research Company. He was called by the principal to investigate the stories surrounding the abandoned school building. The next day, on the way to school, Mai passes the school building in question. While examining a strange camera she spotted inside, she gets surprised by Kazuya's assistant. Unknowingly interfering with the investigation, Mai breaks the camera and Kazuya's assistant gets injured. Kazuya forcefully hires Mai in order to pay for the camera and replace his injured assistant. From that point on, Mai begins to learn about the paranormal world and the profession of ghost hunting. Ghost hunt is one of my most hated concepts. And this particular title is just weirdos playing in occult detectives. Overall Rating: 5/10 9. Busou Renkin Buso Renkin 武装錬金 [Xebec] (Finished 3/26) Tags: Shounen School Action, Fantasy, Supernatural The story begins when high school student Kazuki Muto is killed one night saving a mysterious girl from a monster, only to wake up in his school dorm, believing it to have been a dream; however, he soon finds out that dream wasn't a dream at all when a giant serpentine monster attacks him and his sister. Tokiko Tsumura, the girl he saved, explains that the monster is a homunculus. Kazuki had been attacked and killed by it when he was rescuing her; however, she, feeling responsible for him, revived him by placing a Kakugane medallion in his chest, serving as a replacement heart. The Kakugane, as Tokiko explains, is an alchemical device that, when activated, takes a certain form based on the Kakugane's user, forming a unique Buso Renkin. The Buso Renkin is the only thing that can destroy a homunculus monster. Using this, Kazuki creates his own Buso Renkin (the "Sunlight Heart," a huge lance). Along with Tokiko and her own Buso Renkin (the "Valkyrie Skirt," an execution scythe), Kazuki joins the fight against the homunculi and their master. Quite a typical action shounen, but at least with an ok protagonist. Story and humor are pretty bad, though. So while show's no good, it still manages to be better than majority of shounens. Overall Rating: 6/10 10. Jigoku Shoujo Futakomori Hell Girl: Two Mirrors 地獄少女 二籠 [Studio Deen] (Finished 1/26) Tags: Psychological Horror, Mystery, Supernatural Ai Enma and her companions continue to offer their service of revenge against those who have wronged others, and the price is as steep as ever—for damning the offender to hell, the person exacting vengeance is sent to the abyss as well. As they cast soul after soul into the darkness, a new sinister force is watching them: a little girl named Kikuri. While Ai continues her duties, she meets a boy named Takuma Kurebayashi, known as the "Devil's Child" because of the horrific events that occur around him. Unfortunately, Takuma's reputation leads the townspeople to use him as a scapegoat for those who have been ferried off to hell. When things quickly spiral out of control, Ai must find a way to bring an end to this senseless violence, as it poses a threat to her very existence. Sequel. Overall Rating: 6/10 11. Kekkaishi 結界師 [Sunrise] (Finished 2/52) Tags: Shounen Mythology Action, Adventure, Supernatural Yoshimura Sumimura comes from a long line of "Kekkaishi," individuals who have supernatural abilities and are able to destroy evil creatures called Ayakashi that venture into the human realm from time to time. The Ayakashi are demons that look to feast on the power emanating from the land of Karasumori, which also happens to be where Yoshimura's high school is located. Now, Yoshimura must fight to protect his beloved school and hometown. Although, if it were up to him, he would rather be baking cakes than fighting off the ugly characters that show up at night. Thankfully, Yoshimura isn't the only one helping to keep the baddies at bay. His childhood friend and neighbor, Tokine Yukimura, joins him in this righteous battle. Despite the fact that they are from rival clans, these two make a fantastic team. And teamwork is something vital to fighting the evil that is closing in, as the Ayakashi attack in waves, looking to claim the land as their own, and a shadowy organization looks on, ready to pounce when the time is right... Another ghost/demon hunting story, and this time can't find anything that could pull it out of averageness. Overall Rating: 5/10 12. Black Blood Brothers ブラック・ブラッド・ブラザーズ [Group TAC] (Finished 3/12) Tags: Vampire Action, Comedy, Fantasy, Supernatural Black Bloods and Red Bloods, vampires and humans. Despite their differences, these two races once fought together in a crusade against a formidable foe. A decade later, the vampire war hero Jirou Mochizuki, known as the "Silver Blade," travels with his younger brother Kotarou to the Special Zone—a safe haven where vampires and humans live in harmony. However, their journey is suddenly faced with danger when a conflict erupts between vampire migrants and human forces from the Special Zone. With the rise of a developing conspiracy from an old enemy, Jirou will need the help of his new ally, Mimiko "Compromiser" Katsuragi, as well as the power of his ancient bloodline to protect what he treasures the most. It's not Hellsing, but action is decent, occasionally to the similar extent. Other elements are not as good, so it's only advisable for vampire action enthusiasts. Overall Rating: 6/10 13. Negima!? Negima!? Magister Negi Magi ネギま!? [Shaft, GANSIS] (Finished 1/26) Tags: Harem, School Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy, Romance, Supernatural, Ecchi A remake of the Negima anime with its own original story. Wizard Negi Springfield may be a boy, but he has a man-sized job to do! Fresh from the Academy of Magic, Negi continues his training as an instructor at Mahora Academy in Japan. But before he can get his Masters in magic, the 31 schoolgirls of Class 3-A are gonna keep him up all night cramming for a final exam in will power. Temptation aside, Negi has more on his syllabus than flirting and spells. Darkness is closing in, and Negi is gonna need help from his lovely student bodies to drive the ghouls from their school. These girls want to prove that they're the best in class, and extra credit is available to the cuties that aren't afraid of after-hours phantom fighting! Not distinguishing it from Mahou Sensei Negima Overall Rating: 6/10 14. Bartender バーテンダー [Palm Studio] (Finished 3/11) Tags: Seinen Adult Cast, Workplace Drama, Gourmet Hidden in the backstreets of the Ginza district is Eden Hall, a lone bar operated by Ryuu Sasakura, the prodigy bartender who is said to mix the most incredible cocktails anyone has ever tasted. However, not just anyone can find Eden Hall; rather, it is Eden Hall that must find you. Customers of varying backgrounds, each plagued with their own troubles, wander into this bar. Nevertheless, Ryuu always knows the ideal cocktail to console and guide each distraught soul. Tried it earlier as it is Seinen, but it's only episodic stories in the end. Overall Rating: 6/10 15. Sumomomo Momomo: Chijou Saikyou no Yome すもももももも〜地上最強のヨメ〜 [Studio Hibari] (Finished 3/22) Tags: Seinen Martial Arts Action, Comedy, Romance Koushi Inuzuka is a smart high school student who aims to become a public prosecutor. Unfortunately for our good guy, he was born into a martial arts family whose head (ie his father) only knows one language: violence. When Koushi was still a baby, his father made a pact with his biggest rival to marry Koushi to his opponent-turned-friend's daughter. The union of the two blood lines is supposed to bring forth Earth's strongest martial arts clan. Skip forward: Koushi is in high school, oblivious to the marriage arranged for him at his birth. Enter Momoko Kuzuryuu: sugar bomb, airhead, loli martial arts artist and Koushi's self-proclaimed bride (the strongest on Earth, no less). Her wish for sexual intercourse meets with Koushi's square refusal as he has absolutely no desire to get it on with someone who looks like she could be his little sister, not to mention that he doesn't have the foggiest idea who she actually is. Meanwhile, a war has broken out between the martial arts families. For Koushi, this means that numerous fighters are out to challenge/assassinate him. As if that weren't bad enough, our protagonist also has a fight phobia due to a traumatic incident that took place in his childhood. Now it's up to Momoko and her superhuman fighting skills to protect her "husband." Will the two sweethearts survive the trials and tribulations ahead of them? More importantly, will Momoko get her way receiving a baby from Koushi? An irritating ordinary comedy with ridiculous plot and a bit of action. Overall Rating: 5/10 16. Otome wa Boku ni Koishiteru Otoboku: Maidens are Falling for Me! 乙女は僕に恋してる [Studio Deen] (Finished 1/26) Tags: Shoujo Historical, Mythology Action, Fantasy, Supernatural Masahiro is the grandson of the great onmyouji, Abe no Seimei. However, he lost his sixth sense that enables him to see supernatural beings, which is very important for an onmyouji. Thus, he is left with no choice but to try and pick a different career. But one day, a strange mononoke appears, which he names Mokkun, who shows him his true potential powers after fighting a demon. With the assistance of Mokkun, his quest to become the greatest onmyouji begins. Otoboku is the first thing on mind when remembering cross-dressing, and it's usually love or hate relationship. Overall Rating: 5/10 17. Shounen Onmyouji Shonen Onmyoji 少年陰陽師 [Studio Deen] (Finished 5/26) Tags: Shoujo Historical, Mythology Action, Fantasy, Supernatural Masahiro is the grandson of the great onmyouji, Abe no Seimei. However, he lost his sixth sense that enables him to see supernatural beings, which is very important for an onmyouji. Thus, he is left with no choice but to try and pick a different career. But one day, a strange mononoke appears, which he names Mokkun, who shows him his true potential powers after fighting a demon. With the assistance of Mokkun, his quest to become the greatest onmyouji begins. Heian hunting for demons is a boring concept for me on its own, and realization disappointed as primitive. And since protagonists possess mass destruction magic, only minibosses battles matter. Overall Rating: 6/10 18. Oban Star-Racers オーバン・スターレーサーズ [Hal Film Maker] (Finished 3/26) Tags: Mecha, Racing Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi Eva's birthday has just passed, and she hasn't heard from her father. Despising the Boarding School she attends, she escapes using her Rocket Bike that she just completed. Taking on the alias "Molly," Eva sneaks with the Earth team to Alwas for the Great Race because the winner of the race gets any one wish granted. Little does the Earth Team know what danger awaits them... Space racing... wohoo... Overall Rating: 5/10 19. Red Garden レッド ガーデン [Gonzo] (Finished 6/22) Tags: Drama, Mystery Strange suicides have been taking place in New York. One day, four girls from the same high school wake up in the morning feeling tired and dizzy and not being able to remember anything about the previous night. In school, they find out that one of their classmates has committed suicide. School is canceled for the rest of the day, but instead of going home, the girls are drawn to a park by butterflies only they can see. Suddenly a man and a woman approach the girls, telling them that they all died the previous night. It's basically life stories of four girls who died and now in zombie world finally have time to deal with their violence and psychological problems while slowly trying to perceive the world. And that means we're in for a lot of screams, violence and hysteria behavior. It's a fresh concept, but fresh does not mean good. I could not tolerate that absolutely irrational behavior and torture of screams for long. Overall Rating: 6/10 20. Pumpkin Scissors パンプキン・シザーズ [Gonzo, AIC] (Finished 3/24) Tags: Shounen Military Action, Comedy, Drama Three years ago, the long war between the Royal Empire and the Republic of Frost came to an end. With both nations a long way from recovery, a passionate young woman named Alice L. Malvin leads the Pumpkin Scissors, a unit of the imperial army specializing in war relief. During a mission to assist a village occupied by renegade soldiers, Alice meets Randal Oland, a scarred former soldier with a sordid past and kind heart. Encouraged by the efforts of the Pumpkin Scissors, he joins the team on their mission. During the assault, however, Randal enters a trance-like state prompted by a mysterious blue lantern. As a result, he acquires monstrous strength and decimates the enemy forces. Despite having witnessed Randal's disturbing transformation, Alice invites him to join her squandrant, confident that his gentle nature will prevail and make him a perfect fit for the Pumpkin Scissors. Sadly there's little for the story, only setting as first episodes are different kinds of rescue missions to save civilians at different places... I don't know what they were counting on with this kind of tedious concept. Overall Rating: 6/10 21. Yoake Mae yori Ruriiro na: Crescent Love Brighter Than the Dawning Blue 夜明け前より瑠璃色な -Crescent Love- [Daume] (Finished 12/12) Tags: School Comedy, Romance, Sci-Fi The moon and the earth are linked by a single contact point, "Mitsuru ga Sakichau Ouren Rakuniushi" where Tatsuya lives under the supervision of the Sphere Kingdom (Moon Kingdom)'s Princess Feena Fam Earthlight who is coming to stay at his home. How is Eustia different from Shuffle and similar simplistic plots... It's main advantage is that it's short. Can't even call second serious part borderline decent, more so because the horrible first half shouts otherwise. Overall Rating: 5/10 22. Tokimeki Memorial: Only Love Tokimeki Memorial ときめきメモリアル Only Love [AIC ASTA] (Finished 2/25) Tags: Harem, School Comedy, Romance Aoba Riku has just transferred to a new high school because of his father's job, and things aren't quite what he expected. The headmaster's secretary controls the school while espousing the virtues of academic freedom, the teachers are even stranger than normal teachers, and half the student body is walking around with animal ears on. On his very first day, Riku is unfortunate enough to find himself at the center of the student council's latest event, which has him running for his life. All this on top of the normal high school rigour of popularity contests, crushes, and homework makes it unsure whether Riku will be able to survive this new school. Two episodes were enough to wear me off completely with this kind of banality. Overall Rating: 5/10 23. Happiness! はぴねす! [Artland] (Finished 5/12) Tags: Harem, School Comedy, Romance Kamizaka Haruhi having been rescued when she was young by a mage, longed to be a mage herself, so she enrolled into a special school that allows regular and magic classes into two different sections. Together with her rival/best friend, Hiiragi Anri, they study magic together while she is searching for the boy that saved her years ago, to give him a Valentines' chocolate. It's goofing around at school with usage of magic included. It's not going anywhere, so can't call it outstanding. Overall Rating: 5/10 24. Gift: Eternal Rainbow ギフト~ eternal rainbow [OLM] (Finished 3/12) Tags: Harem, School Comedy, Drama, Romance Amaumi Haruhiko is a high school student who attends Shimano Academy in a town called Narasakicho. Narasakicho contains an unknown rainbow which constantly overlooks the town and is related to granting a magical wish called "Gift." Gift is a once-in-a-lifetime present between two people. As a child, Haruhiko has been close with his childhood friend, Kirino, until he obtains a new non-blood sister by the name of Riko. Haruhiko develops a strong relationship with Riko until they sadly depart due to the fact Haruhiko's father could no longer support the two of them. After some times passes by, Riko finally returns to the town of Narasakicho, and along with Kirino, starts to attend Shimano Academy with Haruhiko. The series revolves around the relationship among these main protagonists and slowly reveals the story behind both Gift and the rainbow. There's enough effort applied to craft situations and show cuteness from different angles, so feels of higher quality than usual romcom. Still, it's mostly SOL, so is bound to be forgotten in an instant. Overall Rating: 6/10 25. Mamoru-kun ni Megami no Shukufuku wo! Venus to Mamoru! 護くんに女神の祝福を! [Zexcs] (Finished 3/24) Tags: School Comedy, Romance "Beatrice". It is a mysterious power that responds to people’s will and realize all of them. Tokyo Beatrice University Attached High School is the only school that teaches Beatrice called "magic appears in the real world". Yoshimura Mamoru is a high school boy who was saved by Beatrice miraculously when he was a child. At the first day of the school, he meets a girl under the cherry trees on his way to the school. She orders him to go out with her. Her name is Takasu Ayako. She is in the second grade and one year older than him. She is a director of student committee of discipline. Also, she is a granddaughter of a big-name politician, very beautiful, and a genius Beatrician who can even shoot a satellite down. She is called Witch Beatrice or Death Angel in Beatrice, but in fact, she is a pure-hearted girl. Light romantic school love triangle comedy with some flavor of superpowers, maybe with slightly more cringe than usual. Overall Rating: 5/10 27. Hataraki Man 働きマン [Gallop] (Finished 11/11) Tags: Seinen Adult Cast, Workplace Comedy, Drama, Romance Hiroko Matsukata is a woman who works for a magazine company. She puts all she has into her work, and is known as a strong, straight-forward working girl, who can at will turn herself into Hataraki man (working man) mode. Despite Hiroko's success at work, her life lacks romance. Even though a hard worker, she'd leave early anytime to go on a date. Too bad her boyfriend is an even bigger workaholic than Hiroko. Great opening and ending, serious and adult SOL with characters that feel alive and even sometimes familiar. Can't say it rings the right strings like some doramas do, like it's hard to understand this constant urge to pursue recreative activities, but other countries probably don't have as many overwork hours. It's far from perfect, but it's a good start for serious SOL titles. Overall Rating: 7/10 28. Asatte no Houkou. Living for the Day After Tomorrow あさっての方向。 [J.C.Staff] (Finished 5/12) Tags: Drama, Supernatural Sentai Filmworks About to enter junior high school, Karada Iokawa is a cheerful and reliable girl, who hates being treated as a child more than anything. After her parents' deaths, her older brother, Hiro, comes back from studying abroad to take care of her. His ex-girlfriend Shouko Nogami, a composed yet sometimes childish and stubborn young woman, follows him to Japan in order to find out why he left her. Between the two girls, the atmosphere is tense, which eventually leads to Shouko calling Karada childish. Later, Karada stands before a shrine praying to grow up. Little does she know that the shrine wishing stone would grant her wish. As Karada grows older, at the same time, Shouko, who happens to be nearby, finds herself a child once again. With their ages now reversed, Shouko and Karada must come to terms with one another and ultimately themselves. Love triangle in the spirit of Memories Off as kid girl who wants to love grows up and protagonist's girlfriend becomes a kid girl. I'm not fond of such stories as everyone is constantly sad and frequently crying pitying themselves, but there should be enthusiasts of such settings, because quality is quite good. Overall Rating: 6/10 29. Soukou no Strain Strain: Strategic Armored Infantry 奏光のストレイン [Studio Fantasia] (Finished 7/13) Tags: Mecha, Military, Space Drama, Sci-Fi, Ecchi Eleven-year-old Sara Werec's elder brother, Ralph, was sent to the frontlines of an interstellar war 130 light years away, and Sara vowed to reunite with him one day as a comrade. Five years later, Sara is a student at Grapera Space Armed Soldier Academy, training to become a Reasoner, a pilot of an advanced weapons system called a "Strain." When the academy is suddenly attacked by enemy forces, Sara enters battle against a Strain that quickly overpowers her. After incapacitating her, the pilot reveals himself to be her Ralph. Killing all the other students and destroying the school, he disappears, leaving Sara to question everything she has ever known. Soukou no Strain is the story of Sara as she reenters training under a new name, now determined to confront her brother and make sense of her brother's actions. This anime uses 3D rendered mecha fights and absolutely does not know where it's going. In the result it's slow boring trainings with main heroine history, plus occasional fights that don't result in anything. The whole intrigue is about her brother who switched sides and now fights on the enemy side, but producers are definitely saving this only plot development for the very end. So basically it's mostly SOL at military space station with a bit of comedy and romance, and that's not enough even though characters aren't repulsive. Overall Rating: 6/10 30. 009-1 ゼロゼロナインワン [Ishimori Entertainment] (Finished 12/12) Tags: Seinen Mecha Action, Sci-Fi Mylene Hoffman, a beautiful cyborg spy with the codename "009-1" lives in an alternative world where the cold war never ended, continuously on-going for 140 years. The world is split into two factions, the West and the East block. A masquerade of peace between the two is slowly dissipated as the conflict occurs. Through politics, the two factions battle over supremacy over technology to threats of a nuclear attack. Mylene Hoffman, teaming up with three other agent, gets surrounded by deception, chaos, and rivalry as she carries out missions assigned by her superiors. When I watched it a decade ago I actually liked it as a minor masterpiece, so rewatching it with anxiety now. And nowadays I can't appreciate that retrofuturism and those character designs and those relatively similar episodes. Still good, but not enough. Overall Rating: 6/10 31. Tenpou Ibun: Ayakashi Ayashi Ghost Slayers Ayashi 天保異聞 妖奇士 [Bones] (Finished 5/25) Tags: Historical, Mythology Supernatural In the year of Tenpo 14, Yoi, monsters from another world attack Edo. Those who fight against them are members of Bansha Aratemesho. In public, Bansha Aratemsho is known as an organization to study foreign books. In fact, they are a organization dedicated to destroying the Yoi. These warriors are called Ayakashi. They gather information of odd events in the country, and are sent to destroy Yoi who appear. They are generally very strange people. For example, a guy who has lost his memory, a girl who dresses like a man. They have special powers with which to beat the Yoi. It's slow, monotonous, in same greyish palette and even battles are the same slow. Add there same looking characters and concept of just hunting demons during Edo period, and it becomes less and less lucrative show to watch. Overall Rating: 6/10 32. Pucca (TV) 짜장소녀 뿌까 [VOOZ Character System] (Finished 1/26) Tags: Parody Comedy, Romance Pucca is the young daughter of a Chinese noodle house owner and she is hopelessly in love with the ninja Garu. He tries desperately to avoid Pucca's advances and usually does not return her affection. This results in many comical situations as Pucca goes to great lengths just to steal a kiss from Garu. Expect to see lots of "funny love" antics involving everything from noodles to deadly ninjas. What I see is that episodes are only 8 minutes long, and thus I'd block it if I knew that beforehand. Primitive flash drawing and nonsense parody plots don't add credibility. It's childish, too, but not all the time. Overall Rating: 5/10 33. Kujibiki♥Unbalance くじびき♥アンバランス [Ajia-do] (Finished 12/12) Tags: School Comedy, Romance Once a year prestigious Rikkyouin High School has a lottery to determine the next year's Student Council membership. On their first day of school Chihiro Enomoto wins the presidency while his childhood friend Tokino Akiyama picks the vice-president's ticket. There is one catch though, they must first pass a one year apprenticeship under the current Student Council and any failure to perform the tasks assigned, however minor, will result in immediate expulsion from the school. After first great episodes actually had to rewatch OVA to check differences and see if I evaluated it properly. And, actually, OVA is much worse as it did not have any concept apart of just competitions by groups in all three episodes. And what's even worse, different episodes of OVA had varying character personalities. Basically, it was too chaotic and random with many challenges inside each episode. This time there is a concept of tasks from student council in each episode, so can concentrate around one topic, plus a much bigger emphasis on characters individuality. It's done with love, but I don't get anything from it - no plot, no humor, no really likable characters. And unless you like the characters, their development won't have much meaning either. All those random situations lack good humor, sadly. Problem here is that this kind of concept is chosen for writer's convenience sake, but watchers feel disoriented while they should be put in the center. Overall Rating: 6/10 34. Ryuusei no Rockman Megaman Star Force 流星のロックマン [Xebec] (Finished 1/55) Tags: Strategy Game Action, Sci-Fi In the year 220X, the world has advanced toward radio-wave technology, and the world is connected through the Wave Road. Meet Subaru Hoshikawa, a fifth-grade student who lost his father in a space accident. Subaru meets an extraterrestrial radio-wave being named War-Rock, descending from a distant FM planet. War-Rock claims to know about Subaru's father, but many alien beings are after War-Rock. The two work together and merge into Rockman, a radio-wave human capable of traversing the Wave Road and battling the radio-wave viruses and FMs that threaten the Earth. Not first Rockman anime. Overall Rating: 5/10 35. Souten no Ken Fist of the Blue Sky 蒼天の拳 [APPP] (Finished 1/22) Tags: Historical, Martial Arts Action A mysterious man known as "the King of Death" roams the streets of pre-war Shanghai in this action-packed prequel to Fist of the North Star. Shanghai in the 1930s is a dangerous place. Foreign governments and Chinese factions have carved the city into different quarters, each with its own laws and government, and all rife with corruption. As the major powers vie for political control, the streets are left to local gangs. Life is cheap, and death is always near. In days past, one man walked these mean streets battling the forces of evil. He was known only as Yan Wang, "the King of Death." Few knew who he really was, but many knew that he was a master of Hokuto Shinken - Fist of the North Star - a lethal martial art. He disappeared years ago after dispatching the city's worst gangsters, and is now rumored to be in Japan. Various people have come to Japan in search of him, but who will find him first? Thanks to a friend who watches a lot of dubious shows in full I happen to understand chronology of the fist of the northern star with derivatives. Rebooting franchise in China mythology while maintaining links to original franchise is a good move, but it only matters for those who still have not watched enough of the manliest men ever. Overall Rating: 5/10 36. Tokyo Tribe 2 [Madhouse] (Finished 3/13) Tags: Action, Drama This is the other side of Tokyo, a Tokyo of a different color. There, various tribes are living. The SARU from Japan's Musashino, WU-RONZE of Bukuro, and HANDS of Shindyuku... Young men living in the city...the public of modern times builds a home out of corruption, these young men of the sordid side of life, a side called "reality," are depicted here! Acid mix of disgust, cringe and ugliness. Guess only for those who can appreciate GTA3 aesthetics. Overall Rating: 5/10 37. Lovedol: Lovely Idol らぶドル~Lovely Idol~ [AIC ASTA, TNK] (Finished 4/12) Tags: Idols (Female), Music Lovedol, or Lovely Idol, is a girl group consisting of two generations of idols. The 3rd Generation is about to make its debut, but to their surprise, they have been delayed! The vague reason is only that "they lack something." The manager, and the 3rd Gen. girls too, must find the answer. A rather typical idol show, to be honest, but possibly the best one so far. It's good indeed, but the problem is that it does not make it interesting for me, guess I need some special traits like in Wake Up, Girls or Carol & Tuesday at least. Overall Rating: 6/10 38. Giniro no Olynsis: Tokito 銀色のオリンシス TOKITO [Toei Animation] (Finished 2/12) Tags: Mecha Adventure, Drama, Romance AD 3567. Mankind has lost its once great civilization, now living in the ruins of the aftermath. But even though their lives are threatened by Gardeners — mysterious unmanned mobile weapons (of different ranks) sent from the Moon — brave teenagers have to become Gardener hunters to earn their living. And although human civilization at large lies in ruins due to high-tech maintenance free technology, some parts of the remaining cities still work in limited ways, supporting the humans living there. One fateful day Tokito Aizawa meets Tea, awakening a power older and beyond that of the Gardeners, and inadvertently opening up the door to a possibly much brighter future for the remainder of mankind... Mecha, nonsense plot, time travel, bland characters... this is what happens when shows try to imitate already hugely flawed Gundam. Overall Rating: 5/10 39. Super Robot Taisen OG: Divine Wars Super Robot Wars The Original Generation: The Divine Wars スーパーロボット大戦OG -ディバイン・ウォーズ- [OLM] (Finished 2/25) Tags: Mecha Action, Sci-Fi It is two hundred years after the beginning of the Space Era, when human civilization on Earth began expanding into space. However, by the start of the 21st century, two meteors struck the planet, sending humanity into chaos. By the year 179 of the Space Era, secret technology, dubbed Extra-Over Technology, or EOT, was discovered by the Earth Federal Government within a third meteor that hit Earth in the Marquesas Islands of the South Pacific. Dr. Bian Zoldark, head of the EOTI Institute (Extra-Over Technological Investigative Institute), had evidence the creators of the EOT were heading to Earth, in order to reclaim it...or worse, invade the planet. In order to defend humanity from extraterrestrial threats, the government begins to research and develop humanoid mecha called Personal Troopers. The beginning is typical Gundam with a brat occasionally finding a vacant giant mecha ready to launch. 3D mecha battles are horrible. Coming from a game, it can have a more thorough plot than usual, but two episodes is is as far as I'm going to investigate this primitiveness. Overall Rating: 5/10 40. Galaxy Angel Rune ギャラクシーエンジェる~ん [Satelight] (Finished 1/13) Tags: Comedy, Sci-Fi Apricot Sakuraba and 4 new girls were now assigned as the new Galaxy Angels with the same mission: to search for the Lost Technology and keep peace to Planet Transbaal. Sequel. Overall Rating: 6/10 41. Sasami: Mahou Shoujo Club 2 Sasami Magical Girls Club 砂沙美☆魔法少女クラブ シーズン2 [AIC Spirits] (Finished 1/13) Tags: Mahou Shoujo, School In this world, there live a group of people who call themselves "Majo" or "Magical Girls". They hide their powers so as to assimilate into the environment. They have been living together in harmony with the humans for many years to come, and their predecessors continue to do so. Sasami was enthroned with magical powers since her birth. However, at the age of three, she was told by her parents never to use her innate powers and from then on, had kept it a secret from everyone. On the day of a new school term, a new transfer teacher by the name of Wajuu arrives and from then on, Sasami's life begins to change tremendously. Sequel. Overall Rating: 6/10 42. Ginga Tetsudou Monogatari: Eien e no Bunkiten The Galaxy Railways II 銀河鉄道物語 ~永遠への分岐点~ [Planet] (Finished 1/24) Tags: Space Action, Adventure, Drama, Sci-Fi Second season. Sequel. Overall Rating: 6/10 43. Jinzou Konchuu Kabutoborg VxV 人造昆虫カブトボーグ V×V [Studio Comet] (Finished 1/52) Tags: Strategy Game Action, Comedy, Fantasy BorgBattles between KabutoBorgs have become popular enough to hold world tournaments. The main character Ryuusei is an enthusiast of these battles. Along with his friends Katsuji and Ken, he continues fighting against new enemies day after day. Not translated. Kids stuff. Overall Rating: 4/10 44. Silk Road Shounen Yuuto シルクロード少年 ユート [OLM] (Finished 0/26) Tags: Historical Adventure, Fantasy When a boy Yuto visits Qinghai in China, he is involved in the battle between time-travelers, and he is sent to the Silk Road in the past. They are looking for a mysterious treasure, the statue of Yuki Daruma Taishi, which is said to make miracles. Seeing historical events and encountering historical persons, such as Yang Guifei and Xuanzang, he will learn many thinks. Whether will he be able to go back to today? Not translated. 3D. Nonsense concept. Chinese aesthetics. Ugly. Not even going to try it as it has zero chances. Overall Rating: 0/10 45. RGB Adventure RGBアドベンチャ [ACC Production] (Finished 0/6) Tags: Adventure The light – it is the resource of life. There are mysterious monsters and robots that aim at the powers of the light, i.e. R(Red), G(Green), and B(Blue). However, no one notices that… except three children. Ryu - he is a stupid, simple, and mischievous boy who he says without hesitation that his dream is to the conqueror of the world. Guccho - he is a nerd of mechanics, glutton, and chicken-hearted. Becky - she is very cute, but she has a very twisted personality. They have encouraging friends, such as Rosso, Gibson, Bo, etc. They are various aliens that usually change their figures into animals. By exchanges between aliens who have different principles, purposes, tastes, and hobbies, they will learn importance of communications. Not translated. 3D. Nonsense concept. Kids stuff. Ugly. Not even going to try it as it has zero chances. Overall Rating: 0/10 46. Bakumatsu Kikansetsu Irohanihoheto Intrigue in the Bakumatsu: Irohanihoheto 幕末機関説 いろはにほへと [Sunrise] (Finished 3/26) Tags: Historical, Samurai Action, Drama In the final years of the Bakumatsu, wandering mercenary Yojiro Akizuki travels the length and breadth of Japan. And while he employs his sword in the usual fashion, he also uses it to help him locate supernatural items which he pursues with single-minded determination, often with bloody results. In the course of his quest, he crosses paths with a traveling theater group whose members have their own dark agenda. Is it a chance meeting or the result of some, as yet, undiscovered conspiracy? Sunrise show is of high quality as always, but original script raises suspicions as usual. Pseudo-historical revenge fighting action fantasy about collecting artifacts with kabuki flavor on the side. I'd call it something like that, at least. Overall, it's a mess of historical references, fighting action and theater stage which is rendered useless by overwhelming supernatural powers usage. As usual for Sunrise original concepts, it lacks integrity and emphasis on personalities which results in surface-scratching actiony something. Overall Rating: 6/10 47. Catblue: Dynamite Catblue Dynamite げんしけん OVA [-] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Action, Fantasy It is the end of 70s. Blue – a woman with cat ears and tail – has solved many incidents and troubles with her special ability to see a ghost and her technique to handle three guns at one using her tail. One day, two couriers, Bill and Robert are assaulted by mysterious masked men. They don't know why they were assaulted. Blue asks a dead masked man their purpose. It is incredible. What they are aiming at is the cassette tape of Sinatra that Bill owns. Over the cassette tape, a long day begins... 3D usage is more or less fine looking. Show feels like imitation of Quentin Tarantino or maybe Guy Ritchie movies, but lacks a good concept or talent. It's fine if you look at it this way, but nothing great, anyway. Overall Rating: 6/10 48. Genshiken OVA げんしけん OVA [Ajia-do] (Finished 3/3) Tags: Seinen Parody Comedy, Slice of Life It's the start of a new year for the Genshiken crew, and that means recruiting new members. Always a dreaded task, The Society for the Study of Modern Visual Culture manages to get Chika Ogiue pushed onto them from the Manga Club. With her introduction of "I'm Ogiue and I hate otaku," this year certainly will be anything but boring. Derivatives get one score less than original, but I rewatched it with pleasure for the third time overall now. Overall Rating: 7/10 49. Freedom [Sunrise] (Finished 7/7) Tags: Space Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi 2041, Earth. After being pulled into the planet's atmosphere, the fall of the Freeport Space Station has led to the "Great Cataclysm"—an event that devastated the Earth's environment. Left as a polluted wasteland, survivors go to war with their fellows to guarantee themselves resources; in the end, these scrimmages have erased the whole existence of humanity. Coincidentally, life still exists on a moon base. Although it is supposedly meant as an immigration outpost for the mission to explore Mars, it is soon turned into a city, both regulating and allowing its citizens to flourish. The lunar base, officially named "The City of Eden," holds the hope of fully colonizing the moon. Takeru, one of many citizens of Eden in the year 2267, participates in "Tube Races" between gangs and groups using hovercraft-like vehicles. Due to causing an accident in one of his races, Takeru is sentenced to complete volunteer work outside the city. While clearing his punishment, Takeru stumbles upon remains that may unravel the truth about Earth and Eden's genesis. Sunrise original that is clearly fantasy on Akira on so many levels. Development is slow and plot is simple. Very soon 3D rendered characters start to be used in many scenes. Venus Wars that started in a similar way was a lot more exciting than this one. A mess with no integrity, as usual. Overall Rating: 6/10 50. Baldr Force Exe Resolution バルドフォース エグゼ レソリューション [Satelight] (Finished 4/4) Tags: Mecha Action, Drama, Sci-Fi Any network runs all over the world, and the development of the information network reaches its acme. In this age, there are two developed worlds; "the real world" and "wired", or the virtual network world. Soma Toru belongs to a hacking group, Steppen Wolf, which runs around the network world freely. They attack the database of the UN forces as their last work. During this attack, he loses Nonomura Yuya, his friend as well as the team leader. Toru is arrested by the army. In exchange for letting him free, he has to work for an anti-hacker organization, the first squad of the UN Security Force Information Administration Bureau. Working for them, he is looking for the person who killed his friend, while the other members also have their own reason to fight. The three-way fights of the terrorist group, the security enterprise, and the army, continue every day. The various events occurred during the fight seem to be independent of each other at the first glance, but they're converging on one event as if they were attracted by something. Based on the game by GIGA. Never liked its gameplay, so now is a good opportunity to learn the story. So, story is better than expected from GIGA, but it's all over the place and is not of masterpiece scale. It's jumpy and moves in different directions, and it lacks impact. Game should feel better with clear distinguishing between battles and dialogues, plus side-characters are almost totally abandoned in the anime. Overall Rating: 6/10 51. _Summer _summer [アンダーバーサマー] [Rikuentai] (Finished 2/2) Tags: Harem Drama, Romance “Is there any girl you love?” By this word his friend asked during the school excursion, the protagonist, Kaizu Takumi, begins to aware of his interest in opposite sex. Of course, there are girls around him, for example, his childhood friend, Hatano Konami, his classmate, Ebizuka Shino, a school idol, Shimazu Kakana, etc. However, he himself hasn’t noticed his feelings until he is asked by his friend. He becomes anxious seeing his friend try to find his girl friend, and he resolves his mind to find a girl friend during the last summer of his high school life. Banality to the bones. Overall Rating: 5/10 52. Paprika パプリカ [Madhouse] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Adult Cast, Psychological Avant Garde, Award Winning, Fantasy, Horror, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Suspense The world of dreams can be an incredible window into the psyche, showing one's deepest desires, aspirations, and repressed memories. One hopeful tech lab has been developing the "DC Mini," a device with the power to delve into the dreams of others. Atsuko Chiba and Kosaku Tokita have been tirelessly working to develop this technology with the hopes of using it to deeply explore patients' minds and help cure them of their psychological disorders. However, having access to the deepest corners of a person's mind comes with a tremendous responsibility. In the wrong hands, the DC Mini could be used as a form of psychological terrorism and cause mental breakdowns in the minds of targets. When this technology is stolen and people around them start acting strangely, Atsuko and Kosaku know they have a serious problem on their hands. Enlisting the help of Officer Konakawa, who has been receiving this experimental therapy, they search both the real and dream worlds for their mental terrorist. Never been a fan of Avant Garde, but Paprika is rather a mix. Can't deny I quite enjoyed both times I watched it, but the source is concentrated curiosity rather than something more serious. Overall Rating: 7/10 53. Tekkon Kinkreet 鉄コン筋クリート [Studio 4°C] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Psychological Action, Adventure, Award Winning, Supernatural The streets of Treasure Town are said to belong to "The Cats." They know everything that goes on in the city, and no one can stir up trouble without going through them first. In reality, The Cats are a pair of orphan boys called Black and White, who aren’t afraid of anything or anyone. But their rule of the streets is challenged when the Yakuza come to town and start making changes. The wild Black and the carefree White have no one to rely on but themselves to get their Treasure Town back to the way it was. But their bond is tested as they quickly realize going back to how things were may no longer be an option. It is ridiculously boring and ugly. They try to play in psychology in the end to feel meta or something. Can't find anything to like here. Overall Rating: 6/10 54. Top wo Nerae! & Top wo Nerae 2! Gattai Movie!! トップをねらえ!&トップをねらえ2!合体劇場版!! [Gainax] (Finished 2/2) Tags: Mecha Action, Comedy This double feature comprises of Gunbuster and Die Buster (aka Gunbuster 2) condensed into a single theatrical release told in two parts with a musical intermission in between. The first part, Gunbuster the Movie, condenses the six episodes of the original OVA into a 95-minute movie featuring a new 5.1 audio remix and a redub by the original Japanese cast. The second part, Die Buster the Movie, mixes large chunks of the second OVA series with a few altered or newly-animated scenes to create a truncated take on Nono's story. I'm mad because 100% of it is retelling of first and second Gunbuster, even interlude that is more like prequel to Diebuster that adds nothing really new. Waste of time for those who watched the normal issues. Overall Rating: 4/10
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I bet remaining companies coordinate release windows to issue exactly one conventional visual novel each month without any competition 1. Yahari Game demo Ore no Seishun Love Come wa Machigatteiru. Kan やはりゲームでも俺の青春ラブコメはまちがっている。完 [230427] MAGES. GAME In the game, you can enjoy new stories of each of the six heroines, different from both the anime and the original story. The destination of the story of the hero, Hachiman, and the heroines is left to you, the ...... player! Anime spin-off 2. Grisaia: Chronos Rebellion グリザイア クロノスリベリオン [230428] Frontwing "If the master commands it, I can even destroy mankind." Counter-terrorism unit, and so forth, are a part of SORD, an organization established for the purpose of training operatives to defend the country against future threats. With nowhere to go, girls who have lost their places are sent to SORD, with guns in their hands. To earn forgiveness for existing, this is their only way. In the SORD's specialist school, Mihama Academy, Class D, where Arata serves as a handler, is a gathering place for the misfits, nicknamed "Dead Stock". To help them survive as long as possible, Arata trains them using a neural connection technology called "PeTS". And then one day, he encounters a mysterious girl. In a terrorist hideout, a girl named L, sleeping in a stasis tank. As if guided by fate, Arata connects with L, using PeTS, overcomes a desperate crisis, and welcomes her into his class. However, this also marks the beginning of a fight against the mysterious terrorist organization Heidio. Taking up arms, girls who have lost their places in the world, this is their story―― Fandisc 3. Prima Doll プリマドール [230428] Key The collection of stories of the 5 automata dolls at the Black Cat Cafe. The stories take place either before or after the story in the television anime series. Anime spin-off and another partial release cash grab that confirms transition to low-effort works since even such works like planetarian sell well enough, why even try 4. Tenshi☆Souzou RE-BOOT! 天使☆騒々 RE-BOOT! [230428] Yuzusoft It began as a day just like any other. A dull morning, an uneventful trip to school, an afternoon of tedious lectures... And then I met her. "I'm an angel, sent here from Heaven on a very important mission." She appeared suddenly, and without warning―a beautiful girl who called herself an angel. Spreading her large, snow-white wings, she made a declaration that would forever change my life. "I come in search of the Demon Lord's reincarnation." "That being you, Tanikaze Riku." That's right, apparently I was a Demon Lord in my previous life. From some other world to boot. Unfortunately for me, the anarchy wouldn't stop there. Memories from a previous life, visitors from another world... It was just one crazy, chaotic event after the other. "Wait, what? But that doesn't― Huh?!" Thus began the story of Tanikaze Riku, a tale marked by the loss of his normal life, along with so many other precious things. Aside from even more anarchy, what else does the future have in store for him? I consider Yuzusoft games to be primarily collections of fetishes with conceptual plots being rare guests. And a brief glance at Japanese reviews confirms my worst worries.
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Anime of the Year 2006-III Summer - NHK ni Youkoso!
kivandopulus posted a blog entry in Anime of the Season
NHK ni Youkoso! is a genius title. Koukaku Kidoutai: Stand Alone Complex - Solid State Society is still nice. 1. Zero no Tsukaima ゼロの使い魔 [J.C.Staff] (Finished 13/13) Tags: Harem, Isekai, School Action, Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy, Romance, Ecchi Louise Françoise Le Blanc de La Vallière is a self-absorbed mage in a world of wands, cloaks, and royalty. Although she studies at Tristain Academy, a prestigious school for magicians, she has a major problem: Louise is unable to cast magic properly, earning her the nickname of "Louise the Zero" from her classmates. When the first year students are required to perform a summoning ritual, Louise's summoning results in a catastrophic explosion! Everyone deems this to be yet another failure, but when the smoke clears, a boy named Saito Hiraga appears. Now Louise's familiar, Saito is treated as a slave, forced to clean her clothes and eat off the ground. But when an unfamiliar brand is found etched on Saito's hand from the summoning ritual, it is believed to be the mark of a powerful familiar named Gandalfr. Wild, adventurous, and explosive, Zero no Tsukaima follows Saito as he comes to terms with his new life and as Louise proves that there is more to her than her nickname suggests. Of course I watched it before. I'm grateful for popularization of tsundere archetype that I'm still not tired of, but I can't treat this story seriously. After first several episodes it starts to repeat more and more. For me it's only decent and can be skipped without regrets. Overall Rating: 6/10 2. NHK ni Youkoso! Welcome to the N.H.K. N・H・Kにようこそ! [Gonzo] (Finished 24/24) Tags: Otaku Culture, Psychological Comedy, Drama, Romance Twenty-two-year-old college dropout Tatsuhiro Satou has been a hikikomori for almost four years now. In his isolation, he has come to believe in many obscure conspiracy theories, but there is one in particular which he holds unshakable faith in: the theory that the evil conspirator behind his shut-in NEET (Not in Employment, Education or Training) status is the Nihon Hikikomori Kyokai (NHK)—an evil and secret organization dedicated to fostering the spread of hikikomori culture. NHK ni Youkoso! is a psychological dramedy that follows Tatsuhiro as he strives to escape from the NHK's wicked machinations and the disease of self-wrought isolation, while struggling to even just leave his apartment and find a job. His unexpected encounter with the mysterious Misaki Nakahara might signal a reversal of fortune for Tatsuhiro, but with this meeting comes the inevitable cost of having to face his greatest fear—society. It was always one of my most loved anime on par with Ergo Proxy, but it has a lot of stuff suitable for rebellious youth and I was afraid that in older age I would not be able to appreciate it fully anymore. I happened to forget how many different concepts and themes this anime contains, but it sure is genius without any reservation. Overall Rating: 10/10 3. Bokura ga Ita 僕等がいた [Artland] (Finished 3/26) Tags: Shoujo Love Polygon Drama, Romance Going into her first year of high school, Nanami Takahashi is filled with the hope of making many new friends. After meeting the shy Yuri Yamamoto, she hears about a popular boy in their class: Yano Motoharu. Yuri cares little for Yano because of his past relationship with her older sister Nana, and at first, Nanami doesn't like his attitude either. However, Nanami soon begins to warm up to Yano and takes a liking to him. The two spend more of their time together and eventually decide to start dating. But their love is not without challenges; Yano has trouble opening up to Nanami, since his first girlfriend, Nana, died in a car accident the year before, and she had been with one of her ex-boyfriends at the time. Finding themselves living in the shadow of Yano's relationship with Nana, Nanami and Yano struggle to keep their relationship afloat amid misunderstandings and heartache with the certainty of their love for each other. Not bad romance shoujo, but level of complexity and seriousness does not live up to His and Her circumstances, and everything worse can't be treated highly. Overall Rating: 6/10 4. Hachimitsu to Clover II Honey and Clover II ハチミツとクローバー II [J.C.Staff] (Finished 3/12) Tags: Josei Adult Cast, Love Polygon, Visual Arts Drama, Romance Back from his journey across Japan, Yuuta Takemoto reminisces about his college life so far. He has matured significantly since his second year and is motivated to move forward. Feeling more confident than ever before, he finally confesses to Hagumi Hanamoto, the girl he has been in love with since their first encounter. However, Hagumi has been confused by her attempts to understand the mysterious Shinobu Morita. Hiding behind a playful demeanor, Morita may be the most burdened by his own potential. Meanwhile, Takumi Mayama has become a full-fledged working adult and has landed Ayumi Yamada several pottery orders through his company in an act of friendship. The five youths continue to face individual hardships in academics, work, love, and friendship as they push each other toward the paths that they are destined to walk. Sequel. Overall Rating: 6/10 5. Kemonozume ケモノヅメ [Madhouse] (Finished 3/13) Tags: Mythology Action, Horror, Romance, Supernatural Creatures known as Shokujinki have been secretly living alongside humans for hundreds of years. Though they may look like humans, Shokujinki are able to transform into uncontrollable beasts with gigantic claws and consume humans to survive. The equally secretive Kifuuken dojo specializes in killing Shokujinki by cutting off their arms, and is the only force preventing unchecked Shokujinki domination. Toshihiko Momota, the son of the leader of the Kifuuken, is instantly charmed by a mysterious woman named Yuka Kamitsuki. Their relationship is complicated, however, because unbeknownst to them both, Yuka is a Shokujinki and Toshihiko is sworn to kill her. Meanwhile, the Kifuuken is having a crisis of confidence as Toshihiko's brother Kazuma pushes against tradition and tries to modernize the Kifuuken. As emotions are strained and the secrets of both the past and present are revealed, who will live, and who will be eaten? Drawing is deliberately primitive and ugly. Story can be crafty at times, but nothing really great. Overall Rating: 6/10 6. Le Chevalier D'Eon シュヴァリエ Le Chevalier D'Eon [Production I.G] (Finished 5/24) Tags: Historical Mystery, Supernatural In 18th century Paris, a coffin is found floating down the Seine River. It carries the corpse of noblewoman Lia de Beaumont: a spy of King Louis XV, and whose younger brother Charles d'Eon has just been knighted. When several disappearances occur throughout Paris, the young knight believes that they are somehow connected to his sister's death. Hoping to find her killers, d'Eon joins the secret police to investigate the incidents. Following the clues, they piece together that a conspiracy between members of the French and Russian nobility, spurred on by a cult, may be behind the disappearances. D'Eon concludes that Lia may have uncovered the truth while on a mission and was killed as a result. That night, the secret police are to arrest the Duke of Orléans on suspicion of being the mastermind. One of their own transforms into a demon called a Gargoyle and massacres the group. D'Eon attempts to rescue the sole survivor, only to find that he too has been transformed. During the ensuing battle, d'Eon is possessed by Lia's vengeful soul, who takes command of his body and slays the Gargoyle herself. In the aftermath, d'Eon must gather allies to discover the depth of this supernatural conspiracy. Mystery is not my genre, to put it mildly. Historical mystery does not make it much better. And it tries to be pseudo-complicated, so it wastes a lot of time on not too significant events, thus feeling boring most of the time. Overall Rating: 6/10 7. Tonagura! となグラ! [Daume] (Finished 3/13) Tags: School Comedy, Drama, Romance, Ecchi Kazuki has been awaiting 10 years for the day when her neighbours moved back to their old house. She has a crush on Yuuji, whom she considers as her first love but to whom she never managed to express her feelings for him before they moved out. Yuuji often comes over to play with Kazuki, Kazuki's older sister Hatsune and Yuuji's sister Marie when they were kids. Her ideal depiction of Yuuji was soon shattered when he turned out more than she had expected, him acting all ecchi during their reunion. With their parents off in South America, both families must learn to live with each other and rekindle the childhood feelings they shared together. Things get even more crazy as they attend the same school. Quite an ordinary ecchi comedy that has typical characters and gathers a collection of all kinds of tropes. Overall Rating: 5/10 8. Demashita! Powerpuff Girls Z Powerpuff Girls Z 出ましたっ!パワパフガールズZ [Toei Animation] (Finished 1/52) Tags: Shoujo School, Super Power Action, Comedy, Sci-Fi, Slice of Life Based on the American cartoon, "The Powerpuff Girls." Professor Utonium and his son Ken are studying the strange Chemical X. When a mochi cake falls into the formula, it changes into Chemical Z. Ken fires a ray of Chemical Z at a glacier in Tokyo Bay, however that causes strange black and white lights to scatter. The black lights turn its victims into monsters, with emphasis on a black light hitting a zoo monkey and transforming him into Mojo Jojo. The white lights, however, aim at three normal girls, Momoko, Miyako, and Kaoru. This gives them the power to transform into superheroes, the Powerpuff Girls Z! This is clearly childish and should be marked properly as for kids. Overall Rating: 5/10 9. Night Head Genesis NIGHT HEAD GENESIS (ナイト ヘッド ジェネシス) [Bee Media] (Finished 3/24) Tags: Psychological Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Supernatural Following a 15-year long seclusion in a research facility, brothers Naoto and Naoya Kirihara finally escape after the psychic barrier separating them from the outside world collapses. Abandoned by their parents, who feared their supernatural powers, the siblings now strive for a normal life. However, the two are soon forced to use their talents to save lives as the "minus energy" begins to engulf the world and crimes involving psychic abilities gradually multiply. Learning to control their capabilities and using them for the sake of others will prove challenging, for Naoya is traumatized by his psychic abilities that allow him to read people's minds; while Naoto has hurt many close ones due to his unstable psychokinetic powers. With the help of the mysterious Shouko Futami, who can see into the future, the Kirihara brothers must find a way to foil the plans of an organization that seems to be linked to the harmful events related to gifted individuals. Espers. Mystery. Violence. Confusion. Boredom. Insanity. Horror. If you don't like these, best not start. Overall Rating: 5/10 10. Innocent Venus イノセント・ヴィーナス [Brain's Base] (Finished 12/12) Tags: Mecha, Military Adventure, Drama, Sci-Fi In the year 2010 AD, Hyper Hurricanes born concurrently all over the world caused severe damage. Five billion people lost their lives, decreasing the world's population to 3 billion. Existing economies and military were wiped out. Countries were frozen under solid ice, plains sank beneath seas, the world was changed dramatically. Human civilization enters a chaotic era. Poverty flourished outside of these economic zones and slums were widespread. The ruling class called themselves Logos and maintained their position by force of arms. They call the poor Revenus, who are exiled to live outside the special economic areas. Time has passed since then. Katsuragi Jo and Tsurasawa Jin, escape from Phantom, a force organized to watch Revenus and to suppress renegade elements of the Logos, taking with them a mysterious girl, Nobuto Sana. There are many who are interested in her, all with their own reasons. I actually liked characters, setting and plot. But main negative factor for me is frequent mecha battles that are done in 3D, also after intriguing beginning pace settles down and communication also becomes ordinary. The ending does not impress. Overall, it does not feel like a masterpiece. Overall Rating: 6/10 11. Mamotte! Lollipop Save Me! Lollipop まもって!ロリポップ [Studio Comet] (Finished 1/13) Tags: Shoujo Adventure, Comedy, Romance Nina, thinking it was a lolly, swallows an object called "Crystal Pearl". But the candy turns out to be a test for the magicians. To retrieve the crystal, a special medicine has to be made so now Zero and Ichii, the magicians, have to protect her from others while waiting for the medicine to be completed. It's nonsense comedy with specific random humor, so it's hit or miss, but even in hit case it's far from great. Overall Rating: 5/10 12. Binbou Shimai Monogatari 貧乏姉妹物語 [Toei Animation] (Finished 2/10) Tags: Seinen Iyashikei Comedy, Drama, Slice of Life Without the presence of both their deceased mother and their debt-ridden father, sisters Kyou and Asu Yamada are forced to fend for themselves. Thankfully, they at least have a roof over their heads: a small room in an old apartment spacious enough to fit both of them. However, to make ends meet, the older sister Kyou strives to juggle various part-time jobs—all while making sure that she and her younger sister can continue studying. Despite these hardships, they are not alone. Seemingly blessed with good and kind people around them, Kyou and Asu's lives are far from miserable. Above all else, the two sisters share a precious bond that, no matter what pain, trials, or quarrels may come their way, will always remain unbreakable. There's a high competition among episodic SOL anime without distinctive plot, so only the best like Maruko-chan or Minami-ke remain in memory. I doubt I'll ever remember Binbou Shimai Monogatari, because it does not stand out even though it's good enough while it lasts. And constant fixation on money is rather irritating. It's deliberately tearjerker situation, but it's also artificially stretched to aggravate even more making most of it forced. Overall Rating: 6/10 13. Chocotto Sister ちょこッとSister [Nomad] (Finished 3/24) Tags: Comedy, Drama, Romance, Ecchi Haruma Kawagoe is an only child. A long time ago, at Christmas time, his mother miscarried the child that was to have been his baby sister. That night, young Haruma knelt down and offered up an earnest prayer: "Please make my mother well again, and please give me a little sister." Years have passed, and Haruma has nearly forgotten his prayer. But Santa hasn't.... one Christmas, when Haruma is least expecting it, he gets an unusual present - his sister. Our old acquaintance setting of sudden cohabitation with a girl is back. And of course girl does not know about this world much. Needless to say, it loses to Chobits in every element. Overall Rating: 6/10 14. Coyote Ragtime Show コヨーテ ラグタイムショー [ufotable] (Finished 3/12) Tags: Mecha Action, Adventure, Comedy, Sci-Fi Mister is a "coyote" or space faring outlaw who has been sitting in prison for a year for a traffic offense. Ten days from release, he breaks out with the help of his old partners Bishop and Katana. He then seeks out Franka who has been left in his care by her dead father and takes her on a journey to find her father's treasure. On their heels are the federal investigators Angelica and Chelsea as well as the android assassins of the Criminal Guild, Madame Marciano's Twelve Sisters. Legendary treasure, pursuits and space pirates. Outstanding characters and some twists are required for such concept to work, And Coyote Ragtime Show does not boast of innovation elements and easily falls into some musical that stirps it of all leftover seriousness. Overall Rating: 6/10 15. Muteki Kanban Musume Ramen Fighter Miki 無敵看板娘 [Telecom Animation Film] (Finished 2/12) Tags: Shounen Martial Arts, Parody, Workplace Action, Comedy Miki Onimaru is a poster girl that works at her mother's Chinese ramen restaurant. She appears to be a normal girl, but she can become very violent if provoked. She picks a fight with her mother and accquaintances as a result on an almost daily basis, causing a series of troubling mishaps in their otherwise normal lives. Parody slapstick nonsense comedy. Not to my taste, but tastes differ. Overall Rating: 6/10 16. Tsuyokiss つよきす [Trinet Entertainment, Studio Hibari] (Finished 3/12) Tags: School Comedy, Romance, Slice of Life Sunao Konoe starts her first day at a new school and is surprised to find that there is no drama club. So, she decides to make one of her own. But between a childhood friend showing up, the crazy student body, and the arrogant student council president blocking her at every turn, it seems that actually creating the club is going to be more difficult than she thought. Tsuyokiss has always been a light-hearted ecchi averageness. Can't stop getting surprised of how talentless and vulgar it can be at times. Overall Rating: 5/10 17. Otogi Juushi Akazukin Fairy Musketeers おとぎ銃士 赤ずきん [Madhouse] (Finished 3/39) Tags: Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy Long, long ago, there existed a world of magic and science. God, afraid of man's potential, split the world in to the world of science, Elde, and the world of magic, Fandavale. One day in Fandavale, a terrible witch named Cendrillon (Cinderella) revives. Cendrillon plots to rule both worlds, and searches for the "key" which holds tremendous power. A young boy from Elde by the name of Sōta meets a mysterious girl from Fandavale, Akazukin, and her talking wolf companion, Val. Sōta learns that he is the key Cendrillon is searching for. Now it is up to Akazukin, Val, and the other Fairy Musketeers to protect Sōta from Cendrillon and her Nightmarelians who wish to obtain the power he mysteriously possesses. With chibi cute designs, kid protagonist and fairy-tale covering it's supposed to be for kids, but it manages to stay perfectly serious and all age. I still consider this shallow concept to be a waste of time for adults, but it's only the second child title after Blue Blink that I would actually recommend children to watch, and that means a lot already. Overall Rating: 6/10 18. Project BLUE Chikyuu SOS Project Blue Earth SOS Project BLUE 地球SOS [A.C.G.T.] (Finished 2/6) Tags: Adventure, Comedy, Sci-Fi In this exhilarating series paying homage to classic 50s era science fiction, the disappearance of revolutionary G-Reaction engines is but the beginning of the ghastly end for mankind. While deranged alien forces prepare a fleet of flying saucers to the invasion of all invasions, teenage geniuses Penny Carter and Billy Kimura join forces with a clandestine secret alliance to save humanity from the extra-terrestrial helmet worms and their tentacles of doom! Avoiding alien attacks and dodging disintegration rays won't be easy, but these courageous kids will have help from above as Ace pilot James and his mentor Cpt. Clayton enter the fray to stave off a threat incomprehensible to mere mortals! Original dates back to some 1950, and this retrofuturism is everywhere. And it all is alien to me as I don't feel any affinity to such retro settings. Overall Rating: 6/10 19. Naikaku Kenryoku Hanzai Kyousei Torishimarikan Zaizen Joutarou Government Crime Investigation Agent Zaizen Jotaro 内閣権力犯罪強制取締官・財前丈太郎 [Trans Arts] (Finished 3/11) Tags: Seinen Detective Action, Drama Based on Ken Kitashiba & Yasuhiro Watanabe's political intrigue detective manga. The close relationship between political and business circles doesn't die; politicians and government officers line their pockets taking advantage of their positions. Zaizen Jotaro is an investigator who is allowed to use extralegal methods to crack down these power abusing criminals. Detective investigation action is all that I needed to know, basically. It's not bad, but for a narrow niche as I don't feel anything watching corrupted Japanese businessmen and politicians. Overall Rating: 5/10 20. Hoshizora Kiseki 星空キセキ [CoMix Wave Films] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Romance, Sci-Fi Kozue is a girl who loves astronomy, particularly the stars. One night, on an excursion to witness a meteorite, she meets Ginga, a boy who is able to help scientists discover more information about the stars through a mysterious ability of his. However, he is forced to stay in a protective suit in order to carry out his mission. Because of this, Kozue decides to convince Ginga to make his own decisions & to take off the suit using his own will. 25 minutes to tell an indistinct floaty story. Overall Rating: 5/10 21. Biohazard 4: Incubate バイオハザード4 Incubate [Capcom] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Detective, Military, Mythology Action, Horror, Mystery, Supernatural, Suspense After the Playstation port of Resident Evil 4 hit the stores Capcom released a new 97 minute DVD some time later which intended to summarize the whole story of Resident Evil 4. It's played on English audio with Japanese subtitles. It also included a little book which explains the life on El Pueblo before and the arrival of Osmund Saddler. It also solved some plot holes like the whereabouts of the children. It contains many of the scenes original to Resident Evil 4. I only watched let's play of Resident Evil 4 and did not remember much from it, so anime was entertaining enough for me, yet not great, especially because it's game engine machinima. Overall Rating: 6/10 22. Kikoushi Enma Demon Prince Enma 鬼公子 炎魔 [Brain's Base] (Finished 2/4) Tags: Seinen Mythology Fantasy, Horror, Supernatural Enma is a character created by the genius manga artist Go Nagai. Now, the popular character makes his appearance in an alluring Japanese horror anime for adults. It's a hair-raising erotic suspense in which Enma takes on complicated and gruesome incidents caused by demons who lurk in the darkness. But humans have lit up the darkness of the night with neon lights and turned their world into one that never sleeps, so demons now lurk in the "darkness of the human heart." Unfulfilled hearts, suppressed hearts, despair,...such darkness of the heart is the place they lurk. Enma is the Demon Prince of the Underworld, a demon "Born of Fire." His mission is to take back or destroy demons that have escaped to the human world from the Underworld. Along with his partner, Princess Yukihime, "Born of Ice," and the monster, Kapaeru, Enma sets up "Enma's Detective Agency." Tonight, like any other night, they will roam the sleepless city. Horrific incidents that could not possibly be human acts occur one after another. The stench of evil lingers at the scene... Enma's fire rips through the darkness! Serious version of Enma, but the gist remains the same - hunting demons and monsters. Overall Rating: 6/10 23. Shin Onimusha: Dawn of Dreams the Story Onimusha: Dawn of Dreams 新 鬼武者 DAWN OF DREAMS THE STORY [Capcom] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Historical, Martial Arts, Mythology, Samurai Action Set fifteen years after the fall of Oda Nobunaga. After the fall of this evil warlord, in the late sixteenth century, it appears as though evil times are ahead as his successor, Hideyoshi Toyotomi, has decided to call upon the Genma forces and once again place Japan under their demonic shadow. A strong warrior Soki who possesses the dark power of the Oni. Having learned about Hideyoshi's insidious scheme, he sets out on a journey to burn the Genma trees and defeat the Genma running rampant across the land. Shin Onimusha: Dawn of Dreams the Story is a compilation of cut-scenes from the game by the same title. It has been released on DVD separately from the game. Never played the game, but this alternative Warring States period story does not fit movie shape as we get klutz girl protagonist, dozens of characters and a series of battles without much buildup. It becomes a tedious enterprise. Overall Rating: 5/10 24. Ged Senki Tales from Earthsea ゲド戦記 [Studio Ghibli] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Adventure, Fantasy Calamities are plaguing the land of Earthsea and dragons have been seen fighting above the clouds—something which has never happened before. Sparrowhawk, a powerful Archmage, sets out to uncover the mystery behind these concerning events and meets Prince Arren along the way. Arren is the fugitive heir to the Kingdom of Enlad and a seemingly quiet and distressed lad. Wandering aimlessly in an attempt to escape the dark presence haunting him, he decides to tag along Sparrowhawk on his journey. However, their arrival in the seaside settlement of Hort Town is met with unexpected trouble—Lord Cob, a powerful evil wizard obsessed with eternal life, stands in their way. Forced to confront him, the pair joins forces with Tenar—an old friend of Sparrowhawk—and Therru, the ill-fated orphan girl she took in. But the enemy's cunning hobby of manipulating emotions may just prove to be catastrophic for the young prince. Set in a magical world, Ged Senki goes beyond the classical battle between the forces of good and evil, as it explores the inner battles of the heart. Plot turns out to be too simple and too stretched, and it all feels really boring. Overall Rating: 5/10 25. Eien no Hou The Laws of Eternity 永遠の法 [Group TAC] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Fantasy, Sci-Fi Ryuta and his friends from the science club visit a museum exhibit on Thomas Edison and it's there they learn about one of his proposed inventions called the "spirit phone" which would enable communication with the deceased. Later that day, they bump into a shaman who claims she has a message from Edison. In an instant Ryuta is given the necessary knowledge he needs to construct the device and decides to go for it, so beginning a spiritual adventure. Ah, it's from the series of Happy Science Movie. All of them are trash, at least the ones I've seen so far. Overall Rating: 4/10 26. Koukaku Kidoutai: Stand Alone Complex - Solid State Society Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex - Solid State Society 攻殻機動隊 STAND ALONE COMPLEX Solid State Society [Production I.G] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Seinen Adult Cast, Detective, Mecha, Military Award Winning, Mystery, Sci-Fi A.D. 2034. It has been two years since Motoko Kusanagi left Section 9. Togusa is now the new leader of the team, that has considerably increased its appointed personnel. The expanded new Section 9 confronts a rash of complicated incidents, and investigations reveal that an ultra-wizard hacker named the Puppeteer is behind the entire series of events. In the midst of all, Batou, who was stalking the case on a separate track, encounters Motoko. She goes away after saying, "Stay away from the Solid State Society." Batou is left with a doubt in his mind. Could Motoko be the Puppeteer? The series of intriguing incidents that Section 9 faces gradually link together almost artistically. Who is the Puppeteer? What will happen to Batou's relationship with Motoko? What is the full truth behind this carefully planned perfect crime? And what will the outcome be? Mysteries surround the Solid State Society... Solid State Society always felt rather plain to me compared to previous iterations, but it's a serious slow afterstory with familiar characters, so it's good, anyway . Overall Rating: 8/10 27. Brave Story ブレイブ・ストーリー [Gonzo] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Isekai Action, Adventure, Fantasy, Supernatural When 11-year-old Wataru's father leaves home and his mother is taken ill to the hospital, he decides to change his fate by traveling through the door shown to him by his friend Mitsuru. In a land of magic and monsters, Wataru must summon all his courage and embark on a journey with several comrades to meet the Goddess of Destiny and change this "mistaken fate." It feels more Ghibli than actual Ghibli movies. Protagonist is horrible and too young, the whole gathering of many gems concept does not add interest. Basically, it feels moderately childish and not enough isekai-like to matter. I'm not enjoying it, but for younger audience it should be a hit. Overall Rating: 6/10 28. Lily to Kaeru to (Otouto) Lily, Frogs, and Little Brother. リリとカエルと(弟) [Toei Animation] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Adventure, Comedy, Supernatural Lily went to an amusement park using the frog as its symbol character with her parents. At the Frog Castle of the park, she happened to draw a sword. It was said that the Frog King would grant any wish if one beat the big snake with the sword. When Lily beat the snake, she went to the Frog Land and met the Frog King. The king said she would become a frog if she couldn't open the Gate of Hope until a child would hatch from the roe in front of her. Suddenly, a man in suits appeared. His name was Knodo, and he was supposed to become her little brother. Lily thought it strange, and she ran away from him. He chased her. Then, they fell over into the water head over heels. A short and actually cute and funny enough parody. Overall Rating: 6/10 29. Taiyou no Mokushiroku: A Spirit of the Sun 太陽の黙示録 A Spirit of the Sun [Madhouse] (Finished 2/2) Tags: Drama, Sci-Fi On August 10 2002, the eruption of Mount Fuji, as well as a series of large-scale earthquakes tsunamis inflict tremendous damage to Japan, sending the country into a state of emergency. Furthermore, another massive earthquake hit Japan on August 15, splitting the country into two. While Japanese refugees were taken in by various countries, the Japanese government accepted aid from China and the United States, which eventually caused China to govern the North, and the USA to govern the South. 15 years later, the Japanese refugees residing in Taiwan and the Taiwanese citizens find themselves clashing with one another, due to job competition and the unimproving conditions of the Japanese refugees. Genichiro Ryu is a survivor of the catastrophic events that took place in Japan, but was raised in Taiwan by a couple who adopted him. He gets himself involved in the situation between the Taiwanese and the Japanese, hoping that the two parties will be able to coexist with one another. One movie is similar to Tokyo Magnitude 8, the other deals with taking Taiwanese civilians into refuge to uncover terrorist group despite all the arising troubles and incidents. It's realistic, but nor particularly interesting. Overall Rating: 6/10 30. Jiok The Hell (Two Kinds of Life) 지옥 두개 의 삶 [Studio Dadashow] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Drama, Fantasy, Horror Jae-young, an ordinary woman in her mid-20s is sentenced to death by an angel, and ascends to Heaven. Going to Heaven means nothing to her because she assumes Heaven is devoid of reason and humanity. But she accepts her fate and proceeds to bid farewell to her mother and friend. During her farewells, the desire for life starts to torture her. Too much ultraviolence and no sense in all that. Overall Rating: 4/10 31. Toki wo Kakeru Shoujo The Girl Who Leapt Through Time 時をかける少女 [Madhouse] (Finished 1/1) Tags: School, Time Travel Award Winning, Drama, Romance, Sci-Fi Makoto Konno is in her last year of high school, but is having a hard time deciding what to do with her future. In between enduring the pressure of her teachers and killing time with her best friends, Makoto's life suddenly changes when she accidentally discovers that she is capable of literally leaping through time. Toki wo Kakeru Shoujo follows Makoto as she plays around with her newfound power. However, she soon learns the hard way that every choice has a consequence, and time is a lot more complicated than it may seem. I actually used to think it was from Ghibli. By now we've seen so many time loops and travels that only outstanding titles become paragons and others fade away as lacking. And this is exactly such second case. Overall Rating: 6/10 -
Anime of the Year 2006-II Spring - Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuuutsu
kivandopulus posted a blog entry in Anime of the Season
Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuuutsu is revolutionary anime in several ways, so for me it has the upper hand over Black Lagoon which is also a great masterpiece, but in more mundane , complex and adult way. Lots of titles in Spring season, but I can't vouch for the rest. 1. Ouran Koukou Host Club Ouran High School Host Club 桜蘭高校ホスト部 [Bones] (Finished 1/26) Tags: Shoujo Crossdressing, Reverse Harem, School Comedy, Romance Haruhi Fujioka is a studious girl who has recently enrolled at the prestigious Ouran Academy. One day, while looking for a quiet and peaceful place to study, she stumbles across a seemingly unused music room. Upon entering, Haruhi is welcomed by the members of the well-known Host Club: a club in which attractive boys amuse girls from across the entire school. However, when Tamaki Suou—the founder and president of the club—startles the bright scholarship student, she accidentally breaks an expensive vase. With repayment looking difficult for Haruhi, the Host Club members come up with the perfect solution to the girl's problem: work for the club and ultimately become a Host herself! Mistaken for a boy by her peers, Haruhi has to entertain various female students while coping with her fellow Hosts' extravagant personalities. I've understood recently that Reverse Harem is the tag that I should block as there is not a single such work that I like. As far as I understand, this is one of the most popular representatives, and that's more than enough for me to know. Not finding it funny or entertaining or valuable in any way. Overall Rating: 6/10 2. Gintama 銀魂 [Sunrise] (Finished 204/204) Tags: Shounen Gag Humor, Historical, Parody, Samurai Action, Comedy, Sci-Fi Edo is a city that was home to the vigor and ambition of samurai across the country. However, following feudal Japan's surrender to powerful aliens known as the "Amanto," those aspirations now seem unachievable. With the once-influential shogunate rebuilt as a puppet government, a new law is passed that promptly prohibits all swords in public. Enter Gintoki Sakata, an eccentric silver-haired man who always carries around a wooden sword and maintains his stature as a samurai despite the ban. As the founder of Yorozuya, a small business for odd jobs, Gintoki often embarks on endeavors to help other people—though usually in rather strange and unforeseen ways. Assisted by Shinpachi Shimura, a boy with glasses supposedly learning the way of the samurai; Kagura, a tomboyish girl with superhuman strength and an endless appetite; and Sadaharu, their giant pet dog who loves biting on people's heads, the Yorozuya encounter anything from alien royalty to scuffles with local gangs in the ever-changing world of Edo. I've watched everything from Gintama, at least everything to my awareness. And I liked less than 10% out of it all, mainly some plot advancing episodes and rare comedy episodes. I the end I only consider some Gintama movies to be worthy. Overall Rating: 6/10 3. Black Lagoon [Madhouse (Finished 12/12) Tags: Seinen Adult Cast, Organized Crime Salaryman Rokurou Okajima spends his days trying to climb his company's corporate ladder, until one day when a business negotiation in Thailand goes awry. During the botched deal, he falls hostage to the Lagoon Company—a band of ruthless pirate mercenaries. Left to the whims of his captors after his managers refuse to pay his ransom, Rokurou does the unthinkable: instead of begging for his life, he joins the very crew who kidnapped him. Now a member of the group, Rokurou must adjust to his new residence in the dissolute hellscape known as Roanapur, a city where corruption and crime run rampant, and even the smallest slipup could cost him his life. If not for one of the many crime syndicates on the island, Rokurou also constantly finds himself at odds with his brash, gunslinging colleague, Revy. As Rokurou struggles to abandon his past—and with more than just the profits from the Lagoon Company's illegal trading on the line—he must quickly find the resolve to make tough decisions in high-stress situations while keeping his humanity intact. Always loved Black Lagoon - it's seinen, thought provoking and cool. Can't call it perfect or having an integral interesting story, though. Overall Rating: 9/10 4. Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuuutsu 涼宮ハルヒの憂鬱 [Kyoto Animation] (Finished 14/14) Tags: School Award Winning, Comedy, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Slice of Life If a survey were conducted to see if people believed in aliens, time travelers, or maybe espers, most would say they do not; average high school student Kyon considers himself among the non-believers. However, on his first day of school, he meets a girl who soon turns his world upside down. During class introductions, the beautiful Haruhi Suzumiya boldly announces her boredom with "normal" people and her intention of meeting supernatural beings. Dumbfounded, Kyon learns of her frustration with the lack of paranormal-focused clubs at their school and unwittingly inspires her to start her own club. She creates the Spreading Fun all Over the World with Haruhi Suzumiya Brigade, otherwise known as the SOS Brigade. Following the SOS Brigade's founding, Haruhi manages to recruit Kyon and three other members: quiet bookworm Yuki Nagato, shy upperclassman Mikuru Asahina, and perpetually positive Itsuki Koizumi. Despite their normal appearance, the new members of the SOS Brigade each carry their own secrets related to Haruhi. Caught up in the mystery surrounding the eccentric club leader, Kyon is whisked away on a series of misadventures by Haruhi and the SOS Brigade, each one bringing him closer to the truth about who and what she is. Again, can't call Haruhi perfect, but it's definitely something unique and intelligent. Overall Rating: 9/10 5. Higurashi no Naku Koro ni ひぐらしのなく頃に [Studio Deen] (Finished 6/26) Tags: Gore, Psychological Horror, Mystery, Supernatural, Suspense Keiichi Maebara has just moved to the quiet little village of Hinamizawa in the summer of 1983, and quickly becomes inseparable friends with schoolmates Rena Ryuuguu, Mion Sonozaki, Satoko Houjou, and Rika Furude. However, darkness lurks underneath the seemingly idyllic life they lead. As the village prepares for its annual festival, Keiichi learns about the local legends surrounding it. To his horror, he discovers that there have been several murders and disappearances in the village in the recent years, and that they all seem to be connected to the festival and the village's patron god, Oyashiro. Keiichi tries to ask his new friends about these incidents, but they are suspiciously silent and refuse to give him the answers he needs. As more and more bizarre events occur, he wonders just what else his friends might be keeping from him, and if he can even trust them at all. When madness and paranoia begin taking root in Keiichi's heart, he will stumble straight into the mysteries at work in Higurashi no Naku Koro ni, a story that is told across multiple arcs. I tried Higurashi a lot of times, but inevitably fell asleep out of boredom and confusion. And since it does not provide a normal story while substituting it with constant time resets, I'm absolutely not interested in this writer's self-satisfaction. Lazy concept. Overall Rating: 6/10 6. Nana NANA [ナナ] [Madhouse] (Finished 2/47) Tags: Shoujo Adult Cast, Love Polygon, Music Drama, Romance Departing from their respective hometowns, two young women with identical names are brought together in their pursuit of new beginnings. With their hearts set on going to Tokyo, Nana Komatsu dreams about blissful love, while Nana Osaki aims for a successful music career. The former has a cheerful and friendly nature, but her naivety has steered her romantic life astray until she meets her dependable boyfriend—Shouji Endo. Without letting herself be dismayed by Shouji's decision to study in Tokyo, Nana works hard to earn enough money and follow him there. Meanwhile, her namesake is a solitary punk vocalist whose impassioned romance with her band's bassist, Ren Honjou, comes to a sudden end. Though heartbroken, Nana bravely looks forward and travels to the capital with the ambition of becoming a recognized artist. Shortly after they arrive in Tokyo, the girls cross paths again due to an unexpected coincidence that ultimately leads them to live under the same roof. As they grow closer, the two strive to support one another amid their struggles to forge a future for themselves. I understand that it's popular, but I can't stand the visuals and the personalities here. Not sure I'd tolerate this kind of naivete and flow of thoughts even if it was redrawn . Overall Rating: 6/10 7. Air Gear エア・ギア [Toei Animation] (Finished 3/25) Tags: Shounen Action, Ecchi Air Trecks, also known as AT, are motorized and futuristic inline skates that are the new craze taking the nation by storm. Although each AT comes with a speed limiter, a community of daredevils known as the "Storm Riders" are brave enough to tamper with the device. Utilizing AT's in underground battles, individual teams wager valuable AT parts or team emblems—their symbol of pride—to dominate the streets. Living in this era is Itsuki Minami, a middle school student notorious for engaging in street fights. Always wanting to reach heights no one else is able to, the reckless punk will break through any obstacle that stands in his way, alongside his best friends Kazuma Mikura and Onigiri. However, it is when he discovers a pair of Air Trecks in his house that the path to his true desire finally opens: to rule the skies. Such a barebones cheeky shounen that I've no idea how it can attract anyone. Overall Rating: 5/10 8. xxxHOLiC ×××HOLiC(ホリック) [Production I.G] (Finished 6/24) Tags: Seinen Comedy, Drama, Mystery, Supernatural Kimihiro Watanuki can see spirits and other assorted supernatural creatures, which is quite a bothersome ability he strongly dislikes. On the way home one day, while plagued by some spirits, he is inexplicably compelled to enter a strange house. There, he encounters Yuuko, a mysterious woman who claims to be able to rid him of the ability to see and attract the troublesome creatures—for a price. She demands that he work at her "store" that grants wishes to people, and thus begins Watanuki's adventures through weird and wonderful events. Internet obsession episode put the last nail to this coffin. It's not interesting and situations are just ridiculously silly. There's no even story, just episodic cases with some random weird humor. And I dislike all the characters with their gimmicks. It's just bad. Overall Rating: 6/10 9. Utawarerumono うたわれるもの [OLM] (Finished 26/26) Tags: Action, Drama, Fantasy, Sci-Fi An injured man is found in the woods by a girl named Eruruu, and everything about him is mysterious. Without knowledge of his past nor even his own name, he is welcomed to Eruruu's home and is given the name Hakuoro by her grandmother, and younger sister, Aruruu. While the inhabitants of the village have large ears and tails, Hakuoro's defining physical trait is quite different as he has neither ears nor tail, but only a mask that he cannot remove. Soon after he becomes a part of the villagers' lives, a revolution against the tyrannical emperor of the land begins, and the conflict finds its way to his new home. Hakuoro must do whatever he can to save the people and the village that he has come to love, all while uncovering the mysteries that shroud his past. Original game was super boring except for deus ex machina in the finale, and mechanics were just trash. Sadly, anime is same horrible - very long and muddy development, slightly changed ending and zero good traits as I don't like characters, and story can be easily skipped. There's no way I can recommend this. Overall Rating: 6/10 10. School Rumble Ni Gakki School Rumble: 2nd Semester スクールランブル 二学期 [Studio Comet] (Finished 1/26) Tags: Shounen Gag Humor, Love Polygon, School Comedy, Romance We still have no idea what's really going on with this show, beyond the fact that the weirdness is piling up! Curry-fiend Karasama remains oblivious to Tenma's crush, and Harima still hasn't confessed his true feelings to Tenma. But hey, the thug's got an excuse since he's caught up with his comic career and knee-deep in a blizzard of deadlines! Meanwhile, the love triangles are ever-shifting thanks to wannabe cupids and runaway brides. Even when you throw in a bit of cyborg love, a shipwreck, and a fugitive red panda–seriously, that ain't even scratching the surface. You are encouraged to scratch the pig, though. He likes it! And something rumbles in the next to last episode, no matter what I say next. School Rumble–The absolutely funniest show you’ll ever see that's not about anything that rumbles... Ever! Sequel with lots of specific humor which is not to my taste. Overall Rating: 6/10 11. Strawberry Panic ストロベリー・パニック [Madhouse] (Finished 1/26) Tags: School Drama, Girls Love, Romance Nagisa Aoi begins her new school life as a transfer student at St. Miator’s Girls Academy, one of three prestigious all-girls institutions atop Astraea Hill. Getting lost on her first day, Nagisa encounters a mysterious student whose elegance and charm is so bewitching, she ends up in the infirmary. There to greet her when she awakens is Tamao Suzumi, her roommate, who enthusiastically introduces Nagisa to the daily life and social structure on campus. Most notably, Tamao informs her of the existence of an exceptional student representative among all three schools—the Etoile, or "star." Eager to meet this person, Nagisa learns that the ethereal beauty she met earlier, Shizuma Hanazono, is the one and only Etoile herself! Not only that, Shizuma seems openly interested in Nagisa! Her interactions with Shizuma naturally make her a hot topic on campus; yet despite being so captivated, Nagisa can’t help but wonder if something is off. Strawberry Panic! follows the everyday routines of Nagisa, Shizuma, and her friends at St. Miator’s, St. Spica, and St. Lulim as they navigate through the challenge of relationships while confronting hidden feelings, lingering regrets, and new possibilities. As expected, can't appreciate serious Girls Love without comedy. Overall Rating: 6/10 12. Tsubasa Chronicle 2nd Season Tsubasa RESERVoir CHRoNiCLE Season Two ツバサ・クロニクル 第2シリーズ [Bee Train] (Finished 2/26) Tags: Shounen Action, Adventure, Drama, Fantasy, Mystery, Romance, Supernatural Syaoran, Sakura, Kurogane, Fai and Mokona's journey through to different world's continue as they search for Sakura's feathers. The fated journey slowly becomes more complicated for our travelers, as they find themselves diving deeper into more dangerous worlds. Takes place immediately after the first season. Based on the manga by CLAMP. Did not like original, did not like xxxHOLiC, do not feel like gathering some feathers with this poor cast. Overall Rating: 6/10 13. Witchblade ウィッチブレイド [Gonzo] (Finished 5/24) Tags: Super Power Action, Sci-Fi Masane Amaha and her daughter Rihoko are on the run from a government child welfare agency that wants to take Rihoko away from her mother. They are caught and Rihoko is taken away. Meanwhile, Masane is attacked by an advanced weapon that can disguise itself as a human being. When faced with the danger, a strange light emits from her wrist and she transforms into a powerful being. She destroys the weapon and consequently becomes involved in a power struggle between powerful organizations, with her at the center of their attention. Because she holds the greatest power of them all, the legendary Witchblade. Gonzo usually guarantees high visual quality, including this case. And I don't care if it's fanservice'ish provided that story is good. And what I see is just working for some organization and investigating new cases after acquiring superpower. What I get is another monster of the week story without any exceptional traits, and thus it can't be recommended. Overall Rating: 6/10 14. Saiunkoku Monogatari The Story of Saiunkoku 彩雲国物語 [Madhouse] (Finished 1/39) Tags: Shoujo Historical, Reverse Harem Adventure, Fantasy, Romance Shuurei Kou, the daughter of a noble yet impoverished family, is a clever young lady who dreams of becoming a government official and contributing toward her country. However, her dream is out of her reach as such a position is forbidden to women. While her father works a low wage job as an archivist at the palace, Shuurei has to juggle odd jobs to make ends meet. Then, one day, an unexpected visit changes her life. Shuurei is called to assist Ryuuki Shi, the new emperor who is known for slacking on his duties and preferring the company of men. Tempted by the generous compensation, she readily accepts the chance to become the young emperor's consort for six months. Luckily, she is not alone as Seiran Shi, her trusty friend, joins her as Ryuuki's bodyguard. While tasked with transforming the new emperor into a responsible ruler, court life and politics prove troublesome as Shuurei faces the challenges of her new life. Set in a fictional country, Saiunkoku Monogatari centers on the idea of meaningful leadership, its adversities and the rewards that come alongside a prospering nation. This is definitely last season when reverse harem is included by me. Setting is ridiculous and convenient, as usual for this genre. Overall Rating: 6/10 15. Digimon Savers Digimon Data Squad デジモンセイバーズ [Toei Animation] (Finished 1/48) Tags: Adventure, Comedy, Drama, Fantasy Upon meeting for the first time, undefeated street fighter Daimon, Masaru and renegade Digimon Agumon become friends in the most natural way possible for the knuckleheaded duo—by fighting their hearts out. The self-proclaimed "ultimate team" are recruited by a secret government organization called the Digimon Data Squad, or DATS, who had witnessed an unbelievable human fighting blow for blow with a Digimon. Their primary objective is investigating mysterious problems caused by Digimon entering the real world, and the world is currently in the midst of a crisis with Digimon appearing at an unprecedented rate. Embarking on various missions with DATS, Daimon and Agumon become colleagues with adolescent genius Touma Norstein and his Digimon partner Gaoman, along with the kind-hearted Yoshino "Yoshi" Fujeda and her Digimon partner Lalamon. As the group continues to investigate the rapid increase of Digimon in their world, a darker truth begins to surface, and it is up to Daimon, Agumon, and their friends to get to the bottom of things. I want to unsee this first episode. Overall Rating: 5/10 16. Kiba 牙-KIBA- [Madhouse] (Finished 3/51) Tags: Isekai Adventure, Fantasy In a dystopian future, two friends dream of freedom... and gain more than they bargain for! Hothead Zed is on the run from the authorities, while his brainy pal Noah struggles with his own battered body. Both find a magical world that seems to offer escape and power undreamed of. Join Zed and his powerful, rebellious spirit Amir Gaul on their search for the ultimate power. It's a force that can save the world—or destroy life as we know it. This is the world of KIBA! Where you must harness the power within and fight with all you got! As I see it, the main problem here is 51 episode length. All people who like it say that show changes drastically for the last 15 episodes and becomes more serious and dramatic compared to boring core. I'd watch some recap or cut into 12 episode version, but in this state it's a too tedious and dualistic shounen to follow. Overall Rating: 6/10 17. Aria the Natural [Hal Film Maker] (Finished 1/26) Tags: Shounen Iyashikei Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Slice of Life Akari Mizunashi continues her training to become a Prima Undine (a professional tour guide gondolier) along with her friends Aika and Alice in the peaceful city of Neo Venezia. Despite the fact that these three girls are from competing companies, they are constantly together, learning more about how to become better tour guides and more about the mysteries of Neo Venezia. As the group continues to meet interesting and unforgettable people through their daily routines, they will also come closer to the secrets that make the enigmatic and ever beautiful city of Neo Venezia so warm and alive. Welcome back to Neo Venezia: the city where miracles can be created by hand. Sequel. Overall Rating: 5/10 18. .hack//Roots [Bee Train] (Finished 3/26) Tags: Video Game Adventure, Drama, Fantasy, Sci-Fi After the termination of the incredibly popular virtual reality MMORPG "The World," a new version of the game—The World R:2—is brought online. On his first day in the game, newcomer Haseo thinks he has made some friends to quest with. However, as if mocking his sentiments, they kill his character just for fun. Luckily, he is saved by a mysterious, one-armed player named Ovan who offers to show him around The World. Alongside Ovan and his cleric friend Shino, Haseo enjoys a wonderful first year in the game. But this peaceful life is shattered when Shino's character is killed by a familiar figure notoriously known as Tri-Edge, whose victims have all fallen into comas in the real world. In a fit of rage, Haseo vows to find the elusive Tri-Edge and kill him. Taking place during Haseo's first year in The World, .hack//Roots explores the friendships Haseo built in the game before Tri-Edge ripped them away. I find anime about MMORPG difficult to fail, and because of that every case of failure is especially painful. First such case was with hack//Sign and now we have its sequel. Just as then it tediously follows some not really interesting story without focus on characters or world. And the result is that it's full of fillers and just not engaging overall. I still find it watchable, but just as Sign it's not memorable and is totally ok to skip. And it's one of those rare cases when I actually pay attention to music just because of how inappropriately it's used . Overall Rating: 6/10 19. Juu Ou Sei Jyu-Oh-Sei: Planet of the Beast King 獣王星 [Bones] (Finished 3/11) Tags: Shoujo Survival Action, Adventure, Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi After the murder of their parents, 11-year-old twin brothers Thor and Rai Klein are sent away from their home planet. They find themselves awakening on the terraformed planet of Chimaera, where carnivorous plants dominate and the few humans who live there are divided into four groups known as "Rings." Soon after, they meet a young man by the name of Zagi, and the twins learn that only the "Jyu Oh Sei"—the one who conquers these four Rings—is allowed to leave the planet. Driven by the desire to return home and discover the truth behind the death of his parents, Thor resolves to survive in the harsh, merciless environment of Chimaera. However, he quickly learns there is more than meets the eye in this strange ecosystem. As Thor is swept up in the politics that entangle the Rings, he uncovers more about his parents' murder, and ultimately, humanity's fate as a whole. I despise sandboxes, and this anime reminds one as it's battle royale between four artificially divided factions. To watch it just for action is not worth it, and all the other elements don't feel any good at all. Overall Rating: 6/10 20. Inukami! いぬかみっ! [Seven Arcs] (Finished 3/26) Tags: Comedy, Romance, Supernatural, Ecchi Kawahira Keita is a descendant of a historic Inukami tamer family; however, because he lacked in its ability, he was forsaken by the family. One day, an Inukami named Youko came. She looked graceful, obedient, above all, beautiful. Soon he contracted with her, and she paid homage to him. However, she was a problematic Inukami that no one had been able to control. This is a slap stick comedy of an Inukami Tamer, Keita and an Inukami, Youko. Keita is a man of worldly passions, and he likes money and girls very much. On the other hand, Youko likes to destroy things and is very jealous. Saying it's bad is praising in this case. Ecchi hunting for spirits is lame as a concept, and realization is even worse than it sounds. Overall Rating: 5/10 21. Aa! Megami-sama! Sorezore no Tsubasa Ah! My Goddess: Flights of Fancy ああっ女神さまっ それぞれの翼 [AIC] (Finished 1/22) Tags: Seinen Harem Comedy, Romance, Supernatural One year after goddess Belldandy emerged from Keiichi Morisato's mirror and promised to stay with him forever, a new threat to their happiness emerges, one that could end the contract between Belldandy and Keiichi. Sequel. Overall Rating: 6/10 22. Princess Princess プリンセス・プリンセス [Studio Deen] (Finished 1/12) Tags: Shoujo Crossdressing, School Comedy, Drama Tooru Kouno's attractive appearance draws unexpected attention on his first day at an all-boys school. Having to transfer to a school without girls has been bad enough, but adding to his list of frustrations are boys staring at him all day long. However, he hopes that there may be girls around, since he ran into a lovely pink-haired girl on campus earlier that day. After being escorted to his dorm by his classmate, Yuujirou Shihoudani, he meets a student named Mikoto Yutaka, who looks eerily similar to the girl he saw previously. To his shock, he realizes Mikoto is the girl and confronts him about this revelation. Yuujirou divulges that he and Mikoto crossdress as part of their job: a school tradition in which attractive first years are chosen as idols called "Princesses" in order to boost the morale of the students—and because of his looks, Tooru has been chosen by the student council as their third Princess! How the hell is this shoujo if first male teacher hits on male transfer student, then everybody in boys school falls in love with him.... it's definitely boys love genre . Overall Rating: 4/10 23. Kamisama Kazoku 神様家族 [Toei Animation] (Finished 2/13) Tags: Comedy, Drama, Fantasy, Romance Samatarou is not just an average high-school boy, the truth is that he is the son of a god, his mother is a goddess and his sisters are candidates to become goddesses. They are living in the human world, because they want their boy to learn about the human customs and the habits of the creatures that they are protecting, so that in this way Samatarou will become a better god. Tenko is a angel assigned to look after Samatarou. She's born the same day, same year as Samatarou and have been close friends ever since. Life seems normal but things start to change with the appearance of a transfer student named Kumiko. Samatarou falls in love with her and from now on, things will be a lot more different for him. His decision of making her fall in love with him without using his powers will put him in trouble. Quite a typical romcom about a company of gods deciding to live among humans. Can't find anything to cling to here, to be honest. Overall Rating: 5/10 24. Shinigami no Ballad. Momo, Girl God of Death しにがみのバラッド。 [Group TAC, Ginga Ya] (Finished 2/6) Tags: Psychological Drama, Fantasy, Supernatural A girl wrapped in white, her name is Momo...in her hand lies a blunt yet shiny scythe. By her side is a winged black cat by the name of Daniel. Carrying the souls of humans, the girl's existence parallels to that of a "Death God" or "Shinigami". At the instant when this white Death God touches the hearts of humans, the world is filled with kindness and grief... Just random stories about shinigami, seriously? It lacks pretty much everything. Overall Rating: 5/10 25. Tokkou Tokko TOKKÔ[特公] [AIC Spirits, Group TAC] (Finished 5/13) Tags: Seinen Detective Action, Comedy, Horror, Mystery, Supernatural "Shindou Ranmaru has just graduated from police academy and assigned to Tokko: Special Mobile Investigation Force. On the day of his graduation, he meets the half-naked girl he has been seeing in his dreams. Her name is Rokujo Sakura and she works for a secret group within Tokki, known as Tokko: Special Public Safety Task Force. Shindou ends up joining Tokko to avenge his parents' death, and solve the mysterious mass murder of residents in his hometown of Machida. Meanwhile, bottomless pits begin appearing around Japan, and mysterious creatures emerge from them. Could these events be linked to Machida Massacre?" Ghouls start to kill and possess people, special girl team opposes them, and main character happens to be nearby as investigator, and he just learns more and more about these creatures and murders. Action is good, but overall it fails to involve and get interesting. Watch it or don't, it does not matter as nothing of it will stay in memory for any significant amount of time. Overall Rating: 6/10 26. Makai Senki Disgaea Disgaea 魔界戦記ディスガイア [OLM] (Finished 2/12) Tags: Mythology Action, Comedy, Fantasy An angel arrives in Hell! A demon lord is awakened! There are penguins everywhere! What’s going on here? Angel assassin-in-training Flonne is on a quest to destroy the demon Overlord. Instead of accomplishing her mission, the ditzy Flonne manages to wake Laharl, the demon lord and heir to the throne, from his two year slumber. Now the pair, along with Laharl’s not-so-faithful vassal Etna and her army of explosive souls in penguin costumes, must restore order to the crumbling Netherworld. Based on the events of the game Disgaea: Hour of Darkness, Makai Senki Disgaea follows Laharl’s journey to squash the demon rebellion, reclaim the throne, and destroy anyone who stands in his path. Or, you know, let them join him on his travels if they really want. Just remember: Laharl is a demon lord. There’s no way he’ll ever show kindness, compassion, or love... right? Disgaea games had too poor mechanics for me, and plot feels like a bad unfunny parody that has nothing to enjoy. Overall Rating: 5/10 27. Simoun シムーン [Studio Deen] (Finished 26/26) Tags: Military Drama, Fantasy, Girls Love, Romance In the peaceful theocracy of Simulicram, everyone is born female. At age 17, each maiden undergoes a special ceremony where she chooses her sex. However, only Pairs of maiden priestesses can synchronize with the ancient flying ships known as Simoun needed to defend Simulicram. These Pairs refrain from undergoing the ceremony as long as they wish to keep piloting their Simoun. Aer is recruited to be a Simoun pilot after a terrifying attack by an enemy nation decimates the squadron known as Chor Tempest. To earn her wings she needs to find her way into the heart of Neviril, Regina of Chor Tempest. But Neviril's heart still belongs to her previous Pair, lost in the battle when she attempted a forbidden Simoun maneuver. It is one of favorite works of my Taiwanese acquaintance, so after couple failed attempts to finish it in the past it's time to make that effort now. And I can understand the appeal as it's about pure priest maidens who start ship engine with a kiss and thus need to travel in pairs, plus to attack by writing figures in the sky they need as many as two ships and thus four girls. Girls are from different backgrounds and with very different personalities. Plus, there is not much in the story or action department, so majority of time is devoted to dialogues that help to flesh out images even better. Due to such non-cliche variety even I could find someone to root for. But it does not mean I find this anime interesting as story itself is lacking, and aesthetical enjoyment is not a solid ground for an 8-hour long show. A must have for girls love enthusiasts as all those constant private academy settings don't stand even close. Overall Rating: 6/10 28. Joshikousei: Girl's High High School Girls 女子高生 GIRL'S HIGH [Arms] (Finished 3/12) Tags: School Comedy, Drama, Slice of Life, Ecchi Eriko and her friends Yuma and Ayano are excited about entering high school. Their excitement leads to their breaking of the rules when they toured the school before the opening ceremony. They find out their preconceptions about the all female school may not be as true as they had first thought. Despite that, Eriko and her friends are joined by new friends. They aim to get through high school life together. Comedy is actually not bad, but situations are rather silly and typical from joshikousei life. And since I'm not gaining anything from it and not enjoying it, no sense to go on. Overall Rating: 6/10 29. Kishin Houkou Demonbane (TV) 機神咆吼デモンベイン [View Works] (Finished 12/12) Tags: Harem, Mecha Action, Romance, Ecchi Kurou Daijuuji is a poor detective living in Arkham City. One day, he was requested by Ruri Hado of Hado Financial Group, to search for a magic book. While he initially refused, Ruri offered him a large sum of money upon completion of her request, in which bribed Kuro to accept. As Kurou searches for the book, he unexpectedly runs into Al, a pretty girl that is actually a powerful grimoire. They forge a contract with each other, bestowing Kuro with powerful magic. Soon afterwards, Al also activates Demonbane, a deus machina owned by the Hado Financial Group, to combat the mechanical menace from the Black Lodge. With this, the war between the Hado Financial Group and the Black Lodge begins.... Only played first game, but not the sequel as genre switched to action. Having watched anime now, I'm absolutely shocked of how low quality essenceless mess it is. 95% of it is action fights, often poorly 3D rendered. Nothing is ever explained or concluded properly. Just watch an endless spree of fights with laughable villains and try to make sense out of it , then wait for Deus Ex Machina in the end and be happy about it. It's worse than bad. It's tasteless. It managed to deteriorate even further from first horrible visual novel that at least had three quite nice action segments. Visual novel would have dialogues between these fights and some character focus, but with this kind of "story" I'd not recommend anyone touching this substance either. Overall Rating: 4/10 30. Zegapain ゼーガペイン [Sunrise] (Finished 3/26) Tags: Mecha Action, Romance, Sci-Fi Average high school student Kyou Sogoru is an avid swimmer living in beautiful Maihama City. He spends his days hanging out with friends, swimming, and playing video games. However, his normal life turns upside down when a beautiful and mysterious girl named Shizuno Misaki approaches him with a strange request—jump into their school's pool together. This fateful leap transports Kyou into a war-torn world where humans pilot impressive humanoid robots known as Zegas to fight against malicious aliens known as Gards-Orm. To spearhead this endeavor, humans have formed Cerebrum, a rebel organization working to prevent the Gards-Orm from eradicating humankind. As Kyou participates in combat operations, meets his fellow Zega pilots, and witnesses countless deaths, he begins to question the true nature of this world as well as his own life. Sunrise mecha... of course I'm biased as no such previous attempt was worthy. And this time it's even more lazy than usual as it's partly school SOL and partially teleportation to another world to fight in mecha and teleporting back. Still, duality of worlds is not the worst idea they could have come up with, and second half can actually add something meaningful while first half is traditionally mostly waste of time since Sunrise stubbornly refuses to fit their shallow original stories in one season as they deserve. After three episodes can say that execution is rather poor. Overall Rating: 6/10 31. Renkin San-kyuu Magical? Pokaan 錬金3級 まじかる?ぽか〜ん [Remic] (Finished 3/12) Tags: CGDCT, Gag Humor, Parody, Vampire Comedy, Ecchi Renkin San-kyuu Magical? Pokaan follows the daily lives of four young girls. There is just one catch: they are anything but normal. This group of friends—the energetic werewolf Liru, the joyful witch-in-training Uma, the motherly android Aiko, and the seductive vampire Pachira—are actually princesses from the netherworld who have traveled to the human world in search of a new home. Unfortunately, their naivety and severe lack of knowledge make living peacefully among earthlings much more difficult than they imagined. As they attempt to adapt to their brand new lifestyle, they cause all sorts of trouble, and end up attracting the unwanted attention of a woman by the name of Dr. K-Ko. The scientist believes that these new residents of Earth are up to no good and attempts to capture the girls to prove the existence of the supernatural and gain credibility with the scientific community. Every day brings a new adventure as the girls deal with the insanity of her antics and all that the human realm has to offer. Each episode consists of two shorter humorous stories. I don't like such episodic format, and humor here is not quite to my taste, so can't really praise it. But feel free to see for yourself, a lot of people seem to fit here just fine. Overall Rating: 6/10 32. Kirarin☆Revolution Kirarin Revolution きらりん☆レボリューション [SynergySP, G&G Entertainment] (Finished 1/153) Tags: Shoujo Showbiz Comedy, Drama, Romance Kirari Tsukishima, a gluttonous 14-year-old beauty, is a girl who does not care about idols and the entertainment world because her mind is occupied by food. Her obsession with food only causes her to be clueless about love. One day, after saving a turtle that is stranded in a tree, Kirari meets with a handsome and gentle boy named Seiji, who gives her ticket to a SHIPS (a popular idol group) concert to show his gratitude for her saving his pet. Kirari then storms off to the concert and runs into another boy, who tears up her ticket and warns her to stay away from Seiji because she and Seiji live in different worlds. The outraged Kirari then sneaks into the concert, only to discover that Seiji and the boy who tore her ticket, named Hiroto, are actually members of SHIPS. Finally understanding the meaning of "different worlds" (Seiji is a popular idol while she is an average middle school student), Kirari refuses to give up. Filled with determination to be with Seiji, she declares that she will also become an idol. Feels like a typical romance shoujo without anything to give additional score for. But I'm not willing to investigate it beyond pilot episode. Overall Rating: 5/10 33. Himawari! ひまわりっ! [Arms] (Finished 2/13) Tags: Martial Arts Adventure, Comedy Himawari Hinata recently transfered to Shinobi Gakuen to train to become the best kunoichi she can be. She wanted to be a ninja ever since she was saved by one when she was little. On her first day, she meets Hayato Madenokoji (a new transfer teacher) who saves her life. Hayato does not possess any ninja skills or traits, he is teaching the ninjas about normal society to pay off his debt. However, Himawari notices that Hayato bares the same mark on his neck as the ninja who saved her when she was young. I have slight prejudice against ninja, so I'm not enjoying another anime about ninja at school, but with ninja affinity it should be a blast. Overall Rating: 6/10 34. Soul Link [Picture Magic] (Finished 12/12) Tags: Military, Space Action, Adventure, Comedy, Romance, Sci-Fi Aizawa Ryota was in the 3rd grade of the preparatory course of Central Military Academy. AD 2045, he went to a space station, Aries, for the training with his classmates including Nagase Saka and Nittak Kazuhiko. However, the station was attacked by a terrorist group, Hallarax. Now they must find a way back to earth. What a tedious undertaking. This is what happens when stage substitutes story. Ever 17 was at least created by a talented writer and was one of the first to present a stage instead of story. But Soul Link is not even talented. Of course I can name even worse representatives of such concept, but that does not make Soul Link any better than average. Overall Rating: 5/10 35. The Third: Aoi Hitomi no Shoujo ザ・サード 蒼い瞳の少女 [Xebec] (Finished 10/24) Tags: Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi In the distant future, because of an interplanetary war that had continued on for centuries, civilizations were ruined. Human beings have lost everything, and only 1/5th of the population survived. A strange breed of humans, ''The Third'' is said to have appeared just after the war. They possess a third eye, as their name suggests, that appear as oval-shaped red pupils called "space eyes'' over their conventional two eyes. Using them, they can control computer systems and so on, and as such, rule the world by their superior power over technology. In this world, there is a young woman named Honoka; she is a "jack-of-all-trades" sellsword, and she accepts any job except murder. One day, she happens to find and rescue a young man named Ikus in the desert. Entering his world, and accepting a job from him, the adventure begins for Honoka and Ikus. We've seen enough episodic anime about bounty hunters... well, this is another one. And there are no worthy characters to save it either. Overall, neither good, nor bad anime. Overall Rating: 6/10 36. Nishi no Yoki Majo: Astraea Testament The Good Witch Of The West 西の善き魔女 Astraea Testament [Hal Film Maker] (Finished 1/13) Tags: Comedy, Drama, Fantasy, Mystery, Romance On Filiel's 15th birthday, she received her mother's necklace as a memento from her obstinate astronomer father. Her common and tedious life was turned into a life of conspiracies. With her new life, many adventures await. I can't say after single episode if it's reverse harem or not, but it totally feels like one with protagonist as princess and all kinds of bishounens hitting on her. This is as far as I'm willing to follow it. Overall Rating: 5/10 37. Ray The Animation [OLM] (Finished 1/13) Tags: Medical Drama, Romance, Sci-Fi If you have enough money, you can buy anything. So why wait for an organ you need to become available? Raised to be harvested for parts, Ray had already lost her eyes when renegade surgeon Black Jack rescued her. Now, ten years later, she has grown up to be a surgeon herself. And thanks to the unique artificial eyes she received as replacements, she has a reputation for performing incredible medical operations that no one else could even attempt. But unknown to any but a select few, her surgical endeavors are only part of a greater mission: to discover what happened to the other children she was raised with, and to find the men who stole the eyes she was born with and to bring them to justice. Come on, miraculous eyes is even worse than original Black Jack concept... Overall Rating: 5/10 38. Black Jack 21 ブラック・ジャック21 [Tezuka Productions] (Finished 1/17) Tags: Shounen Medical Action, Drama No direct-relation sequel to original Black Jack. Black Jack attempts to find out the conspiracy, of why he was involved in the bombfield accident that killed his mother, while he uncovers secrets of Organization and Project "Noir", which, his father and other famous doctors were involved in... It's still medical action, just with more detective mystery now involved... can't watch that either... Overall Rating: 5/10 39. Glass no Kantai: La Legende du Vent de l'Univers Glass Fleet ガラスの艦隊~La legende du vent de l'univers~ [Gonzo, Satelight] (Finished 4/24) Tags: Adventure, Sci-Fi The People's Army led by Michel stands against Vetti's newly founded empire. Upon seeing how strong the Glass Battleship is, Michel tries to get Cleo, the captain of the Glass Battleship, to help People's Army overthrow Vetti's empire. And together they fight against Vetti's empire. The space battle aspect is laughable, even worse than stratagems of Legend of the Galactic Heroes. There's more focus on small battles while on foot, yet can't call it outstanding either. The way story is told is deliberately simplified, even that pales in comparison with deliberate complexity in the Legend of the Galactic Heroes. Overall Rating: 6/10 40. IGPX: Immortal Grand Prix (2005) 2nd Season IGPX: Immortal Grand Prix Season 2 [Production I.G] (Finished 1/13) Tags: Mecha, Racing Action, Sci-Fi Team Satomi has just been deemed as the winners for the IG-2 lower league and now join the top IG-1 competition. But it's not going to be easy. Young pilots Takeshi, Liz, Amy, and River are going to have to be a team to be number 1, however one thing leads to another with these four. Most important of all, their opponents overwhelm Team Satomi in every aspect, including strategy and skill, as well as funding. One thing is for sure, this is not going to be an easy year for "Team Satomi." Sequel. Overall Rating: 5/10 41. Spider Riders: Oracle no Yuusha-tachi Spider Riders スパイダーライダーズ ~オラクルの勇者たち~ [Bee Train] (Finished 3/26) Tags: Mecha Action, Adventure Underneath the surface of the Earth lies the Inner World, a realm where a war rages on between intelligent spiders and the invading humanoid insects known as Insectors. However, the spiders are not alone, as "Spider Riders"—humans from the Outer World, known as Earthens in the Inner World, that are chosen by the Oracle—fight alongside them. Filled with wondrous tales of a mysterious pyramid and entrusted with his grandfather's journal, a young boy called Hunter Steele sets out on an exploration. There, his destined meeting with the Oracle occurs, and he is transported into the Inner World as a Spider Rider. Finding himself lost and confused in the middle of a forest, Hunter crosses paths with a giant spider named Shadow. Although reluctant, Shadow agrees to fight by his side. He then meets Corona—a skilled Spider Hunter and kind girl with a penchant for normal life. She shows him the ropes of being a Spider Rider, and educates him about the fate of the Inner World if the Insectors continue their tyrannical reign. Thus begins the story of Hunter Steele, a heedless young boy on a quest to save the Inner World. But his task of retrieving the four Oracle Keys holding the Oracle's true power will lead him to an ultimate clash against Mantid, leader of the Insectors. It has such primitive dialogues and characters that it must be made for kids only. Can't take it seriously at all. Overall Rating: 5/10 42. Yume Tsukai 夢使い [Madhouse] (Finished 3/12) Tags: Drama, Fantasy, Slice of Life When people dream, they express their utmost desires and emotions within the confines of their mind; but when their strong emotions cross the border into reality, the dream can turn into an uncontrollable nightmare. Touko and Rinko are sisters known as "yume tsukai" (dream users), and their job is to take care of these nightmares. Using toys as weapons, the girls must both destroy the nightmare and return the dream to its rightful owner before the nightmare does any sort of serious damage. Have no fear, Touko and Rinko are here! Episodic stories about unusual ghosts. Lighthearted and moderately amusing, but it will wear off memory same easy as it comes and flows. Overall Rating: 6/10 43. Love Get Chu [Radix] (Finished 11/25) Tags: Showbiz Comedy, Romance Five girls came to a training school to become voice actresses holding each thought in her mind. Momoko - she wanted to be a voice actress to meet her favorite voice actor. Rinka - she is an armature voice actress, but she didn't have special purpose to become voice actress. Yurika - she likes anime very much. Tsubasa - she was a girl in love, and acted only as a boy. Amane - she found a deadlock as a actress and tried to find another way. They managed to get over the difficulty to become voice actress although they couldn't perform as main characters yet. There is a love romance with a boy works for an anime company, and you can catch a glimpse of situations of anime industries. I was actually interested enough to go on, and the main problem here is length as there is not enough content for 25 episodes, and more and more ridiculous stories start to get inserted. It's actually masterpiece series with fillers and weird genre transformation, so feel free to try it. Overall Rating: 6/10 44. Sasami: Mahou Shoujo Club Sasami Magical Girls Club 砂沙美 -魔法少女クラブ- [AIC Spirits] (Finished 3/13) Tags: Mahou Shoujo, School Fantasy In this world lives a group of people who call themselves "Majo" or "Magical Girls." They hide their powers so as to assimilate into society. They have been living together in harmony with humans for many years, as had their predecessors long before them. Sasami has had magical powers since her birth. However, at the age of three, she was told by her parents never to use her innate powers, and from then on, she kept them secret. On the first day of a new school term, newly transferred teacher Wajuu arrives, and from then on, Sasami's life begins to change tremendously. I see it as Sasami plus Tenchi. First episodes were slow and tedious, and I don't see the core here. Overall Rating: 5/10 45. Gun-dou Musashi Gun Samurai GUN道 MUSASHI [ACC Production] (Finished 3/26) Tags: Samurai Adventure, Fantasy The war over control of a unified Japan, the Sengoku Era, is over and the Toyotomi army has won. Toyotomi has allowed his rival, Tokugawa, to live but since that final battle an evil ayakashi named Yasha reveals to Tokugawa that history says that he should have won the war instead of Toyotomi. Tokugawa agrees to the evil ayakashi power Yasha offers him, and the only person who can stop Tokugawa from ruling Japan and killing Princess Kaguya, who is the link to this alternate present, is Musashi Miyamoto, a young and brash man who follows the way of "Gun-do", which mixes together swordfighting with gunplay. Partially translated. Dueling on guns used as melee weapons is weird. Story is not going anywhere. Fighting action comes up constantly with no reason. It feels like a weird parody, but not a really a funny one. Overall Rating: 5/10 46. Rockman.EXE Beast+ ロックマンエグゼビースト+(プラス) [Xebec] (Finished 1/26) Tags: Shounen Mecha, Strategy Game Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi Beast+ continues from where Beast left off, though it is marketed as a stand-alone series. Episodes are reduced to approximately ten minutes in length, airing in the thirty minute time-slot Oha Coliseum alongside the Saru Getchu anime. Beast+ consists of a string of arcs beginning with the appearance of the Professor and Zero (both from Mega Man Network Transmission). Sure, why even bother making an opening for this crap already. Overall Rating: 4/10 47. Fushigiboshi no☆Futagohime Gyu! ふしぎ星の☆ふたご姫 [J.C.Staff, Hal Film Maker] (Finished 1/52) Tags: Mahou Shoujo Comedy, Fantasy Fine and Rein are sent to the Royal Wonder Academy on the Royal Wonder Planet in order to study to become better princesses. They plan to make many friends, but unfortunately, the competition and cold nature of the students and teachers make things impossible. The twins also become Universal Princesses when touching the legendary Soleil Bell, releasing two angels named Pyupyu and Kyukyu to help aid them. Unfortunately, an evil force manifested in a painting doesn't seem to be satisfied about the Universal Princesses... Sequel. Overall Rating: 5/10 48. Onegai My Melody: Kurukuru Shuffle! おねがいマイメロディ くるくるシャッフル! [Studio Comet] (Finished 1/52) Tags: Comedy, Fantasy A continuation of Onegai My Melody. Sequel. Overall Rating: 5/10 49. Yoshinaga-sanchi no Gargoyle Gargoyle of Yoshinaga House 吉永さん家のガーゴイル [Studio Hibari] (Finished 3/13) Tags: Comedy, Fantasy, Slice of Life When Yoshinaga Futaba wins the first prize in a lottery, the prize turns out to be a stone gargoyle. More surprising yet, the gargoyle turns out to be alive. A decent nonsense comedy... with non-moving gargoyle statue as protagonist... It's random, but not excessively so even I can tolerate it, but not finding it super interesting as it's not funny, it's more like episodic jokes during some finished story inside episode where gargoyle usually fights some baddie. Just not to my taste. Overall Rating: 6/10 50. Iron Kid Eon Kid 아이언 키드 [Daewon Media] (Finished 1/26) Tags: Action, Adventure, Comedy, Sci-Fi In a futuristic world, young Marty stumbles upon a bionic arm which endows him with superhuman powers and put him at the centre of a centuries-old struggle between good and evil. His teenager heart will now begin a long-way training together with two loyal friends: Buttons, his robo-puppy, and the brave Ally. Korean childish action, now ugly 3D edition. Overall Rating: 5/10 51. Kakutou Bijin Wulong: Rebirth 格闘美神 武龍[ウーロン] REBIRTH [TMS Entertainment] (Finished 1/25) Tags: Seinen Martial Arts, School Action, Comedy Mao Lan continues growing into her path in life through what she learns while fighting. Her grandfather thinks that she has grown complacent and decides to train an adversary for her next Prime Mat appearance. Training with her friends and companions Mao Lan slowly advances through life. Sequel. Overall Rating: 6/10 52. Bakegyamon 妖逆門 [Radix] (Finished 1/51) Tags: Shounen Isekai, Mythology, Strategy Game Action, Fantasy Sanshirou's chances of having an adventure are slim to none in his tiny island hometown, until the day a mysterious stranger invites him to play a game... Without warning, Sanshirou is taken to a backwards universe to play BakéGyamon—a game pitting monsters against monsters. Along the way he meets other players who have a particular reason for being there—to obtain the wish that is granted to the winner. But how far can Sanshirou get when the monsters he's been paired with are a bunch of little mud balls?! Childish imitation of Yu-Gi-Oh monster duels. Overall Rating: 5/10 53. Himesama Goyoujin 姫様ご用心 [Bandai Visual] (Finished 3/12) Tags: Comedy Nomad Himeko is supposed to be a common high school student... until she happens to obtain a crown and she becomes a princess. Since then, Nana, the true princess, follows her around to take the crown back. In addition, Leslie and Caren, the thieves, appear to rob her of the crown, and her peaceful life turns into turmoil. Another random nonsense comedy, but again keeping inside some acceptable boundaries. I don't like humor here, but it's not the worst comedy to run at background. Overall Rating: 6/10 54. Ring ni Kakero 1: Nichibei Kessen-hen Ring ni Kakero 1 Episode: The Pacific War リングにかけろ1 日米決戦編 [Toei Animation] (Finished 1/12) Tags: Shounen Action, Sports Immediately after Ryuuji Takane won the Champion Carnival, the U.S. Junior Champion Black Shaft appeared, and challenged the best Japan has to offer, just before the World Tournament is about to happen. Now Ryuuji, Takeshi Kawai, Kazuki Shinatora, Ishimatsu Katori, and Superstar Jun Kenzaki have to prove to not only Black Shaft, but the world, that they are truly world-class boxers before the World Tournament starts. But Shaft is not recruiting boxers for his challenge, but instead gets a life-timer criminal from Death Row, the leader of the Great Angels, one of the toughest gangs in America, a mysterious woman, and the "Dark Emperor of the South". Also, Shaft negotiates with Don Juliano, the Italian Junior Champion, just in case... Sequel. Overall Rating: 5/10 55. Himitsukessha Taka no Tsume Eagle Talon 秘密結社 鷹の爪 [DLE] (Finished 0/11) Tags: Parody, Super Power Comedy Eagle Talon is a secret society based in Kojimachi, Tokyo. With plans for world domination, their attempts are continually foiled by Deluxe Fighter, the superhero who always manages to save the day. This comedy of their frivolous lives is definitely not to be missed! Not found. Overall Rating: 0/10 56. Yoshimune 吉宗 [AIC Spirits, Ginga Ya, Gonzino] (Finished 3/24) Tags: Historical Comedy Akubi-chan is a cute magical girl. She is good at magic, she can turn into any form by tapping a tambourine, and she can grant any dream or wishes. Usually, Akubi-chan is in a vase, but when Ruru-chan, the owner of the vase, yarns (akubi), Akubi-chan pops out of the vase. Ruru-chan is in the 1st grade in elementary school, but she is little precocious and loves secretly her classmate Itoshi-kun living next-door. Akubi-chan uses various magic to make them good friends, but she always fails. However, for her best friend Ruru-chan, Akubi-chan gets out of the vase and taps the tambaine to play Cupid. This one is actually more frivolous and random than I hoped it to be, so closer to average. Overall Rating: 5/10 57. Flag FLAG(フラッグ) [The Answer Studio] (Finished 13/13) Tags: Mecha, Military In 20xx, a civil war broke out in a small country in Asia in spite of the dispatch of UN forces. But a picture taken by accident in the battlefield accelerates the peace process: a photograph of a flag, which became the symbol of peace. However, just before the peace agreement is finalized, the flag is stolen by an armed extremist group in order to obstruct the truce. To rescue the flag, the UN sends the Special Development Command (SDC, which is armed with the High Agility Versatile Weapon Carrier (HAVWC)), along with an embedded photojournalist to record their activities. That photojournalist is Saeko Shirasu—the young camerawoman who took the picture of the flag. I refuse to call it animation and thus I've invented a new term for it - abruptation. There are a lot of still images with camera a bit shaking to imitate movement, there are also a load of photos made of absolutely everything so that for few seconds there was only still image. Add the fact that 3D is also used occasionally. Finally, even in rare moments of actual animation it's done through tiny window of camera with a lot of UI on top of it. The plot is journalist recording everything she sees... that's it. And it's not that it's something really interesting. I can understand the appeal of aesthetics and occasionally crafty dialogues and some social confrontation context, but that's not nearly enough, and visually it's a pure pain to watch. Overall Rating: 5/10 58. Hana no Kage Shadow of the Cherry Blossoms 花の翳 [-] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Historical, Mythology Drama, Romance In ancient Japan, a princess and her lover run away from their pursuers. When it became apparent that they would be caught, they vowed to commit suicide rather than have the princess return to her former life. Both of them took their blades to end their lives but something went wrong. Now one of them seeks revenge for being abandoned. Short simple Heian story with some horror element, nothing to brag about. Overall Rating: 5/10 59. Mitsu x Mitsu Drops Honey x Honey Drops 蜜×蜜ドロップス [Radix] (Finished 1/2) Tags: Shoujo School Drama, Romance Students at the Houjou academy are perfectly normal—except for those who take the Kuge course. This special course is reserved only for elite and rich students and their "honeys." Hagino Yuzuru enrolls in the course through Kai Renge, and she quickly regrets it. To become a honey, a student must get someone already in the Kuge course to sponsor her. Kai becomes Hagino's sponsor, getting her into the course and paying the price to cover it. But in return, Hagino must submit to him as her master, catering to his every whim. Hagino may have gotten herself into something she can't handle. But if she pulls out now, she gets expelled from the school. Can she make things work with Kai, or will she call it quits before he does something she'll regret? Naïve shoujo girl and weird cruel bishounens - everything is as I like it to such extent that won't even bother wasting time on second episode. Overall Rating: 5/10 60. Aachi wa Ssipak Aachi and Ssipak 아치와 씨팍 [Flatiron Film Company] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Action, Comedy After the world ran out of all traditional energy sources, only one remained—human excrement. To encourage citizens to produce as much waste as possible, the government implants a chip in the anus at birth, which provides citizens with "juicybars" every time it detects defecation. Juicybars are highly addictive narcotics that sometimes transform their users into mutant blue dwarfs with extreme constipation. These mutant addicts make up the "Diaper Gang," those who live underground and are focused on trying to obtain juicybars. Aachi and Ssipak are two small-time crooks who steal and sell juicybars to make it on the streets. When they meet a beautiful woman who has the anal chips of every Diaper Gang member implanted in her, producing dozens of juicybars with every dump, Aachi and Ssipak strike it rich. However, with both the government and the Diaper Gang on their tails, the two struggle to protect their newfound riches. My first impression - disgusting. It's basically collection of ultraviolence and SM "humor" with some dwelling into other fetish territories. Overall Rating: 5/10 61. Crayon Shin-chan Movie 14: Densetsu wo Yobu Odore! Amigo! 映画 クレヨンしんちゃん 伝説を呼ぶ 踊れ!アミーゴ! [Shin-Ei Animation] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Seinen School Comedy, Slice of Life, Ecchi An action comedy film based on the "duplicating humans' invasion" setting derived from Jack Finney's Sci-Fi novel "The Body Snatchers", combining Sci-Fi horror-like story and dance (samba). An authority on biotechnology and a developer of "konjaclone" technology, Amigo Suzuki carries out "Transformation Plans for Samba World", in which he makes human clones using konjac as a material and makes them dance a samba. In Kasukabe city, people switch places with false ones who look just like the real persons. The Nohara family and the members of Kasukabe Defense Forces try to escape from Kasukabe with the help of a mystery beautiful girl Jacqueline Feeney (Jackie). There was already Shin-chan movie about impostors. This one is a more advanced version, plus there's this weird samba sidetracking, but it's not good enough. Overall Rating: 6/10 62. Hanare Toride no Yonna Yonna in the Solitary Fortress はなれ砦のヨナ [CoMix Wave Films] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Adventure, Fantasy Yonna and Stan, brother and sister, live in isolation because of their special powers. There are enigmatic people who plot to use their power, in conflict with the king`s government, which is also planning to draw them onto their side. Intrigue surrounds Yonna, and now a new agent comes to see her. Character designs are unusual, and not in a good way. 3D is mostly ok. Whole movie is basically confrontation of two mages, so no good story either. Girl's personality is quite horrible. There aren't really good sides here. Overall Rating: 5/10 63. Ginga Tetsudou no Yoru: Fantasy Railroad in the Stars 銀河鉄道の夜 -Fantasy Railroad in the Stars- [ KAGAYA Studio] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Drama, Fantasy, Mystery The Celestial Railroad is a fantastic journey of a boy, Giovanni, in a dreamscape created into a colorful full-dome CG animation picture with inspiring background music. Based on a story written in the early 20th century, KAGAYA, a digital fine artist, has breathed new life into the unique imaginary world using creativity and precise astronomical knowledge. The starry sky is depicted as the Celestial Field made up of a river, a field of silver grasses, flowers, birds, survey towers, railway signals and more. Across this amazing beautiful scenery, the Celestial Railroad runs along the Milky Way. Abstract random 3D is not the best way to tell a fairy tale story... 1985 version is still better. Overall Rating: 5/10 64. Tachiguishi Retsuden 立喰師列伝 [Production I.G] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Comedy, Gourmet Immediately following the end of the World War II, Tokyo was trying to emerge from the rubble. In a corner of the black market stood a flimsy soba (buckwheat noodle) eatery. It was a delicate time just before the closing. A man appeared at the threshold. "One moongaze (raw egg). With soba." This was none other than the legendary Fast Food Grifter known as Moongaze Ginji. His relentless scam quietly initiates. The time changes. In the midst of the first anti Japan-US Security Treaty movement (1960), the streets rumored about Foxy Croquette O-Gin, a beautiful lady Fast Food Grifter, who disappeared all of a sudden. Wandering the alleys in the years of the economic miracle was Crying Inumaru, the loser. Then came Cold Badger Masa, whose scandalous death made people aware of the presence of Fast Food Grifters within the Japanese society. Beefbowl Ushigoro put an end to a major gyudon (beef and rice bowl) restaurant chain. And it is not possible not to mention Hamburger Tetsu, who shocked the entire fast food industry. Fast Food Grifters are the phantoms that rise and fall with the shifting diet-styles. They are the dissenting heroes who carved their names on the dark side of dietary culture with their glare. Now their legend revives, strong as ever... First of all, it's not animation as real faces and often also bodies are used. Next, it's mostly black and white.... And if you read the synopsis, it gets obvious that comedy is not the strong side here. And since I don't see any strong sides here at all, it does not stand out for anything good. Overall Rating: 5/10 65. Yu Shi 雨石 [-] (Finished 0/1) Tags: Adventure, Drama, Romance - Not found. Overall Rating: 0/10 -
Anime of the Year 2006-I Winter - Ergo Proxy
kivandopulus posted a blog entry in Anime of the Season
Ergo Proxy is my favorite anime of the past which is still a full head ahead of most anime, though I see its imperfection nowadays. I also see Fate/stay night and Hellsing Ultimate as minor masterpieces deserving a mention. 1. Fate/stay night [Studio Deen] (Finished 26/26) Tags: Action, Fantasy, Romance, Supernatural After a mysterious inferno kills his family, Shirou is saved and adopted by Kiritsugu Emiya, who teaches him the ways of magic and justice. One night, years after Kiritsugu's death, Shirou is cleaning at school, when he finds himself caught in the middle of a deadly encounter between two superhumans known as Servants. During his attempt to escape, the boy is caught by one of the Servants and receives a life-threatening injury. Miraculously, he survives, but the same Servant returns to finish what he started. In desperation, Shirou summons a Servant of his own, a knight named Saber. The two must now participate in the Fifth Holy Grail War, a battle royale of seven Servants and the mages who summoned them, with the grand prize being none other than the omnipotent Holy Grail itself. Fate/stay night follows Shirou as he struggles to find the fine line between a hero and a killer, his ideals clashing with the harsh reality around him. Will the boy become a hero like his foster father, or die trying? Another honorary masterpiece, as for me. It's good to know the story, and anime is more accessible than visual novel. Despite the schematic nature of the story with battle royale and generic names of servants, enough life and passion is poured in the contents. But second season of such battle royale or its spin-offs would look totally alien to me as meager attempts to parasite. Overall Rating: 7/10 2. Ergo Proxy エルゴプラクシー [Manglobe] (Finished 23/23) Tags: Psychological Mystery, Sci-Fi Within the domed city of Romdo lies one of the last human civilizations on Earth. Thousands of years ago, a global ecological catastrophe doomed the planet; now, life outside these domes is virtually impossible. To expedite mankind's recovery, "AutoReivs," humanoid-like robots, have been created to assist people in their day-to-day lives. However, AutoReivs have begun contracting an enigmatic disease called the "Cogito Virus," which grants them self-awareness. Re-l Mayer, the granddaughter of Romdo's ruler, is assigned to investigate this phenomenon alongside her AutoReiv partner, Iggy. But what begins as a routine investigation quickly spirals into a conspiracy as Re-l is confronted by humanity's darkest sins. Elsewhere in Romdo, an AutoReiv specialist by the name of Vincent Law must also face his demons when surreal events begin occurring around him. Re-l, Iggy, Vincent, and the child AutoReiv named Pino will form an unlikely faction as they struggle to uncover Romdo's mysteries and discover the true purpose of the mythical beings called "Proxies." I considered it to be not only perfect masterpiece, but also first suggestion for those who consider anime childish cartoons. Having rewatched it now, my eye finds quite a few imperfections and an unsatisfying Evangelion-like ending. I still love the characters, the style and those great filler episodes in the middle that aim to become the best filler episodes in the world. Yet the whole mystery concept and story are lacking on a larger scale. It's thought provoking all right, but imperfect, and I have a score exactly for such cases. Overall Rating: 9/10 3. Rec レック [Shaft] (Finished 9/9) Tags: Seinen Showbiz Comedy, Drama, Romance After being stood up for a movie date, marketing employee Fumihiko Matsumaru is about to throw away his tickets when he is stopped by a girl who implores him to let her accompany him instead. Thanks to his upbeat and eccentric companion Aka Onda, an aspiring voice actress, Fumihiko enjoys his evening. While walking home together, they find out that they live in the same neighborhood. Mere hours later, Fumihiko wakes up from a nightmare and hears sirens outside his window. Going outside to check the situation, he sees that Aka's apartment has burned down, along with all her possessions. Fumihiko invites the distressed Aka to stay at his place, leading to them sleeping together. In the aftermath of that fateful night, their personal and professional lives become inextricably intertwined. Not only do they begin living together platonically despite their one-night stand, they also discover that Aka will be voicing the mascot Fumihiko designed for his company's newest product. While trying to keep their live-in relationship under wraps for fear of scrutiny, the two begin to support each other throughout the difficulties in their respective careers. I've seen it twice now, and it's hard to distinguish it - it's weak as romance or comedy or drama. But as niche SOL it definitely loses to Genshike and even to Animation Runner Kuromi. It's a decent anime, but my tongue can't twist to call it a masterpiece. It comes as a light fling and goes without leaving memories. Overall Rating: 6/10 4. Hanbun no Tsuki ga Noboru Sora 半分の月がのぼる空 [Group TAC] (Finished 6/6) Tags: Comedy, Drama, Romance Group TAC After contracting hepatitis A, Ezaki Yuuichi has been confined to a hospital, away from his friends and family, much to his displeasure. To relieve his boredom, he has taken to sneaking out of the hospital, usually putting himself on the receiving end of a beating from his nurse. Upon meeting a girl his age also staying in the hospital, he is immediately captivated by her beauty. Akiba Rika's personality is not quite as captivating as her beauty however. In fact, she is rather selfish, moody, and bossy. But as the two spend more time with each other, they become closer, sharing the ordinary joys and trials of a budding teenage romance, even when darkened with impending tragedy—for Rika's condition does not leave her much longer to live. I can't stand all those stories about terminal stage of some illness. It's possible to make it work, but not this time as there is no magic in here. Overall Rating: 6/10 5. Ayakashi: Japanese Classic Horror 怪~ayakashi~ Japanese Classic Horror [Toei Animation] (Finished 1/11) Tags: Adult Cast, Historical Fantasy, Horror, Mystery A collection of three classic Japanese horror stories: "Yotsuya Kaidan", the story of a wife betrayed by her husband who seeks vengeance even in death. "Tenshu Monogatari", the story of forbidden love between a goddess and a human, and "Bakeneko", the story of a mysterious cat monster with a vendetta against a certain family. Nothing special, just Heian weird stuff. Overall Rating: 5/10 6. Major S2 メジャー (第2シリーズ) [Studio Hibari] (Finished 1/26) Tags: Shounen Team Sports Gorou Honda has finally returned to Mifune East Junior High School, surprising his friends upon arrival. Now, Gorou is once again surrounded by those he holds closest, and he strives to continue playing and enjoying the game he loves most. However, things do not go as planned, as Gorou is reminded of the harsh realities of baseball as he copes with an injury he sustained while playing baseball at Hitaka Little. Between new rivals, old friends, and mending broken relationships, Gorou must overcome challenges he has never faced before. His goal of attending elite baseball high school Kaido may not be far from his reach, but complicated circumstances may stop him in his tracks once again. How will he deal with the immense pressures of the game? And will he ever be able to find the type of baseball he loves most? Feels rather generic apart of cheeky brat protagonist. Overall Rating: 5/10 7. Amaenaide yo!! Katsu!! Ah My Buddha Katsu あまえないでよっ!! 喝!! [Studio Deen] (Finished 1/12) Tags: Seinen Harem Comedy, Romance, Supernatural, Ecchi In this sequel, a girl named Kazusano Kazuki joins up with the 6 girls and Ikko. With Kazuki around, Ikko will find himself in more embarrassing situations with these priestesses-in-training. The Buddhist perverts are back, can't say I'm happy about the fact. Overall Rating: 5/10 8. Kashimashi: Girl Meets Girl Girl Meets Girl かしまし〜ガール・ミーツ・ガール〜 [Studio Hibari] (Finished 3/12) Tags: Love Polygon, Magical Sex Shift, School Comedy, Drama, Girls Love, Romance Hazumu was a shy boy who enjoyed gardening, collecting herbs, and long walks in the mountains. One day he finally worked up the courage to confess his love to Yasuna, but she rejected him. Depressed, he wandered up Mt. Kashimayama, the place where they first met, to reconsider his feelings. After getting lost, he wished upon a shooting star and received a bizarre twist of fate. Now he is a she, and she stumbles headfirst back into social life and relationships only to find that the entire landscape has changed! Serious girls love drama is so weird, guess I need stronger comedy flavor to tolerate it. Overall Rating: 5/10 9. Magikano マジカノ [Tokyo Kids] (Finished 1/13) Tags: Shounen Harem Comedy, Fantasy, Romance Ayumi Mamiya is a witch cursed to lose her powers and only one boy can break the spell. Haruo Yoshikawa thinks he is a normal boy but unknown to him his three sisters have magical powers and keep him protected and ignorant about the existence of magic. Now Ayumi must wake up Haruo's latent powers to save herself but his sisters will have none of that. Another silly variation of Shuffle or something very close. Incredibly irritating as everything is wrong and cheesy here. Overall Rating: 5/10 10. Kage kara Mamoru! Guardian Ninja Mamoru 陰からマモル! [Group TAC] (Finished 2/12) Tags: Comedy, Romance Kagemori Mamoru is a dowdy boy whose hair is disheveled and who wears thick glasses, but he is actually the son of a ninja family. They have protected their neighbors, the Konnyaku family, secretly for 400 years. Mamoru has personally protected their daughter, Konnyaku Yuuna, since they were in kindergarten. When Yuuna is in trouble, Mamoru puts on ninja suit and turns into a competent ninja to help her. Another silly comedy, but at least watchable and just having specific humor which is still not to my liking. Actually, can't remember any ninja related anime that I'd really like. Overall Rating: 6/10 11. Yomigaeru Sora: Rescue Wings よみがえる空 -Rescue Wings- [J.C.Staff] (Finished 2/12) Tags: Adult Cast, Military, Workplace Drama Kazuhiro Uchida is transferred to a rescue centre located in a small town while training to become a fighter pilot. Initially, Kazuhiro thinks negatively about his new occupation, due to the difficult missions and the harsh discipline he receives from his seniors. However, over the course of his training, he begins to accept the job for what it is and becomes a true member of the rescue force. Just SOL about niche occupation. I more or less could understand if it was about a girl, but in the current state I fail to understand motivation to watch it as there's no story, no comedy, no heartwarming, no sophisticated drama... show like this can be shot about any occupation, and I just would not want to watch such shows. Overall Rating: 6/10 12. Futari wa Precure: Splash☆Star ふたりはプリキュア Splash☆Star [Toei Animation] (Finished 2/49) Tags: Mahou Shoujo Action, Comedy, Fantasy During the summer festival five years ago, two girls met at a mysterious tree and saw two glowing spheres. Now, these two girls--Saki Hyuuga, ace pitcher on the school softball team; and Mai Mishou, who prefers sketching over stargazing--are chosen by the spirits of flowers (Flappy) and birds (Choppy) to restore the Seven Fountains and save their worlds from Dark Autumn. Together, they are the NEW Pretty Cure. Spin-off. I liked down to earth parts more. First episodes are just fantasy fighting ridiculous opponents, but I guess school comes back later. Overall Rating: 6/10 13. Binchou-tan びんちょうタン [Studio Deen] (Finished 2/12) Tags: Iyashikei Comedy This is a story about a little girl who lives in an old house in the mountains. Her name is Bincho-tan. Each episode depicts a day in the life of Bincho-tan as she prepares her breakfast in the morning, goes to the forest to gather vegetables, does her household chores and rests at night after a day's work. She is surrounded by a group of close friends who add color to her ordinary yet simple life. Cute blobs do their cute stuff. And that's not bad, it fulfils relaxation role ok if you come here for it. But if you're in for the story... I have bad news for ya. Overall Rating: 6/10 14. Tactical Roar タクティカルロア [Actas] (Finished 1/13) Tags: Military Comedy, Romance, Sci-Fi In the near future the world's climate shifted creating in the Western Pacific a perpetual super cyclone: the Grand Roar that altered the earth, flooding most countries. Shipping and navigation became important to nations and following the appearance of ocean pirates, necessisated companies to hire escort cruisers to safeguard their investments. Hyousuke Nagimiya is a system engineer that was comissioned to upgrade the Pascal Magi manned by an entire crew of women with its captain, Misaki Nanaha. Together the crew strives to prove themselves to their detractors that they are no mere 'Alice Brand'. Yet as they go about their mission a larger global conspiracy seems to be working behind the scenes to take advantage of this new world order. It's goofy ecchi comedy with poor parody-like characters and situations. Its SOL part is plain and bad, but the tactical dimension in the second episode failed to impress either. Overall Rating: 5/10 15. Nerima Daikon Brothers 練馬大根ブラザーズ [Studio Hibari] (Finished 1/12) Tags: Music Comedy In the town of Nerima, the boisterous Hideki and his stoic brother Ichiro run a daikon radish farm along with Mako, their bubbly but vain cousin. The three dream of raising the money needed to build their own concert hall, where their band—Nerima Daikon Brothers—would perform and hopefully rise to stardom. But their farm and Ichiro's host club job aren't raising money fast enough for their liking, leading them to resort to get-rich-quick schemes. Their plans usually involve tracking down evil-doers and then stealing their ill-gotten gains. Yet, while they usually do put a stop to the villains, they always end the day no richer than before. However, neither these failures nor interference from the policewoman Yukika Karakuri can come between this trio and their dream! With help from gadgets provided by the rental shop owner Nabeshin, the Nerima Daikon Brothers get themselves into and out of all kinds of ridiculous situations through their boisterous singing and comedy. Nonsense weird comedy that constantly bursts into couple phrases sung, then continues as usual. I guess it can be entertaining on some level, but definitely not for me. Overall Rating: 5/10 16. Kagi Hime Monogatari: Eikyuu Alice Rondo Eternal Alice 鍵姫物語 永久アリス輪舞曲 [Trinet Entertainment, Picture Magic] (Finished 1/13) Tags: Mahou Shoujo Fantasy Average high school student Aruto Kirihara is obsessed with the Alice stories, written in this alternate world by the enigmatic recluse, Alternite L. Tachyon. One night, while writing his own version of a potential "third book," he sees a girl flying in front of a full moon... and she looks just like the "Alice" in his imagination. Aruto runs out of his house and chases the flying figure from the ground, ending up at a library, where he witnesses her in combat with another costumed girl. And so begins his sudden introduction to the world of Alices, an elite club of super-powered teenage girls who regularly fight in an extra-dimensional Wonderland in order to steal each other's "hidden stories." When all of the stories have been gathered, they will form the legendary third volume, "Eternal Alice," and the possessor will be granted one wish. It probably won't be Aruto, who can't turn into a magical girl. But it could be his doting little sister, Kiraha. Or maybe the girl of his dreams, Arisu... All this Alicization is so silly that I'm going to drop it after a single episode again as there's only averageness and zero potential. Overall Rating: 5/10 17. Lemon Angel Project レモン エンジェル プロジェクト [Radix] (Finished 3/13) Tags: Idols (Female), Music Drama Lemon Angel was once the greatest girl band of Japan, but then it broke up and most of its members vanished. When a music producer decides to put together a new Lemon Angel, average high schooler Tomo Minaguchi is approached to audition for the group. Little does she know of the mystery behind the original Lemon Angel... This is a stereotypical idol project with super good and super evil guys, as well as rather boring idols themselves. And it's probably the first case when I hate voice acting of protagonist so much as voice is absolutely plain from a typical Japanese in real life. Also this total clutz characteristic adds irritation. Production is above average, so it can be slightly enjoyed if you already have idol affinity. But it's best to avoid it completely and stick to better representatives of the genre. Overall Rating: 6/10 18. Ginyuu Mokushiroku Meine Liebe Wieder 吟遊黙示録マイネリーベ ヴィーダー [Bee Train] (Finished 1/13) Tags: Shoujo Drama, Fantasy The Strahl candidates are enjoying a brief holiday in their various homes. However, many surprises await them when they finally come back to their elite boarding school: Rosenstolz Academy. There is a new headmaster, and his policies are not necessarily to the advantage of the main characters. Sequel. Overall Rating: 5/10 19. Kinnikuman II Sei: Ultimate Muscle 2 キン肉マンII世 ULTIMATE MUSCLE 2 [Toei Animation] (Finished 1/13) Tags: Combat Sports, Martial Arts Action, Comedy, Sci-Fi, Sports Mantaro has made it to the semifinal match of the Chojin Cup. He must now fight Ricardo in a soccer field to advance to the last match. Kevin Mask is also in the semifinals, and must defeat Ilioukhine in an aerial field to advance. These three matches will determine who wins the Chojin Cup. Continuation. Overall Rating: 5/10 20. Papillon Rose パピヨンローゼ [Studio Kelmadick] (Finished 2/6) Tags: Mahou Shoujo, Parody Comedy, Ecchi The story takes place one year after the OVA. Because of the previous war, Kabucki-cho was devastated, and the owner abandoned his lingerie pub, "Pallion," and opened "New Papillion" in Akihabara. During the war, Tsubomi, and her colleagues Anne and Shizuku lost their memories, and they began new lives in Akihabara. On the other hand, the Susano, aliens who were invading the Earth, appeared. They turned a UMA (Unidentified Mysterious Animal) into a monster and make it raid on Akihabara. Rama the cat made Tsubomi and her buddies retrieve their memories, and let them fight against the monster as Lingerie Soldiers. Pure averageness with some parody stupidity added. Overall Rating: 5/10 21. Youkai Ningen Bem (2006) Humanoid Monster Bem 妖怪人間ベム [Studio Comet] (Finished 1/26) Tags: Mythology Horror, Supernatural The plot of the series revolves around three youkai, Bem, Bera and Barro, who arrive at a large coastal city and come across an evil atmosphere, which was brought about by immoral behavior by humans and mischief caused by monsters and youkai. They therefore decide to stay in the city, fighting against other monsters and yōkai which attack humans, making a few friends in the way. Even though the three youkai are often abused by other human beings due to their appearance, they still strive in protecting the human populace of the city from other monsters, one day hoping to become human beings in return for their good actions. I'm usually against resurrections of old franchises as in most cases they are too morally old despite any visual upgrades. Good only to get acquainted with classics without torturing the eyes. Overall Rating: 5/10 22. Rakugo Tennyo Oyui 落語天女おゆい [TNK] (Finished 2/12) Tags: Historical, Performing Arts Comedy Five girls including Yui Tsukishima were summoned into the end of Edo period by the power of mystic stones jewel (known as Hojous'). They became the current Tennyo replacing the previous Tennyo who fell in battle. Through the use of their powers, and "the Power of Word," they fight back the two demon brothers who sought to destroy humankind, using the powers they've gained. This story is about a true to life Rakugo Storyteller (named Utamaru Katsura) who wants nothing more then to make Yui (a very happy cheerful girl) an capable professional in the "art of Rakugoing." In otherwords, a comedy, with a punchline told in a story. There are quite a few decent anime about girls impersonating warriors during Warring states or Edo period. This is not one of them. Overall Rating: 5/10 23. Xingji Biaoche Wang Galaxy Racers 星际飙车王 [-] (Finished 1/52) Tags: Racing Action, Adventure Set in the future on the Yellow River Planet, the realm of car racing has advanced beyond Formula One - into the domain of the Galaxy Racers. Riders steer their simulator-racers which remotely control the actual customized speedsters hurtling around a track. The hero, a teenager named Roy, was born to race and aspires to be the King of Galaxy Racers. But his guardian, his grandfather, sees a threat from and great danger in the evil and greedy Taz, the CEO of the Titan Space Navigation Auto Group which seeks to swallow or destroy all competitors, and whose Mosha Racing Team would just as ruthlessly run over and crush Roy under its thundering wheels. He arranges for him to join the good guys in the Matela Racing Team to race for the highest honors. Many years ago, Ray’s father, Dr Renault, worked for the Titan Group and he invented the Galaxy Racers but he was against CEO Taz’s destructive greed. He tries to escape - and disappears! Monopolizing the technology and construction of the Racers, Taz, the Titan Group and Mosha Racing Team swallowed, crushed and beat all rival companies, racers and teams. Desperately, Ray’s grandfather uses a secret design hidden by Dr Renault from Taz and builds for him a superior racer, The Lion King. But he has first to learn the skills and garner experience from racing at the highest levels. To acquire these qualities plus humility and resilience, he relies on his Matela friends who have their own cool cars, to help him. But arrayed against them are the Mosha baddies and their menacing machines. In a series of hair-raising and nail-biting races with thrills & spills, growling engines, screeching wheels, burning rubber, smashing metal against metal, intense bitter rivalry, persevering friendships & loyalties forged in grueling teamwork and battle, Ray and Team Matela must conquer their fears and overcome the arrogant and powerful Team Mosha which uses cheating as a winning strategy. Will justice prevail or evil triumph? Find out on The Galaxy Racers on a track near you! Chinese. Childish. SPEED racing. Using horrendous 3D animation. Overall Rating: 4/10 24. Meng Li Ren The Dreaming Girl 夢裡人 [Drama] (Finished 0/1) Tags: - Not found. Overall Rating: 0/10 25. Hellsing Ultimate HELLSING OVA [Madhouse, Satelight, Graphinica] (Finished 10/10) Tags: Seinen Adult Cast, Gore, Military, Vampire Action, Horror, Supernatural There exist creatures of darkness and evil that plague the night, devouring any human unfortunate enough to be caught in their grasp. On the other side is Hellsing, an organization dedicated to destroying these supernatural forces that threaten the very existence of humanity. At its head is Integra Fairbrook Wingates Hellsing, who commands a powerful military and spends her life fighting the undead. Integra's vast army, however, pales in comparison with her ultimate weapon: the vampire Alucard, who works against his own kind as an exterminator for Hellsing. With his new vampire servant, Seras Victoria, at his side, Alucard must battle not only monsters, but all those who stand to oppose Hellsing, be they in the guise of good or evil. In a battle for mankind's survival, Hellsing Ultimate proves that appearances are not all they may seem, and sometimes the greatest weapon can come in the form of one's worst nightmare. As I see it, OVA allows episodes of any length, usually guarantees visual improvements and is free from restrictions such as on gore. I see OVA as glamourized version, bringing both positive and negative sides to extremes, thus it's called Ultimate. And in return it loses the innate charm of the original. Since I don't care about coolness and flashy stuff, I prefer original, and OVA is only a secondary product for me, so it's only natural that it gets a lower score. It was important to popularize anime world-wide back then, but story is told much better in original, as for me. Overall Rating: 7/10 26. Dai Mahou Touge Magical Witch Punie-Chan 大魔法峠 [Diomedéa] (Finished 4/4) Tags: Gag Humor, Mahou Shoujo Comedy, Fantasy, Supernatural Punie is next in line to become queen of Magical Land. However, she must spend a year on Earth before she can inherit the throne, so she transfers into a school in Japan. She's usually a sweet and gentle girl... that is unless someone does something to displease her, then she'll drop the act. She won't hesitate to whip out her magic stick and cheerfully rain bloody destruction down on the hapless fool, or barring that, simply use wrestling moves she calls "Submission" to punish them. Accompanied by her animal mascot Paya-tan, who makes regular attempts on her life (still bitter about being defeated and then forcibly recruited from Waku Waku Mascot Village), and forced to fend off random attacks by various people from her Kingdom who all have different reasons for wanting her dead, she must complete this year of training on Earth without fail. I dislike parodies as a genre. This one is on the better end, but I still can't appreciate its weird humor and randomness. Overall Rating: 6/10 27. Kyou no 5 no 2 Today in Class 5-2 今日の5の2[Shinkuukan, Lilix] (Finished 4/4) Tags: Seinen School Comedy, Ecchi Kyou no Go no Ni revolves around Sato Ryota, a 5th grader in an elementary school. He is a bright and active boy but always manages to get in to a bit of ecchi trouble with his female classmates. A lot depends on whether you can stand multiple sketch shows or not as each episode has some four 5-minute sketches like in Azumanga. Basically, if all sketches were split into individual short episodes, I'd even skip this in entirety. Not finding these sketches with ecchi context any fun. Overall Rating: 6/10 28. Ar Tonelico: Sekai no Owari de Utai Tsuzukeru Shoujo アルトネリコ 世界の終わりで詩い続ける少女 [Trans Arts] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Action, Adventure, Fantasy, Sci-Fi Based on the RPG game of the same name. Aurica Nestmile is a young Reyvateil, or "singing maiden" who feels her song magic is not of much use to anyone. From high up on the tower Ar Tonelico comes Lyner Barsett, whose airship is totaled upon impact with the ground. These two meet up, and in the search for someone who can repair the ship, end up helping both each other and themselves. 20-minute promo, so can't be treated seriously. Overall Rating: 5/10 29. Sin in the Rain [Mook Animation] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Mystery It is raining in Tokyo at night. A woman, named Kimura Yu, is caught in the rain. She has had lots of trauma in her life, because her parents were killed, and to make things worse she experiences another tragedy, her reliable councilor, Kanzaki, is killed. But Yu is "saved" by a mysterious detective named Takamizawa Kyosuke. I only have one word to say. Why? Overall Rating: 5/10 30. Memories Off #5 Togireta Film The Animation Memories Off #5 とぎれたフィルム THE ANIMATION [Doga Kobo] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Drama, Romance Kawai Haruto belongs to a cinema club to realize his dream to make his own movie. But he is losing his passion of the movie because Hina Yusuke, his best friend as well as a good rival, died suddenly last year. One day, he meets Sendo Mahiro. She asks him to make a movie with her. Also she says that she was at the place where Yusuke died, and that he died because of her. On the other hand, Yusuke’s little sister Hina Asuka blames him for killing her brother. Necrophilia has taken place of love triangle as main theme in memories off series. Without brilliant execution it reeks of fake. Overall Rating: 5/10 31. Cream Lemon: New Generation くりぃむレモン ニュージェネレーション [Radix] (Finished 4/4) Tags: Drama, Romance A remake of the old Cream Lemon OVA series. I was surprised to find it not in Hentai, and it indeed does not belong there. It's basically same episodic hentai fantasy stories as in older prequels, but without the H part itself. Corny innuendo is fine, but guess it was not as popular as it's the last part of the series. Overall Rating: 5/10 32. Haru no Ashioto The Movie: Ourin Dakkan はるのあしおと The Movie - 桜鈴奪還 [Asahi Production] (Finished 1/1) Tags: School Action, Comedy One day the else so peaceful mood in the Ourin Gakuen suddenly changes. Kusunoki-sensei, the so-called subheroine, along with most of the students takes over the school after a coup d'état. The principal is beaten and now it`s up to Yuu Sakurano, Yuzuki Kaede and Nagomi Fujikura to take back the school from her and return it to the former peaceful days. This is the start of a full-scale war, one that this school has never seen before. A hectic mess. Overall Rating: 5/10 33. Giniro no Kami no Agito Origin: Spirits of the Past 銀色の髪のアギト [Gonzo] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Adventure, Drama, Fantasy, Romance, Sci-Fi Three hundred years ago, a genetic experiment gone wrong caused the mutation of all forests on Earth. Armed with consciousness, the vegetation sought to destroy all of humankind, and the war that ensued turned the planet into a hellish dystopia. In the present day, Agito, a young boy, lives with his father in Neutral City—a village maintaining an uneasy truce with the neighboring forest. One day, Agito, on his way to collect water, becomes separated from his friend and stumbles upon a relic of the past: a girl sleeping in a mysterious machine. Agito awakens the girl, Toola Cm Sacl, and introduces her to the village. But outside forces have ulterior motives for the girl, who holds the key to restore the Earth. Misguided by Shunack, a soldier from the old world hellbent on destroying the forest, Toola follows him despite Agito's warning. Determined to save Toola and unify humankind with the forest, Agito borrows the power of the forest and pursues her. Another post-apocalypse and confrontation between nature and technology. But accent is on constant running and jumping rather than on the story or characters, so it's so-so even despite high overall quality. Overall Rating: 6/10 -
Anime of the Year 2005-IV Fall - Shakugan no Shana
kivandopulus posted a blog entry in Anime of the Season
Shakugan no Shana deserves a honorary mention. 1. Mushishi Mushi-Shi 蟲師 [Artland] (Finished 2/26) Tags: Seinen Adult Cast, Historical, Iyashikei Adventure, Fantasy, Mystery, Slice of Life, Supernatural "Mushi": the most basic forms of life in the world. They exist without any goals or purposes aside from simply "being." They are beyond the shackles of the words "good" and "evil." Mushi can exist in countless forms and are capable of mimicking things from the natural world such as plants, diseases, and even phenomena like rainbows. This is, however, just a vague definition of these entities that inhabit the vibrant world of Mushishi, as to even call them a form of life would be an oversimplification. Detailed information on Mushi is scarce because the majority of humans are unaware of their existence. So what are Mushi and why do they exist? This is the question that a "Mushishi," Ginko, ponders constantly. Mushishi are those who research Mushi in hopes of understanding their place in the world's hierarchy of life. Ginko chases rumors of occurrences that could be tied to Mushi, all for the sake of finding an answer. It could, after all, lead to the meaning of life itself. Tried it several times, but this slow-paced bore about spirits can only help fall asleep, as for me. Overall Rating: 6/10 2. Shakugan no Shana Shakugan no Shana: Season I 灼眼のシャナ [J.C.Staff] (Finished 24/24) Tags: Mahou Shoujo, School Action, Drama, Fantasy, Romance The world has become a slaughtering ground for the Crimson Denizens, mysterious beings from a parallel universe who thrive on the life energy of humans. These merciless murderers only leave behind scant remainders of souls called "Torches," which are mere residues that will eventually be destroyed, along with the very fact of the victims' existence from the minds of the living. In an ambitious endeavor to put an end to this invisible, hungry massacre, warriors called Flame Hazes relentlessly fight these monsters. One fateful day, Yuuji Sakai ceases to be a regular high schooler—he becomes trapped in a crevice of time and is suddenly attacked by a Denizen. Coming to his rescue just in the nick of time is a nameless hunter who seems no different from an ordinary young girl except for her blazing eyes and burning crimson hair. However, before Yuuji can learn anything more about his situation, he discovers that he has already been reduced to a Torch—merely a scrap of memory waiting to be extinguished. It was definitely a hit when it came out, but nowadays can only give it honorary masterpiece as it falls short in comparison with modern anime even though Shana as character still stands out well. Overall Rating: 7/10 3. Blood+ ブラッドプラス [Production I.G] (Finished 4/50) Tags: Gore, Military, Vampire Action, Drama, Horror, Mystery, Supernatural Saya Otonashi is a seemingly ordinary girl living a mundane life with her adoptive family in Okinawa City. In fact, her only peculiarities are suffering from anemia and being unable to remember any of her life beyond the previous year. However, Saya's forgotten past quickly comes back to haunt her—one night, she is attacked at school by a creature that feeds on human blood. Just when all hope seems lost, a mysterious man named Haji appears and fends off the creature temporarily. But when her rescuer forces her to drink his blood, Saya suddenly enters a trance and slays the monster with ease, using her own blood as a catalyst. Saya then learns of an organization named Red Shield, founded for the sole purpose of defeating the hellish beasts. Now Saya and Haji must work together with Red Shield to fight these fearsome monsters and unlock the secrets to the girl's past. We've seen Blood in its prime in the movie, and series is a very slow prequel, and by the end of the 4th episode even prologue is not finished yet, and no real interest to watch it further. Overall Rating: 6/10 4. Jigoku Shoujo Hell Girl 地獄少女 [Studio Deen] (Finished 4/26) Tags: Psychological Horror, Mystery, Supernatural It is said that if someone seeks revenge, they should dig two graves—and this is especially true of those who use the Hell Correspondence website. At the stroke of midnight, this ominous web domain becomes accessible, and whoever inputs the name of their grudge will get a visit from Ai Enma, the Hell Girl. Ai explains that she will send the target's soul to hell, but the requester will also end up in hell when they die. For some, that price is far too steep; for others, where they will spend their afterlife has no bearing on their current, day-to-day hell. But one thing is certain: the Hell Girl will always be available to those in need of revenge, while she stoically performs her duty of ferrying souls into the darkness. Again, a combination of things I dislike. Just immature revenge stories, as for me. Overall Rating: 5/10 5. Black Cat (TV) ブラックキャット [Gonzo] (Finished 3/23) Tags: Shounen Super Power Adventure, Comedy, Sci-Fi Completing every job with ruthless accuracy, Train Heartnet is an infamous assassin with no regard for human life. Donning the moniker "Black Cat" in the underground world, the elite killer works for the powerful secret organization known only as Chronos. One gloomy night, the blasé gunman stumbles upon Saya Minatsuki, an enigmatic bounty hunter, and soon develops an odd friendship with her. Influenced by Saya's positive outlook on life, Train begins to rethink his life. Deciding to abandon his role as the Black Cat, he instead opts to head down a virtuous path as an honest bounty hunter. However, Chronos—and particularly Creed Diskenth, Train's possessive underling—is not impressed with Train's sudden change of heart and vows to resort to extreme measures in order to bring back the emissary of bad luck. This assassin turned "stray cat" can only wander so far before the deafening sound of gunfire rings out. A normal bounty hunter story, not particularly interesting though. It's time to move away from episodic stuff to actual stories already. Overall Rating: 6/10 6. Paradise Kiss [Madhouse] (Finished 1/12) Tags: Josei School, Visual Arts Drama, Romance On her way home from school, Yukari Hayasaka is approached by a weird-looking guy who starts looking at her body intently. He's got blond spiky hair, a spiked choker, and multiple piercings on his ears and face. She wants nothing to do with him, and runs away, only to bump into a very tall and beautiful purple-haired woman with a flower pattern around her eye. Yukari faints from shock and wakes up later in a strange place called the Atelier. It turns out that these strangers are fashion designers who attend the most famous art school around, Yazawa Art Academy, and their group wants Yukari to model for their brand in Yazawa Academy's upcoming show. Yukari turns down their offer and escapes the Atelier, but unknowingly leaves her school ID behind. George Koizumi, the head designer, later sees it and immediately knows she would be the perfect model for them and will not stop until he gets what he wants—and he wants her. Yukari had never considered something as frivolous as modeling before, but could life among these eccentric designers actually prove to be fun? Or will Yukari lose herself in this world of art and passion? Can't stand shoujo about fashion, but for those who like Nana it should be a natural choice. Overall Rating: 5/10 7. Karin かりん [J.C.Staff] (Finished 3/24) Tags: Shounen School, Vampire Comedy, Romance, Supernatural Vampires—supernatural beings that feed on the life essence of the unsuspecting at night—have been around for centuries. However, high schooler Karin Maaka is unusual, even among her own kind. Unlike her vampire family, ever since she was a child, Karin has suffered from polycythemia: a rare disorder which causes her to periodically produce excessive amounts of blood. And the more blood she produces, the more anemic and lightheaded she gets, ultimately leading to frequent nosebleeds. Her only solution? Force her excess blood onto random strangers, which surprisingly causes these "victims" to become livelier and happier than before. With her siblings—Anju, her reserved yet affectionate younger sister, and Ren, her womanizing elder brother—helping her abilities remain a secret by altering the affected humans' memories, no one is the wiser. That is, until Karin's newly transferred classmate, Kenta Usui, finds her behavior suspicious. And to make matters even more complicated, Karin feels her blood reacting unusually to Kenta's presence. Slow-paced comedy about vampire girl nosebleed. No essence or good story, as usual - only setting exploration. Overall Rating: 6/10 8. Aria the Animation [Hal Film Maker] (Finished 1/13) Tags: Shounen Iyashikei Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Slice of Life Drift peacefully into Neo Venezia, a city on the planet Aqua (formerly known as Mars). By the 24th century, humans have found a way to colonize the previously uninhabitable planet. As futuristic as that sounds, Neo Venezia is still teeming with rustic beauty; gondolas on wide canals and waterways are the main mode of transportation. The city itself is a faithful replication of Manhome's (the planet formerly known as Earth) Venice. To make sure that residents and tourists alike get the most from Neo Venezia's many wonders, companies offering guided tours via gondola were formed, one of which is named Aria Company. This is the workplace of Akari Mizunashi, a free spirited teenager from Manhome who is now a novice Undine (the title given to tour guides). Join Akari as she becomes intimately acquainted with other Undine, tourists, Neo Venezia's residents, and even the city itself, learning many valuable life lessons along the way, such as the wonderful truth that there are such things as manmade miracles. The fact that it's based on a simulation game does not leave much room for experiment - just some similar girls look to become best undines and build and cook stuff better. Whatever. Overall Rating: 5/10 9. Rozen Maiden: Träumend ローゼンメイデン トロイメント [Nomad] (Finished 1/12) Tags: Seinen Action, Comedy, Drama As the story of Rozen Maiden closes, a new chapter begins in Rozen Maiden: Träumend. Shinku and the other sentient dolls of the Rozen Maiden collection are living life as usual at Jun Sakurada's house. Having settled into his role as Shinku's partner in the deadly Alice Game, Jun overcomes his former fears and prepares to return to school. And although Shinku and the other dolls idly pass the days by in the comfort of Jun's home, dark times lie ahead as a new foe presents herself: Barasuishou, the seventh Rozen Maiden. But Barasuishou is a mystery even to her sisters, none of whom have ever laid eyes on her until now. Shinku considers this a sign that the Alice Game is coming to an end, meaning the dolls will soon be forced to fight one another. Haunted by the upcoming battle and nightmares concerning another doll, Shinku begins distancing herself from the others. If she wishes to claim victory, it will come at a high cost—the lives of her sisters. Nothing to do here without liking the prequel. The flow is more or less the same, plus more focus on battles between dolls. Overall Rating: 6/10 10. Touhai Densetsu Akagi: Yami ni Maiorita Tensai Akagi 闘牌伝説アカギ 闇に舞い降りた天才 [Madhouse] (Finished 17/26) Tags: Seinen Adult Cast, High Stakes Game, Organized Crime, Psychological, Strategy Game Suspense While mahjong is a game that is often played with family and friends, it is also a game that is played in the darkest corners of society. Nangou is a compulsive gambler who has accumulated debt over three million yen. In a last ditch attempt to clear his record, he decides to wager his life on a game of mahjong with the mafia. Unfortunately, as the game progresses, Nangou only moves further from the prize and closer to death. When all hope seems lost, the game parlor is suddenly intruded upon by Shigeru Akagi, a young boy on the run from the police. Desperate to turn the game around, Nangou hands the game over to Akagi after teaching him a few of the rules. The mafia can only smirk as Akagi sits down to play. However, they soon come to learn that Akagi is a natural-born gambler. An imposing figure who does not fear death. One who is destined to become a legend. Kaiji had a great impression on me when I first watched it, but Akagi is all about mahjong which is alien to me. The tension is there, but target audience seems to be narrow. Overall Rating: 6/10 11. Noein: Mou Hitori no Kimi e Noein: to your other self ノエイン もうひとりの君へ [Satelight] (Finished 3/24) Tags: Adventure, Drama, Sci-Fi During their last summer of elementary school, four friends decide to undertake a test of courage at their local graveyard. Before the test begins, Haruka Kaminogi makes a last effort to pull Yuu Gotou away from his controlling mother. While doing so, Haruka suddenly has a strange vision of blue snow followed by the appearance of an imposing silver-haired man. Later, a similar vision occurs at the graveyard to both Haruka and her friends before they try to escape what they assume are ghosts. Unbeknownst to the children, the people who appeared before them are Dragon Soldiers: an elite military group from a dimension known as La'cryma. The soldiers have traveled to this dimension to secure the "Dragon Torque"—an entity they believe to be their last hope for survival. However, both the Dragon Soldiers and Haruka are shocked to learn that the Dragon Torque is Haruka herself. She attempts to escape from the Dragon Soldiers as she finds her own last ray of hope—the strange silver-haired man who claims to be another version of Yuu himself. Time loop, quantum mechanics, Schrodinger cat are referenced here for the first time in anime, at least with such depth, but with lousy execution. Pace is very slow. It's mostly SOL with occasional battles. Art and characters are unimpressive. So it all depends on whether you watched Steins Gate and similar works before or not, because comparison is not in favor of Noein. Overall Rating: 6/10 12. Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha A's Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha A's 魔法少女リリカルなのは エース [Seven Arcs] (Finished 3/13) Tags: Mahou Shoujo, Super Power Action, Comedy, Drama After solving the incident of the scattered Jewel Seeds, Nanoha Takamachi happily returns to her everyday life, though now with added magic practice in the morning. Exchanging video messages with Fate Testarossa and the crew of the Arthra, Nanoha eagerly awaits the chance to speak with them in person again. But while studying in her room one day, Raising Heart suddenly calls out to Nanoha and warns her of an incoming attack! The attacker is a young girl named Vita, who calls herself a Belka Knight. She proves her strength by using an intelligent device with a mysterious cartridge system to quickly overwhelm Nanoha. Luckily, the Space-Time Administration Bureau is able to step in before she is completely crushed. Vita and her fellow knights Shamal, Signum, and Zafila are on a mission to steal magical power from mages in order to complete the Book of Darkness, one of the Lost Logia. For what sinister purpose are the knights after this Book of Darkness? Decent battle mahou shoujo, but obviosly need to finish original to appreciate sequel. Overall Rating: 6/10 13. Mai-Otome My-Otome 舞-乙HiME [Sunrise] (Finished 1/26) Tags: Comedy, Drama, Fantasy Arika Yumemiya has traveled far in search of her goal: the prestigious Gualderobe Academy. This is the school where young girls are trained to become Otomes, protectors of royal leaders throughout the lands. Here, Arika makes plenty of friends, but some enemies know something about her past that she does not. Nevertheless, her spirit and determination will keep pushing her forward. Adapted from its predecessor, Mai-HiME, this series is not a direct sequel, but an alternate universe setting featuring some of the Mai-HiME cast (though with different personalities). Just wow. Absolutely needless and useless spin-off. Generic private Academy story with battles has become even more bland with this iteration. Overall Rating: 5/10 14. Ginban Kaleidoscope Skating Rink Kaleidoscope 銀盤カレイドスコープ [Karaku] (Finished 8/12) Tags: Performing Arts Drama, Romance, Sports, Supernatural Figure skater Tazusa Sakurano is on the fast track to the Olympics. As a top contender, her chances rest on a single competition in Canada. However, during her program, she falls and hits her head on the ice, knocking her unconscious. At the same time, Canadian stunt pilot Pete Pumps goes down in a fiery blaze. After her devastating failure, Tazusa returns home to Japan, but she starts hearing a voice in her head. In reality, when Pete had arrived at the gates of heaven, he was denied access for his sins. Instead, he was told to wait 100 days and is now trapped in Tazusa's body! Unwilling to let this interrupt her life—even if her body is a bit crowded—Tazusa moves forward with skating, all while a pesky voice may just be able to help her achieve her dream. Ice skating shoujo, feels quite similar to that theater anime. A decent one and even with some psychology, but not my plate. Overall Rating: 6/10 15. Lamune ラムネ [Trinet Entertainment, Picture Magic] (Finished 1/12) Tags: Drama, Romance Lamune tells the story of a boy named Kenji and his childhood friend Nanami. Although, everyone seems to know that they have a relationship, neither are determined to push it anymore than close friends. The story goes through flashbacks, explaining why they are such close friends and any action doesn't seem to push them apart, but draw them closer. Super clutz is super irritating. Too many cheezy situations for one anime. Overall Rating: 5/10 16. Solty Rei ソルティレイ [Gonzo, AIC] (Finished 10/24) Tags: Super Power Action, Sci-Fi In a future-based disaster-ridden city with an enormous gap between the rich and the poor, it is hard to tell which humans are walking around with cybernetic body parts. This makes Roy Revant's job as a renegade bounty hunter/bodyguard-for-hire even more difficult. When a young girl with unbeliveable strength rescues him from a particularly dangerous criminal, Roy realizes that perhaps help can be found in the strangest of places. Joining together with a few others, they engage in a battle to find out the truth behind the giant conglomerates that are supposedly serving mankind and making life better. Solty, an android who has lost her memory, has escaped and is being hunted by the RUC Security Bureau. She encounters the bounty hunter Roy and he adopts her as his daughter after being hired as a bodygaurd for Miranda. The reality is that it's super slow paced bore with no real plot even started by the middle. It's mostly SOL about unusual girl. Another filler series with actual story enough only for OVA while stretched to 26 episodes. Overall Rating: 6/10 17. Canvas 2: Nijiiro no Sketch Canvas 2: Rainbow Colored Sketch Canvas2 ~虹色のスケッチ~ [Zexcs] (Finished 1/24) Tags: Visual Arts Comedy, Drama, Romance Kamikura Hiroki is an art student at the local school Nadesico Academy (High School and college level) whom intends to be an art teacher in the future. He is also the advisor to the high school arts society where his cousin, Housen Elis, attends. While Elis is a painter like Hiroki, Hiroki seems to have given up on his dreams and no longer paints. There appears to be some mysterious trauma in the both of their pasts which may have changed them. Meanwhile, the high school hires a new PE teacher, Kikyo Kiri. On the first day, she bumps into Hiroki and is stunned. Here is the boy she confessed to and he refused her... The curse of early visual novels is here through and through. Cheezy comedy, irritating characters, blank protagonist and constant flashes don't leave many opportunities to get interested, at least for me. Overall Rating: 6/10 18. Capeta カペタ [Studio Comet] (Finished 1/52) Tags: Shounen Racing Sports After losing his mother at a very young age, elementary school student Capeta Taira is forced to become more independent to avoid his father worrying for him. Working in a paving company, his father is often busy and has to work overtime to make ends meet. However, no matter how tough he acts in front of his father, Capeta is ultimately just a lonely kid with a rough life. In addition to his typical house duties, he has to deal with the bully Nobu Andou which makes him feel worse, despite support from his classmate, Monami Suzuki. One day, Capeta's father sees young go-kart drivers racing at high speeds and gets inspired by the scene. He then decides to collect scrapped parts available on the track and begins working on a gift for his son. Meanwhile, Capeta and Monami sneak into his workplace, suspecting that his father is up to something. Much to their surprise, they see a go-kart built from discarded parts—with Capeta's name attached to it! Although it lacks an engine and looks worn out, the kart is mostly complete and functional. Despite the heavy rain, Capeta cannot resist the urge to try out this new machinery. As he drives the kart downhill on a wet road, an incident that is almost a dangerous accident instead becomes a thrilling obsession. No longer bored with life, the engine of Capeta's heart is ignited with a new passion as he journeys into the world of racing. A lively racing spokon, but protagonist is too young to make it serious. Overall Rating: 6/10 19. To Heart 2 トゥハート2 [OLM] (Finished 3/13) Tags: Harem, School Comedy, Drama, Romance Following her graduation from middle school, Konomi Yuzuhara enters the same high school as Takaaki Kono, her childhood friend. As the new school year begins, they meet their childhood friend Tamaki Kosaka, as well as many new accquaintances. Unbeknownst to the group, their encounters with each other will soon lead to many memorable adventures. Compared to good romance anime To Heart 2 does not stretch beyond averageness. Overall Rating: 5/10 20. IGPX: Immortal Grand Prix (2005) IGPX: Immortal Grand Prix [Production I.G] (Finished 3/13) Tags: Mecha, Racing Action, Drama, Sci-Fi In the year 2048, people are raving about a fighting race called “Immortal Grand Prix”, or IGPX in short, which is faster and more exciting than any of the existing motor sports. The phenomenon is so big that an entire city was built for the racing industry where competitions take place on a huge track. In the “Immortal Grand Prix,” two teams of three IG machines, high-tech humanoid mechs driven by humans, race at speeds greater than 400km/h. The teams make three laps of a 60 km course while intercepting the opponent as they vie for a first place finish. The best machine performance, the best pilots and the best teamwork are the only factors that can make them the winners. I doubt anything about SPEED can ever raise my interest. Overall Rating: 5/10 21. Idaten Jump 韋駄天翔(ジャンプ) [Trans Arts] (Finished 1/52) Tags: School, Strategy Game Sports During a race, mountain bike (MTB) enthusiast Shou Yamato is mysteriously dragged into another world alongside his friends, Kakeru and Makoto. Soon, the group discovers that this world known as "X-Zone" revolves around Idaten battles—MTB races characterized by special courses, rules, and hidden powers lying dormant within the bikes. The only way to return home is to win and obtain the MTB emblems from the defeated challengers. Despite being perplexed and terrified of the bizarre world, Shou is surprisingly excited. He has the opportunity to compete with fellow MTB riders, make new friends and rivals, and also unearth the X-Zone's hidden truths that may dramatically change his fate. Shou and his friends must make it through an arduous journey, one rife with conspiracies against them, in order to safely return home together. Childish races. Overall Rating: 5/10 22. Angel Heart エンジェル・ハート [TMS Entertainment] (Finished 3/50) Tags: Seinen Action, Drama, Mystery, Romance A young Taiwanese assassin codenamed "Glass Heart" committed suicide by jumping off a building, and her heart was pierced by metal fence. Miraculously, her life was saved by heart transplantation. During her recovery she began to experience strange dreams, which lead her to Japan looking for the donor of her heart, who happens to be Kaori Makimura, former partner of City Hunter Ryo Saeba. The author mentioned in the first tankoubon volume that Angel Heart only shares the same characters of City Hunter but not its continuation. The events are all parallel universe, therefore it has nothing to do with City Hunter. City hunter was not good enough for side-tracking it in a parallel universe let alone for 50 episodes without presenting a thrilling story. Overall Rating: 6/10 23. Ginga Densetsu Weed 銀牙伝説ウィード [Studio Deen] (Finished 2/26) Tags: Seinen Anthropomorphic Adventure, Drama A dog named Weed happens to hear that he is the son of Gin, the great leader of Ohu who lead the dogs of Ohu to victory in a fight against monsterous bear, Akakabuto. Weed wants to find his father no matter what. On a journey to find his father Weed meets many friends and enemies. Dogs/Wolfs constantly fight in the wild, and it has some traits of samurai series. Personally, I can't take it all seriously, especially because there's a lot of shounen naivete. Overall Rating: 6/10 24. Cluster Edge CLUSTER EDGE(クラスターエッジ) [Sunrise] (Finished 5/25) Tags: Military Action, Fantasy, Sci-Fi Cluster Edge Academy isn't just any school; it's THE school, where the offspring of the elite come together to prepare for their roles running a world where artificial soldiers and religious sects are major factors in the battle for total control. Which may be part of why new transfer student Agate Fluorite doesn't quite seem to fit in. It's not just that Agate's enthusiastic attitude stands out among the somber, brooding balance of the student body. There's something about him that demands notice, even from jaded honors students like Beryl Jasper, and from the moment of arrival he's been at the center of a series of mysteries that not even Agate understands. Because Agate's not just another student, he's part of a something so momentous, and dangerous, that the world that built Cluster Edge may not survive its passing. Super boring Sunrise fraud, not sure if this pseudo-SOL is even going anywhere. Overall Rating: 5/10 25. Rockman.EXE Beast ロックマン エグゼ BEAST [Xebec] (Finished 1/25) Tags: Shounen Mecha, Strategy Game Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi Trill, a mysterious navi said to have originated from the world of Beyondard, is discovered. And new beast-type enemies, the Zoanoroids, want him for his special power. Netto Hikari and Rockman must protect their new friend while they try to figure out what Trill is really and his connection to the two legendary cyber beasts, Grega and Faltzer. Kids stuff. Overall Rating: 5/10 26. Bouken Ou Beet Excellion Beet the Vandel Buster Excellion 冒険王ビィト エクセリオン [Toei Animation] (Finished 1/25) Tags: Shounen Adventure, Fantasy, Supernatural It is the dark century and the people are suffering under the rule of the devil, Vandel, who is able to manipulate monsters. The Vandel Busters are a group of people who hunt these devils, and among them, the Zenon Squad is known to be the strongest busters on the continent. A young boy, Beet, dreams of joining the Zenon Squad. However, one day, as a result of Beet's fault, the Zenon squad was defeated by the devil, Beltose. The five dying busters sacrificed their life power into their five weapons, Saiga. After giving their weapons to Beet, they passed away. Years have passed since then and the young Vandel Buster, Beet, begins his adventure to carry out the Zenon Squad's will to put an end to the dark century. Original had uniqueness from the start, but guess it's more or less lost, and now it's just your average shounen. Overall Rating: 5/10 27. Kakutou Bijin Wulong Fighting Beauty Wulong 格闘美神 武龍 [TMS Entertainment] (Finished 3/25) Tags: Martial Arts Action, Ecchi At first glance, Mao Ran is a normal cute girl, but she is a master of a martial arts handed down by Mao family. One day, she is tricked by her grandfather, and forced to take part in the fighting match, "Prime Mat". First, she is reluctant to fight, but fighting against the rivals, she is gradually fascinated by the "fighting". It's all in the title, and nothing can justify this bore. Overall Rating: 5/10 28. Happy Seven: The TV Manga はっぴぃセブン ~ざ・テレビまんが~ [Studio Hibari] (Finished 4/13) Tags: School Comedy, Fantasy Amano Sakogami is a girl who has an unnatural amount of bad luck. One day, she stumbles into the clubroom of the Better Fortune Research Organization, which consists of a boy and seven other girls who secretly use the power of the luck deities to fight against the Magatsugami, monsters who can affect a person's luck & well-being. Amano soon becomes the club's manager, and joins the club in their fight against the Magatsugami and their controller, Kukitomoe. Majority of time is occupied by nonsensical school comedy of generic nature, and no characters really stand out. Overall Rating: 5/10 29. Gaiking: Legend of Daiku-Maryu ガイキング Legend of Daiku-Maryu [Toei Animation] (Finished 1/39) Tags: Mecha Action, Sci-Fi A boy, Tsuwabaki Daiya found a black fire in an ocean when he and his father were in a small boat. A big monster came out of the fire, and the father and the crews were disappeared into the sea. When he was about to become the next victim, a large mecka dragon appeared and saved him. 5 years later since then, Daiya becomes a junior high school student. A big monster reappear, and he meets the mecha dragon,"Daiku Maryu". The head of the dragon separates from the body, and it turns into the body of a super robot, Gaiking. He gets in Gaiking, fights against the monster, and beats it. He learns that there is an enemy that plots to conquer the world, and he leaves for another world, Darius, to stop the plot. Childish mecha is back for those who still care. Overall Rating: 5/10 30. Gunparade Orchestra ガンパレード・オーケストラ [Brain's Base] (Finished 3/24) Tags: Mecha, Military Drama, Romance, Sci-Fi he story focuses and revolves around the 108th Guard Squad, stationed in Aomori. A poorly equipped unit with very little military standing, it is often viewed as a 'reject camp' for pilots not making the grade for the elite units based in Hokkaido. The apparent helpless nature of this force is hardly a deterrent for the encroaching enemy armies, ever closing in on both the 108th and the rest of the empire. The young pilots of the 108th, who had dreamed on returning home, are plunged forcefully and unwillingly into a war. Just a more irritating generic mecha than usual. Overall Rating: 5/10 31. Dae Jang Geum: Jang Geum's Dream 少女チャングムの夢 [Heewon Entertainment] (Finished 3/26) Tags: Historical Adventure, Comedy, Gourmet Story is about the girl Jang Geum who wants to be a cook. She gets accepted as a palace servant. Clever and cheerful Jang Geum quickly finds friends. But all to soon she encounters intrigue and corruption. If I wanted to see how a child is treated poorly by some rich, I'd watch some World Drama Theater series. There's also superability elements here, so I'd call it another immature attempt to play in national anime. Overall Rating: 5/10 32. Animal Yokochou Animal Lane アニマル横町 [Gallop] (Finished 2/51) Tags: Shoujo Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy On the first day her family moved to their new house, 5-year-old Ami-chan made friends with three talking animals who came out of a door in her bedroom floor, which she finds out leads to Animal Yokocho, another world. The three are Issa, an overly innocent, soft-spoken panda, Kenta, a highly strung, red-scarf-loving bear who puts on an almost constant tough-guy act, and Iyo, a rabbit who usually holds her own well-being and enjoyment over the happiness (and safety) of her friends. Even at only 5 years old, Ami-chan is easily the most rational of the group, and she's a little wary at first, but she eventually comes around and starts spending her free time with them. A typical day involves Ami-chan and the three doing different things to pass the time, often playing a seemingly innocent game, but in AniYoko style. Unfortunately for Ami-chan, the AniYoko version usually turns out to be drastically different, much less logical, and usually more dangerous than the ordinary version. It's just nonsense as stuff animals fool around beside a girl, waste of time as humor is not to my taste. Overall Rating: 6/10 33. Rean no Tsubasa The Wings of Rean リーンの翼 [Sunrise] (Finished 6/6) Tags: Mecha Award Winning, Fantasy, Sci-Fi Because his friends fired a rocket into the US Army camp, Suzuki was wanted by the US Army and the police. While he was running away the sea surface suddenly rose, and when a brilliant light appeared he saw a strange looking battleship flying in the air. He was dumped into the sea and when he crawled onto the battleship there was a beautiful girl standing there. She said her name was Lyx, the princess of another world, and added, "My Father is Japanese, Shinjiro Sakomizu. Please help me, Suzuki." I endured it somehow, but it's nothing but dumb. Overall Rating: 5/10 34. Pale Cocoon ペイル・コクーン [Studio Rikka] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Drama, Sci-Fi A future where the continuity of history has broken off, a world of enormous ruins that continues endlessly. Oceans and continents have vanished, existing only within the archives brought up from the remains. Ura works in the Archive Excavation Department, which restores and analyzes the data left behind. One day, he finds a disturbing visual record... Super short, and without even a deep thought intended. Overall Rating: 5/10 35. Arashi no Yoru ni あらしのよるに [Group TAC] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Anthropomorphic Adventure, Comedy, Drama, Fantasy A story about a goat and a wolf who become friends on a stormy night, and how they overcome differences and hardships. It tries to be drama, but still feels childish. Overall Rating: 6/10 -
Koukaku Kidoutai: Stand Alone Complex - The Laughing Man is inevitably the winner, but for a change there two more small masterpieces - Ichigo Mashimaro and Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children 1. Shuffle! SHUFFLE! (シャッフル!) [asread.] (Finished 3/24) Tags: Seinen Harem, School Comedy, Drama, Fantasy, Romance, Ecchi In present times, Gods and Demons coexist together with Humans after the door between each of these worlds had opened. Tsuchimi Rin is a normal young high school student attending Verbena Academy, spending his days living peacefully with his childhood friend Kaede. Unexpectedly, one day the King of Gods, the King of Demons and their families move into be Rin's next door neighbors. Apparently the daughter of the Gods, Sia, and the daughter of the demons, Nerine, are both deeply in love with Rin after having met him in the past. Along with his playful friendship with upperclassmen Asa and his encounter with the silent but cute Primula, Rin has much on his hands dealing with the affections of each of these girls. Based on the eroge by Navel. Shuffle is so obnoxious for me in many ways that I can't tolerate it for long. Overall Rating: 6/10 2. Full Metal Panic! The Second Raid フルメタル パニック!The Second Raid [Kyoto Animation] (Finished 2/13) Tags: Mecha, Military Action After overcoming various tumultuous events, mercenary sergeant Sousuke Sagara of Mithril and "Whispered" school girl Kaname Chidori return to their normal high school lives. Sousuke continues his efforts to assimilate with the civilian population and manage his mission at the same time, while Kaname attempts to support his endeavors (even though his antics often drive her up a wall). However, as their lives calm, new problems begin to appear. The appearance of an independent terrorist organization known as Amalgam and internal conflicts within Mithril threaten to wreak unity into a series of failures and betrayals. And new, powerful Arm Slave models only worsen the situation when the world's peace is at stake. As Kaname and Sousuke face their own inner battles amidst life-threatening fights, will they be able to make the right choices and change their future? Third season, so need to at least like previous ones. Overall Rating: 6/10 3. Suzuka 涼風 [Studio Comet] (Finished 3/26) Tags: Shounen Drama, Romance, Sports Teenager Yamato Akitsuki has moved from the Hiroshima countryside to Tokyo to begin his high school career. In return for room and board, he has agreed to help his aunt and cousin run their bathhouse and the adjacent girls-only dormitory where he will be staying. On his way to meet his relatives, he passes by a local high school track and is mesmerized by a high jumper practicing her technique. Later on, Yamato finds out that the high jumper is not just another resident of the dorm, but is also his neighbor. Suzuka Asahina is a heavily scouted track and field athlete who is attending the same high school he is enrolled in. A perfectionist by nature, Suzuka is put off by Yamato's clumsy and carefree attitude and finds it difficult to be near him. Determined to win her over, Yamato joins the track team after discovering his hidden talent for sprinting. Through his interactions with the track team, his classmates, and the ever-inebriated college students in the dorm, Yamato finds the resolve to become a better athlete and a more suitable companion to Suzuka, even if it means pushing himself to the point of exhaustion. Slightly above average school romance. It tries to be reflexive, but has a long way to go till His and Her circumstances. It's only moderately irritating, and that deserves a praise already. Overall Rating: 6/10 4. Ichigo Mashimaro Strawberry Marshmallow 苺ましまろ [Daume] (Finished 12/12) Tags: CGDCT, Iyashikei Comedy, Slice of Life "Cute girls doing cute things in cute ways." Everyday things make up the fabric of life—whether it's making friends, going to school, trying to make money, or celebrating a holiday. Ichigo Mashimaro is a heartwarming series that follows the daily lives of Itou Chika, her sister Nobue, and her friends Miu, Matsuri, and Ana. Cute girls doing stuff is a familiar concept, so it all depends on humor. And humor here is actually great to my liking, at times it even rivals Lucky Star. And thanks to continuous episodes in contrast to sketches of Azumanga etc Strawberry Marshmallow actually feels solid. Overall Rating: 7/10 5. Gun x Sword ガン×ソード [AIC ASTA] (Finished 6/26) Tags: Mecha Action, Adventure, Drama, Sci-Fi Van, a lanky and apathetic swordsman, is on a journey to kill the murderer of his fiancé. The only characteristic he has to go by is that the murderer has a claw for an arm, hence the murderer being referred to as The Claw Man. During his travels, Van happens to pass through the city of Evergreen, which is defending itself from bandits who aim to rob the city of its treasury. It is in this city that Van meets Wendy Garret, a timid young girl who is looking for her kidnapped brother. When the city pleads for Van's assistance to defend it, he refuses, claiming it has nothing to do with him and thus leaves the city on its own to deal with the peril. Soon after, Van comes across the raiding bandits himself and they eventually tick off the swordsman to a degree where he takes action against them for his own personal vendetta. Surprisingly, Van learns that the bandits had ties with The Claw Man, and in kidnapping Wendy's brother for a reason they did not disclose. After the bandits are dealt with easily, Van and, much to his chagrin, Wendy continue the journey in search of The Claw Man. Little do they know, however, that The Claw Man is involved with something more atrocious than either could fathom. Another work that tries to fuse many successful elements from the past. Protagonist feels like Vampire D, concept like Trigun, and there's also mecha, because... everyone likes mecha or something. Female protagonist is rather poor as is, but villains are just horrible and ridiculous, excessively irritating. Overall Rating: 6/10 6. Amaenaide yo!! Ah My Buddha あまえないでよっ!! [Studio Deen] (Finished 2/12) Tags: Seinen Harem Comedy, Romance, Supernatural, Ecchi Satonaka Ikkou, a 16 year old boy, is a first year trainee at the Saienji Buddhist Temple. He was sent there by his parents to be trained by his grandmother, the Saienji Priestess. At the temple he finds himself surrounded by beautiful female priestesses-in-training. Upon seeing a girl naked, Ikko has the ability to turn into a super-monk, performing massive exorcisms for the good of the temple. This is just average. Super convenient recycled situations and bland characters that we've seen a lot of times. Overall Rating: 5/10 7. Paniponi Dash! ぱにぽにだっしゅ! [Shaft] (Finished 6/26) Tags: Shounen Gag Humor, Parody, School Comedy The 11-year-old Miyamoto Rebecca becomes the new teacher of a classroom which is full of weirdos. Despite her cute looks she's a little beast and can be pretty sarcastic and offensive. The school is not safe anymore now that she's in charge of a class and her students, Himeko, Ichijou, Rei and a white rabbit who took a liking to Rebecca help her to rough up the school and the neighbor with its teacher "ojii-chan." Student actually surpassed teacher, and this one is definitely better than Azumanga. But I'm getting tired of it fast and not enjoying it on the same level as Strawberry Marshmallow. Can't say I appreciate this humor highly. Overall Rating: 6/10 8. Kamichu! かみちゅ! [Brain's Base] (Finished 12/12) Tags: Iyashikei Award Winning, Comedy, Drama, Slice of Life, Supernatural Yurie Hitotsubashi was just an average middle school student living in the city of Onomichi on Japan's inland sea in the easygoing times of the 1980s. She spent her days worrying about exams and trying to get Kenji, the clueless boy she likes, to notice her. Then during lunch one day she suddenly announces to her friend Mitsue that the night before she had become a goddess. Their classmate Matsuri quickly latches on to Yurie's newfound divinity as a way to promote her family's bankrupt Shinto shrine. She hopes that replacing their hapless local god, Yashima-sama, with Yurie will make the shrine more popular (and profitable). Now, with Matsuri as her manager, Yurie has to grant wishes, cure curses, meet aliens, and attend god conventions. All the while attending school and working-up the courage to confess to Kenji. Ordinary girl becomes a shy local god. And it's no really much better than expected of such kind of story. And all the awards probably go just because style and substance resemble Studio Ghibli works, with worse visuals though. It's slow-paced and very boring, as for me. Only finished it for reference purposes and because plot is still unusual for works up to that point, but don't color me interested. Overall Rating: 6/10 9. Sugar Sugar Rune シュガシュガルーン [Pierrot] (Finished 1/51) Tags: Mahou Shoujo Comedy, Drama, Fantasy Chocolat Meilleure and Vanilla Mieux are two witches who are pitched in a contest to see who will become the new Queen of the Witch World. They must travel to the Human World and collect the hearts of humans. Whoever collects the most "human hearts" wins. Even though they're rivals, the two are still best friends. Join them on this adventure! One episode of this yet another mahou shoujo anime with naivete and bishounens is more than enough for me. Too many stamps and familiar things under one roof. Overall Rating: 5/10 10. D.C.S.S: Da Capo Second Season D.C.S.S. ~Da Capo Second Season~ D.C.S.S. ~ダ・カーポ セカンドシーズン~ [feel.] (Finished 1/26) Tags: Harem Comedy, Drama, Romance, Supernatural Hatsune-Jima was once well-known for its cherry trees, which would bloom no matter what time of year it was. Two years ago, the island's cherry trees lost this ability and all became ordinary cherry trees that bloom only in the spring. Jun'ichi Asakura is now a graduating senior at Kazami Academy, and is surrounded by many close friends, old and new alike. On a stormy summer day, a mysterious young girl, Aisia, arrives at Jun'ichi's door. She is looking for Sakura's grandmother to study magic, ultimately hoping to bring happiness to everyone. When she discovers that grandmother Yoshino had long since passed away, she joyfully assumes (thanks to his error in judgment) that Jun'ichi is able to teach her. Even though she finally understands that the only magic he's capable of is conjuring Japanese confections, Aisia continues her search for magic on Hatsune-Jima. Amid the chaos of her search, Kazami Academy hires new medical staff. All those classic charage adaptations look alike to me, same as original material. In one word - stupid. Overall Rating: 5/10 11. Okusama wa Joshikousei (TV) おくさまは女子高生 [Madhouse] (Finished 2/13) Tags: Seinen Comedy, Drama, Romance Asami Onohara is a seventeen-year old high-school student with a secret which has not been revealed to anyone: She is already married. Her husband, Kyosuke Ichimaru, is a Physics teacher in the same high school as her. However, even though they are officially a married couple, Asami's father forbids them to have any sexual contact until after Asami has graduated. Asami has to hide the fact that she is married to Kyosuke while trying desperately to further their relationship, and it does not help when there are so many interferences and obstacles from her father and other third parties. Again, totally expected development with fetish flavor. The only intrigue is terms of contract, so after it's revealed there's not much to look forward to. Overall Rating: 6/10 12. Kyoushoku Soukou Guyver (2005) Guyver: The Bioboosted Armor 強殖装甲ガイバー [OLM] (Finished 2/26) Tags: Shounen Adventure, Sci-Fi Sho Fukamachi, a normal teenager accidentally found an alien object called Unit and thus, changed his life forever. The Unit bonded with Sho, resulting in an incredibly powerful life-form called Guyver. With this great power, Sho battles the mysterious Chronos organization and it's Zoanoids, in order to protect his friends and his world. Unknown to Sho, the battle against Chronos will lead to the discovery of the origins of human, their destiny, and the Creators... Hate to admit it , but old Guyver OVA was indeed better - alive and not typical. This plastic refined installment reeks of stamps and fake emotions. The way protagonist's pal is depicted now is just a total shame. Overall Rating: 5/10 13. Okusama wa Mahou Shoujo Madam is a Magical Girl 奥さまは魔法少女 [J.C.Staff] (Finished 3/13) Tags: Mahou Shoujo Fantasy, Romance Ureshiko Asaba, 26 years old, married. Few people know the fact that she is a magical girl named "Agnes", and she is actually the guardian of the town where she lives. One day she meets Sayaka Kurenai, aka "Cruje", another magical girl appointed by the magic realm as the legitimate sucessor to her position, but Agnes is reluctant in letting her assume because she knows that Cruje has orders to erase the whole place, including its human inhabitants with the purpose of creating a new one. To complicate matters, Ureshiko must deal with the growing distance between her and her husband, Tamotsu, her crescent feelings for Tatsumi Kagura, a young man who is now living as a tenant in her home, and the fact that in the moment she ever kisses a common human, she would lose her powers forever. The idea is to make mahou Jousei with a curvy female protagonist. A bit of ecchi, a bit of mahou shoujo battles, a bit of generations conflict. The result is quite sad as it's a typical show in slightly twitched setting rather than something different. Overall Rating: 5/10 14. Tide-Line Blue タイドライン・ブルー [Telecom Animation Film] (Finished 12/12) Tags: Military Action, Adventure, Drama The catastrophe, "Hammer of Eden," resulted in the loss of six billion lives and the flooding of 90% of the land. The New United Nations were formed to pursue peace on the ruined lands 14 years later. Keel is a boy living in a town called Yabitsu, an area which prospered due to the energy from the nuclear generator brought by the catastrophe. His next kin, Aoi, is the secretary general of the New United Nations. She views the catastrophe as an opportunity to create a new world in which nations can help one another overcome differences in races and religions. However, her efforts to realise that vision fail because of the unwillingness of the nations to change. Gould, a military officer, feels that the only way to make an order is through the military. Using Ulysses, a nuclear submarine, along with his crew, including Keel's brother Tean, Gould carries out a coup to declare war against the New United Nations in his attack on Yabitsu. An immature adventure and politics story. Friendship brings world peace and all that crap. No appealing characters spotted. Overall Rating: 5/10 15. PetoPeto-san ぺとぺとさん [XEBEC M2] (Finished 5/13) Tags: Mythology, School Comedy, Romance After centuries of antagonism and misunderstanding, the Japanese finally welcome youkai into their community. In an attempt at species integration, normal children begin attending school with paranormal creatures who are quite humanoid. Shingo Ohashi finds himself developing feelings for Hatoko "Petoko" Fujimura, a half-youkai half-human girl whose powers are: uncontrollable cuteness to enchant those around her (similar to a low-power succubus), get stuck to any other person who touches her bare flesh (cured by her falling asleep), and the ability to disappear even at the molecular stage (which she can for the most part control). Focus on cuteness and youkai is not what I generally seek in anime... it's mostly just cheerfulness, so not sure who the target audience is here as it does not seem to be for children either... probably for those who can just enjoy cute things without much in place of the the story. Overall Rating: 6/10 16. Kidou Shinsengumi Moeyo Ken TV Moeyo Ken TV 機動新撰組 萌えよ剣 TV [Trinet Entertainment, Picture Magic] (Finished 3/13) Tags: Historical Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy Set in an alternate version of the Meiji Era, a boy named Sakamoto Ryunosuke returns to Kyoto from Shanghai with his monster (youkai) Nekomaru. The law states that in order to live freely with humans, a youkai must be liscensed. The Kidou Shinsengumi Co. Ltd. is responsible for the capture of unliscensed youkais but must fight with the Tsubamegumi, who resents the new law. It turns out that Ryunosuke is the son of the owner of the Shinsengumis. Female shinsengumi is not a bad thing, but content is some nonsense and some romcom, so not great. Overall Rating: 6/10 17. Akahori Gedou Hour Rabuge Akahori's Heretical Hour Love Game あかほり外道アワーらぶげ [Radix] (Finished 4/13) Tags: Parody Comedy Akahori Gedou Hour Rabuge is an anime series that combined episodes of two related stories into one broadcast block. Zettai Seigi Love Pheromone Yoshizumi Aimi and Sasajima Kaoruko are comic duo, Their dream is to become popular and stand on the Broadway stage.However, their names are not well-known, and they have to do part-time jobs.To make their names popular, they decided to do side job. It is heroines of justice, They will beat villains one after another, but after that, there is nothing but ruins. People are afraid of them and even rumor that they are evil. Mahou shoujo nonsense with unfunny parody comedy. Overall Rating: 5/10 18. Play Ball プレイボール [Eiken] (Finished 1/13) Tags: Shounen Team Sports After fracturing a finger in a junior high school game, Takao Taniguchi is unable to play baseball. After entering Sumitani High School, he is constantly watching the baseball club even though he is unable to play. He catches the eye of the captain of the soccer club, and while he still has lingering hopes of joining the baseball club, he decides to join the soccer club. While he's a complete beginner, Taniguchi developed a strong spirit of hard work while in junior high school and his new teammates begin to see his potential. While he focuses all of his energy on soccer, he is unable to forget his youthful zeal for baseball and he begins umpiring baseball games in secret. Not translated. Old-fashioned baseball spokon, not seeing anything special about it. Overall Rating: 5/10 19. Hametsu no Mars Mars of Destruction 破滅のマルス [WAO World] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Horror, Sci-Fi Several months after a probe returning from Mars burns up during reentry, strange creatures dubbed "Ancients" begin to appear throughout Tokyo. Aggressive and dangerous, they cannot be killed with ordinary weapons. As scientists struggle to find the cause of their sudden appearance, the monsters wreak havoc across the world. Humanity finds hope in the form of the MARS suit—a new weapon developed to take down these enemies. The suit, however, can only be worn by those with specific DNA. Enter Takeru Hinata, an ordinary teen with a troubled past and one of the few capable of piloting the only weapon against the Ancients. With the help of the AAST, a special police force established to defeat the dangerous creatures, the young man battles against demons both personal and global whilst trying to discover the true nature of Earth's new aggressors. Short infamously horrible episode, at least there's a funny dub. Overall Rating: 4/10 20. Saishuu Heiki Kanojo: Another Love Song Saikano: Another Love Song 最終兵器彼女Another Love Song [Studio Fantasia] (Finished 2/2) Tags: Drama, Romance, Sci-Fi Before Chise became the "ultimate weapon," there was another—Lieutenant Mizuki. A battle-hardened military woman, she volunteered for an experimental procedure after injuries left her unable to return to the battlefield. As the prototype ultimate weapon, Lieutenant Mizuki was highly successful on the battlefield, however, as the first candidate, her development was limited. When a more suitable candidate to become the weapon, Chise, is forced into the military, Lieutenant Mizuki thinks that she is silly, weak, and unsuited for the role. As the only other person to have undergone the procedure, however, Lieutenant Mizuki can hear Chise's thoughts and is the only one who understands her. As the war rages on and Chise's development progresses, Lieutenant Mizuki discovers more about Chise, ultimate weapons, and herself. A new portion of senseless self-hatred and crying with the only positive side of it all being short. Overall Rating: 5/10 21. Seikai no Senki III 星界の戦旗 III [Sunrise] (Finished 2/2) Tags: Military, Space Action, Romance, Sci-Fi Jinto and Lafiel were riding on a light-armed transport ship "Bokbrusue" and navigating at the planar space of the Hyde System. This was for Jinto to govern the Hyde System, which returned to Empirial rule after the Union retreated, officially as an Earl. However, the government of Martin, Jinto`s motherland, resisted obstinately against the Empirial rule. On the other side, "Daiichi Jyuurin Sentai" (the First Devastation Fleet), formed with the new ship type "Attack Vessel", travelled to the Hyde System for drilling practices, but... A deserved open ending for the series where nothing happened but a one-sided streak of victories after initial collapse. Just worldbuilding is not enough without normal story or really outstanding characters. Overall Rating: 5/10 22. Prayers プレイヤーズ [PPM] (Finished 2/2) Tags: Sci-Fi It is the year of 2014, Shibuya is independent from Japan, and it becomes an independent nation. It is a town of chaos where only young people are living. The life necessity, such as electricity, water, and food are transported by the pipelines out from the Shibuya. The pipelines are running like cobweb in the sky, the young people in Shibuya looked like bugs trapped in the cobweb. In this city, there are people called "Prayers". They earn money by the battle of music. They turn music into electric signals and inject them into brains, and destroy opponents' mind and bodies each others. Ridiculously poor concept failed to present a miracle, not surprising. Overall Rating: 5/10 23. Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children ファイナルファンタジーVII アドベントチルドレン [Square Enix] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Super Power Action, Fantasy Two years ago, the world was changed forever. The young Cloud Strife and his band of friends may have defeated Sephiroth and thwarted his plan to crash a giant meteor into the Earth, but this victory was not without great cost. The highly populated city of Midgar was nearly ripped apart in the conflict. Fortunately, many of the city's citizens were able to evacuate to safety, and in the years afterward have formed a new home called Edge. Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children revolves around Cloud and Tifa as they try to make new lives for themselves, as well as for those around them, in this new city. Together they run a courier service, and tend to their mutual friend Barret’s adopted daughter Marlene and a young orphan by the name of Denzel. Denzel, Cloud, and scores of children are suffering from a mysterious new illness called "Geostigma." The children of the city have one other threat looming over their heads—a trio of powerful men are kidnapping infected kids for unknown reasons. Cloud is determined to save these young ones, not only from Geostigma, but from the kidnappers as well. He has no idea, however, that these men share a link to his old enemy, Sephiroth, and Cloud’s quest to vanquish them will bring him back into conflict with the demons of his past. If there is any hope in conquering these threats, it lays within the bonds of friendship between Cloud and his allies who saved the world once, and now must do so again. It feels more like high quality fandisc with a bit of time for each character, a bit of action and just fates of characters. As a canonical continuation, it arouses interest and deserves a minor masterpiece, but story itself is not great, just extrapolation of old ideas. Overall Rating: 7/10 24. xxxHOLiC Movie: Manatsu no Yoru no Yume xxxHOLiC The Movie: A Midsummer Night's Dream 劇場版 ×××HOLiC 真夏ノ夜ノ夢 [Production I.G] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Seinen Psychological Comedy, Drama, Mystery, Supernatural Summer break has arrived, but while his other classmates are out having fun, Kimihiro Watanuki continues to work as compensation for the eccentric Yuuko in her shop. With the spirits and supernatural phenomena that bother him lessening, he pays his dues by cleaning, cooking, and doing whatever else the apparently lazy Yuuko needs. Watanuki, however, gets involved in a new predicament when Yuuko receives a mysterious invitation to a mansion whose owner seeks Yuuko's wish-granting ability. When he, Yuuko, and his classmate Shizuka Doumeki make their way to the peculiar residence, they meet others who were summoned by the same strange invitation. All of them are collectors of various unique items, drawn there by the chance to expand their collections. But as the collectors begin to disappear one by one, Watanuki and his companions must solve the mystery and put the case to rest, or find themselves in risk of danger. Paranormal mystery is not the combination that I enjoy. This starting movie is not impressive. Overall Rating: 6/10 25. Glass no Usagi Glass Rabbit ガラスのうさぎ [Magic Bus] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Historical Toshiko Ei and her family are residents of Tokyo. Her father is a respected and skilled glass craftsmen so the family makes a good living. However, the Ei family soon finds itself having to suffer through many tragic hardships as a result of World War II. Another obligatory social movie about World War II. It delivers the message crudely. Overall Rating: 5/10 26. Shisha no Sho The Book of the Dead 死者の書 [Sakura Motion Picture] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Award Winning, Drama, Supernatural When a young noblewoman, Iratsume, falls into a trance after copying Buddhist sutras and walks to a remote temple that women are forbidden to enter, she stirs up the ghost of the executed Prince Otsu. Otsu's ghost then mistakes Iratsume for one of her ancestors, a young woman who came to watch his execution. The beautiful face of this young woman was the last thing the Prince saw before he died, and his ghost cannot rest while her face haunts his sleep. It's not anime, just animated dolls. As for me, it's one of those Heian ghost stories that are just taking an hour of life without giving anything. Overall Rating: 5/10 27. Nagasaki 1945: Angelus no Kane Nagasaki 1945 ~ The Angelus Bells NAGASAKI・1945 アンゼラスの鐘 [Mushi Production] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Historical, Medical, Military Drama August 1945. In a converted theological seminary on the outskirts of Nagasaki, a young doctor works to help his patients, as unsettling news comes of a new weapon used by the Americans on the city of Hiroshima. When the second nuclear weapon is dropped on Nagasaki, the hospital staff must work to save lives in the midst of the concentric circles of death that their city has become. Again, not a very spectacular or memorable echo of the war. Overall Rating: 5/10 28. Final Fantasy VII: Last Order ラストオーダー -ファイナルファンタジーVII- [Madhouse] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Action, Adventure, Drama, Fantasy, Sci-Fi With reports of monsters terrorizing the reactor at Mount Nibel, the Shinra Electric Power Company dispatches their elite fighting force SOLDIER to investigate. Accompanied by fellow SOLDIER First Class Zack Fair and a small contingent of company guards, the war hero Sephiroth is to assess the condition of the Mako reactor at the behest of the company. In Nibelheim, the village that the reactor powers, Sephiroth discovers the source of the monsters and the origins of Shinra's legendary Jenova Project. Running through the woods months later, Zack is no longer the hero he once dreamt of becoming. He flees from the General Affairs Department of the Shinra Electric Power Company, better known as the Turks, who desperately seek to bury the evidence living within the two. Short and lacking in most aspects compared to movie. Will do as a prequel to the game, but I have not played Crisis Core yet, so may be missing a lot here. Anyway, it's too short for serious scores. Overall Rating: 6/10 29. Koukaku Kidoutai: Stand Alone Complex - The Laughing Man 攻殻機動隊 Stand Alone Complex - The Laughing Man [Production I.G] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Seinen Adult Cast, Detective, Mecha, Psychological Action, Mystery, Sci-Fi In 2024, the terrorist incident known as "The Laughing Man Incident" occurred in which Ernest Serano, president of the groundbreaking micromachine company, Serano Genomics, was kidnapped and ransomed. One day, the case having remained unsolved for six years, Detective Yamaguchi, who has been investigating "The Laughing Man Incident," sends word that he wants to meet with Togusa from Public Safety Section 9. However, soon after sending this message, Yamaguchi, crucial to the success of the case, dies in an accident. Many days pass and in the midst of a police interview relay concerning suspicions behind interceptors, a forewarning is received from "The Laughing Man" of his next crime. The incorporeal hacker begins to move once again. Laughing man is one of the most memorable cases in the series. The quality is still sky high. Overall Rating: 9/10 30. Hotori: Tada Saiwai wo Koinegau ほとり~たださいわいを希う [Sunrise] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Drama, Sci-Fi At the Personality Plant, robots are being built and slowly outfitted with the artificial memories of real people. Suzu is one such robot, being made to replace the young boy a family has lost. By chance, he meets Hotori, a young girl suffering from progressive memory loss. The two children become friends and attempt to define themselves in the light of their changing memories. Just a constant amnesia story with addition of artificial memories. As drama ok, but nothing big. Overall Rating: 6/10
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Another empty month 1. Sainan Tantei Saiga - Meijou Dekinai Kaijiken 災難探偵サイガ 名状できない怪事件 [230303] Yu Production Co., Ltd. 1 Saina is calamities town!? The worst disaster tale and adventure game ever! In "Saina Town" where unique residents gather, there is one unlucky detective. His name is Saiga Tendo. He is different from ordinary detectives in that he has just only one weapon. It is neither a brilliant mind nor a superhuman body. Yes, his weapon is the world's most fearsome and ferocious bad luck! When he stands up, he is anemic; when he sits down, he is poor; when he walks, he looks like a ghost or a reaper. But then a mysterious fortune teller, Hin Rei, appears in his life, and his luck is supposed to gradually improve. But the shadow of an evil god looms over the town, and ・・・・・・ When the evil god and the unhappy detective meet, something happens in Saina・・・・・・! Game is localized and has detective gameplay elements 2. PARANORMASIGHT FILE23: Honjo Nanafushigi PARANORMASIGHT FILE23 本所七不思議 [230308] Square Enix 1 Shogo Okiie, an ordinary office worker, visits Kinshibori Park in the dead of night with his friend, Yoko Fukunaga, to investigate a well-known local ghost story: The Seven Mysteries of Honjo. Shogo doesn’t quite believe Yoko when she talks about how the Mysteries are connected to the Rite of Resurrection and doesn't pay it much mind - that is, until strange events begin to unfold before his very eyes. Meanwhile, several others are making their own investigations into The Seven Mysteries... Detectives investigating a series of strange deaths, a high-school girl seeking the truth behind her classmate’s suicide, and a mother who has sworn revenge for her lost son. Their desires and motives intertwine and interplay, with the Seven Mysteries of Honjo at the core, leading the story towards a battle of wits and curses. Detective horror has English reviews 3. Kemonomichi ☆ Girlish Square 2 けもの道☆ガーリッシュスクエア2 [230331] Whirlpool Main character is a producer of idols who are also magical girls. TOKYO NEW-DOLL FESTIVAL is a nation-wide even that is going to determine No. 1 underground idol. After prequel there's nothing to discuss 4. Koi ni wa Amae ga Hitsuyou Desu 恋にはあまえが必要です [230331] HOOKSOFT Losing his father when he was young, and currently lives with his mother, the protagonist―― Morino Kento. In his second year at Aketo Hanabue Private Academy, he goes on a school trip which takes him far away from his hometown, to a place filled with exotic tourist attractions. But at that destination, Kento's cousin lives there, and it is a town where he is already familiar with, so he does not expect anything much, however...... Caught up in a commotion caused by Shishikura Ooga―― An extremely shy childhood friend who comes from the strongest lineage in human history. Helping a girl in trouble, becoming a "hero" for Karakuchi Hibana―― An ojousama who visits the same tourist attraction by chance on the school trip. Getting acquainted with Amaeda Chiwa―― A cute local student and his cousin's best friend. Earning respect as a "hero" from Aijou Michiru―― A signboard girl in the shopping district at the tourist attraction. What should have been a school trip with nothing to expect turns out to be an exciting trip filled with new encounters. However, when such a trip comes to an end in the blink of an eye, parting ways with these girls (except Ooga), Kento feels a bit lonely. But with the end of such trip―― from now on with these girls, comes the start of the new love stories. Just a relaxed stage for dating, not expecting anything good out of it 5. Shin Koihime † Eiyuutan 5 ~Otome Enran ☆ Sangokushi Engi [Gi]~ 真・恋姫†英雄譚5~乙女艶乱☆三国志演義[魏]~ [230331] BaseSon Overlord Cao Cao has one problem. If something happens to Cao Cao, who will inherit the country? Cao Cao makes a decision. Side story is another word for fandisc
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There are couple review links here
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Anime of the Year 2005-II Spring - Hachimitsu to Clover
kivandopulus posted a blog entry in Anime of the Season
Lots of decent works, none is good enough for me. If I really needed to choose, I'd probably go for Hachimitsu to Clover as with all its flaws it can still be nice at times. 1. Koukyoushihen Eureka Seven Eureka Seven 交響詩篇エウレカセブン [Bones] (Finished 3/50) Tags: Mecha Adventure, Drama, Romance, Sci-Fi In the backwater town of Bellforest lives a 14-year-old boy named Renton Thurston. He desires to leave his home behind and join the mercenary group known as Gekkostate, hoping to find some adventure to brighten up his mundane life. However, stuck between his grandfather's insistence to become a mechanic like him and the pressure of his deceased father's legacy, the only excitement Renton finds is in his pastime of riding the Trapar wave particles that are dispersed throughout the air, an activity akin to surfing. Everything changes when an unknown object crashes through Renton's garage, discovered to be a Light Finding Operation—a robot capable of riding the Trapar waves—specifically known as the Nirvash typeZERO. Its pilot is a young girl named Eureka, a member of the Gekkostate, who requests a tune-up for the Nirvash. Their meeting sparks the beginning of Renton's involvement with the Gekkostate as he takes off alongside Eureka as the co-pilot of the Nirvash. Eureka Seven is of high quality, so it's watchable and easy to watch. But it's just not interesting for me as it's a slow mecha without big aim. Compared to contemporaries, it has many benefits, but the newer anime titles, even of the same genre, put the whole enterprise of Eureka Seven to shame as they actually know what they are doing and where they are going for a change. It's too immature. And seriously... 50 episodes of this drag? Overall Rating: 6/10 2. Hachimitsu to Clover Honey and Clover ハチミツとクローバー [J.C.Staff] (Finished 6/24) Tags: Josei Adult Cast, Love Polygon, Visual Arts Comedy, Drama, Romance Yuuta Takemoto, a sophomore at an arts college, shares a cheap apartment with two seniors—the eccentric Shinobu Morita, who keeps failing to graduate due to his absenteeism, and the sensible Takumi Mayama, who acts as a proper senior to Takemoto, often looking out for him. Takemoto had not given much thought to his future until one fine spring day, when he meets the endearing Hagumi Hanamoto and falls in love at first sight. Incredibly gifted in the arts, Hagumi enrolls in Takemoto's university and soon befriends the popular pottery student Ayumi Yamada. Ayumi is already well acquainted with the three flatmates and secretly harbors deep feelings for one of them. Hachimitsu to Clover is a heartwarming tale of youth, love, soul-searching, and self-discovery, intricately woven through the complex relationships between five dear friends. I generally like such college dormitory anime like Silver Spoon, but this first representative could never involve me. All female characters here are too weird. And there's no even distinctive theme to revolve around despite the fact it's art college - compare that to Blue Period, for example. Without some glue it all falls apart to pieces, and rather irritating characters make it all obsolete under pressure of time. Overall Rating: 6/10 3. Tsubasa Chronicle Tsubasa RESERVoir CHRoNiCLE ツバサ・クロニクル [Bee Train] (Finished 4/26) Tags: Shounen Action, Adventure, Fantasy, Romance, Supernatural During an excavation at the mysterious ruins in Clow Country, Syaoran discovers his childhood friend Princess Sakura appear on the site with wings that disperse into many feathers. As the feather's disappear to different dimensions, so does Sakura's memory. In attempts to save Sakura's life and restore her memory, Syaoran travels through to another world to find a solution. There's only one thing left he can do. Travel through to different dimensions to collect Sakura's feathers. Helping out with the quest is Kurogane, an exiled ninja from Japan Country who wishes to return to his world, the runaway magician, Fay, who desires to jump between each world never to return to his own and the white meat-bun shaped creature, Mokona. Tried to watch it before, and it inevitably irritated me with simplicity and stupidity as well as bland protagonists and horrible mocking villains. It's not bad, but it's worse - it's plain, and has aged poorly. Overall Rating: 6/10 4. Basilisk: Kouga Ninpou Chou Basilisk バジリスク 甲賀忍法帖 [Gonzo] (Finished 4/24) Tags: Seinen Historical, Samurai Action, Adventure, Fantasy, Romance, Supernatural For centuries, the Iga and Kouga ninja clans have engaged in a bitter war. But when a ceasefire is ordered by the powerful warlord Ieyasu Tokugawa, the two clans are forced to put down their arms. Years later, Gennosuke Kouga, heir of the Kouga clan, and Oboro Iga, heir of the Iga clan, have fallen in love. Through marriage, both heirs aim to bring peace to the clans. But their hopes are dashed when flames of rivalry between their clans are reignited, and they are dragged into another war. Ieyasu's two grandsons have both claimed to be the next heir to the shogunate. To resolve this dispute, both the Kouga and Iga are ordered to send their 10 best warriors to fight in a bloody battle royale, with each clan representing one of the potential shogunate heirs. Two scrolls with the names of the fighters are given and are to be marked in blood upon the given fighter's death. The prize for winning is the favor of the Tokugawa shogunate for a thousand years. Torn between their love for each other and duty to their clans, Gennosuke and Oboro must ultimately decide the fate of their clans. It's pure fighting action between Iga and Koga, canonical and gory, but not to my liking. Overall Rating: 6/10 5. Trinity Blood トリニティ・ブラッド [Gonzo] (Finished 24/24) Tags: Vampire Action, Supernatural Following Armageddon, an apocalyptic war, mankind faces yet another menace: vampires. The continuous confrontations between the races have split the world into separate factions. The race of vampires, Methuselah, are affiliated with the New Human Empire; whereas the humans, deemed Terrans by the vampires, make up the Vatican Papal State. Furthermore, extremist groups like the Rosenkreuz Order strive to rekindle a war, despite the factions' attempts to avoid direct conflict. To combat terrorist organizations, the Vatican has implemented the AX unit. Led by Cardinal Caterina Sforza, the AX agents investigate vampire-related disturbances with hopes that the Terrans and the Methuselah will one day achieve peaceful coexistence. Amongst the AX unit is priest Abel Nightroad—a seemingly disoriented but gentle-hearted fellow who is a fierce vampire slayer on the battlefield. Joining the unit as his partner is agent Sister Esther Blanchett, a brave and gentle young nun troubled with a tragic past. As the two grow closer, they begin to uncover signs of malicious schemes and dark forces working in the shadows. But the path they walk is riddled with misfortune that might just force them to confront the memories that plague their hearts. It had all the chances for a solid vampire story, but execution is poor. And unlike Hellsing or Vampire Hunter D this one is more about world, politics, mystery rather than action. Basically, need some kind of vampire affinity to like it as story itself is lacking. Overall Rating: 6/10 6. Eyeshield 21 アイシールド21 [Gallop] (Finished 1/145) Tags: Shounen Team Sports Shy, reserved, and small-statured, Deimon High School student Sena Kobayakawa is the perfect target for bullies. However, as a result of running errands throughout his life, Sena has become agile and developed a skill for avoiding crowds of people. After the cunning Youichi Hiruma—captain of the Deimon Devil Bats football team—witnesses Sena's rapid legs in motion, he coerces the timid boy into joining his squad. As Hiruma wants to conceal Sena's identity from other clubs, Sena is forced to hide under the visored helmet of "Eyeshield 21," a mysterious running back wearing the number 21 jersey. The legendary Eyeshield 21 can supposedly run at the speed of light and has achieved remarkable feats in the United States during his time at the Notre Dame College. Accustomed to avoiding his problems in the past, Sena's specialty might just help him become the new secret weapon of the Deimon Devil Bats. As he interacts with his teammates, Sena gradually gains more self-confidence and forges valuable bonds along the way. Quality is higher than average, but that's as far as I'm willing to go for spokons. Overall Rating: 6/10 7. Ueki no Housoku The Law of Ueki うえきの法則 [Studio Deen] (Finished 2/51) Tags: Shounen Super Power Action, Adventure, Supernatural Unbeknownst to most humans, a bizarre tournament is held to decide the next ruler of the Heavenly World. In this tournament, 100 Heavenly Beings known as the "God Candidates" are required to search among the middle school students on Earth, and transfer their powers to a student of their choice. The chosen ones will then battle each other, representing their God Candidates. The victor of this tournament will be awarded the "Blank Talent"—allowing them to choose any one unique ability they so desire—while the God Candidate they represent will obtain the position of "God" and become the king of the Heavenly World. Participating in this grand tournament is Kousuke Ueki, a middle school student who is given the power to turn trash into trees by his homeroom teacher, Kobayashi. Despite the concerns of his classmate, Ai Mori, Ueki embarks on a journey to pursue his own sense of justice after witnessing the people around him misusing their powers for selfish purposes. But as he encounters talented power users such as Seiichirou Sano, Rinko Jerrard, Robert Haydn, and Hideyoshi Soya, he realizes that achieving his goal might be harder than it seems. One of the bland superpower battle royales imitating Shaman King. Very irritating. Overall Rating: 6/10 8. Ichigo 100% Strawberry 100% いちご100% [Madhouse] (Finished 2/12) Tags: Shounen Harem Comedy, Romance, Ecchi One day, Manaka Junpei walks to the roof of his school and encounters a beautiful girl falling down from above him and accidentally exposing her strawberry panties. The embarrassed girl runs away before Junpei can find out whom she is. He wishes to become a filmmaker, and this whole experience seemed like it would make the perfect scene in a movie. And so he goes on a search for the girl with the strawberry panties in order to reenact it all on film. But he will soon discover that finding that one girl will not be that easy... A memorable ecchi, but mostly because of the concept stupidity. Overall Rating: 6/10 9. Speed Grapher スピードグラファー [Gonzo] (Finished 24/24) Tags: Adult Cast, Super Power Action, Mystery Ten years after the Bubble War, the dichotomy between the rich and the poor in the world becomes more prominent and Japan is no exception. The rich seek to satisfy their desires and derive pleasure for themselves, and Tokyo has materialized into such a city as a result. Saiga, once a war photographer, works for Hibara Ginza in the capitalist state of Tokyo. He infiltrates the Roppongi Club, a secretive base located in the red light district of the city, to collect information about them. However, he was caught in the process and brought forward to a girl called Kagura who was in the midst of a ritual. His contact with Kagura awakens his special ability: the power to make things explode when photographed. In order to unravel the mystery behind the Roppongi Club and Kagura, Saiga begins his solitary battle. It's just a weird and senseless mess with actual adult themes that I could not believe it would not develop into something normal by the end. And it did not. Same pursues, trap cabaret and with just more fighting action towards the end. It's such an inarticulate story that I don't want to recommend it. But at least it tries to experiment, still better than all those generic schematic adventures we get more often than desired. Overall Rating: 6/10 10. Erementar Gerad Elemental Gelade エレメンタルジェレイド [Xebec] (Finished 3/26) Tags: Shounen Super Power Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy, Romance After a routine raid, the rookie sky pirate Coud finds a most unusual cargo in his mates' cargo hold: Ren, an "Edel Reid", a race prized by humans for granting special combat power to their partners through "Reacting". He quickly discovers, however, that Ren is even more prized than he expected. The pirate ship is visited by three members of the Edel Reid Complete Protection Agency "Arc Aire", who try to purchase her. When Coud refuses, the ship is suddenly attacked by a mysterious force, and Coud's captain charges him with Ren's protection. A most tasteless fantasy travel adventure to some Shangri-la again. Since plot is generic, only characters could save it, but characters are nothing but a bunch of irritating stamps as well. The flow and slapstic comedy obviously imitate Slayers. Overall Rating: 5/10 11. Kore ga Watashi no Goshujinsama He is My Master これが私の御主人様 [Gainax, Shaft] (Finished 2/12) Tags: Shounen Comedy, Slice of Life, Ecchi Izumi Sawatari and her younger sister, Mitsuki Sawatari, have run away from home and are in need of employment. The only jobs available are as maids in the mansion of 14-year-old millionaire, Yoshitaka Nakabayashi. What seems like simple work is soon revealed to be far more than the girls bargained for when they find Yoshitaka to be an authoritative employer who demands they call him "Master". Gainax actually made maid fetish work watchable, but there's mostly fanservice and affiliated humor. Overall Rating: 6/10 12. Sousei no Aquarion Aquarion 創聖のアクエリオン [Satelight] (Finished 3/26) Tags: Mecha, Super Power Action, Fantasy, Romance, Sci-Fi Once upon a time, a race known as the Shadow Angels attacked Earth to harvest the life force of all those who inhabited the planet. Thanks to some outrageous miracle, the Shadow Angels went dormant, and humanity was able to live another 12,000 years without fearing their presence. But 11 years after a catastrophe dubbed the Holy Genesis brought ruin to the Earth, the Shadow Angels were stirred from their slumber and resumed the attacks once more. To give humanity somewhat of a chance, an organization known as DEAVA was formed, and use of a robotic weapon named Aquarion has been authorized. In order for the Aquarion to be brought to full power, three pilots must combine their hearts, bodies, and souls into one—a feat few can hope to accomplish. Thus, the search for so-called 'Element Users' was prioritised, hoping to ensure humanity's future. Sousei no Aquarion follows the story of Apollo, a near-feral young man brought up in poverty, who is believed to be a legendary hero reincarnated. After his best friend is taken by the Shadow Angels, Apollo chooses to become an Aquarion pilot. Will he be able to turn the tides of the war, and free humanity from the threat of the Shadow Angels for once and for all? A decent mecha with mediocre characters. And it's more interesting to watch than any Gundam series because of tension, to be honest. Overall Rating: 6/10 13. Eikoku Koi Monogatari Emma Emma: A Victorian Romance 英國戀物語エマ [Pierrot] (Finished 1/12) Tags: Seinen Historical Drama, Romance Emma has been a maid for most of her life. Working for a retired governess—the strict but compassionate Kelly Stownar—Emma has grown to love her work and has long since accepted her place in society. Beautiful, hardworking, and exceptionally kind, Emma has captured the hearts of many of London's working men—but their feelings always remain unrequited. Emma is waiting for love, and she finds it in the most unlikely of places. William is the eldest son of the wealthy Jones household—a family that has only recently been accepted into the gentry, securing their position in high society. He is also the former ward of Mrs. Stownar, and on his first visit in years, he falls madly in love with her maid. His earnest attempts to win her affection, coupled with his good nature and warm personality, have captured Emma's heart. But the polite society of 19th century England does not take kindly to the rejection of tradition. As a result, Emma and William's relationship could not face more opposition. In a world where the class lines are as strongly defended as the borders of nations, does their love have the strength to survive? A normal victorial novel. Definitely not for me. Overall Rating: 6/10 14. MÄR メル [SynergySP] (Finished 5/102) Tags: Shounen Isekai Action, Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy Dreaming of a magical world every night, the young Toramizu Ginta yearns to be able to go there. With only his friend Koyuki believing in his dreams, Ginta remains positive despite the slander he receives from others over his dreams. But his wishes are answered, as one day a large door appears in front of Ginta, summoning him to the land of MAR Heaven. In this land, the weapons known as ARMS exist. While initially Ginta greatly enjoyed the discovery of this magical world, he soon learns of the terrible wars that have once plagued MAR Heaven and the upcoming war that may soon appear. A generic shounen, I'd call it a mix of Dragon Ball and Shaman King, but it surely has many more sources of inspiration. Overall Rating: 5/10 15. Glass no Kamen (2005) Glass Mask ガラスの仮面 (2005) [Tokyo Movie Shinsha] (Finished 3/51) Tags: Shoujo Performing Arts, Showbiz Drama Two Girls. One Dream. And the entire world for a stage. At 13 years old, Maya Kitajima seems destined to spend the rest of her life toiling in a crowded restaurant alongside her bitter and unstable mother. But when her incredible acting talent is discovered by the legendary diva Chigusa Tsukikage, Maya finds a new future filled with both golden opportunities and terrifying risks. For Ayumi Himekawa, success has always been assured, yet she longs to be recognized for her own talents and skills, not her famous parents' connections. For both, the ultimate prize is the role of The Crimson Goddess in the play of the same name, a part created by Chigusa. To achieve this goal, both Maya and Ayumi must seek out and conquer every acting challenge, pushing the limits of their talent and endurance to the utmost, until they are worthy of the part… But for one to win, the other must fail! They took their time preparing this classic remake, and it's indeed decent. For me this shoujo still lacks complexity of Nodame Cantabile and some other psychological or twisted shoujo titles. Overall Rating: 6/10 16. Futakoi Alternative フタコイ オルタナティブ [ufotable, feel., Studio Flag] (Finished 2/13) Tags: Comedy, Drama, Romance The Futaba Detective Agency, being run by Rentarou, who has taken over the family business, after his father's death 3 weeks ago. Along w/ Sara & Souju, his live-in identical twin assistants. He ends up running afoul of the local Yakuza. Lots of ridiculous nonsense action akin to R.O.D. . It's not funny as parody, not engaging as story , not serious for anything deeper, so just some surface scratching comedy . Overall Rating: 6/10 17. Zettai Shounen 絶対少年 [Ajia-do] (Finished 11/26) Tags: Drama, Fantasy, Mystery, Sci-Fi Oftentimes, people are most vulnerable when they are lonely and unable to get along with those around them. Isolation is felt more keenly amongst a crowd, so some will try to find solace in the strangest of places, where the unknown lurks. Such people include Ayumu Aizawa, a former city boy now living in the countryside of Tana, and Kisa Tanigawa, a young girl who has a hard time relating to others. What these two share in common is a feeling that their life has gone astray. Zettai Shounen tells a story of strange phenomena affecting two different settings, with no explanations of their origin or sudden appearance. All that is known is that these phenomena seem to center on individuals with mixed emotions toward themselves and others. As most mysteries, a total bore with the essence being a 99% filler. So pissed. Overall Rating: 5/10 18. Gokujou Seitokai Best Student Council 極上生徒会 [J.C.Staff] (Finished 4/26) Tags: School Comedy, Slice of Life Randou Rino is a young girl with a head full of air and a talking puppet on her hand. She is accepted into the illustrious Gokujou all-girl's school, and is summarily, almost curiously, accepted as part of the even more illustrious Gokujou Student Council, who has more power and business ventures than most large businesses. Now a part of the student council, she befriends the talented members of the Gokujou Student Council, leaving one to wonder how a girl with seemingly no talents or redeeming qualities would get chosen for such a group. It's sort of parody on girls love academy stories. It's funny enough, but there's no story, just setting. Overall Rating: 6/10 19. Koi Koi 7 Koi Koi Seven こいこい7 [Studio Flag] (Finished 2/13) Tags: Harem Comedy, Romance Tanaka Tetsuro is excited at getting a full scholarship at a new high school, far away from his family. What he does not know is that he will be the only boy in an all girl school, and that there is a girl head-over-heels in love with him, waiting for his arrival. But his special friendship with the very cute and dynamic Asuka also causes him to get into a lot of trouble with the powerful student council leadership, as they are at open war with Asuka and her five friends, a group of super amazon warriors called the Koi Koi Seven. Longs things short, there's hardly anything but constant fanservice. Overall Rating: 5/10 20. Zoids Genesis ゾイド ジェネシス [Shogakukan Music & Digital Entertainment] (Finished 1/50) Tags: Mecha, Military Action, Adventure, Comedy Natural disasters have devastated planet Zi, killing off almost all life. A thousand years later humans have gradually re-established civilization, salvaging ancient Zoids through diving and mining efforts. In a village whose most previous item is a giant sword which they worship as a holy symbol. A teenage boy discovers an ancient Liger-type Zoid while on a deep water salvage operation. Suddenly the village is attacked by skeletal Bio-Zoids intent on stealing a powerful generator located in the village. Our teenage hero awakens the Liger and discovers that the town`s sacred sword is the Liger`s weapon, together they fight off the mysterious Bio-Zoids. At least for now... I lost any remaining interest in the very first season. Overall Rating: 5/10 21. Onegai My Melody おねがいマイメロディ [Studio Comet] (Finished 3/52) Tags: Comedy, Fantasy My Melody arrives on Earth much to the surprise of her rival Kuromi. Together with one of the junior high school students, Yumeno Uta, they decide to protect the dreams of the people with the help of magic. Childish humor, simplicity and episodic nature, young girls problems. It can be enjoyed by the target audience, but this audience seems to be very narrow. Overall Rating: 6/10 22. Izumo: Takeki Tsurugi no Senki Izumo: Flash of a Brave Sword IZUMO -猛き剣の閃記- [Trinet Entertainment, Studio Kyuuma] (Finished 12/12) Tags: Martial Arts Adventure, Drama, Fantasy, Romance, Supernatural Yagi Takeru has been living in the Touma family's house since his parents are gone. He was raised by Touma Rokunosuke, the head of the house. He is surrounded by many people such as Yamato Takeshi, his best friend-cum-rival from the kendo club, the Shiratori sisters, Kotono and Asuka, and his childhood friend, Oosu Seri. Life has been blissful until one day, an earthquake strikes the school and everything changes. Takeru awakens to find that the school looks as if it has been abandoned for centuries and reduced to ruins. He also realize that all the teachers and students have disappeared as well. He meets up with Seri and Asuka and they fled from the ruins, only to realize that the town they used to live in is completely empty. Subsequently, people wrapped in cloaks appear before him. They were told that they have been brought to another world. Sat through this horrible bore about flirt and some fighting of a school boy in a fantasy land. It had better stayed as a game without serialization. Overall Rating: 5/10 23. Fushigiboshi no☆Futagohime ふしぎ星の☆ふたご姫 [Hal Film Maker] (Finished 2/51) Tags: Mahou Shoujo Comedy, Fantasy In the hollow Mysterious Planet, seven kingdoms co-exist, all of them lit by the Sun's Blessing from the Kingdom of the Sun, in the middle of the planet. The light of the core sun is necessary for the continued existence of all the kingdoms. Yet, something is causing the Sun's Blessing to weaken. If something isn't done, it will be the end of life in the Mysterious Planet. Fortunately, the twin princesses of the Sun Kingdom, Fine and Rein, have been endowed with the magic of the Prominence, and are looking for a way to fix things. Feels like a fusion of Do-Re-Mi and Precure in fantasy kingdom setting. Humor is nice, but not finding it outstanding. Overall Rating: 6/10 24. Comic Party Revolution こみっくパーティー Revolution [Radix, Chaos Project] (Finished 13/13) Tags: Otaku Culture Comedy, Drama Sendo Kazuki, failed the entrance exam for the art college he was applying to, His childhood friend, Kuhonbutsu Taishi forced Kazuki to enter the doujin (private publishing) world. I hated OVA since it was fanservice spin-off about two female heroines, and this second season is actually same spin-off episodes with addition of some glue ones that have original protagonist. There are couple episodes that can be considered plot development, but overall impression is poor as it's one big filler for the most part. Overall Rating: 6/10 25. Yuki no Joou (TV) The Snow Queen 雪の女王 [TMS Entertainment] (Finished 2/36) Tags: Shoujo Adventure, Drama, Fantasy Based on the children's story by Hans Christian Andersen. Gerda and Kai have been neighbors and best friends since childhood. Gerda is eleven, Kai twelve. They were happy children who worked and played as they should. All that changed when the Snow Queen's mirror broke. The shards spread all through the world, each containing evil. If a shard went inside your eye, it would turn your heart to ice. A shard went into Kai's eye. After that, he grew cold to those he loved. One night, the Snow Queen came in her carriage and took Kai back to her ice castle at the farthest north point of the world. Everyone in Kai and Gerda's village didn't know where he went and believed he died from drowning in the frozen-over lake. Gerda doesn't believe this, for she dreamed of seeing Kai enter the carriage. When a drunk man admits that he also saw this, Gerda starts realizing that maybe what she saw wasn't a dream. She packs her things and goes on a journey to save Kai and bring him back home. I seriously dislike it when short fairy tales are turned into some huge series. Lots of useless SOL, antics and slow-paced fiddling details... too irritating to go on. Overall Rating: 5/10 26. Yuusha-Ou GaoGaiGar Final Grand Glorious Gathering King of Braves GaoGaiGar Final Grand Glorious Gathering 勇者王ガオガイガーFINAL Grand Glorious Gathering [Sunrise] (Finished 1/12) Tags: Mecha, Super Power Action, Sci-Fi Following Gutsy Galaxy Guard's victory over the Zonder Empire and the 31 Primevals, a new threat makes their appearance on Earth. GGG - with Guy Shishio and the newly-constructed GaoFighGar - team up with their French counterpart Chasseur to battle the evil organization BioNet. Among Chasseur's ranks is Renais Cardiff Shishioh - a former BioNet cyborg with the relentless pursuit of destroying those who took away her humanity. But as GGG and Chasseur fight the BioNet, GGG's bases around the world are suddenly attacked, and the recently-discovered "Q-Parts" and the original Gao Machines are stolen by Mamoru Amami, who has been abducted and cloned by an even greater threat known as the "Eleven Kings of Sol." Evicted from Earth by the United Nations, GGG must now travel to the far reaches of the galaxy to battle the Eleven Kings of Sol and save Mamoru before it's too late. Childish Tarzan-themed beast transformers are back for those who care. Overall Rating: 5/10 27. Kouchuu Ouja Mushiking: Mori no Tami no Densetsu Mushiking: The Guardians of the Forest 甲虫王者ムシキング ~森の民の伝説~ [TMS Entertainment] (Finished 1/52) Tags: Fantasy The story begins with a spaceship struggling to return to its home world, which crash lands onto a dying planet, triggering an explosion of pure energy, generated by the powerful and mysterious life forms that are piloting the craft. This outburst of energy infuses the dying planet with a life-generating force. Popo, the main character of the story, lives happily with his mother on this planet in a remote part of the forest that is populated with praying mantises, ladybugs, beetles and many other insects. Popos greatest desire is to grow up and become stronger, so that he can search for his father who left the family several years before and has not been heard from since. His father was known as the Guardian of the Forest, as he was passionately dedicated to his research on the planet and on the forest in which his family lives. One day, while walking through the forest, Popo witnesses an ominous event. A strange flowing mist appears, completely covering the forest. A mysterious and sinister character, Passer, also appears, condemning Popos father as an enemy of the forest people and the source of all their trouble. Popo races home only to find to his shock and amazement that his mother has been transformed into a half-plant, half human creature. Confused and dismayed over what he has seen, Popo decides that only his father will be able to restore his mother to her human self and rescue the forest from harm. He decides to leave his home in search for his father. However, the evil Adder and his henchmen plot to prevent Popo from achieving his goal with the help of giant beetles who attack the young boy at every turn. Fortunately, Popo has an ally, Mushiking: The King of Beetles! With his overwhelming strength and overpowering fighting style, Mushiking always comes through at the nick of time to save the young boy from defeat and to set him back on his quest. Is Popo able to find his father and to save his mother and the forest? Discovering his destiny as the next Guardian of the Forest, and protected and guided on his journey by Mushiking, Popo's epic quest to reunite with his father now begins! Setting is childish - just having adventures with bugs etc. Overall Rating: 6/10 28. Shinshaku Sengoku Eiyuu Densetsu: Sanada Juu Yuushi The Animation 新釈 戦国英雄伝説 眞田十勇士 The Animation [Group TAC, G&G Entertainment] (Finished 1/12) Tags: Historical, Military, Samurai Action, Comedy In the Fifth Year of the Keicho era, the Tokugawa clan sought to solidify their control of Japan. Hidetada Tokugawa has come to the doorsteps of Ueda Castle with the intentions of having the Sanada clan open its doors to him. But the Sanada and their retainers have other plans... Not translated, only movie special is. With great NHK taiga about Sanadas having subtitles this one hardly matters till it gets subs. Overall Rating: 6/10 29. Eien no Aselia The Eternal Aseria 永遠のアセリア [Studio Matrix] (Finished 2/2) Tags: Adventure, Drama, Fantasy Yuto Takamine and his younger sister-in-law Kaori, were at their parents' grave, when they were suddenly summoned into another world, Phantasmagoria. The King and a woman named Restina took Kaori as a hostage, and ordered Yuto to fight against their enemies. Then, the King gave him a sword called Motomeh to protect their kingdom from enemy spirits. Kaori will only be freed if Yuto helps protect Phantasmagoria. Thus, Yuto's journey begins... Short and rather unimpressive advertisement for the game. Overall Rating: 5/10 30. Mezame no Hakobune Open Your Mind めざめの方舟 [-] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Fantasy The plot of Open Your Mind follows the extraterrestrial origin of life, coming from outerspace as six deities (Intermission act), evolving into water (Sho-ho) then emerging to the air (Hyakkin) and to the ground (Ku-nu). Each one of these creatures rules one of the six elements of the godai philosophy, i.e. Earth, Water, Fire, Wind (referred to as kaze in the Hyakkin chant), Sky and Consciousness (referred to as "Awakening" in the movie's title). Another weird experimental something, more like music with random imagery. Overall Rating: 5/10 31. Kirameki☆Project きらめき☆プロジェクト [Studio Fantasia] (Finished 5/5) Tags: Mecha Comedy, Sci-Fi, Ecchi In a world where giant rude robots are common and used to fight wars appears a giant Handcrafted robot that defeats the major armies of the world. Meanwhile in a kingdom where three sisters reign in peace and harmony there is a secret that they keep from the rest of the world until they must use a Doll-looking robot to protect their nation, even when her creator refuses to put her friend in danger. A ridiculous fanservice mecha with poor plot. Overall Rating: 5/10 32. Haruwo ハルヲ [CoMix Wave Films] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Action In a violent post-apocalyptic Japan, a reckless juvenile delinquent named Haruwo takes on the Yakuza, but their new bouncer may be more than he can handle... Over a year in the making, this half-hour short was entirely the work of one person--even the music! "Haruwo" animator Shao Guee writes, "I didn't make this film for money, just for fun. I hope people all over the world will have a chance to see it. If you like it, please tell your friends about it. That's all I want. My thanks to everyone who helped me make this project a reality." Just a small simple revenge story, and the fact that it's done by one person does not justify it in any way. Overall Rating: 5/10 33. Crayon Shin-chan Movie 13: Densetsu wo Yobu Buriburi 3 Pun Dai Shingeki 映画 クレヨンしんちゃん 伝説を呼ぶ ブリブリ 3分ポッキリ大進撃 [Shin-Ei Animation] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Seinen School Comedy, Slice of Life, Ecchi An action comedy including parodies of tokusatsu monster/hero genre, such as "Godzilla" and "Ultraman." A time-space conditioner from the future, Miraiman, suddenly appears before the Nohara family, and he requests the family to fight against giant monsters who appear from time-space distortion one after another, in order to save the world from destruction. Every time monsters appear, Shinnosuke's parents, father Hiroshi and mother Misae go to the world three minute later, transform themselves into righteous heroes and defeat them within the time limit of three minutes. Hiroshi and Misae become wrapped up in getting rid of monsters, and Misae stops doing the housework. Then, a strong monster appears, and he cannot be defeated within three minutes. Shinnosuke rises up against the monster. Superhero family themed movie with kaiji is more dramatic than funny. I don't like this change. Overall Rating: 6/10 34. Ark [Skouras] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Mecha, Military Action, Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Supernatural Ark takes place on a dying alien world in which a global war between two technologically advanced human civilizations has reduced the planet to a wasteland. The only way to escape the world is by activating the Ark, an ancient giant robot capable of supporting a human city as well as traveling through space. A surprisingly well done machinima with a nice small story. Overall Rating: 6/10 35. Ashita Genki ni Nare!: Hanbun no Satsumaimo Tomorrow Will Become Better!: Half a Sweet Potato あした元気にな~れ!~半分のさつまいも~ [AYCO, Studio Kelmadick] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Drama The story is about a 5-year-old girl who lived in just after World War II when people were struggle for living. Not translated. Basically, 5-year-old girl cheers up and helps people. There's not much substance or drama, just some more or less touching episodes from war aftermath life. Overall Rating: 6/10 36. Kumo no Gakkou 雲の学校 [-] (Finished 0/1) Tags: Drama, Slice of Life Near the end of the 19th century, a young boy loses his father and has to move from a comfortable city to a poor village in Saitama. There, living with his mother, elder sister, and a dog, he learns valuable lessons about what's truly important in life. Not found. Overall Rating: 0/10 37. Yin Shun Daoshi Fu Ven. Yin Shun [-] (Finished 0/1) Tags: Historical Drama The story begins in 742AD, when Japanese monks Yoei and Fusho, pay a visit to Jian Zhen, the abbot of Daming Temple in Yangzhou, China, and implore him to help implement Buddhist precepts in their homeland. When his disciples shy away from the task, the abbot volunteers himself. From 743AD, he tries to sail to Japan several times and only succeeds on his sixth attempt. By then he had already lost his eyesight, yet not once did he lose sight of his aspiration nor did he allow his determination to falter. Bringing along with him several Chinese artisans, Jian Zhen, himself a medical practitioner, went on to make major contributions to the development of Buddhism in Japan, as well as to its culture, architecture and traditional Chinese medicine. Not found. Overall Rating: 0/10 -
Slow beginning of the year, and among decent ones Karas is at least memorable 1. Air [Kyoto Animation] (Finished 12/12) Tags: Drama, Romance, Supernatural Yukito Kunisaki is on a journey in search of the Winged Maiden who was bound to the sky centuries ago, after hearing an old childhood tale from his mother. As Yukito shows his puppet show to people in an attempt to make some money, he finds himself in a small town in which he did not expect to stay very long. However, when he meets an unusual girl named Misuzu, things take a drastic turn as he is invited to stay with her. By staying in the quaint town, Yukito soon becomes friends with the locals. As he gets to know them better, he learns of their problems and decides to help, putting his search for the Winged Maiden on hold. With his search on hold, and his growing attachment to Misuzu and the small town, will Yukito ever find the Winged Maiden, or is she closer than he thought? Watched it twice, hated it immensely both times. One of the most overrated stories ever. Overall Rating: 5/10 2. Aa! Megami-sama! (TV) Ah! My Goddess ああっ女神さまっ [AIC] (Finished 3/24) Tags: Seinen Comedy, Romance, Supernatural In a world where humans can have their wish granted via the Goddess Help Hotline, a human, Keiichi Morisato, summons the Goddess Belldandy by accident and jokes that she should stay with him forever. Unfortunately for him, his "wish" is granted. Suddenly, Keiichi is now living with this gorgeous woman all alone, causing him to be kicked out of the all-male dormitory he was staying in. But soon, after they find lodging in a Buddhist temple, Keiichi and Belldandy's relationship begins to blossom. Although they are both awkward and rather uncomfortable with one another at first, what awaits these two strangers could turn out to be an unexpected romance. There's been over a decade since OVA, and finally its issues are addressed. But result is not great with a lot of mediocre and simple content introduced. Overall Rating: 6/10 3. Mahou Sensei Negima! Negima! 魔法先生 ネギま! [Xebec] (Finished 3/26) Tags: Shounen Harem, School, Super Power Comedy, Fantasy, Romance, Supernatural, Ecchi 10-year-old Negi Springfield is a wizard-in-training, and needs only to pass one more test in order to become a Master Wizard. Unfortunately, his final task is a bizarre one—to become a English teacher at an all-females boarding school. As soon as he arrives, he completely embarrasses one of his students, Asuna Kagurazaka, and replaces the teacher she loves, which garners her hatred. To make matters worse, Asuna learns that Negi is a wizard, and promises to tell unless he helps her out. But unfortunately, circumstances force them to work together to do many things, from fighting evil wizards to helping the class pass their final exam, with a lot of humor, magic, and romances thrown in. Sampled it several times, and it's too simple and nowadays feels morally old. Overall Rating: 6/10 4. Peach Girl Peach Girl: Super Pop Love Hurricane ピーチガール [Studio Comet] (Finished 2/25) Tags: Shoujo School Drama, Romance With her gorgeous, tan skin and long, bleached hair, former high school swim team member Momo Adachi seems like the kind of girl who could get any guy she wants. In reality, however, she is only in love with Kazuya "Toji" Toujigamori, a baseball player whom she fell for in junior high and who reportedly only likes pale-skinned girls. Despite her attempts to change her appearance, many of her jealous classmates have begun spreading rumors about her promiscuous and "easy to get with" personality. Momo's friend Sae Kashiwagi is always there to comfort her, but is secretly the source of the rumors about Momo as part of her own scheme to steal Toji. Further complicating things is Kairi Okayasu, a popular male student at Momo's high school who has publicly declared his love for her and is determined to date her. Hoping to find love in a nearly impossible predicament, Momo must navigate complicated love triangles, back-stabbing friends, and her insecurities about her appearance to discover who she really i There has been non-sexualized anime about gyaru culture already, so this one begins a streak of sexualized ones. It's so primitive that I could not even tolerate it for three episodes. Overall Rating: 5/10 5. Girls Bravo: Second Season GIRLSブラボー second season [AIC Spirits] (Finished 1/13) Tags: Shounen Harem, Isekai, School Comedy, Fantasy, Romance, Ecchi Small for his age, Yukinari has been bullied and abused by girls all his life. Now in high school, he has developed a rare condition: whenever girls touch him, or even come close, he breaks out in hives. Imagine his surprise, when he is suddenly transported to the city of Seiren on a mystic world invisibly orbiting the Earth, and populated with vast numbers of women and very few men. Fortunately, he has a new friend, Miharu-chan, whose touch inexplicably doesn't affect him. More of cringe fanservice in the second season. Overall Rating: 5/10 6. Mahoraba: Heartful days まほらば ~Heartful days~ [J.C.Staff] (Finished 3/26) Tags: Shounen Iyashikei, Visual Arts Comedy, Drama, Romance Shiratori Ryuushi is a young artist-in-training, about to start studying at a vocational school. Arriving at his new lodgings, Narutakisou, he finds himself the focus of attention for the collection of weirdos that inhabit the place. He also meets and falls for the landlady, Aoba Kozue, who seems to be both lovely and charming. However, Kozue is not what she seems to be... in fact, she's more. Boarding house setting is quite good for romcom, but Mahoraba is typical. It delivers what you expect of it, but does not offer much more or anything exceptional . Overall Rating: 6/10 7. Xenosaga The Animation ゼノサーガ THE ANIMATION [Toei Animation] (Finished 12/12) Tags: Mecha, Space Action, Sci-Fi The year is T.C. 4767. Four thousand years have passed since humanity abandoned its birthplace, the planet Earth. Beset by the hostile alien Gnosis, mankind is now scrambling to find ways to defeat this threat to their existence. The development of KOS-MOS (a specialized android with amazing capabilities) by Vector engineer Shion Uzuki was one response to the threat. But when their ship is destroyed by the Gnosis, Shion and her companions find themselves thrust into the middle of a battle with no clear sides... Rather bland space mecha, at least without experiencing the game. Overall Rating: 5/10 8. Futari wa Precure: Max Heart ふたりはプリキュア ー マックスハート [Toei Animation] (Finished 1/47) Tags: Mahou Shoujo Action, Comedy, Fantasy Shortly after the fall of the Wicked King, the Queen of the Garden of Light lost her memory and came to Earth, in the form of a 12-year-old girl named Hikari Kujou. Now, she—with the help of Nagisa and Honoka, endowed with new costumes and powers—must find the 12 Heartiels, which hold the key to restoring the Queen's lost memories. For together once again, they are Pretty Cure. First episode has a familiar flow, not sure it something changed. Overall Rating: 6/10 9. Starship Operators スターシップ・オペレーターズ [J.C.Staff] (Finished 13/13) Tags: Military, Space Drama, Sci-Fi For the 73rd class of cadets of the Defense University of the small planet Kibi, a shakedown cruise on the fleet's new starship "Amaterasu" is a fitting lead-up to graduation. As they are returning to their home planet, however, they are shocked to hear news of a declaration of war by the aggressive Kingdom against Kibi. When their planetary government surrenders without a struggle, the cadets decide to launch their own war, aboard the "Amaterasu". To gain funding, they make a deal with a galactic news network - and find themselves the "stars" of their own "reality show". Unfortunately, this is the kind of reality show that can get you killed... It tries to be Yamato in a trivial way with lots of SOL in addition to space battles. And execution can be described as mixed at best. I struggle to remember anything memorable after watching it, maybe apart of politics. Overall Rating: 6/10 10. Buzzer Beater [TMS Entertainment] (Finished 2/13) Tags: Sci-Fi, Sports Hideyoshi is a homeless boy living in New York in the near future, who survives by hustling other kids in basketball games. But now he's been drafted into a pro team-a pro team with a very unique goal. There once was a time when humans dominated the game of basketball. But times have changed, and now the physically superior alien players have taken over the game, and there are barely any human players left. But Hideyoshi's team-the first all-human team to compete in the Space League-intends to change all that, and bring the championship back home to Earth. Unusual, yet still silly spokon. Overall Rating: 5/10 11. Gallery Fake ギャラリーフェイク [TMS Entertainment, Tokyo Kids, Minami Machi Bugyousho] (Finished 3/37) Tags: Seinen Adult Cast, Visual Arts Mystery Fujita Reiji is the owner of an art gallery, Gallery Fake. He deals with fake items, and is also familiar with the black market. However, he has a special talent for art, and used to work for the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York as a curator. I used to watch everything Seinen, and this is another horrible representative of it. Episodic and super boring, but maybe it feels like that for me because of mystery genre, very similar to detective mystery. Overall Rating: 5/10 12. Jinki:Extend ジンキ・エクステンド [feel.] (Finished 4/12) Tags: Mecha Sci-Fi Aoba is a young girl who loves to build models of robots. She lived alone with her grandmother until her grandmother passes away. Shortly after she is kidnapped and brought to a secret base where she discovers a huge robot. The piloted robots fight against Ancient-Jinki in The Grand Savanna, but the true meaning behind the fights is hidden. Aoba works hard at the base so one day she can pilot one of the robots and discover these secrets. It's primitiveness extended, feeling dumber after just a few episodes. Overall Rating: 5/10 13. UG☆Ultimate Girls Ultimate Girls UG☆アルティメットガール [Studio Matrix] (Finished 2/12) Tags: Comedy, Sci-Fi, Ecchi During a monster attack on the city, which is something that happens quite often, Silk and her two friends try get close to the attacking monster for a better view. An unfortunate choice of location to watch from leads to UFO-man, the city's giant protector, to land on the girls crushing them to death. Feeling sorry, UFO-man blames their death on the monster and promises to bring Silk and her friends back to life by lending them his power but the catch is that they now have to become the city's protector as well. Some cosplay kaiju superhero nonsense parody. Overall Rating: 5/10 14. Transformers Galaxy Force Transformers Cybertron トランスフォーマー ギャラクシーフォース [Gonzo] (Finished 1/52) Tags: Mecha Adventure, Sci-Fi Forced to abandon their home planet of Cybertron due to the threat of the Blackhole, Optimus Prime prepares to lead his autobot warriors to Earth. Just as they are leaving they are confronted by Vector Prime who warns Optimus Prime of the threat to the galaxy if the four Cyber Planet Keys are not gathered in time. However, Megatron has plans of his own for the universe. As they embark on the search, they land on new planets which are inhabited by different Transformer races as well as the Convoys who lead these planets. Won't hit the dead horse. Overall Rating: 5/10 15. Magical Canan Magical Kanan まじかるカナン [AIC ASTA] (Finished 2/13) Tags: Drama, Fantasy, Supernatural Five dangerous "seeds" have been stolen from their vault in the world of Evergreen and taken to Earth. Natsuki, an agent of the Queen, has been sent to retrieve them. However, he cannot do this alone and enlists the aid of Chihaya, a middle school student, who is "the only one" who can help him. With his aid she transforms into Magical Warrior Carmine in order to save the humans possessed by the seeds. Questions abound though, such as why Chihaya's mother appears to know all about this secret activity, why Chihaya remembers her father who reportedly died before her birth, and why she dreams of Evergreen, which she has never seen. Source is old bad visual novel imitating Sailor Moon poorly. Overall Rating: 5/10 16. Lime-iro Ryuukitan X らいむいろ流奇譚 X CROSS ~恋, 教ヘテクダサイ.~ [A.C.G.T.] (Finished 3/13) Tags: Harem, Historical, Mecha Drama, Supernatural, Ecchi It was Meiji 38 (1905), the Russo-Japanese War that had begun since the previous year was getting hard. In this severe circumstance, they reorganized the Raimu Squad. The members of the Raimu Squad were the girls. They were just like other ordinary girls who went to schools and yearned for love, except that they had "Raimu." Inukai Tsuyoshiro was a young man who was newly chosen to be the leader of the squad. He was ambitious to fight for Japan. When the young man met the five girls, the new chapter of "Raimu" began. Terrible source, terrible original, terrible sequel. Overall Rating: 5/10 17. Shin Chou Kyou Ryo: Condor Hero II Legend of the Condor Hero II 神鵰俠侶 II 襄陽風雲 [Nippon Animation] (Finished 3/26) Tags: Historical Adventure, Drama, Romance Continuation of Legend of the Condor Hero. It's in Chinese, it's sequel, it's nauseatingly culturally narrow and pretentiously epic making it feel even more like bad parody. Overall Rating: 5/10 18. Oretachi Ijiwaru Kei おれたちイジワルケイ [Karaku] (Finished 0/14) Tags: Comedy An anime about Kei's daily life. Not found. Overall Rating: 0/10 19. Karas 鴉 -KARAS- [Tatsunoko Production] (Finished 6/6) Tags: Gore, Super Power Action, Fantasy, Sci-Fi The world of the humans and the world of the demons (youkai) have overlapped one another, leaving humans to walk the streets of life as they normally would, while demons walk, hidden from the naked eye, down the very same streets. A seemingly young woman named Yurine and her servant, the Karas (from the Japanese word for "Crow"), have long maintained order and balance between the overlapped worlds, ultimately keeping the demons from interrupting the lives of humans. However, humans have come to forget and jest at the existence of demons, and no longer understand the privilege it is to live without fear. Disgusted by this arrogance, an old Karas turns his back on the laws he had once upheld, and in his human form, named Eko, he creates an army of Mikura, or mechanized demons, to ready an attack on the human race. A young man named Otoha inherits the powers of the Karas and takes his place at the side of Yurine, who claims that his soul called out for her while he lived the life of a human. They live in the world of the demons. It is now up to Otoha to prove himself as a Karas, and restore the balance that Eko threatens to upset. Meanwhile, a superstitious police officer named Sagisaka and his rational new recruit, Kure, follow the trail of the murders dealt by Eko's Mikura, as well as the trail of a rogue Mikura named Nue. The prophecy unfolds from here into a grave revelation for all in the city. Beautiful fighting action with good and bad demons, but can't call it something outstanding. Overall Rating: 6/10 20. Bokusatsu Tenshi Dokuro-chan Bludgeoning Angel Dokuro-chan 撲殺天使ドクロちゃん [Hal Film Maker, Nomad] (Finished 4/4) Tags: Gag Humor, Gore Comedy, Ecchi Sakura Kusakabe, a mere junior high student, has committed a horrible crime. Or, rather, he will commit a crime—20 years into the future. The crime in question? He will prevent all women from developing past the age of 12, with immortality as an unintended side effect. As a result, the angel Dokuro Mitsukai is sent from the future as an assassin, armed with with a magical spiked bat named Excalibolg. However, rather than kill him, Dokuro wants to take a different approach. She resolves to be a constant nuisance to Sakura, in an attempt to prevent him from focusing on anything long enough to create his criminal technology. With Dokuro going against orders, the angel Sabato is sent out to complete Dokuro's mission. Between the impulsive Dokuro—who often murders Sakura with her bat before reviving him with the magic words "Pipiru piru piru pipiru pi"—and the electric baton-wielding Sabato, Sakura's life will never be peaceful again. Some nonsense for cute gore lovers? Not finding it funny. Overall Rating: 6/10 21. Iriya no Sora, UFO no Natsu イリヤの空、UFOの夏 [Toei Animation] (Finished 6/6) Tags: Drama, Romance, Sci-Fi Asaba Naoyuki is an ordinary high school student. As a member of his school's press club, he's just spent the summer camping outside the local military base, in hopes of seeing the UFOs that are secretly kept there, according to local legend. Returning to school, he meets a strange girl, Iriya Kana, and gradually comes to realize that she is more than merely strange - and that a dark secret lies beneath the world that he knows. A rather weird show in the sense that something goes on and on and then ends, and there's no real story in all that, just some pointless low pressure drama. Just a drag. Overall Rating: 5/10 22. Long Dao Qi Yuan DragonBlade: The Legend of Lang 龍刀奇緣 [-] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Action, Fantasy A town is attacked by a deadly creature, it can only be stopped with the Dragon Blade. The one person who knows where the blade is won't tell Lang, and even if he did, untold peril will fall on anyone who dares to find this legendary weapon. Something like kung-fu panda, also a musical, for me a bore. Overall Rating: 5/10 23. Hurdle ハードル [Magic Bus] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Drama Yuuki has to move from Yokohama to a rural city and becomes the target of bullying. Not translated. Aged SOL, drama, crying - everything as I like. Overall Rating: 5/10
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Fall has become even more saturated than Spring lately. Beck is something unique that I'm willing to cherish. Genshiken is a cozy place to return to. Zipang is probably the best navy anime, at least to my awareness. 1. Bleach BLEACH - ブリーチ - [Pierrot] (Finished 4/366) Tags: Shounen Action, Adventure, Fantasy Ichigo Kurosaki is an ordinary high schooler—until his family is attacked by a Hollow, a corrupt spirit that seeks to devour human souls. It is then that he meets a Soul Reaper named Rukia Kuchiki, who gets injured while protecting Ichigo's family from the assailant. To save his family, Ichigo accepts Rukia's offer of taking her powers and becomes a Soul Reaper as a result. However, as Rukia is unable to regain her powers, Ichigo is given the daunting task of hunting down the Hollows that plague their town. However, he is not alone in his fight, as he is later joined by his friends—classmates Orihime Inoue, Yasutora Sado, and Uryuu Ishida—who each have their own unique abilities. As Ichigo and his comrades get used to their new duties and support each other on and off the battlefield, the young Soul Reaper soon learns that the Hollows are not the only real threat to the human world. Looks like someone watched Yu Yu Hakusho too much, and I actually favor that over Bleach. Overall Rating: 6/10 2. Beck Beck: Mongolian Chop Squad ベック [Madhouse] (Finished 26/26) Tags: Shounen Music Comedy, Drama, Slice of Life Fourteen-year-old Yukio "Koyuki" Tanaka is a dispirited young boy with no goals in life. However, this all changes when Koyuki saves a strange-looking dog named Beck from being harassed by a group of local kids. The dog's owner, 16-year-old Ryuusuke "Ray" Minami, is an emerging guitarist and the former member of a popular rock band. After Koyuki meets Ray again in a diner, the older boy leads him to his former band's meeting place and dazzles Koyuki with his amazing guitar skills. Slowly becoming interested in the glamour of western rock culture, Koyuki decides to start playing the guitar while helping Ray achieve his dream of leading the ultimate rock band. Together with Ray's younger sister Maho and a few other members, the two boys launch their career into the world of rock by forming a band called BECK. Beck follows the group's struggles and successes as they spread their fame across Japan. Back in time, I just thought it was great anime. Nowadays, it seems to be still not surpassed as anime about music. I don't enjoy it as a genius masterpiece, but it's truly unique and can't be repeated in our times. Overall Rating: 9/10 3. School Rumble スクールランブル [Studio Comet] (Finished 2/26) Tags: Shounen Gag Humor, Love Polygon, School Comedy, Romance Just the words "I love you," and everything changes—such is the nature of the bittersweet trials of high school romance. Tenma Tsukamoto, a second year, is on a quest to confess her feelings to the boy she likes. Kenji Harima, a delinquent with a sizable reputation, is in a similar situation, as he cannot properly convey his feelings to the one he loves. Between school, friends, rivalries, and hobbies, these two will find that high school romance is no walk in the park, especially as misunderstandings further complicate their plight. Azumanga random gag sketch curse continues, at least humor is somewhat better than usual. Overall Rating: 6/10 4. Gankutsuou Gankutsuou: The Count of Monte Cristo 巌窟王 [Gonzo] (Finished 3/24) Tags: Award Winning, Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Supernatural, Suspense In the year 5053, French aristocrats Viscount Albert de Morcerf and Baron Franz d'Epinay attend the festival of Carnival on the moon city of Luna. While Franz is just looking to have fun, Albert is seeking something more to fill his life—but he finds more than he bargained for in The Count of Monte Cristo, a mysterious and charming self-made nobleman who meets his gaze during an opera performance. Through a few twists and turns, Albert befriends the Count and introduces him into French society. The Count, however, has more on his mind than just friendship; he plots to finally unleash his vengeance on those who wronged him years earlier. Gankutsuou follows Albert and the Count's intertwined destinies and the ultimate price paid for enacting revenge. A weird aristocratic fantasy based on old novel. I dislike the visuals, the style, the corrupted air - pretty much everything here. It may change for the better further on, but I don't want to observe it. Overall Rating: 6/10 5. Yu☆Gi☆Oh! Duel Monsters GX Yu-Gi-Oh! GX 遊☆戯☆王 デュエルモンスターズ GX [Gallop] (Finished 1/180) Tags: Shounen Strategy Game Action, Comedy, Fantasy In the world of Duel Monsters, a new generation of duelists await their turn to bid for the highest title: The King of Games. As an aspiring duelist, the happy-go-lucky Juudai Yuuki enrolls at the Duel Academy, a reputable institution tasked with nurturing these potential challengers. On his first day, however, Juudai's laid back and careless attitude causes him to arrive late to his entrance exam. There, he stumbles upon a familiar figure who entrusts him the "Winged Kuriboh," a card which becomes Judai's new partner. Soon, he begins living as a duelist—but will destiny and darkness bend his reality into something beyond his imagination? Yu☆Gi☆Oh!: Duel Monsters GX follows the story of Juudai as he strives to fulfill his goal of becoming the next King of Games. As they are thrust into countless unprecedented circumstances, one thing is for sure for Juudai and his friends—there will never be a dull moment at the Duel Academy! Since it's the third iteration already, I can hardly care. Overall Rating: 5/10 6. Rozen Maiden ローゼンメイデン [Nomad] (Finished 2/12) Tags: Seinen Action, Comedy, Drama Traumatized by school, Jun Sakurada spends his days at home as a shut-in, purchasing things online, only to send them back before the free trial period ends. So when a note appears on his desk, asking whether or not he would wind something, he assumes it was something he ordered and carelessly circles "yes," changing his life forever. A box arrives with a wind up doll inside, but this is no ordinary toy: after Jun winds her up, she begins walking and talking as if a normal person. With a haughty attitude, she introduces herself as Shinku, the fifth doll in the Rozen Maiden collection, a group of special dolls made by the legendary dollmaker Rozen. These sisters must battle each other in a competition called the Alice Game with the help of a human to ensure victory. The winner becomes Alice, a real girl who is worthy of meeting their creator. As more sentient dolls end up taking residence in Jun's house, and a foe from Shinku's past makes her appearance, Jun's life becomes far more complicated than he ever thought possible. Finally Chobits stories start to transform in different direction, and arrogant intelligent gothic doll is still better than simpleton ones. Guess style and mysteries can intrigue its share of audience, but it's nothing big or especially interesting. Overall Rating: 6/10 7. Genshiken げんしけん [Palm Studio] (Finished 3/12) Tags: Seinen Otaku Culture, Parody Comedy, Slice of Life Kanji Sasahara is an introverted college freshman just looking for a place to fit in. One day, he happens to stumble upon the club known as the Society for the Study of Modern Visual Culture—otherwise known as Genshiken—that serves to bring the full spectrum of otaku culture together. His first visit to the club, however, does not end well as Sasahara's pride is crushed by his senior, Harunobu Madarame, and he leaves the meeting in full denial of his otaku nature. However, after befriending club member Makoto Kousaka, who turns out to be a hardcore otaku despite his looks, Sasahara becomes more involved with club activities which include obsessing over their favorite anime, reading doujinshi, and attending conventions. There, he meets other interesting people like Kousaka's vehemently non-otaku girlfriend Saki Kasukabe, who strives to turn her boyfriend into a "normal guy." While Saki struggles to understand otaku culture and her boyfriend's love for it, Sasahara finds himself enjoying his time at Genshiken, gradually shedding any denial he once had about being an otaku and immersing himself in an otaku lifestyle. For many years I keep considering Genshiken nothing special, just rather truthful depiction of a nice otaku circle. But whenever I start watching it, I just keep watching till the last episode of last season. It has that special coziness that makes it totally believable and trustworthy. Can't call it particularly sophisticated, but it's at least a firm masterpiece for me. Overall Rating: 8/10 8. Sunabouzu Desert Punk 砂ぼうず [Gonzo] (Finished 6/24) Tags: Seinen Action, Adventure, Comedy, Sci-Fi, Ecchi The Great Kanto Desert, a sweltering wasteland of nothing but ruins and sand, is all that remains of post-apocalyptic Japan. The once fair population has been left to cling to the inhospitable dunes for survival. At least, that is the case for normal people. For those who have spent a little too long in the Kanto sun, the desert offers a wondrous opportunity to make a name for themselves. One such person is the masked handyman "Sunabouzu," or Desert Punk, who has forged a legendary reputation for always finishing his jobs, no matter the nature or cost. Cunning and ruthless, he has become a force of crude destruction to the other desert people. However, the "Vixen of the Desert," Junko Asagiri, discovers that Sunabouzu is not without his weaknesses—he is easily swayed by his insatiable lust for large-breasted desert babes. Following their chaotic adventures through the Kanto Desert, Sunabouzu features a bizarre cast of personalities who entertain themselves with senseless violence and perversion in a world long destroyed by their forefathers. And just like them, they have not learned a damn thing. Sampled it several times, but episodic random nature with seemingly no big plan on the horizon always killed the motivation for me. And I consider humor here very poor. Overall Rating: 6/10 9. Mai-HiME My-Hime 舞-HiME [Sunrise] (Finished 6/26) Tags: Mahou Shoujo, School Action, Fantasy, Girls Love Thirteen girls, each with the ability to materialize "Elements" and summon metallic guardians called "Childs" have been brought to Fuuka Academy to battle mysterious creatures called Orphans. Each with a different personality and background, they must decide who they truly care about and why they fight. Sunrise guarantees high production quality, but their original concepts often raise questions. This time it's a decent enough attempt to fuse multiple genres, but shortly after introduction it falls into stretched averageness. Overall Rating: 6/10 10. Kidou Senshi Gundam SEED Destiny Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny 機動戦士ガンダムSEED DESTINY [Sunrise] (Finished 3/50) Tags: Mecha, Military, Space Action, Drama, Romance, Sci-Fi In the year Cosmic Era 0071, a wartime brawl between two mobile suits results in the destruction of a neutral country. Shinn Asuka finds his entire family killed as casualties of the violence, and swears his life toward a vengeful pursuit of the Earth's Natural forces, under the impression they were the ones responsible for his family's death. Shinn works his way up through the ZAFT military forces, eventually gaining access to the cockpit of the prototype Impulse mobile suit. Athrun Zala, a veteran of the recent war employed in the service of diplomat Cagalli Yula Athha, finds himself drawn into a new conflict between the Naturals and the Coordinators: human beings artificially enhanced before birth and hated by the Naturals for their biological advantages. As the new war rears its head and violence becomes inevitable, Athrun finds himself as a mentor to the bitter Shinn. Athrun must steer the young pilot towards a mindset of mercy before his rage and desire for vengeance consumes him. Are they try to start ANOTHER war?! They're gonna pay for that! These phrases sound multiple times during first episodes and it describes the state of staleness in series well. Compared to this void without a grain of inventiveness even Yamato looked fascinating as it had very distinctive varied four seasons. Overall Rating: 5/10 11. Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha 魔法少女リリカルなのは [Seven Arcs] (Finished 3/13) Tags: Mahou Shoujo, Super Power Action, Comedy, Drama Nanoha Takamachi, an ordinary third-grader who enjoys spending time with her family and friends, rescues an injured ferret that she had dreamed about the night before. The next day, the ferret cries out to her telepathically, asking Nanoha to save him. The ferret reveals himself to be Yuuno Scrya, a mage from another world who is trying to collect the dangerous 21 Jewel Seeds that he accidentally scattered across the world. He enlists Nanoha's help, gifting her the magical wand Raising Heart, and teaches her how to become a powerful mage. Days later, after reclaiming a few of the Jewel Seeds, another mage appears: Fate Testarossa. Stronger than Nanoha, Fate refuses to divulge her reasons in trying to collect the Jewel Seeds. Nanoha senses a melancholy in her eyes, but Fate refuses to communicate. Directed by Akiyuki Shinbo, Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha is a story about the clash of emotions when goals collide. An alright magical girl anime with distinguishing features being seriousness and even realism as it's a complex life, and everyone has their problems. Inside the genre it's a big step in the right direction. But can't say first three episodes hooked me in any way, not sure any will till Madoka. Overall Rating: 6/10 12. Major S1 メジャー (第1シリーズ) [Studio Hibari] (Finished 1/26) Tags: Shounen Team Sports Gorou Honda, a little boy obsessed with baseball, has always admired his father, Shigeharu. Wishing to follow in his father's footsteps, Gorou dreams of becoming a professional baseball player. In turn, his son's starry-eyed admiration encourages Shigeharu to keep persevering, despite his late wife's death and his unsatisfying position on the second-string team Blue Ocean. Unfortunately, an elbow injury forces Shigeharu off the team, and he falls into despair. However, after an offhand joke from his childhood friend, Shigeharu reevaluates his choices and decides to keep playing, leaving behind his prime position as pitcher and taking up the bat. Now motivated more than ever, Gorou works hard to carve his way in the Japanese Little League. Not a bad spokon, but protagonist is too young to present a sophisticated story. Overall Rating: 6/10 13. Gakuen Alice 学園アリス [Group TAC] (Finished 8/26) Tags: Shoujo Love Polygon, School, Super Power Comedy Mikan Sakura is a normal 10-year-old girl. Optimistic, energetic, and overall a very sweet child, Mikan is the complete opposite of the aloof, intelligent, and somewhat cold-hearted, Hotaru Imai. Despite their glaring differences, the two girls have been best friends for a very long time. So when Hotaru suddenly transfers to Alice Academy, a prestigious school in the city, her best friend is devastated—especially when she hears of the horrible rumors regarding the academy's harsh treatment of students. Beset with worry, Mikan runs away to see her best friend! Upon her arrival, Mikan learns of "Alices," individuals gifted with various supernatural abilities, and that the school is an institution built by the government to train and protect them. Discovering that she has her own unique powers, Mikan enrolls in the academy, and, after a lot of trouble, finally reunites with Hotaru. Gakuen Alice is a heartwarming comedy that follows Mikan and her friends' adventures in the academy, as well as their attempt to uncover the mysteries surrounding the problematic, fire-wielding student Natsume Hyuuga. Basically, marmalade boy plus mahou shoujo. This is a shoujo oriented work with not much to enjoy for the males . Overall Rating: 6/10 14. Yakitate!! Japan 焼きたて!! ジャぱん [Sunrise] (Finished 1/69) Tags: Shounen Comedy, Gourmet While countries such as France, England, and Germany all have their own internationally celebrated bread, Japan simply does not have one that can match in reputation. Thus after discovering the wonders of breadmaking at a young age, Kazuma Azuma embarks on a quest to create Japan's own unique national bread. And being blessed with unusually warm hands that allow dough to ferment faster, Azuma is able to bring his baking innovations to another level. As he begins working at the prestigious Japanese bakery chain, Pantasia, Azuma encounters other talented bakers and experiences firsthand the competitive world of baking. Along with his newfound friends and rivals, Azuma strives to create new and unparalleled bread that will start a baking revolution. Cooking anime is not my loaf of bread, so to say, as I reluctantly finished even Souma just because it was already approaching the end. But among the cooking anime this one feels relatively decent. Overall Rating: 6/10 15. Tsukuyomi: Moon Phase 月詠 −MOON PHASE− [Shaft] (Finished 8/25) Tags: Seinen Vampire Comedy, Fantasy, Romance Freelance photographer Kouhei Morioka is traveling to a castle in Germany to take photos of paranormal activity for his friend Hiromi Anzai, editor of an occult magazine. Upon entering the castle, he's confronted by a young girl in a white dress and cat ears who calls herself Hazuki. She takes a keen interest in Kouhei and offers him a kiss, but she instead reveals herself to be a vampire, sucks his blood, and turns him into her slave. Much to Hazuki's dismay, however, Kouhei is unaffected by her bite. Hoping to escape the castle and her possessive butler Vigo, Hazuki instead forces Kouhei to help her. With the help of his powerful exorcist cousin Seiji Midou, the two make it out safely. Finally free, Hazuki flees to Japan in search of her mother. Not long after Kouhei returns home, he discovers Hazuki has nested in his home, where he reluctantly allows her to stay. Meanwhile, other vampires set out to find the missing Hazuki. Equal parts gothic and adorable, Tsukuyomi: Moonphase is a charming and mystical story where two unlikely allies form a unique bond in an attempt to defy a society of immortals. Had to linger for quite some time to even figure out what this vague chaotic mess is. Lots of filler episodes with random stuff. Those with imouto and vampire affinity may enjoy the process, but looking for a plot here is a waste of time. Overall Rating: 6/10 16. Kannazuki no Miko 神無月の巫女 [TNK] (Finished 2/12) Tags: Shounen Mecha Drama, Girls Love, Romance, Supernatural Kannazuki no Miko begins in the village of Mahoroba, where time passes slowly for both man and nature. Two students from the village's prestigious Ototachibana Academy might as well be night and day. Himeko is shy and unassertive, while Chikane is bold and elegant. Despite this, they love each other, and nothing can come between them, no matter how hard they try. On the two girls' shared birthday, a sinister voice corrupts one of their friends into attacking them, and just when it seemed grimmest, the lunar and solar priestess powers that lay dormant in the two girls awaken, dispelling the evil. That was only the first hurdle, however. The two must now fend off the countless others who would threaten their well-being—even the people closest to them! I feel like a lot of anime from 2000s were created just by genre randomizer. Girs love and mecha about boy? Sure we can do it. There's nothing to enjoy here without significant yuri affinity. Overall Rating: 6/10 17. Grenadier: Hohoemi no Senshi Grenadier: The Beautiful Warrior グレネーダー 〜ほほえみの閃士〜 [Group TAC] (Finished 3/12) Tags: Shounen Action, Adventure, Comedy, Ecchi Rushuna is a blonde and very beautiful Senshi (gun expert) that travels through the world with one purpose. Which is to make the world a peaceful place by, instead of fighting with weapons, taking away the people's will to fight by giving them a smile. Although she doesn't want to fight, she is forced to, and shows amazing gun skills. In this journey she meets Yajirou, a mercenary that uses a sword to fight and joins her on her journey. Booby action that at least tries to be serious. Nothing really special about it. Overall Rating: 6/10 18. Tactics タクティクス [Studio Deen] (Finished 3/25) Tags: Shounen Historical, Mythology Comedy, Drama, Mystery, Supernatural Ichinomiya Kantarou grew up with the ability to see demons, but was isolated and bullied by others who did not share the same gift. Instead, he became being friends with the demons, gaining a great attachment to their existence. One day, Kantarou was told about the strongest demon, the one known as the ogre-eating Tengu. Amazed by the news of his strength, Kantarou vowed to find this demon who was far stronger than any other, deciding to call him Haruka when he did so. Since this time, Kantarou searched far and wide for the ogre-eating Tengu with no luck, making his living by becoming a folklore writer and demon-buster. On a particular job, Kantarou had finally found news of a nearby shrine supposedly the place where the ogre-eating Tengu was sealed. Detective mystery about bishounens in kimono hunting monsters. It's not up to me to judge detectives. Overall Rating: 6/10 19. Final Approach φなる・あぷろーち [Trinet Entertainment, Zexcs] (Finished 3/13) Tags: Comedy, Drama, Romance Ever since their parents died a few years ago, Ryo and his sister Akane have been living alone together. Despite their difficult situation, they are still living reasonably happy and normal lives. However, everything is about to be flipped upside-down due to a secret government project. Due to increasingly low birth rates in Japan, the Japanese government is testing a program in which two young people are forced to marry. Ryo wants no part of it, but he is given little choice in the matter; his new fiancée, Shizuka, comes to his home late one night with several dozen government issued bodyguards, who are there to ensure the success of the new couple. Unlike Ryo, Shizuka couldn’t be more willing to go along with this new program, and eagerly goes about her wifely duties, despite his objections. With meddling friends, pushy bodyguards, and an overenthusiastic new fiancée, Ryo’s life has taken a turn in a direction the young man certainly didn’t expect. More like final cringe. Random and degrading. Overall Rating: 5/10 20. Futakoi Twin Love 双恋 [Telecom Animation Film] (Finished 3/13) Tags: School Comedy, Romance With his mother dead and his father working abroad, Futami Nozomu returns to the town where he lived as a child, to attend high school and work part-time at a local shrine. He soon finds himself caught up in a local legend of twin girls loving the same man. And there are many twin girls in this town.... There was already series about seven twins, so let's beat them with the number of pairs! Or something like that because there's not much here apart from cute nonsense. Overall Rating: 6/10 21. Black Jack (TV) ブラックジャック [Tezuka Productions] (Finished 2/61) Tags: Shounen Medical Drama Black Jack is an "unregistered" doctor with a clouded, mysterious past. He works with his little assistant Pinoko (who has a massive crush on the doctor), dealing with medical cases not very well known, which can be strange, dangerous, or not known at all. But he is a genius, and can save almost any of his patients' life (as long as they have the money for it, that is), and is known to many around the world, especially to those of medicine and science. He's a man of science himself, and does not believe much until he has seen it, yet it is many times he is surprised by love and nature often overpowering the science he bases his life in. After all those OVAs and movie I really can't stand the TV series, too simplistic, schematic and morally old. Overall Rating: 5/10 22. Fantastic Children ファンタジックチルドレン [Nippon Animation] (Finished 26/26) Tags: Adventure, Fantasy, Mystery, Romance, Sci-Fi, Suspense A group of enigmatic white-haired children has been spotted at different times and places in Europe for over 500 years. Always with the appearance of 11-year-olds, they behave far more mature than they should be, never grow old, and seem to have supernatural power. What they have been seeking is a girl, and the only clue they have is a picture with a crescent moon. Now, in the year of 2012, an athletic boy named Tohma is about to be involved in this centuries-long mystery. Initial impressions of visual style, characters and their emotions was horrible, but I thought maybe it got better in the second half, yet no. The summary is that albino children live through times, learn about their genesis and there's some drama among themselves by the end. It's so weak in every field that I just can't believe my eyes when I see the number of positive reviews it got. Overall Rating: 5/10 23. Uta∽Kata Utakata うた∽かた [Hal Film Maker] (Finished 4/12) Tags: Psychological Drama It's the last day of the school term in Kamakura Girl's School, and summer is about to begin. Serious but polite 14-year-old Ichika Tachibana is excited to make her summer vacation with her friends a special break to remember! But little does Ichika know that this summer will be more special than she could have ever imagined. While cleaning in an unused school building, Ichika notices an image of an unfamiliar girl in place of her own reflection in a large mirror. Convinced by her friends that she was just seeing things, she is surprised to see the girl in the mirror later that day, holding her lost cell phone. Introducing herself as Manatsu Kuroki, she comes out of the mirror and hands Ichika's phone back—and to Ichika's surprise, the stones on her cell phone charm have changed colors and now allow her to borrow the power of the 12 Djinn that watch over the world. Uta Kata is a tale of a young girl who will realize new things through her interactions with these spirits. As the Djinn show her overwhelming sights, they will soon also bring to her overwhelming thoughts... Just cute simplistic girls doing simplistic stuff with a bit of flavor, though nothing worth mentioning. Overall Rating: 5/10 24. Harukanaru Toki no Naka de: Hachiyou Shou Haruka: Beyond the Stream of Time – A Tale of the Eight Guardians 遙かなる時空の中で〜八葉抄〜 [Yumeta Company] (Finished 1/26) Tags: Shoujo Historical, Isekai, Mythology, Reverse Harem, Time Travel Fantasy, Supernatural Akane Motomiya and her friends Tenma and Shimon are pulled by a demon into another world, where Akane becomes the Priestess of the Dragon God. The people of this world tell her that she is the only one who can stop the demons from taking over; meanwhile, the demons want to use her power for their own ends. Luckily, Akane has the Hachiyou, eight men with powers of their own who are sworn to protect the Dragon Priestess. Someone watched Fushigi Yuugi too much, but this imitation is much worse. Overall Rating: 5/10 25. Zipang ジパング [Studio Deen] (Finished 26/26) Tags: Seinen Adult Cast, Historical, Military, Time Travel Action, Drama, Sci-Fi Mirai, an improved Kongou-class Aegis guided missile destroyer, is one of the newest and most advanced ships in the entire Japanese Self Defense Force (SDF). Her crew, also one of the newest, is lead by Capt. Umezu Saburo and Executive Officer Kadomatsu Yosuke. While running scheduled training exercises one day, Mirai encounters a fierce storm that throws their navigation systems into temporary disarray. After a few minutes of recovery, the crew is shocked to discover that they've been transported back in time to June 4, 1942—The Battle of Midway, during World War II. Letting history take its course for this battle, they manage to avoid the conflict firsthand and make a vow to remain anonymous, changing history as little as possible. However, when the crew comes across the dying Lt. Commander Kusaka Takumi, XO. Kadomatsu's instincts to save lives takes over, changing the course of history more than he could've imagined. I referenced Zipang so many times that it's evident it impressed me. A serious navy story with tilt into time travel. Not exactly my genre, but it only makes it more precious. Overall Rating: 7/10 26. Fuujin Monogatari Windy Tales 風人物語 [Production I.G] (Finished 3/13) Tags: Iyashikei, School Drama, Fantasy, Slice of Life, Supernatural Nao, an 8th grader, is one of the only two members of a Digital Camera Club, where she also serves as the manager. It's a mystery that she shoots nothing else but the skies and clouds. One day, she finds a cat on a rooftop where she usually shoots her camera. It's a cat that knows how to manipulate the flow of a wind. Shocked to find a strange animal, Nao loses her footing and falls off from the rooftop! Miki is the other member of the club, and also Nao's best friend. Mr. Taiki is the teacher who's taught the cat how to manipulate the flow of a wind. Ryoko is a girl who has a huge crush on Mr. Taiki. And there's Jun, who helps Nao and Miki look for a cat that can fly. Then, there's Yukio, who is the widow of Mr. Taiki's deceased brother. On the outskirts of this big city, a town off the "Wind Handlers," has been formed—and a mysterious Wind Festival is about to begin... It's a lot of SOL stories with wind as a theme. And aquarelle visuals not feeling good. Still a lot better than movie about a boy who controlled the wind. Overall Rating: 6/10 27. W: Wish Double Wish W 〜ウィッシュ〜 [Trinet Entertainment, Picture Magic] (Finished 3/13) Tags: Harem, School Drama, Romance, Slice of Life The main character, Junna has a twin sister Senna. He is an ordinal student of an elite school. However, in the past, a traffic accident deprived him of his parents and his memory. Junna survived the accident, and he has lived only with his sister though he has been looked after by his relatives. And present... The life with Senna in the same high school is so pleasant that he can forget the severe past. Because he has been in the world where there is only Senna, his lives in this town, such as the beginning of a new life, new environments, and the meetings, are so refreshing. However, he begins to recall the memories he lost in the accident. Though he enjoys happy and pleasant days, he is tossed by the past, the present, and the future. What is the truth hidden in his memory? The amount of cuteness astonishes, but nowadays it's just a long streak of stamps. Still, probably the first case of volunteer school club that was widely used later on, including Haruhi. Overall Rating: 6/10 28. Bouken Ou Beet Beet the Vandel Buster 冒険王ビィト [Toei Animation] (Finished 4/52) Tags: Shounen Adventure, Fantasy, Supernatural It is the dark century and the people are suffering under the rule of the devil, Vandel, who is able to manipulate monsters. The Vandel Busters are a group of people who hunt these devils, and among them, the Zenon Squad is known to be the strongest busters on the continent. A young boy, Beet, dreams of joining the Zenon Squad. However, one day, as a result of Beet's fault, the Zenon squad was defeated by the devil, Beltose. The five dying busters sacrificed their life power into their five weapons, Saiga. After giving their weapons to Beet, they passed away. Years have passed since then and the young Vandel Buster, Beet, begins his adventure to carry out the Zenon Squad's will to put an end to the dark century. I generally like such lvl 1 adventures, but brat protagonist is very irritating, and despite the lvl 1 references it's a normal fantasy and not MMO. Just a crude battle shounen where boy protagonists gets stronger. Other characters aren't impressive either. Overall Rating: 6/10 29. Ginyuu Mokushiroku Meine Liebe 吟遊黙示録 マイネリーベ [Bee Train] (Finished 3/13) Tags: Shoujo Fantasy The first season begins with introducing the characters, their past and their ambitions. Orpherus, Eduard, Camus, Lui, and Naoji are five noblemen who attend the prestigious Rozenstolz academy, and who are a part of the Strahl class—a class for potential candidates for the advisory positions in the royal palace in the small European country of Kuchen. Isaac is an English writer who visits Kuchen. While still students, the five noblemen are forced to deal with corrupted politicians, secret agents, attempted murder and ambitious individuals from both inside and outside of school who threatens to break the fragile peace in their country, and even assassinate the king. Again Shoujo genre without actual girl protagonist, which makes it boys love with bishounens in an instant, and I'm not distinguishing its sorts. Overall Rating: 5/10 30. Viewtiful Joe ビューティフル ジョー [Group TAC] (Finished 2/51) Tags: Action, Comedy, Sci-Fi Joe, a red-headed movie buff, and Silvia, his girlfriend, are having a bit of relationship trouble. Silvia feels that Joe is taking her for-granted and wants to do something together for once, so Joe decides to take her to see an old action movie featuring his favorite hero, Captain Blue. What started out as a cute movie date takes a turn for the worst when Silvia is pulled into the movie by the leader of the evil organization, Jado. Joe follows her into the mysterious "Movieland," and is granted a powerful device known as a V-Watch by Captain Blue himself. With it, he transforms into the action hero named "Viewtiful Joe" and goes off to rescue his girlfriend before she can be used by Jado to take over the world. It's a long road to go from average Joe to full-blown hero, but he'll give it his all to save both his girl and the world—and he'll do it in the most "view-ti-ful" way possible. No idea about the game, but it does not look like anime, just a western superhero cartoon, and only dub is available. Pretty bad overall, but at least there is some humor in it. Overall Rating: 6/10 31. Zoids Fuzors ゾイド・フューザーズ [Tokyo Kids] (Finished 1/26) Tags: Mecha Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi R.D. is a delivery boy who works for a company called Mach Storm in order to earn money to search for the legendary Alpha Zoid. A Zoid that he heard rumours about from his dad that he passionately believes in. Mach Storm also doubles as a Zoid Battling team. In R.D.'s first Coliseum Zoid Battle, he encounters a team that can fuse Zoids. R.D. soon discovers that he has a Zoid that can computably fuse with his Zoid, Liger Zero. After this happens R.D.'s adventure to discover the truth about the Alpha Zoid begins. Zoids should stop with this tasteless agony already. Overall Rating: 5/10 32. Rockman.EXE Stream ロックマンエクゼStream [Xebec] (Finished 1/51) Tags: Shounen Mecha, School, Strategy Game Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi A comet burns in the sky, its brilliant light shining down upon the people of Earth. At that time, a giant army of viruses invade the real world, crushing everything in their path. Netto and Enzan use cross fusion to intervene, but are whisked away to an unknown location, only to be confronted by the one responsible for the attack - Duo! Third season already, so who cares. Overall Rating: 5/10 33. Samurai Gun サムライガン [Studio Egg] (Finished 12/12) Tags: Seinen Historical Action It is the beginning of the industrial revolution, and feudal Japan is in turmoil. The ruling Shogun are wielding their abusive powers to instill fear and dominance over their oppressed subjects. Beatings, imprisonment, rape and even murder are the adopted tactics chosen to maintain their reign. The bloodshed must end. A group of Samurai have banded together, and, with the development of new weapons and new technology, they have both the will and the hardware to stand up and fight. Ichimatsu is one of these fighters. By day, he works incognito at a local tavern, in the evenings he frequents the brothels, and by the dark of night, he doles out some big-time, gun-barrel justice. He is here to help. He is Samurai Gun. Rather weird mix of samurai action, guns and geisha brothel with excessive violence, but story and characters aren't really articulate or interesting, and the ending is on par with that. Overall Rating: 6/10 34. To Heart: Remember My Memories トゥハート ~remember my memories~ [OLM, AIC ASTA] (Finished 1/13) Tags: Harem, School Drama, Romance, Sci-Fi, Slice of Life Time flies by; Hiroyuki and Akari are 12th-graders now. Both of them and their friends have grown up gradually in someway, physically or mentally, but one of their best friends is missing: the lifelike android Multi. To their surprise, Multi is brought to their campus again without notice, yet she is no longer the same Multi they have known. Obviously, only for fans, and I'm a long-standing hater of To Heart in any variant. Overall Rating: 5/10 35. Kakyuusei 2: Hitomi no Naka no Shoujo-tachi Kakyusei 2 下級生2 ~瞳の中の少女たち~ [Arms] (Finished 2/13) Tags: Harem, School Comedy, Drama, Romance Many people have fond memories of meeting a certain teenage boy in their younger years. However, their ages vary widely, and each remembers him as a teen. This story follows the intricate intertwining of their various stories and how this young man, who apparently lives outside of time, has affected each of them. Lighthearted school romance, but it lacks conception and extensive in nature, so outcome feels episodic . Overall Rating: 5/10 36. Onmyou Taisenki The Chronicle of the Big Battle between Yin and Yang 陰陽大戦記 [Sunrise] (Finished 4/52) Tags: Shounen Adventure, Fantasy, Supernatural All his life, Riku Tachibana has been raised by his grandfather. For some reason, the old man has always been fond of strange hand gestures, and they've rubbed off on Riku, who performs them almost subconsciously, to his classmates' great amusement. One day, however, it suddenly becomes clear to Riku what his grandfather has been surreptitiously teaching him. And the teachings could mean the difference between life and death for Riku. The first use of QTE in anime! Actually, Naruto seems to be the first even here. Looks a lot like Digimon, but more serious in comparison. Overall Rating: 6/10 37. Ring ni Kakero 1 リングにかけろ1 [Toei Animation] (Finished 1/12) Tags: Shounen Combat Sports Action, Sports In order to fulfill their dead father's wish, the siblings, Takane Kiku and Takane Ryuji aims for the champion title of the boxing arena. The sister, Kiku, will act as the trainer while her brother, Ryuji, will concentrate on the role of the boxer and learn the Boomerang. His battle with many rivals has led to the growth and maturity of Ryuji. The junior high boxing tournament has began and Ryuji will be fighting with his arch-rival, Kenzaki Jun. The battle begins. It loses a bit time to Hajime no Ippo, and I did not consider even that a masterpiece. Overall Rating: 6/10 38. Ryuusei Sentai Musumet 流星戦隊ムスメット [TNK] (Finished 1/13) Tags: Adventure, Comedy, Romance, Sci-Fi, Ecchi One day, seven shooting stars fell on to the ground. The shooting stars were colored by seven colors, and they had terrible powers. Those who took the shooting star were tuned into monsters by embodying their desires. Dr. Mishina and Dr. Kishiwada obtained the red, green, and blue stars secretly, and they studied the stars. Finally, they could successfully control their power by putting a special helmet on. The newly developed helmet, "Musumet", was as large as an automobile helmet. Putting Musumet on the head, it turned a person's body into the strongest one on the earth. Furthermore, it received the signal from the brain and amplified the inherent power and ability unlimitedly. To utilize the power of "Musumet", to keep the world peace, and to protect from the disasters caused by the remaining shooting stars, Dr. Mishima and Dr. Kishida founded a secret organization "MET". However, he died before he accomplished his aim. The bereaved daughters, Aoi, Midori, and Kurenai, made up their minds to become Musmet in order to execute the father's will. Even if they turned into Musumet, their wearing wouldn't change except helmets, gloves, and boots. Therefore, they had to go to the scenes wearing their own clothes. The girls had to go to the incident spots occasionally wearing school uniforms, occasionally gymnasium suits, occasionally swimming suits, depending the case, they had to go there even if they were naked, and they would do great jobs. On the other hand, at other times, they were ordinal adolescent girls who were dreaming of lovely meetings with boyfriends. Whether would they cope with the world peace and boyfriends at the same time? Not translated in English, but available in Spanish, because it's a simplistic mass superhero mecha product suitable for export. Overall Rating: 5/10 39. Top wo Nerae 2! Diebuster Gunbuster 2 トップをねらえ2!DIEBUSTER [Gainax] (Finished 6/6) Tags: Mecha, Space Action, Award Winning, Comedy, Drama, Sci-Fi Generations have passed since the war with the Space Monsters started, and none remain who know how it began, with even records of those times being scarce. It is a lost cause, but humanity still fights against them, relying on the "Topless": a group of elite space pilots with special powers that allow them to use the Buster Machines—the last hope against the Space Monsters. Nono, a girl from a remote Martian town, has heard tales all her life of the legendary pilot "Nono-Riri," and wants nothing more than to leave her humble life behind and follow in the footsteps of her idol. Though she has no idea of the dangers that lie ahead, nothing will stop her from achieving her dream. While Nono is down on her luck, she chances upon the lonesome Topless pilot Lal'C Melk Mark, and decides to stake her entire future on following Lal'C, no matter the cost. Anniversary titles are always high budget, but getting a sequel for a finished story after over a decade is an ambiguous decision. I got clear Abenobashi vibes out of it, but could not enjoy it as story itself is absurd though lack sincerity this time. Overall Rating: 6/10 40. Tenkuu Danzai Skelter+Heaven Skelter Heaven 天空断罪スケルターヘブン [Minami Machi Bugyousho] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Mecha Sci-Fi When a mysterious entity suddenly appears in the center of Tokyo, the Alta Mira Agency is tasked to repel the extraterrestrial threat. Otsuya Funagai must guide his all-female unit of "Battle Sole" pilots to take down the strange being no matter the cost. However, his intimate relationship with one of the pilots, Rin Ichikawa, may spell trouble for the team and the mission itself. After Diebuster these ugly 3D CG look especially bad. Just 18 minutes of game advertisement, as usual for Idea Factory production. Overall Rating: 4/10 41. Tales of Phantasia The Animation Tales of Phantasia テイルズ オブ ファンタジア THE ANIMATION [Actas] (Finished 4/4) Tags: Adventure, Fantasy Tragedy strikes the lives of Cless Alvein, a young swordsman, and Chester Barklight, a young archer, as they return to their village of Totus to find it razed to the ground by the mysterious Black Knight. To take over the world, the Black Knight seeks to claim the power of the Demon King, Dhaos—sealed away by the ancestors of Cless and a young cleric named Mint Adnade. Dhaos's reawakening signals not only the end of the Black Knight, but potentially the world. Cless and Mint must now journey a century into the past to rally allies capable of vanquishing the Demon King for once and for all. Tales of Phantasia The Animation follows Cless and Mint's journey through time to long ago, where they forge an alliance with the half-elf sorceress Arche Klaine and the summoner Klarth F. Lester. Together, they strive to defeat Dhaos and his army in saving the past as well as the years to come. I generally like RPG-like fantasy anime, but this one is too short and confusing, more like addition to the game than separate piece of art. Overall Rating: 6/10 42. Akane Maniax アカネマニアックス [Silver] (Finished 3/3) Tags: Mecha Comedy, Romance Jouji Gouda is a new transfer student at Hakuryo High. He fell in love at first sight and boldly proposed to Akane Suzumiya, representative of his class, on his first day at the new school. Although Akane finds him very annoying, hot-blooded and simple-minded Jouji never gives up and would do anything to express his love towards Akane. Parody for Age fans. I'm not included there, so it's just a lot of rarely funny mess. Overall Rating: 5/10 43. Kujibiki Unbalance くじびきアンバランス [Palm Studio] (Finished 3/3) Tags: School Comedy, Romance Chihiro Enomoto is a freshman that just got to a new school called Rikkyoin High School. He lost his parents in a traffic accident when he was 10. Since then, he has been living only with his elder sister Shinobu. He is good at cooking and cleaning, and does all the housekeeping jobs. He fell in love with Tokino at first sight when he met her in the school library on the first day of school. Another girl named Ritsuko, a childhood friend of Chihiro and the chair of student council, falls in the love with the boy instantly after this long-awaited reunion. But she is not the only one who is in love with him. This is the story about a one-year campaign among the candidates for the next students government leaders, who are also chosen by the lot (kujibiki), in order to gain the position. A streak of activities to compete with another team. Rather random and generic from today's experience, but it's not long, and it's one of the first anime about otaku. Overall Rating: 6/10 44. Howl no Ugoku Shiro Howl's Moving Castle ハウルの動く城 [Studio Ghibli] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Adventure, Award Winning, Drama, Fantasy, Romance That jumbled piece of architecture, that cacophony of hissing steam and creaking joints, with smoke billowing from it as it moves on its own... That castle is home to the magnificent wizard Howl, infamous for both his magical prowess and for being a womanizer—or so the rumor goes in Sophie Hatter's small town. Sophie, as the plain daughter of a hatmaker, does not expect much from her future and is content with working hard in the shop. However, Sophie's simple life takes a turn for the exciting when she is ensnared in a disturbing situation, and the mysterious wizard appears to rescue her. Unfortunately, this encounter, brief as it may be, spurs the vain and vengeful Witch of the Waste—in a fit of jealousy caused by a past discord with Howl—to put a curse on the maiden, turning her into an old woman. In an endeavor to return to normal, Sophie must accompany Howl and a myriad of eccentric companions—ranging from a powerful fire demon to a hopping scarecrow—in his living castle, on a dangerous adventure as a raging war tears their kingdom apart. Having watched it for the first time now, it's disappointing. It felt totally like sequel to Spirited Away with both protagonists grown up. Trying to parasite on previous financially successful works is a definite sign of degradation. Overall Rating: 6/10 45. Kumo no Mukou, Yakusoku no Basho The Place Promised in Our Early Days 雲のむこう、約束の場所 [CoMix Wave Films] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Military Award Winning, Drama, Romance, Sci-Fi Hiroki Fujisawa and Takuya Shirakawa harbor admiration for two things in their life: their classmate Sayuri Sawatari and the vast Ezo Tower that stands boundlessly across the Tsugaru Strait. Fascinated by the limitless structure beyond their reach, Hiroki and Takuya begin constructing an aeroplane from a fallen drone they discovered—naming it the Bella Ciela—to fulfill their dream of one day reaching the sky-scraping top of the tower. Later joined by the girl they love, Hiroki and Takuya promise Sayuri to fly with her to the seemingly otherworldly top together. However, Japan has suffered a North-South partitioning that has fueled conflict near the base of the tower, which marks the border between the America-controlled Southern islands and the Northern lands occupied by the Soviet Union. Further along, Sayuri suddenly disappears, and Hiroki and Takuya never see her again. Unbeknownst to them, she fell victim to a sleeping disorder that left her comatose for the past three years. Although Hiroki and Takuya later learn about Sayuri's condition, they also discover that the girl's unconscious state is oddly linked to the same tower the trio had promised to conquer together. I dislike such whiny stories where someone is always terminally ill or something and everyone is whispering all the time to show how painful it is to live. BS. Overall Rating: 6/10 46. Shin Angyo Onshi Blade of the Phantom Master 新暗行御史 [OLM Digital] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Action, Fantasy After wandering through the desert for days, a bitter warrior named Munsu is lost and unable to continue. His life is unexpectedly saved by Mon-ryon, a young man who dreams of becoming a secret agent for Jushin, a once-great country that was recently destroyed. Mon-ryon's goal is to save his girlfriend, Chunhyan, a born fighter who is held captive by the evil Lord Byonand. Then, from out of nowhere, blood begins trickling from his chest. He has been fatally wounded by the Sarinjas, a cannibalistic breed of desert goblin. The quick-thinking Munsu convinces these beasts to spare his life, in exchange for the peaceful handover of Mon-ryon's appetizing corpse. Although skeptical of Mon-ryon's motives, Munsu sets out to continue the mission that the young idealist described. Accompanied by an army of ghost troops, unleashed using the powers of Angyo Onshi, Munsu liberates Chunhyan. After visiting her boyfriend's final resting place, she declares herself Munsu's bodyguard and, together, they set out on a mission to punish those who stripped Jushin of its original glory. Nice short action movie for one sitting. Even characters are actually good, but overall I would not want to rewatch or recommend it as there's nothing really special about it. Overall Rating: 6/10
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Anime of the Year 2004-III Summer - Gantz 2nd Stage
kivandopulus posted a blog entry in Anime of the Season
Turns out I criticized everything too much this season, and Gantz 2nd Stage comes out as the only candidate 1. Elfen Lied エルフェンリート [Arms] (Finished 13/13) Tags: Seinen Gore, Psychological Action, Drama, Horror, Romance, Supernatural Lucy is a special breed of human referred to as "Diclonius," born with a short pair of horns and invisible telekinetic hands that lands her as a victim of inhumane scientific experimentation by the government. However, once circumstances present her an opportunity to escape, Lucy, corrupted by the confinement and torture, unleashes a torrent of bloodshed as she escapes her captors. During her breakout, she receives a crippling head injury that leaves her with a split personality: someone with the mentality of a harmless child possessing limited speech capacity. In this state of instability, she stumbles upon two college students, Kouta and his cousin Yuka, who unknowingly take an injured fugitive into their care, unaware of her murderous tendencies. This act of kindness will change their lives, as they soon find themselves dragged into the shadowy world of government secrecy and conspiracy. As I often say, it fought the war on Chobits territory, and Chobits won again. Still, Elfen Lied has more on the side, so it's say it's a tie. Never had any piety towards it. Overall Rating: 6/10 2. Gantz 2nd Stage Gantz: Second Stage ガンツ [Gonzo] (Finished 13/13) Tags: Seinen Gore, Psychological, Survival Action, Drama, Horror, Sci-Fi, Supernatural, Ecchi Despite having seemingly returned to their normal lives, Kei Kurono, Masaru Katou, and Kei Kishimoto are forced back into the lethal game after Gantz's recent activity. The black sphere continues to summon recently deceased people to fight alien invaders. And having survived the two previous encounters, the trio are more than prepared for the upcoming missions. As they progress through the tournament's stages, the three proceed in their attempt to earn 100 points, which is said to be the only way to leave the parallel dimension for good. However, with the constant onslaught of alien invaders and the threat of imminent death, they must first focus on the task at hand—immediate survival. As a sequel, gets one score less, but I don't distinguish first half and second half. Overall Rating: 7/10 3. DearS ディアーズ [Daume] (Finished 4/12) Tags: Shounen Harem Comedy, Romance, Sci-Fi, Ecchi One year ago, a UFO containing 150 aliens crash-landed off the shores of Kasai. Because no one could fix their ship, the Japanese Government decided to bestow upon them the designation "DearS" and make them into Japanese citizens, teaching them the language, customs, and culture of Japan. However, in order for them to become more familiar with human society, a home-stay program has been enacted to allow them to mingle with other humans. One misty morning, a truck carrying a capsule that housed one of these aliens ends up dropping it into the riverbank, releasing her from her confinement. She is eventually found by a high school student named Takeya Ikuhara, who saves her from being hit by a truck and takes pity on her, despite being extremely distrustful of their race and wanting nothing to do with them. Upon being named Ren, she imprints upon him as her "Master" and serves as his personal "Slave," leaving him with a "DearS" who wants to remain with him no matter what and bringing his ordinary, alien-free days to an end. That's what I'd call moege if it was a game. So horrible that it does not even deserve discussing it. Overall Rating: 5/10 4. Girls Bravo: First Season Girls Bravo GIRLSブラボー first season [AIC Spirits] (Finished 3/11) Tags: Shounen Harem, Isekai, School Comedy, Fantasy, Romance, Ecchi Small for his age, Yukinari has been bullied and abused by girls all his life. Now in high school, he has developed a rare condition: whenever girls touch him, or even come close, he breaks out in hives. Imagine his surprise, when he is suddenly transported to the city of Seiren on a mystic world invisibly orbiting the Earth, and populated with vast numbers of women and very few men. Fortunately, he has a new friend, Miharu-chan, whose touch inexplicably doesn't affect him. A big rival for DearS, not in a good way. Overall Rating: 5/10 5. Samurai 7 サムライセブン [Gonzo] (Finished 4/26) Tags: Historical, Mecha, Samurai Sci-Fi In the far distant future, on a planet that might have been called "earth", there was a war between samurai who mechanized their bodies. After the long war, people enjoyed a modest peace. Facing starvation and abductions at the hands of fearsome mechanized bandits (Nobuseri), the farmers of Kanna Village make the dangerous choice to hire samurai for protection. The village's water priestess, Kirara, her younger sister, Komachi, and a heartbroken villager, Rikichi, set off to hire willing samurai with nothing to offer but rice from their meager harvests. Through dangerous encounters and a bit of luck, seven samurai of varying specialties and experience are gathered for an epic battle against the bandits and the merchants that influence them. Samurai 7 is based loosely upon Kurosawa Akira's famous movie "Seven Samurai"/"Shichinin no Samurai" Guess concept was too lucrative - you can press on Kurosawa nostalgy, show varied bright samurai, gather them for a whole season and pack a lot of action in here. And Gonzo is the studio that can pull off such ambitious work. But what I want to ask - is it really interesting? Because it was not for me. Overall Rating: 6/10 6. Soukyuu no Fafner: Dead Aggressor Fafner 蒼穹のファフナーDead Aggressor [Xebec] (Finished 25/25) Tags: Mecha, Military Action, Drama, Sci-Fi Tatsumiyajima is the central island in the middle of a small cluster of islands, in a sleepy backwater of the Japanese isles. Not much happens there, and the island's young people go to school knowing that their lives are likely to remain peaceful and undisturbed. Or so they have been taught... but the truth is different. The fate of mankind is on the line, and Tatsumiyajima is the last line of defense against a hostile and incomprehensible enemy. At the center of it all, fighting for Humanity's continued existence, is the giant robot Fafner, the dragon that guards this final treasure of mankind. As Evangelion clone, it was supposed to get better towards the end. And it did not. And it managed even to have an open ending to spawn sequels and spin-offs. Very immature, as for me . Overall Rating: 6/10 7. Ninin ga Shinobuden ニニンがシノブ伝 [ufotable] (Finished 3/12) Tags: Martial Arts, Parody Comedy Kaede is a normal school girl who was studying for her exams for school when suddenly she is interrupted by Shinobu, a girl who is a ninja-in-training, attempting to complete her exam. The problem is, in order for her to successfully complete her exam, she must steal one of Kaede's panties! In Kaede's attempt to stop Shinobu from stealing her panties, an unexpected friendship is forged between the two. Kaede soon becomes engrossed in Shinobu's world, surrounded by partying ninjas and a yellow pac-man like thing by the name of Onsokumaru, who claims to be the master of all ninjas! Title "Nonsense ninja" says it all. Some pervy humor is not bad, overall rather average. Overall Rating: 6/10 8. Kurau Phantom Memory クラウ ファントムメモリー [Bones] (Finished 13/24) Tags: Space, Super Power Action, Drama, Sci-Fi It is the year 2100, and on the colonized Moon, a project is under way to explore new aspects of energy. Amami Kurau is the daughter of the chief scientist on the project, and on her 12th birthday, she accompanies her father to the lab to observe the experiments. Then something goes awry, and Kurau is struck by twin bolts of light. In the aftermath, her father is dismayed to find that his daughter is no longer his daughter. Rather, her body is now home to two energy entities with fantastic powers. This story absolutely does not know what it wants to be and where it's going to. First it's SOL and split personality drama, then it's sci-fi, next it's using attacking and healing magic, and elements just interchange to prolong the senseless agony. Overall Rating: 5/10 9. Maria-sama ga Miteru: Haru Maria Watches Over Us: Printemps マリア様がみてる~春~ [Studio Deen] (Finished 2/13) Tags: School Drama, Girls Love The spring term is beginning for the students at Lillian Girls' Academy. Friends are reunited, but for the Yamayuri Council, it's a bittersweet time. Yoko, Eriko, and Sei are busy preparing to depart Lillian while Sachiko, Rei, and Shimako are doing their best to ensure that their dear sisters receive a memorable commencement. Sei's departure will leave a sizable hole in the White Roses, and filling it won't be easy. But is there anyone who could appeal to Shimako enough to become the next Rosa Gigantea en bouton? Yuri stories have its audience. I'm not included. Overall Rating: 6/10 10. Otogizoushi Otogi Zoshi: The Legend of Magatama お伽草子 [Production I.G] (Finished 7/26) Tags: Historical Adventure, Drama, Fantasy The year is 972 A.D. in Kyoto, the capital of ancient Japan. Kyoto is becoming a corrupt and run-down city; selfish samurai and onmyoji, who care only about gaining political power are everywhere. To make matters worse the city is suffering from famine and widespread disease. Unable to ignore the condition of the city any longer, the Imperial Court decides to send Minamoto no Raiko, a famous samurai well-known for his archery skills, to recover a legendary gem said to hold mysterious power to save the world. However Raiko also falls ill to disease. Instead his youngest sister, Hikaru, decides secretely to make the journey in his place. Hikaru meets many people, and has many adventures while on her trip for the legendary gem. Yay, new aimless travel adventure about collecting all the pieces of something. Great premise for wasting time which is executed brilliantly if that was the aim. Overall Rating: 6/10 11. Wind: A Breath of Heart (TV) Wind -a breath of heart- [Radix] (Finished 5/13) Tags: School Drama, Romance, Supernatural Okano Makoto transferred to the school in his home town. There, he spent normal but happy school days with his sister, Hinata, a jokey classmate, Tachibana Tsutomu, Shikouin Kasumi, Tsutomu's childhood friend, and other friends. One day, after school, Makoto heard someone playing the harmonica. That melody made him feel something old, and it brought him to the roof of the school buildings. There, he met a girl in the dusk. It was Narukaze Minamo who turned her face to him with a smile. She was a childhood friend, but they had lived separately for years. Hiding their true thoughts, Makoto and his friends spend their lives in school. Their stories in a mysterious town are about to begin. Vanilla sweet and banal with the obligatory drama developing the further it goes, and it could only scrap "content" for half a season with 12 minute episodes. Overall Rating: 5/10 12. Tsuki wa Higashi ni Hi wa Nishi ni: Operation Sanctuary 月は東に日は西に〜Operation Sanctuary〜 月は東に日は西に〜Operation Sanctuary〜 [Radix] (Finished 6/13) Tags: Harem, Time Travel Comedy, Drama, Romance, Sci-Fi Naoki Kuzumi, a junior in high school, had lost his parents in an accident five years ago, and is living with his aunt, uncle, and cousin Matsuri. He always thought his life was ordinary, besides the fact that he can't remember what happened in his youth. One sunny day as he is taking a nap on a bench, a redheaded girl -- Mikoto -- literally falls on him from the sky. For some reason, she thinks he's her younger brother. Naoki's time period is a temporal shelter for those in the future, when many are suffering from an incurable disease. When she heard her younger brother Yuusuke had been taken to Naoki's time, Mikoto herself had gone back in time. It feels that it comes out of an old visual novel. And source material is definitely weak. Overall Rating: 6/10 13. Galaxy Angel 4 ギャラクシーエンジェル4 [Madhouse, feel.] (Finished 1/13) Tags: Comedy, Sci-Fi Starting out with the new Galaxy Angel, Chitose Karasuma, the Angel Troupe continue their search for The Lost Technology while running into different kinds of mishaps. The nonsense horror continues for the fourth time now. Overall Rating: 5/10 14. Agatha Christie no Meitantei Poirot to Marple Agatha Christie's Great Detectives Poirot and Marple アガサ・クリスティーの名探偵ポワロとマープル [OLM] (Finished 1/39) Tags: Historical Mystery Young Mabel West is the daughter of mystery writer Raymond West, who wants her to lead a normal life. Rebelling against this, Mabel wants to be a great detective, and sets out for London to become assistant to none other than Hercule Poirot, the great Belgian detective who resides there. She finally wins the reluctant approval of her father, and embarks on an exciting life of mystery and suspense—his only demand being that she occasionally spend some time with her great-aunt, Jane Marple, in the small village of St. Mary Mead. What can I say, I seriously detest works of Agatha Christie. Overall Rating: 5/10 15. Uchuu Koukyoushi Maetel: Ginga Tetsudou 999 Gaiden Space Symphonic Poem Maetel: Galaxy Express 999 Side Story 宇宙交響詩メーテル ~銀河鉄道999外伝~ [Azeta Pictures] (Finished 2/13) Tags: Space Drama, Sci-Fi Maetel abandoned her mother and her home planet, the doomed and frozen La Metal, where people must become cyborgs to survive. When she is beckoned to return, her options seem slim: follow her mother's path (and with it a robot mind and the contempt of all humans), or run away and fight with humans against the machines. Yet, she is not without comrades and defenders. If she can accept the friendship of beings of metal who desire peace, and oppose those who think being made of flesh and blood is enough to make one human, she may still have a chance to find her own path. Wow, just wow. It's like 5th remake of Express 999 or close to that. Of course it's a side story this time, so it's one coherent story instead of many travel episodes, but I'm so sick of this franchise that I just can't treat it calmly - very infuriating beating around the same stale bush for decades. Overall Rating: 6/10 16. Monkey Punch: Manga Katsudou Daishashin モンキー・パンチ 漫画活動大写真 [TMS Entertainment] (Finished 3/12) Tags: Seinen Gag Humor, Parody Action, Adventure, Comedy, Ecchi It's an animated variety show featuring the works of Monkey Punch that aired on WOWOW with the episodes being 52 minutes long. 12 episodes were aired between July 31, 2004 to June 25, 2005 and received a DVD exclusive 15 minute long special called Crime Mate. Some kind of anthology with familiar Lupin characters and not only them. Pretty weird, as for me. Overall Rating: 5/10 17. Monkey Turn V モンキー ターン V [OLM] (Finished 1/25) Tags: Shounen Racing Action, Drama Sequel to Monkey Turn. Original was already non-repairable, maybe for game fans. Overall Rating: 5/10 18. Eiken: Eikenbu yori Ai wo Komete Eiken エイケン エイケンヴより愛をこめて [J.C.Staff] (Finished 1/2) Tags: Harem, School Comedy, Ecchi Zashono Academy is a massive educational institution with over thirty-five thousand students enrolled across all grades. It is here that the plain and unpopular Densuke Mifune enrolls in high school. While he looks forward to blending into the crowd, circumstances change when he runs into Chiharu Shinonome, an incredibly attractive and intelligent girl who has captured the attention of all the students at the school. Witnessing the encounter between the two, Kirika Misono pressures them into joining her mysterious "Eiken Club" to compete in the school's annual club tournament. The tournament causes Densuke to become more intimate with his fellow club members, but will he be able to maintain his composure or will he give in to their bold advances? An abominable attack of giga boobs. Overall Rating: 5/10 19. Re: Cutey Honey Re:キューティーハニー [Gainax, Toei Animation] (Finished 3/3) Tags: Action, Comedy, Girls Love, Sci-Fi, Ecchi The last words spoken to Honey Kisaragi by her father before his death at the hands of the mysterious organization Panther Claw have shaped her way of life. It is the sole reason she still continues to fight for the sake of others. The energetic Inspector Natsuko Aki does her absolute best to apprehend the members of Panther Claw and bring them to justice, but they are simply too much for the police to handle. The only one who can give these criminals a run for their money is the sexy warrior of love and justice, Cutie Honey—the secret alter ego of Kisaragi. Although Natsuko refuses to acknowledge vigilantes, her relationship with Honey progresses for the better as the strong-headed detective realizes the true intentions behind Honey's actions. Overtime, Honey grows more fearful of her burning desire for revenge; meanwhile, Natsuko wants to protect her friend, a sentiment that clashes with her ideals of upholding the law. If they ever hope to stand a chance against the menacing Panther Claw, the duo will have to put aside their differences and stand together. Original was very modest, in contrast this interpretation is provoking and using lots of absurd humor akin to Abenobashi magical circle. At least it's something that stays in memory. Overall Rating: 6/10 20. Kishin Houkou Demonbane 機神咆吼デモンベイン [Group TAC, View Works] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Mecha Comedy, Drama, Sci-Fi Lily Bridge, a young journalist, arrives at Arkham City, hoping to find a big scoop. However, with all the strange things occuring around the city, only the exceptional findings are news-worthy, such as the mysterious mecha known as Demonbane. However, upon finding a small piece of machinery that seemed to be connected with the Hadou Combine, Lily is determined to find the truth. Little does she know, she enters into a dark world, involving herself with Demonbane and the powerful forces that control the city. It's just a single episode prequel to the game, for advertisement purposes, so no great. Overall Rating: 5/10 21. Ajisai no Uta あじさいの唄 [Group TAC] (Finished 4/4) Tags: Historical Comedy, Drama This is a heartwarming story about a family during the Edo era. The main character, Kuritaro, lives with his father and a stray dog. Despite his mother's death, he continues to live a cheerful life. Not translated. It's rather heart-freezing than heart-warming as it involves too much crying. It's a mixed bag - some events are nice and some are just a spree of crying. Overall Rating: 6/10 22. Mind Game マインド・ゲーム [Studio 4°C] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Adult Cast, Psychological Adventure, Avant Garde, Award Winning, Comedy, Romance After seeing her jump onto a subway at the last second and getting her ankle crushed between the doors, Nishi reconnects with his high school sweetheart, Myon. Nishi is still very much in love with Myon, but is shocked to learn that she is engaged to another man. Nishi agrees to meet Myon's fiancé at her family's Yakitori restaurant, but members of the Yakuza storm the joint and murder Nishi when he tries to stop them from raping Myon. Nishi, now dead, wakes up and meets a constantly shapeshifting god, who mocks him for dying. The god tells Nishi to walk into a portal and disappear from existence, which Nishi rejects, choosing instead to sprint past the god and reanimate. With a new outlook on life and knowledge of how the Yakuza are going to attack him, Nishi kills one of the Yakuza with his own gun, fleeing in a stolen car with Myon and her sister. Acclaimed director Masaaki Yuasa's debut film, Mind Game's constantly shifting visuals tell a story about living one's life without regrets that is unlike any other. Super experimental something. It's rather mindless games. Overall Rating: 5/10 23. Steamboy スチームボーイ [Sunrise] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Historical, Military Action, Adventure, Drama, Sci-Fi Ray is a young wunderkind inventor living in Victorian England. His life is turned upside down when he receives a special package hailing from the United States, sent by his grandfather, Lloyd Steam. The package contains a device called a Steam Ball, a device so powerful that it can drive any machine that requires steam with a nearly limitless amount of energy. Ray is instructed to not let the Steam Ball fall into the wrong hands, which include the mighty O'Hara Foundation, who desperately want to bring the Steam Ball back into their control so they can achieve their less than noble goals. He will need to use every bit of his brilliance in order to dodge the countless goons that are sent to snatch the device from him. It will be a battle between good and evil, a battle for redemption, a battle for the future! I seriously dislike steampunk, and this thing is one condensed steampunk. I've yet to see any worthy steampunk work. Irritating characters only add negative emotions. Overall Rating: 5/10 24. Kakurenbo Kakurenbo: Hide & Seek カクレンボ [Yamato Works] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Psychological Horror, Supernatural Among the high rises of steel pipes, meshed power lines, and faded neon lights, exists a game that children dare to play within the ruins of the old city. "Otokoyo," a secret game of hide-and-seek, one where all who play wear fox masks and only begins when seven have gathered. But it is no normal game, as all who have played it have gone missing. Many whisper it is the work of demons, but that is just a rumor... or is it? Kakurenbo follows the story of seven children as they play Otokoyo for the first time and discover why if you play, you never return. Length is of just one episode, and hearing same two phrases kills any motivation. Overall Rating: 5/10 25. Nareuneun Dwaeji - Haejeok Mateo 날으는 돼지 해적 마테오 [] (Finished 0/1) Tags: Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi A 2004 Korean CG film about an anthropomorphic pig being a sky pirate. Not found. Overall Rating: 0/10 -
Gantz is the anime I truly love with all its weak sides. Samurai Champloo and Appleseed (Movie) should be noticed as well. 1. Samurai Champloo サムライチャンプルー [Manglobe] (Finished 26/26) Tags: Historical, Samurai Action, Adventure, Comedy Fuu Kasumi is a young and clumsy waitress who spends her days peacefully working in a small teahouse. That is, until she accidentally spills a drink all over one of her customers! With a group of samurai now incessantly harassing her, Fuu desperately calls upon another samurai in the shop, Mugen, who quickly defeats them with his wild fighting technique, utilizing movements reminiscent to that of breakdancing. Unfortunately, Mugen decides to pick a fight with the unwilling ronin Jin, who wields a more precise and traditional style of swordfighting, and the latter proves to be a formidable opponent. The only problem is, they end up destroying the entire shop as well as accidentally killing the local magistrate's son. For their crime, the two samurai are captured and set to be executed. However, they are rescued by Fuu, who hires the duo as her bodyguards. Though she no longer has a place to return to, the former waitress wishes to find a certain samurai who smells of sunflowers and enlists the help of the now exonerated pair to do so. Despite initially disapproving of this idea, the two eventually agree to assist the girl in her quest; thus, the trio embark upon an adventure to find this mysterious warrior—that is, if Fuu can keep Mugen and Jin from killing each other. Set in an alternate Edo Period of Japan, Samurai Champloo follows the journey of these three eccentric individuals in an epic quest full of action, comedy, and dynamic sword fighting, all set to the beat of a unique hip-hop infused soundtrack. Of course I watched it in the past and even got a friend who is head over heels over it. Always could enjoy it only slightly. because for me it's primarily an aimless journey with rare bright moments. Still it must be the first road movie that I can enjoy to an extent. Overall Rating: 7/10 2. Monster モンスター [Madhouse] (Finished 3/74) Tags: Seinen Adult Cast, Psychological Drama, Mystery, Suspense Dr. Kenzou Tenma, an elite neurosurgeon recently engaged to his hospital director's daughter, is well on his way to ascending the hospital hierarchy. That is until one night, a seemingly small event changes Dr. Tenma's life forever. While preparing to perform surgery on someone, he gets a call from the hospital director telling him to switch patients and instead perform life-saving brain surgery on a famous performer. His fellow doctors, fiancée, and the hospital director applaud his accomplishment; but because of the switch, a poor immigrant worker is dead, causing Dr. Tenma to have a crisis of conscience. So when a similar situation arises, Dr. Tenma stands his ground and chooses to perform surgery on the young boy Johan Liebert instead of the town's mayor. Unfortunately, this choice leads to serious ramifications for Dr. Tenma—losing his social standing being one of them. However, with the mysterious death of the director and two other doctors, Dr. Tenma's position is restored. With no evidence to convict him, he is released and goes on to attain the position of hospital director. Nine years later when Dr. Tenma saves the life of a criminal, his past comes back to haunt him—once again, he comes face to face with the monster he operated on. He must now embark on a quest of pursuit to make amends for the havoc spread by the one he saved. Suspence mystery is just not a genre I can appreciate. I remember trying to watch it and even sneak peeking into the last episodes which did no good, of course. I see that there is a shorter version released in 2005, so I'll wait till then before commenting on substance. Overall Rating: 6/10 3. Gantz ガンツ [Gonzo] (Finished 13/13) Tags: Seinen Gore, Psychological, Survival Action, Drama, Horror, Sci-Fi, Supernatural, Ecchi Thought your life was bad? Sometimes, death is worse. There is no salvation, peace, nor god waiting to receive you into their care. But wait, a god? Maybe you are talking about that big black ball stuck in the room with you. Now you are thrown into a game, fighting green aliens and robot monsters for the chance to survive. When Kei Kurono is killed, he thus finds himself caught in such a game—a test of his skills, morals, and will to survive. His life is not his own; his death is spat and trampled upon over and over again. What happens if he does not listen? God knows. A word of warning: Gantz is not for the faint-hearted, but neither is it as simple as it looks. Gore, rape, and violence is rampant, as are portrayals of greed, violence, and all the ugliness that one sees in society today. Gantz had a great impression on me when I first watched it. After all, I only read manga twice in my life - to see the ending of Berserk and Gantz. I'm still waiting for the third season so that you know! At the same time I'm not ready to treat it as genius masterpiece, and there's not much in intellectual department either, quite the contrary at times. lol. Will have to settle with a firm masterpiece score. Overall Rating: 8/10 4. Tenjou Tenge Tenjho Tenge 天上天下 [Madhouse] (Finished 2/24) Tags: Seinen Martial Arts, School, Super Power Action, Comedy, Ecchi For some people, high school represents the opportunity for a fresh start. You can take new classes and make new friends. For Souichiro Nagi and Bob Makihara, though, high school means something different: the chance to become the top fighters in the entire student body! Too bad Toudou Academy is the hardest possible place to realize their dreams. Their new high school is no ordinary academic institution. Rather than concentrating on classic subjects like math and science, Toudou Academy was created for the sole purpose of reviving the martial arts in Japan! As a result, Souichiro's aspirations to become top dog are cut short when he runs afoul of Masataka Takayanagi and Maya Natsume. The two upperclassmen easily stop the freshmen duo's rampage across school, but rather than serving as a deterrent, it only stokes their competitive fire. What kind of monstrous fighters attend Toudou Academy? Are there any stronger than Masataka and Maya? And why in the world is Maya's younger sister stalking Souichiro? Learn the answers to these questions and more in Tenjou Tenge! Cheesy and ugly. I managed to hate even the so called "epic" fight beginning and can only imagine the depths of despair awaiting further... Overall Rating: 5/10 5. Initial D Fourth Stage 頭文字〈イニシャル〉D FOURTH STAGE [A.C.G.T.] (Finished 1/24) Tags: Seinen Racing Action, Drama Takumi Fujiwara finally joins Ryousuke and Keisuke Takahashi to create "Project D." Their goal is twofold: Ryousuke wants to develop his "High-Speed Street Racing Theory," while Keisuke and Takumi aim at improving their driving skills by facing powerful opponents on dangerous roads. The idea of Project D is to challenge street racing teams from other prefectures to improve both their uphill and downhill records. In order to attract the attention of the best racing teams, Ryousuke creates a dedicated website to announce the future battles of Project D and post the team's results. The fourth season of Initial D details the hardships and successes of the members of Project D as they try to become the best street racing team outside of Gunma Prefecture. It was weird to see third iteration as a movie, good thing it's back as longer series, but it's not my plate. Overall Rating: 6/10 6. Midori no Hibi Midori Days 美鳥の日々 [Pierrot] (Finished 5/13) Tags: Shounen Comedy, Drama, Romance, Ecchi There isn't a single person in Sakuradamon High who hasn't heard the legends about Seiji "The Mad Dog" Sawamura's demonically powerful right hand. His reputation makes it fairly difficult for him to approach girls, and after being rejected 20 times straight, he half-jokingly vows to finish high school with his right hand for a girlfriend. Much to his surprise, after waking up the next morning, Seiji discovers that his demon right hand has mysteriously turned into a miniature girl, Midori Kasugano, who reveals that she has had a crush on Seiji for the past three years. Because their situation is not ideal for either of them, Seiji attempts to return Midori to normal. But after causing a big misunderstanding at the Kasugano household, the pair decide to keep their predicament between them until a solution is found. Thus begins an odd relationship, and what could be the only chance for Midori to finally be with the one she loves. Wanted to watch it in full as this anime is referenced quite a lot, but this farce hurts. I'd say it's another attempt to play on the Chobits territory, and it's another win for Chobits. Overall Rating: 6/10 7. Kyou kara Maou! 今日からマ王! [Studio Deen] (Finished 1/78) Tags: Shoujo Isekai, Mythology Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy Kyou kara Maou! revolves around Yuri Shibuya, your average Japanese teenager. One day, Yuri sees a classmate being harassed by bullies. Thanks to this intervention, his friend is able to escape, but unfortunately Yuri becomes the new target of the bullies in the process and gets his head shoved into a toilet. But instead of water, the toilet contains a swirling portal that sucks him into another world, largely resembling medieval Europe. There, he is told that he will become the next Demon King due to his black hair and black eyes, traits only possessed by the demon's royal lineage. Yuri's arrival is met with some skepticism by some of the demons, who view him as unworthy to be their king. However, after Yuri wins a duel by utilizing his magical powers, the demons slowly begin to acknowledge him as their monarch. Yuri must now learn what it takes be a true Demon King, as he tries to keep the peace between demons and humans in this strange new realm. How come this is marked as Shoujo with male as protagonist... some kind of shounen ai with bishounens. I block boys love genre for a reason not to watch things like this. Overall Rating: 5/10 8. Aishiteruze Baby★★ 愛してるぜ ベイベ★★ [TMS Entertainment] (Finished 2/26) Tags: Shoujo Childcare Comedy, Drama, Romance Katakura Kippei is in every way a high school playboy. Spending his days flirting with any female he can see, responsibility is the last thing on his mind. Life takes an unexpected turn for him as one day he returns home to find himself with the fulltime task of caring for his 5-year-old cousin. Kippei's aunt Miyako had disappeared, appearing to have abandoned his cousin, Yuzuyu. With Kippei's lack of responsibility and knowledge of childcare and Yuzuyu's injured heart with the disappearance of her mother, their time together is in for a bumpy ride. Basic childcare story with Marmalade Boy motives. It has ways to go till Bunny Drop. Overall Rating: 6/10 9. Koi Kaze 恋風 [A.C.G.T.] (Finished 13/13) Tags: Seinen Psychological Drama, Romance Saeki Koushirou works as a wedding planner, but his own love life is in shambles. His background makes it difficult for him to commit himself wholeheartedly to love. The child of a divorced couple, he lives with his father. He has a mother and a sister, but he has not seen them in years. After being dumped by his girlfriend, a chance encounter with a female high school student shakes Koushirou's calm and awakens new feelings in him—but he learns that the girl is in fact his sister, who will now be staying with his father and him. Yet, the feelings in Koushirou's heart... Watched it in the past , and it's a platonic romance Lolita story, so to say. It's good and all, but I'm not enjoying this, although there was a time when I did. Overall Rating: 6/10 10. Keroro Gunsou Sgt. Frog ケロロ軍曹 [Sunrise] (Finished 2/358) Tags: Shounen Mecha, Parody Comedy, Sci-Fi It is the year 2004 AD, and pandemonium breaks as a mysterious frog-like alien race fills the sky with UFOs—or so 12-year-old Fuyuki Hinata dreams. Coincidentally, Sergeant Keroro, leader of a preliminary squad for the Keronian invasion of Pekopon—the alien name for Earth—begins his mission by invading Fuyuki's home. After subduing the boy and his sister, Keroro plans to reunite with his comrades and return to the mothership to repair his invaluable invasion device, the Kero Ball. Unfortunately, he receives word that headquarters has abandoned his unit's retrieval due to an unprecedented issue that forced the rest of the Keronians to flee. Consequently, Keroro is forced to stay at the Hinata residence together with the friendly, starry-eyed Fuyuki; his athletic, short-tempered sister Natsumi; and their hardworking, attractive mother Aki. Now stuck until further notice, Keroro and his platoon spend each day plotting world domination, but are thwarted each and every time by various unexpected factors. Nevertheless, as they live alongside humans, they learn to treat them as friends and allies, forming comedic yet meaningful connections that make their lives on Earth worthwhile. After a peek into this, I realized that I got immune to mediocre Sunrise comedy by now already. It only feels tiresome now. Overall Rating: 6/10 11. Bakuretsu Tenshi Burst Angel 爆裂天使 [Gonzo] (Finished 3/24) Tags: Mecha Adventure, Comedy, Sci-Fi In Japan's not-too-distant future, crime has become so common that the government has legalised firearms for citizens to use in self-defence. To combat this new wave of wrongdoing, the Recently Armed Police of Tokyo was established in hopes of hunting down criminals with lethal force. Kyohei Tachibana is a gifted culinary student who dreams of saving up enough money to become a pastry chef in France. When four young mercenaries ask him to be their cook, he's forced into making a tough choice. As Jo, Meg, Sei, and Amy take on the bloodiest jobs in the chaotic city of Tokyo, Kyohei accepts an imminent descent into the world of crime—and he'll do a lot more than just cooking! Why does this resemble Evangelion so much... Asuka has grown up quite a bit! Anyway, there's mostly just action, and it inevitably gets repetitive. Quality is high, but there's not much to enjoy besides fighting that gets dull. Overall Rating: 6/10 12. Kono Minikuku mo Utsukushii Sekai この醜くも美しい世界 [Gainax, Shaft] (Finished 5/12) Tags: Comedy, Drama, Romance, Sci-Fi, Ecchi High school student Takeru Takemoto works part time as a (motor)bike courier. During one of his deliveries, he saw a mysterious light passing him and fell into a forest. What he had found was a beautiful girl coming out from a glowing cocoon, calling herself "Hikari." While Takeru was quite embarrassed because of Hikari's nudity, a strange monster suddenly showed up and immediately attacked the two. Both Takeru and Hikari demonstrated the power of their other selves before Takeru had a clue of what's going on. Again Gainax takes the most ordinary plot of Urusei Yatsura and tries to revolutionize things... and it feels different from other anime, but different does not necessarily mean good. It's a slow paced SOL about getting used to life on Earth with friends, and I can't get to like this flow. Overall Rating: 6/10 13. Ragnarök The Animation Ragnarok the Animation [G&G Entertainment] (Finished 3/26) Tags: Action, Fantasy A great evil is sweeping over the realm; an evil that the young swordsman Roan and his life-long companion, the acolyte Yufa, must face head on! For these two travel toward their destiny, from the highest towers to the depths of the underworld, through forest and desert alike. With an ever-growing cast of fellow heroes, fate will grasp these travelers by their very souls and propel the band of skilled adventurers towards a noble end. Or ignoble, if they don't watch their step! Monsters are afoot and the way rife with danger and magic, the path forward may be unclear... But where will is strong, there is a way! Lessons wait in the depths of darkness, and good must prevail. The journey starts now! Never understood the appeal of Ragnarok game. This setting is generic and bland, so I think appreciation for the game is must have to like it for details or something. Overall Rating: 6/10 14. Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Pitch Pure マーメイドメロディーぴちぴちピッチピュア [Actas, SynergySP] (Finished 1/39) Tags: Mahou Shoujo, Music Adventure, Comedy, Romance After the final battle against Gaito, Sara had given her life to remain with him. The sea world is now at peace, but only with six mermaid princesses. While Caren, Noel, and Coco have returned to their kingdoms, it should be time for Lucia, Hanon, and Rina to do the same. After all, Mitsuki Tarou is leaving for Germany, and Doumoto Kaito is heading to Hawaii. Lucia is devestated, and when things couldn't get any worse, Kaito is lost at sea! Worst of all, a strange angel named Michel has appeared, wanting the mermaids to join him. But on the lighter side, Sara's spirit tells Lucia of Sara's successor, a young mermaid named Seira. The mermaids are in for another adventure! Having dropped the prequel, can't say I understand much of this idol mahou shoujo with battles, but it does not look good. Overall Rating: 5/10 15. Madlax マドラックス [Bee Train] (Finished 9/26) Tags: Military, Psychological Drama, Mystery, Supernatural In the country of Gazth-Sonika, civil war rages. There, a mercenary called Madlax plies her trade, with almost supernatural skill. In the seemingly peaceful country of Nafrece, Margaret Burton lives a tranquil life. As separate as their lives may seem, the two are connected by ties of mystery, and by a holy book that is also sought by the shadowy organisation, Enfant. As Margaret and Madlax follow the path of their destiny, they come ever closer to uncovering the truth - with no guarantee that it is a truth they can bear to learn. I gave it a lot of chances. Slow-paced boring action mystery that in my opinion has the primary aim to kill time as many early 2000s anime did. Overall Rating: 6/10 16. Mahou Shoujo-tai Arusu Tweeny Witches 魔法少女隊アルス [Studio 4°C] (Finished 5/40) Tags: Isekai Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy Arusu believes in magic. With all her heart, she believes that magic is possible and that it can be used for good deeds and fun games. But suddenly, she finds herself transported into another world, ruled by a mysterious elite of witches—and these witches don't seem to be in it for the fun. They're hard at work capturing sprites, the native magical beings of the world, and forcing them into slavery. Once Arusu realizes that her new surroundings aren't just a dream, she sets out to change things. A pretty good anime about witches, but I seriously lack affinity even to Harry Potter let alone some naïve ambitious witch trainees. And it looks too Western to my taste, probably was created for export. Overall Rating: 6/10 17. Mutsu Enmei Ryuu Gaiden: Shura no Toki Time of Shura 陸奥圓明流外伝 修羅の刻 [Studio Comet] (Finished 26/26) Tags: Shounen Historical, Martial Arts, Samurai Legends tell of an invincible martial art known as Mutsu Enmei-Ryu, an unarmed style that allows the user to defeat any number of armed opponents using incredible speed and strength. This is the story of three generations of those who bear the name Mutsu, and their encounters and battles with the strongest fighters of their era. Basically, it's anthology about different samurai stories linked with this unarmed mastery. It's a good anime with enough tension and historical flavor, but too many characters don't add empathy, and historical events are often distorted for the sake of the story which is totally ok for the Japanese who know what happened precisely, but it can confuse foreigners. With that in mind, can't recommend it. Overall Rating: 6/10 18. Hanaukyou Maid-tai: La Verite Hanaukyo Maid Team: La Verite 花右京メイド隊 La Verite [Daume] (Finished 3/12) Tags: Shounen Harem Comedy, Romance, Ecchi After his mother passes away, Taro Hanaukyo is invited to his grandfather's home. There, he meets a beautiful maid named Mariel and finds out that his grandfather has retired to a remote island and has given him ownership of his estate. Taro also discovers that not only is the estate a colossal mansion, it has hundreds of gorgeous maids ready to serve him 24 hours a day, seven days a week. There was already a worthless bland ecchi maid story Hanaukyou Maid-tai, this one is only a tiny bit better. Not sure if it's worth watching even in case of maid fetish. Overall Rating: 5/10 19. Saiyuuki Reload Gunlock Saiyuki Gunlock 最遊記RELOAD GUNLOCK [Pierrot] (Finished 1/26) Tags: Josei Mythology Action, Adventure, Comedy, Drama, Supernatural The Sanzo Ikkou continues its westward journey, on a mission to prevent a demonic resurrection. As Genjo Sanzo, Cho Hakkai, Sha Gojyo, and Son Goku fight their way to their goal, their path is fraught with internal strife. When they encounter a formidable pair of adversaries from the west, the cohesion of the group -- and the fate of the mission -- may be at stake. Another reminder of how bad it was. And everyone encountered in each episode is inevitably a demon. So old. Overall Rating: 5/10 20. Love♥Love? [Imagin, Studio Live] (Finished 1/9) Tags: Harem Comedy, Romance, Ecchi Naoto Ooizumi is the writer of the CosPrayers TV show, although this is a secret known only to the producer of the show, Mitsuki Ikuta. He has a crush on one of the actresses in the show, Natsumi Yagami. As the show proceeds so does their relationship, with many wacky twists and turns along the way. Just an endless spree of flashing, groping and similar ecchi situations. Even worse trash than cosplayers were. Overall Rating: 5/10 21. Kenran Butou Sai: The Mars Daybreak Mars Daybreak 絢爛舞踏祭ザ・マーズ・デイブレイク [Bones] (Finished 5/26) Tags: Mecha, Military Action, Adventure, Comedy, Romance, Sci-Fi Mars is now almost entirely covered in water. Humanity exists in large city-ships that float through the open seas. But life is hard for those who live on Mars—the economy is in bad shape, work is scarce, and food is expensive and highly prized. Gram and his friends try to do the best they can, but the work keeps drying up. Some have taken to a life of piracy to combat the corruption in the government; one such group is the pirates of the feared Ship of Aurora. And the Earth government, which rules Mars, has dispatched a new team of military pilots to combat them. In their specialized mecha called Round Bucklers, they must make the seas of Mars safe for humanity. Caught in the wrong place at the wrong time, Gram finds himself on the run with the most notorious pirates on Mars. But here's the thing—he's starting to like them! Reinvention of Harlock, but a rather flat one. There's not much direction in all that, and characters are rather sour for the colorful pirate crew. There are some battles, some mecha, some romance, some not funny comedy, some adventure - a bit of everything for everyone, and with all that not much remains for the substance. Overall Rating: 6/10 22. Boukyaku no Senritsu The Melody of Oblivion 忘却の旋律 [Gainax, J.C.Staff] (Finished 24/24) Tags: Shounen Mecha, Psychological, Space Adventure, Fantasy, Horror, Sci-Fi, Supernatural A great war occurred in the 20th century between humans and monsters. Since that time, the monsters rule the world in fear but keep relatively hidden from public view. A boy named Bokka ponders the past and wonders what became of the Meros Warriors who defended the world so bravely against the demons. He soon meets Kurofune and learns of the power of the Meros and the I-bar machines they ride in battle. Warriors are the only ones who can see and hear the Melody of Oblivion, a phantom girl hidden away waiting to be rescued and be the savior of mankind. During a battle between Kurofune and a demon, Bokka discovers something only his wildest dreams could possibly imagine...he too can hear that melody. Throughout his journeys, Bokka meets many monsters and their agents, friends, and companions as he discovers the true extent of his new powers. He must continue to battle evil in the hope of releasing Boukyaku no Senritsu and free a world that has forgotten its once beautiful melody. Gainax still tries to do something different, but miracles have stopped happening to it. It's a very unexpected mix of Saint Saya, Macross, corporation of monsters, vampire hunter D, ecchi and what not. It's a unique blend, but it's still a blend and not something authentic. It lacks really strong points. Overall Rating: 6/10 23. Hi no Tori Phoenix 火の鳥 [Tezuka Productions] (Finished 13/13) Tags: Historical Adventure, Drama, Sci-Fi, Supernatural From prehistoric times to the distant future, Hi no Tori portrays how the legendary immortal bird Phoenix acts as a witness and chronicler for the history of mankind's endless struggle in search of power, justice, and freedom. The Dawn Since time immemorial, people have sought out the legendary Phoenix for its blood, which is known to grant eternal life. Hearing about rumored Phoenix sightings in the Land of Fire, Himiko—the cruel queen of Yamatai obsessed with immortality—sends her army to conquer the nation and retrieve the creature. Young Nagi, his elder sister Hinaku, and her foreign husband Guzuri are the only survivors of the slaughter. But while Nagi is taken prisoner by the enemy, elsewhere, Hinaku has a shocking revelation. The Resurrection In a distant future where Earth has become uninhabitable, Leona undergoes surgery on a space station to recover from a deadly accident. However, while also suffering from amnesia, his brain is now half cybernetic and causes him to see people as formless scraps and robots as humans. Falling in love with Chihiro, a discarded robot, they escape together from the space station to prevent Chihiro from being destroyed. Yet as his lost memories gradually return, Leona will have to confront the painful truth about his past. The Transformation Yearning for independence, Sakon no Suke—the only daughter of a tyrant ruler—kills priestess Yao Bikuni, the sole person capable of curing her father's illness. Consequently, she and her faithful servant, Kahei, are unexpectedly confined to the temple grounds of Bikuni's sanctuary. While searching for a way out, Sakon no Suke assumes the priestess's position and uses a miraculous feather to heal all those reaching out for help. The Sun After his faction loses the war, Prince Harima's head is replaced with a wolf's. An old medicine woman who recognizes his bloodline assists him and the wounded General Azumi-no-muraji Saruta in escaping to Wah Land. But their arrival at a small Wah village is met with unexpected trouble as Houben, a powerful Buddhist monk, wants Harima dead. With the aid of the Ku clan wolf gods that protect the village's surroundings, he survives the murder attempt. After tensions settle, Saruta uses his established reputation in Wah to persuade the villagers to welcome Harima into their community. Over a period of time, Harima becomes the village's respected leader under the name Inugami no Sukune. But while the young prince adapts to his new role, he must remain vigilant as new dangers soon arise and threaten his recently acquired tranquility. The Future Life on Earth has gradually ceased to exist, with the survivors taking refuge in underground cities. To avoid human extinction, Doctor Saruta unsuccessfully tries to recreate life in his laboratory. However, the unexpected visit of Masato Yamanobe, his alien girlfriend Tamami, and his colleague Rock Holmes reveals a disturbing crisis: the computers that regulate the subterranean cities have initiated a nuclear war that will eliminate all of mankind. Phoenix series had to be made to finalize everything Tezuka did. But it's of anthology genre that I dislike. Could not enjoy it even on the same level as Hi no Tori: Uchuu-hen movie. Overall Rating: 6/10 24. Sensei no Ojikan: Dokidoki School Hours Teacher's Time せんせいのお時間 [J.C.Staff] (Finished 1/13) Tags: School Comedy Meet Suzuki Mika, teacher at Okitsu High School. Mika-sensei is a good teacher, but she has a small problem... literally. Although she's 27, she is only 148 cm tall, and has the face of a child. As a result, it is often difficult for Mika-sensei to get anyone to take her seriously. It cries of Azumanga Daiou and even copies multiple sketches per episode structure. It's ok as sketch comedy, but loses big time even to spiritual predecessor that I do not evaluate highly either. Overall Rating: 6/10 25. Shinkon Gattai Godannar!! 2nd Season 神魂合体ゴーダンナー!! SECOND SEASON [OLM, AIC ASTA] (Finished 1/13) Tags: Mecha Comedy, Romance, Sci-Fi, Ecchi The history is placed right after the -cliffhanger- end of Godannar when Anna looks surprised to see Mira driving the Neo Okusaer. Second season of really a poor ecchi mecha. Overall Rating: 5/10 26. Kinnikuman II Sei: Ultimate Muscle キン肉マンII世 ULTIMATE MUSCLE [Toei Animation] (Finished 1/13) Tags: Combat Sports, Martial Arts Action, Comedy, Sci-Fi, Sports The Chojin Crown, the tournament which Mantaro (Kid Muscle) reluctantly participates in. After going along with the obstacles (most of which were created to try and eliminate him), he qualified. Only for long-standing fans. Overall Rating: 5/10 27. Hit wo Nerae! ヒットをねらえ! [Imagin, Studio Live] (Finished 1/8) Tags: Comedy, Ecchi Mitsuki Ikuta works for the Houchiku Corporation, making movies. To all who know her, she is perceived as being a very infantile woman, still wearing childish fashions. A fan of the detective movie genre, she suddenly finds herself chosen to be the main producer of a new film—but it's a "hero movie" (a genre generally considered childish). Determined to succeed, regardless, she takes on the job. Among the whole trilogy, this part is the most straightforward and enjoyable though seriously lacks tolerance. But since it's part of trilogy, it's absolutely not recommended to suffer through three mediocre shows. Overall Rating: 5/10 28. Tetsujin 28-gou (2004) Tetsujin 28 鉄人28号 (2004) [Palm Studio] (Finished 1/26) Tags: Shounen Historical, Mecha Adventure, Drama, Sci-Fi In post-WWII Japan, Prof. Shikishima has built up Shikishima Industries to be a technological powerhouse, working on developing robots. However, at the heart of their success lurks a dark secret from the war, something that cost the life of Prof. Kaneda, the mentor of Prof. Shikishima. Now Kaneda's son, Shoutarou, is about to learn the truth, and it will change him forever. Pretty sure it's the third iteration of Gigantor already. Material does get less morally old and obsolete. Overall Rating: 5/10 29. Dan Doh!! ダンドー [Tokyo Kids] (Finished 1/26) Tags: Shounen Adventure, Sports Dandoh was playing a baseball game with friends Yuka and Kohei and hits a wild fly ball which crashes into the principal's potted plants. Rather than getting mad, the principal admires Dandoh's swing and introduces him to the world of golf. It's now an adventure in golf as Dandoh is under the watchful eye of a former pro-golfer. They enter a tournament together and play for a shot at the national championships. Ordinary spokon about young golf prodigy. Childish. Overall Rating: 5/10 30. Legendz: Yomigaeru Ryuuou Densetsu Legendz: Tale of the Dragon Kings レジェンズ 甦る竜王伝説 [Gallop] (Finished 1/50) Tags: Action, Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy When a crafty toy company "Wiz" also known in this show as Dark Wiz Company, finds crystals with the faint DNA of monsters known as "Legendz" are found and made into a battle game. A young boy named Shu receives one these crystals known as "soul figures" from his father after a baseball game. Legendz rapidly became popular and more and more children played it. Wiz employeys start to track down Shu for his special soul figure, for his soul figure can revive real legendz not just the little kiddy digital images! How will Shu fight his way to victory and claim this soul figure as his own? It is childish, though maybe borderline and not full-scale childish. Comedy is relatively ok at least, and that's a rarity for a toy promotion anime. Overall Rating: 6/10 31. Massugu ni Ikou. 2nd Season まっすぐにいこう。第2期 [Yumeta Company] (Finished 1/5) Tags: Josei Pets Comedy, Romance, Slice of Life Mametarou is a Crossbreed and this is about his daily activities and the friends he makes with his girlfriend, Hanako. Never finished original, have not got dogs affinity since. Overall Rating: 6/10 32. Get Ride! AMDriver Get Ride! アムドライバー [Studio Deen] (Finished 1/51) Tags: Mecha Adventure, Sci-Fi In the future, human beings are attacked by beings called the Bug-chine, which appeared a few years back. No normal human weapon can defeat the Bug-chine, but there is hope. It is the AMDrivers that will save the earth. They are solders using the latest "AM Technology". With overwhelming power, they will beat the Bug-chine one after another and become heroes, as well as capture the hearts of their fans. Partially translated. One of the most pathetic mecha released even compared to titles from 1970s, so bad on so many levels. Overall Rating: 5/10 33. The Marshmallow Times マシュマロ通信 <タイムス> [Studio Comet] (Finished 1/52) Tags: Slice of Life The series focuses on 7 children and a sheep-like character. Together, they work together as a team and hang out together. They wear various fashion through the series. They also have different colored hair. Sandy, a girl who has a pet sheep-like character named Cloud and 6 other children, Jasmine, Lime, Basil, Clove, Nattsu, and Cinnamon, became friends, they become a news reporter team. Each episode has the children dressed in various clothes. Not translated. Sample episode consisted of three stories. Humor is not bad, but it's all about elementary school girl, so not really appealing to me. Overall Rating: 5/10 34. Cossette no Shouzou Le Portrait de Petit Cossette コゼットの肖像 [Daume] (Finished 3/3) Tags: Gore, Psychological, Visual Arts Drama, Horror, Romance, Supernatural Eiri Kurahashi is a Japanese art student who works in an antique shop. His friends begin to notice a dramatic, and rather concerning, change in Eiri, as he becomes more absent-minded and his behavior completely changes. They quickly decide to blame their friend's troubles on a girl. They may be right, however, as Eiri has begun seeing a beautiful, doll-like girl trapped within an antique Venetian glass that his uncle bought in France. She seems to be living in a strange other world, contained entirely inside this glass, but her image refuses to leave Eiri's mind. His sketchbook becomes filled with her likeness, and he realizes he has become completely infatuated with this strange little girl. When he recognizes her in a portrait by the mysterious Italian artist, Marchello Orlando, he learns her name is Cossette d’Auvergne, and that she was tragically murdered along with the rest of her family. One night, as he closes up the shop, he hears a voice asking him not to leave. Finally making contact with the object of his obsession, he makes a deal that he doesn't fully understand. I feel uneasy when blood is shown abundantly, and this experimental work is mostly about blood, gore and some other disturbing elements. Too much accent on visuals, too little substance. Overall Rating: 5/10 35. Teizokurei Daydream 低俗霊DAYDREAM [Hal Film Maker] (Finished 4/4) Tags: Comedy, Drama, Horror, Supernatural, Ecchi Saiki Misaki has been able to see ghosts since she was a kid. Now, working at an S&M club, her spare time goes to sending the spirits off to the other world by having to make them realize they're dead and have to leave. This would supposedly be a little bit easier if you didnt have a background of hardship and loneliness... and a perverted employer. Albino dominatrix esper solves murder mysteries and fights using demon coming out of her... yes. It's an attempt to make the most shocking and provoking story ever. But I'm trying to remember at least something that impressed me or that I could enjoy... and, nope. Overall Rating: 5/10 36. Shin Getter Robo New Getter Robo 新ゲッターロボ [Brain's Base] (Finished 1/13) Tags: Shounen Mecha, Mythology Action, Adventure, Horror, Sci-Fi Humanity is under attack by demonic creatures called Oni. Unable to fight back by any other means, the scientist Dr. Saotome creates a series of giant robots that harness the mysterious power of Getter Rays, giving them the strength necessary to fight the Oni. The strongest of these is Getter Robo, and Saotome must enlist three very different men to pilot it - martial artist Ryoma Nagare, criminal leader Hayato Jin, and monk Benkei Musashibou. Together, the Getter Team fights to end the Oni menace forever. It's on the brighter side of mecha anime, but too old-school, too shounen in spirit and too schematic for me. Overall Rating: 6/10 37. Natsu-iro no Sunadokei Sandglass of Summer Colors 夏色の砂時計 [Picture Magic, Rikuentai] (Finished 2/2) Tags: Time Travel Drama, Romance, Sci-Fi Makimura Koutarou has made up his mind: during the summer vacation, he is going to confess his love to the seemingly unapproachable Serizawa Kaho. Yet, on the night before, he has a run-in with a strange girl - an encounter which propels him into the future. There, he learns that not only has Kaho-chan become his girlfriend, but she has also died in a tragic accident. Returning to his own time, Koutarou sets out to change the future and save his love. Time slip is only good when it's one-way, as for me. Here it's two-way time slip for the sake of ... just some additional motivation. A very banal visual novel story, sadly, and this time I actually regret I learned this weak cheesy concept as there is not a grain of originality here. Overall Rating: 5/10 38. Aoi Umi no Tristia 蒼い海のトリスティア [ufotable] (Finished 2/2) Tags: Mecha Adventure An ocean city, Tristia. Tristia used to be prospering playing an important role of the maritime trade, and it was as beautiful as to be praised as "marine jewelry". However, that was a long time ago. The attack of the dragons deprived the city of their original brightness. The people in Tristia worked hard to reconstruct their city, but everything they did went wrong, and the city became desolated on the contrary. At the end of their hope, they asked a Great Artisan for the recovery of the city, Prospero Flanka. Prospero was a legendary inventor who had revived cities that otherwise would have been ruined. The long-awaited day came when the Great Artisan Prosper arrived in the city... However, it was only one girl who stood at the port of the city. Prospero sent his grand daughter, Nanoka, for him. Building simulation turned into two episodes flavor anime was doomed from the start. Basically, it's just fanservice advertisement of the games. Overall Rating: 5/10 39. Memories Off 3.5 Memories Off 3.5 [メモリーズオフ3.5] [Picture Magic, Rikuentai] (Finished 4/4) Tags: Drama, Romance This series is made up of two seperate stories with a few overlapping characters. The first story, Omoide no Kanata e, is about Shogo and his current girlfriend Neo. Kanata, a former girlfriend of Shogo's shows up one day and causes Shogo and Neo to think about their current situations. The second story, Inori no Todoku Koro, is about girl called Inori and her boyfriend Isshu. They had made a promise to always go to the fireworks festival together, since that was the place that they orginally became a couple. This year, Isshu says he cannot attend because of his work so Inori goes alone and recalls the previous two years. Not the worst SOL romance, definitely not the best. Overall Rating: 6/10 40. Makasete Iruka! Grrl Power! まかせてイルか! [CoMix Wave Films] (Finished 1/1) Tags: School Action, Award Winning, Comedy Meet Umi, Sora and Ao, the three hardest working school girls in all of Japan. As the proprietors of the best odd-jobs service around, they'll take on any task and guarantee the result! Unfortunately, spending your whole day doing other people's homework and cleaning sewers doesn't leave much time to go to school yourself, so when the girls take on the task of convincing someone else to go back to school, it may prove to be their hardest job ever! Have these junior Jills of all trades finally met their match? Find out in Grrl Power! Length is just of one normal episode. A nice easygoing comedy about girls and for girls. Nothing outstanding, though. Overall Rating: 6/10 41. Steady x Study ステディ×スタディ [Idea Factory] (Finished 0/1) Tags: Romance Nakane Makoto is a freshman in the private school of Kamimori Academy in Harajuku. He enters the drama club because his best friend, Wakabayashi asked him to do so, but it turns out the club is on the verge of dissolution. A girl from Makoto's class, Saitou Koyuki is also a member of the club. In the meanwhile, Makoto's schoolmate since junior high - now a student of the other class - Abegawa Nozomi seeks to launch a so called "study club". Both clubs get into a pinch, as the student council won't finance their activity for this year, and even the day of a performance is approaching... Can the drama club survive this crisis? Not found. Overall Rating: 0/10 42. Appleseed (Movie) アップルシード [Digital Frontier] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Shounen Detective, Mecha, Military Action, Drama, Sci-Fi Growing out of the chaos of a global war, the city of Utopia is populated by humans and bioroids (artificial humans). On the surface, everything is harmonious, but tensions lurk. Into this seemingly perfect society comes a survivor of the wars, Deunan Knute, who carries a legacy that will turn out to be of critical importance to the future of humanity. Last time I watched it I was rather impressed. 3D here is not repulsive, but it would feel a lot better if drawn normally. It's more about unique setting and action, although there is also a story dimension alongside with races rivalry line. As for me, it deserves a borderline masterpiece score anyway, but not higher as it's not without controversies. Overall Rating: 7/10 43. Crayon Shin-chan Movie 12: Arashi wo Yobu! Yuuhi no Kasukabe Boys 映画 クレヨンしんちゃん 嵐を呼ぶ!夕陽のカスカベボーイズ [Shin-Ei Animation] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Seinen Historical Action, Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy A fantasy action set in a world of Western films. One day the Nohara family, Kasukabe Defense Forces (Shinnosuke Nohara and his mates: Kazama-kun, Nene-chan, Masao-kun and Bo-chan), and other people living in Kasukabe City get lost in a world within a Wild West film, which is a city ruled by an evil governor named Justice. The time progression has been stopped there because the film is unfinished but people are losing their memories about the past little by little. To go back to their former world, the Kasukabe Defense Forces tries to defeat Governor Justice and finish the film before everyone loses their memories. Another thematic story, but a rather unfunny one this time. Overall Rating: 6/10
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One normal title per month is all we deserve these days 1. Red List Girls. [230223] 7th;MINT 1 The world has changed dramatically since the war. Humanity, once the supreme power on earth, was swallowed up by the power of the weapons it had created. As a result, the number of human beings has been greatly reduced. Scientific development ceased, but humans continued to kill animals. However, there were a few humans who were concerned about the danger to animals. They created organization "Agape", the Organization for the Assistance and Protection of Endangered Animals. Organization started to transform the strongest of animals into the same form as Human. Girls who are a cross between animals and people. This is the story of the battle waged by animal girls with weapons in their hands to protect their endangered brethren. Partial release 2. FLIP * FLOP ~RAMBLING OVERRUN~ [230224] DiGination Ran Tsukigaoka is a genius girl, but no one truly understands her - even herself. She knows who she is, but she never experienced love. I admit skipping the sequel, but it was vanilla nukige with an AI girl - a super boring service game. This time heroine is a genius creator of AI, so it's at least more or less natural, though still a totally fetish little game. 3. SACRIFICE VILLAINS [230224] CLOCKUP CRIME has reigned supreme in SCUM CITY since the day the SUPERVILLAINS showed up— However, at the heart of this evil nest lies a sanctuary known as JUSTOPIAN WARD. As a deterrent to the evildoers, the SUPERHEROES constructed this self-sufficient stronghold, which thrives despite the surrounding CHAOS. JUSTOPIA, the ultimate hero and bane of countless villains, is its FOUNDER, MAYOR, and CHAMPION. Justopia also founded the HERO SOCIETY and serves as its chairman, giving orders to the other heroes as they fight crime and bring peace to the city and the world. Yet, the crafty VILLAINS are growing stronger, and the HEROES are struggling to keep up... some of them have even betrayed the cause by swearing allegiance to the dark side in the most heinous way! If not the ASYLUM, to whom should Justopia seek assistance? This facility reforms criminals, and who could be more qualified to lead it than YOU? Capturing and reforming S-level villains must be done rapidly and efficiently. It's in your hands to rehabilitate these scumbags and put their power to use for JUSTICE again! Tried to find at least some gameplay elements in it, and no, it's just a pure nukige, and I would not include it unless it got translation at some point. 4. Sakura no Toki -Sakura no Mori no Shita o Ayumu- サクラノ刻-櫻の森の下を歩む- [230224] Makura 1 Even disappear into the inexhaustible world. Still, the sounds overlap and resonate. The time flows – one day, it will become poetry. A two story about geniuses, geniuses and mediocrities. Weak God and strong God. A story beyond happiness. That is the second act of the cherry blossom story. A genius chosen by God, a genius abandoned by God, and a mediocre man who resists God. What is the charism that dwells in beauty? Why is the fruit given only to the chosen one? "Where did we come from, who are we, where are we going?" A world united by the light of causal exchange. Can artists answer that question through beauty? A story told around Kusanagi Naoya after "Sakura no Uta". From that slope, Naoya and Ai went down while looking at the city of Yumihari. There were many untold stories leading up to it. About two geniuses. The true story of Natsume Kei and Kusanagi Naoya. Why do they continue to fascinate people even after Natsume Kei's death or when they break their brushes? A true painter, Misakura Rin, who is the embodiment of beauty itself. Why does she want to go beyond where they stopped? What about Hikawa Rina? What about Kawachino Yuumi? What about Toritani Makoto? And Natsume Ai? All human thoughts intersect. There is at least one English review already.
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Among three titles with score of 9 only Interlude is a new title, so it takes the upper hand over sequels Koukaku Kidoutai: Stand Alone Complex 2nd GIG and Innocence , plus there's this great little series Mousou Dairinin that deserves a mention. 1. Mousou Dairinin Paranoia Agent 妄想代理人 [Madhouse] (Finished 13/13) Tags: Detective, Psychological Avant Garde, Drama, Mystery, Supernatural, Suspense The infamous Shounen Bat (Lil' Slugger) is terrorizing the residents of Musashino City. Flying around on his rollerblades and beating people down with a golden baseball bat, the assailant seems impossible to catch—much less understand. His first victim, the well-known yet timid character designer Tsukiko Sagi, is suspected of orchestrating the attacks. Believed only by her anthropomorphic pink stuffed animal, Maromi, Tsukiko is just one of Shounen Bat's many victims. As Shounen Bat continues his relentless assault on the town, detectives Keiichi Ikari and Mitsuhiro Maniwa begin to investigate the identity of the attacker. However, more and more people fall victim to the notorious golden bat, and news of the assailant begins circulating around the town. Paranoia starts to set in as chilling rumors spread amongst adults and children alike. Will the two detectives be able to unravel the truth behind Shounen Bat, or will the paranoia get to them first? I generally don't like mystery, but can't say the show exists solely for the sake of unveiling a mystery. Rather than inserting filler middle, it usually devotes each episode to some character, and there are a lot of connections between different characters. Compared to Tokyo Godfathers, everyone is much more pleasant, all the nonsense luck motive is gone, and a much wider array of interesting tricks is used. Can't deny I enjoyed it both times I watched it. Overall Rating: 7/10 2. Koukaku Kidoutai: Stand Alone Complex 2nd GIG Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex 2nd GIG 攻殻機動隊 S.A.C. 2nd GIG [Production I.G] (Finished 26/26) Tags: Seinen Adult Cast, Detective, Mecha, Military Action, Mystery, Sci-Fi Following the closure of the "Laughing Man" case, Section 9 is re-established by Japan's newly elected Prime Minister, Youko Kayabuki, to combat the persistent threat of cyber-terrorism. A group calling themselves "The Individual Eleven" has begun committing acts of terror across Japan. While Motoko Kusanagi, Daisuke Aramaki, Batou, and the other members of Section 9 investigate this new menace, the Japanese government faces a separate crisis, as foreign refugees displaced by the Third World War seek asylum in Japan. But as the members of the special-ops team continually encounter Gouda Kazundo—a leading member of the Cabinet Intelligence Service—in their hunt, they begin to suspect that he may be involved, and that the events of the refugee crisis and The Individual Eleven may be more connected than they realize... I decided from the start that sequels can't get the same score as original season in order not to clutter genius masterpiece score. And that's the only reason this series is not getting top score. Fantastic. Overall Rating: 9/10 3. Maria-sama ga Miteru Maria Watches Over Us マリア様がみてる [Studio Deen] (Finished 2/13) Tags: Drama, Girls Love When Yumi Fukuzawa entered the Lillian Girls' Academy, a prestigious all-girls Catholic school in Tokyo, she never imagined she would catch the eye of beautiful and demure Sachiko Ogasawara, one of the school's most popular students. Now Sachiko has offered to be Yumi's soeur, her "sister" and guide for all her years at the academy. The whole idea has Yumi completely flustered—after all, they hardly know each other! The entire campus is abuzz with rumors about the two of them, but Yumi is conflicted over accepting Sachiko's offer. While she admires Sachiko, being her soeur would also mean constantly being at the center of the entire school's attention! Is it a good girls love story? Probably. But it's totally alien and heavy to me, so I need something on the side to enjoy like comedy plus cuteness of Yuri Yuri. Overall Rating: 6/10 4. Futari wa Precure Pretty Cure ふたりはプリキュア [Toei Animation] (Finished 4/49) Tags: Mahou Shoujo Action, Comedy, Fantasy Middle school students Nagisa Misumi and Honoka Yukishiro are the epitome of dissimilarity. Popular with their classmates, Nagisa is the school's energetic star lacrosse player, while Honoka is the soft-spoken "Queen of Intelligence." As unrelated as they may seem, Nagisa and Honoka live double lives as the "emissaries of light": Cure Black and Cure White of Pretty Cure. With the assistance of two fairies, Mipple and Mepple, the girls fight against the Dotsuku Zone—an evil force that has invaded the Garden of Light. In order to prevent the Dotsuku Zone from taking over the Garden of Rainbows as well, the pair must work together to find seven Prism Stones and restore the Prism Hopish to drive out the vile forces. With strong foes standing in their way, Nagisa and Honoka learn to work together and harness their newfound powers in order to save the worlds from further ruin. A more realistic and down to earth mahou shoujo compared to Sailor Moon, also never understood the need to implement half a dozen of similar looking heroines - here it's totally different. A good setting to serialize and pass time on everyday basis, but killing time was never among my interests, and story arcs don't seem to vary much from Sailor Moon at a glance. Overall Rating: 6/10 5. Gokusen ごくせん [Madhouse] (Finished 13/13) Tags: Josei Delinquents, Organized Crime, School, Workplace Comedy, Drama, Slice of Life Kumiko Yamaguchi is smart, enthusiastic, and ready to start her dream job as a math teacher at Shirokin Academy. But as her first day opens on atrocious students and cowering teachers, Kumiko realizes that the all-boys high school is a cesspool of delinquents with no intention of improving themselves. However, what her rowdy students don't know is that behind her dorky facade, Kumiko is the acting head of a powerful yakuza clan, and she has the skills to prove it! Capable of overpowering even the strongest of gangsters in seconds, Kumiko must keep her incredible strength and criminal influence a secret in order to keep her job. Unfortunately, with the vice principal constantly trying to get her fired and Shin Sawada, the leader of her class of delinquents, suspecting she's stronger than she lets on, Kumiko has a difficult teaching career ahead of her. An obvious imitation of Great Teacher Onizuka, reversed version. But character designs are rather bad, and a bunch of Beavis and Butthead types with one bishounen confident are in the center of attention, so I could not enjoy it despite finishing it. Overall Rating: 6/10 6. Yumeria ゆめりあ [Studio Deen] (Finished 3/12) Tags: Harem, Super Power Action, Comedy, Ecchi On his 16th birthday, Tomokazu Mikuri had a realistic dream where he sees a girl battling a giant floating monstrosity. When he wakes up, he is surprised that the girl is actually sleeping next to him... Whenever he sleeps from now on, he ends up back at the dream world, and more and more people that he knows keep showing up there too. He finds out from a mysterious masked woman in the dream world named Silk that they are fighting against one named Faydoom, and he is the one who provides the powers to those girls so that they can fight these monsters. And so it goes... It's a shameless imitation of Chobits in SOL part, but all the other parts like fighting and harem feel hugely borrowed as well. It only has value for those who like harems, but it's also a miss for me. Overall Rating: 5/10 7. Mezzo DSA メゾ [Arms] (Finished 13/13) Tags: Action, Adventure, Comedy, Mystery, Sci-Fi Mikura, Kurokawa, and Harada are the 3 members of the Danger Service Agency (DSA). Mikura is the brawns of the group, Harada is the brains, and Kurokawa is just a bitter ex-cop that likes to think he's in charge. They'll take on any job as long as it involves lots of danger and, of course, money. If you want to live long enough to eat dinner, you better not cross them. Their biggest case, however, could prove to be finding out why someone wants Kurokawa assassinated. Decent action with good visuals. But I never got to like characters which happened even in Armitage III that I never declared a masterpiece. There is also dolls theme here, by the way. Some talks and fanservice are repulsive. Overall Rating: 6/10 8. Hikari to Mizu no Daphne Daphne in the Brilliant Blue 光と水のダフネ [J.C.Staff] (Finished 5/24) Tags: Detective, Psychological Comedy, Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Ecchi In the future, water has covered much of the Earth due to the effects of global warming. The orphaned Maia Mizuki, 15, just graduated from middle school and has already applied for employment in the elite paramilitary Ocean Agency, part of the futuristic world government. Only the best, most intelligent, and physically fit students are eligible for admission. Maia, the series' protagonist, is set to become one of the few. But her ideal life quickly falls apart. To her disappointment, Maia unexpectedly fails her entrance exams. Making matters worse, she promptly gets evicted from her house, pick pocketed, taken hostage, then shot. She is "saved" by two women (Rena and Shizuka) that are part of an unorthodox help-for-hire organization called Nereids (inspired by the Greek mythological Nereids ). With nowhere to go, Maia joins up with Nereids, taking jobs from capturing wanted criminals to chasing stray cats, often with unexpected results. Gloria and Yu later join up with Nereids. "Daphne" in the title refers to a subplot that starts midway into the series and eventually become important to Maia. "Brilliant Blue" refers to the fact that this is a world covered by water with almost no land. The world consists of vast oceans, a few islands, and floating cities. Focus on fanservice and lack of story episodes don't do any good here. Characters are straight up irritating. Can't find anything to hold up to here. Overall Rating: 5/10 9. Area 88 (TV) エリア88 [Group TAC] (Finished 1/12) Tags: Shounen Military Action, Drama, Romance Deep in the sandy plains of the Middle Eastern kingdom of Asran, Japanese photojournalist Makoto Shinjou travels to the remote airbase Area 88 to document the activities of the mercenaries who destroy the country's enemies for a living. Among their ranks is Shin Kazama, a Japanese ace pilot who was tricked by his former best friend into signing a contract with the Asran's fighter squad. Because of this, he lost his career as an airline pilot and the chance to marry his fiancee Ryoko Tsugumo. Now, Shin has three choices in order to leave Area 88 and return to Japan: serve the mercenary group for three years, earn US$1.5 million, or desert the base, risking imminent death. I absolutely hated its OVA and movie at the ancient times for anime. Watching this lousy story for the third time is beyond my patience. Overall Rating: 5/10 10. Yuugo: Koushounin Yugo The Negotiator 勇午 ~交渉人~ [Artland] (Finished 3/13) Tags: Seinen Military, Psychological Action, Drama, Mystery, Suspense "Negotiation means, you turn words into weapons" This is the realization of the popular comic Yu-go that was published in Kondasha Afternoon Magazine over a period of 10 years. Beppu Yuugo is the world's most successfull negotiator. His only weapons are "words." Yuugo doesn't kill people. Neither does he threaten them with brute violence. With rich knowledge and a calm judgement, he believes in the humans inside them. Doing only that he has managed many dangerous negotiations successfully until now. Now two of the many episodes have been chosen very carefully, one taking place in Russia, the other one in Pakistan. In the burning desert and the freezing Siberia Yuugo begins his negotiations. Entrance story is ok, but further one falls into mediocrity. Too many simplifications. Such stories are a disgrace for the seinen genre. Overall Rating: 6/10 11. Juubee-chan 2: Siberia Yagyuu no Gyakushuu Jubei-chan 2: The Counterattack of Siberia Yagyu 十兵衛ちゃん2 ~シベリア柳生の逆襲~ [Madhouse] (Finished 1/13) Tags: Martial Arts, Samurai Action, Adventure, Comedy, Drama Three hundred years ago, in the frigid land of Siberia, Jubei Yagyu engaged in a fierce battle with Kitaretsusai of the Northern Yagyu clan. The duel was costly, as his daughter Freesia was frozen in suspended animation. As a result of global warming in the present day, Freesia breaks free from her icy grave and moves to Japan as a middle school transfer student, where she befriends Jiyuu Nanohana. Little does Jiyuu know that Freesia is targeting her to acquire the coveted Lovely Eye Patch, which Freesia believes is rightfully hers. Sequel coming after five years has not really improved the idea. Overall Rating: 5/10 12. Burn Up Scramble バーンナップスクランブル [AIC Spirits] (Finished 5/12) Tags: Detective Action, Comedy, Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Ecchi AD. 2023, Tokyo. Because of the change of the society such as internationalization and enlargement of the trading, the dark side of the society also continues changing. The criminals are getting deep, and their organizations are increasing its size, then the peace and security is getting worse. The government takes it seriously, and decides to introduce an innovative system. In order to cope with the special criminals, an extralegal police is founded. It is a special criminal team, Warriors, which consists of a few elite members. Yet another Bubblegum Crisis imitation, and a really poor one this time. Overall Rating: 5/10 13. Kita e.: Diamond Dust Drops Diamond Daydreams 北へ。 ~Diamond Dust Drops~ [Studio Deen] (Finished 1/12) Tags: Drama, Romance If a couple sees the diamond dust together, then they will certainly find eternal happiness. Or so it is said. This is a drama about the romances, friendships and conflicts of six girls from Hokkaido and how the diamond dust affects them and eventually links them together in the search for happiness. Can't stand sentimental nonsense while the anthology form and questionable source only aggravate things. Overall Rating: 5/10 14. Choujuushin Gravion Zwei Super Heavy God Gravion Zwei 超重神グラヴィオンツヴァイ [Gonzo] (Finished 1/12) Tags: Mecha Action, Adventure, Comedy, Sci-Fi After Gravion was able to use its ultimate attack, the Zeravire threat seemed to have temporary stopped. However when it rises back up all of a sudden, the Earth Gult and its trump card, the super robot Gravion, is needed to defend this world again. All this while, the EFA is planning to create their own weapons to counter the Zeravire, the Grand Trooper. Now as they attempt to fend off the Zeravire, the people of the Earth Gult and EFA must protect their future as well as confront their pasts, and unveil the mysteries of the Zeravire. Mecha with a sequel is a rare occurrence. Good mecha sequel is something impossible . Overall Rating: 5/10 15. SD Gundam Force SDガンダムフォース [Sunrise] (Finished 1/52) Tags: Mecha Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy The land of Neotopia is attacked by the Dark Axis, evil invaders from another dimension who wish to conquer this land. Neotopia's answer: the secret Super Dimensional Guard and their defenders, the Gundam Force. Led by Captain Gundam, the Gundam Force and its team of Gundams with special abilities are aided by a boy named Shute as they stop at nothing to defend the land from the Dark Axis and to defeat them once and for all. Sadly, this title is not a joke. I don't know where to start, so I won't. Overall Rating: 4/10 16. Chou Henshin Cosprayers The Cosmopolitan Prayers 超変身コス∞プレイヤー [Imagin, Studio Live] (Finished 8/8) Tags: Super Power Action, Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Ecchi Koto unknowingly seals away the Sun Goddess Amaterasu, and now she is in a different world and can't return. Meeting priestesses who combat the evil in this strange place she learns that Black Towers throughout the land keep Amaterasu sealed away and are guarded by evil monsters. Koto must now find a way to help defeat these monsters and return the world to the way it was. Experimental title sounds like swearing to me already. We're getting thrown unbearable nonsense that might get clearer and might get a decent score if we watch the whole trilogy and get to understand the director - blah blah blah - or it might not. Or we can just dump this trash where it belongs to. Overall Rating: 5/10 17. Divergence Eve 2: Misaki Chronicles Misaki Chronicle: Divergence Eve みさきクロニクル 〜ダイバージェンス・イヴ〜 [Radix] (Finished 1/13) Tags: Mecha, Military, Space Adventure, Drama, Sci-Fi Through the long distance warp called the "Exodus Project", Worns, Ryer and the other crew members of "Watchers Nest" manage to escape from the Earth. Misaki, who was attending the final battle with "Ghoul" at that time, isn't present there and before her eyes, the earth changes and gets enclosed by a time barrier. Ryer and the others search for a way to escape from this space time maze, but the earth changes to various forms. Innumerable "Nows" appear due to varying time axes. And also Misaki, who should have disappeared because of the Exodus Project incident, still afortiori. Before Ryer and the others, different forms of Misaki appear. The Misaki from training school, the Misaki from her childhood days. Are these reflections caused by the conflicts that exist inside Misaki? She awakens a second time and when she derives the response, that history is leading into a completely differnet direction now. Will Misaki, Ryer and the others be able to find a real happy end?! Original season was too weird in trying to combine eternal fanservice with serious sci-fi. I could not finish it, so just a glance into sequel is more than enough for me to forget about it forever. Overall Rating: 6/10 18. Transformers Superlink トランスフォーマー スーパーリンク [Actas] (Finished 1/51) Tags: Mecha, Space Adventure, Sci-Fi It has been 10 years since the fateful battle with Unicron. Many of the Decepticons who fought in the battle against Unicron have joined forces with the Autobos to mine for Energon, an alternate energy source. But a new source of evil has a risen, Alpha Q who plans to steal the Energon from the Autobots with the help of Scorponok and the Terrorcons. This new evil is trying to revive Megatron and Unicron in order to rekindle the old flames of war. At least it's staying true to itself... because I fail to find any strong points. Overall Rating: 5/10 19. Kaiketsu Zorori かいけつゾロリ [Ajia-do] (Finished 1/52) Tags: Adventure, Comedy Adapted from the popular storybooks of the same name by Yutaka Hara, Kaiketsu Zorori follows the adventures of a scheming fox named Zorori, who is determined to become the King of Mischief with his very own castle and beautiful bride. Although Zorori is notorious for his pranks and tricks, his conniving plots often backfire and end up helping his targets, and despite appearing to be villainous and immoral, he is actually caring and sentimental. Nevertheless, Zorori has the wits, intelligence, and dexterity to always find a solution out of the most hopeless of situations. Travelling with a pair of twin boar bandits, Ishishi and Noshishi, he continues on his journey to make his deceased mother proud. Kids anime not marked properly. Overall Rating: 5/10 20. Monkey Turn モンキーターン [OLM] (Finished 1/25) Tags: Shounen Racing Action, Drama Based on Kawai Katsutoshi's manga of the same name, published in Weekly Shounen Sunday, Monkey Turn is a sports anime based around professional speed boat racing. The anime's protagonist, Tadano Kenji, is too short to follow his dream of becoming a professional baseball player, but his baseball coach recommends him to boat racing. One day Tadano-san unexpectedly meets his old girlfriend and they exchange promises: in return for her being faithful to him, he is charged with becoming Japan's best racer within three years. The eponymous "Monkey Turn" is a boat maneuver Kenji-san thought up while visiting his girlfriend. The Monkey Turn gives Kenji quite the advantage over other boaters, but is it enough for him become the best? Racing spokon is combination of two things I can't stand, and this representative is particularly bad. Overall Rating: 5/10 21. Taikong Xiha Zu Space Hip Hop Duck 太空嘻哈族 [-] (Finished 1/26) Tags: Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy, Sci-Fi - Not translated and not in Japanese. Abstract nonsense for kids. Overall Rating: 5/10 22. Wolf's Rain OVA ウルフズ・レイン [Bones] (Finished 4/4) Tags: Psychological Adventure, Drama, Sci-Fi, Supernatural As the world accelerates toward its own destruction, Kiba and Cheza—with the help of Tsume, Hige, Toboe, and Blue—race to reach true paradise before the entire world is rendered uninhabitable. Now reunited, Cher and Hubb decide to accompany the wolves in hopes of seeing the journey through to its end, while a distraught and confused Quent wanders aimlessly into the wasteland with his mind fixated on revenge. Meanwhile, Lord Darcia the Third has finally put his plot into motion and pursues Cheza, pitting him against the pack. As everything falls apart yet simultaneously falls into place, the wolves struggle to survive in an increasingly dangerous environment. Though the end draws near, paradise seems further away than ever before. Wow, they managed to pull the same old stunt again, that means a penalty to the score. Overall Rating: 5/10 23. Phantom The Animation Phantom: The Animation ファントム THE ANIMATION [Arcs Create] (Finished 3/3) Tags: Organized Crime Action, Drama Zwei was an ordinary person, until one day, while walking the streets a night, he witnessed a brutal assassination. He managed to avoid the sniper, a young girl named Ein, but was soon captured, and had the memories of his former life erased. He is spared death only by accepting a condition: to train to become an assassin alongside Ein. Now, he must find a way to free himself from this shady world and reclaim his life once again. Having read visual novel, can say that anime is enough to get into this story as what's dropped is like 30 bad or neutral endings. Overall Rating: 6/10 24. Interlude インタールード [Toei Animation] (Finished 3/3) Tags: Adventure, Horror, Mystery The unnamed main character has been having strange dreams, seeing strange things, and meeting strange people. He investigates these events and finds a strange girl named Aya. With her help, he discovers that his world may not in fact be real and many of the people he thinks he knows may not exist anymore. I love anime version more than the game one due to the ending that gives an additional meaning. I would not go that far to call it a genius masterpiece, but it's not without food for thought, so it qualifies for a nine. Overall Rating: 9/10 25. Animation Seisaku Shinkou Kuromi-chan 2 Animation Runner Kuromi 2 アニメーション制作進行くろみちゃん 2 [Yumeta Company] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Otaku Culture, Parody Comedy, Drama Following Studio Petit's popularity for Time Journey's, the crew is now faced with 3 anime at the same time. Rushing to fill the quotas, the owner of Studio Petit hires Takashimadaira, a veteran producer to help Kuromi. However, all Takashimadaira cares about is making deadlines, severely hurting the quality of the images. Shihonmatsu, who has been helping Kuromi, gets angry at the new producer and leaves, leaving Kuromi with a difficult choice: to choose between the quality or the deadline. Studio Petit managed to survive the production of "Time Journeys," but now that show's finished, and in its place they've got no less than three series to animate, with just four artists, one manager and one director - not to mention one very bedraggled animation runner. And it doesn't help that Shihonmatsu picked this week to quit smoking. As the staff starts to fall behind their crushing deadlines, the owner calls in an old "pro," Takashimadaira, to get production back on track. But once he starts putting speed above quality, the Petit team has to choose between following orders and doing their jobs right. Decided to rate sequels lower, and again that's the only reason this little thing is outside radar range, but sequels are easy to discover anyway. Overall Rating: 6/10 26. Tokyo Daigaku Monogatari 東京大学物語 [Shinkuukan] (Finished 2/2) Tags: School Comedy, Drama, Romance, Ecchi Murakami Naoki is the most intelligent student at his high school, but he can't stop obsessing over a girl named Mizuno Haruka. He finally asks her out, and to his surprise, she accepts. After several months of a loving yet obviously doomed romance, it comes time for them to take the entrance exams for Tokyo University. But what would happen to their relationship if only one of them was accepted. Rushed and weird in motivation romance. Overall Rating: 5/10 27. Hijikata Toshizou: Shiro no Kiseki 土方歳三 白の軌跡 [Studio 4°C] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Historical, Samurai Action, Drama A biographical sketch of the life and ideals of Hijikata Toshizou, Vice Commander of the Shinsengumi, fighting to uphold the Shogunate during the Meiji revolution. A short 30-minute biography sketch on a historical figure is welcome, but such format does not fit for a greater score. Overall Rating: 6/10 28. Dai Yamato Zero-gou Great Yamato No. 0 大ヤマト零号 [JCF] (Finished 5/5) Tags: Adult Cast, Space Sci-Fi In the galactic group there are more than 100,000,000,000 galaxies, and the Milky Way galaxy, the one which includes Earth's solar system, is only one of these... one of many in the immensity of outer space. This story starts in the year 3199, when a mighty enemy attacks the Milky Way from a neighbouring galaxy. The enemy engages the combined forces of the Milky Way, an Alliance of many stellar nations, and defeats them one after another. The remaining Milky Way Alliance forces are reduced to just six fleets. After the Alliance headquarters is destroyed, and when the collapse of the central Milky Way Alliance is imminent, the Great Yamato "Zero" surprises everyone and embarks on a mission to assist the Milky Way Alliance in one last great battle. This Yamato is so great that it's not even translated... Decent space battleship action in alternative setting, but ugly CGI and lack of sense. Overall, quite good, but in current untranslated state hardly watchable. Overall Rating: 6/10 29. Innocence Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence イノセンス [Production I.G] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Adult Cast, Detective, Mecha, Military, Psychological Award Winning, Sci-Fi With Major Motoko Kusanagi missing, Section 9's Batou is assigned to investigate a string of gruesome murders—seemingly at the hands of faulty gynoids, or sex robots. But when a faulty gynoid leaves Batou a cryptic message, he begins to question the cause of their malfunctions. Suspicions of politically motivated murder and an illegal "ghost" quickly crop up, drawing Batou and his partner Togusa into a perilous web of conspiracy. As their investigation goes on, the line between man and machine continues to blur, and reality and perception become indistinguishable. Confronting strange and dangerous foes, Batou and Togusa explore a futuristic world filled with machines and living dolls but utterly devoid of humanity. Again, great sequel to the original movie, and only being a sequel inqures a penalty score. Overall Rating: 9/10 30. Dead Leaves デッド リーブス [Production I.G] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Action, Comedy, Sci-Fi Shortly after waking up in an unknown street with no clothes or memories, Retro and Pandy team up and begin a life of thrill chasing and violence. Retro's wild antics and Pandy's carefree personality make them the perfect partners in crime to cause mayhem wherever they strike. When an accidental mistake lands them behind bars, Retro and Pandy are sent to Dead Leaves—a high-security prison on the Moon. Once there, they soon discover that the other inmates are clones, all products of genetic mutation experiments. With nothing better to do, they escape from their cell and lead a prison break with the other captives. Armed with a crew of mutants and a hunger for havoc, the chaotic duo begins their wacky escape. It's schematic in the way that it avoids showing details , it sketchy in the way it tries to mimic manga strips, it's visually chaotic, also more absurd that I'm willing to tolerate, contains some really bad humor. I refuse to acknowledge this as something good. Overall Rating: 5/10 31. Nitaboh NITABOH 仁太坊―津軽三味線始祖外聞 [WAO World] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Historical, Music At a young age, Nitaroh is stricken with an illness that leaves him blind. He inherits the shamisen once used by his mother and is taught its basics by a blind traveling shamisen player. In time, with the help of friends old and new, he walks the paths that leads to his ultimate fate—that of founder of the Tsugaru style of shamisen playing. Great, another special movie about disabled people. At least it's not a tearjerker this time, and those people are showed as strong and finding their place as equals in the society, plus it's partially a musical. But I can't enjoy such a story. Overall Rating: 6/10 32. Hudie Meng: Liang Shan Bo yu Zhu Ying Tai The Butterfly Lovers: Leon and Jo 蝴蝶夢:梁山伯與祝英台 [-] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Historical Drama, Romance The Butterfly Lovers is an animated re-telling of the classical Chinese story of two lovers, Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai. Not translated and in Chinese. I'm not a fan of traditional Chinese tales, and this one is rather poorly done. Musical part is super cringy. Overall Rating: 5/10
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Anime of the Year 2003-IV Fall - Sakigake!! Cromartie Koukou
kivandopulus posted a blog entry in Anime of the Season
Lots of titles, lots of masterpieces. Gunslinger Girl , Gungrave and Jungle wa Itsumo Hare nochi Guu Final deserve a honorary mention as minor masterpieces, but my heart is with Sakigake!! Cromartie Koukou 1. Fullmetal Alchemist 鋼の錬金術師 [Bones] (Finished 3/51) Tags: Shounen Military Action, Adventure, Award Winning, Drama, Fantasy Edward Elric, a young, brilliant alchemist, has lost much in his twelve-year life: when he and his brother Alphonse try to resurrect their dead mother through the forbidden act of human transmutation, Edward loses his brother as well as two of his limbs. With his supreme alchemy skills, Edward binds Alphonse's soul to a large suit of armor. A year later, Edward, now promoted to the fullmetal alchemist of the state, embarks on a journey with his younger brother to obtain the Philosopher's Stone. The fabled mythical object is rumored to be capable of amplifying an alchemist's abilities by leaps and bounds, thus allowing them to override the fundamental law of alchemy: to gain something, an alchemist must sacrifice something of equal value. Edward hopes to draw into the military's resources to find the fabled stone and restore his and Alphonse's bodies to normal. However, the Elric brothers soon discover that there is more to the legendary stone than meets the eye, as they are led to the epicenter of a far darker battle than they could have ever imagined. Just as with other notorious shounens I could never understand the hype and had to listen to some podcasts about it to see what excites people in it. And I did not get good answers - just story of their mother, some epic action, the way equivalent exchange works. Nothing of this makes sense it's it's just super minor points. I'll get to listen to some more with time, but for now after three episodes it's exactly average shounen that's too childish to even consider watching seriously. Overall Rating: 6/10 2. Planetes プラネテス [Sunrise] (Finished 3/26) Tags: Seinen Adult Cast, Space, Workplace Award Winning, Drama, Romance, Sci-Fi In 2075, space travel is no longer just a dream, but an everyday reality for mankind. Advancements in science and technology have led to the colonization of the moon, the commercialization of outer space, and the formation of large space corporations. Ai Tanabe, an upbeat woman whose interests lie in the cosmos, joins Technora Corporation as a member of their Debris Section, a department dedicated to the removal of dangerous space junk between the orbits of the Earth and Moon. However, Ai soon discovers how unappreciated her job is. As the laughingstock of Technora, the Debris Section is severely understaffed, poorly funded, and is forced to use a dilapidated spaceship nicknamed the "Toy Box" for debris retrieval. Undeterred, Ai perseveres and gradually becomes acquainted with the strange personalities that make up the Debris Section's staff, such as the bumbling but good-natured chief clerk Philippe Myers; the mysterious and tight-lipped temp worker Edelgard Rivera; and the hotheaded and passionate Hachirouta Hoshino, who longs for a spaceship to call his own. Planetes is an unconventional sci-fi series that portrays the vastness of space as a backdrop for the personal lives of ordinary people—people who may have been born on Earth, but whose hopes and dreams lie amongst the stars. Welcome the new space janitor Roger Wilco... I mean, some bland girls. I remember dropping this series even when I was younger and more open-minded for weird stuff popping up the screen. Planetes is just SOL on a spaceship with occasional collecting space trash. That's basically it, because everything is supposed to look cooler in space. So it has no story and no humor, plus not interesting characters, as for me. I'm sure author put a lot of effort in character development and unique situations, but it's not the buying points. Just SOL in unusual place is enough for a concept, there must be something of substance to go, for some reason newer anime can find that something alright, but pioneers got lost in weird experiments. Overall Rating: 5/10 3. Chrno Crusade Chrono Crusade クロノクルセイド [Gonzo] (Finished 3/24) Tags: Shounen Historical, Mythology Action, Romance, Supernatural The 1920s was a decade of great change and upheaval, with monstrous demons appearing across America. To combat this menace, the holy organization known as the Order of Magdalene was established. The organization's New York branch is home to the young and reckless Sister Rosette Christopher, as well as her partner Chrno. Tasked with the extermination of demonic threats, the renowned team is excellent at their job, despite causing extensive collateral damage on their missions. However, both Rosette and Chrno are driven by their dark pasts. Through exterminating demons, Rosette hopes to find her lost brother Joshua who was taken by the sinner and demon, Aion, with whom Chrno also shares a bloody history. The two of them must fight off the increasingly dangerous demonic menace and discover its source, while continuing to search for the truth behind Joshua's disappearance. Another shounen with decent visuals, but what's really special about it... I see two good points - lack of evident weak sides and also serious attitude with occasional relief. Nun and good demon fight bad demons , and that's it - no aim, no motivation of both sides, no real hunt. Just enjoy SOL or character past stories and by the end of the episode some demon will hop by. It's not Hellsing to live on characters and action, but even Hellsing had a more refined concept and development than this mess. Overall Rating: 6/10 4. Gunslinger Girl ガンスリンガー・ガール [Madhouse] (Finished 13/13) Tags: Military, Psychological Action, Drama, Sci-Fi In the heart of Italy, the Social Welfare Agency rescues young girls from hospital beds and gives them a second chance at life using the latest in cybernetic advancements. With their artificially enhanced bodies, the girls are brainwashed and trained as assassins to carry out the dirty work of the Italian Government. Despite all the modifications, they are still just children at heart, struggling for recognition from those they love, even knowing the love they feel is manufactured. This tragic tale unfolds as these girls grapple with their emotions in an agency that treats them as nothing but ruthless killers. Seen it long ago, but it still keeps a small corner in my heart, enough for a minor masterpiece though. Serious, dramatic, sympathetic. Overall Rating: 7/10 5. Gungrave ガングレイヴ [Madhouse] (Finished 26/26) Tags: Adult Cast, Gore, Organized Crime, Super Power Action, Drama, Sci-Fi Brandon Heat and Harry MacDowel, two friends so close they could be called brothers, receive an abrupt and violent reminder one fateful day of how appallingly merciless the world around them can be. Their whole lives before then were simple and easygoing, consisting largely of local brawls, seducing women, and committing petty theft to make a living and pass the time. What they failed to realize is that in this cruel world, happiness is fleeting, and change is inevitable. Enter Millennion, the largest and most infamous mafia syndicate in the area, which accepts Brandon and Harry into their ranks and starts them at the bottom of the food chain. Harry has ambitions to ascend the ranks and one day replace Big Daddy as the supreme leader of Millennion, while Brandon only wishes to support his friend and appease Big Daddy who has taken custody of the woman Brandon loves. Based off the third-person shooter video game under the same name, Gungrave is an epic story of friendship, betrayal, and avarice that spans the course of several years, ultimately tying back to the gripping and foreboding first episode, all the while building up to the story's thrilling conclusion. It was always a masterpiece for me, but the one that needs to be known and remembered, not rewatched, so probably will also settle with a minor masterpiece score. To avoid spoilers can only say that story was really impressive and dramatic the first time seen. Overall Rating: 7/10 6. Shingetsutan Tsukihime Lunar Legend Tsukihime 真月譚 月姫 [J.C.Staff] (Finished 12/12) Tags: Super Power, Vampire Action, Horror, Mystery, Romance, Supernatural Shiki Toono wakes up in a hospital ward with the ability to see invisible lines. These thin threads, which make up all matter in Shingetsutan, instantly destroy an object when severed. Shiki discovers that if he traces the lines of something, its destruction soon follows. While keeping his supernatural vision a secret, Shiki proceeds to live his sophomore life in peace. However, this peace is short-lived when Shiki encounters a mysterious woman with bright red eyes on his way back from school. Following a sudden psychotic lapse, he appears to kill the woman, and passes out shortly after. As if things couldn't get any worse, Shiki is assailed by a pair of demonic hounds the next day—facing certain death, Shiki is saved by the timely arrival of the same woman from yesterday. She introduces herself as Arcueid Brunestud, a vampire princess. Deciding to team up, Shiki and Arcueid embark on a journey to uncover the truth behind their lineage and the recent string of murders around town. The beginning is great, but I don't remember this SOL in the middle where all characters drink tea together rather peacefully. All this sudden lose of tension does not qualify for a masterpiece. Overall Rating: 6/10 7. Kimi ga Nozomu Eien Rumbling Hearts 君が望む永遠 [Studio Fantasia] (Finished 14/14) Tags: Love Polygon Drama, Romance In the warmth of a golden sun, timid high school student Haruka Suzumiya confesses to Takayuki Narumi, the boy she admires. Takayuki accepts Haruka's confession and the two become a couple, supported by their mutual friends Mitsuki Hayase and Shinji Taira. All is well for these friends—until tragedy strikes. One of them is sent to an unenviable fate, lying dormant in a coma. Three years later, they awaken, but their sudden reappearance in everyone's lives threatens to test the limits of these friends' bonds. A normal love triangle modified by one girl in coma. Unlike Memories Off characters are at least memorable, still it's decent at best. Overall Rating: 6/10 8. Sakigake!! Cromartie Koukou Cromartie High School 魁!! クロマティ高校 [Production I.G] (Finished 26/26) Tags: Shounen Delinquents, Gag Humor, School Takashi Kamiyama is your typical mild-mannered high school student—polite, aloof, and pacifistic, with a slightly above-average IQ. But would your average high school student really enroll himself at the infamous Cromartie High School, known as a breeding ground for the toughest delinquents out there? Apparently so, as that is exactly what Takashi does, though for reasons he'd rather leave unmentioned. However, one thing is for sure: the "hard-boiled rabbit in a den full of hungry lions" is never going to have another dull day. And how could he, now that he's surrounded by mohawked punks, obnoxious robots, and... gorillas? And was that Freddie Mercury riding a horse down the corridor? Follow Takashi as he earnestly dedicates his new high school life to better his school's reputation while his classmates are hellbent on wreaking havoc. Great comedy with absurdity of humor just enough for me to enjoy. I say it deserves top score reserved for such comedies. Overall Rating: 8/10 9. Maburaho まぶらほ [J.C.Staff] (Finished 2/24) Tags: Harem, School Comedy, Drama, Romance, Ecchi In the world of Maburaho, everyone is born with the ability to use magic and are thus labeled magicians. However, the magical ability of each person is not equal. The number of times you can use magic determines the amount of respect you receive, and since one’s magical power is determined at birth by traits and genetics, those who have a bloodline stemming from famous magicians are highly sought after. Having the lowest magic count in Aoi Academy, Kazuki Shikimori is looked down upon by his classmates and seen as a nearly worthless magician. However, his bloodline consists of many great magicians throughout the ages, meaning that while he may not be a great magician, his offspring could be. This leads to him being sought after by three different young women: Yuna Miyama, a transfer student who declares herself his wife upon arrival, Rin Kamishiro, a prideful swordswoman of a traditional family who wants to kill him so she will be free to pursue her own desires, and Kuriko Kazetsubaki, a member of an influential family who bluntly tries to seduce him for his genes. Now he has to deal with not only the jealousy of all the guys in his school, but also various women chasing after him! A typical thematic ecchi harem, totally plain. Overall Rating: 5/10 10. Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo ボボボーボ・ボーボボ [Toei Animation] (Finished 1/76) Tags: Shounen Gag Humor Adventure, Comedy, Sci-Fi In a futuristic world, the Maruhage Empire is a militant organization out to steal everyone's hair, and thus their freedom. But a brave man with an afro of gold and nose hairs of steel stands up against their tyranny. Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo, trained in the ways of hair, rescues a teenager named Beauty from the grunts of the Maruhage Empire. Together, they start on a journey to defeat Emperor Tsuru Tsurulina IV. As Bo-bobo meets new friends and battles foes along the way, so too does he begin his quest to save all the hairs of the world! Light-hearted and comical, Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo details a wacky adventure in which Bo-bobo and his companions fight all sorts of villains and deviants within the Maruhage Empire, all the while having a fun and exciting adventure. Total absurdity that I can't stand, hardly endured a single episode, so better ask someone else. Overall Rating: 5/10 11. R.O.D: The TV R.O.D -The TV- アール・オー・ディー ザ・ティーヴィー [J.C.Staff] (Finished 2/26) Tags: Super Power Action, Adventure, Comedy, Drama, Sci-Fi Anita King, Maggie Mui, and Michelle Cheung are the Paper Sisters. They run the Three Sisters Detective Agency in Hong Kong which is dedicated to solving cases involving books. They are hired as local guides for Nenene Sumiregawa, a Japanese novelist who has been struggling with writer's block following the disappearance of her longtime friend, Yomiko Readman. The sisters are all Paper Masters—individuals with the power to control paper—and with their abilities, they save Nenene from the dangerous terrorists targeting her at a book signing. But in case they strike again, the sisters remain as her bodyguards to protect her from further harm. This is a dream come true for bookworms Maggie and Michelle who love Nenene's stories, but the young Anita cannot stand books despite her powers over paper. The three struggle to adapt to their new daily life in Japan, guarding Nenene while continuing their detective work under a mysterious organization, Dokusensha. However, the more they get to know Nenene, the more they discover the link between her, the disappearance of her friend Yomiko, and the mysterious books Dokusensha sends the Paper Masters to investigate. What began as a simple job ends up a bigger case than they have ever had before. Are these girls really willing to risk their lives over literature? Concept was clear from the OVA - some detective mystery with absurd action afterwards. And serialization only highlighted its flaws and lack of story. Overall Rating: 6/10 12. Ai Yori Aoshi: Enishi 藍より青し~縁~ [J.C.Staff] (Finished 1/12) Tags: Seinen Harem Comedy, Drama, Romance Two years after meeting Aoi, Kaoru and gang are still up to their normal habits. Kaoru now in grad school and the tenants being as rowdy as ever what will become of Aoi and Kaoru's love. Two years has passed since Aoi and Kaoru were freed from the bonds of their families. They continue to live their normal lives with their usual friends in their house. Still decent romance even after confession, still too typical for me. Overall Rating: 6/10 13. Peace Maker Kurogane PEACE MAKER 鐵 [Gonzo] (Finished 9/24) Tags: Shounen Historical, Samurai Action, Comedy Although traumatized by witnessing the murder of his parents by one of the Choushuu, Ichimura Tetsunosuke's thirst for revenge lead him to desire strength. At the age of 15, Tetsunosuke approached the Shinsengumi, wanting to become one of its members. However, Tetsunosuke lacked the skill, mind and will to emotionlessly cut down whoever threatened peace and the Shinsengumi. Even with the support of his brother Tatsunosuke and his newfound friends of the Shinsengumi, little did Tetsunosuke know the blood and pain he would have to face being part of this historical group. I really tried to like Peace maker Kurogane. Main problem for me is that half of it is silly shounen with a typical cheeky brat, and the other half is serious drama with adult samurai. The will to appeal to different audiences can be understood, but this ambiguity can scare seinen audience off. There is also a lot of confusion and strange scenes that aren't explained. As I see it, Kurogane tries to imitate Kenshin series badly and in the end falls short in comparison, and I did not even rate Kenshin as masterpiece. Overall Rating: 6/10 14. Gilgamesh ギルガメッシュ [Group TAC, Japan Vistec] (Finished 4/26) Tags: Drama, Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Supernatural In an attempt to gather information on immortality, scientists from around the world have assembled to study "Heaven's Gate"—the tomb turned laboratory of the mythical king Gilgamesh. But soon enough, the research is deemed unethical and all planned work comes to a halt. However, a group of terrorists pay this no thought and storm into Heaven's Gate, ultimately causing an explosion that leads to the collapse of the advanced information civilization. Many years after the incident, the siblings Tatsuya and Kiyoko Madoka are on the run from thugs. Yet this seems to be the least of their worries as they find themselves in the midst of a war between two powerful cryptic factions. With both groups claiming to fight for the betterment of society, Tatsuya and Kiyoko will have to find a way to decide who to trust. I'd say genre is mystery because it's never clear where it all is going to and more and more confusing stuff just piles up. But without all the cryptic stuff it's mostly running away and getting to know this strange world with its rules and factions, also fighting, of course. Despite ugly drawing it's not bad, but it failed to attract me in four episodes, and I doubt it actually has any direction at all to fill those 26 episodes, and I don't fancy rationalizing messy stuff. Overall Rating: 6/10 15. Kyougoku Natsuhiko: Kousetsu Hyaku Monogatari Requiem from the Darkness 京極夏彦 巷説百物語 [TMS Entertainment] (Finished 1/13) Tags: Historical, Psychological Fantasy, Horror, Mystery, Supernatural Tired of writing riddles for children, Yamaoka Momosuke plans on gathering spooky and gruesome stories and publishing them in an anthology called Hyakumonogatari ("One Hundred Tales"). While researching these old myths and legends he comes across a mysterious trio who call themselves the Ongyou. They are detectives who are investigating the legends to reveal their truths...and bring those in the wrong to justice. Each time Momosuke meets the Ongyou he must face horrible truths and battle with his morals, but he's seeing things he shouldn't be seeing... I detest horror, mystery and anthology genres, so this is a combo for me. Still a lot better than all the school urban legends or whatever we usually get as horrors. Overall Rating: 6/10 16. Battle Programmer Shirase バトルプログラマーシラセ [AIC] (Finished 15/15) Tags: Comedy, Sci-Fi, Ecchi Battle Programmer Shirase, also known as BPS, is a free programmer with super hacking abilities who doesn't work for money. What he does work for is certainly something that only people like him would appreciate. But, his demeanor certainly doesn't suit the jobs he is hired for. With the evil King of America causing trouble via the internet, Shirase is nothing but busy as each new adventure brings even more interesting people into the picture. By a twist of fate, I watched it in the past and actually liked quite a lot. It's mostly about coolness, but with time I can hardly appreciate that anymore. Great for youth though. Overall Rating: 6/10 17. Saiyuuki Reload Saiyuki Reload 最遊記RELOAD [Pierrot] (Finished 1/25) Tags: Josei Mythology Action, Adventure, Comedy, Drama, Supernatural Priest Genjo Sanzo and companions Cho Hakkai, Sha Gojyo, and Son Goku maintain their westward journey to stop the resurrection of the demon Gyoumao. As the reputation of the Sanzo Ikkou precedes them, they continue to fight demon assassins at every turn, but they must also deal with increasing tensions within their group in order to defeat a powerful enemy. Since it's a sequel, it depends on attitude to prequel. Overall Rating: 6/10 18. Yami to Boushi to Hon no Tabibito Yamibo: Darkness, The Hat and the Travelers of the Books ヤミと帽子と本の旅人 [Studio Deen] (Finished 2/13) Tags: Adventure, Fantasy, Girls Love, Mystery, Ecchi Hatsuki is a highschool student living with her sister, Hatsumi, who she has a huge crush on. On Hatsumi's 16th birthday, she is suddenly surrounded by a green light and disappears in front of Hatsuki. She manages to follow Hatsumi with the help of a being resembling a fat baby chick (literally), ending up in a place called "The Great Library", which is full of different worlds stored in books. Hatsumi wasn't there, though, so the search for Hatsuki's great love begins and involves traveling from book to book. Source material is weak. I guess it's possible to proceed on visuals alone, but there's nothing but disappointment in the end, anyway. Overall Rating: 5/10 19. Mujin Wakusei Survive 無人惑星サヴァイヴ [Madhouse, Telecom Animation Film] (Finished 3/52) Tags: Survival Action, Adventure, Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Slice of Life The story is set in the 22nd century where space travel, planet colonization and anti-gravity basketball are practically everyday things. Planet Earth has become uninhabitable, and therefore people live in colonies on the surrounding planets. On a school field trip, a mistake causes the protagonist, a young transfer student named Luna, her pet robot, and six of her classmates to be thrown through a gravity storm and crash land on a seemingly uninhabited planet. There, with Luna as their leader, the robot cat Chako, the lone wolf Kaoru, the spoiled rich boy Howard, the shy Sharla, the obedient Bell, the prideful musician Menori and the young genius Shingo must fight for their survival. But is the planet really uninhabited, or is there someone or something out there, waiting in the shadows? A cast of bright characters is thrown to an uninhabited planet to... actually, without purpose - just to be , survive , generate some situations. There's no conflict, no real mystery, no magic elements... it's just SOL for 52 episodes. Unless viewer is a kid who learns stuff through this or viewer likes some characters a lot, I see no good reason to watch this. Unfortunately, original stories are often made to suit format and not to actually tell a story. Overall Rating: 5/10 20. Takahashi Rumiko Gekijou Ningyo no Mori Mermaid Forest 高橋留美子劇場 人魚の森 [TMS Entertainment] (Finished 1/13) Tags: Shounen Drama, Fantasy, Horror, Mystery According to an ancient legend, mermaid's flesh can grant immortality if eaten. 500 years ago, Yuta unknowingly ate a piece of mermaid's flesh. For centuries, he travels across Japan, hoping to find a mermaid, thinking she may be able to make him a normal human again. When he finally finds one, he discovers that she and her companions have been raising a girl to be their food so they can eat her and take on her youthful looks. That is how mermaids stay young. Yuta kills the mermaids and rescues her, but she has already eaten some of the mermaid's flesh. Although he had to kill the mermaids, Yuta isn't too disappointed. Yuta's once lonely existence is now over, as he has found a companion in Mana. And Mana, who had been trapped in a small hut her whole life, finds delight in even the simplest of things. Together, Yuta and Mana attempt to seek out more mermaids, trying to become normal humans again. I seriously detested first two Rumiko anime about mermaid flesh. I can't understand why it can be so bad and why anyone in sane mind would serialize it. I've experienced so many negative emotions within just a single episode that I can't call it even average. It's straight horrible. Overall Rating: 4/10 21. Binzume Yousei 瓶詰妖精 [Xebec] (Finished 1/13) Tags: CGDCT Comedy, Fantasy Set in the year 2004, Binzume Yousei is a slice-of-life fairy tale that revolves around four fairies, each represented by four unique colors as seen with their magical bottle jars. These fairies are the extremely peppy Kururu, the reserved and feminine Chiriri, the samurai-loving tomboy Sarara, and the quiet yet quirky Hororo. Fascinated by the human world, these fairies arrived from the fairy world in hopes of participating in the annual traditions and overall way of human life. However, they have a very limited understanding of the human world. Luckily, they are befriended and guided by two humans—"Sensei-san," a university student who they live with, and a first-grade girl they call "Tama-chan," who is sometimes as naive as the fairies themselves. Though these bottle fairies have strange ideas and sometimes have difficulty understanding this new world, they try to make the most of the human experience in their own cute little ways. Episodes are just half the usual length, but at least not 4 minutes of Di Gi Charat that I could not possibly allow to list. Genre is familiar cute blobs do random stuff in a cute way. Hope no one expects anything more than that here... Overall Rating: 5/10 22. Shinkon Gattai Godannar!! Marriage of God & Soul Godannar!! 神魂合体ゴーダンナー!! [OLM, AIC ASTA] (Finished 1/13) Tags: Mecha Comedy, Romance, Sci-Fi, Ecchi Five years ago, while battling an alien force known as the "Mimesis," Dannar pilot Goh Saruwatari first met Anna Aoi. Today, on the day of their wedding, the ceremony is interrupted when the Mimesis strike again. As Goh struggles in his battle against the alien threat, Anna stumbles upon a top secret robot known as the "Neo-Okusaer" and uses it as a last-resort to save her fiancee. At that moment, Dannar and Neo-Okusaer merge to become the mighty robot "Godannar." It's so funny how old mecha was so pretentiously serious and newer mecha is almost exclusively ecchi. Cheesy and primitive. Overall Rating: 5/10 23. Avenger アヴェンジャー [Bee Train] (Finished 2/13) Tags: Adventure, Fantasy, Sci-Fi Mars has been colonized and is a world where children have been replaced by robot servants known as "dolls." Layla is a skilled fighter with a tragic past who travels about the world. Her companions are Nei, a strange and unique doll with some unknown ties to Layla, and Speedy, who is a doll breeder. The founders of Mars see the trio as a threat to their world, and each time they attack Layla and Nei a bit more of their mysterious past and future is revealed. Mars as stage is just wasteland with high tech locations, so can't call it great. Story is... non-existent as companions literally just travel around the world. That's probably done to shift focus to characters and their stories that unfold one by one... but characters are rather schematic and not interesting either. Setting of dolls is not really unique, and there's heavens and earth between Armitage III and this. Guess execution and weird story moves are to blame. Overall Rating: 5/10 24. Rockman.EXE Axess MegaMan NT Warrior: Axess ロックマンエグゼ Axess [Xebec] (Finished 1/51) Tags: Mecha, Strategy Game Action, Adventure, Comedy, Sci-Fi Netto's father Yuuichirou Hikari has made a scientific breakthrough by introducing the "synchro chips". If an operator and his or her navi are in a special enviroment known as a "dimensional area", they can fuse together in the real world via a technique called "cross fusion"! Yuuichirou's first test subject, Misaki Gorou, attempts the process and sadly fails. Netto offers to try with Rockman, but his father forbids it. Cross Fusion puts enormous strain on the operator's health, and battling in the real world could mean death. Sequel about toy robots sparring is back. Overall Rating: 5/10 25. Ginga Tetsudou Monogatari The Galaxy Railways 銀河鉄道物語 [Planet] (Finished 3/26) Tags: Space Action, Adventure, Drama, Sci-Fi In the distant future, trains are no longer bound by their physical tracks. Instead, they take to the skies and travel across the universe on the Galaxy Railways, transporting mankind from planet to planet. However, the Galaxy Railways are no safer than traditional trains: criminals, terrorists, and vile aliens always find a way to stir up trouble. Manabu Yuuki, a rash and hot-headed man, is the latest addition to the Galaxy Railways' elite Space Defence Force (SDF). These brave men and women are responsible for protecting the railways and responding to any unprecedented danger, risking their lives to protect the innocent from evil. But as this drama unfolds and the SDF's greatest crisis draws nearer, Manabu must truly learn what it means to be a member of the SDF before it is too late. Since it's alternative setting of Ginga Tetsudou 999, there's not much to say about it. Recycled characters to inhabit recycled story which is different, but feels like young Daiba/Harlock training as captain. So we once again need to watch as immature emotional captain toughens up and makes difficult decisions. It's far from great and feels worse than Harlock. Overall Rating: 6/10 26. Futatsu no Spica Twin Spica ふたつのスピカ [Group TAC] (Finished 3/20) Tags: School Drama, Sci-Fi, Supernatural When Kamogawa Asumi was just a baby, her mother was grievously injured when a rocket crashed to the ground. Five years later, having been in a coma all the time, Asumi's mother finally dies, and the little girl struggles to come to terms with the death of a mother she barely remembers. In the midst of her turmoil, she meets "Lion-san," a strange figure wearing a lion mask and claiming to be a ghost. Lion-san helps Asumi to bury her mother's ashes, and finally, Asumi reaches her own decision: "When I grow up, I'm going to be a rocket pilot." I absolutely hate fake romanticism shows about space like constructing a rocket or training to become astronauts with maybe Robotics;Notes as sole, but still boring, exception. Don't remember how much of Futatsu no Spica I watched in the past, but only negative emotions remain. Overall Rating: 5/10 27. UFO Princess Valkyrie 2: Juunigatsu no Yasoukyoku UFO Ultramaiden Valkyrie 2: December Nocturne 円盤皇女ワるきゅーレ 十二月の夜想曲 [TNK] (Finished 1/12) Tags: Comedy, Romance, Sci-Fi Valkyrie, Kazuto, Akina, Hydra, and friends are back for more when the Key of time suddenly appears along with many other mysterious happenings. All seemed to be linked to a person named "Valkyrie Ghost" whose only goal is stealing Kazuto for herself. As they team up against this seeming unbeatable foe they dig deeper into the mysterious past of Valkyrie's home planet, Valhalla. Second season, so should be clear. Overall Rating: 5/10 28. F-Zero: Falcon Densetsu F-Zero: GP Legend F-ZERO ファルコン伝説 [Ashi Productions] (Finished 1/51) Tags: Mecha, Racing Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi Rick Wheeler was a police detective who got into a fatal car accident while pursuing the criminal Zoda. He was placed into artificial coldsleep for 150 years. Wheeler is brought back to life by Jody Summer and Dr. Stewart, who work with a group of good racers who try to keep prize money out of the hands of unsavory people like the Dark Million Organization run by Black Shadow and Deathborn. Video game adaptation racing mecha? It was doomed even as concept long before seeing this ugly CGI. Overall Rating: 5/10 29. PopoloCrois ポポロクロイス [TMS Entertainment] (Finished 1/26) Tags: Adventure, Fantasy Pinon, the boy who flows within his body, the blood of the three races (the Dragons, the fairies and the humans), is actually the son of the Courageous One, Pietro. Pinon's encounter with a mysterious animal, Pap, opens up the door to an adventurous journey. He befriends Luna and Marco on the way. However, when he learns that his adventure will determine the fate of PoPoLoCrois, Pinon hardens his heart and leaves his friends. Unknown to him, this is an introductory chapter to a new adventure and Pinon will realise that he must resolve the bigger crisis present in PoPoLoCrois. Everything here cries "kids only". It manages to present even sword fight with skeletons and monsters as something super unserious so that Dragon Quest looks like a serious drama in comparison. Overall Rating: 6/10 30. Papuwa パプワ [Nippon Animation] (Finished 1/26) Tags: Adventure, Comedy In this sequel series, events continue four years after they left off in the first series. Papuwa-kun is a mysterious boy who lives on a new tropical island full of the same crazy creatures. Along with his maid, Liquid, and his new amnestic friend, "Rotarou", they lead nonsensical adventures as they try to evade and confuse the Ganma Army, Special Corps, and even the Shinsengumi from discovering Rotarou's real secret and taking him away. First season only translated pilot episode looked like low quality and more absurd imitation of Dragon Ball. Now quality has improved and absurdity has bloomed even more. Lack of logical development soon invokes headache for me. Overall Rating: 5/10 31. Midnight Horror School ミッドナイトホラースクール [Milky Cartoon] (Finished 1/52) Tags: Comedy The school has 26 students with each name of them beginning with a letter of the alphabet in order and a color, 3 teachers, 3 classrooms, a library, a cafeteria, a music room, a playroom, a fountain, a skeleton playground, a graveyard and several school staff. Not translated. Kids 3D show to learn letters, colors and some other basics. There are two stories in each episode. That's as far as I'm willing to go investigating this. Overall Rating: 5/10 32. Jungle wa Itsumo Hare nochi Guu Final ジャングルはいつもハレのちグゥ FINAL [Shin-Ei Animation] (Finished 7/7) Tags: Shounen Gag Humor Award Winning, Comedy, Slice of Life Haré's family receives a video letter from Weda's home in the city. Witnessing how sad and lonely Weda's mother and Bel are without her, Weda decides to take Haré and Guu back to the city for a while. After Haré complains about being bored and lonely without his friends in the jungle (as part of his plot to persuade his mother to take him back), Weda decides to send him to a private school in the city, where he instanly falls in love with a pretty girl named Rita. But, of course, Guu wants part of the action too. After great series Deluxe OVA looked like thematic episodic stories about different characters, but now the great Guu is back in full swing - just crazy concentrated comedy. I decided to never rate direct sequels the same score as original, so it's one score less now, but overall same high level. Overall Rating: 7/10 33. Aquarian Age: Saga II - Don't Forget Me... アクエリアンエイジ Saga II ~Don't forget me...~ [Madhouse] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Super Power Action, Drama During the chaotic period known in Western astrology as the Aquarian Age, the alien ERASER fleet attacks Earth, ravaging cities. However, a counteroffensive is launched. The four factions—ARAYASHIKI, WIZDOM, DARKLORE, and E.G.O.—who have been fighting each other for control of Earth, join forces to defeat the ERASERS. In the aftermath, Earth is placed under the unified rule of the POLESTAR EMPIRE. However, peace is shattered when the EMPIRE begins to use forbidden magic. These dark powers cause dimensional rifts around the world and once again plunge Earth into chaos and warfare Ironically, in contrast to "Don't Forget Me" title this sequel is totally forgettable. Without finishing original season it all looks like a spree of chaotic action. There's some kind of finale for the boy and five girls from different factions, but it's as messy as everything else in here. Overall Rating: 5/10 34. Comic Party Revolution OVA こみっくパーティーRevolution [Chaos Project] (Finished 4/4) Tags: Otaku Culture Comedy A college student, Sendō Kazuki, happened to set foot in the doujinshi community. There, people are producing and selling doujinshi, which is the comic book drawn by fans rather than professional writers. At first he was reluctant, but as he met the girls earnest about producing doujinshi, he was gradually involved in creating it himself. This series is based on a Dreamcast/PC game, "Comic Party", and its setting is different from the TV series. The main characters, Kazuki, Taishi, and Mizuki are college students whereas they were high school students in the TV series. The story starts after Kazuki has become acquainted with other characters. Main problem of routine in Comic Party is gone, but these three episodes are sort of fan-disc short stories with side-heroines, so can't even treat it seriously. Overall Rating: 5/10 35. Moekan The Animation モエかん THE ANIMATION [KSS] (Finished 3/3) Tags: Comedy, Romance An anarchistic country that is said to dominate the world exists on a vast island known as Moekko Island. This is where the final works of AC Company's android combat maids (resembling beautiful young girls) are done, also where these maids get there communication training. A new maid is to come to the island to be trained, Rinia, she is a young looking girl, who has lost her all of her memories, she tries very hard to impress the owner at Moekko island, but just ends up making a lot of trouble around the mansion. Takahiro, the owner of Moekko island, a depressive young man who has also lost his memories is seen as a very unhappy person who thinks Rinia will only be trouble around the mansion. As time passes, Takahiro slowly grows attached to Rinia's attempted ways of helping and so starts a beautiful relationship among the quiet island. I'd say it's closer to average. Some scenes transferred from the game are ok, but all different routes mashed up into one monstrosity did not do good here. Overall Rating: 5/10 36. Kidou Shinsengumi Moeyo Ken Moeyo Ken 機動新撰組 萌えよ剣 [Trinet Entertainment, Picture Magic] (Finished 4/4) Tags: Historical Adventure, Comedy Set in the Meiji era, Kidou Shinsengumi Moeyo Ken tells the story of Kondou Yuuko, Hijikata Toshie and Okita Kaoru. These three are the daughters of former Shinsengumi members and, in the same fashion as their fathers were, they get called upon to protect Japan from its current problems. Much of their work deals with vanquishing the mysterious paranormal phenomena springing up ever more frequently in the Kyoto area and defending the city from any other dangers that may arise. Nonsense setting , characters and beasts from phenomena in a short OVA. Flow is also whatever for the bigger half and some fight at the end. It tries to be comedy, but comedies are supposed to be funny. Overall Rating: 5/10 37. Kingdom of Chaos: Born to Kill キングダム・オブ・カオス 〜ボーン・トゥー・キル〜 [Idea Factory] (Finished 1/4) Tags: Fantasy Neverland is a world where humans, demons and dieux live peacefully. Lord of the Kingdom of Bjor, wants to conquer the world... Anime based on the online game "Kingdom of Chaos (K.O.C.)". Only found a single translated episode, and can't really say much after just 25 minutes - just some weird fantasy setting with ugly graphics. Overall Rating: 5/10 38. Heart Cocktail Again ハートカクテルアゲイン [Meruhensha] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Seinen Romance An OVA produced to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Watase Seizou's Heart Cocktail manga. Guess depends on whether you get to catch sentimental vibe from it. I did not, for me it's pseudo-seinen. Overall Rating: 5/10 39. Tokyo Godfathers 東京ゴッドファーザーズ [Madhouse] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Childcare Award Winning, Comedy, Drama One Christmas Eve, Hana, Gin, and Miyuki are rummaging for presents through heaps of garbage when they chance upon an abandoned baby in the cold winter night. Appalled at the pitiful sight, Hana's maternal instincts kick in and she insists on finding the baby's biological mother to demand an explanation. Naming the baby Kiyoko—meaning pure child—they begin their search using the possible clues left alongside her: a mysterious key and a single note. However, their plans are soon thrown into disarray as they get caught up in a series of unprecedented events. Tokyo Godfathers follows the journey of the trio as they stick together through thick and thin, hoping to deliver Kiyoko to her true home, and find their very own Christmas miracle. It's a well animated curious chasing story, but it dwells on miracles and bad luck way too much. I definitely don't enjoy it aesthetically as it's mostly about unpleasant people in unpleasant places doing unpleasant things, so the main question left for me is the message of the movie, the reason to watch it. And all I see here is some clever tricks, a way to tell several life stories and social commentary on homeless people who are just like everyone else and even recently successful people while in some qualities are even better than the most. I find it all really ugly and senseless, so I see no reason to recommend it. Cheesy weird Christmas fairy-tale about bums. Overall Rating: 6/10 40. Fuyu no Hi 冬の日 [Imagica] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Historical Award Winning Winter Days is based on one of the renku (collaborative linked poems) by the 17th-century Japanese poet Bashō. The creation of the film followed the traditional collaborative nature of the source material – the visuals for each of the 36 stanzas were independently created by 35 different animators. Each animator was asked to contribute at least 30 seconds to illustrate their stanza, and most of the sequences are under a minute (Yuriy Norshteyn's, though, is nearly two minutes long). As you see, it's avant-garde anthology with hokku in between. And most of the animation is not even real anime... Overall Rating: 5/10 41. Kochira Katsushikaku Kameari Kouenmae Hashutsujo The Movie 2: UFO Shuurai! Tornado Daisakusen!! こちら葛飾区亀有公園前派出所 THE MOVIE2 UFO襲来!トルネード大作戦!! [Fuji TV, Shueisha] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Shounen Adult Cast, Detective, Gag Humor Action, Comedy, Mystery More movie mayhem for Ryoutsu. This time it's just fooling around and having a rest while trying to earn money for Ryoutsu. It all brings to UFO case only accidentally. Again only not bad. Overall Rating: 6/10 42. Ougon no Hou: El Cantare no Rekishikan The Golden Laws 黄金の法 エル・カンターレの歴史観 [Group TAC] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Historical Fantasy In the year 2403 AD a young student named Satoru is visited by a time traveler from the future, a cute girl named Alisa. The two go back in time together to explore the 21st century when a malfunction sends them hurdling through seemingly random episodes of religious and perhaps historic importance. Japan's answer to Scientology, Kyoufuku no Kagaku (幸福の科学, also known as The Institute for Research in Human Happiness), returns with their third animated feature. Time travel and just peeking into some myths is hardly a good concept to choose. Nonsense is the closest word to describe it. Overall Rating: 5/10 43. Atashin'chi Movie 映画 あたしンち [Toei Animation] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Super Power Comedy In a stormy night, Mikan and Mom were stricken by lightning simultaneously and switched bodies. In the following days, while Mom enjoyed being a student again, Mikan had to fought with house chores. Meanwhile, Yuzuhiko and Dad were busy looking for a way to switch them back. Not translated. It's all in the synopsis, really. And since I can't get used to ugly character designs, it gets another score point deduction. Overall Rating: 5/10 -
Anime of the Year 2003-III Summer - Full Metal Panic? Fumoffu
kivandopulus posted a blog entry in Anime of the Season
Can't call anything masterpiece again. Let's point out Full Metal Panic? Fumoffu , maybe. 1. Full Metal Panic? Fumoffu フルメタル・パニック? ふもっふ [Kyoto Animation] (Finished 12/12) Tags: Gag Humor, School Action, Comedy Sergeant Sousuke Sagara returns to Jindai High School to protect the precious war asset, Kaname Chidori, from any threat. However, his lack of social skills and real-life experience result in comical yet dangerous situations, endangering the peaceful school life Kaname longs for. As Sousuke continues to bring a wide range of weapons to school as a means to solve threats—real or fake—Kaname struggles to fulfill her duty as the student council vice president all while keeping him in check. To ensure a successful mission, Sousuke is occasionally forced to use the costume of a famous amusement park mascot called Bonta-kun. With his technical expertise, he eventually transforms the exuberant uniform into a cutting-edge exoskeleton that has only one dysfunction: the voice translator can only produce the sound "mofu." Full Metal Panic? Fumoffu depicts the adventures of Kaname and Sousuke as they try to live their normal school lives despite the chaos they inadvertently cause. A living proof that mecha anime feels much better with mecha itself taken out. Jokes aside, I liked it quite a lot when first watched it, but still never considered a masterpiece. With time this idea only strengthened. Kyoto Animation squeezed maximum from this stale concept, but conceptual flaws aren't easily overrriden. Overall Rating: 6/10 2. Ikkitousen Ikki Tousen: Battle Vixens 一騎当千 [J.C.Staff] (Finished 3/13) Tags: Martial Arts, School, Super Power Ecchi In the Kanto region, seven high schools fight to the death for absolute power. Each fighter is the reincarnation of a glorious warrior from the Three Kingdoms period, placing them in a perilous endeavor to overcome their often cruel destinies. Among them is the airheaded Hakufu Sonsaku, a student at Nanyou Academy who—despite possessing brilliant martial art abilities—is deemed to be killed at a young age by the ruthless Ukitsu. However, her fellow classmate Koukin Shuuyu is tasked by Hakufu's mother to protect his cousin from this grim fate. To add to his burden, Hakufu is subject to sudden bursts of anger, where she loses consciousness and unleashes a destructive power that threatens her own life. Together with Nanyou's "Big Four," Hakufu and Shuuyu will have to foil the plans of their main rival schools and uncover the true nature of Hakufu's powers before it is too late. Ecchi fighting that's not too bad as it has enough drama and bloody scenes to make up for all lighthearted fanservice humor. Overall Rating: 6/10 3. Green Green グリーングリーン [Studio Matrix] (Finished 12/12) Tags: School Comedy, Romance, Ecchi Kanenone Gakuen is an all-male boarding school located in the countryside of Japan. Although an all-male school is nothing new, life can become quite difficult when there are no female students for miles around. In order to help the psychological health of everyone involved, the school board has decided to try and merge with the nearest all-girl boarding school in order to become co-ed. The boys of Kanenone are more than thrilled at the prospect, and the girls are curious as to how interesting school life might become if there were more boys around. Before any serious decisions are made, the girls have been invited to stay at Kanenone for one month as a test. Green Green follows Yuusuke Takazaki and his naughty room mates called the Baka (Idiot) Trio, and their ability to talk to the girls without making complete fools of themselves. But as soon as the school bus with the girls arrives, things become weird, hormonal, and hysterical. In particular, a girl named Midori Chitose leaps off the bus and immediately embraces a very confused Yuusuke. Is he a natural ladies' man, or do the two of them have a shared history that he is not aware of? First Green Green looked rather sincere, but it never rose above ecchi youth romcom. Still finished it in the past, so it had its amusing moments. Overall Rating: 6/10 4. Onegai☆Twins Please Twins! おねがい☆ツインズ [Daume] (Finished 3/12) Tags: Harem, School Comedy, Drama, Sci-Fi Maiku Kamishiro's past has always been somewhat of a mystery to him. The only clue he has to who his family might be is an old photograph showing two young children, a boy and a girl, playing in a small pool outside of a blue house. In an attempt to find his family, he moves to this blue house and begins working as a programmer. He's living a comfortable life until the day two very different girls show up at his door, both in possession of the same photograph, and both claiming to be his twin. With no way to prove who is a relative and who is a stranger, Maiku allows both girls to move in with him until they know for sure. Never expected to see spin-off of Onegai Sensei. Everything was typical and expected, thus the score. Overall Rating: 5/10 5. D.C.: Da Capo D.C.~Da Capo~ D.C.~ダ・カーポ~ [feel., Zexcs] (Finished 1/26) Tags: Harem Drama, Romance Hatsunejima abounds in mysteries—one of which is the town's unwithering cherry trees that are said to grant the most genuine wishes. There are also rumors of people possessing supernatural powers, like Junichi Asakura, who can see other people's dreams and create sweets out of nothing. Alongside his sister Nemu, he enjoys living in peace with his friends at Kazami Academy but chooses to shroud his identity in secrecy. His tranquil school life comes to a halt when he finds out that his childhood friend Sakura Yoshino has returned from America after six years. She is there for one purpose: to fulfill the promises she made long ago with Junichi. Little does anyone know, however, that Sakura's appearance is bound to change everyone's lives—for better or worse. For me it's the barebones of school romance without anything to like at all. Overall Rating: 5/10 6. Narutaru: Mukuro Naru Hoshi Tama Taru Ko Shadow Star Narutaru なるたる ~骸なる星・珠たる子~ [Planet] (Finished 13/13) Tags: Seinen Drama, Suspense During her summer holiday at her grandparents house Tamai Shiina, a young and cheerful schoolgirl, meets a strange looking creature. They befriend each other and Shiina names it "Hoshimaru: The Round Star." When Shiina returns home after the summer to go back to school, she starts meeting other kids that also have befriended a strange creature like Hoshimaru. But she soon finds out that not all these creatures and their masters are as friendly as Hoshimaru. After mildly intriguing episode 2 and 3 decided to watch how it ends, but the whole middle felt like a horrible waste of time. Basically, things spice up only in the very last episode, and it's still really bad. Terrible execution. Overall Rating: 5/10 7. Popotan ぽぽたん [Shaft] (Finished 3/12) Tags: Time Travel Comedy, Drama, Supernatural, Ecchi Beautiful sisters Ai, Mai, Mii, their android maid Mea and slippery pet ferret Unagi make an amazing journey together through time and space without ever leaving their beloved mansion behind! Following the clues of the strange dandelion-like "Popotan," the girls are theoretically seeking the person who has the answers to their most personal questions, but they seem to have more than enough time to take side trips, meet new friends, visit hot springs and occasionally operate the X-mas shop they keep in the house along the way! Yet, the girls' ultimate destiny holds more than a few surprises of its own, and not every moment is filled with hilarity, as moving through time means having to leave friends behind as well. Cute enough, but eventless and boring. I hoped that there won't be Popotan nakedness, but alas. Overall Rating: 5/10 8. Happy☆Lesson Advance [Studio Hibari] (Finished 1/13) Tags: Harem Comedy, Romance Hitotose Chitose is now living together with his 5 teachers as his mothers when a mysterious girl appears and becomes their neighbor which turns out that that person is Nagatsuki Kuron who wants Mu-chan to be her mother so another sibling rivalry ensues as to who would end up as Mu-chan's child. Need to like either original series or OVA. Overall Rating: 5/10 9. Divergence Eve ダイバージェンス・イヴ [Radix] (Finished 4/13) Tags: Mecha, Military, Space Adventure, Comedy, Drama, Sci-Fi In the 24th Century, Intergalactic Space Travel has become a reality. One of the first outposts in the far reaches of space is WATCHER'S NEST - an inflation hole drive portal - which has recently come under attack by a mysterious force known simply as GHOUL... A group of young female cadets assigned to the portal are unexpectedly thrown into a hornet's nest of trouble as they finalize their training to become an elite pilot in the Seraphim Squadron. A very strange experience, but a poor one. Lots of confusion, strange ecchi, serious though boring development and no foreseeable aim. It's definitely watchable, but episodes have no clear beginning or ending, so it's tasteless something that wastes time here and now while other purposes are unclear. Overall Rating: 6/10 10. Cinderella Boy シンデレラボーイ [Magic Bus] (Finished 2/13) Tags: Seinen Magical Sex Shift Action, Adventure, Comedy, Mystery Ranma and his partner Rera run a detective agency in Giraffe City. An arranged accident leaves Rera and Ranma in an unfortunate state where the two detectives swap bodies at the stroke of midnight. With Ranma dissapearing and the beautiful Rera appearing. Action detective with familiar Ranma spice. Overall Rating: 5/10 11. Takahashi Rumiko Gekijou Rumiko Takahashi Anthology 高橋留美子劇場 [TMS Entertainment] (Finished 2/13) Tags: Seinen Comedy, Drama, Romance, Slice of Life, Supernatural Shelter. Employment. Companionship. Rumiko Takahashi explores the stress that can befall people when these basic necessities become endangered. From penguins to wedding chapels and to amnesiac husbands, each episode explores supposedly normal people under extreme situations with all of the dramatic skill and warped comedy that you expect from the world-famous creator of InuYasha, Ranma 1/2, Urusei Yatsura! Being anthology and comedy, it's not great. Overall Rating: 6/10 12. Sumeba Miyako no Cosmos-sou Suttoko Taisen Dokkoida Dokkoida?! 住めば都のコスモス荘 すっとこ大戦ドッコイダー [ufotable] (Finished 5/12) Tags: Shounen Parody Action, Adventure, Comedy, Sci-Fi The Galaxy Federation Police (GFP) desperately wants to cover-up its personnel shortage with new mechanized power-suits. Suzuo, 19-years old, desperately needs a job. Tampopo needs an earthling to fit the prototype of her company's suit and declares Suzuo the perfect candidate! Strong competitors and the wacky A-class criminals fight against our hero in diapers, but they must not recognize each other out of costume or the test results will be a failure- but it's OK if they all live in the same apartment building to save money, right? Nonsense comedy, so need to like specific humor and antics to go on. I did not. Overall Rating: 5/10 13. Massugu ni Ikou. まっすぐにいこう。 [Yumeta Company] (Finished 4/4) Tags: Josei Pets Comedy, Romance, Slice of Life A talking dog is a beautiful story that you should have dreamt of as a child. But if you have forgotten about it, this is a reminder of that fable story. This is the story of a dog that talks, but ordinary people cannot hear his voice. The main character, Mametaro, is an adventurous crossbreed dog. He loves his owner, Iku-chan and his girlfriend Hanako-chan very much. However, he just cannot stand Iku-chan's friend, Akiyoshi. During this story, which will be told from Mametaro's point of view, the warm days of spring are finally here. The school and the riverbank, which is actually just an ordinary neighborhood for people, seems like a mysterious world that extends infinitely to little Mametaro and his friends. Need to either own a dog or like dogs, plus it's Josei. I'm not target audience, so it does not look cute or funny to me. Overall Rating: 5/10 14. Nezha Chuanqi The Legend of Nezha 哪吒传奇 [-] (Finished 3/52) Tags: Adventure The Legend of Nezha narrative The story of Natra, the heavenly boy who was born bare, very mischievous, but the temperament, the mentality of goodness, always towards the righteous. With powerful martial arts and magic, he tried to save the evil to bring peaceful life for people in the time of raging love. Not translated. Some basic shounen based on China mythology. Overall Rating: 5/10 15. Triangle Heart: Sweet Songs Forever とらいあんぐるハート -Sweet Songs Forever- [Seven Arcs] (Finished 4/4) Tags: Adventure, Romance Fiasse is a world-renowned singer. She is now the headmistress of a special Singing School who does a Charity World Tour every year. Her mother left behind a inheritance for her after she died and some shady people are after Fiasse and the inheritance. Bring in Ellis, and two siblings who are master of the swords to protect Fiasse. The World Tour is coming up and Fiasse will continue the show. Ellis, Kyoya, Miyuki and company must protect their childhood friend at all costs. Bodyguard stories are nothing new for visual novels. I remember triangle heart trilogy being not possible to hook, so good to know how it looks in its prime. Overall Rating: 5/10 16. True Love Story True Love Story Summer Days, and yet... [Picture Magic, A-Line] (Finished 3/3) Tags: Romance Picture Magic, A-Line When Morisaki Yuuta ran into a girl in the school hallway that day, he had no idea his life would change forever. As a member of the photography club and a fledgling to the world of women, Yuuta's life has been turned upside down by the entrance of not one, but several women into his life! From old friends to new acquaintances, it will be tough figuring out who to choose! It is based on the latest installment of the True Love Story series of dating sims. PS dating sims aren't exciting enough to adapt them in anime in first place... Overall Rating: 5/10 17. Submarine 707R サブマリン707R [Group TAC] (Finished 2/2) Tags: Military Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi In order to keep ocean peace, PKN was organized. It consisted of the state-of-the-art battle ships of various countries. However, they were raided during the foundation ceremony by the unidentified organization, USR, which plotted to conquer the world. They couldn’t be much for the submarine UX which was operated by Admiral Red of USR. But an old Japanese submarine, the 707 saved them, which was operated Captain Hayami at the risk of his life. One year later, succeeding to the 707, which had been ruined during the former fight, newly developed submarine, the 707 II, went for a sail. Among the crews, there were boys, such as Kenji, Goro, and Senta, who had been trainees. PKN formed a fleet led by the Great Guardian, which was the latest battle ship of the United States. However, the attacks of Submarine U were very server, and the fleet was defeated. Then, the 707 arrived. As soon as Red noticed the 707, he was glad to reunion with his rival and began to fight. Escaping from the submarine attack, they hid the 707 in the valley. But Red tried to destroy the valley in order to put the 707 into the torrents of mud. The 707 nearly escaped from it and got in the crater. However it was the pure water layer where the submarine couldn’t float up. At the moment, numerous torpedoes launched to the 707. Nice little OVA with just one big fight and mostly full of SOL. Overall Rating: 6/10 18. Wonderful Days Sky Blue 원더풀 데이즈 [Tin House] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Love Polygon Action, Drama, Romance, Sci-Fi Set in 2142, Wonderful Days depicts a world that has been nearly destroyed by environmental pollution. Human life as we know it is almost extinct, and only a few were able to pull through the collapse of Earth's ecosystem. In order to deal with the chaos, a city named Ecoban was created. The city uses the very pollution that caused the disaster as an energy source. However, although the initial plan was successful to an extent, it didn't just create a new source of energy, but also an elite group of people. This prestigious faction believes that they are above the system, and are not willing to accept survivors from outside the city unless they are put to work as laborers. Among the people living in the wasteland outside Ecoban is a young man named Shua. He leads a very difficult life, but tries to make the most of it through the love that he feels for his childhood friend Jay. Unfortunately, Jay may be more interested in her security commander Cade than in Shua, and thus a love triangle is formed. Not only does Shua have to deal with the heartbreak, but he must also find a new way to survive in the crumbles left from the once-beautiful planet Earth. The first decent Korean anime, beautiful and even 3D is used well. Story and execution are horrible, though. Super slow pace, lots of needless shots. We don't get familiar with the characters, and after some confusion it's already time to finish. Overall Rating: 6/10 19. Nasu: Andalusia no Natsu Nasu: Summer in Andalusia 茄子 アンダルシアの夏 [Madhouse] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Seinen Racing Sports Pepe is a Spanish cyclist competing in an multi-stage Iberian cycling race similar to the Tour de France. He is a support rider for one of the teams competing in the race, and his role is to assist the team's top rider in winning the overall race. As the story unfolds, the racers are set to ride through Pepe's home town in Andalusia on the same day as the wedding of his elder brother Angel to his former girlfriend Carmen. Their relationship was a factor in his decision to leave the town to pursue professional cycling, and the wedding is a frustrating reminder that his career hasn't turned out as he would have liked. Now, with the sponsor planning to drop him from the team and his family and friends cheering him on, Pepe abandons his assigned role and strives for glory. Not the worst short spokon that I watched, but all the deus ex machina factors involved make it not worth watching. Overall Rating: 5/10 20. Momoko, Kaeru no Uta ga Kikoeru yo. もも子、かえるの歌がきこえるよ。 [Magic Bus] (Finished 1/1) Tags: School Drama, Slice of Life Momoko, who attends a special school, is both mentally and physically disabled. Every morning she becomes peevish because she can't go to the ordinary school with her twin brother Riki. Her family soothes Momoko by singing her favorite song "The Song of Frogs." One day, Momoko shouts encouragement to Riki who's playing dodgeball at an open classroom day and Riki's team wins the game. Ryuji, whose team lost the game, is not impressed and demands that Riki stop bringing his 'idiot sister' to school. Riki totally loses control and hits Ryuji with all his might. The following year, an experiment in integrated education is implemented and Momoko begins to attend Riki's school. Unfortunately, her physical condition takes a turn for the worse and she's sent to a hospital. Riki and all her classmates want to cheer her up and they set a goal of winning a relay race so that they would be able to tell Momoko the good news. Meanwhile, the fastest sprinter, Ryuichi, insists that he won't be taking part in the race. I seriously dislike scoring on disabled people. Have not seen such evident tearjerkers in a while if ever. Overall Rating: 6/10 21. Elysium 엘리시움 [Toei Animation, OLM Digital] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Mecha Action, Sci-Fi In In the year 2113 A.D., a team of scientists is dispatched to Antarctica to investigate the region's abnormal seismic activity. Near the epicenter of the activity, the expedition discovers vast land markings akin to the Nazca paleoglyphs drawn in the Peruvian desert. Stranger still is the presence of an enormous underground cavern below these symbols. At the bottom of the chasm, a portion of a tremendous tower juts from the ground. Armed with ultra-digital cameras, the scientific team transmits their findings to the Command Center. One explorer traces the image of a star chart engraved on the tower's exterior. The tower begins to emit a sinister howling as if possessed by demonic forces. One by one, the members of the expedition writhe in pain and die. Those observing the scene at the Command Center watch helplessly. As the high-frequency noise suffuses their headquarters, they too succumb and die in agony. When the waves of the frequency are analyzed, they are discovered to be a beacon directed at the planet Elysium, which lies beyond Earth's solar system. Van, the reluctant hero of the story, is an 18-year-old pizza delivery boy in Manhattan. He competes in the most popular sport of the 22nd century -- turbo jai alai racing. These races are fast paced and deadly affairs that integrate virtual reality into the competition. He's deeply in love with Lydia, a talented ballerina. In the chaotic futuristic metropolis, they only have each other and their dreams. Van and Lydia desperately want the chance to escape the polluted city-scape. Despite the dangers, Van enters a turbo jai alai race in the hopes of winning first prize -- two tickets to a galactic resort where Lydia can audition for the Jupiter Ballet. Meanwhile, earth's deep space observation vessel, the Odyssey, patrols the planet's orbital perimeter. The Odyssey is confronted by an armada of sophisticated alien spacecraft from Elysium. The awed human crew prepares to receive the Elysian ambassador, Yaspe. Without warning, the Odyssey loses control of its weapons, fires on the ambassador's vessel and destroys it. This tragic misunderstanding results in brutal retaliation by the Elysian fleet, culminating in the destruction of the Odyssey and a full-scale attack on Earth. Van's deadly sport of choice turns deadlier when the stadium he is competing in comes under fire from the Elysian barrage. Van struggles through the chaos on his turbo-cycle to rescue Lydia from the collapsing stands. The indiscriminate Elysian onslaught scorches cities worldwide. Van and Lydia flee through the burning streets of Manhattan seeking safety. After a series of harrowing escapes, they find refuge in a claustrophobic fall-out shelter. Cringy 3D is back. Animations are so laughable that it's impossible to take anything seriously here. Story is torn and nothing to be missed. Overall Rating: 5/10 22. Ryoukan-san 良寛さん [-] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Historical An animated motion picture about a real-life Buddhist monk and renowned poet, Ryoukan who lived in 18th century Japan, during the Edo Period. Though born to a wealthy family in Izumozaki, Ryoukan chooses to abandon the easy life he would have inherited in order to understand the true meaning of life through the teachings of Buddhism. From his early adulthood, he undergoes a series of harsh training that demands a solitary and meager lifestyle. Throughout it all, he remains an extremely modest and humble person, a true humanitarian who accepts every individual for who they are while rejecting all worldly fame and wealth. Ryoukan found true peace in life through nature and spending time with children. His pure mind and affable personality have captivated many, and his legacy and the wisdom of his teachings live on today. Just an eccentric monk life with real video shots of the places he inhabited. More an educational/cultural//touristic video that a piece of entertainment for those who never heard of this Ryoukan before. Overall Rating: 6/10 23. on-chan, Yume Power Daibouken! On-chan, Dream Power Big Adventure! onちゃん夢パワー大冒険! [Nippon Animation] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Fantasy on-chan and his friends from the universe's Parade Star, for some reason meets the brother and sister, Kenta and Haruka, who is moving from Tokyo to Sapporo along the way, in the middle of a meadow. The two of them travel to get back to their new home in Sapporo. For on-chan and the other's though, they encounter all sorts of trouble. At first, Kenta was opposing on-chan's dream power but before he knew it, he was also under its influence... Not translated. Just needed to confirm that it's a kid's work. Overall Rating: 5/10 -
Anime of the Year 2003-II Spring - Texhnolyze
kivandopulus posted a blog entry in Anime of the Season
Many titles, but still no masterpieces. Texhnolyze is the closest one, as for me 1. Kino no Tabi: The Beautiful World キノの旅 -the Beautiful World- [A.C.G.T.] (Finished 13/13) Tags: Iyashikei, Psychological Action, Adventure, Slice of Life Kino, a 15-year-old traveler, forms a bond with Hermes, a talking motorcycle. Together, they wander the lands and venture through various countries and places, despite having no clear idea of what to expect. After all, life is a journey filled with the unknown. Throughout their journeys, they encounter different kinds of customs, from the morally gray to tragic and fascinating. They also meet many people: some who live to work, some who live to make others happy, and some who live to chase their dreams. Thus, in every country they visit, there is always something to learn from the way people carry out their lives. It is not up to Kino or Hermes to decide whether these asserted values are wrong or right, as they merely assume the roles of observers within this small world. They do not attempt to change or influence the places they visit, despite how absurd these values would appear. That's because in one way or another, they believe things are fine as they are, and that "the world is not beautiful; therefore, it is." Towns are interesting and varied, but it's still just fantasy travel genre, could never understand the appeal of it. Overall Rating: 6/10 2. Texhnolyze [Madhouse] (Finished 22/22) Tags: Psychological Action, Drama, Sci-Fi In the dark underground city of Lux, people live in fear and despair under the rule of various criminal factions. Almost secluded from the surface, the gangs' only interaction with the outer world is their mining operation of "raffia," which is the raison d'être of the city. Available only in Lux, this rare substance is the basis of "texhnolyze" transplants that permit humans to replace parts of their body with cybernetic prostheses. The latter have the particularity not to trigger an immune response in their hosts and the "Class" has the privilege to conduct research on them. This elusive organization, also in charge of the raffia production, delegates its executive authority to a group called Organo led by Keigo Oonishi—a self-righteous man with texhnolyzed legs who is rumored to hear the "voice of the city." The fragile balance of powers in Lux is disturbed when a mysterious visitor named Kazuho Yoshii begins committing a series of crimes that puts the gangs at each other's throats. In the midst of the chaos, new actors emerge: Ichise, an ex-boxer mutilated by Organo and recently texhnolyzed by Eriko "Doc" Kamata; and Ran, a young florist who can see the future. While Lux steadily plunges into insanity, both Ichise and Ran find themselves involved in the greatest crisis the city has ever faced. Watching it for the third time overall now, because hardly anything is left in memory apart from cyborg angel action and gorgeous abandoned city landscapes. I definitely get visual and thematic enjoyment out of this, but not sure if can call it a masterpiece, because story itself is cluttered and not great while protagonist behaves in an irritating manner for half of the time. Basically, it's too dark and incoherent for me to be able to recommend it. Overall Rating: 6/10 3. D.N.Angel [Xebec] (Finished 2/26) Tags: Shoujo School Action, Comedy, Fantasy, Romance Daisuke Niwa is a clumsy, block-headed, and wimpy middle school student who has few redeeming qualities. On his 14th birthday, he finally decides to confess his love to his longtime crush Risa Harada, but is rejected. In an unexpected turn of events, however, Daisuke finds himself transforming into Dark Mousy, the infamous phantom thief, whenever his mind is set on Risa. Though Daisuke is unaware of this strange heritage, his mother is certainly not: since before the boy was born, his mother had been planning for him to steal valuable works of art and let the name of the elusive art thief be known. With doubt and confusion constantly clouding his mind, Daisuke finds himself struggling in his relationships with classmates and family. And it is not long before Daisuke Compilation of cheesy utter nonsense elements makes it unbearable for me. Overall Rating: 5/10 4. Last Exile LAST EXILE(ラストエグザイル) [Gonzo] (Finished 3/26) Tags: Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi In the world of Prester, flight is the dominant mode of transportation, made possible by Claudia Fluid: a liquidized form of the crystals that are produced on the planet. An organization known solely as "the Guild" has absolute authority over the skies, with a monopoly on the engines that make use of this fluid. Moreover, as ecological disasters destabilize the warring countries of Anatoray and Disith, the Guild also arbitrates in the disputes between the two. Caught in the middle of the conflict are Sky Couriers, piloting small, two-person vanships that fly freely through the sky. Last Exile follows the adventures of two teenagers who dream of surpassing their parents: Claus Valca, son of a famous vanship pilot, and Lavie Head, Claus' best friend and navigator. Their job as couriers entails passing through an air current called the Grand Stream that separates the hostile nations, which even standard airships struggle to survive. However, when they take on a high-rated delivery to bring an orphan girl named Alvis Hamilton to the battleship Silvana, they get dragged into a much greater conflict that pits them against the might of the Guild. Children in steampunk world travel, compete with other aircrafts, get involved into some "adventures". Can't say I like anything at all here. Maybe there's some cool plot to unveil with time, but beginning episodes are absolutely daunting. Overall Rating: 6/10 5. Konjiki no Gash Bell!! Zatch Bell! 金色のガッシュベル!! [Toei Animation] (Finished 2/150) Tags: Shounen Mythology Adventure, Comedy, Supernatural Takamine Kiyomaro, a depressed don't-care-about-the-world guy, was suddenly given a little demon named Gash Bell to take care of. Little does he know that Gash is embroiled into an intense fight to see who is the ruler of the demon world. All of the demons have to pick a master on Earth and duke it out with other demons until one survives. Needless to say, Kiyomaro becomes Gash's master, and through their many battles, Kiyomaro learns the importance of friendship and courage. Do you know who else wanted to become a king in his field? Despite a totally different setting all the major flaws of One piece are copied here with addition of unfunny comedy. Anyway, it has not gone far from a typical shounen. Overall Rating: 5/10 6. Scrapped Princess スクラップド・プリンセス [Bones] (Finished 6/24) Tags: Mecha Adventure, Comedy, Drama, Fantasy, Sci-Fi Born to the royal family, Pacifica Casull has earned the nickname "Scrapped Princess" after an apocalyptic prophecy foretells her destroying the world on her 16th birthday. Rescued from certain death by a kindly family, she takes shelter with her adoptive older brother and sister, Shannon and Raquel Casull. When news of her survival reaches the ears of the God Mauser's worshippers, they issue her death at all costs, forcing Pacifica to flee for her life. Plagued by threats from the church, the nobility and even the common people, the three siblings attempt to outrun the fate Pacifica is destined to bring, all the while questioning if one girl's life is worth the world's demise. The true nature of the Scrapped Princess, along with the harrowing revelations of the world itself, becomes more and more apparent as the princess' 16th birthday fast approaches. As you see from the concept it's again journey in the company without real aim apart of wasting time till 16 years old and getting constantly attacked on the way... which is sad, because characters are ok'ish and visuals are on high enough level. Still might work with outstanding characters, but, alas. Definitely watchable, but I can't answer why I should keep going Overall Rating: 6/10 7. Kaleido Star カレイドスター [Gonzo] (Finished 2/51) Tags: Performing Arts Comedy, Drama, Fantasy The Kaleido Stage is known throughout the world for captivating audiences with its amazing acrobatics, innovative routines, and extravagant costumes and sets. It is a place for guests to believe in magic, and Sora Naegino wants nothing more than to be a part of that magic—by becoming an acrobat for the famed circus herself. To realize her dream, she travels from Japan to California to audition for a place in the group. However, Sora learns that she needs much more than her natural talent to bring joy to the faces in the crowd. She quickly discovers just how difficult it is to be a professional performer where the stakes—and the stunts—are higher and mistakes spell danger! To put on performances worthy of the Kaleido Stage, she will need to endure rigorous training, unconventional assignments, fierce competition, and the antics of a mischievous spirit named Fool. Can Sora reach new heights, make new friends, conquer her fears, and surpass her limits to become a Kaleido Star? We've seen shoujo about a lot of activities like idol, actress, singer, dancer. So let's make another one about acrobatics and fill the airing time for the whole year... As usual, lively and good enough, but not psychologically tilt, so not for me. Overall Rating: 6/10 8. Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Pitch マーメイドメロディー ぴちぴちピッチ [Actas, SynergySP] (Finished 2/52) Tags: Mahou Shoujo, Music Adventure, Comedy, Romance As the mermaid princess of the North Pacific (one of the seven mermaid kingdoms), Lucia entrusts a magical pearl to a boy who falls overboard a ship one night. Lucia must travel to the human world to reclaim her pearl and protect the mermaid kingdoms. Using the power of music Lucia is able to protect herself and the mermaid kingdoms from a growing evil force. One of the early shoujo Mako the Mermaid had a very similar concept, and there have been several idol magical girls, so it does not feel fresh, more like compilation of multiple elements, plus romance, plus humor. As usual, far from enjoyable for me . Overall Rating: 6/10 9. Juubee Ninpuuchou: Ryuuhougyoku-hen Ninja Scroll: The Series 獣兵衛忍風帖「龍宝玉篇」 [Madhouse] (Finished 5/13) Tags: Martial Arts, Samurai Adventure, Horror, Supernatural Fourteen years after defeating the immortal warrior Himuro Genma and thwarting the Shogun of the Dark's evil plans, Kibagami Jubei continues to roam all over Japan as a masterless swordsman. During his journey, he meets Shigure, a priestess who has never seen the world outside her village. But when a group of demons destroys the village and kills everyone, Jubei becomes a prime target after acquiring the Dragon Jewel—a stone with an unknown origin. Meanwhile, Shigure—along with the monk Dakuan and a young thief named Tsubute—travels to the village of Yagyu. And with two demon clans now hunting down Shigure, Dakuan must once again acquire the services of Jubei to protect the Priestess of Light. It may be not bad, but on contrast with the movie all this loose comedy about thievery with some fighting looses completely, so just using this title without any connection to original brings lots of critique. Overall Rating: 6/10 10. Matantei Loki Ragnarok Mythical Detective Loki Ragnarok 魔探偵ロキ RAGNAROK [Studio Deen] (Finished 3/26) Tags: Shounen Comedy, Mystery, Supernatural Loki, the Norse god of mischief, has been exiled to the human world for what was apparently a bad joke. Along with being exiled, he's forced to take the form of a child. He's told the only way he can get back to the world of the gods is if he can collect auras of evil that take over human hearts, and so to do this he runs a detective agency. Loki is soon joined by a human girl named Mayura who is a maniac for mysteries, and she soon helps out in her own way. However, soon other Norse gods begin to appear, and most have the intent to assassinate Loki for reasons unclear. Detective mystery with fighting and norse mythology. Not my genre. Overall Rating: 6/10 11. Air Master エアマスター [Toei Animation] (Finished 1/27) Tags: Seinen Martial Arts Action, Comedy A former gymnast, Aikawa Maki has turned her skills to a different way of life—street fighting. The only thing that truly makes her feel alive is violence. With amazing power and grace, she fights opponent after opponent, repeatedly demonstrating the gymnastic talent that earns her her nom de guerre, "Airmaster." Something like Grappler Baki, female version, with more acrobatics and unofficial fights. There's no way I can enjoy this. Overall Rating: 5/10 12. Tantei Gakuen Q Detective School Q 探偵学園Q [Pierrot] (Finished 1/45) Tags: Shounen Detective Comedy, Drama, Mystery Kyuu is your average boy with a knack for logic and reasoning. Desiring to become a detective, he finds out about the existence of the Dan Detective School (DDS); a famed school where students are allowed to bear arms. Together with Megu, a girl with photographic memory, the martial arts master Kinta, the genius programmer Kazuma and the mysterious Ryuu, Kyuu tackles many well planned out crimes, always seeking the truth. Too many detectives together, it's multiple times more boring for me than usual. Overall Rating: 6/10 13. Ultra Maniac ウルトラマニアック [Ashi Productions] (Finished 2/26) Tags: Mahou Shoujo, School Comedy, Romance Fantasies and miracles never interested Ayu Tateishi, a popular second-year student at her middle school. She was content with preserving her image of being cool, calm, and collected—all to catch the eye of her crush, Tetsushi Kaji. Ayu's carefree youthful days are interrupted by the appearance of Nina Sakura, a new transfer student who turns out to be a witch. As the only person who knows about Nina's ability to cast spells using a mini-computer, Ayu is forced to help Nina with her mission to find the five Holy Stones, qualifying her to marry the prince of the Magic Kingdom. Unfortunately, Nina's ineptitude with magic and her habit of meddling in Ayu's personal life cause nothing but trouble for the two of them as Ayu toils to maintain her good reputation and Nina struggles to hide her secret from the discerning eye of Hiroki Tsujiai, Tetsushi's best friend and an avid fan of manga. And when Nina's search for the five Holy Stones brings allies and challengers from the Magic Kingdom, Ayu is dragged into a world she never even dreamed was possible. Reminds Marmalade boy a lot, but for some reason also incorporates magic that is used not only by heroine, but by quite some people. SOL is ok, romance average, humor below average. Overall Rating: 6/10 14. Uchuu no Stellvia Stellvia 宇宙のステルヴィア [Xebec] (Finished 3/26) Tags: Mecha, Space Action, Romance, Sci-Fi In the year 2167, a wave of radiation released by the supernova of the nearby star Hydrus Beta caused cataclysmic damage on Earth, leaving millions dead. Now, it is the year 2356. United to rebuild Earth, humanity prepares for the supernova's second wave of destruction. In order to protect the planet from future harm, massive space colonies called "Foundations" have been built throughout the Solar System. Acting as centers for both knowledge and exploration, it is at one of these Foundations—the Stellvia—that Shima Katase applies to be a preparatory student against her mother's wishes, aspiring to see space directly with her own eyes. At the Stellvia, Katase trains to become a pilot and hopes to be selected for the "Great Mission" to shield Earth from the second wave. While she struggles with both her pilot classes and her tumultuous social life, she slowly grows into someone who might just be able to protect humanity. There have been at least three mecha lately with just training and either no actual battles or something only in the end. This is continuation of this trend, but with younger characters than usual and without needless drama over trifles. Good SOL inside training school, but there's little besides SOL, so need to like this flow from the start without hopes for something bigger. Overall Rating: 6/10 15. Astro Boy: Tetsuwan Atom Astro Boy (2003) アストロボーイ・鉄腕アトム [Tezuka Productions] (Finished 1/50) Tags: Shounen Mecha, Super Power Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi At the Ministry of Science, fervent Professor Ochanomizu alongside his coworkers strive to reactivate Atom—the first robot with a human heart. Atom is the masterpiece of enigmatic Professor Umatarou Tenma, who built the android to replace his deceased son Tobio. However, while Tenma inexplicably shut down his brainchild and disappeared, Ochanomizu refuses to let such a major breakthrough in science go to waste. Despite having the appearance of a nine-year-old, Atom not only possesses incredible strength and intelligence, but he is also endowed with a remarkable conscience and compassion that rivals humans. Sadly, the mechanical boy soon faces rejection and learns that not everyone is as welcoming as Ochanomizu. Although automatons have integrated into society, they are accepted only as tools and even seen as an upcoming threat to mankind's dominion. Dreaming of a world where people and robots can prosper together, Atom dedicates his existence to protecting the lives of both and inspiring them to form genuine bonds. I'm glad that Astro Boy can be experienced in modern colored version, and several stories are indeed worthy. But it also brings that extremely retro feeling which can only be experienced with proper attitude. Overall Rating: 6/10 16. Dear Boys Hoop Days ディア・ボーイズ [A.C.G.T.] (Finished 2/26) Tags: Shounen Drama, Sports Aikawa Kazuhiko was the captain of Tendoji high school prestigious basketball team. He moves into a new town to attend Mizuho high school and joins its basketball team. However, Mizuho high's basketball team is far from being prestigious, in fact, it's now defunct. Nevertheless to say, Kazuhiko's persistence, passion and basketball skills inspired other team members of the dysfunctional basketball team to gear up and start practicing again. The goal is to play in the national tournaments where all young basketball players meet their opponents to compete with them. The tale of youth of the five protagonists: Fujiwara Takumi, Ishii Tsutomu, Dobashi Kenji, Miura Ranmaru and Aikawa Kazuhiko have just began along with the live of Mizuho high school basketball team. Best basketball spokons so far like Dash! Kappei and Slam Dunk had big tilt into humor while this one has less humor and more drama. But the main disadvantage that it's unrealistic in the way of having a super player and showing off. But I don't care about spokons in first place. Overall Rating: 6/10 17. Narue no Sekai The World of Narue 成恵の世界 [Studio Live] (Finished 2/12) Tags: Shounen Comedy, Romance, Sci-Fi Meet Narue, an adorable schoolgirl with a secret. She's really an alien with powers right out of a sci-fi comic! But growing up is never easy, and sometimes it doesn't help when you're from outer space. Join our spunky heroine as she faces androids, alien invaders, and her first date with the boy next door. It's the sci-fi comedy that's a direct hit to your heart! A mix of a many elements spiced generously with absurdism. The school romcom SOL is typical, and aliens stuff only adds chaos. Overall Rating: 5/10 18. E's Otherwise エスアザーワイズ [Pierrot] (Finished 3/26) Tags: Shounen Military Adventure, Comedy, Drama, Sci-Fi, Supernatural Kai, who has powers different from the rest, together with his sickly sister Hikaru was protected by an organization called ASHURUM. Scouted by Eiji, Kai was delegated to the ASHURUM special force AESES and undergo intensive training. Whenever he was free, Kai visited Hikaru at the hospital belongs to the organization, but Hikaru's condition never improved. So, one year later, with amazing growth from the intensive training, Kai decides to escape from the organization. Of course e's had to mean espers. Protagonist realizes evil ways of his employer and confronts former friends. Story itself is nothing new, but has enough potential and action opportunities, though heavily depends on execution. And there's not enough effort put into quality here to shine. Overall Rating: 6/10 19. Gad Guard ガドガード [Gonzo] (Finished 3/26) Tags: Mecha Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi Several hundred years in the future, the resources of the Earth runs out, and the progression of the human race has stagnated. The world is now divided into "Units." A boy named Hajiki Sanada lives with his mother and sister in Unit 74, in a place called "Night Town," in which all electricity is shut down at midnight. The key in this story is an object called the GAD. GADs have the ability to reconstruct materials while reacting to feelings of an organic life. The size and shape of the resulting product seem to be different depending on the kinds of feelings that the life possesses. When Hajiki comes in contact with one by accident, it transforms into a huge robot—a Tekkoudo, or "Iron Giant"—which Hajiki names Lightning. And soon he realizes that he isn't the only one with a Tekkoudo, and must find out how to deal with those others who he feels are the "same" as himself. As studio's original story, it's easy to predict the loose middle and real plot elements pushed to the end. The core is just random adventures of children who laid hands on a high tech weapon in a crime town, and even if I'm generous it's only decent. Overall Rating: 6/10 20. Ningen Kousaten Human Crossing 人間交差点 [A.C.G.T.] (Finished 2/13) Tags: Drama, Slice of Life, Sports Though seemingly unconnected, the characters in HUMAN CROSSING all have something in common. They are dealing with the sometimes joyous, but often horrific realities of everyday life. Set in modern day Japan, this compilation of short stories explores the lives of people from all walks of life. The animation used here is subtle, with realistic renderings that fully express the range of emotions experienced by the film`s characters. HUMAN CROSSING taps into the dramatic potential of reality, focusing on the isolated, sometimes lonely nature of urban life. Ultimately, however, the film suggests that perhaps there is an inter-connectedness between people that binds even the most disparate strangers together. Anthology about simple stories with complex details of grown-ups which get interconnected by the end. I don't like anthologies and such format and don't find it entertaining or useful. Overall Rating: 6/10 22. Mousou Kagaku Series: Wandaba Style 妄想科学シリーズ ワンダバスタイル [TNK] (Finished 2/12) Tags: Comedy, Sci-Fi Genius scientist Tsukumo Susumu knows each and every single theory behind aerodynamics that exists on earth despite being only 13 years old. He wants to travel to the moon without the use of fossil fuels that power rockets. So begins his heavy research using his knowledge in the laws of physics, scientific theory and his wild imagination. His test subjects are the unpopular idol group Mix JUICE (Himawari, Yuri, Ayame, Sakura). They come up with all sorts of crazy ideas to become the first humans to successfully hold a concert on the face of the moon. Will the four girls from Mix JUICE be able to struggle their way to the moon successfully? Comedy is too crazy and childish for me. Failed to catch its vibe to enjoy. Overall Rating: 6/10 23. Submarine Super 99 サブマリン スーパー99 [Vega Entertainment] (Finished 3/13) Tags: Shounen Military Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi Dr. Oki , the genius scientist who designed a new type of submarine is missing. His son, Susumu, smells an evil scheme of unknown group. He knows everything of his father's submarine called "Super 99" – equipment, weapons, functions and capacity. Susumu thinks that to find his father is to reveal the secret organization, Helmet Party, and stop their conspiracy. With the help of his friends and Marine Corps, he sets out to an underwater quest, not knowing how dangerous his endeavour is… All this Leijiverse with side stories and recycled characters is getting tiresome and irritating. This time it's getting closer to shounens, and submarine instead of spaceship tones the scale down. Overall Rating: 5/10 24. Firestorm FIRESTORM ファイアーストーム [Trans Arts] (Finished 2/26) Tags: Mecha, Military Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi It is the year 2104 AD. The terrible war is over and peace seemed close in the world. However, there is one thing that can bring down this peace. That is the criminal organization who's power and actions are widespread across the world... The Black Orchid. From the main countries of the world, the "Storm Force" was formed to take down the Black Orchid. They are also known under the code name "Fire Storm". Baddies fulfil evil plans only to be defeated each time by goodies. For me every second mecha is this way, so can't even criticize it. Overall Rating: 5/10 25. Jikuu Boukenki Zentrix Zentrix 時空冒険記 ゼントリックス [Imagi] (Finished 1/26) Tags: Mecha Adventure, Sci-Fi The series is set in Zentrix City, a seemingly "perfect" city. Emperor Jarad is a scientist who with the help of scientists Dr. Roark and Dr. Coy, created a super-computer called OmnicronPsy, which manages all of the city's higher and day-to-day functions, controlling a wide variety of machines and robots, allowing humankind to live a seemingly "perfect" life. However OmnicronPsy, using His super-intelligence, decides that it would make a better ruler than Jarad, and starts to break down the coding that stops him from revolting and harming the Royal Family. Discovering this, Jarad and Dr. Roark head back in time 7 years to stop the revolt from ever happening. To accomplish this they plan to shut down the six Zentrium chips that power OmnicronPsy. Upon discovering this, Jarad's daughter and only heir, Princess Megan, proceeds to follow him to the past while OmnicronPsy concurrently undoes his restriction codes and sends his Robo Guards to hunt her down. Horrible full 3D and there's only official dub version, because no one cares to sub it. Safe childish bland mecha adventure with time travel. Overall Rating: 5/10 26. Bouken Yuuki Pluster World Adventure Hero Pluster World 冒険遊記プラスターワールド [Actas, Brain's Base] (Finished 1/52) Tags: Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi According to the legend, the once peaceful "Pluster World" plunged into chaos and darkness due to the manifestation of the evil MINASUTA. At that time, selected Plusters were combined with humans, and successfully sealed away the evil MINASUTA. It was then believed that the peace which had returned would continue forever. Greenery and trees filled the land, flowers bloomed everywhere, living creatures soar in the blue sky, run on the land, and swim in the seas. However, this peacefulness was once again lost due to reappearance of the MINASUTA... Now, the fusion of Plusters and Humans once again opens the door for a hot adventure! Not translated to English, but aired in arabic, for example, as it's a safe show for kids that's not marked properly by MAL. Overall Rating: 5/10 27. Mugen Senki Portriss 無限戦記ポトリス [Sunrise, Dongwoo A&E] (Finished 1/52) Tags: Mecha Action, Sci-Fi In a raving world, legendary knights stood up. Will they become gods of war or world saviors? Three Portriss Knights and sole human boy are now going to change the World! Portriss Planet, home of where robots live in peace. However, this peacefulness was ruined by the sudden appearance of a Dictator "Dark Portriss". Dark Portriss plans to attain infinite powers through the use of the "Space-time destroying Cannon". The only ones able to stop this are the Portriss Knights! A boy, Yuuma, accidentally got into the Portriss World, and the Portrisses` adventure begins! Only partially translated, it seems. Korean anime is still way too childish compared to older brother, again not properly marked. Overall Rating: 5/10 28. Wonder Bebil-kun ワンダーベビルくん [Radix] (Finished 3/30) Tags: Comedy, Fantasy Bevil-kun, who lives in Wonderland, decided to go out into the human world and live with Ryota in order to set a good example for human beings by his father who wanted to keep his position as a monster. Not translated. MAL incorrectly shows episode length as full while it's just 7 minutes. It's just another Doraemon imitation for kids. Overall Rating: 5/10 29. The Animatrix アニマトリックス [Madhouse, Studio 4°C, Square Pictures] (Finished 9/9) Tags: Action, Drama, Sci-Fi 1. Final Flight of the Osiris The crew of the Osiris discover an army preparing to invade Zion. While one crew member races inside the Matrix to get the message to Zion, the others try desperately to buy her enough time while fighting off an onslaught of Sentinels they can't possibly defeat. 2-3. The Second Renaissance Part 1 and 2 Humans have created the ultimate AI, which is just as smart as they are. But complications arise when these robots and the humans try to exist peacefully, and eventually all-out war breaks out. The humans ultimately lose the war, and become trapped in the Matrix as seen in the live-action films. 4. Kid's Story A young man discovers that his world isn't real, that it's a computer-generated fantasy land created by robots using humans for energy. He escapes with the help of the hacker Neo. Based on the Matrix trilogy. 5. Program Cis and Duo engage in battle in a virtual recreation of Feudal Japan. 6. World Record While running the fastest race in his life, a champion track star breaks free of his computer-generated world for a small period of time. When he goes back to the real world, he has no memories and is placed in a nursing home. Based on the Matrix trilogy. 7. Beyond While looking for her lost pet, a young woman meets up with some kids in Tokyo to play in a "haunted house," which is really a glitch in their computer world. Based on the Matrix trilogy. 8. Detective Story A detective named Ash is called upon by a mysterious organization to hunt down the notorious hacker Trinity. 9. Matriculated A group of scientists capture a robot and place it in a surreal fantasy world. When the robot's friends come in and kill most of the scientists; however, the robot and the last scientist remaining face isolation in the computer-generated world. Based on the Matrix trilogy. It's anthology made partly in 3D lasting for 9 episodes 9 minutes each, so it's already impossible to compete for a masterpiece score. It's basically a fandisc as some stories provide new details for the movies, others are just fantasies with familiar characters or even just around some familiar phenomenon. I'm not a big fan of the original, and these stories did not look significant for the story to me. Overall Rating: 6/10 30. Eiken: Eikenbu yori Ai wo Komete Eiken エイケン エイケンヴより愛をこめて [J.C.Staff] (Finished 1/2) Tags: Harem, School Comedy, Ecchi Zashono Academy is a massive educational institution with over thirty-five thousand students enrolled across all grades. It is here that the plain and unpopular Densuke Mifune enrolls in high school. While he looks forward to blending into the crowd, circumstances change when he runs into Chiharu Shinonome, an incredibly attractive and intelligent girl who has captured the attention of all the students at the school. Witnessing the encounter between the two, Kirika Misono pressures them into joining her mysterious "Eiken Club" to compete in the school's annual club tournament. The tournament causes Densuke to become more intimate with his fellow club members, but will he be able to maintain his composure or will he give in to their bold advances? Fast-paced short fanservice comedy fantasy about breast size. It's clearly of fetish nature and should only be tried with corresponding affinity. Overall Rating: 4/10 31. Parasite Dolls パラサイトドールズ [AIC] (Finished 3/3) Tags: Detective, Gore, Mecha Action, Sci-Fi A secret unit of the AD Police, known as Branch, specializes in crimes involving humanoid robots called 'Boomers'. Branch officer Buzz must cope with having a Boomer for a partner, while officer Michaelson finds the line between human and robot to be a thin one. Together they serve to protect a world that is slowly deconstructing around them. Set in the Bubblegum Crisis universe. Original A.D. Police was not great, and despite different pair of protagonists Parasite Dolls feels only slightly better as it's pure case investigation without police routine. It clearly tries to imitate Ghost in the Shell while remaining in Bubblegum Crisis world, and result is really decent, but due to lack of attention to protagonists, fast pace and lack of details it does not become engaging. Overall Rating: 6/10 32. Hitsuji no Uta 羊のうた [Madhouse] (Finished 2/4) Tags: Vampire Drama, Horror Kazuna's family has a history of suffering from a disease that creates an uncontrollable vampire-like thirst for blood. Knowing none of this, Kazuna was sent to live with the Eda couple as a child. As the sickness begins to show signs of being present within himself, he comes into contact with his older sister, Chizuna, who has been suffering from it since early childhood. Knowing that the sickness incurs a heavy weight upon those that suffer from it, Chizuna tries to ease her brother's burden, to help him learn to control his urges, but... Concept already looks like a bore to me, but it incorporates slow pace, distraction to details, flashbacks and scenes that add very little apart of some supposed emotions. If you like vampires, suspense or mystery it will probably be a treat, but it's three misses for me, and poor visuals alongside depressed atmosphere make it unbearable. Overall Rating: 5/10 33. Guardian Hearts がぁーでぃあんHearts [Venet] (Finished 1/6) Tags: School Comedy, Romance, Ecchi Maya, Kurusu, and Chelsea hit it off really well when trying to get revenge on Guardian Hearts for making them suffer. Maya and company thought that Guardian Hearts usually appears when Kazuya is getting along with a girl. Not knowing that Guardian Hearts is actually Hina, they leave her alone with Kazuya in an attempt to lure Guardian Hearts. Only good if you're in mood to watch light ecchi nonsense. Overall Rating: 5/10 34. Lingerie Senshi Papillon Rose Papillon Rose OVA ランジェリー戦士パピヨンローゼ [Studio Kelmadick] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Mahou Shoujo, Parody Sci-Fi, Ecchi Tsubomi is a savvy and horny school girl who works at a lingerie club, a gentlemen's bar where scantily clad young women serve drinks to the patrons. She is useless at her job but is blackmailing her boss so she won't get fired. One day she runs into a gorgeous young man who she takes to bed. She meets into a perverted talking cat with a butterfly on its forehead, who recruits her to be a magical soldier. She has to fight off a dominatrix elf woman called Beene, a minion of Regina Apis, a matriarch bent on chaos and forming her new Dynasty. Tsubomi is learning of her powers when she is rescued by an oddly familiar masked man, known only as Dandelion. The plot of this anime is completely farcical and parodies the magical girl genre and Sailor Moon in particular. Short ecchi parody on Sailor Moon. Overall Rating: 4/10 35. Mizuiro (2003) みずいろ (2003) [OLM] (Finished 2/2) Tags: Drama, Romance, Supernatural Brother and younger sister-in-law live in the house which parents are often away from. Yuki who is the younger sister is secretly yearning for Kenji who is the elder brother. However, one girl came to show up from the closet in Kenji's room after a certain night. Moreover, her body is transparent, and she looks like the ghost. Her name is Hiyori. She is a friend in their childhood. They are pleased with reunion though Kenji and Yuki are perplexed with the way of Hiyori's strange appearance. However, Yuki gets the mind shaken as Kenji and Hiyori become intimate, and the pain in her mind in the childhood is recalled. At the childhood, Yuki was going to pass the light blue toy ring which Kenji had had to Hiyori in exchange for Hiyori's yoyo. However, because Hiyori became sick, and had moved, the promise was not an accomplishment. Their events in the childhood seem to be related to Hiyori's showing up in front of them. A painful love story of Kenji and two girls progresses. A normal triangle romance drama with aim to squeeze a tear or two. Overall Rating: 6/10 36. Futari no Joe ふたりのジョー [Office AO] (Finished 1/6) Tags: Shounen Combat Sports Joe Yuki, one of the coolest DJs in Shibuya, has a secret identity as the leader of gangs. Because of his traumatic childhood, he fiercely hates "weaklings" and sees winning as his only option in life. One night, an old man is being taunted by the kid known as "the human punching bag." The old man reminds Joe of his parents and childhood, and he uncontrollably challenges the kid to a fight. A fight in which he's defeated, and his pride is utterly shattered into pieces. I see it as trying to parasite on Ashita no Joe name , but with two protagonists and only six episodes having to resort to simplifications. Since I'm not interested in spokons, no will to sample it further. Overall Rating: 6/10 37. Alexandros no Ketsudan Alexander's Decision アレクサンドロスの決断 [Toei Animation] (Finished 0/1) Tags: Historical King Alexander of Macedonia and his troops are at war with the armies of Persia. When he suddenly falls ill, Alexander is faced with a decision: to trust his life-long Persian friend Philip and accept his help or treat him as an enemy because he is Persian. Only dubbed version found. Finally normal visuals unlike previous season and movie about Alexander. It's indeed difficult to stay impartial when father is betrayed and killed before one's eyes and letters warning of spies are arriving. Having received Aristotelean training, it can be assumed that he will take a good decision, but intrigue still remains of how it all ends. A good example how a historical story should look like, but with current length and pace it's not exactly masterpiece material. Overall Rating: 6/10 38. Oseam 오세암 [-] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Adventure, Drama The animation is based on the fairy tale of the same name with the local sale over 100,000 copies by Jeong Chae-bong, a writer well known for his innocent and heart-stirring tales. It is a story about two orphans, Gil-son, a five-year-old boy, and his blind sister Gam-i who are brought up by a charitable monk at a secluded temple in Mt. Seorak. Gil-son, a mischievous boy, is the guide for this hour-long travel in search of innocence. Having a pure heart, he befriends all living things and communicates with clouds, birds and flowers. One snowy day, however... Using already successful material and going harsh rural childhood way is not a bad decision for still young Korean animation that's only starting to get serious. Still the best praise I can give is adequate as serious Korean drama for some reason always deals with some disability, fed up with that already. Overall Rating: 6/10 39. Crayon Shin-chan Movie 11: Arashi wo Yobu Eikou no Yakiniku Road 映画 クレヨンしんちゃん 嵐を呼ぶ栄光のヤキニクロード [Shin-Ei Animation] (Finished 1/1) Tags: Seinen Action, Adventure, Comedy A slapstick comedy going back to the basic, "laughable" style of the TV series. One day, the Nohara family was looking forward to having an ultra-rich yakiniku dinner, but they were put on the Wanted List on suspicion of heinous crimes because of a scheme of a mysterious organization named Sweet Boys. The Nohara family must run from Sweet Boys' pursuit but to eat yakiniku for dinner they need to stop escaping and decide to meet the boss of Sweet Boys, who is based in Atami (a hot spring/resort city in Shizuoka Prefecture). The whole movie is about running away... that's not funny, just simple action humor. Overall Rating: 5/10 -
With already few titles released it might be the swan song for Giga and MAGES 1. Aoki Bara no Terrarium 蒼き薔薇のテラリウム [230101] CURARE It's a world where magic and Three Great Wizards exist, but close-range combat with use of cavalry is the mainstream. Clan Tistia nurtures proud traditions of sword skill going 400 years back. In such household twin brother and sister are born, but sister starts to show signs of possessing witchcraft. One day siblings set out for adventure. Can't afford the luxury of ignoring all doujin games, but doubt it'll ever have reviews either 2. Tristia: Restore トリスティア:リストア [230119] Kogado Studio Happening in parallel to Tristia:legacy, the story of Tristia:restore follows the genius inventor girl Nanoca Flanka, granddaughter of the legendary inventor and crafter Prospero Flanka, as she is working to revitalize the floundering marine city of Tristia alongside her trusty companions! But this game focuses more on running the shop: She has some major crafting projects to complete, but it all starts with smaller objects. Gameplay title 3. Harakiri Geisha Girls ハラキリニンジャガールズ [230120] Frontier Works Inc. The main character, who grew up in America, is determined to become the best "samurai" in the world. He enrolls in Fujiyama High School, a prestigious school for training samurai. And with other unique girls who aspire to become "geisha" or "kamikaze". They will face various ordeals! Mobile game port, so it's inevitably a simplistic dating SIM 4. Summer Time Render - Another Horizon サマータイムレンダ Another Horizon [230126] MAGES. GAME Ajiro Shinpei returns to his hometown of Hitogashima after two years to attend the funeral of his childhood friend Kofune Ushio. While reuniting with Ushio’s younger sister Mio and his best friend Sou, he learns about Ushio’s mysterious cause of death and the legend of the “shadow disease” passed down through the ages. The legend of the shadows—it is said that anyone who sees a shadow with their appearance will die. Ushio was said to have seen that shadow. The shadows of death haunt Shinpei and his friends. Eventually, the day of despair visits Hitogashima. “How can we save our friends, protect the islanders, and avoid death?…” Shinpei is forced to constantly think and make decisions in order to avoid despair, but every choice may only open a new door to despair. But he cannot afford to stop thinking and making decisions. To overcome the three days of despair. Console exclusive 5. D.C.5 ~Da Capo 5~ D.C.5 ~ダ・カーポ5~ [230127] CIRCUS Grand cherry tree still towers over private school . This year students can't decide between sports and cultural festival, so they decide it in competition around cherry tree. With many friends main character has a noisy but fun school life. One day he walks down the lake and sees how another cherry tree that never bloomed suddenly starts to drop petals and with them a girl falls down. The fated meeting marks the beginning of a new story. If previous iterations provided a relatively new story to get enriched with numerous fandisc content, this part is already fanservice as it uses heroines from previous parts... 6. JINKI -Unlimited- [230127] Giga In September 1992 Tokyo was attacked by an organization called Kyomu and it triggered what's now known as "Tokyo Lost Life Phenomenon"... Midori Oribe who worked as a nursery teacher fled the destroyed city of Tokyo with her children. However, during that time, she lost consciousness once, and when she woke up, children were gone. In order to find them she embarks the mecha, but two pilots are needed to run it. A companion joins her and battle begins to regain the occupied Tokyo. Gameplay title 7. RE:D Cherish! -Eternity Blood- [230127] CRYSTALiA It's been a year since main characters revived the diner having overcome many difficulties. Protagonist's twin sister arrives and demands even more attention than a girlfriend. At the same time the Holy Church of Hakuryuu starts its expansion and marks diner as one of first targets. A rare fandisc that actually has story expansion and even battles.