Anime-This-Season Chat/Discussion

[machine 52]

....Akagami no Shirayuki-hime anyone?

 

I'm really hoping more shoujo series like this and Akatsuki no Yona will come out soon because shoujo series that aren't completely romance orientated are quite enjoyable

[Akazora 293]

....Akagami no Shirayuki-hime anyone?

 

I'm really hoping more shoujo series like this and Akatsuki no Yona will come out soon because shoujo series that aren't completely romance orientated are quite enjoyable

I'm so happy someone has finally paid this thread attention....

 

.....aaaand you're watching one of the few things that I'm not.

[insert that crying rolling cat gif icon you like to use]

[machine 52]

I'm so happy someone has finally paid this thread attention....

.....aaaand you're watching one of the few things that I'm not.

 

We are watching a few of the same series. Going off your previous post I believe we're both watching four things (Charlotte, Gangsta, Gakkou Gurashi, and Prison School)

and I haven't fallen behind in any of those yet which is good! 

 

[insert that crying rolling cat gif icon you like to use]

 

fixed

 

 

....and if anyone cares I'm also watching Non Non Biyori Repeat, Joukamachi no Dandelion, Miss Monochrome s2, aforementioned Akagami no Shirayuki-hime, and that new Hetalia thing because I was too loyal to that franchise for too long to not force myself to keep up with it

also some things from last season but I'm behind in all of them except Diamond no Ace aHA whoops, , ,, , 

[Akazora 293]

We are watching a few of the same series. Going off your previous post I believe we're both watching four things (Charlotte, Gangsta, Gakkou Gurashi, and Prison School)

and I haven't fallen behind in any of those yet which is good! 

Hm, of those four my favorite would have to be Prison School.  Haven't laughed so hard while watching an anime in quite some time.  Charlotte isn't so bad, but Jun Maeda's predictable formula is starting to get a bit old.  The most recent episode is looking to send this anime in an interesting direction though, so I'm looking forward to that.  Gakkou Gurashi had a great first episode, but the rest are getting more and more bland as time passes.  Gansta's pretty good too, though the fight scenes aren't as well animated as I would have liked.  What do you think of them?

 

....and if anyone cares I'm also watching Non Non Biyori Repeat, Joukamachi no Dandelion, Miss Monochrome s2, aforementioned Akagami no Shirayuki-hime, and that new Hetalia thing because I was too loyal to that franchise for too long to not force myself to keep up with it

also some things from last season but I'm behind in all of them except Diamond no Ace aHA whoops, , ,, , 

Blasphemous, how could you not be up to date with Ore Monogatari?!

[Ren-kun 50]

Overlord is surprisingly enjoyable, imo. It's more refreshing than the standard 'based on MMO's' fare in that the admittedly cartoonish characters feel more humanized. I guess that's the point of the whole premise though.

[Lupin of the Heisei Era 248]

I just watched ranpo kitan: game of laplace and I think it's kind of interesting (especially the gore..) so I'm gonna watch this anime until the last episode. but one thing that still gives me a complicated feeling is the main character. and coincidentally (or maybe not), I also watch aoharu x kikanjuu (this anime gives me the vibe of shonen ai fan service thing, which is actually not my cup of tea, but I really like the comedy and the idea of the story and the setting, so yeah..)

I don't really watch the other anime (except working!!!),

so my opinion for anime of this season

is full of trap

[machine 52]

tfw you remember that you completely vanished in the middle of a conversation

 

--but how about that fall lineup? Looks pretty decent if I say so myself.... . . I've picked out a handful of things that caught my interest so I hope at least a couple of them will be worth sticking with. 

I'm looking forward to Haikyuu!! season two the most

[Lupin of the Heisei Era 248]

fall lineup?

*checks the list on some website*

...

ajin! uwoooaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah! yesh! *literally fan-girling* ok stop..

 

yeah.. looks pretty decent.. x3

[Akazora 293]

It's that time of the year again guise!!  The summer season has wrapped up so here are my final thoughts!

*note* anime are listed in order from best to worst in my opinion of course

 

1. Ore Monogatri!! - The second cour of this anime just ended, so while it started its life as a spring anime I felt that I might as well give this anime the praise it deserves.  This romance anime is absolutely adorable and a breath of fresh air from the standard tropes that have been established over the years.  If you're sick and tired of the high-strung drama-ridden misunderstanding-filled romance stories, then this show is for you.  It's a cute, funny, feel-good ride that's a pleasure to watch from beginning to end.  The music is solid, the animation is good enough, and it's a job well done by Madhouse.  While there's technically a possibility for a second season since the manga's ongoing, the anime ended on a satisfactory enough note that I'd be perfect content with what's been adapted thus far.

 

2. Prison School - The thing I loved about Death Note was the tension.  I never thought I'd find that very same tension in an anime with the look and premise of Prison School.  At a glace, it just looks like really well-drawn hentai; high-quality eye-candy for horny guys.  But it's so much more than that.  It's an over-the-top, tense roller coaster of humor and suspense that leaves you wanting more after each cliffhanger episode.  It's easy to judge this as another fetish anime catered to the male demographic, but in reality it's something both guys and girls can enjoy.  Admittedly, it's raw and forthright with its sex humor, so those uncomfortable with that in general wouldn't find much enjoyment in this, but for everyone else looking for a ridiculous show that will make you gape at how far they're willing to push their limits, then this is something you cannot miss.  The animation is amazing when it maters, the directing is fantastic, and the music is top notch.  Also, much like Ore Monogatari, there are golden reaction images every other scene, so that's a plus.

 

3. Fate/kaleid liner Prisma☆Illya 2wei Herz! - A wise man once said: the entire Fate universe was created to give context to Fate/Illya.  When I first started this spin-off of the Fate series, I didn't like it.  The first season was predictable, fanservicey, and boring.  It wasn't until the second season that things really picked up and now that the third season has just finished and a fourth season is already confirmed, I'm riding this never ending hype train.  The third season has just as much fanservice as the previous two seasons, if not even more, but despite that it's an amazing anime.  The plot is surprisingly deep and the references to Fate/stay night, Fate/Zero, and Fate/hollow ataraxia tie together everything really nicely.  The animation and action scenes are even better than before and each episode gets me as hyped as, if not even more than, UBW's.  This is a must see for anyone who's already seen F/Z and UBW.

 

4. Shimoneta to Iu Gainen ga Sonzai Shinai Taikutsu na Sekai - How could such a perverted anime like Shimoneta be so good?  I didn't have very high expectations for this when it was first announced.  The premise just seemed like some bizarre story that you'd expect Japanese people to conceive with nothing more to offer other than... weirdness.  But much like Prison School, there is so much more going on beneath the surface.  This anime is ridiculous with its sex gags and is surprisingly self-aware.  You thought that the perverted jokes you made with your friends in secret and saw on shady parts of the Internet were too lewd to be in anime?  Think again.  Shimoneta and Prison School were competing this entire season, nearly neck and neck until the very end, with just how far they could push their limits on television, and it's been absolutely glorious.  While the gags started to wear thin just a bit by the last few episodes, thankfully Shimoneta ends just as it's beginning to overstay its welcome and wraps up everything satisfactorily enough.

 

5. Working!!! - The third season of Working has brought the series to a conclusion... almost.  There's still the true finale, which is an hour long special that will be aired some time in the future.  But regardless, this season took the established premise of the first two seasons and pretty much tied together all the loose ends that there are.  I didn't expect this to turn into a romance anime.  I really didn't.  I just thought it was going to be a funny, relaxing workplace comedy.  Sure, there may be hints of romance thrown in there occasionally, but then again all anime do that and very few of them actually go any further than just teasing.  Working goes the extra mile.  I have to give major props to them for actually developing the romance and giving satisfactory conclusions to all the couples.  This show is adorable, and while I wasn't shipping anyone after the first season, now that all is said and done some of my favorite anime couples now come from this series.

 

6. Rokka no Yuusha - This Mayan-based action adventure anime suddenly turned whodunit about halfway through, and I can't say I minded.  While it may not be apparent from the cover, this is a mystery anime with adventure as the backdrop.  In fact, apart from the very well animated first episode, the rest of the series has really poorly done action.  The animation is admittedly some of the worst I've ever seen in an anime, but since action isn't the focus of this series, it didn't bother me as much as it could have.  The setting and premise is rather intriguing and the mystery is decent.  The characters are a bit flat and kind of trope-y, but it's bearable.  While definitely not the best show of this season, it's also far from the worst and worth giving a shot if you're looking for something a bit different than your average anime.

 

7. Charlotte - Jun Maeda tries to recreate this success with Angel Beats but unfortunately falls a bit short.  While the art and animation is spot on, the story is full of plot holes and the pacing is way too rushed.  Was it still an enjoyable ride?  Yes, I'd say so.  I definitely didn't find myself forcing myself to watch an episode each week, but at the same time I wasn't looking forward to it each Saturday either.  If this series had an extra season to flesh things out, it would have been much better.  Apart from the plot holes and pacing, there's not much else to complain about.  It's an otherwise solid series that's a fun watch if you don't think too hard about it and just go with the flow.

 

8. Gakkou Gurashi! - The Madoka Magica of 2015, this series was pretty much just a one trick pony with a twist in the very first episode.  While the rest was okay, I didn't care enough for the characters to really feel for their plight.  There was nothing redeeming about any of them, the sad parts weren't very sad, and the occasional attempts at moe slice of life humor fell short.  It was an interesting attempt at trying to tell a horror story beneath a cutesy facade, but the idea has been done so many times before that Gakkou Gurashi comes off as try-hard.  The ending leaves rooms for a second season, and I suppose I'll watch it if it does come out, but I won't be particularly excited about it.

 

9. Ushio to Tora - This show isn't over yet, but it doesn't hurt to put it on this list either.  This really old fashioned shounen anime is more style over substance.  Since the manga came out so many decades ago, the character tropes and predictable plot are apparent.  It's animated nicely and the art is nostalgic, but there's not much depth to the surface-level enjoyment.  There's not much to say since the story isn't over yet, but I wouldn't recommend this to anyone unless they were specifically looking for a nostalgic anime.

 

10. God Eater - The last four episodes of this series have been delayed until winter, but I've seen enough to put this at tenth on my list.  Though ufotable's animation is stellar as always, the lack of action in general makes for a rather bland ride.  The plot is uncreative, the tropes are there, and it's honestly pretty boring.  There's very little about this anime that makes it stand out, so I'd say avoid it unless you've played God Eater and want to see it animated.

 

11. Ranpo Kitan: Game of Laplace - What started off as a visceral, dark, detective story quickly turned into one of the worst anime of this season.  The plot is unfocused and all over the place, the characters aren't unique, and the animation is slightly below average.  The music is okay, I'll give it that.  It's bland and tries way too hard to be symbolic and deep when it's not.  All the philosophical issues this series brought up have been addressed elsewhere in far more interesting of a fashion.

 

12. Gate: Jieitai Kanochi nite, Kaku Tatakaeri - This is bad.  Like, SAO levels of bad.  Some shut-in, lazy otaku, by luck of the draw, becomes a hero and amasses his harem of RPG inspired girls?  'K m8.  The animation is bad, the military and political schemes are childish and one dimensional, and the characters are trope-y.  Avoid this and save yourself the headache.  I only put it ahead of Gangsta because it referenced the Fate series.  I'll be watching the second half out of a sense of duty since this was originally meant to be two-cour but was changed to split-cour at the last second.

 

13. Gangsta. - Perfect example of how a dark, gritty anime with adult characters isn't automatically good.  The animation is atrocious, almost as bad as Rokka no Yuusha's.  The plot makes absolutely no sense, the world building is shoddy, the characters are bleh, and the music is okay but not that great.  There is no ending.  Straight up.  The last episode might as well have been the first or middle episode; there was no closure at all.  This was a waste of time, don't watch it.  I'd recommend Gate over this, jeezus.

 

--

I actually don't think this upcoming fall season looks very good.  From what I can see, it's probably the weakest season we've had in years, in all honestly.  I'll be forcing myself to watch as much as I will be, and even then I won't be watching as much as I usually do.  Gives me time to watch some finished series I've been meaning to get around to at least.

 

Here's what I'm "looking forward to":

1. One Punch Man

2. Sakurako-san no Ashimoto ni wa Shitai ga Umatteiru

3. Shingeki! Kyojin Chuugakkou

4. Komori-san wa Kotowarenai!

5. Concrete Revolutio: Choujin Gensou

6. Subete ga F ni Naru: The Perfect Insider

7. Noragami Aragoto

8. Owari no Seraph: Nagoya Kessen-hen

(sighhh, what a sad lineup...)

I'll be posting my initial impressions shortly.

 

(edited for typos and word choice)

Edited September 28, 2015 by Akazora

[machine 52]

I actually don't think this upcoming fall season looks very good.  From what I can see, it's probably the weakest season we've had in years, in all honestly.  I'll be forcing myself to watch as much as I will be, and even then I won't be watching as much as I usually do.  Gives me time to watch some finished series I've been meaning to get around to at least.

 

(sighhh, what a sad lineup...)

 

Really? In comparison to the spring season, it look doesn't look half bad imo. It also looks to be a lot more varied than usual. Then again, as far as I can tell we have pretty different tastes and you seem to watch things more critically too 

... *shrugs*

[Akazora 293]

Really? In comparison to the spring season, it look doesn't look half bad imo. It also looks to be a lot more varied than usual. Then again, as far as I can tell we have pretty different tastes and you seem to watch things more critically too 

... *shrugs*

Ahh, I thought this spring season was pretty solid.  We got Ore Monogatari and Kekkai Sensen (loved those two), the second half of UBW, Shokugeki no Souma and Hibike Euphonium (I didn't watch these two, but I've heard good things about them), and the second seasons of OreGairu and Nisekoi, among other things.  While not everything I watched turned out as good as I had hoped, the hype was running high and there was a perfect balance of standout new shows that brought fresh things to the table.

 

For this fall, I'm only watching OPM because of the hype.  The SnK spinoff and Komori-san are probably going to be there for some light laughs.  Concrete Revolutio might end up being like Punchline (overlooked and decent, but with flaws) and The Perfect insider looks like the next Ranpo Kitan.  I'm forcing myself to watch the second seasons of Noragami and Owari no Seraph, as I really disliked their first seasons but at this point have very little else to watch.  Sakurako-san is the only thing apart from OPM I'm truly excited about.

 

I'm actually under the impression this fall season is stifled by second seasons and continuations and the like.  Aikatsu is on its fourth season, Yuru Yuri is going to hit three, and Cardfight Vanguard is getting a second, as is Diabolik Lovers, Garo, Haikyuu, Gochuumon wa Usagi Desu ka?, K, Shinmai Maou no Testament, Kindaichi, and Soukyuu no Fafner: Exodus.  There's a prequel to Black Jack, and spinoffs of World Trigger and Fist of the North Star coming out.  Also, we're getting Owarimonogatari, which adds even more to the already overflowing Monogatari series anime library.  Since I haven't seen any of these, I'm left to scavenge the leftovers and most of them are very generic like Rakudai Kishi no Cavalry and Gakusen Toshi Asterisk.

 

tl;dr yeah we probs just have different tastes............ 

[Kenzi 146]

So I checked out a few clips of Ore Monogatari out of curiosity.

There's not much that seems spoiler-tag worthy since it's pretty obvious what'll end up happening.

 

...and it's not bad

Soundtrack is pretty standard, but definitely stands out when it needs to.

There's this cute little innocence that envelops the romance between the two unsuspecting lovebirds.

While part of me wanted to punch the computer screen because of how dense these two characters seem to be, I can't deny that the show still has a nice, charming atmosphere to it.

 

The show is definitely "different" to say the least. It's not over the top, and it's straightforward enough to get the point across. The humor and how the interactions between the characters are portrayed is done very light-heartedly and casually, which is just to my liking.

 

On the surface level, there's no doubt this is one of those fairytale romances I despise so much, but I do appreciate how it attempts to break out of the standard tropes that are forced upon most romances.

 

So it's not so bad. All in all, I actually kinda liked the few clips I watched.

[Akazora 293]

So I checked out a few clips of Ore Monogatari out of curiosity.

 

There's not much that seems spoiler-tag worthy since it's pretty obvious what'll end up happening.

 

 

 

 

...and it's not bad

 

Soundtrack is pretty standard, but definitely stands out when it needs to.

 

There's this cute little innocence that envelops the romance between the two unsuspecting lovebirds.

 

While part of me wanted to punch the computer screen because of how dense these two characters seem to be, I can't deny that the show still has a nice, charming atmosphere to it.

 

 

 

 

The show is definitely "different" to say the least. It's not over the top, and it's straightforward enough to get the point across. The humor and how the interactions between the characters are portrayed is done very light-heartedly and casually, which is just to my liking.

 

 

 

 

On the surface level, there's no doubt this is one of those fairytale romances I despise so much, but I do appreciate how it attempts to break out of the standard tropes that are forced upon most romances.

 

 

 

 

So it's not so bad. All in all, I actually kinda liked the few clips I watched.

(^spoilered to cut down on size)

Pfft, why would you ruin it for yourself like that Kenzi?  Nah, just playing.  It's an anime that took a long time to grow on me.  The first episode was okay, the first half was pretty good, but by the time the series was over I realized how much I had come to love the entire cast.  It's simply a feel-good romance that does enough to keep things fresh and funny.  No heavy handed drama to get in the way of the cuteness.  It's not entirely realistic, but then again just looking at Takeo's design should tip you off to the fact that this anime can be a bit extreme with it humor and themes.  It's a relaxing breath of fresh air that's good for giving you nice, warm, fuzzy-feelings, heheh.

 

Anyway, on to my fall season first impressions!  As always, I've ranked everything from best to worst.

 

1. One Punch Man - No surprise here, OPM is at the top of the list.  There was a lot of hype from before the anime started because the manga was so popular and successful, so I was a bit afraid that the anime would flop and not live up to its expectations.  I must say though, I am pleasantly surprised to find that the first episode was quite stellar.  It just lays down the groundwork of the premise, so nothing too impressive in terms of plot that wasn’t already obvious, and the only character introduced so far is the MC.  But where it stands out is the animation and music.  The animation is some of the most fluid, dynamic, action-packed and exciting work I’ve seen to come out of a television series.  This is animation on the level of theatrical releases, not weekly shows.  Paired with the music, it makes for quite the epic experience.  It's supposed to be a parody of shounen shows, but the humor has yet to really show itself.  If the animation maintains its current level and the humor starts to pick up, then this will end up being a fantastic anime.

 

2. Osomatsu-san - The funniest anime no one is watching, not even me at first.  A quick Google search will lead you to some hideous, decades-old character designs, and you're probably thinking to yourself "eww, no way am I going to watch this."  Just do yourself a favor and watch it.  It's made by the director of Gintama and references a nearly uncountable number of anime at breakneck speed all in the first episode.  The more anime you've seen and the more anime-savvy you are the better this series is going to be for you.  It's already rearing up to be the most underwatched anime I have ever seen, and if it plays its cards right it might even be able to top OPM as anime of the season.  It's a "sequel" to Osomatsu-kun, but knowledge of its predecessor isn't necessary to enjoy this.  If you're looking for insane and over-the-top gags and humor, check this out.

 

3. Sakurako-san no Ashimoto ni wa Shitai ga Umatteiru - Did you like Gosick?  Did you like Hyouka?  Did you like Detective Conan? (well, duhh...)  Did you like the beginning of Ranpo Kitan before the plot went down the pooper?  Did you like Sherlock Holmes?  Did you like Sherlock (the Cumberbatch one)?  If so, then hold onto your boot straps because Skurako is the anime for you.  The anime follows the story of a woman with a sharp deductive mind as well as an obsession for bones along with her high school Watson-esque side kick.  If you're craving some good ol' mystery that isn't the same old Detective Conan stuff, then I'd highly recommend this anime.  The art is nice, the music is pretty good, and the characters are fun.  The plot hasn't really kicked into full force yet, so there's not much to say there.  This suffers the same tropes as most detective shows, but if you're fine with that then I think you'll enjoy this.

 

4. Subete ga F ni Naru: The Perfect Insider - Every season there's always that one anime that tries to find success by being as un-anime-like as possible, and The Perfect Insider is this season's nonconformist.  This anime is really slow paced and more dialogue focused than most, so for those with short attention spans or those who are looking for something energizing I suggest you look elsewhere.  I'm not even entirely what the plot is at this point.  From the looks of it, it's a mystery but much unlike Sakurako-san.  The atmosphere is an interesting mix of Steins;Gate, Kara no Kyoukai, and Psycho-Pass, and the philosophical talks are engaging enough.  There's also a noticeable lack of music, which is an interesting directional choice.  That it's so different from most anime and more dialogue heavy than most is likely due to the fact that this is actually based on a novel instead of a manga or light novel or video game.  There's room for this anime to grow and develop into something impressive, so I'll be keeping an eye on this.

 

5. Shingeki! Kyojin Chuugakkou - As the title implies, this is a parody spoof of Shingeki no Kyojin.  It's cute and entertaining enough, but not impressive or as fast paced as Osomatsu-san.  If you've seen SnK, then this might be something fun to check out.  If you haven't, then you shouldn't be considering this anime at all; it wouldn't make any sense even if you tried.  The characters and voice actors return to reprise their role in some weird alternate universe, and there are parallels with scenes and music.  It's slightly shorter than your average anime and fun enough.  It's not outstanding, and the gags might get kind of old, but it's a nice way to get your SnK fix as we await the arrival of next year's second season.

 

6. Concrete Revolutio: Choujin Gensou - This is everything anime squeezed into one really weird anime-original show.  It's a mahou shoujo and a mecha and a super power anime all at once, and I feel like it's trying to be over-the-top in a good way but it ultimately just comes off as confusing.  It has a colorful style and the animation is okay.  I don't really follow the plot, or at least I'm not making much of an effort right now to figure it out.  The ending theme is trippy, which I guess might be a good thing for those just looking for absurd stuff.  I wouldn't personally recommend this, but it could be worse.

 

7. Noragami Aragoto - The first season of Noragami was pretty bad.  I'm only watching the second season because people insist it's better than the first and the plot actually starts to pick up.  I hope they're right, because I really don't have much motivation to get through another 12 episodes of this.  The characters are the worst, especially Hiyori Iki, oh my gosh.  She's just a Ran Mouri clone, and I know that's not really a good reason to dislike a character, but after being bogged down by such a plain and watered down character as Ran for so long, any characters that resemble her personality-wise give me PTSD.  Yukime used to be really whiny, but I'll give credit where it's due; he's maturing a bit.  His voice actor is still Yuuki Kaji though, so that's a bit grating.  And as for Yato, Hiroshi Kamiya has voice acted much better characters before.  The animation is okay, the art is really plain, the characters are bland, the plot is just kinda in limbo right now, and the humor isn't funny.  It's not worth your time unless you liked the first season.

 

8. Owari no Seraph: Nagoya Kessen-hen - This anime is just discount Shingeki no Kyojin: Vampire Edition, Featuring Dante from the Devil May Cry Series, & Kuckles.  The second half starts right where the first left off, and that's God knows where, because I can't be bothered to remember.  The animation is bleh, the characters are even worse than their SnK counterparts (I know, it sounds like a lie, but believe me), the music is cheesy, and the plot is a mess.  There's nothing redeeming about this anime.  Don't watch it unless you've already seen the first half and want to suffer.

 

9. Kagewani - I wasn't going to pick this up unless someone decided to simulcast this, so thanks Crunchyroll.  Or rather, no thanks.  This is a horror anime made in the style of Yami Shibai, except it's really not that good.  Each episode is mercifully short at least, but there's no plot in sight even after two episodes.  It's supposed to be scary, but it's not scary, at all.  It's not even disturbing or cringe worthy, it's just... bad.  I guess it'll be a fine replacement for the now concluded Japan Animator Expo shorts.

 

10. Komori-san wa Kotowarenai! - What is this, Pupa the slice of life version?  Why is each episode only 3 minutes, including the opening and ending?  How can you mess up an anime so bad?  And I was actually kind of intrigued by the premise.  Is there a plot?  I don't know.  Is it funny?  No.  Is it cute?  No.  Should you watch this?  No.

[machine 52]

I decided put off starting just about all fall anime until I finish my leftovers from the spring and summer seasons so I can't talk about much for the time being srry

 

Technically it's from last season, but I've been forcing myself to sit through Hetalia: The World Twinkle. 

1. Not nearly as good as I remember this show being
2. I still dislike the new art style

...that's about it. I doubt my thoughts will change once I finish the last like 8 or so episodes

 

Now for the thing I can actually talk about; Haikyuu!! 

After the first season of Haikyuu!! aired last year, I picked up the manga about halfway through July as the match against Seijou was killing me. I've stuck with the manga over the past year and have been thoroughly enjoying every moment of it. Along with the anime being really good, the manga's really good as well. With that in mind I, and a good part of the fandom, had/have very high expectations for this season. Many fan favorites are going to be introduced in the upcoming arc, some have even already been introduced like Yachi Hitoka, the new manager. Haiba Lev was technically introduced in his own OVA, as that's noncanon though I'm just going to pretend that doesn't exist for the time being.

 

So far, these expectations have been met, it's a little too early to say whether or not this season will ultimately will fall flat or exceed those expectations though. My favorite arc is the one that's going to start in an episode or two. The arc contains a lot of character development and introduces Fukurodani's Bokuto and Akaashi. Being that the arc contains a lot of character-orientated stuff and not any actual matches as it's the training camp arc, how this arc is handled will probably set in stone how I feel about this season. Ideally (but not necessarily realistically), I'd love to have season two solely cover the time between the summer tournament and the fall tournament and have a season three announced at the end so the fall tournament could be covered eventually. The manga's currently in the fall tournament so it's not completely out of left field to hope for this, but a sports anime having no official matches in a two cour show seems a little weird. However, Yowamushi Pedal's second season only covered the last day of the inter-high. It was only 12 episodes (the first season had 39 episodes) and pales in comparison to the first season, but recently Yowapedal got confirmed for a third season so anything's possible I suppose!

 

I'd just really hate to see the training camp arc skimped on. Character relationships are given more depth to them, characters that initially were kinda "eh" are given backstories, some characters's siblings are introduced or appear a few more times, their skills improve a ton over the course of the training camp, and it'd just be a shame to see all the Bokuto/Kuroo moments cut out because their friendship's one of the fandom's favorite. As far as I know, Haikyuu's of equal popularity of Yowapedal, possibly even more popular, so it's possible Haikyuu could get a third season. (I'd love to see it happen tbh) With KnB ending, maybe Haikyuu could even be the next big sports anime. I haven't seen KnB so I can't make any direct comparisons, but I can compare Haikyuu to Diamond no Ace which is also airing currently.

Diamond no Ace is very all sports, all the time. Little time is spent on developing character relationships and expanding upon their pasts. I think the one OVA with Haruichi and his brother, Ryosuke, gave more insight on their relationship than the entire 75ep first season did. (DnA's cast being really large probably has a big part in the lack of individual development. The character's do improve over time and evolve, but all the relationships can still pretty much only be taken at face value because that's exactly what they are; shallow) DnA is very much so a sports anime and not much else. The fanbase is quite small because of that, and more or less unfortunately, is comprised of mostly shippers. There's not many other casual fans which kinda sucks if you just want to talk about the show and not speculate characters's hidden feelings. Whereas with Haikyuu, it's a lot more balanced and appealing to a lager audience. It's not quite on the scale of Oofuri where a sport is still present, but comes second to character development and teamwork. In Diamond no Ace where the sport is literally the entire show, and in Oofuri where the show's main goal is for you by the end of it to love and care for the characters, Haikyuu's somewhere in the middle. Yowapedal is also in this little sweet spot that's able to appeal to both the casual fans, the people mainly watching for the shipping material, and also probably the small percentage that are actually watching it for the sport. Haikyuu does the balance between character orientated and sports much better than Yowapedal though. I'm guessing KnB was also in this area too and was popular for the same reasons.

 

That being said, Haikyuu's really good so far! The first season was pretty faithful to the manga, being that I picked it up at around ch50 I have no idea just how much was cut out, but I've only seen people be upset about one scene getting cut so I'm guessing most of it was animated. The pace it's at is leading me to believe that the training camp arc will be given as much time as it needs which is really, really good. The few things that have been changed have been minor and the short added scenes have been nice too. I have no complaints about any of the voice actors chosen for new characters as the ones we've heard so far have been fitting. I just... yeah,  ,, , I'm very excited about this but also very nervous. I'm looking forward to my weekends just a bit more now too which is also a plus  I'm also looking forward to seeing Bokuto, Akaashi, Tsukishima's brother, and Lev animated and also seeing Nekoma again.

[Benno 4]

Is anyone else getting some serious Conan vibes in Perfect Insider?

[Akazora 293]

Is anyone else getting some serious Conan vibes in Perfect Insider?

Well, they're both mysteries, so I guess?  I wouldn't say The Perfect Insider has much of a Conan vibe though.  Detective Conan is a detective show, but The Perfect Insider is solely a mystery show.  The currently airing Sakurako-san, as well as past shows like Gosick, Kamisama no Memochou, and Ranpo Kitan have more of a Conan vibe than The Perfect Insider does.  If anything, The Perfect Insider feels more like Agatha Christie's And Then There Were None.

[Benno 4]

Well, they're both mysteries, so I guess?  I wouldn't say The Perfect Insider has much of a Conan vibe though.  Detective Conan is a detective show, but The Perfect Insider is solely a mystery show.  The currently airing Sakurako-san, as well as past shows like Gosick, Kamisama no Memochou, and Ranpo Kitan have more of a Conan vibe than The Perfect Insider does.  If anything, The Perfect Insider feels more like Agatha Christie's And Then There Were None.

The whole being deserted on a remote area, somebody dies, contact to the outside world cut off, somebody else dies, little clues as to who the culprit is being scattered around everywhere.

Sakurako-san frankly doesn't have any kind of investigation, they just jump right into the culprit (if they even get that far) and then the show ends, I was a little disappointed since the show is based off of one of my favourite tv shows BONES

[Akazora 293]

The whole being deserted on a remote area, somebody dies, contact to the outside world cut off, somebody else dies, little clues as to who the culprit is being scattered around everywhere.

You do realize that that's literally the premise of And Then There Were None, right?  It's not like Gosho invented that scenario or anything.

 

Sakurako-san frankly doesn't have any kind of investigation, they just jump right into the culprit (if they even get that far) and then the show ends, I was a little disappointed since the show is based off of one of my favourite tv shows BONES

What you're still not seeing is that Detective Conan is a detective show while The Perfect Insider is a mystery show.  Those two terms are not interchangeable.  For one, detective shows always have a genius detective.  In Detective Conan, that genius is Conan/Shinichi.  In Sakurako-san, it's Sakurako.  In Gosick, it's Victorique.  In Kamisama no Memochou, it's Yuuko.  In Ranpo Kitan, it's Akechi.  The genius detective is expected to have deductive skills better than the average person and always solves the case by the end of the arc.  The Perfect Insider has no such character.  Saikawa is just a regular professor, and Nishinosono is just a regular college student.  Neither of them can be considered a genius by any means, or at least no more than the rest of the cast.  Furthermore, Detective Conan is episodic, as are most detective shows.  Heck, even the very first modern day fictional detective, Edgar Allen Poe's Dupin, solved more than just one case, making him part of an episodic narrative.  From Holmes to Conan to Sakurako, nearly every detective story consists of a multitude of arcs or cases with an underlying main plot.  The Perfect Insider is not episodic.  There is a single mystery, the mystery of who's killing people on the island, that makes up the entirety of the 11-episode plot.

 

And also, poor use of the phrase " based off of".  The Sakurako-san anime is based off of the Sakurako-san light novel.  It may share a similar theme of "bones" as the television show BONES, but it is not "based off of" it.

[machine 52]

So I got caught up in Osomatsu-san yesterday. The comedy's pretty hit or miss, but it's overall still pretty enjoyable. I really like the old character designs, especially the sextuplets's. I'm excited to see what the second cour this winter will bring.

 

Haikyuu's been really good lately. The training camp arc is coming to a close, so unfortunately a bunch of fan favorite characters are going to be leaving soon. The second season's been really good so far, but in comparison I still prefer the manga. I think it just overall handled the character development in the training camp arc better. That being said, I'm not sure where the anime's going to go from here. The upcoming arc is the fall tournament arc, and the manga's at the end of that arc right now. If they go ahead and start that, they could probably get one match in, but they couldn't just stop at that point. So if they do start the next arc, a third season is likely inevitable, but then the question becomes, when would a season three happen since the manga's not as far ahead anymore. The anime's been pretty faithful to the manga, so there's also the chance an in between arc could be added in to buy the mangaka some time. Whatever happens though, I'm looking forward to it and will always be down for an additional season.

[Akazora 293]

Autumn 2015 Season in Review!

(listed in order of personal enjoyment)

 

1. One Punch Man

It should be no surprise that this show would be at the top of my list when the season ended.  This show has taken not only the anime world by storm but the entire world by storm.  In fact, if it weren't for Undertale taking the title of "biggest underground to mainstream" jump of 2015, it may have been an even bigger success.  The action and animation was absolutely fantastic and the soundtrack, one in particular, was amazing.  There's not much to say about the plot (it doesn't waver much from the premise) and the characters as well as humor fall a bit flat for me, but the fight scenes are some of the best, if not the best in any anime ever.  It's only 12 episodes, and it has such a wide range of appeal that I recommend it to anyone that hasn't already seen it.

 

2. Subete ga F ni Naru: The Perfect Insider

It's difficult to write a mystery nowadays that is able to provide any sense of surprise, since nearly every trick in the book has already been used.  Despite that, The Perfect Insider did a fairly decent job of stringing together an 11-episode murder mystery.  It's a bit convoluted and nothing about it was particularly surprising or amazing, but it was certainly different.  The characters were interesting at first bet didn't really develop into anything special.  The music was decent and the final episode was really nice.  I'd usually be a bit more harsh with shows, but since this season was rather disappointing this anime was one of the better ones.  I wouldn't recommend it, but if you were forced to watch something from this season that isn't OPM then this would be it.

 

3. Shingeki! Kyojin Chuugakkou

A lot of people overlooked this slice of life school parody of the successful Shingeki no Kyojin.  I personally enjoyed it thoroughly.  The humor is more hit than miss and this series poked a ton of fun at the original series.  It covered a bit of the manga, so some of the referenced scenes have yet to be animated.  As a result, I'll probably have to rewatch this after the second season airs.  The soundtrack was mainly reused from the original anime, with a couple of new songs thrown in.  The opening and ending themes are some of the best this season as well.  I'd recommend this to anyone who's caught up with the manga.  Those who have only watched the anime may want to hold off because of the implied and subtle spoilers, though there isn't really anything too bad.

 

4. Noragami Aragoto

I'll be honest, I disliked the first season of this anime.  The characters were the biggest problem and the uninspired plot was a close second.  Thankfully, the second season fixed most of these problems.  The biggest improvement was the plot.  This time around it was a lot more focused and serious, as opposed to the forgetful mess in the first season.  The characters were a bit better, though not by much.  They weren't as irritating, since they didn't let their faults show through as often as they did in the first season, but there wasn't any development that I would have liked to see as well.  The first arc of the second season was pretty solid, though it turned a bit sour in the second half.  There's room for a third season, and I'll probably watch it.

 

5. Sakurako-san no Ashimoto ni wa Shitai ga Umatteiru

If The Perfect Insider was an example of a mystery anime that was handled relatively well, then Sakurako-san is an example of a mystery anime that didn't quite live up to expectations.  The first two episodes were enjoyable and promising, though it quickly fell apart as the overarching pot unraveled.  The characters remained stagnant and the anime started to focus less on telling solid mysteries and more on the story, which wasn't even very good.  In fact, the anime ended on an unsatisfactory "read the source material" note, which only added to the bland taste.  It could have been worse, but it could have been so much better as well.

 

6.  Osomatsu-san

This anime's first episode was so good.  So so so so good.  If you haven't already seen it, please take 24 minutes to watch it right now.  As for the rest of the series, you're better off not watching.  The humor usually falls flat, and for an episodic comedy anime that relies nearly exclusively on laughs, the fact that I hardly even chuckled outside of the first episode isn't a great case for this anime.  The characters aren't enough to carry the show either.  Aside from that, the music and animation are average.  The anime technically isn't over yet (it's two-cour), but I doubt Osomatsu-san will be able to deliver a future episode as good as the first since they got into hot water for it.

 

7. Kagewani

It may not look like it, but this show was pleasantly surprising.  It's still low on my list because it's far from a good anime but it's a lot better than I initially considered it.  It was mainly episodic up until the second to last episode, but once it hit its climax all of the small teases of plot scattered throughout the previous episodes came together into a surprisingly cohesive narrative.  The final episode ended on a bit of a plot twist and cliffhanger, so there may be room for a second season.  If there is one, I'll definitely watch it.  On a side note, the soundtrack was pretty good and the ending theme, every time it kicked in at the end of each episode, was hype.  I wouldn't recommend this show to anyone since it's still a bit of a drag, but if you choose to watch it anyway you could do a lot worse.

 

8. Komori-san wa Kotowarenai!

Apart from each episode being hardly over a minute long each, there technically wasn't much wrong with this show.  It was a simple slice of life that was more cute than funny.  In fact, because it was so short, there was little room for anything to actually go wrong.  There was no time to really make a judgement on the soundtrack and if there was a plot it was nearly impossible to follow.  It's not good, but since all the episodes total together to less than a single regular episode, it's not exactly a time waster either.

 

9. Owari no Seraph: Nagoya Kessen-hen

I don't know if I'll be giving this series another chance after this one.  I already gave it a chance in choosing to watch the second cour of this split-cour show, and unfortunately the second half wasn't much better than the first.  The plot is still as stupidly convoluted and uninspired, the characters are probably even worse than they were in the first half, and the animation isn't much improved.  The music is cheesy and the direction isn't very impressive.  I was hoping for some sort of closure, but there are still a lot of unresolved plot points and a third season is likely to happen in the near future.

 

10. Concrete Revolutio: Choujin Gensou

This anime had a lot of promise and threw it all away almost immediately.  The story is focused too much on politics, and while that's not too bad if done right, it wasn't done right in this show.  There was nothing special or impressive about the politics; if you're familiar with the turmoil of 1970s American then you pretty much have the general gist of it.  The animation was atrocious, except for two instances, and every character is poorly written and easy to dislike.  Each episode was a bore to watch and while it attempts to throw in grey morality, it does absolutely nothing to make me care about the world being developed.  There's a second season coming up in April, and I'll give it a chance but my expectations are really really low.

 

--

This upcoming year looks really promising, and it all starts with winter 2016.  This is what I'll be watching next season, listed in order of most anticipated to least anticipated:

1. Boku dake ga Inai Machi

2. Ajin

3. Dimension W

4. Dagashi Kashi

5. Bubuki Buranki

6. Hai to Gensou no Grimgar

7. Haruchika: Haruta to Chika wa Seishun Suru

8. Sekkou Boys

9. Shouwa Genroku Rakugo Shinjuu

10. Ansatsu Kyoushitsu (TV) 2nd Season

11. Gate: Jieitai Kanochi nite, Kaku Tatakaeri - Enryuu-hen

[Heliotropic 139]

Just caught the second episode of Boku dake ga Inai Machi, and I do have to say I've been really enjoying it so far. I've stayed away from the manga and such spoilers, but the entire premise of the story is quite interesting. Episode 1 was a blast, and the story has great pacing so far.

Apparently this is Satoru's voice actor's first role in an anime, and I have to say I really like his voice. Apparently his mom is voiced by Minami Takayama. I didn't even notice it until I checked MAL.

 

I'm going to be finally getting around to the new Lupin the 3rd adaptation this weekend, so hopefully it's decent. I've enjoyed a majority of the Lupin series, so it should be alright. From what I've seen, the art looks incredible.

 

On a mostly unrelated note, I have finished up most of the anime I've been wanting to get around to. Took a "gamble" and checked out Steins;Gate which is more recent in terms of things I usually watch... but I do have to say I really enjoyed it. It would seem there is some sort of new adaptation for it coming either this year or next, so I'll be looking out for that. Also late, as always, but finally did check out Attack on Titan and enjoyed it so I guess I'll be on board with that as well.

 

I don't think there is anything else that I'm really looking forward to.

[Kanari Kuroba 0]

The most recent anime I've started watching is Fairy Tail. I guess it's okay, really, but I've seen better animes. While I started out watching more shojo-themed animes, like Anyamaru Tantei Kiruminzuu and Jewelpet, I tend to prefer shonen animes. My favorite animes are DC and Magic Kaito 1412. I'm really excited about the new DC movie coming out! I don't suppose there's much hope for a new Magic Kaito episode, but that would be really nice. 

[Akazora 293]

The most recent anime I've started watching is Fairy Tail. I guess it's okay, really, but I've seen better animes. While I started out watching more shojo-themed animes, like Anyamaru Tantei Kiruminzuu and Jewelpet, I tend to prefer shonen animes. My favorite animes are DC and Magic Kaito 1412. I'm really excited about the new DC movie coming out! I don't suppose there's much hope for a new Magic Kaito episode, but that would be really nice. 

Your enthusiasm is commendable my dear eyewitness, but the thread you're looking for is here.  This thread is only for currently airing seasonal anime, not shows that have already finished airing.

 

--

WINTER 2016 FIRST IMPRESSIONS

To be honest, this year's lineup looks bloody fantastic.  It all starts with the winter season and so far I'm really liking what I'm seeing.

 

1. Boku dake ga Inai Machi

This is the winter show I was most looking forward to, and so far it's exceeded my expectations.  The premise is intriguing, the animation and art is fantastic, the music by the famous Yuki Kajiura is atmospheric, and the directing is confident and artistic.  There is nothing as of now that I can really fault the show for.  This anime is an adaptation of a manga by the same name, and from what people are saying there are some things in the manga that are left out.  However, nothing of importance was omitted, and instead of its condensation being a fault I see it as more of something to praise.  The pacing feels perfect in the anime, and the scriptwriter did an amazing job translating the manga to the anime.  Many times when a book/manga/light novel/video game is adapted to a movie/television series format, the adaption feels lacking and incomplete.  This is not at all the case for Boku dake ga Inai Machi.  Those who are fans of mysteries will especially like this show, but it also has such a wide appeal that I'd confidently recommend this to anyone, even strangers and people who don't usually watch anime.  This is my number one contender to be anime of the season and is on its way to be anime of the year.

 

2. Ajin

I'm not one of those people who dislikes CGI anime.  Back in the day it used to receive a bad rap because it was... well, bad.  Characters looked awkward, lighting and coloring was ugly, and it made for a jarring experience.  CGI has certainly come a long way in the anime community, especially with Polygon Pictures as the trailblazer with their cult classic Sidonia no Kishi.  Polygon Pictures is now responsible for the anime adaptation of the manga Ajin, and so far it's really good.  The premise is similar to that of Parasyte's or Tokyo Ghoul's, expect the "immortal" monsters that masquerade as humans are known as Ajin instead of parasytes or ghouls.  The part I was most impressed by was the music.  Yujo Kanno composed it (known most for his composition of the Psycho-Pass OST), and I'd venture to say he's possibly done a better job with music than Yuki Kajiura has done with Boku dake ga Inai Machi.  That aside, the CGI itself looks fantastic, especially the opening few minutes, and the overall atmosphere of the anime, created not only by the music but also by the coloring and shading, is great.  Those who liked Parayste and/or Tokyo Ghoul and those who aren't so close-minded as to dismiss CGI anime before giving it a try will definitely enjoy this show.

 

3. Dimension W

Continuing the trend of gorgeous looking anime, third on my list of most promising winter 2016 anime is the rule-of-cool action show animated by the young Studio 3Hz.  For those who are looking for some good ol' fashioned seinen action akin to things like Darker Than Black, this is the show for you.  Heck, this anime is an adaptation of a manga by the same name which was written by the author of Darker Than Black, so those missing their beloved Chinese Electric Batman will likely get their fix through this show.  If it wasn't already apart from the gif above, this anime has amazing sakuga.  Not only that, but the integrated CGI used for things such as cars is on par with the quality ufotable is known for.  While the plot has yet to fully develop, the futuristic cyberpunk world filed with things called "coils" and androids is certainly interesting.  Even if the characters and story fall flat, which I'm hoping it doesn't, the show itself is gorgeous and action-packed enough to at least be eye candy.  This is definitely an anime to keep an eye on.

 

4. Ansatsu Kyoushitsu (TV) 2nd Season

I keep on forgetting that AssClass is actually a pretty fun and enjoyable show.  Sometimes it's not quite to my taste, but the odd juxtaposition of slice-of-life and shounen tropes certainly makes for an interesting watch.  The second season is off to a pretty slow start, but then again after the climactic finale of the first season that was to be expected.  The humor is okay and the references to pop culture are neat.  The cast of characters is still too large and unmanageable; occasionally a side character gets development but they're soon sent to the back of the line and fade into the background.  It's difficult to really connect with anyone outside of the handful of "main" characters, unless you go out of your way to read fanfics.  Regardless, the animation is pretty good and the shading is especially impressive.  The music also isn't bad.  I wouldn't recommend starting the first season just to watch this, unless you have a lot of time on your hands and/or are especially intrigued by the premise.  If the second season can drastically improve from the first then I'd perhaps change my tune.

 

5. Shouwa Genroku Rakugo Shinjuu

This is the show I'm watching to broaden my horizons.  It's a josei show about the nearly lost Japanese art of rakugo, a form of entertainment I didn't even realize existed until this anime came along.  Though it's animated by the infamous studio Deen, the animation thus far has been pretty decent.  Of course, it's not exactly an action packed show, so even the most sparse of studios would probably have done this justice.  I'm especially a fan of this show's music, which is a mix of jazz and old fashioned Japanese tunes.  The opening by Megumi Hayashibara is also pretty catchy (nice to see her do something nowadays aside from voice Haibara).  The characters are interesting enough, though it's obviously too early to tell if I'm going to end up liking them.  There may be some romantic undertones later on as well.  While I'm not entirely convinced this show will be able to deliver by the time it reaches its conclusion, I must admit that it certainly is trying to succeed by breaking out of the tried-and-true tropes the anime medium is known for.  That's something I think the anime community should strive to do more often, and so Shouwa Genroku Rakugo Shinjuu has my seal of approval in that regard.

 

5. Dagashi Kashi

This anime is only as famous as it is because of the main heroine, Hotaru Shidare.  If you're wondering why, then... just Google Image her name you'll know exactly why.  Aside from the rather expressive character that is Hotaru, there's nothing too entirely special about this show.  It's a show about Japanese candy, seriously.  It's a simple slice-of-life comedy series about various real-life Japanese sweets, and to an American viewer like me it's hard to appreciate some of the jokes and references just because, well, I don't have the means to eat Japanese confections.  The animation is pretty average, as is the soundtrack.  There's not really much of a plot, though there are some romantic undertones as is to be expected with any slice-of-life anime.  It also takes place in a relaxing town in the country-side (I think?) during the summertime, so if you enjoyed the cicada-filled atmosphere of shows like Non Non Biyori then you might enjoy this.

 

6. Sekkou Boys

This is that silly little anime you probably aren't watching about god busts that become modern day idols.  Literally.  The premise is ridiculous and never even truly explained, but then again this isn't a show that takes itself seriously.  Each episode is only seven or so minutes, including the ending theme and animation.  Though the premise is interesting and over the top, the rest of the show is a bit bland.  It isn't particularly funny, but since it's so short I don't really feel like my time is wasting by watching it.  I'll enjoy it for the novelty, and I'd recommend this to anyone who thinks they've seen everything anime has to offer.  Because if you think you've seen everything but aren't watching Sekkou Boys, then you're missing out.  Also, if you're wondering why the gif above doesn't really portray the anime very well, it's because I was having trouble finding a 500 pixel wide gif from the show and this is the best I could find, even if it is a bit misleading sorry for being OCD okey??

 

7. Hai to Gensou no Grimgar

Well, the season just wouldn't have felt complete without a show about a group of people getting stuck in a video game, now would it?  That's right fellas, we got another SAO/Log Horizon/Overlord anime on our hand.  The only somewhat interesting twist to the overdone premise is the fact that the people in the "game" don't remember that they ever lived a normal life in the "real world."  They just end up at the beginning of the game and go out on quest of sorts, with their "real world" becoming the "game world."  In that sense, the premise has nothing to do with trying to escape the game world but is instead about living in the game world as if it were the real world.  Fighting monster takes actual physical strength and coordination with a weapon, and getting hurt results in actual injuries and blood loss.  The animation is pretty good and the watercolor backgrounds are pretty.  The first episode is slow paced and doesn't really tell the viewer much about what is going on.  The characters and humor are rather tropey and uninspired as well.  I wouldn't really recommend this to anybody, unless you're a sucker for these types of stories because there's nothing that makes it stand out as of now.

 

8. Fire Emblem: Awakening - The Animation

This anime is an anime-original sequel to the Fire Emblem: Awakening game for the 3DS following Lucina, who has now reclassed into a Mage, and her family as they're teleported to the future...............  Nah fam, I'm just playing, hope you didn't have a heart attack or something.  The actual anime is called Bubuki Buranki though I'm sure anyone who's played Awakening, will look at that gif and momentarily think it's from a Fire Emblem game.  Not only is the GCI very similar to the cut scenes used in Awakening and Fates, but the character designer for this anime, Yuusuke Kozaki, designed the characters for the two most recent Fire Emblem games as well.  The animation in this anime is fast-paced and rather exhilarating, though pretty much everything else is rather poor.  The characters are bland and tropey and the plot makes no sense.  This is only good if you're looking for mindless action, because there's very little else in here to take seriously.

 

9. HaruChika: Haruta to Chika wa Seishun Suru

I was really hoping to like this anime because it features a character who actually plays the oboe, but from what I've seen of it so far it's not very impressive.  While the animation isn't bad, it's not particularly good either.  The character's aren't interesting, the plot doesn't have much of a focus, the humor is shallow, and it's trying too hard to be too many things at once.  It's a mix of romance and music and mystery and it ends up just being a mess.  I must say though, the opening song is one of the catchiest of the season, so it has that going for it.  Aside from that, there isn't much else good to say about this show.

 

10. Gate: Jieitai Kanochi nite, Kaku Tatakaeri 2nd Season

As I had mentioned previously, I wasn't a fan of the first cour of this show and am only watching the second cour because I feel obliged to at least give it a chance.  So far, it's pretty much the same as the first season.  The fanservice and needless otaku-pandering is still there, the political intrigue is far from realistic, and the animation is okay but not amazing.  It also feels a bit too pro-Japanese military for my tastes, though it's possible I'm just imagining that.  I don't like any of the characters and I'm only half-paying attention to the story, since everything about it is so ludicrous that it's hard to take seriously.  I wouldn't recommend this at all, and it's pretty much tied with HaruChika for being the most bleh of all anime this season.

[machine 52]

Can we talk about upcoming anime here? 

 

Orange just got confirmed an anime for this summer. The manga was really good, so I'm excited for the anime. I wonder how much of the manga they plan on covering. They could probably do the whole manga in 25 episodes, so maybe they'll do that....? It just got announced, so there's not much information yet, but I hope they'll cover the whole story. I am however just a little worried because the main love interest is canonically depressed and perhaps the most well known depressed anime character, Shinji Ikari, gets crapped on constantly. (Or at least used to. I've noticed less people giving him flak about that recently) While there is a chance of that happening, I'm more so worried the opposite will happen and this will romanticize depression to a concerning degree. The manga did romanticize it, and while it was irritating, manga in general is less popular than anime and usually only get popular once they recieve an anime adaptation. So I'm just worried the anime itself won't fix that issue and that the soon-to-be much larger fandom (or at least parts of it) will see it being romanticize, think it's ok, and run with it. Or perhaps worse, give off the impression that falling in love will miraculously cure one's depression. Still looking forward to it, but I'm worried...

 

On a lighter note, Love Live Sunshine will also be airing this summer. We know very little about the new characters aside from voice actresses and small bios, but going off character designs alone, I think they're gonna be pretty cool. (..probably excited for Watanabe You and Ohara Mari the most) The plot sounds like it's going to be similar to LL's, but honestly, who watches LL for the plot? The new main idol group will be called Aqours and they've already started being added to the Love Live School Idol Festival app. The main reason I'm excited for them is because the voice actresses were chosen a bit more carefully so Aqours' harmonies sound really good. Muse's harmonies aren't bad, but some of the voices stick out occasionally and just sound off. Some people have been complaining Aqours' character designs are too similar to Muse's, but it's the same art style so it's not surprising some characters might look similar. It's a little disappointing Muse stuff is already being retired so the franchise can shift to being mainly Aqours focused though.

 

And then there's Amanchu. It's by the author who did the Aria series, so hopefully this'll be just as good. I've only seen the first season of Aria, but based off the short synopsis and art style, it just looks like it'll be just as nice if not more. It also sounds like it might be a little gay, just a little. Reminiscent of Class S genre gay. That genre has it's problems, but non-pander-y gay subtext... 

 

The third Gundam the Origin episode will be out in May/June too. I think the 3rd episode is going to be mainly about Char and Garma's teen years at the military academy. The Origin ova itself only has the new content from the Origin manga, but, if I'm not mistaken, the flashback(..? I think that's what it is. I haven't gotten to this point in the manga yet) to them as teenagers is a fan favorite so hopefully it'll live up to the hype! Garma's also one of my favorite characters from UC Gundam stuff so it'll be nice to see more scenes with him. I don't think Origin's technically canon, but Garma wasn't given much character development in 0079 so I'll take what I can get.  

 

tl;dr summer anime looks really neat, I'm excited

 

And of the things I'm watching that are currently airing, Diamond no Ace had some tense moments in the newest episode and it was great. It also made me realize that the sports genre doesn't have enough drama in it. I hope this means more drama will come into play in the future. The current game against Yakushi is certainly reaching it's peak now that Yakushi's ace, Sanada, has been put on the mound. I'm honestly not really sure who's going to win. Furuya's hurt, and from what I've read, it sounds like he keeps getting hurt too, so without their ace pitcher being able to perform at his best, and Sawamura and Kawakami needing to improve a lot to stand on equal footing with him, it's hard to say how any games Furuya can't pitch in will go. Miyuki's also hurt and Kawakami can't pitch because he sustained a slight injury to his hand. The mangaka doesn't seem to be afraid of making the main team lose either, so the next few episode will certainly be interesting. 

[Heliotropic 139]

Boku dake ga Inai Machi has been a blast so far, and it's definitely my favorite series of the anime I've watched this season...

Though I can't say I've really got invested in much, I've only liked this and Dimension W, and I'm a bit mixed on the latter... Gonna give Ajin a chance once I have the time though, well once I get done with Psycho Pass.

 

Boku dake, unfortunately, kind of disappointed me for the first time today. There's only 3 episodes remaining, and it was still a pretty good episode, but I definitely don't think it held up to the last 8. Hopefully next week is an improvement.

 

Tried a couple episodes of Gate and Phantom World since they were on Crunchyroll, but I couldn't get into them.

 

The Blue Jacket Lupin series is pretty good as well, and I really like what they did with it. Haven't checked out too much though since I want to finish Part 2 and 3 first.