Occult Academy - 02

In this episode, wacky antics run a muck as Maya is threatened by both naked spoon-benders and the late principal's red-headed assistant, who admittedly has a great character design. Though not as great as Maya, of course.

Always classy.

Honestly, Occult Academy is far from intellectual. Though it and Shiki are the two series sharing the horror genre this season, the two are completely different shows. Occult Academy is humorous in a sarcastic way and it certainly doesn't take itself seriously. It's going for a fun, entertaining tale with a unique spin on Nostradamus' crazy prophesies, and so far it really delivers.

The characters are a lot of fun to watch, and the male lead is really entertaining and interesting. Abe Minoru/#6/Bunmei-kun is particularly interesting because of the way he was portrayed as a clone. There are five other Abe Minorus who seem to have the same looks as our Bunmei does. So why was he a well-known child psychic featured on tv? My theory is there are (or were) 6 different people who all looked the same and because of their similarities they all have psychic powers, too. It's not a well-thought-out theory and it is certainly not sensible, but Occult Academy isn't a sensible show. It throws reason out the window in order to gain an amazing ability to kick ass and take names.

Like all child stars, our poor Bunmei-kun must have been tossed aside after he became old enough that his spoon-bending trick was creepy rather than charming.

If you aren't impressed by Occult Academy, whether it be in its clever writing, interesting plot, or great visuals (courtesy of the lovely A-1 Pictures), I have to wonder what kind of tastes you have.

Overall: 9.5/10

Legend of the Legendary Heroes - Episode 03

This episode actually takes a very serious turn into exploring not only the war itself but also the true extent of Ryner's powers. I think what is very interesting about his powers is that they seem to be an entity completely different from his conciousness, a voice telling him to activate them and tempting them rather than his own concious decision to activate them and use them. Ferris's brother, the guy who always has his eyes closed, is now introduced as more of a psychopath than a savior or do-gooder of any kind.

Don't look at me Ferris. He's YOUR brother.

This episode was also very well done in that it gave legitimate reasons for all the characters to be in the positions they were shown in at the beginning of the series. For example, Sion, having been the only survivor of the battle besides a traitor and a 'monster', gained considerable publicity and power as a celebrity. This undoubtedly played a large role in him gaining the title of king as it drove him into the limelight and probably garnered him a lot of respect. Meanwhile, Ryner became even more misunderstood and his rampage only proved to many that bearers of the Alpha Stigma are monsters. As for Ryner's girlfriend there... yeah.

Estabul Magic Knights: biggest douchbags of summer 2010.

Mostly, I'm interested in where the series goes from here on out. Will it continue this surprisingly mature turn of events or will it go back to its fantasy antics? Only time will tell. For now it is certainly obliged to return to exploring Ryner's powers once he has another breakdown somewhere along the line.

Overall: 8.5/10

Shiki - Episode 02

I'd be lying if I said I wasn't that interested in where Shiki was going. Truth be told, even though my review of the first episode wasn't exactly raving, over the week I have gotten more and more excited about where the story is going and I've been getting more and more anxious to see the next installment.

In episode 2 of Shiki, we learn that Natsuno is kind of an ass, Megumi is still probably stalking him as a ghost, and that the village girl with the weird shaped hair has a lot of profound thoughts and will become a more major character.

On the Natsuno side, this episode makes it clear that he is a lot more like Megumi than he knows: he wants to leave the village and he dislikes associating with the people in it. He's also too much of an ass to fulfill a dead girl's (probably) last wish of accepting her postcard. Bastard. Hopefully he'll get some more development soon because right now he just has hair way too messy for me to like him in any way shape or form.

Oh you motherfucker.

One of the major points of this episode that I really felt come through was the feeling everyone in the village was getting from these murders. I felt as though everyone was effected emotionally by these murders, since everyone knew each other because of the small town environment. With these ten people dead, it seems probable that everyone in the village knew at least one of them well enough to grieve their deaths.

The creators used village girl (I really should learn her name) as an example: Megumi's death, someone she had been with ever since childhood, caused her to think seriously, for probably the first time in her life, about the concept of life and death. In such an isolated village, many of these people live peaceful lives without being exposed to the everyday misery and poverty which would be surrounding them in, say, a poor part of the city. The creators captured this feeling as something new and very unusual in the village and that really helped with the building of the atmosphere in this case.

A character that was happy-go-lucky yesterday isn't smiling 24/7 and is now contemplating life and death seriously this can't be anime WHAT IS THIS

As for the mystery portion, the doctor is busy at work investigating and we can only wait anxiously at our seats until they visit the mansion. Man oh man, I could just feel the buildup growing and growing. There had better be a lot of payoff for this.

Overall: 8/10 (wow outdid the first episode. good job Shiki)

Legend of the Legendary Heroes - Episode 02

In this episode of Legend of the Legendary Heroes, (or DenYuDen which we will be calling it from now on), Sion Astal is severely beaten, watches his mother die, and has his murdered puppy's corpse sent to him in a gift-wrapped box.

Asides from that, the entire episode is focused on revealing the past between Sion, Ferris Eris (good god) and Ryner. While Ryner and Sion are poor members of society forced to be trained for military use, Ferris is part of a rich noble family.

But man oh man, they really forced out the tragedy of Sion and Ryner's childhoods. They seem intent on making these guys have the worst lives ever. Although Sion's goals stem from his experiences as a child who was prejudiced against because of his social standing, Ryner on the other hand has learned to not give a fuck and so he just tries his best not to stand out.

This episode had some of the most heavy-handed characterizations with these characters' backstories. Oh yeah, and those other characters who aren't even named? They were MADE to killed off after Ryner loses control of his Alpha Stigma in the next few episodes (its inevitable).

I thought it was interesting how Sion acted very similar to a villain, and if a few of his goals had been tweaked he would have been one. He has the tragic backstory and his goal is to become king of the country, but instead of wanting to conquer it for his own selfish gain he instead strives to end the current age of corruption on the country. Had it not been for his mother's kind words and eagerness to do good, he probably could have been the villain in this story.

Would look more menacing if the text wasn't blatantly in front of his mouth.

I'm also likin' Ferris more and more, because of her great deadpan personality and the fact that it doesn't fit in with her looks at all. Her long blonde hair and blue eyes are a refreshing difference to set her apart from the quiet, serious girls with glasses and hair of the black/white/purple variety. Even though her facial features are nothing out of the ordinary she is still manages to set herself apart just with a little color changes. Now how 'bout that.

My other main observation for this show: the ending theme reveals the major aspects of this show: sad children, and fanservice for every type of person. Ferris for straight guys/lesbians, Ryner for straight girls/gay guys, and Sion for everyone except straight guys. There's also a lot of Ryner/Sion gay innuendo. If you're into that sort of stuff.

Sion later remembered that he actually wanted Ryner for his penis.

Overall Score: 8/10

Summer Anime 2010 BLOGGING SCHEDULE!

So this season hasn't exactly been the best anime season in awhile. But what do you expect? Summer has a reputation for being worse than fall and spring anyway, both in show quality and the number of shows released. I didn't have the highest of hopes in the first place. Truth be told, I wasn't disappointed by this season as much as I thought, but more like... underwhelmed. The shows aren't all bad, but most of them are only decent. Let's just say that few shows impressed me.

Anyway, here are the shows I'll be blogging for this summer season, along with my rankings for the summer debuts. And hopefully by the fall I'll get enough new readers to feel like making this sort of thing is warranted. -_-;

(1) Occult Academy -----> Blogging

(2) Legend of the Legendary Heroes -----> Blogging

(3) Shiki -----> Blogging

(4) High School of the Dead -----> Blogging

(5) Ookami-san to Shichinin no Nakamatachi -----> Blogging

(6) Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan -----> Watching

(7) Seitokai Yakuindomo -----> Not watching or blogging

(8) Mitsudomoe -----> Watching

(9) Shukufuku no Campanella -----> Watching

(10) Amagami SS -----> Not watching or blogging

(11) Asobi ni iku yo! -----> Not watching or blogging

Summer Anime 2010: Debut Reviews IX

High School of the Dead

This show wins a lot of 'best' awards this season. First, there's best direction: the whole first episode is like an exercise for director Tetsuro Araki to show his chops and create the most adrenaline-pumped atmosphere of any show I've seen in a long time. Let me tell ya, I read the first chapter of the manga awhile back and I was not impressed. Ol' Tetsuro here turned that around and created a rich dramatic atmosphere, elevating it from utter trash to solid entertainment. Even his 'pinky promise' flashback was waaay better than the original.

Also wins most conflicting imagery of the season (if this image does not impress, please keep in mind the gore-fanservice combo in all zombie scenes).

Secondly, it wins best animation from me. Although Shiki had style and Occult Academy had some nice animation with its supernatural battle, this thing keeps the action coming and there is never a moment where anything looks out of place or lazily done. The whole episode is dripping in production values from the writhing zombies to the shiny asses and bouncing breasts of our female characters.

Back Pain of the Dead

But while the show is certainly chock full of suspense, the most I've seen in years, it will never be anything more than pure, unadulterated entertainment. The characters won't become much more than stereotypes and the fanservice will continue even as the girls are being eaten alive (which will probably cause some confusion among the male viewers). At least it won't try to be; that would be awkward.

Overall: 7/10

Summer Anime 2010: Debut Reviews *Shit Edition*

Asobi ni iku yo!

It's bad.

And it only gets worse.

Overall: 2/10

Summer Anime 2010: Debut Reviews VIII

Shiki

To be honest, most of this episode was really boring. I watched the first 8 minutes, then ate dinner and watched the last episode on my Toradora! dvds, watched the next few minutes and then took a shower, and then I finally finished it up. But even while most of it was uneventful, the last few minutes were actually scary and really intriguing.

Take the main character of the episode, Megumi. She's really boring, annoying, and kind of a brat. I mean, I live in a small town. Sure, I'd like to see the world, but I don't stalk people from the city. That was really creepy and any attempts the show made to have the viewers sympathize with Megumi went straight down the tubes after that.

I guess she really does treat others the way she wants to be treated...

But at the near end of the show, we got treated to an awesome twist which not only brought up interest in the residents of the huge out-of-place mansion built in the village (one of the people living there has the stupidest hair I have ever seen in my entire life -- if it doesn't have something to do with his being a demon or something I will be very disappointed). The atmosphere became a lot creepier and we got to see that the story will revolve around the other characters rather than Megumi herself. I called her the main character of this episode because, well... SPOILER!

WHAT IS THIS I DON'T EVEN

As for the plot itself, it has shown less of itself than Occult Academy. At least the latter had a naked man appear at the end to give us a hint of where the show is going. Shiki just had some mysterious deaths that can't even be linked to each other yet. If you're looking for me to compare Shiki to Occult Academy more, not gonna happen. The two shows are completely different in style, atmosphere, and (presumably) subject matter.

For a first episode, interesting but enough going on to completely win me over. Its nice direction gives it another half-point.

Overall: 7.5/10

Shiki is available streaming legally (!) at funimation.com

Summer Anime 2010: Debut Reviews VII

Occult Academy (or some other Japanese name)

Although the plot of this anime sounded pretty basic from the get-go, two things gave me hope:

1. It is being aired in the Anime no Chikara timeslot, meaning it will be more edgy and mainstream than noitaminA shows but adult enough to be consistently mature
2. It is basically guaranteed to look great given A-1 Pictures recent track record of beautiful shows

However, after thinking this over, another thought came to mind: while the shows in Anime no Chikara are definitely less niche and artsy, meaning it won't take itself seriously and will be more entertaining, Anime no Chikara also has earned a reputation (from me at least) of not delivering as solid shows as noitaminA does.

So after all this worrying and fretting about the quality of the show before I'd even seen it, is it the best anime of the season?

"Holy shit, I rock."

Yes. Is it one of the best anime to come out in a long, long time? It's way to early to be sure. While it certainly has style in abundance and quirky comedy along with its high production values, the plot is way too vague for me to even conjure up theories yet. I can't tell you anything about what will happen next, and it isn't because the plot seems so original; rather, its because of the lack of details about the direction of the show.

However, what we have seen so far of the show is unbearably delicious. The main character, Maya, has already been given enough depth to carry her for awhile; her background and her feelings towards her father give the groundwork for her future motivations and actions. Her desire to not believe in the occult because of the pain it has caused her in the past makes her remarkably complex for only one episode.

And so, after her father never took her shopping, Maya was forced to wear the same clothes for the rest of her life...

The other characters are a bit unique but not quite as full of depth. The male lead, for instance, doesn't even appear until the end of the episode. However, it was necessary for the show to put the others' backgrounds on hold completely because of the show's focus on Maya. The trade-off, in my opinion, worked wonderfully. Also, a shy girl with glasses who isn't good at school and gets turned into an evil spirit for half the show? You win, Occult Academy.

Best. Meganekko. Ever.

Occult Academy also suggests some interesting themes, such as Maya's desire to lack belief in the occult. As someone with a disbelief in a lot of things, I know there is a fine line between belief and disbelief and that a forcing oneself to have either one does not work. I am interested to see how Maya deals with her desire in future episodes when she will be undoubtedly confronted by many supernatural creatures. Favorite show of the season by far.

Overall: 9.5/10

Summer Anime 2010: Debut Reviews VI

Densetsu no Yuusha no Densetsu (aka Legend of the Legendary Heroes)

I'm not going to be typing out the entire repetitious title of this thing every time, so we'll call is Denyuden from here on out. That's what the kids are callin' it these days, right?

Even if the title is long and tedious, the show was surprisingly fun and interesting. It made me eager to learn about the "Heroes' Relics" and the characters, although pretty stock so far, definitely have room to improve. The flashback at the very end of the episode was probably the most intriguing scene out of all the new anime I've seen this season, and it really got me interested in the show as a whole. Though of course there were some disappointments.

For a character named Milk she really doesn't live up to expectations, does she?

However, this episode was really heavy-handed in its messages. The king, although attractive, seemed boring as shit throughout the entire episode. Even though he obviously has kingly duties to attend to, he stops what he's doing and helps an orphaned kid find his sister. If that isn't just the lamest attempt to make him seem like a good person, I don't know what is. At least he wasn't born to make people happy. *cough*shukufukunocampanella*cough*

Most of the character designs are uninspired, to say the least. But honestly, I really didn't expect any better and at least they're mostly simple. Take the female lead for example: blond hair, blue eyes, laid back and calm... Wait, is this sounding familiar to anybody else?

LEICESTER-CHAN

The main character, Ryner, is also interesting with his "Alpha Stigma" ability. Not only do people openly exclaim that he is a monster when he uses it, but it also seems to be the root of the massive devastation shown in the ending flashback. The fact that Ryner has a sense of humor and isn't a cardboard box means that his potential conflict is automatically ten times as exciting as the conflict in Nura: Rise of the Who-gives-a-shit Clan. Also, the female lead Ferris has a big appetite for dumplings. Any female character who likes eating gets a thumbs up in my book.

She can eat my dumplings anytime.

Overall: 8/10 (though you might want to take into account that the last fantasy series I tried to watch was Arad Senki: Slap Up Party. Anything looks like a masterpiece when compared to that shit)

Densetsu no Yuusha no Densetsu is available streaming legally (!) at funimation.com under the name Legend of the Legendary Heroes

Summer Anime 2010: Debut Reviews V

Seitokai Yakuindomo

Stop me if you've ever heard this before: a kid attends a new school and on his first day he gets coerced into joining the student council (note: can be substituted with any other club or SOS Brigade) where he meets a variety of attractive young women, all of whom are eccentric in any way/shape/form. Sound familiar? If not, you've obviously never watched anime before.

The main character will now spend his school days with three attractive young women? What a shocking turn of events. ... *snore*

But for all its obvious clichedness, it still holds a good amount of humor in it. Granted they are all of the same type (short joke ---> sex joke ---> short joke, etc.) but at least they are all well-timed and have the desired effect.

Figure A: The original harem. As you can see, the girls' averageness demonstrated a firm grip on reality which is why they had to be substituted for dream girls, thus resulting in today's monstrosity.

And, well, to be honest? There's not much to say about Seitokai Yakuindomo that hasn't been said before. I can't make insightful commentary about this show because there is zero, and I mean ZERO chance that the show itself will ever have anything important to say. Call it otaku pandering, call it funny popcorn entertainment, but it will certainly never become anything more. Unless, of course, the show pulls something out of its ass. Which is doubtful.

After the initial effect of the joke, whether it be about the girls' inexperience with men or a random reference to their opinions about the sole male character, it becomes clear just how repetitious and gag-based this show is. While that's not a bad thing, and the jokes to elicit a few laughs, I can see this formula becoming verrry tiring in the near future.

Oh look! A sex joke. Pretty funny, ha-- oh wait, another one? Well, they just keep 'em comin' I guess, ha-- wait, more? That's jumping the shark a little, don't yo-- oh fuck it.

(For the record I sat through the entire Princess Lover series, which only went from mediocre to downright boring as time went on; I really don't expect Seitokai Yakuindomo to be any better and won't be surprised if there is a significant drop in quality somewhere down the road. I guess what I'm saying is: don't get your hopes up, kid)

Overall: 5/10

Summer Anime 2010: Debut Reviews IV

Nurarihyon no Mago (or Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan, apparently)

This show is seriously lacking in yokai clan risings. That's one reason why I liked the Japanese title better: it kept me in the dark about what it was supposed to be about. I could fantasize about how it was actually much more fitting to the show, like something along the lines of "Nura: Rise of the Unoriginality Clan" or "Nura: Rise of the Interesting-beginning-but-kinda-got-disappointed-half-way-through Clan".

The ending theme is uncreative and way too cute for a show about yokai; basically, a perfect representation of the show.

There isn't really anything special about Nura: Rise of the Unspecial Clan. In fact, I would even venture to call it annoyingly mundane. Everything about it screams standard; even the main love interest isn't exciting, but just as dull as the main character, Nura. Which brings us to our next topic.

You see, dear readers, Nura is destined to be the next heir to a clan of admittedly not very exciting yokai. They just sort of follow him around and act like his lap dogs, which, to be honest, sounds pretty damn cool. A group of super-powered monsters at my beck and call, ready to do whatever shit I come up with? Sign me up! ... Right?

You're just afraid of commitment! *sob sob*

Well, apparently not, because Nura thinks it would be cooler to be a normal human. Pussy. But even with his obvious shittiness, Nura would be cool if his yokai side would come out more often. Red eyes, a rather sexy deep voice, and a decided lack of boring make him much more interesting than regular Nura, even if they do call him Night Nura (I told you this show was unoriginal).

But even though everyone seems to want his yokai side to come out, so he can claim his throne and all, two of his bitches (one of which is obligated to become a love interest) keep protecting him from outside dangers. Come on guys! Have you seen his awesome side? He can protect himself! He can do his own shit! They're all like "oooo we will protect you as we have been doing for the past four years ever since your yokai side appeared" and I'm all like WHY? He gets his powers so he can do stuff by himself and then you protect him? Why didn't you protect him when he was, gee, I dunno, a vulnerable infant or child or whatever? What's up with that?

"For this show to make sense... I cannot allow it!!"

Even with my gripes, the production values in Nura: Rise of the Unreasonable-guardian-yokai-justification Clan occasionally transcend mediocrity and I am slightly interested in the overall conflict, even if the characters hold no appeal whatsoever.

Overall: 6/10

Available streaming legally (!) at vizanime.com

Summer Anime 2010: Debut Reviews III

Shukufuku no Campanella

So from the first look at this series, it promised to be another generic harem-based fantasy series, fraught with fanservice and a wimpy male lead. And on most of those points, it certainly delivered. Carina, the main love interest, is a like totally popular semi-royal chick, and everyone is always making remarks about how beautiful every other love interest is. The character designs themselves are suffocating without being memorable; by trying really hard to create unique designs, the creators actually managed to make them look bland and put on way too much extra that was unneeded. I mean, just look at Carina's outfit! Take away some of the superfluous details and the design is still perfectly fine.

Look, minna-san! It's Moe-moe McBore-tan (desu)!

On the other hand, this series also does something amazing: the male lead (get ready for this)... is HOT. No shit. I am not kidding around here. Not only is he tall, blue-eyed and blond, but people in the show actually comment on how attractive he is. That's right. This is the first time I have ever seen such an anomaly. The creators obviously didn't get the memo: no harem leads are attractive. Ever. It doesn't happen. Not only that, but he is also always calm and collected. Five hot girls around him, three of them claiming to be his bride? No sweat. He says, "I'm honored" with a calm smile. Ultimate badass. Big-breasted mother hugs him in front of cute girls? Whatever. He respectfully tells her that people might get the wrong idea if she does that in public all the time. Holy shit.

Raw, unedited fansub to show off the badassery that is Leicester-sama. You're welcome.

So not only is he hot, confident, and collected, he is also very reasonable. If they don't screw up Leicester's character by making him into some boring loser who overreacts at everything, he is my new favorite character for the summer season.

I LOVE LEICESTER-SAMA

Unfortunately for him, the main 'magical' girl of the series calls Leicester Papa and she was born to make people happy. You don't get much lamer than that.

Overall: 5/10 (painfully bland; but, with added, Leicester, the score jumps to a 7/10; unfortunately he can't carry the show alone, but he comes pretty damn close)

Summer Anime 2010: Debut Reviews II

Amagami SS

The production values for this show are nice. It has cute character designs. In this respect, the show's content reflects its values; so far, this is an incredibly shallow show. We start off with our token loser, Tachibana. However, he is so much more of a loser than our average harem lead, and as anyone who watches harem anime knows, that's saying something.

What do you mean I'm shallow? Now hand over that erotic photo book!

It isn't that he does incredibly bad in school or he's an asshole. He's actually just the blandest, most shallow guy you could ever meet. While he is portrayed as kind and he helps people out, he is also both incredibly fickle and not fickle at all. He is a really inconsistent character. After being rejected 2 years ago, he still has dreams about his rejection and he still dwells on it. Seriously? Get over it, she obviously didn't like you. And this wouldn't be so bad if he had trouble getting over her during the course of the series. Rather, he immediately falls for Morishima-senpai, the most popular girl in the school. So I've decided that we have two choices here:

1. His past crush was also really hot. Since he didn't meet anyone as hot or hotter than this person in 2 years, he never had another crush. However, Morishima-senpai was suitably hot and thus he fell for her in less than a week.
2. The writers thought it was funny to make the lamest main character ever and proceeded to do so with no thought about consistency or likability.

I stare at water in my free time. It must mean I'm troubled.

The rest of the girls are also stock stereotypes. Morishima-senpai will probably fall under the "I'm so popular but no one actually understands me. They are just shallow and like me for my looks apparently unlike you main character who also went after me because I was beautiful". So far only the little sister character has even an ounce of credibility. She called her brother out when she said he fell for Morishima for her looks.

The smartest character in the show. Bet you've never said that about the imouto character before.

The only thing that leaves hope for this series is its unique "omnibus" format, where each heroine gets their own portion of the story animated. Hopefully this means the entire story will start over with the main character falling for a different girl each time.

Overall: 4/10

Summer Anime 2010: Debut Reviews

Ookami-san to Shichinin to Nakamatachi

Ookami-san to Shichinin is this season's cold, calculating hit. While there are some shows, such as Toradora!, which start off as generic otaku fodder and gradually move towards an emotional drama which manages to set the characters apart from their original stereotypes, Ookami-san is not one of those shows. It instead attempts to stick together everything that's popular in the anime market at the time, including: ridiculously wimpy lead, tsundere, spunky loli, and more.

But while it is obvious that the creators are really trying to create a hit here, it is also clear that they know what they're doing. For example, they use the main character, Ryoushi's, extreme fear of being stared down to their advantage and actually manage to come up with a hilarious sequence of Ryoushi failing to complete his mission because of his problem. It is also interesting to see how as much as Ryoushi is an incredible coward, he still worked up the courage to confess to Ryouko. I think that says a lot about his personality and as such he has now become to the most interesting character in the show so far, for me. The creators also came up with a unique scenario in the Otogi Bank system, which lends out help in return for favors later on. Come to think of it, it really doesn't sound all that different from the mafia.

I'm gonna make you an offer you can't refuse.

The fairy tale this episode took its scenario from was Cinderella, with a quirky ending that actually worked well. Although the creators did a good job with the twist on the classic story, it would be slightly disappointing if the entire show were episodic. Hopefully, the show will drift away from its episodic tendencies and become a more character-based series as time goes on. With seven 'main' characters, god knows they have a lot to develop. Oh yeah, and the narrator sucks.

Ringo-san stares into your soul. She sees the dark otaku tendencies which live within your very being.

Overall score: 7/10