Final Thoughts for Winter 2016
FINALLY, AFTER TEN THOUSAND YEARS, I'M FREE TO POST THE LAST OF THE WINTER REVIEWS
Holy shit this season sucked so bad it took us five weeks after to finally get to finish our reviews. Spring better not suck this bad I swear holy hell.
Dropped Shows
Ajin
David O'Neil
Now, it's been quite a while since I watched the first episode of Ajin. And suffice it to say, I suppose my memory of it is a bit fuzzy. Heck, I had hardly remembered that I had watched it. But I am a professional above all else, so I will do my best to recount how I felt about the show. You see, in Ajin, a male student named Ken Kaneki finds himself thrown into a desperate situation when he discovers he's gained mysterious, demonic powers, a "ghoul" as they're called, which makes him an enemy of the state, and feared by the common people. As the show goes on, he encounters government agents who wish to take advantage of his Ghoul powers, other Ghouls who he ends up clashing with, and slowly but surely he begins to lose sight of what it was that made him human in the first place. Yeah, I'm pretty sure that's what happened. And then the talking hand named Migi showed up, and there was an explanation of how the Parasytes are actually-....no, I believe I'm starting to get my stories jumbled. It's as if the episodes I watched of Ajin failed to leave any impression on me whatsoever. It's as if, it was so unmemorable, so lacking of any identity of its own, it has simply become a blur. Blending and merging into memories of the many shows it aspired to be like, yet lacked any new ideas of its own to separate itself from, or even engaging execution for that matter. Or maybe it was because the CG was bad. Yeah, I'll just blame the CG. Two Episodes: 4/10
BBK/BRNK
Danni Kristen
This was not by any means a bad show. At its worst, it was mediocre. At its best, it was pretty good. Ultimately, I decided to drop it for two reasons. The first was its lack of consistency. Good episodes were often followed by pretty mediocre ones. Great scenes of awesome action were often followed or interrupted by lengthy scenes of boring backstory and exposition. It never was able to maintain a steady pace of quality. This goes double for its animation done completely in CG. While action scenes were animated well and looked downright awesome, its calmer scenes were very clunky and robotic. It just wasn't nice to look at in those moments. They clashed with the backgrounds considerably, too. The backgrounds were all beautifully drawn and the visual high-point of the series. The CG could never really compare to it. Regardless of these faults, I was still able to really enjoy the show's good aspects. The decision to drop it really came down to my second reason: time. I haven't been blessed with a wealth of free time this semester, so I've been extra picky about the full shows I watched. Eventually, I started falling behind on it, I realized I just had no desire to catch up. My time was valuable, and BBK/BRNK just wasn't worth it. Seven Episodes: 5/10
Dagashi Kashi
David O'Neil
Dagashi Kashi is a very honest show. At least from the few episodes I watched, it was very upfront about what it was trying to accomplish, who its audience was, and how it was planning on going about its specific objective. It is a show about a bunch of goofball characters setting up dumb, often sexual gags about candy. That's about it. I do almost wonder if the series would've been better off as a short series, but for what it was I did enjoy my time with it. Sure, I ended up dropping it, but mostly because it was so honest, straightforward, and consistent in its episodic attempts to make humor out of the unlikely combination of Willy Wonka and South Park that I found myself having absolutely nothing to critique beyond my initial reaction. The show isn't for everyone, it's not especially witty, and the pace can be slow at times. But for what its worth, its dumb sense of humor resonated with my, but at the same time I'm very east to please when it comes to immature humor. Studio Feel's visuals certainly helped as well. While it wasn't a great looking show, it built a decent atmosphere, had neat character designs, and constantly incorporated the show's visuals into the gags. Let me put it this way. Watch the first episode of Dagashi Kashi. It's one of those shows you'll almost immediately know whether or not you'll like or loathe. It makes a strong first impression, for better or for worse. Five Episodes: 7/10
Dimension W
Jonathan Kaharl
Probably the biggest disappointment of the season. After two very strong starting episodes, all promise is pissed away by our main character failing to develop beyond angry man-guy-man who hates technology because it killed his girlfriend (yes, really) and Miria becomes nothing more than wank fuel for torture fetishists. Plus she keeps getting hit. By the main character. The whole series gets very ugly in a meaningless way, and it's just downright unpleasant to watch, despite the great art direction. Plus, there is a ridiculous amount of rape threats and fridging of women in back stories. It's like Watanabe directed a series based on bad 90s comics. Seven Episodes: 3/10
Divine Gate
Stephanie Getchell
Divine Gate was a series I honestly hoped would be decent. The premise was interesting and the fact that Pierrot was behind it gave me some hope. However, there was a mix of issues going on with the series that, by the time I got half way, just felt like it wasn't worth it anymore. The larger of the glaring issues I had with the series was that it was trying too hard to be this dark and edgy series, giving us a boring story and the wrong exposition when we really needed something different. There's also the characters involved which range from stereotypical hot head to complete emo kid who has to learn about emotions. Just sitting here and writing this now... Oh dear god... I had a flashback to Naruto... I compared Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura to Akane, Aoto, and Midori... Yeah, this series has very little originality to it. The one and only reason I would ever decide to go back and watch the show is for the dub, and not for any specific voice actor either. More for the director Clifford Chapin, who is still fairly new to ADR directing and I would love to see more of his work and get accustomed to his directing style. Otherwise, that's it.
Six Episodes: 4/10
Mahou Shoujo Nante Mouiidesukara
David O'Neil
Anime has always had an uncomfortable relationship with younger girl characters. It's eerily widespread, that even in most mainstream anime it's considered both incredibly marketable and not even all that denounced for shows to sexualize, and overall put a big focus on fanservice towards underage girls. Though usually shows at least have the decency to not be entirely upfront about their intentions to sell through putting little girls in skimpy outfits. The entire premise of Mahou Shoujo Nante Mouiidesukara on the other hand, is "a middle aged girl becomes a magical girl, but her outfit is a skimpy swimsuit". That's it. That's the whole joke. I mean, there's also that her magical girl sidekick is a total creep, which makes the whole thing feel even more skeevy, but the main premise is terrible enough on its own. In another world I could see this being some kind of satire, but the joke doesn't seem to have anything to actually say about mahou shojo or the uncomfortable nature of the premise at all, and it seems way to on board with reveling in the fanservice anyway. The best thing I can say about it is that its a very pretty show, with nice character designs, colors, and animation. But that doesn't do much to save a show that's entirely centered around something so unfunny and sketchy as all hell. Two Episodes: 2/10
Nurse Witch Kogumi R
Stephanie Getchell
I honestly cannot remember a thing about this series. All I do remember is that it was one that was really silly and dumb that I felt like my brain may or may not implode. While there were one or two things about the first episode that got a chuckle out of me, the rest was just bland and full of troupes that I didn't think it was worth going through an entire season for. I may go back if I'm looking to torment myself or if someone really wants me to review the damn thing, but I'm really all set with this one. One Episode: 2/10
Pandora in the Crimson Shell: Ghost Urn
Jonathan Kaharl
This is absolute trash, but very self-aware trash made by two authors just letting themselves be complete trash. There's a respectable, trashy charm to that, and a lot of the gags are pretty great, especially when they involve Clarion becoming a detail void blob of not giving a shit. Unfortunately, the production value is practically non-existent, and a lot of gags repeat and wear out their welcome pretty quickly. If you enjoyed the first episode on some level, you'll probably enjoy the show overall (I only stopped because of scheduling issues). Six Episodes: 4/10
Rainbow Days
Jonathan Kaharl
Bad shojo will never leave, will it. Rainbow Days is a poor romantic comedy that could easily be good, but it relies on tired tropes and archetypes and sticks far too closely to them. When it looks like it's doing something interesting, like a character into BDSM, it quickly makes them a one note joke the very next episode. All the guys are possessive dicks except for one, and the pairings lack a proper spark to them besides the first. The jokes are all very safe, been done, and become repetitive, and I just decided I did not have any desire to see this one through. What a waste of everyone's time. Just go watch Nozaki-kun. Six Episodes: 4/10
Full Shows
Active Raid
Jonathan Kaharl
The return of the director of Code Geass on original anime material. Active Raid became something I had a lot of hope for once I realized Taniguchi was directing it, and that enthusiasm slowly eroded away. It's not that Active Raid is bad, on the contrary. It's very entertaining. But I also kept constantly forgetting about it more than any other show this season. The thing here is that we certainly have the ingredients for a good show, with a lot of interesting ideas, fun characters, and well done action, but there's a lack of a spark to it all.
Our cast of characters have a really fun family dynamic, especially Asami as the awkward daughter (she randomly says things in English and that's so great). Minor characters get a good deal of definition and even back story, my personal favorite being the quiet hacker nerd being one of the greatest gamblers in the world and showing off in a Chinese dress and butterfly mask when she feels like it. The villains are properly developed, mixed between truly despicable and tragic, and the social commentary is well handled and meaningful. Each episode also has a fun pace to it, keeping things moving speedy with a ton of great exchanges between characters. All the elements are here for a good series, especially how it chooses to tackle the growth of the internet, the societal age gap, and the role of police in the modern world from a uniquely Japanese perspective. Its a conservative show I can actually respect on some level. But all of this never comes together as it should.
The series makes clever use of an episodic format to make a larger puzzle that pieces together, but those episodes work better alone than together. There's tone whiplash thrown around, sometimes working and sometimes not. Keeping audience away from the truth also leaves one of the villains significantly unrefined. All the pieces for their motivation is there, but they're not developed long enough to really give impact to the tragedy of their situation. The commentary of the series starts to water down towards the end, while our large cast aren't given proper personal stakes. Only Asami's guilt really works here. For most of the cast, being officers on this squad is a job, but development through the entire show suggests they'd be more tight knit then portrayed. We get a good idea of what they're like as people, yes, but barely any of it relates to the main villain. The series has a love for super robot show writing and cliches, and uses a lot of them, especially trying to cram in these characters into all sorts of situations. However, they're too defined to one genre to really let that work as well as it could.
I hope the second season fixes some of these problems, because Active Raid has the elements for something fantastic. As it is, the series is a fun time while there and then instantly forgettable. I'd still recommend a good few episodes, but as for the whole series, only if you're really into old school anime homage.
First-Cour Score: 6/10
AOKANA: Four Rhythm Across the Blue
David O'Neil
I have a long standing distaste for sports anime. I think it's less the formula itself, and moreso the very presence of sports, which all tend to be boring as all hell. That's also why I'm typically perfectly fine with sports anime as long as they revolve around a sport that isn't actually real. For instance, Aokana: Four Rhythm Across the Blue, which creates a near-future sport known as "Flying Circus" in which competitors use technologically advanced "Grav-Shoes" to race, battle, outwit, and outmaneuver their opponents while flying through the sky.
The sport itself is probably the aspect of the show I enjoyed the most, and there was clearly a lot of thought put into the mechanics of it all, along with assuring it never gets boring. It's a sort of tug-a-war between racing and fighting, and the different play styles (one that focuses on fighting, one that focuses on speed, and one in-between) creates a cool rock-paper-scissors factor which makes each match a little bit different in how they play off each other. Some matches end up being dog fights, while others end up being high speed chases. Things get even more interesting towards the end, when they come up with a science-babble explanation to essentially have the boots go super saiyan, and it turns into something out of Macross or Dragonball Z. With all that aside though, the drama outside of matches does follow pretty strictly to the sports anime formula, to the point it does start to drag on after a while. There are a few above-average character arcs that shine through the cracks, but as a whole it mostly comes down to pretty mundane instances of characters being defeated, or losing sight of why they're playing, and then moping around for an episode before some inspirational speech drags them back. It never digs deep enough into the characters to really make me care, so as it went on I just ended up becoming less and less interested in the drama, and more and more impatient waiting for the next match to eventually come up.
It does help that the show has a good sense of humor. It has its fair share of cutesy faces, and early on even some instances of fun character acting animation. I wouldn't say Aokana became ugly as it went on, but it certainly got a lot rougher around the edges. A few episodes in particular felt as if Gonzo was on the brink of giving in, but it always managed to stay just visually competent enough to keep the show together. In addition, from beginning to end the show did a surprisingly good job mixing CG and 2D animation during the Flying Circus matches. Aokana isn't all that special in terms of its story and characters, but it's still a fun sports anime with a unique twist, boasting an imaginary competition that's as inventive as it is entertaining. If you're in the mood for something with the core of a sports anime, but just can't stand actual sports (like me) Aokana is worth a look.
Final Score: 6/10
ERASED
Jonathan Kaharl
I'm sure I'm going to get some hate for this hot take.
Oh no, I do not hate the most hype show of the season. I don't even think it's bad, quite the contrary. Erased is still one of the better shows of the Winter. But the incredible experience so many people were expecting didn't really come to past. The issue here is that this show wanted to be two different shows slapped together, and one was worlds better than the other. Where Erased (mostly) worked was when it focused on human drama. The best scenes were constantly related to Satoru reflecting on the people he met and connecting with them, trying desperately to fight the inevitable and save the lives of people doomed in his miserable timeline. Those scenes where he is once again a kid attempting to befriend and help the victim of abuse and eventual first murder target are absolutely fantastic.
There's an unexpected beauty to the humanity Satoru expresses, caring deeply for his family, friends, and the people he wants to save. The connections he makes, even in the much weaker present time story, are strong and really help develop him and everyone around him. Erased manages to be an uplifting tale in many respects, helped by the fantastic direction creating so many awe inspiring shots, with the "Christmas tree" being the highlight. As a human drama, Erased manages to be amazing.
And then the plot shows up and we have to deal with the other part of the series, the thriller drama.
This is where the problems start to rise. The premise of the series is that Satoru, a kidnapping victim who's become emotionally stunted, has the power to travel back in time to help people in danger, and this strange power eventually allows him to do his life over and save the people murdered and framed back in the case he was involved in. It's fine at first, making a great hook and allowing for the wonderful past sequences. But then we're snapped back to the present, where the cast Satoru interacts with are far, far less developed and interesting. His highschool girl sidekick has a sad back story based around people thinking her father stole a chocolate bar that lead to his life crumbling around him (I'm dead serious), his former manager is basically a cartoon, and everyone else is just there to be a plot device.
When we eventually find out who the killer is, the reveal is well handled ...but then we learn more about why the killer does what they do. It is disappointing. Without spoiling everything, they're effectively a generic serial killer with muddled motives. Combining time travel and thriller beats makes it near impossible for the show to give out character details on the killer until the second to last episode, so what could have worked is too rushed to leave much of an impact. The ending is also a bit too nice, especially the completely unnecessary final scene. It wraps everything up far too neatly, which doesn't really work for a series that was at its best when it was relatable and human.
Erased is a beautiful, entertaining show. But it felt me feeling a bit hollow. I'd definitely recommend it to most anyone, just keep expectations in check. You're getting a solid thriller with some fantastic drama bits mixed in, not the other way around. It's cheesy and a bit hamfisted at points, but I'm glad I finished it.
Final Score: 7/10
Girls Beyond the Wasteland
David O'Neil
Sticking with Girls Beyond the Wasteland rather than dropping it was likely a mistake. Ever since the beginning I had known the show wasn't especially "good", it operated on a pretty by-the-numbers harem set up, wasn't visually appealing, and had characters who were defined entirely by their stereotypical harem archetypes. Yet, early on I got some kind of bizarre enjoyment out of the show's dumb-fun attitude. It seemed at least somewhat self aware of what it was, and made use of this self awareness without constantly calling attention to its own tropes like most self aware anime these days seem to think is clever. I thought maybe over time it'd be able to keep things fresh, or at the least keep me entertained. I was unfortunately wrong.
It really just comes down to the novelty eventually wearing off. Once I got used to the cast, and the few fun running jokes the series had under its belt, the show got more and more difficult to stay awake during, and the flaws became more and more clear. I couldn't help but notice more how lifeless the visuals were, with characters barely moving or making use of animation for comedy or drama. Or how bland all the characters were, as they become less and less fun over the course of the show, mostly just lightly pushing along plot events, or putting on a maid outfit because you gotta sell them Blu-Rays. Or how all the show's attempts at drama later on fall flat, from a brief love triangle scenario, to a twist involving one of the characters having hidden the truth about something. They present promising conflicts that could have been more effective elsewhere, but here lack the tact or emotional investment to actually take any effect. The twist towards the end especially is resolved in a pretty haphazard fashion, that it didn't feel like the show had earned whatsoever.
And then the show just sort of ends. It does have something of a climax, though its not all that exciting when the only thing hinging on it is some ridiculous bet they made with another group of dating-sim creators that never made much sense in the first place. It never follows up on any of its romantic subplots, and wraps up on a pretty typical, playing-it-safe "and then they went on to make more games" ending that wouldn't have been all that satisfying even if I did care about the characters. I thought perhaps I'd be able to recommend Girls Beyond the Wasteland as some sort of guilty pleasure, but the fun wears off quick and all that's left behind is a bare bones harem romcom that's competent, but lacks any heart, impact, or identity.
Final Score: 4/10
Grimgar of Fantasy and Ash
David O'Neil
Everyone knows "you should never judge a book by its cover", but in anime sometimes it can become easy to shrug things off from their outside appearances. When every anime season brings with it a new batch of shows about generic protagonists being transported into a video game-like fantasy world, one begins to expect it to fit a certain template. With that in mind, Grimgar of Fantasy and Ash served as a reminder that any kind of premise can overcome its preconceptions and create something great.
The show's primary strength is its characters, and how said characters serve as the sole focal point of the show's content. There's not much of a plot, mostly focusing on the main cast's daily lives and ongoing struggle to survive in the strange world they've found themselves in. It uses this structure for building and developing these characters and their relationships through their actions and interactions. These little moments of character building set up some great emotional moments, and certain scenes hit hard thanks to how this show humanizes the characters and invested me in their conflicts. From the low key, almost slice-of-life sections, to the brutal, tense action scenes, just about every part of Grimgar worked better because it put the characters first. It is too bad then, that as the show went on certain flaws became more apparent. For instance, the show quickly gains a bad habit of abusing the use of insert songs (aka Jpop/rock songs thrown in so you buy the CDs). At one point the show has three episodes straight using insert songs in major scenes. While the songs aren't bad, they often clash severely with the tone of the situations. Loud, jarring rock and pop songs just don't fit the fantasy setting, and are often even used during pivotal dramatic moment when an ordinary track from the soundtrack would have likely been far more effective.
Another unfortunate issue came in terms of the visuals. Now, typically Grimgar is damn near incredible visually. Its backgrounds are lush and detailed, its animation is weight-y and heavy on movement (especially early on), it makes excellent use of color and lighting. Unfortunately, towards the end it started wavering in its production values. The amount of character movement started to lower, faces went off model more often, and overall it simply began looking less polished. None of it was especially terrible, I'd seen shows function just fine with more glaring issues, but the show certainly took a hit from it. The most significant blight on the show visually though came with the finale. In the climax- the absolute climax of the entire show of all places- the animation was just flat out unfinished. As in, no in-betweens, not colored, just low frames-per-second key frames laid out over the background. It's clear something must have gone very wrong in the show's production for something that glaring to come to pass. But still, in the end I think I'd still likely recommend Grimgar to people. Despite its flaws, the core of the show was still thoroughly engaging. I loved watching the characters talk, and change, and laugh, and cry, because it did such a good job showing who they were, why they acted the way they did, and what it was they wanted, and then used that foundation to create some powerful scenes. While it stumbled in a few places, Grimgar managed to pull me into its world wonderfully, and I fully enjoyed my time there from beginning to end.
Final Score: 8/10
Haruchika - Haruto & Chika
Stephanie Getchell
Prior to the long break between the last installment of winter seasonal reports and this final report, I had dropped Divine Gate because it was a series that just tried way too hard and lost my interest. But I also dropped Divine Gate over Haruchika, specifically, because I felt that I would be perfectly fine in watching the latter over the former in an attempt to save some of my sanity... Not sure how good of a choice I ended up making, all things considered, because let me tell you, did the rest of Haruchika just kept going downhill and did not even try to improve. And and I such high hopes for the series to go back to the consistency that it had at the beginning of the season too.
The main issue I ended up having with Haruchika was the story. While episodic in nature, you would think that there's suppose to be some kind of main plot, right? There's supposed to be. The main story of the series is supposed to be the brass band working hard towards their goal of reaching the regional competition, because that's what you normally get with musical anime series such as Sound!, etc. Instead, Haruchika would rather go for a more character driven story and fail miserably than stick to stereotypes. We don't even see the brass band perform until the very last episode after they magical made it through two preliminary rounds. And, even then, the majority of that final performance during the final episode was blocked out in order to show the series credits half way through the episode. I'll admit, I thought the series was over once the credits kicked in, and got really mad at the series for pulling a stunt like this. It's ok, though, cause we did get another ten minutes of bad story wrap up where not only were some story elements left up in the air, but the final scene of the series ended so abruptly that it made my head spin. Either the writers for this series are brand new and working on a more training wheels series, or the writers just gave up part way through and decided to say f**k it! It really bothers me to no end when someone just decides to give up and just be completely lazy with their work after they had a decent amount of potential in the beginning.
Speaking of, some of the characters are what make the series a bit more tolerable; particularity the secondary characters that join the brass band after Haruta and Chika help solve their problems for them. Gotou, Narushima, Serizawa, and Maren's introductory episodes were among some of the more interesting stories you could come up with for characters with Narushima and Serizawa being the much emotional and complex of the entire series. As for our two title characters, there's honestly very little to say about them. Haruta is an intelligent guy, however he not only flips between possible genius to homeless bum but the possible romance he supposedly had going on went no where and was almost never brought up except in order to make it into a running gag with Chika. Chika, herself, has no change. The personality she tried to portray in the first episode gets destroyed very quickly and is never brought up again. Same with her crush that she fights Haruta over on a daily basis. The most Chika really gets is her desire to push herself so she can become a bigger part of the brass band club than what she started out as. Again, a rather cliche story line to go with, but never truly gets developed.
HaruChika ended up going from rather fun and emotional to ending at rather poor and rushed. Again, it could be the writers throwing their hands up into the air a long time ago, though it could also have something to do with the original source material the series is based off of. You can never truly tell with these kinds of things. The focus was not where it should have been, and that should have been the growth and development of the brass band club as they work towards their goals. While I can commend the series for trying something a little different and straying away from the norm, the end result was a rather piss poor job. This is by far one of the weakest series I've seen from P.A. Works, as they've been known to do a bit of a wash, rinse, and repeat situation with some of their properties. I ma y have made a mistake in keeping this series to keep rather than Divine Gate. Hell, it's possible to say I made a mistake in keeping both these series over Nurse Witch! ...............Yeah, no, I stand by that decision. Either way, it's not flat out terrible, but it did lose it's way and ended up crashing and burning so it's up to you if you do decide to give it a try.
Final Score: 4/10
KONOSUBA - God's blessing on this wonderful world!
Joe Straatmann
Those sneaky devils at Deen, forcing me to watch a "guy finds himself in an RPG-inspired world" show without knowing I was getting into one. This is normally a subgenre I do my best to avoid, mainly because it's so devoid of imagination and seeks to stroke the egos of its target audience. Oh, did I mention it's a light novel adaptation, too? Thankfully, the comedy Konosuba does not give its lead Kazuma an easy path to being a "legendary hero" or even sees him as a respectable person most of the time. Rather than being automatically declared wonderful, he dies thinking he was doing a noble act when he was really being a complete doofus. The goddess Aqua gives him the choice to live on in a world that strangely mimics a role-playing game complete with character sheets and stat upgrades. He agrees on the condition that he gets to drag Aqua with him. Living the life of a level one adventurer, they sleep in frozen horse dung, have trouble even slaying the most basic of slimes, and can only recruit the most ill-fitting party in Megumin, a mage who can cast some of the most destructive magic in the world once a day before collapsing, and Darkness, a masochist knight who couldn't hit the Great Wall of China. This is more like it.
Comedy is always a delicate chemistry of elements. Konosuba has the right bunch of lovable losers who find some bit of success, but never enough. Kazuma means well, and when he finds he has the ability to steal panties, it's an accident... the FIRST time. Megumin has a certain sweetness mixed with an incredible hard-on for power (A staff being a perfectly serviceable replacement for a penis). They can be a force to be reckoned with against the Devil King's generals just as much as they're capable of destroying the starter village they're stuck in by accident. They're nice company, even if they do tend to mash on certain traits. Oh, Darkness' love of crushing pain and verbal lacerations being directed at her does get mashed on plenty.
The plots are usually quests to get loot, raise levels, and generally get them to a better place than they were before. It's nothing too involved, but it doesn't have to be. Neither are the visuals, which echo the fantasy gaming look without being too on-the-nose with its reference. I will say they use transitions with the show's logo and the voice actors shouting the title a little too often, like it's a short based on a comic strip. Studio Deen also seems to have borrowed breasts physics from the Dead or Alive series as the signature animation of this project is the supporting female cast's bouncing boobies seemingly whenever they move.
Nevertheless, Konosuba is enjoyable otaku trash that neither worships its Mary Sue lead nor puts his head on a satirical spike. I'm glad it got picked up for a second season, as it's consistently fun and full of pleasure; guilty, innocent, and otherwise. It's smart enough to not have dirty thoughts on its mind all the time, but if succubi happened to have opened a shop in town, it'd be rude not to pay a visit....
Final Score: 7/10
Luck & Logic
Joe Straatmann
If there is a blessing and a curse to the breaks before the final seasonal reviews, it's that there is not a mandatory bi-weekly viewing of Luck and Logic. On the flip side, I had to struggle to catch up before writing this, and I assure you, it was a struggle. Strangely enough, Doga Kobo's effort to turn a card game into an anime isn't terrible on the surface. War in alternate universe Tetra-Heaven (Just go with it) has poured into Earth, and pairs of humans and gods make pacts with each other to combine into one entity briefly to take them down called Trancing. Enough stuff for a standard series that's just to the left.of normal to be intriguing. They even got the Kouichi Chigita, the director of Last Exile, on the project. All the pieces are there except for one of the most vital: A soul.
Even when we get to the main character, he's not all cliche. Instead of some young upstart who is special because the show says he is, Yoshichika is a veteran Logicalist who did a reckless thing in the line of duty which caused his Logic card, the source of his powers, to go missing (Logic is the ultimate building block of life and manipulating it can give you special abilities and blah blah blah). It just so happens the goddess Athena found Yoshichika's Logic card at Plot Convenience Beach and he agrees to getting back in the business of fighting alternate dimension gods known as Foreigners with the one wrinkle that Athena is his partner. Rather than a harem, this show is more like Kiddy Grade in that the Logicalists work in dyads. Again, this is all not bad per se, but the execution is rotten, making every moment have a sort of toxic mediocrity.
The lackadaisical tone is hard to portray without watching an episode or two, but I'll do my best. Despite the main character having a little bit different of a backstory, he IS every guy anime lead, and his sister stating the cliches he's doing along with his dad being an insatiable womanizer are only weak feints at distracting the audience from this. The monsters of the week have some interesting designs and I'm sure all have cool mythology, but you wouldn't know it in Luck and Logic where they often don't even speak or get any kind of backstory. There's one that tosses balls of minions or the undead or something, but it washes across the viewer as nothing that's supposed to impress or engage. There's a Logicalist named Olga Breakchild who is powerful and arrogant, yet doesn't have a god to call his own even as he talks crap to everyone else. Guess who eventually becomes the villain? And I wonder if he's going to team up with Lucifer, a powerful former angel kicked out of Tetra-Heaven who even has a similar character design. Every element feels like the people in charge shrugged, said, "Eh, whatever...." and waved it through. Let's put it this way: There's a scene where something escapes prison by feigning illness. We're at that level of imagination.
I wouldn't say nobody cared as that's a rude insinuation many critics make, but it didn't seem a high priority to make Luck and Logic the best project they could crank out. In one episode about the mentor of one of the team turning out to be a crazed experimenter using the other dimensional beings as his playthings, nothing is played right. The build-up isn't really there, the reveal is rushed, and even bizarre action beats like a truck being driven on an icy, round tower pipe don't scan. On another end of the series, the romance between Yoshichika and Athena is flat. Having a loving relationship between the two is a given from the beginning since Trance partners must recite oaths that sound like marriage. Curiously, they lack even an ounce of chemist, having the conflict within them such simple fiction snaffus as neglecting to say he loves or appreciates her, causing her to wander off. The supporting cast get their own mini-stories and have exactly a one-episode arc per person to which all of their issues are sorted out before their conversation goes back to being background noise. If it feels like I'm weaving in and out of points with no sense of importance, well, that's pretty much what the series does.
A shame, too. The music is surprisingly excellent, properly conveying the grandness of the battles and the plight within the Logicalists. The visuals have issues with trying to use bright green with ill-fitting neutrals as its main color scheme, yet have plenty of work put into the designs as well as functional animation. Whatever forgettable stories exist within Luck and Logic's 12-episode run, the final third has at least a decent amount of thought put into it. Olga's circumstances are predictable, but it is a convincing transformation through manipulation and Olga's own hubris. I wish the story continued with the villain being one of those heroes in their own mind whose plans are merely not normal, punished to his breaking point for the crime of being different. The series' averageness stops this in favor of a much more standard villain actions with all of the nice things he did being cold, calculated manipulations. It could've been so much more. Like everything else here, I suppose.
Final Score: 4/10
Myraid Colors: Phantom World
Danni Kristen
Leave it to KyoAni to adapt a shitty harem light novel and make me enjoy it. I went into this show expecting to want to drop it after a few episodes, but watching it every Wednesday easily became one of the highlights of my week. I'm also never recommending it to anyone. That's not to say I think it's bad, but it's just so purely anime.
Final Score: 7/10
Norn9: Norn + Nonet
Stephanie Getchell
As you may well known by now, I'm not much of a gaming person. Yes you can call me a casual if you want, I don't care. Gaming has never really been my thing. So whenever I go into a series that is an adaptation of a video game, nine times out of ten, I'm going in completely blind to it's original material. This happened with Danganronpa, it happened with Divine Gate this season, and it very much happened here with Norn9. The seems fairly easily to understand on the surface: a group of young adults with supernatural abilities try to keep the world from falling apart due to conflict. While doing so, they bond with each other, with some relationships becoming stronger than others. It's too bad they spent more time with those developing relationships that actually trying for a decent story.
As mentioned in a previous report, Norn9 is slightly unique in the otome game world because it's three female protagonists that you have to form three relationships for throughout the course of the game. Going into the anime series, you really only get to pick one guy for each girl to fall for. Now, Koharu and Nanami's respective relationships with Kakeru and Akito ended up on the right path, but it's Mikoto's relationship with Natsuhiko that causes a lot of glaring writing issues. I'm not sure if this was a thing in the game as well, however, when you give the impression that this relationship is going to be what is focused on in the series then you need to focus on it rather than just slightly toss it in during the final third. For Mikoto, it honestly would have made much more sense if they explored her relationship with Sakuya instead as that pairing gets even more screen time than the former. Not only would it make sense, but it wouldn't have made things a more sloppy then they ended up being as Mikoto seems to pick Natsuhiko just because his view on the world around him inspires her to. No hint of a romantic relationship occurs during the series; making the opening theme extremely misleading. But, then again, it's not like any of the relationships are well developed. Mikoto's is just the least developed out of the main three romances.
This essentially leads into the writing for the series. It's not all that good. What it wanted to be was a supernatural/action series with gifted young ones working together to save to world. Instead it opted to go with the more romance option. It's saddening too, because there are parts of the world that was created for this series that really did catch my attention; particularly the World itself. Parts of the mechanics of this world as well as the ship, Norn, seemed rather different compared to others series that use similar ideas and technology. Aion was among those as she is a machine, but also a rather intricate cog in this thing the series tries to make the bigger picture. The series does have a good amount going for it, but gets weighed down heavily by these lackluster romances that it tries to cook up; with the overall writing of the series just diving deeper and deeper into the pits of a dark ocean. If given the chance, it would have made a pretty decent Action/SciFi series. Just give the show better writing and give it less romance to screw around with and we'd have ourselves a winner!
While Norn9 ended up being the most tolerable of the series I was assigned this season, it was in no way the best. While it did try and be a little bit more innovative when it comes to the otome game adaptations, the writing didn't try to go above and beyond in order to try and keep the series from being too generic. It's still filled with the typical troupes and cliches we tend to see when series similar to this one tend to be made. The only difference is that it tries to be a romance series as well without really developing the relationships fully. There's quite a bit going on, however it's just never given the chance to really explore or develop the world and the characters that inhabit them. Again, it's not the worst series I've seen this season, but it is among the best of the series I was initially assigned at the start of the winter season. It's not one I'd want to go to right away, but it would an okay series to marathon just to revisit it much later down the line.
Final Score: 5/10
Phantasy Star Online 2: The Animation
Joe Straatmann
A huge plot twist separates the first half of this video game adaptation from the second, and it probably would've been for the best if it was the main concept from the get go. Few series have been abandoned so quickly after the first entry here where the main thrust of the story was literally the main character being taught how to play Phantasy Star Online 2. The rest of the first half is similarly an ad for the game (The school is even called Seiga Academy. Get it?) with bare-bones high school slice-of-life shenanigans doing little to make the infomercial compelling. Yet, if one can hang in there, it eventually becomes the science fiction adventure they promised in the first place with positive production values. That at the very least takes it off the fast track to the worst anime titles of the year list.
In the beginning, we have an exceptionally standard school tale about Itsuki, the average anime protagonist who even says he's absolutely average like the writers being self-aware of what they're doing means it gets a pass. He's immediately recruited to the student council by president Rina to play Phantasy Star Online 2 and type up sociological reports. For real, that is what part of my Crunchy Roll money is going towards. Rina's big plan is to give this data to the school administrators to keep them from banning PSO 2 due to lowered grades. Oh, it gets even more fascinating with the planning of the school festival, and Rina's insistence that they have an after-party despite everyone being against the idea. Now don't all of you hold in your excitement at once.
From here on out, we're diving into SPOILER territory for the one person who cares. Video games are real. The war with the Darkers isn't only a part of the hottest online sensation on the Seiga campus, but a small window into an intergalactic brawl with a real ARKS organization trying to stop them. I'm not sure how this works, whether it's all a simulation or not, as the writing only does the bare minimum of covering up the cracks. The Darkers find their way to the school's side of the galaxy transporting through the game and try to kidnap students to see if they can be the vessel for their ultimate being, Dark Farce... er, Falz (Sorry, old school Phantasy Star fan here). Due to Itsuki being so good at the game, his powers transfer into the real world, giving him a real-life MMORPG makeover needed to become an instant elite ARKS warrior.
It's self-insert pandering to the extreme, but I'm not lying when I say I kind of dig this part of it. It's exceptionally cheesy and square with a kind of goofy charm in its idiocy that doesn't work when it's attempting to persuade you PSO 2 is the bridge between all that troubles humanity in ways pyramid scheme dupes would roll their eyes at. For a self-insert character, Itsuki is an affable dolt who can't tell that when Rina grills him about what he does when he runs off with ARKS fighter/"foreign exchange student" Aika, she's really asking whether they're having relations. He's also the kind of moron who, despite being directly warned Dark Falz is trying to trick him and wandering into an obvious fake world, he waits until the illusion of Rina clearly gets red eyes before shaking her hand and getting trapped. His stupidity is kind of hilarious since he's supposed to the person the audience relates to.
Being fair, PSO 2 does get a few character beats intentionally right. Of the bad series I've had to watch this season, this at least has a metaphor that works. Rina became socially isolated after one incident where she played hide and go seek and nobody sought to find her even after the game was long over. The series actually loops back and follows up on this. Granted, in a predictable and bland fashion, but it's there. Plus, in an odd way, it likes its characters. You can kind of tell when people are going through the motions and just making something to get enough money to get what they REALLY want done. There's not really that feeling here. Everything's simple and stereotypical, but the voice actors play through it like pros and everyone on the production does what they can to make you care even with the obvious boat anchor that half the series is a sales pitch.
Animation here is a weird addition by subtraction. The scenes with above-average animation and plenty of activity are doled out in 50-calorie bites, being enough to know they're tasty, yet not nearly enough to satisfy the anime hunger. At one point, this tries to be Macross with an ARKS warrior who's also a pop idol pumping up the troops for the final battle. I imagine this doesn't even have a fifth of Macross Frontier's budget, so the scene ends after about a minute. The music has similar points of briefly chiming it with its optimistic waves where it feels like Itsuki should be bobbing his head around happily while walking across campus. The score never realized 90's anime eventually ended, but it fits with the somewhat innocuous tone and steps up to half-an-orchestra whenever the flow leads into battles, online or not.
I laughed at its wide-eyed dumbness, which is a better reaction than I had with most of the other series this year. I wanted to talk about how silly it gets when the student festival plot is given far more attention and reverence than the threat to devour the universe in a time when I didn't want to talk about any of the other garbage I got this season. It's bad, but it's occasionally a fun kind of bad. How blatant of an advertisement tool it is keeps me from any kind of recommendation, but a few years down the road, I could see people making a few wisecracks the way Mystery Science Theater 3000 episode Radar Secret Service made fun of how amazing people thought radar was going to be. This series only stops short of saying Phantasy Star Online 2 can cure medical illness, after all. It's the most obviously bad series of the season, but that doesn't make it the worst.
Final Score: 5/10
Prince of Stride: Alternative
Danni Kristen
I was honestly dreading reviewing this show a little. It by no means looked terrible, and Madhouse has a good reputation when it comes to shows they produce, but I was still not looking forward to this one at all. It has fanservice material written all over it, and not the kind I like. I always get pretty salty whenever bishie guys taking off their shirts and being ambiguously gay is labeled as fanservice for girls. I'm a lesbian. I'll take the big boobs and dumb skimpy outfits any day. Regardless, I got the generic bishie sports show to review, and it was...watchable.
There really isn't anything in particular that makes Prince of Stride stand out above all the other sports shows out there. All the typical archetypes are here, as are all the typical plot trappings of a sports show. The only thing that really seemed to be missing was a wealth of fanservice. There were very few moments of stripping among the boys. The camera never lingered on their bodies, and even if it had there wouldn't have been much to show. They weren't drawn near as muscled as the character models in the likes of Free! are. It felt like a show built for people that just really love sports shows and the ambiguously gay boys in all of them. It never sold itself well on production values, either. While it had a nice, consistent style, they never really did much with the animation. It just doesn't compare well against Madhouse's better offerings, especially following the season of sakuga porn they gave us with One Punch Man. There was only one scene where the animated lighting really impressed me. Two characters stood on a sidewalk at night as cars drove by. As each car drove by, the lights and shadows on their faces shifted. It added depth and weight to the scene. It drew me into the emotions being expressed by the characters. Then at the very end of the scene instead of animating a character walking, they simply dragged his model a little. It felt cheap and immediately undermined the impressive sequence from before. Though most of the show is suitable animation, that one scene sticks out in my mind due to how quickly it went from impressive to disappointing.
I also noticed frequent instances of bad technique in Prince of Stride that went unmentioned. I suppose that's kind of a nitpick that comes from having participated in a fitness club for awhile, but it still bothered me. Every time these talented and experienced runners doubled over for breath after a sprint I wanted to yell at them to stand up straight. At one point, one character collapses on the ground after a sprint. Another runner tells him, while doubled over, that he can't catch his breath that way. That one really got on my nerves. You're not supposed to bend over to catch your breath either. You want to stand up straight and put your hands on your head. It opens up your lungs more and makes it easier to breathe. They also all caught their breath through their mouths, but that can lead to cramps. You need to take deep breaths through your nose when you're out of breath. Call that nitpicking if you want. For the most part, I enjoyed Prince of Stride. It was watchable, and kind of cute. I loved a lot of the character designs, especially of opposing schools. If I hadn't been assigned this show to review, though, I definitely wouldn't have watched it. Let me know when we get a sports show about cute girls instead of cute boys.
Final Score: 6/10
Schwarzes Marken
Joe Straatmann
There is a very fine line between decent melodrama and bad soap opera. The key is the people involved have to feel like they're in a human-driven drama and not parts of an emotional manipulation machine executing a program. Schwarzes Marken sure has plenty of characters with tragic backstories trying to survive alternate 1983 East Germany in the midst of an alien invasion, but it's played more like they're Sims and their god wants them to suffer. I just watched the first episode of Final Fantasy XV Brotherhood, and the fact that Noct takes the lettuce off his cheeseburger is by itself a greater character detail than we ever get here. Their issues don't have any impact as they as they're the only defining factors of the cast, lacking any sense of empathy except in emotional blackmail (Of course a woman who is prostituted and brainwashed by the secret police on an extremely loaded promise garners sympathy, but that shouldn't be one of three traits to the whole person). This is a manga adaptation and a fairly loyal one from what I understand, so it's perhaps a bit unfair to put this all on the anime. The people who make anime still have to pick good material, though.
Much artistic license is given to this era of intense government surveillance behind the iron curtain. Obviously, the hordes of aliens that resemble testicles with faces aren't historically accurate, nor are the jets from the era that are now mechs with plane wings on the side (Would've made Top Gun a very different movie, that's for sure). This is simply background to a story that exists to repeat how much East Germany's government sucks over and over. Main character Theodor is a member of the 666th Schwarzes Marken squadron, East Germany's best MiG pilots who has survived having most of his family killed trying to escape to the west and being tortured profusely before being forced into military service. Other squadron members include Irisdina, a woman who was had to kill her brother to live, her reputation permanently blemished with the nickname "dog of the Stasi" as a result. The newest member Katia was brought in from the West and seeks to figure out the history of her father, an Eastern German hero who has since had his name redacted from the history books. I would love to talk about these people's interests or their defining characteristics, but these ARE their defining characteristics other than they can still secretly stand up against the Stasi. It's not nothing, but it certainly comes off as manipulative.
The aliens are the key to understanding just how underdeveloped the whole concept is. Where do they come from? Out there. Why do they want to destroy humanity and take over the Earth? Nobody knows. What are their numbers and where are their strongholds? It changes depending on what the plot requires them to do. They are the main conflict and aren't really that important until the story decides they are. The final episode has the BETA (The name for the aliens) overrunning the fort in front of Berlin, and then cuts away for about 20 minutes before it ever gets back to the "pressing" matter at hand. Yeah, there's this huge internal struggle for the fate of the Eastern Germany government, underlining a tired trope of how much more cruel mankind is to itself than a threat that seems to only exist to annihilate humanity. It's still weird they how much the aliens don't matter. The BETA are of course a deadly threat at the beginning because they have to be established as the ultimate villains. Afterwards, if the operation to take out the aliens' horrific laser array goes well, they fall almost as easily as opposing Dynasty Warriors armies. I actually like the detail about lasers being so oppressively powerful. It's a very eighties idea lasers were going to become these unholy and unstoppable weapons until Reagan's Star Wars program became one of the most infamous government blunders in history, and it's a neat inclusion. If only we got anything but the vaguest look as this laser array, or a look at battles in general besides mechs occasionally cruising in and slashing stuff. There's a scene where tens of thousands of BETA are napalmed and it looks like a blank strip of land being roasted for no reason.
At a turning point, Irisdina has the line,"You see bonds between siblings and family as mere tools." I would argue this is how Schwarzes Marken views its cast. I was almost hopeful when Theodor is on a secret mission in Berlin with fellow soldier Gretel where they have a night on the town in the middle of it and they exchange some mutual affection surprising even to themselves. It was unexpected and human rather than the trumped-up Greek tragedy making up the rest of the plot. Little did I know this was all part of the plan. You see, Gretel is a small supporting character whose two traits is she has glasses and totally believes in the socialist state. With no murder, torture, or suffering on her resume, she has to have something to make the viewer care when she's put through the bloody paces. The last third of the anime is almost all people dying as tediously as possible. I mean, how else was it supposed to turn out aside from the one ray of hope? There are attempts at playing with gray areas when factions of the Stasi splinter off and the 666th has to ally with one of them to survive, but these are characters with crimson hair or glowing red eyes. Gee, I wonder if a guy named Axmann will turn out to be redeemable later....
The elements for a real cracker of a series are instead made as drab as Eastern Bloc architecture thanks to an overwhelming need to promote suffering above all else amidst a hopeful message of human will. Just like parents smoking weed in a sitcom will produce dull results, so does endlessly tormenting your characters in a drama. The mech fights are serviceable and the music fills in some gaps in emotion (Especially when they break out some oboe solos. Oboe player should be the main character here, let's face it), Alas, what it manages to accomplish is dashed by being too paper thin while ratcheting up the melodrama past excessive levels to compensate. An interesting concept not done any favors by going for easy tears.
Final Score: 4/10
Shouwa Genroku Rakugo Shinju
Danni Kristen
Every now and then a show comes along that just immediately deserves to become a classic. Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju is one of those shows. From beginning to end this show demonstrated a wealth of masterful talent behind it. The best part is that it isn't even over yet. Season two is on its way later this year. It's first half was a beautiful, tragic tale about two brothers and their dedication to a dying art. Virtually the entire season was one long backstory setting up for next season's story about the one surviving brother passing on the rakugo torch to the next generation of performers. It might sound odd and unnecessary to dedicate an entire season to backstory, but it was well worth it. It was a beautiful story that deserved every moment dedicated to telling it. More than anything I'm surprised that the show didn't conclude at the end of this season. The backstory could really have just been the whole story and I would have been satisfied. Nevertheless, I'm thrilled that there's more left in this story to tell. This show has me hooked.
I've been reviewing shows for Infinite Rainy Day for a full year now. I put a lot of thought and care into the screenshots I choose for my posts. I try my best to choose the one single frame that can best demonstrate what the show is and what it is selling. Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju has been the hardest show to choose screenshots for. Each and every episode is simply loaded with single frames that carry tons of depth and weight to them. This was a beautifully composed show that told so much story without even saying a thing. The animation is this show was rather limited, but it was bursting with expressiveness in its imagery. The thoughts and emotions of characters were easily readable without veering anywhere towards exaggerated. Lighting shifted to match the tone set by the conversation. Camera angles and perspectives helped visually represent each character's inner conflicts and feelings. The scenery sold every scene and at times even provided morbid symbolism. All of it was supported by a beautiful soundtrack reflective of the time this period piece was set in. Top it off with a fantastic vocal performance from the whole cast and Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju is one of the most impressive shows of the past few years.
If you don't know what rakugo is, or if you do but aren't sure it's your kind of thing, I still highly recommend this show. I went into it knowing nothing about what rakugo was. The show never really bothers to outright explain the craft to newcomers, and I'm glad it never did. I found its rules and traditions simple to pick up on, and I appreciated the trust placed in the viewer on the show's part. Rakugo is a dying art in Japan, especially among younger audiences, so the typical anime demographic likely knows nothing about or has no interest in rakugo. Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju treated the art form it pays tribute to with dignity and respect. This kind of dedication helped create a newfound appreciation for rakugo inside of me. Even if you're unfamiliar with the art form, the story around it is easy to recognize and relate to. At its core, Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju is a story about art and why we suffer for it. It's about the joy and fulfillment in creation and appreciation. It's also about the artists we look up to and how they drive us to become better artists ourselves. This is a beautiful show, and it deserves your full attention.
Final Score: 10/10
Undefeated Bahamut Chronicle
Jonathan Kaharl
To the surprise of literally no one, this is a bad show. Like, really bad. And like all light novel shows, the most frustrating part is that I can see a really good story trapped between all the expository dialog, self-insertion masturbation, overly complicated political bullcrap, and idiotic understanding of character definition. This time around, the good ideas crawling in the muck are mainly two characters, and elements of a few others. In the hands of someone who doesn't fall into bad fantasy writing traps, I could actually see this series being good. But, you know, everyone starts somewhere, and for some insane reason, people who start in light novels become bizarrely popular and get anime based on poor works, so I got to be that one guy in the workshop.
The premise of this stupid light novel show is that the wussy prince of a dead empire joins an all girls knight academy by complete accident and is actually super badass because he has a powerful robot suit that destroyed his old country's entire army because otaku have to feel like they're super special. As usual, a harem forms of five girls, and some poorly explained or downright boring political stuff happens. We also get all the usual tropes, including the gay girl who's not actually gay, use of sexual assault threats for the sake of drama, making the lead heroine a pathetic joke, girls forcing the effeminate guy to crossdress, cartoonishly evil minor villain built up to be a big deal but is actually the most nonthreatening character in the whole series, and so forth. This is an explosion of bad cliches, but there's some good ideas mixed in there.
Making the main character Lux physically the weakest character isn't common for this genre, and it could have been an interesting twist on his otherwise tired archetype. Lisha ends up being an obnoxious tsundere with a shocking lack of understanding to sexuality, but her back story has a good parallel to Lux that could have resulted in something more interesting with a writer who relies on tired tropes less. Yoruka, the last girl in the harem, also has good ideas in her back story, like being trained from birth to be a killer and her bizarre honor code, and Celistia could have been a great team leader if the show would stop trying to masturbate the viewers egos every five seconds. The basis for good characters are all here. The problem is that the writer believes contradictions are what make a character (Lisha acts mighty but is an emotionally confused girl, Celistia's idiotic "I'M NOT ACTUALLY A MAN HATER I LOVE MEN" thing, ect), and the cast almost never grow beyond the contradictions. Lux may be the worst example, as his entire thing is that he's still traditionally masculine in battle because he can easily overpower his foes and always saves the girls, who usually end up being useless or side characters in their own stories. It's a gross misstep, especially for his usual characterization.
The story is also a complete mess. The series is divided into multiple arcs that each focus on a different girl, all adding together into a greater whole with a conspiracy plot involving Lux's old kingdom trying to stage a rebellion and Lux trying to make the new kingdom work from the inside. That actual plot, however, leads nowhere interesting, constantly teasing of a much more interesting story involving human experimentation that never comes to pass. The presence of the ancient ruins and monsters in them add nothing to the story outside a single arc, just creating the means for monster of the arc stories. All the villains are one note and boring from the world go, and not a single one ever feels like a threat. Production does not help, with lame CG battles where cluttered messes of mech suits smash against other mech suits and poorly textured monsters. I like the character designs in general, but no one design sticks out besides that of Phi. Backgrounds are dull and lifeless, and music fails to really stand out in any way. It's all such forgettable muck.
There are only two characters in this show that actually work and have any sort of depth. The first is Krulcifer (yes, that is really her name), a princess from another country trying to earn her freedom as she struggles with her past. Unlike the rest of the cast, she's something born from the ruins, and she actually grows a solid relationship with Lux, being able to know exactly what will help the team most in dire situations and able to converse with Lux on a higher level than anyone else. When it seems like the show is going to make her another Lisha, she just becomes more socially dominating. She's not a complex character, but she ends up remaining likable and keeps her agency.
Then there's Phi, Lux's childhood friend and the character who should have been the lead. Phi is part of a noble family from the old kingdom and an old friend of Lux, and we get to see how that relationship formed and why she's so attached to him, and it actually makes sense. She's likable very quickly because she's too busy yawning or eating to care about the bad jokes during the show's lighter moments, and she gets a lot of great deadpan lines. But her story ends up being the only one that truly works, the product of human experimentation that stunted her emotional growth and reducing her to a minion for the villains. She was supposed to kill Lux, but she kept resisting the power the villains had over her because she genuinely cared so much for him, and she's the only one who truly seems to understand Lux instead of simply be infatuated with him. Phi's entire situation is far more interesting than any other character, and her personality is very refreshing in a cast filled with blushing teenagers who mainly wonder if Lux likes them or not. She's also the most openly heroic and selfless, willing to sacrifice herself for the sake of others without a moment's notice.
But despite Phi's surprisingly well handled character, the show can't be saved from the sheer magnitude of failures and flaws everywhere else. At its best, the show is mildly entertaining. At its worst, it's offensive, sexist, and downright xenophobic. It plays everything too safe and lacks an identity for itself that isn't build on poor handling of good ideas, while also using every tired otaku garbage cliche in the book. As far as bad light novel shows go, this is no Magical Warfare, but it's pretty damn bad. If it wasn't for Dimension W being so aggressively gross, Bahamut would have been on my shit list a long time ago.
Final Score: 3/10
Shorts
Ojisan and Marshmallow
Stephanie Getchell
I've gone back an forth with Ojisan since the very beginning, and it's hard to tell how I feel about it now at the end. Yes, the premise is really simple to understand and follow and, yes, there are some entertaining moments written in. The main problem that I've had up through to now is that it just can be rather dull. The story and characters are amusing in and of itself, however this little series just isn't the kind that can truly capture my attention. It's fairly similar to Rainy Cocoa in that regard. The simplicity makes it good, but the fact that it's also a short doesn't do much in the way of the story telling. But what Ojisan at least does a little better than Rainy Cocoa is that it's characters are more enjoyable since we don't have a lot in the way of development; giving more room to have fun with the scenarios the series gives them. While simple and easy to get through, Ojisan is one that I wouldn't be thrilled to go back to rather quickly. It was a fun little series, to say the least, but I'm just glad I can go back to Kagewani next season!
Final Score: 6/10
Ooya-san wa Shishunki!
David O'Neil
It's difficult to argue Ooya-san wa Shinsuki wasted my time. Even by anime shorts standards the episodes flew by, they're briskly paced, never get boring, and chocked full of jokes and energy. It's also well animated, with tons of lively character action animation, nice character designs, and bright colors making the show visually appealing. And at times it is quite fun, with some genuinely funny jokes and entertaining situations here and there that made the show feel at least somewhat worth watching. It's too bad the show comes with the baggage of having some uncomfortable, shadey intentions. After all, I have trouble fully recommending a show about a middle-school girl that manages to have an episode about her going to a bath house, her going to buy bras, and her going to try on cute-sy outfits all in a pretty short span of time. As far as this sort of fanservice goes, Ooya-san wa Shinsuki is fairly tame and never goes any farther than playing up her cuteness and some distasteful bust size jokes (thank god they didn't follow up on the implications of romance between her and the adult male protagonist like I was worried) but for many people even this sort of low key subtext will come off as a bit too questionable. But for those who can overlook that, and enjoy it as cute moe fluff, it's a decently put together time waster, that's even polite enough to not waste all that much of your time.
Final Score: 5/10
Please tell me! Galko-chan
Jonathan Kaharl
I've written about this one in far more detail on my main blog, but the gist is that Galko-chan is very human, and that is where it gets its strength. It's a lewd comedy, yes, but with gags and jokes based around common puberty thoughts, and it isn't a product of the usual otaku trash. Really, the entire series is filled with relatable characters of all body types and backgrounds, and they're all almost instantly endearing. Galko herself is probably the strongest character in how she acts the way she does to express herself, and she certainly doesn't embody her surface stereotype. That's not just joke fuel either, it's the source of a bit of character drama in places, and it really works.
I'm so glad a show like this exists for girls hitting puberty, and I'm so glad it exists for the rest of us to enjoy. I've never really seen a series like Galko-chan anywhere, and we need more stuff like it right now.
Final Score: 9/10
Sekkou Boys
Joe Straatmann
My first impression would end up being my final impression of Sekkou Boys. It's a show about how goofy it would be if classical statues were pop stars, and... that's about it. The first episode was endlessly setting up the lead character Miki as an art school graduate forced to turn into a idol manager with an obvious payoff. What improved as it went along was the detail they put into the concept. The statues have to be hooked into baby seats or put on a roller when they're transported. The personalities are of the people they were based on, fictional or otherwise, so we have the god of war Mars, St. George, Hermes, and a younger Medici placed in the modern world. Eventually, it starts to poke fun at the music world with such instances as a scandal when one of "The Rockies" gets caught at another pop star's apartment as she shows him her insect collection. Then... it sort of peters out.
Maybe the problem is the last third had to have an overarching story to finish everything. This is the sort of show where the more grounded to a standard plot line and reality it is, the less interesting and funny it can be. I liked it better when the Rockies randomly had drinks and the show didn't have to underline the ridiculousness by giving them meta remarks late in the game. The final episodes start with the idea that the group got hipster famous by everyone loving their music ironically, eventually leading to a forced divide between Miki and the boys, and finally a kidnapping. Sekkou Boys doesn't so much reach a conclusion as wander into it. But if you need a light comedy with a slightly out-there premise, it's likable enough even as it leans on that premise too much.
Final Score: 6/10
Sushi Police
Danni Kristen
This season's collection of shorts included a few based on concepts that sounded stupidly fun on paper, but completely flopped in execution. Sushi Police is one of those shorts. The idea to revolve a show around a team of Japanese salarymen who travel the world punishing those who make inauthentic sushi was so stupid it should've been funny. I thought it would be funny. It wasn't funny. It was just hard to watch. After spending all season trying to figure out just what made me hate the show so much, I think I finally know. The main characters suck. Nothing in the show made me like them. They were never kind, lovable or sympathetic. All they did was travel the world wrecking people's lives over sushi. I just felt bad for the people they attacked. Even when they started fighting for the Free Sushi movement it was only because their boss had tried to kill them. None of the jokes or funny absurdity of the situations landed because I just hated everyone on screen. Also, that animation was ugly as hell. Don't watch Sushi Police.
Final Score: 2/10
Second Opinions
BBK/BRNK
David: Usually I tend to aversive towards fully CG anime that mimics 2D animation because it's very difficult to get right. I've seen plenty of shows only copy more 2D-minded art-styles in the most shallow sense, making it come off as an awkward, hollow imitation of something else. That's why I was so impressed by BBK/BRNK, which manages to use techniques from smears, to effects animation, to morphing of characters, with proficiency I've never seen in TV anime. While it on occasion relies a bit too much on still characters, when they move it looks excellent, integrating Gainax/Trigger-esque sensibilities into their own CG style in a way that blends remarkably well. In addition, it has some absolutely gorgeous backgrounds, which are a treat to look at even on their own. And even beyond the visuals, the show is just a lot of fun. It does suffer from relentlessly quick pacing, jumping from action scene to action scene, barely ever taking a breath for character or world building. Luckily though, the action is incredibly entertaining, and it even manages to work in some legitimately strong character moments in from time to time. First Cour Score: 7/10
Dimension W
Stephanie: Dimension W was the series that was extremely hyped this season. It was to be the big action/SciFi series that would even boast an american licensing company to help produce an anime series seeing as how, for some reason, people still tend to confuse a licensing company with being the actual animation studio; but I digress. For what it's worth, the series started out rather well and lived up to that hype. The problem, however, is that it caved in on itself as it went along. By the fourth episode on, the series began to rush and jump over certain plot points that could have made the story much more interesting. I'm not sure if it's a problem with the amount of manga chapters that was adapted or the fact that the studio was only able to make 12 episodes, but, by the end of the series, I felt rather disappointed in Dimension W. When series are overly hyped, liked this one was, I either try and keep thinking objectively or just steer clear from the series period. Sadly, I fell for the hype on this one and got a rather saddening result. As for the broadcast dub that is currently airing on Toonami (I've only gotten to see four episodes as of writing this because no cable plus three week streaming delay equals thanks FUNimation), I've heard better work from much of the voice talent involved; Christopher Sabat especially. All in all, it's not a terrible show, just rather average; and one I wished didn't decide to rush itself in the end. Final Score: 5/10
ERASED
Danni: This show started off extremely promising, but just kind of limped across the finish line. Not only did the quality of the production fluctuate throughout the series, but also the direction the story took. On one hand there was a touching story about isolation and abuse with Hinazuki at the center and on the other there was a cheesy and predictable thriller about catching a serial killer. It's not a bad show by a wide margin, but it's disappointing that what could have been a memorable favorite became bogged down by genre trappings. Final Score: 7/10
Joe: This takes me back to Frequency, a movie you might not remember. It was a reasonable hit in the early 2000s, starring Dennis Quaid and Jim Caviezel as a father and son who talk across time via an old radio and attempt to repair events that led to a broken, empty household. The father and son bonding worked extremely well, but the critics had trouble with the climax involving a serial killer that was too Hollywood and had too many of those time travel movie plot holes. Even the director realized the ending didn't make sense and tried to fix it, but was stopped by suits when positive reactions went through the roof with test audiences. This brings us to Erased, an occasionally wonderful anime about a failed manga artist whose consciousness travels back to his boyhood in 1988 to solve a series of murders that leads up to him being framed for the death of his mother. As a person who is around the age of the protagonist, this hit me in all the right spots as far as dealing with the disappointments in life and wanting to fix key events that led to the now (I was supposed to be a best-selling novelist by now, but adult ADHD affecting my communication abilities stole years of potential before I got it under control). The characterization is rich and realistic, truly feeling like life in 1988 right down to random conversations about Dragon Quest/Warrior. Of course, then the serial killer shows up, and it's a very Hollywood villain following the rules of the economy of characters (The one who did it is the one that wanders around the story with seemingly the least to do with it that's not the red herring). This was too unnatural and ruined the perfect little harmony of arthouse and crowd pleaser for some. It didn't really for me. It was always wish fulfillment as extremely well written and trimmed with visual metaphor as it is, and killer or not, Erased does go back to what makes it so touching. It's that payoff that matters. I'll see all of you twenty-something anime fans in ten years and we can watch it again and see how you feel about it. I get the feeling the majority will be much more positive towards it. Final Score: 8/10
Stephanie: From the beginning, Erased was one of the strongest series from the winter season. I enjoyed the story, characters, and some of the darker content we encounter such as the abuse that Hinazuki goes through as well as a variety of other things. What keeps this series from being the best of the season is, aside from Shouwa Genroku existing, is the slight inconsistency the series does have with parts of it's story. Also, having a rather predictable villain doesn't help too much either, but what they did in order to portray his motives was intriguing; albeit really odd. As a mystery series, there is plenty of story to keep me going for long periods of time; while adding the time leaping element makes it something rather unique. To be fair, Steins;Gate does do something similar so this isn't the first time mystery and time travel have mixed together, but Erased just does enough to give it's own spin. It's certainly one of the best of the season even with some of the slight pacing problems. But, once again, it may also be my love of mystery talking as well. Final Score: 8/10
Grimgar of Fantasy and Ash
Stephanie: To be completely honest, I had no interest in Grimgar at the beginning of the winter season. The words Fire Emblem were the major factor that played into that reason, because I'm not much of a video gamer person and have never played Fire Emblem. After hearing good things about the first episode, I gave it a spin. I'm honestly glad I did! This series is not only visually stunning (for the most part), it has a very intense and emotional story that manages to drag you in, kicking and screaming. And I say kicking and screaming due to certain events that occur early on. What seems to appear as an MMORPG type of series similar to Sword Art Online and Log Horizon turns into something different entirely; sticking with the more fantastical elements and just adding a touch of game mechanics we would normally see. The only big problem I have with the series would be that it did lose the initial premise rather quickly and is never address much or explained in detail as to how these teenagers ended up in the world of Grimgar. While Haruhiro's monologue during the end credits of the final episode do elevate some of those concerns, it also can feel like it was half assed, using the excuse of "oh we just kinda forgot about the whole why we're here thing" as a bit of a cop out. But this does leave the possibility of another season, depending on how well this one was received. I'd be more than willing to watch a second season if it was made! Final Score: 9/10
Myraid Colors: Phantom World
Jonathan: This was my favorite thing to watch this season. Yeah, I know. KyoAni's high production standards and the fantastic art direction played a huge part in that, as did all the fun characters and creative episode premises. It's all stuff we've seen from other episodic series, but the whole phantom concept allows all the ideas presented to go farther in really entertaining ways (like everyone becoming cat people and making cat puns). I hope we get another season with anime original content, because the novels get laughably stupid from here. Few shows made me smile as much as this one this season. Final Score: 7/10
Ojisan and Marshmallow
Danni: The joke in this show is that Paul Blart likes marshmallows and the girl desperately wants him to taste her marshmallows. It was never really funny. The only real reason I came back to it every week is because Paul Blart's voice actor starts showing up at the end and he looks like Guy Fieri. Final Score: 3/10
Please tell me! Galko-chan
Danni: This one is definitely a personal favorite of mine, now. It's really nothing more than a series of friendly conversations about sex and the body, but it's got so much heart behind it. The conversations are easy to relate to. Everyone has questions about things like these as a teenager. Why do I have large areolas? Is having ass hair normal? What do boobs feel like? Adolescence is a very sexually curious and frustrating part of a person's life, and there aren't many resources out there that help with it. Please Tell Me! Galko-chan is a cute show full of lovable characters asking the things we all asked at some point, and I adore it. Final Score: 9/10
Prince of Stride: Alternative
Stephanie: This just in, I have become sports anime trash! It's funny how much my opinion can change with just a few different shows. In Stride's case, while it did stick with a wide amount of sports anime troupes, it didn't have to overdo itself or take it too far. Let's face it, there are some extremes in sports anime, with Free! being one of the more recent ones in memory that did go a little too far at times. Stride falls a bit more in line with how I feel about Haikyuu; it's a good show and does a pretty decent job at giving a ton of characters the right amount of screen time in order to compete against or sometimes encourage our main team. While I do feel that Haikyuu has more of an ensemble cast to it, Stride does have three leads we end up focusing on in Riku, Takeru, and Nana. There are some pieces in the story that could use a bit more development, and I very much wished that Ayumu was given much more to do aside from being the nerd with a heart of gold. However, for what the series is, Prince of Stride is a ton of fun! It's the kind of series I can sit back, relax, and enjoy what comes out of it even if we've seen the same plot points a million times. Believe me, I'm going to be going back to this series really soon. I've still gotta finish the broadcast dub, after all! Final Score: 7/10
Sekkou Boys
Danni: I wonder how long it was after someone's idea about an idol show starring statues got greenlit that the creators realized they actually had to make a full series about it. It's one of those concepts that's hilarious and awesome when first thought up but falls apart once it has to be expanded. After the initial hilarity of the revelation these statues were going to be idols, the show didn't really know what to do next. From there it just kind of became a regular idol show. Then it had to somehow end, so they just threw a bunch of shit at the wall in hopes something would stick. In the end, nothing did. Final Score: 4/10
Jonathan: One of the stupidest premises I've ever seen and I love it. The brilliance here is that the simple absurdity of statues being idols gives away to a mess of entertainment industry gags and humor, which are only enhanced by that constant absurd element at play. The characters also have a lot of life and bounce off each other well, despite most of then never being animated. Please remember Sekkou Boys. Final Score: 7/10
Shouwa Genroku Rakugo Shinju
Jonathan: Why aren't you watching this!? While I'll have to finish later because of scheduling problems, everything I've seen has been absolutely fantastic. It's a character drama that perfectly captures what it means to be an artist, encapsulating a dying art and why it was so beloved. It also paints a beautiful tragedy of a story between two rivals in the medium, with an incredible script and fantastic direction. Every performance sucks you in, and the entire voice cast is just incredible. I cannot say enough good things. Six Episodes: 10/10
Stephanie: Like Erased, Rakugo was one of the strongest series of the season and remained one of the strongest till the end of the first season. While the story of Kikuhiko and Sukeroku seemed to drag on longer than it really needed to, it did create such a strong relationship and story that will more than likely play a big role in the next season since Kikuhiko's apprentice, Yotaro, is becoming more and more like his friend every day; with the final scene in the cemetery being the largest moment. And, while some people may find the five minute rakugo stories drawn out and a waste of episode time, I was captivated by each and every one! Not just because I have an arts degree with theatre in mind, but because of the stories themselves and how they were performed by these storytellers just had me hang on their every word. Since this first cour had Kikuhiko's past as the main story line, and now that we finished that arc, it will be a little tough to figure out what will happen from here and into the second season that is set to come out, hopefully, in the near future. Regardless, Rakugo was the strongest series of the season on all fronts and is one that has an early lead for the best series of 2016. Final Score: 9/10
Staff Picks
She and Her Cat -Everything Flows-
Danni Kristen
Just a few years ago, I'd come to terms with the idea that I was never going to get another season of Durarara, yet here I am now reviewing the final arc of the final season. It was a long way coming, and there were some bumps along the way. Long time readers will likely recall I wasn't exactly enthusiastic about Durarara x2 Shou, the first cour in this three part sequel. Luckily, as it went on the series got into the swing of things both in terms of its narrative and production. The show's final arc, Durarara x2 Ketsu, certainly had some rough spots, but as a whole it was a consistently entertaining and wholly satisfying conclusion to the saga that for so long felt incomplete.
As always with Durarara, Ketsu's greatest strength was the characters. Not many new players are thrown into the mix this time around, instead focusing on bringing all the most significant ones to the pinnacle of their character arcs. I wouldn't call this the strongest Durarara has ever been in how it handles character exploration, partially just because it had so many characters at this point, and so much to focus on over such a brief period of time, that certain characters were spread thin. But the characters who got the most screen time, Celty, Shinra, Izaya, and Mikado especially, got a ton of great moments and some wonderful development for them as characters. And really, it was just a blast to see the huge cast and their interlocking stories finally culminate in one place. After all, even the characters who get less depth to them this time around are still a ton of fun to watch. The show's sense of humor and crazy tone are in full force here, and it makes sure the climax is crazy, exciting, and fun as hell. It ties up most of the plot threads, and unanswered questions nicely, and left me feeling like the series was finally complete.
That isn't to say the season didn't have its share of issues. While its far beyond the disaster that was x2 Shou, this arc does have a few visual hiccups, and less than great looking episodes. Another issue people may have, is that on more than a few occasions I've heard complaints that Durarara is "just too complicated", which is a reasonable sentiment. And in this arc, things get more jumbled, unclear, and convoluted than ever. On a normal basis characters would show up who I couldn't even remember who they were working for and why. Multiple times throughout the season characters straight up say "WOW THIS IS GETTING WAY TOO COMPLICATED", as if the writers themselves knew just how much of a mess they'd written themselves into. Now, I've always personally been fine with this part of Durarara. I just block out all the alliances, and yakuza subplots, and overlapping threads, instead focusing on the characters, their interactions, and their development throughout the story. As someone who puts individual characters above the overall narrative, that's fine for me, but for those who actually want to understand what's happening in the grand scheme of things, this last arc is the worst yet in that aspect. But still, if you can get past that, and simply enjoy watching the arcs of all these likable, interesting characters finally come to a satisfying conclusion, Durarara x2 Ketsu is absolutely worth watching.
Final Score: 7/10
KONOSUBA - God's blessing on this wonderful world!
Jonathan Kaharl
Deen just completely owned this season. I can't believe I just wrote that either. But it's true; Rakugo is seriously one of the best constructed anime I have seen in my entire life, but it's not quite the one that really stuck out to me. No, that would be Konosuba, or as I like to call it, It's Always Sunny in MMO World. This one caught me completely off guard. I was expecting nothing from the promo art or description, just another generic light novel show about a game world. The first few minutes of episode one dashed that instantly, by presenting us with two genuinely detestable people as our main characters, one a pathetic otaku cumstain, and the other a stuck-up goddess that likes to laugh at people at their lowest. Things only continued this direction as I saw the other two leads, a perverted crusader that puts sexual torture fantasy over the mission and tiny chuunibyou mage that can only cast a single massive explosion once a day (and it gets her off to boot). See, Konosuba is a comedy about four of the most worthless people who have ever existed, themselves the cause of their great miseries and misfortunes, and they end up stuck together as low level grunts in a fantasy world and trying to make it day by day as karma keeps stepping in to keep them humble.
I love comedies about garbage people, and Konosuba serves up some A-class garbage people. It's all the funnier because everyone around them is a walking light novel cliche, so seeing these miserable, terrible losers interact with these types is instantly a treat. Hate that obnoxious super perfect lead guy who constantly has things go his way and a growing harem? Why not watch him show up obsessed with a goddess who doesn't even remember him, and then watch him get knocked out by a living sperm rag of a human being with his own super sword, and THEN come back groveling to find out his sword was pawned off? It's a thing of beauty. But it doesn't beat an average day in the life with these sad sacks, from tossing their caged goddess party member Aqua into a monster croc infested pond to act as magical chlorine, to the otaku Kazuma and chuunibyou Megumin having arguments about who watches out for ghosts while the other is trying to pee in private. And Darkness. Oh my god, Darkness. I relate to this masochist loon far too much.
The series has absolutely perfect comedic timing, not to mention a great score to work with. It bounces around scenes at just the right moments to keep the comedic energy flowing, stopping on fantastic expressions. There's some old Higurashi staff here, and they take the expression game to master class. On top of that, the loopy, barely contained animation style trades model clarity for a sense of life otherwise lacking, and it fits the series to an absolute tee. Everything about this show really sells the parody and satire angle, especially the pacing between each and every joke and the work of the voice cast. Sora Amamiya, voice of Miia from Monster Musume, stands out most as Aqua, perfectly capturing every single shade of her constantly high volume personality, especially in any instance where Aqua just casts away all pride.
Yet what I liked most about this series (besides Megumin in general) was that while our characters were absolutely vile ...they weren't like that to each other. They have their fights (especially Kazuma and Aqua), but as the series goes along, the four create a genuine dynamic and have a sense of respect for each other, and even some understanding. That's where the series starts to move forward. These four ARE instrumental in the bigger story with the demon king, because all their bizarre flaws and talents, which seem completely useless to a normal fantasy story, end up being far more capable than anyone would ever expect. Only because the four work together that they're able to actually grow or change at all. Megumin's friendship with Kazuma pushes her to do more for the team and plan out the use of her spell better. Aqua only ever manages to really prove useful when Kazuma points out how her abilities can save everyone in a dire moment. Kazuma's understanding of games and unorthodox sampling class gives him weak but a varied set of skills that can compliment his friends. Even Darkness finds self-confidence she lacked and is able to focus more than she used to because she's fighting with people she feels a connection with. They're all walking human disasters, but together, those flaws start to smash up against each other and occasionally create a trait no one else possesses.
The series is filled with little moments of the four just enjoying a moment of satisfaction, and that's where the series has its heart. They found a way to have their cake and eat it too. They're a real team, and they grow as they interact with each other, and they're more relatable because they're so littered with flaws. There's something embarrassing about each and every one of them to relate to, and that becomes instrumental in making the show more than just another shitty people laughabout. Konosuba is, bizarrely, a great fantasy story. it just has a sense of humor about itself.
Final Score: 9/10
Snow White with the Red Hair S2
Stephanie Getchell
It's actually been a rather long time since I've seen a solid romance anime. Not only that, but one that wasn't set in a high school. Before the summer 2015 season began, I noticed that animation studio Bones was planning on releasing a fairy tale romance series called Snow White with the Red Hair. While I was a little bit skeptical, at first, seeing as how the studio is more well known for it's action series and not it's romances, it didn't take me long to realize that this series was going to be something rather special. Not unique, but special. Every second I watched made me feel so happy, and after the summer was over and Snow White ended, I was a little saddened... because I was stuck waiting several months to finally get my hands on the second season. So, here we are! The winter season is over, which means I have a Staff Pick to make from the crop of winter shows. While I really would have loved to have made Rakugo my pick for the season, if you've read these reports long enough, I tend to go with sequels or other series that people may not have been talking about during the report. Bet you can't guess what I went with this time.
Snow White's second season picks up right where the first left off. After making their feelings known to each other, Shirayuki is ordered, by Zen's older brother Izana, to go back to her home country; after an invitation from Prince Raj is sent to Clarines. However, there's a looming danger over Shirayuki's head, as the former noble, Mihaya, suddenly returns to tell her and Zen that someone is trying to track Shirayuki down and kidnap her. As Shirayuki and Obi travel back on Izana's orders and Raj's invitation, Zen, Mitsuhide, and Kiki try to find the mysterious young boy known only as Kazuki; before he manages to find Shirayuki first.
GOD EATER (Ep.10-13)
Joe Straatmann
Call it finishing an assignment. Call it only having enough time to watch a third of a series for my staff pick. Whatever the case, ufotable's trip through the production hell that plagued this particular title is at its end with the final four episodes of God Eater released two seasons late. Disappointingly, I probably could've written a prediction review way back when and it might've been spot-on. It's more of the same, albeit they've toned down the extremely overwrought Zack Snyder slow/fast/slow-fast-motion effects from early on.. There are qualities that make it rise to above-average levels, but there's also a little stupidity, a little hypocrisy, and a little stilted execution now and then.
Take when we start this new wave of episodes. It's a flashback to Lenka's childhood as he's discovered in the dirt by a family rejected from the protective walls of Fenrir. Now, Lenka through this whole series has been a loner who doesn't play by the rules, so obviously, you know where this is going. His family exists in a small settlement outside the protected zone as they didn't have the genetics useful to Fenrir, and they struggle to eek by. Eventually, they have to "decide between two" with whom should live between the family. Despite the father's absolute hatred for Fenrir throwing out people who don't pass their genetics test, the family goes through the same thought process and eventually makes the exact same decision Fenrir would've. At least they find a wonderful closing song and a touching final moment between life and death.
Most of the finale surrounds Operation Meteorite, an attempt to wring control of the Earth from the Aragami by drawing them to a handful of locations and blasting the hell out of them so they can get their cores necessary for completing mankind's last hope, Aegis. This is an average action climax and it delays the tantalizing cliffhanger details from before the break. To ufotable's credit, it does look pretty damn good. However, this is dramatically peanuts compared to Alisa being brainwashed into trying to assassinate squad leader Lindow for his infiltration of Aegis and finding its dark secret. When anybody asks Lindow what this secret is, he brushes it off with obvious lies and then everyone gets a minor distraction that would in no way stop the person from saying, "No, really, what the hell is going on with humanity's most important facility?" Seriously, get on with it! Even the assassination plot seems to get more convoluted and diluted as all of the Aragami are set up to destroy Lindow anyway, so the overwrought brainwashing is simply insurance.
The payoff is based on the extremely doubtful proposition that God Eater will get a sequel. Oh, they complete enough to get to some sort of finality, but the ultimate fate of mankind, the Aragami, and the planet is left hanging on, "Will man become God, or will God become man?" Aegis' dirty little secret turns out to not be a letdown, at least, but you'll never get to see what comes of all of this. Given the massive production delays, I'm guessing ufotable has had enough of this property for one lifetime and it hasn't really gained enough traction among anime fandom to risk a second migraine. Maybe if they hadn't wasted an episode-and-a-half on the "final boss" that's often framed way too close to the action to see what's going on, they could've gotten the closure they required, but as it is, God Eater just misses on about everything except the Go Shiina music.
Final Score: 6/10
Holy shit this season sucked so bad it took us five weeks after to finally get to finish our reviews. Spring better not suck this bad I swear holy hell.
Dropped Shows
Ajin
David O'Neil
BBK/BRNK
Danni Kristen
Dagashi Kashi
David O'Neil
Dimension W
Jonathan Kaharl
Divine Gate
Stephanie Getchell
Six Episodes: 4/10
Mahou Shoujo Nante Mouiidesukara
David O'Neil
Nurse Witch Kogumi R
Stephanie Getchell
Pandora in the Crimson Shell: Ghost Urn
Jonathan Kaharl
Rainbow Days
Jonathan Kaharl
Full Shows
Active Raid
Jonathan Kaharl
Our cast of characters have a really fun family dynamic, especially Asami as the awkward daughter (she randomly says things in English and that's so great). Minor characters get a good deal of definition and even back story, my personal favorite being the quiet hacker nerd being one of the greatest gamblers in the world and showing off in a Chinese dress and butterfly mask when she feels like it. The villains are properly developed, mixed between truly despicable and tragic, and the social commentary is well handled and meaningful. Each episode also has a fun pace to it, keeping things moving speedy with a ton of great exchanges between characters. All the elements are here for a good series, especially how it chooses to tackle the growth of the internet, the societal age gap, and the role of police in the modern world from a uniquely Japanese perspective. Its a conservative show I can actually respect on some level. But all of this never comes together as it should.
The series makes clever use of an episodic format to make a larger puzzle that pieces together, but those episodes work better alone than together. There's tone whiplash thrown around, sometimes working and sometimes not. Keeping audience away from the truth also leaves one of the villains significantly unrefined. All the pieces for their motivation is there, but they're not developed long enough to really give impact to the tragedy of their situation. The commentary of the series starts to water down towards the end, while our large cast aren't given proper personal stakes. Only Asami's guilt really works here. For most of the cast, being officers on this squad is a job, but development through the entire show suggests they'd be more tight knit then portrayed. We get a good idea of what they're like as people, yes, but barely any of it relates to the main villain. The series has a love for super robot show writing and cliches, and uses a lot of them, especially trying to cram in these characters into all sorts of situations. However, they're too defined to one genre to really let that work as well as it could.
I hope the second season fixes some of these problems, because Active Raid has the elements for something fantastic. As it is, the series is a fun time while there and then instantly forgettable. I'd still recommend a good few episodes, but as for the whole series, only if you're really into old school anime homage.
First-Cour Score: 6/10
AOKANA: Four Rhythm Across the Blue
David O'Neil
The sport itself is probably the aspect of the show I enjoyed the most, and there was clearly a lot of thought put into the mechanics of it all, along with assuring it never gets boring. It's a sort of tug-a-war between racing and fighting, and the different play styles (one that focuses on fighting, one that focuses on speed, and one in-between) creates a cool rock-paper-scissors factor which makes each match a little bit different in how they play off each other. Some matches end up being dog fights, while others end up being high speed chases. Things get even more interesting towards the end, when they come up with a science-babble explanation to essentially have the boots go super saiyan, and it turns into something out of Macross or Dragonball Z. With all that aside though, the drama outside of matches does follow pretty strictly to the sports anime formula, to the point it does start to drag on after a while. There are a few above-average character arcs that shine through the cracks, but as a whole it mostly comes down to pretty mundane instances of characters being defeated, or losing sight of why they're playing, and then moping around for an episode before some inspirational speech drags them back. It never digs deep enough into the characters to really make me care, so as it went on I just ended up becoming less and less interested in the drama, and more and more impatient waiting for the next match to eventually come up.
It does help that the show has a good sense of humor. It has its fair share of cutesy faces, and early on even some instances of fun character acting animation. I wouldn't say Aokana became ugly as it went on, but it certainly got a lot rougher around the edges. A few episodes in particular felt as if Gonzo was on the brink of giving in, but it always managed to stay just visually competent enough to keep the show together. In addition, from beginning to end the show did a surprisingly good job mixing CG and 2D animation during the Flying Circus matches. Aokana isn't all that special in terms of its story and characters, but it's still a fun sports anime with a unique twist, boasting an imaginary competition that's as inventive as it is entertaining. If you're in the mood for something with the core of a sports anime, but just can't stand actual sports (like me) Aokana is worth a look.
Final Score: 6/10
ERASED
Jonathan Kaharl
Oh no, I do not hate the most hype show of the season. I don't even think it's bad, quite the contrary. Erased is still one of the better shows of the Winter. But the incredible experience so many people were expecting didn't really come to past. The issue here is that this show wanted to be two different shows slapped together, and one was worlds better than the other. Where Erased (mostly) worked was when it focused on human drama. The best scenes were constantly related to Satoru reflecting on the people he met and connecting with them, trying desperately to fight the inevitable and save the lives of people doomed in his miserable timeline. Those scenes where he is once again a kid attempting to befriend and help the victim of abuse and eventual first murder target are absolutely fantastic.
There's an unexpected beauty to the humanity Satoru expresses, caring deeply for his family, friends, and the people he wants to save. The connections he makes, even in the much weaker present time story, are strong and really help develop him and everyone around him. Erased manages to be an uplifting tale in many respects, helped by the fantastic direction creating so many awe inspiring shots, with the "Christmas tree" being the highlight. As a human drama, Erased manages to be amazing.
And then the plot shows up and we have to deal with the other part of the series, the thriller drama.
This is where the problems start to rise. The premise of the series is that Satoru, a kidnapping victim who's become emotionally stunted, has the power to travel back in time to help people in danger, and this strange power eventually allows him to do his life over and save the people murdered and framed back in the case he was involved in. It's fine at first, making a great hook and allowing for the wonderful past sequences. But then we're snapped back to the present, where the cast Satoru interacts with are far, far less developed and interesting. His highschool girl sidekick has a sad back story based around people thinking her father stole a chocolate bar that lead to his life crumbling around him (I'm dead serious), his former manager is basically a cartoon, and everyone else is just there to be a plot device.
When we eventually find out who the killer is, the reveal is well handled ...but then we learn more about why the killer does what they do. It is disappointing. Without spoiling everything, they're effectively a generic serial killer with muddled motives. Combining time travel and thriller beats makes it near impossible for the show to give out character details on the killer until the second to last episode, so what could have worked is too rushed to leave much of an impact. The ending is also a bit too nice, especially the completely unnecessary final scene. It wraps everything up far too neatly, which doesn't really work for a series that was at its best when it was relatable and human.
Erased is a beautiful, entertaining show. But it felt me feeling a bit hollow. I'd definitely recommend it to most anyone, just keep expectations in check. You're getting a solid thriller with some fantastic drama bits mixed in, not the other way around. It's cheesy and a bit hamfisted at points, but I'm glad I finished it.
Final Score: 7/10
Girls Beyond the Wasteland
David O'Neil
It really just comes down to the novelty eventually wearing off. Once I got used to the cast, and the few fun running jokes the series had under its belt, the show got more and more difficult to stay awake during, and the flaws became more and more clear. I couldn't help but notice more how lifeless the visuals were, with characters barely moving or making use of animation for comedy or drama. Or how bland all the characters were, as they become less and less fun over the course of the show, mostly just lightly pushing along plot events, or putting on a maid outfit because you gotta sell them Blu-Rays. Or how all the show's attempts at drama later on fall flat, from a brief love triangle scenario, to a twist involving one of the characters having hidden the truth about something. They present promising conflicts that could have been more effective elsewhere, but here lack the tact or emotional investment to actually take any effect. The twist towards the end especially is resolved in a pretty haphazard fashion, that it didn't feel like the show had earned whatsoever.
And then the show just sort of ends. It does have something of a climax, though its not all that exciting when the only thing hinging on it is some ridiculous bet they made with another group of dating-sim creators that never made much sense in the first place. It never follows up on any of its romantic subplots, and wraps up on a pretty typical, playing-it-safe "and then they went on to make more games" ending that wouldn't have been all that satisfying even if I did care about the characters. I thought perhaps I'd be able to recommend Girls Beyond the Wasteland as some sort of guilty pleasure, but the fun wears off quick and all that's left behind is a bare bones harem romcom that's competent, but lacks any heart, impact, or identity.
Final Score: 4/10
Grimgar of Fantasy and Ash
David O'Neil
The show's primary strength is its characters, and how said characters serve as the sole focal point of the show's content. There's not much of a plot, mostly focusing on the main cast's daily lives and ongoing struggle to survive in the strange world they've found themselves in. It uses this structure for building and developing these characters and their relationships through their actions and interactions. These little moments of character building set up some great emotional moments, and certain scenes hit hard thanks to how this show humanizes the characters and invested me in their conflicts. From the low key, almost slice-of-life sections, to the brutal, tense action scenes, just about every part of Grimgar worked better because it put the characters first. It is too bad then, that as the show went on certain flaws became more apparent. For instance, the show quickly gains a bad habit of abusing the use of insert songs (aka Jpop/rock songs thrown in so you buy the CDs). At one point the show has three episodes straight using insert songs in major scenes. While the songs aren't bad, they often clash severely with the tone of the situations. Loud, jarring rock and pop songs just don't fit the fantasy setting, and are often even used during pivotal dramatic moment when an ordinary track from the soundtrack would have likely been far more effective.
Another unfortunate issue came in terms of the visuals. Now, typically Grimgar is damn near incredible visually. Its backgrounds are lush and detailed, its animation is weight-y and heavy on movement (especially early on), it makes excellent use of color and lighting. Unfortunately, towards the end it started wavering in its production values. The amount of character movement started to lower, faces went off model more often, and overall it simply began looking less polished. None of it was especially terrible, I'd seen shows function just fine with more glaring issues, but the show certainly took a hit from it. The most significant blight on the show visually though came with the finale. In the climax- the absolute climax of the entire show of all places- the animation was just flat out unfinished. As in, no in-betweens, not colored, just low frames-per-second key frames laid out over the background. It's clear something must have gone very wrong in the show's production for something that glaring to come to pass. But still, in the end I think I'd still likely recommend Grimgar to people. Despite its flaws, the core of the show was still thoroughly engaging. I loved watching the characters talk, and change, and laugh, and cry, because it did such a good job showing who they were, why they acted the way they did, and what it was they wanted, and then used that foundation to create some powerful scenes. While it stumbled in a few places, Grimgar managed to pull me into its world wonderfully, and I fully enjoyed my time there from beginning to end.
Final Score: 8/10
Haruchika - Haruto & Chika
Stephanie Getchell
The main issue I ended up having with Haruchika was the story. While episodic in nature, you would think that there's suppose to be some kind of main plot, right? There's supposed to be. The main story of the series is supposed to be the brass band working hard towards their goal of reaching the regional competition, because that's what you normally get with musical anime series such as Sound!, etc. Instead, Haruchika would rather go for a more character driven story and fail miserably than stick to stereotypes. We don't even see the brass band perform until the very last episode after they magical made it through two preliminary rounds. And, even then, the majority of that final performance during the final episode was blocked out in order to show the series credits half way through the episode. I'll admit, I thought the series was over once the credits kicked in, and got really mad at the series for pulling a stunt like this. It's ok, though, cause we did get another ten minutes of bad story wrap up where not only were some story elements left up in the air, but the final scene of the series ended so abruptly that it made my head spin. Either the writers for this series are brand new and working on a more training wheels series, or the writers just gave up part way through and decided to say f**k it! It really bothers me to no end when someone just decides to give up and just be completely lazy with their work after they had a decent amount of potential in the beginning.
Speaking of, some of the characters are what make the series a bit more tolerable; particularity the secondary characters that join the brass band after Haruta and Chika help solve their problems for them. Gotou, Narushima, Serizawa, and Maren's introductory episodes were among some of the more interesting stories you could come up with for characters with Narushima and Serizawa being the much emotional and complex of the entire series. As for our two title characters, there's honestly very little to say about them. Haruta is an intelligent guy, however he not only flips between possible genius to homeless bum but the possible romance he supposedly had going on went no where and was almost never brought up except in order to make it into a running gag with Chika. Chika, herself, has no change. The personality she tried to portray in the first episode gets destroyed very quickly and is never brought up again. Same with her crush that she fights Haruta over on a daily basis. The most Chika really gets is her desire to push herself so she can become a bigger part of the brass band club than what she started out as. Again, a rather cliche story line to go with, but never truly gets developed.
HaruChika ended up going from rather fun and emotional to ending at rather poor and rushed. Again, it could be the writers throwing their hands up into the air a long time ago, though it could also have something to do with the original source material the series is based off of. You can never truly tell with these kinds of things. The focus was not where it should have been, and that should have been the growth and development of the brass band club as they work towards their goals. While I can commend the series for trying something a little different and straying away from the norm, the end result was a rather piss poor job. This is by far one of the weakest series I've seen from P.A. Works, as they've been known to do a bit of a wash, rinse, and repeat situation with some of their properties. I ma y have made a mistake in keeping this series to keep rather than Divine Gate. Hell, it's possible to say I made a mistake in keeping both these series over Nurse Witch! ...............Yeah, no, I stand by that decision. Either way, it's not flat out terrible, but it did lose it's way and ended up crashing and burning so it's up to you if you do decide to give it a try.
Final Score: 4/10
KONOSUBA - God's blessing on this wonderful world!
Joe Straatmann
Comedy is always a delicate chemistry of elements. Konosuba has the right bunch of lovable losers who find some bit of success, but never enough. Kazuma means well, and when he finds he has the ability to steal panties, it's an accident... the FIRST time. Megumin has a certain sweetness mixed with an incredible hard-on for power (A staff being a perfectly serviceable replacement for a penis). They can be a force to be reckoned with against the Devil King's generals just as much as they're capable of destroying the starter village they're stuck in by accident. They're nice company, even if they do tend to mash on certain traits. Oh, Darkness' love of crushing pain and verbal lacerations being directed at her does get mashed on plenty.
The plots are usually quests to get loot, raise levels, and generally get them to a better place than they were before. It's nothing too involved, but it doesn't have to be. Neither are the visuals, which echo the fantasy gaming look without being too on-the-nose with its reference. I will say they use transitions with the show's logo and the voice actors shouting the title a little too often, like it's a short based on a comic strip. Studio Deen also seems to have borrowed breasts physics from the Dead or Alive series as the signature animation of this project is the supporting female cast's bouncing boobies seemingly whenever they move.
Nevertheless, Konosuba is enjoyable otaku trash that neither worships its Mary Sue lead nor puts his head on a satirical spike. I'm glad it got picked up for a second season, as it's consistently fun and full of pleasure; guilty, innocent, and otherwise. It's smart enough to not have dirty thoughts on its mind all the time, but if succubi happened to have opened a shop in town, it'd be rude not to pay a visit....
Final Score: 7/10
Luck & Logic
Joe Straatmann
Even when we get to the main character, he's not all cliche. Instead of some young upstart who is special because the show says he is, Yoshichika is a veteran Logicalist who did a reckless thing in the line of duty which caused his Logic card, the source of his powers, to go missing (Logic is the ultimate building block of life and manipulating it can give you special abilities and blah blah blah). It just so happens the goddess Athena found Yoshichika's Logic card at Plot Convenience Beach and he agrees to getting back in the business of fighting alternate dimension gods known as Foreigners with the one wrinkle that Athena is his partner. Rather than a harem, this show is more like Kiddy Grade in that the Logicalists work in dyads. Again, this is all not bad per se, but the execution is rotten, making every moment have a sort of toxic mediocrity.
The lackadaisical tone is hard to portray without watching an episode or two, but I'll do my best. Despite the main character having a little bit different of a backstory, he IS every guy anime lead, and his sister stating the cliches he's doing along with his dad being an insatiable womanizer are only weak feints at distracting the audience from this. The monsters of the week have some interesting designs and I'm sure all have cool mythology, but you wouldn't know it in Luck and Logic where they often don't even speak or get any kind of backstory. There's one that tosses balls of minions or the undead or something, but it washes across the viewer as nothing that's supposed to impress or engage. There's a Logicalist named Olga Breakchild who is powerful and arrogant, yet doesn't have a god to call his own even as he talks crap to everyone else. Guess who eventually becomes the villain? And I wonder if he's going to team up with Lucifer, a powerful former angel kicked out of Tetra-Heaven who even has a similar character design. Every element feels like the people in charge shrugged, said, "Eh, whatever...." and waved it through. Let's put it this way: There's a scene where something escapes prison by feigning illness. We're at that level of imagination.
I wouldn't say nobody cared as that's a rude insinuation many critics make, but it didn't seem a high priority to make Luck and Logic the best project they could crank out. In one episode about the mentor of one of the team turning out to be a crazed experimenter using the other dimensional beings as his playthings, nothing is played right. The build-up isn't really there, the reveal is rushed, and even bizarre action beats like a truck being driven on an icy, round tower pipe don't scan. On another end of the series, the romance between Yoshichika and Athena is flat. Having a loving relationship between the two is a given from the beginning since Trance partners must recite oaths that sound like marriage. Curiously, they lack even an ounce of chemist, having the conflict within them such simple fiction snaffus as neglecting to say he loves or appreciates her, causing her to wander off. The supporting cast get their own mini-stories and have exactly a one-episode arc per person to which all of their issues are sorted out before their conversation goes back to being background noise. If it feels like I'm weaving in and out of points with no sense of importance, well, that's pretty much what the series does.
A shame, too. The music is surprisingly excellent, properly conveying the grandness of the battles and the plight within the Logicalists. The visuals have issues with trying to use bright green with ill-fitting neutrals as its main color scheme, yet have plenty of work put into the designs as well as functional animation. Whatever forgettable stories exist within Luck and Logic's 12-episode run, the final third has at least a decent amount of thought put into it. Olga's circumstances are predictable, but it is a convincing transformation through manipulation and Olga's own hubris. I wish the story continued with the villain being one of those heroes in their own mind whose plans are merely not normal, punished to his breaking point for the crime of being different. The series' averageness stops this in favor of a much more standard villain actions with all of the nice things he did being cold, calculated manipulations. It could've been so much more. Like everything else here, I suppose.
Final Score: 4/10
Myraid Colors: Phantom World
Danni Kristen
Try out a little experiment for yourself. Strike up a conversation with someone who knows what anime is but has never actually seen or taken an interest in it. Ask them what particular elements come to mind when they think of anime. Here are a few answers you'll probably get: high school setting, magical powers, silly mascot character, harem leanings, and fanservice. There are many shows that contain those elements out there, but no modern show I can think of has so unabashedly embraced all of those elements like Myriad Colors Phantom World has. It is 100% the anime that people who don't watch anime think anime is. Which is why I find it so endearing. It's a send-up to the goofier and childish side of anime. The critic and film student side of me who just wants her professors to understand that anime isn't just dumb drawings for kids absolutely hates it, but the anitwitter shitposter side of me can't get enough.
There really isn't a lot to actually say about Phantom World. It exists in that deep space between worthy of insightful analysis and deserves to be utterly demolished. It never rose to the kind of peaks that shows like Showa Rakugo Genroku Shnju have, but it's never actually been bad enough to call terrible. At worst it's mediocre, though I honestly hesitate to label it as such. On an objective level, maybe, but I've never found myself thinking any show I actually enjoyed was mediocre. I've already mentioned its worst points in previous posts. Haruhiko is a bland protagonist, half the main heroines are just as bland, there are a string of boring episodes, and some of the character design is downright stupid (seriously, Kurumi, what the hell is up with your hair?). Though in some ways, these complaints add to the sheer anime-ness about it I found so endearing. It's stupid and not very good, yet it so gleefully embraces the tropes and trappings of harem anime that I can't help but laugh along with it as it laughs at itself. While most harem shows just feel like soulless templates filled in for a quick cash grab, Phantom World feels like Ishihara taking a break from making really good shows to just have some fun.
And there are actually good elements about this show. For one, the action is really nice to watch. KyoAni has struggled for awhile to animate compelling fights. Their forte has long been constructing beautiful and serene scenes from everyday life, not mapping out visceral battles. However, Phantom World makes it obvious they've been practicing. Animation in battle sequences is not only smooth and precise but also just plain fun to watch. They managed to figure out how to make a giant stuffed bear punching a supernatural monster look both funny and badass at once. It's great! Also, it's actually pretty funny. A lot of the jokes land extremely well. With shows like these I only seem to find myself laughing at the show's expense, but the wit and timing of KyoAni's stronger slice of life shows is still present in Phantom World. And while some of the episodes can be pretty dull, there are some episodes that are just really good. My favorite would probably have to be the haunted cat mansion one, but it's a hard choice to make. I can't believe I actually liked this show! If they weren't already working on another season of Sound! Euphonium, I would probably be asking for more.
Final Score: 7/10
Norn9: Norn + Nonet
Stephanie Getchell
As mentioned in a previous report, Norn9 is slightly unique in the otome game world because it's three female protagonists that you have to form three relationships for throughout the course of the game. Going into the anime series, you really only get to pick one guy for each girl to fall for. Now, Koharu and Nanami's respective relationships with Kakeru and Akito ended up on the right path, but it's Mikoto's relationship with Natsuhiko that causes a lot of glaring writing issues. I'm not sure if this was a thing in the game as well, however, when you give the impression that this relationship is going to be what is focused on in the series then you need to focus on it rather than just slightly toss it in during the final third. For Mikoto, it honestly would have made much more sense if they explored her relationship with Sakuya instead as that pairing gets even more screen time than the former. Not only would it make sense, but it wouldn't have made things a more sloppy then they ended up being as Mikoto seems to pick Natsuhiko just because his view on the world around him inspires her to. No hint of a romantic relationship occurs during the series; making the opening theme extremely misleading. But, then again, it's not like any of the relationships are well developed. Mikoto's is just the least developed out of the main three romances.
This essentially leads into the writing for the series. It's not all that good. What it wanted to be was a supernatural/action series with gifted young ones working together to save to world. Instead it opted to go with the more romance option. It's saddening too, because there are parts of the world that was created for this series that really did catch my attention; particularly the World itself. Parts of the mechanics of this world as well as the ship, Norn, seemed rather different compared to others series that use similar ideas and technology. Aion was among those as she is a machine, but also a rather intricate cog in this thing the series tries to make the bigger picture. The series does have a good amount going for it, but gets weighed down heavily by these lackluster romances that it tries to cook up; with the overall writing of the series just diving deeper and deeper into the pits of a dark ocean. If given the chance, it would have made a pretty decent Action/SciFi series. Just give the show better writing and give it less romance to screw around with and we'd have ourselves a winner!
While Norn9 ended up being the most tolerable of the series I was assigned this season, it was in no way the best. While it did try and be a little bit more innovative when it comes to the otome game adaptations, the writing didn't try to go above and beyond in order to try and keep the series from being too generic. It's still filled with the typical troupes and cliches we tend to see when series similar to this one tend to be made. The only difference is that it tries to be a romance series as well without really developing the relationships fully. There's quite a bit going on, however it's just never given the chance to really explore or develop the world and the characters that inhabit them. Again, it's not the worst series I've seen this season, but it is among the best of the series I was initially assigned at the start of the winter season. It's not one I'd want to go to right away, but it would an okay series to marathon just to revisit it much later down the line.
Final Score: 5/10
Phantasy Star Online 2: The Animation
Joe Straatmann
In the beginning, we have an exceptionally standard school tale about Itsuki, the average anime protagonist who even says he's absolutely average like the writers being self-aware of what they're doing means it gets a pass. He's immediately recruited to the student council by president Rina to play Phantasy Star Online 2 and type up sociological reports. For real, that is what part of my Crunchy Roll money is going towards. Rina's big plan is to give this data to the school administrators to keep them from banning PSO 2 due to lowered grades. Oh, it gets even more fascinating with the planning of the school festival, and Rina's insistence that they have an after-party despite everyone being against the idea. Now don't all of you hold in your excitement at once.
From here on out, we're diving into SPOILER territory for the one person who cares. Video games are real. The war with the Darkers isn't only a part of the hottest online sensation on the Seiga campus, but a small window into an intergalactic brawl with a real ARKS organization trying to stop them. I'm not sure how this works, whether it's all a simulation or not, as the writing only does the bare minimum of covering up the cracks. The Darkers find their way to the school's side of the galaxy transporting through the game and try to kidnap students to see if they can be the vessel for their ultimate being, Dark Farce... er, Falz (Sorry, old school Phantasy Star fan here). Due to Itsuki being so good at the game, his powers transfer into the real world, giving him a real-life MMORPG makeover needed to become an instant elite ARKS warrior.
It's self-insert pandering to the extreme, but I'm not lying when I say I kind of dig this part of it. It's exceptionally cheesy and square with a kind of goofy charm in its idiocy that doesn't work when it's attempting to persuade you PSO 2 is the bridge between all that troubles humanity in ways pyramid scheme dupes would roll their eyes at. For a self-insert character, Itsuki is an affable dolt who can't tell that when Rina grills him about what he does when he runs off with ARKS fighter/"foreign exchange student" Aika, she's really asking whether they're having relations. He's also the kind of moron who, despite being directly warned Dark Falz is trying to trick him and wandering into an obvious fake world, he waits until the illusion of Rina clearly gets red eyes before shaking her hand and getting trapped. His stupidity is kind of hilarious since he's supposed to the person the audience relates to.
Being fair, PSO 2 does get a few character beats intentionally right. Of the bad series I've had to watch this season, this at least has a metaphor that works. Rina became socially isolated after one incident where she played hide and go seek and nobody sought to find her even after the game was long over. The series actually loops back and follows up on this. Granted, in a predictable and bland fashion, but it's there. Plus, in an odd way, it likes its characters. You can kind of tell when people are going through the motions and just making something to get enough money to get what they REALLY want done. There's not really that feeling here. Everything's simple and stereotypical, but the voice actors play through it like pros and everyone on the production does what they can to make you care even with the obvious boat anchor that half the series is a sales pitch.
Animation here is a weird addition by subtraction. The scenes with above-average animation and plenty of activity are doled out in 50-calorie bites, being enough to know they're tasty, yet not nearly enough to satisfy the anime hunger. At one point, this tries to be Macross with an ARKS warrior who's also a pop idol pumping up the troops for the final battle. I imagine this doesn't even have a fifth of Macross Frontier's budget, so the scene ends after about a minute. The music has similar points of briefly chiming it with its optimistic waves where it feels like Itsuki should be bobbing his head around happily while walking across campus. The score never realized 90's anime eventually ended, but it fits with the somewhat innocuous tone and steps up to half-an-orchestra whenever the flow leads into battles, online or not.
I laughed at its wide-eyed dumbness, which is a better reaction than I had with most of the other series this year. I wanted to talk about how silly it gets when the student festival plot is given far more attention and reverence than the threat to devour the universe in a time when I didn't want to talk about any of the other garbage I got this season. It's bad, but it's occasionally a fun kind of bad. How blatant of an advertisement tool it is keeps me from any kind of recommendation, but a few years down the road, I could see people making a few wisecracks the way Mystery Science Theater 3000 episode Radar Secret Service made fun of how amazing people thought radar was going to be. This series only stops short of saying Phantasy Star Online 2 can cure medical illness, after all. It's the most obviously bad series of the season, but that doesn't make it the worst.
Final Score: 5/10
Prince of Stride: Alternative
Danni Kristen
There really isn't anything in particular that makes Prince of Stride stand out above all the other sports shows out there. All the typical archetypes are here, as are all the typical plot trappings of a sports show. The only thing that really seemed to be missing was a wealth of fanservice. There were very few moments of stripping among the boys. The camera never lingered on their bodies, and even if it had there wouldn't have been much to show. They weren't drawn near as muscled as the character models in the likes of Free! are. It felt like a show built for people that just really love sports shows and the ambiguously gay boys in all of them. It never sold itself well on production values, either. While it had a nice, consistent style, they never really did much with the animation. It just doesn't compare well against Madhouse's better offerings, especially following the season of sakuga porn they gave us with One Punch Man. There was only one scene where the animated lighting really impressed me. Two characters stood on a sidewalk at night as cars drove by. As each car drove by, the lights and shadows on their faces shifted. It added depth and weight to the scene. It drew me into the emotions being expressed by the characters. Then at the very end of the scene instead of animating a character walking, they simply dragged his model a little. It felt cheap and immediately undermined the impressive sequence from before. Though most of the show is suitable animation, that one scene sticks out in my mind due to how quickly it went from impressive to disappointing.
I also noticed frequent instances of bad technique in Prince of Stride that went unmentioned. I suppose that's kind of a nitpick that comes from having participated in a fitness club for awhile, but it still bothered me. Every time these talented and experienced runners doubled over for breath after a sprint I wanted to yell at them to stand up straight. At one point, one character collapses on the ground after a sprint. Another runner tells him, while doubled over, that he can't catch his breath that way. That one really got on my nerves. You're not supposed to bend over to catch your breath either. You want to stand up straight and put your hands on your head. It opens up your lungs more and makes it easier to breathe. They also all caught their breath through their mouths, but that can lead to cramps. You need to take deep breaths through your nose when you're out of breath. Call that nitpicking if you want. For the most part, I enjoyed Prince of Stride. It was watchable, and kind of cute. I loved a lot of the character designs, especially of opposing schools. If I hadn't been assigned this show to review, though, I definitely wouldn't have watched it. Let me know when we get a sports show about cute girls instead of cute boys.
Final Score: 6/10
Schwarzes Marken
Joe Straatmann
Much artistic license is given to this era of intense government surveillance behind the iron curtain. Obviously, the hordes of aliens that resemble testicles with faces aren't historically accurate, nor are the jets from the era that are now mechs with plane wings on the side (Would've made Top Gun a very different movie, that's for sure). This is simply background to a story that exists to repeat how much East Germany's government sucks over and over. Main character Theodor is a member of the 666th Schwarzes Marken squadron, East Germany's best MiG pilots who has survived having most of his family killed trying to escape to the west and being tortured profusely before being forced into military service. Other squadron members include Irisdina, a woman who was had to kill her brother to live, her reputation permanently blemished with the nickname "dog of the Stasi" as a result. The newest member Katia was brought in from the West and seeks to figure out the history of her father, an Eastern German hero who has since had his name redacted from the history books. I would love to talk about these people's interests or their defining characteristics, but these ARE their defining characteristics other than they can still secretly stand up against the Stasi. It's not nothing, but it certainly comes off as manipulative.
The aliens are the key to understanding just how underdeveloped the whole concept is. Where do they come from? Out there. Why do they want to destroy humanity and take over the Earth? Nobody knows. What are their numbers and where are their strongholds? It changes depending on what the plot requires them to do. They are the main conflict and aren't really that important until the story decides they are. The final episode has the BETA (The name for the aliens) overrunning the fort in front of Berlin, and then cuts away for about 20 minutes before it ever gets back to the "pressing" matter at hand. Yeah, there's this huge internal struggle for the fate of the Eastern Germany government, underlining a tired trope of how much more cruel mankind is to itself than a threat that seems to only exist to annihilate humanity. It's still weird they how much the aliens don't matter. The BETA are of course a deadly threat at the beginning because they have to be established as the ultimate villains. Afterwards, if the operation to take out the aliens' horrific laser array goes well, they fall almost as easily as opposing Dynasty Warriors armies. I actually like the detail about lasers being so oppressively powerful. It's a very eighties idea lasers were going to become these unholy and unstoppable weapons until Reagan's Star Wars program became one of the most infamous government blunders in history, and it's a neat inclusion. If only we got anything but the vaguest look as this laser array, or a look at battles in general besides mechs occasionally cruising in and slashing stuff. There's a scene where tens of thousands of BETA are napalmed and it looks like a blank strip of land being roasted for no reason.
At a turning point, Irisdina has the line,"You see bonds between siblings and family as mere tools." I would argue this is how Schwarzes Marken views its cast. I was almost hopeful when Theodor is on a secret mission in Berlin with fellow soldier Gretel where they have a night on the town in the middle of it and they exchange some mutual affection surprising even to themselves. It was unexpected and human rather than the trumped-up Greek tragedy making up the rest of the plot. Little did I know this was all part of the plan. You see, Gretel is a small supporting character whose two traits is she has glasses and totally believes in the socialist state. With no murder, torture, or suffering on her resume, she has to have something to make the viewer care when she's put through the bloody paces. The last third of the anime is almost all people dying as tediously as possible. I mean, how else was it supposed to turn out aside from the one ray of hope? There are attempts at playing with gray areas when factions of the Stasi splinter off and the 666th has to ally with one of them to survive, but these are characters with crimson hair or glowing red eyes. Gee, I wonder if a guy named Axmann will turn out to be redeemable later....
The elements for a real cracker of a series are instead made as drab as Eastern Bloc architecture thanks to an overwhelming need to promote suffering above all else amidst a hopeful message of human will. Just like parents smoking weed in a sitcom will produce dull results, so does endlessly tormenting your characters in a drama. The mech fights are serviceable and the music fills in some gaps in emotion (Especially when they break out some oboe solos. Oboe player should be the main character here, let's face it), Alas, what it manages to accomplish is dashed by being too paper thin while ratcheting up the melodrama past excessive levels to compensate. An interesting concept not done any favors by going for easy tears.
Final Score: 4/10
Shouwa Genroku Rakugo Shinju
Danni Kristen
I've been reviewing shows for Infinite Rainy Day for a full year now. I put a lot of thought and care into the screenshots I choose for my posts. I try my best to choose the one single frame that can best demonstrate what the show is and what it is selling. Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju has been the hardest show to choose screenshots for. Each and every episode is simply loaded with single frames that carry tons of depth and weight to them. This was a beautifully composed show that told so much story without even saying a thing. The animation is this show was rather limited, but it was bursting with expressiveness in its imagery. The thoughts and emotions of characters were easily readable without veering anywhere towards exaggerated. Lighting shifted to match the tone set by the conversation. Camera angles and perspectives helped visually represent each character's inner conflicts and feelings. The scenery sold every scene and at times even provided morbid symbolism. All of it was supported by a beautiful soundtrack reflective of the time this period piece was set in. Top it off with a fantastic vocal performance from the whole cast and Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju is one of the most impressive shows of the past few years.
If you don't know what rakugo is, or if you do but aren't sure it's your kind of thing, I still highly recommend this show. I went into it knowing nothing about what rakugo was. The show never really bothers to outright explain the craft to newcomers, and I'm glad it never did. I found its rules and traditions simple to pick up on, and I appreciated the trust placed in the viewer on the show's part. Rakugo is a dying art in Japan, especially among younger audiences, so the typical anime demographic likely knows nothing about or has no interest in rakugo. Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju treated the art form it pays tribute to with dignity and respect. This kind of dedication helped create a newfound appreciation for rakugo inside of me. Even if you're unfamiliar with the art form, the story around it is easy to recognize and relate to. At its core, Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju is a story about art and why we suffer for it. It's about the joy and fulfillment in creation and appreciation. It's also about the artists we look up to and how they drive us to become better artists ourselves. This is a beautiful show, and it deserves your full attention.
Final Score: 10/10
Undefeated Bahamut Chronicle
Jonathan Kaharl
The premise of this stupid light novel show is that the wussy prince of a dead empire joins an all girls knight academy by complete accident and is actually super badass because he has a powerful robot suit that destroyed his old country's entire army because otaku have to feel like they're super special. As usual, a harem forms of five girls, and some poorly explained or downright boring political stuff happens. We also get all the usual tropes, including the gay girl who's not actually gay, use of sexual assault threats for the sake of drama, making the lead heroine a pathetic joke, girls forcing the effeminate guy to crossdress, cartoonishly evil minor villain built up to be a big deal but is actually the most nonthreatening character in the whole series, and so forth. This is an explosion of bad cliches, but there's some good ideas mixed in there.
Making the main character Lux physically the weakest character isn't common for this genre, and it could have been an interesting twist on his otherwise tired archetype. Lisha ends up being an obnoxious tsundere with a shocking lack of understanding to sexuality, but her back story has a good parallel to Lux that could have resulted in something more interesting with a writer who relies on tired tropes less. Yoruka, the last girl in the harem, also has good ideas in her back story, like being trained from birth to be a killer and her bizarre honor code, and Celistia could have been a great team leader if the show would stop trying to masturbate the viewers egos every five seconds. The basis for good characters are all here. The problem is that the writer believes contradictions are what make a character (Lisha acts mighty but is an emotionally confused girl, Celistia's idiotic "I'M NOT ACTUALLY A MAN HATER I LOVE MEN" thing, ect), and the cast almost never grow beyond the contradictions. Lux may be the worst example, as his entire thing is that he's still traditionally masculine in battle because he can easily overpower his foes and always saves the girls, who usually end up being useless or side characters in their own stories. It's a gross misstep, especially for his usual characterization.
The story is also a complete mess. The series is divided into multiple arcs that each focus on a different girl, all adding together into a greater whole with a conspiracy plot involving Lux's old kingdom trying to stage a rebellion and Lux trying to make the new kingdom work from the inside. That actual plot, however, leads nowhere interesting, constantly teasing of a much more interesting story involving human experimentation that never comes to pass. The presence of the ancient ruins and monsters in them add nothing to the story outside a single arc, just creating the means for monster of the arc stories. All the villains are one note and boring from the world go, and not a single one ever feels like a threat. Production does not help, with lame CG battles where cluttered messes of mech suits smash against other mech suits and poorly textured monsters. I like the character designs in general, but no one design sticks out besides that of Phi. Backgrounds are dull and lifeless, and music fails to really stand out in any way. It's all such forgettable muck.
There are only two characters in this show that actually work and have any sort of depth. The first is Krulcifer (yes, that is really her name), a princess from another country trying to earn her freedom as she struggles with her past. Unlike the rest of the cast, she's something born from the ruins, and she actually grows a solid relationship with Lux, being able to know exactly what will help the team most in dire situations and able to converse with Lux on a higher level than anyone else. When it seems like the show is going to make her another Lisha, she just becomes more socially dominating. She's not a complex character, but she ends up remaining likable and keeps her agency.
Then there's Phi, Lux's childhood friend and the character who should have been the lead. Phi is part of a noble family from the old kingdom and an old friend of Lux, and we get to see how that relationship formed and why she's so attached to him, and it actually makes sense. She's likable very quickly because she's too busy yawning or eating to care about the bad jokes during the show's lighter moments, and she gets a lot of great deadpan lines. But her story ends up being the only one that truly works, the product of human experimentation that stunted her emotional growth and reducing her to a minion for the villains. She was supposed to kill Lux, but she kept resisting the power the villains had over her because she genuinely cared so much for him, and she's the only one who truly seems to understand Lux instead of simply be infatuated with him. Phi's entire situation is far more interesting than any other character, and her personality is very refreshing in a cast filled with blushing teenagers who mainly wonder if Lux likes them or not. She's also the most openly heroic and selfless, willing to sacrifice herself for the sake of others without a moment's notice.
But despite Phi's surprisingly well handled character, the show can't be saved from the sheer magnitude of failures and flaws everywhere else. At its best, the show is mildly entertaining. At its worst, it's offensive, sexist, and downright xenophobic. It plays everything too safe and lacks an identity for itself that isn't build on poor handling of good ideas, while also using every tired otaku garbage cliche in the book. As far as bad light novel shows go, this is no Magical Warfare, but it's pretty damn bad. If it wasn't for Dimension W being so aggressively gross, Bahamut would have been on my shit list a long time ago.
Final Score: 3/10
Shorts
Ojisan and Marshmallow
Stephanie Getchell
Final Score: 6/10
Ooya-san wa Shishunki!
David O'Neil
Final Score: 5/10
Please tell me! Galko-chan
Jonathan Kaharl
I'm so glad a show like this exists for girls hitting puberty, and I'm so glad it exists for the rest of us to enjoy. I've never really seen a series like Galko-chan anywhere, and we need more stuff like it right now.
Final Score: 9/10
Sekkou Boys
Joe Straatmann
Maybe the problem is the last third had to have an overarching story to finish everything. This is the sort of show where the more grounded to a standard plot line and reality it is, the less interesting and funny it can be. I liked it better when the Rockies randomly had drinks and the show didn't have to underline the ridiculousness by giving them meta remarks late in the game. The final episodes start with the idea that the group got hipster famous by everyone loving their music ironically, eventually leading to a forced divide between Miki and the boys, and finally a kidnapping. Sekkou Boys doesn't so much reach a conclusion as wander into it. But if you need a light comedy with a slightly out-there premise, it's likable enough even as it leans on that premise too much.
Final Score: 6/10
Sushi Police
Danni Kristen
Final Score: 2/10
Second Opinions
BBK/BRNK
David: Usually I tend to aversive towards fully CG anime that mimics 2D animation because it's very difficult to get right. I've seen plenty of shows only copy more 2D-minded art-styles in the most shallow sense, making it come off as an awkward, hollow imitation of something else. That's why I was so impressed by BBK/BRNK, which manages to use techniques from smears, to effects animation, to morphing of characters, with proficiency I've never seen in TV anime. While it on occasion relies a bit too much on still characters, when they move it looks excellent, integrating Gainax/Trigger-esque sensibilities into their own CG style in a way that blends remarkably well. In addition, it has some absolutely gorgeous backgrounds, which are a treat to look at even on their own. And even beyond the visuals, the show is just a lot of fun. It does suffer from relentlessly quick pacing, jumping from action scene to action scene, barely ever taking a breath for character or world building. Luckily though, the action is incredibly entertaining, and it even manages to work in some legitimately strong character moments in from time to time. First Cour Score: 7/10
Dimension W
Stephanie: Dimension W was the series that was extremely hyped this season. It was to be the big action/SciFi series that would even boast an american licensing company to help produce an anime series seeing as how, for some reason, people still tend to confuse a licensing company with being the actual animation studio; but I digress. For what it's worth, the series started out rather well and lived up to that hype. The problem, however, is that it caved in on itself as it went along. By the fourth episode on, the series began to rush and jump over certain plot points that could have made the story much more interesting. I'm not sure if it's a problem with the amount of manga chapters that was adapted or the fact that the studio was only able to make 12 episodes, but, by the end of the series, I felt rather disappointed in Dimension W. When series are overly hyped, liked this one was, I either try and keep thinking objectively or just steer clear from the series period. Sadly, I fell for the hype on this one and got a rather saddening result. As for the broadcast dub that is currently airing on Toonami (I've only gotten to see four episodes as of writing this because no cable plus three week streaming delay equals thanks FUNimation), I've heard better work from much of the voice talent involved; Christopher Sabat especially. All in all, it's not a terrible show, just rather average; and one I wished didn't decide to rush itself in the end. Final Score: 5/10
ERASED
Danni: This show started off extremely promising, but just kind of limped across the finish line. Not only did the quality of the production fluctuate throughout the series, but also the direction the story took. On one hand there was a touching story about isolation and abuse with Hinazuki at the center and on the other there was a cheesy and predictable thriller about catching a serial killer. It's not a bad show by a wide margin, but it's disappointing that what could have been a memorable favorite became bogged down by genre trappings. Final Score: 7/10
Joe: This takes me back to Frequency, a movie you might not remember. It was a reasonable hit in the early 2000s, starring Dennis Quaid and Jim Caviezel as a father and son who talk across time via an old radio and attempt to repair events that led to a broken, empty household. The father and son bonding worked extremely well, but the critics had trouble with the climax involving a serial killer that was too Hollywood and had too many of those time travel movie plot holes. Even the director realized the ending didn't make sense and tried to fix it, but was stopped by suits when positive reactions went through the roof with test audiences. This brings us to Erased, an occasionally wonderful anime about a failed manga artist whose consciousness travels back to his boyhood in 1988 to solve a series of murders that leads up to him being framed for the death of his mother. As a person who is around the age of the protagonist, this hit me in all the right spots as far as dealing with the disappointments in life and wanting to fix key events that led to the now (I was supposed to be a best-selling novelist by now, but adult ADHD affecting my communication abilities stole years of potential before I got it under control). The characterization is rich and realistic, truly feeling like life in 1988 right down to random conversations about Dragon Quest/Warrior. Of course, then the serial killer shows up, and it's a very Hollywood villain following the rules of the economy of characters (The one who did it is the one that wanders around the story with seemingly the least to do with it that's not the red herring). This was too unnatural and ruined the perfect little harmony of arthouse and crowd pleaser for some. It didn't really for me. It was always wish fulfillment as extremely well written and trimmed with visual metaphor as it is, and killer or not, Erased does go back to what makes it so touching. It's that payoff that matters. I'll see all of you twenty-something anime fans in ten years and we can watch it again and see how you feel about it. I get the feeling the majority will be much more positive towards it. Final Score: 8/10
Stephanie: From the beginning, Erased was one of the strongest series from the winter season. I enjoyed the story, characters, and some of the darker content we encounter such as the abuse that Hinazuki goes through as well as a variety of other things. What keeps this series from being the best of the season is, aside from Shouwa Genroku existing, is the slight inconsistency the series does have with parts of it's story. Also, having a rather predictable villain doesn't help too much either, but what they did in order to portray his motives was intriguing; albeit really odd. As a mystery series, there is plenty of story to keep me going for long periods of time; while adding the time leaping element makes it something rather unique. To be fair, Steins;Gate does do something similar so this isn't the first time mystery and time travel have mixed together, but Erased just does enough to give it's own spin. It's certainly one of the best of the season even with some of the slight pacing problems. But, once again, it may also be my love of mystery talking as well. Final Score: 8/10
Grimgar of Fantasy and Ash
Stephanie: To be completely honest, I had no interest in Grimgar at the beginning of the winter season. The words Fire Emblem were the major factor that played into that reason, because I'm not much of a video gamer person and have never played Fire Emblem. After hearing good things about the first episode, I gave it a spin. I'm honestly glad I did! This series is not only visually stunning (for the most part), it has a very intense and emotional story that manages to drag you in, kicking and screaming. And I say kicking and screaming due to certain events that occur early on. What seems to appear as an MMORPG type of series similar to Sword Art Online and Log Horizon turns into something different entirely; sticking with the more fantastical elements and just adding a touch of game mechanics we would normally see. The only big problem I have with the series would be that it did lose the initial premise rather quickly and is never address much or explained in detail as to how these teenagers ended up in the world of Grimgar. While Haruhiro's monologue during the end credits of the final episode do elevate some of those concerns, it also can feel like it was half assed, using the excuse of "oh we just kinda forgot about the whole why we're here thing" as a bit of a cop out. But this does leave the possibility of another season, depending on how well this one was received. I'd be more than willing to watch a second season if it was made! Final Score: 9/10
Myraid Colors: Phantom World
Jonathan: This was my favorite thing to watch this season. Yeah, I know. KyoAni's high production standards and the fantastic art direction played a huge part in that, as did all the fun characters and creative episode premises. It's all stuff we've seen from other episodic series, but the whole phantom concept allows all the ideas presented to go farther in really entertaining ways (like everyone becoming cat people and making cat puns). I hope we get another season with anime original content, because the novels get laughably stupid from here. Few shows made me smile as much as this one this season. Final Score: 7/10
Ojisan and Marshmallow
Danni: The joke in this show is that Paul Blart likes marshmallows and the girl desperately wants him to taste her marshmallows. It was never really funny. The only real reason I came back to it every week is because Paul Blart's voice actor starts showing up at the end and he looks like Guy Fieri. Final Score: 3/10
Please tell me! Galko-chan
Danni: This one is definitely a personal favorite of mine, now. It's really nothing more than a series of friendly conversations about sex and the body, but it's got so much heart behind it. The conversations are easy to relate to. Everyone has questions about things like these as a teenager. Why do I have large areolas? Is having ass hair normal? What do boobs feel like? Adolescence is a very sexually curious and frustrating part of a person's life, and there aren't many resources out there that help with it. Please Tell Me! Galko-chan is a cute show full of lovable characters asking the things we all asked at some point, and I adore it. Final Score: 9/10
Prince of Stride: Alternative
Stephanie: This just in, I have become sports anime trash! It's funny how much my opinion can change with just a few different shows. In Stride's case, while it did stick with a wide amount of sports anime troupes, it didn't have to overdo itself or take it too far. Let's face it, there are some extremes in sports anime, with Free! being one of the more recent ones in memory that did go a little too far at times. Stride falls a bit more in line with how I feel about Haikyuu; it's a good show and does a pretty decent job at giving a ton of characters the right amount of screen time in order to compete against or sometimes encourage our main team. While I do feel that Haikyuu has more of an ensemble cast to it, Stride does have three leads we end up focusing on in Riku, Takeru, and Nana. There are some pieces in the story that could use a bit more development, and I very much wished that Ayumu was given much more to do aside from being the nerd with a heart of gold. However, for what the series is, Prince of Stride is a ton of fun! It's the kind of series I can sit back, relax, and enjoy what comes out of it even if we've seen the same plot points a million times. Believe me, I'm going to be going back to this series really soon. I've still gotta finish the broadcast dub, after all! Final Score: 7/10
Sekkou Boys
Danni: I wonder how long it was after someone's idea about an idol show starring statues got greenlit that the creators realized they actually had to make a full series about it. It's one of those concepts that's hilarious and awesome when first thought up but falls apart once it has to be expanded. After the initial hilarity of the revelation these statues were going to be idols, the show didn't really know what to do next. From there it just kind of became a regular idol show. Then it had to somehow end, so they just threw a bunch of shit at the wall in hopes something would stick. In the end, nothing did. Final Score: 4/10
Jonathan: One of the stupidest premises I've ever seen and I love it. The brilliance here is that the simple absurdity of statues being idols gives away to a mess of entertainment industry gags and humor, which are only enhanced by that constant absurd element at play. The characters also have a lot of life and bounce off each other well, despite most of then never being animated. Please remember Sekkou Boys. Final Score: 7/10
Shouwa Genroku Rakugo Shinju
Jonathan: Why aren't you watching this!? While I'll have to finish later because of scheduling problems, everything I've seen has been absolutely fantastic. It's a character drama that perfectly captures what it means to be an artist, encapsulating a dying art and why it was so beloved. It also paints a beautiful tragedy of a story between two rivals in the medium, with an incredible script and fantastic direction. Every performance sucks you in, and the entire voice cast is just incredible. I cannot say enough good things. Six Episodes: 10/10
Stephanie: Like Erased, Rakugo was one of the strongest series of the season and remained one of the strongest till the end of the first season. While the story of Kikuhiko and Sukeroku seemed to drag on longer than it really needed to, it did create such a strong relationship and story that will more than likely play a big role in the next season since Kikuhiko's apprentice, Yotaro, is becoming more and more like his friend every day; with the final scene in the cemetery being the largest moment. And, while some people may find the five minute rakugo stories drawn out and a waste of episode time, I was captivated by each and every one! Not just because I have an arts degree with theatre in mind, but because of the stories themselves and how they were performed by these storytellers just had me hang on their every word. Since this first cour had Kikuhiko's past as the main story line, and now that we finished that arc, it will be a little tough to figure out what will happen from here and into the second season that is set to come out, hopefully, in the near future. Regardless, Rakugo was the strongest series of the season on all fronts and is one that has an early lead for the best series of 2016. Final Score: 9/10
Staff Picks
She and Her Cat -Everything Flows-
Danni Kristen
The first pet I ever had was a cat. She was just a tiny little kitten my dad had brought home from the local shelter one Sunday when I was three. Her time there had been running out, and she was scheduled to be put down soon. My Dad couldn't let that happen, so he brought her home for us. My three year-old self couldn't fathom why anyone would let such an adorable, defenseless creature die. We named her Snickers. She and I bonded immediately. This month, Snickers will be seventeen years old. She's deaf now and unable to control her own bladder. With finals over I'm be back home once again, and I adore the feeling of her resting on my lap.
She and Her Cat -Everything Flows- is a sequel to a four-minute animation from 2002 titled She and Her Cat: Their Standing Points...kind of. Though they both share similar naming patterns and are both about a woman and her pet cat, they each feature different characters and were created by different studios and staff. Everything Flows is about a college student named Miyu and her cat Daru, who she's had since childhood. When Miyu's roommate moves out of their apartment to live with her boyfriend, Miyu is forced to find a job to cover the rent. Life isn't easy, though, and the world can be painful. Miyu's tough, tearful journey into adulthood is told through the eyes of Daru, who can only wish for the ability to ease her pain.
Daru is easily one of the best animated cats I've seen so far in anime. Not only is he less stylized and more realistically drawn, but his behavior and mannerisms are spot on. The way he walks, sniffs, swings his tail, and jumps up and down show that the staff put a lot of attention into studying how cats realistically act. Given that Daru narrates the show with an inner voice, this realism is necessary for keeping the show grounded. Without it, Daru would feel cartoonish. It would be harder for the audience to identify their own cats with Daru. Also, by positioning Daru as the narrator, we're actually shown very little of Miyu's life. Instead, we're given a few glimpses into her struggles and emotional states. Daru - and thus the viewer - will overhear her on the phone, rehearsing for job interviews, or crying in bed, but he will never hear her inner thoughts. This breaks the story down into a series of few emotional moments that allow us to fill in all the blanks. It's refreshing to see a coming of age story told from this angle.
This one flew under a lot of people's radar, which is honestly a shame. It easily stands head and shoulders above most everything else from this season. I imagine this is in part because it's a short, and shorts don't often receive much attention. More than anything, though, I think the release schedule screwed it over. Being only four episodes long, it was slated to air only throughout March, so it missed out on the early season hype. I'm glad I kept my eye out for it, and I'm doubly glad it was picked up for streaming because I'm definitely going to be recommending this one.
Final Score: 8/10
Durarara!! x2 Ketsu
David O'Neil
As always with Durarara, Ketsu's greatest strength was the characters. Not many new players are thrown into the mix this time around, instead focusing on bringing all the most significant ones to the pinnacle of their character arcs. I wouldn't call this the strongest Durarara has ever been in how it handles character exploration, partially just because it had so many characters at this point, and so much to focus on over such a brief period of time, that certain characters were spread thin. But the characters who got the most screen time, Celty, Shinra, Izaya, and Mikado especially, got a ton of great moments and some wonderful development for them as characters. And really, it was just a blast to see the huge cast and their interlocking stories finally culminate in one place. After all, even the characters who get less depth to them this time around are still a ton of fun to watch. The show's sense of humor and crazy tone are in full force here, and it makes sure the climax is crazy, exciting, and fun as hell. It ties up most of the plot threads, and unanswered questions nicely, and left me feeling like the series was finally complete.
That isn't to say the season didn't have its share of issues. While its far beyond the disaster that was x2 Shou, this arc does have a few visual hiccups, and less than great looking episodes. Another issue people may have, is that on more than a few occasions I've heard complaints that Durarara is "just too complicated", which is a reasonable sentiment. And in this arc, things get more jumbled, unclear, and convoluted than ever. On a normal basis characters would show up who I couldn't even remember who they were working for and why. Multiple times throughout the season characters straight up say "WOW THIS IS GETTING WAY TOO COMPLICATED", as if the writers themselves knew just how much of a mess they'd written themselves into. Now, I've always personally been fine with this part of Durarara. I just block out all the alliances, and yakuza subplots, and overlapping threads, instead focusing on the characters, their interactions, and their development throughout the story. As someone who puts individual characters above the overall narrative, that's fine for me, but for those who actually want to understand what's happening in the grand scheme of things, this last arc is the worst yet in that aspect. But still, if you can get past that, and simply enjoy watching the arcs of all these likable, interesting characters finally come to a satisfying conclusion, Durarara x2 Ketsu is absolutely worth watching.
Final Score: 7/10
KONOSUBA - God's blessing on this wonderful world!
Jonathan Kaharl
I love comedies about garbage people, and Konosuba serves up some A-class garbage people. It's all the funnier because everyone around them is a walking light novel cliche, so seeing these miserable, terrible losers interact with these types is instantly a treat. Hate that obnoxious super perfect lead guy who constantly has things go his way and a growing harem? Why not watch him show up obsessed with a goddess who doesn't even remember him, and then watch him get knocked out by a living sperm rag of a human being with his own super sword, and THEN come back groveling to find out his sword was pawned off? It's a thing of beauty. But it doesn't beat an average day in the life with these sad sacks, from tossing their caged goddess party member Aqua into a monster croc infested pond to act as magical chlorine, to the otaku Kazuma and chuunibyou Megumin having arguments about who watches out for ghosts while the other is trying to pee in private. And Darkness. Oh my god, Darkness. I relate to this masochist loon far too much.
The series has absolutely perfect comedic timing, not to mention a great score to work with. It bounces around scenes at just the right moments to keep the comedic energy flowing, stopping on fantastic expressions. There's some old Higurashi staff here, and they take the expression game to master class. On top of that, the loopy, barely contained animation style trades model clarity for a sense of life otherwise lacking, and it fits the series to an absolute tee. Everything about this show really sells the parody and satire angle, especially the pacing between each and every joke and the work of the voice cast. Sora Amamiya, voice of Miia from Monster Musume, stands out most as Aqua, perfectly capturing every single shade of her constantly high volume personality, especially in any instance where Aqua just casts away all pride.
Yet what I liked most about this series (besides Megumin in general) was that while our characters were absolutely vile ...they weren't like that to each other. They have their fights (especially Kazuma and Aqua), but as the series goes along, the four create a genuine dynamic and have a sense of respect for each other, and even some understanding. That's where the series starts to move forward. These four ARE instrumental in the bigger story with the demon king, because all their bizarre flaws and talents, which seem completely useless to a normal fantasy story, end up being far more capable than anyone would ever expect. Only because the four work together that they're able to actually grow or change at all. Megumin's friendship with Kazuma pushes her to do more for the team and plan out the use of her spell better. Aqua only ever manages to really prove useful when Kazuma points out how her abilities can save everyone in a dire moment. Kazuma's understanding of games and unorthodox sampling class gives him weak but a varied set of skills that can compliment his friends. Even Darkness finds self-confidence she lacked and is able to focus more than she used to because she's fighting with people she feels a connection with. They're all walking human disasters, but together, those flaws start to smash up against each other and occasionally create a trait no one else possesses.
The series is filled with little moments of the four just enjoying a moment of satisfaction, and that's where the series has its heart. They found a way to have their cake and eat it too. They're a real team, and they grow as they interact with each other, and they're more relatable because they're so littered with flaws. There's something embarrassing about each and every one of them to relate to, and that becomes instrumental in making the show more than just another shitty people laughabout. Konosuba is, bizarrely, a great fantasy story. it just has a sense of humor about itself.
Final Score: 9/10
Snow White with the Red Hair S2
Stephanie Getchell
Snow White's second season picks up right where the first left off. After making their feelings known to each other, Shirayuki is ordered, by Zen's older brother Izana, to go back to her home country; after an invitation from Prince Raj is sent to Clarines. However, there's a looming danger over Shirayuki's head, as the former noble, Mihaya, suddenly returns to tell her and Zen that someone is trying to track Shirayuki down and kidnap her. As Shirayuki and Obi travel back on Izana's orders and Raj's invitation, Zen, Mitsuhide, and Kiki try to find the mysterious young boy known only as Kazuki; before he manages to find Shirayuki first.
What I loved about Snow White from the beginning is the fairy tale, like, romance that occurs between our two leads. It's not abrupt or forced in any way, and with the personalities of the characters as they are along with the writing, it made for a rather well thought out and developed relationship for Shirayuki and Zen. Shirayuki is a very capable young woman who is always looking to reach her goals on her own terms, fighting back against those who think she would take advantage of Zen and his position. While she does seem to take on the damsel role during her capture by pirates, she still remains strong despite some glimpses of her longing for her prince. Meanwhile, Zen may be the typical prince charming we grew accustomed to as children reading fairy tales, he takes more of a back seat to Shirayuki's own personal growth and instead becomes inspired by her to grow himself. Something that his brother Izana takes great notice in as he used to see his younger brother as a rather useless prince. But this isn't to say that Shirayuki and Zen are the only notable characters as there is a cast of secondary and minor characters that get their time to shine, with Obi and prince Raj getting quite a bit more development; while Mitsuhide, Kiki, Ryu, and Izana progress as characters over the course of these two seasons.
As I mentioned before, studio Bones isn't all that known for their romance series. They're more well known for series such as the Full Metal Alchemist franchise, Soul Eater, and the more recent Blood Blockade Battlefront. But Bones is well known for producing such high quality series with outstanding animation. Now while there was period where the quality did reach a low, but the studio has been making bigger waves in recent years because of series like Blood Blockade Battlefront and Snow White. In Snow White's case, the art style and animation are stunning as the detail in backgrounds and the color scheme give the fairy tale feel much more prominent. As for the broadcast dub that has been produced from the beginning (FUNimation dubbed the first season prior to the start of the second), it has wonderful work on many fronts. While there are wonderful performances from the likes of Eric Vale, Mikaela Krantz, and Austin Tindle; it's Brina Palencia and Josh Grelle's performances of the leads that make it all the more wonderful to revisit. As a first time full director, Cris George does a fantastic job!
Because of the nature and maturity of the series, it takes what we know of the classic fairy tale story and give it a much more well written story and developed characters in order to suit audiences young and old. It's clear that Bones left their stamp on the series, both in animation and in story quality. Again, it's been a while since I have seen a rather well written romance series. I fell in love with the series from start to finish and now I am sad that it's over. Well, time to wait and see if a third season will be produced. Pretty please, guys?
Final Score: 9/10
As I mentioned before, studio Bones isn't all that known for their romance series. They're more well known for series such as the Full Metal Alchemist franchise, Soul Eater, and the more recent Blood Blockade Battlefront. But Bones is well known for producing such high quality series with outstanding animation. Now while there was period where the quality did reach a low, but the studio has been making bigger waves in recent years because of series like Blood Blockade Battlefront and Snow White. In Snow White's case, the art style and animation are stunning as the detail in backgrounds and the color scheme give the fairy tale feel much more prominent. As for the broadcast dub that has been produced from the beginning (FUNimation dubbed the first season prior to the start of the second), it has wonderful work on many fronts. While there are wonderful performances from the likes of Eric Vale, Mikaela Krantz, and Austin Tindle; it's Brina Palencia and Josh Grelle's performances of the leads that make it all the more wonderful to revisit. As a first time full director, Cris George does a fantastic job!
Because of the nature and maturity of the series, it takes what we know of the classic fairy tale story and give it a much more well written story and developed characters in order to suit audiences young and old. It's clear that Bones left their stamp on the series, both in animation and in story quality. Again, it's been a while since I have seen a rather well written romance series. I fell in love with the series from start to finish and now I am sad that it's over. Well, time to wait and see if a third season will be produced. Pretty please, guys?
Final Score: 9/10
GOD EATER (Ep.10-13)
Joe Straatmann
Take when we start this new wave of episodes. It's a flashback to Lenka's childhood as he's discovered in the dirt by a family rejected from the protective walls of Fenrir. Now, Lenka through this whole series has been a loner who doesn't play by the rules, so obviously, you know where this is going. His family exists in a small settlement outside the protected zone as they didn't have the genetics useful to Fenrir, and they struggle to eek by. Eventually, they have to "decide between two" with whom should live between the family. Despite the father's absolute hatred for Fenrir throwing out people who don't pass their genetics test, the family goes through the same thought process and eventually makes the exact same decision Fenrir would've. At least they find a wonderful closing song and a touching final moment between life and death.
Most of the finale surrounds Operation Meteorite, an attempt to wring control of the Earth from the Aragami by drawing them to a handful of locations and blasting the hell out of them so they can get their cores necessary for completing mankind's last hope, Aegis. This is an average action climax and it delays the tantalizing cliffhanger details from before the break. To ufotable's credit, it does look pretty damn good. However, this is dramatically peanuts compared to Alisa being brainwashed into trying to assassinate squad leader Lindow for his infiltration of Aegis and finding its dark secret. When anybody asks Lindow what this secret is, he brushes it off with obvious lies and then everyone gets a minor distraction that would in no way stop the person from saying, "No, really, what the hell is going on with humanity's most important facility?" Seriously, get on with it! Even the assassination plot seems to get more convoluted and diluted as all of the Aragami are set up to destroy Lindow anyway, so the overwrought brainwashing is simply insurance.
The payoff is based on the extremely doubtful proposition that God Eater will get a sequel. Oh, they complete enough to get to some sort of finality, but the ultimate fate of mankind, the Aragami, and the planet is left hanging on, "Will man become God, or will God become man?" Aegis' dirty little secret turns out to not be a letdown, at least, but you'll never get to see what comes of all of this. Given the massive production delays, I'm guessing ufotable has had enough of this property for one lifetime and it hasn't really gained enough traction among anime fandom to risk a second migraine. Maybe if they hadn't wasted an episode-and-a-half on the "final boss" that's often framed way too close to the action to see what's going on, they could've gotten the closure they required, but as it is, God Eater just misses on about everything except the Go Shiina music.
Final Score: 6/10
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