Anime

First Impressions of Spring Anime 2016

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Ah, nothing like a spring anime season after a cold, harsh winter anime season to warm one’s frigid heart. Can’t say I loved anything from last season, but I’m feeling a lot better now. In fact, I haven’t liked a line up this much since last spring. I wonder why that is…anyway, here are my impressions of a bunch of shows, all conveniently airing on Crunchyroll right now.

Kiznaiver

Let’s start off with the big one. I love everything about Kiznaiver. I love the characters, the plot, the art style, the humor, the characters, etc. Oops, I said “characters” twice. I guess that’s just because I find them so utterly enjoyable. Even though some are reminiscent of archetypes I usually dislike, they remove themselves enough from the standard and cut all the crap, leaving nothing but the good. Hajime Tenga is Kamina from Gurren Lagann, except I don’t hate him. Tenga doesn’t run his mouth quite as often, doesn’t force himself to be the leader, doesn’t do incredibly stupid things out of some misplaced sense of pride and determination. Sure, he’ll bust in to smack some bullies around, but he doesn’t hop into a fight he knows he can’t win. Hajime knows he’s not invincible, and most importantly, he has fear which makes him much more down to earth and relatable. The others are great too, and I feel like I should save that for another post. But aside from characters, I love the experimental plot Kiznaiver has, by which I mean literally throwing a group into an experiment. I love these kinds of plots because it allows you to throw whatever crazy shit you want at the characters and see what happens. And it adds an extra layer of mystery. Why are they being tested like this? Hopefully the payoff is as good as the setup, because Kiznaiver absolutely nailed it. Plus the art style is bloody gorgeous. Oh, and the OP and ED are 6/5 okay hand emojis.

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Joker Game

Every episodes seems like a slow burn to me. The set up leaves a lot to be desired as I often find myself fairly uninterested. But over time, usually to around the halfway point, I finally find myself entertained and I’m suddenly engaged in the espionage the show totes itself on. The show has a way of turning itself around near the end, but it doesn’t leave me wanting for more, so much as it has me satisfied with what I received. The characters however, are less than satisfying, due to the fact that I don’t know who any of them are. They all look incredibly similar (business suit, black short hair, sometimes glasses?) and besides the main character, they are all spies that relinquish as little information about themselves as possible. It’s very had to distinguish them, I certainly don’t remember any of their names, or faces, or any sort of defining characteristics whatsoever. The stories are interesting though, so it has that going for it. Joker Game is also set in WWII, which is…fun, I guess? I mean, WWII wasn’t fun, but it might be an interesting place to tell a story. Lastly, the OP and ED are not very memorable at all, to the degree that I can’t recall the tune in my head. I remember the OP had some cool visuals though, so there’s that.

Re:Zero –Starting Life in Another World-

I said it on Twitter and I’ll say it again. Re:Zero –Starting Life in Another World had generic fantasy RPG crap written all over it. So it came as quite the surprise when I found myself actually liking it. Sure, it’s not brimming with personality to the level of Kiznaiver, but it feels like it has something that’s strictly its own. And I’m not talking about the aspect of restarting. That’s already been done by The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask. What makes Re:Zero its unique is typically what makes any story unique: the characters. Subaru is, for some reason, likable. Sure, right now he feels a tad thinly written, but he lacks the things that could make him a totally annoying dominator protagonist. Instead, he has no powers, isn’t incredibly smart, and gets beaten a lot. And when I say he isn’t incredibly smart, I mean he’s actually a little dumb, by which I mean he doesn’t get a grip on what’s happening as quickly as I would’ve liked. It’s not a problem though, it’s actually quite believable and in no way a turn off to his character. He actually reminds me of Juugo from Nanana’s Buried Treasure, who was also a good protagonist despite the lack of any powerful abilities. The more subtle action sequences in the show are quite enjoyable, but when Super Knight shows up, things get a little boring as he stomps everything in his way without even a sweat. I hope that doesn’t keep happening, as there’s rarely anything interesting about a flawless character. Also, the Ending theme is fantastic and I can’t stop listening to it.

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Mayoiga

Campy horror at its finest…okay, maybe not its finest, but I’m still having a good time. I do find it odd how a lot of it takes place in the daylight, as monsters usually thrives in the darkest of nights. But we don’t really know if there’s a monster yet. The group suspects it’s a bear, but a lot of creepy things keep going down and everyone’s on edge, so who knows what’s really going on? Perhaps the paranoia will reveal that they themselves were the monsters all along. Or whatever. Quite frankly, this entire motley crue seems SUPER killable from the very beginning, but perhaps that’s what the show wants us to believe. The foreshadowing in the first episode was almost blunt to be true. A bunch of people who are basically dead to society going off to hidden village that the outside world can’t seem to reach without a guide. Other than the lack of Wi-Fi, what could possibly go wrong? As for the characters, there’s only one in particular that I absolutely hate. Never in my life have I ever wanted a protagonist to die so much, but god, Mitsumune sucks so much, it’s borderline offensive. Hyperbole aside, he is such a little weeny that no character should find themselves liking, and yet of course he’s going to get at least two if not more girls blushing at just the mention of him. He’s young and dumb and weird around girls, and has no redeeming qualities outside of being the token nice guy that I’ve grown to despise over the years. Again, hyperbole aside, I hate him. But I love the Opening theme. The animation has its moments, but what really drives it home is the sick guitar. Gotta love it.

Tanaka-Kun is Always Listless

Gotta love it when shows use uncommon words like “Listless” or “Myriad” in their titles. Also gotta love it when a show is like Kawai Complex but sleepier. I like this show quite a bit, and what really makes the show great isn’t the main character. It’s the supporting cast. Tanaka-kun really only serves as the center of the show, around which the colorful and cute cast can shine around. Miyano is adorable, admirable, energetic and adorable. She’s everything I’d want my apprentice to be. But she’s not JUST cute. I don’t really like cute for the sake of cute, and so if Miyano was JUST cute I probably wouldn’t find myself liking her so much. You see, she can actually convey human thought and emotion, and has a motivation that makes sense, that doesn’t just exist to create exceedingly moe moments down the road. I mean, those happen anyway, but at least she has the drive to make it there. She’s more than just kawaii, I swear. And Oota is solid husband material. Away from the characters, the overall humor of the show is one that I enjoy. It’s lofty, some might even say tired (pun of the day), and worth a nice, soft laugh. I like the color palette, the overall style, and OP and ED. The ED is especially cheeky, I like where the two Miyanos run into each other and explode as the song ramps up a bit. Gotta love it.

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Flying Witch

Okay, I clearly got to stop saying “gotta love it” so much. I’m forcing it, and I know that, and I should tone it down before I beat my new catchphrase to death. As for Flying Witch, I would offer the opposite advice. Tone it up a bit, please, because right now I am very bored and sadly you do not have the humor that Tananka-kun has going for it. The characters are dull, the writing is bland, and I’m losing the will to keep watching. If this show is trying to be funny, I’m not laughing. If it’s trying to be cute, I don’t care. I hate being so harsh on a show like this, but there’s just nothing interesting going on. It’s come to the point where I’d actually pray for some fanservice, because then there might be something actually entertaining about this show. Right now Flying Witch is just a show about a witch that can fly. That’s it. We’ll see where this goes, but so far I’m not impressed.

Big Order

A weird show, with a weird plot, weird world, weird powers and weird mouth animations. I don’t understand what the main character’s power even is. He can dominate everything? Shouldn’t he be sitting atop a throne as ruler of the world? I don’t know about this, but the CG is pretty bad and the characters aren’t very likable. Not much else to say, really.

Space Patrol Luluco

I was hoping this wasn’t Inferno Cop again. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t hate Inferno Cop, but it’s an old joke that doesn’t need repeating. Thankfully, Space Patrol Luluco isn’t Inferno Cop. It’s kinda like Inferno Cop, but with some actual effort put into the writing. The jokes are funny, the characters are cute, the OP and ED are nice, and the plot seems to actually go somewhere.

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And that’s it folks! Sorry if you were looking forward to a list feature of anime characters that wear classes (as my last week post may have hinted at). Perhaps another time. So what do you think about the anime airing now? Do you love Kiznaiver as much as I do? What do you mean you haven’t watched it? Go watch it, it’s good, I swear. Feel free to leave your comments down below and come back next week for another feature. Thanks for reading!

Bungo Stray Dogs, Episode 3

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A nice, simple start laced with great gags and an amazing potential running mystery; is how Bungo Stray Dogs decided to begin this episode. The suicide gag that Dazai runs is especially on point this time around, causing me to audibly express my amusement, amplified greatly in the reality of which I exist. I LOL’d. You’d think jokes about ending one’s own life might be a put off, but I actually find it quite morbidly refreshing, and the way the jokes are delivered is so expertly written and timed that even though I know it’s a running gag, I still don’t see it coming. It’s fantastic, and never too similar to a joke previously made, so I would ever grow tired of it. Hopefully that continues, as well as all the other eccentric antics that this group seems to go through on a daily basis.

Before we move on from the opening scene, an intriguing mystery arises as the agency decides to let Atsushi in on their little game. It’s a guessing game, one where the members of the agency try to infer what every other member did for living before joining the team. The enigma that emerges from this is one that I thought they would run in the long haul, although I could see them revealing it at the end of the current episode as well. No one can figure out what Dazai was before the agency, and so now there’s a huge cash prize for anyone who can come up with the answer. And the answer is good, but more on that later.

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From there the group gets a call alerting them of a new client. What comes from this scene is a mission, an antagonist, and another Dazai suicide joke. The client has a problem with smugglers and needs the help of the agency to scope it out/take it down. Meanwhile, it is explained to Atsushi-kun (and the audience) that there is a big bad mafia, and special people within it that you should avoid at all cost. This of course leads to Atsushi meeting said person. But before that we get a scene of that evildoer doing heinously evil things to a police station in an attempt to hammer in the sense that you should not fuck with this person. Other than that, I felt the moment was a little unneeded, but cool all the same.

Probably the worst part of this episode was how bluntly the trap was produced. The client leads them to an alley and reveals she’s with the mafia. Okay. She pulls out an Uzi and guns down the sister. Not okay. Then Junichirou reveals his special ability which is kinda cool, I guess. Ryuunosuke shows up and takes him down, slaps his partner in her face because she failed, and reveals that they wanted the weretiger all along. Then they fight and Dazai shows up just to save the day. Turns out he planted a wire on the chick, which was pretty smart. Although, he did wait until two of his comrades were down, which wasn’t pretty smart. But this whole situation where the group gets trapped fairly easily wasn’t very smart either.

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What was smart, however, was Dazai’s previous occupation being revealed. If you were expecting that answer then maybe you felt differently, but I sure as hell didn’t see it coming and therefore thought it was awesome. And I still think this show is very awesome, despite its lackluster trap this episode. Hopefully they move away from the straight forward action setups to something a little more unexpected and cerebral, as I felt that these characters aren’t so dense as to fall for a simple alley way ambush.

+ Suicide jokes on point

+ Great ending ties with deceivingly simple beginning

– Reliance on crappy action tropes

– Completely un-clever ruse

My Anime List and Me

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As I sat there, in my chair, in my house, on a Saturday afternoon, home after going out for lunch and buying some new guitar strings, I pondered about what I would write for my weekend feature. It’s too early for a First Impressions Spring 2016 feature, as I feel the need to watch at least three episodes of every show before having a somewhat firm opinion. I wasn’t prepared for any of my feature ideas in the backlog, like my Bioshock review. That would require me finishing Bioshock, and I just didn’t feel like being incredibly annoyed at the time. A list feature would be my last resort, had it come to that. “Top ten anime characters with glasses”, I thought. There’s just something so endearing about vision defects, and I’m sure there are people out there who feel the same way and would appreciate such a magnificent list feature of my favorite heroes and heroines that don the spectacles and then we could all bask in the glory of near sightedness. So I went onto MyAnimeList.net to look back on all the wonderful shows I had enjoyed over the years, all while trying to recall which ones had featured bespectacled beauties. And then I realized: MyAnimeList.net is awesome, I should write about that.

And so here we are now. MyAnimeList.net is awesome. It’s more than just awesome. It’s a fantastic utility, one that provides its users with a litany of resources, customization, social networking tools and etcetera to fulfil more needs than I could possibly have, all while being one (if not) the best database in the world for our most cherished form of entertainment: anime. Oh, and they have manga too. Most importantly, you can make a list of everything you watch/have watched/will watch/stopped watching, which is all it really needed to do.

Just in terms of sheer usefulness, MyAnimeList cannot be beaten. Never has it been so easy to find the anime I’m looking for, original and English title, with the character list, their voice actors, in any dubbing language, with the directors, and studios, and publishers, and PVs, and news, and discussions, and adaptations, and clubs relating to the show, and list goes on. What’s even better is that you can see what’s simulcasting right now in what regions (legally). Plus you can have friends and a profile and a list and stuff.

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And that profile and a list and stuff? You can customize the shit out of it. You can also share the shit out of it. Check out my sick list, special thanks to user SylakentH. I sure as hell couldn’t have made that, but you might be able to with some knowledge of web design and a decent sense of style, something I also don’t have. You can also deck out your profile page with sweet gifs like this. Look at that. Isn’t that just adorable? Plus you have your comments, favorites list, progression bar and more!

Progression feels good. Real good. That’s why I like trophies and achievements in my games. Sure, it might be a shallow sense of accomplishment, but it’s still a sense of accomplishment, and when I see my trophy level go up it makes me just want to play more. And so when I see my number of hours spent watching anime go up, I want to keep increasing it, resulting in me watching more anime. And that’s a good thing, right? I mean, there’s certainly nothing better I should be doing with my life. Because anime is life. And love. And everything good in this world.

Moving on, let’s talk about clubs and discussions! They’re cool, and often helpful, like the custom list groups that share sweet looking list designs for everyone to enjoy. They even have tutorials. What a nice group of individuals, banded together for a fun and noble cause. There are also fan groups, like for those of us who really like anime characters with glasses. And of course, you can also make your own. Then there are discussions and a forum ripe for browsing. Spoiler threads for the episode you just watched conveniently on the page of the anime itself, for all to take part in. Plus other threads, for other things. I personally don’t visit forums very often, but when I do they seem nice enough.

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Then there’s user reviews, which are a nice thing if you like hearing what other people have to say and can handle someone not having the same opinion as you. If you find a review you really agree with, you can friend that reviewer, or at least give their profile a visit. If you don’t agree with them, write your own review and then move on with your life. At least, that’s what I do.

I could go on for days about how fantastic MyAnimeList is, but what’s truly important is this: They don’t stop. MyAnimeList is always improving and adding new features to its beloved user base like news, streaming, private messaging, notifications, and etc. And hopefully it’ll keep doing so in the future.

This post has been sponsored by MyAnimeList. Go there, for all your anime listing needs. Just kidding. No one would ever pay me for anything I do. I just like giving credit where credit is due. MyAnimeList makes my life better. It didn’t save my life or pull me out of a crippling depression or anything. But it makes my day to day a little more enjoyable. Sometimes you just got to acknowledge the everyday things in life that you take for granted. Oh, and I forgot to mention that it’s a site where I’m comfortable turning my adblock off. I try to support whoever I can on the internet, but with ads these days being so gosh darn intrusive (and sometimes malicious) one’s gotta look out for oneself, ya know? Thankfully, MyAnimeList does not have intrusive or harmful ads (at least in my experience), so that’s another plus.

Thanks for reading this week’s feature, sorry for being a little late in the day. That part about me going out to lunch and buying guitar strings was true. As for that part about me having a glasses fetish, well, who knows? Find out next weekend here on There Goes My Kokoro.

And comment below if a list feature of characters with glasses is something you would totally want to read. Ciao.

Bungo Stray Dogs, Episode 2

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This episode starts with another Dazai suicide joke. While quirky and expected, I can’t help but feel it’s alluding to something. If Dazai keeps trying, one day he’s bound to succeed, which would be sad considering he’s such a cool and playful character.

But this is what I love about this show. It keeps a balance between serious and humorful that’s hard to pull off. This makes the show unpredictable, as I can’t tell if a running gag will turn out to be more meaningful down the road. Bungo Stray Dogs even likes to squeeze its comedy into the tensest of situations, while not taking away from the dire reality at hand. Like roshambo to decide who has to talk down the mad bomber, there is no moment too grievous for Dazai to lose his eccentric charm.

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Although this did just turn out to be a test, which may have been the reason for his calm demeanor, I would like to think he’d be just as languid if it were the real thing. In hindsight, the test was kinda obvious, but in the moment it was just so compelling and fun that I didn’t care. The bomber is in the Opening credits and clearly a main cast member, but I just assumed this might be his induction into the agency as well. Dazai definitely seems like the type to welcome someone who threatened to blow up a building full of innocent people.

Still, the plan worked out great, having Atsushi prove his worth in the noblest way possible, retelling the age old lesson that it’s not the power that makes the man; it’s his actions.

+ Pretty colors and scenery

+ Tension + comedy = happy

+ Cool outfits

Meme Oshino – My Favorite Type

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Despite not being a cute anime girl, Meme Oshino is one of my absolute favorite characters in anime, and fiction in general. He is someone the piques my interest every time he’s on screen, someone who knows all the answers and gleefully decides to hold that information until the time is right. Although seemingly lackadaisical, he’ll jump in when, and only when, he is needed. And for those of you who don’t know who I’m talking about:

“Meme Oshino (忍野 メメ, Oshino Meme) is a middle-aged man. An expert in the supernatural. He becomes Koyomi’s informant when it comes to oddities for some time.” –Wikia

I cut some parts of that description out, in case you wanted to watch/read Kizumonogatari first in the series (which would be the chronologically correct way).

Meme Oshino is what some might call “eccentric”, and his sense of fashion is no exception. As if to exemplify his languid nature, he wears just the simple getup of a Hawaiian shirt, shorts and sandals. His face has a little scruff and his hair is in an eternal state of “bed-head”. Plus he has few strange little accessories, like the single earing of an inverted cross. With just a tiny bit of flare, Meme Oshino is the embodiment of “care-free”.

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Which is of course, is a huge part of his personality. Meme is aloof, laid-back, mysterious and detached until ultimately needed. He is a neutral party, one that’s neither for our protagonist nor against him. Oshino’s primary objective is balance. We as the audience do not know why, and do not need to know why, but gladly accept his presence (I may be speaking only for myself) as he tilts the scales until the odds he sees are fifty/fifty. It’s almost as if he’s purposefully lax and strange to counteract the serious and straight forward nature of the people around him. Outside of that struggle for balance, there is no need for Oshino to do anything, and so he doesn’t.

And contrary to his goofy, indifferent nature, Meme always manages to be the smartest in the room. He offers sage but often vague advice to balance the tides without blunt instructions for the main character to carry out and save the day. That would be boring, and so Meme tries to have a little more fun with the characters. And there’s a sense of amusement to everything he does, from the way he acts to the cheeky references and jokes he makes.

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Meme Oshino is truly a delightful arbiter of balance with such an entertaining ambiguity to his very state of being that we (mainly I) can’t help but love, trust and admire him.

But what are your thoughts on Meme Oshino, or just aloof characters in general? Do you like him as much as I do? Have you even seen Bakemonogatari? Comment down below and then come back next week for another feature! Thanks for reading!

And seriously, if you haven’t yet, go watch Bakemonogatari.

Bungo Stray Dogs, Episode 1

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Hello all! It is I, crispyn64, here to review another seasonal anime episode by episode, week by week, in the timeliest manner I can afford. Why? Because I want to, that’s why! And also because I think having another reason to write every week is a good thing that will ultimately (hopefully) result me growing as a writer. Furthermore, I want to you to watch along with me, and read my reviews only after you’ve watched the episodes yourself and have formed your own opinion on the matter. Then we can talk about it in the comments below! Doesn’t that sound fun?

Starting with the scenes: There were three of them. And they all looked fantastic. Flowing waters and purple-red skies, a nice eatery with more than a few interesting camera angles, and then a shadowy blue warehouse lit only by the moonlight through the windows. Positively splendid. And the characters weren’t so bad either.

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Especially Osamu Dazai, or as I like to call him, Suicide. So far he seems like the delightfully aloof but smarter than meets the eye type, which is one of my absolute favorite archetypes. Then there’s Doppo Kunikida, aka Ponytail. He’s pretty cool, with his ponytail and all. And finally there’s the main character, Atsushi Nakajima, and he seems like a safe choice for the protagonist. He’s also an orphan, as the show would like you to know.

By which I mean it repeats it. Over and over, throughout the first episode, presented by the inner thoughts of young Nakajima. Good for nothing. Orphan. Should just die in a ditch. I’m paraphrasing because I’m too lazing to go back and check. But that’s the basic point I think the show is trying to get across. For now it seems this character is pretty down on himself, so joining this group of eccentrics might just give him the new lease on life he desperately needed. Or something. We’ll see as the show progresses.

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As for some final thoughts, I started watching this show like how I try to watch any show: With no prior knowledge and no expectations. So it came as quite a pleasant surprise when the humor finally kicked in. At first I thought this show was had a very serious tone and then BAM! Joke. Nice one, Bungo Stray Dogs. It didn’t muddle the possible significance of this show while still acknowledging that it can have fun. I hope Bungo Stray Dogs can keep that balance, as I am eagerly awaiting more.

Myriad Problems Phantom Girls: A Myriad Colors Phantom World Review

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From the beginning, Myriad Colors Phantom World presents itself to be something that’s not meant to be taken seriously. The show harbors a copious amount of overused tropes and cheeky moments of fanservice. While the fanservice often tries and succeeds in being fresh and original (like boob limbo), the tropes are only made somewhat less trope-y by a blunt act of self-awareness, an example being Haruhiko spouting exposition and Ruru acknowledging that he’s going on and on about something the characters should already know, therefore solving the problem of boring exposition by pointing out that it’s boring exposition, rather than just changing it to be more engaging. Continue reading →

Myriad Colors Phantom World, Episode 13

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It’s finally over. As Myriad Colors Phantom World comes to a close, so does my first ever episodic review series…I probably should’ve picked a better show. That being said, I had a fun time, and I hope you did too. This show definitely had its ups and downs, now all that’s left is to determine what side Phantom World decided to end on.

No intro sequence this time, due to the urgency of picking up from a cliffhanger. If you don’t remember from the last episode, here’s a quick wrap up: Haruhiko kissed his mom and then they passed out and so did Ruru for some reason. That’s really all that’s important here. What’s concerning is that although Ruru losing consciousness was the very last thing to happen in that episode, it wasn’t the first thing address in the following episode. Instead we see that Haruhiko’s mom is in a coma and Haruhiko is fine but doesn’t have his powers anymore. Then Ruru’s part is put into play and it’s just this odd role reversal thing that leads to the revelation that Ruru and Haruhiko are intrinsically tied for some reason and they kiss and are officially shipped and I’m getting ahead of myself.

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Back to Haruhiko, I’d like to point out that we’ve learned more about him and his backstory in the last three episodes than the rest of the series combined. That’s kinda odd, considering he’s the supposed main character, but clearly it’s just meant to create a sense of emotion and meaning for the finale, albeit a needless sense at that. Phantom World has spent so much time creating an ensemble, so it seems counterintuitive to focus on one character for the series final moments, and to spend that time on Haruhiko no less! He’s by far the most unlikeable character in the show and isn’t really deserving of a three episode spotlight. But I digress.

Now onto other details, that thingy from the second episode is back. And it turns out to be just a convenient tool for the gang to hack into the evil corporation’s servers. Who is this evil corporation? No idea. Where did they come from? Absolutely no clue. But we need some sort of super bad guy and a final fighting ground, so here it is. Apparently this evil company has been conducting experiments on Phantoms and the one that possessed Haruhiko’s mom the other day escaped from there. And so the Phantom returns there with all her new powers to destroy the place.

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Let’s take a look the generic plot-points checklist so far, shall we? Evil corporation: check. Evil research facility (check). Test subject escapes (check). Test subject wreaks havoc in search of power (check). Test subject comes back with power to have revenge (check). We’re at four now! Let’s see how many we can get before the show ends!

The group makes it to the company in order to confront Enigma (test subject). Haruhiko says he’ll go in by himself because he’s a man and that’s what men do (check). Girls call him out on his bullshit and go in instead (minus check). When in their fighting poses, villain reveals her backstory and her plan (check and check). When the girls get nowhere in the fight, Haruhiko jumps in because a man always has to save the day (check). Villain shapeshifts into his mother so Haruhiko now can’t fight her (check). Haruhiko gets his powers back for some reason and releases his summons, now in their final form (check). Happy ending and everything returns to normal (check).

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I felt like the series as a whole tended to walk the line between generic and self-aware generic, making it somewhat not generic, but this ending was as generic as they come, and I can’t say I’m not a little disappointed. Myriad Colors Phantom World definitely ends on a downside, but what’s my final overall judgement? Find out in my next weekend post: The Myriad Colors Phantom World Review (working title).

+ Nice visuals

+ Teddy bear hacker

– Generic climax

– Generic villain

– Shoehorned emotional material

– Shoehorned villain

Final Thoughts on Anime Winter 2015/16

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Here we are folks, the end of another season. I can’t say it was better than the last season, nor that it was worse than the next season, and don’t even get me started on how it compares to the season before that season before this season’s season. But I think I had a good time.

Durarara!!x2

Well, that sure was…something. Honestly, I can’t say I’m not at least a little disappointed with how this season wrapped up, and I’ll get to that later. First I want to talk about the characters. Specifically, how many there are. I mean, there were already a lot, and then the show just kept dumping more and more on us, to the point where I would have to actually take notes just to try and understand what the hell is even going on (I didn’t actually take notes, and so I was extremely confused). What’s really bad is how poorly/under-used some of the characters are, to the point where it would’ve been better off not introducing them in the first place. Then there are these villainous plots that seem to lack any rhyme or reason, but perhaps they do and the show just presents itself so poorly that you can’t possibly understand why some characters do what they do. Now back to the ending *spoilers-move onto next paragraph if you don’t want to be spoiled*, Durarara!!x2 committed a most vile cliché, one so off-putting that some might consider it a storytelling sin. A gun is put to Mikado’s head, the trigger is pulled, cut to credits, come back next week, he’s not dead, and I shake my head. No, Durarara!!x2. That is a cheap, no-good, dirty, rotten, obvious, terrible low-hanging fruit that no one in the right mind should pick. But I don’t know, I just really hate it when characters are killed only to not be killed. And then Mikado gets stabbed in the streets later for no apparent reason and still doesn’t die. Okay.

Konosuba

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Ooh! I liked this show! A lot! It starts off in dangerously generic territory, only to become refreshing and original, as well as charming and satirical. The animation is cute and derpy sometimes, swift and action-y at other times, and overall pretty engaging. The characters are likable and the way they interact with each other is even more enjoyable. It’s a fun show and I’m definitely looking forward to season 2.

Erased

Erased started off as an incredibly promising show, so much so that there was almost no way it could deliver an astonishing ending worthy of it’s amazing setup and premise. Sadly, it doesn’t, at least not for me. The killer wasn’t a very shocking reveal as there were really no clues leading to him being the killer in the first place. He revealed himself, rather than Satou uncovering him. And that in itself, is fine. I won’t knock a show for taking a different approach to certain things. What I will say however, is that the killer was not a very interesting villain. Sure, he was maniacal and had a cunning plan as to how to kill and frame all these people, but the reason for doing those things just wasn’t there. He did it just because he could, and the show doesn’t really get into what was really in it for him. Some sort of satisfaction, I assume, but can’t really say for certain. Perhaps I’m just asking for too much out of our fictional serial killers. You do you, psychopaths. Oh, and a 15 year coma is a ridiculous amount of time.

GATE (season 2)

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I feel like I might be coming off this Winter season a little negative. Also, this show was awful. There’s nothing interesting about Zolzal as a villain. He is very much a brash, idiot rapist that has more power than he know what to do with, with no secret plan or chance in hell to take down the SDF, and his sex slave bunny lady easily manipulates him only to accomplish even more of nothing. She wanted to take down the empire, and then didn’t? Doesn’t she want to kill this dude that keeps raping her or something? No? And then there’s the SDF, who are even less compelling to watch. They trample over everything in their way with their superior might and technology. Fin. Oh, and then Itami goes back to being an otaku, because that’s his only defining characteristic that the show just completely ignores until the very end. And although I kinda like Rory, she was definitely created to cater to gothic lolita loving weirdos like myself, and I take full responsibility for her existence. And even then, I didn’t really care for the over sexualization of her.

Myriad Colors Phantom World

I’m not going to get too much into this show here, as I have written every episode review so far and plan to do a complete review once the show is completed (so come back next week for that ^-^). What I will say is that it’s my favorite of the Winter 2015/16 anime season. So uh, check out my reviews.

And what did you think about this winter anime season? What were your favorite shows? And what do you plan to do about the upcoming spring season? I plan to try and watch more shows outside of Crunchyroll, because as you can see, I’ve missed out on a lot. Thanks for reading! Hope to see you next week!

Myriad Colors Phantom World, Episode 12

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Well, the intro is back. *sigh*

But I kinda liked it this time. They started getting into Phantoms and aspects of our personalities and shadows (personas) and stuff and it was super enlightening and then they ended on a joke that seemed to foreshadow what was coming next. The last line of the intro: “Folktales aren’t copyrighted, so we’re in the clear!” A comedic nod at using folktales because they’re easy and free, only to be completely ignored. Well, I guess that lady was a vampire-thingy, so that’s kind of a folktale? Or perhaps there’s some sort of Japanese folktale that’s gone completely over my head, and if that’s the case please tell me in the comments below.

So we move on from the intro to find our spunky protagonists once again fighting some Phantoms on school property, just like the very first episode. Except now there are more members, and apparently they are on the top of the school hierarchy. Yes, they started from the bottom and now they are here, and everyone admires them and life is great and even Minase has a fan club, for some reason. Then there was a call back to the device thingy in episode two that was never explained, only to not be used in this episode either.

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Now onto a tie in from a previous episode that actually means something: The Human Encyclopedia’s mother who abandoned him is suddenly back! That’s not suspicious at all! Haruhiko gets all emotional and they start to mend their relationship and Haruhiko doesn’t have to be alone anymore and they have a blast spending time together and going shopping together and doing mother and son things TOGETHER and it’s great. Then they have this moment where all the girls come to the table and it’s brilliant/awful/whatever you want to call it.

Now, I’m of the belief that just because there’s one male protagonist and a group of female protagonists, a harem isn’t a forgone conclusion. I’m not saying I don’t like harems or that this show would necessarily suffer just by having one…but *deep breathe* WHAT THE F@#$! I really don’t know how to feel about this. On one hand, there is a reason for each of these girls to like him, as realized by all of the characters in that awkward dinner conversation when Momma drops the “which one of you is going to f@#$ my son?” bomb. Okay, I may be paraphrasing. But on the other hand, Haruhiko sucks! He plain sucks, specifically, the life out of the room whenever he goes full encyclopedia and explains something everyone already knows. And by everyone, I mean the characters. Obviously he is an exposition device and exists to inform less educated viewers, which in it’s own right is perfectly fine. But damn does it feel patronizing to more informed viewers, as well as the other characters. And this, plus his almost complete lack of any other defining characteristics beside “kind of nice” and “good at drawing” makes him not a suitable partner for my Izumi. Back off my waifu, Haruhiko! You don’t deserve her! You don’t even deserve Minase.

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Erhm, also there’s this convenient phone call that pops up and provides the shocking revelation as to what’s really going on. Then the villain reveals herself and her plan doesn’t really make sense at all considering her end goal but whatever just go with it and Haruhiko kisses his mom in the moonlight and Ruru steals the attention even though there are currently three people unconscious right now. And then the predictable cliffhanger to lead into the final episode.

So come back next week to find out what I think about that.

I really should tweet my predictions or something, because I totally knew the last two episodes would be connected through a conflict that just appears to serve what will probably be a big, action-y and emotional climax. Or something.