Summer 2013 Anime Season

by **Kiskaloo** Thu 23 May 2013 - 20:34

The first versions of the Summer 2013 Anime Chart are now out and the first Promotional Videos are being released by fansubbers.

This year's Otaku Hit will surely be Love Lab, which checks all the boxes on the list: Tsundere Girl, Meganekko Girl, etc.

Lolicons need not fear being left out, however, since Ro-Kyuu-Bu! is continuing as Ro-Kyuu-Bu! SS.

And Tokurei Sochi Dantai Stella Jo-Gakuin Kōtō-ka C3-Bu seems tailor-made for many of us in this forum - cute girls in miniskirts playing Airsoft survival games. cheers

We also have some history with a new anime adaption to celebrate the 20th Anniversary of Sailor Moon.

As for stuff I will be watching (and yes, I will be giving TSDSJGKC3B a shot), I seriously enjoyed the Tamayura OAV and the Tamayura ~hitose~ TV series (to the point it made a cameo in my GSG fic), so I will certainly be watching Tamyura ~futatose~.

I also found Recorder to Randoseru to be enjoyable, so I expect more of the same from Recorder to Randoseru Mi ☆.

A third helping of Tantei Opera Milky Holmes? Yes please!

And I want to see if the fastest-talking seiyuu group in history can keep it going with Teekyū Season 2. Razz

Based on the PV, I will be giving Silver Spoon a look. I am hoping for another Hanasaku Iroha.

by **Kiskaloo** Sun 2 Jun 2013 - 19:37

Batten down the hatches - KyoAni has streamed their second CM for the anime Free.

Essentially "K-On for the ladies", many otaku lost their shit when the first CM of the show was aired as they were not pleased with the idea of "Male Moe". ROTFL

by Piero Sun 2 Jun 2013 - 21:03

I think some people were hoping this much hyped new Kyoto project was another season of Haruhi or Full Metal Panic. At any rate, I'll likely give it a shot. It could be amusing.

It's also kind of ironic that Free is airing the same season as Genshiken Nadaime (which I plan to watch). I haven't read the new Genshiken manga, but my understanding it it continues with the demographic shift that had the club leaning more towards the fujoshi side of the spectrum. Razz

Despite my limited knowledge of the Type Moon mythos, I'm interested in the Fate Stay/Night spin off with Ilya as a magical girl. I'm also curious about the series about civil servants and the one about the girl who gains eleven brothers when her father remarries.

Also, isn't Ghost in the Shell: ARISE supposed to be a summer release?

by Entropy Mon 3 Jun 2013 - 15:16

Link to updated schedule: http://i3.minus.com/ibzppF4KzcDr3n.jpg

Seems like Gainax is trying to ride the wave Girls und Panzer caused with what is being dubbed in English as "Schoolgirl Survival Game C3-bu", we'll have to see if it has the same strange charm as GuP.

Kin-orp Mosaic also looks interesting, and will add to the long list of anime already featuring cute British girls in Japan with a twist.

There seem to be a few more SoL school series, we'll have to see how Love Lab and Kitakubu Katsudou Kiroku start out. The bishi is also strong in this season, between Free! and Brothers Conflict. Both might be interesting series to check out potentially.

Two movies coming out this summer, Ghost in the Shell: Alive and the new Studio Ghibli offering, Kaze Tachinu (Cutting the Wind). Like every other movie season, though, I don't expect to actually see these for quite a while.

by Piero Tue 4 Jun 2013 - 1:07

Is Brother Conflict supposed to be a bishie series then? I was hoping the thing about the main girl gaining eleven brothers when her father remarries was going to be used for comedy.

I'm really hoping the new Monogatari series is split cour. I'm not a very big fan of the franchise but its pretty much guaranteed to be one of the shows the people I watch anime with are going to want to see. With that in mind, having a season off to break up a half year stretch could be nice.

I'm not sure the plot of Silver Spoon particularly appeals to me, but on the other hand the group that translated the Last Exile interquel manga also translated that series, so it has some name recognition in my eyes. I might also check out the Sailor Moon remake -I've largely avoided that franchise thus far, but its pretty darn iconic, so maybe its time I gave it a chance.

by Entropy Tue 4 Jun 2013 - 9:49

Piero wrote:Is Brother Conflict supposed to be a bishie series then? I was hoping the thing about the main girl gaining eleven brothers when her father remarries was going to be used for comedy.

I'm really hoping the new Monogatari series is split cour. I'm not a very big fan of the franchise but its pretty much guaranteed to be one of the shows the people I watch anime with are going to want to see. With that in mind, having a season off to break up a half year stretch could be nice.

I'm not sure the plot of Silver Spoon particularly appeals to me, but on the other hand the group that translated the Last Exile interquel manga also translated that series, so it has some name recognition in my eyes. I might also check out the Sailor Moon remake -I've largely avoided that franchise thus far, but its pretty darn iconic, so maybe its time I gave it a chance.

Brothers Conflict could include plenty of comedy, but I can't see it not being a "reverse harem" to some extent. You might also have to wait for the Sailor Moon remake, as it seems to have been delayed: http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2013-04-27/new-sailor-moon-anime-delayed

As someone who watched it when I was a kid, it wasn't exactly the smartest/most engaging magical girl series, even if it was the one that sort of started the craze and made it a more viable genre.

by **Kiskaloo** Tue 4 Jun 2013 - 10:32

Entropy wrote:As someone who watched (Sailor Moon) when I was a kid, it wasn't exactly the smartest/most engaging magical girl series, even if it was the one that sort of started the craze and made it a more viable genre.

I loved the Saban dub, as bastardized as it was. That being said, I've been watching the original episodes subbed and they're even funnier, frankly.

by maverick375 Tue 4 Jun 2013 - 12:42

Silver Spoon is an interesting manga. It's humorous and somewhat informative at the same time, though the lack of "real" action might fall short of what people here trend towards. The anime should be interesting.

by Il Direttore Tue 4 Jun 2013 - 19:36

Attack on Titan has

Spoiler:

by **Kiskaloo** Tue 4 Jun 2013 - 20:08

Spoiler:

by Il Direttore Tue 4 Jun 2013 - 20:12

Kiskaloo wrote:
Spoiler:

Spoiler:

by Piero Tue 4 Jun 2013 - 23:04

I thought it was weird too, but I'm not that attached to the series and it was cool, so... meh.

Also, I think this discussion is in the wrong thread.

by **Kiskaloo** Tue 18 Jun 2013 - 17:29

Turning Girls - Episode 01

A flaming turd from the studio that brought us Inferno Cop. They probably should have called it "Turning (Stomachs) Girl" for Kaeru.

by **Kiskaloo** Mon 24 Jun 2013 - 22:58

Ghost in the Shell: Arise [Border 1: Ghost Pain]

The 2004 Battlestar Galactica and Yamato 2199 are examples of using re-imaging to revitalize a property into something epic.

I'm not sure Ghost in the Shell: Arise is going to fair as well...

First off, the character design. With the exception of giving Chief Aramaki dark hair instead of white, the characters all look pretty familiar to their Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex counterparts - Major Motoko Kusanagi being the major exception, of course. Though I guess one of the mandates given to character designer Kazuchika Kise to make her younger and "cuter" is because she spends much of the movie either naked or in her underwear. $W\'ever$

The entire voice cast was changed, but that's not quite so jarring as I am used to the English language cast more and Production I.G.'s animation, while reminding me of Zoids, is far better than the crap passed off in Appleseed XIII. The low frame-rate does impact the action scenes, which are much stiffer and jerkier than GitS: SAC. And it is nothing to the level of what Production I.G. are doing in Gargantia.

The biggest loss, however, is in the music. Yoko Kanno's GitS scores were epic. This is only the second anime work Cornelius has done (the other being Appleseed: Ex Machina) and it shows.

It's not bad, to be sure, but it's nowhere near as good as previous installments (especially compared to Stand Alone Complex).

by **Kiskaloo** Wed 26 Jun 2013 - 12:13

Girls Und Panzer Bonus BRD/Episode #2 - "Survival War"

More bikinis and breasts for your viewing enjoyment.

Spoiler:

by Entropy Wed 26 Jun 2013 - 17:16

Kiskaloo wrote:Girls Und Panzer OVA 2 - "Survival War"

More bikinis and breasts for your viewing enjoyment.

Spoiler:

Just wait until the sixth (still unsubbed) OVA if you want to know the meaning of "homage".

by **Kiskaloo** Thu 27 Jun 2013 - 20:42

Chuunibyou Demo Koi ga Shitai! Bonus BRD/DVD Episode - "Glimmering... Slapstick Christmas"

Still a brilliant show and I am so ready for the second season to start.

Summer 2013 Anime Season Rikka_Takanashi_Volleyball

Summer 2013 Anime Season Rikka_Takanashi_Volleyball

by **Kiskaloo** Thu 27 Jun 2013 - 23:38

One Off [OAV]

Haruno Shizoaki is a young high school student living in a Japanese rustic small municipality. After sixteen years stuck there, she wants to leave her hometown, but is uneasy about the future. She then meets Cynthia B. Rogers, an Australian who has ridden her bike through many countries around the world and will now work at Niwa, a café owned by Haruno´s family. Cynthia´s presence makes Haruno think about many things and inspires her friends to consider a more adventurous lifestyle.

Helmed by Junichi Sato, who gave us ARIA and Tamayura, this two-part OAV actually came out in August of 2012. Fortunately, I stumbled across it on a fan-subbing site the other day. It appears to be sponsored by Honda Motorcycles.

Aesthetically, the show is similar to Tamayura and at first I thought "so it's Tamayura with scooters instead of cameras", but it quickly charts it's own course. I found it quite enjoyable.

And if Laine was an Australian instead of a Brit, she'd be Cynthia B. Rogers. Smile

by **Kiskaloo** Tue 2 Jul 2013 - 20:01

Based on the promotional video, Tokurei Sochi Dantai Stella Jo-Gakuin Kōtō-ka C3-Bu looks like it could be silly fun. Debuts on July 4th.

Turning Girls - Episodes 02 and 03

With Kaeru either gone or not playing the "idol", the show is not nearly as annoying. And fujoshi Chiwa seeing new yaoi material in almost everything she looks at was pretty funny.

by Piero Wed 3 Jul 2013 - 0:58

I had some time on my hands, and tried watching Dog X Scissors.

...

...

...

What on earth was I thinking?

by **Kiskaloo** Thu 4 Jul 2013 - 23:30

Tamayura ~More Aggressive~ - Episode 01

[Nearly a year has passed since Fu Sawatari moved to Takehara and got settled in with a good and supportive bunch of friends. Fu decides that she needs to become “more aggressive” in pursuing her interests, and that means attempting to start a Photography Club in her school when she begins her second year.

It depresses me that crap like Photo-kano gets licensed for release in Region 1, while quality shows like this do not, but then I remember that Tamayura is about pleasant, relaxing entertainment and Photo-kano is about breasts and butts. $W\'ever$

Servant x Service - Episode 01

Yamagami, Hasebe, and Miyoshi are all newly-minted civil servants being introduced and shown the ropes in the Welfare Department. Each has a peculiarity: Yamagami has both a highly atypical first name and an embarrassing list of names, Miyoshi is working her first job ever despite being 24, and Hasebe is good at everything he does (especially dealing with troublesome clients) but a playful slacker by nature.

A rare sight in anime - a show featuring an all-adult cast. However, since it is the brainchild of the creator of Working!! (Karino Takatsu), it's not to be taken seriously and the first episode is indeed funny and entertaining, though I don't think it will be as good as Working!! was.

Chronicles of the Going Home Club (Kitakubu Katsudō Kiroku) - Episode 01

Natsuki Ando has finally made it to high school but does not know what club she wants to join. Karin, a friend from middle school, suggests checking out the Going Home Club, which to Japanese students generally means going home after school rather than participating in club activities. Natsuki is startled to discover the club actually does exist and has three rather eccentric members: twin-tailed Club President Sakura, rich girl Claire, and martial artist Botan. The club's purpose is for its members to simply have fun, which in this episode includes reviewing an account of Botan's bear-fighting journey over summer break the previous year, Botan demonstrating her unusual method for opening plastic bottles, and a journey to a café for crepes.

There have been no shortage of shows about cute girls either doing cute things or nothing at all, so this show breaks absolutely no new ground and adds nothing to the genre.

Unlike most recent 4-koma adaptions, which are single episodes of around three minutes in length, this show follows the more traditional formula of four separate around-five-minute stories to fill a half-hour time slot. This decision is somewhat of a mixed-bag. Each episode is independent, but with enough basic similarity that you don't feel like you are watching four different shows. There are moments of true comedy, yet there are also many jokes that fall flat and the animation quality is, at best, mediocre (except for one scene animated very lusciously as a joke). I shall stay with it for the moment, but I doubt this will end up being a memorable series.

by Piero Thu 4 Jul 2013 - 23:45

I tried watching the first episode of Free yesterday. My assessment is that it should prove quite popular with the fujoshi crowd. :PAside from that the show is notable for having one main character who seems really tall and one who seems to be an asshole to his buddies from childhood for little apparent reason.

by Entropy Fri 5 Jul 2013 - 12:25

Stella Girl's Academy C3-bu is more of a combination of K-On! and Girls und Panzer as opposed to a direct ripoff of GuP. I have to say that it is quite a cute concept and it's also quite funny. It might be a bit too early to judge the characters, but that seemed to be the only part of it which was fairly expected/not as interesting. Still, it's definitely worth a look, and it appears it might make quite a few references to shoot-em-up action movies.

by **Kiskaloo** Fri 5 Jul 2013 - 15:16

Stella Women's Academy, High School Division Class C3 [Stella Jogakuin Koutouka C3-bu] - Episode 01

Yura Yamato has just transferred to the prestigious Stella Women's Academy and discovers that it is difficult to find friends in her first day at school. After a chance meeting with a fellow student named Rento Kirishima, she is recruited to the school's airsoft club named C3-Bu (derived from command, control, and communications, which is also the club's motto). The story revolves around Yura's experiences as a member of the C3-Bu and her interactions with her fellow members.

The short-hand description of this show - "high school girls ("who look super good in mini-skirts") playing survival games with airsoft and BB guns" - pretty much sums it up.

If I had to draw a parallel to another anime series, I'd say it's closest to Upotte!! (just with real girls instead of girls who are anthropomorphic guns).

In Girls und Panzer, Sensha-dō was a formal martial art taught at the school and held in some esteem by society. The girls of C3 Club, however, know they're viewed as weirdos by the other girls because they love guns and holding mock battles.

And while the girls do drink tea and eat cake in the club room, they also actually partake of club activities so it can't be like K-On! Razz

Besides, everyone knows the military version of K-On! is so ra no wo to. Wink

This is by far the most poorly-animated show I can recall coming from GAINAX. It reminds me of the mediocre work Xebec put in on Upotte!! - Actas' work on Girls und Panzer is theatrical movie level in comparison.

Then again, I expect shows like this and Upotte!! appeal to a very narrow band of otaku and they animate it cheap because they won't be selling Blu-rays by the pallet.

by Entropy Fri 5 Jul 2013 - 17:10

Personally I hated Upotte!! and couldn't make it very far, simply because it seemed to care more about the harem and ecchi aspects of it and the logic of the series didn't seem to be decipherable. Stella appears to be a bit more engaging and orders of magnitude less stupid, at least. The characters do seem to have their own unique personalities for the most part but it seems like the more interesting one won't get a proper introduction until next episode.

I don't have high hopes it will be as good as Girls und Panzer, but it was at least interesting enough to keep my attention throughout. The comparison to K-On! comes mostly because it looks like it's going to focus on these 5-6 characters and their interactions.

by **Kiskaloo** Fri 5 Jul 2013 - 17:23

Entropy wrote:Personally I hated Upotte!! and couldn't make it very far, simply because it seemed to care more about the harem and ecchi aspects of it and the logic of the series didn't seem to be decipherable.

Upotte!! was an absolute train wreck of a show. But it was about girls with guns who held mock battles, which is why it seems the closest parallel in terms of concept.

Entropy wrote:Stella appears to be a bit more engaging and orders of magnitude less stupid, at least.

Agreed.

Entropy wrote:I don't have high hopes it will be as good as Girls und Panzer, but it was at least interesting enough to keep my attention throughout. The comparison to K-On! comes mostly because it looks like it's going to focus on these 5-6 characters and their interactions.

Girls und Panzer did grow on me (not to the point I'd buy it, mind you) so perhaps we shall see the same here.

by **Kiskaloo** Sat 6 Jul 2013 - 15:22

il sole penetra le illusioni ~ Day Break Illusion - Episode 01

A story of girls who solve mysterious matters that occur in this world, using the mystical tarot cards that hold the power to read destinies.

This show wants to be dark, edgy and ominous so it can be as taken as seriously as Puella Magi Madoka, but I am not sure I can't do that when the character designs and art style are so cheesy. It's like trying to tell the first season of Gunslinger Girl with the character designs and animation style of Lucky Star.

While the artistic merits are minimal, the musical score is solid. The story lays all it's cards on the table (pun) in the first episode, denying us the slow reveal that helped add punch to PMM, and it leaves some serious gaps, but overall the show looks like it may have potential.

by Piero Sat 6 Jul 2013 - 16:44

Kiskaloo wrote:Tamayura ~More Aggressive~ - Episode 01
[Nearly a year has passed since Fu Sawatari moved to Takehara and got settled in with a good and supportive bunch of friends. Fu decides that she needs to become “more aggressive” in pursuing her interests, and that means attempting to start a Photography Club in her school when she begins her second year.
It depresses me that crap like Photo-kano gets licensed for release in Region 1, while quality shows like this do not, but then I remember that Tamayura is about pleasant, relaxing entertainment and Photo-kano is about breasts and butts. $W\'ever$

If it's any consolation, Photokano's Japanese blu-ray sales aren't particularly good.

Kiskaloo wrote:Stella Women's Academy, High School Division Class C3 [Stella Jogakuin Koutouka C3-bu] - Episode 01
Yura Yamato has just transferred to the prestigious Stella Women's Academy and discovers that it is difficult to find friends in her first day at school. After a chance meeting with a fellow student named Rento Kirishima, she is recruited to the school's airsoft club named C3-Bu (derived from command, control, and communications, which is also the club's motto). The story revolves around Yura's experiences as a member of the C3-Bu and her interactions with her fellow members.
The short-hand description of this show - "high school girls ("who look super good in mini-skirts") playing survival games with airsoft and BB guns" - pretty much sums it up.

If I had to draw a parallel to another anime series, I'd say it's closest to Upotte!! (just with real girls instead of girls who are anthropomorphic guns).

In Girls und Panzer, Sensha-dō was a formal martial art taught at the school and held in some esteem by society. The girls of C3 Club, however, know they're viewed as weirdos by the other girls because they love guns and holding mock battles.

And while the girls do drink tea and eat cake in the club room, they also actually partake of club activities so it can't be like K-On! Besides, everyone knows the military version of K-On! is so ra no wo to.

This is by far the most poorly-animated show I can recall coming from GAINAX. It reminds me of the mediocre work Xebec put in on Upotte!! - Actas' work on Girls und Panzer is theatrical movie level in comparison.

Then again, I expect shows like this and Upotte!! appeal to a very narrow band of otaku and they animate it cheap because they won't be selling Blu-rays by the pallet.

My understanding is that Gainax has lost a lot of experienced staff to other studios, particularly Studio Trigger.

Anyhow, C3 was better than I expected. The girls even made some pretty decent use of tactics.

While it's nice to get a show with an adult cast, I wasn't too impressed by Servant X Service. Symphogear G looks nice, but Symphogear isn't exactly the strongest franchise when it comes to story (its more about music and battles featuring mecha influenced magical girls).

Also checked out the first episode/movie for Ghost in the Shell: Arise. I enjoyed it but I do have some criticisms. I had trouble following exactly what was going on (though that's not entirely unusual for GITS) and one of the action scenes had sudden cuts which seemed to skip over things like characters moving from one spot to another in ways that made me feel like things were missing.

by **Kiskaloo** Sun 7 Jul 2013 - 22:42

Kin-iro Mosaic - Episode 01

When Shinobu was in middle school, she spent some time with an English family, friends of her own. Despite her near total lack of English, Shinobu and the family's daughter Alice became fast friends. Now in high school Shinobu fondly remembers her time in England and hopes to see Alice again one day. Imagine her surprise when Alice turns up as a new student at her school and even in her very class!

Based on a 4-koma manga, you'd never guess based on the opening episode, which was some kind of wonderful for the part that took place in England.

I expect the rest of this show will not be at this level of epic awesomeness, which is a tragedy, considering. That being said, I'm praying this is a gentle, low-key comedy in the vein of Croisée in a Foreign Labyrinth and equally as heart-felt and adorable.

by Piero Mon 8 Jul 2013 - 1:22

Brothers Conflict: I'd had hopes for this one since the premise seemed like it had potential as the basis for a good comedy/drama, but unfortunately its a reverse harem/wish fulfillment series which plays the "we're not related by blood" card. I would actually say that except for not featuring copious amounts of whatever the male equivalent to T&A is, this is actually worse than a lot of harem shows.
Then again, as a guy I guess I'm not exactly the show's intended demographic. sweat

Love Lab: I was originally going to give this one a pass based on the preview description on the chart Kiskaloo posted (which essentially amounted to "this school has girls that fit various stock anime stereotypes"), but got convinced to give it a chance. Anyway, it seems the actual plot is that one of the students at an all girls school gets roped into being a guinea pig for the student council president to use to practice how she should act when she meets her ideal boyfriend. Not quite sure how the rest of the girls will factor into this yet, but thus far is seems to be a not quite yuri comedy.

by Alfisti Mon 8 Jul 2013 - 5:00

Kiskaloo wrote:One Off [OAV]

Haruno Shizoaki is a young high school student living in a Japanese rustic small municipality. After sixteen years stuck there, she wants to leave her hometown, but is uneasy about the future. She then meets Cynthia B. Rogers, an Australian who has ridden her bike through many countries around the world and will now work at Niwa, a café owned by Haruno´s family. Cynthia´s presence makes Haruno think about many things and inspires her friends to consider a more adventurous lifestyle.

Helmed by Junichi Sato, who gave us ARIA and Tamayura, this two-part OAV actually came out in August of 2012. Fortunately, I stumbled across it on a fan-subbing site the other day. It appears to be sponsored by Honda Motorcycles.

Aesthetically, the show is similar to Tamayura and at first I thought "so it's Tamayura with scooters instead of cameras", but it quickly charts it's own course. I found it quite enjoyable.

And if Laine was an Australian instead of a Brit, she'd be Cynthia B. Rogers.

Sounds like something I may need to give a go.

by **Kiskaloo** Tue 9 Jul 2013 - 14:10

Watashi ga Motenai no wa Dou Kangaete mo Omaera ga Warui! | Watamote | ~No Matter How I Look at It, It's Your Guys Fault I'm Not Popular!~

Kuroki Tomoko is an lonely "ordinary girl" who has the dream of becoming popular. for her misfortunes she's branded deranged and lonely and spends most of her time playing games and watching shows. She then enters high school and that triggers her interest in popularity, She tries to achieve her goals in any way she can, but it doesn't always end the way it should.

Nothing special, but does have some entertainment value.

by Piero Wed 10 Jul 2013 - 1:14

I gave the first episode of Watamote a try. I prefer Yahari Ore (My Youth Romantic Comedy is Wrong as I Expected). Granted Yahari Ore took a while to grow on me and I was biased against Watamote before I even watched it so that may not be an entirely fair comparison.
As a note, I've actually been the kid who has trouble getting a group for group projects and finds breaking the ice at social events awkward, yet I don't have a very high opinion of the negative attitudes some not so popular people have towards more popular people and/or the opposite gender. Though at least in the case of the girl in this show it seems pretty clear that her nasty assumptions about some of her peers are unjustified.

by **Kiskaloo** Wed 10 Jul 2013 - 16:22

Kamisama no Inai Nichiyōbi | Sunday Without God - Episode 01

On Monday, God created the world. On Tuesday through Friday, God did a lot of other things that don't match up well with the biblical Book of Genesis's account. On Saturday God rested. And on Sunday he told everyone that they're pretty much screwed.

Heaven is full-up and God has subsequently rescinded the Death Penalty before deciding he's an Agnostic and abandoning his creations. To prevent the living dead from eventually taking over the planet, God did create a special class of "gravekeepers" who could put them to permanent rest via burial. Ai is the gravekeeper for her village, having ascended to the role at the village's behest on the death of her mother five years earlier. Though nobody in her village has died since, she nonetheless has spent the time digging a grave for each of the 47 villagers, just in case.

As a concept played seriously, this could be a pretty interesting show as the first episode did raise a lot of intriguing questions and gave very few answers. However, like Day Break Illusion, this show has a big disconnect between being serious and being cute fluff. The producers know who buys anime merchandise, so Ai is 12, cute, moe, genki and wears an outfit that while mercifully chaste, is also totally unfit for mortuary work. The rest of the female cast looks equally designed to appeal to otakus or lolicons. Madhouse is also channeling SHAFT as the show looks far more like ~ef than the first season of Gunslinger Girl. The premise is enough to give it a second episode, but I hope it plays more to it's story strengths then sales strengths.

by Entropy Wed 10 Jul 2013 - 16:53

Kiniro Mosaic was an interesting surprise, it's not often you see anime attempting to do the whole "actually speaking English" thing for very long. Unfortunately they didn't invest enough in it to actually get a native speaker, even for the one-off characters, but I've only seen that once and that was in the beginning of Shugo Chara. Having an English speaker who was also inexperienced with Japanese might have been an interesting twist, but also very hard to pull off when Japanese people are writing it. In any case, it seems like a relatively cute anime that will seem to blend normal SoL stuff with culture differences.

Love Lab has a certain amount of comedic potential, but I don't have very high hopes for it. It simply seems like one of those shows that are going to keep going to the same well for the jokes over and over, and that might not be terrible in all cases. We'll have to see what the other characters bring to the table.

Fantasista Doll was something I checked out mostly out of boredom, and it did surprise me a bit. The stylism of the series is decent, even if the first episode was action-packed with magical girl tropes (even though it's not technically magical girl). Basically, girl who once won a card game tournament when she was in elementary school gets more or less forcefully recruited into playing a different kind of game, one where cards hold "Dolls" in them that then go out and fight somewhat Pokemon-style. On their off-time, the dolls can also act as some sort of companion for the "Master". What the Master is supposed to do is somewhat questionable, considering the Dolls seem to do all the work. Still, it might be something to follow.

by **Kiskaloo** Wed 10 Jul 2013 - 17:40

The next 16 days are going to drag, I am sure...

And I am seriously annoyed they pushed back the final volume a month to October. Angry

I just hope the show does well enough to greenlight the Comet Empire arc. On Cloud 9

by Piero Wed 10 Jul 2013 - 23:40

Entropy wrote:Love Lab has a certain amount of comedic potential, but I don't have very high hopes for it. It simply seems like one of those shows that are going to keep going to the same well for the jokes over and over, and that might not be terrible in all cases. We'll have to see what the other characters bring to the table.

Love Lab is apparently kind of controversial because boys show up later on. :PSo maybe the show can mix things up a bit later. Or maybe it'll become a so-so rom com. Who knows?

Kiskaloo wrote:The next 16 days are going to drag, I am sure...

And I am seriously annoyed they pushed back the final volume a month to October.

I just hope the show does well enough to greenlight the Comet Empire arc.

I should start watching Yamato 2199 again soon. I'd intended to sort of watch things "as they aired" this season after blowing through pretty much all the material that had already been released on disc at the beginning of last season. So next episode for me is fifteen -I'm not entirely sure if that one has been broadcast yet though.

by **Kiskaloo** Wed 10 Jul 2013 - 23:58

Volume 5 shipped back in May and included episodes 15-18 and they have been released by nubles.

by **Kiskaloo** Thu 11 Jul 2013 - 22:53

Silver Spoon - Episode 01

Yugo Hachiken is an ace with studying, and wants to be away from his family,and believes he can do he could go to any school with no problems, so trading regular high school for Agriculture school, he begins a new journey. Upon arriving at the school and starting classes he is quickly proven wrong, and must uncover the truth about farming, and Agriculture, and how to keep up with his news friends, who are already used to the farming world.

Pretty much a straight played for laughs "fish out of water" high school comedy, but the first episode was amusing and the high school setting is completely different from the grand palaces most such anime shows take place in so it has the novelty factor going for it.

Recorder to Randiseru Mi - Episode 01
Man, they totally ruined this show...

by maverick375 Fri 12 Jul 2013 - 21:18

Watched Gin no Saji (silver spoon) last night. As a long time fan of the manga I found it satisfactory at least. It will be interesting to see how much they try to cram into every episode, as a lot of things happen in each manga chapter. The comedic tone is pretty well on, but the art could use a somewhat more serious styling. It just feels like the fine-line detail of the frames is lacking, sort of like how GSG season 2 lacked the visual definition of the first season. I'm not expecting dark/light as that was, but even a touch closer to School Rumble would be nicer. Hard to describe. As I said, the tone was right, just felt like the visual "quality" was too cartoonish. Maybe it's just me.

by **Kiskaloo** Sat 13 Jul 2013 - 19:06

Nerawareta Gakuen [Psychic School Wars] - B

It's a new school year at the local Junior High School i Kamakura. The school year starts off with a new transfer student Ryōichi Kyōgoku who joins the 8th grade class. He has been ordered to join the school, and use his special gift of telepathy and take over their school. This boy who happens to be handsome, and be a charismatic person, gains popularity, and using his powers takes over the entire school, except for Seki. This begins a war to regain their freedom for their school and themselves.

If you crossed story elements of Puella Magi Madoka Magica and The Girl Who Leapt Through Time, add a sprinkle of Hayao Miyazaki and have CoMix Wave Films produce it and Makoto Shinkai direct it, you would end up with something in the neighborhood of this 2012 anime adaption of a sci-fi novel written by Taku Mayumura in 1973 and previously adapted to four live-action television dramas in the 1970s and 1980s.

Spoiler:

This adaption, however, focuses on being a romantic comedy and not a sci-fi or action film. It therefore suffers from some of the more common anime rom-com tropes and clichés resulting in the story presented, while enjoyable, not being particularly memorable. I am intrigued to read the original work and perhaps see one of the dramas if they are of a more sci-fi tone.

While animated by Sunrise, one could be forgiven for thinking it was handled by CoMix Wave Studios, who have done all of Makoto Shinkai's projects. This movie looks more like a Shinkai project then his own work of 2012, the Garden of Words. It is an absolute riot of lens flares and every color in the visual part of the Electromagnetic Spectrum. That being said, like CoMix Wave's works, it is visually stunning and if you are a fan of his visual aesthetic (which I am), it's worth watching just for the picture.

Visuals and a bit of review available at this blog.

by Awinnell Sun 14 Jul 2013 - 16:52

The little witch academia will be getting a second episode

Japan rocketnews wrote:Remember back in April when we brought you news of the explosively popular anime, Little Witch Academia? The short movie received such an overwhelming abundance of positive feedback from the online community that its creators Studio TRIGGER have decided to create a sequel to their highly acclaimed magical girl anime. And, in order to procure the funds for some extended running time, the team has turned to the American crowd-funding site Kickstarter.
The project began accepting pledges on Monday, July 8, and amazingly surpassed their desired US$150,000 mark after just one day!

The first Little Witch Academia was released at Anime Mirai 2013, an event funded by the Japanese government to encourage young animators into the field. The story follows a group of bright-eyed, young witches fighting to save their school from destruction. The lead animator at Studio TRIGGER, Yoshinari Yoh, and writer for the series, Masahiko Otsuka, both have a history of working with the highly acclaimed animation studio, Gainax, on such stellar series as Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann and Neon Genesis Evangelion among others. Their work is of truly outstanding quality.
The online English-speaking community certainly thought well of their work, appearing in droves at the studio’s YouTube page and leaving many comments which begged for a sequel. More than a few mentioned their willingness to give money to the cause and suggested Kickstarter as a good crowd funding money source.

At the recommendation of many, co-founder of TRIGGER, Mr. Masahiko Otsuka, looked into the service and was drawn to the prospect of reciprocal gains, allowing the studio to work together with the fans and reap benefits on both sides. Kickstarter facilitates a fund-raiser for the animation project and orchestrates the provision of special gifts and favors to those who donate!

Donations to Little Witch Academia start as low as one dollar, but people giving $20 or more will be given a link to download the finished sequel and art book.
$50 or more gets contributors a printed copy of the art book and standard edition Blu-ray of Little Witch Academia 2.
The gifts continue on in this fashion all the way up to $10,000, where three lucky (and generous) fans will have the opportunity to visit Studio TRIGGER and the offices of its affiliates and have a meal with the working staff!

by Piero Sun 14 Jul 2013 - 17:26

I'm certainly pleased that Little Witch Academia will be getting a sequel, as I thought the original was pretty good. On a related note, maybe we should have a thread for upcoming anime...

Anyhow, I wasn't too impressed with the second episodes of Love Lab or C3. The second episode of Genshiken Nidaime left a better impression, but I'm still not totally sold on the series. I haven't been that inclined to watch the second episodes of Servant X Service or Free.

I also watched the first episodes of Silver Spoon and Fate Kaleid Liner Prisma Ilya. Silver Spoon was okay. Prism Ilya was good in some respects, but there were parts I didn't quite get (I'm not that up on my Type Moon lore) and there was more nudity related humor than I'm entirely comfortable with in a show with a loli for a main character.

Maybe there's some other shows I should check out but thus far it doesn't seem like the strongest season ever.

by **Kiskaloo** Sun 14 Jul 2013 - 18:31

Awinnell wrote:The little witch academia will be getting a second episode...

I did the $100 pledge when they announced the KS project since that is about what I pay for the fancy NIS America Blu-ray releases that include art books and soundtrack CDs.

by Piero Thu 25 Jul 2013 - 1:45

Kimi no Iru Machi (2 Episodes): I enjoy good dramas, so I decided to check this series out. Despite seeming a bit like an older style harem show, suffering from story compression, and some oddities with camera position and voice acting, I actually kind of like it. Enough to give it a chance at any rate. Interestingly enough this adaptation seems to be starting in the middle of the series and doing flashbacks (which seems to have really pissed some people who are familiar with the source manga).

Despite my issues with the franchise's characterization, I actually rather enjoyed the second episode of Symphogear G. There's just something about mecha inspired magical girls beam spamming and blowing shit up. Razz

Kaleid Liner Prisma Ilya's second episode also raised my impression of that series a bit. That series definitely trends a bit towards parody, or at least comedy.

I think those three shows and Genshiken Nidaime are the main new shows I have tagged for following this season, though I don't yet see any of them being big winners (in terms of their popularity with me anyway -I think Prisma Ilya and Symphogear G have pretty good chances of being successful).

Oh, and there's also Yamato 2199, which is awesome, but its not really getting regular weekly releases.

by **Kiskaloo** Fri 26 Jul 2013 - 21:15

Futari wa Milky Holmes

In this story set two years after the previous anime works, the new "Milky Holmes Feathers" group are 12-year-old kōhai to the earlier four Milky Holmes girls.

This show appears to focus on the two girls, Kazumi and Arisu, who have enrolled in Holmes Detective Academy to become great detectives like their heroines, the famous Milky Holmes. Unlike the past series, the episodes for this show are 12 minutes.

Yamato 2199 - Episodes 19-22

The four episodes of the next to final volume concentrates mostly on plot development as opposed to action, which is probably a good thing as the plot of Yamato 2199 does have a number of rather significant divergences from the original 1974 television series (to it's benefit, just as they were for the 2004 reboot of Battlestar Galactica). The final chess pieces have been set as the Yamato arrives at the Gamilas-Iscandar solar system and the final four episodes should be amazing (and to make us wait an extra month, now, is just cruel). I will say the action reminded me very much of the naval and air battles of WWII.

by **Kiskaloo** Sat 27 Jul 2013 - 19:00

Okay, now that pretty much all the shows I have been watching are now three or four episodes under their belt, my “first quarter opinions” are as follows:

Tamayura ~More Aggressive~
As excellent as the original OAV and the first TV series. The show literally makes me happy.

Servant x Service
Definitely has that Working!! vibe, however I don’t feel this cast is as interesting or as entertaining as the folks at Wagnaria – perhaps because adults acting like high school kids does not seem as effective as high school kids acting like high school kids. Overall, though, it's a pretty boring show and I am pretty much just watching it for Lucy Yamagami, whom I find to be hella cute.

Chronicles of the Going Home Club (Kitakubu Katsudō Kiroku)
Standard “cute girls acting cute” anime, with the advantage the girls are pretty cute (especially Ando-san). Also pretty darn funny as these sorts of shows go.

Stella Women's Academy, High School Division Class C3 [Stella Jogakuin Koutouka C3-bu]
Have to say the ending of the third episode really turned me sour on the show.

Spoiler:

il sole penetra le illusioni ~ Day Break Illusion
I just can’t take this show seriously due to it’s look, which appears to be aimed to appeal to lolicons and goths.

Kin-iro Mosaic
The show settled into it’s 4-koma format with the second episode and while it is not the gentle, low-key comedy in the vein of Croisée in a Foreign Labyrinth I was hoping for, it is heart-felt and adorable. At the moment, my favorite show of the season.

Watashi ga Motenai no wa Dou Kangaete mo Omaera ga Warui! | Watamote | ~No Matter How I Look at It, It's Your Guys Fault I'm Not Popular!~
Supposedly meant to be comedic, I mostly feel sorry for Kuroki-chan in the face of her crushing social shyness. Her “creepy-cute” vibe is a change from the buxom beauty or moe cutie that have anchored previous shows dealing with this topic - I find her one of the more unique character designs I’ve seen in years. The show as a whole, however, I find to be just creepy and sad.

Kamisama no Inai Nichiyōbi | Sunday Without God
While the show does play on Ai’s inherent cuteness, it also is showing it can have a serious side – I did not expect the third episode to play out as it did and the fourth episode set the stage for what could be an interesting story arc.

Silver Spoon
While content-wise it is a very different show from the anime adaption of Full Metal Alchemist, Hachiken’s response to some of the things going on around him remind me of Ed in FMA. I should find it boring since it is a subject I have zero interest in, but the third episode was fun and I really enjoyed the fourth episode.

Recorder to Randiseru Mi
Just not in the same league as the original, but short enough that I can bang it out on my iPhone just about anywhere.

by **Triela** Mon 29 Jul 2013 - 15:54

I watched all 16 episodes of Attack on Titan yesterday. I LOVE THIS SHOW!!! I can't wait for the next episode!!

Eren and Armin are my faves. :3 A bunch of the side characters are great too.

I.
Hate.
Levi.
Angry

by Piero Wed 14 Aug 2013 - 0:31

I'm not very inclined to like Attack on Titan. I have very little emotional investment in the characters. It's also one of those shows thats gotten so big in the general anime fandom that its feels like its being shoved in my face a bit.

...and yet in spite of that I went and watched all the five episodes I was behind in one day yesterday. :sweat:I suppose that says something.

In other news, C3-bu is pretty freaking bad. Not only is there that weird reality warping stuff, even the actual airsoft segments don't seem very realistic (wall running? Seriously?). Though as someone who selected a Skorpion machine pistol for one of his OCs I found the fact that the main character in the show has an airsoft Skorpion as her primary kind of interesting.

Kimi no Iru Machi is a show that sometimes seems very good and sometimes seems very bad. The show is basically a messy romantic drama, and its characters and relationships seem more down to earth than those in a lot of other shows. On the other hand there are bits that seem a bit... well, I'm not sure anime clich-ish is quite the right way to put it, but hopefully that gets the point across. Plus there were some parts that didn't seem all the realistic, though some of that may have been due to story compression.

Genshiken Nidaime has really grown on me since it started. I wasn't sure about the new cast of characters but they actually seems to be doing decently well, and its not like the old guard never makes appearances. Interestingly there seems to be a lot more direct references to current anime in Nidaime than in the original Genshiken -see the club members cosplaying Madoka Magica in the most recent episode for instance.

I'm behind on Prisma Ilya and Symphogear G. The former has too much fan service for show with a loli lead character.

Space Battleship Yamato 2199 is pretty darn awesome. It has its share of flaws, but there are also things it does very well.

by **Kiskaloo** Wed 14 Aug 2013 - 0:47

The shock and awe factor of Attack on Titan keeps me watching it. Needs less cliff hangars, though. Smile

Tamayura ~More Aggressive~ and Kin-iro Mosaic continue to delight me with every episode.

As for C3-bu, I agree the show has imploded and I am just watching it for the fan service now. I think the girls should just be in their bikinis and web gear the rest of the series.
Run!

Kamisama no Inai Nichiyōbi | Sunday Without God has turned into a very pleasant surprise with two solid story arcs to date. Any fears this would be a lolicon-fest are completely ended and this is probably the show I most look forward to each week.

And Silver Spoon continues to deeply entertain me.

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