Spring Anime 2016 Picks

Third week into the season now but these impressions will just be based on the first episode that I have seen! There was 3 more that I wanted to include here as well 'Sousei no Onmyouji', 'Sakamoto desu ga?' and 'Re:Zero'. The first 2 I'll start at some point, as for Re:Zero, I was recommend that I should marathon that so have moved it to my watch later list!

Anyways, continue below to check out what I will be following this season and my thoughts so far =D

Ace Attorney - The anime adaptation of the first game, was excited when they announced this, after watching the first episode though, I'll be watching this only because I'm a fan. The animation is not great, I find it a bit too over the top even though that's how the game is. It just flowed alot better and it handled the comedy and serious tones better. I will enjoy seeing the characters again and listening to new music arrangements, which is great, I honestly can't wait to see Maya again, after her trial, I just want to see Maya and Phoenix work on a case again!

Mayoiga - Just telling you, that first episode gave me nothing but a bunch of self introductions. The episode just throws a whole lot of names and generic faces at you and tell you that they're all gathered here on this bus to start a new life. It's definitely going to be one where you will have to watch a couple of episodes before you decide if you want to stick with it or not. I kind of wanted it to be along the lines of 'Bokurano' but it seems more likely it'll be like 'Another', not caring for half the characters but just seeing who will disappear, you'd need to watch a couple more episodes I think to see if you would like it. Honestly because it's only going to be 12 episodes and like I said there are alot of characters, I thought the first episode would kill off half of them at least. It is an original anime, so it'll be interesting to see what it brings.
      EXTRA NOTE: There's a character called 'Valkana' (the back of his head pictured above) and I thought I recognized the voice actor but when I looked him up, it was someone completely different, he voiced Makoto Tachibana in Free! He did not even register with me as the seiyuu, well no wonder I love his voice, Makoto being my favourite boy in Free!

Kuma Miko - Glorious, hilarious, cute, mountain raised, bear-loving girl wants to attend middle school in the city. This anime gives me the giggles and feels. I for one really love this, I love this type of comedy, right up my alley. Ya know from a glance I thought it'd be one even a kid could enjoy.....and although they could, I wouldn't recommend it...due to suggestive material.

Kagewani: Shou (second season) - Not much to say here, I enjoyed the first season, it's short, an experimental animation style bringing us themes of horror and suspense, let's do it!!!!

Sailor Moon Crystal Season 3 - This season they introduce the super cool Outer Senshis, as in Sailor Uranus and Sailor Neptune, pretty sure it'll be true to the manga so no more being 'close cousins' censorship!
      Animation is better, though there's still some things I could nitpick. People say that the designs have changed? I honestly cannot say what the design changes are, they're not noticeable right away for me, I'd have to see a side by side comparison. They got rid of the 3D transformation sequences and went back to 2D, I don't mind either way, they were both pretty in their own way. One thing that majorly bothered me before were the damn frickin' cats (Luna and Artemis), they finally learned how to draw cats without them looking like deformed creatures, least I can say they are cute now!
      Another huge improvement is that the characters, especially Usagi, display a huge range of OTT reactions/expressions, thank you animators, this is the Sailor Moon we love and everyone should love!

Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress - Um I thought it was going to be like Snowpiercer but then it went on to be like Attack on Titan (this could just be put into my head though, since I've heard AoT being brought up alot when anyone was talking about this Kabaneri). If you like to treat your eyes once in awhile to great looking animation, give this a go, a bit more of an effort is made than the other animes this season to have it look really good. I didn't really get the whole choking one's self to stop the infection though and I kinda made this face O_< when watching it.

Bungou Stray Dogs - Bleh, kinda boring :l I didn't really like what I saw in the first episode. The comedy chibi moments just starts getting awkward to watch after like half a second. I don't have a good sense of the characters yet and all I can say is 'ah they're just kinda weird/eccentric/wacky what you'd expect from a stereotypical anime character'. The powers they have though, do seem interesting, so there's that, getting to learn about their powers and how they will use it is usually the most interesting thing to look out for. I'll continue to watch it but it's a 'not recommended' so far.
NOTE: This series does seem to have quite a bit of references to Japanese literature, which I am in no way familiar with, so I guess that's another factor that could contribute to how well you will like this.

Flying Witch - Another favourite this season for me. I think we all agree, that the mandrake scene at the end of the episode was the best part right?! I like that being a witch and doing witch-y things is completely normal for Makoto and she doesn't really try to hide the fact that she is one, so whenever she does something odd or 'supernatural', everyone around her is just like '.....is this real life?'. In the end they do just accept it though and carry on with their lives.
     I think this will be a very laidback show that you can watch when you need to just let your mind relax.

Fall Anime 2015: Picks Part 1

So I haven't been able to start this season from day 1 as I had to finish up Snow White with Red Hair and Sore ga Seiyuu!. They're both enjoyable but I just haven't gotten around to finishing them!

Anyway I eventually got around to watching the first episode of the ones I had initially picked out for this season. There wasn't much to be excited about for me this season, other than a few things that I picked just from their summary, any sequels or anything like that, that I know has hype, I just never got around to watching the first season so they won't be appearing either, but let's see what my reactions were for the following:

--- (Timeskip to after I got around to finishing the first episodes) ---

Diabolik Lovers More, Blood - I already knew I wanted to watch this when I heard this was getting a sequel, as I had binge watched the first season one late night! At only 12 mins per episode, how can you not? It's such an awful anime with awful messages but I can't help but keep watching, it's my guilty pleasure anime for sure.
If you're not aware, this anime is a reverse harem, where all the pretty boys (bishounens) the main girl is stuck with are bloodthirsty vampires, always after her blood. I really don't care what happens to anyone in this show, I think I just watch it for how pretty and dark the atmosphere/setting is.
     As you can see I  haven't really mentioned anything about this season yet, as nothing happened other than 4 new characters being introduced that will chase and set fear into the protagonist as every other character in this anime series does!

Garo: Guren no Tsuki - Considering how much I liked the last Garo anime, I had to pick this one up! All new characters and setting, so there's no need to have watched the previous season, although if you want to understand some of the concepts in the Garo universe you might want to, but it's not necessary to have watched any Garo stuff prior to this.
     If you're not familiar with Garo, it's dark, there's blood and gore and it's got a wonderful soundtrack, at least the one before did anyway. This season is set in what seems to be feudal Japan, the animation is nice, though the only bit I find really pretty is the way they have drawn Seimei, one of the main characters (pictured above). The drawing style is less distinctive than last season's I think. It may be a more lighthearted series though? Hard to say really, I'm not even sure if much happened in that first episode other than introduction of 1 Makai Alchemist, Seimei and the Golden Knight (an inherited power), Raikou. But yea, not much happened, I suppose the battle was a bit interesting :/ maybe.....

Kagewani - If you're looking for something that's not animated traditionally, check Kagewani out! It's like a paper cutout style, it's a mere 7 mins per episode. A suspense filled, mystery solving anime. We follow a detective who is investigating in deaths caused by monster attacks. I think the anime could be better with it's horror aspect if they didn't show the monsters in full. The style they went for definitely adds to the suspense, though everytime I hear a monster, I imagine it to look like Godzilla. Either way it seems to be a monster of the week type series.

Kowabon - Another interesting horror/thriller type anime, just for how it's made, this was created using rotoscoping, so I hear! I think it works very well for this anime =D
     The first episode did freak me out a bit, honestly I love horror manga but I can't take it in any video format! Gore and such are fine but horror is a no-no for me. But the show is a mere 3 minutes long so I might as well stick with it. Have no idea what the show is about as of yet, if anything, other than to give you the creeps. I think it's just an experimental series, which I'm happy enough to keep up with. Again it is very very short, so no harm in checking out an episode or 2.
The funny thing though is the ending theme is such a total opposite of the actual tone/atmosphere of the anime.

One Punch Man - This show is ridiculous and so over the top, it's amazing. Just simply amazing.
Having gone into this without knowing anything other than alot of people love it immensely, I decided I would pick this one up for sure. It's funny, weird and a bit gruesome all at once. I mean I don't know how it will play out, if a character can just beat everything in One Punch, but it'll just be entertaining AF to watch! Just 5 minutes in and I was already loving the voice actors' performances, just a brilliant start! Also can I just mention that I am also really loving the crazy animation and perspectives, it's just really entertaining to watch!

Sakurako-san no Ashimoto ni wa Shitai ga Umatteiru - Some beautiful animation in this one! The premise of this show caught my interest straight away when I heard about it! The idea of a woman being obsessed with bones really intrigued me, I have no idea what the story would be about or anything but just that single aspect of her just seemed so strange that it became a great incentive for me to pick up this one!
     The animation is quite beautiful to note again, though some of the characters look too cute or moe if you will. I guess it helps that the characters are a bit funny, it's a tad bit hilarious how attached to bones Sakurako-san is. I am enjoying the orchestral soundtrack as well, fits well and really brings a scene together. You've got to hand it to Sakurako when she gets in her zone, her element, that scene with all those bones and that networking going on in her mind was quite a sight for the eyes! I'm a sucker for sequences in general!
     I love that this is a mystery-solving anime, so if you had even the slightest interest in Ranpo Kitan in summer, you might want to give this a try!

Part 2 will be up in a few days hopefully....that will include Comet Lucifer, Concrete Revolutio: Choujin Gensou and Dance With Devils

Summer Anime 2015 Picks

So if you've scanned my previous posts, you'll notice I did skip the Spring season of anime. I actually had picked out the anime I would watch that season but never got around to it. They're just sitting in my 'plan-to-watch' list on MAL, I'll get to them eventually!
For now however, let's look at some of the anime that piqued my interest this season!

Gangsta. - I really enjoy this! The animation is great, love the style and detail on the characters and the movement and camera angles, love it all! There isn't a great amount of detail in the backgrounds, however, much of it takes place in a small office and alleyways so it works out grand! Instead the focus is on the characters and action sequences. One of the main characters does not speak and would use hand signs to communicate most of the time, which I found very interesting.
     The tone of this seems quite dark and mature? (I don't know, I'm just going with it) I think if you like the seinen genre, you should definitely give this a try, I would say this could be one of my favourites this season.

Dragonball Super - So hyped when I heard that a new Dragonball series would be airing! I mean who doesn't like Dragonball?! Dragonball holds a special place in my heart and always will, not only was it great for us Chinese kids living in a 'non-Chinese' country, this was a series I often watched with my lil' bro and my dad! We just love watching Goku fight and the interactions between the characters.
     DB Super definitely brings back that nostalgia element and kicks it up a notch.  I'm just so excited to see Goku and everyone again. By the way this picks up after Dragonball Z ended.

Snow White with the Red Hair - So I picked this one up because I found the synopsis of this anime kinda interesting. I like the heroine surprisingly and I like that she's a herbalist, a very passionate herbalist might I add. It's always great to see a heroine that has her wits about her! I like that Shirayuki is just a regular common village girl and joins a ragtag group which turns out to consist of a Prince and I'm assuming his bodyguard friends. Even though I like the set-up, I'm getting mixed feelings about the show, it could potentially be great but could also end up feeling lackluster.

Sore ga Seiyuu! - Feels like Lucky Star almost or just that general moe/slice-of-life genre. Wanted to watch this because I have a slight interest in voice-acting, don't think I have what it takes to do it but I like shows like this, that give you a bit of an inside look into the industry. It's quite a light-hearted anime with characters that are driven and passionate about what they want to do, voice-acting. There are roads to take, friendships to be made and all that stuff that comes along with following your dreams.

Gakkou Gurashi! - I honestly thought I was watching the wrong anime and was wondering why I even picked this show to watch. I really don't watch much slice-of-life school anime, and I was ready to drop it halfway through the episode. I also had forgotten the synopsis before I started the episode, one thing I will say though, the opening and just the majority of that first episode is misleading and you have to watch to the end!

Okusama ga Seitokaichou! - Yes, yes those are what you think they are....
Another anime that I thought was going to be something but turned out to be completely the opposite.
I'll watch it to the end though, since the episodes are so short, about 5 minutes long, but really....this anime is just about bordering that line into the hentai genre.

Ranpo Kitan - Game of Laplace - The main character in this just confuses me so much, I want to believe so badly that the main character is a trap and he's really a girl. His voice is waay too cute and the way he is drawn, portrays, acts, dresses and speaks is too feminine! It's not even in the same line of 'loli-shota', I can accept that, I'm just confused by all of him really. That's pretty much what I think of this anime whenever I watch an episode.
     The content is somewhat interesting if mysteries and puzzles are your thing, it's got a detective-solving kind of thing going on and I'd like to see where the series goes, I'll most likely finish watching this, but possibly rather slowly
.

Rokka no Yuusha - Ahhh this anime!!! I actually did not start watching this until the third episode was out, I don't know why but I just didn't want to start it, I'm so glad I finally did though! I really like the character designs and the animation style. There is CG in it but I think it looks nice, so if that bothers you, alot of the fiends and weapons are in CG.
     The set-up is pretty good I must say, 6 are chosen to fight this demon lord thing that will rise and wreck havoc on the world (ya know the drill) and are marked with the flower symbol. However this time around 7 appear with the symbol and the group have to figure out who is the imposter, before they are killed? I think that's what the fake does, I honestly don't remember, but I think the fake is planted by the demon lord...somehow. Anyway it'll be interesting to see how it all unfolds. And since I've already started shipping characters, yup definitely one I have already become invested in.

Sailor Moon: Crystal up to episode 14

It's been awhile since my last post! I've been trying to finish my other post which combined a few anime together but just haven't gotten around to actually finishing it, so most likely it's just going to be split into several posts. I've got a few other posts lined up that also need to be finished......or started I should say, but for now if you haven't watched Sailor Moon Crystal yet, you can read below what I, who has only seen the original anime, think of it.

I have watched up to just before the Black Moon arc starts, so all that I'm recounting from is up to then. So here we go, flashback feels!
       Ahhh! When I heard that Sailor Moon was getting a reboot, I was so excited! Better yet, it would follow more closely with the manga, which I never read. So it'd be nice to see how the story/events change if at all, I imagined there would be less fights or filler episodes I suppose or something to that degree. I remember the first teaser or something of that sort I saw related to Sailor Moon: Crystal was the new transformations! At first I did not like the new transformation sequence at all! The 3D models looked off and a few other things in it just didn't appeal to me. However after having seen it in action contained within the episodes, it's grown on me! I've come to actually really enjoy them! Sailor Moon's transformation still looks kinda weird, mostly the feet and ribbons I think. One thing I love is when they all have that cosmic colour fill in, it's just oddly beautiful and majestic to look at! I also really like the BGM that each of the transformations come with, I think I enjoyed the BGM to Sailor Mars' the most!
      Which brings me to one of the things I love about Crystal, it's so beautiful, very shoujo, dreamlike, there's a softness to the style and just makes everyone beautiful.....except for Luna and Artemis, I'm sorry but they are some weirdly drawn cats. I have read that people were a bit miffed that all the characters were super thin, which I can see what they mean, I mean in the original anime Usagi did seem to have a bit more meat on her and considering how much she likes to eat, it's nice to see she was portrayed with a more realistic figure. I don't know how I feel about it, I mean I'm ok with both and I do see Crystal as a more stylized show than the original. It's not like they've messed with the characters themselves! Usagi's still a klutz and loves to eat and just a lovely girl, making friends with everyone! Another thing I really enjoy in Crystal is that everyone's attacks looks like they pack a punch! I mean in the original series, sure I love it but the attacks and fights do become quite repetitive. However in Crystal, I really like how it is paced, doesn't feel too fast or too slow....well, other than the bi-weekly release for an episode thing.
All in all though, Sailor Moon: Crystal is a good watch, whether you've only read the manga or watched the original anime, there should be something in there for Sailor Moon fans and even if you're not a fan (yet) but like magical girl/romance/shoujo anime, give it a try!