2008/10/11

Summer '08 Season Review

In general the shows that were completed during the summer season were very weak. With Hidamari being the sole exception, I would not recommend anything anything else, unless you begin to run out of choices.





Hidamari Sketch x 365
ひだまりスケッチ x 365
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By far the best show of the season, check its seperate entry! for more wallpapers, OP/ED, a detailed review and character synopsis.



Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu
乃木坂春香の秘密
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The plot touched a lot of romance subjects, but rather superficially, not too mention that it suffered from too many cliches and it was very predictable. At least for a change the male lead was interesting and certainly not your average spineless pervert. Humor was also effective for its genre. Animation was consistent, but nothing spectacular. VA of Haruka (Mamiko Noto) was excellent and very fitting for the role. It felt like REC only with high school kids. On the downside, the ending was a let-down or should I better say that there was no resolution at all, but as expected consistent with the target audience.



MISSION-E
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The sequel of Code-E has really shown its colors, as both were inspired by ROD. Character designs, action and animation ... hell even the music! Technically speaking, animation was below average, but still working nice for me. Action was rather unrealistic, but this was expected because the whole setting was rather surreal. Music was quite good and not your usual j-pop crap. With only the addition of one new character (Ma-chan), the rest of the cast was the same from Code-E, only 5-10 years older; so since I really loved the old characters and their relationship dynamics, I was delighted to see that this remained the case. Personally, I enjoyed the show and if you liked ROD or Code-E you should like this one too. The main problem here are the subs, it's like two weeks now since the series finished and only half the episodes have been subbed (I have watched most of the series raw, hence I refrain from judging the plot).



Wagaya no Oinari-sama
我が家のお稲荷さま。
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transsexual kitsune, dojiko miko, najimi, etc. Wagaya had an answer to any possibly conceivable fetish ... but that does not really represent the value of the series. Technically it was average, but where the series shined was the storytelling, moving from comedy to drama to action smoothly and naturally. All characters that appeared felt complete and were quite likable. Also despite being episodic, characters were recurring and plot progression did not stop with each episode. For this reason despite that the series targeted younger audiences, I found it very entertaining. As a side note, I really appreciated the fact that the human characters were average and everyday people (bus drivers, housewives, etc) not unrealistic super-humans and on the hand the kami really felt unnatural and struggling to blend in human society.



Kyouran Kazoku Nikki
狂乱家族日記
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I am quite delighted that the legacy of excel saga still lives on; this anime was a real roll-a-coaster of wackiness run awry. Let me begin with the animation which was consistent throughout the series and at quite good quality, though action was not all that hard to animate. Character designs were vibrant and surreal fitting perfectly with the characters' personalities and diversity. The OP was just weird, while the different EDs were complementing the characters seamlessly. Background music was fitting, but rather unnoticeable. Now let me move to the main point of the plot structure and storytelling ... nikki, as the word suggests, is basically like a diary from Ouka's POV and hence episodic by nature. This proved to be both a boon and a bane. Some episodes were very interesting, other were hilarious, but there were also boring ones and even others that were painfully silly. Bottom-line is that you could not anticipate what the next episode would deliver.



Nabari no Ou
隠の王
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An anime with ninja, but unlike its ilk, in this one they act like ones! Animation and action was hit-and-miss here; some scenes were amazing, while others got really hurt from inappropriate direction and choreography. The music was rather unimpressive. The character designs were beautiful, but the cast itself was an oddball. The two main characters (Miharu & Yoite) were annoyingly naive and despite the focus of the series was on them they failed to impress me as much as the supporting cast that had much more interesting stories and personalities. I should also note the overall gay-ness that this series vibrated, though it was confined in the platonic sphere.



Slayers Revolution
スレイヤーズ REVOLUTION
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When i read about the new slayers i was very surprised, I really loved all the previous incantations (3 tv-series, 2 ova and 5 movies), but almost a decade after the last series technically this new one is at the same level. Maybe the long break, me stopping playing rpg or the lack of character development hurt more than the actual story, as story itself seemed nothing amazing. The new character it revolves around is also rather silly. Anyway, i will wait until the second half comes out (at some point in 2009) until I finalize my opinion.



Allison to Lillia
アリソンとリリア
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Another 90s animation style and character designs with significant lack of detail and movement. Music was fitting for the story and pacing. Structure with multi-episode arcs was working quite nice, but the split between allison and lillia arcs (1st and 2nd half of the series) did not work me. Lillia and her boyfriend were just like Allison and Will, hence i just missed the point in having them as new characters. Character development was present and significant, sometimes the simplicity of the story and the naivity of resoning was annoying, but this is a series for the family and thus these are expected. I wished Fionna (VA by Mamiko Noto) had more screentime, but that's life.



To Love-Ru
To LOVEる
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A harem show, hence idiotic, ecchi, but most of all fun ... well the last one was not always the case; some episodes were really funny, while others were just boring. Animation was inconsistent and generally below average. Lala (VA by Haruka Tomatsu) had such an annoying voice, but fitting to her annoying character. Eve from Black Cat makes a return at the middle of the show as Konjiki no Yami (really she's exactly like Eve a couple of years older and with different outfit, but with the same powers and background story and the same VA Misato Fukuen). Anyway, maybe not so bad as it sounds, in the department of fan-service at least it was rewarding and actually more enjoyable then the rest of similar shows of this season. I should also not forget to welcome the return of tentacle rape as a means of censorship ;-)



Koihime Musou
恋姫†無双
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An oppai X loli anime, with yuri humor and absolute absence of plot and character development. The animation was OK and character design a tad bit too colorful for my taste. Was it enjoyable? well, yes, bottom-line honest fan-service is enjoyable for the male population and I hope inspiring for the rest half of the world population ;-) ... though an actual plot (even a silly one) would have been a boon.



Ikkitousen Great Guardians
一騎当千 Great Guardians
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The third season of Ikkitousen came with less censoring, a mess of a plot and very sparse fights. The animation was at least consistent, especially when compared to Dragon Destiny. Choubou (VA by Horie Yui) was just wasted as a character. Ryofu's re-entry was exciting at first, but her personalities (all of them) were utterly inconsistent with the original series. The loli-villain, was Ten'i, just with a new name and with Saji to manipulate her, instead of Shibai. The Seito girls were there, but just for fan-service in fillers, though Kan'nu got pretty juicy screen time with Ryuubi, at least. Character development overall was non-existent (which was actually no surprise). BUT, I'm addicted to this series and I cross my fingers for a new season in the near future.



Sekirei
セキレイ
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Certainly better then the last Nanoha, but a far inferior to Inukami. The huge cast of Sekirei was both good and bad; good because it could satisfy every taste and bad because except for their character designs a couple of lines and some clothing damage, we learned nothing else for most of the characters. Should I also point out how annoying the end of the series was? to be continued? just like Haruhi, milk money out of toys and crap for half a decade! The plot by the way was not as non-existant as with other fan-serving series, after pointless introducing a dozen characters, we get the loli plot and after half a dozen more more episodes the last "arc" with the dojiko escape plot. Animation was good though, most of the time, not at the levels of Nanoha As, but still better then most series and at least there were actually animated battles at least in every episode.



Strike Witches
ストライクウィッチーズ
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Classical GONZO, these guys managed to screw things yet agian. After getting over that in the universe of Strike Witches, where girls run around only with their underwear, at least I could enjoy the mindless fan-service. Until those idiots at the studio decided to have a serious plot at the last couple of episodes, which can only compare to Code Geass in stupidity and unoriginality! Also I was kind of pissed off with the stereotyping of Europeans, at least they skipped my own country (I'm Greek by the way).



Zero no Tsukaima: Princess no Rondo
ゼロの使い魔～プリンセッセのロンド～
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I had no expectation, since last season was quite boring ... and this one was too, maybe more. The story can be summed up by the following:

  • Oppai elf (Tiffania) joins the cast, really she did nothing else
  • Tabitha joins Saito's harem
  • Tabitha's dragon-familiar transforms into human
  • Corbert returns from the dead and "does" Kirche
  • The villain, King of Gallia, has a void user (Sylphid)
Really, that is all the story development in 4+ hours of animation!!! Fan-service made a step up, but still this a really "decent" series (decent in a conservative/puritan/american way). Animation was like before, nothing really special or difficult. Basically they were just making fillers for the whole season, no plot, no character development, etc.



Code Geass Hangyaku no Lelouch R2
コードギアス 反逆のルルーシュ R2
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For the And moving on to the worst series I watched this season, for which I will confine myself to bullet-points:

  • plot twists ranged from predictable to rediculous, though I will admit that if not taken seriously (like Death Note) can be hilarious
  • characters make unbelievable decisions in order to screw Lulu all the time
  • character development ... give me a break ... with such a joke for a plot?
  • techno-bubble, pointless & prolonged action scenes, meaningless sacrifices, ... want more?
  • Suzaku was the maybe the most annoying character, after Makoto (School Days)
  • OMG, those Pizza Hut ads! so annoying!
On the positive side ...
  • Kallen was just moving fan-service !!!
  • CC gets a slave-girl personality, alas only for a couple of scenes
  • Sumeragi-hime wants to make a harem for Lulu
  • Euphie turns yandere
  • Nunnally was so irritating, but all is forgiven because at the end she appeared chained and grows a bust
  • Anya did not really do anithing in the series, which was a waste for her character design
Technically, animation was top-quality and character designs were excellent. OP/ED and BMG were ok, though certainly not for my taste. VAs, well ... I was not impressed, after all this was a mecha show with a twist. All-in-all, perfect for its target audience: male, 12-18, no-girlfriend, sci-fi/mecha otaku.

Posted by Malkuth at 08:36

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