Kannagi (Ended): Light Comedy

The structure of Kannagi is very much like Honey and Clover (HxC) series, where there are some rather serious drama on top of the comedies. Just like HxC, where even the heart pounding tear dropping episodes do not leave comedic moment out, Kannagi also manage to stuff in some comedies around the serious dramas.

Overall, I think it's an interesting series which I would categorize it under "light comedy". It's not as hardcore on comedies like Hyakko, nor has it a big enough drama element to be recognized as "comedy/drama" like Nodame Cantabile does. It's actually lies somewhere in between those two.

Final scoreboard (out of 5):

Drama: 3.5 (Very lightly touched)

Comedy: 4.25 (There are some really good moments)

Action: 4 (For what it had, it was ok)

Art/Animation: 4 (Slightly simplified style)

Sound/Music: 4 (Somewhat interesting)

Character: 4.25 (Interesting characters)

Plot: 3.75 (Pretty light)

Ending: 4 (Nice touch)

Re-watch value: 3 (some part are still fun to watch again...)

Overall (not average): 4 ~ Solid Second Tier Anime

Recommendation: I would recommend this as a "Solid Second Tier" comedy anime. In a priority queue, it'll be behind "Highly Recommended" (First Tier), and the "Must Watch Second Tier" animes.

Kuragane no Linebarrels: Twists and Turns

Currently finished: Episode 13

One reason I like GONZO's work very much is that they always mange to bring out big story changing twists at the most unexpected time. Linebarrels of Iron is no exception. Just as I thought everything is slowing down for an intermission period of the story, something major happens. It's so major that it almost threw the entire story off its original track. Now I can't wait to see what happens next.

Tytania: War and Politics

Currently finished: Episode 12

Animes about politics have always been a neutral ground for me. I usually don't have any big expectation for it nor do I hold any prejudice against it. In most cases, it's either a hit or a miss. In the case of Tytania, it's definitely a hit.

The plot, in my opinion has never gotten intense enough in order to get excited about. However, each and every event always manages to set a forward motion on the soon out of control chain reaction that you would get excited about. I like this kind of subtle approach very much.

Some Gundam series are focused greatly on politics as well, however, they always manage to put a greater focus on the Mecha technology, that's why I never liked any of them. Tytania on the other hand, puts no focus on technology, and the scifi environment is merely a convenient setting. The real focus is on the politics. I like that.

Earl and Fairy (Ended): A Crash Course on Celtic Mythology

Earl and Fairy is a fairy tale (quite literally) that is loosely based off Celtic mythology and folklore. Like many light novel adaptation, the story itself is "light". There is no massively complicated main plot nor any super intense actions. Most of the story is on a "tell as it goes" sort of fashion. That actually creates a quite pleasant viewing experience.

Because it's based off Celtic mythology and I knew nothing about it, throughout the series, I often find myself digging through wikipedia looking something that was just referenced in the episode. Now the series has ended, I too have gained quite some knowledge about Celtic mythology and folklore.

The story closed with a somewhat open ending. That leaves the possibility of have a sequel, which I would definitely be interested in. Too bad it is based off light novel instead of manga, it'll have little or no chance of making into a English translated version.

Final scoreboard (out of 5):

Drama: 4 (Light drama...)

Comedy: 4 (For what it had, it's pretty good)

Action: 4 (Not bad for a light drama)

Art/Animation: 4 (Bit shoujo, but I learned to like it)

Sound/Music: 4 (I liked it very much)

Character: 4.5 (Very unique and interesting characters)

Plot: 4.25 (Light drama...)

Ending: 4 (Typical light novel ending, no closure to anything)

Re-watch value: 3 (You might get something more out of watching it again...)

Overall (not average): 4.25 ~ Light, Interesting, Knowledgeable

Recommendation: I know there are people who just couldn't stand shoujo animes. If you're one of those people, don't bother. Otherwise I would recommend this one as something to watch after you finished the absolute top-notch animes on your list.

Kurozuka (End): Huh?!

After finishing the last episode of Kurozuka, I am utterly completely hopelessly confused. What's worse, I was not nearly confused one episode earlier. The ending, really is open to interpretation to whatever. To me, that's crappy.

Anyhow, put away that stranger than bizarre ending, depending on what you're looking for, you may still be satisfied with it. Kurozuka has one of those unusually strange combination: it's a slow paced action anime. Those two (slow pace and action) don't usually go together because they're at the opposite end of the spectrum. What Kurozuka did, is speeding up the pace when action scenes occur, and roll everything almost to a slow motion once it's out of the action scenes. It's a very bizarre combination. Somehow it's strangely attractive. So attractive that I managed to follow it to the end when I initally thought it'll last no more than two episodes for me. This, definitely earns the

Weirdest Anime of 2008

award.

Final scoreboard (out of 5):

Drama: 3.75 (It's kind of there...)

Comedy: N/A

Action: 4.75 (That's what it's all about)

Art/Animation: 4 (Bit strange)

Sound/Music: 4 (Interesting)

Character: 3.5 (Little dull, not enough depth)

Plot: 3.75 (It's kind of there...)

Ending: 2 (I think it's worse than not having one...)

Re-watch value: 2 (I don't think you'll get much more by watching again...)

Overall (not average): 3.8 ~ Good action, bad ending

Recommendation: I can't say I would recommend this anime, mostly because of the overall weirdness and the WTF in the ending. But, if you just want to see some blood and body parts flying, then look no further, this is the one for you.

Hyakko (Ended): Outrageously Funny

After watching the first two episodes of this series, I made sure that I do not have anything to drink while watching this anime. Because if I do, there's a good chance somewhere during the episode, a sip of it would end up shooting out of my nose. Hyakko was outrageously funny partially due to the randomness of its contents, just like Sayonara Zetsubo Sensei except Hyakko managed to stay on the creative side.

Hyakko and Kannagi were both candidates for the top short season comedy for 2008. After finishing Hyakko, I have to say, it doesn't matter what stunt Kannagi pulls in the last episode, Hyakko would be getting the

Best Short Season Comedy Anime of 2008

award.


Final scoreboard (out of 5):

Drama: 3 (Not really its focus)

Comedy: 4.75 (Rolling on the floor laughing)

Action: N/A

Art/Animation: 4 (Interesting)

Sound/Music: 4 (Some nice BGM in early episodes)

Character: 4.5 (Rich and plentiful)

Plot: N/A

Ending: 4 (Quite a smart way to end it)

Re-watch value: 4 (Many scenes are still funny to watch again)

Overall (not average): 4.5 ~ Outrageously funny

Recommendation: If you just want some plain laughter, no story attached, this is for you. I guarantee that you'll get some good laugh out of this one.

Shikabane Hime Aka (Ended): Not Bad

Early on I commented about the voice acting and action scene are below normal standards. Towards the end, as things have gotten busy, the action scenes got better. But the voice acting, in my opinion, is still as terrible, though I do sense a slight improvement. After a little digging, I found out the voice of both Ouri and Makina are done by new and inexperienced voice actor/actress. That explains a lot, because those two are by far the most problematic voices in the anime, which triggered me to tag it as a "B" anime at first place.

Anyway, back to the story itself, it actually ended in a way that was a slight surprise to me. I guess I'm just not used to stories end the way they should end any more because most of them tends to end in an "everything will be ok" way. I am indeed quite satisfied with its ending. But of course, it is an open ending, because the next series is coming right around the new year.

Final scoreboard (out of 5):

Drama: 4 (Not bad)

Comedy: N/A

Action: 3.9 (Gotten better towards the end)

Art/Animation: 4 (Decent)

Sound/Music: 3 (The two main character's voice actings are terrible)

Character: 4 (Good depth)

Plot: 4 (Also has pretty good depth)

Ending: 4 (Somewhat surprising)

Re-watch value: 2 (Don't really need to)

Overall (not average): 3.85 ~ Only if there's better voice acting for the two main characters...

Recommendation: If you can overcome inferior voice acting, the story itself is not bad. On top of that, you'll need to see this one before you start the new one, which starts airing in January 2009.

Nodame Cantabile Paris (Ended): Same Greatness

I wouldn't say this second series' greatness surpasses the first one, but it's at least at the similar level as the first one. Early on in the series, I was a bit disappointed because I just didn't feel it has the similar touch as the previous one had. However, as the story progress, it slowly transformed into something equally great.

What's even better, at the end of last episode, it announced that there will be a new series of Nodame Cantabile coming in Fall 2009. Even without the announcement, I can tell from the plot, there is no way this is the end of it. But that announcement just made it so much more pleasant while wrapping up the story.

Without a doubt, this is the

Best Short Season Comedy/Drama Anime of 2008

The reason I put it as Comedy/Drama is that comedy is actually a byproduct. Drama is what this anime focuses on, it merely presented it self in a comedic way. But nevertheless, it is still good at both, thus it's a comedy/drama.


Final scoreboard (out of 5):

Drama: 4 (That's the real focus)

Comedy: 4.5 (Great)

Action: N/A

Art/Animation: 4 (Not my favorite, but I learned to like it)

Sound/Music: 5 (Grrrrrrreat)

Character: 4.75 (Very interesting ones)

Plot: 4 (Short, but still good)

Ending: 4 (somewhat of a closure)

Re-watch value: 3.5 (Some scenes are still funny to watch again)

Overall (not average): 4.5 ~ Continue on with the greatness

Recommendation: For those who hasn't seen the first series, you're really missing out a lot. If you have seen the first series, you wouldn't want to miss out on this one either. It's one of the best comedy/drama I've ever seen.

Tales of the Abyss: Anime of the Month

Currently finished: Episode 13

Fantasy was never my thing. All fantasy animes to me has really just been something to watch alongside with others when I have enough time to burn. But Tales of Abyss is different. This is one fantasy anime that I couldn't wait to see the next episode. So far it has been mostly action and politics, all taking place in a fantasy setting that is being explained along the way. Aside from the early annoyance of the doucheness of the the main character, the story itself has been very interesting. So I'm going to hand it the

December 2008 Anime of the Month

award.

Akane-iro ni Somaru Saka (Ended): Again?!?!?

Obsession about incest, especially between brother and sisters seems to be a recurring theme for many love story animes, especially the hentai game converted animes. I really have nothing else to say about this anime. It's just another "brother-sister love" anime. There's no more to it.

Final scoreboard (out of 5):

Drama: 3 (Little bit...)

Comedy: 3.5 (Kind of...)

Action: 3 (Not really...)

Art/Animation: 3 (Typical hentai game style...)

Sound/Music: 3 (No lasting impression)

Character: 3 (Mediocre)

Plot: 3 (Flat)

Ending: 1 (You saw that coming miles away)

Re-watch value: 1 (I wouldn't recommend you to watch it first time)

Overall (not average): 3 ~ Er....

Recommendation: When you've seen one, you've seen them all. There is really no big difference between all these hentai game converted, incest promoting animes.

(OVA) Kimi ga Nozomu Eien ~ Next Season ~ (Ended): Why Bother

The original Kimi ga Nozomu Eien anime always has a special place in my heart because that was the first anime that touched my heart. I've been paying close attentions to every follow-ups they are producing. This "Next Season", I have to say is nothing but disappointment. One, there was really no progress made what so ever in this four episode OVA. Some may say there are some definite changes in their relationship, but I think even those are mostly cosmetic. Deep down, everything is still pretty much the same. On top of that, they utilized the Haruka ending instead of the original Mitsuki ending. Among all the characters, I like Mitsuki the best and believe she got the worst end of the deal, even in the original story. So out of disgruntle, I really didn't care much about what happens to Haruka.

Overall, I think this OVA follow-up is mostly unnecessary. It's more about making money than wrap up the story.

Final scoreboard (out of 5):

Drama: 2.5 (If you can call that drama)

Comedy: N/A

Action: N/A

Art/Animation: 3 (Not nearly as good as the original)

Sound/Music: 3 (Not much impression)

Character: 2 (No real development)

Plot: 2 (Mostly unnecessary)

Ending: 1 (Where it started)

Re-watch value: 1 (Why)

Overall (not average): 2 ~ Terrible follow-up

Recommendation: Don't. If you like the original series, then stay away like a pleague. It is just terrible.

Kemeko Delux (Ended): What the...

This is one of those animes that truly makes me speechless, literally. The whole series has just been a big blur. Not only it was packed with action, it was also filled with ridicules. It is best to be describes using the phrase "Pure Nonsense". If you feel like watching such an anime, then you should pick up Kemeko Delux. Otherwise, I recommend you not to waste your six hours of life for this anime.

Final scoreboard (out of 5):

Drama: 3 (Kind of...)

Comedy: 3.5 (Little bizarre, but some parts are funny)

Action: 3.75 (Kind of interesting)

Art/Animation: 3 (Can't stand Kemeko's style...)

Sound/Music: 3 (Not too bad)

Character: 3 (Not much of it)

Plot: 3 (There is one?)

Ending: 1 (That's not an end)

Re-watch value: 1 (I wouldn't recommend you to watch it first time)

Overall (not average): 3 ~ Nonsense

Recommendation: Don't. Unless you're really in the mood for wasting six hours of your life on some pure nonsense.

Ef ~ A Tale of Melodies (Ended): Emotional Ride

With the conclusion of Ef ~ A Tale of Melodies, all lose ends from previous series has been tied up. I have to say these two series are two brilliantly made stories. Even that one year break between these two series is perfect because it put the audience into a vaguely familiar place at the start of the second series and slowly draw them back in the world of Ef.

Ef presents a set of stories about intangled fates and the will of those involved. What separates Ef from other similar animes is the feeling of watching a fine art being crafted right in front of you. This is definitely the most artistic anime I've seen in 2008, so I'll go ahead give it the

Most Artistic Anime of 2008

On top of that, I'm also going to award it with:

Best Short Season Drama Anime of 2008

and

Best Sequel Anime of 2008

Final scoreboard (out of 5):

Drama: 5 (Quite some)

Comedy: 4.5 (For the very little it had, it's pretty good)

Action: N/A

Art/Animation: 5 (Artistic)

Sound/Music: 5 (Heart pounding)

Character: 5 (Entangled fates)

Plot: 5 (Very well designed)

Ending: 5 (Bitter Sweet)

Re-watch value: 4 (I think it's still interesting for the second round)

Overall (not average): 4.95 ~ Emotional

Recommendation: Just look at the award I had just handed out above, do I really need to tell you this is a "must watch" anime? If you have heard about these two series but haven't watche it yet, you should finish up what you're watching and watch these two next. If you haven't even heard about this series, well, that means you don't know enough about animes and you should go revoke the "anime fan" status for yourself. This one will definitely be a contender when it comes to the time for me to hand out the No.1 anime of the year.

Hyakko: "Face"Ball

Currently finished: Episode 11

It was just too funny not to make a comment on the most recent episode. Somehow when they said P.E., I knew they're going go play dodgeball. And when they started playing, somehow I knew every hit is going to land on someone's face. This episode is just too funny. If you like a good non-sense comedy, make sure you don't miss this one.

Ga-Rei Zero (Ended): Brutal

I didn't comment much on this series, because there wasn't much to comment on, until the very end. What's really good about this anime is that the whole series is just a big death trap. It's just so much more exciting to watch when you have no clue who is actually safe from death. Everybody, including those seemingly very important ones, is a potential target of sudden death.

Just like Yozakura Quartet, there is a key decision change of one of the major character caused the story ended the way it did. Since I just finished ranting about how terrible they did in Yozakura Quartet, I'd like to add that Ga-Rei Zero did a much better job with a similar situation. At least you can see why the new decision was made.

Overall, I think they did a superb job on both the layout and the story itself, therefore I'm handing it:

Best Short Season Action/Drama Anime of 2008

(The Best Long Season Action/Drama Anime of 2008 is still held by Shakugan no Shana II)

Final scoreboard (out of 5):

Drama: 4.75 (Quite a lot)

Comedy: 4 (Not its focus, but good enough for what it had)

Action: 4.5 (Very Good)

Art/Animation: 4.75 (Common, but nicely done)

Sound/Music: 5 (Great Theme Song, Great BGM)

Character: 5 (Depth, varity, and lots of death)

Plot: 5 (Cleverly made)

Ending: 4.9 (Bitter Sweet)

Re-watch value: 4 (I think it's still interesting for the second round)

Overall (not average): 4.9 ~ Brutal yet Moving

Recommendation: When I hand an award to an anime, you know the recommendation for that anime would be a "must watch". This is one of the most action packed 12 episode series I've seen lately. So whether you like drama or action, or just want to have some stir in the emotion, you would love this one.

Clannad After Story: He Said It, Finally

Currently finished: Episode 12

I've been waiting for him to say that in last three episodes, now he finally did, in one of the most depressing moment of this series. Say what you ask? That, I cannot tell you because it'll spoil the plot. I will never spoil any plot in my blog, ever. So, you just have to find out yourself. Once you reach episode 10, I think you'll have the same frustration as I did, and you'll know exactly what I wanted him to say for the two episodes coming.

Well, now since he finally said it, and we know the grand finale from the movie, it seems that things from this point on have nowhere to go but downward. Hopefully, we will get a proper tragedy.

Yozakura Quartet (Ended): Unnecessary Troubles

It's an interesting little story with interesting settings and character, though there are some obvious flaws: The second half of the story, are mostly caused by the indecisiveness of one guy. That, by itself is not a problem. However, when it came down to resolving the final conflict, there was no obvious reason why he would have acted differently, he just did. Essentially, you know from the beginning how the whole story is going to end because it's a story follows the typical drama happiness curve, and you only watch it unfold to find out why it'll end that way. But when it's all over, you realized they didn't bother to tell you what you want to know, instead, they just jumped to the conclusion that you already know. I really hate that.

It's really hard to get my point through without spoiling the plot, so you'll just have to take my word for it until you actually see it, then you'll know what I'm talking about.

Final scoreboard (out of 5):

Drama: 4 (Dramatic towards the end)

Comedy: 3 (Not its focus, but good enough for what it had)

Action: 4 (Not the best out there, but not bad)

Art/Animation: 4 (Not quite fond of it in the beginning, but I slowly learned to like it)

Sound/Music: 4.5 (Love the music and songs)

Character: 3.75 (Inconsistent)

Plot: 3.8 (Bit inconsistent as well)

Ending: 3.5 (Everybody saw that coming miles away)

Re-watch value: 2 (I don't see why you would want to)

Overall (not average): 3.5 ~ Missing Some Critical Elements

Recommendation: It's a wild goose chase that ended up where you knew it's going to end up without any explanation on why. If you're really bored, it does have some amusement value. Otherwise, I'd say skip this and spend your time elsewhere.

Kuragane no Linebarrels: Why Didn't They...

Currently finished: Episode 10

It's a common occurrence in the typical "save the world" or "good vs. evil" animes where a plan goes wrong, but at the last second, some hero manage to pull out some better plan and save the day. The biggest problem with that kind of plot, is the question "why didn't they do that to begin with?" In most cases, the plan someone pulled out in the last second is usually a lot easier to execute and less prone to errors and mistakes. Obviously, they need the plot device and the hero needs to be hero to save the day. But the story writers for this kind of plot really need to work on a more convicining plot so when this kind of thing happens, it doesn't leave the audience thinking "why didn't they do that to begin with?"

Kannagi: LOL

Currently finished: Episode 10

You know an anime is completely not taking itself seriously when it grabs things from Lucky Star and try to make fun of it. I knew they're going to do something to Lucky Star as soon as I saw the first scene, but I never thought they'd actually directly put a cut scene in the middle of the episode. That got me laughing for next 5 seconds. Because of that, I'm going to give it:

December 2008 Comedy Anime of the Month

Ef ~ A Tale of Melodies: One Down, One to Go

Currently finished: Episode 10

I was jumping and cursing after I finished episode 9 because I thought they had just turned a perfectly cruel and tragic plot into a happy ending. Then there comes episode 10. To my surprise, they did not just replay the similar happy ending like the first series did. Without spoiling it, all I can tell you is that the ending of one of the subplot is somewhat satisfying to me. Although it's not nearly as cruel or tragic as I would have done, it did end up on the other side of the neutral line. Now all we need is for the other subplot to end tragically...

January 2009 New Anime Season Preview

2008 is nearly over, so are many anime series. Soon I'll have a post for 2008 in review. But now, let's see what awaits at the dawn of 2009. As usual, all gundam animes, sequels to something I've already rejected, sports animes, and yoai animes are automatically filtered from my previews.


Hetalia - Axis Power
http://hetalia.com/top.htm

It's a story about personified countries from the world...I have a feeling that many people will be offended by this anime...

Forecast: I like offensive stuff, so, I think most likely it'll be good...

Genji Monogatari Sennenki
http://genji-anime.com/

The oldest Japanes novel, now made into anime. There might be some culture barrier to understand this anime though...

Forecast: We'll have to see...

Sora o Miageru Shōjo no Hitomi ni Utsuru Sekai
http://www.munto.com/

This supposed to be the alternate retelling of Munto II. That reminds me Munto is still among my unfinished backlogs...

Forecast: Um...I'll tell you after I finish Munto...

Slayers Revolution-R
http://www.starchild.co.jp/special/slayers_revolution/er/

More slayers, yeah...

Forecast: When is this going to end...
Rideback
http://www.rideback-anime.jp/


Girl and her robotic motocycle? That sounds like an interesting concept...

Forecast: Looks very elegant, could be a good one...

Kemono no Sou-ja Erin
http://www3.nhk.or.jp/anime/erin/

Not sure what it's about, but I don't like its art style.

Forecast: I'd give 2 episodes...

Chrome Shelled Regios
http://anime.webnt.jp/regios/

Not entirely sure what it's about, but looks somewhat interesting.

Forecast: could be good...

Tetsuwan Birdy Decode:02
http://www.birdy-tv.com/

Sequel to the first series, which I thought was ok.

Forecast: Probably ok...

The Tower of Druaga: the Sword of URUK
http://www.druaga-anime.com/

Sequel to the first Tower of Druaga series, which was way below Gonzo's normal standards. Hopefully, they're doing something good with the second series.

Forecast: Not so good...

Kurokami
http://www.square-enix.co.jp/magazine/yg/introduction/kurokami/

Not sure what it's about, but I do kind of like its art style.

Forecast: Could be good...

Asu no Yoichi!
http://www.tbs.co.jp/anime/yoichi/

Looks like a modern day sumari boy story.

Forecast: I'm not entirely interested in this type of anime, so it's all depends on its quality...

Viper's Creed
http://viperscreed.jp/

Some futuristic mecha action anime, directed by the director of Appleseed, and Appleseed Ex Machina. It could be interesting, but as a mecha anime, it'll start off with a slightly lower rating than other animes just because I don't like mecha animes in general.

Forecast: It could go either way...

Zuko Natsume Yujincho
http://www.natsume-anime.jp/

If you followed my blog, you'd know I LOVED the first series of this anime, and gave it the most heart touch anime of 2008 award. I would expect no less from this second series.

Forecast: This is definitely a keeper.
Sora Kake Girl
http://www.sorakake.net/

Looks like some space thingy involves girls. Also looks like it'll contain some significant amount of fan service.

Forecast: Totally unsure...

Maria Holic
http://www.mariaholic.com/

Animenewsnetwork.com has too good of a plot summary, I think I'll just quote them:

"The story centers on a sophomore named Kanako who enrolls in all-girls school because she has a phobia of men and wants to find her destined yuri partner. She meets a captivating freshman named Mariya who fits her criteria — except her seemingly ideal mate happens to be a cross-dressing sadistic boy."

Forecast: If it really is what the plot summary says, it ought to be interesting.

White Album
http://www.whitealbum-tv.com

This was originally an visual novel created by Leaf, the company created To Heart series. To be honest, I wasn't really impressed by either To Heart or To Heart 2. This may just be another mediocre love anime.

Forecast: Though it could be mediocre, generally, this type of animes are keepers for me.

Maria Sama ga Miteru 4th Season
http://www.gokigenyou.com/index2.htm

This is one of the very few ultra shoujo anime that I follows. I call it "ultra" shoujo because this is pretty much as shoujo as anime could become. Generally, shoujo anime are interesting to me at the beginning, but I lose interest in them soon after. But Maria Sama ga Miteru somehow managed to hold its place.

Forecast: I think it'll be good

Akikan!
http://www.melomelomelon.com/

About a guy met a girl that transformed from a can of melon juice (?!). One plus for this series is that the original illustrator is the artist for Shuffle!.

Forecast: I think it has 50/50 chance to go either way.

Shikabane Hime: Kuro
http://www.starchild.co.jp/special/shikabanehime2/

This obviously is the Shikabane Hime: Aka's sequel. Though the production quality of the original is below average, it's still interesting. Since I'm already dragged into the story, I most likely will follow the second series as well.

Forecast: I think it'll be ok as long as it's no worse than first series.

Telepathy Girl Ran: Childish

Currently finished: Episode 20

It started off pretty interesting. Slowly, it become more of a detective story, but it was still intriguing. But recently, the story has been getting increasingly childish. While it doesn't really bother me too much, it just increase the boredom meter every time I watch it.

It really has been a slippery slop every since the first two major sub stories. It has gotten to a point that I don't feel it worth the 20 minutes of my time per week. But, since I've already invested so much time into it, I guess it wouldn't be too bad to put up with it a little longer for the remaining six episodes.

Akane-iro ni Somaru Saka: Boobs, Extremely Bouncy Boobs

Currently finished: Episode 8

So far it's been just a typical hentai game converted anime. I really don't have anything to say about it, except in the most recent episode, there's something just completely defies physics.

Maybe it's been there for a while I just didn't notice it, there are some extremely, I mean EXTREMELY bouncy boobs in episode 8. I know anime in general, especially hentai game converted anime tend to have boobs that are unreal, but I don't think I've seen a pair that moves so much. I don't even think water balloon this size would bounce this much.

Tytania: Rise of Fall

Currently finished: Episode 7

I'm not entirely into political anime. But Tytania so far has been pretty interesting. The pace is a bit slow, but you really can't speed up an anime about politics.

One thing I'm still trying to figure out right now is where is this story heading. Is it about the rise of Tytania family to rule the universe, or the ultimate demise of Tytania empire.

Kemeko Delux: F***ing Crazy

Currently finished: Episode 8

So far this series has been nothing but a nutcase. I really don't have much to say at the moment. I just think it's an interesting screen cap for everybody to see, including the dialog line. Note that is not a "translated" line there, the character in the anime actually shouted that pretty clearly in English...

Hyakko: Uh......

Currently finished: Episode 8

Hyakko is one of those comedies that doesn't take itself seriously at all. Very much like Sayonara Zetsubo Sensei, except Hyakko managed to not become overly repetitive like Sayonara Zetsubo Sensei did. Some parts of Hyakko are just plain retarded. Nevertheless, it was some good laughter material. It also managed to stay pretty creative. I guess that's why many retarded comedy didn't last but Hyakko did.

New rating (out of 5): 4.25 (net gain: +0.25) ~ Funny

Ef ~ A Tale of Melodies: Simply Cruel

Currently finished: Episode 8

I just commented how evil the plot had become two episodes ago. Now it is really beyond just evil. It has reached a level of cruelty that it is impossible for normal people not get depressed over.

BUT, I am NOT normal.

In fact, I am the opposite to normal. That, means I'm love every bit of it. This is the type of plot that gets me excited about. You just don't normal see the tragedies with this kind of cruelty. I you like tragedies as much as I do, you'd love it too.

The only concern have I have right now is that the story may end too well. It seems so far it's been following the typical drama happiness curve, which I suspect it'll eventually end up on the happy side. The ending of previous series, also supports my suspicion. That may be the only disappointment I'll get from this series.

New rating (out of 5): 4.75 (net gain: +0.25) ~ Cruel

Vampire Knight Guilty: The End is Near

Currently finished: Episode 8

They've been hinting it ever since the beginning of the second season. Finally, it happened at the end of episode 7. If you have an average IQ, you probably have already sensed it somewhere along the way. Though it's not a complete surprise, I did not see it coming up till a couple of episodes ago. It is a very well constructed plot that keeps playing hide and seek with the audience until it has to reveal itself.

What's interesting is that we're only at episode 8, 5 episodes away from the end of the season. Normally, such a plot turning event would only occur 1 or 2 episodes away from the ending instead of this far ahead. Then there is only one explanation: this what looks like a series ending incident is merely a precursor of what about to come; there are something much bigger awaits ahead.

New rating (out of 5): 4.5 (net gain: +0.5) ~ Twists and Turns

Skip Beat: A Blend of Many Things

Currently finished: Episode 8

You may call it unique (in fact, I did in my previous post about this anime), but if you look at it from a different angle, it's actually a blend of many other well made animes. I pointed out in the initial post, it definitely has some similarity with Nana. As the story slowly unravel itself, you also find many borrowed elements from Glass Mask, Full Moon, and Kaleidostar.

While I'm not against stories borrowing elements from other stories, I'm not a big fan of it either. Skip Beat, however, did it in a very interesting way. It is like a big blender, that grabs many good things from many good show-biz animes, then makes them into a somewhat unique style of its own. Then throw in the occasion comedies and deformation scenes very much like Perfect Girl Evolution (a.k.a. The Wallflower, or Yamato Nadeshiko Shichi Henge) to make it even more unique.

New Rating (out of 5): 4.25 (net gain: +0.25) ~ A Blend of Good Things

New OVA: Switch

Info/download: http://www.animesuki.com/series.php/1334.html

Synopsis: A story about undercover agents from Japanese DEA trying to find the the source of a new drug in the market.

This is a two episode OVA series with a very intense first episode. The art style reminds me very much of Saiyuki. Fortunately, this is not another work from the author of Saiyuki because I just can't stand the pretty boy posing everywhere in her works.

Also, there's a slight suspicion of yaoi throughout the first episode.

New OVA: Gunslinger Girl -Il Teatrino-

I considered the original Gunslinger Girl series as a very fine piece of art, but not so for the second series, Gunslinger Girl ~Il Teatrino~. While I don't have a problem with the story itself, the art work from the second series just bothers me.

Certain art styles just don't match well for certain types of stories. In this case, it became especially apparent when a different art style which does match well with the story had previously set the standard.

Back to the OVA itself, it is merely some side story that is not really related to either story, nor is it an extension for either series. It makes me question the production company's motive for releasing this OVA at all. To me, this seems to be a release for the sake of sales, rather than making the story better.

Rating (out of 5): 3 ~ I only give it this much out of the respect towards the original story

OVA Update: Candy Boy

Info/Download: http://www.animesuki.com/series.php/1135.html

When I review this OVA a while back, I thought that was all because the end of episode 2 was somewhat a conclusion. Since then, two more episodes had come out and apparently there are going to be seven total. With the help from episode 3 and 4, also episode EX from DVD, and episode 0, I kind of start to understand what they're trying to portray.

One thing I don't quite understand Japanese culture about is why they're trying to portray it in such a way that it is easily mistaken to be lesbian love instead of just normal love between sisters. Without episode 3 and 4, I could swear that's where they were heading. Do they just not distinguish them in Japanese culture?

Anyway, even with the new development, it is still a ultra shoujo anime. So people don't like (or don't have the patience for) slow, soft plot development still shouldn't bother with it.

Updated rating (out of 5): 3.75