Majin Tantei Nōgami Neuro: (Ended) Whatever...

Majin Tantei Nogami Neuro never impressed me much. However, I kept watching. I mean during all this time I'm just simplying following it, as it's playing in the background while I'm drifting off somewhere else. The concept is "unique", the story, well, if you take away the lame parts, it might be somewhat decent. But as it is right now, it's just lame.

Final Scoreboard (of 5):

Drama: 3.5 (Kind of lame...)

Comedy: 4 (I guess you could view this as an comedy)

Action: 4 (One of the few decent part of the series)

Art/Animation: 4 (A bit weird, but not bad)

Sound/Music: 4 (I liked the ending theme song)

Character: 3 (A bit...retarded)

Plot: 4 (Acceptable to some degree)

Ending: 3 (Complete open ended)

Re-watch value: 1 (Once is enough)

Overall: 3.2 ~ It's barely enough for me to finish it

Recommendation: This is definitely on my "don't care" list. So the decision whether to watch is completely up to you. It has some values, but not enough for me to recommend it.

Gunslinger Girl ~ Il Teatrino: (Ended) Gotten Better

Later episodes of the series had gotten a lot better than the earlier ones. They don't look like a low budget B-movie like they did. Obviously, they have the ability to make it semi decent, I wonder why didn't they do it to begin with.

However, the first series just left too much of a good impression for me that I still couldn't get around to start liking the different art style in the second series. The look of everybody is just...not right: I can't quite tell what, it's just not right.

The story itself, seemed to focused not only in the main plot development, but also in developing the personality trait for each girl: Rico is the sensless; Triela is the stubborn; Angelica is the whiny; Henrietta is the emotional; and Claes is the useless.

Final Scoreboard (of 5):

Drama: 3.75 (Acceptable, I guess)

Comedy: N/A

Action: 1 / 3.5 (Earlier episodes are just plain cheesy in actions, later ones had gotten better)

Art/Animation: 2.75 (Sucks compare to the original)

Sound/Music: 3 (Acceptable)

Character: 3 (At least they declared each girl's personality trait)

Plot: 3 (I think it's somewhat cheesy and stupid)

Ending: 3.5 (Good enough, I guess)

Re-watch value: 1 (No, not gonna see it again)

Overall: 3.5 ~ I wish they had let the studio who made the original series make this one

Recommendation: On one hand, I really don't want to recommend it to anybody, especially for those who liked the original series. On the other hand, it does serve as an extension to the original series (especially most of the plot in this series followed the book which it's adapted from), and it's nice to see it.

Shakugan no Shana II: (Ended) Spectacular!

Rarely, I've seen an already outstanding series have a sequel that is just as good or even exceeds the level of the original series. Shakugan no Shana II managed to do that. After I heard that a sequel is coming out of the original series, I thought there is no way it's going to beat the original series. Because the original series, in my opinion is somewhere near if not at the top of its kind (action/modern fantasy). However, the sequel just brought it to a whole new level. This series further affirmed J.C.Staff's position being one of my favorite animation studio (the other one is Gonzo, but it's getting close to be struck out). The original series plus this sequel, would be gaining a spot on my all time favorite animes list.

Final Scoreboard (of 5):

Drama: 5 (This is what it's all about)

Comedy: 4.75 (There are some interesting comedies in most unexpected places)

Action: 5 (Spectacular)

Art/Animation: 5 (Very well presented)

Sound/Music: 4.75 (I like the first set of theme songs, not quite fund of the second set)

Character: 5 (Deep and rich in personalities)

Plot: 4.75 (There are some short comings, but still great)

Ending: 4.5 (It ended close to perfection, somehow I didn't mind it that much...)

Re-watch value: 3 (It's just my personal opinion, I think it might worth re-watching)

Overall (not average): 4.8 ~ October 2007 Season's Top Pick

Award: Best Long Season Action/Drama Anime of 2008

Recommendation: This is one of the few animes that I unconditionally recommend to anybody. However, you really can't just jump in from the beginning of this series. You'll need to watch the first series, or, if you want to save time, watch the movie before you could appreciate this sequel.

Kimikiss Pure Rouge: (Ended) Too......Perfect

I don't really have a problem with stories having perfect ending, as long as it's reasonable. As for Kimikiss, well, the ending is reasonable, but it's just too perfect. Everybody ended up with who they supposed to be (ok, that's up for debate, but I think most people would agree). I'm not saying I didn't like it, I just feel it's been "over-crafted" into the perfect ending. Grant it there are still people getting the shaft, but you could already tell from the very beginning that they were stamped with "fail" ever since the beginning. So, the ending like this just make you feel like you've wasted all this time to see something going towards where you know it's going to end up.

Final Scoreboard (0f 5):

Drama: 4 (It's very planned, but it's still good)

Comedy: 4 (This is not its focus)

Action: N/A

Art/Animation: 3.8 (The constrast is too low)

Sound/Music: 3.5 (Not much impression)

Character: 4.5 (Quantity and quality)

Plot: 3.75 (More surprises would be good)

Ending: 3.75 (Too perfect)

Re-watch value: 2 (Once is enough)

Overall (not average): 4 ~ Despite how it ended, I think it's still a solid series

Recommendation: If you're into animes about relationships, this is for you. If you're into perfect ending, this is also for you. If you're into neither, well, then, watch other stuff on your list before you watch this.

Kaiji: (Ended) Gamble = Lose

If Kaiji tought us anything, it is that you never win at gamble, unless you're running the gamble. The author of this manga, is very famous for the use of deep psychological analysis. You can definitely see that from this anime. However, I'm not sure exactly what message is the author trying to pass to us: to gamble or not to gamble. On one hand, it seems that it's trying to tell us that we only live once, if you don't gamble, you never win; on the other hand, it's trying to tell us that unless you are the one running the gamble, the odds are always against you. I'm a bit confused about what it's trying to say...

Final Scoreboard (of 5):

Drama: 5 (Filled with it)

Comedy: N/A

Action: N/A

Art/Animation: 3 (I hated this art style, but it does grow on you after a while)

Sound/Music: 4 (Theme songs are quite good)

Character: 5 (Deep, deep, deep...)

Plot: 4.2 (The drama is great, but there are some part of the plot just make you say "WTF?")

Ending: 4.8 (This is one of the few animes that didn't chicken out on ending it in a non-ideal way)

Re-watch value: 3 (There are certain part you may want to re-watch to see the psychological analyisis)

Overall (not average): 4.5 ~ I'm surprised how good an anime that I was ready to through away before I watched the first episode could be become

Recommendataion: If you're into deep psychological analysis, you might find this one amusing (or retarded, depending on how good you're at it, I guess). Otherwise, if you like its art style (I really couldn't image anybody actually does...) watch it. Otherwise, there'll be no reason for you to watch it.

True Tears: (Ended) Slow Start, Slow End

Normally, a story which has a slow start tend to build up momentum speed throughout the series. True Tears is a bit strange though: It has a slow start and slow end, the middle part seemed to have a slightly faster pace then either end.

The story itself, is interesting enough, if you can put up with the slow developing plots. The thing is that nobody except one character like to talk throughout the series. You have a whole bunch of characters, running around not talking to each other, and things are happening the way it did because nobody is talking to others. I guess at some point they're trying to show that sometimes, a little talking would prevent big problems.

The ending, I saw that coming long time ago. Actually, I take that back, I didn't see it coming, but I was hoping it to end that way. Normally, I prefer tragic endings. However, if there is just no way it'll end in tragedies, I'd prefer it end in the way I'm hoping to end.

Final Scoreboard (of 5):

Drama: 4 (Slow, but there's definitely drama)

Comedy: N/A

Action: N/A

Art/Animation: 4 (Something I like about its style that I can't quite get a grasp on)

Sound/Music: 3.5 (Not much lasting impression)

Character: 4 (Again, slow, but there are quite some character development)

Plot: 4 (There are some unpredictable events along the way)

Ending: 4 (One of my preferred ending)

Re-watch value: 1 (I don't think anybody want to suffer the slowness again)

Overall (not average): 3.8 ~ Only if they could figure out a way to speed it up, it'd be much better...

Recommendation: Overall, it's a decent anime. However, for those who couldn't stand slow animes, this is definitely not for you. Only watch it if you can tolerate slow developing plots.

Shigofumi: (Ended) Short and Unique

There really isn't much to say about this anime. Sure it's unique, kind of, maybe, but I don't see much value beyond that. Somehow it feels very...half-assed for the most part. Grant it, you want series like this to be short and sweet, but somehow, the way they did it, just doesn't feel quite complete. I mean, I can't point out obvious faults, but I can't seem to appreciate it very much either.

Final Scoreboard (of 5):

Drama: 3.75 (Somewhat, but not enough to make lasting impression)

Comedy: 3.75 (Here and there, quite sporadic)

Action: 3.75 (Very few, but not bad)

Art/Animation: 3.9 (Not my favorite art style, but doens't feel too bad either)

Sound/Music: 3.5 (Not much lasting impression)

Character: 4.25 (I think this is one thing they did do well in)

Plot: 3.9 (Feels somewhat "half-assed")

Ending: 3.5 (Predictible)

Re-watch value: 2 (Very unlikely anybody want to see it again)

Overall (not average): 3.5 ~ Above average for sure, but not much...

Recommendation: Well, this is a hard one. This one is not anywhere near my top recommendation level. However, there are some redeeming values. So, I'd probably put this in front those I say "watch it when you are out of stuff to watch", but behind anything I recommend straight up.

Rosario + Vampire: (Ended) ...

Gonzo truely is the master of drama. They manage to bring this series which have almost no substance what so ever into a highly dramatic conclusion. Talking about being over-dramatized...

The bottom line is I'm glad this series is over, because I really don't want to see any more of this low quality series that is actually made by one of my favorite production studio. Gonzo really need to either restructure or axe their comedy department. Series like this is destroying their reputation.

Final Scoreboard (of 5):

Drama: 2.5 (Barely)
Comedy: 3.25 (Something in their humor just doesn't feel right)
Action: 2.5 (Almost as cheesy as Devil May Cry)
Art/Animation: 2.75 (Too much fan service)
Sound/Music: 3 (Nothing exceptional)
Character: 2.75 (Shallow)
Plot: 2 (It's just plain stupid)
Ending: 3.5 (The only semi-decent part of this series)

Re-watch value: 1 (Even once is more than enough)

Overall (not average): 2.5 ~ One of Gonzo's worst

Recommendation: If somebody does some selective editing and cut the total running time to about, say 3~4 episodes, it might be a ok series to watch while you're bored. As it is right now, I wouldn't even recommend it even if you don't have anything else to watch.

Dragonaut: (Ended) Mediocre

After seeing the end of Dragonaut, I was a bit disappointed. I was hoping Gonzo would play out some of the tragic potential of this series, but they didn't. However, I wouldn't hold that against this them for the quality of the anime.

Overall, I think one of my biggest problems with this series is the lack of intensity. Sure there are ups and downs throughout the series, but there's almost never a moment made me hold my breath to see what's coming next. When there's no such a moment, the series tend not to leave a lasting impression for me.

On a separate note, I admint that Gonzo is the master of creating dramas. However, as I said in an earlier entry, they seemed to "over-used" this talent. If you plot a curve with view's satisfaction and the degree of dramatic effect, there would be a point increased dramatization causes negative satisfactions for the views. I think Dragonaut ran a bit too far crossed that point.

Final Scoreboard (of 5):

Drama: 4 (I think they over did it a little)

Comedy: N/A

Action: 3 (Most are ok, but there are some quite cheesy ones)

Art/Animation: 3 (I don't like this style. I think bit over simplified)

Sound/Music: 3.5 (Not bad, but nothing exceptional)

Character: 3.75 (Asides from the main pair, there aren't really much development on others)

Plot: 3.5 (I think there aren't enough ups and downs)

Ending: 3 (Flat, not interesting)

Re-watch value: 2 (I doubt anybody would want to watch it again)

Overall (not average): 3.25 (This one sucks consider Gonzo's standard level)

Recommendation: I wouldn't recommend it, unless by some odd chance, you liked Speed Grapher and Witchblade very much. Then, you might actually like this one, at least the art.

Shion no Ou: (Ended) Shougi or Drama?

The murder mystery is solved, and the drama (partially) about Shougi is ended. Come to think of it, I think there are more than half of the series' time is devoted to Shougi. It's surprising how it managed to last all the way to the end for me who do not play or care to play Shougi.

If you look at the plot, even though there are some unpredictability, for the most part, you can still see something coming several episodes ahead. So I think the attraction has more to do with the character then the plot itself. There are many deep, rich, and well developed characteristics in this show. The mystery really isn't a mystery any more two thirds of the way through the series, yet it's still so interesting because you want to see how the character would react to the fact once they discovered them.

On top of that, there are Shougi play to fill in the blanks-in-between. I'm sure people with Shougi experience would be either praising or criticizing the plays. Me? I had no clue what they are doing. Even so, it still provided some necessary intensities for the series.

I really couldn't say which is more technical, Hikaru no Go, or Shion no Ou. Mostly due to the lack of experience of Shougi. But the general expression I got is that Shion no Ou does carry a bit deeper into the technicality of Shougi than Hikaru no Go does with Go.

Overall, I think it's a solid series.

Final Scoreboard (of 5):

Drama: 4.5 (No lack of that)

Comedy: 4 (There are some humors here and there)

Action: N/A

Art/Animation: 4.5 (Clean, clear, and stylized)

Sound/Music: 3.5 (I don't remember, which means average at best; I do like the opening theme though)

Character: 5 (Well developed)

Plot: 4 (Interesting)

Ending: 4 (Satisfactory)

Re-watch value: 3.5 (Maybe I'll watch it again once I get interested in Shougi)

Overall (not average): 4.2 ~ I think it's a solid series, people knows Shougi might disagree...

Recommendation: Unless you really dislike technical animes (or Shougi), I think this is worth watching.

Spice and Wolf:(Ended) More please...

It is only a 13 episode short journey, but I'm undoubtedly attached to all characters in the series, especially the wise wolf deity, Horo (or Holo, depending on your translation). Come to think of it, there is nothing really stands out, but it's just so mysteriously interesting.

This is one series that I didn't want it to end. The good thing is, the ending is left completely open. It's very easy to be picked back up and make another series out of it. Let's just hope they do.

About the art style, I thought it looked somewhat familiar, so I looked it up. It's done by animation studio IMAGIN, which is the co-production studio of Strawberry Panic!. If you've seen both, you can tell that there are many similarities.

One more word about the art work: the wolf ear is OK, but the wolf tail looks more like a fox tail. I'm not saying I didn't like it that way, it's just how I felt.

Final Scoreboard (of 5):

Drama: 4.75 (Ups and downs, highly contrasted plots)

Comedy: 4.5 (Some wicked humors)

Action: 4 (It's not the focus of this anime)

Art/Animation: 5 (Love the art work)

Sound/Music: 5 (Very good opening/ending theme, and good original score)

Character: 5 (Some of the most interesting characters I've seen)

Plot: 5 (Very creative)

Ending: 4.5 (I normally don't like anime finishes open-ended, but I like to see more of this, so...)

Re-watch value: 4 (This is highly debatable, but I wouldn't mind watching it again)

Overall (not average): 5

Award: Most Unique Anime of 2008 (well, at least among what we have so far)

Recommendation: Many of my friends say that I have weird taste for animes, this may just be one of my "weird tastes". But if you ask me, I'm going to tell you that I highly recommend this series.

Sisters of Wellber 2: (Ended) War and Peace

After two (technically three) long journeys, story of princess Rita and her girlfriend is finally over. While I wouldn't criticize overall quality of the series, there are so many little things that are just too "fantasy", like people in medieval setting naturally know how to pilot an air plane. Grant it, it is a "fantasy" story, so I don't have big problem about things being "fantasized".

The plot, well, I have mixed feelings about it. While they didn't chicken out on playing out the tragedy, the effect of the tragedy, was overshadowed by the later near perfect ending. (It is a bit strange to say that, because normally it's the other way around. Maybe I should say the tragedy is over-shined by the later perfected ending.) I mean, the effect of the tragedy just didn't last nearly long enough. The thing is, it should have been a big deal, but somehow they didn't make a big deal out of it. I am not very happy about that. If I were the writer, I'd attach a much heavier ending than this. But again, I LOVE tragedies, and most people wouldn't be able to stand it.

Final Scoreboard (of 5):

Drama: 3.5 (Acceptable)

Comedy: N/A

Action: 3.5 (Good and bad)

Art/Animation: 3.5 (Ok, I guess)

Sound/Music: 3.5 (One very important thing, they didn't play out proper music for the tragedy)

Character: 4 (Characters do have depth)

Plot: 3.75 (Relatively speaking, much better than first one)

Ending: 3.75 (They did play out one tragedy)

Re-watch value: 2 (No reason to watch it again)

Overall (not average): 3.5 ~ Slightly better than I thought

Recommendation: If they combine the two series, shink them down to about 15~16 episodes, it's probably an ok series. As it is right now, there are just too much fillers. My recommendation would be watch it if you are out of stuff to watch.