My Anime Watch (and Bitch) List
Let’s check out the animes I’ve been following lately, some of them are pretty old, some of them are new:
Bleach: This anime show has been going on for quite some time. It’s pretty popular and I’m following the comic as well. Recently the TV series has finished the “Soul Society Arc” and the staff decided to “fork” the story becaue they are catching up to the comic. Sadly, this new story is simply craptastic. They spent 3 straight episodes to have us watch this hide and seek silliness and it is boring as hell. Instead of having us watch this spectacularly craptastic piece of dog poo I would rather see it takes a season off, wait until the comic has accumulated enough material and starts again. Another option: fire the person who wrote this new crap. Even someone with a quarter of brain can do better.
Blood+: One of my favorite from the list. Nice and relatively consistent art, decent story, and likable characters. Unfortunately I’m kind of stuck at episode 16 right now because the fansub version stopped releasing it. It’s starting to get on my nerves because the story was just getting exciting. If nothing is released soon, I’ll have to find alternatives. The show’s heroine Saya is one of my favorite heroines on this list. The design of her character doesn’t really standout, but once I started watching I found her to be very likable (must be her appetitite) and has lots of style, especially when she goes into her vampire mode.
Ergo Proxy: Not much I can say about this show for now because I’ve only watched 1 episode so far. I will only say the visual is stunning and the story seems to be promising.
Eureka Seven: Another good show by studio Bones. There’s a lot to like about this show, unfortunately as the story moves toward the climax it becomes so convoluted that I’m not sure what is going on anymore. I don’t know if it has to do with the quality of the translation, but it seems that a lot of things aren’t being explained at all which makes the already convoluted story even more difficult to understand. I hope it doesn’t follow the route of RahXephon, another Bones anime that nobody really understands the ending. (Well, at least RahXephon is little better than Neon Genesis Evangelion…)
Fate/Stay Night: New series for this season, it is based on the extremely popular 18+ visual novel by Type Moon. It is being hyped to no end since it was announced. I am expecting good things from this series but so far (9 episodes into it) it hasn’t lived up to the hype. The story is moving very slowly and when a fight breaks out it usually ends very quickly with both sides decide to retreat with nothing accomplished. I try to think since this series has 24 episodes, the story is going to get better. It’s just that my patience is starting to run out. By the way, can someone explain to me what the hell is “Fate/Stay Night”?
Glass Mask (ガラスの仮面): A remake of a well-known anime show which in turn is based on a well-known comic dated back to the 70s. It was decent at the beginning but now it is close to unbearable. I can never understand how the hell can Maya fall in love with a guy who played a major role in her mother’s death. It’s not like it was an accident either, the guy absolutely knew what he was doing. It’s so ridiculous it’s not funny. I can’t wait for this series to end.
Kage Kara Mamoru! (陰からマモル!): I don’t even know why I watch it. The story is kind of dumb and artwork is lazy at best. I guess it’s because some of the jokes are pretty funny, and hearing Nakaharai Mai (中原麻衣, the voice behind the heroine Konnyaku Yuna) trying to make herself sounds like a complete retard makes me giggle.
Karin (かりん): An average anime that’s lighthearted and pretty funny. Sometimes it would put too much emphasis on the heroine Karin’s oversized boo….ahem, bosom but it’s not over-the-top to become annoying.
Kashimashi ~Girl Meets Girl~ (かしまし ～ガール・ミーツ・ガール～): The premise of the story is absolutely ridiculous: a guy name Hazumu got hit by an alien spaceship and died. The aliens revived him but screwed up during the process and made him into a woman. What’s good about the show is it does a good job in showing how Hatsumu’s friends deal with his “transformation.” Also, Hazumu’s voice actress, Ueda Kana (植田佳奈) is at her best here. She is a perfect fit for this type of character. Ueda’s performance makes Hazumu that much more likable.
Kyou Kara Maou! (今日からマ王!): A show that I can’t wait to see it ends. The story has dragged on for too long and it’s becoming unbearably corny. Please, please end my suffering now.
Mai-Otome (舞-乙HiME): My top 3 on this list. It is a sequel of Mai-HiME. I like Mai-HiME a bit more than Mai-Otome. Mai-Otome’s overall production value seems to be higher, as it shows with its extremely consistent artwork. Unfortunately the heroines (Arika and Nina) aren’t as strong as Mai-HiME’s (Mai, Natsuki, Mikoto, though these three are either a regular supporting character or would make an appearance later). The music takes a step backward as well. In terms of story, I like Mai-HiME’s a bit more but Mai-Otome has a much better setting. Overall it is still pretty darn good and really makes you looking forward to the next episode.
Monster: A very good thriller anime that unfortunately has dragged on for too long. About 3/4 of the way through it felt like the story started to lose its focus. I’m near the end of it and I’m just waiting for that particular group to get its act together and finish subbing it. I heard that some Hollywood studio bought its movie right and is making a movie out of it. It seems like it will be nothing like the anime nor the comic though.
Noein -Mo Hitori no Kimi e- (ノエイン -もうひとりの君へ-): One of the top 3 on this list. Good story, great music, and decent artwork. The story involves a lot of mumble jumble about quantum mechanics that most people wouldn’t understand, but it doesn’t affect one’s ability to understand the story. The translation has been going a little slow lately and I’m looking forward to more episodes, as the story is reaching its climax.
REC: This is a short series (9 episodes of 12 minutes each) about a rookie voice actress who is forced to live with a guy she just met because her apartment was burned down. It’s a pretty funny anime and gives the viewers a look at the world of voice acting. One interesting thing about it is the heroine Onda Aka is a big fan of Audrey Hepburn. Each episode’s subtitle is named after a Hepburn movie, and Aka always quotes a dialogue or two from it. The opening sequence also has Aka dresses as Hepburn in her movies and each episode adds a new look. I wish each episode is 24 minutes instead of 12, and 12 or 13 episodes instead of 9.
Yomigaeru Sora -Rescue Wings- (よみがえる空 -Rescue Wings-): An anime about a rescue squad within the Japanese military. One of the better anime series in this season but somehow it is not popular among the fansubbers. The cast of voice actors is a little weak, but they manage to have Noto Mamiko (能登麻美子) as the voice of the hero’s girlfriend. Her character is totally unimportant as this anime is dominated by men, but her Okayama accent is priceless. Ooen!
Shakugan no Shana (灼眼のシャナ): Looks promising when it was first announced. It turns out the story is pretty decent, but the characters are downright annoying. The heroine Shana is so annoying that it kind of ruins my interest for this show. Her “Shut up! Shut up! Shut up!” is just obnoxious. I also don’t like the character design. Let’s just say I’m not a fan of loli-style characters.
Solty Rei: I guess the only reason I watch this is because of the cast of voice actors. With studio Gonzo behind it, a crappy ending is almost guaranteed. One interesting thing about the characters: there’s a special force team that consists of 4 women, and each of women is named after a car from a major Japanese car manufacturer. They are Integra (Honda), Silvia (Nissan), Celica (Toyota), and Axela (Mazda).
Tactical Roar: Same reason as Solty Rei. Unfortunately its story is even worse and the “fan service” is just over-the-top. The artwork is lazy too.
One may ask if some of these animes are so bad, why don’t you just stop watching them? Well, it’s because once I get a little deep into a show I usually want to finish it. Also, I already gave up watching a quite a few shows because they are so crappy it’s not worth my time.
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