(no subject)
New anime season! Here's what I'm watching:
Noragami is one of my favorites of the new shows. It's very easy to watch, with cute humor, attractive art, and a seriously charming cast headed up by one of the best protagonists of the season, Yato, a minor god who dreams of having huge shrines and millions of followers, but in reality is broke, homeless, and on the verge of being forgotten. Yato gives me major Vash the Stampede vibes, since he’s an adorable goofball with an implied very-dark-past. Of the new shows, Noragami is probably the one I’m most excited to see a new episode of each week.
Nobunagun is probably the show I’m second most excited to see each week. It started out strong and has so far kept up the quality. The art has a cartoony vibe that somehow works with the ludicrous premise and over-the-top action scenes. It lets you know that the series doesn’t take itself too seriously, which makes the show a lot of fun. Nobunagun has a great heroine who is spunky, strong, and takes no shit, but is also cute and relatable and kinda dorky. The rest of the cast is made up of attractive guys and badass chicks. Definitely my kind of show.
The Pilot’s Love Song reminds me a lot of Last Exile, in that it’s a steampunk anime about a young boy and his sister-ish childhood friend being pilots and getting involved in major conflicts. But as the title suggests, this series focuses a little more on romance. Thankfully, the romance angle is cute and handled well, with an interesting twist that is sure to provide a ton of drama and angst down the road. There’s an element of mystery and exploration, but I think it’s a little underdeveloped right now. I’m sure this will change as the series moves along though. The art is a tiny bit generic but overall pretty. There are some impressive backgrounds and a few scenes have amazing colors, but everything else is standard anime design work. Oh, and it has the best ending theme of the season, hands down.
Silver Spoon season two was a nice surprise, since I didn’t even know it was coming. I enjoyed the first season a lot, and so far season two is doing great. There’s not a lot to say that I didn’t say about season one. The show is funny, charming, and comforting, with an easy-going pace and likable characters. Even though protagonist Hachiken is sometimes a bundle of nerves, the show remains relaxing, and even though the series has a simple fish-out-of-water plot, it has moments of surprising depth and pathos.
Buddy Complex could have been a Gundam series. Seriously, if it had been called Gundam: Buddy Complex, I don’t think anyone would have complained. Aside from a time travel angle, so far it seems fairly grounded in near-future reality. The mecha battles are cool and you have your standard crew of soldiers and officers and cute angsty mecha pilots. I like that the protagonist, Aoba, is easy-going and takes everything in stride. There’s also a middle-aged captain who is awesome and is quickly becoming my favorite character in the show. He's kind of the opposite of Bright Noa in that he's very laid back, but he still gets the job done.
Inari Konkon surprised me when I found out it was a seinen series instead of a shoujo series. It reminds me a lot of last season’s Gingitsune (they both heavily focus on a rural shrine as a setting, feature a young heroine who has a rare ability to see and interact with a god-like entity that lives at the shrine, have a fairly relaxed pace, and both are inexplicably seinen despite seeming very shoujo-ish). Inari Konkon, however, has much more romance, with the story focusing on the heroine’s crush on her classmate, as well as the budding relationship between the heroine’s older brother and the goddess who lives at the shrine (who sits around playing otome games all day). As such, it’s a little more dramatic than Gigitsune. Regardless, it’s a cute show that I’m enjoying a lot.
Wizard Barristers is a unique show about magical lawyers who defend magic-using criminals in magic court. It sounds silly, but the mostly standalone episodes play out a lot like more serious police procedural shows, with the lawyers gathering evidence, interviewing witnesses, etc. Of course there are occasional flashy magical battles when things get out of hand. Whether or not you’ll like the series will depend totally on how you react to the heroine, Cecil. I like her okay, but I can see how a lot of people would find her annoying. She’s cute and energetic, very moe, very earnest and, actually, very Mary Sue-ish (she’s the youngest Wizard Barrister ever, has amazing hidden powers that pop up conveniently whenever she needs them, and generally gets away with breaking all sorts of rules and laws with pretty much zero consequences). There is a character who frequently calls Cecil out on all this, but the character is portrayed as being bitter and jealous, which is disappointing (and of course Cecil eventually wins even her over). I happen to have a strong tolerance for Mary Sue-ish characters, so I don’t mind Cecil that much. The supporting cast (made up of mostly females who work at the law firm with Cecil, many of which are interesting characters on their own) makes the show more fun, and the art is really nice and colorful. It has some interesting ideas and it feels pretty fresh, so I’m keeping up with it.
That's all for the new shows. As for the shows that carried over from last season, not much has changed except I dropped Strike the Blood (the harem elements began to overpower everything else). Nagi no Asukara, which I complained about having annoying characters and relationships, went through a drastic change at the beginning of the second half that immediately shook up all the character dynamics. It worked wonders for the show and now it's one of my favorites that are currently airing. On the other hand, Samurai Flamenco has devolved into a ridiculous mess that couldn't be farther from the simple, funny show it started out as. I'm still watching partly because I still really like the characters (and none of them have been ruined so far) and partly out of morbid curiosity as to where this train wreck in progress will finally crash.
It's also interesting that this season had the most shows I tried and dropped within the first three episodes. Magical Warfare was about three characters (two guys and one girl) being given magical powers. One of the guys gets the ability to predict his opponent's attacks in battle, the other one gets the ability to wield fire. And the girl? Her cool new magical ability is to make her boobs magically bigger. DROPPED. Witchcraft Works sells itself as a show that challengers gender roles by featuring a powerful girl protecting a bland, helpless dude whom she calls "Princess" (complete with plenty of shots of her carrying him from danger, bridal style). However, it's just another series with the "magical girlfriend" trope, as the girl is relentlessly sexualized by the camera angles and is meek and submissive to the boy. And if the opening/ending themes are any indication, there are plenty more hot chicks on the way to chase after the "Princess". DROPPED. Nobunaga the Fool seemed cool at first with its Warring States Period with Mecha premise but the protagonist is a total asshole to everyone, especially the beautiful, overly sweet busty blonde who is supposed to be Jeanne D'Arc. I just couldn't get over the fact that they decided to take one of the few women in history who was known for being strong, courageous, capable of fighting, and non-glamorous, and re-imagine her as a meek and almost helpless princess who has no idea how to even use a knife. DROPPED. Hamatora had nice art and a couple of interesting characters, but the protagonist (ironically named "Nice") just came across as a jerk to me and I couldn't stomach the rampant victim-blaming he dished out in the second episode. DROPPED.
Overall, this is probably the fewest new shows I've decided to follow in a quite a while, if you don't count the shows that carried over from last season. This season was chock full of moe harem comedies. SIGH.
Noragami is one of my favorites of the new shows. It's very easy to watch, with cute humor, attractive art, and a seriously charming cast headed up by one of the best protagonists of the season, Yato, a minor god who dreams of having huge shrines and millions of followers, but in reality is broke, homeless, and on the verge of being forgotten. Yato gives me major Vash the Stampede vibes, since he’s an adorable goofball with an implied very-dark-past. Of the new shows, Noragami is probably the one I’m most excited to see a new episode of each week.
Nobunagun is probably the show I’m second most excited to see each week. It started out strong and has so far kept up the quality. The art has a cartoony vibe that somehow works with the ludicrous premise and over-the-top action scenes. It lets you know that the series doesn’t take itself too seriously, which makes the show a lot of fun. Nobunagun has a great heroine who is spunky, strong, and takes no shit, but is also cute and relatable and kinda dorky. The rest of the cast is made up of attractive guys and badass chicks. Definitely my kind of show.
The Pilot’s Love Song reminds me a lot of Last Exile, in that it’s a steampunk anime about a young boy and his sister-ish childhood friend being pilots and getting involved in major conflicts. But as the title suggests, this series focuses a little more on romance. Thankfully, the romance angle is cute and handled well, with an interesting twist that is sure to provide a ton of drama and angst down the road. There’s an element of mystery and exploration, but I think it’s a little underdeveloped right now. I’m sure this will change as the series moves along though. The art is a tiny bit generic but overall pretty. There are some impressive backgrounds and a few scenes have amazing colors, but everything else is standard anime design work. Oh, and it has the best ending theme of the season, hands down.
Silver Spoon season two was a nice surprise, since I didn’t even know it was coming. I enjoyed the first season a lot, and so far season two is doing great. There’s not a lot to say that I didn’t say about season one. The show is funny, charming, and comforting, with an easy-going pace and likable characters. Even though protagonist Hachiken is sometimes a bundle of nerves, the show remains relaxing, and even though the series has a simple fish-out-of-water plot, it has moments of surprising depth and pathos.
Buddy Complex could have been a Gundam series. Seriously, if it had been called Gundam: Buddy Complex, I don’t think anyone would have complained. Aside from a time travel angle, so far it seems fairly grounded in near-future reality. The mecha battles are cool and you have your standard crew of soldiers and officers and cute angsty mecha pilots. I like that the protagonist, Aoba, is easy-going and takes everything in stride. There’s also a middle-aged captain who is awesome and is quickly becoming my favorite character in the show. He's kind of the opposite of Bright Noa in that he's very laid back, but he still gets the job done.
Inari Konkon surprised me when I found out it was a seinen series instead of a shoujo series. It reminds me a lot of last season’s Gingitsune (they both heavily focus on a rural shrine as a setting, feature a young heroine who has a rare ability to see and interact with a god-like entity that lives at the shrine, have a fairly relaxed pace, and both are inexplicably seinen despite seeming very shoujo-ish). Inari Konkon, however, has much more romance, with the story focusing on the heroine’s crush on her classmate, as well as the budding relationship between the heroine’s older brother and the goddess who lives at the shrine (who sits around playing otome games all day). As such, it’s a little more dramatic than Gigitsune. Regardless, it’s a cute show that I’m enjoying a lot.
Wizard Barristers is a unique show about magical lawyers who defend magic-using criminals in magic court. It sounds silly, but the mostly standalone episodes play out a lot like more serious police procedural shows, with the lawyers gathering evidence, interviewing witnesses, etc. Of course there are occasional flashy magical battles when things get out of hand. Whether or not you’ll like the series will depend totally on how you react to the heroine, Cecil. I like her okay, but I can see how a lot of people would find her annoying. She’s cute and energetic, very moe, very earnest and, actually, very Mary Sue-ish (she’s the youngest Wizard Barrister ever, has amazing hidden powers that pop up conveniently whenever she needs them, and generally gets away with breaking all sorts of rules and laws with pretty much zero consequences). There is a character who frequently calls Cecil out on all this, but the character is portrayed as being bitter and jealous, which is disappointing (and of course Cecil eventually wins even her over). I happen to have a strong tolerance for Mary Sue-ish characters, so I don’t mind Cecil that much. The supporting cast (made up of mostly females who work at the law firm with Cecil, many of which are interesting characters on their own) makes the show more fun, and the art is really nice and colorful. It has some interesting ideas and it feels pretty fresh, so I’m keeping up with it.
That's all for the new shows. As for the shows that carried over from last season, not much has changed except I dropped Strike the Blood (the harem elements began to overpower everything else). Nagi no Asukara, which I complained about having annoying characters and relationships, went through a drastic change at the beginning of the second half that immediately shook up all the character dynamics. It worked wonders for the show and now it's one of my favorites that are currently airing. On the other hand, Samurai Flamenco has devolved into a ridiculous mess that couldn't be farther from the simple, funny show it started out as. I'm still watching partly because I still really like the characters (and none of them have been ruined so far) and partly out of morbid curiosity as to where this train wreck in progress will finally crash.
It's also interesting that this season had the most shows I tried and dropped within the first three episodes. Magical Warfare was about three characters (two guys and one girl) being given magical powers. One of the guys gets the ability to predict his opponent's attacks in battle, the other one gets the ability to wield fire. And the girl? Her cool new magical ability is to make her boobs magically bigger. DROPPED. Witchcraft Works sells itself as a show that challengers gender roles by featuring a powerful girl protecting a bland, helpless dude whom she calls "Princess" (complete with plenty of shots of her carrying him from danger, bridal style). However, it's just another series with the "magical girlfriend" trope, as the girl is relentlessly sexualized by the camera angles and is meek and submissive to the boy. And if the opening/ending themes are any indication, there are plenty more hot chicks on the way to chase after the "Princess". DROPPED. Nobunaga the Fool seemed cool at first with its Warring States Period with Mecha premise but the protagonist is a total asshole to everyone, especially the beautiful, overly sweet busty blonde who is supposed to be Jeanne D'Arc. I just couldn't get over the fact that they decided to take one of the few women in history who was known for being strong, courageous, capable of fighting, and non-glamorous, and re-imagine her as a meek and almost helpless princess who has no idea how to even use a knife. DROPPED. Hamatora had nice art and a couple of interesting characters, but the protagonist (ironically named "Nice") just came across as a jerk to me and I couldn't stomach the rampant victim-blaming he dished out in the second episode. DROPPED.
Overall, this is probably the fewest new shows I've decided to follow in a quite a while, if you don't count the shows that carried over from last season. This season was chock full of moe harem comedies. SIGH.