Wrapping up the summer anime
Arslan Senki 16-25! the end of season one. A battle against the war elephants leads to a one on one battle for the throne. Daryun proves again to be unbeatable and Rajendra is made king. He predictably betrays Arslan, but is again outsmarted by Narsus. This side trip seems a bit off-topic, but adds another unexpected & loyal follower to Arslan's camp. Episode 19 focuses on Hermes who is possibly the rightful king of Pars. He has the task of defeating the religious nutcase and his followers. The gender reveal in episode 20 was amusing and what eventually happens is predictable but nice. And Arslan finally heads to Escabana to take back the capital. He first takes the Keep of Saint Emmanuel back from the Lusitanians in the climax of this season. There is a lot of good fortune on Arslan's side, but due to the title of the story, you do expect that he wins every battle. ~8/10 rating~ for a speedy historical fantasy story. The production was inconsistent, but the characters, story and action made this enjoyable. Another year until the next season?
Ore Monogatari!!! 1-24! the end. This is a really funny shoujo anime about a large, not traditionally attractive first year high school boy, Takeo. He's popular with other guys since they admire him as a manly man, but his romantic crushes always fall for his best friend/neighbor, Sunakawa, a typical ikemen. In episode 1, he happens to save a girl, Yamato, from a groper. He thinks she has a crush on Suna and decides to help them get together. This is nice that Takeo and Yamato reveal their feelings by episode 3. The production and humor are great. If you need a pick-me-up, this will definitely make you laugh or at least smile. Takeo is awesome and the supporting characters are quite likable. ~8/10 rating~ Apparently, there is a live-action movie in the works which looks ridiculous, but yeah, I want to see it.
Akagami no Shirayukihime 3-12! the end of season 1. Shirayuki passes the court herbalist test, and becomes an apprentice to a young genius herbalist. So far, the episodes have been diabetes sweet. Prince Raj from the first episode is invited by Zen's older brother, Izana, to liven things up. Episode 6 was pretty amusing in that regard. Episode 8-9 flashes back to when Mitsuhide was assigned to guard Zen. The last few episodes culminate to a kiss and to Shirayuki and Zen admitting their feelings for one another. There weren't any real big conflicts or antagonists in this show, but it was mildly amusing overall. ~7/10 rating~ for mild romance.
Junjou Romantica 3 3-12! the end. Misaki and a friend from college go to meet their favorite mangaka...who takes an interest in Misaki..shocking, of course. Misaki also starts the interview process at Marukawa Publishing and passes. Episode 4 features the Terrorist couple. Miyagi asks Shinobu to move in. And coincidentally, episode 7 features the Mistake couple and they decide to move in together. Episode 10 features the Egoist couple. They are so cute. Most of this season focuses on Misaki and Usagi's insecurities about their ability to stay a couple as Misaki approaches graduation.~7/10 rating~ for soft yaoi and cute couples just being cute...the quality of the production was fairly mediocre and sometime bad this season...boo hiss.