New anime
Toward the Terra: Mankind has messed up the ecology of Earth, so it has branched out into space. In this utopian society, children take their 'adulthood exam' when they turn 14: they leave home, and will never return there... Turns out that if you 'fail' your adulthood exam (because you're telepathic, for instance), you will be 'disposed'! Of course, Yomi will have to make some quick decisions now!
Outstanding character designs, and a paranoid distopian sci-fi story. What's not to like?
Shonan Junai-gumi! (also known as GTO, the younger years). Retro-sub (1994 vintage). Two delinquents say goodbye to their old comrades and start anew, looking for girlfriends. Of course, this doesn't go off without some problems: either their past catches up to them, or they get into trouble because they never back down. However, they always get back on their feet!
Quality is so-so, but it is very amusing. The voice actors give it all they got, which makes for an enjoyable OVA series.
Lovely Complex: Koizumi is very tall for a girl, while Ootani is very short ofr a guy. They are constantly bicker (their teacher compares them to a comedy duo). But when a guy enters the school that Koizumi is interested in, she makes a pact with Ootani: she will help him get closer to her friend, if he helps her get closer to the new guy. Things don't work out as planned: while Ootani and Koizumi's temperaments are really alike, they make a poor match with thier prospective partners...
Love comedy. Could turn into another Peach Girl-like drama-fest, but could also keep its upbeat pace. The exaggerated poses and facial expressions are, for once, funny instead of grating -- which is quite a feat.
Engage Planet Kiss Dum: The 'book of the dead' is making creatures mutate, and by following the ocean currents, a team of scientists succeeds in locating it! But then mutated creates attack, and some mecha are launched to protect the chief scientist while millions are being slaughtered!
...or something like that. We couldn't make heads or tails of this. Looks pretty, though.
Kaze no Stigma: Kazuma has left the Kannagi-clan, because he didn't have the fire-control powers that clan has. But now he has returned to Japan as a wind-magician, working as an exorcist. But when people from the Kannagi-clan turn up dead, killed with wind-powers, Ayano, the heiress to the clan, hunts him down!
Could turn into an interesting story, but we're not sure. Ayano's character design is in a completely different style from the rest of the characters, which is quite grating as well.
Claymore: Fantasy anime. The peasants are being hunted and eaten by Youma, who can disguise themselves as normal humans! Only the Claymore, silver-eyed witches who are half Youma themselves can detect them! When people turn up dead and eaten in Raki's town, the village elder sends for a Claymore. Even though she's there to help, the villagers are scared of her -- except Raki. Through various circumstances, Raki and the Claymore end up together...
Quite dark, with many a blood spatter. It has a strong 'Beserk'-vibe to it, with peasants being beset by monsters. May not be everyone's cup of tea, but man is this thing beautifully drawn and animated!
Winter Cicada: At the end of the Tokugawa shogunate, various clans have different ideas about what to do with foreigners in Japan. One samurai doesn't agree with his clan's official party line, and he finds a kindred soul in a samurai from the other side. Together, they study English -- and their relation grows into something more... But years later, they find themselves on different sides in a war!
Man-love anime, set at the end of the Tokugawa period. Apart from the theme, this series has few distinguishing characteristics.
Sola: Yorito is obsessed with taking pictures of the sky (ingiechan liked him immediately!), and one time when he gets up extremely early to take a picture of the sunrise, he meets a girl who has trouble getting her drink from a vending machine. He helps her, but when he is distracted by the machine, the girl dissapears! She is a 'night-dweller', and apparently there are people who hunt the night-dwellers, as Yorito finds out!
Quite moe, but with an appropriate amount of action mixed in. If you're into bishoujo series, give this one a try.
Darker than Black: Some sort of mystical field has enveloped Tokyo (but it's no problem for foreigners to get in, for some reason). This mystical field has given rise to people with supernatural powers, called Contractors, and mediums called Dolls. When a researcher goes missing with vital information about the gate, she is hunted by the police, a team of Contractors and a Doll...
Super-natural spy thriller, apparently. Reasonable artwork, with some interesting plot developments.
Outstanding character designs, and a paranoid distopian sci-fi story. What's not to like?
Shonan Junai-gumi! (also known as GTO, the younger years). Retro-sub (1994 vintage). Two delinquents say goodbye to their old comrades and start anew, looking for girlfriends. Of course, this doesn't go off without some problems: either their past catches up to them, or they get into trouble because they never back down. However, they always get back on their feet!
Quality is so-so, but it is very amusing. The voice actors give it all they got, which makes for an enjoyable OVA series.
Lovely Complex: Koizumi is very tall for a girl, while Ootani is very short ofr a guy. They are constantly bicker (their teacher compares them to a comedy duo). But when a guy enters the school that Koizumi is interested in, she makes a pact with Ootani: she will help him get closer to her friend, if he helps her get closer to the new guy. Things don't work out as planned: while Ootani and Koizumi's temperaments are really alike, they make a poor match with thier prospective partners...
Love comedy. Could turn into another Peach Girl-like drama-fest, but could also keep its upbeat pace. The exaggerated poses and facial expressions are, for once, funny instead of grating -- which is quite a feat.
Engage Planet Kiss Dum: The 'book of the dead' is making creatures mutate, and by following the ocean currents, a team of scientists succeeds in locating it! But then mutated creates attack, and some mecha are launched to protect the chief scientist while millions are being slaughtered!
...or something like that. We couldn't make heads or tails of this. Looks pretty, though.
Kaze no Stigma: Kazuma has left the Kannagi-clan, because he didn't have the fire-control powers that clan has. But now he has returned to Japan as a wind-magician, working as an exorcist. But when people from the Kannagi-clan turn up dead, killed with wind-powers, Ayano, the heiress to the clan, hunts him down!
Could turn into an interesting story, but we're not sure. Ayano's character design is in a completely different style from the rest of the characters, which is quite grating as well.
Claymore: Fantasy anime. The peasants are being hunted and eaten by Youma, who can disguise themselves as normal humans! Only the Claymore, silver-eyed witches who are half Youma themselves can detect them! When people turn up dead and eaten in Raki's town, the village elder sends for a Claymore. Even though she's there to help, the villagers are scared of her -- except Raki. Through various circumstances, Raki and the Claymore end up together...
Quite dark, with many a blood spatter. It has a strong 'Beserk'-vibe to it, with peasants being beset by monsters. May not be everyone's cup of tea, but man is this thing beautifully drawn and animated!
Winter Cicada: At the end of the Tokugawa shogunate, various clans have different ideas about what to do with foreigners in Japan. One samurai doesn't agree with his clan's official party line, and he finds a kindred soul in a samurai from the other side. Together, they study English -- and their relation grows into something more... But years later, they find themselves on different sides in a war!
Man-love anime, set at the end of the Tokugawa period. Apart from the theme, this series has few distinguishing characteristics.
Sola: Yorito is obsessed with taking pictures of the sky (ingiechan liked him immediately!), and one time when he gets up extremely early to take a picture of the sunrise, he meets a girl who has trouble getting her drink from a vending machine. He helps her, but when he is distracted by the machine, the girl dissapears! She is a 'night-dweller', and apparently there are people who hunt the night-dwellers, as Yorito finds out!
Quite moe, but with an appropriate amount of action mixed in. If you're into bishoujo series, give this one a try.
Darker than Black: Some sort of mystical field has enveloped Tokyo (but it's no problem for foreigners to get in, for some reason). This mystical field has given rise to people with supernatural powers, called Contractors, and mediums called Dolls. When a researcher goes missing with vital information about the gate, she is hunted by the police, a team of Contractors and a Doll...
Super-natural spy thriller, apparently. Reasonable artwork, with some interesting plot developments.