Jhiday – Page 21 – Blog@Jhiday.net

Rage of Bahamut – Genesis (Shingeki no Bahamut: Genesis)

What’s it about ?

Adaptation of a heroic-fantasy cellphone videogame… But since it revolves around multiplayer card battles, I assume the writers took a vague look at the background flavour text and made up the plot of whole cloth.

Characters

Favaro Leone, our protagonist. He’s a cocky bounty-hunter who cares more about the thrill of the chase than actually making a living out of it. Especially if the tale can earn him a good night with the ladies. Most of his bounties are spent on placating the locals for the collateral damage, anyway. But behind the smarm, there’s a competent lone operative in there, who knows how to deal with powerful summons despite having little more than his short sword on hand. That’s a good thing, as he often gets way over his head.

Kaisar Lidford is his “rival”, insofar as the dude wants revenge on Favaro for ruining his life and reducing him to become a bounty hunter. I get the impression there’s a long line of those.

Amira is a woman who randomly falls from the skies (or so it looks like) and wants to head for the semi-mythical iced fortress of Helheim (a name that should have raised alarms bells in my head way sooner than it did). Since she’s heard Favaro bragging of knowing a shortcut to the place (while drunk in a tavern), he’ll do as a guide. She accepts his offer of sealing it with a kiss.

The next morning, Favaro wakes up with the hell of a headache. Getting drunk ? Check. That bounty target’s brother coming for vengeance and his super-big summon ? Er, he must have dealt with that somehow. That broad transforming into a scary demonwoman ? Er, must have dreamt that, surely. Why does his mouth taste like he’s swallowed dragonfire ? This is a terrible hangover indeed. Let’s get washed up.

Wait, why does he have a small demontail now ?

Production Values

Wow, just wow. This is by far the most impressively animated first episode of the season, and I can’t see anything compete with it. It shows off one impressive action setpiece after another, from the purely gratuitous (hello, giant wheel !) to the plot-important (with Amira shifting to demon form and kicking all kinds of ass). All the characters have tons of expressive body language, and move smoothly all the time.

Overall Impression

What. The. Hell ? How come the adaptation of a friggin’ cellphone cardgame is so good ? This is a feast for the eyes, and I really hope the budget keeps up in further episodes. But even if the action scenes’ ambition gets toned down a bit later on, the show can still fall back on its core strength : its likeable protagonist having fun adventures. Let’s be honest : how long has it been since we got a good, straight heroic-fantasy romp ? Because that’s definitely what this is.

I’m flabbergasted. Don’t let the videogame tie-in discourage you : this is the deeply unlikely gem of the season.

via [In Which I Review] New anime, Fall 2014 – Page 3.

Le Fruit de Grisaia (Grisaia no Kajitsu)

(12ish episodes ?)

What’s it about ?

Adaptation of a generic dating sim visual novel… OR IS IT ?

Characters

Kazami isn’t exactly your generic dating sim protagonist. An orphan in unspecified circumstances, he’s in the employ of some secret governmental agency, in what looks very much like hitman-style jobs. He’s asked to be able to live a “normal school life” in his downtime, so his bosses send him to this elite academy… with only five other students.

Much of the humour comes from his deadpan bafflement at this bunch of girls acting out the classic dating sim archetypes :
– Sachi, the doormat who’s been tricked into wearing a maid uniform ;
– Makina, the foreign-looking kid ;
– Michiru, the tsundere who struggles under his heavy trolling ;
– Amane, who has no qualms about him walking in on her as she’s half-naked (hey, that’s his room !), and is vying to become a big-sister figure ;
– and Yumiko, the aloof girl that will totally cut you if you get too close.

Frankly, it’s a bit embarrassing how they try to act so stereotypically, and he’s not above making a bit of fun out of them (especially Michiru). But this is a thoroughly weird setup, and his paranoid constant vigilance looks more and more appropriate as time goes by.

Like, how exactly did Amane enter his room ? Did she pick the lock ? Why are several of them mumbling about having identifying him ? Are those bombs Sachi is making in her room ? And in that light, Yumiko’s “I will cut you” antics take a more sinister look…

Is it still paranoia if they’re really out to get you ?

Production Values

For some reason, the whole thing is shot in a widescreen aspect ratio. Well, whatever. Anyway, this seems to be drowning in budget, as the camera keeps moving around in fancy ways to stray from the cliché visual novel shot (you know the one), although it still shows up a lot anyway. (Amusingly, the girls often act out cliché “quirks” as though the camera was stuck to Kazami’s viewpoint.) There’s quite some scenery porn, too.

And, well, the camera also finds a way to show off repeatedly the panties of each and every girl, because dating sim adaptation. And there’s Amane’s half-naked scene, of course. (Ah, convenient bulbs of light…)

Overall Impression

Usually, it’s a bad sign for a harem romance show if I find every possible option creepy and/or unlikeable. This show achieves the remarkable feat of turning that around and morphing into a thriller where the protagonist will need to fight for his dear life. It helps that Kazami (the always impeccable Takahiro Sakurai) does have charisma and a personality, which is more than 95% of dating sim protagonist. We do root for him, despite his being a paranoid jerk with much blood on his hand.

I have to admit I was fooled : this really looked like a generic dating sim adaptationwith crappy cliché girls who can barely read their script. I was entertaining the thought that the whole thing was a prank on him, but as a joke, not as the actual premise. Have a cookie, show, you were clever enough to get my attention.

Don’t waste it, though ; you’re still on a thin line for those gratuitous panty shots. So get to the point and don’t try to have your cake too much while eating it.

via [In Which I Review] New anime, Fall 2014 – Page 3.

Wolf Girl & Black Prince (Ookami Shoujo to Kuro Ouji)

(12 episodes)

What’s it about ?

Our token adaptation of a romance shoujo manga for the season.

Characters

Erika, our heroine, is the titular “Wolf Girl”. Meaning, the girl who cries wolf : she keeps spinning out the wildest lies as a desperate cry for attention. As you’d expect, this bites her back in the ass consistently. Heck, even the episode’s title makes it clear from the start (“Liar – Caught in her own trap”).

Aki & Karin are her new “friends” by default, i.e. the only girls left in her new class who weren’t already in cliques by the time she arrived. So she did as she always does : try and keep up with their conversation, even if that means lying all the time. Unfortunately, they’re “mature” gals who keep talking about their superficial relationships with their boyfriends, so Erika felt compelled to one-up them with this super-cool and perverted boyfriend of hers that she totally has.

Ayumi, Erika’s one actual friend (but unfortunately in another class), would very much like her to give it a rest already. It’s been two months, and it’s obvious Aki & Marin have their doubts about the boyfriend’s existence. At the very least, Ayumi making fake phone calls from him to Erika doesn’t cut it anymore, and her phone bill’s running off quite a lot, so she’s out.

Kyoya, a random handsome dude Erika stumbles on in the street. Here, stay still while she takes your picture, and be utterly confused as she runs away. There, that’ll be enough proof for the gals, right ? Wait, what do you mean he’s attending the same high school, and is famous enough to have gained the “Prince” nickname ? Oh, crap.

To Erika’s surprise, when she eventually comes clean to him, he’s actually fine with pretending to be her boyfriend. In exchange… well, he’s always wanted a dog. So spin around and bark.

Production Values

Perfectly alright for this kind of thing. It sometimes goes a bit abstract, and sometimes giving Erika random wolf ears doesn’t make the metaphor any less strained, but it sells the jokes and that’s what matters.

Overall Impression

In shoujo romance, there are basically two types of stories : either maladjusted shy kids take their time to get together, or the girl falls for an sadistic jerkass who blackmails her into an abusive relationship. We’re firmly in the second camp here.

The good news is that this series is actually fun instead of rape-tastic. Most of Erika’s troubles are self-inflicted, and Kyoya spends more time disentangling her from those messes than really pushing her boundaries. And while her misadventures are hilarious, she really needs to grow up ; if he can be the catalyst for that, then so be it.

A pleasant surprise. (Although I really shouldn’t be ; shoujo romances have often been well worth my while recently.)

via [In Which I Review] New anime, Fall 2014 – Page 3.

Celestial Method (Sora no Method)

(12ish episodes ?)

What’s it about ?

Pastoral and semi-fantastical slice-of-life-ish, I guess ?
(For the record, a manga adaptation has already started publishing, but this is the core series.)

Characters

Nonoka, our protagonist. She abruptly left this small town 7 years ago, and now she and her father are moving back in. (Her mother isn’t. It sounds like she was already sick at the time, and that’s why they went to the big town.) She has trouble remembering her former life here, which is an excuse for fragmentary flashback to be spread throughout the episode. She’s a bit miffed that Dad has her do a major part of the installation, but then he’s busy with his new job…

Noel, the bizarre cyan-haired girl who randomly shows up in her room. Nonoka doesn’t even notice her at first, and can’t recall that they met 7 years ago. She might have something to do with the weird glowing thing hanging over the town. Heck, it looks a lot like Nonoka and her friends “summoned” her somehow back then, and she’s been waiting ever since. Nonoka spends much of the episode furious at her due to a stupid misunderstanding, and then they make up. So Noel’s ready to grant her wish !

The previously-mentioned friends make short appearances in the present day. One’s utterly furious at Nonaka (and the world in general) but won’t elaborate. Another’s a natural airhead. There’s a token guy.

Production Values

Scenery porn, here we come !

Overall Impression

Oh, dear, my greatest nemesis : “healing” anime. Must. Not. Fall. Asleep. There’s something about this kind of anime that bores me to death, and this one doesn’t stray from the norm. The one-dimensional characters and slow pacing don’t help.

There’s nothing really wrong with this series ; I just don’t care about what happens to these people. So I’ll be on my way and ignore it.

via [In Which I Review] New anime, Fall 2014 – Page 3.

Cross Ange : Rondo of Angel and Dragon (Cross Ange: Tenshi to Ryuu no Rondo)

(25 episodes)

What’s it about ?

Mecha vs dragons… well, at least that’s the pitch ; the actual series’ content is way more trashy and exploitative than you’d expect. We’re talking Freezing levels of bait-and-switch.

Characters

Angelize, our protagonist, is the First Princess of the Mizurugi Empire. She’s basically the MVP of the Imperial Family : wildly popular among the people, star player of her school’s sports team, and admired by all. She’s also completely drunk the official Kool-Aid : she’s in favour of a zero-tolerance policy against the Norma, the rare mutant girls who not only can’t use Mana (magitek telekinesis) like everyone else, but are actively destructive of it. Imperial policy involves snatching them as young as possible from their families, and detaining them in special facilities where they’re thoroughly dehumanized.

Julio, her older brother, resents her fame… because he knows it’s all a lie : she’s actually (unknowingly) a Norma. He exposes her in the most spectacular fashion possible during her coming-of-age ceremony. Obviously, it’s a huge scandal. I’m sure he’s terribly broken up that their parents get thoroughly discredited for covering it up for 16 years, and he thus has no choice than taking over as the new Emperor. (That his most prominent potential political rival gets summarily gitmo’d is a terrible shame, too.)

Angelize, now renamed “Ange” and stripped of any rights as a human being, is sent to the Norma detention facility where she’s to be trained as a soldier, presumably to pilot mecha against dragons like shown in the opening fast-forward. But because this is a classy series, let’s first spend way much more time than necessary on a gratuitous cavity search.

The OP & ED sequences showcase, among various future members of Ange’s team, a baffingly-prominent male character. Since there’s little chance he’s a Norma (described as a female-only phenomenon), I presume we’re due for some creepy Stockholm-Syndrome-type relationship.

Production Values

Just in case the above synopsis had you confused over what kind of series this is, the opening flashfoward proudly asks the question : how many different angles can we show Ange’s cleavage from as she’s piloting her mecha ? (Six under three minutes, plus three for her buttcrack and a couple more for her crotch.) And to dispel any doubt, the OP features exploding clothes, because of course it does.

Which is a bit of a shame, as Sunrise’s mecha battles are as impressive as ever, and the main segment of the series is perfectly alright and non-fanservicey.

Overall Impression

This is a truly infuriating show, as it wastes a decent premise by applying it to a creepy fanservice series. It really feels like two completely different shows welded together ; unfortunately, I have little doubt which one is going to win out.

I almost gave the series the benefit of the doubt until I got to the gratuitous prison rape scene, immediately followed by obviously-traumatized girls fondling each other. Fuck this crap, I’m out.

via [In Which I Review] New anime, Fall 2014 – Page 2.

Magic Kaitou 1412

(24 episodes)

What’s it about ?

Spin-off of Detective Conan about a kid Gentleman Thief. This already got a few TV movies over the years, but here it seems we’re getting a fresh start from the ground up.

Characters

Kaito, our protagonist, is your average lecherous high-schooler… scratch that, he’s an incredible illusionist who constantly enacts pranks and can still solve complex math problems (as well as look up the teacher’s panties) in the middle of them. One of his signature tricks involves putting on a fake head as he’s standing upside down, and his others are similarly impossible-looking.

Aoko, his long-suffering childhood friend and neighbour, isn’t a slouch in the smarts department either, and she would very much like him to cut the crap. Her father happens to be the kind of caricaturally incompetent police inspector you often see in those series. Kaitou often eats out at their home, as his mother is always on the move (sometimes abroad), and his father…

Well, his father was a stunt artist who “died” 8 years ago in an “accident”. But he was really “Kaito Kid”, a genius Gentleman Thief who also stopped making waves 8 years ago (for obvious reasons). Kaito’s just learned about his legacy, just as a Kaito Kid copycat has started showing up. Obviously, he’s going to investigate the fake and retake his legacy ! (And also follow up on the hints that Dad was murdered.) And as it turns out, Kaito Kid was Aoko’s father’s white whale…

Production Values

Perfectly okay, although there’s no way to make Kaito’s stunts look even remotely credible. The show does try its best, though.

Taku Iwasaki produces the score, and while it’s less wild than most of his recent production, it’s still very good.

Overall Impression

On the one hand, this is a deeply silly show. (Why the heck would Kaito’s dad choose such a revealing stagename ?) And Kaito’s panty-watching antics are quite aggrievating indeed for anyone above the age of 12.

… Still, it does have its charm ; it starts finding its feet towards the second half as the plot kicks in and Kaito gets to be something other than a jerk. And, well, I’m a sucker for mysteries, which are rather thin on the ground in anime ; together with Iwasaki on board, there’s a good chance I’m going to stick with this.

via [In Which I Review] New anime, Fall 2014 – Page 2.

World Trigger

What’s it about ?

Adaptation of a sentai-ish shonen manga series.

The plot involves invaders from another dimension (mostly giant monsters) wreaking havoc in town until the Border organization shows up out of nowhere to contain the threat, through their “Trigger” powers.

Characters

Mikumo, our point-of-view character, is an ordinary and slightly nerdish middle-school kid. He does have enough charisma (or so the script claims) to intimidate the bullies, and he makes a point of going out of his way to help the weak out. (Not that this always works out well for him.) Anyway, he’s on the lookout for any Border activity.

Kuga is a weird transfer student (who even transfers into such a disaster zone ?) who barely makes any attempt to hide his Trigger powers. (They’re linked to his “ring” helper who offers constant discreet help.) The big obvious twist is that he has no direct link to Border ; he comes from the other dimension !

The OP sequence heavily features two other kids : an older dude and Border agent who briefly shows up early on and leaves a big impression on Mikumo, and a girl in another class. Presumably the four of them are going to team up.

Production Values

Quite good-looking indeed ; the battle scenes are clear and fun to look at. Also, the constant succession of Kuga’s funny faces is a hoot.

The Kenji Kawai scores does a lot to give the show some well-needed atmosphere.

Overall Impression

That’s much better than I expected. It’s got some clever writing, as well as a rare narrative infodump that actually works and doesn’t overstay its welcome. The characters’ interplay is already fun, despite half of them barely being around.

I’m not sure how long it can keep the momentum up, but so far, so good. Looks like a fun ride.

via [In Which I Review] New anime, Fall 2014 – Page 2.

À la Recherche du Futur Perdu (Ushinawareta Mirai wo Motomete)

(12ish episodes ?)

What’s it about ?

Adaptation of a dating sim visual novel.

Characters

Sou, our dense and clueless male lead. He seems to be only interested in astronomy, to the intense frustration of the girls clustering around him. I’m with them, so much (deliberate ?) inattention to his surroundings is quite annoying.

Kaori, his longtime childhood friend. Why she’s leaving in the same house is left completely unexplained at this point. Anyway, she’s effectively been friendzoned, and she responds in pure tsundere fashion, alternating between pouty passive-aggressiveness and hopeful wishful-thinking.

Airi, the president of the astronomy club, also has a thing for Sou, and does have better chemistry with him to the point that Kaori feels threatened… But Airi is intent on playing matchmaker so that she can move on. Also, she’s not entirely defined by her relationship with him ; her main thing is to play “mediator” between any troublemakers at school by beating the crap out of them. (For some reason, the Student Council even encourage her.)

Nagisa, the senior in the club, has the uncanny ability to show up out of nowhere (“I was here from the start”), which has obviously helped us gather blackmail material on just about everyone. Which helps a lot to smooth things over after Airi’s bursts of violence.

Kenny, the foreign exchange student who seems to have no real purpose in the story beyond being weird and randomly funny. Maybe he’s a figleaf so that the Astronomy Club isn’t just Sou’s harem ?

Now, things get weird towards the end, as Kaori finally finds the nerve to confess to Sou, only to be hit by a truck. No, seriously. Except everything’s back to normal in the next scene, as we seem to have slided back in time slightly… and then a naked girl shows up in the next room over from the Astronomy Club’s. The heck ?

Production Values

Perfectly decent. I could do without Airi flashing her panties whenever she kicks people, but it’s a blip in an otherwise fairly tame series.

Overall Impression

Well, that was weird. This looked like an utterly forgettable and generic romance series until the episode’s bizarre conclusion. That definitely got my attention. It does help that it wasn’t actually bad until then ; the characters had some likeability and were better written than average for this type of thing.

On the other hand, I’m wary of the gratuitous Proust reference in the title, which feels more than a bit pretentious. (Especially as the subtitle is complete gibberish.) Can the series really follow up on such a start without messing the landing up ? That remains to be seen.

Still, it bought itself a second episode, which is more than I thought going in. Don’t waste it.

via [In Which I Review] New anime, Fall 2014 – Page 2.

Lord Marksman and Vanadis (Madan no Ou to Vanadis)

(13 episodes)

What’s it about ?

Adaptation of a series of fantasy light novels.

Characters

Tigrevurmud (sic) Vorn, our protagonist. Lord of the small province of Alsace (/facepalm), he leads a token battalion among the much wider forces of Brune. At least, that’s his backstory, as by the time the series starts he’s the last man standing, with patrols from the enemy country of Zhcted (gesundheit) scouring the battlefield for stragglers. But while he doesn’t have any illusions over his survival odds, he’s going to make the most of the few arrows he’s got left.

Eleonora Viltaria, one of the seven war maidens (“Vanadis”) of Zhcted, stumbled upon him ; she quickly overwhelms him, but she’s fallen in love with his bow skills, and so takes him prisoner. Officially she’s asking for ransom, but she deliberately set an unreasonable price to be sure she’ll get to keep him. Refreshingly, she’s NOT a tsundere ; she exudes power and self-confidence, and is charmingly frank about her motives and plans.

Her entourage, though, aren’t too happy with her latest conquest, as they suspect she wants more than merely his bow skills. Some of them are already trying to undermine him.

Zaian Thenardier (sigh) was Tigre’s “rival” among the Brune forces, i.e. a bully who kept provoking and insulting him. The episode closes on the announcement that he’s attacking Alsace, because mwahahahah he’s an evil little prick. It’s obvious where this is going : Eleonara “conquering” Alsace so as to protect it and keep Tigre under her thumb.

The OP & ED threaten to turn this series into a full-blown harem series, with several more scantily clad young woman about to join in.

Production Values

As has become the norm from studio Satelight, this is much brighter and shinier series than you’d expect from the actual subject matter. The fanservice level is quite high, as the camera never lets you forget that Eleonora has boobs and legs.

Overall Impression

I had very low expectations coming into this. I’ve come to dread adaptations of fantasy light novels in general, as they’re often the height of mediocrity ; the pervert camera is highly annoying ; and the laughable naming scheme is just distracting. It doesn’t help that the script makes the questionable choice of starting off with Eleonora’s claim of ownership over Tigre (which has no impact whatsoever out of context), and then delves into several nested flashbacks to explain it all. (There’s even a terrible infodump from the narrator.)

And still… there’s the nugget of a semi-interesting premise here. The core couple are surprisingly engaging characters, with more charisma, depth and maturity than the norm. (The supporting cast, not so much.) They’ve got great chemistry. I’m shocked to be thinking this might actually work and be quite watchable, if the harem elements don’t overwhelm it.

Against my better judgement, I’m giving it a second episode. Make the best of it.

via [In Which I Review] New anime, Fall 2014 – Page 2.

Gundam – Reconguista in G (G no Reconguista)

(26ish episodes ; the first two were aired together)

What’s it about ?

Happy 35th anniversary, Gundam ! For the occasion, we’re getting a new TV series by the franchise’s original creator, Yoshiyuki Tomino. Since his last turn at the helm was 1999’s brilliant Turn A Gundam, there are reasons to be excited.

This is nominally set in the far-future of the original “Universal Century” continuity, but the ties are token enough for this not to matter : it’s a series that can be jumped into without any foreknowledge.

Characters

Bellri “Bell” Zenam, our protagonist, is a young prodigy among the mecha pilot trainees. Also, son of the Director of Operations, but he doesn’t let that go to his head. His squad’s mission is routine maintenance of the space-elevator/space-station, but of course unexpected stuff happens.

Raraiya Monday is the first unexpected factor. She’s a mysterious girl who got dropped off during a skirmish with space pirates. Unfortunately, she seems to have suffered brain damage from performing atmosphere reentry in a mere skydiving suit, so she’s having trouble communicating. Anyway, for some reason she’s kept captive aboard the space elevator.

Aida Rayhunton, a space pirate who attacks the space-elevator aboard the titular G mecha to rescue her. After a fierce battle in which Bellri takes no small part, she’s eventually subdued. (I’m amused that someone complains that the name she gives is obviously made-up, because seriously this is a Gundam series.) She boasts that she’s locked the mysterious G’s cockpit and only she can open it again… wait, Bellri, how did you do that ?

Rounding up the supporting cast are many pals of Bellri’s, including Luin Lee, his amiable senior and best pal ; and several members of the high school cheerleading squad, who hitched a ride with the cute mecha pilot trainees to get some. Most prominently : Noredo Nug, who’s clearly set her sights on Bellri ; and the gung-ho Manny Ambassada. (But Aida is still obviously the one with a made-up name.)

Production Values

There’s something slightly old-fashioned in the character designs, which is compounded by the beautiful pastel watercolor-ish backgrounds. Still, the CG elements are well integrated, the animation is fluid overall, and it’s a great-looking package.

The OP & ED sequences feature the entire cast dancing for some reason, which hints at a bright and fun series. That’s certainly what it looks like so far.

Overall Impression

Fuck yeah ! This is as promising as I hoped for : fun characters having colourful hijinks with barely any angst around. There’s a lot of exposition flying around the first episode that’s a bit too dense to entirely parse, but the second episode helps it all sink in. And there’s just tons of charm from watching those kids fooling around on cool tech in the middle of a battlezone. It has the same sense of innocence that Turn A had, and that’s a relief from the more grim-and-gritty norm for mecha series.

This looks like one of the season’s highlights. No way I’m skipping it out.

via [In Which I Review] New anime, Fall 2014 – Page 2.