Astarotte’s Toy! (Lotte no Omocha!)

(12 episodes)

What’s it about ?

The incumbent succubus princess is now 10 year old and should really get around to gathering a harem, or so her handler says. Since she has no wish to do so, she tries to finagle about it by demanding that her first gigolo be a Man (Men’s world has been sealed away from their world for millennia), but she underestimated her handler’s persistence…

Characters

Princess Astarotte (aka “Lotte”), our very, very annoying main character. Played by Rie Kugimiya, of course. She’s attended by a little squad of maids and various other helpers. The most prominent of which being…

Judith, her teacher/handler, who’s very dedicated to raising her charge as a proper succubus. Hence why she decides to single-handedly reopen the portal to Men’s world… and actually succeeds.

Naoya, the first dude Judith bumps into, and who just happens to be ideal boytoy material (of course he does !), so she immediately snags him up. The OP suggests his relationship with Lotte will be a lot more genuine than just “source of lifeseed for Lotte to suck”, although to be honest she’s got much more chemistry there with his little sister. (Also, some of the dialogue suggests he’s much older than Lotte. Eek.)

Production Values

Nothing special.

You know you’re in for a classy show when the second scene has a generic exposition lecture happen with all the female cast bathing for no real reason, and Lotte’s tail hiding various naughty bits Austin Powers-style. Later on, Lotte gets quite a few random panty shots.

Overall Impression

When in another forum I stated how my mind boggled at the premise (“A loli that needs to suck semen to survive !”), I was assured that the manga it came from wasn’t that bad and very tongue-in-cheek. Well, while this isn’t as skeevy as it could be, it’s still pretty bad and exploitative. And it’s not like “Lotte discovering True Love” is a “twist” I have any interest in.

Bottom line : it isn’t funny, and none of the characters are interesting. Avoid.

via [In which I review] New anime, Spring 2011 – Page 8.

Shingu: Secret of the Stellar Wars (Gakuen Senki Muryo)

(26 episodes)

What’s it about ?

2070, a future that’s basically the same as now, except we’ve got neat folding laptops. A giant alien floating thing shows up above Tokyo and wreaks havoc on anything electronic, but nobody really panics because it’s quickly dispatched by another giant alien floating thing that looks a lot more friendly (and has the good taste to disappear once it’s done its job). Meanwhile, one of the few characters who seems to have a clue about the whole thing moves to a backwater town and enrols in the local middle school. Cue the usual clichés : making friends despite being a bit weird, slice-of-life scenes with the supporting cast, rooftop ki fights with the local bully… Wait, what ?

Characters

Hajime, our narrator, who seems to be a normal middle school boy apart from his habit of droning pointlessly about everything that happens on screen. He’d be quite annoying if not for two points : (1) his general reaction to the alien attack’s TV coverage is “Yeah, right…”, and (2) there’s a point where he turns to the camera while continuing to narrate, and even his little sister comments on how weird his behaviour is. So presumably this is going somewhere.

Subaru, the weird transfer student. He coincidentally had a perfect vantage point with his grandfather when the alien thing showed up, and they both talked as though they knew what was happening. He seems completely clueless about ordinary school life, to the point of showing up in a school uniform despite them being out of fashion for decades.

Moriyamata, the student council vice-president, who immediately pegs Subaru as somehow related to the alien attack, and summons him to a ki fight on the school rooftop. (How they got there is strange in itself, considering the acrobatics Hajime had to perform to join them.) He gets completely (although gently) schooled by Subaru, who offers to teach him to use his ki powers properly.

Production Values

This feels very retro-looking, especially the character designs. But overall this looks quite pretty and well-animated. The opening sequence with the alien attack is impressive, with a nice level of detail for the consequences of the electronic failures slowly propagating through the city.

Overall Impression

This is definitely intriguing. The Evangelion parallels are undeniable, but this has no angst whatsoever and everyone seems very relaxed about the whole thing. In lesser hands this absence of dramatic tension would be a turn-off, but here it feels like it’s a deliberate part of the plot that’ll be explored in due time.

I want to watch more. Mission accomplished.

SURPRISE ALIEN CROTCH ATTACK !
SURPRISE ALIEN CROTCH ATTACK !

via [In which I review] New anime, Spring 2001 – Page 8.

Yondemasu yo, Azazel-san

(?? half-length episodes)

What’s it about ?

A detective agency routinely summons a demon to solve their clients’ problems. But since he never stops long enough to hear his orders, hilarity ensues.

Characters

Azazel, the titular demon. A rude womanizer… who’s less than two feet tall. He would really like to get out of this contract, but he’s consistently outwitted by…

Akutabe, the head of the detective agency who summoned Azazel. A complete jerk, but he’s so marvellously deadpan !

Sakuma, Akutabe’s part-time assistant. Our point-of-view character, as Akutabe judges she’s just got enough experience to learn how the agency really works. She spends most of the episode bemused by the whole thing, but then you’d be too.

Our client of the week is a classic ugly cheated wife. The various “solutions” offered to her problems get more and more bizarre as the episode goes.

Production Values

Low but adequate, I guess. It does the job.

Overall Impression

This is very low-brow humour indeed, but it works. It’s got very good comedic timing, the character play well off each other, and I liked the punchline. Stupid but fun.

via [In which I review] New anime, Spring 2011 – Page 8.

Softenni

(12 episodes)

What’s it about ?

Slice of life comedy about a middle school female tennis club. Also, panties.

Characters

Asuna, who is very enthusiastic about the club, but a bit of a slob. She has a very dirty mind that will interpret anything as sexually suggestive. (Also, she’s a walking panty shot.)

Kotone, who hasn’t been stated to be the club president but might as well be. Very bossy and sarcastic. (Voiced by Eri Kitamura, of course…)

Chitose, the upperclassman for whom this is the last chance as entering a tournament before graduating… but that’s a tall ordeal, considering she’s completely crap at tennis. Also, she eats a lot, although most of it seems to go to her upper figure, if you see what I mean (and I think you do).

Kurusu, the dark-skinned prodigy with a bit of a sadistic streak. Has a weird tendency to show up wearing a random big mask over her head.

Mr Mishimagi, the coach/teacher advising the club. Mostly there as a straight man for Asuna’s bizarre trains of thought.

The credits suggests a fifth girl will be joining the cast soon.

Production Values

Not very good, and the show’s bizarre obsession with showing panties every other shot is more than a bit distracting. There are some very puzzling bits of censorship, with random sexy shots heavily censored despite the nearly exact same thing being displayed in full ten seconds later. The mind boggles.

Overall Impression

Oh dear. Well, I wasn’t expecting much from XEBEC, but this is a mediocre slice of life series made nearly unwatchable by obstructive fanservice.

Although, considering it isn’t very funny to begin with, I’m perfectly content with giving it a pass.

via [In which I review] New anime, Spring 2011 – Page 7.

Abnormal Physiology Seminar (Hen Zemi)

(13 half-length episodes)

What’s it about ?

Slice of life about very special college course where the students hand reports about their fetishistic experiments.

Characters

Matsutaka, our somewhat prude-ish heroine, who isn’t enthusiastic at all about this course. If you’re wondering why she’s attending, that’s because it’s a way to get closer to…

Komugi, who looks and acts like a nice guy but is actually quite an irritating jerk under the deadpan façade (but since he’s voiced by Akira Ishida, you can’t quite bring yourself to hate him…). Totally unashamed about his fetishes and what the Hen Zemi does.

Pr Meshiya, the teacher/researcher in charge of the Hen Zemi. A complete creep, and one wonders how he gets away with this with the faculty.

Mizukoshi, the nymphomaniac best student. She’s into really extreme stuff (seriously, her report in this episode ? Ewwww !). Beware her slobber whenever someone talks dirty in front of her.

We get to see a few more students attending the course : the peeping tom who camps with his camera under the stairs, the ecchi manga artist and his innocent-looking sadistic girlfriend…

Production Values

Adequate. I actually quite like the stylized artstyle : it gives everyone (apart from the teacher) a look of complete innocence that contrasts very well with what they’re talking about.

Overall Impression

Quite fun, actually. I appreciate the directness of the approach, and thankfully all the people involved are consenting adults (Matsutaka can quit whenever she wants…). There’s quite a lot of mileage in the sheer weirdness of those fetishes.

But it clearly won’t be to everyone’s tastes. Some of the fetishes described here are bound to squick you out. Also, and that’s a bit more problematic, not all of the jokes are that funny. Moreover, I worry that the short format won’t give the series the time to properly gel. Still, if you have any interest in the subject matter, it mostly works.

There’s been a couple of OVA out ; they seem to have been some sort of pilot or something. It’s basically more of the same, but they aren’t necessary at all to understand this first episode (which introduces all the key players properly).

via [In which I review] New anime, Spring 2011 – Page 7.

Dororon Enma-kun Meeramera (“*Bamf* It’s Enma ! *Crickle Crackle*”)

What’s it about ?

The wacky adventures of Enma and his Demon Brigade, in charge of hunting down demons who’re wreaking havoc on Earth’s surface.

Characters

Harumi, our point of view character. A young girl whose friends get attacked by a face-stealing demon and calls on Enma & co for help. Very snarky indeed (to the point that she snarks at her own tendency to snark on inappropriate occasions), and quite bemused by Enma’s antics.

Enma, our idiot hero (and that’s quite an understatement). A fire demon. Wears a talking hat.

Yuki, his purported love interest (although it’s obvious they’ve known each other for so long that they’re getting on each other’s nerves). An ice demon. Maybe the most sensible of the bunch, although by a fairly narrow margin.

Kapaeru, a kappa. Mostly there to deliver exposition and horribly dated impersonations, although he does get to save Harumi from drowning at one point. He might be the most heroic of the bunch, which of course makes him a target for abuse.

Production Values

All over the place. There are some gorgeous pieces of animation, especially in the hell house with its wonderfully gorgeous backgrounds… and then there are a few shots drawn with crayons. WTF ?

Let’s be clear, this is an aggressively retro series, especially with the character designs ; but then, what do you expect of a remake of a 70s Go Nagai series ?

Overall impression

WHY ?

Why did someone greenlight a remake of a random 70s series, without updating much besides the animation ? (It’s even set in the 70s.) It’s not bad or anything (it’s standard inoffensive shounen fare), but it’s so obviously a nostalgia piece that I can’t bring myself to care. Especially as its tone doesn’t do much for me (this kind of constant hyperness tires me out very quickly).

I’m bemused. This show obviously has quite some money behind it ; is the market for it really that big ?

via [In which I review] New anime, Spring 2011 – Page 7.

Sekai-ichi Hatsukoi – World’s Greatest First Love

(12 episodes)

What’s it about ?

Yaoi romance comedy in a shoujo manga publishing house. Oh, the irony !

Characters

Onodera, who fled the Onodera publishing house because his co-workers suspected him of only getting his job out of nepotism. He’s trying a new job elsewhere to get acknowledged on his own merits. He thought he’d be working as a literature editor, but somehow ended up assigned to the shoujo manga department. He’s a bitter and cynical narrator who’s bemused by the bizarre quirks of his new co-workers… but at the core he’s still a hard worker who loves books.

Takano, his new boss. He’s quite rough and brutal indeed (sexual harassment on the first day for the new guy !), but also a genius who revitalized the shoujo department since he got the job.

Neither of them really recognize each other, but they had a hot and steamy fling, way back in high school. It’s been 10 years since…

Oh, and we briefly see the three other (male) editors in the department, but they don’t show too much personality yet.

Production Values

Barely adequate. Ah, Deen…

Overall Impression

You know, I was all set to hate this : yaoi doesn’t tickle my fancy, and the prequel OAV really rubbed me the wrong way (it’s 20 minutes of really cliché high school yaoi romance). But this actually ain’t half bad… at least as far as the office comedy is concerned.

I have my reservations about the yaoi romance subplot, but as long as it stays in the background it doesn’t bother me too much. When it takes center stage, though, I’m out.

via [In which I review] New anime, Spring 2011 – Page 6.

A Channel

(12-ish episodes ?)

What’s it about ?

Slice of life about four high school girls, with a heavy lesbian subtext. Wait, it’s pretty much text, actually.

Characters

Run, the ditzy central character. She can barely walk without tripping over her thoughts ; don’t let her lean over a window !

Tooru, Run’s self-appointed bodyguard. She’s one year younger than the rest of the cast, and very worried that Run may be moving on from her. In consequence, she’s (i]very[/i] possessive of Run and tries to prevent anyone from getting too close to her (with her baseball bat, if needed).

Let’s be honest : there’s no way to interpret her behaviour without yuri glasses. (Run’s mostly oblivious… or is she ?)

Mika, the sarcastic glasses girl with a bit of a mean streak.

Yuuko, who got off the wrong foot with Tooru by being a bit too close to Run when they met, and desperately tries to make friends with the runt (to no avail, alas). Mostly there to be the butt of jokes.

Production Values

That’s some very impressive animation, especially for a 4koma adaptation that doesn’t really warrant it. What’s with the trend this season of slice of life series with bizarrely high budgets ?

Overall Impression

It’s okay, I guess. It’s a middle-of-the-road high school slice-of-life series… with one selling point : Tooru. Most of the other characters are kinda bland, but the little gal’s got a striking emotional hook and is by far the most memorable aspect of the series. (Aoi Yuuki’s superb voice-acting doesn’t hurt, either.)

I’m probably going to give it a couple more episodes to see where it goes.

via [In which I review] New anime, Spring 2011 – Page 6.

Hanaukyo Maids (Hanaukyo Maid-tai)

(12 episodes)

What’s it about ?

A boy receives a sudden inheritance from his grandfather : a ridiculously huged mansion, staffed by hundreds of maids. (Also, tons of money.)

Characters

Taro, our protagonist. Completely baffled by the whole thing. In the grand tradition of stupid harem comedies, he’s got an allergy to girls, which makes it all very awkward.

We don’t actually see his grandfather, but he sounds like a gigantic pervert : his video will to Taro only has footage of maids sunbathing on a private island, there are nude statues everywhere, and then there’s all the training of the maids to be very intimate to their master. Now, I can somewhat understand why a squad of them would help him pee and bathe, but there’s little excuse for the “final service” after lights out.

Mariel seems to be the head maid or something (although it’s not actually acknowledged onscreen). Taro seems to like her, and she’s the only maid who does not set off his girl allergy (which of course raises all sorts of alarms in my brain – hopefully they’re not going that route, are they ?).

There are literally hundreds of other maids, although the only other notable ones are a set of triplets who seem the most sexually aggressive of the bunch.

Production Values

Terrible. This is barely animated at all. Also : boobies ! There’s LOTS of nudity here.

The ED sequence has live-action footage of what looks like the voice-actresses cosplaying as their characters, which is frankly embarassing. At least they’re properly clothed…

Overall Impression

Dear gods this was horrible and sanity-destroying. This obviously tries to be a raunchy sex comedy, but this is neither funny nor titillating.

This somehow got a remake in 2004. I can’t see how that’d improve things.

I had trouble retrieving the only SFW scene of assault in this episode.
I had trouble retrieving the only SFW scene of assault in this episode.

via [In which I review] New anime, Spring 2001 – Page 7.

Sket Dance

(?? episodes)

What’s it about ?

A high school club who specialize in helping people… although they’re quite bumbling indeed, and mostly do odd jobs. But they take it very seriously.

Characters

Teppei, our point of view character. A transfer student, and thus direly in need of exposition. The SKET club tries to recruit him aggressively, and when it fails they do help him with his troubles. To tell the truth, he’s a horrible wimp, and I was delighted when it turned out he’d fade in the background by the next episode. Pfew.

“Bossun”, the idiot in charge of the SKET club. (By the way, this is both a pun on the Japanese phrase for “helper group”, and a terrible backronym – “Support, Kindness, Encouragement, Troubleshoot”.) He’s very enthusiastic… but his trains of thought are quite bizarre, to say the least.

Himeko, the vice-president, would really want to be thought of as kind and feminine… but when the chips come down, she’s a violent thug. She’s the muscle of the team.

“Switch”, the third and last member, is a geek who’s never seen without his laptop strapped on. He absolutely refuses to talk, instead using voice-generating that sounds like Tomokazu Sugita (who’s impeccably deadpan here). He’s got very precise and intimate information on everyone in the school, and knows how to use it ruthlessly.

We also see quite a few other characters : a couple of bullies, the casanova kid, several members from the student council that will presumably become important later on…

Production Values

The animation is very limited, despite me not being one to overly notice this kind of thing.

The soundtrack is overloaded with guitar riffs, to the point that it becomes a bit distracting.

Overall Impression

Hey, a shounen series that I actually like quite a bit ! What has the world come to ?

Now, it isn’t without problems. I don’t really care for the club president, and I loathed Teppei. The production values are quite cheap indeed. And I could quickly grow tired of the amped up histrionics.

Still, it succeeds where it really needs to : it’s quite funny indeed. Switch has an awesome gimmick, Himeko’s fun, and most of the jokes work.

I’m cautiously optimistic about this one.

via [In which I review] New anime, Spring 2011 – Page 6.