Tag: light novel adaptation

The Pilot’s Love Song (Toaru Hikuushi e no Koiuta)

(12 episodes)

What’s it about ?

Adaptation of a very successful light novel series. Before you start running away, I should mention it’s the “ambitious steampunk” type of light novels, not the generic incest/harem/etc. ones that have plagued recent years.

Characters

Kal-el, our teenage male lead. (Who the heck though this was an appropriate name for a character in a pseudo-European steampunk setting ?) He’s a new recruit for an airship piloting school that is set on a flying island. I can’t quite get a bead on him, personality-wise : most of the time he’s your generic protagonist, but at times he’ll have fits of unexplained anger, or impenetrable flashbacks involving some sort of priestress.

Ariel, his “sister”. (I get the nagging feeling he’s been adopted, and some spoilers I’ve encountered pretty much confirm it.) They have typical siblings relationships : often quarrelling over insignificant nonsense, but still there for each other. They’ve actually got two other sisters, but Ariel is the one who also enlisted and is the copilot for his plane.

There’s some mysterious new student whose main distinguishing feature is that he scowls angrily at people. (I don’t think he even utters a single word this episode.) Everyone else wonders what’s the deal with this angry loner bozo.

Claire, a cute shy girl Kal-el meets in the countryside. Ten minutes later, they’re already touching intimately. Well, that was quick. They reluctantly part ways late in the evening : she lives in the “noble” section of the island, which he can’t access because he’s a commoner.

The narration is all doom and gloom. This can’t bode well.

Production Values

Scenery porn !

Overall Impression

Hmm. There’s nothing particularly wrong with this : it does some good (if not particularly innovative) world-building, establishes the characters quite well, looks quite good overall…

But the core problem here is Kal-el : it’s obvious there’s some sort of twist about him incoming soon, but in the meantime the character is left in an awkward place where he keeps shifting personalities randomly. And let’s be blunt : his default “nice ordinary guy” personality is quite boring indeed. (Not that the “angry” one is any better, especially given the lack of context for his outbursts.) Which removes a lot of charm his romance with Claire might have.

Frankly, I just don’t have the patience to wait for the twist ; the story is just too bland so far. I won’t be bothering with this one.

via [In which I review] New anime, Winter 2014 – Page 3.

My Mental Multiple-Choice Power Is Completely Ruining My School Romantic Comedy (Ore no Nounai Sentakushi ga, Gakuen Love Comedy wo Zenryoku de Jama Shiteiru)

(10 episodes)

What’s it about ?

Adaptation of a light novel series taking the piss out of dating sims.
(I believe the official nickname is “NouKome”.)

Trigger warning : there are some actual jokes in this. Do not drink while watching.

Characters

Kanade, our generic high-school protagonist, is afflicted with a very bizarre condition : he’ll randomly have seizures where multiple choices appear in front of him. (1) The choices are framed by over-the-top dramatic music and narrated by Jouji Nakata. (2) He MUST choose to avoid the pain. (3) The choices are most often between two equally silly and embarassing things.

Yukihira, the girl sitting behind him in class, is one of the few classmates of his that don’t recoil as soon as he freezes, about to be doing something very stupid. That’s mostly because she’s a complete troll, and finds him entertaining.

Ouka is another of those few people he’s on speaking terms with. Mostly because she’s always ridiculously cheerful and doesn’t seem to care about his antics. As the daughter of the CEO of some vast conglomerate, she’s always smuggling in various samples for her classmates to try out. Today’s batch includes blue pills for middle-aged women (why are you even bringing this to high school ?), an actual money-making machine (which looks even more illegal than improbable), and some bug-shaped candies (ingredient list not disclosed).

Most classmates refer to them as part of the “Reject Five”, which implies there are two more oddballs yet to be introduced (they show up in the OP/ED sequences).

Their pint-sized teacher knows about Kanade’s condition, but still takes every opportunity to troll him.

One more thing : those multiple choices aren’t delusions. When Kanade chooses that “a pretty girl falls out of the sky” (instead of “my fat neighbour falls out of the sky”), then you can be damn sure a pretty girl is going to fall out of the sky (and onto him), physics be damned.

Production Values

While this doesn’t have that much of a budget, there’s some flair in the direction, and it looks good enough to sell the jokes. I especially love Yukihira’s body language, as half her shtick wouldn’t work otherwise.

The fanservice is more than mild, as you’d expect from this kind of thing. Still nowhere too outrageous, and the OP sequence where all the female cast do backflips without actually showing anything has to be seen to be believed.

Overall Impression

What. The. Fuck. Was. That.

If the premise isn’t bizarre enough for you, then the early 4-minute TV reportage showing a montage of people endorsing the value of choice will probably do the job. (I was sold at “[famous Japanese historical figure] could have (1) assassinated [other famous Japanese historical figure] or (2) rolled around with a dolphin. He chose the first option, and history was made.”)

I haven’t laughed this hard while watching an anime series for a good long while. Some of the jokes will make you cringe, not all of them land, but there’s such a rapid-fire string of them that it doesn’t matter. Random absurdity with good comedic timing : it just works.

There’s always the risk it may run out of steam before ending, but so far, so good.

via [In Which I Review] New anime, Fall 2013 – Page 13.

Unbreakable Machine Doll (Kikou Shoujo wa Kizutsukanai)

(12 episodes)

What’s it about ?

Steampunk light novel trash.

Characters

Raishin, our generic grim-faced protagonist, who joins the Machine-Doll Academy for REVENGE! (It’s not quite explained yet revenge against whom, or why.) He hopes that winning the Machine-Doll Fighting Tournament will be the first step towards this ; unfortunately, he scores second-last among the thousands of test-takers, and only the Top 100 can enter the Tournament. Fortunately, his teacher/guidance advisor informs him of a loophole : if you beat one of the 100, you can take his place.

Yaya, his Machine-Doll, is very annoying indeed. She’s ultra-clingy and keeps trying to get into his pants, despite him showing no such interest (I presume she’s mechanical, after all). On the other hand, she’s very powerful, if the opening action setpiece (stopping a runaway train) is any indication.

Shouko, Yaya’s creator, stayed back home : she’s mentionned, but not seen.

Charlotte is the kind of Alpha Bitch you always see in stories like this. Her doll is a dragon voiced by Jouji Nakata, of all things. Our “hero” targets her to take her place… until she’s ambushed by a bunch of other guys who had the same idea first.

Production Values

Well, at least it does look quite good.

Overall Impression

Sigh. I don’t want to use the “light novel trash” label too lightly, but this really deserves it. Contrived setup that gives the protagonist a devoted girl without any effort of his own ? Check. Angsty male lead with Nice Guy tendancies ? Check. Generic technomagic setting that barely hides the standard tournament arc ? Check.

A less jaded viewer might find something of interest here ; after all, it does look quite pretty. But I won’t bother.

via [In Which I Review] New anime, Fall 2013 – Page 12.

Log Horizon

(25 episodes)

What’s it about ?

Players trapped in a MMORPG world. Which is on the verge of becoming its own subgenre.

Characters

Shiroe, our protagonist. Technically a mage, although his core role in the party is the strategist : the guy who keeps his cool, stays at the top fo things, and finds the best tactics for everyone. Which is a lot harder when you’re busy fighting monsters in the flesh and have trouble focusing on the menus.

Naotsugu, his mandatory perverted best friend. A fighter. Not too bright. The comic relief of the group. He’s damn happy to find his old pal : he hadn’t played the game for two years, and certainly wasn’t expecting this. (Not that anyone was expecting this, instead of the announced “update”.)

Akatsuki, the assassin. Unfortunately, while Shiroe just about gets by now having the body of a character a foot taller than he used to be, she just can’t deal now having a male body twice her former size. (Hey, it’s a fantasy game. You don’t have to play what you are.) The good news is that she remembered Shiroe had a (very rare) shape-changing potion that solves the problem. Since she insists on repaying him, they have her join their party. (She seems to be a hardcore roleplayer who takes the “lone ninja” thing seriously, however impractical that may be in these circumstances.)

Marielle, leader of the Crescent Moon Alliance. Cutesy and teasing… but clearly an old friend of Shiroe’s. They go and see her because of course networking for information is the thing to do at this point, but our heroes aren’t joining ; they don’t do guilds. (Cue talk of Shiroe leading the most badass non-guild group some time back, before they disbanded.)

They’re some dude with the head of a cat lurking in the shadows. Presumably he’s important.

Production Values

Not bad, although we’re far from the highest budget in the season.

The OP features some mightily old-school rapping. You’ve been warned.

Overall Impression

Let’s start with the elephant in the room : how does this compare to Sword Art Online ? Well, of course it looks nowhere as good. But it already feels like a better show on all other levels : it takes more time to explore the novelty of the setting, and gets some good jokes out of it. It’s got decent comedic pacing. The characters have more personality and charisma, and the leads already have some good chemistry. And it doesn’t look like it’s going to feature any of the creepy NTR that made that other show so painful to watch.

Now, let’s be clear : this isn’t a masterpiece. But it’s a perfectly pleasant show, and that’s all I’m asking from it.

via [In Which I Review] New anime, Fall 2013 – Page 6.

Outbreak Company

(12 episodes)

What’s it about ?

The ultimate otaku-pandering fantasy.

Characters

Shinichi, our protagonist, is your stereotypical otaku, including all the nastier aspects (the lewd proclivities lurking behind the Nice Guy façade, the lolicon tastes, the tendacy to spout cliché quotes, the inability to have normal social interactions for more than a token amount of time…). One day, he finds an ad for an otaku-targeted job, including a 200-step otaku-culture quizz, and can’t believe his luck.

Mr Matoba, the interviewer, is all sugar but quite evasive about what the job actually is about. Well, at least until he drugs Shinichi’s coffee and has him transported to a high-fantasy world. Which the JSDF has found recently and is trying to establish good relations with. This includes setting up an otaku-culture export company, as apparently that’s what the locals are most interested in. Unfortunately, somehow previous attempts by government representatives have failed, which is where Shinichi comes in : he’s to be the new manager of this company.

Myusel, the half-elf maid, is one of the perks of the job. She fits just about every stereotype you’d expect : submissive, shy, a bit clumsy… Frankly, it’s all a bit awkward.

Koganuma is a deadpan JSDF soldier who’s there to make sure he doesn’t get into too much trouble, and provide some more exposition. (Include the fact she’s a F-cup.)

Eldant III, ruler of the kingdom, summons our protagonist the very next day, which is frankly a bit too early in his acclimatisation process. So of course he immediately perpetrates the blunder of calling her a “little girl” to her face. She’ll have you know she’s 16, for starters. (Also, there are hundreds of her knights in the room. Oops.)

Production Values

Perfectly okay. The character designs (as well as the setting as a whole) is more than a bit on the generic side, but then that’s the point.

Overall Impression

I’m conflicted about this one. On the one hand, it does have a good central joke at its center, and makes a good job of following through on it. It’s a very silly premise, but there’s certainly been some thought applied to make it work ; Matoba & Koganuma make it clear that this is a dangerous situation that could go wrong horribly quickly. They’re taking it very seriously, and humouring Shinichi’s quirks when they’re inoffensive enough. It’s relatively well-paced, and it’s got some good jokes.

On the other hand, this is still a massive bit of otaku-pandering, with a very annoying main character. (It could do without Myusel, too.) It kinda rubs me the wrong way, to be honest.

There’s a good chance I’ll give up on this very quickly.

via [In Which I Review] New anime, Fall 2013 – Page 6.

Strike the Blood

(24 episodes)

What’s it about ?

Urban fantasy, set in a man-made island city in the middle of the Pacific, built as a refuge for vampires, half-demons and various other nearly extinct supernatural species.

Characters

Kojou, our protagonist. Up until three months ago, he was just a normal high-schooler ; now he’s “The Fourth Progenitor”, a super-powerful vampire. He’d rather do without that, mind you ; the random brutal cravings for blood are quite annoying, and he’d rather live just a normal life.

The previous Fourth Progenitor only appears in thoroughly unclear flashbacks ; the only thing he can clearly remember is that she gave her powers (and then faded away) without him providing much consent.

Yukina, a middle-schooler in the same school complex who just transferred in ; she’s very obviously stalking him. After the token confrontation, we learn that she’s a reasonably powerful mage from some governmental agency, who consider Kojou as about equal to a nuke and sent her to investigate him. She does eventually agree he’s a decent guy ; she’s still going to keep close to him forever, just in case.

There’s a couple of asshole thugs (whose predator behaviour border on paedophilia) who serve as our cannon fodder of the week. Presumably they get taken out in the stinger by the small kid and her bodyguard who look like serious business.

(Kojou has a couple of “normal” friends, but I have doubts we’re going to see much of them from now on. Instead, the OP sequence playing at the end shows off many other girls.)

Production Values

There’s some good directing at work here, especially with the creative use of colour and degenerative artefacts to provide atmosphere (as you’d expect from a Silver Link co-production). Nice score, too.

It’s a shame it has to be applied to a script that requires Yukina’s panties to be showed off repeatedly over the course of the episode.

Overall Impression

Oh, dear. There are some semi-interesting ideas here, as well as a protagonist with more personality than the usual bland everyman, and a strong build up to the atmosphere. But it’s wasted on a script that constantly undercuts itself with very annoying “fanservice” events and generic romantic comedy hijinks. I really get the impression that even the director doesn’t have much interest in those elements, and only includes them as some obligation to the producers and the source material (a series of light novels, of course). It’s all very perfunctory, and would be a much stronger show if omitted.

I fear another Index : some decent worldbuilding and characters ruined by contrived and joyless irritants. I’m giving it at least another episode to see whether it cuts down on the crap, but I’m not too hopeful.

via [In Which I Review] New anime, Fall 2013 – Page 6.

I couldn’t become a hero, so I reluctantly decided to get a job (Yuusha ni Narenakatta Ore wa Shibushibu Shuushoku wo Ketsui Shimashita)

(12 episodes)

What’s it about ?

Oh, a Devil is a Part-Timer clone !

Characters

Raul, our protagonist. He used to be the swordsman leader of a team of wannabe heroes on their way to defeat the forces of evil… but then the Demon Lord got beaten by someone else, the country cancelled their whole hero project because of budget cuts (it’s not like they needed it anymore), and thus he had to find a new career in retail. It’s not quite working out, despite his best efforts.

Nova’s boobs and crotch assist him (clumsily) in his job. I’m not quite sure whether they’re the same characters as the boobs and crotch of the other fighter on his team in the prologue, but the camera spends as much attention on them.

Firo is an antagonistic kid who shows up one day and demands to be hired (and, being homeless, a place to stay). Despite being the heir of the Demon Lord. Incredibly, the manager accepts, to Raul’s bemusement. Cue the usual “fish out of water” jokes. Eventually Raul and Firo find some common ground, what with being relics of a war nobody cares for anymore ; by the episode’s end, they’re more or less friends. (Also, you can see the “twist” coming from a mile away.)

Production Values

It’s almost rythmical : Boobs, crotch, ass. Boobs, crotch, ass. Repeat ad nauseum. Otherwise, it’s just about average-looking.

Overall Impression

There are glimmers of an interesting premise here ; unfortunately, I’ve already seen much of these ideas explored much better in The Devil is a Part-timer. So what we’re left with is a cut-price version of that show, with much more fanservice, less interesting characters, and less clever writing.

I won’t bother with this one.

via [In Which I Review] New anime, Fall 2013 – Page 6.

Golden Time

(24 episodes)

What’s it about ?

Romantic comedy, set in college.

Characters

Banri Tada, our provincial protagonist, is just entering a law college in Tokyo. He’s more than a bit overwhelmed by the big city and his newfound independance. Fortunately, he finds a twin soul with…

Mitsuo “Yana” Yanagisawa, who’s having some of the same troubles. While he is Tokyo-born, he’s cut his links with his family and transfered to this average college instead of the prestigious elevator academy he was previously attending. All this to escape from…

Koukou Kaga, his clingly childhood friend. Unfortunately, his efforts are for naught, as she immediately finds him (she’s rich and has many powerful connections) and transfers with him. She sees his attempts to avoid her as “him just being a tsundere”, although I’m not entirely sure how delusional she is. Somehow, Tada is a bit attracted to her, despite the crazy.

Chinami Oka, a random innocent-looking student in their group, looks like another potential love interest. It’s not like she seems to have any other reason for her prominent introduction.

But it’s Nana “Linda” Hayashida, a senior from the Festival Club, who makes the strongest impression on Tada, when she rescues him from the numerous clubs attempting to recruit him.

Production Values

Perfectly okay for this kind of thing. The ED song’s quite catchy.

Overall Impression

Well, this is a bog-standard romantic comedy, already busy setting the various possible options. And there’s nothing wrong with that : it’s perfectly pleasant, most of the main characters have some charisma… well, except from the protagonist, who’s a bit bland so far.

It’s a decent start, and I see myself sticking with it for the long haul unless the season is way too busy.

via [In Which I Review] New anime, Fall 2013 – Page 5.

Beyond the Horizon (Kyoukai no Kanata)

(13ish episodes)

What’s it about ?

Self-aware urban fantasy.
Very obviously adapted from a light novel series (if you’re familiar with the tropes).

Characters

Akihito, our protagonist. He tries his hand at Kyon-style sarcastic narration, but doesn’t quite have the charisma to pull it off. And I can’t quite call him a generic high school student, since we learn very quickly the twist : he’s immortal, due to being half-demon.

Mirai, a new student at his school. He first meets her as she’s about to commit suicide… wait, no, that’s just a trap to lure him in so that she can stab him with her blood-sword. She’s the last heir of a demon-hunting clan with that special technique, you see. She tries again several times in the following days. He’d very much like her to stop : it doesn’t work, but it still hurts like hell. Especially as he’d find her cute if not for the stabbing thing.

Misaki, the other member of the Literature club besides him. Also the heir of the local demon-hunting group, who have an understanding with him and instead focus on the people-possessing demons who actually do some real damage. They also seem to include one of their teachers. Anyway, they don’t see the new troublemaker’s arrival with a good eye.

Production Values

It’s KyoAni : of course it’s gorgeously animated.

Overall Impression

Am I so jaded that I have a hard time enjoying any of this ?

Part of the problem is that it often feels like the main characters suffer from acute chuunibyou. Yes, the supernatural stuff is real, but it feels so off-the-shelf and generic that it’s hard to get too invested in it. The constant snark and self-awareness doesn’t help one bit : sure, it’s mildly funny, but it completely undercuts any gravitas the plot might have.

I’ll give it one more episode to try and make me care, but it’s not off to a good start.

via [In Which I Review] New anime, Fall 2013 – Page 4.

Tokyo Ravens

(24 episodes)

What’s it about ?

Oh, look, another rural fantasy show !

Characters

Harutora, our protagonist. He’s part of a branch of a powerful mage family, but doesn’t feel he’s talented enough to undergo mage training. He’d rather stay in this little town with his “normal” friends forever.

Said friends include Touji, the usual perverted best friend ; and Hokuto, his tomboyish not-girlfriend, who’s really pushing for him to become a mage.

Natsume, his cousin, is the actual heir of the family, and poised to become the super-mage. They’re still somewhat on good terms, but have grown apart, especially as she usually lives in Tokyo. Harutora assumes she’s in town because it’s summer vacation, but that may not be the whole story.

Suzuka, a girl who shows up out of nowhere, looking for Natsume for nefarious purposes. She’s a big deal enough for a bunch of MIB to try and contain her as soon as she shows up ; she makes short work of them. After the initial confusion where she mistakes Harutora for Natsume, she leaves him with a message for her. And forcefully kisses him in front of Hokuto, just for kicks.

Production Values

That’s some very clunky CG for Suzuka’s summon, and the MIB’s black vans. But overall, this isn’t half-bad looking, if a bit generic.

Overall Impression

I don’t know. There’s nothing particularly wrong with any of this : it’s decently paced, it introduces the characters and the main conflict well, and overall it’s perfectly competent.

But it doesn’t quite grab me ; it’s not a genre I have that much time for, and it doesn’t do anything particularly new or fun with it. And I don’t feel like signing up for six months of it. It’s a busy season where I need to make choices among the many “not loving it” shows, and this one doesn’t make the cut for me.

via [In Which I Review] New anime, Fall 2013 – Page 12.