Tag: light novel adaptation

So, I can’t play H! (Dakara Boku wa, H ga Dekinai.)

(12 episodes)

What’s it about ?

Magical girlfriend show.

Characters

Ryousuke, our male lead, is a complete pervert with an unfortunate tendency to utter his creepy inner monologue out loud. There’s nothing likeable whatsoever about him.

Mina, his doormat gentle childhood friend. I have no clue why she puts up with him, although it seems clear she’s not too bright or perceptive.

Lisara, a Grim Reaper who suddenly shows up on his doorstep, and nearly immediately stabs him to forge a bond and steal his energy to sustain herself in the mortal world. Not that she considers her as more than below average, but he was the closest dude available. The twist here is that he gains the more energy the more aroused he is, and she gets it too from their link. It helps, because they’re immediately attacked by some sort of tentacled monstrosity.

Production Values

Holy fanservice, Batman ! Never mind the pervert camera (which makes sense considering our protagonist),but Lisara spends most of the episode in some state of undress (including a long gratuitous shower scene), culminating in the reveal that her battle outfit is powered by her own energy, and thus starts to dissolve once the tentacle thing gets the upper hand. Naked boobies ahoy !

Overall Impression

Urgh. I hate every single character in this show, the long running joke about Ryousuke seeing Lisara’s bush gets tired as soon as it starts, and I still have no clue how the title relates to the plot. There’s just nothing entertaining in here.

Avoid.

via [In which I review] New anime, Summer 2012 – Page 11.

Aesthetica of a Rogue Hero (Hagure Yuusha no Estetica)

(12 episodes)

What’s it about ?

Magical battles with tons of fanservice.

Characters

Akatsuki, our protagonist. He’s just escaped from a fantasy parallel world where he became a magic-wielding badass ; like all the people who came back, he’s automatically enrolled in an academy supposed to keep them under supervision.

Myuu, daughter of the Demonlord, and prophetized to wreak havoc later on. So of course our hero smuggles her (in a bag, naked) into our world and disguises her as his sister.

The student council president shows up, just to prove he’s an arrogant jerk who can hold his own in magical battles.

It’s heavily implied that the academy is way more sinister than it claims. It’s ruled by an Omniscient Council of Vagueness Shrouded in Shadows (the screen is so dark you can’t see anything !), some of whom sound a lot like the battle maids that were trying to stop our hero from leaving Fantasyland.

Production Values

Hello, fanservice ! (There’s little else to say.)

Overall Impression

Hum. There’s the glimmer of an interesting idea here, but the high fanservice level, heavy-handed exposition and murky pacing don’t make me very confident this show can achieve its potential. The male lead has some charisma, but that’s about it.

I’ll be passing on this one.

via [In which I review] New anime, Summer 2012 – Page 11.

My little sister is among them ! (Kono Naka ni Hitori, Imouto ga Iru!)

(12 episodes)

What’s it about ?

Generic harem romance with heavy incest overtones. Adapted from a light novel series.

Characters

Shougo, our generic male lead. He’s the heir to a huge conglomerate, and Daddy’s will stipulated that the estate would be his if he found a girl to marry within the last couple of years of high school he has left. He even got a sweet bachelor pad to bypass the dorm regulations.

Konoe, the first girl he meets on his way there. The friendly big-breasted girl who’s fond of sweets. Also the class representative, and coincidentally sitting next to him in class.

Mana, the other girl sitting next to him, obviously the jealous flat-chested tsundere type. Very annoying.

Mei, a witch-Yuki-Nagato cosplayer who keeps stalking Shougo, and point-blank claims she’s his long-lost little sister (he conveniently has memory issues). Which doesn’t prevent her from wanting to bone him too.

Also in this episode : the airhead student council president and the level-headed vice-president, both of whom the OP present as possible marriage prospects.

Production Values

Very average. The fanservice level is a bit lower than you’d expect. (I can’t determine whether the shadows shrouding underskirt areas is censorship or just an artistic choice, but it does look better than the usual censorship tools.)

Overall Impression

Well, this is exactly what it sounded like, with no redeeming feature whatsoever. It’s dull, the characters are walking clichés with no personality, the dialogue is atrocious and the “mystery” of who’s the sister isn’t remotely entertaining. (Even if you give the show a little credit and assume Mei is lying.)

Pass your way without even bothering to check it out.

via [In which I review] New anime, Summer 2012 – Page 11.

Humanity Has Declined (Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita)

(12 episodes)

What’s it about ?

The most cheerful post-apocalyptic series you’ll ever watch.

Characters

Our unnamed protagonist lives in a small rural village as a mediator to the fairies, on behalf of the UN. This basically makes her in charge of the female population here, mostly by virtue of having a clue and not being afraid of abusing her authority.

She lives with her grampa, a scientist also studying the fairies. And he’s very obviously calling the shots in the village, for about the same reasons.

The locals seem to suffer from a severe case of the stupids, and are barely able to function anymore. It’s funny until starvation because of their own incompetence becomes a plot point.

Fortunately there’s the fairies… and whoever’s running the mysterious FairyCo that’s been dropping free (awful-tasting) food recently.

Production Values

Well, that’s a good way to make a post-apocalyptic setting very creepy indeed : over-saturated bright colours everywhere, and the more pink the better. And that’s before the headless chicken start showing up, or the action moves to the utterly absurd FairyCo factory.

Overall Impression

Warning : this show doesn’t bother to explain anything about its setting : why has humanity declined ? Is this village typical of the world ? What state is the UN in ? (Our protagonists don’t seem to have access to any technology or outside help.) What’s with the fairies ? Indeed, it seems to revel in the explosive decompression of throwing the viewer into this strange land, even spending a lot of time on pointing out that our heroine just had her hair cut for undisclosed reasons and not being comfortable with it : is there any significance to it ?

Fortunately, we have a strongly-defined central character to latch onto, with enough shrewdness and cynicism to compensate for the braindead villagers. What prevents her from being obnoxious is that she doesn’t really get away with it, thanks to her grandfather’s vigilance.

But what really sets this series apart is the sharp contrast between the sugar-coated presentation and the very black humour at its core (the bleeding bread scene in particular has perfect comedic timing). There’s also a strong sense that it knows exactly where it’s going and the haphazard pacing is deliberate.

Somehow, this looks like one of the most original and refreshing shows of the summer. (Yes, more than that one with the talking yeast.) Very worth checking out.

via [In which I review] New anime, Summer 2012 – Page 6.

Campione!

(12ish episodes ?)

What’s it about ?

Magical battles set in Italy, with just a hint of romantic comedy.

Characters

Godou, our generic Japanese male lead. He was sent in Italy to deliver a package by his grandfather (who turns out to be a vey powerful mage who really got around). He randomly crashes into…

Erica, who for some reason walks around in a ludicrous “period” red dress. (Even curiouser : for magical battles she switches into something more comfortable and decent.) She’s a witch (with battle maid in tow) who immediately takes an interest in the package, apparently a super-powerful artefact that can steal gods’ powers. Which is handy, considering how there are more than a few roaming around.

Verethragna, a super-powerful and super-arrogant kid who’s so powerful he’s going around challenging other gods because he’s curious what defeat feels like (so far, no luck).

… And that’s how, by the end of the episode, Godou acquires god-level power. (That’s not a spoiler, his inner monologue states it at the very beginning.)

Production Values

I watched the eyebleed-o-vision streaming pre-air version of the episode, so it’s a bit hard to judge, but the magical battles feel very generic and uninspired.

Overall Impression

The obvious comparison here is with Ichiban Ushiro no Daimaou, and that’s not exactly to this show’s advantage ; the characters feel very generic (Erica in particular alternates between stale charmless antics and exposition mouthpiece), the plot hangs on some very big coincidences and doesn’t flow too well (special points to the first magical battle just stopping off-screen for no obvious reason), and the worldbuilding feels quite by-the-numbers.

(Also, I can’t take Fuhimiko Tachiki’s narration seriously when he uses the same boisterous tone as for Katte ni Kaizou, which was a clear parody of this sort of thing.)

You never know, this might develop some charm later on, but it hardly looks promising so far. I’m not even sure I’ll bother with a second episode.

via [In which I review] New anime, Summer 2012 – Page 4.

Hyouka – You can’t escape

(21 episodes)

What’s it about ?

A high school detective club.

Characters

Houtarou, our protagonist. He’s usually a partisan of minimum effort, but here he strong-armed by his sister (an alumni of this same high school) into reopening the “Classics Club”, which had no members left. He’s actually quite a clever guy once you get to know him (if you’re not rebuked by his unwillingness to do anything unnecessary).

Satoshi, his best friend for years. He’s very obviously the exposition guy, and relishes in it (calling himself with pride “a database of useless knowledge” at one point). He’s not above starting rumors on his own, either.

Chitanda, a girl they found in the clubroom, and who’s very interested in it. (And so, Houtarou immediately dumps the presidency onto her.) She’s fascinated by mundane mysteries, school urban legends and the like. She’s a bit gullible, to say the least.

Whatever the club is actually about (it apparently has something of a reputation), they never get around to going into any Classic Litterature in this episode ; instead they obsess over several of the most low-key and low-stakes mysteries I’ve ever witnessed. Although it’s mostly an excuse to showcase each character’s personality.

Production Values

You can tell this is a Kyoto Animation production : the animation is wonderfully fluid, and there’s a marvellous attention to detail in the body language and the backgrounds ; every single walk-on extra feel like they have a personality and a story of their own. (Witness in the opening scene that dude desperately trying to do some homework in the deserted classroom and getting progressively more annoyed at Houtaru and Satoshi talking so loudly behind him !)

This isn’t the most visually creative show of the season (aside from that fun little “mystery of the door” sequence and the random fantasy scenes “demonstrating” Houtarou and Chitanda’s chemistry), but it certainly has the best production values by far. (Yes, better than Fate/Zero.)

I’m not a fan of the soundtrack yet, but I could see it grow on me.

Overall Impression

In any other hands, this would have been a forgettable low-key mystery show. But the impressive care put into every single detail pays off at the end, when Houtarou gets to display some impressive sleuthing skills in a way that takes advantage of those details and is perfectly in line with his stated philosophy. And the solution to the “phantom club” mystery is a strong enough piece of writing to make me trust this is going somewhere. (I’m not spoiling it, because I loved getting surprised by it.) Also, I’m now sold on Houtarou (Yuuichi Nakamura is impeccable as always).

I’m definitely going to follow this one.

via [In which I review] New anime, Spring 2012 – Page 15.

Nyarko-san: Another Crawling Chaos (Haiyore! Nyaruko-san)

(12ish episodes ?)

What’s it about ?

Lovecraft monsters as cute girls ! Except not really.

Characters

Mahiro, our token male protagonist. Mostly there to keep complaining that nothing makes sense. For some reason, he’s targeted by tons of creepy monsters, thus why he’s being protected by…

Nyarlathotep, aka Nyarlko. Except she’s not really a sanity-destroying abomination (unless you want to give this series way too much credit), but an alien agent sent by the Galactic Defense Organization to protect Mahiro. Oh, and the access to Earth entertainment is a nice side-benefit, too. Obviously she’s supposed to be annoying, but they kinda overshoot the mark.

We see a bit of Mahiro’s supporting cast, including a rare non-perverted best friend (who’s just bland), and the inquisitive journalist-type who’s set up to be a regular annoyance. The OP/ED also promises two more of Nyarlko’s kind, but they’ve yet to really show up.

Production Values

Not very good. And no, re-using the same stock monster three times does not become more tolerable if it’s pointed out.

Overall Impression

You know what ? I actually enjoyed somewhat the Flash-made shorts from a little while ago. Sure, they were crudely drawn and some of them were boring, but they did have a good final punchline, and clearly suggested that those were eldritch abominations mindfucking Mahiro (and the audience) in a very convoluted way for the lulz. That was a decent way to make the premise work.

Unfortunately, this new series pretty much throws all of that away. I mean, you can still interpret it that way if you’re so inclined, but that’s probably wishful thinking. Instead, Nyarlko is transformed into a generic superhero who’s bloody annoying in the downtime scenes (I can only stand Kana Asumi in small doses), which is just a waste.

So we’re left with a generic superhero show with an insufferable heroine and tons of 4th-wall-breaking jokes that aren’t funny. I’ll pass.

via [In which I review] New anime, Spring 2012 – Page 8.

Accel World

(24 episodes)

What’s it about ?

In the future, augmented reality is going to be wicked awesome… Oh, wait, it’s a shounen fighting series.

Characters

Haru, our protagonist. Nothing says “punchable loser” like being voiced by Yuki Kaji, but the character designer went out of their way to portray him as a very short fat dude who looks utterly out of place among the other characters. He spends most of his middle school life being harassed by bullies and retreating into virtual reality games, until he meets…

Er, well, I really doubt Kuroyukihime (“Black Snow Princess”) is her real name, so let’s call her Black Lotus, her virtual reality screen name. She’s the beautiful idol of the school, although that’s just a front for her actual personality of a complete troll. She goes out of her way to introduce Haru to the underground community of Burst Linkers, which are basically people who use a program to hack the omnipresent augmented-reality/internet/network to get super-speed. This sounds awesome and addictive until you learn you must play a special game to get more doses of it. The big mystery here is obviously what’s Black Lotus’ angle in getting Haru under her wing.

Haru has what looks like a successful big brother to feel inferior to, and a clingy childhood friend who’s all set for the mandatory love triangle by the end of episode 2. Hopefully they won’t get too much screen time wasted on them.

Production Values

Wow. The real world sequences and characters aren’t much to speak of, but as soon as the augmented reality kicks in it looks awesome. (The virtual worlds don’t look too bad, either.) I really, really want to live in this future world where you have the internet hardwired into your neck. Sure, the Big-Brother-cameras everywhere feel a bit dystopian, but it feels worth it.

Overall impression

Dull characters, including yet another Yuki-Kaji-voiced loser protagonist ? Check. Already starting to degenerate into a fighting tournament series ? Check. Oh, dear, those aren’t good signs. But on the other hand, it’s a series with a killer concept at its core (and the visuals to back it up), and that may be enough for me to keep watching it.

via [In which I review] New anime, Spring 2012 – Page 3.

Kino’s Journey

(13 episodes + 3 specials, 2003, 2005, 2007)

My previous exposure

Suggested in this very thread. And I vaguely remember having heard of it before.

What’s it about ?

Our protagonist Kino travels between various countries, atop her faithful motorbike Hermès. (Who can talk. Don’t ask.)

What did I think of it ?

This is a very episodic series, alternating between several tales in a single episode, up to a two-parter halfway through. The setup is basically always the same : Kino arrives in a new town/country, learns about their customs, stuff happens, and she leaves after three days. The whole thing is an excuse for exploring human sociology, and why they do what they do, however pointless it is. In particular, there’s a great unspoken ironic parallel in the “3 men and the railroad” between the 3’s pointless task, the “country where people don’t need to work (but do anyway, because doing something pointless is better than doing nothing)” tale-within-a-tale, and Kino’s own aimless wandering.

Kino is a very compelling protagonist, despite us barely ever getting into her head at all. She doesn’t talk much and offers no inner monologue ; Hermès’s whole role is to offer a naive proxy for the viewer so as to try and understand her. A few episodes offer some explanations about her backstory, although a great deal is left unsaid. What little we do get to see, though, I really like ; the Colosseum two-parter shows she’s got a strong sense of justice and a nasty sense of humour. I also like that she sometimes completely fucks up (seriously, driving that family of androids to suicide can’t have been her intention).

Another strong point of the series is that it knows how to vary tones across its tales ; it can go from the cheerful story of the first airplane to the grim and bloody Colosseum two-parter. The soundtrack is intriguing ; along with some direction effects, it often emphasizes the artificiality of the story and injects a dimension of “something’s not quite right” that contrasts nicely with the naive character designs. This works especially well in the second special where Kino goes on her first “real” journey.

It’s a bit of a shame that the last special is among the weakest tales (with CG backgrounds that are a bit too distracting to be impressive), though. Still, this has been a great series to watch, and is the first one suggested in this thread to join my Top 30.

via [LTTP/WIW] Various anime from the 00s and beyond – Page 9.

Winter 2012 capsules

Some quick notes :

Amagami SS Plus basically resumes where it left off : each of the 6 main girls gets 2 more episodes set after their original arcs. We start off with Ayatsuji (the verbally-abusive class president). Frankly, at first it’s more than a bit self-indulgent (a perverted bath scene that turns out to be the MC’s erotic dream ? Seriously ?), but it does pick up after that, and the new plot is actually a lot of fun. Got me worried for a while, though.

I’d gotten the impression that Nisemonogatari would star the Araragi sisters, but that’s only in the loosest sense of the term ; this is really a straight sequel to Bakemonogatari, with new arcs focusing on said sisters. Well, “focusing” may be too strong a word ; the arc is titled after Karen, and she doesn’t even show up this episode (while Tsukihi gets less than 5 minutes). The bulk of the episode is devoted to an extended prologue that I fail to see what it’s got to do with anything, and a long talk between Araragi and Mayoi that often makes me uncomfortable whenever he’s making a joking pass at molesting her.

Don’t get me wrong : the direction is still as impressive as ever, and the dialogue is on fire ; but this isn’t quite gelling together yet. (But then, I’ve never been that impressed by Bakemonogatari ; it’s good, but there are huge chunks that leave me cold.)

And maybe I should say a few words about Poyopoyo Kansatsu Nikki, a series of 3-minute shorts where a round cat gets adopted by a family. I’m getting the impression those shorts aren’t for me, because there’s barely any meat there ; although this one gets point for being faster-paced than most and managing to get in quite a few jokes. But that’s a few chuckles at best, and I’m not going to bother with any more of it.

via [In which I review] New anime, Winter 2012 – Page 4.