Post about Cartoons and Anime you like

[Oky]

OMG!OMG!OMG!OMG!OMG!

Looks like the new Samurai Jack will be a whole lot grittier! I love it! Here's some more concept art:

Is that Jack? Doesn't really look like him, but he's in the teaser trailer and it would be neat to see Jack wear samurai armor. Not sure how I feel about that helmet...

I'm so excited for this! I really wish we could get more than just 10 episodes. Hopefully this will be better than other recent reboots on Cartoon Network. Powerpuff Girls is actually not as bad as many say it is in my opinion. Of course it's not as good as the original seeing as it is clearly just a cheap cash grab, but at least it's not TTG.

By the way, has anyone watched Voltron: Legendary Defender? I'm only a few episodes in and I'm already loving it! Now this is how you reboot a cheesy show from the 80's and make it awesome! Michael Bay, take notes!!

[Kalhiki]

I'm super stoked for Jack! Sad that it's 10 episodes, but so long as it gives a satisfying conclusion, I'll forgive.

And I have no doubt it'll be good. Tartakovsky's back and it'll be airing on Adult Swim. Sounds like they'll be pulling out all the stops for a much darker, grittier show that you'd never see on a daytime kid's cartoon channel.

I'm just wondering about Aku. Since the original voice actor died, I hope they get a good replacement.

Also Voltron. Really need to see that as it looks really good. And it's the same animation studio that did Legend of Korra, so that's incentive enough.

[Aanchir]

I'm just wondering about Aku. Since the original voice actor died, I hope they get a good replacement.

Conceivably they could do like Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra did and get Greg Baldwin to voice him. Greg Baldwin was a long-time understudy and voice student of Mako Iwamatsu, and so learned to closely match his voice performances. He's already voiced Aku in Cartoon Network FusionFall, back when that was a thing.

[Forresto]

It's still very sad Mako passed on, he had such a brilliant voice and had gave so much energy to every performance he did. I like Greg Baldwin, he's definitely the best alternative I can think of, but he's still not quite Mako. I know that's not fair to Baldwin though

[xboxtravis7992]

Speaking of Jack, where would be the best place to catch up with the original series? Netflix, Amazon Prime? Or should I just order the DVD copies?

[Oky]

I'm just wondering about Aku. Since the original voice actor died, I hope they get a good replacement.

I agree with Aanchir and Forresto. I think Baldwin did a great job taking over for him, so I wouldn't be surprised if they get him to do it.

Also Voltron. Really need to see that as it looks really good. And it's the same animation studio that did Legend of Korra, so that's incentive enough.

Yeah, you can really tell it's the same studio as the animation is just as fluid and awesome! Definitely check it out!

Speaking of Jack, where would be the best place to catch up with the original series? Netflix, Amazon Prime? Or should I just order the DVD copies?

Samurai Jack (along with A:TLA, the DCAU and Disney Afternoon shows) is one of the few animated series that I own all the DVDs of as it is one of the best cartoons of all time. And I don't know any service that has the show at the moment, so yes, I'd say definitely get the DVDs.

[Kalhiki]

Conceivably they could do like Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra did and get Greg Baldwin to voice him. Greg Baldwin was a long-time understudy and voice student of Mako Iwamatsu, and so learned to closely match his voice performances. He's already voiced Aku in Cartoon Network FusionFall, back when that was a thing.

That's what I'm figuring, and I won't complain. While I could still tell it wasn't Mako, he did a quite a fine job as Iroh.

I think Forresto put it best: "still not quite Mako." But seriously, who is? There's no replacing that voice. RIP, Mako.

[Toa of Gallifrey]

After a long slew of delays resulting from the unholy mix of an imperial blockade of tests and work, end of school work, deciding to watch the entire Fate series, a new update on my favorite MMO and the grinding/farming that follows, I finally caught up on the Spring anime I was watching. I dropped/put on hold several series that I felt weren't worth my time, but I might pick up some further down the line and see if I was wrong. I'll wait until next week to post my usual rundown but I'll mention the dropped/on-hold ones now, from order of most likely to pick back to up to least likely.

Flying Witch - It was just a slow slice of life and with being backed up on so many series I didn't really want to binge watch this one to catch up. I might watch it one day, maybe with my sister who'd definitely like it, but not before I get a lot of other series I wanna watch out of the way first.

Sousei no Onmyouji (Twin Star Exorcists) - An interesting series but a mixture of my own lack of interest in the played out premise and my friends being rather disappointed with it clued me into leaving it behind, though I might definitely watch it someday when I eventually decide to watch Charlotte, SAO and everything else I put on-hold.

Seisen Cerberus - It felt rather boring to me and one of my friends dropped it further down the line for the same reason. It's short so I might watch it some day to see whether it improved but it's definitely not something I'll keep in mind. I consider this one dropped.

Endride - Same as Cerberus, except it's 24 episodes so I'm less inclined to one day binge watch it. I consider this one dropped too.

Hundred - From the first episode it was easy to tell that this'd be this season's Infinite Stratos/Asterisk War/Bahamut (funny since Asterisk War season 2 is airing this season as well so there's two of these), I wasn't even gonna waste time with it. Definitely dropped with low to no chance of picking it back up.

So far my AOTS is JoJo Part 4, followed closely be Luluco and Re:Zero. The worst is more difficult to pick, there's a few choices. :P

As an aside and as mentioned before I've also been watching Fate/stay night (2006), Fate/Zero and Unlimited Blade Works (2014), and now the wait for the Heaven's Feel movie trilogy is killing me. I also may or may not have obtained the Visual Novel and plan to read ahead. Teehee...

On a whim I saw the first episode of Hellsing Ultimate (in dub) last night. I never watch anything dubbed but I was told repeatedly that it's better dubbed than subbed so I watched it in dub then compared to sub. The acting is about as good on both (though in dub Police Girl speaks a little too softly for me to properly understand her sometimes) but the dialogue in English was better written so I'm sticking with dub.

The penultimate episode block of Wander Over Yonder airs tonight. I'm really sad that it got cancelled when it had such great momentum going. It did literally everything I want it to do and had so many more things it could've done. All I can hope for now is a decent finale, which at least we're getting and it's not ending on a regular episode. Can't wait to see what the staff works on next!

At any rate, I should stop posting random thoughts and go get ready to watch Finding Dory.

[PenPlays]

So I was watching Food Wars (Shokugei no Soma), when a cousin of one of the central characters was talking about how her family started a gourmet research facility in Denmark. This was accompanied by a visual of what the building looked like.

Clearly the artist for the series based their research on "modern building design in Denmark" because this building...

... is the Lego House.

A near carbon copy.

Odds are this will pass even some trained eyes.

[Ceroknight]

Watched Gravity Falls cause lots of people seem to like it. Didn't meet my expectations unfortunately

[Toa of Gallifrey]

So I was watching Food Wars (Shokugei no Soma), when a cousin of one of the central characters was talking about how her family started a gourmet research facility in Denmark. This was accompanied by a visual of what the building looked like.

Clearly the artist for the series based their research on "modern building design in Denmark" because this building...

... is the Lego House.

A near carbon copy.

Odds are this will pass even some trained eyes.

I started watching Shokugeki no Soma a couple days ago and didn't catch this. Nice!

[xboxtravis7992]

My gosh

[ShiningOne]

I haven't seen any new anime in a year, any recommendations?

[PenPlays]

I haven't seen any new anime in a year, any recommendations?

-Seraph of the End (Owari no Seraph) is really good for what's there so far. The series has ended at the moment due to it (very quickly) catching up with the manga. It's quite suspenseful none the less.

-Blood Blockade Battlefront (Kekkai Sensen) is an unfortunately brief story that's shrouded in intrigue, complete with a zany cast of characters.

-My Hero Academia (Boku no Hero Academia) is currently airing, and is a believe in yourself story. Although generic in context, all of the characters are brimming with personality for a fantastic experience both story-wise, and visually.

-Food Wars (Shokugei no Soma) is a comedic and very technical story that speaks for itself in the title. Most of the characters are quite gerneric, but it's enjoyable none the less. Also, understand what "Umami" means before watching.

-Seven Deadly Sin (Nanatsu no Taizai) is another story with great characters, but, compared to BBB, has a much more lush world.

Also, if you are looking for a great ongoing story, with a very generic drive, but lush world. I would suggest watching Fairy Tail.

[Toa of Gallifrey]

I haven't seen any new anime in a year, any recommendations?

Some (varied) recommendations:

Fate/stay night - [unlimited Blade Works] - Ufotable's first adaptation of a route from the Fate/stay night visual novel, it keeps the general aesthetics of Fate/Zero but changes the tone accordingly. As an anime first viewer, I really enjoyed it as a gigantic step above Studio DEEN's 2006 Fate/stay night and, though Fate/Zero is overall better, this is a worthy continuation. Next year there will be a trilogy of movies on Fate/stay night - Heaven's Feel, also animated by ufotable. Here's a quick synopsis:

The Holy Grail War is a battle royale among seven magi who serve as Masters. Masters, through the use of the command seals they are given when they enter the war, command Heroic Spirits known as Servants to fight for them in battle. In the Fifth Holy Grail War, Rin Tohsaka is among the magi entering the competition. With her Servant, she hopes to obtain the ultimate prize—the Holy Grail, a magical artifact capable of granting its wielder any wish. Another magus, Shirou Emiya, wants to become a hero of justice and prevent suffering, but he'll have to question his ideals when unwittingly thrown into a deadly battle royale. Unlimited Blade Works can be seen as an alternate version of the Fate route adapted in the 2006 anime, but doesn't need to be seen to understand UBW. It is recommended to watch Fate/Zero before UBW. The difference between Fate and UBW is the focus changes from the relationship between Emiya and his Servant to that of Emiya and Tohsaka, as well as her Servant.

Recommended for: great action scenes, stellar animation, focus on characters.

Not recommended if: if you watched Fate/Zero and it set your expectations for a follow up to be the same in tone, UBW might share F/Z's general atmosphere (if a bit less tense) but it is more idealistic than F/Z and focuses less on the Holy Grail War and more on the main characters' development.

JoJo's Bizarre Adventure - David Production followed up on the 2012 JJBA with an incredibly faithful 48 episode adaptation of Stardust Crusaders and an ongoing also very faithful adaptation of Diamond is Unbreakable that will run for 39 episodes. Requires watching the 2012 JJBA beforehand.

Stardust Crusaders - In a Japanese jail sits 17-year-old Jotaro Kujo: punk, fighter, delinquent...and possessed by a force beyond his control. Around the world, evil spirits are awakening: "Stands," monstrous invisible creatures which give their bearers incredible powers. To save his mother's life, Jotaro must and travel around the world to Cairo, Egypt, where a hundred-year-old vampire thirsts for the blood of his family. But the road is long, and an army of evil Stand Users wait to kill JoJo and his friends...

Diamond is Unbreakable - The year is 1999. Morioh, a normally quiet and peaceful town, has recently become a hotbed of strange activity. Jotaro Kujo, now a marine biologist, heads to the mysterious town to meet Josuke Higashikata. Allied together with two of Josuke's friends, the group dedicates themselves to investigating recent disappearances and other suspicious occurrences within Morioh. Aided by the power of Stands, the four men will encounter danger at every street corner, as it is up to them to unravel the town's secrets, before another occurs.

I personally recommend watching Diamond is Unbreakable if you enjoyed the 2012 JoJo even if you disliked Stardust Crusaders. While both SC and DiU follow a sort of enemy of the week structure, DiU is infinitely more creative in the way it's approached and presented. SC focuses on the journey, DiU focuses on the characters' daily lives and how they use their Stands in that regard. Regardless, both are very good series in their own right and I recommend both.

Stardust Crusaders:

Recommended for: great action scenes, fantastic animation, brilliant over-the-top style

Not recommended if: you dislike long monster of the week series, dislike a loud, boisterous over-the-top style, consider underdeveloped characters a dealbreaker, don't like gore.

Recommended for: creative action scenes, fantastic animation, brilliant over-the-top style, creative use of typical shonen traits in a slice of life environment.

Not recommended if: you dislike a loud, boisterous over-the-top style, don't like gore.

If you are interested in DiU but not SC, I recommend watching episodes 1-5, 23-26 and 40-48 (10-12, 21, 22, 27-29, 36 and 37 added if you care about Polnareff.) to be familiar with what went on (and frankly the last 9 episodes are glorious).

Food Wars - A great comedy ecchi cooking anime that is surprisingly very tense. 24 episodes aired last year with another season coming out next week.

Ever since he was a child, fifteen-year-old Souma Yukihira has helped his father by working as the sous chef in the restaurant his father runs and owns. Throughout the years, Souma developed a passion for entertaining his customers with his creative, skilled, and daring culinary creations. His dream is to someday own his family's restaurant as its head chef.

Warning: first episode spoiler

Yet when his father suddenly decides to close the restaurant to test his cooking abilities in restaurants around the world, he sends Souma to Tootsuki Culinary Academy, an elite cooking school where only 10 percent of the students graduate. The institution is famous for its "Shokugeki" or "food wars," where students face off in intense, high-stakes cooking showdowns. As Souma and his new schoolmates struggle to survive the extreme lifestyle of Tootsuki, more and greater challenges await him, putting his years of learning under his father to the test.

Recommended for: hilarious comedy, surprisingly tense moments, over-the-top style, gorgeous plates.

Not recommended if: ecchi is a turn-off, don't like an over-the-top approach to food-tasting.

One Punch Man - a subversive superhero comedy show. Aired last fall for 12 episodes, has an OVA and 6 12-minute specials.

The seemingly ordinary and unimpressive Saitama has a rather unique hobby: being a hero. In order to pursue his childhood dream, he trained relentlessly for three years—and lost all of his hair in the process. Now, Saitama is incredibly powerful, so much so that no enemy is able to defeat him in battle. In fact, all it takes to defeat evildoers with just one punch has led to an unexpected problem—he is no longer able to enjoy the thrill of battling and has become quite bored.

Recommended for: fantastic action, gorgeous animation, excellent comedy, interesting characters, different approach to the superhero genre.

Not recommended if: I really can't think of a warning other than a bit of gore and a small amount of fanservice.

Shimoneta: A Boring World Where the Concept of Dirty Jokes Doesn't Exist - A hilarious ecchi comedy that also serves as a clever criticism on censorship in Japan. Aired for 12 episodes last summer.

With the introduction of strict new morality laws, Japan has become a nation cleansed of all that is obscene and impure. By monitoring citizens using special devices worn around their necks, authorities have taken extreme measures to ensure that society remains chaste. In this world of sexual suppression, Tanukichi Okuma—son of an infamous terrorist who opposed the chastity laws—has just entered high school, offering his help to the student council in order to get close to president Anna Nishikinomiya, his childhood friend and crush. Little does he know that the vice president Ayame Kajou has a secret identity: Blue Snow, a masked criminal dedicated to spreading lewd material amongst the sheltered public—and Tanukichi has caught the girl's interest due to his father's notoriety.

Recommended for: great comedy, social commentary, interesting characters.

Not recommended if: ecchi is a turn-off.

ERASED - A murder mystery thriller with time travel from winter of this year. Aired for 12 episodes.

When tragedy is about to strike, Satoru Fujinuma finds himself sent back several minutes before the accident occurs. The detached, 29-year-old manga artist has taken advantage of this powerful yet mysterious phenomenon, which he calls "Revival," to save many lives. However, when he is wrongfully accused of murdering someone close to him, Satoru is sent back to the past once again, but this time to 1988, 18 years in the past. Soon, he realizes that the murder may be connected to the abduction and killing of one of his classmates, the solitary and mysterious Kayo Hinazuki, that took place when he was a child. This is his chance to make things right.

Recommended for: gripping mystery, well-developed characters, fantastic atmosphere, brilliant directing, different approach to time travel.

Not recommended for: I can't think of anything that could be a turn-off.

KonoSuba: God's Blessing on this Wonderful World! - a hilarious ecchi comedy series that subverts common tropes in the "NEET gets transported to RPG world" wish fulfillment type of story. Aired for 10 episodes last winter, with an OVA coming out soon and a second season in production.

Warning: I recommend not reading the synopsis, this spoils the events of the first episode and they really have to be seen unspoiled for the best experience.

After dying a laughable and pathetic death on his way back from buying a game, high school student and recluse Kazuma Satou finds himself sitting before a beautiful but obnoxious goddess named Aqua. She provides the NEET with two options: continue on to heaven or reincarnate in every gamer's dream—a real fantasy world! Choosing to start a new life, Kazuma is quickly tasked with defeating a Demon King who is terrorizing villages. But before he goes, he can choose one item of any kind to aid him in his quest, and the future hero selects Aqua. But Kazuma has made a grave mistake—Aqua is completely useless!

Recommended for: hilarious comedy, subversive characters, unique take on a tripe format.

Not recommended if: its somewhat wonky animation turns you off, you are a fan of otaku wish fulfillment anime. It can still be enjoyed if you like it but it's not what you'd want if all you wanted was a wish fulfillment story.

Shouwa Genroku Rakugo Shinjuu (Shouwa and Genroku Era - A Lover's Suicide Through Rakugo) - a gripping historical drama about the Japanese art of rakugo. Aired for 13 episodes (1st is 40 minutes long) last winter with a second season in production.

Yotarou is a former yakuza member fresh out of prison and fixated on just one thing: rather than return to a life of crime, the young man aspires to take to the stage of Rakugo, a traditional Japanese form of comedic storytelling. Inspired during his incarceration by the performance of distinguished practitioner Yakumo Yuurakutei, he sets his mind on meeting the man who changed his life. After hearing Yotarou's desperate appeal for his mentorship, Yakumo is left with no choice but to accept his very first apprentice. As he eagerly begins his training, Yotarou meets Konatsu, an abrasive young woman who has been under Yakumo's care ever since her beloved father Sukeroku Yuurakutei, another prolific Rakugo performer, passed away. Through her hidden passion, Yotarou is drawn to Sukeroku's unique style of Rakugo despite learning under contrasting techniques. Upon seeing this, old memories and feelings return to Yakumo who reminisces about a much earlier time when he made a promise with his greatest rival.

Shouwa Genroku Rakugo Shinjuu is a story set in both the past and present, depicting the art of Rakugo, the relationships it creates, and the lives and hearts of those dedicated to keeping the unique form of storytelling alive.

Recommended for: Great characters, brilliant storytelling, great directing, gripping drama, great insight into Japanese culture, great animation (it's a DEEN anime with great animation!).

Not recommended if: you dislike slower, more talky series. There's great conflict in this one but it goes through a lot of (beautifully written) dialogue.

Re:ZERO -Starting Life in Another World- - Like KonoSuba, a NEET-in-RPG-World story with a twist. While this one plays things more straight, the very charismatic protagonist and gripping plot make it stand apart. Airing this season for 26 episodes.

Like with KonoSuba, I advise against reading the synopsis but more for plot reasons than comedy reasons.

When Subaru Natsuki leaves the convenience store, the last thing he expects is to be wrenched from his everyday life and dropped into a fantasy world. Things aren't looking good for the bewildered teenager, however: not long after his arrival, he is attacked by some thugs; armed with only a bag of groceries and a now useless cell phone, he is quickly beaten to a pulp. Fortunately, a mysterious beauty named Satella, in hot pursuit after the one who stole her insignia, happens upon Subaru and saves him. In order to thank the honest and kindhearted girl, Subaru offers to help in her search, and later that night, he even finds the whereabouts of that which she seeks. But unbeknownst to them, a much darker force stalks the pair from the shadows, and just minutes after locating the insignia, Subaru and Satella are brutally murdered.However, Subaru immediately reawakens to a familiar scene—confronted by the same group of thugs, meeting Satella all over again—the enigma deepens as history inexplicably repeats itself.

Recommended for: fun characters, gripping plot.

Not recommended if: you dislike blend comedy-serious action series. The series pulls it off rather well, though.

Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress - a dark steampunk zombie apocalypse story airing this season for 12 episodes (ends next week). Bears striking similarities to Attack on Titan due to sharing production teams. I haven't seen AoT yet so I can't make a proper comparison.

As the world is in the middle of an industrial revolution, a monster appears that cannot be defeated unless its heart, which is protected by a layer of iron, is pierced. By infecting humans with its bite, the monster can create aggressive and undead creatures known as Kabane. On the island Hinomoto, located in the far east, people have built stations to shelter themselves from these creatures. People access the station, as well as transport wares between them, with the help of a locomotive running on steam, called Hayajiro. Ikoma, a boy who lives in the Aragane station and helps to build Hayajiro, creates his own weapon called Tsuranukizutsu in order to defeat the creatures. One day, as he waits for an opportunity to use his weapon, he meets a girl named Mumei, who is excused from the mandatory Kabane inspection. During the night, Ikoma meets Mumei again as he sees Hayajiro going out of control. The staff on the locomotive has turned into the creatures. The station, now under attack by Kabane, is the opportunity Ikoma has been looking for.

Recommended for: well-realized gritty zombie apocalypse story, stunning art and animation, good action.

Not recommended if: you dislike zombie stories played straight. While this takes place in a steampunk setting aboard trains, it is after all a zombie apocalypse. It has enough things both plot and style-wise to set it apart from other stories in that vein, though.

Other series I've heard good things about but haven't seen myself to recommend firsthand include Ushio to Tora, Your Lie in April, Plastic Memories and Himouto! Umaru-chan.

My gosh Cartoon Lego House? This will join anime Freddy Mercury in hilarious infamy.

Edited June 24, 2016 by Toa of Gallifrey

[Kalhiki]

Alright, so while the Spring Anime Season still isn't completely over, I figure I'll pot my thoughts now since most of my favorite shows have ended.

This isn't everything I watched, just some pick-and-choose:

Start with Concrete Revolutio which was the first to end. The second season was superior to the first, I must say. Sorting out the timeline was still bothersome, but it was a wild ride. Especially with all of its amazing animation.

KumaMiko I feel I need to mention. Good show that got better as it progressed until the final episode when it decided to take everything it seemed to be building up to and just take a dump on it and chuck it out the window. Gotta say, for that reason, it was probably the biggest disappointment this season. Blah.

Tanaka-kun is Always Listless and Flying Witch were both wonderful SoL shows. Very relaxing and I looked forward to them every week. Though I will say I enjoyed Tanaka more than Flying. Just found it more enjoyable.

Kiznaiver hit me in the feels. Hard. The story was a little janky at times (not terrible, mind you), but when it wasn't focused on that, it was very good. Great job, Trigger!

Speaking of Trigger, Space Patrol Luluco was amazing! Probably one of the best short series I've ever seen. Funny, beautiful art, and pretty cute to boot.

Moving on, Twin Star Exorcists is still ongoing for god knows how long. I liked its start, but it's recently shifted into what can only be described as a romcom with some action sprinkled on top. The animation quality is decreasing, and overall I haven't been enjoying it as much as I was at the start. Don't know if I'll continue on with it...

Finally, what I have to say was AOTS for me was (if you couldn't tell by my sig and avatar) Bungou Stray Dogs. I will admit, the pacing went from 0-100 and back in a matter of minutes, but that wasn't enough to bring it down for me. I thoroughly enjoyed everything it presented. The characters were fun, action was great, soundtrack was tops, artwork was high quality... F. Scott Fitzgerald was one of the(later) characters. It was a fun ride. And now to begin the long wait for Season 2... *sigh*

Kabaneri still needs to finish up. And I went with dub on My Hero Academia, And You Thought there is Never a Girl Online, AssClass, and Shounen Maid. So I'm not done with those yet.

Next Season... I can't say I'm looking forward to much. I got a bunch lined up, but I'm unfamiliar with most of it and haven't been keeping up on the details. Flying blind. Aside from Food Wars Season 2. Looking forward to that.

Honestly I'm just holding out until the Fall Season. Bungou Stray Dogs Season Two and Brave Witches? It's going to be great.

[Toa of Gallifrey]

Just watched the finale of Wander. I'm gonna miss that adorable little guy so much. I really hope Disney reconsiders cancelling it.

I'm gonna wait for Kabaneri, Shonen Maid and Sakamoto to finish before I post my post since both Shonen Maid and Sakamoto had an episode pulled from airing due to the delay from the earthquake earlier in the season, which will be put on the DVDs. Shonen Maid's was the original episode 7 (billed as 6.5), which features some characters that just appear outta nowhere later on. No clue about Sakamoto's. In my post I'll rank the finished shows, with a separate section for those with multiple cours confirmed. For Spring I'll be watching 91 Days, Bananya, Berserk, Mob Psycho 100, Regalia: The Three Sacred Stars, Rewrite, Food Wars: The Second Plate, Taboo Tattoo, Time Travel Shoujo and Under the Dog, as well as continuing with JoJo, Re:Zero, Kuromukuro, Ace Attorney and Pokemon XY&Z from the previous season. Among those, Bananya will most likely be just shorts, Under the Dog will be a single OVA in August and I've got no clue about Time Travel Shoujo's runtime.

[Kintobor]

Alright, time for me to relay stuff.

My Petite Equine: Horse Women: Myth of Constantcomplimentary has a teaser site.

As with the other films, it looks better now that we have some information on the basic plot. Seeing how I doubt this one's coming to theatres ( ) it looks like this'll be a Netflix watch for me.

[Soul of Cinder]

I second the JoJo recommendation.

[Toa of Gallifrey]

Totally didn’t forget about making this post. Toootally. My opinions on Spring anime: (minimal spoilers ahead on a couple shows)

Dropped/on-hold shows: (most likely to pick back up to least likely to pick back up)

5) Flying Witch (2/12)

This is the only one that I’m almost certainly gonna pick back up sooner rather than later. I only really dropped it because I fell very behind on it and didn’t feel up to binge watching it when I was already behind on a lot of other series and wanted to watch some older series that I never saw before. Flying Witch is a very calm slice of life series surrounding the titular witch’s daily life with her relatives and her friends. In the two episodes I saw not much happened but it was a nice, tranquil experience. It’s a show that I’d like to give a proper chance given the time and it’s something that I know my sister would love, and will probably need after Higurashi so we’ll probably watch it together sometime. I consider this one to be on-hold.

4) Twin Star Exorcists (2/?)

Twin Star Exorcists is a battle shonen about exorcists fighting demons. The MC has the talent to fight but doesn’t want to. He gets forced to fight on by being married to another exorcist and the two being declared Twin Star Exorcists. Despite the series not feeling very special to me, it had some nice imagery and I planned to continue with it. Unfortunately, falling behind on a ton of series and wanting to carry on with older shows meant making cuts here and there and I didn’t feel particularly inclined to keep this one, especially after hearing from a friend that it really wasn’t worth keeping. I still might check it out someday to see what I missed but that’s not gonna be for a while. Still, I consider this one to be (indefinitely) on-hold.

3) Seisen Cerberus (2/13)

I don’t even remember what Seisen Cerberus was about; all I know is it involved a dragon and that I literally fell asleep on the second episode. I was bored through and through with this one and it’s partially responsible for my laziness one weekend mid-season which made me fall behind on a few series followed by the avalanche of homework and tests that kept me busy for the next few weeks. I asked a friend who was watching it if it got better and he just told me he dropped it further down the line because it was boring. I might watch it someday since it’s short but I don’t plan on it. I consider it dropped.

2) Endride (3/24)

Like Cerberus, I found this one rather boring. It’s about a teenager who touches a magic crystal and gets transported to a fantasy universe. At least the first three episodes didn’t play out like a typical otaku wish fulfillment story so there’s that. The other MC, a native to the fantasy world, plans to overthrow the king as revenge for killing his father. I don’t plan to continue watching this, especially as it’s 24 episodes. I consider it dropped.

1) Hundred (1/12)

Hundred is just like every other LN-adapted mecha ecchi harem that came before it and will come after it after it. I’m not even gonna bother with this. I dropped it in a heartbeat and I’m not looking back.

Completed shows: (worst to best)

14) Big Order

There once was an anime called Mirai Nikki. It wasn’t that good but had a decent start, some solid moments in the middle and a kinda crappy ending, but damn if it wasn’t a great ride. What mostly bogged it down was the weirdness of some of its characters not working well with the dramatic narrative it tried to weave and interesting ideas that weren’t that well executed. But the author was not content with that, he’d go all the way with his next story! Indeed he went all the way... not in a good way. Big Order is the unholy lovechild of JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure and Code Geass, with an incoherent plot, bizarre character motivations, average animation, lazy censoring and CG Stands. Unlike Mirai Nikki, this one is only nominally enjoyable for the weird sex scenes and for making fun of it. Thank goodness it was only 10 episodes, it was getting tough to come back week after week. I struggled with naming this one or Mayoiga my least favorite one but more on that later. Suffice to say, Big Order was my least favorite series of Spring. It’s still not the worst of the year.

13) Mayoiga

Just like with Big Order and Mirai Nikki, there was once an anime called Another with a pretty decent start, a rather over the top middle that one could still push forward through with some suspension of disbelief and a few chuckles and a really, really lame ending. Mayoiga takes all those and cranks them up to 11 with a rather promising start, an over the top middle somehow manages to also be boring and a really, really, really lame ending. Also bonus points for having the most punchable MC I’ve seen so far and having the one black character be a creepy rapist and be the first one to (seemingly) die.

12) Pan de Peace

Not much to say about this one other than cute girls making bread set to cheap animation and nothing really happening. It’s a 3 minute show, they could’ve put a little more effort into the animation. Still more enjoyable than Big Order and Mayoiga.

11) Onigiri

Another series of shorts, this one based on an MMO. It didn’t really take itself seriously and was rather hit or miss. Some episodes were pretty funny but most were meh. I enjoyed it for what it was but was kinda sad that it had potential to be a lot funnier and sexier.

10) Kuma Miko

Kuma Miko is about a young miko who lives with a bear in a village where the bear is a deity (kinda). What started off as a really funny comedic romp with the country bumpkin miko’s goal to become a city girl ended up as a really jerkish and mean-spirited put down where she lets her anxiety get the best of her and everyone’s happy about this. For context, the series builds up to the miko going to the big city for an idol contest and the (tech savvy) bear not wanting to let her go but ultimately recognizing it was what she wanted. Then she gets a panic attack and runs back home. Does the bear comfort her and try to help her get over it? No, he freaking revels in the fact that she’s staying with him and later (unintentionally) mocks her. The show steadily got less funny as it went on, the jokes became more hit or miss but I could’ve let that slide if it wasn’t for this ridiculous ending.

9) Bakuon!!

Cute girls riding motorcycles is the best way to describe this show. Like Kuma Miko, it started off really funny and steadily got less funny, though I never found it boring unlike the former and it never annoyed me the way Kuma Miko’s ending did. The biggest pitfall for Bakuon was its cheap animation. At first it wasn’t too noticeable but as they went on the budget was clearly spread thinner and thinner, making for awkward shots and very awkward facial expressions that didn’t really help the show the way Konosuba’s derpiness helped show everyone in an even more awkward light. Still rather well done and easily the best CGDCT of the season, in my opinion.

8) Shonen Maid

A funny show about a young boy who loses his mom and moves with his uncle and becomes his maid. Though some of its jokes got old as the show went on, it never lost its spark of energy and cuteness. The characters were rather interesting and the feels moments were surprisingly well done. There’s not much else to say other than it was pretty good. It’s not exactly the first thing I’d think of when I think of a good show but it’s one that deserves to be called one. I eagerly await the unaired episode when it comes out.

7) And You Thought There is Never a Girl Online? (Netoge no Yome wa Onnanoko ja Nai to Omotta?)

What I thought would be just lame otaku pandering was surprisingly much better than I would’ve thought. Netoge is about a female game otaku who gets married in-game to the typical male slice of life MC, though I consider the show to be more about her than him. Turns out they go the same school and all of their male guildmates are actually girls in real life. The meat of the story is to get the girl (Ako) to separate reality from fantasy. At the same time, the MC starts falling for her. The romance is a bit flip-floppy and the show doesn’t really go anywhere but it’s a novel idea and a fun exploration of a female otaku’s mind.

6) Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress

What started off as a really cool zombie apocalypse steampunk story started to degrade a bit when they introduced an actual villain whose presence was rather weak. That’s not to say the show was bad, just it started to lose direction when they introduced Biba. Nonetheless, people everywhere seem to focus on this negative aspect and forget the stunning animation and music, as well as the gripping atmosphere for the first half. It’s hardly a perfect show but doesn’t deserve to get written off due to weakening as it went on.

5) Joker Game

Probably what I was most anticipating aside from JoJo, I was somewhat let down by the episodic nature of the show. I was eager for a good spy thriller set in one of the coolest eras for the genre and in a country that I’d never seen headlining the story, usually the protagonists in these stories would be from the Allies rather than the Axis. Nonetheless, every episode featured a gripping story that suffered somewhat from not having an overarching plot but benefitted from not being told in a chronologically linear fashion, thus allowing for a different experience upon rewatch both in broadcast and chronological order. It may not be perfect but it was a good ride and I will be rewatching it soon.

4) Kiznaiver

Though a well written character drama, Trigger is definitely better when doing zany anime. A really cool drama series with funny moments here and there and really good, heavy feels moments somewhat let down by Trigger’s signature art style. By no means a deal breaker, just I would’ve liked slightly more refined character models. Not Trigger’s best effort (and certainly not better than their other show this season) but a pretty good foray into a more serious story and one of my favorites this season.

3) Haven’t You Heard? I’m Sakamoto

Sakamoto is always stylishly cool. I expected the joke to get boring fast but to my surprise it never did. Sadly, it took lessons from Kabaneri and introduced a villain late in the show without bothering to make him anywhere near as interesting or COOL, COOLER, COOLEST as Sakamoto-kun. Nonetheless, the show’s comedy was usually on point (I always giggle when I think of running in the style of Darwin’s Theory of Evolution… it makes some sense in context) and the fan theory of Sakamoto

being terminally ill

makes a lot of sense and puts the show in an entirely new light. I can’t wait for the unaired episode to be released so I can have an excuse to rewatch the entire show. Also, can I just give DEEN huge props on the animation in this? It’s not quite as good as Rakugo’s animation but damn it’s really good.

2) Tanaka-kun is so Listless

On the opposite end of the spectrum, we have lazy Tanaka-kun. Both Sakamoto and Tanaka felt very similar in the way they handled their main character (as in, exaggerated and with great jokes all around) but I felt Tanaka-kun handled the whole of the show better than Sakamoto did. Silver Link’s art and animation was spectacular and fit the show perfectly. While Sakamoto had a pretty heavy ending (especially if you subscribe to the popular fan theory I mentioned before) Tanaka didn’t do anything special. It didn’t really need to, given the nature of the show, but I would’ve wanted to maybe resolve the romance subplot or something. Nevertheless, Tanaka-kun was an excellent show and it’d be my (non-continuous) AOTS if it wasn’t for…

1) Space Patrol Luluco

Now this is what I wanted when I saw the name Trigger. I suppose it’s not Trigger but Imaishi specificlly who brings the magic. The show is about Luluco, a girl in a futuristic Earth where humans and aliens coexist who just wants to live a normal life. That’s not to say she finds aliens weird, just she hopes nothing weird happens to her. Of course, her life gets turned upside down when she goes to the PD to defrost her dad (makes sense in context), gets conscripted as a police officer by Inferno Cop and Kamina’s epic lovechild (again, makes sense in context) and eventually goes off to find her stolen hometown of Ogikubo, which is tricky because there’s lots of Ogikubos in the universe. (okay this one makes no sense but is still pretty funny). Rife with references (and direct crossovers) to other Trigger shows (really wish Gainax would give Trigger the rights to Gurren Lagann, Panty and Stocking and Gunbuster so they could include them), this wild ride never settles down and tells a surprisingly compelling love story. Also, I need to reiterate: Trigger multiverse confirmed. Also, Little Witch Academia TV series confirmed!

Ongoing shows:

7) Ace Attorney

I’ve never played any of the Ace Attorney games before but I roughly knew what it was about so I came into the show with an idea of what to expect. It’s pretty much what I expected but is let down on two fronts: the animation is lacking and it’s very noticeable that it’s a video game adaptation. The cases are somewhat predictable (though by the end of the first cour the cases start getting less so) and it’s very exposition heavy. Still somewhat enjoyable but it really could’ve been a lot better if it laid off on the exposition and had a different studio do its animation.

6) Super Lovers

What I expected to be a cringy shounen-ai with poor animation turned out to be a rather compelling story with okay animation. The main story is about the brotherly (later romantic) relationship between young Kaidou Ren (no relation) and his step brother Haru. They have an 8-year age gap so the relationship sometimes comes off as somewhat disturbing but for the most part I found it really endearing (I don’t know if that’s just me being a creep though). The show doesn’t really have any glaring flaw I can point out, other than the perceived squick between step brothers with an age gap which the show let me forget about a lot.

5) The Black Relic (Kuromukuro)

What I consider to be Evangelion’s younger cousin, Kuromukuro is a mecha series about a samurai who appears in the present day and has to pilot a mecha with a common every day girl to fight extraterrestrial mechas. On paper, it doesn’t seem much like Evangelion but the main character (props for being a female MC in a mecha show) feels a lot like Shinji. While there’s no Askua or Rei per se (though one could compare the samurai to Asuka), some supporting characters remind me of supporting characters in Eva (though the military otaku in this one is a huge prick with no regard for life or limb, seriously). It’d be unfair to call it unoriginal, though, it’s hardly an Eva clone and stands on its own with beautiful visuals and a fun cast. It doesn’t really try to develop its characters outside of the main duo and the plot is nothing special but it’s a fun ride if only because the main duo has great chemistry and the animation is stellar.

4) My Hero Academia

One of the shows I was most anticipating, My Hero Academia delivers with stellar animation, great action and humor and a pretty cool set of characters. So far only the MC has seen development but seeing as it’s ongoing I’ll give it time to get around to other characters. Due to the nature of the show and its giant cast, most will never see the limelight for the show’s duration so I hope this one gets to run for a while to explore its setting and cast.

3) Bungou Stray Dogs

Another show I was anticipating, the blend of mystery, humor, action and historical references with great animation from Studio Bones set this apart from other shonen by being able to be seen on two different levels, whether it be by surface level and just being a decent action/mystery show or by digging deeper and seeing how the characters relate to the people whose names they bear and the interactions between proxies for famous writers. I won’t pretend to catch half of the references but I find it thrilling and very clever.

2) Re:ZERO – Starting Life Again in Another World

Typical otaku in another universe setting… I’ve seen this all before, though at least the MC’s more self-aware… oh… well…things just escalated. Re:ZERO sets itself apart from other shows with its unusual self-aware MC and the tragic consequences of dying and coming back to life at an earlier point in time. As the show went on, the MC’s antics became rather divisive. I firmly stand by him and see his jerkish tendencies as coming naturally from his passive aggressive personality established early on mixed with his deteriorating state of mind. The last couple episodes have been nothing short of spectacular but those would count for the summer season, so I’m not even bothering to debate whether this or JoJo is better. I really don’t wanna say much, not even in spoiler tags, because it really has to be experienced. The only other anime this that I crave for an entire week and can’t watch fast enough is…

1) JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure – Part 4: Diamond is Unbreakable

The next part in JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure, Diamond is Unbreakable, is the first time in JoJo where I have truly been captivated for more than just its presentation. Set in a single location and playing out like a mystery/slice of life hybrid, this part of JoJo brings much more to the table by being more minimalistic in its smaller cast and setting, thus allowing both to flourish beyond their basic traits. Where the last part was set all over the world with a pretty sizeable team of protagonists at the expense of personality beyond the over the top animation and villains, this part takes a hint from Part 2: Battle Tendency and develops its main cast. Continuing JoJo’s legacy of creativity and hammy horror, this part doesn’t disappoint on any front. Between cool, likeable main characters, a thrilling mystery, fun slice of life antics with Stands and gorgeous animation, Duwang is easily my favorite JoJo part to this point and my AOTS for Spring.

Summer is now underway, with every show I was interested in already out. Berserk made me cry sad CGI tears, Rewrite disappointed me with its typical setting (I hear it has a genre shift as most Key/Visual Arts stories do but this was a really disappointing start), Regalia was even less interesting than anticipated, Taboo Tattoo was okay, Orange (not planned, picked up on recommendation) surprised me with its great start, Time Travel Shoujo was surprisingly more entertaining than I thought it’d be, Mob Psycho 100 delivered with its crazy art and animation, 91 Days turned out to be exactly what I wanted out of a historical drama with its first episode and Food Wars S2 started off a bit rushed but found its groove again by the second episode. I plan to binge watch ReLife at some point since all 13 episodes came out right off the bat. So far 91 Days and Mob Psycho 100 have the most potential I can perceive. Berserk would be great if it wasn’t for feeling very incoherent and for its terrible animation.

Edited July 12, 2016 by Toa of Gallifrey

[Kalhiki]

Honestly, there's not much that's really "wow-ing" me this season. There's not much that I'm really looking forward to watch every week. Maybe because the shows have just started and haven't kicked off?

91 Days is so far, so good. Will need to wait and see how things progress.

Sweetness and Lightning is cuuuute. Don't fail me!

Mod Psycho 100 was highly anticipated, and paid off in the end. Love its action and even its janky art style.

Orange took me a while to get used to the artwork, but the story is looking great. Took me by surprise.

Regalia: The Three Sacred Stars isn't for everyone. Lolis piloting giant robots... Luckily it's been entertaining for me, and the robots aren't CGI! And there's great mecha action fight scenes! Consider me hooked.

Food Wars 2 is Food Wars as ever. So far, so... Delicious?

Thunderbolt Fantasy is amazing. If you're turned off by the fact that it's puppetry, at least try to give it a chance. This show has some of the most intense fight scenes I've ever had the pleasure of watching. And Hiroyuki Sawano doing the soundtrack makes the show all the better.

Those are the ones I enjoy the most. Other shows include Ange Vierge (getting Strike Witches vibes for some reason), Planetarian (pretty cute), This Art Club has Problems (surprisingly really enjoyable), New Game (also surprisingly enjoyable), and Taboo Tattoo (which I can't help but feel could be a lot better...). Oh, and Hybrid x Heart... For research purposes. Its got pretty... Heavy Plot, if you catch my drift.

Servamp and Tales of Zestiness are on hold. They didn't really capture me, so I'll give them both a second chance when Funi releases their simuldubs.

I'm still ingesting way too much anime. I feel I need a break...

[Toa of Gallifrey]

I started watching Bakemonogatari almost a week ago. I'm up to the second arc of Monogatari Series: Second Season. I really love how artistic it is with its dialogue, backgrounds and overall presentation, just wish I didn't have to pause so much to read the text cards.

[Kintobor]

Star vs. The Forces of Evil returned, and good golly that season opener rocked! The first episode was a fun little prologue hinting at things to come, including Star using magic without her wand, and potential romance between Marco and Star. Also, the little book genie's always a welcome addition to any episode, and his humour was spot on!

And then we got the second episode revolving Luddo, which I don't want to spoil if you haven't seen it, but holy smokes that episode was awesome! The tone, the minimal yet effective humour, and the ending what a stinger to leave on! I can't wait to see where this show goes!

[YellowCorvette]

Just started to watching Anime and I'm currently watching This Art Club has Problem which is pretty good although cliched. I also watching Lego Star Wars: The Freemakers Adventure which is some of the better Lego TV shows I watched. I even want to pick up the Nexo Knights TV series to see how it will impress me. Hope that it will live up to my expectations.

[x105Black]

That new Samurai Jack shows a lot of promise.

I watched the new Voltron: Legendary Defender a few weeks ago on Netflix. That was a really good show. Fairly faithful to the original, but definitely it's own beast. It holds its own as a show, and I'd recommend it to fans of anime and cartoons.

It can be a little cheesy with the humor at times, but I love Rhys Darby's voice acting. I just love Rhys Darby. He was great in Flight of the Conchords, and he's great in this. Funniest character in the show.