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Tigerkinney's Anime Reviews


Tigerkinney

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<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="White Dolphin" data-cite="White Dolphin" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="33970" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>I think the plotholes might be fixed with a second season, no? The show kinda needs a conclusion before it gets to that point, just ask Season 5 of Game of Thrones. I don't love the show really and cannot for the life of me figure out where the hell the yaoi fanshipping community for this came from, (given that Eren is a 6 at most), but F is like......latter seasons of Prince of Tennis bad.<p> </p><p> Likin this thread Tiger, and I'm prolly gonna check a lot of this out. You should really give more chances to sports anime though. Prince of Basketball and Initial D aren't really doing the genre justice, and I think you'd really like some gems such as Cross Game, Haikyuu, Eyeshield 21, and Ookiku Furikabutte. People are reluctant to even get into sports anime, mostly because it doesn't get overseas exposure for some bizarre reason, and also because not everyone is a fan of sports. Really though, its not that different from animes centering around people killing each other with swords: Its just another backdrop for telling a story, and a lot of good stories are told due to the huge pride involved in Japanese athletics (particularly at high school level).</p></div></blockquote><p> </p><p> There are actually several decent sports anime out in the last few seasons</p><p> </p><p> Ace of the Diamond - Baseball</p><p> Baby Steps -Tennis</p><p> Kuroko No Basketball - Basketball</p><p> Haikyuu -Volleyball (which you already mentioned)</p><p> Yowapedia - Cycling</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> I liked Prince of Tennis more in the early seasons, before it got far too unrealistic. Kuroko's gets into that territory, but I still find it enjoyable.</p><p> I watched the first couple of episodes of Eyeshield 21 but I found it a little to campy for my taste.</p>
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<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="OctoberRaven" data-cite="OctoberRaven" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="33970" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div><span style="color:#0000FF;"><strong>Koko and Valmet's relationship </strong></span></div></blockquote><p> </p><p> I think the writers purposely decided to make Koko and Valmet's relationship open of interpretation by the viewer, especially as the ending of the series was also very much in this vain, in regards to judging Koko's goals and actions. The way I interpretate their relationship is as such. Valmet does not even hide the fact that she is a lesbian and is in love with Koko. Koko on the other hand cares for Valmet but does not 'love' her in the same way, however she might give out the wrong signals, due to being the sort of person who thinks nothing of engaging in close physical contact (she's exactly the same way around Jonah). </p><p> </p><p> Where as Jonah, probably just views Koko's glomping and fondling as playful teasing, Valmet is practically begging for Koko to fondle her and sees it as a signal for them to turn Jormungand into a Yuri series. <img alt=":p" data-src="//content.invisioncic.com/g322608/emoticons/tongue.png.ceb643b2956793497cef30b0e944be28.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /></p><p> </p><p> </p><blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="33970" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div> <p> <span style="font-size:12px;"><span style="color:#FF0000;"><strong>OctoberRaven hates Attack on Titan so damn much, he thinks it deserves an F!?!?! </strong></span></span><img alt=":eek:" data-src="//content.invisioncic.com/g322608/emoticons/eek.png.0e09df00fa222c85760b9bc1700b5405.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" />:eek:<img alt=":eek:" data-src="//content.invisioncic.com/g322608/emoticons/eek.png.0e09df00fa222c85760b9bc1700b5405.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" />:eek:.</p></div></blockquote><p> </p><p> Whilst I wouldn't expect everyone to 100 % agree with my opinion on Attack on Titan, declaring you despise it so much that would give it an F does come across as a tad overboard. </p><p> </p><p> It's just that an F, declares something to be completely worthless. When I think of something that deserves an F Grade- I think of something that has a terrible story (which clearly you think Attack on Titan has), and also has a terrible art style and shitty animation (which you acknowledged it doesn't). </p><p> </p><p> I wouldn't have any qualms, about someone disagreeing with my A Grade- but I enjoyed the series that much, I could overlook the flaws that Attack on Titan does have- quite simply the flaws it did have, didn't ruin my enjoyment in the moment of watching the show. </p><p> </p><p> At the end of the day, I don't want to be one of those nit-picking critics or viewer in general for that regard, looking for every possible flaw in a series. Sometimes I do wonder if people watch a film/TV series sometimes, and spend their time looking for stuff to criticise in regards to the character/storytelling, rather than simply just enjoying it as entertainment, and for me Attack on Titan, succeeded as just that. </p><p> </p><p> I see that White Dolphin already responded to you, in regards to the criticism of plotholes- Right now it's an unfinished story, and those plot holes might be taken care of in the sequel. If there was no sequel to announced, I would given the series a B Grade, rather than an A Grade. </p><p> </p><p> I completely disagree with the statement, that every character is an unlikeable moron. Just because a character, wouldn't do exactly what you would do in the situation, doesn't make them a shit character. Eren Yeager is kind of dumb, but that's his character- he's the typical shonen action hero, who is all determination but doesn't think things through logically. And you surely missed the character development for both Jean (who goes from selfish to team player) and Armin (who goes from feeling like a useless bystander to someone who starts to believe in his strategical abilities) but you may have been too caught up in raging against the series being over-rated. <img alt=":p" data-src="//content.invisioncic.com/g322608/emoticons/tongue.png.ceb643b2956793497cef30b0e944be28.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /></p><p> </p><p> As for the action sequences not being original in your view. I have heard of Spiderman<em> </em><em><strong>(I think most people have!)</strong></em><em> </em>and am aware that the movement system is similar in that regard, but can you think of many other anime's that have a similar style of action. It might not be 100% original, but it still feels fresh in comparison to similar shonen action anime. </p><p> </p><p> Anyway I very much doubt you're going to change your mind in regards to Attack on Titan, and your declaration of blind hate towards the series isn't going to change mine. </p><p> </p><p> Finally I do respect you as a contributor to the thread, and you are fully entitled to not bow down to my opinion, but I couldn't disagree more with your criticism of Attack on Titan. <img alt=":p" data-src="//content.invisioncic.com/g322608/emoticons/tongue.png.ceb643b2956793497cef30b0e944be28.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /></p>
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<p>I haven't watched a great deal of sports anime, but I'm watching and enjoying Ace of the Diamond currently (I have it paused right now in fact.) </p><p> </p><p> </p><blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="33970" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>This brings us neatly onto the execution of the ending itself- one that might frustrate and be admired in equal measure. The ending is very much an open ended affair, that asks the viewer to judge Koko for her goals, and doesn't tie everything up into a neat bow at the end of the series. From a personal standpoint, whilst such an ending did initially seem unsatisfying, after the dust had settled I came to admire the brave stance of going with an ending that doesn't deliver what the audience wants or expects but challenges the viewer to form an opinion for themselves. </div></blockquote><p> Agree with all of this. Well, except for finding it unsatisfying at first--I liked the ending right away. Jormungand was a good show, but I do agree that sometimes the comedic elements don't really land. I understand why they tried to lighten the mood now and then, and sometimes it worked okay, but this show was definitely at its best when it got down to business.</p>
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<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="Dragonmack" data-cite="Dragonmack" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="33970" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div> <span style="color:#0000FF;"><strong>Sportz Anime .</strong></span></div></blockquote><p> </p><p> I don't think it's a case of actively disliking/avoiding sports anime and I did actually enjoy Kuroko No Basketball. I think my issue with them, is that a lot of them tend to go on forever, and have hundreds of episodes (the same thing puts me off a lot of shonen action/fighting series).</p><p> </p><p> I prefer the shorter one cour (approx 13 episodes), or two cours (approx 25 episodes) series, and sports anime are rarely that length. I might be willing to give one a chance in the future though <em>(I think Ace in the Diamond is on crunchyroll)</em> and watching a longer series, will also give me time to give some love back to my currently on hold TEW diary- I hate to admit it, but it is difficult to juggle both this and and a diary. </p><p> </p><p> But right now for the forseeable future, I recently went to comic con in the UK, and forked out cash on a bunch of DVD's (mostly stuff not available on Crunchyroll in the UK) , so am currently working through that batch in regards to my current reviews.</p>
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Then you'll love Ookiku Furikabutte: Its only got 2 seasons, its free on YouTube(legally), it has an amazing animation style (especially for the main character, who has some of the best facial expressions you'll see.), and it puts a premium on character development and making the sports encounters seem like a really big deal. Dragonmack's suggestions are fine as well although I prefer their manga versions.

 

You've gotta be careful with sports anime though. Some of it suffers from what I like to call Superman Syndrome: You create a hero so ridiculously powerful that you have to create an even more stupidly powerful villain just to make him a believable threat. Anime takes this road frequently (Bleach, etc), but a lot of sports anime in particular is guilty given that the ones that established the genre were Ashita no Joe and Captain Tsubasa, both of which said "**** it" to physics towards the later half of its lifespan. The only anime that really pulls this off is Inazuma Eleven, and thats because its a parody and tied to an awesome video game franchise. And also because it has a tremendous soundtrack that make the big matches, corny as they get, seem like high-stakes affairs.

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<p>I have to finish Attack on Titan one of these days.</p><p> </p><p>

The spanish speaking fans of that anime make a phonetic joke regarding Mikasa (Because it sounds like "Mi casa" (My home) and even i saw a joke involving her and Tsukasa Hiiragi from Lucky Star, which it is "Mikasa es Tsukasa" (My home is your home)</p>

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<p></p><div style="text-align:center;"><p><span style="color:#008080;"><span style="text-decoration:underline;"><span style="font-size:12px;"><strong>Heaven's Memo Pad </strong></span></span></span></p><p><span style="color:#008080;"><span style="text-decoration:underline;"><span style="font-size:12px;"><strong>

</strong></span></span></span><span style="color:#008080;"><span style="font-size:10px;">aka </span></span><span style="color:#008080;"><span style="font-size:10px;"><em>-Kami-sama no Memo-chō</em></span></span></p><p> </p><p>

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</span></p></div><p></p><p></p><p> </p><p>

<strong>Genre:</strong> Urban Mystery/Drama</p><p> </p><p>

<strong>Studio:</strong> J.C Staff <strong>Director:</strong> Katsushi Sakurabi <strong>Writer:</strong> Seishi Minakami <strong>Source:</strong> Light Novels by Hikaru Sugii</p><p>

<strong>Original Broadcast:</strong> July-September 2011 E<strong>pisodes:</strong> 12*</p><p> </p><p>

*Episode 1 was a double length episode. </p><p> </p><p>

<strong>Synopsis:</strong> Due to consistently transferring school Narumi Fujishima, tends to keep himself to himself, rarely getting involved with class activities- however he somehow gets pulled into becoming a member of the Gardening Club, whose sole member consists of his classmate Ayaka Shinozaki.</p><p>

Ayaka works a part time job at a Ramen Noodle shop amongst the backstreets of the Shibuya district in Tokyo, where the NEET detective agency lies above- an amateur detective agency run by a band of unemployed 'slackers'<em> (several members of which Narumi had a strange run in with before joining the Gardening Club)</em> who take on and solve cases by their own whims. </p><p> </p><p>

Narumi, then meets the agencies leader 'Alice' an anti-social shut in, with a genius intellect but a childish personality that spends most of her days in a room filled with computer monitors and surrounded by her favourite stuffed animals. Narumi then finds himself becoming a member of the NEET detectives as Alice's personal assistant, helping them solve various mysteries affecting the community they live in. </p><p> </p><p>

<strong>Recommended Viewing Age: </strong><em>Teenagers and above (approx 14+)</em>: Whilst the show features barely any fan-service, there is some mild violence and it does often deal with mature themes amongst the various cases, including prostitution, drug taking and attempted suicide. </p><p> </p><p>

<strong>Action Level:</strong> <em> Low- </em>The odd punch up here and there, played more for drama than anything else. </p><p> </p><p>

<strong>Moe/Kawaii Level:</strong> <em>Medium-</em> There are even more 'moe' shows out there, but the two female leads of the series 'loli' detective 'Alice' and cheerful Ayaka could be perceived as having 'moe' like personalites. 'Alice' the series poster girl and co main protagonist, may well be viewed by some as needless otaku bait. </p><p> </p><p>

<strong>Animation Quality/Art Style</strong>: J.C Staff aren't particularly noted for top quality visuals and often their series come across as being on a tight budget, but Heaven's Memo Pad does leave the impression of being one of their more impressively animated titles. There's nothing amazing here, but there's also little to find fault with on this occasion.</p><p> </p><p>

The general character design style, is fairly generic but some characters, such as the series poster girl 'Alice' with her trademark teddy bear pyjama's and guest star Renji Hiraka with his two tone hair, do manage to stand out and leave a lasting impression. The colouring throughout the series is admittedly quite muted but suits and compliments the real world urban setting of the story. </p><p> </p><p>

<strong>Music:</strong> Opening theme 'Kawaru Mirai' sung by ChouCho is an emotively sung slice of J-Pop, that fits in well with the overall feeling of the show, whilst ending theme 'Asunaro' by Kenichi Suzumura <em>(who plays guest character Renji)</em> is a guitar driven, Indie-Rock style piece.</p><p> </p><p>

Taku Iwasaki's OST score is an electice one, spanning traditional orchestration, rock and even hip-hop at one point), yet it's execution is suitably understated for a series where a score with a more low-key approach is more desirable over something more bombastic. </p><p> </p><p>

<strong>Plot & Characters:</strong> The basic premise of Heaven's Memo Pad, see's aimless high school student Narumi, fall in with a band of what general society, would term to be outsiders or even wastes of space, and fine some purpose in his life by helping the group of misfits, solve the kind of cases that would often be overlooked by society at large.</p><p> </p><p>

Through it's various cases, Narumi builds up a camaraderie with his new set of misfit friends and the loosely over-arching story, pushes through the message that though these people might not be acting in a way that is deemed to be conventional, they are not necessarily just wasting their time. Though they have declared to partake in a lifestyle where they are not pursuing paid employment or education, ironically enough the 'NEET's' of Heaven's Memo Pad are putting some degree of hard work into the case's they end up taking on. </p><p> </p><p>

The series 12 episodes are divided into various arcs, either lasting around 3 episodes, or stand stories, such as a baseball themed episode that occurs prior to the series final (and most dramatic) arc. The cases that the 'NEET Detective Agency' take on, involve a deep seated personal feud between gang members and the rise of a new drug that ends up plaguing the local community. </p><p> </p><p>

Whilst Narumi is the series main protagonist and the story very much follows his personal journey from aimless drifter, to finding his purpose in life through rather unconventional means, it is clearly 'Alice' the leader and brains behind the NEET Detective Agency, that is put front and center to be the story's most memorable character. With the appearance of a 12 year old girl <em>(though her actual age is never determined</em>), Alice who rarely leaves her room <em>(and thus can be considered to be a hikikomori) </em>has a childish personality, highlighted by her need to surround herself with stuffed animals and a picky diet that consists mostly of ramen (minus the noodles and any meat) and Dr Pepper <em>(referred to as Dokupe in the show)</em>, with her unconventional personality and lifestyle being referred to as 'creepy' by those outside of her 'friends'. </p><p> </p><p>

Despite her childish demeanour and appearance, it is clear that Alice has a high level of intelligence, often displaying a verbose vocabulary and consistently proving herself at solving mysteries, through a combination of genius level computer hacking skills and an insightful mind, that can find the hidden details many tend to overlook. </p><p> </p><p>

Alice can be considered to have a tsundere like relationship with Narumi, often chewing him out for being 'useless' but actually appreciating the help and support he provides to her cracking the cases. There however no hint at romance between the pair, with their odd relationship being a spiky friendship, driven by Alice's often abrasive and somewhat brattish personality. </p><p> </p><p>

If there is any hint at romance to happen in Heaven's Memo Pad, it's between Narumi and Ayaka , the girl who convinces Narumi to join her in the Gardening Club and also works part time at the Ramen Shop placed below Alice's base of operations. Energetic and cheerful, Ayaka however does have some dark secrets regarding her family, that end up have major repercussions by the end of the story. </p><p> </p><p>

The rest of the 'grunts' that end up doing Alice's leg-work, whilst she tries to crack the case from her monitor filled room- include Tetsu<em> (an ex boxer with a gambling addiction</em>), Hiro <em>(a handsome ladies man, who is the only member of the team with a driver's license and thus often finds himself in the role of driver</em>) and 'The Major' a military otaku, who is a university student but rarely attends classes. </p><p> </p><p>

The NEET detective agency, also have a close working relationship with a local gang known as the Hirasaka gang, headed up by their brash leader known as 'The Fourth', whilst important recurring/guest characters include the gangs former leader Renji and Min the owner of the Ramen Shop, who despite having a brash personality often finds herself in the role of 'mother hen' to the band of misfits that hang around the shop. </p><p> </p><p>

<strong>Analysis:</strong> In simplistic terms Heaven's Memo Pad, can be described as a Durarara!! style urban mystery with a loli detective co main protagonist similar in vein to Victorique from Gosick.</p><p> </p><p>

'Alice' is placed in the position to be the stories most memorable character, and she succeeds in leaving an impression, whilst some may complain of a lack of actual character development or explanation as to why she act's the way she does, it ends up adding an air of mystique to the character. Though Alice's appearance and behaviour might also draw criticism as being unnecessary 'moe' otaku bait. I'm not going to say that from a personal standpoint, it is something that majorly bothers me but the shows 'moe' element through it's co-lead does feel tacked on, rather than integral to the appeal of the show. </p><p> </p><p>

Where Heaven's Memo Pad, can be admired is for it's handling of some difficult dramatic themes. Though the series has it's comedic side, through the quirks and interactions of it's core cast, Heaven's Memo Pad never made light work of it's more serious side, and in the end dealt with difficult subjects such as underage prostitution and drug addiction is a sensitive manner, that only on occasion stepped over into over sold melodrama. In all honesty the surprisingly assured handling of it's issues based drama, shines brighter than when Heaven's Memo Pad, shows the lighter side of it's coin. In fairness the comedy/light relief in the show doesn't annoy but it rarely steals the spotlight either- though perhaps that can be seen as a good thing, focusing the show towards being dramatic with the odd bit of character lead quirkiness, rather than an unfocused mess that can't decide whether it wants to be taken seriously one minute and then guffawed at the next. </p><p> </p><p>

A contentious issue for some people regarding the show, may very well be with it's handling and image it gives out, regarding it's cast of NEET's. Heaven's Memo Pad, rarely appears to criticize or question their unconventional life style choices, and there may be some who watch this show that feel the story glorifies slackers that don't contribute to society. From my own personal take, the show didn't come across as glorifying NEET's, but it certainly didn't set out to ridicule them either. The messages that strongly came across by the end of the series, were 'hard work' and 'believing in yourself' aren't things that can be measured by money. </p><p> </p><p>

Realistically though, such complaints are likely to come from the most casual of anime fans or someone who isn't even an anime fan at all and somehow happened to stumble across this watching this. Whilst I'm not advocating that everyone should stick it to convention and not get a job, like the 'employees' of the NEET Detective Agency- many otaku will feel an affinity with the characters 'outsiders' logic and in all honesty that's who this show is aimed at, not the average discontented wage slave. </p><p> </p><p>

Even with the contentious issues of Alice being otaku bait, and the possibly perceived glorification of the NEET lifestyle choice aside, Heaven's Memo Pad falls short of being the great series it could have been, even with the praiseworthy handling of the issues dealt with amongst it's individual arcs. Where the show end's up falling short, is with the series pacing. The opening 'double length' episode sets up the series intriguing premise, but then the rest of the series meanders along at an often pedestrian pace, until the final arc which amps up the drama and gives the story some much needed urgency. </p><p> </p><p>

Perhaps part of the problem, was that may of the arcs, would near enough follow the same format with Narumi and the rest of 'Alice's' underlings proverbially fumbling around in the dark, until the loli genius would spot some minute game changing detail, that no one else was able to spot, and then babble some philosophical nonsense. The reveal itself for each arc, often comes across as truly surprising and clever but sometimes the journey towards each mystery, unfortunately at times ends up being disengaging. </p><p> </p><p>

<strong>Final Verdict: </strong> Heaven's Memo Pad, is an urban mystery show that could have been really great, if it just had punchier pacing. The reveals to it's mystery's are often inspired and it showed a surprisingly sensitive touch to dealing with real life issues, but in the end the often meandering pace of the show, lets it down. All in all Heaven's Memo Pad has enough good elements to just about it give it a mild recommendation <em>(to those who are intrigued by these kind of shows</em>) but it had the potential to be considerably better. </p><p> </p><p>

<span style="font-size:10px;"><span style="color:#808000;"><strong>Mildly Recommended</strong></span></span></p><p> </p><p>

<strong>Is the Dub Any Good:</strong> Sentai Filmworks did the dub here, and though Sentai can tend to be a bit hit and miss with their dubs, I personally found little to find major fault with here. Hilary Haag, who has always been pretty good at playing 'moe' roles, convinces as co-lead Alice, whilst Blake Shepherd is fine as Narumi. Amongst the supporting cast Greg Ayres, once again gets typecast as a nerdy/whiny teenager as 'The Major' but I suppose casting directors keep going back to him, as he has perfected his 'annoying' voice for those roles.</p>

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Blue Exorcist

(aka Ao No Exorcist )

 

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Genre: Supernatural Fantasy Action

 

Studio: A-1 Pictures Director: Tensai Okamura Writer: Ryota Yamaguchi Source: Manga by Kazue Kato

Original Broadcast: April- October 2011 Episodes: 25 (+ 1 OVA)

 

Synopsis: Abrasive and unseemly strong teenager Rin Okumura, shockingly finds out that he is the son of Satan!

 

Shiro Fujimoto a priest and exorcist, tried to raise Rin as an ordinary human boy, when he adopted Rin and his twin brother Yukio, but when Rin starts to see spirtis and begins to emanate blue flames, it becomes clear to Shiro that he can no longer keep Rin's true identity a secret. Satan himself comes calling, and tries to open a gate to the demon world Gehenna, leading to a life changing tragedy, that leads to Rin swearing that he will become an exorcist like his adoptive father and defeat Satan.

 

In order to become an exorcist, Rin enrolls at the mysterious True Cross Academy, where he finds his more level headed brother (who holds some supernatural secrets of his own), already enrolled.

 

Recommended Viewing Age: Younger Teens and up (approx 13+): Mild fanservice, mostly via the character of Shura with her large assets and stripperific outfit choice. Show can become quite bloody and violent, especially during the latter episodes.

 

Action Level: High- Blue Exorcist might not be for little ones, but it's still a shonen, so that means the series provides plenty of action to get it's target audience pumped up. It's rare that an episode will go by without one of the Exorcists getting into a confrontation with a demon.

 

Moe/Kawaii Level: Low- Shiemi, a pretty girl that lacks self confidence is the nearest thing the show gets to having a token 'moe' character.

 

Animation Quality/Art Style: Much like Soul Eater (a similar shonen action series with an underlying supernatural and gothic tone) , Blue Exorcist goes for a playful quirkiness with it's overall art style, with bright striking colours, instead of dull tones. The series makes good use of colour, in portraying the tone of each scene, with lighter tones of the more relaxed moments giving way to ominous looking black and purple skies when the series ramps up the drama.

 

The background art is particularly striking in the scenes in and around the theme park-esque surreality of True Cross Academy, but remains consistent throughout even amongst the series more mundane locations.

 

It's not just in the series overall art aesthetic that Blue Exoricst manages to leave an impression, the character designs for the series are consistently striking with every character be it human or demon) given a unique trait to make them standout.

 

Whilst there are probably more striking battle scenes amongst other anime series, on the whole the series key set pieces are animated with a strong consistency with Rin's signature blue glow, whenever he 'snaps' leaving a striking impression.

 

Music: First opening is the energetic rock of 'Core Pride' by Uverworld, whilst second opening 'In My World' by ROOKiEZ is PUNK'D continues on with the high energy rock. Both songs do a decent job of getting you pumpd up for each episode, though I would say that the second opening does a better job of channelling more emotion alongside the energy.

 

Whilst the opening songs are cliched but overall a good fit for the series, the endings are this time round actually the more interesting songs, with the refreshing decision taken to completely eschew the cliched softly sung ballad. South Korean boyband 2PM sing the first ending theme Take Off- and whilst I'm not usually a fan of R&B influenced boyband music, I have to admit this was a really infectious song, especially as it worked seamlessly with the closing animation. The second ending is 'Wired Life' an ice cool slice of electronica sung by the actress/model Meisa Kuroki that works surprisingly well with the series.

 

Meanwhile Hiroyuki Sawano's soundtrack is a well judged eclectic mix of rock, electronica and orchestral pieces that does a fine job of supporting the drama and action on screen.

 

Plot & Characters: Blue Exorcist first introduces us to Rin Okamura, a 'delinquent' boy, always getting into fights and seen as having a demonic nature by those outside of his closest family and friends. As it turns out he does literally have demon blood running through him, and has been raised to be 'human' by his adoptive father Shiro Fujimoto a priest and an exorcist, alongside his twin brother, the smarter and calmer Yukio.

 

When Rin's demonic powers can no longer be contained, the situation changes drastically for him and because he is biological son of Satan, he becomes a target of elimination for the True Cross Order (an army of Exorcists battling against demons). However he manages to convince Mephisto, the chairman of True Cross Academy's Japanese branch that he want's to kill Satan and is enrolled into True Cross Academy. Mephisto is a demon that has allied himself with the exorcists, and is shown throughout to be a shifty, manipulative character and both the audience and other characters within the story are never quite sure what is goal is and what he truly wants with the son of satan, especially as he stays in close contact with his younger brother Amaimon, an equally eccentric and aggressive demon who becomes obsessed with trying to eliminate Rin.

 

On arrival at True Cross Academy, Rin learns that his brother Yukio is already a highly trained exorcist, and wasn't completely ignorant to Rin's situation. We also get introduced to the cram school students that are all training to become esquires (junior exorcists) and eventually become the Okamura twins closest friends, as they go through a series of trials and tribulations together.

 

Amongst these students are Shiemi Moriyama, an intially reclusive girl who tended to her grandmother's garden amongst the grounds of True Cross Academy. Even after she finally breaks free of tending the garden, she remains an unconfident, socially naive and meek figure, who can easily be manipulated but over the course of the story begins to believe in herself more.

 

Initially having a frosty relationship with the rest of the class ( in particular Shiemi) is Izumo Kamiki, a haughty girl from a family of shrine maidens, acting offensive towards everyone else in the school, apart from her best friend Paku. Initially portrayed as being extremely selfish, we eventually learn that her social problems stem from being overly prideful.

 

Also in the class are the trio of friends from Kyoto, hot-headed but hardworking Ryuji Suguro (whose delinquent like appearance belies the fact that he is one of the best students at True Cross Academy), timid but smart Konekomaru Miwa and carefree Renzo Shima. Ryuji seems particularly determined to eliminate Satan and because of his similarly hot-headed and stubborn attitude, he consistently 'butts, heads' with Rin.

 

As the story unfolds, we learn that not all the demon's are necessarily bad, but there are those within the True Cross Order, willing to use extreme methods to rid the world of Satan and Gehenna (the demon world), eventually leading to an internal conflict of ideologies within the organization, and as the story heads towards it's conclusion, some of the higher-up's controlling things from the Vatican, may well be more dangerous than Satan himself.

 

Important (to the story) members of the True Cross Order, are Igor Neuhaus an eye-patch wearing Exorcist and Academy lecturer who appears to be determined to eliminate Rin Okumura, the buxom Shira Kirigakure, a student of Shiro Fujimoto who in turn becomes a mentor of sorts to Rin, and Arthur Auguste Angel- the current Paladin (the top exorcist) who's nature is to blindly follow orders, even if deep down he knows that sometimes the orders given should be questioned.

 

Running throughout as a central theme, of Blue Exorcist is the issue of trust, especially when it comes to those within the True Cross Order/Academy trusting that the 'Son of Satan', is on the side of the humans and not Satan himself.

 

Analysis: No one could seriously claim Blue Exorcist, to be anything original, shonen action stories based upon the realm of the supernatural is something that the manga and anime world keeps coming back to time and time again and it's one that bears strong similarities to Soul Eater, another series with a similarly idiosyncratic and playful art-style, where the primary protagonists are students at an academy training to do battle with evil spirits/demons. Add to that a main protagonist in Rin Okamura, that has clearly come out of the shonen protagonist factory, displaying the typical traits of being dumb, hot headed but stubbornly determined' and you have the recipe for something that feels oh so familiar, to the point of being played out.

 

Being un-original, doesn't necessarily mean that a series is bad however, there can also be much to admire about a series that takes well worn tropes and still manages to make them fun to watch, and on the whole Blue Exorcist manages to do that. It's scattershot approach to borrowing elements from various forms of religion and folklore and applying it to the story whenever it see's fit, does make Blue Exorcist hard to take seriously- but to take such as series like this seriously would be missing the point, this after all is for the most part a fun series designed to provide plenty of thrills for it's audience. Sure it gets much much darker during the final stretch (and thus make's it unsuitable viewing for someone's 10 year old son/younger brother) but despite the threat of demonic beings as such from the start, the tone is generally light hearted.

 

That's not to say that Blue Exorcist is a series that fails to take itself seriously at all, it's just aware enough not to get bogged down with grandiose attempts to make the story feel more important than it actually is. It's fully aware of who it's target audience is and on the whole keeps the story refreshingly simple enough not to ever over-complicate matters without ever feeling oversimplified either. It get the balance right and does so with a consistently enjoyable mix of character lead drama, cliched (the characters often do that cheesy shonen thing of calling their attacks) but exciting action and actually amusing comedy, based as one would expect on the quirks of the various characters. Unlike many series of the shonen action kind, where the attempts at comedy often feel forced in, the light relief here slots in naturally.

 

It's the relationship's between the characters that do the most to pull you into the story, especially in regards to Rin's relationship with his brother Yukio and the rest of the cram school students, whilst the supporting cast of adults also have plenty to offer. The eccentric Mephisto, manages to consistently keep the audience on the edge with his shady behaviour, whilst Shura shine's as a strong female bad-ass (even if she is partially put in to provide horny teenage boys with some cheap titillation), whose independent way of thinking makes her one of the most admirable characters in the entire story.

 

Blue Exorcist does fall down in one regard however, and that's the pacing of the story. Given 25 episodes, the anime adaptation ends up going with an original ending, rather than leaving things hanging in the hope that it will sale enough discs and be granted a second season. As I've alluded to in previous reviews, I'm not an avid manga reader and generally judge the anime on the merits of it's own story, though am aware that this is something that may irk those who have already read the manga, though personally I find a solid ending preferable to being left hanging with a 'read the manga' ending. And on the whole the ending itself is pretty solid, and ties things up neatly enough whilst also leaving things open enough for some form of sequel.

 

However the build towards the conclusion, in the second half becomes rushed and makes you yearn for the series being given a second season or at least approx 50 episodes to begin with to fully realise it's potential. This is especially highlighted by the fact that the True Cross Academy cram school students skip quickly from naive novices to capable exorcists in an unbelievably short amount of time, especially as the first half of the story managed to build up the idea that becoming an Exorcist would take plenty of dedication to master becoming one.

 

In fairness the story does stay dedicated to Rin struggling to have complete control of having his demonic powers for most of the story, and the plot twists regarding the Okamura twins and their origins did add some extra spice to the conclusion of the story, but all in all the first half did a better job of setting things up than the second did bringing the story to it's conclusion.

 

Final Verdict: Put simply Blue Exorcist is a cliched shonen action series with well worn tropes but the slightly rushed closing stretch aside, one that pulls of the formula in a consistently enjoyable manner.

 

Recommended

 

Is the Dub Any Good: Aniplex of America got the license for this series (which should come as little surprise, seeing as A-1 studios are a fellow subsidiary of Aniplex) using L.A based talent.

 

Whilst I generally think the Texas dubbing scene (well more to the point Funimation) has the L.A dubs beat for overall consistency, I would say that when the L.A dubs get it right, they produce some of the most enjoyable English dubs and in my humble opinion, Blue Exorcist can be counted amongst those.

 

Whilst Johnny Yong Bosch can perhaps be accused of being Johnny Yong Bosch as Yukio, Bryce Papenbrook puts in an energetic performance as main protagonist Rin, a performance that shows alongside his more recent turn as Eren Yeager in Attack on Titan that Papenbrook is the current go to guy for stubborn shonen protagonists.

 

Other standouts in a consistently well casted dubbed, are Sam Reigel's suitably mischievous turn as Mephisto, Patrick Seitz's Igor Nehaus and Wendee Lee's Shura (a predictable but in the end utterly perfect piece of casting).

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Inu x Boku SS

 

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Genre: Romantic Comedy Drama with a Supernatural Twist.

 

Studio: David Production Director: Naokatsu Suda Source: Manga by Cocoa Fujiwara

Original Broadcast: January-March 2012 Episodes: 12 (+ 1 OVA)

 

Synopsis: In a move to become more independent, Ririchiyo Shirakiin moves out of the family home and into the The Maison de Ayakashi, a high security building where humans with demon (yokai) ancestry such as Richiryo are protected by a team of secret service bodyguards. Despite not wanting a bodyguard of her own, anti-social Ririchiryo finds herself stuck with the services of the stubbornly loyal and eager to please Soshi Miketsukami.

 

Recommended Viewing Age: Teenagers (approx 14 plus and up)- Light fanservice (bathing scenes, bouncy chests) and a fair amount of sexual innuendo/references.

 

Action Level: Fairly Low- There's a supernatural element, that occasionally see's the characters change into a more superhuman form, and the occasional sword fight but those looking for a more action based series, would be wise to look elsewhere.

 

Moe/Kawaii Level: Fairly High- Some moe character archetypes to be found amongst the principal cast with the protagonist Ririchiyo being a Tsundere Loli and Karuta being cut from the 'emotionless' girl mould.

 

Animation Quality/Art Style: The overall style of the character design's aren't anything revolutionary but still manage to be attractive with both Richiryo and Karuta oozing with cute appeal and Miketsukami brooding with mysterious Bishonen attractiveness. Meanwhile the background art is crisp and clean but is on the whole unremarkable and lacking in depth.

 

Music: Opening song 'Nirvana' by Mucc is an infectious alternative rock flavoured number- a good song in itself out of context with the anime series, it also manages to capture an emotional resonance with the series, particularly capturing Miketsukami's desperate infatuation with Ririchiyo.

The show has six ending theme's, all sung by the original seiyuu from the viewpoint of their character. The most striking of these is the first ending Rakuen No Photograph (Miketsukami's theme), a slice of quirky Eels flavoured indie-rock (this is another really good song, that I would happily listen to on my i-pod).

 

The other ending themes include the slow ballad Kimi Wa (Ririchiyo's theme), the dance pop flavoured One Way (Zange and Banri's theme), SM Hantei Forum (Kagerou's theme- a bonkers piece that shifts from a old fashioned sounding song into heavy metal, and is the character theme that best captures the spirit of it's character), the cute and playful pop of Sweets Parade (Karuta's theme) and finally the dance pop duet Taiyo To Tsuki (Rensho and Nobara's theme).

 

Plot & Characters: The driving force of Inu x Boku's plot is the relationship between Ririchiyo and her assigned secret service bodyguard Miketsukami, and basically boils down to how two people with confidence issues and problems with social interaction find solace in one anothers company.

 

Being brought up in a privileged family, Ririchiyo was always the target of jealously- which in turn lead to Ririchiyo putting on an abrasive front to cope with the gossiping etc about her. She is aware that her haughty exterior and often confrontational tone is preventing her from interacting the way she truly wishes to with other's around her, but she's lost all confidence is being unable to interact in a more friendly and sociable manner. She moves into Maison de Ayakashi with the attitude that she is going to continue putting on a front and living life as a loner but with her interactions with the residents of Maison de Ayakashi and in particular her bodyguard Miketsukami, she gradually manages to open up.

 

Half Kitsune (Fox) Ririchiyo's bodyguard Miketsukami is obsessively loyal to the point, that at first his unyielding devotion to her, irritates rather than impresses the pint sized protagonist. But over the course of the series, his dogged persistance at doing everything and anything for Ririchiyo and more to the point his skill at observing the 'real' Ririchiyo beneath the haughty exterior, begins to impress the girl he has been 'assigned to protect'. It is of course hinted rather early on, that Miketsukami's assignment was not by mere coincidence and rather by design and that he harbors obsessive feelings for Ririchiyo and that he is not merely just doing his duty. The latter episodes reveal the real Miketsukami, beneath the over eager bodyguard persona and reveal someone just as emotionally 'broken' as the girl he has been assigned to 'protect'.

 

The supporting cast made up of the rest of the residents and staff of Maison de Ayakashi is primarily there to be comic relief, though a few do have a key role to play in regards to the series plot. Made up primarily of other tenant/SS agent pairings they include laid back Rensho (who has known Ririchiyo since childhood and is the closest thing she has to an older brother) and his SS Agent Nobara (a lesbian who is always sexually fantasizing about cute girls), Kagerou (an egotistical S&M freak, who claims the world is only made up of sadists and masochists, that claims to be betrothed to Richiryo) and his SS Agent Karuta (a girl with a big appetite who appears to be 'zoned out' into her own world most of the time but is actually very observant) and finally there is the hot-headed and impulsive Banri (who has feelings for Karuta, with that relationship acting as a beta couple for the show) and his SS Agent the meddling Zange.

 

Analysis: Those hoping that the reference to secret service agents in the title, would point to a thrilling show with with it's fair share of action will of course be bitterly disappointed, and there is a scene early on where Miketsukami transforms into his Yokai form to protect Ririchiyo from an intruder that hints that may be the case, but all Inu x Boku SS boils down to being is a slice of life comedy that happens to be set in a luxury apartment building inhabited by a bunch of eccentric people that have Yokai (Demon) blood in them and is primarily centred on the relationship between a self aware tsundere and her obsessive servant.

 

For two thirds of the story, Inu x Boku SS just sort of meanders along being mildly amusing but never really feeling like it's going anyway and it's supernatural element consistently feeling like a pointless addition. Prior to it's final arc Inu x Boku SS isn't a bad show, it's just not particularly a good one either, it's an average slice of life comedy in eccentric clothing, that occasionally sparks into life when Kagerou, the story's most amusing side character bursts onto the screen and steals every scene he is in with his over the top declaration's that everything in the world is either sadist or masochist.

 

In terms of the story's supernatural element, as I have already alluded to it feels entirely pointless here and the same thing could have been achieved if the tenants and servants were just simply eccentric nobility out of touch with the real world. From my understanding, the yokai ancestry of the characters plays a considerably large role in the manga penned by the late Coco Fujiwara, but the anime adaptation treats it as a tacked on afterthought.

 

The thing is though that by the end of the series, Inu x Boku SS almost tricks you into thinking that it was a much better show than it actually is, that's because the final third kicks into gear and we get some real traction in the central relationship between Ririchyo and Miketsukami, which up to that point was progressing at an agonizingly slow rate and stuck in a constant loop of Ririchiyo being frustrated yet also appreciative of Miketsukami's loyal to a fault behaviour.

 

Inu x Boku SS closing stretch reveals more about it's central characters in just a handful of episodes, that it managed to do with the majority of episodes that came previously and finally gets you to truly care about the protagonists. The ending really is rather well done, bringing a truly heartfelt conclusion to the story, centred upon positive character development for the central pairing of Ririchiyo and Miketsukami.

 

Even if their slow moving relationship frustrated early on, with it's repetitive nature from the very start Ririchiyo and Miketsukami, both made for refreshing takes on the well worn anime character tropes of the tsundere and yandere. The better written tsundere's, are always the one's that are aware that they come across as a bit of a 'bitch' and that their behaviour is often a defense mechanism for emotional problems going on underneath the haughty surface, and Richiryo certainly manages to fall into this category. Throughout she comes across a 'tsundere' with depth rather than the lazily written kind that finds some miniscule excuse to justify physically abusing the hapless male protagonist and shouting baka!

 

Meanwhile Miketsukami makes for one of the more subtly written and intriguing yandere's in anime. The viewer should be able to catch on fairly quickly, that there is something a little 'off' with his eagerness to constantly please Ririchiyo and do every little thing for her but until the final arc you are never quite sure if he is dangerously obsessive or if his over zealous behaviour is just misguided and when his true character is revealed it is one that has a multitude of intriguing layers and certainly helps justify the time invested in watching Inu x Boku SS to it's conclusion.

 

Finally that though it wasn't a deal breaker for me, some viewers may feel a little uneasy watching a potentially romantic relationship blossom between a 15 year old highschool girl and a man at least 5 years her senior (the character page on TV Tropes has Miketsukami listed as 22) from my own personal perspective, the age's of the protagonists in regards to the central relationship straddles that borderline area of being morally acceptable.

 

Final Verdict: Inu x Boku SS ends up being a mixed bag and something of a missed opportunity at being something better despite delivering a satisfying conclusion with the wasted potential of the stories supernatural elements being a glaring fault. An intriguing central relationship and an amusing supporting cast, cannot hide the fact that for much of it's run Inu x Boku SS meanders along aimlessly, until the story kicks it up several gears in it's closing stretch.

 

Mildly Recommended

 

Is the Dub Any Good: The casting for Sentai Filmwork's dub, generally plays it pretty safe, utilizing veteran talents such as Hilary Haag, Chris Patton, Greg Ayres and Monica Rial in key-roles, what this leads to is a dub that is solidly put together but sounds somewhat over familiar and sounds like a trillion other Sentai dubs. For instance there's nothing all that wrong with Hilary Haag's Ririchiyo if you look at the performance by itself, but for me it sails too close to performances from her for similar tsundere loli types such as Alice from Heaven's Memo Pad.

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So I'm in the process of doing some spring cleaning in regards to my reviews.

 

First off you will notice, I have a new rating system. The Letter grade has gone (I haven't been 100% happy with it for a while). The new system, is something I've borrowed from a wrestling reviewer, I noticed would use a tiered recommendation system for the matches that he enjoyed watching, and I thought that could be applied to the anime I enjoyed watching.

 

The new grading scale, which is also on the front page is as thus.....

 

Highly Recommended: This doesn't necessarily mean that the anime is flawless but is a series/film I would whole heartily recommend that people at the very least check out, even if it's not usually their cup of tea.

 

Recommended: Strongly recommended to fans of the genre, and comes with a milder recommendation to those who don't normally like this kind of thing.

 

Mildly Recommended: Flaws are becoming considerably more noticeable, however viewers who generally like this kind of thing should still get a strong amount of enjoyment from watching this anime.

 

Mediocre: Not the worst anime, but not exactly good either. Can't really recommend it but if you like this sort of thing, there are worse ways to spend/waste your time.

Avoid: Whether it's a tedious bore of a series/film or hilariously incompetent, these are the anime that have little to nothing redeeming about them.

 

In a nutshell, anything from Mildly Recommended and up, I enjoyed the series to a varying degree. Mediocre is something I didn't particularly care for but didn't feel like I wanted approximately 25 minutes of my life back per episode. Avoid is stuff, I wish I hadn't wasted my time watching and am giving you warning not to do the same!

 

All reviews with the current review format, now have this grading system attached to them.

 

I will also be gradually reformatting the old reviews, into the new format and grading system. Some of the really ancient one's will probably end up being re-writes. It will be a long process, but I'm determined to get everything uniform and representative of the reviews I'm proud to put out.

 

When rebuilt reviews have been completed, I will post a link to the review, in the thread.

 

Rebuilds done for both seasons of Ah! My Goddess:

 

http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum...&postcount=474

 

http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum...&postcount=679

 

Minor rewrites for both reviews.

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I watched this a while back and i'd only have gone with a C. It's good and the dub is solid. I liked the show quite a bit. Great review as always.

 

 

Here's something extra for you:

 

heh

 

 

Same here, I watched this one a few months ago and found it entertaining as well.

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I like the new rating system! I've never seen it done that way before, but I wish it was more widely used.

 

Pleased that you like the new rating system. I can't of course take credit for it's concept, as it's something I spotted on this puroresu reviews website, and thought it was a really good concept for a rating system.

 

At this moment in time, I'm reformatting the later reviews but just changing the rating to the new rating system for the earlier reviews, as these honestly in my opinion need a full re-write, as opposed to just being re-formatted. I'm honestly grateful that enough people thought my early reviews were decent enough, because otherwise I wouldn't have carried on with the thread but in all honesty those early reviews are so sketchy, that they aren't very good. :p

 

I'm using a cut off point of Post Count 400, as that's roughly around the point I think my reviews have a considerable up turn in quality. Reviews posted prior to that point, will be re-written at some point. Reviews after that point, will just be reformatted with minor rewrites.

 

There are a lot of reviews to be rewritten or reformatted but it's a challenge I feel I can take on, as I have taken the pressure off myself of running a TEW diary at the same time for the time being (something I probably will return to doing at some point in the future, but most likely not until a new incarnation of the game comes out).

 

Now reformatted:

 

Akame Ga Kill: http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum...&postcount=794

 

Arakawa Under The Bridge: http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum...&postcount=795

 

Bakemonogatari:

http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum...&postcount=505

 

Bakuman (Season 1): http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum...&postcount=572

 

Regraded thus far up to Black Blood Brothers.

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Reviews Rebuild Project Progress Update:

 

All reviews alphabetically listed under A and B now have ratings using the new rating system.

 

Reformatted reviews completed for:

 

Black Bullet: http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum...&postcount=718

 

Black Butler:http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum...&postcount=631

 

Black Butler II: http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum...&postcount=756

 

Black Lagoon- Roberta's Blood Trail!:

http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum...&postcount=486

 

Brynhildr In The Darkness: http://www.greydogsoftware.com

/forum...&postcount=680

 

Reformatting the review for the above, made me have the urge to fire pot-shot's at a well established anime reviews site (one that come's near the top of a Google engine search, when you type in 'anime reviews') :p

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Samurai 7

 

http://www.anime-planet.com/images/anime/screenshots/samurai-7-835-1.jpghttp://www.anime-planet.com/images/anime/screenshots/samurai-7-835-2.jpg

 

http://www.anime-planet.com/images/anime/screenshots/samurai-7-835-4.jpghttp://www.anime-planet.com/images/anime/screenshots/samurai-7-835-5.jpg

 

Genre: Samurai/Sci-Fi Action Adventure

 

Studio: Gonzo Director: Toshifumi Takizawa, Writer: Atsuhiro Tomioka Source: Anime Original*

Original Broadcast: June- December 2004 Episodes: 26

 

* Samurai 7 is a retelling of the classic Akira Kurosawa film Seven Samurai.

 

Synopsis: In a future Japan that resembles the age of the Samurai, a civil war has left Japan shattered. Many who fought in that war, have now become bandits, hired guns that have given up the honorable spirit of the Samurai and now bully villages into giving up the rice they have harvested, and even going as far as stealing women and children from the villages to uphold their dominance over the weak peasants.

 

However one village, Kanna has had enough and Kirara (the Village's Water Priestess) sets out on a journey, along with her younger sister Komachi and fellow villager Rikichi in pursuit of Samurai that will protect their village from the bandits.

 

However they only have the rice from their village as payment- Firstly will any Samurai be prepared to put their life on the line for such a meager payment and secondly are their any true Samurai left, since the great war came to an end?

 

Recommended Viewing Age: 12 and Up- Whilst probably not suitable for little one's, Samurai 7 actually has very little in the way of objectionable content, with virtually no fanservice to speak of. The action gets quite intense, and at times bloody, but I've seen series of a similar vein get much much bloodier and ultra-violent than what's is to be seen in Samurai 7.

 

Action Level: High- Being a story about Samurai, you would be expecting some Katana wielding action. Well you get that, plus Katana wielding Samurai taking on mecha's. If you like plenty of action, then Samurai 7 should satisfy your craving by combining lots and lots of hacking and slashing with lots and lots of explosions!

 

Moe/Kawaii Level: Fairly Low- Komachi the little sister of Kirara serves as the series 'Token Mini- Moe' character, and for those who don't like any 'moe' in their anime, may find her presence in an otherwise non cutesy/moe anime annoying.

 

Animation Quality/Art Style: Character designs are very individualistic, with every character standing out. Many of the peasants look as though they've had several appointments with the ugly stick, and aren't the most pleasant character designs to feast your eyes on, but I always appreciated that every character appeared to have thought and care taken into their design.

 

The background art is beautifully detailed and holds up very well for a decade (plus) old anime, whilst the CGI for the mecha is at times spectacular. However the art and animation for Samurai 7 is unfortunately not without fault, the CGI blended awkwardly with the rest of the animation, which was also generally inconsistent- with the action sequences animated with care and attention with lots of spectacular looking explosions, but becoming sloppy elsewhere with the characters often going 'off model'.

 

Music: Kaoru Wada's soundtrack built upon traditional Japanese instrumentation, perfectly compliments the samurai action and the often stirring battle music pieces, remain with you long after the anime has finished- it's one of those rare instances where the soundtrack doesn't just do it's 'job' as background fodder but retain their 'strength' outside of the context of the visual art form they are providing support to.

 

Opening song 'Unlimited' sung by Nanase Aikawa, is your standard fare J-Pop with a soft-rock base, on a positive note Aikawa's vocals have a very 'hopeful' tone that ties in well with the protagonists determination to reach their goal. Ending song 'Fuhen' by Rin' with it's traditonal Japanese instrumentation, is a beautiful and stirring ballad, that has a nostalgic feeling to the song.

 

Plot & Characters: Approximately the first half of Samurai 7, follows the plot of famous and influential Akira Kurosawa film that it is based on, where a village being ravaged by bandits seek out the help of Samurai to drive the bandits away. In this case the bandits, referred to as the Nobuseri are former Samurai, who have converted their bodies into machines- with the highest ranking Nobuseri taking the form of large mecha robots.

 

As the story progresses, we learn that the Nobuseri are doing business with corrupt merchants, this leads into the second part of the series, where the story deveates from the original plot of the Seven Samurai, and the hired Samurai vow to rescue the kidnapped women and children that were taken from the villages by the Nobuseri. However there are unexpected complications in the second half of the story, that make the 'rescue' mission far from being a straightforward task.

 

Sent to seek out the Samurai are the village's teenage water priestess Kirara, her precocious little sister Komachi (who took it upon herself to tag along) and Rikichi, a villager who carries the guilt of his wife Sanae being taken away from him by the Bandits.

 

The leader of the titular Seven Samurai of the story, is Kanbei- a jaded ex Samurai that has fought and survived many battle's but claims to have been on the losing side of everyone of them. Kirara however has strong faith that Kanbei is the man who can lead a band of Samurai to help drive away the Nobuseri from Kanna Village.

 

The first 'Samurai' that the trio of villagers meet however, is Katsuhiro a naive young man, who has an idolized vision of being a Samurai but doesn't actually have any previous battle experienced. Driven by a desire to protect Kirara (possibly due to the fact that he's attracted to her), Katsuhiro continues to travel with the group, despite originally being rejected as a true Samurai by Kanbei. Eventually his determination to become a Samurai wins recogniton from Kanbei, whilst at the same time the hardships of battle make Katushiro realise what it truly takes to be a Samurai.

 

Another 'Samurai' introduced early on is Kikuchiyo, a cyborg with impressive brute strength but next to no skill in fighting. Like the equally inexperienced Katsuhiro, he is another prospective Samurai, rather than a real one that had prior experience. Loud and abrasive, and causing trouble more often than helping to solve it, Kanbei does not view Kikichiyo as a true Samurai. However he continues, with the encouragement of little Komachi, who is the only one to really believe in Kikuchiyo (viewing him as strong and brave) to follow the rest of the Samurai. Eventually he wins Kanbei's recognition as a Samurai, when he embraces his true identity, one that makes him the most empathetic of the Samurai with the villagers they have been hired to protect. Because of his uncouth ways Kikuchiyo, often finds himself in the role of comic relief throughout the series, and forms a double act with Komachi, who he forms a strong bond with.

 

Amongst the remaining Samurai are the laid back Gorobei (a veteran Samurai working as a street performer since the war ended, Shirichoyi (who fought alongside Kanbei in the great war, he runs a successful ryokan with his beautiful fiancee- but the lure to return to the battlefield has never really gone away), the genial gadgeteer Heiachi whose one berserk button is traitors (something that he has deep seated reason for) and finally the near silent Kyuzo- introduced as a skilled bodyguard for the the merchants- he intially joins the team because he wants to face Kanbei in a one on one showdown. Due to the fact that he joins the team for reasons, other than simply helping to protect Kanna village from the bandits and that he ultimately wants to be the one to put an end to Kanbei, he is initially distrusted by the rest of the group, but his strong Samurai principles and his actions in helping to go up agains the Nobuseri, earns both the trust and respect of his peers.

 

The residents of Kanna village in general, start out as a cowardly bunch, including Rikichi but through the help of the Samurai hired to protect their village, they learn to become braver in standing up to the Nobuseri. In fact, initially most of the villagers do not want the protection of the Samurai, and feel that taking on the Nobuseri, even with their help will only be a losing battle, and most vocal amongst these is Manzo, a farmer not exactly blessed in the looks department, and a whiny coward, willing to sell out to the Nobuseri. Other prominent villagers, include the village elders and Komachi's best friend Okara, who receives letters from Komachi, when the trio of villagers go out on their search to find the Samurai.

 

Amongst the antagonists of the series are the Nobuseri, and the merchants- the magistrate Aymaro and his pampered son Ukyo, who has an unsavoury obsession with trying to make Kirara become part of his harem of women. Intially introduced a spoiled playboy, that is a sinister but somewhat bumbling and comedic minor villain, the second half of the story evolves Ukyo into as being a much more deeper and dangerous character, that ends up having a much more significant role in the story. Protecting both Aymaro and Ukyo, are the bodyguards, the frustrated sycophant Tessai and the androgynous and sinister Hyogo.

 

Analysis: Samurai 7 is an anime re-working of Akira Kurosawa's Seven Samurai, one of the most critically acclaimed and highly influential films in the history of cinema. Doing a remake of a work as beloved as Seven Samurai, was always going to present a huge challenge and there will be those who will dismiss Samurai 7, right from the start, because why try to fix something that wasn't already broken?

 

In all honesty though Samurai 7, never feels as though it's trying to better Seven Samurai, but is simply putting it's own take on a tried and tested formula that has shown to work time and time again. It is clear that the creators of Samurai 7, respect the source material- not only keeping the same name's of the Seven Samurai from Kurosawa's film, but also primarily keeping the same core characteristics. The first half of the story also for the most part largely follows the same basic plot as the original film, but never feels like an exact carbon copy- therefore finding that ideal balance in paying respectful homage to it's source material but never feeling like a pointless copying exercise.

 

The second half of Samurai 7, see's the creators of the project, really try to push further with trying to obtain an individual identity for the story away from Kurosawa's film, with an original story that expands the Samurai's fight against a corrupt empire, than simply the invading bandits of the original film. Admittedly the all original second half of Samurai 7, is on shakier ground than the first half built upon the foundations of Kurosawa's masterpiece, with a story that feels as though it's been tacked on to the original story and increasingly over the top action scenes that will have you struggling to suspend your disbelief.

 

Granted that this is an action series, where one shouldn't expect much in the way of realism, but there is a certain limit in being able to believe how much seven mortal men armed with Katana, can destroy and army of machines. Admittedly the action scene's look cool, and the Samurai (Kyuzo in particular) couldn't look anymore badass but the battle's between humans and gigantic mecha, take the action from unlikely but prepared to suspend my disbelief to these fights are completely unbelievable to the point that it ends up taking you 'out' of the story. In it's defence the story does introduce a sense of mortality with not every Samurai, making it intact by end of the story, but that does not cover for the fact that these men are portrayed as unbelievably unstoppable one-man armies that can cut a giant mecha robot into pieces with a incomprehensibly sharp blade.

 

However what does maintain consistent from beginning to end, is the strong character development for the films, key components the Seven Samurai. Already in place as strongly written characters, each with distinct personalities from one another, Samurai 7 builds upon those strong foundations right to the very end of the series, to really make you care about this set of brave and principled warriors. Admittedly there are a few of the Samurai that suffer from being a little more underwritten that some of the others, such as Shirichiyo, but for the most part the heroic band of samurai's individual characterization and dynamism as a team, is what holds the story together.

 

The side characters are for the most part different to Kurosawa's film, and are ultimately what gives Samurai 7 their own flavour. In all honesty, the supporting cast is a mixed bag- Kirara the water priestess, is probably one of the most vanilla characters in the entire story- whilst it's unlikely that many will find her presence to be annoying, for someone who plays a prominent role in the story, she ends up leaving little impression.

 

In contrast her energetic sister Komachi, is likely to garner a stronger reaction- as the series 'token mini-moe' and largely there to provide a combination of cuteness and comic relief, you're either going to love her light relief antics (mostly playing off Kikuchiyo) or be cursing her 'out of place' presence in the story. Meanwhile Ukiyo, ends up being a delightfully complex villain, who manages to be both sympathetic (in the sense that the story ends up giving strong explanations for the reasoning behind his actions) yet still suitably detestable as all good antagonists should be.

 

Final Verdict: Complimented by strong (albeit inconsistent) visuals and an impressive soundtrack, Samurai 7 mostly succeeds as an original but respectful reworking of Akira Kurosawa's influential masterpiece. It's not flawless, as the Samurai vs Mecha device- that seperates this from the original work- does lead to the action and story reaching levels of incomprehensible disbelief but overall this does succeed as a thrilling and engaging action adventure.

 

Recommended

 

Is the Dub Any Good: Funimation provided a strong English dub for Samurai 7. R.Bruce Elliott brings plenty of gravitas to (what can considered to be) the lead role of the samurai's leader Kanbei, whilst the the underutilized Bob Carter does stellar work as the laid back veteran Gorobei.

 

Meanwhile Christopher Sabat is always entertaining in those big brutish roles that he has made his speciality, as Kikuchiyo and has excellent chemistry with Luci Christian's cute and feisty Komachi. It's also nice to hear Greg Ayre's play something a little more 'chilled' in the form of Heiachi, rather than being asked to turn up the weed/nerd in his vocal performance.

 

Amongst the supporting cast, I believe that Rikichi may well be the first anime role for J.Michael Tatum, who has since gone on to become one of Funimation's key contributors both as a voice actor and script writer.

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<p><span style="text-decoration:underline;"><strong>Rebuild Project Update</strong></span></p><p> </p><p>

G and H are now done (finally!)- I picked up a stinking cold at the weekend and am only just starting to get over it. </p><p> </p><p>

Anyway reformatted reviews completed for:</p><p> </p><p>

<span style="color:#0000FF;"><strong>Galilei Donna:</strong></span></p><p><span style="color:#0000FF;">

</span><a href="http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum/showpost.php?p=1951803&postcount=493" rel="external nofollow"><span style="color:#0000FF;">http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum...&postcount=493</span></a></p><p> </p><p>

<span style="color:#0000FF;"><strong>Gantz: </strong></span><a href="http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum/showpost.php?p=2061558&postcount=816" rel="external nofollow"><span style="color:#0000FF;">http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum...&postcount=816</span></a></p><p> </p><p>

<span style="color:#0000FF;"><strong>Gingitsune:</strong></span><span style="color:#0000FF;"> </span><a href="http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum/showpost.php?p=1971034&postcount=561" rel="external nofollow"><span style="color:#0000FF;">http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum...&postcount=561</span></a></p><p> </p><p>

<span style="color:#0000FF;"><strong>The Girl Who Leapt Through Time:</strong></span><span style="color:#0000FF;"> </span><a href="http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum/showpost.php?p=1975638&postcount=580" rel="external nofollow"><span style="color:#0000FF;">http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum...&postcount=580</span></a></p><p> </p><p>

<span style="color:#0000FF;"><strong>Golden Time: </strong></span><a href="http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum/showpost.php?p=2000571&postcount=635" rel="external nofollow"><span style="color:#0000FF;">http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum...&postcount=635</span></a></p><p> </p><p>

<span style="color:#0000FF;"><strong>Good Luck Ninomiya-Kun:</strong></span></p><p><span style="color:#0000FF;">

</span><a href="http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum/showpost.php?p=1952557&postcount=498" rel="external nofollow"><span style="color:#0000FF;">http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum...&postcount=498</span></a></p><p> </p><p>

<span style="color:#0000FF;"><strong>Guilty Crown: </strong></span><a href="http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum/showpost.php?p=2000039&postcount=634" rel="external nofollow"><span style="color:#0000FF;">http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum...&postcount=634</span></a></p><p> </p><p>

<span style="color:#0000FF;"><strong>Gunparade March: </strong></span><a href="http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum/showpost.php?p=2036749&postcount=740" rel="external nofollow"><span style="color:#0000FF;">http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum...&postcount=740</span></a></p><p> </p><p>

<span style="color:#0000FF;"><strong>Gunslinger Girl:</strong></span></p><p><span style="color:#0000FF;">

</span><a href="http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum/showpost.php?p=1946693&postcount=464" rel="external nofollow"><span style="color:#0000FF;">http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum...&postcount=464</span></a></p><p> </p><p>

<span style="color:#0000FF;"><strong>Hanamaru Kindergarten:</strong></span><span style="color:#0000FF;"> </span><a href="http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum/showpost.php?p=1962225&postcount=543" rel="external nofollow"><span style="color:#0000FF;">http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum...&postcount=543</span></a></p><p> </p><p>

<span style="color:#0000FF;"><strong>Haiyore! Nyaruko-San:</strong></span><span style="color:#0000FF;"> </span><a href="http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum/showpost.php?p=2006726&postcount=670" rel="external nofollow"><span style="color:#0000FF;">http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum...&postcount=670</span></a></p><p> </p><p>

<span style="color:#0000FF;"><strong>Highschool DxD</strong></span><span style="color:#0000FF;">: </span><a href="http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum/showpost.php?p=2001045&postcount=647" rel="external nofollow"><span style="color:#0000FF;">http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum...&postcount=647</span></a></p>

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<p></p><div style="text-align:center;"><p><span style="color:#800080;"><span style="text-decoration:underline;"><strong><span style="font-size:12px;">Dream Eater Merry</span></strong></span></span></p><p><span style="color:#800080;">

(aka Yumekui Merry)</span></p><p> </p><p>

<span>http://www.anime-planet.com/images/anime/screenshots/yumekui-merry-3476-7.jpg</span><span>http://www.anime-planet.com/images/anime/screenshots/yumekui-merry-3476-11.jpg</span></p><p> </p><p>

<span>http://www.anime-planet.com/images/anime/screenshots/yumekui-merry-3476-13.jpg</span><span>http://www.anime-planet.com/images/anime/screenshots/yumekui-merry-3476-5.jpg</span></p></div><p></p><p></p><p> </p><p>

<strong>Genre: </strong>Fantasy Action</p><p> </p><p>

<strong>Studio:</strong> J.C Staff <strong> Director:</strong> Shigeyasu Yamauchi <strong>Writer:</strong> Ushiki Yoshitaka <strong>Source: </strong>Manga by Ushiki Yoshitaka</p><p>

<strong>Original Broadcast:</strong> January-April 2011 <strong>Episodes:</strong> 13</p><p> </p><p>

<strong>Synopsis:</strong> Yumeji Fujiawara possesses the unique ability to sense whether or not people will have nightmares, and is currently suffering with a recurring nightmare himself, that involves being harassed by a gang of cats. </p><p>

One day a strange girl falls on top of him, and he finds himself transported into the world of his recurring nightmare. The girl who then introduces herself as Merry Nightmare, then claims to be a Dream Demon who is currently trapped in the real world and is trying to find her way back to her real home of the Dream World. </p><p> </p><p>

<strong>Recommended Viewing Age</strong>: <em>Approx 12 and up- </em>A mixture of mild fanservice and relatively light fantasy violence, that is probably a little too strong for kids but should be fine for young teens and upwards. </p><p> </p><p>

<strong>Action Level: </strong><em>Fairly High- </em>The cutesy art style might make you suspect otherwise, but Dream Eater Merry features it's fair share of fantasy battle sequences, between Merry and the opposing dream demons, in fact the final episode is pretty much just one long battle between Merry, her allies and the big bad. </p><p> </p><p>

<strong>Moe/Kawaii Level:</strong><em> High-</em> Merry with her cute little fang and 'fish out of water' demeanour is designed to have blatant moe appeal, and is supported by several other 'cute/moe' style girls. This may be a fantasy action series, but this is a fantasy/action where the 'moe' appeal is laid on heavily. </p><p> </p><p>

<strong>Animation Quality/Art Style:</strong> J.C Staff tend to have an inconsistent track record when it comes to the quality of the art and animation put into their shows. Whilst much of their output tends to be mediocre when it comes to visual delivery, occasionally they do pop out a show that bucks that trend and shows that they can put out something with top quality art and animation, when they actually feel like doing so. </p><p> </p><p>

Dream Eater Merry, is the one of those cases, where J.C Staff have put considerable effort into the art and animation of this show. Whilst the general character design style can be accused of being 'generic 2010's moe style fare', some of the individual character themselves are particularly striking, none more so than the series titular heroine 'Dream Eater' Merry Nightmare. </p><p> </p><p>

The world of dreams that the characters enter, are really vivid and truly stand out from the slightly mundane art of the 'real world' , whilst the animation really comes alive in the vibrant battle's between the dream demons. </p><p> </p><p>

<strong>Music:</strong> Opening song 'Daydream Syndrome' sung by Marina Fujiwara is a energetic slice of infectious pop-rock that does a good job of getting you pumped up for what lies ahead. From a personal viewpoint, I really liked the opener here and rarely skipped past it, but of course musical taste is a subjective thing and I always try to look more at whether or not the openings and endings are a good fit for the anime and contrast well with one another- thankfully here the opener is both an enjoyable ditty in it's own right and a good fit for the anime itself. </p><p> </p><p>

Ending theme 'Yume to Kibou to Ashita no Atashi' sung by Ayane Sakura (the seiyuu for Merry Nightmare) in contrast to the opening, is generic electronica based J-Pop that is both forgettable and not particularly a great fit for the series. </p><p> </p><p>

The eclectic soundtrack composed by Keiichi Oku, brings together electronica, balls to the wall rock and sombre piano ballads. Whilst the soundtrack does end up sounding a little uncohesive at times, it does a generally good job of complimenting the story and visuals. </p><p> </p><p>

<strong>Plot & Characters:</strong> Dream Eater Merry, presents to it's viewers a reality, where there are two 'worlds', the worl of the humans and the dream world, inhabited by Dream Demon's. Sometimes the dream demon's attempt to crossover into the human world, and take over the human, as a 'vessel'- where some co-exist in a relatively peaceful manner alongside their human, whilst others are more antagonistic. Almost every Dream Demon, however is unable to fully exist in the human world, and are only able to communicate through a 'vessel'.....</p><p> </p><p>

However Merry Nightmare, is the exception to the rule- she is able to fully exist in the human world, however after years and years of sending malevolent Dream Demon's back to the 'Demon World'- Merry just want's to return to her 'home'.</p><p> </p><p>

That's when she meets up with Yumeji Fujiwara, a highschool student with the unique ability to predict what kind of dream some will have by seeing the color of their aura (whilst his predictions for normal dreams tend to be shaky, he is depressingly always spot on when it comes to nightmares). A boy with a strong sense of justice <em>(shaped by his love of 'Super Sentai' style hero shows)</em> he vows to help Merry find her way home, whilst always convincing her to help fight off the more malevolent Dream Demon's from the human world. </p><p> </p><p>

Yumeji lodges at the restaurant owned by the father of his childhood friend Isana Tachibana, whilst his parents are away. Isana is on the whole a sweet and cheerful girl, who one day dreams of becoming an artist, and is someone that Yumeji would particularly wish to be protected from harm.Whilst another girl that Yumeji becomes close to and has an important role to the play in the story, due to having a relationship with a dream demon of their own, is Yui Konagi, a somewhat ditzy girl who goes to an all girls school.</p><p> </p><p>

Whilst much of Dream Eater Merry is taken up with the battle's against other Dream Demon's, the show also has it's lighter side, much of which is taken up by Merry 'experiencing' the human world, through her friendship with Yumeji and the Tachibana's. Because though she has roamed the human world for many years, she has had no real interaction with humans, until bumping into Yumeji. </p><p> </p><p>

Yumeji is also a member of the writing club, whose members include the club leader Mei, the tomboyish Saki and Takateru (who has a passion for writing cheesy haiku's). It is hinted that Saki and Taka have feelings for one another and serve as a kind of 'beta couple' that provide many of the stories 'cool down' moments. Also at the school is the anti-social transfer student Chizuru Kawanami and the <em>(over)</em> friendly guidance counsellor Ryota Ijima- both of these characters have something a bit 'off' about them as soon as they hit the screen- are they just strange or is one or perhaps both of them an antagonistic presence? </p><p> </p><p>

Along the way Merry and Yumeji encounter other Dream Demon's, many of whom provide an antagonistic presence as soon as they encounter them, these include 'Chaser John Doe' the leader of the gang of cats that have been harrassing Yumeji in his dreams, 'Garden' Engi Threepiece- a somewhat aggressive demon looking for revenge against another 'Dream Demon' known as Pharos Hercules and views all other Dream Demon's as a threat and the cruel and powerful dream demon known as Mystletain. </p><p> </p><p>

<strong>Analysis:</strong> I'm not going to beat around the bush here, Dream Eater Merry is a series that left me with a feeling of disappointment after the conclusion of it's final episode. </p><p> </p><p>

Things start out promising enough, it never looked to have the potential to be an unmissable classic, but it had plenty of potential to be a fun, enjoyable watch that was able to successfully blend thrilling fantasy action with cute comedy. That's a mix that can sometimes feel a little awkward when blended together, but Dream Eater Merry had the balance down about as well as anyone can expect during the series early episodes. </p><p> </p><p>

In terms of the series two main protagonists, Yumeji's unique ability to see other people's dreams can't hide the fact that he's a generic male protagonist, who still believes in 'heroes and justice' and occasionally gets derided for being a 'pervert' by predictably walking in on a member of the opposite sex during bathing time. He's not so bland that he becomes unlikeable as a character, but he is another one off the endless conveyor belt of generic male anime leads. </p><p> </p><p>

Thankfully <em>(unless you really detest anything that is even remotely 'moe') </em>Merry Nightmare, makes up for Yumeji's brand of bland, by being a fun character that brings energy to the show anytime she is on the string. Her sense of wonder, at trying new things for the first time in the human world, is cute and funny and she strikes a good balance between bad ass enough to believe in as a hero, whilst also being vulnerable enough to give the viewer doubt that she might not be able to pull through every battle that herself and Yumeji encounter. </p><p> </p><p>

Unfortunately the final third of Dream Eater Merry, see's the once charming show take a massive nosedive off a very steep cliff. Adapted during an on going Manga, it all of a sudden completely abandons the original premise of the story, by introducing an anime original big bad that basically see's the conclusion of the anime adaptation become just one long drawn out battle against the imported antagonist. </p><p> </p><p>

Even without actually reading the manga, I could tell that J.C Staff had total fudged up the adaptation here, because I was left feeling frustrated that so many elements that were introduced as being important at the start of the story were basically left hanging with no explanation provided what so ever. I can only imagine, how frustrated those who have actually read the manga would be with this adaptation, that suddenly suffers from severe ADHD when it comes to handling the source material. In all honesty that's what tends to happen when someone decides to adapt an on-going manga/light novel series and ends up only getting a one cour length series.</p><p> </p><p>

In all honesty, I wouldn't mind so much, if the anime adaptation did veer off into it's own direction, but that direction still ended up being enjoyable. But the final stretch of episodes, end up pretty much tearing up anything that made the series a charming watch to begin with, almost completely abandoning the cute charm of the early episodes for a melodramatic showdown with an over strong big bad, where it becomes painfully obvious that the only way the heroes are going to get out of the predicament that find themselves in, its through some ridicilous 'Deus Ex Machina'. Whilst a 'final boss' in any form of entertainment, should be difficult for the heroes to defeat, the series ending big bad in Dream Eater Merry is of the annoyingly over strong kind that ends up being a major detriment of the story. </p><p> </p><p>

Visually the series has a strong presentation from charming beginning to frustrating end, but that doesn't paint over the fact that Dream Eater Merry, ends up being an ineffective adaptation, that ends up wasting it's potential on a poorly conceived anime original ending. </p><p> </p><p>

<strong>Final Verdict</strong>: Dream Eater Merry is pretty much the equivalent of that nice looking potential love interest, that you've begun to build up a nice rapport with. They seem charming enough, you're getting along fine and then they suddenly tell you that they're already seeing someone and you've been put in the 'friendzone'! </p><p> </p><p>

Seriously though Dream Eater Merry, whilst far from the worst anime I've watched, ended up being such a frustrating experience by the conclusion of it's final episode that I can't bring myself to give this any kind of recommendation. </p><p> </p><p>

<span style="color:#A0522D;"><strong>Mediocre </strong></span></p><p>

</p><p><strong>

Is the Dub Any Good</strong>: Sentai Filmworks did the dub for Dream Eater Merry, and yet again we find Hilary Haag cast as a 'moe' lead character. Haag does do always do a solid enough job in these kind of roles, as she's a natural fit but her casting is too predictable and feels a little bit lazy. </p><p> </p><p>

Overall it's a solid dub, but not even the surprise guest appearance of Vic Minogna <em>(who doesn't usually do a lot of work for Sentai)</em> can't stop this from feeling like pretty much every Sentai dub you've heard before.</p>

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<p><strong>Rebuild Project Update:</strong></p><p> </p><p>

I,J and K are now all done </p><p> </p><p>

Reformatted reviews completed for-</p><p> </p><p>

<span style="color:#0000FF;"><strong>Ikki Tousen- Battle Vixens:</strong></span><span style="color:#0000FF;"> </span><a href="http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum/showpost.php?p=1993504&postcount=608" rel="external nofollow"><span style="color:#0000FF;">http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum...&postcount=608</span></a></p><p><span style="color:#0000FF;"> </span></p><p><span style="color:#0000FF;">

</span></p><p>

<span style="color:#0000FF;"><strong>Invaders of the Rokujyoma:</strong></span><span style="color:#0000FF;"> </span><a href="http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum/showpost.php?p=2045739&postcount=770" rel="external nofollow"><span style="color:#0000FF;">http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum...&postcount=770</span></a></p><p><span style="color:#0000FF;">

</span></p><p> </p><p>

<span style="color:#0000FF;"><strong>Iria: Zeiram the Animation:</strong></span></p><p><span style="color:#0000FF;">

</span><a href="http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum/showpost.php?p=1990598&postcount=596" rel="external nofollow"><span style="color:#0000FF;">http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum...&postcount=596</span></a></p><p><span style="color:#0000FF;"> </span></p><p><span style="color:#0000FF;">

</span></p><p>

<span style="color:#0000FF;"><span style="color:#0000FF;"><strong>Is This A Zombie?: </strong></span></span><a href="http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum/showpost.php?p=2036520&postcount=739" rel="external nofollow"><span style="color:#0000FF;"><span style="color:#0000FF;">http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum...&postcount=739</span></span></a></p><p><span style="color:#0000FF;"> </span></p><p><span style="color:#0000FF;">

</span></p><p>

<span style="color:#0000FF;"><span style="color:#0000FF;"><strong>Kamisama Dolls:</strong></span></span><span style="color:#0000FF;"><span style="color:#0000FF;"> </span></span><a href="http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum/showpost.php?p=2002030&postcount=648" rel="external nofollow"><span style="color:#0000FF;"><span style="color:#0000FF;">http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum...&postcount=648</span></span></a></p><p><span style="color:#0000FF;">

</span></p><p> </p><p>

<span style="color:#0000FF;"><span style="color:#0000FF;"><strong>Kimi To Boku :</strong></span></span><a href="http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum/showpost.php?p=1936379&postcount=441" rel="external nofollow"><span style="color:#0000FF;"><span style="color:#0000FF;">http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum...&postcount=441</span></span></a></p><p><span style="color:#0000FF;"><span style="color:#0000FF;"> </span></span></p><p><span style="color:#0000FF;"><span style="color:#0000FF;">

</span></span></p><p>

<span style="color:#0000FF;"><span style="color:#0000FF;"><span style="color:#0000FF;"><strong>Kinmoza!: </strong></span></span></span><a href="http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum/showpost.php?p=1965941&postcount=547" rel="external nofollow"><span style="color:#0000FF;"><span style="color:#0000FF;"><span style="color:#0000FF;">http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum...&postcount=547</span></span></span></a></p><p><span style="color:#0000FF;"><span style="color:#0000FF;"><span style="color:#0000FF;"> </span></span></span></p><p><span style="color:#0000FF;"><span style="color:#0000FF;"><span style="color:#0000FF;">

</span></span></span></p><p>

<span style="color:#0000FF;"><span style="color:#0000FF;"><span style="color:#0000FF;"><span style="color:#0000FF;"><strong>Kuroko's Basketball: </strong></span></span></span></span><a href="http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum/showpost.php?p=2003042&postcount=651" rel="external nofollow"><span style="color:#0000FF;"><span style="color:#0000FF;"><span style="color:#0000FF;"><span style="color:#0000FF;">http://www.greydogsoftware.com/forum...&postcount=651</span></span></span></span></a></p>

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While the Kuroko's season 3 really only covers 3-4 games ( with a 3-4 episode flashback to when they were in middle school story as well) it pretty much brings to a close the whole Winter Cup and Generation of Miracles storyline so it's worth checking out as its just ending the the 3rd season. especially if you waited till now, you can watch the entire thing and not have to deal with a cliffhanger at the end.
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<p>TK you are doing anime fans proud with all the reviews. I do hope that you are sharing the reviews elsewhere too. I've found a few that i missed and the ones i've asked to be reviewed cause i dug them got good ratings. Great thread and now that the new season is upon us, you'll have to review the winter/spring stuff. </p><p> </p><p>

I'd dig a review of Plastic Memories. <img alt=":)" data-src="//content.invisioncic.com/g322608/emoticons/smile.png.142cfa0a1cd2925c0463c1d00f499df2.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /></p><p>

Is it wrong to pick up girls in a dungeon.</p><p>

My teenage romantic snafu. Both seasons and if there isn't a third season, i shall calmly riot in my room.</p><p> </p><p>

Good stuff.</p>

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