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Round 2. FIGHT!

Dance in the Vampire Bund

Before you read my thoughts on this show, I implore you to watch the actual episode beforehand, especially if you know nothing about it. The surprise was kind of spoiled for me, and as a result my experience was ruined somewhat.

Before I got around to watching the first episode of Dance in the Vampire Bund, I read that it opens with a parody on Japanese TV shows. I simply assumed that the first five minutes would be focused on this gag, and after that the show would be all about rubbing oil on a naked lolita vampire.

However, once the episode made it to the 10-minute mark, I knew they were going all the way. While initially put off by this stunt, I now find that it’s absolutely brilliant. Looking back on it, there’s no better way to open the show and get people acquainted with its world. People with no experience with bad Japanese television probably won’t appreciate this parody, but SHAFT nailed the dynamics of those kinds of shows perfectly.

That said, I am looking forward to when it makes a shift towards the serious. Nice opener, though.

Durarara!!

While not as well packaged, interesting, or downright confusing as the first episode of Baccano!, the first episode of Durarara!! catches one’s interest almost as well. It balances its hip Tokyo highschooler antics well with some crazier and darker elements that will no doubt become more important as the show progresses.

The show presents itself very well, boasting some slick character designs, a stylish soundtrack and sharp direction. However, one thing to note is that at this point, the storytelling is very linear. Unlike Baccano’s first epsiode that jumped around a lot, Durarara!!’s stays in one place (namely Ikebukuro). The show is fine as of this first episode, but I hope it finds some way to recapture the same kind of charm Baccano had.

I have faith that it’ll be good, though. The first episode was already above average, even if most of the awesome parts were in the opening.

Hidamari Sketch ☆☆☆

Just the same as the rest, really. Like with most additions to ongoing franchises that SHAFT does, there’s an attempt to refine and try out new techniques. This episode boasts a lot of the same directorial quirks found in Bakemonogatari, and are used fairly effectively. The designs have also been changed a bit to match Aoki Ume’s art a bit more than in previous outings with the material.

I used that screencap because I’d like to assume Hiro is actually wondering about what happened to the opening and ending sequences. The opening they have right now is only 1/4th done and the ending is non-existent. I guess this is what happens when one of your outsourcing studios dies.

Natsu no Arashi 2 and Dance in the Vampire Bund didn’t really have much in the ways of openings and endings either. A shame, since SHAFT is so good at both of those.

Current
Chi’s Sweet Home: Pretty easy to catch up on considering each episode is only three minutes. I watch them in sets of four here and there.
Code Geass R2: Oh lawd.
Golgo 13: ….
Hidamari Sketch x365: This show almost has the best Shinbo opening ever. Almost, since the best Shinbo opening is the second SZS opening. Neko Mimi Mode gets an honorable mention.
Koihime†Musou: Still junk food. Half-way done.
Kyouran Kazoku Nikki: Yuuko Gotou is a butterfly girl. Win.
Macross F: I kind of don’t care anymore. Not like I don’t like it, but eh. Who cares.
Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu: Has slipped into being kind-of-sort-of generic, but I don’t care. It’s done well and I’m actually archiving the episodes!
Sekirei: I can enjoy me some tits, too.
Slayers Revolution: Where is it.
Strike Witches: Still the best of the season.
To Love RU: SAIGO NO CHANCE NOW IS THE TIIIIIIIIIIIME. Better than Rosario+Vampire.
World Destruction: Disposable action series. Has Toru Furuya.
Zero no Tsukaima ~Princess no Rondo~: Almost as good as season two. Kind of slipped down into season one level of good.
Zettai Karen Children: Plot’s getting pretty intense.

Birdy is on hold.

Will write about the upcoming season soon. Lots of regular looking stuff.

Current
Chi’s Sweet Home: I’m almost confident that I have not seen an episode within the past month. Oh well.
Code Geass R2: Feeling really Gundam Seed Destiny at this point. The stupidity is actually getting to me now.
Golgo 13: ….
Hidamari Sketch x365: Liking it better than season one, possibly because subs are coming out regularly and the episodes are slightly faster paced.
Koihime†Musou: Junk food anime. Tasty but forgettable.
Kyouran Kazoku Nikki: Fun to watch– a curious mix of serious stories with comedy-like execution.
Macross F: Uh, I have no idea what this show is about anymore, I just like Ranka Lee. Sheryl can die in a fire etc.
Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu: I support anime about hot otaku girlfriends.
Sekirei: My Kanokon for this season– well produced fanservice fluff.
Slayers Revolution: Fun fantasy series– want to get around to the originals eventually.
Strike Witches: DELICIOUS FLAT CHESTS CROTCHES AND PANTIES ALL OVER DEAR GOD BEST OF THE SEASON
Telepathy Shoujo Ran: Ok kids thing. Have three episodes waiting to be watched– if they suck I’ll drop it.
Tetsuwan Birdy Decode: I liked the first two episodes… where’s the rest??
To Love RU: Why can’t THESE types of Jump shows run for 100+ episodes?
World Destruction: Has turned into a surprisingly fun adventure/fantasy series. Completely disposable, but I like it.
Zero no Tsukaima ~Princess no Rondo~: Girls, girls, GIRLS!
Zettai Karen Children: Watching it raw at this point. Hopefully Chihiro will continue on with it now that Deculture has folded.

Dropped Natsume Yuujinchou because it sucked.

Sitting on a bunch of DVDs and manga, too.

Man, so much anime, so little time. I work 40 hours a week, dammit!

Previously…

Third three~

Hidamari Sketch x365: I’m actually liking this one. My problem with the first series was its pace, and I could only really enjoy it while in the right mood. I suspect it’s the same with this one, since it’s just more of same, but I just know when I should watch it now. The first episode is an unrelentless attack of fluid animation for about 15 minutes, then in the last half it goes back to business as usual. If you liked the first series, you’ll like this one.

Also, for some reason I totally forgot Yuuko Gotou was in this…!

Koihime†Musou: I generally steer clear of shows that involve badass fighting women, but since all the boob shows this season are of that ilk, I decided to submit and give some of them a try. One of these shows is Koihime†Musou.

I was pretty surprised by how much I liked this one. I usually like the pure, soft-spoken maiden types of girls, but the badass women in Musou don’t seem all that annoying, even if I’m not totally moe~ for them. The animation is solid, the writing is solid and the boobage solid, so I don’t see any reason not to continue unless it goes bad.

Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu: This show is just so adorable. Studio Barcelona has won me over again, but this time with the cutest otaku girlfriend ever, and not mischievous lolis. Haruka, the title character, is just so hot and is the sole reason why I am watching this. It’s not like she’s the only good part, though– the production values are great and the show has a great opening and ending.

The only off putting thing is Mamiko’s acting, but that’s only because I’m used to her playing a spineless shota…

It wasn’t until I saw a sub out for Lucky Tousen*: Great Guardians did I realize that the summer season had already started. So, before anything else starts, I guess I’ll list out my picks like I normally do!

You know, since the list of shows playing this season was so short, I assumed I’d only walk out of it with something like three or four shows, but after I went through and picked out everything, I came out with seventeen! Good thing some of those are short OVAs.

GOTTA WATCH IT EVEN IF I HAVE TO KILL A MAN

• Cobra (OVA): The mighty space returns to the small screen after 30 years to kick more ass. I love Space Adventure Cobra, and if this OVA can capture the magic of the original series, I’ll be in love. COBURAAAA~
• DETROIT METAL CITY (OVA): I’ve always been interested in the manga, but never read it. Hopefully Studio 4C will do a good enough job with their adaptation that I won’t have to!
• Hidamari Sketch x365 (TV): Honestly, I find Hidamari only works for me if I’m in the right mood. Otherwise, it’s boring. But, this is another Shaft/SHINBO combo, so it’s worth watching just for that.
• Lucky Star (OVA): More Lucky Star can’t be a bad thing. I liked the TV show well enough.
• Zero no Tsukaima ~Three Princesses’ Rondo~ (TV): Hey, fuck you guys, 0nT 2 was great and I don’t care what you say. I’m watching this one without a second thought. So long as they keep delivering more fanservice than plot, I’ll be happy!

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2007 was really fucking uneven. The first few months got by on the better titles that carried over from 2006, but between April and August it was something of a wasteland. I managed to get my fix for good modern anime by way of genius works such as Gurren Lagann and Hayate no Gotoku, but all the other offerings during that period of time where somewhere between mildly amusing to plain bad. Thankfully, August saw the debut of Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei and Zero No Tsukaima 2, both of which restored my faith in the industry somewhat. October once again impressed with Minami-ke, Kaiji and Clannad.

What follows will be something similar to my monthly posts, but for the Year In Review, I’ll be ordering things by quality using letter grades, starting from the worst to the VERY BEST. I cover a lot of shows in the post, but it’s not everything I watched during the year.

Here’s my rankings.

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