Mistakes of Youth: The Blog (Powered by EXCELLENCE!)

Asura Cryin’: The entertaining part has kind of gone away and now it’s just bad. If this episode I have sitting here doesn’t blow my mind I’ll drop it, even if I am past the point of no return.
Dragon Ball Kai: I guess I should feel embarrassed about this or something, but this recut reminds me that shounen fight anime can be good when all the characters don’t look like emo J-rock stars. I should probably watch Hokuto no Ken though.
Hatsukoi Limited: While this started off pretty slowly, it has since developed into a good–but throwaway– high school romcom.
Hayate no Gotoku!!: I kind of wrote 700 words about what’s wrong with this, but to keep it short: J.C. Staff doesn’t know what creativity is.
Higashi no Eden: What a weird show.
K-ON!: Not BREAKING MY FACE, but a well executed, heartful and entertaining high school comedy with a unique musical twist.
Natsu no Arashi!: I’m still not quite sure if it’s consistently entertaining, and it is pretty noticeably cheap, but it’s a nice calm before the storm which’ll be… Bakemonogatari. Well, I guess Natsu no Arashi! IS the storm, if one is to take the title into consideration. Also, best opening song of the season. Maybe best ending song, too.
Saki: There’s doujin where all the dudes from Akagi fuck all the girls from this show. It’s WEIRD, dude.
Shin Mazinger Shougeki! Z-hen on television: Really wish this had a budget/real opening. But stuff always happens, so it’s cool.
Sora Kake Girl: Watching it on TV, am somewhat behind on subs. Episode 23 looks nuts!
Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuuutsu re-air: Wow some of those random comments don’t seem so random anymore.

Asura Cryin: Moments of expert storyboarding and directing, but the writing really isn’t that stellar.
Dragon Ball Kai: Wow, is Goku really getting across Snake Road in like… three episodes? Man, DBZ with all the fat trimmed is actually pretty cool, but a lot of those fillers were endearing in their own way. I’ll probably keep watching this until the nostalgia dries up.
Hatsukoi Limited: Dances between entertaining and boring. I feel like dropping it.
Hayate no Gotoku!!: It’s kind of sad that J.C. Staff saw it fit to cut all the humour from one of the most hilarious comedies ever, but if they keep pushing out episodes like episode 5 I really won’t care.
Higashi no Eden: I didn’t know that I watched things for plot anymore. The character interaction is ok, too, I guess.
K-ON!: Really starting to dig this show. Not sure if it’ll stick with me far into the future, but it channels good energy, and controls it expertly.
Natsu no Arashi!: The entertainment value varies between episodes, but it’s generally quite good. Probably one of SHAFT’s better outings as of late. Love the opening and ending, as usual.
Saki: The Mahjong parts lack the same tension found in Akagi, but I’ll be damned if these girls aren’t adorable. I’m watching this just to see girls be cute.
Shin Mazinger Shougeki! Z-Hen on television: They sure are dragging out this first night, but it’s working well to ease us into the world. I suspect it’ll speed up soon. Pretty good show, and definitely the greatest first episode I’ve seen in a long while.
Sora wo Kakeru Shoujo: Still very enjoyable. I like how the plot is developing.

Original Post

This is a terribly webcomicy twist, but I figure if I’m going to go over the top I may as well go all the way. Also, I really wanted to draw a tiger.

Higashi no Eden (or Eden of The East) seems to have the English-language side of things talking. I say “seems to be” since I don’t actually read anime blogs, but I have heard second hand reports of there being lots of talking about it, so I can only assume that this is the case. The show isn’t the greatest thing in the world, but it’s pretty cool. Production IG hasn’t really wowed me since GITS:SAC 2nd GIG, so this show is a little bit refreshing in that respect. When it comes right down to it, what it provides you with is a pretty good story that keeps you guessing, all the while dressed up in flowery Umino Chika designs. It’s pretty interesting.

Another show that I’m a little behind on, but I feel is worth some rant space (but not a devoted entry) is Asura Cryin’. The story is pretty by the numbers as far as 2D Visual Entertainment goes, but it manages to be entertaining, which is ultimately all that really matters. However, what stands out about this show is the energy behind its direction and storyboarding. I didn’t notice it in the first two episodes, however it really struck me in episode three. Its style almost reminds me of Shinbo when he’s doing action (and it’s been far too long since he’s done that.) I don’t know how long it’ll be able to keep my interest, but it seems fairly cool so far. My only complaint is that I don’t really like the character designs too much.

Hatsukoi Limited is almost a good show. After four episodes I’m still not sure if I want to drop it or not–at times it works as entertaining fluff, but at other times it’s just boring. There are times when it’s both of those things at once. I also don’t like the character designs that much. I can appreciate them on some level, but they’re not really the type of super cute designs I look for in light romance shows.

One show which I have dropped with a great amount of certainty after four episodes is Shangri-La. I was hoping Gonzo could pull of at least a pretty looking show with this, but it seems all their attention is devoted to Saki. And for good reason too–Saki rules. I may write about that later on, in its own entry.

And finally, while a little embarrassing, I am watching Dragon Ball Kai. Mostly for nostalgia value, but also because I really like aspects of Toriyama Akira’s work. Mostly the comedy bits, but the action is fairly good too, albeit a little cheap. The remaster doesn’t really help things, and the shots they’ve painted over stand out really badly. I’ll probably drop this soon, because it took only three episodes to remind me just homoerotic DBZ was…

You may have noticed that this is a Wednesday, and I usually update on the weekends. The reason for this is that this week I want to try and make two comics. With the way things are going, that’s probably impossible, but I can try, right? Later!