On a scale of 1-10, rate the animes you've seen recently

[bwing55543]

Princess Mononoke-9.5/10
It's great, but the lack of character development is what keeps this movie from being perfect.

[Shadowmage]

Heroic Age - Above Average 6/10 (AA: 74%)

*I'll try to post a review on the NHRV within a week.

[Kavik Ryx]

King of Braves GaoGaiGar: 7.5/10

Talk about epic. This series had to have some of the greatest synergy I've ever seen in anime. And its opening is just unforgettable to boot.

[Emeraldas]

The Girl Who Leapt Through Time - 8/10
This was a nice, spontaneous viewing to nudge me back into anime. Though kind of a typical anime in that it was a fantastical high school romance, it was down-to-earth, endearing and fun.

Windy Tales - 8/10
I've been slowly watching this show for 2-3 years now, and finally finished it up. I hope one day I get around to watching it in a less spread-out fashion. I really liked it. It was a lot like NieA Under 7, which I loved for its charming characters and warm, comfortable environment.

[Ghostmaster]

Baccano - 8.3/10
This 13 episode series started off rough and during the 2nd or 3rd episode pulled me into this bizarre, violent infested world with some pretty crazy characters. It works really well. There are definitely some very memorable and strange characters, my favorites are probably Issac and Miria or Jacuzzi. Very stylish and well done. I am eager to see the 3 extra episodes.

[Major Tom]

It's been a while since I've finshed these, so my memory is not too fresh, so it's short and sweet time.

Clannad: 8
An enjoyable series, that can get genuinely emotional and be funny at the same time. Okazaki was quite different from the kind of male lead I've come to expect form this genre, and it was a better show for it. Some stories were a bit abrupt and the Fuko gag was overused to some degree, but othwerwise a fine show.

Zoku Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei: 8
Better than the first. Having gotten through the character intros and not taming down anything this time around did the show a whole lot of good. the attacks on society were scathing and funny, though some of the jokes did sail right over my head. It is very culture specific, so I didn't expect to find everything funny. I would have preferred some episodes to have more of a focus

[animanic_critic]

Ah! My Goddess: Flights of Fancy - 5.5/10

It's clearly the most polished edition of the AmG franchise, but it's not much different in what it has to offer - more fluffy adventure by Keiichi and Belldandy. There are new characters this time but they're too shallow to be side characters. In other words, they're just plot devices.

I prefer the original OVA over 14 years ago. It has its flaws but it was sweet enough to be memorable even after more than a decade.

[Kavik Ryx]

King of Braves Gaogaigar Final: 8/10

What an epic way to conclude such an epic. My only two complaints are that that the plot seemed a bit jarring until near the end and that I think the whole courage theme was a little overused. Though I have to admit that my eyes started watering a little at the end.

[Shadowmage]

Naruto Shippuden Movie: 7/10 (AA: 80%)

Awesome. Now this is what I wanted from the first few Naruto movies: excellent fight scenes driving the predictable but enjoyable plot. I had fun with this and it's a must see for anyone who remotely enjoyed Naruto.

[Barrelhaven]

Naruto Shippuden Movie: 7/10 (AA: 80%)

Awesome. Now this is what I wanted from the first few Naruto movies: excellent fight scenes driving the predictable but enjoyable plot. I had fun with this and it's a must see for anyone who remotely enjoyed Naruto.

Bleh, I thought it was terrible. The plot is all a vague memory to me now (something about Naruto protecting a priestess who needs to complete some ritual to seal a demon, yaddie-yadda), but that's not important. Naruto movies reel me in for one reason, and that'd be for the action. In this case, it failed pretty badly...the fights were fairly generic (the animation and choreography were just ho-hum for movie standards), and didn't bring anything new to the table. Those scenes felt like they've all been done before in previous Naruto movies...and done better, at that.

I would honestly rather just watch a DBZ movie instead. 4/10

[Shadowmage]

Bleh, I thought it was terrible. The plot is all a vague memory to me now (something about Naruto protecting a priestess who needs to complete some ritual to seal a demon, yaddie-yadda), but that's not important. Naruto movies reel me in for one reason, and that'd be for the action. In this case, it failed pretty badly...the fights were fairly generic (the animation and choreography were just ho-hum for movie standards), and didn't bring anything new to the table. Those scenes felt like they've all been done before in previous Naruto movies...and done better, at that.
I actually agree with most of your points. The plot was generic, the animation was mediocre and the movie didn't do anything the series has already done. However - as you've stated - what makes or breaks the movie are the fight scenes, and I thought they were great.

You say that the choreography was ho-hum, but could you name some movies with better action choreography? Personally, I can only think of FFVII AC. Also, there wasn't a single fight scene that was done better in the previous movies. Yes, Naruto the television series did have fight scenes that were better than those in the Shippuden movie, but it took about 20 episodes to get to them. This movie was a consistent stream of awesome battles without all the repetitive filler fights.

I would honestly rather just watch a DBZ movie instead. 4/10
That's a bit harsh. I suggest you actually watch a DBZ movie and see how bad it actually was.

[Barrelhaven]

You say that the choreography was ho-hum, but could you name some movies with better action choreography? Personally, I can only think of FFVII AC.

- Aachi & Ssipak
- Street Fighter II: The Animated Movie
- Street Fighter Alpha
- Blood: The Last Vampire
- Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust
- Cowboy Bebop: Knockin' on Heaven's Door
- Spriggan
- Dead Leaves
- Ninja Scroll
- Mukoh Hadan (Sword of the Stranger)
- A bunch of DBZ movies
- And I'm sure many more that escape memory at this moment.

Also, there wasn't a single fight scene that was done better in the previous movies.

Damnit, you're causing me some pain here. I don't have any of the movies on hand (they're often promptly deleted the second I finish them), so I had to sift through hordes of horrible Naruto AMVs on youtube for some reminders. Here's a few off the top of my head that were better than anything in the latest movie (aside from that Rock Lee fight, since any Rock Lee fight is awesome).

- The Rock Lee nunchucku fight (starts around 30-second mark in the clip). (http://youtube.com/watch?v=coL2UwUXOqM&feature=related)
- Sakura vs Bat-Girl in movie 2 (couldn't find one with better vid quality) (http://youtube.com/watch?v=80pHx_dtoXc)
- Gaara fight in the abandoned ship (can't find clip)
- Naruto vs demon boss guy...forgot his name, but he had white hair and a gray body or something.
- I think the 3rd movie had some more interesting fights aside from that Lee one, but I don't feel like putting up with any more Linkin Park/Naruto AMVs.
- I honestly don't remember the first movie at all, at this point. It's almost completely gone from my memory, so I can't really say anything about its fight scenes.

That's a bit harsh. I suggest you actually watch a DBZ movie and see how bad it actually was.

Hehe, I've actually seen them all back in the day. I still have some Cantonese-dubbed VHS copies lying around in the attic, lol. Horrible, yes...but it was entertaining as hell when I was a kid.

[Shadowmage]

- Aachi & Ssipak
- Street Fighter II: The Animated Movie
- Street Fighter Alpha
- Blood: The Last Vampire
- Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust
- Cowboy Bebop: Knockin' on Heaven's Door
- Spriggan
- Dead Leaves
- Ninja Scroll
- Mukoh Hadan (Sword of the Stranger)
- A bunch of DBZ movies
- And I'm sure many more that escape memory at this moment.
I agree with Cowboy Bebop, but I really can't agree much about the rest.

I haven't watched the Street Fighter movies, Dead Leaves and Mukoh Hadan so I'll refrain from commenting on them. Blood: The Last Vampire did have some interesting choreography decisions, but the fights scenes lacked any sense of excitement. Vampire Hunter D had one badass moment (the arrow shot that went through the graves before D caught it), but I found the rest generic. Spriggan had decent fights across the board, but none was really memorable. Ninja Scroll had interesting ideas, but the execution relied a bit too much on conventional body movements. And you really need to go back and see some DBZ movies because the two I saw half a year ago nearly put me to sleep (Super Android and Bojack's Revenge).

Damnit, you're causing me some pain here. I don't have any of the movies on hand (they're often promptly deleted the second I finish them), so I had to sift through hordes of horrible Naruto AMVs on youtube for some reminders. Here's a few off the top of my head that were better than anything in the latest movie (aside from that Rock Lee fight, since any Rock Lee fight is awesome).

- The Rock Lee nunchucku fight (starts around 30-second mark in the clip). (http://youtube.com/watch?v=coL2UwUXOqM&feature=related)
- Sakura vs Bat-Girl in movie 2 (couldn't find one with better vid quality) (http://youtube.com/watch?v=80pHx_dtoXc)
- Gaara fight in the abandoned ship (can't find clip)
- Naruto vs demon boss guy...forgot his name, but he had white hair and a gray body or something.
- I think the 3rd movie had some more interesting fights aside from that Lee one, but I don't feel like putting up with any more Linkin Park/Naruto AMVs.
- I honestly don't remember the first movie at all, at this point. It's almost completely gone from my memory, so I can't really say anything about its fight scenes.
You know, I should go watch the third movie. I never bothered because I was under the impression that I needed to have knowledge of the filler (like hell I'm going to watch 75 episoes of filler). Perhaps watching that would lower my opinions of this movie.

As for the second movie, yes, there were a few interesting fights, but the quality of the ones that mattered (the ones with Shikamaru and Gaara) sucked. And, yes, I'm talking about the boat scene.

Hehe, I've actually seen them all back in the day. I still have some Cantonese-dubbed VHS copies lying around in the attic, lol. Horrible, yes...but it was entertaining as hell when I was a kid.
How true. :)

Ultimately, we shall have to agree to disagree. I do see where your coming from, but I found the Naruto Shippuden movie to be a lot of fun.

[Barrelhaven]

I agree with Cowboy Bebop, but I really can't agree much about the rest.

I haven't watched the Street Fighter movies, Dead Leaves and Mukoh Hadan so I'll refrain from commenting on them. Blood: The Last Vampire did have some interesting choreography decisions, but the fights scenes lacked any sense of excitement. Vampire Hunter D had one badass moment (the arrow shot that went through the graves before D caught it), but I found the rest generic. Spriggan had decent fights across the board, but none was really memorable. Ninja Scroll had interesting ideas, but the execution relied a bit too much on conventional body movements.

I listed those titles in particular (aside from the DBZ movies and SF: Alpha), because they show exceptional thought in their action scenes, which isn't exactly common in a genre where punches, kicks, and bright flashing lights are often thrown together haphazardly. Whether it was in the camera angles, how the scene was set up, the actual choreography of movement, or the animation, these movies seemed to be crystal clear on the style they wanted employ and executed it to near perfection. There's nothing more I can ask for than that.

Blood: The Last Vampire may not have been "exciting" in terms of flashy, high-flying dynamics (ala FLCL), but then again, it was never meant to be in the first place. The action was more slow-paced and brooding, often relying on tension and abrupt bursts of violence to get its point across (very appropriate, considering the atmosphere of the movie). I haven't seen it in years, yet the opening scene on the train and the one in the infirmary are still vividly in my memory (which can't be said for most of the action in the latest Naruto movie). It also helps that it was pretty much a sakuga project, which allowed a cast of legendary animators (Iso Mitsuo, Norio Matsumoto, Toshiyuki Inoue to name a few) to basically go nuts in how in they wanted to manage their specific parts. And from that freedom, you could see a lot of innovation in "camera work", scene construction, and animation style.

I can pretty much say the same for all the other movies I listed (save for the DBZ titles, which are just guilty pleasure for me)...but nothing in the Naruto Shippuuden movie really screams out at me. The Rock Lee fight was well done, but not even close to his other scenes in previous movies or in the TV series itself.

And you really need to go back and see some DBZ movies because the two I saw half a year ago nearly put me to sleep (Super Android and Bojack's Revenge).

I probably haven't seen a DBZ movie since like the 90s, and I absolutely refuse to revisit them. It'd be like when I tried re-watching some old Thunder Cats and X-Men cartoons, and realized just how much they sucked. People tell me all the time DBZ movies suck, and I completely agree. It's just that something inside me refuses to face that fact, and compels me to defend my childhood nostalgia life and limb.

EDIT: Holy crap, I cannot believe I wrote so much on Blood: The Last Vampire. Sorry for the rant. =\

[C0MPL3X]

My turn to talk!

Ergo Proxy - 7/10

Very interesting beginning. I liked the characters, the mystery, overall pretentious tone, the world (fusion of Blade Runner and Brave New World). Then its pace started to drag down...that was ok, it wasn't anything horrendous. And without warning, the mystery cyberpunk anime suddenly transformed into episodic journey anime (kino/mushishi)...and I thought those stand-alone episodes were great to utterly brilliant. Extra points to Pino for being simply THE MOST CUTEST AND ADORABLEST THING IN THE ENTIRE UNIVERSE (I WANT HER AS MY DAUGHTER).

...and they had to screw it up with THE WORST TRAINWRECK I'VE SEEN IN ANIMU. I guess I should've seen it coming. It's a shame too because I thought the concept of 'proxy' here was fascinating. Too bad they had to put 'ergo' in front as well, and started talking bullshit about 'no its not i think therefore i am, its i think therefore you are' and you just want to slit your wrist. But o well. Still highly recommended to anyone interested in cyberpunk or experimental.

[Barrelhaven]

My turn to talk!

Ergo Proxy - 7/10

Very interesting beginning. I liked the characters, the mystery, overall pretentious tone, the world (fusion of Blade Runner and Brave New World). Then its pace started to drag down...that was ok, it wasn't anything horrendous. And without warning, the mystery cyberpunk anime suddenly transformed into episodic journey anime (kino/mushishi)...and I thought those stand-alone episodes were great to utterly brilliant. Extra points to Pino for being simply THE MOST CUTEST AND ADORABLEST THING IN THE ENTIRE UNIVERSE (I WANT HER AS MY DAUGHTER).

...and they had to screw it up with THE WORST TRAINWRECK I'VE SEEN IN ANIMU. I guess I should've seen it coming. It's a shame too because I thought the concept of 'proxy' here was fascinating. Too bad they had to put 'ergo' in front as well, and started talking bullshit about 'no its not i think therefore i am, its i think therefore you are' and you just want to slit your wrist. But o well. Still highly recommended to anyone interested in cyberpunk or experimental.

Hey, I actually finished watching that just last night! Weird coinkidink. And for a change, I completely agree with everything said in that post.

The show went leaps and bounds over what I expected, yet in the end, it still somehow felt like it didn't reach full potential. The standalone episodes near the end were worth the price of admission in itself, though. I especially liked episode 16, where it went all "slice-of-life" on us. For a pretty serious show, they absolutely nailed the dark comedic aspects whenever they went to it.

[LadyYuina]

Romeo x Juliet: 9.5

[Shadowmage]

Naruto Movie 3 - 4/10

Oh.... now I see why I enjoyed the Shippuden movie so much. That was the only movie where I didn't want to take the new characters to a back room and strangle them. I admit, this movie did fix the main thing I hated about the first two movies: interesting fight scenes. The action here was exceptional enough that I actually felt genuine excitement, but I felt visceral pain whenever the melodrama kicked in.

About 15 minutes of awesome for 80 minutes of crap gets a 4/10 from me (yes, I grade harder for each passing movie).

[animanic_critic]

Romeo x Juliet: 9.5
0_0 Care to explain the high grade? I would really love to know.

Noein: To Your Other Self - 8.3/10

I never knew that quantum physics can be used as a theme for a science fiction series, let alone a very intriguing one. The first four episodes are boring but things kick into gear after that thankfully. I find most of the characters unlikeable and some are actually irritating, like Fujiwara and Miho. What I hate about Noein is the overuse of certain terms/words, this one in particular thanks to Fujiwara as his catch phrase.

This is one original concept which isn't delivered fully due to the sketchy mediocre artwork. Still, I enjoyed alot throughout. Somehow the premises of the show teeters around the likes of RahXephon; probably due to the Shangri'La's units.

The ending of episode 14 on:
How future Haruka spoke to present Haruka
= best moment of Noein. I love Haruka BTW.

[KiraraKim]

Episode 14 of Noein was my favorite too. The series just never reached great status for me but that entire episode was awesome.

[General Suburbia]

I thought the artwork was one of its high points.

[laborpilot86]

Mononoke..................................8.5/10

surreal doesn't even begin to describe this one.

[Tremolo]

What I've watched since getting back into anime:

Rebuild of Evangelion: 1.0 YOU ARE (NOT) ALONE - 9/10
I was genuinely surprised at just how great this turned out. Can't wait for the rest.

Macross Plus (OVA) - 8/10
It's an animu Top Gun! But not lame!

Mobile Suit Gundam 00 - 8.5/10
The very definition of great pay-off. If the first half was a bit more interesting and we got a tiny bit character stuff I'd be tempted to give it full marks. Episodes 18 onwards are 10/10 material anyway.

Mobile Suit Gundam 0080: War in the Pocket - 8/10
;_;

Mobile Suit Gundam Seed C.E.73: Stargazer - 7/10
A very nice little side story thing.

Mobile Suit Victory Gundam - 9/10
Depressing as hell, but definitely worth it.

Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion - 9/10
Gorgeously put together, ludicrously exciting nonsense.

Turn A Gundam - 9.5/10
My joint-favourite Gundam series with Zeta, I think. Just amazing. Totally different from the Gundam norm but all the better for it considering how well it's executed. Beautiful ending, too.

[Kavik Ryx]

What I've watched since getting back into anime:

Mobile Suit Gundam 0080: War in the Pocket - 8/10
;_;

I've actually tried recommending this one to a friend over and over. I think I got to him with "there are no huge explosions," which just made everything a whole lot better.

Turn A Gundam - 9.5/10
My joint-favourite Gundam series with Zeta, I think. Just amazing. Totally different from the Gundam norm but all the better for it considering how well it's executed. Beautiful ending, too.

Oh yeah, though for me it is tied with X as my second favorite. It also happened to be the most addicting one to watch, I think seeing over 10 episodes in one day speaks for itself. I feel bad that I didn't really appreciate the ending till seeing it the second time around.

[Tremolo]

I've actually tried recommending this one to a friend over and over. I think I got to him with "there are no huge explosions," which just made everything a whole lot better.

I think anyone would be able to enjoy it - even hardcore anti-mech people would get something out of it.

Although why anyone wouldn't enjoy huge explosions is beyond me. Cartoons are all about huge explosions!

Oh yeah, though for me it is tied with X as my second favorite. It also happened to be the most addicting one to watch, I think seeing over 10 episodes in one day speaks for itself. I feel bad that I didn't really appreciate the ending till seeing it the second time around.

X is next on my list, although I'm having a Gundam break for a few weeks. Burnout = bad. And I know what you mean about how addictive it is, especially the second half. But it's all great.

Out of genuine curiosity, why did it take a second viewing for you to appreciate the ending?

[A-R@D]

Otome wa Boku ni Koishiteru - 7/10
A guy crossdressing as a girl then attending an all girls academy? Cliched , but this is the kind of story that I generally enjoy watching for some reason.

Rebuild of Evangelion: 1.0 YOU ARE (NOT) ALONE - 9/10
Awesomeness. It was like a professional editor went and improved all the good things about the origional series and cut out all the flaws.

Ghost Hunt - 9/10
This is probably the first scary/supernatural shoujo I've seen that I actually liked a lot. Some of that stuff is actually pretty frightening.

[animanic_critic]

I thought the artwork was one of its high points.
It didn't work for me; it was too sketchy and untidy for me. For a show that is based on something as futuristic as quantum physics, I'd be under the impression that the artwork should be in the likes of GITS or something out of Production IG.

[Kavik Ryx]

Although why anyone wouldn't enjoy huge explosions is beyond me.

Out of genuine curiosity, why did it take a second viewing for you to appreciate the ending?

To answer the huge explosion thing, he finds the fact that everything explodes kind of stupid, which is understandable with how much it happens in mech anime.

About why it took me two viewings, it actually had a lot to do with my girlfriend breaking up with me the before I watched it, so I was not really up to watching it. Though the second time I saw it a couple months later, it was simply beautiful, though I think no the series should be renamed "Sochie's Life Sucks."

Though to actually add a rating of an anime (Note I saw this on my search for the worst anime out there and not out of any enjoyment factor.

Eiken: 0.5/10. It made me want to vomit. The jaded fanboy inside kept saying how empty the story was and the perverted fanboy in me was simply disgusted beyond belief. I think there is hentai with more taste than this.

[animanic_critic]

Ouran High School Host Club - 9.1/10

Now why didn't I watch this earlier? I've heard about how it was a sleeper hit for 2006 and I now understand why it was so popular. Furthermore, this is one series that I have a lot to say.

Ouran is one of the best reverse harem anime yet since Fruits Basket (valid deduction, isn't it). Here is one slapstick comedy that knows how to stay fresh despite using some repetitive gags. I'm glad they are implemented only for a few episodes. However, there are some gags which I find everlastingly hilarious. One particular instance is how the host club's snooty members are completely oblivious to the daily lives of commoners, like instant coffee for one.

Another thing I'm interested in is its one-off episodic approach where though some episodes can be boring, others can be brilliant like episode 13 (Haruhi in Wonderland). Talk about out-of-the-box ^^. Plus, I love how in the midst of all the laugh-out-loud chaos, there are some drama elements here and there. On stupid premises they may be, but some are genuine enough to be touching (episode 11 for one).

The best part about Ouran is the characters. Suou Tamaki is simply the best character that seiyuu Mamoru Miyano has voiced for yet. It never fails to amaze me on how he always tries to cover up his childish/moronic outbursts by looking cool to other girls especially Haruhi, and manages to keep in mind about his friends. Kind of reminds me of Luffy from One Piece for some reason. Plus his stupidity amazes me along with the twins, which is a welcoming change from their naughty demeanor at the beginning.

Honestly, I don't understand why there are news raving on his brilliant work as Light Yagami in Death Note light; I thought his work here is a lot better. One of my favorite characters of all time. Also, I have to give it to Haruhi's in-your-face replies and down-to-earth behavior, in contrast to the club's goofballs. Maaya Sakamoto's versatility here is apparent. Tamaki's larger-than-life presence can explain why I find the first half of the series better than the second. This is probably because of Tamaki's hilarity is more in the first. It's a relief that things went back to normal from episode 22 onwards (Mah?).

Haruhi + Tamaki = best couple since Nodame + Chiaki (it's more of a reverse case to me actually), apart from Honey and Mori. Honey-senpai's cuteness can kick Chiyo-chan's butt anytime. Lastly, episode 10 is personally the best episode of the series. I loved how
Kyouya and Haruhu's dad poke arrows at Tamaki. I also loved the Tamaki's dream at the start and the over-cautious scheming of him and the twins that end up in smokes. Imagine the shock on my face to see dad as an okama 0_0
This is the one of the best comedy since Cromartie for me. I'm so glad I've watched it soon enough.

[Marth]

Spirited Away: I saw this for the first time somewhat recently. Very good movie. My third favorite ghibli movie. Probably an 8.5/10

Ef A tale of Memories: I liked it. The art is beautiful, if a bit odd. The story's been done before, but I liked it. I'd say around an 8/10

Black Lagoon: I really enjoyed this one. Very fun action series. 9/10

Spice and Wolf: An interesting little show. 8/10.

Elfen Lied: I just finished rewatching this. Its very screwed up, and I'm not really sure how to rate it.

[Shadowmage]

Neko no Shuukai 7/10

Go watch it now! It's one minute long and it's easily available on a "certain" streamload site. The torrents are recommended for those who love to oogle at every frame of Makoto Shinkai's works.

Anyways, this short was a good laugh. I wish Chi's Sweet Home was this well animated and this snappy.

[KiraraKim]

Neko no Shuukai 7/10
Anyways, this short was a good laugh. I wish Chi's Sweet Home was this well animated and this snappy.

It was cute for something that is only 1 min but I actually think Chi acts more like a real cat (well minus the saccharine sweet voice) and that is what I like about it.

Although the manga>anime

[Shadowmage]

It was cute for something that is only 1 min but I actually think Chi acts more like a real cat (well minus the saccharine sweet voice) and that is what I like about it.
Well, yes. Shinkai's cats have always acted like human beings. I thought we established this with She and Her Cat. :)

[C0MPL3X]

While you guys are at it, check out the rest of Ani Kuri 15 series. They're all one minute long, directed by the best of the best in Japan (well, at least that was their concept), including Satoshi Kon, Oshii and Maeda and by studios like studio 4c, Madhouse and Production I.G.. Although I guess Makoto's short is the funniest and cutest out of them.

[Tremolo]

Baccano! - 9/10
Pretty much pure awesome in animated form.

Baccano! OVA - 8/10
Slower than the series and lacking in its unique manic energy, but it's a nice epilogue that wraps up things in a good way but leaves open the prospect of moar. Also, KAAAAROOOOOOOLLLUUUU.

Sword of the Stranger - 9/10
Holy christ on a stick this was good. Unlike some anime movies it didn't drag once, always a plus. Nice character interaction and absolutely jaw-dropping animation and action sequences. I'm serious, they are beyond incredible. The story isn't anything special but it doesn't really matter when everything is this enjoyable and spectacular to look at. Properly atmospheric, too. I wish more samurai anime were like this.

[laborpilot86]

Boogiepop Phantom...................8/10
creepy and thought-provoking urban gothic, without the graphic sexuality and brutal violence that typically prevades this subgenre.

[animanic_critic]

Ah! My Goddess: Fighting Wings (Tatakau Tsubasa) - 7.5/10

I felt a strange feeling of deja vu when I watched Tatakau Tsubasa. I found out that it's because it is similar to Tsubasa Tokyo Revelations - both are original animation videos (OAV/OVA), they branch out from the main plot and most importantly, there are the grittier version of the main series; rendering themselves more riveting from their already boring series.

I really relish the arrival of Lind and how the show revolves around her instead of Belldandy and Keiichi. Plus, the fighting scenes is a breath of fresh air from their routine fluffy romance. In conclusion, that was one good way for me to enjoy one hour of my free time.

[Tremolo]

Terra e... - 9.8/10
I can't believe this series is as ignored as it is. Because it's amazing. AMAZING. "Epic" more or less does it justice. This series does in 24 episodes what some would take 100 or more to do. It spans years, getting bigger and bigger with each perfectly-paced episode. It's pretty awe-inspiring stuff, it has to be said.

Beautiful to look at, full of compelling characters, brilliantly creative action sequences, spine-tingling music, wonderful drama and capped off with a fantastic ending, it really doesn't deserve to the lack of attention it's recieved.

I highly, highly recommend it. If you like sci-fi, epic storytelling or just great anime in general then it's an absolute must. Fucking watch it.

[Major Tom]

ARIA The Origination: 9 10
A stunning conclusion to a magnificant franchise. Origination took what was good from The Animation and The Natural and combined them into one show. The annoying pre-episode rant made a return, the chibi inserts did pop in and out at any time (sometimes a little out of place), there was one plot twist at the end that came out of nowhere (and didn't effect anything, but it had that 'what? when?' feeling) and occasionally the animation started chugging like an old computer, but in the end none of that is really here or there when the story sweeps you up in it's beautifully orchestrated arms and carries you away.

And carry you away it does. The bulk of the story (arguably the entire franchises story) is concentrated in the final 5 episodes, but unlike other shows that try the same it never ever felt rushed. You can tell when the pace picks up, but everything is done in its own time, and nothing feels out of place (aside from that small plot element that doesn't really do anything). This has much to do with the solid base we have to work from, the show has established the characters and their trials the past 30 something episodes.

The music has been placed perfectly and for maximum effect (damage?:p). Each charged scene is only enhanced by it's soundtrack.

All in all, Aria ends with that bittersweet 'it's done' feeling. Happy that it's ended, but sorry to see it go. The epilogue does leave a small opening for more, but I'd say anybody would have to be pretty damn careful with my show.

Edit: Scratch that, I'm giving it 10. The little bits that I said were not here or there really just aren't here or there, they didn't affect my enjoyment of the show. Aria just can't get much better than that.

[Barrelhaven]

Sword of the Stranger - 9/10
Holy christ on a stick this was good. Unlike some anime movies it didn't drag once, always a plus. Nice character interaction and absolutely jaw-dropping animation and action sequences. I'm serious, they are beyond incredible. The story isn't anything special but it doesn't really matter when everything is this enjoyable and spectacular to look at. Properly atmospheric, too. I wish more samurai anime were like this.

Yeah, I've been waiting forever for this movie (http://www.animeacademy.com/forums/showthread.php?t=24945&highlight=sword+stranger), and I'm relieved to say that patience was rewarded. Going into this, I had pretty high expectations for the action scenes, and they lived up to every ounce of it...delivering the best sword fights I've seen in anime. The actual story was a bit hokey with the whole immortality bit, but it's easily overlooked with the strong direction and excellent presentation.

[Milkymagic]

Pani Poni Dash!

I loved Excel Saga, I enjoyed Di Gi Charat, and I even found the craziness of FLCL to be enjoyable. But as far as anime that do things to provoke a reaction from the audience goes, I had a blank look on my face for most of the series. A true definition of a "hit-or-miss" anime that just didn't find me the qualified audience. Well, even after understanding some references and jokes, I still had trouble laughing at times.

Fortunately, there are enough funny portions to make it not feel like a waste of time, such as the appearance of "Archangel Michael" for instance, or even a number of onscreen random images that got a reaction out of me. However, I just wasn't assaulted with laughs like I was with other zany comedies, and it's almost like the series tried too hard to be something else at times.

An acquired taste to say the least.

6/10

[Shadowmage]

Toward the Terra: 9/10 (AA: 92%)

I second Trem's motion that this is an AWESOME epic. The story itself is so convoluted that I don't dare try to describe it, but to make a haphazard impression, think of The Matrix meets Infinite Ryvius meets Planetes. Shame the first few episodes suck so much. I'm sure the show would have been more popular if they were top tier like the rest of the show.

Tokyo Tribe 2: 7/10 (AA: 81%)

No, this is not a sequel. The title "Tokyo Tribe" has been licensed by MTV back in 2006, but the actual project seems to be in production hell.

Tokyo Tribe 2 is a Madhouse project that aired on WOWOW. If you know anything aobut the channel, you'll probably know that you'll either get very graphic violence or full body nudes with everything drawn in. Tokyo Tribe 2 gives both in a neon colored world of Japanese Gangtas trying to act like an Eastern perversion of their Western counterparts. It has an adequate story with decent characterization, but what makes this show worthwhile is the batshit crazy Madhouse imagery. The studio obviously has a lot of fun with this, and I couldn't help but be impressed.

PS The show has one of the most ****ing disturbing rape scenes of all time. Once you get past this, everything seems more or less benign. NOT SAFE FOR WORK Link (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xrhLdDIQ5Kk)

[KiraraKim]

Toward the Terra: 9/10 (AA: 92%)

I second Trem's motion that this is an AWESOME epic. The story itself is so convoluted that I don't dare try to describe it, but to make a haphazard impression, think of The Matrix meets Infinite Ryvius meets Planetes. Shame the first few episodes suck so much. I'm sure the show would have been more popular if they were top tier like the rest of the show.


Wow I am so happy to see all this Toward the Terra love suddenly pop up. It was such an under appreciated show when it was airing and yet it is one of the best from last year.

Don't forget that Bandai is selling the first 8 episodes for a really good price (subbed only)

http://www.amazon.com/Toward-Terra-Part-1/dp/B0019H6IUY/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1213301143&sr=8-1

[Tremolo]

Just to add to what Shadowmage says about the first few episodes in case anyone is giving it a try based on our comments on it, I'd say it's episode four where things get properly excellent. The first three are a bit mediocre but not bad viewing by any means (although it was ironic that the show fell by my personal wayside back when it was on just before it kicked into gear - see my thread from 2007 (http://www.animeacademy.com/forums/showthread.php?t=24496) for evidence). With episode four the awesome starts and doesn't really stop.

And the DVDs will be mine. Not immediately as I'm crossing my fingers for a UK release, but they WILL be mine.

[Kavik Ryx]

Bleach Memories of Nobody: 7/10. Surprisingly good, as far as movies based on overtly long anime go. Except for some of the backgrounds, the animation was quite crisp, and...okay pretty much everything Shadowmage said about the Shippuden movie. For what it is, it was good.

[C0MPL3X]

Just to add to what Shadowmage says about the first few episodes in case anyone is giving it a try based on our comments on it, I'd say it's episode four where things get properly excellent. The first three are a bit mediocre but not bad viewing by any means (although it was ironic that the show fell by my personal wayside back when it was on just before it kicked into gear - see my thread from 2007 (http://www.animeacademy.com/forums/showthread.php?t=24496) for evidence). With episode four the awesome starts and doesn't really stop.

I actually tried to watch the first episode on a whim through youtube (something I rarely do), just to get the 'feel' of it. My impression was that it didn't grab me, but it had potential, but I had WAY too much on the plate, so my decision at that point of time was a typical "wait for posts/reviews then decide".

Now that I have some time to catch up...let's see...there's Terra E...and also TTGL (which I also dropped on a whim...)...Zoku Zetsubou...Aria Origination...but I also want to start watching Avator that everyone's fangirling around (which is going to take 3 seasons worth...)

So...much to choose from...

*oh, should also start catching up on Kaiba and Kure-nai. I was also thinking of Macross F but considering what else is on offer at the moment...nah...

[Shadowmage]

*oh, should also start catching up on Kaiba and Kure-nai. I was also thinking of Macross F but considering what else is on offer at the moment...nah...

At least get the soundtrack for Macross F. It's Kano Yoko and it's worth your free time. Upload the music mp3 player and listen to it while you commute if you have to; just give them a chance.

[KiraraKim]

I actually tried to watch the first episode on a whim through youtube (something I rarely do), just to get the 'feel' of it. My impression was that it didn't grab me, but it had potential, but I had WAY too much on the plate, so my decision at that point of time was a typical "wait for posts/reviews then decide".

Now that I have some time to catch up...let's see...there's Terra E...and also TTGL (which I also dropped on a whim...)...Zoku Zetsubou...Aria Origination...but I also want to start watching Avator that everyone's fangirling around (which is going to take 3 seasons worth...)

So...much to choose from...

*oh, should also start catching up on Kaiba and Kure-nai. I was also thinking of Macross F but considering what else is on offer at the moment...nah...

Oh wow that's a lot of good stuff but it depends on what you are looking for

An artsy series then I would recommend Kaiba
A fun epic story I would recommend TTGL and Avatar
A more serious epic story I would recommend Terra E

I do like Kure-nai and Macross F but neither are amazing so I would recommend the others I listed first (although I do agree with Shadowmage about the OST for Macross)

[Tremolo]

Majin Tantei Nougami Neuro - 8/10
Strictly speaking this isn't a GREAT anime. Hardly ever does it smash through the ceiling and grab your balls in its sweaty hands - it's not that sort of show. But fear not, because the kind of show it is is a hugely entertaining one. Apart from the mind-numbing awfulness of episode 14, every minute of the series is fun, silly and sometimes disturbing entertainment that should please anyone with a liking for shounen, horror, comedy and a good mystery.

And speaking of the mysteries, those in Neuro are strange in that it's usually very easy to work out whodunnit but not anywhere near as easy to work out how, and as is usually the case with this sort of thing, the explanations are hugely engrossing. The fact that the main character is a sadistic, Alucard-esue demon detective who delights in torturing his long-suffering colleagues (or "slaves") makes it even more fun to watch.

Very solid entertainment from start to finish. I'd happily welcome a second season.

[Barrelhaven]

Jeez...I suppose I better give this Toward the Terra a shot then. What's with all the random love-fest for this show lately, anyway? Didn't it come out over a year ago? I barely heard any news of it since it aired, and now it's apparently popping up as awesome incarnate.

[KiraraKim]

Jeez...I suppose I better give this Toward the Terra a shot then. What's with all the random love-fest for this show lately, anyway? Didn't it come out over a year ago? I barely heard any news of it since it aired, and now it's apparently popping up as awesome incarnate.

I actually watched the show when it aired (well okay I caught up in the last 2 weeks of its airing but still) and loved it but no one was watching it on here so I didn't want to discuss it by myself. But it was definitely one of my favorite shows from 2007.

2007 had a lot of great shows (too bad 2008 isn't living up to it at all). But yeah I strongly recommend it. Although be patient with it because it doesn't show its full promise until about episode 5 I think.

[Shadowmage]

Jeez...I suppose I better give this Toward the Terra a shot then. What's with all the random love-fest for this show lately, anyway? Didn't it come out over a year ago? I barely heard any news of it since it aired, and now it's apparently popping up as awesome incarnate.

I dropped it at episode 2 a while back. If I had given the show the three episode test. I still would have dropped it.

Why?

Episode 1: Not bad, but it's quite mediocre overall. I really don't care about the characters, but the premise seems interesting enough.

Episode 2: Angst! And very, very forced angst too. RahXephon had developed its characters before Ayato went emo about his true identity, but this sure doesn't know subtlety.

The primary reason I gave this a second shot was because it's summer and I had the free time.

EDIT: My bad. The DBZ thing was episode 4.

[Kavik Ryx]

I apologize beforehand for the self indulgence of rating the bits and pieces of an entire franchise, but I just can't resist. GUNDAM SEED DESTINY. As of now I have essentially seen the entire Gundam canon, barring the 0079 movies, Final Plus, and a couple comp movies, I'm going to be an ass and place them in relation to GSD. With AA *%, NHRV */10, a high and a low. Note the percentage and the number are on two entirely different scales.

Mobile Suit Gundam: 89%; 8/10; excellent direction; lingering Super Robot tenancies
Zeta Gundam: 95%; 9/10; solid plot and story; uneven distribution of characters
Gundam ZZ: 82%; 8/10; nice character chemistry; must brace for impact at the beginning
Char's Counterattack: 90%; 9/10 appropriately epic ending; a few cameos wouldn't hurt
0080 War in the Pocket: 91%; 9/10; tear inducing; nothing comes to mind
F91: 75%; 6/10; hits hard; underdeveloped
0083 Stardust Memory: 78%; 7/10; epic on all cylinder; poor synergy
Victory Gundam: 89%; 9/10; horrifyingly creepy; did I mention it's creepy
G Gundam: 81%; 7/10; just plain fun; am I supposed to take this seriously or not
Gundam Wing: 42%; 3/10; excellent soundtrack; pitiful execution
08th MS Team: 69%; 5/10; unique premise; and screws it up
Gundam X: 92%; 8/10; Great cast; damn you cancellation
Endless Waltz: 72%; 7/10; AC but watchable; still doesn't save the TV series
Turn A Gundam: 92%; 9/10; unique down to the very core; nothing really
GUNDAM SEED: 70%; 6/10; dramatically sound; dramatically over the top
GSD--- See bottom
MS IGloo: 70%; 6/10; unique premise; not much in the character department
CE 73 Stargazer: 68%; 6/10; SEED without the melodrama; too concise
Gundam 00: 82%; 8/10; Surprisingly mature take on Gundam; a tad dry

Now GUNDAM SEED DESTINY: 59%; 4/10; had potential for excellence;
AND SCREWED UP MASSIVELY.
I don't think I have to explain much on GSDs faulting because they are common knowledge by now. But everything was set in place to be good. But every time a safety rope came to rescue the series from a pitfall, either Shin goes extra angsty, Kira takes center stage; or flashbacks ensue. Seriously if the last episode was from a different story scenario, it would have been good, but with 49 eps proceeding saying otherwise, DESTINY's greatest fault is that it does the exact opposite of good storytelling. Sorry for this rant, and thank you for not kicking me off this thread or forum for this selfish self satisfaction.

[animanic_critic]

Now GUNDAM SEED DESTINY: 59%; 4/10; had potential for excellence;
AND SCREWED UP MASSIVELY.
I don't think I have to explain much on GSDs faulting because they are common knowledge by now. But everything was set in place to be good. But every time a safety rope came to rescue the series from a pitfall, either Shin goes extra angsty, Kira takes center stage; or flashbacks ensue. Seriously if the last episode was from a different story scenario, it would have been good, but with 49 eps proceeding saying otherwise, DESTINY's greatest fault is that it does the exact opposite of good storytelling. Sorry for this rant, and thank you for not kicking me off this thread or forum for this selfish self satisfaction.
Personally, when I see how the series ripped off most of their material from Gundam SEED, I thought SEED Destiny is already screwed from the start. At least the J-Pop and animation were a feast to the senses but dang, how angsty can the characters get in Destiny >.>

[Tremolo]

Shigurui - 9/10
Scarier than any horror anime you could possibly care to mention. Nail-bitingly intense, incredibly disturbing, with gore and violence so strong it's almost like porn for crazy fetishists... this is absolutely not for the faint of heart.

It is however completely brilliant. And I wasn't expecting it to be at all, simply because I'm not massively keen on samurai stuff (only Champloo and Sword of the Stranger have really done it for me) - but this... maybe it's the claustrophobic, dread-soaked atmosphere, the nightmarish dream sequences, the compellingly serious characters, the gorgeous art. If you let it you'll be completely caught up in each deliberately-paced but totally engrossing episode.

It's just a shame that it's incomplete. There's more material left to be animated and I'm really hoping that it does. Second season, please?

[Ghostmaster]

Yeah I might have to start watching Toward the Terra as well, I had the same question since I thought it was least a year or so old, why everyone was talking about it recently. But Tremolo I will go with your reccomendation and perhaps start watching this.

[Tremolo]

I think it's a word of mouth thing, coupled with Bandai's early licensing of it (obviously they knew they were onto a good thing!). That was why I gave it another shot after the relatively mediocre opening three episodes and I'm amazingly glad I did - I think it's probably in my top ten now.

If you like big sci-fi epics/space opera you might get a wee bit more out of it, but really if you want a great anime series to watch then this is it.

[Kavik Ryx]

Personally, when I see how the series ripped off most of their material from Gundam SEED, I thought SEED Destiny is already screwed from the start. At least the J-Pop and animation were a feast to the senses but dang, how angsty can the characters get in Destiny >.>

Well from the beginning, despite reading the end of a lengthy rant about it being exactly how to not do a Gundam series, I gave GSD the benefit of the doubt. I had liked SEED, especially with it being one of the three series that got me into the franchise (along with 0079 and 0083). And for the first 13 episodes I was impressed, and then on episode 16 there was five minutes spent on a launch sequence, and I started bracing for the worst. I don't even hate DESTINY, I happen to like Shin and most of the new cast. But the series just seemed to sabotage itself from the inside out, thank you very much Chiaki Morisawa and Flashback em all Fukada.

[Barrelhaven]

...simply because I'm not massively keen on samurai stuff (only Champloo and Sword of the Stranger have really done it for me)

You should probably check out Rurouni Kenshin Tsuiokuhen. It's more serious than its TV-counterpart. The pacing is a bit slow along the lines of Shigurui, but it's got wicked swordplay action that ranks up there with Sword of the Stranger and Samurai Champloo. The story isn't as dark as Shigurui's, but it's serious and well-scripted nevertheless.

[C0MPL3X]

Shigurui - 9/10
...
It's just a shame that it's incomplete. There's more material left to be animated and I'm really hoping that it does. Second season, please?
Amen to that.

Anyway, up to episode 6 of Terra . Won't say much until I see the whole thing but I just want to say I really like background art, or more specifically their design (as they lack the meticulous details in features or rendering of Seirei or 5cm/sec). Interior of spaceship and buildings especially, I think a lot more thoughts have been put into them compared to your stock anime backgrounds.

[Kavik Ryx]

Gasaraki: 5/10. For all the anime I've seen (that didn't deserve to be thrown into the fires of hell), this is the only one that has felt like a chore to watch. So much energy was needed to get through that I am surprised I even made it even to disc two. What was odd might have been that the whole story revolving around Gasara was so boring and the high point was something as obscure as the rising prices of grain exports.

[Akuhei]

Majin Tantei Nougami Neuro - 8/10
Strictly speaking this isn't a GREAT anime. Hardly ever does it smash through the ceiling and grab your balls in its sweaty hands - it's not that sort of show. But fear not, because the kind of show it is is a hugely entertaining one. Apart from the mind-numbing awfulness of episode 14, every minute of the series is fun, silly and sometimes disturbing entertainment that should please anyone with a liking for shounen, horror, comedy and a good mystery.

And speaking of the mysteries, those in Neuro are strange in that it's usually very easy to work out whodunnit but not anywhere near as easy to work out how, and as is usually the case with this sort of thing, the explanations are hugely engrossing. The fact that the main character is a sadistic, Alucard-esue demon detective who delights in torturing his long-suffering colleagues (or "slaves") makes it even more fun to watch.

Very solid entertainment from start to finish. I'd happily welcome a second season.

Thanks for writing that, I kind of needed to watch something like this show and it definitely made me happy o_o (haven't really watched anime in a while, this was probably my first series in half a year). It felt kind of weird because it felt like it shouldn't be good, but it was. Or maybe my brain just isn't functioning right cause I'm sick.

[C0MPL3X]

Toward the Terra - 9/10

Not much to add other than what has already been said. I would say it's more of Brave New World meets Sci-Fi in that there's interesting conflict of ideas between humans and Mus (which parallels the philosophical debate between Mond and John), although I guess there's that "we want to survive!" element of Ryvius mixed in as well.
*actually the characters of Terra are infinitely more selfless than those of Ryvius. It's more of "I need you to survive"

I also loved the brief Peter Pan connection with Shiroei and Keith, which reminded me of Pied Pier metaphor in Boogiepop Phantom. They both explore childhood and innocence lost in adulthood and hey, they even look like brothers!

http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a258/L4lN/poonpoon11.jpg?t=1213954233
http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a258/L4lN/A-E__Saizen_Toward_the_Terra_09_A39.jpg?t=1213954234

Actually there are quite a number of anime that plays around with fairy tales with a twist (Red Riding Hood of Jin Roh, Prince/Princess of Utena and of course, countless examples from Tutu). Just that the above two examples I find very alluring.

[Zelkiiro]

Ninja Resurrection - 4/10: I liked the artwork, and the action scenes were stupid fun. Everything else was just terrible. :<

[Kavik Ryx]

Legend of the Galactic Heroes: My Conquest is the Sea of Stars: 9.5/10. I don't even know where to begin here. And to be honest I don't know if I can say everything good in this movie. It's sort of one of those see it to believe it kind of things. And now, well actually once I finish up Death Note and Gunbuster, I think its high time to get underway with watching LOGH, the longest OVA ever to be produced.

[Ghostmaster]

Ninja Resurrection - 4/10: I liked the artwork, and the action scenes were stupid fun. Everything else was just terrible. :<

Haha I watched literally the first 15 or 20 mins of that movie on tv with my friend we could not take much more than that and had to turn it off it was that bad.

[Tremolo]

Claymore - 8/10
I went into this with not massively high impressions (I expected another "hunt and kill the monsters!" sort of show) and was generally VERY pleasantly surprised.

Yes, the last few episodes are a bit of a drop in quality, but the actual ending is pretty OK and didn't leave a sour taste in the mouth like I was dreading. Prior to that, Claymore was terrific fun all the way and I dug every minute of it. The atmosphere, the characters (lots of great female characters = hooray!), the designs, everything... just superb. (:D)

I've already started to collect the manga.

[Barrelhaven]

Wow, you've been on one helluva tear lately, Trem.

[Zelkiiro]

Haha I watched literally the first 15 or 20 mins of that movie on tv with my friend we could not take much more than that and had to turn it off it was that bad.
I also marathoned half of Lucky Star.

I'm impervious to bad.

[Sorrow-kun]

Gasaraki: 5/10. For all the anime I've seen (that didn't deserve to be thrown into the fires of hell), this is the only one that has felt like a chore to watch. So much energy was needed to get through that I am surprised I even made it even to disc two. What was odd might have been that the whole story revolving around Gasara was so boring and the high point was something as obscure as the rising prices of grain exports.
Wow, you didn't like Gasaraki? I loved it. It's one of the better political commentaries I've seen in anime (which are few and far between to begin with). Probably not quite as relevant in the post-Bush era as it was before then. But still, I thought it was very intelligent, nonetheless.

[Milkymagic]

Gasaraki: 5/10. For all the anime I've seen (that didn't deserve to be thrown into the fires of hell), this is the only one that has felt like a chore to watch. So much energy was needed to get through that I am surprised I even made it even to disc two. What was odd might have been that the whole story revolving around Gasara was so boring and the high point was something as obscure as the rising prices of grain exports.

I wasn't big on Gasaraki myself when I first saw it, mostly because I preferred Patlabor's approach, and felt Gasaraki could've made better usage of all the political aspects by ditching the whole "Gasara" bit. Nonetheless, I wouldn't call it crap, but it definitely wasn't up my alley per say.

Ninja Resurrection - 4/10: I liked the artwork, and the action scenes were stupid fun. Everything else was just terrible. :<

The one shining achievement I saw in this anime:

Ninja + Jetpack = awesome

I didn't think this anime was very good, it was quite unfinished for what I expected, but the first episode had more of a point than that needless second episode that featured no worthwhile events until the very end. Why did they try developing anything if it was going to be that short to begin with? They should've just opened a can of "Whup-Ass" and created more of the deliriously absurd action that was featured in the first episode, at least it would've kept that stupid grin on my face left from the ninja on the jetpack.

[Kavik Ryx]

About Gasaraki, I thoroughly enjoyed its political B plot, thus my interests with the whole grain export thing. However, the Gasara A plot was incredibly boring. It's far from being crap, in fact it is quite good, but there is so much to trudge through to get there. Ultimately, I knew a story would be good if it involved the SSDF. Though their involvement was so little compared to (sigh) Miharu, (facepalm) Kazukiyo, and (cringe) Nishida. Without all the mysticism, it is quite good. But then again there may have also been some sort of cultural divide that made it hard to get.

[animanic_critic]

About Gasaraki, I thoroughly enjoyed its political B plot, thus my interests with the whole grain export thing. However, the Gasara A plot was incredibly boring. It's far from being crap, in fact it is quite good, but there is so much to trudge through to get there. Ultimately, I knew a story would be good if it involved the SSDF. Though their involvement was so little compared to (sigh) Miharu, (facepalm) Kazukiyo, and (cringe) Nishida. Without all the mysticism, it is quite good. But then again there may have also been some sort of cultural divide that made it hard to get.
I can't agree more. The big problem with Gasaraki is that it's so slow-paced and dull that they nullify the potentially incredible political drama. I (and maybe Kavik) may be used to associating political high drama with some fast-paced storytelling, oh say something like GITS: SAC 2nd GIG.

[laborpilot86]

Gasaraki is bit to ethnocentric and brainy for its own good. Its certainly not Ryosuke Takahashi's best, but I like it overall.

[Zelkiiro]

Lupin III: In Memory of Walther P38 - 9/10: I thought it was terrific, but the ending came and went a little too quickly for my tastes.

Lupin III: To Hell with Nostradamus! - 8/10: To be honest, I liked the ending to this one, Lupin purists be damned. I just wanted more Zenigata.

[C0MPL3X]

Zoku Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei - 9/10

This show is ****ing insane. And no character in anime is more batshit insane than Chiri.

[Kavik Ryx]

Garzey's Wing: 3/10. Easily Tomino's worst work, by a lot. Things happen, stuff is left unexplained, the story is more incomplete than F-91, and don't even get me started on that giant duck. On the other hand, it had some nice action sequences, I didn't sit through what's supposed to be a god awful english dub, and I can safely say that it wasn't the worst piece of crap I've ever seen.

[silan]

Majin Tantei Nougami Neuro - 8/10
Strictly speaking this isn't a GREAT anime. Hardly ever does it smash through the ceiling and grab your balls in its sweaty hands - it's not that sort of show. But fear not, because the kind of show it is is a hugely entertaining one. Apart from the mind-numbing awfulness of episode 14, every minute of the series is fun, silly and sometimes disturbing entertainment that should please anyone with a liking for shounen, horror, comedy and a good mystery.

And speaking of the mysteries, those in Neuro are strange in that it's usually very easy to work out whodunnit but not anywhere near as easy to work out how, and as is usually the case with this sort of thing, the explanations are hugely engrossing. The fact that the main character is a sadistic, Alucard-esue demon detective who delights in torturing his long-suffering colleagues (or "slaves") makes it even more fun to watch.

Very solid entertainment from start to finish. I'd happily welcome a second season.
I agree with this pretty much word for word. I watched this series because I got really hooked on the manga. I have to say I like the manga more after all, but the anime was really very enjoyable and just a lot of fun to watch. Neuro's interactions with Yako and Gotai are always hilarious to watch, and his solutions to the mysteries are fascinating. And when I reached the end, all I could think was, "That's it? Where's season 2?!"

I want more.

On that basis alone, I'd give it a 9/10. There were flaws, but they were always overpowered by the sheer enjoyability of each episode.

If "enjoyability" is a word...

[A-R@D]

Towards the Terra 8/10 - After watching the first thirteen episodes of this when it was airing, I decided to go back and re-watch the whole thing. The Sci-fi elements are great, I think the characters are lacking somewhat though, The character of the major villian and the main side characters doesnt seem fully explored.

[C0MPL3X]

That was part of my problem with Toward the Terra as well, along with an approach to direction that relied bit too much of melodrama. I think part of that is however resolved by excellent portrayal of what emotion they're going through (I don't know, maybe it was epic soundtrack), even though the exploration behind them might night be as strong as a show like Infinite Ryvius. The show deserves (IMO) something between 8 and 9 out of 10, but I tend to be generous on the ratings relatively so..especially the ones I really like.

[Shadowmage]

I too felt that the characters were a bit lacking, but I was so amazed at how much they accomplished in the short time span that I shelved most of my reservations.

Ultimately, I found that Toward the Terra was more about its story than the characters (which is ironic since the anime is pretty much about the interactions of the characters).

[KiraraKim]

Hmm while I wouldn't say Toward the Terra had the best cast of characters I actually liked the development of the characters. I especially liked Keith's characterization.

But the contrast between Jomy and Tony was interesting too. But I guess Toward the Terra was more plot driven than character driven.

[Tremolo]

Does EVERY anime have to have ultra-developed and in-depth characters if the storyline is good, though? Really? Can't they have enough depth so that they don't work against the plot but also sustain our interest (which they did)? I mean, I agree that the storyline has work a bit harder for this to be pulled off (the first half of Gundam 00 is a case in point where not enough character depth makes things come off as quite dry), but it can be pulled off and it is marvellously in Toward the Terra.

I agree with this pretty much word for word. I watched this series because I got really hooked on the manga. I have to say I like the manga more after all, but the anime was really very enjoyable and just a lot of fun to watch. Neuro's interactions with Yako and Gotai are always hilarious to watch, and his solutions to the mysteries are fascinating. And when I reached the end, all I could think was, "That's it? Where's season 2?!"

I want more.

On that basis alone, I'd give it a 9/10. There were flaws, but they were always overpowered by the sheer enjoyability of each episode.

If "enjoyability" is a word...

"Enjoyability" isn't a word, but it clearly should be because it sums up Neuro so well!

I'm going to start reading the manga soon (I have a craving for more mysteries!), although I'm almost tempted to wait for Viz's inevitable licensing of it and releasing it under their "Shonen Jump Advance" label, because you know that's totally what's going to happen.

[A-R@D]

Trem, I get what you are saying, and No every story doesnt need great characters. I did give it an 8/10 so I found it very enjoyable. Yet, I just felt there is a degree to the characters that makes them feel slightly off, or not believibly real. It's odd because in a sci-fi like Kaiba, with much less realism and WAY less dialogue the characters feel much more authentic than here. As I said though this only detracted from my enjoyment slightly, a minor flaw in what I percieve to be a very good anime.

[silan]

I'm going to start reading the manga soon (I have a craving for more mysteries!), although I'm almost tempted to wait for Viz's inevitable licensing of it and releasing it under their "Shonen Jump Advance" label, because you know that's totally what's going to happen.
I really hope so. With all the crap/cliche manga that is getting licensed nowadays, they really need to snatch up more manga like this one. It's definitely unique and so much fun to read.

[Tremolo]

Trem, I get what you are saying, and No every story doesnt need great characters. I did give it an 8/10 so I found it very enjoyable. Yet, I just felt there is a degree to the characters that makes them feel slightly off, or not believibly real. It's odd because in a sci-fi like Kaiba, with much less realism and WAY less dialogue the characters feel much more authentic than here. As I said though this only detracted from my enjoyment slightly, a minor flaw in what I percieve to be a very good anime.

Fair enough. I do disagree in the extent that I found Keith quite fascinating (including his bizarre relationship with Matsuka which I felt was all the more effective because it wasn't examined in great detail) and I loved seeing Jomy's transformation from hotheaded kid to world weary warrior. I suppose them not ultimately feeling real to you could well be down to either the source material's age (the original manga is only three volumes, too) or simply that character realism isn't something that necessarily always comes with these big, epic sci-fi sagas. I think the slightly theatrical, almost operatic nature of these sort of things don't usually lend themselves to realistic characters. That's just my take on things though, it might not be the case!

I really hope so. With all the crap/cliche manga that is getting licensed nowadays, they really need to snatch up more manga like this one. It's definitely unique and so much fun to read.

I certainly don't see why it wouldn't. Shonen Jump properties nearly always do really well, and I definitely think the more superficial elements of the series like Neuro's design would catch the eye of browsers.

I hear what you're saying about the large amount of crap manga flooding the market these days, although I'm biased because I'm ridiculously picky and fussy when it comes to Japanese comics. I think the amount of titles I could list as absolute favourites probably wouldn't be anymore than ten. And I do feel a bit bad about that - I just can't afford to have anymore than the three (soon to be four) series I have on the go at the moment. >_>

[KiraraKim]

Trem, I get what you are saying, and No every story doesnt need great characters. I did give it an 8/10 so I found it very enjoyable. Yet, I just felt there is a degree to the characters that makes them feel slightly off, or not believibly real. It's odd because in a sci-fi like Kaiba, with much less realism and WAY less dialogue the characters feel much more authentic than here. As I said though this only detracted from my enjoyment slightly, a minor flaw in what I percieve to be a very good anime.


Well I do agree with you that Kaiba has intriguing characters, even one-time characters get interesting development (more people watch Kaiba please :) ) but I actually thought the characters of Terra E were really well developed (with the exception of Physis).

But characters like Keith, Matsuka, Jomy, Tony, even Blue all really stood out to me.

Keith was one of my favorite characters last season and one of my favorite anime villains in general (funny that you mention Kaiba because Popo might take that seat this year)

[A-R@D]

Well I do agree with you that Kaiba has intriguing characters, even one-time characters get interesting development (more people watch Kaiba please :) ) but I actually thought the characters of Terra E were really well developed (with the exception of Physis).

But characters like Keith, Matsuka, Jomy, Tony, even Blue all really stood out to me.

Keith was one of my favorite characters last season and one of my favorite anime villains in general (funny that you mention Kaiba because Popo might take that seat this year)

Yeah, I think some of the main characters were developed well. Jomy, Blue and Keith for sure, but something about them didn't strike me as believeable. I guess I am saying I didn't buy into their character. I realise this is a high-level critism that the vast majority of anime series don't even warrant, so that is saying something about the quality of what I watched.

[Kausin]

Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya = 8
Legend of Black Heaven = 6
5 cm/sec = 9
Kaiba = 9
Lucky Star = 4

[Kavik Ryx]

Gunbuster: 8/10
I'm not gonna ramble on, so I'll leave it at these two points. It was so god damn fun, and it singlehandedly did a service to the anime industry.

[C0MPL3X]

Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann - 10/10

No ****ing generosity here. I tried to think of something witty in What I saw/expected/got thread but there's no image I can find to describe what I just saw and well, pictures of epic and awesome is getting old. I could try to nickpick and find flaws but at the end of the day, none of them matters because they didn't affect in anyway such a sheer enjoyment. After episode 16, I thought the show was trying to take itself more seriously than needed with bunch of politics and weakening of Simon's spirit but thankfully everything else after that was back to pure awesome.

And reading the old TTGL thread, I too have to laugh at SC with Niner.

*gee, I'm supposed to be exhausted from such a long viewing but I feel more energised (at 1 am to boot).

[Shadowmage]

Magical Lyrical Nanoha - 5/10

I'll be blunt. I hate the Magical Girl genre. There's either too much fanservice or too much (suffocating) cuteness. I've heard from a variety of places that the first Lyrical Nanoha does things differently, and I must admit the claims are qualified. Shinbo has an eye for little visual quirks that make each scene look more interesting even without a modest budget. Also, the action is above par more often than not.

The reason I'm still calling this show mediocre is because Shinbo just doesn't do enough things differently with this project. His visual genius can save a lot of sh*t, but it feels like his magic kicked in every four episodes or so (a horrible ratio for 13 episodes), and even then, only for a few minutes. The overall premise is copy and pasted from Card Captor Sakura, the story is a bunch of meh (CCS with a sci fi twist) and the characters are flat, cardboard cut outs from CCS.

The only things I'll probably remember from this is the nude loli henshin sequence which grated my nerves the umpteenth time it replayed (and raised an eybrow to the back of my head the first time it played), and one of the later Fate v. Nanoha fight scenes which pretty much said **** you to the art in lieu of dynamic choreography.

Black Lagoon - 7/10

This is an over the top gunslinging action anime from Studio Madhouse about the ventures of a blood-thirsty chick, an average Joe, a genius hacker, and a coolheaded leader person. To put it crudely, think Cowboy Bebop but replace the Jazz with Rock and Hollywood short stories with Shounen Action short stories.

The story of Black Lagoon is built through a series of short stories showcasing conflicts ranging from smuggling a highly classified CD to fighting Neo Nazis to fighting a maid with a suitcase mini gun. It's quite entertaining stuff especially, and the solid production values make it all the more sweeter.

While there are many differences to Cowboy Bebop, the largest one is in the core of the characters. Sure, they all look alike when they fool around and play, but when crap goes down, the crew of Cowboy Bebop linger in a perpetual sense of gray; the crew of Black Lagoon (specifically the chick, Revy) turn pitch black. I remember a scene in Cowboby Bebop where the main character grants a dying man his final wish of returning to the warzone where he lost his humanity. In Black Lagoon, Revy would say "f*ck you" and drag the dying man to the jail (force feeding him blood to keep him "alive") to collect the money reward. The stories here may be gimmicky, but the characters are grounded in the grotesque filth of reality.

Black Lagoon: Second Barrage - 8/10

This sequel is essentially a coninuation to the the first Black Lagoon through a series of three short stories. The atmosphere is the same, the characters are the same, and the stories assume the same shounen action setup. The reason I rate this higher than the first season is because I feel that this has another layer of darkness.

How? You ask? Well, I admit, the second story (of the three) is just a casual, mindless romp, but the first and second had moments that disturbed the living hell out of me. The first story deals with a pair of superhuman gothic children who essentially masterbate on the desecrated corpses of people they've horribly tortured for the sheer fun of it. I balked at how contrived this premise was, but as I watched through the mini arc, the show managed to rip out a plausible explanation as to how children can get this ****ed up (Gunslinger Girl has nothing on this). The third story is about the succession of a high school girl into the leadership of the Yakuza that's being raped by the Russian Mafia. Melodrama ensues, people die, and I can't be left but mildly awed at the story that was told.

[Zelkiiro]

Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann - 10/10

No ****ing generosity here. I tried to think of something witty in What I saw/expected/got thread but there's no image I can find to describe what I just saw and well, pictures of epic and awesome is getting old. I could try to nickpick and find flaws but at the end of the day, none of them matters because they didn't affect in anyway such a sheer enjoyment. After episode 16, I thought the show was trying to take itself more seriously than needed with bunch of politics and weakening of Simon's spirit but thankfully everything else after that was back to pure awesome.

And reading the old TTGL thread, I too have to laugh at SC with Niner.

*gee, I'm supposed to be exhausted from such a long viewing but I feel more energised (at 1 am to boot).
:icon_danc

[KiraraKim]

Magical Lyrical Nanoha - 5/10

I'll be blunt. I hate the Magical Girl genre. There's either too much fanservice or too much (suffocating) cuteness. I've heard from a variety of places that the first Lyrical Nanoha does things differently, and I must admit the claims are qualified. Shinbo has an eye for little visual quirks that make each scene look more interesting even without a modest budget. Also, the action is above par more often than not.



If you want a really good magical girl series then Princess Tutu is a must if you haven't already seen it.

I could talk more about it but this video sums it up quite nicely :)


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tHZqxecCukg

[7Th]

I could talk more about it but this video sums it up quite nicely :)


Princess Tutu is a compelling and very endearing show, but I never got the internet obsession over that "Hold Me" music video.

[Tremolo]

Princess Tutu is a compelling and very endearing show, but I never got the internet obsession over that "Hold Me" music video.

Really? I mean, I know it's a subjective thing but I'm sure you'd at least acknowledge it's a pretty high quality AMV. From my perspective people probably got really excited over it because it's an incredibly well edited music video timed wonderfully to a cool song that fits with the series and generally demonstrates overall how good Princess Tutu actually is, destroying the misconceptions that it's a drippy girly series about ballet. I'd certainly take it over some AMV of long, badly-edited clips of Naruto fights stuck to a Linkin Park song.

And it's what got me watching the series in the first place, so I have a lot of affection for it.

[KiraraKim]

And it's what got me watching the series in the first place, so I have a lot of affection for it.

Yeah that pretty much sums it up for me too. I had vaguely heard about Princess Tutu before watching the video but since I wasn't into the magical girl genre I wasn't really interested but after watching that video I knew it was a must see. I ended up posting the video on my LJ and getting more people interested. And if you ask people how they got into the series more than half will tell you it was because of that video.

So it's doing something right. :)

[A-R@D]

Yawara! A Fashionable Judo Girl - 8/10 I finally found the first half of this and I have to say I really like this. The Manga is of Naoki Urasawa one of his earlier works and also his only shoujo that I know of. It plays out like a shoujo version of Hajime no Ippo , except it's Judo instead of boxing. Now if only if I can get a hold of the second 60 episodes (its about 120 episodes in length) I would be very happy.

As far as flaws go, I would say that the character development of Yawara is very slow, and her character lacks the passion for Judo that I think it takes for someone to succeed at a sport (granted she is supposed to be a Mozart-like prodigy at Judo). I imagine the second half of the series might resolve this, but I can't seem to find any more episodes of this to confirm. Yet, what I saw was still excellent despite the unresolved plot.

[Milkymagic]

Gunbuster: 8/10
I'm not gonna ramble on, so I'll leave it at these two points. It was so god damn fun, and it singlehandedly did a service to the anime industry.

Glad to see it's had an impact on you, it certainly did a number on me when I first saw it years ago, and has kept its impact since then! ;)

Yawara! A Fashionable Judo Girl - 8/10 I finally found the first half of this and I have to say I really like this. The Manga is of Naoki Urasawa one of earlier works and also his only shoujo that I know of. It plays out like a shoujo version of Hajime no Ippo , except it's Judo instead of boxing. Now if only if I can get a hold of the second 60 episodes (its about 120 episodes in length) I would be very happy.

As far as flaws go, I would say that the character development of Yawara is very slow, and her character lacks the passion for Judo that I think it takes for someone to succeed at a sport (granted she is supposed to be a Mozart-like prodigy at Judo). I imagine the second half of the series might resolve this, but I can't seem to find any more episodes of this to confirm. Yet, what I saw was still excellent despite the unresolved plot.

I'm glad to hear good things about this anime, ever since Animeigo announced they had licensed it a while back, I was very excited in obtaining the series because of some research I had done on it just months prior to that announcement.

Hopefully it does well for the company.

[Sharkman]

Full Metal Panic! 8/10
Full Metal Panic! The Second Raid 8.5/10
Full Metal Panic? Fumoffu 6/10
Shuffle! 6/10

[KiraraKim]

While I replied on this thread multiple times I don't think I ever reviewed anything (well no time like the present). :)

Ōkiku Furikabutte- 8/10


This is sports anime done right. There are no super powered players or super moves, it's really just a show about regular kids playing baseball. This might sound boring but what makes this show appealing is these regular kids are just so likable that you can't help to cheer for them. There is also that really nice sense of teamwork and friendship that permeates all shounen anime but it never feels overboard here (and I am pretty sure this series is actually seinen). The opposing teams are also depicted as real kids and not evil villains. Also the animation is well done so the characters actually look like they are playing baseball.

Probably my only gripe is the main character can be annoying at times but not to the point that the series is unwatchable. And when I say he is annoying I don't mean in the way Naruto is annoying. In fact this character is the complete opposite of Naruto.

Another thing that brings the series down is its length at only 25 episodes it only covers 2 games (although a very thorough two games). The series is based on an ongoing manga so I hope there will be second season. This series definitely deserves one.

[A-R@D]

Baccano! - 6/10 - This surprised me, because I tried really hard to like it, because of all the praise it was getting. But, I couldn't get past some really stupid and annoying character gimmicks, an uninteresting plot, and the inane prologues.

Kaiji - 7/10 - This is like akagi, except the gambling for your lifel. Wagering your life on a rock paper scissors game or on crossing a beam many stories over the ground sounds interesting, but after a while it had me yawning a bit because they dragged it way out for suspense.

Master Keaton - 9/10 - Urasawa really surprises me sometimes, this is his one work that I though I would not like, but I turned out liking it as much as anything he has done. Master Keaton can be a bit episodic, but almost each episode is very entertaining and had my enjoyment from beginning to end.

[Barrelhaven]

Baccano! - 6/10 - This surprised me, because I tried really hard to like it, because of all the praise it was getting. But, I couldn't get past some really stupid and annoying character gimmicks, an uninteresting plot, and the inane prologues.

I find it hard to see how you can say all that about Baccano, yet like Soul Eater so much.

[A-R@D]

I find it hard to see how you can say all that about Baccano, yet like Soul Eater so much.

Well, for one Soul Eater hasn't got nearly the praise that Baccano! has gotten, so I didn't start watching it expecting to be impressed. Also, I find Soul Eater's fights, animation and art at another level compared to Baccano!, so that keeps my interest level, while Baccano! had nothing to keep my interest at all. Truthfully I only find one character in soul eater annoying (black star) and all the other characters I find to be pretty good. While in Baccano! I found all the main characters to be gimmicky and more importantly uninteresting.

[C0MPL3X]

also, I Find Soul Eater's Fights, Animation And Art At Another Level Compared To Baccano!, So That Keeps My Interest Level, While Baccano! Had Nothing To Keep My Interest At All. Truthfully I Only Find One Character In Soul Eater Annoying (black Star) And All The Other Characters I Find To Be Pretty Good. While In Baccano! I Found All The Main Characters To Be Gimmicky And More Importantly Uninteresting.
Fail!

[A-R@D]

Fail!

I put the exclamation point after, just because thats how the series is officially titled. Also, why did you capitalize every word? Is that supposed to be making fun of my grammar? If, so I apologize because I am used to writing in German, where all nouns are capitalized.

[C0MPL3X]

I honestly have no idea why everything I've quoted is capitalised. I sure didn't take the ridiculous effort to do it manually myself (not that I wanted to anyway).

It's a mystery...

Anyway it was supposed to be a friendly joke about failing for not noticing the awesome that is Baccano! but the way it was communicated turned out to be even more fail.

[animanic_critic]

Kurenai - 8.8/10

This takes the cake as the gem of Spring '08 (Kaiba and Macross Frontier yet to be determined). The characters are wonderfully colorful and unique, and the story is handled very maturely. However, the aspect of the series which I find the most amazing is the overall dialogue. Rather than the usual pauses that I see in almost all other series, the continuous spontaneous responses and conversations are what kept me from feeling sleepy watching each episodes. Also, I was engrossed by how the Kuhouin family works with their idea of plutocracy.

About the discussion of a possible insinuation of lolicon, I don't see how this is so in Kurenai. The relationship between Shinkurou and Murasaki (favorite character BTW; find her annoying in the beginning but cute towards the end) is endearing enough as a brother-sister relationship and I see nothing lustful in it.

My favorite episode is a tie between episode 3 and 7. I love the three-way conversation in episode 3 and how Tamaki's weakness is exposed in episode 6 despite her expertise in men (read: jack-of-all-trades but a master of none).

I only have one particular gripe about the show:
What's the point of that blade-like thing in Shinkurou's right elbow? I know why he requested it to be put into his body, but I don't see the purpose of it in terms of the whole show. Simply put, it's just out of place, isn't it?

[Kavik Ryx]

Death Note: 9/10

Now this, I have really no idea on where to start so I'll just write what comes to mind. First off, Light still stands out as among the coolest characters in just about anything, and without a doubt the greatest villain out there. By the end I wanted him dead, by the end I knew he had to die, and by the end I ultimately felt sorry for his downfall. I could go on, but I'm sure everyone knows what made Death Note so epic.

[Shadowmage]

Claymore 7/10 (81%)

Copy and pasting SK's review (http://www.nihonreview.com/anime/claymore/).

Episode 1-9 Berserk quality material
Episode 10-23 Solid shounen action
Episode 24-26 Oh ****, we're on Namek. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Planet_Namek)

[Sorrow-kun]

Am I really the only person on the interverse that didn't mind Claymore's ending?

[Barrelhaven]

Most likely, yes.

[silan]

Brave Story

Hah, I didn't even know this movie existed until the GONZO thread, where through links to ANN I saw it listed. I just finished watching it, and am really impressed with it. There were some flaws here and there (and it was hard to separate the book from the movie in my mind), but the characters were awesome, the production and animation were great, and the plot was serious and bittersweet. Some of the elements in the movie were pretty heartbreaking, but at the same time the movie ended on a rather uplifting note.

I haven't seen any talk of this movie around here, but then I haven't really been paying attention. Anyway, I definitely recommend this.

9/10

[C0MPL3X]

Yumedamaya Kidan - 7/10

A typical Studio 4C work. 24 min long. Nothing original, visuals are below their usual wacky standard. But I found it quite cute and heartwarming.



Gin Iro no Kami no Agito - 7/10

Another GONZO movie. In a sense, a wannabe-Miyazaki environmentalist movie. Beautiful background art, fluid animation and has some absolute mesmerising scenes. As an example, I'll let this opening clip (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RsQHEfZo6NA&feature=related)do the talking.

Too bad the characters and writing are atrocious. This unfortunately falls under the realm of "talk a lot but doesn't show". Unlike Princess Mononoke or Nausicaa, its environmental message falls apart because they developed no substance to support it.

A massive disappointment. Redeemed by generally excellent visuals, designs, intriguing ideas/epic scope and few beautifully presented key scenes.

and the main male lead gets my one-of-the-worst-voice actor award.

*screencaps shamefully stolen from web
one (http://irohanihoheto.typepad.com/photos/giniro_no_kami_no_agito/agito03.jpg)
two (http://irohanihoheto.typepad.com/photos/giniro_no_kami_no_agito/agito26.jpg)
three (http://irohanihoheto.typepad.com/photos/giniro_no_kami_no_agito/agito23.jpg)

[Ghostmaster]

Brave Story

Hah, I didn't even know this movie existed until the GONZO thread, where through links to ANN I saw it listed. I just finished watching it, and am really impressed with it. There were some flaws here and there (and it was hard to separate the book from the movie in my mind), but the characters were awesome, the production and animation were great, and the plot was serious and bittersweet. Some of the elements in the movie were pretty heartbreaking, but at the same time the movie ended on a rather uplifting note.

I haven't seen any talk of this movie around here, but then I haven't really been paying attention. Anyway, I definitely recommend this.

9/10

I did want to see this originally because it looked like some good eye candy, like Giniro no Kami no Agito (Origins: Spirits of the Past - English), but I'm glad someone liked it, maybe ill give it a go, but I remember trying to find it and couldn't anywhere.

[Shadowmage]

Toshokan Senso (Library War): 6/10 (74%)

Okay, complements first. This was a good anime with quirky, well developed characters. Just about everything was done with a certain amount of Production I.G mastery, and I enjoyed the experience. However, the reason it gets a 6/10 (above average) from me is that the show never tries to be truly daring.

Everything this show does has been done better elsewhere. Since this series is essentially a drama about the characters, Production I.G's flat characterization felt impersonal. Although I liked the characters, I could not feel much of anything when it came to their problems.

The second major fault the show has is its premise. Simply put, it's absurd beyond belief. Yes, I'm willing to accept a story about busty vampire babes falling in love with some hapless jock that what Toshokan Senso gives me because those type of shows are farcical to begin with; this anime, on the other hand, tries to be serious.

Let me give you short run down of the premise. The retarded Japanese government want to protect society by censoring all forms of media that may harm society (which is pretty much a carte blanche called "anything they want"). They go further to create an armed, military organization to enforce this law resulting in a small scale massacre in local Japanese libraries. In response to this extremism, another faction of the Japanese government passes a law that allows libraries to arm themselves to protect (illegal) books. Now, the two factions are waging war on library grounds following some arbitrary "rules of war", which was established along with these two agencies. Before you start imaging the front lines as a series of trenches and mortar holes, I must debunk your expectation and say that these are just normal, upscale libraries that function like any other normal library except on some days, they have a game of capture the flag (a.k.a. book) with live ammunition on library grounds. But don't worry, they'll fix up everything the next day and be open to the public with smiles. :)

Simply put, this anime mocks war.

But ultimately, this anime is not about the premise, it's about the characters, and what well developed characters they are. Shame the drama really doesn't amount to much.

[Barrelhaven]

That's a pretty good assessment, I think.

As much as I enjoyed the characters, the series was still a slight chore to go through with that ridiculously eye-rolling plot looming over things. In the end, I just wanted to see what would become of Kasahara and co....I couldn't have cared less how the actual story turned up (in fact, I made an effort to ignore it entirely, so I wouldn't end up criticizing how stupid their logic was all the damn time). In that regard, it was pretty satisfying to see how their relationships played out, even if it was entirely predictable.

Another thing that sorta irked me was the art design and presentation. It's not bad, but it's horribly inconsistent. I really liked that heavy, inky outline style they had going in some episodes, but when they went away from it, the visuals turned horribly bland.

I'd probably give it a 6/10 as well. It does enough things well to keep it from drifting into obscurity, but it's countered by enough poor aspects to ruin the experience. Also, is it just me, or is your math a little off? (6/10 = 74%??) I'm sure I'm missing something here.

[Shadowmage]

I'd probably give it a 6/10 as well. It does enough things well to keep it from drifting into obscurity, but it's countered by enough poor aspects to ruin the experience. Also, is it just me, or is your math a little off? (6/10 = 74%??) I'm sure I'm missing something here.

It's largely the difference between the NHRV (http://www.nihonreview.com/faq/the-rating-scale/) grading scale and the AA (http://www.animeacademy.com/gradescale.php)'s grading scale. I would bump this up to a 7/10... but it has the added burden of a recommendation (Yes, this means that everything I give a 7/10 is a genuine recommendation... Though in hindsight, not so much with Blood+).

6 - Above Average -
There are many hits and misses. Its redeeming qualities barely make up for its drawbacks. The title is of questionable merit, but still deserves a chance.
70% to 79%:
These anime are just good. A nice addition to any collection, but not particularly memorable.

[Tyrdium]

Before you start imaging the front lines as a series of trenches and mortar holes, I must debunk your expectation and say that these are just normal, upscale libraries that function like any other normal library except on some days, they have a game of capture the flag (a.k.a. book) with live ammunition on library grounds. But don't worry, they'll fix up everything the next day and be open to the public with smiles. :)This. Last episode I watched had some CTF match to stop the unveiling of a statue or something. Now, it comes to a scene where the media cleansing guys are rushing in a big mass. Machine guns? Grenades? Claymores? Oh, no. We're the good guys! We'll start punching them.

Shame, too. I was really looking forward to this show.

[KiraraKim]

/gradescale.php"]AA[/URL]'s grading scale. I would bump this up to a 7/10... but it has the added burden of a recommendation (Yes, this means that everything I give a 7/10 is a genuine recommendation... Though in hindsight, not so much with Blood+).

That's interesting because for me something that is 7/10 is something I would watch but never buy. Or it might be something that I am nostalgic about because it was one of the first series I saw but I can see that it has many flaws so I can't necessarily recommend it to other people. Something that is 6/10 I would never consider watching.

As for Library Wars I gave up on it after the 3rd episode. The characters were cute but as someone who is studying to be a librarian it bothered me that they took an idea (about censorship) that could have been really interesting and turned it into a farce.

[Sorrow-kun]

That's interesting because for me something that is 7/10 is something I would watch but never buy. Or it might be something that I am nostalgic about because it was one of the first series I saw but I can see that it has many flaws so I can't necessarily recommend it to other people. Something that is 6/10 I would never consider watching.

I usually reserve "6" for genre pieces that do what most people expect them to, but little more. For something to get "7", it has to be genuinely good, as in, I finish it with a "I'm glad I watched this" feeling.

I don't want people thinking that the NHRV rating scale is just a scaled-down and less sensitive version of AA's scale, because it's not. It's a tier system, and it starts at the philosophy that "5" is "Average", and works from there. By, what I'd assume is, complete coincidence, our scale is pretty much exactly the same as the one they use at MAL.

[animanic_critic]

I basically wish to tell everyone who knows about NHRW to go and actually opt to read the review and understand it rather than believing in the grade itself. It's not like the grade says everything, right?

[Kavik Ryx]

Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion: 8/10. Holy Shit! Just Holy Shit! Over the course of today and yesterday, I marathoned all 25 episodes, being the most anime episodes I've seen in such a short period. Honestly, I would have gone with a 7.5, but then the last 5 episodes rolled in, yes even the attempted world's largest pizza. Though it would've deserved something a little higher if not for not actually being complete and those oh so convenient plot devices. Episode 25 has got to be one of the all time greatest cliffhangers I've seen in years. But being so late in watching, I'm probably just preaching to the choir now.

[laborpilot86]

Batman Gotham Knights (yes it counts, just ask MAL and ANN)....8/10
some very interesting visual experiments, but doesn't fit together as well as it should.

[Ghostmaster]

Naruto Shipuudden (whatever this current arc is) - 6.5/10
Yeah this is a filler arc they are currently doing on the show. That kid Sora is the most annoying character on the show probably. The plot is typical, villain tries to destroy town and ninjas must save it. The beginning of this arc was extremely boring and stupid with Sai now being a good guy and just living life in Konoha and the team just sitting around. It has started to pick up a little bit now that they are under attack by freakin' zombie ninjas! However, I wish they would get back to some core plot stuff and forget about these stupid uninteresting villains and this dumb kid, who is probably a monster like Naruto.

[C0MPL3X]

Batman Gotham Knight - 6/10

Good shorts of action, but nothing much else. One thing this severely lacks in comparison to Animatrix as an anthology is the variety of unique styles, and how these unique styles better portray a set of different ideas and intrigues of the Matrix world.


Abenobashi Mahou Shoutengai - 6/10

This is bit of an oddball...

It's like FLCL + Excel Saga...but more of the latter and less of the former unfortunately. There's lot of similarity between FLCL in terms of visuals and direction (but FLCL is more energetic and better assembled. MUCH better). And there's too many pointless crap and parodies like in Excel Saga. There are great stuffs here, if you are patient and tolerant enough, but you'd have to wade through a ton of crap to get it (and even then, it's questionable). Not a gamble I recommend. The girl with osaka accent is adorable though.

[Kausin]

Just watched "Photon (The Idiot Adventures)." It's a six-episode OVA done by the Tenchi team over the course of two years. The first three episodes had me convinced I'd found a new personal favorite, as the animation quality and humor far surpassed most anime I've seen.

Then the last three episodes deviated into more cliche, "guys and girls at a bath house" noise, as well as a series of events crammed into the final episode that would've played out MUCH better as 5 and 6 or just...a couple more episodes. So I recommend it (all on one DVD!) with an 8/10, perhaps you'll see the stroke of greatness I think it missed.

[Shadowmage]

Kaze no Stigma 5/10

I wanted to like this anime, I really did. This is the only anime I've seen that has a fully potent male that can dodge the blows from his local tsundere. However, a single character cannot make up for generic, shounen story arcs, generic fight scenes and a generic side cast.

[Barrelhaven]

http://img254.imageshack.us/img254/5527/redgardenwx1.jpg
Red Garden - 8/10

Those who enjoyed Kurenai and Bokurano for its writing, ominous atmosphere, and deep character explorations will most likely dig this.

The story centers around 4 strangers who are brought together to slowly unravel the mystery of their own deaths. Despite the imposing supernatural aspect, the series remains surprisingly down-to-earth thanks to a highly engrossing, easy to relate to cast of characters. They each have their own personal demons to face aside from, well, you know...being "dead".

The main draw of the show isn't necessarily discovering how they died, but about how they choose to continue living in their new lives. And after witnessing their struggles and how they cope with all the crappy cards they're continuously dealt, you're treated to an especially satisfying ending that really cashes in on the whole journey up to that point.

It might not be saying much, but it's one of the best GONZO titles I've seen.

[C0MPL3X]

http://img234.imageshack.us/img234/7258/axesigpr4.gif
What a fitting reaction upon watching Abenobashi...

Simoun - 7/10

Summary: "In the world of Daikuuriku, everyone is born female, and chooses which sex they wish to become at age 17. In this world, the peaceful theocracy of Simulacrum is guarded by magical flying machines called "Simoun", which can only be piloted by young girls who haven`t chosen a sex yet."

Sounds like a story about bunch of girls wanting to do each other (and there's some of that...not that I'm complaining). I personally took something more interesting out of this. For a moment after the show's end, the most beautiful and sacred of all relationship to me seemed like the one between two females. Who is in control, who is aggressive and decisive, who desires to embrace, who desires to be embraced, who is seme and who is uke...these positions within a relationship is interesting because they change over time, and seeing these changes within various relationships (between females, which are mostly a mixture of feelings including romantic/friendly/fraternal/maternal) was the biggest kick I got out of Simoun. A beautiful tango between two dancers, of pulling, and being pulled, and within that tension lies the aforementioned beauty (which is why I loved the last scene, a tango between two main leads)

I still think it could've been so much more. Its setting is interesting but not explored enough. The way these battleships fight are elegant and breath-taking in several cases, but they lose their wow-factor quickly. The two main leads are just fantastic characters, I love them, but I didn't get to see as much as I wanted to because of the amount of screentime given to developing side characters (as a result, they're all thoroughly analysed and all interesting, but I wanted to see much more from the two main).

Anyway, a great Lesbian fantasy drama anime.

[Barrelhaven]

What a fitting reaction upon watching Abenobashi...


Yeah, you nailed it in your review. It's pretty up and down in terms of quality. I was eventually crossing my fingers before each episode, hoping this time it'd be bringing teh lulz instead of complete and utter fail. It's just a shame they miss more often than they hit. The Osaka girl is indeed adorable, though.

[Kavik Ryx]

Armored Troopers VOTOMS: Stage 1 Uoodo City: 7/10

This is probably one of the most evil anime I've ever seen. It was a little long winded at time, but covers so much ground, and so perfectly portrays the darkness in humankind. Fo