Posts Tagged ‘Saki’

meikyuu butterfly

October 23rd, 2009
Warning: High-powered Class A laser device anime rant.
This post may contain chemicals known by the State of California to cause birth defects and other reproductive harm (Proposition 65).
<em>Meikyuu Butterfly</em> - Nana Mizuki

Meikyuu Butterfly - Nana Mizuki

See, I’m capable of coming up with creative names for my anime posts.

Firstly, Shakugan no Shana S, the four-part OVA leadup to the long-awaited third season of mega-popular anime Shakugan no Shana, is now out in Blu-ray and DVD. J.C. Staff just released the first episode, Reshuffle.

Other than the normal Thursday/Friday-ish lineup of things like Kampfer, Shin Koihime Musou, Umineko no Naku Koro ni, etc, I’m still watching Shugo Chara!. If the anime is longer than, say, 30 episodes, usually I lose interest after the first half.

However, like Ranma 1/2, Shugo Chara! and Shugo Chara!! Doki have captured my inner fanboy and, like Hayate no Gotoku, combine interesting episodic storylines with a larger major plotline. Of course, there’s no missing the Hayate-like humor that’s scattered throughout Shugo Chara! either.

Now, on to the episodic reviews.

Shakugan no Shana S Episode 01 “Reshuffle” – This felt like a standard Shana episode; however, I haven’t watched Shana for months or years. It felt good to experience a new Shana episode.

As for the content of the episode, it wasn’t particularly breathtaking, epic, or even fantastic. I think just the feeling of new Shana satisfied me. However, I won’t give it something in the S to SS range like the animes, because it wasn’t that good, particuarly. Actually, since it’s called Shakugan no Shana “S”, maybe I should give it an S anyways. S-. [8.5/10]

Shakugan no Shanatan Revenge – YESS! As usual, Shanatan is better than Shakugan no Shana itself. Index and Nagi (from To Aru Majutsu no Index and Hayate no Gotoku! respectively) make hilarious cameos… and… just, everything is hilarious. Of course. SS-. [9.5/10]

On second thought, I downgrade the actual Shana S episode to an AA. [7/10] Yeah, too bad. Compared to Shanatan (which doesn’t really deserve a 10/10, so it gets 9.5), Shakugan no Shana has to be like at least ranks below Shanatan.

WHERE ISH MY Hayate-tan no Gotoku!! series? >_____>

Also, awaiting Railgun-tan. They’re gonna do it, right? Haha.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Kampfer Episode 04 – “Make me feel good!” Wtf? Why do they need to remind us that this is from a dating sim?

However, the Student Council President has an interesting side. The stupid stuffed animals, I still hate their guts (no pun intended).

So many good voice actors in this anime, but such a sucky anime. I like the genderbender aspect, but… um… yeeahhh. What’s with the sexual connotations that everybody thinks are behind everything Natsuru-san says?

So. An interesting anime… where we watch… boys… shop for… female underwear… and lingerie………

In this episode… we learned:

  • How to put on a bra.
  • How to choose female underwear in Japan.
  • Factoid: When guys attain sex appeal, the emotional trauma will take decades to heal.
  • Factoid: Student council presidents generally suck at singing. Hinagiku-san (Hayate/2) is an exception, because Itou Shizuka is beyond awesome.
  • Factoid: Every anime, as a rule, MUST include a Macross reference. “Atashi no uta wo kike!!!!“
  • How to confess your love for a person of the same sex.

… just… because… it was kind of… um… let’s go with an A. [6/10]

The outro (and intro) I really like. I wonder when the final main character will be introduced; she’s cute.

Umineko no Naku Koro ni Episode 17 – “All magic exists to bring happiness to the human world.”

Best line in the entire anime so far, considering what has happened in this anime so far >_< So terribly ironic.

Beato’s character change is just TOO huge to bear. Just three or four episodes ago she was like “HAHAHAHA KILL MURDER SLAUGHTER” and now she’s all being a crybaby and weak and nice and… this just feels awkward.

What the hell is with the “Siestas”? They’re so goddam moe, they don’t belong in this anime. Their animations are stupid too. It feels more like Digimon than the Nanoha-like feel they were probably aiming for.

Of course, seeing them die is never fun, but we see like 10-20 people die per episode so you get used to it.

OMG we finally see Ange! For… like… a half-second flashback.

Jessica looked like Shion or Rena from Higurashi in that one moment. ^^

I still like Higurashi better. Boring episode. The morals they were trying to convey didn’t really reach me. Maybe it’s because… I can’t use magic… B. [5/10]

Shin Koihime Musou Episode 03 – They finally added Ryuubi to the opening! Which, by the way, is EPIC. If not for Seitokai no Ichizon, it might be my favorite OP this season. KIZUNA, ATSUI KIZUNA~

So they go to visit Kousonsan… wait, who’s Kousonsan? [/runninggag] but lol, Enshou VS Kousonsan… hahaha.

Ryuubi is so cute+awesome.

The “competition” gets a bit… uhh… yeah…. in the 2nd round.

This falls in the "WTF!?" category, too.

This falls in the "WTF!?" category, too.

Of course, we can’t have Koihime without some perverted stupid scenes.

How Ancient Chinese lords and viceroys settled their disputes with each other in the Three Kingdoms era.

This is how Ancient Chinese lords and viceroys settled their disputes with each other in the Three Kingdoms era.

You know, I miss Bachou already.

SS (it’s that good). [10/10]

Yes, the only reason I love it this much more than Koihime Musou itself is ‘cuz of Ryuubi. <3

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

I miss -Saki-. It was my weekly dose of mahjong and random yuri, but it was still really great. Hopefully another season comes along soon. As for Bakemonogatari, I realize I haven’t even finished watching it. I don’t really miss Kanamemo or Sora no Manimani, either. Of course, obviously I miss Hayate2, but that’s so popular there won’t be a problem getting another season. I guess I miss Tayutama, waay back from Spring 2009. Well, I don’t really miss the anime; I miss the intro song <3333

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Welcoming the new (anime) season!

September 28th, 2009

The worst thing about something new arriving is that something old must depart.

This season’s Summer 2009 animes were all very excellent (and I believe Fall 2009 will be just as awesome, if not better). Hayate2 ended suddenly, as did Saki (as expected, half of the final episode was devoted to yuri. meh, the ending/preview for next season was epic). Princess Lover is of the one-shot type, I think, although the animation was spectacular (especially considering it was a vn adaptation). The setting was good (something not commonly found in vns), and although I can’t say it had great themes, they weren’t bad (something about… what was it? the disparity between the filthy rich and the filthy (literally) poor? it didn’t make any impression at all on me). CANAAN also ended, although I haven’t watched past ep2 yet. Sora no Manimani and Kanamemo, etc, I also haven’t finished yet. Bakemonogatari is still webcasting for two more eps, I think.

This was a short summary since I already said my goodbyes in a previous post. Long, pictureful, awesome post, go read it instead of reading this.

Ranting about Fall 2009 will be left to another post, but I seriously can’t wait for the first week of October. Almost like every anime I’m gonna watch this season will be coming out sometime that week! Some highlights off the top of my head: Shin Koihime Musou, Nogizaka Haruka2, Seitokai no Ichizon, To Aru Kagaku no Railgun, that one where a guy turns into a girl or something (cough soundslikeranma), etc etc etc. Some weird ones were that China-Japan collaboration one, and Inuyasha Final Season or something. Seriously, Inuyasha already has 500 episodes, do we really need 100 more? (no offense Rumiko Takahashi, Inuyasha was a good concept, it just got too long and fillery.)

Well, I’ve still got Umineko and a couple other things to watch while I wait for the Fall animes. And eventually I’ll get my Hayate3. Hehe.

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2nd to last episodes (“semifinales”?)

September 16th, 2009

The 2nd to last-ish episodes have mostly aired; eagerly anticipating summer 2009 finales. I mostly can’t believe that Hayate2 is going to end… already…

Bakemonogatari (化物語)

Episode 10/15 :: So far: SS (10/10)

The effing epicest slideshow the world has ever seen.

Saki (咲 -saki-)

Episode 23/25 :: So far: S+ (9.5/10)

The individuals have ended (finally…), and the winners are that weird Kazekoshi heterochromatic girl (I don’t understand why she is so popular), Nodoka, and Saki. Except for Mihoko, these were totally expected, although I was really hoping that the other 3 schools would get people in (because they’re interesting, and a big cast is nice and important for this kind of anime). I mean, they wouldn’t introduce all these characters, only to toss them away when we move on to season 2 whatever…

Next episodes look like OVA-type material, haha. I expect a lot of humor, because I guess this episode was the actual “finale” to the plot of Saki. Hope next season comes soon.

Umineko no Naku Koro ni (うみねこのなく頃に)

Episode 10/a lot :: So far: AA (7/10)

I’ve heard this was better/was going to be better than Higurashi no Naku Koro ni (which I really loved, by the way, once you get past the ewwww). So far, it doesn’t interest me, besides the curious fact that Rika appears (whether it’s a cameo or she plays a major role I do not know yet).

Battler is cool, I guess, and his catchphrase is cool. He can compare to Keiichi. The female characters all suck, however. None of them (Shannon, Maria, and Jessica — basically only 3!!) can even COMPARE with Mion, Shion, Rika, Satoko, and company.

So, um, I do expect Ryukushi07 to live up to his reputation. Maybe the good part just isn’t here yet.

Sora no Manimani (宙のまにまに)

Episode dunno/dunno :: So far: AAA+ (8.5/10)

I liked Aone’s subtitles, but they’ve been dead for over a month… but I will be faithful and wait for them :D

Hayate no Gotoku!! 2nd Season (ハヤテのごとく！！)

Episode 24/25 :: So far: SSS (11/10)

I am seriously considering giving Hayate no Gotoku!! the first SSS (11/10) I’ve ever given (as an overall, including the first season).

*geass*

*geass*

There’s no anime so far that has matched it in terms of laughs-per-episode (LPM, computed as \tfrac{\mathrm{Total Laughs}}{\mathrm{Number of Episodes}} laugh-seconds per minute).

There is also no anime that has characters (and actual character depth to go along with them) that can match Hayate’s. Each character has a unique personality and intriguing backstory, and there are no “filler episodes” or characters I dislike.

The love pentagon… hexagon… I’m not even going to count how big the polygon is now >_< but anyways…

I feel like picture-reviewing this week’s episode (because it’s the second-to-last episode we’ll see in a loong while).

ASDF

"Admitting that I like him is like I lost, and that sucks."

The most important plot point in this episode is probably that Hina-chan confesses to Ayumu that she also fell in love with Hayate. I was somewhere between *headdesk* and *squee*.

Ayumu: "..."

Ayumu: "..."

Hina being so awkward and embarrassed would be considered “out-of-character” if she was using her school personality. She is the student council president of what is probably like the most prestigious school in the world (considering how insanely rich and powerful everybody who goes there is), and the most respected person in the school. Normally she has a cool, calm, and collected personality and is full of leadership. However, she really has a deep feminine side that she didn’t like to expose often. I think she feels safe showing Ayumu this side of her.

The development of the friendship between Ayumu and Hinagiku is also interesting and meaningful. Usually Ayumu is the one freaking out and worrying about everything and being embarrassed and all, but it looks like they switched roles this episode.

Ayumu being the calm and cool character while Hina is freaking out.

Ayumu being the calm and cool character while Hina is freaking out.

Oh, by the way. Because of extensive torture by my high school Freshman English Honors teacher, I am compelled to write an analytical review about this episode instead of “OMFGGG !!! THIS epZode wuz AWEZOMMEE!! EPIKKK“.

I love her outfit in this arc! It's so cute.

I love her outfit in this arc! It's so cute.

Yeahh, although that was probably the focus of the episode, it wasn’t really my favorite part. There was more drama than usual this episode. Sakuya is cute~~ although her outfit wasn’t as cute as Nagi’s.

See Nagi’s outfit at left. ^-^

Oh, the finger-pulling-off joke that was repeated again this episode was just stupid and lame. It was awesome and hilarious how stupid and lame that was. Script writers, Hayate-kun isn’t that dumb!

Okay, fine, I guess I liked last week’s episode a bit better than this week, but this week is the second-to-last episode so I want to do something special.

Yes, even though I suck at finding the best moments to screenshot XD

Anyways, here’s to the sudden end of Hayate no Gotoku!!, second season, and to the rapid production of the third season! I propose the name “Hayate no Gotoku!!!” as the third season’s name!

"... no comment."

"... no comment."

Princess Lover

Episode 10/idk :: So far: AAA+ (8.5/10)

The last couple of episodes about the Arima Hills incident were totally epic. However, the next episode (where we find out Charle got kidnapped and omg evil organization is going to do evil things!)…

The scale of events certainly has gone up. It’s not just one building that might be torn apart now, the whole world might now be thrown into another world war or something. However, somehow I feel that the anime has actually gotten less interesting. It’s just not exciting anymore. That’s why I dropped this from S (9/10) to AAA+ (8.5/10). I hope that the ending will be beautiful (like all the animation has been in this anime <3) and exciting, so this one still has a chance of getting an S ranking.

Oh, and I’ve totally gotten addicted to the intro and outro songs~~

******will finish later:

Yoku Wakaru Gendai Mahou

Kanamemo

Dropped this season:

Umi Monogatari

Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuutsu 2

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This week in anime…

August 15th, 2009
Today I shall describe some of the past week’s new anime episodes. The letters beside the title indicate the rating I give the episode. I’ll describe my elaborate rating system in a later post >_<
Princess Lover – AAA
The latest ep for PL was as odd as… the Kanamemo musical one XD Except this was kind of odd in a good, in fact, AWESOME way.
It’s, like… FMP/Fumoffu-class funniness ><
Seriously, this anime is so hilarious, they should just take out the “ecchi” genre and make it pure romantic comedy.
Bakemonogatari – A
The new story arc is kind of odd. Nothing really really awesome except the usual awesomeness.
E.g. Senjougahara being her awesome self (e.g. making death threats with writing utensils and stationary).
Hachikuji has turned out to be an even MORE awesome character XD her jabs at Araragi are fundamentally funny.
Oh my gosh, I actually remember the lead male’s name in this anime o_O that’s rare.
Oh, and Araragi’s two sisters should appear in the anime more. I mean, so far they’ve only had like 3 seconds of screen time.
Umineko no Naku Koro ni – C-
I expected this episode to be super-ultra-MEGA EPIC (due to the last episode’s preview, plus lots of online hype on blogs, etc)
It wasn’t that epic. in fact, nothing epic happened at all (besides the EPIC op sequence, but that’s always epic). Pfft. So basically, not-up-to-expectations episode (but with a lot of “Uuu” I guess)
Hayate no Gotoku – S+
This is last week’s episode (wasn’t able to watch it, so I’m watching it this week). Summary:
Nagi: “I am changing, starting today! I am the new Nagi! NAGI 360 ELITE!!”
Maria/Hayate: “ahaa…” *sweatdrop*
Sorry, I just felt like adding screenshots >_<
… and… um… Yugioh parody? Slash shameless advertisement for Hayate no Gotoku TCG (does that really exist? XD)
“That was obviously a commercial!”
Ahahaha, that was awesome. And that was just the first half.
Second half… Sakuya is awesome. (She should start making romantic advances towards Hayate ><)
ToLOVE-ru OVA 01 and 02 – SS
First of all, the ToLOVE-ru ending was pretty… yeeah XD
It really needs an actual second season… but OMG, the OVAs are beyond awesomeness — I mean, one OVA is probably worth like 10 episodes.
In OVA 1, another one of Lala’s malfunctioning machines turns Rito into a girl… and awkward, hilarious situations ensue.
OVA 2 is about the cutest character in ToLOVE-ru — Rito’s little sister, Mikan. This is probably what made me laugh the most this week.
I like the little things that changed from the anime to the OVA (such as giving that minor girl-spirit a major(er) role, and GIVING MIKAN MORE SCREEN TIME). I also love how pretty much every main character has at least a cameo in each OVA.
Sora no Manimani – B+
The usual hilarity. Fuumin (the student council president + literature club president + really mean and ugly person) is really mean and ugly. Of course, it’s nice how Lead Male and Fumin have some sort of mutal understnading.
Oh, the astronomy club president is weird o_O he isn’t really funny, nor is he cool, nor is he smart or anything… he just sits there, looks creepy/ugly, and throws up/spews blood spontaneously (yeah…… I know… ><)
I liked how the characters described the beauty of stars, of the night and the sky. It makes me want to run off to some mountain, lie down, and gaze at the stars the entire night.
Umi Monoagatari – no comment
… somebody kill me… *eyes and ears bleed*
Saki – S+
OOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG
The twenty-episode-long epic mahjong match is FINALLY over XD
They could have made Saki’s final move even more epic (I would imagine, like, making Haramura-san or, even better, her nee-chan barge in at the last moment and inspire her to get like, a haiteiraoyue four-dora four concealed melds/suuankou with rinshankaihou or something ><)
But yeah… she won pretty epicly I guess. But since this battle has lasted for god-knows-how-many episodes too long, you’d think it would be epicer than this.
It was enjoyable though. The part where Saki is smiling while she is revealing her super-epic-hand-that’s-probably-harder-to-get-than-winning-the-lottery is REALLY creepy ><
Koromo was sweet, and I’m not sure whether or not I liked how Saki basically “showed her that playing mahjong could be fun”.
Of course, the yuri. I just try not to notice it (not a fan, but it’s not really repulsive).
But ohhh… next episode… it’s the typical “beach episode” that every single anime just HAS to have XD
BUT… we also FINALLY get to see Saki’s nee-chan/older sister finally, it seems! ^_^
Yes, I realize I do grade harsh on episodes (this is my first time rating individual episodes… I have all the animes I’ve ever watched in a spreadsheet with each individual part [e.g. plot, music, bgm, characters, humor, etc.] having a rating from F- to so far SS+, as well as an overall rating in the same range.)
I have never given out an SSS rating yet. I want to see the anime that deserves that.

Today I shall describe some of the past week’s new anime episodes. The letters beside the title indicate the rating I give the episode. I’ll describe my elaborate rating system in a later post >_<

» Read more: This week in anime…

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Almost back! Summer ’09 Animes!

August 8th, 2009

I’m an incoming tenth grader (2nd year of high school) this year, and over the summer I’m attending a summer camp at a local university. Just to explain, I’m staying there from Sunday through Friday, and I come home for the weekends on Friday.

Anyways, I finally have time to write another post, and frankly I’m even more puzzled on what to write than my last (first!) post. I suppose I’ll share my thoughts on the recent Summer 2009 animes that are currently airing in Japan.

» Read more: Almost back! Summer ’09 Animes!

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