General Anime Discussion Thread

[Linkachu]

Now that I've finished the entirety of the Digimon Xros Wars saga (including season 3), my watch list seems to be growing every day. Currently it looks like this:

- Fairy Tail (Last watched: episode 129)
- Pokemon: Best Wishes (Last watched: episode 76)
- SKET Dance (Last watched: episode 56)
- Hunter x Hunter (Last watched: episode 3)
- Leiji Matsumoto's OZMA (Last watched: episode 2)
- Hiiro No Kakera (Last watched: episode 4)
- Saki: Side A (Last watched: episode 5)
- Rock Lee & His Ninja Pals (Last watched: episode 5)

Fairy Tail and SKET Dance are ongoing, so I'll likely keep watching 'em until they end or become ungodly boring/horrible, and Pokemon is Pokemon. I'll always be watching it.

Of the shows I've recently started into, OZMA, Hunter x Hunter, and Hiiro No Kakera are the three I'm liking most. I only properly started Hunter x Hunter last night but I'm already loving it and will definitely get caught up soon. OZMA only has 6 episodes and I'll likely finish it off sometime this week. As for Hiiro No Kakera, it heavily reminds me of Fushigi Yugi which is A-ok in my books.

Saki: Side A was horribly rushed for the first 4 episodes but it seems to be balancing out now. It's also a helluva lot more meaningful to me now that I've watched through the original Saki series (did so over the this past weekend). But good lord, all of these girls are lovers. Only they're not. But they totally are! Anime, you so craaazy~ (And hell, apparently the series isn't even Shojo like I'd initially assumed. The original is apparently Seinen and the spin-off series is Shonen! Does not compute.)

I don't have much to say about Rock Lee & His Ninja Pals aside from the fact that it stars Rock Lee's team (whom I love ♥). It's pure, silly comedy and can either be quite entertaining or very, very boring.

Aside from Pokemon, I'm only following Crunchyroll Anime this season. I'm still planning to look into several other shows however, particularly Space Brothers, Kids on the Slope, Phi Brain, Polar Bear Cafe, Medaka Box, Upotte!!, and Dusk Maiden of Amnesia. Everything else... may still give it a shot, but may also give it a pass. I recently watched a bit of Recorder and Randsell and doubt I'll watch more, and Dem has warned me off Mysterious Girlfriend X and Sengoku Collection. XD

 

[Demelza]

and Dem has warned me off Mysterious Girlfriend X and Sengoku Collection. XD

Sengoku Collection is just awful and I'm yet to find anyone who made it through the first episode. Mysterious Girlfriend X is just really strange, and it's hard for me to work out if I find it interesting or just wrong because it does stand on that borderline of being awful, or working, but more often then not just leans towards wrong. I struggle with that series a fair amount for those reasons, but at least I'm still watching it (unlike Sengoku >> <<). xP

Alrighty, lessee I've been watching a fair amount the last few days.

Fairy Tail
Naruto
The World God Only Knows
OZMA
Hiiro No Kakera
Deadman Wonderland
Dusk Maiden of Amnesia
Mysterious Girlfriend X

Fairy Tail and Naruto are ongoing. I -try- and keep up with Naruto, but normally fall behind and end up just having weekends of going through a ton of episodes. I'm up to date with Fairy Tail though, so I make sure to watch that each weekend. ^^

The World God Only Knows is something I'm rewatching. I've seen both seasons of the show before, but it was ages ago now and I do value the show highly so thought I'd go through it again. I also needed something a bit more upbeat after I'd watched Deadman Wonderland (which I'll get to soon). I'm up to about episode 9 of season one currently.

OZMA is a series I recently finished, and one which I can thankfully rate very highly. For just a six episode series I actually managed to really enjoy it, and the ending was fairly moving too. It had a good story, good characters that you could actually feel for, and overall I struggle to fault it. The only thing I can fault is Crunchyroll spoiling the fifth episode in the episodes details (I will likely complain about this for quite some time). xP

Hiiro No Kakera is ongoing for now, and again a series I struggle to fault. Its up to episode 5-ish now and the plot is generally starting to settle and pick up now we know all the characters. It isn't anything amazing by any means, but being handled by Studio DEEN its pretty to look at and there really isn't anything wrong with it. The story is interesting enough to keep me amused, and most of the characters are likeable enough, although the lead girl can be somewhat annoying because she can't actually -do- anything yet, but I can see this changing as the story continues.

Deadman Wonderland is a series that largely revolves around death, people killing each other, and gore. The series makes that very clear from the very first episode, despite this it had a really interesting story which is what got me to watch the whole series plus the OVA in a day. xD It's an overall depressing story, but somehow the series works and draws the viewer in. Just don't watch it all in a day like me.....

Dusk Maiden of Amnesia is a series I'm really really enjoying, but I can't help but feel it might need to make its mind up now. It works as a creepy ghost story, but also with a hint of comedy, but the plot is asking for more seriousness now and then which is being somewhat killed with the comedy. The series has so far done well in finding the perfect balance, just the fourth episode sort of disappointed me in building up for a spooky moment and killing it. I'll likely forgive it in time if it returns to having the fine balance. xD

Mysterious Girlfriend X I spoke about before. I don't know why I'm still watching it because it is really strange, but like I said before it walks a fine line between being wrong and working.

I likely won't start watching anything else for awhile now other then picking up Digimon Xros Wars again now Crunchyroll has it. ^^

 

[Demelza]

Bumping because I can! x3

I've finished off four different anime shows recently, so about time I rambled about them here~

I'll start off with the two shows from the Spring Crunchyroll season, Hiiro No Kakera and Dusk Maiden of Amnesia.

I'll put general thoughts then throw anything spoilerish in a spoiler tag.

Hiiro No Kakera started off as one of my picks of the seasons. The first few episodes were promising, the characters were interesting as was the plot, and I loved the look of it thanks to Studio DEEN's involvement. However there are at least three problems here, the first being the fact the story tended to drag a lot in places, and I likely could have accepted this more if they weren't focusing on the most uninteresting aspects of the story they could find. The second fault is with the fact the series is apparently being split into two seasons, the second being due in October - this explains the dragging most likely, but despite the fact we're heading into another season the show hasn't done enough with the story to make you want to come back and find out more. There is no cliff-hanger, nothing to draw you in. The third problem is with the characters themselves. It may have been a small cast of characters, but by the end only two to three were properly being focused on, heck the final two episodes didn't even explain what had happened to half the cast! XD

Spoiler-ish stuff

Spoiler

Really more of the time in this series was spent talking and discussing things over actually doing anything. Tamaki stayed useless throughout and then suddenly earns powers by the final episode, and even then not really being useful. Don't get me wrong, I'm not against characters who don't really do a lot as long as they have something else to them, but so much time was spent on trying to "awaken" Tamaki and it quickly grew boring. The five guardians of Tamaki started out quite interesting, but by the ninth episode it was clear they were no longer being developed and all attention was on Takuma and to an extent Mahiro. The guardians never grow in power either though, they stay pretty useless bar Takuma.

Tamaki's grandmother never actually did anything either, even in the final episode where she really should have been helping out she only said a few small words. Less then impressed to be honest. ^^;

I think what annoys me most is they haven't left anything to be going into a second season with. Onikirimaru was never released and pretty much everything is right with the world, any other interesting subjects from the story aren't really worthy of another season either, so I really don't see where they'll go with this.

Last complaint is the fact in the last two episodes all attention was on Tamaki and Takuma. Hell, the other guardians are shown to be fighting the Logos and we don't even see what happens to three of them, they just got dumped later on in the episode being badly beaten up. I would have liked to have seen what actually happened to them.

Anyways, on to a series that did impress me, Dusk Maiden of Amnesia.

This series also started off really well and the only complaint I ever really had was with the fact it often didn't take itself seriously, going for comedy over the spooky edge it was seemingly aiming for in the first place. However, as the story and characters developed the series started to lose that comedy edge when it was important and that really did end up being the making of it - it did what it set out to do very well. We have a very small cast of four characters, with the focus largely being put on Teiichi and his friendship with the ghost Yuko. Momoe is there for the comedy and as a 'love rival' for Yuko over Teiichi, while Kirie is there to bang their heads off one another when they're being stupid. All the characters were really quite loveable, but Teiichi and Yuko were just pure awesome. ^^

The overall story, once it took itself seriously, was interesting. Once we learnt about Yuko's past I quickly saw the series in a different way, and started to really care for both her and Teiichi.

Spoilers~

Spoiler

My only complaint with the plot is how dark it become for two episodes or so. We finally got to see Yuko's past, and it quickly became apparent how gruesome and traumatic her death had actually been. She'd been a human sacrifice in order to stop a plague which was placed on the towns folk as some sort of curse, she was thrown down into underground shrine under the school were she landed, suffering a broken leg, and dying in the end. The episode itself however was amazingly well thought and acted out. This wasn't just flashbacks for our sake, Teiichi was watching it all and it was interesting seeing his reactions. The whole episode was moving and I struggle to fault it, it really made me feel for Yuko.

Of course after this there was no going back, I fell completely in love with Yuko and Teiichi and the episodes which followed were very moving ones, which had me in tears more than once.

I watched SHANGRI-LA which starts off mental and continues like that. By the end of it I still didn't understand everything, and I didn't really feel for the characters either if I'm being honest. It was an enjoyable enough series, but felt to confusing in places for me.

I also watched the two seasons of Asura Cryin' which I really love. Like Shangri-La it starts off mental, but within three episodes you have a basic enough understanding of the plot for it to make sense. It has quite a large cast of characters, but that doesn't effect it either. I actually really liked them all, but one stands out and has earned the title of new favourite anime character!

Shuri-senpai!

Oh gods she is such a crazy and awesome character, but no example at all as a senpai! She puts people in more danger then they were actually in to start with, and just pops in with a "hi, here to save you" line in the most cheerful and normal voice ever. XD I love her so much for being such a fun character. ♥

That said I loved the whole series overall. It actually managed to keep me interested for 26 episodes and care for the characters, which is one of the most important aspects. Really enjoyed it~

 

[Dark Soul]

I can't decide whether Guilty Crown or Ao No/Blue Exorcist should by my next anime to watch. In any case, I finished Katanagatari and it was great.

 

[Linkachu]

Yesterday was a good day for Anime watching. I finished off this season's airings of Bodacious Space Pirates (which hands down wins the award of "Most Ungodly Slow Starting Series That Ends Up Awesome" - I hope it gets a sequel), and Saki: Side A (which doesn't really feel like it even ended, and it's a shame that the Anime caught up to the manga).

On top of that, I caught up with SKET Dance, Hunter x Hunter, and Fairy Tail, and watched several episodes of Cardfight!! Vanguard Season 2 (which Crunchyroll recently picked up). I'm still not quite sure which shows I'm going to pick up for the summer season, but I'm likely to jump into at least another 3-5.

In other news, while I was on vacation I watched two series with my buddy: Puella Magi Madoka Magica and Toradora.

I will say nothing specific about Madoka Magica aside from that it's rather amazing and highly worth the watch, it renewed my faith in 12 episode long Anime series (because so many of them feel rushed or aimless), and it's right up there with my recent favourite Anime series'.

As for Toradora, it's not a must-see but it was a fun show to watch with a nice finale. It's slice of life and horribly predictable, but the characters kept me watching to the end. Very catchy first OP, too.

 

[Linkachu]

Bumping to ask a very serious question...

I'd be living in the Fairy Tail world, which would be pretty awesome if I actually acquired magical powers. If not, I'd probably be screwed. 8D

 

[Dark Soul]

I now live in the world of K-On!!.

Fuck yes.

 

[Demelza]

Death Note, so quite screwed if I did anything bad, or happened to be going after Light. x3

 

[Carmen Lopez]

Hetalia Axis Powers...I don't even XD

 

[ShinyZekrom009]

This keeps bothering me, so I'm going to ask about this here, as it's about anime.

There was this anime show I watched when I was younger that is no longer on. All I remember about it is that these little kids with powers would fight, and they had partners who were taller. Each of these partners had a special book that would activate the little kid's powers.

Does anyone know what I'm talking about?! I can't remember what it's called.

Also, does anyone remember Oban Star-Racers? I watched some of it on Jetix several years ago.

 

[Carmen Lopez]

Are you thinking of Zatch Bell (or Gash Bell as it's called in Japan). The protagonists were a duo, the Mamodo named Zatch who had electric based powers and his partner Kiyo who held his book. I watched some of the show but I never became a huge fan although I remember liking Sherry and Brago.

 

[Sir Red]

In response to Katie's post, Baccano! I am totally cool with this. Living in a zany 1930's New York with awesomely colorful characters who are immortal. Yes, please. :]

Also, Carmen sounds correct. ShinyZekrom seems to be talking about Zatch Bell. Which was an...interesting show. It was too zany for zany's sake for my taste.

 

[Dark Soul]

I've been having a bit of correspondence with Demelza lately and I've managed to find some more anime series to add my to-watch list;

-Accel World (Another virtual reality game anime, but it looks great.)
-Kokoro Connect (About three club members who end up switching bodies.)
-Tari Tari (Very K-On-like, according to Dem~)

I'm keeping Ao No Exorcist on there as well, although I'm most likely scrapping Gurren Lagann and Fairy Tail.

 

[Linkachu]

Looks like it's been awhile since I last updated my "currently watching" list. As of now, it looks like this:

Ongoing series (aka. shows I've been following for multiple seasons)
- Fairy Tail
- SKET Dance
- Hunter x Hunter
- Pokemon: Best Wishes

Summer season shows (and anything ongoing that I recently picked up again)
- Cardfight!! Vanguard: Asia Circuit, aka. season 2
- Sword Art Online
- Humanity Has Declined

Rewatching
- Fairy Tail (Rewatching it with a close friend. This marks my 5th time restarting it)
- Cardcaptor Sakura (Rewatching it with my younger sisters)
- Tenchi Universe (Borrowed my older sister's DVD boxset because I haven't watched Tenchi in ages. It's still as great as ever)

There are still several summer season shows on Crunchyroll that I'd like to try watching, and I'm considering rewatching Cowboy Bebop once I'm finished with Tenchi and CCS. Beyond that, I can't wait to finally watch Angel Beats! on Crunchyroll. So glad they finally added it. :3

 

[Demelza]

Beyond that, I can't wait to finally watch Angel Beats! on Crunchyroll. So glad they finally added it. :3

Just so you know, the above makes me very, very happy. ♥

Hmm currently watching looks like this:

- Sword Art Online
- Tari Tari
- Kokoro Connect
- La storia della Arcana Famiglia
- Humanity Has Declined
- Durarara

The first five are from the current season, while Durarara is what I've been watching during the week to kill time before the Crunchyroll stuff given it's all released over the course of Saturday, Sunday, and Monday.

This season is very different to last where I picked up three shows and ended up very meh about two. At least four of the shows I'm currently following are quite special. Sword Art Online and Humanity Has Declined stand out as the must sees of the season, the former is very depressing just through the whole aspect of 'die in this game and you die in real life too', but that's also its selling point because it really makes you feel for these characters, and then sob when they do indeed get killed. So far it's doing what it sets out to do very well, people claim its the show of the season and I largely agree. Humanity Has Declined is something I didn't think I'd enjoy, but after being pushed towards it by a friend I found I really loved it, I especially like how story arcs are seemingly being split across two episodes, so it never feels like they're being rushed along.

Tari Tari is by P.A. Works (Think, Angel Beats), so it's something really impressive just to look at. As far as the story and characters go... It has a very K-ON! feel to it, but a fair bit deeper. Currently I'm enjoying it, but it likely won't be a favourite of mine.

Kokoro Connect felt stupidly rushed until episode three where it /really/ managed to turn itself around. I'm actually quite surprised how well it turned around and by the serious twist the series all of a sudden took. It was a good move and really has made the show stand out and I'm hoping it continues down this route.

La storia della Arcana Famiglia is okay. Not impressive, not amazing, its just okay. It gets a few points for having kept me watching it when I thought I'd drop it - My fault with it really is the fact they seem to have forgotten the actual plot we were first shown (bar a few small mentions here and there), and thrown us into filler land JUST so we can learn about all the different characters. I'd have liked the filler first before throwing us in like they did during the first episode because now I'm expecting things which seemingly aren't going to happen for awhile yet.

Durarara I've been meaning to watch for ages, and after learning Crunchyroll had it I finally picked it up. Like the general theme of this season, even though it isn't part of it, the show is actually following a depressing tone. Case and point: suicidal girl for the second episode. I normally wouldn't mind as much, but that sort of put me off the series this time, and although I'll finish it I can't see it being something I'll go back too.. XP

I do have some good comments about it though! :'D I love, love, love what they do with the art. Because the series is set within a large city pretty much all the time, only the main characters are coloured while random people on the street aren't and stay black and white. It's an interesting choice and one I've grown fond of during the series. ^^

 

[Secad MS]

Well, at times, iTunes can release pretty good free material. One such portion of material was the first episode of Death Note. Over my road trip, I have used the hotel Wi-Fi in order to watch Death Note after watching the first episode. My boyfriend recommended it to me in the past, being a huge anime fan. I watched the entire series and loved it. Now I need to read the manga.

In addition, thanks to the free episodes on iTunes, I have watched the pilots of Ouran High School Host Club, Inuyasha, and Ghost in the Shell. I do not know where to start, but I think I would choose an anime that is fairly short, like about forty episodes in the series maximum in order to finish it in a timely manner (i.e., one ep a day, finish it in about a month). Any recommendations?

 

[Teapot]

Well, you're asking a pretty broad question. Most anime released is either 12 or 24/25 episodes for the first season, and about the same for any subsequent seasons. The big exceptions, of course, are the "big" shows like Naruto, Pokemon, One Piece, Bleach, etcetera, which are all many hundreds of episodes long because they are vastly popular.

So there's a million things I can recommend based on taste. Basically, a short list of anime I think are most accessible/you should watch - all of this is judged on the subbed versions, you'll have to ask someone else for dubs. Incidentally, some of thus anime is in fact quite long. If I list a long anime here, it generally means you should definitely watch it.

Angel Beats (12 episodes)
Angel Beats' first episode takes a little stamina to get through if you're not a seasoned anime watcher, due to being completely nuts and having to introduce several key concepts and a lot of characters in twenty four minutes. In short, it is set in the afterlife, where everything looks roughly like a Japanese high school. There, our main character meets the Shinda Sekai Sensen (or Rebels Against the God), who explain where he is and tell him that they are trying to find a way to not disappear from their world.

The show takes a few episodes to wind up, but once it does it goes from an interesting show to one that is absolutely compelling.

Cardcaptor Sakura (three seasons of 24 episodes)
Notable for being the first subbed anime I ever watched, Cardcaptor Sakura is the poster child of magical girl anime. It's also really, really good.

In short, it's about a collection of magical cards which get accidentally released, and our titular Sakura must get them back to stop them causing havoc. It's full of transformation sequences, a thousand silly costumes (CLAMP decided they didn't like magical girls with one fixed outfit), and filler that is probably better than a lot of the card-catching episodes.

Despite being fluffy anime, it also manages to become a bit of a tearjerker at times. The ending made me shed a single, manly tear.

Code Geass (two seasons of 25 episodes)
Okay, so having listed two very different examples of anime that people mostly like based on taste, here's one you should watch regardless. Code Geass is about a guy called Lelouch who essentially initiates a plot to take over the world.

To quote my previous post on the matter, Code Geass has some of the best characters I've seen in an anime (Lelouch is deliciously psychotic and very very human, even when he's doing incredibly improbable things), the action is really good, the character dynamics innovative, and it's one of those shows with no clear protagonists; Lelouch is the focus of attention, but you never quite know if what he's doing is a good idea or not... especially when his double-life begins to crumble around him.

Gosick (26 episodes)
The best loli detective show, bar none. Set in an alternate 1914, our protagonist, Kujõ has moved to a European boarding school from Japan, and meets a mysterious girl called Victorique. She has the power to "see into chaos", and uses it to solve crimes - very much like a tiny, female, European Sherlock Holmes. She manages to be one of the most complex "loli" characters in anime - and watching the interactions between Kujō and her is incredibly interesting. Also worth noting is that the show shifts neatly from detective drama to epic story as the show progresses.

K-On! (two seasons: one 14 episodes, one 27 episodes including DVD/BD-exclusives)
Do you like the sound of an impossibly optimistic slice-of-life anime about a set of high-school girls who form an after-school light music club? Because if you don't, move on.

It is really one of those shows that everyone either loves or hates; I personally really like it and feel it's surprisingly detailed and incredibly funny for an adaptation of a four-panel comic, and manages to go through 40 episodes without ever losing pace or charm, despite of my skepticism of whether the writers have ever heard of an actual plot.

And the dub is godawful, so don't go there.

Nichijou/My Ordinary Life (26 episodes)
You know, I still haven't seen most of Nichijou. So why am I recommending it in my list of top anime?

Simple.
Because this.

I don't feel anything more needs to be said.

Puella Magi Madoka Magica (12 episodes, plus three upcoming movies)
This is what happens when magical girl anime goes wrong. Basically, a girl called Madoka discovers a small creature called Kyubey, and gets dragged into a war between a small band of mahou shoujo (magical girls), and creatures called Witches. Kyubey offers Madoka the chance to have any wish granted, with the proviso that she become a mahou shoujo and fight Witches. The result is misery wrapped in intrigue, stuffed in a bag of metaphor and dusted with really really trippy fight scenes. The art, although very simplistic and reminiscent of old magical girl shows, is consistently imaginative and dark- for example, one of the fight scenes taking place entirely in silhouette - and the show manages to get successively more tangled and deep as time goes on.

Star Driver (25 episodes)
This is the most fabulous anime you will ever see, bar none. To summarise the premise, a teenage buy called Takuto washes up on the shores of a island called Southern Cross. He enrols into the high school there, and makes friends - until he comes across a frozen set of giants called "Cybodies" hidden underground. Takuto finds himself dragged into conflict with a group called the Glittering Crux Brigade. Shortly through the first episode, Takuto reveals himself as a "ginga bishonen" (Galactic Pretty Boy), and enters Zero Time along with the Glittering Crux, where it is revealed that the Cybodies can only move there, due to Seals on four shine maidens that lock them in place: seals that the Glittering Crux are attempting to break.

The plot is insane. Don't even try to comprehend it from that paragraph alone. However, it is backed up by some really solid writing and animation, which neatly combines high school drama with epic robot-ballet fight scenes. And the music is amazing.

It also has the prettiest boys you'll see this side of any given CLAMP manga. So there's that.

---

There are like eleventy billion other anime shows you should probably watch, but there's a list of my personal favourites and why. Call it a synopsis of my earlier TL;DR post.

If I had to call an anime my favourite of all time, Code Geass would be tied with Hanasaku Iroha as the top pick. The decider is whether you like more action (Code Geass) or more character-driven stories (Hanasaku Iroha)

As a footnote: A lot of the anime I talk about can be found on Crunchyroll. I recommend it for anyone who doesn't have the will for the fansubbing community.

 

[Carmen Lopez]

I know this is about anime and all, but I actually want a good manga to start reading. Anyone have any suggestions? I think I've said it already, but I own all of Fruits Baskets and Kare Kano and I prefer the manga to the anime in both cases (the Fruits Basket one in particular makes me cry).

 

[Linkachu]

I know this is about anime and all, but I actually want a good manga to start reading. Anyone have any suggestions? I think I've said it already, but I own all of Fruits Baskets and Kare Kano and I prefer the manga to the anime in both cases (the Fruits Basket one in particular makes me cry).

Have you read any of the Pokemon Adventures series? If not, do so. :3

Anyways, haven't been able to watch much Anime lately but I recently bought a new boxed set at Fan Expo Canada 2012: Wolf's Rain (Perfect Collection). I'd been meaning to watch the show for aaaaaages, the price was good, and I hadn't yet bought any other Anime at the expo, so I went for it.

Three episodes in and so far, so good. I'm quite enjoying its futuristic setting and rather glad that it's not merely a modern day world. The music is gorgeous too, but I already knew that.

 

[Carmen Lopez]

Hetalia and Pokemon Special are now on my list of 'must-reads.' I love the Hetalia anime, so reading should be awesome too.

Also we watched two of the weirdest animes I've ever seen: Mushishi and Polar Bear Cafe. I liked them both, but I don't even know if anyone else has heard of them o.o

 

[Demelza]

Anyways, haven't been able to watch much Anime lately but I recently bought a new boxed set at Fan Expo Canada 2012: Wolf's Rain (Perfect Collection). I'd been meaning to watch the show for aaaaaages, the price was good, and I hadn't yet bought any other Anime at the expo, so I went for it.

Of what I saw of Wolf's Rain a few years back, reminded me of Spice & Wolf (maybe purely for the whole 'x character is a wolf' thing), which is by no means a bad thing. I need to pick it back up at some point.

Also we watched two of the weirdest animes I've ever seen: Mushishi and Polar Bear Cafe. I liked them both, but I don't even know if anyone else has heard of them o.o

I've never heard of Mushishi before, but Polar Bear Cafe is part of the current anime season (it started in the last season and just continued onwards), very keen to watch it at some point but keep putting it off for other things.

Been a month since I last posted my "watching list", so here's what it currently looks like~

- Sword Art Online
- Tari Tari
- Kokoro Connect
- La storia della Arcana Famiglia
- Humanity Has Declined

Just recently finished rewatching Spice & Wolf (both seasons + OVA), and the original Fullmetal Alchemist anime. Both shows are favourites of mine, especially Fullmetal. I'm not sure if it's the bond between the two brothers, the story, how brutal the world is to these two kids despite how much they've already gone through, or even the rule of equivalent exchange the brothers live by. Or maybe I just utterly adore the characters, I'm not sure. x3

As for the stuff still in season and continuing week by week:

Sword Art Online has felt a bit iffy for a few weeks, but after recently reading through the light novels I understand why. Where the light novels seem to throw us into the action and save the filler for later, the anime has done things the other way around in an attempt to character build, but in doing so it really screws with the pacing of the series. Thankfully we seem to have left the filler behind now and the plot, pacing, and overall series is working a lot better. I remember thinking this would probably be my favourite show of the season, and despite a few small issues I have with it, I do still really love it. It's hard not too.

Tari Tari is still pretty good. We've know pretty much learnt the back-story of every character in the club now that the series is coming to an end in about three episodes time. In the end I've found it quite hard to relate to most of the characters besides Wakana, I'm not sure why because they are really likeable, but I've just lost interest in a few of them really. Maybe the show tries too hard to make everything over dramatic without giving us enough time to take it all in, or maybe it just doesn't explain everything well enough (case and point: the mean vice headmaster, we know she's mean and we know it has something to do with Wakana's mum, but gods do I wish they'd finally explain over dragging it out). Guess my overall impression of this series can't be judged till it ends, maybe I'd have taken to it more if not for the fact I've found this to be a very good season and I'm enjoying other shows a lot more.

Kokoro Connect I utterly adore at this point, but it's soooooo sad. I must cry at almost every episode, which is rare for me. x3 At first I never thought I'd take to it, it felt rushed during the first three episodes or so, but boy was I wrong to judge it so quickly. The underdog really came in as the best of the season. I guess this is where my discontent for Tari Tari comes from, with both shows having the slice of life genre in common (even if they both also spin off into other things, like music for Tari Tari), Kokoro Connect just does everything better. The show is trying to cover a number of its light novels, and for that reason doesn't often hang around in explaining what's going on and isn't one for placing filler here and there. Each character has a dramatic background of some kind, and huge problems of their own which are only heightened through what the bad guy, Heartseed, does to them. Tari Tari seems to leave the characters with their problems sorted after a few episode, whereas with Kokoro Connect even when a certain arc is finished with the characters will still have those problems, or aspects of them, hanging over their heads. I like that better because it's closer to life in general, no one gets over problems as quickly as the kids in Tari Tari can.

Admittedly the show is hoping for dramatic impact in everything it does, and maybe rewatching it and knowing what happens would lessen how much you enjoy it, but for now I love it. I find the characters much more interesting than Tari Tari, especially Inaba who reminds me far too much of myself, so I really enjoy watching how she copes with certain problems. The only fault many pick out with it is the fact Heartseed has no real motive (that we currently know of anyway), for what he's doing to these kids, I'd like to better understand him/it. I don't mean to knock Tari Tari as much as I am doing either because I really do like the show, but it would likely have had more impact on me if it hadn't been placed in the same season as this show. I'm also really happy to know that Kokoro Connect, like Sword Art Online, will continue on into the Autumn anime season, so I still have quite awhile before I have to sob over it ending. xD

La storia della Arcana Famiglia surprisingly hasn't been ditched yet. I don't know why I'm still giving it a chance, maybe because the original plot idea interested me, maybe because I want to see the end result, I don't know. It finally seems to be going back to the original plot we were thrown into, so guess we'll see what happens.

Humanity Has Declined has proven in recent weeks that the episodes in the series don't actually go in any kind of order. They're just random stories for the sake of random stores, but I'm okay with that. I adore this crazy comedy and everything about the crazy, future-ish, world in which it's set. The idea that each story is split across two episodes is something I really like because it avoids them being rushed, and the stories not being in order means I could drop in and out as I please if I were to rewatch it and skip any episodes I hated. After Kokoro Connect and Sword Art Online this is probably my favourite show. ♥

My current plan now is to head towards Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood. I loved the original, but I also loved Brotherhood and it could do with rewatching.

 

[Carmen Lopez]

Ha, Sword Art Online! We watched three episodes of it in anime club, and now I'm hooked as well. I forgot to add it to my list of anime to watch.

I forgot to mention, but I finished Angel Beats recently and I loved it. It made me laugh and nearly brought me to tears in the ending. Apparently a lot of people who liked Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya dislike it because Yuri of Angel Beats is too similar to Haruhi. I can't say much on that because I never got past episode two or three of Melancholy because I couldn't stand Haruhi, but I loved Yuri xD.

On another note, Netflix removed Noein from Instant and now I'm sad

 

[Linkachu]

Whoo. After being away from my net connection for so long there's so much to catch up on. :'D

I'm up at our cottage alone today so I tried to make the most of it. So far I've watched Pokemon Best Wishes (Season 2) episodes 4-6, SKET Dance episodes 72-74, Fairy Tail episodes 146 and 147, Hunter x Hunter episodes 44 and 45, and last but not least, my bluray copy of Tales of Vesperia: The First Strike.

I'm glad that I finally got around to watching the Tales of Vesperia movie because I've owned it for several months now.
It was nice revisiting that world again and, on the whole, the movie was quite good and has nice pacing, but even though it's a prequel it'd likely be wasted on anyone who hasn't played the video game first. The movie gives a nice overview of the world but doesn't do a great job explaining who some of the side characters are. It's obvious that this is very much a tribute verses an Anime movie any viewer could enjoy, but then again, maybe watching the movie would encourage people to play the game? Wouldn't surprise me. Puppy Repede is damn cute too.

 

[SineCosineTangent]

I finally started watching shows again :'D

Okay one show but whatever. Sword Art Online is super great, I honestly didn't expect to get emotionally involved but then I did |D It's reminiscent of .hack, but done right. My friend is also trying to make me watch Hayate no Gotoku, but our internet at the apartment is kind of moody and won't let us watch it without extreme buffering |D Next on my list is WORKING!! and its followup series. c:

 

[Carmen Lopez]

I finally started watching shows again :'D
It's reminiscent of .hack, but done right.

Lol, what was wrong with .hack? I never actually watched that.

So I recently downloaded an app on my phone called Viki and it's actually pretty cool (I never bothered with the website though). I mostly use it for Korean dramas that I recently got into, but the app also has ancient anime (I'm talking around Astro Boy era along with some 80s and 90s stuff). I'll likely be updating in this thread when I start watching them xD

 

[Demelza]

I started watching Kokoro Connect for one reason. This,

Kokoro Connect I utterly adore at this point, but it's soooooo sad. I must cry at almost every episode, which is rare for me. x3

Yeah, after I read that from Demelza, I just really want to watch it.
Well, d***. This anime is so freakin' depressing. I thought it pretty boring at the first three episode. (Which I never finished because I was so busy) Towards the end of episode four, I started to cry. Now I am SO addicited to this anime.

I'd say that's the affect it has on most people. The first two - three episodes just don't show you how good this series actually is.

Well, haven't updated this for awhile. My currently watching list looks like this:

Sword Art Online
Kokoro Connect
YuruYuri
Special A

We're at the end of the Summer season, so most of the stuff I was enjoying is now finished. Most of it was good, in the end La Storia Della Arcana Famiglia never picked up, which is sad. There was sooo much they could have done with the idea of that series, but it really was wasted. Tari Tari was enjoyable throughout, but Kokoro Connect outdid it in every respect, and the series spent far too long focused on one character. It wasn't an awful series, but I can't say I'll ever regard it very highly either.

Humanity Has Declined ended up being the series I least expected to enjoy - yet fell in love with anyway. I think it was greatly helped by the idea of showing us stories spread out across two episodes. They never felt rushed, but they never got dragged out either, and I can honestly say there was only one arc which I hated and I wouldn't watch again if I rewatch this show.

Of what I'm currently watching Sword Art Online and Kokoro Connect are by far the favourites. Both have proven to be very impressive, even if, admittedly, Sword Art Online took its time in getting to this stage. Kokoro Connect is just all-round pretty darn perfect (at least for my tastes), and hasn't really let up at all since it turned itself around from a slow first couple of episodes. It's certainly a show which has me counting down the minutes to its release on a Saturday afternoon and not much has done that. x3

Special A and YuruYuri are both a comedy of sorts. I started the latter after hearing some fond comments regarding it from the UKAnimeNetwork podcast. It isn't really anything special for the genre, and I can't watch more than an episode or two a day because it's just too insane, but it can be enjoyable. I've only watched one episode of Special A so far, but it does look good. The character designs amuse me greatly though, as they seem to have really long legs...and just, yeah, that both annoys and amuses me. xD

In other news; Anime on Demand have announced that UK anime fans will be able to watch all their autumn simulcast titles for free with no adverts. It's basically an incentive to bring people back after they completely screwed up the summer season by having little to no titles for the paying members (and given the service is normally a pay-for only service anyway and they rarely supports free users like Crunchyroll does, that was quite a blow for those that pay for it). I wouldn't mind if they chose to do this for future seasons, although yes, they'd need to add adverts. The news makes me very happy though with the autumn season shaping up to be quite good, both Anime on Demand and Crunchyroll have started announcing the titles they're going to be streaming, and so far they are looking good.

 

[Dark Soul]

Sword Art Online has been absolutely fantastic this first season. I consider it the best anime within its own genre (Although, to be fair, I haven't seen that many other animes from the fantasy/sci-fi/drama world.) because it stunning both graphics-wise and audio-wise (You can't go wrong with LiSA!) and everything else, from the intense emotional drama to the creature and scenery designs, is terrific as well.

And more goodness is on its way! A teaser trailer has already been released for the upcoming season, which I'm very excited about- And about the eventual other sequels as well, although I won't spoil anything for the rest of you. Demelza knows what I'm referring to xD

So, yeah! Sword Art Online might have a bit of a slow start in the first 4-5 episodes, but when it gets going, it gets going. Definitely worth watching because it will both amaze you and leave you in tears.

I haven't been keeping up with Kokoro Connect. I'll get to that now!

 

[Linkachu]

Lately I've been unable to keep up with some of my usual shows but I've still been watching lots of Anime. But instead of listing my current watchlist, I'm going to discuss something else.

Now that my younger sisters are older and able to read subtitles, I've been rewatching a bunch of stuff with them. I'm not sure if they'll keep loving Anime as they get older but for now they absolutely adore it. :')

The first two shows that we watched through together (which I'm pretty sure I've previously mentioned within this thread) were Cardcaptor Sakura and Fairy Tail (at least up to the end of my four Fairy Tail DVD/Bluray combo sets). From there we went on to watch Tenchi Universe, a bit of Digimon Xros Wars (only up to episode 20 or so thus far), and most recently Angelic Layer. Both of my sisters really, really loved Angelic Layer, and it was really enjoyable for me to rewatch it too. I'd only watched it fully through once before now.

I think from here I'm going to show them the dubbed version of the Slayers, or at least the first three seasons of it. We'll likely continue to watch Digimon Xros Wars and then once we're finished that I'll introduce them to Digimon Adventure. At times like these I'm really fortunate to have siblings who like the same stuff that I do. ^^

And hey, as a random question: do any of you Anime fans also have siblings who enjoy Anime?

 

[Demelza]

And hey, as a random question: do any of you Anime fans also have siblings who enjoy Anime?

I've had 12 years to get my brother into it, and he still walks in and sees anime on the TV/my laptop and calls it "That Japanese rubbish" and walks out the room. So no, no love from my brother for it. xD

As of now the Autumn anime season has started to kick in, and I've dared to pick up far too many shows this season. They do, however work out to a show a day apart from Thursdays and Sundays which are quite busy, so I can work around that nicely.

What I'm following currently:

My Little Monster romantic comedy series. Didn't expect much of it at first, but it's so insane that I'm actually quite enjoying it.

From The New World
This show is certainly one to keep an eye on this season, it's tipped to be one of the best, and I have little doubt it will fulfil that hype. At this point I'm not sure what it is about the show which interests me, but I've just become very fond of it very quickly.

The latest Hayate series after asking Katiechu about it and her nudging me towards it. She now has to take all blame for my love of this.
It's a really fun show which hasn't filled to have me giggling at least once during its episodes. I now really want to go and check out some of the other Hayate stuff when I have time. :3

The Pet Girl of Sakurasou
I only watched the first episode of this yesterday as it's one of the latest titles Crunchyroll has grabbed for the season. I was quite surprised to find that the main character, Sorata Kanda, is being voiced by Yoshitsugu Matsuoka who most people will now know as playing Kirito in Sword Art Online. I think this made the show all the more interesting for me as I've grown very fond of that voice actor (I knew it was the same VA from the first line Sorata had) and he fits Sorata really well. Again, it's sort of a mental romantic comedy, and it's a bit early to tell if it'll be a good show or not, but from the first episode I really liked it.

K
Now, even after just one episode it has to be said that I grew to utterly adore the soundtrack of this series. Currently I'm finding K a good series, and like From The New World it's tipped to be one of the best shows of the Autumn, so I'm looking forward to seeing what it does. After two episodes I've settled into the somewhat odd setting it has, and the only thing we lack, and I really want, is for them to explain the actual plot. They threw us into it and haven't explained much more than x character wants to kill y character for something it looks like he did. But, y'know, it has time, so I won't complain about that yet as I'm enjoying everything else it offers. ^^

Blast of Tempest
After two episodes I'm not really getting into this show, I'm not sure what it lacks, maybe nothing, but I just can't seem to like it. It may end up like La Storia Della Arcana Famiglia from last season where I watch it for the sake of having said I've watched it. We'll see.

Magi
This show is okay. One episode hasn't drawn me into it just yet, but it certainly isn't bad. Undecided what I think for now.

Say I Love You
Neither Anime on Demand or Crunchyroll picked this show up, but I really enjoy the manage, so I knew I had to watch regardless. It's another romantic show (yes, watching a lot of these this season), but eh, I'm already really fond it. The first episode was really cute, and I can only hope for it to continue with the same cuteness etc. that the first episode showed.

Sword Art Online
I can't say much about this show that I haven't said in the past. It's still an awesome show and I'm enjoying where the second arc is taking us and the huge plot twist it brought with it. When the show sets out to do things right, it really does them right, enough to forgive the bad start.

Hiiro No Kakera season 2
I want this show to be good, but it will never ever live up to what I want. I'm watching this purely because I want to see what happens and so I can say I watched both seasons.

Little Busters
Neither of the big streaming sites picked this up, I'm randomly following it because I'm told it'll be good and after watching the first episode on Thursday while I was sick I have to admit it looks good so far.

That's basically all I'll be following this season now that we've had most, if not all, of the shows announced. I was also interested in Teekyu, which is a tennis/slice of life anime, so I might pick that up at some point.

That shall do for rambles for now.

 

[Linkachu]

Just a quick heads up, even though I'm a day late. I just found out about this promotion today! XD

In the spirit of Halloween, Crunchyroll is giving free premium access to a handful of different shows until November 2nd.

Premium access means streamed HD viewing (480p/720p/1080p if available) and no ads. It's a nice deal if you've been interested in any of the series offered, don't already have a premium account, or don't like watching Anime illegally. Only problem with the short timeframe is that you'll need to marathon stuff, which most folks can't manage mid-week. But hey, at least the offer's there at all.

The shows included are these:
- The World God Only Knows
- 07-Ghost
- Tegami Bachi Letter Bee
- Another
- Gosick
- Natsume Yujincho
- Uraboku
- Nyarko-san: Another Crawling Chaos
- Maburaho
- The Mystic Archives of Dantalian
- Level E
- Web Ghosts PiPoPa
- Dark Side Cat

Some good shows on that list, particularly Gosick. I'm looking forward to buying that one on blu-ray someday.

 

[Demelza]

Only problem with the short timeframe is that you'll need to marathon stuff, which most folks can't manage mid-week. But hey, at least the offer's there at all.

Made harder by the fact most of these shows are over 20 episodes, which is pretty much my limit for two to three days. So I doubt even those who marathon them will be able to see them through until the end, but that said once you start maybe you'll have the incentive to continue and put up with the adverts~

It's also worth noting that those of us in the UK don't have access to Another and The Mystic Archives of Dantalian due to their licensing limitations.

As for me I'm spoilt for choice. I've wanted to watch Tegami Bachi Letter Bee, Natsume Yujincho, and Uraboku for quite some time, but needed an incentive to start. On the other hand I wouldn't mind rewatching Gosick because that's an awesome series. I don't think I could watch either Tegami Bachi Letter Bee or Natsume Yujincho, though, because both are way over 20 episodes, so I'm left with Uraboku which I could manage, or rewatch Gosick... starting one of the former series might give me the incentive to continue after the deal though. Choices. (I'm also completely ignoring the fact I was almost finished Linebarrels Of Iron and shouldn't be leaving it now for other things. >>)

Also, for those wondering, of that list I've watched 07-Ghost, Another, Gosick, Nyarko-san: Another Crawling Chaos and The World God Only Knows, and would suggest that The World God Only Knows and Gosick are most worth your time. Another is pretty good too, especially as it's only 12 (maybe 13), episodes. That said, Another is also the most graphic of the titles when it comes to people being killed and stuff, so not for the faint-hearted. ^^;

 

[Psycho Monkey]

Just started watching Kaichou wa Maid-sama. It is so damn hilarious! Basically, the main character Misaki is sexist against men because her father left her, her sister, and mother with a huge debt that they need to pay off. To make ends meet, Misaki works at a maid cafe because the pay is really good. One of her classmates, a boy named Usui, finds out she works as a maid and only keeps it a secret because he finds it amusing. That is the first half of episode 1.

I highly recommend it for anyone with free time to watch the rest because it's so great! Watch the Subbed version though, the Dub is kind of bland if you ask me.

 

[Linkachu]

Just started watching Kaichou wa Maid-sama...

I watched that series last year and it really was lots of fun. I didn't expect to like it nearly as much as I did, but the show was both hilarious and, well, interesting. The dynamics between Misaki and Usui were very enjoyable to see. x3

Lately I've been watching Soul Eater through for a third time (the second time this year). It started as a way to get into the Halloween spirit but now I'm just enjoying the characters/universe too much to stop watching. I'm not sure if I'll keep with it until the finale this time but I really do love that show.

I've also been watching the Slayers and the Slayers Next with my younger sisters. We finished first season a week ago and have since started into second season, and gosh. Rewatching it now (especially Slayers Next, my favourite season) reminds me why I've long considered Slayers my top favourite Anime series bar none. It's like seeing old friends again. ♥

I've been very, very bad with my simulcasts. I've only been keeping up with four shows, three of which that I've been following for awhile (Fairy Tail, Hunter x Hunter, Cardfight! Vanguard) and one new show: Hayate No Gotoku! Can't Take My Eyes Off You. I was a big fan of Hayate's first Anime series and liked the second series enough to stay interested for a third series, but so far this third series has been hit-and-miss with me. That being said, I'm still going to watch it beginning to end with hope that it steadily improves.

Need new shows. Need to catch up with old shows. But most of all, we needs moar time in the day to do it all.

 

[Demelza]

Need new shows. Need to catch up with old shows. But most of all, we needs moar time in the day to do it all.

I find myself thinking the above more often than not recently. So far this season has been /very/ hit and miss with me so far. Some shows started out really good and I was enjoying them, but they've slipped downhill now they've hit the 5-6 episode mark; some have been awesome from the start, and a few have actually improved from when I first started them.

Currently my watching list sits like this:

- Sword Art Online
- Hiiro No Kakera second season
- Hayate No Gotoku! Can't Take My Eyes Off You
- Shin Sekai Yori (From the New World)
- My Little Monster
- Blast of Tempest
- Say I Love You
- The Pet Girl of Sakurasou
- K
- ChuunIibyo
- Magi

Sword Art Online is what it was last season, it still suffers from silly pacing problems where it will storm ahead and then spend an episode or two being really slow while trying to work out what to do next. It's a bit problematic in that, we're up to the 18th (maybe 19th) episode now, and the series is only due to run for 25, it hasn't got the time to slow down and take things slowly when it needs to be drawing to it's close and not leaving us with a rushed end. That said, I've felt like this from the start. Sword Art Online is a very nice series when it does things right, but more often than not it falls short of what you'd expect - I think the final few episodes will decide my final view on this show. That said, it's still one of my favourites this season and although I spend more time speaking badly of it than I do nicely, I'm actually really fond of it and its characters.

Hiiro No Kakera season two has actually managed to impress me! Admittedly, I went into watching this show purely so I could say I'd watched the second season and then could shake off all regrets that it may have gotten better and I hadn't seen it. Surprisingly it has been doing better than the first season, purely because all the characters are actually getting some attention now over the spotlight being on just Tamaki and Takuma, so I actually care about them now, yay! But yeah, it seriously has improved over the first season and I'm glad I picked it up. It'll never be a favourite, and I'll always have some faults with it (namely the whole of the first season >> <<), but I'm still glad I gave it the second chance. The plot is getting to a point where I'm really interested to see just what's going to happen next, something I never thought this show would manage.

Hayate No Gotoku! Can't Take My Eyes Off You I would probably enjoy more if I had watched past shows in the series and had the knowledge of who half the cast are. For a show which was meant to be easy for newcomers (like myself), to get into I can't help but feel disappointed in that it started out explaining who the characters were, and then just stopped. It now just seems to assume that the viewer knows who these random, but key, characters are... and I don't and I want it to explain, but it doesn't. So many of the jokes feel like you need the knowledge of who the characters are, and when you don't you're left feeling somewhat left out. It isn't a bad show, but it isn't right for anyone who hasn't watched anything in the series before either. And like Katie episodes tend to be very hit and miss to if I enjoy them or not, that could be again because of having no past knowledge of the show, or just this series in general. I dunno.


Shin Sekai Yori (From the New World) started off really really well and quickly became a favourite of mine for this season, but I feel like the fourth and fifth episode saw it go downhill somewhat. The fourth episode involved a huge dump of info in regards to the history of the, now peaceful, world of which the characters live in, however before we have the chance to absorb all the 'bloody history' ( a play on the fourth episodes title), we're thrown into some monster rat war. The fifth episode wasn't much better with the show rushing on and barely giving us the time to think, mix that with a slight art change which makes the characters lose a lot of their emotion, and make the series look very low budget, when it actually isn't, I'd lost my hype for it a bit. The sixth episode managed to make me restore some hope in it though, so hopefully it's all uphill from here and I can go back to singing its praises like I did at the start of the season. If nothing else the animation was better in terms of the characters having their emotion back. It's overall such an intriguing story, but the show has to keep up a certain level of emotion and animation for me to stay drawn into it.


My Little Monster is a romantic comedy, I don't view it as anything special, but it's still really enjoyable. For what it is and the genre it comes from, it's not a bad show, just largely outdone by the other romantic shows this season. I guess it's suffering the same fate Tari Tari did last season when put next to Kokoro Connect, which just outdid it. When you're watching three shows from the same genre, it's very rare that they'll all hold out when put against one another, which is what is happening here. My Little Monster just isn't good enough.

Blast of Tempest is an interesting one for me... I started off not really getting into it, but hanging on because it's by Studio Bones who were in charge of Fullmetal Alchemist (both series), and Gosick, all of which are favourites of mine. The last couple of episodes however have finally really caught my attention, especially the plot twist at the end of the fifth, so I think this one will be going uphill and holding out for the Studio's name and history of giving us good shows.

Say I Love You is a real down to earth romance story, showing all the thoughts, feelings, and fears a young, shy, girl like Mei would have going out with the most popular guy in the school. Hats off to it honestly, I love the manga, but I've likely been enjoying the anime even more, it's a really great series for the genre, and I'm SO happy Crunchyroll decided to start streaming it so late into the season. ♥ The only thing I can find fault with it for is the fact Yamato seems creeper than in the manga, so people getting into the series for the first time may be put off by that. Mei is pretty awesome though. ^^

The Pet Girl of Sakurasou is another romantic comedy, but outdoes My Little Monster in so many ways. On paper the idea for the series is completely silly, it's stupid and crazy, but the series has more to it than the comedy, when it decides to explore deeper subjects (like, how people struggle to be around those with talent), it does it very well and for a series that I never expected to become a favourite of mine, it has quickly managed it. It was really impressive from the start and I've sorta kept my thoughts for it at arms length because I worried it was due to trip and roll downhill too, but it actually hasn't. For five-six episodes it has kept up a strong performance and I've come to love everything about it. It's crazy, but it's fun and has a strong cast of loveable and interesting characters, and I really believe that it has become the must see this season. And I really don't want it to end any time soon, so I'm glad it's a 24 episode show.

K is amazingly pretty to look at and listen to, but it has taken forever in exploring its plot, and for a 12 episode show it should be moving faster considering it's currently sat with the sixth episode released and has only JUST started to get into things properly. I want it to be good though, and I like the main character and want to understand his back-story, so I hope the show doesn't let me down, but at this point I really feel like it will.

Chuuniibyo is interesting enough for what it is, but I've fallen behind with it quite quickly. I'm not sure if it's because it was late being released for the season because Anime on Demand kept putting it back, and thus I was much more into other shows by the time it was released, or if it just isn't good enough to stand up to other stuff this season. Time will tell.

 

[SineCosineTangent]

Sword Art Online.

My feels, though.

I gave up on that show for a bit, but came back to it today and caught up to 22. I also had forgotten how much my feels get involved when OBVIOUSLY RIDICULOUSLY EVIL VILLAIN OF THE ARC comes on the screen. I wanna punch his face in D:<

 

[Dark Soul]

The development team behind Sword Art Online most definitely knows how to play with the emotions of their viewers and exercises this knowledge with a great degree of skill. This season's got only a couple episodes left, and we're likely to see this arc end when the season does- Unless the studio is sadistic enough to end it all on a cliffhanger, which isn't likely.

(Although I would actually prefer the latter, because that would assure a season 2, which hasn't been confirmed yet but is likely to happen.)

But yes, this anime has become one of my personal favourites by being a combination of many positive attributes; The graphics are pretty to look at, the action scenes are exciting to behold and the story is awesome, gripping, and moving.

 

[Demelza]

The development team behind Sword Art Online most definitely knows how to play with the emotions of their viewers and exercises this knowledge with a great degree of skill. This season's got only a couple episodes left, and we're likely to see this arc end when the season does- Unless the studio is sadistic enough to end it all on a cliffhanger, which isn't likely.

I'd say they need to finish the books off, and even though I haven't read through the final book that covers this arc I know they're coming to an end and couldn't really drag it out into a second season without killing it. That said, despite its faults, this series has ended up being quite a hit and I honestly wouldn't be surprised to see a movie or another season come out of it.

Now, I'm going to be good and not ramble about what I'm currently watching because I want to ask a question. >:3

We're coming to the end of 2012 now, and I'm wondering which anime you guys enjoyed most this year.

Out of everything I've watched this year I enjoyed OZMA, Dusk Maiden of Amnesia, Sword Art Online, Kokoro Connect, and The Pet Girl of Sakurasou. All but the latter have had their faults, but I've enjoyed each greatly regardless. If I had to pick a favourite it'd be Kokoro Connect or The Pet Girl of Sakurasou though, as I've loved both. ^^

But yeah, over to you guys.

 

[Linkachu]

We're coming to the end of 2012 now, and I'm wondering which anime you guys enjoyed most this year.

Good question! ^^

Going by shows that were either released this year or ended at some point within 2012, Kokoro Connect is definitely high up on my favourites list. SKET Dance also stole its way into my heart, watching it brightened my days, and if a new season is ever made I'm there faster than you can say "pizza's ready!". I don't feel right choosing Sword Art Online until it's completed but I'm certainly liking the show a lot. I just wish its pacing hadn't been so borked at times!

However, if I'm picking a show that I personally watched for the first time this year regardless of when it was first made, there's a definite single answer: Puella Magi Madoka Magica. I never truly believed that a 12 episode length TV series of any sort could feel as complete as a 20+ episode length series until watching Madoka. Not counting the fact that it's a downright beautiful show, with gorgeous atmospheric music to boot, Madoka feels complete. Nothing felt rushed and nothing felt unanswered, it was all just right for me. So much love, so much love for that show.

Fairy Tail and Hunter x Hunter are likely my favourite ongoing shows but have been so for awhile now, especially Fairy Tail. Both shows are currently into great arcs too, so I guess that's worth a mention.

 

[Demelza]

Bumping because I can~

I realise now, looking at this tread, it has been ages since I properly rambled here, so what better time to do so than in the middle of the Winter season? ^^

Currently watching:

- The Unlimited
- Shin Sekai Yori (From The New World)*
- Amnesia
- Magi*
- The Pet Girl of Sakurasou*
- Blast of Tempest*
- Hakkenden Eight Dogs of The East
- Kotoura-San
- Tamako Market
- Fairy Tail*
- Problem Children Are Coming From Another World, Aren't They?
- Vividred Operations

* Anything with the star thing is something I've followed since last season. Although, Magi isn't a fair mention because I keep dropping the thing. Also, it may look like a lot of shows, but spread over a week it really isn't. XD

*ahem* Thoughts in order of the list:

The Unlimited: The series is a spin-off of something else which I've never watched and likely should have done before taking this up, but it seems I haven't hindered my enjoyment of the thing because of not watching whatever it spins off from. It tells the story of.. I guess you'd call them mafia.. group P.A.N.D.R.A. which is a group of people with psychic powers, people who in this world are shunned for having such powers. The leader of P.A.N.D.R.A. wants to rid the world of the "normals" and create just a world for those with powers.

In the middle of this we have Andy Hinomiya, a guy who works for the US secret service and is tasked with getting into P.A.N.D.R.A. and bringing the group down. However Andy is half normal and half psychic, so once he sees how P.A.N.D.R.A. works and what it does for those with powers he is almost forced to choose between the two, which is certainly interesting if not expected of the story.

Overall the series isn't a favourite of mine, and I haven't really taken to any of the characters, but it's certainly interesting and we're at the point where everything has unfolded nicely and we're going into the last few episodes. I'm looking forward to seeing where we go.

Shin Sekai Yori (From The New World): Since the show started I've been rewatching it with a good friend of mine, and I think it's always a good sign if you can rewatch something so soon after you've seen it. The first arc felt dragged out at the end, but they've handled the middle arc really well (if not perfectly at the end), and I'm looking forward to seeing what comes next as we've just jumped ahead in time again. If it keeps up as well as it has been I'll be quietly impressed with the show, as I have been on and off since it started.

Amnesia: I wanted this show to be good, I really did! At this point though (7th episode), the show just isn't answering any of the questions that the plot is giving us, if anything it keeps making things more confusing. I expect when everything is finally revealed at the end it will be quite interesting, but the getting to that answer has been tiresome at best, I just can't be bothered to drop the show at this point because we're so close to the end and the animation is actually really pretty, if nothing else. The ending better be worth it.

The Pet Girl of Sakurasou: See, my problem with this show isn't that I don't like it, it's that I love it so much I don't have any more ways to express it. I knew from around the fourth episode that the show was going to be something I regard extremely fondly, not just as a favourite of the season, but as a lifetime favourite. Strong words, yes, but the thing has earned it.

We're about five episodes away from the end now and we've just been left with a painful cliffhanger of sorts, but the show is still as awesome as ever. I struggle to think of another comedy that can take itself serious when it needs to and have such depth to its characters... Maybe Ouran High School Host Club, but that isn't quite the same for the depth in its characters. Yeaaah. I just love the thing and would strongly recommend it to anyone who is up for a fun title with some really strong and interesting characters, just get through the first couple of episodes as the first doesn't show it off well enough.

Blast of Tempest: This show is interesting. It took me awhile to get into it, and at one point I was only sticking with it because of Studio BONES involvement, but now I'm glad I did. The second half of the series seemed to be taking it less seriously than the first did, but that hasn't hindered it, if anything it's just showing us a cute side of Hakaze. Again, it likely won't be a favourite, but I look forward to it every week and can't fault it aside from the three episodes or so of bluffing near the end of the first half, that was awful for people watching it week after week. xD

Hakkenden Eight Dogs of The East: The lead character has the same voice actor as Natsu in Fairy Tail, and the fact the characters sound just like each other yet aren't anything like one another in personality has kinda hindered my enjoyment of the show just a bit. It's interesting, but I just don't look forward to it each week because it hasn't been able to draw my attention that much, but then I think I'm being harsher on new shows this season because a lot of the stuff that has continued from last is just so good.

Kotoura-San: As if to counter my point, we have this thing. Another comedy, but it has a darker undertone running through it because of Kotoura's past. I don't enjoy it as much as I do Pet Girl, but I can easily relate to Kotoura, and it is a very strong show, so overall I'm quite happy with it. ^^

Tamako Market: Another slice of life/comedy anime (I'm not swimming in these things now, nooo), and again it is a good one. It tells the story of Tamako who lives in a shopping district, and the other people with their stores there. We also have a talking bird called Dera thrown in to keep it interesting. It isn't a bad show and it sets out to do what it does very well, and Dera offers some wise words and awesome comedy. This show wouldn't be half as fun without Dera that's for sure. It's a cute show that shouldn't be taken seriously, and I enjoy it, but it isn't something I make the point of watching on the day of release either.


Problem Children Are Coming From Another World, Aren't They?: Out of all the new shows this one is my favourite. I waited six weeks for Anime on Demand to start streaming it, and then realised that if I didn't start watching it I likely wouldn't if we fell behind any more. So, I went through six episodes in a day and fell in love with the thing. xD

We have three "problem children" who all have special powers and have all been summoned to some magical world by Black Rabbit to help the community "No Name" to overthrow the Demon lords with their powers. The show has a deeper meaning, but on the outside it's light-hearted and crazy. It's a genre of anime that I find easy to get into, and the characters are all really likeable (and I love the design of Sakamak). I don't think I'd have gotten into it if I'd been watching it week by week to begin with, going through the first four episodes at once really helped me get into it, partly because the first episodes are nuts and don't explain enough at once. Again though, this is my favourite of the new shows. ♥


Vividred Operations : Magical girl anime: Check. A ton of fanservice: check. Insane special move names so as to stop us /ever/ taking the thing seriously: check.

As long as you don't expect any answers from this show about why things happen, then you'll be fine. I'm fond of it, I am, but it really is crazy and of the characters is totally Homura from Madoka Magica. xD

That'll do for a ramble I think~

 

[Luckii]

It seems lots of people who are fans of anime hold Hetalia in high regard. So I checked it out. After watching a rather large amount of the episodes, I had one question to ask:

How?

How the hell is this show so popular? The episodes are only about 5 minutes long (so waaaaay too short), the show has no coherant plot whatsoever, the characters are frustratingly annoying, the show lacks focus (I am often left wondering what the hell is going on), and some of the character elements are confusing (why does Britain have imaginary friends?).

I just don't understand why people adore this show so much.