The Impression Series: Spring 2012 [Part 2]

Damn I'm sure taking my time for this (Tales of Grace F is just too awesome). I was supposed to post this weeks ago, but somehow I totally forgot about it and the entry ended up in my draft. Now this is not even supposed to be called a first impression entry...well I guess no use keeping it forever in my draft list, so I might as well finish the post now before I forgot about it again. Nonetheless, not much to add to the 6 series I've watched in my part 1.

Tasogare Otome x Amnesia
MAL/OFFICIAL SITE 
Genre: mystery, romance, supernatural, comedy
Studio Production: Silver Link
Number of Episodes: 12

Comments: When I looked at the anime list released for this season some months ago, for some reason I had a feeling that this series would be the show I would “probably” enjoy the most this season, together with Sankarea. And my hunch was correct. Amnesia, while vaguely similar to Sankarea, was quite entertaining in much more different ways. For one, the OP song Choir Jail was so awesome I don’t think I would remove it from my playlist for a long time (along with Kusoo Merosogii and Dead End). Secondly, the plot was entertaining. From the existence of the legendary ghost named Yuuko that haunts the school but in fact was a pretty girl who often hanged out with the main character Teichii Niya; other members of Paranormal Investigation Club Okonogi and Kanoe who often made things even more entertaining; the mystery/supernatural elements added every now and then, mainly revolving around Yuuko’s tale and her past; and most importantly, the comedy/romance. The animation art was magnificently done with many scenes incorporating darker background to complement the theme. And I like the fact that sometimes it assimilate SHAFT's unique animation style, with the unique camera angle, random dialogue appearing every now and then…

verdict: 5/5















Hyouka
MAL/OFFICIAL SITE 
Genre: mystery, school life
Studio Production: Kyoto Animation
Number of Episodes: 21

Comments: Finally another show by KyoAni, but I didn’t really expect they would go for this kind of series. You know…the mild mystery genre that once engulfed the Suzumiya Haruhi series, but without the element of supernatural in it. Hyouka tells the story of an “eco-friendly” boy named Oreki Houtarou who doesn’t like to get involved in anything and would rather preserve his energy...for nothing. Until one day when he was “coerced” into joining the Classic Club by his sister, met a super curious girl named Chitanda Eru, and from that point his energy conservation lifestyle seems to be over, no thanks to his great logic and analysis ability. The little mystery that came in every episode was well crafted given the fact that Houtarou often solved it in the simplest manner possible, then when it comes to the bigger mystery, he used every possible information available to draw the most feasible answer to the puzzle. Despite their contrasting nature, the unenthusiastic Houtarou and energetically curious Chitanda, along with their friends Fukube and Ibara are quite good pairings when it comes to doing their routine club activities.

 verdict: 4.5/5

p/s: is this the season of long black haired girl? Rea of Sankarea, Yuuko of Amnesia, Yuka of Natsuiro Kiseki, Chitanda of Hyouka....

Hiiro no Kakera
MAL/OFFICIAL SITE 
Genre: fantasy, romance, supernatural
Studio Production: Studio DEEN
Number of Episodes: 26

Comments: Damn now it’s already over 8 episodes, can’t even call this a first impression, huh. When the series first aired, I’ve never really planned to put this into my watchlist. But as I watched a few more episodes, I kinda started to like the series, maybe because it had the resemblance to Hakuouki, from the reverse harem point, and the same production of studio DEEN. Mind you I’m no fan of reverse harem, but those from DEEN seem to have something that I enjoyed. Maybe the action/supernatural factor, maybe the animation art…The plot revolves around a girl named Tamaki, a descendant of the powerful Tamayori princess and hence was targeted by all kind of menaces, but surrounding her are 5 guardians assigned to protect her. The plot was rather slow at first but then it started to build up quickly once those people that targeted Tamaki appeared, complemented by some nice fighting scenes. One thing I’m really hoping for though is that it won’t have a disappointing ending, like Hakuouki. And I want to see the romance more. Well, a long way to go I guess.

verdict: 4/5















Haiyore! Nyaruko-san
MAL/OFFICIAL SITE 
Genre: comedy
Studio Production: Xebec
Number of Episodes: 12

Comments: my god, an anime with all the weird names from cthulhu mythos, thanks HP Lovecraft. Never been the fan of the work so I’ll put the mythology aside, but I certainly had a lot of laugh watching the craziness of the characters in this series, the ridiculousness of the jokes, the repeated gags that reminds me to Bokusatsu-tenshi Dokuro-chan. But with less guro. So the story (well do people really care about the plot of this series?) is about Nyaruko (aka Nyarlathotep), a totally messed up "deity" withh so many crazy shit going on inside her head, coming to earth for the sole reason to protect a boy named Mahiro Yasaka, and subsequently all kind of other “mystic” creatures/aliens came either to help them or to oppose/break them. To be honest there’s really not much for me to say, the plot was forgettable but it was balanced by the unique characters, pretty animation and funny jokes. A light-hearted comedy series like this is always welcomed into my watchlist.

verdict: 3.5/5

Victory Quotes

....and and this is one of the reason why Tales series are so enjoyable, especially Tales of Grace F. Pascal, Sophie, Malik, Cheria, Asbel, Hubert and to some extent, Richard made things really entertaining XD

or for just the English sound clips to complement the video above;

still a long way to finish the game...I mean, Platinum it. Gonna enjoy it slowly.

The Impression Series: Spring 2012 [Part 1]

Should have posted these weeks ago, but shit happened and it got delayed more and more. It’s tough trying to balance work, games, dota and anime -___- Better late than never I guess. Anyway, time for the not-so-early impression, now for the recently started Spring 2012 series.

Fate/Zero S2
MAL/OFFICIAL SITE  
Genre:action
Studio Production:ufotable
Number of Episodes:12

Comments: It doesn't make much sense that the first season ended last month and right off the bat, the 2nd season begins this season. Taking a breather before continuing with the rest of the production? Regardless, Fate/Zero S1 exceeded my expectation and I was looking forward to how it's gonna continue in this 2nd season. And right away, episode 1 alone was bloody entertaining. It restarted right where it stopped at the end of season 1, and now all the servants temporarily abandon the Holy Grain war in order to defeat the greater hindrance that is Caster. 4 episodes so far, things are looking great for the series, I'm glad that we finally got to see the much anticipated Saber's Noble Phantasm. The animation retained its high standard despite not having many flashy special effects, the bgms remained a classic from Kajiura Yuki, and though I love both S1 and S2's OP song, the current OP song by Kalafina was much more favorable in my playlist. Overall, like its predecessor, Fate/Zero S2 had the potential to be enlisted in my favorite shows this year.

Verdict: 4.5/5

Sankarea
MAL/OFFICIAL SITE  
Genre:comedy, romance
Studio Production:studio DEEN
Number of Episodes:12
Comments:

The first thought in my head when I watched the first episode: The unique animation, the random scenes appearing every now and then....SHAFT? Then I checked the anime information, and I was surprised to see that the anime was actually produced by the last studio I would have thought of - DEEN. Now that is something coming from DEEN, but overall I am quite satisfied with the series so far. Last year I randomly download the manga into my iphone, yet until today I haven't even touch the manga but the first chapter. I guess now that the anime is aired, I can just set the manga aside. Back to the story, Sankarea tells a story of a high school boy, Furuya Chihiro, whose obsession with the undead (or to be exact, cute zombies) brought him an unexpected meeting with Sanka Rea, a sheltered, innocent girl whose freedom was limited by her strict father. Things happened and she ended up turning into something that Chihiro exactly looks for, a girl zombie.. From production value, DEEN did quite a good job in giving the best animation and musics, along with great choice of dialogues/seiyuus to voice Chihiro and Rea, and scenes selection that sometimes tries to mimick shaft's style. Nevertheless, this is gonna be one of my favorite show this season, and probably this year too.

Verdict: 5/5














Kore wa Zombie Desu ka? of the Dead
MAL/OFFICIAL SITE  
Genre:comedy, romance, supernatural
Studio Production:Studio DEEN

Number of Episodes: 12 

Comments: The second season. Initially I don't have much things to expect from the sequel,  and having watched 3 episodes so far, I would say that my impression didn't change by much. Continuing straight from where it left in season 1, the story still retained the same recipe of fanservice+harem comedy mixed with some action/thriller (Ayumu in action with his Masou Shoujo persona as usual), with more side/new characters (classmates, Sarasvat, Kris etc) now getting involved, though so far the plot was more comedic than the second half of the first season. I used to like the anime a lot when it was first aired, but after a while, for some reason the impact kinda lost, even after watching this 2nd season. So for now, I guess I would put it on my watchlist just for the sake of having some laugh.

Verdict: 3.5/5














Kuroko no Basuke
MAL/OFFICIAL SITE  
Genre:sport/basketball
Studio Production:Production I.G.
Number of Episodes:25

Comments: I am by no means a basketball fans (much less a player) and as far as basketball anime goes, the only series I've got some attachment to was Slam Dunk (duh) and to a certain degree, Buzzer Beater. Having watched 4 episodes, I had to say that I am immensely fascinated with the series. 5 players plus 1 "invisible" sixth player from a generation of extremely talented middle school basketball team, now scattered around the best of high school basketball team, with the story focuses on that sixth player, Kuroko and his teammates. Simple premise, yet nicely done to highlight the 2 main characters Kagami and Kuroko - 2 players of completely different ability yet complement very well to each other and together, the vows to beat the rest of the Generation of Miracles and become the best team in Japan. The basketball game was intense, lots of fast paced basketball action involved, yet it was easy enough to follow for people with minimal basketball knowledge like myself. And even better, they provide in depth strategy and analysis about the game/formation that a football/rugby fan like myself can relate to and understand. The BGMs are also as intense as the action in the court, and that only helped get my excitement going. Overall, it was one of the better sports anime I've watched in recent years, and no doubt I'm gonna watch the anime all the way to the end.

Verdict:: 4.5/5 (must watch)














Natsuiro Kiseki
MAL/OFFICIAL SITE  
Genre:drama, slice of life
Studio Production:Sunrise
Number of Episodes:12

Comments: At first I was a bit skeptical about the story (particularly because I'm less inclined to watch an all-girl slice of life drama). Skimming through the first episode didn't really get me all impressed, until that last "miracle" scene, which surprised me in many way (because I thought it was strange to have that bit of supernatural element infused to the story).  Then I watched the next episode, and the next, and the next; and I have to say that my impression changed, to the better. I sorta feel the same way as when I watched Hanasaku Iroha, and indeed the story did feel similar - a slice of life series focusing on summer life of the 4 main girls, each with different personality: Natsumi, Saki, Yuka and Rinko; and the best part of it is probably watching all of them getting caught in different kind of "miracles"granted by the big rock at the shrine in each episode. I'm all in for the rest of the episodes.

Verdict: 4/5 (must watch)

Shining Hearts ~Shiawase no Pan~
MAL/OFFICIAL SITE  
Genre:fantasy, romance
Studio Production:Production I.G.
Number of Episodes:12
Comments:  I've been a fan of the Shining Series since the introduction of Shining Tears game quite a few years ago, and although Shining Tears x Wind was average overall, I am still looking forward to the third of the series, Shining Wind (how I wish the game was translated). 3 episodes in, I'd say that the pace of the story was way too slow. In the first episode we were introduced with Rick, his job a the bakery and the 3 pretty girls who assisted him, then the 2nd episode didn't differed by much, and only at the end of it we got the gist of the real deal of the story. It's crazy that it took more than 2 episodes to arrive to the focal point, huh? How are they gonna cover the whole plot in 12 episodes is beyond me, I just hope I can see enough actions to satisfy my needs for Shining series. Other than that, I don't really have much to comment. The graphic is awesome but that was a given since the original characters were designed by one of my fav artiste Tony Taka. Nevertheless, it was still a must watch for me because, well, I'm a fan of the series.
p/s: The first time I saw Lana, I totally thought she was Elwyn (Shining Tears). Totally look alike.
Verdict: 4/5


part 2 coming a bit later