New crop of tomatoes fresh in...
Robert Sneddon
episodes out there. The scores on the doors are:
Seitokai no Ichizon
As its title suggests this show is about a school's student council
(Seitokai). It's based on a yon-koma (4-panel) gag manga with little
depth to it. There is a goodly chunk of 4th-wall breaking going early in
the show before it settles down to the everyday tale of an
eroge-obsessed would-be harem-builder being put down mercilessly by the
four stereotypical girls who comprise the rest of the council. It's not
good enough to be bad, if you see what I mean. I might continue watching
it if I should misplace my nosehair-trimming scissors and lack something
better to do of an evening. 4 out of 10.
Kampfer (aka K�mpfer)
Mortal Kombat, sorry combat at a school between two groups of fighters
who use swords, guns and magic to try and kill members of the other
team. Well, when I say "kill" this is anime where "kill" actually means
beat someone up a little bit. Swords rip clothing and might give someone
a slight paper-cut (Ooooh! Nasty!), guns are wielded by epileptic
half-blind idiots that can never put a bullet where it would do the most
good and magic... well, lots of noise, lots of flame, little damage
(unless the target's knockers are worth seeing in which case her
clothing takes a beating -- see "swords" above). Being anime all the
K�mpfers in this sorry tale are cute buxom girls, including poor old
Natsuru who started off as a guy. Being trapped in an anime he makes a
cute girl, busty enough to attract the attention of most of the other
guys in his class. He also manages to attract the attention of the cute
girl he's madly in lust with only she prefers his, ahem, feminine side.
The animation isn't very good and the direction is sloppy with lots of
cross-cuts and bad editing. The voice acting is nothing to write home
about either. 3 out of 10.
Sasameki Koto (aka Whispered Words)
This is one series I was particularly looking forward to given how much
I am enjoying the manga it is based on, and sadly my expectations were
maybe tweaked a little bit too high. Moving from B/W still art to colour
animation has obscured some of the fine clean lines of the manga's pen,
backgrounds are more noticeable, movement sometimes works and sometimes
doesn't, real voices replace the written word changing the feel of the
dialogue somewhat. That being said this is still good stuff. The first
episode is slow, really just introducing the key characters Sumika and
Ushio and the central dilemma of their existence. Other characters who
will have major roles to play in the story to come are seen in passing
but they are yet to be put on centre stage. At the end of the first
episode my immediate impression was that this is a good start, a
foundation to build on. It is not perfect, it is not what I hoped for
but I smiled and laughed here and there, sympathised when Ushio was shot
down in flames once again and nodded sagely when her friend Sumika
stepped forward to sweep up the pieces and give her the shoulder to cry
on she always provides at times like this. The manga has a lot of
internal dialogue, mostly from Sumiko's POV which is missing from the
anime but it is clear from the direction and editing what is going on
inside people's heads and that's good enough. 7 out of 10.
To Aru Kagaka no Choudenjibou (aka To Aru Kagaku no Railgun aka A
Certain Scientific Railgun)
This anime is based on a side-story manga to the much longer To Aru no
Magical Index manga which is itself based on a long-running light novel
series of the same name which has already been made into an anime
series. Got all that? Like many side-story shows it's a bit lighter than
the original storyline, more comedy and less overt drama and pathos. You
don't need to have seen the first show to "get" this one as it takes
pains to introduce the locale and the main characters pretty seamlessly.
The Railgun of the title is Mikoto who can control electricity via esper
powers. Her best "finishing move" is to accelerate a coin in a
psychically-constructed railgun hence her nickname (she's also called
the Electric Princess and The Shockmaster). In this world esper powers
can be trained up through Levels -- Mikoto is a Level 5, the top rating
and so she is her school's "ace". The first episode welds a group of
girls together as friends and allies of Justice by throwing a bank
robbery at them. One spectacular Railgun Special later it's time for the
credits. Cheesy perhaps but I'm a sucker for well-constructed cheese and
this is brick-built Wensleydale. Lots of CGI to make background stuff
look more solid and urban-futuristic than most animes manage but it's
clean and acceptable and the plot is thick enough to be palatable.
Having read forward in the manga I'm hoping to see some more characters
appear to complicate things so I'll be tracking this one. 7 out of 10.
--
To reply, my gmail address is nojay1 Robert Sneddon
Dave Baranyi
"Robert Sneddon" <fr...@nospam.demon.co.uk> wrote in message
news:NHfeW1UM...@nospam.demon.co.uk...
> The new season of anime is upon us and I've seen some of the first
> episodes out there. The scores on the doors are:
>
> Seitokai no Ichizon
>
> As its title suggests this show is about a school's student council
> (Seitokai). It's based on a yon-koma (4-panel) gag manga with little
> depth to it. There is a goodly chunk of 4th-wall breaking going early in
> the show before it settles down to the everyday tale of an
> eroge-obsessed would-be harem-builder being put down mercilessly by the
> four stereotypical girls who comprise the rest of the council. It's not
> good enough to be bad, if you see what I mean. I might continue watching
> it if I should misplace my nosehair-trimming scissors and lack something
> better to do of an evening. 4 out of 10.
>
Seitokai no Ichizon is a series that might be better if it focused upon the
male character instead of the female characters, sort of like what "Inukami"
did.
> Kampfer (aka K�mpfer)
>
> Mortal Kombat, sorry combat at a school between two groups of fighters
> who use swords, guns and magic to try and kill members of the other
> team. Well, when I say "kill" this is anime where "kill" actually means
> beat someone up a little bit. Swords rip clothing and might give someone
> a slight paper-cut (Ooooh! Nasty!), guns are wielded by epileptic
> half-blind idiots that can never put a bullet where it would do the most
> good and magic... well, lots of noise, lots of flame, little damage
> (unless the target's knockers are worth seeing in which case her
> clothing takes a beating -- see "swords" above). Being anime all the
> K�mpfers in this sorry tale are cute buxom girls, including poor old
> Natsuru who started off as a guy. Being trapped in an anime he makes a
> cute girl, busty enough to attract the attention of most of the other
> guys in his class. He also manages to attract the attention of the cute
> girl he's madly in lust with only she prefers his, ahem, feminine side.
> The animation isn't very good and the direction is sloppy with lots of
> cross-cuts and bad editing. The voice acting is nothing to write home
> about either. 3 out of 10.
>
The glances I've taken at some of the blogs on episode 2 seem to indicate
that episode 1 may be the high point of the series...
> Sasameki Koto (aka Whispered Words)
>
> This is one series I was particularly looking forward to given how much
> I am enjoying the manga it is based on, and sadly my expectations were
> maybe tweaked a little bit too high. Moving from B/W still art to colour
> animation has obscured some of the fine clean lines of the manga's pen,
> backgrounds are more noticeable, movement sometimes works and sometimes
> doesn't, real voices replace the written word changing the feel of the
> dialogue somewhat. That being said this is still good stuff. The first
> episode is slow, really just introducing the key characters Sumika and
> Ushio and the central dilemma of their existence. Other characters who
> will have major roles to play in the story to come are seen in passing
> but they are yet to be put on centre stage. At the end of the first
> episode my immediate impression was that this is a good start, a
> foundation to build on. It is not perfect, it is not what I hoped for
> but I smiled and laughed here and there, sympathised when Ushio was shot
> down in flames once again and nodded sagely when her friend Sumika
> stepped forward to sweep up the pieces and give her the shoulder to cry
> on she always provides at times like this. The manga has a lot of
> internal dialogue, mostly from Sumiko's POV which is missing from the
> anime but it is clear from the direction and editing what is going on
> inside people's heads and that's good enough. 7 out of 10.
>
This is a series that I decided not to watch, even though it was initially
on my "to watch" list. Once I realized that it was a drama about high school
lesbians I couldn't see any reason that I would find it interesting. The
fact that you described the first episode as being "slow" just reinforces my
decision.
> To Aru Kagaka no Choudenjibou (aka To Aru Kagaku no Railgun aka A
> Certain Scientific Railgun)
>
> This anime is based on a side-story manga to the much longer To Aru no
> Magical Index manga which is itself based on a long-running light novel
> series of the same name which has already been made into an anime
> series. Got all that? Like many side-story shows it's a bit lighter than
> the original storyline, more comedy and less overt drama and pathos. You
> don't need to have seen the first show to "get" this one as it takes
> pains to introduce the locale and the main characters pretty seamlessly.
> The Railgun of the title is Mikoto who can control electricity via esper
> powers. Her best "finishing move" is to accelerate a coin in a
> psychically-constructed railgun hence her nickname (she's also called
> the Electric Princess and The Shockmaster). In this world esper powers
> can be trained up through Levels -- Mikoto is a Level 5, the top rating
> and so she is her school's "ace". The first episode welds a group of
> girls together as friends and allies of Justice by throwing a bank
> robbery at them. One spectacular Railgun Special later it's time for the
> credits. Cheesy perhaps but I'm a sucker for well-constructed cheese and
> this is brick-built Wensleydale. Lots of CGI to make background stuff
> look more solid and urban-futuristic than most animes manage but it's
> clean and acceptable and the plot is thick enough to be palatable.
> Having read forward in the manga I'm hoping to see some more characters
> appear to complicate things so I'll be tracking this one. 7 out of 10.
> --
Your description again reinforces my decision not to try this series out.
Thanks for the mini-reviews - it's always helpful and entertaining to read
someone else's opinions on new anime!
Dave Baranyi
Peter Boulter
<very large snip>
> Your description again reinforces my decision not to try this
> series out.
Indeed, and the descriptions reinforce my decision not to try any of them out.
I've half a mind to try Kobato because it's a CLAMP series, but then again they
ran the manga in NTUSA and I wasn't all that impressed with it.
> Thanks for the mini-reviews - it's always helpful and entertaining
> to read someone else's opinions on new anime!
Yes it is and I think it's something that we should do more of here, but I
never quite get around to it. ^_^
== Peter ==
-----------------------------------------------------
"If he has a name, he's not like me...
...I don't have a name ... all I have is a lie."
(Kirika Yumura: Noir)
-----------------------------------------------------
http://www.dragonsanctuary.co.uk
Ansgar -59cobalt- Wiechers
> Sasameki Koto (aka Whispered Words)
>
> This is one series I was particularly looking forward to given how
> much I am enjoying the manga it is based on, and sadly my expectations
> were maybe tweaked a little bit too high. Moving from B/W still art to
> colour animation has obscured some of the fine clean lines of the
> manga's pen, backgrounds are more noticeable, movement sometimes works
> and sometimes doesn't, real voices replace the written word changing
> the feel of the dialogue somewhat. That being said this is still good
> stuff. The first episode is slow, really just introducing the key
> characters Sumika and Ushio and the central dilemma of their
> existence. Other characters who will have major roles to play in the
> story to come are seen in passing but they are yet to be put on centre
> stage. At the end of the first episode my immediate impression was
> that this is a good start, a foundation to build on. It is not
> perfect, it is not what I hoped for but I smiled and laughed here and
> there, sympathised when Ushio was shot down in flames once again and
> nodded sagely when her friend Sumika stepped forward to sweep up the
> pieces and give her the shoulder to cry on she always provides at
> times like this. The manga has a lot of internal dialogue, mostly from
> Sumiko's POV which is missing from the anime but it is clear from the
> direction and editing what is going on inside people's heads and
> that's good enough. 7 out of 10.
The show reminded me way too much of what I didn't like about "Aoi
Hana", although short-genki-girl and tall-weepy-girl seem to have
switched roles here, and tall-weepy-girl wasn't that weepy in the first
place. I'll try a couple more episodes, but if the show stays like that
I won't follow it through to the end.
I've rated it 7/10 as well, but only because art and animation were
quite good, and all new shows get the benefit of doubt.
cu
59cobalt
--
"My surname is Li and my personal name is Kao, and there is a slight
flaw in my character."
--Li Kao (Barry Hughart: Bridge of Birds)
Robert Sneddon
Wiechers <usene...@planetcobalt.net> writes
>In rec.arts.anime.misc Robert Sneddon <fr...@nospam.demon.co.uk> wrote:
>> Sasameki Koto (aka Whispered Words)
>>
>> This is one series I was particularly looking forward to
>The show reminded me way too much of what I didn't like about "Aoi
>Hana", although short-genki-girl and tall-weepy-girl seem to have
>switched roles here, and tall-weepy-girl wasn't that weepy in the first
>place.
Ushio (the short cute one) gets weepy but she gets over it until the
next time she gets shot down in flames. She's used to it and as long as
she's got Sumika (the tall meganekko iincho) as a friend to fall back on
she can cope. She's oblivious to Sumika's real feelings for her and
Sumika is determined Ushio will never find out for fear of losing her,
because Ushio only likes cute girls.
> I'll try a couple more episodes, but if the show stays like that
>I won't follow it through to the end.
The first episode held to the manga storyline pretty much and I'm
optimistic future episodes will do the same. I've read forward in the
manga and it's actually a romantic comedy with some very good (IMO)
comedy segments mixed in with the rabu-dorama. The supporting cast of
characters is also quite strong even if they fit neatly into assorted
standard anime tropes (the rori with a bro-con, the secret fashion idol,
the super-rich girl attending a regular school, the ********* type, the
foreign transfer student etc.)
>I've rated it 7/10 as well, but only because art and animation were
>quite good, and all new shows get the benefit of doubt.
I believe it has the potential to be as good as Toradora! was; since
the manga is ongoing I don't know how they plan to bring it to a close
in 12 or 13 episodes but for me it will be fun to watch.
Hand-of-Omega
Big O?
Dex^_^
Captain Nerd
<c336d687-b5d1-4448...@l13g2000yqb.googlegroups.com>,
Hand-of-Omega <hando...@hotmail.com> wrote:
> Am I the only one who thought this thread was about a new season of
> Big O?
No, you aren't.
I didn't catch any series this past season, but I've been waiting
on the second "Nogizaka Haruka" series, and I wasn't disappointed
by the first episode. They did make assumptions that viewers were
at least somewhat familiar with the previous series, though. I
just got a copy of the first volume of "Kimi Ni Todoke" and enjoyed
it, so I'll likely be following this series, if they manage to
adapt the manga well.
Cap.
--
Since 1989, recycling old jokes, cliches, and bad puns, one Usenet
post at a time!
Operation: Nerdwatch http://www.nerdwatch.com
Only email with "TO_CAP" somewhere in the subject has a chance of being read
Chika
> <very large snip>
> > Your description again reinforces my decision not to try this series
> > out.
> Indeed, and the descriptions reinforce my decision not to try any of
> them out. I've half a mind to try Kobato because it's a CLAMP series,
> but then again they ran the manga in NTUSA and I wasn't all that
> impressed with it.
>
> > Thanks for the mini-reviews - it's always helpful and entertaining to
> > read someone else's opinions on new anime!
> Yes it is and I think it's something that we should do more of here, but
> I never quite get around to it. ^_^
I know that feeling! I've now got the knotty task of reviewing two anime
series, one of which is extremely long and old (my memory has its limits)
and the other is a bit tame, though thankfully short and comparatively new
(I need to find constructive criticism for it but I'm not convinced that I
can!)
[If I do it, it'll be on my Livejournal first...
www.livejournal.com/users/mistie710]
--
//\ // Chika <miyuki><at><crashnet><org><uk>
// \// Hazukashii serifu kinshii!!
... Become a programmer and never see the world!!
Robert Sneddon
<fr...@nospam.demon.co.uk> writes
Here's an update on what I've been watching of the new season's anime:
>Seitokai no Ichizon
Dropped. I found my nose-hair scissors and I have better things to do
with my time.
>
>Kampfer (aka K�mpfer)
I downloaded the second episode and fast-forwarded through it. I caught
a one-word description of it on another forum and nodded sagely:
"titfest". Not interesting, stupid plot, badly animated, dropped from a
great height.
>Sasameki Koto (aka Whispered Words)
Watched the second (Admiral Ackbar) episode. Things are moving slowly
forward with the introduction of the confused new love interest for
Sumika-chan. It is still tracking the manga quite closely even if one or
two scenes have been moved around on the timeline. Sadly the anime
hasn't quite got the clean bite of the manga's plotting although the
anime has tried to match the art-line of the drawings and the character
designs are very accurately taken from the manga. I'm still enjoying it
and I will continue with it.
>To Aru Kagaka no Choudenjibou (aka To Aru Kagaku no Railgun aka A
>Certain Scientific Railgun)
I watched the second episode with a sinking heart as it went from
stupid through suggestive to ecchi faster than a slug from a railgun.
Touma makes a brief appearance right at the beginning and then
disappears from the plot forever (or so it seems). However I just
watched the third episode and it is redeemed somewhat. The focus is
still on comedy although there are hints of drama to come (assuming the
anime plot follows the manga). Laugh-out-loud moment at the end when
stun-gun meets Railgun, and... "Gbb onq. Guvatf yvxr gung qba'g jbex ba
zr. MNC!" Continuing.
Other series currently being devoured:
Natsu no Arashii second season
First episode: the beach. Okay, I'll give them a bye on that one since
the show is set during summer. The drama of the first season has abated
somewhat and a filler episode like this is pretty much traditional.
Jun's desperate attempts to conceal her gender from the oblivious
testosterone-ridden Hajime are starting to grate a bit though -- I don't
enjoy squirmingly embarrassing stories like this very much. Discovering
the second episode was a hot-springs episode with even more layers of
squirm shovelled on top was not enjoyable and I stopped watching it
half-way through. The quality of the comedy and storytelling of the
first series built a large reservoir of tolerance in me for this show
and so I'll go on with it but it is a bit of a disappointment. Any more
crap like this though and despite the flavourful animation it's getting
the Big E from me. On probation.
Kimi ni Todoke
The vibes I got from the first episode of this high-school rom-com is,
oddly enough, Toradora! The scene where Sawako/Sadako tries to return a
dropped pen felt very much like Ryuuji's wallets scene at the beginning
of the first episode of Toradora! There are also hints of Yamato
Nadeshiko Shichi Henge in the basic concept. The anime artwork is very
Clamp-ish, not surprisingly and for me this is a bit of a downer. I will
watch the second episode and see how it goes. Holding.
Peter Boulter
<large snip>
> So far this season I haven't found anything that excites me
My thoughts exactly. I though Kobato would be interesting, but as you'll have
read in another post, I was quite disappointed with it and won't be continuing
with it.
One series I'd like to have a look at is Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu: Purezza
because I saw the first series and while it was very silly in many places it
was quite good fun to watch. But on the other hand I wouldn't be terribly
upset if I didn't see it.