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smokeybrandreviews · 6 months

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Starving

We are winding down on the current anime season and I say to it, “Good riddance!” Look, almost everything which dropped this Winter, has been trash. Absolute bunk. And I don’t mean in a poor narrative way, I mean in an execution way. Some of my favorite manga got adaptions and they’ve all been WILDY disappointing. One got a continuation and the you can see the slash in budget with every handicapped frame. Sh*t was absurd. Others, just didn’t get the money they deserved. I’m over here reeling from the fact that Winter 2024 might go down in history as one of the worst seasons of anime, ever. That’s insane because, for the past few years, we’ve seen a strong uptick in overall quality. Anyway, as this underwhelming Winter season gives way to a much more promising Spring 2024, I wanted to look back and pay respect to the slog we all endured. Apparently, budget cuts was overarching theme this time around.

The Cream of the Crop

Frieren: At Journey’s End

With no hyperbole or exaggeration, Frieren is one of the best anime I have ever seen in my entire life. From production, to execution, to writing, to animation and performances; All of it is a shining example of what this medium has to offer. Frieren is a goddamn masterpiece and will go down as a classic. And I’m just talking about to the first half of this show. Everything I just said, was turned up a notch for the back end. I thought it would be hard to top that Aura scrap but then then Frieren mirror match happened and I was legitimately awestruck. Absolutely beauty. Absolute spectacle. Those big moments stun, but it’s the small ones which really make this show. When Fern and Serie met and had their little exchange? Yeah, for me, THAT was the greatest thing this show ever produced. Sousou no Frieren is, without a doubt, a masterpiece, both on the page and on the screen.

Delicious in Dungeon

One of the very first post I made on my Review blog which got solid traction on this hell site, was an ode to Dungeon Meshi. I’ve loved this manga for years. I wasn’t on that ride in the very beginning, but I stumbled across it early in it’s run and decided to ride that story out until the very end. It was well worth it. Meshi is one of the strongest manga I’d ever read so, when it was announced it would finally get an adaption, I was mad hyped. The problem came when it was announced that f*cking Trigger would be the production house bringing that sh*t to life. I was absolutely sure that the kinetic, frantic, unrelentingly spastic, animation style of Gainax Jr., would not lend itself to the wonderful art and delicate lines Ryoko Kui laid on the page. For the most part, I was right. I expected a studio like Pierrot or Madhouse would have delivered a much richer animation experience but, as the series progressed, I found myself less and less offended by those Dead Leaves sensibilities. In fact, after this last episode with the slaying of the red dragon, I am all for it. Still wish UFOtable or someone got the contract but the narrative, performances, and grand nature of the adventure, make up for those fleeting Kill La Kill levels of absurd in the animation.

Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy 2nd Season

This one squeaks right in there, but just barely. For the most part, it continues on from the excellent first season. That said, you can definitely see this thing had a budget cut. When it shines, it’s bright as f*ck, can’t lie. But there was a whole ass battle that was just skipped and I REALLY wanted to see that animated. Interestingly enough, this is a continuation of a series that started in one of the previous, much better, anime seasons, similar to the trash fire that is Banished from the Hero’s Party. That one, we’ll get to it here in a minute, was absolutely hammered by budget cuts and it kind of has me wondering if these second season shows, just didn’t garner enough popularity to give them the same level of care as before? As I recall, Tsukimichi often ranked in the upper part of popularity results, week in and week out, so it’s rather surprising to me that the quality dropped so much. It’s no Reincarnated as a Sword or Chainsaw Man, but it still had a decent following behind it. Why would the studio opt to cut corners like this? It’s just damaging an already proven brand.

The Underwhelming

Solo Leveling

I just do not understand the hype around this series. As far as I can tell, it’s a mediocre power fantasy where the protagonist is mad overpowered for no reason. That’s fine, two of my favorite anime are based around this trope (Overlord and Slime are top tier), but this? This is just meh. It doesn’t help that the show, and the overall narrative, doesn’t pick up for a full five episodes. Talk about a slog, man. Just getting to the point where he has that second Awakening was a goddamn chore. After that? It’s all just gore and the occasional cool animation effect. Overall, for a show going in with this much hype, I’m left wanting. In my head, I can see Madhouse absolutely crushing this thing but A-1 seems to be dragging their feet. Like, it’s not cheap looking at all, we’ll get to those here in a second, but I just feel like, with all the potential this thing has, Solo could have been so much more. I absolutely understand the hype, I really do. There is, for sure, something special about Solo Leveling. I can see it in the margins. But, for a guy like me who has been watching anime for almost three and a half decades, this one is just fine.

The Disappointments

My Instant Death Ability is so Overpowered

The first of many to be crippled by budget. Again, I am a fan of the manga. This one popped up as a surprise. I had no idea it was getting an adaption so, taking in that first episode, I understood immediately how awful this show was going to be. It has it’s moments but, overall, it is gross to look at. Like, this thing had less than a shoestring budget because goddamn! I’m not going to sit here and pretend that there was a large enough fan base to justify AAA levels of animation, but at least give me a consistent, competent, frame rate. This sh*t is about as consistent as an ice head from Florida!

Chained Soldier

This one hurt. Bro, I LOVE Mato Seihei no Slave. It’s one of the few manga whose release I properly anticipate. I read dozens of these things but there are probably seven or eight I'm really invested in, and Slave is at the top of that list. When it’s adaption was announced, my hype was real. And then I watched that first episode. Disappointment. But, I was willing to give the show the benefit of the doubt. Maybe it will get better as time goes on? It did not get any better. This thing is ugly and has these weird ass, throwback, splash scenes whenever an attack is used. It’s f*cking absurd and makes the show WAY more dated than it actually is. There’s a certain charm you need to execute that type of stuff and this adaption has none of that. And, as if to make the entire situation worse, the actual battle scenes, the strongest part of the manga, awe the weakest aspects of this anime! How do you fumble the bag this hard??

Gushing Over Magical Girls

Here’s another one that is just plain disappointing. Again, huge fan of the manga. High expectations. Dashed on the rocks of a stymied budget. Just off the premise alone, evil yuri Magical Girl battles with a hard lean into sadism, how goddamn popular this show could have been? Do you know how much potential for gags, visual brilliance, and clever fan service, ended up wasted because there were no funds to properly animate that sh*t? Gushing is, unapologetically, smut, but it’s smut that does something fun. Watching this adaption is not fun. It’s borderline painful. I wasn’t even all that hyped when i found out about this pone, more curious how it would be executed. I had no expectations and still, I was so very, very, disappointed.

Banished from the Hero’s Party

I can’t say I am a huge fan of this one but I do enjoy the manga. It’s got fantastic art, endearing characters, and some of the best fight scenes on the page. I recall that translating fairly well in the first season of this show. Definitely not the second. Someone took a rusty knife to this thing’s budget and it shows. Bro, there are frame rate issues, errors, and inconsistencies throughout every goddamn scene of this show. A perfect example? The “fight” between Ruti and whoever the new hero dude is. That sh*t was THE WORST and it’s arguably the BEST fight in the goddamn show! I wince for what was, lament for what is, and weep for what could have been.

Honorable Mentions or The Dropped

The Wrong Way to Use Healing Magic

This one is fine. Generic, Isekai, nonsense, but still pretty fun. It’s inoffensive and decently animated, for the most part. Sh*t’s not redefining the genre or impressing with it’s visuals, but I’m not trying to claw my eyes out while watching it, either.

Ragna Crimson

This one is another anomaly for me. I used to read the manga but dropped it long ago. It just felt too repetitive and wildly uninspired I took a gander a the first few episodes of this thing and it’s fine. I wasn’t super impressed but that’s probably more because I didn’t care for the anime all that much. I mean, he action is solid or whatever but it’s a soft pass for me.

Tales of Wedding Rings

Another surprise in the same vein of Gushing Over Magical Girls. Wasn't expecting it at all but figured I’d give it a shot on the strength of the manga. It’s fine. The art from the book is so much stronger and you lose a lot of that charm with the simplified animation models. I've seen around five or six episodes of this one but I have no intention of finishing the series. The difference between the manga art, and the anime style, is so disparate, it’s just depressing.

Admittedly, most Winter anime seasons are kind of whack. With the exception of continuations, content be real thin during the waning days of last year, and burgeoning weeks of current. It feels a lot like Hollywood in that way. You get occasional gems sprinkled in there, I'm told both Metallic Rouge and Ishura are excellent, but I can't be bothered to even start them. I've been too disappointed with the lot I chose. Maybe I'll circle back and dig deeper into what was presented this season but, as it stands, bring on the Spring already!

#anime

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smokeybrand · 6 months

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Starving

The Cream of the Crop

Frieren: At Journey’s End

Delicious in Dungeon

Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy 2nd Season

The Underwhelming

Solo Leveling

The Disappointments

My Instant Death Ability is so Overpowered

Chained Soldier

Gushing Over Magical Girls

Banished from the Hero’s Party

Honorable Mentions or The Dropped

The Wrong Way to Use Healing Magic

Ragna Crimson

Tales of Wedding Rings

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lefthandedtribune · 7 years

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somebody once asked me

which Gainax/Trigger animus I enjoy most. I ain’t the sharpest tool in the shed (but I made a list anyway). Some spoilers I guess, so beware. Also quite a few personal opinions, so beware of that too; I’m a horrible fanboy, especially when it comes to Imaishi’s work, and this list reflects that in its disgusting positivity. Anything not on the list I simply haven’t watched, off the top of my head it’s missing Kiznaiver but I’m sure there’s other stuff too; I’ve actually only been watching animu for a year or two, so lots of catching up to do.

1. FLCL - pride of place. I think there’s literally not a single scene in the whole of it that I’d dislike; as far as I’m concerned, it’s a tightly packed bundle of sheer fun, entirely not bothered by constraints of form, substance or style. And it only gets better with rewatches. Also, dat OST hnng

2. Kill la Kill - this is kind of a contentious one for me, because I actually don’t know if I’d put KlK or TTGL first; both are a case study in why I love, aye LOVE Imaishi as a director. I suppose it’s a question of how much I love ensemble shows done absolutely right (KlK) versus a sheer emotional rollercoaster ride (TTGL). At the end of the day, though, while I’d say KlK has the less impactful plot structure (scissor sisters ending WHEN - you don’t just have a weapon broken in two, and two sisters, without having both of them at the final confrontation), I am a sucker for how it handles characters and characterization; just taking tropey archetypes and turning them up to 11, and giving everyone a chance to show off and do their thing. If FLCL doesn’t have a scene I’d hate, KlK is the same for characters. It helps that it’s also phenomenally directed and so very imaginatively animated (making the budget cardboard cutouts episode actually one of the best and funniest imo was a masterstroke), and that Ryuuko is basically just my favouritest trope done right.

2.5 Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann - it should by now be clear I am a huge sucker for INTENSE HOTBLOODED ACTION (which is, again, one of the reasons Imaishi is my spiritual liege). In my opinion, TTGL has an overall weaker cast of characters than its scantily clad sister series; Kamina overshadows absolutely everyone in the first part of the series, and Simon takes up the mantle soon afterwards (with a slightly awkward gap in between), giving precious few chances for the rest of the cast to shine. Nia also never sat right with me, feeling a little external to the cast, which meant that one of the emotional hooks for the second cour didn’t work as well on me as it could’ve. On the other hand - the pacing is insane in just the right way, and like I said earlier, it was much more of an emotional rollercoaster for me than KlK (many tears shed over episode 8). If I was in a slightly different mood, I might rank it over KlK - that’s how close they are in my mind, and frankly I adore both of them.

3. Inferno Cop - I unironically love it, so sue me. To me it’s why I love Trigger as a studio; it’s such a glorious shitpost, it pretty much feels like something they did for their own fun rather than to get viewers. Also, the sheer fact that this was the first thing all these incredibly talented animators did after leaving Gainax never fails to make me laugh. Bring on season 2.

4. Little Witch Academia - talking TV series here. I can’t really neatly slot the OVAs into a list together with episodic things, it feels like cheating because I adore the animation in both the original and Enchanted Parade so much (yes I know, FLCL was an OVA too, but shhh). If I did have to rate the OVAs, I’d put both of them very near FLCL, they’re masterpieces in animation, distinctive character design and compact storytelling IMO.

The series was a little weaker, which is natural given the differences in the two forms. If I could rank the two cours separately (and in many ways they feel like separate shows to me), the first cour might even rank above TTGL/KlK - but maybe that’s just me being an enormous sucker for slice of life; either way, and even though it stuttered in a few places, I felt it was closer to the original spirit of the OVAs and just an adorable, comfy ride throughout, with a cour finale that was basically... the Enchanted Parade but better? I’d say the second cour felt more awkwardly paced, maybe because it was (I think anyway) Yoshinari’s first time as a director for a full-length series. The plot came at the expense of any screentime whatsoever for Lotte and Sucy (and a lack of Sucy is an inexcusable crime in my eyes), Diana was properly introduced too late for me to really appreciate her at all, which meant her prominence in the climactic scenes (Akko coming to terms with her loss of magic, and the final missile fight) likewise struck me as awkward, too forced. Some episodes made me wonder if they shouldn’t have just made a separate series about Croix and Chariot (as they seemed to want to), who had probably the best and most dynamic relationship out of anyone in the series - but also struck me as a bit... tonally inconsistent with the rest of the series? On the other hand: I nitpick because I love it enough to constantly think about it, and the final episode was hands down some of the best animation I’ve ever seen. Also I love all these little witches too much.

5. Neon Genesis Evangelion + End of Evangelion - I’m not at all versed in mecha animu, so I didn’t appreciate the deconstruction as much as I might’ve otherwise. Still, it’s something of a seminal piece, isn’t it; even if plagued by budget issues (hello elevator scene, hello final episodes), I found it a gripping piece of storytelling, just... emotionally draining - which was rather the point, I guess. It’s actually a fairly deep work (though I hate using that word, being firmly in the ‘style over substance’ camp I don’t see how being shallow is at all a bad thing - if you do it right, it can be just as gripping, after all there was little revolutionary or especially ‘deep’ about TTGL or KlK but both are among my favourite things ever, ditto with Redline). That’s rare enough that I have plenty of love for Eva (+ EoE, I’d say you can’t really separate the two).

I’ll admit though, I originally watched it just because of dankest Cruel Angel’s Thesis memes.

6. Space Patrol Luluco - as with Inferno Cop, I unironically love it; secretly, more so than many serious and renowned animus I should, by rights, appreciate more than Luluco. It made me laugh until I cried, it was chock-full of shamelessly overt references to some of my favourite Gainax/Trigger shows, and the OP is catchy as fuk. Also, “the most worthless thing in the world - a middle schooler’s first love” remains a staple joke with my best friend.

7. Panty&Stocking with Garterbelt - the fact this is so low on the list is more testament to how much I love the other Trigger/Gainax series, rather than any failing of its own. I can see why it’d be hit and miss for some people, but as far as I’m concerned, Panty&Stocking was a hilarious, irreverent, sometimes (most times) giddily stupid ride, and the fact we’re not likely to get a second season is a crying shame.

8. NinjaSlayer from Animation - “but wait, you loved Inferno Cop, why isn’t NinjaSlayer higher then?” Well hypothetical reader voice, while I found swathes of Ninjaslayer to be hilarious in their own right, I couldn’t help the feeling that - unlike Inferno Cop - it sometimes overstayed its welcome, and wasn’t quite as punchy as a result. Maybe that’s a fault with the source material, who knows. Still, something about the fact that this is basically the only adaptation Trigger has done (I think so, anyway - something else might’ve slipped by me) tickles me the right way.

I’m not a very serious person, if you couldn’t tell yet.

Whew, that got much longer than I expected it to. I guess it’s good for finally getting my blog on brand, there hasn’t been a single ramble on it (reasonably priced or otherwise) since I started.

#anime ranking: Gainax/Trigger

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tanjaded · 2 years

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Just finished Gurren Lagann, probably the third or tied for second best Gainax/TRIGGER product I've seen so far

Kill la Kill is number 1 here by a wide margin, like it's not even close in the slightest. It's just that good. Gurren Lagann was awesome too but the post timeskip after a certain point just sort of went "meh", but I still enjoyed it

It'd be sort of like: 1. Kill la Kill, 2. Promare, 3. Gurren Lagann, 4. Brand New Animal, 5. Panty and Stocking

I haven't finished Evangelion yet and I haven't seen Little Witch Academia or the TRIGGER Star Wars shorts, so I can't rank them. I don't really care for Space Patrol Luluco

#studio trigger #gainax #gurren lagann #kill la kill #this is my opinion of course

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scoutception · 5 years

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Ranking the 5 animes I’ve recently watched

Long story short, I’ve been taking a break and watching anime, something that I’ve only really experienced in small doses before, though in general I don’t really watch a lot of stuff nowadays (to my memory, the only anime I’ve watched in full is Danganronpa 3, so I’ll go ahead and say it gave me an aversion to it all). As the title says, I’ve gone through 5 so far, so I’ve decided to just type up my personal rankings and thoughts. If I had to say anything important before starting, it’s that 1. everything I list here is a very enjoyable and worthwhile watch, and I would definitely recommend giving any of them a try, and 2. this is just a personal ranking, and so it’s very biased. I might, for example, think whatever is number 5 is technically better than whatever is number 4, but still prefer number 4 for any number of reasons. I’m at least going to try to point out when that’s the case, but it’s still something to keep in mind. I’ll also be including information like number of episodes, what streaming platforms they’re on, which I’ll admit mostly comes down to Netflix, Hulu, and Crunchyroll, and whether or not English dubs are available, or only subtitles. Other than that, let the rankings begin. 5. Little Witch Academia

Number of episodes: 25. Language options: dub and subs available. Streaming availability: Netflix. Little Witch Academia originated as a short film released in 2013 as part of a training program for animators. It was only about half an hour long, but the fun cast and beautiful animation gave it a lot of charm, and enough popularity to spawn a second short film in 2015, the Enchanted Parade, which lasted for closer to an hour. Then, in 2017, it got a full series on Netflix, produced by Studio Trigger, which did away with any continuity from the short films, but kept the general concept. Little Witch Academia follows Atsuko “Akko” Kagari, who, after witnessing a magical show hosted by the witch known as Shiny Chariot, dedicated her life to becoming a witch, despite not coming from a family with magic in its bloodline. Despite managing to enroll in the academy of Luna Nova, dedicated to training witches, Akko finds the reality of it isn’t anywhere near what she expected; Chariot is ostracized by most of the magical community for portraying magic in a flashy, illusionist manner considered embarrassing, Luna Nova’s education is much more focused on tedious, small scale magic than what Akko had come to expect, the world at large considers Luna Nova and its magic to be weak relics of the past, something even its staff can’t argue well against, and worst of all, Akko is incompetent at magic to a downright abnormal degree, even for her normal origins, incapable of so much as riding a broom. Despite the constant demoralization, Akko receives help from one of the academy’s professors, Ursula, who puts Akko on the path to unlock the secrets of the Shiny Rod, Chariot’s personal wand, found by Akko on her way to Luna Nova. This isn’t exactly the most original series out there, and if you’ve watched pretty much anything involving non evil witches and magic schools, you’re not going to be too surprised. The main strength, writing wise, is the fun cast. Akko herself is a pretty entertaining main character, being very excitable and passionate, enough to keep likeable even with her many, many missteps throughout the series, but the rest of the cast is pretty good too. Characters like Sucy, Akko’s roommate obsessed with poison, mushrooms, and picking on Akko, the delinquent Amanda O’Neil, the mute technological genius Constanze, and Akko’s alleged rival, Diana Cavendish, who, though very haughty, has a lot more depth to her than you might expect, help hold the series together very well. Most of the series is pretty goofy and lighthearted, which helps keep it from feeling too cliche. Starting with the second half of the series, though, it gets much more story based, which might be a bit jarring for some people, but still manages some surprisingly sad moments. This is all helped by the great animation, as Trigger can always be counted on to provide, and the dub is good overall, with Erica Mendez especially perfectly capturing Akko. Overall, this is a fun watch, but it’s really not much special, so I can’t really put it anywhere other than dead last. If you want a fun, lighthearted romp that isn’t stuck to only 13 episodes, this is a good one to try. 4. The Pet Girl of Sakurasou/Sakura Hall

Number of episodes: 24. Language options: subs only. Streaming availability: Crunchyroll, Hidive. Firstly, don’t let the very questionable title give too many bad impressions. Sakura Hall, as I’ll be calling it, was originally a series of light novels by Hajime Kamoshida, with 10 main novels being released. The anime, produced by JC Staff, actually only adapts the first 6, though it ends rather conclusively regardless. This is also probably the most obscure anime on this list. Sorata Kanda is a rather unremarkable high school student attending the Suimei University of the Arts High School, forced to live in the very abnormal mixed gender dorm of Sakura Hall. Sakura Hall’s other residents consist of Misaki Kamiigusa, an extremely talented, and extremely weird and energetic, animator capable of creating anime almost entirely on her own, Jin Mitaka, the scriptwriter and childhood friend of Misaki, who is cool, mature, and has an almost chronic playboy streak, Ryunosuke Akasaka, the extremely reclusive, but talented computer programmer who mostly communicates through texts, and Chihiro Sengouka, Sakura Hall’s extremely irresponsible supervisor who prefers to leave the students to fend for themselves, outside of the occasional words of advice. Sorata is only stuck in Sakura Hall due to his refusal to abandon a stray cat he rescued, and intends on escaping Sakura Hall however he can to escape his roommates and return to normalcy, a plan that’s certainly not impacted by him picking up 6 more stray cats along the way. One day, a new resident moves into Sakura Hall: Mashiro Shiina, a relative of Chihiro and extremely talented artist, on a level only Misaki and Ryunosuke can match, who is also very unemotive and almost completely incapable of caring for herself, not helped by some rather odd thought processes (she’s almost certainly autistic, but they never actually clarify that). Sorata and some of the other Sakura Hall residents thusly become Mashiro’s caretakers, and are soon additionally joined by Sorata’s friend, the workaholic aspiring voice actress Nanami Aoyama. Sorata’s previously tedious life becomes defined by his struggles to find a direction to his life, his attempts at caring for and understanding Mashiro, and the various problems of the rest of the Sakura Hall residents. The main writing strength, is, again, the cast of characters. The characters are all very enjoyable, even the designated average guy, Sorata, and they all have their share of struggles, hidden depths, and development. The first half of the series is, for the most part, plain wacky, and while it does delve into serious moments more than a few times, it’s also prone to plain breaking the mood, either by starting them suddenly, or just as suddenly interrupting them with a gag. It’s enjoyable on its own, but it can be a bit hard to get into. The second half of the series is a big change of pace, becoming much, much more focused and serious, and for the better. Bitter topics like resentment against those who can outperform others simply through natural talent, and the risks of overworking, and the slippery slope mentality against accepting help that it can generate, are frequently brought up, and it does not shy away from how brutal reality can be. It’s never dark to the point of creating apathy, though, and it overall captures a very bittersweet portrayal of nearing the end of one’s teenage years, and preparing to become an adult. The animation is pretty good, and the voice actors all give memorable performances. Overall, this was probably the hardest series for me to get into at first, but sticking with it is very worthwhile. I can’t really say much about it, if only because I don’t want to risk getting into spoilers, but it genuinely is great. I was even considering placing it higher than number 4, but the next three things were stiff competition. 3. Gurren Lagann/Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann

Number of episodes: 27. Language options: dub and subs available. Streaming availability: Netflix, Crunchyroll, Hulu, Funimation. Here’s what I would bet is the second most popular anime on this list, and was more or less one of the grand finales to the golden age of Studio Gainax, directed by one of the co-founders of Studio Trigger, and is perhaps most memorably one of the series where Gainax didn’t completely mess up the budget by the end. Simon (pronunced see-moan) and his self appointed big brother Kamina live in an underground village, with Simon living a monotonous life digging tunnels so the village can expand, in hopes of finding artifacts and being awarded better dinners, while Kamina constantly causes trouble in his attempts to breach the underground and reach the surface. Simon is insecure and self deprecating, thinking he’s only capable of the job he already has while Kamina is extremely boisterous, charismatic, and capable of seeing the potential within Simon. The way to the surface is finally opened for the pair by the appearance of a giant mecha called a Gunmen, which are piloted by the beastmen, who control the surface and are out to exterminate any humans they come across. Simon and Kamina are saved by the appearance of Yoko, a human who lives on the surface, and a miniature Gunmen discovered by Simon, which Kamina dubs Lagann. Making their way to the surface and capturing an enemy Gunmen Kamina names Gurren, Kamina decides to take the fight to the beastmen themselves, and drags Simon and Yoko with him, starting what can only really be described as a rollcoaster ride of giant mechas, drills, and general insanity. The series honestly starts only about average, but starting about episode 7, the scale just starts going up and up, and doesn’t tend to slow down. It goes for bigger and bigger heights, making for some amazing action scenes, and doesn’t get desensitizing like some things would. The cast of characters is great, between characters like Kamina, being lovably boisterous and encouraging, Simon, who gets some fantastic character development, Yoko, the sniper who despite seeming just like designated fanservice has some great development herself, Viral, the recurring beastman commander who just can’t keep up, and Lordgenome, the absurdly manly leader of the beastmen, and that’s just listing a few. The animation is great, the soundtrack is very memorable, the dub is one of the best out there, especially with Kyle Herbert as Kamina, and the writing, despite just seeming like big fun robot show, makes a surprisingly great story. I unfortunately can’t go much more indepth without definitely wading into spoilers, but it doesn’t take too long to start paying off. Overall, if I had to try to rank without bias, this would actually be number 2 on this list. It’s a great ride, and one I can recommend pretty much without question. 2. Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood

Number of episodes: 64. Language options: dub and subs available: Streaming availability: Netflix, Crunchyroll, Hulu, Funimation. Here’s what’s certainly the most popular anime on this list, and what would be my number 1 without bias. There’s actually two Fullmetal Alchemist animes, with the original 2003 one going very off track from the manga and becoming its own thing, while Brotherhood, made in 2009, stays faithful to the manga. Fullmetal Alchemist follows the Elric brothers, Edward and Alphonse, in a world where the art of alchemy allows its users to transmute materials for purposes such as reshaping them into new forms, and operates on a principle of equivalent exchange, with every transmutation made relying on something being taken away. After being abandoned by their father, Van Hohenheim, and losing their mother to a plague, Ed and Al attempted the forbidden practice of human transmutation in an attempt to bring her back to life, only to fail, with Ed losing his left leg and right arm, and Al losing his entire body, forcing Ed to affix Al’s soul to a suit of armor. His missing limbs replaced with automail, a type of prosthetic, Ed becomes a government employed alchemist for the nation of Amestris, ruled over by Fuhrer Bradley, in hopes that he and Al can find a Philosopher’s Stone, an artifact said to be capable of eliminating the equivalent exchange requirement of alchemy, in hopes they can reacquire their natural bodies. Since things can’t ever go so smoothly, they end up involved in a massive conspiracy led by one known as Father, who commands Homunculi, artificial humans, who are themed after the seven deadly sins. By far the longest anime on this list, it’s also easily one of the richest. Almost every episode does something to move the plot along, and introduces a lot of important plot points fairly quickly, which helps keep the story interesting. There are many storylines going on, but all of them are both interesting and relevant, helped by the downright amazing cast Fullmetal Alchemist has to offer. From colonel Roy Mustang, out to become Furher to help atone for Amestris’ crimes, to Ling Yao and May Chang from the country of Xing searching for the secret of immortality, to the Ishvalan named Scar, out to avenge his people, who were the victims of a war of extermination waged by Amestris. As for characters closer to the main plot, Ed and Al are both great protagonists, with plenty of development between the two, and their interactions with Winry Rockbell, their childhood friend and mechanic, make for some great scenes. The antagonists are also great, with quite a few defying how one note themed villain groups like them can be, like the shadowy abomination Pride, the sadistic rat that is Envy, the independent Greed, and especially the extremely intimidating Wrath. The animation by Studio Bones is great, as is the soundtrack, and the dub is fantastic, helped by almost all of the cast from the 2003 anime reprising their roles. Voices like Travis Willingham as Roy Mustang, Christopher Sabat as Alex Louis Armstrong, Chris Patton as Greed, and Ed Blaylock as Fuhrer Bradley especially are fantastic. Overall, this is one of the best shows I’ve watched, period. I recommend it very highly, and almost wish I could confidently declare it number 1. 1. Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai

Number of episodes: 13. Language options: subs only. Streaming availability: Crunchyroll, Hulu, Funimation. Firstly, again, this is not something to judge based on the name. Secondly, yes, this is where all the bias on this list comes from. This is anime is actually only about a year old, so it’s surprisingly recent, and is also by far the shortest of all the series I’ve listed here. Rascal is based off a series of light novels by the same author as Sakura Hall, Hajime Kamoshida, and was produced by CloverWorks. Like Sakura Hall, the anime doesn’t completely adapt, only going through 5 of the 9 novels currently released, with a movie, of all things, adapting the 6th. You may or may not have heard of this anime while it was airing, but regardless, I’m here to spread the word of it, cause it’s a special place for me. One day, while browsing a library, high school student Sakuta Azusagawa notices a girl wearing a bunny suit walking around, not being acknowledged by anyone other than himself. The girl turns out to be Mai Sakurajima, an actress on hiatus that attends his high school, who has found she’s recently become invisible to an unknown number of people outside of their school. Sakuta identifies it as “Adolescence Syndrome”, a mysterious phenomenon that occurs due to the unstable psyches of adolescences, which causes physical effects on the world based on their biggest causes of stress. Sakuta has seen the effects of Adolescence Syndrome himself, with it causing physical harm to his sister, Kaede, and causing her to become a recluse, and somehow causing Sakuta to be scarred as well. Hoping to learn more about the phenomenon, as well as just hoping to spare Mai from a similar fate, Sakuta decides to solve the mystery of her syndrome, as well as those of other girls in each story arc after. The premise is pretty unique by itself, and it uses its potential very well, thanks to the grounded writing and great cast of characters. Sakuta is not your typical protagonist: he’s blunt, blatantly perverted, and more than willing to verbally pick on people with little to no provocation. He’s not even close to a bad person, though; he treats the friends he already has at the start of the series, and everyone else he proceeds to grow closer to, much more respectfully, and when the chips come down, he’ll do crazy things for other people with no hesitation. He’s one of the most refreshing protagonists I’ve seen in a long time, and has most of the best lines in the series. The rest of the cast is also great, especially Mai, the other main lead. In fact, the main focus of the series besides the Adolescence Syndrome cases is Sakuta and Mai’s relationship, which is very well written, to the point of being my favorite part of the series. It avoids so many stumbles a lot of other series can run into: the relationship is started up early, nobody manages to threaten their feelings, and any misunderstandings, current or even just potential, they take steps to work though. Even when she’s willing to jab at and mess with Sakuta, Mai is always affectionate and transparent with her feelings, and becomes progressively even more so as it goes on. It’s also just, a refreshing change of pace compared to most relationships in anime. The other main focus, the Adolescence Syndrome cases, are just as well written. Despite exaggerated situations like becoming invisible to people, or even causing a time loop, there are few times they’re played for laughs. The series takes it all very seriously, mostly because of the kind of factors that lead to the syndrome appearing. Things like an oppressive school atmosphere, where standing out causes scrutiny, and most decide to just follow the leader to avoid consequences, or the fear of your only friendships being damaged over minor reasons. While more positive than Sakura Hall, it takes the same care to show just how damaging issues like this can be. Even Sakuta isn’t above it: he’s rumored to have send some of his classmates to the hospital once, and despite being completely false, it’s ostracized him to the point that he considers himself lucky to have 2 whole friends, and he’s just accepted the mindset that fighting against such an atmosphere is pointless. There a lot of emotional moments throughout the series, especially the last three episodes, and it earns them all. It even shies away from fanservice most of the time, even despite the very title of the show (the bunny girl part was actually only the title of the first light novel, but the series just kept it for the whole thing) The animation isn’t too wacky due to the tone and grounded writing, but it has an appealing artstyle, and the voice actors do a great job as well. Overall, this is an anime that’s genuinely very good by itself. Even so, what is it that makes me so biased towards it? For one thing, it just hits some emotional soft spots a lot of other stuff doesn’t personally manage, through stuff like, once again, Sakuta and Mai’s relationship. The very interesting premise and general grounded nature also wins it a lot of points. But, ultimately, it’s not something I can really put into words. Might be because I watched it on a very weird day. Regardless, this is one I would definitely want everyone to give a chance, and here’s hoping the movie gets a DVD release soon. And with that, there’s to end to my rambling. Again, I would recommend everything I’ve put here to most people, but especially the top 2. I’m planning on watching some more anime, so I may make another ranking like this soon. Otherwise, till next time. -Scout

#anime #bunny girl senpai #the pet girl of sakurasou #fullmetal alchimist brotherhood #gurren lagann #little witch academia

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waaty · 3 years

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Mazinger Z, Getter robo and gundam.

Rank these three mecha and tell me which one you would recommend to start with. Thanks ;)

oh no, i’m actually only familiar with gundam! but i can at least tell you what i know.

1. gundam - maybe it’s my bias but i still like it a lot. it’s been the easiest for me to get into. i started with mobile suit gundam (1979 anime) and would generally recommend most people start there too if they’re interested. despite its age, it has an interesting ongoing plot, good character writing, and a lot of drama. i watched it after watching and becoming obsessed with evangelion and felt right at home.

2. getter robo - i didn’t finish the manga, but there’s no good reason why. i enjoyed it well enough. most getter fans will tell you to start with the first manga, getter robo (1974). as far as i know, there are still no anime that follow the manga’s plot. some people really like getter robo armageddon (1998 OVA) too, but it’s a standalone AU. the vibe i’ve gotten from getter robo is less like gundam/evangelion/“serious” mecha and more like the anime made by studio trigger and some gainax anime (like gurren lagann), but it’s also totally its own thing.

3. mazinger - i have barely any knowledge of this series tbh. :( i tried the 1972 mazinger z manga and was bored. some people really enjoy the 1972 mazinger z anime. from what i see, “mazinger edition Z: the impact!” (2009) is well loved and often recommended to people curious about mazinger. i would like to give that 2009 anime a shot someday and right now don’t feel like i have a real opinion on anything mazinger related.

#asks #guardianofsatansama

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recentanimenews · 6 years

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DARLING in the FRANXX Creators Talk TRIGGER and Zero Two at Crunchyroll Expo 2018!

Of the many attractions at Crunchyroll Expo 2018, few drew crowds quite like Atsushi Nishigori, Masayoshi Tanaka, and Yuichi Fukushima. The director, character designer, and producer trio were visiting the convention in the wake of the mega-popular mecha anime, DARLING in the FRANXX, holding a press pool and two packed panels breaking down their hit anime along with host Evan Minto. In each, the crew broke down the making of FRANXX, first with a treasure trove of original concept art, while the second featured a live drawing by Tanaka of Zero Two, Ichigo, and Zero One. Here are some highlights of their discussions of the series concept and aftermath.

First, Nishigori described how the series got its start, claiming he wanted to bring his favorite creators from his time in GAINAX together and finally work with Tanaka. The concept came naturally from the two teams he’d drawn together, with TRIGGER’s ex-GAINAX staff specializing in action and mecha along with A-1 Pictures’ emphasis on drama and character animation. With the idea for a more drama-focused mecha anime, the plot started coming together as Nishigori looked to incorporate his favorite things into a consolidated series.

Despite Nishigori bringing in TRIGGER because of their past relationship, the crew admitted that reining the rowdy studio in was a difficult trial. Nishigori complained of having to constantly prune Imaishi’s wild tendencies, taking what he could from the creator’s outlandish (and often unasked-for) ideas, although he later admitted that he eventually found uses for many rejected concepts.

While the groundwork for the series was an involved process, Fukushima described the actual production as a fairly smooth affair, with the studios trading off production responsibilities each episode with Nishigori’s core team ensuring quality. Tanaka had a slightly different experience, discussing some of the scenes he personally redrew, such as Hiro and Zero Two’s dramatic kiss in episode 15. Nishigori joked about Tanaka’s constant aggressive calls to TRIGGER, saying each time that he was probably making a girl cry again. Tanaka didn’t disagree.

They brought out some of the original Franxx concepts they had shown off at the TRIGGER panel in Anime Expo, featuring, in Nishigori’s words, “much more ‘robot’ designs” by Shigeto Koyama illustrated in a surprisingly stylized Yoji Shinkawa/Metal Gear Solid-esque style. The concepts had much more diverse silhouettes than the Franxx in the anime, with the Genista appearing as a hulking tank-like machine, and what was probably the Chlorophytum appearing more bird-like with a design somewhat reminiscent of the Anubis from Zone of the Enders.

The trio discussed a trimming process of the mechs’ designs, deciding they didn’t quite fit with the more dramatic and character-focused direction of the series. Nishigori in particular mentioned a desire to maximize their ability to show characterization even during mech segments, which eventually led to having faces on the Franxx and a paring down to have them more closely match the appearance of their pistils.

Unsurprisingly, a significant amount of time was spent discussing Zero Two’s concept and character design. The crew discussed her developmental process from its vague foundations mostly regarding “what” she was into her current iconic appearance. From the beginning, the plan was for her to be a badass exchange student to seduce Hiro, but Nishigori described her original character concept as a small, quiet, and diligent girl while Tanaka showed off some slides of a black-haired Zero Two. Deciding this didn’t really work with their intentions for her to be aggressive with Hiro or their equal relationship, they eventually added a few inches to Zero Two to level out their heights while Tanaka adapted the original design for the queen of the Klaxosaurs.

Given Nishigori’s description of DARLING in the FRANXX itself, Zero Two could be thought of as a microcosm of the entire series, featuring a collection of Nishigori’s favorite features. While happy with the straight-haired look, they decided pink hair and eyeshadow would make her stand out. Evan inquired if her horns and penchant for calling Hiro “darling” were inspired by Urusei Yatsura’s Lum, to which Nishigori replied that he was a huge fan of its author Rumiko Takahashi. They all agreed they were looking to make an iconic character as a sort of flagship for the series which, given the amount of cosplay and fanart they had found, they deemed a success.

While Zero Two may have been the most labor-intensive design, a great deal of work went into the other character concepts, especially their uniforms. They showed off two full slides with rows of different designs and spoke of wanting something with a naval look but putting but a futuristic feel, eventually settling on the X and Y lapels as thematic for the series. Where Zero Two had been an additive process, Tanaka spoke of the rest of the characters as attempting to reduce their designs as much as possible, while still keeping them recognizable. The only one they mentioned at length, however, was Ichigo, who was the subject of an intense debate over the merits of bangs vs foreheads, with Nishgori pulling rank to ensure we’d get the one covered eye.

DARLING in the FRANXX was a unique production and, in retrospect, it’s a credit to the creators that the series lasted for two cours with such consistent quality. The crew responded to questions about future collaborations with uncertainty, joking it might be fun to do the whole thing over again but let TRIGGER handle the drama and A-1 work on the action. Learning more about the ins and outs of the anime was enlightening and seeing Tanaka at work during his live-drawing as well as the groundwork images was a rare treat--sorry, photographs were prohibited. With each studio soon to put out their next big project, we can look forward to future works from these three and the rest of the FRANXX staff.

---

Peter Fobian is an Associate Features Editor for Crunchyroll, author of Monthly Mangaka Spotlight, writer for Anime Academy, and contributor at Anime Feminist. You can follow him on Twitter @PeterFobian.

By: [email protected]

#Anime #News #Latest in Anime News by Crunchyroll!

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rieshon · 6 years

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Fall 2018 Power Rankings

Wow, I actually finished this shit sort of on time this season.

1 Yagate Kimi ni Naru: You know a show is good when you put off finishing it just because you don't want it to end. I did that with Yagakimi this season, and not only is it my favorite show of the season, I'm pretty sure it's my favorite yuri anime of all time. It's not just that Touko and Yuu are such an adorable couple, but that the story and relationship dynamics are genuinely original for a yuri anime. You've got two heroines who are de facto dating from the outset, so no will-they won't-they bullshit like most yuri stories (lookin' at you citrus)... But only sort of, because it's complicated. You've got one heroine who doesn't want her girlfriend to fall in love with her because she has a weird identity crisis because of past trauma and is afraid to embrace her own individuality which having someone fall in love with her would validate because she's "only herself" around said girlfriend... And then you've got the other heroine who thinks she's asexual/aromantic but slowly starts to realize she's actually just gay, but only after she's promised her girlfriend she won't fall in love with her because she "can't." To say this is a weird relationship is putting it mildly. There's also some stuff you usually don't see in anime at all, like another character who actually IS aro/ace, and a live-in adult lesbian couple (one of whom is actually revealed to be bi later on) who are the Big Gay Mentors to the younger characters. There is still the requisite amount of Yuri Melodrama, of course (elevated by a beautiful soundtrack from the venerable Haketa Takefumi) but it's so much more interesting than usual here. Oh, and of course, as I mentioned above, Touko and Yuu are the most darling couple ever, perfect cinnamon rolls who must be protected. Well, okay, maybe not perfect: they got issues. But I love this story and characters so much I actually picked up the manga to read what happens next, and I basically never do that. Maybe it's not technically the "best" anime of the season, but it's the one I love the most. ★★★★☆

2 SSSS.GRIDMAN: Somehow, based Trig just keep doing it. You'd be forgiven for thinking Darling in the Franxx, the show that has "SMART ANIME FOR ADULTS" practically engraved on everything about it, would be the 'cerebral' robot anime Trigger made this year, and Gridman, a spinoff of a cheesy tokusatsu show that was itself a spinoff of Ultraman, would be little more than a fun but forgettable robot romp. You'd be totally wrong, of course: Gridman is every bit the heavyweight that previous Trigger/Gainax robot anime are, with its own flair of course. It takes a while for it to fully develop and present its themes about social anxiety and isolation, but once it does it really pops off. The dual heroines of Akane and Rikka are brilliant, not just for their lewd character designs but also for how well their stories are written. Rikka is the real hero of the show--Yuuta might be the one jumping around in a robot, but ultimately Rikka is the most important. Stellar performances from both Ueda Reina and Miyamoto Yume as Akane and Rikka, respectively, really carry the thematic weight of the show. There is, of course, some great art and animation on display, as you might expect from Trigger, who always make the most (and then some) of whatever resources they're given. Episode 9, which takes place for the most part inside of a dream, was especially visually striking. An all around great production and one that won't soon be forgotten. ★★★★☆

3 Zombie Land Saga: With all that out of the way, here's a show about some moe zombies. Ah, anime, even after all these years it still finds ways to surprise me, like a show about moe zombie idols being as genuinely moving as it is hilarious. Probably the weirdest thing about Zombie Land Saga, even as a show that features the undead filming commercials for a Saga-based fried chicken restaurant and competing in a Takeshi's Castle-style mud Olympics, is that it unironically works as an idol anime, too. All the characters (well, except for Yuugiri, who is woefully underutilized) really do grow throughout the show and it gives the idol anime aspect a really solid backbone to build off of. Of course, Zombie Land Saga is more than just another idol anime, and calling it a zombie idol anime is somehow still selling it short. From the aforementioned chicken commercials, to the unforgettably epic zombie rap battle, to the middle schooler biker gangs, to basically everything Yamada Tae does, this show was not just surprisingly moving but shockingly hilarious at times. Also, it must be noted that these zombies are fricking adorable: definitely way cuter than the undead should ever be. Especially Junko who is the best girl, once again proving the superiority of Showa idols. ★★★★☆

4 Seishun Buta Yarou wa Bunny Girl Senpai no Yume wo Minai: Since this is a light novel anime through and through, it seems fair to describe it in terms of light novel anime: it's basically the Monogatari series meets Oregairu. Our sardonic protagonist with a heart of gold (and impossibly hot girlfriend) meets a bunch of high school girls with weird supernatural problems and helps them solve them. That might make it sound boring or derivative, but as I always harp on, it's really all in the execution and Aobuta sticks the landing. It reminds me of those above shows not just in narrative content but also in terms of how sharp the dialogue is: it is one of those delightful shows where you could have two characters just have a conversation for 24 minutes and it would still be endlessly absorbing. The reliable Ishikawa Kaito is great as our male lead, bringing not just snappy wit to the table but also a surprising amount of emotional depth in later story arcs. The aloof, sarcastic protagonist is of course done to death in this genre (hi, Kyon!) but Sakuta is certainly an example of it done well. It helps that he's such a loving oniichan and cute boyfriend, which really endears him to the viewer. The gallery of heroines is of course stocked with plenty of cute and sexy girls--the art and animation is top notch--but what really carries the show is Sakuta's relationship with his girlfriend (and best girl) Mai, which is a continuing story throughout the series even as the focus moves to other heroines. They're just so adorable together. Ironically, the element of the show that probably matters the least is the weird sort-of-sci-fi plot hooks: you're really just here to watch these characters talk through their emotions and stumble through adolescence, and the sci-fi plot devices are basically incidental to all of it. ★★★★☆

5 Himote House: Talk about a dark horse of an anime... Himote House is the latest... thing... from the man, the myth, the legend who brought us Minarai Diva, Ishidate Koutarou, and it's great. It's half nichijou-kei anime, half just a seiyuu radio show that's animated, and it's all superb. In the scripted bits, the show can get wonderfully weird, from the episode that used the Game of Life to teach us about the lack of gay rights in Japan, to the episode that took place entirely inside of a copy machine, and I haven't even mentioned the Bitcoin episode yet, which is too bizarre to even give away in this review no one will read. The unscripted bits are also great thanks to a collection of some of the seiyuu industry's top personalities, including the always great combination of Suzakinishi, comedic genius Mimorin, and the criminally underrated Mizuhara Kaoru whose performance as Tokiyo really must be experienced: it starts over the top and just keeps going from there. Even the cheap 3DCG animation is surprisingly charming, and it's at least good enough that these girls look genuinely cute, although the show is also helped along by regularly inserting some nice hand-drawn stills in the most important moments. Almost everyone probably overlooked this show this season, but I'd give it a hearty recommendation. ★★★★☆

6 Tonari no Kyuuketsuki-san: I hope Comic Cune anime are here to stay, because this was certainly the best pure nichijou-kei offering this season. It's "cute girl vampires" but, as you might expect from the source, this is the most laid-back depiction of vampires you're ever going to find in fiction. None of the human characters even seem to be remotely bothered that vampires are in their midst, the sun is an inconvenience that mostly makes it harder to go buy manga in the middle of the day, and they order their blood from Amazon. Even when a vampire hunter shows up, she's just won over by the vampire girls' cuteness. It does use vampire lore to tell some amusing jokes at times, like Sophie getting trapped outside because she had to count all the seeds in a sunflower, or Akari getting a plank put on her in bed because the vampires felt bad that her bed didn't have a lid, but mostly you're just here for the cute girls cuting, and cute they do. There's the requisite amount of soft yuri, and the character designs and animation are fantastic. Very little to complain about here--the show's only real weakness is that the jokes are occasionally kind of meh. Ellie is best girl. ★★★☆☆

7 Uchi no Meido ga Uzasugiru!: Shocking no one, the Comedy God delivered again. This show is frequently laugh out loud funny, and it's helped along by animation from Douga Koubou that is right up there with some of the best they've ever produced. The sole factor that makes this show somewhat weaker than Oota Masahiko's previous works is that with its completely absurd comedic premise it is ultimately trying to tell a very serious story--about a little girl who is terrified of having her late mother replaced by having any other adult woman enter her life--with a premise that definitely should not be telling a serious story. The show is at its best when Tsubame (voiced by Numakura Manami in some of her best-ever work) is being an irredeemable lolicon shithead, not a role model. Still, the show is pretty great most of the time, and it only gets better when ドM best girl Midorin turns up about halfway through. The Russian loli is pretty cute too I guess, but as seems to always be the case in these shows (I can't help but remember another Douga Koubou production, Mikakunin de Shinkoukei) the silliest and most perverted girls always steal the show. ★★★☆☆

8 Irozuku Sekai no Ashita Kara: It's a P.A. Works original, so that means it's time to complain about how it's not as good as other P.A. Works originals! Seriously though, although it's not the second coming of TARI TARI, this show is easy to recommend, being beautiful both artistically and narratively, with a simple and heartfelt story to tell about a girl going to a new place (well, a new time) to discover herself. Yep, you guessed it, this is one of my favorites: sentimentality anime! Girl literally learns to see the beauty in the world that she had been blind to by leaving her comfort zone and falling in love. Good shit, good shit. My main complaint is that the best girl, Kurumi, gets short shrift as best girls often do, although she at least does get one little story arc to develop her character. Ishihara Kaori is solid as the female lead, but I just loved Naobou as the snarky Kurumi so much. It's also worth noting that although the cast actually has a fairly even gender split, all the male characters are pretty much inoffensive to likable, which is all I really ask in a show like this. There's no one on the level of Wien, but Chigusa and Kurumi's relationship was pretty cute. Overall, though, this show is just about drinking in the atmosphere and the feels, and trying to avoid thinking about time paradoxes. ★★★☆☆

9 Akanesasu Shoujo: I had cautiously high expectations for this show going into the season, and although it didn't blow me away with a masterpiece, I was satisfied with what I got. The show doesn't have the best production values, but it has a solid premise that is executed well. A group of misfit high school girls in the incredibly lame Radio Club find a way to slip between alternate dimensions, have misadventures where they learn that The Real Power Was Inside Us All Along, and end up saving the universe from being consumed by some vague evilness. The story comes courtesy KID's Uchikoshi Koutarou, and definitely feels like something you might find in a science fiction visual novel. It's not afraid to be at least a little adventurous, with the various dimensions we visit being varying degrees and kinds of social commentary, and it even goes as far as killing off major characters and actually letting them stay dead! Plus, it had Kurosawa Tomoyo basically playing like three or four characters at once, which has to be worth something. If nothing else, I respected this series. ★★☆☆☆

10 Kishuku Gakkou no Juliet: Romeo and Juliet may well be the Bard's most widely popular play, so it's not surprising that now we have an anime version of it... sort of. In true anime fashion, this is not a tragedy of star-crossed lovers, but a comedy of errors about two goofball kids who fall in love at a ridiculous boarding school. Set against a backdrop of, uh, race war. Kayano Ai's blondenblu Juliet is pretty cute but as is typical in these shows the best girls never win, namely Ayaneru's Hasuki and the actual best girl, Shimamura Yuu's Chartreux. As always, the gay girls are the best. The show does have an unusually likable protagonist for one in this genre: Romio is a big dork who is singlemindedly dedicated to his cute girlfriend, and even if she's not the best girl, you definitely want to root for them. A pretty good show. ★★☆☆☆

11 Animayell!: Kirara anime are playing second fiddle to other cute girl shows again this season, but like Harukana Receive last season, this show is still decent. What it lacks in a compelling premise (sorry, not only do I come in thinking cheerleading is lame, but the show's animation isn't good enough to get it over as a cool thing) it makes up for in the most important ingredient for an anime, homosexuality. Not only is there the immaculately gay Hanawa-chan and the extremely homo Ukki, for some reason at one point theres also a completely random, out lesbian side character who asks our heroines for advice confessing to her female home tutor. But yeah, it's definitely worth it for Hanawa and Ukki at least; your mileage may vary on the rest of the actual show. ★★☆☆☆

12 Sword Art Online Alicization: I've repeatedly gone on record saying I love a slow burn, and I don't necessarily mind when nothing happens in a show if its at least giving me some good atmosphere and characters to gnaw on in the meantime... But man, is the new SAO one slow-ass show. Though I've never read the books, this really feels like a case of following the Original Way too closely. That's not to say that what is here is bad by any means; there's some truly interesting concepts, a good SAO story, and of course some stellar animation, but they probably could have cut this first cours down to like, six episodes and still accomplished the same things. I still have confidence that it will get more hype as we progress, though. There's a long way to go in this one yet, so this rating is anything but final. ★★☆☆☆

13 Debidoru!: This show is an ugly looking 3DCG abomination that was probably made in MikuMikuDance, but thankfully we now live in a post-Kemono Friends world, and so Debidoru! was still pretty great. You couldn't ask for a better trio of voices for an ad-lib stuffed comedy than Hanazawa Kana, Mimori Suzuko and Iguchi Yuka and they fill their roles with aplomb, especially Iguchi, who at one point tsukkomis so hard she clips the microphone. Like the best no-money shorts it also had some moments of true ART, like Sugahara Souta (the director) singing the moe opening song (in one uncut take) for no reason, or one of the greatest things I saw all season, episode 11, which was done (also in one take) entirely with paper cutouts of the characters in front of a camcorder. It's not really a mastapeece in the way Himote House was, but it was certainly a memorable little show. ★★☆☆☆

14 Beelzebub-jou no Okinimesu Mama: I'm as surprised as anyone that this show ended up as low as it did, but by the end of the season I had a hard time convincing myself to even load up the latest episode of this one, and it's hard for me to really even say why. On the face of it it should be my jam: it's full of cute girls and pastel colors, and it's even occasionally lewd. Really, it's probably just because there's so many male characters who get a decent amount of attention in the narrative. It also doesn't help that Beelzebub (despite being a cute blondenblu voiced by Oonishi Saori) is not really a very appealing character, which makes the protagonist, who is constantly fawning over her like she's the best thing since sliced bread, come off as less likable as well. It had some good stuff too, like Sargatanas's shyness and Gocchin's needing to pee constantly, but I guess it wasn't quite enough to hold my interest. It also doesn't help that my favorite girl, Eurynome, was barely even in the show after she was introduced. We ankle fetishists gotta stick together, man! ★☆☆☆☆

15 Tensei Shitara Slime Datta Ken: I had exactly zero expectations for this show to begin with, so I was pleasantly surprised with it at first. Those great typographic effects, especially, really sucked me into the first episode and I was excited to see where it went for the first few weeks, especially with the promise of cute girls on the horizon. The girls have been underwhelming, though (mainly by virtue of their having nothing to do in the story) and what actually is going on in the story, I find incredibly dull. Rimuru is just such a booooring protagonist, and his very existence tends to sap the tension out of scenes since you know he's ridiculously OP and will probably just absorb whatever bad thing shows up next like he's absorbed every other bad thing up to that point. 俺TUEEEEEE isn’t even necessarily something I hate, and it can be made to work, but Rimuru isn’t cool enough of a guy or really interesting in any way that I can self-insert and live vicariously through his TUEEEEE-ness. Just give me more Shion, she is the best purple oni secretary. ★☆☆☆☆

16 Hashiritsuzukete Yokattatte: I guess I should put this down since it's technically a show I finished from this season. It's kinda boring and lame, do not recommend. The girl with the glasses never even puts them on, she just wears them on top of her head like a doofus the whole time. Might have been able to deliver some feels if it was in a longer format, but just falls flat due to the <60 minute total runtime. ☆☆☆☆☆

#power rankings

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recentanimenews · 5 years

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Discover the History Behind the Anime Creators Going to Crunchyroll Expo!

Behind every anime is a team of people working their butts off to create something special. These teams are usually led by a Director, an Animation Director, a Character Designer, and even a CEO, producing from above, and at Crunchyroll Expo this year, you’ll be able to meet some of these elusive faces in panels or at signings, and you may even be able to ask them questions!

But even the most dedicated fan might not know every amazing name on our guest list. So, to get you prepared to meet these anime creators, let us go through and learn a little about each one!

Masahiro Suwa

Masahiro Suwa started out in the anime industry around 2003. At the time, he was under contract with Tanto, an anime outsourcing studio, for video inspection work and in-between animation. Suwa’s first credits were on anime series such as Honey and Clover and Happy Lesson: The Final. While at Tanto, Suwa has tasked with checking the in-betweens on Makoto Shinkai’s The Place Promised in Our Early Days film.

In September 2007, Tanto closed its doors. By this time, Suwa had become a key animator for the studio with his last credits for them being for anime series’ GR -GIANT ROBO- and Over Drive. After, Suwa worked closely with anime studio Xebec. Xebec had led the production on many shows that were outsourced to Tanto and when the studio folded, Suwa was given the opportunity to work on Xebec-led series and outsourced projects such as Kanokon and Evangelion 2.0 as a key animator and second key animator.

Suwa’s big break came as an animator director and key animator on the Manglobe produced series The World God Only Knows. He continued to work with Manglobe on a number of series as a key animator, such as Gangsta. and House of Five Leaves. During this time, Suwa also started working with Bones as a key animator, with credits on Bones-led series such as Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, and as an animator director on Blast of Tempest. Suwa worked his way up to become the chief animation director on Chaika –The Coffin Princess- and its sequel series.

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During the production of Under The Dog, Masahiro Suwa was asked to join Kinema Citrus as a key animator to work on the OVA. Since then, he’s helped out with the character designs on Made in Abyss, was one of the chief animation directors on Scorching Ping Pong Girls, and of course, was the character designer and chief animation director on The Rising of the Shield Hero.

You can find him at these events:

Live Drawing with The Rising of the Shield Hero character designer Masahiro Suwa Saturday August 31 at 10:15 AM (w/ producer Junichiro Tamura)

The Rising of the Shield Hero - Special Panel Sunday September 1 at 12 PM

Terumi Nishii

It wouldn’t be a surprise if you’ve never heard of Terumi Nishii, but she is an animator that has touched many famous works over the years. You’ll be surprised to find out that multiple anime series and movies share a special bond thanks to her.

Terumi Nishii’s first credits in the anime industry were usually found next to Studio Cockpit. After graduating from Osaka College of Design, she started working with Studio Cockpit as an in-betweener, with her first known credit being Revolutionary Girl Utena: The Movie. She was quickly promoted to a key animator position on Pilot Candidate and her career bloomed.

During her time at Studio Cockpit, Nishii racked in credits as a key animator on hit anime like Pokémon 3: The Movie, Angelic Layer, Initial D: Fourth Stage, Love Hina and many more.

After parting ways with Studio Cockpit, Ishii’s big break came on Fushigiboshi no Futago Hime, where she was the Chief Animation Director. During production, she was also an animation director and key animator on cult-classic MUSHI-SHI in 2005. She would return to the series nearly a decade later for MUSHI-SHI The Next Passage in the same roles, along with helping an assistant animation director and 2nd key animator for the episodes she wasn’t in a main role for.

At the start of her career, Nishii worked closely with Hisashi Kagawa, who took her under his wing alongside Mitsuko Baba. They all worked on Revolutionary Girl Utena: The Movie together and because of this and her love of the Utena franchise (of which she made doujinshi of), Nishii was asked by Kunihiko Ikuhara to create the character designs for Peguindrum.

Since then, Nishi has been the lead character designer and animation director on a number of works. These anime include Servant × Service, Knights of the Zodiac: Saint Seiya, and part 4 of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Diamond Is Unbreakable.

You can find her at the following events:

Demonstration with Character Designer Terumi Nishii Friday August 30 at 1 PM

Animation Director & Character Designer Terumi Nishii Career Perspective Saturday August 31 at 2:25 PM

Live Demo with Animation Director & Character Designer Terumi Nishii Sunday September 1 at 11:15 AM

Yuzuru Tachikawa and Yoshimichi Kameda

It’s hard to talk about Yuzuru Tachikawa and Yoshimichi Kameda separately, as they’re a team that has threads of animation that lead back to episode 341 of Bleach. With Tachibana on direction and storyboard, and Kameda on animation, this super sakuga team have worked together on Death Parade, FLIP FLAPPERS, Kill la Kill, and the aforementioned Bleach. Their biggest hit to date though has been the jaw-dropping Mob Psycho 100.

But let’s turn back the clock a little and see where they came from, starting with Yuzuru Tachikawa. Tachikawa started out in the anime industry working for Madhouse in 2006. His first credit was for Kiba in setting production. He must have made a good impression because his first directorial credit was for the final episode of the same anime series.

Tachikawa’s final credit for Madhouse before moving onto freelancing was for Kobato. where he was an episode director and animation director on three episodes. Whilst freelancing, he was courted by Pierrot to work on Bleach. The first episode he's credited for on the shonen series was the May 2010 episode, “Ichigo Dies! Orihime, the Cry of Sorrow!”, the 271st episode of the series, as a storyboarder.

Obviously impressing the producers and directors on the long-running show, Tachikawa got his chance to direct his own episode the very next year, episode 319. Tachikawa’s work on Bleach is said to be what got him noticed by the anime industry at large and led to more and more projects.

One of these projects was directing episode 12 of Steins;Gate, a fan favourite episode of the series, along with being a storyboarder for episode 7 of Sword Art Online. But it wasn’t until a collaboration between Tachikawa and Madhouse for the Anime Mirai project that Tachikawa would be blasted into the stars. The collaboration turned into the original short anime film Death Billiards in 2013, which morphed into Death Parade in 2015, Tachikawa’s directorial debut. He is credited as the original creator, along with storyboarding and being a unit director on the show's banger of an OP.

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This industry clout let Tachikawa work on some of the biggest projects of the decade. This included working closely with Shinichiro Watanabe on Terror in Resonance as a storyboarder, episode director, assistant director and many more roles in the hit show. Tachikawa also worked on Yuri!! on ICE, Lupin the Third - The Woman Called Fujiko Mine, One-Punch Man and the biggest Detective Conan film of all time, Detective Conan: Zero the Enforcer.

After being popular within the industry for over a decade, Tachikawa’s mainstream popularity came from best-boy series, Mob Psycho 100. Tachikawa worked closely with Kameda to craft one of the most visually appealing series ever created. With Tachikawa on direction, storyboard and overall looking over the series, and Kameda on character design and all the animation roles, together they created a show that goes beyond 100%.

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Yoshimichi Kameda, on the other hand, is an animator at heart. After not being accepted for a job at Studio Ghibli as an animator, Kameda went on to a vocational school wanting to study more than just animation and hone his skills. On that front, he failed. At school, he mostly created animations, using cuts from Gainax series as references. His love for the company and the people who started Gainax grew and when Kameda graduated from vocational school, he applied to be an animator at Gainax.

Kameda applied three times to the studio by sending them a giant box of his creations from school. The boxes were returned to Kameda all three times, with the second returned box having a note that read “At this time, we’re really sorry…”

Not being dismayed, Kameda applied for the studio AIC as they worked closely with Gainax as an outsource studio on their projects. This led to his first credits being for video work on Pumpkin Scissors and in-between animation for Ah! My Goddess: Flights of Fancy. During his time working for AIC, Kameda wasn’t able to fully flex his animations muscles – even if he did get to work on Gainax’s Gurren Lagann – and moonlighted under a pen name.

This pen name let him work as a key animator on Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, where he caught the keen eye of Bones producers and was asked to freelance at the studio as a key animator. Since then, Kameda has been able to soar through the anime industry. He’s moved up the ranks to become a character designer and animation director on projects such as Paroru no Miraijima and Doraemon the Movie: Nobita's Treasure Island, has worked as an action animation director on One-Punch Man, and was even a guest alien designer on Space Dandy Season 2.

Kameda was finally granted his wish to work with the superstar animators of Gainax Past when he was asked to be a key animator on Hiroyuki Imashi’s Kill la Kill at Trigger and Hideaki Anno’s Evangelion 3.0 at Khara. I wonder if they remembered his giant box?

You can find both industry legends at the following panels at CRX:

Mob Psycho 100 II OVA Premiere Saturday August 31 at 4 PM

Mob Psycho 100 Director Yuzuru Tachikawa Career Perspective Sunday September 1 at 10:30 AM

Mob Psycho 100 Character Designer Yoshimichi Kameda Career Perspective Sunday September 1 at 12 PM

So, who are you interested to meet this weekend? Let us know down below!

>>> Get your tickets for Crunchyroll Expo now!

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Daryl Harding is a Japan Correspondent for Crunchyroll News. He also runs the YouTube channel about Japan stuff called TheDoctorDazza, tweets at @DoctorDazza and posts photo of his travels on Instagram.

By: [email protected]

#Anime #News #Latest in Anime News by Crunchyroll!

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