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recentanimenews · 5 years ago

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Isekai, Ranked

If Anime is escapism, there is no better way to escape than plunging Into Another World, where our niche skills and routine possessions may shake the fabric of reality! From MMO-inspired, to hard fantasy, there are many types of shows on this list but no movies nor series we haven’t seen recently. Bring all disagreements to the comments below!

1. Re:Zero − Starting Life in Another World Re:Zero takes Isekai’s love for fish-out-of-water stories on step further: through brutal, expectation breaking blind sides, it makes the viewer a fish out of water too! Dripping with fantastic animation, Re:Zero true strength is the balance of its highly detailed world without over explaining its magic system, time loop mechanic and political systems. It also earns bonus points for limiting the application of its protagonist’s powerful magic and technological advantages.

2. Sword Art Online (1st season) In the narrowest of second places, SAO pairs top shelf animation with an approachable cast and easy to appreciate central conflict. Its lovingly constructed MMO setting aside, Kirito’s mistakes and occasional darkness elevate him above his potentially generic good-at-everything character type and Asuka plays the strongest heroine/love interest on the list.

3. Now and Then, Here and There Imagine if Digimon told a bleak about story sex trafficking child soldiers trapped on a waterless world with a maniac king? NTHT’s intense swerve from adorable into darkness is on par with Re:Zero and, much like Natsuki Subaru, HTHT’s Shu must rely on ‘durability’ and ‘heart’ to make it through. While some of it’s later tragic moments are predictable, this f’ed-up little anime scores major points for telling a complete story and having that story grow Shu from simpleton into a conflicted young adult.

4. Gargantia on the Verdurous Planet While Red’s post-earth scifi origin may stretch the common definition of Isekai, being trapped in a primitive culture that treats him (and his AI-driven mech Chamber) like a hero of old does not. Beautifully, Gargantia flips the script and makes Red’s overwhelming power, and killing in general, at odds with the local people.

5. Yōjo Senki / The Saga of Tanya the Evil Give us World War I with magic, a gender swapped villain as our protagonist, and God as our antagonist, and you’ve given us something pretty damn original. Like Gargantia, this reborn in another world captures thinking differently about the world can be as powerful and terrifying as unworldly strength. Without question, Yojo Senki’s cast is the most uniquely imagined on this list.

6. No Game No Life Like Tanya, the Blank twins piss off god and are sent to another world as punishment. However, their punishment is much more stylish and… harem. Underneath NGNL’s acid-soaked panties, over the top protagonists and the psychedelic color pallet, lives a show featuring thoughtful puzzles and imaginative spins on classic gamble to win story telling. Sadly, its story ends unfinished…

7. KonoSuba One part jab at Isekai and one part love letter to the starting town of every fantasy MMO, KonoSuba is all parts ruthlessly funny! While this reborn in another world (with a goddess!) show is not be as smartly written as NGNL, and it becomes repetitive after a time, the constant frenetic action more than makes up for it.

8. Grimgar of Fantasy and Ash Quiet, thoughtful, and full of sadness, this hard fantasy Isekai doesn’t care if its heroes are reborn in another world or trapped in a dungeon crawl afterlife. Building family bonds and connecting with people who would not normally be friends is all that matters… and it’s lovingly animated to boot!

9. ReCreators As a reverse Isekai, ReCreators distinguishes itself by bringing the other world to us. The experience is fantastically animated and packed with clever dialog that somehow breaths sincerity into a profoundly silly plot. The cast is quite diverse, both in design and personality, which keeps the action fresh, yet somehow cohesive throughout. It’s only major flaw is, the final act, which is way to drawn out.

10. The Devil is a Part Timer No I’m not kidding! This reverse Isekai’s premise that the Devil is trapped in our world and must work at McDonnald’s to get by is charming. While DiaPT’s humor isn’t particularly specific to the devil, the jokes are punchy, and the overall plot develops at a respectable pace. As an added treat, the opening gothic fantasy fight scenes are surprisingly well animated.

11. Log Horizon (1st season) Most exposition heavy, trapped in an MMO themed Isekai featuring ‘top ranked’ players crumble after a few episodes. More often than not, these shows try too hard to sell the coolness of their game worlds, user interfaces, and central characters. Miraculously, Log Horizon gets better mid season with a simple question: if former NPCs have personalities, can grow and learn, and even die, are they more human than the former players that dismiss them as background texture? Still, it takes Log Horizon six episodes to get going and good lord is it gray looking…

12. Overlord (3 Seasons) This transported into an MMO Isekai mirrors its main character: it is competent but not sure what it should be doing at any given moment. Sometimes the protagonists are villains and sometimes they are heroes. More often than not, characters are given lavish screen time to develop, only to be slaughtered whimsically. The resulting narrative is full of call backs and revealed foreshadowing… yet hasn’t gone very far in 3 seasons and hasn’t asked any interesting questions along the way.

13. El Hazard – The Magnificent World (OAV/TV) Predestined paradox, trans-dimensional time jumping high school students (and their drunk gym teacher) are trapped in an Arabian Nights’like land besieged by sentient bugs, a secret tribe of assassins from another dimension, and a death star like eye of god orbiting nearby. If you watched anime in the 1990s it will all be familiar but it still manages to feel original yet cohesive production. The character abilities are wonderful, the tragedy is nice, and plenty is left up to your own imagination to fill in the blanks. A bland, fault free, protagonist and a boy-crazy harem vibe are the only reasons it isn’t higher on the list.

14. Gate: Jieitai Kano Chi nite, Kaku Tatakaeri This invading the other world Isekai flips the script to deliver political intrigue, clash of culture, and commentary on Japanese society. It loses points for being a overly harem, relying on super dumb/super evil antagonists, and a dull protagonist but it’s fun enough to watch.

15. Drifters Stylishly violent, strikingly ugly, historical character filled and utterly bonkers, this reborn in another world Isekai’s uniqueness will hold your attention. Even if you do not want it to.

16. Rise of the Shield Hero (2 Seasons) On paper, this transported to an MMO world Isekai’s “treat the hero like crap,” “watch him accept the role of a slave-buying villain” and ultimately “rise to become the true hero” concept is great. Revealing that the world he’s saving may be less redeemable than the world the invaders are trying to save is also great. Too bad its padded and many of the arbitrary delays and narrative dead ends feel like cop outs.

17. That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime While it lacks the initial hardcore’ness of Shield Hero, this reborn in another world Isekai is pleasantly animated and full of heart. The idea that naming monsters grants them power is a pretty neat mechanic too. It just sort bounces from idea to idea without a sense of purpose of resolution. One minute it’s a story of unlikely friendship, then magic destiny, then town builder, then harem, and onto magic school and isn’t about anything in particular until a hastily thrown together plot ties it up at the end. It scores points for making its hero a slime… although the reborn aspect never feels played with or justified.

18. Angel Beats! If the gun fetish, kids fighting a loli-angel instead of attending school in the afterlife plot weren’t so dumb and drawn out, this rebirth story’s touching moments would push it much higher. There’s a really good tale of life cut short, reunion after death, and again after rebirth here and it gets major bonus points for finishing the story it had to tell. Totally squandered.

19. Death March / Kara Hajimaru Isekai Kyousoukyoku Like Shield Hero, this reborn in an MMO Isekai is actually quite good looking. However, its Gary-Stue protagonist, harem and absurd narrative padding make it far less interesting. OMG how many episodes are about making lunch?! That’s too bad because the concept of code-like “copy and paste” magic system is pretty neat.

20. Wiseman’s Grandson / Kenja no Mago Despite opening with a modern day man being killed, this reborn into a fantasy world Isekai is more Magic School than Isekai. The only thread that connects the protagonist’s lives is that he can look at magic with an eye for process instead of outcome. The result is harmless easy watching but harem elements, a slow pace and lack of getting anywhere narratively hold it back.

21. How Not to Summon a Demon Lord This summoned into an MMO Isekai starts off as charming, but ecchi-heavy, before abruptly turning dark at the end of the season. We’re talking ‘make a child watch as her best friend is slowly tortured to death’ and creepo ‘finger-bang a loli cat girl in order to give birth to the demon inside her’ level dark. While those elements elevate HNtSaDL above niche appeal of its harm and MMO content, they aren’t so interesting to earn my recommendation.

22. Problem Children are coming from Another World, Aren’t They? The non-ecchi poor man’s No Game no Life features a talking cat that only some characters can understand and dreadful music. TFW smooth jazz? There’s some cuteness to be had, and the solutions to gambling games can be clever, but the overall vibe is low energy. It loses drama points because its protagonist is as smart as a god and physically stronger.

23. Do You Love Your Mom and Her Two-Hit Multi-Target Attacks? This poor man’s Konosuba is occasionally funny, satire of RPG conventions and family relationships. Mama’s skill that interrupts whatever her son is doing, no matter what it is or where he is in the game world, is particularly charming. Unfortunately, there’s no avoiding the creepo factor of sexualizing that family relationship.

24. Restaurant from Another World My mom is secretly from another world and my restaurant’s front door connects back to that world each day is certainly unique, but it’s structured more like a food-porn show than Isekai. While the linkages of each patron become clear over time, few characters are not aware of those connections themselves. The result never feels like it gets anywhere.

25. In Another World With My Smartphone Stories without risk are still watchable when they immerse us an interesting world, or delve into niche details like food or how magic works, or sleeze us with harems and sex appeal. Smartphone fails all of these things. Worse, it does nothing with it’s one idea: protagonist Touya is reborn in a fantasy world with smartphone. Except, GOD GIVES HIM GOD TIER MAGIC FROM THE GET-GO! Ironically, Re:Zero and No Game No Life both use of a cell phones in more interesting ways, and Tanya’s God isn’t even comparable. Unoriginal, unfunny, not dramatic, not sexy, not worth watching.

26. Maou-sama, Retry! This transported to an MMO Isekai’s trash production values, and bizarre characters are hard to take seriously. The results are sometimes so terrible they are funny, such as incompetent background music transitions and detailed horses hiding at the edges of the frame. Sadly, a bland harem and complete lack of narrative objective kill the mood.

27. Isekai Izakaya Imagine a low energy, public access style show, with a tourism theme, that featuring a modern Japanese restaurant that serves fantasy world patrons…

28. Isekai Cheat Magician A loveless summoned to a fantasy world Isekai who’s protagonists are the most powerful and purely good characters could deserve a niche rating. Not this one. The narrative sort of ‘skips the boring stuff’ and, in doing so, skips character development. Hilariously, what the narrative does show is poorly animated, always underwhelming magic battle scenes or people standing around talking.

29. Endride Without dialog, this stumbled into a magic world Isekai’s vibrant color and crisp art would be watchable. The fact that the world is somehow inside of Earth’s core and the sparse use of mythology are unique, but its dumb-as-bricks whiny teen protagonists have the maturity of a small children. There are many unintentionally funny moments like scientists using gigantic laptops or the king’s magic weapon looking like a safety pin. Ultimately, the cast is so unlikeable that the show itself is unwatchable.

By: oigakkosan

#Anime #News #RABUJOI – An Anime Blog

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drink-n-watch · 6 years ago

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Genre: Isekai, coming of age, thriller, drama, comedy, adventure, heart squeezes, friendship, potty humour, wow

Episodes: 7

Studio: Haoliners Animation League

Have you ever fallen in love with a dream? Not in that way you perv! True love. The type that sneaks up on you. The type that can be difficult and frustrating. When that other person is your best friend and your hero but also the one you absolutely need to protect at all costs! What would you do to see them again? And you know how dreams are. Tricky and fleeting. Before you know it, they flicker out of your mind without a trace. What if you missed someone from the very bottom of your heart, who you couldn’t remember at all? How far would you go to find them again? All the way to another world?

Do you know why I chose to watch this series? Because I liked the title. I liked the idea of an ensemble cast that had a heroine. That’s all. I knew nothing about it. I can say without hesitation that To Be A Heroine is the most surprising anime series I’ve seen in years. It caught me completely off guard and made quite the impression. Even now, it hovers on the edges of my brain. I decided to write this review because I just couldn’t concentrate on anything else.

I always suspected this would happen someday

Two little factoids to give you a bit of production background here. To Be A Heroine is a spiritual successor to the short program To Be A Hero (which I have not seen). It’s also a Chinese Japanese co-production and it’s not subtle about it.

What does that mean? For one, the art has a certain quality to it. It’s still very much an anime aesthetic but there seem to be some other influences in the mix. Something in the proportions and angles that makes it look like, well, a manhwa. Which is Korean so I’m not quite sure why this is. The animation is fine, but you can tell the budget wasn’t illimited. Not that this matters at all for the story. Some of the battle scenes could have been a touch more fluid or dynamic but again, I’m not sure that really would have been a plus. I’ll get back to it.

Where the mixed roots are most apparent though, is in the voice acting. That’s because half the series is in Japanese while the other half is in Chinese. And that is AWESOME! I strongly recommend you see this subtitled. They even throw in some French in there, and it’s the best French I’ve heard outside of an actual French movie. The constant back and forth between languages is such an interesting experience, especially since it brings with it a change in intonation and delivery style. It’s something that I had never seen done in any anime before. I loved it.

looks like my commute

However, this one is all about the story. It’s an isekai with a penchant for super childish blue humour, with some nice battle action, a surprisingly tender coming of age story and a tense criminal thriller set in the world of Big Pharmaceuticals. I’m not joking. I’ve tried to describe this over and over again without just simply telling the whole story (which would be a huge mistake as the reveals are amazing) and all I could come up with is imagine The Neverending Story (or the Wizard of Oz if you prefer), mashed with Kill la Kill and The Constant Gardener with just a hint of KHR. I’m not kidding. Oh, there are also some tongue in cheek BL jokes….

To not give anything away, I would say this is a story of tender youthful friendships, the hardship of growing older and growing apart, the beautiful bloom of love, the tragedy of jealousy and betrayal and the agony of loss. This cycle repeated across generations and realities. It’s about how greed can destroy entire worlds even if those worlds never quite existed.

This is a very weird show that starts off in a world where you can turn your clothing into warriors to fight for you and super powerful babies roam a land of perpetual darkness. And it made me cry. It hurt me in a pretty way. It still does.

of course

I would say this is the type of series that is likely to divide audiences. I adored it. It went directly to my list of favourites and I will now watch To Be A Hero just because of how amazing this show was. And if you watch it and tell me there’s something wrong with my head because this was a complete piece of trash – I will not be surprised either. It swings wildly form a poignant and visceral moment to a silly dad joke to innocently suggestive then tense and suspenseful. Sometimes in a single scene.

Moreover, I see that a lot of anime sites have this as a comedy/superpower show. Let me be clear. There are funny moments and silly moments, but this is a sad story. A very sad story. It deals with loss and pain in a direct way and when all is said and done, I would call it bittersweet at best. It’s also much stronger in its drama and thriller elements than its action or even comedy (which again, have some great moments). My point is that going by genre description I might have expected something like KonoSuba or the Disastrous Life of Saiki K and if that’s what I really wanted to see, then this would not have done the trick at all. I can imagine some of the audience may have felt rather cheated.

When looking at the MAL score you really can’t get much of an idea either. The total score is 7.2 (lowish but o.k.). There are only four written reviews though and the average of those scores is a slightly higher 7.5 still pretty average. What’s interesting though is that the actual scores are a 9, two 10s and a 1. This should give you a much better idea. It’s a love it or hate it sort of show. I loved it.

for friends like these – I would reshape reality as well

Aside from the originality of the production. Aspect ratios and colours are constantly being played with which is unusual, to say the least, and the genuinely visceral writing that had a completely unexpected emotional impact on me, it was also the sweetest example of friendship. It’s an almost indescribable show and I mean that as a compliment. I really think you should watch To Be A Heroine. You might hate it.

Favourite character: Moemoe – who am I kidding, everyone

What this anime taught me: Do not go gentle into that good night; Rage, rage against the dying of the light. (Dylan Thomas)

Every empty bottle is filled with stories

Suggested drink: Old Friend

Every time there’s a change in aspect ratio – take a sip

Every time anyone says “spicloth” – take a sip

Every time anyone ends up naked – take a sip

Every time there’s a flashback – get some tissues

Every time it’s raining – get some water

Every time anyone says “hero” – take a sip

Every time Hikaru hugs Super Oldguy – take a sip

Every time there’s a double entendre – just me?

Every time anyone pets Futaba – take a sip

Every time they mention “light” – sigh

I have pages and pages of notes on this show but I didn’t want to spoil it. If you want to chat about it with me, I would love to hear your thoughts…

nice glasses

The images of this series are very interesting and I would love it if you took a look at the gallery I put together but only AFTER you’ve seen the series. Here’s a little taste in the meantime:

What It Truly Takes To Be A Heroine Genre: Isekai, coming of age, thriller, drama, comedy, adventure, heart squeezes, friendship, potty humour, wow Episodes: 7…

#adventure #anime #comedy #coming of age #drama #fun!#isekai #sad #surreal #thriller #wow

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recentanimenews · 6 years ago

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Crunchyroll Features' Favorite Anime of Fall 2018!

The Fall season, and 2018 anime with it, are finished. We’re looking at a lot of big anime titles wrapping around into 2019, so now is the perfect time for our editors to honor our favorites from this season before the Winter premieres begin. This was a huge season with a ton of big returning titles, so it was particularly hard selecting our Top 3 from the season. You can check out our top anime from summer season, see how our picks compare to our most anticipated titles, or scroll down and check out our favorites!

Peter Fobian

Fall 2018 was absolutely ridiculous. The season looked huge going into it with the shonen fighter RADIANT, returning giants JoJo AND SAO, and 2 mega hyped isekai in Goblin Slayer and Slime. Oh yeah, also a new TRIGGER anime. Then it got EVEN BIGGER with some unknown quantities turning into awesome favorites. We’re still riding the crest of this wave into Winter as so many of the top series are continuing, but the ones that are coming to an end this year really left an impression on me.

ZOMBIE LAND SAGA

This might be the single biggest anime dark horse that has emerged since I started following seasonal anime and that was kind of part of its design. Everything from the show to the promotion was masterfully orchestrated, with the studio giving away little more than the title and Mamoru Miyano’s gorgeous face leading into the season. The way this anime took both tourism and idol anime to the extreme with one of the best concepts and pretty meta. The writing was on point, the comedic timing was perfect, and it even had great emotional beats. I’m really hoping a few of those loose plot threads mean a season 2 because this anime could easily deliver more.

SSSS.GRIDMAN

I watched the first episode of this series back at Anime Expo 2018 and was extremely surprised at how serious it felt. Although it loosened up during the fight scenes, Gridman has to be TRIGGER’s most reserved project to date with some really great storyboards, character drama, and a slowburn mystery that are typically absent from their high-octane visual circuses. It even stuck the landing. This series wasn’t just good in its own right, but really proved TRIGGER is about to deliver in multiple styles of storytelling.

Golden Kamuy

There's never enough space to talk about all the good things in Golden Kamuy. The story is an amazing treasure hunt/survival game in a wonderfully articulated historical set piece of Hokkaido, Japan following the Russo-Japanese War. The characters are as adorable as they are psychotic. The mysteries just keep building up. The violence is magnificent. The food looks delicious. This manga has a the best bit of everything and continually shows new faces as the story develops. Hopefully the wait for more of the manga wont be too long.

Ricky Soberano

Woo! This fall season has been a chock full of great anime that varied from each other in many aspects so I ended up staying consistently caught up with almost everything that came out this season and shows that haven’t stopped going. Trying to pick three took many rounds of questioning from myself to the people that I care about and the conclusion was ‘Ricky loved everything.’ However I came up with my top three by only choosing the ones that made me 110% happy every single time I clicked to watch the latest episode.

Fairy Tail Final Season

I’ve been a diehard Fairy Tail fan since the beginning (tattoo on my hip for proof) and frankly I’ve cried during every episode this season simply knowing that there will be no more of this amazing shonen that has saved my life more than once after this is done. This season exceeds expectations by not only doing a victory lap and bringing on almost every character that has ever shown up in the show but also by tying up every loose end, answering every burning question, and naturally showing every individual guild member’s badass power has gotten to a level so high up that one could barely fathom. Each episode has me screaming at the screen from the new insane revelation that they just revealed.

As Miss Beelzebub Likes It.

I don’t usually watch cute anime. However watching Beelzebub be super encapsulated by the presence of fluffy things, show her an affinity for tasty snaccs, and captivation for adorable animals pulled me into a hug as warm as an alpaca sweater and I never want it to stop. The color palette of pastel glory has kept me in a happy mood all season and the stories told are ridiculous but make for a never ending sweet dream.

Run with the Wind

This was a wild card for me since I may’ve ran track on high competitive levels but I don’t have a preference to sports anime. However the cast of 10’s journeys not only as runners but also as individuals take place with such high stakes on the line made it hard to not want to continue watching especially since the show did well to realistically show competitive running and the realistic sacrifices and training that goes behind it. With such high tension and drama circulating, I was truly on the edge of my seat the entirety of every single episode.

Nate Ming

Y'know, I thought I was gonna watch more JoJo… but I got my mom into JoJo over Christmas break, so that's gotta count for something. From retail hell to the frozen wilderness of Hokkaido to the sacred ring, my Fall 2018 season was full of emotional ups and downs… and I'm still screaming about that season finale for Golden Kamuy.

Skull-faced Bookseller Honda-san

All the built-up trauma from working retail and customer service for almost half my life came back in one huge wave with Skull-faced Bookseller Honda-san. No anime this season has made me laugh so hard I pulled a muscle (I'm not joking), and no anime this season has made me curl up in the fetal position remembering the insanity of working a Harry Potter book launch at Borders. But aside from all that, Honda-san himself is refreshingly positive and upbeat--work is work, it's tiring and frustrating, but if you love what you do and like sending customers home happy, it's all worth it in the end.

Golden Kamuy

The treacherous journey to find the stolen Ainu gold continued with a second season, bringing back our favorite characters while introducing plenty of new faces. Unexpected team-ups, shuffling of group rosters, and then pitting everybody against each other kept me watching every week, needing to know what was coming next--and that infuriating season finale means I'm absolutely tuning in for whenever season 3 starts airing.

Hinomaru Sumo

I keep joking that "no cowards allowed" is the tagline for this intense adaptation of the Weekly Jump manga, and it's a pretty fair assessment: characters may feel doubt and fear, they may question the decisions that led them to get into the ring, but there's nowhere to run in sumo, so finish the fight and worry about the details later. This show has so much heart, and I'm here to continue cheering for Hinomaru and team into 2019 as we head into its second cour.

Nicole Mejias

I gotta say, this fall season was STACKED with a whole bunch of great shows from start to finish! It was a season where my queue was at its fullest and trying to find time every week was actually a bit challenging to make sure I watched everything. There were so many shows that I ended up liking way more than I thought I would, so it was difficult to pick a top 3, and in some cases I feel my top 3 are mostly continuing from things I really enjoyed before, or last season; but that said, this was a tough season, and if I had more than 3 slots, I’d be in even more trouble picking!

Golden Kamuy

Golden Kamuy is a must-have on my list, and frankly should be on almost everyone's! I really had no idea what to expect from the series when I first heard about it, but whatever I thought it was, Golden Kamuy surprised me with it's amazing characters, fast and severe action, and its balance of comedy and suspense. As the second season draws to a close and some of the serious questions are about to be answered, I'll be waiting to see what's next for Sugimoto and Asirpa in the future. I probably would never get tired of this series, so I'm hoping we hear about a new season soon. Golden Kamuy is a series of feel almost anyone can enjoy, and I hope more people get sucked into it like I did!

JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Golden Wind

JoJo's is one of my favorite series of all, and when Golden Wind got announced I was extremely excited to see what was in store for me, since it was the JoJo part I knew the least about. Part 5 really does have a unique feel to it, from the mafia trappings to the unique and interesting Stand abilities, and now that things are really getting underway, I'm excited to see what's next! Giorno and the rest of the gang are quickly becoming one of my favorite collections of JoJo heroes, with their mix of fun chemistry and personalities, and I can just see Part 5 being in my favorite anime lists throughout 2019 too!

That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime

I'll be honest: I'm not a big isekai fan. I've never really found the power fantasy aspect of them interesting, and so I've usually found myself giving them a few episodes before getting bored or finding myself watching something else. Slime really grabbed me, though, because from the first parts of episode 1, I thought I was in for a similar experience, but it soon turned things on their heads! While Rimuru is super powerful, the world built in Slime is fascinating, and all of the interactions between characters is great. Also, seeing Rimuru put the smack down on baddies is incredibly satisfying! I'm excited to see where this series goes and how Rimuru's little collection of followers and hangers on grow!

And that's our editor's favorites for the Fall 2018 season! I'm surprised no anime got repeated twice except for Golden Kamuy with 3 votes, which is a fitting send off to an awesome series that reached its conclusion this year after an insane climax. But there's more to come. Prepare yourself for tomorrow when we'll be putting up our most anticipated titles for Winter 2019!

---

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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recentanimenews · 5 years ago

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My Girlfriend is an Alien: Looking Back at Ano Natsu de Matteru

Spring is coming to a close and Summer is just around the corner. And while the current state of the world may preclude certain typical Summer activities like going to the beach or visiting an amusement park, there's no shortage of catalog anime titles to catch up on. But what's worth watching? Where do we start?

“Cruising the Crunchy-Catalog” is here to help fans make informed choices by drawing attention to older titles that they may have missed the first time around, and this week we're looking back at an original series that mixes science fiction, teen romance, and a little comedy for good measure when we check out Ano Natsu de Matteru.

What's Ano Natsu de Matteru?

Ano Natsu de Matteru (Waiting in the Summer in English) is an original 2012 TV anime with direction by Tatsuyuki Nagai and animation production by J.C. Staff. Crunchyroll describes the story of the series as follows:

To combat the approaching boredom, friends decide to make a film together documenting their memories together.

Here are some additional details to give you a broader idea of the series: Using an old Super 8 camera left to him by his grandfather, first-year high school student Kaito Kirishima decides to make an amateur science-fiction film with his friends and classmates, including the mysterious and beautiful transfer student, Ichika Takatsuki.

Kaito falls in love with Ichika at first sight, but little does he know that Ichika has a secret: she's actually an extraterrestrial from a highly-advanced civilization in the Andromeda galaxy.

Magical Girlfriend.

Long before the “trapped-in-an-MMO” and isekai sub-genres were the primary vector for adolescent male wish-fulfillment in anime, there was a sub-genre best described as “magical girlfriend” anime. Its main feature was stories of romantic pairings between an ordinary Japanese schoolboy and a young lady who embodies the kind of qualities found only in speculative fiction. Earlier examples include series like Ah! My Goddess and Please Teacher, but there are countless works that involve a boy finding romance with an oni, a goddess, a ghost, a sentient computer, or an alien from outer space.

Ano Natsu de Matteru is the prototypical “magical girlfriend” series. It follows a story pattern that allows the inexperienced romantic leads to fall rapidly and hopelessly in love: Kaito's parents and elder sister are absent; school is winding down for summer break; Ichika and Kaito end up living under the same roof due to circumstances, etc. It's a perfect storm of teenage hormones, puppy love, and a general lack of meddling adults.

Unequal Romance.

The path of true love is always bumpy, and many “magical girlfriend” shows introduce complications in the form of a love triangle, often with a childhood friend who is secretly enamored with the protagonist. Ano Natsu de Matteru gets even funkier with its romantic geometry by introducing what can only be described as a “love chain,” in which every main character is in love with another main character, who is in love with someone else, who is in love with someone else, etc.

On paper, that sounds needlessly complicated, but in execution, it's a simple way to raise the emotional stakes and ratchet up the dramatic tension. And despite the show's far-out premise, the main characters in Ano Natsu de Matteru generally behave like ordinary teenagers — they can be both selfish and selfless, greedy and giving, compassionate and petulant — so the romantic entanglements strike a realistic tone.

Agent of Chaos.

There are several places where Ano Natsu de Matteru diverges from the typical “magical girlfriend” pattern, for example via the reveal of Mio Kitahara's a-typical lifestyle (no spoilers!), but perhaps the best weapon in the show's romantic comedy arsenal is comic relief character/aspiring film-maker/professional instigator, Remon Yamano.

None of the other characters ever know exactly what's up with Remon, and the pint-sized third-year student has a talent for making any social situation more unpredictable, whether it be through her too insightful observations or the careful application of cans of “Dynamite Drink.” Remon is chaos incarnate, and the series is elevated by her presence.

Take Me to Your Leader.

Crunchyroll currently streams Ano Natsu de Matteru in 55 territories worldwide and the series is available in the original Japanese with English subtitles. The series is also published on DVD and Bluray in the United States by Sentai Filmworks, and the home video version includes an English language dub.

Ano Natsu de Matteru is a quintessential “magical girlfriend” show, so it's not likely to appeal to someone if they aren't interested in teenage romance, but if you're in the mood for a relatively low stakes show with a lot of romantic anguish and a surprisingly bittersweet conclusion — and if the series is available in your area — then please consider giving Ano Natsu de Matteru a try.

Special thanks go to resident Japan correspondent Daryl Harding (@DoctorDazza) for suggesting the subject for this week's installment of “Cruising the Crunchy-Catalog.” Be sure to tune in next time when we look at a sports show from the Fall season of 2012 that stretches the boundaries of high school athletic competition in some radically implausible ways.

Is there a series in Crunchyroll's catalog that you think needs some more love and attention? Please send in your suggestions via e-mail to [email protected] or post a Tweet to @gooberzilla. Your pick could inspire the next installment of “Cruising the Crunchy-Catalog!"

Paul Chapman is the host of The Greatest Movie EVER! Podcast and GME! Anime Fun Time.

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drink-n-watch · 6 years ago

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Genre: Isekai, coming of age, thriller, drama, comedy, adventure, heart squeezes, friendship, potty humour, wow

Episodes: 7

Studio: Haoliners Animation League

I always suspected this would happen someday

looks like my commute

of course

for friends like these – I would reshape reality as well

Favourite character: Moemoe – who am I kidding, everyone

What this anime taught me: Do not go gentle into that good night; Rage, rage against the dying of the light. (Dylan Thomas)

Every empty bottle is filled with stories

Suggested drink: Old Friend

Every time there’s a change in aspect ratio – take a sip

Every time anyone says “spicloth” – take a sip

Every time anyone ends up naked – take a sip

Every time there’s a flashback – get some tissues

Every time it’s raining – get some water

Every time anyone says “hero” – take a sip

Every time Hikaru hugs Super Oldguy – take a sip

Every time there’s a double entendre – just me?

Every time anyone pets Futaba – take a sip

Every time they mention “light” – sigh

I have pages and pages of notes on this show but I didn’t want to spoil it. If you want to chat about it with me, I would love to hear your thoughts…

nice glasses

The images of this series are very interesting and I would love it if you took a look at the gallery I put together but only AFTER you’ve seen the series. Here’s a little taste in the meantime:

What It Truly Takes To Be A Heroine Genre: Isekai, coming of age, thriller, drama, comedy, adventure, heart squeezes, friendship, potty humour, wow Episodes: 7…

#adventure #anime #comedy #coming of age #drama #fun!#isekai #sad #surreal #thriller #wow

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