Review: Clannad
Story: 6.5
When I heard there was going to be another anime by the same makers a Kanon2006, I knew I wanted to watch this. And even though I think the story from Kanon was better, I wasn’t disappointed by this series, far from. Like Kanon, this series is build up in different arcs that focus on one character. Tomoya is the male lead and there are several female students in his surroundings who he somehow manages to become friends with. As he gets involved in their lives, he comes across as really helpful to aid these girls whenever he can. Each of these girls has their problems or insecurities to face and Tomoya lends a helping hand. The main story line which ties all the characters together is about Nagisa whose dream is to re-start the drama club at their school. There isn’t really going on much plot wise in this series since it is mostly the character development that makes this series interesting. It is a pity though that some characters didn’t get as much screen time as others and it left me wondering what could have been their motives.
I am personally a huge fan of the animation style used in this series. I really like the big eyed girls and their hairdos. Because of the detailed backgrounds and the vivid colors this anime was a joy for the eye. I feel there isn’t much more to say about this point since I can’t really find anything bad about it.
From all the songs of this series I like the one that closes up Fuuko’s arc the best, but the opening theme is also very beautiful. The rest of the soundtrack delivers a good quality of songs which I actually enjoy listen to on its own. The Dango theme sounds like a lullaby which is interwoven with the whole series. The voice actors also do excellent jobs on personalizing the characters and like the animation I really have nothing to complain about here.
As stated before this series involves around Tomoya who does anything for others as long as he doesn’t have to go home. I really like his sarcastic character and I think it is one of the best male leads I have seen in a series. As with all Key adaptations, Clannad has a huge side cast. There are several girls that get in touch with Tomoya somehow. I do feel that there are a bit too many characters in Clannad because as mentioned before some characters didn’t get the screen time they deserved. However the characters that did are likable characters with interesting tales to follow.
I would defiantly recommend it to anyone who liked the other Key adaptations. This one is more realistic then Kanon and Air however it still has the same quality and charm. I found it a good watch even though some things remain unexplained in the end.
Lemon Angel Project Review
Story: 7.5
It has been a long time since I watched a series where music was a main part of the plot, so when I read the synopsis I decided I would watch it. This story has more to it then meets the eye. The first half concentrates on forming a new formation of the Lemon Angels. It will take the viewer through the auditions and rivalry. When the formation is formed the viewer gets to see what hardships a new band can get especially if there are some people out there to boycott the new formation on purpose. And there are even darker secrets untold.
Colorful is a keyword for this anime. The character designs are all to match the personality of the different band members and this concept works in this case. It’s like they kind of created the Spice girls in anime form, or at least it looks that way. The colors match and the costumes are cute. Further the animation wasn’t that spectacular. It is guilty of using stills and the backgrounds are all very basic. However the thing why it still deserves a 7 in my opinion is because of the dancing scenes. The animation there was fluent and synchronized and those were very fun to watch.
I always rate a series where the theme is focused on music more critical then I would normally do. I think that when you focus your plot around music in a series, you must be able to back it up with a more then decent soundtrack to make things appealing and realistic. This series has a lot of vocal tracks apart from the opening theme and ending song. The songs are typical J-pop ones which were meaningless to me at first. But the songs did grow on me because they matched the story well. However the soundtrack still isn’t as good as some others from the genre. Mostly the soundtracks of anime with the music theme are great to listen to on its own, but with this series this isn’t the case for me.
As stated before the new band members are selected on type. They have different characters that cause them to clash occasionally. The strong point of the series is the fact that each character has an episode that is dedicated to her. It contains things like background or personal issues, insecurities or scandals. It gives the characters more depth and it makes it easier to empathize or relate. Even though the characters are very stereotypical I did enjoy the way they interacted and grew from rivals to a close group of friends.
This anime is surely enjoyable. It has a decent story, an ok soundtrack and fun characters. In the whole it is an anime which is easy to get into and it is realistic. However there are better series in this genre therefore this anime with its current quality gets no further then decent.
Shigofumi review
Story: 8
Sometimes I just pick a random anime out of a list without looking up the info about it and I watch it without knowing its genre or anything else that is to know about anime nowadays. This sometimes results in finding an enjoyable series in a different genre I normally prefer. This was the case with Shigofumi, a series which I wouldn’t normally have watched if I had looked up the info beforehand, but I did now.
I was a tad disappointed by the animation of this series. Most characters have a simple design, a bit too simple to my opinion. They used mostly pale colors and several grey tones, like clothing you washed the wrong way. All though the movements were fluent, the overall impression felt a bit off. It is a pity that with such a great story the animation is of lesser quality.
The opening song is from Ali project and therefore it doesn’t really fit my tastes. Personally I like the mellow ending song far better. Of course there are orchestral tunes used to set the atmosphere in the series and they manage to capture this very well. The voice acting on the other hand was decent. The voices fit the characters and I especially liked the voice of the talking staff Kanaka.
There are a lot of characters in Shigofumi, however it only involves around a few of them. A lot of characters are only in 1 or a few episodes so after their story is over they won’t come back, this leaves little room for development, however you often see those characters at crossroads in their life. This makes it very interesting to follow the characters story.
Story wise this is one of the better animes out there therefore it is a pity that the makers didn’t pay so much attention to the other aspects of the anime, like animation. If they would have put a little more effort in, this would have been the best anime of its season, however now I can’t rate it higher then a seven, which is still a good watch but not as good as it could have been.
H20 - Footprints in the sand review
Story: 6
Now this is a series that started out really promising. The first episode did contain a lot of fanservice however things were still interesting. The 2nd episode did contain a lot less fanservice and it still seemed promising so I decided to watch the anime further from then on. Well lets just say that this series kept amaze me. On moment the story was so touching and deep that I would think it could become one of the best anime of the season and the next moment everything was thrown overboard because a completely random episode was thrown in and I thought it would become a major flop. One thing is certain: with this anime you never knew what to expect. It could be that you were totally amazed and touched when an episode ended or you were left frustrated and confused.
The animation overall is cute. There are bright colors used most of the time and the nature backgrounds are really pretty. However there are some odd things in the animation as well. Some movements being a bit off, like Hayami’s hair moving in the wind still felt kind of static and unnatural. This is a pity because if they would have paid more attention to such details, the score would easily have been an eight because I did like the overall feel this anime has.
I actually quite like the opening theme of the series. It is catchy, yet not too happy or hyperactive. A lot of scenes are accompanied with suiting orchestral background music, which set the right mood. The voice acting is ok as well, all though some girls do have high pitched voices, the voice actors manage to lay a lot of emotion in the characters. Kudo’s for Harumi Sakurai who voiced Hayami. The ending theme is quite good as well, so nothing to complain about audio wise.
The character development faces the same issues as the story basically. In the beginning of the series the characters develop really well and the series mostly focuses on one character in an episode. This concept worked for the first half of the series, and then randomness kicks in. When you expect a character would develop a certain way, things turn around and things go in a total different direction. It is good to make some unexpected twists however these twists didn’t make sense at points and it looked like the makers just threw them in at random, making development forced, unbelievable and unreal. Especially in Hirose’s case his development felt rushed in the last episode, like they wanted him to end somewhere but didn’t have enough time to make it look natural.
This series starts out in a good way and the first half is really enjoyable to watch, however the series feels unnatural after that because of the many random twists and forced development stated earlier. The series could have been a brilliant one but turned out to be a flop due to the bad decisions of the creators.
Zero no Tsukaima
Story: 7,5
In a fictional fantasy world the power of magic is held in high respect, and those who can use it are considered the nobility of that world, where those without the ability to use magic are treated as inferior in every aspect: not quite slavery just yet, but definitely a difference in class. Louise is one of these nobles, however also one of the worst, and pretty much every attempt at using advanced magic ends in failure or destruction.
The first episode introduces this new world, at an important day at the academy of magic: the day when each student summons his or her familiar, a magical creature destined to accompany them. All sorts of strange and wonderful creatures are summoned, but Louise’s familiar is something else altogether: a young boy from our present-day
Even though he’s from another world, most others simply see him as a commoner, someone who can’t use magic, ridiculing him, and frustrating Louise even further –another failure-, frustration which she violently takes out on Saito.
At first there doesn’t seem to be much going on Zero No Tsukaima, a chain of loose episodes, but gradually a storyline starts to develop, though it rushes with some plot twists around halfway, introducing a lot of new elements. But everything ties together in the end, even though some aspects of the story still feel a bit rushed to me…
Graphics: 7
Graphically, Zero no Tsukaima is nothing to write home about, though the animation is far from bad either. There are some stills, but nothing which disrupts the flow of the series, and the action sequences are good. Nothing to write home about, but nothing bad either.
Audio: 7,5
The same as with graphics, season 1 of Zero was good, it set the mood well, but apart from a few strong tracks, it wasn’t really something to write home about. Average. The voice acting was well though, enthusiastic and professional, no complaints there.
Characters: 7
The series introduces a set of fairly cliché characters early on: the silent brainiac with glasses, the rose-wielding arrogant but cowardly playboy, the busty attention-craving female, etcetera. Fortunately there’s room for some more original characters as well, such as a talking sword, or the headmaster, who looks like he could’ve been swept straight from a Harry Potter movie, except for his pervy nature to use his pet mouse to find out the color of girls’ underwear.
The relationship between Louise and Saito is pretty much defined from the start: she is the noble, and he is a commoner and a familiar, a lowly servant without any real rights. But Zero no Tsukaima has a romantic element as well, so of course more is bound to happen… were it not for complicated love triangles and at least a handful of others having an interest in poor Saito, while Louise in turn keeps denying her feelings.
However just as important as a good hero is a good villain, and since the story feels a bit rushed sometimes (perhaps 12 episodes is too little?) most of the villains aren’t really developed as well; in fact, most of them are only introduced in the last few episodes, which in turn gives them very little depth.
Overall: 7
Zero No Tsukaima is a fun little series and has all the potential of becoming a popular series: a fairly original setting, good characters, a promising plot –which I can’t tell much about since some vital elements are only introduced in the final episodes- and a nice mixture of action and comedy. Season II is out, and if it improves a bit in the story department, it could be a hit indeed.
Gakuen Alice Review
Story: 7
Gakuen Alice is presented as a comedy and while this anime certainly has comical elements, it didn’t make me laugh out loud much. This doesn’t mean this is a bad anime; it just wasn’t what I expected. I was pleasantly surprised when I noticed the deeper elements that this story had to offer. On the surface it seems like any ordinary school life anime, but as the story progresses you get drawn deeper and deeper in the underlying secrets of this school. Hidden motives are a keyword in this series and it was interesting enough for me to finish this one in 2 days.
The animation is pretty basic, yet they spend time to add details to the total picture. This is especially clear in the character designs. They made certain that the animation fitted with the unique characters of certain personalities. Also it is one of those series where characters actually wear different every day clothes instead of the same thing over and over, of course the school uniform is the exception here.
The comedy aspects are brought out more by using exaggerated facial expressions. To my opinion this really adds something extra to the series.
Voice acting is good overall. Most of the times the voices fit the characters however there is one boy though who sounds like a girl and I think it took me about 4 episodes before I noticed he was a boy because of his uniform.
The opening theme is a wacky song that fits the anime well. The ending theme is a mellow song, almost like a lullaby. Both songs aren’t bad, but I wouldn’t play them on their own. It is too bad that the former are the only two vocal tracks for a 26 episode series. The scenes in the series are accompanied by little weird sounds to accent the comedy aspect. As for background music, they use the same tunes over and over but this is only noticeable if you pay attention to it.
When Mikan, the main character first comes to the new school, almost everyone acts cold towards here. But with her personality she wins people over 1 by 1. This is the main event for this series and if you compare the beginning of the series to the end there is a major difference. They did a good job here, following this line of development. Mikan stays the same cheerful girl overall in spite of all the hardships she has to endure, yet she still develops to a stronger person. Even if she still stays a crybaby in the end.
To my opinion a lot of people will be able to enjoy this series. Some will appreciate it for the humor while others might be drawn to the drama aspects of the anime. There is also some action involved and is has a deeper story then expected. The ending could have been stronger and it is true that the series leaves quite a few things untold. All though these flaws are there, I nevertheless enjoyed watching it.
Rozen Maiden Overture Review
Story: 6
Rozen Maiden Overture is a separate story that tells the history of the relationship between the dolls Shinku and Shogintou. The timeline where it begins is somewhere in the second season but I couldn’t quite place it myself. This aspect doesn’t matter so much since the whole thing is basically a 2 episode flashback.
I didn’t really think it adds really much to the whole series. It is a nice story but I wouldn’t have noticed if it wouldn’t have been told. To me it doesn’t add anything really spectacular. It is a sad background story which is mostly an addition for Rozen Maiden fans.
The animation is the same as the other Rozen Maiden series and therefore there is of good quality. The atmosphere is more grim and dark though which fits the melancholy of the story. The thing that was done really well is the transformation of Shogintou from an almost cute doll to the wicked doll we know her. I noticed the small differences they put in her expressions and it really adds something the whole picture.
The opening is once again done by Ali Project and is not really my taste, however this one isn’t as bas as the 2nd seasons. The ending I liked better since it is more soothing, almost comforting which matches the theme quite well. Of course the voice acting has the same quality as the rest of the series so there is really nothing to complain about.
Since this prequel only lasts 2 episodes, the character development is down to a minimum. The episodes concentrate on Shinku and Shogintou and their relationship. Shinku is still her old demanding self and not as compassionate as she came to be in the second series. It tells the Story how she pitied Shogintou and how she and Shogintou were friends first and why Shogintou’s hate for Shinku came to be. It does add some sympathy towards Shogintou since Shinku isn’t displayed as merely the good doll here. The other dolls only play minor parts in this story.
We meet the past medium of Shinku, a little rich girl. She adds her opinions on the whole thing but further adds nothing of importance.
Since the great stories of the other series I went in with great expectations, however I was slightly disappointed. To my opinion this story could have seen told in the 2nd season and there wasn’t any need to make a separate appearance. It does have the same quality of sound and animation, but it just isn’t as good as the rest. For the fans it can be a nice addition but it isn’t a must see.
Karin review
Story: 7
I normally dislike vampire stories. Sure, I don’t have a problem with a series that happen to have a vampire in it, however I wouldn’t normally watch an anime where it all involves around these creatures of the night. Yet, when I read the synopsis of this series, I got curious and decided to watch it.
I normally dislike anime that has blood. However if there is blood it is animated in an almost cute way. For example flower shaped blood. Even though it is unrealistic, I really liked it because in this way I can handle blood.
Further the animation is nothing really special; it is the kind you normally encounter in a romance anime. Backgrounds aren’t really detailed, but characters have more details and most were aimed to look cute. Some characters look slightly odd but there is always a reason behind it. Extra details were laid in the different costumes characters wear. A thing that did draw extra attention was the last episode which was fully drawn in a grey and red palette.
The first thing that stands out is the classical vampire sounds that are used as a comical note in this anime. I find this very well done and it made me laugh on several occasions. The voice acting is done splendid. Karin’s father Henry has this really amusing voice and Winners voice has a bad American accent which fit his character well. All other voices are also fitting so the series scores high marks here. The opening theme is a catchy upbeat song. The ending song is somewhat mellower. Both aren’t outstanding however I have heard far worse.
There are a lot of characters in Karin. At first it starts out with her, most of her family, best friend and Usui Kenta, the male lead of the anime. First the anime focuses of Karins daily life and how she gets along with this unusual situations she gets involved in and Usui Kenta who discovers Karin’s secret. It shows the weird family structure and their way of caring for Karin.
This anime made me warm up towards vampires, and I enjoyed watching it. Even though there are some points of annoyance as well. It isn’t the most outstanding anime out there but if you want to see something lighthearted about vampires then this is a good pick, even if you normally aren’t into the vampire genre much, I would still recommend you try it out.
Tsubasa Chronicle : The movie (Princess of the Birdcage Kingdom)
Story: 7,5
The CLAMP studio has already been around for quite a while and produced a good variety of different mangas and, additionally, anime shows, most of which became little gems of their own. An item which has been seen several times before in CLAMP shows has been the re-use of characters: some characters can make a new appearance in a different series, either as the same character or as a completely different personality who has nothing in common with the original, except for appearance.
The Tsubasa Chronicle series takes that aspect one step further, by re-using every CLAMP character in existence, several times over: the series is based on the concept of the existence of many different world in different realities, each with their own theme. The same people can exist in different worlds, and yet while they may look the same, their characters might be as opposite as day and night.
The plot of the Tsubasa Chronicle in a nutshell: the princess Sakura (originally from Card Captor Sakura) is lured into ancient ruins and loses all her memories as a result, which are scattered across different worlds and dimensions. Determined to win them back, thus saving her life, her childhood friend and potential lover Saiyoran journeys with her to the Dimensional Witch because it’s believed she can help him. She gives him the ability to travel between worlds (in the form of the cute creature Mokona), but in exchange Sakura will never be able to remember their past together. Saiyoran agrees and sets off on this journey, together with two others, Fai and Kurogane, both who have their own reasons to travel across worlds.
After a whole season of traveling, finding feathers, and bonding between main characters, the movie is a logical continuation of that; in reality, the Tsubasa movie is little more than a lengthy, drawn out episode, and that’s also its main flaw: there’s a story to be told, and in this case that story would take more than one episode, yet at the same time the movie is short, and trying to cram as much of that story into as little time as possible. The result is that some things aren’t explained that well, or rushed through, and it may leave the viewer confused sometimes.
Graphics: 8,5
After seeing the first season of Tsubasa Chronicle, this ‘movie’ came as a bit of a surprise. A different studio was responsible for this production, and it was notable in a subtle change of animation and redesign of characters, both in outfit and appearance. Fortunately, none of this seems to disrupt the flow of the movie in any way, apart from taking a moment to get used to.
However the movie is fast paced, leaving no room for filler scenes or long (boring) dialogues, mixing said dialogues with camera changes, rather than using a lot of stills. There’s plenty of action, yet it isn’t all about action, and this movie creates a fine balance of that.
Audio: 8,5
A good soundtrack can either make or break an anime series, and where Tsubasa Chronicle is concerned the soundtrack serves only to strengthen the anime, with soft calm tones during quieter scenes, romantic melody where romance is required, and wild, upbeat orchestral tracks to intensify the action scenes. The only real shame is that, though the Tsubasa movie introduces some new tracks, some of the old ones are also re-used, even after a whole season of it all.
Characters: 8
With every new episode (or in this case, a “movie”) it’s always a surprise what kind of characters will be introduced; of course there are the main characters, who travel between worlds, along with both good guys (the Dimensional Witch) and bad guys (Fei Wong Reed) who watch and influence them from the sideline, but in every world characters from different series and previous worlds are re-used and it’s always a matter of finding out whether or not they are good, bad, have hidden agendas, dark pasts, etc.
This ‘movie’ brings back some old characters in new roles –or similar roles, since Tomoya has been a princess in several worlds already- but also introduces some new faces, which are a welcome sight.
There isn’t much room for character development since most characters are too busy rushing back and forth either carrying out evil schemes or preventing them, but there is a glimpse of the love relationship which is about to blossom (again) between Saiyoran and Sakura, though this movie by itself does not indulge further into it, leaving that story to be told another time.
Overall: 8
As I already mentioned, the title “movie” isn’t totally fitting of this Tsubasa Chronicle installement, and while it does influence the overall quality of this title a bit, it’s still a worthwhile movie to watch. It’s still recommended you watch season 1 of the series first though, since pretty much everything in this movie has references back to it, and you won’t have much of a clue about what’s going on if you don’t. But Tsubasa fans will agree that it’s a good… episode.
Final Fantasy Unlimited
Story: 7
I’ve been a long time fan of the Final Fantasy franchise, a series of roleplaying games in a fantasy setting, and perhaps one of the most famous roleplaying games out there. Of course which such a popular item, it would be only a matter of time before Final Fantasy would move beyond a game franchise, and so it did, with an anime OAV based on Final Fantasy V, and a valiant effort of introducing Final Fantasy to a broader, worldwide audience with a feature (computer animated) film. The anime failed hopelessly, and the movie had only moderate success. Having seen both these attempts, I was somewhat skeptical about Final Fantasy Unlimited, and worried that it would indeed turn out to be another fluke.
When the anime started in our own world (
Unfortunately a quick pace isn’t always kept as the story progresses; fortunately the story lacks fillers, but especially in the beginning there are some “monster of the day” episodes, and later on several episodes are spent on the good guys escaping a complex enemy puzzle which offers them many challenges.
On the other hand, the final episodes feel a bit rushed and could’ve drawn out a bit more, but this is no surprise, given the series was supposed to last for about 52 episodes, but was reduced to 26 due to poor ratings in Japan.
Because of this a continuation of this series is probably out of the picture as well, which is a pity, because while some import issues are concluded at the end of the show, there are quite a few loose ends that need to be wrapped up, and could fill at least another season.
Graphics: 7.5
Character design has always played an important part in the Final Fantasy games, especially the later ones, with characters which can either look completely human, yet with odd spiky hairdo’s, or completely beyond that, odd creatures and mad villains. The anime is no exception, with a generous host of different characters and designs; standing out most in this aspect are perhaps the “Summoned Beasts”, creatures conjured forth by Kaze’s Demon Gun, and the special bullets it’s equipped with: each of these creatures is computer animated, though some of these Summons still lack some detail.
As I stated earlier, Final Fantasy Unlimited was initially planned to last 52 episodes, to be aired on Japanese, even though this was cut back later; still, a lot of episodes means a lot of screentime and thus a lot of animation, and that usually means certain tricks are used to cut back on costs. A well known method is the use of stills, especially when dialogue is used, ie. By focusing on a certain bodypart which doesn’t move when talking (eyes) or by showing an image of a landscape; FFU is guilty of this one, though not by extremes. Another method is by re-using key animations, and FFU does this richly: Summon animations are re-used, and when Kaze powers his Demon Gun, the same method is shown (in one episode even at least four times!). Pity, because it tends to get annoying…
The action sequences are good though, and they make up for a lot where graphics are concerned.
Audio: 8
One of the better aspects of pretty much every Final Fantasy game out there has been the beautiful orchestral soundtrack which carries each game, a soundtrack with some familiar tracks which return with every new game, yet also always renewing itself with a brand new soundtrack. The Final Fantasy Unlimited anime is no different from that, carrying a fairly large soundtrack of different themes, personal themes, battle music, cute innocent themes – enough to set a certain atmosphere for every major scene.
Characters: 7
As I already mentioned earlier the characters in FFU are as diverse as some of the characters in the game series, and no doubt the artists have enjoyed that little bit of freedom. Some characters are fairly stereotypical: the powerful villain warrior, the seductive femme fatale villain, the genius Cid (in most final fantasy games there is a character named Cid, who usually takes on this role). However there is also room for some unexpected roles, for instance the evil Count, main villain of the show, takes the appearance of a seven year old boy.
Unfortunately that’s about all there is for most characters, they tend to stick to their clichés with no major character development. Sure, the grouchy loner becomes a bit more… socially acceptable, the innocent children become a bit more independent, and some of the villains turn out to be more than meets the eye, but don’t expect any major developments like you see in some of the games (then again, in some of the games the characters stick to their pre-determined clichés as well.. )
Overall: 7.5
Final Fantasy was a fun anime to watch. Fans of the games will not be disappointed when it comes to reference material from a good host of Final Fantasy games, however might find the storyline a bit lacking in the end. Still, it has enough action, comedy and stuff going on to keep you entertained for the full 26 episodes.