So here are four reviews as I had intended to put up one a day, but only to fall short. Honestly a lot has been going on work wise, so I haven’t had a lot of time. Now I would have posted five… but I am going to use Easter as an excuse. (PS: Happy Easter)
With all that said, I have at least been able to catch up and finish most of the anime from the Winter that was on my plate. Some shows Storm is picking/ed up and will do the final reviews (Bakumatsu Gijinden Roman, Hakkenden: Touhou Hakken Ibun, and Senran Kagura). Also as you all know a few really good shows have ended besides the ones below (or ended today like Magi), I’ll get those reviews up soon. The one other thing I noticed is that I have felt very empty with several endings. I honestly felt that the Winter Anime dropped the ball when it came to closing several of their shows (a few which seem to have another planned run). Hopefully this will not be the case for the final run of shows I am watching. Anyway enjoy the new updates!
Title: Maoyou Maou Yuusha
Genre: Fantasy / Romance
Review: 7
Aired: Jan 2013 to April 2013 (Episodes: 12)
Review: (By Dash)
Maoyuu takes place in a world where humans and demons have been battling for ages. Eventually “Yuusha” or “Hero” embarks on a quest with four friends to end the war and kill “The Maou” or “Demon King”. Yuusha (you never get his name) will leave his friends journeying alone and reaches the stronghold of “Maou” (another character you do not get the name of). Entering the chamber Yuusha charges at Maou to kill him only to be stopped in his tracks by young woman, who is Maou. She has been waiting for Yuusha to come to meet her and she proposes a plan in hopes of turning the world around which eventually can lead to the end of the world. She shows him her dreams. Maou then asks Yuusha to be hers and she will his as they embark on changing this dark war-torn world, he agrees. At the end of the episode you find out that Maou has been in love with him prior to their encounter and it is one of her dreams to be with him.
The show moves from this point to intertwine of politics, religion, and war. It shows that the ability to reach peace comes through countless efforts and sacrifice. The show puts a big emphasis on creativity, sharing, and knowledge as the ways to break free of their years of war. The takes time to explain the importance of trade, crops, and currency. The show acts as a great demonstration of what it takes to change from a war torn country to a peaceful prosperous nation.
The relationship between Yuusha and Maou is the key component of the show. Not only is their union a symbol of the desire to be with each other and start a new world, but also a union between the demons and humans. Their relationship is cute and fun to watch develop as there is a level of awkwardness around them. They do add another love interest in the “Knight” which comes off as caring, but also adds some comedy too (between her and Maou). I have a hard time putting this into the “Romance” category as a lot of the show is not focused on their relationship as heavy as a romance generally is.
I really enjoyed this series. They combine the action, drama, romance, and comedy very well. The flow of the show really makes you feel like your traveling with them through the journey to start peace in the land (where demons and humans can live together). It does a great job of pointing out how much intrigue and personal interest also play into the world and how those interest are seen as more important than the people. I did enjoy the primary cast, although I wish “Mage” came into play sooner. I do wish you got a little more back story, although the feel of “hearing a tale at a time of change” forces you into the now, much how the Yuusha and Maou are (from their previous duties). The show can push some good thought process and at times wishing for a bit more action or story, it does leave you with the “need” to have a second season to see the tale through. The short life of the series with the thought of not getting a second season (based on how they end) would be the big detractor to viewing this anime. I did look forward each week to the new episode and felt each episode flew by. I can see people who are planning on watching this for pure action or comedy very disappointed, as the show is very dialogue based. There is a focus on the power of knowledge and that the world is not perfect, but we do have the ability to make it better.
Title: Minami-ke Tadaima
Genre: Comedy / Slice of Life
Review: 7
Aired: Jan 2013 to April 2013 (Episodes: 13)
Review: (By Dash)
“For those of you who do not know Minami-ke follows the life of the three Minami sisters and their daily lives, please do not expect much.”
This is literally stated at the start of the show. Minami-ke is an easy going Slice of Life / Comedy that has no real plot line except following the ongoing life of the three Minami sisters and the people they interact with. The show has a lot of comedy and is built on the personality of the characters. I love easy going shows I can just pick up and start watching at any moment without having to worry about plot or where I left off at times.
Chiaki, Kana, and Haruka are the three Minami sisters. They seem to live alone and as a result Haruka acts as the mom figure. She also gives off an aura of perfection, however they point out she is a naturally lazy person. Kana is the middle sister who is full of energy and considered the “dumb” one, at least according to Chiaki. Chiaki is the youngest sister who idolizes Haruka and is very stoic. The exchange between the three sisters and their friends on daily things (from school, home, or at the park) that pop up is very amusing.
I am a huge fan of this series. It is the fourth installment to air so far. It is my favorite animation wise of the four. The VA hasn’t seemed to change and proven to execute their roles perfectly. The music fits the moods perfectly and the OP/ED are catchy as the other seasons. It is a bit hard to write a full review on this show as it lacks plot and runs more “as stuff comes up” and segment by segment. If you are looking for an easy going and funny show with no strings or plot attached this is perfect. I would play this show as a cross between Lucky Star and Aria the Animation (which seems odd to many). I honestly love this show and even for all that it “lacks” for a lot fans, I would give it closer to an “8” due to sheer re-watch value and enjoyment.
Title: GJ-bu
Genre: Comedy / Slice of Life
Review: 7
Aired: Jan 2013 to April 2013 (Episodes: 12)
Review: (By Dash)
Shinomiya Kyouya is part of the GJ-bu. GJ-be seems to be a club that gets together and do each do whatever they feel like. The opening reminded me a lot of Negima!?!, each girl talking with the song intro then going into the song. The shows opening gives you an intro segment to get to know each girl (Mao, Shion, Megumi, and Kirara). The show focuses on the antics of the GJ-bu and the interaction of Kyouya with all the girls of the club. I’d say 80% of the show takes place in their club room. It is a very easy going and funny show. If you like after school club humor you’ll probably enjoy this. This would also fall under harem type, however there is no real ecchi in the show.
I really enjoyed this show. As many of you know, I (Dash) love slice of life / comedy anime so my “love” may not match up with yours. If you do enjoy slice of life with a hit of humor then you’ll probably enjoy this. The show itself doesn’t boast the most details animation, but stayed true to character design which I thought was cute. The voice acting fit perfectly to each character, which then again isn’t done wrong often in Japanese. The opening song is one of my favorite OP’s for the Winter season and various ED’s were cute. The story itself is simply Kyouya adjusting to club life and his interactions with each of the female club members. He is pretty innocent and has a thing for the “maid” twirl. As the show progresses a few of the younger sisters get involved, which made the show more entertaining. Obviously his younger sister has a brocon. Overall I really enjoyed the pace of the show (and the ending snippet). The show does add in characters as it moves along, however the show felt really short. The Gj-bu itself is based on enjoying life and celebrating the day. The final episode pushes this with how it plays out, although it felt a little empty to the rest of the show (its just not as funny) by comparison. It does close the series well and in fashion fitting the GJ-bu.
Overall this show was very enjoyable for me, but biased of course. Unlike some school shows, this is only a hint of cute attraction (not full fledged love story and falling in love). This keeps the show light and cute and virtually void of any drama. Seeing I’ve pretty busy with work and other ongoings, this show combined with Minami-ke was a “Happy Joy” 20 minutes for me. My favorite character was Kirara for her super cute portrayal as a foreigner (from Canada) and her little sister. I especially loved the final segment in the last episode as they interacted. If your looking for action, plot, super cute guys… this is not your cup of tea. As a fan of this genre, it does get my thumbs up!
Title: Love Live! School Idol Project!
Genre: Idol / School
Review Score: 5
Aired: Jan 2013 to April 2013 (Episodes: 13)
Review (by Dash):
It is the start of a new school term and junior Honoka Kousaka (standard energetic acts without thinking heroine) comes to find out her precious school is getting closed due to lack of attendance. After initially going into shock and believing it is a dream, Honoka decides to create a plan to save her cherished school. After going to town and seeing that one school has become super popular due to the fact idols go there, she decides to start a school idol group to save the school with her two friends!
As the show progresses they recruit more and more members, ideally going for nine in total (very SNSD of you). I honestly enjoyed as they convinced each person(s) to join the group to save the school. It felt as if the story would hold two main struggles, winning over the student council president and eventually reaching the goal of performing at “Love Live!” to promote their school. (To side not this really quick, Love Live! is a competition where the Top 20 School Idol groups perform in a live concert and one to be crowned champion.) The overall development of the show is enjoyable, although much of the back story of the characters is never presented. I did love the music (let’s admit one song is called (START: DASH!) and the dancing animation was not not bad (although AKB0048 did a much better job here). The costumes were cute… I’d say on par with Idolmaster. The one area Love Live! excelled I felt was the animation to the other “Idol” anime tha is out there. This all said the one thing that got me is the title.
(Spoilers)
The thing that really irked me about the show as final two / three episodes. They bring about an additional plot line to add conflict for main three characters which would bring about the end of the show. What really annoyed me was the title of the show is Love Live! School Idol Project in which the manages to execute only half of this. Due to circumstances in episode 11, they drop out (which the reasoning is just stupid… straight stupid) in essence shattering their goal (although they do recruit enough students to save the school) and then dropping another issue (Kotori deciding to go study abroad leaving the group and not talking to Honoka) on Honoka to drive her down. I felt the withdraw from the competition was a horrid script/story decision at which point I lost virtually all interest of the show. They use the Kotori plot line to bring about the “let’s stay together” plot line and they perform in the once empty auditorium of the school to a packed house. I’m sorry not even showing them at the next Love Live!, but hinting they re-enter is just not enough. Additionally three of the members are seniors… do they even stay part of the group? The very anti-climatic ending really hurt this show. I really enjoyed up through episode 11, but the ending gave it a death blow. If I had to rate it I’d say episodes 1-11 could rate as high as a (7) for how much I enjoy these types of shows, but the ending would kill the plot line and I give this a final score of (5). If you really enjoy “Idol” anime, its worth the watch for the overall performance, but the ending will definitely hurt your view on this show.