HITS

Le Chevalier d’Eon
Given how much it’s been covered on this blog, it should come as no surprise that I love Chevalier. Admittedly, it’s not for everyone, it needs more arcs and I’m still trying to make sense of the ending, but despite these issues, Chevalier manages to offer a well presented storyline in an appealing historical setting. Whether you enjoy it for what it is, or simply appreciate the fact that it offers a fascinating glimpse into a world of history and magic, Chevalier is one series that everyone should give a chance.

Memorable moments: d’Eon’s first transformation into Lia, Robespierre’s confrontation with Dashwood, Durand in episode nineteen.

Windy Tales

I have recently discovered the greatness of Windy Tales, and although I’ll write a proper review once I’ve seen the ending, for now this paragraph will have to suffice. One of the overlooked greats of the slice-of-life world, Windy Tales tells the tale of those who can control the wind, and how this potent yet unseen force of nature shapes our lives in all sorts of ways. It’s arguably superior to even Someday’s Dreamers, and the presence of hundreds of flying cats is just the icing on the cake.

Memorable moments: The ball of flying cats.

xxxHOLiC movie
Back in the days when our hopes for the xxxHOLiC anime were high, this movie only seemed to prove that we had much to look forward to. Disregarding the manga in order to present an original story, this hour long tale seemed to capture the style of the series, with its elegant style, dark morality plays and invincible Yuuko. Who knew that it would all go so wrong for the anime?

Memorable moments: The house of collectors.

Seirei no Moribito

It is arguably too early to definitively label this as a hit, but despite a lack of clarity as to the overall storyline (at least for anyone who hasn’t read up on the original novels), Seirei no Moribito is holding its own so far. Thanks to its beautifully crafted backdrops, it is almost impossible not to be drawn into the series, and fortunately it is able to back up its sumptuous visuals with a solid, likeable cast and superior action scenes.

Memorable moments: the action scene in episode three.

NEUTRALS

Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex

Although I expect to get disagreements and flames for this, SAC just isn’t a hit for me. I will admit that there are stretches when I enjoyed it (particularly the more character driven segments in Second Gig), and I’m a big fan of both the music and the idea of having my own tachikoma, but the reason I decided not to class it as a hit is because the series is just too pretentious for its own good. All too often, it will drop into ponderous exposition designed to make it seem clever rather than pointlessly long-winded; call me intellectually challenged if you will, but I prefer something clearer and more concise to endless philosophising over the concepts of self and individuality.

Ghost in the Shell movies
What I’ve said about SAC can in some way go for these movies too, although they also have their own issues to discuss. Although it is at times unclear just what exactly is going on, their relatively brief length and solid presentation make them more watchable than anticipated, and although it should perhaps be only a secondary concern, I’m so utterly impressed by the animation in Innocence that I don’t care that not all of it made sense on first viewing.

Otogi Zoshi
In many ways, Otogi Zoshi is like two series that just happen to have been aired as one, for although its two arcs are connected, it would have been arguably better to focus on one or the other than try to put in both. Despite its often generic “search for the magic elemental crystals magatama” theme of the first arc, the setting and characters gradually grew on me, but I would have preferred more in the Heian period than half a series in modern day Tokyo.

Blood: The Last Vampire
It is true that Blood leaves a lot to be desired in terms of back story and development, but within the constraints afforded by a single movie, it isn’t too bad. Interesting but not particularly outstanding or memorable, Blood will serve your entertainment needs once or twice, but then it can be thrust to the back of the shelf.

MISSES

xxxHOLiC

Despite being one of my most anticipated series of Spring 2006, xxxHOLiC ultimately turned out to be one of the season’s biggest disappointments. Where the manga’s artwork was distinctive and high contrast, the anime was like washed out paper cut-outs with tiny heads and overlong limbs, and even the stories that had seemed so appealing on the page failed to stand out onscreen. The pacing was changed, becoming languid and repetitive to the point of boredom, whilst the lowest point came from a novel adaptation that proved to be just Yuuko and Watanuki talking for twenty-five minutes. The fact that two near-identical snowball fight episodes are among the series’ better offerings must surely give everyone an indication of just how utterly monotonous xxxHOLiC TV was.

Tsubasa Chronicle movie
It may have only been a half hour movie, but aside from brighter character designs and a setting more attractive than the TV series norm, the studio’s attempt to animate Tsubasa was only slightly better than Bee Train’s filler arcs. An entirely generic story that became largely nonsensical when compressed into such a short time span, it’s hard to see that this movie can have appeal to anyone other than raging Tsubasa fanboys (are there any left) and completists.

Blood+
Admittedly I only watched seven episodes, and apparently it improved later on, but whilst it initially made a promising start, Blood+ soon declined, resulting in an utterly boring episode of angst that ensured that I never wanted to expose myself to another instalment of it again.

Final Thoughts
No studio (not even the revered Bones and Madhouse) is perfect, but Production I.G. makes a good showing, with some excellent series, and a good body of solid ones with which to obscure the failures. And after its recent success with Chevalier and SnM, I will be keeping a close eye on its future endeavours.

I hate resizing images. Picture heavy posts are always tough and tedious work, because up until now I’ve been resizing them manually. It was only last night that I finally discovered the power of the batch resizing program, a device which shall make my life infinitely easier. No longer shall I spend hours at my computer painstakingly editing images- now I can go out and live (or more likely, stay in and spend time at the computer doing something else).

Reviewed this week: Asatte no Houkou 4, Bakumatsu Kikansetsu Irohanihoheto 3-4, Busou Renkin 5, Bartender 2, Code Geass 4, Death Note 5, Hecatan 1, Kanon 5, Keroro 63, Chevalier 9, Negima!? 4, Otogi-jushi Akazukin 15-16, Red Garden 4, ROTK 29, SaiMono 20, Shounen Onmyouji 2, YoakeNa 5

…and in manga: Furuba 133-4, GITS 1.5 1, Gokinjo 33, Otome 33, Spiral 17-18, NHK 32, Haruhi Suzumiya novel 4.4

ANIME

Asatte no Houkou 4: It’s up to Shouko and Karada to convince Hiro that they really have swapped ages, but can he be persuaded to believe that his little sister is all grown up? Apart from some touching moments towards the end, this episode wasn’t quite up to the level of the previous three, but it was still enjoyable nonetheless (not to mention far ahead of most other recent releases). I really can’t recommend this series enough, and am almost considering promoting it to the hallowed ‘top ten’.

Bakumatsu Kikansetsu Irohanihoheto 3-4: As Bakumatsu forges ahead, I continue to have less and less of an idea what’s actually going on, but somehow it remains entertaining. From the excellent FictionJunction OP to the atmospheric setting and slick action scenes, the series’ presentation comes together to such an extent that the story itself doesn’t really matter. It may sound like a case of style over substance, but it isn’t so much that the substance is absent, just that I’m finding it a little impenetrable.

The Millennium Eye from Yu-Gi-Oh makes an unexpected return.

Busou Renkin 5: It’s standard shounen all the way as Kazuki and Tokiko face off against the third general of evil, the eagle homunculus. Unfortunately, the fast pace that characterised the first few episodes is now slowing down, and there are a few too many “only the destined hero can do it”-style clichés, but the series still manages to remain watchable.

*DROPPED* Bartender 2: I can’t say that I’ve ever felt fidgety and irritable after watching an anime episode before, but somehow the second episode of Bartender managed to achieve just that. I want to like the series, but I just feel divorced from the events of the episode due to the presentation; the narrator’s voice sets my teeth on edge and the incessant piano playing that passes for background music intrudes too much on my consciousness. This episode saw a woman come to the eponymous bartender in the hopes that he could identify a drink related to a story of her past- unfortunately, it is impossible to care about her tale when the characters seem so lifeless.

Code Geass- Lelouch of the Rebellion 4: With Suzaku having been arrested for the murder of Prince Clovis, Lelouch decides to don his ‘Zero’ mask and rescue his friend- cue lots of running around from people with brightly coloured hair. Whilst not as appealing as the previous episode, Code Geass (aka Mobile Suit Gundam Seed Geass) still manages to hang on by virtue of being fairly entertaining.

Death Note 5: It’s a turning point for Light this week, as he goes beyond merely ‘judging’ criminals and starts using the Death Note against those attempting to catch Kira. Now that events are moving, the quality of the series improves as we are given a respite from the lengthy exposition scenes. The background music is also worthy of note for its simple yet atmospheric style.

That being said, I must digress here in order to air a mini-rant about an annoyingly sexist part of this series (and yes, it was in the manga as well).

Perhaps five screencaps is a bit excessive to make one minor point, but even so- “Woman, you are now my chattel and must cease having any kind of life or identity of your own; instead, get to pumping out and raising strong sons whilst I go off and do MANLY things.”

Itadaki no Hecatetan 1: The follow-up to Shakugan no Shanatan, this instalment takes the series of short extras to new and disturbing places. As the title indicates, Shanatan is joined by the chibi Hecatetan; potentially interesting as this may seem, all it does is lead to a special filled with HARD GAY and penis fondling. Unless you have a strong stomach or an unnaturally strong urge for completion, avoid at all costs.

Normally I would have to take this out of context to make it HARD GAY, but let’s just say that this time any alteration to the original intent is unnecessary.

Kanon 5: Despite being advised not to do it, I just had to start watching the old Kanon series this week, and as someone who hasn’t played the game, I’m finding it more enjoyable than the remake. This week sees Yuuichi enter new levels of evil as he tightens his hold on Makoto and begins pursuing Mai and Sayuri; once again it just feels that the development is spread too thinly around all the girls.

Keroro Gunso 63: Season two continues to slowly improve with this episode, which features Keroro coming into school (in Pekopon suit) to teach Fuyuki’s class, followed by an impromptu visit from Keroro’s father in order to announce an arranged marriage for his son. The first half of the episode isn’t particularly inspiring, but whilst it lacks in originality, Keroro’s attempts to convince his father that he is already engaged to Natsumi are reasonably amusing. Of course, I’m a sucker for Keron-style resonance, so the ‘Natsunatsunatsu” scene immediately won points for the episode.

Le Chevalier d’Eon 9: The Russia arc gets into full swing as the Four Musketeers apply their skills to foiling a plot to assassinate Empress Elizabeth. Despite a drop in animation quality, the content remains as good as ever; the only trouble with Chevalier is that one episode at a time is never enough.

Negima!? 4: I don’t greatly enjoy watching Negima, but as before, I’m sure that next episode will win me over. This time around, Negi must combat an encroaching darkness that may be related to the theft of the power Star Crystal; the shoutacon obsessed girls and naked transformations are disturbing, but I can get through each episode by virtue of the visuals alone.

Otogi-jushi Akazukin 15-16: Since Hansel, Gretel and Randagio have lost so many times, episode 15 sees Cendrillon decide to send out mecha-witch Trude, the next recurring enemy. After turning most of the party into wooden dolls and thus trapping them in another dimension, Trude stands around waiting for the heroes to save the day, but from the looks of things she’ll be back many times despite her limited repertoire. Not a particularly enthralling episode, but one that marks a bit of a turning point for the series by adding some variety to the standard formula.

Episode 16 takes our heroes to Ibara’s home land in order to give the sleeping beauty some much needed backstory; it’s an interesting episode by Akazukin standards, which finally answers the question of why she falls asleep so often.

Red Garden 4: The only reason I’m watching Red Garden is to answer the question “why have high school girls been revived in order to fight slavering men?”. I really couldn’t care less about the development of the annoying and dislikeable leads, and hence episodes like this one fail to capture my attention. It is quite possibly more realistic to have them whining and crying all the time, but sometimes realism must sacrificed for the sake of entertainment; until these girls get their act together, this is going to be a painful ride.

Romance of the Three Kingdoms 29: The end of Guan Yu’s stay with Cao Cao seemed to promise a reduction in HARD GAY hilarity, but fortunately ROTK stays in form this episode as Guan Yu, Zhang Fei and Liu Bei reunite. Unfortunately, poor Sun Quan only gets a “and by the way, Sun Quan exists” mention, which is something of a blow for Wu fans, but otherwise it remains as unintentionally amusing as ever.

Saiunkoku Monogatari 20: Shuurei and Eigetsu are off to Sa Province, but before we get to their adventures it’s time for some back story. Focussing on Seien/Seiran and Ryuuki’s formative years and the Saiunkoku civil war, this episode may not further the story much, but it does a good job of filling in some of the blanks. To put it simply, SaiMono is always highly enjoyable, and this episode is certainly no exception.

Shounen Onmyouji 2: With decent subs, SO immediately upgrades from “what the hell is this?” to light entertainment; it may still be a poor man’s Tactics, but now that the dialogue is no longer cobbled together from Google translations, it becomes an enjoyable series for fans of fantasy and action. This episode sees Masahiro pay a visit to the Minister of the Left after his coming-of-age ceremony, complete with Mokkun’s backchat, introduction to female lead and a monster-of-the-week for our hero to face.

Yoake Mae Yori Ruriiro Na ~Crescent Love~ 5: It’s the obligatory swimsuit and summer vacation episode this week, as Tatsuya and his harem take to the beach. Whilst this is somewhat more entertaining than last week, the series is still some way below the “light fun” level it initially promised.

There’s been a lot of HARD GAY this week, so here’s some HARD YURI to even it out.

MANGA

Fruits Basket 133-4: As Fruits Basket grinds slowly towards an ending, Tohru’s classmates discover that she is now dating Kyo, leading Hanajima and Uotani to demand that they accompany Tohru and Kyo on their first date. With lines like “it could take ten years” and “this is just the beginning”, it is hard to imagine the series ever actually finishing (although apparently chapter 136 will be the end of it all).

*NEW* Ghost in the Shell 1.5 1: I probably won’t be reviewing the rest of this, but having read the first chapter, it seemed a bit pointless not to include this in the Round-Up. This first chapter sees Togusa assigned to a mission involving a potential ‘zombie’ under remote control; the story isn’t bad but the artwork is a little too rough and cluttered.

*OMAKE* Gokinjo Monogatari 33: Having thought that I’d already finished Gokinjo, I was surprised to see the release of this extra chapter, but it actually turned out to be the ending the series needed. Taking place somewhere between the events of Gokinjo and ParaKiss, the series ties up the adventures of one set of protagonists whilst introducing their successors. Even if you’ve only read Paradise Kiss, it’s worth looking at this chapter for some interesting back story.

Random trivia: Arashi of ParaKiss is the son of Gokinjo’s Risa; apparently she got pregnant whilst still in school, presumably just after the series ended.

Mai-Otome 33: In the aftermath of Mai’s attack, the real Mashiro and Sergey plan further evil, whilst Manshiro, Arika and the others retreat for now with help from Mimi (yes, Mimi is back, and she actually has a better design in the manga). Very little actually happens in this chapter; it’s more an excuse to show off various cast members and remind us that while the fanservice has been in abeyance of late, it’s never too far from the page.

Spiral 17-18: I had pretty much given up all hope of ever being able to read more Spiral, so to have not one, but two additional chapters is a welcome boon. Those familiar with the anime will recognise these chapters as corresponding to the mid-series arc in which Narumi competes with Kousuke and Rio for both Hiyono’s freedom and a tape implicating the Blade Children in a murder; as expected from the series, it’s an absorbing ride which ends too soon.

Welcome to the NHK 32: Although I’m sceptical about how long it will last, this chapter actually looks like a turning point for our heroes, as Satou and his sempai work out their feelings for each other, and Misaki contemplates her future. Could this be heading towards a conclusion, or will they just rollercoaster down into a new wave of depression?

NOVEL

The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya vol 4, chapter 4: Given the way I keep writing about these novels, you’d be forgiven for thinking I was a big fan of the series instead of someone who has written two rants about it. This chapter sees Kyon travel back in time once again as part of his attempt to repair the future; despite the headache inducing number of ‘temporal variants’ I’m still enjoying this volume and not particularly looking forward to the series reverting to standalone stories in volume five.

Fair enough, you say, if the existing material is complete and self-contained, but what about stories without a proper ending? Don’t they deserve some kind of conclusion, be it in OVA or TV series form? This is indeed a valid point, and in fact, several series, such as Fushigi Yuugi and Hunter X Hunter, have successfully continued or concluded with the help of a few extra OVAs. The problems arise, however, when the writers either end up with more episodes than they know what to do with, or don’t have the courage to actually put an end to the series. After all, if a second season can generate some more profits, why not leave the door open for a third? Who needs to worry about quality when you can just squeeze as much from a franchise as possible? And in that case, are the fans equally at fault for continuing to support their favourite shows long after they have ‘jumped the shark’?

Regardless of the reasons behind their existence, the fact often remains that as a viewer, second seasons all too often fail to live up to the standards set by the first- and what better way to quantify this effect than to look at some specific examples? Note that for this article, only direct continuations are considered- alternate universe spin-offs, retellings, or follow-ups based on different characters will be covered in Part Two.

Were these continuations a good thing?
Series in red did not fare so well compared to their respective first seasons. Those in black were able to maintain quality or even improve upon it. Linked titles lead to existing rants and appraisals about the series in question.

Ah! My Goddess Sorezore no Tsubasa
There were only so many times we could hear “Keiichi-kun!”, “Belldandy!” without getting bored of the situation, and where 26 episodes would have been fine, 52 were far, far too many. Four episodes in, the series seemed gently entertaining, but by the tenth, each instalment was nothing more than a 25 minute stretch of tedium and pain.

Aria the Natural
Although it probably wouldn’t be the case in practice, Aria is one of the few series that feels like it could go on forever without losing its charm. Since there are plenty of manga chapters to draw from and no main plot to worry about in the first place, The Natural’s 26 episodes are easily able to stand with the thirteen instalments of the original series.

Full Metal Panic! The Second Raid
(Fumoffu qualifies for Part Two)
Neither FMP nor Second Raid are particularly good, but with its shorter episode count and lack of filler, Second Raid manages to pull ahead of the original by some way.

Ghost in the Shell Stand Alone Complex 2^nd Gig
Although I will no doubt incur the wrath of fanboys for only the 500^th time since I started writing about anime online, I really don’t rate Stand Alone Complex as the ‘best thing ever’ that most people make it out to be. Yes, it has excellent music, and it’s fairly entertaining, but as far as I can see, it isn’t so much clever as ‘lengthy exposition scenes masquerading as something clever’. Nonetheless, 2^nd Gig manages to come in ahead of its predecessor for one simple fact- it actually had some episodes devoted to character development. At last, the likes of Saito and Paz could finally be characters with more depth than “guys who stand in the background and support the main three”, whilst even Motoko and Batou became more interesting personalities.

Honey and Clover II
My feelings on Honey and Clover II should already be well-known, but nonetheless I’ll be reiterating them here. I absolutely loved season one; from start to finish, every episode seemed to be right on the mark as far as quality was concerned. Then along came season two, and everything became a lot more inconsistent; some episodes were undoubtedly good, but others had a meandering focus, unable to settle on which tone or storyline they wanted to adopt. Mayama became a one-dimensional stalker, debating on whether or not it would be better to break into Rika’s locked room, Shuu’s love of Hagu became almost creepy, and minor character Kaoru suddenly surged into the spotlight from out of nowhere.

Keroro Gunso season 2
Admittedly, I have only seen a short way into Keroro season two, but so far, it just doesn’t quite capture the spark that made season one so entertaining. The early episodes of the season clearly suffered through a lack of Giroro and Dororo, but even their return hasn’t brought things up to speed- what once was hilarious is now merely partially amusing.

Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha A’s
The first season of Nanoha was so completely and utterly by the book that A’s couldn’t help but improve upon it to some extent. The story may have been only slightly more interesting than the original, but A’s pushed itself forward with new characters and powered up battles to feast the eyes upon. Better still, Nanoha now actually seemed to be contributing to the battles a little more, rather than just standing there and letting Raging Heart do all the work.

Maria-sama ga Miteru ~Spring~
Both seasons of Maria-sama are equally drenched in angst, but ~Spring~ had the advantage of having already introduced the characters and setting. Where the first thirteen episodes had been a bit of a slow burn that took some getting used to, ~Spring~ could just pick up right where they left off, and thus proved a more consistently enjoyable experience.

Meine Liebe Wieder
Meine Liebe will never be renowned for the complexity of its plot, but season one more than compensated for that with some absorbing character studies and intriguing one-off stories. At first glance, Wieder seemed to promise a lot more, such as new characters, shifting relations and even simmering tensions with another country that must inevitably lead to war. Unfortunately, whatever potential Wieder had was lost in the mires of parody as the series itself devolved into character angst, undeveloped additions to the cast, and a main storyline that proved to be a carbon copy of the first season (oh look, Beruze is behind yet another generic duke who wants to overthrow the king! I didn’t see that coming!).

Rozen Maiden Traumend
Like Wieder, Traumend was series that tried to convince us it would be more epic than its first season, and in exactly the same fashion, it failed to deliver. The new characters were dislikeable, the storyline seemed to contradict season one in places, and the promised battle royale not only failed to materialise until the last possible moment, but was given a disappointing ‘let’s leave it open for a third season’ ending.

School Rumble Nigakki
When School Rumble’s second season began with a battle royale style survival game, it immediately became clear that this series would be aiming for ‘wackier’ humour than the last. Nonetheless, if never up to the standard of the first season, for a time, it was a highly enjoyable experience- until slowly, a rot crept in. At first, each three-part episode would have one segment that was a little too nonsensical or pointless to be worthwhile, but over time, such segments became increasingly common. By the latter half of the season, the vast majority of episodes (now with added filler) completely failed to entertain, until finally the whole thing limped home to a sorry ending.

Tsubasa Chronicle season 2
Whilst Tsubasa can hardly be said to be top quality at the best of times, the first season at least had the advantage of drawing from the manga for 25 of its 26 episodes. Unfortunately, everything went horribly wrong in season two, when the anime went too quickly through the Piffle arc and ended up in danger of catching up with the source material. In order to stave off the threat, a series of filler worlds began to appear, each more dull and pointless than the last, filled with generic characters, tedious storylines, and a distinct lack of animation. With a third season still to come, the future does not look bright.

Final Thoughts
Based on this somewhat limited study (unfortunately I can’t include what I haven’t watched), it seems as if second seasons aren’t always bad news after all. Nonetheless, with good series so easily able to be brought low by sub par sequels, and dull shows like Jigoku Shoujo equally likely to be renewed for yet more tedium, it is no wonder that I will always regard news of any follow-up season with apprehension.

A series of strange events in Tokyo all points to one thing- a mysterious apple maniac is on the loose. As the evidence mounts up, Section Nine are forced to consider an unwelcome possibility- could the culprit be Major Kusanagi herself?

The first clue: the mysterious disappearance of a warehouse filled with apples.

Complaints start coming in from civilians after an apple shortage is discovered.

The new apple-green Tachikomas seem to indicate that the suspect is a member of Section Nine.

Motoko will do anything for a bite of sweet, juicy apple.

Desperate to spend some quality time with her apple collection, Motoko tells Batou she is too busy to come into work.

The tastiest looking apple is selected for consumption.

Motoko is embarrassed to be discovered in the middle of an apple binge.

Kuze tells Motoko that he can help her overcome her apple problem.

Counselling begins; Motoko explains how she came to become an apple addict.

Kuze encourages Motoko to give up her apple collection.

Motoko grips an apple, summoning up the strength to part with it.

By freely handing the apple over to Kuze, Motoko takes an important step on the road to recovery.

Kuze is very proud of Motoko’s progress.

Kuze’s recovery program backfires when he takes a bite of apple and becomes addicted himself.

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