Ever since Nyanko-sensei came into his life, Natsume Takashi has slowly learned that being able to see spirits doesn’t mean he has to distance himself from other people. But even as he juggles the responsibilities of human friendships and the Book of Friends, new challenges will arise that test his powers and make him consider his place in between everyday life and the world of the supernatural.

In its first season, Natsume Yuujinchou quickly grew on me and established itself as one of the better supernatural series out there- and with a fresh batch of manga stories to draw from, it seemed only sensible to expect the second season to keep on delivering quality material. Fortunately, not only did this season live up to expectations, it went a long way towards strengthening Natsume Yuujinchou’s already worthy reputation.

Continuing in the vein of the first season, Zoku Natsume Yuujinchou brings us more episodic tales of the supernatural, offering its usual mix of the amusing and the thoughtful to bring each story to life. From a delightful tale in which a black version of Nyanko-sensei mysteriously shows up to hideous monster intent on devouring its victim, each episode is always a treat to watch, and certainly the highlight of any viewing schedule.

In the first season of Natsume Yuujinchou, we saw our hero grow beyond his enforced isolation, and Zoku Natsume Yuujinchou continues the process. Once again, we see our hero slowly opening up to the people in his life, maintaining old friendships, establishing new ones, and even slowly breaking down the barriers he erected between himself and his foster parents. Not that Natsume is the only character on display, of course, for as well as bringing back the always solid supporting cast, this second season throws a few new faces into the mix, most notably Taki Tooru, an onmyouji and new ally who can see spirits who pass through her magic circles. Also of interest are some further insights into the character of Natsume’s capricious grandmother Reiko, whilst the delightful Nyanko-sensei remains a consistent scene-stealer.

Visually, Zoku Natsume Yuujinchou brings us more of the same subdued pastel visuals; it will never be the flashiest series out there, but it still looks attractive. Nyanko-sensei seems to be fatter than ever, but other than that the series is on a par with the first season. Similarly, background music continues to serve its purpose without particularly standing out.

Final Thoughts

After a strong first season, Zoku Natsume Yuujinchou brings us a slightly tweaked and improved formula that delivers even more goodness than ever before. Watching it is a thoroughly satisfying and enjoyable experience- more of the same, please.

Tier: Gold

We all inherit things from our grandparents, but in the case of Natsume Takashi, his grandmother Reiko left him with a rather unusual legacy. Not only can he see sprits and supernatural beings, but he also has her ‘Book of Friends’, a collection of contracts binding various spirits to Reiko’s will. Naturally, such a powerful item is of interest to many, but all Natsume cares about is tracking down the spirits in the Book of Friends and releasing them with their contract. It’s no easy task, but with the help of ‘Nyanko-sensei’- a powerful spirit who usually takes the form of a lucky cat- he might just be able to manage it.

Anime has more than its fair share of supernatural series, and, mildly entertaining though many of them are, they usually tend to run towards the more mediocre end of the spectrum. Fortunately, despite a slightly shaky start, Natsume Yuujinchou turned out to be a cut above the rest, proving the old adage that fat cats really do make anime better.

Admittedly, at first the series felt a little contrived; for example, despite laying claim to the Book of Friends if Natsume ever died, Nyanko-sensei chose to protect rather harm the main character- as if to make sure that the series didn’t end prematurely. Similarly, it initially wasn’t clear why Natsume really had to go to so much trouble, but fortunately, as the series progressed and we got to know the characters a bit more, their motivations seemed more logical- and with such matters cleared up, Natsume Yuujinchou proved itself to be thoroughly enjoyable. Despite sticking with a standard episodic format, the series managed to strike the right balance between developing the characters whilst at the same time coming up with strong one-off stories that rarely failed to entertain.

At the heart of the series is Natsume himself, and one of the most satisfying aspects of Natsume Yuujinchou is watching our hero develop and mature. Thanks to his unique ability to see spirits and his desire not to stand out or cause trouble, Natsume starts off as being very detached towards the world; it is only over the course of the series that he slowly starts to realise the value of getting involved with people. Somehow it is eminently satisfying to see him start to form links with others over the course of the series, providing a growth that is often neglected in episodic situations.

That being said, the character who truly steals the show is none other than Nyanko-sensei, the powerful spirit who spends much of his time in the form of a fat cat. Despite continually reminding us that he isn’t really a cat (his true form resembles a giant version of the wolf god Amaterasu from Okami, and he can also transform into a human female), Nyanko-sensei is as greedy, selfish and lazy as any real feline, with his laconic and self-motivated attitude providing much of the humour in the series. Even a filler episode entirely about the minutiae of his life cannot be criticised, because it’s just plain good fun.

Of course, apart from these two, there are a range of minor characters, including Natsume’s foster parents, friends and various minor spirits. None of them particularly stands out in anything more than a supporting role, but with a second season on its way, there’s a chance for other cast members to grow and develop too.

Visually, Natsume Yuujinchou relies on attractive character designs and a subdued pastel palette, making for a pleasant, understated look that nonetheless remains memorable. Background music serves its purpose, but isn’t particularly noteworthy outside the context of the series.

Final Thoughts

After an average start, Natsume Yuujinchou quickly finds its feet and proves itself to be a cut above the average supernatural series. With proper main character development, a solid episodic format and a scene-stealing fat cat, this series has all the ingredients for success- and the upcoming second season is more than welcome.

Tier: Silver+

Reviewed this week: Antique Bakery 8, Detroit Metal City 2-3, Gunslinger Girl- Il Teatrino 8, Hidamari Sketch x365 8, Itazura na Kiss 21, Koihime Musou 8-9, Kyouran Kazoku Nikki 18, Love GetChu! 11, Nabari no Ou 20, Natsume Yuujinchou 9-10, Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu 9, Ryoko’s Case File 9, Sisters of Wellber Zwei 5, World Destruction 9-10, Xam’D 8

…and in manga: Doubt 14, Elfen Lied 105, Emma Bangaihen 11-12, Minami-ke 37-9, Sketchbook 19-22, Slayers Revolution 4, xxxHOLiC 164

ANIME

CURRENT SERIES RANKINGS

1. Chi’s Sweet Home (1)- cuteness overload
2. Hidamari Sketch x365 (2) – 365 times the fun
3. Soul Eater (3) – Krona
4. Xam’d- Lost Memories (5) – Humanform
5. Natsume Yuujinchou (4) – can a fat cat get too fat?
6. Detroit Metal City (6) – I’m gonna f***ing raep you!
7. Wagaya no Oinari-sama (7) – pure white oni
8. Nabari no Ou (8) – tranquil aid to meditation
9. Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu (9) – cliché
10. Slayers Revolution (10) – Dragon Slave
11. Koihime Musou (11) – Sun Shang Xiang
12. Antique Bakery (12) – father
13. Kyouran Kazoku Nikki (13) – Fantastic Voyage
14. Someday’s Dreamers ~Summer Skies~ (14) – magic can’t do everything
15. Ryoko’s Case File (17) – attack of the killer mangrove
16. Itazura na Kiss (18) – dislikeable cast
17. World Destruction (19) – some stuff happened
18. Chocolate Underground (21) – chocolate is forbidden

SLOW RANKINGS

1. Tetsuko no Tabi (1)- is this ever going to be subbed?
2. Love GetChu! (2)- voice acting isn’t easy
3. Gunslinger Girl- Il teatrino (4)- Claes
4. Sisters of Wellber Zwei (3) – love triangle
5. Himawari!! (5) – needs less plot
6. Real Drive (15) – demoted to slow
7. Himitsu (6) – demoted to slow
8. Allison and Lillia (-) – demoted to slow

Antique Bakery 8: It’s time for an unexpected revelation and evidence of STRAIGHT as a young girl gets fed up with her mother and asks to stay with her father for the night- that father being Chikage. As it turns out, Chikage fathered a child because one of Tachibana’s friends wanted to beat the biological clock, creating a soap opera style situation that is only exacerbated by the fact that the daughter in question is a 10 year old with the body of a high school student. It almost makes you long for the days when the series was plain, simple HARD GAY.

Detroit Metal City 2-3: After covering the rest of the material from the special, DMC is finally ready to forge ahead, as Negishi tries to keep Krauser in control whilst his agent decides to visit his home and help him lead the bona fide death metal lifestyle. By all rights, this series should be puerile and offensive, but I have to admit I find the mismatch between Negishi and Krauser to be rather entertaining- I just have to make sure I watch this when no one else is around.

Gunslinger Girl- Il teatrino 8: They say that absence makes the heart grow fonder, and it even applies to anime, making one actually look forward to a rare episode of a mediocre series. This episode is basically an expanded version of a manga chapter about a day in the life of Claes, roping in minor cyborg Beatrice (who appeared very briefly in manga volume four) as she undergoes tests, plants her garden, reads her book and has her erased memories stirred by a visit to the firing range. Unfortunately, this season is never going to be able to live up to the manga, so it’s a bit of a waste of time for anyone who’s already read it.

Hidamari Sketch x365 8: In the long overdue next instalment of Hidamari Sketch, it’s time for Sports Day, which for some reason in Japan always involves throwing balls into baskets, cavalry battles and so forth. Of course, we’ve all seen more than our fair share of anime sports festivals, but when it’s Hidamari Sketch, you can’t complain because it’s just as much fun as ever.

Itazura na Kiss 21: It’s taken 21 episodes, but Naoki’s stopped acting like a complete and utter jerk- so that someone else can take his place. As I predicted, ill pop star Nobuhiro is indeed the same Non-chan who Kotoko and the Iries once befriended in hospital, but the years have transformed him into the kind of selfish and spiteful bastard this series seems to specialise in. It’s a shame that no story arc in this series can be constructed without this kind of hateful character, but at least we’re near the end- just stop Hanners if he tries to test his theories of what would happen to someone who watched the whole series in one go.

Koihime Musou 8-9: Episode eight introduces another new party member in the form of Sun Shang Xiang (aka Sun Ren), the latest in a long line of lolis that tag along with Aisha/Guan Yu. No sooner has she joined, however, than the group become embroiled in an assassination plot and have to save archer Huang Zhong from murdering the feudal lord’s new husband by rescuing her daughter from some generic archers. After this is resolved, it’s time for the obligatory hot springs episode- except that the hot springs have dried up, forcing Aisha, Cao Cao to compete against each other to find a new spring whilst Yuan Shao bumbles about looking for treasure. I am slightly confused, however- does Liu Bei play any part whatsoever in this series?

Kyouran Kazoku Nikki 18: Given the kind of poor fare this series serves up, this episode didn’t actually seem too bad in comparison- at least at first. Ouka has fallen ill with a cold, and so Kyouka takes it upon herself to organise the household to compensate for his absence, only to get bored and go on an Indiana Jones style adventure to rescue an artefact that could cure him. Naturally, this only makes the situation worse, ultimately seeing the family make a Fantastic Voyage into Ouka’s brain in order to destroy an invading nanomachine. I can’t deny there were some amusing moments earlier on such as Kyouka squeezing lemons and Hyouka breaking the bath taps, but the episode packed in so many changes of direction that by around the 15 minute mark I just wanted it all to be over.

Love Getchu! 11: Now that our leads have skipped ahead of basic training, the time has come to apply for a proper voice acting role- but can Momoko and the others make an impression with just the line “I’m sorry- goodbye”? Naturally, Momoko has to go through the usual angst and finding her own path route that most main characters undertake, but loses out in the end anyway because the anime’s original creator wants a different actress (if that was the case, why didn’t he say so before they held auditions?).

Nabari no Ou 20: It’s been a while, but now more Nabari has come our way, as Miharu and Yoite decide to find Oda (yes, I thought she was out of the series, but it seems the plot needed her once more) so that they can communicate with the Shinrabanshou and find out how to use it. Unfortunately, not only does the Shinrabanshou have a personality and agenda of its own, but Kairoshuu have sent the Tategamis out to eliminate Yoite. Yes, things are actually happening now, but it’s still hard to see how the series can fill up six more episodes with content.

Natsume Yuujinchou 9-10: Natsume has been pretty much alone in his ability to see spirits, and even when he meets someone else who can just about see them, he doesn’t like to admit the truth. This time around, however, Natsume finally meets someone who not only realises his secret, but who wants assistance on a particular case. This change in pace injects some variety into the series, but the ending is nonetheless fairly predictable, whilst the high point is discovering that Nyanko-sensei has become so fat that he has to go out on walks, lest his moving around at home gets mistaken for an earthquake!

Unfortunately, episode 10 has much less Nyanko-sensei, but it does provide another interesting variation as Natsume gets possessed- by the spirit of a woman! Asagi wants just one more chance to play her koto, but can Natsume help her fulfil her dream even as his friends wonder why he seems a little more girlish than before? This series could easily go to 26 episodes, so why is it ending soon?

Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu 9: Now that Yuuto is working with Shiina to help out with the school festival, he has less time for Haruka- so naturally, she jumps at the chance to help him pick out reference material for the cosplay café their class will be putting on- even if it means breaking a promise to her father. Aside from the threat of further craziness from the father and a cliff-hanger ending that will almost certainly turn out to be a misunderstanding, this was actually a rather pleasant episode, plus I’m now in a position to appreciate the Onegai Teacher reference in the preview.

Ryoko’s Case File 9: When Ryoko disappears, poor Jun’ichiro is like a dog without a master, even going so far as to wait on Ryoko’s rival. Worse yet, the press has begun attacking Ryoko for her practice of poaching ex-police officers for the family company just when she isn’t around to defend herself. As it turns out, however, this episode is just a rather dull prelude to a longer arc that may actually prove to be more worthwhile than anything involving enlarged lizards, sentient plants and suicide-inducing bugs- although I probably shouldn’t get my hopes up.

Wellber no Monogatari ~Sisters of Wellber~ Zwei 5: Despite his general lack of personality, Galahad has managed to end up at the centre of a love triangle as both Rita and Tina develop feelings for him (you fools, you’re meant to be HARD YURI for each other!), but since he can only reciprocate the feelings of one girl, how will it all end up? Meanwhile, Greedom and Wellber’s kings have a laugh together and Sherri falls ill, necessitating an RPG style trip to find a cure.

Love triangle summarised

Tina: Broke up with Jin because she loves Galahad, tries to confess but quickly changes what she said after blurting it out so he doesn’t realise. Later tells Rita her feelings for Galahad.

Rita: Loves Galahad, but becomes unable to admit it after Tina admits her feelings. Rejects him for Tina’s sake.

Galahad: Loves Rita and ultimately confesses to her after angsting about how Jamil was his one true love last season, only to be rejected. Has no idea about Tina’s feelings for him.

World Destruction 9-10: There are two kinds of World Destruction episode- the mediocre and the forgettable. Episode nine is definitely the latter, featuring a stop at a town where humans and beastmen live in harmony, Morte angsting over past and present, and very little else (or, if there was anything else, I can no longer recall it). Episode ten is slightly more memorable, featuring a town of robots that was clearly inspired by Wall-E, but ultimately it dragged on for so long that I had to split my viewing into two halves, separated by many hours.

Xam’D- Lost Memories 8: With the help of his newfound allies, Akiyuki manages to make it to his meeting with Haru, but whilst she still believes him, Furuichi feels otherwise. Having been cast as the anti-hero, Furuichi has no qualms about turning against the friend who believes betrayed and abandoned them, but even he is just another cog in the machinations of the authorities, who are currently interested in a giant green soulstone.

Really?

MANGA

Doubt 14: After dragging it out for as long as possible, the wolf is finally revealed, but just why did they kill everyone anyway? With his life literally hanging by a thread after he gets tied to the top of the staircase, Yuu’s only chance of survival may be to understand the motives that drive the murderer, but can anyone think straight under these circumstances? Now we’ll have to wait again to see what happens next.

Elfen Lied 105: With the realisation that she is dying, the remains of Lucy/Nyu begin lashing out at everyone around, with only a small portion of her consciousness left to protect Kohta. Can Kohta fulfil his promise to kill Lucy now that she has lost control? If so, he’d better hurry up, as the series is rapidly drawing to a close.

Emma Bangaihen 11-12: In this two-part story, we take to the theatre to follow the careers of three young singers- George, Allen and Louise. I can’t recall how or even if this relates to the original Emma characters beyond them going to the theatre at one point, but as always it’s so worthy that I wish these characters had their own series.

Minami-ke 37-9: Volume two draws to a close with these chapters, which fit in a bit of the ‘Banchou’ storyline before sending the Minami sisters off to beach with Takeru and some friends. The most amusing segment, however, is an omake chapter set in Chiaki’s school in which crossed wires lead to one boy in class getting the wrong idea about how far his female classmates have gone. An old joke, perhaps, but still amusing in the right places.

Sketchbook 19-22: It’s time for more random fun with Sketchbook, complete with the introduction of a character everyone should remember from the anime- English girl Kate. It’s not all (or even mostly) about her, though- there’s still time for oddities such as a plush screwdriver, a calendar that starts on Wednesdays and other quirks that will bring a smile to your face.

Slayers Revolution 4: The manga is quick to catch up with the anime once again as it strips away the fluff and skips straight to Lina and co having been captured by Xellos and sent to Gioconda’s castle. What follows is basically the same as episode nine, although I must say it’s easier to digest in 30 page rather than 25 minute chunks.

xxxHOLiC 164: I felt as if I was reading a cookery book in this chapter as Watanuki explained how he taught his new client how to cook potatoes (wait a minute, even I can cook potatoes), but when Doumeki gives the food the all-important taste test, something seems amiss. Am I really supposed to take Doumeki’s food criticism seriously in connection with spiritual and supernatural issues? Then again, in Ryoko’s Case File, bad cooking caused explosions, so who’s to say what imperfectly prepared food can do?

“…and you brought me the Dragonballs too!“

Reviewed this week: Antique Bakery 6, Chocolate Underground 6, Itazura na Kiss 20, Koihime Musou 6-7, Natsume Yuujinchou 8, Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu 7, Ryoko’s Case File 7, Slayers Revolution 7, Someday’s Dreamers ~Summer Skies~ 6, Soul Eater 20, Telepathy Shoujo Ran 9, Wagaya no Oinari-sama 16-17, World Destruction 7, Xam’d 6-7

…and in manga: None this week!

ANIME

CURRENT SERIES RANKINGS

1. Chi’s Sweet Home (1)- cuteness overload
2. Hidamari Sketch x365 (3) – 365 times the fun
3. Soul Eater (4) – Krona
4. Natsume Yuujinchou (6) – Nyanko-sensei forever!
5. Xam’d- Lost Memories (5) – Humanform
6. Detroit Metal City (12) – I’m gonna f***ing raep you!
7. Wagaya no Oinari-sama (7) – pure white oni
8. Nabari no Ou (8) – tranquil aid to meditation
9. Slayers Revolution (9) – Dragon Slave
10. Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu (10) – ridiculous
11. Koihime Musou (13) – Xu Chu
12. Antique Bakery (14) – domestic violence
13. Kyouran Kazoku Nikki (15) – everything at or below this line is wasting my precious life!
14. Someday’s Dreamers ~Summer Skies~ (16) – magic can’t do everything
15. Real Drive (18) – flashback
16. Himitsu (20) – faceless
17. Allison and Lillia (22) – plane crash is the new train wreck
18. Ryoko’s Case File (17) – attack of the killer mangrove
19. Itazura na Kiss (25) – dislikeable cast
20. World Destruction (19) – some stuff happened
21. Telepathy Shoujo Ran (23) – and I would have gotten away with it too, if it wasn’t for those meddling kids!
22. Chocolate Underground (26) – chocolate is forbidden

Antique Bakery 6: Ono’s Parisian HARD GAY master has arrived, but when the stereotypically named Jean Baptiste isn’t professing his love for Ono, he’s beating him up. The HARD GAY levels hardly needed any increasing, but somehow the series has managed it; however, the most disturbing aspect is Jean’s outbursts of violence, especially the way Ono accepts them- it’s a somewhat uncomfortable portrayal of domestic violence that feels out of place in a series like this.

Chocolate Underground 6: When the Chocolate Police take away fellow classmate Dave, Smudger and “that other guy” realise what a ridiculously oppressive regime they live in- but don’t worry, they’ll take their own sweet time in doing anything about. Given that this new healthy government makes China look like a particularly liberal democracy, it’s somewhat hard to even rate this series on the outside realms of believability.

Itazura na Kiss 20: Stupidity and strangely cold relationships continue to abound in Itazura na Kiss, starting with the nurses’ capping ceremony for Kotoko, with Irie acting his usual cold self until he turns up after the event acting like a normal human being for once (an event so rare that Kotoko is reduced to tears). After another bout of Trap wishing he was a woman and Naoki reading yet another newspaper, we suddenly jump ahead four years to a world where Kotoko is a qualified yet annoyingly incompetent nurse who still refers to her husband by his last name. In an attempt to enliven the proceedings, TV star Nobuhiro shows up at the hospital and greets Kotoko as a friend- but who is he? I’m assuming he’s that little boy who was in the hospital with Yuki, but to be honest I don’t care all that much.

Koihime Musou 6-7: There’s no reason why I couldn’t have watched episode 6 last week- except that I completely forgot I even had it. Anyway, this episodes sees Zhao Yun get lost in fog, whilst our other two heroines meets a loli version of Zhuge Liang, who is so cute and underaged that Rin Rin (aka Zhang Fei) begins to fear her position in the show will be jeopardised. Fortunately, there’s room for both a bookish loli and a strong loli, but a disgruntled Rin Rin runs off and enters an eating competition, only to team up with Ma Chao and Xu Chu for an episode. What follows is largely forgettable, although fortunately the ecchi content has been toned down for the moment, whilst the introduction of new Three Kingdoms girls is a welcome bonus.

This seems to be an early version of the She-Wee seen on Dragons’ Den.

Natsume Yuujinchou 8: Natsume once again gets involved in the lives of the otherworldly when he meets a female spirit who cares for a man who can no longer perceive her. As well as showing Natsume that there may come a time when he will no longer be able to see spirits (typically causing him to reflect that much as it can be trouble, his ability is an important part of who he is), this is a nice little bittersweet love story that is enjoyable without demanding too much from the viewer. Aside from the greatness of Nyanko-sensei, the draw for all these one-off tales is watching our lead grow, mature and reach out to others instead of remaining isolated and alone.

Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu 7: At the end of last episode, it was plain that Haruka’s father had just found out about his daughter’s secret, and indeed, that was carried through here as he sends elite units to try to track her down. Unfortunately, what this meant was that the little ground the series had gained with me was quickly eroded, as anime-style overblown ridiculousness took hold. I always knew that this moment was coming, and sadly, it was as tiresome as I predicted, causing a wave of tiredness to overcome me that ensured I went to bed as soon as the episode was over (okay, it may not have been watching the episode that caused the exhaustion, but it certainly didn’t help with my efforts to stay awake).

Ryoko’s Case File 7: There was a time when I thought giant lizards and explosive cookery were deep in the realms of the absurd, but that was before I watched episode seven of Ryoko’s Case File. In a move as ridiculous as anything the Indiana Jones writers might come up with, this episode features a giant mangrove as its main protagonist, a fearsome plant capable of attacking with its seeds, spreading rapidly and even controlling generic security guards. I’m not sure whether to take this as an affront to my intelligence or laugh at the B-movie nature of each plot. I’m almost looking forward to the stupidity of the next episode.

Slayers Revolution 7: Our heroes are taking a boat ride to their next destination, but unfortunately, someone seems to be after them. What follows is the typical Slayers craziness: 2008 style- mildly entertaining but not really memorable. This season isn’t particularly bad, but was it really necessary in the first place?

Someday’s Dreamers ~Summer Skies~ 6: Before this season, I never thought that anything with the Someday’s Dreamers name could be unworthy, but how wrong I was. In another turn of creepiness, this time around Sora and her friends meet a little girl who wants a baby because they’re fun to play with (get a doll! A pet! Anything!). What follows is little more than Sora and co chasing after this girl until they finally track her down, and once again one can’t help feeling that they should leave well enough alone- stop interfering in other people’s lives! We don’t care, so why should you?

Soul Eater 20: When it’s time for battle in a shounen series, you can be sure of one thing- blows will be traded in between lengthy dialogue exchanges. Thus proceed Maka’s battle against Krona, who is revealed to have the typical troubled past as Medusa’s tortured and abused child. Maka’s only chance of defeating the insane product of bad mothering is to use the power of the black blood that lurks within Soul, but is dipping a toe into the sea of insanity really a good idea? Only main character power and narrative convention can save her now.

One day dancing in anime will be properly animated!

Telepathy Shoujo Ran 9: I probably should drop this show, but for some reason I’ve kept struggling on, reaching an episode where Ran’s plan for a picnic date with Rui is ruined by Midori tagging along. What follows next is a pathetically syrupy story of reuniting two spirits who were once lovers- really, who cares anymore? The only high point was a cameo from Ran’s two cats, easily my favourite characters.

Wagaya no Oinari-sama 16-17: The Byakki storyline continues to rumble on in this duet of episodes, in which the pure white oni sucks the vitality out of her fellows and returns to Tohru, who has been imprinted as a parent figure. Meanwhile, the other characters generally run around in deference to the gravity of the situation, resulting in a mildly entertaining but not particularly outstanding duet of episodes.

World Destruction 7: A group of even less memorable characters has starting going around impersonating the World Destruction Committee- all for the sake of a free meal. This, in its entirety, is the plot of the entire episode, with the addition of an ‘important’ point about Morte’s skirt being about to rip. If I didn’t know the depths Disgaea had plumbed, I would ask if anime has ever reached these depths before.

Xam’d- Lost Memories 6-7: After all the dross that collected on my viewing list, it was nice to have something decent for a change, in the form of two episodes of Xam’d (or whatever we’re calling it at the moment). On Sentan Island, Furuichi and Haru begin their training, only to find themselves confronted by a test-type Xam’d gone out of control- hardly a good start to their new careers. Meanwhile, Akiyuki takes a trip with Nakiami before deciding to keep a meeting with Haru- but out in the real world, more Humanforms await. From a strong start, Xam’d has continued to build on its success- I could watch 51 episodes of this and still remain satisfied (although I hear it’s only going to be a modest 26).

“I’ve heard this joke before.”

Reviewed this week: Antique Bakery 5, Chi’s Sweet Home 69-76, Chocolate Underground 5, Detroit Metal City 1, Hidamari Sketch x365 7, Itazura na Kiss 19, Kyouran Kazoku Nikki 14-15, Natsume Yuujinchou 7, Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu 6, Ryoko’s Case File 6, Telepathy Shoujo Ran 8

…and in manga: Elfen Lied 102-4, Tsubasa 197, xxxHOLiC 163

ANIME

CURRENT SERIES RANKINGS

1. Chi’s Sweet Home (1)- cuteness overload
2. Hidamari Sketch x365 (3) – 365 times the fun
3. Soul Eater (4) – vectors
4. Natsume Yuujinchou (6) – Nyanko-sensei forever!
5. Xam’d- Lost Memories (5) – what’s going on?
6. Detroit Metal City (12) – I’m gonna f***ing raep you!
7. Wagaya no Oinari-sama (7) – pure white oni
8. Nabari no Ou (8) – tranquil aid to meditation
9. Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu (10) – Comiket
10. Slayers Revolution (9) – Dragon Slave
11. Koihime Musou (13) – Guan Yu has more breasts and less beard
12. Antique Bakery (14) – Gaydar overload
13. Kyouran Kazoku Nikki (15) – everything at or below this time is wasting my precious life!
14. Someday’s Dreamers ~Summer Skies~ (16) – magic can’t do everything
15. Real Drive (18) – flashback
16. Himitsu (20) – faceless
17. Allison and Lillia (22) – plane crash is the new train wreck
18. Ryoko’s Case File (17) – giant lizards
19. World Destruction (19) – tree
20. Telepathy Shoujo Ran (23) – and I would have gotten away with it too, if it wasn’t for those meddling kids!
21. Itazura na Kiss (25) – dislikeable cast
22. Chocolate Underground (26) – chocolate is forbidden

Antique Bakery 5: Antique has landed the chance to open a stall at a department store fair, but for Ono the prospect of cooking in front of members of the opposite sex is more than a little terrifying- can he and Chikage manage it? And will Eiji be able to produce the legendary cassis back at the main store? Of course they will, but can viewers take the intense combination of sweet cakes and HARD GAY?

Chi’s Sweet Home 69-76: The fat cat gods of anime are smiling down on me again, for they have provided eight more episodes of Chi, and the series just keeps getting better and better with each marathon. This time around, Chi finds out where the cat biscuits are stored and helps herself, gets a much needed grooming and plays with her own shed fur- cat owners, need I say more? Why must this series ever end?

Chocolate Underground 5: If Chi’s Sweet Home is the poster series for how much can be achieved in the space of 2-3 minutes, then Chocolate Underground must fill the opposite, because after five episodes, we’ve still barely got anywhere. Having discovered the magical chocolate buffet, our heroes are in for a rude awakening when the Chocolate Police show up- although fortunately, there are some convenient escape wagons waiting. Cue a mine cart chase scene that could have come straight out of any number of video games, and before you know it, the two leads have stumbled upon the raw ingredients needed to start their own chocolate underground by episode 13! Now excuse me whilst I go and play some Chocolatier.

Detroit Metal City 1: Okay, so the last ‘episode one’ was actually a preview special, but this time around we have the genuine episode one- and to be honest, apart from a few scene changes, it covers much the same material.

Hidamari Sketch x365 7: After spending so much time at the end of the school year, it’s time to flip back to Yuno and Miyako’s entrance ceremony, and as always, it’s good straightforward fun. From a glimpse of the infamous drying agents to Yuno and Miyako getting ready in the morning, this series just knows how to hit the mark. This may be my new favourite SHAFT series.

Itazura na Kiss 19: Another week, another week of marital bliss for our leads- or so you might say if you were deaf, blind and apathetic to the world. After spending the first half of the episode contriving an engagement between Kinnosuke and Chris, we get back to the happy couple- but Kotoko has just noticed that Naoki doesn’t treat her all that well. Frustrated and angry, she lashes out at him, causing him to admit that he is in fact a robot who was never programmed with human emotions. In the meantime, Keita is waiting to take Kotoko away from her husband, the way responsible friends should. Of course, our leads make up by the end, but next week it looks like a blonde guy will be showing up to hit on Kotoko- what fun.

“…because I am a robot!”

Kyouran Kazoku Nikki 14-15: The tiresome Doctor Gebok is back in episode fourteen, and the only way to reverse the disease that has turned all generics in the city into animals is to defeat him. Cue another bout of pointless craziness that manages to remain entirely dull- if you want to see epic battles against bizarre monsters, then watch the far superior Futakoi Alternative.

Episode 15 continues the trend with an episode in which Kyouka becomes a magical girl so that she can punish Ouka for those two cardinal sins- criticising his wife’s cooking and then forgetting their anniversary. This time around I was reminded of Excel Saga, which, although it hasn’t particularly stood the test of time, was still more enjoyable than this.

Natsume Yuujinchou 7: When Natsume goes on a school trip, he attracts the attention of a little fox when he saves it from some bullying demons- but is it dangerous to form an attachment when Natsume is going home in just a few days? This was a nice, largely sedate episode which seemed to indicate how Natsume is gradually settling into his life and becoming less depersonalised from everything.

Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu 6: Comiket is here, and in the trend of the Genshiken team before them, Haruka and Yuuto are all set to attend. Unfortunately, the aforementioned Genshiken already did this a lot better, but Haruka has a decent enough stab at it, resulting in a reasonably entertaining episode that seems to characterise the series as a whole- “decent, but nothing particularly inspiring or original”.

Ryoko’s Case File 6: I know we all have series we watch even though we find it impossible to properly absorb what’s going on, and now that Amatsuki is over, Ryoko’s Case File is occupying that role for me. This time around, some other generic bad guys are indulging in generically scandalous activity, whilst the ‘natural treasure’ of a giant salamander wanders around. To be honest, the emergence of the salamander into daylight was much like reliving the X-ATM-092 boss battle from Final Fantasy VIII (complete with music that could have been penned by Nobuo Uematsu); I appreciate not everyone will know what I’m talking about, but the feeling was so strong that I just had to mention it.

Telepathy Shoujo Ran 8: As Telepathy Shoujo Ran gets ever more dull, the only way I can even make it through an episode is by playing rock music in the background- a nice contrast to the tepid contents the episode has to offer us. This week, two generic one shot characters are having trouble expressing their feelings to one another- which is a shame as one is about to move away. Cue some clumsy interference from Ran, Rui and Midori in an attempt to set everything right, and whilst I suppose I should be happy that they wanted to improve someone’s life, one can’t help feeling they should stop horning in on other people’s affairs.

MANGA

Elfen Lied 102-4: As the end approaches, Lucy goes final boss and starts destroying everything in sight, but when she sees that Kouta is injured, she uses her powers to repair his body- at the expense of her own. Now, Lucy is just a melted pile of flesh and the army is demanding that Kouta and the others hand her over- how can all this be resolved in just three chapters?

Tsubasa Chronicle 197: Syaoran has been sent back to Yuuko’s shop, but he isn’t content to wait in his own world- Sakura needs him, and to that end he plans to pay Yuuko to return to Clow Country. As for what the price will be, even that small detail has been reserved until next chapter.

xxxHOLiC 163: After learning from Haruka that Doumeki only eats food that he is satisfied with (and therefore has great trust in his cooking), Watanuki heads off to teach Yuuko’s new client how to cook- but why does she seem familiar? I suppose she might somehow be a relative of Watanuki’s (perhaps even his mother in some strange twist) but we’ll have to wait until September to find out the truth.

Sadly no- that’s why I dropped the series.

Reviewed this week: Hidamari Sketch x365 5-6, Itazura na Kiss 18, Koihime Musou 5, Kyouran Kazoku Nikki 13, Nabari no Ou 19, Natsume Yuujinchou 6, Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu 5, Ryoko’s Case File 5, Slayers Revolution 6, Someday’s Dreamers ~Summer Skies~ 5, Soul Eater 19, World Destruction 5-6, Xam’D 4-5

…and in manga: Doubt 1-13, FMA 86, Minami-ke 36, Mozart Doesn’t Sing Lullabies 11, Nodame Cantabile 122, Shinigami no Ballad 4-6, Sketchbook 17-18, Tsubasa 195-6, xxxHOLiC 162

CURRENT SERIES RANKINGS

1. Chi’s Sweet Home (1)- cuteness overload
2. Hidamari Sketch x365 (3) – 365 times the fun
3. Soul Eater (4) – vectors
4. Xam’d- Lost Memories (5) – what’s going on?
5. Natsume Yuujinchou (6) – Nyanko-sensei forever!
6. Wagaya no Oinari-sama (7) – pure white oni
7. Nabari no Ou (8) – change of side
8. Detroit Metal City (12) – I’m gonna f***ing raep you!
9. Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu (10) – Shiina
10. Slayers Revolution (9) – Dragon Slave
11. Koihime Musou (13) – Guan Yu has more breasts and less beard
12. Antique Bakery (14) – Young Master!
13. Kyouran Kazoku Nikki (15) – everything at or below this time is wasting my precious life!
14. Someday’s Dreamers ~Summer Skies~ (16) – magic can’t do everything
15. Ryoko’s Case File (17) – superintendant
16. Real Drive (18) – flashback
17. World Destruction (19) – tree
18. Himitsu (20) – faceless
19. Allison and Lillia (22) – plane crash is the new train wreck
20. Telepathy Shoujo Ran (23) – and I would have gotten away with it too, if it wasn’t for those meddling kids!
21. Itazura na Kiss (25) – dislikeable cast
22. Chocolate Underground (26) – chocolate is forbidden

ANIME

Hidamari Sketch x365 5-6: It’s time for double fun with Hidamari Sketch, starting with an episode in which Chika visits during spring break- a situation in which very little of consequence happens, but it all proves to be entertaining (although for some reason I just can’t like Chika as much as the other girls). Next up, we have a two-part episode which starts with Sae using up her summer vacation to think up new storylines, with the old running joke about her not wanting to admit her lack of experience in love, before rounding off with a November segment about making choux pastry. It’s all good fun, and adding in a cooking element is just the icing on the cake (no pun intended), making for a series that is always entertaining to watch.

Itazura na Kiss 18: At the risk of sounding ever so slightly repetitive, I must note how much I hate all the characters in Itazura na Kiss. Whilst Kotoko continues being such a useless trainee nurse that I fear for the health of anyone who becomes her patient, Naoki continues to be a cold-hearted bastard who cares more for the newspaper than his wife. Understandably, Kotoko’s friends wonder how she can put up with such a husband, but after coming across as quite a sympathetic character, Keita manages to blow it by suggesting that Kotoko break up with Naoki as casually as if they were just dating. No, they shouldn’t be together, but having married you’d better be damn sure you know the situation before suggesting they break up. Maybe I’m getting too old to enjoy this sort of thing.

What a loving relationship.

Koihime Musou 5: When our heroines stumble upon a village where a mysterious monster blocks up their homes with rocks if they don’t offer it food, Zhao Yun volunteers them for the task of sorting it out. Naturally, the other two girls are scared at the prospect of a monster- although of course the explanation is far more prosaic, as it turns out to be the solitary Lu Bu (Ryofu) living alone and feeding dogs- at least until she makes some brand new friends and comes to work in the court of the surprisingly young and cute Dong Zhuo- a far cry from his fat, bearded Dynasty Warriors self.

Kyouran Kazoku Nikki 13: After the fillerific episode twelve, the only way for Kyouran Kazoku Nikki was up, and indeed, after episode thirteen, it’s managed to claw its way back up to the usual level of senselessness that the series specialises in. This time around, we see Chika struggling with being an outsider, whilst also dealing with disappearances at her school that lead into the introduction of a tiresome main villain for the series. Sadly, any chance of a thoughtful moment of character insight is completely spoiled by the stupidity that surrounds it- but that’s what we’ve come to expect from this series.

Nabari no Ou 19: The tranquil pace continues in this episode, as Yoite returns from walkabout to eat strawberry cake (of Doom) and Yukimi has a flashback to the days when Yoite didn’t even have his own name. There are actually hints that something might be happening soon by the end of the episode, but everything’s become so convoluted that I don’t hold out hope that anything can be settled in a timely fashion.

Natsume Yuujinchou 6: When a dammed up river dries out for the summer, the spirits that live there are free to get out- including some who’d like their names back from the Book of Friends. Also emerging from the river is a swallow spirit who wants nothing more than to see a particular person again- but can Natsume be persuaded to aid her in her quest, and if he does, what will Nyanko-sensei think of it? Although I’m still unsure as to why Nyanko-sensei has even chosen to stay with Natsume, this was a nice little character development piece for our lead as he realises that he can and does care about other people.

Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu 5: Haruka remains in safe anime territory this week as ‘panty shot girl’ Shiina transfers into Yuuto and Haruka’s class and becomes an instant hit. What follows is the obligatory swimming pool episode, but even if this series isn’t budging from the tried-and-true storylines of anime, it still just manages to be more entertaining than the lower level series on the list. Maybe it’s just the bright colours, but it certainly has something they lack.

Ryoko’s Case File 5: Although I had heard second-hand that Ryoko’s Case File would improve in this episode, I have to say that it’s an improvement so small as to be imperceptible to me. This time around, Jun’ichirou is looking after a young relative of his when a case suddenly comes up, forcing him and Ryoko to enter a building owned by a business, get kidnapped for about two minutes, and do some other things so fascinating that I don’t even recall what they were. Meanwhile, instead of realising the wisdom of staying put, said young relative decides to walk right into danger, making the whole situation that much trickier. Oh, but she does secretly have a crush on Jun’ichirou, so I suppose that makes it all right.

Slayers Revolution 6: It’s time for the obligatory HARD GAY episode as our intrepid heroes enter ‘Gongoro’, a legendary village which devotes its time to making giant balls to roll up a mountain (no, really). What follows is the typical competition episode as Lina’s team, Pocota’s team and some minor enemies all support different factions in the ball-rolling contest- it’s reasonably entertaining, but this story was already done better between Lina and Naga in one of the OVAs.

Someday’s Dreamers ~Summer Skies~ 5: After the creepiness of the breast milk, any magic the series showed us could only be an improvement, although sadly all it does is take the series into the realms of the unbearably twee. First up, Sora uses her power to restore a treasured comb that a woman’s deceased husband clutched as he went to his death, before she awakens a mother who has been in a coma- albeit at the expense of her memories. I’m rather happy that magic couldn’t solve anything in the latter case, as if it had I might have just been overcome by the unhealthy wholesomeness of it all. In other news, we learn that Sora’s mentor likes playing the guitar, and that minor characters like screentime- which is no big surprise.

Soul Eater 19: The named characters are ready to fight their opponents, who have happily been laid in such a way that everyone gets their own personal fight. First up, the junior members must get past Medusa whilst Stein and Papa distract her- but will even the professor be a match for her vector-based attacks (with vectors and symmetry, this is turning into a surprisingly mathematical series)? Well, we know that the heroes must prevail, but watching them fight is the main attraction here- and it’s one that seems certain to keep us thoroughly entertained (see, I can give praise where it’s due).

World Destruction 5-6: If there’s one thing you can say about World Destruction, it’s that at least it’s consistent- consistently poor, that is. In episode five, we enter a town where an old friend of Toppi’s (his name is Yappi, he’s a small black bear with an eyepatch and he says ‘bear’ at the end of every sentence- but no resemblance to anyone we know, eh?) has fallen to the dark practice of selling humans to the gladiatorial arena- but don’t worry, boys and girls, because Toppi will help him see the light. Next up, our heroes enter Summerland, only for Kyrie (I remember his name now) to faint in the heat and end up under the care of an elephant beastman who is secretly trying to atone for the evils of his past. Oh well, at least the series is helping to improve my multitasking abilities, since I can now download images, watch anime and have another streaming video running all at the same time without missing out on too much.

Xam’D- Lost Memories 4-5: I have to admit that as Xam’D progresses, I’m starting to lose the thread of what’s going on- although in spite of that it remains a quality series nonetheless. Whilst Akiyuki settles into the training needed to become a postal worker who doesn’t transform into a monster, various other characters follow separate threads, with the series seemingly setting up a Dominic-style character in episode five. I get the feeling this series would be better watched as a marathon, but that’s not exactly possible right now.

MANGA

*CATCH-UP* Doubt 1-13: Inspired by both Necromancer and THAT, I’ve jumped on the bandwagon of Doubt (not to be confused with an older manga series, also called Doubt). As I’m sure you’ve heard already, Rabbit Doubt is a popular online game where the players take on the role of rabbits out to find the wolf in their midst before they all get killed; unfortunately, things go a step too far when a real life meeting of Rabbit Doubt players ends with them being locked in a Cube-esque labyrinth with barcodes that open one door each and a wolf out to kill them. Over the course of the first thirteen chapters, a tale of horror, suspense and mystery unfolds- but typically enough we’ll have to wait for the release of chapter 14 to find out the culprit. And, equally pressingly- does the series end after this case, or will there be more to it? Whatever the case, it’s been a solid experience.

Fullmetal Alchemist 86: With Al possessed by Pride, Ed and Greed might be up against more they can handle- especially when the regrown Gluttony shows up and tries to open his fake Gates of Truth. Meanwhile, there are wheels within wheels in the military, but does anyone have the power to topple Father and Bradley? Whatever the case, I cannot express enough how I want the rest of the manga here, not drip fed in monthly chapters.

Minami-ke 36: It’s another brief yet amusing segment as Kana holds an impromptu session on staying away from suspicious people- but should ‘Uncle’ Takeru be counted amongst their number? Just what is his relation to the girls anyway? And even when this question is answered, will Kana still consider him a suspicious person? These are of course rhetorical questions, but it’s amazing how the series can pack all this into a mere nine pages.

Mozart Doesn’t Sing Lullabies 11: Now that Beethoven and Czerny have found the magic flute, they are deeper into the mystery of Mozart’s death than ever before- and there are those who don’t want them to uncover any more. For whilst Salieri might have been the culprit, the conspiracy involves the might of the Freemasons, and if he continues to investigate, Beethoven’s safety can’t be guaranteed. Of course, this warning is only likely to fuel our cranky hero’s curiosity, but is that exact what they are counting on? Other than that, not a great deal happens in this chapter, but there’s the feeling that we’re being set up for bigger and better things to happen in the second half of the series.

Nodame Cantabile 122: At long last the time for Chiaki and Rui’s joint performance has arrived, and although it may not be the most polished of pieces, the audience cannot help but be blown away by the display of emotion therein- Nodame included. There’s not much else to say about this chapter, except that UK readers interested in conducting might be interested in ‘Maestro’, a new TV series where celebrities learn how to conduct.

Shinigami no Ballad 4-6: I don’t know how I failed to notice it, but I somehow got three full chapters behind on Shinigami no Ballad, which for this series is the best part of a volume. In these stories we see a teacher reaching out to a young girl who has become too used to being alone, a middle school student falling for a senpai who can use magic and a cat who wants only to comfort a young girl whose mother has disappeared. All of these are worthy healing tales, and even though Momo largely remains in the background as the thin thread that pulls it all together, it remains a highly enjoyable series.

Sketchbook 17-18: Summer has come to the world of Sketchbook, and despite the lack of cats, our protagonists are outside, enjoying everything from the beach to insects. In terms of amusement, this series is really going from strength to strength- even if you were underwhelmed by the anime, you must try it.

Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle 195-6: The purification ceremony is finally here, but when Sakura and Syaoran enter the shrine, an unpleasant surprise is waiting- Fei Wong has opened a portal, and branded Sakura with a deadly curse, all because Syaoran hesitated in saving her. What does this all mean for the plot? CLAMP only knows.

xxxHOLiC 162: At long last, a new customer has come to the shop with a rather unusual request- she wants to learn how to cook. But whilst Haruka might reflect on how far Watanuki has come, for the rest of us it’s a rather strange turn of events- is xxxHOLiC about to become the new Masterchef? Has the series run out of steam?

]]> http://azureflame.dasaku.net/2008/08/15/weekly-round-up-august-15th/feed/ 2 http://azureflame.dasaku.net/2008/08/08/weekly-round-up-august-8th/ http://azureflame.dasaku.net/2008/08/08/weekly-round-up-august-8th/#comments Fri, 08 Aug 2008 22:59:59 +0000 Karura http://azureflame.dasaku.net/?p=3293

Backlog catch-up is a myth.

Reviewed this week: Amatsuki 12-13, Antique Bakery 3-4, Blade of the Immortal 2, Chi’s Sweet Home 53-68, Detroit Metal City 1, Eve no Jikan 1, Himawari!! 6, Itazura na Kiss 17, Kaiba 11-12, Koihime Musou 4, Kyouran Kazoku Nikki 12, Otome S.ifr 2, Nabari no Ou 17-18, Natsume Yuujinchou 4-5, Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu 4, Persona Trinity Soul 22-6, Real Drive 13, Ryoko’s Case File 4, Someday’s Dreamers ~Summer Skies~ 4, Soul Eater 16-18, Telepathy Shoujo Ran 6-7, Wagaya no Oinari-sama 14-15, Xam’D 3

…and in manga: .hack//Link 3, Caramel Espresso 1-2, Clannad 6-8, Claymore 82, Elfen Lied 89-101, FMA 85, MariMite 25-7, Minami-ke 34-5, Nodame 121, Rose of Versailles 9-10, Sketchbook 13-16, Slayers Aqualord 1, Slayers Revolution 3, Tsubasa 194, Wagaya no Oinari-sama 1, xxxHOLiC 159-161, Yotsuba&! 55

ANIME

CURRENT SERIES RANKINGS

1. Chi’s Sweet Home (1)- Chi plays
2. Kaiba (2) – who am I? <-complete!
3. Hidamari Sketch x365 (3) – 365 times the fun
4. Soul Eater (4) – symmetry
5. Xam’d- Lost Memories (5) – Bones does it again
6. Natsume Yuujinchou (6) – Nyanko-sensei forever!
7. Wagaya no Oinari-sama (7) – hot springs
8. Nabari no Ou (8) – change of side
9. Slayers Revolution (9) – Dragon Slave
10. Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu (14) – maid secrets
11. Persona Trinity Soul (11) – what did it all mean? <- complete!
12. Detroit Metal City (-) – I’m gonna f***ing raep you! <-new!
13. Koihime Musou (10) – Guan Yu has more breasts and less beard
14. Antique Bakery (15) – Young Master!
15. Kyouran Kazoku Nikki (16) – fillerific
16. Someday’s Dreamers ~Summer Skies~ (12) – open the safe
17. Ryoko’s Case File (18) – superintendant
18. Real Drive (13) – flashback
19. World Destruction (19) – tree
20. Himitsu (21) – faceless
21. Amatsuki (20) – inconclusive <-complete!
22. Allison and Lillia (23) – plane crash is the new train wreck
23. Telepathy Shoujo Ran (17) – and I would have gotten away with it too, if it wasn’t for those meddling kids!
24. Blade of the Immortal (22) – boring <-dropped!
25. Itazura na Kiss (24) – dislikeable cast
26. Chocolate Underground (25) – chocolate is forbidden

SLOW RANKINGS

1. Tetsuko no Tabi (1)- is this ever going to be subbed?
2. Love GetChu! (2)- light entertainment
3. Gunslinger Girl- Il teatrino (3)- licensed
4. Himawari!! (4) – needs less plot

*COMPLETE* Amatsuki 12-13: At long last, the series so dull and unable to maintain a consistent plotline that I barely knew or cared what was going on has come to an end, although to call something as inconclusive as this an ending is stretching it a bit. In episode twelve, Toki manages to save Imayou from evil somehow and turn her into a cute fox once again, before episode thirteen sees Ginshu call down the Hand of God, everything turns a bit Matrix-esque and then it all ends with the announcement that Toki may have to become the next overseer of this world. I’ll go into more detail in its own specific review, but suffice to say that after a slightly promising start, Amatsuki was barely worth watching. If you haven’t tried it, don’t bother.

Antique Bakery 3-4: Two more episodes in, and the HARD GAY has gone off the scale as Tachibana’s childhood friend Chikage shows up. Chikage holds a candle for “Young Master” Tachibana, but when he takes off his sunglasses, he captures Ono’s heart leading to new extremes of lust, longing and a general HARD GAY atmosphere. At least it’s somewhat amusing.

*DROPPED* Blade of the Immortal 2: It’s been proven that I can sit through near endless amounts of mediocrity, but there inevitably comes a time when one of the worse series just goes a step too far, and this week, Blade of the Immortal has proven too dull to continue with. In this episode, we see a flashback of a generic wronged family, before we return to the present, where the one survivor has grown up and now wants to travel with our lead on the way to revenge. When you put it like that, it sounds fairly inoffensive, but there’s absolutely no reason to care about what’s going. Bee Train has really outdone themselves this time.

Chi’s Sweet Home 53-68: If the rash of average series that has infected us this season can be thought of as a kind of dull gruel, then Chi’s Sweet Home is the delicious chocolate chips in my viewing schedule, renewing my faith in the medium as a whole and refreshing my stamina for everything else. In this batch of episodes, Chi gets a return visit to the vet, plays in a storm, experiences the family getting ill, becomes addicted to snack treats and generally does all sorts of cute cat-like things. The most hilarious moment occurs when Chi gets into a net, secure in the knowledge that no one can catch her- right up until Youhei seals her in.

*NEW* Detroit Metal City 1: Negishi is a mild-mannered young man who came to Tokyo to make it big as a guitar player; but whilst he may play wholesome songs of peace and harmony by day, by night he becomes Krauzer, lead singer for Detroit Metal City, a death metal band who has built their reputation on explicit lyrics. The trouble is, Krauser has a tendency to emerge as and when he will, and as long as that happens, Negishi won’t get any girls. Thus begins a new OVA series based on the manga of the same name, and whilst this is certainly something you won’t want to watch in polite company (or perhaps any company whatsoever), there is something amusing to be found from the mismatch between the two personalities.

*NEW* Eve no Jikan 1: In a world where androids have become integrated into all walks of life (yes, another one), there is only one place where artificial intelligence and humans can be treated on the same level- a small café located in an obscure back street. Just like the café in Mizu no Kotoba (is it meant to be the same place?), humans and androids are treated equally here, as our protagonist discovers when he stumbles on it after checking his android’s movement logs. Although the overall premise may not be particularly original, this is a well animated and reasonably thought provoking piece that immediately stands out from most of the dross we’ve been subjected to lately.

Himawari!! 6: Hayato and the girls have been left alone, but whilst they try to figure out what’s going on, who should show up but Tsubaki- and this time she wants to duel Himawari to see who is worthy of Hayato-dono’s heart. As with the rest of the season, this is a pretty average episode, although at least the infamous birthmark is having some significance this time around.

Itazura na Kiss 17: Another week, another episode of Itazura na Kiss that gives us no reason to do anything but despise all of the characters. Kotoko has finally made it into nursing school (skipping straight to the second year for some reason) but in predictable fashion she is an incompetent klutz that I wouldn’t wish on any patient, whilst her new classmates are all obsessed with Naoki- first trailing him to find out the identity of his wife (since Kotoko gets into a situation where she can’t easily admit it) and the deciding that it will be easy to get Naoki to divorce her and go after them. Well, aside from the fact that he’s a complete and utter bastard, vowing to break up someone’s marriage is a bit much even when viewed in a ‘comedic’ light, whilst the one character who isn’t interested in Naoki seems likely to end up falling for Kotoko. Oh dear, what a tangle.

*COMPLETE* Kaiba 11-12: Episode eleven sees Popo ascend to the world above, but his victory is a pyrrhic one- Cheki, the one who he wanted to see his victory, no longer has any memories of their shared past, whilst a careless mistake sees his mother’s memory chip consigned to oblivion. Not that Popo’s achievements are to be long-lived, given the number of people ready and willing to snatch it all away from him- setting the stage for Kaiba-Warp to meet and battle the fake. Can Neiro and Hyo-Hyo (who contains Neiro’s original memories) help Kaiba-Warp to claim victory and defeat the plant, all without losing himself in the mass of memories he possesses? I can’t say that this series made complete sense to me, but it was still very good, and one of the few select series that deserves watching again.

Koihime Musou 4: When Cao Cao shows up in town, Ma Chao decides to take revenge for the death of her father, and when she lands in prison because of it, Guan Yu must offer her body to the ambitious warlord in return for her friend’s freedom. Although the deed doesn’t actually take place, this episode takes the ecchi levels up several notches (presumably they slept together in the original game) but if you discount those moments, the series is still mildly entertaining if you view it with rose-tinted glasses.

Kyouran Kazoku Nikki 12: Although I have occasionally complained about the family going overboard and ruining everything, what I didn’t count on was an episode in which they all but completely failed to appear. Unfortunately, that’s exactly what we get here, with a filler episode about a random college student who takes in a catgirl. The catgirl is rather cute, but the episode is hardly anything to write home about- unless you want to write home to explain how you just wasted twenty-five minutes of your life.

Mai-Otome 0 S.ifr 2: Since I completely forgot to watch this raw, I ended up catching my first subbed episode of Mai-Otome since the original series, as the prequel tale of Sifr, Bruce and Rena continues. Whilst Schwarz try to convince Sifr that their dodgy haircuts and generic minions are in no way any indication that they are, in fact, evil, Rena has an angst session with a bishie and his brother Reito in the desert, Elliot gets stripped naked for some reason and various other uninteresting things happen. But the true indicator that the franchise has gone downhill is that this episode is completely lacking in fat grey cats, or indeed any cats whatsoever. Bring back the cats!

Nabari no Ou 17-18: Although you wouldn’t expect it of a series purporting to contain ninjas and action, I’ve come to realise that the best way to enjoy Nabari no Ou is to adapt oneself to its tranquil pacing- if you do this, it somehow becomes more enjoyable. Anyway, episode seventeen sees Raimei lead Yukimi to the school in an attempt to keep him away from Thobari and everyone else, but as it turns out, Thobari is there shredding documents anyway. Perhaps it’s just as well, however, as Raimei’s character has degenerated into that of a pathetic female who can’t do anything, much to my disappointment. Then in episode eighteen Yoite enters Angst Mode after learning that he has a month to live, causing him to wander the wintry streets in his pyjamas, coughing up blood. Nice.

Natsume Yuujinchou 4-5: It’s time for Natsume Yuujinchou to show lesser series how it’s done in this double bill of episodes; first up, we have a test of courage that sees Natsume and his friends wander the school at night, only to discover that there may actually be a ghost, followed by an encounter with a none-too-bright demon at the station that leads to Natsume attempting to complete a reconciliation Reiko forgot to do anything about. It may not be mind-blowingly original, but the series has a perfect trump card in the form of Nyanko-sensei, who reveals that he can also transform into an attractive young woman alongside his fat cat and Okami forms.

Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu 4: It’s time for another classic anime storyline this week on Haruka, as our intrepid main characters decide to trail Haruka’s maid in order to discover why she might have a life of her own outside the household. The entire script has basically been lifted out of the annals of anime history, and the fact that it is better than several other things I’ve watched this week is only an indictment on their low quality rather than endorsement of this.

*COMPLETE* Persona Trinity Soul 22-6: Well, the best that I can say about is that at least it’s over, because overall this last batch of episodes was as underwhelming as the rest of the series. Whilst people continue to sink into apathy, switch consciousness and all the rest, several main characters die (I must admit I felt sad for Kanaru, given her true nature) and Shin learns the hideous truth of his past before entering a persona-driven boss battle. Would I have got more out of this series if I’d played the game first? Perhaps, but I’m waiting it for reduce in price before I buy it.

Real Drive 13: Amidst all the boring and monotonous episodes to pass my eyes this week, one stands out above them all, and it is this- Real Drive’s own attempt at something even more fillerific than the average filler episode. In this episode, Haru and Minamo drag us along on their day off, in which they look at pictures and reminisce about Haru’s youth- complete with musical interludes in place of dialogue. In the annals of dull, this episode must surely deserve some sort of prize.

Ryoko’s Case File 4: The affable and none-too-bright Jun’ichiro accompanies Ryoko on another case in this episode (you don’t say!), in which they embark on a dialogue ridden investigation into a company researching the creation of artificial/genetically-engineered/whatever life forms. To cut to the chase, what they produced was a hideous green monster, but the woman who mothered it considers it her son and runs off with it in her arms. It’s a little disturbing, and I almost wish it would go back to the 90s where it belongs.

Someday’s Dreamers ~Summer Skies~ 4: It’s Midorikawa’s turn in the spotlight this episode, as we learn of the predictably troubled past that made him into the moody teen he is- basically, after learning that her husband and son had mage potential, Midorikawa’s mother walked out on them, whilst his classmates rejected him. Now he must learn to face up to his situation, but in a rather unpleasant turn of events, one client wants to recapture the taste of a nostalgic drink- and the mages give her breast milk. Yes, that’s right- rather creepily, a glass full of breast milk appears out of nowhere and the woman drinks it. I guess if you want to get technical then it’s not much different to drinking something that’s come from a cow’s udder, but the thought of it is somehow far, far worse.

This isn’t Bartender, you know.

Soul Eater 16-18: Episode sixteen concludes Kid’s visit to Nidhogg and his duel with both the ship and Ragnarok (ending in an appropriately symmetric situation, of course), before we move onto the realms of complete filler with episode seventeen. Perhaps the worst episode of the series so far, seventeen sees minor character Oxford visit Excalibur and basically listen to him ramble on for twenty-five minutes. Fortunately, eighteen is quick to get things moving again, as Medusa’s plans come to fruition and it is left to the named characters to try to stop her. Hopefully this means plenty of action and lots of ‘coolness’ in the upcoming episodes.

Telepathy Shoujo Ran 6-7: Scooby-Doo meets the 21^st century in this duet of episodes, as our heroes set off to an inn which has been plagued by ghost sightings. Could it be the work of the evil man who wants to buy the inn from the family that manages it? Is water wet? Unfortunately, where episode six can be watched with a sense of smug superiority that you know what will take the protagonists a while to discover, episode seven is entirely dull as they slowly struggle to conclusions you no longer care about. I’m toying with dropping this series.

Wagaya no Oinari-sama 14-15: It’s time for new characters and a new arc as Tohru gets a mysterious girl delivered to him by a large cat- but who is she, and why would the Oni go to such lengths as to capture Kuu-chan just to find out her whereabouts? Naturally, Kuu-chan isn’t without her tricks, even using Mubyou’s voice over a cell phone to break a sealing spell. It’s entertaining stuff, even if the conclusion of episode fifteen indicates that there might be a slightly tedious arc ahead.

World Destruction 4: World Destruction reaches new lows in this episode, as we visit a village where the frogman leader has cut down all of the sakura trees- except for one, which is purported to be cursed. What follows is a lot of running around from our leads in an attempt to maintain the illusion of the curse, resulting in so much mayhem that they really didn’t need to pretend at all. Drum this into your head once and for all- no good can come from RPG-based series.

Xam’d- Lost Memories 3: Akiyuki must adjust to his life on the ship in preparation for his Eureka Seven style adventures to come, but naturally he’s none too pleased to learn that not only is his old life over, but he’s going to have to work for a living from now on. As the obligatory “hero reluctantly settles into his new role” episode, this isn’t the best episode thus far, but I’m optimistic that it will all pay off in the future.

MANGA

.hack//Link 3: Whilst the villain group receives orders via magic CCTV (I wonder if they bought it from Yata and Pai), Tokio is demoted from hero to servant of fellow player Saika and given the mission of tracking down the Chrono Cores before the villains get them. The first Chrono Core is in the hands of familiar face Tsukasa, although given all the revisions of the World, it’s hard to know whether this has a connection to the real Tsukasa or if it’s just a data ghost. And let’s not even get into the use of the age old “collect all the special items before the enemy does” direction that the plot is taking.

*NEW* Caramel Espresso 1-2: Why do all the gay series have misleadingly intriguing names? Anyway, in this rather bizarre excuse for HARD GAY, Sayuu is a coffee shop worker and university student who wakes up one morning to find that he has suddenly become left-handed. Tracing back the origin of the switch to a customer at the café, he becomes acquainted with Aki, a quiet young man who has a HARD GAY dominant alter ego named Ao. Since Ao was produced from suppressing the painful memories of a troubled childhood and a need to hide his HARD GAY from homophobic adults, Aki seems to hope that having a relationship with Sayuu will help him to integrate his alter ego- and even though Sayuu is STRAIGHT, he finds himself oddly attracted to Aki (yeah, like we haven’t seen that happen before). It’s all a bit convoluted, but by the end of chapter two we’re already down to the sausage-fest.

Clannad 6-8: With all the excess of the other girls’ stories clipped out, the Clannad manga is moving at a fast pace down Nagisa’s track- which of course suits me just fine. First up we attend to the restoration of the drama club, which is easily achieved without resorting to baseball matches, before Tomoya’s situation with his father becomes so untenable that he moves in with Nagisa’s family. Yes, it’s familiar ground, but it’s nice to be covering it this quickly.

Claymore 82: Whilst Renee is captured by Riful and persuaded to cooperate with her in exchange for the chance to regenerate her legs, Claire’s team decide to resolve their personal issues in preparation for the final attack on North Crater the Abyssal Ones. For the lesser characters, this means visiting their hometowns, but for Claire, only tracking down Raki will be enough to set aside the last of her doubts. A fated meeting is no doubt in their future, but what will come of it? Let’s hope we don’t have to wait too many months to find out.

Elfen Lied 89-101: A bulk catch-up on Elfen Lied takes us almost to the end of the series, and it’s a far cry from the situation we once knew. Female Researcher has developed a vaccine that could cure the Diclonius virus, but it’s only with considerable outside help that she can get it past all the Diclonii that have broken out of the research facility. Meanwhile, Lucy’s powers have levelled up significantly, but will Kouta accept her, or turn her away for all the lives she’s taken? It’s to see some real plot development- after all, so close to the end, we can’t do without it.

Fullmetal Alchemist 85: The time has come for those who oppose Bradley to make their move, but when terrorists blow up his train, Father himself comes forward out of the shadows to take control. Meanwhile, Ed is reunited with his father, but when Al shows up, something seems amiss. It seems as if the plot isn’t afraid to march forward at this stage, but what will happen next? The anticipation for the next chapter is great.

Maria-sama ga Miteru 25-7: Since the order of arcs was switched round a little, it’s now time for the Rosa Canina arc, as the third years prepare to graduate and Shimako seems reluctant to run against new character Kanina Shizuka in the Yamayurikai elections. Again, it’s enjoyable to revisit this arc in a format where I can take it at my own pace, but with these chapters only covering about half of the story, it would be nice to have the rest to hand even though I know how it will turn out.

Minami-ke 34-5: After the girls try on each other’s uniforms, Kana becomes obsessed with the effect of appearances, even going so far as to borrow Keiko’s glasses in order to become more intellectual. These chapters aren’t the best examples of the series, but they’re entertaining enough.

Nodame Cantabile 121: After a quick catch-up with Streseman in New York (where a little boy wipes dog faeces on him), we return to Paris to see Chiaki, Rui and the orchestra continue their rehearsals and field an interview from Classic Life magazine, whilst in the background, Nodame practises some Debussy. Not a particularly eventful chapter, but one that seems to indicate the manga could go on forever.

Rose of Versailles 9-10: With the passing of Louis XV, Louis XVI takes the throne and Marie Antoinette becomes Queen of France, but hopes of a new age for France are quickly dashed when the beautiful young queen seems more interested in using the country’s finances to order finery for herself than for helping the people. Meanwhile, Jeanne carries out a plan to earn herself her benefactor’s title and money, whilst poor Rosalie hits rock bottom. Of course, we all know how this particular period in history turned out, but you can’t help urging Marie Antoinette to realise the error of her ways before the guillotine starts looming.

Sketchbook 13-16: I can’t express how much better this manga is than the anime as it continues onwards into volume two, complete with fresh humour, more moments of randomness and everything you could want from this sort of light-hearted comedy. There’s only so many different ways I can express these sentiments, but I’ll keep repeating them for as long it takes to complete this series.

*NEW* Slayers- Knight of Aqua Lord 1: Another Slayers series, Knight of Aqua Lord doesn’t fit into either novel or TV series canon as we see Lina and Gourry head off to a cursed island in an attempt to find enough treasure to pay off a gambling debt. Unfortunately, things go a little pear-shaped when the fearless duo is attacked by giant water dragons, with Lina waking up in a strange land where her magic doesn’t work! How will Lina fare without her trusty Fireball and Dragon Slave? Presumably we’ll find out in the next few chapters.

Slayers Revolution 3: Much of this chapter is just a retread of episode five, and since I only wrote about that last week, I won’t bother to recount it here. There are some slight additions, however, at the end, as Xellos and Waiser team up with the goal of arresting Lina (again), and the evil Marquess dispatches a mid-boss type assassin named Zuuma to be inevitably defeated at the hands of our heroes in the near future.

Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle 194: If you thought very little had happened in the last few chapters, then even less happens here as Sakura has some sort of premonition of danger and Syaoran decides that he must accompany her during the ceremony- which will be occurring next chapter at the earliest. Could the pace be getting slower than even that of the infamous bus arc?

*NEW* Wagaya no Oinari-sama 1: The first chapter of the Wagaya manga is actually much the same as the first episode (albeit without covering the ending) so thus far there isn’t much to say, except to comment that Kuu-chan’s female form looks younger and cuter than her anime form. Personally, I prefer the sophisticated look of the latter.

xxxHOLiC 159-161: Whilst Watanuki realises that he can live without his memories as long as he’s the main character of the series, the bulk of these chapters seems to be affirming his HARD GAY relationship with Doumeki- with a visit to Early Chapters Fortune Teller and her new apprentice Kohane indicating that they are destined to be together. At the end of 161, however, a new customer comes to the shop- could this be the long-awaited start of a new story?

Yotsuba&! 55: Dad has plans to buy some clothes for the autumn, but Yotsuba being Yotsuba means that they inevitably get sidetracked when she decides that she needs to collect some acorns. Yes, it’s another delightfully whimsical chapter in the life of everyone’s favourite green-haired five-year-old; may it last for a good while yet.

Reviewed this week: Amatsuki 10-11, Clannad Tomoyo Edition, Itazura na Kiss 15, Koihime Musou 3, Kyouran Kazoku Nikki 11, Mnemosyne 6, Nabari no Ou 15, Natsume Yuujinchou 3, Persona 18-20, Slayers Revolution 3, Someday’s Dreamers ~Summer Skies~ 3, Soul Eater 15, Telepathy Shoujo Ran 5, World Destruction 2, xxxHOLiC Kei 12-13

…and in manga: too lazy to read any!

ANIME

CURRENT SERIES RANKINGS

1. Chi’s Sweet Home (1)- Chi plays
2. Kaiba (2) – who am I?
3. Soul Eater (3) – best exam ep ever
4. Hidamari Sketch x365 (4) – 365 times the fun
5. Natsume Yuujinchou (6) – Book of Friends
6. xxxHOLiC Kei (5) – not so bad <- complete!
7. Wagaya no Oinari-sama (8) – hot springs
8. Nabari no Ou (7) – change of side
9. Slayers Revolution (9) – Dragon Slave
10. Koihime Musou (11) – Guan Yu has more breasts and less beard
11. Persona Trinity Soul (10) – catch-up, start!
12. Real Drive (13) – chat program
13. Someday’s Dreamers ~Summer Skies~ (14) – open the safe
14. Ryoko’s Case File (15) – superintendant
15. Antique Bakery (17) – super gay demon
16. Kyouran Kazoku Nikki (22) – biological weapon
17. Telepathy Shoujo Ran (18) – predictable
18. World Destruction (12) – cats
19. Amatsuki (16) – Kuchiha
20. Himitsu (19) – faceless
21. Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu (20) – secret otaku
22. Blade of the Immortal (21) – immortal worms
23. Allison and Lillia (24) – Travas-ty (sorry, Hanners)
24. Itazura na Kiss (23) – dislikeable cast
25. Chocolate Underground (25) – chocolate is forbidden

Amatsuki 10-11: Although episode ten was so underwhelming that I can’t actually remember anything beyond the fact that I watched it, episode eleven is marginally more interesting, with Tsuyukusa and Imayou plotting some kind of vaguely directed revenge, whilst Kuchiha, Toki and Shamon all get locked in a cellar (and no, there’s no punch line to that). I’m not even sure why I started watching such a mediocre, dull and forgettable series, but with only two episodes left I may as well see it to its conclusion.

*SPECIAL* Clannad~ Tomoyo Edition: The long-awaited Clannad 24 is here, and it’s Tomoyo’s turn to step up to the plate as the other girls vanish to let her gain Tomoya’s heart (Tomoyo and Tomoya, isn’t that nice?). Unfortunately, dating a delinquent isn’t such a good thing when you’re running for school council president, and it seems that outside pressures could very tear their relationship apart. Unfortunately, whilst this isn’t a particularly bad instalment, my focus has always been on Tomoya X Nagisa and so other pairings just don’t interest. Plus it’s the old thing of giving up your dreams for love- being the kind of person who wants it all, I always hate to see that situation.

Itazura na Kiss 15: After the fastest nuptials in the history of man (barring celebrity weddings, which don’t really count), Kotoko and Naoki are off on their honeymoon, and naturally, trouble isn’t far behind in the form of another newlywed couple in which the wife wants nothing more than to get into Naoki’s pants. So here we have Kotoko worrying over a husband who she still addresses by his last name, Naoki completely brushing off his wife, a woman who married a man she doesn’t love and only wants an affair, and her husband, a weakling who takes charge by hitting his wife. Oh, and the Irie family somehow sneak to Hawaii to spy on the honeymoon- a rather idiotic and overused ‘joke’ if ever there was one. Are there women out there who really find this sort of storytelling romantic? Do they long to be dominated by despicable assholes of men? I hope not.

Koihime Musou 3: The good thing about this show is that unlike other bastions of mediocrity, I can slip on a pair of rose tinted glasses and enjoy it- just because there are beautiful girls with Three Kingdoms names. This week, Guan Yu and Zhao Yun end up working in a maid café (in ancient China) for cash, whilst Zhang Fei makes such a hash of it that she wanders off and ends up entering a tournament held by Yuan Shao. Also in the tournament is named character Ma Chao, with both girls naturally getting to the final, fighting to a draw and being invited to work for Yuan Shao. Meanwhile, Cao Cao also makes an appearance, only to take an unnatural interest in seeing if Guan Yu’s hair is just as black and lustrous ‘down there’. No, really.

Kyouran Kazoku Nikki 11: After a long stretch of disappointment, KKN finally improve slightly in this episode, a Hyouka-centric story about the biological weapon’s first love. It may be a predictable tale, but aside from Kyouka’s inevitable attempts to turn it into a tired frenzy situation, it’s actually a pretty solid one. And I must admit to being amused when Hyouka accidentally sucked in Yuuka.

*COMPLETE* Mnemosyne 6: Mnemosyne has finally ground to a conclusion, and I have to say that it apart from being a platform for gratuitous sex and violence, it didn’t make a great of sense. In this episode, a disappointingly pathetic Rin confronts Apos, meets the previously unmentioned Guardian of Yggdrasil, and various other things happen that I probably shouldn’t spoil. Suffice to say that this OVA has been a disappointment and would have better aired way back in the 90s.

Is it wrong to want to cosplay as Apos?

Nabari no Ou 15: The Kouga arc ends in this episode, and once again I find myself wishing that I could really care about and get into this series, because it just keeps sliding superficially past my indifferent eyes. Whilst Aizawa proves to have God Mode switched on, evil eyepatch teacher attempts to murder the headmaster, but as the old guy is dying anyway, he’s already made plans to pass on the kinjutsu scroll. Oh, and some minor characters have dialogue and emotional scenes, but since they were only introduced a couple of episodes ago, no one really cares.

Natsume Yuujinchou 3: Natsume Yuujinchou picks up a little in this episode as our eponymous hero heads off to help some youkai who are being exterminated by an unknown person- complete with some Flashback Modes about a chapter in his childhood. It may not be particularly outstanding, but amidst the mediocrity of the summer season, this is a real breath of fresh air.

Persona Trinity Soul 18-20: Although I intended to marathon five episodes of Persona this week, I was only able to make it through three before my brain demanded stimulation, leaving me with six episodes to clear before the series can be deemed complete. In a confusing turn of events, Jun’s spirit has some gone to be with Ryou, leaving Yuki in charge of their body, whilst around them various things happen such Yamazaki perfecting alternate hairstyles for good and evil forms. I presume some kind of final boss confrontation is coming, but along the way not a great deal of interest is occurring.

Slayers Revolution 3: In a rather tiresome turn of events, John Smith (yes, I know his name is Weiser, but he looks like a John Smith) is here to arrest Lina for yet another crime she didn’t commit, and yet again she must search for the real culprit in order to clear her name. With that rather dull start, it takes about half the episode for the series to rev up to the usual levels of Slayers entertainment- and if this is to be the format for most episodes, it will get tired very, very fast.

Someday’s Dreamers ~Summer Skies~ 3: After picking up a little in episode two, Natsu no Sora backslides somewhat in this episode as our heroine takes on her first proper job- opening a safe. Of course, just opening it wouldn’t be all that exciting, so there’s more to the story than that, but ultimately it all falls flat to me- Sora’s interference may have helped the client, but at the same time it’s a bit like Captain Kirk destroying an alien paradise- you can’t help feeling they should have just let the situation be.

Soul Eater 15: It’s time for a Kid side story as he takes Patty and Liz to a ghost ship, and whilst Patty’s immaturity is becoming a little annoying, this is generally an entertaining episode. Much as I like Soul and Maka, I’m glad that all the protagonists get their chance to shine in the series- I think I’ll be happy to see this through to 51 episodes.

Telepathy Shoujo Ran 5: In case you hadn’t noticed already, something is amiss in the village, and as it turns out, it’s all tied to Evil-ish Former Teacher and a particular type of magical grass. From there, we have a conclusion to the story that just feels shallow and even stupid at points- for example, did the grass really have to go as far as ‘kill’ Midori just to make Ran summon the wind that would end its life? Couldn’t it have just asked for her to bring up a box of matches or something? How has this become even worse than the at least slightly interesting Mokke?

World Destruction 2: As I feared, World Destruction has rapidly gone downhill in this episode, as our three reluctant allies end up on a lawless ship where the Destruct Code promptly gets stolen. It’s basically the pirate ship level of the RPG, and after my hideous experience on the Zelbess in Chrono Cross, I’ve never been a fan of ships in RPG worlds. I fear I’ve taken on another lemon.

*COMPLETE* xxxHOLiC Kei 12-13: At long last, xxxHOLiC Kei can be crossed off the list, the series I never intended to watch but actually quite enjoyed. Episode twelve wraps up the Himawari arc with the hatching of her little bird, whilst episode thirteen is a coda to the series, first covering an earlier manga chapter in which Watanuki finds a thunder god in an electronics store before all the recurring characters come together for a party to

Thanks, I’ll take two.

Reviewed this week: Allison and Lillia 13, Antique Bakery 2, Blade of the Immortal 1, Hidamari Sketch x365 2, Itazura na Kiss 14, Koihime Musou 2, Natsume Yuujinchou 2, Persona 13-17, Ryoko’s Case File 1, Someday’s Dreamers ~Summer Skies~ 2, Telepathy Shoujo Ran 4, Wagaya no Oinari-sama 12-13

…and in manga: Ayu and Mayu 1, Bartender 4-6, Claymore 81, Elfen Lied 86-8, Gunslinger Girl 51-6, Minami-ke 32-3, Nodame Cantabile 120, Sketchbook 8-12, Tsubasa Chronicle 193

ANIME

CURRENT SERIES RANKINGS

1. Chi’s Sweet Home (1)- Chi plays
2. Kaiba (2) – who am I?
3. Soul Eater (3) – best exam ep ever
4. Hidamari Sketch x365 (4) – 365 times the fun
5. xxxHOLiC Kei (6) – typhoid Himawari
6. Natsume Yuujinchou (5) – Book of Friends
7. Nabari no Ou (7) – change of side
8. Wagaya no Oinari-sama (8) – hot springs
9. Slayers Revolution (10) – Dragon Slave
10. Persona Trinity Soul (9) – catch-up, start!
11. Koihime Musou (11) – Guan Yu has more breasts and less beard
12. World Destruction (12) – cats
13. Real Drive (13) – chat program
14. Someday’s Dreamers ~Summer Skies~ (15) – slooowww start
15. Ryoko’s Case File (-) – superintendant <-new!
16. Amatsuki (14) – Kuchiha
17. Antique Bakery (16) – super gay demon
18. Telepathy Shoujo Ran (17) – predictable
19. Himitsu (18) – faceless
20. Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu (-) – secret otaku
21. Blade of the Immortal (-) – immortal worms <- new!
22. Kyouran Kazoku Nikki (19) – kyouran kaizoku
23. Itazura na Kiss (20) – dislikeable cast
24. Allison and Lillia (21) – Travas-ty (sorry, Hanners)
25. Chocolate Underground (22) – chocolate is forbidden

Allison and Lillia 13: Maybe I’m just getting old, but between this and Itazura na Kiss, romance and its recent depiction in anime has really angried up the blood. Hardly the bastion of worth at the best of times, the final episode of the Allison arc rejoins our protagonists now that they are living together- although aside from the wedding rings you’d be hard-pressed to realise they actually had a relationship. Still, Allison and Wil seem happy enough, until Major Stork (or whatever his name is this week) decides that Wil should join his intelligence agency, which will necessitate leaving Allison and changing his very identity. What’s a guy to do when a suspicious mass murderer with lax parenting values tells you to leave the love of your life? Apparently, you should go along with it- and worse yet, Allison supports Wil’s decision, even failing to tell him that she’s just found out she’s pregnant.

So, after saying “I love you” for the first time as he leaves on the train, we flash forward fifteen years, where Allison is now living with her daughter Lillia, and going out with one Major Travas- who happens to be Wil with different coloured hair. So, if he could be Allison’s boyfriend, why did he have to leave forever? Why couldn’t he have just said no and got an academic job at the university or something? It took Allison long enough to get Wil to go out with her, so why did he have to be taken away? Or was such an emotionally stunted man even worth it in the first place?

Antique Bakery 2: The strawberries of doom seem to have taken a backseat this week as former boxer Eiji joins the Antique team- but despite being hired as a receptionist, his love of cake sees him train under HARD GAY chef. Although not quite as parody-worthy as the opening instalment, there’s still potential amidst the banter, not to mention a scene in which our protagonists pipe cream into holes in choux pastry.

*NEW* Blade of the Immortal 1: Giving an action series to Bee Train is like asking a three-year-old to paint the Mona Lisa- you just know that what you’re going to end up with will be a mess that bears very little resemblance to what you asked for. Anyway, in this series we meet a man who has worms inside him that grant immortality (no guffawing, please), but due to his past as a killer, practically everyone is after him- forcing him to kill again and again. Unfortunately, since straightforward action might strain the animation team at Bee Train, everything has to take place either off screen between still shots, or in a darkened room so that a minimum of detail needs to be shown. It’s not terribly interesting, but the series is short enough that it shouldn’t become another El Cazador de la Roots.

Hidamari Sketch x365 2: After last episode’s prequel to season one, we jump ahead to the end of the school year, with Sae’s sister Chika taking entrance exams and everyone else reflecting on how much has happened since they first came to the Hidamari Apartments. It’s another worthy dose of slice-of-life, although I wonder whether we’ll be jumping back to familiar old territory next episode or seeing everyone moving up to the next school year.

Itazura na Kiss 14: And now to the second romance fiasco of the week- the legendary wedding episode of Itazura na Kiss, in which all the development that didn’t happen in the first half of the series is crammed into one episode. Despite having been a complete bastard who treated her like dirt for half a series, Naoki can’t bear the thought of Kotoko marrying Kin-chan (and who could, really), and so he takes it upon himself to propose to her- because despite a large body of evidence to the contrary, he actually does have feelings for her. I assume I’m supposed to sigh and say ‘how romantic’, but come on- shouldn’t they at least go out for a while before getting engaged?

As if that wasn’t enough, however, Naoki’s mother decides it’s too dangerous for them not to get hitched straightaway, and even though a wedding costs about £20-30,000 on average, it somehow all gets arranged within the space of a week. Unreality aside, what happened to “marry in haste, repent at leisure”? Shouldn’t people get married because they want to, rather than because their mother forced them into it before they changed their mind? How can we enjoy such a poorly paced relationship? Isn’t Naoki just a bastard no matter how you look at it?

Oh, for goodness sake- get over yourself.

Koihime Musou 2: The great thing about Koihime Musou is that even though nothing momentous is ever going to happen, I love the Three Kingdoms and the character designs, I can have a fun time spotting them. This week, our heroines link up with the slightly HARD YURI Zhao Yun and Gongsun Zan in order to bust yet another den of generic looking bandits. I get the feeling that this will be the pattern for the series, but if we get to see all the Three Kingdoms favourites as beautiful women, who cares?

Natsume Yuujinchou 2: The returning of contracts is going well enough until a tiny shrine gods shows up to ask for his back, only for Natsume to realise it is stuck to another page in the Book of Friends. Since ripping the pages apart would be damaging to the spirits named within, Natsume and Nyanko-sensei must instead track down the other spirit so that they can both be released at the same time. There’s still a feeling of ‘why does it have to be this way?’ about the whole series, since it seems there must be easier ways for Natsume and Nyanko-sensei to achieve their goals, but the episode is nonetheless a solid one that builds to a decent conclusion- and let’s face it, Nyanko-sensei in cat form is worth the price of admission any day.

*NEW* Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu 1: Although it sounds a lot like Kare Kano, I was immediately drawn to the idea of a ‘perfect girl’ who is a secret otaku- is it something I can identify with (well, apart from the fact that I’m far from perfect and my love of anime isn’t a secret)? Unfortunately, this episode isn’t really as exciting as I hoped, featuring a male lead who cooks for his two slobbish female flatmates for some reason, and naturally ends up discovering the perfect Nogizaka Haruka’s secret. His first job as her ‘accomplice’ is to return a manga magazine to the library after hours- hardly a terribly interesting start.

Persona Trinity Soul 13-17: During the first half of the series, I was fully prepared to accept that Persona would improve later on, but now that I’ve made inroads into the later episodes, I can’t say I’m entirely convinced. Although I admit that there are little details that would probably stand out as foreshadowing were I to go back and watch earlier episodes again, apart from Ryou’s undisclosed fate, not a great deal has actually happened. It just all feels too bland to care about- I’m more interested in buying the original game than anything this anime can offer.

*NEW* Ryoko’s Case File 1: Meet the typical detective odd couple- the beautiful and near flawless woman with a harsh personality and her loyal, long-suffering male aide. Together, they solve supernatural cases, and although there’s a lot of visual style to their antics, so far there has been little substance. In fact, aside from a humorous exchange between Ryoko and her rival, this episode wasn’t terribly interesting in terms of content- it’s only the characters that’s going to keep me watching for now.

Someday’s Dreamers ~Summer Skies~ 2: I have to admit that this is an improvement on the treacle slow first episode, but even so, there’s a lot of padding in this new series of Someday’s Dreamers- let’s face it, I don’t need to look at Photoshopped landscapes and listen to insert songs. When it gets to the story, however, this season is decent enough, with Sora attending her first magic class and meeting the usual line-up of characters- seemingly uncaring young man who probably has an ill sister, dead parents or some other family tragedy; rival magic user who aims to be class rep and top of the class and of course the amiable best friend type. There’s nothing her we haven’t seen before, but if the series can provide actual content, it should be solid enough, if not a patch on the original.

Telepathy Shoujo Ran 4: I’m beginning to think about parodying this series, and only the fact that the queue already contains several other series is putting me off. This time around, our heroes go on holiday to a village where something seems amiss- indeed, they even comment that something doesn’t seem right after the villagers threaten them with pitchforks (you think?). Unfortunately, this is only the beginning of the suspicious village arc, so we’ll have to wait until next week to see the thrilling conclusion.

Wagaya no Oinari-sama 12-13: It’s another double bill of predictability for Wagaya, starting with the obligatory hot springs episode in which everyone kicks back and relaxes, leaving poor Tohru to get menaced by a demon, and then proceeding to the equally obligatory culture festival. Fortunately, in the latter episode we do at least meet up with a new fox- a silver one nicknamed Tama-san who I’ve been waiting to see ever since I glimpsed them in the OP- whilst Sakura’s obsession with being the only woman for Noboru continues to be highly entertaining.

MANGA

*NEW* Ayu and Mayu 1: I think we all know by now that I pick up manga based on titles that have even the vaguest connection to things I’m familiar with, and indeed, this series was chosen because of Ayu and Mayu from Kimi ga Nozomu Eien (who have absolutely nothing to do with this manga, might I add). In fact, the series is more like Chokotto Sister II, featuring an older brother who tracks down two girls- one of whom is his long-lost little sister. Whilst he tries to figure out which is which, we’re treated to the usual rounds of fanservice and light entertainment, and whilst I can hardly call it good, this is a decent enough “brain lite” opening chapter.

Bartender 4-6: Although I feel I’m losing something through an imperfect translation, the Bartender manga continues to deliver what the anime couldn’t- tranquil enjoyment. First off, Ryu is asked to placate a foreign architect before he cancels an important job, but will even the promise of the oldest liquor in the world be enough after Ryu criticises the design of the bar? Next, Ryu’s friend decides to get close to the mysterious cabaret girl Akiko, but there is more to this strong and lonely young woman than meets the eye. Finally, a legendary bartender stops by Ryu’s bar, but will he be impressed with the young man’s talent? All of these chapters are calm, pleasant character pieces, with Ryu having far more personality than his more polished anime self did.

Claymore 81: Raki is back, and his newfound maturity has made him more likable, but why is he travelling with Priscilla? And what’s more, why has Priscilla forsaken eating humans to the point where her body has shrunk to that of a child, putting her at the very limits of hunger? Meanwhile, after encountering this strange pair, Claymore number six- Rene- heads off on her way, only to fall into a trap set by Awakened Beings. Thank goodness Claymore is improving all the time, whetting my appetite for more.

Elfen Lied 86-8: As volume ten ends and eleven begins, Nana is reunited with her Papa, but after Evil Scientist feels a rare moment of remorse and releases Barbara from his control, she turns on him and immediately heads off to dispatch both of them. Meanwhile, now that Main Villain has Lucy in his custody, he is free to do the obligatory explanation of his plans, telling her how the Diclonius are merely the resurgence of the powers his family once had- powers they lost and then attempted to regain by breeding near a radioactive lake where the mutation rate was high. He wants Lucy to bear his child and become the Eve of a new race, but all she wants is to go back and live with everyone. Now that the end is in sight, the pace is ramping up, but what will the outcome be? Whatever the case, there’s bound to be violence aplenty.

Gunslinger Girl 51-6: With Angelica gone, Triela knows that her time is running out- a fact that Hilshire is also well aware of. Desperate not to shorten her lifespan any longer, he takes on the next job alone, but when Triela finds out what she has done, she runs off into the night- and only the intervention of some old friends stop her from falling foul of the mafia. Now the time has come for Triela to finally learn of her connection to Hilshire’s past, but how will knowing the truth change their relationship? These are tragic times for one of my favourite characters, and it’s unlikely that there will be any sort of happy ending, but no matter how depressing it gets, Gunslinger Girl is still as excellent as ever.

Minami-ke 32-3: First up, we have the familiar segment in which Kana tries to get Chiaki to sleep in by making her stay up late, only to have them both babble for hours before falling asleep in the living room- it’s an amusing segment, but an uncomfortable reminder of how much I hate having my sleep interrupted. Next, Takeru comes over and manages to find all sorts of hidden items simply by dropping a pen in a straightforward yet utterly hilarious instalment. More of the same, please.

Nodame Cantabile 120: Whilst Chiaki spends his time practising with Rui for their upcoming performance, not being able to see him has hit Nodame hard- but at the same time, these feelings of despair might be just what she needs to bring out the best in her Beethoven. And with exams just around the corner, everyone’s going to have bring something special to their music if they want to stay in Paris- but who will succeed, and who will fail? Will this manga go on forever? Will I even mind if it does?

Sketchbook 8-12: Even though it doesn’t seem particularly long, these chapters complete the first volume of Sketchbook with more 4-koma goodness and plenty of cats; not only is this one of the most consistently funny 4-koma series I’ve read, but it also outmatches the anime by keeping things light and amusing instead of trying to inject some forced thoughtfulness. Here’s hoping for even more cats in the next volume.

Tsubasa Chronicle 193: It’s flashback extravaganza again this chapter, as Syaoran’s week with Sakura slowly draws to a close. What will happen when he goes back and Sakura finishes purification ceremony? Do we even care anymore?

There were times when we all felt that way about Busou Renkin.

Reviewed this week: Allison and Lillia 12, Amatsuki 8-9, Amuri in Star Ocean 1, Antique Bakery 1, Aria DVD Special, Chi’s Sweet Home 47-52, Chocolate Underground 4, Hidamari Sketch x365 1, Itazura na Kiss 13, Kaiba 9, KgNE Next Season 3, Koihime Musou 1, Kyouran Kazoku Nikki 10, Miyori no Mori, Nabari no Ou 13-14, Natsume Yuujinchou 1, Persona 12, Real Drive 11, Shion no Ou 22, Slayers Revolution 2, Someday’s Dreamers ~Summer Skies~ 1, Soul Eater 13-14, Telepathy Shoujo Ran 3, Wagaya no Oinari-sama 11, World Destruction 1

…and in manga: Tsubasa Chronicle 192

ANIME

CURRENT SERIES RANKINGS

1. Chi’s Sweet Home (1)- Chi plays
2. Kaiba (2) – who am I?
3. Soul Eater (3) – best exam ep ever
4. Hidamari Sketch x365 (-) – 365 times the fun <-new!
5. Natsume Yuujinchou (-) – Book of Friends <- new!
6. xxxHOLiC Kei (5) – typhoid Himawari
7. Nabari no Ou (6) – change of side
8. Wagaya no Oinari-sama (4) – part-time job
9. Persona Trinity Soul (7) – catch-up, start!
10. Slayers Revolution (8) – Dragon Slave
11. Koihime Musou (-) – Guan Yu has more breasts and less beard <-new!
12. World Destruction (-) – cats <-new!
13. Real Drive (9) – chat program
14. Amatsuki (11) – Kuchiha
15. Someday’s Dreamers ~Summer Skies~ (-) – slooowww start <-new!
16. Antique Bakery (-) – super gay demon <-new!
17. Telepathy Shoujo Ran (10) – mind-reader
18. Himitsu (12) – faceless
19. Kyouran Kazoku Nikki (13) – kyouran kaizoku
20. Itazura na Kiss (15) – dislikeable cast
21. Toshokan Sensou (14) – Dojo falls into the Lifestream <-complete!
22. Allison and Lillia (16) – Luke, I am your father
23. Chocolate Underground (17) – chocolate is forbidden

SLOW RANKINGS

1. Shion no Ou (1) – oh and by the way, I did it <-complete!
2. Tetsuko no Tabi (2)- is this ever going to be subbed?
3. Love GetChu! (3)- light entertainment
4. Gunslinger Girl- Il teatrino (4)- licensed
5. Himawari!! (5) – needs less plot

Allison and Lillia 12: Hello and welcome to another episode of such ridiculousness that even the lack of armour piercing pistols and super fast tanks can’t reduce the stupidity. You see, despite being a cold-blooded murderer and all-round suspicious sort, Major Stork is actually Allison’s long-lost father- and that makes everything all right. Never mind that he was a double agent who abandoned his own daughter and embarked upon a life of evil deeds- as long as he sends her a present on her next birthday, we can all play happy families again. Meanwhile, Benedict weds Fiona in a rather dodgy sham of a wedding ceremony, and Wil finally asks Allison to move in with him because it will save on living costs. How romantic.

Amatsuki 8-9: First up, it’s the obligatory flashback episode as we learn more of Kuchiha’s origins and how it ties in with various other supporting characters. Then it’s back to the present, where Toki and the others continue to take their quest at a measured pace (has no one told them that the series is ending soon?) and Heihachi gets a sound beating before learning about the past tragedy of a tree spirit and a fox demon. By this point it’s easy to see that the series’ main problem is that it doesn’t want to go anywhere fast- hardly a good move when the episode count is so low.

*NEW* Amuri in Star Ocean 1: Shallow as I am, I only acquired the first episode of this CG-animated OVA because it had ‘Star Ocean’ in the title, and perhaps I shouldn’t have bothered, given how little sense it all made. At some point in the future, solar radiation has caused the emergence of Adapters, humans with special abilities, and naturally the titular Amuri happens to be one of them. Thanks to her ‘Repulsion’ ability (she bounces off anything she touches, although the ability appears not be active 100% of the time as she can at least wear clothes), Amuri ends up in space with two other Adapter girls, where they somehow end up on the front lines of a stellar conflict- or so I just about gathered. Exactly what the point of it all might be is anyone’s guess.

*NEW* Antique Bakery 1: Through a mixture of hope that this would be like Bartender with cakes and desire to parody it, I decided to throw caution to the winds and see what a series about gay guys running a café would be like. In fact, very little happens in this first episode, which is mainly about introducing three of the four main characters; the (straight) proprietor of the Antique bakery/café who suffered trauma as a child when a burly man tried to force him to eat a strawberry cake of doom; the gay chef who got fired from all his other jobs because man of all sexual orientations can’t keep their hands off him and the boxer who learns he must quit his profession because of a detached retina (he learns this whilst eating a strawberry cake of doom). Expect parodies soon.

Aria the Origination DVD Special: Just when I thought that Aria had shown me all it had to offer in animated form, along came a special treat in the form of this DVD special. Billed as ‘episode 5.5’, the episode sees Akari take an afternoon off to wander round the places she doesn’t usually get to see in her work as an undine, and somehow Akatsuki ends up tailing her in hilarious fashion. This may only be a one-off extra episode, but one brief half-hour I was transported back to Neo Venezia, with all the wonders therein- humour mixed with poignant moments and just the right dash of magic.

Chocolate Underground 4: Four episodes in and our heroes finally get to the secret chocolate underground, a place of so many delectable treats that I could feel my mouth watering. Unfortunately, the preview tells us that the Chocolate Police are on the way to bust this modern-day speakeasy, which is something of a shame, but at least means the plot is going somewhere.

Chi’s Sweet Home 47-52: We’re halfway through Chi’s Sweet Home now and I never want it to end- whether she’s being left at home alone or going on an adventure with the big black cat (not that Chi thinks she’s a cat), Chi is so cute and lovable that I just want to pick her up and take her home.

*NEW* Hidamari Sketch x365 1: Having just finished the first season of Hidamari Sketch (plus the two special episodes), it hardly feels like x365 is new- it’s just a continuation of what I was watching a couple of weeks ago. That being said, anyone can jump in with this episode, which acts as a prequel to explain how Yuno came to attend Yamabuki High School and live in the Hidamari Apartments. As usual, there’s a good mix of slice-of-life and SHAFT craziness, so it’s all good fun.

Itazura na Kiss 13: You’d think that after half a series I might have warmed to the cast of Itazura na Kiss, but if anything, I hate them even more now that when I started. Whilst Kotoko contemplates marrying the annoying Kinnosuke through lack of other offers (wait a minute, girl, you’re only 19, there’s no need to rush), Naoki remains irritatingly silent about his true feelings, instead dating Christie through what seems to be a simple desire to ruffle everyone’s feathers. Will he finally come clean in the next episode? Even if he does marry Kotoko, as we know he must, do we really care anymore? How can everyone in this series be so shallow and annoying?

Kaiba 9: After what feels like an age of waiting, another episode of Kaiba has appeared to sate our appetites, not to mention deepen the mystery surrounding Popo, Neiro, Warp and ‘Kaiba’. For all his righteous talk, we already know that Popo is, to be frank, a bit of a bastard, but just how much has he manipulated Neiro’s memory? Quite a lot, it seems, and whether she can break through to the truth of her past will determine whether she’ll realise her feelings for Kaiba-Warp, or kill him in cold blood. One thing’s for sure- a series of this level of detail needs plenty of rewatching.

Kimi ga Nozomu Eien ~Next Season~ 3: Despite being labelled as the Haruka route, so far in this OVA we’ve had one episode about Haruka and another about Mitsuki, so it hardly seems surprising that the third instalment focuses on Akane. Torn between her feelings for Takayuki and her sister, Akane angsts her way through this half an hour, quietly suffering the awkward situation the two people closest to her have put her in. Unfortunately, even a cliff-hanger ending can’t really save this latest mediocre instalment in a mediocre OVA, and I’m becoming increasingly scared to go back to the TV series in case that too has lost its lustre.

*NEW* Koihime Musou 1: If Koutetsu Sangokushi was the HARD GAY retelling of the Three Kingdoms, then Koihime Musou must be the HARD YURI version, featuring as it does an all-female cast very loosely based on those famous historical figures. In this episode we meet the busty and beardless version of Guan Yu, who joins up with juvenile bandit Zhang Fei and shows her the error of her ways. Based on the ED, Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang will be joining them too, whilst beautiful women will also be representing the forces of Wu and Wei. It’s shallow, I know, but I like the character designs, I like the Three Kingdoms, and I prefer this to Ikkitousen, so I’m good to go.

Kyouran Kazoku Nikki 10: Each episode of Kyouran Kazoku Nikki represents its own little endurance trial, and this episode of ‘pirate frenzy’ is no different, featuring as it does a tiresome rivalry between two pirates as they race to be first to uncover a particular horde of treasure. Naturally, the family muscle their way into the action, resulting in another lacklustre outing filled with random madness and general lack of coherence. Why did I once think this series could make crazy humour work?

*MOVIE* Miyori no Mori: A two hour movie (well, 1:47 to be precise), Miyori no Mori is a pleasant little family film about a girl named Miyori who becomes guardian of a forest as a baby- hence the title. Flash forward ten years and Miyori is a city kid who is none too happy about being dumped in the countryside to live with her grandparents. Naturally, her prickly personality rubs everyone up the wrong way, but as she begins to accept the presence of the mysterious spirits in the forest, she becomes determined to save the forest from the plans of an evil corporation who want to build a dam and flood the village. It’s a pretty standard “kids versus evil capitalist” story, but it’s nicely animated and reminiscent of a Ghibli work.

Nabari no Ou 13-14: It’s time for something to happen as both sides head to Kouga Village, better known in the real world as a prestigious private school where ninjas attend special classes and no one else is any the wiser. Unfortunately, the Kouga student council has its own plans, resulting in a battle that ends up as a bit of a free-for-all. Nonetheless, there are some good moments in episode fourteen particularly, with Rokujou realising his feelings for Yoite, Yoite admitting that he really does want to live, and Aizawa putting his life on the line. Is the only way to exist in the world of Nabari to kill?

*NEW* Natsume Yuujinchou 1: When I previewed this series, I billed it as a sort of reverse Card Captor Sakura, and after the first episode, that’s still my impression, with our lead having to free all the monsters that his grandmother made contracts with. Helping him is by far and away the best part of the show- Nyanko-sensei, an Okami-esque creature who usually takes the form of a fortune cat. The only oddity is that Nyanko-sensei, who wants the contracts in the ‘Book of Friends’ for himself is helping on the condition that he gets the book if Natsume dies- so why not just kill him and take the book before too many contracts are lost?

Persona Trinity Soul 12: In amongst everything else, I’ve managed to fit in another episode of Persona for parody purposes, with this one revealing more about Ryou (who has to take drugs to control his Persona) and various shady evil forces. I’m still waiting for the point where the pace picks up and I understand what’s going on, but maybe that will come later.

Real Drive 11: After a couple of episodes which at least tried to get back to the main concept (in spite of poor execution), Real Drive is floating in shallow territory once more this time around as Minamo attends a classical music concert and learns that Kurama was once a legendary violin prodigy. The entire episode is then spent trying to return a violin to him- and, well, that’s about it. No, I know the series isn’t meant to be about violins, but what can you do?

*COMPLETE* Shion no Ou 22: The end of the series is finally here, and it’s the one we were all expecting as Shion outmatches Hani-meijin in their final game, and the police close in to finally arrest him. To be honest, the poor guy is probably in need of psychiatric help, given that he murdered Shion’s family just to help her improve at shogi. Yes, Hani, just because you lost your family means that everyone has to be orphaned in order to improve at shogi! Call me old-fashioned, but I’d prefer to just practise and play strong opponents. Also, Shion suddenly being able to speak again was a bit farfetched, if not unexpected.

Slayers Revolution 2: Remember the old days when you could cause general mayhem and destroy villages with abandon just because you were a main character? Well, those days are over, because Lina’s reputation is no so notorious that she’s about to be arrested for destruction she didn’t commit- unless she can find Digimon wannabe Pokota and prove that he is the real culprit. Unfortunately, the somewhat annoying Pokota is a slippery guy, so even a whole barrage of spells isn’t enough to stop him. Aside from the general annoyingness of Pokota, the episode is generally entertaining, but the animation is looking worse than ever- dare I say I preferred it in the old days?

*NEW* Someday’s Dreamers ~Summer Skies~ 1: I love the gentle tranquillity and beautiful artwork of the Someday’s Dreamers franchise, but somewhere along the line, this new anime has lost its way. With bland character designs and extended landscape shots (which aren’t even particularly impressive landscape shots since they seem to be slightly edited photography), this episode manages to accomplish in twenty-five minutes what the manga did better in a single chapter, as our main character heads off to Tokyo to begin training as a mage. Where’s the tortured love triangle, the mistake of going to the wrong place and only then finding out she was supposed to be in Tokyo? Where is Kumichi Yoshizuki’s beautiful, beautiful artwork?

Soul Eater 13-14: It’s time for two more instalments of straight-up entertainment with Soul Eater; first an action-packed episode in which Soul must overcome his fear of the black blood within him in order to battle an immortal werewolf, followed by a lighter-hearted and thoroughly enjoyable episode in which our protagonists must prepare for their exams with a flurry of study, preparation and downright cheating. This must surely be the most entertaining exam episode in the history of anime, featuring everything you could possibly want from such a story, all nicely wrapped up into a twenty-five minute bundle.

Telepathy Shoujo Ran 3: There’s an odd feeling of déjà vu in this episode as the bland and dull Tate Rui is captured by the evil Shiho Masked Villain, forcing Mai Ran to convince Natsuki Midori of the power of HiME friendship (whilst the enemy stands and waits) so they can fight this oddly familiar enemy. To be honest, I was hoping that Rui would turn out to be responsible for all the evil, but instead the kids’ teacher is the culprit, and now that the first enemy has been seen off (“I would have got away with it too, if not for those meddling kids”), they can go off and have fun and games whilst solving mysteries on the way. I can’t wait.

Oh, and for a couple more interesting observations, note how the shape of Midori’s eyes changed once she replaced evil with friendship, and how Evil Teacher’s mask somehow masked the scent of her perfume. Was it sprayed with Febreze?

*COMPLETE* Toshokan Sensou 12: Yes, the library wars have finally come to an end, with Riuva summarising it best in a post far more hilarious and satisfying that the episode itself could ever be. Whilst Kasahara looks after the unresponsive Dojo, various other things happen as we patiently wait for the inevitable happy ending between the two. So many people seem to have loved this series, but I just didn’t get it; maybe I’m just emotionally starved or something.

Wagaya no Oinari-sama 11: With the last arc finally done and dusted, the series is ready to move onto another adventure, although not an especially enticing one. What with all the breakages and house damage that she’s managed to cause, Kou decides she should really start making up for it by getting a part-time job, but guess what- she’s too much of a klutz to do more than rack up the destruction in the workplace as well. As the bills mount up, Kuu-chan decides to try working too, but even though she doesn’t do as badly as Kou, neither of them seem to be able to stay in work for very long, resulting in a painfully predictable instalment that returns everything to the status quo at the end. To be fair, even a couple of years ago I would have enjoyed this episode, but at this point it’s just annoyingly predictable.

*NEW* World Destruction 1: Although I wasn’t really intending to try this latest in a long line of RPG-based series, when Hanners showed me a screencap of Chocolat-esque cats, I knew I had to watch it. As it turns out (and these may be famous last words), the opening episode wasn’t too bad, introducing a world where humans are inferior to beastmen and one woman plots to destroy the world with a simple sphere. After our hero gets dragged along with her, action and craziness follow, and whilst it wasn’t anything special, it has at least proved entertaining for now. Here’s hoping it’s not going to degenerate in future episodes.

MANGA

Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle 192: I was expecting something a bit more spectacular after CLAMP went on hiatus between this chapter and the last, but all we get is a continuation of the Flashback Mode as Syaoran Jr reveals that he has both his father’s name and sword, and well, very little else happens. Who knows how it long it will be before we actually see any kind of plot development?