"Sasami-san@Ganbarani" and "Kotoura-san" (Anime) Initial Thoughts

A lot of people from various sites have been criticizing how this anime season looks to be the most generic and “Moe” heavy one yet. At first I agreed because my first impressions of some of the anime were not that great but just when I thought there was no other anime worth picking up this season, Sasami-san@Ganbaranai and Kotoura-san revealed themselves to me. The site I use happened to showcase these two on the home page and after reading various comments for each series I decided that it wouldn’t hurt to add two more anime to my watching list.

Let’s start out with Sasami-san@Ganbaranai. The first episode made me very interested in what this anime is trying to achieve. The only way I can describe this show is that it is trying to have the randomness and witty conversations of Bakemonogatari while also having strange and likable characters such as the ones in Humanity Has Declined. The main character Sasami seems to be able to change the world around her based on her current feelings. This sort of plot device is just like the one used in The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya…in fact it almost completely mirrors it in many ways. The main character is a likeable but pushy female lead and her surrounding “friends” have to do various things in order to keep the surrounding world in check…yeah sounds exactly like The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya…Well anyways the show is interesting, good looking, and has a really good soundtrack. This anime has the potential to be the good non-“moe” anime of this season.

Finally we have Kotoura-san, my favorite new anime of this season (pending more consideration). This show does something that I think a lot of anime tend to forget; first impressions can be almost more important than the whole show’s running. If you are not initially drawn in by something then it doesn’t matter that the show has an amazing last arc or ending (like Guilty Crown). Every show/movie needs to grab your attention at the start so that you are emotionally invested and actually care what happens in the show/movie. Kotoura-san’s first episode will pull on your heart strings and make you want to seriously rough up some messed up parents and kids. While I will not ruin the experience for you, the first episode does an amazing job setting up Haruka’s unfortunate situation while also introducing her new best “friend” Manabe. While the first episode has a very serious tone, the second (and from what I can tell every episode for now on) shows the anime’s true form; a romantic high school comedy/slice of life. Now don’t go and immediately write this off as a generic copy like I did at first, there are a lot of things Kotoura-san is doing correct. The show quickly introduces all the main characters and sets up where Haruka and Manabe will be spending most of their time; at the ESP club. The very pushy club president Mifune will most likely be a source of bringing Haruka out of her shell because in the second episode she pushes Haruka a little too far with the fortune telling booth. The animation and sound of this anime are both very good so far. Overall this might be my favorite anime of this season so far (or a close tie with Ore no Kanojo to Osananajimi ga Shuraba Sugiru). This is an anime you want to pick up regardless of how you feel about high school “moe” series. 

"Humanity Has Declined" Anime Review

There was one show that stuck out from the rest of the crowd during the 2012 summer season. This anime, Humanity Has Declined had the randomness and uniqueness of Gintama and while I would say I enjoyed it almost as much, certain parts of the season really brought it down.

Story: 5/10

So starting out with a downer, the plot is very incoherent. To give you an idea of what the show is about, we follow Mediator who is in charge of overlooking the fairies in the surrounding area. She and her assistant, Assistant (what a cleaver name…) run into many different experiences over the course of the season. The first story arc is brilliantly funny and a joy to watch but the following arcs felt…out of place. We learn towards the end of the show that the final episodes actually take place before the first four or so episodes in the timeline. Why the creators arranged it this way I do not know but whatever effect they were shooting for missed me completely. While I generally enjoyed the show, the order of events really threw me a curveball. If your main focus is on the actual content and whether it is worth watching, I would say yes it is. Most of the story arcs have a very dry, dark humor but the character interactions break the tension. The main cast along with the fairies work very well with each other. The major flaw with the plot though (the sequence of events) just really lets the show down. If you want a coherent experience, you are almost better off watching the last two episodes, then the ones before that, then starting from the beginning. This might not affect a lot of people but whenever I watch a new anime or tv show, I cannot start it until I am fully aware of the beginning episodes. I just cannot stand jumping into the middle of a season. 

Animation: 7/10

While the animation won’t blow your mind away, it is very unique and distinctive from other shows. The show sports a plain, matte looking color scheme that fits the post world war whatever environment. The character models also have this slick, reflective look that make them stand out from other slow paced shows. It’s hard to explain the appeal but just know that it isn't amazing but by no means horrible.

Sound: 7/10

The first episodes really shine in the sound department. The music played during the chase scene at the end of the first arc was brilliantly placed and the voice actors really nailed their character’s personalities. While the quality of the voice acting continues onto the very end, the background sound tends to sizzle out. I even started to notice that they were reusing some of the musical tracks in the ending episodes that were present in the first couple ones. The best thing about the sound however is the opening theme. It is by far the catchiest opening I have ever watched…and I tend to stray away from J-pop. Overall a great sounding anime.

Characters: 9.5/10

This is by far the most stand out point of the show; the characters and the chemistry between them. The main character, Mediator deserves character of comedy anime of this century award by far (either that or a very close tie with Gintama). Her morbid thinking and decision making process makes every episode a blast to watch. Assistant also tends to steal the show while he is present due to his very crude humor and his use of his sketchpad. Other great characters include Grandfather, Pion, and Y. The fairies also provide some very funny moments in the show. There is however a problem; while all the characters present in the show are well written and amazing, they tend to stay on the sideline too much. After their respectable arc is over, we hardly see anyone but Mediator. Even her Assistant is absent in the middle of the season for a lengthy amount of time. If they would have worked these characters in some more, I would have rated this category with a ten without a doubt in my mind.

Overall: 7.1/10

Do not let this score stray you away from this show. While the timeline really screwed up my experience, this show has too much greatness to offer. If you want a very dry humor and interesting comedy to watch, then look no further.

Anime Currently Watching (October 2012)

Its October which means Halloween is close by! I don't know about you but Halloween is the only holiday where college students have just as much fun as they did as a child. Anyways going to be watching a lot of different anime until I find some that I like that have just started airing. This is what I have so far:

Little Busters! 4 out of ?
Kamisama Hajimemashita 4 out of ?
To Love-Ru: Darkness 4 out of ?
Tonari no Kaibutsu-kun 4 out of ?
Sword Art Online 17 out of ?
Onii-chan Dakedo Ai Sae Areba Kankeinai yo ne 4 out of ?
Sakurasou no Pet na Kanojo 3 out of ?
K 1 out of ?
Haiyore! Nyaruko-san 1 out of ?
Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita (Humanity has Declined) 12 out of 12 Finished!!
Gintama (2011 season) 16 out of 51 Stalled
Hyou-ka: You Can't Escape 1 out of 22 Stalled
Yuru Yuri (season 2) 12 out of 12 Finished!!
Tari Tari 8 out of 13 Stalled
Sket Dance 2 out of 77 Dropped

I have been VERY lazy with Tari Tari and Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita because I am very close to losing interest in them and I do not know why. Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita was quite funny but I feel that the complete lack of a flowing plot is making me put it off while Tari Tari is just boring. Yeah its really sweet, looks and sounds great, and has great characters but I just feel bored when watching it. No matter what though I will finish them so I can at least put my thoughts down. Please recommend any new airing anime because I really haven't research what is coming out.

Edit 1:
Dropped Tari Tari because I have literally no urge to finish it. Also the anime version of Sket Dance proved to be quite boring but the manga is very well done. Picked up To Love-Ru: Darkness, Tonari no Kaibutsu-kun, and Hyou-ka: You Can't Escape because they all look like they have a lot of potential to be interesting shows. In addition to these shows, I decided to start trying to finish the 2011 season of Gintama. I absolutely love Gintama but when I was watching it awhile back, I just burned myself out.

Anime Currently Watching (September 2012)

Another month rolls on by and all of the summer anime are coming very close to their completion. Here is what I am watching at the moment:

1. Kokoro Connect Ep. 12 of ?
2. Kono Naka ni Hitori, Imouto ga Iru! Ep. 12 of ? Finished!
3. Yuru Yuri (season 2) Ep. 7 of ?
4. Tari Tari Ep. 8 of ? 
5. Sword Art Online Ep. 13 of ?
6. Accel World Ep. 15 of ? Stalled
7. Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita Ep. 6 of ? 
8. Campione! Ep. 13 of ? Finished!

I recently started watching Campione! which I have heard many diverse things about. Sword Art Online is finally getting to the good stuff, Yuru Yuri is still funny as hell, Kokoro Connect and Tari Tari are unfortunately starting to lose it's charm with me, Kono Naka ni Hitori, Imouto ga Iru! is uhhh interesting kind of still,and Jinrui wa Suitani Shimashita still has that wtf charm.

"Humanity Has Declined" (anime) episodes 1-4 thoughts

I came across Humanity Has Declined (known as Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita in Japan) when one of my friends showed me this video:

I was...taken back at how random it was thus was the beginning of my quest to watch one of the funniest anime I have experienced so far in my life.

The show apparently takes place where human society is on a downward fall. The show seems lighthearted and joyful but there are many hints at very depressing facts that are present. Mediator, our main character has a unique way at looking at life and her interactions with Assistant are quite funny. Assistant is a mute who apparently is understood by Mediator with out the use of talking to one another. He has a very dark humor shown in the video below:

The characters in this anime are very well done and all of their interactions are enjoyable. The animation is very unique looking because all the character models are not eye candy but the way the backgrounds look in each scene are pretty awesome. It is overall a great looking anime in my honest opinion. Sound wise the opening theme is way too addictive and the voice actors are pretty good.

So episode one is mostly an introduction to the characters and it starts off a two episode story arc on how the town will produce more food for everyone. There are so many parts that are very morbid but like I stated before it is masked by very crude but funny jokes. Episode two puts our characters in a factory that seemed to have been made overnight. Mediator's thoughts are that the fairies (they haven't really explained them but they seem to be hanging out everywhere and they help Mediator when she provides sweets) made the factory and are running it. The episode ends with a very fun chase with some epic orchestral music. Episode three and four deal with the fallen human art of manga being revitalised by an acquaintance of Mediator named Y. Episode five takes place inside a manga panel and Y, Mediator, and Assistant must make story in order to be able to leave.

I didn't want to spoil anything in the episodes because I really want everyone to go give this anime a shot. It is seriously the funniest show I have seen in my life; the very depressing and morbid themes in this anime are just covered up by situational humor that will make you think, "Wait...wtf just happened?". I am on episode five and I cannot wait to get home from work tomorrow to watch it.