Opportunity is a strange thing, as it just manifests itself and you have to decide to open the door or hide near the torchiere and peer through the curtain, to make certain they have gone away.

I had a marvelous chance to see “Neon Genesis Evangelion 2.22: You Shall (Not) Advance” with the family in tow. Now, I initially argued against seeing it, as I did not really enjoy “1.11” and since they were so behind the curve on things, I was afraid I would be spending huge amount of movie time explaining things. If you thought I was bad coming into this film, they were even worse, but they said they would take the chance.

They lost.

I had to explain about the Second Impact and what these angels were and trying to do and what the EVA units were and trying to do. Now, not a lot of time has passed between the films, so we still have Shinji Ikari, who is more determined than ever to stop being a pilot, partially aided by the fact that Rei Ayanami is back to some degree of health and can reshoulder the burden.They also are given the ‘present’ of a new pilot, Asuka Langley Soryu. Despite her heritage, she is considered American, which means she is brash and rash. Oh, and also has boobs. She takes care of EVA unit 2 and we see all three of them work together to attempt to take out an angel, trying to fight as a cohesive unit. (more…)

So, you have been reading me for a while now, and you should know by this point that the genre in anime I detest the most is Giant Fighting Robot. However, the one that is in second place is sports anime.

This is not to say that all sports animes are terrible; I could name two right off the bat that were very interesting, in that I watched them all the way through: “Bamboo Blade” (Kendo) and “The Big Windup” (Baseball), but they went against the grain to tell their stories. (Another is “Suzuka”, but the track and field aspect is a means to an end and not the core of the show). It’s that some of the shows get so involved in presenting the sporting aspect of things, the plot suffers to the nth degree and one loses interest. If I want to watch basketball, I’ll watch basketball, not a basketball anime.

Here is the problem that I have with the approach to the sporting life story, as it falls into the same tropes and traps:

Our hero (or heroine; mustn’t be sexist) is just a-walkin’ down the street, singing “Doo wah diddy, diddy, dum diddy do” and is called upon to use some hidden talent that is reflective of the sport that we are angling towards. Once this ability is now out in the open, they are asked or blackmailed or coerced or driven into joining the particular club or team to really present his talent (or hers; mustn’t be sexist). (more…)

This is one of the odder school romance anime shows I have seen, mainly because the main thrust of it doesn’t make any real sense, but, being a comedy, I guess it’s not supposed to make sense, as we have to make the story work, more or less.

“The Pet Girl of Sakurasou” (“Sakura-sō no Petto na Kanojo”) tells the story, initially, of Sorata Kanda (that stiff guy three in from the right). He attends Suimei University of the Arts (often shortened as Suiko), but he is a ‘problem’ child. He is a problem as he took in an abandoned cat, in the hopes of finding a new owner for it. Well, that didn’t happen, and pets aren’t allowed in the dorms, so he was ‘transferred’ out (read that as ‘hit the bricks, bozo’), as he wouldn’t surrender the cat, and into the Sakura Dorm. In this world, it’s like a one-way bus ticket to Cleveland: you go in, you never come back out to the normal world. I hope you enjoy seeing Lake Erie catch on fire. (Well, actually it was the Cuyahoga River, in June of 1969).

Now, these people in the dorm (and it doesn’t house that many; only about six. In a school this size, there are only six problem students? Really?) are all very creative and highly intelligent, just a tad on the addled side. Thrown into this mix is Mashiro Shiina (to Sorata’s right). She is so addled that she cannot even dress herself in the morning and needs a handler to help her. OK, who gets the job of being her handler? Who haven’t I called on in a while? That right! Sorata gets this dubious job. Feed her, dress her, get her to class, bring her home, help her pass her tests, etc., etc., etc. (more…)

OK, how many people remember what happened at the end of “Senki Zesshō Symphogear”? Did anyone do the homework assignments over the break? Anyone? Fine, I want two scrolls on my desk by tomorrow morning. To recap, the Noise was defeated, but we blew a crater in the moon the size of Texas, which now makes the moon look like Saturn.

“Senki Zesshō Symphogear G” starts up about three months after that climatic battle. The good guys (or gals, in this grouping) are, from right to left:

Tsubasa Kazanari. Half of the group Zwei Wing, her partner, Kanade, died but passed her relic on.
Chris Yukine. A bit of a loose cannon, she was an enemy who became an ally.
Hibiki Tachibana. She is trying her best to be a good fighter, but she has merely a shard in her, not a full relic.

They are supposed to protect Dr. Ver (a mad scientist type) and (more…)

When is a movie not a movie? When is a series not a series? Why can’t you ever get a good answer to questions? How often will I reuse this introduction?

I bring this up, for when I saw this, it was billed as a movie, but it isn’t even seven minutes long. It’s not an OVA or a short or a segment, so I am confused. You’ll probably spend more time reading this review than seeing the film. “Dareka No Manazashi” (“Someone’s Gaze”) is the name of this little offering.

We are in the ‘slight future’, potentially 2016 or thereabouts. We are telling the story of Aya Okamure. She is the young one in the snapshot up there, but we are a few years beyond that point. She is living on her own and trying for a job. This is a typical Japanese family, in that mom is overseas working somewhere. As a doctor, her abilities are in high demand, but she has been overseas for about 10 years or so. Dad lives alone with the family cat, Mii-san. (more…)

When is a movie not a movie? When is a series not a series? Why can’t you ever get a good answer to questions? Did you remember to turn off the iron?

I bring this up, as I am uncertain how to approach “Mardock Scramble”. If it is a movie, why isn’t it presented as such? At three hours, it is a bit long for a movie (especially an anime one), but it could have easily been broken up to be a first season of a show (a 12-episode run). I am going to call this a ‘special’, as it works best in that configuration. So, let’s get to the story, eh?

It could be the future, but it is certainly an alternate universe of Tokyo….I mean, Kamina City, Rune Balot is a 15-year old prostitute, who goes on a ‘date’ with the notorious Shell Septinous. Shell has a bit of a problem, in that he is a psychotic killer. He has sex with these underage ladies, and then murders them. Rune is no exception, as she is left to die in a burning car which explodes. However, she is rescued and transformed into a cyborg by the rather mysterious Dr. Easter. An Artificial Intelligence life form (more…)

Although ostensibly a school romantic comedy, it is the setting that makes it a bit different from your regular school animes.

“Silver Spoon” tells the story of Yugo Hachiken (the guy in glasses). He comes from Sapporo, but had no real idea what he wants to become. He also wanted to get away from a demanding father and a slacker brother, so he enrolls in Ezo Agricultural High School. He is the only one there without a goal, a purpose or a reason to be at this school, as everyone else is involved in some aspect of agriculture (dairy, livestock, horse racing, cheese making and the like).

He becomes tops in the class overall, as he excels in the regular stuff (math, history, writing), but he bites mightily when it comes to the other aspects of the school, like the agricultural part. I hope he didn’t miss that ‘agricultural’ is part of the school’s name. His other classmates are: (more…)

“High School DxD – New” is the second season of this show. There were so many loose ends left at the end of the first season, the only real question was “When is season two coming out?” Now it has, and we continue on with both training and fighting.

Let us recap the cast, for those who may have forgotten:

Issea Hyodo is a demon, smack dab in the middle.
To his right is the president of the Occult Research Club, Rias Gremory
The three lovelies above are Akeno Himejima, Koneko Toujou and Asia Argento.
(There is another guy, Yuto Kiba, that’s him to the far right, with his marvelous new sword).

Now, with the battle between demons, fallen angels and angels still raging, the Church decides to send out its own minions, those two spandex-clad femme fatales, Irina Shido and Xenovia. (more…)

This is another entry into the “Women and Weaponry” genre. We started with “Upotte!” went to “Girls und Panzer” and now we have “Stella Women’s Academy, High School Division Class C3“, which we’ll call “C3-Bu”.

Yura Yamato (front and center) has just transferred to the prestigious Stella Women’s Academy, but is having a hard time fitting in, as her timid nature and robust fantasies of what could happen seem to take over her waking life, so she is all by herself. She is asked to join the airsoft club, but is scared off by the more forceful members of the club, which include (left to right, as always):

Honoka Mutsu, tactics and logistics
Yachiyo Hinata, sniper
Karila Hatsuse, close-quarters combat
Rento Kirishima, support and back-up
Sonora Kashima, club president and Yura’s roommate. (more…)

Another show with a monstrapatious title, this is “Watashi ga Motenai no wa dō Kangaetemo Omaera ga Warui!”, also known as “WataMote” and for those of you not fluent in Japanese, we’ll call it “No Matter How I Look at It, It’s You Guys’ Fault I’m Not Popular!”

It revolves around Tomoko Kuroki, as she is going to be a first-year in high school. Having conquered dating Sims games, she believes, to the very fiber of her being, that she will be fiercely popular. She painfully discovers this is far from the truth as she winds up being an unsociable loner and is forced to take a long hard look at herself for the first time in years.

I had a very difficult time with this show, as I was never really certain if it was a comedy (as she makes all these horrible mistakes and missteps in trying to break out of the jail she has put herself in) or a tragedy (as we kind of see a slide into insanity, as she is unable to cope or understand what is going wrong with her life). All of her attempts meet with failure and there is honestly no one she can turn to for guidance, help, a shoulder to cry on, or perhaps something from the local WacDonald’s to nosh upon. (more…)