I once made the comment that it appears that anime companies will do a show on anything. Or so it seems. What initially appears to be an anime on shogi (Japanese chess) turns out to be far more than expected, but that is what you learn with “3 gatsu no Lion” (“March Comes in Like a Lion”). I was worried initially, as it authored by the same person who did “Honey and Clover” and I found that a truly turgid drama. Plus, the art style and approach is like “Your Lie in April”, but I decided to stick with it. It has a lot going for it; it has a lot working against it. But, let’s get down to the board, as it were. (more…)
I really, really thought that this series had reached its conclusion with the movie that tied it all up. Well, yes and no. It’s like the Chef’s Special; it’s never going away. What we did was bid farewell to THOSE people, then repopulated the restaurant with a new brand of misfits, out-of-sorts cranks and other weirdoes. Although it should have been called “Working!!!!” (as each exclamation point indicates the season of it), with a new crew, it’s a new approach; thus we get “www .working!!” (and don’t think that doesn’t cause troubles. You type it properly in and it turns blue, so you can click on it and get linked to somewhere….maybe. I ain’t gonna try that!) (more…)
I am really going to ignore all the suggestions and intimations that this is a yuri show. Yes, it is very heavily tilted towards the troubles and tribulations of the female portions of this high school orchestra. Yes, the tales are about friendship and betrayal and wants and needs and desires. Yes, the ladies do wear a caliber of flirty outfits that tends to emphasize things, but since I feel it lacks a key ingredient to have it go over to the yuri side, “Hibiki Euphonium 2” is just showing us more of the problems that we saw in the first season, now made manifest in the second season. (more…)
OK, I allowed myself to be suckered into this show. I mean, not only is it a sports show, it is also what I call a Squealing Girl Show, as a divergent bunch of ladies find a commonality and bond. In one sense, this show is NO DIFFERENT than “Roar!” That show was ladies on motorcycles; this show, “Long Riders!” (“Rongu Raidāsu!”), is girls on bicycles. (more…)
As of late, I have seen a lot of shows about being in anime or in video games. This is another anime show, but it looks more at the life and times of being a senyuu or a female voice actor. What if after work and dedication, you finally got your dream job? What do you do then? This series, “Girlish Number” (“Gārisshu Nanbā”, but also seen as the odd “Gi(a)rlish Number”), relates the tale of Chitose Karasuma (that’s her, stuck in the middle with you), a voice actress who has been working in the anime industry for a year. Although she believes she is quite talented, she also thinks the anime industry is out to get her, as she has only been voicing minor or support characters. One day, an opportunity arises for her to voice a main role in an upcoming anime adaptation. (more…)
One thing about a majority of the short-pull series that I see is that many of them are based from 4-koma strips and, boy howdy, does it show! It’s not much more than set-up, joke, punch line, we all have a good laugh and that’s the end of the episode. Next! It almost seems more trouble than it is worth, but these shows can also be quite enjoyable. I tend to think of them as a proving ground for future writers and directors to test the waters without investing a whole lot into it, especially if it tanks. (more…)
One gets the feeling that anime companies will do a show about anything. I mean, there are shows about playing Go (“Hikaru no Go”), performing rakugo (“Shouwa Genroku Rakugo Shinjuu”) and even one about soda cans that turn into girls (“Akikan!”). So, I initially was not surprised when they did one about scuba diving. For most of us, what we know is whatever was gleaned from Jacques Cousteau specials on TV, or, in my case, “Sea Hunt” (yeah, check the archives for that one.) But what about something a tad more casual? Too bad “Amanchu!” is not that show. (more…)
Although not exactly like “Shiro Bako” (which detailed the struggles of an anime production company and how they are getting out their latest offering), “New Game” (“Nyu Gemu”) details the struggles of a video game production company and how they are getting out their latest offering of one of their most popular games. It also follows the tale of Aoba Suzukaze, (dead center), a recent high school graduate, whose first real job is working for this company, Eagle Jump, and how she can fit in to the demands that both the company and game want of her. She also runs into or runs afoul of or runs around in circles with the odd and divergent staff that populate this company and I will tell you right out, there is not a single man that works for this place and precious few men seen among the show’s run. This means it raises the question “Is it yuri?” (as you may have seen in my commentary revolving around “Valkyrie Drive: Mermaid”). However, I’m going to let that pass and focus on the show itself. (more…)
On the flip side of Sakamoto, we have this guy. Everything Sakamoto is, he isn’t. “Tanaka-kun wa Itsumo Kedaruge” (“Tanaka-kun is Always Listless”) relates the tales of Tanaka. Now, I can’t tell for certain if he is lazy, anemic, bored or uncaring, but he desperately has to rely on the good-will of his friend, Oota, to physically truck him from place to place. He can (and does) sleep everywhere and it is a wonder how he is able to dress himself in the morning. If the food would just crawl into his mouth, he’d be as happy as they get.
Oota thinks he is missing out on a lot life has to offer, but Tanaka is content with things as they are. Even when classmate Miyano wants to be his apprentice, as she admires the complete inertness Tanaka exudes, he declines the offer, as that seems like too much work for him (and, after you see him in action, or inaction, you understand why). He also appears to be grandly clueless, as he stumbles upon a secret that fellow student Shiraishi has. Or maybe it’s that it doesn’t mean a great deal to him. This is both the core charm and the overall frustration with the series. You just can’t tell the difference.
Is he a slacker? Is he a passive-aggressive? Is he a sponge? Is he a deep thinker? You are never really sure, but to see the huge amount of effort placed onto him to be more than just a rolled-up carpet, lugged from place to place, is astounding. I just wonder what it will be like when he has to get a job.
There is also a series of OVAs, done in chibi style, of varying lengths, but nothing over a minute. They are not much more then set-up and gag, but it does help to explain things a bit better. It’s that for a single joke, there really was no logical way to insert it into the series without it coming off as more strangeness. Some may feel that this is a caliber of ‘nothing’ show, but something does happen; it just unrolls very slowly and maybe that’s what we want to say. Then again, maybe not.
On a scale of 1 to 10:
Artwork 7 (Eyes seem too big) Plot 8 (Expressed surprisingly well) Pacing 8 (Good, despite a potential lethargic nature) Effectiveness 8 (Tells itself well) Conclusion 6 (It reaches a ‘coupler point’, but hasn’t ended) Fan Service 0 (A similar show would be “Honey and Clover”)
Overall 8 (Oddly compelling)
And remember, it’s first run until you’ve seen it. Just let me sleep.
There are a lot of strange shows about school life, whether we speak of “Ouran High School Host Club” or “School Rumble” or even “Medaka Box”, but the offering before us, “Sakamoto desuga?” (“Haven’t You Heard? I’m Sakamoto” or “I’m Sakamoto, You Know?”) certainly ranks as one of the strangest. We follow the aforementioned First-Year Sakamoto (nope, we don’t know his first name AT ALL) the incredibly cool and popular genius who is well liked by both girls and boys. Despite the strange situations he may be in, Sakamoto always manages to fix the problem in absolute perfection while still being over the top. (more…)
