heavenly_pearl: (Default)
After a pretty blah summer season, I'm happy to report that the fall season was much, much better!

Recovery of a MMO Junkie - This series wasn't even originally on my radar, but after reading the reviews of the first episode during ANN's Preview Guide, I thought it sounded interesting and gave it a shot. I'm glad I did! It was nice to see an anime romance centered on people around my age for once, and it was just really cute and funny. Loved it!

Anime Gataris - This is more along the lines of what I wanted last season's Gamers to be - a show about a geeky subject that focuses almost completely on said geeky subject, instead of romance. And the last few episodes? Crazy, but in the best meta way.

The Ancient Magus' Bride - I've always been a little tempted to pick up the manga for this series, but I have to admit that the initial premise turned me off a bit. Thankfully, the anime allowed me to check the story out for free. Even though the premise is a bit problematic, it is actually handled pretty well, and I love how well-researched all the obscure magic stuff is. Also, some of the scenes were just stunning. Continuing into next season.

March comes in like a lion - This new season was much stronger than the previous seasons. I liked that it didn't focus so much on shogi tournaments and more on the characters, especially the sisters. Hina's bullying story, in particular, was quite moving. I think this is continuing?

Kino's Journey - the Beautiful World - - I watched the original series that came out about ten? fifteen? years ago and remember really liking it, but this sequel/remake was just okay. The Kino in this series is almost a different character than the one I remember.

Elegant Yokai Apartment Life - I really wish this series had focused more on the title "Apartment Life" instead of lead character Yushi's boring school life. Honestly, I'm not sure what the point of having him live with a bunch of yokai and learn magic was when it rarely affected the plot...

Love is like a Cocktail - It was cute. Basically all you can say about a three minute short!

Black Clover - I was watching the Japanese version, but when Toonami announced they were going to air the dub, I decided to stop and switch over to the English version, so I'm way behind. Toonami hasn't even gotten to the episode where I left off yet. Still, considering how incredibly ANNOYING Asta's seiyuu's voice is, I don't mind. The episodes I did see were pretty good, though.

And my ranking of My Top Ten Anime of 2017:

Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju (2nd season)
Sakura Quest
Recovery of a MMO Junkie
Natsume's Book of Friends 6
- I actually didn't watch this when it was simulcast because I needed to watch all the previous seasons first, but I really loved the whole series.
Anime Gataris
The Ancient Magus' Bride
Tsudere Children -
This was another show I didn't watch when it was first airing, but checked out later due to good buzz.
My Hero Academia (2nd season)
Blue Exorcist: Kyoto Saga (2nd season)
Love Tyrant
March comes in like a lion


Not much has really caught my eye for next season other than Card Captor Sakura: Clear Card. (So, so excited! And I just bought the first manga volume, too.) Other possible picks are: Gakuen Babysitters, Marchen Madchen, and Takunomi. Maybe Basilisk: The Ouka Ninja Scrolls since I watched the first season way back when.

Happy New Year!
heavenly_pearl: (Default)
I haven't actually finished any of these yet, but I'm close enough to give my overall thoughts.

Sakura Quest - My favorite this season! It reminds me a lot of Shirobako, another favorite of mine, since it focuses on a group of five female friends, and I think it was actually animated by the same company, too. The adventures of a rural town tourism board aren't quite as exciting as the workings of an anime company, but it was still a lot of fun, and I think the main characters are actually a little more interesting and developed than Shirobako's. This is continuing for another season, so I'm looking forward to more!

My Hero Academia - This season had a bit of a slow start, but once the sports festival began, and especially the battles, it was fantastic! I especially liked that some of the more secondary and minor characters were developed more. I actually remember most of their names and powers, now! Another one that is continuing for another season.

Kado: The Right Answer - The CG in this was just gorgeous (at least when not used on the actual characters)! It also has a rather interesting, thought provoking premise. It reminds me a bit of the movie Arrival, which I actually just watched for the first time a couple of weeks ago.

Love Tyrant - This show won't be for everybody. It's a parody anime, and the humor is kind of dark at times. Still, I found it quite funny and amusing. Also, the opening song is SUPER catchy. Everytime I watch it, it makes me just want to dance!

Tsuki ga Kirei - The best words to describe this show are pleasant and nice. Not the most exciting or interesting show out there, but not a bad way to pass the time. (My favorite parts of the show were actually the mini-shorts after the credits focusing on the minor characters, who I wish had more of a role in the main show.)

Attack on Titan - Since I watched the first season dubbed on Toonami and was used to the voices, I decided to watch the second season on Toonami as well, so I'm still a few episodes behind. What I've seen so far, though, has been really good, with some genuinely shocking revelations.

As for next season, my definite plans (if available on a free streaming site) are to watch the continuations of Sakura Quest and My Hero Academia, the new season of Hell Girl, and new series Welcome to the Ballroom and Love and Lies. On the maybe list are Restaurant to Another World, Yokai Apato no Yuga na Nichijo, DIVE!!, 18if, Vatican Miracle Examiner, Princess Principal, and Gamers!. I want to check out the ANN Preview Guide before making any definite decisions on those, though.

EDIT: Argh, stupid Amazon Strike with the ridiculous double paywall got Welcome to the Ballroom and Hell Girl. There goes my two most anticipated titles! (Atlhough after recently hearing some things about the Ballroom manga, I was a little less excited.) Seriously, though, this sucks! I wouldn't necessarily mind buying an occasional monthly subscription to binge the shows they have, but I'm not going to also pay for Prime in order to do so. Well, I hope some of my maybe titles turn out to be good...
heavenly_pearl: (Default)
Lookee what was delivered today!



*Squee!* Isn't it just gorgeous? Love it, love it, love it!

I also just finished watching my winter anime choices, so here's the rundown:

Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju (2nd season) - After the first season, I was reluctant to say with certainty that this series was a masterpiece, but now that it is complete, I can now say without a doubt that it is. Seriously, wow.

Blue Exorcist: Kyoto Saga (2nd season) - Like D.Gray-Man Hallow from a couple of seasons ago, this is a new season of an older shonen series. I think it was much more successful than D.Gray-Man's revival. It helps that it's not quite as old (from 2011, I think?) and that the first season was only 25 episodes, the second half of which the new anime actually ignored in favor of bringing the story back in line with the manga. Anyway, it wasn't hard to get back in the groove, and this arc was great. I would definitely be up for more seasons!

Classicaloids - The second half wasn't quite as good as the first, but still, a very fun show, and I'll be looking forward to the second season that was just announced.

March comes in like a lion - This series was the opposite of Classicaloids in that I thought the second half was stronger. Still a bit uneven at times, but a good show. Also getting another season, I think.

Fuuka - Originally this show caught my eye because it was about a band (love band stories) and was a sequel to Suzuka, which I had seen before. However, I had also heard that the manga for Fuuka had a crazy twist that made a lot of fans angry, so I spoiled myself out of curiosity. It turned out that it really was a crazy twist...that they ended up completely ignoring in the anime. I'm not sure if that was a good thing or not, because without the twist, the show remained rather generic. Still, enjoyable to watch, though, and great music.

Piacevole - Cute short about Italian cooking. Pretty much all I have to say about it.

I really wanted to watch Scum's Wish, but I wasn't about to sign up for Amazon Prime, then have to pay even more money to get access to their anime channel in order to watch it. (Horrible, horrible idea!) That was a disappointment, but I went ahead and kept up with the episode reviews on ANN. Though I'm now spoiled for everything, it does sound really interesting, so I think I will check out the manga (which was the the main reason I wanted to check out the anime, anyway -- to see if the manga was worth a buy).

As for next season, I'll be watching the second seasons of Attack on Titan and My Hero Academia, and I'm thinking about checking out Sakura Quest, KADO: The Right Answer, Tsuki ga Kirei, and Love Tyrant. Re:Creators also sounds great, but like Scum's Wish, that's another Amazon show, so I guess I won't be able to. Boo!

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