Showing posts with label anime review. Show all posts
Showing posts with label anime review. Show all posts


Image result for kobayashi's dragon maidI'm usually not a huge fan of slice-of-life anime such as this. Cute girls doing cute things can only hold its luster for so long before I begin to lose interest. At the start of Kobayashi's Dragon Maid, however, I knew this one would be different. Different in that, unlike some other anime of this genre I've seen, this one takes its bizarre concept and stays fairly grounded – for the most part. It definitely surprised me with how clever it was, despite it only getting me to laugh aloud a few times. This isn't a gut-busting, heart-palpitating comedy. It's more subtle than that but was able to keep me engaged throughout the entire journey. And its setup, though strange, definitely hooked me.

Kobayashi is just an ordinary adult woman living an ordinary adult life. She gets up, makes herself breakfast, goes to work, comes home, has a few drinks, and goes to bed. A very simple, yet boring, life. One night, however, she has a few more than a few drinks and ends up wandering up onto the mountain where she ends up saving a dragon named Tohru. The following morning, Kobayashi having lost all memory of the events of the night prior, is greeted by Tohru at the door of her small apartment. Apparently, Tohru has agreed to be Kobayashi's maid as penance for saving her. Then life with a dragon-maid starts!

Eventually new human and dragon characters get added to the roster. A young wide-eyed dragon-girl named Kanna; a video-game addict and recluse dragon named Fafnir; a very, shall I say, well-endowed and wise dragon named Lucoa; and the inconsequential-to-the-plot-but-still-best-girl dragon Elma. Along with some other human characters they go about their days trying to live among and adapt to humans.

Image result for kobayashi's dragon maid tailAs was previously stated, Kobayashi's Dragon Maid is a slice-of-life anime first and foremost. There is no grand narrative nor some epic evil to overcome. Instead the episodes are dedicated to Tohru and Kobayashi trying to prepare Kanna for school or Tohru attempting to prepare dinner for Kobayashi. We're not dealing with serious stuff here. With that being said, however, I did really end up feeling for these characters. Slice-of-life shows in particular tend to be popular for their love of the mundane but Kobayashi's Dragon Maid tends to take the mundane and add some kind of twist. For example, there is a running joke in the anime where Tohru tries to feed Kobayashi her tail (spoiler, she never succeeds). Or a dodge-ball match with a bunch of bullies getting out of hand when Tohru and her friends crush them with their superior dragon-strength.

This leads me to my first problem with the anime. It never follows through to the end. I was hoping by the end of the show one of these running jokes or “isms” that the characters have would get resolved and, though we are left with an emotional final episode, it never broke through to me like I thought it would. During the last episode I was hoping that Kobayashi would finally take a bite of her dragon-maid's tail or something to that effect. Don't get me wrong, the ending was still satisfying but it didn't quite get me to where I would have wanted.

One other minor issue I had was with the critically underutilized Elma. Obviously-best-girl Elma doesn't appear until episode eight and after that she only gets a few scene transition jokes to herself. She never becomes a truly vital part of the group which pains me to my very core. Hopefully a second season will fix that. I'll just have to be patient.

Image result for kobayashi's dragon maid gif elma

Truly, I wasn't expecting much of the music from this show but it is a delight through and through. Its opening is visually confusing and off-the-wall but the song is bouncy and definitely got me pumped for the upcoming episode and all of its music is able to keep a grin. It's also very uncommon that I commend Japanese voice acting (simply because I'm not too informed on the industry) but Kobayashi's Dragon Maid's voice performances are consistently great. The animation is also very good. The character designs are all very distinct and the color choice is fantastic. What really amazed me was the actions scenes, few and far between as they may be. Though it is just the dragons' way of 'playing' it is still astounding to look at. 

Image result for kobayashi's dragon maid fight gif

Kobayashi's Dragon Maid truly surprised me. Its characters are all very well-developed (with exception of Elma) and, though the ending of the series didn't quite do it for me, I will still look back on it fondly. Despite the problems, it still had a lot more heart than any other anime that I've seen in a long time. 

Kobayashi's Dragon Maid is a fantastic time from start to finish. 
Saturday, May 20, 2017
This spring season of anime was a little disappointing to me on the whole. I didn't get around to every show this season but the ones I did get to didn't really grab me. About four weeks in to the season I went on MyAnimeList to see what the most popular ones of the season were and I was surprised at just how much praise that My Hero Academia was getting. I didn't get on the band wagon right away because I've gotten really bored of super hero films and shows but I thought I would give this one a try. I was not disappointed. My Hero Academia is clever, fun, and really gripping right from the start but still not quite what I wanted from it.
Art by DeviantArt user corphish2
The premise alone originally got me into the show. At first it may seem like a generic super hero romp but it is surprisingly more than that. In this world the superpowers are known as Quirks and, contrary to most other hero tales, the ones who don't have a power are the odd-ones-out. This is interesting. I've seen enough X-Men to be able to sympathize with the ones who are considered freaks with their powers. In this world the ones who don't have a power are considered outsiders. After the first episode I wanted to see where this story would take me considering the differences that it fundamentally has with other super hero stories of today. In that aspect, I was disappointed. I suppose it's my fault as the name of the show is My Hero Academia - with an emphasis on 'Academia.' If I had taken this in mind I could have predicted that it would have the generic "school of heroes" set up. That set up, though not special, appeared at first to be uninspired but dang I just love these characters so much.

I've always been a believer that the setting doesn't carry much weight as long as the characters are relatable. This brings me to our main character, Izuku Midoriya. Izuku is quirkless i.e. he doesn't have any powers but he still strives to be a hero and even idolizes the so-called 'Symbol of Piece,' All Might. Because of his powerless position the other students make fun of him and he even develops a rivalry with a bully with a fire-based quirk, Bakugo. Izuku wants to take the entrance exam to the highest ranking hero-training school available but he can't pass without a quirk. This all changes, however, when All Might himself saves Izuku from a villain which leads to the discovery of All Might's grand secret - he can only do hero work for three hours a day. All Might explains to Izuku that he is looking for someone to hand over the reigns of 'Symbol of Piece' to so, after some rigorous training, All Might gives Izuku his powers of super strength and sends him on his way to take the entrance exam. You could consider this entire paragraph as a spoiler but this all happens in the span of the first four episodes.

The animation of My Hero Academia isn't the best I've seen this season but it is still very good in its own stylistic way. Thick lines and varied character designs make for a very memorable art style that accentuates the themes that the show is going for. The designs of the different heroes are especially great. There is a certain hero that goes by the name of Mt. Lady who only shows up in a couple scenes in the very beginning but her character design is so memorable even all these weeks later after finishing the series. All of the students eventually get their own hero costumes that do a good job of making them look cool while also giving them a lot of personality, not that they didn't have any before. I especially loved Asui, a frog-girl with (you guessed it) frog powers; Momo, who's powers were never fully explained; and Ochako, who has the power to make any object she touches lighter. One character that I was really hoping had a great design was Bakugo. The suit that he ends up with does fit with his explosive personality but it looks stupid. He just put grenades on each of his hands and, at least to me, it looks uninspired.

The music... I can't say much for. I think I liked it but I couldn't pick out a certain track over the others. Such a shame considering how great both the OP and ED are. The OP, THE DAY, is an aw-inspiring anthem that pumps me up for the show every time. The ED, Heroes, is always a good ending for almost every episode. Overall the sound isn't great but it does what it needs to which I can appreciate.

My Hero Academia is probably my favorite anime of this season with its good action, great characters, and wonderful designs and art.

My Hero Academia is thrilling!
Sunday, June 26, 2016
Have you ever seen an anime that is so over-the-top and insane that you just need to turn your brain off to fully enjoy the series? Kill La Kill is that for me. It does have very apparent problems but just the general excitement and joy I feel watching it makes the whole experience seem perfect, even though the show is far from it. The explosive fight scenes and scenarios and dumb fun of the show tend to overpower but the lack-luster story and villain. And I'm okay with that.

The story of Kill La Kill is pretty stupid. If you are going into this anime expecting deep themes with interesting plots than you are in the wrong place. Ryuko has been tracking down her father's killer for an unseen amount of time and she believes that the criminal is Hounouji Academy's class president, Satsuki Kiryuin. Armed with her trust Scissor Blade and a magical talking uniform named Senketsu, Ryuko must fight her way up the ranks of the Academy's school clubs in order to avenge her father and find the other half of her blade. We've seen this plot a million times and it doesn't do anything new in this case but the show isn't about the story. Rather, it's main focus is on the relationship between the characters. As soon as Ryuko arrives at the Academy she befriends a no-star student ("Star" referring to power level) named Mako and during the series we even get to learn a lot about Satsuki's underlings. Every character has their own energy and finesse that I can appreciate, even though some of them can fit into archetypes. I also like how--- ugh, I can't take it anymore. This show has way too much fanservice than it needs to have. I don't mind it as much near the beginning because when Ryuko transforms she becomes embarrassed with her appearance which suppresses her power but once that hurdle is overcome the fanservice seems like it is there just to be fanservice. To the show's granted, however, a third of the way through we are introduced to a group of totally-to-almost nude men that one can argue balance it out but I felt it wasn't needed in the first place and just could've been an over-the-top anime. Maybe the fanservice is part of the show's nature, then? I don't know. Just something to think about.

Speaking of the characters, I absolutely love their designs and color pallets, fanservice aside. Ryuko usually wears black and red but can occasionally sport a "white-knight" type outfit that fits with the metal state of her character at that given time. Even Mako gets a variety of designs to show off her general craziness. I especially love her "fight club" outfit. I feel like the characters' various outfits were designed and then the writers wrote the story because of just how well they mesh with the tone of whatever story they might be on at the moment.

Before I started watching Kill La Kill I assumed a little too much from the animation. Sure it's good but from the screenshots and short clips I had already been privy too, it ended up feeling lack luster. It does have a few border-line Sakuga moments near the
beginning of the series but it seemed to take a dip in quality during the last six or so episodes. This is one of the most hype soundtracks I've heard in an anime recently. I absolutely love the militaristic style of "Blumenkranz" and "Before My Body is Dry" is just amazing all around. The only problem is how the show uses these tracks - that is to say too much. Every time Ryuko does something remotely cool I hear the chorus of "Before My Body is Dry" and Satsuki's theme is good but I can only stand it so many times! The constant abuse of these amazing tracks forced me to turn down my TV volume a number of times when they would play. Such a shame to pound such a great OST to the ground.

 Kill La Kill is one of the weirdest but funnest anime I've seen in a while. It does have a lot of problems which tend to bog down the experience but if you just turn off your brain while watching you won't mind the flaws all that much.

Kill La Kill is explosive.
Wednesday, May 11, 2016
"When it comes down to it, there are few people who will swing the bat." This quote, among others, sums up FLCL perfectly. To put it simply, it's a story about growing up; actions vs. consequence, true love, etc. This story approaches it from an angle that I have never quite seen before. Using beautiful story and animation techniques it provides multiple viewpoints for a story about one kid's journey.

The story is all over the place in a good way. Characters are introduced ad nauseum, plot threads get cut and reintroduced seemingly randomly, and personalities can flip at a dime. In any other anime these would all be bad things but in FLCL it sums up what it means to be young. You meet new people, forget and remember past actions, and most importantly, you are extremely emotional. The character of Naota is just this. At the start of the show he is young, immature, and inexperienced but when the finale hits, he is a whole new man. Every single character in this show has a great arc of growing up. By episode six every single character has changed and grown. Before the plot of the show, Naota's older brother had a girlfriend named Mamimi. When he graduated, however, he moved to the U.S. in order to pursue his own dreams which leaves Mamimi heartbroken and she uses Naota as a cushion for her sadness. To her, Naota is the closest she can get to Naota's brother. This does cause trouble, though. Naota is twelve and Mamimi is seventeen. Among the funny and awkward character interactions the position they're in is conducive to them understanding each other more by the end. The first episode of FLCL is an utter masterpiece. I don't want to give too much away but a character is introduced in a way that perfectly captures her personality. The show's story isn't without its faults though. The show does have a supernatural element to it that isn't explained very well. The characters do work well around this element and it can lead to some great action scenes and funny moments, but it isn't until the finale that you truly understand what's going on. Is that a bad thing? No but I feel the series would have been even better if it at least hinted at the explanation.

The animation and soundtrack are both mind-blowing. The art style is perfect and the fight scenes have a certain kind of Saguka to them that really got my heart racing. The character designs themselves are even great. The characters are all memorable just by their designs alone which helps you become attached to them even more. The soundtrack fits the show perfectly. Almost every song is created by a Japanese band named "The Pillows". They do a great job at catching the theme of the show and the entire OST will go straight into my music library after writing this.

FLCL is an anime that I will never forget watching. It is clean, simple, but also beautiful and surprisingly mature for a comedy-action series. The plot is confusing but has great re-watchablity.

FLCL is utterly crazy in a good way but can be hard to follow. 

Wednesday, March 23, 2016
This movie really took be by surprise. By the art style and tone of the film you wouldn't think that it would be this good and relatable. My Neighbors the Yamadas is a film of stories. It has different chapters of the Yamada's life split up into small short stories that make the film. This is the movie's greatest strength and weakness as at about half way through I checked the progress bar to see how much of the movie was left. Though I do enjoy all of the little stories, watching them all in one sitting is just a little bit overwhelming. I would have probably taken a break half way through if it weren't for the wonderful cartoon art style that the film is showing. The entire feature feels like it was ripped straight from a comic book and just looks great the whole way through. There were a couple scenes on the Yamada's TV that even look rotoscoped from real broadcasts, though it could just be that the animation team was brilliant. This is also the funniest Studio Ghibli movie I've seen with the comedy not coming from slapstick or action like with some of Ghibli's other films, but rather with just an interesting family being interesting and inherently funny. None of the situations that the characters seem to get themselves into are too far fetched from reality. All of them are relatable. How many times have you gone to school or work just to realize half-way through your trip that you had forgotten a crucial object needed for those activities. Or how many times have you fought with a family member over what you wanted to eat for dinner? That is the comedy that My Neighbors the Yamadas provides and it is always on point. The music in the film can be described in one word: happy. This word can really describe the whole movie. If I had one problem with the movie it's that the youngest sibling, Nonoko, didn't get as much screen time as I would have liked. The very first short story was centered mainly around her but I would have liked more from her because of how much I enjoyed her personality. In fact all the characters have personality and I loved each and every one of them.

My Neighbors the Yamadas was unique.
Monday, February 01, 2016
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