ATTACK ON TITAN (Shingeki no Kyojin): Simultaneously Awesome and No
After the Titans (terrible and very naked man eating giants of mysterious origin) attacked and nearly destroyed humanity, the humans retreated behind three enormous, concentric walls. Years later they have determined that, as long as they stay safely behind their walls, everything will be fine. Clearly, the humans have not watched Attack on Titan or they would know this is exactly the moment for everything to go horribly, horribly wrong. And nothing - let me repeat, nothing - is as it seems.
But maybe if friends Eren, Armin and Mikasa can just join the Scouting Legion and use the powers of determination and friendship ... no, wait, wrong story. Everyone's gonna die.
Let me explain my rating of this one. Attack on Titan is good. It's got good characters, good storytelling, plot twists wrapped up in plot twists, good animation. And the lead is voiced by Yuki Kaji, man of a thousand voices. (Seriously, he's done voicework for practically everything and he makes every character unique. More on that in another post, probably.) So with all that going for it, what's not to like? Okay, it's dark. And it's violent. But neither of those things is necessarily a deal breaker. What made me back off is the fact that I see no way of this ending well. I can't imagine any possibility of this story having a non-curl-up-and-die-depressing ending. So, I'm out. But if you're okay with depressing, or you're sick of stories where people achieve the impossible using teamwork and determination, you might really enjoy this one.
The music should have its own review. Listen to the first opening. Then, once you regain consciousness from your awesomeness blackout, reattach your head. It's probably around somewhere.
BABY STEPS: Pretty Good
Eiichiro (Ei-chan to his friends) is a good student, thanks to his thorough-to-the-point-of-obsessive note taking habits. But he's decided a little exercise would be good for his health, and that cute girl from school told him her tennis club is offering a free introductory lesson. But rather than some light exercise, Ei-chan discovers something he's been missing - a passion in life. Is there any chance a non-athlete whose only skill is meticulous observation could ever go pro?
Oddly enough, the best thing about Baby Steps is its realism. The rules of both tennis and physics are carefully obeyed, the romance (yup, a sports anime with an actual, well-developed romance) is quite likely, and none of the characters are extreme caricatures. Nobody is an evil villain or a perfect hero. And there's plenty of sports-related suspense. Baby Steps is not a brilliant work of art, but I found it enjoyable.
BARAKAMON: Pretty Good
Seishu Handa was a brilliant young calligraphy artist - emphasis, according to the gallery director, on was. Hearing this critique, Seishu loses it, attacks the elderly director, and is sent away in disgrace to a rural island. No taxis, one small shop, and plenty of nosy neighbors who seem determined to interfere with his art. But as he struggles to interact with the people and environment around him, Seishu starts to realize that maybe he was missing something after all.
This one is actually about 85% comedy, with the city boy artist trying to deal with fishermen and farmers and children, and succeeding about as well as conceited fish out of water usually do. If you like a character-driven story with attractive backgrounds and a certain amount of slapstick, this one may be for you. And I'd like Seishu's painting (writing?) of stars for myself. That thing is gorgeous.
BIRDY THE MIGHTY: DECODE: Decent
She's an undercover alien space cop! He's an average high school kid! They fight crime!
Oh, if only it were that easy. See, due to an unfortunate accident, average kid Tsutomu is dead. Well, mostly dead. He's getting better. For now, his mind is being stored in space cop Birdy's body while his body is being repaired. And since Birdy feels really bad about that whole "accidentally killing him" thing, she's willing to shape-shift to Tsutomu's form so he can continue living a normal life. Well, a mostly normal life. After all, she's still got to catch alien criminals. And keep up her cover as a supermodel. They can take turns using the body, right? It'll be fine.
I would give this one a much higher rating if it weren't for the fact that just as the plot was getting really good ... it ended. Unfinished. Which is a shame because Birdy the Mighty makes me think of a fun combination of Saturday morning cartoons and comic books. And who doesn't like a good body switching comedy?
BLEACH: Decent/Pretty Good
Ichigo sees dead people. And undead things. Things that Soul Reaper Rukia is supposed to take care of, but can't after passing her power to Ichigo in an emergency. Guess she'll just have to move into Ichigo's closet and coach him while he subs for her until she gets her power back.
There is no point in attempting to briefly cover the plot of Bleach because this one is a monster. With more than 350 episodes, you've got to be willing to commit in order to finish it. I have not managed it yet. Because while Bleach is a pretty darned good story, after a while the plot fatigue sets in. It just keeps going ... and going ... suffering the dual shonen curse of two minute fights that last for months' worth of episodes and the dreaded ... filler. Actually, the filler plot arcs aren't too bad, if it weren't for the fact that they sometimes come smack dab in the middle of the actual plot. Sometimes in the middle of a fight scene. Will our heroes live or die? Eh, who knows, let's take a break and watch some other plot that has nothing to do with it. And frankly, the animation is not stellar. Will I finish Bleach some day? Yeah, probably. Could I live even if I never do? Yup.
Next up: Blood Lad, Blue Exorcist, Bodacious Space Pirates, Brothers' Conflict, Bunny Drop
After the Titans (terrible and very naked man eating giants of mysterious origin) attacked and nearly destroyed humanity, the humans retreated behind three enormous, concentric walls. Years later they have determined that, as long as they stay safely behind their walls, everything will be fine. Clearly, the humans have not watched Attack on Titan or they would know this is exactly the moment for everything to go horribly, horribly wrong. And nothing - let me repeat, nothing - is as it seems.
But maybe if friends Eren, Armin and Mikasa can just join the Scouting Legion and use the powers of determination and friendship ... no, wait, wrong story. Everyone's gonna die.
Let me explain my rating of this one. Attack on Titan is good. It's got good characters, good storytelling, plot twists wrapped up in plot twists, good animation. And the lead is voiced by Yuki Kaji, man of a thousand voices. (Seriously, he's done voicework for practically everything and he makes every character unique. More on that in another post, probably.) So with all that going for it, what's not to like? Okay, it's dark. And it's violent. But neither of those things is necessarily a deal breaker. What made me back off is the fact that I see no way of this ending well. I can't imagine any possibility of this story having a non-curl-up-and-die-depressing ending. So, I'm out. But if you're okay with depressing, or you're sick of stories where people achieve the impossible using teamwork and determination, you might really enjoy this one.
The music should have its own review. Listen to the first opening. Then, once you regain consciousness from your awesomeness blackout, reattach your head. It's probably around somewhere.
BABY STEPS: Pretty Good
Eiichiro (Ei-chan to his friends) is a good student, thanks to his thorough-to-the-point-of-obsessive note taking habits. But he's decided a little exercise would be good for his health, and that cute girl from school told him her tennis club is offering a free introductory lesson. But rather than some light exercise, Ei-chan discovers something he's been missing - a passion in life. Is there any chance a non-athlete whose only skill is meticulous observation could ever go pro?
Oddly enough, the best thing about Baby Steps is its realism. The rules of both tennis and physics are carefully obeyed, the romance (yup, a sports anime with an actual, well-developed romance) is quite likely, and none of the characters are extreme caricatures. Nobody is an evil villain or a perfect hero. And there's plenty of sports-related suspense. Baby Steps is not a brilliant work of art, but I found it enjoyable.
BARAKAMON: Pretty Good
Seishu Handa was a brilliant young calligraphy artist - emphasis, according to the gallery director, on was. Hearing this critique, Seishu loses it, attacks the elderly director, and is sent away in disgrace to a rural island. No taxis, one small shop, and plenty of nosy neighbors who seem determined to interfere with his art. But as he struggles to interact with the people and environment around him, Seishu starts to realize that maybe he was missing something after all.
This one is actually about 85% comedy, with the city boy artist trying to deal with fishermen and farmers and children, and succeeding about as well as conceited fish out of water usually do. If you like a character-driven story with attractive backgrounds and a certain amount of slapstick, this one may be for you. And I'd like Seishu's painting (writing?) of stars for myself. That thing is gorgeous.
BIRDY THE MIGHTY: DECODE: Decent
She's an undercover alien space cop! He's an average high school kid! They fight crime!
Oh, if only it were that easy. See, due to an unfortunate accident, average kid Tsutomu is dead. Well, mostly dead. He's getting better. For now, his mind is being stored in space cop Birdy's body while his body is being repaired. And since Birdy feels really bad about that whole "accidentally killing him" thing, she's willing to shape-shift to Tsutomu's form so he can continue living a normal life. Well, a mostly normal life. After all, she's still got to catch alien criminals. And keep up her cover as a supermodel. They can take turns using the body, right? It'll be fine.
I would give this one a much higher rating if it weren't for the fact that just as the plot was getting really good ... it ended. Unfinished. Which is a shame because Birdy the Mighty makes me think of a fun combination of Saturday morning cartoons and comic books. And who doesn't like a good body switching comedy?
BLEACH: Decent/Pretty Good
Ichigo sees dead people. And undead things. Things that Soul Reaper Rukia is supposed to take care of, but can't after passing her power to Ichigo in an emergency. Guess she'll just have to move into Ichigo's closet and coach him while he subs for her until she gets her power back.
There is no point in attempting to briefly cover the plot of Bleach because this one is a monster. With more than 350 episodes, you've got to be willing to commit in order to finish it. I have not managed it yet. Because while Bleach is a pretty darned good story, after a while the plot fatigue sets in. It just keeps going ... and going ... suffering the dual shonen curse of two minute fights that last for months' worth of episodes and the dreaded ... filler. Actually, the filler plot arcs aren't too bad, if it weren't for the fact that they sometimes come smack dab in the middle of the actual plot. Sometimes in the middle of a fight scene. Will our heroes live or die? Eh, who knows, let's take a break and watch some other plot that has nothing to do with it. And frankly, the animation is not stellar. Will I finish Bleach some day? Yeah, probably. Could I live even if I never do? Yup.
Next up: Blood Lad, Blue Exorcist, Bodacious Space Pirates, Brothers' Conflict, Bunny Drop
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