If I had to pick a high point for these episodes, I probably couldn’t. Despite the continuing lack of a cohesive plot for episodes 7 and 8, all four of these episodes have thoroughly cemented my faith in this series. Though some of the characters are still fairly underdeveloped, most became considerably more well-rounded through the ~100 minutes of these episodes. They were great characters to begin with, and now they’re rivaling those of Fullmetal Alchemist and some of my other all-time favorite series.

Not to mention the ever-deepening mysteries, which continue to perplex as much as they amaze…

[Spoiler-free post ahead! Aren't you proud of me? :D]

Rakuen already talked about episodes 7, 8, and 9, so I’ll avoid summarizing those… but ohmigosh the amount of character development and general awesomeness of those episodes was amazing. I liked Shizuo fairly well before episode 7, but diving deeper into his past and his issues with Izaya was oddly well done. Naturally, the episodicness of it annoyed me, but I was able to overlook that fairly easily.

Episode 8 was epic as well, but in a slightly different way. This was another Selty-centric episode, which the fangirl in me loved, and the Selty/Shinra bits made my day. On a deeper level, though, I also loved the tension in this episode, especially with the revelations regarding who Shinra works for. Shinra and Selty continue to be my favorite characters, despite a fair amount of Selty angst this episode.

And then, in episode 9, everything goes off a cliff… The truth behind Yagiri Pharmaceuticals is (somewhat) revealed, and the girl Seiji Yagiri has been hanging out with is not who we think. Part of her isn’t, anyway. Both Seiji and his sister Namie get huge amounts of character development in this episode, but I really can’t decide if it’s for better or for worse. Seiji’s obviously unstable as heck, Namie’s a creep, and their story is just plan weird. It’s weird in a kinda-sorta good way, for now, though; hopefully they won’t throw any more extraordinarily creepy plot twists at us for a while. They’re at level 99, character development-wise…

And that brings us to episode 10, which totally threw things off a cliff… again. The very end of the episode is a spoiler to end all spoilers, though it doesn’t state anything explicitly (just makes things very very obvious through Mikado’s thoughts and what he does with his computer.) I didn’t think there was any way a certain theory of Rakuen’s could be right, but I guess it makes sense. Well played, Ryougo Narita and Brain’s Base. I do love series where nothing is what it seems; they reflect real life oh so well…

Despite the huge revelation at the end, there’s not nearly as much character development as relationship development in episode 10. I loved Kida’s quasi-casual mockery of Mikado at the beginning of the episode, as well as his and Mikado’s interactions with the boy who turns out to be a Dollar. Mikado’s relationship with Anri gains a layer, and he fully meets Selty for the first time, too.  I’m really glad this episode dropped the backstories in favor of relationship explorations, especially with Mikado’s confusion regarding Anri. I lol’d pretty hard at the stalker bit.

I can’t even begin to describe how excited I am for next week’s episode, despite the insanity of the revelation at the end of episode 10. Hopefully it’ll be properly explained, since the person it concerns isn’t the most logical person to be the… well, go watch the episode yourself. Durarara!! is a series that, at this point, I fully reccomend to anyone who has the patience to deal with the quasi-episodic nature of the first several episodes. If you can deal with a lack of definite plot direction, the characters and mysteries of Ikebukuro are well worth it.

CJ’s Rating: 9 out of 10 California rolls

I’ve spent the whole day reading around 95 chapters of the Hayate no Gotoku! manga, one of my favorites since a long time ago. I should have been caught up with it as soon as chapters are released, but the releases of chapters were all irregular. You’ll see one chapter and then the next chapter [...]

As this post publishes, TheSpeedGamers will begin yet another charity marathon.  This time, they will run the entirety of the Metroid series.  In honor of this and out of my curiosity as a fan of the franchise, I checked to see if Nintendo had sponsored any anime or manga adaptations of the series.  Sure enough, to celebrate the release of Metroid Zero Mission, the company approved a two-volume back story to the games and the life of Samus.  I read it, and now I’m going to tell you about it.

Metroid’s story is typical for a space marine style series.  Samus grew up on a peaceful planet that contained a prized energy source.  The resources caught the space pirates’ attention, and they raided the planet.  As the sole survivor, the Chozo took her in and began training her to become a warrior and protector of peace.  As a teenager, she leaves the planet and enters the Federation.  Her unit manages to capture a space pirate, alive, and the interrogation leads her back to her home planet.  She returns to find the space pirates seizing control of the planet, under the directive of the Chozo’s own computer, Mother Brain.  She flees the planet, but years later, fate requires her to venture once again into the twisted world she once called home.  The last few chapters cover events you can actually play in the game, Metroid Zero Mission, up to but not including the final encounter with the biocomputer.

Metroid historically relies on the environment to tell a story, so while this two-volume series is light on progression, it is good for adding personality to the already established characters.  Samus starts as a traumatized girl whom the Chozo protect.  Over time, she fights out of an obligation she feels to defend the galaxy.  Of course, “obligation” only gets you so far, and when forced to stare down her past, she breaks down completely.  After the experience, she becomes a free-spirited bounty hunter who can fight for causes in which she truly believes.  The Chozo, who only show up in the games through their remaining technology, strive for peace in the galaxy.  Despite high hopes for their special projects, they fell woefully short and, in the end, set into motion all the events in the Metroid canon.

On the antagonistic side, the series reveals that the space pirates respond only to the strong, in a sort of hive-mind mentality.  Ridley, Samus’ nemesis and the leader of the space pirates, is portrayed as constantly sadistic.  He enjoys killing people, and even eats the corpses of his victims to regain his strength.  Mother Brain, however, starts the manga as a docile biological computer for the Chozo.  As time goes on, she develops a sense of fear, that the Chozo will leave her behind as they focus their efforts on Samus.  This eventually evolves into an egocentric god-complex that causes her to rebel against the galaxy.

From an artistic standpoint, the manga is simply sufficient.  Most of the problem rests on Samus, who has a disproportionate feel.  That’s a problem when she’s the main character.  I realize this manga occurs before the sexualization of Samus, but her body just looks too stocky for an acrobatic and agile bounty hunter.  It might just be me, but it seems like the artist made her head too big in some places and too small in others.  It has a weird rubber-band effect that steals your attention.  The space pirates lack detail, and Ridley looks kind of like a convoluted caricature of a demonic dragon.  The backgrounds also suffer from this same unpolished feel.  For a series that prizes detail in the environment, this is an unfortunate letdown.  On the other hand, I really liked the design of the Chozo.  Their avian features are a bit exaggerated, but they still look distinguished in their simple, formal robes.  The Metroids also have their traditionally interesting character design, and seeing Mother Brain’s slow but steady design progression is a nice addition.  In addition, the sci-fi space setting lends itself to many battle sequences, with the focus on firearms and explosions.  I found these enjoyable.

Your enjoyment of the Metroid manga will largely depend on how much interest you have in the accompanying franchise.  If you have never played the games but have thought about trying them, these volumes are the obvious starting point.  If you love the franchise already, then the story will shed some light on the characters and their backgrounds that will enhance your playing experience.  However, if you fall into the third group that has no real interest in the games, much of this will be lost on you.  The Metroid manga’s prominent weakness is its inability to stand alone as a single work.  You might enjoy the battle sequences, or the progression Samus makes, but there just isn’t enough here for a real recommendation.  I see it as a lost opportunity from Nintendo to explore the story in a different perspective.

Final Score: 6.5/10 Wave Beams

I’m not a huge fan of the Shana franchise… but I am a fan of the short-tempered sword-swinging loli herself. ♥ I figured checking out the OVA would be worthwhile, partly thanks to the better (and therefore more adorable) animation. After reading about it all over the blogosphere and getting mixed reviews, I really wanted to check it out for myself, but didn’t get to until recently… and was thoroughly rewarded by the changing room scene in episode 1:

“Sakai-kun! Why are you covering Shana’s eyes?!” Abso-friggin’-lutely priceless. (Also, tons of Shana spam under the cut.)

Episode 1 of the OVA is just goofy beyond belief, but it’s actually entertaining and even throws in some plot and character tidbits at the end. Shana and Yuuji are rummaging around a room full of magical devices when Yuuji accidentally activates a telescope that switches the consciouses of two bodies. In other words, Yuuji’s mind ends up in Shana’s body, and Shana’s mind is in Yuuji’s body… much to their despair. Alastor quickly explains that they absolutely cannot let anyone find out about this, and it would be best if they fixed it right away… but before they can fix it,  Margery’s lovely cronies enter, and Yuuji!Shana is forced to hammerspace the pile of magical objects so they can find the telescope later.

Desperate for a secluded place to unhammerspace the goods and find the telescope, Yuuji and Shana begin hunting around town, only to run into a very drunk Margery. Alastor urges them not to let her know what’s going on, so they babble an excuse and dash off. Next they try their school, since it’s a Sunday… only to find Kazumi and every other school chum imaginable there for a volleyball game. Changing room scene occurs, flailing happens, etc, and Shana and Yuuji quickly depart to find another place to hunt for the telescope.

Our favorite meido-chan, Wilhelmina, shows up next, and immediately notices Shana and Yuuji’s suspicious speech patterns. She takes a shot at Shana!Yuuji, who deflects it suspiciously fast. Wilhelmina’s about to really go on the attack when Yuuji!Shana interrupts with “Wilhelmina~! DAISUKI!!” which puts the poor meido-chan into shock and allows our genderbent heroes to escape.

After finally making it to Yuuji’s house, they dash upstairs, but Shana!Yuuji is beginning to feel the side effects from the telescope. Yuuji!Shana quickly releases the items they collected, but that dumps all over9000 items onto Shana’s body… and Yuuji’s body saves it. Hence the above screencaps. Sigh. Yuuji’s mom comes upstairs, and only a hastily-cast Fuzetsu saves the pair from being caught. They finally find the telescope and set things right, just in time for Yuuji to develop severe stomach problems from all the ice cream Shana ate while in his body.

Shana asks Alastor why he wanted to keep the genderbending antics such a secret, and he explains: the telescope only works on individuals who have no barriers in their relationship with each other; in other words, people who are very close. He naturally doesn’t want any enemies to realize how close Shana and Yuuji really are.

That revelation made the weaker moments of the episode all worth it. The reality of the situation Yuuji and Shana are in continues to be made clear even through the goofy romance antics and fanservice: they’re in a world at war. Though the episode really had no action, it still managed to drive home that point. That’s an accomplishment, really.

Episode 2 is a heckuva lot more bland, partly thanks to the plot mainly revolving around Wilhelmina and Yuuji stalking Shana. (I really don’t even feel like summarizing it properly…) Sure, the resulting development of Wilhelmina and Yuuji’s strained relationship is neat, but there’s no action and no comedy. That sounds like a shallow complaint, but in a series like this, you can’t have a really fun and lulzy episode like episode 1 and follow it up with what’s essentially a slice-of-life side story. Episode 2 had its moments, alright, especially with the moeness of the last few scenes (and the hilarity of Yuuji getting yanked around by Wilhelmina, of course.) It just didn’t compare to episode 1.

Yuuji!Shana was probably the best character of both episodes, both in appearance and in commentary. Totally loved his remark about how annoyingly tight panties are (though no comment on whether it’s true or not :P). Shana’s as cute as ever, even in Yuuji’s body, and I did really love her at the end of episode 2. Just look at this:

So is this OVA worth watching? If you’re a fan of the series, the answer is a definite yes. Fortunately, there’s still two more episodes to come; if they’re both really good, that’ll make the OVA average out to a must-watch for anyone. Despite a lackluster episode 2, there’s enough lighthearted lulz combined with character development to make the OVA pretty decent so far. And if you’re one of the zillions in love with Shana… more power to you. THOSE EYES~!!!

CJ’s Rating: 7.5 out of 10 California rolls

PS: SHANA SPAAAAAAAAAAAAAAM

Last week on Baka to Test to Shoukanjuu, Yoshii’s sister showed up and started a wave of shenanigans.  She’s here to stay, but the episode doesn’t focus on her.  Instead, it spotlights the cast as they all come together to advance this thing we call a plot.  After seven episodes of treading water in various pursuits, the series tries to return to its roots.  Let’s get this show on the road.

The episode starts with Himeji trying to confess her love to Yoshii one day, and failing.  The next day Yoshii wakes up to his sister trying to kiss him again.  She prepares “food” for him, which is really a bunch of “nutritious” drinks.  Yoshii goes to school and finds Voyeur making a profile of all the girls’ breast sizes.  Typical.  Hideyoshi’s sister comes in and berates the class for acting like idiots and never trying to improve themselves.  Ironman finds Yoshii and makes him carry the next exam papers down to the safe.  Unfortunately, he mixes up everyone’s possessions with the tests as well.  The class joins forces to try to break into the safe.  Hideyoshi’s plan fails miserably, but then Kyouji Nemoto shows up to help them.  Of course, he just wants the papers to cheat.  He berates the class for being too stupid to take advantage of their break-in, but Himeji counters with a passionate speech.  Yoshii and Yuuji talk about the state of their class, and realize that almost 3 months have passed.  They resolve to declare another ESB, but first, they break into the vault again and leak the exam to invalidate Kyouji’s stolen papers.

As I expected, Yoshii’s sister hasn’t added much to the series.  That said, I don’t think any of the characters lacks enough common sense to think drinking a liter of liquid for breakfast is healthy, and I enjoyed that little exchange.  What comes out of left field in this episode is the return of the plot, and I mean all of it.  We’ve got Himeji trying to confess her love, the return of the goon that messed up the computer room in episode 8, and a resolution to declare war on the school.  Also, the series again points out the value of the class working together as a team.  The comedy takes a bit of a backseat in this episode for the sake of plot, but I don’t think that’s a terrible thing.  The jokes have gotten stale.  I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of Minami bashing Yoshii, but you can only watch Voyeur snap so many photos or Shouko tase Yuuji so many times before it’s boring.  They really needed to generate new material.  Do you remember when they had funny battles at the start of the series?  I’m really hoping for those in the final episodes.

Last month on Katanagatari, Shichika and Togame retrieved Zantou Namakura from the tragic villain Ginkaku.  The next sword on the list is Sentou Tsurugi, or the thousand swords.  The weapon has fallen into the hands of Meisai Tsuruga, the matriarch of a shrine and yet another foe with a tragic history.  What are you going to do now Shichika?

The episode starts with our heroic duo climbing the thousand steps outside of the shrine.  Shichika ends up carrying Togame up to the top, where Tsuruga greets them.  The two women retire to discuss the terms of their visit.  Tsuruga lays out the challenge: Togame must identify the original Tsurugi, while Shichika must defeat her in combat.  A shrine maiden attempts to kill the strategian, but Tsuruga blocks her and sends all the girls away.  The leader calls Shichika in to tell him about the purpose of the temple.  It serves as a refuge for broken women who have nowhere else to go.  Despite hearing the story, he stays determined to defeat her in combat.  Maniwa Kuizame shows up to claim the sword, but Tsuruga dispatches him with ease.  Togame believes she has found the original Tsurugi, and the battle begins.  Tsuruga lures Shichika into a trap, and then explains her past in detail.  Shichika “escapes,” and the two face off for a final rush between his martial arts and the true Tsurugi.  He emerges triumphant upon slaying her in a single blow.

The shrine maidens set the framework for this episode.  Many of the girls suffered severe abuse at the hands of men.  The psychological damage is so extensive that they cower in fear of Shichika, even though he would do them no harm.  They all came to the temple looking for a sanctuary, both for their broken minds and from the crimes they committed.  While their assailants may have raped or abused them, in the eyes of the law, they are guilty of murder.  As a result, they also have to keep their faces covered so no one can recognize them.  Their circumstances force them to live in isolation for the rest of their lives.  Tsuruga puts their welfare ahead of her own life.  Thus, Togame offers aid from the Shogunate to take care of the temple and pardon the women for their crimes.

Tsuruga is quite an interesting character.  She lost her father to the rebellion.  To gain power and influence, she used the skills he gave her to kill hundreds of people.  Then, she found salvation, but only by treading upon the bodies of her comrades and an innocent priest.  Finally, she has helped all the girls at the shrine to repair their damaged minds, but they will have to pay with their souls.  Everything she set out to do has reached fruition, but she did it by paving the road of her life in blood.  To her, the ends do not justify the means.  At this point, she doesn’t feel she has the power to break the cycle, or no longer thinks she’s fit to try.  Following Shichika out of her trap seems like a tactical blunder, but she herself says she thought she would probably die.  Like Ginkaku before her, Tsuruga ultimately wants death, and she knows that Shichika is fully willing to grant her wish.

On that note, Tsuruga also mentions a belief in fate several times.  Let’s look at the events in the series through that lens.  When Togame’s father died in the rebellion, it set into motion events that would cause her to resent the empire.  Since Shichika is the only heir to the anti-sword style, fate dictated that the two would meet.  Their search means that so long as they live, they will eventually meet every person who bears one of the twelve swords.  Tsuruga believes fate decided that her multi-sword style would bring her in contact with the Tsurugi that perfectly compliments her.  This means that her path would have to cross Shichika’s at some indeterminate point.  The ensuing battle would finally allow her to feel death’s embrace.  When you look at it in this manner, Tsuruga’s death broke her cycle, but served to prolong Shichika’s.

Finally, we need to look at Shichika’s character development.  You probably have trouble sympathizing with him given the way the writers have constructed his character.  When Tsuruga questions him on why he fights, he states that he does it because Togame wishes it.  It evokes thoughts of a soldier that carries out his duty with no regard for the task’s morality.  That idea is firmly rooted in reality.  Many times, we kill our enemies because they tried to kill us without taking a moment to think about why they tried to kill us.  Even when he’s given the opportunity to learn Tsuruga’s motivations, he ignores it.  This leads Tsuruga to accuse him of ignoring it simply because he doesn’t want to think for himself.  She is absolutely right, and he even admits it.  Think about it.  Tsuruga and Ginkaku are not truly evil characters.  At worst, they are simply misguided.  Their only real crime was standing in the way of Shichika’s, or rather, Togame’s goal.  He never questions if the ends justify the means.  I have to wonder if a real fight for his life would get him to start examining his actions, and it seems that Sabi will put him through hell next month.  I’m looking forward to it.

Last week on Sora no Woto, a rainstorm assaulted the town of Seize, and the town mobilized to save the day.  We also learned about Courier Klaus’ backstory, and he finally became a hero.  This week, we meet the old woman Jacquotte, and through her explore Rio’s life.  This wraps up a lot of points rather than providing much fodder for speculation, so let’s get underway.

The episode starts with Rio burning a letter, presumably the one she received from her father.  At the same time, Noël and the girls have almost finished the tank.  Kanata wants to look into Iliya’s past, but Filicia’s records are “missing.”  Kureha fills her in on the details instead.  Yumina shows up and asks for help finding Jacquotte, and Kanata drags Rio off with her.  The two find the woman building a house for her long-lost son, and decide to help her with chores around the house.  While Rio chops firewood, Filicia remarks that the Roman army has redeployed troops.  Kanata and Rio leave to gather supplies, and Rio talks about how she first came to the town.  Then they retire to the old woman’s house, and she relates her past to them.  Afterwards, she goes out to die, quite literally.  Rio plays Amazing Grace again, and then entrusts her trumpet to Kanata.  Under her tutelage, Kanata has become a fine trumpet player, as well as a fine young woman.  Content with her work, Rio has finally decided to leave and carry out her task to protect the family she loves.

This episode finally puts Rio’s whole story into perspective.  She is the illegitimate son of the Archduke.  Her father never came around to see them, and he resents him for that.  However, Iliya did visit, and Rio loved her elder sister.  Iliya allowed herself to become engaged to the emperor of Rome to end the hostilities.  Unfortunately, a tragedy cut the Princess’ life drastically short.  While on a morale building tour, she tried to save a drowning child.  She lost her life instead.  The war dragged on for yet another year until the two armies struck a truce.  Of course, Rio never got over it.  She still hated children because of the one who took her sister away from her.  She fled to the town of Seize, which she symbolically views as a dead-end for her life.  In the process, though, she met Kanata, which allowed her to slowly grow as a person to become more like her sister.  With the help of Jacquotte, she finally finds some means of closure.

Jacquotte fell in love with a wealthy man, and became pregnant with his child.  However, this man had a family and a wife who could not bear children.  He took her son and left for his home, promising to return one day.  The story curiously reflects Rio’s own, so she asks how the woman can deal with her grief.  Rather than allowing the past to drag her down, she always looked forward with hope.  She remembered the good times she had before the man left her, and focused on his promise to return one day.  As a result, she has lived a long and largely satisfying life.  The point of this story boils down to how you should view loss.  You’re always going to suffer loss, whether by your own power or because of unforeseen occurrence.  You can’t undo it, so simply dwelling on it is not going to help anyone.  To get through life, you have to focus on the good in your past, live your life in the present, and always aim for the future.  Life is short, so live the best life you can.  This realization finally snaps Rio out of her depression.

At first glance, this episode wraps everything up into a nice package, and to an extent, you would be correct.  However, a few plotlines still exist for the final episodes.  First, Noël has almost finished rebuilding the tank.  Since they already put it to use to save Klaus and Kureha, I doubt they would spotlight it again unless it will see another use.  I think the second DVD bonus episode will focus on how they got the parts.  Second, they still haven’t resolved the fire maiden plotline that started in the first episode.  The story shunted the legend off to the side for quite a while, but in this episode, they bring it back into focus.  However, this has served its purpose by reflecting Rio’s character, so we can safely live without a blatant resolution.  Finally, we know Roma fought Helvetia and that they’re mobilizing the army again, but that nation remains an enigma.  We don’t know their motivations in all this, mostly because we have never met anyone from there.  The next episode will introduce a wounded soldier from Roma and address that issue.  I’m looking forward to it.

OMIGOD OMIGOD OMIGOD OMIGOD OMIGOD OMIGOD OMIGOD!!!!!!!!!!!! XD XD XD XD XD XD XD

Makoto Shinkai’s first true OVA got the attention of sci-fi and romance fans on both sides of the Pacific with its beauty and tear-jerker moments. I was initially somewhat wary of its rarely-mentioned manga adaptation, partly because anime-to-manga adaptations normally suck.

But… This one was different. It totally took Shinkai’s idea and ran it in a dramatically different, slightly more political direction with a very different ending, and it somehow works. Mizu Sahara’s adaptation is just as tear-jerking as the original, but has a less ambiguous ending, which should please the softer-hearted readers. Its original characters could have been extremely annoying, but instead they flesh out Mikako and Noboru’s world quite well. Though the art is fairly weak, especially in battle sequences, there’s a couple of really nicely done color pages at the beginning of the book. It’s a must-read for fans of the OVA and shoujo fans in general.

Mikako and Noboru are middle-schoolers living in a near-future Earth… threatened by galactic war, or so it’s told to the civilians. The military drafts Mikako for a mission before she’s even out of high school, and she leaves Noboru to fend for himself. They had always been somewhat in love, but what will happen when their text messages take longer and longer to get to each other? Will Noboru forget about her, and will she die? Things are made even more nerve-wracking when Mikako’s new friends are in danger as well – and their mission turns out to not be as noble as it seemed.

Don’t get me wrong, there’s no conspiracy crap to be found here, but the story still has just enough politics to be interesting to a romance-disliking (usually) cynic like me. Mikako and Noboru’s romance is typical enough, especially if you’ve already seen the OVA. But little bits of dialogue, especially from minor characters, often contribute to an overall political tension that many readers, young and old, can probably recognize. For example, one character remarks that the rescue mission to Mikako’s ship has no hope of success, and is merely being sent to appease the public. The harshness of the young pilots’ situation is emphasized as well, but fortunately, there’s no  real angsting to be found.

The manga has more characters than the OVA, partly because a volume of manga can cover considerably more plot than a 30-minute episode. Fortunately, the manga-original characters avoid being one-note cliches or just plain annoying. Hisa in particular is a great addition to the cast, partly because her injuries are a powerful reality check for both Mikako and the reader. Miwa’s a great oneechan-type figure for Mikako, and Noboru’s potential love interest back on Earth was likable enough to keep me wondering if she’d win his heart fully. (Quasi-spoiler: She doesn’t. But that’s to be expected.) Other nameless, one- or two-line characters aren’t badly done either, and I have to wonder how much effort Tokyopop poured into making this translation as natural-sounding as possible.

Pacing is only a slight issue; the end feels a bit rushed (although in this case, it’s better than too long) and some scenes just seem to have too many dialogue-less panels slowing things down. The slightly sloppy art doesn’t help things either, especially since the robot battle scenes are so dependent on the reader actually being able to figure out what’s going on. Characters’ expressions are almost always well-drawn, though, and the color pages make absolutely stunning use of sepia tones.

For once, an anime-to-manga adaptation has been produced that might just be as good as its original. Despite taking Makoto Shinkai’s concept in a very different direction, The Voices of a Distant Star’s manga shines thanks to its likable characters, attention to societal details (especially pertaining to politics), and the sheer awesomeness of its deceptively typical love story. Despite pacing and artistic issues, it’s an amazingly refreshing story compared to some of the teen angst romance stories out there.

CJ’s Rating: 8.5 out of 10 California rolls

Springtime is supposed to be a time of rebirth… but will it be a healing time for the weary, scarred-for-life anime fans out there who are tired of being fed crap each season? Don’t get us wrong, there have been some really good series in the past 3 or so years, but there’s also been tons of legitly horrible shows.

The consensus at BH is that this season’s fairly lame again, but there are several shows we think might be decent or even good. And since we have more bloggers on board, we’ll get a broader look at the season than usual.

The usual disclaimers: We try not to hate on something too hard without watching it (except for the ecchi trash) and all of this is subject to change. Episode count information is scarce this season, and even definite air dates are unknown for some series, especially the ONAs.

Ai no Kusabi
13 episodes?, starts releases in March, animated by AIC

CJ: So this is a remake of an old yaoi OVA? Interesting that they should be bothered making a remake, but I’ll pass; yaoi’s not my thing.
Crisu: I’m not a yaoi fan, but based on the apparent track record of this show’s longevity, I perhaps ought to look into this if I were a fan.  A strict social system is in place that allows males to serve other males (insert teasing here), the highest-ranked ones are forbidden to have sex (oh the tension), and there are slums in a neighboring city where such rules don’t apply (conflict and suspense).  Looks like a lot of good elements to see boys yearn for one another.  I won’t be watching, but I’ll probably hear about it from a few people nonetheless.
Dave: I should start by saying that man love isn’t wholly my bag. (I did, however, see one of the OVAs a while back.) This is what you get when you mix yaoi and Ghost In The Shell. No, really. It’s hard to define just what sort of Orwellian overtones exist here, but if the critical reception of the manga is any indication this should be worth watching if it’s up your alley.

Angel Beats
starts in April, animated by PA Works

CJ: Angels are overdone. Girls with guns are overdone. Why do I get the feeling I’m going to watch this anyway?
Crisu: Yes, definitely. I am a Key fan, so it’s a must-watch. And PA Works will be a treat — gives me a break from KyoAni for a while.
Rakuen: An organization in the afterlife wants to war against God. They’re sure going to have hell to pay. Well, the trailer looks certainly looks interesting; though I have a feeling the fanservice stick will hit it a few times. That never killed anyone though, right?
Raphael: Wow, what a pedigree! Original story by Key, animation by PA Works and the trailer looks stunning. I’m also a sucker for supernatural battle-type shows and the afterlife theme seems really interesting. I can’t wait for this one.

Arakawa Under the Bridge
starts in April, animated by Shaft

CJ: Most of Shaft’s shows haven’t really caught my eye, lately, though I have been really meaning to watch Bakemonogatari… Maybe I’ll follow this, maybe not; I think it’ll come down to what the blogosphere says and how much free time I have.
Crisu: I see a star-head man and a green (frog?) man. And it’s by Shaft. Nevermind, this is TOTALLY normal.
Rakuen: A guy almost drowns, but a girl saves him. He becomes her boyfriend, but has to live under a bridge with her. I am very confused here, and the commercial doesn’t really help clear things up, though it prominently features a kappa. MAL lists the genre as comedy, which seems like a given, so I will try to give it a shot.
lvlln: I’ll definitely be watching this primarily for 2 reasons: it’s being produced by Shaft, and it stars Maaya Sakamoto as the female lead. I don’t know anything about the source material, but I have greatly enjoyed the unique spin Shaft puts on their adaptations, whether they be drama or comedy or both. And I could listen to Maaya’s voice all day (in fact, I sometimes do, putting her music on my playlist). This is one I would definitely like to blog.
Raphael: This is one of the shows I’m eagerly awaiting. It’s Shaft, it’s got a strong voice cast and it looks both fun and bizarre. I’m definitely going to check this out and I may blog this.
Dave: I’m not really sure what I can say about this. Plotwise, it just seems like an archetypal Love Story. Visually, though, I want to touch the Star Guy’s head. I bet it will make me invulnerable.

B Gata H Kei
starts April 1, animated by Hal Film Maker

CJ: Wow. I am a nun compared to this chick.
Crisu: o.O Hrm. The synopsis gives me a negative impression just based on the aspiration itself. But that could just be the lonesome single me taking out my frustrations on an anime character. Most likely a comedy or the plot wouldn’t really go too well on TV; my first impression of the artwork is good. I’ll wait on the reception.
Rakuen: If you heard a cracking sound, that was my soul breaking just a little bit more. A girl wants to become a promiscuous socialite but finds the boy of her dreams. I’m going with pure ecchi trash on this one.
Raphael: I quite like Hal Film Maker, but seriously. Yuck. Even if the humour is good, I don’t think I can get past the premise.

Black Rock Shooter
unknown start date, animated by Ordet
(Admin note: Most sources are saying this was originally announced as a Spring 2010 series, but there’s nothing indicating that on the website now. Draw your own conclusions…)

CJ: I really couldn’t care less about an anime based on a Hatsune Miku song… I mean, really, what is the plot of this thing going to be? Supposedly the creator of the character has a whole world fleshed out and everything, but… Eh…
Crisu: Am interested! The pilot was super short, but it gave a glimpse of what could be. It stirred some talk in ISML land, so I don’t know what will become of BRS come 2011. She definitely has the looks. And the ability to fight could rival Shana (although the Flame Haze has a lot more story behind her).
Rakuen: I honestly have no idea about this, but I already see a tremendous number of members logged on MAL for it, so I think I will take the plunge on it.
lvlln: I found out about this one by being a fan of Supercell. I liked how the PVs have stayed true to the art from the original video. The fact that the PV uses the original track as well leaves me wondering if they’ll actually have Hatsune Miku as the voice for songs in the show. I hope Supercell is involved in this in some way and that maybe we’ll get to hear Black Rock Shooter sung with Nagi’s wonderful voice. Definitely gonna be watching this.

D.C. ~Da Capo~ Ext
starts in April, animated by Feel

CJ: Do you really think I’m going to waste my time on generic moeblobs?
Crisu: A retelling? Since I hadn’t gotten to the original series yet, would this be a decent substitute to catch up on it all?
Rakuen: I never watched any of Da Capo, and looking at the series history, it just looks like a passable harem anime built over an eroge. If I understand what little information I can even find, this is like a reboot for the series, and so it’s possible to jump onto this boat if you want. Of course, I could be wrong, but I’m still not really going to care about this series.
lvlln: This fascinates me because way back around 2005/2006, I had watched both seasons of Da Capo back to back. I regret the hours I sunk into that greatly, but it fills me with wonder how I had managed to sit through over 18 hours of such a crappy series. So I’m pretty biased against the show, but I think I’ll watch at least a couple episodes, in a way similar to revisiting an old enemy from middle school. At the least, I wonder if they’ll bring back all the same voice actors.

Giant Killing
starts April 4, animated by DEEN

CJ: This looks cool, but I’m not really into soccer or underdog stories. Maybe I’ll give it a chance if the blogosphere starts saying it’s awesome, but I don’t really trust Studio DEEN anymore…
Rakuen: Here comes another sports anime this season. However, unlike the others, the total underdog story kind of appeals to me. The coach has to pull his team all the way out from rock bottom. I like the animation style as well. So, if I were to pick up a sports related series, I would pick this.
Dave: Couldn’t they just have called in Beckham? Joking aside, my biggest point of interest about this is how you can stretch something that has the same premise as Angels in the Outfield or Remember the Titans into a full-length series (though, since it’s a manga, I guess…). I think I’ll give this one a watch just to find out the answer.

Hakuouki: Shinsengumi Kitan
starts in April, animated by DEEN

CJ: Haven’t we had enough wanna-be Byronic heroes for one decade already?
Rakuen: This series tries to put a romance story into the history of the Shinsengumi. I’m not sure what to make of this one. It sounds like a little potential is there, but it screams bishonen and has the potential to devolve into reverse harem. Of course, romance with swordsmen fighting demons is hardly a unique concept either.
Raphael: This is potentially interesting, but I’m thrown by the setting and character designs. So once again, a probable “no”.
Dave: Game-based anime aren’t really doing much for me, but it’s certainly an interestingly-sounding premise, so who knows? I might be surprised by this. Also, it has swords. Can’t go wrong with swords.

Heroman
starts in April, animated by Bones

CJ: This one will either sink horribly or swim quite well… Probably the latter, since it’s Bones. But it’s worth watching the first episode, whether the outcome is win or twisted lulzyness.
Rakuen: I can’t find a video of this on Youtube, but the preview image just screams that it’s trying to be very American in a Japanese culture. You just don’t build a robot sporting the Star-Spangled Banner otherwise. I’d rather watch Iron Man.
Raphael: My thoughts towards this are pretty much the same as mine for Iron Man (switch “Madhouse” with “Bones”) except I think I’ll dive in and watch the first episode of this one, because the art looks strong.
Dave: I want this to be Stan Lee’s take on Giant Robo. I really, really do. I want to watch this.

Hetalia season 3
starts in April?, animated by DEEN

CJ: Maybe I’ll watch this just to get Jenni to stop nagging me…
Crisu: On my list … as well as the prior seasons. I know they’re short; it won’t take me long to catch up! But any bit of learning in anime, even if it’s silly, is praiseworthy for the attempt.
Rakuen: Completely missed Hetalia, and I have no stake in trying to catch up. I’m sorry if that makes me uncool.

House of Five Leaves
starts April 15, animated by Manglobe

CJ: I’ve been meaning to check out the manga via IKKI, but I might as well just try this. The concept doesn’t intrigue me that much, but it’s worth a shot, just for the sake of trying something different…
Rakuen: I am a sucker for samurais and swords as well. This time we have a shy and unconfident samurai. After everyone else throws him out, he ends up joining a gang though, and finds himself sucked into the work and motivation. It sounds like it’s trying to explore the concept that darkness isn’t necessarily evil, which again, is a mechanic I enjoy, so I might give it a shot.
Dave: Now, I didn’t really watch Secret Blacksmith, and it’s been a while since I dug out Michiko to Hatchin, so my relationship with Manglobe has become a bit stale. They’ve never failed to deliever visually, and given that this is yet another period piece (hi, Samurai Champloo) they’ve certainly got the experience to do it. Looking forward to this.

Ichiban Ushiro no Dai Maou
starts in April, animated by Artland

CJ: This… looks dumb. Like, legit shounen-y trash. There could be potential in this, but I’m really not seeing it, especially with the lame promo art.
Rakuen: Just looking at the promotional image screams ecchi harem. What’s worse is that it sticks itself into the magical academy ground that many series have already treaded. Maybe if the spring season were less populated, I’d give it a look, like Omamori Himari from this season. There’s just too much going on already to justify watching it.
Raphael: Iffy on this one, but there’s a solid voice cast and I’ll definitely check out the first episode. This could be the show that I watch (and enjoy) but would never tell anyone in RL about, a la Saki and Kampfer.

Ikkitousen – Xtreme Xecutor
starts March 26, animated by TNK

CJ: You know, if I wanted to watch hot girls fighting, I’d go watch women’s wrestling or something.
Rakuen: This is one of those Three Kingdoms heroes as hot girls anime, and it’s the fourth season. I have actually looked at both the anime and manga in the past; you really aren’t missing much here. It’s not much more than your standard ecchi combat fare.
Dave: Lord, is this the Spring season or the Three Kingdoms season? I kid, I kid. Dragon Destiny did mildly interest me though, so I’m not writing this off yet. Not to mention that I’m a college-age male and thus am not immune to the charms (or lack thereof) of fanservice…

Iron Man
starts  in October?, animated by Madhouse and Marvel
(Admin note: Iron Man has allegedly been pushed back to October, but we’re leaving it in this preview just in case.)

CJ: Hmmm. Part of me wants to write this off because I pretty much hate the superhero genre. Part of me wants to embrace this because it’s a fusion of Japanese and American talents. And the last part of me just wants to watch this out of curiosity… Which means I will be trying the first episode.
Crisu: Introducing Tony Stark, the bishie! I watched an anime version of Batman once, and I swear I did not recognize Bruce Wayne until someone said his name, even though he had been on screen and speaking for several minutes. I was like “No way that could be him” … but it was. And so I expect the same in this anime. However— Iron Man gets to exploit the anime laws of energy blasts and flight a lot more than Batman can, so I expect this to be exciting.
Rakuen: Marvel is giving Madhouse the opportunity to animate Iron Man. Apparently, there’ll be a different Marvel character for the next three seasons as well. I would pay out the nose for Deadpool to be in there somewhere. For now, I think Iron Man is cool and I want to see where this project goes.
Raphael: Eh, I’m kinda iffy about this. It could be great, with Madhouse at the helm, but it could also crash and burn. I’ll probably wait to see what the consensus is in the blogosphere before giving this a shot.
Dave: Hey! Finally, I can watch an anime version of one of my favorite c-OH WAIT NO I CAN’T. I’m used to video games getting delays, but anime? Preposterous.

K-ON! season 2
13 episodes?, starts April 6, animated by KyoAni

CJ: Never watched season 1, and probably never will. The music was pretty good, though, so I’m glad a second season is being made. At the very least, I’ll check out the OSTs.
Crisu: Well I already went through the whole first season; might as well keep going. Mio is cute, sure, but she’s rather overdone. Azusa also doesn’t seem to have a very defining personality; she’s just the helpless target of moe-based attacks. I mean at least Mikuru is a time traveler and knows classified information. I kinda want them to play music more … and not just go on a picnic. Bring back a new Lucky Star season if you want simple stuff like that. Much better characters there.
Rakuen: I tried to watch the first season and didn’t get past the first episode. Then again, I’m sure you don’t need my recommendation here anyway. If KyoAni’s announcement didn’t get you pumped, you’re probably not interested.
lvlln: I feel similarly about this show as I do about D.C. ~Da Capo~ Ext. Except the first season of K-ON! was wildly more popular, and by the time it had come out, I had learned to stop watching a show if I hated it. Indeed, I only watched the first 4 episodes of season 1. In any case, given how popular this show was, and how I did mostly enjoy its music, I’ll be giving the second season a shot. Pretty sure I’ll be dropping it quickly, though.
Raphael: So I watched the first series. I enjoyed the first series. The first series made me laugh. But I can’t help but feel like I’m losing my patience with the girls of Hokugou Tea Time. A solid “maybe”.

Kaichou wa Maid-sama!
starts April 1, animated by JC Staff

Crisu: This sounds pretty interesting.  Reminds me briefly of the Railgun episode where the tough-as-nails dorm manager also has a soft romantic side.  Though I’m not sure if the heroine here does the maid cafe because she likes it or because she just needs the money.  It’s a nice contrast, though, and perhaps is a great excuse to slip in moe shots of a tough character — a forced tsundere appearance if you will.  But heck, she might actually be one.  With JC Staff behind the reins on this, I feel it has potential.
Rakuen: A girl tries to lead her school as the class president… but she works at a maid café. Amazingly, this lacks the ecchi tag on MAL, which in some ways gives me hope. I haven’t seen a good romantic comedy since, well, ever. I might try it if I have time.
CJ: This……… I……… This is just. No.

Kiss x Sis
starts in April, animated by Feel

CJ: Do I even NEED to provide caustic commentary for this one? No? Good.
Crisu: Ah, wow. I watched the OVA and admittingly enjoyed it. But an anime was not on my list of expectations. Oh goodness. But I guess I can’t help but check it out. It’ll probably be heavy on the censorship save for the DVD releases. I just find the situation so awkward — two step-sisters wanting to jump you at moment’s notice .. and your parents APPROVE — that I’m very curious as to what crazy situation the writers can come up with next.
Rakuen: It’s kind of refreshing to have a series that is exactly what it says on the tin. Of course, it’s still an ecchi comedy with pseudo-incest in it, but at least it’s honest!
lvlln: I tried to read the manga when it first came out a couple years ago, but I couldn’t. The premise is just too much of an ero-setup to take seriously. So it might have worked if it had actually been hentai, but as an actual anime or manga with no “payoff,” it just isn’t interesting. Not gonna be watching unless some shitstorm breaks out on the internet about this. I don’t think that’s likely.

Mayoi Neko Overrun!
starts in April, animated by AIC

CJ: Screw catgirls, I want more of the cats in Sketchbook ~full color’S~.
Rakuen: Yep, another ecchi comedy involves cats, and this one has a stepsister too! I believe this is the third season in a row with one of these, perhaps it’s become a niche trend again. While I did watch Himari this season, I’m don’t feel even remotely interested in this one.
Dave: For some strange reason I can’t comprehend, I get flashbacks of Bottle Fairy when I read about this. Though, I can’t quite tell which direction this series goes in. They take in catgirls, but then what? My money’s on Michael Vick making a cameo appearance here somewhere.

Ookiku Furikabatte ~Natsu no Taikai-hen~
starts April 1, animated by A-1 Pictures

CJ: OoFuri (released as Big Windup! in the US) has a bit of a following among girls, and it’s baseball, which I love… But I haven’t watched the first season. Still, maybe I’ll give this a shot if some of the other series I want to watch this season suck.
Rakuen: I don’t really get into sports anime, and as this is the second season, I doubt that I will get into this either. If that’s your thing, by all means go for it.
Dave: Again? All of my female, under-21, baseball-loving friends told me I’d love this (and oddly enough that’s a surprisingly large constituency), but, no. I make an enemy of Japan when I say that baseball is not my favorite sport, and by extension I’m not too thrilled about an anime based around it.

Rainbow – Nisha Rokubo no Shichinin
starts April 6, animated by Madhouse

Rakuen: Another Madhouse show, and I am definitely interested in this series as well. It focuses on delinquents who went through a rough time of reformation and their lives after release. From some of my previous posts, you might know that I love the delinquent characters because they have so much room for growth. I hope someone picks up this series.
CJ: Rakuen’s description makes it clear that this is one of the most original concepts this season. That said, I probably won’t end up watching this, just because I’ll be busy following other series. Doesn’t mean I won’t give it a try, though.
Dave: This one sounds good. Haven’t read the manga but there doesn’t seem to be any mystical overtones, so that’s a plus. It kind of gives me a vibe akin to The Outsiders, only probably much more violent.

Senko no Night Raid
13 episodes?, starts April 5, animated by A-1 Pictures

CJ: The art was what caught my eye first… And then the concept really got my attention. Since it’s A-1 Pictures, it could be really good, but it could also fall flat. Just because it’s about spies doesn’t automatically mean it’s awesome. I’ll give this a try, but if the lead ends up being an uberawesome James Bond-wannabe Gary Stu, we’re gonna have problems.
Rakuen: This is the original work to replace Sora no Woto in the Anime no Chikara timeslot. The short of it is… spies in China. Now, I am a fan of the TV show Burn Notice, so I have a definite interest in spies. Of course, I imagine this will be more dramatic and less witty, but that’s fine too. In addition, the trailer has a big explosion as an added bonus.
Raphael: I’m looking forward to this. I love spy dramas, and the setting is definitely different to the usual anime fare. It’s also being animated by A-1 Pictures, which I consider to be a leading studio, and is showing in TV Tokyo’s “Power of Anime” timeslot, so I’ll definitely give it a try and may even blog this.
Dave: Now this is something I really like the thought of. I watched the trailer and it really does look neat, plus it’s got that 1930’s espionage thing going for it.

Shin Koihime Musou – Otome Tairan
starts in April, animated by Dogakobo

CJ: Why are they making another one? Can we steal the funds from this and pour it into another season of Darker than Black please?
Crisu: I want to know more about the Three Kingdoms saga in general. And yes this anime is not the best source at all for it, so I totally expected it to go just one season and then disappear into the vault. But nooo~. Maybe I’ll just go play Dynasty Warriors again. Or, yeah yeah I know .. actually read the book. x.x
Rakuen: Speak of the bloody devil, it’s the other Three Kingdoms ecchi series. MAL rates this slightly higher, and it’s only season two, so if something possesses you to watch one or the other, you might want to go with this one.

Uragiri wa Boku no Namae wo Shitteiru
starts in April, animated by JC Staff

CJ: Are there gonna be joke subs for this one? I’d watch those. The Hanamaru Kindergarten ones were hysterical, this one could be even better!
Rakuen: I’m not interested in shounen ai. However, an empath as a main character at least sounds like a good framework for a story, so if you do like the genre, you might try it.
Dave: I read the description for this one and just kind of made my “wat” face. It seems like there’s some kind of veil of mystery surrounding the plot of this, but I’m just not interested.

Working!
starts April 4, animated by A-1 Pictures

CJ: This looks like fun, but comedy usually isn’t my thing. Still, the art looks pretty nice… I have a heavy bias towards shiny things… Maybe I’ll try this, especially since A-1 Pictures has been on a roll lately.
Rakuen: Okay, this looks somewhat interesting. Undoubtedly, someone has done slice-of-life in a restaurant before, but I missed the boat on that one. This might fulfill my desire for a second comedy this season. If you think about it, all kinds of shenanigans can happen in a kitchen…
Raphael: If it doesn’t rely on moe too much, this could be a lot of fun. One of the strongest voice casts this season + a good studio = potential blog for me. I’m definitely going to look at the first episode.

Yojo-han Shinwa Taikei
starts in April, animated by Madhouse

CJ: A series about a guy’s college life… I could glean some tips from this. Especially since I’ll be pretty young for a freshman. ;_; Anyway, this looks like it could be either really good or really boring, but I might as well try it.
Rakuen: Another Madhouse show! This one comes out of the brain that gave us Kaiba, but it doesn’t look like it will be a mindscrew. Instead, it’s about a guy looking back on his college life. Just from the animation style, I can tell this is not for everyone, but at least try to look past it and give it a chance.
Raphael: Great director, and it’s part of the noitaminA timeslot, but I really have no idea how this will turn out. I’ll probably watch the first episode and end up making a snap decision within the first 10 minutes.

Yutori-chan
starts March 16, animated by Actas

Crisu: Pastel colors! Too cute! Will it be enjoyable? ^_^
CJ: The feminist in me is puking violently at the sight of those pastels… and that hair… Well, moe in general makes her puke, but that’s not the point. Enjoy this one, Crisu; I’ll be over here rereading Fullmetal Alchemist to bleach my eyes…
Rakuen: A high school girl gets a job at a toy factory. The episodes are two minutes long and distributed by e-mail. It also looks like it actually started in the winter season, and no one noticed it. I hope you aren’t too heart-broken by the loss.
Raphael: I actually like the art of this. If it’s sweet and fanservice-free, I’ll check it out. But yeah, once again I am enlisting others to do the dirty work for me. :P

Before I begin, one thing I forgot to write in the catch up is that there is an organization of vampires called Telomere that was behind all of the assassination attempts on Mina. One of the members was a student who lead the charge against the human students in episode 7. I mention this now because they take a central role in the plot of this episode and presumably of the episodes going forwards.

Well, the Vampire Bund has now been established, so a new plotline begins to develop. The episode starts off almost like a hentai, with a young boy waking up to find his “older sister” trying to jump him. The young boy’s name is Yuzuru, and the “older sister” is actually Nanami Shinonome, the former student council president who was turned into a vampire very early in the show. The scene ends with her fleeing after forcing herself to stop from biting the boy.

It has been a month since the events of episode 7 and the opening of the Bund. It has a very strict border policy, with vampires not being allowed to leave as they please. Vera, the head vampire bodyguard/assistant for Mina, reports to her that some vampires have been breaking this rule, and so she is order to investigate.

At the high school, the students who had been victimized in the previous episode have all been “vaccinated” (they never do explain how they can “vaccinate” turned vampires ex post facto), but all of them have still opted to leave the school. Yuki considers quitting the student council as well because it hurts her to see Mina and Akira together. But after she and Mina talk things out about Akira and learning that there are some aspects of her relationship with Akira that Mina is jealous of, they become friends.

Mei Ran makes a brief appearance early in the episode. She visits Akira in the classroom, flirts with him a bit. It is revealed that she has a pendant which is a replica of one that Akira vaguely recognizes. It will probably become significant later.

The real meat of the story starts when during her investigation, Vera catches Yuzuru trying to break into the Bund. When he reveals that he’s looking for Nanami, Vera takes him to Mina, who decides to set up a net to catch her in the act. The net is successful, but Nanami does not listen to Mina’s orders, making her realize that she has a different master. After a short chase, they run into the master, a vampire by the name of Hysterica (va: Rie Kugimiya ). Vera recognizes her, and they seem to have a history that stretches at least a 100 years. Last time they met, in 1918, she had been known as Francesca.

She also has with her a sizable army of undead-like vampire followers, also immune to Mina’s words. A fight scene breaks out between Beowulf Elite Eight, Mina’s royal guard team made up of wolfmen, and the rogue vampires, while Vera takes on Hysterica herself and Akira goes chasing after Nanami. When they catch up, they see Nanami in pain over her love for Yuzuru, not wanting him to see her this way or to turn him into a vampire, but still having the urge to do so. Yuzuru suddenly appears, and tries to chase Nanami who starts running away from him, but not before Hysterica also appears, pushing him away and grabbing Nanami.

She decides to retreat for now, realizing that she’s outnumbered and outmatched, but not before giving an ominous warning that she is planning on something that will show the “fragile humans” the power of vampires. She escapes by creating a diversion by exploding 2 of her undead vampires, who had been rigged with explosives.

Well, this episode was really filled with a lot of content, and it was a lot more intelligible than most of the previous episodes. I’m glad to see even more of Mei Ran and to get a glimpse at what her story is all about. Still nothing concrete yet, but the pendant tells us that unless it’s just a red herring, she will definitely play a bigger role in the rest of the episodes. Yuki seems to have gotten a mostly happy ending, as she learns that she can let Mina have Akira without having to give him up.

But given the more interesting stuff that happened in this episode, I hope that there isn’t too much time spent on Yuki and the love triangle. Nanami was a character whom I wrote off as dead after she first got attacked by vampires, but she had returned in episode 6 and now plays an even bigger role, although I predict she’ll step aside to Hysterica and the bigger Telomere organization that’s behind it all. The opening scene with her reminded me a bit of the latest episode of Baka to Test. The anime industry definitely went through a little sister phase for a while; is it now going through a big sister phase?

I liked how Hysterica was presented as a character. I didn’t realize Rie Kugimiya was going to be in this, and it’s nice to hear her play a character so unlike her usual roles. Besides her voice, the sharp angles of the features of her face, the stark contrast between her thick eyebrows and her skin, and her maniacal facial expressions worked well to present her as a very sinister character. Her former relationship with Vera interests me as well. It seems that they used to be on the same side until some event or decision they made split them apart, and I hope the show explains that a bit more.

The fight scenes were short, but were again pretty well done, like in episode 7. Shaft isn’t traditionally known for using a lot of action in their animation, but it was quite fluid and, more importantly, very well directed. Mina’s take down and destruction of Hysterica’s weapon was beautiful to watch. I don’t expect action to be a major portion of the show going forwards, but if there are little scenes like the ones in this episode, I’ll be happy.

This episode finally had a legitimate ED sequence. Same song as before, but there’s actual animation and stuff going on instead of slowly zooming out of a slowly colorizing picture of Mina in lingerie. The imagery reminded me of some of Shaft’s other OPs and EDs. The high-contrast, very dark imagery reminded me at times of Zoku Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei’s final ED (Omamori), while the moving gears and chained up Mina was reminiscent of the OP from the 2 Ef series. Overall, it was a pretty standard Shaft ED, but nothing to write home about.

To start off, let me introduce myself. My name is Raphael and I’m one of the new bloggers here at Borderline Hikikomori. Pleased to meet you!

Working!! is one of the shows slated for the upcoming season, and one that I’ll be blogging. Set in a family restaurant called Wagnaria, it’s a slice-of-life comedy that revolves around the lives of the men and women who work there. In this first (preview) episode, we meet Poplar Taneshima, a wide-eyed and ditzy waitress who is tasked with finding a new part-timer for the restaurant. She begins her search by asking her schoolmates but after no luck with this method, she sets out to recruit strangers. She literally runs into high school student Sota Takanashi, who mistakes her for a lost child. After she clears the air with him and inadvertently reveals that they go to the same school – and that she is, in fact, older than him – he happily takes the job. He’s brought back to the restaurant and introduced to lazy assistant manager Shirafuji Kyoko, as well as Jun Sato and Hiroomi Soma, both chefs, and Yachiyo Todoroki, the sword-carrying “crew chief”.

Following this is a somewhat bizarre turn of events where Sota compares Poplar to an insect behind her back, calls twenty-eight year old Kyoko “pretty old” (and gets crazy shifts as a result), and later watches as she fights some customers who are teasing Poplar… and then orders some friends to rob them. Towards the end of the episode, the new recruit meets another member of staff, the man-phobic Inami Mahiru, who greets him with a wild punch to the nose. Suffice to say, Sota has realised that working at Wagnaria is going to be interesting… to say the least.

I quite enjoyed this episode. The art is done in typical A-1 Pictures style (see Sora no Woto), with smooth animation. The cast, especially the male members, give strong performances and the character designs are sweet but nothing special. The atmosphere of the show was fun and lively, with a strangely calming effect despite the occasionally frenetic pace of the jokes. Since this is a slice-of-life series, the fate of the show is really going to depend on the strength of the characters. I’m not entirely won over by them as of yet, but I feel confident that I’ll grow to be very fond of them within the space of a few more installments.

The full run of Working!! will begin on April 4.

I honestly didn’t think I’d ever recover enough to write a review about this series. I mean. That ending. T-That ending.

After a while, though, I’ve come to terms with the depressing mindscrew end, and have decided to enjoy the show (and its fandom) for what it is: a quasi-psychological sci-fi exploration of characters and “what if?” scenarios. As I’ve said before, Suou captured my attention enough to make me watch the show, but it was also worth watching thanks to the exploration of Hei and Yin’s relationship and the extraordinary plot twists. Close to the end, it seemed like Bones had written itself into a hole, but the revelations at the end of episode 11 pulled things back together surprisingly well.

(A/N: Still haven’t managed to see all of season one, but fandom has spoiled me enough to allow me to put this review quasi-in-context of Kuro no Keiyakusha. Therefore, it may contain minor spoilers for season one as well.)

The series’ opening scene was attention-getting, but I loved how it was essentially ripped to shreds by the end of the season. Throughout the first 10 or so episodes, the viewer is mainly focused on Suou, with Hei mainly being a catalyst for her development. As a new character, Suou was going to be either hit-or-miss, and I sense that a lot of fans of season one were really wondering where the heck Yin is.

Suou’s character was extraordinary well-rounded thanks to her interactions with  others, especially Tanya and (for the short time he was alive) Nika. Her worrying and confusion were rarely overdramatic, and most of her other emotions were superbly executed as well. This, of course, is partly thanks to Kana Hanazawa, Suou’s seiyuu, as well as Tensai Okamura’s directing awesomeness. The changes in Suou’s relationship with Hei at the end caught me by surprise – the two of them didn’t get along well for so long, and now he’s all huggy and stuff? Perhaps she had begun to remind him of Bai or something.

Either way, I found her quasi-hatred of Hei to be one of the most heartbreaking parts of the show. This was what made her really tragic: she had the powers (and, arguably, responsibilities) of a Contractor, but her emotions still spiraled out of control at the drop of a hat. She tells Hei she hates him, then turns to him when she can’t figure out what’s happening to her. Between that, her family-related angst, and her vain attempts to save Tanya, she’s a character I won’t be forgetting anytime soon.

Hei’s an odd character for me to discuss, because he’s so much less likable when he’s not with Yin. Legitly. You have him all worried and puppy-loving on Yin at the end of this season and in the OVA, but for most of this season he beats up Suou, is very unsupportive of her emotionally, and makes her do pervy dances. Some of his actions are partly justified by the circumstances, especially since he’s a Contractor, but I still wanted to slap him at times. I can’t really get a good grasp on his overall character, though, and that may be partly because I haven’t finished season one.

July, on the other hand, I could never slap… <3! I didn’t care for him much during the first 10 or so episodes, but toward the end when he apparently began to “evolve,” I found myself wishing for a happy ending for him. The shot of him in Suou’s new world was a relief, to an extent, though I’m left wondering if he was still a Doll in that world. It would have been interesting to see him continue to evolve, especially considering what happened with Yin.

All I ever hear about on LJ is how most of DtB’s female fans don’t like Misaki, but she continues to be one of my favorite characters. (Second to Suou, of course, and perhaps tied with Yin.) Maybe part of why I like her so much is her subtlety; she’s relatively calm and collected, but not unreasonably so, and that’s what makes her a believable law enforcement/detective character. She’s a little flat, but as a supporting character, you can’t be her to be super-complex or anything, can you?

Of course, some of the other side characters REALLY confused me, and that’s also partly because of me not finishing season one. Take, for example, the blonde twins that talked kinda creepy and popped up at creepy times. While I eventually figured out their general purpose in the series’ development… were they in season one at all? Or did they just magically appear in season two to be (very adorable) objects of mystery for the first 8 or so episodes? Some of the other side characters I adored without hesitating, though, especially Hazuki and Youko.

Speaking of Youko… holy crap, a lot of people died in this show. Did this many people die in season one? You have Nika, Tanya, Shion, July (arguably,) Suou (arguably,) that one chick in episode one, Youko (; A ;), and a couple of quasi-random characters, clones, civilians, etc. The violence in the series didn’t surprise me, but I expected it to mostly be concentrated at the end, not scattered throughout.

The final two episodes do a nice job shifting the focus from Suou to her relationship with her family, Shion’s powers, and Yin’s fate. It had all the potential to be a trainwreck of an ending, but Bones managed to tie things together without totally closing off the potential for another season or OVA placed after the events of this season. Yeah, it was an absolutely heartwrenching final episode, but it was the kind of heartwrenching that made sense (sort of) and didn’t feel too horribly cheap. The shot of the Yin look-alike waking up at the end was especially tantalizing, as was the shot of Hei carrying away Yin. I sort of didn’t like the part with Misaki randomly hovering over Hei and Yin; was that a reference to something in season one that I didn’t get? It seemed like a deus ex machina to make Misaki (and the viewer) think Yin and Hei were possibly dead.

Regardless of the possibilities for another season, Darker than Black season two is surprisingly well-plotted and creative. The whole Izanami/Izanagi prophecy thing was arguably a bit uninspired, but when executed in the Darker than Black universe, it works pretty well. The characters are what make this series continue to be outstanding, despite the changes in the main cast (and over9000 deaths.) Hopefully the new OVA will help explain the more confusing parts of this season a little better, especially with regards to Yin; but even if it doesn’t do a particularly good job, Ryuusei no Gemini should still be hailed as an impressive accomplishment by Studio Bones.

CJ’s Rating: 8.5 out of 10 California rolls

First, the obvious: I’m off hiatus. Expect a few fun new things from me within a day or so.

Secondly and slightly more importantly, I got my college plans worked out… and I will be attending school in-state! This means good things for my convention schedule, because I will still be able to attend Matsuricon and Ohayocon each year. Theoretically, I’ll even be able to add Sugoicon, Anime Punch or another Midwest convention, if I can get rides. ^__^ Paneling, especially Anime Blogging 101 and 201, should continue, and maybe I’ll even manage to work with Rakuen, Dave, or others to do a new panel or two.

The bad news is that I have to start classes in the summer… but that’ll be okay, since it’s Japanese 101 and 102, which I could have tested out of but decided against because there’s big holes in my writing abilities. ;_; Sigh.

Thirdly (and even MORE importantly~) Borderline Hikikomori has two new writers! Raphael will start posting shortly, but lvlln jumped in already with a Dance in the Vampire Bund post since I dropped the series. We’re all looking forward to working with them and the fresh insights they’ll bring us!

~CJ

PS – Spring Preview will be up by Monday!

WOW! Kagura snapped and her Yato blood took over! That was a crazy fight, always awesome to see a small girl take down a guy over 3 times her own size, as an extra she was wearing sexy black leather heel boots! And look at that pose showing her dominance! So awesome~ P.S: I’m watching this on [...]