- Supporter
- Last OnlineYesterday, 11:53 AM
- GenderMale
- BirthdayJul 2, 2003
- LocationRostock, Germany
- JoinedDec 8, 2020
RSS Feeds
|
![]()
May 13, 2024
THIS IS A SPOILER-FREE REVIEW
There has been a trend in the anime industry in the last few years, especially post-pandemic. There is just more and more anime coming out then ever before. Every single season is absolutely packed with a giant flood of (mostly mediocre) shows. Naturally, some shows will fall under the radar and “Tomodachi Game” was one of them for me.
Story – 7/10
This is a classic death game anime, a genre that has been absolutely milked to death in the 2010s, with a lot of infamous examples that range from incredible (“Danganronpa”) to...what did I just watch? (“Euphoria”). Tomodachi Game is somewhere
...
in the middle. The show does not spend any time on trying to explain how the death game comes to be in the first place and rushes right into the plot. Every single game in the show has a certain set of rules to it. Especially the tag-game is really interesting and was probably my favourite arc. The mind games get pretty intense in this one, and the show is trying everything it can to stay realistic. I had a lot of fun with the death game itself and thought the resolutions were really well thought out. This is a very dialogue heavy show with little to no action and slow pacing, but it still manages to build up excitement arc for arc.
However, the big problem I have with the show is the whole story structure itself. I won´t go into spoilers, but the final episode and everything that happens before felt extremely random. The story seems to have no idea where it wants to go next and I seriously hope it won´t turn into a convoluted mess later on.
Art – 6/10
The animation itself is pretty solid. There isn´t much action here, so the screenplay itself is very laid back. There are instances where the art changes a little bit, especially during some of the more dramatic scenes, but other than that, there is not much to say here. The character designs are pretty boring and clearly inspired by other anime of the genre (Our main protagonist literally feels like a mix of Kirito from “Sword Art Online” and Light Yagami from “Death Note”).
Sound – 7/10
The opening is pretty good, but I thought the ending was better. The show reuses a lot of tracks during the dialogue scenes which can be a turn off to some people. I liked the way the show builds tension with the music, utilizing a very deep bass synthesizer. Other than that, there is not much to say in this category
Characters – 8/10
My god, it has been quite sometime since we got a black-haired, genius, edgelord protagonist and I am absolutely here for it. He fulfils every single cliché of the trope and is, like most of his clones, absolutely insane. But even I have to say that his deductions and mind games were really interesting and he managed to trick the audience a lot of the time. There is also an ongoing mystery about his past, that I am eager to find out more about.
The other characters are mostly fine. A lot of them where extremely cliché and even those that are a bit more interesting where written in a very inconsistent way (Looking at you, Tenji!).
Also, because the death game starts in episode one, there is not much time to explore the relationship of these characters beforehand. It is actually quite hard to believe they were actual friends considering what happens later on in the show,
Enjoyment – 9/10
I binged this show very quickly on a long train ride. This has some extremely high entertainment value, but the plot and characters themselves are pretty weak. I will watch the second season (if there will be one, let´s hope for it!). This is a great show for anyone who likes stuff like “Danganronpa”. If you can´t turn off your suspension of disbelief, maybe skip this one.
- Marco_Yooo
FINAL SCORE - 7/10
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
What did you think of this review?
Nice
 0
Love it
 0
Funny
 0
Confusing
 0
Well-written
 0
Creative
 0Show all
![]()
May 10, 2024
THIS IS A SPOILER-FREE REVIEW
On my way back into anime I decided it would be time to come back to my favourite genre, which has always been mecha. Infinite Stratos is the premier mecha anime of the year 2011 and it´s combination of mecha, comedy and fan service looked like something that would suit me, so I gave the first season a go.
Story – 5/10
My god, what an absolute car crash this plot is. Imagine every single high school cliche packed into a single school. This show has it all: Insane fan service, beach episodes, our main character literally has to share a dorm with
...
like 1000 Girls at this school. The sci-fi mecha aspect was clearly not the main focus of this show. This is more like a ecchi, harem comedy set in a school WITH mechs in it. There has been absolutely zero plot progression so far. There are fights, but besides the final fight in episode 11/12, they all lack a certain emotional weight. The comedy is, to be fair, pretty funny and I just really like the world, but you can´t deny that all the sci-fi and mecha concepts are just a facade to carry the comedy and fan service aspect. I have absolutely zero issues with something like that but even a veeery simple story would have worked to carry this setting instead of the lacklustre mess we got.
Art – 8/10
Well, this is maybe the shows biggest strength. This came out in 2011 and still looks good. I mean, reeeeally good. The camerawork is great during the fight scenes and I personally like the mech designs a lot. The characters all look fantastic and different (except the male ones, of course) and the movement is really crisp and fluent.
For the mechs, they decided to go for a kind of 50/50 approach, and constantly switch between 2D and 3D which can look horrifyingly bad if done wrong. This show however managed to nail this aspect. I still prefer 2D mechs over everything else, but I think this approach also has it´s merits.
Sound – 8/10
The OP of this show is amazing with great visuals and a fantastic song that fits the atmosphere of the world perfectly. However, the main thing that I would like to talk about for this category is the ED. My god, they did not have to go that hard. This is an instant hood classic. All of the female voice actors came together and created one of the catchiest anime endings ever. This actually could have inspired later ecchi shows like “Highschool DxD” to do the same. The voice actors even toured Japan and sang the ED in front of live audiences. Fantastic stuff here.
Characters – 7/10
Well, this is a typical harem setup of characters. Our main character is just absolutely dreadful. No personality, dense and clearly of the overthinking type. The female characters were a little bit better. This show is set in an international boarding school, so every girl has a different national background. We have a Japanese, British, French, Chinese and a German girl here, all with different mechs, looks and personalities. The quality of depth in their characters is inconsistent, but they are all likeable and fun to watch. If the main character wasn´t such an irredeemable idiot, there would actually be a lot of potential here, but I cannot give this category a higher score at the moment
Enjoyment – 7/10
Well, I have to admit that I like these kinds of trashy comedies from time to time and this is just another big entry in the gerne. Although the story is a mess and I hate the main character, I will absolutely watch season two. This is just great entertainment, something to watch during lunch or in the subway on the way to university. If you like shows like “Rakudai Kishi no Cavalry”, “Highschool DxD” or “The Irregular of Magic Highschool”, this show is for you.
- Marco_Yooo
FINAL SCORE - 7/10
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all
![]()
May 7, 2024
THIS IS A SPOILER-FREE REVIEW
If you talk about classic Shounen-Jump Manga, a lot of fighting-shounen come to mind: “Dragon Ball”, “Naruto”, “Bleach” and, of course, the legendary “One Piece”. But in it´s long runtime, the magazine has always pushed different types of stories to be published. “shounen” is just an audience, not a genre, and “Hikaru no Go” is one of them.
Story – 9/10
The ancient Chinese board game “Go” has always been pretty popular in east asia, especially in China, Japan and South Korea. In the west however, there hasn´t really been a big boom in terms of popularity. This may be because the
...
game is arguably much more complex than something like chess and the bar of entry is much higher. Even in Japan, it is mostly seen as a game for old men.
Hikaru, our main character, enters this world as a complete beginner and has to learn the basics, just like the reader. Slowly, the manga sets up character after character and introduces the reader to the complex structure of the Go world. Everything follows the classic sports anime formula: tournaments, training arcs and a big emphasis on character development. Seeing our main character slowly climb the stairs of the go world, from absolute beginner to professional should not be as intense and interesting as it is. Most of that excitement comes from the matches themselves.
They are highly intense and enjoyable and involve a lot of mindgames and overthinking. The author, Yumi Hotta is also not afraid to make our main character lose a lot of the time, only for him to come back stronger. This manga also deals with a lot of the pressure that comes with being a professional player. Every story arc perfectly flows in the next one, creating a highly addicting experience.
Honestly, this story is pretty much flawless and in terms of pacing and variety even better than some of my favourite sports manga ever, “Slam Dunk” and “Haikyuu”. So why is it not a 10/10?
Well, Hikaru no Go is infamous for having one of the worst endings in Shounen-Jump history and I can see where the disappointment came from. Right after one of the best and most thrilling tournaments, which showed amazing build-up potential for future arcs, the manga just...ends. Very abruptly too. I usually don´t weigh an ending as hard in the ratings if it is just okay, but this is just bad.
Art – 8/10
The art of this manga was provided by Takeshi Obata (“Death Note”, “Bakuman”) and the similarities between this and some of his other manga is glaring. His art style is just an absolute blast. Everyone looks distinct and the different expressions perfectly convey the tension during matches. What I also noticed is the different clothing styles. A lot of authors don´t put to much thought into something like fashion, but Obata mostly uses it to show a characters development, with Hikaru being the most prominent example.
While the start of this manga is more slice-of-life heavy, the art style was very simplified at the start, and you can see maybe a little bit of inexperience in the panelling. But as the manga went on and Obata found his style more and more, the art just got better and better up until the final chapters, where the character-designs veeery closely resemble his next big manga, “Death Note”.
Characters – 9/10
What separates this manga from something like “Slam Dunk” is the insane variety in the types of characters. This manga not only deals with teenagers, it also puts a lot of emphasis on the older pros and the other leading figures in the Go world.
Hikaru has certainly become one of my favourite main characters ever. The insane amount of growth between his humble beginnings as a complete scrub and his professional career at the end is very inspiring. His eternal rival, Akira Touya serves as the perfect motivation for him to improve and get better to finally beat him in a match. Another character we have to talk about is Fujiwara no Sai. What I like about him and his story is that, yes, it has supernatural elements, but the themes that the manga tackles with his character are very down-to-earth and relatable. His circumstances are a big part of what makes this story so unique and different.
Enjoyment – 10/10
This is one of the most fast-paced, intense and engaging manga I have ever read. I can safely recommend this manga to everyone. Even if you never heard of Go, or think it looks “boring” and “uneventful” I dare you to read this. This is what you have in mind if you think about the word “page-turner”.
- Marco_Yooo
FINAL SCORE - 9/10
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all
![]()
Apr 30, 2024
THIS IS A SPOILER-FREE REVIEW
Naoki Urasawa has been one of the most renowned mangaka of the last century, continuing his success into the modern era. His works however, always seemed pretty difficult to adapt, mostly because of their lengthy storytelling that doesn´t really lend itself for seasonal airing. Pluto is the first Urasawa adaption since “Monster” back in 2007 and has been in the works for multiple years. Will this be the first in a new series of remakes?
Story – 9/10
First off, this is a retelling of the classic manga “Astro Boy”, but it deviates a lot from the source material, so much, that you
...
could say it is it´s completely own thing. There are characters and themes that Urasawa took from the original, but the genre has shifted quite a lot.
Instead of the mild entertainment for the whole family that the old series provided, “Pluto” is a very dense and mature series, that can get pretty dark during most of it´s story. In a world where humans and robots live together, the show takes some highly unique approaches in terms of storytelling. Even though this setting has been explored many times before, not only in anime, but in movies, TV-shows and video games too. But although this series is based on an older manga, the way it explores these different themes seems very new and refreshing. The show runs for 8 episodes, but unlike most modern anime, every episodes spans for over an hour. This has probably been done trying to include big chunks of Urasawas massive story arcs in as few episodes as possible, otherwise they could not have adapted the whole manga in a single season.
The pacing is extremely slow, but never to a point where I felt the show dragged, which tends to be a problem with a lot of older shows. Every episode brings something new to the table, and moves the story forward in classic Urasawa fashion. Every time the show answers some of it´s questions, new ones arise, keeping you on the edge of your seat until everything gets wrapped up nicely in the end: an effective mix of the genres thriller, psychological, mystery and sci-fi. The scale of every decision is massive, the action is thrilling and the different character interactions are an absolute joy to watch. This has certainly been one of the shows that deviate the most from the classic seasonal anime formula, but that only makes it more interesting.
Art – 9/10
After many years of planning, an unsatisfactory pilot and multiple reworks, Pluto finally released in last years winter season, and received widespread critical acclaim, expecially for it´s unusually high animation quality. The series was produced by the famous Masao Maruyama, founder of studio MAPPA (“Chainsaw Man”,“Jujutsu Kaisen”) who founded his very own animation studio, M2. He stated in multiple interviews that adapting Pluto was his dream for a very long time and he will do anything he can to get the project done, even though the production will face a lot of problems.
The final product however does, in my opinion, absolutely delivers in every aspect. Not only is every episode the length of a movie, they also feel like ones. The main reason for that is the absolutely spectacular effects animation. This show has a very distinct style to it while also closely sticking to the original manga. The movement is fluid, the backgrounds are highly detailed and every character has a wide range of expressions making everyone feel alive. The dark tone of the story perfectly gets reflected in the shows gloomy art style. This is a perfect example of how to adapt a classic manga to fit the modern anime landscape. This really opens the door for more older anime receiving remakes (20th Century Boys….!).
Sound – 8/10
This is where the shows plays the most upon the foundation of it´s classic roots. The soundtrack is clearly old-school, with a lot of classic piano and saxophone tracks. The sound design (I have to emphasize again that this is one of the most underrated aspects of anime productions) is crisp and clear.
The sound-effects also give the show it´s own unique identity. This show does sadly not have an opening, but to be honest, I don´t think it needs one, especially not some 24/7 J-Pop Song. Other than that, there is not much to say here, very solid stuff overall.
Characters – 10/10
This is probably the shows biggest strength. In my opinion, a lot of anime clearly struggle when it comes to this category, probably because a lot of them tend to rush through as many plot-points as possible, leaving a lot of possible character development in the dust. The last show I gave 10 points in this category was the third season of “Kaguya-Sama” back in the 2022 summer season.
Pluto absolutely destroyed this category. Every single character in this show is highly memorable, interesting and well developed:
First of, I have to say that the lack of a true protagonist is actually one of the series biggest strengths. The narrative constantly switches between different characters, giving everyone a chance to shine. Some characters only appear in like half an episode and quickly turned into fan favourites. The heart-warming relationship between Duncan and North#2, the mystery around Pluto's past, the crazy but relatable villains, everything gets fully fleshed out. My favourite characters are definitely Gesicht, Atom and professor Ochanomizu. Even side characters like Brau-1589 have massive screen presence in the little scenes that they are in.
If you ever need an example of a great cast in modern anime, this is the one. This is one of the clearest 10/10 I have ever given.
Enjoyment – 9/10
This was a blast to watch. Every episode was better than the last and although the finale was just solid and nothing outstanding, the show delivered everything it promised to.
- Marco_Yooo
FINAL SCORE - 9/10
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all
![]()
Apr 22, 2024
THIS IS A SPOILER-FREE REVIEW
I was browsing through Amazon Prime Video, looking for something interesting to watch when I came across “Hello World”. I was immediately hooked on the premise. I can´t remember when I last watched an original sci-fi anime movie.
Story – 8/10
The premise of this show is extremely interesting. Set in the near future in Kyoto (Thank god not Tokyo again), this anime has some very cool ideas of how technology will be used in coming years, with the main focus being mapping and simulating our world through surveillance. Over the course of the movie, more and more layers are added to the
...
multiverse plotline.
Hello World is separated into two story-parts. There is a huge plot-twist in the middle of the movie that splits it into a funny, light-hearted romantic comedy with sci-fi elements and a dark, twisted Christopher Nolan-esk action drama.
Now, while I don´t think any of the concepts and twists in this movie are 100% original, the story itself works really well and the plot-twists are unexpected and sudden. The pacing is also really good. The last third of the movie gets a bit convoluted but not to a point where it harms the experience.
Another thing that I would like to add here is that there is actually a post-credit scene that really surprised me as it delivers a key plot-point that wasn´t explained earlier.
Definitely wait for the credits to finish!
Art – 8/10
This is a fully 3D animated show and I have good news for you.
In the last decade, fully CGI animated shows always struggled to exactly replicate the humanoid figure. Even the fantastic “Knights of Sidonia” , while having insane mechdesigns and fight-scenes, gets weighed down by it´s clunky and unrealistic character models.
This is the first CG anime where that is not an issue. The character models look almost exactly like if they were hand-drawn. This is a major step for the anime industry.
Other than that, there are some REALLY trippy scenes in this movie that are animated fantastically. However, I don´t think anything done in this movie couldn´t have been done by traditional animation, which is why I can´t really go higher with the score in this category.
Sound – 7/10
The BGM is solid and very charming, especially in the first half. I think the directors took some inspiration from Makoto Shinkais works, especially “Your Name” and “Weathering with you” here. There are multiple montages and vocal tracks seemingly implemented in the movie. Again, the change between the comedic first and the dramatic second half becomes apparent in the OST.
Characters – 7/10
There are actually just 4/5 characters in this movie. The cast is really small, which, in my opinion, helps the movie a lot. Our main character, Naomi, is your average anime protagonist, but as the story progresses it actually makes him extremely interesting and relatable. What I mean with that is the very...interesting(!) relationship between him and our main “villain”. Please go into this movie as blind as possible as to not get spoiled. I guarantee you that you will be surprised.
Other than that, there is not much to be said here. Our female heroine Ruri is pretty unique especially at the start, but her development gets sidelined in the final arc.
Enjoyment – 8/10
This was a nice, interesting take on the sci-fi genre. It is always refreshing to watch new-gen anime movies that tell stand-alone stories and don´t belong to an established franchise. If you like sci-fi, drama and romance this is a movie for you, although I think this film can truly be enjoyed by everyone, especially believers of 3D-Animation!
- Marco_Yooo
FINAL SCORE - 8/10
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all
![]()
Apr 14, 2024
THIS IS A SPOILER-FREE REVIEW
I took a very long break from watching anime this winter and haven´t seen any of the shows that aired this season weekly. However, when I saw that “Classroom of the Elite” finished it´s third season, I thought it might be time to come out of hybernation to review the newest entry of the fan-favorite series!
Story – 8
The story continues exactly where it left of in season 2. The vines are still amazing, as this is one of the few anime set in high-school that actually do something with the setting, giving it an interesting twist. Like the rest of the
...
series, this season is split into little mini-arcs that usually span around 2 to 3 episodes at a time and focus on one specific character. The mindgames here are intense as always. The show really found it´s tone over the time. I still love how seriously this show takes itself. The interactions between the characters are a blast.
Again, the author finds clever ways to test the different classes in multiple ways. The amount of mind games, planning and rivalry between the classes is at an all-time high and you really feel the tension during the tests. Even simple concepts can split a class in half or give another class an advantage over the other.
They really nailed the pacing with this season, there is no filler, no pool episode and no unnecessary fan service that gets in the way of the plot. Although I feel that a lot has been cut from the original Light Novel, the show itself still makes enough sense for anime only-viewers to enjoy.
Art – 7
This is the only aspect where this show disappoints a little bit. If this was done by a studio that focuses on high school settings, (Like Kyoto Animation for example) things would be different, but as it is, the quality of the animation itself is just about industry standard. Characters are rather stiff and the camera is positioned in the same three angles. The only thing the show does really well is the backgrounds. They are beautifully drawn and colorful. I really wish the show would get a little upgrade in this department to really elevate the high school aesthetic to the next level, like “Hyouka” or “Love is War”.
Sound – 7
The Opening is pretty good but in my opinion the weakest one the series has had so far. The ED is amazing, just like season 2. This really is one of the shows where the ED has an edge over the OP which is pretty rare but can happen sometimes (“Code Geass”, “Hunter x Hunter” or “Lucky Star” are other examples…). The BGM is solid and works well, carefully building tension with it´s use of deep bass. Nothing extraordinary here, just solid stuff.
Characters – 8
Probably the shows strongest category. The characters just get better and better the more time you spend with them. The pool of characters that play an important part in the story is huge and varied. Every class has it´s popular figures and by the time of season three, all leaders have made big decisions to keep moving forward with their respective class.
Ayanokoji is still the star of the show. If you have read my reviews for season 1 and 2, you mayber remember that I used to compare him to Oreki from “Hyouka” even going so far as to say he is a ripoff. But after seeing more and more of him I decided to step back from that statement. This season really digs deep into his past, his backstory and, most importantly, his motivations.
The one that really surprised me this season is Ichinose. Her arc was one of the most enjoyable parts of this season, and there was some really interesting(!) setup being done which could indicate future development on her side.
Everyone is just a blast on screen, even characters that I found to be annoying like Koenji really found their unique place in the story and I am eager to see how everyone develops further into the story.
Enjoyment – 8
This was a nice return to form for me as an anime fan and I now consider myself a true fan of this series. Let´s hope we will see season 4 sooner than later!
- Marco_Yooo
FINAL SCORE - 8/10
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all
![]()
Jan 3, 2024
THIS IS A SPOILER-FREE REVIEW
If you look at some of the most referenced shows of the early 2010s, „Highschool of the Dead“ is one that very often comes up as one of the first examples. But what got me interested in this show was actually the staff that worked on it, because this show was directed by one of the greatest anime directors of all time, Tetsuo Araki!
Story – 7/10
This show definitely hits the ground running in the very first minute of episode 1. The pacing is extremely fast for the most part. Zombies are an integral part of the horror genre to a point
...
were you basically know what to expect from a show that includes them. A good zombie movie has to somehow set itself apart from the rest if it wants to be memorable. Unfortunately, “Highschool of the Dead” , while having some recognizeable aspects (The zombies only being able to react to sound made for some interesting ideas being explored) simply did not have enough new things that added to the genre. Everything in this story is written purely just for shock-factor, which is probably the cheapest way of entertainment in my opinion.
However, I think from a writing perspective, the story itself kinda makes sense if you look at it. The inclusion of world politics, although barely developed in the short 12-episode run makes for a highly interesting scenario. What I mean is, that I can see some potential here. Unfortunately this show will never get a season two because the author, Satou Daisuke, passed away before being able to complete his work on the manga.
So, if the plot is generic and the show is unfinished, then why is it still talked about to this day? The only big standout of this show was the ecchi aspect, and my god, they did not hold back. Some of the most unhinged, iconic and just insane scenes were put in here. There is an entire episode that just has girls bathing together. Isn´t there an apocalypse going on outside? What is happening??
Art – 8/10
Tetsou Araki´s track record with anime has always been outstanding. He is most known for his work on “Death Note” (Where he managed to turn one of the most dialogue heavy shounen jump manga at the time into a memorable, fast-paced thrill ride) and “Attack on Titan” (Where he revolutionized the use of on-rail camera usage combined with 3D-backgrounds creating some of the most immersive action setpieces ever).
“Highschool of the Dead” animation seemes like a precursor to the later “Attack on Titan”. The camera usage is already outsatdning, the shots are creative and incredibly stylish. There are some clunky moments, and you can tell some of the things they tried to do needed a bit more polish, but the animation as a whole is actually really good. The colour grading and the whole vibe of the show is very reminiscent of his earlier work on “Death Note”. The colours are toned down, it gets very dark and gritty for most of the time.
The character designs were certainly unique, but whenever the show slows down you can see that the animation quality drops quite a bit.
Sound – 6/10
The OP is a banger, both visually and musically excellent. I can see why it is one of the most beloved openings ever even today. The OST of the show itself however had some problems, starting with the genre selection. The tracks that play in the background don´t seem to follow a cohesive line. There is EDM, Opera, Metal and more just thrown in whenever the writers pleased leading to a lack of a distinct musical identity.
Characters – 6/10
The character in the show mostly followed classic anime tropes. Our protagonist is the typical self-insert hero, similar to the heroes you see in some of today's Isekai shows. The big standout out of the female cast was Saeko Busujima, who actually has a very interesting backstory. Because of the limited runtime and the fast-paced nature of the show, the rest of the female characters lack development.
However, if you put the whole group together, there is some great chemistry to be found here. Because of their shared destiny they are held together while the world falls apart around them. That´s compelling and interesting, and I would have loved to see where this series would have gone in the future.
Enjoyment – 8/10
This is just a fast-paced thrill-ride with some interesting ideas and an insane amount of ecchi thrown into the mix. Watching this feels like eating fast-food. You know it´s bad for you, but it tastes to good that you just can not stop eating it. If I was 15, i´d have rated this 10/10. I can definitely see why this show is still talked about to this day.
If you are a fan of horror (especially the zombie-genre) and like your ecchi, this show was made for you. If not, you can probably skip out on this one.
- Marco_Yooo
FINAL SCORE - 7/10
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all
![]()
Dec 18, 2023
THIS IS A SPOILER-FREE REVIEW
Kentarou Yabuki is one of the most renowned Shounen authors of all time at this point. His first manga was a traditional battle-shounen, “Black Cat”, his second one was an ecchi, sci-fi comedy, “To-LOVE-ru”. His newest manga, that I have followed every week since 2021, combines the two most prevalent genres of his old works with a classic setting. And like always, there are a lot of crazy concepts being explored here.
Story – 7/10
The first few chapters do a great job at setting up the main concept of the show. After that, this manga continues very episodically, with each mini-arc spanning
...
1-4 chapters each. This really has the same vibe as a Saturday morning TV-show.
The main goal of the characters (Turning Matsuri back into a boy) gets put on the back-burner for most of the show. Instead, the series keeps a very fast pace with it´s side content. Every little mini-arc contains a different little magical concept that is being explored. From teleportation, invisibility, magical gadgets and even little time-travel stories, this manga stays fresh and new every chapter. But where this series deviates from a classical ecchi manga is the fights. This manga has full-on, “Naruto”-esque fight sequences which provide some nice little variety in the story. The pacing is very fast, this definitely feels like a modern manga.
On an emotional aspect, this manga is also interesting: If the person you like suddenly changes his gender, could you still love him the same way? And does love really transcend gender-norms all the time? This amount of LGBT content is really rare to find in Japanese media, especially the shounen-genre. This could be a sign of japan opening up to these kinds of topics, which is great, because there are a lot of highly interesting themes to be explored here.
The biggest aspect of this manga is of course the ecchi content, and I have to say, it delivers. This is some of the most unhinged stuff I have ever seen in a Shounen Jump manga. It never feels dull or undeserved, and is mostly combined with extremely funny scenarios.
However, I think the main story does not have enough meat on it for the manga to go on for so long. It mainly serves as a way for the author to play around with ridiculous magical scenarios. I think 100 chapters would have been the perfect length. After a while, the manga starts to lose itself in the side-stories a little bit to much.
Art – 9/10
I mean, there is a reason why Kentarou Yabuki is called the king of ecchi. He has been the most prominent author of the genre for almost 20 years now. To-LOVE-ru already showed his capability to craft immaculate ecchi-scenes but I honestly think that he has improved his game A LOT, which is especially visible in the chapter introductions. Every character is distinct and consistent, the clothing and different outfits perfectly fit the setting and the chapters fly by in a breeze because of his simple but effective paneling. This is one of the manga that would really improve with a coloured version, because I think Yabuki Kentarou is one of the best when it comes to coloured manga panels. This has to be one of the cleanest looking ecchi-works that I have ever read.
Characters – 9/10
I think this category is always highly influenced by the way the respective manga is being read. If you just breeze by it in a few days, the characters might not have a huge impact on you, but if you only read one chapter every week for almost two years, you will have a completely different view.
There is a certain set of characters that gets introduced very early on. Every one has at least 3 little arcs to himself, giving everyone little bits of development sprinkled throughout the manga. The main thing here is of course the relationship of Matsuri and Suzu, and I think this is the mangas biggest strenght. They explore some really interesting topics here that I have never seen in any other type of manga. This is truly a one-of-a-kind love story! I honestly think that after the fantastic ending, Suzu Kanade is one of the best female characters ever in the ecchi genre.
The side characters were also fantastic, with the edgy, but dense Ninokuru being my favorite.
The only downside here is that there were a few weird decisions made by Yabuki here. Why does the female lead, Suzu, have so many different personalities and forms at the end? There exist an adult version, a cat-girl version, a loli version and more(!). These could all be different characters.
Enjoyment – 8/10
I wish this manga was shorter, but although there was some meandering in the middle it was never outright bad and the good aspects outshine the bad ones. This is a highly creative and inventive entry in the ecchi genre and i am eager to see what Yabuki Kentarou is cooking up next!
- Marco_Yooo
FINAL SCORE - 8/10
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all
![]()
Dec 14, 2023
THIS IS A SPOILER-FREE REVIEW
After the phenomenal first season and the great movie sequel, “Made in Abyss” has solidified itself as one of the best anime of this generation. The highly anticipated second season continues the story of Riku, Reg and Nanachi as they delve deeper and deeper into the bottomless Abyss. I waited a long time to watch this season, as i wanted to be in the perfect state of mind to watch this intense and emotional story.
Story – 9/10
A very interesting thing about the story of “Made in Abyss” is that so far, every season (and movie) has had a completely different approach
...
to pacing and storytelling. Season one was a fast paced, story-driven adventure that continuously sprinkles little pieces of lore throughout it´s narrative. The movie felt more like an action-drama, with Bondrewd serving as the series first true antagonist (besides the Abyss itself of course).
Season 2 again delivers something else. The pacing slows down tremendously, the whole season spends it´s time on the sixth layer of the Abyss. We get a much deeper, more character-driven storyline with multiple jumps between the different timelines. The structure of this arc feels more in line with something like “One Piece”, a series where each arc serves as an enclosed and finished story with designated characters that only appear in this specific arc.
Plot-wise, the author continues to play to his strengths. The whole vibe of this season is extremely unique to a point where it´s hard to describe. The sudden shifts in tone are done really well. The show goes from happy go lucky to absolute body horror in mere seconds and continuously keeps you on the edge of your seat.
The story is split between our main characters and a whole bunch of new characters. There is a lot of set-up that happens in one timeline which gets answered in the other one. The show keeps you guessing how certain things came to be and how the established rules of the sixth layer are enforced.
There are also multiple action scenes sprinkled throughout the show. Especially the final fight shows the series capability to deliver a beautifully animated action-scene.
Because this season only focuses on one layer (this arc covers almost half of the entire manga) the ending was resounding, and it really felt like it was placed at the right point of the story.
Another thing to mention is that the last episode features a 60 minute runtime(!)
Art – 8/10
The character designs are still the heart of the show. Everyone is memorable and unique, the author plays around with clothing, armor, hairstyles and more to give every important character a unique feel. The body-horror elements are more crazy than ever in this season. The author apparently realized that the cuter the thing, the more horrifying it´s transformation will be and I hate to say it, but it is true.
There is a significant amount of CGI being used here, but like other works by Kinema Citrus, i´d say they tried their best to only use it when it is really necessary. It looks decent too.
I thought the action was done perfectly, incredibly gory and brutal, with fantastic character animation and great camera angles.
The only reason why the score in this category is lower than in season one is because of variety. In season one, the whole scenery of the abyss constantly changes. The white flower field, the shaft, the chalices and Bondrewds lair were all wildly different conceptually and are extremely memorable and unique. This season however only focuses on the sixth layer and also tells a more personal story about characters, love and exploitation, but we never really discover the layer itself besides the village where the story mostly takes part in.
Sound – 9/10
The soundtrack of “Made in Abyss” has always been a highlight. Composer Kevin Penkin delivered an insane variety of different songs here. Although every track is wildly different from each other, it still feels like a complete package that helps to give the show it´s unique feel. He mixes reused songs from season one with completely new themes seamlessly. What I also liked is that there are a lot of scenes without music at all, which often enhances the emotions even more. There are a lot of shows that just blast loud music all the time, trying to get an emotional reaction out of the viewer but “Made in Abyss” always uses the perfect track with the perfect emotions at the right time.
The OP is an outlier, and feels more like a traditional shounen opening, which is by no means bad, but I think the show is just so weird and different thematically to a point where i´d wish for them to be more experimental with the opening. The ED however fits perfectly, ending every episode with an emotional punch.
Character – 9/10
I think this is the biggest strength of this season in comparison to the others. The focus shifts from our main trio for a lot of this season (although we get some information about Reg´s past here!), but every single new character that is introduced is well-written, so you immediately care for what happens to them. There are two big things to talk about in this category. One is the relationship between Vuelo Eluco in the past timeline and the other is Faputa in the present timeline. Unfortunately, I can´t really get too deep into explaining my reasoning for that because of spoilers. Just know that I think that we got some of the most profound and gut-wrenching character arcs in modern anime here.
Enjoyment – 9/10
This was a very fast watch for me. The show keeps reinventing itself with it´s storytelling while still keeping everything that made it interesting in the first place. Unfortunately, this season almost completely caught up with the manga, which probably means we have to wait multiple years for a season three. However if there will be one, i´ll definitely be the first to watch it this time.
- Marco_Yooo
FINAL SCORE – 9/10
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all
![]()
Nov 25, 2023
THIS IS A SPOILER-FREE REVIEW
Rent-a-Girlfriend is a show that i have followed for 3 years now. Season one was an average rom-com with a degenerate protagonist, but season two improved on the pacing and made it a really fun little watch. But this season takes a completely different turn with the story and actually decided to go full in on the drama to the point where the show is hardly recognizable.
Story – 7/10
I have to say, I really liked this story arc. Instead of an episodic romantic comedy with some ecchi scenes thrown into it, this season actually has an ongoing narrative in which the
...
protagonist helps the girl of his dreams to become a film star. The show plays this part very serious and tackles topics like fundraising, producing and shooting an indie movie, which was very interesting to see. What made this special, is that the show doesn´t put the focus on the movie itself, but rather the struggles and the hard work that go into making it.
Another noteworthy aspect of the season is the drama. Rent-a-Girlfriend has never been a very dramatic series so I was a bit worried about this huge shift in tone for the show. However, they actually pulled it of and crafted a believable and realistic scenario, which really pulls on your heartstrings as the show goes on. This is also a finished arc, which means we get to see a lot of payoff in the final 3 episodes.
The huge flaw here is that as soon as the focus shifts away from the movie, it loses a lot of steam and the obvious flaws in writing from the previous seasons becomes very apparent.
Art – 8/10
The artstyle of the show is absolutely beautiful. I said something similar in my review for season two, but I really like the character designs. If you go on youtube, you can actually see some behind the scenes of the manga creation, showing that the author uses a lot of real-life examples for clothing styles and brands which appear in the anime. There are moments where the studio uses something called “make-up animation”, which was actually something that Studio Wit popularized with the first season of “Attack-on-Titan”. This means that there are many highly polished shots of the characters, making everything feel a lot more real and expressive.
Sound - 6/10
The Soundtrack of the show is pretty average. I do think the only times where it is noticeable is when they use elements of EDM during fast-paced scenes. The opening is pretty good, but compared to the classic first opening and the banger second opening, this one is a bit of a let-down. The ending was also less special than before, it doesn´t have the cringey visuals of the iconic(!) first ED, but something like that would have probably destroyed the serious tone of this season.
Characters - 8/10
This was by far the most needed upgrade this show needed. Rom-Coms rise and fall by their characters, and this show never really delivered on that part. All the girls were either severely underdeveloped, unlikeable or both and Kazuya, our protagonist, was just an irredeemable idiot.
This season changed the dynamics and decided put the harem aspect to the side and only focus on our two main characters Kazuya and Chizuru, giving each of them much needed space for development which paid of really well.
Chizuru was the biggest surprise, as she had a full, well-written and deep character arc in this season. It manages to be both dramatic as well as realistic at the same time, making her by far the most interesting female character in the show. Kazuya (surprisingly) does not suck anymore! He actually has goals now and goes out of his way on multiple occasions to help Chizuru with her ambitions.
The other characters were also lightly touched upon, but i think giving each character his own big arc is the way to go now for the manga.
Enjoyment – 7/10
While a bit slower than the fast-paced, ecchi-filled season two, the show has reinvented itself with a new tone and new plot structure. I am actually really looking forward on how the author decides to follow this arc up. Let´s hope season 4 gets announced soon.
- Marco_Yooo
FINAL SCORE - 7/10
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all
|
