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May 11, 2024
Geopolitics playing a role in anime? It’s more likely than you’d think! Flashback, it’s 1904 and Hokkaido is the closest tangible land mass to repel a potential Russian attack due to foreign provocation. Fast forward 120 years and the same fear is spreading all throughout the region. Should Japan decide to occupy Sakhalin once again or there be another Russo-Japanese war, Hokkaido would be at the forefront. It’s no secret that Japan’s most northern island is rather sparsely populated by their standards and declining steadily due to their natural population cycle. In order to feed the potential war machine, the government must utilize what they
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think “the kids” like, and therefore Dosanko Gal wa Namara Menkoi was born.
Anime is no stranger to tourism based on real locations in their shows. This was famously noted in multiple PA Works shows and in the hit military propaganda show, Girls und Panzer. Dosanko Gal is just the latest addition in a long line of location-based shows. When it comes to execution, this is nothing compared to say, Sakura Quest, in terms of attracting people to a geographical location. The stereotypical snow filled background is in the same vein as South Park stereotyping Colorado as a snowy location. However, due to the 2023 crisis-du-jour, Global Boiling, neither Hokkaido nor Colorado have been the snowscapes they once were. This is just the first chapter in unrealistic expectations and why Dosanko Gal wa Namara Menkoi is a poor propaganda piece.
In terms of characters, developing them, and overall realistic expectations, Dosanko Gal wa Namara Menkoi once again falls short. By local country girl standards and idealization, it misses its mark. The gyaru fad seems to be gaining popularity again, due to Gen Z having a strong desire to emulate Y2K Millennial culture. While this may be something expected in a chic area in a first-tier urban area, it seems off in a more rural based setting. This also leads one to question the “draw” of such a character in this region. If the goal of the anime is to attract people to Hokkaido, wouldn’t it be more of a draw to feature a culture that is different from what is seen locally in the high cost of living cities? Is having TikTok dances and other city-slicker type cultural statements truly appropriate? I think not. For a government funded propaganda piece, this comes across as a failure of communication. Time and time again, it is proven that people move to less developed areas to escape the rat race, embrace wholesome values, or just to start their own cult. These are the topics that should have been brought up, not hyper-consumerism, TikTok, and mobile gambling games.
Artistically speaking, Dosanko Gal wa Namara Menkoi, is overall average to mediocre. There is nothing spectacular, nor is it offensive. This inoffensive artistic vision truly shows the government backing of this anime. Boring, expected, plain, and bureaucratic. All are adjectives that can describe Dosanko Gal. Likewise, voice acting and music are also typical of what you would expect. Nothing outstanding one way or another, but leaning more towards the mediocre side. If this was the anime industry’s quiet-quitting product, I would not be surprised.
Overall, Dosanko Gal wa Namara Menkoi is an anime plagued with mediocrity and mixed messages. On one hand it adds a much-needed spice of fanservice that has been sorely lacking in recent years due to the westernization of anime and their prudish values being enforced upon the artform. While on the other hand, it does not push any envelopes nor does it encourage any sort of deeper thought into the clear reason for the creation of the show. If this is truly a government propaganda piece, it does seem fitting considering how poorly it is executed. Much like the overall sluggish and hesitated response to world problems due to our ever-increasing connectivity and fear of economic issues among the proletariat class, Dosanko Gal wa Namara Menkoi does fit in well with a unified world response. Does this show work on recruiting the remaining youth to the countryside? Absolutely not. Does this inspire anyone to move to Hokkaido to help create the northern bulwark? I doubt it. Is this as effective as modern day military recruiting? Absolutely. Dosanko Gal wa Namara Menkoi is just mediocre lip service, which truly makes it an appropriate show for 2024’s global situation. In that sense, I view this as a fine and appropriate show considering the circumstances of the world in this ((current year)).
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
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Jun 28, 2015
Fuji Heavy Industries is a well known Japanese conglomerate company in which they produce everything from planes down to their most notable product, automobiles. Their Subaru brand has created quirky vehicles for more than 60 years and has seen record breaking success in the last decade. Thanks to catchy advertising that caters to former yuppies with growing families and a portfolio of safe and reliable vehicles such as the Forester, Outback, and Impreza they have broken internal sales records for more than half a decade. With such success, experiments are soon to follow. Houkago no Pleiades is the perfect example of this. It was a
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magical girl show funded by Subaru and produced by the animation studio Gainax during the Spring 2015 anime season. There was a previous set of ONAs which aired online back in 2011 when this project first came to fruition as nothing more than an advertisement. Regardless, this was an unusual partnership considering the fact that Gainax has been largely irrelevant this decade and that Subaru funding a magical girl anime seems a bit out of place. However, the results are rather interesting considering the subject matter and the story that it portrays. What is the most striking thing about this show is that it was not a shameless advertisement like many would expect, it featured a cohesive story with likable characters and an overall goal and purpose. Something that is relatively rare in terms of directly sponsored anime.
In regards to the story, Houkago no Pleiades follows a rather typical magical girl theme with a rather unique backdrop. The plot revolves around a group of girls in an after school club who are trying to help an alien from the Pleiades star cluster go home. For those of you who are unaware, Subaru is the Japanese name for the Pleiades star cluster and is the logo for Subaru automobiles which obviously makes the alien's home a fitting choice. With this, the main cast travels through both space in time on their magical “drive shafts” which feature the typical throb and rumble of a boxer engine, the trademark engine type used by Subaru. The story itself makes you really question what is reality and brings in many hard science ideas such as theoretical physics, time travel, and multiple universes. If this story was not planned out years prior, one could argue that it was heavily influenced by Christopher Nolan's “Interstellar” which featured many of the same ideas. So “Bravo Gainax” for creating such an interesting story to back up your Subaru sponsored advertisement.
The art for Houkago no Pleiades is incredibly well done and thought out. There are incredible backdrops in the space scenes and the main and supporting cast has colorful and well designed outfits. The drive shafts which the characters fly on are also well designed since they feature grills from the previous generation Subaru vehicles that were sold back when the original designs were created back in 2010 – 2011. There are also some interesting cameos of new Subaru vehicles which pop up throughout the show which will entertain a car enthusiast who watches this show. The color palate is also well done and fits great with the theme of the show. For a magical girl show, everything should be vibrant which Gainax certainly delivers upon. The CG when used is also mostly okay, but CG itself has gotten significantly better over the years and it has become not as jarring when you see it mixed with 2D animation which Gainax does an acceptable job with. That being said, there are no glaring issues with the art overall.
As for the sound, it was unique to say the least. In terms of human characters, their voice acting was perfectly adequate. The voice actresses for the main cast are relatively unknown in the industry so it was refreshing in a sense to hear new voices while many of the supporting cast were easily recognizable veterans. Going into the cast itself, they were all well written and played their respective parts just fine. The show did go in a different direction than many fans may have wanted in the last episode, but they can put their goggles on for another show. Regardless, the characters were nothing truly outstanding and will most likely be largely forgotten as time goes on unlike some characters in magical girl anime. What did steal the show though were the sounds of the drive shafts which featured sounds from various Subaru engines. If you had a discerning ear you could pick out the rumble and burble of the unequal length headers of an EJ257 along with the smooth mechanical sounding FA20DIT. Both of which are engines that are used currently in the STI and WRX respectively. Once again, if you are an auto enthusiast you will certainly find it entertaining to hear the burble of a turbocharged flat four engine in your cute magical girl show.
When it comes down to my overall enjoyment, I must say that I am completely pleased with this show. It was one of the shows that I was looking forward to the most in 2015 due to the fact that I am a long time Subaru enthusiast and a flat brimmed hat and Ray Ban sunglasses wearing boy racer who drives a WRX. This show checked off all of the boxes for what entertains me, if you want to bring up pandering to a certain audience I would certainly be their ideal person. However, outside of car enthusiasts I really fail to see many of the aspects in this show really meaning much. If their goal was to paint the Subaru brand in a comfy and cozy light among otaku who watch late night anime, they certainly hit their mark. However, that may not be the best place to market things which leads us to the elephant in the room, the studio. This is most likely Gainax's swan song, it has been reported that they have not been working on any other new projects. For a studio that brought us such iconic anime like Neon Genesis Evangelion and Gurren Lagann it is depressing to see them go out like this. I hope that the relative success of Houkago no Pleiades may bring some life into their studio after they lost the majority of their talent to both studio Khara and TRIGGER. That being said , it is difficult to truly recommend this show to many people, mainly newer anime viewers. It goes between several different genres and brings up many ideas that are difficult to combine together. The story itself is cohesive, but it still feels quite odd considering the magical girl backdrop. It feels more like a hard sci-fi show that should be a bit more serious and feature characters other than a group of girls in an after-school club. In the end, it comes off as being an enjoyable, but still flawed show with some questionable choices with the story. If you are a fan magical girl shows, science fiction, and cars – this is the show for you, it will certainly not disappoint in that regard.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Dec 25, 2014
The idea in which equating popularity to greatness is disappointingly common in our modern world. Many people will claim that 50 Shades of Gray is high quality literature and many others will consider Drake to be a great rapper. They are blinded by the delusion that something being popular automatically makes it good. Obviously those people have never looked further into the media that they claim to be an aficionado of and have never read Infinite Jest or listened to Yung Lean before. This leads to Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai, an unfortunately overlooked show in the Fall 2014 season. It did not stand out and the
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publicity was nearly nonexistent. However, if you were one of the people who decided to give the show a try, you were in for quite a treat. You would have experienced a coherent plot, enjoyable characters, entertaining drama, and an overall comfy feeling that viewers have not experienced since Non Non Biyori last Fall. The fact that people would rather discuss popular, yet mediocre shows is downright depressing. It brings back bad memories of last Summer when a terrible Adam Sandler movie beat out Pacific Rim in the box office for that weekend. Regardless, those of you who overlooked this show have a chance to redeem yourself if you change your ways and look to the less popular and more obscure things in life. Following that ideal will take lead you closer to the path of enlightenment.
The overall story for Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai was nothing extraordinary or groundbreaking. It compares to other typical club-type shows where you find both drama and comedy as the main ideas. A word that would describe the story would be “unoffensive”. It was rather soothing and made the viewer feel comfortable when watching it. The overall arching plot was a typical slice of life show with a bit of a supernatural twist added in, but that is once again typical for this genre of visual novel from which the show was adapted from. The story itself could have been more fleshed out, but that would not have been easily done with the time constraints of a 1 cour show. The pacing was also quite well done, it did not drag or feel boring at any time and gave the viewer a relaxed or comforting experience. The fact that the show was adapted from a visual and had such a comforting feel to it is rather unique. Many times visual novel adaptions are rather fanservice driven or focus mainly on the exciting action related parts of the game. That being said, Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai was not without fanservice (it had plenty), it just came off in a bit more subdued and enjoyable than the typical smut that you would expect to see. It did not feel out of place or forced into the story to sell more Blu Rays, it just had an overall natural feel due to how the story was told and how it was directed.
One aspect of this show that was rather interesting was the studio choice. Many people will remember Hoods Entertainment as a studio that did some of the most obscene fanservice shows that have aired on regular television. However, it seems that they have turned over a new leaf since their latest projects have not been lewd at all. It is a strange change of pace to go from doing Manyuu Hikenchou or Seikon no Qwaser which were over the top in terms of smut to the rather tame and pedestrian shows that they have done in recent history. Regardless, Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai was a rather pleasant show to look at. It featured a pastel color theme and the overall quality of the show was relatively high. Once again, the term that describes it best is “unoffensive”. That would also describe the sound for the show. The voice actors used were the same from the game which are commonly heard in visual novels. Experienced viewers will recognize a few voices, especially if they read visual novels. Regardless, the voice acting was well done and felt natural for the show. The OST and sound direction was also perfectly acceptable, it had that typical visual novel flair to it which fit the mood of the show perfectly. It definitely added to the comfortable feel that the show gave off.
In regards to characters, Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai did not feature anything special in particular. The cast was composed of rather cut and paste type characters with various back stories to give them some sort of depth. Obviously, the anime viewer would not see their full stories since it is not the original source material in which the reader would go through an entire route dedicated to all of the main characters, but it was easy to pick up on the various drama points and other traits from what was shown. However, what stood out for this show was the character interaction. That was top notch and it really felt like the characters had chemistry with each other. It was incredibly well done for this type of show and it really made it incredibly enjoyable to watch.
When looking at the complete package of Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai, it is hard to consider it to be anything but enjoyable. The fact that it was one of the least popular and overlooked shows for the Fall 2014 season is rather disappointing. However, that may be for the better. The discussion and subsequent translation project for the visual novel were in part done due to the smaller and tight knit community that enjoyed watching this show. Regardless, if you are looking for something enjoyable that you can sit back and relax to, Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai would be an excellent choice. It goes to show that it does not matter if something is relatively overlooked, it could end up being better than many high profile options. That being said, the moral of this review is look in unlikely places and you will find true hidden gems. Worshiping nothing but mainstream media is a terrible habit and you should try to think outside the box more often. Once you do, you can appreciate more things and even find enjoyable stories in unlikely places. Or in terms more suited to Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai, don't judge a book by its cover.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Sep 24, 2014
Jersey Girls aren't trash, trash gets picked up.
That should be the description for Hanayamata. When I first heard that this show would feature a character from the greatest state in union I was incredibly excited. However, that was short lived. I soon realized that like with many shows, the Japanese depiction of a foreign land is far from accurate. Seeing a blonde haired girl who speaks fluent Japanese in Princeton, NJ is rarer than finding one in Japan. Luckily the depiction was not along the lines of a Jersey Shore parody, but at the same time I felt that it would have been a more
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entertaining depiction of the first New Jersey native depicted in anime. What is even more strange is this New Jersey resident's love of “yosakoi”. Now you may be asking: “Ayyy yo Tony – what the hell's a yosakoi”, yet after a dozen episodes I still do not know the answer to it. Is it singing, is it dancing, or is it some weird mix of both that only a small minority of Japanese would even understand or care about? I am guessing it is the last option. It truly is a baffling subject matter for a foreign resident to be infatuated with which only leads to the overall mediocrity of this show. Let me straight with you, Hanayamata is the biggest disappointment of the season for me. A show that could have had terrible, but charming “engrish”, funny character interactions, and a pleasing story failed on all three fronts. If you are a fan of Kiniro Mosaic and were expecting more of the same, you will be in for quite a disappointment. Frankly, this show just comes off as being rather dull. It does not stand out among the many other “cute girls doing X” shows. If anything, it seems to be a cash grab by Madhouse on this popular genre. They have not cashed in on it and had to pump something out in hopes that it will break sales records like the many other shows that have used this formula.
In regards to story, Hanayamata is only unique due to the subject matter. As I have previously stated, the whole idea of Yosakoi is something that isn't explained well in the show and since they hardly focused on it for 12 episodes, I am not sure if the viewer is even supposed to know what it is. The show's formula where several girls do a certain activity has been done and redone dozens of times. For someone to create a story about girls creating a club about some obscure Japanese organized dancing; it really shows that the industry is scraping the bottom of the barrel. Then again, I don't think anything can top girls in a tank driving club so everything else really does pale in comparison. In addition, the show suffered from absolutely terrible pacing. While you cannot expect and you do not really want a show to rush the story along, it has to move at a pace in which the viewer remains entertained. I felt that the pacing for Hanayamata really made the show feel dragged out which added to my overall dissatisfaction. Regardless of the subject matter or pacing, the story itself is rather cut and paste – the girls have issues creating their club, there's drama involving some of the members, and they spend little to no time each episode practicing and instead do other various activities. This is not particularly a problem since this same formula has worked well in many other shows, it's just that Hanayamata lacked the magic of character cohesion. While the characters in the show were not any less generic and cookie cutter than any others, they just lacked chemistry with each other for some reason. There were many cheap attempts at making the viewer feel emotion towards the characters, but since they were not charming enough that ended up being a failure. Even New Jersey's pride and joy could not carry the weight of the show on her back. Don't get me wrong, I genuinely like “cute girls doing X shows” and I mainly watch them for the character interactions since they can be amusing and relaxing, unfortunately for Hanayamata they just either felt forced or just plain boring. I am not sure if it was poor direction or just poor writing, but it did not feel up to par in terms of either story or character interaction.
In regards to art and music, I found yet another problem. Style over substance is common theme in many shows, which can work if properly executed, but unfortunately for Hanayamata this is not the case. The art itself is put through a myriad of filters, much like No Game No Life which aired in Spring 2014. Hanayamata shares a director and she likes doing that to her work so I am not going to really fault her for it, but at the same time it felt off putting for a show like this. It was very out of place for a slow paced slice of life type show. It almost seemed like a distraction so that the viewer would focus on the vibrant colors instead of the dull plot. In regards to music and sound, it was nothing extraordinary. The voice acting was adequate and the singing was also typical and unremarkable. I will repeat my gripes over the lack of English used in the show since it did feature an American main character. They could have done something similar to Kiniro Mosaic was both entertaining and charming with the poorly done English. It could have been a bright spot in a show that was lackluster in many other aspects, but unfortunately I wasted my time watching 12 episodes for nothing.
If I could sum up my entire experience of Hanayamata in one word, it would be “disappointing”. I expected an enjoyable and fun slice of life show. Instead, I got a dull and boring show that quickly became a chore to watch. The cause of this was many different factors which all ended up working against this show. I would personally put the subject matter at the forefront of my disappointment. The actual subject of yosakoi was not thoroughly explained and it seemed to be somewhat of a joke with the characters who were just as baffled by the activity as the viewer. If anything, this show does prove that the “cute girls doing X” formula does have its limits. They have to either be mundane enough to bring a sense of familiarity to the viewer or outlandish enough that you just can't help but want to watch it. Unfortunately, Hanayamata falls in between that and comes off as a half baked and lackluster product that has to be a cash grab by the declining Madhouse. It feels like they had to make something to fit this current trend and went with whatever they could find, which unfortunately turned out to be this show. I expect more out of Madhouse and I expect more out of the staff behind it since their other works have been relatively good for the most part. Hopefully Madhouse either quits attempting this formula if it is going to be mediocre like this or at least picks a subject matter that is interesting and entertaining to the viewer the next time they try it.
Reviewer’s Rating: 3
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Jun 30, 2014
“Just shut up and show me your armpits”
Having that as an important and plot relevant quote during the first episode of a show should be more than enough to tell you what you're going to be dealing with for the next 13 episodes. Gokukoku no Brynhildr does not disappoint in that regard. You are treated to a full season worth of ridiculous shenanigans, colorful characters, and downright nonsensical plot devices. Watching this show with your brain turned off is highly suggested since trying to comprehend everything in a logical fashion may turn you into a pile of goo. People who come into this show expecting
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well thought out characters and a coherent plot are quite naive in my opinion. One just has to look at the original creator's previous works to understand where it all comes from.
Flashback to 2004...the economy is doing well, we have a strong Republican in the White House, and things seem to moving in the right direction. However, 2004 was also the year that a rather infamous anime aired. Elfen Lied was its name and it has been well known ever since for its excessive usage of nudity, gore, and over the top drama. Even today it is still discussed by edgy teens and casual anime viewers due to its ridiculousness. Surprisingly, the creator of that has gotten yet another anime adaption. However, unlike Elfen Lied, Gokukoku no Brynhildr lacks much of the over the top drama and suggestive themes. The lack of fetish pandering is another peculiar aspect of this show (provided you don't like armpits), it was highly prevalent in Elfen Lied and is a mainstay in Studio ARMS shows. However, Gokukoku no Brynhildr featured almost none of it. What was also shown was incredibly tame and certainly intended for the more modern TV regulations. In a sense, that would seem to be a huge benefit to the show, but in reality it drags it down to something a bit more plain and mediocre. Skipping out on excessive fanservice or gore in a show like this is a mistake in my opinion since it doesn't have anything else pulling the weight, the usage of cheap tricks such as exploding heads or gratuitous pantyshots are required. Regardless, the story of Gokukoku no Brynhildr shares many likenesses to that of the creator's previous work in the vein of it being young girls with supernatural powers and a shadowy organization behind it all. This is nothing new or groundbreaking so it should be overlooked since it quickly changes from being a backdrop to a main focus in the story throughout the show. Therefore, the story of the show is easily by far the weakest point. It ranges from ridiculous to downright terrible throughout each episode. As previously mentioned, turning your brain off is something that is highly suggested since you can actually enjoy the other parts of the show if you're not focusing on the gaping plot holes and terrible pacing.
In many cases, characters can make or break a show and in the case of Gokukoku no Brynhildr, they are the one thing holding the show together. The entire cast is likable in their own ways and the interactions between them are enjoyable to watch. However, this does not mean they are without flaws. The characters themselves are poorly thought out and their actions turn the majority of the show into an unintentional comedy. The viewer is often treated to situations where the characters act in downright idiotic ways which can be quite frustrating at times. Regardless, there is a strange sense of charm with the character interactions and it is largely enjoyable. However, as previously stated, the viewer should try to ignore the majority of the plot related character interactions and just focus on the ridiculous shenanigans if you want to enjoy yourself.
In regards to art and sound, Gokukoku no Brynhildr does not stand out in any way. The art feels a bit dated and lacks in detail, most likely due to a mix of budgetary concerns and the source material itself. It is rather inoffensive though and it is on par with what one would expect from a Studio ARMS anime Curiously though, the fanservice that is prominent in ARMS shows is lacking in this show. As previously mentioned, the smut levels have been certainly turned down compared to Elfen Lied and that surprisingly detracts from the overall viewership experience. In addition, the art somehow feels less detailed and cheaper in this more modern show which in itself reinforces the mediocre aura that this anime has. In terms of sound, the seiyuu do a good job in their respective roles and the OST is on point. The sound is something that I will not complain about since it completely acceptable. However, there was a strange change in the opening song starting from episode 10. Some people may dislike hearing the Japanese equivalent of Attack Attack or The Devil Wears Prada, which is completely understandable since can hardly be considered music. For me, it reminded me of the wonderful mid 2000s where I hung around Hot Topic and had glow in the dark pants so I didn't mind it nearly as much.
Saying that you enjoyed something is a tricky situation. Despite all of its glaring flaws, I will admit that I enjoyed Gokukoku no Brynhildr (up until the last episode at least). I probably enjoyed it more than I should have since I actually looked forward to watching it each week. It is certainly a guilty pleasure type show and I would imagine that many other people have a similar opinion of it. I found it to be incredibly funny in parts and the characters were very entertaining. The show was nothing spectacular in any sense, but it was very entertaining even if it was for the wrong reasons. However, if someone asked me if I would recommend watching this show, I would grit my teeth and say no. In the end, memorable shows are either famous or infamous. Gokukoku no Brynhildr is neither of those, I am sure it will be forgotten rather quickly. It just doesn't have enough going for it, negative or positive, to make a mark on the viewer for better or for worse. If you are looking for a coherent sci-fi anime or one with gratuitous fanservice, there are much better options out there.
Reviewer’s Rating: 4
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Dec 22, 2013
Jousting is widely agreed to be the true sport of nobles and is a main focus of the idealized Medieval Europe and Chivalry. While chivalry lives on in every fedora wearer's heart, Walkure Romanze enacts upon it instead of posting self loathing status updates on social media sites. Following Princess Lover which came out in 2009, Ricotta has sent another one of their H-Games out onto the battlefield of anime adaptions. Ricotta is well known for their pandering to specific fetishes and classy atmospheres. As expected, Walkure Romanze has both of those traits. While Walkure Romanze and Princess Lover both share a high class atmosphere
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and catering to very specific fetishes, that is where the similarities end. Walkure Romanze focuses more on the sport of jousting and surprisingly has significantly less smut. In this adaption they even omit much of the pandering, unless you are horse that is. This makes it a quite peculiar show and puts it in a weird position in regards to genres and target audiences.
As expected of a show in this genre, the story is nothing outstanding. However, this does not make it particularly bad. It is enjoyable, albeit predictable and cliché. It features all of the typical activities that you will see in a generic eroge adaption such as your beauty pageant and a hot springs episode. You know, the finer things in life. However, the jousting storyline made this show stand out amongst other eroge adaptions. It is a rather unique setting which as mentioned previously, is Ricotta's specialty. What also made this particular show unique is the overall lack of fanservice and smut. If you were to take a look at the game CGs you would definitely see many vulgar things, even during the regular parts of the game and not just during the h-scenes. Not to say that it lacks fanservice altogether, but it is definitely lacking compared to what you would expect out of something like this. 8Bit and Ricotta must have taken the high road in this adaption, which is a bit different from the norm. They must have been targeting the gentleman’s market, unlike what GoHands did with Princess Lover. The story does not get dipped into the toilet with the bathroom humor that was featured in both the game itself and in the Princess Lover adaption. Some may say that this is an upsetting omission, but those people are plebeians and not true gentlemen.
The characters of this show all feature tropes that any veteran anime viewer has seen a million times before. The male lead is a bit of a doormat, somewhat dense, and has a troubled past. Very unique and groundbreaking I must add. The girls on the other hand range from strong independent women (who don't need no man) to ones that are completely dependent and helpless. This is to cater to both the strong alpha male and the beta apathetic male who wants a cute doormat housewife demographics. You have to tip your fedora to Ricotta, they can really make a game appeal to a wide audience. However, this show features a unique paradox amongst the female characters. Despite many of them being “strong and independent” they need a man to be their squire and then resort to petty fighting over their mediocre catch of a male lead. This may have a deeper meaning which states that no matter how far we go in modernization, traditional gender roles still rule. If anything, it shows that chivalry is not dead, so go out there and start holding doors for women. If they get angry at you and say they can do it themselves, just grit your teeth and bear with it since they will eventually want a true gentleman such as yourself.
When the news broke that 8Bit was going to be three shows simultaneously this Fall, I was a bit worried. One would expect that they would give the single cour H-Game adaption the short end of the stick over Infinite Stratos S2 and Tokyo Ravens, but they surprised everyone. The artwork was mostly on point with excellent backgrounds and very few off model character shots. The artists kept up with the classy theme quite well, thankfully it also lacked the terrible blue filter that GoHands used in Princess Lover. In regards to the sound, it was quite well done as expected. The voice acting cast is filled with veterans who you are sure to recognize if you play enough eroge, and the music was on point. As a whole, the artwork was surprisingly well done and the sound lived up to expectations.
All in all, I must say that I did enjoy this show. It was very entertaining to watch each week and it never came off as being dull. For a cliché storyline such as this, that is an impressive feat. What is ironic is that 8Bit made two separate shows with a similar harem premise, and the show with the lowest expectations came out on top. Despite it being mostly good, there are still some flaws to it that I must mention. I feel that the route direction could have been done a bit better rather than just focusing on harem antics and in the case of this show, horse husbandry. I dislike that aspect in many of these adaptions, I would prefer to see a specific route done well rather than a hodgepodge of them all. What is also funny about this show is that the horses seemed to be more important than the main characters, it is like some sort of sick television show that caters to horses. It even features similar pandering aspects from the human “side” characters. Regardless, this adaption is a glorified advertisement for the game so if you would like to know more, you have to buy it. The overall lack of fanservice is another potential negative for this show. Most viewers of this genre generally expect a bit more, especially considering the specific fetish pandering that the game features. Hopefully they will make several H-OVAs for this like they did with Princess Lover in order to cater to the other fans of this series. Regardless, this show is quite entertaining and I leave you with the most powerful quote of the series: “The horses are waiting for me”. That itself sums up Walkure Romanze perfectly.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Oct 10, 2012
A famous philosopher once said “It was all a dream, I used to read Word Up magazine”. Looking back to his 1994 work, one would never think that hentai would take it this far. Well, it did. Otome Dori plays into the popular “It was all a dream” approach and it comes off as a deep and philosophical story about an unfortunate young man who happens to get videos in the mail which depict his childhood friend being violated by fat old men. Something so cruel couldn't be true, right? Well folks, it gets worse.
Let's get this out of the way, it is not intended
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for all audiences. Some of the weaker willed people cannot handle a NTR story, especially one with the additional lewd plot points in which this one has. It is unfortunate due to the fact that they are missing out on one of the best examples of the genre. Regardless of their whining, the story takes a typical NTR scenario and twists it into something special. It is a story of betrayal, jealousy, and pure unadulterated rage. Carn's complex story makes the viewer question themselves on what is actually the truth and what is actually fake. We see it through the hapless main character who is thrown into a sticky situation where he gets a mysterious DVD in the mail. After opening it up and viewing the contents, he realizes it's his childhood friend and love interest is being violated by faceless old men. As the story progresses and the DVDs become more and more graphic one begins to think that it's too cruel to be true. Follow it up with the main character questioning his own sanity and the cruelty of the acts, one gets the idea that there is something more behind the scenes which they need to decipher themselves. Luckily, the unexpected mastermind behind this unfortunate story reveals herself and her true goals which works its way to the thrilling conclusion in which the viewers question the reality of what they had seen prior. It is an incredible way to play with your mind and I must say that the complexity and depth of this story is unparalleled for the genre.
Sadly, there are some disappointing aspects of the Otome Dori adaption as well. Sadly, some scenes in the second episode were cut short and others from the original h-manga were omitted. This knocks it down slightly due to the fact that it was not a complete adaption and the viewer does not get the same experience that the manga reader does. While the scenes were not completely relevant to the plot, they did add to the despair and overall theme of the story. Another issue is the varying quality of the art. The first episode had relatively high quality art while the second one had multiple scenes with off model quality art which is a strange clash compared to the much more higher quality that you had previously scene. While hentai is not known for its consistency and quality work, it is still nonetheless a valid criticism. However, the pros definitely outweigh the cons in the story overall.
Otome Dori truly does make you question what in your life is real and what is not. Who knows, one day you might be woken up by who's presumably your child and your wife who's expecting your second after a long nightmare. Or maybe that's just another dream? Who knows what is reality and who to trust? Do you trust the Maury show or do you trust your own beliefs. Otome Dori takes the aspect of your inner nightmares and puts them into a story that can happen to anyone. They say dreams are a reflection of your inner most desires. Let's just hope that you don't have such a twisted mind that enjoys such agony and maybe you wont be as unfortunate as our main character in this story. I leave you with a word of caution when fantasizing about things because in the end they might come true.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Jul 11, 2012
Queen's Blade is one of the more infamous titles out there in TV anime. It's known for catering to nearly every fetish imaginable while at the same time having a legitimate plot with a very healthy dose of PLOT. Queen's Blade Rebellion is the third installment in the Queen's Blade franchise which extends across multiple different outlets of media. Rebellion is a direct sequel to the previous series and takes place several years after the last one. It features an all new cast with the previous characters making appearances throughout the show. The show itself is certainly different from the last ones, but it is
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still the Queen's Blade that you know and love.
When regarding the story, Queen's Blade Rebellion takes a turn from the previous two seasons where it was a fighting tournament and this one changes over to fight the queen who has done away with that said tournament. This sadly means that it is no longer “G Gundam with more tits” and now it has moved onto something else. The story to Rebellion is slightly convoluted due to the fact that it moves rather slowly while introducing the plethora of new characters. Not to mention, a lot of it can be considered extraneous due to the fact that Queen's Blade is a merchandise driven show and you need as many compromising scenes to sell those figures. That being said, the overall main point of the plot is clear and that is to “defeat the tyrant queen” and while the journey to that takes many different paths, the main point of the story is a main focus throughout the series. The attention to the story is something that you rarely see in fanservice driven shows such as this and that's what makes the Queen's Blade franchise unique in this aspect. It might push the envelope on what can actually be shown on TV, but at the same time it goes against the grain and sets itself apart from the masses of mindless fanservice shows. Queen's Blade Rebellion may have a different format and a different story than the first two seasons, but in the end it's still a plot driven show which is rare in this category of show. However, in the end it is still not the enjoyable plot that you had in the first two seasons. The PLOT certainly was improved, but the legitimate plot suffers compared to the second season and reverts back to a similar level of coherence as the first season.
The art and sound of Queen's Blade Rebellion was quite good The fight scenes in it were drastically improved from the first seasons and there seemed to be less off-model shots than before. That being said, I'd suggest watching the Blu Rays regardless since I'm sure they will fix up whatever mishaps were in the show. Other than that, we have a very vibrant color palette which encompasses many different settings and places with well done character designs. It's clear that this is a merchandise driven show because the character designs are certainly paid special attention to since they are moving advertisements for the plethora of figurines available. This is not a bad thing since the character designs are vibrant and interesting which makes the show a much more visual treat. The character models look a little different this time around due to some staff changes but overall, the art in the show is pretty good. When it comes to the sound, it was also quite good. The voice acting is from notable veterans and the OST is fitting. I'm sure it's hard to do a show like this with a straight face and I must applaud the voice acting cast for their performance in this. The OP/ED were acceptable and fit with the setting.
When it comes to Queen's Blade, the characters are what make the show for the most part. Their interactions are key to the overall enjoyment of the show. When it comes to the variety of characters, Queen's Blade never disappoints. We have a whole slew of different types of characters ranging from a Ghost Pirate to a Mayan goddess which may or may not have been a copy from Gundam ZZ. Annelotte is a good protagonist and she seems to get more stuff done in Rebellion than Reina did in the first season. Annelotte certainly gets down to business and she is an enjoyable character and interacts well with the other cast. However, there is certainly some degradation of characters compared to the last season. Without going into details spoiling everything, I must say that there many changes to previously loved characters that will make many people upset. Especially the former queen, Aldra. There are other strange character changes which are passed off as “magic” and it just seems that the previous set of characters are nothing like their old selves. It's upsetting to see them in such states and it ruins some of the enjoyment of the show. While we get awesome characters like Siggy and Lilliana, we also have to deal with the dramatic character changes of Mrs. Bushid—err Reina and Aldra. The new characters are enjoyable, but many of your favorites from the last season are a mockery of their previous selves.
When it comes to the overall enjoyment, I can't deny the fact that I did enjoy the show. While many people did complain about some of the changes and the drastically different plot from the previous two seasons, it's still an entertaining show. Whether you're watching it for the plot or the PLOT, you wont be disappointed when it comes to overall enjoyment. If you just sit back and relax and let it flow, you will save yourself quite a bit of trouble from the inevitable plot holes and other issues that the show has. On the other hand, the new characters are enjoyable and fun to watch and it's great to see more Queen's Blade after the long break in between the last TV series. Since this is a sequel and you should have watched the previous two seasons prior to watching this one, you should know what you're in for. If you enjoyed the last two seasons of Queen's Blade, chances are you'll enjoy this one enough to at least finish it. It's not the best installment in the franchise, but at the same time it's not terrible. It does suffer from the "sequel syndrome" where it does feel somewhat less enjoyable compared to the previous show, but it is still an acceptable show and very fun to watch. Regardless of its issues, Queen's Blade Rebellion is both an enjoyable show and an acceptable successor to the previous installments in the franchise.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Mar 17, 2012
Nisemonogatari is the sequel to Shaft's 2009 hit Bakemonogatari. It features much of the same cast as the first show, but it includes many new characters as well. The particular focus is on Araragi's sisters, Karen and Tsukihi this time around. The first show broke sales records and this one is looking to do incredibly well as well. However, if you were expecting more of Bakemonogatari you might be in for a surprise.
There is always an issue with sequels when it comes to the story. They always seem to never really live up to their predecessors and sadly Nisemonogatari suffers from this issue as well.
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While the story is both interesting and engaging, it just lacks that overall “wow” factor that Bakemonogatari had. This pattern is especially prevalent in Shaft's other sequels other than maybe Hidamari Sketch but that's probably due to me needing a nutbladder replacement every time I watch another one of those. However, that is not to say that the story is not good. It is actually very good but it just lacks that special feeling that the first series had. When it comes to the actual story, it is a similar format to the first series where Araragi goes around messing with the various females in his life and unraveling mysteries. In Nisemonogatari the focus is on his two younger sisters and their issues though. However, instead of spending a significant amount of time on the mysteries themselves the sequel focuses more on character development and character interaction. I will not say that it's particularly a “bad thing” but the overall pace and tone of the story is definitely different from the first series and I'm not completely sold on those changes. Without spoiling everything, if you enjoyed the setup of Bakemonogatari and you enjoyed the characters of the first series you'll most likely enjoy the sequel. There really isn't much to say on the story just because if you're watching this, you must have watched Bakemonogatari as well so I would just be reiterating the facts that you already know. What I must point out is one of the flaws and distractions that was present in the sequel though.
Nisemonogatari essentially translates into “Falsestory” or “Impostory”. However, it should be translated into “Fanservicestory”. If I were to say Bakemonogatari didn't feature a significant amount of fanservice I would be lying, but they really did go overboard with the sequel. They must have put a significant amount of effort into cramming the most amount of fanservice into this 11 episode series and it definitely shows. From the convenient camera angles to half an episode dedicated to a discussion with Shinobu in the bath to the (in)famous “toothbrush scene” you can definitely see that there was a significant amount of work involved. While the novel includes this as well, it certainly is incredibly distracting to the overall tone and mood of the show. This is one of those cases where the source material does not particularly go over well into the adaption. While the original source material did include a lot of fanservice, Shaft also took it a step further with a multitude of compromising camera angles. That is not unexpected of them since it occurs in nearly every one of their shows, but it only adds to the distraction and makes the overall feeling of the show more low brow than the predecessor. Before you get your jimmies rustled, I am not against fanservice. I enjoy fanservice masterpieces such as Queen's Blade after all. I just feel that the second season's fanservice was a bit excessive and detrimental to this show's overall quality.
What wasn't detrimental to the overall quality was the art in this show. Shaft generally has a policy where the TV broadcast looks abysmal but they come up with an absolutely stunning Blu Ray release. In the case of Nisemonogatari, the TV version is excellent and they will be hard pressed to do any incredible changes to the Blu Ray release. The animation was for the most part very fluid and the background scenes were beautiful. They really outdid themselves on this show and it looks great. Likewise, the sound was also excellent in this show. The OST was fitting and the various openings were all great as well. Platinum Disco definitely stole the show this time around, like how Ren'ai Circulation stole the show in Bakemonogatari. I have absolutely no complaints when it comes to the art or sound in Nisemonogatari. Shaft went above and beyond my expectations on making an actually presentable TV anime and the sound continued on par with it's predecessor. Overall I feel that this section is much better than Bakemonogatari since you could only really enjoy it if you watched the Blu Rays due to the sheer amount of fixing they did to it.
As previously mentioned, Nisemonogatari focuses more on characterization over the mystery solving that was most prevalent in its predecessor. We see several new characters such Kaiki who brings up quite a bit of Hitagi's past and Yozuru and Yotsugi who serve as an exorcist combo. We also see Karen and Tsukihi having actual roles in the story as well. Without going into much detail since that would give away the entire show, I must say that the characters are once again a very strong point for the show. There is little character degradation between both shows and there is quite a bit of development as well (some of which I don't particularly like but I guess it can't be helped after all). The new characters are interesting and enjoyable while the old ones are what you knew and loved from before. The voice acting was once again top notch. The cast is filled with veterans that you have heard many times before. The new characters are also voiced by veterans and are fitting for their respective roles. Even Shinobu gets to talk this time around, however instead of Aya Hirano we have Maaya Sakamoto for obvious reasons. The characters are definitely a strong point for the *monogatari series and it continues on quite well in this sequel.
Overall, I must say that I enjoyed this show quite a bit but I was not nearly as impressed with it as I was with Bakemonogatari. Nisemonogatari does well as a sequel since it mostly maintains itself but it just leaves you feeling just a little disappointed. Bakemonogatari is one of my favorite shows due to its interesting dialogue, it's characters, and the overall story of it. Nisemonogatari picks up on much of that but the overall product feels unimpressive compared to Bakemonogatari. I think the issue with this show is that despite being great, it still pales in comparison to Bakemonogatari. The excessive fanservice and some certain “character development” that happened in the last episode really leaves a bad taste in my mouth. That along with some of the previous season's characters getting much less screen time and development also makes me feel somewhat frustrated with this series. I will not say that I am platinum disappointed with this show overall, but I just feel that it is not as good as Bakemonogatari. What is good news is that this particular arc of the story is now over and there are plans to continue this animation project with even more. The Kizumonogatari movie should be coming up soon and a suspicious “to be continued” at the end of the last episode shows that this story is definitely not done with. What I can say is that I am still looking forward to more and I hope that the upcoming projects maintain the overall quality. Surpassing the original will be a difficult feat, but I'm optimistic about the upcoming projects and I can't wait to see more. I just hope to the Space Pope that Shaft doesn't decide to release them as online episodes every 6 months.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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Dec 27, 2011
Maken-Ki! is just another one of the ever occurring fanservice shows that pops up every season. They are a mainstay in anime and they range from being decent shows to being absolutely terrible shows. Sadly, Maken-Ki! is on the “terrible” side of the scale. That being said, I sometimes enjoy watching these shows since they can be fun and entertaining when they are done right. However, I did not have fun watching Maken-Ki!. It is also important to note, the director of this show is not known for his great shows. He directed such masterpieces as MD Geist and Genocyber to name a few. His
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previous works made me want to watch this show to see how terrible it was, and I was not disappointed in that aspect.
When it comes to story and plot, Maken-Ki!'s is nearly nonexistent. Like every pointless fanservice show, it is in a school setting and we have a wide array of characters ranging in bust sizes, hair colors, and personalities. All of which seem to have come out of a cookie cutter and have little to no characterization. There are also attempts of describing something that is related to elements and fighting styles yet it is never really explained nor does it really matter throughout the show since the majority of the show is focused around putting the girls in situations where they are exposed and the audience sees a nice light beam covering what might be a pantyshot. However, I am not sure due to the fact that Tien's Solar Flares blinded me. While this show does lack in plot, it certainly makes up for it in PLOT. The entire show focuses on breasts and panty shots and makes sure to put them into every scene. I do know that this is also to be expected and it is a mainstay in these types of shows, but when some of them can come out half decent there's not really much of an excuse. Just earlier this year, Freezing was aired which featured at least some sort of main idea while being a low brow fanservice show and ended up being somewhat decent. I did not expect much from this show story wise, but I did not expect something this little out of it. We had various conflicts that made little to no sense and characters that were introduced randomly and pointlessly to move along some sort of plot regarding a school that has students with magic element powers that fight. The story to this show is absolutely atrocious and nearly nonexistent. It is even worse than what you would expect from this type of show.
The art and sound of Maken-Ki! is unremarkable. Takeda Hiromitsu's designs were altered quite a bit for the anime and due to the nature of the show and the TV stations it was airing on, more than half of it was censored. Other than the having half of the show being covered in either white light beams or fog, the rest of the art is relatively poor. The backgrounds are plain and simple and there are some various character models which are absolutely ridiculous as well. It also features many vibrant colors which don't necessarily help it along. The character designs are typical of a fanservice show since many of the female characters in it have breasts that are larger than their heads but none of them really stood out for me. It is also a shame since fanservice shows can feature relatively interesting art, Samurai Girls which aired last year had interesting character design which was further accented by creative censorship that featured ink blots on the screen. Maken-Ki! Takes a step back towards the generic side by having unremarkable character designs in the anime form and features the dreaded light ray censorship that nobody likes. Maybe I'll take a look at the Blu Rays when they come out but my overall opinion on the art is poor. As for the music, my opinion does not differ. It had a generic OP, generic ED, and the OST was also unremarkable and easily forgotten. The voice actors did a decent job on their roles but it was also nothing special which just makes the show seem even more subpar, even for this genre.
When it comes to characters, we have our usual ones for the most part. We have our busty childhood friend, a tsundere flat chested girl with twin tails, and a delicious brown girl. Where this show differs from many of these other shows is the main character. Most of these shows feature a generic and wimpy self insert main character. But our bespectacled and perverted orange haired main character in this show takes it a step further and somehow comes off as being even worse than usual. On top of being a pervert and a pathetic coward, he puts on a righteous facade where he claims that women shouldn't fight and then ends up getting himself beat up by the various opponents that occur in the show. He must have taken a lesson from everyone's favorite dense orange haired main character from Fate/Stay Night. Our main character also has some sort of special ability which of course makes him overpowered when the time comes as well which is just another typical character trait in this type of show. The cast of girls in the show are generic and not particularly notable in any way. They are just there to get into embarrassing situations where they are exposed for the audience to see their goods. The characters in this show are not particularly terrible, other than the main character of course so I can't really complain that much about it. It's just that the main character really drags down the rest of it in this aspect of the show.
I definitely did not enjoy Maken-Ki!. It had a few moments that were funny because of how over the top they were, but the majority of it was pretty terrible. Terrible even for a fanservice show. There's not really much to praise about this show and I could go on and on regarding its flaws. I know that these fanservice shows are relatively popular (especially since they are consistently made and purposely censored so that people buy the Blu Rays), but Maken-Ki! is not one of the better ones. I would not recommend watching this show even if you do enjoy watching pointless fanservice shows. This one is certainly not one of the worthwhile ones. Some might argue that it's the spiritual successor to Fate/Stay Night due to our dopey main character who wants to fight in place of trained women fighters. But, character and VA jokes aside, we have the true successor being translated and will be done sometime in the next 25 years which everyone can look forward to. I do not think Maken-Ki! was worthwhile and I must say that overall this show gets a 2/10 which correlates to “Horrible” on the scale that MAL uses. What makes this even more depressing is that it was licensed by Funimation for release in the United States. I'm guessing it will probably sell well due to the amount of PLOT and that's a shame since it doesn't deserve that, but that's just how these things work out. That being said, Maken-Ki! is definitely not a buy. I would not recommend watching this show or buying this show, there are many other superior options out there for your wacky fanservice and harem antics.
Reviewer’s Rating: 2
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