Spring 2013 – Week 4 Anime Review

This week: the theme of forgiveness and tolerance in Hyakka Ryouran Samurai Bride, questioning the utilization of steampunk technologies in Shingeki no Kyojin, those awkward color filters in Dansai Bunri no Crime Edge, and beginning to understand and appreciate Emi’s character in Hataraku Maou-sama!

Winter 2013 – Week 11 Anime Review

This week: how transitioning focus away from the cantus has strengthened Shin Sekai Yori, how the diversity of settings in Battle Spheres reflect on the characters in Senran Kagura, the brilliant cinematography utilized in Tamako Market, and finally realizing what’s important in Sakurasou no Pet na Kanojo.

Robotics;Notes – 14

Robotics;Notes can be split right down the semicolon into essentially two separate parts.  The first is the ‘Robotics’ half which tells of Aki’s story and the construction of GunPro-1 and now, GunPro-2.  The latter piece is the ‘Notes’ side of things, focusing in on Frau’s story and the conspiracy linked to her mother’s sudden disappearance.  Although there is some overlap between the two halves, mainly due to Kai’s character playing fundamental roles in each, there have been two narratives developing throughout the anime that examine two distinct and dissimilar stories.  In doing so, Robotics;Notes has found itself some positives and some negatives.

Magi – 15

The flow of fate is a fascinating concept, a theory which dictates the existence of a predestined ‘proper’ direction for the world to follow.  As we’ve learned from Ugo, there are those who fight to maintain this path and work to keep the world in the vision of Solomon’s wisdom.  Others, however, are opposed to this path and fight against it, laboring against this flow of fate to improve their power and their lives at the expense of Solomon’s plan.  Because of this dichotomy, the conflicting sides fighting to improve their own personal goals, one has to wonder if there is a ‘right’ and a ‘wrong’ side to Magi or if the two are blurred and ambiguous with each sharing some positives and negatives alike.

Winter 2013 – First Week Impressions (Part 2)

This post reviews: Tamako Market, Sasami-san@Ganbaranai, GJ-bu and Kotoura-san.

Magi – 13

Within the Balbadd story arc, a specific hierarchy has been successfully established.  No, no, this isn’t about the monarchy, class structure, or social order in Magi but instead about how the fighters and fighting is ordered into certain tiers based on the various acquired powers and intrinsic abilities present.  With Alibaba now controlling and utilizing the flames of Amon, we’re able to better understand how powerful the magoi and djinn are and comprehend the difference in fighting capacity between these characters.

Robotics;Notes – 5

A shy, nervous or timid schoolgirl isn’t anything new nor is it anything exceptional to anime.  In fact, this character archetype is a staple of many anime franchises, almost always included in harem settings or used in combination with another personality type to fit in with virtually every other anime.  And despite the frequency of such characters in anime, the shy elements of the character are often poorly written, exceedingly simplified, or completely mismanaged to the point where it’s detrimental to the character and potentially the story.  Junna Daitoku, however, is a character that understands ‘shy’.  And unlike most shy characters, Junna has already shown growth and progress in her personality as an attempt to overcome this trait and improve as a person.  Junna’s character is just one example that demonstrates how Robotics;Notes has a tremendous grasp on its characterizations.