Alright, let’s get the sequels out of the way first since there are quite a few this Winter. The ones that I will not be watching because I haven’t watched the original series or any previous material on include: Amagami SS+, Aquarion EVOL, Mobile Suit Gundam Seed Remaster, Natsume Yuujin-chou 4, New Prince of Tennis, Smile Precure, Tantei Opera Milky Holmes 2, and Zero no Tsukaima F! That’s pretty much every single sequel out there excluding one which is pretty amazing that I’ve missed all these anime. At least the one sequel I can watch this season is my most highly anticipated anime of the season.
Nisemonogatari
By now you should know what you’re getting yourself into if you watch Nisemonogatari. Expect more visual brilliance from Shaft in this sequel to Bakemonogatari. What’s different about this story is it has a different focus, being more central to Koyomi Araragi’s sisters, Karen and Tsukihi, rather than the first season which was all about Koyomi himself. This fresh perspective should liven up the anime for a second go-around and introduce some new character dynamics (can’t wait to see Senjougahara again) especially if the series can rid itself of the harem aspect, my least favorite thing about the original season. And the art and music I expect to love all over again. This should be my favorite anime of the season and I’m eager to see what new artistic indulgences Shaft has planned for us this winter.
With Nisemonogatari out of the way, all that’s left are my thoughts on all the new anime airing this season. No show has taken the reigns of this season and stood itself out from the rest but that doesn’t mean none of these anime are capable of becoming a personal favorite or an anime masterpiece. Most shows this Winter have potential but nothing is definite, at least not yet. Because of this, I’m planning on sampling virtually every new show and trying to figure out what suits me best. There appears to be a number of comedies that sound interesting, so I’ll try them all at least once. And I haven’t watched a fanservice/ecchi anime in a few seasons, so I’ll likely end up with one or two before the season is over. And with that said, onto the new anime this Winter:
Kill Me Baby
Opinion: Yeah, somehow this comes out on top. Not sure why but comedies are always the safest best with me. The synopsis is about a school girl and an assassin doing ‘normal’ girl things together for a quick-hit, innocent comedy with loads of energy. These comedies usually never disappoint me but I’ll have to see how much of it is genuine comedy vs. otaku humor (which I never really care for or seek out in an anime). The art style is pretty moe and cutesy which can translate to gag humor easier than a more serious style. The PV linked above makes me think this anime might be a little insane. That can be good or bad depending on the material and execution but I’m betting it will turn out to be somewhere between humorous and hilarious. Probably will end up being a fun and lively comedy.
Plans for this show: Likely watch
Ano Natsu de Matteru
Opinion: My initial thoughts on this are that it’s a blend of AnoHana and Toradora (all three have same director, Nagai Tatsuyuki) but without the vibrant and lovable characters that elevated each anime into legendary status. I must quickly counter and say that it’s impossible to read into the characters from a PV and a short synopsis but their character designs don’t seize my attention like the AnoHana or Toradora did. In fact, my enthusiasm in this series is a bit lacking considering that this will likely end up being one of the better anime this season. The anime seems to be one of the only serious ones this season, too, so it’ll likely be watched by a wide anime audience compared to others this season. I hope the romance is on par with Toradora and the drama similar to AnoHana but that might be giving this anime unfair expecations.
Plans for this show: Maybe watch
Another
Opinion: I’ve never really been a big fan or horror anime but Another is one that has caught my attention. I’m not entirely sure why though. The art style in the PV is magnificent but it never really gave off a creepy or frightening vibe. The synopsis (at the school 26 years ago the most popular/honors/best sports/you know this archetype dies suddenly and the class decides to keep her around until graduation… how exactly they do this, I want to know. Anyway, presently some boy transfers into the class where we have this mysterious eye-patch girl who shares the same name as the preserved student from years past) certainly sounds horror-esque but it really doesn’t explain what will happen in this anime but rather the background of the situation the boy is entering. I don’t have much else besides those two things, so I’m still a little uncertain about this anime but I have a feeling I’ll end up keeping it and enjoying it, so long as it can maintain a creepy and uneasy atmosphere.
Plans for this show: Maybe watch
BRAVE10
Opinion: I tend to like historical/samurai anime so it should be no surprise that I’m planning on giving BRAVE10 a chance this Winter. What stands out to me the most are the exquisite character designs, the solid battle animation, the number of battles, and the use of blood. It looks to have a healthy amount of action to keep me interested and a decent style of art and animation to keep my eyes happy. And the setting, another feudal Japan backdrop, certainly gets a thumbs up from me. The few concerns I have are that the story and the characters might end up being stereotypical and/or boring. The one problem I have with historical/samurai anime is that the stories never interest me and the characters, except for one or two, are always monotonous and boring except when in battle. Will BRAVE10 show the same problems that have plagued so many samurai anime in the past? Guess I’ll be one to find out.
Plans for this show: Maybe watch
Rinne no Lagrange
Opinion: Giant robots, crazy battles, a gorgeous setting, and an acceptable level of ecchi material, too. Rinne no Lagrange seems like the type of entertainment anime that I’m eyeing for this season. I’ve never really been big on Xebec as an animation studio but I’m already digging the visual appeal of the animation, especially during the battle sequences, and find the overall artwork to be above mediocre. The main character seems like a suitable protagonist for this type of anime but the rest of the cast looks pretty dull. And whatever the story is, I’m going to guess it will be dry and uninteresting. The appeal for this anime is all in the eye-candy, so as long as it can keep me entertained with the robots and fights and fanservice, then I’ll end up enjoying this anime.
Plans for this show: Maybe watch
Senhime Zesshou Symphogear
Plans for this show: Maybe watch
Black Rock Shooter
Opinion: I watched the Black Rock Shooter OVA when it came out in 2010 and didn’t enjoy it. In fact, the first time I watched it, it put me to sleep. The second time I made it to the end but it wasn’t much better than my first viewing of it. The fights were beautiful and fun to watch but I really didn’t care about what was going on the whole time and the school aspect was a real buzzkill. Not sure I want to watch 8 more episodes of this but one more wouldn’t ruin me. Not sure how I feel about this being a noitaminA anime either but I’ll reserve my opinions until after I see how BRS performs.
Plans for this show: Doubtful but it gets a shot
Daily Lives of High School Boys
Opinion: There are also some longer PVs out there with actual material from the anime, so it may be worthwhile to check those out if you’re interested. I’ve watched two that are up on YouTube and came away unimpressed with both. It just isn’t the kind of comedy that I actively seek out when looking for a comedy anime and the rest of the material seems rather uninteresting. There has been some excitement and positive reviews about it lately, though, so I guess this is where I deviate from the norm a bit. It just doesn’t look like something I would enjoy but I guess if everyone is pumped about it, I might as well give it one episode to see if it can redeem itself.
Plans for this show: Doubtful but it gets a shot
Gokujyo
Plans for this show: Doubtful but it gets a shot
High School DxD
Opinion: Another fanservice/ecchi anime (quite a few this season) with elements of magic, battles, and of course another school setting. Why this one ranks lower than the other fanservice/ecchi anime of the season is there are definite harem elements going on which I detest in these types of shows (for whatever reason), so I’m not as excited about this as I am with others. Still, the battles look interesting, the character designs are attractive, and the show might turn out to be one of the best entertainment anime of the season. But for some reason, I just don’t see that. I’ll give it an episode to prove its worth and see if it can beat out the other fanservice anime this season.
Plans for this show: Doubtful but it gets a shot
Mouretsu Pirates
Opinion: The main reason this anime is getting a shot is I really want to watch a space-themed anime. But there are quite a few things about Mouretsu Pirates that I don’t like and why I’m ranking it in this category. The character designs are fine and the animation looks solid, so that’s good, but the rest turns me off. Our protagonist is a high school girl who works at a maid café and doubles as captain of a pirate space ship. Why can’t she just be captain of a pirate space ship, why does she have to be a high school maid? No one else in the cast stood out as interesting or worthy of a backstory when they flashed over their faces in the PV but at least they looked like they could be somewhat entertaining. And I’m not exactly sure how they’ll get away with the whole space pirate theme when the main girl has to go to school everyday. I’m giving it a shot since it might satisfy my desire for a space-themed anime but I’m not expecting it to do much of anything.
Plans for this show: Doubtful but it gets a shot
Recorder to Randoseru
Plans for this show: Doubtful but it gets a shot
Surprisingly, there are only two anime that I’ve already decided against. Perhaps it’s partially because I want to watch a fanservice/ecchi anime this season or that I feel every anime has potential this season or that I’m being more lenient this season that previous ones. Whatever the reason, these two anime just don’t offer enough to even make me consider watching their first episodes.
Inu x Boku SS
Opinion: Seems to be some combination of romance, mystery, and the occult. Unfortunately that combination doesn’t include my interest in this anime.
Plans for this show: No dice
Papa no Iukoto o Kikinasai!
Opinion: I want an ecchi/fanservice anime but not one with lolis in it. And this one appears to be entirely loli.
Plans for this show: No dice
And that concludes the Winter 2012 Anime Season Preview. Not sure how much room I have for this Winter but it has room to be larger than this past Autumn. Doesn’t mean I’ll fill it up with shows this season but at least I’ll have more time to watch anime or choose to catch up on other shows or whatever this season. Need to keep in mind that about five anime I’m watching this season (Chihayafuru, Future Diary, Guilty Crown, Last Exile Fam, and Persona 4) so there isn’t a whole lot of room for new anime as there have been in seasons past. Also need to figure out what to blog since I want to do Nisemonogatari and maybe one other. Guess we’ll find out once the calendar turns over and the Winter anime season begins.