The blog that reviews all anime and the mangas
Showing posts with label school. Show all posts
Showing posts with label school. Show all posts

Friday, January 24, 2014

Anime Review: Date A Live

I have really mixed feelings about this anime... So I'll proceed with this review


A little word before I begin. Date A Live (デート・ア・ライブ Dēto A Raibu) is the anime adaption of the Japanese light novel series, Date A Live. It is directed by Keitaro Motonaga and produced by AIC PLUS+.

Well let the dating game BEGIN!

Story

Spacequakes, a mysterious phenomenon that destroys everything at the point of impact within a given radius. They are unpredictable and appear randomly. Itsuka Shido lives with his sister Kotori in a town that experiences lots of Spacequakes but has proper countermeasure to warn the population and limit the casualties. 
Here's an example of a spacequake

Oh wait wrong picture


One day Shido is (through some complicated circumstances) running to find his sister who is not in a shelter and a spacequake warning has been issued.
He doesn't find his sister but discover that those spacequakes are caused by a girl.

This girl called Princess (Hime) is standing in the middle of the spacequake impact. She is attacked by a squad called the AST who's objective is to kill these creatures called spirits.
Of course he is shocked. But he is more shocked when he discovers that his little sister Kirino.... euh I mean Kotori is actually the boss of a secret organization aiming to stop these spacequakes.
The more shocking fact is that to stop these spirits from wreaking havoc on earth the solution is actually to date them, show them that there are people who actual want her and won't deny her existence.
So yeah in the end Shido will have a harem. This gets a whole lot more interesting when the number of girls slowly grows and the attempts to sway Shidou’s heart commence.

Characters:

The characters all have some pretty unique personality to them that makes them pretty special. The main girls are all pretty interesting even though they aren’t really fleshed out that well. We have a kuudere, a yandere, a tsundere, a loli and the childish one.

Itsuka Shido, the good looking character who gets all the girls etc etc etc.... Your typical protagonist in a harem anime, very generic. Shallow, bland at best, he only serve to advance the harem. An interesting personality Shido has as described by Kotori: "onii-chan had become strangely sensitive to the despair inside people.—Mm. Something like everyone rejecting oneself—thinking that one will never be loved by anyone else. Well, basically what he had been like back then. If there was someone with such a melancholic expression, even if it was a complete stranger, he would probably go help them without a second thought."


The character that caught my interest the most is Tohka Yatogami. It’s still not quite clear how she gains the last name Yatogami. On my first impression, she resembles Saber from the Fate Series. The usage of armor, the aura she gives off and her nickname “Princess” are all very similar to Saber. She even shares the same hobby as Saber (specifically eating). It is hard to tell whether or not the author did this on purpose. Tohka is voiced by Marina Inoue (Mikazuki Yozora in Boku wa tomodachi ga sukunai)


Next is a..... uh.... how should I say it... Oh yeah a Yuno rip-off (Mirai Nikki). Kurumi Tokisaki, who is was the second character that caught my interest. She dresses like a gothic lolita which is not very common these days in the anime industry. She is depicted with a very sadist/masochist yandere tone and I must admit I kinda like it

Next is Kotori Itsuka serves as the protagonist’s beloved imouto (little sister). Technically, Kotori is Shido’s foster sister. Like any other kawaii imouto, Kotori was doomed from the beginning to become lolicon material, much like Yoshino who is also essentially a loli spirit. Other than her loli physique and her tsundere personality, there is nothing moe about her. Well there isn’t much to fit the criteria of moe anyways... Also I should mention that she is voiced by Taketatsu Ayana, some might know her other no...


Sound:

I don't have anything to say, the music is good, the opening is good but I have to talk about ending #1 and #2 Save The World and Save My Heart. They are pretty addictive and I kept listening to them for a while
Edit: The second opening was also a really good surprise and I enjoyed it a lot!






Animation and Art:

The animation and the art were really good, it is always a pleasure for the eye to watch anime with such a good quality. The level of details is really high but still not the best we can get (KyoAni does that). The animation during the combats is smooth and the quality never dropped which is very good point. Here's some image to let you judge.






Difference with the light novel:

Didn't read the novel can't say

Conclusion:

It's pretty complicated to say what I feel about this anime, it is your typical harem anime with some new stuff added that actually doesn't make it like all the other harem. I personally enjoyed watching it because I like Tohka and I would recommend that you watch it
My original score would be 8/10 but the fact that season 2 should be airing around Spring 2014 I shall rate Date A Live : 8.5/10
EDIT: Dropped the rating to 8 because season 2 was... not that good, and the animation quality was awful... 8 because The movie: Mayuri Judgement has been announced and confirmed for 2015.

Enjoy


Saturday, April 6, 2013

Anime Review: Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai

So there it is, my review of an anime I recently watched Boku wa tomodachi ga sukunai (not many friends)



Despite containing lots of fanservice and being very funny, this anime will teach you the value of friendship, that having a couple of trustworthy friends is better than a thousand "fake" friends.... okay now lets get to the review shall we?

Story:

Where to begin? Ah yes I know! With our main character: Hasegawa Kodaka!
Kodaka is a transfer student, he came back to the town where he grew up with his sister to live and go to school because he didn't want to follow his dad to the US.
So this guy is considered by his classmates a delinquent because he happened to always do the wrong thing at the wrong moment (like arriving late at class the first day of school after running and looking like a zombie in front of the innocent teacher scarring her in the process)
That kind of expression

One day while waking at school he notice that a girl in his class, Mikazuki Yozora, who is in general very discrete in talking to someone and laughing happily.

He enters the room and he notice that this girl is kinda complex-ed for creating an imaginary friend and talking to him (her air friend as she likes to call him/her). After telling each other's story, Yozora gets an idea and then leaves Kodaka telling him that she will contact him later.
The next day she catches him and tell him that she got an idea to make friends: founding a club! And thus the Neighbor Club was born.
To recruit member they attach posters all over the school with a special message that only people looking for friends will notice or understand

After finishing posting those flyers, they go back to the club room and are surprised when someone knock at the door saying she wants to join. Unfortunately it is Kashiwazaki Sena, a beautiful and popular girl with only fake friends. She wants to join so she could make real friends.

Things starts to go awry because Yozora hates Sena and Sena hates Yozora. We can see their reactions when Kodaka suggested that the 3 of them can become friends!

And here the story goes on, more people will join the neighbor club to try and make friends.
It is a really interesting story so I won't spoil it. You will love it!

Characters:


Despite his looks, Kodaka is actually a calm and collected individual who is soft-spoken and kind hearted. Kodaka would have initially called Yozora and Sena by their last names if not for the two demanding him to call them by their first names instantly. Kodaka would remain calm even when provoked or angry and is the only one among his club members who is still trying to get friends. Kodaka is always depicted to be somewhat "dense" at the feelings being expressed by most female characters towards him. But in reality, Kodaka is well aware of this, but only pretends that he does not know since he doesn't want anything to change from the relationship between him and most female characters


Mikazuki Yozora: Although Yozora looks nice, her personality is far from that. She is extremely manipulative, and would often trick the people to do her bidding. She have no qualms on who her victims were and have probably tricked almost all of the Neighbor's club members (save Rika) at least once, directly or indirectly.

Kashiwazaki Sena: On the outside, Sena appears to be an ordinary high school girl but in truth, Sena is arrogant and prideful by nature and is well aware of this, even once stating that she should do that since she's that good. Sena considers herself like some sort of queen or goddess to the school and would often treat her fellow male students as servants (not that they mind). Because of her personality and her beauty, she has no female friends. Sena also believed that there are two types of girls, the ones who would be her friends and the others are all not worthy of her. Sena also does not treat the boys in her class with much respect due to them constantly oogling at her and doing whatever she told them to, as such, Sena merely sees them as her servants. However, whenever Sena's ego is shattered by someone else (mostly Yozora), she bursts in tears and flings childish insults before running away. Sena was also shocked to see that Kodaka does not act like the boys in her class (wanting to be stepped on) and hence, views Kodaka in a different light.  Her feelings have increased to the point where she says that she wouldn't mind marrying him and that she was in love with him.


Sound:

The soundtrack is awesome. It really fits the situation and you will find yourself always singing or humming them. The opening is also great as it is sung by many well known seiyuu (Kana Hanazawa among them).

What I really loved while watching the anime were the piano themes.

Here have some example

The opening theme

Ending theme

Animation:

The art is actually one of the I've ever seen. Especially when you look at the character's lips. They have something that no other anime has. The animation was almost flawless, the background was well designed and it is really enjoyable.
Playing on PSP

Difference with the light novel:

Didn't read the novel personally but I was told the anime follows the novel very well

Conclusion:


This anime is hilarious, the jokes were simple cheesy and they managed to pull them off again and again and yet you find yourself laughing hear-tidily again and again. So if you are looking for an episodic anime to watch while you are cooking or whatever or just wanna have a good laugh this is the one.

Final Grade: 9.3/10




Sunday, March 10, 2013

Anime Review: Another

So today I will be reviewing a relatively new anime: Another


Before you begin let me warn you: If you are under 15 turn away, this anime is bloody, gory and this review will contain some sensitive material.
Also this anime will change your perception of life and death (and dolls). I personally loved it (even though I swore to never ever rewatch it I found myself watching it again the other day)

Story:

Well this is a tough one... Another is full of twists and stuff but I'll make it "spoilerless" (hard)
Anyway the story takes place in Yomiyama and follows Kouichi Sakakibara, a young boy with lung disease who just transfered to junior high at Yomiyama North (actual name of the school) from Tokyo. He lives with his grandparents and his aunt Reiko.
A little spin off here: There is a rumor in Yomiyama that 26 years ago a person called Misaki, who was in class 3-3 and was very popular, died with all his family in a house fire. Misaki's classmate's unable to accept this horrible truth began to act as if he was still their with them and acted along (even the teachers did). Anyway at the prom's picture it is said that Misaki appeared on it. It would have been nice if this had stopped here but...

The story begins with Kouichi waking up at the hospital.

He is visited by 3 of his future classmates (because he didn't get to go to school yet) who claims to be representatives from his class.

Visit's over, Kouichi went to take a walk, he catches the elevator quickly and gets in. He doesn't notice that someone was already in there, a girl who is also at Yomiyama North wearing an eye patch and carrying a doll.

She is going to the B2 floor (the morgue) claiming that she has to meet her other half (creepy eh?)

First day of school (for him) he isn't greeted the way he was expecting it, the mood in class is gloomy, dark, tense etc... Some people try to get to know him but there is obviously something going on (from their attitude)
He meets the Eye patch girl again on the rooftop, her name is Misaki Mei (suspicious eh?) who tells him to do not get close to her and to stop trying to talk to her.

That's mostly it for an introduction, the plot is simple: one tightly-written, carefully thought out, involving a relatively small number of characters, which proves surprisingly durable as a twelve episode series, having avoided the trap of the same cliff-hanger ending every time; they always manage to throw in a new and interesting variation. The resolution of the story-line was amazing; it managed to bring all the strands of information which we had gleaned and wrap everything up in a style which was paced exactly right; fast, but not hurried or rushed. I certainly didn't see the final twist coming- not many people did- but it was masterful. It was also the most emotional moment of the series; even those of you who have laughed like maniacs throughout the entire series will suddenly become somber during the final five minutes. Being mindful of the strict limits on what I can actually say about its specifics, I shall merely say that it was a perfect ending to a brilliant series.


Characters: 

Kouichi Sakakibara is a regular junior school students, interested in arts with some cooking skills who always gets involved because of his high curiosity level in the most dangerous stuff. Oh and I forgot to mention he is a horror story lover. He is always trying to find what is happening, we can say he is half clueless...

Misaki Mei: A mysterious girl who apparently can only interact with Kouichi.




Izumi Akazawa, the class representative, is blunt to the point of being rude, but is quite the deceiver and manipulator behind the scenes, as it later turns out.


Not every character is what they seem to be. Only the end will tell you everything!

Sound:

Well... how to say it... the sound is the key (bad musical pun... sorry). From the start, the music creates a sense of eeriness, from simple melodies to electronic effects and string sections. As difficult as it is to describe, I would like you to imagine a full orchestra having a psychedelic freak-out (think of that section of A Day in the Life) with a hair-raising selection of electronic hums and whines added, and then multiply that by about ten. That's about what it's like (or as best as I can put it into words). The music never quite goes away, unlike in other, lighter series; it drops right down to a few notes on a piano, but still gives you the sense that something's always just about to happen.

The opening theme

The opening is one of the freakiest thing. Just read the lyrics, they are all about death, emptiness, void and blood... And the video doesn't help to ease the tension!

The ending (it is quite relaxing and gives you a sense of peace)

One of the many scary OST

The scariest OST

Animation:


The art is simply beautiful. This might actually be quite near the top in terms of the best series I have ever seen art-wise. The characters aren't that different from any other series, but the backgrounds are amazingly well defined; they really are just bliss to watch. The art mostly depicts death, lots and lots of death, with some dismemberment and impending doom thrown in. In almost every scene, there's a sense of decay, everything looks decrepit and rusty, the buildings look deserted, and there's gratuitous use of deep, dark reds wherever possible. If it's outdoors, there are crows perched on the roofs, looking hungry. If it's indoors, like the hospital, then the lights are dim and flickering occasionally





Difference with the manga and Novel:

Concerning the manga some stuff might change but you will get the same feeling as the anime.
I haven't read the novel, a book can't be judged by it's cover but THIS IS TOO MUCH



Conclusion:



If you are still with me (and it's quite likely if you are indeed reading this sentence), I recommend you go and watch Another now. It's only a few hours out of your spare time and you really have nothing to lose except a night's sleep if you are easily scared. If you are going to watch it, I can recommend watching it at midnight, it's surprisingly good fun (if your idea of 'fun' is the same as mine, that is).

Final Grade: 9.8/10






Saturday, February 23, 2013

Anime Review: Angel Beats

Hello everyone! Today I will be reviewing one of the best anime out there that really affected me: Angel Beats

Before I begin let me say 2 words about why I began to watch this anime:
   1- The original idea (the plot take place in the after life)
   2- The beautiful art/animation
   3- The presence of guitar

With this being said I will begin the review (you can read relaxed, I won't be spoiling the story)

Story:

The story takes place in school acting as a limbo for those who died. People who are sent there are those with lingering attachment to life and are rebelling against there past; In other words people with a hard childhood (sickness, paralysis, un-achieved goals etc...).
Note that people who committed suicide are not allowed to go there and people there can still feel pain, sadness and can "die" (they will awaken sometimes later with no injuries)
The story begins with Otonashi Yuzuru, a boy who awaken there not remembering anything about his life.

Upon awakening he is approached by an armed girl: Yuri Nakamura

Yuri tells him that she is a member of the Afterlife Battlefront (Shinda Sekai Sensen or SSS), an organization she founded and leads against the oppressing God and his messenger Tenshi (Angel in Japanese).

Tenshi

There is a rock band called Girls Dead Monster that act as a diversion for the SSS missions and a guild that mass produces weapons.

The rest of the afterlife school is populated by a large number of "normal" students and teachers Yuri deems "non-player characters" (NPCs) as they are not human, but look and act the part.
Also if they just do like everybody (go to class and everything) they will be obliterated and reincarnated as a sea barnacle (or so they say)

Now I won't say anymore to avoid spoilers, I will just say that the story is really not what you might believe, things are very complicated. We have some childish humor but we also have this dark atmosphere when some of the SSS member's past is revealed. Each one has a unique story, torturous, depressing tale. 

The ending will leave you in tears

(image pretty much accurate of how I felt at the ending)


Characters:

As I mentioned before the story follow mostly Yuzuru and the SSS in their fight against Tenshi. Though we might notice that not all the character's past is covered (the Manga and the Light Novel do)
Each of them also have a special way to make you laugh as they are funny as hell.

Sound:

Nothing to say, the music is awesome, perfect, you will never forget it.
Opening theme "My soul"


"My song" One of the most emotional

And the ending theme which is relaxing after an action episode

Also the music really fits the situations, happy songs in happy moments, sad songs in sad moments.

Animation:


The animation in this series is quite detailed and beautiful. The school campus looks good and the scenery is close to flawless. The character designs are wide and different for every character. It doesn’t rely on sex-appeal or moe characters, which is refreshing. The amount of detail put in the weapons and instruments is impressive. If you’re knowledgeable with these kinds of things, you can clearly see what model, brand and such the different items are. The violence is dramatic, but not «gory» or noticeably special.

The action scenes does not disappoint as well. It gets your blood pumping, and that’s all it takes for a viewer to want to see more.


The series has its own band called «Girls Dead Monster». The amount of detail put into their performances is incredible. If you watch closely, you can see that the guitarist holds the correct chords, the drummer hits the right drums and the bassist plays as if it was a real performance. Now THAT is amazing since anime often just lets the guitarists hand slide up and down the neck of the guitar and so forth.

Difference with the Manga:


The manga is still ongoing, and it is wider since it covers more the SSS's members story.

Conclusion:


Overall, this anime is one for all tastes, and it will have you crying and laughing at the same time. You will start thinking about your own life in comparison to the pasts of the members of the Battlefront and get caught in deep thought. It is visual and musical brilliance, and I would recommend seeing this if you want a mix of everything. It did turn into one of my favorites the moment I finished it, and the same may happen to you.

Final Grade: 9.8/10 MUST WATCH!




Sunday, February 17, 2013

Anime Review: School days

So as I said my first post will be reviewing the latest anime I watched: School Days



School day is a psychological. Do not think it is a regular love story between a boy and a girl playing in school, no no. It is an anime with a dark plot, twist that will make you go all Incredible Hulk on it (don't know how my PC survived this experience). It is about how cheating can mess up with your life and the heart and heads of your loved one. It shows how the human heart and mind are very fragile and how friendship is very precious and when destroyed in the worst way, it can have the worst consequences.

Story (Spoiler Warning when mentioned)

The story Starts with Itou Makoto, a normal high school person who listen to music and have some perverted thought like all boys of his age. 

Makoto has a crush on the girl that always ride the train with him, Katsura Kotonoha. Kotonoha is a shy girl with big boobs who always was victim of bullies since middle school.

Saionji Sekai (Makoto's friend) discover that he likes Kotonoha, and so she decide to help him and eventually hook them up

Now (and it was pretty much predictable) we discover that Sekai has feelings for Makoto and kisses him.

The first three episode are like the typical anime love triangle. Eventually Makoto and Kotonoha become lovers and start going out together.

Here things start to go the wrong way. Makoto on the phone tell Sekai that dating Kotonoha is "tiring"


I will be SPOILING the whole story in this section, if you don't want to be spoiled jump to the next section. You have been warned


I will make this short and not detailed. Watch the anime

Sekai and Makoto start "dating" without Kotonoha's knowledge, he's cheating on her and eventually he sleeps with Sekai (multiple times). The comes in Makoto's childhood friend Otome Katou.

Makoto is now cheating on Sekai and Kotonoha (who is convinced that Makoto still loves her) and eventually sleep with her (little detail worth mentioning, they are filmed and they don't know it)

So Makoto is now a guy who is obsessed with sex and is sleeping with every girl in the school. He eventually musters the balls to tell Kotonoha that it is over (followed by a reaction of disbelief from her)
Now we introduce Sekai's best friend Kyoura Setsuna. She cares deeply for Sekai and eventually goes to Makoto to make him promise that he will take care Sekai (because she is traveling) and even sleep with him to convince him (how intelligent)
Lets press on things. Sekai discover that Makoto has been cheating on her and falls into depression and to top it all is waiting for her periods which (wait for it) are not coming... pregnant. That's what you get B**CH.
She tells Makoto that she is pregnant expecting him to take responsibility. This news eventually slips and all the school now knows about it. All the girls are now avoiding Makoto who is now depressed. He doesn't want to go back to Sekai.
He finds Kotonoha on the road and eventually and apologize to her and she (stupidest thing ever) actually forgive him. They go back together, dating and sleep together. Sekai catch them in the act and just leave while crying.

Here is the most interesting part and the BIGGEST SPOILER, so if you DON'T want to be spoiled please do skip this section in particular


Sekai goes to Makoto's house so that they can talk about the child she is carrying (abortion in other word) she propose to make tea and goes to the kitchen. Meanwhile Makoto who left his phone in his room receives a message and go to check on it. It is from Sekai saying "Sorry..... Farewell" he turns around to ask her what is the meaning of this only to find her right behind him, knife in the hand, and stabs him.

Kotonoha come to his house and finds his dead body on the ground. She sends a message to Sekai using Makoto's phone telling her to meet him. Sekai go to the meeting only to find Kotonoha with Makoto's head (disgusting eh?). She tells Sekai that she is lying, she is not pregnant and it is just an excuse for Makoto to come back to her. She stabs Sekai.

Happy ending?

END OF SPOILER

Characters:

The characters in this anime are seriously some of the dumbest people I have ever seen. Makoto especially - after watching about 5 episodes I wanted to smash his face in. His idiotic expressions, his whiny sped voice, everything about him. I hated it all. I hated the way he looked, the way he talked, and everything he did. My hatred for this character is unparalleled to any other characters I might have ever hated in my life. The only props I can give to the people who dream't up this character was that we got to see him go from a selfish idiot to a selfish asshole by the end of the series.

That rant out of the way, I don't have much to say bout the other characters which was mainly composed of idiotic girls that for some reason or another couldn't get enough of this whiny faced idiot.



We only notice an evolution of Kotonoha and Sekai.

Sound:

The opening sounded great, but it didn't really suit the series considering how dark (and idiotic) it became. The opening was way too happy in contrast to the story. Otherwise, bgm was decent, even good at times. No big comments 
Here the Opening theme which I really liked




OST: Anata Ga Inai


OST: Kanashimi no




Animation:

 I thought the animation and character design was pretty good, one of the series stronger points. All of the character designs although not unique, were nice, and the colors brought out the mood fairly well. 


Difference with the Mangas:

In the mangas the plot is simpler. The beginning is the same, but we find a faithful Makoto who is not a stupid arrogant cunt. I liked it more than the anime.

Conclusion:

This story is more about the idea behind cheating and how it can affect you and all the people around. I am very neutral concerning the anime because without the ending it would have been the shittiest anime ever. Also bear in mind that the studios are making everything to make you HATE Makoto so that the ending would be better and more enjoyable

7.9/10, Watch if you want