Macross Delta
Alternate Titles: Macross Δ
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M
Musaigen no Phantom World
Alternate Titles: Myriad Colors Phantom World
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My Love Story!
“Slice of life” is a genre of anime that has truly taken off over the last ten years. It’s grown from something one might see a couple of times a year to a veritable multi series per season affair. Yet, it seems like many of these “slice of life” anime tend to fall flat and often settle for being middling entertainment for those longing for days gone by. My Love Story! is a series that from the outset busts out of the typical mold and delivers to fans of the genre something for which they’ve been waiting a long time; a series with compelling characters and a story written as well as its comedy.
Takeo and Yamato Celebrate Sunakawa’s Birthday.
My Love Story! is propelled by an all-star cast of studio and production talent. Beginning with the famed Studio Madhouse (Death Note, Hajime no Ippo, Parasyte) and continuing with prolific director Morio Asaka (Aoi Bungaku, Cardcaptor Sakura, Chihayafuru, Chobits, Nana), there is no shortage of talent in the My Love Story! stable. On a side note, it remains to see how profitable the series will be as a lot of Madhouse’s properties have not generated stellar revenue in the Japanese market.
My Love Story! is the tale of high school student Gouda Takeo. As if something out of the anime Slam Dunk, Takeo is a giant among his other high school classmates, often earning him deep respect among those in the male demographic. But while Takeo may be a dominating physical presence, this has not granted him any points with the opposite sex. Every girl Takeo has ever fallen for has not returned his affection and instead gravitated their affection to Takeo’s relationship-disinterested best friend, Sunakawa. Takeo’s bad luck changes one day when he rescues a girl, Yamato, from a train groper (“Chikan”).
Yamato Falls Victim to a Train Groper
The events that follow change Takeo’s relationship track record forever as Yamato immediately falls for his cool personality and heroic spirit. After many meetings in the park and a cute exchange in which Yamato accidentally confesses her love in front of Takeo, the two become a couple by only episode three of the anime. Fans of the genre can breathe easy as this series is quite refreshing compared to more typical, slow to develop, anime romances (e.g. Ao Haru Ride, Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-kun, Kim ni Todoke)
The relationship dynamic between these two is adorable. Yamato being a very small Japanese girl looks like a tiny child next to Takeo and the disparity in their size and personality allows the writers to play off of them in a way that is in a word, “cute”, and often funny. Eventually even the other girl’s that attend Yamato’s school also realize Takeo’s cool appeal as they quietly investigate why exactly Yamato loves Takeo so much.
Takeo Salutes the Fans in My Love Story’s Opening Video
So where is the conflict in the story? The majority of this comes in the form of potential obstacles to Takeo and Yamato’s relationship. These often surface in the form of quickly resolved “love triangles” that pop up in 2-3 episode story arcs. This might seem obnoxious and cliche to some viewers but the writers truly did a nice job navigating the story through these relationship complications. One might find it ironic however that a story that was initially about a man who has no feminine sex appeal drives this story to its conclusion as women flock to him one after another. Despite this, the anime does not devolve into a harem anime as Takeo gently dispatches each woman’s feelings in a manly fashion.
As is the case with many anime, My Love Story! feels a little slow in the middle. The story started and ended strong but those finding themselves disinterested with a particular story arc might struggle to wade through that section of content. My Love Story! could easily have been a 13 episode anime and might have been the better for it. To this end, the anime is not meant for those wanting a fast paced or action packed series.
As far as the music and animation are concerned they are both pleasantly delivered to the viewer. The character designs are very well executed; Takeo has large facial features to match his overall enormous physique and Yamato is all around as cute as is needed to create stark contrast against her significant other. The animation isn’t stellar but is about as good as needed for a “slice of life” anime without any real “action beats”. The music was smooth and enjoyable, right down to the theme song, “Miraikei Answer”, performed by Trustrick.
Takeo Uses Sunakawa for Kissing Practice
All in all, My Love Story! is a must watch anime for all fans of the romance comedy or “slice of life” genre. Everything from the story and the comedy, to the character designs were all comfortably within the good to very good range. Its cute witty charm makes this a contender among the top anime series of 2015.
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Magical Lyrical Nanoha Vivid
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Mushishi Zoku Shou
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Midori
MIDORI (1992)
地下幻燈劇画：少女椿 (ちかげんとうげきが：しょうじょつばき)
– Directed by Hiroshi Harada (Eternal Paradise, Lullaby to the Big Sleep)
– Also known as MR. ARASHI’S AMAZING FREAK SHOW.
– Based on the ero guro manga by Suehiro Maruo, which is subsequently based on the narrative of Shoujo Tsubaki, a character who emerged during the Showa era revival of kamishibai. Kamishibai is an 800-year-old form of storytelling used paper scrolls to illustrate spoken stories told to an audience.
– The story tells of a young girl who loses her parents and is taken in by a traveling carnival. She is then abused and forced to work as a slave.
– The film had somewhat of a troubled production and distribution history. Director Harada almost single-handedly created the entire film, due to a the film’s subject matter scaring off potential investors and severely affecting the project’s budget. The production took five years and all of the directors savings.
– MIDORI is considered a partially lost film due to being seized by the Japanese government when it was discovered that the movie contained illegal depictions for the time. The original master reel was destroyed.
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Major World Series
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Makai Ouji: Devil’s and Realist
Reviewed by Mitsugi:
I was originally lured into watching this anime because it is directed by Chiaki Kon, the director of Higurashi no Naku Koro ni, an anime I enjoyed quite a lot. I should have learned my lesson after watching Umineko no Naku Koro ni that Chiaki Kon is capable of being involved in some not quite so good anime.
The story centers around William Twining who is a wealthy and very intelligent noble, who attends a prestigious school. After William’s uncle goes bankrupt, William is unable to pay his school tuition. To avoid this catastrophe, William searches his house to find something of value to pay his school fees. What he finds is a gate that allows him to accidentally summon Dantalion, a demon, who identifies William immediately as the reincarnation of Solomon and the “elector” the man is able to announce a replacement ruler of hell the ruler of hell, Lucifer, has fallen into a slumber and the other high ranked demons of hell are seeking a replacement to rule over all of hell. Soloman was a powerful figure in hell in the past that had abused demons to conquer and rule over his nation. None of this is really very important to what happens in this anime.
Makai Ouji suffers, as much as any, from the anime “gloom”! (dum dum de dum!) What unfolds are two episodes of story setup, eight episode bishi romp, rife with man love, dumb comedy, and unbelievable and yet totally expected circumstances that are the embodiment of some genre of anime and two episodes of wrap up in which the selection for the ruler he hell is settled.
Things that occur in the middle section of this show:
One at a time, William learns that everybody he knows in his life is a demon (shocker!), even his family butler who has been with the family since William was born.
There are lots of “almost kiss” moments between Dantalion and William
Male demons that look like girls frolic around and beg to be named king of hell
Male demons all fighting over William for his affections
Really senseless school events such as festivals and boat races suck up screen time
Let’s get right down to what this show is really about: Boys love, bishi love. This show doesn’t even really do that well. For people who watch this show to see a romance blow up between two men, this won’t happen. There are moments in the show where Dantalion will say to William “Command me” or “I won’t ever leave your side” but this aspect of this show never really blooms and for this reason, I think fans the the show are asking for a second sesason to be made. Lord help me.
Where a second season to be made, the one benefit I would hope for would be a heavier emphasis on one part of the series that actually could be interesting, the war between Heaven and Hell. This is teased a lot but unfortunately it never really gets around to it. It would be nice to see this in a sequel were it to happen.
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Mesu Saga Persona
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Majestic Prince
24 episodes ; started in the Spring 2013 season
· Staff
o Original creator – Rando Ayamine – GetBackers
o Director – Keitaro Motonaga – long list of credits to his name; Date A Live(recent), Jormungand(recent), Katanagatari, School Days House of 1000 Tongues (hentai), and others.
o Production studio – Dogakobo
o Music – Toshiyuki Watanabe – Space Brothers
· Plot Summary
o The anime’s storyline doesn’t delivery anything new to the world of anime but it does present itself in a way that is easy to understand and follow with very little convolution.
o It is the story of a very human looking alien race called the Wulgaru who are hunters and acquirers of “DNA” from around the galaxy. They exist by using exceptional genetics to enhance their own race.
The humans of Earth have long expanded into Earth’s surrounding solar system. In order to handle the harsh environments of space and the defense against hostile aliens such as the Wulgaru, Earthlings have been genetically modifying children to pilot mecha that contain a very specific battle system the AHSMB, “Advanced High Standard Multipurpose Battle Device (These mech units have systems that were reminiscent of the Lamnda drivers from Full Metal Panic.) These advanced genetics lure the Wulgaru closer to Earth. The battle to defend Earth and to save mankind from extinction thus occurs.
The Earth’s best chance for survival rests on a band of genetically engineered children who were misfits and generally unsuccessful students at their training academy. They are each skilled in one particular area of combat but are generally bad soldiers and are not skilled at group cooperation. This assembled AHSMB team called “team Rabbits”, lead by aspiring “hero” Izuru, is Earth best weapon against the Wulgaru. Each child was genetically enhanced to excel at one specific task. For example, you have the sniper, the heavy defender, the “hero”, higher powered attacks, etc…
There are some problems with the characters in the series. The silly female pilot who says things like “stupid poopy doodoo head” when she is angry and the brooding “I hate you all” type of character just doesn’t often work well in skillfully constructed stories. This is no exception. The former especially took away from the seriousness of the story at times. How can one be expected to seriously invest oneself in a story about mankind’s survival when one of the main characters is constantly crying, eating pickled squid guts, shouting things a 4 year old would say and generally immature.
There were also some things that the anime’s writer forces into the story the make the “bond” between characters, ultimately the main character, Izuru’s, motivation for survival at the most tense and critical moments of the show, stronger. Things like forced, unresolved romance and a surprise “We’re actually related” (not sexually) moment, are all in the show and are given significant time but in the end are not important.
o Hanging its hat
§ The anime definitely hangs its hat on the combat sequences. They are fast and crisp and far outclass anything we say in other full length mecha shows from recent years such as Gundam Age or Macross Frontier.
§ This anime does a really fantastic job of pacing itself. The balance between the shows action scenes, which are very frequent, and character developing/comical moments is just right. Throughout the course of the story, I didn’t find myself bored very often. The battle scenes are long and engaging.
· Aesthetic
o Overall Visuals
§ The overall quality of the visuals is amongst the best of the Summer 2013 season. Appealing character designs and vibrant colors bring the anime’s battle scenes to life.
o Mecha Design
§ The hero mecha units were well designed and each have a somewhat unique style. Some of remininscent of Zone of the Enders, especially Nephitis and Anubis.
§ Enemy mechs always look bio.
o Music
§ The music was average. Opening was good but the battle music and general BGM was generally uninspired.
· Summary
o Pros
§ Simple non-convoluted storyline that is easy to follow
§ Amazingly animated action sequences and glorious visuals
§ Enjoyable characters (mostly)
§ The general pacing of the story is excellent.
o Cons
§ Storyline is unoriginal and doesn’t delivery anything new
§ Cliches AND rushed ending (3 mins 40 seconds after the battle ends)
· “I will protect”
· Suicide crashing vessels into each other
§ Some very unnecessary goofy characters that clog up the mood and pacing of the story at time.
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