As promised, here’s the preview guide. The short version of the following document is: WATCH “TAMAYURA (check out the entry for links and thoughts).’ The long version is… well…
The long version follows.
My sole remaining official duty (this is a lie—I just do it because I want to) is to send a complete-ish preview guide for each new season, with a few thoughts and interesting tidbits hidden inside. This season has a massive number of watchable shows, so I will try my best to keep each entry brief (note: I never succeed at this). Some of these series are actually continuing from previous seasons, but I’ve stuck them in here because they’re just that good. Keep in mind that these are not “how much I liked the show” reviews, but “how good I think the show is” reviews—confusing the two is disastrous* (good luck finding where that asterisk reference leads…). Basically, I usually want everyone to watch everything, but some things more than others.
My rating system changes every season, but I rarely rate a show “bad” unless it’s morally indefensible or I think that no one could possibly enjoy it. This time around there’s nothing that bad, so I’ll just use two tiers, “watchable” (shows that could be the best show of the season for some folks, and trash for others) and “WATCH” (shows that should be glorious for nearly everyone). Without further ado, and in alphabetical order:
[Note: every time the "Kana Hanazawa?" question is answered with a YES, add 100 points to a show's ranking. She is the best voice actor. Every time the "Irritating fanservice" question is answered with a YES, subtract 10 to 150 points depending on how serious it is and how irritated you are by irritating fanservice. I, alas, have been a fan for so long I can't even see fanservice any more---I block it out like the banner ads on websites. Consider this your warning if you have not yet built up a resistance to this particular form of visual poison.]
******* “Ben-to” *******
OP: (fanservice alert: medium)
ED: http://rex51920.pixnet.net/album/video/11259844 (fanservice alert: none, unless taking out the trash and microwaving dinner counts as “fanservice”)
Rating: watchable
Pedigree: David Production (“Book of Bantorra,” “Level E”), directed by Shin Itagaki (who has earned my respect forever for directing all the good bits of “Basquash!” before he was sacked for going over budget and the show turned to nonsensical crap)
Kana Hanazawa?: no, but male lead Hiro Shimono (Jin from “Kannagi,” Ayato from “RahXephon,” Negishi-senpai from “Sketchbook”) and the underused Mariya Ise (Ren from the first episode of “Mushishi,” Dragon Kid from “Tiger & Bunny,” Stocking, who has the best RRRRRRUUURRRRRUUUUUU ) provide plenty of seiyuu power
Irritating fanservice?: yes—as a comedy, I think “Ben-to” is required by law to have plenty of irritating fanservice, but the great action sequences make it fairly easy to forgive
Get it from: *sigh* gg ( http://www.ggkthx.org/tag/ben-to/ ), I guess.
Info: I knew I would like this show the moment it opened with a “Grave of the Fireflies” parody. “Ben-to” is a comic series about people beating each other up in supermarkets over half-priced lunch boxes. It is not intelligent, profound, or witty. What it is—is FUN. If you take your thrift shopping seriously enough to beat off a hungry rugby team or stand up to a 300-pound housewife trying to run you over with her shopping cart, “Ben-to” is the show for you.
Interesting tidbit: The series composition for this show was done by the same guy (Kazuyuki Fudeyasu) who did “Monster,” “NANA,” and “Gunslinger Girl.” Bizarre.
************************************************** “Boku ha Tomodachi ga Sukunai” (“I Don’t Have Many Friends”) **************************************************
OP: (fanservice alert: HOLD ONTO YOUR HAT, which is unfortunate given the quality of the direction here, particularly in the “history of animation” opening shot)
ED: (fanservice alert: low)
Rating: watchable
Pedigree: AIC Build (“OreImo”—blech), directed by Hisashi Saito (a man with a checkered career: “Bamboo Blade,” parts of “Planetes,” a bunch of key animation on really good shows… and some dreadful trash like “Sora no Otoshimono”)
Kana Hanazawa?: YES, although her character hasn’t spoken yet
Irritating fanservice: yes, in relatively small quantities (most of it’s in that OP) but still getting in the way of a perfectly good show
Get it from: Mazui ( http://mazuisubs.com/ )
Info: Huh, somehow the two fanservice-tainted fun comedies I previewed wound up next to each other alphabetically. “Boku ha Tomodachi ga Sukunai” is a show with a great concept—two eternally friendless loners hook up to make a “friendship club,” hoping to turn it into a haven for outcasts and the plain socially inept. The trouble is, it takes one glance at the male/female ratio of the cast to figure out that this is sort of “Love Hina ver. 9001″ in disguise. But! As long as you can get past the show’s haremy undertones, there’s a lot to enjoy: a fun sense of humor, some truly great characters, and absolutely mind-blowing background art creating a superb sense of place (the show is set in a Catholic school). There’s also some admirably original live-action stop-motion animation in the eye-catches. I need to look up which animator was responsible for that…
Interesting tidbit: The original character designs were from the light novel, illustrated by some guy named “Buriki.” He also did the illustrations for “Denpa Onna to Seishun Otoko.” I detest the way his characters always look like they’re wearing lipstick and have weird fingertip blushes. I’m… I’m not selling this show very well, am I? Honestly, I didn’t hate it THAT much, and Kana Hanazawa makes up for many things.
********** “Chibi Devi!” **********
OP: (could only find it flipped, not that it matters; fanservice alert: ah hah hah hah, this show has no fanservice)
ED: This series has no ED
Rating: watchable
Pedigree: Some studio called SynergySP that also apparently did a little work on “Cross Game,” series composition by Michihiro Tsuchiya (“Cross Game,” “Major”)
Kana Hanazawa?: no, pretty much the only VA is Yuka Iguchi (she’s been in a lot of stuff but never really impressed me—her most famous role is as Index in “To aru Majutsu no Index,” and her best is as Norie in “Tamayura”)
Irritating fanservice?: good gracious no
Get it from: Doki http://doki.co/category/chibi-devi/ is the only group subbing this
Info: This is a five-minute children’s series about Honoka, a very lonely 14-girl who tearfully prays to God for some company. Her prayers are answered in the form of a demon infant, who behaves just like a normal infant apart from his ability to shoot fire at the bullies who tease Honoka. This show is completely harmless and even kind of cute, and at five minutes, why not check it out?
Interesting tidbit: I got nothin’ for this show. Um. Did you know that sauropods were so big, they had a separate nerve cluster at the base of their tails that controlled their back halves semi-independently of their tiny brains?
************ “Chihayafuru” ************
OP: (fanservice alert: none)
ED: (fanservice alert: none)
Rating: WATCH
Pedigree: Madhouse (Masaaki Yuasa, Satoshi Kon, and Mamoru Hosoda’s works; possibly the most major studio next to Ghibli), directed by Morio Asaka (“NANA,” the original “Gunslinger Girl”… “Cardcaptor Sakura”?!)
Kana Hanazawa?: no—the show’s only weak point
Irritating fanservice?: no!
Get it from: Commie http://commiesubs.com/
Info: Blythe has already pretty much said it for me—I cannot believe that possibly the best show this season, and certainly one of my personal favorites, is about a card game. I haven’t been so shocked since I watched the first episode of “Cross Game,” which was supposed to be about baseball, and found myself a sobbing emotional wreck. (Note how I have cleverly worked in a plug for “Cross Game” here. Watch “Cross Game.” It is extremely good.) What really gets me about the first episode of “Chihayafuru” is the realism—I use this word guardedly—of the childhood bullying on display: the series is entirely even-handed in its depiction of the bullies’ motives and often unintentional hurtfulness, but at the same time it actually made me angry at the cruelty latent in all children. Anime almost never affects me this way. Please give the show a chance.
Interesting tidbit: The official translation of “Chihayafuru” is pretty well and truly messed up, at least when it comes to Karuta and the meaning of Chihaya’s name. For a full set of rules and correction of the translation, see http://8thsinfansubs.wordpress.com/2011/10/05/cr-i-am-disappoint-chihayafuru-tl-notes-rules-observations-sub-review/
************ “Guilty Crown” ************
OP: Hasn’t yet aired, unfortunately, but the song that features in the first episode’s opening minutes is FANTASTIC—seriously, just watch the first four minutes of this show and you’ll be hooked
ED:”This video is no longer available due to a copyright claim by Sony Music” is everywhere T_T
Rating: WATCH
Pedigree: noitaminA show; Studio I.G. (“Ghost in the Shell,” half of the anime you watch), directed by Tetsuro Araki (Kurozuka [why did no one watch "Kurozuka"?], “Death Note,” part 2 of “Aoi Bungaku”)
Kana Hanazawa?: YES! (In her second role as a paraplegic, oddly enough)
Irritating fanservice?: Maybe? Depends on your sensitivity. There’s some risqué futuristic costuming but nothing too bad.
Get it from: Commie (http://commiesubs.com/ )
Info: The first shot of “Guilty Crown,” with its grotesquely swollen Tokyo Tower casting a watchful lighthouse eye over a Tokyo both familiar and subtly altered, told me instantly that this was a series to pay attention to. The rest of the episode only confirmed my opinion: sometimes, Production I.G. makes really, REALLY good stuff. “Guilty Crown” concerns a near-future Japan which, having been ravaged by a mysterious disease (conspiracy, anyone?), has been largely taken over by foreign powers. Our high-school protagonist Shū is a patriot at heart, but he’s also a self-admitted coward, taking the easy way out whenever he can. When his favorite singer suddenly shows up his his video-editing studio, badly injured and pleading for help, Shū must overcome his tepid former self and then there’s a robot and some stuff about “divine genes” and a resistance army and you know what, there’s nothing in the plot itself you haven’t seen 100 times before. The reason the series gets a strong WATCH is entirely the amazing effort put into it by Production I.G. and Supercell, who deliver one of the most interesting, authentic visions of Tokyo’s future self I’ve ever seen and some of the greatest music ever to grace an anime, respectively. Every frame of the show has a feeling of solidity mixed with an indescribably subtle menace, and the direction lends it an often heart-stopping vibrancy—I am more than willing to forgive a few broadly-applied clichés in exchange for such exquisite technical merits. (Now for goodness’ sakes don’t watch it in streaming quality…)
Interesting tidbit: The noitaminA timeslot, on which this show airs and which is known for its high-quality, adult (and usually female)-targeted fare, has never exactly been a bastion of progressive Japanese politics—but “Guilty Crown” takes that Conservative [in the Japanese, not the American sense] trend to a whole new level by launching an isolationist, “everyone outside Japan hates us” political argument. I’m extremely interested in seeing how this argument is developed over the coming season.
*************** “Hunter x Hunter” ***************
OP: (fanservice alert: none)
ED: (this is GOOD—”Fear, and Loathing in Las Vegas” also did the OP for “Kaiji” S2 and they are quickly becoming a favorite hardish rock band of mine)
Rating: watchable
Pedigree: Madhouse again, directed by Hiroshi Koujina (key animation on lots of great stuff like the “Escaflowne” movie and “Ano Hana,” also directed… welp, “Grenadier”…)
Kana Hanazawa?: no, “Hunter x Hunter” has almost no girls, although the extremely awesome Keiji Fujiwara ( http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/people.php?id=949 ) does feature
Irritating fanservice?: no, this show is deliberately free from even a hint of romance
Get it from: tidal~ http://tidalsubs.wordpress.com/
Info: After a hiatus of far too long, the shounen tournament show that’s actually good is back on the air—”Hunter x Hunter” has returned in an all-new telling! Although I call it a “tournament” show, there’s not a whole lot of fighting; the appeal of “Hunter x Hunter” has always been its cleverly-constructed, every-so-slightly brainteasing challenges: our optimistic heroes must brave deadly storms, answer impossible two-choice questions, walk unthinkable distances through featureless underground tunnels, play perilous games of rock-paper-scissors, and more in their quest to become the greatest “Hunter” (whatever that is) the world has ever known. If you’re looking for good, clean, guilt-free, “Tintin”-esque fun rendered in pleasant animation and packed with oodles of very interesting characters, this is the show for you. Just be warned, it gets very addictive, and if you watch the old series and OVAs you’ve got 92 episodes ahead of you…
Interesting tidbit: “Hunter x Hunter” has some serious history with the Bethel Anime Club: the Club’s first president, Matt Zipf (yes, the first three presidents were all named Matt) absolutely loved the first incarnation of the show, and we often watched it as a pre-club treat. I still remember the initial thrill of the rock-paper-scissors game, although now I know it’s only the second-most epic in anime (the most epic rock-paper-scissors game in anime is the first part of “Kaiji”). Also, Kurapika is obviously a girl in disguise. OBVIOUSLY, Matt Zipf!
************* “Hyouge Mono” *************
OP: (fanservice alert: none—sorry, I can only find this OP flipped)
ED: I am defeated—can’t find this one anywhere. Oh well, it’s not that great anyway…
Rating: WATCH
Pedigree: Bee Train (“Phantom,” “Blade of the Immortal,” many, many, many more), directed by Koichi Mashimo (a man who has been in the anime industry since before there really WAS an industry—most famous now for the “.hack//” shows)
Kana Hanazawa?: no, but “real-life” actor Kouji Ohkura gives the performance of a lifetime
Irritating fanservice?: no
Get it from: Huzzah ( http://huzzah.fansub-torrents.com/ is their only website, they are the only ones subbing the series, their efforts at old-fashioned-sounding English are a bit painful, and wow, they are slow, but at least it’s being subbed…)
Info: Man, “Hyouge Mono” is a hard sell—it’s a historical drama/comedy full of real-life figures and revolving around the mysterious and powerful occult force of… tea. Yes, the series is really about how tea, the tea ceremony, and the various artifacts surrounding tea changed the face of Japan in the time of Nobunaga and his successors. Our (rather contemptible) “hero” is Furuta Sasuke, a glory-hungry asthete who simply can’t control his lust for beautiful things, and watching him geek out over cups, pots, tea scoops, and even chunks of charcoal is a true delight. Like all the characters in the series, Sasuke is a real historical figure—a good portion of the enjoyment factor in this series comes from the epic Wikipedia-reading sessions that inevitably follow each episode. This is such a great way to learn about the parts of Japanese history you don’t usually hear about: of course I knew that Oda Obunaga was killed at Honnou Temple in June of 1582, but I had no idea that he was there to attend a tea ceremony, and I knew very little about Akechi Mitsuhide, the man responsible for Obunaga’s death. Everyone should learn this kind of history…
Interesting tidbit: That OP I linked to is abruptly changed early on—this is because a member of the band was arrested for marijuana possession and, this being Japan, the creators instantly disavowed him and stopped using his music in their show. Japanese attitudes towards drugs are hardcore.
**************** “The iDOLM@STER” (continuing) ****************
OP: (fanservice alert: low? medium? I’m very confused about the not-fanservice in this show)
ED: Changes every time. The best is probably (it really starts 40 seconds in. This video has awful audio quality, but the song is fun. Fanservice alert: low)
Rating: watchable (overall), WATCH (episode 
Pedigree: A-1 Pictures (“Ano Hana,” “Sora no Woto,” “Welcome to the Space Show,” more), directed by Atsushi Nishigori (this is his first directorial effort; he’s worked on “Gurren Lagann,” “Panty & Stocking with Garterbelt,”and many more)
Kana Hanazawa?: no
Irritating fanservice?: no, surprisingly enough—I am constantly shocked by this series’ apparent innocence, and there’s not a single panty shot or costume malfunction to be found
Get it from: UTW-Underwater ( http://utw.me/ or http://underwater.nyaatorrents.org/ )
Info: The Japanese “idol” industry is often cited as an example of the worst kind of Japanese excess, pumping out at it does a seemingly endless array of identically featureless and infuriatingly cutsy plastic-looking non-people whose main purpose is to be the objects of creepy otaku’s disturbing “ore no yome” fantasies. What “The iDOLM@STER” accomplishes in this sordid context is nothing short of mindbending: it follows a group of girls working for the dirt-poor 765 Pro studio who want nothing more than to entertain and delight their audiences, and through sheer cheerfulness and gumption, it really makes us care about their quest. This is a show that has all of the ingredients for squick, but somehow magically rearranges them to produce a slightly-too-sweet but deeply appealing dish. The standout episode, #8, is an inspired screwball comedy in the “Cowboy Bebop” “Mushroom Samba” style, featuring two runaway brides, a fortune teller with stomach problems, yakuza, an oil baron (name “Mr. Oil Baron”), Jet Lee-inspired high-wire action sequences, chases, crushed fruit carts, explosions, cross-dressing, circus animals, and a climactic showdown for the ages—you can watch it without seeing any of the rest of the show, and I highly recommend it for anyone who enjoys a truly well-put-together piece of situational comedy brilliance.
Interesting tidbit: The voice actors for the idols in this series are all minor celebrities in their own rights, and certain events in the show have been taken directly from their real-life experiences—-see for an especially hilarious 8-second example.
************ “Kimi to Boku.” ************
OP: http://v.youku.com/v_show/id_XMzEwMTcxMTQ0.html (fanservice alert: none—takes a second to get going)
ED: http://v.youku.com/v_show/id_XMzA5NjE5Mzcy.html (fanservice alert: none)
Rating: watchable
Pedigree: J.C. Staff (been around forever… “Slayers,” “Azumanga Daioh,” “Toradora,” many many many more), directed by Mamoru Kanbe (“Sora no Woto,” “Cardcaptor Sakura,” …”Elfen Lied”?!)
Kana Hanazawa?: no
Irritating fanservice?: no
Get it from: Yagami http://www.yagamisubs.tk/
Info: It kind of hurts me to give this show a mere “watchable,” because personally I love the series. “Kimi to Boku” is exactly the show I’ve always wished existed: an “Azumanga Daioh” or “K-On!’ or “Sketchbook” or “Hidamari Sketch” or “A Channel” or “Lucky Star” or [insert high-school slice of life of your choice here] with a male cast. Our protagonists are a group of 4 high-school boys with deeply ordinary lives, and the show finds its dryly understated comedy simply by observing their actions carefully. There are no over-the-top gags or super-deformed shouting matches here, only an evocative portrayal of lazy high school days that may cause flashbacks among many viewers. Unfortunately, much as I love this style, I also must admit that it’s not for everyone; if you long for romantic entanglements or constant hilarity, you won’t find much to please you here. But if you’re looking for a chance to kick back and relax after a long, stressful day teaching people the difference between “boring” and “bored” for the 100th time, “Kimi to Boku” is definitely the show for you.
Interesting tidbit: Well, I’m still pinching myself to make sure that I’m not just dreaming that this is by the same director as “Elfen Lied”… the universe is a seriously strange place. The series composition is by Reiko Yoshida, the woman who works on all the slices of life: “Aria,” “K-On!” “Emma,” “Kobato,” “MariMite,” Shinigami no Ballad,” and this season’s superb “Tamayura ~hototose~” are all her.
*********************** “Kyoukai Senjou no Horizon” ***********************
OP: (fanservice alert: medium)
ED: (fanservice alert: medium-low… I can’t believe this show has such inoffensive OP and ED sequences…)
Rating: watchable
Pedigree: Apparently Sunrise (“Cowboy Bebop,” “Code Geass,” “Yakitate!! Japan,” every “Gundam” series) decided to animate a fever dream Tatsuhiko Urahata (“Monster,” “Living for the Day After Tomorrow,” “Saki”) had after he spent 2 weeks without sleep playing through every “Tales of…” game ever
Kana Hanazawa?: no, but EVERYONE else, from Marina Inoue to Chiwa Saito to Jun Fukuyama is here
Irritating fanservice?: is there a more affirmative way to say “YES”?
Get it from: Commie http://commiesubs.com/
Info: There are only three things I can say about this show with any confidence: 1. it’s full of great animation by complete newcomers; it seems it’s being used by Sunrise as a place for the new generation of animators to go wild and have fun 2. it’s full of fanservice and outfits that are so outrageously impractical that even I’ve noticed them 3. I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON. Now, MAYBE I’m just a moron… or maybe these people are great at making glorious animation, but not so good at explaining the difference between the “Divine States” and the “Heavenly Divine States” or why the world is trying to repeat its history when everyone already has sweet flying battleship-villages. That said, the show is so energetic and so much fun to look at that I can’t hate it. If you’re looking for dumb, pretty fun this season, this is the show to go for.
Interesting tidbit: This is actually based on a light novel series. I’m not sure if that’s why the backstory makes no sense, or if it’s the anime producers’ faults. I note that the description of the world on Wikipedia is pretty completely different from what I thought I had figured out from the anime…
*************************** “Last Exile: Fam, the Silver Wing” ***************************
OP: (fanservice alert: medium-low)
ED: (fanservice alert: none)
Rating: WATCH (this is the show that delayed this preview guide while I waited for it to air…)
Pedigree: Gonzo (coming back from the dead to make this series; they made the first “Last Exile,” as well as “Gankutsuou,” “Samurai 7,” and “Welcome to the NHK”), directed by Koichi Chigira (a ton of “Gonzo” shows, also including the first “Last Exile”)
Kana Hanazawa?: not yet, but she made her anime debut as Duke Mad-thane’s daughter in the first episode of the original “Last Exile,” so I’m hoping that her character returns, a bit older and wiser, in this one
Irritating fanservice?: borderline
Get it from: Commie ( http://commiesubs.com/ )
Info: OK, I admit that this is a “WATCH” mostly for the promise it holds, but unless the original “Last Exile” team (which returns nearly intact here) has forgotten how to tell a gripping story I fully expect this sequel to fulfill its promise. Our story is set on Earth, to which refugees from dozens of colonies scattered around the stars are returning (the world of the first series was just one of these colonies). As might be imagined, tensions are running high between the various nations of the planet and the new arrivals, and war is everywhere. In the midst of a freshly-flaring conflict a band of sky pirates decides to do what they can to stop the fighting… oh, and also Dio is somehow still alive (I’m really going to look forward to the flashback explaining that one). Thus far, “Fam” has simply introduced its conflict and sketched out its characters, but a return to the universe of “Last Exile” is something that Western anime fans have been craving for years. Here’s looking forward to what this new tale has in store!
Interesting tidbit: The original “Last Exile” is another piece of ancient Anime Club history: in one of our earliest meetings, the entire group became so absorbed in the anime’s story that we stayed late.. and later… and later still to watch, if memory serves, a total of 9 episodes in one night.
************************** “Maji de Watashi ni Koi Shinasai” (AKA “Majikoi”) **************************
OP: (fanservice alert: medium)
ED: (fanservice alert: high)
Rating: watchable
Pedigree: A new studio called “Lerche” (which so far has only the Type-Moon self-parody “Carnival Phantasm” to its name), directed by Keitaro Motonaga (“Katanagatari,” “Getbackers,” “Malice@Doll,” much more)
Kana Hanazawa?: no
Irritating fanservice?: yes, up the wazoo—I’m not totally sure what body part a “wazoo” is as there seems to be conflicting information on the subject, but I am 100% certain that we get to see it butt-naked in “Maji de Watashi ni Koi Shinasai”
Get it from: Hiryuu http://www.hiryuufansubs.com/category/majikoi (Warning: site contains pictures from “Maji de Watashi ni Koi Shinasai”)
Info: This is most certainly the least Bethical entry on this list, but the first episode also happens to be one of the most fun: at a high-class Japanese academy, disputes between classes are resolved through full-on feudal warfare. To the class with the keenest tacticians and the strongest warriors go the spoils, and despite his foolish demeanor our protagonist Naoe Yamato may have the best military mind in the world. But is it enough to win the affections of his brawlin’ giantess love, Momoyo Kawakami? Although this show seems rapidly to devolve into eroge clichés from episode 2 on, the epic battle of the first episode is truly a sight to behold and well worth the fanservicey price of admission—let’s just hope that the series can keep its mind on the “Samurai” part of its English “Samurai Girls” subtitle (hint: it can’t).
Interesting tidbit: This show shocked me in the first episode by giving the coolest introduction of the series to a character I was *sure* I recognized (she jumps out of a helicopter and smashes the camera with her fist). I looked it up and yup—she’s from another silly fanservice-laden comedy, the nearly forgotten “They Are My Noble Masters.” The two series are rather bizarrely set in the same world, being based on games by the same publisher, although I must say so far that “They Are My Noble Masters” is significantly funnier.
******************* “Mawaru Penguindrum” (continuing) *******************
OP: Unbelievably, this seems to have been successfully scrubbed from the Internet—it’s performed by Yakushimaru Etsuko, one of my favorite vocalists…
ED: (fanservice alert: low—one of several EDs, and I really love this song… “saa! omoidashite…”)
Rating: WATCH
Pedigree: Brain’s Base (“Baccano!” “Kamichu!” “Natsume Yuujinchou”), directed by Kunihiko Ikuhara (“Revolutionary Girl Utena”)
Kana Hanazawa?: no, but this is Miho Arakawa’s first voice acting role (as Himari), and she gives one of the finest freshman performances I’ve ever had the pleasure of hearing. I’ll be keeping an ear out for her—”IMAAAGIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINNE!”
Irritating fanservice?: no, but there IS sex (er, almost-sex rather)—this show demonstrates that adult themes and fanservice are NOT one and the same
Get it from: Since everyone else dropped it, gg ( http://www.ggkthx.org/tag/mawaru-penguindrum/ )—to be fair, their translator is taking this show VERY SERIOUSLY
Info: What do you think of the word, “fate”? Does it inspire hatred? Hope? Disgust? Fear? Longing? “Mawaru Penguindrum” is a tale of three siblings bound to a small ground of people by fate… and by a gang of invisible alien penguins. (Note: this description may not be 100% accurate, but it is at least spoiler-free.) The series features some of the most delightfully cluttered animation and finest art direction of the new millennium, using it to construct a fascinatingly dense meditation upon destiny, family, love, the 1995 Tokyo subway gas attacks, the relationship of the future and the past, morality, death, and more. It mixes absurd comedy and heart-touching tragedy in the most original ways—ways only animation can—and becomes along the way what the Japanese call a “special existence”: something entirely peerless in the anime world, because there is nothing else to which it can even be compared. It’s not possible to recommend this series too highly. (Also, episode 9, set in an alternate-reality library, is unthinkably great.)
Interesting tidbit: This series is nothing if not densely-encoded, and there’s a TON of clues, jokes, and references hidden in the original Japanese that no translation can convey. Luckily, the translator maintains a fascinating blog with analyses of each episode at http://8thsinfansubs.wordpress.com/category/anime/mawaru-penguindrum/ —I believe this is the first time I would consider a blog “indispensable” to enjoyment of a series. I cannot recommend it highly enough.
********** “Mirai Nikki” **********
OP: (fanservice alert: low)
ED: (fanservice alert: medium)
Rating: watchable
Pedigree: asread (“Ga-Rei: Zero,” all but the first season of “Minami-ke,” helped with “Beyond the Clouds”), directed by Naoto Hosoda (“Shuffle!” “Minami-ke: Okawari,” technical work on a bunch more)
Kana Hanazawa?: no (she seems to be taking a break—two seasons ago she was in something like 23 out of 48 new series)
Irritating fanservice?: nnnnnnnnnnnnnnooooooooooo… (just creepy yandere stalker girl *shudder*)
Get it from: GotWoot ( http://gotwoot-subs.net/?category_name=mirai-nikki—note that they do two releases of each episode, and it’s well worth it to avoid the “GotSpeed” ones. Just wait a few days for the final GotWoot releases)
Info: Half “Death Note” and half “Eden of the East,” “Mirai Nikki” revolves around a lonely nerd whose imaginary God (“Deus Ex Machina,” voiced by the impossibly awesome Norio Wakamoto) grants him a quite absurd ability: he can see his future cell phone diary entries before they are written. But of course, there’s a catch. Twelve people have been given the same power, and only one of them can survive to become the new God of Space and Time. Cue the typical time paradoxes, clever plots, and outrageous characters—if you’ve seen “Death Note,” you know exactly what to expect out of this show.
Interesting tidbit: “Mirai Nikki”‘s TV release is actually rather heavily edited and censored; this is one case where it might just be better to avoid it all together and wait for the completed BD or DVD releases.
********************** “Morita-san wa Mukuchi 2″ (really continuing—there was no break in airing from last season. They just stuck a 2 at the end of the name and changed the OP) **********************
OP: (fanservice alert: none, but holy cow, beware the “NYAA-NYAA-NYAA-NYAA-NYAAAAAAAAA!!!”)
ED: This show has no ED
Rating: watchable
Pedigree: Seven (their first production, although they helped with animation on a quite random collection of series), directed by Naotaka Hayashi (animation on an equally random collection of shows, although he DID do key animation in episode 11 of “Haibane Renmei” which makes him all right in my book)
Kana Hanazawa?: YES
Irritating fanservice?: no
Get it from: SHiN-gx ( http://shingx.wordpress.com/category/morita-san-wa-mukuchi/ )—they also did the first season and will release the OVA soonish.
Info: Every three-minute episode of this series consists of Kana Hanazawa overthinking things before she talks to someone. There is no plot, little comedy, and minimal animation (I think this show is made on a weekly budget of two thousand yen plus free coffee and donuts for the staff); the entire appeal comes from listening to Kana Hanazawa worry about how she’s be perceived if she says the wrong thing. If you’re also a terminal social overthinker (like me), or if you just really love to listen to Kana Hanazawa talk the same way you love to listen to Morgan Freeman talk (again like me), the three-minute commitment required by this series is more than worth it. Just don’t expect to remember what you saw for more than twenty or thirty seconds.
Interesting tidbit: If you listen to that OP enough, you start to notice that it has the same chord progression and nearly the same tune as the “Evangelion” OP. I was really confused when I first watched this show and the back of my head started going, “zaaaaaaankoku na tenshi no thesis…”
********************** “Persona 4: The Animation” **********************
OP: the anime version keeps on getting taken down, so is the one from the game—it uses the same song and visual style
ED: This one’s just gone from the Internet…
Rating: Watchable
Pedigree: AIC (“Bubblegum Crisis,” “El-Hazard,” “Bamboo Blade,” “Hourou Musuko,” many more), directed by Seiji Kishi (“Angel Beats!” “Tentai Senshi Sunred” [that show is SO GOOD], erm, “Yugu the Negotiator,” oddly enough…)
Kana Hanazawa?: Not yet, but she’s in the enhanced version of the game so there’s always hope…
Irritating fanservice?: no
Get it from: Commie ( http://commiesubs.com/ )… man, considering how many shows they release, I really wish they’d use tags
Info: Although I’ve never been able to finish it (on account of not actually owning a PlayStation), “Persona 4″ is one of my favorite commercial video games—part murder mystery, part social simulator, part dungeon crawler, it’s a deeply immersive experience that uses the interactive elements of the medium to generate an enormous sympathy for its characters. On the one hand, this anime adaptation understands what makes the game great, and takes pains to remain as faithful as humanly possible to its source material. On the other hand, it’s also a bit redundant; the OP and ED themes are actually taken from the game, as are the storyboards for entire sequences. Right now I feel like I’m just killing time waiting for the parts of the game I never got to play. However, if you’ve never experienced the world of “Persona 4,” I can recommend this adaptation wholeheartedly—it stands on its own merits (great characters, a unique concept, the COOLEST SCHOOL UNIFORMS EVER) well enough.
Interesting tidbit: The voice actor for Igor, the mysterious hook-nosed man in “The Velvet Room,” actually passed away last year; his performance in this show is taken entirely from the lines recorded for the original game.
********************** “Phi Brain: Kami no Puzzle” **********************
OP: (fanservice alert: none… also, May’n's music always makes me happy somehow)
ED: (SHOCKINGLY GOOD for this show—no fanservice, of course, as this is a SatoJun series)
Rating: Watchable
Pedigree: Sunrise (“Cowboy Bebop,” “Code Geass,” “Yakitate!! Japan,” every “Gundam” series, if you didn’t read the “Horizon” info), directed by Junichi Sato (known as “SatoJun” to his fans; mostly makes the best slices-of-life around, from “Aria” to “Sketchbook” to “Kaleido Star” to this season’s incredible “Tamayura”)
Kana Hanazawa?: no, although the cast is packed with big names like Rina Satou and Kenji Fujiwara (man, he’s in everything) and Jun Fukuyama (again)
Irritating fanservice?: haha, no—again, this is a SatoJun series…
Get it from: WhyNot? ( http://whynot.doesntexist.com/tag/phi-brain-kami-no-puzzle/ )
Info: Do you like brainteasers? Can you crack a sudoku puzzle in 40 seconds, solve the Sunday New York Times crossword in under ten minutes, run the Tower of Hanoi like it ain’t nothing? Do you keep graph paper in your pocket so you can whip up a chart for a logic puzzle whenever the mood strikes you? Even if you answered “yes” to all of these questions, your devotion to puzzles is nowhere NEAR the level of that displayed by the characters of this show: puzzles are their literally livelihood. The prize for success is vast riches and enormous power, and the punishment for failure is instant death. So long as you can accept the idea that brainteasers are the most important things in the universe, chances are you’ll enjoy “Phi Brain” as an immensely fun diversion (one that often sends you scrambling for a pen and paper to see if you can solve something faster than the characters…)
Interesting tidbit: The series composer, Mayori Sekijima, also worked on “Pandora Hearts” and “Lost Universe”—this show is what happens when an unstoppable force (Sekijima’s dynamic style) meets an immovable object (SatoJun’s “spiritual healing” angle).
****************** “Sekai-ichi Hatsukoi 2″ (another hidden continuation—there was a one-season break for this show, but the episode numbering is continuing from last time) ******************
OP: (fanservice alert: none, exactly, but there are men kissing each other, so…)
ED: (fanservice alert: see above)
Rating: watchable
Pedigree: Studio DEEN (a Sunrise spin-off venture; started with “Angel’s Egg” and also made “Hell Girl,” “Shion no Ou,” “Kokoro Library,” and many more), directed by Chiaki Kon (one of the only female anime directors; she did “Nodame Cantabile: Paris-hen” and, surprisingly enough, “Higurashi no Naku koro ni”)
Kana Hanazawa?: no (this is a BL anime, so there’s almost no women)
Irritating fanservice?: no, just sweaty topless men making out… I guess since this is aimed at fujoshi that means “yes?”
Get it from: Sekai ( http://sekaiichi.wordpress.com/ )
Info: “Sekai-ichii Hatsukoi” may not be the most accurate depiction of gay life in Japan, but it’s certainly one of the most fun—the series takes place entirely in the context of Marukawa Publishing’s shoujo manga division, where lanky men with attractively rumpled hair work around the clock to bring their female audience the pure romance it so desires even as they struggle to keep their hands off their belt buckles. On the one hand, sure, about 3/4 of this show is taken up by characters blushing boyishly and narrating what’s happening to them for far more time and in far more detail than seems possible, and most of the remaining quarter is men making out. On the other hand, the show is also rather insidiously filled with interesting details of the manga publishing industry (you may finally understand why your manga is NEVER out on time) and a number of genuinely hilarious moments (one female mangaka’s reaction when two of the guys start snogging right in front of her eyes is a piece of animation for the ages).
Interesting tidbit: Take a look at the banner at the top of the Sekai homepage (again, http://sekaiichi.wordpress.com/ ). How many different people are pictured there? Two? Four? Well, the correct answer is “six.” Apparently the original mangaka can only draw two faces, which makes it VERY CONFUSING when the plot jumps between the different couples and you suddenly wonder why everyone has new personalities.
********************* “Shinryaku!? Ika Musume” (“Squid Girl” S2, another sequel that’s really a continuation) *********************
OP: Wow, another one that those demons at Crunchyroll managed to keep off the Internet… this is an idiotic idea, really, as spreading the OP or ED around is free advertising for your series…
ED: (has three versions of the ED, which changes subtly every time based on the events of the episode)
Rating: WATCH
Pedigree: Diomedea (not a huge studio—they worked on the excellent “Bokurano” and “Sola,” but this is their first really major production), directed by Tsutomu Mizushima (“Genshiken,” “Hare+Guu,” “Club-’em-to-Death Angel Dokuro-chan”… this is a man who makes truly great anime comedies)
Kana Hanazawa?: no, although she’d fit right in…
Irritating fanservice?: no—I kid you not, this is a series set entirely on a beach with no real fanservice (SCORE)
Get it from: Underwater ( http://underwater.nyaatorrents.org/?tag=Squid%20Girl ) has the best scripts, but if you really can’t stand the squid portmanteau words you might want to try FFFPeeps ( http://fffansubs.org/?cat=221 )
Info: Squid Girl’s invasion (whoops, sorry, should be “inkvasion”) of the human world continues as she daringly walks dogs, discovers tickling, cleans up jellyfish, and learns English, but as might be expected of a show containing the line, “you’re cutest when you fail,” our poor cephalopodous heroine does not make any great breakthroughs in her quest. “Squid Girl” provides the perfect mixture of weirdness, hilarity, and charm—seconds after we are done laughing at Ika Musume’s folly as she tries to conquer the world through the power of tickling, we are rejoicing with her in the childlike glory of creating a great bamboo boat. The secondary cast also continues to excel this season, providing comedy, pathos, and a great overall experience. This is a series that may sometimes lose a battle with a weak sketch or two, but never fails to win the war in our jaded anime viewer hearts.
Interesting tidbit: Actual directorial duties this season have been taken over by Yasutaka Yamamoto, with Mizushima serving as “Chief Director”; this sort of thing often happens in anime, but rarely creates a quality gap (especially since Michiko Yokote is still doing the series composition). The first two episodes of this season *were* a little weak, but three and four are amazing.
******************** “Tamayura ~hitotose~” (TV continuation of “Tamayura,” a 4-episode OVA) ********************
OP: (fanservice alert: none)
ED: (fanservice alert: none)
Rating: WATCHWATCHWATCHWATCHWATCHWATCHWATCHWATCHWATCH
Pedigree: TYO Animations (they’ve helped out with a ton of good stuff, but so far their only real production has been the ecstatically wonderful “Legend of Koizumi”), directed by Junichi Sato (SatoJun, director of all that is good and wonderful in this world—see “Phi Brain” entry)
Kana Hanazawa?: no T_T —it’s her kind of series too…
Irritating fanservice?: no, of course not
Get it from: UTW ( http://utw.me/tag/tamayura-hitotose/ ); pick up the OVA first from http://coalgirls.wakku.to/?p=2541 (and if you’re interested, I highly recommend the radio dramas—you can get them with subtitles at http://mamikogroup.wordpress.com/2011/06/30/tamayuradio-plus-drama-cd-batch/)
Info: Much as I enjoy the laconic humor of “Kimi to Boku” and the realistic schoolroom drama of “Chihayafuru,” there’s no doubt that “Tamayura” is the hands-down winner of this year’s School Anime Crown. The series follows four high-school friends who each represent a different sense: protagonist Fuu, a photographer, who uses her vision of the world to transform seemingly ordinary scenery into heart-touching glimpses of the Joy behind the Real; Kaoru, an osphresiophiliac who experiences the world through her sense of smell and plans one day to create the most joyful perfumes; Norie, an aspiring pâtissière with an unmatched sense of taste both for food and for the small joys of life; and Maon, a shy girl who communicates her emotions through whistling and who finds her greatest joy in music. Fuu’s joyously affectionate little brother Kou provides the sense of touch to this cast, and the rest of the secondary characters fill in the other senses: memory, direction, balance, maternal instincts, responsibility, etc. You may have noticed that I’ve connected the word “joy” to every character in this series, and I mean it in C.S. Lewis’ transcendental sense. “Tamayura” is packed with Joy from start to finish. Sato is the master of delicately conveyed emotions and evocative, dreamy-yet-realistic compositions: one of the finest moments in the series is in episode 2, when the girls make plans to have a sleepover in the loft space above Fuu’s family store. Sato carefully avoids showing the audience this loft for the majority of the episode (without being obvious about it), so when the girls finally climb the stairs and arrange their futons, the space itself captures that feeling of the “special places” you had in your house when you were a kid, the places where reality was a little thinner and you and those you invited were adventurers in your own private domain. Um. Basically this is a really really really good show, is what I’m trying to say here.
Interesting tidbit: “Tamayura” is set in the smallish town of Takehara, near Hiroshima, and the animators have taken extreme pains to ensure the series’ fidelity to its location. I love shows with a strong sense of place, and when I finally get a chance to visit Hiroshima, Takehara is definitely on my list of places to go…
******* “Un-Go” *******
OP: (fanservice alert: low)
ED: (fanservice alert: low)
Rating: watchable? (may turn into a WATCH later)
Pedigree: noitaminA show; BONES (“Eureka Seven,” “RahXephon,” “Wolf’s Rain,” many more), directed by Seiji Mizushima (“Fullmetal Alchemist,” “Mobile Suit Gundam 00,” “Slayers NEXT” [the good one])
Kana Hanazawa?: no, this is more a bishounen series…
Irritating fanservice?: I don’t THINK so—Inga’s female form is pulchritudinous, but more in a creepy and less a sexy sort of way
Get it from: Commie, yet again ( http://commiesubs.com/ although I doubt you can possibly have forgotten this)
Info: This year’s “other noitaminA show” is a really odd fish: set in a slightly alternative Japan that experienced a devastating terrorist strike in retaliation for its part in the War on Terror (yet another noitaminA show promoting Japanese isolationism, I see), “Un-Go” follows the adventures of famed “defeated detective” Shinjūrō Yūki and his…… unusual… partner Inga, a seemingly supernatural being who typically appears as a hyperactive young boy but can, when the need arises, turn into a creepily curvaceous woman and ask her victims a single question—a question that they MUST answer. And if you thought that last sentence was unusually-structured, wait until you see the layout of “Un-Go”‘s first episode. This is a series that eludes easy categorization, but I still recommend it for its energy, imagination, and genuinely surprising vision. (Also genuinely surprising character designs—I have never seen narrower faces in anime.)
Interesting tidbit: “Episode 0,” the episode setting up the protagonists’ backstories, won’t actually air on TV—it’ll play in Japanese movie theaters in November. I, of course, plan to see it if I can make the time…
***************
Thanks for sticking with me, imaginary reader! …Seriously, who would ever actually read all that? Ah well, it’s worktime for me—watch good anime, and have a wonderful meeting this week!
—Matthew
* (you found it!): Ideological rant: It’s OK to say, “I don’t like this series,” but that does NOT equal, “this series is bad.” In general, I try to remember that I am not the arbiter of taste: just because I don’t like something doesn’t make it “bad,” and vice versa. My tastes tend towards either the experimental or the very reflective (read: boring). But I still watch *everything* I have time for. My pet peeve is people who fixate on one undesirable element of a series and declare the whole show “crap” without considering the overall quality or imagination of the series. Watching only what you like is an intellectual death sentence. (This is why English professors make you read books you don’t like.) It’s much better to challenge yourself with something unfamiliar and expand your experience than it is to stultify yourself with unadventurous safety. This is also how you come to understand the history and shared language of a given medium, a particularly important task in the foreign grammar of Japanese animation. I’ve often read the old saw claiming that “time spent watching something you don’t enjoy is time you’ll never get back.” This is a lie. It’s the time spent running away from the different that steals the rest of your life away. (I similarly despise the phrase, “there’s no arguing with taste.” There are objective standards of quality in each art form, and there most certainly is arguing with taste—that’s what lit theory is all about. In fact, arguing with someone else’s taste is the most fun you can have without breaking the law.)
PS: But did you find the Dinosaur Factoid? _______________________________________________ The Bethel Anime Club e-mail list Anime-Club@lists.bethel.edu Go to https://lists.bethel.edu/mailman/options/anime-club/anime%40scaleddesign.net to change your list options
Website at http://scaleddesign.net/bac Check it out for downloads and more!
The Bethel Anime Club Fall Semester Meetings Saturdays, AC 337, 7:00pm
