Spring 2011 Anime Second Impressions

I wasn't really able to make a first impressions post before a new season airs (unlike before), except for my most anticipated top three. But after watching most of the new shows that aired this season, I can't help myself from being "typative", hehe.

Fireball Charming had a wonderful animation but its first episode didn't feel like... an episode, haha! More like a random promo video or an advertisement, ehehe. I'm not even familiar with the original version...

But anywayz, here goes my list for the rest of the titles this Spring 2011. The rankings are not as a whole, but by category. Of course, they're subject to change. Though I doubt that for now... especially on those at the bottom.....

[ HIGHLY RECOMMENDED ]

These are the series which I love the most this season. My tastes are awesome so of course they rock! Ohohohohoho!!!! *gets spanked*

Anywayz, I made a top five, and those which I have no manga background I shall be trying my best to be updated every week. The ranking of my top 5 may change in the future (because I have no manga background on the other three), but for now they're ranked with the top as the one that makes me most excited:

=== C: The Money of Soul and Possibility Control ===

Earning money in a surreal world using... your future.

A - EPIC!

IT'S A SHOW ABOUT MONEY.
That alone is enough to make the show incredibly unique. And I looooove the unusual.
The animation might not be great but generally it's still so imaginative which makes me awed so much! The director is doing such a amazing job with this series (His style's bizarre yet fantastic as usual!!!!). The writer hasn't let me down.... storytelling and characterization as magnificent like with my Ryohgo Narita series~
People see it just as a card game rip off, but in my opinion it's hell more complicated than that. I'm really impressed on how it used its fantasy and fictional world to reflect/symbolize how things go in real life that are related to money. We get somethign related to economics,finance, military, sociology, psychology, mythology, and religion.
That's so WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOW!!!!!!!!!!
But yeah, it doesn't have perverted fanservice.. doesn't really even aim for moe (err... at least not the generic type) even though it had cute little demon girls. Yeah, it prefers to make you interpret their scenes rather than be direct about it. Yeah, it doesn't want to give you a lengthy lecture on Economics. Yeah, it is not going to focus on economics ONLY because it didn't aim to in the first place.
As usual, like my Baccano!, this favorite series of mine is once again underappreciated. Hahahahahahaha! ...........

5 Hearts - OBSESSION

Iwasaki Taku si still my favorite composer. But gotta say that my favorite music here is the ENDING THEME!!!! SO BEAUTIFUL!!!!  LOVE YA SFP!!!
MASAKAKI STEALS THE SHOW!!!! OH I LOVE FREAKY CLOWNS!!!
I adooooooooooooore Kimimaro!!! He's so "plain" and "uninteresting"... AND THAT'S WHAT MAKES HIM SUCH AN INCREDIBLE AND UNIQUE LEADING CHARACTER WHICH IS RARE IN THE ANIME UNIVERSE!!!! LOVE YA KIMIMARO!!! AND SINCE I'M A SADISTIC FAN, I WOULD LOVE TO SEE YOU ABUSED MORE!!! BWAHAHAHAHAHHAHA!!!!!!!
I have high respects for Mashu and I can't wait for her and Kimimaro to become close~ And.. oh Q.... totally adorable (in a moe and twisted way)!!!!

=== Deadman Wonderland ===

You fight with your blood.... literally!

A+ - BRILLIANT!

The manga is SAVAGELY BEAUTIFUL!!!!! The brutality and bloodshed fits the dark themes of this story so much. It's these inhumane acts that make these prisoners frighteningly twisted! The "loser" main character is developing into a "badass yet still in-character" very smoothly. Despite the depressing atmosphere, the cute and touching parts don't seem out of place. It's so brilliant... I love it.
MANY MANGA READERS ARE COMPLAINING THAT IT IS NOT COPYING THE MANGA AND I DON'T GET IT!!! YOU DON'T HAVE TO 100% IMITATE THE ORIGINAL MANGA TO BE AN AWESOME ANIME YOU KNOW!!!! EVEN IF SOME COOL MANGA PARTS GOT REMOVED, MAIN PLOT IS STILL THERE AND CHARACTERS ARE STILL IN CHARACTER!!!!
In my opinion, the anime did it justice! I am pleased with majority of the changes~Even if the bloody stuff aren't as bloody as supposed to be, the anime didn't exactly minimize the brutality. I am also very impressed with the directing, even with those lil' flaws. The shots were cool overall~ OMG OMG OMG OMG!!!

5 Hearts - OBSESSION

YAY FOR PSYCHOS AND LOTSA BLOOD!!!!!!! I'm a huge sucker for psychological thrillers... especially when they're written SO WELL. Oh wow wow wow wow.
IT HAS THE BEST OPENING THEME THIS SEASON!!! I ALREADY FORGOT IF THE OTHERS ARE AWESOME TOO, I ONLY HAVE THIS IN MY HEAD!!!!
SHET CROW! YOU'RE SO SEXY!!! I AM NOT DROOLING!!! AND OH YOU AND YOUR PHOBIA TO SEXY WOMEN IN REVEALING OUTFITS! LOVE YA!!!!
MAKINA IS MY GODDESS!!!! SEXY BITCHY BADASS GODDESS!!! w00t!!!!!!
GANTA x SHIROH FOREVER!!! HERE I GO AGAIN WITH MY STARCROSSED LOVERS!!! AAAAAAHHHH!!!!!!
YOH-KUN YOU HOTTIE!!!! YOU FREAKIN' SISCON!!! LOVE YA LOVE YA LOVE YA LOVE YA!!!!

=== The Blue Exorcist ===

Satan's my daddy... and I'm gonna bring him to hell!

A- - AMAZING!

I seems like your generic shounen, but in my opinion it had been more impressive than a lot of popular action fantasy shounen series out there. It has a great story with a wonderful cast~ It's tough to figure out which is the true villain, and it has cool plot twists here and there.
The only thing that turns me off in this is the freakin' school setting. I'm sick and tired of seeing that at the beginning of majority of my supernatural series. But oh well, they don't stay school for long. Not many chapters/episodes are wasted on simple/episodic cases.... main plot keeps on moving... and things get more dangerous.
OH IT'S SO AWESOME!!!!!!!!!
And oh, I jsut had to mention that it's also very hilarious xD Yeah, there are perverted jokes once in a while, but they're just... err.. Bleach level. So I don't care, haha.

4.5 Hearts - ADDICTION

I FREAKIN' LOVE RELIGIOUS REFERENCES, ESPECIALLY CHRISTIAN ONES!!!!
KYAAAAAAA KYAAAAAA KYAAAAAAAA KYAAAAAAA KYAAAAAAA
SECOND BEST OPENING THEME IN THIS SEASON IMHO!!! OMG THOSE RELIGIOUS BG MUSIC!!! LOVE 'EM!!!! LOVE 'EM!!!
And oh I love series with characters using blue flames... (it's my name, you see ;P)... it's awesome that even though those flame seem cold, they're actually hotter than ordinary fire. Wow wow wow wow~
MEPHISTO AND HIS BROTHER ARE ADORABLY CRAZY!!! LOVE 'EM!!!!!
Speaking of brothers, HOORAY TO MY TWIN BROTHERLY LOVE FANSERVICE!!!! DON'T YOU DARE BADMOUTH MY OTOUTO AND I SHALL PROTECT MY NII-SAN!!! SQUEEEEE!!!!!!! I'm so hyper hyper hyper hyper hyper *goodlooking twin boys stay away from her out of disgust*

=== Tiger & Bunny ===

Saving the world is... business!

A - EPIC!

I thought this will be just a typical super hero anime show with a high budget (like Heroman) but nooooooo... so many things about it are so unlike your average superhero show. Starting with the main characters... a dad and a young dude that exposes his identity on his first appearance. Whoooooaaaa!!!!
This is so much fun! The characters are very likeable and unique in their own way!
It also looks like there's going to be a deep plot thanks to Bunny's background. Oh wooooooooooow!!!! I salute to the creators of this show! GO NEXT! YEAH BABY!

4 Hearts - ADORATION

I don't have particular favorites.... but it's most fun to see the main characters bicker, hehe~

=== Hanasaku Iroha ===

Her mom treated her like a nanny... while her grandmother just sees her as an employee. Poor girl, eh? But nah, she doesn't let herself be bullied.

A- - AMAZING!

This would've been boring if it weren't for the great characterization, directing, and scrptwriting. The girl who kept on saying "die" and the extremely shy girl are super annoying at first, but once they got close to the heroine they've become decent. The rest of the cast are so fun and interesting! I'm most impressed with the heroine! She's cool and strong mentally and emotionally... she accepts flaws and is very forgiving. I thought I was gonna hate her at first impression (girls w/ flowers are usually... guh) but now I can't think of anything that can make me hate her, haha! She's that awesome~
I'm really impressed on this show's comedy... fantastic! It's not really perverted, but on the part with perverted scenes... the series had managed to see something that is useful/essential behind those perverted scenes! This is so unique... I love it~

4 Hearts - ADORATION

OHANA!!!!! I also like Ko-chan x Ohana... AND THE BISHIE COOK!!! HE IS FUN TO ABUSE!!! PLEASE ABUSE HIM MORE~

[ WATCHING BUT.... ]

I like and am watching these shows but... they're going to be in lower priority. I don't adore them as much as the others, but I do find them enjoyable to watch. Here's the list ranked from most enjoyable to least enjoyable:

== We Still Don’t Know the Name of That Flower We Saw That Day ==

She is just the manifestation of his trauma and stress, he says.

B+ - IMPRESSIVE!

Not your usual slice of life series; not your usual series with a ghost girl either. This is a series where the moe and perverted stuff are in tolerable/decent levels. This is fun, touching, and tragic. It's a wonderful emotional story about a group of friends who have broken apart but now trying to be united bit by bit.

3.5 Hearts - LOVE

Bishie's obsession to Menma is scary and sweet at the same time O_O Jinta x Menma is cute... but impossible... no complains to Jinta x Anaru. Anaru's nice~

== World’s Greatest ... (FINE!!! I'M TYPING IT!!!!).... World’s Greatest First Love ==

The guy he hated for ten years is now his boss! And his boss wants them to be more than that....

B- - PRETTY GOOD!

Yaoi actually scares me. I was really traumatized when I tried to read a yaoi series and its first chapter spent most of the pages one guy raping the weaker one. IT WAS CREEPY!!!!
Sekaiichi Hatsukoi, however, is like a shoujo manga that had a guy for its heroine and a few sex scenes once in a while. Unlike the other yaoi series I have witnessed, the guys here know how to prioritize work over their emo angsty romance. There's more plot than sex scenes. For a yaoi series, this was VERY decent.
I can't help seeing it as the usual shoujo crappy shoujo series. But it managed to make me chuckle for a lot of times that I forget about the flaws and just laugh at all that crazy fluff.

3.5 Hearts - LOVE

I LIKE ANIME!ONODERA~ HIS TSUN TSUN SELF MAKES ME LAUGH SOOOOOOOO HARD.

== Maria + Holic Alive ==

The leading girl still dreams of getting a harem but still very far from attaining it.

C+ - NOT BAD!

It doesn't make sense at all and you can't ever expect plot/character development from it. It's so absurd and bizarre, overall stupidly hilarious. I watch this with my brains off, haha!

3 Hearts - LIKE

MARIA-SAMA AND "HER" MEIDDO!!!! w00t!!!!

== Showa Monogatari ==

Story of a family during the Showa era

B - NICE!

It's a nice family drama during a period seldom featured in anime shows. I admit that this is the type that bores me, but I adore historical shows and I'm happy the series shares historical trivia~ The story of the ordinary life of the family in this show had been nice to watch. It's also a plus that none of the characters have been annoying.

3 Hearts - LIKE

I think I like the older brother... and pair up the older sister and her crush, teehee~

[ GOOD/ACCEPTABLE BUT.... ]

These shows are not bad at all. Some are pretty or very impressive, in fact. They're just....uumm... there's something about them that couldn't make me crave for more episodes. In short, they may be nice, but they're just not my type. The top has the highest chance of going to the category above then at the bottom is the least:

= Steins; Gate =

Let's send a message to the past... through a microwave oven!!!

What Turns Me On: time travelling, directing, leading character thinking himself as a mad scientist
What Turns Me Off: fanservice, majority of the cast, vague storytelling

= Tea For Universel Tea for Life =

I see politics, war, blood, and .... A WONDERFULLY CRAFTED TEA KETTLE OMG!!!!!

What Turns Me On: unusual humor, aesthetic samurai, rare Sengoku series
What Turns Me Off: s*x scene

= X-Men =

The X-Men.... JAPANESE STYLE!

What Turns Me On: gorgeous art, nostalgia, Cyclops
What Turns Me Off: Japanized Western Heroes, Jean Grey

= Dog Days =

The Chosen One becomes a hero in a fantasy world at war.... to enter a sports competition!!!

What Turns Me On: war without bloodshed, chosen one's actually capable (didn't just get super lucky or suddenly had special powers, or other rubbish), no perverted fanservice (from what I saw so far)
What Turns Me Off: boring cast, looks like I really prefer the bloodshed *morbid*

= You’ve Been Summoned, Azazel =

A detective solves his cases... using demons!

What Turns Me On: demons, crazy humor, detective
What Turns Me Off: I can tolerate the level of perversion... but not for long, poor assistant girl

= Health and Physical Education for 30 Year Olds =

You're still a virgin? Don't worry! The god of sex is here!

What Turns Me On: god of sex is f*ckin' hilarious and he reminds me of my Gilbo (Prussia from Hetalia), insanity
What Turns Me Off: IS LOSING ONE'S VIRGINITY THE MOST IMPORTANT THING IN THE WORLD??? GAWD

= A Delusional Girl and a Young Man =

His cousin thinks she's an alien from outer space

What Turns Me On: somewhat like the junior version of Arakawa Under the Bridge, crazy humor
What Turns Me Off: girl's mom, moe fanservice, looks like there'll be a harem

[ CAN'T WATCH ]

I couldn't watch the following either because I haven't finished the previous season or haven't even started it. Here they are, from what I love to the one I have no idea with:

• Gintama - I LOOOOOOVE Gintama xD But I don't think I can ever catch up on the manga... much less the anime (200 episodes... impossible)
• The World God Only Knows 2 - I really liked the manga but I haven't caught up with the latest chapter and I'll be too lazy to marathon the first season, ehehe...
• Ultimate Survivor Kaiji 2 - I hear many people say that this is good. I'll check out the first season some day.

[ UNIMPRESSIVE/DISAPPOINTING ]

I have manga background on all of these and already made my initial impressions. Their manga adaptations didn't make me that impressed, and their anime adaptations couldn't improve them. They are tolerable, but not that enjoyable. Rank from "pretty disappointing" to "almost barely tolerable":

• Aria The Scarlet Ammo - the setting and the story concept was very interesting! It had an interesting leading guy but the rest ruined it, especially the loli. Oh gawd.
• Lotte’s Toy - the premise might be disturbing but it wasn't that bad... & the perverted stuff isn't the focus of the story. But the anime wanted to highlight the perverted stuff... ugh, no...
• Toriko - I call this crack!GAR ... & though the manga is okay... the anime wanted to leech on an extremely popular anime on its first episode. I lost my respect on its anime staff.
• Sket Dance - I read the manga THRICE and I STILL can't find it appealing. It's so unfunny, I can't last long on it. Too bad, music seems cool.
• A-Channel - I'm fine of it being another "slice of life comedy w/ 4 girls" show... but the girls here are just... not likeable.
• Everyday Life - I can understand random and weirdness.... but this one is TOO bizarre. Anything that is too much is bad. And no, they're not cute.

[ UNBELIEVABLE ]

I didn't bother to watch all of the titles under this category. The premise, spoilers, screenshots, or prequels are already too much for me to bear. It might be prejudice, but I even if I watch them, I'll most likely be rating them in the line of D or F (for star system) then 0 to 1.5 hearts (for my hearts system). Here's the list from unbearable to most unbearable:

• Sengoku Maidens - the idea of changing the genders of historical figures may not be original, but it's not bad. But the story's just too cliche... and what's with that ED?!
• A Bridge to the Starry Sky - I seldom, if not never, see PLOT and decent characters in these kinds of harem shows.
• Abnormal Psychology Seminar - Oh come on, of all abnormalities, why sexual desires only??? WHY???!!!
• Dororon Enma-kun Meeramera - Seeing the heroine naked so often in this show makes my head hurt so much.
• Kampfer Liebe - Story idea hadn't really been that bad, but the actual story and the characters were meh. Fanservice made things worse for me.
• Softenni - It looked like a pr0nz show in the guise of tennis uniforms to me.
• Under the Innocent Sky - I saw boobs begging to be groped and women showing off their panties... oh dear lord
• The Qwaser of Stigmata 2 - I prefer splattering guts than this... this.... I AM SO AFRAID!!!! WAAAAAAHH!!!!

That's it for now~ Curious to see your lists especially if we're similar~ I'm sure you have different impressions on these series and have a different set of favorites too, but that doesn't make your tastes less awesome. Opinions differ; beauty is in the eye of the beholder~ I love this season, and I hope that those I loved will get even better~