Domi's Blog

Anime Relations: God Eater, Durarara!!x2 Ketsu, Ao no Kanata no Four Rhythm, Haikyuu!! Second Season, Ansatsu Kyoushitsu 2nd Season, Saijaku Muhai no Bahamut, Schwarzesmarken, Kono Subarashii Sekai ni Shukufuku wo!, HaruChika: Haruta to Chika wa Seishun suru, Boku dake ga Inai Machi, Dimension W, Akagami no Shirayuki-hime 2nd Season, Phantasy Star Online 2 The Animation, Nijiiro Days, Musaigen no Phantom World, Norn9: Norn+Nonet, Sekkou Boys, Prince of Stride: Alternative, Ajin, Ooya-san wa Shishunki!, Dagashi Kashi, Gate: Jieitai Kanochi nite, Kaku Tatakaeri Part 2, Divine Gate, Active Raid: Kidou Kyoushuushitsu Dai Hachi Gakari, Mahou Shoujo Nante Mou Ii desu kara., Ojisan to Marshmallow, Hai to Gensou no Grimgar, Nurse Witch Komugi-chan R, Shoujo-tachi wa Kouya wo Mezasu, Oshiete! Galko-chan, Bubuki Buranki, Luck & Logic, Koukaku no Pandora

Since all the shows I was watching ended except Ajin and the two-cours it is time for a season review. In comparison to the seasons of the previous year this one was weak. A lot of shows which were boring or simply bad. The few good ones were actually not mind-blowing good so the difference between good and bad shows is not that severe this time. Except for the 2nd season of Haikyuu!!, which aired as a two-cour, I did not give a single score of 9 or 10 points this time, which usually happens to be the case for each season, so that might be an indicator that this wasn't that enjoyable overall.

I did it for the last season, so I am doing it here again. Some subjectively selected awards for shows for all the good or wrong reasons:

Top 3 Anime of the season: 1. Haikyuu!! 2nd season (2nd half) - As the first half, this was amazing. Without wanting to spoiler too much, I can only say that it always is great to see how amazingly executed the games are and how many characters actually receive great development, despite there being so many. Easily the top spot.

2. Kono Subarashii Sekai ni Shukufuku wo - Very funny show and despite having a really sloppy animation it did a really good job. At the end it all comes down on how I enjoyed the show - and I had a really good time watching it so it deserves the top spot of the new shows.

3. Hai to Gensou no Grimgar - Despite having a slow start it turned out really well in the end. The story development was well executed and the characters, despite lacking a bit of depth were still really likable and made a good cast overall. The end left me satisfied and overall it was really enjoyable.

Top 3 Failures of the season: 1. Divine Gate - I don't even know if it had any good points despite having a good opening song. The story was all over the place and the characters were so bland and boring that I didn't care about a single one. After the first quarter it slowly turned into a full edgy and pretentious show which just left you confused and led to nowhere.

2. Active Raid - Uninteresting bad story paired with characters which share the same fate. It was kinda like a mix up between various different shows but they only took the bad parts of them. The animations weren't all too great either. There was nothing to save this from being bad, and make things worse there will be a 2nd cour to suffer through.

3. PSO2 The Animation - I had very low expectations before it aired and it came true. You always have to wonder for game adaptations how much they will diverge from the promotion aspect and actually make a decent show, but this time it didn't really work out. The story was just bad and something you wouldn't expect if you know about or even played the game. It showed some hope halfway in which immediately got dropped again directly after. If I didn't know about the game and watched the show first, I'd definately be reluctant to even bother installing it.

Biggest Surprise: Sekkou Boys - Tough choice here since nothing was really that much surprising, but Sekkou Boys sounds really stupid from the synopsis so I expected a really terrible show which tries way too hard to be funny. Instead it was actually quite enjoyable and caught me off-guard. The characters were likeable and for a short Anime it did a really good job.

Most underrated: Musaigen no Phantom World - If we talk about the score on MAL, I wouldn't consider it underrated, but spot on. But if you look into the opinions in the community, there is a lot of hate towards this show and people who repeatedly say that KyoAni lost its way and similar things. It also gets called out for all the wrong reasons which do not even apply to the show, like the thing that some people keep mistaking it for a fanservice-heavy ecchi show which it clearly is not. This definitely deserves less shittalking and more acceptance.

Most overrated: Boku Dake ga Inai Machi - After all the praising and how it skyrocketed in the rankings, and it even raised to rank 1 on a similar Anime site, the result was quite poor. It still was a good show but nothing special at all.

Top 5 Best openings: 1. Screen Mode - Naked Dive (Musaigen no Phantom World)
2. Kishida Kyoudan & The Akeboshi Rockets - GATE II: Sekai wo Koete (GATE)
3. (K)NoW_NAME - Knew Day (Hai to Gensou no Grimgar)
4. ALL OFF - Never Gave Up (Heavy Object)
5. Kawada Mami - Contrail ~Kiseki~ (Ao no Kanata no Four Rhythm)

Top 5 Best endings: 1. Azusa Tadokoro - Junshin Always (Musaigen no Phantom World)
2. Matsunaga Tomoya - I wanna be your knight (Nijiro Days)
3. Sekkou Boys - Hoshizora Rendezvous (Sekkou Boys)
4. Zahre - Kanashimi ga Jidai wo Kakeru (Schwarzesmarken)
5. (K)NoW_NAME - Harvest (Hai to Gensou no Grimgar)

Biggest Disappointment: HaruChika - It is a shame. This show has a great character design and looks good, but it is just not interesting at all and simply boring. I was getting my hopes up a lot since I have 2 P.A. Works shows in my favorites and I expected it to be at least decent. Despite from looking good and having a decent soundtrack there was nothing really redeemable about this.

Best short Anime: Nijiiro Days - It is still running, but the first half was good so far. For being half the length of a regular TV episode, it has quite some time to make something decent out of it and it uses the time well. Likable characters, and a cute, relaxing slice-of-life storyline.

Worst short Anime: JK Meshi - The 2nd half was as bad as the first half. Totally not funny and with a garbage animation which looks like a high schooler did it who just learned how to do it. Nothing which can be called meh or okay here it is just plain horrible.

Best Animations: Musaigen no Phantom World - Has a very beautiful and detailed animation, and it looks nearly flawless. KyoAni living up to its name.

Best Art Style: God Eater - Albeit only 4 episodes airing in Winter, it easily takes this palce. A lot of people might disagree, but I simply love how it looks like. Totally fits to the show and the setting and is very appealing.

Best Character Designs: Haikyuu!! S2 (2nd half) - As last season, this also takes the top spot this time. While HaruChika also did a great job in terms of character design, it can't come close to Haikyuu!!.

W T F of the season: Sekkou Boys - A show about four ancient god statues making a boy band. Figure the rest out yourself.

Best Boner: Saijaku Muhai no Bahamut - Despite being a bad show, it at least had nice girls and a few good scenes if you know what I mean ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Most Relaxing: Akagami no Shirayuki-hime 2nd Season - Very light hearted romance show in a very calming setting. Despite Nijiiro Days which is also quite comfortable there is no contest.

Best Comedy: Kono Subarashii Sekai ni Shukufuku wo - Very funny show, which gave me a lot of laughs each episode. Absolutely nothing this season which comes remotely close to it.

Best OST: Hai to Gensou no Grimgar - No contest. Despite being majorly insert songs, the whole OST is simply amazing. And it is also worth mentioning that everything was done by the same group.

Top 5 Best Girls:
1. Merry (Hai to Gensou no Grimgar)
2. Irisdina Bernhard (Schwarzesmarken)
3. Frolaytia Capistrano (Heavy Object)
4. Kurashina Asuka (Ao no Kanata no Four Rhythm)
5. Mai Kawakami (Musaigen no Phantom World)

Top 5 Best Boys:
1. Tomoya Matsunaga (Nijiiro Days)
2. Kazuma Satou (Kono Subarashii Sekai ni Shukufuku wo)
3. Utsugi Lenka (God Eater)
4. Fujiwara Takeru (Prince of Stride: Alternative)
5. Kuga Kyousuke (Prince of Stride: Alternative)

Anime Relations: God Eater, Durarara!!x2 Ketsu, Ao no Kanata no Four Rhythm, Ansatsu Kyoushitsu 2nd Season, Saijaku Muhai no Bahamut, Schwarzesmarken, Kono Subarashii Sekai ni Shukufuku wo!, HaruChika: Haruta to Chika wa Seishun suru, Boku dake ga Inai Machi, Dimension W, Akagami no Shirayuki-hime 2nd Season, Phantasy Star Online 2 The Animation, Nijiiro Days, Musaigen no Phantom World, Norn9: Norn+Nonet, Sekkou Boys, Prince of Stride: Alternative, Ooya-san wa Shishunki!, Dagashi Kashi, Gate: Jieitai Kanochi nite, Kaku Tatakaeri Part 2, Divine Gate, Active Raid: Kidou Kyoushuushitsu Dai Hachi Gakari, Mahou Shoujo Nante Mou Ii desu kara., Ojisan to Marshmallow, Hai to Gensou no Grimgar, Nurse Witch Komugi-chan R, Shoujo-tachi wa Kouya wo Mezasu, Oshiete! Galko-chan, Bubuki Buranki, Luck & Logic, Koukaku no Pandora

So we are now almost a month into the Winter season and all the scheduled shows have at least 3 episodes aired, so it is time for first impressions. Overall, I think this season is one of the weaker seasons with mostly average to slightly good titles but barely any title which really blowed my mind. Some shows however show potential and can turn out quite good in the end. Now let's give short reviews about the titles I have seen. There will be spoilers for the sequels so if you haven't seen them don't open the boxes

Active Raid: Kidou Kyoushuushitsu Dai Hachi Gakari



Akagami no Shirayuki-hime 2nd Season



Ansatsu Kyoushitsu (TV) 2nd Season



Ao no Kanata no Four Rhythm



Boku dake ga Inai Machi



Bubuki Buranki



Dagashi Kashi



Dimension W



Divine Gate



Durarara!!x2 Ketsu



Gate: Jieitai Kanochi nite, Kaku Tatakaeri 2nd Season



Hai to Gensou no Grimgar



HaruChika: Haruta to Chika wa Seishun Suru



Kono Subarashii Sekai ni Shukufuku wo!



Koukaku no Pandora



Luck & Logic



Mahou Shoujo Nante Mou Ii Desukara.



Musaigen no Phantom World



Nijiiro Days



Norn9: Norn+Nonet



Nurse Witch Komugi-chan R



Ojisan to Marshmallow



Ooyasan wa Shishunki!



Oshiete! Galko-chan



Phantasy Star Online 2 The Animation



Prince of Stride: Alternative



Saijaku Muhai no Bahamut



Schwarzesmarken



Sekkou Boys



Shoujo-tachi wa Kouya wo Mezasu

Anime Relations: Muv-Luv Alternative: Total Eclipse

Muv-Luv Alternative is set in a dystopian setting in our world where an alien race called "BETA" has invaded the earth and plunged it into chaos. Humanity is on the brink of extinction and in defense of the BETA, they have invented fighting robots known as the Tactical Surface Fighters (TSF). Since there is not much hope left, a cooperation between Japan and the USA has started to further develop the TSF and resist the BETA. Yui Takamura is a japanese pilot who has been sent to Alaska to work on that project, where she meets the American pilot Yuya Bridges. Will they be able to change their fate and prevent humanity from extinction?

First of all, the story and setting aren't unique, and the "aliens who invaded the earth" thing has been done several times before. But even then you can't help but be interested in the story nonetheless. Just because it has been done before, doesn't mean that it can't be executed well and still be interesting.
There is a bit of a shift and a lot of timeskips in the beginning. In the first two episodes we get to know the backgrounds on how the BETA invaded the earth and the damage they caused over the years from 1973 to 2001, and that in a very cruel and violent way. The Anime certainly doesn't hold back with showing how terrifying the BETA are, and I liked that. I was on the edge of my seat and didn't really expect it to turn out this violent.
After the first two episodes, the Anime plays in the present where you get to know the set of characters which will play a big role in this series and it certainly starts to take a milder approach than at the start. Nevertheless it is still interesting to watch.

The set of characters is, from what I have seen yet, okay. What I first noticed is that they are older than what a usual cast in Anime is like. You don't have stereotypical high schoolers, but grown up characters (although they don't reveal their age in the series, they are actually old enough to be drinking so it is highly likely they are all over 18 years old at least). I don't feel attached to any character yet, but that might be because not that much happened until now. A part of the cast follows certain archetypes but not even close to the point where it feels like a burden or that you get annoyed by it. There could have been more information revealed about the characters, because all we know yet is the backstory of our female lead. But I don't want to judge too early, maybe it will all happen throughout the series.

The animation looks fine so far. It is not outstandingly beautiful by any means but it certainly isn't something you would get turned off with. The CGI can be a bit sloppy here and there, but personally I don't mind it that much. The character designs are pretty cool though, I like their outer appearance. I have to say that the female cast of this show has a lot of sex appeal, even more so in their tight piloting suits which perfectly outline their great bodies.

The soundtracks in this Anime are amazing. The opening tune fits perfectly to the series, it has some kind of dubstep-ish vibe to it which in my eyes compliments the show well. The ending song is fine, but nothing remarkable or memorable. What is really great are the insert songs which are played during battle scenes. They sound awesome and match the scenes, I really liked them.

I enjoy the Anime so far and certainly want to see more of it and see where it is going. There are a few things mentioned above to complain about, but overall I can give this temporarily a 7/10.

Anime Relations: Haikyuu!!, Ore ga Ojousama Gakkou ni "Shomin Sample" Toshite Gets♥Sareta Ken, Heavy Object, K: Return of Kings, Hidan no Aria AA, Gochuumon wa Usagi desu ka??, One Punch Man, Rakudai Kishi no Cavalry, Shinmai Maou no Testament Burst, Valkyrie Drive: Mermaid, Noragami Aragoto, Owarimonogatari, Comet Lucifer, Miss Monochrome The Animation 3, JK Meshi!

Since all 1 cour Anime from the Fall Season have ended by now I'm going to make a small summary of how I liked the season, what were possible problems and I will give awards for a few shows shows for certain categories.

How did I like the season? I think it was overall a satisfying season. There were a few disappointments in there but the surprises and the good shows overweigh it. We had a good variety of genres this season and I would say almost every genre was covered. There was a good amount of short Anime too which I really like because they are usually easy to watch due to their length.

Some awards I am giving to Anime which exceeded in special categories this season:

Anime of the season: Noragami Aragoto - Excellent job with this show, was hooked from the beginning to the end and it exceeded all my expectations.

Failure of the season: Valkyrie Drive: Mermaid - Simply stupid show which was boring and had tons of yuri fanservice which was not only badly done but also way over-the-top. There was barely any plot and the bits that were there were horrible like the conclusion.

Biggest Surprise: Noragami Aragoto - I rated the first season with a 7 and expected the second season to score around that are, too, and I was speechless when I saw how awesome this show is.

Most underrated: Heavy Object - Many people discarded it because J.C. Staff decided to animate it instead of a 3rd Toaru Majutsu no Index season, and overall people are way too strict and nitpicky when judging this title. I think it deserves a score of at least way above 7.

Most overrated: One Punch Man - While I agree that it is a good Anime, it doesn't deserve that much praise. It even reached the top10 of best Anime on MAL which I find undeserved. I can see why people would hype it a lot, though, because in fact it appeals to a broad mass.

Best opening: Harada Hitomi - Overdrive (Valkyrie Drive: Mermaid) - The anime was horrible and the only thing I truly liked about it was the amazing opening, well done!

Best ending: CustomiZ - Kai (K: Return of Kings) - Great song which very well fits the Anime.

Biggest Disappointment: Hidan no Aria AA - I liked the original Anime and thought that this spin-off might be like it as well, but I was so wrong. In the end it turned out completely different from my expectations and was pretty bad.

Best short Anime: Miss Monochrome 3 - Good short, like it about the same as the 2 prequels of it.

Worst short Anime: JK Meshi - Nothing is happening, bad animation, not even funny, what is this?

Best Animations: One Punch Man - Looks great. It was hard to decide between this and K for this category but when it comes to the battle scenes then it clearly exceeds.

Best Art Style: Comet Lucifer - Very colorful art style which looks beautiful.

Best Character Designs: Haikyuu!! S2 - Exceptionally good character designs, honorable mentions to One Punch Man and Comet Lucifer for also having good character designs but not as good as Haikyuu.

W T F of the season: Shomin Sample - Over-the-top comedy which is hilarious. Great use of parodies and jokes. You got me mad now!

Best Boner: Shinmai Maou no Testament BURST - Fanservice done right.

Most Relaxing: Gochuumon wa Usagi desu ka?? - Cute girls doing cute things, nice to watch, gives you a warm and fuzzy feeling

Best Comedy: Shomin Sample - Funny anime with good jokes and parodies. A lot of hilarious and WTF Moments.

Best OST: Comet Lucifer >and< K: Return of Kings - I really can't decide between those two. They both have an equally amazing OST.

Best Girls:
1. Stella Vermillion (Rakudai Kishi no Cavalry)
2. Kirima Sharo (Gochuumon wa Usagi Desu ka??)
3. Sodachi Oikura (Owarimonogatari) / Frolaytia Capistrano (Heavy Object)

Best Boys:
1. Munakata Reishi (K: Return of Kings)
2. Araragi Koyomi (Owarimonogatari)
3. Kurogane Ikki (Rakudai Kishi no Cavalry)

Anime Relations: Fairy Tail

Fairy Tail is one of those popular titles which gets either a lot of praise or a lot of hate. It is considered mainstream so there are people who say that this is one of the reason why it is criticized so much. On the other hand it is said that the Anime has a boring plot and boring characters and that it is a waste of time by a bunch of people. I'm on my journey to find out whether that is true or if there is more to this show.

The Anime plays in a big fantasy world where superpowers and magic do exist. The story evolves around Lucy Heartfilia who is a wizard girl. She is a huge fan of the Fairy Tail guild and is dreaming to be a member of that guild. One day, by chance, she meets Natsu Dragneel who helped her out after she got into trouble and she learned that he is a member of the Fairy Tail guild. She gets invited to the guild and thus the adventures of the Fairy Tail guild begin for her.

It is a really good premisse. Setting is great and the plot doesn't sound all too bad either. But very soon you will realize that the plot is very cheesy and that it is loaded with a lot of shounen cliches. Must not be a bad thing, but it gets really repetitive. As in, there is always a problem which needs to be solved or an enemy who needs to be defeated and at the end it is done with the help of the bond all the members share and because of that they can get stronger and move forward. There are a lot of flashbacks before and during fights looking back at the past of either one of the protagonists or the antagonist they are fighting against. It can be really dragging from time to time but I think it is more a good thing that you actually get to know about the antagonists they are fighting against and that they aren't randomly generated characters which get discarded without any reason for their existence. Despite being cheesy, the fights are entertaining and the battles aren't bad either mainly because sometimes they get really intense. Sometimes the Anime likes to use a bit of fanservice but it is kept moderate so it doesn't bother at all.

The characters are mostly good, especially the members of the Fairy Tail guild we get to know more about. There are still many members who make an appearance here and there but there isn't anything revealed yet, but there might be in the later episodes who knows. It is funny and light-hearted to watch the interactions between the characters, they are like a big family. The antagonists usually have a good backstory but I said that already above.

Animations are decent but could be better here and there. The character designs fit the shounen genre and they look fine. Special focus on the battle scenes which look well done.

The opening and ending songs are fine, didn't encounter a song yet which I didn't like. The OST is godlike, and whenever it plays in intense moments you immediately get fired up while watching. Good use of the OST.

Overall, despite being cheesy it is entertaining and enjoyable. I didn't encounter any filler arc yet so I can't say anything about that specifically. But for now I am satisfied with what I am seeing. Rating: 8/10

Anime Relations: Katanagatari

I always wanted to start this Anime but never got around doing it until I got a recommendation from a friend lately, so that is basically the reason why I decided to start watching this.

The story sets place in the edo-era of Japan where sword fighting and martial arts were still a thing. The MC, Yasuri Shichika, is the head of a fighting school on an unhabited island, where he lives with his sister after his father passed away. One day a women called Togame comes to the island in order to meet Shichika's deceased father to help her out with a request. Little did she know that he already passed away. Unable to refuse her request, Shichika feels obliged to help her out on her quest to recover 12 famous blades for the shogunate from various fighters who are in possession of them.

First of all, I really like how unique it is. The story is episodic, yet contributes as a whole, and has an interesting concept. Each episode is, different from other Anime, around 50 minutes long. The pacing and the execution of each episode seem to be similar. As in, there is one antagonist each episode which gets introduced, then you get to know about their backstory and why they are fighting and at the end of the episode there is a fight between the main character and the antagonist, which makes each episode neatly round up in an own story, while still being a concept of a whole.

The characters are also very unique. Shichika is the kind of airheaded uncivilized type of person and doesn't understand much about how to interact with others beside his sister. He eventually fell in love with Togame during the first episode although he doesn't really understand the weight of that yet. Togame is more composed but also a little airheaded, but in comparison to Shichika she knows well how to behave and how to deal with other people. She doesn't have much fighting power and relies on Shichika.
What is really special are the interactions between the two, but also the interactions between them and the antagonists. The dialogues are really good and sometimes funny. It repeatedly switches between being funny, serious, symbolic etc. what I really like.

But what I liked the most about the Anime so far is the art style and the animation. Both are very unique and you probably need to get used to it. I'm somehow attracted by this unique artstyle and think it looks really good and fits the show well, so I'm giving this a huge bonus.

Whats also really noticeable is that each episode has a different ending song, which shows that a lot of work was put into this. The opening song stays the same, but it is a really nice song. The BGM are usually rap-ish songs which I personally find a bit weird and sometimes out of place.

All in all I really enjoy this so far and have high expectations of this show. Wouldn't call this a masterpiece yet but it is definitely on a higher level. Score: 9/10