Tag: Anime Strike

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First Impressions Reviews

Summer 2017 First Impressions – Princess Principal

Five girls live in 19th century London, a city within the Albion Kingdom divided into east and west by a large wall. The girls serve as undercover spies enrolled as students at the prestigious Queen’s Mayfair school. The girls make use of their individual abilities to remain active in the underground world of disguise, espionage, infiltration, and car chases. – ANN

Copyright 2017 (c) Actas/Studio 3Hz

Streaming: Amazon Anime Strike

Episodes: TBA

Source: Original

Episode 1 Summary: A new path for history was set in motion when the strange element “cavorite” was discovered. Cavorite allowed the kingdom of Albion to create an air fleet that was unmatched in the world, but this imbalance of power tore Europe apart. Albion was split into East and West by a huge wall encircling London, and now, as in any divided country, spy networks crisscross from one side to the other trying to get the upper hand for their side.

Five young women attending Queen’s Mayfair school moonlight as spies, their current job involving helping a scientist defect so that he can get the money to help his younger sister, who is suffering from cavorite poisoning. But the scientist’s goals are muddied by who he’s actually working for, and it isn’t long before the girls discover that the ultimate goal is to draw them out from their hiding place.

Impressions: Anime is a medium that’s tackled a lot of genres and sub-genres over the years, but despite the popularity of steampunk within geek culture over the last decade or so, there haven’t been very many anime that have taken advantage of that. Steamboy is probably the most obvious one, and perhaps Last Exile as well, though that one has a slightly different feel. But for the most part it’s kind of an untapped market for anime. That’s why I was pleased to see a series like this that seems to be all-in as far as the steampunk aesthetic goes. Princess Principal seems to not only be concerned with what type of technological achievements might have been made had the world made a giant leap in discovery around the late 1800’s, but also the effects on class in society as a result.

‘Tis a very fancy school. Copyright 2017 (c) Actas/Studio 3Hz

The first episode takes place in the city of London an its surroundings some years after its eponymous battle that’s referenced several times throughout the episode (and which seems to play a large part in at least one of the main characters’ backstories). Many of the scenes occur within the elite private school the girls attend which serves as a cover for their nightly activities, and portrays the kind of upper-class Victorianesque setting one might expect in a steampunk-focused piece. With its emphasis on aesthetics, we get the expected steam-powered inventions, English gentility, and costume-like variations upon period clothing that make the genre fun to play around in. What we also see, though, are the bits and pieces of London buried beneath the thick smog, in the gutters of the city where the lower classes dwell. There are scenes of the poor clustered in an infirmary waiting room, and homeless people lining the streets. The discovery of cavorite, and likely the war that went along with it, definitely made some people wealthy, but there are clearly many who weren’t lucky enough to share in that prosperity.

The first episode doesn’t really take a stance on any of this beyond allowing the audience to see how things are; it’s clearly used as a means to demonstrate how stratified the world is. It does give us some perspective in that at least one of the girls now working as a spy was lucky enough to escape this kind of poverty (having been orphaned) and find a way to some kind of financial means (even if the work she and her compatriots are hired to do isn’t particularly savory). Anime has a tendency to “tell” rather than to “show,” so despite the fact that these visual interjections were pretty obvious, it’s nice to get a little bit of background on the world without an “as you know…” info-dump up front.

Ange keeps watch on their target from on high. Copyright 2017 (c) Actas/Studio 3Hz

In addition to its portrayal of the people populating its alternate-history milieu, the show’s background art is striking and detailed, providing a lovely backdrop for the well-executed action in this episode. There’s an incredible amount of care in the depiction of the lush plants in the Queen’s Mayfair gardens, as well as in the brownish grit and grime of the city streets below the all-encompassing fog. There’s just enough of a sepia-tone to give the whole thing a classic feel to go along with its old-timey vehicles and other less tangible period style. It’s definitely not a universal constant, but I find that, often, when different pieces of the whole are given a lot of attention and care separately, the final product tends to reflect that extra energy and planning in its overall quality. Obviously nothing is certain from one episode, but I was truly impressed by how this show made its visual impression.

I did a panel at an anime convention a year or two ago that was a discussion of moé tropes and how employing them in character creation isn’t necessarily a mark of laziness on the part of a creator, but instead can be a shortcut to get the audience up to speed quickly, with character detail and development to follow as required by the story. Some examples of this technique used well are Puella Magi Madoka Magica, or perhaps a slightly better comparison to this show, Sound of the Sky. In both of these shows, we’re fooled into thinking that the characters, being who they are and marked by their moé characteristics, will have a particular, predictable story arc. In both cases the characters have much more depth than might be obvious at first glance, and as details are added to their personas, we learn more about the world they inhabit. I think many of us are still wary when the cast of an anime looks like “a bunch of girls each with her unique one-note personality,” and that was my knee-jerk reaction to this show. Ange, who we spend some time with in this episode, feels like a typical “emotionless girl with a tragic past” that is meant to appeal to a certain type of fan, and there are a couple of other obvious character types within the group of characters we don’t know very well yet. But I get the impression that we’ll learn more about these characters as we go, and I’m interested to see that happen. And hey, if we don’t end up with richer portraits of our protagonists as we go, perhaps at the very least we might end up with something like Joker Game, which oozed style despite not sharing any pertinent details about the cast; I can dig a show about cool people doing cool things.

It’s not surprising to me that this show, which wasn’t really on my radar, seems much more promising than I would have thought; that’s something that happens every season. Though I might have some slight misgivings about the show’s ability to keep up the standard of this opening episode, I’m impressed enough by the type of story it told and the environment it portrayed that I think it’s definitely worth a second look.

Pros: Lots of visual style and a cool alternate history premise. Depicts class differences in a steampunk setting.

Cons: Difficult to tell if the somewhat-generic characters will develop as we go. The visuals may not be able to maintain quality going forward.

Grade: B+

 

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First Impressions Reviews

Summer 2017 First Impressions – Dive!!

Since he was a young boy, Tomoki Sakai has been in love with the sport of diving. After years of practice and stalwart determination, there’s no place where he feels more at home than in those brief seconds of flight before he’s submerged into the water. Unfortunately, he and the other boys of the Muzuki Diving Club (MDC) aren’t doing enough to please their sponsors, and the club is on the verge of being disbanded. Enter coach Kayoko Asaki, a fiery woman who is determined to pull the boys of the MDC back from the brink. Her mission: get the MDC to the Tokyo Olympics in one year’s time. Tomoki and his friends have a long road ahead of them as they begin their fight to fulfill their dreams. – ANN

Copyright 2017 (c) Zero-G

Streaming: Amazon Anime Strike

Episodes: 11

Source: Novel

Episode 1 Summary: As a youngster, Tomoki Sakai had a chance meeting that changed his life forever. He caught a glimpse of Yoichi Fujitani flying through the air as he dove into a pool below. It was then that Tomoki fell in love with diving. Tomoki’s road to being a competent diver was fraught with challenges, including his fear of opening his eyes before hitting the water, but having Yoichi as an inspiration (and occasional teacher and mentor) has helped give him the confidence to keep going. Tomoki’s personal life, however, isn’t quite so successful; though he accepted a request to go out from a girl named Miyu, he’s unenthusiastic about the relationship and would rather spend his time worrying about his sport. When rumors start going around about the closing of the Mizuki Diving Club, Tomoki’s place of training and home-away-from-home, all the members of the club are understandably stressed. In reality, the arrival of new coach Kayoko Asaki marks the beginning of a new, ambitious goal for MDC; get the club members to the Tokyo Olympics in one year’s time. But is this a goal that’s within the team’s grasp?

Impressions: Amazon seems to have a pretty firm grasp on many of the anime that piqued my interest this season, and Dive!! is no exception. As a part of Fuji TV’s long-running noitaminA anime programming block, it’s also part of Amazon’s current exclusivity deal. Years ago I was quite the noitaminA devotee, having been attracted to its penchant for broadcasting anime aimed at an older (and often female) audience. In more recent years its reputation has become more spotty, but at the very least I can still say that most of noitaminA’s programming is somewhat off the beaten path.

Yoichi demonstrates his skill. Copyright 2017 (c) Zero-G

This series will obviously invite many comparisons with Free! due to its similar title stylization and penchant for portraying young men in Speedo swimsuits. It’s also a sports series that seems to deal more in character dynamics and emotions, which was one of Free!’s strengths as an anime. Whereas KyoAni’s famous outing made a name for itself by combining sports action, character development, and great animation, not to mention fanservice aimed at individuals attracted to the male body, this series is, thus far, much more subdued in tone and execution. Whereas the episode ends with the introduction of a huge goal – get to the world stage by qualifying for the Tokyo Olympics – it spends much of the rest of the run time telling a much quieter, more contained tale of one young man’s internal conflict between what he feels he should like – having a girlfriend and spending time with his friends at school – and what he feels compelled to do – achieving even greater heights (literally!) in the sport he’s come to love. This fits in well with noitaminA’s catalog, which contains a lot of anime series that speak to the realities of human existence in ways both large and small within almost every sort of genre context. Despite Tomoki’s status as “yet another teenage male anime protagonist,” I actually felt like his struggles were relateable, because they’re also much bigger than high school. Many of us find ourselves pulled in multiple directions, and part of life is learning to balance our wants and needs in order to create a satisfying existence.

One moment that really pierced through some of my misgivings was the flashback to Tomoki’s one-on-one mentorship with Yoichi, the one time Yoichi seemed to find the time and inspiration to give direct instruction. Tomoki is told that he needs to keep his eyes open, to see where he’s going and orient himself to the water (this is after failing several times to enter the water cleanly from his dives and looking like a doofus). There’s an element of technical instruction to this advice, of course, but there’s also a broader message within it about facing challenges head-on with open eyes. One thing I was always told as a child when playing catch or tossing a Frisbee, was that I needed to keep my eyes open and not shy away from the object flying quickly and painfully towards my face. Practically, there’s a better chance you’ll catch the ball (or enter the water better) if you’re watching what you’re doing. There’s also a much higher chance of achieving success in life if you handle challenges head-on with as much knowledge as you’re able to gather. As someone with anxiety, this is a challenge that I have to face every day, and sometimes what essentially amounts to large-scale self-imposed exposure therapy is a terrifying proposition (and not one that works for me all the time or would work for anyone/everyone else regularly, either), but I find myself better able to cope now that I’ve at least made an attempt to face my fears. I was surprised to find myself relating to the show on this level so quickly.

Tomoki isn’t sure about his feelings for Miyu. Copyright 2017 (c) Zero-G

The unfortunate thing is that this isn’t a great looking show. This tends to be the case with a lot of noitaminA series, at least in my experience. They’re caught in a space where they’re meant to appeal to a more mainstream audience, but that means that there’s not really a built-in guarantee of financial success like there might be for a show related to a big-selling game, book, or manga property. I suspect that makes it less attractive to animators in some way, or there’s not as much energy and time devoted to scheduling and planning something that’s slick and produced in a way that’s meant to “wow” people. While the promo art might give the impression of shiny male abs and sports action, there’s ultimately not a lot of focus on that element. There aren’t high detail shots of abs or bodies in motion (there we go, comparing it to Free! again), but again I feel like that’s not really the point here. I do think that viewers might expect that kind of thing from this series, though, and if that’s the case there’s bound to be some disappointment.

There’s also a little bit of juvenile humor in this episode that feels really out of place considering how subdued the tone is. One of Tomoki’s friends at the MDC can’t seem to get over the fact that a beautiful woman has come to visit their coach, and there’s a much-longer-than-necessary scene in which this character melts down over the fact of the woman’s curvaceous body and his default assumption that their coach must be having an affair with her. It’s the episode’s one real attempt at being silly or funny, and beyond being generally out of place it’s also pretty crass and doesn’t add anything to the episode. I maintain that teenage boys aren’t nearly as stupid as anime makes them out to be.

Though there are a few missteps, I’m actually, surprisingly still interested in this series despite how it went against a lot of my initial expectations (or possibly because of it). I think it runs the possibility of being a little generic, and with only 11 episodes it doesn’t have much time to bring all the characters where they need to go, but I like that it seems very self-contained and doesn’t seem concerned with being bombastic and intense like a lot of other sports anime. This might be a show worth spending a little time with.

Pros: Seems to have a pretty deep message about facing anxiety and balancing the various elements of one’s life. The tone is pretty subdued.

Cons: The production values are lacking somewhat. There’s some juvenile humor that falls flat.

Grade: B-

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First Impressions Reviews

Summer 2017 First Impressions – Vatican Miracle Examiner

To detect lies, refuse fakes, and reach the miracle of God – that is their mission as Vatican Miracle Examiners. Hiraga, a scientific genius and Roberto, an expert on the decryption of cryptography and ancient documents are not only good partners but also “Miracle Examiners” working for the Vatican. They are secret examiners, who are requested to examine and identify the authenticity of miracles from all over the world. – ANN

Copyright 2017 (c) J.C. Staff

Streaming: Amazon Anime Strike

Episodes: 12

Source: Light Novel

Episode 1 Summary: Hiraga and Roberto are Vatican priests with a very important job – when claims of miraculous events are reported, they travel around the world to investigate their veracity. Having just received word of a virgin impregnation, the two hop a plane to Mexico in order to examine all the evidence. Before they leave, though, they’re warned that they may meet with the Devil himself once they’ve arrived. The two enter the grounds of Saint Rosario church, which has an attached boys’ boarding school and a hospital that seems strangely well-equipped. They speak with the pregnant nun in question, who doesn’t seem to be lying and who greets them sporting stigmata, but Hiraga (the more scientific of the two) seems unconvinced. There’s also kind of an odd, unsettling atmosphere hanging over the estate, and as night falls the two suspect that word of the Devil’s presence might have been more than just a faint warning. Late at night a security guard comes upon the body of one of the priests, bloodied and sprawled across a pentagram on the ground. Murmurs of students playing at devil worship begin to rumble a little bit harder, just as a statue of the Virgin Mary in the chapel begins to shed tears.

Impressions: Oh anime, forever attempting to combine religious iconography with animated entertainment. I’m kind of kidding on that point, as this series seems to at least make a play at portraying some aspects of Catholicism in a way more accurate than many others (see Hellsing or Crono Crusade for some great examples of ham-fisted pasted-on Western religion). As the setup for a horror-mystery series, well, there are worse out there. But there’s something about this episode and the overall feeling it establishes that seems a little bit “off” to me.

The examiners pray in the chapel at Saint Rosario Church. Copyright 2017 (c) J.C. Staff

Though you’d be hard-pressed to find a whole lot of concrete evidence in this first episode, it has a very odd, pervasive sense of violent sexuality to it that rubs me the wrong way. This is possibly my mistake, but I’d sort of assumed before watching the show that the two male leads were supposed to be some kind of low-key yaoi bait; there’s obvious potential to frame up something that’s taboo and exciting between two attractive male priests. The first episode makes kind of a weak play at this sort of thing, with a shower scene in which Hiraga goes over his personal internal struggle while nude under the running water, and Roberto does domestic duties in the sitting room, ironing his companions clothing before they both go to meet their head priest for their assignment. There’s a lot of relationship coding, but absolutely zero chemistry between the two characters. I was left feeling kind of puzzled. It’s certainly not a requirement to feed shippers, and in fact I felt a little bit guilty going in with that kind of assumption. But on the other hand, why the weird fanservice? It left me feeling disoriented, like I couldn’t quite nail down the tone.

There are some other offhand comments and some actions that occur briefly that speak to kind of an unsettling view of sexuality. I was really getting uncomfortable when the protagonists and the related side characters started to get into the nitty-gritty regarding the nun’s pregnancy. The reference to her hymen (which isn’t examined on screen, but was apparently looked-at by someone at some point to verify her physical virginity) and the kind of faint suggestion of how she may have become impregnated (there’s literally no direct evidence, but I interpreted a few cues to mean that there may have been student involvement) made me really uncomfortable, and I would venture a guess that some people might even find themselves triggered by the entire situation. It should be news to no one that the religious view of women’s sexuality isn’t that great, but to dive right into it with episode 1 was something I wasn’t really prepared for.

Oh, and there’s also a bizarre and completely incongruous split-second scene of a nun suggestively and violently biting into a juicy sausage at the dinner table. I rewound the video a couple of times to try to see if there was some context for it, and other than just the overall creepy atmosphere, it doesn’t seem to be related to much of anything. She’s briefly introduced earlier in the episode and immediately reads as “sexy” and “probably not actually a nun,” but beyond that prepare yourself for a laugh and a great opportunity for a screen capture.

Dial “1-800-SATAN-66” to speak to the dark lord. Copyright 2017 (c) J.C. Staff

There are also some situations that came across as being (probably unintentionally) funny. For example, the episode begins with a group of cloaked figures performing a ritual around something that looks similar to any off-brand Ouija board you might find at a game shop. For a show that honestly seems a little bit in love with itself with its richly-depicted scenes of Vatican City and such, to represent occultism and Satan worship in such a cartoonish way just made me laugh. Next time they’ll be trying to find the name of Carlos’ crush or how many kids Steven will have, right after they bloody up another priest as sacrifice to Satan’s will.

One thing I did really like about this episode is the music that was chosen. The use of choral songs for many of the scenes that take place in religious houses of worship or similar environments is overbearing but very pretty in its own way, and gives a good feel for the looming presence of God wherever seems appropriate. As the priests arrive in Mexico, there’s also some pleasant Central/South American flute music to accompany them to their destination. Like the rest of the show itself, it’s sort of corny, sort of cheesy, and sort of try-hard, but I thought it worked well against how over-the-top some of the other content was.

Ah yes, I can see so much more with my monocle. Copyright 2017 (c) J.C. Staff

If I had to choose a word to describe how the first episode presents itself, I’d have to choose something like “goofy.” The characters are so serious that I can’t take them seriously, if that makes sense. Hiraga’s sad situation, as a scientist and a man of God who just knows there’s a way to save his younger brother from whatever kind of horrible bone cancer is plaguing him, is just over-the-top; it doesn’t really build sympathy so much as it paints him as kind of a madman with a penchant for playing made-up games with himself. Roberto seems like kind of a nothing person, serious and more fatherly but without even a strong backstory to distinguish him from others. Other than that, the flying rose petals that accompany the characters’ stigmata, as well as the over-the-top acting and really obvious use of color, shadow, light, and darkness, paints this as campy rather than serious. Not necessarily a bad thing so much as something I wasn’t really looking for.

With so few series starring adult characters, I had some hopes that this show might provide a more mature supernatural series to compliment all those that are focused on teens. I should probably know better that, just because an anime stars grown-ups, doesn’t mean that it’s made for grown-ups. This one might just be a little too weird for me to enjoy.

Pros: The soundtrack does a lot to create the proper atmosphere, at least in some situations.

Cons: The overall atmosphere seems in conflict with itself. There’s some weird-but-not-surprising treatment of women’s sexuality.

Grade: C-

Categories
First Impressions Reviews

Summer 2017 First Impressions – Made in Abyss

An enormous pit and cave system called the “Abyss” is the only unexplored place in the world. Strange and wonderful creatures reside in its depths, and it is full of precious relics that current humans are unable to make. The mysteries of the Abyss fascinate humans, and they head down to explore. The adventurers who venture into pit are known as “Cave Raiders.” A little orphan girl named Rico lives in the town of Ōsu on the edge of the Abyss. Her dream is to become a Cave Raider like her mother and solve the mysteries of the cave system. One day, Rico starts exploring the caves and discovers a robot who resembles a human boy. – ANN

Copyright 2017 (c) Kinema Citrus

Streaming: Amazon Anime Strike

Episodes: 13

Source: Manga

Episode 1 Summary: 1900 years ago, a remote island surrounding a seemingly bottomless pit was discovered. As the world’s last truly unexplored phenomenon, the “Abyss” as it came to be known beckoned explorers and relic hunters alike into its depths. Some unlucky travelers entered, never to be heard from again. Riko is the daughter of one such adventurer, and she and her friends Nat and Shiggy live at an orphanage where they and their ilk are trained in the dangerous art of cave raiding for various relics in the Abyss. Their lives are harsh and occasionally frightening, as their lot is exploited as cheap labor. One day on their first excursion without adult guidance, Riko and Nat are attacked by one of the Abyss’s many terrifying creatures. Riko is saved by a mysterious and powerful shot from the hand of an unconscious robot boy. Riko is ecstatic to have found such a treasure, and drags the boy back to the orphanage. The robot can’t remember his name or where he came from, so Riko assumes that he must be from deep within the Abyss, a place where incomprehensible relics are said to be ubiquitous. Though this excites her imagination, for right now all she wants to do is keep Reg (her name for her robot friend) a secret from the authorities.

Impressions: I’ve actually been delaying watching this episode – not because I suspected that it might be bad, but that I’ve been looking forward to it so much and I wanted to give myself a chance to cool down and take it in properly. As with almost anything I’ve ever watched, I do have a few misgivings, but besides that this has absolutely one of the most impressive first episodes I’ve watched so far this season.

Riko goes looking for valuable artifacts. Copyright 2017 (c) Kinema Citrus

Looks certainly aren’t everything, but in this case they’re one of the first things one notices once the episode starts to play. The anime wastes no time in establishing a strong sense of place. The idea of a bottomless pit is intriguing and horrifying and everything in between; As Riko and her companions descend a mere(!) 100 meters down at the outset, we’re given an appropriate taste of both aspects via the background environment and the strange creatures flying through the air. The cliffsides are lush with strange flora, the sun penetrating enough to give us a look at the various plants and rock formations. As Riko uncovers an old cave system there’s a palpable sense of age and mustiness as she breaks through rock walls and discovers strange objects and even old human remains dressed in unfamiliar clothing. The visuals tell a story on their own, about ancient peoples who may have lived in this strange environment and the tools that they used to survive. It also begins to raise question thus far unspoken – why did they die out, and is this an ongoing threat?

As Riko and Nat haul Reg’s unconscious body up from the area that they were exploring, the visual montage of the various parts of town, precariously balanced around the empty blackness of the Abyss, is fascinating. It feels like something out of a film with a much higher budget, and there was clearly a lot of purposeful design and framing in creating the first impressions of this environment. I’m reminded a bit of Xam’d: Lost Memories, an anime with a similar kind of cinematic style and extremely distinct visual presentation and feel to it. Xam’d had a lot of very strong fantasy elements, as well as a profound undercurrent of body-horror that made for a very intriguing watch; I’m already getting the impression that this series might tend towards the same direction.

Riko is suddenly under attack. Copyright 2017 (c) Kinema Citrus

While it would be easy to be fooled (and maybe even put-off) by the cutesy character designs, there are enough clues in this first episode to indicate that this show has the potential to skew really dark. There are several offhand references to forms of punishment in which offenders are “strung-up naked” for their offenses. It’s actually sort of easy to miss this since they’re offhand comments spoken by Riko in a comedically frantic way when it appears as if she’s about to get into trouble. I’ve heard online from readers of the manga that the source material has the tendency to be dark and horrifying; while my search for specifics around the web came up mostly fruitless, I don’t doubt that these comments in the anime are without basis. This might be enough to give a lot of people misgivings, especially since most of the characters introduced so far are really young, and bad things happening to young people makes them seem doubly-terrible in most cases. To be blunt, I have zero desire to see any character, especially a kid get strung up naked in the town square, and if that’s where this is all going it would probably be enough for me to drop it no matter how great the rest of the show might be.

What I’m hoping, though, is that the darkness of the narrative is more reliant on the terrifying unknown of what lives down the rabbit hole. It’s easy to see why the Abyss would be such a tempting mystery; I think there’s something romantic about an unexplored piece of the world, and it’s just so easy to identify with the characters because as a viewer I’m just so curious to know what’s waiting down there. It goes far beyond wanting to conquer nature or claim more land for this or that nation; knowing that there were people there once, and that they made and built and created things that still survive in some form, is almost magical in a way. The fact that one episode of the anime has the ability to create and cultivate that sense of wonder is truly an accomplishment.

Reg hides out so Riko can get in less trouble. Copyright 2017 (c) Kinema Citrus

Animation-wise, there are some great moments in this episode. I’ll leave the specific technical commentary to the pros at Sakuga Blog, but to my untrained eye this episode is propped up both by its expressive character movement and the otherworldly-horrifying creature designs, of which the most interesting is probably the giant flying worm that nearly eats Nat and Riko during their excursion. There’s something especially terrifying about it, which is effectively conveyed through the very different animation style used to bring it to life; the splotchy ill-defined nature of the beast gives the impression that it’s almost too terrifying to look at and see clearly, which is fitting given the circumstances. I’m interested to see what other horrors of nature show up to give our characters trouble later on.

I haven’t spoken about it yet, but I thought I might mention a little bit about the Amazon Prime/Anime Strike viewing experience, since I’ve read some other comments online about it. I’ve heard tell of some issues people have been having with ill-timed subtitles, and that hasn’t been the case in my experience (it might have something to do with individual computer set ups, but that’s not my area of specialty). What is kind of quirky, though, is that I had to actually turn the English subtitles on manually. I think in the case of other video services I’ve used, living in a primarily English-speaking region while watching material in a language other than English has meant that the subtitles would appear automatically but could be turned off. I did have a bit of an issue with video quality, which has been my experience with Amazon Video even outside their Anime Strike channel. When the video starts, the stream is initially in kind of a low quality standard-def size, which is pretty pixelated. It then takes a while (probably less than a minute, truthfully) for it to adjust to HD quality. I have pretty fast cable internet service and live close to a major city, so the reason why some services are still struggling with this (I’ve had this happen with Netflix as well) is somewhat irritating. Otherwise the experience isn’t nearly as bad as some would make it out to be, but it’s still irritating to have to pay extra to add the Anime Strike channel when I already pay for Amazon Prime in the first place.

Video service issues aside, I’m digging this series a lot based on the first episode. I love the air of mystery it’s cultivated so far, and I’m anxious to find out what sort of path the story might take going forward. While I have some misgivings about just how far the violence or other horrific material might go based on the related internet chatter, for now I think I’ll just hope that the anime can maintain the tone while maybe leaving some things to the imagination. I think this is going to be a really striking, unique, and satisfying ride.

Pros: The episode quickly establishes a great sense of place. There are some great visuals, from the background artwork to the character and creature animation. The setting is mysterious and intriguing.

Cons: Signs indicate dark skies ahead – including content that might be objectionable to some, especially since the characters are young.

Grade: A-

Categories
First Impressions Reviews

Summer 2017 First Impressions – Katsugeki! Touken Ranbu

The year is 1863 as the tumultuous samurai era is coming to an end, Japan is split between the pro-shogunate and anti-shogunate factions. The fate of the world is threatened as an army of historical revisionists are sent from the future to alter the course of history. In order to bring these forces down and protect the real history, two sword warriors, spirits who are swords brought to life by Saniwa (sage), rush to Edo. The polite and thoughtful Horikawa Kunihiro and the short tempered yet skillful Izuminokami Kanesada, who served the same master, confront the invading army along with a lively gang of other warriors including Mutsunokami Yoshiyuki, Yagen Toushirou, Tombokiri, and Tsurumaru Kuninaga. As the fate of history lies in these hero’s hands, what meets the blade is yet to be uncovered… ANN

Copyright 2017 (c) Ufotable

Streaming at: Amazon Anime Strike, Crunchyroll

Number of Episodes: 13

Source: Game

Summary of Episode 1: Kanesada and Kunihiro are two warriors who exist outside of time and outside of the bounds of normal humanity. Both men are warrior spirits summoned from powerful blades by the sage Saniwa, and who have been sent backwards in time into historical Japan to prevent the malevolent Retrograde Army from meddling in and altering Japan’s history. The problem is that they are but two individuals, and the Retrograde Army continues to send more and more demonic soldiers to murder important people. It’s becoming more difficult to accurately predict where these creatures will appear and what effects they might have. It’s during a particularly dire battle that Saniwa makes his appearance in person, and he comes bearing gifts – three more weapon-based warriors to aid in the good fight. This may just tip the scales in the right direction, but only if Kanesada and the gun-wielding Yoshiyuki can get over their rivalry and work together.

Impressions: It’s easy to go into an anime viewing with prejudices, especially when the type of source material on which it’s based tends to have its own set of tropes. The Touken Ranbu game is described as a gender-swapped version of the game Kantai Collection, which anthropomorphizes historical military warships as sexy young women, for the consumption of a mostly male audience. Touken Ranbu does the same for famous swords, turning them into various flavors of attractive men for an interested female audience. Turnabout is fair play and all, but in past cases this sort of thing has resulted in anime that’s almost always kind of goofy and based around a one-joke concept that has to be manipulated all over the place to provide enough basis for an actual story. It’s not meant to provide a pithy plot, it’s meant to show attractive characters doing a thing and to justify merchandising. Which is great and all, but I don’t buy a lot of merch so that doesn’t really resonate with me.

The team analyzes who the next target might be. Copyright 2017 (c) Ufotable

Touken Ranbu is an interesting case in that it’s received two different types of adaptations. There was a more light, comedic adaptation (that I didn’t watch) a couple of seasons ago called Touken Ranbu Hanamaru that seemed to exist in order to get the sillies out of its system, and now there’s this adaptation, which appears to be taking things more seriously and concentrating on the supernatural action elements of the plot. It’s kind of an unorthodox approach to adapting a property to animation, but I think I kind of like it; there will always be people who just aren’t interested in doom-and-gloom seriousness and who wouldn’t watch something where characters are legitimately getting hurt and drawing blood from their enemies, while others just aren’t down with goofy humor and mostly plotless shenanigans. Now that some game companies are using their zillions of dollars to commission and oversee adaptations of their own material (see: Rage of Bahamut), maybe it’s something we’ll be seeing more often.

All that stuff is just background, though. The question is, how does the first episode of this show hold up? I was surprised that, when all was said and done, I was pretty impressed by what this episode has to offer. Anime in general, especially when the background plot points are sort of complicated, has a tendency to info-dump via expository dialog. Even really good series like ACCA:13, for example, can trip themselves up by awkwardly inserting minutes upon minutes of plot setup into character conversations (any time I hear or read “As you know…” in a show, I get a little embarrassed for the writers for being so obvious with what they’re trying to do). There’s a little bit of that here, but it feels more natural than in many cases. Since Kunihiro is a noob sword-guy on his first mission, the guidance he receives from old veteran Kane-san serves to fill us in on a lot of what their general mission is and the workings of the time travel element as it relates to what’s happening. A lot of what we learn comes in the characters reacting to the realities of their situation – the Retrograde Army is going to kill some important dudes in a general location that’s been narrowed-down as much as possible (though not enough – just the realities of trying to predict these things from a couple hundred years in the “future”), and they have to get rid of the enemy without intervening in the normal day-to-day stuff that’s going on. Since they’re from the future, they also have some notes regarding things that historically happened every day so they can cross-check that history hasn’t been altered. It’s a good system, doesn’t try to nail down the time-travel stuff in too much detail (because if you try to “logic” that all out it stops making any sense), and allows us to concentrate on the things that are really important – namely the cool action scenes and other exciting things.

Kane saves Kunihiro from getting skewered. Copyright 2017 (c) Ufotable

Since adapting the Fate series over several different anime incarnations in the recent past, Ufotable has gotten a reputation for its high-quality cinematic anime productions that present cool, well-animated action sequences with a lot of excitement and polish. Try as I might I’ve never really been able to get into any adaptation of the Fate series, which is unfortunate since I like watching cool action choreography and animation as much as the next person. At least judging by this episode, Ufotable has given us something that retains and shores up their reputation in this area, but without the added baggage of people trying to convince me that Saber is a feminist character (please stop doing this; I will not agree with you). While it’s not quite Sword of the Stranger quality action (seriously – if you love amazing animation, you can definitely watch around the middling samurai-movie plot for the sublime sword fight choreography in this film from BONES), the glistening swords and characters racing across the rooftops is exciting and fun to watch. A lot of care has gone into making this episode look good; if the job of an opening episode of anime is to put the show’s best foot forward and get viewers hooked on its best qualities, this definitely accomplished that.

The other side of this is that there’s a lot of reliance on computer generated components (creatures and settings) to help make many of the shots possible. Anime cinematography has gotten so much better over the past couple of years that this is really almost a non-issue; the hand-drawn characters and the 3D backdrops mesh together really well thanks to judicious use of visual filters and what is probably very conscientious storyboarding and layout construction. In short, it looks great! But similar to a lot of modern live-action films (especially superhero or disaster films that, by their nature, require a lot of effects work) there’s always that subconscious sense that the two pieces don’t exist in the same world, and that can be ever-so-slightly distracting (at least for me). But don’t let that dissuade you – I think this is one of the better examples of what can be done in the modern era when the two animation techniques work together.

A good-looking rival appears. Copyright 2017 (c) Ufotable

I was incorrect in thinking that this show was an Anime Strike exclusive; I learned that Aniplex USA has got it playing on several different streaming outlets, so while you won’t be able to afford to buy it when it’s released on disc, at the very least you’ll be able to scrape together enough pennies to watch it on your favorite streaming service (I added it to my queue on both Crunchyroll and Anime Strike, so we’ll see what service I default to in future weeks).

While I’m usually more interested in quieter, more thoughtful, or “iyashi-kei” or “healing” entertainment, it’s definitely fun to branch out and watch something that does nothing more than get my heart pumping. A well-constructed action series with attractive anime dudes is really the very definition of what gets my kokoro going doki-doki, so there you have it. Even if bishounen aren’t exactly your thing, though, I think if you enjoy swordplay, historical fantasy, or just really cool hand-drawn animation, Katsugeki! Touken Ranbu might have something worthwhile for you.

Pros: The visual presentation is slick and high-quality, the fantasy and time-travel elements don’t bog things down too much, and the characters are attractive.

Cons: There’s a sense that the characters and backgrounds are not of the same world.

Grade: B

Categories
Previews Reviews

Summer 2017 Preview

It’s Summer, which means that intolerable humidity is hanging over the Midwest causing me to sweat myself to death. So it’s a great time to stay inside and watch some anime! Below are some impressions of upcoming series that seem interesting to me. Will all of these pan out? Probably not. Will some shows surprise me later on, even if they’re not on my gotta-watch list? Probably. Every season brings with it something new and interesting. Even though the Summer anime season tends to be pretty small in comparison to Spring and Autumn, there are still likely a few gems waiting to be discovered.

One interesting development that’s occurred in the past few months is what seems like a partnership of sorts between Sentai Filmworks and Amazon’s Anime Strike. While Anime Strike is controversial on its own due to being cloistered behind a pricey double paywall (first you pay for Amazon Prime, and then you pay a few more dollars to add Anime Strike to your channel list), it seems like this might be a big boon to Sentai Filmworks, who hasn’t had a go-to home for its acquisitions. I can’t say I’m happy having to add to my many video streaming subscriptions (Hulu, Netflix, Crunchyroll, Funimation… there are so many) but I see what they’re trying to do and I’ll play along for the time being, even if I think that it doesn’t set a good precedent for either convenience or price

Anyway, here’s a hastily-assembled list of the new shows I think might be interesting:

Copyright 2017 (c) Production I.G.

Welcome to the Ballroom/Ballroom e Youkoso

Begins: July 9th

Streaming At: Amazon Anime Strike

Synopsis: The setup seems typical for a sports or sports-type anime; the protagonist, a middle school student named Tatara Fujita is kind of mediocre at most things that he tries (sports in particular). He’s “rescued” from his mediocrity (and his bullies) by Kaname Sengoku, a professional ballroom dancer. It’s this encounter that draws Fujita into the realm of ballroom dance, perhaps something where he’ll discover his talent (spoilers: I’m guessing he’ll end up being pretty good at it).

Impressions: This is the show this season that I’ve been anticipating the most, for reasons that are as simple as me being interested in more offbeat takes on the sports genre and liking to look at attractive dudes doing fancy things. The various trailers have featured great music, sharp animation, and more elongated necks and bodies than you can shake a stick at. According to Sakuga Blog, there are some pretty big names associated with the project as well. It’s kind of fascinating to be in the fandom at a time when we get to see series that have clout with both fans of popular anime, and fans who like to follow individual creators and the animation process. I think this show will at least satisfy on looks alone.

 

Copyright 2017 (c) Zero-G

Dive!!

Begins: July 6th

Streaming At: Amazon Anime Strike

Synopsis: The Mizuki Diving Club is in dire financial straits and in danger of being shut down. Their only hope for keeping things running is to send one of their divers to the next Olympic Games on the Japanese team.

Impressions: I was just about ready to call this one a poor rip-off of Free!, but the novel and manga predate KyoAni’s bishounen cash-cow by a few years, so that’s probably misguided. Remember what I said above about anime that revolves around unusual sports? This is another series that might scratch that itch. Judging from the PV I just watched, the visual presentation isn’t quite as clean and crisp, but there are an awful lot of rippling abs on display, so the anime junk-food quotient for someone like me, a not-quite-but-kinda fujoshi, might be enough to keep it interesting, if there aren’t also some decent character moments (which is something that’s hard to get a sense of during a 2 minute preview where the characters are speaking in metaphors about “flying” and telling each-other how cool they looked).

 

Copyright 2017 (c) Haoliners Animation League/ Emon Animation Company

A Centaur’s Life/A Centaur’s Worries/Centaur no Nayami

Begins: July 9th

Streaming At: Crunchyroll

Synopsis: Himeno is a centaur girl with a sweet, quiet personality. All of her friends and classmates are also supernatural or fantasy creatures, with wings, tails, horns, and other physical traits that set them apart from the human beings we’re used to. This is the story of Himeno’s daily school life.

Impressions: I like monster girls a lot. From the time I was a sullen teenager doodling in my sketchbook, to the current day during which I mostly just appreciate the art of others, I’ve thought female characters with demon horns or snake bodies or mermaid tails were just the cutest. But I’m still waiting for a really good “monster girl” anime to come down the pipeline. Monster Musume was gross, Interviews With Monster Girls started to give me a bad feeling a couple of episodes in, and Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid, despite having its good moments, still managed to bungle the good will it had built with a couple of non-con scenes that turned me off (I love that it’s inspired a lot of really cute cosplay, though). I’m hoping that this will just be kind of cute and innocuous and give me my fix. I haven’t decided whether or not the fact that there are also monster boys in the characters’ school will be positive or negative, but I’m willing to give the show a chance.

The anime is produced by a Chinese animation studio (though it seems to be managed by Japanese staff), and their track record isn’t the best (I see the dismal Spiritpact on their rap sheet – not a good impression to leave). If anything, I’m interested to see if the end result of this particular endeavor is any more pleasing to the eye or satisfying to the soul.

 

Copyright 2017 (c) Ufotable

Katsugeki!: Touken Ranbu

Begins: July 1st

Streaming At: Amazon Anime Strike

Synopsis: It’s 1863 in Japan, an era during which forces loyal to the Shogunate and those wishing to bring its power to an end were clashing. Historical revisionists from the future begin to invade in order to change the force of history, but they’ll have to get through two sword warriors who have come to Edo to defend the sanctity of the true timeline.

Impressions: So you’ve heard of guys who use swords, but how about guys who are swords? This series, one of two anime based on a collectable card style smartphone game, personifies historically significant blades as hot warrior dudes of various personalities. A more comedic take, Touken Ranbu: Hanamaru, premiered during the Autumn season last year, and this version appears to be a more “serious business” take on the concept. Considering Ufotable’s involvement, it’ll probably look pretty slick (it’s difficult to say for sure, since the most lengthy trailer I could find was mostly animation sketches put to dramatic music). I can’t predict how much staying concept the central premise might have, but at least the characters are attractive and the action might be fun.

 

Copyright 2017 (c) Kinema Citrus

Made in Abyss

Begins: July 7th

Streaming At: Amazon Anime Strike

Synopsis: The Abyss is an underground cave system, the last bastion of unexplored territory in the world. It contains treasures and relics from long ago that current humans cannot re-produce. It’s Rico’s dream to become a cave explorer like her late mother. One day she finds a robot who has the appearance of a young boy.

Impressions: Whereas there’s a lot on this list I think I can probably take or leave, I’m actually really excited about Made in Abyss. I found the trailer to be absolutely haunting, and the plot synopsis suggests that the story might take place after humanity has undergone some kind of technological decline, which is one of my favorite set-ups (see: Nausicaa, Sound of the Sky, Humanity Has Declined, and many others). There’s an edge to this one that makes it seem a little spooky in spite of its lush setting and cutesy character designs, which is another production aspect that gets me excited. It’s a little bit difficult to put my feelings into words any better than that, since this type of show really hits me in a deep place that’s based in old 1980’s sci-fi and fantasy that I saw as a small child, but maybe there are some of you out there that can relate.

 

Copyright 2017 (c) Studio Deen

Hell Girl 4/Jigoku Shoujo: Yoi no Togi

Begins: July 14th

Streaming At: Amazon Anime Strike

Synopsis: The fourth season of the long-running supernatural horror revenge story. Those seeking revenge on those who have caused them harm may access a secret website to call upon Hell Girl. She drags her targets to Hell itself, in exchange for the immortal souls of those who call upon her to help them. This season will feature 6 new episodes, and 6 “reminiscence” episodes.

Impressions: Hell Girl is one of those properties I’ve always been aware of but which I’ve never watched much of. From the time the first season aired it’s cropped up as a favorite pick at anime club Halloween events and so I’ve seen several episodes here and there because of that, but never entire seasons. I do, however, enjoy stories about human nature, even those bits and pieces of it which are uncomfortable to look at and experience, and this series is notorious for presenting those kinds of stories. The titular character doesn’t judge on morality, she just does a job; it’s up to the viewers to understand and interpret who’s in the right or wrong in each situation, and that can be unsettling.

 

Copyright 2017 (c) MAPPA

Kakegurui – Compulsive Gambler

Begins: July 1st

Streaming At: TBA

Synopsis: When you’re a child of the mega-rich, normal school sports and clubs don’t teach you the tools you need to keep your position in society. At Hyakkao Private Academy, the students’ education is geared specifically towards the skills of negotiation, manipulation, and deception – the students participate in a rigorous curriculum of various forms of gambling where the winners end up at the top of the class and the losers are punished accordingly. Yumeko arrives on campus and decides to show her classmates what a real gambler is capable of.

Impressions: This is a situation where I find the plot concept of the anime sort of interesting, but I have a strong suspicion that the execution will end up being too grotesque and/or mean-spirited for my personal tastes. The trailer features the protagonist in a kind of weird sexualized ecstasy that I suspect might get old (I’m not big on cruel sadism, and this feels like it might be toeing the line there as well). But hey, maybe there’ll be a little bit of Kaiji in there somewhere, too. I’m definitely game (ha!) to give it a try.

 

Copyright 2017 (c) Silver Link

Restaurant to Another World/Isekai Shokudou

Begins: July 3rd

Streaming At: Crunchyroll

Synopsis: Yoshoku no Nekoya is like any other normal restaurant during the week, and is patronized by the working people of Japan. But on Saturdays, when it takes a day off, it becomes a gathering place for people from another world. When members of non-human races patronize the restaurant, they find that even the most mundane of Western-style dishes seem exotic and wonderful.

Impressions: I like stories about cooking and I enjoy light fantasy elements, so this series which seems to combine both things looks like it might be kind of episodic and cute. It’s amusing to think about how an elf or a demon might react to something commonplace like chicken soup. I’m also heartened to see that this is sort of a twist on the “isekai” sub-genre that’s been so popular lately; instead of some loser dude making his way into a video game or fantasy world and having several women hot for him, the people from another world are finding their way into ours. I can’t help but think that might be an improvement.

 

How about you? What have you been looking forward to this Summer? Let me know in the comments!