C³ is a generic tale made of both borrowed and original elements fused in a predictable fashion to give an anime which is fairly enjoyable, slightly different and mildly bland in some areas. By the time you have finished the first few episodes you'll already have an idea of your impression of the overall anime and you can decide for yourself whether or not to continue. The first episode is hardly special so don't get disappointed, watch at least three episodes before you quit.

Onto the real review. C³ is a moderately well developed anime. It tells the story of Fear, a cursed tool developed for the purpose of torturing others which has acquired the persona of a young girl over the years. Yachi Haruaki our protagonist gets a cube mailed to him by his father who usually sends him antiques and the like. Overnight the cube transforms into the girl Fear who is actually a cursed "Waas", a tool of torture. She wants to get rid of her curse and is sent to Haruaki's place which abounds in spiritual energy for curing her curse. Yachi himself is resistant to curses. As Fear begins to live there she is sought by enemies who want to steal or destroy her. Yachi and his friends fight to protect Fear.

Characters in C³ are 'synthesized'. What I mean to say is that the series borrows the cliche of chracter traits and fuses them to give a feeling of 'new'. Yachi Haruaki is a simple, straightforward, popular(in a harem sense) character with a strong side capable of fighting for what he needs to protect. Konoha is your usual sweet, bespectacled, big-breasted beauty in the role of a childhood friend(another harem cliche) but she actually has a strong, different side too. Fear is the usual loli with a curse and powers to add to her charm. Other characters include Class President, as usual, strong, independent and helping but with a dark side.
Of note is the abundance of yandere/psychotic and S&M traits in many characters especially the evil ones.

Animation is the mix of CG and usual scenes. The art is good but I wasn't particularly impressed. The lighting and contrast tend towards poor and the camera angles are not as good as they could have been. Also many still scenes actually dull the action scenes rather than adding to them. It starts looking like the staff put too much in some scenes while too less budget went to others. Thus the animation appears unbalanced and slightly misplanned.

The musical score is really good. Both the OP and ED are great. I especially like the second OP. You should notice the beautifully planned scenes along with OP songs.

Now the disappointing part. The plot is not as intriguing as most would like it. The Mysteries are lade bare much before they even have a chance of developing. So there's hardly any tension and nothing to keep you at the end of your couch. There is also a poor choice of dialogue which appears too weak to excite anyone. And even though the seiyuus have put much effort into it the interactions are too artificial to be appealing. One particular point is the poor use of English. I would have been much more satisfied if they'd gone with Japanese only lexican. ("Bitchin' bitch bitchin'..." repeated twenty times only gives a bad taste and nothing else. You'll note other examples yourself) About the character base, it is not given much depth. The only character transition I like is the two sided character of Fear, one as an innocent child and the other a maniacal torturer. The other characters are not developed well given the time they appear. Also the yandere potential is not fully utilized much to my dismay. IF you can't bear with this you'll probably quit the show.

All in all C³ provides a fairly good enjoyment for those looking for the usual action-comedy-ecchi genre with a slightly distinct taste. It may not meet all your expectations but it doesn't leave you in dearth. Let's see if it ever gets a season2. I'll be waiting....

Boku wa Tomodachi ga sukunai... let's say it's just another simple anime with a harem like route (but not a harem), a school life background and the usual refreshments to offer without much too flare but not much disappointing either. My view on the series also takes into account the manga which i've read to a considerable length so it might be a bit overrated. Nevertheless if you like the first few episodes of the anime you must continue; if you hate them better leave before it gets dry and tasteless.

The story is set on one of the now common tenets of misunderstood and unsociable-like people searching for friends to give a meaning to their life. Yeah, hardly much originality but it has fine taste in development. Here's the catch- the"neighbour's club" for recruiting friends formed by individuals desperately seeking friendship but hardly showing loneliness looks almost exactly like a harem for our protagonist. The storyline is populated by much the usual events of life which include school, clubrooms, swimming pools, private beaches (wha??) and games and games and games... there are ecchi and ero tones thrown together but the harem edge never develops as though it was never the objective of the plot. The slight suspense created about yozora and kodaka's past (it's hardly a suspense, though) is not much developed but rather bluntly revealed.

Oh yeah, forgot to mention.. You will NEVER see mecha in the same light again after watching the series (someone already commented this on fb). Prepare to be soiled by the most unimaginable hentai of your life.. well, not exactly a hentai.

Characters, usual, not very distinct, not very dumb either. Our protagonist kodaka is a blonde-haired transfer student misunderstood as a delinquent, feared by most, liked by few and revered by one. If you throw together a once-parted childhood friend, an idol student (with a huge otaku within?), a loving (bro-con??) sister, a perverted genius junior with extreme delusions, an ambiguously male character (who cross-dresses and even wears female swimsuit but has a burning desire to be a "man")and a loli nun you'll get the gist of the cast. The series tried to fuse many types of characters together with somewhat success.

The humor element in the series is fairly enjoyable, and ridiculously hilarious at times but there isn't much depth given either to the plot or to the characters. The interactions among characters and the events are meant more to be humorous than anything else and so they turn out to be entertaining but not engrossing.

On to the art. This is where i like it. The anime series has much better art and graphics than manga. The manga characters appear much too rough at the edges and rashly sculpted. But in the anime, the characters are well sketched and given a fine depth. The animation is fine. However, i dislike the way CG was used. It appears a bit weird to me. It would have been better if they'd not used the CG in bus scenes.

The musical score is nothing special. I don't much like the OP track, the ED however is good and has a nice perspective.

All in all, it's a fine series to watch, if you watch it slowly few episodes in a go. If you rush thorugh, the anime loses much of its taste and enjoyment. This series provided me a welcome break from the monotony I'd been facing for a while so i much appreciate it. It goes without saying that it is simple and entertaining not spectacular or engrossing. That's what it was meant to be...

If someone told you "here's a box that can grant any wish without any cost in return" what would you do?? This the simple concept from which the story takes it's origin. The 'box' is an entity which can grant it's owner a wish exactly as his owner "imagines" it. The author takes an incredibly deep insight as to how such a wish can actually prove to be a flaw that disrupts everyday life and have sinister consequences .

When a beautiful new transfer student directly addresses Hoshino just after a brief introduction he's surprised. Thereon his life takes a plunge from the ordinary to surreal.. How does Hoshino whose motto is enjoying the normal ordinary life react to this?

The plot centers around three forces-- 1. '0' the creator of the box who remains an enigma; 2. Hoshino, a seemingly ordinary boy (but a rare existence as one who was offered a box but never made a wish upon it) and his allies 3. 'owners' the ones who make a wish upon the box.
The story pits the latter two forces against each other. These forces are not distinctly defined but unknown. Imagine when you are forced against a wish which distorts reality or the normal continuity of daily life and results in murderer or any number of horrendous and mysterious situations. You don't even know the owner, you cannot distinguish friend from foe, trust and truth becomes redundant. Thus, a psychological and physical warfare ensues with two undefined forces against each other. There is falsehood, betrayal, murder, violence and negative emotions dominate as the ugly side of your trusted compatriots is exposed.. such is the world which the author paints.
The protagonist and Maria are, however, portrayed as righteous and innocent, though it may change(it does change a little) along with time.

The characterization is brilliant, a lot of variety is used while defining the characters. The development is also intriguing. An atmosphere of mystery and sinister shades mean you'll encounter a lot of two-faced characters-- crafty, cruel or dangerous, almost anyone you see has a hidden side to their personality.
On a side-note, its a harem with a variety of girls- yandere (School Days), S (=sarcastic, Senjougahara and S**ist) and some more creepy ones.

The atmosphere of mystery is well built, the narration style is great and the psychological insight is interesting. While I wasn't particularly impressed by the 2nd volume the 3rd and 4th definitely stunned me. It's gripping and intriguing and really worth a reading.

Hidan no Aria or Aria the Scarlet Ammo is hardly an anime that could be judged by its name or by the genres mentioned here. To put it straight the anime does have action and comedy and school but its hardly the main part of it, its all about girls and guns (and swords) and the cliched over-used recycled gibberish scenarios (hence the G-shock). As a matter of fact, neither girls nor guns nor both put together made the anime any good but a lot of us (including me) are sucker for these types and thus the popularity.

The plot is set in a school that grants special students permission to take up missions and engage in combat using arms and ammunition. So you get talented snipers, gunmen, sword masters and special ability users produced by the school. Our protagonist, Tooyama Kinji, after a sad incident has decided to quit the combat division and live a normal life when suddenly he gets involved with a killing incident, a girl falls from sky, and activates his 'Ero-super-mode/ Hysteria mode' by contact with the flat-breasted Aria to set off the new course for his life.. so you can see :
1-sudden accident 2-girl falls from sky(special girl=cloud these days) 3-perversion=power and 4-rescue heroine :all 100% checked for predictability.
After being persistently sought after for his Hysteria mode (activated by ecchi stimulation and heightens his senses out of his urge to protect females) he decides to help Aria absolve her mother from false accusations.

The protagonist is surrounded by a flat chested tsundere, a plump yandere childhood friend and a femme fatale as a starting dose to his harem, hopefully the other female encounters will also enter into harem cruise if they dare to make a sequel. The plot throughout is quite predictable and strewn with your usual harem scenarios, depth and mystery are hardly much of a factor and most scenarios are mediocre or dumb or both. Therefore, as an intellectual facade to give a perception of depth and mystery they decided to use the offsprings of famous characters- Holmes IV, Lupin IV, Jeanne de Arc (was it 38th ?) and the Dracula himself who was generously available due to his immortality. Except that Holmes IV has more intution than deduction abilities, Lupin IV has to use others to steal, Joan of Arc 38th can use ice and of course! all of them are girls. By the way, Dracula is a 'stupid cur with black-and-white fur' (a werewolf like creature with white spots on his otherwise brown skin to mark 3 of his 4 weak spots --FYI that's so you can kill him easily). If they thought that they could create a masterpiece by stuffing something from everywhere they couldn't have been more wrong.
Seriously, the story could hardly have been good when the basis itself is flawed. I regard the story as mediocre and generously award it a 6/10.

[spoiler.. on a side note the last episode really pissed me off; Vlad, the EU no.2, great villain, is actually a dumb wolf, defeated in less than one episode. At last, at long last they f***ing ruined their own credibility.]

The animation is not so good. The character sketches are good for the most part, the coloring scheme is decent. But, the animation fares poorly, for one the scenes are not so fluid, they seem cut-off sometimes and another the angles are definitely not the best they could have given. I don't think spent much in the animation department cause although the guns and characters are well made the action scenes don't come out as great. The backgrounds aren't spectacular either.

The sound department is fairly better than the others. I don't have sharp ears to analyze the quality of voice-acting and BGM and grade it qualitatively but I consider most of the voice acting as good and the BGM nice though not spectacular. The OP seemed good to me, the ED was good and had a great accompanying animated scene.

The character zone is also starved of stagnation and ordinary means. Kinji, the male lead is a retarded and weak student with a hidden potential due to which he is either coveted by or recklessly thrown in the midst of dangerous women. A masculine instinct to protect females gives him the strength to survive. The female leads include a flat-chested with the greatest potential to sexually excite the hero, a yandere childhood friend madly in love with him and a dangerous seductress bent upon using him for her own devious schemes. The rest of the characters are also derived and hardly have a hint of originality. The development also follows the predictable route to a classic harem. Well, since Aria plays a greater in the plot, her development is comparably better.

You can see how much of a hypocrite I am since, despite all the scorn and cynicism, I still gave the enjoyment a 7/10. That's because, even though it's full of shortcomings, I still like the anime because of its comedy-harem nature (not that i watch every harem but I do watch a lot of them).

As an overall opinion, if you're into it because of mystery or action or something new, I suggest you drop it and watch better ones. On the other hand, die hard fans of harem are always welcome.. come friends, no matter what happens if it has an H its a Must-Have, if its a Harem its a must watch.

Before I begin: You have to be at least acquainted with the FMP series and its basic background if you want to appreciate this series.(Oops! I already began)

Sousuke,a military nut who has spent almost all his life upto now surrounded by terrorists and war has to guard Chidori, normal Japanese girl and act within the 'common' common sense. Yeah, so how hilarious can it turn out to be.. not much? Wrong! Trust me, you'll hardly get a greater dose of humor elsewhere.

This story just goes on to incredulously display how dangerous and dumb and droll it can be to have a man whose mind is a 'combat-oriented manual' live a normal high-school life. The abundance of humor utilizing normal, usual situations and satire directed at inane military attitude coupled with the absence of sexual innuendos and ecchi references makes this anime a really rare one (Though you will find censored 'terminologies' in an episode. And I don't loath ecchi humor btw). In my opinion, although a side-story, this anime is undoubtedly excellent and displays the ingenious talent of the team to create fresh humor from simple, sometimes inconspicuous, situations and some truly insane ones. And if you liked FMP, you'll more than like this.

Most of the plot basically moves around the school life of Chidori and Sousuke and their friends. The episodes are independent events (some episodes have two independent stories) so there's hardly any link or depth throughout the series. But each of the individual events has been skilfully crafted from the aspect of location, situation, dialogue and timing. Love-letters, confessions, dates, school lunch, beach holidays, Rugby death-matches and bacteriological weapons - the diversity of situations it utilizes is really good and the impact it creates is even better
[!!Spoiler: Who the hell would fire a real gun at a shooting arcade, Just how much dumb do you have to be that you really 'capture' the girls and train players like recruits, How dangerous can a deranged caretaker become and Question: How do you split watermelons?.. with a shotgun of course! -- just imagine the impact] . So irrespective of overall plot development or depth or whatever it scores for being witty and clever and hilarious and I'll give the story a 9/10. (btw I do not think that a central developing storyline is essential to a great comedy, not anymore :D)

The art and graphics of Fumoffu are quite similar to the FMP series, the exception being that there are no mechas or intricate artillery displays (but guns and bombs are used a lot)-- the characters are well designed and proportioned similarly, the coloring scheme is also similar but some different areas are explored by introducing new locations (school clubs, playground, cafeteria, hospitals, recreation parks, hot springs etc.) and characters. The motion is fluid and some of the scenes like that of Sousuke escaping the patrol car on bicycle, battling the butler and the battle at hot springs are stunningly well depicted.

The music choice in Fumoffu is.. good, I think. The OP "Sore ga Ai Deshou' is beautiful (I so love it ) but doesn't seem quite apt due to a serious sort of theme, the ED is fine. The BGM frequently has some serious or throbbing tones which are meant more as a mockery than otherwise and the romantic tunes are also great but those actually meant as comedic are not spectacular. So to say other than the soundtracks that explicitly convey laughs the choice is much better than standard.The synchronization and timing are great.

Fumoffu fully exploits the well-developed character base of FMP while also introducing its own cast. The characters of Sousuke, Chidori and Tessa are hardly developed and maintain a status-quo ( They're not inanimate but they are static). However, the Student Council president, school staff and students (Ono-D, Tsubaki) along with others like Yakuzas, Police lady and most notably Bonta-kun are nicely introduced and characterized. Bonta-kun is one of the most hilarious and well-defined characters of the series. I love the series so I'll give a slightly biased 9/10 to the characters.

This is one of the most enjoyable comedy series I've ever watched- it doesn't resort to stale or recycled humor or cheap tricks or gap-filling fan-service and not even ecchi humor and still manages to provide a great entertaining experience. The events are brief and hardly any time is wasted on developing a central storyline or theme, the conversations are concise and comprehensible, the sense of satire is modest and a quite a few scenes are like - OMG! OMG! and you clench your stomach twisting with laughter..
What this means is that you get a show with nearly 100% comedy since almost every bit of time is utilized in doing so. A value for your time and laughter for your heart.. You've gotta see this one.

PS: Overall I'd give this a 9

I didn't begin this show with very high expectations but it turned out to be among the most awesome Romance-Harem of all times. Here's why.. first of all in most 12-13 episode harem anime the plot hardly progresses anywhere, yes you get to see a lot of comedy and ecchi scenes, you get great lols out of it but in the end its nothing much more than a timepass; there are extremely few harem anime (Isekai no Seikishi Monogatari to quote one) that reach a decisive ending in just 12 or 13 episodes. Second, a lot of harem anime start exuding superficial, fake-like vibe as they progress (I don't like to quote here but I have quite a few in mind) but this series maintains or rather develops the atmosphere throughout from comedy to dark themes to comedy again. This is definitely a never miss anime for Harem lovers..

The plot narrates the plight and shock of Sai Akuto (who dreams of becoming the head priest) when it is foretold that his 'future occupation' is going to be Maou the demon king, what's more is that the predictions at the prestigious Constant Magick Academy where he enrolled are 100% true. He must now face the scorn of class leader, seduction by a dangerous girl and round-the-clock observation by an android, deal with a mysterious girl (from his past?) and the students who are afraid of him while upholding his own ideals..

The plot is fast paced but not ambiguous in any manner. A slow exposition despite the pacing makes it even more intriguing. All along the elements of humor and ecchi are mixed in a good dose. As you go along with the plot you feel a slowly increasing tension, some mystery developing in background, a conflict and action scenes in the foreground and all this beautifully mingled with ecchi-harem-comedy(well i'll call it EHC.. lol) So that in no way do the EHC scenes feel exaggerated, or repulsive or superficial. The interest never fades and the plot keeps gaining depth until it takes a final plunge in the last chapter. By the time the mystery and intriguing aspects clear away the tension is already so high it keeps you gripped. The sense of humor used in the plot is good and does make you laugh at all those expressions, situations and play on words.
Watch it and you'll see multiple themes (friendship, love, conspiracy, mystery, dark past, struggle, war and tragedy) flip through the story... How Sai slowly develops his bond with others, the past behind Fujiko's brother, Hiroshi's dreams, Junko's thoughts, Soga Kena's queer character, Student Council's plans, Yamato Bouchiro's plans, the difference of ideals between two conflicting parties and his reasons, the Maou's fate; even some philosophy as to what is God, what exactly is evil, a conflict over ideals and outlook.. honestly I'm dazed at how meticulously the anime handled all this in just 12 episodes without making a mess ( in fact its totally comprehensible and interesting). Watanabe Takashi has done an amazing job at direction and you'll get to see it throughout the series.

Animation is superb. The character sketches are quite typical of EHC anime ( beautiful girls , curves etc. ). As always the eyes have been paid special attention (see Sai Akuto), the proportions and consistence is well maintained. The coloring scheme used is simple and effective. The action scenes are really good, the use of special effects is judicious (except a few scenes where they tend to stand out a little), the angles and pacing is brilliant.

The music selection us good. The OP "REALOVE:REALIFE" is really great and in right context, the ED is good too. The soundtracks are fine.

Characters are not very original but the development is great. Even in this realm I think it was an astounding job to develop the main cast this well while creating a clear character base for supporting cast. Sai Akuto is portrayed as the typical powerful, gifted and altruistic hero, to be frank his base is very well defined but further development is not very marked compared to other characters. He retains his thoughts and emotions till the end but becomes more decisive and comparatively strong and confident. The female cast have what you always see - a tsundere, a beautiful large busted, a mysterious and a mischievous character. What makes it better are the other attributes imparted to the heroines - Junko is faced with a conflict of emotions and rationale, Fujiko is scarred by her past, Kena has a mysterious air and a profound knowledge of the deeper scene. All these are developed beautifully throughout the series. Hiroshi is also well developed with an entire event based around him. All of them contribute to comedy in their own way (like the tasteless but humorous dialogue of Korone). So to say the charcters reatined the typical harem side while developing some new aspects.

The enjoyment factor runs high throughout the story. You'll find this a rare find in the way it combines EHC and still preaches serious themes. The sense of humor may be light sometimes and heavy at other times but it is never absurd and the main theme is preserved throughout quite seriously. All this makes sure you're glued to your seat as you watch it in anticipation and laughter.

The encodes are very well done.

Overall you must definitely watch it even if you aren't a harem fan, cause if you dislike the sweet-superficial-cliche aspect that creeps in on some harem anime this is definitely one for you; however if you dislike the root idea of a single male surrounded by many females ( shame on you.. XD) this definitely not for you.

Katanagatari is a story that morphs from a simple sword quest into a somewhat historical theme analyzing war and history. Fairly original in its content, experimental in animation and astoundingly good in conversation its definitely a series to watch..

STORY
The Yanari Shogunate is in power in Edo era and there is a slowly rising struggle for 12 ultimate cursed swords (Deviant blades) forged by swordsmith Shikizaki Kiki which can grant the wielder great powers. Setting aside her emotions Togame, a strategian (and daughter of Hida Takehito, a former rebel head) sets out to an isolated island seeking Yasuri Mutsue (Sixth Kyotoryu head, the hero of rebellion who killed Hida Takehito) to help her gather the 12 swords. Having been betrayed earlier by her accomplices she sought Kyoutoryu head since Kyoutoryu is a swordless style and so he wont betray her. Instead she meets the seventh head Yasuri Shichika (a rather straight and naive boy) to find that Mutsue is dead. Shichika says he has fallen for her and agrees to accompany her on her journey to collect swords.

The story has a seemingly simple basis and well defined pace with fairly independent episodes each driven by a single sword (except the last episode which is not 'driven' by a sword). The plotline is pretty much predictable but is still interesting. The various factors like Togame's struggle for power, Shichika's straightforward and dry attitude, Maniwa corps , Shikizaki Kiki and his plans are very well defined to direct the flow. The dialogues are concise, clear and meticulously scripted. A lot of story's depth comes from dialogues rather than the characters or narration so well.. there's a lot of talking going on and no 'just because' fight scenes. The sense of comedy is rather lame ( they tried to introduce quirky phrases and serious but humorous characters), well if anything, it does give you a light laugh at Shichika's - he's just plain dumb attitude- and Togame's 'Cheerio'...
I don't have much to say about depth but the notion of 'distorted' history, its aftermath and victims is pretty interesting. The overall story is not spectacular but interesting, predictable but smooth and brilliantly executed.

ANIMATION
White Fox experimented quite a lot with animation which seems like a fusion of multiple styles. The backgrounds are well sketched with subtle texture and detailing which gives a nice feel. Most of the backgrounds seem to be like paintings but the texturing is diversified and beautiful. The characters are rather simple .. plain faces, eyes and bodies, the hairstyles are innovative and diversified. Despite that, its laudable that the artists were able to brilliantly convey both action and expression clearly (Just look at the eyes of Shichika in the last episode - emotionless, vengeful.. wow). The costume designs have a lot of variety, I like most of the costumes but some of the Maniwa ninja costumes are exaggerating and not so good. The action scenes are stunningly good and impressive. A lot of different things were tried out and it really paid off well.

SOUND
The anime has two OPs and a lot of ED songs. Both the OPs are good, the ED.. depends on your taste (I particularly like the ED in last episode). The BGM is good and apt, the soundtracks are nothing thrilling or stunning sort of but have a good feel and subtle rhythms which suit the anime. They do not impress much upon the scene, the impression is mainly created by dialogues and the BGM supplements it.

CHARACTER
The character development is great. Shichika is shown to develop from a naive, emotionless, driven character to one who finally gains a free will and some strong emotions. Togame's character development is also excellent, the story takes a good insight into her plight, her thoughts and emotions. The other characters are also well defined (esp. Shichika's sister) but given the limited time slot they are granted they do not come out so well. The concept that some of these characters are 'foreign' to history and their existence is false (they weren't supposed to exist originally) and the tragic fate that awaits them.. I found it particularly interesting.

ENJOYMENT
Yes well, you may find it a little weird at first and the action scenes may seem brief and the dialogues a bit too much.. but after a few episodes you'll get accustomed, it is good and enjoyable if you watch the whole series. The dialogues continue to be a bit much (it is both good and.. bad) but the action and depth are good.

ENCODE
no comments since I downloaded from elsewhere

Before I begin my review I must give you some of my viewpoints about the anime.. One, do NOT form your impression of this anime on only the first 2-3 episodes or on someone's view who has only watched 2-3 episodes; Two, after you begin watching the anime try to remember exactly, if you can, the names and faces of characters in the first 2 episodes cause it will get complicated later on; Three, do not get confused by the random events as many of them don't have too much of a deep significance. Four, and this may seem weird initially but I strongly suggest that you watch the anime till the end. It has a nice innovative approach towards developing a romance-ecchi-harem(?) scenario.

It's winter in the big city of Yanagihara, and young people will meet and fall in love. Takashi is a boy who plans to escape to another world, but is held back by thoughts of his younger sister Kobato and girlfriend Asuka. Shusuke is a poor part-timer who has to work with student-author Hiyoko in spite of their initial dislike for each other. The antisocial Hayato makes his living as a handyman until he is visited by a girl name Naru.
These young men begin to develop a sort of relationship with those girls even though, apparently, they can't become too serious and involved because their time is limited... Also, they have a mysterious link among themselves.


The narration is random and weird, at least that's how it seems in the beginning. DJ condor narrates the tales as if they were being captured on camera of some reality show, they change channels to go to a different scene. There is random fan-service in the beginning and in between scenes and the plot does have a somewhat haphazard flow and confusing sequence of events.. So, for the first two episodes though you get something out of the individual events you'll hardly be able to link them to grasp the general flow or the bigger picture of events. But slowly as the plot progresses you will get accustomed to the weird narration style and grasp more of the theme.. the central theme is brilliant, its not something unbelievable but it is definitely creative and has been dealt with with unparalleled dexterity to maintain the mystery and slow plot exposition.

There's good use of satire and comedy (Gretacalibur, weird statements, stupid assertions and whatever goes.. xD), particularly watch ep7. The plot uses multiple elements of slice of life, fantasy, romance, ecchi, urban culture, comedy -- the fusion of genres is nice to watch and also aids in developing a sense of ambiguity and mysterious atmosphere that is essential to the plot. This means that while for most part you'll see romantic encounters, daily life events, ecchi scenes and some classic romance-ecchi-comedy events you'll also get to see urban gangs and culture, fantasy battles, mysterious people and the like. What it gives you is a 'metaphorical' (or illusionary) sense of multiple worlds existing in the same city connected by unexpected means. This is important to the essence of the plot because it depicts what separates and connects the male protagonists.

Though some may ridicule or dislike the narration style I think it adds a nice taste to the story, it is queer like sweet-and-spicy but its worth a taste. Plus if the story had been left as is, it would have become too plain or too formula-based to be anything special. I like the experimenting they did and the results are great. The plot in its core has a psychological basis. A theme that takes the developing romance an almost converts it into harem. But even though it basically hinges on a psychological concept its not something gore or deranged, its something simpler with interesting (if not stunning) consequences. The ending is good but it mellows the entire prospect on which the story was built an it'll also give to you all the answers you desire in three letters ???.

[!!SPOILER!!
What happens to a boy faced with great shock and guilt in childhood? Remorseful, but he cannot abandon his only sister.. takes refuge in an unending dark abyss so he doesn't face others, invents an altruistic personality to look after her sister.. and when even that fails? invent others to reside in the 'cockpit'? It is also impressive that one of the 'invented' personalities has his own delusions! a delusion within a delusion?!! MPD?ISH?]

Though not apparent, the story stunningly depicts how a child's experiences, surroundings and events around him come together to define his psychology; to create a dark refuge, a world of fantasy, ideals of peace and upholders of justice. This certainly is one awesome anime in both its concept and development.


The art is great. There is a prevalent of CG, nice sketches with well-defined proportions ( bishoujo, some pronounced curves but most within acceptable range) , good backgrounds and sharp graphics with good sense of color. The coloring scheme is mostly bright but it sways to some darkened, shaded or dim-lighted scenes for instance during urban gang-wars, graffiti scenes etc. Fan-service scenes abound, they're random but not absurd, and use of yellow caution tapes gives a distinctive feel. Fighting scenes aren't serious but more humorous in depiction. The animation is fluid and smooth. The soundtracks are good enough though nothing special. The OP 'Spread Wings' is great and EDs are fine.

The characters have been fleshed out well. Author has a strong understanding of the personalities he wants to depict and good insight.The male protagonists can swap personalities in the same body. The way male leads are introduced and developed each of them retains their individuality and defines his own behavior distinctly, despite being exchanged one after another. It is great (and also humorous). Their roles, their emotions and purpose is well defined, Takashi is a simple-shy-altruistic character, the usual hero kind but bound by some of his own troubles which he doesn't reveal. His coupling with the class beauty Asuka is so.. cliched. Hayato's cool delinquent appearance, arrogant attitude is not something new but his coupling with Naru sure is, its weird to go searching for a stupid bicycle witha girl every night. Chitose Shuusuke is the most lively male protagonist, he's the unpopular guy who gets involved with the weird Tamaizumi while lurking after many other girls. His actions, thoughts and developments seemed the most interesting. The random situations when he swaps personalities, his stupid conversations but skilled criticism and sudden outburst set him as among the best developed characters. The main attraction about the male protagonists is not about their characters but more abut how they exchange personalities and the situations they are in.

In contrast the female cast scores mainly due to characterization. Leave Asuka out of this, because apart from the scene where she beats the shit out of the protagonist there isn't much interesting. Naru's seemingly air-headed but actually a little weird and assertive (a personal opinion), she's lively and well portrayed. Tamaizumi, shines brighter in my opinion, a tsundere but sometimes dangerous and sometimes perverted; she has a fresh touch to herself. The minor cast may not have much development but a lot of them are very well-depicted and used.
For her anastrophe, also Alice I like.

ENJOYMENT
Sort of a roller-coaster ride: you get interested, confused, frustrated and finally hooked. I think it is fairly enjoyable and has some queer taste. I liked it more when I watched it a second time, cause many events were clearer.

ENCODE
is great

OVERALL
The initial impression may be fuzzy and queer but the final impression is great. The story is able to fulfill its purpose clearly in 12 episodes and hardly leaves any plot holes. Some events may be difficult to comprehend but the plot improves with each episode and has a good re-watch value (which is surprisingly due some of the confusion it creates). Definitely recommended for Romance-ecchi-harem fans, among the best and the innovative ones in the genre.

PS
Sorry for a somewhat exhaustive review, but before I knew it it had already increased this much.

And here is another series which could have been a lot more than it actually became.. I dropped it repicked it, got interested only to be disappointed by a rather lame ending.

Valkyria Chronicles is set in a fictitious continent reminiscent of 1930s Europe. The continent, called Europa, is divided into two main powers: The Imperial Empire, a monarchy in the east, and the alliance of democracies called the Federation in the west. In this world, there is a very important resource called ragnite; its uses range from fueling weapons of war to use in medical treatments. Since ragnite is such an important resource, the Federation and the Empire are constantly at war with each other for it.

The story takes place in the neutral country of Gallia, known for its bountiful reserves of ragnite, when the Empire decides to invade and seize the ragnite for themselves. The story follows Welkin, the son of a former war hero; Isara, Welkin's Darcsen adoptive sister; and Alicia, a member of the Bruhl town watch, as they fight the Imperials in the ragtag Gallian militia group, Squad 7. [MAL]

PLOT

Not very original but it begins nicely, along the plot they display a few nice strategies and developments with a balanced pace. There are quite a few humorous scenes in between with a good rhythm. The plot explores some of the prevalent dark themes that have always overshadowed the world of conflict and war - for instance a public despise towards a race (Darcsen), deep seated conspiracies behind wars, a conflict over resources (Ragnite) and the private interests of the higher echelon behind war. These are the strongest plus points of the story, they provide the much needed depth, multiple viewpoints and a touch of realism (though most of the plot clearly lacks realism). I will admit that they do take some bold moves ( death of Isara, annihilation of Faldio's squad.. )

On the minus side, the plot hardly advances any of the multiple themes it professes (a great disappointment for this could have proved stunningly good). Even the main theme of the war is later merged and somewhat overshadowed by the story of Valkyrie warriors. The plot gives some time to minor short-stories but the main plot becomes devoid of time to develop well. The story ends prematurely and poorly. I strongly think that after creating a good base they needed another (even if shorter) season for the plot to mature; the last parts show signs of poor execution, rush and mis-planning.
Also, what the heck happened to the theme of war.. they explored catastrophes, causes and aftermath but everytime there's a battle it gives a 'goody-goody', 'no pain - no blood - no sorrow' sort of atmosphere and the evaluation and views are frequently unilateral or prejudiced. And yes, at the end all you have is no strategy, just superhuman strength -- the whole war is reduced to a tussle for the Valkyrie and their super weapon.. so cliched I couldn't imagine.
I must glibly say that the final villain is so cliched its almost unpredictable (I thought, till the end, that there was bound to be some more complexity to this.. )

ANIMATION
This is where it wins - the graphics are good, nice sketches, pastel colours and nice backgrounds. The animation is fluid, has a distinct touch to it and has good use of CG though it stands out sometimes. The militia uniforms are good and the tanks and arms are well displayed. The animation is the most unique and interesting part.

SOUND
The BGM and soundtracks aren't much special but they do fine. The OP songs are nice but don't suit the anime much in my opinion. The ED is just so-so.

CHARACTERS
The characters lack originality but are nicely introduced. They do not, however, have a sound basis. Welkin is a queer genius but not much developed, his personality remains undefined for the most part. Alicia is rather simple and better defined but ends as the cliched 'super-strong warrior fighting for love'. Most characters are not developed to their full extent including Faldio, Isara and Squad 7. Maxmillian is very poorly developed for a negative lead.

ENJOYMENT
I enjoyed it for the most part but the ending sucked and the end matters a lot.. So I just gave it a 5/10

ENCODE is good.

OVERALL
You'll like most episodes and the initial development but you'll probably not like the anime as a whole. They put quite an effort but failed to put together a well-crafted story..
Watch it if you like it, drop it if you hate it.

This series turned out to be one of the most disappointing series I've ever seen. I much agree that 2 episodes is not enough to develop a plot but even those two episodes were rather pathetically used. Cliched, ill planned and poorly executed.. I don't like it at all.
The plot re-uses the much used and overused elements.. quite like a recyclable anime. You have all those common comedy-ecchi scenes and developments but they aren't well linked at all. The events and characters seem rather randomly introduced and organized. The characters don't have an original touch to them and depth.. well I don't think there's any. I didn't expect them to develop the characters much but the characters aren't well defined even at most basic levels.. Aya's feelings seem superficial, Oraku doesn't have an impact and most characters are woefully defined. Animation is nothing special and music isn't impressive.

If you're a die-hard fan of anything comedy-ecchi or have too much time to spare you may watch it, but I don't recommend it to anyone else.

Its been almost a year since I first watched this anime and I pretty much like it . Well, even though I was not captivated enough by it to watch it in one go, I can still vouch for it.

Story
Quite simple - the protagonist Kazuma, after being disinherited from his family (Kannagi) for not having enough potential to use fire, returns after 4 years as a powerful wind user to his town. Initially involved as a suspect in a string of murders he continues to stay in the town and help the Kannagi household solve a number of incidents with his cousin Ayano and his brother.
Though not much original, the plot is well planned and laid out as a few fairly independent events each of which is good. The pacing is nice but its not much unique and more or less predictable because.. well you'll see how Kazuma always wins. The humorous aspects are fine and the storyline is prevalent with light hearted scenes to put relief to darker themes. The more serious themes seem to be derived but the romance and comedy aspect is more entertaining.
The intensity of the story builds and fades in most of the anime since the events are fairly independent and do not have much after-impact after being resolved. This leads to less of a link between successive events and reduces the depth of the anime a little. By the end as the anime delves deeper into the protagonist's past it starts gaining the much needed depth and intensity. However, it ends rather soon leaving much of the questions it produced unanswered probably for a tentative sequel.
All in all its enjoyable and the individual events each have depth but the anime as a whole only gains depth in the last 5-6 episodes which is left as is.. I hope they have a sequel for it can turn out much better.

Animation
Good. FUNimation did a pretty decent job at all the special effects and action scenes. Some scenes are really good but some do not come out as expected or rather the angle seems a little inappropriate. The character designs are good and the coloring scheme is impressive. The animation may not be spectacular because some scenes seem cliched but its good and enjoyable.

Sound
Not impressive. Neither the songs nor the BGM seemed influential to me... Not much more to say in this.

Character
Not much original. The protagonist is like some abandoned child who discovers his true powers and returns but there is hardly any conflict between him and the Kannagi family which expelled him. He keeps a cool mind, good reasoning and strong power.This sort of perfect hero ambiance doesnt do much good to the anime. His character development is not much defined in the first half but it progresses quite beautifully later by delving into his past and his thoughts.
Ayano is the hot-headed female counterpart, impulsive, somewhat immature and strong. She is much responsible for the comedic touch which arises form her quibbling with Kazuma, and her shy-jealous-aggressive-clumsy shades.
Ren, Kazuma's brother has a well defined character and much potential. His emotions and actions are characterized with more originality and less predictability.
Kazuma's character seems to fade in front of others cause he is too powerful and too cool until the final episodes finally break the ice and expose his core.

Enjoyment
In spite of all the drawbacks the anime is fairly enjoyable. They put a lot of effort despite the modest story and not much depth which turned out worthwhile.. Its enjoyable to watch it few episodes at a time but it couldn't keep you glued.

As an overall judgement watch it easy, few episodes at a time and relish the simpler but nicer moments because you will hardly get too much intensity or conflict. Well if you dislike it you can drop it any time but its good enough for a watch once a while..

After watching a few episodes I almost forgot I was watching an anime, it was almost like I had plunged into a realistically surreal world.. yeah, that's probably the best way I can describe it; because undeniably it paints a world of imagination and paranormal and yet it paints it so naturally and flawlessly as though it were the absolute truth. All through the atmosphere of tranquility and peace pervades, soothing yet intriguing.. this anime is in a class of its own. But for all who are looking for thrills and abrupt happenings this is definitely not the choice..

STORY
The plot narrates the journey of Ginko, a mushishi, as he travels through the world encountering the mysterious phenomenon which are caused due the interaction of Mushi with humans and nature. Mushi are creatures that exist between the realm of life and death, transcending the boundaries the living and non-living they are the most primitive life-forms invisible and incomprehensible to most. Mushishi deal with the queer phenomenon caused by mushi which may happen among humans and the like..

Along his journey Ginko comes across a miscellany af situations.. queer, depressing, intriguing, helpful, disturbing and so on.. like everyday situations in usual life except all of them have a somewhat weird air to them. The plot portrays how he solves some of them and leaves others; sometimes he is helpless at other times its better to leave it. Its almost like a human wading through the world trying to ease interaction with nature and mushi.. he cannot obliterate them but just suggest ways to co-exist. As he passes along some people are relieved of their problems, some made ignorant of them, some face despair and still others wish to stay as is... This whole idea gives Mushishi a touch of realism and distinctness.

The story, I came to know, derives much from traditional Japanese folklore, nonetheless I found it fully comprehensible and quite impresssive in the manner of narration and progression.

ART & ANIMATION
Mushishi has some of the most breathtaking scenes of scenic beauty, the serenity brought out in the depiction of natural landscapes is really impressive. Considering the whole story moves through natural landscapes of mountains, rivers, streams, forests, oceans, fields, hot springs and pastoral areas your retina is painted consistently with artistic depictions of natural scenery. The background paintings are stunningly impressive and soothing.
The character sketches are quite normal, though they do not bend much towards the anime style of large eyes, glistening irises and stereotypical faces; the designs are simple and plain, quite apt for the anime story and style. The only character a lttle different is Ginko as you'll see.

SOUND
The anime puts to best use 'silver speech' and 'golden silence'. The BGM is simple, plain and low in tone like a soothing melody which merges with the environment and nature (I heard the music was also traditional). Its another major contributor to the tranquil atmoshere. The opening song is beautiful. Most of the music begins gently and slowly merges with everything else.. and is interspersed with echoing silence. It suits the anime theme.
Well, since this is one of the few series I watched in English dubbing I suppose I ought to comment on voice acting. I definitely prefer subbed to dubbed but Mushishi has such an authentic voice acting and a brilliant clarity in dubbing I was simply drawn to it.

CHARACTER
The character inroduction and development is great. Ginko is the main character and the only one to appear throughout the series, he has a slow and steady development and quite a few meticulously pictured traits (that is to say some traits which have been skilfully elaborated).
The other characters all form a face of the general demographic, which is quite possibly the reason for their similar faces etc. The author has defined the story taking into consideration the thoughts, behaviour and situations of the common people. As such, most characters represent a face/segment of the common population, their aspirations, troubles and daily lives.

ENJOYMENT
If you've been running your brain dry and your adrenaline high by watching intense and in-depth complicated anime, this will provide you a welcome relief from high tension and entertain you really well.
The series has more or less fairly independent episodes except for a few 2-episode-tales and you can comfortably watch 4-5 episodes in one go; but of course if you're hooked go watch'em all !

Overall its a really great and peaceful series with a lot of thought, effort and direction, very meaningful, silent and soothing I'd definitely recommend it to all. But if you're seeking thrill, excitement and tension better keep your distance..

I never thought that a single 27 min episode would be good enough for a movie.. stunningly enough Tailenders broke the record in this case, utilizing a meager half an hour this movie gave me an unexpectedly good and entertaining experience.

The story is set in future when mankind plants Terraformers on planets in an attempt to colonize them. By going haywire Terraformers produce disastrous consequences of tectonic shifts, environmental changes and 'stampede'. During a race Tomoe Shiro, our protagonist, meets an unfortunate accident and his heart stops beating, a mysterious woman cures him by planting an engine as a replacement for his heart which also functions for his car. He must now participate in a precarious race with the Terraformer as the final destination risking his life to achieve what the Loser King couldn't 100 years ago.
A rapid plot development and simple sci-fi imagination about racing form the core of the movie. The plot is fast-paced but not rushed and doesn't seem to have missing/skipped parts, I'm saying that most people can easily comprehend the plot and all its sci-fi inventions and appreciate it. Though its mainly focused on racing other aspects are also glimpsed at nicely. The fiction introduced is nothing extraordinary but original enough. However sometimes too many elements are introduced all at once in a not so impressive manner, the racing course also didn't impress me much.
I think most people will notice the use of contradictory terms.. Loser King is a hero and Tailenders are great racers.. Its amusing

The animation is good if not great. The art and graphics have been done really well with minimal use of CG. The action scenes are somewhat lacking in both depiction and direction, what is expected is sometimes skipped and the focus, angles and timing do not come out so well in some racing scenes. The rest of the animation is much better and impressive.

Sound.. what to say , your usual noise of engines revving up, tires screeching and the like, nothing more, nothing less..

I'd rather not comment on characters cause 27 minutes is hardly time enough to define and develop a character. If I had to say, I suppose the main cast are introduced pretty well even though they don't have an air of originality to them.

Enjoyable and worth your time for a first time watch.

All in all I think it has a decent plot which is skilfully executed with nice animation, for a time pass its really good. The sci-fi touch given is also nice and improves the potential, if developed further it can turn out to be really good.

Beautiful, simple and heartbreaking.. this movie takes a simple, commonplace love-story with a melancholic tone and polishes it to brilliance by its subtle touches and superb direction. What I got out of watching this movie was not some intriguing, deep or mystifying romance but an impressive outlook on a simple sad love-story which left a lingering impression somewhere in my subconscious... simplicity is its beauty and melancholy its elegance

The story is about two childhood friends (Takaki and Akari), quite reserved in their nature, who grow to realize their blossoming love for each other only to be rived by the cruel fate of time and a slowly increasing distance between them, despite all the efforts on their behalf... (see synopsis for more)
An emphasis is laid on how a seemingly inconspicuous separation can slowly grow to form an unconquerable rift. After Akari transfers to another city they to struggle keep their friendship alive but then Takaki has to transfer further away, this separation usurps their chances to meet frequently and creates a wave that will drift them towards opposite shores. As a desperate endeavor to finally convey their feelings decisively, to prevent their hearts from being torn apart, to somehow halt space and time from overwhelming their relationship they meet for a final reunion, a scene excessively simple in depiction and exceedingly impressive in its importance... the subtle tragedy which is expressed, a natural force trying to disrupt their meeting, the feelings that got across by kissing but were never expressed, a love letter that never reaches its destination..
The next scene depicts the hollow left in his heart, how it is apparently masked by outside happenings and how he always searches for solace which is always distant, as far as the sky.. It also shows how the world around them moves along apathetic to their fate
The withering romance receives a death-blow in the final scene, each of them have finally drifted apart, their feelings have been subdued though they still seek that which they lost, writhing somewhere in their subconscious but never achieve it.. A new girl has fallen for the male lead though he hasn't developed feelings for her and Akari is going to get married; they cross paths at a railway crossing barely catching a glimpse of each other and when he turns to look again a passing train has concealed the view, all the while she has passed away no longer in his reach, physically or metaphorically.

The whole plot is very simple and simply tragic, it uses normal elements effectively and lays down an excellent pace and setting. The story gives you what we say in Hindi 'Zor ka jhatka dheere se lage' ( A heavy shock which feels like a light blow)


The animation is brilliant, the art and graphics have been meticulously done down to very minute details, the use of shadows and coloring has a modest touch to it- neither very bright nor very dark- just the kind the story needs, the skies and stars have been stunningly depicted (however this felt exaggerated and out of place sometimes to me). The style in which they break off the focus for short times to depict the surroundings and the camera angles give off a nice feel. All in all the art and animation is one of the best you will ever see.


The music is not exceptional, but exceptional is not needed in this case. Well the story is simple so it needs simple music to convey the mood and underlying theme. As I see it the BGM and song suit the movie very well, its great in sync with the story.


The characters are good. Again you don't get to see the story delving too deep within them or creating intricacies and entanglements cause the story doesn't need it. Nevertheless the story succeeds is creating a strong impression of Takaki and good characterization of Sumida with a nice portrayal of Akari. In the basic plot-line it follows, the way it defines characters and develops their relationships is more than enough to provide a sound base.


Enjoyable and heart piercing, this is a masterpiece built out of pure simplicity and tragedy, it penetrates slowly but quite deep and gives a good experience to the viewers. Something that could have turned out inane turns out influential and appealing owing to awesome direction and animation. Must-definitely-watch at least once for all you people out there just to have a taste of a usual romance with a difference..

Regardless of whether you've watched the original series or not this movie is one of the more beautiful and entertaining ones you'll ever find out there ('cuz for the record I watched the movie both before and after watching the series and found it equally good). Its brilliantly planned and executed and has a nice touch of distinctness to it, so it'll draw you in and keep you entertained.

Story
It retells the plot of the first six episodes of the original series with some minor modifications. One of the good points about the storyline is its appropriate length. In the short time of 90 min the story is beautifully developed.... The pacing is great so it doesn't feel left-out or rushed, the plot is nicely developed without open ends and plot-holes so even a first time viewer can grasp the story very well (As a contrast in quite a few other similar movies the actual storyline is too long to fit into the short time-frame of the movie and results being rushed or partially skipped). The modifications in the plot prevent any loose ends from forming.
The conversations in the movie come out better than the original series, plus the expressions and behavior appear a little more natural and appealing compared to the 6 episodes. Obviously the intensity and depth of both action and emotions run somewhat deeper in the movie than in those 6 episodes ( cause they got another 18 episodes to develop it further)

Art and animation are on par with the original anime and good to watch. Music, however, is not as good as the anime series.. its good alright but doesn't make much of an impact, the anime songs seemed better than the ED song to me.

The characters are developed equally well in both the movie and the series. Considering the limited time slot in the movie the character development is fairly good and quite well planned. They refrain from unnecessary characterization while providing good depth to the main cast, in this respect I suppose the movie fares slightly better.

Its quite an enjoyable movie and worth watching at least once even if you've watched the original anime. If you want an enjoyable and understandable Romance-Action-Fantasy with a hint of Drama this is one of the better ones you'll get.

This is a mecha-harem with a story so irrevocably cliched you'd never find something remotely original all the way to the end of the series, and yet its not as boring or worthless as I'm making it out to be. A lot of times the originality doesn't owe much to the heart of anime, rather its the the way the plot is executed that defines it, this is certainly one of those anime.

The story is about Hayase Kouichi, a pathetic and weak boy, always shielded by his friends Yajima and Risako who gains the privilege of piloting Linebarrel - an extremely strong mecha after being involved in an accident with the same. Deep in his heart Hayase deeply laments his weakness and inability to stand up for himself and deludes about becoming a hero of justice someday. The story depicts how he deals with all his thoughts after gaining the Linebarrel. The main plotline follows a deep conflict brewing with the peace and balance of Earth at stake.
Everything about and through the story is so, so cliched you hardly need to think about it. Even though I'm pretty new to mecha genre, the anime seemed characteristically unoriginal yet enjoyable to me (not to mean it in a scornful manner). The first 2-3 episodes appeared extremely frustating ( I dropped and repicked it from there) however the anime improves considerably from thereon. Pacing is normal, although a little slow initially it finally picks up momentum and proceeds smoothly.
Elements of harem, comedy and slice of life are better defined in the initial half , however, let me warn you a whole of 13 episodes pass away before your eyes without adding much depth or twist to the plot, its only made up by the comedy and action in the initial half. The core and depth of the story is actually defined in the later half by addition of twists and intensity and presentation of the bigger picture you were waiting for. The story presents you nothing new but whatever it presents, it presents it nicely.. 'wont bore you wont thrill you' kind of story

The art and graphics had a considerably differing impact on me in different areas. I like the mecha designs and the backgrounds which are done quite well, the character designs are different issue. I dont like a few things about the way they sketched characters - the eyes are little widely spaced, the shape of faces is not so good and the shading on cheeks isnt impressive; the body proportions are still good. The use of CG is nicely done and it blends fine with the anime, neither standing out much nor becoming inconspicuous. Other than faces most other things are done well. The coloring makes use of both bright an dark contrast in different situations, dark contrast is more prevalent.

Sound and music are good enough but not very thrilling, OP is good.

Characterization definitely deserved at least 8/10 if only Hayase were better developed. Hayase has the psyche like that of a child desperately trying to gain appreciation and become a hero, its irritating, pathetic and immature but its NOT a negative point, even if the protagonist has a not-so-positive mind an avid depiction of his psychological state and its development can stunningly excel the anime. Sadly, till the end of series that irritating character of Hayase is neither deeply explored nor developed and altered which was definitely critical to the anime. From the beginning till the end all he does is shriek 'I am the champion of Justice'.....what the heck, at least add some more traits to him or develop his character along a path (and yes, this is scorn).. he remains a monochromatic lead with only a single trait which appears more and more superficial as the anime progresses. And even so, all the others blindly accept his status and revere him. With no tactics, not much depth and single-shade Hayase is one of the worse protagonists I've seen.
All other characters are much better developed and deserve quite the applause for their interactions and thoughts. They more than make up for the gap left by the male lead and play their parts out well.

Its enjoyable but not memorable; its good but not among the best and its worth a watch from all mecha fans.. but don't go watching this in anticipation of depth and originality. I still like the show despite all its shortcomings and quite a lot will....

It begins as a seemingly normal anime but by the time it ends this anime really touches your heart and leaves a good feel behind, a feeling of satisfaction at having picked the right thing and a feeling of triumph at how despite some bad premonitions it gave you a really good ending. It is definitely an anime that gets better with every passing episode till a beautiful destination is reached.

STORY
Takuma Hirose, a blind young male high school student, though the cause for his blindness is undetermined. After his mother died an unexpected death, it left a deep emotional scar on him, which caused him to become very lonely and reserved. Due to this, Takuma move from the city out into a rural area and Takuma is enrolled into a new high school. At his new school, he meets several new girls, though three of whom he gets to know the most out of anyone else. They are, the firm and obstinate Hayami Kohinata, the kind and obliging Hinata Kagura, and the cheerful and mysterious Otoha. As Takuma interacts with these girls, his medical condition gradually begins to heal.[ANN]

The initial few episodes follow what you call expected... destined encounters, worry about damsel-in-distress, indecisiveness and efforts to save her..., the story begins to take a turn when the protagonist becomes more decisive and definite at countering the ill-will that pours on Hayami. With each passing episode the plot keeps getting better; even if what it depicts is predictable, it depicts it beautifully. What forms the most engrossing part of the plot, however, are the last three episodes, the conflict, the twist, the tragedy, the drama in the final three episodes set the plot apart from all and sundry and take it a level higher, they represent the sublime destination extracted from all the preceding developments. This anime, I believe, has one of the most beautiful and touching endings I've seen (even if its not totally unique).

ANIMATION
The art is good, you do not have bishoujo girls with pronounced curves, but they are nicely done nonetheless. The coloring is neither very bright nor very dark although it tilts a little towards the brighter side. The animation is good, no complaints there.

SOUND
Nice, the soundtracks and songs are good, but not very impressive. They are soothing and peaceful but sometimes fail to incite emotions underlying the scene.

CHARACTER
The characterization is beautiful and most characters have a distinct touch to them, like how Takumi's blindness hides an emotional scar which he cannot face, Otoha the spirit of sounds of time and her true identity, Hotaru's nature and circumstances, Hayami's family and past - none of these may be very original but each of them are well developed. The most original touch to the characters according to me is how Otoha came into being and her objective. The concept of the 'Promised One' may not be entirely new but it is definitely beautiful in how it is given form. Also the development of Takumi in the last few episodes is really great and befits the theme very much.

ENJOYMENT
It is enjoyable through and through, have some patience to pull through a few less exciting parts in the initial half and it will get more captivating every passing moment for you.

ENCODE
great

Overall
One of the anime you shouldn't miss just because the premise may appear derived or it isn't much famous 'cuz you'll like it once you've watched it and miss it if you dropped it.

In the world of romance dramas 'Myself ; Yourself' occupies the lower half of spectrum as 'nothing more than average' type. I wont say it is the worst for definitely there are far dumber and nonsensical romance dramas out there, Still this anime is more of an unsuccessful attempt to develop good romance in 13 episodes. It fails to leave an impact on the viewers mind because of its incomplete nature.

The story is about Hidaka Sana who returns to Sakuranomori after five years in Tokyo and starts living on his own. While the town has remained peaceful and familiar a lot of things have changed especially his childhood friend Nanaka who has become unusually gloomy and reserved. The story follows his attempts at healing Nanaka's heart... There's nothing more to this story other than short incomplete-like side stories to put main plot into relief.
Very clearly the story has not much potential to it but it is decent in its setting and good at plot exposition and development, the pace at which the story moves is just he right pace to maintain curiosity and evade too much predictability. The events are introduced at the right time to keep up the viewers anxiety. However a lot of plot-holes are left which ruins the story, plus, it may be the restriction of 13 episodes which robs the opportunity to make amends. The new situations which are introduced are hardly seen through satisfactorily (past suicide attempt, brother-sister elopement, step-mother's character,... etc. etc. all end up like a dead end or skip a decade and suddenly 'good end'). What results are enough plot-holes to make a swiss-cheese out of the plot. The sudden time-jump in the last episode is like a desperate attempt to finish it all quickly, making it worse than before. Even the main storyline about how the protagonist soothes Nanaka to provide her solace takes an infinite jump.. and then , suddenly "they lived happily ever after" ending. What could have at least been 'more than average' turns into 'nothing special' barely avoiding 'total crap'.

The characters are also not much developed, Sana, Nanaka and Asami are the most decently developed ones. The Wakatsuki siblings are half developed like most other characters. What is irritating, however, is how Aoi is left almost as a blank sheet of paper despite all the screen-time given to her. The characters lack much of originality and fail to impress me.

The animation is so-so, it is done fine but it lacks luster and uniqueness. I am not a connoisseur of music, still the sound appeared fine to me, the OP and ED were fine but the violin melody played by Nanaka needed to be much better.

Encode is good considering its only 40MB

Overall: Its one of the just average romance anime like most others- neither good nor bad, so it works fine as a pastime but not as an invaluable memory.

Quite frankly this anime had the much-needed potential to turn into a great anime and yet, pitifully, it didn't turn into a memorable anime for me. As much as I'd like to claim that it has everything from a good story to strong cast I must admit that the anime falls short of the expectations it generated. The premise and plot are good and create a sort of craving for great developments but by the end I was a little disappointed since I had expected a lot more. Also my review might be a little biased since I am judging it in the light of manga on which it is based.

Story
Kurenai Shinkurou is a 16-year old orphan working as a dispute mediator to earn a living. He resolves threats and fights for his clients. A huge challenge falls upon him when he is entrusted as a bodyguard for Kuhouin Murasaki, a daughter of Kuhoin family (one of the 13 great families). There are various other circumstances surrounding both Murasaki and Shinkurou but I won't go into the details since it will spoil the fun.
The basis is good, more like great in the way it depicts the rules and circumstances of the Kuhouin and their impact on Murasaki. It also follows the life of Shinkurou before and after Murasaki joined him. Its not like pure action plot where you fight just for the heck of it, rather the situations are much more realistic. This adds depth and drama to the overall plot which takes a good look on a segment of society (the powerful clans) and the people involved with them. Action is not the driving force of this series although action scenes are good, it is mainly driven by its seinen-drama nature.
What pulls it down is the snail-paced progression of the plot, events are not outstretched but the developments are really slow and late. Some of the scenes from manga are omitted which negatively affects the plot (although what is added from outside manga doesn't hamper the mood). Finally a premature ending dooms all the expectations you've had and pours a bucket of water on them.. since the plot didn't end at the same point in manga I expected quite a bit, but it ended much earlier. That said, the anime improves a little over the manga in displaying the daily life of Murasaki and Shinkurou. All in all the story has a sound basis, great potential but a short-life which fails in taking it to the peak.

Animation
Its good, both the art and the animation don't leave much to be desired.

Sound
So-so not great and not bad either, doesn't make much of an impact.

Character
The strongest part of this anime are its characters. The cast is well-defined and elaborated. Within the short storyline which they follow, they create a strong impression of characters which most series dream of. Murasaki is the best characterized, everything from her nature to her circumstances and emotions are brilliantly dealt with. Shinkurou's nature and situation are also shown quite well, second only to Murasaki. Even the other characters are portrayed nicely, although the plot doesn't delve much into their depths.

Enjoyment
As I said the story is not bad, only that it raises your expectations but doesn't answer them. I suppose the enjoyment factor is the most subjective attribute of the anime, I watched the whole anime and felt disappointed in the way it progressed slowly and how it ended, despite the fact that it has many strongholds which may entertain many.

Encode
Good

Overall
Its worth a watch once, but it doesn't turn into a memorable anime. You'll like its various points but it probably wont leave an impression deep enough to last. "short-lived" is all I can say...

I don't know about others but it definitely appears overrated to me... more so because the backbone is weak and a lot of 'blank' spaces seem to be present. The story is about a skilled gunman Train Heartnet (Black cat) working for the secret society of Chronos which controls the world from shadows. After meeting Saya a bounty hunter he undergoes a change of heart and swears not to kill anymore. Further on he makes friends (bounty hunter Sven and Eve) and is involved in a conflict with Taoists who threaten the balance of power and Chronos which treats him as a threat.

As you can see the roots are in one of the most cliched grounds- super-skilled gunman hero, secret society maintaining balance of power, secret powers challenging Chronos, destined encounters, hero's change of heart and trustworthy friends - hardly something new. The pacing is fast ..fast enough to let you feel that some parts were missed out, as if there were blank spaces in between which are never reminisced on. There are places where it seems a gap of months appeared in a span of single episode without realization. The only decent twist is the one in ep21 but its still predictable. The conflict of ideals 'kill or not to kill' is one of the oldest fads. The ending is normal and not elaborate- what happened to the Taoists... I don't see anything exceptional with the story.

Characters also seem unoriginal, Train Hearnet is like very skilled, simple minded and persistent- your normal hero. Same for most others... Creed - skilled swordsman, power-craving, obsessed with Train (almost gay) and deranged, Eve - simple looking girl (actually a potential nano-tech weapon). All main cast characters have some special skills. Character development is hurried, the emotional aspect and thoughts change rapidly between episodes, its something which definitely deserved a lot more attention. Black cat is a merciless killer in the first episode, becomes altruistic by the third. Even if there's enough time for a change the mental conflict accompanying the change and the mindset is not depicted very well.

Animation seems the only redeeming feature. The scenes are a little different, rather than 'merging' with others there are places where they 'shift' and sometimes provide still-scenes. The action scenes are good. Music and songs are fine, the OP song is good.

Overall it seems like a large plot had to be compressed to a shorter version leaving gaps in both characters and plot which dulls the sense of enjoyment. Still its good enough for a watch if you are an avid fan of action.

My first impression of this show was considerably shallow though I definitely liked it the first time itself. On the second watch I really appreciated the beauty and authenticity of this anime. Its neither very peculiar nor commonplace yet surprisingly impressive. When I say genuine I don't exactly mean the story but rather the direction, progression and the relations.

STORY
Shinichiro Nakagami is interested in tears. More specifically, in the tears he believes Hiromi Yuasa, a close friend of his family, is hiding. Hiromi recently moved into the Nakagami family home after the death of her parents, and though she keeps up a cheerful front at school and quietly ignores Shinichiro at home, he's convinced that inside her heart is breaking. And oh! how he wants to wipe those tears away. It is in this miserable state that Noe Isurugi finds him. Noe is a deeply odd girl with a deeply odd attachment to the school's chickens Raigomaru and Jibeta. When Raigomaru is eaten, as chickens are wont to be, Noe is devastated and seizes, oddly enough, on Shinichiro as the deceased poultry's replacement. In the meantime Shinichiro's best friend Nobuse's relationship with his restaurateur girlfriend Ai is starting to come apart at the seams because Ai is very obviously carrying a torch for Shinichiro. What's a guy to do? Well, moping around would be good start.[ANN]

The story draws a lot from the general archetype of romance dramas but it doesn't 'imitate' them. Thus though it seems familiar it never appears cheap. A well paced plot with a decent plot-line form a simple base. What is built on it are some very realistic situations and good conversations (plus some cliched events with philosophical (crap) conversations ). I didn't understand some philosophical statements but story is still interesting. It might not have a lot of depth and intricacy but it has some genuine depth and shade which scores. It has its emotional scenes and fun scenes (its not exactly comedy but its fun). Thus it may not be exceptional but the plot leaves a nice deep impact.

ANIMATION
Animation is great. The art pays attention to subtle details and the background people/objects are not always passive unlike the common trend. The scenes vary a little... sometimes like a painting at other times more 3D-like (watch the basketball scenes which are unusually impressive).

SOUND
Awesome music,Its one of the main driving forces of this anime, while in most romances BGM adds a special feel in this anime it adds a whole dimension to the story; the timing, the tracks everything is awesome. OP and ED are good.

CHARACTER
The characterization is good. The characters are not unusual but their behavior and actions suit them. Shinichiro, Nobuse, Ai, Hiromi and Noe are all nicely developed. Though Shinichiro plays the most important role Noe and Hiromi seem better defined to me. Having three characters fall for Shinchiro is definitely like 'out-of-harem' but their behavior and relations are natural and rarely exaggerated or superficial.This adds a distinct touch of 'genuine'.

ENCODE
Good

OVERALL
Watch it giving a nice thought to the natural flow and nice music. It may appear a little irritating/boring sometimes but its definitely good. Worth watching and re-watching.

A bunch of talented kids from detective academy (Kyu good at deductions, Megu with photographic memory, a 10 dan karate master and a genius programmer) solve mysterious cases and help police. For all who have seen Detective Conan - Just ditch this unless you're excited by the first few episodes....For all who haven't and like this series - Just go and watch Conan (though I seriously doubt there are viewers in the second category)

The premise appears totally cliched and so do the characters. You get crimes performed deceitfully, the ingenious group finds them and solves them thus helping the police. The tricks and clues are all fine but the whole atmosphere and the conversation appears awfully unnatural and disappointing, nowhere near Conan. As for the main characters just separate the qualities of a modern detective and you get a character for each quality- deduction, memory, strength, tech-savvy. Other characters are also nowhere unique or impressive. The comedy isn't much pronounced, the emotions and behavior are boring and cliched and the animation is nothing special. Its more like a series rushed out of the box and needs a lot more to be improved.....but its fine for children.

Overall: see it if you like the initial 7-8 episodes but don't expect too much.

The first thing that hooked me to this anime even before the story had begun was the fantastic music, the opening song is simply awesome no matter how many times I listen to it, plus the soundtracks are great I really like them (although they may seem a little monotonous sometimes but they totally suit the anime).

The story takes a look on the darker side of society comprising of assassins, mafias and the like. It stares into the lives of assassins and criminals- deeply analyzing some aspects, lightly touching others while completely ignoring a few. Its the story of how, out of a desperate attempt at survival, is born an assassin (forced to murder), how his later life is impacted by his actions and the change in his state of mind/thoughts all along. An ever-expanding web of crime that entraps all it touches and throws them into the downward spiral of villainy or kills them. There are two major aspects of the story which are both influential and heart-piercing.. One is the plight of a man thrown into the world of crime, his turmoils, his losses, his acceptance of the evil, his pain and his attempt at redemption. The other is tragic fate of innocents who become entwined with this world of crime (that is to say, how the protagonist, himself a victim, creates other victims like himself.. a chain of never-ending evil). All throughout the plot monitors the darker world of criminal masterminds and the unrest they create among themselves.
If I were to point something which was lacking it would be one, that the impact of all these actions on the 'normal' everyday society is not much impressed; two, although I'm more than satisfied with the ending its still seems little lacking (it'd be better if they'd implicitly dealt with the fate of Inferno as well); third, too late to admit, but some of the dialogues come out pretty dumb considering the situation and the statements.
Nevertheless,... Depth,Twists,Conflict,Drama,Tension the story has it all to keep you occupied. The ending is embodied in the title - A Requiem for assassins who don't wholly know their own identities/ discarded them somewhere in their life.

The main cast of characters are pretty well defined. The lead roles are phantom assassins, specters that aren't supposed to exist.. their extreme skill at assassinations and secrecy actually sets the stage for the plot. Somewhere along the line however, the secrecy/phantom part dies out. The female lead, Ein, is introduced as an emotionless, cold-reasoning character lacking an independent will. The male lead, Reiji, has a strong survival instinct and preserves somewhat independent will. Their characters undergo changes as the plot progresses. You get to see their composed mentality towards killing and an ingenuine capability at combat and survival. All in all, Ein is more impressive than Reiji except for her skills. Also notable is the character of Cal Devens which provides a much needed contrast between the innocent and guilty, and to the character itself over a period of time(how she changes). The characters of Giuseppe and McCulllen are nicely done, Giuseppe emerges as a skilled conspirator and falls as a deranged psychotic. The boss of Inferno, the center of all this mayhem, has hardly much of a role.

Animation is great. The action scenes are so captivating at times you want to rewatch them again and again. I specially like the way they show the after-images sometimes.

Its one of the best anime in its genre with an enjoyment factor of 10/10. See how drama blends with action and romance to create a beautiful anime. If you like the first episode you'll get hooked in no time.

Watching the first few episodes of this anime really annoyed me (its like "chaos in my head"), at the same time it kindled a strange curiosity and some anger which propelled me till the end. The most distinct feature of this anime is its psychological genre so let me say this... If you're interested in the beginning you're hooked till the end, if you're annoyed in the beginning you will probably be annoyed till the end but it will give you a different flavor and 'might' keep you hooked. It's not as good as Death Note but its interesting.

Story
The premise of the story is good but not as brilliantly realized. The story is built around a world where reality and delusions intermingle and people can be manipulated by distorting reality. A heap of sci-fi theories (Pardon me for saying so, but most of them are half-baked crap) make it possible to artificially tinker with reality. What would you do if the hero was a delusion himself? The interplay between the 'real' real and the unreal 'real' gives the story its edge.
The protagonist is a somewhat psychotic, deranged, deluded, socially withdrawn otaku.. he has all these weird delusions some perverted, some horrifying and many confounding. Owing to some circumstances he gets involved with a series of horrifying NewGen murders, encounters the possible suspect and a lot of more confusing stuff occurs. This might make you really confused and annoyed (I couldn't make any head or tail out of it initially) but don't take it to heart as the mystery will solve itself with time or take it to heart if it appeals to you. The plot slowly reveals itself only after ep7.

Animation
Art is fine but some scenes fail to deliver (most notably action scenes)

Characters
The male lead is the most annoying and the best developed character. See his delusions, his psychotic behavior, his terror, his cowardice and most of all his dialogues and expressions... cant blame him much, after all, what would you do if you were the biggest delusion of yourself?? Rest of the characters have also been given some freaky/unique shades. But they are not developed so well. Apart from Rimi and Yua most characters appeared unimpressive to me.

Sound is fine

Encode is good

Overall
I think the anime could have been a lot better had the plot been given a little more depth and the characters were stressed a little more. Some light hearted scenes in the anime seem out of place, also, the ending could have been 'depicted' in a better manner.( +The after-climax which shows all the girls falling for the hero appears rather ridiculous to me). Nevertheless its good enough for Psychological fans.

Let me say this before i begin, the anime itself is neither great nor very unique but if it is made into a series with more events and more elaboration it can definitely be made much better. So don't expect this to captivate you, but have a taste.. it can stimulate your imagination or at least give you a fine pastime.
Strange as it may be, this anime which is hardly so much about fighting as it is about friendship begins with a short but great action scene (enough to make you crave more); unfortunately however, there are very few and brief action scenes further on.

The Plot: In one word its about 'Friendship'. Its about an upbeat playful girl Mato who befriends a rich girl Yomi. (At the same time possibly in some other crumbling ravaged dimension a fight is going on between two girls who look the same as Mato and Yomi). Their friendship strengthens over time but it begins to weaken when Mato makes friends with her manager Yuu. The plot describes the forging and weakening of bonds of friendship, a desperation on both sides as they grow apart and how they respond to it( I'm guessing their response is also symbolized in their lookalikes' actions). The story is very fast paced which gives you lesser time to appreciate the emotions and circumstances (guess it can be acceptable for an OVA), there is not much conflict, tension or thrill and the ending is rather incomplete and inconclusive (we never know how exactly Yomi came back).
Characters : Commonplace characters are used. They are nicely introduced but hardly developed.. A lot more conversations and thoughts are needed to appreciate them. Why does Yomi join the volleyball club? (Apparently its due to a crush, but no further development is shown), Yomi hardly voices her dissent against Mato befriending Yuu. A lot of things which can be defined better with dialogues are left to just animated scenes. There are also mysterious characters which appear in between scenes(the lookalikes).
Animation: Brilliant, brightly colored art and fluid animation. Action scenes, as rare as they are, are portrayed beautifully.
Soundtracks and songs are nice.

OVERALL : I give it a 7/10 (adding points doesn't necessarily give you overall rating.. it gives you the 'average'.. ;)). Its an anime which could have been much better...but it has its redeeming points..One, its animation and action scenes(though they are few) and two, the mystery which is left unexplained.. who exactly are the girls who were fighting? (and another person in the other world who is only shown few times), what are Yomi's thoughts now and why did she disappear, what exactly are Yuu's intentions (is she the villain? seeing as she 'seemed' disappointed in the end). I hope its retold in a better way.

You wont get to see a more beautiful romance anime in most places. Its like an epitome of beauty, fluidity and elegance.

STORY
Ryuuji Takasu (with a delinquent-like appearance) has a not-so-good encounter with the"Palmtop Tiger"Taiga, an aggressive clumsy girl. Ryuuji has a crush on Taiga's friend Minorin while Taiga has fallen for Ryuuji's friend Kitamura , they decide to support each other in their endeavors.
The plot begins with a love-letter confusion, has a startling confession in the 2nd episode but from thereon follows a more or less defined storyline for romance comedies. Be it as typical as it may the plot is ingenious in its depth and conversations. Using mostly the common elements with some unusual/ not-so-common events the anime still excels above most others due to the way it intensifies plot and adds depth and drama to it - You see genuine love triangles and 'love quadrangles' which do not appear superficial or mocking, complications arising from feelings, the confusion of being unable to understand oneself, the spontaneous burst of true emotions everything exquisitely planned. There times when you're stunned (by something you expected), you feel like crying (I'm not joking i really felt like crying in ep16 and 21). What begins as a comedy turns into a serious captivating emotional romance. Every time you expect it to bore or fade it gives you a something new. A much expected climax smoothly descends to a nice ending. Truly a masterpiece polished by supreme skill.. cause even after using the common premise it builds an exceptional story.

CHARACTERS
The characters are skillfully developed. They have depth, emotions and actions planned out well. Just like the story the characters are not unusual in identity(delinquent looking protagonist, small ferocious clumsy heroine, intelligent simple popular guy,a weird girl, a beautiful transfer student (model)) Its their depth, dialogues and actions which add colour and perfection to them. Something that is unusual and humorous, however, is Ryuuji's extreme fetish for cleanliness and skillful 'housewife' jobs. Also lookout for his peculiar freaky 'Inko-chan' and its utterances.
For example see the conversation when Ryuuji converses with Taiga about Ami using signs only and Taiga understands everything perfectly, the anger-venting by Taiga at the student council president and emotional outbursts, the simple conversation about ghosts between Taiga and Minorin which has a deeper meaning to it which is used several times as indirect remarks. The characters are richly defined and beautiful.

ANIMATION Vibrant, fluid and colorful..the kind that suits it the most.

SOUND is plain and simple, but it delivers when needed. Every time Taiga grieves over Ryuuji and when she fights with the student council president and at most other touching scenes the musical score fits greatly. What is specially noticeable is the great potential to which the ED song is applied to when Ryuuji rescues Taiga from the snowstorm... The surge of volume fills the atmosphere with emotions and truly exemplifies excellence.

ENCODE is good.

Definitely MUST-WATCH for romance/comedy fans. You'll absolutely love it.

When i started watching the anime it felt a little weird in the beginning but soon evolved into a great anime one can savor with enjoyment.

STORY Modern Japan (in an alternate world) is in a dire situation, it lacks powerful master samurai (samurai which make a pact with a general), the premonition of a dark shadow threatens it. The 'supposedly' few remaining master samurai are known to be under the control of Tokugawa Shogunate. In this situation Yagyuu Muneakira unexpectedly comes across an unusually powerful girl who falls from the sky into his arms(man! people falling from the sky is becoming a fad these days) and encounters five other samurai girls in course of time who will play a decisive role in the imminent struggle of Japan. The plot is well defined. In the initial 8 episodes ecchi, romance and comedy are beautifully depicted with action. In the last 4 episodes plot intensifies rapidly and tension escalates, there are twists and turns leading to a somewhat tragic ending. The pot is well laid out with well-paced exposition and without plot-holes. The ending however is not fully conclusive, it comes rather abruptly and nothing can be ascertained about the impending calamity(Amakusa), there's hardly any after-climax or 'epilogue'. I should also comment on the seemingly anachronistic depiction, since Japan is in 21st century in the anime but still under Tokugawa Shogunate you'll see samurai attire, swords, buildings of that time. At the same time you have maid-uniforms, telephones, trains, computers and airplanes (i think this actually adds a funny side to the anime..you got advanced computers and labs but no guns, elevators but no skyscrapers.....haha )

CHARACTERS Characterization in this anime is one of the best you'll see. This is not much about impressing emotions or thoughts but rather more about clear-cut demarcation. Each character is defined very distinctly in terms of status, ideals and actions. Character development is nice.. you'll like most characters (all their names come from famous samurai)

ANIMATION This is one of the things i really liked in this anime. The background is like oil paintings on which characters are sketched with a distinct outline(see picture above download links). This adds a unique touch which is captivating. Also the depiction of action scenes is pretty unique with an avid use of shadows/dark contrast and what appears like 'ink blots'

SOUND is good both the songs and soundtracks are fine.

ENCODE is nicely done

Enjoyable for action/ecchi/comedy fans but dont expect deep, intriguing, complicated plot or an overbearing sense of humor.

A vibrant anime designed to entertain the viewer.
STORY a beautiful alien female officer Birdy comes to earth in pursuit of a dangerous something and ends up killing a boy Senkawa on her mission, you can guess what happens next.. Senkawa's consciousness is absorbed into Birdy to keep him alive...From here on the plot follows action + light-hearted comedy for the initial half, it intensifies in the later half and introduces conflict, action, anxiousness, tension, romance and some tragic scenes (well i consider a city being destroyed pretty much tragic). A fine twist at the climax adds to the nice conclusion...Pretty good...I'd give it a decent 8/10. However the plot follows a more or less predictable outline most of the time, also quite a few aspects are left untouched: the past of Birdy (its dealt with beautifully in the sequel), the past and emotions of the villain Shyamalan (i think this to be a major drawback), the conspirators behind-the-scenes (i guess they may deal with this in further sequels, if any)

CHARACTERS Birdy is a beautifully depicted character, her actions and interactions are well-planned and she has a touch of mystery. The male lead Senkawa however doesnt meet my expectations, he's rather unplanned in behavior, indecisive and pretty annoying at times. Even so he does save the day in the end (very decisively too), so i guess its fine. Most other characters are depicted well but their development is not impressed, i mean to say that even though they interact quite often and in diversified manners( these events are very well planned), it almost never brings out their character or any emotional aspect...this is true for almost all except Sayaka.

ANIMATION is nice. Some of the scenes are mind-blowing, at the same time some of the action scenes seem a little lacking.

SOUND the op song is beautiful, sound effects are nice but not very thrilling.

ENCODE is good

ENJOYMENT well despite and some setbacks a decent plot you'll find this series enjoyable and satisfying. The individual elements may not be spectacular but they are put together beautifully which grabs your attention(unless you're interested single-mindedly in the hot-chick only).
My take- see it, its enjoyable and has a good sequel awaiting you.

This is one of the series where you you cant stop laughing at the sheer depiction of characters and events...everything is filled with humor.. you'll laugh at the scenario, at the background, at the character's expression, even at the accompanying sound. If you're a fan of ero/perverted stuff and you love comedy , this one's definitely for you.

STORY its about a perverted peace-loving boy who has an encounter with an angeloid (UMA) which falls from the sky, he is surrounded by a killer-chop childhood friend and other freaky characters (>see the anime for more). Its filled with perverted and hilarious comedy, the basic storyline (about synapse) is developed slowly and remains more or less mysterious throughout, there is slow plot exposition which adds to curiosity. The plot is laudable for placing humorous scenes even at unexpected occasions and in most unexpected ways (see how the protagonist reminisces about his grandfather.. Tomobou! Tomobou!.......(hahaha)). The story is little different from manga and introduces characters rather rapidly, even the timing of events is different.

CHARACTERS laugh-till-you-drop characterization.. just see their expressions, especially their chibi forms..it makes you laugh just seeing them without any event taking place at all. There are really freaky characters (science freak hell bent on discovering new world...., beautiful, simple looking but really deadly dangerous girls...) Every character is beautifully defined and developed.

ANIMATION is really great, nice contrast and nice detailing and nice chibi scenes.

SOUND is great, some of the sound effects are really funny if you consider the scene during which they play. I like the OP song.

ENCODE is great

ENJOYMENT its a funny anime punctuated with burst-your-stomach-laughing scenes. Watch each episode entirely cause there are some really funny scenes even during/after ED songs.
If you enjoy it also give manga a go (in my personal opinion the manga fares little better because of two reasons 1-the story timeline/ chronological order of events is better (plus in anime some extra events dull the sense of comedy) 2-some of the expressions come out better in manga maybe because they're still or whatever)

STORY A new age fantasy + mecha + harem plot is just the correct way to describe it. 'Skip the obvious show the unique' is what it does i think.. there are no slow developments towards the harem scenario,no slow shy >blush >conflict >jealousy events, no cliched statements or events that pronounce "harem",.. the story moves rapid fast and characters fall for the protagonist one after another (call it INSTANT HAREM or whatever).. even the fact that they fall for him is not much impressed unless required as though it is obvious and implicit, The aftermath (conflicts + jealousy events) are portrayed similar to the classic harem anime. There's good use of comedy and action. The action scenes are particularly different and brilliantly depicted.There are emotional scenes but they hardly elicit any emotion from you (one of the prices paid for rapid scenario development). If you are looking for serious plot development and depth there isnt much.. probably because this is an initiating season to establish the characters and background scenario(which is pretty good).. they may develop plot in sequels.The basis of story is well established.

ANIMATION is real good...every scene depicted very well esp. action scenes are nicely done.

CHARACTER It does have classic characters like childhood friend and foreign transfers( + cross dresser) but it doesnt waste much time on cliched characterization..its neither ignored nor impressed. Its obvious that they're/ they fall in love with him. That said further character development is little slow( there're multiple(actually too many) characters and none of them are given much depth according to me).The fantasy/action/comedy is impressed more than characters, which are basically introduced and developed mainly in relation to main character.

SOUND I liked the soundtracks and songs just fine.

The encode is very good.

The idea of time travel is dealt with in a slightly different but pretty exciting manner by contrasting the peaceful after-war times with the devastating war scenes. There is a really good use of humor and comedy (LOOK out for --all the silly uses time travel can be put to.., see how confusing paradoxes can become and 'what-cant-be-done' with time travel) in light contrast to a serious plotline which develops concerning the implications of time travel and its ethical issues(which is developed further in season 2). The main storyline is not developed much in this season, though it is a pretty good 'pre-quel' for further events. Still the events are well planned and well linked(this is especially laudable seeing as there is time travel involved) without plotholes. The author really knows when and how to use humor in a befitting manner..the story is punctuated with comedic anecdotes. A good mix of humorous and grave situations along with a developing romance makes for a good worth-a-watch anime.
Animation is a little different but good, art fits the plot well.
Music is good and flows in sync with the atmosphere.
The characters are simple but nicely developed, there's a tinge of mystery concerning some which is slowly resolved( or should i say dissolved)
Dont get too confused by the first episode's complications.. Well you may go oh gosh! what the heck happened! by some of the entangling events mingled together due to time travel.
The encode is really good..
Overall definitely give it a go once.

PS: If you've finished this and liked it also watch the second season, its as good as the first.

The concept is original but the development makes you feel rather annoyed and really bored. The story does not have any thrills or excitement.. it continues as monotonously dull and pretty illogical and unreasonable plot( come what may the viewer doesnt feel excited or anxious). What i mean is although the basis of the story is original and has great potential, there are hardly any events to exploit the potential... no sudden twists worth watching, no element of surprise or conflict, no depth( NO DEPTH AT ALL...dont know what they used 12 episodes for!).. Even the ending is depicted stupidly.
The character introduction is fine but development is pathetic... a rather failed attempt to develop a protagonist, poor depiction of her childhood friends change to yandere/psychotic behaviour.. even the other characters lack a sound base..(how the heck do the characters fall in love with the protagonist)
Animation is fine .. though the action scenes could have been more impressed
Sound is good enough
An unsatisfactory combination of characters and story means even lesser entertainment than otherwise

Fate/stay night: Unlimited Blade Works follows a storyline different from original anime, nevertheless its pretty exciting. Revelation of the identity of Archer and his fight with Shirou are particularly awesome.
The best part about the movie is its beautiful and flawless animation especially concerning the action scenes. The depiction, angle, pace ...every thing about action scenes fits really well.
The characters and some events are rather predefined based on original anime. Character and plot development are good.
The pace of story is rather fast, more events are compressed into lesser time... feels like skipping a few scenes, makes story a little difficult to understand. You can easily understand it if you've watched or at least know the original anime story.
A must watch for action fans!