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The sports genre seems to be the most underrated genre in anime. I would scroll down the top anime list and see really highly rated sports anime like Hajime no Ippo, Kuroko no Basket, Slam Dunk, Major etc. but it would seem that at most, a sports anime would only have around ±15000 members. Which is a real shame because I find it to be the most entertaining genre of anime so far. Granted I have only seen 3(busy with the 4th) but it always seems to bring something unique to the table. Whether it be boxing, baseball or cycling, the show always seems to ... make a statement: you don't have to play, watch or enjoy this sport to enjoy this show. It can make you laugh, cry, frustrated and root for an animated character. Over Drive did this and more.

I watched Over Drive last year and ever since I always felt I had to share my experiences watching this show but I never really knew how to put it in writing so I'll try my best.(SOME SPOILERS FOLLOW)

Over Drive is about Shinozaki, a high school student that just goes to school, gets picked on and hangs around by himself at recess. He meets Fukazawa and through a series of events, he falls inlove with cycling and enters a local cycling tournament. The idea for Over Drive is what made me want to see it. Watching a cycling match is like watching a really slow toaster. But the idea of an anime revolving around cycling just enticed me. The series starts off slow but I assure you as soon as the race starts you'll be on the edge of your seat. The backstories, rivalries and intensity of the racers is just a joy to watch. A strong point of sports anime- simple yet gripping story.

The characters are typical shonen types but their personalities grow as the show progresses. You have your likeble goofy lead, two best friends, one straight and one silly,a love interest, the mysterious dude and a villian. The main characters consisting of the cycling team aiming for the win have an interesting bond on and off the road and watching them on their bicycles is really just fun. There's no other way to describe it. Fukazawa can come off as really unlikeable to some viewers. There was a point to her attitude but she really turned me off by the end of the show.

The art is the highlight of Over Drive. It's lush and beautiful. The bicycles, grassy backdrops, tar, cycling uniforms, sky and characters themselves are wonderfully illustrated. What always turns me off about anime is the way the art style changes to illustrate slapstick comedy, but here the animation stays the same.

Sound is another highlight. Shinozaki doesn't come off as annoying thanks to excellent VO work by Kaji Yuki and everyone else sounds believable and as if they are one with their character. The OP isn't all that great, reading the subtitles I still couldn't understand what it was about. The 2 EDs were not that bad. The first was so-so but Koi Suzumi was excellent. Really mellow and the perfect touch to give you a lump in your throat after the series ends.

Overall Over Drive came as a surprise. The story was good, the melodrama involving the bicycles were heartfelt and at times so cheesy it was hilarious and the race is so good it makes you wonder why Lance Armstrong risked losing a world like that. The characters are all believable and they make the show shine(sports anime is not really about the story anyways, more about the characters). The sound is top notch(I really can't stop raving about Koi Suzumi) and the art gives the show it's feel good vibe. Over Drive may not be the best anime out there, but please give it a try, it could convince to see what else the genre has to offer. Who knows, maybe you'll even take up cycling after finishing it.

Feedback(positive or negative) on this review will be greatly appreciated.

Dragon Ball Z is a show that you can enjoy whether you’re eight or eighteen. I saw this cartoon for the first time at the age of nine years when it peaked in my country of South Africa and tidal waves of merchandise were visible as far as your eye could see, be it videogames or movies. I watched as many episodes as I could and when me and my friends couldn’t think about anything interesting to talk about, we’d talk about DBZ. I re-watched DBZ recently and my opinion has changed a bit from way back then.

Dragon Ball Z is the sequel to the ... excellent Dragon Ball, where our hero is once again, the guy who started the dumb, funny and strong shonen hero trend, Goku who along with his friends protect the earth from villains who want the dragon balls for themselves and use it take over the world/galaxy. The plot stays exactly the same for the whole series which is divided into four major story arcs. The story is unoriginal and can get repetitive very fast. Like I said previously, Dragon Ball was a really satisfactory and pleasurable cartoon which was an adventure comedy for the most part. Dragon Ball Z however is an action adventure that feels inferior to its prequel that has a story second and countless action scenes first. This show has a large following and many people know what makes and breaks this anime, so what I’m writing about may have been heard or known by quite a few of you.

The story isn’t bad but drags on for a long time. The series contains super-sized fillers which Dragon Ball Z Kai managed to fix. Instead of adding an episode with no relation to the main plot, fight scenes were extended that lasted months, as wikipedia stated(SPOILER): that the last five minutes before the explosion of Namek which lasted five episodes is the most infamous of these.(END SPOLIER) The four major arcs were really good on their own if you hadn’t told yourself "the exact same thing just happened for almost the past year". On the spectrum of enjoyment from best to poorest the arcs are as follows : Majin Buu Saga, Planet Namek Saga, Android Saga, Sayain Saga. The Majin Buu Saga really manages to try new things and changes the formula a little bit by introducing new charcters like the awesome duo Trunks and Goten(and a whole lot of new and actually likeable characters, including the funniest and coolest villian in the entire show), Goku's role isn't so major at the beginning and some of the other supporting characters don't show up so much and with experimenting here the arc exceeds the previous three.

The animation for this show isn’t abysmal as it starts out ok and just gets better. The faces of a lot of the male characters look identical with their hair making a lot of difference. It took me quite some time to notice it so it may not be that off putting to viewers. The fight scenes were not bad, the animators had no option with this seeing as this is an action show. There were various shots that were re-used here and during a lot of the moves used during battle, lines would replace the limbs of the characters to show the fighters’ lightning fast speed. The animation has more hits than misses because the animation becomes more fluid, brighter and sharper later on. The characters also appear as bodybuilding archetypes as the show progresses. Backgrounds appear as re-used but are not that noticeable.

The sound changed completely in the American version which made fans of the original livid. Cha La, the original opening theme was replaced with a rock n’ roll heavy metal piece which I have to admit I was partial to which also changed throughout the series. The silence that was in the original in between battles and during stare downs got changed with guitar riffs. Goku’s English voice is a lot more tolerable than the Japanese counterpart, which is the case with quite a few of the characters(with the exception of Frieza, who I was convinced was a woman), while some may argue the more cartoony voices like that of Vegeta and Piccolo are not up to snuff. Another reason some fans react negatively to the DBZ dub is the inclusion of words like “darn it”, “dude” etc. You may also hear that the word “kill” is seldom used if ever and usually in its place is “destroy”.

The characters were a little hard to get attached to because if they died, they just got wished back with the dragon balls which took a lot of the suspense and tension away later during the show’s run. There is enough character development to keep one happy, characters grow older, which I haven’t seen a lot in anime and it was fun to see the introduction of new characters and how the older ones changed. Some female characters come off as more annoying than funny or likeable( Bulma, Chi Chi). The same can be said for male characters like Yamcha for instance. There are however some show stealers like sexual pervert and martial arts teacher Master Roshi and the self obsessed moronic martial arts champion/wuss Hercule( Mr. Satan in the original) who are all supporting characters.

DBZ was a phenomenon back in its hey day, and it’s not difficult to see why. The dub made quite a few changes to the show but if you haven’t seen the original you won’t notice a thing and on its own it really is not that bad. It inspired popular shonen shows like Fairy Tail, One Piece, Naruto and Bleach but with all the new anime that manage to surpass it, it just seems like some forgettable cartoon. Dragon Ball Z is not as good as Dragon Ball but is so much better than Dragon Ball GT. I’m still a fan of the show and I love it, especially for nostalga.If you’re looking for a really long adventure cartoon or just a fun animated show, please do yourself a favour and give the English version a try if you haven’t watched it yet.

I will refer to the series being reviewed as Psychic Detective Yakumo. I watched this to try and alleviate my boredem. The synopsis will not be typed here for obvious reasons. This is just my opinion and attitude towards this series.

This series is suppose to be a horror but I have no recollection of being scared, nervous, alarmed or even startled while watching Psychic Detective Yakumo. The ghosts were more of a joke than terrifying really. They come off as people's shadows . Could you please just for the sake of this review try to scare someone you know by standing still and asking ... them to look at your shadow whenever you have free time. The episodic structure of the show is a chance for this show to tell refreshing stories that improve on the previous episode, but it is the exact same formula over and over and over again. Girl asks psychic for help on a potential case, psychic insults girl, detective that the psychic helps and vice versa becomes involved in the case and the trio set off to solve the mystery. After a few episodes watching became more of a chore. There is no unpredictablity and the writing is just flat. How can I get rid of this ghost? Why don't I try the exact same method I used the previous week.

The characters are complete strangers to the viewer with no real development. The only characters that I really cared for was detective Gotou and Isshhin Saito but they can't really save this series from being the exact oppisite the creators were trying to achieve. You will read about this in a lot of reviews but it's still a complaint from my side: The villian is a complete alien. You get that type of my kids should stay away from that guy whenever possible vibe but he does not live up to his full potetntial. His goals are never stated which means everytime the show cuts him you have to squeeze interest out of yourself to listen to something that may or may not have something to to do with the plot. If you hear what everybody calls him in the series you will realize exactly how uninteresting and stale this weirdo is. The romantic plot that that makes up alot of the show's "story" goes nowhere. I was really expecting something , anything. I have to listen to whining and arguing between two people I dont give a damn for for 13 episodes. Give me something,anything!

The sound is run-of-the-mill voice acting with the exception of the most intersting characters Gotou and Isshhin. My cousin told me he realized that a lot of voice actors speak with a mono tones when they have to dub anime to english. This is the exact case with Yakumo. When he is supposedly shocked or sad yo just hear that mono tone (a lot like Edward's tone of voice from Twilight). The OP is terrible. If you can classify under what type of music this falls under please let me know (I only listened to it for about 10 seconds).The ending theme was actually beautiful,it is that type of song you can understand without speaking the language it is performed in.

The art was alright. It's not like Dragonball where everyone is drawn according to Asian sterotyping,you know that saying . These characters have looks that fit what liitle personality they have perfectly. The backgrounds are okay and the ghost are just "meh".

The show was alright at the beginning but went to make my weekend feel a lot longer and declined after just 2 episodes. I have to admit I liked the ending, I'm a sucker for stuff like that and because the experience was over. Here's what I thought about the show:

Pros:
-Gotou and Isshhin
-Ending theme
-Ending
-Art was alright

Cons:
- Everything else

Story - 5/10
Art 7/10
Sound 6/10
Character 5/10
Enjoyment 5/10
Overall 6/10

Mirai Nikki aka Future Diary was my gateway anime. I read the synopsis for this seris and as sure as I was that South Park is the funniest show on television right now just above American Dad and The Simpsons, I was just as sure this is the one and only thing that could,no WILL make me watch more anime. And making pop culture references and mentioning other television shows is the way I write. When I do this I'm in my groove. No big words here or trying to sound smarter than you, I'm just going to tell you why I love this show ... and why I think that Future Diary is one hell of a ride. This is only my second review on MAL and the first I think could've been better. I'm don't think I'm going to write another review for a while so I'm going to try my best with this. Please if you could, let me know one or both of the following:
-What you think of this review by itself
- Is it an improvement over the last review, is it the same or is it worse?

You see to me, anime was Dragonball Z, Speed Racer, Yu Gi Oh! etc. A bunch of anime for kids that adults could also enjoy. I mean before a few years ago I was pretty ignorant when it came to anime, I grew older and the biggest mystery to me in life was why I actually worshipped Pokemon.It was childish and as I was well into puberty I thought that maybe there has to be something better Japanese animation has to offer. Don't get me wrong, I like Dragon Ball Z but it didn't get to watch anime. It has its flaws like being really repetitive and having a group characters with constiaption, but I like the mindless fun. That's not to say I can't like other genres of this type of animation.

I still watch shonen anime like Naruto and Bleach, but Future Diary is something special.I saw the subbed version of this show. The show is a combination of action adventure, psychological thriller has bits of comedy, and can be seen as a tragedy for a lot of the characers. The show has amazing character development, a story so engaging it will keep you glued to your television screen, incredible voice acting and much more. I will try to go through what makes this show so incredible one by one and what, if an any, can be improved.

STORY AND SETTING(Contains Minor Spoilers):
The story kicks off with a girl being brutally murdered and a girl trying to revive a boy. This should tell you that this show will have a lot af violence and killing. The story then takes us to present day Japan where a boy named Yukiteru (our protaganist) is shown to be a solitary person. He keeps to himself and has almost no friends. He rather spends his time typing everything he sees into his diary. His only friend is the imaginary god of space and time Deus Ex Machina who he talks to in his bedroom. One day Yukki sees his diary entris are already written down and everything that happens is written down in his cellphone.Yukki suspects Deus has something to do with this and it turns out Deus is not that imaginary. Deus forces Yuki to take part in a 12 man battle royale fight to the death. The diary of each participant now has the abilty to predict the future each with it's own benifits and weaknesses. The diary must be used by particiapants to kill each other with the winner being Deus' successor as god of space and time. You already have to be itching to see this if you have not already.I thought that it would be a lot like Death Note because of the concept te be a able to predict a future death but this show takes an old idea and makes it its own and Future Diary can even give Death Note a run for it's money. The writing for this series is razor sharp and the show never loses any steam during the 26 episode run. I have to admit that the show only really pulled me in with the second episode . The modern setting makes it accessible and watchable for a lot of people since a bunch of viewers don't like space westerns, period pieces or post apoctolyptic shows. The show is full of twist and surprises. There is also a romantic subplot which a guy like me, who does not really care for romance enjoyed. Some people think that the ending was abrupt but I thought it was perfect. If you have a problem with it, read the manga or google the ending.

STORY AND SETTING; 10/10

ART:
The art of this show is incredible. Each character has their own look with different facial expressions and details, their own outfits which really looks like something you can buy from any store. The backgrounds and landscapes are clear, whether it is water or grass. The houses,cars and buildings look amazing,some would say this is just really bright live action objects. Just one example of how beautiful this show is is to look at the sunset. Jim Carrey could not have said it better : B-E-A-UTIFUL. There is some CGI in here which can turn off some viewers, but it actually grew on me. It is just one character and one environment so you don't have to worry if it's not your cup of Pepsi. One more thing, the cellphones, the diaries, it really looks like the animators put real effort into designs and layout. One of the best art out there.

ART 10/10

SOUND:
Another highlight if this show is the hypnotic sound. No voice is out of place, villian,good guy, fat lady, fat guy all whose voices fit like "like a glove"-Jim Carrey. The sound apart from the story to me is the make or break factor for an anime series. The voice actors convey incredible emotion with just a voice and they obtain what they set out to achieve. If the character should be rooted for, hated, likeable or felt sorry for,this is exactly what happens. Yukki can come off as annoying and whiney but it's all part of the way he matures throughout the series. The instrumentals played throughout the series makes you want to cry if something sad is playing when someone is dying or when something heroic plays you actually get goosebumps. My eyes were watering of excitement when something really badass happened. How good must the music be to make you feel like that. Really Motherloving good! The opening and ending theme songs of Future Diary are are catchy, upbeat, and just plain first-rate. The shows contains two opening songs and two ending songs with my personal favourites being the first ending theme and second opening theme both having a fast tempo and are really feel good songs. The first ending theme sounds like Japanese pop and the second opening is more of rock n roll but both are very good. The other two are not bad either.The first opening sounds like classical mixed with pop and the second ending theme falls more under soft rock. Incredible voice acting, songs that fit the tone of the show perfectly,this really is possibly the show's greatest asset.

SOUND 10/10

CHARACTER:
I can't give this part a perfect score because there are like two contestants that you dont get to know as well as the other players and this agitated me because every other contestant gets their chance to shine. However every other character has great character development with distinct personalities and qualities, there are even characters that are not part of the game that you begin to care for and learn to love. The main character Yukiteru, matures a lot through this show as I stated above. He is a unique main character, because he has his flaws. He doubts himself, and doesn't want to be god at the beginning of the story. He is not a fighter but bit by bit comes to terms with his situation and knows that he is a participant for a reason. Yuno who is a smoking hot red head teen girl who has strong feelings for Yukiteru, is my favourite character on the show. She would do anything to protect Yukki, and is the most mysterious person in the game. Her actions ,her lack of mercy for other players , her abilities, she really is a stand out character here.She plays major parts in the twists that occur,in the biginning, middle, end and everything inbetween of the series. Yuno is the the character that makes the story even more thrilling and epic than it already is. There are so many more characters but I'm really scared that if I summarise them it would take away the suspense and mind games that makes up this show.The other 10 contestants first appear as silhouttes when Deus first calls them together to explain the game so you don't know they are.Silouhettes + Mysterious characters=Guy biting nails. I'll just say there are killer and non-killers, lovers,terrorists,cops who all have their own reasons for wanting to be god. So with the exception of about two characters, everyone has a backstory. The non-contestant characters all three dimensional and are all believable. Friends or foes, all people that grab your attention. There is also a lot of moral abiguity because alliances can be formed and then be broken just like that. The acting of the characters, their facial expresions, everything is really good.

CHARACTER 9/10

ENJOYMENT:
This was as I said my gateway anime. After I saw this I wanted to learn more about Japan. I want to do Judo,I want to learn Japanese,I want to create a cartoon show similar to anime, and I know who Steve Blum and Akira Kurosawa is. This is that good. Violence,suspense,twists,subtle humour, I love this show and after this I'm going to watch Great Teacher Onizuka and Full Metal Alchemist all thanks to this gem, this piece of art. I'm not overselling this series,it really is incredible and even though I'm a casual fan and have only seen a handful of anime, I recommend this to a person who is a fan of any genre of anime or even if you are not an anime fan and just want to watch a a spectacular tv show.And please don't forget to comment.

ENJOYMENT 10/10

OVERALL 10/10

It's a bird, it's a plane' it's ZETMAN!!! This is my very first review and I'm glad I started it like that. Since this is my first review I will try my best not to write a bunch if garbage. Zetman is an anime I have been looking forward to ever since I saw the 2012 anime lineup online. The superhero genre does not really exist in anime since the only real superhero anime out there is Astro Boy, which is considered a classic and one of the first shonen anime/manga. The superhero genre I personally think has the potential to be a great addition ... to so many things that already make anime great. It can make you forget about slice of life and psychological thrillers if it is done properly. Zetman could have put this genre on the anime map. But like this review's introduction, this anime is anything but super. Zetman's premise sounds like the perfect set up for a crimefighting show. Monsters created by humans for humans' entertainment escape from their captivity into this world and our hero has to stop them. It is a fairly simple premise with which a lot can be done with but alas the creators miss the mark with failed execution. My main beef with this series is that it should have lasted longer. 13 Episodes is enough to tell a decent story, but the producers needed more time for what they were going for. I feel that not a lot of time was spent on character development with the exception of the two main characters. Every one else is just there to fill up space or to move the story along. I wish that viewers could see Jin(our protaganist) find out about his powers and how to control them,and it is never actually stated what ZET is specifically capable of doing, that you have to figure out for yourself as the series goes on.Everyone else's motives are never really explained. Why do they do what they do?They just do do what they do. What I really liked about the series was the way Kouga (the other hero) is tested to see what his idea of justice is.This was a character that I really liked . But that was really the only REAL exciting bit I thought there was. There is a real twist at the end which I didn't see coming so props to the writers for that.The sound of the anime was alright,with the voice acting quality about the same as your average anime. The OP was alright but I got sick of it 4 epsiodes in. The ending theme was a lot better but I think it could be because of my love for slow songs.Visually the the show is not bad, I just wish that more detail was put into the blood, which reminds me that the fight scenes were enjoyable as well as it supposed to be since this is a superhero show. In a nutshell here is the pros and cons of Zetman.

Pros:
-Kouga and Jin are good lead characters
-Nice ending theme
-Enjoyable fight scenes
-Twist near the end of the show
-Visuals are not that bad

Cons
-Average voice acting
-Very little character development
-Not a very good OP
-Invisible support characters
-Boring story
-Too short to cram everything in

Zetman is something I would watch again but not for a while,it really is not that bad,but with my high anticipations for it it felt like a let down.I recommend it as a something you can watch to pass the time if you have nothing to do for the weekend.

6/10