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Apr 17, 2009
What I am about to say may just create an angry, pitchfork-wielding mob in my driveway, but i'm going to say it anyway: the hated Queen's Blade isn't all that horrible. Don't get me wrong - it certainly isn't very good, but it is at the very least enjoyable. Hold on, I think I see torches! False alarm, at least for now.
The reason why i am doing the unthinkable by writing a review at merely the third episode is because this anime receives such widespread malignment that some might not give it a try for themselves. I will rewrite this after the final episode.
If you
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can get past the now-infamous, shall we say, tomfoolery - and granted, that isn't easy to do - you've got yourself a decent show. Key word: decent. I think the reason why people say that there is no story is because Queen's Blade hasn't been picked up by a quality subber yet (in fact every English fansub so far has been an utter disgrace), and not everyone can understand Japanese. This is a character driven anime, and the relations between the characters and their backgrounds make up the bulk of it. It isn't all that deep, but it does keep things interesting.
I'll mention this again for emphasis: it is highly character driven. If you like character designs, you're going to like Queen's Blade. The anime was based on a set of fighting game books (yeah, I can't imagine how that's supposed to work, either) and every character was designed by a well-known artist. Unfortunately, the wide range of interesting personalities and outfits are one of the few redeeming qualities that Queen's Blade possesses, but oh what a quality it is.
It has been outsourced, and so the art isn't all that great, but at least the animation isn't terrible, and the battles are short and sweet...
...even if those battles feature a girl with acidic projectile nipple lactation that only ever manages to burn clothes, and another that pees herself constantly, and another that actually walks around completely bottomless with only a snake wrapped around her waist as a censor. The shock value is ridiculous, and any other time I would have been offended and stopped watching immediately, but Queen's Blade is so over-the-top in its silliness that it's actually downright hilarious at times. It seems as if with every new episode we meet a new combatant, each one just as, umm...original as the next. Yeah, 'original' works.
I truly can't wait to see what sort of madness is coming my way next week, and that says it all.
So don't expect a deep, riveting story, flawless artwork, or lovey-dovey romance. What you should try to enjoy Queen's Blade for is the creative cast of interesting characters. If you can get past the shock value (which is truly more comical than irritating), you may come to enjoy this. At least give it a shot before you drop it!
Now if you'll excuse me, I've just been hit in the neck with a pitchfork and have to see a doctor.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Feb 23, 2009
These relaxing and slow-paced slice-of-life animes are difficult to write about. It's like trying to write a review of the sunset over the ocean or the wind through the trees. They make you feel great just by being there, but 'being there' is all they do.
And that's Sketchbook. It is the leaves changing colors in autumn, the snow falling, new growth in spring and a warm sun in the summer. Watching it fills you with a sense of calm and innocence that brings you back to your childhood (assuming you've left it).
It presents the sort of soft, gentle, dream-like atmosphere that will make you feel
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like you're on a bed full of pillows and kittens, even if you're watching it on a wicker chair. The music is made up of soft guitar riffs and sentimental piano pieces and is a great compliment to the innocence of the anime.
Atmosphere.
But what would an atmosphere be without a great cast of characters? This is where Sketchbook becomes a masterpiece. The lead, Sora, will turn your heart to mush with her free-spirited innocence and adorable facial expressions. Even though she is lost in her own world and shy, she ends up joining an art club and gradually opening up. The art club is full of completely crazy (in an innocent way) students that, like Sora, have their own little loveable quirks. I especially liked Kuga-senpai and her curtain, and those two delightfully creepy girls that have their own theme song.
The cats in the neighborhood are just plain awesome, and when I learned that kitty introductions include their charm points I actually said "kawaii~" out loud.
There are many supporting characters, none of which feel like side characters at all. The majority get their own episode and they are all well-developed. To top it all off, the voice acting (Japanese) is top-notch. This all makes for quite a high replay value. I can't tell you how many times i've watched the first episode over and over again just to see those two girls' nursery rhyme about catgrass!
I'll admit that i'm a bit biased. This anime matches my tastes perfectly and pulls all my strings. I'd imagine some might find the slow pacing hard to deal with and view it as a sleep inducer. If you watch anime for fights and explosions, this isn't the anime for you!
If that wasn't enough, this anime has zero fanservice or ecchi! It is completely innocent.
Although I feel like this anime's appeal is highly subjective, I give it a rare 10. Could it be any better? It doesn't have to be. Sketchbook is just what it is: a slice of life. You wouldn't ask a sunset to be better, would you?
Reviewer’s Rating: 10
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Feb 22, 2009
At the time of this writing, Naruto is all but over. In fact, it might as well have been over way back when the fillers started in the first season.
What started out as a great anime with a deep story and tons of charming characters has inexplicably turned its back on most of what was good about it, first and foremost the relationship between naruto, sasuke and sakura. And there are still filler arcs in Shippuuden, one of which has just begun.
We are now at episode 95 of the second season and sasuke is still basically nowhere to be seen. The first arc showed bits
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and pieces of him, and he was on screen for 5 minutes at the end of it. Since then, he's appeared sporadically in flashbacks and extremely short vignettes as a way to tease the audience into thinking he will return soon and naruto will get back on track...but then another arc starts without him. And another. To top it all off, another worthless filler arc has just begun!
I don't mean to say that sasuke makes the entire series. Akatsuki is an interesting group of characters, and the majority of those great characters from the first season are still present and basically unchanged. However, Sasuke is a huge part of naruto, and he's gone. Gaara is one of the coolest characters ever, and he's gone. And another filler arc has just begun.
The art has also taken a huge hit with this series. I don't know if they changed production companies or what, but everyone suddenly looks disproportioned and the animation looks choppy and cheap. Sakura has a tendency to look quite mannish when viewed in profile. There is an infamous part of the new ending where Hinata's hair seems to be falling off. The art seems to get even worse during fillers...i don't know if i've mentioned this yet, but a filler arc has just begun!
Naruto is also no longer funny.
Well, I could sit here and write all day about how much naruto has jumped the shark, but there is one thing that should be said: I still watch it. I'm not sure exactly why, but I never miss an episode. If I had to pay even a cent for it, I wouldn't; but I still watch.
Although I might stop watching until this filler arc is over. The problem with fillers is not that they are worthless (i'd rather have fillers than nothing) but that they are so often boring and cheaply done, and often stray too far from the roots of the show. There are ways to get fillers right (see Bleach: Turn Back the Pendulum), but Naruto's fillers fail. Miserably.
Another %*#@%&! filler, and still no sasuke. Can you believe it?
Reviewer’s Rating: 5
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Feb 21, 2009
Hitohira is a nice little drama that you will enjoy as long as you aren't expecting much.
The story is fairly generic - shy girl tries to change - but they do it in a way that is quite refreshing. The problem is that some of it is a bit hard to understand. I wasn't sure exactly what was going on at times.
However, it was still quite moving. The characters were great, especially the lead, and you really felt for her. Voice acting was quite good as well. Although the weird timing of this anime has a tendency to distract you from the dramatic elements,
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you will still find yourself holding back tears at times.
I really liked the characters of Hitohira. They were the strong point of this anime. If you're as character driven as I am, you won't be disappointed.
All in all, this one gets a solid 7. Nothing much to complain about, but nothing to rave about either. It will most likely leave your HD as quickly as it came but it is still worth watching once.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Feb 16, 2009
I thought real long and hard about those extremely high scores up there, believe me. I absolutely hate the fact that i'm giving it such a high score, but I can't give it anything less. Lucky Star is an amazing anime and one of my favorites of all time. I'm a sucker for character-driven anime, and this is right up my alley.
It's impossible not to compare this to Azumanga Daioh. While Azumanga Daioh is definitely funnier, Lucky Star has a sort of wit and cutting edge air about it. Not many people will get all of the jokes, and it definitely helps to understand Japanese
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(you lose a lot in the translation), but that makes it even more unique and special.
The characters in Lucky Star are oustanding, and while not quite up to par with Azumanga Daioh, there are more of them. And like Azumanga Daioh, they are all extremely interesting and likeable. Not a boring or useless character to be seen.
The most interesting character is probably Konata Izumi, the blue-haired, free spirited otaku. You're not sure if you'd prefer her as your wife or your daughter, but either way she's more moe-inducing than the girl who is designed to be stereotypically moe, and that says alot.
Her dad is a creepy pervert, and the anime deals with it well; some might condone his behavior, but Lucky Star doesn't. It recognizes that he is a problem, but at the same time he's just a human like the rest of us. Perfect.
There are too many characters to list here, but rest assured that you won't be disappointed by any of them.
Even though most of the humor comes from subtle observations on human behavior, otaku in-jokes, and wit, there is still some Azumanga Daioh type humor present that can be very funny. It can also be very touching, and one of the later episodes had me literally crying.
And who can forget the opening credits? They are legendary.
Being based on a four-panel comic makes the anime translation a daunting task, but Lucky Star pulls it off splendidly, much better than Azumanga Daioh. The progression is fluid and perfectly paced. The empty space is put to good use with a 'lucky channel' corner at the end of every episode that is separate from the main show but still very entertaining.
And the ending credits...the later episodes have the voice actors doing typically insane Japanese things in live action. Legendary!
And speaking of the seiyuus, they did an amazing job. Lucky Star and Azumanga Daioh really set the standard for voice acting. And who would have thought that Aya Hirano, basically a bubble-gum pop star, would be so talented? Her work as Konata steals the show amongst a field of excellence. Our pop stars can't act their way out of a wet paper bag!
Some don't like the art, and I suppose it is truly in the eye of the beholder, but I personally loved it. Everyone looks very young (even the adults) but they are all well drawn and their facial expressions are extremely well done. Especially Konata.
All in all, this was an amazing anime and a classic in my book. Completely entertaining with an unforgettable and loveable cast with great voice acting, it is downright hilarious, and its replay value is neverending. Nothing else to ask for.
Reviewer’s Rating: 10
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Feb 15, 2009
Such an amazing anime packed into 6 episodes. Short, but oh so sweet.
The story is admittedly confusing, but not to the point that it becomes a distraction. You'll most likely have to watch it again just to make sense of it all. Basically, an artifact of great power was stolen from the Guardian World, a magical realm. This artifact, known as the Throne of Yord (even though it's a painting) has captured the sister of its thief. A Guardian named Tiara has been charged with the Throne's retrieval, only to find out that another Guardian is already on the job.
The art...good lord, the art.
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I have never seen a better looking anime. Ever. I'll say it again for emphasis: this is the best looking anime i have ever seen in my life. The town is a quaint European village that had me searching on google to see if a place like that actually exists so I can move there immediately. The architecture is amazing. Everything about it feels refreshing. I never thought that I could feel refreshed from watching an anime, but I swear the air feels cleaner while watching it. You can almost smell the flowers. The character design is equally amazing.
I really liked the opening and ending themes. Both are quite catchy.
Character development is surprisingly deep for a 6 episode anime. The last two episodes are prequels that make up the bulk of the development by letting us know how it all started. The lead, Tiara, can be quite catty, but never crosses the line into annoyingness. She's also quite badass. There are exactly zero useless or annoying characters which is very rare for an anime of this genre.
It's a 6 episode anime that i can watch again and again. The art quality is legendary. I loved the story even if it was confusing at first. The characters are all very interesting and you want to know more about them.
Shamanic Princess gets a solid 10 from me. The best part about it is that I got the entire series on a single DVD for a mere 10 bucks! A rare find indeed, but that makes it even more worth it. Of course most people who read this will be downloading it, but in the name of all that is good in the world, download away! It will make your favorites list.
Reviewer’s Rating: 10
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