Make no mistake: Mission! School is a stupid manga. It quickly forgets its own central plot (premise: hijinks ensue as girls trained for combat have to adapt to a normal school setting), and its characters are one-note at best. But it's funny. It's really really funny. And it doesn't have to be anything else.
You see, Mission! School is first and foremost a gag manga, full of weirdos and fools doing silly things in variably ridiculous scenarios, framed as a romantic comedy and peppered with a moderate disregard for the Fourth Wall. In it, we see male lead Ishikawa - a mildly reserved guy (who, as
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Apr 19, 2011
Futakoi Alternative
(Anime)
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"It'd be tiresome to explain it all logically, but, if I were to try and sum it up with one phrase, it's probably a story about love." -Rentarou Futaba
Futakoi Alternative...what I expected was a silly, light-weight, mindless action comedy. Let me tell you now, that is NOT a good description. Futakoi Alternative tries to be something much greater than that, and, in some ways, it succeeds. In other ways, it fails. Overall, though, I think Futakoi Alternative is a pretty darn good show. Story: 5.5 || Art: 9.0 || Sound: 7.5 || Character: 9.5 || ... Enjoyment: 8.0 || OVERALL: 8.0 STORY: Futakoi Alternative tells the story of one Rentarou Futaba, self-employed as a detective (more-or-less), and his twin assistants, Sara and Soujyu Shirogane. The first part of the story follows excerpts from their daily lives and adventures, which range from mundane to bizarre and usually involve another pair of twins (most likely a nod to the original source material). This part of the story is mainly action-comedy. The second part of the story is a semi-continuous storyline focusing on Rentarou's relationship with Sara and Soujyu. This part of the story plays out like a romantic drama. The third part of the story details the resolution of the dramatic tension, switching back to action-comedy mode. The first episode of Futakoi Alternative deserves special mention. It plays out kind of like one long action sequence, ridiculously (and hilariously) over-the-top. It operates on two long-standing rules of fiction: things that are incredibly awesome and things that are incredibly funny are both acceptable (even desirable) breaks from reality. Basically, anything goes, so long as it’s cool enough or funny enough. This works fantastically well, making episode 1 an example of frenetic anime action-comedy at its peak. It’s pure chaos, and it’s pure FUN. Episode 1, somewhat unfortunately, is an outlier. The series mellows out very quickly, generally dropping the over-the-top awesomeness (but maintaining the comedy) beginning with episode 2 in favor of a more realistic feel. This is definitely not to say that Futakoi Alternative becomes bad; rather, it gains a different sort of charm. The comedy remains gut-bustingly hilarious but does not solely drive the show. It starts to focus more and more on the characters and at times lapses into a pensive melancholy that, when paired with the spectacular presentation, comes across as genuinely artistic. This loose trend from comedy to drama continues for several episodes. Once you hit episode 5, you may start to really notice that Futakoi Alternative is not much of a comedy anymore. It still has funny moments, but they soon start feeling out of place, and perhaps disconcerting. The show morphs into an intense, character-centric drama, complete with heavy atmosphere. Again, this is definitely not to say that Futakoi Alternative becomes bad; it just becomes good for different reasons. As a drama it is entrancing, mainly due to phenomenal presentation and excellent characters. Then, after establishing a realistic and solidly depressing mood, Futakoi Alternative suddenly (and I mean SUDDENLY) switches back to its original state. Unfortunately, it does this by tossing its sense of realism out the window. I cannot emphasize enough how sudden this shift is. The show resumes its original attitude that anything goes, so long as it’s cool enough or funny enough. And yet, in spite of all the ridiculous action sequences this generates, the show keeps bouncing back and forth between that and the dramatic melancholy it established earlier. This whole set of mood-swings is jarring, so much so that it threatens suspension of disbelief. Luckily, if you can weather the storm of episode 11, the mood stabilizes to a reasonable degree. Whether or not you can take Futakoi Alternative seriously enough to care about anything after the Squid Nazis (I am not making this up) and their utterly absurd diabolical plot is an entirely different issue. Overall, the story is really only strong enough to maintain interest. It is never complex or even very creative. Actually, I would go so far as to say that the plot is downright stupid in the last episodes (even ignoring all the problems with the biplane flight). However, Futakoi Alternative is genuinely funny at the beginning; it does drama really well; and it transitions impressively smoothly from comedy to drama (just not vice-versa). It is really effective at establishing strong moods, even if they do bounce around like manic-depressive ping-pong balls on crack. And, if you can manage to stop banging your head against the wall long enough to watch the final episodes, the finale of Futakoi Alternative is pretty awesome, and the final conclusion is somehow satisfying and maybe even beautiful. STORY SCORE: 5.5/10 - AVERAGE ART: At first glance, the art style of Futakoi Alternative seems, in a word, generic. When it comes to the main character designs, I can’t disagree. This does not mean that the show’s design style is bad; the main cast looks quite nice; Sara and Soujyu are cute, and Rentarou is actually rather handsome. Furthermore, the supporting cast has more diverse designs, often fitting for their roles. The art and designs are consistent throughout the show, except for intentional art-shifts. With regard to the art itself, the line-work is crisp, and the color palette is wide and excellently used. The background art is good but generally nothing special. The animation, however, is surprisingly fluid. Where Futakoi Alternative really shines is its style. Think Gainax crossed with Shaft. The action sequences are slick. The camera angles are dynamic. The comedic art-shifts and sight-gags are successful. The scenes of madcap mayhem are composed wonderfully and are full of energy. The cinematography is brilliant, and this extends to the more tranquil scenes as well. The more down-to-earth the show is, the more traditional the camera work and animation style. The more melancholic the show is, the darker the color palette. The more pensive and thoughtful the show is, the more experimental and artistic the animation direction. The use of lighting in this show to enhance or distill the mood is amazing. At times, Futakoi Alternative borders on cinematic in its scene composition, direction, and animation quality. The unfortunate flip-side to this is that all these extraordinary touches can produce heightened expectations for the show. Indeed, at times I began to think I was watching a rare, triumphant example of anime as true art. As strong as Futakoi Alternative’s presentation is, it doesn’t take long with a “true art” mindset for it to remind you that it’s not fundamentally different from other anime series. In the end, Futakoi Alternative isn’t a high-budget anime; there is plenty of typical shortcutting and standard camera-work mixed in with the clever bits of cinematography. The animation studio just took what little it had and made the best of it. And, through their own skill, they turned it into something that is, at the very least, respectable. At the very most, it’s nearly a masterpiece. ART SCORE: 9.0/10 - EXCELLENT SOUND: The background music of Futakoi Alternative varies a great deal in terms of both style and quality. We have groovy breakbeats, light orchestral themes, big band numbers, mellow solo pianos, whistling, acoustic guitar pieces, rock ‘n’ roll riffs, and obviously-synthesized orchestral pieces with little nuance to them. Despite that the composition and production are often below top-tier, the BGM is quite effective in both setting and supporting the mood, whatever it may be at any given moment (an impressive feat, considering how volatile the show’s mood is). Futakoi Alternative also demonstrates that silence can be just as expressive as a symphony. Sound effects are very well-used, but I don’t recall anything extraordinary other than the disk-scratches in episode 1. The opening theme starts off as a sort of synth-pop-orchestral piece, but quickly switches to hard rock. It is very fast and energetic, which captures the spirit of Futakoi Alternative’s action-comedy aspect rather well. The accompanying animation parallels the style of the song perfectly; it starts with a cheesy scrolling view of some of the cast, which gives off an unoriginal harem anime feel, and then it bursts out into a continuous action sequence starring the female cast members and a whole lot of firepower. It’s pretty cool, but, as Futakoi Alternative shifts genres and tonality, it starts seeming more and more out of place, only serving as a reminder of what the show no longer is. The ending theme is more remarkable for its animation than for its music. The song itself is a wistful pop ballad. It consists of an acoustic guitar, a four-piece string ensemble, some very light drumwork, and the singer. The vocals have a breathy quality to them, but it contributes to the relaxing feel of the song. Overall, it’s rather pleasant, but it’s really nothing you haven’t heard before. The accompanying animation is notable in that it uses stop-motion animation with figurines, which is certainly creative. The ending theme changes briefly about two-thirds of the way into the show to a different arrangement of the same song with just piano and vocals. It gives off a different feel from the original. The vocalist drops some of her breathiness, grounding it a bit more in reality. The lyrics also change, as does the accompanying animation, although it is still stop-motion. I just have to mention the music that plays during the preview segment at the very end of each episode. It’s a lilting, hauntingly hopeful piece for woodwind and music box, with intentionally degraded audio, as if it were an old record. I really, really like it. In fact, the overall style for the previews is inexplicably enjoyable. In general, I do not watch episode previews, but I watched every single one in Futakoi Alternative. For some reason, they fill me with nostalgia… Last on the list of things to discuss about the sound is the voice acting. Considering that the mood of Futakoi Alternative swings around like a chimpanzee on a jungle gym mounted on a colossal playground swing set, and considering that the show can be very intense with any given mood, this is a difficult show to act. That said, the voice actors perform wonderfully in roles that require a large amount of versatility. It feels like a lot of passion went into the voice-work. Mizuhashi Kaori and Kadowaki Mai do fantastic jobs bringing to life both the subtle and not-so-subtle aspects of Sara and Soujyu. Seki Tomokazu does a good job modulating his voice to give Rentarou depth, occasionally even giving deliberately flat delivery of lines for optimal effect (one priceless instance is his “scream” in episode 1). Unfortunately, he occasionally comes across as more hot-blooded (excited or agitated) than is appropriate. The supporting cast is also pretty strong, with fitting voices and at least solid acting. The one thing that really bothers me about the voice acting is the annoying polyphony generated by Rara and Ruru. Their voices are already annoyingly high; adding unison to that borders on painful. Thankfully, they don’t have many lines. SOUND SCORE: 7.5/10 – PRETTY GOOD CHARACTER: Futakoi Alternative manages to work some amazing magic in the realm of characterization. The main characters are very likable (and well-characterized), and the side characters, though not particularly well-characterized, range from unobtrusive to downright fun to watch. Sara and Soujyu are certainly based on the tsundere and yamato nadeshiko archetypes, but they are never slaves to them. Sara is impulsive, aggressive, and standoffish, but she is also playful, affectionate, and sometimes even reserved; Soujyu is kind, calm, and accepting, but she is also playful, determined, and sometimes even uncontrolled. The twins somehow manage to really come alive. It helps, more than one could possibly expect, to see that they have hobbies utterly unrelated to the plot. Both their personalities are multifaceted, and they are often influenced by the people around them. The obvious example is Rentarou, who frees the inner child in each and allows them to drop the barriers that the harsh, uncaring world forced them to erect. Rentarou is likewise affected by the twins; their dependence and love brings out the father in him (his competence and reliability), which allows him to finally respect himself; their frolicsomeness and immaturity bring out his own childishness (playfulness, happiness) which allows him to finally like himself. Without them - without those aspects of himself that the twins enable - he is but an angsty teenager forever trapped, living in his father's shadow. Sara and Soujyu complete him, and he completes them. They love him and make him capable of loving them back. However, the nature of this love is complex (and confusing to him), as he is both a father and a peer to them. Precisely WHY the twins and Rentarou happen to interact in this mutually-self-actualizing way is unclear, but this complaint is inane. Real life is rarely clearer, and real life gives us far more than 13 episodes to figure out our relationships. All you have to do is watch, and Futakoi Alternative will let you bask in it until you simply FEEL that it's right. Getting over the possible twincest vibes is something entirely different. I somehow managed to get through Futakoi Alternative without really thinking about it, thus avoiding the problem. I'm sure I could discuss the issue in further detail...but this is hardly the right place. CHARACTER SCORE: 9.5/10 – FANTASTIC ENJOYMENT: Futakoi Alternative is immensely (and surprisingly) enjoyable to watch, although for different reasons at different points in the series. Notably, the first episode is one of the best single episodes in all of anime. As for the remainder of the series, it excels as an action-comedy in the early and the later episodes, and it excels as an artistic drama in the middle episodes. However, the transition from the latter to the former is unpleasantly jarring, making it a bit misleading to call the series, as a whole, enjoyable. This transition really is bad enough to endanger enjoyment of the entire series, and, as such, a lot depends on any given viewer’s ability to cope with sudden genre shifts and mood whiplash. If you can tolerate that structural problem, Futakoi Alternative has some extraordinary qualities. The presentation of the series is downright impressive; whether the style is experimental or traditional, the cinematography ranks among the best of the best in terms of scene composition and directing. More importantly, though, the main cast is truly top-tier; rarely does a character come alive to the same extent that Rentarou, Sara, and Soujyu do. The bottom line is that they are simply a joy to watch, and the series does an outstanding job telling their stories. ENJOYMENT SCORE: 8.0/10 – GREAT OVERALL: Futakoi Alternative is a diamond in the rough. Although it appears generic on the surface, it quickly proves itself to be anything but. This does not, however, mean it is a flawless production. The story itself is most certainly not a work of brilliance, and one of the genre/mood shifts near the end is so awful that it threatens the quality of the entire series. However, these weaknesses are far outweighed by its strengths: remarkably powerful characterization and superb artistic direction. These qualities earn Futakoi Alternative a place in my heart, and I think they should earn it a place in your “Plan to Watch” lists. OVERALL SCORE: 8.0/10 – GREAT
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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Apr 1, 2009
Gift: Eternal Rainbow
(Anime)
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Mixed Feelings
"Gift ~eternal rainbow~" is yet another show based on an H-Game. Really, what isn't based on an H-Game nowadays? In any case, I decided to watch it simply on the basis that it had no reviews on AnimeNfo. As such, I did not have high expectations. However, it turned out to be a decent show. By no means was it anything special, but it was somewhat enjoyable.
STORY: 5/10 The story of "Gift" isn't a particularly great one, and it doesn’t always make a whole lot of sense. Not to mention that the gimmick of this series, the Gifts themselves, are ... really kind of unimportant in the grand scheme of things. “Gift” is a romance, complicated by the sibling-esque relationship between Haruhiko and Riko and by the obligatory H-Game diversions. The show spends too much time on side characters. I assume their stories are nods to the source material, but they are simply unnecessary. As regards the relationship between Haruhiko and Riko, its effects don't feel well-considered in the long run, although it eventually doesn't matter. Once their relationship issues are "resolved," the story accelerates rapidly into a love triangle full of drama and betrayal for the final third of the series, with Gifts and the mysteries behind them playing a more central role. Although these elements are interesting, they feel like a bit of an afterthought. I did like the love triangle, though. It was well-motivated, although it was certainly melodramatic. The double-childhood-friend angle was a bit original. Overall: 5/10 – What is essentially generic drivel is redeemed slightly by…I don’t know…the cuteness of the first arc and the intensity and understandable motivation of the last arc? “Please Twins” did a better job handling character responses in a siblings-but-not plot. “KgNE” and “True Tears” had more compelling triangles. Still, though, “Gift” wasn’t terrible. It just wasn’t particularly great. ART: 4/10 Character Designs: Enormous eyes, almost completely filled by the irises. It took a while to get used to it. While this eye design seems to be increasingly common in bishoujo characters, it was odd (in a bad way) to see such large irises in the male lead. Also, the character designs, especially that of the male lead, are very inconsistent. This was most noticeable in facial design and hair, although it occasionally extended to female body proportions. The male lead fluctuated between being cool and attractive (ep 11) and being goofy-looking (ep 1). However, the female leads were consistently decent-looking, and occasionally very pretty. Riko looks a bit too much like Lucy/Nyu from "Elfen Lied" at times, though, which was...peculiar. The color palette is bright, just the way I usually like it. Background Art: Nothing particularly amazing, but it was pleasant and consistent. Pretty much standard in recent years, it seems. Animation: Nothing impressive, but nothing noticeably bad. Seemed fluid enough for its purposes. Cinematography: I didn't notice anything particularly noteworthy. Pretty standard shots. Overall: 4/10 - The inexcusable lack of consistency drags a decent visual production down to a bad one. It still has its rare moments of beauty, though. SOUND: 6/10 OP: A pleasant but non-compelling piece. Guitars (acoustic and bass), strings, and vocals are layered on top of an uptempo rock/break beat. I've encountered quite a few of these lately. BGM: Pleasant, appropriate, and yet forgettable. ED: Actually kind of interesting due to the visual sync with Riko playing the guitar (with actual chords). Otherwise, it's pleasant but nothing memorable. Voice Acting: As someone who is not a native Japanese speaker, I cannot hope to catch the subtleties of delivery. However, for what it's worth, I thought that all the seiyuu were appropriate and matched their characters and their emotions. Also, the occasional non-verbal noises caught my attention and were appreciated. Sound FX: Gift effects sounded cheesy. It was kinda inevitable, though. Not a big deal. Overall: 6/10 - Enjoyable all-around, but forgettable. CHARACTER: 6/10 The characters, in general, were pretty flat or caricature-ish. Background stories were limited to the three leads, primarily to Haruhiko. However, Kirino and Riko acquired a little depth by the end. In addition, Riko and Haruhiko had good rapport as siblings...which was kind of wasted by the romance. Haruhiko: A pretty generic harem-type lead at first, but perhaps a bit more empathetic and open with his feelings. Over time, he seems to become a better person, although I get the sense that this was due only slightly to character development and mostly to inconsistent writing. Kirino: A shy, pleasant girl who likes Haruhiko. She has a more complex relationship with Riko than initially meets the eye. I don’t want to spoil much, so I’ll just say that I liked her motivation in the final arc, although that’s primarily because she simply HAD an understandable motive. Riko: Basically Haruhiko’s adopted sister, who had to leave him years ago. They were great and lively friends, something maintained in their playful treatment of each other. She’s feisty and cheerful, but has a sensitive side and a selfish side that overwhelm her on occasion. She also has a fear of being/becoming alone. If you pay attention, you might notice that she uses slight regression under severe stress. Nice Freudian touch. Also, I was surprised by how kawaii she occasionally managed to be (kawaii enough for me to use fangirl Japanese to describe it). As an afterthought, I remember that I appreciated that she insisted on carrying her own suitcase instead of letting the male lead do it for her. Maki: A supporting character and friend of Haruhiko, although he is more a caricature than a true character. He is the smart, controlling, cold-hard-rational-science-obsessed guy, although he’s really not scientific in his methods. He’s calm and collected, and he also considers the feelings of his friends, which is nice. Then, in addition to these, there are all the girls who probably have their own routes in the game, like Rinka, Chisa, Yukari, and possibly someone on the student council. None of these characters seemed important in any way, really, and I think they detract from the overall experience, making it less focused than it could have been. In terms of interpersonal relationships, we are often left with such ambiguous descriptions as declarations of “love.” However, Kirino eventually describes something a little bit more specific, and it isn’t too hard to figure out what drives Riko’s relationship with Haruhiko (he cares about her, pays attention to her, and is simply there for her, almost as family). Additionally, the relationship between Riko and Haruhiko is supported by a bit of casual banter near the beginning of the series, which actually seems to go a long way in showing their mutual compatibility in the long run. Still, I feel that the relationships in “Gift” are sketchy, primarily because what Haruhiko sees in the girls and/or wants from a relationship with the girls remains a mystery to the audience. Overall: 6/10 – There are a lot of cardboard cutouts, especially at the beginning, when only Riko seems to have any depth, and that’s only because of the way she interacts with her foster brother. On top of that, many are completely unnecessary to the story. However, the added depth to the characters of Riko and Kirino, by the end of the series, manage to pull “Gift” out of the realm of mediocrity and into the realm of decency. ENJOYMENT: 7/10 The odd thing about “Gift ~eternal rainbow~” is that, despite its flaws and rather unremarkable basic essence, I really enjoyed it. Well, I didn’t enjoy it THAT much, but it was a pleasant surprise. It’s probably because I didn’t expect much, as that tends to increase my overall impression. So, really, “Gift” is an unremarkable but generally pleasant romantic drama, with occasional points of noticeable enjoyment, usually provided by Riko in some manner. As such, I have rated my enjoyment as a 7/10. I guess enjoyment would also depend on one’s tolerance for H-Game fare and harem fare: the stuff of male wish-fulfillment. My patience for such content has yet to be depleted, since I usually avoid the genres. “Gift” is far from being the worst of this kind of stuff, but it certainly cannot hold its own against the best shows these genres have to offer, which are often respectable titles within the whole of anime, across genres. SIMPLIFIED RECOMMENDATION: Watch it if you’re in the mood for or have run out of other pleasant romances. Don’t watch it if you’re sick of somewhat shoddy character and plot constructions.
Reviewer’s Rating: 5
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Apr 1, 2009 Not Recommended
Well, I figured I ought to weigh in on the opposite side of the scale, with a less positive review of the series. I'm probably going to end up comparing (i.e. contrasting) this more than I really should with Kyoshiro to Towa no Sora, which is (was?) my current benchmark in bad fantasy anime.
Story: 3/10 Munto TV is a rerelease and continuation of two OVAs from KyoAni in 2003 and 2005, if I recall correctly. The story itself (go check the synopsis) is fairly generic, although that's not a problem if the storytelling is excellent. Of course, therein lies the rub; Munto TV's ... storytelling is anything but excellent. When I say "rerelease," I mean it almost literally; Munto TV feels like it's cobbled together, lacking a proper flow between OVA segments. Additionally, it turns out that not a whole lot actually happens. It doesn't even have a melodramatic and focused (although still cliched as hell) finale, unlike in Kyoshiro to Towa no Sora. Art: 9/10 What can I say? KyoAni is good. Really good. If you want high production values, they'll give 'em to you. The art is crystal clear, and the animation is fluid. Backgrounds are detailed, designs are fitting, both for the environments and for characters. I can dock one point only for the fact that they're not animating very many really awesome sequences, therefore wasting the extraordinary fluidity. Sound: 7/10 The soundtrack is decent, although it doesn't always manage to create the perfect mood, unlike Kyoshiro to Towa no Sora. That series wasn't salvageable either, unsurprisingly, as it's from the fantasy genre too. Instrumentation seems to be of high quality. OP and ED are disposable, as usual. Character: 6/10 Munto TV had a neat thing going with Yumemi as a realistically reluctant and skeptical heroine, but this was wrecked by sudden character shifts required by the OVA timeframe. Lord Munto was pretty cool, but he was also affected by the timeframe. Suzune got way more characterization than she should have, given the timeframe, although I understand that her section of the story was metaphoric. Ichiko was...meh. All other characters might as well not have had names or faces. Really, Yumemi from the first third of the series netted an extra 2 points. Enjoyment: 4/10 It was honestly painful to watch this. This was mainly due to my hopes shattering, with the shards subsequently working their way deeper and deeper into my skin. Maybe that's unfair, but that's the only basis I have for a rating of enjoyment. Episode eight made me want to stop watching, but I was so close to the end that I just sucked it up. It didn't even give me the satisfaction of terribly amusing (and amusingly terrible) screenshots, unlike Kyoshiro to Towa no Sora. Overall: 4/10 Go watch Vision of Escaflowne if you want good fantasy anime. Or go play a fantasy adventure RPG. You really have better things to do with your time than watch this. KyoAni needs to stick to adapting pre-existing material if this is the pinnacle of its story-writing ability.
Reviewer’s Rating: 4
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