I am a big fan of Jun Maeda. While his style of characterization is always a bit direct, and he is a bit preachy with his themes, he's always been careful to try to weave fully-developed people into these fictional worlds of his. He's master at crafting characters that audiences are guaranteed to care about, making their eventual death all the more painful.
For these reasons, as well as the overall premise, Charlotte caught my interest. Unfortunately, as the series rolled on, I started to wonder to myself whether this show was capable of doing anything right as it slides like a derailed locomotive to its
...
inevitable doom.
Minor spoilers for the first 3 to 4 episodes ahead:
Story (3/10): One thing I have never recognized Maeda as is a strong storyteller. His characters have always been the thing that keeps his rather simplistic plots together. In his romance dramas (Kanon, Air and Clannad), most of the big emotional plot turns had something to do with fantastical elements that either affected people's memories, or caused big changes in the plot. So, naturally, it would seem this is the first time Maeda has tackled a story that's almost as plot driven as it is character-driven (especially during the second half).
Does it work? No, it doesn't work at all.
It started off with the declaration that powers were temporary. I was disappointed by this reveal greatly because it meant learning to control your powers would ultimately be pointless, as one would just lose them once adolescence ends. It also nips the potential plot point of having to live with such powers for the rest of one's life in the bud. However, unlike my siblings, I was willing to forgive this.
I could not, however, forgive the numerous other issues that cropped up in the series.
First of all, our antagonists are a faceless void, a combination of government-funded research organizations and criminal syndicates. When they discover that these young people have powers, they forcibly take them from their homes and experiment on them to see exactly how strong their powers are. In fact, their experimentation is so torturous, it cause those who undergo it to become nearly lifeless husks of their former selves that are discarded once they cannot work anymore. Despite how controversial this would be if it was made public, not a single person blows the whistle on the fact that all of these teenagers are being taken from their homes and brought into facilities where they are treated very poorly. Maeda never tries to rationalize why these groups would do this instead of offering these people health care, extra cash, or an increased rep. to get them to work for them. Why earn these folks' disdain if you can get loyal servants through more diplomatic means? If they can find these super beings so effectively, why do they have to routinely capture and torture those who show up? Furthermore, where are the filmmakers who take advantage of these abilities and put them on the big screen? Where is the outcry of rage against this horrible mistreatment? Where are the dissentors at all? Why experiment with these super-powered humans until they became unable to function when you can use their present applications to great effect? All you have to do is test their abilities in safer ways, and if it doesn't work, you bring them back to their homes. But these scientists and syndicates never even try to act rational throughout the course of the series.
Unfortunately, Maeda does little to answer any of these complaints. There are no alternatives to the grand scheme hatched by the heroes near the end of the story; there is no non-linearity and there is no alternatives to the plot he's created. Everything feels so railroaded in this story; there was only ONE twist in this show that legitimately made me go "Huh, that's actually pretty clever" and that was the only time I felt that way about this show. Everything that happens in the plot is a result of stupid evil on the part of the villains, and chronic idiocy on the part of our heroes. And although I cannot speak about the latter half of the show in detail, as it is riddled in spoilers, the story consistently finds new ways to remind you of how unintelligent it is about resolving its conflicts.
Art (7/10): After watching Tari Tari, Charlotte was a surprising disappointment for me in this department. The colors feel washed out, and the animation is surprisingly limited at times. There are moments where the latter shines, but for the most part, it's a rather lackluster affair.
Redeeming it, however, are those BEAUTIFUL landscapes P.A Works loves to boast it has. Every layout is rendered with detail and care. Whenever the on-screen action wasn't catching my eye, I'd turn to those amazing backgrounds, and go "Wow, this is what art is capable of . . ."
Finally, the character designs aren't great, but they get the job done. Na-Ga has basically settled on what design he likes for his characters, and they are quite appealing. There isn't a lot of variety, and our lead in particular has a boring design, but I still found them fitting nevertheless.
Sound (6/10): It's rare for me to say that a soundtrack by Key is lacking in quality, but this one really is. None of the scores are memorable at all. I can only recall pieces of a couple of tracks that might have been decent.
The opening, however, has a really strong impact. It's well-animated, and the atmosphere of the music and the vocals sets the tone for this series very well. It's a shame the ED is nowhere near as memorable. There are a couple of insert songs that the show uses. One is particularly effective (despite its awkward English), but the others are rather forgettable.
Character (5/10): As I mentioned before, Maeda's characters are normally pretty good. Here, unfortunately, most of them range from inconsistent to utterly under-developed.
Yuu Otosaka is our main character. He is a sociopathic teenager who uses his ability to posses others to his own advantage. He cheats on tests, sexually harasses his classmates, and beats up people he doesn't like. He even stages a car accident that has to be precisely timed, just so he can earn the affection of the school's madonna. Once his tactics are exposed by Nao and crew, however, he's forced to transfer to a new school and only use his powers when he's instructed to.
So far, this is actually a pretty interesting character. The marketing wasn't lying when they tease him as being the worst Key lead yet.
Unfortunately . . . He shows very little dissatisfaction with his new state of affairs. He's only passively resentful of the fact he's stuck working with these new friends of his and warms up to them much quicker than one would expect. Need I remind you, these people came out of nowhere, and took him out of his self-indulgent lifestyle BY FORCE. Yet, he show little signs of really despising these people. This could have been played for drama as well as the gradual character development Maeda normally employs, but instead, our writer decides to change his demeanor into something much more reminiscent of our archetypal high school protagonist.
Predictably, Yuu eventually becomes a much nicer person overtime. There is some continuity that recognizes his selfish nature from before, but the show is way too fast to turn him into a decent enough guy. However, the biggest problem with his development is one that's more subtle.
Yuu develops an EXTREMELY strong empathy for total strangers by the time we reach the last third of the series that's never really explained. While he has had time to grow close friends with the Student Council and to care for his school at large, he hasn't really been shown a solid reason to care for everyone on the same level. At the core of it, he's still a self-absorbed person who fights and does things either for himself, or the people he cares about. The only reason he willingly gave up his former lifestyle was because his friends (particularly his love interest) wanted him to. Yes, he has a soft spot for his little sister, but that didn't stop him from acting like a total jerk before. Maeda never adequately explains why he becomes such a chivalrous, boy-scout like hero, a plot point that comes up in a rather infamous episode late in the series. This inconsistent characterization was the central reason I never really felt invested in his character.
Meanwhile, Nao Tomori is our only solid character in the class. She keeps a tight leash on our lead to ensure he doesn't misbehave. Of the cast, she's the only one I was truly captivated by. Her range of interests, emotions, and convictions really reach the par for the craftsmanship Maeda normally shows in his characters. Even better, she's rather unique for a Key lead as well. Not normally do we have a lead who defaults to a more blunt, rather abrasive demeanor without coming off as a tsundere. From her character design to her seemingly uncharacteristic (yet fitting) fangirling over her favorite band Zheind, Nao really was a joy to watch, and she MADE the romance between her and Yuu work.
Joujiro Takajou is our next main character, and at the start of the show, he had a lot of potential. Since our lead was established as a rather over-the-top jerk, he's a foil in a much different way. He's polite, friendly, and rather calm about the awkward situations around him. He provides information about different aspects of the characters for our lead in an understandable fashion, and I couldn't wait for Maeda to elaborate more about his character.
Only . . . Maeda never does. Joujiro never gets a chance to become a fleshed out character. After episode 1, his dialogue tends to get drowned out in running gags that are only funny the first couple times, and he only has one especially meaningful conversation that reveals something about his character in episode 5. After the first half, he and fellow lead Yusa/Misa become very unimportant, and that's disappointing for people who were billed as main characters.
Speaking of, Yusa and Misa are two characters in one. One is a giddy, super-friendly pop star, the other a hilariously abrasive older sister. The contrast between the two makes up a number of the gags in the first half of the series. Unfortunately . . . They don't get a lot of adequate development either. Much like Joujiro, her dialogue is overwhelmingly filled with gags that don't really expand on her character at all. They just repeat broad traits about her over and over again. Unlike Takajou, however, she does get an arc that's resolved. It's not as much as I'd like, but her resolution does remind me that Maeda can write convincing characters when he puts his mind to it.
Ayumi is exactly the type of character you'd expect her to be; she's a very childish archetypal "onii-chan" character who's only distinctive quality is how overbearingly happy she is. She never develops a significant character beyond this, however. It's rather depressing when we see a scene from when she was eight years old, and her dialogue sounds more mature than it does now when she's a middle schooler. Hah . . .
There are a decent number of supporting characters and episodic plot characters who encompass the "find a super-powered being, and get him to stop using it" part of the first five episodes' formula. While a couple of these characters get close to being meaningful, none of them ultimately stuck out to me as being effective. There are a bunch of other characters who I can't talk about in detail without spoiling certain aspects of the plot, but the ones who aren't painfully flat never have their potential fully realized, a flaw which seems to be a theme for this series.
Enjoyment (4/10): What really upsets me about Charlotte, however, is I rarely found myself enjoying it.
There were times I'd get excited about the once-a-week plots, only to find out they never lived up to what they promised they would be. I normally like Jun Maeda's sense of humor, but here, it just didn't work for me. There were too many gags that would only work a couple of times that were played ad nauseum with very little variety, and they did little to establish the characters and their interactions beyond what we already know. Worse, the plot didn't have a lot of luster for me because inside I knew many of the people I would see in the plot weren't going to get adequately developed. That feeling of anticipating failure is not a fun way to watch a series, and it really hurt my enjoyment of this show when I knew it wasn't going to meet my expectations in various ways.
Now, every so often, there was an occasional gag that hit the mark, and Nao was a solid character that made the show a tiny bit palatable. But, the ridiculous number of plot-holes, the inconsistent/under-developed nature of the rest of our cast, and the underwhelming artwork made this feel like a show the creators didn't really try their best at.
Then, there's one other thing about this show that really ticked me off; the thematic conclusion of the series. The super powers are treated by the main cast like they are disease. Despite the fact only a couple are activated subconsciously, the consensus seems to be the world would be better without them. Why? Because these uber-powerful evil organizations want to persecute us for them, so it would be best if they go away. That's right; these special gifts that can be used to help people are deconstructed into a sickness that causes trouble for no rational reason. These powers are even used to benefit others a couple of times in the show, but this is seen as not enough to justify them. Why would you take away gifts that can be used to benefit mankind? If someone can find a way to use a limited version of invisibility, or healing, or pyrokinises to help the world, why in the world should they have them taking away before its time? Has Jun Maeda heard anything of compromise? This is a rather important part of the show's theme, and it really ticks me off that the show reaches a thematic conclusion that I'd find wrong even in-universe.
Overall (4/10): I wasn't asking for the next Clannad for this show; all I wanted was a well-executed series that delivered, if nothing else, solid characters that made a questionable plot worked. All the pieces were there, so there is no reason the series should have been much less than that.
Unfortunately, it was. Charlotte fails to deliver in nearly every category, proving itself to be the first work by Maeda/Key Visual Arts I can confidently say is bad.
All (5)FriendsRSS Feeds |
Sep 26, 2015 Not Recommended
I am a big fan of Jun Maeda. While his style of characterization is always a bit direct, and he is a bit preachy with his themes, he's always been careful to try to weave fully-developed people into these fictional worlds of his. He's master at crafting characters that audiences are guaranteed to care about, making their eventual death all the more painful.
For these reasons, as well as the overall premise, Charlotte caught my interest. Unfortunately, as the series rolled on, I started to wonder to myself whether this show was capable of doing anything right as it slides like a derailed locomotive to its ...
Reviewer’s Rating: 4
What did you think of this review?
Nice
 0
Love it
 0
Funny
 0
Confusing
 0
Informative
 0
Well-written
 0
Creative
 0Show all 
Aug 16, 2015
Kaze Tachinu
(Anime)
add
Recommended
The Wind Rises is director Hayao Miyazaki's swan song; the final chapter of his illustrious film career which features such captivating tales as Spirited Away. Inevitably, his last motion picture is going to be filled with sentimentality and tearful scenes.
The Wind Rise is captivating, but it does not reach the level Miyazaki's other works have. Story (7/10): The Wind Rises details the journey of Jirou Horikoshi as he walks through the many stages of life. His central goal is to become an airplane designer, and much of the plot is spent detailing this process. Through flashback sequences where Jirou talks with a famous Italian designer in ... his dreams, the story reveals the philosophies on life our lead entertains, and what goals he hopes to achieve. This is an excellent narrative device that makes the main character compelling without needing to tediously recite aspects of his character in bland conversational segments. These dreams also contain hints of the themes which (unfortunately) are marred by issues that occur in the latter half of the film. While the first half of the tale does a great job of showing our main character's growth, his pitfalls, and his background, the second half feels a bit lost. A lot of time is spent of a romance that blooms between him, and a girl he helped during an earthquake in their childhood. This wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing were it not for the fact these scenes don't really sell the female character very well. While their relationship is charming in a very earnest way, I never got a feel for their chemistry or the character of Naoko Satomi, and this is a big strike against the film because much of the second half is focused on the main character's connection to her. What's worse, the film wraps up in a rather confusing segment that looks back on the events in the past in an abridged, surprisingly un-insightful. This comes right off the heels of a tear-jerking scene, so it feels even more abrupt than it normally would. While there is a sense of thematic resolution here, the focus of the themes is directed towards a conflict that doesn't get any screen time in the film. Meanwhile, the aformentioned tragic scene lacks a lot of weight beyond the scene's execution (which is excellent) because the character involved isn't developed well-enough. It's almost as if Miyazaki was so satisfied with the first half of his film that he decided to play the second half of the film very close-vested. If he had given the latter portion of the film more balance in its focus, it may well have turned out better in this department. Art (9.5/10): Studio Ghibli delivers an A+ effort here. The animation is exceptionally smooth, and the colors are strong and vibrant. The backdrops are grand yet simple, poignant but grounded. The animation work on aircraft in particular is a lot better than some of the work that animation giant Walt Disney has produced. The only reason I gave this a 9.5 was because Studio Ghibli's designs are very average. This works thematically, but the lack of fantastical creatures to shake up the art design makes it feel like a very standard effort, while the rest of the film's visuals are exceptional. Sound (8/10): This is a film where the dialog and on-screen visuals can usually carry the weight of a movie. However, a good score that compliments the themes and the story rather than overshadows it can make it that much better. The Wind Rises does just this. Each tune, whether whimsical, nostalgic, or tragic syncs up to the bullet points of the scene perfectly. Never once did I feel the music in a particular scene was out of place. The individual tunes rarely stood out (which is a bit of a flaw), but they served their intended purpose and did so perfectly, so I'm not going to gripe them too much for that. The film's couple vocal tracks are fitting, but they aren't as effective as the score. I only saw the English dub for this film, and it was decent. Despite it being generally well-acted, however, the writing doesn't always match up with the lip-syncing terribly well. Not all of the script is smooth, and there are a couple awkward deliveries here and there. Nevertheless, it is well-cast, and captures the spirit of the film well. Character (6/10): Jirou is an excellent lead. Miyazaki not only comes up with clever ways to expose his ideals, detail his background, and portray his growth, but he is a solid character from beginning to end. He's kind, earnest, and determined, but still doubts himself on multiple occasions. He's overwhelmed from his job sometimes; he doesn't think he'll be able to meet a deadline; he doesn't know whether he's catching the eye of his crush; he smokes often just to keep his calm. Miyazaki often crafts relatable leads, and he does an exemplary job with Jirou. Unfortunately, the rest of the cast pales in comparison. While I liked them okay, and did find their quirks realistic, I found the Italian plane designer, portrayed only in Jirou's dreams, more convincing than Naoko. For a lead heroine who steals the spotlight in the second-half, she just came off as awfully bland. This isn't because she's normal, either, because Jirou is very normal, yet is simultaneously compelling, so I think the central problem is that the film never elaborates why Jirou grows to like her or what specific traits she has. Because of that, she feels like a broad strokes canvas waiting to be filled with color and detail. As for the rest of the cast, they suffer similar problems (though, they do at least get specific quirks). Jiro's best friend who he tackles much of flight school with has his moments but doesn't come into his own, Martin Short's character is very relatable, but not particularly convincing. The same goes for the one-scene-wonder characters as well. Perhaps the film was trying to convey that sometimes, we don't ever know as much as we'd like about the people who influence our lives, but I don't think it comes off strongly enough here to be meaningful. Giovanni, as I mentioned earlier, is interesting. Not only does he represent Jirou's ambitions and his reasons for being so determined, it also gives us a peek into the eccentricities of the man, as well as his "anything is possible" attitude. The biggest reason each dream sequence of Jirou's really worked was because of him. Enjoyment (7/10): I did enjoy watching this film. I loved the lead character and his mentor, the fabulous art direction, the complimenting score, and the well-structured first half of the story. But, because of how uneven in focus the second half is, how little it made me care about the lead heroine, and how it failed to address it's themes properly . . . I couldn't enjoy this as much as I would. I didn't find the scene before the rolling credits satisfying; I was disappointed by it. At the very least, the lack of development in the second half could have been resolved by a beautiful final scene, but instead, we get another scene that lacks build-up. It was sad for me, especially because this is the last film the wonderful Miyazaki will ever direct. However, that doesn't mean I stopped caring. I wanted to find out what happens in Jirou's life, I wanted to see where his relationship with his girlfriend left, I wanted to see how the other people in his life played a role, the film did just enough to keep me watching this film, even when development became very sparse. Besides that, the grand, balanced viewpoint the movie has on ambitions, dreams, and nostalgia is heart-warming and well-executed. It's a hard film for me to watch because of how tear-jerking these things are, but they're given so much respect here by Miyazaki, a man obviously passionate about this film, that they're still effective despite this movie's flaws. Overall (7/10): The Wind Rises is not one of Miyazaki's better films, neither is it even a great movie, because of its failure to develop most characters aside from the lead, and its lack of resolution. However, the heart-wrenching themes, beautiful art design, and compelling lead character are certainly enough reason to watch this film. For these reasons, it's a film I believe fans of Miyazaki's works, and those who aren't, should watch.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Informative
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all 
Aug 15, 2015 Mixed Feelings
Sonic X was a favorite of mine back in the day. When the show aired on Saturday mornings, courtesy of the CW4kids, the Sonic fan in me tuned in every Saturday to watch the adventures of Chris Thorndyke and his stranded alien, animal, anthropomorphic friends. What Sega hoped to do what this series was popularize the brand by conveying Sonic's video game adventures in a television format.
Does it work? Sort of . . . It gets some things right but some things wrong. Story (7/10): Season 1 is a mostly episodic set-up that details the Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh (I mean, Sonic and Chris). ... The first episode details how Chaos Control (teleportation, a power granted by the Chaos Emeralds) mis-used by Eggman whisks Sonic and his friends away from their planet, Mobius, to the real world. There, Sonic and his friends take shelter at the home of a lonely, 12-year-old rich kid name Chris's mansion. In fear of what would happen if their identities were revealed, Chris tries to help Sonic and co. stay below the public eye (though these attempts ultimately prove futile). As you can tell by this premise, there are little to no overarching plot details, so I'll have to judge the episodic story lines by what merits do have. They're a blend of action and slice-of-life sitcom antics that worked okay for me at the time but thinking back on it now, come off as rather bland. The central reason behind this is how oddly slow-paced this show is. Most modern cartoon series know that kids tend to prefer a faster pace. It lends itself to more intense action, snappier comedy, and compelling events. These things help keep aforementioned target audience interested. Unfortunately, Sonic X doesn't really do this. Even as a kid, I recall yawning during most of these season 1 episodes because the writers spent way too much time on conversational scenes that have no weight. Because of the archetypal nature of these characters, conversations in the boring mansion backdrop aren't going to entertain, especially when they're sparse on humor. Oddly enough, the human characters are used for humor more often than Sonic's group, who seem to take their conflicts a bit too seriously. This results in an uneven tone that only kept me hooked because I cared about the Sonic characters. Season two picks things up a bit, adapting plots from Sonic Adventures 1 and 2, only using the human characters established in the series. Now, this was a bit more compelling. From Sonic and Shadow's duels, to the climatic battles between titanic foes, season 2 was action-packed and filled with thrills that entertained me at the time. There's a surprising bit of pathos behind the stories, and even the slower-paced conversational scenes worked better because it felt there was actually something to talk about. Sure, 12-year-old wish fulfillment was at play here, but it was still a LOT more enjoyable than season 1. Season three is . . . weird. This time around, Eggman's not even an antagonist, but an occasional ally. The foe this time around is a space-fearing race known as the Meterax who are in pursuit of an OC for reasons established during the plot. It's the series attempt at an overarching story, and it does a decent job. The Meterax are pretty bland as far as overlords go, but to its credit, the arc is fairly well-executed Ensemble darkhorses like Shadow and Rogue only get bit parts (unfortunately), but otherwise, it's a decently executed (if not terribly distinct) storyline. Art (5/10): Ugh. TMS does not bring their best here at all. Very little here is well-done. The colors are bland, the backgrounds are forgettable, and the animation is limited during conversations and cuts corners during fight scenes. This is egregious because a series like Sonic should be more fast-paced (pun totally intended), not a weird mix of camera pans, looped animation, and dragged frames. The human character designs are bland, with little to distinguish them from the anime grain. To its credit, though, the Sonic characters are rendered accurately. Sure, Snic has less quills than he normally does, but TMS brings their designs to traditional animation form about as accurately as one could do so. If only they moved a little more . . . Sound (8/10): Whether America's "Gotta Go Fast" or Japan's "Sonic Drive", I remember Sonic X for its iconic themes. They were catchy, upbeat, and opening themes that really capture the tone of the video game series. The 4kids score, however, was pretty weak and didn't have any memorable tones. The anime's, however, was well-done and matched the on-screen action well. The future ending themes for Sonic X in Japan were strong as well. T.O.P was my personal favorite. Combined with cool on-screen visuals, it conveyed the smooth, cool side of Sonic exceptionally well. While the English dub of this series is well-cast, it's not terribly well-acted. Besides its script inconsistencies, the voice acting is stiff and awkward at times (it would take time for this cast to come into their own). Conversely, the Japanese voice isn't terribly well-cast, but its much better acted. I wouldn't blame most people if they watched the sub on Hulu because of this. Character (6/10): I mentioned earlier that Sonic and his friends are archetypal, but that doesn't mean they have to be boring. These video game characters have enough personality that they should be able to drive a series like this. Unfortunately, they don't get enough screen time and what little they do get is marred by underwhelming comedy, and poorly-executed build up to episodic conflicts. Sonic, in particular, feels like an enigmatic drifter who we only cut to when we need him. He's got his cocky, classical anti-hero style traits like he does in the video games, but they don't shine through here because the main character spot is taken by Chris Throndyke, an utterly forgettable progtagonist. Ash Ketchum and the lead from the Beyblade series look compelling compared to this guy's generic niceness, really looks up to Sonic as role model stuff. His one distinctive trait (his lonely rich kid side) doesn't get enough screen time or development to be interesting. To his credit, though, his emotion in some particularly tear-jerking scenes does ring true. The other human characters are pretty boring. The butler has his moments but isn't strong enough to be memorable, the scientist is bland in much the same Chris is, and the maid is a boring stereotype. Chris's uncle, Sam, is a weak Human Torch expy, and the President is about as memorable as an unnamed president would be. One of the only strong characters in the human cast is Topaz, an original character who is a member of GUN. Her vitriolic relationship with Rogue is well-executed, and she's played refreshing straight as a normal person swept into these events without her consent. A couple one-shot humans, like a traumatized GUN soldier in seasons 2, and Helen in season 3, are also portrayed effectively and show more distinctiveness than their supporting/main character peers. As for Sonic's friends, they have their canon traits. Amy loves Sonic, yet is kinda violent to everyone else, Cream is the enthusiastic younger sister type character, Knuckles is, well, a knucklehead who is kinda slow at times, and Tails is the upbeat, ready to help sidekick. These personalities don't get a lot of limelight in season 1, but get some tests in seasons 2 and 3. These moments are refreshing, but they certainly don't take them out of one-note character. Dr. Eggman is admittedly entertaining, and he gets really cool a couple times late in the series but is mostly a bright spot because the rest of the cast is that bland. It's bit post-morteum to say this now, but his robot buddies, Decoe and Boccoe, are only good for a couple gags. Enjoyment (6/10): I LOVED this series when I was younger. For all its flaws, it was my favorite characters on the TV screen, battling evil, going through drama, and having fun together. Does it really stack up for me now? Honestly, there are so many other series that fill the quotient for this series better. It has a really yawn-inducing first season, and the next two seasons, while decently-executed, don't stand out much from its contemporaries. The main reason I'll remember this series is because of how nostalgic it was, and that despite its slow pace, I still tuned in every week I could. So, props for that. Overall (6/10): Don't watch this series if you're not a fan of the franchise, casual or otherwise. But, if you are, this series might be diverting. If you can make it past season 1, there are legitimately enjoyable plots, scenes, and character dramas. It's just not gonna appeal much to those who don't care about the franchise already.
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Informative
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all 
Aug 13, 2015 Recommended
Part of a 4-series deal between Marvel and Madhouse, I eagerly anticipated the X-men anime. Based off a comic that features my favorite Marvel Comic team, the X-men anime focuses on the titular group as they re-form several years after the death of a teammate (for your comic fans, guess who gets to kick the bucket). In the process of investigating the exploits of a psychotic cult known as the U-Men, the X-men recruit two new female teammates and discover there's more to the U-Men's plot then meets the eye . . .
Story (6/10): The story of the X-men anime is a mish-mash of various ... comic book story-lines, only set in Japan instead of the U.S. The story is fairly well-structured, and each episode leaves viewers guessing at what the outcome of the next episode will be. It keeps you hooked to the end, and the flaws that crop up here and there won't dissuade viewers from seeing this one to the end. Unfortunately, Warren Ellis's yarn just doesn't weave into a great story. As characters, the U-Men are pretty bland, only defined by how despicable their schemes are. Their enigmatic leader has a lot of gravitas, but even he's bland as far as egomaniacs go. Pacing is also pretty bad, with big twists happening with little lead-up provided by the conversations between characters. One mysterious organization from the comics that gets some backstory in the show doesn't really make a proper appearance in this show, despite having build-up. In addition, one of the most popular X-men stories that ends up incorporated in this series lacks weight here because one of the key characters involved, as well as his relationship to a main in the series, isn't properly developed. While emotional ties made the original arc, it doesn't really work well here, and the climax is unsatisfying because of it. On a more minor note, the X-men roster in this anime (Cyclops, Wolverine, Beast, Storm, and later Emma Frost and Armor) is a bit odd. Comic book fans will inevitably find the roster odd, as the main cast basically feels like a fragmented version of the New X-men from the Chris Claremont days. On the plus side, the writer carefully plants mythology nods and characters to appease comic fans (which I certainly appreciated). Art (8/10): Madhouse delivers a visual experience fitting of the X-men. Characters are rendered with lush detail that emphasizes darker colors to match with the grimmer atmosphere of the series. Even Wolverine's crazy-hair (which took a BIT for me to get used to), is faithful to his comic design. Aside from some ridiculous proportions on the part of the female characters, all of the character designs satisfied my desire to see well-proportioned characters in anime every so often. Each major/minor character design is also distinct, and the villains in particular get some really freaky yet cool-looking designs. Background are drop-dead gorgeous from the front lawn of the X-mansion to the holo-screens brimming with detailed English text. The colors also compliment the series' tone very well, supplying dark colors in much the same way the palette does. The animation, meanwhile, is good. Fight scenes are intricate and fast-paced, though a couple do turn into shaky-cam messes. The only time this quality slips is during casual conversation scenes. It's a bit limited, and relies too much on the voice actors to sell the characters. Sound (7/10): The opening and ending themes in this series are cool, but lack the staying power that the 90s X-men series' theme had. The music is fine, but so standard, I rarely ever took notice of it. The voice cast, on the other hand, is impressive. I only saw a little bit of the Japanese vocals, and I feel the voices lacked the character and distinctiveness needed to give the X-men justice. The English cast, on the other hand, is superb. Scott Porter gives a solid performance as Cyclops, blending his leadership experience, angst, and new found cynicism into each of his lines. Steve Blum and Fred Tatasciore steal the show as Wolverine and Beast. Here, Steve Blum is not only re-visiting his anime roots, but playing a character he's acted for years, resulting in a smooth, grizzly performance that fits the adamantium berserker perfectly. Fred Tatasciore, meanwhile, voices a Beast that embodies his scientific skill and trademark wit very well. Storm's actress exudes confidence and the motherly affection trademark of the character. Finally, Stephenie Sheh as newcomer Armor is great casting, as she sells the high school girl adjusting to the role of a X-man, yet still trying to be confident, extraordinarily well. Emma Frost, however, was fairly forgettable. Her wispy, slightly icy delivery didn't have the punch that Kari Wahlgren's brilliant, very British performance in Wolverine and the X-men did. Meanwhile, Cam Clarke's Professor X is too ordinary to be worth mentioning. The extras and minor villains are fine but aren't particularly memorable. I can't give away who the major villain is, but Travis Willingham gives him a LOT of flair and sometimes, almost made me forget at the core of it, his character is kinda bland. Character (8/10): As an X-men series, the central goal of the writer is to effectively show the comradery of the team. Warren Ellis does that excellently here. From Cyclops and Wolverine's pool games, to Storm and Wolverine's contrasting personalities, and Beast and Cyclops' casual friendship, this series captures the dynamic between the X-men pitch perfectly. Each character feels thought-out and realized, and there reactions to newcomer Armor are very in-character. As for the character herself, I was surprised to find she was no way near as annoying as Jubilee in the 90s X-men series (though, her forced importance to the final conflict is a bit irritating and fanficy in nature) and was actually compelling in her own way. Professor X's characterization doesn't break any new ground, but Warren Ellis effectively relays his personality as well. Unfortunately, Emma Frost is bland, and at odd with her comics persona. This wouldn't necessarily be unwarranted if her discovered morality was fleshed-out, but the character almost takes her turn to good as understandable. We get some peeks into the loneliness she felt as a mutant, but her turn to good still doesn't ring true. It's never sufficiently laid out why she betrayed the group of villains she belongs to, so I was never really sold on nice, mentor to Armor Emma. The same could be said for the villains. Despite being visually interesting and having cool abilities, none of them really had much character. I suppose this isn't much of a problem for a quirky mini-boss squad, but this problem carries over to our big bad as well. Despite how cool his design and voice is, his scheme comes off as crazy and doesn't really mesh with his character aside from him just being evil. While evil overlords are fine, not enough time is given to his growth as a person, especially considering the myth arc he has. There are two significant characters who I can't get too much in to because of spoilers. One is a scientist who taught Armor at a school similar to Xavier's in the past. Her personality is based off a character in the comics, and Warren Ellis tries desperately to convince us she's a strong character. And while I'll say she's well-justified, for how significant this person is, I never really connected with her. Meanwhile, the other character who plays a significant part in the climax really doesn't get any character and comes off as a one-dimensional macguffin. Enjoyment (8/10): The biggest reason I enjoyed X-men was because of how loyal it was to the characters. The show looks and feels like a contemporary Marvel Comics story (but with more Japan) and gets the characters better than most of the modern comics do. I was intrigued by the plot and wanted to continue to watch it just to find out how it all ended up. I enjoyed Madhouse's well-directed fight scenes, and the friendly banter amongts the characters. Heck, I even enjoyed the token newbie female character more than I thought it would. Even if the plot lacked weight thanks to its flat villains, the mystery surrounding their intention was fun, and I felt Warren Ellis tried his hardest to sell each of the personalities in this stories. Overall (8/10): I would absolutely recommend this series to X-men/Marvel Comic fans, as well as people not familiar with Marvel but are fans with anime. Its villains are severely short-changed, but the main cast is so likable and true to the pathos set up by the comics, I connected to them instantly. The fight scenes also put the characters abilities on display nicely. Sure, it's got several flaws, but it's a strong story that sells the colorful characters well.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Informative
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all 
Aug 9, 2015
Uchuu Senkan Yamato 2199
(Anime)
add
Recommended
About two years ago, I watched through the original Star Blazers/Yamato series, as well as the sequel and inter-quel movies that accompanied them. While they each had significant flaws (under-developed characters, lack of world building, and short-changed arcs in the case of season 3), I enjoyed following the adventures of the Space Battleship Yamato from series to series thanks to its well-animated fight scenes for the time, thought-provoking (if heavy-handed), exploration of moral grey areas, and the inspirational message that no matter what happens, good will triumph over evil.
I was ecstatic when I discovered the series was being re-made in the form of Space Battleship ... Yamato 2199. With contemporary, more detailed character designs, smoother animation, gorgeous CGI fight scenes, everything seemed to be in place for an show that takes all of the good things about its foundation series and makes it better. For the most part in the first half of the series, this was true. But once the series had approached and reached its climax, I realized the show had short-changed many of the plot and character arcs that looked so interesting at the start of the series; almost as if the writers took the easy route and created moral compromises that were simpler for the audience to resolve and understand. Story (6/10): Yamato 2199 (or Star Blazers 2199 as it's called on the DVD releases from Voyager Entertainment) follows the same basic plot as its predecessor. However, several subplots are added that give the series much more depth and nuance than its predecessor. A botched attempt to deal with the invasion of the Gammilas is established, developed, and comes full-front about half-way through the show, relationships and conflict are established among members of the Gamilas staff (who now have distinct personalities), and Dessler is planning some sort of conspiracy he hasn't seemed to make any of his staff aware of. I have to go out and say that this series does an EXCEPTIONAL job of developing these plots bit by bit, giving them just enough time in each episode to give new info about them without giving away anything. This series kept me hooked week-to-week thanks to how much promising plot material was surely going to be explored late in the series. In addition, an plot thread following main heroine, Yuki, implies she's actually an Iscandarian Princess. Very intriguing stuff. But . . . Well . . . On the plus side, the series does bother resolving these plot threads. It just does so in a very unsatisfactory manner. Project Izumo's plan is dealt with in the course of just one episode (No. 16) and derails the sympathy and morality of the plan and one of its key members in the process. The intrigue of the Gamilas staff is dealt with when one, obviously evil member goes rogue, and no dissent and political backstabs are ever heard from again. Dessler's 'conspiracy' turns out to be one of the most fool-hardy, and gratuitous turns since Prince Schiezel and Dewey Novak. And Yuki . . . don't get me started . . . But they resolved the arc in the worst way possible, simultaneously insulting their audience for thinking their conclusion on what she was was right. As opposed to leaving opportunities for audience interpretation and debates over whether certain actions or right or wrong, the series insists on telling us who the guys we're supposed to feel bad for our, and who we're supposed to despise. It's an uninteresting, linear way to conclude these arcs when it would have been much more effective to leave some ambiguity as to who is right. There is an arc I can't really go into detail on without spoiling the resolution, but it's yet another unnecessary turn that would've made more of an impact if they had gone with a simple solution. Sometimes, it feels like the series just goes out of its way to make sure every questionable moral decision is either justified or downright wrong. There is only one episode completely segregated from the main plot, and its a story featuring the red robot, Analyzer, who is (thankfully), nowhere near as annoying in this show. The plot could've been deep, but like much of the series, it was far too heavy-handed, and without reasonable rhetorical discussion to be worthwhile. Honestly, the backstory in the episode that was basically created for the sole purpose of providing paralells would have been a better way to spend an episode than what they decided. To its credit, though, the last few episodes of the show are okay. They wrap up the series well, and the deux ex machina ending of the orignal now has some explanation here. It wraps the series up well for the most part, but a crippling lack of explanation of a key background element where a huge leap in logic is made is never explained. Art (9/10): Yamato 2199 excels in the presentation department, particularly in its visuals. The traditional animation is smooth, each body movement serving a purpose in illustrating character. The updated character designs are much nicer and distinct looking than the ones in the classic show, and help give personality to the Yamato crew, as well as the Gamilas characters. There are a couple of off-model episodes (such as 11 and 12 when Xebec first took over animation duties from AIC), but otherwise, it's definitely solid. The CGI, meanwhile, is drop-dead gorgeous. Fights are rendered with far more sophisticaed animation than most TV computer generation. The models of the ships are extremely accurate to the ones used in the old show, with some additional designs and alterations to add distinctiveness. Explosions and particle effects are powerful and breath-taking to the point I eagerly anticipated each fight scene even more than I did in the old show. Sound (8/10): The scoring for the show is done by Akira Miyagawa, son of the composer of the original series. As a result, the majority of the tunes are snazzy remixes of the father's exceptional work, so it sounds very polished. It gives the series a retro feel that meshes with the setting very well, as well as the themes of sentimentality. A couple of the tunes haven't aged well, and sound a bit too old, but the tunes work well for the most part. The opening is a remix of the old one, and is just as grand in scale as it has always been. The thing that stands out the most about this series' sound, however, is the choice in ending themes. They're changed up every four episodes, and they each compliment the arc stories/themes exceptionally well. The first one, in particular, by Aira Yuhki, has become one of my favorite ending themes of all time. Character (6/10): Much like the resolutions to the plots, some of the character arcs are rather disappointing. You know it's bad when I believe the Yuki from the old series had more character than the one in this remake. In the first four episodes, Yuki is established as awkwardly polite with people she doesn't know, but abrasive towards the enthusiastic attitude some of her comrades have towards war. She's respectful to her superiors but feel people are too quick to assume war is the only option. Thus, her relationship with Kodai is tense, lessened when she realizes he's more human then he appears. After episode 5, though, the writers decided they didn't like the direction they decided to take her character, so they stopped her development. Suddenly, she turns into THE most generic main heroine I have seen in any anime I've watched up until now. The writers never decided what new character traits to give her, so they never gave her a personality to fill in the void. As a result, the prominence she gets is very irritating and distracts from a much more colorful supporting cast. Dessler is the second big disappointment. Set up as an enigmatic ruler with his own goals who, nevertheless, is surprisingly kind an lenient with conquered species, turns out to be not nearly as complex as he's seem. Worse, he could've easily enacted his plan because of how loyal his staff and people were to him, so his plot wasn't even practical in the least. I can't go into much more detail than that, but there is virtually no foreshadowing for it, and very little explanation as to why he'd go to such great lengths. Other than that, though, the characters are pretty strong. Okita is as likeable an captain as he was in the original series, Kodai is more strong and confident in himself, making his inevitable rise to Captain more understandable, and his relationship with Shima is more genuine since the latter has a more vivid, friendly, enthusiastic personality. There are many, many more characters who I could talk about, but most of them are pretty solid. There's the witty scientist, Niimi, radio announcer Yuria, cocky gunman Nanbu, old engineer Tokugawa, there are a plethora of colorful personalites that sadly, only have the time to be somewhat revealed during the course of series time. However, each of them get enough development that you feel like you know them, and ultimately, you grow to care about them. In addition, there are a number of female characters added here (a quality severely lacking from the previous series), who all stand out in their own way. Pilot Akira Yamamoto, in particular, is an excellent character, and was teased as a possible romantic interest for Kodai, only for Yuki to take center stage with no explanation. Had she been the main heroine, this series would gain back points in its favor. The one other significant character who was interesting until, unfortunately, he wasn't, is the slimy security chief, Shinya Itou. He has an interesting dynamic with Niimi and oozes with so much evil, he's actually rather charming. Unfortunately, he goes insane half-way through when his plan starts failing, and boringly loses his composure (again, way too easy to tell who the bad guys are). He actually somewhat redeems himself later on, but it's not quite enough to sell me on the character. Then there's the Gamilas General Domel, who steals the show whenever he's on screen. He's easily in my top three for most favorite character in the series thanks to how straight he's played as a principled, sympathetic character who's, nevertheless, bound to Gamilas due to his code of honor. Enjoyment (7/10): For all of the execution issues this series has (particularly when it comes to climaxes and resolutions), I enjoyed Space Battleship Yamato 2199 through and through. Sure, the first half was a lot better than the second, but the supporting cast and some of the main characters remained colorful, the visuals were top-notch, and the music was great. And even if the ideas were poorly-handled, the new concepts were great potential ways to improve on the original series. And, some of the new ideas, do work pretty well. The aforementioned fair treatment of races the Gammilas encounter? That was really cool, and it made the now justified pale-skinned Schultz a more compelling character. Even if a lot of the nuance is lost, there's still depth to much of what happened, and being a fan of the original series, all of the fanservice for super fans of the original series was great and helped me enjoy the cast even more than I would've otherwise. Overall (7/10): It's littered with character flaws, and anti-climaxes, but I can still earnestly recommend this series. It does have a good supporting cast, solid visuals, and a good main character. Sure, it fails to realize a good bit of its potential nearly as much as it should, but fans of the original series and newcomers will still enjoy this series, issues and all.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Informative
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all 
Aug 7, 2015 Recommended
I'm a big slice-of-life guy. Anime like Clannad and Hyouka have captivated me with their simple plots propelled by complex, well-thought out characters who experience situations and complications in their ordinary lives that hit very close to home. The charm of such school life adventures persuaded to watch a few of such tales.
Tari Tari is such a series. Produced by the creme de la creme of animation companies, P.A. Works, Tari Tari follows the story of four characters, three female, two male, who form a choir club in their senior year of high school in hopes of tying the loose ends in their lives before ... moving on. Story (6/10): Tari Tari follows a standard structure for a school life series. The tale is told through three or four episode arcs that put a particular character in the spotlight and explore their goals, motivation, and crises in detail. This formula has been proven to work for other series, so there's no denying the logic in choosing this method of narrative. The problem is that Tari Tari doesn't pace itself to its 13 episode length accordingly. Three or four episodes is far too much time to spend on a single character out of five, and the arcs are paced a bit too slow. Too much time is spent on fairly irrelevant happenings, such as a low-stakes tennis game and an admittedly humorous Super Sentai parody episode. In a series such as this, the producers cannot afford to waste anytime; everything must be devoted to developing the characters and elaborating the details of its plot. Unfortunately, this wasted time leaves the show feeling like it ended too soon, damaging its impact significantly. In spite of this, Tari Tari's story and arcs are well-constructed and meaningful, even if they drag too long for such a short show. From Konatsu's energetic determination to make her own variant of the Choir Club and bring her different friends together, to Sawa's determination to ride horses professionally despite her father's wishes, each plot is emotional and has exactly as much weight as it should, with no conflict feeling overblown or easily avoided. Scenes swelling with feeling and weight are positioned at exactly the right moments, and each story feels distinct, yet equally effective. Sentimentality and themes of continuing to move on through ruined ambitions and tragic happenings are incorporated into each of these arcs seamlessly and contribute their own two cents to the emotional tone of the series. The arcs characters go through in the course of the series are all significant to the series' overarching portrayal of the good and bad of growing up and moving forward. Wakana's arc is especially effective. Her tale has the most weight of all of the characters and has a really strong climatic payoff. Despite this, the series simply takes too long on these routes. And as a result, two major characters never get substantial development, much less a story arc. This painful consequence to the series' structure is why I docked it as many points as I did. Art (8/10): P.A Works does an exemplary job in the visual department for this series. The backgrounds are gorgeous and have a grand sense of scale that crafts a vivid, beautiful looking world that emphasize the beauty in simple locales. The animation is on-par for the studio's works with vivid animation that portrays Sakai's introvertedness, Wakana's confidence, Taichi's abrasiveness, and Konatsu's energy in a way that distinguishes the characters from their bland designs. I counted several times early in the series that I found myself mistaking Wakana for Sakai and vice versa. Sound (7/10): The music can be described in one word: good. The score matches the tone of the show well, the opening theme is memorable, and the choir performances are well-executed. Conversely, the ending theme is utterly forgettable. Meanwhile, the voice acting is strong, but for the most part, doesn't really stand out. Wakana and Sakai's actresses do a good job of giving their characters unique performances, but there are no A quality acting jobs here. Character (7/10): Tari Tari's personalities are well-elaborated and entertaining. I didn't dislike a single one of the characters. Konatsu's energetic, never-give-up disposition granted her a charm almost instantly and Wakana's confident, straight-woman attitude contrasts her to the more colorful personalities around her. Sakai is quiet, but far from unfriendly, and actually shows her nicer side once the other characters push her to speak out. Her backstory perfectly justifies her behavior, and she has to be one of the most realistic portrayals of an introvert I have ever seen in anime. The relationships these characters have with each other, and the dialogue they share is cliche at times, but their characters still shine through nonetheless. Our male leads, however, end up being fairly forgettable. Austrian foreigner Atshuiro has an earnest, totally nice personality that is played out to its logical conclusion. The most amount of internal conflict he has is minor, and in his stringent moral code, rational viewers will realize this strife is self-inflicted. Its a consistent character, but because his dialog is often played for comedy, only shades of his personality come through dialog, and the lack of significant conflict for him to go through during the series makes him a static character. Considering a series where the majority of the mains have to go through harsh trials and tribulations to decide their future, this is a bit jarring. Meanwhile, tennis player Taichi Tanaka is easily the most bland of the main cast. He's one of the characters who has his ambitions crushed, but unlike the other leads, he doesn't go through an intriguing change or trial phase because of it. He plays the role of abrasive jerk with a heart of gold throughout the series and shows little development. A romance sub-plot that had been hinted at early in the story further develops in the last few episodes, but nothing ever comes of this. As a result, Taichi comes off as a third-wheel who could've easily been written out of the show to make room for the other characters, and this is disappointing because of how character-driven this series is. Enjoyment (7/10): On the one hand, Tari Tari has a lot of appealing qualities. Most of its characters are quirky, yet simultaneously grounded, making them relatable, the art direction is excellent, and the character arcs have a lot of weight. Each piece of these stories is well-crafted, directed, and executed. Most significantly, the theme captured the last year of these fictional high schoolers academic lives in such a poignant, sentimental way that it was both touching, yet unpleasant to watch. On the one hand, it's a beautiful send-off. On the other hand, I didn't really get the feel that life has beautiful things for these characters in the future. There's a disconnect for me as a viewer between the fact these characters are going on to wonderful lives and that their graduation marks the end of their lives in storytelling. This isn't a strike in quality, because this disconnect is part of what makes this effect, but it personally prevented me from enjoying the series as much as I normally would. On a more quality-related note, the aforementioned male characters who don't get as much elaboration as the female leads keeps the series from reaching "great" level. The poor pacing is at-blame for this, and the lack of resolution for a key sub-plot makes it feel like the overarching story wasn't carefully thought-out, which lead to such careless mistakes as this. I appreciated the occasional times the series examined the details of choir singing, because it distracted from the times the series got bland. Tari Tari is so painfully normal sometimes, that it loses some of its charm. The pieces are there; the main cast is mostly strong, the supporting cast is colorful, by all accounts, this should be an interesting series. But, somehow, this series fails to really distinguish itself from the grain. There isn't something specific I can lock on to this series does that's different or new compared to its competitors, so I didn't see an enjoyable, distinct school life anime in this show. Overall (7/10): Nevertheless, this was worth my time. The characters are well-developed and their arcs are relatable, the art direction perfectly fits the setting, and the comedy (when it's not overly quirky), is charming in a plain, endearing way. For all the shortcomings that keep it from being a series that sticks out from the fray, Tari Tari is worth the watch for school life anime fans simply because of how well it executes the standard elements of its genre.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Informative
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all 
Aug 6, 2015
School Days
(Anime)
add
Not Recommended
School Days, a twelve episode TNK anime production based on a notorious visual novel by Overflow (which featured a few graphically violent endings) was an extremely divisive topic during its prime. Some argued it was an excellent deconstruction of school life romance dramas, while others argued it was overblown and gratuitous.
I would definitely fall into the latter camp. Story (3/10): I will give School Days some credit; the premise of following a group of high schoolers perverting love into a self-fulfilling fantasy well all their desires are met is an intriguing one that hits surprisingly close to crises that occur in actual high schools. And the ... plot is structured logically with key events happening in time precisely when you'd expect them to. The pacing of the series is impressive as well, with the plot moving at a steady beat that's never too fast nor too slow. However, to properly follow through with such a concept, you need build-up. The author would need to work their hardest at developing life-like, understandable characters who despite their warped actions, would have sympathetic qualities. We'd have to explore the friendships these characters have, and the reasons, whether in back story or in present day, why things go worse and worse for the character as the fall semester of the school year progresses. If this is at least ATTEMPTED, the series would have a hook-worthy premise that has rarely been attempted in anime before. Instead, the author copped out, leading to what is probably the most shallow soap opera story of all time. Characters aren't ex-posited upon; we don't get relevant peeks at their backstory or explorations of their thoughts and opinions on different subjects relating to their relationships. We don't get any type of feel for how these characters normally interact with each other, or the reasons they might start to take increasingly selfish actions to get what they want (hint hint, it usually has something to do with romancing an increasingly unlikable male protagonist). Actions are not preluded with prior events or interactions that justify their existence; they just come out of the blue to add drama. As a result, we don't get a feel for any of the characters because what little we do know about them is promptly discarded for cheap drama. I don't really feel I understand why a single one of these characters did any of the stuff they did. From beginning to end, the series snowballs into increasingly bizarre drama that flies off into one of the most horrifyingly gratuitous endings in anime history. It was memorable, I'll give it that, but otherwise still non-nonsensical. Why? Because for a soap opera to be compelling, we need to know the motivations, friendships, and feelings of a character and how they relate to the actions they take in the series. School Days doesn't do this at all. And that's why the story fails on virtually every level. Art (4/10): Visually, School Days is pretty bland. The backdrops are uninteresting and un-detailed, with some shows from the 90s actually having more convincing background. The female character designs do nothing to distinguish themselves from this series' visual novel competitors, and the palette is really weak, favoring dully bright colors and really, really lame looking dark ones. On the plus side, the animation is slightly above average for a show with a mid-range budget of its time. Character motion is slightly more frequent, which would (normally), give us more of a chance to understand the characters in subtle ways. In addition, the ending gets a noticeable increase in quality in this department (adding to the terror this scene instills on viewers). Meanwhile, cinematography is standard, with only a couple of scenes (such as the aforementioned ending, and a scene where lead heroine Kotonoha discovers the truth behind a main character's suspicious actions) standing out. However, the two male characters have surprisingly distinct designs. Our lead avoids the generically bishonen look of his peers by looking frumpy and average while still having attractive qualities, while his friend has a distinctly off-putting facial structure that possibly foreshadows his later actions. Sound (6/10): The show has a memorable score, combining primarily original violin and piano compositions to set the atmosphere for the show. In certain scenes, the music actually overshadows the main series it's so effective. Also, there are a large number of ending themes the show cycles between over the course of twelve episodes, giving viewers reason to stick through the credits. On the downside, most of these ending themes were fairly forgettable. The opening in particular failed to leave any kind of significant impression on me. However, the ending theme that played during the show's final episode was chilling, well-made, and perfectly fit the on-screen action. The scoring isn't perfect either, with certain repetitive tunes being played in scenes where a previously un-played tune would have sufficed better. Voice acting wise, the actors do a solid job. I had no complaints with the performances (aside from Sekai's grating every once in a while). Daisuke Hirakawa's Makoto is also strong, gently persuading the viewers that our main character is likeable when his on-screen actions tell us he's clearly not. Character (1/10): THIS category is what really causes this show to crash and burn in an unceremonious blaze. For a show to deconstruct character-driven dramas, the characters need to be compelling. AND THEY AREN'T! There is a clear disconnect between the disposition of the characters in the first two episodes (which sets up some standard stereotypical personalities for our leads with a couple interesting traits) and the rest of the series. Starting with the third episode, EVERYBODY starts doing random crud for no reason whatsoever. There's no logical build-up to the drama, no motivations for the characters to act like they do, and most of all, NO REASON OUR MAIN CHARACTER IS ADORED BY PRETTY MUCH EVERYONE HE MEETS FOR NEARLY THE ENTIRE SERIES!!!! Because of how flat these characters are, and how their every action is decided by the plot, the show became extremely unpleasant to watch. I didn't feel bad for the characters or relate to anyone's actions, I just felt off-put by how vicious and cruel some of the things that happen are. And I feel purely off-put by them because it doesn't feel like there's any quarter-decent reason for any of the characters to be acting so vile, cruel, and hateful towards each other (If there is supposed to be, the series sure doesn't wanna convince us there is!) And that's a terrible feeling, because workable characters could be created to fit around these situations. But the series doesn't try at all. And what's worse, beside the normal female demeaning that comes from ecchi, the show paints high school females as going hopelessly gaga over a jerk main character who's not even good at manipulating. He can't even act nice in private settings with them sometimes! There wasn't a single character whose behavior in this show I understood (though, to be fair, at least Makoto was distinctly mean starting with episode 3). And that HAS to be the show's biggest fault. Enjoyment (4/10): As I said, my enjoyment of this series was hampered severely by how illogical everything that happens within it is. Despite this, I did garner some enjoyment from watching this thing through. Why? Because there's something attractive about the promise of dark, horrible things to come. Viewers are enticed by the idea of seeing characters find new ways to dig themselves into worse and worse situations. It's disturbing, yet fascinating to see how we ENJOY seeing the reasons people end up in inglorious, awful ends. That promise of drama and darkness was what kept me going through School Days (and the completionist part of my soul). And, to be fair, the direction does a decent job of promising more dark things to come. And, the ending delivers on that promise. It is fittingly dark, bleak, chilling, and ultimately incomprehensible. The fact that we cannot begin to understand how these characters' normal lives sunk this low is part of this show's appeal. And I did feel that. Despite that, however, it was nowhere near as effective as it could be because the characters were paper-thin and events pretty much happened out of the blue. Overall (3/10): Like I said in the previous section, I can understand why people enjoy this show. But, honestly, I am firmly under the impression there is nothing deep or thoughtful about this show. The people in the show have no consistent character, events in the plot happen with little to no build-up, and the series doesn't even compelling artwork to distinguish itself from the grain. I just can't find the worth in sitting through 12 episodes of unpleasantness just to get to its visceral conclusion; it's not worth it. If you're looking for a GOOD anime that examines the psyches of its main characters, go watch Neon Genesis Evangelion, Fate Zero, or Your Lie in April. Those shows have well-developed characters that the writers do an excellent job of persuading us to care about them. Viewers can do so much better for character drama than the gratuitous, blood-stained mess that is School Days.
Reviewer’s Rating: 3
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Informative
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all 
Mar 28, 2013
Tamako Market
(Anime)
add
Recommended
When I heard about Kyoto Animation's latest series Tamako Market, my expectations were probably unusually high. I had just come off of watching, and loving both Hyouka and Clannad, and was expecting another spectacular series in a similar vein to those two. Of course, that's not at all what I got.
Being directed by Naoko Yamada, written by Reiko Yoshida, and character designs provided by Yukiko Horiguchi (all of who worked in the same positions on K-ON!) this series has quite a lot of similarity with said series. However, I was unaware of this fact before I started the show, so maybe my expectations were ... slightly unreasonable. However, there's a lot to talk about in Tamako Market, so let's get on to the review. Story (7/10): Tamako Market doesn't really have much of a story. The series is almost a textbook example of a slice-of-life series. The show follows the main character Tamako who is a carefree, bouncy energetic girl who absolutely loves mochi. She has a friend named Mochizuo who, like Tamako, is the child of a mochi making family. She also has a few friends from school who pop into the story, but I'll explain about them in the characters section. In essence, one day a talking bird name Dela Mochimazzi wreaks havoc when he jumps into the shopping market, saying he's looking for a bride for his prince, and the story follows their daily, mostly episodic lives. The story doesn't really have much weight, but the individual episodes range from enjoyable to boring. I was really put off by the first episode when the bird came off as more annoying than funny, but I'd say the writers of the show got better at using him as the show went on. The series bills itself as a comedy, and in that regard, its a hit and miss. While the slice of life stories were somewhat enjoyable, I would have preferred an actual story. Which was why I was surprised when in the second half of the show, it did try to give us an actual story. When the series decided to go down this route, I was really excited, hoping for a very interesting finale. Instead, I got a very lackluster ending with a forced, and very anti-climatic resolution. Sad as it is, the ending almost ruined the show for me, as this was the part of the series I was looking forward to the most. None of the character drama was really resolved, and I felt the ending just could have been done SO much better. Overall though, I found the story fun to watch, and I was really waiting during the second half to see how the ending would play out. Art (9/10): Easily the best part of the series. While the character designs are simple enough, and are all too familiar to K-ON!, that isn't necessarily a bad thing. The animation is of very high quality, and really helps to sweep the viewer away into this simple, yet relaxing world the vast amount of colorful characters in the shopping district live in. The backgrounds are simple, yet really help to bring out the best in the character design and animation brought to the series. Sound (7/10): The music definitely isn't spectacular, but it does fit the show. The opening theme is really catchy, while the ending theme is very forgettable. The BGM fits very well in the series, and the shining moments for the music is truly when they played with the comedic timing. I know, a rather skimpy entry, but that's all there really is to say about the music. Fitting, yet mostly forgettable. The voice acting is really well done though, and I found especially fitting of the characters, especially the bird's voice (which always cracked me up.) Character (8/10): If there is one thing Tamako Market is not, its being a character driven series. Most of the characters are given broad character types, and don't show much depth. I was annoyed by this through most of the series, but eventually came to realize that the characters are still very fun in their own right. In addition, they did start to flirt with character depth in the second half of the series, with Tamako having a partial emotional breakdown, Dela actually showing himself as more than just a bossy bird, and even the dad shows some depth. Regardless, none of this is fleshed out, and as someone who absolutely loved the characters in Hyouka and Clannad, this disappointed me. However, that doesn't mean the characters aren't a lot of fun. Tamako is bouncy, a bit of an airhead, yet as with the other girls in this show, really cute, and reminds me of Chitanda from Hyouka in a good way. Her friend Midori was an interesting concept, and I was really hoping they'd give some resolution to her possible feelings for Tamako. Dela started out as EXTREMELY annoying, but actually became a really funny character as the show went on. Tamako's friend Kanna gets some laughs to, even if she doesn't have much character, and so does Tamako and Mochizuo's fathers, who are both really funny characters as soon as they first appear. Mochizuo himself is a rather large stereotype with zero depth, but still has his own charm as being the childhood potential love interest. One character is a surprise character who doesn't appear until the second half of the show, so I won't spoil it for you, but this character easily became one of my favorites. Overall, I thought this diverse cast of characters may lack much depth, but were still a lot of fun to watch on screen. Enjoyment (7/10): Because of the mass disappointment of the ending, I had to drop this down to a 7. Regardless, I did find a lot to enjoy in the series. The atmosphere is so calm and peaceful, you fall in love with it almost immediately. The characters are a little wacky, but that's partially where they get their charm from. Everything in this series is peaceful, and rather mundane, even when considering the second half of the series, but that doesn't mean I didn't like it. I just would have preferred more deep characters, and a story with more weight. While my favorite part of the series was definitely just staring at the gorgeous artwork, it wasn't just the art itself that ended up giving the series a boost, but it really did bring the characters and the setting to life. All of the designs are simplistic, yet gorgeous, and its almost exactly how you'd envision such a setting in your imagination. However, with all its bells and whistles, the series' ending was still disappointing, and I definitely would have liked more character development and an actual story. The comedy, meanwhile, like I said earlier, is hit and miss. Some of the jokes were really funny, while others were irritating and a bit annoying. However, I did feel the comedy helped bring out the characters, and the jokes were funny enough to give the series a breath of fresh air in order to get me through some really boring episodes. Overall (7.5/10): If you could give .5s on this website, that's definitely what I'd give this series. While the ending was very disappointing, the characters didn't have much depth, and the art was a bit simplistic, the characters were still hilarious, and very fun to watch, the artwork and animation was gorgeous, and the comedy aspect of the series was really funny when it hit a stride. While I definitely wouldn't recommend this series to those who only enjoy a series if it has a deep story, riveting characters and or lots of action, for those who are willing to get swept away in this calm, peaceful, sometimes hilarious story with its simple setting, and quirky, funny characters, this series is probably worth a watch, even if its just to relax from watching said heavy action,plot, character development series.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Informative
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all |