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Jun 30, 2014
What an ending.
Flag Matrix: Harem Edition.
Also known as "If Her Flag Breaks".
I honestly feel as though they should have done something different with this show. I'm glad they tried something new, but it was way too obnoxious for me to appreciate it, at all.
They should have stayed away from being a harem in general. The plot was intriguing and had a lot of potential, so why fill it up with annoying and cliche harem devices? The harem was way too big, too. Around 12 or 13 girls. Seriously? Come on, man.
If this show was, instead of a silly and ridiculously large
...
harem, a serious series that actually took a darker look at Souta's condition and the story then it would have been much better. They sort of just compiled Matrix-esque story elements into the harem madness and boom, they created this show. With flags.
That piece of text right there was part of a post I made after watching the last episode of this series.
If Her Flag Breaks is an anime that had a good amount of premise, but eventually failing and falling into a pit full of burning flags and every single type of girl that could be included in any harem anime, ever.
I was excited for this show when it first came out. The PV made me think "Oh my god! A romantic comedy about a main character who actually feels DEPRESSED from his supernatural condition? This is gonna be great!" and the actual series made me think "I don't want to be here anymore."
With that aside, I'll split the review into separate paragraphs to explain my feelings for each aspect of this series. I'll try to be quick about it, since nobody likes reading long reviews when all they really want is an opinion on the show before starting it. Or they do want long reviews to learn about other people's feelings on the disaster we all just witnessed. Either way, here you go.
Story: 5
I don't even know where to go with this. The story, for the most part, is fairly simple. At least we think it is. Hatate Souta has a sort of "curse" brought upon him, where he has the ability to see people's "flags". These flags mark a certain person's feelings and emotions or they simply predict the upcoming events of their lives. Death Flags, for example, will appear on someone's head if they're soon to, well, perish. Souta also has the ability to break these flags, giving him the ability to change fate itself. The only way he can break these flags are... uhhmm... what was it again? Oh, well, he has to know something... personal about said dying person and he has to... errr...
Anyway, eventually Souta starts to learn about this power of his and along the way, more and more girls pile up at his dormitory and fall in love with him for absolutely no reason at all. Just like any harem. Or, if there is a reason, it's an extremely stupid one. For some odd reason, just like in any harem, these girls that Souta has just met care about him deeply. Why is this? Well, ask the plot, because it... sort of explains it. I think. Too much was going on, I... I couldn't really tell.
I won't explain the story for you, because I just can't. All I can say is, like I said before, it basically becomes the Matrix featuring a harem. Well, not exactly, but something similar to it.
The plot is executed horrifically. The show spends most of it's time trying to "develop" the outrageously large harem it's constructed, though all in all, they end up with forced personalities that are actually kind of annoying. Well, some of them are annoying. I'll just count this as part of my Character section, so I'll tell you I gave the characters a 6 out of 10. Although they weren't developed very well and their feelings were forced, some of them I actually liked. "Some of them" actually meaning two out of the 13 or so girls that were involved.
Souta, on the other hand, isn't really an interesting character. Sure, I liked how he was actually depressed because of his power and his "past" was actually tragic enough to create a logical reason as to why Souta would be a big ball of gloominess, but other than that, his personality was bland. As are most main characters in a harem series.
Well, that's it for Story and Character. Sorry for skipping around, sometimes I end up turning into a different direction when it comes to talking about certain topics.
Art: 6
I didn't care for the artwork. The style was strange, as it made every girl look like they had, what I call, "babyfaces". Seriously, every single one of them looked like they were 9 years old or something. Don't get me wrong, I've seen plenty of anime where young girls are depicted to look MUCH younger than they actually are, but there's something about the way their faces look that makes them appear baby-ish. Other than that there's nothing to really talk about in this section.
Sound: 10
This is literally the only thing I actually enjoyed throughout the entire show. The soundtrack was phenomenal. I loved every bit of it. I feel as though... this series does not deserve the music it had used. Give it to something better! Argh.
On the other hand, I didn't care for the opening or ending. The opening is catchy, but not anything special.
Enjoyment: 5
I constantly questioned where this show was going, over and over. This and that happened, and I'm just sitting here waiting for something to finally make sense!
I only recommend this to people who want a chance to turn their brain off and enjoy a typical, senseless harem. Ignore the plot, because it's plain garbage.
One more thing. The show isn't even that funny.
When I saw the synopsis, before watching the PV, I figured it may turn out to be another genius romcom like Noucome. I was wrong. Horribly.
This is partially, or I should say, mainly, a romantic comedy. It's neither romantic nor comedic. It tries but it fails.
Well, my friends, the Spring season is over. Some shows are notable, and some are not. This show is the latter. While I have to mention, though, I did love several of the series this Spring and I cannot wait for the summer simulcasts to begin.
Have a good day. May the harem gods rain mercy down upon your soul, for after watching this show, you're certainly going to need it.
Reviewer’s Rating: 5
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May 17, 2014
Fate/Kaleid is something that happens when you take a seemingly stupid idea and turn it into something that's close to spectacular.
Now, before I get started, I just want to point something out; A lot of people disliked this series, or dropped it in the first few episodes because it's a Fate/ series... turned Magical Girl. I did the same. When it was first airing, I dropped it, not because I didn't think it was interesting, I just didn't feel like watching it at the time. I, too, think that turning the Fate/ series into a Magical Girl series is a, well, stupid idea. I
...
was wrong.
Also, this series is a lot darker than it seems, so do not judge a book by it's cover, including a fair amount of blood and suggestive themes. It's like Madoka Magica's rating, though I find that this series is more mature in terms of content than that series is.
I love the Fate/ series, I love Fate/Zero and I love Fate/Stay Night. Now note that I have JUST finished this series, as in, I watched it after the announcements for a Fate/Stay Night remake by ufotable and a season 2 for Fate/Kaleid were made. Due to the Fate/Stay Night remake being announced, I saw this series more as an awesome bonus. It takes the Fate/ story line and looks at it through a different light; although a fairly obnoxious and/or ridiculous one, it has a lot more to offer than it seems. Also note that this series has NOTHING to do with the main Fate/ storyline, character relationships are different, the Holy Grail War doesn't exist as far as we know, and characters who are supposed to be dead, are now alive.
Now I'll start my actual review, and it may seem like I'm over-praising the series... if it does, I apologize because that was not my intention. This is my actual opinion. I watched this series with a perspective as it being a bonus series to add onto the already-amazing Fate/ universe, thus I won't judge it just because it's a "dumb" magical girl adaption of the Fate/ series like most people have.
Story: 8
The story is simple. Illyasviel Einsbern lives a normal Elementary-School life with her friends, and her "older brother" Shirou Emiya. Rin Tohsaka and a woman named Luvia were given the job of finding the remaining Class Cards, as they already own the Lancer and the Archer. The class cards reflect the 7 servant classes in the Fate/ series; Archer, Lancer, Saber, Rider, Assassin, Caster and Berserker. These cards are obtainable by entering a mirrored version of certain areas, (As in, another dimension) and fighting the "Alter", or the Dark versions of each servant. They use weapons that look like Magical Girl wands, each with a name, Ruby and Sapphire. They both talk and have personalities, too. These two wands believe they're abused by Rin and Luvia, so they decide to find new masters. Ruby flies off while Illya is taking a bath and happens to meet her. She then tricks Illya into a "contract" with her to become her new master. (Note: This is NOT a contract similar to Madoka Magica whereas she's forced to fight or else she'll die or something horrible will happen. It's just a contract to give her the title of master and to be able to use the wand's powers, that's all. She doesn't HAVE to fight and Ruby fully understands that.) Rin finds Illya, and tells her that since she stole her wand, she'll have to help her collect the class cards. Luvia does the same with a girl named Miyu. Thus begins their story.
Since the story is simple, it's portrayed/paced perfectly fine. There isn't much to explain, so it doesn't waste any time. Although, there are some fanservice-ish moments included, but that's to be expected of Silver Link's animations. They don't last long enough to really be a bother. The story becomes dark around episode 6 of the series, as Illya and Miyu go to collect the Caster card, an unexpected servant arrives causing trouble. The series delves into the horror and grief involved with being an elementary school girl and having to fight dark, demonic entities with a magic wand dressed as a magical girl. Illya shows true signs of terror, she realizes that, after she's cut and begins to bleed, that all of this is real, that she can actually be killed within these dimensions. Thus, she's psychologically unstable for certain amounts of time, and even refuses to talk to her friends when the time comes. The impact of her fighting really shows in her character development. Guilt from accidental attacks that could have injured her own friends is also an element, that you'd have to see to know what I mean. It does an alright job emotionally, and the dimensions are portrayed spectacularly.
To be honest, one of my favorite aspects of the story was the Dark versions of the servants. I have to say, Dark/Alter Saber is one of the most badass characters I have ever seen. She is brutal.
There is one thing that isn't really explained, unless you're a fan of the Fate/ series and you know the background behind Illya, and that's the source of her powers. That may or may not be explained in season 2, which I heard from someone that the story will only get darker.
Art: 10
What can I say? This is Silver Link, their animations have always been fantastic. Look at shows like Dusk Maiden, who's visuals are gorgeous. Also, compared to other anime these days, the fight scenes were top-grade. Actually, one of my new favorite anime fights of all time come directly from this series, and that's the fight with Alter Saber. You'll see what I mean. It's a stunning sight to see, and certainly came as a surprise. The art keeps the show suspenseful and intense. I'm hoping season 2 will be even better, I expect no less from Silver Link.
Sound: 10
The music is phenomenal. It keeps fight scenes and other emotional scenes intense or it causes them to leave more of an impact. The soundtrack actually sounds like Fate/ music as well, which is a huge plus. I believe it even kept close to the original main theme of Fate/... but it's been so long since I've seen Fate/Stay Night I can't say for sure. The opening, too, is amazing. Great song, and great visuals to go along with it. The ending I didn't really care for because it was somewhat light-hearted and I wanted to see more, so I skipped the credits.
Character: 8
The characters are... they're alright. Nothing really worth mentioning. Ruby and Sapphire, the wands, have their own personalities which keep the show a little more lively considering their attitudes. Illya is, well, different. Nothing really worth describing. One of her friends at school, though, was entertaining even though she didn't have a lot of screentime. She was obnoxious and clueless but in a good, funny way. Other than that, the characters are fairly average but you can get attached if you weren't already from the previous Fate/ series.
Enjoyment: 10
This series was interesting. An extension to the Fate/ universe, and a very satisfying one at that. Especially considering there's going to be more, I'm even more pumped and happy that I saw this. It's underrated and misunderstood. Don't take it as an extension to the Fate/ story directly but an additional bonus to the universe. That way, it'll be more enjoyable. Watch it for what it is, don't watch it as a Fate/ series, in terms of the Holy Grail War.
Overall: 9
I can't wait for the second season. Give the show a try, I promise it'll be a lot better than what it seems to be, especially if you don't compare it to anything and just watch it as it is.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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May 15, 2014
I'm just going to start off by saying that this series, Love, Elections and Chocolate, is fairly underwhelming. I actually came in with normal romance expectations and came out a bit disappointed. I wasn't... satisfied. This series started off on a great note; Good characters, a somewhat unique twist on the slice of life genre, and some good and light-hearted comedy mixed in there. I'd say starting around episode 10 is where it started to go downhill for me. Things were starting to get extremely ridiculous, to the point where I began feeling stressed out with this show because of what it was doing. Or,
...
I should say, what the characters were doing.
Story: 7
Love, Elections and Chocolate is about a club named the Food Research Club who's activities involve eating snacks, such as Yaoi Sticks. Enter main character, Oojima Yuuki. Not to be mistaken with Ooshima, Yuuki and his childhood friend, Chisato, are part of this Food Research Club, and devastating news arises as they learn that with the new presidential election for the Student Council, one candidate is deciding to cut the Food Research Club due to funds and pointless activities. Yuuki and the others will not stand for this! Thus, Yuuki is chosen by the clubs to run as Student Council President himself for the sole purpose of avoiding the loss of the Food Research Club. There you have it.
Now, I have no issue with the basis of the plot whatsoever. None at all. I do have an issue, though, with how this election is portrayed. Understand that this is a Student Council Presidential Election, not an actual presidential election for the entire country. Students are running everything, only one teacher is in sight and she's a drunkard who slobs around in the Food Research Club all day! What could possibly happen? Apparently, students and the student council have much, MUCH more power than you'd expect. This gets to the point where it's extremely ridiculous and kind of, well, stupid. Things like espionage, "Governmental" cover-ups on events that could negatively effect the president's campaign and impression, or even death threats involving hostages. Yes, this presidential campaign is taken to the extreme, despite the fact that it's all for the mere student council.
This may make the show sound more exciting... but it's honestly not. Actually, it's more aggravating than anything. Why do the students have so much power over everything? Why are they the security for a hospital, believing they can control what nurses can and can't do there? Why didn't the main character call the police when a certain someone is taken hostage and he's being threatened with death by said kidnapper? The student council doesn't control the police too, right? Right? It's not like calling the police won't work on them because the student council has more power, and what they're doing isn't illegal, right? It's just... stupid. Why is it taken to such extremes and why isn't the police called when you can easily fix everything by doing so? It bothered me to the point where I just really didn't care what happened with the election anymore. I just wanted to see the romance, which in itself wasn't too satisfying either. There's almost no closure in the end whatsoever. It just kind of... ends. I can't say how it ends, obviously, but I'll tell you right now it was barely satisfying. And I'm all for romance, too! Romance is one of my favorite genres! This show was great until the end. Really that's all I should have said. I have too many complaints about how ridiculous the measures taken in this story was. Let's move on.
Art: 9
The animation was great and the art style was extremely appealing. Honestly, the art is one of my favorite aspects of the show. It's smooth and detailed nicely. Emotional scenes, although there aren't many, are emphasized as they should be. Other than that there isn't much to say about it.
Sound: 8
Not really much to say here, either. The soundtrack was nice and fit well. I like cello and piano. It's a nice mix. Didn't care for the opening or ending, though, as they were kind of... bland. The main character's voice actor did an outstanding job, though, as he always does. (He's very recognizable... he did Kyousuke in Oreimo, Gray in Fairy Tail, and so on and so forth. He's great. That's all you need to know.)
Character: 9
This is one of the better aspects of the series. As you get a group of characters together for the main cast, you'd at least hope they're all enjoyable. Really the only character I can point out is the main one, Oojima. He's not painfully dense, and he doesn't show a hint of denseness whatsoever. He actually shows romantic interest in certain girls and actually takes the chances he can get to get closer to them. He's not afraid to confront certain characters on issues, and he knows exactly what's wrong. He slapped a girl once and yelled at her about a certain issue. That was refreshing.
The other characters range from fun to bland. The main love interest was cursed by trauma, afraid to eat chocolate and very attached to Oojima. I didn't really care for her, she didn't really have anything interesting going for her. Honestly, I liked Satsuki more, who was a rival candidate against Oojima. He spends a lot of time with her and her character development is much better than Chisato, who was the main love interest.
Enjoyment: 7
You already know my woes with the storyline. The extreme measures that are taken and the stupid choices the main character makes near the end. (Seriously man, get the damned police!) Though, for the first 9 and a half episodes I really enjoyed this series. The ending was O.K. but it needed more. I won't be watching the OVA seeing as it most likely doesn't continue the story and I didn't enjoy the series enough to really care for the OVA. I'd say to just try it out. If you don't like it, fine. I want to tell you now, don't expect anything amazing. Don't expect the following;
Emotional drama that is complicated (In a good way) and done very well as seen in shows like Toradora, The Pet Girl of Sakurasou, Golden Time, Honey and Clover, Hell, even Waiting in the Summer! I understand those are all J.C. Staff and this is not, but they've basically set my standards for romances like this. And I have seen great romances that meet their levels by other companies, but J.C. Staff still does it best.
Don't expect anything hilarious either. The humor is good but nothing more and nothing less.
Again, just give it a shot. If you don't like it, fine by me. It honestly wasn't really worth watching, in my opinion, but I suppose I had a good time... most of the time. I am disappointed, but it certainly was a... different, experience and twist on the romantic comedy genre.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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May 9, 2014
Despite how it looks, this series is actually fairly dark. A lot of issues dealt with in this series have to do with murder, guilt, jealousy, hatred, revenge... and the list can go on.
I'm not sure if this series will actually get a season 2, despite the last episode saying "To be next story" which I assume is a broken English version of "To be continued." I've heard that it didn't sell well, so a season 2 may actually never happen. Either way, I'm going to review this series with the viewpoint that it IS getting a season 2. (Honestly I'm just keeping my
...
own hopes up.) Thus I won't be as critical on this series as I would have been if a season 2 was never hinted.
Story: 8
If I have to state my one and only real problem with this show, it's unexplained story elements. There are countless story elements that are introduced and are never full explained or dealt with. Actually, the story kind of went off track. At first, everyone was sent to the city to catch Aki, who is a Seki (One who controls a Kamisama Doll) and a murderer at that. Afterwards, around episode 9 or so, the story changes direction and aims itself more towards dealing with a new character, leaving Aki behind in a sense that he's not really the main focus anymore.
The reason I'm not going to be harsh on these missing story elements is because if a season 2 is ever created, which I'll keep in mind that it will be despite the fact that it's been two years since the series has finished, then the unexplained plot points can easily be... well, explained for us. Thus, when that happens, if it ever does, this series actually has potential to be something really, really special.
Art: 9
The execution of the scenes in this show, especially in the first few episodes, is something I really enjoyed. The animation was really good, and the art style was appealing. It did become a bit silly at times to lighten the mood but other than that, it has great animation. Even the CGI is tolerable. (I for one usually hate CGI)
Sound: 8
When it comes to the soundtrack, it wasn't anything special whatsoever. Nothing stood out to me, at all. The main character's voice actor is phenomenal, though. (He's the VA that voiced Rin in Ao no Exorcist or Accelerator in To aru Majutsu no Index). What I found interesting was the songs that the Kamisama Dolls sang. It was actually kind of eerie; whenever the dolls were summoned they sang what sounded like a traditional Japanese song with no lyrics, over and over again.
Character: 8
There isn't really much to say about the characters. Kyohei, the main character, wasn't very interesting until a few episodes in when he had his sudden outbursts of extreme anger. I've never witnessed a main character with that kind of temper before, and serious temper, at that.He has a good reason to act that way, though. Utao, his little sister, was a fun character to watch. She was awkward (In a cute way.) and obviously had some sort of strong attraction toward her brother. The main love interest, Hibino, isn't really all that special. Don't get me wrong, I liked her and how the show managed to portray her and Kyohei's relationship maturely, but she didn't have a really entertaining personality, or one that can even be described with interesting adjectives, at that.
Enjoyment: 9
I had a certain itch for a while... for something very specific. I'm sure we've all felt it before; the urge to watch a certain anime that matches your criteria right on the mark. Such as, if you're in the mood for a sci-fi, but not just ANY sci-fi, it has to be a sci-fi romance, with mechas, taking place in a futuristic city with an overall darker tone to it. Something along those lines. I had an itch for something, something that was actually fairly indescribable. It had to have romance, though. So here I came to Kamisama Dolls, and surprisingly enough, with it's unexpected serious vibes and good/mature romance elements, along with an interesting backstory involving murder, a main character with unique and justifiable trauma/anger issues, and large singing God dolls fighting each other... was able to somewhat help me with that itch. Not completely due to it's short length... but it almost got me right on the mark.
Overall: 8
TL;DR the only problems I had with this series was majorly unexplained story elements, which could possibly be explained in a possible season 2! (Which was announced at the last episode.) If you want something with good romance, murder, and fairly intense and well-animated fights between strange creature-like God dolls... then watch Kamisama Dolls. It's a lot more serious than it seems.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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May 4, 2014
Oh man, that ending.
I won't be comparing it to the VN because I haven't tried the VN.
I'll keep this review nice and simple.
Majikoi is simply a fun show. I went into it not expecting much and got just that. There wasn't anything memorable in this series whatsoever. Despite that, the series was funny when it wanted to be, and the action was actually fairly good. Honestly, the only real problem I have is the story and the ending.
Story: 5
I honestly think this show would have been better without a story. Of course, one of my main reasons for being the
...
anime addict that I am is the countless stories that anime is able to offer. If an anime doesn't have a story, then as long as it has great characters and good humor then I'm set. Majikoi is a funny show. They make a lot of sexual jokes, but that's not really the only basis of the humor. The story is simple yet also kind of stupid. Stupid is a sort of childish term, but it fits the story nicely. It tries to be serious, and really I tried to take it that way. The ending is what disappointed me. I didn't mind the stupid story because there were great characters to back it up. I'm just going to be straight and say the ending to this show is one of the worst endings I've ever seen. No closure. At all.
Art: 8
I gave the Art an 8 because it's fairly average, but at times it's a bit more than that. The animation is actually pretty good for the fight scenes, and there's plenty of fights to go around, whether they're a serious fight or not. It was fun to see. Other than that, there's nothing really notable to point out about the art.
Sound: 8
The soundtrack is definitely above average. It's good, though there are only about 2 stand-out tracks that I'd actually want to look for. None of the music was really notable. The opening isn't anything special, though after a few episodes it grew on me and I actually started to like it. The Ending song I never paid any attention to. (Though I usually would.) The BGM of the show fits fight scenes nicely and one track actually managed to make one of the fights seem fairly emotional. Only a bit, though.
Character: 9
This is where the show stands out to me. I don't really care for "typical character types", like when people point out the typical types of girls always involved in a harem. To be honest I have a hard time finding any typical character types here except for Momoya, the girl who only really cares about fighting. I'm not sure if that's typical, though. There were some unique characters, types I've never seen before, actually. Mayucchi, for example, was a great character who always talked to her keychain, which she also thought talked back but it's actually just a sort o split personality of hers pretending to be the keychain. There's Cookie, the robot, who was a fun character to see interact with people. The main character, Yamato, was actually pretty stand out too. He's a pervert, but not really to an extreme level like the main characters of "So, I can't Play H!" or "Kenzen Robo Daimidaler". He's not afraid to pull out his man-parts if needed, though. He also loves Hermit Crabs, which was a small yet somewhat entertaining personality trait of his. He's also extremely smart when it comes to being a strategist, and for that people admired him. The other girls in the harem, as well as the dudes who were Yamato's friends, were all fun to watch interact with one another. The strong point of this show is it's character, yes. I honestly kept watching this show for them solely. Plus, the relationship between Yamato and Momoya was one I rooted for. There's actually a good amount of depth to their relationship, too.
Enjoyment: 7
Really the strong points of this series is the comedy. If you watch it solely for that, you shouldn't be disappointed. Don't take it seriously. Watch it for the characters. They're fun. The story is dumb. It's there, and it gets in the way of the comedy, but it's something you can easily get past and back to the fun.
Overall: 7
If you're looking for a quick comedy to watch to pass the time, a so-so show with a lot of dick jokes, fun characters and pretty good action, I'd say try out Majikoi. It's only 12 episodes, so why not? I enjoyed watching it to pass the time and I feel as though if you don't take this seriously, you may enjoy it too.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Apr 27, 2014
After finishing Gosick, I instantly went to it's MAL page and looked at the recommendations for similar series. I'm a huge sucker for Gothic/Victorian-esque anime that take place in the 1920s or late 1800s. Especially ones with a mystery element to it's story. I saw Dantalian no Shoka, or The Mystic Archives of Dantalian, and became really happy. It looked almost just like Gosick. Though... the only way it's similar to Gosick is the time it takes place, and the small mystery elements thrown in there. As well as characters.
This series is fairly episodic. It's about a man named Hugh, or Huey, who inherits
...
his grandfather's mansion. His grandfather was a book-addict, and had his own personal library. When Huey enters the library, he encounters a girl, whom he thinks to be a doll at first.
He learns of mysterious entities known as "Phantom Books", which are like a piece of literature that causes magical happenings whenever they're read. Though, in this case, Phantom Books can come in the form of basically anything, even sound. Huey becomes this girl's, whose name is Dalian, Keykeeper. She explains that she is the gateway to a bookshelf of Phantom Books, keeping them away from humans. This way, they won't cause any harm.
Thus, begins our series of Huey and Dalian as they search for these entities known as Phantom Books so they can store them away in Dantalian's Bookshelf. They don't travel much, so it's not an adventure series. Basically they hear or learn about mysterious happenings and then choose to investigate it to see if the cause of said happening is by a Phantom Book.
Now that I'm done summarizing the base of the plot, here is the actual review;
Story: 8
Now, as much as I absolutely LOVED the concept of this story, there are some flaws. Mainly the only flaws are events or characters that aren't really explained. This girl that Huey wants to save... who is she? What is she? Why is she in that empty space, trapped for all time? You'll never know. (Unless you read the LN... if it is an LN. I believe it is.) It doesn't tell you. How did Huey meet her, as well? Another flaw in the story is certain characters arrive and never really... do anything drastic or important. Well, they do, in the last episode. There's an entire episode based on two characters; Hal and Flamberge, who are similar to Huey and Dalian in terms that they're both a Keykeeper and Gate to a bookshelf. They only come in during that episode, and then make one last appearance in the final episode. The final episode is when they actually do something important to the story. Same goes for another Keykeeper and Gate. None of these characters are really explained or don't really do anything important to what's happening around Huey and Dalian.
Other than these flaws, I loved the story. Very unique and creative. The story-telling style is similar to Mushishi in the sense that every episode is a new story where Dalian and Huey get involved and solve with their power and knowledge of the phantom books. Each story has something to do with a phantom book as well... obviously. The stories are creative and interesting, and I definitely wish the series was longer to show me more of them.
Art: 10
As I said before, I am a sucker for the time this anime takes place in. It takes place in Europe. The show has an overall dark-ish Gothic feel to it, as well as some beautiful backgrounds of Victorian style buildings or castles. There is one episode, I believe episode 9, where the art changes drastically. Though, there is a reason. I found it kind of funny, actually, the reasoning behind the art change. At first I thought the studio was just lazy for that episode, but... I was wrong. You'll see.
Sound: 10
Oh my goodness. I can't really explain how much I am IN LOVE with the music for this series. The opening... oh my, the opening, it's beautiful and it fits the show perfectly. It's a very unique opening. The background music, or OST, is also beautiful and keeps that Gothic feel to it. I'll definitely be looking into the soundtrack later. It may even become one of my favorite soundtracks ever.
Character: 10
Now, there aren't a lot of repeating characters in this series. I'd say there's four important repeating characters, as well as 4 others I mentioned before that don't get much background. The two main characters, Huey and Dalian, are very similar to the ones in Gosick; Kujou and Victorique. An ex-soldier, who comes across a small girl dressed in a Gothic dress in a library. Both Dalian and Victorique are very similar in terms of their personalities. Hell, they're both even similar to Shinku in Rozen Maiden. Both also are tsundere-ish who thinks they can tell the male character what to do, and they get cute when they see sweets.
Either way, enough comparing characters. Huey is an interesting one. He doesn't really have a personality I can explain, but it's most definitely not a boring one. Watching him and Dalian interact in front of other people is extremely precious and awesome. I loved seeing them talk back and forth with each other. You can clearly see that Huey learns how to deal being with and talking to Dalian more and more. There is some romance between them, but it's not really emphasized. Armand and Camilla are two other repeating characters and friends of Dalian and Huey. They come to them for help when dealing with phantom books, especially Armand. Armand's a fun character who calls Huey "lieutenant" and is always trying to find a girlfriend. (He's not one of those dudes who go after every pretty woman he sees, though.) Camilla always approaches Huey and Dalian dressed in "strange" outfits from other countries, and Dalian's opinions on them are always entertaining to hear. There are a bunch of other characters for each story, as well, that appear in one episode each.
Enjoyment: 9
The only thing that I didn't enjoy about this series is the missing explanations in certain characters and it's length. If this show was 24 episodes or even more, I probably would have marked it as one of my favorites if it managed to keep up it's amazingly unique feel throughout the entire show.
And the show is actually a bit more action-packed than it seems. It's not too crazy, but there are a good amount of well-animated fights with monsters or people. There's also a good amount of blood and gore, too! Which is always a plus!
My Overall score is 9. If you like Gothic-themed Anime with a supernatural element to them, then give the show a try! I highly recommend it!
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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Apr 15, 2014
Before I get started, I'm going to state that I will be REVIEWING Ookami Kakushi, not COMPARING it to Higurashi or Umineko like the other "reviews" have been doing for this show. The only thing they have in common is the author, the setting, and the overall vibe of the series.
Here I am, my favorite anime genres being horror, thriller, psychological, mystery and anything of the like, searching for a new anime to fit said genres. That being said, it is a hard task indeed. Why? Well, there are only a handful of well done horror/thriller series out there that are really worth watching,
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such as Higurashi, Another, Shiki, etc. Suddenly, out of the blue, I see Ookami Kakushi! A horror-genre series with a dark atmosphere, mysterious story and the author of a few other great thriller series. "This is a dream come true!" I say to myself as I start to look up the first episode to try it out. Because of bad reviews (In which a majority compared the series instead of reviewing it) I had lower expectations. But it's a new horror series, so why not?
Now that the long introduction is out of the way, let's get started with what I thought about the series.
Story: 8
The story is described on MyAnimeList's page for the series, so I shouldn't have to tell you what it's about. The description they give you is kind of vague, but that's because it's an easy show to spoil. About that, the story is also fairly predictable at some parts, and I basically figured out what was going on by episode 2. Not even lying. It's not hard. So sadly, that took away some of the excitement of finding out the mystery of the story.
My thoughts on the story, other than the mystery aspect being weak, is that it's unique and still somewhat interesting as it goes on. It has a sort of creepy vibe to it, and I feel as though if I were living in that town... well, I wouldn't. The story is executed... to an O.K. extent. Again, the execution and what it decides to show you makes it too easy to figure out, too early into the show. Which is a downside. Though, basically everything is explained so you shouldn't have any questions in the end. If you do, then they'll probably be about trivial things that don't really matter much at all.
Art: 9
The series was animated in 2010, I believe. Which is good, because most series getting closer to present day get better and better when it comes to animation. This series definitely shows it. The art is wonderful, and the dark tone of it creates a creepy atmosphere throughout. There were moments in the series where I looked in awe, because the animation looked beautiful as the music (Which I'll talk about soon) added an extreme emotional vibe to it, causing me to even choke up at one point. Animation and art is definitely one of this series' stronger aspects.
Sound: 10
Oh my god how I love the soundtrack! It has a sort of traditional Japanese sound to it, which is good for the kind of story is holds, as the story has a lot to do with old family traditions and what not. Some of the music also manages to make a scene much more emotional, as I stated before, and there's one particular track that really stood out to me. (Which I'll be looking up soon.) The music and sound is outstanding, and the series' strongest aspect.
Character: 6
And here's where the show has it's downfall. The main character, Kuzumi, is extremely dull. To add onto that, he's a wimp. He screams a lot, he's looks and sounds pathetic... it actually really bothered me.
The other characters aren't really worth mentioning except for two that I particularly liked; Kuzumi's sister and the main antagonist. Kuzumi's sister is a small girl, who looks to be around 9-10 years old, in a wheelchair. She's adorable, although mean to her brother sometimes. Sometimes I find it odd that they make her CGI when she's rolling around in her wheelchair outside, though.
The main antagonist... I just liked him. Nothing really special. He was... cool. Haha, I know that doesn't sound very professional but that's my honest opinion. Not saying my reviews are professional, either, because they're most definitely not.
Oh, Kurumi was cute, too, mainly in episode 12, which I'll mention before I finish this review.
Enjoyment: 9
To be honest, the first two episodes did not get me hooked. They mentioned wolves and I don't find interest in wolves whatsoever. But I pushed on, and after episode 3 it began to get interesting, showing signs of insanity being part of the plot. I love insanity in anime, I really do. From then on, I was hooked. I was satisfied with the end. It was nice, music execution was spot on and so was animation. They even had a 12th episode to boot! And what did they do with it? Something I appreciate. I didn't finish the last episode, because my internet had stopped working halfway through and I won't be getting back to it. The last episode is like a filler episode that takes place 2... months, I believe, after the 11th. It's good, though, for character development and it's a nice change. It's funny, and it shows a cute side to Kurumi, which I especially enjoyed.
Overall (I use a calculator to find the mean of my scores) I give this series an 8. It was a good watch, and I may even consider purchasing it by Sentai Filmworks depending on the price. It'd be an interesting addition to my shelf.
Try out this series if you're desperately looking for a good horror series! If you haven't yet and you're looking for more good horror/mystery, I suggest Another, Higurashi no naku Koro ni, Denpa Teki na Kanojo and Shiki.
Happy Anime Watching!
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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Apr 13, 2014
Canvas 2 was definitely an unexpected series. Despite what the other reviews say, this show doesn't feel like a harem whatsoever. In fact, it's more of a love triangle. Take note that just because a show involves a male character hanging out and talking with a fairly big group of girls, doesn't mean it's a harem.
I have literally one issue with this series. What's the issue, you ask? Well, I'll tell you; The ending. I'm a person who values the path along the way to the ending the most, but you can't disagree that an ending to a series can affect your view on
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the series as a whole, despite the ride along the way being unexpectedly enjoyable. I don't know if this spoils anything, but I'm just going to say that the path the main character was taking for the entire series was one I really agreed with, until the last episode he decides to change his mind and turn everything around.
Story: 9
The story is simple and sweet. Hiroki Kamikura is an artist... well, an ex-artist, who refuses to paint anything after a certain life event. (Which you learn about later on.) He lives with his little cousin; Elis, who lost her parents in a car crash when she was little. (Afterwards, Hiroki decided to take care of her.) Due to trauma, she refuses to use the color red in her paintings, or freaks out whenever she notices the color. (Again, you'll learn why, and it's a completely understandable reason as well, considering how trauma works and how old she was when said accident happens.)
There are past events and other events that are important to the story, but all you need to know is it's about an awesome art student/student-teacher/teacher (Yes, the main character is a teacher, not a student) who gets trapped in a love triangle between his cousin and a childhood friend who ended up becoming a teacher at the same school. (Yes, there is incest to a certain degree. If you don't enjoy this sort of thing... you may not like this show. It's really not emphasized whatsoever due to the fact that the main character doesn't share his cousin's feelings, and doesn't even consider her a romantic interest. It's there, though, and it grows near the end.)
Canvas 2 is a drama and a romance. The story is, as I said, simple and sweet. I myself enjoy drama, a lot, and found that the drama in this show is fairly deep and organized well. Some events and decisions are ridiculous, but nothing too severe. (Disregarding the ending...) Think of drama in shows like Golden Time, or Toradora... it's similar to that. If you like this sort of drama, you'll probably enjoy Canvas 2. If that's not enough, then I'll explain more of my feelings for this show continuing with...
Art: 7
I don't know if this rating is considered fair or not for a reason; The anime is from 2005, and, from what I can tell, the average cheaper visual novel adaptation. When it comes to animation, that is. Shows like Myself;Yourself or H2O: Footprints in the Sand are along the lines of what I mean. Though, at times, the animation is definitely great, though most of the time the animation is just plain old "good". Nothing more or nothing less. Though the kids in this show are great artists.
Sound: 7
Again, I don't know if this rating is fair due to it's age and budget. The soundtrack is simple, and below average. Despite this, there are a few soundtracks that really stood out to me, and it fit the feel of the show extremely well. It's not a soundtrack I would spend the time looking for, though, and it's definitely not "great" either. Again, the sound, just like the art, receives a plain old "good", as well as a "Meh."
Character: 10
This is where the show stands out, in my opinion. Aside the romance, my favorite thing about this series was the main character; Hiroki. I don't know how to describe him with certain adjectives, but what I can say is that one of the main reasons I really, really enjoyed this show is because of him. He has a certain feel to him that you just can't help but love him, or at least, like him. You can't dislike him. At least, I think so. He's never gotten stuck in a cliche moments, not once. He was called a pervert? Doesn't bother him. He takes it as a joke, doesn't try to pathetically and desperately defend himself, and walks away. Plus, throughout 23 of the 24 episodes, he made all the right decisions. (Again, I did not like what he did in the ending. Seriously. I'm so mad about his choice in the end.) But despite the ending, he's seriously a great and funny character.
Of course, the other characters are wonderful too. The only character I disliked to a certain extent is Elis, Hiroki's cousin. As much as I like yanderes, her obsession with him is more annoying than you'd expect. It just... is.
Hagino is also a character that really stood out for me. She's an author who goes to the school Hiroki works at. She's adorable and has a wonderful attitude that is actually fairly unique. There are other characters that aren't emphasized as much, but you can tell what kind of person they are after a few episodes. Character development is outstanding.
Enjoyment: 9
My explanation for this rating is simple; I would have given it a ten... if it wasn't for the damn ending! Arrrgh! Either way, this show was surprisingly entertaining and fun to watch. The romance had me cheering throughout 23 of the 24 episodes, and I had a good time watching it. I laughed at a certain character I actually hated (Who I didn't mention in the character section) whenever he became sad.
This series was definitely a fun ride, and sadly, I'm going to be feeling a bit down due to the path the ending took... but despite that, it's a great series nonetheless, definitely underrated and even fairly unpredictable. plus, it's got good comedy to fill in the spaces between the romance! Now to try to find another VN adaption that lives up to something as great as Canvas 2.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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Apr 12, 2014
Freezing is one of those shows where it had a lot of potential, to a certain extent, and it didn't use it as well as it could have. Then again, it's also one of those shows that would be better if it didn't use an excessive amount of nudity even during the most serious moments. (Looking at you HOTD)
This review will be spoiler free.
I do admit, the show was entertaining, though, and there were quite a few moments that stood out to me. I find that the romance was one of the best aspects, although there's an annoying love triangle involved. (Don't get me wrong,
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love triangles are alright as long as they're not outright fighting over the main character and shoving themselves on top of him all the time.)
Either way, I'll try to keep this review nice and simple.
Story: 7
The story is somewhat similar to shows like Attack on Titan, whereas it's a large group of Teens/Adults who are trained specifically to fight off a race of superior beings, defending the planet from it's demise. Despite this, there's actually only one real fight (Well, it's against four of the beings at once, so I suppose it's four fights) against said beings that they're defending Earth against. I give it a 7 because of this, and, due to the fact that they spent more time showing the teens fight each other instead of the creatures, the story wasn't really brought out until the last few episodes. It was somewhat explained in the beginning, but it really all comes out in the end. I just found it ridiculous that the students were killing off each other instead of, you know, the giant alien race that's trying to destroy the planet.
Art: 8
The animation is a bit above average. Intense and fairly well animated fight scenes, good amounts of blood and gore, and of course... boobs. Though, when it comes to the boobs, I say they're overdoing it. Now you may ask; "How can you overdo boobs? They're BOOBS." Well, when the show is trying to be serious, like for example, a sad and emotional death, but a large pair of melons is covering the screen (I say this because whenever the girls fought each other, literally the first part to rip off their clothes was their chest, and their boobs would hang out, nipples and all, throughout each fight.) it's hard to take it seriously. Other than that, the character designs are... interesting, I suppose, and overall animation is great, again, above average.
Sound: 10
I give the sound a 10 because of this show's outstanding soundtrack. Seriously, the soundtrack is just marvelous and made each and every scene better than it actually was. Nice, sad and atmospheric piano tracks during emotional scenes or intense and fast paced full out orchestras during fight scenes. I myself and looking somewhere to get the soundtrack, because it's very well composed.
Characters: 6
The characters were alright. Some typical and annoying characters, such as the proud and arrogant school girl who's rich and calls herself a princess, (including the annoying laugh they do.) and a sort of bland main character in which all he really wants is to protect the ones he cares about. Pardon my French, but most of the girls are this school are straight out bitches. Seriously. I wanted to slap almost every single one in the damned face. All they wanted was to beat up the main characters, to the point of near death, and laugh in their face. They wouldn't leave them alone and it was aggravating. My favorite character, honestly, was the main love interest; Satellizer L. Bridget. At first glance, she seems to be the typical "Most powerful girl in the school, who is a bitch and tells the character to leave her alone", somewhere along those lines. This is actually wrong. She's strong, and tends to not talk to anyone, but when the main character, Kazuya is near, the she becomes girly, shy and flat out adorable. Especially with those glasses. Unf.
Enjoyment: 8
Overall it was a fun series to watch. Great action scenes, amazing soundtrack, adorable main love interest and fairly good stand out emotional scenes. The story is average, but enjoyable when it finally reaches it's climax. Apparently it doesn't finish until season 2, which I haven't seen yet, and I've seen that season 2 isn't even better. But, I'll judge that for when I see it.
Anyway, I recommend this for anyone who likes see boobs and butts during intense fight scenes and even emotional ones. Basically if you like shows like Highschool of the Dead for the boobs and action then this show is for you.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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