Extremes can fail, even in anime, but Kimi to Boku pulls it off. This is a show based on the manga of the same name, that in a phrase is the Seinfeld of highschool anime shows.
No, I'm not referring to its popularity or critical reception, but to the fact that while most other shows have a gimmick, Kimi to Boku is essentially a show about nothing. This is slice of life anime taken to its extremes, and as someone who enjoys the genre (guilty pleasure), it's sort of fun.
Early reviews of the series berated it for its predictability "oh there's the
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Nov 8, 2011
I picked up the series when it was airing around 2005 but dropped it. I recently went back to finish the series and found it satisfying. That said Suzuka is an acquired taste and older viewers may like it more than younger viewers who will likely expect early payoffs in the story to keep them interested.
The series also doesn't quite fit the mould of a highschool drama and cannot be easily categorized. It has the elements of a harem, mixed with a sports drama, but neither are fully developed. Instead, we get a story of imperfect people leading imperfect lives. ... 
Oct 29, 2011
Byousoku 5 Centimeter
(Anime)
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5 Centimeters per second is the third in Makoto's triptych stories about lonely lovers pining for each other.
It is possibly his most mature work to date, eschewing story for 'incidences' and focusing on the emotional turmoil of a young man and those around him. Shinkai's sensibilities have always been in-tune with my own, and in 5 centimeters he finds a way to introduce a light sci-fi touch, by introducing the idea of the emptiness of space into the story. It is his ability to tap into this reservoir that he has found his voice as a story teller. To Shinkai, Love and loss is ... 
Oct 14, 2011
Hourou Musuko
(Anime)
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It is rare to come across a show as genuine as Wandering Son without trappings of fan service and the catering to the various ecchi demographics. This slice of life anime really digs into emotions and relationships of adolescents and sets motivations into action with a strong sense of cause and effect.
As a result, the show relies far less on 'chance' and 'coincidences' to drive the narrative but let the ensemble cast move it. There's a sense of pureness and honesty to Suichi's motivations. This slice of life story is honest, if somewhat implausible given the ages of ... 
Oct 10, 2011
Ghost Hunt
(Anime)
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Ghost Hunt is a show that is driven by story. The 25 episode anime is divided into 8 'cases'.
The characters are fairly forgettable, and often inconsistent shifting from scared in a dire situation to comedic. The protagonist and cipher for the audience, is easily one of the more annoying characters placed on screen and suffers from the Lisa Simpson syndrome of asking too many questions, often at the wrong time. Worse she often complicates the situations for the self styled ghost hunters by acting out on her own initiative. The monk, Shinto priest and spirit medium (think Maya from Phoenix Wright) ... 
Oct 9, 2011
Great show. I REALLY enjoy slice of life anime in part because it gives the story time to show the culture and the environment.
Ironically AnoHana is weighted down by its gimmick. Menma is an out of place super-kawii character in an otherwise down to earth cast of likeable characters. If they wanted to keep the whimsy, Menma shouldn't have aged; but that would diffuse the human-ghost sexual tension. Despite all that, I teared up at the end. So the story/plot devices work, just sad to see the characterization of one of its central character dictated undoubtedly by market research to appeal to ... |
