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Can money save the world from the very evil it creates?

Eden of the East is political. Not just political, it’s very philosophical. The appeal of this anime is that it does not just tell a story, it builds rapport between the characters and the audience. Undeniably, this anime is a critique of everything our society upholds; from its economic and political institutions to the way we view and judge our fellow citizens.

The story follows the adventures of our female lead, Saki Morimi, as ... she tries to figure out the identity of a mysterious young (naked) Japanese man she meets in Washington D.C. The man, who assumes the identity of “Takizawa Akira”, realizes that he is caught up in a demented game where he has to use 8.2 billion yen bestowed upon him by a shady benefactor in order to “save Japan”. The series ends in a rather wholesome manner and while the movies do not reach much of a conclusion, there is an acceptable amount of closure. I personally do not think that Eden of the East’s focus is its plotline. The anime is more about atmosphere and political themes. If you’re perhaps a younger viewer you may not understand or like it, to be transparent (I was 14 when I watched it for the first time and I didn’t really understand much aha).

As a character, Saki does not have any special quirks but I think this is because the creators wanted the narrator of the story to be relatable to the audience. Takizawa, oddly enough, could pass for a cross between Howl from Howl’s Moving Castle and Spike Spiegel from Cowboy Bebop. Despite some of the stereotypical bad boy things he does, he is not your archetypal “bad boy with a sob story”, but is instead just a good-hearted lad utterly confused by the deadly past-times of the rich and powerful. Saki’s friends are a group of NEETS who will touch your heart as they are ever so sweet and funny.

Overall, I highly recommend this anime, especially if you’re an older viewer. The anime is so enjoyable because it strikes a good balance between dark, psychological moments and light, comedic ones. What’s more, the storyline is rather refreshing and the characters are absolutely lovable. The amazing art and soundtrack are definitely a bonus! If you do venture forth to watch Eden of the East, I sincerely hope you fall in love with it as I did! 

My friend asked me what this anime was about and I looked her right in the eye and asked, “Do you know what a dank meme is?” Zoku Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei, the second season of Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei, is a satirical comedy that pokes fun at our everyday behaviour whilst simultaneously bringing to light the more serious issues in modern society.

The protagonist of this anime is Nozomu Itoshiki, a seemingly depressed young man whose name literally spells out “despair” when written horizontally. Itoshiki likes to portray himself as being pessimistic and suicidal, although upon ... closer inspection, one would notice that he is neither. In direct contrast to him, is Kafuka Fuura, a cheerful optimist (though again, the genuineness of her persona is questionable). Itoshiki lands himself a job as the homeroom teacher of Fuura’s eccentric class and soon embarks upon several adventures alongside his students.

The art is unique but not especially breath-taking. However, it is clear that the hues are carefully chosen to set the mood. The soundtrack, again, is nothing special. The opening and ending songs are great but the lyrics are somewhat nonsensical (which isn’t necessarily a bad thing).

The characters are definitely what give Zoku Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei its flavour. The new characters introduced in this season include: Manami Ookusa, an okusama-nami (married person); Ikkyu, an “old friend” of Itoshiki who is obsessed with all old things; Kuniya Kino, a student of 2-H with an unconventional taste in clothes; and Marui who has a crush on Kuniya but is appalled by his sense of fashion.

Personally, I found Zoku Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei to be extremely enjoyable and I highly recommend it. This anime does seem to be targeted towards the more cynical individuals of society. That being said, it isn’t overwhelmingly deep/philosophical so even if you’re just looking for a good laugh after a hard day’s work, you’ll find this anime pleasurable.

I heard so many things about how painfully realistic this anime was which made me hesitant about watching it because entertainment is supposed to be a refuge from reality not something that makes you go head-to-head with it. Regardless, I ended up watching all 47 episodes of Nana, and what can I say? It was amazing and I have no regrets. Shows like this are valuable because they portray romantic relationships and friendships for what they really are (hint: not all sunshine and roses).

Story: 9/10
Nana doesn’t really have a storyline to speak of, it simply follows the lives of two young women: Nana ... Komatsu and Nana Osaki. The two women lead vastly different lifestyles but end up befriending each other on a train. The story essentially explores the difficulties of being an adult in modern society—more specifically being a happy adult in modern society. There’s a lot of foreshadowing and ominous moments throughout the series. The narration makes it all the more dramatic. A lot of people complained about how the ending was a cliff hanger but I preferred it that way because it gave the audience a chance to imagine an epilogue for themselves (and the ending was heart-warming).

Art: 8/10
This anime is somewhat “old” (2006) so the art isn’t exactly breath-taking. However, the character designs are impeccable and really suit each character. The dark hues that are present in pretty much every scene set the mood for the bitter-sweet happenings that occur throughout the show and they also do well to place the focus on the characters.

Sound: 10/10
I fell in love with the OST of Nana long before I watched the actual anime. This show does have a Music tag so I suppose that’s to be expected. The lyrics of the songs contain so much depth and even if you listened to them without understanding a single word, you would still be moved. The seiyuu did a great job voicing these characters, honestly, I can’t imagine them sounding any other way.

Character: 10/10
The essence of Nana is in its characters. The character development that occurs throughout the show is bound to have you wiping away tears saying, “Awh, look at my baby all grown up.” Each and every character in this anime possesses a unique personality and they’re all lovable. Well, except Takumi (but he’s hot so we’ll cut him some slack). There weren’t any “good” or “bad” characters. I’d say that you could apply the concept of yin yang to pretty much all the characters since sometimes you would want to coddle them and at other times you would want to violently shake them.

Enjoyment: 9/10
I have so much appreciation for Nana and it’s definitely one of my favourites. I wouldn’t say that it’s “fun” but it’s full of comic and heart-warming moments. I would definitely watch this anime again and I 100% recommend it—especially if you’re on the verge of entering the adult world and you’re already starting to get sick of this individualistic society where bonding with people seems so difficult.

After watching AnoHana I was a tear-streaked mess. This anime gave me a true taste of what a teenager’s life is like in Japan and it also helped me to understand what it means to truly love someone.

Story 9/10
The story follows Yadomi (Jinta), a socially awkward teenage boy who enjoys playing video games and often skips school, and his group of friends. Jinta is pretty normal—except for the fact that he is being followed around by the spirit of Menma, his dead childhood friend. Menma tells Jinta that she cannot leave until he grants a wish of hers that he promised to fulfill when they ... were children. The problem is that she cannot remember what the wish is. Jinta then sets out to bring together his childhood friends, who have separated and are walking their own paths, so that they can figure out and grant Menma’s wish together. Even though most of the events were quite predictable it was still very interesting to watch. Overall, the anime was very emotional but there was lots of comedy and the romance was pure and adorable. The only problem I had with the story is that there were several things that didn’t quite make sense. The ending, however, was very satisfying.

Art & Sound 10/10
The character designs matched each of the characters perfectly. The designs of each of the characters as children was also well done. Every time there was a flashback to the characters childhoods, the visuals would appear to be brighter which goes to show how their lives were filled with more light when they were children but now that they’re older there is more darkness. I also thought that the backgrounds were quite breath-taking. The voice actors did a marvellous job portraying their characters in my opinion. The OP was very catchy and the background music helped set the atmosphere.

Character 10/10
The characters were all memorable and each of them had their own way of dealing with situations. Jinta, the socially awkward slacker; Menma, absolutely kawaii but not an air-head; Anaru, extroverted and confident; Poppo, comical and eccentric; Yukiatsu, mysterious and little bit of an egoist; Tsuruko, intelligent and cocky. At the beginning of the series you may not understand the characters and some of their actions (you might even become agitated with them) but as you progress through the anime, you’ll be able to develop empathy for each of the characters and you’ll see them mature.

Enjoyment 9/10
This isn’t what you should watch if you hate anime that revolves around feelings and emotions but if you are looking for something refreshing that dwells deep into the psyche then you should definitely watch this. This anime gave me a sense of why friendships and romance are important in life and I would definitely watch it again.

Darker than Black is one of those anime that have you clicking the “Next Episode” button at 2 o’ clock in the morning. I really enjoyed watching it and I fell in love with the characters.

Story: 9/10
The story takes place in our everyday world—the only difference is that two gigantic ‘gates’ have appeared on Earth, all the stars in the sky are unreal and there are human beings with supernatural powers called “Contractors”. This season of DTB mainly focuses on Hei—a young man who identifies himself as a Contractor but displays the characteristics of an average human. The first few episodes are about the ... adventurous missions that Hei and his team complete. The story is actually pretty fun and exciting to watch. The pacing isn’t perfect though—I feel like some of the scenes would’ve been more interesting if it was fast-paced. The last few episodes give us a glimpse into Hei’s past and we begin to see the formation of a plot.

Art: 9/10
The art was very good. The backgrounds were breath-taking and most of the character designs really did match each characters’ personalities. The only character whose design I didn’t particularly like was Kirihara’s—but that’s just my opinion. I also liked how the difference between “Hei the Contractor’s expressions” and “Hei the average student and part-timer’s expressions” were highlighted.

Sound: 10/10
The soundtrack of DTB was amazing and it really did a lot to enhance my experience watching this anime. The voice actors did a great job in embracing their characters and each character could be identified by their voice alone (this was especially helpful in the case of Mao).

Character: 10/10
Each of the characters were unique and they all had their flaws and strengths. Kirihara, hard-working and justice oriented; Amber, smart, positive… and somewhat insane; Yin, strange and melancholy yet so lovable; Gai the goofy detective and his cosplaying, money-loving sidekick Kiko; Hei, dark, mysterious… and always hungry; Mao, wise but and self-preserving; Huang, the man with a lot of tough love; and so on.

Enjoyment: 9/10
This anime was like a roller-coaster ride for me and I think most people would find it enjoyable. There are some deep and tense scenes but there’s also lots of comedy. I wouldn’t watch this anime for the romance but there are definitely some notable ships. All in all, this anime is, in my opinion, very enjoyable as it gives you that feeling of wanting to see more.

This was definitely a thought-provoking anime. I’ve often asked myself the question, “What if I could go back in time? What would I do? What would I change? What would happen if I was able to go against the flow of time?” This anime answered some of my most complex questions regarding time travel and I enjoyed watching every minute of it.

Story: 10/10
The story follows Okabe Rintaro, the self-proclaimed “mad scientist”, and his adventures with time travel. Do not get thrown off by the first episode—I know that it may be confusing but as you progress through the anime all of the bits and ... pieces will fit together. There were a lot of tense and philosophical moments in the story but there was also the much-needed comic relief. I also think that the pacing of this anime was excellent. It was slow and relaxing up until episode 5; allowing the audience to slowly take in the plot. And from episode 5 onwards, it started to speed up and there was much suspense and excitement. There was also a fair bit of romance-- which I enjoyed. Other great things about the story are that it is unpredictable and that it makes you want to see more and more. The ending was very satisfying.

Art: 10/10
I liked the art alot and I felt that the character designs really did match the characters’ personalities. I also liked how most of the focus was placed on the characters instead of the background which made the story easier to follow. I don’t know a lot about animation but I thought the colours really set the tone for the story.

Sound: 9/10
The voice actors for this anime were very talented. I haven’t watched it dubbed so I don’t really what the English voice actors were like but the Japanese voice actors really did embrace their characters. The only thing that may have made this anime better was background music for some of the scenes.

Characters 10/10
Each of the characters in this anime were very unique. They all had their strengths and weaknesses and they were all able to see situations differently. I fell in love with Okabe’s eccentric ways and Kurisu’s perseverance. Daru would often make me laugh and Mayushii was absolutely adorable. Okabe does, however, change slowly as the anime progresses because of the events that befall him and he becomes more serious.

Enjoyment 10/10
I enjoyed this anime and I feel like other people would too. Steins;Gate is very refreshing and it’s worth the watch. Even if you’re someone who doesn’t really watch anime you should give it a try if you enjoy sci-fi, time-travel, etc.