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Azunyan for President

6 Comments |

April 10, 2010

I can’t even begin to describe how delighted I am that K-ON! is back, and (supposedly) for two cours, at that. It seems I’m not alone. I’m feeling a lot of good vibes this time around. Perhaps the first season grew on people over time much the same way it grew on me? Or perhaps it’s because the old “it’s just a bunch of girls sitting around drinking tea, eating cake and being moe” critique is mostly irrelevant now that the show makes no bones about the fact that it is, for all intents and purposes, just that.

I mean, the show pretty much lays all of its cards out on the table by the seventh second of the OP animation, amirite?

That said, I never expected K-ON! to grow into a franchise. I think it goes without saying that, until now, Kyoto Animation’s output has mostly been defined by Haruhi and their various VisualArt’s/Key adaptations. Initially, I assumed K-ON! to be little more than a four month long part time job taken to help pay the rent. Oops. Of course, it may very well be that K-ON! is the very model of a modern unexpected hit to which all parties directly involved were just as surprised as I was. Not like anyone would ever publicly admit to that, of course (”Yes sir, I DID expect buckets of money all along, and, no sir, I don’t know why that bucket looks like it used to say ‘Melancholy of something-or-other’ on it.”), so I guess we’ll never know.

Here’s some food for thought, though…

K-ON! isn’t the only slice of life show to pull this “Franchise GET” stunt in recent years.

Watching a bunch of girls sitting around drinking tea, eating cake and being moe… or rowing boats… or having a nice soak in the bath at the end of the day… perhaps there are plenty of anime fans out there who really do like this sort of thing after all?

We should get together and start a club or something. Or write a book.

In Summary

10 Comments |

March 21, 2010

| Television

“Won’t somebody please think of the children?!”

Year in Review, or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Numbered Lists

16 Comments |

December 29, 2009

| Miscellaneous

I’m not even going to talk about the decade. I wouldn’t even know where to start. Six or seven paragraphs of Aria love, I guess. Let’s not go there.

My Ten Favorite Anime Series of 2009

Aoi Hana - Not so much a yuri show as it is a lovely story of friendship and how love exists in so many different forms, to be expressed in so many different ways. And, like everything Shichiro Kobayashi touches, it’s oh so pretty.
Clannad After Story - A fitting finale to the most genuinely touching and engaging of the Visual Art’s/Key adaptations. Tomoya and Ushio in a field of safflowers still makes me cry, no matter how many times I watch it.
K-ON! - A much more charming slice of life series and much better organized 4-koma adaptation than the “too cool for school” crowd would have you believe. The music angle, even if not the ultimate point of the show, makes for tasty seasoning if you’re as into that sort of thing as I am.
Toradora - As a romantic drama, it shines, even despite its hard on for existential philosophizing (a common disease of many light novel adaptations, it seems). Still, the anime series is a well conceived and carefully constructed piece of work that leaves me even more convinced that Tatsuyuki Nagai is truly one of the industry’s brightest new stars.
Hatsukoi Limited - Ah, the innocence of adolescent romance. I’m with Omo. Enomoto x Kusuda get the award for the year’s best couple, rivaled only by Chikura x myself.
Hayate no Gotoku!! - I’ll admit that it took a few episodes before I made peace with the change in tone from the first season, but a plot focused, late-night time slot romcom Hayate no Gotoku is fine, too, you know. If I had a pile of anime to watch on any given night, this always came first.
Kanamemo - I kind of like to think of this show as a low-rent Mahoraba, just with a little less heart-warming and a little more goofiness. And more lesbians. And singing. And hilarious broadcast censorship.
Sora no Manimani - I want to join an astronomy club, too.
Nyan Koi - A perfect example of how a romantic comedy can still do the romance right even when the comedy borders on the absolutely absurd. I’d like to think the production team had as much fun making this show as I did watching it. Seemed like they did, at least. I anxiously await the promised second season.
White Album - I could never really decide if I was laughing with, or at this show. Such was its charm. So utterly fascinating, yet so utterly ridiculous. Touya may have been a gutless douchebag, but he sure did get laid a lot. RESPECT.
Fact of the matter is, I watched a lot of anime this year. A LOT OF ANIME. There are plenty of other shows that deserve praise, like Seitokai no Ichizon, Sasameki no Koto and To Aru Kagaku no Railgun. Then, there are the theatrical releases, like Summer Wars and Kara no Kyoukai. Oh, and oddities like the Candy Boy ONA and Hidamari Sketch specials. And the fourth season of Maria-sama ga Miteru, which I haven’t watched yet (waiting on the R1 DVD release) but will no doubt love once I do.
No, I didn’t watch Bakemonogatari. Or, to be more precise, I didn’t watch more than three episodes. Didn’t do much for me. Sorry.
OMG DON’T GET OFF ON THIS FLOOR.
I already did my homework.
I already did my homework.
I already did my homework.
I already did my homework.
I already did my homework.
I already did my homework.
I already did my homework.
ASK ME HOW I CAN HELP YOU WITH YOUR HOMEWORK.
We’re doing this again next year, right?
Just so you know, I flunked Calculus my freshman year in college. Fuck you, 1996.
Happy New Year!

Autumn On My Mind

14 Comments |

November 9, 2009

| Television

Since I was bumming around Japan when the current anime season first began, I’m a little behind the curve. However, I’m making an effort to catch up with what’s currently airing now that we’re entering the cold and dark part of the year and I have nothing better to do. Might as well watch some anime! Note that I still need to check out Sasameki Koto and To Aru Kagaku no Railgun, so no comment on those two shows as of yet.

Anyway, you know the drill…

Nyan Koi - Easily my favorite show of the season thus far, despite my initial low expectations. It plays the harem card effectively without getting too bogged down in harem conventions - almost to the extent I feel like I’m mischaracterizing the show by mentioning the “H” word in the first place. The show’s true charm, however, is its humor, which gets surprisingly wild at times. Some of the recent episodes have had me roaring with laughter.

Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu - Purezza - I enjoyed the first season more than I should probably admit (there’s a podcast out there with record of that, so I guess I’m screwed as is), but I’m having a difficult time with this second season. Some episodes have been fairly enjoyable - the opener and the Hayate no Gotoku homage, for example - but others, such as the Christmas episode, have been tough to stomach. Not only have the two leads misplaced the better parts of their personalities, but the show as a whole has misplaced the plot. Hello, writers? See the show’s title? Perhaps you should try doing something with that. It worked last time, you know.

Kimi no Todoke - This show feels an awful lot like the second coming of Bokura ga Ita both in presentation and premise. I really enjoyed that show, so it stands to reason I should enjoy this one as well. And I do… for the most part. Sasaki Nozomi for teh Mamiko is a fair enough trade (both voices make me think dirty thoughts, I admit) and the lighter tone is a nice counter to Bokura ga Ita’s propensity to wallow. On the other hand, a lot of the drama in the initial episodes has felt manufactured enough that I can’t help but feel uneasy. Good shoujo can go sour in an instant.

White Album - More of the same, but with twice the budget! Or three times, maybe. Kind of difficult to multiply by zero, I guess. I half wonder if Seven Arcs kept production going full steam during the show’s six month intermission in an effort to stay ahead of schedule. Anyway, it’s more of the same silly soap opera drama and opaque writing that has no business being as enjoyable as it is. Touya is still every bit a spectacular douchebag. Legendary, really.

Kobato - So, I found this time machine in the coat closet the other day, and I thought, “what the hell,” and punched in 1998, and when I got there, I was totally in Japan (a bonus feature, I guess), and Cardcaptor Sakura was totally on TV, and so I totally watched it, and then I woke up, and I was back in 2009, and I got to feeling sad, because Sakura was surely some old lady by now, and the only decent CLAMP anime adaptation in the past ten years had been fucking Chobits (of all things), but then this Kobato show totally came on TV, and the birds started singing and the clouds started dancing and then I started thinking I shouldn’t have eaten those brownies after all.

Seitokai no Ichizon - I almost gave up on this show after the second episode, but I’m glad I stuck with it. There’s a certain low budget, taking-a-piss charm to the entire production, and the humor, while unbalanced, leans more to the “funny” side than the “not-so-funny” side. And, for a show that relies heavily on referential inside jokes, it doesn’t pull any punches. None of this, “we can only make fun of our own properties,” crap (I’m looking at you, Lucky Star).

Fresh Autumn Flavors

14 Comments |

September 26, 2008

| Television

Is it already that time of year? It’s been warm lately - I’m sitting outside, enjoying it at this very moment - but the leaves are nonetheless changing color and the nights are growing cooler. The cold and snow is just around the corner.

I don’t know how much value there is in doing these season previews, as I often change things up a few weeks in, but who am I to argue with tradition? Here’s what I’m looking forward to…

Clannad: After Story - That’s it for the laughs. We will now proceed to mope. Seriously, though, from what I’ve heard from people who have played the original game, the After Story arc is quite the tear-jerker. I’ll have the tissues ready. I’m happy that the second season is a two cour show, as it suggests the pacing will be “just right”. When all is said and done, Clannad will be (at least) a 49 episode show. Crazy.

ef - a tale of melodies - I’m still ruminating on whether I should watch this as it airs or wait and marathon it at a later date. I’m leaning toward the former. I could go for some “arthouse” anime right about now.

Hyakko - This looks an awful lot like slice of life comedy, which is clearly my favorite genre of anime nowadays. I have a feeling this might be the surprise hit of the season - for me, at least. My fingers are crossed.

Kannagi - I’ve been excited about this show ever since it was first announced. This, despite the fact I know jack all about the original manga. I think it’s the character designs - I love that style of “simple” moe. Also, it’s good to have Yamakan back. I look forward to his quirky direction.

Nodame Cantabile: Paris Chapter - The final episode of the first season left me a bit conflicted, as I felt it was a great place to stop, but at the same time, I wanted more (and then some). Cue second season. Problem solved.

Toradora - You know, I think Nagai Tatsuyuki has a bright future as a director. His work on the second season of Honey & Clover was really solid (I recently rewatched it, so it’s fresh on my mind). Same with Idolmaster XENOGLOSSIA - although I recognize that I’m in the small minority of people who actually have a positive opinion of said show. Either way, it’s Nagai’s involvement alone that has me interested in Toradora. I guess I’m a fan.

Yozakura Quartet - This is another instance of a show’s staff attracting my attention more than anything else. On it’s face, the premise makes the show sound like something I wouldn’t necessarily dig, but my gut is telling me to check it out. Who am I to argue?

Akane-iro ni Somaru Saka - This one goes in the “maybe” category. I’ve been hungry for a good eroge adaptation as of late, and since I’ve heard so many good things about the original game from people who have played it, it’d be silly not to at least give it a try. These shows can be a lot of fun every now and then.

Shugo Chara!! Doki - I’m way behind on the first season, but I’ll get to this eventually. It might just take awhile. Still, I feel I should list it, lest you guys think I gave up on what is probably the best mahou shoujo show to come out of Japan in years.

Skip Beat - Speaking of shoujo… why on earth did it take so long for this to get an anime adaptation? I feel like I’ve been hearing about Skip Beat for ages. Anyway, “aspiring idol” shoujo is one of my favorite types of shoujo (yes, it’s a genre almost all its own), so I’m really looking forward to this. Tis my hidden pleasure.