
I’m just now diving into the Summer season. I’ve been preoccupied with continuing Spring shows, I suppose. Still, I’ve managed to check out a few new shows this past week…
Honey & Clover - More of the same. Of course, when it comes to Honey & Clover, who could complain about more of the same? The only thing I can complain about is the fact there’s only eleven episodes remaining.
Muteki Kanban Musume - It seems every season has a couple of wacky shows that go unnoticed by audiences outside Japan. This strikes me as one of those shows. There’s a reason these shows go unnoticed: they’re weird. And Muteki Kanban Musume is clearly weird. Is it funny? Maybe. I’ll admit to cracking up here and there while watching the first episode, but for every joke that worked, there were ten jokes that fell flat. Unfortunately, I get the feeling the first episode was a microcosm of the entire series - that is, every gag featured in those first 24 minutes will be repeated ad nauseam for the remainder of the series. Eventually, you’re left wondering why you ever laughed at it in the first place. Thanks for a fun night, Miki. There’s a cab waiting downstairs.
Tsuyokiss - I haven’t felt this conflicted about a new show in long time. A few minutes in, I almost stopped watching. That rarely happens unless something is profoundly bad. Were those first few minutes profoundly bad? You bet. Did it get better? You bet. Will I keep watching? I honestly can’t say. H-game conversions have a tendency to get off to rough starts, and I can think of several that had debuts as atrocious (if not more) as Tsuyokiss, yet still managed to recover after a few episodes. I think Tsuyokiss has a lot going for it in that regard, but I have to admit I’m spooked by the giant cast and the heavy pandering to fans of the original material. I’ll give it another episode or two, at least.
NHK ni Youkoso - Like a lot of people, I’m always a little apprehensive about new GONZO shows. It’s not that GONZO produces one stinker after another, necessarily. Rather, I’ve just had some bad experiences. Still, GONZO is a competent studio, and they’re working with some great material this time around, so… even a blind squirrel finds a nut once in awhile? In other words, this is good. Really good. It took until about the commercial break of the first episode before I realized that, but once I did, everything sort of clicked. It kind of makes previous otaku-themed shows look especially silly.
New stuff I still need to check out: Binbou Shimai Monogatari, Zero no Tsukaima, and Chokotto Sister.
UPDATE: Oh, and add Tonagura to that list. It has a military otaku loli character, after all. I nearly forgot, but Momotato reminded me. He stays on top of these things so I don’t have to!




