What Current Anime Are You Watching Version v4.0

[Major Focker]

Just finished Bakemonogatari. I had no clue what I was watching until about 5 episodes in. I find it hard to follow as some of the dialogue can be fast but it was oddly enjoyable.

you fared better than i did. i had to re-watch the first part of episode 2 over and over again, just to be sure

Can highly recommend Pale Cocoon. A gem of a short 23 minute sci-fi OVA done in the same style as some of Makoto Shinkai's work. Really thought provoking stuff.

many thanks for bringing this up. it was beautiful.

[Keith]

Psst, we have a Monogatari topic now! Also, I will rage if this weeks ep is another recap!

[Major Focker]

oops, my bad. and oh, prepare to rage..

[Keith]

It felt like it would be that kind of week. Luckily I love tge Tsubasa Cat arc, so I'm not that mad.

[technoblue]

This week's episode of Kill la Kill ramped up the pervy action. It's so ridiculous that I can't help but to enjoy it immensely.

There was a rumor going around that the glowy threads we see appear after Matoi wins a fight were threads that she was losing from her outfit. That didn't sit well with me and the third episode finally explains it clearly: Senketsu is one of a special batch of uniforms that can collect "life" threads to become more powerful. And it looks like there is at least one more of these things out there because Kiryuin has one too.

tl;dr: Kamui upgrades!

[mecha2241]

I hope we start seeing more stuff like Attack on Titan and Kill la Kill. They're a nice change of pace from what has been coming out the last few years.

[Marzan]

This week's episode of Kill la Kill ramped up the pervy action. It's so ridiculous that I can't help but to enjoy it immensely.

There was a rumor going around that the glowy threads we see appear after Matoi wins a fight were threads that she was losing from her outfit. That didn't sit well with me and the third episode finally explains it clearly: Senketsu is one of a special batch of uniforms that can collect "life" threads to become more powerful. And it looks like there is at least one more of these things out there because Kiryuin has one too.

tl;dr: Kamui upgrades!

They actually found a solid plot/ideological foundation to support the fanservice so it'll be even more present from now on.

Satsuki-sama reminds me SOOO much of Haman Karn from that it's not funny. Good. I really like them both for strange reasons I cannot explain.

[Major Focker]

they sure turned up the perv dial to 11 and completely overshot hentai territory and landed instead into awesome-land.

i'm actually starting to worry that they might lose steam and wondering if this is a short or long series.

the soundtrack is reminiscent of Attack on Titan.

[technoblue]

I hope there is more to this anime than a flashy fight of the week. I mean, I'll watch it anyway but Gurren Lagann was fun and had twists and turns. This could be straight forward stuff, but I'm hoping there is something more.

[Major Focker]

that's also what i'm afraid of. the way the story is set up right now, it seems the protagonist will have to go through each of the underlings to reach the end boss.

[Major Focker]

first half of Stella Women's Academy was fun. it's like K-On! with guns, and of course tea. though it falls short of K-On! it was enjoyable for end of the work day, laid back watching.

episode 4 was notable for hinting at a meta-fantasy angle and was a good bit of story telling.

but in the second half, the main character went all angst-y and was annoying as hell. moe and emo just don't hang well together even if they share the same letters.

the meta-fantasy element in episode 4 was also never developed. in fact the writers seem to have forgotten about it until near the end of the series. quite a shame as it might have actually set this anime apart.

fortunately the last 2 episodes was full-on fun again with some really hilarious moments. still, it's hard to recommend this one except to airsoft afficionados.

[Keith]

I still enjoyed Stella, it's a solid Gainax b-series, though not as good as Hanamaru or Dantalian.

[Marzan]

I thought Stella was allright, nothing special but ok. I think Gainax wanted to develop a MC with a lot more character development that is the norm for these kinds of shows but it kinda backfired on them. I've read that it's been a colossal flop back in Japan with dismal sales. With all the talent Gainax has been bleeding to Trigger and Studio Khara, things are not looking too good for them lately.

[Major Focker]

pleasantly surprised that Sword Art Online is actually kinda amazing.

well i'm only a few episodes in. hope it holds up.

[Keith]

I'm honestly still not sure about Trigger and Kill la Kill. All the right to alent is there, but something isn't quite clicking. Khara on the other hand is hitting it out of the park. I'vr finally seen 3.33 with subs, and that film is every kind of amazing.

Edited October 22, 2013 by Keith

[technoblue]

Evangelion 3.33 felt more transitional to me. It was good, but not incredible. I'm not very familiar with the other EVA work, so I may be missing out on some of the lore that doesn't show up in the television series and the movies. The first two redo OVAs were very good and I enjoyed the changes. I can't wait to see how things progress with the fourth, whenever that lands.

Things are too early for me to make a final judgement on Kill la Kill. It could ramp up fast and become excellent or it could fall on its face. I'm hoping it becomes something of a spiritual successor to Gurren Lagann, but I'm trying to keep those hopes in check.

Speaking of Gurren Lagann, the BD collector's set has a good discount at Amazon Japan. It is very tempting...

.

Edited October 22, 2013 by technoblue

[Keith]

First, Rebuild is a movie series, not an OVA. But that Gurren Lagann box is totally worth it.

[technoblue]

My mistake. I'll leave the error above as is.

I forgot to mention that I have also been impressed with the enhancements each .xx release brought to the new Eva films.

[ron5864]

pleasantly surprised that Sword Art Online is actually kinda amazing.

well i'm only a few episodes in. hope it holds up.

I'm on Ep. 11 of Sword Art Online. Things escalated quickly like in Ep. 8-10. I feel this is more enjoyable than Accel World. And Asuna is one trigger happy tsundere.

The other anime, Skakugan no Shana II, Yuji is really bugging the heck out of me. Why u so useless Yuji???

[Scream Man]

The first 14 episode of Sword Art Online are basically perfect to me. I loved every frame.

The second season is GOOD, but not great. It has a couple of very glaring faults, but i don't want to go into them and color your opinions. once your done We'll discuss in more detail

I have to admit, Log Horizon is growing on me slowly. Samurai Flamenco is... a bit more Meh. Still giving it a few episodes, but not blown away.

Coppellion is more fun than i expected it to be.

[Major Focker]

indeed, the 1st season of SAO was excellent. the 2nd season was ok but completely overshadowed by the first.

the 1st season had quite a variety of stories and they were purposeful. rather than just explaining the mechanics of the game world through dialogue they crafted episodes that showed the dynamics and implications of those game rules. and i appreciated the deliberateness the writers took to integrate many different game elements into the story, things like player killing, safe zones, levelling up, farming/teabagging, weapon upgrade/crafting, as well as bits of social commentary and human behaviour/dynamics. in the course of these episodes they introduced various characters that managed to be memorable despite their short air time, and more importantly, gave a sense that the world was populated and alive.

this i think is mainly where the 2nd season fell short. they practically stopped with the world building and what little they did had almost inconsequential impact to the story. the episodes were so single-mindedly focused on advancing the plot that the story could've been transplanted to a different world/setting and no one would be the wiser. they did well with addition of another major character who was interesting and gave some emotional complexity to the story, but unfortunately a previous major character, while remaining central, was then reduced to a nearly passive role. the new minor characters paled in comparison to their counterparts in the 1st season and where pretty much like cardboard NPCs who just moved the story along.

overall, SAO is still highly recommendable. the visuals were great and the soundtrack pretty compelling.

[1st Border Red Devil]

Watched the entirety of Yamato 2199. Definitely one of the best remakes I've seen in a long time, anime or otherwise. I damned near started bawling my eyes out at the start of episode 21, between the scene itself and female acapella version of the theme.

[Scream Man]

indeed, the 1st season of SAO was excellent. the 2nd season was ok but completely overshadowed by the first.

the 1st season had quite a variety of stories and they were purposeful. rather than just explaining the mechanics of the game world through dialogue they crafted episodes that showed the dynamics and implications of those game rules. and i appreciated the deliberateness the writers took to integrate many different game elements into the story, things like player killing, safe zones, levelling up, farming/teabagging, weapon upgrade/crafting, as well as bits of social commentary and human behaviour/dynamics. in the course of these episodes they introduced various characters that managed to be memorable despite their short air time, and more importantly, gave a sense that the world was populated and alive.

this i think is mainly where the 2nd season fell short. they practically stopped with the world building and what little they did had almost inconsequential impact to the story. the episodes were so single-mindedly focused on advancing the plot that the story could've been transplanted to a different world/setting and no one would be the wiser. they did well with addition of another major character who was interesting and gave some emotional complexity to the story, but unfortunately a previous major character, while remaining central, was then reduced to a nearly passive role. the new minor characters paled in comparison to their counterparts in the 1st season and where pretty much like cardboard NPCs who just moved the story along.

overall, SAO is still highly recommendable. the visuals were great and the soundtrack pretty compelling.

True, but what got me about season 2 was:

Season 2 got Japan-creepy. Kirito's sister is in love with him... oh but its OK, they're actually cousins. Asuna goes from being a heroine to a sex slave trapped in a cage... and then at the end the WAY creepy villain explicitly discusses, and begins the process of raping her in front of Kirito. It's just... icky. Just a little gross. It's all just kind of wrong.

[Major Focker]

i guess i'm just desensitized already since a number of animes have those, and some are good notwithstanding.

so it didn't bother me while watching SAO season 2 and despite those SAO might have made it to my top faves list if only S2 had the same narrative strengths as S1 and if the overall S2 story was a little more sophisticated than just go and rescue the damsel in distress.

[BeyondTheGrave]

I'm honestly still not sure about Trigger and Kill la Kill. All the right to alent is there, but something isn't quite clicking.

Because it's like a Gainax series but not Gainax. so therefore your brain has issues processing it.

Edited October 25, 2013 by BeyondTheGrave

[technoblue]

With the latest episode of Kill la Kill, I have no more doubts. This is good zany (sometimes pervy) fun.

This week's episode was a good play on king of the mountain. The hyperactive jumps in the dilogue had me laughing too. The first instance being when Senketsu is taken to the wash. It was an obvious set up to make the whole story a little more interesting, but it was done with humor. The other sight gags weren't that bad either, even if a couple had me rolling my eyes (that silly dog).

Edited October 25, 2013 by technoblue

[DuelGundam2099]

So today I watched the Princess Resurrection OVA trilogy and.... Hmm. On the plus side it had better creatures (hooray Starship Trooper warrior bug knockoff and deformed vampires!) and Flanders actually did something awesome twice. One the other hand the music was bland and they cranked up the fan service which blew bloody chunks (and the TV version had enough of that junk as it was). Renegade Leader you might like this since you're the local ecchi addict. So.... Basically in the same ballpark as the TV series. Eh. They really did not need Sylvia or episode 3's hot spring scene.

Edited October 26, 2013 by DuelGundam2099

[Major Focker]

With the latest episode of Kill la Kill, I have no more doubts. This is good zany (sometimes pervy) fun.

This week's episode was a good play on king of the mountain. The hyperactive jumps in the dilogue had me laughing too. The first instance being when Senketsu is taken to the wash. It was an obvious set up to make the whole story a little more interesting, but it was done with humor. The other sight gags weren't that bad either, even if a couple had me rolling my eyes (that silly dog).

it's so zany that it's probably more apt to call it pervy-parody.

i was laughing so hard and it was so hyper kinetic it nearly blew my brains out.

[Vepariga]

Gundam build fighters,been pretty cool so far

and I'm going to start watching Arpeggio of Blue Steel,looks awesome.

[Major Focker]

i was looking for Kantai Collection anime and ended up finding Arpeggio instead. first episode was ok. will reserve comments until i'm further in.

i didn't know Kantai was a card game. in any case, an anime adaptation is supposedly in the works for 2014.

[technoblue]

it's so zany that it's probably more apt to call it pervy-parody.

i was laughing so hard and it was so hyper kinetic it nearly blew my brains out.

Parody is spot on. That's a great description.

The supernatural moe drama, Beyond the Boundary, is holding my interest.

However, Infinite Stratos season 2 is on hold because I want a few more episodes to watch before diving back in completely. LoL!

Also, I want to try out some of the other anime recommendations in this thread...

[renegadeleader1]

Renegade Leader you might like this since you're the local ecchi addict.

Alright let's get one thing clear here turd I don't JUST watch anime for the fanservice and ecchi situation, but I am also not going to crap all over a show like Queen's Blade, Ikki Tousen, or Aika like you do, because they are at least being honest about what they are, unlike other shows that try to force jiggling boobies and panties in. The guy with the Shelf Life column on Anime News Network probly said it best in his review of Highschool DxD:

My relationship with fanservice is a complex one. I don't like it when series try to sneak in fanservice where it doesn't belong, but I can embrace a series that doesn't bother pretending it's selling anything else as long as it has a story that could reasonably stand on its own even if you were to give everyone A-cups and turtlenecks.

There are limits to my tolerance as I found Qwaser of Stigmata to be absolutle garbage, didn't care for Gantz, and no I really couldn't care less about Princess Resurrection either. I'm not a big fan of horror anime, the character designs don't appeal to me, and the previews did nothing to hook me.

Now would you like to know some anime I do like? I love pretty much anything by Leiji Matsumoto(just finished original Harlock), Berserk, Lupin III, Venus Wars, Gunbuster, Sword of the Stranger, Captain Tylor, GaoGaiGar, Daiguard, and a lot of other stuff.

You want a classic I love that doesn't include ecchiness? Give Scrapped Princess a shot. This series as others can attest is damn near close to perfect. Its a show that should be on Toonami as opposed to some of the things they've shown.

[DuelGundam2099]

Alright let's get one thing clear here turd

No need to be rude.

I don't JUST watch anime for the fanservice and ecchi situation

Sorry.

Queen's Blade, Ikki Tousen

Never seen these two....

Scrapped Princess

Alright, I will eventually.

[Marzan]

Got the "The Woman Called Fujiko Mine" BD set and I'm currently enjoying it. Love the old school, very sexy yet artistic look and feel of it all. And Miyuki Sawashiro is a delight playing Fujiko Mine. Lupin III feels a bit different than from what I remember him, but then again, I've seen very little of the original Lupin III stuff to make an informed opinion.

[DuelGundam2099]

Valvrave ep 16 has officially cemented my inability to give this series a 9 or 10 out of 10. Yes, lets throw in a background decoration, make her so important with little build up, and make an emotional scene so forced it makes Gundam Age look subtle. In addition they're ripping off Tekkaman Blade's "oh man I'm going to die of memory loss!" bit with NO build up at all! I thought this was Zegapain: Vampires in the Cosmic Era, now it is basically Tekkaman Blade: Suckage Edition. I might punch a wall if this ends up being the last non-Gundam title Kunio Okawara works on, that guy made some of the best mecha in anime history and to go out on this sour of a note.... GAH! Toshiki Hirano nearly suffered this from CLAMP's trash of Rayearth (thank frick we had Great Dangaioh). Who knows, maybe Marie dying will improve the series like how it did for Linebarrels after Kunio died or TTGL when Kamina died (seriously, what an obnoxious guy).