Back to -Nata's Profile -Nata's Profile

With an upcoming adaptation, I'd thought I read, and ultimately review this short Shoujo Ai (Girls love) manga. What greatly differentiates this series from others of its genre is its sci-fi premise. The protagonist is overtly shy and through her sheer will of panicking under pressure has conjured up the ability to stop time. The catch is she only has three minutes out of a day to utilize it. This is her alone time where she is allowed to roam freely with no anxiety. She exploits her power by looking under the skirt of Haruka, the most popular girl in class and is shocked to ... find out that Haruka is the only person who isn't affected by her power. As awkward as their first encounter was, they begin to share this secluded time together.

Story:
With only two volumes, the mangaka doesn't waste time to get to the root of its story. The relationship in this series is a familiar trope you might've seen before: a shy girl starting a relationship with the popular girl in school. The dynamic between the two is cute, but even with its short length, the main character's insecurities of whether or not the popular girl is actually in love with her gets tiring and played out.

Despite it's sci-fi premise, it doesn't have any further features that compliment the genre, in fact there's even plot holes in the science itself. If you pause time, you would have to move back into position in order to not cause a scene yet despite this, the main character bolts mid conversation multiple times and somehow is never questioned by other characters. This might seem like a nitpick, but I should be upfront with the "sci-fi" tag so that if you're one of the few extremely interested that this shoujo ai series has a sci-fi twist, just know that it stops there.

Art:
I consider the art to be the biggest detriment to this series. The reason why I think it'll likely affect your enjoyment is because I'd imagine people looking for a shoujo ai manga have high expectations for an appealing art style and memorable character designs. The art style isn't bad by any means, but it doesn't do anything to set itself apart, or even enhance any of the girls features. Every girl character in here looks practically the same, and they can easily fit in with the background characters of other series. The art is simple, and the paneling can be awkward at times with me sometimes not noticing that the main character stopped time. Manga is essentially pictures. It looks frozen by default; if you don't draw anything that signifies something went motionless, the reader won't follow.

Conclusion:
It was fairly enjoyable. It starts off exciting and the story continues to introduce conflicts and gives a bit of room for the characters to have more depth in the end. Ultimately the two characters are cute, and their relationship is pretty wholesome. I would recommend this if you're into Shoujo Ai and want a quick read, but this wouldn't be my first recommendation for someone looking to get into the genre as the characters and art style leave a lot to be desired.

Anime Review: Baccano!

Every now and then, out of all the generic harem anime coming out, we get one anime that sticks out more than a white guy in an NWA concert. For 2007, we get Baccano! An anime that feels like it has everything an anime should have. Action, Adventure, Supernatural, Fantasy, and don't forget Comedy. With all this in mind, this anime will have you hooked all the way till the last episode.

Story (9): Baccano has multiple individual storylines, all of which intervene into a larger story. The story is not told in order, so the first episode is actually the last episode, while ... the middle is actually the beginning, etc, etc. At first, you'll be mind fucked but that's what will get you watching an episode after an episode. The more you get into the story, the more you find out what's happening and why is it happening. The story is unique as it revolves around a train robbery not knowing there's mass murderers, bootleggers, immortals, mercenaries, and a loving couple who commit crimes on board.

Art (9): The art is realistic and smooth, from the streets of New York to the blood squirting out of a guys face. The animation holds up for the greatness of the series, it's nothing special but it should be noted that the animation is very lively especially during the action scenes.

Sound (10): Baccano takes place in the 1930's so it would only make sense that the OP and OST is nothing but good old jazz music. The music fits perfectly with the show, you'll be bopping your head to the rhythm of the music, while watching Ladd Russo punch a guy to death. The music is excellent even if it's not my choice in music. Not only that, this has the best English dubbed I've seen next to Cowboy Bebop. The voice actors were spot on with accents from new york action flicks. Giving the dubbed version a must watch.

Character (10): Without a doubt, Baccano has an outstanding cast. With this large of a cast, you're bound to hate at least one character but this was the first anime, that made me like every character including the villains. Never before in anime I've seen a psychopathic killer being my favorite character. You have your cool guys, your badass girls, a couple, and even a wimp who gets to kick ass in the end. Characters in Baccano is definitely a strong point in this series.

Enjoyment (9): Being a huge fan of Quentin Tarantino, this anime was a pleasant treat for me. I didn't want this show to end, and when it did I was left there longing for more. This was an anime that made made me want to rush to the next episode, that kept me at the edge of my seat after ending the episode with a cliff hanger. This show will kill your boredom in a jiffy.

Overall (9.5): Baccano! feels like a big puzzle solving it's self with every episode. As it shows a bunch of events that later on piece together to make a great story. It is incredibly enjoyable watching every character going through their own story mixed with mafia action and hilarious comedy. Baccano! should be a prime example for what an anime should be. Instead of watching today's anime for the tits and ass route, go check out Baccano for the entertainment that anime was made for.

Hey guys, this was my first review. Please feel free to give me some feed back, help would be much appreciated. Thank guys.