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Jul 30, 2018
I don't read manga. Not really. Certainly not manga that's still being serialized. It's just not my style. I hate waiting and I generally want to just coast and enjoy the arc of the story in it's entirety. Yet, here I am, writing about a manga that's still being serialized. With the above context in mind, I think I can more clearly communicate to you, dear reader, how much I love Gal Gohan. Let's break it down shall we?
Story: The story's probably the one part where things fall somewhat flat. Schoolgirl in love with her teacher really should be listed as a trope if it
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isn't by now, especially for Japanese media. Yet, Gal Gohan puts quite the shine on an old story, and it's hard to not support and enjoy the lead heroine's (Miku) earnest feelings... while being a bit of a goober about how she expresses them. When the second heroine was introduced I was worried the story would go off formula a bit and that it would lose the luster I'd been enjoying so much, but in the end the course is true, even with more characters sharing that course.
Short version: The jokes are funny, the emotions heartfelt and endearing. Perfect for a romcom with impact.
Art: Honestly just got look at the art. The girls are all uniquely designed, and even the male lead, Mr. Yabe manages to not look like a stock male lead for anime and manga. The panels flow nicely, the environments are detailed and engaging, and action, is illustrated quite fluidly.
...plus there's plenty of panty shots and various "ecchi" material... which is quite nice to look at. Miku's a stunner and the art illustrates that very well.
Character: Making archetypes into interesting characters takes a deft hand with the pen. Trust me, I'm an author myself. Taking archetypes, and a somewhat tropetastic story, then making something engaging and spirited out of it, well that's even more special, and I'd say where Gal Gohan really puts rubber to the road is with it's characters. Miku's an engaging and, despite her attempts to act otherwise, intelligent female lead, and her goober moments, driven by her pure and sweet heart, whether she's managed a slapstick klutz move or she's realized she's expressed her feelings a bit too directly are great. Then again, I enjoy a girl who clearly knows how to use her looks to her advantage shifting to pure maiden mode without a clutch.
Fujiwara is a character that very easily could have stayed as stock standard issue, but develops rather nicely into more than the sum of her tropes. (Much more than this is spoiler territory so I'll leave it here)
Yabe too does an excellent job, not just of being a good teacher, but showing exactly why Miku's into him. He's reliable, kind, the right kind of intense... and he can cook. (irl dating tip from a married guy, learn to cook gentlemen. Miku digs a man who knows his way around a kitchen, and so do most women. Plus eating good food is it's own reward.) He's a decent guy, and he's earned Miku's affections in a very believable way that does deepen and go further than a simple school girl crush.
Enjoyment: I think that's pretty obvious by now considering I'm writing a freaking essay on a romcom about a pure gyaru trying to earn her Mrs. degree immediately after graduating high school.
Reviewer’s Rating: 10
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Apr 6, 2018
Last Generation Hero
This is my favorite anime. It's also the anime that got me in to anime. The animation's gorgeous, the art and style's classic mecha and spaceship design at it's finest. Gene and the crew are fantastic and fun without a single point of failure (Well. Coulda used more Aisha, but everything could use more Aisha).
I'll skip going on at length, and gods only know I could, but this adventure of leaving boyhood behind, of finding your place in a sea of stars... it's worth your time straight up. It can be a bit hard to find but it will reward your efforts.
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It's also worth noting the dub's pretty good.
Reviewer’s Rating: 10
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Apr 6, 2018
Rei Hiroe's explosive masterpiece is a beautiful homage to Hong Kong action movies and crime dramas with more than few references and nods to things you might just recognize on the way. Black Lagoon comes at you fast, but once you blink the flash blinding explosions out of your vision, it can bring you some serious food for thought too. Good, evil, and the nature of both are examined in detail and there's plenty of action courtesy of devil may care Revy to keep the pace up. This blend of philosophy and serious drama with action movie fun is intoxicating. The sound is gorgeous, music,
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voice acting. Hell this is one of the few animes where I think the English dub is the definitive one! (Yeah I went there, come at me. They're all supposed to be speaking English any way. Lagoon Company is three Americans and a Japanese salariman ffs.
I could keep going. I could go into exhaustive detail. I love this series. I have a tattoo of Revy, the female lead, for the love of the gods. I'll spare you the details. Go strap in and watch Black Lagoon instead.
Reviewer’s Rating: 10
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Sep 29, 2015
Ah Infinite Stratos. The anime I love but really, really, don't ever tell anyone about. Well. Unless they're already anime fans. Then I'll talk to them about it. Infinite Stratos is my ideal for one specific thing I like to find in anime. What I refer to as "junk food". Anime that you can reach into your brain housing unit, flip the off switch and just veg for a bit. Now Infinite Stratos happens to be a very good piece of junk food, but it's still junk food.
With a standard scifi harem set up and the usual characters showing up with the special addition of
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three foreigners instead of one, two childhood friends, and back to normal with implied repressed feelings for the protagonist's big sister! Woo! There's even a reverse trap. Which would a spoiler if they didn't give it away in any cast image ever put up, including the one on the anime's page here on MAL. Not to mention, how often do you actually see characterized males in harem anime? Especially during the harem assembly phase.
Despite the standard setup IS rose above it's material, making the old archetypes shine as fun and enjoyable characters, and the story's set up is a bit hackneyed, but looks great with it's refurbishment and fresh coat of paint.
So if you're looking for something to compliment your reading of Anna Karenina that will let you switch to something complex and interesting but not so depressingly Russian you're barking up the wrong tree. If you want to put your brain on pause for a little bit and take a micro vacation from work or studying though, Infinite Stratos might be what you're looking for.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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Sep 29, 2015
No need for a review!
Especially given that everyone and their dog's probably seen Tenchi Muyo (Universe/TV aka the one who's page you're on). I'm also an unashamed fan. It's not a stretch to say that Tenchi is what got me into anime along with Outlaw Star on the legendary Toonami block a few yonks and a half back now.
Tenchi isn't just a harem anime. It's not going too far in my mind to say it is THE harem anime. A fantastic rom-com with some well placed scifi action and a nice bit of world building here and there, Tenchi has managed to create a
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fantastic cast of characters with unique personalities and character design (following the silhouette rule of character design, that is, in silhouette, as many characters as humanly possible should be immediately identifiable or recognizable. It's also a trope setter for a lot of things we commonly see now, and it's not unfair to level a fair amount of blame for the scourge of super cute mascot characters we see these days on Sasami and Ryo-Ohki.
I'm not going to go into depth on this review. Suffice to say, it's worth your time. Enjoy.
Reviewer’s Rating: 10
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Sep 29, 2015
I confess before you all, I came to the anime from reading the manga. I am, as such properly labeled a fanboy in this case, but I'll keep it short, sweet and on the up and up. Monster Musume on the whole should not be as insanely popular as it is right now. The anime tore up the charts and the latest American release of the manga is on the NYT Manga Best Seller's list right now. A spot it's predecessors have all enjoyed as well. It also does quite well at home in Japan. What grip Darling and his bevy of monstrous beauties has
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on the planet (and me) is beyond me, but all the same, it's quite enjoyable. This isn't going to shake the world, it's a harem rom-com with fantasy elements (okay that's mostly fantasy elements) and you know, it's great at that. Not everything needs to be Citizen Kane.
I will note in particular that this is a very faithful adaption of the manga. Frame for panel in some spots!
Here's hoping for season two.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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Sep 24, 2015
The following review is written fresh from completing this anime in under 24 hours.
However, before we get into it I'd like to make a note about fan service, because some people, including professional reviewers on places like Amazon seem to be slightly confused about what fanservice is. Fan service is nudity, near nudity and other titillation for titillation's sake, simply to give the audience a treat. If any form of sexuality or nudity in the show serves the plot and/or character development then it's not fanservice. So, does Yuuko strip down? Yes. However her lack of concern for her own nudity changes as the
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story arc progresses. Why? Well watch it and it's rather patently clear. However, if it was completely clear I wouldn't have to be making this note. Let this serve as a warning to pay attention and actually stick your head in the lake and have a look around, as opposed to just watching the surface.
Now then, taking it from the top!
Story - 10/10
The story in Dusk Maiden is absolutely beautiful. There's plenty of plot to enjoy and I didn't find any of it dry, boring or predictable and it had my guessing until I finally started putting two and two together towards episode 6 or so. I'm not writing anything about the story in detail in the name of avoiding spoiling, but it has a lovely blend of romance, comedy, horror and above all a good ghost story. Now, the story itself is complex, and details are hidden away in the art and even music. This isn't an anime you can't not pay attention to. It also generated a lot of discussion. A friend and I literally had to discuss every episode in detail.
As a side note, the story gets a gold star from me for avoiding my greatest anime pet peeve revolving around this concept called "resolution" that some anime directors seem to try and ward off like it's well, an evil spirit.
Art - 10/10
This anime is absolutely beautiful in every possible way. The character design is good and the sets and the ways the animators show us those characters and sets is absolutely wonderful. Cinematography is not something I often get to compliment in anime, but I have to for Dusk Maiden; angles, color, and an amazing variety of motions and fades create a visually grabbing world that blends beautifully with the art itself. As mentioned, the art hides a lot of really deep and meaningful symbols that contribute to the plot. The duology in particular makes for a gripping sense of atmosphere when it's employed. The opening gets special note for it's beautiful shots, and it's use of one of the symbols, the momiji (maple leaves in their autumn colors) which is a reference to a Noh play Momijigari, and the Kabuki dance drama of the same name. The latter being an expanded version of the former.
Music and Sound Design - 10/10
The music is stunning from start to finish, Choir Jail, the OP is well paced and enjoyable as Suzuki Konomi delivers once again, and Calendrier, sung by the character Yuuko herself for the EP, makes watching through the credits a treat not worth missing. Acquiring the OST is almost as much of a priority as the actual DVDs. Lucky for you dear reader if you do purchase the reasonably priced DVD box set, the OST is included. The music within the anime is excellent and well themed to the various scenes, ranging from upbeat to haunting. I'm honestly not sure what some of the other reviewers were listening to, but this audiophile was extremely pleased, even more pleased, as I am an audiophile, when I ran the OST through my expensive audio gear of course.
Characters - 10/10
Teiichi Niiya - Teiichi seems to be getting a lot of flak for being "normal", which I honestly think is a good trait, he might be a regular guy, but he's not weak when the chips are down, and when it comes to Yuuko he faces down some pretty serious stuff with his arms wide open. He's got a lot of courage, and of course gets props for being an anime character who can be open about his emotions before the final episode.
Momoe Okonogi - The comic relief character, Momoe's a very pleasant ditz and scaredy cat who absolutely loves ghost stories and the paranormal, while at the same time having a very, very strong Reality/Someone Else's Problem filter that blocks out all but the most obvious actions of the paranormal.
Kirie Kanoe - The grand niece of Yuuko, Kirie is the only other person who can really "see" Yuuko. A complex and conflicted young woman, Kirie is actually one of my favorites in the story because of her arc and how she grows and confronts many of her own issues over the course of the show.
Yuuko Kanoe - That leads us of course, to the center that these three characters rotate around, the mournful beauty that haunts the grounds of Seikyou Academy, with no memory of her death or the life she lost, Yuuko is a surprisingly cheerful character at first blush, ecstatic that Teiichi can not only see her, but is more then happy to interact with her and be kind to her, the only person to likely do so in the sixty odd years since her death in 23 Showa (1948. Which means the show takes place in approximately 2008 if you care.) However her arc is the center of the show and she evolves beautifully as time goes on, revealing more and more shades of the complex, lonely and hurt spirit that lingers in the world of the living.
Enjoyment - 10/10
If you haven't picked up that I really liked this anime by now, I have to question what the hell you've been reading, because it's not this review.
TL:DR; Watch the anime.
Reviewer’s Rating: 10
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Mar 18, 2015
Look I'll be upfront about it. It's dross. Not even the kind of turn your brain off and take a vacation dross that I call "mental junk food" like say Infinite Stratos, but like Infinite Stratos I was surprisingly enthused with this, not quite to IS levels, but impressive for it's genre. The title had me expecting a sub par anime based on an ero-manga I hadn't read. Instead I got an average to above average for genre anime based on an ero-manga I hadn't read.
Story:
An interesting concept at least, and handled at least semi-seriously in a rare turn of events. Sure Asami's focused on
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getting some nookie out of her hubby when all the universe and the gods of luck are actively preventing them, but really the focus in the anime is kept tight on our forbidden young married couple and how they react and respond. There's some middlin drama, and some cringe worthy moments that will have the relationship experienced amongst you yelling at the screen like an old lady watching her soaps. (Or maybe that's just me). I came to actually enjoy our lead's relationship, and it could be quite sweet at moments. If anything the things that bothered me were things not covered.
Art:
It's standard issue, but not bad per say. Just common. Run of the mill.
Sound:
Same. Some music was really well used here and there, voice acting's crisp and clean with reasonable performances for the material.
Character:
As with the art and music, boilerplate with some stand out moments. Asami can be surprisingly sweet, and the character comes off as being earnest, as does the husband, which is nice for an anime couple.
Enjoyment:
Like I said at the start, I rather liked it. It's not a bad little time sink and bridges the gap between ecchi and a romcom in a more positive manner then I've seen before.
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
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