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A Comedy of Misunderstanding’s

Hilarity comes from many parts of life. But, misunderstandings can create some of the biggest laughs. Think back on your life, the most embarrassing instances. I’ll bet quite a few of those moments can be chalked up to misunderstandings. Yeah, those moments might be embarrassing, but put yourself in someone else’s shoes and thinks about those moment in your life. Chances are you might laugh at those misunderstandings. Hell you might even laugh at those moments as you grow older, and as you recount the stupid mistakes of you past.

Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-kun is a comedy all about misunderstandings. From Nozaki misunderstanding Sakura’s ... confession to Hori-sempai mistaking Kashima for a man. Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki Kun thrives off of misunderstandings, and this drives the comedy that is the center piece of the show.

The Story is a simple one. Sakura, Chiyo is girl in love with a boy named Nozaki. She confesses to Nozaki that she has always been his fan. But, unbeknownst to Sakura, Nozaki is a famous shoujo manga writer. So Sakura instead getting a date, gets an autograph, and an invite to Nozaki’s home, but only to assist him with his shoujo manga. Thus begins the comedy of misunderstandings, which only continues with more misunderstandings as we are introduced to the cast of assistants and inspirations of Nozaki’s manga. To give away anymore would be criminal, because the comedy is again experienced from the misunderstandings, and the shock value of some them will have you rolling on the floor.

For those expecting your traditional Rom-com though be forewarned. Nozaki-Kun is not a traditional Rom-Com. It is Rom-Com, heavy on the Comedy, with just a sprinkle of Romance. Most of the Comedy comes from the cast’s misunderstandings or analysis of Romance. This could be from the almost eccentric Nozaki’s study of Romance for his inspiration, or the confusion of a cast of characters experiencing love for the first time. However, there are a few tender moment’s (and I mean very few) that will have you squeeing your little fanboy and fangirl hearts out. At least until you smacked in the face with by the blue ball gods who will have you wishing for more, as laugh through tears.

Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-Kun is easily my favorite Rom-Com of all time. I’m hard pressed to find any faults with it. You won’t understand why until you see it for yourself. I know I will be re-watching this show, as I patiently wait for a second season, which I hope will someday come. Hopefully someday soon.

"Sports are the canvas of Mitsuru Adachi, but the real art is the human interaction" - Guardian Enzo

Cross game is a story centered on 2 characters Kitamura, Kou and Tsukishima Aoba. They are linked by their mutual love of a girl named Wakaba and baseball. Throughout their story, the characters progress through their love of baseball and discover much about themselves and each other.

I don't really want to give away much more about this anime than that, because to do so would be a crime. I would be robbing you of the experience of life and love and baseball.

However, what I can say ... is don't be fooled by the retro art style. From the author of the critically acclaimed Touch (a Japanese classic from the 80's which I have yet to see or read) Cross game is a diamond in the rough. There is a little something for everybody in this series. For those who love sports, you have baseball, but that is only the surface. There is also an touching love story, but again that is just scratching the surface.

Cross Game is not just a simplistic retro baseball anime. Players from any sport are taught to master the basics. Cross Game doesn't make the use of flashy plays to win the hearts of its viewers. Cross game use the fundamentals such as good characters and good story to challenge its rivals. It is a story of life and love, seen through baseball. The characters work with each other perfectly just like professional fielders, and the story knocks it out of the park.

Just like the underdog Team Seishu, Cross Game is not to be overlooked.

Minor spoilers
SAO has a bad reputation, and for good reasons. It's a flawed series that could have been outstanding. So why give it a 7? All flaws aside, for me the world as a whole allowed me to dive in and leave the knit picking for after the credits rolled.

First, what are the major problems that kept this show from becoming a masterpiece.

The Pacing. The pacing of this show was so fast in the beginning I thought I missed an episode. Finally after about 3 or 4 episodes the show becomes steady and much easier to follow. Unfortunately the damage has already been ... done. You can't feel that these characters have been trapped as long as they have been, and it takes away from conflict of progressing through those early levels of a game.

The characters. The characters in this suffered the opposite fate of characters in other anime. For instance look at Angel Beats. Where Angel Beats only had 13 episodes to flesh out the characters, this had 25 episodes to flesh out the characters, but instead ignored that and focused on getting in that 2nd pointless arc. Which leads me to my next point.

The 2nd arc (ep 15-25). Pointless. Need I say more. Instead of using the extra episodes to flesh out the characters and story, they put in this pointless second arc to create more suspense (I think? It's hard to tell.) Frankly even if they had ended the show the way it was at ep 14 I would have liked it better. The ending of the 1st arc (kirito leaving the hospital) is powerful enough.

Then you have other problems. Like I never felt any real suspense, I was only surprised by the story once or twice, other than that everything was predictable. The Romance was dull and generic, and as much as this show was an action/adventure, it was more of Romance than anything else, especially with that second arc.

But what makes the story work? It's one saving grace was the overall concept, and the world of SAO. It is such an appealing idea, and the world of SAO is so immersing that even with it's flaws the show captures you for 24 minutes and leaves you wanting more. It's a shame that this show had to have so many flaws because the concept behind it and the world were so great that it could have made a spectacular Action/Adventure or Romance.

So what the show does well, it does really well, and that's enough (at least in my case) for me to recommend this show. And on a personal note I hope that one day someone will come back to this world and fix the mistakes. Because if someone can fix the mistakes of this show, and give us a story and characters to really enjoy (as well as getting rid of the 2nd arc) then maybe we'll have the phenomenon this show could have been.

What makes a show great? What is it that makes it stick with us, go back and re-watch it and try to experience it again? For me it's when a show makes me feel something, when it tugs at the heartstrings, or makes you laugh out loud, and you can't stop thinking about for day's or weeks afterward. Its characters that feel like real people. Clannad After Story is a great show. One of the greatest I've ever seen, and by far the best anime I've ever seen (although I'm rather new to anime so that's not saying much). But what makes Clannad After Story ... great? What makes it almost perfect? Let break it down.

Story: 10/10
It's odd how a show with no actual story can score so high on the story scale. After Story doesn't really have a story more like underlying themes that push the overall narrative forward. Some of those theme's being friendship, family, and just living life to the fullest. The whole is essentially the progression of the lives of Tomoya and Nagisa, with the occasional side story involving some minor characters that also furthers the story of Tomoya and Nagisa. It's the fact that this is so simple but explores the complexities of life that makes this show so great and keeps you thinking after the credits roll.

Art: 8/10
I'm not much of an artist or an art critic, but I can safely say that the art of After Story is its weakest point. However this isn't a bad thing. The art of After Story appears to be similar to most other anime's. While it's still pretty to look at, it's nothing we haven't seen before.

Sound: 9/10
Sound and music give scenes emotion and the sound of After Story succeeds in almost every way. The music in After Story just makes you feel so much more in every scene. I'm at a loss of how else to describe it. My favorite tracks in particular are "Nagisa," and "Palm of a tiny hand." There isn't much else to say about Sound other than it's for the most part fantastic however, doesn't always reach its true potential.

Character: 8/10
The characters of After Story are great and make the story great however I still have a few problems with them. Tomoya is a fantastic character full of imperfections and flaws. His imperfect character makes him almost the perfect character because his problems remind us of ourselves. My one problem is actually from Clannad, what causes him to suddenly start helping people. This is never explained and leaves me wondering. One other major problem is the fact that Tomoya and Nagisa have such an innocent relationship that doesn't seem to progress much until a certain point where your hit with everything. There are few other minor problems with minor characters but overall it doesn't detract much from the show as a whole.

Overall: 10/10
Clannad After Story is an anime that is nearly perfect. It's a story with lovable believable characters, a simple story, with excellent music and beautiful art. It makes you laugh, and it makes your cry (yes I cried, and I've got rather thick skin, so if you don't get teary eyed at least once you may be a heartless human being.) Clannad After Story is an anime that shouldn't be missed by anyone.