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When a manga starts with "please let me have a normal life", I know that the manga is going to be filled with the craziest ideas ever. That would normally turn me away from a series, but when those words are coming out of the lips of Simon, and you know that Kamina's going to appear dramatically in the background in the next frame, you kind of have to keep reading, despite the fact you don't like him. Now, I'm not a big fan of Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann, but when I realized the story was taking place in a high school setting, even I ... couldn't turn away. There's something about the appeal of seeing mecha characters in a high school setting that makes me feel a little gitty on the inside.

Now, jumping into this manga, I expected a lot of humor, and not a lot of emphasis on story. Not because I didn't have faith in the manga, but rather that every other high school based manga like this I've run into did the exact same thing. Low and behold, I was right. Well, sort of. The manga had some hilarious moments, with Kamina breaking windows and dramatic catch phrases at the worst moments. However, those jokes got old very quickly, and the rest of the humor was focused on fan service and the Mary-Sue like qualities of Nai, which I hated from the original series. When the manga was attempting a fight scene, I couldn't take the fight seriously, and the drawings for the fights only showed a lot of boobs and crotch shots that only the hard-core fan service fans would like. The amount of humor I expected wasn't delivered, and I felt extremely disappointed.

For characters, I wasn't expecting much of a change from the original series. Since I was still expecting the over the top jokes, I was expecting the over the top characters with them. I was excited to see that Simon was a little different, wishing for a normal life in the chaos surrounding him, but the craziness from the rest of the characters took away from that minor change, and everything fell to pieces. Kamina was still Kamina, trying to steal the spot light, even though the girls fighting were far more important to the artist. On the off chance that the villains would show up, they would act as they did at the very beginning of the original series. Viral, although he has such an important role in the original series, acted like a butler character and was very mistreated by everyone in the series. This made me very irritated with the series, not because Viral is my favorite, but that the manga could have been so much better if he, and other characters, were given more important roles to the story.

At the end of the manga, I was extremely disappointed. The only pages I actually laughed at were the first two or three, and the jokes that were littered in were based on fan service, large boobs, and Nai's mary-sue identity, which was not done very well. Most of the manga, I was just waiting for it to be over. If I had to recommend this manga to anyone, I would only recommend it to the hard-core Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann fan, because they would be the only ones who would understand and respect everything going on. For everyone else, avoid the manga entirely. Unless you really love Gurren Lagann, you won't like the manga at all.

I jumped into Hetalia Axis Powers with high hopes. Online friends and real life friends gave the series such high praise. They swore that Hetalia was one of the best anime they'd seen. At appearance, Hetalia looked as good as they said, with a great set of beginning episodes. As the series progressed, however, I began to feel that Hetalia was just an over-hyped series that didn't deserve the credit that it was getting.

At first, I loved the story. With every country represented by a single character going through the events of World Wars I and II, what wasn't to like? The beginning of the ... series brought up the relationships between the countries very well, and stuck with the important, historical points of the two wars. As the series progressed, however, the story began to steer away from the wars and go towards what could have happened between countries if the countries were just one person. I thought the relationships took over the series and made the story lose traction.

With the character heavy series, at least I could watch them progress through the series. The characters, however, showed very, very weird interpretations of the countries. Even with foreign countries, I felt that the characters were just falsely advertising their countries with stupid quarks to make the characters "better" for the series. A great example, I think, is England, with his ability to see mythological creatures. As funny as that made going to Japan's house, the idea was still stupid. Another example is America's giant fear of horror movies. As funny as that was at times, I felt the idea was still stupid. And what was with the alien that was with America? I feel like I was the only one that didn't get that.

As far as the sound goes, I felt that the theme song got extremely annoying very quickly, even with different countries sang the song. Often, I skipped over them, or just turned off the episode when the song began. With no real fluctuation with the music, the sound lacked in the series and made Hetalia even more bland.

The one thing that I did enjoy in the series was the art. I liked how the countries were animated, but sometimes, the art got a little weird. I felt that the flags to show the countries were very distracting. The text for the country name would've just been appropriate. Still, the animation was cute, especially during Chibitalia, and I often got really engrossed in the art.

At a series, Hetalia could have been much better. I wished the show was better constructed, story wise, and the characters weren't quite as dumb. I believe that it's over-hyped, but there were some good moments. I would recommend Hetalia to anyone looking for a funny, short episode series, but I won't be watching the series again.

When I jumped into Baccano!, I really wasn't sure what to expect. I didn't really do any research on the anime, and none of my friends really knew what the series was. The only thing I really knew was that the art looked interesting, and everywhere I looked in the forums, I could see people that said, "Watch this series!". So, I decided to give Baccano! a look.

In the first few minutes, I didn't think that the anime was going to be much. For a while, you saw a little girl and an older man talking to each other about some story that happened earlier. ... I was a bit worried that all Baccano! was going to be was these two characters talking back and forth about the series. Pretty soon, I realized that I was mistaken and there was more that was offered than just these two characters. Soon, names, places, and years because to pass and I started watching with a great intent.

Story wise, Baccano! spares no expense giving a gory, yet interesting story with enough drama, action, and comedy to keep most fans occupied. I was very impressed with how balanced the series really was. The way the story was presented was unique as well, but it does take a while to get use to. By the end, it's easy to get a hang of the presentation, and the story really makes sense. Most of the questions are answered by the end of the series.

Along with the story was the large library of characters, who were all as unique as the presentation. Normally, I would avoid an anime with a lot of characters. They're often hard to keep track of. With Baccano!, keeping track of the characters was rather easy (much easier than I thought it would be), and the characters were actually interesting to keep up with. With such a large selection, choosing a favorite character can either be simple or very difficult. From Isaac and Miria, a pair of idiotic robbers that stole to help everyone else, to Ladd Russo, a serial killer with a passion for murdering people in a bloody matter (especially if those people thought they were safe), to Firo, a gangster with a longing to help and save the people that mean the most to him, there's unlimited characters, drama, and suspense to keep a fan entertained for hours. It's easy to tell that the creators spared no expense making the characters exactly as they wanted them.

Another thing that helped the series is the wonderful art. Unlike most brightly colored, distorted anime, Baccano! holds its head high for having original, darker art that really works well for the series. Since the story takes place during the 1930's, the costumes, colors, and setting really help make the world. The selection of art created a very realistic setting for all of the characters and situations and helped build the 1930's world the creators were looking for. Almost every detail was spot on for the art. Plus, the art was very appealing to the eyes. There was nothing too flashy or out of place within the series.

One of the best things, I think, about Baccano! is the music. Never have I heard a soundtrack for an anime that I wanted so badly. Even the opening and closing themes are great, and the music really does help bring certain situations alive. What is a good fight scene without dramatic music? Baccano! not only brings that music, the music is also places perfectly in the scenes, and it fits the time of the anime. The swing type music brings the era alive and helps the 1930's feel of the show better than any entertainment about the 1930's I've seen.

To say that I enjoyed Baccano! would be an understatement. I adored Baccano! with every fiber of my body and I would recommend the series to anyone that's looking for something different, unique, and loves a little blood with their characters, story, and entertainment.

When I first looked into Lucky Star, I thought I was going to be impressed. People in the anime club I help run wanted to watch this series so bad and it ended up in 4th place, so we weren't able to show it this semester. Still, I wanted to know what the appeal of Lucky Star was. The chibi art made the anime look unique and interesting, and I thought that I couldn't go wrong with an anime series that was so popular. This is where "looks can be deceiving" really comes into play.

Despite the cute art, which got annoying very quickly, Lucky Star ... really fell on its face form the get-go. The story had nothing to offer. Basically, you spend twenty-four episodes watching a group of high school girls run around, talk to each other, make jokes, and dance. I have completely summarized the entire series for you in that last sentence, and I'm not kidding. Each episode was a repeat as the last, except for character problems and issues, and after every episode I said, "Alright, it still has to get better from here," and it never did. The only thing that ever improved was the Lucky Channel, but that was because I didn't have to hear Akira's annoying squeaking in the last three or so episodes.

I know that the story is suppose to be based around a comedic high school cast, but to be honest, the comedy was terrible. In order to get most of the jokes, one would have to know a lot in video games, anime, and Japanese puns. Now, I don't know a lot of video games or Japanese puns, so those jokes failed, and the anime jokes that I did get surfaced once in a while, and that type of comedy was absolutely terrible. I think I snickered maybe once or twice during the entire series. Yes, the entire series.

Along with Lucky Star's terrible story and comedy choice, I found myself hating most of the characters. The only half-way decent characters were shown in the last half of the anime, and those characters really weren't anything special. Most of the weren't dynamic, lacking originality, and went along with the same thing over and over again. When those sparks of originality were shown, they were quickly covered by the same old, bland things that happened through out the entire series. A great example comes from Konata, the main girl with blue hair and green eyes. She runs around every episode, talks about food, anime, video games, and how she was late or tired because she stayed up all night playing video games. Kagami, one of the lavender haired twins, is exactly the same way - smart, angered easily, and is very poor at house chores. Miyuki, the pink haired girl with glasses, is klutsy, "moe", intelligent, and formal with her speech. I could go on and on, but I don't think it's needed.

With the characters, art, and story quickly falling apart, I turned to something I thought would work - the music. I learned quickly, however, that the music was only a little better than everything else. Some of the songs sounded like they were recorded on a cellphone and then placed into the show. It wasn't that the quality was bad, but rather than the music used was very bland, unoriginal, and lacked dynamic, not that the story had any of those or anything. The music fit the series alright, but by itself, the music would just be a waste of space on whatever drive you would be listening to it on. Even the opening theme was annoying.

So, with all of these things said, I'm surprised that I made it to the last episode. Now, it's safe to say that just because I didn't enjoy it doesn't mean that others won't. Obviously, the MAL rating for Lucky Star fights any point that I've made against the series. However, I will not be recommending Lucky Star to any of my friends. Ever. In fact, I will tell them to avoid it, and to be fair in my fight, I don't think it deserves the popularity it has. Sure it's cute, but that's about it.

I started Azumanga Daioh with a sort of mild reluctance. Going into the series, I believed that I would be watching a poorly done crack anime that would fall on it's face in the first episode, despite the hype that the series was given. At first, I believed that I was right. Soon, however, the series spoke for itself and showed me that first impressions can be deceiving.

When I first dove into Azumanga Daioh, I fell in love with the characters. Each character was unique and drove beyond the normal thoughts of high school girls, or teachers, and went straight for original and strange. Certainly ... Chiyo could first be seen as a Mary-Sue, but it's later seen that she has several weaknesses that make her a believable and straight forward character. Other characters, like Tomo, show their weaknesses at the beginning, but slowly show their strengths over time, which is a bit surreal, but I liked the appeal that the characters had because of that.

Unfortunately, the characters were the only thing I loved unconditionally. From there, everything else kind of lacked. Although I did like the story, and it was easy to follow, I didn't really like how some of the characters interacted through the story. Also, many plot points were made just for humor, not for character development. Speaking of, there wasn't a lot of development in the characters through the story, which is understandable, but it's still high school. A lot of growing and developing happens during high school, and there wasn't a lot of that.

Even the art had strange occurrences sometimes. Normally art wouldn't deter me from anything, but the animals just looked to weird, especially the cats. They would grin and I would get reminded of a dark horror movie with a killer that was given sharp teeth and a cat costume to murder in. I felt they were too creepy for the show and it often took away from some scenes with Sakaki. Another art problem was with some of the expressions that Osaka gave. Osaka's expressions changed, but some looked strange and gave questionable impressions through the series.

Finally, there's the music. I'm not sure what it was about the music, but I didn't like it. At all. Sometimes the music would mask the drama in a scene, or something like that, and become a distraction for me. Plus, the same tune being changed over and over again with no real change in the mood of the music is just irritating and gave the repetitive expression in anime that I dread watching, or listening to.

Overall, the show is cute and very character heavy. It's unique and interesting, but the lack of plot and change in music makes me turn away from the series again and again. It was good, but I don't think that I'll watch the entire series again. Azumanga Daioh just doesn't offer enough for me to dive into it a second time.

When I first watched Ouran High School Host Club, I felt a warmth in my heart that turned me into a squealing, obsessed fan-girl in less than twenty-four hours. Since Ouran was my first Shoujo anime, so to speak, I fell in love with it. And what lonely, crazy, sophomore in high school wouldn't love a group of sparkling men that treated girls with care and respect, even if the acts were a bit scandalous? Certainly I was no exception to this fan-girl-ism. Still, even from the first travel into Ouran, I knew that the series wasn't worthy of a ten.

Ouran High School Host Club ... had it's moments of wonder and great ideas to spark them. A great example of this wonder is the story. Not only was the story easy to follow, but the characters all were given believable and well-built backgrounds that really help people understand and connect with them, even if the backgrounds weren't really shown until the end of the series. Plot lines, from characters to overall story, were very well developed and really pushed the story through until the end.

Another fantastic example of the wonder of Ouran is the music. Through the entire series, music played a very important role in setting the mood for the scene. Weather it was a small conversation with the hosts, or a huge, dramatic scene between an antagonist and a protagonist, the music brought out every scene beautifully and pulled off being one of the best soundtracks I've ever heard in the entertainment industry.

With Ouran's greatness, however, the series did have it's flaws, even if the flaws were so small they could be overlooked the first time around. Art is a great example of a flaw that can be overlooked. The first time around, I didn't really notice anything about the art I didn't like. In fact, I thought the art brought out a lot of characters, especially the flowers around Honey and the expressions that Tamaki gave. The second time I watched, however, I was concerned about the colors of the school. I realize that Ouran is a Shoujo, but having an all pink room with a lavender outside and clock tower is a bit ridiculous, even for something as "girly" as Ouran High School Host Club.

The worst thing about Ouran, sad to say, is actually the characters. The first time around, I would've told you that the characters are great and everything about them is wonderful, but that's not the case anymore. First, I want to point out Tamaki, the prince, so to speak. Tamaki Suou seems like an appealing character, with the fan-girls and the following, but he comes across as a male Mary-Sue, other wise known as a Gary-Stu. He's second in his class, scores all the ladies, and most of his flaws are "cute". The climax of the story has one flaw blown to an extreme.

Another character is Honey, who looks like he's in grade school, even though he's eighteen, yet if he fights to his fullest potential, other countries would believe that Japan had some sort of new nuclear weapon or something like that. He's very smart, cute, scores girls, can fight, and, like Tamaki, most of his flaws are "cute". His character isn't realistic at all, and leaves me wondering if anyone would really be attracted to someone like that.

Really, Ouran High School Host Club could be enjoyed by a lot of people, but I would save it for girls that love an anime for the characters and cuteness. Even I go back and re-watch episodes on occasion, when I feel lonely or just want to watch something cute without devoting myself to a different Shoujo that I'm unsure about. In the end, I would say that Ouran shouldn't be as popular as it is, but I can see why it's popular - girls love it, and I can't blame them.

One day, I found myself on an island of lonesome and heart-break and I wanted something to brighten my day and make me squee like the inner fan girl I really am. So, as any other fetish obsessed fan girl would do, I turned to yaoi - a guilty pleasure perhaps, but there's occasionally one that makes me warm on the inside while tearing my heart into tiny shreds. Re Set stood proud in the fetish department, giving me the long desired bondage yaoi that I wanted for years. Unfortunately, it didn't hold itself up in the story department. Still, I find myself turning to ... Re Set again and again to give me squee moments along with drooling, yummy bondage.

When I first turned to Re Set, I found that the art left more to be desired, at least in my mind. Izumi could easily be carted out of the manga for appearing as a woman, which wouldn't normally deter me, but I couldn't help but feel a nagging sensation that his girly side would take over and make the manga feel less like a yaoi and more like a hentai. Thankfully, Izumi appeared "manlier" when stripped of his attire and dawned with ropes and chains or whatever else Tomoya could throw him into.

These sex and bondages scenes were mixed with a plot that left a lot more to be desired. Basically, Izumi was dumped a year before by Tomoya. Not long after the break-up, Tomoya lost his memory in an accident. Now gaining Tomoya's attention for a second time, Izumi struggles to get the old Tomoya back that he loved with Tomoya throws him into different bondage positions and they have sex. A plot like that gave me the "heart torn to pieces" aspect of the yaoi I wanted, in a good and bad way. The good way is I was able to feel a strong attachment to Izumi. However, the story was so plan that I wasn't able to jump onto the bandwagon and journey through the story with the characters. I just felt I was on the sidelines cheering for more sex or something.

The story could have easily been more dramatic and less predictable if the manga was longer. Sixty pages to tell a romantic, trying story between to men is certainly not enough, but I'm afraid that the story would've continued with more sex and less plot. I have a love/hate relationship with the idea of the manga continued (which it won't, so don't get your hopes up), but I continue to go back to the bondage filled pages. Somehow, I've grown attached to the characters draped inside.

In the end, Re Set probably wasn't as good as it should be. The manga is great for yaoi fan girls looking for a bondage filled love with drama. I liked it, but it lacked in the good story department and left me wanting more in a good way and a bad. Either way, Re Set was worth the read, but not the many re-reads afterward. Oh god, I am a hopeless fan girl after all.