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So a class-full of assassins assigned to kill one of their own? How in the hell is a premise like that supposed to work?

Answer: with outstanding visuals, mesmerising combat, great characters and a story that will tug at your heartstrings from beginning to end.

So the story begins with Class Black, a special little group of 13 girls gathered together for one purpose: 12 of them are supposed to go after the 13th. And the brilliant thing is everyone is aware of the status quo. Well, except the teacher - how quaint - for whose benefit the whole "pretending to be a real class" thing is. ... Poor clueless sensei.

So, enter our main heroine, one Azumi Tokaku. She is an emotionally challenged bad-ass that, given the tools, would give any would-be assassin a run for their money. And she is totally hot in a tomboyish sort of way. She comes into the whole thing on orders of her superior - one very f*ked and crafty psychologist named Kaiba who pesters her with unanswerable riddles throughout the seires - with nary a want or goal of her own until she meets...

Ichinose Haru. Oh man. This girl. Even if you didn't know the premise beforehand and even if somehow you missed the first intro - which totally would give it away - she is. from the moment she comes on-screen, most obviously the target. She is the friendliest, most open girl there with her only goal being to graduate. You know, without dying.

So the two meet, their personalities clash like fire and ice, one assassin gets a tad greedy and rushes in for the kill, Tokaku busts her moves and bim bam boom! the ball gets rolling.

What follows can only be described as a roller-coaster. The action is top notch and the characters, who at first come off as practically cliche show most amazing - if sometimes subtle - depths to them, as their images of heartless killers are washed away like tears in the rain. Half-way through the series... I... I...

And so, the ride continues at its perfect pace until the glorious conclusion that resolutely flips the whole thing on its head, while tugging at your heartstrings as if attempting to pull them out.


"But if Haru was allowed to decide the answer, "forgiveness" would be nice"

Before, watching this, you maye have - like me - heard of two absolute facts about this show:

1. How amazing it is
2. How absolutely f*ked up it was.

And you may have - again, like me - bumped into some clips of it on the internet.

But whatever you may have envisioned for yourself, take it, crump it all up in a ball and chuck it out the window.

Without spoiling too much, this is Hollow Ataraxia meets Saw. And for those who may get that convoluted reference, this may be spoiling quite a bit.
...
Personally my feelings on the show ranged from bewilderment to confusion. But I think that's because the show was itself very confused. It haphazardly bounced between - yet never settled too comfortably in either - mystery, horror and gore. Hell, for a while the best moments were the slice-of-life-esque padding that permeates the main story.

And then, the show starts dropping hints up until the main twist swags along like an outdated rock star. I mean, hell, it put everything in perspective, yes, but at the same time it amped up the ridiculousness of the entire thing to a new high.

In the end, I cannot decide whether Higurashi is a dumb show pretending to be smart or a smart show pretending to be dumb. All I know is that it will mess with your mind, but not necessarily in the way you'd expect.

Well here's a surprise. Marvel Disk Wars is actually fun. Like, really really fun.
Though the set up was pretty sluggish. Over the first 3 episodes we are introduced to a myriad of superheroes, super-villains and the titular DISKs which are going to be the main source of trouble for our beloved protagonists, exploited as it was by - not so surprisingly - Loki. Cue a convenient temporal explosion and the little multicolored buggers are spread all over the world.

It takes further 5 to get the band back together, while bogging them down with so many rules and limitations that it's only through the villains' ... incompetence do they survive till that point.

The visual style is actually of a pretty high quality, even if - as one might expect - there were some unavoidable hiccups translating classic Marvel characters into it. Highlights include pretty awesome looking Captain America, strange-faced Hulk and the proof that just when you think M.O.D.O.K. couldn't look any weirder... well, let's just leave it at that.

But what makes it work the best are the characters. Disparate quality of their designs aside, each of the beloved classics - heroes and villains alike - act exactly as they should. Case in point, Captain America gives a speech in Episode 2 that is so him, I almost forgot what I was watching... until anime-Hulk bounded in.

Which, of course brings us to the kids. I won't lie, as far a bunch of stock "chosen ones" go, they are pretty likable. Even the one I thought would be the b-- err... haughty rich brat, was actually quite a nice kid herself (in fact, she is now officially my favorite). It is, however, quite ironic how her and Wasp will be the token female team-up of the show. Just as ironic is that the sulky "i don't give a damn" dude will get Captain America. Much wow indeed.

So, in the end, yeah, having a blast, even if I do roll my eyes ever so often.

I want to start off by saying that the first two Rebuilds have set the standard for me in terms of reimagining one of my favourite anime of all time.

Now wrap that around your heads as we dive into the absolute shitstorm of mediocrity and needless stringing along of the so-called twists.

This is not Evangelion. This is a glorified Evangelion FANFICTION. And a terrible one at that.

I'm not even kidding! I've read DOZENS of fanfics BETTER than this crap!

What kept me going, you ask?

Well, for one, the hope of it getting better as it went along at its jerky, yet somehow still snail-like pace. This ... was partially realized as a certain character reveal actually blew my mind. What can I say, I was genuinely surprised.

Aaand then just like that, the magic was gone.

I cannot go on talking about it without spoiling the entire thing, but let's just say that the current Rebuild takes everything that made the first two so great... and puts it all through a meatgrinder. Repeatedly.

Oh well, at least Rei is back.
Or is she?
Spoilers!