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This movie is certainly among the least known fruits of cooperation between director Mamoru Oshii and composer Kenji Kawai. Just like most Oshii's works, the movie has a rather complex thematic background. However, the topics and the message aren't clearly stated, as the anime is very abstract and open for interpretations - there isn't a story in a typical sense, although the story can be inferred.

STORY
First, the seeds of life are brought to the Earth with meteorites crashing into water, and we see several creatures similar to pagan gods standing silently in the forest. Then 3 acts go, each with its own musical theme: they ... represent Water, Air, Earth and the life forms there. At last, a figure appears: it looks like an android with multiple hands & faces, and then we see the empty forest that the "gods" left.
The whole thing may be described as an abstract and slow-paced Discovery movie with sci-fi elements that shows the process of evolution exemplified by the planet's nature. The nature in the movie is quite similar to the real one, although the giant bird that appears in the Air act looks different from any existing species. As for the "gods" & the robotic "god", I interpret it as an allegory of human evolution and how we pass from biosphere to noosphere, abandoning our natural roots and developing a new form of consciousness influenced by technological progress (which is somewhat similar to the themes explored in Oshii's Ghost in the Shell).
Overall, I enjoyed those visual sequences as a relaxing and thought-provoking work, yet they aren't really something I would be eager to rewatch.

ANIMATION & SOUND
The animation is a combination of CGI & live footage, and it leaves a somewhat controversial impression:
1) the quality is a mixed bag. Some parts of the movie are good-looking and full of captivating symbolism; on the other hand, some visual effects look really cheap (for example, those lightning bolts at the beginning);
2) some artistic decisions are questionable. For instance, those "gods" and android are fairly creepy and not very pleasant to look at, and even more so is a certain part of the Earth act showing the evolution of mammals. Or, there's a long segment of the Water act, where whales and sharks rotate smoothly in a round dance... with sky and clouds as a background. It obviously looks relaxing, but how does it make any sense at all?
3) finally, the show uses lots of repetitive sequences, like a school of fish swimming in the ocean or clouds flying in the sky. While I guess the repetition was done on purpose to create a certain relaxing effect on the viewer, I'm also sure the movie would look more interesting if the imagery was more diverse and didn't repeat itself all the time.
Overall, the visuals are fine yet they can't be compared with a real Discovery movie, which leads me to believe the creators either needed higher budget or should've used some different animation techniques and approach in general.
As for the sound, it's simply fantastic: Kenji Kawai does it again. Imagine his soundtracks from Ghost in the Shell movies with drums, symphonic orchestra and polyphonic chants, add some sounds of nature and zen music, and you'll get the picture. Even if not as impressive as GITS OST, it's sure very close to that level. Obviously, this surprised me the most about the movie.

OVERALL
Well, the anime is very abstract, very slow-paced and has no plot & characters in the normal sense of those words, so it's definitely not for everyone.
On the other hand, if you want something relaxing and thought-provoking, and you like Kenji Kawai's music as much as I do, you might still enjoy it as a fine one-time watch.

Bavel's Book is a 1996 TV special by independent director and animator Koji Yamamura that tells about two siblings who find a mysterious book left on a bench and what happens to them after they start reading it. For its five-minute length, the anime presents a simple yet interesting story that comprises:
- a short adventure with a twist;
- a fair bit of surrealism that involves merging our reality with the reality inside the book;
- and also a cultural reference to Jorge Luis Borges - a famous Argentinian writer who is widely considered one of the key figures in the magical realism genre.
In general, with this ... short Yamamura vividly portrays how a person may get completely absorbed while reading an engaging book, especially if that person is a child with a rich imagination. The story may be not something mind-blowing, yet it's good for the fact that it employs an interesting surreal concept; brings enough twists for its brief duration; pays tribute to Borges and literature in general; and with all that remains clear and absolutely unpretentious, so that even a child could understand it.
Speaking of the animation, it is somewhat of a mixed bag. On the one hand, it is very interesting, creative and original, just like in all Yamamura's works. On the other hand, it also has a fairly low-budget look, and Yamamura's art style, with its brownish colours, sloppy lines and somewhat grotesque character designs, may probably not appeal to some viewers. In other words, it is artistic but low-budget and perhaps not for everyone.
Speaking of the sound department, the soundtrack is several short avant-garde tunes performed by a female duo called Syzygys. The melodies employ keyboards and violin; they aren't particularly memorable, yet they sound nice and fit various situations in the anime quite well. As for the voice-acting, it's just decent: the characters don't talk much, and when they talk, they sound just like usual kids should.
As for the characters themselves, they are just a boy, his sister, a certain man and a certain creature they encounter on their adventure. None of them get any substantial characterization; however, that's not what this short is supposed to do, and it hardly makes any sense to expect deep personalities and development in the course of five minutes anyway. So, the cast is nothing much, but that's excused by the show's format.
Overall, this anime is recommended to Yamamura's fans and those who are generally into experimental animation and unusual stories. Also, if you enjoy Bavel's Book, I highly recommend Atama Yama - my favourite Yamamura's short with a similar theme of merging realities, albeit in a totally different story.

Diamond is Unbreakable (hence DIU) is another TV series in the JoJo's Bizarre Adventure franchise, adapting part 4 of the original manga. Generally speaking, it is a good fighting shounen that keeps some fundamental elements of its predeccesors and also brings many new things to the table.

Before writing anything else, I would like to point out that while each part of JoJo may be viewed independently from others, it is much better to watch them in chronological order, as you may lose some important context otherwise. So, if you haven't watched anything from JoJo yet, I highly recommend to start with the first TV series.

STORY
Each ... part of JoJo follows the members of Joestar family at different time periods, and each of the already released series makes some shift in the formula. Since DIU is not the 1st series in the franchise, I guess it makes sense to draw some comparisons in order to put things into perspective.

I. Unlike the first series and both parts of Stardust Crusaders (hence SC), which have a strong adventure element with the characters travelling around the world, DIU takes place entirely in one town and its surroundings. However, even though the show has a relatively small slice-of-life setting, it doesn't prevent it from being interesting or entertaining in any way, as it has a good pacing and keeps introducing new characters, powers and stories which often take place in different locations of the town.

II. Speaking of those stories and plot continuity in general, DIU has a more continuous plot than SC. Whereas the latter has an entirely stand-of-the-week plot where events in different episodes have little influence on each other and the final outcome, this series has short story arcs where events are more directly related to each other. The fundamental similarity between the two series is that both of them are essentially about introducing many characters with interesting powers, putting them against each other and tying all those battles together. However, DIU does a better job at this because of a better plot structure.

III. Speaking of the powers, the characters use stands, which follows the change that happened in Stardust Crusaders. I actually like hamon/ripple from the first series a lot, because it adds an element of training to the plot, because it's somewhat akin to using qi in Chinese martial arts, and because using your own body & powers in a fight is generally cooler than using a proxy, in my humble opinion. That being said, the concept of stands also has its notable strengths, as it offers a lot more variety than hamon and always keeps the viewer interested with new powers and strategies introduced.
Overall, whether you prefer hamon, or stands, or like them equally is a matter of personal taste more than anything.

IV. While stands in SC are named after tarot cards and Egyptian gods, DIU returns to the practice of referencing Western rock bands that already existed in the first series: as you probably remember, it has a character named after AC/DC, and two characters named Dire and Straits, which is a reference to Dire Straits. This series, however, goes further than its predecessor and has more of these references. For example:
- the name of the main antagonist's stand is Killer Queen, which is a reference to a famous Queen song (and one of that stand's abilities is named after another famous song by Queen);
- one of the characters has a stand named Red Hot Chili Pepper, which is a reference to Red Hot Chili Peppers;
- another character has a stand named Highway Star, which is a reference to a famous Deep Purple song;
- and even the name of the protagonist's stand, Crazy Diamond, is an obvious reference to a Pink Floyd song called Shine on You Crazy Diamond.
Besides the rock references, the series occasionally refers to old-school manga and some famous people of that era: for example, they mention the name of some famous wrestler in one of the episodes, which is used as a pun.
Overall, this aspect is one of the things that I've always liked about JoJo, because it adds an interesting and unique flavour to the series, and also because I'm a rock/blues/metal guy myself, and I like many of those old-school bands very much.

Now, when I mentioned some specifics of the story, let's talk about the controversial aspects it has.

1) Just like other JoJo anime, DIU is very heavy on explanations and expository monologue, which is both good and bad:
- on the one hand, while the series constantly introduces new unusual elements to the plot (new stand powers, ghosts, aliens etc.), it also does a great job at setting the rules of how those elements work most of the time. This is something that I've always liked about JoJo and one of the things that makes this series good: no matter what crazy ideas the author comes up with, he usually gives some basic explanation and sets some limitations to the way they work, which makes the whole thing look a little less arbitrary, and also makes the characters use interesting strategies, which are undoubtedly one of the main strengths that all JoJo anime have;
- at the same time, the constant talking also leads to some fairly ridiculous situations. For example, one character gets attacked by the antagonist who stands several meters from him, and the attacked character and his friend somehow manage to exchange several phrases in those few seconds before the blow is landed, as if their dialogue exists in a different timeframe. Or, there is a situation when the antagonist talks to an almost defeated character, says that he has twenty seconds (!) before that character's friends arrive... and yet he doesn't hurry to leave the scene at all, keeps talking and gets beaten in the end.
Besides, this show is one of the biggest infringements of the "show, don't tell" rule I've ever seen, as the characters often comment on bloody obvious things that need no commentary at all. For example, the characters chase the antagonist, he disappears in the crowd, and one of them screams something like: "PEOPLE ARE GOING FROM WORK! HE DISAPPEARED IN THE CROWDS!". Well, thank you Captain Obvious: you've just ruined a dramatic moment by explaining something I totally couldn't see myself. And this thing happens quite often and, of course, detracts some points from the enjoyment.

2) While most arcs of the show are very short and often limited to one or two episodes, there is a long arc involving a serial killer, who is also the user of a very powerful stand. This arc is more interesting because it has elements of a thriller and many lives at stake, which makes it feel more important than all other arcs. The problem here is that the show that loves to explain virtually everything that happens on screen (including many things that need no explanation at all) somehow drops the ball in this arc and doesn't address a number of important issues that need to be addressed. Those issues are spoilers for the most part, so I'll try to talk about them as vaguely as possible. However, if you absolutely want to avoid getting spoiled, skip the next section of the review:
SPOILERS
- one of the characters introduced in this arc is an eleven-year-old kid who spies on his parents using hidden cameras installed all around their house and a monitor in his room, and this plays a very important role in the plot. The problem is that the show never explains where this kid got the equipment and how he was able to install, use and maintain it. Even if we assume that he is a young genius who somehow developed rather specific technical skills at his age that even many adults don't have, it still doesn't explain where and how he got all that equipment in the first place;
- the antagonist very conveniently reveals himself by loudly pronouncing his name twice in a situation where he absolutely doesn't have to do it;
- in the fight that follows, the antagonist fights against two characters, while the other three stand just round the corner. The kid, who is also present at the scene, simply has to call for their help, and yet he doesn't do that even though he knows that those three characters stand there, and nothing prevents him from calling them;
- after one of the characters explodes because of touching another character's body with the antagonist's bomb planted in it, Jousuke saves that character by restoring his body with Crazy Diamond's ability, even though all parts of that character's body including his head were already torn in little pieces, and thus he was certainly already dead (and Jousuke's stand can't resurrect the dead, as was explained in the beginning of the series).
SPOILERS END
Overall, I think the story is still fine as it is, because it's well-paced, entertaining, and has a satisfying and conclusive ending.
That being said, it could have been even better if the show didn't constantly talk about obvious things and instead addressed some aspects that needed an actual explanation.

ANIMATION
First thing you will notice when watching this series is that it has some crazy colour schemes that change all the time. For example, you may see an orange sky which suddenly turns pink, or a character with grey hair which may turn blond or blue depending on the scene. This is probably a matter of a personal taste more than anything, but I personally like this feature: it is artistic, unusual and fits the general bizarrity of the series. Besides, it reminds me a lot of pop-art and those portraits by Andy Warhol where he depicted famous people like Che Guevara and Marilyn Monroe using different colours. In other words, this aspect of JoJo's animation may be considered another interesting tribute to Western culture and something that makes this show stand out of the crowd.
Besides, the series is marked with important change in character designs. While most characters in previous JoJo series are huge ripped men akin to those in Fist of the North Star, the proportions of characters in this series are basically those of normal people. That being said, the character designs still look very stylish, as they usually have interesting haircuts and fashion accessories, which makes them different from designs in many other anime.
The fighting scenes are also well-animated, and the battles often feature good shots and close-ups that add a lot to the dramatic effect.
In general, the art and animation are quite impressive in their own way, being some of the most memorable aspects this series has.

SOUND
DIU continues the tradition established in previous series by choosing a famous song in English for the ending credits. This time, it's a very good and very catchy song called I Want You by Australian duo Savage Garden. It's interesting to note that all ending songs in English which have been used so far in JoJo TV series appear in chronological progression:
- the first series has Roundabout - a 70s song by Yes;
- SC has Walk Like an Egyptian - an 80s hit by The Bangles;
- and this series has a 90s song by Savage Garden.
So, not only it is a great music choice and another tribute to Western culture, but that time progression is also an interesting feature which I haven't seen in any other anime franchise to this day.
As for the opening songs and BGM, they are all very nice, energetic and fitting for the series, but not quite as catchy and memorable as the ending song. In fact, I can't even remember any background melody that particularly stood out for me, but on the other hand, they all do a great job at supporting the mood of the show.
Speaking of voice-acting, it's generally very good, with characters pronouncing various funny catchphrases, like Jousuke's "Greato!", Joutarou's "Yare Yare Daze" and, of course, Joseph's "OH MY GOD!!!". That being said, I really wish the characters didn't YELL all the time. I understand that YELLING is an integral part of JoJo that shows the passion and spirit of the characters, but sometimes it just sounds overly dramatic and really unnecessary, like in that scene with the antagonist disappearing in the crowds I mentioned earlier. Not saying it's a huge problem - just something the series could have improved on, in my opinion.

CHARACTERS
Just like the character designs, the cast also went through certain changes. While the protagonists in previous series were all ripped, GAR men, the protagonist of this series, Jousuke Higashikata, is an illegitimate son of Joseph Joestar and seemingly normal high schooler. However, while Jousuke looks like a normal guy of his age, he is by no means a generic character - rather, he is a smart, very reliable and kind guy (except when someone bad-mouths his haircut, that is), and I personally like him quite a lot.
His two best friends are Okuyasu, who is strong, not very clever and somewhat of a delinquent, and Kouichi - a short and seemingly timid guy who often overcomes his fear and becomes very brave in dangerous situations. They both are ok characters, but perhaps less charismatic than the companions of Jojos in previous series.
The anime also features the comeback of now older Joutarou Kuujou, who is easily one of the best, if not the best character in the series. He always talks sense and does reasonable things, and often acts like Jousuke's older brother and mentor despite being technically his nephew.
The other comeback character is Joseph Joestar himself, who is now an almost eighty-year-old man. He comes to Morioh in order to use his stand ability for finding other stand users. Sadly (and strangely), he never actually does that, and generally performs few memorable actions aside from some interesting father-son interactions with Jousuke and one truly heroic moment I won't spoil here.
The other memorable stand users are serial killer Kira Yoshikage and mangaka Kishibe Rohan. Rohan is one of my favourite characters in the show, as he eventually appears to be a much better guy than he seems at first: he actually cares about other people despite being a selfish bastard on the surface; his words may sound cynical, but they always make sense; and his fanatic, almost maniacal dedication to his work is actually admirable in its own way. As for Kira, he turns out to be a very good opponent for the main characters because of how ruthless and calculative he is.
The other stand users are far less likeable and interesting, in my opinion, like that yandere girl (whose only memorable trait is that she is a yandere), that greedy little guy Shingekiyo (who is fairly annoying and looks as if he belongs to Dragonball or some fantasy anime), Kira's father (who is fairly annoying and serves more as a plot device to create new stand users) and Toshikazu (who is frankly pathetic and has no interesting and respectable traits whatsoever). Perhaps, the only other stand user whom I genuinely like is Tonio the chef, but he plays a very small role in the series.
Besides the stand users, there are regular humans (like the stand users' family members, for example) and two characters who are neither stand users nor regular humans. I won't spoil who they are, but let's just say that both of them are quite likeable, and each plays an important part in the plot.
Overall, the cast may be somewhat of a mixed bag, but it's still good, and I liked a number of characters in this series.

OVERALL
Like most, this anime has its visible drawbacks and could be surely improved in some areas. That being said, it's still a good, enjoyable and memorable series which is far better than most other shounens and most recent stuff in general.
So, if you have already watched the previous JoJo series, I highly recommend to watch this one too. And if you haven't, go watch those first and enjoy the ride!

Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex is an anime that needs no special introduction since it often gets praised as one of the most outstanding shows ever created. The question is, what are the reasons for those high accolades and are they actually justified? Well, let's look into the matter to find out the truth.

STORY
While often claimed to be the best cyberpunk series ever, GITS SAC is ironically one of the less typical representatives of the genre. Although it does share the name, the main characters and the focus on cyber technologies with its famous predecessor, the Ghost in the Shell movie, this series ... doesn't continue the movie's plot, and the "punk" & gloomy atmosphere is pretty much absent here since the creators apparently decided to make the anime more accessible to a general audience. Did they make it worse? I think, no. While the show indeed became a little more mainstream in its presentation, it also gained a lot in the story department.
The story takes place in a society with amazing technologies, precisely:
- cyberbrain i.e. human brain with cybernetic augmentation that allows its user to have a mental interface with computer networks and thus communicate at distance, transmit & download information directly into the brain or simply enter the net like virtual reality and operate there;
- advanced prosthetics: in the world of GITS SAC not only one can replace injured limbs & organs but also have an entirely new artificial body. Consequently, this technology permits cyberbrain users to transfer their minds from one body to another which makes it rather easy to prolong life or conceal a person's identity;
- some other important innovations include robots with artificial intelligence; micromachines utilized to maintain connection between cyberbrain and computer networks; and thermo-optical camouflage used by special forces.
Unsurprisingly, not only these technologies change the everyday life as we know it but they also alter people as such, blurring the line between man & machine, virtual & real worlds. Therefore, the story tackles quite a number of thought-provoking matters, from classic sci-fi themes (like the aforementioned artificial intelligence) to philosophic questions of memetics and hyperreality, explaining how information is transferred in modern society and how it affects our perception of reality. All those topics gain importance every day due to rapid technological development, which makes this futuristic series very relevant to our present world. That's why I highly recommend to watch it attentively as it will sure give you enough food for thought.
However, even if you are not that much into philosophy or science, I believe you may still enjoy the show since it has absolutely kickass action and one of the most thrilling detective plots ever. Essentially, the series tells a story of Section 9, an elite police force dealing with various forms of crime including terrorism & espionage, with its members being simultaneously proficient in the arts of combat, hacking and detective work. The main plotline revolves around their exciting chase after the Laughing Man - a highly-skilled hacker accused of corporate terrorism and blackmailing. Eventually, the whole cat & mouse game turns out even more complex and interesting than it looks at first, involving more parties and providing a fantastic social commentary... but I won't elaborate on that to avoid spoiling: let's just say I'm not a tiny bit overrating the qualities of the story.
Like most, this story has some drawbacks. I presume, there are three of them:
1) contradictory setting. The anime focuses too much on cybernetics, therefore you get the setting where people have androids and crazy technologies like the ability to transfer one's mind to another body... and yet they drive 20th century cars and live in 20th century houses. It just doesn't work that way. However, the amaziness of plot twists and those questions & technologies almost negates the setting issue, and soon you simply stop paying attention to it;
2) while the anime is clever indeed, it may occasionally feel pretentious, prolix and difficult to grasp as the characters happen to carry lengthy discussions overcomplicated with pathos and philosophy. Well, that's bearable considering all the things they say are very interesting and plot-related - it's just the complex presentation of ideas that needs some time to get used to. Not to mention the show isn't only about talking: it also has very dynamic action and some nice comic relief like robotic tanks that read books(!);
3) half of the series are stand-alone episodes that tend to disrupt the main story's flow and make the narrative somewhat choppy. Yet they aren't your typical fillers because those little stories are very memorable and they allow to explore the world, flesh out the characters and tackle the main topics from different perspectives. You won't have much trouble with this aspect of the show (in fact, you may even like it) if you're generally ok with episodic format.
Overall, the aforementioned drawbacks are effectively compensated with the positives, and the story successfully blends intellectual matters and pure entertainment in a very original & enjoyable way.

ANIMATION
Unlike some other great series, GITS SAC does not feature any particularly unique art style; what makes its animation outstanding nonetheless is the overall quality. You would never think this show was made in 2002 - in fact, it looks better than many newer anime in terms of both drawing and cinematics. The latter becomes especially clear when the action kicks in: not only it has almost everything you could ask for (gunfights, car chases, hand-to-hand combat, robot combat etc.), but the choreography is very impressive and pretty realistic at the same time. On another note, the animation employs quite a lot of CGI yet it doesn't spoil the picture at all - in fact, it gives everything a sort of robotic look that ideally fits the show, and the 3D models of various machines blend really well with 2D character animation. In general, I wouldn't go as far as calling the animation a masterpiece, yet the excellent rating seems fairly appropriate here.

SOUND
Well, soundtracks are probably the strongest part of the whole Ghost in the Shell franchise. Kenji Kawai's music in the GITS movie is amazing indeed, and all the tracks there belong to the same style. GITS SAC takes a different approach: the soundtrack by Yoko Kanno is very diverse, with songs in different moods, styles and languages, but of the same exceptional quality. So, besides it's beautiful and breathtaking, it also provides you with a great opportunity to find a song that best suits your personal taste. No doubt, it gets a 10/10 score.

CHARACTERS
At first glance, the cast resembles a regular special squad... except their commander is a lady dressed (or should I say undressed?) in a very peculiar way, and they also have wacky AI tanks with high-pitched voices for fire support. These fanservice and comic relief elements may initially feel wrong in a serious anime that GITS SAC is. However, as the show goes on and the characters get some time to prove themselves you inevitably start to appreciate their personalities and genuine brilliance as special agents. Even Tachikoma (those AI tanks) have a number of interesting and really great moments of their own as they end up playing a much more important part in the show than mere comic relief.
Speaking of the main cast, it basically consists of 4 characters:
- Daisuke Aramaki, the chief of Section 9 with sharp analytical mind and plenty of experience & political connections, which enable him to pull the strings behind the scenes and gain the necessary information for the team. Seldom directly involved into police operations, he still maintains control over his agents and coordinates their actions with guick & authoritative decisions. He is fairly strict yet very loyal to his subordinates, often even risking his career to protect them;
- Motoko "Major" Kusanagi, the squad leader of Section 9 with exceptional fighting & hacking skills, great intellectual abilities, and major curves on top of that. Undoubtedly, Motoko is the most famous and popular character among the fans, although the way she is portrayed in the 1st season of SAC is probably less believable than in the 2nd season and the GITS movie, because this "version" of Kusanagi is TOTALLY badass with no flaws & weaknesses at all, which makes her a bit too unrealistic in my opinion. Not that I don't like her though - of course, I do;
- Batou, the second in command who often acts as a tough guy of the team. Despite that, he is by no means an average brute - in fact, he is pretty clever and even quotes various philosophers from time to time; it's just that this role fits him because of his strength & experience. He cares a lot about all his teammates including Tachikoma despite being fairly carefree on the surface, and he also has very interesting chemistry with Kusanagi which, however, never really goes in the romantic direction;
- finally, Togusa - literally the most human member of the team as his body has no artificial parts aside from some cybernetic augmentation to his brain. In GITS movie, this was actually the main reason why he became a part of Section 9: they wanted to have at least one member who was still able to think like a "normal" human so that they wouldn't end up thinking the same way and always had an alternative view on a problem. Unlike the movie however, the series provides no substantial ground for his inclusion in the squad. As a result, Togusa has no distinctive role and factually does the same job as Batou and The Major, often ending up weaker in comparison simply because he is not a cyborg and has no physical abilities of his colleagues. Nevertheless, this doesn't make him a worthless character: he is a good detective, as well as a very nice guy & real family man, so he still adds more human qualities to the team, albeit in a different way.
Overall, this quartette of protagonists is impressive, well-defined and easy to sympathize with. The only remaining issues are that they don't get much development, and we learn very little about their lives before joining Section 9. One reason is most of their development and background exposition happens in the 2nd season; the other reason is the nature of the series, as its main focus lies on story, philosophy & action. Eventually, that doesn't become a serious problem because the main characters are very fitting for this kind of show just the way they are; I only wish the other Section 9 members i.e. Ishikawa, Saito, Pazu and Borma got a bit more spotlight, as they receive little attention throughout the series and seriously lack in presence department compared with the main cast. Thankfully, this issue is fixed in the 2nd season where all four receive more opportunity to shine, with Saito and Pazu even getting personal episodes.
As for the Laughing Man, I won't go into detail for obvious reasons - let's just say you'll be very surprised when you learn his actual role in the story.

OVERALL
As you could already guess, GITS SAC is one of my most favourite series, and I highly recommend you to watch it in case you haven't. Bear in mind, however, that it strongly demands your thinking and attention to follow the story and appreciate its ideas. So, you'll need to use your brain quite a lot, and if you do, you'll certainly understand why this show belongs to the golden classics of anime and why it deserves the time I took to write this long review.

Kannagi is a little deceptive kind of series: it may look like fantasy at first, yet soon it ends up a harem/moe comedy with insignificant fantasy elements, and well, it isn't nearly as good as some people make it out to be.

STORY & CHARACTERS
First, the major part of the "plot" is taken up by endless dialogues about nothing at the pace of a crippled snail. Perhaps, fans of K-On! and similar series may enjoy that, but I personally consider it to be nothing more than a boring waste of time.
Second, the "story" is essentially a generic harem with your cookie-cutter boy-protagonist who allows a girl ... to live at his place, and how that girl and two other girls compete for his attention. That's the base, and the authors apparently try to add some other aspects to make the anime more entertaining, yet that eventually turns the "plot" into a total illogical mess:
- the series starts as fantasy, with the heroine taking on the duty to destroy some shadow creatures because it's supposed to be a purpose of a goddess - to protect the land from the negative energy those creatures are made of;
- then this mission suddenly gets abandoned, and she starts rivaling another goddess for popularity, making the show a parody on pop-idols;
- then this plotline also gets abandoned with no conclusion, and the anime shows several comedy fillers;
- and then out of nowhere it becomes a serious drama.
None of those parts are logically connected, and nothing gets solved by the end, as the show has an open ending and no sequel whatsoever. Overall, it looks like those who wrote this "story" tried to appeal to different groups of viewers but totally failed to tie various elements together and make a proper conclusion.
Third, the only outstanding character here is Nagi - the female lead who somewhat reminds me of Holo from Spice & Wolf: she's cute, very likeable and lots of fun to follow. The other characters aren't nearly as interesting and memorable since they are only some shallow anime stereotypes that never develop into anything.
All in all, my experience with this "story" & characters may be described as boredom with occasional sparks of entertainment when Nagi comes into play with her tricks & shenanigans. Basically, she's the main attraction of the show and the only aspect I truly enjoyed about it.

ANIMATION & SOUND
The animation utilizes fitting colour palette and shows nice fluency of motion. In general, it's good but not really something to brag about. As for the sound department, the voice-acting is quite remarkable, especially when it comes to Nagi who sometimes uses archaic Japanese words in her speech: not only it sounds rather amusing, but it also might be interesting to those who study the language. Sadly, the musical score doesn't match the voice-acting: it's bland and absolutely forgettable except for the ending song.

OVERALL
The series might be enjoyable if you're ok with the extremely slow pace and the numerous plot issues it has (in other words: if you don't care whether the anime you watch is exciting and has a logical and conclusive plot). As for me, I personally like the comedy fillers: for example, the episode where Nagi locks herself up in the cupboard is very funny indeed. However, the rest of the show is pretty boring and nonsensical.

Chiryokumaru is a 2016 web short by Studio 4°C, and just like most of their shows it's a pretty original work that offers a little more than it first meets the eye.

STORY & CHARACTERS
The whole plot may be summarized in just two sentences: inside a museum, a young warrior fights against shadow beasts using the energy charger on his waist. Soon, the energy runs out, but the warrior finds a new source of power to continue fighting. The plot is extremely short and simple, and even feels somewhat torn out of context, as we never learn why those events take place.
However, as I have already ... said, the anime offers a little more than it first meets the eye. When the warrior runs out of energy, he draws new energy from kanji written on the museum walls. And since the description on the official Youtube channel mentions that those shadow beasts symbolize people's fear and uncertainty over what they don't know, the whole thing becomes a pretty cool allegory of how knowledge defeats ignorance, fear and other obstacles. Of course, that does not prevent the plot from being extremely simple, but it does make it more than just a dumb action sequence, as the idea behind it is good and not quite common for anime.
As for the characterization, it's even more basic than the plot, since the whole cast consists of shadow beasts that don't have names and personalities, and one warrior of whom we learn virtually nothing. However, it would be rather strange to expect outstanding character building from a two-minute short, so I am not really too critical about the cast.

ANIMATION & SOUND
- the animation is very good, with eye-appealing colours and nice action scenes featuring some cool energy blasts;
- the BGM employs taiko drums. It's not memorable but fits the show well and gives it a certain samurai feeling;
- the main character says only one line during the whole show, and those beasts don't talk, so the voice-acting is nothing much to write about.
In general, the production values are good, as expected from Studio 4°C.

OVERALL
To sum everything up, I would say that Chiryokumaru is a fine short. While its plot is very simple and somewhat torn out of context, and the characterization is virtually nonexistent, the idea behind the whole thing is very good and not something you often see in anime, and the production values are quite good too. So, if you want some quick watch or you just like Studio 4°C's works, this short might very well be worth giving a try.

Curly is a one-episode web short directed by Tetsuro Kodama, who previously provided CG direction for the first Mardock Scramble movie and also directed a number of fairly obscure shorts and children's series. Besides, he is the representative director of studio Echoes - a rather unknown Tokyo-based studio specializing in CGI animation that was established in October 2012 and so far has only made a number of short anime (including this one) and provided CG work for the recent gangster series 91 days.

So, what is Curly actually about? According to the opening credits in the movie, the story takes place in Kyoto, Japan (although there ... is no real way to tell whether it's Kyoto or not). A young bride has two mishaps just before the wedding ceremony and naturally starts panicking because the ceremony is about to commence, and she is absolutely not ready for it. The anime shows the interactions among her, her parents, her younger sister and her pet (who is some big fantasy creature of unknown origin wearing an orange scarf), and how they deal with the situation.

Now, a quick rundown through each section of the review:
- the character animation is entirely computer generated, which is not something I would normally like as I prefer hand-drawn animation over computer generated one because the latter often makes characters look awkward and robotic. However, the CGI here is not bad compared to many other shows I've watched. In fact, the animators even managed to make the characters move in a fairly lively way, which is very important because the show has absolutely no dialogues, and thus gestures and facial expressions are the only way the characters can express themselves. As for background art and art in general, I guess it looks alright;
- the soundtrack is instrumental music employing keyboards. It is not memorable yet sounds nice, creating a proper mood for the show;
- the story is very simple but dynamic, with a nice premise and a conclusive ending;
- as for the characters, they are also not outstanding or particularly memorable for any reason yet they feel lively and believable, acting like normal humans would, and thus they are fine for this kind of show.

While the following statement may be rather subjective, I think the biggest drawback this anime has is that it's not that funny for a comedy, which is one of the main reasons why my overall rating is not very high.
On the other hand, while the show does not manage to be outright hilarious, it does manage to be mildly amusing and pretty cute, which is especially good if you like romance and family-related anime.
So, if you want some quick watch, or you are generally interested in obscure anime, this short might turn out to be a fine way to spend three minutes of your time.

Twilight Q is an interesting albeit largely forgotten OVA produced back in 1987. Originally, it was supposed to be a showcase for young talents in the industry; alas, only 2 episodes were made before the project was abandoned due to low sales, and the anime ultimately sunk into oblivion. Well, I guess it's high time to do the show some justice and bring it back to the surface.

STORY
As the title clearly suggests, the OVA is a sort of Twilight Zone anthology, which means the episodes don't bear any connection plotwise, yet they have similar mysterious atmosphere and employ the same mix of genres that may ... be roughly described as mystery + sci-fi + mindf*ck. A very good mix, if you ask me.
The first episode called Reflection is based on a story by Kazunori Ito (the scriptwriter for Ghost in the Shell & Patlabor movies), directed by Tomomi Mochizuki (known for his work on studio Ghibli's Ocean Waves and studio Manglobe's House of the Five Leaves). One day, a girl named Mayumi dives into the ocean and finds a camera stuck on a coral riff; later, she discovers a film inside the camera and, much to her surprise, the film contains a picture where she poses with some guy she doesn't even know. Obviously, she decides to find out the truth about the picture's origins, and so the sequence of enigmatic events begins.
Without spoiling anything, the episode is simultaneously interesting and easy to follow, moving at a fine pace, providing enough twists to keep you intrigued, and offering a conclusive ending while leaving some of the mystery to the viewer's interpretation. That being said, the story does have a certain problem, as it ends up lacking any distinctive central theme or well-defined message; and even though the episode is tagged as "romance", it appears to be almost non-existent in the show. Besides, the story incorporates a certain ecological disaster and a certain historical event that, while interesting on their own, remain unexpanded and contribute very little to the main plotline. Eventually, the story turns out well-written and intriguing yet somewhat empty at the core.
The second episode called File 538 is cut from an entirely different cloth. Directed by Mamoru Oshii and based on his own story, it tells about a private detective spying on a father - daughter pair living next door (well, not entirely like that, but I won't go into detail to avoid spoilers). One summer night, the main character enters the apartment and finds a sleeping girl, a fish, and what seems to be a letter from another detective previously working on the same case. As he sits there reading the message, the mystery unravels before his eyes.
This episode turns out very multifaceted and surreal, as the story seamlessly blends real and dreamy events to show how we are often unable to distinguish illusion from reality and end up getting trapped into dreams; also, it provides an ironic commentary on human existence, full of dark humor and Kafka-esque transformations; and some Christian symbolism may be found here as well, although only a bit of it. In general, the story is very original, multilayered and thought-provoking, with plenty of ideas to infer and a couple of amazing revelations that I won't spell out to avoid spoilers.
That all being said, the anime also has a very dry & demanding presentation, as the whole story is narrated very slowly by the protagonist while he sits in the room, doing nothing else at all. Thus, the show ends up way too static, not to mention a radical violation of the "show, don't tell" rule. Thankfully, the story makes sense overall, with the protagonist factually explaining everything in the ending; the problem is, many viewers may have trouble following 20 minutes of ultra-slow & rather complex narration that precedes it.
To sum everything up, the two stories of Twilight Q turn out diametrically opposed in their strengths & weaknesses, as the first is well-presented yet has fairly little substance in it, while the second has plenty of substance and the presentation arguably too challenging for its own good. The only thing they have in common, besides the overall mysterious tone, is that both are far from perfect yet unusual & interesting, each in its own way.

ANIMATION
If you look at the staff credits, you will see two very big names in the credits for the 1st episode: the character designs were made by Akemi Takada, who also worked on Mobile Police Patlabor, Kimagure Orange Road, Urusei Yatsura and some other classic shows; and the art director was Shichiro Kobayashi, known for working on Lupin III Castle of Cagliostro, Urusei Yatsura 2: Beautiful Dreamer, Berserk, Revolutionary Girl Utena and Nodame Cantabile, among other things. Plus, there're some great animators in there, such as Takayuki Goto, a co-founder of studio I.G Tatsunoko, which was later renamed as Production I.G (the G in the studio's name comes from his surname, by the way). So, no wonder that the animation in this episode is very nice: it's very colorful, neat and detailed, with both artwork and motion done right. However, the overall style is just realistic with few unique features, and while Takada's character designs are nice, as they always are, Kobayashi's backgrounds don't stand out as much as they normally do for some reason (that may be only my personal impression though). As a result, it makes the animation pleasant to watch yet rather unmemorable in the long run.
The animation in the 2nd episode is no worse although it appears much more limited at first, showing only the room where the protagonist dwells or some stills & abstract imagery going along with his speech, like airplanes in the sky; view of the city streets with clouds flying above; and other stuff like that. It all may look boring on paper, yet the visuals turn out quite impressive in their own way, which is no wonder when the art director is Hiromasa Ogura - the same man who later worked on Ninja Scroll, Ghost in the Shell, Jin-Roh and FLCL among other famous anime; and the animation director is Shinji Ootsuka - a longtime Studio Ghibli animator who also assisted with key animation for Angel's Egg, Jin-Roh, FLCL, Millenium Actress and Tokyo Godfathers. In general, the main strength here is the artistic composition that makes some clever use of stills & abstract imagery; and when things actually move, the animation is quite smooth & detailed. Also, the colors are rich, dark and pleasant to the eye, and the overall quality is very good considering the show's age. The one and only aspect I strongly dislike is the character design of the male protagonist: while it may be a matter of subjective taste more than anything, I think it is way too grotesque, giving him a fairly ugly appearance. Perhaps, Oshii wanted him to look unusual in some way, but that remains beyond my understanding.
Overall, the animation in both episodes reflects their nature and differs the same way as the stories: the animation in the 1st episode is nice to look at yet rather forgettable; the animation in the 2nd episode is quite original & well-done, yet some questionable artistic decisions make it hardly tolerable for some viewers. Nevertheless, both display some genuine quality only hand-drawn anime can offer.

SOUND
The soundtrack for both episodes by maestro Kenji Kawai consists mostly of keyboard music that isn't really memorable, and you probably won't even notice it if you don't pay specific attention. However, if you do, you'll realize that the tracks are nicely composed and they do a great job at creating the enigmatic atmosphere of the OVA. I only wish the melodies were more diverse and employed more instruments, but even this way they're still good & fitting for the show.
The voice-acting in the first episode is fine, with nothing particularly standing out. The protagonist's voice in the second episode is really weird, and exactly like with the character designs I have no clue why Oshii wanted him to talk that way: maybe, to make him sound mysterious? I don't know. Well, at least I wasn't annoyed with his voice although it did sound very strange to me.

CHARACTERS
The characters in both episodes have no remarkable personalities and few distinctive features in general: in fact, they are just gears used to keep the plot going. However, while the lack of outstanding characters is never a good thing, it may be not too bad in this case, considering the anime's relatively short length & the very story-driven nature of the mystery genre it belongs to. Taking that into account, I believe the cast is more or less ok for this kind of show... and that's pretty much it. I wish I could tell you more about them, but there really isn't much else to say aside from a couple of spoilers.

OVERALL
While far from flawless, Twilight Q is certainly an interesting & innovative anime that may be recommended if you're into mystery, sci-fi & mindf*ck genres or if you particularly like any of the creators involved in the project. I hope this review helps you set the right expectations before going into the show, and perhaps, you'll enjoy it more than I did.

Based on a story by Kazunori Ito (the scriptwriter for Ghost in the Shell & Patlabor movies), Urban Square: Chasing Amber is a very unusual OVA as it can be perceived in two different ways, and the way you choose pretty much determines whether you'll like it or not.

STORY
Essentially, it's a classic detective story where the main character witnesses a murder and gets into trouble with the mafia; eventually, he ends up an action hero, fighting the criminals and protecting the girl he likes. Not only the plot is rather simple in general, but it also contains quite a lot of cliches typical for this ... kind of stories.
However, if you look at the story from a different angle, all those cliches were initially supposed to be there. You see, the main character is a scriptwriter who factually ends up a protagonist of his screenplays, and that makes the OVA a witty parody on/homage to detective stories which may be shortly described as "B-movie coming to real life". Although the show never openly admits its nature it gives some hints during the story: for example, when the protagonist and his future girlfriend meet for the second time, she wonders how two complete strangers have met twice in two consecutive days, and he replies: "That's why fiction can't win against reality. In reality, coincidences are allowed, but in fiction, coincidences are ridiculed". By doing that, the anime elegantly mocks its own narrative and performs the parody in a more subtle & intelligent way than many other shows of this kind.
So, the story is good and well-written for what it is, providing an enjoyable watch if you keep in mind its actual purpose and don't take it too seriously.

ANIMATION
The OVA clearly reveals its age: not only it features classic 80's character designs but also some minor age issues here and there. On the other hand, the animation displays very nice fluency of motion that makes the action quite enjoyable; also, the movie is depicted in eye-appealing dark blue tones that add a subtle noir feeling to the show. So, the OVA looks pretty good despite some age imperfections it has.

SOUNDTRACK
Performed by a band called Chickenshack, the soundtrack is an elegant jazz mix of piano, sax, drums, funky guitar and slap bass. In general, the OST is unmemorable because it doesn't contain any songs or even a main theme; yet it suits the OVA extremely well as background music. The voice-acting & sound effects (gunshots, explosions etc.) are also well-done and fitting.

CHARACTERS
The characters have simple personalities, and some of them are straightforward action/mystery movie stereotypes, so don't expect much depth or development here. However, it doesn't become a serious problem because they were supposed to be like that anyway (it's a parody, remember?), and thus they're still fine for this kind of show. Besides, the protagonist, his girlfriend and the detective who helps them are all quite likeable.

OVERALL
If you want a witty parody on mysteries or just some quick 80's fun with good visuals & soundtrack, this OVA will be a nice choice for you.
However, if you need a clever & intricate detective story, this show is a wrong place to look for it. Perhaps, you should try something like Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex or the first Patlabor movie, as those two feature the best detective plots I've seen in any anime.

In the world of show business, music videos are normally treated as mere tools for increasing band's popularity & sales. However, this clip is nowhere near that kind of banality since the creators are Kouji Morimoto and Studio 4°C, famous for their experimental animation & generally uncommon approach to anime. The result of their work is simultaneously a very positive piece of entertainment and a rather psychological story with some right ideas inside.

STORY
The story is pretty simple at the core. Basically, it tells about an ordinary girl who leads a very carefree life, hanging out with other girls like her and paying no respect to ... the people around. One day she harms a boy with her arrogance and feels very serious stress due to guilty conscience. Eventually, that experience completely changes her personality.
In a nutshell, that's the whole story but the actual presentation is not so plain & straightforward. The story is told as if there're TWO girls in the video (the one staying in her room and the other wandering around the city) who are factually the same person's ego and alter-ego. That kind of presentation is very interesting from the psychological point of view but it may also confuse the viewer at first since the whole thing reminds of Serial Experiments Lain.
Thankfully, the plot is nowhere near as intricate as in Lain or any other real mindf*ck because it would've made the video too complicated for its format and, consequently, much less enjoyable. In fact, it utilizes just about the right amount of complexity so that the show could convey its main idea and yet remain creative & thought-provoking, leaving some aspects to the viewer's interpretation.
In general, it's a simple story presented in an interesting, unconventional way. Also, it delivers a clear & very positive message that I really liked.

ANIMATION
Kouji Morimoto has his own distinctive artstyle: sketchy lines, simple character designs with small facial features and some cool visual effects that create great animation fluency. Also, the show employs some interesting surreal imagery (for example, in the scenes where the girl roams around the city). So, the animation's originality is out of question - the question is whether you like the style or not. I personally enjoy how simple yet unusual it is, but that is also the reason why some of you may consider it primitive & ugly.
Besides that entirely subjective matter the animation also has two objective flaws you should know about:
- first, it didn't age particularly well. Kouji Morimoto mixed hand-drawn animation and CGI in this video, and while the former is still artistic, the latter looks rather outdated;
- second, for some unknown reason Morimoto utilized lots of grey, brown and other dirty colors in this and other anime he directed at the end of the 90's (Four Day Weekend, Noiseman Sound Insect, Tobira wo Akete etc.). It always seemed a very strange artistic decision to me because it isn't really appealing to the eye and makes the video look even more worn-out.
Overall, I think the animation is still good for its fluency and originality despite a couple of issues it has. As for the style, again, it's an entirely love-or-hate matter.

SOUND
The soundtrack is only one song, which is "Survival" by Glay. I've never heard the band before as I'm generally not into J-rock. However, I liked that piece: it's rather simple yet melodic, upbeat & with nice vocal. Perhaps, it's not the kind of song to become one's lifelong favourite yet the quality is clearly there, and now I understand pretty well why these guys are among the top-10 best-selling artists of all time in Japan.

CHARACTERS
To start with, there's only one character of interest in this video, and that's the female lead - the other people are used mostly for backgrounds. Besides, she's just an ordinary girl, and we don't even learn her name.
However, the girl turns out to be more than just a nameless cardboard as she goes through some really intense character development, reaching a very emotional catharsis at the end. Unsurprisingly, this makes her engaging and easy to sympathize with even though we know almost nothing about her.

OVERALL
Survival is a very unusual anime that will certainly make a different impression on every viewer. In my case, I really liked the experimental animation, the song, the thought-provoking presentation, the message of the story and the whole positive feeling about it. In fact, I watched this video several times and each viewing was like a great boost of positive energy. However, I'm a person who's generally into unusual stuff and doesn't mind a little outdated visuals. If you happen to prefer more traditional forms of entertainment (which is not bad at all), you will probably enjoy this video less than I did.