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The more I think about this series, the more I realize just how much I liked it. On the surface, Mysterious Girlfriend X is pretty much your standard high-school romantic comedy, insomuch as many of the characters and situations are almost universal within the genre, yet right out of the gate, it's obvious that there's something unusual going on here.
Tsubaki Akira is in every way, your typical high-school boy. He's inexperienced, and awkward as hell, but he's also a nice average guy, with nice, average friends, and living a nice, average high-schooler's life.
Until that is, the day a new transfer student arrives in his class ... and turns his existence upside-down.
Urabe Mikoto is that transfer student, and her unorthodox appearance, and curt demeanor immediately set her apart from the rest of the class, a distance which only widens when she displays some of her quirky behaviors, such as sleeping at her desk through lunch, and laughing uproariously, seemingly at nothing during class.
And yet Tsubaki can't help but find her fascinating...

It's not too long after Urabe's arrival that the weird amps up and we're introduced to the concept on which the series is based, and the one that makes this series a little squirmy for a lot of people.

Yes, it's drool.

One day after class, Tsubaki realizes he's left something in class and, upon returning to pick it up, he finds Urabe still sleeping at her desk long after everyone else has gone home for the day.
Tsubaki can't help but notice the puddle of drool Urabe is lying in, and waking her up, sends her on her way, but then finds himself transfixed by the glistening pool of saliva she's left behind and...
tastes it.

This is probably the point where a lot of people make their decision on Mysterious Girlfriend X and choose either to move on to another show, or stick tight to see where this could possibly be heading. Those who choose the former are really doing themselves a disservice, because if you can get over the whole "ick" factor, what takes place from that point on is actually something pretty unique and special in the realm of anime rom-com.

Two weeks pass after the "drool episode" and life settles back into the familiar routine of teenage life. Tsubaki finds himself even more fascinated by the mysterious Urabe, but being your typical awkward high-schooler, nothing comes of it until one day he's mysteriously stricken with a fever and passes out during gym class. Several days pass and Tsubaki's condition continues to worsen, forcing him to miss classes and remain in bed suffering from all the symptoms of a terrible cold and fever.
But Urabe knows differently, and showing up at his home one afternoon, explains that what he's suffering from isn't a cold at all, but in fact is withdrawal. She's correctly deduced that on the day Tsubaki found her sleeping in class in a puddle of drool, he must have tasted it after she left, and, after two weeks without tasting it again, has developed a serious case of "love sickness".
Tsubaki tries to deny of course, but ultimately admits to his actions at which point Urabe calmly announces that his illness can be cured, and all he needs is another taste of her drool. Tsubaki freaks of course, but eventually relents, allowing Urabe to insert her drool covered finger into his mouth.
And sure enough, he's immediately cured.

This begins their ongoing relationship, and henceforth they meet on a daily basis after school and perform the daily ritual of Urabe providing Tsubaki with a drool covered finger to suck on in order to maintain his equilibrium.

Time passes and we see more of Urabe's eccentricities, such as her "panty-scissors" and uncanny skill with them. We're also introduced to some of the supporting cast that make the series so much fun, in the form of Tsubaki's best friend, Ueno Kouhei and his adorable, yet quirky girlfriend, Oka Ayuko.

Mysterious Girlfriend X is unusual in many ways. The character design is a bit of a throwback to decades past, being nowhere near as pretty as many current series such as Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai or Chuunibyou, but the characters and scenery are definitely attractive.
There's the whole "drool" factor of course, and the implied theme of dependence that comes with Tsubaki's withdrawal pains in the first episode.
But what I found the most unusual and seemingly contradictory was the comparatively high level of fanservice. Mysterious Girlfriend X is in so many ways a sweet and innocent story of first love, and the fanservice seemed almost diametrically opposed to that sweetness.
Yet somehow it worked.
There's no denying there's a lot of panty-shots (how could you have "Panty-scissors" be a recurring and important story element without them?), boob shots ( still can't figure out how anime high-school girls can look like skinny 14 year olds in their uniforms, and Playboy center-folds in a bathing suit! lol!), and more sexual allusion and innuendo than you can shake a stick at, yet it never felt gratuitous like it did in Haganai.
With very few exceptions, the fanservice was integral to the story-line and made sense being there, and let's face it, what 17 year old highschool boy isn't obsessed with sex?
For all the fanservice and innuendo, Girlfriend was never leering or lecherous.
Yeah, there's plenty there for those who appreciate fanservice, but really, this anime was incredibly sweet and endearing, and to be honest, gave a pretty accurate portrayal of just how awkward and inept most of us were at that age.

So all in all, I'd highly recommend this series to anyone who loves a sweet and innocent love story. Honestly, people might think I'm nuts comparing it to Clannad, but despite it's brevity (a mere 13 episodes) and admittedly racier aspects, this is still a wonderfully funny and innocent tale of two awkward teenagers falling in love and working through the issues that come with discovering and dealing with some pretty overwhelming new emotions, so man-up and deal with the drool.
You'll be glad you did! :)

The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya, or as I dubbed it, "It's a Wonderful Haruhi Suzumiya Life".
As someone who's only seen the first season of the Haruhi series and read only the first five manga, I came to this movie expecting more of what I had become used to; light and quirky comedy with the occasional sci-fi twist tossed in to keep it interesting, but it wasn't long before I realized that that wasn't what I was going to get.
The movie started off reasonably consistent with the series and manga, with regards to personalities, situations and content, but once the morning of December 18th arrived, it ... took on what seemed to me to be a definitely "un-Haruhi-like" quality, and became far less funny, far less frenetic, and anything but light.
Kyon's realization that he has awakened into a world in which Haruhi Suzumiya no longer exists throws his perception of his own existence into turmoil, and his struggles for understanding provide some very serious moments, and that seriousness never really goes away even when comedic moments are sprinkled into the story.
To put it bluntly, this movie is dark.
Not to say that it's not excellent, because it is.
The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya puts Kyon into the very uncomfortable position of having to seriously examine his own life and decide how he wants to live it going forward, and the process by which he ultimately arrives at his decision is at times, extremely painful, and not without casualties.
I came to The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya expecting to laugh at Haruhi's irrepressible antics and Kyon's long-suffering straight-man routine, but after 140 often gut-wrenching minutes, I walked away feeling anything but light-hearted.
As I said, despite the familiar characters and setting, this is not your standard Haruhi Suzumiya, and casual fans of the franchise might just find themselves feeling as if they too have awakened into a parallel world or alternate reality.
Is it worth the ride?
Definitely.
But be prepared for the ride to be bumpy and unsettling.

I'm not sure what I was expecting when I first started watching Chobits, but I can tell you that whatever expectations I had were abandoned within the first few moments of the first episode.
Chobits is the story of a naive young "country bumpkin" arriving in the big city in order to prepare for his next attempt at being accepted to college.
Hideki Motosuwa arrives in town impossibly ignorant of current technology and is immediately enthralled with the omnipresent "Persocoms", which are humanoid computers and have become so common throughout the city as to be entirely ordinary.
Hideki pines for a Persocom of his own, because they ... are cute (the vast majority of Persocoms seen throughout the series are built to resemble attractive young women) and will enable him to pursue many interests, chief among which would seem to be surfing the Net for Porn.
If the opening theme, which immediately made me think of such cheesy 70's shows such as "Love American Style" or the equally cheesy "Three's Company" from a decade later, hadn't already labelled this series, Hideki's obsession with porn, inexplicable, yet complete lack of understanding of technology and juvenile behaviour certainly did.
But I digress...

On his way home to his new apartment, Hideki continues to bemoan his inability to afford a Persocom of his own, and muses how nice it would be to find one lying around somewhere, when lo and behold, what should he pass by, but the titular character, "Chi", lying atop a stack of garbage in the alleyway behind his home.
Stricken by how cute she is, and amazed by his good fortune, Hideki brings Chi home, failing to notice the computer disk that has fallen to the ground as he laboured to pick her up.
Exactly what was on this disk? Well, despite the close-up of said disk lying unnoticed on the ground, we're never told.

Once having managed to get Chi back to his apartment, Hideki struggles with trying to revive her, and, having exhausted all reasonable avenues, finds that her "On Switch" is located in her vagina.
Yikes....

Once awakened, it becomes apparent that Chi has no operating software installed, and is essentially a blank slate, but thanks to having a "learning" program she can be taught, so Hideki takes it upon himself to teach her the things she will need to know in order to be fully functional.

As the series progresses, additional characters are introduced; the attractive building manager, Chitose Hibiya, the neighbour and school chum, Shinbo, and the cute girl, and possible love interest, Yumi, among others, all of whom have distinct roles to play in the story and who play them well. While I have issues with Chobits, surprisingly enough, character development is not one of them. The series gave itself ample time to explore and define each of the main supporting characters, and each of them play a prominent role.

Time passes and Chi learns more and more, ultimately becoming able to work part time and earn an income of her own, and we are introduced to more supporting characters, the majority of whom are also well written and play important roles in the story line.

There are laughs (most of which follow the same juvenile pattern that was established out of the gate) as well as tears along the way, and we become aware that Chi may not be your average Persocom, but rather a product of the (urban) legendary "Chobits" line, which was rumoured to be a line of Persocoms possessed of actual Artificial Intelligence and capable of being as human as a Persocom could possibly be.
We're also informed that somewhere in Chi's heavily protected core programming may be a protocol which could potentially change the way humans and Persocoms interact forever afterwards, should it be activated.

At it's core, Chobits attempts to deal with love and relationships between individuals. It deals with issues of infidelity and loss, and asks the viewer to question the very nature of love and where it can exist. We are offered the possibility of a person having genuine feelings for a Persocom, and presented with the potential fallout from that love, whether it be marital breakdown or simply a growing dependence on one's computerized companion for all things, including emotional engagement, that gradually leads to an ever increasing isolation of those who sought a connection with another being.
Chobits also succeeds to a large extent in this, and the issue is investigated in a surprisingly mature and compassionate fashion. We are ultimately left with the feeling that love may not always be kind, can exist in many forms, and may not always be found where we would expect it, and all of these are good messages.

So why it it, with Chobits having strong, well written characters, decent artwork and a solid core message, that I found it to be such a disappointment?
I think it's because Chobits could have been so much more.
Questions about the very nature of love and our deep seated need to find and nurture basic personal relationships are weighed down under such a burden of childish humour and fanservice that the seriousness of the core discussion is tainted and loses much of its power.
Add to that, the seemingly important plot threads that are left unaddressed, and Chobits ends up falling short of its potential, and because that potential was so well laid out and seemed so good, it's failure to be realised is bothersome.

In the end, I did enjoy Chobits, despite its flaws, and I wouldn't hesitate in recommending it, but for those who have seen the series' high ratings and read its many glowing reviews, I'd say "be prepared to be let down".
Chobits is good. Perhaps better than much of what's out there, but its flaws are enough to make it more an example of unrealised potential than one of anime classic in my opinion.

Elfen Lied....
It's been less than 12 hours since we finished marathoning this series, and I have to admit to still being a little off balance.

Elfen Lied is the story of a genetic mutant (Diclonius) named Lucy, who's mutation has resulted not only in the cat-ear like horns on her head, but the ability to manifest four incredibly powerful and destructive, invisible arms known as "Vectors", and her interactions with the central protagonists, long separated cousins, Kouta and Yuka, and her "sister", Nana.

The opening sequence of Elfen Lied is not for the squeamish, and for folks like us, whose principle anime diet consists of Shojou and ... Shonen series such as Haruhi Suzumiya and Naruto, it was quite a shock.
I honestly didn't expect my wife to finish the first episode, much less the series.
And yet, hours later, there we were having finished what was without question, the most disturbing anime we've ever seen, and both in full agreement that it was worth the effort.

Odds are, anyone coming to Elfen Lied will have already heard of the extreme levels of gore and casual nudity, but even forewarned as I was, I found the first ten minutes to be uncomfortable to watch, the body count being so high and the gore so undeniably over the top.
Yet despite that, we were inexplicably drawn into the story in a way neither of us had expected or experienced before.

Yes, Elfen Lied is brutal, both physically and psychologically, but the brutality serves a purpose, and by the time it's over, there is no question of it's origin.

Despite living up to it's reputation for gore and nudity, Elfen Lied is not so much about satisfying the viewer's prurient interests as it is a statement about the basic human need for companionship and compassion. Certainly those whose tastes are limited to that type of entertainment won't be disappointed, but those who are willing to look beyond the surface will undoubtedly understand that the only monsters in Elfen Lied are the people at the controls, those who are willing to de-humanise anyone who displays even the most innocuous of differences from their narrow definition of "normal".

The artwork in the series is solid throughout, and the character designs are very effective at eliciting the desired responses from the viewers. Throughout the series, characters who are intended to be endearing most assuredly are, and when menace is required, it is supplied in abundance.
Character development is also solid, and despite the brevity of the series every principle is given sufficient back story and growth to allow the viewer to understand and identify with them.

Are there flaws in Elfen Lied? Most definitely, but they are by no means deal breakers. Some supporting characters are more like caricatures than human beings, and some situations, designed to make us feel for certain players feel contrived and unnatural, but these moments are few and more than compensated for by the strong overall story and themes of alienation and the importance of being accepted.

I can't honestly say if I'll ever watch this series again because, despite it's strengths in so many areas, it is still an uncomfortable watch, not only because of the violence and gore, but because it's depiction of just how cruel we can be as a species is so bang on. That being said, as dark and dire as it is, Elfen Lied also shows us how even the most abused and alienated among us can be saved if we are only given the most basic of human necessities...
Companionship, compassion and respect.

I came to Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai with no preconceptions whatsoever beyond that I was about to see some truly beautiful artwork, and I wasn't disappointed in the slightest.
Unfortunately, that's about the only thing about the show where I wasn't.

The concept of Haganai is simple enough to be almost formulaic...
Social misfits get together in search of the ever elusive "popularity", and merriment/romance/insert trope here, ensues.
The dynamics are all in place...we have the nice guy who just can't seem to get a break; the beautiful, yet miserable outsider girl; the eye candy, I mean, the rich, beautiful, talented, stuck-up girl who only wants to be ... liked for herself, and an assorted cast of caricatures, I mean characters, to keep things lively.
With such a diverse group of characters and insanely beautiful and detailed artwork, Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai should be an instant classic, but the only classic here are the classic mistakes made by so many shows.

It fails to develop its characters or deliver its message.

The show relies too heavily of lewd camera angles, "poop" jokes and telling the same joke over and over again, and never actually gets around to allowing the characters to grow. At the end of the season, with only one or two notable moments, the characters are exactly who they were when they were introduced to us.
Kadoka is still unfairly ostracized by the majority of the student body, Yozura is still a bitch, Sena is still a bitch, and the rest of the ensemble are still the one-dimensional caricatures they were when the show started.
It's disappointing really, because the subject matter has potential, and there were opportunities presented on numerous occasions for the characters to experience some personal growth, but it never happened.

But despite all this, Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai wasn't a complete loss.
Knowing that there's a second season, coupled with the brief flashes of evolution displayed by the principles, holds out hope for season 2.
Anything this beautifully drawn deserves a second chance and I hope the writers give it the opportunity to grow that it so richly needs and deserves.