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I've personally gotten very frustrated with shounen ai/yaoi, not because of all the man love, but because there's no point to it. It's all 'Hey you're cute! Let's now have sex for no apparent reason or character development, YAY!" I also dislike that it's always marketed to little "YAOI SUKI DESU" 12 year old fan girls, so quite a lot of it has basically children getting jiggy with it. Even if the anime goes 'Oh yeah, I'm 25', there's noooo way that little boy could even possibly pass as so.

It's ridiculous.

Which brings me to Sekaiichi Hatsukoi. My oasis in the KAWAII DESU quicksand realm. Story-wise, ... it's nice to actually see it take place in a publishing house in the manga section. I personally haven't seen this before and found it very interesting. I also like that they split the series by following three different storylines that are all intertwined by where they work and it really connects you with all the characters instead of just the two main guys.

I also like the fact that they're not always KAWAII BISHOUNEN hot and the fact that there are cycles where they look like they've been dragged under a bus and have bags under their eyes really cracks me up and I warm to the characters even more.

Now, let's get to why most people will be coming across Sekaiichi Hatsukoi in the first place: The man shex. Don't worry! There's loads of little tidbits and oomph to sate your needs, but because of the character emotion and the build-up in storyarc, it rarely feels like a simple 'fanservice', where the creators have gone "Oh this scene is running a bit flat. Let's add some sex!!"

It's also very tastefully done, so those expecting a gangbang of wild pleasure, this really isn't the shounen ai for you. But for those of you who get the most enjoyment out of a growing story with buckets of angst, misunderstandings, tenderness, warmth, caring, hilarity and overall enjoyment, cue up episode one right now. RIGHT NOW, I SAY.

Though I've been known to harp on watchability, stretched out plot, unnecessary recaps, and stupid love stories, I have to say, with Kimi ni Todoke, I really didn't mind.

It's one of the slowest things I've ever watched, plot-wise, but it has a very delicate and nostalgic feel to it that makes you want to tune in more. I'm really fond of the theme tune; it's very feel-good, and though there is a lot of repetition, I really found I didn't care. I just let myself be absorbed, sat back, and enjoyed.

At the end, I did have a RAEGFEST since I felt cheated of ... my happy ending with a kiss/confessions of love, but then a friend pointed out to me that the second season has just begun airing in Japan this January. Thank goodness it's being continued because, JEEZ! I'm looking forward to it, but for only being 25 episodes, it took me days to get through because it really is quite a slow burn.

It's probably a good thing that these episodes are five minutes long, because that's about all one could take of this without there being a plot. I thought that many of the episodes were amusing, but the fact that there is so much commotion going on at any one point in such a short amount of time made me struggle to keep up. Talk about speed-reading.

I think that as something to amuse purely because the characters are bishounen and hyper, it does it's job. But that's about it. There isn't anything especially witty and if this is trying to be a satire, it has failed ... incredibly on many levels, least of all historical accuracy. But then again, I'm probably taking it far too seriously and expecting too much.

Guess I should pop some speed with the rest of the tweens if I really want to enjoy watching this.

I only have one thing to say. YES. Yes, yes, yes.

This is a hilarious, wonderful, fun, dramatic, and fantastic anime. It's so good, I may have to start reading the manga. This ticked all the shojo boxes for me and I am proud to say that it is now in my list of top anime.

When I started on the first episode, I had a bad feeling that it was going to be your typical love story with a boring, soppy female lead character who cried all the time and had everything happen for her because she was cute. NOT SO! In the first five ... minutes, my fears were assuaged. I don't think I've laughed or enjoyed an anime so much since Azumanga came out. It's a good balance of humor and warmth, mixed with heart wrenching drama. You really connect with the characters, which I always find pleasing.

The only thing that I was slightly disappointed on was the ending as I was looking for a firmer resolution, which isn't available since the manga is still going and there might be a second series at some point. I really, really hope so.

I was recommended this by a friend and because I'm a fan of old style (though it was made in 2006, it has a 90s anime feel), I thought I'd give it a go. Five episodes in, and I couldn't take any more. Completely predictable and uncreative, it's a simple generic shojou anime. The concept of the story sounded interesting, but there isn't enough drama to make it sustain anything. It's supposed to be dramatic, but as far as an innovative and fun anime, this is not.

If I was seven, I think I would be mindless enough to not be bothered with characters or ... plot, but if Sailor Moon or Cardcaptors Sakura can even attempt to engage you into a whirlwind storyline with 3D characters, there isn't any excuse for Yoake Mae.

As I began to watch this anime, I didn't have high hopes nor was I completely impressed with the first few episodes. But perseverance paid off, and I found the story to be quirky and enjoyable.

When I thought they would go down a conventional plotline/reaction, there would suddenly be a twist that would make me laugh. Overall, this anime was kept very fresh throughout the episodes. There are some obvious filler episodes that became slightly boring, but the humor was enough to keep me from looking away. The characters, while cliche in their actions, have a sort of warm and fresh feel in such ... that you forgive them immediately if they do something predictable.

The artistry is beautiful. The background and settings can sometimes be breathtaking and the attention to detail is impressive.

After finishing, I started on the second series, which could also be a bit of an OAV as well, Kuroshitsuji II. The first episode threw me off a bit as I thought that the main characters from the first series wouldn't be in it, but that wasn't so and the new plot line really had me hooked, the ending episodes are really worth it.

I would say I think I enjoyed Kuroshitsuji II more than the first one, but I wouldn't have the attachment to the main characters I did if I hadn't watched the first series before. Overall, I recommend both to the age groups of about 12 to 35. It's kiddy enough that younger people will enjoy it, but witty and fast paced enough for the older generation looking for something new.

Overall, I found the series enjoyable, though a bit repetitive and probably could have been summed up in 10 episodes and not twice that amount. The ending was exciting, but as I started on the OAV, it was more like a feeble attempt at a reboot and I have to say I lost interest quickly.

There's no real surprises when it comes to character development, but the battle scenes are creative and always keep you on your toes. Plot-wise, you can guess where certain things will lead up to, which is a bit of a disappointment in that something that's supposed to be an exciting twist ... falls flat.

I personally am not a huge Mecha fan, but I found myself being pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed Code Geass overall. I watched the entire series in one go, and there was a good flow across all of the episodes.

So, if you're in the mood for some light angst, guns blazing, rivalry, school shenanigans, and an easy-to-follow storyline, this would be the one for you.

From the first episode, this anime intrigued me. Even the opening title song and sequence is so telling, it fits the series perfectly. It's rare that I listen to an Opening song every time, but I did with this one. The score is wonderful accompaniment to the carnage, but is non-intrusive throughout. This series bravely underplays scenes, letting the ambient sound be the music. The foley work is sublime.

Some would say that it's slow going, but I personally think the pacing is well done. Once you get passed the first two episodes, things pick up and become well worth the wait. Each episode is about ... 23 minutes long, including opening and closing title, so you can really blast through them quickly (Took me a day and a few hours).

The thing I found most disappointing was the ending, as the subject matter and title would lead you to believe there is a huge mission and a shootout with some angst and going insane, but there's none of that at all. If I had to put it into any genre, I would say that this is a drama, looking into the lives of these characters punctuated by some scenes of shooting. The title 'Gunslinger Girl' is extremely misleading.

And maybe it was just me, but I thought with the jumping around story line, that they were following one girl, when in fact the younger version I thought was the older one further down the line, were actually two separate people (not a spoiler, simply my own mistake). I only realised this in the last two episodes, so most of my brain power was aching from trying to retrace the individual backstories mentally. I'm sure that was just a personal problem of mine not paying enough attention.

The last episode itself was moving and touching, but it didn't have a 'THE END'. There isn't a well-defined story arc (Exposition, Climax, Resolution) across the whole series, which adds to the unfinished feel to the end.

Overall, if you're the type of person who is more invested in the characters and stories, but who also likes a bit of action and slight gore, then this is a good anime to watch. It's absolutely beautiful, introspective, smartly written, and the sound work is sublime. It has its pitfalls, mainly due to what the name of the anime sets you up for. If it had been named 'Gunslinger Girl Academy', that might have given a better idea of what the series would entail: A poignant drama.

The scenic art just wasn't enough to save this anime from its 2 dimensional characters, cliched events, and forced humor. Far to many anime stereotypes all shoved in together makes for boring watching as you know what everyone's reaction is going to be. If you're into obvious character development and pairing offs, and don't really want to think about plot or witty banter, then you would probably enjoy this. But this is possibly because I'm personally not in the tweens demographic, so take this review with a pinch of salt.