I really wanted to like this series. I really did. I'm a fan of "a girl with sword fights monsters", and because of it, I usually am quite forgiving, but this is a truly dreadful show.
It starts innocently enough - the characters are pretty to look at, and the setting, a small town, a high school and a temple, pleasant enough. The first couple of episodes fool you with a promise of goods that will never be delivered.
The characters are pretty flat with no development to speak of. I could not bring myself to like Saya, who, as the protagonist, too many times just
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Oct 23, 2007
Mononoke is a collection of horror fairy tales, a thrilling blend of mystery, murder and the supernatural. The main and the only recurring character is the Medicine Seller, a laconic man of whom we learn almost nothing, and who, throughout the series, only using his knowledge and a handful of tools, battles the various Mononoke.
The team at Toei Animation accomplished something quite unique - they brought a painting to life. The stationary, ever-present texture of marbled paper, reinforces the illusion of a canvas across which the characters move, in all their watercolour glory, somewhat reminiscent of Ukiyo-e prints. The art is highly stylised with ... 
Oct 15, 2007
Tonari no Yamada-kun
(Anime)
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Despite being a fan of Studio Ghibli, this release somehow passed my by. Today, I'm adding it to my "re-watch" list, somewhere near the top. Whatever you may think anime is, throw it out the window, this is not a typical show.
You watch the first few minutes thinking that it's the credits and you wait until you realise, this isn't the credits, it's the story! The unique style of animation throws you in for a loop, but it's not bad. Yes, it's simple, more like a moving comic strip than animation, but simple does not mean sloppy. Each line and curve of the drawings ... 
Oct 6, 2007
Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei
(Anime)
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Normally I'd wait until I've seen all of a series before voicing my opinion, here I'm making an exception. Once in a while comes an anime that pushes all the right buttons for me; Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei does just that.
It starts with the music: more to my taste, a little harder than your usual cutsy jpop. I often find myself skipping past the opening songs, I hardly ever watch the ending credits and quickly move onto the next episode; here, the music with the animation creates an awesome visual I watch each and every time. I'm sure it's partially due to the style of the ... 
Sep 27, 2007
Yamato Nadeshiko Shichihenge♥
(Anime)
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Having read the manga first, I can't help but compare the two. And, boy, does the anime score low. It's a classic case of good idea badly executed.
First thing I noticed is the sloppy art. In the manga the boys are beautifully drawn; in the anime, the artists seem to run out of steam by the time they finish drawing Kyohei and Takenaga - Ranmaru often ends up looking like a drag queen and Yuki grotesquely cute. The backgrounds are so simplified they are almost nonexistent and the constant use of chibis is distracting and annoying after a while. The characters we get to know ... 
Sep 24, 2007
Pinky Street
(Anime)
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Frankly, I'm surprised anyone would bother translating this; if you aren't familiar with Pinky:st, I don't know what interest or pleasure you'd derive from watching these two episodes.
These short movies, not even 15 minutes long, were released singly on DVDs, each coming with a Pinky:st figure. And that was the sole reason for making of these movies, to plug the merchandise and appeal to the fan-base. The animation is decent enough and the 3D well done and cute, but the recycling of certain footage got old and made me roll my eyes. There is no time to develop a proper story or characters, hence it ... 
Aug 23, 2007
An epic story of a young prince with a dark side, a wise old wizard and a mysterious, scarred girl. I was so full of hope for this one.
At a first look, it looks like what you would expect; the art is very familiar, especially the character design; the detail of the latter Studio Ghibli movies present, with grandiose scenery and breathtaking settings; the music appropriate, ushering us into the right mood; yet... something is missing. This is very serious movie, gone is the usual playfulness and humour; there is a strong lesson being taught throughout, not unlike in Mononoke Hime, warning us about how ... 
Aug 15, 2007
Ichigo Mashimaro
(Anime)
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Excuse me while I gush over this series, it's almost too cute to bear. I, perhaps, would have overlooked it if it wasn't for the 3 volumes of the Ichigo Mashimaro manga I have sitting on my shelf. I often find myself not liking the art in the anime if I was exposed to the manga first, but in this case I was pleasantly surprised; the characters in both were drawn very similar, almost identical. The backgrounds lack the detail of other anime, but I can't say that it bothered me much.
(If you've read the manga, you'll notice the shuffling of the chapters, the ... 
Jul 26, 2007
Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou
(Anime)
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I\'ve been a long time fan of the manga so I decided to finally check out the anime as well. This OVA is not everyone\'s cup of tea, or should I say coffee?
After watching, I prefer the manga. This is probably due to the fact that it\'s in colour and to me, they\'re ill suited. Also the art in the OVA looks dated by now, yet the manga manages to avoid that. It\'s not easy to rate, never mind describe the story, to give it justice. And perhaps that was the idea, to make you feel things rather than tell you a story? It is ... |
