- Last OnlineJan 28, 2018 12:36 AM
- GenderMale
- BirthdaySep 17
- LocationNYC | Rochester, NY
- JoinedDec 2, 2011
Also Available at
RSS Feeds
|
![]()
Mar 6, 2012
Amagami SS+ Plus is the second season to the show Amagami SS. This review will try to cater to any viewer, whether you watched to first season or not. Therefore, there are no spoilers. Also another thing to note, most of this review was formulated before the show finished airing. Because none of my thoughts have changed since the writing of this review to the very end, I added an extra paragraph at the end of my initial review for any thoughts I figured you guys would want to know, rather than rewrite the whole review.
To recap, let's briefly jump back to the concept of
...
the first season. Amagami SS was a story of a guy named Tachibana Junichi that got stood up by his date on Christmas Eve two years ago. In the present, Junichi is very melancholy about his love life, but is presented with many ways to get the date he was never able to get.
Basically, the story, which runs in omnibus format, is about a guy named Junichi, who technically dates six or seven girls leading up to Christmas Eve. However the story itself runs, in the best way I can describe it, as if it has parallel universes. So no, he is not dating multiple girls at the same time... technically. Specifically, the story, which is divided in to 4 episode arcs per girl, highlights the different stories that come with Junichi's relationships with each of the six girls to hopefully get the Christmas Eve date he was not able to get beforehand. To specify even more, aftereach arc ends, time resets to a time prior to the days leading up to Christmas Eve and another girl gets to be with him.
Saying all that, Amagami SS+ Plus season/show is run in the same format as the previous but in a 12 episode format - 2 episode arcs for each of the 6 girls (though it seems as if MyAnimeList is not that sure of the episode count). The story, while not necessarily kicking off right where each arc in the first ended, adds on to those stories. That said, because of the unique nature of the show, and because it is a direct sequel, going through the first season is a must to watch SS+ Plus.
Without spoiling anyone (those who have not entered the whole series series included), I'll just say that the story is nothing too major, and personally and quite frankly, with the exception of Sakurai Rihoko's arc and maybe one or two more at best that may show up in the next few weeks (the show is still airing at the moment this review is being made), the story is not anything too mindblowing - I cannot stress this enough in this review. As a whole, because of the unique composition of Amagami SS, the second season sort of suffers in that each arc is only composed of 2 episodes. This is frankly not enough to write up any major developments to add to the stories established in the first season. Actually, to put it simply, these episodes were probably made just for the fans who were literally dying to see more of the show.
Despite some of downsides I see to the show, I do enjoy it, but I don't commit to it as much as the richer experiences from other 12 episode shows. You will find some if not most of the happy and romantic qualities that the first season had. In regards to conflicts, they, again, are not as drawn out as well as in the first season, but are a decent watch to say the least. I give the show credit for what its worth.
As someone who watched the first season and liked it a decent amount, I though SS+ Plus was good at best. It did what I expected it to do - maybe it added a bit more depth to each of the characters here and there, but I honestly did not find it that necessary to watch - again, apart from one or two good arcs. That's not saying you shouldn't watch it. It's just saying don't expect too much out of it. If you enjoyed and had fun watching Amagami SS, then SS+ Plus will most definitely be a good watch as well. If you have not watched watched the first season, all I can say is that you will feel completely alienated if you watch SS+. While there is some substance for new viewers, it would probably make you think worse of the show, which is not that fair. Take note of that first season before you judge.
*Update after show's end: I can honestly say that the show overall was good. However most of my thoughts did not change over the course of the three or four weeks since the making of this review. Additionally, I'd like to add that Haruka's arc was, although predictable, a really fun and satisfying arc overall, although I'm not sure if I can agree with the show ending with Miya's mini-arc. If the show ended with Haruka, that would have been much better than dragging along the season longer than it should. If anything, this should have been a DVD/BD extra, not an extension of the season run - but I digress.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
What did you think of this review?
Nice
 0
Love it
 0
Funny
 0
Confusing
 0
Well-written
 0
Creative
 0Show all
![]()
Feb 25, 2012
Nichijou is a slice of life comedy that was produced by Kyoto Animation, the company behind the production of very popular shows in the same genre - such as K-ON! and Lucky Star - but also other works like Clannad (in conjunction with Key), and The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzymiya. That said, all of these shows had some sort of genius behind them, and Nichijou is the same way.
*Very minor character spoilers in the paragraph below - nothing really detrimental to the story in my opinion*
Nichijou's cast is quite lovable to say the least. The show is initially divided into three groups.
The first
...
is the Shinonome Laboratory group, consisting of Hakase Shinonome (a really cute but attention seeking kid-professor), her robot, Nano Shinonome (who ultimately wants to be like an ordinary teenaged girl), and their cat (a cat who talks due to one of Hakase's inventions; tries to be mature).
The second is composed of three really awesome friends in high school: Yuuko (a somewhat stupid girl with some really stupid logic, but has some good things going for her), Mio (practically the opposite of Yuuko [complimentary], but shares some of Yuulo's flaws as well), and Mai (Nichijou's resident troll ; practically the catalyst for many of the skits and jokes).
The third is a wide array of side characters, such as Tachibana Misato (Nichijou's resident Tsundere, who, somehow, has many rocket launchers, turrents, and a P90 at her disposal), her crush, Sasahara Koujirou (a character that sorta comes off as a douchebag but has some redeeming undertones to his personality), Sakurai Izumi (a shy, reserved homeroom teacher who is naturally a pushover), and Manabu Takasaki (a teacher that crushes on Sakurai, but epicly fails during encounters he has with her).
While this may seem like a lot of characters to get a grasp of, you are given an 'almost equal' taste (in the way of skits) of each group in every single episode and in no particular order. (I do say 'almost equal' because the story tends to favor the first two groups more - this makes sense since the third group are considered supporting roles, but I feel that their roles in the show go way past the expectations of supporting roles.) In watching how they carry out their lives, express themselves, interacting with each other, by the end of the series, you'll have a great feel for the characters and the roles their friends play in their lives. One of the major themes in Nichijou is friendship, which the story does a good job showing us. You will find that Nichijou has some serious, heartwarming moments that not only compliment the feel of the show, but also the feel for each of the characters.
Slice of life comedies put a lot of emphasis on humor rather than plot, which is where the genre gets lost for some. Nichijou, while not necessarily plot driven, does contain a more concrete story in the second half of the series. In fact, while we're only given a little bit of plot, it does not feel 'half-assed' in any way as it does drive many of the skits along, and it also helps put a really nice and sweet ending to the show (though some may argue that it was a bit underwhelming).
I do feel like it is worth mention that Nichijou sorta reserves the right to gets away with it's minimal plot as the literal translation for the name 'Nichijou' in English is 'Ordinary Life,' or more colloquially, 'Everyday Life'. That is what this show does, depict the everyday life of the cast - nothing more, nothing less. Adding all these thoughts up, I think Nichijou met my expectations content wise.
There is no doubt that Nichijou looks a bit different, but who says that's a bad thing. It is important to note that Nichijou's designs are almost completely taken from the manga it originated from. That said, while it may not feature the most favorable designs, it does make sense for the show in that it helps convey the same feel as the original, intended work.
This 'animated comic book' like feel, in my opinion, compliments the type of story Nichijou actually is - its light, fun, not meant to be taken seriously - and adds to the whole mindset that anything can happen in the show. That said, Kyoto Animation really out did themselves with the animation and production quality of this show.
Nichijou is fitted with all sorts of skits. For one, you have these really simple interactions between the characters. Animation on these, as expected, is practically flawless. However, a large part of Nichijou's claim to fame is due in part to its very overdramatic, hyper, overproduced, but ridiculously hilarious slapstick skits. Quite literally, you'll get all of these epic 3D camera movements, and epic, vivid explosions on many occasions - often for stupid things (for example, saving a piece of food from hitting the floor). Not only that, but its fits shockingly well with the comic art style. This is where I, as well as many other people agree that KyoAni did all of this random stuff, not because it was necessary, but because they simply can. Actually, some may even go as far as saying that KyoAni decided to play the mad scientist and made stuff happen just for the hell of it. I really cannot stress enough that all of the art, this included, contributes greatly to the overall comedic execution within Nichijou. For that, I really praise KyoAni for their work on this.
Speaking of comedy, I feel that Nichijou is one of the funniest shows I've seen yet, however, it is not all that perfect. There are going to be times when the jokes end up flying over your head and make you wonder whether or not the particular skit was supposed to make you laugh or not. This should not deter you from watching though. I cannot stress enough that the vast majority of the jokes will have you ROFLing, as Nichijou's execution is top notch (some may say one of the best in the business), particularly in timing -after all, it is everything - and the ordering of the skits in particular episodes (hell, at some point you may see a funny skit cross an episode, which was a pretty hilarious surprise in my opinion). In fact, it can be pretty safe to say that this show has ways to surprise you with jokes, which definitely can definitely keep you watching.
While I don't want to go on about the music (I'm going to totally omit talking abou the BGM), the two OPs the show has to offer are both crazy earworms. I personally love them as the hyper feel compliments the show very well. Additionally, I love the how KyoAni sequenced both OPs together with awesome pans and editing. I don't remember loving a sequence this much since Lucky Star's OP and the very popular Hare Hare Yukai ED from THAT other KyoAni work. If there is anything a reader will pick on, it is this portion (opinions are opinions), so I'll end the music talk here.
If you could not tell from, what I think is, the overwhelming amounts of praise from the paragraphs above, I really enjoyed Nichijou. Truth is, I really love slice of life shows. The fact that they are not plot driven, fun, and entertaining makes it my 'go-to' genre when I don't have the time to watch plot heavy shows - especially with this being my senior year in high school. Fact of the matter is that Nichijou is my favorite slice show at the moment, mainly because it can act as a pick-me-up and/or aid in procrastination with the random skits it has, but I can also choose to focus on the minor plot if I really want to watch something with a little more substance.
Lastly, I find it sad that this show flopped in Japan. While it seems popular here on MAL, Nichijou got knocked off it's primetime slot mid-series, and missed its sales quota in Japan by a lot (it sold less than 2,000 Blu-Ray and DVDs). Ultimately, this kills all chances for a second season, which I and many others would have liked to see. Many attribute Nichijou's failure to the fact that it was not produced to market to the masses - something K-ON did with it's moe-style feel and practically was a smash hit.
I don't know the truth behind KyoAni and Nichijou, but it seems as if they created a masterpiece, if not something close, and did it without thinking about catering to the mainstream - did it for the sake of creating something awesome, not for the sake of profit. Maybe its just me wanting to justify KyoAni's failure, but either way, the fact that the intended market left Nichijou unappreciated just doesn't sit well for me. This show is awesome to say the least, and I do wish it would catch on in Japan. But it is what it is I guess.
Scoring:
Story & Plot: 7.5 -> 8
Art & Animation: 9.5/10 -> 10
Characters: 9/10
Enjoyment: 9.5/10 -> 10
Comedy: 9
Average: 9.2 (I'll give it a ten for my own reasons, but I won't object to people giving it 9's)
I'd just like to note that this is the first time I'll be reviewing a series on this site. I'd appreciate it if any readers out there could give me feedback on this review as it would be extremely helpful for whenever I decide to make another review in the future. Additionally, this review will not contain any major spoilers, however, I do feel like the review will lack a bit without them. Again, any wisdom on this would be highly appreciated. Thanks.
Reviewer’s Rating: 10
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all
|
