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How can one best describe "Owari no Seraph" in a nutshell - a wasted opportunity. I think that sums it up best. This story had so much potential and had many good ingredients, but it wasn't meant to be. Made by WIT, music by Hiroyuki Sawano, a BL story in disguise, Dark Fantasy and still the result was absolute rubbish.

Let's start with the characters. Oh boy.
Yuuichi - boring and 2-dimensional, always angry at everything and loner. In 2 seasons his character doesn't develop at all and what's even worse - he survives everything. He never uses his brain and slips from one thing ... to the next. But like the other main characters, he survives everything anyway. The fact that the guy carries a demon inside him is also rather trite and deserved a better twist.
Mika - So much more could have been done with Mika. This is a fellow who loves Yuuichi with the deepest devotion. His love even overcomes problems like the fact that he is not even human by now. How can it be that nothing has been made of this devotion. Why is his story so damn flat.
Guren: I liked Guren, except they screwed up his character by the end of season two. A brilliant man, but not from any respectable lineage and only looked down upon haughtily by the relatives of the better lineage. A man who is willing to go to any lengths, but who is fundamentally not bad.

The other characters bored me and are not really worth mentioning. With the vampires there were a few with some potential including a loli vampire queen for all the lads who need one of those.

So.Much.Potential and the characters still couldn't develop and got lost in a boring, hackneyed, stereotypical story. It does make you wanna cry.

Story: Yeah, nah. Forget it. The story is absolute rubbish. Like a cheap recipe in which standard ingredients are simply slapped together. Vampires and monsters are cool, post-apocalyptic is always good and why not a high school story. The MC has to be a "chosen one", of course. Unfortunately, the whole thing was wrapped up in a story that was absolutely impossible to figure out in the end. I can well imagine that everything is well explained in the manga, but as an anime-only viewer I understood very little at the end of S02.

Animation: Not bad, but WIT didn't exactly put a lot of heart and enthusiasm into this. The animation in the second season was clearly a bit better. But since it's WIT, the animation was very passable all around.

Music: Yes I am a Hiroyuki Sawano fan. Sue me. I like the score for the series. There are a lot of very nice pieces like 1hundredknight:Y and 1hundredknight:M or pfSOTEad3. The music is probably about the best thing about the series.

I started watching "Golden Kamuy" on a whim and didn't expect anything from it, but it has quickly become one of my favourite shows in recent years. Rarely have I seen a show that has managed to mix so many different genres in such a seamless way. On the one hand, we have a show about survival in the wild and a treasure hunt that includes a pretty gruesome treasure map, on the other hand, we have one of the strangest, craziest comedies with a seriously unconventional sense of humour. I mean, honestly, how many shows have you seen in which a creepy taxidermist who ... loves to create clothes out of human skin falls in love with a psychopath who misses a large part of his cranium? It sounds really strange on paper, but it's very funny on screen.

The heart of the show is clearly the relationship between Asiripa and Sugimoto. The relationship has a lot of heart and what originally started out as a purely business relationship has now become a deep and intimate friendship. Besides the two, there is also a whole bunch of really interesting side characters.

What really distinguishes the show is that there are no one-dimensional characters, but all of them are lovingly worked out. It's hard not to like the whole crazy bunch and it's even harder to find out who's "good" and "bad" because there are constantly changing coalitions.

It's really a shame that the series has few fans in the West (similar to "3-Gatsu No Lion"), because "Golden Kamuy" beats many other shows that are popular in the West by far.

Small warning: The show is definitely to be rated "18" or hard R, maybe even NC-17, because of its extreme brutality (not always but sometimes).

When I started watching the show, I knew nothing about it and yes I also frowned in the beginning at Akane. She was pretty hard to swallow in the first episode but I was patient.

There are three possible ways a character can be introduced: (i) a character may be introduced as already being very capable. Someone who does not need to be told how things work. Characters such as these do not tend to be quite so frustrating but there is also very little potential for growth unless the show ends up destroying everything the character stands for or loves and we end up ... with the polar opposite (ii) It is also possible to have wise all-knowing wunderkind. Such a character will probably not end up making as many dumb mistakes as type number three but they are notoriously annoying - call it the Wesley Crushed effect. Last but not least, we may end up with a complete newbie, innocent, fresh out of college (like Clarice in "Silence of the Lambs"), who initially fucks it up but then changes and grows. This is what was chosen for Akane and I am really fine with that.

The show features a lot of very positive traits: the animation is really good, the score by Kanno Yugo is divine and the OPs and EDs are equally great. Best of all, however, are the characters in general. Neither the antagonist nor the supporting characters are simple cyphers as they are in so many shows that only concentrate on the protagonist. Makishima, Masaoka, Ginoza ... all characters are fleshed out, there are conflicts and problems and backstories. I really loved the whole team.

A fair warning. Do not get too attached to the characters. The show is brutal (in more ways than one). It will hurt. All in all, it has been a while that I enjoyed a show quite this much. The story is intelligent, gripping and like any good sci-fi story asks the right questions. Is freedom overrated? What exactly is freedom? Are you ready to give it up for the greater good? How far are you willing to go?

For me, this show was a 10/10.

Hot damn. This manga is sexy as hell. Think of it as a cross between "Ballroom e Youkoso", "YURI!!! ON ICE" and "Dirty Dancing". This is not a hot tumble but a slow-burning love story that develops slowly with lots of UST and comedy in between. The art in this manga is gorgeous and very dynamic, which is only fitting for a manga that is all about two professional ballroom dancers who are slowly falling for each other. The only bit I do not like because it is rather boring is the storyline regarding the two journalists. If this is ever turned into an anime, ... then I would cry tears of joy. Read it!

Do you know those stories that make you feel all warm and fuzzy inside and leave you with a happy smile? 3-Gatsu No Lion is one of those. Some people may feel like staying away from the show because the story involves Shogi (and yes it does play an important role) which is a different variation of Chess but the show is so much more than this. It is about Rei, a professional Shogi player in Middle School and when we meet him for the first time he is mentally in a very dark place but he gets "rescued" by a very kind family ... consisting of three sisters and their grandfather. Later on, he meets other people who also enrich his life and also help him become a better player.

Story
This is in many ways a slice of life story with some drama thrown in for good measure. There are some episodes which are a bit more tedious (frankly I was neither a huge fan of the "baseball crush" storyline nor the cats that explained Shogi) but overall I loved the pacing.

Characters
There are way too many shows where characters simply do not seem to change. They exist but this is not true for Rei. I the first episode Rei walks around his life without any joy and thinks about killing himself. Rei is depressed and the only thing that motivates him at all to get out of bed is playing Shogi but things change. He meets the wonderful Kawamoto sisters who welcome him to their lives as well as their hearts. Their warmth often made me teary-eyed and even Rei admits that being with them feel like a nice warm stove on a cold winter night. Shimata, an opponent who becomes his master, is also a fascinating and wonderful character. What is wonderful to see is how Rei is learning how to enjoy life and how his outset in life become more positive over time.

Music
The score is serviceable but nothing special. It works well with the show. I am not a huge fan of the 2nd OP but the Bump of Chicken songs are just divine.

I love 3-Gatsu no Lion because it often leaves me with a big smile on my face and sometimes also with a tear. It is hard not to care for the characters. I wish the show would receive more attention since it is truly a great drama. I am very much looking forward to watching the second season.

Saikasuru Kado. What can I say? This is easily the most disappointing show of the year. The ending of the show really messes so much up it isn’t fun. It has been a while that I have seen a show or read a book that started out this good and then crashed and burned like Kado. It is even worse than “Langoliers” by Stephen King which created an amazing atmosphere a great mystery and had a laughable ending. Why is it worse? Because in the case of Kado, it was not just that the ending was weak. This was Donna of “Doctor Who”.

Animation ... – 7
I wasn’t very fond of the CGI-only animation but it actually sort of worked here because of the otherworldliness of Yaha and Kado and the CGI emphasised their alien qualities nicely. In the case of the human characters, it would have been great if they had been animated the old-fashioned way. Maybe a mix of both with a heavier emphasis on CGI would have been good but since the CGI was actually pretty well done a 7 it is.

Story – 5
Kado is about First Contact and in the beginning, the show does so many things right that I could have shed a tear. I wondered why it was compared with “Arrival”. They are not really similar but both “Arrival” and “Kado” are about communication and language and so much more. It debates the pros and cons of natural to sudden technological advancement. How would the media handle a first encounter with aliens? How about the political and economic impact of technology that is so far removed from what we know? The show was smart, the pacing was great, the ideas were fascinating but halfway through something changed. Maybe they ran out of ideas, maybe some people wanted to have a say. I don’t know what happened but whatever it was, it was not good and the show suffered massively and received a very stupid deus ex machina ending.

When it comes most of the episodes, especially the first arc (8 episodes), the show would receive either a 9 or 10 but that ending deserves nothing less than a big fat zero, so all in all 5. This is why this show is so frustrating. It had so much potential but Yaha, who had been cool and composed suddenly became downright human and emotional. I adored the developing relationship (in a way undefinable – Friendship? Love? Something more profound?) between Shindou and Yaha and in my eyes, it was not just a simple friendship and then the finale happened. Talk about badly handled.

Music – 10
The music is utterly gorgeous and it is my favourite score of the year so far (and this also includes scores like “Mary Magdalene” by Jóhann Jóhannson). 岩代太郎 already did a great job with A.I.C.O. but outdid himself with the help of the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra. The OP and ED did not only fit perfectly with the images but are also very, very beautiful. There is even a beautiful operatic Aria included (ヤハクィザシュニナ伝 ~Diva Version~). Do buy it. It is totally worth it!

Characters 6
Again a solid ten in the beginning but with an ending like that- 6 is generous.

I hate this show. I love this show. I loved it so much but I hate it for being such a massive let-down at the end.

"Guilty Crown" is for me like an average Terry Gilliam movie - gorgeous to look at, great actors involved but damn that story... in other words - a very frustrating experience.

Guilty Crown IS incredibly gorgeous to look at. The art is really wonderful. The music (both the utterly incredible score by Hiroyuki Sawano and the songs by EGOIST) belong to some of my absolute favourites. The idea behind the story may not have been revolutionary but it was still interesting. So how is it possible that show that looks and sounds this good still only gets an overall "7"? Because of the story. "Guilty ... Crown" is an anime-only and unfortunately it is telling. There are some shows like "Koutetsujou no Kabaneri", another gorgeous looking anime-only show, which devolve mid-way through and there are shows like "Guilty Crown" that simply cannot seem to tell a coherent story and on top end up with an ending that will leave everybody wanting and very few people truly happy. Another problem or should rather say part of the plot problem is the character development, which unfortunately is in some cases either non-existent or (like the story) makes little sense.

So what is the verdict? Watch it if you want to look at something pretty but as far as the story goes set your expectations really low. Do get yourself the soundtrack, though. It is totally worth it.

The best thing about this anime is definitely the music which is naturally gorgeous. I have some gripes with the interpretation of the first movement of Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata (too slow for my taste, though I know that some pianists love to play it that slow but I stick to the tempi set by Gilels and Rubinstein). Overall though the music is very enjoyable. I think the one party I enjoyed the most was when one of the strings of the piano broke during the third movement and Kai worked around it. Other pianists would have excused themselves and stopped playing but Kai worked around ... it. It was cheeky and it was, at least for me, amusing.

I really like Kai as a character. He does not play the piano because he has something to prove but because he genuinely loves playing the piano and wants to become a professional to support his mother. Shuuhei is a bundle of insecurities but still likeable (at least as a child...).The characters, on the whole, save this anime from becoming too terrible because the anime has two main weaknesses: the storyline and the animation.

While the first story arc (childhood and first competition) were well paced and interesting, the second arc (Chopin competition) has pacing issues as well as character development issues. Kai, while likeable hasn't changed at all in the last five years and Shu has suddenly turned into a complete selfish git. Kai does not know how to deal with it, yet somehow it all doesn't seem to be too important. My heart certainly wasn't aching for either character, which screams bad writing. I am hoping the story will pick up in the second half of the anime.

Now to the worst part of the anime - the animation. While it is often passable (never outstanding) it has a lot of very, very bad CGI in it. It feels as if the studio had been rushing to finish the anime and did not have the time to replace placeholder CGI with real animation. What is really annoying is the fact that most of the CGI scenes involve characters playing the piano and it is very distracting. Yuri!!! On Ice, it ain't.

Piano no Mori is NOT an outstanding anime but I have seen worse. The one thing the show does capture (and this is why it still receives an overall 7 despite its shortcomings) is the love and passion for playing the piano.

Caramba this show truly pissed me off. I love slash, femmeslash, yaoi and yuri it if done well like in "Revolutionary Girl Utena" but here? This is just bad. I really wanted to like this show but I gave up after watching five episodes and here is why. This is not a story about love but sexual assault. Both girls either assault or are being assaulted by someone else (a teacher, a "best friend"). There isn't a single instance where any of the sex doesn't look like dub-con or flat-out rape (what Himeko does to Mei - that was rape. Mei didn't enjoy any of ... it and was completely messed up after it). There is certainly no love anywhere. There is also no real story and not a single character that one can feel sympathetic for. Also, serious plot holes that make no sense. How the hell did the parents of those two girls end up married in the first place when Mei's father is constantly anywhere but in Japan? Did he advertise somewhere - "need a mother for my teenage daughter, since I can't be arsed to take care of her myself"? This anime reminded me of "Kuzu no Honkai" which I tried reading but gave up after being utterly disgusted by all the characters. Every single character is an egoist and not caring whether they hurt anyone else in the process of trying to find pleasure/fulfilment. How can you sympathize with anyone when everyone is an a**hole. I watch anime for enjoyment and there was neither joy nor enjoyment while watching this turd.

The one thing that made me watch this particular show in the first place was the animation studio. I have a real soft spot for WIT Studio, but then the beautiful calm slice of life story peppered with romance drew me in. This is not some unrealistic love/romance story where two characters fall in love hook line and sinker. There is no kissing, no even hand-holding or anything really. The show is, in fact, more about the development of a relationship, which is closer to a friendship between two lonely people. It is filled with embarrassment, awkward moments and pauses and misunderstandings and ... is all the more endearing because relateable. Both main characters are basically in the middle of a crisis. Akira used to love to run. Running was everything to her and her biggest joy but since her injury, she cannot run anymore and started working instead at a Café. Her boss and love interest Kondo is divorced and has low self-esteem. Most of his employees do not take him serious but for some reason, Akira is drawn to him. During the story, we discover more and more about him and Kondo is definitely a lot more interesting than originally shown. This anime is a slow-burner and I love it for it. If you liked "Garden of Words" and have a thing for "Slice of Life" stories with a dash of romance then you should definitely try this show. The art isn't quite as flashy as in other WIT Studio productions but still gorgeous and I love the music.