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Satoshi Kon's magnum opus. Here it is, Christmas Eve once again, and I have trotted out my DVD to watch it, along with Miracle on 34th Street and It's a Wonderful Life. It's never gotten old in the maybe 20 times I've watched it now.

Like Kon's other productions, the art work and animation is superb, especially taking into account when this was produced. It still looks great today. The characters are grand. What can go wrong when you mix up a drunk, a drag queen, a runaway teen girl and newborn infant?? Nothing, I tell you. Nothing. The journey from where they start, to ... where they arrive, is one hell of a wild ride. It will leave you with as much of a warm fuzzy as that hot toddy you've been sipping on.

I've watched both sub and dub over the years, and I easily prefer the sub. While the English cast is nothing to sneeze at, the Japanese cast manage a performance for the ages. And Kon's direction knows just how to get the best of the cast, and everything else for that matter.

This Godfather's making you an offer you can't refuse. My grade for this 99/100, almost an A+. Definitely a masterpiece. If you have never seen this, how can you call yourself an otaku?? Santa's got a lump of coal and a switch for you. Get on the peppermint stick, and check it out already.

I really liked this. I was all set to give it an A- grade. Then came the finale, and it fell flat on its face. It was such a trainwreck I'll be knocking the grade back.

Overall though, this series is well put together if a bit frenetic. The artwork ran appropriate gamuts from bright and cheery to dismal and creepy. Very good background work. I found the animation was above average, with a nice, mostly undetectable, blend of cel and CGI.

I especially liked the character designs. Momo is the bomb. Okarun is a dweeb, but at least he tries hard. The secondary characters are ... not just cardboard cutouts. The villians are well thought out and creepy as hell.

The narrative felt a little underdeveloped. Mostly episodic, with some short arcs lending a wisp of overarcing plot, but certainly nothing deep, unless you like dick jokes. I get the feeling the producers spent the whole first season introducing characters, and doing set ups, for what hopefully will be a 2nd season one might be able to sink their teeth into deeply. But let's address the elephant in the room. That ending was simply a trainwreck. It left me grinding my teeth. It was some seriously lazy writing to have not found a smoother way to end this season, and be able to segue into season 2.

I have been impressed with the VAs across the board. Protags and antags are done with a nice touch. The direction does a nice job of leading them through drama, action, silliness, and comedy. The director does a nice job with the soundtrack, too, although I found the OP grating, especially as the season went on.

This started out in the 90th percentile for me, and I'd probably have graded this about 92/100 for an A-, at least until the final episode. But that was so badly done, I have to ding this hard. Drop the grade to 86/100 for a flat B. Still, looking forward to a much better 2nd season.

Been holding on this review for about 3 eps now, but its apparent that this series is what it is. I was looking for a dramatic, historic samurai shonen, but it's not very dramatic, its not super samurai (or real ronin, for that matter), and the shonen is not particularly well done. I really wanted to like this a whole lot more. There are too many problems though, and it's become a sore disappointment.

You'd think the art work would reflect a harder, more edgy vibe, but it's full of pastel softness that would be more appropriate for a shoujo. The animation has only shown ... rare instances being slightly better than average, and since ep 6 has tailed off mightily. Lots of slide show sequences and panning across still frames. Just not cutting it at all.

The character designs show no originality, and everyone fits neatly in their pre-ordained cliche stalls. The narative started off with the usual tropes. It took a turn for the better after a bit, but this 9th ep has turned out to be pure filler. There hasn't been enough presented yet to get away with a filler ep. Makes me believe the producers have no idea where this series is going next, when it is so close to being done.

The VAs have been kind of a mixed bag. Some are decent and lend some weight to the product. Some are cliche enough to be awful. The majority are just meh. Can't praise the direction between the VA work and lack of animation quality.

This anime has left me singing the blues. I wanted to enjoy this so much more, but it seems like the rug got pulled out from underneath me. It's not miserable, but if I had to grade it, it would be no better than a C- at 71/100. And that might be too generous. I'll wolf down the last couple eps, but I don't really see this doing much better or worse in the long run.

When I first watched this, it was the sub, as I almost exclusively do subs. I only made it through 3 eps and dropped it. Because, frankly the sub sucks for this title. I restarted it in the English dub, and my opinion swung 180°. The English cast and direction make this so campy, it's damned near adorable. I was laughing out loud nearly every episode, or at least finished the episode with a dopey grin on my face. One of the extremely rare anime titles where the dub totally outshines the sub.

The artwork here is nothing to write home about. It's below average, ... as is the animation. The narrative writing bounces around from one goofball situation to another. Don't expect much, if any, plot at all. The character writing is kind of up in the air, depending on the actors' renditions. They were kind of boring in the Japanese. The English cast made them so goofball as to be highly entertaining, and even kind of realistic, in a klutzy way. It's stumbling, bumbling slapstick giggles.

The Japanese VA rendition was not very entertaining because it seemed the VAs themselves didn't get the humor. The English cast, though, not only gets it, they embrace it. They are having as much fun with the material as you are. Be aware this can get pretty bawdy, so I'd not call it appropriate for younger kids.

So while the sub bites, the dub is so bloody well done. If the graphics had been even mediocre, I would have given this a B+ or maybe even an A-. But even with the shortcomings, this easily deserves a solid B at 84/100, at least for the English dub. Don't take a stake to the heart. At least give the dub the chance it deserves, as the sub dies in no time.

Started a little slow, but picked up after a couple episodes. Then it went straight into the dumpster. We need nephilim washed away in a world wide flood, to bring things back to where they belong.

The art work is the same. There's been a slight uptick in the animation quality this season. No problems on this front.

The characters seem to have been a mixed bag. Bilac is the only one that seems to have gotten any real development so far. But the writing to introduce a new character has been sketchy at best. Why throw in this mecha silliness when she's already got ... SLF experience? Which leads to the narrative writing. Why are they wasting multiple episodes on mecha trash? If I wanted to see that crap I'd queue up some Gundams. It's jarring to start off in fantasy land, and then BAM! suddenly it's a sci-fi cosmos, with no apparent need for any such transition.

Most of the original VAs still doing a decent enough job. Although I think Sunrako and at least 2 of the new characters introduced are being overacted. So at least in that regard the direction slid compared to Season 1.

Even if we get heaping helpings of vorpal bunnies for the rest of the season, damage has already been done. I'd have started this season off at an 88/100 B+ grade, but since then it's dumped to a B- at 82/100. I'll grind through to the end of the season, but not sure the writers can keep this series from the trash game bargain bin. .

It was so bittersweet to see this series come to an end. Where will I go for my daily cuteness overdose now???

It's a kids show, so the artwork is very cartoony. And the animation certainly leaves a lot to be desired. But the episodes, minus the opening, are only 2 minutes long. It's great if you only have a moment. Or you can binge 10-12 episodes in a row easily enough.

The narrative writing is simplistic enough for even a preschooler to follow. Episodic, to some short arcs before things get resolved. But the thing that really impressed me was the wide array of characters, ... and how well written they all were. Chi's extended family is totally lovable, one and all.

I liked the VA work. It fit both pets and humans well. The director did a good job of portraying a number of different emotional responses to situations, while keeping the main premise of cute intact, A lot of times I don't mention soundtracks, but this opening really grew on me over time. I watched every opening sequence for all 104 episodes, and caught myself chair dancing, too many times. I am also glad they translated the lyrics, in the sub, for the final episode. Made the song even more enjoyable.

If you have little bits running about, and want to share your passion for anime with them, this is the place to start. It's not perfect, but I found it highly enjoyable. If I were to grade Chi on her performance, I'd say a solid B at 86/100 would hit the mark nicely. No pussyfooting around it. This series is as adorable as it gets.

At first, I wasn't going to review this. Almost everything has been touched on in other reviews, but I thought I might share my experience as it seems to be a little different than most.

I remember when this first came out so many years ago. There was no dub yet, just bootleg fan subs. And frankly, it sucked. Poorly done, even for a kiddie show. I thought it was probably much too scary for little kids. The art is sloppy and the animation is mostly less than average. The characters and episodes were poorly written. There's no overarching plot, just Scooby-Doo Ghost of ... the Week shit. The Japanese VA work seemed blah. There was nothing to keep me watching, and I dropped it after 2 or 3 episodes. I could see why it tanked in Japan. I wouldn't have graded the original better than 40/100 for an E- on the edge of an F.

Then, over the years, I kept hearing about how funny this was. "Where TF are they getting their sinsemilla from?" I wondered. It was many years before I got the picture. People were talking about the official English dub. It took a few more years, but I finally got around to checking it out.

The art and animation still sucked. The episodic nature was still lame. But the new take on the characters and dialog was simply off the chain. This version is as brutal and vulgar as Panty and Stocking with Garterbelt. Maybe even moreso. It certainly helped that ADV got the best dub talent avaialble at the time. And the VAs completely crush the delivery. Monica Rial and Chris Patton are especially noteworth MCs. I was LMAO through the vast majority of episodes.

But after a while, it all started to wear on me. It became downright offensive. There was nothing or no one in American culture or society that didn't get skewered in the most obnoxious way. Poor Christian Slater! The first 12 episodes were A- material all day long. But I think I can only go as far as giving the dub an 80/100 for a B- as a complete project.

Don't let that spook you, though. The dub is definitely worth at least a try. But the sub is Dead On Arrival. For the final overall grade, I'll split the difference and call this 60/100 for a D-. I'd avoid it if you are at all woke or sensitive, but if you like bawdy, and to roll around in the gutter with your humor, you want to check this out.

When this came out, I remember thinking, "A fantasy with a mecha?? Oh, god spare me please!" But anime could be sparse in the US back in the day, so you took what you could get. I'm glad I swallowed my expectations, and gave this a try. In fact, over the years I've given it a couple tries. One of the very rare animes of the era I have given multiple watches.

The art work for the day was well above average. Same with the animation, for the most part. There's some cost cutting in the middle episodes but it's not too distracting. There are ... some action scenes that still are wonderful examples of how good hand drawn animation could get.

For the day, the character writing was very good. I suspect they might seem a little cliche today, as so many other animes over the years stole the ideas for themselves. The narrative, for the most part, is impressive considering they managed to weave mecha and fantasy tropes together, and didn't end up with a complete cluster. It's a satisfying story that holds together well through the season.

I've only seen the dub, as that was all that was available on Blockbuster VHS tapes back then. Still, the English cast does a nice job and is instrumental in making the series successful. Kudos to the director as well. It must not have been easy to hold this together when it could easily have become a Frankenstein's monster of a series.

Sadly there is no armor against the flowing of time. Back in the day, this would have been an easy A- grade. But I suspect the ages haven't been too kind to Escaflowne. Still, I think it would be good enough to earn a solid B at 85/100 today. Definitely worth another stroll down memory lane. And worth checking out if you are into classic animes of days gone by.

This one is not passing the 3 eps test. It had a germ of a good idea, but was quickly slammed into a mountain of isekai cliches and tropes by the producers. Bye Bye Dragon! Bye bye!

The art work is no better than average for the genre. Backgrounds look cheap and hastily drawn. Same with the animation. First episode was acceptible but it quickly slid to kid vid in episodes 2 and 3. Yeah, OK this is a low-budget production. Did you have to rub our noses in it?

The characters, at first, seem like they might provide some originality, but no. They quickly slide ... into their standard trash isekai slots. It must have taken a lot of effort to make a lamia this boring. The MC is supposed to be a dragon, but we don't get to see much of that, except as a deus ex machina to try and move the plot along.

What little plot is presented, though. It takes some bad writing talent to make a mere 3 episodes seem sloggy. Everything is cut and paste from a bunch of other titles, in hopes the viewer has little experience with anime, and won't notice. Pluck them from their original series, slap a new skin on them, and toss them out there to the wolves. The foreshadowing provided offers no hope either. More of the same old isekai slop the industry pukes into the mass consumption trough each season.

The VAs were nondescript. Their direction was less than inspired. He just hung the actors out to dry with little to no leadership. And the director's misuse of the soundtrack seemed amateurish at best.

I'm flying away from this one as fast as I can. It's almost failing at a D- 62/100 grade. Slay this dragon by avoiding it like it was the plague.

Ep 12 update: The ending was disappointing. Unless we get another season, it sucked. This title has zoomed to the top of my list of animes that need to be remade by a studio that knows what it is doing.

Ep 9 update: This is starting to sizzle. That Yoshino is one mean bitch. Kirishima is proving to be more than expected. Some antagonists in play that are not just Kirishima fodder. Going all the way with this one. Update to Recommend.

Ep 6 update: I was all ready to dump this like a murdered corpse. Then we got some new, intriguing characters introduced. It's ... enough to interest me, to see how/if the writers can work them in intelligently. So I'll stick around until at least ep 9 now. It still has the same shortcomings, but there seems to be a chance for them to be overcome. I'll nudge up the grade to a full C, 76/100

Passes the 3 eps test, but not by much. Some of this is as brutal as playtime with yakuza.

I'm not much of a fan of the artwork aesthetic. I don't know if they meant to go with an old school 90s style vibe here or what. But it looks stilted for a modern anime. The animation is all over, from pretty good to dismal. Overall, the graphics scream low budget.

The title pretty much spells out the plot. It's looking so far to play out most of the typical yakusa and romcom tropes.

The characters were looking totally cookie cutter. Could have been plucked from any of a number of other anime. But the FMC redeemed herself when she clobbered a yakuza with a hair dryer in ep 2. Yoshino at least shows some high spirit. The MMC is pretty much a dumbass with a mean streak. Doesn't seem to have much redeeming value at all. I wish Yoshino would beat the fuck out of him, and get it over with. Calling their relationship dysfunctional would be putting a nice spin on things. The rest are pretty meh. But after getting to spread their wings a little in ep2, the characters collapse back into their cliche stalls in ep 3. So who knows when, or if, there will ever be any real development?

The VA work has been OK to meh. The actress that voices Yoshino has been notable. The rest are pretty cliche, probably due to direction flaws. They just seem to be pushing this out the door, without much care being given to the quality of the product.

While this is not criminally bad, I'd say it'll have to improve a lot to keep me viewing for a whole season. It's only a C- at this point, grading out to 72/100. It could get better, and I'll update the review if it does. Conversely, it could just end up as food for the fishes.