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Nov 5, 2014
I don't know what to say. This anime is one of few to reach a new low. I usually reserve 2 and 1's for shows that scream, "No effort," or are plain offensive. This anime... I don't know where to begin. I can tell there was actual effort put in, and I never felt that it offended me in anyway. But it's still is so bad I can't believe it even now.
At least, with Skelter Heaven and Mars of Destruction, they were only one episode length long. Tokyo ESP is twelve episodes. And nowhere in those twelve episodes are any shred of dignity. I was
...
embarrassed to have finished this. Everyone I knew told me how they dropped it after two or three episodes because of its atrocities. Maybe I was foolishly hoping it would get better as I force-fed myself.
The plot is an origin story of the "White Girl" and her band of crime fighters. Although, it starts off near the end of the story because seventy-five percent of this anime is a flashback. And also flashbacks within a flashback just to add some depth, I guess. It really is hard to remember specific details of the plot due to how unimportant most of it was. Overall, it was forgettable and uninteresting. What was memorable was the "Deus Ex Machina" at the end! Boy, was that memorable!
When boiled down, this is a show about superheroes fighting villains. What is probably the single most important thing for any type of media or literature with superheroes in them? Character development! Batman wouldn't be very interesting if he didn't grow as a character from his past to his present. In Tokyo ESP, this is practically nonexistent! Literally, no one ever changes. There might be that occasional flashback within a flashback that tells the history of a character but that is it. Character development isn't why or how a character is, it is why or how he or she grows from how he or she normally was.
Since this is an animation, I'll talk about the art style and quality. I feel bad to have to kick a dog while it's down. The art style is rather bland and uninspired. The art quality is the icing on the cake, though. It is utter garbage. Characters look stiff, scenes show signs of laziness, animation is inconsistent, and the CGI is as dreadful as Skelter Heaven's. It's just not good.
Now for the best part of the anime! The music was fun to hear... for the first two times. Yes, the music is catchy and pumps up the audience, but it can only be played so much. There are many shows that use the same music for the "big finishing move" in multiple scenes, but the "big finishing move" music in Tokyo ESP is on a ten second loop. It will play the same tune over and over every ten seconds five minutes at a time at almost every fight scene.
So, that's pretty much all there is to it. Tokyo ESP is a downright terrible anime, and it makes me feel icky inside to have had the experience of watching it.
Reviewer’s Rating: 2
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Mar 31, 2014
I had very high hopes for Chuunibyou demo Koi Shitai! Ren. I have been a fan of the first season ever since I watched it, but I cannot say that with the second season.
With a slice of life, character development is important. Very. Important. And the first season, I believe, did a very good job at that. Behind the whimsical nature of the first season, there was a serious theme of growing up and what is lost when someone does. This was emulated through Rikka. Sadly, the second season doesn't touch this at all.
Instead, the second season has the audience follow the relationship of Yuta
...
and Rikka. It is a full on romantic comedy, but it also fails at being a well-made one. The romance is tiring to watch and the comedy is pitiful. Isshiki becomes the center of horrible jokes and becomes nothing more than a town fool. "Hahaha! He's darker than he should be! Lol! A dude likes him!" The comedy revolving around Isshiki is lackluster and, at times, can be offending. The only saving grace from this hell is the romance of the anime. If I had to compare it to the hell of watching the comedy, I'd compare it to purgatory.
The romance is meant to be cute. The audience sees the couple in various situations that would never happen and watches as the couple takes their relationship an extremely small step forward every episode. Emphasis on the extreme. Yes, it's supposed to be cute seeing both of them blush at the thought of doing anything that involves their significant other, but it becomes a drag to witness. Even more enervating to watch is the half-ass attempt at creating a love triangle.
Shichimiya is the new character introduced this season, and she is also the old chuunibyou buddy of Yuta. And she is a horrible character. "I love Yuta, but Rikka loves him now. I'm sad. Now, I'm happy for Rikka and Yuta." That is the extent of her existence.
The main thing I find saddening in this last season is the chuunibyou. In the first season, it was the thing that was viewed as childish, something people grow out of. Eventually, the audience finds out that people can grow up and keep a part of them childish. Hence, Rikka's "grown-up" love for Yuta while she still keeps her chuunibyou. For this last season, there is now reason for the chuunibyou. It is just there. The main use for it in Ren is to provide comedy. Thankfully, the outrageous behavior of Rikka's, Shichimya's, and Dekomori's chuunibyou is still as funny as the first season.
Also, the anime keeps it's well done art and animation. It is pleasing to the eyes and softens the blow one gets from the other aspects of Ren. I found the OP fine and thought the ED was really good, but this is a rating of the show and not how much money a studio can pour into their OP's and ED's.
Overall, I was extremely disappointed. I went into Ren expecting more of the first season. With this tragedy, I hope that there will never be another sequel. My love for Chuunibyou demo Koi ga Shitai! has been stained.
Reviewer’s Rating: 4
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Jan 25, 2014
Zombies, boobs, and more zombies. What more can really be said about Highschool of the Dead? I have to say, though, HotD did it better than I expected it to.
Story: 5
Not much in terms of story. Immediately from the start, we have zombies (for unknown reasons) out to eat a bunch of people. Other than that, it is just the characters running around and surviving. What is interesting to watch is their interactions within their group and with people outside it. Even though most zombie shows or games have done it, it is intriguing to see the casts' morals come into play in various situations
...
pitted against them.
Art: 9
The animation in HotD is superb. The action scenes are well-detailed, as for the fan service too. Now, I'm not a big fan of fan service, but I can't deny that every boob-bounce is animated extremely well. Other than a couple of awkward CG moments and mobs of zombies being animated lazily, (can't really blame since animating hundreds of zombies on-screen is surely a pain and money-sink) one could tell that time and care was taken into the actual animation.
Sound: 7
Wow. 12 ED's. That's a lot. Honestly, the sound effects, voices, or the music never captivated me, but that's not to say that it wasn't bad. It just wasn't memorable. As far as I can tell, nothing sounded awkward or out-of-place. The casts' voices matched up with the characters they portrayed, and the music fit in just fine.
Characters: 6
Meh. All the characters were just... meh. I mean, it is hard to develop any of them in 12 episodes. The strengths are the interactions between them and their zombie-infested world, not the characters themselves. Out of all of them, Kouta is the most interesting with the lead, Takashi, being the least. Every other characters' main purpose is fan service, albeit the girls do have more unique characterizations than most other female anime characters whose sole purpose is to give the male audience a boner.
Enjoyment: 9
The big selling point of HotD is the excitement and suspension it brings. There are scenes that will make you sit forward in your seat. I found that my eyes were fixated on the screen at all times with no intention of giving my attention to anything else. The amount of fan service being shown feels like it should be overbearing, but, strangely enough, it isn't. The anime is meant to be for mature audiences anyways. There is also an extremely healthy amount of action that is choreographed exceptionally well.
Overall: 7
HotD is an anime that is meant to be enjoyed. It is not an anime with a powerful theme assisted by symbolic references or motifs. It is anime that captures your attention with zombies, fan service, and beautifully animated and choreographed action scenes. My advice, when you are done watching that highly-acclaimed anime about mankind vs. nature, give HotD a watch. It will excite you to the end without having to think too hard.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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