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I don't think this show is that bad, honestly. From the frontal poster and taking few photos of the game, it looks like a decent mobile game of some guy on a yellow scooter with a cute girl shooting things. From the outside, it looks like fun. A fun and mindless Anime.

Honestly, this is what I think it should've been. Fun and mindless with a somewhat of a backdrop for a story. Though, the plot does slow things down and not much action. This is where I think the problem lies. It wants to be a "Neon Genesis Evangelion" complexity whereas it should've been wacky ... and fun. This could've been an "Akudama Drive" with more lightheartedness with some comedy and quirky villains and that's about it.

This show was cramming too many things which it didn't need to... you have amnesia, forgetfulness, lost children, idol stuff blah... blah... blah... some are interesting and some feel just there.

Overall, it's harmless enough and you may find things interesting. The girl is cute but a bit mopey and some of the characters are kinda cool but all in all, it's good enough for a watch.

Helck, at first, seems like a decent show with a likeable titular character who in the surface is this big, strong guy with a jolly heart. He's kind of like a Hercules (and I think, this is where it is inspire... Herc... Helck) type of character and I do like the female protagonist Vamirio who wants to know more about Helck who dropped into the demon world and siding with them against the human race.

From the outside, it would look like it's going to be some sort of buddy-buddy adventure with the two including a funny side-kick, Piwi, with a bird like creature (or ... a green testicle with a beak). That sounds from me and you get that for some of the part from the intro, outro songs.

But once the show goes deeper, this is when, for me, feels quite underwhelming and that is the whole LORE. While the lore, secrets, humans vs. demons things are very understood, they don't seem very interesting to me. There is some dragging that goes along from the side story, side characters that at some point, I feel like I'm watching a different Anime. There are episodes in which Helck doesn't appear before snapping going: "Wait... is this Helck or something else?" For as much as the Anime tries to make me invest into the side characters or the main story, I feel so tuned out. Whenever the show focuses on Helck, Anna, Piwi, as they try to find their way to the demon world thing, this is the fun part to see their adventure. Helck is strong and nice, Anna is angry and curious, Piwi is clumsy and funny... that makes the show worthy but aside from that, I just want to fast forward or move this whole thing along.

As a whole, I don't think this is a bad show depending on what you're looking for. As a whole, it's decent... fun enough but ngl, the "plot" seems to be there to me.

6/10

It's really hard to not try to dislike some Anime shows because there are so much effert when into it and try to appreciate what its worth, however, I cannot really lie to myself and tell how I feel about "Heike Monogatori" or "The Heike Story".

At the beginning of this show, it had so much potential to enjoy because of its unique art and animation style. It doesn't look like your traditional Anime in the sense... big eyes, big expressions etc... and that's what made it to stand out and make me want to follow through but besides that, it gets quite confusing the ... more you keep on watching.

So, we're introduced to the main lead, Biwa, who her father get killed by the the Heike which is a clan. One of the members takes her in and start living with them, she can predict the future because each eye has a different color. Coincidentally, the guy who takes her in also has the same thing to him name "Shigemori". From there, we see the rise and the fall of this clan. This is what I could gather from what I'm trying to understand from the series.

***Bit of a Spoiler here***

In 3... 2... 1...

So, this guy, Shigemori, dies on the 3rd/4th episode and this is when the series goes off the rails. The series doesn't help its case when you have to wait from week to another, you'd be asking yourself when another character is introduced or was there in the first place going: "Who's that again?" before your head decides to wrap "Oh! It's that guy, okay!"

Even after finishing it, it is hard to remember what happened but all I know it's that the characters start dying as Biwa predicts that. Her character seems like some sort of spirit that interacts with them and once someone dies, she goes: "I will tell your story".

In the end of it, I really wanted to like this show more because on who's involved and the art/animation look amazingly unique and the characters feel like those old Japanese paintings coming to life by living their lives and going to war but aside from that, it does feel boring, confusing and even if you understood the story, it does feel like slog to go through. Out of the Anime rotations that I'm going through, this is my least looking forward to watch out of the series that I'm watching. So, I guess, 5/10 feels about right for this show.

Sometimes, it's the simplest things in life can make things the most interesting. For many Anime fans, we get caught up with the epic adventures, heroic tales and the amazing fight scenes and whatnot. Those are fine and good but sometimes, it is nice to just kick back and relax and see something on the chill side.

The more I watch "Houkago Teibou Nisshi", there is a sense of coziness and relaxation and the whole show goes with that pace and it's pretty welcoming. Having 4 school girls fishing and one of them trying to learn how to do so is all you need to make ... something just fun and enjoyable to watch.

Hina is a student who wants to join up the knitting club because she has the hand for it only to join the fishing club when she notices a bit of an older girl who about to fish and from there, she becomes part of it alongside her friend, Natsumi, and Ohno, who is the quiet one in the group, to have such fun characters.

As much as it is relaxed, there's the information part from week-to-week to see what those girls what they're to catch and have a nice knowledge about the animals and how to catch them.

Overall, this is a fun and calm-like show that can be very appreciated and the art and sound are really good. You can sense the smell of the sea from the artwork. If you're looking for something to enjoy with a bit laughs and joy, this is the Anime for you.

What is this? Is this another Idol-based Anime?

Yes and no... this is one of the titles that's shamelessly going to be overlooked because idol Anime might have a stigma that they are all the same. It's just young girls acting cute in from of the stage, isn't it?

Well, the difference between this show and perhaps many, is that this show takes a somber route. We start off the show being introduced to Miyu. Miyu isn't the most social person possible and she doesn't have a positive outlook to the adult world. She gets given an invitation to join in to become an idol with several ... girls that have been called in to become the unit known as, 22/7.

At first, she wasn't very motivated because she already had the job to support her family but eventually, she gets laid off and decided to join in the group. Her story is very relatable.

Throughout the duration of the series, we start to look into the other members' backstories and one is heartbreaking and heart-wrenching than the other. It shows the pain that everyone of the girls have went through before joining in the idol group. There are so many tear-jerking moments and once they start singing together, you can sense the tears of joy from inside. These girls feel like human and it could happen to anyone around. They all come across extremely likable through what they went through.

One thing that I also enjoyed about this Anime is the music. The music does play a bit part of the show from the intro, that is beautifully somber, and every ending, starting from episode 4, has its own song and theme related to that character's backstory that we've been through. That makes every character shine and stick with you in your mind. They make everyone really important and not just the main character and even though, she's still my favorite out of the eight ladies.

This show went from a 7 to a solid 9 because the last episode, it brought a shine to everyone and honestly, it almost made me tear up from this journey. I do recommend this title if you enjoy idol shows with a bittersweet/somber mood to it.

*May Contain Minor Spoilers*

You know, when you have a burden on your back and want it to throw it away, this is how I felt when watching "Hamelin no Violin Hiki".

I love old-school Anime especially the 90's because of its distinctive style and overall mood and here I am, I was trying to find a series back in 1996 and got across this one, it looks interesting enough but throughout the whole thing, I was feeling bored and gave an Anime procrastination.

The major problem about this series is the animation. At first, it isn't too bad but then, at some point, it starts to get ... in your way. Understandably, the budget for this series didn't seem that great because of the still images thrown in at the worst possible way. Just imagine watching a Dragon Ball Z fight and in throughout the peak of the fight, you get still-images here and there in the most inconvenience places possible with sound effect and dialogue in the background. It gets very distracting and revoked any type of enjoyment from the series. If this series was just still-images with dialogue throughout, I think it would've been better but no, you've got animation there and stop that. It's frustrating.

The story becomes a bit overbearing to go through, quite frankly. It tries to be serious with the flip-flopping with the main character whether he's the good guy or the bad guy but never feels very genuine. For something like that and the show trying to be dramatic, there's no sense of tension. It doesn't make you feel with the characters, at all.

*Minor Spoiler here*

There's a scene in which the main character, Hamelin, kills the father of Trombone in demon form which supposed to be a dramatic moment and because of still/motion animation throughout the sequence, the emotion is gone. It doesn't make you feel anything.

Anyway, I tried to enjoy the show for what it is and I'd say, the second half of the series is a little bit better than the first part but yet, it didn't feel very satisfying overall. It's an average Anime with really good music (unfortunately) and by the way, all the characters' names are based of musical instruments. At first, it's cool but then it starts to feel a bit contrived.

For me, it really feels like a mixed bag and I'm glad the show was over because it was really dragging and was quite happy, it's done. However, I did watch the movie and I was thinking to myself, why can't the show be like the movie? The movies was more fun, had comedic moments and the animation *LE GASP!!!!* The animation moves!!!

That's my take on "Hamelin no Violin Hiki". If one thing I'd say, the art is nice throughout.