thejosh18's Profile - Reviews

Last OnlineMay 21, 9:10 AM
GenderMale
BirthdayJun 16, 1995
LocationLong Beach, California
JoinedNov 27, 2010

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Apr 25, 2012

Another (Anime) add

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26 years ago a student from Yomi North's class 3 grade 9 passes away. The next day however someone in the class says he's still alive. . . as the year goes on others agree that he exist until the time the student graduates. From this point on class 3 grade 9 has been known as the class closest to death.

This is the pretext for Another.

I would consider Another to be the first horror anime I've seen (Thinks back to School Days *shudders*) but regardless I would say that it's a very well put together piece of work.

The first arc so to speak ... of Another starts off with a scene of one of our main characters Sakakibara Kouichi in a hospital bed surrounded by his classmates. Seems normal enough. After he's discharged from the hospital he meets a girl, Misaki Mei on the hospital's elevator. When he goes to school a few weeks later he sees her and goes to talk to her although his classmates strongly object him doing so. From this event we start getting the meat behind Another's story.

We start to ask questions to ourselves such as why do they act as if she's nonexistent? Is she a ghost? Whaat's going on? Is how you start to feel basically. You may also start to wonder why there's a few seconds of zooming on on panels of broken glass windows, and why there's so many dang creepy dolls... Although these shots may seem random they are fully intentional and provide good foreshadowing for what's to come later in the episode, or series.

The second arc of the show is where Another's masterful storytelling really comes together. Once the background on class 3 grade 9's story comes to light is where the story really picks up with one of the major questions of *Spoiler* (Who is dead?) This arc is very powerful in the way that it addresses some complex moral issues on the value of life, in a way that's subtle yet powerful. Although others may disagree and think that people are just killing people there's nothing deep in that is where I think that everyone is entitled to their own thoughts and opinions and this is mine.

All in all Another's storytelling style manages to hit you with plot twists left and right to keep you on your toes, and just when you start to think you've figured out the story, your hit with a cliffhanger which jumbles up your thinking leaving you feeling pretty mindfucked so to speak.

I don't have much to say about the characters in Another, just that they played their part I guess, even though some of them weren't around for long. . . The main characters Sakikabara and Mei were good but Mei really caught my attention. I don't watch horror anime often but her personality really appealed to me. I like the fact how she's mysterious, reserved, and is able to maintain a rational outlook on things. Even though there's not much change in the characters they're fine the way they are.

The art for Another would be what I would consider to be one of the show's strongest aspects. The color palette for this anime is strong, dark, and bold which really compliments and meshes with the scene's background settings creating an overall solemn and dramatic feel throughout the show. The vivid details put into the death of people in this anime also left my jaw agape with horror at times, but also left me feeling appreciative of the beauty of death basically... and how everything lays out (call me sick but some of the scenes in this anime are powerful...)

The final component of Another is its sound. The OP for this show is some sort of dark opera song I guess, but it matches the show and does its job. The ED is a more mellow Jpop tune which gives you relief after an episode filled with tension and horror. The bgm's do their part of setting the mood for a suspense scene, or horror scene, and it does its job as well and ties in well with the other elements of the show. In conclusion I had a wonderful time watching this show. From intricate and detailed story telling, to magnificent gory scenes depicting death and destruction, this show has them all. The only thing that kept me from rating this a 10 is it's not my usual cup of tea for anime, but nevertheless it's definetly a show worth a watch. :)

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Mar 18, 2012

H2O: Footprints in the Sand (Anime) add

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In life we go through hardships, pain, and sorrow but we always try our best to overcome our struggles and look towards a brighter future.

Story: H20 Footprints in the Sand starts off with our main protagonist Hirose. In the first episode we see Hirose encounter his harem although he has a problem, he's blind. Later in the episode he''s cured of his blindness so he can do whatever he wanted when he wasn't blind. Although you may think the anime ends there and everything is happy go lucky, that's not the case with this anime. Throughout the series we encounter more ... of the girls in Hirose's harem and we get insight on the village Hirose lives in and whatnot. The plot moves fairly well placed and near the middle to the end of the series the story makes you facepalm yourself and feel all other kinds of emotion. Overall i rate the story an 8.

Art: The art for this anime is well done for an anime for it's year as colors are fresh and clean. Another nice thing about the art is it has a rich palette and the environments are soothing and you really get a feel for the atmosphere for the anime. Art gets an 8.

Sound: I really liked the OP as it gives a nice start for the anime and the background musics really blend well with the environment and set the mood for the scenes. Sound is an 8.

Character: In this anime you have the main characters Hirose, "Hinata", Otaha and Hayami. Hirose's harem consists of Yui and Hamaji basically. You also have the villagers and that dang grandpa guy. In the beginning Hirose is posed as a weak and vulnerable character because of his blindless, but after he's cured he starts to develop. Towards the end you start to really feel hate and love for him, but in the end he's a good guy I guess? =p Hinata undergoes a lot of character change throughout the series as she changes from obedient and mindwashed zombie to a respectable girl who can make her own decisions. Hayami also experiences some changes from a lifeless pushover ragdoll to a prominent and respected member of the anime. As for the 2 girls a part of Hirose's "harem" we can say they change as well. =3 The villagers and the damn grandpa guy was probably the only real characters who made me want to flip my t.v. at times and you'll see why :) Overall the characters were all very strong and they deserve a 9.

Enjoyment: I was expecting somewhat of a lighthearted and good feeling out of this anime but what i got was a good story plot with strong characters, but then again i guess i expected something strong out of this for it to be closely recommended with Clannad. Enjoyment 8.

Overall: If your looking for a strong well thought out plot with characters that make you want to flip your t.v. and drop your jaw then definitely check this out. Full of drama and and love, this anime will really tug at your heartstrings and just go Awee in a good and bad way (I should know i'm a guy x.x) =p Overall H20 deserves a 9! :D

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Mar 15, 2012

Goshuushou-sama Ninomiya-kun (Anime) add

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Preliminary (10/12 eps)

Story: The anime starts off by introducing us to Mayu Tsukumira a sucubbus with a problem. She can't control her powers well enough and attracts men to her and she's afraid of them. Ninomiya Shungo is the man who's supposed to help her with her problem and so starts his "crazy" life. The story seems good and interesting but throughout the anime I felt that it started to stray from its main point and become something else, and I felt that the directors should have stayed more true to the plot.

Art: The ecchi scenes are done nicely and is what ...

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