Otaku Review

Well, the winter season is well underway which means that it’s time to take a look at this season’s winners and losers. Out of the twenty three premieres this season, thirteen series weren’t sequels and I was able to check out eight of them to varying degrees. Watching those eight series however, I remembered one important lesson… not all anime is created equal. So without further ado…

Akikan!
Studio: Brains Base
Genre: Comedy

Universally condemned by fans, ‘Akikan’ served as one of the first big failures of the season. Filled with characters that no one could possibly like and a story that just barely made sense, ‘Akikan’ seemed ready to fail before the first episode had even finished. There were certainly some bright spots in the early going with the government agents (come on, tell me that you didn’t at least laugh a little when they used a chainsaw to get into Daichi’s apartment) but largely this series just didn’t have a chance.

Verdict: Loser!
Award: Most Optimistic; The fact that SOMEONE out there thought this was going to be a success has to be the most optimistic thought ever.

White Album
Studio: Seven Arcs
Genre: Romantic Drama

After the disaster of ‘Akikan’ I had two thoughts go through my head. The first was ‘If that’s what the tone of this season is going to be like, we’re all screwed.’ But then the most optimistic side of me (because I do have one you know) thought ‘Well, after that the rest of the season can ONLY get better from here.’

Based on an eroge from Leaf, ‘White Album’ served as kind of a precursor to the repackaging to be released later this year. There are certainly things to not like about this series such as the incredibly slow pacing but the emotional pull that ‘White Album’ managed to create within a span of just a couple of episodes cannot be denied. ‘White Album’ demanded attention from its viewers through the use of very subtle dialogue and on screen captions that helped push along the protagonist’s inner monologues and within half an episode it became beyond difficult to not care about these characters or have an opinion of them.

More than that though, ‘White Album’ is just a simply beautiful series. Soft character designs that don’t pander to those looking for fan service and backgrounds that characters just seem to naturally envelope the characters went a long way towards pushing this series from ‘good’ to ‘very good’. Unless you absolutely, desperately need to have a lot of action or fan service in your anime there really aren’t any good reasons to skip this one.

Verdict: Winner!
Award: Best Drama; Every time I watch an episode I want to see more right away

Maria Holic
Studio: SHAFT
Genre: Yuri Comedy

‘Maria Holic’ is a series that almost lost me at first. Opening with a dreadfully slow opening episode filled with nonstop reaction jokes I found this series really hard to get into. After a little while though, ‘Maria Holic’ calmed down and the staff realized that they could be funny without always trying so hard.

The story and characters were definitely what eventually won me over about this series. With constant changes in animation style to fit the joke ‘Maria Holic’ makes me laugh constantly. Add in great performances from Yu Kobayashi (Maria) and Asami Sanada (Kanako) and you have the first great comedy series of the year.

Verdict: Winner
Award: Best Maid Guitar Solo; it only lasts for two seconds but that bit during the opening animation never gets old!

Sora Kake Girl
Studio: Sunrise
Genre: Sci-fi

A girl in space discovers an AI named Leopard with an affinity for tea. What could possibly go wrong with that? Oh, that’s right; everything. The first episode of ‘Sora Kake Girl’ did a great job of pulling audiences in with its very flashy animation and relatively interesting characters. Sadly though, there seemed to be little else beyond that and thus started a very rapid downhill slide. Always using the cliff hangers as an escape, a heroine who seemed to have no mind of her own and mascot characters that became annoying within minutes ‘Sora Kake Girl’ just failed on way too many levels to sustain me as an audience member.

Verdict: Loser
Award: Most Disappointing; I had hope for this series once… then I watched the second episode.

Asu no Yoichi!
Studio: AIC
Genre: Harem Comedy

Not being a manga reader (I know but you can scold me later), I had zero idea about this series until I started watching it. Then after the first episode I was filled with a deep desire to not watch the series at all. Didn’t see the point really, all I saw to start with was over the top action, a dense hero and breast jokes. Sticking with it though, I can’t even begin to describe the shock I felt when I got to the end of the next couple of episodes and discovered that ‘Asu no Yoichi’ is actually… decent!

I’ll be the first to admit that as a harem comedy, this isn’t Shakespeare. Luckily though, it never tries to be. While the fan service and breast jokes will never disappear, the early development of relationships and some clever comedy managed to push it beyond average. I don’t imagine that the rest of the series is going to be amazing nor am I looking forward to seeing what kind of ending it decides to pull out. There is more than enough potential here though to give me an excuse to turn off my brain for 30 minutes a week and laugh.

Verdict: Winner
Award: Most Surprising; I can’t even begin to describe how low my expectations were for this series when it started.

Kurokami the Animation
Studio: Sunrise
Genre: Action

There’s not much I can say about ‘Kurokami’ beyond the buzz it has generated over the last couple of months. Besides ‘Shikabane Hime: Kuro’, this is the only series from this season licensed for R1 release and beyond that, Bandai put so much stock into this series that they dubbed it using pencil tests and gave it a near simultaneous broadcast. After seeing the first episode, I was left more than a little intrigued to see more. Unfortunately that hasn’t been an option thus far but if I get a chance to see this series in the future I most certainly plan to do so.

Verdict: Winner?
Award: Best Puppy Placement

Rideback
Studio: Madhouse
Genre: Mech

‘Rideback’ is another series that initially seemed to have quite a bit of potential. While the initial PV’s and commercials left me wary, there were moments within them that made me think that this series could be something special. Then I spent time with it and wondered how these characters ever managed to get around with such terrible designs. Quite a bit of the early data about this series really pushed the political atmosphere of the series which is what initially drew me in. College students, riding mechs and fighting against a totalitarian government that took control by force… sounds like a winning premise to me.

Instead the first couple of episodes does nothing but sell the history of the heroine as a dancer and showed off the mechs as much as humanly possible. Trying way too hard to be impressive, the political nature of ‘Rideback’ seemed to be almost entirely glossed over and set on the back burner for later. Sadly there just wasn’t enough within the first couple of episodes that made me actually want to stick around to see it.

Verdict: Loser
Award: Most Psychotic Happy Face

Chrome Shelled Regios
Studio: ZEXCS
Genre: Sci-fi

Finally we come to the last series that I managed to take a look at this season; ‘Chrome Shelled Regios’. Based on the light novels, once again I walked into this series completely empty and ready to be impressed. Initially there is a lot about this series to be impressed by. The characters were interesting and the use of their powers made for intriguing viewing. After the first episode however, ‘Chrome Shelled Regios’ slowed things down considerably and decided to become a bit more melodramatic. It will never be an epic series but the battle scenes (helped along by very strong music) keep this series interesting enough to make someone want to learn more. ‘Chrome Shelled Regios’ is another series that I plan to keep watching but unfortunately there isn’t enough within it to keep it near the top of my priority list.

Verdict: Winner
Award: Best Battle Themes; those driving beats manage to get me every time.

Well, that’s it for this season. The good news is that the spring season is right around the corner and I’m already excited to see what there is in store for fans. What did you consider the winners and losers from the latest round of premieres?

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