Fall 2008 Anime

[blkmage]

So the first fall previews are getting posted on blogs, so those of us who like to follow anime as they're aired in Japan will be starting to wonder about what shows we're going to pick up once October comes along. The upcoming fall season looks far more promising than summer was (which I will blame for the death of the previous thread). So, what's everyone going to be looking forward to?

Definitely watching:

I am a huge Gundam fan, so it's a no-brainer that I'm going to be catching the second season of Gundam 00. I wasn't that huge of a fan of the first season, so I'm hoping that the second season will fix some of the problems that I had with it. This will also serve as my Code Geass replacement.

I also got hooked on Nodame Cantabile, so I'm really looking forward to Nodame Cantabile: Paris Chapter. I loved the story and the emphasis on music. However, there are a few things that worry me about the upcoming sequel. Basically, the time that is spent in Paris in the manga is very, very long, and the upcoming anime is slated to be only eleven episodes long. It makes me wonder just what they can accomplish.

Having a look:

Hyakko is another slice-of-life high school comedy revolving around a bunch of girls. Also, it has Hirano Aya.

Skip Beat is an adaptation of a shoujo manga that is about a girl who tries to defeat a guy who's a superstar by becoming one herself. Leads are Marina Inoue, Katsuyuki Konishi, and Mamoru Miyano.

Kuroshitsuji is an adaptation of a shounen manga about the perfect butler and his twelve year old master. Voices by Ono Daisuke and Sakamoto Maaya.

Kurogane no Linebarrel is a mecha anime by GONZO.

CHAOS;HEAD is an adaptation of a visual novel that seems to be in the horror, sci-fi, and psychological genres and is being animated by Madhouse.

That's it for now. I might end up having to take a look at a few more series depending on whether or not anyone sways my opinion on anything.

[Kawaiikneko]

I might follow Skip Beat... it's one of my favorite mangas ever, but I'm not really big into manga to anime adaptions. I'll probably test out the first few episodes and see if I'm interested.

[Popsicle]

There's also an anime adaptation of the game Tales of the Abyss airing this Fall. So for fans of the game, look forward to this October!

[AsianBlossom]

(EDIT: text removed because I missed the point of this thread...sorry...)

[Bap]

If I can find anyone that'd work on it, I'm kinda looking forward to Casshern Sins, just because the live action was really cool. XD

[EricTheFred]

I'm curious about Michiko to Hatchin, myself. But, I'm not sure if it's going to be another good shoot-em-up, or just another excuse for fan service. Of course, I had the same worry going into Black Lagoon, and it turned out to be great (as in a great shoot-em-up, not necessarily anything more than that.)

You can probably tell, I grew up on cowboy flicks and cop shows.

[ShiroiHikari]

I wonder what kind of mecha series Kurogane no Linebarrel is going to be?

[Fish and Chips]

None of the shows this season really appeal to me. I'll give this quarter a pass.

[blkmage]

Day 1 of first impressions, GO.

Toradora! was pretty entertaining and funny. It looks like it's going to be solid. People say it's like watching Shakugan no Shana or Zero no Tsukaima all over again because of Rie Kugimiya going URUSAI URUSAI URUSAI and all, but because I haven't seen those, I can still enjoy it.

The Lucky Star OVA is everything you can expect from Lucky Star. The OVA feels like it's just a longer TV episode, since it's the same bunch of small stories stuffed together format. Because of that I'd much rather they did a second season instead. Still, if you enjoyed Lucky Star, you'll like the OVA.

I can't remember what I read to make me interested in Linebarrels of Iron, because I thought it was pretty terrible. It's being streamed right now on Crunchyroll by GONZO. I don't know what it is with GONZO and CG. They love it to death, but I can't stand it. The only time that I thought it was cool was in Last Exile. Their CG Druaga ruined Tower of Druaga for me, which was alright because it was near the end anyway.

Casshern Sins was something that I wasn't going to pick up based on the few promotional shots I'd seen of it, but once I saw the actual screencaps from some blogs, I decided to have a look. I really love the art and animation style. Everything else, like the plot and characters, are still a little cryptic, but I'll be sticking with it for a few more episodes.

[minakichan]

Definitely watching Nodame 2. Skip Beat will probably be on my list too <s>because of Miyano Mamoru</s>. Kuroshijitsu is a maybe-- a friend of mine is really into is <s>AND IT HAS BUTLERS!</s> but somehow it doesn't seem that interesting to me.

[Elycien]

I've just been reading the previews up on ANN, and Toradora looks worth looking into... romantic comedies are fun. Nothing else they highlighted particularly sparked my interest, though. So I dunno. Guess I'll wait around and see what else appears.

[KhakiBlueSocks]

The Lucky Star OVA is everything you can expect from Lucky Star. The OVA feels like it's just a longer TV episode, since it's the same bunch of small stories stuffed together format. Because of that I'd much rather they did a second season instead. Still, if you enjoyed Lucky Star, you'll like the OVA.

Yet another DVD I shall be keeping my eyes out for. Lucky Star is the kind of anime you're either going to really like or really hate. And I also love the fact that it's a show about...well...nothing!

[blkmage]

I'd heard that Kuroshitsuji had a pretty strong first episode that blew everyone's expectations, mostly because they'd been expecting it to be some sort of shounen-ai garbage. Still waiting for subs for that one and Skip Beat.

However, for today:

Hyakko was kind of random. The first episode is basically about these girls trying to get to class in their humungous school on their first day and the shenanigans that ensue. I don't know about this one yet. The characters seem kind of generic at the moment and it wasn't too hilarious. I was kind of expecting a bit more. I guess I'll see if it gets any better in the next episode or two.

Gundam 00, affectionately called "Gundamoo", starts off stronger than the first season. Here, we're thrown ahead an entire four years from where we left off. We immediately get a picture of how certain characters will fit into this new setting. The character interactions work much better now too, now that the meisters are past the whole not trusting one another thing. My main criticism of the first season was that it seemed to move superfast and by the end of the first season, I figured out why: they decided to fit what normally took fifty episodes into twenty-five. Of course, now that leaves twenty-five more episodes of something that's hopefully new and interesting. So far, they've got me and I'm glad that a six month break has managed to get me into this thing again.

[minakichan]

Here, we're thrown ahead an entire four years from where we left off.

4 years? ORLY?

So Setsuna actually sounds like his age now? Seriously, Miyano Mamoru != shoutabait.

ANN said somethingsomethingHyakkosetsuppotentiallyasyurisomethingsomethingsomething, so I don't know.

[Fish and Chips]

None of the shows this season really appeal to me. I'll give this quarter a pass.

This post is written in lies.

I'm checking out Michiko to Hatchin. Because "Shinichiro Watanabe."

[ADXC]

@ Popsicle- I thought there was going to be one of Symphonia, oh well. Abyss is good as well. Same for Legendia(Not an anime, just a game.). Just about all of the games of the Tales series are worth of becoming anime.

[Roy Mustang]

I wonder what kind of mecha series Kurogane no Linebarrel is going to be?

From the reviews that I read, a crappy one. I haven't seen a review yet that gives the series three stars out of five. All of them have been two stars and some two stars and half.

What gets me is, this is a work of Gonzo and just about everyone calls this series not one of Gonzo's finer artistic effort.

I may watch a little of it, but just from the screen pictures from the series. The art work looks bad!

[font="Book Antiqua"][color="Red"]Col. Roy Mustang[/color][/font]

[blkmage]

I haven't checked out Tales of the Abyss because I have a negative impression of RPG adaptations.

More impressions I guess:

Maybe it's because I don't really like kids, but Today in Class 5-2 doesn't really appeal to me. It's a slice of life anime based on the manga of the same name about a bunch of kids in this fifth grade class. There was also an OVA that was released a while ago done by a different studio. I can see the similarities in style with Minami-ke, with the whole serious face that popped up, because it's by the same author. Or it could be that I just really want another season of Minami-ke. Anyhow, this is probably not for me.

A Certain Magical Index is set in a city where everyone has special powers. The main characters are a really unlucky guy and a nun who's a mage. The animation was pretty nice and the characters and plot seemed to be pretty interesting. It looks like it could turn out to be decent, but I didn't think I was up for another one of these kinds of shows to follow. Someone might want to check it out.

Someone finally subbed Kuroshitsuji. I mentioned this before, but basically, when the previews first hit the Internet, everyone was saying that this show looked like it had some yaoi overtones. Essentially, everyone was wrong and the first episode turned out to be pretty interesting. It sort of oscillates between funny and creepy. This one looks like a keeper.

I'm beginning to think that Kyoani did a Lucky Star OVA because they couldn't wait long enough to release a series so they could use a bunch of references from anime that started airing this year.

[blkmage]

Today, I watched a bunch of stuff that I didn't plan on checking out and am very glad I did:

We start off with Kemeko DX which is about a boy who somehow gets married to this girl who drives a really ugly robot with a gatling gun around, fighting off robotic rice cookers. Everything about it is as insane as it sounds and it manages to deliver in the comedy and LOL WUT departments.

We move on to Yozakura Quartet which is about a town that has a significant youkai population. It seems to be managed and protected from bad youkai by a bunch of teens, most of which are girls with really overpowered special powers and a guy who doesn't. I noticed the soundtrack was pretty cool and the characters are alright, even if the concept seems a little worn out.

Finally, there's Ga-Rei Zero. If you enjoy action, I highly suggest checking this one out. The fighting is phenomenal and the setting looks fairly interesting. Of course, I don't know what the plot is going to be like because of the PLOT TWIST D: at the end there. I particularly enjoyed the use of the bike as a weapon.

[Bekalou]

Kuroshitsuji is the only show this season that I'm following, mostly because it's the only one I knew of from before and I was waiting for the anime to come out. I've read some of the manga and it is quite interesting - it is NOT shounen-ai like everyone seems to think; it is horror and comedy. Very creepy with some fantasy-occult themes mixed with goofy comedy, but the characters are highly effective (and the butler is darn sexy) and I'm excited to see where this one goes.

[blkmage]

This post is all about Nodame Cantabile.

This is the show I was waiting for and the reason I couldn't wait for October to come: Nodame Cantabile Paris Chapter. Nodame Cantabile is a romantic comedy that follows two talented music students. It began in manga format, which I have been following ever since I finished the first season. It also got adapted in to a drama, which I hear is excellent, and features real musicians for the performance parts. And it got an anime adaptation, of which this is the second season.

Noda Megumi (Nodame) is a piano student who is an unmotivated slob. However, she has ridiculously good ears and can play something just by listening to it and when she's in her element, she's amazing at it. Shinichi Chiaki is a piano student who's an arrogant, perfectionist prodigy and dreams of becoming a conductor. The first season takes us along as they meet and intrude on each others' lives, helping each other overcome their own challenges, all the while meeting new friends and performing some lovely classical music along the way.

Nodame Cantabile Paris Chapter is a direct sequel after the events of the first season, so you'll probably want to watch it first. In fact, you should go right now and watch it, it's great. We arrive in Paris, France, where Chiaki and Nodame have come to study in conservatories much better than those in Japan.

So actual impressions. I watched the first episode of this, and the only thing that was remotely disappointing was the OP, Sky High, which unfortunately did not end up surpassing the impossibly good OP from the first season, Allegro Cantabile. Oh, I guess there's also the fact that it's only 11 episodes. Beyond that, it's more of what we all loved from Nodame Cantabile. I can't imagine anyone who's already seen Nodame Cantabile that would need prodding and encouragement to see this.

If you're looking for something romantic that's outside of the usual visual novel adaptation or high school setting and enjoy classical music, then this is the anime for you.

[blkmage]

Thread resurrection time! It's been a month. I want to hear some opinions and have some discussion.

My list has become solid:

The top spot goes to Clannad ~After Story~ after I decided to pick up Clannad and pretty much fell in the tank for it, finishing the first season in three days. Kyoto Animation basically reminded me why I love them so.

Second comes Gundam 00 which is a huge shock for me personally because it is doing so well after being incredibly rushed during the first season. Good job, I guess.

Third place goes to Nodame Cantabile Paris Chapter. While it is more Nodame, I am fairly disappointed in the pacing of the anime compared to the manga. The eleven episode season is hurting it immensely.

Fourth, we have Casshern Sins. Best art of the season hands down, which is ironic since it's an adaptation of something that was born in the 70s. Seriously, you have to look at some shots of this thing and then be compelled to watch it animated.

In fifth, we have Toradora! which takes something that could have gone down the worn typical tsundere path and comes out with something interesting.

Kuroshitsuji is sixth for having an excellent atmosphere and going back and forth between creepy and hilarious consistently.

Seventh place is for Tytania, which delivers space battles on a grand scale and actual political machinations and maneuverings with modern production values.

Skip Beat! comes in eighth for being another shoujo that has an interesting lead female. A decent adaptation of the manga, which is excellent because it managed to make me interested in Kyoko's development as an actress.

And lastly, we have Ga-Rei Zero, which remains an anime that constantly gives me the "wut". I can't get a very good reading on this thing, as every episode just throws something out from left field at you.

Things that I dropped include Chaos;HEAD (annoying characters), Kemeko DX (way too random), Hyakko (meh), A Certain Magical Index (weird premise), Yozakura Quartet (doesn't seem interesting), Kurogane no Linebarrels (lolgonzo), and Today in Class 5-2 (looks terrible, unfunny).

Things that I haven't picked up but people won't shut up about how great they are include Kannagi (boy meets goddess), Tales of the Abyss (the RPG), Akaneiro ni Somaru Saka (visual novel), Hakushaku to Yousei (shoujo), ef a tale of melodies (sequel), Jigoku Shoujo (sequel), Mouryo no Hako (haven't heard of it), and Michiko e Hatchin (Brazil!).