After summer comes autumn. I know I’m going to miss the time I spend during summer holidays doing funny things without any worries.
But fear not! The new batch of anime is already under the way.
This season is filled with lots of fanservice shows so it’s kinda difficult to find an interesting one that deals with a good story, or with good characters without being too pafu-pafu.
Kami no mizoshiru sekai
Katsuragi Keima has no interest with real life. Nicknamed “otaku-megane” or in short “otamega”, from his looks (he wears glasses) and his deviate passion for playing galgames (japanese pronounciation of girl game, that most people reduce to date-sim games, but are actually all the games involving beautiful girls, being simulation, table games, visual novel, or adventure games), he has no interest whatsoever with 3D girls, that he finds less interesting than their 2D counterparts.
He is best known as the “capturing god” on the internet because he cleared over five thousand games. Because of this his reputation reached many lands. Everything changes as Elsee, a demon agent from the underworld, binds him with a contract: he must collect escaped spirits that hide into girls hearts.
This show is going to be one of the best of this season. It’s so fun to see Keima, the worst example of a gamer otaku turn into a romantic and woman heart-fluttering-knght-on-a-white-horse prince.
His dubber is Shimono Hiro. He is best know for his avant-garde roles as Kamina Ayato in Rahxephon, but also in other shows as Nagasarete Airantou, Kannagi, Mitsudomoe… Well he’s no rookie. He’s able to express a wide range of emotions, so I hope he’ll be able at least to get the strong feeling of overwhelming superiority when he brings out the Lelouch-like catch phrase of Keima: “Mieta zo! Ending ga!” (I can already see the ending!).
Bakuman
Moritaka Mashiro is a young man, unsure of his future. His drawings are really good but one day he left his latest work in his classroom. It represents the picture of the girl he loves secretly, Azuki Miho. His classmate, Takagi Akito, stumbles on this and wants to convince him to become a mangaka. Because of his disagreement due to his past story with mangaka, Takagi announces to Azuki that both him and Mashiro are going to become mangaka. Azuki reveals that she’s going to become a seiyuu, an idol-dubber, then Mashiro promises her that they’ll both fulfill their dreams and marry.
Well the plot is quite strange, too pure to be true, but that’s not the main point of interest of this story. Actually, Bakuman is a story where you meet with the realities of being a mangaka, in a somewhat ideal way, but there are many points where you meet with reality. It litterally blows every myth that comes with being a heavenly being as soon as you become entrusted the title of “sensei” as a mangaka. You learn a lot about the processes of the real manga creation world, about the psychology of some of the creators, how they even construct each piece of their work.
The show is made by J.C. Staff. The dubbers are quite good so expect some impact from them. However, I’m a little worried about the directors who only seem to have made shows that were totally ignored by even the mainstream viewers…
Ore no imouto ga konna ni kawaii wake ga nai
litt: My little sister can’t be that cute
This is the story of strange siblings, one big brother and his little sister. She has a secret she doesn’t want to tell to anyone but one day his brother discovers the truth. She’s an Imouto-type (little sister) fan!
There ensues incredible situations, romance and comedy.
This show is made by AIC Build. It’s a new section of AIC. So I don’t know about the quality of their work, but it looks like they do a pretty decent work (as usual with AIC).
Motto To Love-Ru: Trouble
This show is the sequel of To Love-Ru. We follow the story of Rito, who’s become princess Lala’s fiancée. You find the usual second characters Haruna, Yami, etc.
If you like the first season, you might like the second. There are lots of new characters and thus new story developments. The studio providing their experience in animation is XEBEC.
The main problem is that the story will primarily revolve around the smut, since the new director is the one who directed Kanokon and Ladies X Butlers… While the previous one was more mainstream. There’s also a big change in character artwork design. The new reference seems to be close to Ladies x Butlers. Well I don’t mean it’s bad or anything, really, because this style looks great actually.
Anyway, the opening is sung by KOTOKO.
FORTUNE ARTERIAL
Due to family reasons, Hasekura Kouhei had to move from place to place, without having enough time to settle down. One day he moves to Tamatsu Island, where he is to attend high school and live in dorms. Soon, he discovers the secrets of his nearby friends.
This show is based on a visual novel. So don’t expect too much of a story plot because it’s mainly focused on heroines character development, thus on character interactions rather than on a plot driven story.
Plus, the romance might shift easily from the neutral zone to one of the heroines direction (obviously towards the main heroine) but it would be nice if there was clear competition between them rather than passive action (the classical harem situation that makes the show seem dull).
Anyway, the animation is made by two main animation studios, Zexcs and Feel. Both are famous for bringing several anime adaptations from visual novels and manga.
Hyakka Ryouran: Samurai Girls
From a franchise of Hobby Japan (Queen’s Blade, Ichiban no ushiro no daimaou), this show is an uchrony of today’s Japan, still in some sort of modern Heisei age. Buou gakuen is a high school complex where students hone their skills. As he transfers to this facility as a teacher assistant, Yagyuu Muneakira bumps into several girls, as beautiful as dreadful.
At first I thought it was again another muneblob, that would resemble this crappy TV series adaptation, Highschool of the dead, where even bullets can navigate between breasts. The first episode that was preaired just proved me wrong. Gladly, the directors seem to have chosen a more adult storytelling stance.
The studio is ARMS, certainly chosen because of their legendary animation skills.
Plus this show has an important asset: Kugimiya Rie, who dubbs a splendid petanko tsundere.
The question is then: are martial artists in quasi-swimsuit costumes credible?
Toaru Majutsu no Index II
Sequel to season one. You meet Index and Touma again in their adventures. There’s also Misaka Imouto (the clones from Misaka). As usual, a mature storytelling shines upon this show.
With these new story developments, TMI2 finally moves to another epic stage.
JC Staff continues to release show after show. After being more mainstream last season, we are to access their last piece of art, which might be more adult, storytelling-wise.
Shinryaku! Ika Musume
A squid girl is invading the earth! Or so she’d like, as the Ika Musume fails and ends on dry land.
Animated by Diomedea (Hidamaru Sketch hoshimitsu), this comedy anime promises great moments.
Yosuga no Sora
Adapted from a visual novel, this show focuses on the main character’s difficult relationships. After losing both their parents, Kasugano Haruka and his sister Sora live together in their passed grandfather house, Okukozome.
The animation is left to Feel, known for its visual novel to anime adaptations (with more or less success).
Now my rant:
I’m kinda worried about the japanese manga and anime becoming more and more focused on pseudo-erotic contents rather than strong stories with good character development… Is the audience becoming that dull?
I don’t mind if it’s the classical fanservice, to show a heroine’s body charms, but if that only for the smut… That’s kinda lame. I mean, it’s even better to watch a real H anime in that case, where the stories are even lamer and the sex quite explicit.
Plus, the depictions are not even erotical, it’s becoming grotesque. They surely forgot that Erotism is about suggesting, without revealing too much, litterally tantalizing, because it makes use of one’s imagination. Delivering nude girls on a plate lacks style.
I know that the reason is the huge decrease of dvd sales, but if the stories are good, they sell. Take Evangelion for example: even years after, there are still people who go to the theatres, buy dvds, artbooks, novels, related goods…
In 2008, the best seller was Code Geass (39,251), followed by Macross Frontier (27,142) over six months after release.
If any studio related people reads this (one chance over 1000 billion), please consider this.
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