Yes, there was no preview for the past season. The main reason is that I was too lazy to even write an article. During this summer I quickly turned into what you would generically call a human wreck. I woke up, ate, sometimes slept all day, played some visual novels, bathed in the summer sun, ate ice cream, flirt a little…
Well, I enjoyed about one month and a half of holiday for the first time of the year. I think I deserved it, next holiday is in… Eleven months… But I guess my summer is a kinda dull topic so let’s focus on something more interesting.
For this incoming fall season, I have set my eyes on love comedies and sentimental series. I guess it’s what you would call the effect of fall nostalgia, when you begin to look at things with introspection, when the sensation of lost days haunt you and when you feel like you want to empathize with some romance story of some sorts.
We see that AIC studios placed major bets, that Sunrise is now reborn from its ashes, and that stories being told for this season are mainly from novels and light novels.
But it’s also a season with lots of continuation series. As expected from popular series though.
Some of the series will air in premiere in September for their first episode and actually start in October.
Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai
Shorted into “Haganai”, this series begins with the hero, Kodaka Hasegawa, who wears a naturally mean expression. Combined with his natural blond hair, the people around him think he is some sort of delinquent. Thus, he ends with no friends.
One day, he discovers that Yozora, a girl from his class, who always seems to be so silent, has created an imaginary friend.
That’s only the beginning of a weird relashionship where they wonder how both would make friends. The result is the “Rinjinbu”.
In that club, they end up experiencing lots of things, like playing together galgames, go to the pool, and discovering love.
The animation is assured by AIC Build (mainstream). Nowadays, when you see that AIC is involved, you know that the animation quality is top notch.
The director is Saitou Hisashi (Bamboo Blade, Sora no Otoshimono) and he is assisted by Watanabe Yoshihiro as an animation director and character designer.
Music is made by Tom-H@ck. He’s the guy who has made the music for K-On!
In my opinion, all the required ingredients are here to create a fantastic work: a funny story, nice animation, nice music, a good director and a good promotion campaign (on radio, TV PVs, conventions).
This story, made for a young adult audience, might actually turn out to be quite shounen in its TV adaptation. Being a slice of life genre, with several thema around rejection, the anime might turn quickly popular. And I will only say this: “Niku” will be extremely popular. But one thing still makes me worry: the fact that there will be a plot that will be very easy to figure out. Will it be its main forte or its impeding doom?
The answer will lie in how the execution will be held.
WORKING`!!
We’re back with the Wagnaria staff (and the Takanashi family)! Aah, I knew there would be a second season! Oh joy of life!
Actually I knew there would be another one, because the story from the 4-koma of Takatsu Karino, serialised in Young Gangan (available in manga volumes through Gangan Comics or at your nearest store if translated), continued way after the last episode of season 1.
I will let you discover the funny additional characters, centered around Shirafuji Kyouko, Otoo Hyougo and Inami Mahiru.
The animation studio in charge is still A-1 (wan wan!). Same staff. With some more animation studios outsourcing help. But same.
Mashiro-iro Symphony: Love Is Pure White
Things are changing in the private school of Kagami-dai. The town had always been split in two, with the old part and the new quarter.
For Shingo Uryuu, it means that he is to commute to Yuihime high, an all-girl high school, along with his sister Sakuno and his best friend Hayata. As expected, this change isn’t nearly welcomed and the atmosphere is quite tense. Particularly from Airi and Sana. But he meets a maid in training Angelina (alias Ange) and Miu, who give him the courage to continue.
As life in Yuihime high continues, everyone begins to change.
This anime is directly adapted from the first version of the visual novel from Palette. Some might regret that Yutsuki isn’t there (and I’m one of them). I’ll miss her “Waoh!” and kira-face. And her cute parts. But oh well, my favourite had always been Airi… Erm.
Anyways, the animation studio is Manglobe, that we might now call the VN to anime adaptator exclusive studio (not that they are particularly bad or good at it), and the cast is the same as the one featured in the PSP version of the game, with the additional voice of Takahiro Mizushima, known for his roles in an impressive list of various anime like Uchuu no Stellvia, Kimikiss Pure Rouge, Seto no Hanayome, Angel Beats…
I’m also happy to be able to hear Airi’s voice once again: Ryouko Ono (who might be the one making Pannya’s voice).
All the other girls are also veterans, they aren’t newbies and they have solid experience in voice acting (I could say the same with any japanese voice actor actually, even the less known ones): Mai Gotou as Sakunon (that I find quite funny), Oma Ichimura as Angelina, Noriko Ikimaru as Miu and Mayumi Yoshida as Sana.
To be honest, I’m quite eager to watch the show.
Tamayura
Tamayura tells us the story of Fuu Sawatari, a junior high school girl who loves photography, and nicknamed “Botte” (and a cute catch phrase: “Hawaa”). She moves in Takawara, in the prefecture of Hiroshima, a place surrounded by the mountains and the Setonaikai bay, where her deceased father used to live when he was a kid. In this fabulous place, it is easy to find happiness. And Fuu naturally wants to share this happiness to her friends thanks to her photos from her Rollei 35 S (one of the first portable argentic cameras).
The animation studio is one of the newest, TYO Animations, also known for the popular Ika Musume, but also some minor titles like Mayoi Neko Overrun or Ookiku Furikabutte.
This time they seem to have upgraded their stuff and delivered what seems to be quite high quality.
Expect an atmosphere close to Aria, slice of life filled with poetry, aesthetically calm, beautiful, and joyful.
Maken-ki!
Takeru Ooyama enters into Tenbi academy, a previous all-girls high school, where he learns that its students are not your regular ones. Only Element users are actually admitted and Takeru is convinced by his childhood friend, Haruko Amaya, to enter the Maken-ki, an instance made to regulate and act as referee for duels among students. The main problem is that Takeru can’t seem to have any Element force into him!
The animation is left to AIC Spirits (them again?!). The voice actors are not particularly known. But remember that most japanese voice actors interpretations are particularly good 
This is a battle story, so it will be essentially a shounen story, with fanservice shots, and drama. What makes me want to watch this is because of the magic system and the hero’s situation, that I like to compare to Mai-Hime. But that’s only for a part of it, both stories are quite different.
Ben-Tou
You Satou, who lives in a dorm, near a convenience store, is involved one night to a cruel and terrible fight during the dreaded half-priced bentou event. The next day, as he meets Hana Oshiroi and Sen Yarizui, he learns how to survive in this cruel world of high school bentou eaters.
This show is made from a rather popular light novel (already at its 7th volume). In the original story, there are lots (and I mean lots) of characters, ranging from the old elementary school friend to parents, uncles, high school friends…
The animation studio is David Production. They used to help in several known anime, like Code Geass 2 but this is their fifth independant series, after Tatakau Shisho: Book of Bantorra and Level E.
Ｏ(≧▽≦)Ｏ ﾜｰｲ♪
I’m happy to see that anime producers, animation studios and writers have upgraded everything. That’s exactly what the audience wanted. The next step is to create long and interesting stories, in order to be able to rebuild confidence in the six months running shows. These are what makes people buy DVD, goods, and motivate fans.
I’m also quite confident that these works will begin to bring a future for japanese animation. Internationally speaking.
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