...what are you watching...

Mahoutsukai no Yome 15-24! the end. We learn a little bit about Silky in episode 15 while Chise is healing in the fairy world. And we see Alice's past in 16. And 19 starts an interestingly dark arc featuring Cartaphilus and most of the characters we've seen thus far. The fantasy story was a bit rushed, but the characters and world-building was pretty unique. I enjoyed the slightly dark aspects of Chise's encounters. ~7/10~ I'm interested to read if this is how the mangaka wants the story to end...things didn't seems interconnected well in the anime; maybe due to editing..I guess the Cartaphilus storyline ended and Chise sorta became a bride. Good enough for now.

Cardcaptor Sakura: Clear Card 3-12! Sakura gets two! cards in episode 3. A new transfer student is introduced in episode 4...you'd think Sakura would figure out that transfer students are tied to the magical activities. In episode 10 Sakura cheats on Tomoyo with Akiho...sad. *maybe spoilers* The theory that Ahiko might be the mirror card somehow brought to life has some credibility. That would be a nice twist. It explains the whole clear/crystal-ly theme this arc has. And it's a shame that her new cards do not have human characteristics anymore. Syaoran and Eriol are withholding info from Sakura and if this were any other anime, that would be rather douchey of them. I like the fact that Touya's powers are being restored due to him just being alive.

Violet Evergarden 2-4! A very pretty anime, but rather low on dynamic characters. Dropped!

Kokkoku 3-7! The daughter is able to expel the ghost thing that keeps people out of stasis and is able to fight off the guys who are after the family's magical stone. It's interesting how the different family members deal with their crisis and what powers they have. The pacing is a bit too slow for me and the characters aren't likable enough to continue to watch. This would be a better live action show. Dropped.

3-gatsu no Lion S2 36-42! Kiriyama v. Souya starts and Kiriyama learns Souya's secret. It's interesting how they treat Souya so delicately. Nikaidou is back and recovered from his illness by episode 38. Sorry, the duel in 39 made me fall asleep. While I know that they are building the relationship between Kiriyama and Hina to a certain point in the story, it's still rather unconvincing to me. It's mildly cute though.

Saiki Kusou no Psi S2 1-10! picking up where it left off a year ago, the first episode reintroduces Saiki and his classmates. It even has a Gintama cameo. I enjoy the episodes that focus on Saiki's parents and/or grandparents more than the classmates.

Catching up...


3-gatsu no Lion S2 7-11 (29-33)! LOL, at Kiriyama's senpais comment about him being similar to Hachiya because they think he thinks the world revolves around himself. I thought that Hina's bullying issue would bog the show down a little, but it's handled rather well. The science-shogi club bros are fun.



Ballroom e Youkoso 21-24! the end. This show has the best facial expressions. Kiyoharu's attempt at loosening Tatara's muscles backfires on Tatara until Chinatsu is able to support him. They struggle through the competition, but in a sorta surprising anime-move, they win the competition instead of lose as many main characters do. ~8/10 rating~ for a hilarious sports anime about ballroom dancing. The only flaw was that half-assed attempt at animating the actual dancing scenes.



Shoukoku no Altair 20-24! the end. Halil Pasha, Mahmut's mentor, is killed in his attempt to take down the Empire. As in all the other episodes, time moves very quickly in this series and Mahmut is able to trap his enemies. It's terrible that the animation quality is so inconsistent...ugh, episode 21. Mahmut Pasha is able to defeat the Empire's attempt at taking Cielo. He is rewarded a promotion and show ends at the beginning of Torqye's offensive. ~7/10 rating~ When the show takes its time with the characters and its animation, it's pretty good. But overall it glosses over the war and its large cast of characters so quickly that other than Mahmut, you barely care about anyone else. I did enjoy the colorful and sometimes elaborate costume designs. Another season isn't announced, but it appears open for one.



Inuyashiki 7-11! the end. After his mother's suicide, with the prodding of his high school female 'friend', Shishigami decides to save people instead of killing them. But the police come after his safe house and he goes off on another psychotic killing spree. Inuyashiki continues to train with Ando. The show climaxes with Shishigami and Inuyashiki fighting it out with Inuyashiki being the winner. But the last climax is an asteroid that threatens the Earth. ~7/10 rating~ for a unique hero. I enjoyed the occasional humor including the sadly realistic anime Trump. This would make a good Hollywood movie with the right writers.



Kino no Tabi: The Beautiful World 8-12! 8 is another Shizu-centric episode with no Kino this time. We see that Shizu, Ti and Riku are travelers looking for a place to settle. They find a country where the residents believe that radio wave can influence people's behavior. Episode 9 is another break from the normal routine as we see Kino, Shizu-tachi and references to Kino's teacher in separate instances in separate countries. Quite a cute episode with a nice message from the original novels' author. Thought it meant that the series ended here...but we see another remade story in episode 10. It's interesting that because of the prior new episodes we can apparently connect the old guy with the woodsman gun to Kino's teacher's companion. Unfortunately, the twist at the end is not a surprise this time. It was a very pretty episode though. And 11 shows us Kino's origin story again...with a prettier-boy Kino. And the show wraps up with a wtf human-killing sheep episode. ~9/10 rating~ for a high quality traveling show hosted by a fearless, and sometimes ruthless traveler. The original 2001 series had a pastely, haunting quality, while this remake was bright and clear. I enjoyed this and the original equally. Hope to see another season.

Youkai Apartment no Yuuga na Nichijou 21-26! the end. There seemed to be very mundane high school problems with random supernatural things happening. ~6/10 rating~ for a pleasant time waster. Nothing really stood out production-wise or character-wise. It almost seemed like a parody of a magical girl show starring a male character, but it didn't quite rise to the comedy or drama-like levels that it could have.

Juuni Taisen 1-12! the end. Wasn't going to watch this, but it was a decent time-waster. 12 fighters representing the twelve zodiac signs fight to the death with one winner whose wish will be granted. Each has a specialized, sometimes supernatural skill. None of them are particularly memorable, but overall, the payoff is rather lame, but fitting once you realize the author of the novel that the anime is based on is Nisioisin (Monogatari's author). ~6/10 rating~ for a story that does make you wonder what may happen, but kinda makes you roll your eyes. *spoilers* I suppose I should have know that the mouse would win.

Black Clover 8! This is moving way too slowly for my tastes. Dropped.

Mahoutsukai no Yome 8-12! Chise becomes friends with a cute dog animagus-like creature in episode 8 and gains familiar. While making a wand, Chise learns about Elias's background from Lindel in 10-12. I enjoy the quiet, but fast-paced world building in this show. Lindel has a nice singing voice, too. Once she finishes her wand, you can sorta predict that Chise's early death issue will be resolved by her new phoenix-like-looking powers. Halfway through and still enjoying this show...

3-gatsu no Lion Part 1 live-action movie! I don't know if a person who wasn't familiar with the manga or anime would find this as satisfying as someone who could fill in the blanks. The imdb rating of 6.9 suggests it was possibly ok to the average critic. Keishi Ohtomo who was the director of the Kenshin live-action movies and was also credited as a writer is responsible for this adaptation as well. He does do a great job squeezing the whole first season of the anime into a two hour movie; up until Shimada and Souya's match. The movie is well-cast and well-acted. ~8/10 rating~ for a darn decent adaptation. I look forward to the 2nd movie as well, but honestly prefer the anime.



3-gatsu no Lion S2 1! yes! another season of anime. Episode 1 finds Kiriyama hanging out after school with his science shogi bros. The episode was so colorful and fun.



Inuyashiki 1! wasn't exactly about what I read online before...probably an erroneous summary. Anyway, an underappreciated, aging father who has cancer is accidentally killed and brought back to life by aliens. His body is basically robocop now. He tries to use his powers for good. There was a young teen with him during the alien abduction. And I was hoping the dog got robo-ed, too.

Black Clover 2! Episode 2 shows us a flashback to when young Asta and crybaby Yuna decide that they will become rivals for the Magic King title. It's your mandatory shonen bromance. The opening theme showcases a lot of interesting-looking characters so it may be worth continuing.

Kino no Tabi: The Beautiful World 2! The Colosseum story was two episodes in the older anime, but is one episode this time around. You do feel that the story is rushed, but I believe that Shizu and Riku show up in another story or two, and maybe this new series wants to get to the stories that were not animated this time around.

Shoujo Shuumatsu Ryokou 2! I think this tries to be too cute and too serious at the same time. Kino does it better. I'm sure the background story may be interesting, but I don't think these first couple episodes are worth it. Dropped.

Mahou tsukai no Yome 2! While I'm waiting for Chise's melancholy personality to evolve, the new characters are turning out to be cute and interesting.

Shoukoku no Altair 14! New theme songs and visuals in episode 14. It seems that the series is back to one speedy political maneuver per episode now. Mahmut attacks the empire through a trade deal rather than through a fight.

Ballroom e Youkoso 13-15! Tatara and Chinatsu reluctantly pair up together and Tatara tries to figure out how to lead a headstrong female. I'm a little sad Tatara leaves Sengoku's studio for Marisa, but it's nice that his education and development are shown in a realistic manner....though the jump into high level competitions seems fast.

Youkai Apartment no Yuuga na Nichijou 15! Two pretty teachers and one troublesome student are introduced in episode 15. This isn't a really good show, but some filler fluff to watch during the week.

ACCA 1-2! builds an interesting world where a monarch rules 13 independent districts. Jean works for ACCA as a sort of government auditor who inspects the various districts. Madhouse still produces top-notch, visually interesting animation and this fits that bill. The episodes are a little sleepy. A day in the life of Jean in an unreal world should be more interesting that it appears. Episode 2 introduces us to his best friend who is spying on him since his bosses think Jean is planning a coup d'etat. Each district seems to have its specialized food and oddities which makes this intriguing despite the slow pacing.



Youjo Senki 1-3! The first episode shows us a seemingly psychotic little girl, Tanya, who is the most powerful mage in the army...like seriously, if she can blow up the enemy like that, why are there so many non-magical ground troops? Anyway, it's a crazy anime, but the first episode spent a little too much time on the army leaders just standing around talking 'army stuff'. In episode 2, we see Tanya in her former life as a ruthless Japanese businessman who lays off an employee. The employee pushes him onto an oncoming train. At his moment of death, he converses with 'God' and God decides to see if he will learn faith...or something like that. He is reincarnated into a magical little girl in an alternate Europe-like world in the midst of war. She still retains his former life's memories and moves up the ranks quickly.



3-gatsu no Lion 12-14! I usually enjoy Yuki's anime pop songs, but her new song has a little too much autotune and cuts off oddly. We pick up after Rei has recovered from his flu. He starts a new competition and we get to see some new players. I continue to love the detail in the animation; they really try to make Chica Umino drawings come to life.



Tales of Zestiria the X 13-15! picks up where it left off with Sorey traveling with Rose. The episode focuses on her general likability amongst the people of hometown, and her darker side as an assassin. We learn a little about Dezel the wind seraph who is loyal to Rose. So far, the 2nd season is rather lackluster.

Ao no Exorcist: Kyoto Saga 1! In the first episode of this season, Yukio heads off to pursue an exorcist-turned-demon who steals the Left Eye of the Impure King while Rin plus classmates go after the Right Eye in Kyoto. Hm, this is only mildly interesting despite the nicely animated episode. Other than Rin's cat, all the characters are stuck in a rather teenage-y drama. Dropped. Will not stick it out this season.

Spirit Pact 1! I would think that a Chinese-Japanese collaboration would be a tad more interesting, but this is pretty mediocre. A young pseudo-fortune teller gets hit and killed by a truck. He wakes up as a spirit, and a exorcist tries to recruit him because of his innate spiritual powers. I think this is trying to be a comedic version of Mirage of Blaze, but most of the jokes fail. The production was quite bad. Dropped.



Doukyuusei jmovie! was something I forgot to write about last year. It apparently was the first full-length BL anime movie shown in theaters....or that's what the internet says. Anyway, it's a standard boy-meets-boy/first love/opposites-attract story. The only conflict being that both boys have differing plans after they graduate. It's pretty charming and the highlight is that the anime captures the mangaka, Nakamura Asumiko's unique drawing style. ~8/10~ for a cute and sweet time-waster.

The Full Metal Alchemist live-action trailer is online. Looks nice! I hope it's entertaining like the Kenshin movies, and not like the badly-written Attack on Titan movies.

ClassicaLoid 2-6! Beethoven continues to obsess over gyoza while Mozart is convinced Kanae is in love with him. Sousuke tries to find out what triggers their 'muzik' transformation. Chopin/Cho-chan shows up in episode 3 as a painfully shy character. Liszt also shows up as a busty woman. Schubert is a character obsessed with Beethoven. We find that they were created by Kanae's eccentric father so she doesn't feel lonely...or something like that. Though unusual, the show gets repetitive as Kanae continues to worry about money and continually tries to kick the classicaloids out. Dropped.

Drifters 2-4! We learn that the ones pulling the strings are the megane blond, Murasaki, and evil-looking, black-haired girl, Easy. Episode 2-3 continues scenes of extreme violence with weird comedic breaks. 3 was pretty confusing with all the different Drifters showing up, but near the end, they reveal that they are wanted to fight the 'Enders' who are insane and evil Drifters. I don't know enough of the historical figures to care. Dropped.

Saiki Kusuo no Psi Nan 41-90! 45 was about how Saiki can sorta cheat on exams to stay unnoticed at school, and how it backfires on him when he places below brainless Nendo. The next story arc covers the school trip to Osaka. It's nice to see that despite his internal grumblings, Saiki somewhat cares for his classmates. Looks like this show got more episodes on order which is fine by me since each 4 minute episode is fun to watch.

Fune wo Amu 3-5! Majime's landlady's granddaughter comes to live with her and becomes Majime's love interest. The characters also overcome the threat of the dictionary becoming cancelled.

Natsume Yuujinchou Go 2-6! Small youkai children are the cutest and Natsume can't help himself from solving their problems. In episode 3-4, Matoba manipulates Natsume into doing what he wants but fails to get him to join the Matoba clan. Unfortunately, there are some large plot points like Natsume's grandmother, Matoba's grand plan, if any, and Natori's shiki tattoo that seem to be forever unanswered.

3-gatsu no Lion 2-6! We are introduced other shogi players and their outgoing personalities. Episode 4 was about how Nikaido meets the sisters and it was adorable. And Rei tells us about his past and how he was adopted into a shogi-obsessed family after his biological family passed away in a car accident in episode 5. This anime hasn't really educated the viewer on how to play shogi yet, but apparently Rei is very good. Ah ha, the live-action movie trailer is up. Looks good!