...what are you watching...

Nisemonogatari 11! this very quick arc ties Kaiki, Oshino and Kagenui's interesting views together while resolving Tsukihi's story. This series didn't have as much action as Bakemonogatari did, but Araragi did get a thorough beating here. Shinobu helps Araragi, but sadly, her fight is off-screen. This was a really good second season to the series. Araragi's relationships evolved and his love for his sisters was really nice (though humorously perverted). ~9/10 rating~ top-notch visuals, thoughtful dialogue, and well-timed comedy once again entertain oh so well. Very good end. Darn teaser.

Hunter x Hunter 2012 23! Gon, Leorio and Kurapica open the gate together. The first version allowed them to open the gate individually with Leorio being able to open an upper gate. Then Gon gets beat up by the young servant with the cane.

Hungry 9! The chef at Gasterea challenges Eisuke during his friend's wedding.

Nisemonogatari 10! Just finished an online translation of Kizumonogatari. Despite the fan translation bumps, you can tell the movie should be epic as if the trailer didn't convince. This episode was fun. Loved the Mister Donut scene (though bitter that all the local Mister Donuts closed up a long time ago) and the second half was even better.

Last Exile: Ginyoku no Fam 20 (or 18 depending on who's counting)! Now, we're getting somewhere. Could they next point the gun towards the other 3 characters; Fam, Millia and Sara.

Hunter x Hunter 2012 22! Gon et al meet the Zoldyck's gatekeeper. There are a handful of scenes in the original series that made some characters more endearing. Some of that gets lost in this semi-speedy version.

Hungry 8! Eisuke and curly-haired guy get stuck in the freezer. Eisuke and his mates reconcile. Good episode.

Saikou no Jinsei no Owarikata 7-8! Haruka discovers who her online crush is. Masapyon finds out about his brother's tumor. Sakamaki's sempai is killed during an investigation. Masapyon finds that he has been talking to Sakamaki's dead grandfather. tbc.

The Thermae Romae live-action movie looks great. Abe Hiroshi! Little old men!

Some feel-good movies recently about the net:

Kimi to Boku jmovie! a live-action movie (not related to the manga of the same name). This short film is about a budding, young mangaka who finds and raises a little kitten. The kitten is voiced by Maaya Sakamoto. The kitten observes the young man through the years and keeps him company. ~6/10 rating~ for cute cat. Story, of course, is bittersweet..possibly not exciting enough for most audiences.


Usagi Drop jmovie! the live-action version of the manga of the same name is expectedly sweet. It has good pacing and covers much of the highlights the anime version covered. The story is well-edited in that respect. Kenichi Matsuyama does a great job as Daikichi; though not quite as tired/grumpy as the manga/anime version. And the young actress who plays Rin is perfect; definitely looks like a little bunny-like child. ~8/10 rating~ for some welcomed fluff. The dance sequences are the only wtf additions...not terrible, but just weird.


Hotarubi no Mori e jmovie! from the mangaka of Natsume Yuujinchou, is an animated movie based on the manga of the same name. Hotaru, a small child, gets lost in the forest. She is found by a youkai named Gin who helps her find her way. They become friends with a catch; that being that Gin will disappear if Hotaru touches him. She visits him each summer through the years. ~8/10 rating~ The movie doesn't have any extraordinary production, but it is very cute and bittersweet.

And last week in animeland:
Chihayafuru 21! The gang pass their school exams and start the qualifying karuta competitions.

Nisemonogatari 9! Araragi and Karen's sibling perversions are at work again. Two new characters arrive. And Araragi and Hachikuji do their thang.

Hunter x Hunter 2012 21! After the exams. Gon et al get stuck in traffic on the way to the airport. There's more than that, but the traffic jam was the only new scene.

Chihayafuru 20! Torture Taichi Tuesdays are fun. Taichi tries to win another regional tournament so he can advance to class A. Arata is there. The interaction between him, Taichi and Chihaya is <3


Nisemonogatari 8! Araragi and his sisters certainly win the trophy for their perversions; toothbrush, really? The episode's first half was pretty funny. The second half descended into uuuh, but thankfully, they get interrupted. Very funny episode and Tsukihi's opening song was cute.

Natsume Yuujinchou Shi 8! is about the megane grey-haired female exorcist who isn't as bad as she first appeared.

Aquarion EVOL 8! So the bad guys are from a planet where all the females have died. And the pilots find that fighting naked heightens their senses. The rationale for the fanservice is ridiculous, but funny. There are times that the ridiculousness is more stupid than funny. Hopefully, the writers error more on the side of humor than stupid.

Last Exile: Ginyoku no Fam 16-17! Sorush and Orang's love story...in one of the dullest battles on this show yet. And then all it takes for the war against Luscinia's allies to end is Augusta's letter. Please push Fam and Augusta Sara off a cliff.

No HxH this week. *weep*

Full Metal Alchemist: The Sacred Star of Milos movie! I can't really remember what the first movie was about, but there were Nazis and gypsies, right? The first movie wrapped up the first version of the series in a weird way. This new movie is about a border country whose residents are looking for the star of Milos for power...salvation...etc. Three guesses on what the star is. This takes place before the end of the manga story. Ed and Al meet a female journalist, her brother, some corrupt border officers, and a group of people who need saving. Basically the journalist and her brother mirror Ed and Al. It's a decent movie with great action. Nonetheless, the story pales next to the actual tv series. ~7/10 rating~

Nisemonogatari 7! so the climactic action featured Karen pummeling her brother, and not Araragi against Kaiki. Cute.

Hunter x Hunter 2012 20! I think the first series' recap of the matches was better than this version, but the interaction between Killua and Illumini made more sense here than it did in the past. It's nice that the recent manga arc mirror this part in the anime...or at least provide resolution of some sort.

Inu x Boku SS 6! Ririchiyou becomes friends with Roromiya and Watanuki. Despite the cast's potential, the show is sorely lacking in good dialogue and a good story. The rare moments of supernatural and cute aren't enough to fill the episode. Zzz...dropped.

Hungry 6! Curly-haired Smap guy challenges Eisuke again. He says the food is delicious but not French.

Lucky Seven 5! I don't think the Nitta arc was very well written (or well translated). I suppose it left the bigger questions open to resolution later. After the first episode, the show hasn't been as good, so plop, dropped.

Akino with bless4 performing the opening to Aquarion EVOL. Lovely voice, but she looks older than I thought, and the fashion and dancing is sooo...jpop.

Nisemonogatari 6! Didn't think much of Hachikuji the first season, but she's definitely one of my favorite characters here. Araragi is able to take half of his sister's curse into himself, and convinces Senjougahara to allow him to accompany her to her meeting with Kaiki. I like that this season is one continuous story. Shinobu is an added plus.

Hunter x Hunter 2012 19! Gon and Hanzo fight. Cute.

Hungry 5! Eisuke has to take care of his former manager's fat child. At first the child refuses to eat Eisuke's food. Eisuke wins him over with fried rice with cream sauce...gotta start somewhere.

Lucky Seven 4! Nitta takes photos of something that gets the detective agency into trouble. It seems too early in the show for this type of storyline. The comradery of the agency hasn't been established yet. Zzz...

Last Exile: Ginyoku no Fam 16! Mostly a filler episode as Fam meets Augusta and thrills her with tales of the Grand Race. Luscinia finds a bigger weapon or something and laughs maniacally. The best part came after the episode as the preview shows us Claus and Alvis.

Nisemonogatari 5! Actually predictable gags in this episode, but there's gotta be more, right? Still fun.

Hunter x Hunter 2012 18! wraps up the Zevil Island arc. In the first series, Gon was ready to give up and leave Hisoka's number plate before he helps Kurapika and Leorio, but he doesn't do that here. I thought Gon also talked to Killua, not Kurapika afterwards. I think the first series had more Gon x Killua being cute kid-moments in the beginning than this series...but then again, there's more of that later.

Nisemonogatari 4! Shinobu speaks! barely recognized Maaya there. Araragi gathers information about Karen's disease. Love the way they make the lengthiest of conversations visually interesting...even if it's a bit perverted.
Inu x Boku SS 3! Ririchiyo starts school and immediately alienates some classmates with her snobby act even though she is insecure on the inside. Dull and sappy episode. The next one looks more promising.
Last Exile: Ginyoku no Fam 15! This was mostly a filler episode after the annihilation of the north (unfortunately the old geezers did not have another weapon up their sleeves like I had thought). The politics of this show are terrible. After she conquered so many countries, Augusta decides that killing was probably not the right approach to take, and she abandons Luscinia.
Hunter x Hunter 2012 17! Killua quickly gets his target's plate while Gon teams up with Kurapika and Leorio to help Leorio get his.

Hungry 3! The vocalist from Eisuke's band is released from jail and becomes the restaurant's waiter/host. Eisuke's girlfriend feels uneasy about his new dream. Fairly predictable story, but the show is light-hearted fun.

Sherlock 2x03 was more enjoyable than I thought it would be. Do we have to wait until next season to find out how it worked?

I'm also enjoying the slash potential in Grimm...especially the last few seconds of yesterday's episode. Have the fangirls jumped on ship on yet?

Nisemonogatari 3! Araragi meets a weirdo male character...suprise..in front on Suruga's home, and then meets Senjougahara on the way home ending the flashback.

Last Exile: Ginyoku no Fam 14! the battle is nicely orchestrated. While the Federation uses their provincial armies as decoys, Luscinia plans to use Liliana's Exile. Seems the northern country also has their own Exile? Fam heads outta there. I hope Augusta gets a kick in the head soon.

Hunter x Hunter 2012 16! Gon finally gets Hisoka's number tag.

Inu X Boku SS 1! eye-candy

+ Attractive characters
+ Black sparklies
- Random cleavage and panty shots of a pre-teen(?)
- Cheesy dialogue

Quick impression~ A rich, young, girl (who is constantly pms-ing (or is that tsundere again)) moves into an apartment complex that houses elite residents. A young man with mismatched eyes declares himself her secret servant/dog. He and the other SS can call upon supernatual powers when faced with danger. The young girl also has some powers not yet revealed which causes her to want to be alone. There are awkward moments of humor, cuteness, ecchi-like jokes and shoujo-cheese in this show, but visually, it looks very attractive. It reminds me of Kuroshitsuji with its random pacing. I am intrigued by the SSs' half-gloves and the black sparkles that follow Soushi.

Nisemonogatari 2! Araragi's 'fire sisters' are given a proper intro. Picking up from the last episode, Araragi visits Sengoku and Kanbaru next. Despite the fact that the girls try to seduce him by being half-naked or completely naked, it was quite a funny episode. Kanbaru was hilarious. I think the difference between this and other anime that feature ero-fanservice is that they insert the right amount of humor at the right time.

Last Exile: Ginyoku no Fam 13! Good intro, though I wish they animated the action. Fam and Dian from a northern country become friends; bath time! The Federation heads to conquer the north. Fam will go back to warn her new friend.

Hunter x Hunter 2012 15! Gon watches Hisoka...zzz...