Reaction: Zankyou no Terror – Episode 2

Well, compared to last week’s, this episode was rather slow. I actually zoned out numerous times while watching.

There isn’t much to say, really. While I liked how they went back to explain how the bombs worked, I nearly fell asleep at the same time.

What I found pathetic was the fact the police didn’t catch onto the riddle. Not necessarily the answer, but the riddle itself. How did they NOT notice that rather than the 4-2-3 sequence, Sphinx said 2-4-3. Did they even WATCH the video?

Not to mention Oedipus is a well-known tale in Greek mythology. I don’t know the education system in Japan, but it seemed like practically no one had heard the story.

I get it now. The police are going to be completely incompetent while this guy –

will be the only person relatively intelligent enough to see what’s going on.

Still, I have hope for this series and really want to know what’ll happen next. So, I will be taking a look at next week’s episode. But if it continues to stay slow, I may be dropping it.

and the “Highlight of the Episode” award goes to…

Art, I guess?

Sure, why not?

Reaction: Tokyo Ghoul – Episode 3

Heck yes, episode 3 has been released! I’m actually starting to enjoy this series quite a bit.

As always, the art is great, but while the animation was solid, there wasn’t too much movement in this episode compared to the last two.

Touka, of course, is still my favorite.

In my first thoughts, I mentioned how it was rather strange how she would go from bashful and kind to cold and straightforward…

Turns out it’s just a face she has for work. I’m glad they kept it this way, her character is a lot of fun to watch. 🙂

Now, while I praised Kaneki in the last episode for the small development he gained, this wasn’t a good episode for him. I understand the adjustment to the life of a ghoul would be difficult and Tokyo Ghoul is still doing a good job to show this…but I had a facepalm moment when he saw the dead body at the bottom of the cliff.

…Really? Really?! I think you’ve seen enough messed up things by now that you wouldn’t be surprised by something so mild in comparison. His reactions in this episode felt kind of old.

One of my favorite things about this episode was the introduction of all the new characters. A sweet little girl and her mother, a doctor with some kind of connection with the ghouls, ghoul hunters (called “doves”), a ghoul that makes masks, and some flamboyant dude in a red suit. (Who I have a feeling I’m going to end up hating. 😛 )

(I especially loved Hinami who was just the sweetest thing ^^- )

Finally we’re getting to some major conflicts! I can’t wait to see what the CCG (a group that’s determined to wipe out all the ghouls) is going to play in this story. 

These two were just so interesting and the ghoul slaughtering they did was AWESOME for a horror fan like me.

This episode certainly had its high points and low points, but overall, it was very satisfying. I can feel that it’s slowly moving into the main story now with greater forms of conflict.

And the “Highlight of the Episode” award goes to:

Story development

Join me next week for a look at episode 3~ 🙂

First (and Final) Thoughts: Akame ga Kill

Spoiler warning, but I don’t recommend even wasting the time to watch this anime. Read on to learn why~

So, I read about Akame ga Kill some time last month and had absolutely no interest in watching it. The only reason I watched the first episode was because I was at a friend’s house and he had the grand idea of putting it on.

My initial disinterest remains strong.

The characters are very generic and I couldn’t help but think about Power Rangers whenever they showed up. While the art and animation is good, it’s wasted on such a boring series. The “twist” that occurred in the first episode really wasn’t a twist at all. Just some more sadistic villains with no motivation to do what they do. I’m sick of the whole “I’m better than you, so I can do what I want” excuse for a legit form of motivation, too. And the death of his best friend was a very dry, emotionless scene. I can’t feel bad for characters that were only mentioned and never seen. That’s not how it works.

Also, every girl in the series looks like they can be in a harem. Shallow pandering, anyone? It’s only the first episode and they’ve given plenty of boob shots. Oy.

The episode slowed down for a few scenes too which tempted me to skip….a lot.

The only relatively good things I found were (as mentioned above) the art, animation, and also the ending theme.

To sum it up, the episode was an utter borefest. There was nothing that caught my attention, nothing that got my heart racing, generic characters galore, and the story is neither interesting nor well-written.

I have a two-episode anime rule, but since my friend made me watch it out of my own volition and I had no initiative to look it up from the start, I’m going to screw the rule this time.

Dropping this series like a hot potato feels great.

Nobunaga Concerto Directory

First Thoughts (Episode 1)

First Thoughts: Nobunaga Conerto

And the first episode has finally been subbed! Whoo!

Well, the first time I read the description of Nobunaga Concerto, it sounded like it would be pretty good already. And lo and behold, it is! (At least, the first episode was).

Funny, interesting, and very enjoyable! Even though the “idiot protagonist” trope is way overused, I’m a sucker for it every time. The main character, Saburo, is just so enjoyable to watch and has a lot of room for development.

Also, I’m not familiar with Japanese history in the least, so I love how they gave a short description when introducing new characters. The background art is also beautiful and well drawn.

Something I love about Nobunaga Concerto is that it seems to take on an older anime kind of look. The style somewhat reminded me of Prince of Tennis so it’s hard to believe it came out just recently.

One of my favorite things about this entire anime is the ending song. My favorite band of all time is a Japanese rock band named “One Ok Rock”. The lead singer of One Ok Rock has a little brother who has his own band called “My First Story”. The brothers both have a similar voice, so I immediately realized My First Story was singing the ending song. It was a personally awesome surprise. 🙂

But there were also a couple things I wasn’t very fond of.

For one, the animation style is…different. It kind of seems like as if they used 3D models for the characters rather than actually drawing. The character movements can come off rather stiff.

Also, I found it unbelievable how Saburo isn’t very surprised with traveling back in time. He goes along with his new situation very easily like it isn’t a big deal. Also, there’s a chase scene where he has to ride a horse which I was confused with. I’ve never ridden a horse myself, but I doubt it’s as easy as Saburo makes it look.

None of the characters seem to ask questions about him either. Even when he brought out his modern day school bag and took out items from his own time.

Overall, the first episode was fun and interesting. Even with some aspects that weren’t executed well at all. It’s given enough to convince me to keep watching, which is sufficient.

I’ll be taking a look at episode 2 next time. 🙂