First Thoughts: Yona of the Dawn

I haven’t done reviews lately simply because nothing has caught my attention. And by nothing, I mean absolutely NOTHING. That is, until I happened to see a trailer for Yona of the Dawn on my Facebook newsfeed.

Has anyone realized the difference between harems and reverse harems? One thing, reverse harems seem to focus just as heavily on story as romantic interaction. Whereas in harems, no one gives a crap about story and just want to see fanservice. (These speculations come from my own personal experiences, mind you. Though I’d love to see someone prove me wrong.)

So far, Yona of the Dawn looks just as promising as what I saw in the trailer. Obviously they’re geared toward female audience members so I’m biased. While all the basic storytelling components are rather mediocre, there’s still something entertaining about it. Perhaps I’m just happy to at last find a new anime that doesn’t look like garbage.

Let’s talk art. I can’t say I like it, honestly. The hard blush characters have and the overall moe/shoujo style has never impressed me. The character designs are…fence-sittingly generic. What I mean is, I feel like I’ve seen Hak’s design thousands of times..

Yet Yona is a heroine I could easily recognize.

As for the animation…I’m once again, still on the fence. They’ve hardly used still frames (10 points to Griffindor) but there’s nothing impressive about the animation. Hopefully we’ll get some good action scenes later though (here’s hoping~)

Voice acting…define “acting”. I’ve yet to see the dub, but I’ll probably switch over to it simply because Yona’s voice gives me a headache. Her voice doesn’t sound natural at all, as if her seiyuu is trying to be 8 years old. But I see potential with this show, so I’m hopeful actual acting will occur later.

The score fits the anime, but it isn’t memorable. It does remind me of the score used for the Soul Calibur games, however, so +100 points for nostalgia.

Now let’s talk about plot. Here’s the reason I’m continuing this show. While the first episode was predictable and they do have a couple drops of exposition, I have high hopes for Yona’s character. I’m excited to see her development from a helpless princess to the determined and fierce girl shown in the banner art. I want to know what trials she’ll go through to become stronger. Unfortunately, exposition is still exposition. Characters say things that are out of place and obviously directed to the audience. There’s only been a small amount of it so far, however, and I’m guessing it’s because they wanted to jump straight into the story within the limited time of the pilot episode. It’s irksome, but I have a feeling this will not continue. The good thing is, what exposition they use are only little things like “I can’t wait to see my cousin who is 3 years older than me!”. No one says things like that, but it’s tolerable to be used here because it’s not some reveal that will impact the story.

Overall, I’m just happy to finally find a series that has caught my interest. Yona of the Dawn looks promising and hopefully it’ll continue that way.

Reaction: Gun Gale Online – Episode 9

The episode starts off and we’re immediately bombarded by still frames. Oh, A-1 Pictures, you.

So Kirito’s harem is in some room watching the BOB tournament. And of course, all they can do is talk about how AMAZING Kirito is. And that he’s sooo smart and such an amaaazing strategist.

All hail Digital Jesus!

WE GET IT. He’s amazing and you all want the D. Now SHUT UP. Please.

DEASU GUNNU kills someone and the overly dramatic bad guy speech ensues. Hey, Kirito! Sinon! While he’s giving his stupid speech why don’t you try to…you know…attack him? Sinon fires one shot, misses, and they just…sit there.

DEASU GUNNU leaves and our two GGO heroes go after him. But not before they get attacked by some nameless guy and they beat him. Nothing new.

I suck at shooters and I hardly play them, so I can’t really criticize the tactics they use. But even I know that there were A LOT of idiotic things that characters did throughout this tournament. Starting with that guy who went after both Kirito and Sinon. Yes. Go after not only the 2 best players in GGO, but go after TWO people at once. Genius.

Also, can I just say again, WHY ISN’T EVERYONE A SNIPER?! Clearly you’d have a huge advantage in this stage! But, whatever.

Kirito tells Sinon that DEASU GUNNU can actually kill people in real life and she’s in disbelief that “someone like that plays GGO”! How dare a psychopath play her precious video game.

What’s even worse is that as he tells her this, she has another one of her flashbacks and starts freaking out. Sinon THEN proceeds to tell Kiritina that she has a hard time believing his story.

Uh, if you don’t believe him, why are you freaking out? Sigh.

Oh yeah, and we now know that Sinon CAN get panic attacks in GGO. So all these people saying that the “headgear keeps her trauma in check” can now SHOVE IT.

If anyone is actually fearing for Sinon’s life…and were at the edge of their seat at this scene…. I seriously laugh at you.

Who wants to bet that in the next episode, Kirito will show up and “heroically” save his haremette? No one? That’s right, because it’s so painstakingly OBVIOUS that’s what will happen.

Misogyny Online. Where females can’t save themselves. Ever.

If you haven’t noticed the trend, Kawahara CONSTANTLY uses the whole “damsel in distress” trope as a way to heighten drama. And when Kirito inevitably saves said damsel, he’s suppose to be glorified as some kind of mighty savior.

-throws up-

This all goes back to the whole self-insertion theme that is Krito. When something good happens to him…you cheer NOT because you’re cheering for Kirito, but because you want that to be you.

And the “Highlight of the Episode” award goes to….

Heck, I don’t even know anymore.

Next episode, I guess.

Reaction: Gun Gale Online – Episodes 5 – 8

Well…

To be honest, I have been watching every new GGO episode since episode 4. The reason I never posted anything was because I got lazy. There. Now you know.

So I guess I’ll just do a giant review in one sitting!

Pretty much, all you need to know is that Kirito/Kiritina whupped Sinon’s butt in the tournament (No shocker there), there’s more BS going on about Laughing Coffin, and more backwards story writing. 

(RETCON HERE WE COME!)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Ngep0xq7lk

All hail DraconisMarch. He’s said all that I’ve wanted to say (and MORE) in all his reaction videos. So I’m going to be lazy again and say if you want to know what my view on the latest episodes were…just watch his videos. xD

So much for that “review”. But I’m too lazy to care.

I’ll do a proper rant/review for episode 9. Promise. XD

 

Reaction: Ao Haru Ride – Episode 4

Okay, I’m sold. I originally had no interest in this anime but now 4 episodes later, I’m sucked in.

Something I can’t BELIEVE I didn’t notice about Ao Haru Ride is the fact the opening song was written by Honey Works. I knew I loved the opening the first time I heard it, but I didn’t realize it was composed by one of my most favorite Vocaloid producing units! The rhythm and sounds were familiar, but I never made the connection until now. As a die-hard Vocaloid fan, this was SUCH a great surprise. 🙂

 I can’t believe I even missed the nod towards Honey Works’s mascot!!

Well, jumping into the episode, we’re thrown into a fast-paced story line. The beginning scenes were really fun to watch Kou and Futuba running around trying to get to their destination. Overall, the episode was just a blast to watch.

 (Notice that Murao is blushing)

LOVE TRIANGLE SPOTTED!

I’ve always loved friendly love triangles. They’re SO much fun. Especially when you root for either couple. Thumbs up to you, Ao Haru Ride.

Yuri is still my favorite character.

This just made her character even better. It’s usually painfully obvious when characters have alter egos, but I didn’t see it coming with Yuri AT ALL. More points to you, Ao Haru Ride!

I cringed during this scene, however. Have you ever noticed that main characters in shoujos always fall in love with the male love interest because he’s better than her at something? (More often than not, everything.) Ao Haru Ride still hasn’t escaped the cliche shoujo anime zone, but its certainly gotten better.

DO THE SPIDERMAN KISS. DO IT.

 Futuba makes her move!

Jokes aside, his part definitely surprised me. I feel like the romance is moving a lot faster than it should be.

Lady, you just KISSED his head. Stop. If Futuba ends up being a tsundere you can just kill me now. I DETEST tsunderes.

The side ships are starting to appear! I think that was my favorite part about this episode. The fact they’re establishing other couples now.

Okay….fine. I’ll admit it. I’m kind of getting on board with the romance now. Just a little bit.

Or maybe not. STOP THE TSUNDERE. STOP IT. Ao Haru Ride can still escape and keep out the tsundere relationships. I have no desire to watch Futuba turn into some immature, emotionally unstable character who’ll become violent at the drop of a hat. 

(Sorry for the throw up of pictures.)

Anyways, this episode was definitely the best one so far. It’s amazing how much I’ve come to enjoy watching this series. But I swear if Futuba continues to push away her emotions, I’m done. The whole “What are these feelings I have? Is it love? No. I can’t possibly love him!” trope has always pissed me off. It’s fine to a REALISTIC extent, but when they go overboard for most of the season, I end up wanting to shoot the girl. Luckily, when Futuba holds her feelings back, it’s understandable. But the fact she boldly makes a move on Kou and tells herself she doesn’t have feelings for him is nothing but a bad attempt at trying to create drama.

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

The love triangle and the new side ships!

Tune in next time for a look at episode 5! 🙂

Reaction: Barakamon – Episode 4

Because of last week’s episode I was pretty hesitant of this week’s….

But thank GOODNESS I worried for nothing! Episode 4 definitely brought back the same feelings I had the first time I checked out Barakamon. Laughs for everyone!

This episode was so much fun to watch! I just couldn’t help smiling!

I’m actually SUPER allergic to cats myself so Seishuu’s reaction to them made me laugh at how relatable it was. (But unlike him, I’ve always preferred dogs ❤ )

Naru and Hina both appeared in this episode for a large majority too, which already made this episode FAR more enjoyable than last week’s.

This episode was just tons of fun! Which is exactly what I expect from Barakamon. I’m glad this series got back on its feet after episode 3 was such a flop.

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

Being an actual episode of Barakamon. Unlike whatever that mess of an episode was last week…

Glad to see it got back to its hilarious, fun roots. Hopefully next week’s will be just as good.

Reaction: Gun Gale Online – Episode 4

Considering the fact I barely woke up and haven’t eaten anything to start up the snarky part of my brain, this post won’t be as sarcastic or angry as the previous ones.

But I will say, HOLY CRAP WE’RE ACTUALLY IN AN MMO GAISE. OMG. IT’S FINALLY HAPPENING. It’s called Sword Art ONLINE for a reason. I don’t know wtf has been happening for the last 3 episodes. Oh right. We were establishing the awesomeness of Kirito’s next heremette. (aka Sinon.)

Anyways, the episode starts off and Kirito is giving his idiotic speech about how he’s “99% sure DEASU GUNNU is a myth”. Stop. DEASU GUNNU is a FACT. It’s whether or not he can kill people that’s the myth. But who cares about dialogue in an anime about pandering? I mean action. Action. It’s funny because Kirito talks about how he can’t believe video games can kill people in real life. Remember the incident concerning, oh, 10,000 people just last year? How many died again? Shut your hole, Kirito.

WHAAAATTTT?! Kirito’s avatar in game is female?! What a shocker considering the promos and opening NEVER revealed this! Wow! Screw you, A-1 pictures. SAO is bad as it is but the way they revealed everything makes it even worse. Actually, it’s kind of funny. Not “haha” funny, but funny as in A-1 pictures just shoved a stick up SAO’s mighty arse.

Talk about pathetic. Kirito’s portrayal of being a girl is to apparently act woefully cheerful and cutesy. Because that’s just how all girls are, ya know? This scene made me slightly die inside.

I’m pretty sure SAO has now fulfilled every single wish fulfilling fetish there ever was. Tentacle rape? Check. Girls with giant boobs? Check. Girls with nice butts? Check. Crotch shots? Check. Girl with glasses? Check. Lolis? Check. Incest? Check. Groping nurses? Check. The only thing missing is the crossdress fetish. Wait…CHECK!

Wow. Apparently it wasn’t enough that every girl immediately fell in love with Kirito without him trying. Now even GUYS have to hit on him too. Because he’s just that desirable, right? All hail the Gary Mary Sue!

I can’t even stress how stupid Kirito’s female avatar is. The fact that it was random just gives more proof that Kawahara doesn’t know anything about MMOs. He’s probably never even played one before! Everyone knows one of the best things about MMOs is the fact you can customize your character. Your in-game self is designed how YOU want it to look. Who the F*CK came up with the idea of random customization? I would be pissed off if I was given an avatar to look like this gap-toothed ding dong:

I’m not the only one who thought of Moliere from Atlantis during this scene, am I?

If default designs were based on pure luck…no. Just no.

It’s funny because everyone in SAO acts like pretending to be a female online is uncommon. (If it looks female it MUST be female!!!!!) No one would DARE pretend to be the opposite gender ONLINE! That’s ridiculous!

Also, WHY does Kirito bother to hide he’s a male? Why? Don’t give me the “he’s undercover” bull either. If entering that BOB tournament as a noob doesn’t already seem suspicious, then I don’t know what is.

So Kirito and his new BFF/haremette go shopping! And that’s…pretty much the entirety of the episode. No, really. And since Kirito doesn’t have enough money for weapons, he decides to gamble and play a minigame to get money. (By the way, why didn’t the people who hired him GIVE him an account? You know. One that’s already tricked out with the best weapons, plenty of money, etc.?)

Again, projecting the path of bullets COMPLETELY defeats the purpose of FPS.

 

Everyone acts like it’s SUCH a difficult game so that it’ll look that much more impressive when Kirito beats it on his first try. WHICH IS EXACTLY WHAT HAPPENS. 

(OMG Digital Jesus is just TOO COOL.)

Of course there are swords in this world too! Why wouldn’t there be? Kirito wouldn’t be Kirito WITHOUT a super special sword! He also buys a handgun and I’m going to guess that he’ll be able to duel wield his weapons. Which will be some super special skill that only Kirito has. Because Kirito is just so super specially special. News flash – if you can deflect bullets with the light saber, why doesn’t anyone use them?!  Probably because Kirito will be the only one that can do that. He’s the best after all. Plus 100 Gary Stu points to team Kirito!

Sinon and Kirito apparently lost track of time and now only have a few minutes before they can sign up for BOB. In every online game with tournaments I’ve ever played, a public message would be sent to every player reminding them to sign up. This was just laughable. It was just an excuse to make Kirito look super amazing because he can ride a motorcycle.

You’re forgetting he’s Digital Jesus, Sinon. He can do anything.

Oh so THAT’S why Kirito has a motorbike in real life! So he can ride on one in a video game!!! Here’s a thought – If no one can ride those bikes, WHY IS IT POSSIBLE TO RENT THEM?! Also, the thought of an MMO without teleportation devices makes my soul cringe.

Do you know how many quests require you to do things in different areas? This is so stupid. Again, Kawahara knows nothing about video games. NOTHING.

To sum it up, everything in this episode should’ve happened in either the 1st or 2nd episode. But nooooo. We had to first establish how awesome Sinon was and throw a pity party for her at the same time.

I can’t. It’s only getting worse. But how much worse can it get? That is the true question.

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

The design of the city. Because cyberpunk.

Well…I lied about this post not being sarcastic. I guess even without my morning glass of orange juice I can still be snarky. Join me next week for another look into the world of Harem Fetishes Online!

Grave of the Fireflies

• Characters: 2  /3
• Story: 3  /3
• Enjoyment: 1  /2
• Art: 1  /1
• Animation: 1  /1

Overall Score: 8/10

Grave of the Fireflies in one word: Powerful.

The story is about a young boy named Seita who passes away shortly after the end of World War II. His spirit looks back at his experiences during the war as he struggled through various hardships…

I love Studio Ghibli films to death. But, surprisingly, I’d never seen Grave of the Fireflies until recently. I had no idea what it was about before watching it, and wanted it to be a surprise, so I didn’t do any research on the film prior.

Immediately I realized I was about to watch something that would have me crying at the end. And yep. I was.

The characters, the story, the animation…it’s everything I expected from a Ghibli film, but completely different from any other I’d seen. I fell in love with both Seita and his sister, Setsuko. Their bond, their struggles, their laughter, their love for each other…I was completely sucked into the story because of them.

As always the case with Studio Ghibli, the characters were very realistic and well written. But what captured me about Grave of the Fireflies was definitely the story.

I can’t believe how many people bash this movie and say it “demonizes Americans” when it absolutely DOESN’T. The point of the story is not to show how horrible us Americans were – or anyone for that matter. It was to show the devastating effects war has in general while also telling a story that tugs at your heartstrings. There was a comment on the site where I was watching the movie where the person called this movie laughable. That they couldn’t feel sympathy for the characters because they were Japanese, America’s enemies during WWII. How pig-headed do you have to be to say something like that? I understand that in war, you do what you have to do. But it doesn’t change the fact that war is ugly for everyone. And the fact he couldn’t sympathize with Seita or Setsuko, war victims, is lost on me.

This movie is definitely, er…depressing. Like….very depressing. Yet it’s so powerful that it’s ultimately a masterpiece. I’ve said this before, but the best kind of writing is something that makes you feel. Something that can move an audience and bring out emotion. Grave of the Fireflies brought tears to my eyes and made me feel like I’d been punched in the gut. (In a good way, if that’s possible) I felt so much watching this movie; it’s such an enthralling tale.

And of course, as expected of a Studio Ghibli film, the animation was SUPERB. The hand-drawn, smooth movements characters have never cease to impress me.

You can call the art style of Grave of the Fireflies outdated if you want. But that doesn’t change the fact it’s done not only very well, but makes it a classic anime movie. 

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So to sum it up:

Pros: It’s powerful. Definitely a classic anime movie. The characters, story, atmosphere – everything is done brilliantly. It’s a very deep, enthralling tale. For something that came out in 1988, the art and animation are both top quality.

Cons: It’s rather depressing. Kind of like someone beat up your emotions and left them to rot…

Worth watching? If you can handle an anime with deeper, more mature themes… If you can handle being handed a masterpiece at the expense of having your feelings ripped to shreds… Grave of the Fireflies is exactly what you want. It’s a beautiful, compelling, and gripping story that WILL get you to tear up. Plus, it’s a Ghibli film which automatically makes it a top-notch anime movie.

 

Reaction: Tokyo Ghoul – Episode 4

Well…compared to last week’s episode…this one was rather….meh.

Let’s talk characters.

First off, I absolutely detest characters like Tsukiyama Shuu. The fact he even exists kills me inside. I don’t dislike him for anything he does in the story – he makes a good antagonist. It’s his personality that makes me gag.

I kind of wish Touka was the main character. It was sad how she barely showed up this episode. And the few minutes she did were some of the most interesting moments of the episode.

 Meanwhile, Hinami and her mother didn’t even show up in this episode at all. I wonder what happened to them anyways…

Overall, the episode just felt INCREDIBLY rushed. One second they’re at the coffee shop, now Kaneki is sparring with some dude whose name I won’t bother to remember, now there’s a shower scene, and now….wait, what the heck is going on?

Carnival Corpse? I thought this was Tokyo Ghoul not Deadman Wonderland…

Seriously, why in the world was Kaneki there in the first place? He’s so incredibly gullible, I couldn’t even feel sorry for him. That was just pathetic. I heard that in the manga he went to the ghoul restaurant to learn more about Rize’s death. Why they decided to keep out such an important fact is lost to me.

“He didn’t seem like all that bad a person.” You mean like how Rize didn’t seem like all that bad a person? Okay then.To put it bluntly, Kaneki only frustrated me this episode. I can’t believe how stupid and gullible he is even after EVERYTHING that has happened to him. The lack of character development is strong with this one.

This episode was mediocre at best. While it kept my interest till the end, I couldn’t believe how rushed it was. And the fact they left out important information and didn’t care to cover up plot holes annoys me beyond all reason.

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

Touka

Because why not?

Hopefully next week’s episode won’t be as pathetic…

Daily Lives of High School Boys

• Characters: 3  /3
• Story: 3  /3
• Enjoyment: 2  /2
• Art: 0  /1
• Animation: 0  /1

Overall Score: 8/10

I finished Daily Lives of High School Boys (Danshi Koukousei no Nichijou) the day I started it, but my internet connection was messed up, so I couldn’t write a review.

First off, writing a review for a comedy is obviously different from reviewing something like, oh, Angel Beats!. So, even though I gave Daily Lives a higher score, it’s in a different category entirely. The two can’t be compared because they’re so DIFFERENT. So with that out of the way, let’s get started.

Daily Lives of High School Boys is about exactly what it’s called. Can’t get any simpler than that. It’s comprised of short stories rather than a linear plot.The entire anime is nothing but short, simple, hilarious, rollicking stories. It’s probably the funniest anime I’ve ever seen. 

Pretty much every character in this show is hilarious. The conversations and childish antics they partake in is the center of Daily Lives. Not to mention all the characters are completely likable/lovable! The thought of a comedy centered around high school boys definitely sounded interesting to me. I stress “boys” because school comedies seem to always be centered around high school girls for some reason. Lucky Star, Nichijou, Azumanga Daioh, etc. But one about boys? At first I expected an anime with lots of video games and trying to pick up girls. And while there was a conversation or two about both, Daily Lives had SO much to offer! Something I was really surprised about was the fact that there are actually a LOT of girls in this anime too. Regardless of the fact the main characters attend an all boys school. In an anime like Lucky Star where the characters even go to a coed school, I’m pretty sure there was a maximum of 2 males in the entire show. (It doesn’t count if they’re just characters in the background.) There’s even a short at the end of every episode called High School Girls are Funky! Just because of that, Daily Lives brought something totally new to the table!

I really had to pause the video a couple times because I was laughing so hard! While there were some jokes I normally wouldn’t laugh at in any other anime, Daily Lives gets away with it because of how ridiculous it KNOWS it is. It’s been a while since I could just shut off the “critic” part of my brain, sit down, and just watch something without ever making a snide remark!

 

Even without a plot, Daily Lives managed to become one of my favorite anime. I enjoyed every second of it because I never stopped laughing!

While the art and animation isn’t the best by any means, that doesn’t take away from the show at all. It’s too funny to just NOT enjoy!

While Daily Lives portrays pretty much every female character as treating males like monsters or lower beings, it’s only to give way to funny moments. Rather than coming off as misogynistic, it seemed like the opposite, in fact. It felt a lot more along the lines of “girl power!”.

And the males were all completely lovable as well. There’s even a scene where one of them rants on how guilty he was when he accidentally saw up a girl’s skirt. I feel like it’s rare in anime to find males who act like gentlemen without being either overly flamboyant, prince-like, or shy. Daily Lives breaks the norm once again.

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So to sum it up:

Pros: It’s HYSTERICAL. You will be entertained to the very end. There is not one story that didn’t at least make me smile. Not one. The characters are all memorable and lovable – even though it’s not necessary to remember their names!

Cons: The art/animation is under average. (But this definitely doesn’t take away from the anime AT ALL.)

Worth watching? If you like slice of life comedies, this is probably the best one you will ever find. (It’s definitely my favorite.) If you want to watch something that will have you on the floor laughing, Daily Lives is DEFINITELY worth checking out!

 

First Thoughts: Daily Lives of High School Boys

I’ve been looking for a good comedy anime and Daily Lives of High School Boys (Danshi Koukousei no Nichijou) MORE than delivers!

I can’t stop laughing! It’s so funny I had to pause the episodes a couple times!

I love it. There’s really nothing more to say.

I’ve only seen the first episode and it’s already becoming one of my favorite anime. That’s REALLY saying something. I will definitely be writing a review of this in the future! XD