Fall 2016 – Mid-Season Round Up

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Weee! I’m finally writing my first mid-season round up post since I started this friggin’ blog. Two seasons have already passed since then, so I guess third time’s the charm?

But what’s all this for, anyway? I mean, I’m already doing weekly round ups, so why one come mid-season? Well, there are just so many shows, and a number of my RL friends often come to me sometime around mid-season just to ask if there’s anything worth picking up. In some ways, you could say they’re more than happy to make me suffer on their behalf, what having to plough through all these shows expecting for the worst… But at the same time it’s always a good feeling when I can recommend a good title or two. Because let’s face it, some shows grow at their own pace, but knowing a show will be worth the effort is always something helpful to keep in mind.

So this will just be a quick rundown of the current standing of all shows this season based on my current census of titles. As with the season preview list and weekly round ups, these shows are ordered in descending rank. Only the season end ranking places the shows in order of ascending rank (they say it’s more dramatic that way). Also, if you’re lazy and just want a TL;DR, look for the words in bold in the last paragraph of each show description.

On a personal note, I’d highly recommend #’s 1-6. The rest might require a bit of… well, patience. Anyway, enough talk, let’s do this!
Continue reading →

Fall 2016 – Week 6 in Review

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Okay, this week sucked. And it wasn’t because of the anime. In fact, the anime did just fine — the rest of the world just basically went batshit crazy.

Of course I’m talking about the US Elections. Heck, I didn’t vote last time because it’s a chore to register as an expatriate; but The Avengers were calling out to me, so I decided to get my butt into gear and register to vote. Never would I have imagined that my first time would turn out a shit hand like this. It just sucks. I wake up feeling like it’s all a dream; I spent most of that day walking around in a daze, only to have to go to a unit comprehensive examination in the evening. It was a shitty day for someone who practically considers himself apolitical. I downed a half a bottle of wine and bought a new headphone amplifier on impulse. I cooked two homemade dishes good for at least eight people and served it to my flatmates for no particular reason.

Sure, you can say I’m overreacting, and yes I agree with you completely. But yeah, boohoo — that’s over and done with. Thank goodness anime was kind enough to console my weary heart this week with some of the most captivating episodes the season has to offer. While Californians are screaming out #Calexit, here I am enjoying my sweet little escapist pleasures. That may sound like me being indifferent — I know what’s going on with feminist rights violations and xenophobic acts of hate on the rise — but at the same time, I’m not sure if I have any energy left in me to be angry. I hate what’s going on, sure, but I don’t want to hate on any other Americans in the same way that Trump supporters have hated on everyone else. It’s a complicated feeling I’m feeling right now, and I’m sorta rambling at the moment — so yeah, let’s talk about anime. Let’s forget about the issues for a second and enjoy our colorfully animated worlds for now. Because it’s time we set down our political differences and enjoy the things that actually bring us together for a change. Continue reading →

Anime and the Love of Headphones 2

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Yup, it’s that time of the week again where I ramble about anime and all things gloriously audiophile. Last week, we talked about Mio Akimiya from K-ON! and the famous AKG K701 reference headphones. In fact, AKG has made many other iconic headphones whose eye candy-like design has made it the object of many animators to include in shows. Case in point these next pair of cans worn by none other than Hifumi Takamoto from last season’s comedy/slice-of-life NEW GAME!! Continue reading →

Fall 2016 – Week 5 in Review

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This was a pretty weird week in animeland. Apart from the fact that many of the shows were basically settling in to their established “groove”, a good number of them managed to be overtly offensive. And if that wasn’t the case, it was the animation that took a turn for the worse. So five weeks in and the shows begin to bare their ugly side.

But that’s not to say that the shows started getting ugly per se. Think of it as how you discover that your significant other likes pressing the toothpaste tube in the middle, or how they bite into a TimTam only to leave it half-eaten in the refrigerator. You don’t necessarily hate them for it, but God is it frustrating. But then again, that’s the point we’re at in this season — just a little ways from hitting the midpoint.

So strap yourselves in for the ride and let’s plunge through what just happened this week! Continue reading →

Anime and the love of Headphones

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First off, I’d like to welcome you guys to a new column entitled Anime and the love of Headphones, which I plan on running for a couple articles. As a short introduction, I’m actually a big personal hi-fi audio geek. It’s probably a hereditary thing since each guy in my family seems to have their own personal preference for audio. For my father, it’s home audio systems; my brother is an expert in car audio (and he even serves as a professional judge in some gigs); for me, it’s headphones and other high-performance audio recording equipment.

Which makes watching anime all the more fun when they cameo real-life equipment in a show. It’s a fact that the headphone market has seen a marked boost in popularity after the release of Beats by dr. dre, and other commercials/celebrities that promote these headsets as forms of fashion statements simply add to the whole headphone craze. And though it might serve as a touch of class in anime for the casual viewer, it’s a pleasant little easter egg for headphone enthusiasts like me when I see a model that I’ve either tested in the past or better yet own myself.

So in these next few articles, I’ll pay tribute to some of the great headphone models that have made their cameo appearances in well known anime (and even manga). I’m pretty sure some of you might have spotted some of these models before, but here’s the point where I share a little extra trivia on what you might not have known about these wonderful pieces of ear jewelry. Heck, you might even be inclined to buy them yourselves!

So enough chit-chat and let’s get started! Continue reading →

Fall 2016 – Week 4 in Review

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Wow, we’re already one month into the season? That just means two weeks until I have to do a mid-season recap — something I’ve always promised myself to do but never got about to doing. Oh well, perhaps this time around I won’t burn myself out given I’m still around after a month of continuous reviews. That’s gotta mean something, right?

So yeah, the last month was actually quite nice. And I say that with all modesty because I’d hate to jinx the situation. It’s been a long time coming since I’ve actually enjoyed a Fall season (Fall always tends to be the best season for some reason), so jumping in to it with low expectations actually gave me the benefit of being surprised when there were, in fact, quite a number of great shows. Sound! Euphonium is the obvious gem of the season, but there are a couple others that simply can’t be ignored.

For this week, a couple other shows have finally come out of their own, in particular Occultic;Nine, which was actually engaging! So just what exactly happened this week? Let’s run’em down! Continue reading →

Turning 30 and still watching animu

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I’m pretty sure someone’s given you that look before, and it was probably followed up by something along the lines of really, you still watch cartoons?

The left half of my brain starts churning up arguments like cartoons ≠ animé, while my right half starts contemplating on the merits of Japanese animation as a unique medium of expression — only for me to end up responding with a rather underwhelming: yup.

I mean, there’s no denying it. Yes, I’m turning thirty. And yes, I still watch cartoons if that’s what you want to call it. There’s no point in analyzing the hermeneutics of animation with someone who thinks anything colorful and drawn is essentially a cartoon. But before you call me out as a pretentious Animé “supremacist” (if that is even a title), I’ll have you know that I actually DO enjoy watching western cartoons as well, although not as passionately or regularly as I would Japanese animation. Heck, I have cousins who work as animators in the United States, so any snide comments about the animation industry in general is tantamount to insulting them.

But really, I’m not here to argue about why people think Animé (or cartoons, whatever) are assumed to be made for younger audiences. And I’m not here to argue with people who assume I should be spending my time doing more “adult-like” things. To be honest, what I do with my spare time is no one’s effing business. But what’s really interesting, to me at least, is how I feel (personally) about watching anime now that I’m turning a decade older. Continue reading →

Reveries and the search for hope

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I realize this is the first time I’m actually writing an essay regarding my thoughts on an Anime. For a site named Anima & Anime, it’s a bit embarrassing that all I’ve ever turned up are rants and rankings of currently airing shows — all the while looking like a half-decapitated chicken trying to pass off as a full-time writer. But essay writing really is something different in that I don’t necessarily have a point to prove. Instead, all I do is simply talk about something that has piqued my interest, case-in-point summer 2016’s understated star: Planetarian ~Reverie of a Little Planet~.

For a show that is only five episodes long, there is a gracefulness to its execution that is both simple yet deliberate. As a part of Visual Art’s/Key’s visual novel line up, it is probably not as dramatically verbose as stories like CLANNAD or Kanon. Regardless, it still makes a solid attempt at yanking the emotional feels of any casual viewer. It’s quite obvious, given the themes, that the story will end in tragedy, but tragedies work precisely because they do not brood over the obvious demise of a member of its cast. Instead, tragedies elevate and emphasize the emotional toils of its characters, allowing their sacrifices to serve as living messages for those left behind (and those watching, as well). A good tragedy, therefore, transcends beyond the explicit experience of sorrow in order to depict a greater message of truth and hope. And this is why Planetarian gets everything right when it comes to depicting sensitive topics such as death and despair. It’s not enough that you punch people in the emotional gut just for the sake of it; this show is far more sincere than that, and yet still deliberately poignant.

Planetarian starts off with the “birth” of Yumemi — the “bargain bin” robot girl tasked to serve as the tour guide at the Hanabishi department store planetarium. We see the world for the first time through Yumemi’s eyes, complete with cryptic-looking, holographic cyphers whizzing about her HUD. It identifies her world as warm and inviting, but at the same time clearly delineates her cold and artificial nature. We are then suddenly shifted to a parting scene where her human counterparts explain to her that they “cannot stay” and request that she “stay strong” under the pretext that “they’ll be back”.

But of course they won’t be back. The world has fallen into chaos. Biological warfare has plunged the world of Yumemi into darkness, and the bustling city she once knew is now a disintegrating maze of decrepit buildings doomed to the ravages of time and neglect. Devoid of humans, the city is now host to weaponized robots that scout the grounds for any signs of life, effectively eliminating anything that breaths or moves. It is in this post-apocalyptic setting that the story of Planetarian takes place. Continue reading →

Fall 2016 – Week 3 in Review

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Bring out the sparklers, it’s time for WEEK 3 IN REVIEW, wohoo!

Yes, it’s kinda weird how time flies when you have fun — and boy, am I having fun. The shows this season are pretty hefty contenders, and a good chunk of them are just enjoying their time at the top spot. Of course, I’m referring to Sound! Euphonium 2. But hey, there’s more to this season than just the KyoAni house favorite. So let’s run down what’s happened this week! Continue reading →

Fall 2016 – Week 2 in Review

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I hate myself.

As much as I said that I’d “limit” my viewing list, turns out I added another two shows, which in total makes for nine shows. That’s pretty much my standard viewing list, so there goes my hopes of “trimming” down anything. 0 – over 9000 in favor of Animu, I guess.

But that’s only because this season is actually pretty great! I’m such an idiot for thinking the releases were pretty dull (shame on you), and that’s probably only because I was in a hurry to tick off things from the list just because the cover art wasn’t so “appealing”. Having said that, wonderful pieces like Akiyuki Shinbo’s interpretation of March comes in like a lion went completely under the radar, and so did Wataru Watari’s gi(a)rlish number.

And so here we go with the week in review as I nonchalantly include these two titles as if I never missed out on watching them in the first place. That said, please–PLEASE do not recommend any more shows for me to watch. I’m seriously going to stick a cacatuar into my eyes if I end up adding another show to my list.

So anyway, back to this week. The shows pretty much powered their way through this week with very little reason for me to be worried. But as always, the first few weeks are the moments these shows tend to place their best foot forward. But if the prize for “most improved show” must go out to someone, then it most definitely has to go to Natsume Yûjinchou Go… Continue reading →