Berbagi Ilmu {-KpM-}

For the previous anime season (Fall 2011) I put out a post entitled Fall 2011 Anime Season Roundup. Since that went over so well with you guys we’ve decided to make it a regular thing. There are a lot of new shows this season and I’ve checked out the majority of them so you guys can get a good idea of what’s worth checking out this time around. There’s a few silly ones, a few bad ones, and a few that just might be worth watching until the end. Which ones are they you ask? Well let’s find out.

In Mouretsu Pirates the story centers around a spirited high school girl named Marika. She keeps herself busy with space yacht club and her part-time job at a high-class maid cafe. One day, two men suddenly appear and claim to be subordinates of her dead father. They demand that she assume command of the space pirate ship Benten Maru and Marika soon finds herself embarking on her new life as a space pirate.

I have mixed feelings about this anime. I wanted to like it, and I think the premise is cool, but the show itself didn’t do much for me. The animation was good though, I really enjoyed that. There was little to no fanservice or nonsense like that (which is surprising given that the English translation of the title is Bodacious Space Pirates). This one might turn out okay but there was not enough interest in the first episode for me to continue. I don’t think I’ll continue watching it unless it becomes really popular and people start telling me to check it out.

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Who should watch this show: People who like space pirates and pretty anime gals.
Likelihood of me watching another episode: Not too high. It didn’t really grab me from the first episode. Perhaps I will watch more if it starts getting rave reviews.

In Aquarion EVOL the story takes place 12,000 years after the first Aquarion television series (I actually didn’t know this was a sequel until I looked up the synopsis online. Apparently it’s not too important to have seen the first season). A new cast of characters pilots a new Aquarion mech, and fights off enemies from another dimension in this action packed mecha anime.

There’s definitely a lot of stuff going on in this anime. Having so many unanswered questions makes it interesting in the fact that it makes me want to watch more to see where things are going. All these unanswered questions might have something to do with me not seeing the first season, but who knows. I might watch one or two more episodes just to see what happens. The show has promise but I can’t say for sure if I’ll be watching this one until the end.

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Who should watch this show: People who like mecha anime and crazy super powers.
Likelihood of me watching another episode: Pretty good. I’m definitely interested in it enough to check out another episode or two.

In Senki Zesshou Symphogear, humans are menaced by mysterious monsters called “Designated Aberrant Disaster: Noise”. Yes, that is actually what they are called. Tsubasa and Kanade are a popular vocal group known as Zwei Wing and they wear a weapon known as Symphogear to fight the Noise and save Earth. I’m not making this up. Basically the show is about J-Pop stars battling computer generated monsters from the 80s with catchy tunes. It’s pretty weird. And no, this anime has nothing to do with Vocaloids.

Half of the time this show seems serious and the other half it just seems outright ridiculous. I didn’t really like it because it didn’t grab my attention and I didn’t really care for the characters. About halfway through I was just waiting for it to be over so I could start something else. I didn’t plan on watching any more of this one – or at least that’s what I was thinking until I got to the very end of the episode where I witnessed the most wtf moment of this anime season. Looks like I’ve been roped into watching another episode of this one whether I like it or not.

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Who should watch this show: People who like generic J-Pop tunes and wacky premises for their anime.
Likelihood of me watching another episode: I’d like to say zero, but unfortunately I will probably watch another episode just to figure out what the heck was going on at the end of the previous episode. Damn you, Symphogear.Damn youuuuu.

In Danshi Koukousei no Nichijou (The Daily Lives of High School Boys) the story follows the humorous everyday life of Tadakuni, Hidenori, Yoshitake, and other students at an all boys’ high school. Each episode tells a handful of humorous shorts meant to entertain and amuse. It’s very much a slice-of-life anime.

Okay, so the show is definitely funny and I was laughing throughout the episode. The only thing that I don’t like is how the episodes are broken down into about five 5 minute stand alone shorts. While each of them were pretty funny on their own, I just wish that the show had more of a cohesive storyline. Because of this, I would gladly watch the show as I think it is quite humorous, but there are no cliffhangers or any unresolved questions that would really get me excited for the next episode. It’s humorous fluff – enjoyable, but nothing deep.

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Who should watch this show: People who like anime about high school boys getting into shenanigans and silly situations.
Likelihood of me watching another episode: I’ll probably lazily watch some more if I have time to kill and I’m looking for a laugh.

In Lagrange, Madoka Kyouno, an energetic and passionate girl, is the proud and only member of the Kamogawa Girls’ High School Jersey Club. Her duties are to go around town and help out people in need. However, Madoka’s life is turned upside down when she is suddenly asked by a mysterious girl named Lan to pilot a giant robot and save the world. Motivated by her desire to protect the people of Kamogawa, Madoka agrees to pilot the resurrected Vox robot and fight some aliens.

This show seems like it could be pretty cool. It reminds me a bit of Xam’d for some reason and I really liked Xam’d. I’m not exactly sure why it reminds me of it though. The show is funny, action packed, and has enough mystery in it to really make me want to watch the next episode. This is one of the few series I’m actually a little bit excited about this season. Hopefully it doesn’t let me down.

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Who should watch this show: People who like quality animation, cool action, and a neat story.
Likelihood of me watching another episode: I’m definitely watching the next episode. It just seems really cool so far and I really like the animation.

In Brave 10, a young ninja/samurai named Saizo is trying to find meaning and direction in his life when he encounters Isanami, who is fleeing from assassins. He manages to save her life and then gets roped into being her personal bodyguard. When they arrive in the protected territory of Sanada, they realize that Sanada has gathered bold and talented ninjas together in order to bring an end to Japan’s era of war. Meanwhile, Isanami’s mysterious hidden power becomes revealed. Sounds pretty generic to me!

The animation is fine here, but the story seems nothing but average. I can’t see the show getting much more exciting than it already is which isn’t very. I don’t plan on watching any more of this show. It’s just not my thing. There are much better options to check out this season so you won’t be doing any harm skipping this one.

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Who should watch this show: People who like samurai era anime and pretty boys battling it out with swords.
Likelihood of me watching another episode: Zero. Can’t see any reason to continue this one.

Ano Natsu de Matteru: When a group of friends decide to make a movie over a long summer holiday, they end up learning a little about film making and a lot more about themselves. What begins as a simple way pass the summer holiday turns into something much more complex, intimate, and revealing. This show is going to be good. I’m calling it now.

I really, really like this show. I can definitely see myself watching the entire series here. The story seems like it could turn into something very interesting and I really like all of the characters. They’re all varied and interesting and well developed. This anime is just really well done. I’m excited just to see what happens with all of the characters and even more so to see what that story will develop into. Before I watched this show, Lagrange was my top pick for this season, but now – Ano Natsu de Matteru is definitely in the top position. This show is full of surprises and I love it. Very cool.

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Who should watch this show: People who like interesting character driven anime.
Likelihood of me watching another episode: Definitely. I really like this show and can’t wait for the next episode.

I tried watching Kill Me Baby which was adapted from a 4 panel manga (it definitely shows), like Lucky Star and whatever, but nowhere near as good asAzumanga Daioh- I got bored and stopped watching after about 5 minutes. There was at least one other show that I didn’t check out because it didn’t sound very interesting. (If there’s a show I didn’t cover that you were looking forward to, just let me know about it in the comments.) And also, Black Rock Shooter doesn’t come out until February so I couldn’t include it here.

Amagami SS+, The Familiar of Zero F, Natsume Yuujin-Cho 4, andNisemonogatari all aired this season but they are sequels to shows I never got around to watching. Nisemonogatari was the sequel to Bakemonogatari which I think ended up becoming popular but I’m not positive. I watched the first episode of Bakemonogatari and it didn’t grip me enough to continue watching the show back when it was airing. Did I make a mistake? Have any of you watched Bakemonogatari? Was it any good?

So tell me – what’s your most anticipated new show this season? Ano Natsu de Matteru, or something else? What series are you most looking forward to?

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