Summer Anime 2009

Discussion in 'Science Fiction & Fantasy' started by firehawk12, Jul 10, 2009.

  1. firehawk12

    firehawk12 Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    You know, I'm not sure if I should do this thread here or in the GTVM board, but I get the impression that the people who watch anime read SFF more so I guess I'll just play it by ear.
    (Of course, I could also be talking to myself here...)

    Anyway, it looks like the new season has started and I was just wondering if people here have watched of the new shows?

    Of the ones I've seen, so far I like:

    Sora no Manimani - a break from all the Tsunderes in the Spring, this time it's a Genki girl as the love interest. At first glance, it seems like a Haruhi clone replacing the SF stuff with slapstick, but it works for me as a nice replacement for Hatsokoi Limited.

    Aoi Hana - because I love slice of life school stuff at the moment, this seemed like another no brainer. A shoujo-ai series without the fanservice works fine for me... although, it just makes me wish there was a new shounen-ai series around the corner. It doesn't help that in the fall, yet another shoujo-ai series will start up - although that one is more of a comedy I suppose.

    Bakemonogatari - A show about curing various people of supernatural ailments, including vampirism. I watched this based simply on the Shaft name. I sat through Maria Holic, mostly for the style, but I think this shows a little more promise in that it looks like plot actually happens in this show.

    Zan Soyanara Zetsubou Sensei - Speaking of Shaft... well, in some ways it looks exactly the same as Bakemonogatari. :lol: I just caught up with the previous seasons, so I'm a little burnt out on the concept (even though I find it more hilarious than... say, South Park, the only American equivalent I can come up with), but it hits the right beats for someone more normal and has been waiting a couple of years for a new season.

    Sea Story (Umi Monogatari) - I checked this out because it is directed by the person who did Aria... and the first episode screamed Aria to me, what with its slow pace and constant music soundtrack. Then it turned into a magical girl series with weird transformations and whatnot and I felt a bit of shock. I'll probably stick with it just for kicks, but it took a huge unexpected left turn for me.

    Taishou Yakyuu Musume - a series about girls in the 20s trying to play baseball. Hey, it works for me anyway. :lol:
    Also, the fact that the first episode starts with this song makes it awesome. :)

    I'm also thinking of checking out Mouryou no Hako (even though it started a while ago), Umineko no Naku, Tokyo Magnitude 8.0, CANAAN and Spice and Wolf, even though I don't really know anything about the previous season.

    Of course, there's still quite a few unfinished series from the Spring that are still going. Haruhi is on 254th episode of Endless Summer (much to the chagrin of a lot of people) and Cross Game, Saki, Valkyria Chronicles and Hayate keep chugging along.
     
  2. SlaveOfSeven

    SlaveOfSeven Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    Sora no Manimani - I wasn't going to watch this but I did on a whim, and I'm glad. Quite amusing.

    Aoi Hana - I thought the art style was refreshing and quite attractive.

    Bakemonogatari - Thought the arty direction was a bit out of place, but seems like it could be cool.

    CANAAN - first episode was pretty interesting. Visually very nice and had a good atmosphere. Very cinematic. Not without some silliness though.

    Spice and Wolf II (I think it should be Wolf and Spice given the repetition of "Wolf" in the titles, but there ya go) - Horo and Lawrence were on top form with their banter in the first episode. Will probably be my favourite show of summer, particularly if Haruhi doesn't do something fairly spectacular soon.
     
  3. CorporalClegg

    CorporalClegg Admiral Admiral

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    Aug 23, 2001
    I'm so far behind on my anime. I really need to catch up. The problem is I don't know where to start.

    I still have like five shows from the Spring season that I've watched part-way through and haven't finished. There's even a couple from last fall. :eek:
     
  4. Luckyflux

    Luckyflux Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

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    USA-CA-LA(Hollywood)
    What is your opinion on Gantz? I recently watched the first few episodes and it was OK. I then read about it online and found that many fans thought it was under-achieving.

    I always liked anime, but I too don't know where to start or what to go for. I like Science Fiction, Mysterious Stuff, Cyber-Punk, Spy, can you recommend some titles like that, or other good anime websites?
     
  5. SlaveOfSeven

    SlaveOfSeven Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex would be just the ticket.
     
  6. melancholymecha

    melancholymecha Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    anyone know if Adult Swim will be picking up any more anime other than Bleach & reruns of older shows?
     
  7. CorporalClegg

    CorporalClegg Admiral Admiral

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    Adult Swim sucks!

    I know that's not what you asked, I just felt the need to offer my unsolicited opinion. :D
     
  8. firehawk12

    firehawk12 Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    Aug 4, 2002
    Of the new shows that I've seen, I would say that Eden of the East and Requiem for the Phantom fit the bill.

    If you are looking for recent stuff, I've just been reading a lot of review blogs, of which there are plenty like this one:
    http://psgels.blogsome.com/

    But for older stuff, I'm mostly stuck. :lol:

    There was a long thread here I started where I was looking for random mecha and then romance anime that you should be able to dig up that has several suggestions.
     
  9. clint g

    clint g Admiral Admiral

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    I would say that Sora no Manimani was the big surprise for me so far. It was a great start for a show and I was expecting another generic harem show.

    Spice and Wolf II is my current favorite of the season. The first season was a great show in its own right but the second season has come out of the gates running. I'm looking forward to the rest :D

    Haruhi is another one I was looking forward too and I still enjoy it, but yeah. We have a thread on this one already haha.

    The problem with Gantz is that the manga was still ongoing and a lot of the later stuff (as in more than 75 percent of it) didnt make it into the show. Its not so unusual for anime but some shows pull it off better than others. Gantz did not pull it off very well. if you want Cyber-Punk stuff there is always Ghost in the Shell and its various movies and TV shows. Darker than Black is another one you may want to give a shot

    if you want a good website check out myanimelist.net Its an anime database where people review and rate anime. It has breakdowns by genre and whatnot as well as a tracker that lets you keep track of the shows youve watched. animenewsnetwork.com also has a similar feature
     
  10. firehawk12

    firehawk12 Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    Out of curiosity, do I need to watch the first season of Spice and Wolf (or Wolf and Spice)? :lol:

    Oh yeah, totally forgot to mention Full Metal Alchemist Brotherhood. I never saw the original, but this remake is pretty damn awesome. Like FMP, there's a great blend of drama, tragedy and comedy.
     
  11. clint g

    clint g Admiral Admiral

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    Yeah, Full Metal Alchemist was awesome but Brotherhood is awesome in that it follows the manga this time around lol

    And while you probably wont need to watch Spice and Wolf to get Spice and Wolf II, you'll only be depriving yourself of one of the greatest animes to have come out in 2008 :p Seriously, it takes economics and bartering and makes turns it into a fun TV show :D Soooo in conclusion...... go DL Spice and Wolf and the Spice and Wolf OVA right now and watch. You wont regret it :p

    EDIT: And yeah, Horo and Lawrence are one of the most awesome anime pairs ever :D
     
  12. SlaveOfSeven

    SlaveOfSeven Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    Another vote for watch the first season. The show is less about plot and more about the two main characters and their relationship, so while you could just pick it up in Season 2 and not miss much plot-wise, you'll be missing out on character stuff which is the real reason to watch the show in the first place, including Horo's backstory, which is pretty important in understanding her character.

    Luckyflux, a review site you might want to check out is T.H.E.M. Anime Reviews. There are a lot of reviews there and you can sort them by star rating, and I find their ratings are pretty reasonable and a good place to start looking.
     
  13. C.E. Evans

    C.E. Evans Admiral Admiral

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    It's apparently a lucky thing that Adult Swim hasn't dropped anime altogether...yet.
    :vulcan:

    The unaired episodes of Moribito might be the closest to a new acquisition right now.
     
  14. firehawk12

    firehawk12 Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    I also like this review site: http://www.nihonreview.com/

    And, I guess I'll check out the first season... so much to watch!
     
  15. barnaclelapse

    barnaclelapse Commodore Commodore

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    I really need to start watching Anime again beyond the stuff I have to watch at Katsucon. I'm the department second for Video Operations, so I do generally have a rough idea of the hot titles out during that time period (Jan-Feb), but I really can't say any of the stuff we wind up screening ever really grabs.

    I know there's new Anime out there that's probably awfully damn good. I just never get around to seeking it out and wind up watching old stuff whenever I do sit down to enjoy some Anime.
     
  16. Peach Wookiee

    Peach Wookiee Cuddly Mod of Doom Moderator

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    If they'd stop dissing the fans and putting up good anime again, their ratings might go up. I mean, come on... Family Guy? And their... live action? Gag me...
    Robot Chicken and Moral Orel are and were stop-action. And they're enjoyable. But some of AS's stuff lately... :wtf::wtf::wtf:
     
  17. melancholymecha

    melancholymecha Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    Aug 21, 2002
    thanks,
    yeah I havent been watching AS "action" since they screwed up the Code Geass schedule, making me miss some episodes of R2(Im just gonna watch the rest on dvd, thank you Netflix) so I have no idea whats going on in that end or heard any news about them picking up anything new. I have a feeling after they burn of the rest of Moributo they will just probably finish Bleach & thats it. Though maybe theyll give the new FMA a try since the original series seemed to had done well there.
     
  18. C.E. Evans

    C.E. Evans Admiral Admiral

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    Adult Swim can poke fun at anime fans because the comedies can get up to three times the ratings of the anime shows (Bleach is the only show that is considered a serious contender on Saturday nights, and even it falls noticeably short of the Sunday night shows). Comedies are where Adult Swim's bread and butter is, and they have no problems letting anime fans--who frequently send them otaku-style letters/emails complaining about this or that--know that.
    This is only the beginning...
    :borg:
     
  19. barnaclelapse

    barnaclelapse Commodore Commodore

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    I caught some Adult Swim on TV in the hotel room I was staying at while staffing AMA. It looks about as lame as it's been the last two or three years. They seem to have this weird mathematical formula worked out where it's three to five bad shows for every good one.

    I'm also tired of them trying to get multiple seasons out of jokes that were only marginally humorous the first episode out.
     
  20. zakkrusz

    zakkrusz Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    Jan 18, 2002
    Location:
    United States
    I'm currently watching:

    Bakemonogatari- I like it's strange sense of humor and homages to other anime. Not sure exactly where it's going yet. Hiragi is one of the more interesting characters I've seen in a while.

    Canaan- A reporter and his camerawoman look for scoop and seem to have gotten it, along with what looks like a lot of trouble. Seems like a highly interesting "girls with guns" show and I'm a sucker for those. It also has some interesting elements of mystery and an interesting cast.

    Needless- It's kind of Scryed ripoff if you ask me. Your standard people with powers fighting show. Entertaining enough to pass some time, but nothing overly complex or worthwhile. It revolves arround a boy trying to survive in a devestated area of Japan as he's being hunted by a group of superpowered vilains.

    Spice and Wolf II- The long awaited sequel. Currently am enjoying my Horo fix as usual. Also yeah, it's amazing how this show can be so good when it's subject matter (economics and trade) is so dry. It's supported by the excellent characters.

    Tokyo Magnitude 8.0- Mirai is having a bad day stressed over family trouble and worried about her grades and future carreer, and now she's been saddled with shaporoaning her little brother Youki arround town instead of enjoying her summer break. She wishes everything would just fall apart....well she should have been more careful what she wished for as she got it. A massive earthquake strikes Tokyo and the two siblings are trapped in the destroyed remains of a multi-story mall.

    Umeneko no Naju Koroni- Another supernatural murder mystery from the creators of the Higurashi no Naku Koroni series. When the rich head of a family becomes terminally ill, his sons and daughters meet on an isolated iland to (calously) decide how to divide up the family wealth. No doubt many people will croak before this series is over.

    There's also a buch of shows still running that haven't completed yet which I'm watching like Asura Cryin', Bleach, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, Guin Saga, Melancholy of Haruhi Suzimiya II, Naruto Shippuden, Pandora Hearts, Phantom, and White Album. I'm also enjoying a bunch of OVA series and movies as they're sporadically released such as Denpa Teki no Kanojo, Dogs: Stray Dogs Howling in the Dark, Hellsing Ultimate, Higurashi no Naku Koroni Rei, Kara no Kyoukai, Time of Eve, and the Utawarerumono OVA.
     
    Last edited: Jul 13, 2009