June/July/August 2009 Anime List

I know I havent actually been reviewing any anime since last year, but since I am currently unwell, I have compiled my thoughts on the new series. Nothing really that special, but we will see…..

To Fast-track, here is the order of series reviewed….

Umineko no Naku Koro ni
July 1st

Summary: Umineko no Naku Koro ni takes place in the year 1986, during the time frame of October 4 and October 5 on a secluded island named Rokkenjima (六軒島, Rokkenjima). The head of a wealthy family named Kinzo Ushiromiya, who lives on and owns Rokkenjima, is near death, and eight of his family members arrive on the island to discuss how Kinzo’s assets will be divided once he is dead. Also on the island are three family members who live there, five of Kinzo’s servants, and his personal physician. After the eight family members arrive, a typhoon traps them on the island and shortly after people start to get mysteriously murdered. [AnimeNewsNetwork]

Comments: I did really enjoy Higurashi no Naku Koro ni (Kai) therefore this series does automatically spark my interest. I have played the first two visual novels of it (Most probably covering Episodes 1-8 of this series, or maybe more). More blood, more mystery and less loli leads it to possibly being much better than Higurashi. If I pick one series to review, this will be the one.

Element Hunters
4th July

Summary: Chemical Elements disappear from the planet, causing forests, buildings and life itself to disappear. Research reveals the elements have been flowing into another Earth on the other side of a dimensional wall – that can only be accessed by those with flexible minds. A team of Element Hunters is formed to return the elements to earth.

Comments: I only look at this one in interest for the crazy chemistry aspects within it. Simply, I am interested to see how elements will keep disappearing. It would always be an easy way to end the series by removing either Carbon, Nitrogen, Oxygen or Hydrogen out of the world but that wouldn’t be fun right 😉

Aoi Hana
1st July

Summary: Fumi Manjoume, an introverted, bookish teenage girl, is beginning her first year of high school at Matsuoka Girls’ High School. She enters the school year with her heart broken by a previous relationship. At about the same time, she reconnects with her best friend from ten years ago, Akira Okudaira, who is now attending Fujigatani Girls’ Academy as a first-year high school student. As they reconnect, they both deal with their own respective romantic problems, and help each other get through them.

Comments: Meh, this storyline sounds like a bore, another storyline on two girls helping each other through relationship troubles.

Bakemonogatari
3rd July

Summary: Koyomi Araragi is almost human again after briefly becoming a vampire. When Hitagi falls down the stairs into his arms, he discovers he weighs almost nothing, and offers her help from a middle-aged man. Koyomi encounters different apperitions in a series of interconnected stories.

Comments: It is produced by SHAFT, which basically screams that it will be something comedical, however the story sounds different than usual so I am inclined to watch it. Another easy way to end the series, take Hitagi outside in a draft or even grab a fan Mwahaha! Althrough once again, I am hoping this is good.

CANAAN
4th July

Summary: The modern-day story centers on a present-day story about a detective, a young man, a virus researcher, a, and a cat mascot character who are brought together in the Tokyo neighborhood of Shibuya by bizarre events with worldwide implications.

Comments: From the look of the graphics of this series, it is going to be a very intensive setting and the storyline doesn’t really give much detail into the ‘worldwide implications’ so it will be a rather hit or miss chance at getting my blogging interests.

Fight
Fight Ippatsu! Juuden-Chan!!
25th June

Summary: The story revolves around Puragu or Jūden-chan, a mysterious office lady (OL) who came to our world from a parallel world to “charge” up dejected people.

Comments: Oh, I now have no intent on blogging this knowing how is supposedly has a greater than normal Ecchi factor. Just had the image that I made a few weeks ago so I thought I might as well make use of it ._.

GA: Geijutsuka Art Design Class
6th July

Summary: Follows five first-year senior high students in an art focused school as they play and learn. Offers some basic art information and color theory, with color pages spaced throughout.

Comment: I only intend on watching this to see if it can save the art-class genre of anime for me… Hidamari Sketch wasn’t really my cup of tea (Wasn’t a bad anime, just that I am not really that into art). If it is what it seems to be, an animated art class, then I have to say goodbye to this and most probably the whole art-class genre of anime forever.

Yoku Wakaru Gendai Mahou
11th July

Summary: The story revolves around Koyomi Morishita, a clumsy high school freshman girl who is often mistaken for a grade-schooler because of her shortness. Koyomi becomes a disciple of Misa Anehara, a 25-year-old graduate student who happens to be one of the most powerful modern-day magicians.

Comments: The artistic style and the short summary seems to state one thing, this is going to be a very interesting but complex storyline. But hey, a modern-day magician does sound interesting…

Kanamemo
5th July

Summary: The story centers on Kana Nakamichi, a middle-school girl who had already lost her parents and just recently lost her only remaining relative, her grandmother. As a result, she ends up living and working at a newspaper delivery office. Everyone else living at the office are all charming, self-assertive bishōjo. The manga follows Kana’s daily life in the fast-paced yet joyous environment.

Comments: Among all the crazy fantasy anime of this season, I feel like an anime like this may bring the tone down just a little bit… still, a tad too childish >_>.

Princess Lover
5th July

Summary: Teppei Arima is a second-year high school student who lost both of his parents in a traffic accident on their way home from a family trip. His grandfather, Isshin Arima, happens to wield the puppet strings in Japan’s vast economy and demands that Teppei becomes his successor as the head of the Arima Group. To prepare for his debut into high society, Teppei enrolls in an elite academy for the scions of the rich and powerful.

Comments: OOOH! Economy! Elite Academy! I am so mildly interested… dunno, another hit or miss anime in my opinion.

Sora no Manimani
7th July

Summary: In the story, Saku Ōyagi is a quiet bookworm who moves back to his former hometown as a high school freshman. He meets his childhood friend, Mihoshi Akeno , although a traumatic incident long ago had left their friendship in an awkward state. Despite this, Mihoshi brings Saku into the astronomy club she founded, and this sets the stage for the slapstick romantic comedy that

Comments: Another long lost relationship anime. This time with an astronomy club and a romantic comedy…. will be interested to see how much this series offers.

Taisho Yakyuu Musume
2nd July

Summary: The novels are set in 1925 when two 14-year-old Japanese high school girls named Koume and Shōko decide to start a baseball team in Japan where few baseball teams — male or female — exist at the time. First though, the two girls have no clue where to find nine players, how to use the equipment, and what even the rules are.

Comments: I will give this series a merit for a very different storyline. Besides that, I doubt it will get far in my books, me and sport do not work well.

tokyo-m8
Tokyo Magnitude 8.0
9th July

Summary: The premise of the project is the 70% or higher possibility that a magnitude 7.0 earthquake will occur in Tokyo in the next 30 years. The anime will depict what would happen if an 8.0 earthquake took place. The story will center on Mirai, a middle school freshman girl who goes to Tokyo’s artificial Odaiba Island for a robot exhibition with her brother Yutaka at the start of summer vacation. A powerful tremor emanates from an ocean trench, the famed Tokyo Tower and Rainbow Bridge crumble and fall, and the landscape of Tokyo changes in an instant. With the help of a motorcycle delivery woman named Mari who they meet on Odaiba, Mirai and Yutaka strive to head back to their Setagaya home in western Tokyo.

Comments: Not every season you see an anime like this which actually focuses on serious implications of an environmental disaster. Will definately keep an eye on it since it could turn out to be a very fascinating watch.

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This is all the reviews so far. More may be coming soon if I can be bothered making more images if I find a few more promising series. These series are ones that I thought had the slightest chances of capturing my attention and it was actually supposed to be posted early this month, but fell into my drafts pile. Credits for Summaries go to AnimeNewsNetwork and MyAnimeList whilst images are taken from the respective official sites for the animes. Special thanks to Moetron for the anime list.