The new anime have all had their premiers, at least the ones I had my eye on. Here is a first impression of those first episodes.
The Dreaming Boy Is A Realist
Wataru is utterly obsessed with the beauty of his class and grade, Aika. He is also confident enough to tell her he loves her...again and again and again. She keeps rejecting him, to the point of being annoyed with his stalker like behavior. His actions are so common the student body thinks of him as her stalker as well. After one failed attempt at winning her over he suddenly realizes what he is doing is wrong. He is now working to not bother Aika, understanding she is not interested in him, instead choosing to be her champion, fighting for hr success in school. But could this sudden lack of attention cause Aika to reconsider hr feelings for the stalker?
While this isn't the typical story of blooming young love where everyone is anxious and unwilling to properly communicate, swinging it into the opposite end of the spectrum isn't really enough to overcome this first episodes short comings. The writing staff crams a large amount of exposition into the episode while at the same time they progress the plot, introducing a competitor for Wataru's affection. The dialogue between the characters is rather hollow and forced. On top of that, the animation and character designs are subpar for 2023. Like, really really terrible artwork and animation quality. I am not sure how long this one will stick around, its going to really have to wow me by episode three before it sees the bin.
The Girl I Like Forgot Her Glasses
Kaede is in love with the girl next to him, bespectacled and aloof Ai. While he spends as much time as he can drinking in her beauty, she has no idea she is being watched. At times she forgets her glasses at school, causing her to focus even harder in class due to their position in the back of the room and her terrible eyesight. These times when she is the most forgetful allows Kaede to become closer to the girl of his dreams.
On the surface, pretty straightforward plot concept. More of a one trick pony akin to Tonari no Seki-kun and Aharen-san wa Hakaranai. Its uncertain how long the series can keep it fresh with this flimsy premise, but what it has going for it is the character design. Unlike the previous entry, this one has some really nice artwork...unless there's movement involved. The character detail is crisp and clean, with an impossible attention to hair movement. The problem comes in when things are in full motion. You can really see the movement algorithms in place on scenes when background characters are moving about. Its quite unnatural and jerky at times. This is also enhanced with some interesting perspective choices, particularly the opening sequence of Kaede walking to school, giving his background information. You can definitely tell they are trying to cut corners and arn't doing well to make it work. Hopefully they get that sorted out before long, because it is a really nice looking series...when nothing is in full motion. That hair though...they gotta tone down the wind effects!
Atelier Ryza: Ever Darkness & the Secret Hideout
Ryza is a girl full of more energy than her isolated island can contain. She is annoyed with her bucolic existence and seeks to venture into the greater world. She convinces her friends to join her on a secret excursion to the nearest land outside of their island. They learned that they are unprepared when they struggle to save a girl they meet from monsters. Instead a pair of seasoned adventurers rescues everyone, bringing them back to a hip destined for their island. Failing and being forced back home in shame only emboldens Ryza's determination as she visits the adventurers for help learning about their life. Ryza has some latent talent as an alchemist and it seems her time in the closed off community is coming to an end...but will she be able to maintain her overbearing optimism in the outside world?
I'll come right out and say I am only here beause of Ryza's thighs and ovr all cute character design. I have never played any of the games the anime is based off of and tend to stay away from fantasy anime. I am not sure if her cuteness can keep my attention long enough. This first doulbe episode was the standard intro gameplay for any JRPG. I can already see in my head plot lines and scenes we will encounter later in the series, as Ryza and her class specific friends encounter greater threats and dangers in the world around them. The animation is good, well done and does this 'infamous' video game series justice. But man, I am not sure if its me seeking it out but the camera angles and shot compositions are quite suspect....quite suspect indeed. Side note, the voice acotr for Ryza shares some qualities with Hirano Aya...strange.
Horimiya: The Missing Pieces
This is really just a collection of story left out of the original series so it doesn't further the story beyond what we had seen at the end...or that is what I suspect, but we will find out as these episodes come out. Either way, Horimiya was an enjoyable story and it will be fun to spend more time with these characters...but the story will be a bit disjointed as these episodes will be out of sync with the flow of the original series. Maybe once it's all out the entire thing can be watched in proper chronological order!
Rurouni Kenshin
Himura Kenshin is a retired samurai, wandering the newly peaceful Japan. He survived the civil war that saw the Emperor reinstated as the head of the government and the outlawing of samurai and swords. Kenshin himself still carries a sword at his side, but the blade is reversed. He says he wields this 'non' lethal alternative to help protect those in need. He runs into a young girl who struggle to keep her family dojo relevant in a world that no longer needs swordsman. A crazed brute has been attacking people recently, saying he is from her dojo and claiming the title of a legendary assassin from the war, Hitokiri Batousai. She wants to bring him to justice and prove he is not from her school. Unfortunately this assassin is a far greater threat to her than she realized. The peaceful Kenshin comes to her aid in defeating the swordsman because he wants to see her vision for kendo flourish and to also clear his name, as he was the real Hitokiri Batousai. The veteran killer may have found a place to settle down in an effort to atone for the death his hands wrought 11 years earlier.
If you've not ever seen the original version of this series form the mid 90's, now is a really good chance to get into it. The artwork isn't spectacularly improved, but it feels like the pace of the story will be better. It's nice to return to this story, but also a little embarrassing as well. There are aspects of the show that are a bit ridiculous, particularly for how much it entrenches its self in real history. if anything, the show doesn't feel right without the original opening theme...that thing is ingrained in my mind for this show. Travesty...
The Masterful Cat Is Depressed Again
Twenty-something single, office lady Saku took in a stray kitten who grew to be...well the size of a human. The cat, Yukichi, has developed a taste for standing upright and doing house chores. Saku isn't sure what to think about the kitten she saved suddenly turning into a motherly figure for her, but shes enjoying having having less chores and a fresh packed lunch every day. Yukichi, well, its hard to tell exactly what hes doing, but he seems to enjoy taking on the role he has grown into. The problem is, its strange and unnatural and Saku is worried about people finding out about her cat.
We have yet another anime by the same studio doing The Girl I Like Forgot Her Glasses. Again, their CG, particularly with outside scenes, is a bit unnatural and off putting. But when it comes to the characters and their expressiveness they are doing a fantastic job! They just need to either clean up the motion process and strive for more natural vehicles and background movement. but man, they are really making some nice looking anime over all. They definitely are pushing a certain style as well when it comes to camera angles and perspectives. Regardless, this is a really fun and enjoyable show and I can't wait to see more episodes....may be the best of the season?
Zom 100:
Akira landed himself a job with a great company after graduating high school. The staff is cheerful, management understanding and one of his coworkers is a super cute girl he desires....or so he though until the first day of work turns into three days of grueling labor to met some random deadline. Akira has ended up being employed by a black company and all he can due is drag himself through each day hoping death will come quickly. After three years of wasting away he is given a beacon of hope...a sudden collapse of civilization in the form of a zombie infestation. Now, faced with no longer needing to clock in at work he finds a new found passion for life. How much life can he live before he succumbs to the zombies?
I knew this was going to be entertaining from the previews and it definitely does not disappoint. This is te best looking series out of the selection for the season and is highly entertaining. It will be hard to say how long the series can remain fresh as both The Walking Dead and My Name Is Earl each were only interesting for so long. For no though I am excited to watch the show and wish more anime had at least half as much attention to detail in the artwork and directing as this one does.
Tonikawa: High School Days
This one is on pause as I still need to finish season two! I was under the impression this was a season that wrnt back to when Nasa was high school age...but that seems to be incorrect based on the first few minutes....pending....pending...
Hyakusho Kizuko
This is a short form comedic look at the life of Arakawa Hiromu growing up on a dairy farm in rural Hokkaido. The first episode has Hiromu in cow-form chatting with a friends over the struggles and complexities of running a dairy farm...including her parents comments...also in cow-form.
It's going to be hard to keep up with this one as no one has licensed it for distribution in North America and as of no its not being fansubbed! It's cute, quirky and fun, but really not much of anything other than an amusing way to wast 4 or 5 minutes in your day.
Reborn As A Vending Machine, Now I Wonder The Dungeon
Our unnamed iseki target, a vending machine otaku, is killed by a vending machine in a freak crash and finds himself reborn in a new world as a vending machine. He is fully conscious and remembers his past as a human on eart. He can not speak beyond triggering a handful of phrases built into the machine and has the ability to control aspects of himself by spending points he earns through sales of items. When he runs out of points he will no longer function, being essentially dead again. He begins to learn how to interact with his new body, resupplying stock, changing items, repairing damage, etc. But when you're an immovable appliance out in the middle of a dangerous wilderness, things can be pretty difficult for you. That is until a super strong adventurer finds him, falls in love with the exotic choices and determins hes got some sort of sentience. She carries him off to a safe area, in hopes to bring him to a friend who has been crafting magical items.
i don't watch isekai for a lot of reasons. This was purely morbid curiosity. I am not going to say it was bad, I am not going to say it was good. But for damn sure, someone put waaaaaaaaay to much thought into this concept. Not sure how much more I will watch, but this is just the right level of stupid to keep me interested for the time being.
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