Spring Anime 2014 (Part 1)

Title: Selector Infected Wixoss
Release Date: April 3, 2014
Studio: J.C. Staff
Genre: Supernatural, School Life, Card Battle
Premise: Ruko Kominato is having trouble making friends at her new school. Everything changes when she becomes a Selector, a special type of girl who can gain power by winning battles in Wixoss (read: we-cross), a popular card game.

Verdict: If there's one thing anime has taught me, it's that the fate of the world is often decided by children's card games. This series looks like it's going to take this principle and run with it, adding a dash of Puella Magi Madoka Magica's gritty edginess along the way. The dark mood is established early, as two black silhouettes engage in a battle to the death before the opening credits roll. We are then introduced to Ruko, affectionately called Ru-chan by her grandmother, a shy but likable high school student who shares an apartment with her grandmother and older brother.

Ruko is introduced to the world of Wixoss quite quickly when her grandmother buys her a starter pack, hoping it will help her make friends. Oddly enough, the first friend Ruko makes is one of her cards. It is eventually explained that certain Wixoss cards possess sentient avatars with wills of their own; when these cards, called RLIGs, find their way to the right owner, that person becomes a Selector. Selectors who win card battle obtain more power and come closer to being named the "Eternal," a Selector who is able to become her idealized self and have any wish granted. However, if a Selector loses three battles, she is stripped of all power and banished from the world of Wixoss forever.

There are plenty of talented names involved with this project and it shows. J.C. Staff's top-caliber animation skills are on display again. Tama does battle with other RLIGs in a mesmerizing alternate dimension, and a haunting dream sequence in the middle of the episode should provide plenty of (gorgeous-looking) nightmare fuel for younger viewers. Wixoss is directer Takuya Sato's first project in three years, but considering his last work was 2011's spellbinding Stein's; Gate, the series is in good hands. Add in the tight scripts of prolific anime scribe Mari Okada (Nagi no Asukara, Blast of Tempest), and this could shape up to be a must-watch.

Winter Anime Season (Part 1)

Title: Witch Craft Works
Release Date: December 30, 2013
Studio: J.C. Staff
Genre: Supernatural, Magical Girlfriend, Harem, Comedy, School Life
Synopsis: Average high school student Honoka Takamiya suddenly finds his life turned upside down when a building mysteriously drops on him from the sky above. Honoka's is suddenly rescued by school idol Ayaka Kagari, who reveals herself as a witch sworn to protect him.

Verdict: Impressive production values and an intriguing premise save this from being just another harem. Based on Ryu Mizunagi's popular manga, the anime wastes no time throwing Takamiya into the over-the-top, silly and often dangerous world of witches. Facing such perils as falling buildings, armed bunny robots and Kagari's own rabidly jealous fan club, Takamiya rarely has time to process all of the weird circumstances in which he finds himself. His bumbling surprise and amusing observations are comically offset by Kagari's unflappable stoicism. Director Tsutomu Mizushima is right at home thanks to his work on gut-busters like Genshiken, Yondemasu yo Azazel san and +Tic Nee san, and the magical battles by J.C. Staff (Shakugan no Shana, Toaru Kagaku no Railgun) balance a sense of absurdity and danger. Much like Takamiya himself, the audience barely has time to breath in between new revelations that raise new burning questions. How does magic work? Who are the "Tower Witches" and why are they after Takamiya in the first place? Is Kagari always an emotionless doll? This show is enticing enough to warrant a second look.