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.

The Fall Anime Season is Here (Part 4)!

Title: Nagi no Asukara
Release Date: Oct 3, 2013
Studio: P.A. Works
Genre: Supernatural, School Life, Romance
Premise: Hikari Sakishima and his three friends, all children from a race of sea-dwelling humans, must attend school with humans on the surface after their underwater middle school closes its doors. Hikari must contend with the ridicule of his land-dwelling classmates, the ire of his fellow sea-dwellers, and a surface boy who has taken a special interest in his childhood friend, Manaka.

Verdict: I probably should have expected this since P.A. Works was involved, but this really registered with me on an emotional level. This will probably hold true for any viewer who has known young love, especially love of the unrequited variety. As Hikari opines in the opening scenes:

"What can I do? Without someone else, she just wouldn't get through life. I have to be with her."

By the time the end credits roll, however, it's apparent to everyone (except perhaps Hikari himself) that he may actually be the one who needs her. The surface boy, Tsumugu, throws many a wayward glance in Manaka's direction, and she doesn't seem to mind the attention. To make matters worse, Manaka's friend Chisaki carries a flame for Hikari; and there's a touching scene where she reveals she is torn between her feelings for Hikari and her friendship with Manaka. Experience says this unrequited love rectangle is sure to only get more complicated as time goes on.

To keep from telling another stale young love story, Nagi no Asukara also adds supernatural elements. Legend has it that all humanity is descended from the ancient sea god, originally living underwater. When a faction of mankind ditched their gills to live on land, the sea god became angry, leading to mankind's travails with droughts and fights over fresh drinking water. Mankind sent sacrificial maidens out to sea in boats to appease the sea god, and sea dwellers are supposedly the offspring of the sea god and said maidens.

Despite these shared origins, it is clear that tensions between the land and the sea are running high. Surface kids tell Hikari and his friends that they "stink of fish" and vandalize his older sister's workplace. The men of his underwater village gripe about fishermen who fish outside of their designated zones. Hikari, who is heir to the shrine where his father serves as high priest, must lend an ear to his fellow villagers' complaints and try to make sense of it all.

It makes for an interesting mix of elements. There looks to be a large ensemble of characters, and write Mari Okada (whose past credits include the excellent Wandering Son and tear-jerking Anohana) seems more than able to communicate everyone's frenzied jumble of emotions. Supporting characters like Lord Uroko (who is already my favorite) should flesh out Hikari and co.'s underwater world and provide some lighthearted moments between bouts of teenage angst. P.A. Works looks like they have another hit on their hands with this one.