Summer Premier Season (Part Six): Uchouten Kazoku

Title: Uchouten Kazoku
Release Date: July 7, 2013
Studio: P.A. Works
Genre: Supernatural, Comedy, Drama, Slice of Life
Premise: In the city of Kyoto, humans, tanuki (raccon dog spirits) and tengu live among one another without intermingling. Except for Yasaburo Shimogamo, a tanuki who is fascinated by the world of humans and tengu, using his shape-shifting ability to move between societies.

Verdict: This seems like a slow burn, but a slow burn worth watching nonetheless. Aside from Yasaburo's opening narration, which basically reiterates the premise, there isn't much exposition; it's a welcome change from most anime that waste airtime by having characters or a narrator explain how the world works. Instead, the audience is dropped into the story and follows Yasaburo around town, learning the dynamics of Kyoto as he goes about his day. There's plenty to learn in spite of this hands-off narrative approach.

It's apparent Yasaburo doesn't hold much clout in his family due to his habits. He runs into two of his brothers, one older, one younger, and both view his shape-shifting with disapproval or confusion. He also pays frequent visits to his "Master" an old tengu who has lost his ability to fly, and, consequently, his sense of pride. Most importantly, he seems to be acting as a go-between for his Master and the mysterious Benten - a tengu with a sultry femme fatale vibe who might have a romantic history with Yasaburo, his Master, or both.

So far the show is playing its cards pretty close to its chest, but there's definitely hints of a bigger story waiting to be told. I have every confidence that said story will deliver because 1) P.A. Works has yet to disappoint me (seriously, go watch Angel Beats! if you haven't already) and 2) it's based on a novel by Tomihiko Morimi, whose other novel The Tatami Galaxy has already been adapted into one of my all-time favorite anime. With credentials like that, I have no problem waiting until next week to get the whole story.

Summer Premier Season (Part Five): Genei wo Kakeru Taiyou

Title: Genei wo Kakeru Taiyou
Release Date: July 6, 2013
Studio: AIC/Aniplex
Genre: Supernatural, Magical Girl, Action/Adventure, Drama
Premise: Akira Taiyou, the daughter of a deceased Tarot card reader, doesn't see it coming when she suddenly awakens magical powers on the anniversary of her mother's death.

Verdict: And just like that, Symphogear has some company as the series to watch this season. I almost didn't give this one a chance because of its cutesy art style and character designs, but look past the super-deformed exterior and you'll find a much more mature story waiting underneath.

Things start out simply enough for Akari, who has adjusted surprisingly well in the year following her mother's death, taking over her mother's Tarot card reading business and moving in with her aunt, uncle and cousin. Her skills garner much attention from her classmates, and she has many friends among the townsfolk (so far, so boring - I mean, good). But alas, there is something amiss: accidents follow her wherever she goes, her cousin has begun acting funny and her most recent reading foretells a grave challenge that will change everything. Sure enough, things go South pretty quickly from there, and it becomes very clear that no one is safe (or alive, for that matter) by episode's end.

It's all done in a very satisfying, well-paced way, and the end credits left me ready for more. Looking at AIC's track record, it's easy to see why (GunxSword remains one of my favorite space westerns of all time, right under Trigun). Original projects are pretty hit-or-miss when it comes to anime, but so far this is reminding me of Puella Magi Madoka Magica in all the right ways. Let the Dark Magical Girl Revolution continue!

Summer Premier Season (Part Four): Senki Zessho Symphogear G

Name: Senki Zessho Symphogear G
Release Date: July 4, 2013
Studio: Encourage Films/Satellite
Genre: Action/Adventure, Sci-Fi, Drama, Magical Girl
Premise: The second season of Senki Zessho Symphogear continues the adventures of Hibiki Tachibana, Tsubasa Kazanari and Yukine Chris, users of the Symphogear - a special armor driven by the power of song that is the only effective weapon against monsters known as Noise.

Verdict: Instant must-watch. I usually don't bother writing about sequels, but the first season, which premiered last year, holds a special place in my heart. If you tl;dr 'ed at that link, the basic gist of my mountain of text was this: Symphogear was the first magical girl anime since Puella Magi Madoka Magica to really "go there." Although PMMM remains the magical girl to beat (it is definitely in any Top 10 List I make, anime or otherwise), Symphogear displayed a similar willingness to get real. It didn't pull punches when it came to showing death or raising the stakes, and it built to a satisfying conclusion in spite of its admittedly silly premise.

Cue Season 2. The story picks up three months after the action-packed Season 1 finale of (literally) cosmic proportions. Hibiki and Chris have taken over the duties of fighting the antagonistic Noise while Tsubasa is on tour with a recently discovered vocalist, Maria Cadenzavna Eve. It doesn't take long for all hell to break loose as Hibiki and Chris begin to encounter strangely intelligent Noise, suggesting that something (or someone) is controlling them. There appears to be a whole host of new characters and revelations waiting to debut, and sure enough the first bombshell drops right before the credits roll. This is shaping up to be the first must-watch of the Summer, and I recommend you give it a spin (or go back and view the original if you haven't already)!

Summer Premier Season (Part Three): Kitakubu Katsudou Kiroku

Name: Kitakubu Katsudou Kiroku
Release Date: July 4, 2013
Studio: Nomad
Genre: Comedy, Slice of Life, School Life
Premise: First-year high school student Natsuki Ando jokingly declares that she wants to join the "Go Home Club" when prompted by her friend. To her surprise, the Go Home Club actually exists, consisting of a trio of eccentric second-year girls. Along with fellow first-year Karin Touno, Natsuki finds herself drawn into their weird world.

Verdict: I was ready to throw in the towel on this one (ugh, another vapid depiction of moe girls' school life?) until I saw that Nomad was responsible for Dokuro-chan. That same comedic ability is on display in this series as well. KKK (ironic, no?)'s appeal lies in how self-aware it is, often breaking the fourth wall and launching into separate sketches parodying other genres. This is where the show is at its best, including a brilliant gag where a wealthy character uses up the episode's animation budget. If Nomad can keep the laughs coming, this show will join the ranks of other sharp satires like Lucky Star and Yuru Yuri.

Summer Premier Season (Part Two): ServantxService

Name: ServantxService
Release Date: July 4, 2013
Studio: A-1 Pictures
Genre: Comedy, Slice of Life
Premise: Based on a popular manga, this workplace comedy focuses on the everyday lives of civil servants Yamagami (pictured), Yutaka Hasebe and Saya Miyoshi - the three newest editions to the Welfare Department in a city government building.

Verdict: This series is worth its salt as far as office satires go. The main characters' personalities make for some lively interactions, such as Yamagami's straitlaced sensibilities clashing with Hasebe's slacker attitude, Miyoshi's submissiveness, or their supervisor's complete ineptitude. There is also a healthy amount of humor provided by the main cast and a revolving door of colorful customers.

I've been to the DMV one too many times to fall completely head-over-heels for an anime about the lives of civil workers, but the show does a good job of humanizing the people behind the paperwork and stamps. Due to the straightforward nature of the story, I highly doubt there'll be any earth-shattering revelations in the works here, but it should be an entertaining weekly watch.

Summer Premier Season (Part One): Stella Jogakuin Koutou-ka C3-bu

The Summer anime season has finally gotten underway with a slew of new series premiering this month. To save time I will be switching up my approach this season and only posting reviews of shows that I feel are noteworthy. Going into an anime cold turkey is fun, but writing about the lackluster first episode of a series you don't plan to watch is tedious at best and downright painful at its worst. This will allow me to highlight only the good without wasting page space on the bad. First up is:

Name: Stella Jogakuin Koutou-ka C3-bu
Release Date: July 4th, 2013
Studio: Gainax
Genre: Comedy, Slice of Life, Girls with Guns
Premise: Timid Yura Yamato has just begun her brand new high school life at Stella Girls' Academy, and is unsure of where she'll fit in. She gets more than she bargained for when she meets her senior roommate's fellow club members: a ragtag group of gun enthusiast misfits who stage mock battles with airsoft weapons!

The Verdict: Not bad, Gainax. I hadn't heard of this one (or the manga upon which it is based) going into the first episode so I wasn't expecting much. Gainax usually does best when they stick to their bread and butter of mecha, a la Gunbuster, Neon Genesis Evangelion and Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann, so this series is a bit off topic for them. I also wasn't thrilled with the episode's abundance of diabetically-sweet moe moments which are all too common in today's school life anime.

Nevertheless, things got rolling once the actual shooting started. The mock battles themselves are smoothly animated and could provide several great action set-pieces down the road. I may hate moe, but I'm a sucker for the girls-with-guns trope that pops up in most anime. Hopefully  they choose to rely on the latter as the 12-episode season continues. Grating, cutesy-wutesy personalities aside, C3 still has potential as a harmless popcorn anime to help take your mind off anime that deals with heavier issues.

New Year, New Anime: Winter Premier Season Kicks Off!

Title: Bakumatsu Gijinden Roman

Genre: Suspense

Studio: TMS Entertainment

Release Date: Jan. 7, 2013

Initial Thoughts: This show ended up on my radar when the good folks at Tokyopop shared a teaser trailer for it on their Facebook page. The flashy, Lupin III-esque character designs and the jazzy score caught my eye and my ear, respectively. Its studio, TMS Entertainment, has apparently been in the industry for decades, having worked on everything from the original Lupin III anime series to the current run of Detective Conan aka Case Closed, not to mention the fact that their foreign productions also include the Superman and Batman animated series. Although I'm not familiar with their name, the longevity in the industry and irrevocable ties to my childhood reassure me. I similarly drew a blank on the director, Hirofumi Ogura, but IMDB says he handled directing \duties on Samurai 7, the anime re-imagining of the classic Akira Kurosawa flick, Seven Samurai. However, that was over eight years ago, and the only other series he has directed since is 2012's very O.K. sports anime, The Knight in the Area. I am also a bit wary that this whole show is based on a pachinko arcade game. Nevertheless, here's hoping that Samurai 7 lightning strikes twice...

Post-Credits Verdict: If there's one thing that can be said about the eponymous Roman, it's that he sure knows how to make an entrance. The episode's first sequence shows off his main talent: theatrical heists; I won't spoil the details, but let's just say he gives new meaning to the phrase "make it rain." The rest of the episode is spent introducing Roman's team and their respective talents. There's Koharu, Roman's feisty younger sister and faithful assistant; Hiraga Gennai, a wizened old tinkerer; Dr. Hans, a physician of Western European origin; and the sexy master of disguise and feminine wiles, Kanade. Together they protect the citizens of their town from the greedy ambition of local government official Yanagisawa, whose methods for enforcing tax payment bear a striking resemblance to extortion. The show seems to sport a retro feel to go with its retro look, following a procedural format with a "Big Bad of the Week" for each episode. I usually like my plots and my dialogue a bit more intricate than this, but the show has something going for it in terms of arresting visuals and overall production value; TMS Entertainment knows what it's doing, and it has come up with something worth a second viewing.

Overall Score: B