Archive for the English Anime Category


Yuri Anime: Maria Watches Us, Volume 4 (English)

September 28th, 2008

If you were among the many that ran out the first second you heard that Maria Watches Us was available in box set, it’s likely that you did so more for this one volume than for the rest of the series. Because saying you like Sei is, as we all know, like saying the sky is blue. :-) (Which, by the way, was part of one of the questions I sent in to Konno Oyuki-sensei last month when Right Stuff opened that form for us. I thought she ought to know that we say that.)

And here we are, arrived at *last* at the zOMG! official release of “Forest of Briars” (as Right Stuf translated it) in the US. Surely I am not the only person who thought that we would never, ever see that.

In the winter of her 17th year, Sei suffered a parting that was very painful, she relates to us in the opening.

Yumi overhears classmates talking about Rosa Gigantea, and then rumors of a book begin to filter though the school. A book, she later reads and finds to be about two students at Lillian who attempted suicide to be together. Yumi finds out that Sei’s past includes some kind of situation that makes it a likelihood that she is the author of the book!

Sei’s honesty is pretty stark, and she admits to having been in a situation that’s pretty similar to the one in the book. Neither Yumi nor Yoshino seem particularly surprised to learn that Sei fell in love with another student. Yoshino’s biggest concern is that Sei might have been hurt, so she decides to find out who wrote the book, only to learn that it was a memory of a distant past and nothing, except by coincidence, to do with Sei.

It’s hard to imagine, having seen only the teasing, openly grope-y Satou Sei, that there was a time when she was withdrawn from everyone and cold. And that the reason she changed was not, as one might expect, because she had fallen in love. In fact, it was quite the opposite – her heart had been broken, forcing her to lean on other people and see how many people genuinely cared about her. In “White Petals,” we watch Sei meet, fall in love with, be rejected by, reconcile with and lose Kubo Shiori. A lot of the novel had to be cut out for the anime, which really is a shame, because it’s an excellent novel. (Including at least a *little* recognition of the issue of lesbian identity.) But what is left is still a very moving story…and the source of 90% of Youko x Sei slash, as well. lol

The last two episodes are the Valentine’s Day date episodes, in which Yumi losing sight of Sachiko for a moment is turned into a laughably absurd cliffhanger and which also had a great scene truncated, so all we get of Yumi listening to Sachiko changing in the jeans shop is a little clothing noise and Yumi blushing – but it’s enough. ^_^

Shizuka and Shimako continue to confuse fans, because both are so difficult to read. But, watching their date now, with all those novels between this episode and me, I find them an utterly fascinating pair. There’s a line towards the end of their date that characterizes them perfectly. If Rosa Gigantea hadn’t existed, then we might have been soeur, Shizuka says. But she does exist, Shimako says. And so, Shizuka concludes, taking Shimako’s hand, we are both happy. It’s a great line.

Yoshino has her moment of satori about why stalking is bad and ends up having an armful of crying Chisato, then turns around and gets mad at Rei for not being more considerate of the girl’s feelings and getting an apologetic embrace from Rei in return.

And so, with the addition of the Don’t Tell Maria-sama extras, we come to the end of the first season of Maria Watches Over Us.

Ratings:

Art – 6
Story – 9
Characters – 9
Yuri – 8
Service – 0

Marimite Fan – 100

Overall – 10

Now I have to go and watch it all over again in a marathon. And memorize the novels. Perhaps start camping outside a Japanese bookstore in anticipation of Before Graduation which is due out next month. (I’d add “stalk Konno Oyuki-sensei” but I learned my lesson from Yoshino. ^_^)





My Zhime (My Otome) Anime, Volume 6 (English)

September 24th, 2008

It is entirely thanks to the kindness and generosity of Eric P that I am able to bring you today’s review, so everyone say “Thanks, Eric!”

Volume 6 of My Otome does something completely unheard of in the
Mai series to date…it begins to *answer* some of the questions asked in the earlier episodes.

Who is the true Queen of Windbloom?

What is the Harmonium’s power?

What really happened to Mai?

And more of your favorite hits in this volume of…

There’s a lot going on in Volume 6. The story is moving rapidly towards a climax that feels, at this point, as if it might *actually* climax, unlike other Mai series we could name.

The action comes fast and furious. Arika and Mashiro, having found themselves a haven, are ripped untimely from it and deposited safely in the bosom of the legendary
Black Valley, where they encounter a bunch of ridiculous legends which are all true.

Nina becomes the possessor of the Harmonium’s power through a gambit that I actually thought was incredibly clever and deserves the writers a pat on the kepi.

The Valkyrie squad is deployed. Tomoe jumps at the opportunity to crush people
she thinks are beneath her like a bug, which is to say, everyone. Chie plays it more cautiously, and finds herself in a lose-lose situation. But we trust that she’ll come out on the right side of it because, after all, she has 1000x lesbian power. The forces of evil seem to have the upper hand, but the forces of good are beginning to set their playbook up in the background. Meister we don’t care
about die, while ones we do care about seem to be hanging in there, biding their time.

Yuri comes mostly in the form of Tomoe’s fixation on Shizuru. And her…interests. We also briefly get a glimpse of Chie reunited with a presumed-dead Aoi. She was only mostly dead, apparently.

But Yuri isn’t the point here. The point is war. That’s what we’re gearing up for and that’s what we have to be ready to deal with next volume. We’re ready, I say.

Ratings:

Art – 7
Characters – 8
Story – 8
Yuri – 4
Service – 6

Overall – 8

And let us not forget the hallucenogenic effects of Maki-maki-ing.

 





Yuri Anime: Simoun, Volume 5 (English)

September 19th, 2008

Sometimes, the worst part of a choice is the time before the decision is made. The doubts, the waffling, the feeling of “what if?”

In Simoun Volume 5, all the choices are made, the cards are dealt and the fate of not only the Sibylla of Chor Tempest, but all the people whose lives touched theirs, is decided.

I don’t think I breathed once while watching this volume.

There are many people who did not enjoy Simoun. It was non-linear. There were giant holes in the construct of the world in which the Sibylla lived (although if you like your worlds tidy, I can’t *imagine* that there’s too much anime that suits you. Maddening inconsistency is about the only constant.) We never really learn the answers to a lot of our questions.

Honestly, I can’t imagine caring a damn about any of that. This series has beautiful art (with the exception of Nevril’s sex-doll mouth,) amazing characters, fantastic music, a terrific plot. And…above all…it made me realize exactly what I think makes a good story.

To me, a *good* story travels a considerable distance in character development from the moment we meet the character to the moment we last see him or her. If the characters grow, change, respond to circumstances and learn from their experiences and choices – that is a good story. If the character starts the story and ends it roughly the same, I might enjoy it, but I won’t consider it *good.*

So, Strawberry Panic (anime), for instance, isn’t *good* by my standard; Nagisa and Shizuma do change a little bit from the beginning of the series to the end, but not a lot. Neviril and Aeru travel astronomical units by comparison. They pretty much reverse roles completely from the beginning of the anime to the end.

Yun, who comes to Chor Tempest seeking absolution for not dying with her previous Chor finds her absolution in saving one woman. And the rest of the Sibylla face what they thought they wanted, and found out what was really important to them after all.

If Simoun was too hard to follow or just annoying to you, I won’t try and convince you to watch it. But there is *no* doubt in my mind, that this will be the best Yuri Anime once again this year for me. (With at least two Yuri couples and as many as four if you have no pride. ^_^)

The Director comments were particularly interesting this time. The director says that, at the beginning of the volume, when Aeru confronts Neviril about her feelings, he (the director) had ceased to think of them as two girls. Also the Animation Director commented that she felt that Yun was in love with Onashia, which I completely agree with. ^_^

Ratings:

Art – 9
Story – 9
Characters – 8
Yuri – 7
Service – 2

Overall – 9

Technical – 9

Couldn’t ask for better.





Maria Watches Us, Volume 3 (English)

September 15th, 2008

How ironic that the Valentine’s Day episodes of Maria Watches Us Season 1, are some of the *least* romantic in the series. Not that they lack romance mind you, it’s just that in comparison to the rest of this season, Yumi and Sachiko’s crisis and Sachiko being stalked, sort of pale.

Once again, I am looking back on this arc from the perspective of having read the many novels afterward. In fact, I’m currently reading the novel that follows the Valentine’s Day dates a year later. (And they are totally cracktastic, let me tell you…) So it fascinates me even more that in Volume 3 we get to see the beginning of what will obviously become a long tradition at Lillian. I can see it now, fifty years later, when the tradition is so long-established that everyone just assumes it’s always been done….

And yet…here we are, when crazy yellow journalist Newspaper club President Tsukiyama Minako sits down and sets the scene for the first ever Valentine’s Day treasure hunt. Kinda cool, huh? Kinda ironic too, that a woman without an ounce of romance in her is the source of this heart-pounding event. One of the best scenes in the arc is watching the Rosas defeat their soeurs and “encourage” them to participate. ^_^

In the middle of all this, Yumi and Sachiko have to deal with a significant crisis spawned by their differing styles of communication. This will continue to plague them for some time, ultimately complicating issues through “Rainy Blue” but, for now it’s no more than a few days of unhappiness for them to get through.

My biggest complaint with this arc is that the story of Yumi’s trick chocolates for Sei kind of suffer from neglect and confusion. Let me summarize – Yumi made two sets of chocolates, one with yummy centers and one with weird centers like tuna and wasabi. When she and Sachiko struggle with the box, the chocolates all get mixed up and its possible that the chocolate Sachiko ate and said was tasty is one of the weird ones. We’ll never know. ^_^

Sachiko’s stalker episode is notable for two things – when Mafuyu comes back into the story briefly a year later, Sachiko still has no clue who she is, and the fact that kindergarten Sachiko is hideously adorable.

In the end, Yumi proves that she is indeed suited to be Rosa Chinensis en bouton.

Ratings:

Art – 6
Story – 8
Characters – 9
Yuri – 4
Service – 0

Marimite Fan – 100

Overall – 8

Now I must run and finish the next year’s date stories, because really, *so* freakishly weird, I must know what happens!!!





Red Garden Anime, Volume 4 (English)

September 12th, 2008

I just finished reading a manga that I won’t be reviewing here, but found myself immediately composing a review in my head anyway. In that review, I was quibbling about a single phrase that really annoyed the heck out of me. It showed not only insensitivity but also complete lack of cultural knowledge by the company that translated the book. It’s not important, really, except for the fact that I find myself doing that quite a bit here – quibbling about a small thing that’s quite irrelevant to a series that I see as some kind of “wtf” committed by the American production company. And I will do it again today.

But, let’s set this quibble aside for a moment and discuss the meat, if you will allow me to be so crude, of Red Garden, Volume 4.

Kate, Clare, Rachel and Rose realize that there is no escape from their fate as members of one side of an ages-long battle. What that actually means to them is still unclear, but they are as determined – more so than before, even – to retain what little of their “real” lives they have left to them. Each reacts in a different way. Rachel sheds her superficial skin going so far as to shed even her genuinely concerned and caring boyfriend, someone she needs but understands will not be able to handle the truth. Rose embarks upon a quest to find her father and bring him back into the fold of her family. Kate tries to date, with tragic consequences, and Clare is forced to confront her (perhaps unfair) anger and feelings of betrayal she has for her father.

Paula remains the epitome of “Grace,” even in the face of Jessica’s flaring jealousy and accusations that her interest in Kate has changed her. In return, Paula forces Jessica to become a partner to Kate. From watching her so closely, Jessica begins to develop a kind of bond with Kate – and ultimately begins to sympathize with her, even if its for the wrong reasons. To Kate’s shock, Jessica confesses her sympathy and offers her help – again, even though it’s for the all the wrong reasons, Jessica is no longer an enemy. And Paula has once again protected Kate.

As the entire series edges closer to climax and everyone deals with betrayal – Rachel as the betrayer, Rose as the reconciler, Claire as the confronter and Kate as the betrayed, they all find some strength within themselves to fight the fight they must fight.

And in a surprising moment, the first instance of loss on our side is from an entirely unexpected source.

Yuri? Not very. Paula’s interest has not waned, but has not become a burden as it does in the manga. Fabulous? Definitely.

Ratings:

Art – 7
Story – 8
Characters – 8
Yuri – 1
Service – 1; Violence – 8

Overall – 8

So, here’s my quibble. On the DVD case for the last volume the reviewer’s quote said that this series was like Buffy the Vampire Slayer. This time the synopsis of the episode includes a line that describes this series as “sexy.” *Sexy*?? What part of this is sexy – the beast men ripping Rachel’s shoulder open or JC taking one for the team? Did they just add that in for spice or do they automatically describe anything with female leads as “sexy?” American companies – WTF?