Blazblue Alter Memory

Blazblue Alter Memory is a strange anime to me.  The story starts by dropping you off in the middle of the story, which is fine.  However, there are a lot of characters with vastly different backgrounds and the explanation as to what they are doing, what their motives for doing it and how they came to be doing it are extremely slow in coming out.  This is a new release, so there are only 8 episodes out thus far, but I'm really hoping that this anime is going to be more that 12 episodes, because I can't see anything important to the story being concluded in only four more episodes.  There are definitely some interesting ideas at work in the story, but right now it seems a little more like a jumbled mess.  I'm really hoping that the concepts can get ironed out so these ideas can start to make an interesting tapestry.

As for artistic development, I find a number of the character silhouettes to be quite strong, as to be expected from an anime developed from a video game.  However, there isn't a lot more that distinguishes the look of this anime.

My fingers are crossed that this anime is going to be longer than 12 episodes and that the story is going to come together.  For now, I'm giving Blazblue Alter Memory a 3 out of 5.

For more information about this anime, click here.

Kyousougiga

Kyousougiga is one of the most strange and inventive anime stories I've seen to date and that is why I absolutely love it. :D  It's story is about a half human, half fox monk who lives by himself in the mountains.  He was driven to live in the mountains, by the other monks of Kyoto, because of his unique ability to create anything by drawing it.  With a little help from buddha, the monk creates an entire new world and his very own family, but no family is without it's problems.  

Like I said, this is a very messed up story that has logic to it so you can follow it, but it's nothing like I have ever seen.  I really have very little understanding of what is actually happening which is great because I can't figure out what what's going to happen next.  All I can do is sit back and enjoy it's strangeness and unique sense of beauty.

I really hope that the story wraps itself up well.  In the mean time, I give the story 4.5 out of 5.

For more information about Kyousougiga, click here:

Galilei Donna

Galilei Donna is an anime about a family which is 'under attack', so to speak, from both the inside and the outside.  The three daughters, all descendants of the Italian inventor Galileo, tend to all excel in vastly different areas of life.  Can these three possibly save their family and possibly the rest of the world?  It's a pretty big problem that maybe, just maybe three young genius women can solve.

One part of the story that stands out to me, that I just have to mention here, is the spaceship that the youngest daughter designs.  It's a giant goldfish that ends up being named Galileo.  I really love the flying fish and it's fun AI.  The artwork, appears pretty standard for recent anime productions but it's not lacking in anyway.

Since I don't know if the story is going to be wrapped up or not by the end of the anime I'm going to give Galilei Donna a 3.5 out of 5 for now. :D  However, I'm hoping that the story will pleasantly surprise me so I can raise it's grade. ;)

I found this Wiki's plot line to be slightly incorrect but you're welcome to see for yourself here:

For more information about Galilei Donna, click here:

Eden of the East

Eden of the East is an anime about creating a better 'Japan'.  It has some strange genre mash-ups but it does tend to all make sense at the end of the story.  It reminds me a little of a cross between James Bond, The Princess Bride and some kind of super AI computer.  Like I said, very strange mash up, but the lead character is so strangely down to earth and strange at the time that he holds the blend together relatively well.

Likewise the art has a little more grungy realism to it's design and I think it's a very good choice for this story.  I think it's subtlety is something that makes it work so well.

I really liked the originality of the story and the fact that I couldn't figure it out in the first three episodes.  I would have liked to have seen some of the extraneous loose ends tied up a little bit better at the end of the story though.  All in all, I think this is a fun anime worth watching and I give it a 4 out of 5.

For more information about this anime, click here:

Black Blood Brothers

Black Blood Brothers takes place in world divided into two races, The red bloods or humans and the black bloods, AKA - vampires.  Naturally, the two races try to find some sort of balance but there are many factions with in each race that have different opinions on the matter.

The artwork was a little old styled for my taste, but the story and characters were interesting enough that I quickly started to pay more attention to the story.  The plot line was pretty entertaining but the character development was a bit shallow.  I think it had more to do with the fact that this is a very big story, with lot's of long and interesting back stories (they are vampires after all.)  However, despite the really great ideas involved,  everything just gets cut too short.  Although, I have to admit that even though this anime feels like a small window on a big story, I am happy that they made it a very complete little segment.

I give Black Blood Brothers a 3.5 because it's interesting and a complete mini-story.  I would love to give it a better rating but everything needs to be fleshed out more including the ultimate conclusion for the main characters.

For more information about this anime, click here.

The "Hentai" Prince and the Stony Cat (hentai-ouji-to-warawanai-neko)

The "Hentai" Prince and the Stony Cat is a strange anime geared more for an adolescent age range, but it is a fun anime to watch.  

The main characters title, the hentai prince, means the 'pervert' prince and this character is constantly being teased by the female characters for that very reason.   The interesting twist to this story is the strange cat god who grants bizarre wishes.  

I think the character development is okay but definitely could have used a bit more refinement.  Actually, that seems to be a good way to describe the plot as well.  However, the story does complete itself in its 12 episodes.  Overall, I give the Hentai Prince and the Stony Cat 3.5 out of 5. ;)

For more information about this anime, Click here.

Wolf Children: Ame and Yuki

Wolf Children: Ame and Yuki is a self described fairy tale.  It's not a western fairy tale with strange creatures and little people.  This is a Japanese fairy tale where animals of the wild, under threat of extinction, learn to take on a human appearance and live amongst humans.

This is a very heartfelt story about a mother who struggles to raise her unique children.  The story is very complete and left me feeling both joyful and sad at the same time.
There is a surreal quality to the artwork that's beautiful, a little unique but very fitting for this story.

I think the character development for the children was very well done, especially considering that the story takes into account both human and wolfish character traits.

I believe this is a movie worth watching and is suitable for all age ranges.  I give the Wolf Children: Ame and Yuki 5 out of 5.

For more information about the Wolf Children movie, click here.

Tokyo Ravens

Tokyo Ravens is an interesting magic anime that where the characters use a Japanese style of magic.

The main characters are all from magical family lineages who are in training to defend Japan from magical attacks.  

I find both the artwork and animation to be good but fairly standard for modern anime. The character development is slow to progress but that may be a hint at a larger storyline.  Also, the plot line is slow to reveal itself as well, but  from what I see it appears that the story is well organized and has a definite conclusion.  Which, for me is a great thing!  I'm always disappointed to reach the end of an anime and the story hasn't been finished. 

Tokyo Ravens makes a great start! For now, I give it a 4 out of 5.

For more information on Tokyo Ravens, click here.

Hunter X Hunter (Original Series)

Hunter Hunter,  the original version has 62 episodes that appeal to a large age range.  The story revolves around a young but talented boy, Gon Freecs.  Gon wants to become a hunter so that he can find his father but along his journey he finds both friends and adventures of a life time!

The original Hunter Hunter uses the traditional animation methods and uses a lot of traditional inking techniques. However, the animation is good and quite surprisingly, the special effects are well done.  I find the original Hunter Hunter to be more action pact and perhaps a bit darker than the more modern version.  However, the episodes do move more slowly than they do in the 2011 version.

The character development is pretty decent but sadly, the story lines do not get wrapped up in the 62 episodes.  I'm hoping that they are able to finish the story line in the 2011 version  because it is an interesting story.

Overall the original Hunter Hunter scores well but loses points due to its incomplete storyline.
I give the original Hunter Hunter a 4 out of 5.

For more information about Hunter Hunter click here.