New Anime Series Youjo Senki

First Episode(s) Review for: Youjo Senki

I only do these reviews for new anime I like now so take this as a recommendation

Summary:

Set in an alternative world war I that includes magic and told from the German point of view, a young very Arian blond girl is the commander of an airborne mage platoon, it soon turns out she is a cut above the rest in both ability and viciousness, a cruel calculating horror in the body of a little girl.

Animation:

Nicely detailed, with a lot of research on what WWI battlefields looked like based on my somewhat limited knowledge ( the reading of Good-Bye to all That and such ) looks a bit like Fullmetal Alchemist

Plot Potential:

This will be the kicker, they could be boring with this or they could go anywhere, to have such an obviously evil hero character is a fairly unique starting point, but as they have already included political bits, the war being at a tipping point and a young soldier who does not know what to make of her Commander which has shades of Platoon in it we might be going somewhere interesting.

Music:

Grim powerful music and great war noises

Reminds me of:

If the hero of Strike Witches had been an evil military minded psycho…..

Overall:

It’s been 2 seasons since I have been surprised at a new anime, they have been very manufactured recently, but this one took me back, its quite obvious that the hero is an utter ba****d and a nut job and should be the bad guy, but I like her, want to see what she is up to and what her ultimate goal is.

Disclaimer: These are mini reviews of anime’s that are fresh out in Japan and are not licensed in the UK, buy them once they have been licensed or at the very least buy the merchandise, remember if the anime makers make a loss, THEY WILL STOP MAKING ANIME!!

New Anime Series Thunderbolt Fantasy

I don’t tend to do my anime reviews any more, mainly due to lack of time but also that they don’t really add much to the internet, however this one I just felt I had to flag up, it’s called Thunderbolt Fantasy and it’s a puppet show done in the style of an anime, I am aware of the long history of puppet shows in many cultures, but the action puppet show as a TV format was first really introduced with Thunderbirds by Gery Anderson and culminated as far as I was concerned with the creation of Star Fleet X-bomber (a Japanese show by Go Nagai) which I ADORED!!

Now Thunderbolt Fantasy is an updated form of that kind of Series, It is a mix of puppets and CGI special effects feeling more like a movie or a classic epic tale than an anime. it is fascinating to watch, the plot line is totally feudal power rangers with an epic music score 1, the puppets them selves and the sets are works of art so much so that I have had to watch each episode more than once as the first time I’m too busy staring to read the subtitles.

Obviously effects have come on a lot since the 80s and it still has that charming puppet feel, but you don’t just see the top half of the puppets, full body shots and foot shots are common and mixed flawlessly with things like fire and magic.

I’m just praying its going to be at least a 24 episode series.

 

 

FootNotes
  1. I’m not sure it will beat Brian May’s opening theme music but its going to give it a run for its money[]

New Anime Series: Soul Eater Not!

First Episode(s) Review for: Soul Eater Not!
Summary:

A young and apparently ordinary girl discovers that she can turn into a weapon, this is not as strange as it would seem as this is the world of the soul eaters where living weapons and their welders keep the mortal world safe from the forces of evil.

Animation:

A slightly faded out version of the bright over the top colours you get with hyper anime like Naruto and Soul eater (the original) which suits this series perfectly.

Plot Potential:

So this is an off shoot of the original Soul Eater series and I love the idea of merging its crazy over the top world where everyone is class A personalities with a normal school anime allowing for the mix of both plot lines and styles

Music:

Bouncy pop tunes for both the opening and closing credits, I recon I will start skipping them from episode 5 onwards.

Reminds me of:

Well Soul Eater for a start but the plot line is very different so I would add in Daphne in the Brilliant Blue as the main character reminds me of her and just a smidgen of Working!!

Overall:

This is quite a captivating little anime, its mix of normal in an over the top world has me eager for each episode, well done cameos from the original cast members sets it off nicely, top job to who ever came up with it

 

 

 

Disclaimer: These are mini reviews of anime’s that are fresh out in Japan and are not licensed in the UK, buy them once they have been licensed or at the very least buy the merchandise, remember if the anime makers make a loss, THEY WILL STOP MAKING ANIME!!

New Anime Series: Brynhildr in the Darkness

First Episode(s) Review for: Brynhildr in the Darkness
Summary:

A thoughtful teenager thinking back on mistakes he thinks he has made in his life (though I think he is being really hard on him self) has to deal with all sorts of strangeness when those mistakes come back to haunt him in the shape of a girl he KNOWS is dead

Animation:

Most of it is plain if not drab cell animation, but its given a lot of effects to highlight the plot such as greying everything out apart from a point of interest or oil paint rendering of stop scenes.

Plot Potential:

The plot is a good serious one and for once I don’t seem to be able to tell where it is going, there are a lot of mysterious hints but by the end first episode you just don’t know for sure what the crux of the plot is going to be, the oily irritant is the opening credits which while awesome are at this stage a huge spoiler (skip if you can bare it)

Music:

“Good guys walking into spooky alien s**t” type music for a good opening tune, as if daft punk did the x-files theme. closing theme is nothing much.

Reminds me of:

A bit of Elfen Lied a bit of Occult Academy

Overall:

The opening credits for this Anime are fecking awesome, sent tingles down my spine with anticipation, and I am pleased with a slow moving plot for a change (its always such a shame when they have to put ‘hooks’ in early episodes rather than letting it develop normally) , but there is enough meat for me to hope for a gripping series.

 

 

 

Disclaimer: These are mini reviews of anime’s that are fresh out in Japan and are not licensed in the UK, buy them once they have been licensed or at the very least buy the merchandise, remember if the anime makers make a loss, THEY WILL STOP MAKING ANIME!!

New Anime Series: Black Bullet

First Episode(s) Review for: Black Bullet
Summary:

After a terrible infestation / invasion from really nasty infecting monsters, mankind has retreated behind huge monoliths that keep the beasties at bay, any of them that get past are hunted down by red eyed young girls and their controllers, this is the story of one such pair.

Animation:

A lot of the early 2014 seasons seems to be filled with the slightly washed out cell style of animation, I have no complaints as it is one of the most distinctive things about anime, the only down side of this series is they seem to have done the cars in CGI which does not match quite right.

Plot Potential:

In the first 15 mins I did not think I would be going to pay more that cursory attention to the whole series as it seemed very much a stamped out of a template job, then they added a serious and deeper angle when it turns out that the very girls that are keeping humanity alive are treated like cattle and ostracised at every point (hell they even live in the sewers when they are not being used)

Music:

Opening is what other members of the household call “Aweseome”, not quite MP3 player quality as it needs a lot of context but still very rousing

Reminds me of:

Another one that is a lot like Aria the Scarlet Ammo but in a company setting a lot like Heat Guy J and monsters more like the D Gray-man

Overall:

I was initially unimpressed with this series particularly because it was using very young girls in quite an adult (violence wise) situation, but they have really stuck the knife in on the refugee and discrimination angle, this has given this series a lot more that its basic “remnants of humanity against the insect hordes” setting would indicate. a somewhat grim thumbs up.

 

 

 

Disclaimer: These are mini reviews of anime’s that are fresh out in Japan and are not licensed in the UK, buy them once they have been licensed or at the very least buy the merchandise, remember if the anime makers make a loss, THEY WILL STOP MAKING ANIME!!