But anyways, I think I'll just post here with what I think are the best anime this season, and a short description and comments by me...so if you're ever bored on the internet...
WINTER 2011
Fractale♦ Genres:
- - Adventure, Science Fiction
♦ Description:
- - The story takes place on a small island in the near future, where everything is connected by an internet successor known as the "Fractale System," which allows anyone to communicate via "Doppels", data-based entities that can be controlled remotely. One day, a young boy named Clain finds and cares for an injured girl called Phryne under a cliff after she was chased by unknown enemies. She disappears the next morning, leaving a pendant behind housing a girl-shaped Doppel named Nessa. Clain and Nessa set out to look for Phryne and to discover the secrets of the collapsing Fractale System.
♦ Comments:
- - If you're a fan of Hayao Miyazaki films, but feel they lack a bit of action and depth, this is the anime you want to watch this season. The look and feel seem like they're another one of his masterpieces, but the setting and plot are a far cry from his heartwarming scenes. The emphasis on technology, without going Mecha, is also something fresh that hasn't been seen too often recently.
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Bakuman
♦ Genres:
- - Comedy, Drama, Romance
♦ Description:
- - Moritaka "Saiko" Mashiro is a 14-year-old boy who dreams of living a perfectly ordinary life. All of that changes when he meets Akito "Shujin" Takagi, a smart but eccentric classmate who wants to combine his writing skills with Mashiro's artistic talent to write manga! At first, Mashiro is reluctant, because his uncle was a one-hit wonder manga artist who spent the rest of his life struggling, and died from overwork. But after a series of events leading up to him asking his crush to marry him after he becomes a manga artist, they set out to write a best-selling manga together.
♦ Comments:
- - After beginning in Fall, this story of two young boys struggling to realize their dreams has captivated me. The story has great depth and character development, not to mention the art style's pretty good, too. It's also great as a glimpse into the inner workings of the manga industry,
and how easy it is to come up with an idea, but how tough it is to produce a hit.
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IS: Infinite Stratos♦ Genres:
- - Action, Comedy, Drama, Science Fiction, Romance, Tournament
♦ Description:
- - In the near future, Japanese scientists have engineered armed exoskeletons, known as "Infinite Stratos" (AKA "IS"), and they have become mainstream weapons. Since only women can operate IS, females dominate society over males. During his high school examinations, 15 year-old Orimura Ichika stumbles into an IS exam room and accidentally touches an IS. After it reacts to his touch, he is discovered to be the only man who can operate IS and is coerced into entering an IS Training Academy by his older sister and mentor Chifuyu, who is a teacher at the academy and also an IS Tournament Champion.
♦ Comments:
- - Seriously, what two genres are they going to cross next? This is a layered anime, with a dash of Tournament, some Mecha, and a heck of a lot of Harem. Regardless, there are quite a few funny bits and the action scenes are fairly impressive. The art style is also pretty nice, which covers a bit for the slightly shallow female character archetypes (Tsundere, Princess, Bubbly, etc.). Don't expect too much from this anime, and you'll like it just fine.
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Mitsudomoe Zouryouchuu♦ Genres:
- - Comedy, Slice of Life
♦ Description:
- - Mitsudomoe Zouryouchuu continues the adventures of teacher Satoshi Yabe (Yabe-cchi) and the troublesome Marui triplets: the somewhat precocious and sadistic girl Mitsuba, the somewhat lecherous muscle girl Futaba, and the somewhat mysterious girl Hitoha, this is the story of how these three triplets go about their days in Class 6-3 with their cute yet wild antics.
♦ Comments:
- - Call me a ***** all you want, but this show is freakin' amazing. I usually can't go an entire scene without laughing, usually hysterically. For a series built around misunderstandings, this Japanese equivalent of Napoleon Dynamite definitely delivers. It's a great school comedy without all that messy romance getting in the way. Oh, by the way, you
might want to watch Season 1, Mitsudomoe, before watching this.
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Gosick♦ Genres:
- - Drama, Supernatural, Romance, Horror
♦ Description:
- - Gosick takes place in 1924 in the small, fictional European country of Sauville. The story centers on Kazuya Kujo, the third son of a Japanese Imperial soldier, who is a transfer student to St. Marguerite Academy, where urban legends and horror stories are all the rage. There he meets Victorique, a mysterious yet beautiful and brilliant girl who never comes to class and spends her days reading the entire content of the library or solving mysteries that even detectives can't solve.
♦ Comments:
- - It's one of those animes that I thought I wasn't going to be interested in, but surprised me nonetheless. Every moment is like an Alfred Hitchcock movie, leaving you guessing until the very end about what's going to happen next. Oh, as always, love the art style. Manages to be gritty, yet smooth. Definitely a must-watch for this season.
