Jeoffrey

Stan Lee - the Animation. That is what I would call this strange collaboration between the Americans and Japanese, mixing together their different visual concepts regarding animation. The American style prevails on the whole, and only a few things show that the guys from the Land of the Rising Sun are half involved. So why Stan Lee? Well, this is because he was involved in practically everything, and his presence is felt almost throughout this anime series. By that, I do not just mean the fact that his voice-over introduces and ends practically every episode or the fact that there is a character in the anime series which is actually an animated version of Stan Lee because every production based on his work has to include a cameo by Stan Lee himself. It is more about the concept behind the characters and the idea of heroes in general, as Stan Lee sees it and has presented many times before. This makes it a very one-dimensional affair. However, everything is more comic book than manga and cartoon than anime, and the main protagonists are based more on the American idea of heroes. Even the Magical Girls that appear at the end do not have much in common with the enchantment of Japanese Magical Girls. They are more like something between Magical Girls and Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers. So I think this show is more for fans of Stan Lee and his comic book heroes. For those who are looking for actual anime, I would recommend ignoring this and concentrating fully on My Hero Academia which features the Japanese version of superheroes. However, that is enough about what it is or is not. Now, a few words about how I liked it. The narrative was good with some cool twists, even though I did not find it particularly profound or highly compelling. At times, especially in the beginning, I found it a bit confusing, and at times it seemed somewhat unfinished, almost to the point of having too many plot holes. The characters reminded me of other well-known characters from other heroic universes. There is probably not a single one that I found fascinating, although X-on was quite likable. The animation is a bit strange. It is very dark and comic book-like with minimal details, and there probably was not a single scene where I found its beauty captivating. The soundtrack was OK, it was well suited to a show about superheroes. The action element is weak, and the fight scenes are rather boring. However, the conclusion itself is quite excellent, even if it is pretty typical for its genre. My overall impression is 4/10.

I do not think fans of the TV series will be disappointed in any way. This movie has got everything I love about the TV series and it has the requisite cinematic qualities as well. Sure, one could criticize that the storyline is a bit too "classic"; however, who cares when I got my dose of adventure and everything I expect from something with the MLP name on it? Plus, some of the scenes are very enchanting, the atmosphere is excellent, as is the emotional aspect most of the time (except for one scene near the end where you know exactly what is going to happen, so you do not feel scared at the right time). The soundtrack is impressive; the songs are catchy, and so in general, the soundtrack suits the movie, and I could definitely see myself putting it on just to put myself in a good mood. The jokes are more or less amusing, and I did not notice any that were outright stupid. The animation is colorful and quite beautiful. It did take me a while to get used to the combination of 2D and 3D; however, in the end, it is really very good to watch. The new characters are interesting and they work well, exactly right for the scenes as some are cool, and some are funny. The Storm King is also good as the villain. He maintains a balance of being scary, so he commands some respect and then is also quite amusing, ensuring that kids are not just going to be scared shitless of him. Of course, what would MLP be if we did not learn another valuable lesson about friendship? All in all, it is clear that the makers of this movie took their time with it, and everything is almost as great as I expected it to be, so strong enthusiasm prevails, and my rating is given accordingly. 9.3/10.

Nowadays, you have to be careful even when looking at your own smartphone because apparently, for some mysterious reason, it could transport you to a strange version of history where vampires and werewolves are in a war against each other. The world is full of colorful, supposedly sexy men in exotic costumes everywhere. In fact, it looks like a fair has arrived, or perhaps even a circus. For a girl, this could be perhaps an interesting idea and a tempting spectacle, full of the expected dramatic love story and fight scenes involving the main female protagonist. This is because her blood is supposedly unique, and only she can save this world full of beautiful boys, vampires who are not averse to daylight, and mysterious, charismatic werewolves. For some reason, Nobunaga looks much more like a vampire than anyone else although he is actually a werewolf. For the guys in the audience - these Vampires Sucks! And so the first battle scene is such a “massacre”  where the armies calmly disperse. I had to laugh at one of the main male protagonist’s reports about what a terrible fight it was while I had not seen even a single body on the field. This show has nothing to offer me, so dropped after the first episode, and I am going to leave the rating to those for whom this anime series is aimed at.

"No senpai, it is our fight" finally got a sequel, even though there are only eight episodes of OVA. Plus, these have been coming out kind of sporadically rather than regularly. However, this is still perhaps better than nothing. Otherwise, this season is still more/less the same old same old. At times I wondered if there was too much fan service in the original anime series, too (well, yes, there was), even though I still gave it a go and had no issues. My favorite subplot came up again at the very end (so there was at least one reason to finish each of the narratives), and it was, of course, the main thing I was looking forward to. Of the new characters, I think I was mainly interested in Kiriha Kisaki, I am probably going to forget the rest. It is quite a change that the characters did not really interest me that much this time. However, I can still remember Kojou Akatsuki, and that is enough to make me happy. I remember him because, in my opinion, he is one of those hilarious "harem lords". In the end, this show is still the same; I just was not that into it this time. 6/10.

Chronos Ruler strikes me as a kind of a light rip-off of D.Gray-man with slightly older and at the same time much more boring characters. Plus, it is a family saga about the Putins that surprisingly is not actually about the infamous "Russian Bear". With the first episode, I was reminded of D.Gray-man right away and thought that the beginning was pretty similar. The concept of the enemies was also identical. The only thing that I probably found surprising was the relationship between Viktor and Kiri. The rest of the narrative was very predictable for my taste and not very sophisticated compared to D.gray-man. For example, the Chronos organization seemed incredibly uninteresting. The rest is just a show full of the typical chatter about the importance of family in all sorts of absurd ways. Unfortunately, I have seen this many times already. Some of the fight scenes are lacking; they are just not epic, and the repetition of jokes about eating spaghetti through your nose and teasing that poor Kiri because he still doesn't have a woman (also a trope in a lot of other anime series) gets stupid really soon. So, Chronos Ruler was almost nothing new, and at times I even found it pretty boring. 4/10.

Tournaments, practices, and final exams are practically nothing new in any student's life and special academy for heroes is no exception. Still, even these fairly typical episodes were pretty decent and each had at least one epic moment that reminded me why I love watching this anime series so much. It still gives me that lovely feeling and makes me realize why I enjoy heroic narratives so much and why people like comic books so much, for example. Plus, things are getting much more dramatic at a rapid pace as the dark side is also gaining momentum. Most importantly, though, we have been introduced to this show's main vilain. Personally speaking, I am satisfied and want to praise what I think is a very well-produced second season. Compared to the first season, the  second season has lost none of its pace or atmosphere. It still has the same good, likable characters, plus the interesting animation and appropriately chosen soundtrack. 8.4/10.

This show is basically the same old bullshit that is quite cute and occasionally funny. There are a few new and quite interesting characters, even though I think Chidori is still easily the best. Plus, it gets some merit as a history lesson, and I would definitely enjoy learning this way. So no significant change from the first season in terms of my impressions. 6.7/10.

This show was awesome, beautiful, and simply fabulous! I was already immensely in love with the first season, and once again, this show more than succeeded in being great. I was a little dubious at first because in the first season I loved the frantic pace and the energy that was a rollercoaster ride. I also loved the exciting and, in my opinion, very well-developed narrative. It probably was not as detailed or developed; however, it was an excellent fantasy tale. It definitely stood up and fulfilled my expectations of a great fantasy show, and of course, I liked the characters. I admired the outstanding animation and soundtrack. I think the whole first season just worked really well, as expected. In other words, I still remember the first Rage of Bahamut: Genesis anime television series fondly and can easily recall most of the characters. It was well-paced, it had a good atmosphere, and it was enchanting and enthralling. Now, back to the follow-up and my initial doubts. I was pretty surprised that the pacing is a lot looser. At first, they explored everything a lot more and deeper, and there were many times when I thought I was missing some proper action scenes. Furthermore, I really missed the character Favaro. At first, I thought Nina was a kind of poor version as a main protagonist (or maybe a substitute.). However, it gradually became clear that everything has a good reason behind it, and the narrative sets the stage for everything it wants to say and show, and Nina has a lot to offer. Throughout this season, she managed to push herself so far that I started to like her a lot. Plus, everything the screenwriters have dreamed up worked well. The atmosphere works; it has a sophisticated and well-thought-out narrative and an emotional love story full of memorable scenes. For example, every dance I watched put another nail in the coffin of a certain other anime series I also watch that also deals with dancing. Thanks to the great animation and soundtrack, the whole narrative was fascinating, heartfelt, and to my utmost satisfaction. Then there is the conclusion itself which is intense and dynamic. Ultimately, the ending is utterly satisfying, including the final epilogue and the post-credits scene. This show is how fantasy anime series are supposed to be produced. This show has my admiration which is all the greater considering the subject matter is a pretty ordinary online card game. This anime series shows how to write a screenplay and create an atmosphere so people can enjoy everything nicely. The characters were again excellent, the animation was breathtaking in places (so I am going to let the CGI go), and the soundtrack was once again fabulous, including both the opening and ending. In the end, I am completely satisfied. It renewed my enthusiasm, and I am awarding a big 10/10.

Convenience Store Boy Friends is an utterly mediocre romantic anime series about two couples finding their way to each other - one way is too long-winded and the other is too complicated. For the most part, the narrative is either fairly predictable or full of tropes, and even the intensely romantic moments that would make me feel something were woefully relatively sparse. The couple, Mishima and Mashiki, who I have renamed to "I am not going to squeeze it out myself" as a working title, were much less entertaining than Honda and the student council president. Even the supposedly emotional conclusion, which again contained a pretty traditional storyline resembling those from trashy romance novellas, could not change that fact. 5/10.

As the title suggests, Gamers! is not an anime series that is just about a passion for gaming, but focus on video game players themselves. We, therefore, see only a bit of the actual gaming and the video games themselves. Only the opening itself is really pleasing because we can catch a glimpse of some old-school video game classics. Sure, there is a lot of chatting about video games, because real enthusiasts do like to talk amongst themselves about their hobbies. The last episode might explain what is so great about these video games; however, that is about it. As the title does not suggest, Gamers! is mainly a romantic comedy, a narrative concerning four gaming enthusiasts and an ordinary girl falling in love and dealing with all the things that go with a love story. So, therefore, being a comedy, the main companion of all the fun this time is summed up in one word, misunderstanding. Seriously, if the characters had talked more and openly discussed their feelings with the object of those feelings, most of the situations dealt with here would have been resolved quietly. However, then there would probably not really have been anything to watch. So, for my part, I guess in the end, I was happy for all the relatively simple jokes and reasonably breezy humor, all the entanglements, and the possible romantic relationships that could have come about, even though it was clear from the start who was going to be with whom. This show made sitting around and chatting about video games fun, albeit quite simple. 6/10.