Rate the last anime you watched out of 10

Level E

This series is the most funniest anime I have ever seen and to be freak is probably underrated.

The main character is a alien Prince that comes to earth ans to be honest his a funny prick that likes to mess with everyone ans I freaking loved it yeah he isn't in all the episodes but this seriestakes you by surprise if you want a laugh I suggest you watch this series.... the down side is that it's too short and should of been at least 26 episodes

9/10
 
Last edited by a moderator:
It would not be the first time I've judged an anime harshly on my first and only viewing, but a premise involving hobos and a baby in Japan was not exactly the anime medium playing to its strengths, and that's what little I remember of it. I can't say Paprika was exactly 'anime as it should be', either, but the surreal visual splendor did add something when paired with the Berserk's OST composer.

Perfect Blue was a far better film than either: a combination of a psychological thriller that could work as live-action and some surreal insanity thrown in that blurred the line between what was real and not.
 
Kyoukai no katana, 7/10
I like me some urban fantasy/ supernatural stuff. Sometimes I was stupid but other times it was pretty awesome. Best thing about the show is definitely the visuals. The animation is top notch and any short cuts made in tv anime are very well hidden with beautiful SFX. I honestly think it is the most visually impressive tv show I have seen to date.
 
Hellsing - 5.5-6/10

Not sure what to think about this series, i thought it was ok but nothing really grabbed me apart from Alucard. It's not bad, it's just not that great either. The soundtrack is decent but the art/animation wasn't as good as it could have been. The dub voice acting was decent for the most part but sometimes it just felt like something was lacking, for example Alucard's dub voice actor was great but Victoria's dub voice actor was abit annoying at times.

Hopefully Hellsing Ultimate will be a lot better as it'll follow the manga more closely.
 
Hellsing Ultimate is fantastic. Haven't seen the original series to compare but Ultimate is just really over the top violent and quite dark. Episode 5 of ultimate is just one of my favourite episodes of anime on the whole.
 
Hellsing Ultimate is great fun - I love that they actually went and did British accents for the dub too, even though they're corny as hell. I wish there were more long OVA projects like that these days where they can properly up the budget and do whatever they want without caring about censorship.
 
I actually got tired of Ultimate after around three or four episodes. It's better animated and doesn't rely on 'anime original content' the way the tv series did, but it just feels like a highlight reel of the goriest and most violent scenes from the manga, with a bare minimum of plot to string them together.
 
I suppose the obvious criticism about the show - and one I've seen people say a lot - is that Arucard is so stupidly overpowered, you're never in any doubt that he'll lose. So I suppose that takes away from some of the drama of it. I file the show next to the likes of Jojos though in that it's pretty much big, dumb fun and you just take it chiefly as a visual treat and worry about the other stuff afterward (like if Manga are ever going to release the last two parts)
 
I don't think it was even so much Alucard being overpowered that bothered me, more that, when they pared it down to little more than the action scenes, the novelty of those began to wear off. By the time we got to the sacking of London and one of the Millenium soldiers ate a baby, I just thought "I am not enjoying this anymore".
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Space Dandy (both seasons).

It's a pretty good show, although it's the sort of thing that people are likely to have fairly different experiences with. Since every episode does something different you could easily love one and hate the next. I don't think there were any episodes I didn't enjoy, but I certainly liked some more than others.

I'm not sure I could pick a favourite between seasons, I've got a contender for favourite episode overall in each season and while I'd probably say season 2 has the weakest episode I don't think it was enough to make a huge difference.

I did like the ending, it made a certain amount of sense and had some quite good moments. I think if I could change one thing, I'd probably have them play the "prologue" segment again at the end (though I suppose there's kind of a reason not to). I enjoyed it every time (which maybe says something about me) and was kind of disappointed that it appeared less often as the show went on (I don't think it appears in at least the last five or six episodes).

Overall I enjoyed it quite a bit, I'm going to miss it.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Been watching quite a lot recently:

Mayo Chiki - 7/10

I found this one really, really average. Yes, it has some pretty funny jokes, and the central premise of the bloke getting a nosebleed from touching girls is kinda funny for a while, but it soon gets pretty stale. Also, I just couldn't get past the fact the main girl looks like a girl, even when he's dressed as a guy. At least make it semi-ambiguous?! All in all, I didn't really find myself attached to any of the characters - they could have come straight off a rack of anime archetypes, and the only reason I'm giving this a 7 instead of a 6.5 is probably because it gets pretty racy in places, which marks it out from countless other identikit harem/gender swap shows.

Kokoro Connect - 8.5/10

AKA I masturbate to my best friends, the anime - In all seriousness though, that episode alone gets serious kudos from me for daring to go 'there', and in the process probably becoming one of the most realistic depictions of teen life/romance I've seen in anime. I love that thematically, the show felt really mature, but was paired with the super cutesy art style from the same character designer that did K-On. The romances feel genuine, and I like how the supernatural elements were used to manipulate the characters into certain situations and get them to confront their morals. I powered through the first two arcs in a single sitting, they were that engrossing. And then I hit the final three eps, which I found pretty disposable and kind of killed it a little for me, as they largely put the central love triangle on hold.

Anyway, Inaba = Best Girl, no doubt about it.

Kamisama Kiss - 7.5/10

This is super-similar to Fruits Basket, but I didn't enjoy it anywhere near as much. I mean, as a bloke, I'm hardly the target market for this kind of show, but whereas Fruits Basket takes you through the emotional ringer from highs to lows with each episode, I found this seemed far more focussed on small scale dramas and so-so comedy.

That said, one thing I really did like was the show's aesthetic in general - it's always pretty to look at, and has some really great visual gags. The main girl is the life and soul of the show, and pulls some of the best facial expressions I've seen in a long time. I suppose it's something of a cliche, but the whole 'innocence' thing that shojo adaptations pulls is kind of attractive too, just because it lends itself to corny melodrama so much.

Chihayafuru - 9/10

I had absolutely no idea what this was before I went in, but boy am I glad I watched it. I found it completely and utterly engrossing from the off, and the most 'just one more episode!' watch-fest I've had in ages. I haven't watched that many 'sport' anime, but the way this show handles tensions in what you could argue was quite a static environment is incredible. And obviously it helps that everything is utterly gorgeous - it's shojo aesthetics to the core, but I came to absolutely love it for it. Chihaya herself is probably one of the most expressive, beautifully drawn female leads I've seen, and I like how all the side characters get genuine, decent development too. No one is a bit player in this anime.

I felt the second season started to sag a little in the mid-point, mainly because it was just endless tournament rounds, and the initial wow factor of the anime's core premise had started to wear off - but even so, I'd recommend this show to anyone. Plus, the soundtrack is incredible, and got my genuinely choked up on an almost episodic basis.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Lutga said:
Mayo Chiki - 7/10

I found this one really, really average. Yes, it has some pretty funny jokes, and the central premise of the bloke getting a nosebleed from touching girls is kinda funny for a while, but it soon gets pretty stale. Also, I just couldn't get past the fact the main girl looks like a girl, even when he's dressed as a guy. At least make it semi-ambiguous?! All in all, I didn't really find myself attached to any of the characters - they could have come straight off a rack of anime archetypes, and the only reason I'm giving this a 7 instead of a 6.5 is probably because it gets pretty racy in places, which marks it out from countless other identikit harem/gender swap shows.
Click to expand...

I think I liked Mayo Chiki a bit more than you did, I found some of the moments between the characters elevated it a bit since it felt like they did actually care about each other and there were a few interesting character stories. I'd say it doesn't really count as a harem show because most of the girls aren't really interested in the male lead and it does spend a bit of time on non-romantic relationships between different characters. I'd say it has a similar type of relationship setup to Toradora, though it's not an exact comparison (and I wouldn't rate it as highly as Toradora).

Lutga said:
Kamisama Kiss - 7.5/10

This is super-similar to Fruits Basket, but I didn't enjoy it anywhere near as much. I mean, as a bloke, I'm hardly the target market for this kind of show, but whereas Fruits Basket takes you through the emotional ringer from highs to lows with each episode, I found this seemed far more focussed on small scale dramas and so-so comedy.

That said, one thing I really did like was the show's aesthetic in general - it's always pretty to look at, and has some really great visual gags. The main girl is the life and soul of the show, and pulls some of the best facial expressions I've seen in a long time. I suppose it's something of a cliche, but the whole 'innocence' thing that shojo adaptations pulls is kind of attractive too, just because it lends itself to corny melodrama so much.
Click to expand...

I probably liked Kamisama Kiss a little bit more too. I think your assessment is pretty accurate but I guess the smaller moments appeal to my love of slice of life shows. I'd definitely agree that the female lead is the best part of the show, it's always good to see female characters with actual character in this kind of show (well, in general really).
 
Now I finally have proper internet access again I can finally write this. Hoorah.

Elfen Lied (Dubbed)

Spoiler Warning: I'll be talking about vague spoilers, scenes but not their context or anything. Just a warning.

Every since I first started watching anime about year ago, I've always meant to watch Elfen Lied but I never got around to it until now. It's a show that, while not quite as well known as perhaps your Bebops and your Evas, is still quite mainstream in comparison to other shows. It's reputation for violence is probably what makes it so well know, and it's this reputation that attracted me to the show. Needless to say, it didn't disappoint.

In terms of actual content, this show is probably the darkest show I've seen. This show really tries to cover all its bases from the super gory deaths, infant torture, baby murder, child molestation and more. I've never really seen a show go out of it's way to fit as much dark subject matter into it's story before and I think that is part of the appeal of the show, just to kind of see how far it goes. Whilst the show is dark in terms of it's content, it is let down by a really inconsistent tone. For all the scenes of death and suffering, there are also scenes that I can only compare to slice of life. If anyone on this forum knows me, they know I love Slice of Life and while the scenes aren't bad, per say, they are very out of place and ill fitting with the dark subject matter. Then there is all the Ecchi stuff. The show will go out of it's way to shove as many boobs in your face as you could possibly handle. Like if you played a drinking game where you drank every time you saw breasts, you'd need a liver transplant by the end of the series. I doubt it's Highschool DxD levels (Then again, I haven't seen that show) but, much like the Slice of Life elements, it's just very out of place.

Despite the tone, I actually really did like this series. For one, the story was enjoyable. It's not a complex story, but it's interesting enough to keep your attention. I was actually getting Shiki vibes from it, which is a good thing as I liked the story in Shiki too. Like Shiki, the story shows 2 species that are two sides of the same coin, both just fighting for survival. Whilst I don't think it is done quite as well here (Mariko just seemed genuinely malicious) it's still an interesting dynamic to watch. The story isn't really the main focus of the show though as Elfen Lied is all about it's characters. The show sports a pretty small cast but does does a good job of fleshing out it's characters. All of the main cast are given backstory, some more than others, and it really helps you to connect with them. Of course, the main character Kota has the best backstory and his backstory is probably the highlight of the show for me. Whilst after a couple of hints the reveal at the end of his backstory is incredibly predictable, the build up was well done and it really helped to flesh his character out as well as Lucy's. The only character that was poorly done was Yuka. Her character wasn't really fleshed out at all and all she did was whine and be selfish throughout. On that topic, I could have also really done without the romance subplot. I like the romance between Lucy and Kohta but the romance between Yuka and Kohta just felt kind of forced. Besides, I'm pretty sure they're cousins, but it's never really addressed that their relationship is incestuous. It's kind of weird they made them cousins as it's kind of unnecessary.

In terms of Animation, I thought the show looked pretty subpar. It always looked like it was missing details and the characters looked pretty muddled even in medium shots. I also thought the dub was pretty sub par all around, apart from Lucy.

While this show is definitely not without it's flaws, if you're looking for a show that really pushes the boundaries in terms of gore and dark subject matter, you can't really go wrong with Elfen Lied.

8/10
 
Last edited by a moderator:
What did you make of the OP sequence/theme? For me, that's one of the best parts of the show, with the Gustav Klimt inspired visuals.

I have to admit, having watched Elfen Lied again the second time recently (with the new Blu-Ray release), once you know what's coming, I feel the show kind of transforms from being dark/shocking into a weirdly black comedy. Maybe I just have a really sick sense of humour, but I find the image of Nana with all her arms and legs cut off one of the most unintentionally hilarious things I've ever seen.

I don't know if you've seen it, but if you fancy trying something even darker/bloodier/sex heavy than Elfen Lied, the third Berserk movie - The Advent - is worth a shot if you've got a strong stomach and want to see just how 'far' anime can go with that kind of content.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
I think cousins are generally okay and such a relationship wouldn't really be considered incestuous in most places (I could easily be wrong about that). I guess they'd only be something like 25% blood related. Of course, there's also some debate about how "bad" incest is in the first place.

I don't think Elfen Lied would be my kind of show. I don't mind "dark" content but I'm not a fan if it's just used to shock or push boundaries. I tend to prefer when shows are subtle and maybe don't even show anything explicitly, that usually works better for me. I guess I'm a bigger fan of mental suffering than physical suffering too. I wouldn't say there's anything wrong with the more shock based kind of "dark" content, it just doesn't tend to appeal to me as much. Of course, it's also possible that I haven't watched enough of it (it's one area that I'm a bit behind on anime wise).
 
I think cousins is pretty taboo in the UK, but from what I've read, it's apparently less of an issue in Japan.

I read an interesting article debating exactly this in regards to anime the other day, and it went with an interesting line of discussion saying that incest is only taboo because that attitude has become the societal norm - not because there's any inherent 'wrongness' to it, and compared it to how attitudes to other societal issues have varied vastly between now and say, 100 years in the past. But obviously everyone has their own view on the matter.
 
Lutga said:
What did you make of the OP sequence/theme? For me, that's one of the best parts of the show, with the Gustav Klimt inspired visuals.
Click to expand...

The OP was something I more appreciated than enjoyed. The art looked really good and the song is excellent (I also really liked how it was worked into the show) but I only watched it the first time and skipped it every other time.

On the subject of their relationship, I didn't think it was bad they were together or anything like that, I just thought it was weird how the issue wasn't addressed or even mentioned in passing. As you say Smeelia, maybe it's a cultural thing.
 
Back
Top