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Backlog Clearing Operation, Phase 1: Last Exile 1-12

Really enjoying this, just the sort of thing I wanted to watch. Though it fairly blatently borrows from other places (Gundam, Harlock, even Star Wars Episode 1 of all things) it's so far proving to be better than all of them. Likeable characters (with lovely character designs by Range Murata. Mmm... Tatiana... /creepy) an intriguing plot, not much of which has been revealed yet, but I like the way it's progressing. Former peace keepers starting a war, a kidnapped girl of unknown origin and mysterious objects being bid for in a fixed auction... I look forward to seeing more.
 
Haruhi Suzumiya Season 2 - Episode 4
Bleach - Episode 226 (back to fillers after this episode :()
When The Seagulls Cry Episode 1 - Not to bad from what i can tell
Sea Life Episode 1
Phantom Episodes 12-13 - This series is getting better and better!
ToLoveRu - OVA 2
 
WHR: 1-10

You can tell both this and Planetes aren't based on a manga. They're both episodic series, lacking any main plot and a ton of fillerish content. And, in the case of WHR, the character development isn't done right - you get told a little about a secondary character and nothing about the main characters in the first ten episodes. Next to nothing, character quirks aside, was revealed in the first ten episodes.

There hasn't been a main story connecting the episodes so far; just lots of random case solving. A new major user gets transfered to the Japanese branch of magic hunting people and they hunt magic users - that's it. It's been more entertaining than Planetes because there's been more going on than removing rubbish from space, but it hasn't been amazing.

What's pissed me off so far is how dumb the concept seems. Why, in the name of Jesus, are magic users hunting other magic users - some not having done anything? The normal humans list the magic users like criminals and kill/capture without trial, yet some magic users help the humans and aren't thought of as the same by humans? What the hell!? It's like the mutants in X-Men turning on each other just because the humans don't want them to exist.

The series is a lot like DtB. In other words, it's another fairly generic, episodic series involving people with special powers. Both are entertaining, but both look likely to fail for the same reasons.
 
Except Planetes is based on a four volume manga by the same guy who is currently the manga-ka for Vinland Saga. lol. Google, use it.

Kannagi 1-4: For some reason I love the opening, the show itself is better than I expected, I'll stick with it, glad it had more than the looks.

Chobits 1-5: Crispin Freeman voicing the main character makes the series worth watching alone.

Finished Ouran too, the ending despite being filler was pretty win, I won't be watching the second series when it's released in Japanese though, ick.
 
Didn't it come out at the same time as the anime? They only finished within a few months of each other.

Even if it is in part based on the manga, it's clear that a lot of the content is filler.
 
Witch Hunter Robin: 11-14

It's ok. Entertaining, full of witch jargon and lacking a decent main plot thread... well, it doesn't really have one. At this point, 14/26 episodes in, the episodes have finally started connecting, with the story connecting the episodes being about Robin's employers randomly turning on her for no reason.

What's still getting to me about this series is the how badly the witch vs. witch aspect has been handled. Did the creators seriously accept me to believe that any semi-intelligent character wouldn't get that by hunting others with the same magic power as herself that she's hunting her own? The anime treated it like some huge revelation when it was obvious from the start.

The other thing bugging me is character development. Apart from the tech guy explaining why he stats at the office 24/7, there hasn't been any, and I'm over the halfway point. Plenty of case solving, lots of case related dialogue... but no fleshing out the cast. So much time to do it and yet the studio opted to put in pointless episide after pointless episode.

So far, I think the rating on MAL is right on the money - 7.5/10. I'm betting, like me, most are torn between 7/10 and 8/10 - it'sa 7/10 series in terms of overall quality but more of an 8/10 in enjoyment. No idea why the 'critics' scored it so highly, though...
 
It's got a fantastic atmosphere, and is a very well produced series (directing, score, etc). But I'd agree that it's not 100% one of the best series ever all the way through, as much as I like it.
 
Where as I've only watched 10 episodes of Planetes in over a week, I've watched 18 episodes of WHR in under a week. It isn't bad. But, really, it strikes me as being an empty series, full of lots of suspense and style but little in the way of substance. The irony is that it's easy to watch because there's so little in the way of story and character development - it'd be a great series to watch weekly because most episodes are standalone.

If I were to pick one of the two episodic 'mutant' series I've seen, I'd go with DtB. A much better lead, Yoko Kanno, excellent visuals and a near 10/10 start. I'm looking forward to watching DtB on DVD and, eventually, finishing it for the first time.
 
Planetes: 18

Hachi is fast becoming a hate worthy son of a bitch. I can understand there being a conflict between dreams and love, but just ignoring Tanabe all of a sudden and not giving a **** about the debris section has made me seriously dislike him. Instead of Tanabe dying (I like her now - she says less naive rubbish and is kind of cute), I hope Hachi dies. Painfully. People who put themselves above others life he has are trash.

The series itself is good. Solid, but not amazing. In terms of overall quality, the odd crappy filler aside, it's an eight, but in terms of enjoyment it's probably more of a seven. It's often boring, the characters aren't anything new and the 'Dreams vs. Love' thing isn't exactly original. It hasn't rocked my world.

WHR: 22

This series does not have a story. Girl joins witch hunters, girl hunts people, girl escapes when she's hunted, girl comes to the shocking (...) realization that she's a 'witch', girl stays in the area to help out with hunts, series ends (afer some genetics rubbish, no doubt).

It also doesn't have character development. I know next to nothing about any of the cast. The only thing I know is that the IT guy can't leave the building he works in - that's it. What sort of episodic series doesn't even attempt to add depth to its cast!? Character love is impprtant when the 'story' sucks.

...still, it's fairly enjoyable to relax and watch. It requires no brain power and it's hard to get lost when very little new occurs. I'll forget it when I'm finished with it, though - it just isn't special in any way.
 
Valkyria Chronicles ep 13

we're officially off the storyline from the game

same plan, same ideas...... But Is still lives
 
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