Fate Stay Night Unlimited Blade Works

Some things never change

For ages magicians have fought in an contest called the Holy Grail Wars in which seven magicians each summon a heroic figure from history and fight to the death in order to summon the holy grail which can grant a wish. Shiro is a young man who has a bit of a hero complex who one night witnesses two people fighting and ends up entwined in the latest Holy Grail War when he ends up almost getting killed and summoning the servant Saber.

Berserker, complete with shoulder mounted loli

 Fate Stay Night Unlimited Blade Works is a movie adaptation of one of the routes to the famous visual novel of the same name. As it tries to cram such a long story line into less than two hours of film time this movie is very fast paced and there was probably some stuff that was cut out to make for time. The movie probably is best watched if you have some familiarity with the Fate Stay Night franchise to understand all the details.

Shiro is so angry is practically besides himself

Although there is some character development in this movie they include all of the various servant battles so it isn't the focus of the movie. If you are looking for a bunch of nicely animated fights on the other hand unlimited blade works is what you are looking for. It's a bit better than calling it a mindless movie but It is best for it's fans and those looking for a bunch of action.

Rin Punch!

Overall I think this show is best for fans and those looking for some pretty pictures of fighting as anyone who remotely considers themselves a type moon fan

Rating the bronze sword on a string (ninja scroll) for being a delightful action packed movie to watch on just about any rainy day (and I live in western Washington so there are a lot of those).

Review Akuma no Riddle

It's a shame we have to waste the swimsuit episode with bomb defusal

Tokaku Azuma was trained to be an assassin since birth and is a formidable fighter. One day she is assigned to a special high school class called class black. In this class there are other assassins as well as one normal student called Haru. The objective for the students in this class is to be the one that kills Haru. Tokaku develops feelings for Haru and decides to protect her from the other assassins.

See my smile is only somewhat creepy

Akuma no Riddle is an action show with a Yuri (lesbian) undertone. This is also one of the show's main assets as just about all Yuri stories I have seen are slice of life shows and it is nice to see another genre. This also means that the protagonist is a rare strong female character in the vein of Utena who is really nice to see.
Also there is plenty of action and each of the assassination plots are varied giving each episode it's own unique spin.

Unfortunately the rest of the show doesn't measure up to the protagonist. A lot of the problems with the show stem from the assassin of the week nature of most of the show which means that characters aren't really developed until the episode that they leave the show. This leaves most of the show dealing with characters that aren't properly fleshed out and scenes of character back story that ends up feeling pointless because it is about a character that will soon leave the show.

Overall I found Akuma no Riddle to be a decent action show with yuri undertones although at some points I was left wishing the show was better.

The bronze cocktail dress of doom (madlaz) for efforts in being a good action show with a strong female lead. 

My wishes for Dog Days 3

It has been announced some time ago that there will be a third season of the anime franchise Dog Days. While the show is not a modern classic by just about anybody's reckoning it a fun guilty pleasure in this anime fan's perspective. I will be watching the the series as a matter of course but of course there are some things that I would love to see in the third season even if there no real chance that they will ever happen in the show. So here is my list of Dog Days wishes.

1. There needs to be more General Godwin. He is a badass warrior voiced Norio Wakamoto. Probably doing awesome stuff alongside princess Leo who is also badass and awesome. I know this is a moe show but a show can always use more awesome things.

2. Becky needs to make out with squirrel princess ( think her name is Couvert) like the show has turned into an episode of Sakura Trick. I know she has a thing for the main character (like just about all of the female characters in the show) but everyone who watches the show (outside of a few fujoshi who want him paired with Gaul) know he will end up with princess Milihore or Eclair. Just toss the yuri fans a bone.

3. Some sort of overarching plot would be nice. Especially given the second season this is a bit of a stretch but it is something that would always be nice. 

review No game no life

Someone put Jojo in my moe anime.

Sora and Shiro are two NEETs (Japanese acronym meaning Not in Employment, Education or Training) who are a famous pair of game players known as blank. One day they are summoned to another world by the god of games, Tet. In this new world all the conflicts are decided by the outcome of a game. However this is also a world of magic; can Sora and Shiro prosper against foes that can use magic using only their wits?

To be fair Stephanie is pretty good even if she is a Steph

No game No life is a fantasy anime based off of a light novel. While there are several unremarkable shows that fit this description No game No life is hardly unremarkable. The main reason for this is the characters, while many anime shows have boring protagonists Sora especially is a dynamic and charismatic presence with complex plans that keep the show entertaining. Much of the story is based around preparation but even these episodes are fun to watch.

Even angels can be drooling otaku too!.

The animation style of this show is quite vivid and unique which fits a fantasy show well and is quite the visual treat.  There is also a fair but not an overwhelming amount of fan service in this show. The show also has a bunch of references to other anime shows (what do would you expect with those main characters?) but those are done concisely and are only a minor part of the show.

Overall I consider No game No life to be a really fun fantasy romp with fun to watch protagonists.

rating the silver heart of the cards (Yugioh) for being an enthralling game centered anime show.

Review One Week Friends (Ishuukan Friends)

Ordinary boy, you interest me so

Kaori Fujimiya is a young woman with a strange defect, every week on Monday she forgets all of the memories she has of her friends. Yuuki Hase is a young man who tries to approach Kaori and tries to overcome the wall between her and any possibility of forming a relationship with others outside her family.

Beach episode but no fan service, what witchcraft is this?

One Week Friends is a slice of life drama, although this is a rather different show than the usual troupe of cute girls doing whatever gimmick the show has. Instead this show plays out like a romantic show although actual romantic commitment is something that would exist in some non existent future season. The show does lack a lot of the exploitative elements that are in most romantic comedies as there is no fan service or harem elements in this show.

We were going to have gay sex on this roof but I see you are already here

The show does require some suspension of disbelief required to accept although besides that the show does adhere to realism. The shows animation is rendered in pastels which helps further the mostly calming atmosphere of the show. The cast of characters is small but the show does a good job developing all of them and making all of them feel like they are important to the show as a whole.

Overall I found One Week Friends to be a heartfelt anime that really hits the spot if you are looking for a warm fuzzy feeling.

The silver dango (Clannad) for being a rather delightful and unique art style and a very worthwhile addition to the slice of life genre. 

Review Selector Infected Wixoss

There is a new popular card game out called Wixoss (pronounced We-cross). For a special set of girls called selectors by those in the know there is even more to it as they can play a secret version of the game that will allow them to have their wishes be granted. Ruko is a somewhat reserved girl who receives the game from her grandmother and finds out that she is a selector.

Watch the show and you will want to punch this girl too

Selector Infext Wixross is a dark magical girl show with a collectable card game tie in. There are going to be two seasons of this show but this review covers only the first season.The card game aspect of the game isn't played out in detail so those that get bored of YugiOh styled won't get similarly annoyed by this show.The other draw of the show is the drama of the main characters and the web of tragedy that envelops them as they play the titular card game.

Why couldn't I have been born a little sister not related by blood?

Being the type of show it is the comparisons between it and Madoka Magica are a bit hard to avoid. While this show doesn't measure up entirely (few shows ever would) this is not to say that this show is without merit. There are a couple of flat characters and the story starts out a bit flat but the core story does ramp up to something more interesting if you have the patience for it.

Overall I found Selector Infected Wixross to be a show with a couple of fairly compelling characters and make it a far more watchable show than It may first appear.

Rating the BronzeKyubey (Madoka Magica) for being the sort of crazy dark show that is more than it appears at first

Review Gundam Build Fighters

Ah the joy's of being a faceless drone

Iori Sei young man who loves to build Gundam models called Gunpla and to fight with them but for some reason isn't all that good at fighting with them. One day he meets a mysterious boy named Reiji and Sei teaches Reiji about Gunpla. The two decide to team up and see how far they go in the international gunpla tournament.

like all great shonen heroes they begin to collect their ex enemies

Gundam build fighters is a strange sort of mecha show that works as a type of sports show as well. It also like many mecha shows is a glorified toy commercial and is more blantant about it than most other shows. The the defining feature of this show is that it is utterly loaded with references to other Gundam shows; it not enough that it will turn off people new to the franchise but if you have seen a few Gundam shows you will get more out of it.

Behold my extra evil sunglasses

If you have seen a show with a tournament as a large feature in it you can pretty much guess how the show will progress. Still there is a few gundam centric touches as the last two opponents and the last episode make little sense in a toy model tournament but make sense in a Gundam show. While it isn't a show that tries to hard to be comedic it doesn't take itself all that seriously at the same time.

That hand glows with an awesome power

Overall I wouldn't call this a great show but I understand it has it's audience and if you like Gundam you may enjoy this show.

Rating The bronze Gekiganger (Martian successor Nadesico) for being a delightful peace of bold faced merchandising.