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Hi! It's babyeinstein12, a relatively new member of the anime world yet someone completely willing to write about it! Here are my takes.

La Corda d'Oro (Overall Rating: 5/10)
Tales from Earthsea (Overall Rating: 8.5/10)

La Corda d'Oro

Story (3/10)
So how often do we hear "shoujo" and "classical music" uttered in the same sentence? Both entities dwell in vastly different realms of substance, media, and mind, and after watching La Corda d’Oro, I am convinced that it should stay that way. For the average shoujo-loving viewer, this series will be nothing more than a delicious catalogue of hot guys (who, as a side note, all happen to play instruments, but that doesn’t really matter). For the classical music junkie, it will twist a dearly beloved genre of music into something more akin to bubblegum pop.

Kahoko Hino, a regular high school sophomore, stumbles upon a fairy, receives a magic violin that anyone can play, and promptly finds herself in the school’s prestigious music performance competition. Throughout the next twenty-five dragging episodes, she gets to know her handsome competitors even while she confronts jealousy and sabotage. She also struggles to cope both with her unfair advantage, and her lack of skill. Sound interesting? It’s really not. Hino meanders along in a romantically drugged haze, and the show quickly tires with its loose plot and lackluster characters.

For those who enjoyed the masterpiece that is Nodame Cantabile, I urge you take strong precaution with La Corda. Within this sissified, sugared depiction of a rich Old World tradition, one will be acquainted with more sparkles than musical notes, with more tantalizingly open collars than instruments, with more bishonen than genius composers, and with more squeal moments than enriching tapestries of an underappreciated art form. Well, perhaps the intent of La Corda has always been more about pleasing female viewers than educating them. But even the series’ shoujo elements, while carried off in an aesthetically pleasing manner, hold the dangerous risk of leaving even the least discerning fangirls unsatisfied.

Of course, virtually all slice-of-life shoujo anime treads that fine line where filler and plot happily blend together. This is no exception with La Corda. Actually, the show benefits from an overarching premise with its four-round music competition; the viewer is able to see how Hino grows as a musician throughout the months that the competition spans. However, instead of shaping the competition as an integral plot device, the anime takes a form more similar to a stock chart – moments of brief culmination at the competition rounds that give way to plotless lulls. The relationships that are formed remain hopelessly one-dimensional. The drama so integral to a shoujo is, in a word, nonexistent. The conclusion is slapdash, leaving absolutely no closure.

In short: this series falls short in its role both as a showcase of classical music and as a shoujo anime.

Animation (8/10)
La Corda d’Oro makes fine use of color shading, which owes to its soft, pretty look. The backgrounds are not particularly detailed, but that does not mean they are simplistic. Actually, the pastel-like texture combines nicely with the still clearly definable lines.

Most of the energy, however, is spent on its plethora of close-up face shots, which, while unneeded, becomes an integral method for retaining viewers. Shiny lips and smooth skin run unbounded in this anime. In fact, everyone’s skin is so smooth that they all almost resemble porcelain dolls. In my opinion, this is the show’s greatest strength – the men are positive drool-mats, even if they are shallow and indecisive to a one. The prospect of impending eye candy is the thing that kept me watching, at least. Unfortunate, but true.

Sound (7/10)
For an anime that is supposed to emphasize the “heart” of classical music, it hardly presents the best of what the genre has to offer. From countless Ave Marias to Chopin clichés, much of the featured pieces take the form of generic favorites, utilized more to elicit the “Hey, I know this!” than to actually freshen up an old form of music. What’s even sadder is that half of the time, they muddle up the titles. On the other hand, the music composed specifically for the anime boasts an inexplicable yet noticeable charm. I did not get tired of the background music; instead, I actually wanted to hear more.

The Japanese voice acting stands out not so much for how they were performed as for who were performing. Each seiyu speaks with a unique tone that supplies their respective characters with individuality. I especially loved the trumpet player, because Masakazu Morita voiced it. Contrarily, I found the cellist’s voice annoying, because it only slowed up the already sluggish pacing. Whether I love a voice or hate it, La Corda succeeds in this aspect because the variety of lilts all so greatly help define a character’s identity from the others.

Characters (2.5/10)
As with any reverse harem anime, the male cast becomes vital to La Corda 's survival. Each typecast is faithfully administered, from the cold prodigy to the friendly jock to the heartwarming nice guy. They fling into the mix the ever-popular “angel of light” who happens to have a dark side, as well as the aloof cutie pie. It’s as if nothing could go wrong with this tried-and-true arsenal of bodacious boys.

And yet, things do go wrong. Instead of the guys coming into their own, they dig deeper and deeper into their preprogrammed personality modes. As a result, their bonds with Hino never grow. For example, the icy, talented Tsukimori continues sawing away at his violin, forever out of reach. The cheerful Hihara’s conversations never evolve past small talk. One could forget that the sleepy, supposedly endearing Shimizu even exchanged words with Hino on more than three or four occasions. At the end of the series, Hino’s friendships with each male do not seem to have expanded in any dimension.

This is not to mention the utter tedium that is the protagonist herself. Hino seems an affable girl in the first episode, yet as the anime continues, she judders into a completely static character, never progressing beyond the spouting off of pleasantries like “Oh, Hihara-kun!” or “I am going to try my best!” Then, to make things even more irritating, everyone begins to crush on her. Nothing connects.

Overall (5/10)
Evidently, La Corda's superb animation and well-gauged voices somewhat recompense the poor storyline and even poorer characterization. The series as a whole teeters on a very precarious edge, and in my opinion, it all boils down to a matter of taste and a reason for deciding to watch it in the first place. Even then, it doesn’t take a genius to figure out that La Corda d’Oro is firmly planted within the ranks of the utterly mediocre.



Tales from Earthsea

Story: 7.5/10
When Miyazaki Goro’s anticipated debut film hit the screens in 2006, much of the reception was lukewarm, and even a bit unflattering. Let me tell you this: Don’t take those criticisms seriously. The problem was that many of the reviews judged the then newest Ghibli film as just that – a Ghibli film. Young Miyazaki was unable to escape his father’s shadow (not unlike his film’s protagonist,) and his ambitious work ended up the undeserved target of many preconceived expectations. Tales from Earthsea is a far cry from the typical family-friendly flight of whimsy that characterizes most Studio Ghibli films, but while considered a studio “disappointment,” it remains a movie that can stand quite well on its own, thank you very much.

True, Tales from Earthsea is not a movie for kids. Nor is it a movie tailored for those simply “in for a nice time.” It is an unpretentious work with an unpretentious story, but a lot is said. Unlike Miyazaki Hayao, Goro’s narrative is driven more by mood and character than actual plot, though father and son align in their ability to convey something to their audience.

Prince Arren, a troubled teenager and runaway, finds himself unwittingly caught in an evil scheme that has been throwing the world of Earthsea out of sync. In the midst of such troubles, he gains friends, traverses the countryside, hides from slave traders, and delves into the meanings of life and death. It is by no means a swashbuckling adventure, but is instead a series of thoughtful portraits in which Arren comes to learn about himself and the way he views the circumstances around him. Miyazaki Goro clearly has something to say through this movie. I found this quite arresting, and it left me thinking long after the film had finished.

Compared to the charms of other Ghibli films, Earthsea promises a very different kind of magic. The fantasy surrounding the land of Earthsea is presented in a way not dissimilar to Lord of the Rings or Harry Potter: Its tone is much airier than those of the elder Miyazaki, the landscapes are distinctly un-Japanese, and all in all, there is just something sweeping about the whole thing. Perhaps not what every anime fan is looking for, but when coupled with its not-as-flashy story, it becomes a unique, and quite memorable, type of fantasy.

This isn’t to say that the story is without gaps and flaws. As a matter of fact, there exist a few moments where motives and actions do not connect adequately, leaving the overarching story less convincing than it could have been. Some plot occurrences are unneeded, while others are left unexplained. Nevertheless, its theme on the dynamics between life and death hits hard. The climax, while lacking a sense of urgency, is ethereal and grandiose, and then cascades into a quiet, satisfying conclusion.

Animation (9/10)
One can easily detect the classic “Ghibli style” in Miyazaki Goro. Like its story, the animation and backgrounds are unpretentious, uncluttered works of art that serve their purposes well and add to the fresh, “open” feel of the film. What drew me in the most were its vast landscape designs. With such breezy, sun-tinted oceans, desert seas, broad mountain ranges, and windblown grass fields, I felt a strong desire to step through my computer screen and actually experience the sensations that the scenes so strongly elicited. The characters are drawn in an uncomplicated manner and yet exhibit a cleaner, more detailed polish than earlier Miyazaki counterparts.

Sound (8/10)
Let me just say that the music is absolutely, unequivocally beautiful. Its exotic harmonies and sweeping symphonic elements truly bring the world of Earthsea to greater life. Some main themes were used rather repetitively, yet they were so exquisite and full of imagery that I hardly minded. I particularly liked the more folksong-like piece that makes a poetic appearance sometime in the second half, sung by Therru, the heroine.

The voice acting is well done. I was above all struck by the voice for Cob, whose low, musical murmurs captured his mystique and lent to an odd kind of hypnotism that was fascinating to hear. The others’ voices, while performed persuasively, were generally unremarkable in timbre. It was only Cob’s voice that stuck in my mind.

Characters (8.5/10)
What the film might miss in plot it almost completely makes up for in the multifaceted characterization of its protagonist, Prince Arren. It is the boy’s realizations of life, death, and himself that largely constitute the story as a whole; throughout his journey fraught with guilt, doubt, and fear, he is able to strike a deeply familiar chord with many viewers. Seemingly crushed by the irrevocability of one day dying, Arren copes with the meaning (or meaninglessness) of life. His development throughout the film makes it easy for viewers struggling with similar problems to reflect and journey with him. The impact of such a dynamic evolution of character cannot be denied.

Many of the other characters initially appear to fit into one-dimensional frames. Some of them remain so, while others grow into themselves. Sparrowhawk remains the stereotypical wise wizard, Tenar the supportive and strong female adult ally. However, Therru transforms from a lonely girl into a vital part of Arren’s self-realizations, and the greedy, evil Cob is not without his share of vulnerabilities. The only disappointing character is the annoying, broad-faced slave trader lackey who repeatedly fails in his attempts to apprehend Arren. His presence is merely a bad aftertaste that pops up over and over again as a device to tend to the rather forced undercurrent of suspense throughout the first half.

Overall (8.5/10)
In my opinion, the critics who have trashed this majestic film are merely failing to come to terms with their own presuppositions. Of course, no one can call this piece flawless. Yet I see in the film a young director’s immense potential, as well as a stunning individuality that went by duly unappreciated by those who merely desired to see an unoffending successor to the Ghibli tradition. The future looks dim for this underrated movie, and to be honest, this saddens me. I am not afraid to admit that I am completely taken with Tales from Earthsea: with its style, its aesthetics, and most especially its characterization. It has carried me upon wild wings of rhapsody. I know this sounds cheesy, but it really did.

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holy shit, someone besides me that liked gedo senki!!! (did you see my review, btw?)

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Yay! I totally understand what you're saying.

Actually, I remember browsing through it before watching the movie, and then I read it again after I finished my review. It was really gratifying to see someone who agreed with me on basically all of the movie's points! Go us!

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Your reviews look pretty good for the most part (although I hated Gedo Senki :P). I'll try to give more detailed feedback later. It's neat to see another anime-lover/writer from Colorado - I'm currently living in Boulder/Fort Collins.

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Okay, I like what I've skim-read. I will give detailed feedback once vivafruit has given his (in case there's something I think of that he hasn't).

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<.< I think I'd like to take a stab at this. Is there a deadline for new reviewers/applicants? I've been thinking about trying to write a couple reviews, but might not get to them for a week or so.

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Devil Hunter Yohko (7/10) & Chocolate Underground (8/10)

Devil Hunter Yohko



Chocolate Underground

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There is no deadline for applying. At the moment the recruitment drive will be indefinite. Good luck. :)

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After rereading BabyEinstein's reviews, there really isn't a lot to say. The only true errors are mechanical nitpicks: the comma always goes after the parentheses (like this), and the first word after a colon shouldn't be capitalized.

I also have a minor stylistic quibble with this sentence:

Using indeterminate pronouns without proper antecedents usually leads to non-descriptive writing, and here the practice is especially bad because you use "it" twice, each time referring to a different antecedent. As is, the sentence doesn't read too well, especially when coupled with the following sentence, which also has "it" without an antecedent.

Other than that, the reviews are great and definitely good enough to be posted to the site.

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OK, my exact words as I type this are:

"Fuck it, I won't know til I try."

Anyway, I'm submitting the following reviews:

UFO Ultramaiden Valkyrie - Overall Score: 1.5/10
Black Jack 21 - Overall Score: 6.5/10

Extra Requested Review: Prince of Tennis - Overall Score: 8/10

(Note: I already posted the Black Jack one in the reviews forum ages back, but I went back and edited it based on feedback, so this is the new edit I'm posting now.)


UFO Ultramaiden Valkyrie:

Story: 1/10

When a buxom young female alien crash-lands in the middle of a bathhouse, it’s a pretty clear sign than some ecchi fun will follow. Throw in a bumbling male lead and as many shots of nude aliens – particularly nude female aliens – in the bath as you can get away with, and you’re set; let the entertainment commence! Unfortunately, this is where UFO Ultramaiden Valkyrie falls flat on its face. Valkyrie takes a relatively simple and foolproof concept and manages to make twelve of the most irritating episodes of anime I have had the misfortune to watch.

UFO Ultramaiden Valkyrie centres on Kazuto, a quiet high-school boy who runs a bathhouse, and Valkyrie, a princess from the planet Valhalla. Kazuto happily goes about his daily business, until Valkyrie arrives. Not only does she crash into the bathhouse, but also manages to kill Kazuto in the process. In order to save his life, the guilt-ridden Valkyrie gives Kazuto half of her soul. However this process has an unfortunate side effect; it turns Valkyrie into a child again! Kazuto then begins to live with child Valkyrie. To add to the fun, Valkyrie’s personal maid, cat-girl Sanada, and her younger sister Hydra – who also became a child after her powers were sealed – followed Valkyrie.

The majority of the twelve episodes of UFO Ultramaiden Valkyrie are essentially pointless filler, with the main plot only dealt with in the last episode and a portion of the penultimate episode. Needless to say, the entire thing feels ridiculously rushed as if the production crew had completely forgotten that they were supposed to include some kind of story within the series. One could argue that the rest of the episodes demonstrate a development of the central relationship. Regrettably I fail to see how an entire episode of Sanada transforming half of the female population into cat-girls shows the progression of the relationship between Kazuto and Valkyrie.


Animation: 1.5/10

I can only assume that UFO Ultramaiden Valkyrie had a very small budget to work with, as that would actually explain the poor animation displayed in this series. Boasting movement that is far from smooth, I would have expected more from an anime of this era. Valkyrie also suffers from an over-reliance on the re-use of shots, in particular the two images used to show the bathhouse environment. Such obvious repetition not only highlights one of the many failings of this series, but also threatens to incite a feeling of “if I see that banana alien with his towel once more, I will kick a puppy.”

The only semi-reasonable section of animation displayed in Valkyrie is that of the forty-second transformation sequence. Even then, it is far from impressive and drags on for much too long. Though on the bright side any time taken up with the transformation results in a few less seconds that I have to stare at the clunky animation or Hydra’s sunburnt skin. The latter I can only imagine can only be the result of an accident that occurred while mixing the colour for her skin.


Sound: 1.5/10

Best described as ‘Happy-bubbly-cheesy-pop’, the opening theme to Valkyrie proves as generically awful as the rest of the series. In fact I would rather drink a pint of said cheese-flavoured soda pop than sit through the opening more than once. The ending song meanwhile simply falls into that grubby little box in the corner that’s half-heartedly labelled ‘forgettable’.

Aside from the attempted nod at Wagner’s ‘Ride of the Valkyries’, which merely serves to throw in our faces once again that someone is able to access Wikipedia and research Norse mythology, the rest of the score remains unremarkable.


Characters: 1/10

I don’t necessarily expect much from my characters in any kind of ecchi or harem show. I especially don’t anticipate much from the male lead, who generally exhibits as much personality as a tissue and has the emotional depth of a raisin. However, this lack of expectation allows Valkyrie its only chance to shine. I present to you, Kazuto: the most vapid, flat and crushingly vacant male lead I have ever seen on screen. Kazuto’s role in the majority of the series can be summed up as follows: Kazuto stands around smiling and under-reacts to every bizarre situation foisted upon him. Then Valkyrie kisses him so she can transform, before Kazuto continues to stand around smiling a bit more. Even his supposed impassioned speech at the end of the series displays less emotion than your average politician.

The rest of the cast also struggle to leave much of a lasting impression. I would often find myself struggling to remember some of the supporting characters names because I simply just did not care.


Overall: 1.5/10

Ecchi may not be to everyone’s tastes, but if, like myself, you like the occasional fun romp in the world of panty shots and big breasts, I would certainly advise that you steer clear of UFO Ultramaiden Valkyrie. Maybe ecchi connoisseurs would be able to find some positive aspects, but I couldn’t. Half of the time I was praying that Valkyrie would display just one lone redeeming feature and the other half contemplating whether or not staring at my lava lamp solidly for four hours would be a better use of my time. If you are looking for a decent ecchi series with a good plot, then you’re in the wrong place. Instead, turn around and go through that door on the right because there are far better titles out there that don’t make such a half-assed attempt at entertaining the general populace.

_____________________________________________


Black Jack 21:


Story: 5.5/10


Best described as the bastard love child of a rather dodgy soap opera and a James Bond film, Black Jack 21 is the latest instalment of Osamu Tezuka’s popular franchise. The premise is simple; Black Jack becomes the target of a group of assassins hired by a mysterious corporation and, with only a single photo as a clue, he sets off on a worldwide journey to discover who wants him dead and why.

With conspiracies abound and some interesting – if not predictable – plot turns, the storyline remains entertaining throughout, though sometimes difficult to take seriously. While plenty of action is not necessarily a bad thing, Black Jack often finds himself in situations best left to 007 rather than an unlicensed surgeon. Although the Black Jack franchise is not known for particularly plausible plots, the inclusions of scenes such as Black Jack scaling the outside of a plane mid-flight truly push the boundaries of believability. Mix this with the sort of familial conflict and shocking revelations that are more at home in a daytime soap opera, and the product is a bizarre creation wavering on the boundary of becoming utterly laughable.

The inclusion of an actual plotline makes a pleasant change from the usual episodic content, which the rest of the franchise tends to rely on, where Black Jack swoops in to save the day. However die-hard fans need not fear – expect plenty of ‘swooping’ to be had in this chapter of the Black Jack series.


Animation: 7/10

Black Jack 21 follows the visual style that you would expect to see from any Osamu Tezuka creation, complete with the character designs heavily influenced by 1920’s western animation. Though the movement is relatively polished, I find the constant use of static images with dramatic ‘action lines’ (which has become a standard in the Black Jack series) somewhat unimaginative. As with many other more recent anime a small amount of CG has been included. However it seems just as obvious as Black Jack’s scars, and often serves little more purpose than enabling the use of sweeping and supposedly dramatic camera movements.


Sound: 6/10

The sound design in Black Jack 21 serves its purpose of heightening the drama of certain scenes. However during the more ridiculous ‘dramatic’ scenes, the over-the-top score merely makes the scenario seem all the more laughable and, as such, becomes somewhat of a double-edged sword. Though neither overly outstanding nor memorable, both the opening and ending themes fit in with the mood of the series.

Reprising his role as title character, voice actor Akio Ohtsuka provides a stellar performance. Showcasing his ability to express the desperation and motivation required for the situation in which Black Jack finds himself, Ohtsuka’s performance adds a slight plausibility to a sometimes far-fetched plot.


Characters: 8/10

During this series Black Jack goes on both a long physical journey and a mental one. Discovering the secrets behind his past, Black Jack 21 provides an excellent chance to develop the main protagonist - and it does not disappoint. To see a character such as Black Jack, who often shows little emotion, reliving his painful past and learning about what was truly behind the tragic events of his childhood comes as a refreshing change and provides quite possibly the highlight of the series.

Black Jack 21 also introduces an array of new characters, though with most appearing in one or two episodes, only a select few are really developed. However, those that are explored in more depth are accorded a good amount of development and their own personal journey. This selection of more developed secondary characters, and the demonstration of the consequences that befall those surrounding the protagonist, easily breathes more life into a series in a way that the other instalments of the franchise failed to achieve.


Overall: 6.5/10

Going into this series expecting a truly gripping thriller of a plot would be a mistake. To forgive the seemingly ridiculous moments scattered throughout the series, Black Jack 21 should be viewed as a fairly light-hearted series with a decent plotline and some cheesy, over-the-top action. It is certainly easy watching without being utterly pointless and it manages to throw in some reasonable character development to boot. Fans of the Black Jack series will most likely find this highly enjoyable, and anyone new to the franchise may well find it more entertaining than they imagined.

_____________________________________________

Here's a third review as requested. Free of feedback. :)

Prince of Tennis


Story: 7.5/10

History is brimming with monumental battles, Nelson versus Napoleon, the Greeks against the Trojans, and apparently any high school tennis match featuring Ryoma Echizen. Prince of Tennis manages to take a simple concept – a high school tennis tournament – and create a wonderfully over-the-top comedic romp into the world of sport.

Prince of Tennis follows the Seigaku tennis club and their bid to make it to the Junior National Tournament Finals. At the centre of the plot resides Ryoma Echizen, a freshman tennis prodigy. Returning to Japan after spending four years in America, Ryoma manages to not only wow the seniors at Seigaku, but also easily secures a place as a regular – something utterly unheard of for a freshman. With their new ace player in place, the club begin their quest to conquer the regional champtionships.

Certainly, whatever excitement Prince of Tennis lacks in its basic premise, it more than makes up for in pure entertainment and spectacle. Following in the footsteps of a shounen standard more often seen in the likes of Naruto or Bleach, Seigaku’s regulars demonstrate an array of impressive but entirely outrageous new moves. As expected, these moves always emerge at the most crucial point of any given match. Naturally the majority of the plot does become somewhat predictable, though I still found myself highly anticipating the revelation of Ryoma’s latest technique.

Prince of Tennis only manages to get away with such exorbitant styles of play for one simple reason: it never once takes itself too seriously. Had it tried to become a serious series about sport then Prince of Tennis would have most likely failed on every level imaginable. However alongside the humorous exchanges between the Seigaku members; the ridiculous training camps; and Inui’s special vegetable juice; it is possible to forgive the odd boomerang shot or shattered tennis racquet.


Animation: 8/10

Prince of Tennis boasts impressive animation during the match sequences. In particular some of the close up shots demonstrate a more realistic movement than I had expected, as outside of the matches the animation remains fairly standard. However, with the majority of the series devoted to the games in which Seigaku participate, this is not a major problem.

By pouring more effort into match sequences, the animation heightens the intensity of what become almost epic battles. Whether displaying the power of one of Momo’s ‘Dunk Smashes’, or the flexibility of Eiji’s acrobatics, each difference in play style is dealt with effectively, to the point where even the most ludicrous ideas seem more believable.


Sound: 6/10

Alongside the often-cheesy plotline comes an equally cheesy score. Including suitably over-dramatic music for the intense matches and light, bouncy harmonies for more comical moments, Prince of Tennis’s score performs its duty effectively. However, even though the score fits with the series, it feels as if few risks were taken and instead the safer, more generic path was chosen. Completing the soundtrack are a myriad of opening and ending themes that, while moderately catchy, leave little lasting impression.

Overall, the voice acting was decent, and there is little to complain about. However, kudos does go to the actor who voiced Horio. The blaring and almost nasal voice attributed to him, served only to make Horio (and his two years of tennis experience) all the more irritating – a perfect fit to the character.


Characters: 8.5/10

Including characters from other competing schools, Prince of Tennis boasts a large cast. While Ryoma remains the central protagonist, he is not the sole focus. For example, the other Seigaku regulars are accorded plenty of development; from the problems and injuries they face, to the creation of their new match-winning techniques. Although central focus always inevitably shifts back to Ryoma at some point, often Prince of Tennis feels more like an ensemble series, which serves to add an extra interest factor. This allows Prince of Tennis to become something more worthy of viewing instead of falling into a realm of mediocrity entitled: ‘The story of Ryoma Echizen’.

Even the secondary characters such as the students from Hyotei and Fudomine enjoy more development and screen time than would be found in any average shounen series. By exploring the personal stories and the improvement behind the opponents as well as those of the protagonists, each match is given an added depth. Though the majority of these reasons are corny, by knowing why each character must win this particular bout, Seigaku’s opponents develop into more than just faceless rivals; they become characters in their own right.


Overall: 8/10

The almost satirical quality that Prince of Tennis demonstrates throughout becomes without a doubt its greatest strength. Providing pure entertainment by mixing a large portion of comedic content with matches of almost epic proportions, Prince of Tennis is ideal viewing for those looking to kick back and relax. Hardcore tennis fans may well find Prince of Tennis a little too on the ridiculous side, but take it as it is and even those who – like me – aren’t necessarily fans of the sports genre could find themselves enjoying this playful series.

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Hi There brand new here and here are my reviews!
These are completely opinionated and would love to here some feedback good or bad.

ToraDora - Overall 9.5/10
Samurai Champloo - Overall 8/10



ToraDora

Story: 8.5/10
The story follows Ryuji Takasu, who though a gentle guy to those who know him, his eyes give him a bad image as the baddest deliquent/troublemaker in school. With many scared faces staring the whole way through, Ryuji enters his second year of high school, and is happy to get a class with his best and only close friend Yusaku Kitamura aswell as the girl he likes, Minori Kusheida. Though everything is looking like the start of a normal year, he runs into, Taiga Aisaka. Like Ryuji, Taiga, to the rest of the school, is a deliquent and a bully and someone you dont want to mess with. Unlike Ryuji, she actually is.

When the 2 meet, they immediately hate eachother. Taiga comes from a very wealthy family whose house overshadow's Ryuji's , which like his family is unwealthy. Ryuki hates her house for blocking out the sun as well as being rich in general. Taiga's reason for living there is to get away from the stress of the family issues she has.

One day, Taiga finds out Ryuji likes Minori, who happens to be her best friend. Also on the same day, Ryuji finds out Taiga likes Yusaku who is his best friend. The two of them deside to make an alliance to help eachother get the person they love. They also pledge to make eachother's image better than it is now. As time passes by, Ryuji and Taiga spend alot of time with each other and become very close. Taiga opens herself to Ryuji in a way most people dont see and Ryuji begins to consider Taiga as part of his family. As they become closer thier friends begin spreading rumors about the two of them, opinions begin to change, and the amazing love story that is ToraDora, unravels.

Animation:9/10
From the very first episode the animation is very smooth. All scenes bring great detail and bright colors to the settings as well as the characters. There is especially great detail on the characters especially in scenes of running or fights. Settings bring some uniqueness yet realness to the city/town they live in. Overall it all feels very real, smooth, and detailed the whole way through.

Sound: 9/10
What really draws you in from the very beginning is the Opening theme, which one of the catchiest intros ive heard in an anime ever. The episodes have great music as well. A very modern electric, poppy soundtrack, which can be really catchy, but at the same time set the mood for a sad scene. The ending themes are just as great as the openings, and sometimes when a cliffhanger is thrown in, it really helps the episode sink in as you think about what just happened.

Characters: 10/10
Though you may have seen all of these characters before,this anime executes those characters very well. Each character has a great personality but also internal problems which, imo is a great balance. Even the happiest character has some of the worst problems in the anime and all the love interests (main characters) usually have one problem that just snaps. With all of these personalities, you cant help but align yourself with one character and say "HEY thats me!" but unlike most anime that makes you do that, you actually fight for your character because you want him/her to win. (idk, maybe my own personal expieriences)

Overall: 9.5/10
One of the most, if not the most overly exploited genres in anime is the Love Story. And nowadays very few stand out as most follow the same general premis of Boy Meets Girl, Boy Falls In Love With Girl, etc. ToraDora is not that anime. With very unique and different characters all intertwined in some way, ToraDora actually pulls you in and makes you debate over who looks cute together. Aside from bringing something different and unique to the table , it also add's a layer of realism, as most of these situations could happen and this love story isnt always so happy. In fact it doesnt really get mushy-gushy until the very end. It honestly made me awe at the end, something i havent done in a while for an anime.

With a great cast of characters, a realistic setting, very smooth animations, and a few twist and turns, ToraDora is a fantastic anime and very well executed. A fantastic anime for anyone looking for a good love story.

EDIT: Just finished reading the guidelines, and this is one of my favorite animes ever.

next review on the next post!

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Application continued!!! :sweat:

Samurai Champloo Overall:8/10

Story: 7.5/10
3 people, who were virtually unconnected in the past come together in something a little more than faith and coincedence for a long journey to find a certain samurai. Mugen, a rowdy samurai with a lazy laid-back personality, Jin, a desciplined samurai with a past he wishes to forget and Fuu, a young girl searching for some personal closure with her father. Mugen and Jin meet in a fight and promise to kill each other but in the process burn down the restaurant they fight in. When arrested, the penalty is execution at the sunrise. Fuu , who watched the whole thing, as well as worked in the restaurant at the time of the battle, breaks into the jail to try and break them out. She fails to, and has to run away, as the 2 samurai's are carried to thier deaths. With some quick thinking Fuu runs to go buy bombs to make a way out. As Fuu is out, the 2 just before death, go into one of the coolest action sequences ever. As they show off their skills, killing masses of guards, Fuu appears at the roof and throws two bombs in the air. The distraction lets Mugen and Jin escape, as they blend in with all the civilians coming out of the exit.

The 2 are about to go at it again, promising they will be the one to kill the other, just as they are about to go at it, Fuu stops them both and says they owe her for her saving them. The two keep thier attention as Fuu makes a proposition. She will flip a coin and if its heads they must accompany her as bodyguards and if tails they may fight it out as long as they want. It lands on heads and Mugen and Jin reluctantly lay thier swords down and agree to accompany Fuu to find...."The Samurai Who Smells Like Sunflowers" this triggers a story of the growing friendship between them, the dark pasts they each have, and the adventure that is Samurai Champloo.

Its executed very well, but the plot slowly trickles into your usual samurai or adventure story. Friends get closer, a bad guy has been tracking them, etc. What it does right however, is bring alot of unique stories on thier trip to Nagasaki from the origin of spray paint and tagging, to a extremely amazing baseball game. Either way the story, though not original, is executed well and is very unique.

Animation: 8/10

The animation is fluid and smooth for the most part of the run. There is a great amount of detail in the environments and settings for the anime and also an interesting combination of colors that help make the scene. The character designs help define who they are and are very detailed to an extent. Where the anime really shines animationwise is its fantastic action sequences, especially towards the end. They are very beautiful to watch and make alot of moves that look amazing but other wise impossible. One character I found very well done in fight sequences was Mugen, who's motions incorporated some bboying into his movements as well as an unpredictable way of moving and fighting. This is the complete opposite to Jin who is just pure disciplined badass. He's very quick and thoughtful of his moves and does them very smoothly and with ease.

Sound: 7.5/10
As most people know, this anime is the second work of Watanabe who made the great anime Cowboy Bebop. Cowboy Bebop had a fantastic soundtrack which really fit and made the anime. Not just the theme song but everything about the soundtrack alone was fantastic and imo the definition of cool.

Samurai Champloo does this but not to the 10/10 extent of its older brother. Watanabe does definately catch a different kind of cool with this as the soundtrack holds a kind of modern,gangsta jazz feel to it, however it doesnt do it as well Cowboy Bebop. The opening and ending themes are definite highlights of the anime and the soundtrack does achieve the feel of the anime but it doesnt MAKE the anime. Cowboy Bebop's soundtrack could be considered a whole character to the anime that helped make it what it is, whereas Samurai Champloo, though achieving the feel doesnt make the anime as well as the characters and settings do. The music is still top-notch just a step down from its musical alumni.

Characters:8/10
This is not the first time we have seen these characters but like Cowboy Bebop they are executed in a way that makes them great, a way that is only Watanabe. What breaks it from reaching a 9/10 is the lack of character development in the first half of the series. Aside from occasional flashbacks, the characters do not develop till somewhere before the end.

Overall: 8/10
Overall though it achieves the success of emersing you into the world of Samurai Champloo as it did previously, its not as well done as Cowboy Bebop. This does not take anything away from the anime itself its just the fact that it rivals such a masterpiece. Also, I believe that Watanabe intended to do that for his next project. He new that Cowboy Bebop left such a huge impact on the anime community and probably knew it would be hard to top it. So instead of trying, he just had fun with this anime. Which is what it ultimatey is : Alot of Fun. It doesnt try to compete with anyone, it just gives you a great ride that isnt completely mindless but also isnt too serious to make you lose interest.

Overall a great anime done by the great director of Cowboy Bebop, that achieves a certain level of greatness without competing to outdo its brother. Though definitely flawed it is fantastic either way.



APPLICATION COMPLETED!!! I hope you liked it and feel free to comment, i take very well to critism for i feel it makes me stronger.

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All applicants up to this point have received decisions.

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I've finished overhauling my Gurren Lagann review, and finished my Hellsing review from scratch! I read the reviews on the site to get a differing opinion, and I bet you'll be happy to find that I share yours very closely on Gurren Lagann, VivisQueen.

We do differ on one major point... don't hate me for it! However this turns out, I look forward to the feedback.

Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann - 7.9/10
Hellsing - 6.5/10


Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann

Story (7.9/10)

This 27-episode anime was rather uninteresting for the first third. I feared that I had been trapped by my self-indulgence into yet another drivel-driven shonen, but then this anime suddenly leaped up beyond all my expectations. While settling into a small rut towards the end, the story surpassed many of my predictions and made for the best shonen and mecha I have seen in quite some time. While not escaping the drawbacks of the shonen genre entirely, Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann did a great job of defying them in a meaningful way. It has certainly carved itself a small, unique niche in the world of over-saturated gunk that is all too often shonen anime.

All shonen settle into a “little engine that could” story in some form or another, and Gurren Lagann did the same at the outset. This central theme certainly dominates it without question, but Gurren Lagann puts a unique spin on it with a shockingly (for a shonen) realistic event. The ever-pleasant world of shonen often depicts events unfolding without any hiccup. By the time the end finally rolls around, everyone is living happily ever after, all the love interests together. Gurren Lagann is brave enough to say that sometimes, life isn’t fair, and things just don’t work out the way you want them to, even with the power of love and friendship on your side. I applaud their efforts.

However, despite my heavy praise, Gurren Lagann has two notable failures that keep it firmly in “7” territory. The first: you have to slug through some very boring sections at times. I was actually on the brink of dropping it, my patience worn thin, when it finally went into high gear and reeled me back in. Despite how much I ended up liking it, all its positives are no excuse for wasting my time with crap. 3 or 4 episodes could have easily been cut without any loss in character development, and those few tested the limits of my patience sorely. Perhaps others will enjoy the over-the-top humor and random antics that made them borderline fillers. I found them neither funny nor interesting.

The second major annoyance that bothered me was the development of the powers the characters used to fight with. Upgrades in fighting strength were achieved by a combination of dumb luck and inexplicable scientific advancements. The troop is literally in the middle of a wasteland with nothing to eat when the genius of the group unveils fully automated spiderbots… that do nothing particularly useful. Every time the characters are backed into a corner, they remember everything they are fighting for and then miraculously unleash the trademark of shonen: magical-willpower-strength-magic-power. Even the best of shonen seem unable to escape this philosophy, but Gurren Lagann in particular almost abuses it. Later on in the series, things get very sci-fi, but all this technology remains unexplained. In an extremely short time humanity essentially goes from about our present day to super-futuristic technology with no adequate explanation even attempted. The quick development is even mentioned, but given no justification. Nothing irks me more than enormous plot holes. To put this in perspective for the potential viewer, we literally see the level of technology rise from manually digging in the dirt to make tunnels to biological supercomputers. Come again? Even for a shonen, the genre of impossible power-ups, this is just asinine.

Gripes aside, the story was excellent for a shonen. Unexpected twists and truly touching messages made this an unexpected winner. Carry on through the occasional muck, especially at the beginning, and you will be rewarded with a surprisingly emotional and deep story that touches on a variety of interesting topics, such as love, loyalty, and the strength to face an intimidating future with courage.

Animation (8.5/10)

If you enjoy eye-popping explosions, than look no further, because in Gurren Lagann seemingly everything that exists is capable of blowing up in a “WTFBOOM”-level mushroom cloud, and those are the small ones. I found myself rewinding just to see an epic explosion one more time. In fact, I found myself rewinding and pausing to study several scenes more than once in this anime.

Character animations were great. Not too much to say here – everyone looked the part quite well, occasionally minor characters being a tad bland. You’ll certainly get some substantial fanservice with Yoko, one of the female leads, but it is always done in a pretty funny and self-conscious manner, so it isn’t obnoxiously obtrusive for the more conservative viewer (most of the time).

I’m a big fan of color schemes that are attached to characters and certain messages throughout an anime. Death Note is an excellent example of this – lights and shading are always used to create an undeniably immersive effect; there are those dramatic moments when the eyes of opposing characters meet and the background “auras” seem to clash against each other. Gurren Lagann also uses this technique to great effect, creating some surprisingly inspiring and intense moments that had me enthralled. I guarantee you will be dazzled at least once watching this anime.

Sound (7.7/10)

The best parts of Gurren Lagann’s soundtrack were the opening and closing tracks, especially the opener. I sat and watched the opener at least every other episode just because I enjoyed it so much. Other than that, it was all pretty standard; nothing particularly caught my ear. An excellent job of matching music to scenes was done; quiet, dramatic moments were appropriately silent, with only dialogue, while other times saw grand battle themes clash with giant explosions. The opener was good enough to push my rating up a bit, but nothing in the show was ear-shatteringly spectacular.

The voice acting is what really shined. Every character was well voiced, Gurren Lagann thankfully avoiding the whining male lead pitfall which would have easily killed this anime. Each character certainly had a distinctive and unique voice, especially the main supporting character, Kamina, who was voiced exceedingly well, despite my utter hatred of him.

Characters (7.5/10)

With one exception that I will comment on shortly, the characters of Gurren Lagann were quite spectacular. I didn’t expect much; characters in a shonen are often hurried along with quick introductions and just enough background to make you care, only to “hold down the fort” against the grunt army while the main character fights the main villain. Gurren Lagann wasted no space with its characters. People I quickly wrote off as flat pieces of cardboard were eventually fleshed out later in the series. Against all odds, Gurren Lagann continually reused its cast, refusing to just drop anyone out of the picture. Everyone who is anyone in Gurren Lagann has not only a big role but a truly meaningful role at that. It was quite a pleasant surprise.

The lead character, Simon, is developed exceedingly well. Simon is certainly a weak character to begin with, but this is justified and reasonable; he has his definite flaws and lives in the shadow of the main supporting character, Kamina. Simon, through the course of the anime, goes on an intriguing journey discovering a purpose and a sense of self that anyone who lives can relate to. It is one of the most complete and fleshed out character developments I’ve come across, and certainly one worth appreciating by any anime fan.

My favorite character from the series is Viral. He is the first real villain the heroes must fend off, but subsequent developments shows he has much more meaningful motivations than mindlessly obeying his superiors. I won’t say more, but be sure to keep an eye on him if you take up the series.

The reason that Gurren Lagann does not score more points in this area is due to a single character: Kamina. Oh, how I hate him. Take your generic shonen: Naruto, Bleach, what have you. Take all of the speeches, monologues, and “we can do it with the power of love and friendship” rubbish out of them, and shove it all into one character. This is Kamina. He had no less than 26.7 speeches per episode. He is completely essential to the story, and occasionally he surprised me with a touching moment – but he is also a seemingly endless fountain of idiocy and mediocrity. He easily could have been much different, much better, and still played the same role. Some will love his devil-may-care attitude, constant out-of-control antics, and mindless drivel. I did not. If I go to hell, I will wake up chained next to Kamina endlessly monologuing about how my destiny will pierce the heavens. There is having the confidence to believe in yourself, and then there is mindless recklessness that doesn’t even make any sense – and Kamina crossed that line. He certainly has personality, at the very least.

Overall (7.9/10)

Despite the most annoying character ever (EVER) and the inevitable shonen stereotypes, Gurren Lagann does a bang up job. I was bored and annoyed at times, but overall it had some great moments that really had me captivated. And just for emphasis, the explosions were awesome. This needs to be qualified: don't forget that it is good for an action flick. Gurren Lagann was really pushing for an 8 from me, but couldn’t quite get there on action scenes and characters alone, especially with the black spot named Kamina. However, I give it an excellent recommendation to any fan of shonen, mecha, or action-adventure, and only a slightly less enthusiastic recommendation to anime fans in general. Relax and don’t pay attention to the plot holes, and you'll be in for a surprisingly emotional good time.

Edit:

Small error, I italicized only the Gurren Lagann portion of Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann in my first paragraph.

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Hellsing

Story (6.9/10)

Hellsing is an strange mix of excellent and terrible. There were some things I loved, and yet others that I hated. The characters really made the story, with the plot being a generic action movie standard, albeit with vampires. However, considering the characters, this means the story jumped between jaw-dropping awesome sauce and boring crud – and I’ll get to more of that later on.

The setting of the whole anime was actually quite fascinating. The action centers on the Hellsing organization, a secret vampire-fighting force run by the noble Hellsing family. The organization started around 100 years ago and maintains a dated but endearing sense of honor and loyalty to the crown. The portrayal of the secret underground of British government was excellent; anyone interested in British history will appreciate it. You will see everything from a modern day round table made up of the leaders of Britain’s military branches to fights between the vigilantly Protestant Hellsing and Vatican agents. This might seem ridiculous to one unfamiliar with European history, but the hatred between the two religions has been long and very bitter, and I certainly buy into an underground competition between the two in the present day.

The references to classic fictional works were numerous. I really believe that world of Hellsing fits into the old works of Dracula. Anyone familiar with them will appreciate the connections; and herein lies some of the problem with Hellsing. There were many, many small things that made the story better for me, and most people would probably gloss over them without a second thought. In relying more upon the viewer, Hellsing makes its story weaker to the masses, but stronger to a smaller slice of the population.

For the average viewer, the often boring, repetitive action scenes, and often difficult to follow drama will seem as hurdles to get to the real action with Alucard, every moment not including him a letdown. The real trouble with Hellsing’s plot lies in its delivery. Every other episode starts “in medias res”. To get a sense of what I mean, imagine an action movie. Right away, you are launched in the middle of an action-packed car chase, with no explanation. You have a sense of who the good guys and bad guys are, and you know everything will be revealed in detail later on – it sets a good level of tension to start a story off with a bang. Hellsing fails in giving adequate explanations quite often and the repeated use of the technique leads to a rather disorienting plot. Rather than feel the tension ratchet up another notch, which is what they were probably going for, I simply felt confused and disappointed.

As such, I cannot possibly give the story too high of a rating, despite some personal interest in the fine details. If you do share my interests, pay close attention, and you will be rewarded with the occasional gold nugget.

Animation (6.5/10)

The animation is, in short, very average. The action scenes are quite good, and many moments surprised me, but for the most part they are only tolerable. Many character animations in particular had me scratching my head; I remember one scene in which Integra, wearing her normal outfit, distinctly appeared to be in pajamas. The occasional very poor image such as this one reduces the art level to a bland “ok”. On the other end of the spectrum, some of Alucard’s more interesting powers had me glued to the screen in anticipation – a strange mix of bad and good.

Sound (8/10)

I really enjoyed the soundtrack to Hellsing. The opener is an interesting mix of piano, electric guitar and drums with a blending of slightly creepy-sounding lyrics – a great combination that really captures the mood of the anime. The closing theme is good, but oddly inappropriate, clashing with the opener. Many good moments in the anime are backed by acoustic guitar supported by vocal chords, polishing them off with a little extra flare. Some of the more intense battle scenes, especially towards the end, appropriately dip into a little hard rock, highlighting the intensity. Overall, a great job was done on the music.

The voice acting was a different story, although still good overall. Alucard was extremely well-done; bass overconfidence with just a touch of creepy laughter. I also particularly liked Integra’s manservant, Walter; he is just the right mix of understated elderly badassery – think Sean Connery. Integra, on the other hand, grated on my ears from the first moment. The young yet tomboyish leader of Hellsing sounds more like a 70-year old life politician than a determined leader of a secret organization. While she grew on me over time, her voice did not. Finally, the major character, Seras, is very annoying. Every time she whined “Master” to Alucard I wanted to strangle her so I didn’t have to hear it again. Once again, Hellsing mixes excellence with mediocrity, but I feel the good does outweigh the bad in this case.

Characters (6/10)

While the characters of Hellsing are interesting they are also incredibly frustrating. Alucard is easily the great centerpiece. It’s not that the other characters were bad, per se: the creators of this anime apparently never felt a strong need to flesh anyone out. Seras’s past is barely scraped upon for 2 minutes, only serving to push me further away from her useless character. Her struggle to maintain some humanity in the face of vampiric urges never fails to come off as boring and uninteresting. I found myself zoning out whenever she came on screen for more than a minute. Walter, who I would have loved to learn more about, has frustratingly little background – he has unflinching loyalty to Integra and was a great friend of Integra’s father, but otherwise we are given no information. Integra is the most researched, but this still only consists of a flashback episode which details only one single event. This, apparently, is enough to explain all her motives.

Alucard, on the other hand, is absolutely captivating. He is never fully explained, but mystery works in his non-human favor. If you are a Dracula buff at all (hint: spell Alucard backwards) you will pick up on all the little details that made him a masterful character, paying homage to the classics while carving out a new, unique feel for him. Although we see only the outside shell of Alucard, as with the other characters, his inner character is often hinted at and glimpsed in small hints of dialogue that make him all the more intriguing. Of course, he also has his fair share of vampiric powers, which naturally heighten his awesome meter. Yet again, Hellsing mixes the sigh-worthy with the awesome. Despite my captivation with Alucard, however, the other characters really drag the show down.

Overall (6.5)

Hellsing is an interesting anime and one worth watching. However, with only one major character really driving interest, it quickly became a game of “watch to see what Alucard does next”. Too much time was spent on random action scenes I didn’t really care about rather than the development of potentially fascinating characters. I felt constantly “prepared” during Hellsing - I was always ready to be dazzled, enthralled, and immersed – and it seems they never quite hit the nail on the head. As I was drawn in by the good, the bad would inevitably show up and give me a good smack. It was definitely worth the time, and perhaps it merits watching just to be able to recognize the numerous Alucard cosplayers, but there are certainly many better anime.

-----------------------------------------

Thanks for the time!

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While I usually stay out of the site reviewing application process (too much to do on the site and too little time), I thought I'd give a first round of feedback, as I know some things that will come up already (these things are common with applications).

But first, two notes:

Let me assure you that AP's site reviewing staff acts in a professional manner and will not let personal feelings get in the way of giving legitimate, honest and constructive feedback - the same feedback they'd give to anyone applying.

That being said, I think they're owed an apology for all of the slander going on recently. These people have spent a lot of time not only submitting reviews for the site, but taking valuable time out of their real lives to help others who are applying (as well as giving feedback to each other). Being assaulted with a barrage of insults about how they are elitist, how the site is elitist, or how I am elitist is offensive.

Regardless, I guarantee that the feedback given will be the same to you as to everyone else. But that being said, going into it thinking 'I can write so if your feedback isn't positive you're clearly out to get me' is the wrong way to go into this. I don't hate you, but I can definitely see some areas of improvement. I trust that, as someone who loves writing, you'll be open to hearing this constructive feedback and won't cast it aside because of your own opinions. ^_^

And now, on to the reviews. this is simply preliminary feedback - I suggest having a rewrite first, as that'll help save the other reviewers time repeating what i'm going to say ^_^

In general, there are some areas for improvement that will help strengthen your writing tenfold:

1. Tenses - they are mismatched. heavily. there's a lot of switching between past and present tense throughout both reviews - for example, 'the characters were', 'the male lead has', etc. My personal choice tends to be to focus on the present tense as imo that tends to sound less awkward, but regardless, pick one and stick with it.

2. Stop and go - This is the #1 thing that plagues a lot of us, including a lot of the current site reviewers (who, prior to becoming site reviewers, had to learn how to iron this out :)). Stop and go sentences vastly impede flow and tend to make a review sound dry and uninteresting, and tend to follow this sort of format: 'This. Then this. Now this. And then this. And this. This.'

I'll use one example from Angel's Egg:

The score was minimal. The movie functioned. The pieces were beautiful. The actors were adequate.

or:

The colors are warm. Altogether this creates a feel to the setting. The character designs are uninspired. The animation is fluid. Fight scenes were intricate. The most fascinating part was detail.

Very. Very. Stop. And. Go. Content-wise, the above focuses on the right things - but they're presented in a way that makes for very dry reading. One of the easiest ways to catch yourself doing this is to look out for 'the' sentences - every sentence up there starts with The! Changing things sentence structures is key for flow. The best example I can give of this is VivisQueen's recent works; check out her Major Movie review, the story section, starting with 'Well, check your expectations' in the 3rd para. Notice the changeup of how the sentences are pieced together - they flow perfectly together.

A few things can help fix stop and go, such as trying to change up the beginnings of sentences to trying to minimalize whenever possible (for example, there's a lot of filler in the first three sentences that can be chopped). To give you an idea of how much working on stop&go can change the tone of a review, try reading both of these aloud - and actually, that's another way to notice stop and go, reading aloud. If you have a natural pause after each sentence, quickly and all the time, that's not good. :)

(note: originally I was going to post a sample edit of the entire sound section, but it was difficult because it's unclear to me what your message was with this section; thus, i went only with the first part. The beginning of your audio section makes it seem like you thought the minimal score was perfect for the abstract tone, but at the end you say it's forgettable. You say the voice acting is adequate and then segue into 'one scene comes to mind...', but then you bring up something that implies the voice acting isn't adequate. I think this needs to be revisited and rewritten to have a stronger message, as right now it's unclear to me what you thought of the audio. Regardless, I did an edit just to show how removing the 'The's' and eliminating some of the fluff/stop and go can help with flow - added some stuff that you didn't touch on just for example purposes.)

The former, imo, sounds very dry when read out loud, while the latter has more of a musical effect and flows well from sentence to sentence.

3. Repetition
Make sure to make removing repetition a valuable step in the self editing process. ^_^ Alternating terms (via thesaurus.com, etc) is a must for flow. :)

4. Passive voice
Good occasionally (some of the other site reviewers will likely not agree with me on that and say NEVER, but I like it sometimes ;)) but using it heavily will hurt flow.

5. Lots of different pronouns
You've used 'you', 'one', 'i', 'a viewer', etc. Reviews are generally about your impressions so definitely try to stick with first person (though don't overuse this either - use only when you think calling your opinion out is imprtant - else just say what you think. readers will assume what you're saying is what YOU think).

It's also ok to call out 'Anime fans (or some other choice) who are looking for x should stay far a way, but others who like blah would...', but try to not move between 'you' or 'one', etc

6. Detail
I'd like to see more detail in some of the sections, notably story, as they seem short. NTHT's story section is quite thin, with a third of the text as a rehash of the synopsis (I personally rehash the synopsis too, but there needs to be more meat to the actual opinions). For example you say 'episode highlights for me include episode 6' - this doesn't mean anything to me, a reader. I'm now curious about what about episode 6 was interesting, but now suddenly the story section is over! Angel's Egg is easier because as you mentioned it's abstract and tough to talk about without spoiling. However, giving the reader any nuggets of wisdom about how they can interpret the symbolism (if possible, without spoiling) would be helpful, as otherwise it feels kind of like a tease :p. 'Understanding is fundamental, but I'm not going to say anything else' ;)

Or as another example, you list the characters in NTHT and say they have depth, but not why (and there are no details as to why the others don't).

7. One other general observation
(^^ha, couldn't think of a better way of saying this XD)

The last thing I'll bring up, and I'm not sure how to explain this, is to try to tighten up your thoughts. That above para reads very awkwardly to me - there's passive voice and a mishmash of ideas that don't come together very well. I get what you're trying to say, but... it just needs to be worked on. For example: 'The current system of gauging the quality of film is inadequate to tackle projects such as this.' => this comes across as overly wordy and I'm not sure what you mean by it anyways. Why not something a lot more direct and less wordy like 'Angel's Egg can't be judged like other films in the medium - it's an art film meant for an audience willing to experience an abstract nature and thought-provoking references, and will not satisfy those looking for a popcorn flick' ?

There are various paras throughout the reviews that have this same style, and if they're tightened up, the reviews will read much better. :)

-----------

I meant this to be preliminary feedback but instead have spent 30 minutes writing this up XD hopefully it's of use. You're a competent writer and clearly are capable of writing creatively - for example, i liked this passage:

(needs editing at the 'without the need for computers' but otherwise, a solid analogy and a great way to start the section)

I'd like to see a rewrite of these two, taking into account the feedback I gave above. It's basic stuff but I think you'll be surprised at how much your writing will improve. At that point, the other site reviewers might have more tips.

I look forward to seeing your round 2s. ^_^

[a final note: please forgive any mis-spoken terms in my feedback or poor explanations for things that English majors may be able to explain better ^_^; I have a computer science major and virtually no experience with formal English, thus all of my feedback is based on what I've learned through my tech writing job and personal experience.]

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crap, sorry for the two posts there - looks like it accidentally posted while i was still working on the response. the post at the end of this thread now is the correct one.

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Ok, i currently don't have any reviews, nor have i ever written one, but i have the Fullmetal Panic! Fumoffu and Saikano Boxsets and am willing to write reviews for them, ofcourse this might take a while but if this thread is still up by the time i've watched and written i'll post them here :) might take me a while mind...

Ideally waiting for Elfen Lied's Boxset and eager to write it's review since ages ago lol

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Thank you for the advice. I will write it over and see what you have to say.

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My first review got laid into by Sheex and VivisQueen. Despite my horror, therik, Veev, and vivafruit pointed out that getting attention from three different site reviewers didn't mean my writing was bad, but should be taken as a sign of interest--always a good thing.

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the two before you were denied, privately, with very general feedback (not nearly as detailed as what i gave). others who have applied (most who apply) get the level of feedback i gave, or more. if you look at any site reviewer review thread, you'll see the same level.

i gave you personal, detailed feedback as somewhat of a favor, given the unpleasant exchanges that have been going on and my desire to show you that you will be treated fairly. let's be clear here - the people above you didn't get the benefit of almost an hour's worth of attention/feedback; you did.

if you'd prefer that i PM you a copy to work with, I'm happy to do so and will delete here.

please take a step back and don't take this so personally - i understand that you think you're a perfect writer already, but we all have room to improve; i think it's clear based on my feedback that you do as well, and that's not a bad thing.

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you guys respond to comments so quick, I didn't even have time to delete the earlier comment and collect myself. I realize upon looking at the review that I am far from a perfect writer. The writing was stilted and broken up. I am taking your advice right now and attempting to write better pieces for submission.

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This should be more adequate; however, I appreciate the feedback as it gives me necessary information that will help me in fine tuning my writing skills.

Angel’s Egg: 8/10
Now and Then, Here and There: 8/10

Angel’s Egg

Story: 7/10

Angel’s Egg didn't have much of a "storyline" per say. More or less it was a collection of images with a central theme running through all of them. The story followed a mysterious girl as she traveled across an industrial landscape incubating an egg. She came across a man with a peculiar interest in the egg. At first weary of the man, the girl came to trust him and began to travel with him through the city. It’s difficult to explain the symbolism without giving away the entire film. Angel’s Egg deals with many themes - it is a tale of fear, misplaced trust, men seeking things that don’t exist, and the ultimate betrayal that trusting a religion – I’m sorry, a man - the ultimate betrayal that trusting a man will bring.

Animation: 8/10

Angel’s Egg had animation that could be likened to a fine wine. Fans of age would come to appreciate the cultured style; meanwhile, more new fans would find it antiquated. The characters were literal representations of the art style of Yoshitaka Amano, the concept designer for the Final Fantasy series. While this aesthetic was appealing, the minimal usage of animation (the anime preferred instead to focus on single cells of animation for minutes at a time) wouldn’t appeal to someone looking for multiple frames of high quality animation. Viewing the movie as an art house piece, the use of minimalism was poignant creating certain moments of ambient intensity. Usage of dark colors in the film contributed to creating an environment that seemed hostile and nightmarish. This worked well considering the dreamlike setting of the film.

Sound:7/10

Angel’s Egg had an ambient soundtrack that had its ups and downs. For the most part, the music was a heavy mix of orchestral sweeps, crashes, and background noises that complimented the feeling of creepiness and alienation. Although this worked to suit the film’s theme it was not, however, memorable in the least. The voice acting was sub-par, sometimes having its good moments, but just as forgettable as the music.

Characters: 6/10

Those looking for a character driven narrative will be disappointed by Angel’s Egg. Characters of the film were symbolic, rather than literal. The personages had no depth to them.

Overall: 8/10

Angel’s Egg was an art film for art film’s sake. Fans of anime as a form of entertainment will be bewildered by Angel’s Egg; however, fans of surrealist, abstract, or absurdist cinema should be delighted by its voyage of expression. Angel’s Egg was a concise dissection of religion through the usage of minimalistic dialogue and surreal animation.

Now and Then, Here and There

Story: 8/10

Now and Then told the story of an ordinary Japanese boy named Shu. Upon encountering a mysterious girl and her otherworldly pursuers, Shu was sucked into another dimension. A dimension that was rife with megalomaniacal psychopaths, blood thirsty child soldiers, and more post-traumatic stress than Vietnam War vet could shake a prosthetic at. While Now and Then had a cathartic and evocative storyline, it was simple and predictable. The story progressed through intensive dialogue and character interaction. Viewers would likely be kept interested by its frantic pace and continuously evolving situations. Fans of action series would most likely find it boring; meanwhile, fans of drama would be sucked in to its emotionally sadistic tale.

Animation: 9/10

Now and Then had a style that was typical of Pioneer during the 90s even sharing the same art director as Tenchi Muyo, Rei Nishino. The style was clean and in many ways a predecessor to a style used by BONES. Now and Then was highlighted by its uncanny attention to detail. Animators didn’t get stingy with frames as the sparse action sequences flowed just as fluidly as the rest of the animation in the show. Separate designs for characters lacked distinction, however, and were boring and uninspired.

Sound: 7/10

Now and Then boasted a forgettable soundtrack, but was dubbed with passion. The opening theme, closing theme, as well as the three other songs I heard in the show suited the action on screen, but did little to stand on their own. Top notch voice acting by the staff conveyed depth of emotion with convincing humanity.

Characters: 7/10

The cast of Now and Then displayed little or no growth in regards to the plot. More interesting players came in the forms of Hambo (the psychotic dictator of Hellywood), Sara (my personal favorite), and the vengeful Elamba. Main characters Shu and Lalu-Ru were not engaging and came off a little dry. While the cast of Now and Then were a little two-dimensional, their interactions over the course of the OVAs were natural and well-scripted.

Overall: 8/10

I think fans of sci-fi dramas, retro anime, or just plain old fashioned emotional masochism will enjoy Now and Then. With a well-paced story, adequately interesting characters, and high quality animation Now and Then delivered a completely enjoyable experience with a satisfying conclusion.

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hmm - i think i'll have the other site reviewers step in at this point as i'm thinking i probably explained myself poorly. i'm surprised to see the word count drop so dramatically - i think you had a lot of good points in the originals, and tightening up certain sections was definitely needed, but now the sections are for the most part very short. for example, now the NTHT story section (which was called out as needing a lot more detail), is 2/3rd of the original length, and 1/2 of that is a rehash of the synopsis.

off hand, as well, the majority is still very stop and go (some places have improved though). then again, the stop and go thing is usually not something that can be picked up immediately, and generally requires plain old practice. cassiesheepgirl, for example, is one of our newest reviewers but her first application was months ago. with general feedback suggestions she worked on a few things (stop and go was one), and now she's gotten the hang of things and has been brought onboard. i'm posting this as an encouraging message for you or anyone else who applies - even if ultimately the application is turned down (I'm not sure if yours will be or not, just saying), we highly encourage people to continue to work on the feedback points and to reapply.

as another note, i think it's always a good idea to let feedback absorb at least a day before attempting a full rewrite (i think most, if not all, of the other reviewers here, do the same). this way there's a chance to look at things with fresh eyes.

anyways, i'll open the floor up to them now. ^_^

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Figured I might jump in here and throw out a few observations on this second draft.

Firstly, I'd have to repeat what sothis said about the length. Certainly she did advise you to tighten it up, but not at the expense of your insights or opinions. Take a look at what you said about Angel's Egg's story. I've cut your writing up into three sections

The blue section is a synopsis, the likes of which can be found on the site or elsewhere. It's helpful, but doesn't provide much of a personal insight (which is what a review is for). The green section is a statement which doesn't help the reader particularly in discovering what is good or bad about the anime. The red section reads like the blurb on the back of a DVD box or the like. What's missing from here is a section which really looks at what the story does well. Did it move you? How? Did you find it interesting? Why? Was it memorable? What was memorable about it? Is the narrative gripping and exciting or slow and thoughtful? Does the story make you think or wow you? Both? There's so much you can say about the plot of an anime - any anime - that you should really look at putting a lot more into this. You need to think about what questions the potential viewer might have, and answer them based on your own experience. The same goes for every section, paragraph and even sentence of your review. Think about what people need to know, and tell them.

Something else that seems to be lacking is a personal touch. There's some debate to be had over just how objective or subjective a review ought to be, but you certainly need to inject something that feels like a personal opinion. Take this, for example:

It just strikes me as three plain statements. What is interesting is what you made of the characters. Can their lack of depth be forgiven because they're meant to be symbolic? Would the show have been better off with complex characters? Were you disappointed by the absence of character-driven narrative? Why/why not? What effect did the characters have on you, symbolic or otherwise? Get involved in your writing and deliver your thoughts and opinions with a punch. It's important to understand that not everyone has the same tastes, but your reviews are YOUR reviews. They need to say what YOU think. As another example, here's what you said about Now and Then's animation. My thoughts are in bold:

While I wouldn't expect every single one of those questions to be answered, they strike me as something that would be helpful to the reader of your review, which is the person you need to keep in mind throughout.

Looking at other things, sothis already mentioned the stop/start problem, and you seem to have cleaned up a few other things (notably repetitions, passive voice and other traditional bugbears).

One piece of advice that I will always hand out, however - whether you're writing a review, an article, a blog post or a pizza menu - is to write with a swagger. There's something to be said for neat, precise sentences with all the commas and semicolons finding their way into the correct holes, but to really bring your prose to the next level, you need to write with your own voice. A confident voice, where the words flow onto the paper. Did my last sentence have a verb in the active clause? No it did not. Do I care? No, sir. Grammar, spelling and the likes still need to be correct and spot on, but it's just as important to not feel like you're worrying about them, and just write. I think this might clear up a lot of issues for your writing - the stop/start sentences, the lack of real oomph behind your opinions, etc. etc. - and it's something well worth working on, even if it takes time. Practice writing, practice writing sentences with different structures and of different lengths. Mix up your vocab, find a word you've never used before and use it (correctly, if possible ;)). Tie all this together and see what you can come up with. Basically, more stuff like this:

would be welcomed with open arms. There's no need to put a joke in every line or force metaphors and similes in where they have no rightful place, but a bit of bounce in your reviews and the occasional line just to show-off ought to give your writing much of what it's missing. Work on enjoying what you write and writing what you enjoy. It'll show, and it'll make your work a pleasure to read.

I think that's the best help I can give. Feel free to PM me if you want any specific pointers, and I'll see what I can/can't do for you ;).

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this is a great line to call out - i chuckled when i first read it and forgot to mention it. XD this sort of writing is stellar and shows a knack for creative writing. i'd like to see more of that throughout the review (the bit about fine wine also was great - though i prefered it in its original form with the bit about being bitter, rather than the slimmed down new version :))

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I don't know - when intimidated by the critique, I made my sections smaller so there was less chance for mistakes. I would like to keep practicing the things you told me earlier and implement them fully into my writing. I would love nothing more than to be a skillful writer.

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It may sound silly, but I would worry less about the mistakes at this point and more about getting practice in. Read stuff by writers you enjoy, and see if you can figure out what makes their work so awesome. Implement those elements into your own style and write more and more until you're confident in using them and you've made them your own. Honestly, I think it's a lot more important to write attention-grabbing prose than writing with all the Is dotted and the Ts crossed. Punctuation and the like are necessary, but can be dealt with separately and later on.

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FALSEDAWN'S ADVICE CORNER FOR APPLICANTS

First piece of advice I ever give to anyone: Read. Read reviews. Find ones you enjoy and then figure out why they're enjoyable - or even if you don't enjoy them, ones that give you a reaction. Think about why they made you react.

Reviews aren't just pieces of texts. They're written specifically for some kind of reaction from the reader - whether it's something as simple as "oh, that sounds like something I'd enjoy" or "yeah! I really hated that part too" or just "this guy missed the whole sodding point of the series!" (the last one generally isn't one you should aim for, but can lead you to write a review to counter).

Reviews are a form of entertainment - or perhaps, infotainment. You need the right balance of information and entertainment, with a dollop of style and exaggeration. No-one will ever read a review that's the equivalent of a shrug and "s'alright" because what do they gain from reading that?

Which leads me to advice nugget #2: Think about your audience. You write reviews to be read. It doesn't matter how much sense it makes in your head, if it's not there on the page, the reader won't see where you're coming from. Similarly, you have to give readers what they want. You have to give them opinions, a final analysis, a score, because y'know, we rank everything that way. We want to know how good something is and if it's no good, exactly why it's no good.

If every applicant thinks about these two points when they're writing, there's a good chance you'll turn out something worth reading.

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Thanks for all the feedback and opinions and stuff, but this is the applicants corner. FalseDawn, your post should have gone in the Guidelines. Please, anyone is free to post some comprehensive guidelines/tips there.

But don't derail what is an application thread. Thanks.

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Time to apply! I'm not a native English speaker, so I look forward to read your comments.

Rurouni Kenshin Movie 7.5/10
Noir 5/10




Story 8/10

Since the Rurouni Kenshin movie is produced in the middle of the production of the Rurouni Kenshin series (henceforth referred to as "the series"). I usually watch related series/movies in chronological order, so I wasn't sure when to watch it, but I decided it would probably be best watch it after I had completed the series.

This movie is not what I would consider an actual sequel to the series, despite taking place two years after the end of the storyline of the series. The movie is not depending on the series, so it is fully possible to watch it without having watched the series in it's entirety.

The first minutes of the movie shows a fighting scene from the Bakumatsu where Kenshin fights and eventually kills Takatsuki Gentatsu.
Following the intro and titles, Kenshin meets Takimi Shigure, friend of the late Gentatsu. Since the day of Gentatsu's death, Takimi has taken care of his sister, now 18 years.
As the synopsis states: "Takimi blames himself foolishly for his friend’s death, and vows to take revenge upon this corrupt Meiji government who wasted Gentatsu's sacrifice".
So, as the majority of the enemies in the series, Takimi plans to overthrow the government and Kenshin tries to stop him.

Is this story like the multitude of poor arcs in the series? No. Actually, I'd consider it as one of the better ones, if it was a part of the series. Once again, you will experience some good moments with an enemy doing what he believes is right, not realizing the consequences of his actions.

Animation 6/10

Like the series, this movie is made by Gallop, sharing the same style of animation, though with some minor differences. Focus is put on aesthetics instead of realism. The Rurouni Kenshin movie is animated like many action movies are filmed, with interesting cuts, angles and perspectives. It's as if the creators tries to make the fights awesome, in that way that any 12 year old boy would think "Woow! I want to be a samurai!!" when watching.
I don't think that it's very bad, but I'm not sure sacrificing realism is necessary — just look at Rurouni Kenshin: Tsuiokuhen.

As for the differences between the movie and the series in terms of animation, I notice a somewhat different character design and generally stronger colours. As an examle, the blood in the first scene is almost self-luminous. The strong colours further increase the aesthetics and decrease the realism.
Some might like it this way. I don't dislike it, but I don't really like it either.

Sound 5.5/10

The sound effects are the same as in the main series, with the weird cutting-flesh sounds and the sound for clashing blades resembling that of a tuning-fork. The sound effects gives a very synthetic impression. In what way is it supposed to represent the real world? I don't like it at all.

What saves the sound section from disaster is the music. The music lifts the series, and helps creating emotional moments. The opening song isn't really that wonderful, but the rest of the soundtrack is very nice. At the emotional peak of the series I almost, almost, shed a few tears. Almost.

Characters 8/10

As I stated in the story section, I get a feeling of understanding for Takimi Shigure. That is the case with quite a few of the characters. I don't want to repeat myself, but the depiction of people that aren't really bad, only making wrong choices, is very convincing.

I can't find anything in particular to complain about. Takimi Shigure develops in the movie and that's good, but he may be the only one. In any case, this is a movie, hence not giving that much place for character delevopment. All in all, I'm satisfied.

Overall 7.5/10

I get the impression that The Rurouni Kenshin movie, not being a sequel, is not really made for the fans of the series. The opening and first scenes hints that the movie is made more like a short version of the story made to attract Kenshin fans that haven't watched the series — or completely new fans for that matter.

Like the series, the movie seem to sacrifice much of the realism (in both story, animation and sound), trying to give a more aesthetic and cool impression.

The final line is that the movieis much like the series — the good parts, that is. If you like the Rurouni Kenshin series, you will enjoy the Rurouni Kenshin movie (also, there's a good chance you will even if you haven't watched the series).



Story 4.5/10

I'd like to use the expression "What kind of trickery is this?", but since it wouldn't be appropriate, I won't. I'm not really sure, though, why I decided to watch Noir. Somehow it attracted me, making me imagine a thrilling story about a skilled assassin somewhere in Europe. That's not what I got.

Then what did I get? I got a repetitive story about two women, Mireille Bouqet and Kirika. Mireille, is a successful assassin in France. She meets Kirika, a mysterious young girl, with killing skills worth mentioning.

Mirieille is tormented by her past, partially unknown. Kirika's past is a total mystery. The pair of them decides that two is better than one and start doing Mireilles assignments together. At the same time they try to solve the mystery of their pasts.

Throughout the series Mireille is experiencing flashback from the time she was young. I don't think that there's anything wrong with flashbacks, as long as they don't appear to often — like in Noir.

After several episodes I was sick and tired of the series. My only oasis in the vast desert of repeating flashbacks and more or less boring assignments, was the not so boring and sometimes exciting gun fights. However, the gun fights had some quite annoying elements, like the protagonists never being hit despite having hordes of enemies emptying magazines in their way — or the total lack of blood!

Then why this lack of variation? Is it that the creators hasn't heard of variation, or is it that the Noir really shouldn't be 26 episodes long? I think it is the latter one. Noir simply does not contain as much material as would be required to create a 26 episodes fast-paced exciting action series. Instead, the creators gave us a slow-paced, repetitive and sometimes boring action series.

Back to the story: Mireille and Kirika soon discovers a large (and evil) organization — as expected of a series with protagonists with a mysterious past. Of course I won't tell you if they ultimately succeeded, but on the way they really uncovered some things worth watching.

Noir's story isn't really bad, but it is stretched paper thin. I really enjoyed some parts of Noir, but they drowned in the swamp of Reiteration.

Animation 7.5/10

The animation is pretty good, actually. Especially the lighting is great, with dark scenes lit by gunfire, cities by night and luminescent windows. Don't get too excited though, Noir does not have the impossible flawless animation that every anime fan keeps dreaming about: the colours are sometimes strong and appealing, and sometimes flat and boring. In short terms: artistic, yet unreal with varying quality and results. However, all this is powered by a low frame rate — which takes away a part of the impression, lowering the score.

Sound 8/10

The most common weapon in the arsenal of Noir is — of course — the pistol. There are some variations to it (I think I can spot some Walthers and Desert Eagles), but the sound effects are — most of the time — the same. I might be mistaken, but I think I've heard that sound effect in some computer game, probably in one of the numerous games based on the Source engine. I can't say I like it, though. It demonstrates power comparable to a cap pistol. In a series with at least one gun fight in every episode, I'd like to be able to actually hear the power of the gun. Well, all right. To be fair, I have to admit that at least one or two of the guns in Noir really demonstrates power.

Despite the lack of variation in the gun sounds directory, the ambient sounds and details in sound flora are (generally) nice. I didn't really expect hearing the sound of empty shells falling to the floor or the sound of chirping birds in the background.

Now to the music: it is great. It really does what it is supposed to. However, with the risk of being too picky: I would have liked a few more tracks.

Characters 6/10

I watched a movie the other day: Taken (2008, starring Liam Neeson). Long story short: in the movie, the protagonist does some very cruel things to his enemies. Even though his enemies are mere characters in a movie — and evil — I feel for them.

Mireille and Kirika, especially the latter, are cold-hearted assassins. That's not the kind of person that usually gets a lot of sympathy. However, in Noir, the assassins are not portrayed as evil. They are just doing their job and the only thing they really know (?).
Despite their obvious lack of morale, I can't say that I dislike them, nor question their acts (as in Taken). I guess one of the reasons is that their enemies aren't real people. They are nothing more than pictures on a screen. This is one of the strengths (or requirements) of Noir. When watching the last episodes, I heard an expression: "When a person dies, a whole world dies", a world of thoughts, feelings, relations and actions.
Noir pays no heed to human value. That gives Mireilles and Kirikas killings less importance, making it easier to like them. Instead of putting emphasis on the protagonists actions, focus is laid on their desire to find out about their past and their true identity. Their striving make them more human.

Noir poses a few questions, e.g. Kirika: "I can kill people easily. However, I wonder: Why don't I feel regretful?". That's not an uninteresting question, but why not pose more interesting and serious questions? Noir has a superb opportunity to deliver a message! Noir is a series that's ultimately about killing people, so why not use that? All right, maybe Noir isn't really the right forum for serious philosophical questions, but still!

Overall 5/10

Good music and animation is great, but they certainly do not compensate for a thin (or more accurately: not so thin stretched to very thin) plot — and neither do flashbacks! Noir really has the potential, but the creators do not exploit the potential the right way. Noir could have been great and engaging, but ended up with an all too slow pace. I'm pretty sure that Noir would've been much better as a 13 episode series, instead of 26.

You might be thinking: "Should I really watch Noir?". As long as you don't get the wrong expectations, I'd say: Go ahead, but be warned!

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All applicants to this point have received decisions.

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I've already posted some of these, but I reworked them a little. I know that when I first posted I was told I had to see more anime, and that's what I've been up to recently.

Samurai 7- 6/10


Desert Punk 5.5/10




Samurai Champloo- 8/10


Trigun- 9/10


Black Cat- 7/10


NOTE: When I copy and pasted, the text formatting was erased, so the titles of the animes should be italicized. Just assume they are ;)

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I love making reveiws =] Hopefully, these are up to scratch.

Series: Chrono Crusade and Le Portrait de Petit Cossette

Chrono Crusade
Story (7/10)
The 1920s was a turbulent time in America. Aside from badass gangsters roaming the streets and doing very badass things like talking slowly, the sudden economic boom brought all sorts of devilish creatures to our world. Enter Rosette Christopher, a young nun working for the Magdalene Order. Their mission? To eliminate the supernatural threats and keep it all under wraps.

Most, if not all, in fact, of Chrono Crusade's plot revolves around Rosette and her partner-in-crime/punching bag, Chrono for whom the series is named. Rosette joined the order along with her demonic boytoy in hopes of rescuing her brother from a sexy-yet-psycho demon named Aion. Rosette and Chrono, as it transpires, are under contract. Chrono channels Rosette's soul for power, killing her slowly, and in return he does some major ass-kicking in her name.

The series starts off very happy go-lucky and cutesy, giving off the first impression that it's not very different than other cute-girls-fighting-crime animes. However, as the episodes continue, the series takes a slow, yet enjoyable, turn for the more serious. By the last episode, every viewer is reduced to little more than a puddle of tears.

One thing to keep in mind: Chrono Crusade loves it's Biblical themes. Aside from the whole Devil vs. God thing, there are many references to stories and characters from the bible. The series typically does a good job of recapping for those who aren't familiar with Bible. However, it is something to keep in mind if you are a person who has strong objects to religion in anime. Or religion in general.

Animation (7/10)
The animation throughout the series is very crisp and clear. It's obvious that a lot of time was spent animating Chrono Crusade, and it really pays off. The action scenes in particular are done nicely. Too often in anime fighting sequences leave something to be desired aesthetically, and coming from a person who likes her action, Chrono Crusade doesn't skim on the fighting.

The only real issue I had was that the animation was clearly a member of Generic Anime Style School. Big eyes, small mouths, button noses-pretty darn stereotypical. I'm just picky about that though, and the plot itself was more than enough to make up for the genericness of the art.

Sound(8/10)
As far as music goes, I'm hooked. The opening and the ending for Chrono Crusade are beautiful, deliciously melancholy, and easy to remember and subsequently sing repeatedly. The background music I thought really captured the mood of what was happening in the anime. The mark of a good OST is that it conjures up the mood of the scene(s) it plays in just with a listen. Certainly, the music from Chrono Cruade does that. I haven't seen the series in a couple years, yet to this day if I hear the sorrowful strums of "Chrono's Sorrow" tears magically appear in my eyes.

I watched Chrono Crusade in both English and Japanese, and found both versions to be delightful. I preferred the English version, simply because I thought Hilary Haag and Greg Ayres "captured the essence" of Rosette and Chrono better than their Japanese counterparts. Though at times Hilary's voice can get quite annoying, particularly when she's screaming, I still thought it suited Rosette's character so I could look past that.

That being said, the voice of Azmaria Hendric, stupid annoyance extraordinaire, was incredibly bad in both versions. My recommendation is to turn on the subtitles. When Azmaria appears on screen, quickly stuff your fingers in your ears and hum loudly. Then read the subtitles. Or mute it and read it aloud yourself. I guarantee your voice will be a whole lot less torturous.

Characters (9/10)
There isn't a whole lot of character development in the beginning, but the series quickly remedies that. At times the personalities come off as a bit generic, with the stoic-but-loving boy and the happy-yet-had-a-horrific-past girl. However, the personalities stick to the characters, making everything they do seem true to themselves and not contrived plot devices.

Overall(9/10)
This has always been one of my favorite series. I can't give a specific reason as to why, I just know that it works well. I suppose all the little parts of the series are nice enough that, when added up together, they create something spectacular.

Some people quickly dismiss the series as generic and cliché, but I firmly believe that is one worth watching. The characters may be bit stereotypical and some plot devices may be easily foreseen, but the series is simply just good enough to make up for that. Particularly after about the 12th episode, when things start to get incredibly serious.

Chrono Crusade isn't a great introspective series like Death Note or Full Metal Alchemist, but it is its own special brand of nice animation, beautiful music, structured plot, and likeable characters. And, its got nuns running around waving large guns around. What's not to love?



Le Portrait de Petit Cossette
Story(5/10)
College student and antique shop worker Eiri Kurahashi begins having strange [probably] wet dreams about a mysterious lolita girl. One day he unearths the uncompleted portrait of said object of affection/sexual fantasies. It is labeled with one word: Cossette. Which, you guessed it, is the name of this girl. He soon learns that the portrait is cursed, causing anyone who owns it to die a mysterious death. (Except for the antique store owner. So, we assume, that poor Eiri isn’t out of a job. Spirits are very considerate like that). An apparition of Cossette appears before Eiri and confides in him her dark secret: she is really twelve years old. No, wait, sorry: she is trapped in eternity. Eiri vows to help her for reasons not adequately explained.

'Plot' is a subjective term when referring to Le Portrait de Petit Cossette. There is no real story here, or at least one worth watching. It's almost as if the creators were too wrapped up in everything else to be bothered with something so trvial as the story line. This results in many instances of what I like to call:whatthehellisgoingonrightnowneosis, or the state of being utterly and totally lost.

Animation(9/10)
Really, the animation is the only saving grace of this series. Beautiful is too mild a word to describe it. Clearly this was not a series done on a budget. Each frame is carefully crafted to optimal artistic ability, giving the viewer lots of eye popping incredible beauties.

Yet, even here there is fault. Odd camera angles are epic when used sparingly and to punctuate a dramatic scene, but Petite Cossette uses them so incessantly to the point where it stops being cool and just is headache inducing. Incidentally, this also makes it impossible to tell what the hell is happening. I was lost about ten minutes in, and I’d already read the manga. That’s pretty sad.

Sound(7/10)
My impression of the music is that it was...nice. There was nothing wrong with it, yet it didn't stick it out, either. It just sort of was.

The voice acting in both English and Japanese was masterful, leaving me wondering why so many talented people wasted their time on something so incredibly dull.

Characters(3/10)
What characters? The anime was so focused on the art that, like the plot, the characters were forgotten. The two main characters were devoid of anything even remotely resembling a personality. Cossette was simply spooky and lolita, while Eiri was too preoccupied obsessing over his hallucinations to have any actual depth. This made it hard to enjoy the series as I genuinely did not care what happened to any of them.

Overall(2/10)
The hours I spent watching this...this...show are precious moments of my life that I will never regain. I'll start with the positives: the art was pretty. Now the negatives: everything else. It was boring, it was confusing, the plot was laughable, the characters were shallow, the camera angles were unintentionally annoying, it was three episodes too long, ramble, ramble, rant. This show was more like an art school student's high-budgeted film project than anything else. The one thing the anime did pull off expertly was the art: it was simply breathtaking. However it was so wrapped up in its sheer gothic "artsyness" that it forgot about the plot.

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Sekirei

Story (9/10)

Sekirei is an ecchi/comedic/romantic/fighting style anime that really stays true to its genre. The main character in the anime is Minato Sihashi, a young, shy, seemingly innocent failure, with a unique skill of attracting women. But not just ordinary women, they’re Sekirei- superhuman form of women, each having a unique type of power, and style of fighting. The anime takes place in Tokyo, which is quarantined by MBI- an organization that is responsible for making sure Sekirei and their masters- Ashibaki- don’t leave the battleground. The anime is relatively straightforward, there are basically two rules that both Sekirei and their masters must follow; one, Sekirei and their masters must stay within the territorial battleground, and two, all Sekirei must fight each other until there is one, or a team of Sekirei left.

Animation (8/10)
The animation is relatively modern, given that the original run of the TV series was July, 2 2008. The body types all seem proportional, with the exception of gigantramous boobs. The eye style was typically large, and eye color well suited for the personalities and powers of the Sekirei. The facial features in this anime really utilize blushing in almost every love seen- which really helped connect with the emotions of the characters.

Sound (8/10)

The opening music was absolutely on the spot. It was uplifting, passionate, and plays well with the love component of the anime. The voices of all the characters were distinct; I think Sekirei really nailed the rhythm of the characters through the tone and pitch from the voice actors. However, there simply wasn’t enough music to really judge.

Characters (9/10)

The characters were a wonderful bunch. If it’s anything this anime did well, it was in the character department. I absolutely fell in love with the relationships that each of the main characters had. The characters were far from passive, and the team feeling was entirely there. The emotions given off by the main characters had me rooting for them.

Overall (9/10)
I felt this anime rocked! If you can get over the big breasts and some nudity, this is a must see! The jokes in this anime had me really laughing, and the characters were genuine, and authentic. The main character is courageous when the moment demands it. The anime is moderately paced, but 12 episodes just wasn’t enough. Luckily season 2 is coming out later this year!
:smile:

please let me know if you'd like to read another one, to confirm my position. otherwise thank you for the opportunity! :drinking:

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Heya ^^ Im kinda new to this stuff, but here are my reviews, so I hope I've got what you're looking for :)

Ginga Densetsu Weed – 4/10
Jubei Chan: The Ninja Girl – 7.5/10

Ginga Densetsu Weed
Story: 6/10
Whilst anime hunting on the net I came across Ginga Densetsu Weed and was struck by the novelty of an anime with a cast consisting almost entirely of dogs. I started watching it for that reason, but unfortunately despite the original concept of an anime following the lives of wild dogs, this anime’s greatest strength is also its greatest weakness.
The story of Ginga Densetsu Weed is , as far as plots go, solid, relatively coherent and reasonably well paced. Even though it is a sequel to an older series, it is quite easy to watch by itself. Our hero, Weed lives with his mother in the mountains, but after a chance encounter he learns of his identity as the son of the legendary leader of the strongest pack of wild dogs in Japan. We then follow him as he sets out to find his father, making friends and enemies along the way. Surely a story like this has a lot of potential to become a brilliant adventure tale, with loveable characters and a gripping storyline, but sadly the anime hits its stumbling block before the second episode.

When I started watching the anime I was well aware that this is a story about dogs fighting one another, but what I didn’t realise was that that’s all it is about. We see fight after fight after fight, with plenty of blood, guts and angry dogs, but very little besides, including minimal character development and a few sad scenes. This focus on fighting to the exclusion of almost everything else means that as soon as you’ve finished episode 1 it’s easy to figure out exactly how the rest of the anime will pan out, from start to finish. The few plot twists there are have usually already been seen coming from a long way off, which, needless to say, makes the entire anime less interesting.

In spite of this however, the plot is still reasonably entertaining, for the sake of watching the enemy dogs get ripped apart if nothing else, and kept me watching until the end. There were also no filler episodes which was a big plus, and at no point was I really struggling to pay attention.
Overall I think Ginga Densetsu Weed deserves a fair-minded 6 because despite its flaws, it is still reasonably entertaining – just don’t let your expectations get too high, and enjoy it for what it is.

Animation: 2/10
The very first thing we see in this anime is a sequence of beautiful stills showing flowers, mountains, rivers and forests which are all vibrantly coloured and instil in the viewer a sense that this is going to be a very well animated, beautiful anime which will be remembered for the quality of it’s animation if nothing else. Then suddenly a misshapen apparition that I can only assume is supposed to be a dog appears, followed by several others, and whatever hopes you may have had for the animation quickly slip away.
I consider myself a huge fan of eye candy, and good animation is important to me, but I can appreciate that there is a lot more to a story than the quality of the animation. That being said, when the animation is so bad that you spend more time gawking over it than paying attention to the story, there’s definitely a problem. These puppies have seemingly no joints in their legs, meaning that when they walk or run they tend to resemble ugly rocking horses, and the less said about the fighting scenes the better. Granted there are a handful of decent fight scenes in the series, namely the climax and a few in the middle, but for the most part the animation is nothing short of painful to watch. The characters also seemed incapable of making facial expressions, resulting in our main character, Weed looking constipated for the duration of the series, and all the other characters looking permanently angry.
Despite being easily the worst animated anime I’ve ever had the misfortune to watch, I must give credit where credit is due, so the two points I’ve given this section are for the beautiful backgrounds, and the reasonably original character designs which made the anime slightly more bearable.

Sound: 5/10
GDW’s story suits a wide range of music, but instead of taking advantage of this and creating a wonderful soundtrack with varied and enjoyable music, the creators have decided to create only a few songs and replay them again and again throughout the series. On top of that, the majority of these songs are half-hearted attempts at rock and metal, which simply don’t work as background music. The intro song was bearable, but nothing special, although I was surprised by how much I enjoyed the outro, which had a completely different style of music to the rest of the series.
The voice acting was slightly better than the music – characters expressed emotions believably, and all the voices matched the characters’ personalities well. The voice actor of Hougen, the main antagonist in the series, was especially well done and managed to sound convincingly evil, sad, and kind at different points throughout the anime.

Characters: 4/10
There are many things that prevented this anime from being better than it was, but I think it’s safe to say that the main problem in GDW is the cast of characters.
For a start, Weed is one of the most dislikeable protagonists I’ve ever seen in an anime. He’s illogical, unreasonable, difficult, and treats his enemies with more respect than his friends. At some points in the anime I wanted to reach my hand through the screen and throttle him for being so near sighted and downright irritating. The numerous other characters were all pretty similar to one another: honour driven stereotypical soldier types, although some of them were reasonably likeable. I particularly liked the relationship between Kaibustsu, an escaped experiment and Jerome, the dog who is sent to kill him, along with the deviously loveable Hougen, the villain who has no particular motives for being evil, but is still entertaining. The legendary leader of the wild dogs, Gin is also a great character, for his badass personality if nothing else, but sadly he isn’t given the screen-time he deserves.
Unfortunately the character development is very poor, with only a few characters ever given any depth or histories, and most are very hard to empathise with.

Overall: 4/10
Ginga Densestsu Weed is an average anime that could have been awesome, but sadly the characters, animation, and lack of original plot prevent it from reaching its full potential. By all means watch it, as it is still an entertaining anime to some extent, and can serve to be an afternoon filler for sure, but don’t expect a huge amount from it, and prepare your eyes to be subjected to some of the worst animation I’ve ever come across.

Jubei Chan: The Ninja Girl
Plot: 7/10
On the surface Jubei Chan comes across as a simple magical girl style anime that doesn’t deserve a second glance, and in many ways it is. But this anime has one major redeeming feature that makes it not only bearable, but very entertaining to watch – it’s hysterically funny!
Admittedly the plot itself, while fairly decent, leaves something to be desired. Our Heroine Jiyu (nicknamed Jubei by her father) meets a mysterious samurai in the woods who reveals to her that she is the reincarnation of Yagyu Jubei, one of the greatest swordsmen of all time. He then presents her with a magic eye-patch, which when worn allows her to transform into the embodiment of his spirit, thus helping her fight and defeat Jubei’s four-hundred-year-old rivals.
Yes, this does sound very much like a magical girl anime, and with monster (or in this case, ninja) or the week style episodes it could easily be considered one. But in spite of this, Jubei Chan’s ability not to take itself too seriously, and mock itself on a regular basis makes it original, fresh and fun. The antics of the characters had me laughing out loud from the first episode, and kept me laughing right up to the end of the series with simple slapstick, random comedy.
Evaluating the plot of an anime like this is difficult, because while Jubei Chan is a great watch, the actual plot relies so heavily on humour that without it the show would be unoriginal and dull. However the light-heartedness of the show and the manner in which even the most serious scenes are portrayed make it truly enjoyable, so I feel it deserves a decent 7/10.

Animation: 8.5/10
Despite being dated by modern standards, Jubei Chan’s animation is clearly of a high quality, with engaging battle scenes that are all thoroughly entertaining to watch. The anime’s lack of modern effects is made up for by the raw, fluid animations that make up the battles. Many of the animating techniques used were also revolutionary at the time it was made.
Character designs were interesting and suited each of their personalities well .The goofy characters looked goofy, the evil characters looked evil, and the normal characters were pleasant to watch without being over the top. Some characters change from villains to good guys and visa versa and this is expressed with small changes to their designs. The results to this are more striking than I would’ve thought possible from such simple alterations.
There is also a great deal of visual humour used, namely a lot of chibified characters and one character who wears a sign that changes to show what he is thinking. Overall I wouldn’t recommend this anime for its animation alone, as it is dated and not exactly beautiful, but it is still of a perfectly good quality for it’s age and adds to the anime as a whole.

Sound: 7/10
I’m an absolute sucker for simple folklore style tunes, which is exactly what Jubei Chan gives us. There is one tune in particular which is used as the anime’s opening song, and also plays regularly throughout the series itself, but somehow it never gets old or repetitive, and suits the Jubei Chan’s style very well. The numerous comedic scenes are expressed with simple but surprisingly effective drum beats or a fanfare, depending on which characters are involved.
Jubei Chan’s Japanese cast are entertaining, believable and fitting for each of their characters, although sadly the same cannot be said for the English cast, which are flat, forced and speak in monotones throughout the series. A word to the wise – avoid the dub!

Characters: 8/10
By far Jubei Chan’s strongest point is its characters, which without whom, it wouldn’t be half as enjoyable. Our heroine Jubei is likeable and down to earth, and acts as a nice balance for the madness that springs from almost every character around her. The trio of boys known as the Ruffians who take it upon themselves to guard Jubei are especially fun to watch on screen. They goof about around Jubei, and generally serve as the main contributors of comic relief, although we get it dished out from all the characters at some point in the series.
Jubei Chan has very little character development, although this is no bad thing for the type of anime it is. The two main characters, Jubei and love interest, Shiro each have manageable amounts of history shown to us which give us a reasonable understanding and appreciation of each, without chucking their life stories on us. Other characters also give us small titbits of history which keep the anime running smoothly, and act as interesting filler episodes throughout the series.

Overall: 7.5/10
Jubei Chan isn’t a masterpiece or a work of art by any means, but the reason it works so well is because it never tries to be. Its light-hearted attitude mixed in with some samurai culture and engaging fight scenes makes this anime a truly satisfying and enjoyable afternoon filler if nothing else. Look past its magical girl coating and give it a chance – I guarantee you’ll be laughing out loud five minutes into the first episode!

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Tokyo Magnitude 8.0


Darker Than Black