Kari5

This is my review for Monthly Marathon Club's December event, where I was recommend (by Bluntjoker) three shows to finish by the end of Christmas. I picked this one because it was done by the same person who did Cowboy Bebop, one of my favorite anime, and I've been meaning to watch it since it came out.  I'm glad to saw I wasn't disappointed! While obviously very different than Bebop, I again fell in love with the musicwould recommend this to almost anyone. There are a few minor spoilers in this review (story section... See full review

As a huge X-Men fan, I was looking forward to this series. However, unlike some super-fans, it did not need to be similar to the existing media to be considered any good to me. However, not only did it miss the tone of the comics, but it really wasn't good. It was bland and the plot jumped too much; I was even confused at one point. My first complaint is the characters. They have a large cast of original characters with cool powers, but they don't use them. Scott and Emma are the main focus, while the others are secondary to them. I'm glad they didn't go overboard and introduce 20 mutants, but they... See full review

This short is an absolute waste of time. The entire thing consists of two claymation figures playing some sort of weird game that involves hitting each other with a hammer. There is no plot, the only characters are poorly shappen clay men, and the sound is crap. Avoid at all costs, it's seriously not just "bad", but a waste of time.

Chainsaw maid is a grusome claymation that I really didn't enjoy. It tells a simple story of a group of zombies attacking a father, daughter, and their maid who protects them by killing all the zombies (via chainsaw of course). I don't like claymation, but it was at least parcially effective because I was disgusted by the gory kills. Unfortunately, I found them a bit too gross to be enjoyable. A case of 'gore to have gore'. Overall, even with it's short run-time, Chainsaw Maid isn't worth a watch.

Idol Ace is nothing more than a preview for the manga of the same name. It actually feels like a flashback or a beginning of an episode, which stops short of actually telling us anything about the character or plot. It's possible to make interesting previews that make us want more, but this is not it. Skip and go straight to the manga.

Asura Cryin. Such major disappointment. For most of the first episode, this show looked interesting. It’s about a high school student named Tomoharu who lives with a ghost, that only he can see, that wou ld no doubt become his love interest. I don’t exactly know why, but I thought this was a neat idea and was looking forward to a good show. Boy, was I ever wrong. The episode went fine, (until the end), but after that hell breaks loose and suddenly there are secret organizations, mechas, people blowing up parts of Tomoharu’s house, women with rockets coming out of her their legs, demons... See full review

This show takes place during a large scale war between Gallia and the Empire. It focuses on the people within Squad 7 (the main characters being Welkin, the captain, and Alicia, his second in command) of the militia. The episodes consist of battles or small pauses in between (that usually focus on character development). It shows various sides of the war, including the enemies’ view and shows what happens to the innocent people who are affected. It’s similar to Full Metal Alchemist in the sense it’s military focused, with soldiers who don’t like the way the war is going. There are... See full review

Saki had potential if it had taken itself more seriously as a competative gaming anime. However, it ended up focusing a bit too much on on a huge cast of girls (fan service), without providing much depth to the plot or character development. It's similar to Girls und Panzer in this way. Too many tournament scenes and moe, not enough of anything else. (A series like Hikaru no Go is a good example of a decent gaming anime that focuses on characters and plot as much as the game scenes.) Plot: Saki is about a small high school Majong club. It's members are from various years and are almost all... See full review

This is a music video done by CLAMP that features a bunch of their characters including those from xxxHolic, Tsubasa, Cardcaptor Sakura, Magic Knights Rayearth, Kobato, Chobits, Clover, Wish, Angelic Layer, X, and others. While hard to rate, I overall enjoyed the video. The plot, if you can even call it that, is the two Mokonas running around the different dimensions, running into all the characters. Unlike the first music video, this one has a bit more flow between the scenes. The animation is beautiful and the music is catchy, so it's a nice watch. It is also a fun way to learn about CLAMP titles I... See full review

Dragon Ball Kai is a rebroadcasting of Dragon Ball Z. Kai reduces the show from 300 to 97 episodes (with a final 61 episodes later). To do so, the studio cut out 'fillers' and less important scenes to follow the manga closer. They've also re-recorded all the voices and touched up the animation. I loved this show so much when I was in grade school. Oddly enough, I still do! At the end of each episode I find myself excited for the next episode. While it's often the butt of jokes here in North America, I think a lot of individuals would change their opinion if given the chance to re-watch this... See full review

       Umi Monogatari was the magical girl show for the Fall 2009 season. I shoud warn any potential viewers that it's a different kind of magical girl series. You may enjoy it's originality, or lament it's not like others in the genre. Personally, I was not a big fan of the series. Perhaps if it was not a 'magical girl' series I migth have looked at it different but I went it with a preconceived notion about what I was looking for in a magical girl series and I know it affected my enjoyment of it. Please keep that in mind when reading my score. Story: Umi Monogatari... See full review

Chi's New Address is what I would turn too if I was feeling sad. You can not watch this anime and not get a smile on your face. It's incredibly adorable. Chi, who is the young and curious kitten protagonist, sounds and looks so cute. As a big cat-lover I couldn't pass this show up. Story: Each episode is less than 5 minutes, which fits the light hearted and simpleness of the show. It's a slow but fun show about the mischief a small kitten can get into. And that's it. They don't try to over complicate things or have a complex plot. It's just pure, adorable entertainment for five minutes. Cat... See full review

Well, this show turned out to be a major disappointment. The first episode made it look like this anime would have a plot line and somewhat interesting characters, but both the characters and plot ended up being extremely lacking in substance. The plotline with the character Roxy could have been used to direct the entire show. Instead, any serious plot was tossed aside for the sake of bad comedy. Story: A woman, Roxy, turns into a demon because of a curse, dies, and her spirit somehow ends up stuck in the sword of a warrior named Baron. Although Roxy's small spirit is sometimes seen hovering next to... See full review