snivets

As I watched the final episode of Silver Spoon, a single word came to mind to describe this anime. "Thoughtful." But also thought-provoking. Brief Summary: A "smart kid" who has trouble fitting in at his traditional middle school is encouraged by a teacher to apply to an agricultural high school. Once there, he learns a lot about how food is produced, as well as learning how to make friends. Themes: Making friends, business realities, the difficulties of being in the agricultural industry, how food is made, the value of hard work, the value of struggling with large moral issues (for... See full review

I watched 10 minutes of this movie and decided it was showing more or less the same events as the TV series, and didn't feel like watching it again. I liked the TV series a lot (and I'd encourage you to check out my review of it) but suspect I would prefer the show to the movie. Either way, it's worth your time.

Suki-tte Ii na Yo is a very simple shoujo anime with a mellow and realistic setting. A lot of people compare it to Kimi ni Todoke because of the very similar premise for both shows, but by the end, I felt that KnT took an entirely different direction, focusing on the chase, rather than the post-formation relationship dynamics. Also the side characters are completely different and make the atmosphere completely different, but I digress. Story:  A basic story about a shy, plain girl with no friends, Mei, and a popular boy, Yamato, who fall in love with each other, Suki-tte Ii na Yo has a very... See full review

What a great little show! This is slice of life at its absolute best, a portrait of a Japanese family who runs a small business during the 1960's. I'm a huge fan of accurate period shows of any kind, but this one really does justice to the times. Story: Episodic, with all of the stories referencing the time period. Three-wheeled trucks, tension between hand-made and machine-made industries, black TV giving way to color, old radios, memories of the war, the Olympics, baseball. Additionally, the episodes each show some kind of strain or tension being placed on the family and showcases how they deal with it... See full review

This slow-paced slice-of-life is not for everyone. Its atmosphere is subdued and subtle, yet elegant and meaningful.  **Spoilers to follow** Story: Sora goes to Tokyo for a month-long mage certification course, and along the way she makes friends, meets people, and, through the tasks assigned by her clients, digs into tough questions about the Meaning of Life. Like: should a person who is hired to do a job do merely the job assigned them, or should they do their best to help their client, despite being outside of their job description? Along with that, what is the price of simply going along with... See full review

Let me start this review by saying, I am a complete sucker for any kind of food anime. I *love* looking at beautiful piles of bakery goodies. That is the entire reason why I picked this one up. But let's get down to business... Story: This one is slow paced. It is mostly about the daily lives of some bakers and then a bigger story develops step by step, day by day around them. Either you like that sort of pace or you don't. Also, a lot of it--the simplicity of their lives, the fantasy aspects of swords and ships, and the blasé attitude which most of them take to the fact that they have no memories... See full review

I feel very lukewarm about this show, and about zombies in general, which I view as an all-around weak plot device because they usually have about as much personality as trees, or any other part of a landscape. Story: Meh. There wasn't much meat to it, just a series of problems. First, Rea wants to get away from her dad. The victimization of the main female lead managed to be creepy and boring at the same time--boring because there was no real one event that prompted Rea to get away. Just a series of flashbacks and then some not-convincing events that got her "killed." Then, we moved onto the... See full review

I love all things steampunk, so I borrowed Steamboy from the public library recently. Story: The plot had all the elements of a good plot: multiple characters whose actions collided in an exciting and suspenseful way, excellent pacing wherein no scene felt unnecessary or unnecessarily long, and the situation kept getting worse and worse until the climax, which was, admittedly, rather vague. Furthermore, the plot managed to incorporate complex themes, framed through the characters and their struggles with each other because of their beliefs about science and society. And managed to do so without long... See full review