sothis

Story
Rozen Maidens are an elite handcrafted line of dolls that have an interesting feature: sentience. Each one is rather unique (and dressed to kill in gothic-lolita garb, straight from the fashions in Japan), and all of them battle in something called the Alice battle. Whoever beats all the other dolls gets to "meet father", but saying any more would be spoiling.

Anyways, one of these dolls ends up in the hands of Jun, a young man who has dropped out of school, and resorts to buying and returning things on the internet for fun. Shinku, a beautifull doll, arrives one day unannounced... See full review

Story
Puss in Boots is the tale of, well, Puss in Boots, the swashbuckling cat. We are introduced to our furry friend when he is being banished from the land of cats for saving a mouse. As if this wasn't enough, several cutthroats of the feline variety are then sent to kill him! The assassination attempts throughout the film are simply the comic relief, however, and are not the central plot. Puss in Boots (Perro) runs across a house where three men live. The two older brothers are hoarding their deceased father's riches, refusing to share it with their younger and overworked brother Pierre. Various... See full review

Story
First of all, Roots Search has one of the most unexplained titles ever. Some series have titles that somehow relate to the story, but I have absolutely no idea why "Roots Search" was chosen for this OVA. It has nothing to do with roots (except tentacle looking things at the end), and nothing to do with searching.

Anyways, Roots Search takes places on a space station that houses the ESP Project, which is investigating -- you guessed it! -- ESP. Moira is the current subject, and she's having dreams about all her crewmates dying in fairly terrible ways. Then a spaceship shows up... See full review

Story
Burn Up is a 45 minute OVA that definitely feels like the first episode of a TV series, that leaves you wanting more...

In the city, a high tech police force is on the prowl for bandits and bad guys, and three women, Reimi, Yuka, and Maki, are some of the best cops the force has ever seen. A recent rash of kidnappings has been reported -- kidnappings that lead to young girls being forced to become sex slaves. The trio goes undercover, and alas, Yuka is kidnapped! Action and ass-kicking ensues, as the remaining two women try to rescue Yuka AND take down the bad guy.

An... See full review

Story
Golden Boy follows the story of Kintaro, a 25 year old man who dropped out of school because he finished early. On a quest for knowledge, Kintaro decides to become employed in a variety of jobs, to learn everything he can about the world. Each episode takes him to a new profession, as well as a new girl, and new challenges to overcome.

There are two aspects of the story I'd like to talk about. The first is the actual plot, which I felt was very well done. Golden Boy is a lot like Great Teacher Onizuka, so you'll see me compare it in this review. Like GTO, Kintaro is misunderstood... See full review

Story
After sitting through approximately 90 minutes of episodes (6 in total), I can tell you that I still have no idea what the hell just happened. At first, it woos you with pretty CG images and a decent intro talking about how the world has abolished capital punishment, is basically going down the toilet as far as nuclear waste and threats of war, and how there is a rumor of a fallen angel. Sounds interesting, right? Unfortunately, past that point, the story takes a nosedive and goes down faster than a chihuahua in a cage match with an elephant.

Since nothing is spelled out very well... See full review

Story
Demon Fighter Kocho is a 30 minute 1 episode OVA that feels a lot like Haunted Junction, but is a lot more ecchi and a lot less funny. Our story begins (and ends) at Heian University, where a rash of ghost hauntings have been reported. The school happens to have an Astrology club that investigates such matters, made up of Kocho (who can't seem to keep her clothes on for various reasons), her little sister Koran (who sleeps around), and the perpetually horny Kosaku and club president.

Due to its length, there really isn't a great deal of plot. Various bad spirits cause problems... See full review

Story
Though produced before the Gravitation TV series, the Gravitation OVA takes place chronologically after the TV series. Thus, if you haven't watched the TV series, stop reading this review right now (due to potentially mild spoilers), and go check it out. If you have seen the TV series, read on...

The Gravitation OVA takes place very soon after the end of the events in the TV series (which left us feeling like we'd seen something very open ended). Yuki is back to his shenanigans and is treating Shuichi coldly, much to Shuichi's dismay. Plenty of whining and melodrama follow, mixed... See full review

Story
Shuichi is a young guy who has a friend named Hiro and a band named Bad Luck. They haven't hit it big quite yet, but are determined to get to the top eventually! One day, by chance and a gust of wind, one of the self conscious Shuichi's songs gets into the hand of Eiri Yuki, a cynical and heartless writer, who proceeds to inform Shuichi that he has no talent. Shuichi is totally thrown off guard, and needs to find the man again to figure out what his problem was.

Gravitation, as you've probably heard, is shounen-ai. Yes, I said shounen-ai, as in, men who like men, NOT yaoi, which... See full review

Story
Great Teacher Onizuka follows the life of Onizuka, a 22 year old ex-gang member who decides he wants to be a teacher. Not to help out young minds or spread the joy of education -- he wants to be able to gawk at teenage girls. Through a series of fairly hilarious events, Onizuka manages to land a job at a prestigious academy, but there's a catch: he'll be teaching a class full of junior high delinquents. These students aren't up for accepting Onizuka as their new homeroom teacher and mentor, and with that, the story begins...Great Teacher Onizuka is fairly episodic and... See full review

Story
Having seen the original OVA for Appleseed, I was expecting this movie would be nothing more than glorified eye candy with a weak plot and nothing to show up the surely pretty graphics. The original OVA is basically a police show, handling one case. We know about the city and the bioroids, and the hostilities between the bioroids and the military, but not much more than that. We have no idea what Appleseed means or why it has anything to do with the OVA, and there isn't anything deep, per se.

Boy, was I surprised...

Appleseed the MOVIE was incredible. Simply... See full review

Story
While the idea of exploiting children or other human beings for murder might seem unoriginal, Gunslinger Girl still manages to bring a bit of uniqueness to the story, mostly through how the story is told, rather than the content. So as far as actual content, I enjoyed what it was about.

Although murder and assassination is the job of these young girls, the focus of the series is more based on them as characters, and the morality of using them as tools to reach a means. Because the main topic seems to be character development and moral issues, you should be forewarned that the... See full review

Story
Ugh. After finishing Idol Project, that's my strongest reaction. Nevertheless, let's start the review, shall we?

As mentioned in the description, Idol Project follows a young girl named Mimu as she strives to become an idol. This anime was presumably made because of Japan's obsession with idols, who tend to do things such as singing, acting, or just prancing around in public looking pretty. Mimu, like many real life people in Japan, probably, is obsessed with becoming an idol as famous as HER idol, Yuri. Thus, she tries out at the idol competition in Starland, a place definitely... See full review

Story
Sound a bit generic? Perhaps it is. But although the "boy transported to another world of fantasy" idea might be overdone, it doesn't stop from being an enjoyable watch. There are so many series that came to mind while watching this, including Escaflowne, El Hazard Alternative World, and more. But the main thing I thought of was Final Fantasy 3, or the plot of ANY Final Fantasy. Definitely had a video game type feel, even if it didn't mean to. Or perhaps the combination of fantasy and technology just sparked that idea in my head, who knows?

Because of the length (only 45... See full review

Story
Kino no Tabi is completely episodic, with each episode (or two episodes) based on a new country and its culture. In general, the tone is remarkably dark, usually prompting at least one "wow" from your lips for most of the episodes. To be as non-spoilerish as possible, let's just say that each one deals with cultural differences that would be considered shocking in some instances, and merely melancholy in others. In general, the series has a remarkably deep and philosophical tone, with lots of undertones that are easily missed. Thus, if you watch this, you need to dedicate your full attention to... See full review

Story
Story? What story? Wild Cardz literally doesn't have one. Not only is there no background as to who the girls are, but even the idea of the current plot is extremely, if not impossibly hard to grasp. By the end of the OVA I wondered "wtf just happened?". Characters are introduced randomly and you still have no idea who they are at the end, the entire "point" of the OVA wasn't explained well and in general the story was just complete garbage. I have literally nothing good to say about the "story", hence an unprecedented score of 0.
Animation
The animation didn't suck, but it also wasn't... See full review

Story
Ahh, .hack. A very strange and interesting story, which unfortunately was stretched out over too many genres and mediums. In this case, the story takes place after the .hack//SIGN universe, and in the middle of a bit of a crisis: people are becoming comatose from their gameplay in The World. The problem with the story in this OVA is that you HAVE to have prior knowledge of the .hack world, and probably the games before it will make sense. There really is no lead in, or at least, not a good one. You are suddenly thrown into events already occuring and have to catch up, which makes this OVA not... See full review

Story
Although the name would suggest it (as well as the screenshots), Very Private Lesson is in fact not hentai. It's ecchi, that's for sure, but it isn't even THAT ecchi. We see occasional nakedness (without any nipples or such), the occasional shot of Tairaku's pants when he has a hard-on, and the occasional thing such as Aya getting groped by a fellow female classmate, but no sex or anything of the sort. That being said, Very Private Lesson could have EASILY been a hentai, had there been any sex. The plot follows a man named Tairaku who just wants to sleep with one of his fellow teachers. One... See full review

Story
The tale of Mighty Space Miners revolves around exactly what you'd think it would: space miners. In the future, these folks live up in space on an asteroid, divert comets and meteors and then mine them for precious metals and such. They then send the spoils to Earth, and continue to work. In addition, scientists are studying the effects being born in space can have on children. Our protagonist, Ushiwaka Nanbu, is the only surviving child in space, still. He's 12 years old.

The crew are getting ready to capture Halley's comet, when a military nuclear missile threatens the base, and... See full review

Story
It should be said that regardless of the description, Narutaru has two very distinct sections to it (that aren't really integrated at all, for that matter). The first 7-8 episodes revolve around Shiina and Akira with their dragonets, and the web of destruction and death they are drawn into because of them. Sound dark? IT IS. What's funny is that the first episode makes you think something totally different. I watched episode 1 and remember coming away from it thinking this would be a light series, perhaps slice of life. In the episode, Shiina finds Hoshimaru on the beach, and that's about it... See full review

Story
Jing is 100% episodic. There, I said it. If you are reading this and are suddenly not interested, stop reading now and go pick up Juuni Kokki. Else, let's continue...

Jing is the world's best thief and is known for his desire to capture the most beautiful and unique treasures in the world. His pal, Kir, is a talking bird who loves the women, and follows him wherever he goes. King of Bandit Jing follows Jing and Kir as they travel to various towns and places, as they try to steal a different one-of-a-kind treasure. As mentioned, this is an episodic series. There is no central plot... See full review

Story
Cat Soup is a bizarre and abstract look at the lives of two young kittens, as they peruse the land of the dead. Then again, knowing that information is hard to discern from watching it once, and odds are, had you not read any review or description, you may have not picked up that fact at all. There is no dialogue in Cat Soup, except random noises used for the characters talking with occasional subtitles (in Japanese characters). Usually these words are very simple, not even full sentences. The story is told primarily through the visuals, and again, are very abstract, making it hard to... See full review

Story
Dead Leaves is weird.

Now that that's been said, let's discuss why. First of all, the plot of Dead Leaves doesn't really matter. This movie was obviously made for the animation, plain and simple. That being said, even if you wanted to understand the plot, it's not so easy, given the extremely unique animation style and the high octane feel and pacing of the anime. In general, Pandy and Retro are two "people" of sorts that awaken on Earth, naked. They don't know who they are or why they are there, and shortly after they run off on a crime spree. They are captured, and sent to... See full review

Story
Eternal Family is a Studio 4C production. Interestingly enough, as we were watching this both of us kept saying how much it reminded us of End of the World (another short from Studio 4C), and sure enough, when the end credits rolled, it was in fact Studio 4C! This might explain the confusing nature of the OVA, as well as the pacing and randomness that abounded.

The story involves a family that is made up of rejects of society. These individuals have been brainwashed to think they are actually a family (except the dad), and live in a closed environment. Due to some circumstances... See full review

Story
Within the first three minutes of the first episode, I knew this would be something that kicked ass. Thankfully enough, I wasn't mistaken.

Phantom takes place in Los Angeles, where a young man whose name we don't know (though based on other reviews I've seen, I guess his name is Reiji) has come to visit from Japan. The reason seems to be something related to being accepted to a school. I don't believe the school is in LA, though the details aren't totally clear, and don't really matter anyways. Our young protagonist is dropped off in the middle of nowhere by his inept taxi driver... See full review

Story
The entire premise of Gude Crest revolves around just that -- the Gude Crest. Our two heroines Efera and Jiliora received this crest while escaping a slave ship and/or attempting to save a young boy who perishes. He hands them the crest, and they set off to return it -- and the story begins. Unfortunately, as if that was unexciting enough, it just goes downhill from there. The girls end up running into a cult-like group who communicate with a being known as the Supreme Mother, and end up trying to save two royal twins (and rightful heirs of the crest) and the entire continent from evil itself... See full review

Story
Refrain Blue is based on an h-game. While some series manage to pull this off well, making you not-so-convinced that's what it's from (KgNE, for example), Refrain Blue is a bit more obvious in its roots. The OVA itself isn't hentai, though. There are only two scenes that might be considered questionably ecchi (where Nao has her shirt removed), and there is some nudity in shower scenes, but it's probably the same amount as KgNE.

I seriously am starting to think that all h-games have one or more of the following in them: being at the beach, a long lost promise you remember, a long... See full review

Story
Since there is virtually no plot in Space Travelers, I thought I'd write a haiku instead:

Space fights and action
Robots appear, oh shit! Run!
Shoot them in spaceships

Oh man, I kick ass at the haikus. (ha!!). Yes folks, that's about how much inspiration I got from Space Travelers. Let's just say the entire point of the movie was to be a campy sci-fi viewing, sort of like Star Wars, but way worse. It's unfortunate because in the beginning of the movie, we actually think it might not be half bad. Alien invaders came and conquered the Earth in three... See full review

Story
I've read my fair share of reviews for Odin, all of which give it terrible scores. I'm talking Angelique or Wild Cardz terrible. All of these reviews had one thing in common -- they all had watched the dub, which has about 40 minutes of the 2 hour 15 minute Japanese version removed, supposedly significantly cutting down on the story. I, on the other hand, did watch Odin in its original form, so I can only imagine that either A) the subtitled original version is a hell of a lot better than the dub, or B) strange parasites invaded my brain (presumably from that sketchy Mexican food I hate... See full review

Story
Tristia of the Deep Blue Sea is actually focused on a girl named Nanoca, who likes to invent golems and invent various things. The story we are told is that she has been sent to Tristia to help revive their economy, though we never really understand many aspects of the story. Who sent her? How was she supposed to help revive the economy? I suspect that fans of the manga or whatever this was based off of would understand these things, but unfortunately for the regular viewers, we don't. Anyways, rather than being a show about inventing or neat things like that, the entirety of the two episodes... See full review