First Impressions: Spring 2015

And just like that a new season starts.
It feels like this just happened to be but pretty much every show i watched in Winter has ended.
The two shows i am 'continuing' i'm on the fence about.

Kuroko's Basketball
It has to do something incredible to win me back over. between the named moves, the zone and the fact that the main character has barely played... i am just kind of sick of the whole show.
The only reason i continue is cause Akashi is voiced by Hiroshi Kamiya... and as much as i like his voice it's not enough to get me to keep watching a show.
Like... Bakemonogatari... he's in that... i don't watch that show cause it creeps me right out...
so yeah... fav voice actor be dammed the show has to get better... or at least less stupid... and shorter matches.  also if they start the spring part of the season with the match for 3rd i will potentially lose my shit.

Sailor moon
BORED
bored bored bored bored bored
so boring
do something
stop yelling peoples names (mostly mamo-chan) and do something!
and the art
it's so bad! and the CG is still so damn rubbery.... I HATE being this negative about the show that got me to love anime but when a gag mahou shonen show is better and more thoughtful then you.... then you must be doing something wrong.
but then again you'd have to be doing something to mess it up... still..... BORED

Some ground rules:
1. No webshows, i sometimes make exceptions but for the most part i can't stand waiting a week for a 3-15 min long show... also they tend to be comedy and unfortunately some comedy isn't universal.
2. No shows with Brother or sister in the title.  Japan has this odd obsession with having family members be love interest, almost always falling back on the "well they aren't actually related" argument... i can't stand those types of shows and a good portion of them have Brother or sister in the title.
3. No card game shows.... i just never like them.
4. I will try to watch everything i can legally get my hands on (read as on Funimation, Crunchyroll or Daisuki) for one episode but i'm allowed to drop out early, i'll let you know when i stopped watching and feel free to let me know if things change after that. 
5. My taste tend to be more on the shoujo or slice of life side but i try to give everything a fair shot. If i end up not liking something that doesn't mean it's bad it just means i didn't connect with it.

OK.... onto new shows...
and by new shows i mean sequels and spin offs with a few original titles thrown in for good measure.

Food Wars! Shokugeki no Soma
wtf does japan think eating food is like.
between the show last season that i don't remember the title of
and this...
like... serious wtf
ok... i bailed at, and i wish i was kidding, personification of a tentacle coated in penut butter wrapping itself around a girl while she screams no cause it tastes so bad
so... 2:30ish
uh... ok... next

Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon?
.... no
i don't want to
the title.... it's so stupid.... i would have a "no stupid titles" clause but i've been surprised by shows with terrible titles.
but this... i highly doubt it.
This show has something against having frabric against ones back.... ok minor gripe i guess
also she has this string that goes aroudn her arms but under her bust
i'm sorry but what could that accomplish
anyways... honestly? not as bad as i was expecting... dunno if i'll keep watching cause when it wasn't bad it wasn't interesting either.
we will see i guess?

My Teen Romantic Comedy SNAFU TOO
Yay~
ok from here on this wonderful show with a stupid title will be just called SNAFU 2 cause... easier.
Ok so way back in.... uh... 2013 according to MAL, I saw the title for this show and quite literally went "well that show is going to be terrible... still i'm giving everything a chance so lets see" and it ended up being among my favs that season.
Right off the bat i need to comment on the animation, it's a little different then season one (makes sense... different studio) Based off the whopping 25 seconds i have watched i am enjoying it even more then the old style... it's just really fluid and the shading and lighting is just a bit more pleasing to the eye.
The intro song animation kinda reminds me of a persona type game...
I do find it a little funny that the show is based largely around the fact that Hikigawa is creepy/not pretty/beady eyes...
and this animation studio has made him look just a bit prettier, i find it kind of funny at least.
Anyways so far the second season looks to be as good as the first... maybe better. I'm just happy we are getting more.
I suggest watching season 1 and then this (all on crunchyroll for North america at least), it's worth it.  Do not be fooled by the stupid title.

Re-Kan! 
Now every time a show starts with food i a little worried...
Right off the bat i think it's a little interesting that they are trying to immitate depth of field and the shifts within it as the focal point changes... but i am finding it a little bit distracting.. i find 2d  animation has to be pretty phenominal to pull that kind of thing off and this, so far, isn't.
ok so super moe with a spalsh of horror visuals... well why not i guess?
So it's technically a comedy anime but Comedy isn't universal... this just isn't doing it for me.
The gag is that she can see ghosts and it freaks some people out but most are okay with it and isn't it funny.
yeah... maybe i'm spoiled by natsume yuujinchou... but this fluffy 'all is well' stuff just is a little too boring.
ok... yeah that was just a lot of dullness... next

*reading the news between shows* Gargantia 2 was cancelled?... no... That was one of the shows i was looking forward to the most in the fall.
I am so sad now.

Gunslinger Stratos
I wasn't sure if this was a sequel to something so i checked MAL, apparently it's based off an arcade game... lets see if this ends up making any sense...
Okay so it's a future where these is only on gov, or corporation with all the power, and there are wars and... yeah
seems interesting enough... i'll probably give it a few more episodes before i decide.

Plastic Memories
Oh.... oh this is going to hurt isn't it?
...
Well... i can't think of many other shows that have gotten me to cry episode 1...
Hell Natsume yuujinchou didn't get tears from me till episode 2.
... uh... okay so.
Theres a company that has been able to create robots with artificial souls and personalities. they are pretty much identical to humans in every regard but they only live for approximately 9 years and 4 months.
before the robots break Retrevalists are sent in teams of two (one robot and one human) to get the robot back.
Some part willingly, others are a bit less willing to give up something they grey attached to for 9 years. only one thing is true... The job never feels rewarding.
So far, of the new IPs, it's the one i've been most invested in... it was really good...
but damn, if the robots look any younger... (they can be built to look any age from the looks of things) i may not be able to continue despite how much i enjoyed it... there are somethings i cannot handle.
still best 'new' show so far


Tesagure!
wow... uh... i shoudl have added no sequels to shows i haven't seen but i didn't realize this was a sequel till i hit start.... but wow
this is UGLY
there eyes are litterally poping off their CG models... it's just... wow
no.
Also it's the third season of a 'show' i never heard of so... yeah no.
als i dropped out at about 5 seconds in... new record~ 
 
Seraph of the End: Vampire Reign
this doesn't look like it'll be my kind of show... but giving everything a chance...
The reason i was unsure about this was because
a) i do not particularly care for Vampire stories, they almost always end up a little too overpowered in Anime.
b) Plague stories tend to trigger Anxiety attacks for me
However luckily the plague aspect of the show is limited only to the first few minutes so... yay.
A mysterious Plague hits all of humanity and the only survivors are Vampires and Children under the age of 13. Not wanting to be livestock for the rest of their potentially short lives a group of orphans do their best to escape the facility. However a group of children takign on powerful vampires seems like an insurmountable task.
And you know what? i enjoyed it... at least enough to give it another episode. I'm surprised (especially considerign i watched this shortly after Plastic Memories) that i didn't cry... cause yeah it's not happy... i figure it's jus ta sign that i'm not emotionally invested just yet.
But still not bad at all... next.

The Heroic Legend of Arslan
I'm 99% sure this is the same artist as Full metal alchemist. *checks* yep, same character designer... not the same creator though.
I do wish Anime would stop using CG for large crowds of people... it almost never looks good.
Hm, The first episode was okay but not enough to base an opinion on. it's mostly an info dump on the world and rules so this will probably get 2-4 episodes before i make up my mind.
Two nations are at war.
Arslan, a timid prince has a chance encounter with a child prisoner of war and is forced to question what his nation's happiness has been built on.

Show By Rock!!
Moe girls in a band at school...
I always have a gut reaction of get away when these types of shows come out... still i'll give it a chance... i guess.
CG in anime that is kinda cute? Unheard of.
Well... that was.... stupid
not bad... but very very silly
not my cup of tea but conisdering it's half CG and half animated... it actually has a nice look.
but no... no thank you.

Hello!! Kinmoza
Not going to talk about this since i hated season 1, just reminding everyone that if you like the first episode of season 1 then remember the rest of the show is nothing like that.
how this got a second season just baffles me.
like i get that Gargantia was cancelled for reasons similar to why Gen Urobuchi only worked on the first few episodes of Aldnoah... but it was a million times better then Kinmoza.
anyways... onto the next thing.

Ultimate Otaku Teacher
Oh this looks like a stupid piece of.... no
no no no
Hiroshi Kamiya?!
*torn*
the sound mixing on this episode is so funky it actually took me a second to figure out it was him...
but.... ok i'll give it a try.
I really hope other episodes fix the sound mixing... it's really distracting.
OK... think great teacher Onizuka but instead of the teacher being a pervy punk he's a Nerd obsessed with Anime.
it's a little less violent then GTO but still... fine so far... i'll watch for a bit longer (yes cause hiroshi's in it.... granted if they don't fix the sound i may not conitnue for long)
still that title.... *sighs*
ok next~

The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan
If i had to pic a fav storyline from the Haruhi Suzumiya series... it would be a touch choice between disappearance and Surprise.
I love this series.
before Natsume yuujinchou it was among my top anime/novels of all time (right along with Princess tutu)
Part of me is sad that we are getting the spinoff instead of animating the rest of the novels.
The novels have been done for years... another season (or more realistically 2) and you could complete the story... hell have Snowy mountain syndrome be another film like disappearance... it would be really good.
That all being said... I love that they are adapting what is essentially (in all manners of the term) and Alternate universe.
I currently have 3 volumes of the manga, i haven't gotten to reading it cause... well the pile of unread manga by my bed is quite literally 30+ volumes
But i did read the first volume and despite some of the moe bullshit it is a really cute idea.
and i'm always up for more kyon, i think Kyon used to be the character i had the most figrues for but... natsume has beaten him (cause they made more... i still want all the kyon figures ever... he's so cute)
anyways what do i think of the show?
on one hand it's strange seeing something Haruhi Suzumiya related (i know it's a spinoff) not being animated by Kyo ani....
on the other hand i haven't enjoyed a Kyo Ani animation in the past... 5 or so years so.... part of me is okay with this
the music is terrible though.... or maybe i'm just pointing cause it's so different.
the art style is pretty reflective of the manga... *pouty mode activate* however kyon isn't as pretty... he's much more blobby and... *sighs*
ok i'll be honest with my other reason i'm a little bummed that we are getting this and not more of the main line.
I'm not the biggest 'shipper' in the world... i almost never ship any characters that aren't established to have a bond.
... what i'm saying is i ship Kyon and haruhi... Yuki is a great character but yeah... i just don't see her and kyon together so... thats also making me pout. i know haruhi is in it but.... come on...
John smith *pout* that scene....
READY?
*rolls* if the movie weren't 3+ hours long i would watch it right now... maybe this weekend.
right... the show the show.
The show is fine... it's really moe... i hope as it and the manga continue it adds a bit more seriously/thought provoking stuff...
but i know it probably wont... i'll just re-read the novels... they are pretty short. *sighs* and we'll never get the rest animated
*looks at the size of this* sorry... i just... really like Haruhi suzumiya stuff....
yeah.... ok next

Takamiya Nasuno Desu!
2 mins long? no thank you... if i hear good things maybe i'll marathon when it's over.

Oh.... Kyo Ani next... alright... lets do this.

Sound! Euphonium
Anime, for a while now, has been doing this depth of field thing... and sometimes it works well... you don't tend to notice it it's done so well...
this show is adding a bit of colour abberation to the edges and... i dunno it's just distracting... the show is pretty....
Haruhi pretty? no
Clannad pretty? not really...
but pretty
It's nice to see that Kyo Ani is diversifying their look a little but... *sighs* i really with all their stuff didn't look like K-on.
The show seems fine, not too moe or anything but also not really anything to hook me in.
Maybe i'll watch when it's done? or if i suddenly hear everyone talking about it.

Rin-ne
This show is cute, brought to us by the same person who made Ranma 1/2, Inu yasha and Maison Ikoku.
my issue with rumiko takaharhi is solely that her beginnings are good... and then things get stupid and long and never end and... yeah this should have that problem cause it's only 25 episodes (unless it gets more seasons but cross that bridge later)
what i saw was cute and with a bit of a late 80's early 90's vibe... it was decently funny.
Basically the story is about a girl who can see spirits who happens to see a shikigami and ends up being dragged into helping him (mostly because she has some money)
i'm hoping it continues to but cute and funny.

MY love STORY!!
I was hoping this would be good.
I'm so glad that it is.
It's a story about an extremely tall/scary looking guy and his best friend the pretty boy... he is super sweet and falls in love easily but all the girls fall for his friend and so he's started just giving up.
By a chance encounter he helps a girl deal with a groper and his friend seems to be, for the first time, interested in a girl. but of course he has fallen in love as well.
it was very funny, so far it's the show i enjoyed the most (that hasn't made me cry) so yeah... looking forward to more of this.

Triage x
wow... uh, so just a crapton of fanservice and no.... not having it.
Also the sound mixing was really off so... painful to listen to.. the dialogue was so quiet and the BG just loud and annoying


Wish Upon the Pleiades
Gainax has always been hit or miss with me.
This was a miss
right off the bat it felt like a moe madoka cashgrab
but i don't care about any of their characters and i'm actively rooting for the bad guy.
so yeah pass

Punchline
I was going to go into this blind but my friend warned me.
So this is Panty Shot: The anime.
so if thats your thing... enjoy.
moving on...

ETOTAMA
Another anime that has cg chibi sections? again focusing around animals... and again it doesn't look half bad.
welcome to 2015 i guess?
Oh wow... i haven't seen crunchy explain the japanese puns like that before... interesting.
once again, comedy is not universal.. .and while i loved the punnyness of Cute high... uh... the awesome magical boy show from last season that everyone needs to buy.... i loved it cause i understood/could hear it....
my japanese isn't good enough currently to know that Fuka means (or sounds like at least) both soft and deep (i'm guessing Fuka vs fuuka or Fu-ka)
so yeah... i probably wont continue with this just cause there is a language barrier.
so much Nya
too much Nya to handle
again maybe it's good... i can only handle so much plotless moe.
and by so much i mean not very much at all. 

Mikagura School Suite
4 minutes... well... i don't like meteors...
um from what i could tell the main character was an annoying brat who just wants to play Yuri dating sims all day and then i'm guessing after the meteor there is a magical girl aspect or something... again there is some shit i just don't want to see. The animation was a bit whiplashy... the first bit almost looks animated by trigger but then it gets all fluffly... but in the end i guess i'll never know.

Hm... still have another week of new Airing shows and i've already seen the titles i was excited for... heres hoping in week two there is something to surprise me~

Nisekoi:
So happy this got another season... 20 episodes just wasn't enough.
So yeah... technically a Harem anime but more so a rom com. it's just a lot of fun and i look forward to the rest of the season... i'm still cheering for Onodera even though i know chitoge is the more likely match.

Blood Blockade Battlefront
It's funny... i used to only be able to do the voice thing with characters i liked.
But Natori's voice is in so many things... and.... now i hear it immediately cause i hate him (the character, not the voice actor who is immensely talented) and it just sends a chill down my spine.
It's bad enough that he's actually playing a villain in the show...
oh... the show itself... uh...
Okay so it's set in new york (we know this cause we see the statue of liberty and hear some jazzy music)  and something happened a few months prior that essentially made it so the normal and abnormal were both there in abundance.
A young boy named Leo has a chance encounter with a group named Libra (hey it's my start sign~) and figures they hold the key to learning more about what happened to himself and his sister when everything went down.... Libra in turn things he has an ability that could be the key to everything.
I don't know what i think of the show overall just yet but luckily Funimation put up two episodes at once so maybe that'll help me decide.... the Bump of Chicken song at the end was really nice though.
Oh the song is actually the intro, neat.... love Bump of Chickens Voice.
The show seems ok, not sure if i'll continue cause i still dont have much invest but who knows.

Yamada-kun and the Seven Witches
I was worried when i saw the title just cause... it sounds like a harem anime title and i'm not too big on those.
I do think it is a harem anime but that is not the hook.
After falling down the stairs the main character, a delinquent, and a female honour student end up switching bodies.
in fact the reaction to finding that out is one of the better ones i've seen portrayed.
anyways they work together to find out how to swap back sicne the original trigger isn't working... apparently when they fell they kissed and apparently thats the real trigger.
only the switching doesn't only work between the delinquent and the girl... as far as we know the delinquent can swap with ANYONE after one smooch.... gender be damned.
Honestly the episode was really funny and well done, it wasn't too fanservicy (so far) and i laughed a lot... we still don't know about the 'seven witches' or why the switch happens but honestly i'm surprised how much fun it is so far.

wait.... am i done?
*checks the list*
other then one title every other show is either a sequel to a series i haven't seen or 5-15 mins long.
the one title i'm waitign on is Digimon adventure tri which i'm curious since the first cast of the show was the only one i likes.

in that case i think i'll post this and just update it if i realize i missed something.

IS this season going to as good as last season? probably not... last season had so many titles i simply adored (at least until the final episode kinda ruined two of them)
However there is a lot that i didn't expect to like but managed to make me smile... so whats my final verdict?

Shows i will most likely complete:
SNAFU 2 (crunchyroll)
Plastic Memories (crunchyroll, daisuki)
The Disapearance of Nagato Yuki-chan (more so cause at least it has kyon... i still want main story animated) (funimation)
MY love Story (Crunchyroll)
Nisekoi: (crunchyroll, daisuki)

Shows i am enjoying but still a little on the fence about:
Is it wrong to pick up girls in a dungeon (this should be in the other category but i worry about it going down a crappy path) (crunchyroll)
Seraph of the end: vampire reign. (funimation)
The heroic legend of Arslan (funimation)
Ultimate Otaku Teacher (cause hiroshi kamiya) (funimation)
Rin-ne (crunchyroll)
Yamada-kun and the seven witches. (Crunchyroll)

so yeah no shortage of half decent shows this season... a lot of crap as well but thats always the case.
again i'll update this later if i find something else worth talking about...

Edit:
Just cause i was curious i wanted to see how lopsided my week would be if i watch all the shows i mentioned

Monday: Nothing
Tuesday: Nothing
Wednesday: rin-ne, my love story
Thursday: Nothing
Friday: Nisekoi:, is it wrong to pick up girls in a dungeon, Disappearance of Nagato yuki-chan
Saturday: SNAFU 2, Plastic memories, Ultimate Otaku Teacher, Seraph of the end: vampire reign
Sunday: Kuroko's basketball 3, Heroic legend of arslan, yamada-kun and the seven witches
so yeah... thats going to be fun.