Jeoffrey

"No senpai, it is our fight" finally got a sequel, even though there are only eight episodes of OVA. Plus, these have been coming out kind of sporadically rather than regularly. However, this is still perhaps better than nothing. Otherwise, this season is still more/less the same old same old. At times I wondered if there was too much fan service in the original anime series, too (well, yes, there was), even though I still gave it a go and had no issues. My favorite subplot came up again at the very end (so there was at least one reason to finish each of the narratives), and it was, of course, the main thing I was looking forward to. Of the new characters, I think I was mainly interested in Kiriha Kisaki, I am probably going to forget the rest. It is quite a change that the characters did not really interest me that much this time. However, I can still remember Kojou Akatsuki, and that is enough to make me happy. I remember him because, in my opinion, he is one of those hilarious "harem lords". In the end, this show is still the same; I just was not that into it this time. 6/10.

Chronos Ruler strikes me as a kind of a light rip-off of D.Gray-man with slightly older and at the same time much more boring characters. Plus, it is a family saga about the Putins that surprisingly is not actually about the infamous "Russian Bear". With the first episode, I was reminded of D.Gray-man right away and thought that the beginning was pretty similar. The concept of the enemies was also identical. The only thing that I probably found surprising was the relationship between Viktor and Kiri. The rest of the narrative was very predictable for my taste and not very sophisticated compared to D.gray-man. For example, the Chronos organization seemed incredibly uninteresting. The rest is just a show full of the typical chatter about the importance of family in all sorts of absurd ways. Unfortunately, I have seen this many times already. Some of the fight scenes are lacking; they are just not epic, and the repetition of jokes about eating spaghetti through your nose and teasing that poor Kiri because he still doesn't have a woman (also a trope in a lot of other anime series) gets stupid really soon. So, Chronos Ruler was almost nothing new, and at times I even found it pretty boring. 4/10.

Tournaments, practices, and final exams are practically nothing new in any student's life and special academy for heroes is no exception. Still, even these fairly typical episodes were pretty decent and each had at least one epic moment that reminded me why I love watching this anime series so much. It still gives me that lovely feeling and makes me realize why I enjoy heroic narratives so much and why people like comic books so much, for example. Plus, things are getting much more dramatic at a rapid pace as the dark side is also gaining momentum. Most importantly, though, we have been introduced to this show's main vilain. Personally speaking, I am satisfied and want to praise what I think is a very well-produced second season. Compared to the first season, the  second season has lost none of its pace or atmosphere. It still has the same good, likable characters, plus the interesting animation and appropriately chosen soundtrack. 8.4/10.

This show is basically the same old bullshit that is quite cute and occasionally funny. There are a few new and quite interesting characters, even though I think Chidori is still easily the best. Plus, it gets some merit as a history lesson, and I would definitely enjoy learning this way. So no significant change from the first season in terms of my impressions. 6.7/10.

This show was awesome, beautiful, and simply fabulous! I was already immensely in love with the first season, and once again, this show more than succeeded in being great. I was a little dubious at first because in the first season I loved the frantic pace and the energy that was a rollercoaster ride. I also loved the exciting and, in my opinion, very well-developed narrative. It probably was not as detailed or developed; however, it was an excellent fantasy tale. It definitely stood up and fulfilled my expectations of a great fantasy show, and of course, I liked the characters. I admired the outstanding animation and soundtrack. I think the whole first season just worked really well, as expected. In other words, I still remember the first Rage of Bahamut: Genesis anime television series fondly and can easily recall most of the characters. It was well-paced, it had a good atmosphere, and it was enchanting and enthralling. Now, back to the follow-up and my initial doubts. I was pretty surprised that the pacing is a lot looser. At first, they explored everything a lot more and deeper, and there were many times when I thought I was missing some proper action scenes. Furthermore, I really missed the character Favaro. At first, I thought Nina was a kind of poor version as a main protagonist (or maybe a substitute.). However, it gradually became clear that everything has a good reason behind it, and the narrative sets the stage for everything it wants to say and show, and Nina has a lot to offer. Throughout this season, she managed to push herself so far that I started to like her a lot. Plus, everything the screenwriters have dreamed up worked well. The atmosphere works; it has a sophisticated and well-thought-out narrative and an emotional love story full of memorable scenes. For example, every dance I watched put another nail in the coffin of a certain other anime series I also watch that also deals with dancing. Thanks to the great animation and soundtrack, the whole narrative was fascinating, heartfelt, and to my utmost satisfaction. Then there is the conclusion itself which is intense and dynamic. Ultimately, the ending is utterly satisfying, including the final epilogue and the post-credits scene. This show is how fantasy anime series are supposed to be produced. This show has my admiration which is all the greater considering the subject matter is a pretty ordinary online card game. This anime series shows how to write a screenplay and create an atmosphere so people can enjoy everything nicely. The characters were again excellent, the animation was breathtaking in places (so I am going to let the CGI go), and the soundtrack was once again fabulous, including both the opening and ending. In the end, I am completely satisfied. It renewed my enthusiasm, and I am awarding a big 10/10.

Convenience Store Boy Friends is an utterly mediocre romantic anime series about two couples finding their way to each other - one way is too long-winded and the other is too complicated. For the most part, the narrative is either fairly predictable or full of tropes, and even the intensely romantic moments that would make me feel something were woefully relatively sparse. The couple, Mishima and Mashiki, who I have renamed to "I am not going to squeeze it out myself" as a working title, were much less entertaining than Honda and the student council president. Even the supposedly emotional conclusion, which again contained a pretty traditional storyline resembling those from trashy romance novellas, could not change that fact. 5/10.

As the title suggests, Gamers! is not an anime series that is just about a passion for gaming, but focus on video game players themselves. We, therefore, see only a bit of the actual gaming and the video games themselves. Only the opening itself is really pleasing because we can catch a glimpse of some old-school video game classics. Sure, there is a lot of chatting about video games, because real enthusiasts do like to talk amongst themselves about their hobbies. The last episode might explain what is so great about these video games; however, that is about it. As the title does not suggest, Gamers! is mainly a romantic comedy, a narrative concerning four gaming enthusiasts and an ordinary girl falling in love and dealing with all the things that go with a love story. So, therefore, being a comedy, the main companion of all the fun this time is summed up in one word, misunderstanding. Seriously, if the characters had talked more and openly discussed their feelings with the object of those feelings, most of the situations dealt with here would have been resolved quietly. However, then there would probably not really have been anything to watch. So, for my part, I guess in the end, I was happy for all the relatively simple jokes and reasonably breezy humor, all the entanglements, and the possible romantic relationships that could have come about, even though it was clear from the start who was going to be with whom. This show made sitting around and chatting about video games fun, albeit quite simple. 6/10.

Clione no Akari probably wants to be an interesting and melancholy spectacle. It probably wants to impart some lesson regarding that to its audience, even though it fails on several levels. First of all, the narrative lacks any kind of intensity, something that would arouse any sort of emotion in someone like me. In other words, I could not sympathize with the main female protagonist and the other characters. Part of this show is spoiled because the whole of the narrative is chopped up into such short chunks, so it does not really have a chance to have any real impact. However, even so, it does not seem to be trying too hard. I could not really feel any of the main female protagonist's pain, and so I could not feel any sympathy for her. I could not see the effort and struggle of any of the characters enough to make a real difference, and so I lacked the desire to start rooting for any of them. A friendship gradually starts between the characters, even though that development does not really solve anything. To bring things to the desired conclusion, an element of mystery is introduced. In other words, some supernatural forces intervene in the lives of the main protagonists. However, as good as this might sound, even this element is not very convincingly incorporated due to the poor writing of the screenplay. I found the overall feel of this anime series was about the same as if a complete stranger just said, "Bullying is bad." to me with a serious face, without any real explanation of what that meant and just buggered off. I probably would have said to myself at that point: "Well, sure..." and not given it another thought. Well, if I ever needed to be convinced that bullying is awful, I would watch A Silent Voice again. Clione no Akari is not exactly a bad anime; I did find the animation quite amiable; I even enjoyed the soundtrack quite a bit in places too. It is just damn underdeveloped, and overall it just could not convince me in any real way. 4.5/10.

At first, I could not believe that the second season could be better than the first, and during the very first episode, I almost wondered if I was simply watching an OVA. I doubted if the second season would be in the vein of supposedly ordinary and perhaps even random narratives concerning the background of a company making new games with female protagonists I was already familiar with. Gradually, however, it became clear that the second season would once again have a coherent concept and narrative. In the end, it also convinced me that it was slightly better than the first season. A significant part of this has to do with the two new characters that joined the team. They contrasted beautifully with the existing members, perhaps making it easier to see how the main protagonist had moved on. The contradictions between the couples Aoba x Momiji and Narumi x Nene showed some interesting aspects of working relationships and their approaches to work. However, when someone like me can understand both sides, then no one is actually the bad guy. On top of that, this anime series still manages to convince people of the passion everyone involved has and their love for what they do. The fact that it is pretty amusing sometimes and still gratifying (because many of the characters are indeed endearing) still holds true (the first season had these attributes as well). Regarding the soundtrack, I liked the opening very much, even though the rest of the music was not as appealing. Another thing that impressed me more than the first season was the game the girls were creating, this time, I even felt like I wanted to play PECO. The ending was good, too; it was emotional, although it did not feel as overdone as in some other anime series. So, in the end, the second season of New Game! is better, and if I had to try and put it in one word, it is just much more considered. 7.5/10.

It is hard for me to rate this anime series because there are many things I found interesting, even though at the same time, after the final episode, I am not quite sure what this anime series will leave me with. What I definitely want to remember was the setting. The idea of the Berlin Wall relocated to London, and the whole location of industrial England, in general, was very charming. Then again, I would quite like to forget all the nonsense about the Cavorite and the fact that the main protagonist uses it to fly. The Cavorite was unnecessary after all, and even without the main protagonist flying, it would still be a decent spy-thriller anime series. I mean, even the individual cases were not so badly thought out, the spies’ work was portrayed quite realistically and interestingly at some points. I, therefore, could not understand why they shoved a useless thing that was not even used that often (I mean, I certainly did not get the impression that we could not live without it). Another thing I was quite pleased with were the characters as they became more likable with each passing episode. Quite possibly, it was the fact that some episodes tried to be emotional and move me besides all the investigations, deceit, and conspiracies, and sometimes they succeeded. However, there was also a certain revelation that I had been suspecting, which really pleased me. It proved that someone was trying hard when writing the screenplay. Of course, if they had put adult women instead of young Lolita girls, it would probably have been much more believable, more adult, and it would have worked out much better. On the other hand, however, I am probably the last one to mind the Lolita girls in the lead role because I found them likable. As I have already written, I felt that someone went to quite a lot of trouble with the narrative, characters, and descriptions of the spies’ work. They, therefore, managed to convince at least one viewer that watching this anime series was worthwhile, interesting, and even very good at times. The conclusion itself may not have been that intense, and I did not feel very moved (or rather the wall around my heart still holds firm), even though it was not actually a bad conclusion either. I liked the animation, and I had no problem with the soundtrack. I do not know if I am rooting for 3Hz animation studio, but once again, I was quite impressed with their production. So, I am going to leave the fourth star there. 6.7/10.