Sunday, April 7, 2013

My Anime Wrap-Up for the Winter 2013 Season

Girls und Panzer - I'll start off with the best. GuP has become one of my favorite anime of all time. It is superbly paced, has great animation, and witty dialogue. This anime's quality really took me by surprise. GuP, in my eyes, is basically a combination of Eyeshield 21 and Strike Witches, as it combines the action execution of the best sports manga where, both the planning and execution are equally intense, with the diverse characters and interaction there-of of Strike Witches. Perhaps what was most impressive is the pacing of the series, as the anime manages to develop much of the cast and create a great sense of tension and satisfaction within all of the battles, all within the span of 12 episodes. I really, really hope this anime will get a second season, as the amazing characters and battles really need to be seen more.

Jojo's Bizarre Adventure: Battle Tendency - The first word that comes to me when asked to describe Jojo is ... interesting. I actually use the same word to describe One Piece. And I believe that's what attracts me so much to Jojo. You never really know what's going to happen next. It all plays out in a classic shonen execution while all being stylishly animated. It's a great time, and I look forward to more. I'll also say that the OP for this season of Jojo is perhaps my favorite anime OP ever; I watch it every time.

Vividred Operation - While not terrible, this series was a huge disappointment. The main problem with the series is that it lacks focus. There are times when it looks to be a light-hearted magical-girl anime, while other times it wants to tell a serious, sometimes dark, story. If the anime had stuck to one of these routes, it probably would've been a lot better. What was good, though, were the characters. Most of the cast was pretty great, and more interactions between the cast would've been appreciated. Overall, it was disappointing; perhaps not because the actual content was mostly mediocre, but because the series' potential really shined through all the mediocrity.

Sasami-san@Ganbarai - This was a decent series. Honestly, I'm confused on a lot of the overarching plot, but there were many nice moments throughout the series. The best aspect of the series was the characters interaction, and since I'm a huge fan of good character interaction, it kept me watching the series, even if I didn't always understand it, heh.

Senran Kagura - It was OK. As a fan of the games and manga, I was pretty hyped for this anime. And, what I continue to say to myself whenever questioning the anime's quality is: it gets good at episode 5. From episode 5 to 12, this anime is actually pretty good and does nearly everything I wanted it to. The disappointment comes from the fact that the first four episodes could've been used to solve several of the anime's biggest flaws, such as developing certain characters who didn't get enough, specifically Ikaruga, Katsuragi, and the Hebi girls. A second season could be good, but I'd be wary of the quality.

Overall, there have been better seasons, but it was a nice laid-back season. I'm really happy to have seen Girls und Panzer, and I know that just because the Strike Witches team is working on a new anime, that doesn't mean it will be great, heh.

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