Anime Review: Fall 2018

The fall is coming and I really expect from it...

Let's compare with Winter it had some interesting choices with good anime Karakai Jouzu no Takagi-san; Gakuen Babysitters; Koi wa Ameagari no You ni (Love is Like After the Rain); Overlord 2; A Place Further than the Universe; Saiki Kusuo no Ψ-nan 2 and Violet Evergarden. So basically 7 good anime.

Regarding Spring I had Wotaku ni Koi wa Muzukashii, Hinamatsuri, Golden Kamuy, Tada-kun wa Koi wo Shinai, High School DxD Hero, Megalo Box, Boku no Hero Academia Season 3, Captain Tsubasa (2018) & Steins Gate. So 8

In the Summer we had Chio-chan no Tsuugakuro, Aggressive Retsuko (ONA), Gran Blue, Hataraku Saibou, Overlord 3, Tenrou Sirius the Jaeger, Shingeki no Kyojin Season 3. So basically 7. 

This new season of Fall we've got some interesting ones but only by the end of the series I can say more. After all we all know Darling in the Franx...

Hinomaruzumou - A Shounen that focus on Sumo.

Karakuri Circus - Another Shounen very alike from Ushio and Tora. Circus and puppet battles.

Irozuku Sekai no AShita Kara - The most beautiful of the season. From PA Works. Slice of Life & Romance (Potential if not ruined to be on my favourite list).

Kishuku Gakkou no Juliet - Really interesting take on Shakespeare tale of Romeu & Juliet.

Seishun Buta Yarou wa Bunny Girl Senpai no Yume wo Minai - Another take on Romance mix with supernatural stuff. So good. (Potential if not ruined to be on my favourite list).

Tensei shitara Slime Datta Ken - Some interesting Isekai adaptation. Very interesting main character and world (So far).

Yagate Kimi ni Naru (Bloom Into You) - A Yaoi love story.

Zombieland Saga - Expected a horror show but got a music idol mix with zombies....

Goblin Slayer - Another great isekai - very dark.

And let us see what the mighty Sword Art Online: Alicization brings us....

So basicaly 10 shows I am eagerly waiting.

Thoughts XXXII: What makes something your "Favorite"?

I was wondering this after watching (binge watching is the correct term) Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai. 

Is it a good anime? It's okay. Will be my favourite or 20 spot? Unless something happens - I don't think so. It's a solid 7. But then why I am binge watching when I rate 10 Ginga Eiyuu Densetsu and I cannot binge watch it. Steins Gate, Toradora or even Tsuka Ga Kirei were anime I rated 10 but I didn't binge watch them. I watch a couple of episodes at a time. So why this one I can "binge" and the others no? So what's my favourite?

It's really hard to understand this, would love your feedback but interesting or not, I made a top 20 list and Just because was not in top 20 or 30 for that matter but it's an anime I really liked (didn't enjoy the choice he made - it was very stupid one) and I am always looking forward for an anime that gives me that feeling... so far couldn't find one (although this season Bunny is really hitting that spot)

I am also watching really fast Cross Ange but then again is not an anime I would rate above 7. But it's engaging I think.

Another that made me watch in one go - it was the only one in all my years of consuming anime was Ore no Imouto ga Konnani Kawaii Wake ga Nai. Is it thhe best anime? Not in a hundred years. I gave it a 8 but could easily give 7. It will never be in my top list and it is one anime I will not advise to anyone unless it's very particular request.

So why did I watch it in one go? What makes it more "special"? I really can't understand why this happens in one show and not in another...

My only thought it's - when I am enjoying a show - like toradora per example if I watch it in one go It will not be as rewarding as savoring an ep per day or so. Do you understand? Do you feel that way? It's like I want to prolong that feeling I will never have again (or at least I find another top anime).

Top 20 (or so) Animes (After 500)

Lets talk today about my favourite anime after watching 550 animes... Some will be review here for the first time.

It's hard to pinpoint a top 10 but let us try... Some I would advise to you but others I cannot.

Ima, Soko ni Iru Boku (Now and then , Here and There) made by AIC it's I made a review previsouly and you can read it here but if you don't have the time - this anime earns high marks for pessimism, melancholic and despair factors. It was one of the first Isekai made in 1999 where a boy goes to another world to help a girl. His mind is bend on doing everything good no matter what. He gets beaten up time and again. If you want an anime that afterwards you are going to gaze into a wall deeply then this is anime for you.

After watching it try  Tokyo Magnitude 8.0. This anime is also way depressing as hell. It's slow pace compare with the first but if you want an anime to connect to your characters try this one. You will cry.

Afterwards we've got the movie Hotarubi no Mori e. It's a tale about friendship and old times. Really interesting take on romance and the division between two worlds and at the same time about two people who cannot be in love. Don't know if it makes sense... In terms of art style is way better than the above BUT since it's a movie of 45m you will get attached more to the other tv series characters. Nevertheless - very good. So beautiful and sad.

Violet Evergarden is an orgasm to your eyes. It's beautiful slice of life with some interesting story behind it. You will cry. I cry at least in 4 episodes (the latter ones). It's a story about war and about the ending of a war and the impact they have on people. In this case in a girl that only knew her benefactor who she took orders and to kill. Now she must return to everyday life. It's a story about learning your place and one that most military man who fought in wars go through....Very interesting.

In the other hand if you want romance then Toradora , Rec or Tsuki Ga Kirei are three good choices. One is more comedic feel and it's about the discovery of love, the second is more mature love about two adults living in a adult world while the third is the discovery of the first love. I must say I would prefer the first of the third but cannot choose one of them.

If you want more in terms of action you've got Attack on Titan,  Ushio and Tora (the new), Kill la Kill or Youjo Senki. They are all different. Kill la Kill is the strangest one with very interesting art style with a bit of comedy. If you don't mind a bit of surrealism you are in for a treat. Ushio and Tora is a shounen where a boy and a demon fight alongside against even more evil beings than the demon. They have a bit of comedy but the story is about friendship and strength. Attack on Titan is more action, mystery and more global (since it doesn't focus on a single or two characters but a lot of them. Youjo Senki is a Isekai but your main protagonist is a middle age cold business man transformed into a young 11 year old girl in WW1 worrld with the brains and coldness of the former guy. It's a fight between her and X-Being (God). I know it sounds strange but watch it. You will enjoy it and you will be cheering for her. Btw, you can try Overlord. Another anime where your main protagonist is a evil guy. This second and third season got a lot of attention.

Straight more adult mystery you've got Boku Dake ga Inai Machi. It has a great tv adaption (netflix). If you want a more relaxed gorgeous mystery anime you've got Hyouka. If you ware like me an enjoy Black Metal then watch Detroit Metal City. If you are into a more epic with a lot of background, tactics and such you've got Ginga Eiyuu Densetsu. If instead you want a slice of life you've got Sora yori mo Tooi Basho or Fune Wo Amu.

If you enjoy great artwork and deslike SAO but enjoy that kind of anime with a fantasy setting I would advice Hai to Gensou Grimgar. A Bit darker than other isekais with a hint of slice of life. The artwork is perfect. If you want something that makes you think then you've got Steins Gate or Made in Abyss.  If you just want to laugh you've got Asobi Asobase, Danshi Koukousei no Nichijou or even Saiki Kusuo no y-nan. But my favourite is Konosuba.


This is it from me. As you can see my top list is not ten but probably 20 or so. I would never advice anyone to watch an anime sorely on my taste. I would like to know what you want and I will search it. Maybe it was not for me but I can understand the value and suggest something different for you.

There are also three interesting movies Koe no Katachi, Byousoku 5 Centimeter or Kimi no Na wa. if you don't have the time for a 12 or 24 episode tv series. All three are great and high praised even for non-anime people. The first one is probably my favourite and the one show I would suggest to anyone who never watch any anime but wanna try.

Let's be back at 1000.

Talking About Anime - 500 Animes

Well my journey began only in my youth and now I've watched 547 animes. Well lets be realistic. 50 or so of myanimelist are old animes but  497 shows I've watched since April 2016..

From April 2016 to now I've watched 4913 episodes - 215 Tv Series plus 196 Movies/Ovas and Specials.

That's a lot...

Now talking about anime itself. A lot of youtubers and reviewers talk about producers and directors and sometimes choose from it. I never watch a tvshow (or anime) because a producer is there. Maybe I will change that way in me - let us see. But One or two things I care about (now) it's the studio behind. I can see there are studios I give better rating than others - I think that means something no?

OTher thing it's the source material. This is something people often talk about. Anime are either original, light novel, manga or some novel inspiration. Nowadays also games and music inspire a show.

Just to give you a preview, from the 298 Shows (not counting OVA's/Specials and Movies) 168 the source was Manga (either manga, web manga or 4-koma). 52 came from Light Novel while 37 were original. 
But if you take in consideration my 9/10 stars  - 14 Manga, 7 Original and 6 Light Novel.
And if you are wondering only the ten then surprise - 4 Light Novel & 4 Original with 2 Manga.

This means anything? I don't think so... But I am a number freak.  

Now the studios... My Ten stars

Studio	Series
A-1 Pictures	Hai to Gensou no Grimgar	1
AIC	Ima, Soko ni Iru Boku ( Now and Then, Here and There)	1
Artland	Ginga Eiyuu Densetsu (Heldensagen Vom Kosmosinsel)	1
feel.	Tsuki ga Kirei (as the moon, so beautiful)	1
J.C.Staff	Toradora	1
Madhouse	A Place Further Than The Universe	1
MAPPA	Inuyashiki Last Hero	1
NUT	Youjo Senki (Saga of Tanya the Evil)	1
Studio Deen	KonoSuba: God's Blessing on This Wonderful World! Vol 2	1
Sunrise	Danshi Koukousei no Nichijou	1
Trigger	Kill La Kill	1
Zexcs	Fune wo Amu (The Great Passage)	1
Grand Total		12

And now my top 8/9/10

Studio	Count of Studio
A-1 Pictures	9
Madhouse	7
J.C.Staff	5
Wit Studio	5
Bones	5
White Fox	4
MAPPA	4
Sunrise	3
Studio Deen	3
TNK	3
Kyoto Animation	3
Diomedea	3
feel.	2
Brain's Base	2
TMS Entertainment	2
P.A. Works	2
Lerche	2
Haoliners A League	1
A-1 Pictures, Trigger	1
Zero-G	1
David Production	1
Telecom Animation Film	1
Artland	1
AIC	1
Doga Kobo	1
CoMix Wave Films	1
NUT	1
G.CMay Animation & Film	1
Orange	1
Geno Studio	1
Fanworks	1
Trigger	1
Pine Jam	1
Kinema Citrus	1
Satelight	1
Zexcs	1
Shaft	1
Studio 4°C	1
Grand Total	85

Now my favourite Studios

#	Name	C	M	W	Time
1	Kyoto Animation	11	7.73	7.19	29.35h
2	Wit Studio	10	7.80	7.16	36.60h
3	White Fox	10	7.80	7.16	39.35h
4	Madhouse	22	7.14	7.11	84.93h
5	A-1 Pictures	26	7.08	7.03	104.08h
6	Bones	7	8.00	6.98	38.42h
7	Sunrise	8	7.43	6.65	17.17h
8	TMS Entertainment	13	6.85	6.64	91.28h
9	P.A. Works	11	7.11	6.59	32.58h
10	CoMix Wave Films	5	7.40	6.48	4.62h

There are some studios that are in the other end of the scope but I still try. It's not that I do not judge an anime because of it's studio but still I try. Some of my not so prefered studios are:

Creators in Pack (12 shows -  mean score 4,33).

Seven (15 shows - mean score 4.53)

Gonzo (9 shows - mean score 4.12)

Silver Link. (11 shows - mean score 4.82)

Studio Deen (26 shows - mean score 5.72)

Last but not least it's the year/season they were made. When I first start thinking watching anime I try to watch the new season intakes but also take time to watch previous seasons/years... So let us watch...

This has not only the ones I've watch but also the ones I am watching .

	559
2018_Q04_Fall	24
2018_Q03_Summer	37
2018_Q02_Spring	34
2018_Q01_Winter	23
2017_Q04_Fall	23
2017_Q03_Summer	34
2017_Q02_Spring	32
2017_Q01_Winter	19
2016_Q04_Fall	33
2016_Q03_Summer	25
2016_Q02_Spring	10
2016_Q01_Winter	17
2015_Q04_Fall	13
2015_Q03_Summer	14
2015_Q02_Spring	6
2015_Q01_Winter	9
2014_Q04_Fall	6
2014_Q03_Summer	8
2014_Q02_Spring	7
2014_Q01_Winter	10
2013_Q04_Fall	6
2013_Q03_Summer	6
2013_Q02_Spring	8
2013_Q01_Winter	5
2012_Q04_Fall	4
2012_Q03_Summer	4
2012_Q02_Spring	8
2012_Q01_Winter	13
2011_Q04_Fall	3
2011_Q03_Summer	3
2011_Q02_Spring	5
2011_Q01_Winter	5
2010_Q04_Fall	5
2010_Q03_Summer	3
2010_Q02_Spring	5
2010_Q01_Winter	0
2009_Q04_Fall	0
2009_Q03_Summer	4
2009_Q02_Spring	0
2009_Q01_Winter	2
2008_Q04_Fall	2
2008_Q03_Summer	4
2008_Q02_Spring	0
2008_Q01_Winter	1
2007_Q04_Fall	0
2007_Q03_Summer	1
2007_Q02_Spring	1
2007_Q01_Winter	1
2006_Q04_Fall	0
2006_Q03_Summer	0
2006_Q02_Spring	3
2006_Q01_Winter	2
2005_Q04_Fall	3
2005_Q03_Summer	0
2005_Q02_Spring	0
2005_Q01_Winter	0
2004_Q04_Fall	0
2004_Q03_Summer	0
2004_Q02_Spring	0
2004_Q01_Winter	0
2003_Q04_Fall	1
2003_Q03_Summer	0
2003_Q02_Spring	1
2003_Q01_Winter	1
2002_Q04_Fall	1
2002_Q03_Summer	0
2002_Q02_Spring	0
2002_Q01_Winter	2
2001_Q04_Fall	1
2001_Q03_Summer	0
2001_Q02_Spring	0
2001_Q01_Winter	2
2000_Q04_Fall	0
2000_Q03_Summer	0
2000_Q02_Spring	3
2000_Q01_Winter	0
1999	4
1998	4
1997	2
1996	3
1995	3
1994	2
1993	2
1992	4
1991	4
1990	3
1989	3
1988	5
1987	5
1986	8
1985	3
1984	0
1983	0
1982	0
1981	1
1980	0
1979	0
1978	0
1977	0
1976	0
1975	0
1974	0
1973	0
1972	0
1971	0
1970	0

My objective to 2019 is watch at least a couple of them from each slot.... Let us see...

So here it is... a bit information about me and my tastes....

Oh about genres? I like it all I must say. From Romance to Slice of Life to Comedy to Action to Horror going through Sci-fi, Historica, ecchi and even Yuri and Shoujo-Ai. The only one I don't particulary enjoy is Shounen Ai. Sorry.

Btw, I dislike dropping anime...

Anime Review Part 1 - Galaxy Express 999 (1979)

Galaxy Express is a tvshow that from the late 70's and early 80's. With 113 episodes plus several movies and some spinoffs it was a big project at that time. The last tv show from that series was in 2005. It's very well known in Japan but in the west not so much. Probably because at that time Anime was not that know in Europe and the USA and then the project was big to thwart some investment. With the internet it was easier to people to learn about this show but unfortunately it's still not well know because, well people have problem starting a show with 100 plus episodes (plus the art is not that good compare with nowadays).


This show also suffers from some problems - and it's the format on itself. Each episode it's full of really not that important stuff in the great scheme of things.

Well, I am getting astray. Basically the anime follows Tetsurou and his quest to get a mechanical body. With the help of the enigmatic Maetel he boards a train with a free pass and will get him to a planet where getting a mechanical body is free. Although it's never specific a lot of people have mechanical bodies but some are even poorer than him - I don't know why but it's never explain. Apart from a couple episodes each episode it's basically a life lesson and it's way of Maetel and other times coincidentally to make him learn something.

There are a lot of interesting episodes but as I said before most of them are just fill. They would made all the sense but so far Tetsurou doesn't learn anything - or at least it seems. Apart from a couple episodes, as I said before, they could be seen in any order you want. This is the problem with episodic tv shows. Detective Conan suffers from the same problem. But as long you are enjoying it doesn't matter 90% is fillers.

Each episode deals with different stuff for the creator to make us wonder and think about something.

From stories that deal with where's our place in the universe (society), to our misguided and someone nostalgic feel of where is home and our delusion (sometimes of it); to dealings where foreign powers abuse your own country;  to critiques to the poor who turn rich and spit on the plate they once ate. Another episode dealt with technology vs nature faction and why they can never live one without the other or even the the ridiculous growth of manufacturing goods in the 70's with no responsibility to damage they were doing to nature. One interesting episode dealth with material money and how other people see it (not everything is just what it seems).  I remember this episode being very sad (ep16). Episode 17 was another sad one where we are told about the rule of survival of the fittest and how to the strong to live the weak must perish.. 

As you can see a lot of theme and such. As I said, unfortunately even if in the episode Tetsurou connects with those characters in the next they are soon forgot. Let us see where the next 70 eps lead us.

There are some other stuff we will talk about a later day like the imagery quality and characters themselves.