What anime are you watching?

[MomentOfInertia]

I'm following Blue Exorcist so that's up through ep.7 now. I think its a good show, a premise that hasn't been beat to death, a setting I haven't seen it in, and well executed. Hopefully it'll keep me entertained till funi puts the rest of Soul Eater back up.

I'm up through ep.5 of Durarara its a lot of fun, I'm just beginning to attach names to people (so many people introduced all at once) and I am still mostly confused as to who's who in the chatroom.

And I've been watching FMA: Brotherhood of AS Sunday mornings. You can tell how good it is by how annoyed you are when they end the episodes on you XD.

Because its on after FMA I've also been watching Inuyasha, sometimes good, mostly okay; I'm already up so I watch it, it was better when they ran two episodes a week.
Kekkaishi ended last week. It was a good show I miss it. Plus now I can't be bothered to get up long enough before FMA to really appreciate it. Maybe I'll start getting up for Ghost In The Shell....

[ich1990]

@ich1990 - What is your status on Samurai Champloo? I want to hear more of your opinion on it.

I will let you know as soon as make some more significant progress on it. I haven't had much time to watch/read anything these past two weeks.

[Maokun]

Finished Escaflowne. It was good, and I'm glad I watched it, but I wouldn't rank it as one of my favorites.

About the ending:
[spoiler]I actually knew that Hitomi wasn't going to stay in Gaea, because I accidentally read a spoiler somewhere or other--I think in a review. So that wasn't a surprise. What was a surprise was that there were no reasons given for why she chose to return to Earth. I was expecting her to leave out of some tragic necessity. I didn't expect her to decide that she just needed to go home. [/spoiler]
I'm not sure that that ending worked for me. I'll have to think about it.

A lot of fantasy anime of back then had a very similar plot: random person from our earth is spirited to fantastic world, has amazing adventures, falls in love...and yeah, just returns home leaving everything behind (a few of them at least are left with the ability to travel between the worlds at will.) I believe it's just widely understood that as awesome as your fantastic trip was, you just have to go back to "reality" and live your life as the human you were born to be, with the benefits of the life lessons/character growth you got from your adventures. Let's call it "The Chronicles of Narnia" syndrome.

Funnily enough, as tragic as most of those partings are, the one that got me the most misty-eyed was Monster Rancher's which had no romantic involvement whatsoever.

More puzzling about Escaflowne (to the point of annoying) to me was that they left forever unexplained why Hitomi found an earthian music CD in a random peddler's stand in Gaea.

[Mr. Hat'n'Clogs]

Right now I'm looking for something new, and maybe a bit different from what I've usually watched. I've had several friends recommend Ouran High School Host Club, so thinking about trying that.

Ouran really is a brilliant show. Definitely watch it.

Honey and Clover, why have you been holding back on me? I would have finished you by now if every episode was like thirteen.

[Mouse2010]

I believe it's just widely understood that as awesome as your fantastic trip was, you just have to go back to "reality" and live your life as the human you were born to be, with the benefits of the life lessons/character growth you got from your adventures. Let's call it "The Chronicles of Narnia" syndrome.

This is getting a little off topic of anime, but I remember noticing this in fantasy novels for younger readers, and it really puzzled me. I was all like "if you found this amazing magical world and had adventures there, wouldn't you want to stay?" So when I was 13 I wrote a "novel" for the express purpose of having it end with the teenage protagonists staying in the magical world instead of going home. I thought I was being all groundbreaking and stuff. LOL.

I can understand now that those Narnia endings are probably more realistic: people do want to go home eventually, and you can't always stay in another world. (For a non-fantasy example, think of that Harrison Ford movie, Witness. The ending to that managed to feel like inevitable necessity, rather than a "what the freak? why?" ending.)

With regard to Escaflowne, I just didn't feel that they prepared viewers adequately for the particular ending that the writers wanted. I mean:

[spoiler] Just a few episodes before that, Hitomi was seriously considering Allen's proposal of marriage. Obviously, that meant that she was considering staying in Gaea. So then she realizes that it's VAN she's in love with, really in love, but suddenly she's going home, without (apparently) needed to deliberate that much? That seemed inconsistent. I guess what I'm saying is that I would have liked to see more of the reasoning or deliberation behind her decision. That might have made it feel more like the "right" ending.[/spoiler]

[Atria35]

Hanasaku Iroha 5-9- This is still a great, relaxing show. Definitely one of my favorites for this season.

Gosick 13-18- Still fascinating. It's more fun to watch these play out than anything. I especially liked the story about the tower. The clues are still not really all there for people to pick up, but I don't mind.

[R86]

House of Five Leaves: Finished it a few days ago and I'm glad I took the advice to watch it. I am not much of a history buff (which I'm not proud of) and I never expected to get into the historical setting, but somehow I did.

Ghost Hunt: I'm 4 episodes in and expect to see this one through to the end. I normally enjoy the detective genre and haven't seen any such anime since Tantei Gakuen Q and Spiral. I read a couple volumes of the manga a while ago, but as I'm often finding, I like the anime version more. I'm curious who the voice actors are so I'm off to check that out next.

Besides the current series I'm watching, and the ones I'm catching up in, that should keep me busy.

[the_wolfs_howl]

FMA: Brotherhood episode 35

Monster episode 20 - This...really works better in writing and still pictures. My suspension of disbelief was shattered into pieces, as I knew it would be, when there's an English couple who speak in English that is actually Japanese, and then a Japanese man and a German boy speak in Japanese when they're actually speaking German, and.... Sorry. I just can't do that. I really wish they could have done Monster in its original languages, but I guess that's impossible :/

[Sapphire225]

Beginning Princess Jellyfish. so far, it seems like a pretty good anime.

[Maokun]

Puella Magi Madoka Magica 2-8

Well!

That was something.

Dark.

Wow.

Looking forward to the rest.

[Darth_Kirby]

lolz I'm going to invite alot "I told you so's" but here goes. I'm watching FMA: Brotherhood. Still didn't like the begining very much, but I like where it's going. I'm at the 14th ep.

[Mouse2010]

My husband and I have been alternating between Casshern Sins (up to episode 9) and Moribito (up to episode 12). I think we're enjoying Moribito more at the moment, but I'm going to try watching Casshern Sins subbed rather than with the English dub and see if that's any better. Sometimes when we think we don't like a show, what we don't like is actually the English voice acting.

On my own, I'm watching El Cazador de la Bruja, and really enjoying it. This isn't a deep or brilliant series, but it's a lot of fun. I love Ellis's deadpan delivery of absurd lines like "She's a bounty hunter who spilled coffee on herself and took it out on the cup."

[Atria35]

Finished up The Animatrix- not too shabby! I liked all the different styles and stories that were brought out, and they all managed to be told in a very short amount of time. All in all, even though I haven't watched the entire trilogy, I still think this is a very good movie. Or... series of shorts, whatever people want to consider it.

EDIT: And just finished watching Grave of the Fireflies. I like Ghibli for their other movies. I respect Ghiblie for this one. It takes balls o' steel and a massive heart to be able to create a movie like this. However, I found my sorrow augmented by my laptop eating the dvd after I had taken it out to clean it when it started skipping near the end. There was no way I was stopping there, so I did finish it... but I will have to go and get someone to open up the case tomorrow to get the dvd out. I don't even know where it is in there- I can't see it.

[ST. Attidude]

I'm watching Inuyasha - Episode 30; This plot is interesting; I like the "vital-ness" of Kagome's role, its way more than what you'd expect from some famous video-game gals...

[FllMtl Novelist]

Watched Durarara 19-22. I'm running out of episodes! D:

[Wallachia]

I haven't progressed very far in Saber Marionette J, but I finished Slayers Revolution and am now watching Slayers Evolution-R.

As for my thoughts on Revolution? Well, eh, it's more Slayers I suppose. Of course it didn't live up to Slayers Next, but it was still a blast to watch despite the small, new... furry... addition to the team...

I'd give it a 6/10 since only the original cast was interesting. The only new character I enjoyed was Wizer.

What I think of the Slayers TV series, OVAs, and movies.

[Princess Kairi]

I finished the last two episodes of Black Cat!!!

[Ante Bellum]

Finished Giant Robo. That means I'm back to watching Legend of the Galactic Heroes.
Or that I'm going to rewatch Giant Robo. That works too.

[Agloval]

Pretty Cure Splash Star Movie

Such action as there was was very fluid and nicely put together, and the introspective section in the middle was set in a brilliant, MC Escher illogical maze of staircases, doors, clocktowers and deserts. Inside a briefcase.

This movie's critical flaw (for people like me, who aren't its target audience) was that its action scenes were too short. I'm beginning to think that the early Precure movies tend to emphasise action scenes less than the later ones.

Rose of Versailles

I've watched the first few episodes of this. It's pretty good fun. Some of the explanations of what's going on get a tad laboured, which suggests to me that the show had some genuine educational intent. Though I wasn't impressed by the rather apocalyptic one-sentence description of the wars of the first two-thirds of the eighteenth century -- then again, maybe that's Anglocentrism kicking in.

Anyway, everything's shot through with the gap between the audience's knowledge that the French Revolution's on its way and the characters' blissful ignorance, which is nice.

[TheSubtleDoctor]

Watched several things, so I'll try to be brief

Rose of Versailles

Incredible. This show is absolutely awesome, and I think it's a must for all anime fans, not just shoujo fans and not just fans of older stuff (RoV was made in 1979). As agloval mentions above, the first episodes are quite a fun watch. Anyone familiar with shoujo will feel right at home here: young girl thrown into a situation in which, as the new girl, she has to get a foothold all while she is being bullied by an "established" girl. Due to the historical characters and setting, there's a fair bit of political gamesmanship going on in the background. Secret alliances and plots in the French court and all of that. As the show moves along, its focus shifts from Marie Antoinette to the fan favorite Oscar Francois De Jarjeyes. This is a good thing. As RoV rolls along, it moves from the fun to the epic.

Then, it happens. At episode 19, the revered, and recently deceased, Osamu Dezaki steps into the directorial chair. The shift is apparent from the first moment, and RoV develops into an incredibly affecting sweeping historical drama, Shakespearean tragedy, and detailed character study that transcends the shoujo conventions that ran through it in its early stages Bravo, Dezaki. Bravo. You, sir, can direct.

Getter Robo Armageddon

This OVA is an insane piece of work. It functions as a kind of hybrid of Giant Robo's brand of storytelling coupled with TTGL's flair for the grandiose. And, while Gurren Lagann may have it beat in terms of sheer scale, the execution of the ending of GRA might give it the edge in terms of being a total package, wall-to-wall actioner. By the end, the galaxy is, uh, rearranged. Such feats of the ridiculously awesome becomes quite commonplace. Oh, and there's also a pretty cool horror-style episode somewhere in the middle.

The problem with the show is that it is NOT neophyte friendly. At all. It's a direct sequel to an audio drama (way to shrink your fan base!) "The Moon Wars." The briefest of recaps is given, and personalities and motivations get filled out throughout the course of the series. All of that, however, does nothing for the uninitiated to lessen the feeling of being oh-so-lost at the beginning of the show. Reading choice wikipedia pages and/or checking out the Getter Robo manga are recommended before going into this one.

Cyber City Oedo 808

I expected to like this one a lot more. It was fine, even quite good at some points; I mean, I can't think of any glaring issues. I just couldn't get into it. Solid action with a quite interesting premise. I will likely rewatch it at some point, but the hype that this one got made me think I was in for something great.

[Gojira]

Ghost Hound. Very intriguing anime.

[AnimeGirl]

Finally finished episode 4 of STEINS;GATE and continued on with episodes 5 and 6. Oh...my...gosh! The jellyman experiments O.O That was...just terrifying.

[Shao Feng-Li]

Watching Ah! My Goddess! at Hulu. It's been years since I've seen it now. I forgot how good it is.

[Maokun]

Watched several things, so I'll try to be brief

Rose of Versailles

Incredible. This show is absolutely awesome, and I think it's a must for all anime fans, not just shoujo fans and not just fans of older stuff (RoV was made in 1979). As agloval mentions above, the first episodes are quite a fun watch. Anyone familiar with shoujo will feel right at home here: young girl thrown into a situation in which, as the new girl, she has to get a foothold all while she is being bullied by an "established" girl. Due to the historical characters and setting, there's a fair bit of political gamesmanship going on in the background. Secret alliances and plots in the French court and all of that. As the show moves along, its focus shifts from Marie Antoinette to the fan favorite Oscar Francois De Jarjeyes. This is a good thing. As RoV rolls along, it moves from the fun to the epic.

Then, it happens. At episode 19, the revered, and recently deceased, Osamu Dezaki steps into the directorial chair. The shift is apparent from the first moment, and RoV develops into an incredibly affecting sweeping historical drama, Shakespearean tragedy, and detailed character study that transcends the shoujo conventions that ran through it in its early stages Bravo, Dezaki. Bravo. You, sir, can direct.

Another great review! I was never too interested in this anime because there's an undescribable component to old shoujo character design that turns me off something fierce, and if any, makes me grateful for moe design. However, this review really piques my curiosity... we'll see.

[Atria35]

Hanasaku Iroha 10- I think everyone's been that sick at some point! xD It was cute and funny, though. I do see a love triagle (or is it a square) brewing now.

Sora no Woto 7-12 (complete)- Interesting. Definitely has a few pacing issues with the story, but overall highly enjoyable and definitely marathonable.

[Nanao]

Gosick episodes 1-10
C episode 9

[Falx]

Sora no Woto 7-12 (complete)- Interesting. Definitely has a few pacing issues with the story, but overall highly enjoyable and definitely marathonable.

Actually you're not quite done, there are two more DVD extra episodes.

The first deals with how Kanata discovers the "secret" and is mostly comedy. The other seems mostly like a slice-of-life affair but it drops a huge plot point that explains a lot about the current state of the world near the end and is also a sequel hook.

[ShiroiHikari]

Watching V Gundam.

I wanna see Rose of Versailles so bad.

[Mouse2010]

I started watching Cowboy Bebop. I've seen the first three episodes now, and I figure I'll watch an episode here and there over the course of the summer.

I have a confession to make: I didn't expect to like this series. I knew that it would be episodic, and I prefer shows with big overarching plots. I just wanted to watch it because it's a classic: the sort of thing you have to watch. The first episode didn't do much for me, but I REALLY liked the second episode, and the third one was pretty good, too. The "style" and the characters really do carry the show. It reminds me a lot of Joss Whedon's Firefly, for obvious reasons. I loved Firefly, so I really shouldn't be surprised that I like this, too.

I guess in the future I shouldn't be so quick to dismiss a series just because it's episodic in structure.

[Xeno]

In the last couple of days I've watched all of "Eden of the East" including the two movies that go with it and "Myself;Yourself." I was highly impressed with both series. I started EotE since the plot sounded interesting from reading it on Netflix and it hooked me instantly. Myself;Yourself was a slightly different story; I had signed up on crunchyroll (something I never thought I'd ever do) and checked out the "Psychological" sub-category. By about 3 episodes in I thought it was going to turn out to be a standard run-of-the-mill harem series, but as I progressed it completely proved me wrong (it's not harem at all).

If feels weird to say this, but I think I like anime again, after not caring for it in much capacity at all for a number of years.