Jeoffrey

They say there are miracles everywhere, and I think the biggest one for me was finishing this anime series! I was sort of subconsciously convinced that it was going to be a supposedly miraculous pile of nonsense from the first episode. Simply the fact that two priests go to investigate one miracle and within twenty minutes there are about five more of them was causing me to stop finding it believable. Furthermore, the miracles kept increasing with each episode; everything was constantly unnaturally dramatized and convoluted that I could not believe that they would ever reasonably get out of it. All this was mainly to conclude the first narrative, which I do not think I am ever going to forget! The point of it all, and who was behind it was so incredibly B-movie-Esque, plucked out of thin air. It aimed to leave as much of a surprising effect as possible, and I was rolling around with laughter. Any positive impression went definitively in the bin, and I was entertained by the fact that I expected it to be bad, even though I had not expected it to end that way. Any seriousness was gone, and I was waiting to see what would happen next. After a brief interlude, there was another narrative stretched over a few episodes, with everything basically repeating itself; only the word MIRACLE was replaced by the word PROPHECY. Suddenly prophecies were everywhere, and everything was again getting more and more convoluted, so I was waiting to see what "brilliant" outcome they would come up with this time. They did not disappoint me, and I had a great time with the absurdity. Plus, by consistently watching all these episodes, I have also confirmed that another thing that scares me about this anime series is that most of the characters strike me as somehow strangely unlikable. Still, I was eagerly awaiting the last episode, and there was a part that felt like it was lifted from a sub-par horror movie. Once again, everything got messed up and convoluted, and the conclusion was actually quite weak this time compared to the previous ones. I was disappointed that after two absolutely brilliant nonsense movies, they came up with something this plain stupid, or rather not so shocking. So the last episode came along, and I was not expecting anything great because they probably would not wish to cram a new big case into one episode. Well, the conclusion was typically emotional and philosophizing on the subject of those real miracles. However, it did not do anything special for me and did not improve my impression of it much. So I guess the only thing this anime series gave me that I enjoyed was the anticipation of whatever bullshit they were going to explain everything with this time. As a positive thing (especially for a show that does not consider itself a comedy), that is a great big bummer. 2.5/10.

Starting a show in the middle of a story may seem like nonsense; however, if you have ever heard of something called "Monkey King" or even "Journey to the West" then you are going to have a pretty good head start and can get the hang of it pretty quickly. If not, just a quick introduction to the plot via the table of contents and just take it as a quartet of rather distinctive characters going on an epic road trip, this time to kick some demon king's ass. Or, ideally, start with the first anime series from 2003. I did not know that existed, though, so I was a bit thrown off at first by what was going on. Fortunately, I still got my bearings quickly, and because of the fact that the bunch of main protagonists is really quite likable and it is full of decent fight scenes, I made it through until the end quite easily. The show does not have a complicated narrative by any means, plus the flashbacks from the past that come in make even that part pretty well understandable. So even though it should probably not start in the middle, in this case, it works pretty well, and I would rate this anime series the same way (in an easy way). 6/10.

Sakura Quest contains a pleasant narrative concerning a group of young women and their efforts to revitalize and raise awareness of a small village in Japan. Along the way, we are presented with lots of ideas to revive tourism, wake up the sleepy village, and make it more visible in the general public's eyes. Some are pretty silly, some naive, and some quite good. We watch as all the characters slowly find themselves and discover what is really important together with the other residents throughout the journey. Because of the really good conclusion, I thought, as a viewer, it ended up working quite well. It is kind of understated and a little bit wacky, even though it is still quite enjoyable for a single viewing, and while it is not very dynamic or suspenseful, it is still OK. All the girls are quite endearing, and their efforts make the viewer happy because the main aspect of the fight is not to give up. Plus, there is a fairly decent mix of tradition and relentless progress, and finding out that you need to remember what was, although also be able to adapt and learn from anything new, feels like the right way forward indeed. Thanks to the final episodes, which wrapped things up really well, the authors managed to convey their message, which was quite emotional. I will increase my rating to a weak four stars in the end because I found it satisfying and in the words of their local poet Sandal: "All is well, that ends well." - 6.8/10.

I initially expected this show to be about infidelity, swinging, and "you can sleep with anyone or everyone" sex scenes. This was because the title implied cheating. In other words, I was expecting it to be just about sex; however, it has quite an interesting plot, centered around two girls who feel a particular affection for each other and are now trying to figure out what to do about their attraction to each other in their own way. I like the attempt to portray the psychological side of the characters and deal with their sexuality, so it seems pretty realistic to me. The narrative is not simply there as an excuse to have tons of sex scenes. The sex scenes are not unnecessarily drawn out or overly explicit. So, in the end, it is much more than just an erotic anime series, and therefore definitely much higher in quality than "Hentai Priest" from last year's releases and "Perverse Transvestite" from this year's releases. Of course, it is not perfect; it is too short, so there is not much room for psychology; the male characters are pretty flat, with one being a typically self-centered bastard and the other a self-sacrificing decent guy. However, they both seem pretty believable in their roles. The girls are trying to be more than just a naive girl and a bitch, and I think they are pretty good. Hotaru, in particular, seems to be going through some development throughout the narrative. In other words, as a kind of insight into the mind of a girl discovering her sexual orientation, I found it sufficient and did not find it uncomfortable in any way. 5.7/10.

Somehow I had not planned to start watching Fastest Finger First. I would never have believed that I would finish it because somehow, I just could not imagine how interesting an anime series based on general knowledge quizzes could be. Plus, the narrative is pretty mediocre and typical for almost all sports anime series. In other words, a talented young man with no experience falls into something, goes full-on, and sets out on a journey to the top. Along the way, he meets friends, a talented older student (that means simply someone who has been doing it for a while) who is happy to explain everything to him. Of course, there is a rival, and they fight their way to the top and keep motivating each other to win. This type of show has been done many times before; however, combined with the quiz element, it makes for quite an interesting experience in itself. Plus, the quiz is not only about knowledge; it is about many other aspects that lead to winning (like speed). There is also a strategy involved because the rules can be different. In other words, the anime’s writers have managed to make something uninteresting into quite an acceptable show. This show was just kind of weird. The dubbing of the main character had a strange voice actor and did not fit her character at all. However, at the same time, I liked it incredibly. So in many ways, it is a mediocre and predictable show, although there are things that held my attention. 5.5/10.

So I have finally lived to see it, and this is, as the title suggests, the true end of the Kuroko's Basketball anime series. It is basically a dream come true for all the fans who wanted to see the whole "miracle generation" play together, and it is kind of a huge trope at the same time. If I was going to come up with the simplest narrative where they all got to play together, this is unquestionably just the first and completely obvious choice. In other words, it probably did not take much work to come up with such a simple screenplay. On the other hand, the American street basketball team named Jabberwock are a bunch of pretty obnoxious and pretentious dudes, so people like me want to give them a hard time. We therefore intensively support our old well known Japanese group again. My only criticism would be the incredibly frequent repetition of the word "monkey" to disparage all the Japanese basketballers by the American challengers. While I understand it is a swear word that the Japanese are probably quite sensitive to (and not only them...), when it is the twentieth time it has been said in half an hour, it seems kind of weird. The rest is the classic Kuroko's Basketball with everything someone like me has grown to love over the last three seasons. Intense confrontations on the court, dynamic play where the atmosphere spills over, superbly portrayed movement and ball handling combined with superhuman tricks so typical of sports shonen anime series. I do not wish to be harsh or review this movie quite critically for the stripped-down and simplistic narrative. This is the ending I was waiting for, and I still enjoyed it, because most of it is about a sport, which I watched every minute with suspense and which again was quite well done. So I guess I am going to give Kuroko's Basketball five stars for the last time even though objectively, it probably does not deserve it this time. 8.5/10.

If someone had told me before the summer releases that one of the best things would have been this short romantic comedy with too many characters in the first episode for such a short anime series, I would never have believed them. However, it is true! Tsuredure Children is sweet, funny, enjoyable, and likable. There is probably a couple in the show for everyone to like and their love affairs. Personally speaking, I found Takuro Sugawara and Chizuru Takano the best, even though I also found the other couples interesting. I thought all of them were original and well-matched. If the chemistry works in a romantic comedy, you are able to believe in even the strangest of storylines and enjoy the characters' interactions with each other; then it is simply a winner. Everything works without the slightest problem in this show, and the humor makes it pleasantly light-hearted. The animation looks quite endearing, and even though it is pretty simple, in my opinion, it is not a bad thing; it serves its purpose, and it suits this likable rom-com. In other words, this is how I think a nice summer movie should be, where you can have fun and relax, even though it just did not seem enough in the end. 8.4/10.

Expecting any kind of sensible idea or even a calm, relaxed show from a Japanese slice-of-life comedy simply called (translated) "Idiot Girl" is naive. This show is just stupidity of unbelievable proportions that takes human folly and stupidity to total extremes. At the same time, this show is a spectacle full of energy and stupid jokes; however, it does not come across as bad, quite the opposite because of the rather endearing female protagonist. Yoshiko is simply an elemental force of unbridled energy who just wants to have fun, eat bananas, hang around her friend, and experience love. I managed to grow quite fond of this bonkers, shouty and perverted girl. I like people with unquenchable optimism and zest for life, who can give less enthusiastic people strength and can power them with positive energy. So this show, no matter how silly, managed to keep me awake, and sometimes pleasantly entertain me. In addition to Yoshiko, there is the character Akuru, who is the opposite - responsible, considerate, and a good student and their interactions are interesting. I can also confirm that there is a certain spark (except for all the punching). The rest of the characters are more or less there to fill out the show, though. There is more fun interaction between Yoshiko and a bunch of local kids than between the rest of the supporting characters. So as a kind of crazy and refreshing summer anime series just to sit back and relax, it works. This show is, in addition, also unmitigated simpleminded bullshit. So while I am tempted to give it that fourth star because I found Yoshiko's character and the energy in it very refreshing, I am not going to because my brain just cannot allow it and Yoshiko is not here to stuff a banana in my mouth. 6.3/10.

The concept behind this show seemed really interesting, and I think they could have got a really decent romantic drama out of it. However, then the characters should not have been so incredibly kind. This idea that no one wants to hurt anyone is completely unbelievable. Sure, I guess there is selfless love, and when a person is in love, they think mostly of the other person. However, I sincerely doubt that it could work this strongly and with everyone involved. Here we just have four people who all kind of like each other and lie to everyone and themselves to avoid hurting anyone - except themselves. So I was watching the lake of tears, and I did not believe they could keep it up for so long, although they do manage to keep it up and make decisions that strike me as odd. So when someone acts in a way I think is normal, that only lasts a few minutes. It does not seem to suit any of the characters, so they would rather go back to their tragic but rosy dream state. Then the conclusion is the icing on the cake of it all. It would have been fine like a fairy tale, although as a real-life romantic drama, it did not convince me. When I think of what made Scum's Wish good, I realize that to find the characters believable, they have to have their bad sides. If Scum's Wish was a showreel of the bad aspects of human nature, then this was probably a pretty exaggerated showcase of the good elements. Plus, combined with the sheer indecision, most of the characters wallow in their feelings. Instead of resolving anything, they are all drowning in their inability until the final realization that this is actually fine. I did not find it fine, and in this case, in particular, I do not think that just any old decision will do. I, therefore, remain unconvinced and unsatisfied. Perhaps it is just my feeling, and I cannot deny that it has its merits; however, I did not really enjoy it in the end, so I cannot award it more than three stars. Subjectively, however, I might want to go even lower, even though I am not going to. I am so full of selflessness and self-sacrifice that I am going to let them have some of it back. 4.8/10.

There is nothing special about this show. It is simply yet another mediocre advertisement for the Japanese science-fantasy social network game, and they decided to introduce us to nineteen female protagonists. When you are trying to work with this many characters, you either need a lot of time to introduce and showcase them all properly, or you just have to pick one or perhaps a few of the characters and build a narrative around them and leave the others in the background. However, they were unsuccessful, so we were introduced to all the girls in different situations in the somewhat limited space of twelve episodes. They pretended that there was actually a main narrative concerning two or three girls, but unfortunately, by having so few episodes and so many characters, I found they did not grow on me at all. Also, the narrative is not complicated in any way, just a bunch of standard tropes, so it failed to hold my attention. In other words, in two weeks or so, I am not going to remember any of these nineteen girls, and I will barely remember what any of it was about. It was watchable; the girls were nice enough, even though they were not unique. The animation was okay, and I did not pay any attention to the soundtrack.It did not strike me as anything special so I got nothing out of it. 4/10.