If you watch this, keep in mind the target audience of the show. It is 100% intended for children. Sure you can argue that Avatar the Last Airbender was also targeted for children, but ATLA is an outlier among a sea of children's shows. The story is average, the fighting scenes are pretty good, and it is simply just entertaining when you are running your brain at like 5% capacity. Among all the other children's Anime I've seen, this one has been one of the best.
This show is pretty much the essential American sitcom. Its incredibly funny but has some really meaningful moments too. I can't say I always liked every character, but I came to realize that part of the point is to be realistic and you can't like everyone the entire time. The real thing preventing this show from being a true 10 is the obscene number of clip episodes (episodes consisting of over 90% old episode clips). If it weren't for those annoying reuses of old clips, I would happily say this is probably the best sitcom to have graced the American television. I've probably learned more about how to approach friendship and life from this show than anyone else, now I just need to get off the TV and get out there :smiley:.
Very solid Anime. The beginning is a little rough but it does get better. It provides a neat style of magic "dueling" and the magic of the world has some interesting variety.
Edit: Coming back to say that this has turned into one of my favorite Animes. The action rarely ceases up and when it does, I still find myself fairly engrossed in the episode. I wasn't the biggest fan of the characters at the beginning, but I really do root for them now that they have trained so hard to become stronger.
Second Edit: This show really was quite good at many points and the fast paced, magical action is awesome to watch. However, the pacing can be all over the place and 20% of the episodes are pointless recap/filler. I think this show could easily reach a 9/10 if they edited the series to remove all the pointless filler and focus on the action and main story. Because of the sheer number of derailing recap episodes my rating has dropped steadily.
Honestly, this series is really a mixed bag when you look at it as a whole. There were some really great moments and the pretext of the Aincrad arc is purely phenomenal material and world building, with a pretty neat set of plot twists built in. I could spend a lot of time picking out the little points that I was annoyed by or hated, but there are plenty of other reviews that do that with very similar opinions to my own. This Anime will always have a bit of nostalgia for me and its a big part of why I enjoy Isekai as a genre. The series really is worth a watch and there's a good chance you'll have some enjoyable moments, but there are a lot of parts where things are honestly really dumb, riddled with holes, or should have been left for hentai.
If you want to watch what I might consider the "ideal" parts of the series, this is what I enjoyed the most:
The Aincrad Arc: S01 Episodes 1-14
Alicization Arc: S03
War of Underworld Arc: S04
Although I include the Alicization stuff because there were some really good moments, there were also a plethora of extremely poor moments that I only considered acceptable because the animation and soundtrack in these seasons are quite splendid.
Glad that this Anime is still going strong. Such a fun setting with all the creative superpowers and they keep smoothing out each plot arc nicely.
This was a childhood favorite of mine. Still pretty good to rewatch as well. It's kind of like a more tame version of S.A.O.
What an interesting concept for an Anime. I've watched my fair share of food network and I really enjoy watching cooking battles, especially when there is some type of challenge or theme. Put that together with an Anime (add lots of unnecessary moaning, stripping, and sex appeal) and BAM, you've got Food Wars!
This show actually made me want to cook and eat more interesting things just on its own merits and when a show has the power to influence someone like that, you know it must be a good one. It's a shame there was such a heavy emphasis on fan service because otherwise I would recommend this to anyone and everyone. But if the Ecchi isn't a problem for you (its mostly just near nudity except on rare occasions where squid is involved in the dish), then I can easily recommend you watch and enjoy this show.
It could've easily been canceled after the Fourth Plate and still would have been a satisfying ending. The last season was not quite as good, I think it might have to do with the novelty of the show wearing off and the introduction of completely new characters just to be immediately disposed of, but at least the final season does a nice job finally tying off all the loose ends.
This is quite possibly the best sports Anime you may find out there! The action, the ups and downs, it all feels so good to watch. I can easily lose track of the hours watching this show. Some of the deeper themes can be a tad repetitive or shallow, but they do make some strong arguments and explain the complex emotions of the players as if it were nothing. Great Anime!
An incredibly wholesome Anime about life, loss, and being kind. A worthwhile show.
Edit: The third season started slow but wow was it incredible. It really made for a phenomenal story and a beautifully orchestrated closure.
This is effectively the only soap opera-like show that I've genuinely enjoyed for a period of time. I really liked the "who's the cleverest" battles of wit that the show effectively continues throughout. However, like all good soap operas it starts to drag as the characters have really just been there forever and have a well established trope already.
Having watched the original fullmetal alchemist first, I can easily say that this series was far superior. The graphics were just a slight bit better, the pacing was a little bit faster, and most importantly, the ending wasn't some incredibly rushed, hot garbage.
I'd go as far as to say, you only really need to watch FA: Brotherhood. But when I say that, know that I mean, you absolutely need to watch this Anime. It has incredibly cool world-building and the plot is ever-twisting and keeps you on the edge of your seat.
This felt like a really solid Isekai Anime! There was quite a bit of the standard pervy-tropes, but the scenes in this one felt more comical than some of the others I've seen that dove headfirst into Harem-land. (Although I am slightly concerned for the fact that there are clear romances between children here. The only defense I can think of is that age seems to be very different from appearances and that age/mental maturity isn't standard either.)
The fantasy world building here is quite fantastic and the characters you meet have distinct personalities and stories to them. The animation quality is decent enough, and the music is thematic. Overall, I'm excited to see where this one goes.
First off, I will say tis show was truly a pleasure to watch. ufotable has a remarkably good track record for really outstanding animation. However, I have one question for you:
If Wisteria wards off demons and can kill them, and this is known by literally every demon slayer (as it is a part of their initiation ritual), then why doesn't literally everyone keep some on their person?
So my point is, yes it's good to watch and I'd recommend it highly, but don't think too carefully about everything as you'll find inconsistencies and unexplained details. That said, I'm looking forward to seeing more of Nezuko in action with Season 2!
This show was kind of up and down for me. It was a really cool game sim feel to the show, but there were just parts where the overall plot lines seemed random, and with a lack of urgency. Graphics and voice acting was simply average, nothing too incredible. Although the fight scenes definitely provided a different feel than normal, with more emphasis on outwitting your opponent than simply overpowering them. I feel like with some better pacing and updated graphics, this show had the potential to be stellar, but it was still pretty great overall.
I'd argue that this show has actually aged quite well. It has the world building and narrative power to hold its own against the other phenomenal series that are out there. However, the simple fact is I could tell where the series diverged from the Manga simply because it felt different and in a way that was not nearly as perfect as the start of the series.
In addition, the graphics are a little choppy and they do show their age, especially when compared to something like Demon Slayer that turns the visuals of an Anime into a beautiful art form. Don't get me wrong, for the time period the animation is quite good, I'm just spoiled by having seen the magical works of art that come from decades more experience.
For primarily these reasons, I think I'm going to move onto Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood in the hopes that it takes such an incredible work of narrative art and makes it better to withstand the passing of time. I don't regret watching this series first, but I just know that Brotherhood can be everything this show was and more.
A fitting end to the series with every major arc come to a close. Could it have been better? Yes, almost definitely. But it still lived up to the standards that Fairy Tail has always gone with.
Season 1 was a phenomenal hook into the series, and while there were some really good moments in season 2, there was also a lot of really slow paced filler / plot development episodes where nothing really happened until the very last minute of the episode to act as a cliffhanger into the next episode where the process repeats.
The animation and music were about average for an Anime of the genre, but the Ending theme was phenomenal so that was a definite plus. This show definitely could've been something really special with gorgeous animation and scenic views, action scenes that build character development and plot at the same time, and more. But instead what we got was a decent Anime that was still worth the watch.
Recommended, but not the Anime of the century, let alone the decade.
The graphics for this Anime are typical of a 2000s Anime, but the story and the character development are really where this Anime takes the cake. I’ve always been a sucker for Tsundere character development, and Aoba Tsukishima has just reached one of the top spots. I couldn’t imagine a better story arc with it’s complex relationships and progression over time. Man this Anime really takes you for a ride. It’s probably less of a Sports Anime, and more along the lines of RomCom / Slice of Life — but without the cheesy Shoujo romance stuff. Highly recommended.
Wow I can't believe a show with so much sex appeal and fan service could actually have a decent story and great action scenes.
Its a pretty average Anime with mild amounts of ecchi moments, raunchy behavior, and "assemble the Harem!" kind of thinking. But the content and story-wise rating is equivalent to that of something like Fairy Tail: extremely easy to digest and requires no thinking on behalf of the viewer. And as such, I would recommend you focus on not thinking, because otherwise you'll notice the incredible inconsistencies, moments that just don't make any logical sense, and the numerous events that are honestly counter-productive to the current plot and/or previous plot points.
I really only rated it this highly because I'm just a massive sucker for Tsundere relationship arcs, and let me tell you this arc just kept going.
It started off as a somewhat interesting concept. But then I quickly found out why Rimuru is considered the "most likeable protagonist" by so many people. Quite frankly, Rimuru is so incredibly overpowered throughout the series that he cannot possibly lose and that creates zero tension in any of the fights. Secondly, the character will make friends with literally anything he sees. And is probably the most uninteresting and supposedly "perfect" character that I've seen. Rimuru is so "likeable" to the point that it makes me hate the character. With a mundane backstory and not a single flaw or conflicting emotion, watching Rimuru make "choices" is the equivalent of watching paint dry -- it's incredibly obvious what the outcome is.
The show had (emphasis on had) a couple of redeeming qualities. They introduced a character with a level of moderate depth and intrigue. If this show was literally just about the life of Shizue then I might have found some enjoyment from her expoits. But then of course, they had to kill off the most interesting character in the attempt to make Rimuru appear with some amount of emotional depth.
But this is all really just regarding the first arc of the first season, in the second arc, they completely sidetrack the entire story to go on a quest to save some orphans -- because that's the right thing to do?
Really, the animation is alright and there sure a lot of "cute anime girls" with enough fan service to distract the average viewer from the lack of substantial plot.
But alas, I am still going to waste my time by watching season 2 because apparently, people have said that it got more interesting.
This Anime is so beautiful and emotional, sad and happy, dark and bright. A good romance Anime can replicate similar feelings to the first season of Clannad. A boy and a girl meet, they slowly fall in love, and by the last episode, they admit their feelings. But the second season of Clannad is what all the fans always ask for: The "after story."
And I can't imagine a better after story than this one. I openly admit I cried in far more episodes than any other Anime. Both out of sadness and happiness. Because that's what makes this Anime so amazing. It is full of ups and downs and has themes of growing up, life, the changing world, and more.
If you are looking to take something out of this Anime, treasure the small things in life, but above all, treasure the gift of life, friendship, and family. There are rarely any do-overs and you only get one. And for the people who do treasure it, their hopes and dreams will lift them up.
Just beautiful. 10/10
There were a lot of great moments that really made you go from loathing the existence of humanity to cheering on the good people of the world. But between all of these great episodes there was some strangeness and unreasonably slow pacing.
The second season definitely surpassed the first one on all regards though. I’d still give this show a strong recommendation and I absolutely loved the entire Kawamoto family throughout the entire series. They were the most heartwarming bunch of characters around.
Damn this show really hits me in the feels. Do not watch this unless you want to see the very things you love ripped away from your trembling fingers. The natural cycle of human life is both so immensely sad and wonderful at the same time. I do wonder though, why is naivety so easily lovable when it comes to people? I look forward to seeing what else they can do with this show.
The first season didn't really have much because they didn't really resolve anything. The second season, however, felt a lot better in terms of overarching plot development and character backstory. There was some characters who really got their character developments rushed through, and even at the end of season 2, they really left a lot of issues unresolved. The various shenanigans in each episode were still fairly entertaining and the level of espionage, manipulation, and drama that high schoolers were having is quite a funny idea. It was a fun enough Anime to binge through
This was an adorable, funny and witty Anime that was so worth the watch. The dialogue and hilarity of the situations presented truly drives this Anime to rise to the top.
What started off as a really good Isekai Anime with minimal Cliché, slowly gained some flaws and a couple times went a little too hard down the path of Loli, so much that it essentially sidetracked the series. However, by the end of the season I found myself enjoying the show quite a bit. I think there's a lot left unexplained and unexplored with the first season so I'm glad that the show won't be stopping here.
Being the largest Isekai franchise out there, it's hard not to try and compare this to Sword Art Online. And all-in-all, I'd say this series is messy but still no where near as shallow and convoluted that SAO got at certain times in the series. It is all too easy for these types of shows to get swept up in the balance between "gotta grind more" and "woah just got overpowered out of nowhere". For example, the sudden rage shield introduction seemed poorly executed and the "curses" sudden appearance has also gone rather unexplained.
I'm not familiar with the Manga, but I hope this show takes the opportunity given with season 2 and really sets itself apart from the mistakes of past Isekai animes. The first 5 episodes were a rock solid introduction which is something I can't say about most Anime.
To sum up, Raphtalia is really cute and needs some more cool attack moves, but please keep the story rolling instead of diving head first into a Loli harem with insanely OP cute power.
If I had reviewed this series after just the first season, I would have said its quirky and mediocre. Towards the last couple episodes of Season 1 I had finally had some more enjoyable moments. From there, however, Season 2 only let the series get better and makes me excited for Season 3! This series is simply just fun to watch.
Edit: After watching season 3, it really seals the deal. This is one of the most entertaining and well orchestrated rom-com Animes I've had the pleasure of watching.
Now this is the right way to blend the Chunibyoo genre into a real engaging story. I challenge the viewer to try and decide reality from fiction. But after you decide, think about which part you enjoyed more!
This Anime is just like watching a beautiful poem unfold and progress. Reminds me a great deal of the famous works of Miyazaki.
