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.
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.
Really great Shounen Anime. Honestly this series practically defines how the Shounen should feel in terms of crazy shenanigans and emphasized action. With a neat little story woven throughout, Gurren Lagann was quite entertaining.
Actually this was quite good. It had a very typical ecchi and harem start in the first 6 episodes, but then it actually pulled some solid character and relationship development. And instead of giving into the harem, the main character actually focuses on one relationship. Of course, they introduce new side-chicks almost every episode, but there were some interesting stories mixed in. There wasn't nearly as much sex appeal as you would imagine, honestly there was more nudity in mainstream Anime like Food Wars than in this. Some of the animation also was kind of like a watered-down version of Demonslayer swordplay, which is saying a lot since thats an incredibly high standard to live up to.
This was just a solidly entertaining Anime to watch, I zoomed right through the episodes and I kinda wish there was a second season to at least finish the tournament.
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.
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.
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.
Filled with Clichés, but a touching goodbye to the entire cast of K-ON! I can't help but enjoy all the music they make in this series because I just love making music so much myself. It's never about how good it sounds, but the love and labor that went into it.
This movie aimed to be the next Inception. In terms of powerful visuals, complex narrative and truly mindboggling concepts that require you to think deeply to truly understand. It did not fully accomplish this incredible feat, but it did manage to pull some good punches.
I did find that the film lacked sufficient character development, and quite honestly, the emotional acting didn't seem very strong. While the action scenes could have me at the edge of my seat, any of the character development/emotional building scenes left me feeling underwhelmed.
Ultimately, they had a lot of the aforementioned characteristics but it simply wasn't done smooth enough. Oftentimes the plot felt jagged as you were torn from scene to scene. They handles the the explanation of the mind-bending concept, but they simply couldn't make the entire film feel smooth and connected. Despite understanding the plot and the internal physics quite well, I couldn't help but find myself lost in a way that did not make the film appealing.
You definitely feel the clichés while you're watching, but boy was it hell of a ride! Not much can live up to the thrill of giant metal machines duking it out.
The movie was a strong conclusion to the original Steins;Gate series and I think it gave a much more satisfying ending than the OVA episode did. Obviously, this movie doesn't make sense independent of the series so I really wouldn't watch it unless you were like me and absolutely sped through the series. This didn't have quite the same amount of mind-bending time travel shenanigans as the series but I really enjoyed this movie more as a definitive conclusion rather than an extension of the series. (And yes that means this movie was a little slower, but as in all things Steins;Gate, it still had a good emotional impact.)
There was an intense sadness that permeates this film. It was simply a heartbreaking story that we know is all too true in our history. I think this story hits each person with a different intensity. Whether you have children, have survived through a war, etc. The emotional impact is different for each person, in each stage of life. I think if I were to revisit this in 20 years, I might be left sobbing instead of simply depressed. It was still an excellent film.
It was very unique to see such a different ending where almost every other character but Tomoya and Tomoyo completely disappeared from the picture. It may not have been the official story-line, but I think it was wonderful that they explored it here. (Although the academic and delinquent love story feels a tad cliché these days.)
Now let's talk about 5 Centimeters Per Second (warning: spoilers ahead). This episode felt just like the happy version of that film's ending. Instead of the melancholic concept of moving on from your past lover, they decided to stay together after all. The two stories don't match up entirely, but the resemblance is startling. Right down to the final scene being at the railroad tracks and the theme of cherry trees throughout. At this point, I'm fairly certain that the writer decided to pay homage to Makato Shinkai's film since it released about a year before this episode. I would recommend you watch that film (it was really worthwhile) so you can enjoy this episode to its fullest.
I found that this show was actually fairly decent on its own. It doesn't have over-powered characters (cough-Kirito) and the main character is actually quite like-able and charming. There is a greater degree of character development and I can definitely say I enjoyed it more than SAO seasons 1+2. However, that doesn't mean this has flawed logic and some degree of craziness, this is a video game after all. I'd still recommend this if you aren't looking for a perfect anime.
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.
That was a pretty fun ride all-in-all! They weren’t kidding about the whole twists and turns every 5 minutes. The movie felt like an 2 hour long run-on sentence where it managed to get just enough engaging content without worrying about the punctuation.
Honestly a better adventure than I think I was expecting. There was wit, storytelling and the touch of a bard. It was not so much a giant mash of DnD references as much as it was actually listen to the story of a friend’s campaign.
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.
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 piece works by making what seems like a ragtag team and a bunch of random events and episodes fall in place like puzzle pieces. Its just a well executed story and character development with some decent action sequences. And of course, the OP is just a classic now.
It was an overall great anime romance. The graphics were gorgeous and the music was perfect. The characters were all interesting, although a bit cliche in their design. They definitely could’ve provided some more character development and a greater variety of characters, but it wouldn’t be a true romance unless they didn’t focus on the growth of two individuals anyways.
While the story wasn’t the most original and innovative, it was cute and kept me entertained all the way through. I would highly recommend this to those who just want a little bit of an emotional rollercoaster but don’t mind the cliché.
This is a really strong Anime with an emphasis on character development that many other (even much more recent) Anime cannot fathom the depth. The show is very bluntly about child abuse, unrealistic pressures, fear of failure, and most importantly, suicidal thoughts and heavy depression. Many have said that the writer/director was heavily depressed while working on the series, and that the show stems from his experiences. You can truly feel the pain and the self-loathing through the repetition of phrases like 'I hate everything' and 'I hate myself.' You can't always hear when someone else is suffering, but this Anime makes their feelings heard.
The series is quite chaotic, but it was still an excellent work of art that really tried to put something special out there for the world to understand. It tried to convey some of the deepest of most complex human emotions, and that is an especially difficult task.
The psychological ending (ep 25-26) was filled with primarily dialogue and it was quite tough to get through, however, it did make a lot of sense for the characters and was important for the coming of age and self-realizations the characters needed to have. But it was just portrayed in such a low-budget way that made it hard to enjoy, even with the context of the 1990s graphics.
For those watching on Netflix, I would recommend watching the series (the episodes on Netflix are the Director's Cuts with extra important bits on the last 4 episodes). Then watch The End of Evangelion afterwards. Personally, I think of EoE as a sort of alternate ending, so be prepared for a very different style of ending than presented in the original series. But still a very important contrasting perspective that accents the series quite nicely.
This movie felt that weakest of all three in the trilogy, most certainly because it exists as primarily setup and new characters are thrown at you left and right. But despite that, I wholeheartedly recommend anyone who has seen 1 or both of the other Fate/Stay Night routes watch this trilogy. The animation quality throughout is incredibly pristine with strong music in pair. Not to mention, they did an incredible job with both emphasizing the story and giving us the incredible, explosive fights of immense magical power.
Truly, watch every last minute and enjoy the experience.
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.
After only reading the main shadow and bone trilogy a long time ago (and having loved it), it was actually a little disorienting coming into this series and realizing there are several other big plot lines happening simultaneously across Ravka. However, I came to love how beautifully what I assume is the Six of Crows plot melds with the Shadow and Bone trilogy.
The visual effects and scenery throughout the show were high class and this epic fantasy series is thrilling to watch. It honestly is a good show to binge and immerse yourself in for awhile.
This mini-series did an excellent job of portraying the life and legacy of Napoleon. There were of course moments where it was a little dull, but that's pretty much how a biographical film works. It did a much better job of displaying Napoleon's "passion" than some of the other films that made him out to be some kind of crazed lover. Overall, well done cinematography and realism, although the blood and gore was far more minimal than the truth of the history likely was.
Nice little gem of an Anime. I wouldn’t be lying if I said the music was one of my favorite parts of the series. The music is certainly a highlight of the atmosphere building. The animation quality was top notch at some points and subpar at others, but they still did a great job building a pleasant and interesting world.
Honestly, the witty banter is absolutely my favorite part of the series. When it’s just Holo and Lawrence, the back and forth reminds me so much of my own love for witty charades.
If it feels a little slow at the start, you aren’t wrong. The story really doesn’t pickup until the 4th episode. I really wish there could be a third season to finish tying up the loose ends but alas.
Highlights of the show:
:asterisk_symbol: Cute wolf girl Holo is an incredibly interesting and mischievous character
:asterisk_symbol: I somehow learned a great deal about economics without it feeling painful
So really, it was quite good.
This episode has confirmed that this series is actually along the lines of a rom-com, I really wasn't sure so far. I wouldn't recommend skipping this even though it is considered a special and doesn't really further the plot.
An interesting little precursor episode to the movie. You can find the movie that this episode alludes to here: https://trakt.tv/movies/k-on-the-movie-2011
The dialogue of this show is absolutely hilarious and the plot really hasn't been all that bad either. The way that things worked out have been pretty amusing. As far as I see it, this has been "merely one hell of a season."
