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| 5 Centimeters Per Second (movie) |
Masterpiece |
The plot of this movie didn't grab me at first glance. I thought it would be simplistic, or perhaps overly sappy. I was wrong on both counts. "5 Centimeters per Second" had everything I look for in great anime: beautiful art, haunting music (especially the closing theme), likable, memorable characters, and a script that both told the story thoroughly and knew when to stop. I am usually very histant with the "masterpiece" rating. Hyperbole just isn't my style. However, when I looked back at this film, I sincerely couldn't think of a single thing that could be done to improve it or add to it. Just as it is, it is extremely memorable; and definitely great use of your anime watching time. |
| Death Note (live-action movie) |
Masterpiece |
see comments on "Death Note: The Last Name" |
| Death Note (TV) |
Excellent |
This was an incredible series that almost rated "Masterpiece" IMO. What made it "Excellent" instead was a very weak ending. I was disappointed because I felt the characters had much more potential, and that the resolution of the plot was pretty cliched. The plot weakens a bit in the last 12 episodes or so but is still worth watching. Deflinitely Death Note as a whole pulled me in as very few anime series do. I just had to see what happened next. |
| Death Note: The Last Name (live-action movie) |
Masterpiece |
I will only make comments on one of these two movies since they are really two halves of a whole, and it was more important to me that the writers got this, the second half, right. These films are darker and grittier even than the TV series, and scarier somehow in live action format. There has been a lot of compression of plot for the sake of time (after all, together, the films are more than 4 hours long). Some characters have been omitted entirely. The ending is very different from that of the tv series. However, I do consider myself a Death Note purist; this is my favorite anime ever. And I believe that every change that was made from the original was an impovement. The shinigami look awesome; the atmospheric music is perfect. Any ambiguities in character or weaknesses in the plot lines (IMHO) from the original have been streamlined. These movies rock! |
| ef: a tale of memories (TV) |
Excellent |
Unique and very meaninful art, memorable music. A story that was so sad in places I almost didn't want to finish it--that was how much the writers made me care about one or two of these characters--but don't make that mistake. Follow it through to the end. The message of following your dream no matter what--and more important than that, the way the writers deliver that message--is worth the warning that you might need a tissue or two. |
| Ghost in the Shell (movie) |
Good |
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| (The) Girl Who Leapt Through Time (movie) |
Excellent |
The writers here could have fallen into the trap of following lots of cliche's with their established plot--teenager discovers she can time travel. And she does do some of the selfish things you would expect. But there are meaningful consequences. It's hilarious in places. The characters are very memorable. And all in all they manage to serve up a new and entertaining take on a pretty old idea. |
| Grave of the Fireflies (movie) |
Masterpiece |
Moving, disturbing. Beautiful art and memorable music. Not a movie for kids at all, but definitely worth seeing. This will really enrich you and make you look at the world a bit differently. |
| .hack//Intermezzo (OAV) |
Very good |
Great message, good music, much more compressed than the original series .hack/sign and doesn't drag nearly as much. I really enjoyed this though I had to force myself through some of the middle of .hack/sign. |
| .hack//SIGN (TV) |
Good |
This really only gets a "good" from me on the strength of the last few episodes. I found that I cared about one or two characters very much and the others not at all. Music was exquisite, art dramatic and unusual in some places and blah in others. The message in the last few episodes makes up for the fact that the middle of the series really really dragged; I had to force myself to keep watching. I was also disappointed by the fact that the series didn't exactly resolve some loose ends. But overall this is worthwhile if online gaming is your kind of thing. Maybe if you are a big player of MMPORPGs then .hack/sign may hold your interest in a way it won't for others. I suspect this was the case with me. |
| .hack//Unison (OAV) |
So-so |
Amusing episode but not really needed. It felt like one big Ewok celebration, sort of a "reunion episode". If you really loved the series I see no reason to skip this episode but there's really no new information given as far as character development and some of them act far out of their established characters. That bugged me. |
| Kanon (TV 2/2006) |
Masterpiece |
Original concept, gorgeous music. Art is good though I have seen better. What struck me most was how much I identified with the characters and could see a little of myself in each of them. I really cared about what happened to them, especially Mikoto and Ayu. This one made me cry. It drew me in. I just had to see what happened in the next episode, and finished the show in only a few days as a result. |
| Kino's Journey (TV) |
Good |
Refreshing in that you could view these as 13 stand alone episodes if you wanted to do that. There was something of a plot from episode to episode but it was by no means as major as in some shows. A very light series, younger than I usually watch. I thought the idea of a talking motorcycle would be awful but the writers manage to carry it off without being at all cutesy. With all that said I am glad they stopped at 13 episodes. Beyond that, a cute idea would have gotten old. |
| Lunar Legend Tsukihime (TV) |
Good |
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| (The) Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya (TV) |
Very good |
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| Momo: The Girl God of Death (TV) |
Good |
Similar to "Kino no Tabi" in that it is very episodic. You could easily watch the middle episodes of this series out of their proper order and not really lose anything. It's a pretty simple story; probably best that they didn't take more than 6 episodes to tell it in. Lighter than the anime I usually watch, especially considering that it deals with shinigami. Perhaps it's lighter because the characters are so young. For me the middle episodes were unremarkable, but the first couple and the last one were great. The other episodes felt like filler, "more of the same". This isn't to say that I feel like "Momo" isn't worth watching. I enjoyed it. Just not as much as some others. (And frankly, I really liked Daniel, Momo's wise-cracking cat familiar, better than Momo herself or any other character.) |
| My Neighbor Totoro (movie) |
So-so |
In general I really admire Miyazaki as an artist. "Spirited Away" is incredible. However, "My Neighbor Totoro" just really wasn't that memorable. It was meant for a very young audience and so did not hold my attention as much as his other work. I found I didn't care about the characters that much and the plot was pretty weak; the film dragged as a result. |
| Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (movie) |
Good |
Interesting world (flora/fauna etc). I appreciated the creativity of the setting, though I have seen Miyazaki do similar plots before. Well-executed plot, but a bt slow to take off. I didn't really care too much about the characters; some of them seemed a little one-dimensional for my taste. However, considering it's a Miyazaki piece (that is, a kid's film) I can perhaps cut it some slack on that point. (i.e. simplicity) |
| Neon Genesis Evangelion (TV) |
Excellent |
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| Neon Genesis Evangelion: The End of Evangelion (movie) |
Good |
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| Ouran High School Host Club (TV) |
Excellent |
Refreshing, cute, and very funny. Extremely over the top, but if you can accept it for what it is; an anime series making fun of itself and basically of the entire genre; it's a laugh-riot. What's better is that it's more than just a series of good jokes (although that's a big chunk of it). The characters do mature and change, and I found myself interested in each of their backstories. This was pretty light stuff--a nice change from the darker anime (Monster, Death Note, NGE) that I tend to go for generally. |
| (The) Place Promised in Our Early Days (movie) |
Decent |
Not very believeable to me. I had trouble telling some of the main characters apart and found the plot pretty predictable and hackneyed; too sappy for my taste by far. It dragged. |
| Princess Mononoke (movie) |
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| RahXephon (TV) |
Excellent |
A very complex and interesting series, lots of depth and philosophical food for thought. Gorgeous music and nice, if not exeptional, art. Very original plot idea. Though I rated both this and "Neon Genesis Evangelion" an excellent, for me NGE was better. Rahxephon was disturbingly vague in places, even when they had supposedly "revealed" key points, and required a little more backtracking for full understanding than I would have liked. Nonetheless, I admire the writers for taking a really complicated, ambitious plot and realizing it fully. |
| Rurouni Kenshin: Trust & Betrayal (OAV) |
So-so |
Excellent art, beautiful music, but I just didn't care that much about the characters. I found the plot predictable and I got bored in places. (About halfway through.) Some people will say this is sacrelige, I know. I also didn't find the ending sequences very beliveable; no one would have lived through some of the things that happen, even if you allow for a pretty big suspension of disbelief. |
| Spirited Away (movie) |
Very good |
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| Trigun (TV) |
Very good |
Quirky, original plot idea. It dragged in places but then really picked up if you stuck with it. I laughed out loud, and I don't do that with a lot of anime that intends to be funny. (This does not.) I found Vash endearing and really sympathized with a lot of characters, not just him. Great music. I even cried at some sequences. I was very sorry to see the series end. This isn't for everyone; Western just may not be your taste. But if you can accept the idea of a shoot-em-up Western anime with a twist, go for it. You'll have fun. |
| Voices of a Distant Star (OAV) |
Good |
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