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Winter 2011 Season Postmortem

Thanks to the delays the seasons are colliding a bit, but the majority are done now, so let's start with the "post-view".

Good season with some interesting concept shows, although in my opinion not many with finales that really paid off on their interesting premises. So, although I was expecting a record Excellent/Very Good group of shows, it ended up being a typical season in quality for me.

Roughly from most favorite to ones I'm surprised I finished...

EXCELLENT:

Kimi Ni Todoke 2
OK, it does have the obvious fault of being very slow, but it’s a fault that is almost completely negated when marathoned at any speed and you are given a solid story and you see that the second thoughts and timidness that can be so frustrating when taken weekly are central to the stary and they could never be any other way. And then there’s the pay-off, this is the show with the perfect pay-off, one that isn’t technically the end of the story but still feels perfectly satisfying. Also retroactively re-rating the first season as Excellent, the only reason I didn't previously was its incompleteness, not an issue with this sequel/continuation.

VERY GOOD:

Puella Magi Madoka Magica
As frustrating as it I think it’s very understandable that a show that promises an ending with tremendous death and destruction is being held back in this difficult time in Japan. From what being said by the director/ staff though I think they’ve used the delay to their advantage by tuning up the production a bit for the finale. But even if the ending doesn’t meet the promise of the earlier episodes I think the series would still deserve a “very good” rating at least just on the basis of what they’ve shown so far. Visually inventive, nice and unique dark take on Magical Girl shows, a “villain” not to be forgotten and unexpected twists aplenty. This is a show that will be talked about for years.

GOOD:

Hourou Musuko
This has been getting some good reactions but the common criticism of the show is one that keeps me rating it higher. Usually I completely admire maturity in anime, but these barely out of elementary school kids were so mature it caused me to constantly step out of the story

Fractale
Once again a good story but somehow it never felt fleshed out satisfactorily.

Kore wa Zombie Desuka?
I loved the comedy in the show and the slasher story was alright, but the drama with the King of the Night- not so much. If it were just a comedy show I’d rate it higher

Star Driver
Quality action with fabulously stylish art. Some might have a problem with the "fight of the week" structure but when compared to others of that type I think they executed it very well, really integrated each fight with valuable character development and moved the story along. It could have maybe done with a half dozen more episodes or so more to really flesh out the end though.

Mitsudomoe Zouryouchuu!
Plain good comedy, thank goodness that they mostly ditched the gross-out crutch from the first few episodes of the first season..

Dreameater Merry
I really like the overarching story and the art was very appealing to me bu it went downhill a bit at the end of the show with the overpowered Mistletin and her psycho host. It’s also a slight problem that a BIG part of the show was an anime original story. I would welcome further seasons though, in which the main characters, like the criminally underused Chaser Doe, would take a bigger role.

Bakuman
I’ll say the same I did last season, it’s a pleasant show with likable characters that I want to succeed. Ends, basically, in the middle of nowhere, but I figure it will continue again eventually.

GOSICK
Despite plot holes in its mysteries it does have a great core duo and fine supporting characters.

To Aru Majutsu no Index 2
Still has the same annoying villain problems (all start off psycho but if they survive- you learn their sob story and chances are they become allies of some sort). But again, I’m weak for the cute girl characters and their harem-lite relationship with the unfortunate Touma. If the show does continue it does promise to finally get to some nitty gritty big story ideas and complicated antagonists they’ve only been teasing us with so far.

IS: Infinite Stratos
Okay, so even Dragon Crisis had more plot than IS, but it was quite fun in ways DC wasn't. If you want harem shenanigans, nice fan service and a male lead you could maybe believe could attract these five girls this will fit the bill, it's a bit shallow... but shallow waters are good for beach episodes. Wink

DECENT:

Level E
That first arc ended wonderfully… then there were the short stories. Occasional good laughs but The Prince without Yukitaka proved to be quite irritating and the Rangers stories could have certainly been better. At the time of the writing the final episode hasn’t aired, and it looks like it could be a good one, but I don’t see it being good enough to bump this up.

Beelzebub
If it weren’t for Aoi Kunieda I probably would have dropped this, not that it is impossible to pull off a funny moment without her, but she was definitely a brightspot.

Dragon Crisis!
Nothing special, but diverting.

SO-SO

Oniichan no Koto Nanka Zenzen Suki Janain Dakara ne!!
meh, that guy really is a waste of space and the girls are idiots for being obsessed with him.

WEAK:

Wolverine
I started out liking it, there seemed to be a plot with intrigue and interesting relationships, but the plot was ditched and it simply got boring. First he fights Omega Red a half dozen times and then it gets even worse when they go to Madripoor and we get 6 episodes of Wolverine "storming the castle," each episode another pointless action set-piece culminating an absolutely horrid final episode in which he's stymied by two complete wussy badguys and all of the sparse logic left logic is thrown out the window, with the whole point of the entire show being disposed of like a fly with a swatter. The entire resolution took about a single minute, it's obvious the show had no use for anything that didn't make generous use of impalings. I’m glad I’ve never read the classic Claremont/Miller story that this was (obviously very loosely) based on and dragged out to obscene proportions- I’m merely left very disappointed, not apoplectic with rage, the reaction I assume actual fanboys will have.

I don't use ANN's ratings, so I'll be picking the equivalent of the numerical rating I've given it.

Masterpiece - None. Madoka seems to be the top contender for that spot, but I find it very unlikely unless they can turn all that teen angst upside down.

Excellent -
Kore wa Zombie Desu ka? - Outstanding comedy, great character design, fresh ideas, etc., etc. Although drama wise, it was fairly weak in comparison. But it's not like it was bad, but perhaps just generic or mediocre. But then again, if you take a look at top rated romantic crap it's about the same shit but different characters. I think there's still one episode left, so while I consider the rating I've given it quite solid, it could be changed.
Madoka - Too many episodes left, and since this kind of titles usually have a drastic twist at the end this rating is pretty unstable. Just like the end could upgrade it, it could also downgrade.

Very Good - in favorite order.
Gosick - Loving the characters, and I think the light mystery really creates the perfect mood with them.
Dream Eater Merry - With one episode left, I can't really guarantee this rating. So far it's been a delightful surprise along with another couple of titles.
Freezing - They're good at what they're doing. It has everything to be some cheap action/suspense/gross title but it surprisingly finds a way around that.
Fractale - Turned out exactly like I thought it would. I'd say waiting whole weeks really ruined the fun here, which is why I'll leave it with a temporary 8/10 until I re-watch it.
Level E - Another enjoyable show. Quite unique and very funny. I had a few issues with 2 or 3 episodes, which is why it's at 8/10.
Wandering Son - Well, not really fond of teen angst, which is why it's at the bottom of my favorites and was less enjoyable to me than titles down in 6/10.

Good -
Beelzebub - Too many annoying elements. Overuse of the same joke. It's gotten better later on, but I can't just ignore all the annoyance.
Infinite Stratos - This title was heading for a solid 8/10 until it decided to have a plot and focus on less entertaining characters.

Decent -
Dragon Crisis - Meh. Never thought it would get any better anyway. At least the characters looked good.
Mitsudomoe 2 - Not dragging the same jokes for too long was an improvement. Surprisingly short season.

So-so ???

Not really good
Wolverine - Not a single try to do anything innovative. Have seen lots of hentai with more interesting stories and plots.
Cardfight! - Same thing, but it at least delivers entertainment without being annoying, which is the case of the one below.

Weak - Rio - Rainbow. Here's one of those very low ratings I give every now and then. I don't even wanna comment. Which is why I'll give you this comparable experience.

Plan to watch: Kimi wo Korosu - I think season one's dosage of romance and dragging was simply brutal for my mental health.
Onii-chan no crap. Dropped it halfway through for being worse than the worst [Rio]. But with like 6-7 episodes I think I can manage someday when I forget that it's so bad.

I rate most shows by enjoyment value so here goes:

Masterpiece - (Madoka Magica is most likely going to get this spot)

Excellent -

Kore Wa Zombie Desu Ka? - Randomness that makes it really enjoyable. There was drama which was okay. The seriousness and comedy worked pretty well.

Level E - Comedy for the first few episodes went well. The series has several arcs, so if you don't like one, then you could skip it (I didn't like the first Color Rangers Arc). The comedy was excellent and enjoyable. Still 1 episode left so this can change my rating, but for now, it's solid in it's rating.

Madoka Magica - Deconstruction of Magical Girl genre = AMG!!! The speculation of this series makes it a fun watch. Gen Urobochi's storytelling is depressing - watch as he spoiler[sadistically kills off Magical Girls.]

Very Good -

Fractale - Almost excellent, but it was rushed, suffers from low amounts of episodes. Slow, but a fun ride - we experience the Fractale world. Despite it not giving the Fractale system a positive outlook, the ending fixed that up for me. Main villains were just meh.

Gosick - Awesome characters but mysteries are bit disappointing. Still, it's enjoyable just nothing really outstanding.

Good -

Infinite Stratos - Generic, but like people said in the thread, comfortably generic. Saved by lovely harem members. Yandere Cecilia + Rin, Charlotte, Houki, and Laura. Characters need more cameo though, the fights were pretty decent, and the last one was pretty good.

Beelzebub - I think this was one of the most hyped series for Winter, it was okay. Nothing really good, jokes died after the first 3 episodes, the baby really needs a diaper/to be censored. Only watching it for Kunieda as of now, and hoping the action arcs start soon.

Decent -

Dragon Crisis! - Meh. Dislike loli dragon. I only watched for Ai. I was hoping it would get better after Ai was introduced, but it disappointed me.

Dropped:

Houro Musuko (Ep 2) - Had headaches from watching, must have been the angst, I'll try to marathon it sometime.

Yumekui Merry (Ep 3/4) - Heard it was licensed, thought it would get a stream, now no way for me to watch it (paranoid about illegal stream sites).

I Don't Like You At All Big Brother! (OniichanKoto) (Ep 1) - Hated the character designs, comedy was meh, didn't like it at all.

Stuff I've actually finished:

Excellents:
Infinite Stratos-This was a fun and highly enjoyable series with lots of good characters and action. Might have higher with it were it not for spoiler[the typical harem ending. Well, at least Ichika seemed to have made a choice which puts it above other harems.]

Very Good:
Dragon Crisis-An entertaining action/fanservice comedy it had some decent characters and an okay storyline. The ending was far too rushed though.

Good:
Toaru Majutsu no Index II- This was about the same as Railgun. Sometimes awesome but also a lot of mediocrity and time wasting. Generally, I thought it was just plain badly put together. Here's hoping for another, better season to come.

Still trying to finish Beelzebub, Freezing, Gosick, Madoka Magika, and Stardriver so the verdict is still out on all those. Madoka Magika is a poossible contender for a masterpiece rating. Gosick, Beelzebub, and Freezing could get an excellent or very good depending on the ending. Stardriver is mostly likely just going to stay where it is at good.

Dropped:
Wandering Son-I couldn't even make it through one episode of this and I'm Mr. 5-Episode-Rule. It was just so incredibly uninteresting.

Rio Rainbow Gate=I watched half the series until I just got tired of it. I may finish it at some point but the show is pretty tedious.

From what I've watched so far. If I don't plan to finish a show, I'll note how many eps I've seen against that show.

9/10
"Star Driver" - to me, this show combines the best aspects of seventies and eighties robot shows - exciting giant robot fights, ridiculously-powerful super attacks, entertaining characters, and a sense of humour - with the best aspects of the current crop of robot shows - high-quality animation, and well-developed characters, plot and setting. I know that there has been some criticism that there isn't much of a plot, but I'd counter that with two points - it's just not shoved into the foreground of the show, and the light plot is exactly like the mecha shows of old.

"Puella Magi Madoka Magica" - someone decided to do a "Neon Genesis Evangelion" on Magical Girl anime - examine all of the tropes of magical girl anime, and ask how such a concept would work if it was treated as a serious concept, showing how unrealistic the typical conceptualisation is. And then proceed to break the minds and psyches of the characters in the show. I appreciate dark and depressing anime when it's done right, and by what I've watched so far, this definitely fits the bill.

4/10
"Infinite Stratos" - (watched two episodes) I loved the animation and fight scenes - it's clear that a lot of money went into this part of the show - but everything else is just tired and broken harem anime cliches, and rather boring at that. I think anime can be better than that.

Yes, I haven't watched much of the Winter season, but between issues in getting files available in a country that isn't the US (I have some strange rule about not downloading any show simulcast in the US) and not liking generic shonen and comedy anime, my options do become rather limited.

This started out a very strong season, but unfortunately most of my early favorites ended up being a little disappointing. With that said, I still consider winter 11 to be solid and above every season from last year.

9/10
Madoka - Without question the best of the season. Potentially the show to beat this year depending on how the final two eps turn out. It doesn't really matter how it ends to me as long as it's executed well. And considering everything so far, it's very likely it will be. I did have one problem with Madoka though and that is Shinbo's artsy style he uses for the witches labyrinths; 1st ep it is fine, 3rd and 10th ep are great, but the others not so much. Ideally, the style for them would have been in actual animation; something like the opening scene of ep 1. While it does take me out of the experience somewhat when I see paper-cutout witches, it's not that big of a deal, especially considering how short the scenes tend to be. I absolutely loved the art for everything else though.

7/10
Kimi ni Todoke S2- Misunderstandings are a frustrating plot device, especially when they last the entire show. I didn't enjoy the second season quite as much as the first due to that and how little variety there was; too much focus on Kazehaya/Sawako. Still, I found the characters endearing and consider the show to be one of the better shoujos.
Mistudomoe - Mostly solid comedy, but can sometimes be too forced or run with a very weak joke too long. The reason I watch this show though is because of the sisters (which is why the first ep was horrible) and how they play so well off each other.

6/10
Level E - It struck a good balance between serious sci-fi and some clever comedy early on, but it lost it's touch mid-way (specifically the final color ranger ep is where I started to lose interest) and didn't recover (it has one ep left though). Despite that, I've been excited to tune in every week simply because I never knew what I was going to get; it was refreshingly unpredictable.
Star Driver - Continued to be repetitive and not do enough story wise to be interesting. I think if it removed 50%~ of the mecha battles and used that time to develop the characters or story more it could have been a better show. The finale was quite awesome however and ended on a great note.

4/10
Fractale - Beyond the initial intrigue of a unique setting, Fractale had nothing going for it. Poorly developed story and characters (who were also annoying).

Dropped
Gosick - The highest point of the show for me was everything that took place on the boat, not that it was all that noteworthy... but it had some good character development for the two and it was by far the most exciting situation. Mysteries never improved.. if anything they got worse. The dynamic between the lead characters was the highlight early on, but Kujo's stupidity wore thin.
Houro Musoko - I stopped watching Houro Musoko fairly early as I found it mostly a frustrating experience; started off somewhat confusingly and the tone/pacing just rubbed me the wrong way. Maybe it got better, but I don't have a desire to find out.

Lemme see. Summer 2011 was a great season. I hope Autumn 2011 is just as good, although it will have its work cut out.

Masterpiece:

Puella Magi Madoka Magica
Not finished yet, but given the episodes that have been released thus far it is undoubtedly the creme da la creme.

Wandering Son
A worthy number two. I haven't finished it yet (waiting on the DVD version as the broadcast was interrupted), but damn if it isn't touching and mature. People have called it too mature, as if Kino and the last seven years hadn't existed.

Excellent:

Bakuman.
Always accused of being too slow by Manga readers, as if not going at the same pace of the Manga is an automatic problem. I liked how they took a stupid plot setup and tried to give it a strong foundation. The superb characters are easily the best part, but the writing in general is very, very good.

Level E
Anyone who hates this show because they hate Baka Prince is completely missing the point. Never have I been so delighted to be reverse-trolled as I was in this show.

Supernatural
Great stories, great art and character designs, great fraternal chemistry between the two leads. Also, it can do humour and serious drama equally well and knows when each one is appropriate (and when it is not).

Very Good:

Kimi ni Todoke Second Season
Slower than slow at the start, takes much of the season to speed up from "going backwards" to "first gear". Still a nice ride with an acceptable ending, but so frustrating.

Letter Bee: Reverse
A bigger emphasis on the plot helps this season out, but it raises more questions than answers. I mean, there are some massive plot threads left dangling. Obviously the second instalment in a three-part series, there is more than ample room for a sequel.

Good:

GOSICK
The cases are not too bad, and Victorique is cute enough, but Kujou is so stupid that I cannot help cringing. Obviously designed to appeal to fans of Lolis, it does enough to hold my interest but rarely does it actually impress me.

Beelzebub
Is it still funny even after a dozen or so episodes? Yes. Yes it is. But it needs to branch out because it is in big danger of getting stale. And a stale comedy is never funny.

Weak:

Fractale
I've rated higher many shows which are - in some ways - inferior to this one. Why? Because it doesn't collapse like a house of cards so much as get sucked into a black hole during the fifth episode never to appear again. This show is little else but a fantastic OP and a sweet ED bookending a never-ending stream of plot holes and character stupidities.

Kore wa Zombie Desu ka?
Horrible mish-mash of Magical Girl with the occult, and so brainless (pun unintended) and gormless that I find it neither lovable nor funny. Which is a shame, because those were pretty much all it theoretically had going for it in the first place. What makes it worse is that Wandering Son was airing at the same time, and the mood whiplash between a serious transgender drama and this painful cross-dressing adventure show would have been too much to bear had I finished it.

Bad:

Infinite Stratos
If it had been yet another mindless harem show with numerous plot holes I wouldn't have cared. But it dared to touch Mecha as well, and not in a nice way like RahXephon. The combination of the two genres has made it a huge seller, but to the detriment of future Mecha productions.

Wolverine
No, just no. I knew from the first episode alone that it had serious problems, but like I foolish idiot I kept watching. Despite how much experience I have now with Anime I still kept at it, and now I'm pissed off at myself. Oh, and the creators of this pile of dreck.

Yumekui Merry
It was going along just fine, a happily mediocre show . . . and then episode nine happened. You could almost hear the sonic boom as the show plummeted from a So-so (or even a Decent) to just plain Bad. On the plus side, Yumeji is a refreshing change from the spineless lead males we've seen so often, but his coolness gets depowered and never recovers.

Awful:

Rio - Rainbow Gate!
Oh come on, expecting me to say what was wrong with this one is unfair. A brainless fanservice show with visuals so bad it isn't even very fanservicey. What the heck am I supposed to think?

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Forum - View topicWinter 2011 Season - Postmortem.

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Winter 2011 Season - Postmortem.