Forum - View topicThe Winter 2018 Anime Preview Guide
|
Goto page Previous Next Note: this is the discussion thread for this article |
| Author | Message | ||
|---|---|---|---|
|
James_Beckett
ANN Reviewer
 Posts: 282 Location: USA |
|
||
1. We don't get paid or coerced to cover a show any one way or the other, period. Number grades are a relative and subjective system, meant to indicate a critic's general response to a single episode of television. A 4.5 or 5 does not mean "perfect", it simply means that I promise another reviewer really enjoyed the episode. That's it. 2. No critic thinks they're the be-all-end-all of taste, opinion, or what is "good", at least none that I've ever met or worked with. We're simply articulating our thoughts and feelings about art and media on a way that will hopefully inform and entertain our audience. If you disagree with our opinions, all that means is just that - You'd disagree. It is perfectly valid to not be in line with my or any other critic's views. |
|||
|
|||
|
Ambulator
Posts: 30 Location: California |
|
||
|
KARAKAI JOZU NO TAKAGI-SAN Does remind me of Road Runner vs Coyote, but that's a cartoon I avoid. I much prefer Foghorn Leghorn vs Dog, where they both get their licks in. Also, I suspect that women will have a much higher rating for it than men.
The Ryuo's Work is Never Done! is something I thoroughly enjoy. If the main character ever goes after the young kid I'm dropping it, but kids obsessing over some adult is normal. This so far looks more like Hanamaru Kindergarten. Violet Evergarden and After the Rain were both snooze fests. |
|||
|
|||
CrowLia
 Posts: 5527 Location: Mexico |
|
||
|
Although I wouldn't call it a dead season it certainly feels like it's lacking on something that really packs a punch. I wonder what series of coincidences led to this season hosting so many cutesy feel good shows though.
A place further than the Universe: Watched two episodes, fell asleep on the second one. It's not doing anything inherently wrong, but it also feels like they're perfectly capable of skirting the whole show without ever going to the Antarctica, so I think I'll put it on hold/drop for now and wait for it to end to see if it's worth continuing. Dropped [maybe temporarily] Basilisk: I have no idea of what's going on with this series. I don't understand the plot or why anything is happening. I'm a huge fan of the original show but this so far makes little to no sense. I'll give it one or two more episodes but if it doesn't at least lay down what the point of this all is I'll drop it. Likely to drop. Card Captor Sakura Clear Card: Best premiere of the season by a wide margin, I'm very pleased with how they've captured the magic of the original series and it's a delight to be able to see these characters again. I'm indescribably happy to see we're not dealing with another Sailor Moon Crystal disaster here. Unquestionably a keeper. Citrus: It's frustrating because Yuzu is a very likable protagonist and I want to root for her. Even her friend, whatever her name is, is pretty cool. But the whole creepy love at first sexual assault approach is just gross. I think I'll watch episode 3 and see if that changes my mind. Likely to drop. Darling in the FRANXX: I like the look of the robot and the monsters, but nothing else about the premiere felt fresh or interesting and the heteronormative setup coupled with the crappy cliché meeting of the two leads made me roll my eyes with boredom. Hopefully Trigger will deliver on the 3-episode rule. Might drop. Hakata Tonkotsu Ramens: I'll admit I didn't pay a whole lot of attention to the episode, but the final twist hooked me, so for the time being I'm interested. I have liked what I've seen of how they're portraying the cross-dressing character. Keep watching for now. Hakumei to Mikochi: Very adorable! I love the color palette and the character designs, and even the stories are sweet but fantastical enough to set it apart from the pile of SOL of this season. Keeper. How to Keep a Mummy: It wasn't as cute as I expected from the reviews, but it was pretty adorable. I think maybe they're trying too hard with the cuteness, but I think it has potential. Keep watching for now. Koi wa Ameagari no You ni: Not a huge fan of the central conceit of this one, but the production visuals are incredible and the two leads are very likable characters. Like others, I'd wish this would go in the direction of Kondo acting like a parental figure for Tachibana but the opening indicates that's not likely to be the case, so at least I hope they can manage a somewhat tasteful execution. Keep watching for now. Kokkoku: I strangely like the characters, especially the older brother who seems like a very real person, and of course the protagonist, she's cool but relatable, but the pacing of the story is a dreg, the visuals are really ugly and the execution so far isn't super interesting to me. I'm mostly frustrated that two episodes in they haven't rescued the kid and the brother and it seems the story is getting too complicated too soon. Dropped. Pop Team Epic: Just didn't work for me. Osomatsu's style of comedy didn't ring with me and neither does this. I actually tried to watch the second half of episode 1 closely to catch if there were any differences, but I got bored very quickly, didn't even finish the episode. Dropped. Sanrio Boys: I'm amazed that such a blatant commercial can actually have so much heart! It's unexpectedly compelling and sweet and feels way more genuine than a show that exists solely to convince boys to spend money on Sanrio characters has the right to be. Keeper. School Babysitters: The other surprisingly touching show of the season and my second favorite premiere after Sakura. I think they're nailing that double aspect of how toddlers can be really adorable one moment and extremely annoying the next one. The scene at the hospital in episode one was beautifully executed and really touching. Definite keeper. Seven Deadly Sins 2: Kind of all over the place with the first episode, the pacing felt jerky. I always thought the whole "power levels" gimmick was very pointless since it was introduced in the manga and it's not a whole lot more interesting except for whatever jokes come at Hawk's expense from it. I just hope we get to spoiler[Escanor] soon. Keeper Violet Evergarden: An interesting premiere although I felt like some pieces of the puzzle were missing and I wasn't fully understanding what was going on the whole time. It definitely has a lot of potential, I just hope it can deliver on it narratively and not just visually. Keeper. Yowapeda Glory Line: Same old, same old. Kind of tired of Sohoku losing everything, so Naruko and Imaizumi better bring it for the goal. If my numbers are right, this season will bring Yowapeda past its 100th episode, which is kind of amazing. Keeper. |
|||
|
|||
Greed1914
 Posts: 4540 |
|
||
|
That's a real bummer about the run time cutting the more slice-of-life elements of Dagashi Kashi. The first season worked as a mix of mellow and zany. Hopefully, some of that will come back as the season progresses.
|
|||
|
|||
CatSword
 Posts: 1489 |
|
||
|
Pingu in the City's second cour is still going strong, in case anyone else still cared.
|
|||
|
|||
|
vonPeterhof
Posts: 729 |
|
||
Having watched the third episode of Mitchiri Neko, I'm starting to question if it's meant for young children: not sure how that audience would react to three consecutive gags about spoiler[cats getting eaten by a lion] 
Out of the other shorts Working Buddies! has me sold solely by the power of random philosophizing by Tomokazu Sugita as "The Animal That Must Not Be Named", Takunomi. by the power of yet another comfy group of friends this season, and Dagashi Kashi season 2 by the power of Hotaru's personality. I'm guessing that's something that can be enjoyed by someone who hasn't watched the first season, although I'm not sure the set-up for why Hotaru is even in their town was established clearly in the episode (plus the humour of the spoiler["Your dad is a YouTuber!"] quip and Kokonotsu's reaction to it may be lost on people who haven't seen episode 5 of the original). |
|||
|
|||
|
Redbeard 101
Oscar the Grouch
Forums Superstar  Posts: 16954 |
|
||
Theron already touched on the being civil part, but I want to clarify something in case there are questions or misconceptions. To make it crystal clear for anyone and everyone, the mods are not the "attacks dogs of the reviewers" or anything of the sort. We do not go around "defending the honor" of the staff members as if it's some sort of edict handed down to us by our Shogunate Lords Tempest and Zac. We "defend" them as we do any other user here when they are attacked personally. It's that simple. Just because they are a reviewer or other staff member does NOT mean they are somehow expected to tolerate or be subjected to personal attacks towards them. Most times the reviewers do not even ask for moderator intervention. The vast majority of the time we wind up moderating such posts because they were reported by other users regular here, or we stumbled across them, not the reviewers themselves. On a personal front I think many of the preview reviews this season by the reviewers, especially, Nick & Rebecca, are totally bogus and way off the mark. That is my personal opinion based on my thoughts regarding the first episodes I have watched and the corresponding previews/reviews for those shows. The reviewers have their opinions based on the episodes and premises as they saw them and I have mine. Just because I think they are wrong with their scores and interpretations does not mean I'm going to go say they're full of shit, ignorant and stupid morons, paid shills, or some other rude insult. That's the difference between disagreeing civilly and just being rude and insulting. |
|||
|
|||
Showsni
 Posts: 641 |
|
||
I just wanted to say the idea of Hakumei and Mikochi riding around on a friendly Ringo Starr tickled my funny bone. |
|||
|
|||
harminia
 Posts: 2024 Location: australia |
|
||
|
I'd be sad the few people who watched gdgd men didn't speak favorably of it but I wasn't expecting much in the way of positivity for it
it's kind of like pop team epic in that its a particular taste and if you don't really "get" it you won't enjoy it (not saying "getting it" is like some thing only smart people do or something, rather it's one where it's sort of void of review because it's not trying to like tell a proper story or look good or anything. "getting it" just means you know there isn't exactly stuff "to get" in the show) personally I found it really funny, but it's been my most anticipated anime of this season (so the week delay CR pulled almost killed me) and come on surely you can't say kirito's voice actor improv-ing star burst stream wasn't hilarious (is it sad the only anime i care about this season are kuso anime like pop team and gd?) |
|||
|
|||
DeTroyes
 Posts: 521 |
|
||
|
I have to say, I've found this season to mostly be a little disappointing. My watch list this cour is currently only 8 new shows, but at least two of those (Grancrest War and Junji Ito Collection) are on the bubble and may be dropped if they don't do something soon to keep me interested. And even among the shows I am interested in, few are rising anything above mediocre in my estimation. So far the only truly memorable title has been A Place Further than the Universe, with Karakai Jouzu no Takagi-san a close second. Everything else... adequate, but not much more.
In contrast, for most of the last 6-7 seasons I've been finding at least 10 shows at the start appealing to me, with many considerably more (Spring 2017 had 15). This cour I struggled to find more than a handful. Mind you, I'm not complaining. Not every quarter can be stellar, and it just means I can devote more time to catching up on some of the older titles I never got around to. And what we're hearing about Spring 2018 has be me really excited. So in some ways, its good that an off-season for me has come along. |
|||
|
|||
|
Silent_Ninja
|
|
||
|
Unlike some ANN commentators, I have a full-time job which leaves me very little time to comment on anything. In any case, here are my brief impressions for each show I've checked out thus far:
A Place Further Than the Universe - This is the best SOL show I've seen so far this season and it's coming from no other than Studio Madhouse. Love the all-star cast they've put together because lately I haven't been too impressed with some of Japan's latest voice casts and this is coming from someone who prefers watching in Japanese most of the time. The visuals are lovely and they remind me of Tsuki ga Kirei with the "white border". Wasn't too fond of the characters in the first episode but they quickly grew on me in the second episode. Still have to watch the third one before I forget. If they don't ever get to Antarctica, I'm going to be very disappointed. Darling in the FranXXX - I'm a little disappointed with the episode with its existence of tiresome tropes and a generic male protagonist. At least the main female girl, the visuals, and the action are good though. My biggest concern is how will the quality of the show's writing hold up? Will be giving this the three-episode test before I decide continuing or dropping it altogether. Devilman: Crybaby - I have not read the original source material which leaves me no room for comparison. Great ideas on paper but the show is dragged down by its undeveloped cast and story. If it only had a few more episodes, then the outcome would have been potentially different. Rating as a masterpiece is overrating it in my opinion. Grancrest Senki - The only reason I checked out this series at all is because it shares the same director as Shouwa Genroku Rakugo Shinjuu. Too bad the show as a whole isn't good enough for me to continue as it shares many of the same flaws as generic fantasy light novel adapations. Dropped. Hakumei to Mikochi - Cute Dwarf Girls Doing Cute Things in an enchanted forest. This will be one of my fun shows to watch. Karakai Jouzu no Takagi-san - The premise shares a parallel with the RoadRunner cartoon I watched during my childhood where the one main character always fails in his/her attempt to beat the other one at something. The two main protagonists sound too old to be middle-schoolers despite how ridiculously talented their seiyuus are. Personally I think that having separate little "teases" squeezed together in one episode combined with its slow pacing is not a good format as it ruins the buildup for the comedy aspect. Instead, it should be made into shorter episodes in my opinion. Not only that, I found it very predictable. I'll give this the three-episode test before I decide to drop or continue with it. Koi wa Ameagari no You ni - If you know me well, I'm far from the biggest fan of romance. I'll admit I was hesitant in checking out this show at all is due to the large age gap. However, the first episode seems to indicate that it will handle this subject tastefully rather than pander to otakus which is a breath of fresh air. The Japanese cultural taboo of coworkers having romantic relationships in conjunction with the large age-gap romance between the main protagonists leaves me wondering how the show will tackle these themes into its storytelling. The visuals and OST are lovely. Will definitely keep watching this show. Pop Team Epic - Will be watching this show just for ****s and giggles. 
Violet Evergarden - KyoAni always delivers outstanding visuals for our eyes to feast upon. Now the question remains: Can it deliver a strong narrative to hold up those visuals? Will keep watching to find out the answer for myself. Yuru Camp - May share the same iyashikei genre as Flying Witch (which I personally love more) but it doesn't appeal to my personal tastes to be honest. The background visuals are nice, but the show's central cast of characters don't appeal to me in the slightest which largely makes it boring for me. Dropped. Last edited by Silent_Ninja on Tue Jan 23, 2018 5:58 pm; edited 1 time in total |
|||
darkchibi07
 Posts: 5495 |
|
||
If episode 3 is any indication, through crazy conveniences, their chances towards Antarctica might have increased ten-fold. Though I'd imagine one of show's main driving force is the girls' interactions with each other which I have to say is incredibly good so far. |
|||
|
|||
|
Author_Days
Posts: 3 |
|
||
|
NANATSU NO TAIZAI Season 2 Review Guide please
|
|||
|
|||
getchman
 He started itPosts: 9130 Location: New Hampshire |
|
||
Its locked in Netflix prison, so no service is streaming it outside of Japan, so they cant do a review |
|||
|
|||
|
ultimatehaki
Posts: 1090 |
|
||
I don't think they're gonna blue ball us like that, I'm pretty sure they will get there put ep 2 was...slower than the first, true. Either way got my list ready to go! |
|||
|
|||
 |
All times are GMT - 5 Hours |
|
|
|
Powered by phpBB © 2001, 2005 phpBB Group