All reviews here are based on the original Japanese sound and English subtitles unless otherwise indicated. The translation quality of the subtitles will not be taken into account.Disclaimer! This web page was not created in any sort of artistic manner! The content is the only thing that counts in here.
The format of a typical review I will give here.
Title of Anime
Review Content, general comments.
Character Development: These categories will all be given a score from 0 to 10, 10 being the best and 0 being the worst, along with some comment. This category indicates how well done the characters are in terms of their development.
Plot: Score from 0 to 10 as well. This category measures more of how well done the overall plot is, and in particular how well the developing characters, storyline, and their environments come together as a coherent whole. "Filler episodes" will cause major penalties in this category. I understand that anime makers need to make money and they're putting in filler episodes to make money, but that's no excuse for ruining a potential work of art, and you're not getting any slack from me.
Music: Also a score from 0 to 10. Music is an integral part of anime. This measures how well done the music is.
Art: Also a score. This is a rough measure of how well the characters are drawn. "Shorthand" drawing and reducing the characters to tiny little simplified dolls and ^_^ faces will result in major penalties here. Artists, don't get lazy.
Special: In here, I'll just mention anything about the anime that I found particularly interesting and well done. No score, though. Just a bonus.
Parental Guidance: In here, I'll give descriptions of things that could probably be considered inappropriate for kids. Look up the official age rating to be sure. This is just meant as a rough reference for when anime's aren't rated (which is surprisingly often). Moms and Dads, this is the only part you read, don't you? Shame on you. Learn to like anime. It's an ART.
Overall: In here, I'll give a score as well. This just measures how well done I thought the entire piece was, and how well all the elements mentioned above came together.
Millennium Actress. (Movie)
Commentary: Excellently and flawlessly done, and the handling of the two worlds was a treat. I quite like how the piece avoids designating any one realm as 'real'. Although I must say, this one was a tad too "conventional", without any weirdness or good science fiction / fantasy elements for it to be in my true "wub list". This one is very expertly done.
Character Development: 8. Very well done. But then, what else would you expect from the Director and Character designer of Perfect Blue?
Plot: 8. Marvelous. I love how dreams and reality lose all distinction from one another. The story continues to reveal new things every step of the way.
Music: 5. Nothing special. Not bad, but not too good either.
Art: 7. Well done. Nothing to drool over, but at least the artwork didn't get in the way of the story. Badly drawn characters tend to do that; this wasn't cursed as such.
Special: No extra nice touches I found. Doesn't need any, though. It's a nice, solid piece anyway. It could've used some extra something, some extra oomph in terms of creativity or ingenuity to send it soaring.
Parental Guidance: Suitable for the entire family. Mild violence.
Overall: 7. Solidly done. It's got all the basics down pat. But nothing to wet your pants over.
Ah! Megami-sama (OVA's, 5 episodes)
One of my favorites. It's quite charming, happy-go-lucky, and it leaves a pleasant taste in your mouth after you're done watching it. Come to think of it, I wonder why I like this so much?
Character Development: 5. Well, to be fair, it's only five episodes, so there wasn't much room to unfold this "character development" nonsense in. But this loses major points for having Belldandy be so unrealistically submissive without any justification. Has that woman no backbone?
Plot: 6. Okay. So that little 'yakusoku' thing was a bit rushed. Lost major points for that, but I refrained from killing it because it was simply 5 episodes. In the TIME PROVIDED, it didn't do a bad job. But the fact remains that it was rushed and somehow didn't work. Failed to move me.
Music: 6. Cute intro theme. The music is nothing to sweat over, though. Same old same old anime music.
Art: 5. For some reason, the artwork seemed to be a bit smudged and blurry. I'd like to have the colors better and the lines a bit sharper and more distinct. Sometimes makes me want to run every frame through some kind of photoediting program. Not a problem once you get "into" the story, though.
Special: Well, if this is of any redeeming value, I'll just let you know right here that I hear the manga is very well done, and is much more extensive and long, with more characters and plot. However, I don't do manga, so that's out of my realm.
Parental Guidance: There is that scene where Belldandy goes to the beach. Keichi does fantasize a bit, and Urd gets slightly slutty. Slightly skimpy bikinis, brief massaging scene with massage oil, but that's about it. I'd say it's more for teens, but given the sappy content it'd appeal more to preteen girls ...
Overall: 5. Par bordering on subpar. I personally love this piece, but under strict objective scrutiny I think it barely holds itself together. At least it didn't fall apart. I believe this is known in the US as 'Oh! My Goddess'.
Ah! My Goddess (movie)
The movie is an entirely different thing from the OVA's. I highly suggest watching the OVA's first, however, since they leave Keichi's sister completely unexplained and unintroduced. This is, again, about Keichi and Belldandy's blossoming relationship.
Character Development: 6. At least there was SOME development in Celestin and Morgana. Oh, and the introduction to Belldandy's younger years also saves this from the doom of an under-5 score. I really don't like how none of the main characters really change. Did I neglect to mention how amazingly charming Belldandy is as a tiny little girl?
Plot: 6. Not bad, but not really genius either. Your standard OK anime plot, as opposed to your standard awful anime plot.
Music: 8. Excellent. Very excellent. The singing at the end put tears in my eyes for some odd reason. Psh, I just coincidentally had dust in my eye every time I watched that scene, I swear!
Art: 6. Pretty much the same as the OVA's, except that I like the coloring balance better this time. Just slightly.
Special: If you're thinking of ditching this, you absolutely HAVE to see this through just to see the ending. The singing at the end carries a significant that can only be felt when you see the movie through to the end. The scene that 'accidentally' put dust in my eye.
Parental Guidance: Nothing major. Peorth does sport a lovely bikini outfit, however.
Overall: 6. A tad better than the OVA's. As opposed to "par bordering on subpar", just plain "par".
Love Hina (TV series, 25+ episodes)
One of my favorites. This piece is just so charming; you can't really find anything about it to hate. At worst, it'll just be passed off as 'airheaded'. At best, it'll have hordes of Shinobu worshippers.
Character Development: 8. Amazing. Each and every Hina girl gets a piece of the spotlight, and with that many characters, that's a feat. (I still think Keitaro went for the wrong girl, Naru is so overrated)
Plot: 4. Well, despite how wonderful the character development is, let's face it. It has NO plot. Just a string of loosely connected episodes. But this is actually a strength. It gives you a clean feeling; no overpowering obligation to watch every single last one by ending them all in a cliffhanger.
Music: 5. Intro and closing themes are both atrociously bad, but the wonderful in-anime music redeems it from the ultimate damnation of having a reviewer being forced to watch it muted.
Art: 6. Relatively well drawn, but sometimes they get lazy and do 'shorthand' often.
Special: The humor is just wonderful. Adds a very good aftertaste.
Parental Guidance: Nothing major beyond the occasional underwear shot. However, watch out for episode 25, which pushes the limit all the way to a Motoko butt shot. Yes, a bare butt shot. Best bet is for you to watch it before letting the kids watch it.
Overall: 7. Sure, it has no plot or groundbreakingly original concept. It's still a solid romantic comedy piece that's to be cherished and loved and rewatched for many times to come.
Love Hina Again (3 OVA's)
Fails to live up to its predecessor. Shameless fan service. Chronically comes AFTER Love Hina the tv series.
Character Development: 6. Introduction of a new character, and even a revelation! Oh gods, that's got to be good, right? Except that none of the other characters seem to develop or even move.
Plot: 3. Plot? What plot? Are you sure that excuse for a plot counts as an actual plot? Wash out your brain.
Music: 6. The intro and closing themes got better. This is in no way any bit redeeming of the horrendous overall quality.
Art: 5. Nothing to really sweat over. I took off major points for the shameless fan service.
Special: To be fair, Naru finally discusses sex in an indirect way by considering how their relationship would change when she accepts Keitaro as her lover.
Parental Guidance: Plenty of underwear shots and lingerie pictures. Not for kids. At least for teens, but the sheer silliness won't make it appeal to teens either. Just ignore these OVA's, okay?
Overall: 4. Stinks. This is an insult to Love Hina fans.
Neon Genesis Evangelion
I haven't seen a lot of this, but the little I've seen so far impresses me deeply. This piece is either something you hate with a passion or love insanely.
Character Development: 6.5, decent, if not a little bit confusing.
Plot: 7. Well done. Very well done.
Music: 7. Not bad. Decently played violins are always sexy.
Art: 7. Great animation. In my humble opinion, this is far better than any 'mecha' out there. Those Gundam fans should wake up and smell the NGE.
Special: The sheer creativity and brutal pace of this stuff, along with the sheer weirdness makes it a winner.
Parental Guidance: Simply put, not for kids. Sorry kiddos. Plenty of violence and sex. For the prudish conservative Christian front, I'd even suggest an R rating. For the rest of us who are actually humans, I'd venture to suggest you be at least 15 or older to see this.
Overall: 7. Solid piece. Avoid if you don't like being depressed for days after watching something, however.
Slayers Next (TV series, 26 episodes)
One of my childhood favorites. I've always dreamed of watching it, and it was just so wonderful when I actually got a chance to watch more than five seconds clips of it at a time.
Character Development: 6, not bad. The Gourry/Lina relationship development was a bit clumsy, but the clumsiness just made it all the more endearing. And do I smell something going on between Amelia and Zelgadiss? However, don't expect spectacular character developments.
Plot: 5. Too many filler episodes to make this truly great. The ones that are on the grey side just don't connect well, in my opinion.
Music: 6. Decent and slightly above par. In-anime music is nothing to cream your pants over, though.
Art: 5. Too much shorthanding. Artists, get off your asses, will you?
Special: Humor is a very good thing to add to a swords and sorcery outfit. I think humor fit very well in this piece.
Parental Guidance: Suitable for the whole family. The "worst" you'll find is Lina standing in front of the mirror wondering if her breasts got bigger. Typical teen girl insecurities. Violence? Not much, just a ton of explosions. No bloodshed, really.
Overall: 6. Not bad, but not great either. A humorous swords and sorcery flick that's slightly better than the average.
Slayers Try (TV series, 26 episodes)
Again, I have a ridiculous love of anything Slayers-related. I go too easy on Slayers, forgive me for that. Another swords and sorcery flick, chronically comes AFTER Slayers Next.
Character Development: 5. Horrible. Absolutely horrible. I see none of character development, everyone might as well be static. This is supposed to be one of the sacrifices made for a 'better plot', but I see no better plot.
Plot: 6. I don't see anything imaginative or inventive in the plot. Sad, since it's supposed to be plot-centered and since it sacrifices so much else for that purpose. Didn't work, in my opinion.
Music: 6.5, pretty good intro and closing themes. In-anime music is nothing to drool over.
Art: 6. Not bad, a bit less shorthanding. Nothing to drool over.
Special: To be fair, I must mention this. There is one exception to the bad character development. The slow, but sure development of Filia, which is tied to that of Valgaav's, isn't that bad. In fact, Filia has her touching moments. For this one thing, I ask that you give this a chance and watch it through to the end. Watch carefully the ending credits and all the scenes they show during the ending credits in the last episode. Look for Filia in it. That single scene, tied to everything she and Valgaav went through, redeems this piece from eternal damnation.
Parental Guidance: No sex or nudity. Some violence, some blood.
Overall: 5. Didn't work overall. However, for the sake of Filia's clumsy but beautiful character development, I'm even willing to ignore the horrible and stupid filler episodes and incoherent piece.
Onegai Teacher (TV series, 12 episodes)
This charming little piece is one of my recently acquired favorites. I must say I'm a hardcore Onegai Teacher fan. Although this piece has its faults, I just irrationally love it. Which means I'll be extra hard on it (I'm afraid of being biased, you see, and that can sometimes backfire).
Character Development: 7. Very nice. The characters actually interact and change in this piece. Which is a hell of a lot more than most anime series can claim to have done?
Plot: 5. This one was a tough choice. The Kei/Mizuho relationship development was basically the plot, and that one was well done, but I translated the good scores from that one into the Character Development score. Besides the relationship, there really isn't a plot.
Music: 7. Not bad at all! Very nice intro music. The unique theme song in the middle of the later episodes was a great touch. I like how they make unique songs when they're called for. (I can't tell you what they are due to my anti-spoiler vows)
Art: 6. Very nice color balance, in my opinion. Everything seems to be neatly and nicely done. Shorthanding is kept to a tight minimum, though they do tend to reuse some clips and shorthanding isn't exactly nonexistent. I just love the artwork in this piece.
Special: I love the monologue, though it's a bit sappy. That was a very nice touch. The voice acting for Mizuho was amazing; many layered and quite a bit of texture and believability ... but what else would you expect from Kikuko Inoue? She rocks.
Parental Guidance: They make an implied erection joke, and there are a few swimsuit shots, along with the preteenish sex jokes. At the very prudest, I'd say keep it for people above 13. But then, the preteenish sex jokes might be hazardous to the mental health of anyone not preteen ... (just kidding) Oh, and zero violence whatsoever.
Overall: 6.5, I think this one worked. Good, solid piece overall, with its touching moments. Well done. The only thing that is almost like a stormy lining in a silver cloud (yes, I know that makes no sense) is the absence of a good plot besides the budding relationship. One can only hear Kei whine about how much he loves Mizuho one TOO MANY TIMES before pining after some blood or violence. I believe this is sold in the United States under the title 'Please Teacher'.
Onegai Teacher OVA (1 episode)
This is just a one-episode piece, so I'll need to take that into account. You'll find that it's just a bit different from Onegai Teacher, the TV series, in some aspects.
Character Development: 6. We don't see many new things, except that now Kei and Mizuho seem to have become comfy with the consummation of their marriage. But to be fair, seriously, this is only one episode.
Plot: N/A. I can't judge the plot of something this short fairly or accurately. But if I needed to give one, I'd venture a 6. The plot is reasonably complex, involving nearly all the characters introduced in this OVA to some reasonably complex extent, CONSIDERING THE TIME GIVEN.
Music: It only gets a 7 because it's the same music from before (the TV series).
Art: 5. The artwork has degraded greatly; they've shorthanded too many times here. I don't like that.
Special: This piece is quite funny. That's always a nice touch.
Parental Guidance: In here, though you won't see any genitals or bare butt shots (if you count sideways shots) or bare nipples, it'll come pretty damn close. A vibrator is briefly shown, and there is a shot of someone mounting his wife (though, the scene ends and fades away and you don't see any thrusting). Considering that, I don't recommend this for anyone under 13, at the very UN-PRUDEST. Conservative Christian parental front, I'd say 16 or older at the very prudest, mkay?
Overall: 5.5, charming piece, but too much fanservice and shorthanding. The degraded artwork was a bit of a letdown, and the mounting scene was simply not necessary. This one is just for hardy Onegai Teacher fans who simply can't get enough.
Onegai Twins (TV series, 12 episodes)
Again, this one is solely for diehard Onegai Teacher fans, because newbies simply won't be impressed by this. I know I wasn't, but I loved it nonetheless because ... well, I AM a diehard Onegai Teacher fan.
Character Development: 5. There was some character development, but I don't think there was enough to come up to the level of its predecessor. And Matagu was completely demoted to comic relief status; they've done complete injustice to his character.
Plot: 6.5 -- Alright. There was a fair degree of suspense, but it lacked some small genius spark to send it soaring. It can walk, but it can't run or fly or twirl or anything interesting.
Music: 7.5; I loved all the in-anime music, along with both intro and closing themes. The lack of a monologue song was a bit of a letdown. It would've been at risk of considered ripping off its predecessor, but it would've been a worthy risk.
Art: 7. Like I said, I very much love how the characters are drawn. Very nice color contrast and balance, and everything is crisply drawn with no annoyingly blurry edges.
Special: Kei is pretty much gone and we don't get to hear his whiny voice anymore! Mind you, this is a POSITIVE point.
Parental Guidance: There is this one shower scene involving two naked girls accidentally falling over each other (no lesbian implications, just an accident). There is also a gay guy here who keeps trying to hit on the main character. Besides that, a few beach scenes, people drinking ... zero violence. If you're the type who avoids Will and Grace because it 'makes the family uncomfortable' then this one is not for you.
Overall: 5.5; it's not a disaster but it never really gets off the ground. It sort of hovers for about a few seconds at a time right above the ground, flapping its scrawny wings, but without much success. Only for diehard Onegai Teacher fans who are willing to overlook a few major flaws.
Chobits (TV series, 26 episodes)
A long time favorite of mine. This thing is just so amazingly charming. But then, you wouldn't expect less of CLAMP. CLAMP usually does a very good job of things.
Character Development: 7. Simply charming. Each of the major characters are given a sizeable chunk of the spotlight, but CLAMP skillfully avoids diminishing the importance of Motosuwa/Chii in any way.
Plot: 6. The existence of the filler episodes is quite distracting and annoying. The ending felt a bit rushed, and leaves many things unresolved for no apparent purpose. I can stand unresolved issues in anime, but I can't stand it gratuitously done and that's how it felt.
Music: 5. I see nothing original or amazingly awesome about the music ... your standard, average, feel-good, sometimes-angsty anime soundtracks.
Art: 7. Very cutesy and well drawn, in soft tones, though it could've used a bit better color balance. However, it also does its fair share of "shorthanding".
Special: Did I mention that Motosuwa has one of the best voice acting I've ever seen? (Japanese voice, I never ever listen to dubs)
Parental Guidance: Well, it does make a bit of an erection joke, and there's plenty of underwear shots. A few scenes involve lewd men attempting to touch Chii's crotch. One scene with Motosuwa getting mad in the bathtub and standing up ... exposing his crotch and his "future children", so to speak, but the drawing is very very simplified and shorthanded, so it isn't that obscene. Just funny.
Overall: 6.5 ... I felt that this was a very solid piece with plenty of backbone and a firm base, but it had some of those shortcomings that kept it from rising to true greatness. The bad music, along with the filler episodes and the frequent shorthanding and the rather subpar plot development at the very end, kept it from a 7 or above.
Angelic Layer (TV series, 26 episodes)
Under Construction (I will complete this later)
Character Development: Plot: Music: Art: Special: Inoue Kikuko's voice acting for Shuuko is something of a treat for anime connoisseurs. Her many-textured, believable voice is a very nice touch.
Parental Guidance: Overall:
More reviews to watch for: Of course, the rest of the Angelic Layer review! Keep your eyes peeled for Hagane no Renkinjutsushi (Full Metal Alchemist), Kenshin limited review, Dragonball Z, Ranma 1/2 limited review, Peacemaker Kurogane limited review, Read or Die OVA, R.O.D the TV series, Serial Experiments Lain, and Shingetsutan Tsukihime. Especially look forward to the underlined ones. I always save the best for the last, so those will go last.
