Goodbye, Fall 2014 – Last Impressions and Ranking

Sylphy confirmed for Best (Elementario/Background/Minor) Girl for Fall 2014.

Now, to the actual meat of this post, if there’s any.

Amaburi

This is certainly better than Free!. Not that these two are similar, but I might as well point out that it surely has been a long while since I truly enjoyed something from KyoAni—perhaps not since Chuu2Koi, the first season of course. While some gags went past through me, it managed to keep me hooked throughout its run and never did I consider dropping this show since there was no reason for me to stop watching it. In all honesty, I really enjoyed watching this, with its huge list of characters that left quite a good impression. If I had one complaint, it’s just that the melodrama surrounding princess Latifa didn’t fit quite well with the overall picture. If I was supposed to feel something during those scenes, then it didn’t do well enough to move me. But that alone didn’t really hamper the flow of enjoyment, and I will remember Amaburi as a fun show with some (violent) tricks up its sleeve to keep the viewer wanting for more.

Verdict: B+

Fate/stay night UBW (TV)

Eh, I don’t have anything to say. Really. I could barely keep my eyes glued to my video player while doing other stuff. So that pretty much means it didn’t really grab my attention, although it managed to do until the first half. But after some internal assessment, it’s mostly because Saber wasn’t the main girl. There you have it.

Verdict: C-

Gugure! Kokkuri-san

Very fun show to watch… only until the first third of it? The rest is fun, but not very fun. If I were to pick a favorite episode, it’s episode 2. A runner-up for that may be that Kokkuri-san genderbent episode. I forgot which episode that was. The show wasn’t funny all the time. Kohina’s initial charm gradually faded since the gags revolving around her got staler, repetitive to the point that there was nothing to laugh at even though the cast seemed to ask for my laughs. Inugami was interesting at first, but he(she?) became boring to watch. And Shigaraki. He was cool. The show would’ve really been boring if he didn’t appear. He was the reason that Kokkuri-san genderbent episode was funny, at least. If you’re looking for a light show to watch without needing to think deep about plot or conflicts, then this is the show for you. But don’t expect too high from its comedy. It’s not the best there is.

Verdict: C+

Inou Battle

I only got into this anime because of THAT scene in episode 7. The rest is pretty much average, and the plot is kind of lost in the process? I don’t know. It attempted to introduce a grander story within its universe, but that felt rushed, like “let’s put this awesome back story here so that what has been happening will have a greater purpose”—only to fail at what it was trying to do. The girls were pretty forgettable, too. Chifuyu’s and Sayumi’s last stretches just before the end were unnecessary, since there position in Andou’s harem had already been established since episode 1, and their mini-arcs were already told shortly after the first episode, too. I don’t know anymore, but I don’t totally regret watching this show since it had its small share of shining moments. At the very least, let me take that Hatoko rant as my only memento for this show.

Verdict: C-

Mushishi Zoku Shou 2

Is it just me, or the stories for this last Mushishi series were in fact grimmer, sadder, and more depressing than the first half of Zoku Shou? I know the writers were just randomizing the manga chapters a little bit, but viola!—the episodes were heavier to my heart. Nonetheless, Mushishi was still a lot of wonder to watch, and I appreciated the stories despite this season being a tad weaker than its prequel. I can’t wait for the movie (even though I can just read the manga)!

Verdict: S

Shingeki no Bahamut: Genesis

The first episode was the best episode. I enjoyed every moment of it. After that, there were some moments I couldn’t totally enjoy, though the scenes with Favaro and Kaisar together were the most enjoyable. FAVAROOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!

And I like Favaro. Although the entire cast was already varied as it was, he gave it a somewhat nice contrast, being true to his rough (and to an extent, badass) image that didn’t scream chivalry and invited a good deal of laughter. Amira was cute, too. Too bad, we didn’t see her often in the last episodes.

Verdict: B-

Wolf Girl & Black Prince

Much to my surprise, this was a delightful series. It was nothing serious and was just being a shoujo anime with happy feels around it. The main characters, however, fell into the usual shoujo pairing archetypes (hot-and-cold guy, dumb girl), in spite of the character introduction trying to make them appear (even slightly) different from the ubiquitous personality types. But even so, it didn’t try to make the heroine look so desperately in love with the sadistic guy. To me, she has a lot more personality than the heroine of previous shoujo anime, Ao Haru Ride (I’m not recommending this), and that was more than enough for me to finish the series. Although the animation wasn’t something to write home about, I must say that I really appreciate the atypical presentation of its characters that seem to effectively mirror their quirky energy during dialogues/chats. Those were just little touches, but I actually grew fond of this style.

Verdict: B+

(Attempted) Final Ranking

I don’t really like ranking series, but some of them in this list have similar verdicts, so I shall try putting them into their somewhat arbitrary standings. This is for me to gauge which shows were, in my opinion, superior to which.

1. Mushishi Zoku Shou 2
2. Amagi Brilliant Park
3. Wolf Girl & Black Prince
4. Shingeki no Bahamut: Genesis
5. Gugure! Kokkuri-san
6. Inou-Battle wa Nichijou-kei no Naka de
7. Fate/stay night: Unlimited Blade Works (TV)

Carry-Overs

I’m not gonna write my halfway impressions of these shows, since I didn’t get past that point yet and I have some catching up to do. I will only write about them when winter season ends.

• Garo
• Parasyte
• Seven Deadly Sins
• Your Lie in April

And I realized I have a few other shows I picked before Fall started that I haven’t yet watched. I won’t watch them any time soon.

• Donten ni Warau
• Log Horizon 2nd Season
• Magic Kaito 1412
• Yowamushi Pedal: Grande Road

 

I guess I’m (not so) ready to welcome Winter 2015 now that Fall’s out of the way.