fall 2014

Rule of Three Review, Bubble Digest: Laughing Under the Clouds, In Search of the Lost Future – Episodes 2-3

The moment of truth.

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These two shows have a surprising amount in common for me, despite their wildly different settings, casts, and overall tones. Both struggled to get me invested in the characters and the story during the first episode, both had what I saw as some pacing issues where I kept waiting for them to get to the point, and both kept me watching thanks to some late-episode reveals and ongoing mysteries that held enough promise for a three-episode rule. So did they live up to that potential, or did they lose their futures on my watchlist? Hit the jump to see how they look a couple episodes later.

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Panning the Stream: Mushi-shi: The Next Passage (Part 2), Yuki Yuna wa Yusha de Aru, Girlfriend BETA

The stream may have slowed to a trickle, but that doesn’t mean we can’t still find some gold.

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It always feels strange to do a premiere post after doing a Rule of Three Review, but due to licensing issues and delayed release schedules, sometimes it happens. This time we’ve got girls both magical and vanilla (in every since of the word), plus an old friend returns (again!) and I’m very happy to see him. Hit the jump to read what may very well be the last premiere post of the fall season.

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Rule of Three Review, Caps Lock Digest: TERRAFORMARS, DENKI-GAI – Episodes 2-3

Trimming the watchlist, one censored mess at a time.

The first pair in our Fall Rule of Three Reviews were both shows that were on my radar going into the season, but which proved less noteworthy than I’d originally hoped. One is more of a tastes thing, while the other is pretty much just awful. Which is which, and how do they affect the watchlist for the rest of the season? Hit the jump to find out.

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Panning the Stream, Sequel Edition: Chaika the Coffin Princess, Yowamushi Pedal, Psycho-Pass

Reunited – and it feels so good.

I was going to knock out all my sequels in one fell swoop, but since the new Mushishi doesn’t air for another week, it made more sense to go ahead and get these (re)Meet ‘n’ Greets out now. I’ve changed up the formatting to include a little information about the first season for the sake of any newcomers. I’m also keeping my overall opinions fairly short to avoid spoilers (and because I’m guessing that most of you already know what to expect). Hit the jump to reacquaint yourself with some old friends and to see if the spark is still there.

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Panning the Stream: SHIROBAKO, Your Lie in April, Gonna Be the Twin-Tail

I knew you wouldn’t let me down.

No high fantasy this time (gasp!), but it doesn’t matter, because we’ve got one very good and one positively lovely premiere from two of my favorite studios today, and they’re both getting nice, long Meet ‘n’ Greets. Oh, and then I watched something ridiculous about pigtails. But let’s focus on the first two instead. Hit the jump for stories about animation, music, and the messy artistic process.

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Panning the Stream: Parasyte, Garo the Animation, Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai, Trinity Seven

No, it’s cool, you guys. I didn’t really want to sleep tonight anyway.

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I crammed four shows onto this list because only Parasyte is getting a full review, but boy howdy, is it a doozy. I’m still on the fence about whether or not it will make my watchlist, although this has nothing to do with the show’s quality and everything to do with me being creeped the hell out. Screw your courage to the sticking place and hit the jump for this skin-crawling Meet ‘n’ Greet.

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Panning the Stream: Yona of the Dawn, Rage of Bahamut: Genesis, InoBato

Fall (much like Tahiti) is swiftly becoming a magical place.

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I’m ready to call this the season of swords and sorcery, as there seems to be a ridiculous number of high fantasy series on the schedule (to say nothing of the low fantasy series like Fate/stay night). While the new shows haven’t had much in the way of “wow” moments so far, I gotta admit that if I had to choose between middle-of-the-road high school drama and middle-of-the-road dragon slaying, I’d choose the latter any day of the week. Anime fantasy is near and dear to my heart, and I’m happy to see it making a comeback on the schedule.

True to the season’s trends, this batch features a trio of stories with fantastical elements, from a pair of very promising (and very different) high fantasies to a bland supernatural school tale. Hit the jump and get excited for these two Meet ‘n’ Greets, as they’ve got the potential to be memorable additions to that lovely catalog of anime fantasy tales.

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Panning the Stream: Gugure! Kokkuri-san, Laughing Under the Clouds, JOKER

Good things come in small (and unexpected) packages.

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After writing yesterday’s somewhat discouraging premiere digest, I sat down to watch my final Sunday series, feeling like Fall was doing exactly what its name implied. Which, of course, was the moment when I turned on Gugure! Kokkuri-san (“Google it, Kokkuri-san!”) and found my first potential gold nugget of the season. There’s nothing like that giddy feeling of discovery to rejuvenate you for the long premiere week ahead.

Outside of that pleasant surprise, we have a series with a lot of (currently unrealized) potential and a standard but enjoyable kids’ show. Can Fall rise? Maybe so. Two Meet ‘n’ Greets and a quickie review below the jump.

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Panning the Stream: World Trigger, Cross Ange, Grisaia, Wolf Girl and Black Prince, Celestial Method

That’s a whole lotta nope, right there.

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After yesterday’s uneven but at least somewhat intriguing premieres, I was starting to worry that I’d end up with another massive watchlist. Now I’m starting to worry that I won’t have very much on my watchlist at all. I’ve crammed five series into this post, and none of them are getting a full Meet ‘n’ Greet. The good news is that (1) most of the more promising shows for this season haven’t aired yet, and (2) a few of these are watchable enough that if we DO have a weak season, I could end up coming back to them.

It’s a wide variety, this bunch, from mecha epics to school stories, and while a couple simply didn’t catch my interest, a couple others were downright infuriating. Hit the jump for some quickie reviews as the nope parade rides through town.

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Panning the Stream: Lord Marksman and Vanadis, In Search of the Lost Future, Fate/stay night

Well, so much for “keeping these posts shorter”…

It’s possible I was just in the right anime-watchin’ mood yesterday, but all three of these shows are getting full Meet ‘n’ Greets, because while only one of them is pretty much a sure thing (Spoiler: It’s Fate/stay night), all three of them had at least enough of a spark to keep me on the fence. I wouldn’t give a full thumbs-up to either of the other two just yet, but, well… hit the jump and read on for details.

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