Basquash! – 12
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Summary:
One of the teams that Dan and company have to face in the championship consists of triplets who specialize in magic tricks.
Suzumiya Haruhi no Gensou Actually Not Bad
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In my dark and depressing pre-20 anime per week days, I would usually scoff at those who listened to anime and game OSTs – why listen to some pew pew soundtrack when you could be listening to… oh, Puff Daddy or DMX or uhh Ayumi Hamasaki. Y’know – cool people music. Ah, those were the days. Since then my music collection has slowly been overtaken by an abundance of [nipponsei], and I’ve even uploaded some Youtube videos of me playing those same songs I used to scoff at. Times have changed, and I’ve really started to appreciate the amount of talent that goes into this kind of composing. Still, I believe there’s a difference between the music that goes into the likes of K-ON and that of Gundam, specifically it how well it translates to classical orchestra music. Which is why I was thoroughly surprised with Suzumiya Haruhi no Gensou, the concert by the Tokyo Philharmonic on April 29 that was just released on CD. The music from Haruhi was largely… teenybopper and/or rock, both of which I wouldn’t imagine translating well into classical. Surprisingly enough, the adaptation is quite good! Some tracks remind me of Hisaishi’s work in Totoro, others sound like it could’ve come out of some classic Disney movie. Well, the instrumental tracks, at least. Several tracks have Hirano Aya and Chihara Minori blaring away, and while some of you will probably love these alternate versions, their inability to hit or hold the right notes is a bit hard on my ears. Check out orchestral Mikurun-run and a Hiranofied God Knows! |
Summer 2009 Preview!
The Spring season seemed to go by really fast, and now Summer is finally here! The selection is a little bit more limited than the Spring season, but there’s still around 20 new shows premiering, not including OVAs or kiddie stuff. As usual, I’ll try to watch the first episode of as many shows as I can within certain parameters (in other words, not those kiddie shows), and what I list here are the chances of me actually blogging something based on my initial impressions from promotional material. However, even if I list the chances for a show as good or guaranteed, it doesn’t necessarily mean I’ll stick with it for more than a few episodes unless it actually is good.
By no means does this list reflect every single anime series that is going to be aired, though I did try to be as comprehensive as I could. Check out MOON PHASE for an entire listing, syoboi’s calendar for specific airtimes, and Fansub Wiki’s Summer 2009 page for who’s tentatively subbing what.
Technical Note: All times are given in a 24-hour, relative-day format where times are extended to show which day they belong to. For instance, Friday morning at 1:30AM would become Thursday at 25:30 to show that the episode aired late Thursday night.
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Bakemonogatari http://www.bakemonogatari.com/ Premiere on July 3rd, 2009 Airtime in Japan (JST, GMT+9): Fridays at 23:00 Airtime in U.S. (EDT, GMT-4): Fridays at 10:00 Information Links: ANN Encyclopedia, AnimeNfo, AniDB, MyAnimeList, syoboi The first of SHAFT and director Shinbou Akiyuki‘s two summer series is about a high school guy who meets different girls in each of the story arcs, all of whom are have something supernatural going on with them. I know I haven’t been the biggest fan of SHAFT’s style over the past several seasons since it tends to favor comedy and inside jokes (with the exception of maybe ef), but I’ve heard good things about the novels that this is based on, and the promos for this series show some very high production quality, so I’m willing to give this a try. Odds I’ll Blog This: Good |
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CANAAN http://www.canaan.jp/ Premiere on July 4th, 2009 Airtime in Japan (JST, GMT+9): Saturdays at 22:30 Airtime in U.S. (EDT, GMT-4): Saturdays at 9:30 Information Links: ANN Encyclopedia, AnimeNfo, AniDB, MyAnimeList, syoboi The show I’m probably most excited about this upcoming season is CANAAN. It’s based on a scenario created by Type-Moon founders Nasu Kinoko and Takeuchi Takashi for the Wii game 428: Fuusasareta Shibuya de about an assassin-like girl in Shanghai going up against a crime organization whose leader was responsible for terrorism in Shibuya. It’s being produced by the P.A. Works team that did true tears, and the promo videos look great, but if that’s not enough, it’s got an A-list cast as well including Sakamoto Maaya, Sawashiro Miyuki, and Tanaka Rie. Basically, this show should have everything going for it in terms of production, story, and cast, and I’m definitely planning on watching it. Odds I’ll Blog This: Guaranteed |
Note: This is a rather long and fairly comprehensive list of July shows. Much much more after the jump, including a bunch of promo videos.
Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood – 12
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Summary:
Ed and Al arrive in Dublith and are soon reunited with their teacher Izumi Curtis and her husband.
Valkyria Chronicles – 12
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Summary:
Outside the castle, Karl witnesses Alicia and Cordelia being tied up and taken away on a cart.
Hatsukoi Limited – 11
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Summary:
In the aftermath of telling Kei that he hates people like her the most, Kusuda runs away and joins his depressed friends.
Eden of the East – 11 (END)
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Summary:
On her way back to the shopping mall, Saki calls Hirasawa and explains what she knows about Akira.
Suzumiya Haruhi 2009 – 12 (Endless Eight)
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Summary:
One summer day, Haruhi calls up Kyon and forces him to meet up with her and the rest of the SOS Brigade.
Suzumiya Haruhi 2009 – Super Driver (New OP)
As expected, there was a new episode of Haruhi today, Endless Eight, and with it came a new OP: Super Driver by Hirano Aya. As you might know, I’m not a very big fan of hers when it comes to singing (bad memories of LOVE GUN still linger), and this didn’t really change my opinion any, but regardless of whether or not you like her music, the animation that goes with it still a fun watch.