Summer 2011 Preview!
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As the summer season draws upon us, it’s time to take an in-depth look at what’s just around the corner. There are 26 shows to choose from, marking a significant increase from the 16 offered last summer. Brain’s Base is making a splash this season with three productions, all of which show a lot of promise. Sunrise is back with another original series, leading the way in the fantasy department. BONES and Production I.G are going the sci-fi and heartfelt drama route with their noitaminA shows, plus the latter is providing an original vampire series of its own. GAINAX also makes a rare appearance, providing the standout mystery series of the bunch, though J.C. Staff may have something to say about that with its own adaptation. It’s a bustling summer season with a lot of high school romantic comedies to round it out, which is great for getting back into the blogging swing of things.
* A season poll is available on the sidebar. It will automatically close on July 1st at 6:00 AM PST to coincide with the start of the season.
* This preview will be kept at the top for the next while, so be sure to scroll past it or check the Recent Entries on your right for new posts.
Retrospective Look – May 2011
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As I alluded to last month, I’m bowing out of the monthly posts for the rest of the season, as these three months are all about Kiiragi, Prooof, and Takaii’s coverage of anime. Please see below for a comparative take on all the shows they’re watching.
Changes since last month:
Note: Once again, please be considerate of others who may be interested in picking up a series after reading about it here by placing discussion of any major spoilers in <spoiler></spoiler> tags. There will be little to no tolerance for anyone intentionally spoiling the enjoyment of others.
Break Blade – 05
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「死線ノ涯」 (Shisen no Hate)
“Horizon of Death”
The story has shifted away from Zess since the capture of Cleo and introduction of Borcuse in the third movie, and this fifth one continues on that trend. In his place, we have Girge bumping heads with Rygart, and ultimately changing his attitude toward the war between Athens and Krisna altogether.
Note: It’s a bit difficult to look at fifth movie alone when I’ve already watched the sixth one that was streamed on Bandai Channel, but I wanted to talk about the final two movies separately. I’ll have more thoughts on the ending later on and how it left the series as a whole unfinished, should I decide to cap off the much lower quality stream. (The BD release isn’t until July 22.)
Ore no Imouto ga Konnani Kawaii Wake ga Nai – 15 (TRUE END)
Look who’s back.
「俺の妹がこれで最終回なわけがない」 (Ore no Imouto ga Kore de Saishuukai na Wake ga Nai)
“There’s No Way This is The Last Time for My Sister”
After two full episodes Kirino-free, the stage was more or less set for our bratty heroine to make a return in the finale. I imagine no one in their right mind was expecting this true route to be completely devoid of Kirino’s presence, regardless of how refreshing it’s been with Sena substituting in as another younger sister with a rampant fetish.
Kampfer fur die Liebe – 13
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「Versuchung ～抜け駆け～」 (Nukegake)
“Temptation ~Steal a March On~”
The two-episode Blu-ray release of Kampfer’s direct continuation has been released, and with it comes the more relevant first episode (thirteenth overall) that was preempted on March 31st due to the earthquake crisis in Japan. This episode is more relevant in the sense that it addresses the fallout of the eleventh episode of the original series, when Kaede was revealed to be a Moderator who oversees the Kampfer battles used to settle a power struggle somewhere off in the universe.