Dantalian no Shoka Preview and First Impressions

Airing
June 16, 2011 @ 0123
Every Saturday.

Producer
Gainax

Genre
Fantasy, Supernatural

Synopsis
Hugh Anthony Disward inherits an old mansion and a personal library from his grandfather. In the basement of the mansion, he meets a mysterious girl, Dalian. She is a Dantalian and a gateway to "Dantalian's bookshelf", which stores the prohibited books of the demons.

"Gensho (Illusory Books)", the prohibited books, endanger the balance of the world, but people are fascinated by the taboo. Hugh and Dalian solve the cases involving Gensho with their ability to access the Dantalian bookshelf.

Pre-season Thoughts

"I see a gun, fire, and Victorian era style. Disregard everything because this is the most necessary thing to pick up this season." 

As you may or may not know, I choose anime by the art style first. The ones I pick are always usually not the best but I have a far better chance of being able to finish it. Plot wise it sounded pretty original. I'd never heard of anything like it before so I wouldn't be expecting much coming into this series, albeit it seems like the typical anime I'd watch.

Typical anime for me = tsundere girl + boy + some sort of magic + MacGuffin

Considering the prospects as a whole, I wasn't expecting a masterpiece. I was just looking for a bit of fun.

PV


First Impression
It started off nicely, clearly explaining the situation. It wasn't overly poetic or beautifully done or anything but it set the premise for the story so you kind of actually know where the story was heading. I guess that denotes predictability in a way, but hey, it's the first episode. In a way, I found it a little boring at the beginning. I mean, I knew what was going to happen but at least it didn't confuse me. The art was somewhat mediocre. It was a bit strange seeing how insanely pale Dalian was. What I wasn't expecting was that it was a little scary. (Maybe it's just because I watched it in the middle of the night. Who knows.) Yes, I was thoroughly creeped out. Not to mention that ED. How freaky is the girl in the ED? I was scared watching that during the day.

Overall, the first episode was a bit rushed. It did introduce the story but everything happened way too fast and too much  happened in a short time span. It didn't seem to flow very well. Hopefully this show won't become episodic. There are only 13 epiosdes.

And another thing. I've noticed a lot of people comparing this to GOSICK. I guess Hugh and Dalian are somewhat similar to Kujo and Victorique in that they're a male and a female. Oooh, what a striking resemblance. The leads are of the same gender. Wonderful. Seriously though, the only similarity I've noticed is the Victorian era style. Really.

Can't say I minded the start too much really. It's obviously not ever going to be the best anime in the world and I'm honestly not expecting much more out of it. I mean, if it did offer more, I wouldn't be complaining but I can enjoy it just the way it is.

Usagi Drop Preview + First Impression

Airing:
8th July 2011 (Yes, that was last week.) 0045

Producer:
Production IG

Genre:
Slife of Life

Synopsis:
Going home for his grandfather's funeral, thirty-year-old bachelor Daikichi is floored to discover that the old man had an illegitimate child with a younger lover! The rest of his family is equally shocked and embarrassed by this surprise development, and not one of them wants anything to do with the silent little girl, Rin. In a fit of angry spontaneity, Daikichi decides to take her in himself! But will living with this overgrown teenager of man help Rin come out of her shell? And hang on, won't this turn of events spell doom for Daikichi's love life?!

Fansub:
I do believe I'm watching Doki Fansubs. (Why is the fansub important? I've got no idea. In any case, anything is better than HorribleSubs ripped of Crunchyroll. To be honest though, after watching all these Korean shows, any Japanese fansub is way better.) 

Thoughts:
At first, I didn't really notice this show because the art really isn't too eye-catching. That's an understatement really. I had a look at the chart for the 100th time a few days before the season started and actually read all the synopses and thought it sounded really interesting and really felt like it was something I had to watch. So I ditched my plans of watching Blood-C (which I heard isn't too good) and went with this instead. 

PV:


First Impression:
Truly and completely honestly, my first thought was 'the art is weird'. The colours aren't that nice and it takes a bit to get used to. Well, for me it did. I didn't really like the way the scenery was done, but hey, each to their own. Story-wise, it was a good introduction episode. Nothing too extraordinary but it was nice. The story isn't extra special or different but I'm looking forward to a heartwarming series.

Ikoku Meiro no Croisée First Impression

This first episode completely defied my expectations. Having not read the manga, I was expecting a moe-fest but what I saw was quite different. The animation features the story of a young girl who travels to France to work. While it may seem slow to some, I find the story really nice and heartwarming. Yune is a really respectable character, portrayed as the ideal Japanese woman. She's really adorable, it's hard not to fall in love with her immediately. The character dynamic between Yune and Claude is really cute. I also really liked the classical background music.

Apparently, this show has Aria vibes. I haven't seen Aria yet so I wouldn't know. What I do know is this is a good show to enjoy after a long day or before bed. I don't like giving away plot in these things so that's all I'll say. The first episode was a nice start to the show and to the season for me. 

「PREVIEW」Ikoku Meiro no Croisée

Airing:
4th July 2011 0030

Producer:
Satelight (Fairy Tail, Macross Frontier, Shugo Chara)

Genre:
Slife of Life, Historical

Synopsis:
Based on manga by Hinada Takeda, who did the art for Gosick. Maybe that's why it caught my eye. 
The story takes place in the second half of the 19th century, as Japanese culture gains popularity in the West. A young Japanese girl, Yune, accompanies a French traveller, Oscar, on his journey back to France, and offers to help at the family's ironwork shop in Paris. Oscar's nephew and shop-owner Claude reluctantly accepts to take care of Yune, and we learn how those two, who have so little in common, get to understand each other and live together in the Paris of the 1800s.

Fansub:
According to fansubwiki, it's Interrobang. They're slow. My life is over. Just kidding. I'm just going to have to wait and see.  I should be thankful to those who sub these shows considering I don't understand much Japanese, especially conversational Japanese.

Thoughts:
This was the third series I decided to pick up this season with the firm decision that it was just something I had to watch. Oddly enough, it was the last series to catch my eye and I only saw it on about the 10th time I had a look at the chart. There's just something about the story that sits well with me. It really sounds like a beautiful story. I don't want to expect too much and see it fall flat but I'm hoping for something enjoyable. It doesn't have to be spectacular but I just has to be worth my time.

PV: