Sea Slugs! Anime Blog

I’m starting to think that my taste for slice-of-life comes and goes with my stress level. You’d think that I’d want to watch some cool, refreshing ARIA when I’m wound up to my breaking point, but in fact the opposite is true. As a result, this month’s hit list is somewhat devoid of slow paced SoL’s like Asatte and Bartender.

They Float My Boat:

1. CODE Geass: What really impresses me about this show is how vibrant the art is. The lively coloring and razor sharp CLAMP designs really stand out amongst the crowd of dreary-looking series.
2. Death Note: I finally sat down and had myself a mini Death Note marathon. Hot damn, this is good stuff. I think not reading the manga probably aided my enjoyment, otherwise I might have been bored to tears. Though there were plenty of highly implausible moments (when someone creeps up behind you and tells you not to turn around, the surprise would cause you to turn around anyways), I thoroughly enjoyed the cat-and-mouse game between Light-o and L.
3. Soukou no Strain: Totally hooked on this sci-fi entry - it has a space academy, angst, and a Rozen Maiden. Though it’s supposedly based off “A Little Princess” by Francis Hodgson Burnett, further investigation reveals that the similarities are tenuous at best. As in, some of the names in the book are used in the anime. At the moment, I’m loving the spiffy mecha designs (very organic!) and decent CG (though after seeing Soul Link, almost any CG starts looking “decent”). I also loved the fact that the heroine gets downgraded to grunt-mech status, and that the “mean bully” character doesn’t eventually befriend the protagonist. However, the plot is in extreme danger of becoming stale. One wonders how long the writers can keep things interesting now that Sara “Kira Yamato” Crewe has an uber-mech.
4. Super Robot Wars: Original Generation 2 for Gameboy Advance: This late port will undoubtedly go in history as one of the best GBA games that nobody played. OG2 retains most of the basic gameplay elements of its predecessor, but adds more features like better animation and pilot close-ups. The special attacks are even more over-the-top than in OG1, and the battle themes are as catchy as ever. On a side note, poor Rai must suffer from a serious case of “younger brother syndrome”; his nii-san Elzam has a killer mech (Trombe, then Ausenseiter), his own capital ship (Kurogane), and is loved by women, children, and small woodland animals. On top of that, his theme song overrides the boss-battle music. It’s tough to be number 2!
5. Hataraki Man: My only pseudo-SoL contender for the month! Feels almost like a documentary about magazine life. I must say, the intro is really starting to grow on me, especially the nasal theme song! This show is yet another example of how anime can make ANYTHING interesting. Now if only someone would make an anime about transistors…

They Get My Goat:

• Welcome to the NHK!: Somewhere along the way, this series has lost its soul, along with a large chunk of funding apparently. What was with the horrid animation in the most recent ep? These niche shows can always claim it was in the name of “artistic experimentation” I suppose.
• La Corda d’Oro: The character designs are REALLY starting to get to me (the rainbow-haired menagerie look is soooo last decade), and the plot twists are laughable. He is an awesome piano player who hides his talent for some unknown but tragic reason? No way!!1!1!

Limbo:

• Sumomomo Momomo: Releases have been slow. Now where am I going to get my fill of utterly stupid entertainment?