Quick Impressions for Spring 2015 (First Quarter)

Now that the season has entered its quarterly mark, and all the 3-episode rules have been fulfilled, its time to check back to see what I'm keeping and what I'm dropping, as well as my Top 5 picks for the season.

DROPPED

Kyoukai no RINNE

Kekkai Sensen


ON-THE-FENCE (OTF)

Plastic Memories
Episodes Watched: 4
Verdict: OTF
For a series with quite an intriguing premise, I must confess that I am pretty disappointed the way this has turned out. The episodes aren't bad per se, but frankly uninspired and cliched. The characters all fall into established archetypes and their depth is non-existent. Aside from a few character-driven moments, the rest was all filled with filler which did nothing at all to flesh out the characters. Worse still, emotional moments were completely destroyed by what-was-supposed-to-be-funny-but-wasn't moments that took out every ounce of emotional intensity the scene should have employed. To be fair, this show does have its moments, but completely redundant scenes and poor direction have left me with a poor taste in my mouth. If it wants to warrant my attention, it had better step up its game soon.
  

WATCHING

Dungeon ni Deai o Motomeru no wa Machigatte Iru Darouka
Episodes Watched: 4
Verdict: WATCHING
It has all been done before - the harem hijinks, the cliches and the main character, and yet I'm still watching this show. Sure, its nothing special, but with decent animation coupled with a standard cliche plot, it manages to mildly entertain me - and as far as I'm concerned, if an anime can entertain, it has already done it job well. 




Owari no Seraph
Episodes Watched: 4
Verdict: WATCHING

In a drastic change from its stellar premiere, Owari no Seraph has now denigrated to be a high-school rom-com reminiscent of Ao no Exorcist. I'm not buying the idea that a high school is a necessary part of the story's progression. And even if it is, its not showing any evidence of that. That said, I'm still quite intrigued by this show, from the setting to its characters. With the vampire's queen's (spoiler) declaration of war with the humans, things are bound to get interesting.




Arslan Senki
Episodes Watched: 4
Verdict: WATCHING
Arslan Senki has yet to let me down with its run of great episodes, but I fear that this is merely only the preamble. The story has yet to even take off, and I fear that the two-cour series run-time will be insufficient to cover the sheer scale of the series. But for the mean time,  I'll gladly accept whatever we're given. Arslan Senki is filled with characters with a lot of depth, and a strong protagonist that subverts the typcial shounen protagonist. Arslan is physically weak, introverted and uncharismatic, but he has an iron core of steel, understands the hearts of his people and probes into the issues that really matters. As his entourage grows, I'm excited to see the possibilities that lie ahead.


Hibike! Euphonium
Episodes Watched: 3
Verdict: WATCHING

Despite its similarities with K-ON!, Sound! Euphonium is definitely not the same anime about cute-girls-doing-cute-things. Euphonium, unfortunately, isn't on the same level of Hyouka - even if their visuals are almost as impressive as Hyouka's - but it is a step in the right direction. Euphonium is the first KyoAni production in a while that shows promise, and if the latests episodes are anything to go by, it has much potential to be explored. Sound! Euphonium seems to be pushing the right buttons and asking the right questions so far, but only time will tell if their effects will bear fruit. With KyoAni's pedigree, it should end up pretty well.  


Ore Monogatari!!
Episodes Watched: 3
Verdict: WATCHING

A cute love story. Well... the confession has already gone through. Cue the ending theme...
Wait. It's two cours? There's another 21 episodes...?
I'm a bit surprised that the OTP has already confessed and are already a couple within the first three episodes. I know there's no sense in delaying the inevitable, but the progression seemed way too fast. Exactly what are they going to do for the next twenty-over episodes?
Whatever we are given though, is really good. The story progression, while fast, was well-paced and well-directed. Aesthetically wise, the art couldn't be handled better. Although I'm a bit perplexed at what they will do for the rest of run, this anime should do well.


Yamada-kun and the Seven Witches
Episodes Watched: 3
Verdict: WATCHING

An anime I left out at the earlier Impressions, Yamada is a adaptation of a popular manga of the same name. Although I have not read the manga, Yamada seems to be a pretty fun anime. I like the art style and the story progression and I hope it continues its good run. This looks like our resident rom-com for the season, and a pretty good one, too!


DEFINITELY WATCHING

Yahari Ore no Seishun Rabukome wa Machigatteiru. Zoku
Episodes Watched: 4
Verdict: DEF. WATCHING

As this series continues, it is quite evident that this show is an entirely different animal that the first. The same formula that made the first popular is still there, but now the show goes off on a different tangent and explores the psyche of the characters - especially Hachiman and his self-sacrificial pedagogy. The characters of OreGairu often peruses a lot of depth, and we need all the character development we can get. A definite keeper in my book.   

Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha ViVid
Episodes Watched: 4
Verdict: DEF. WATCHING

If you are not a fan of the first three seasons of Nanoha, then certainly your mileage may vary. As a mahou shoujo show, there is the same mahou shoujo antics that are geared towards younger audiences (well, this IS a shoujo show). For those who are already fans of the original series, it is fun to see the parallels between the relationships between Nanoha and Fate and their circle of friends with the relationship of Vivio and Einhart and their circle of friends. Its slowly building up the characters, but the plot is bound to move forward soon.


Fate/Stay Night [Unlimited Blade Works]
Episodes Watched; 4
Verdict: DEF. WATCHING
If its not apparent by now, I am a HUGE fan of the Fate franchise, so I'm likely to be quite biased at its offerings. Luckily, UBW has done very little to warrant criticism, and instead has been rather praise-worthy indeed. Admittedly, it still seems to leave first-time viewers out of the loop, but a couple of looks at my primers should tell you all that you need to know (please leave a comment on them if you have any questions). This is certainly the best anime of the season, so if you're not watching this you're missing out. BIG TIME.


Shokugeki no Souma
Episodes Watched: 4
Verdict: DEF. WATCHING

There is hardly another anime this season which is as shamelessly explicit as Shokugeki no Souma, but that is probably one of the series' charms. Shokugeki no Souma's fanservice has not lessened in the slightest, but at least it has become slightly more palatable. The standard shounen elements are here, and all the ingredients to an excellent anime are in place, so let the cooking begin. This is one of my favourites this season, and I'm definitely going to keep up with this.


Baby Steps
Episodes Watched: 4
Verdict: DEF. WATCHING

The most faithful adaptation of a sports anime in recent times continues to steamroll the competition with sheer faithfulness. Studio Pierrot has made a wise decision in choosing to stick with the manga as close as possible and look at what it has produced - one of the best sports anime this season. Granted, it is not the typical shounen sports show with special powers and secret tactics, but watching a regular guy slowly levelling up has its appeals too.

....And without further ado, the Top 5:

TOP 5 (New Series)	TOP 5 (Overall)
1. Shokugeki no Souma	1. Fate/Stay Night UBW
2. Owari no Seraph	2. Baby Steps 2
3. Ore Monogatari	3. Yahari Ore no Seishun Rabukome wa Machigatteiru. Zoku
4. Arslan Senki	4. Shokugeki no Souma
5. Hibike! Euphonium	5. Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha ViVid

Why are there two Top 5 lists? I try not to put sequels and split-cour series on the same scale as new series because they may be riding on the glory of their predecessor, and I want to judge each series based on its individual merits. As new series do not have this restriction, they qualify for both lists.