Wednesday, July 9, 2014

First Impressions: Sword Art Online S2 Ep 1, Hanayamata Ep 1, Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-kun Ep 1, Akame ga Kill! Ep 1, Jinsei Ep 1, Argevollen Ep 1, Locodol Ep 1, Rail Wars Ep 1, Momo Kyun Sword Ep 1

 
Sword Art Online S2 Ep 1: Mysterious deaths has occurred among players who logged into the Gun Gale Online game. Kirito who has started a new life with Asuna was requested by the Ministry of Internal Affairs' Virtual Division, Kikuoka to investigate the deaths due to his experiences. However he was reluctant to do so. Meanwhile a sniper named Sinon in the game was in top form...

So after the previous season which is filled with loop holes, idiotic characters and an uninteresting second half, did this first episode make me get hype again? No, to be honest. I find that it is just a matter of Kirito want to take the offer or not. But because of his curiosity and his past histories, he find it hard to resist and enter the game without Asuna's knowledge. (Which I am guessing that she take a back seat again for Kirito to flirt around with this arc's female lead, Sinon) If you like the first season, more power to you. For me, I will rather watch something else instead.


Hanayamata Ep 1: Naru is a pretty average girl and has some self confidence issues. Her only interest is reading fairy tales and was amazed by it. One night, she met an America girl named Hana who was dancing the Yasakoi-a combination of traditional dances and modern music and Naru was mesmerised by it. However she was too shy to ask and later, Hana was in the same class as her and she keep pestering her to join the Yasakoi club that she created. Naru finally give in and is about to step into a whole new world...

I think we see this scenario before. Girl who has confidence issues meet a form of art or sports that make her join and from there on, her life will never be the same again. In the case of Yasakoi, it is similar since it took almost the end of the episode before Naru took the first step to a bigger world. Hana was fun and full of energy-a complete opposite and from the opening, Naru's only friend, tomboy Yaya, Senior year students-Tami and Machi are also going to be part of the group. The opening was very catchy and if this is good, it could be the next K-On to start a new trend-Yasakoi dance.


Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-kun Ep 1: Chiyo has a crush on fellow student, Nozaki however when she tried to confess her love, he mistakenly think that she want a job and hired her as his manga assistant. Chiyo found out that Nozaki's pen name is Yumeno Sakiko and is a popular shoujo manga artist. However Nozaki has no experiences in love and his ideas are too far-fetched. Chiyo started giving pointers but is still unable to confess her love (Plus, getting two signatures from Nozaki in one episode!)

I don't really read shoujo manga but this is one that I will probably will find it since it is so hilarious. Chiyo is very funny and plucky since Nozaki was oblivious to her signals. Nozaki's ideas for his manga were funny like how his male lead tried to get girls to ride on his bicycle and the results was closer to a shouen manga punchline than a shoujo manga punchline. Interesting start and hope more funny moments between Chiyo and Nozaki.


Akame ga Kill! Ep 1: Tatsumi tried to work in the Captial as a warrior but he was conned by a woman of his money. He was taken in by a rich family and that night, the family was murdered by a group of assassins called Night Raid. Tatsumi held his own against one of the assassins, Akame and when he found that his former friends were murdered by the rich family. He killed the last family member and was taken in by Night Raid...

In preparation for this show, I went to read the manga and man, it is hard core! The Captial is controlled by an evil government using a child emperor as a puppet. Furthermore, the rich and corrupted ruled everyone lives leaving the Night Raid to the law into the own hands. Akame herself is the typical cool, strong girl with a complex past. She showed no emotions to her target and Tatsumi is probably the one who will open her heart slowly. It is okay but you need to have a strong stomach for some of the more graphic scenes in this show.
 
 
Jinsei Ep 1: Akamatsu was asked by his cousin, Ikumi to led the school newspaper club and to gather 3 girls who are good in their field to become life advisers for the newspaper column. We have intellect Rino, sport girl Ayaka and helpful Fumi to act as advisers. However the advices they gave will kinda of silly and so far, no one isn't complaining about it...

The show remind me of Love Club but with a guy in the mix. Rino is the smart one but shy among guys, Ayaka is the active one and a bit of a tomboy while Fumi is kind hearted and has the biggest rack. The first episode is all right but it need more "punch" if they want to be more interesting about it..


Argevollen Ep 1: Two nations, Arandas and Ingelmia were at war with each other and they used robot mechs to battle. An Arandas rookie pilot, Tokimune rescued a scientist, Jamie when her convey was attacked. He was guided by Jamie to pilot a newly advanced robot named Argevollen and defeated the enemy forces...

I wasn't really impressed with the first episode since Tokimune came out in the second half and it was focusing more on the main battle at the border. Of course when Argevollen was activated, it was quite all right and it was very fast since all the other mechs took forever to move around as they were very slow in their mobility. So far, it is ok but I need to watch a few more episodes to convince myself.
 
 
Locodol Ep 1: Nanako was conned by her uncle to appear as a local idol to promote the re-opening of the town's swimming complex. She met her partner, Yukari to perform together. Nanako messed up at first but thanks to Yukari's quick thinking, they became the talk of the town the next day. She then found out that Yukari is her senior at school...

Not the most original idea but instead of idols in the city competing each other, we have local idols who promote their towns' attractions. Nanako is the klutz but kind hearted girl and Yukari is the gentle senior. The pacing is all right but will need to watch more.
 
 
Rail Wars Ep 1: Naoto dream of getting a stable job at the Japanese National Railways. He enrolled in the one month training and was group up with tough guy Sho, man-hater mark woman Haruka and kind hearted and intelligent Aoi. After one month of training which include a one day attachment at the Tokyo station in which the group found a lost puppy and arresting a pair of purse snatchers, Naoto and his team mates were finally assigned to Team K4-the security unit of the organisation.

If you love trains a lot like how Naoto will always spur knowledge of different trains and station, this show is for you. But the rest of the show is pretty cliched since we have the tough guy, the tomboy, the nice girl with the biggest rack (Again!), the cute senior and the bad ass chief. But I know this show take quite a turn since they will be dealing with a terrorist group who plan to privatise the train system by force. (Really? I thought just setting up a rival company will be better than blowing things up)
 
 
Momo Kyun Sword Ep 1: Momoko was born from a peach and was raised by her adopted grandparents and her three companions-Inugami, Sarugami and Kijigami. When Oni monsters attacked her villages in search of fragments of the Michimi no Momo, Momoko teamed up with the Celestial warriors to save the village. They were successful in chasing off the Oni and even broke off one of the horn of Oni general Tekki. Momoko was asked by the Tenyo (The Celestial Head) to search for the other fragments and defeat the Oni...

A re-telling of the Momotarou folk story with Momoko as the female lead. I already like Momoko's design and with Taketatsu Ayana voicing her, it was a plus for me. The rest of the cast is all right and instead of Momoko's animal companions giving moral support, they are able to grant Momoko different power up like Inugami merging his soul with her to make her a stronger warrior. It is a good start plus with all the fan service running around, this is one show I won't miss it!
 

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