Summer Anime 2017 Preview: It's all about Super Powers!

Hello everyone! This is my preview for the upcoming Summer anime 2017 which begin this July! (Some of the series synopsis are taken from other sources)

Gamers!: Amano Keita is a loner who love video games and he discovered the beauty of the school, Karen Tendou is also a gamer and she created a gaming club for her own amusement!

Hajimete no Gal: Junichi want to get laid and decided to woo the gyaru in his class, Yame Yukana. What he didn't expect was Yukana seriously ended up falling in love with him and how Junichi overcome "the first time" in dating.

Kakegurui: Yumeko Jabami enrolled in Hyakkaou Private Academy where the elite students used anything to bet and losers were made to suffer their abuses. Yumeko decided to teach them a lesson by showing what high stakes are all about.

Fate/Apocrypha: In an alternative timeline, something went wrong during the Holy Grail War and one of the great magic families decided to wage war against the Magic association. As such both sides employed Mages/Master and Spirits/Servants for the Great Holy Grail War..

Isekai wa Smartphone to Tomo ni: Mochizuki Touya found himself in a fantasy world where magic and monsters exist. With only a smartphone on hand, Touya began the adventure of a lifetime!

Koi to Uso: In the near future, when young people in Japan turn sixteen, they are assigned a marriage partner by the government. Yukari Nejima lives in a small corner of the country, and just can't seem to get ahead in life. Both academically and athletically he's below average. But within him, he hides a heart burning with passion! In this world in which love is forbidden, what will happen to him when he falls in love?

Youkoso Jitsuryoku Shijou Shugi no Kyoushitsu: Ayanokouji Kiyotaka is a student of D-class where is where the school dumps its "inferior" students in order to ridicule them. For a certain reason, Kiyotaka was careless on his entrance examination, and was put in D-class. After meeting Horikita Suzune and Kushida Kikyou in his class, Kiyotaka's situation begins to change.

New Game!!: Season two of the misadventures of Aoba and her co-workers in a video game company.

Knight's & Magic: Eru whose past life was a fan of mecha was reincarnated into a world where robots and magic exist. With his unusual knack for mecha, Eru decided to create the most powerful robot in the kingdom!

Jikan no Shihaisha: Chronos Rulers (Jikan no Shihaisha) are those who fight the time-eating demons that appear when people wish they could turn back time.

Aho Girl: Yoshiko is a complete idiot who is proud of getting zero and eating bananas all day long. With her childhood friend and weird classmates by her side, Yoshiko's life is never a boring one!

Nora to Oujo to Noraneko Heart: One day, Nora meets a girl named Patricia in a park. Patricia says that she is a princess of the underworld, and has come to the surface world to destroy all life. But the first time she touches someone in the surface, she faints and Nora finds himself nursing her. Patricia asks Nora to tell him the secrets of life and Nora starts by explaining the adult magazine that they found in the park.

Isekai Shokudou: An ordinary restaurant hold a secret-Every Saturday, it led a portal to another world where customers who are not from this world paid a visit to the restaurant for it's meals and drinks...

Princess Principal: The "spy action" series follows five girls in 19th century London. The girls serve as undercover spies enrolled as students at the prestigious Queen's Mayfair school. The girls make use of their individual abilities to remain active in the underground world of disguise, espionage, infiltration, and car chases

Enmusubi no Youko-chan: In a world where Youkai and Humans live together and love each other. But the life of humans is limited and Youkai who lose their loved ones have to continue living without them. Even if the humans are reborn and the Youkai find their partner again, previous memories are lost to the human.

So a certain ‘service’ became popular among Youkai. Some Youkai can revive the lost memories of their love. If some Youkai loses a loved one and still desires them, they can go and buy the service and restore the lovers memory, starting over with days full of love.

The Reflection: From Comics Book Legend Stan Lee, come a show which was inspired by Boku no Hero Academia about what will you do if you have Super Powers one day?

Nanamaru Sanbatsu: A show about who is quick in pressing the buttons and answering questions in a game show!

Jigoku Shoujo: Yoi no Togi: Hell Girl return again for 6 new episodes!

Centaur no Nayami: Himeno is a sweet, shy girl who like many teens her age, struggles with the trials and tribulations of attending high school. The difference is she's a centaur and she's not alone...

Saiyuki Reload Blast: After years of travelling, Sanzo and his companions finally arrived in India but not everything is what they seem to be...

Dive!!: After Free, another swimming inspired show about hot guys in swimming trunks!

Hina Logi: From Luck & Logic: Liones Yelistratova a pure princess from a small country enters a school in Hokkaido on a spring day. The school is a specialized educational institution operated by ALCA to train Logicalists, who maintain world peace.

Battle Girl High School: From the popular App game of the same name.

RoboMasters the Animated Series: Based on the DJI-hosted RoboMasters competition, which is the world's biggest student robotics competition.

Clione no Akari: The story centers around an illness-stricken, constantly bullied orphan girl named Minori. After one rainy day, she doesn't turn up at school, having been admitted into a hospital in a distant town. Two months pass and the girl's two school friends, Takashi and Kyouko, receive a mysterious email with no sender listed. The email reveals a summer festival taking place at a nearby town...

Tenshi no 3P!: From the people who gave you Rokyubu come another show where cute little girls now play musical instruments!

Action Heroine Cheer Fruits: The story about how local heroines does good things to help people and to promote the town's popularity at the same time.

Senki Zesshou Symphogear AXZ: Season 4 of the action music battle series. (Seriously, how come this show keep getting new seasons every two or three years?)

Skirt no Naka wa Kedamono Deshita: Kominami Shizuka is a mild-mannered college student who is having trouble adjusting to city life. One day, she meets Kirishima Ryou, another student who projects the image of a cool older sister. The two hit it off but Shizuka is shocked when Ryou attempts to seduce her. Shizuka initially assumes that Ryou is a lesbian but Ryou is in fact a man who dresses like a lady.

Made in Abyss: A little orphan girl named Rico lives in the town of Ousu on the edge of the Abyss. Her dream is to become a Cave Raider like her mother and solve the mysteries of the cave system.

Mahoujin Guru Guru (2017): A retelling of the popular 90s anime of the same name.

Musekinin Galaxy☆Tylor: Another retelling of a little know anime series from the 90s.

Marvel Future Avengers: When three kids Makoto, Adi, and Chloe were kidnapped by Hydra, the Avengers rescued them and learn that the trio have super powers. Deciding to recruit the kids into become new Avengers, the kids now learn to fight alongside their favourite Marvel Superheroes!

Looking at this list, some of you might have guess which show I most probably hype for and it is Marvel Future Avengers! Yes, it is a kids' show and yes, it is weird that everyone speak Japanese and has many anime tropes in it.

However I did reviewed Marvel Disk Wars Avengers a few years back and it is pretty good despite a rocky start. Using the same cast as Disk Wars, it is pretty decent and by the end, it is actually better than a lot of current Marvel series from the west, eg: Avengers Assemble.

Fate/Apocrypha which I have started reading the manga and so far, it is pretty hardcore with both sides having their own agenda and the servants themselves are pretty bad-ass. It also mark the first appearance of Ruler aka Joan of Arc in anime form and her reasons for her appearance intertwine the war.

The rest of the shows of course, I will have to watch it first before deciding what to follow after three episodes. What are the shows you are looking forward to? Leave your comments and see you in July!

Marvel Disk Wars Avengers Full Series Review and Final Thoughts (Minor Spoliers)

Hi everyone! I have been very busy lately so I don't have time to review shows like Dog Days Season 3, Cinderella Girls and even Marvel Disk Wars Avengers due to my personal work life. I don't even have time to go through all the Spring shows that are out already. (Hopefully I can go through them eventually)

Anyway, here is my final review and thoughts of Marvel Disk Wars Avengers that ended last March.

If you are still living under a rock all these while, here is a short summary of the show-Tony Stark/Iron Man has created a new device named DISK that is able to hold any objects including humans for an indefinite period of time. He worked with Professor Akatsuki Nozomu from Japan and he invited his two sons, Akira and Hikaru to America to witness the unraveling of DISK. However Loki has send a lackey, Tim to steal the device and released many of the Super Villans from their prison.

In the chaos, the Avengers and many of the Marvel Super Heroes were captured into the DISK. But thanks to Spiderman, he managed to recover five of the disks and Akira, Hikaru and three more kids-Chris, Ed and Jessica were given the power to use the DISK. So the search begin to find the missing heroes and villains all over the world...

I love both Marvel and DC comics in general and I always look forward to how different interpretation of both heroes and villains will be from a different writer and artist will do. So when Toei animation and Marvel Comics team up to do this show, I was thinking will it have the same feel from the Madhouse's Marvel series?

But after reading the plot, it is clearly a show for kids and some might claimed it is ripping off Digimon and Pokemon. However instead of just focusing on the five main Avengers-Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, Hulk and Wasp (Not Black Widow) Toei was allowed to use any characters from the Marvel Universe (Except for the Fantastic Four which is odd) and they really brought on some B-list and even C-list characters into the series.

The show also doesn't take itself too seriously and the kids are not stupid to know what is right and wrong (Except for Akira) which I really dislike him despite being the series leading kid. But there is a reason why it was done this way. Iron Man is the smart ass show off like his movie counterpart and a bit of hot head which played with Akira's curious nature and playfulness. On many occasions, they couldn't get along but once they do, their partnership was great. Furthermore, Tony actually felt responsible for causing Akira and Hikaru to loss their father not once but twice! So in a way, he is making up to the two brothers like a surrogate father.

Hikaru is the overprotective older brother which mirror Thor's issues with Loki for having an irresponsible sibling. Chris and Captain America couldn't get along at first due to Cap fearing of losing another partner like Bucky but in the end, they came to a compromise and several occasions, Chris actually save Cap's life. Ed and Hulk are the odd couple however Hulk see a bit of his alter ego on Ed since he is such a weakling but in the end, they came out to be the best partners among the five kids. Jessica and Wasp are two peas of a kind so not much to say about them.

The best part of the show are the episodes when Akira and Iron Man are not the focus of the episodes. Seriously, Akira was annoying at hell and keep shouting Tony's name every time he is in trouble. Iron Man himself is arrogant, cocky and sometime get ahead of himself. The only time he is good is when he is quietly building some device in his lab and Pepper keeping a lash on him.

Only in this universe where the Mandrain and Silver Samurai actually come and bail Iron Man's ass!

I am seeing that Marvel and Toei also agreed on some terms when doing the episodes. Like when Guardians of the Galaxy the movie was aired in Japan, the show actually introduced them in a two parter and together with the Avengers, they battled Ronan the Accuser and Fin Fang Foom. People complained that the Avengers never worked with the X-Men in the America series but here they did and Magneto was a bad ass smashing Sentinels Robots like paper. They even did their version of Age of Ultron with Hank Pym saving the day. (Yes, it is Hank Pym not Tony who created Ultron for all you newbies!)

Rocket looked cute!

Spidey and Blade working together? Make that a Movie!

Even Blade and Deadpool who are considered Anti heroes appeared and they were a lot of fun. Blade was killing vampires like a bad ass and Deadpool bring in his signature Fourth Wall jokes into the episode. Spidey was also awesome for the first arc of the series which he helped the kids in getting the Avengers together and we even had a Venom episode (Although it is actually Hulk who got possessed by the Symboite) Even future Marvel movie characters like Dr Strange, Black Partner, Iron Fist and Luke Cage were promoted in the show and they were a lot of fun.

The main villains were Loki and his cronies-The Celebrity Five who are a group of people who can called out villains to do their biding. Of course, we had villains like MODOK, Green Goblin, Baron Zemo and they even have Destroyers (which I find them to be pretty weak compared to the movies) Even Red Skull and Crossbones also appeared in the second arc and they make up to pretty good villains and the team up of all the heroes battling them was epic!

But the show also suffered some flaws especially the graphic department. Toei is not really the best in doing long term shows and you can tell some of the characters actually look horrible and action scenes was kept to a minimum for some episodes. Some of the characters also looked funny like Captain America looked like Mega Man Star Force, Iron Fist is a Red Indian Chief, Black Widow looked like a Barbie doll. The weblines in Spidey's costume were circular instead of curves and the Lizard looked like Lizard man from Soul Caliber.

The final arc which is Loki mind controlling Nozomu into becoming Ronin and in cahoots with Dormammu was pretty typical Super Villains plot. Loki double cross Dormammu to gain his powers which you can see it a mile away and he went totally insane on the heroes. But of course thanks to the power of Friendship, Teamwork and the usual Anime yelling, the heroes saved the day with Loki trapped in a DISK for the rest of his life. (Hahaha!)

Overall, the show is a pretty good one if you get over the usual anime moments and accept it as a retelling of the Marvel Universe in anime form, you will enjoy it. Especially when the characters don't behave like idiots like those from Avengers Assemble which I really dislike it. The whole show is full of Fanservice and if Toei wanted to make a sequel (provided the sales of the DISK toys are good which I doubt it) make more heroes and villains and please don't make Loki as the Big Bad since he is really overrated at this point.

The Power of Friendship, Teamwork and Anime Cliques!

Final Verdict: Good for your collection. Just watch the best episodes and you will be fine!
 

Quick Picks: Date A Live S2 Ep 3-4, Love Live S2 Ep 4, Gaworare Ep 4, Marvel Disk Wars Avengers Ep 4-5

 

Date A Live S2 Ep 3-4: Shido was ordered by Reina to win the Yamai sisters' affections. Although things were going well, both sisters wanted to sacrifice themselves in order to save each other. However both refused to give in and decided to fight.

Suddenly Ellen arrived with a squad of robots and tried to abduct Tohka. She tried to defeat against Ellen but her Sandalphon was broken by her. Shido want to save her and created a stronger Sandalphon in his own image.

He managed to save Tohka and Ellen fell into a pit hole. Shido got the two sisters' attention and told them he will save both of them. It won their hearts and they too defeat Ellen's backup mother ship which was defeated by Ratatosk's crew.

After the battle, the two sisters kissed Shido and their powers were sealed by him. Meanwhile, Kotori received orders from her commander, Woodman to kill Shido if necessary as he now possessed the powers of the Angel...

That concluded the end of the Yamai sisters arc and it was all right although it was filled with fan service until this latest episode. It showed that Shido can used the Spirits' powers at well and it is stronger than the original user. Although Ellen and the DEM industries failed in capturing Tohka, it is just a matter of time before they returned again. Will Kotori complied her orders to kill Shido if needed?

Love Live S2 Ep 4: The girls learned they have make it to the 2nd round of the competition. However Nico was preoccupied with something and didn't attend training. The others followed her but Nico gave the slip.

They saw a little girl similar to Nico and learned she is her younger sister, Kokoro. She brought them back to her house and there were two more siblings, Kotaro and Koko. The girls also discovered that Nico has lied to her siblings that she is an idol now and the others are her back up singers.

Nico was confronted by the girls and she confessed she didn't want to break the dream of her siblings that she has become an idol. The others thought for a while and realise Nico had went through setbacks in her first two years and now she got a chance. They decided to let the siblings attend a mini concert held by Nico and she finally declared that she is no more a solo idol but part of an idol group, Muse....

So we get to know more of Nico and her white lie to her siblings. Although the others were angry that she lied that they are her backup dancers but both Eri and Nozomi also felt they could have help her in the first two years. Nico suffered many setbacks in becoming an idol and she didn't want to ruin her siblings' dreams. Thanks to the others, they found a way to break the news to the siblings and keeping her dreams alive...

Gaworare Ep 4: Souta and the girls began the one week of School Sport Meets. Although they are pretty good in their rankings, Souta is still worried of the death flag on his head. He accidentally spoke of the four classes in the letter he found and Ruri's program activated a new command for Souta.

Through Ruri's answers, he saw an image of Nanami, Ruri, Akane and an unknown girl in battle gear opening a mysterious door that reveal the truth of this world. The next day, Souta decided to give "speeches" in order for the girls minus Nanami to gain victory flags.

During the 3 legged race with Nanami, she had a fall but Souta carried her to the finish line. Although they were in 2nd place, Mimori informed them that the school shareholders decided to forfeit their bet as they were touched by their teamwork. As everyone was celebrating, a mysterious masked female was observing Souta from afar...

Souta managed to avoid being expelled from school but his danger is far from over. He know he has to find the "Cleric" in his group but there is no such person in the school. There is also the mysterious masked female whose motives is unknown and she disguised as one of the school shareholders. Will Souta be able to find the "Cleric" before his death flag is activated?

Marvel Disk Wars Avengers Ep 4-5: Iron Man explained that he can only remain out of the Disk for five minutes and it take at least six hours before he can be called out again. This is due to the Bio code Installer's damaged program. It was also revealed that Spider Man has caught hold four of the disks before they were teleported. Later Senator Roberts from the Pentagon visited the Helicarrier and framed Nick Fury in cahoots with the Shield scientist, Tim and Loki in releasing the Super Villains from the Raft.

Nick Fury was taken away as Hawkeye watched from the side. Meanwhile the Lizard was attacking the city and despite Roberts' protest of not allowing Akira and Iron Man to stop the Lizard, Marie Hill who is left in charge of SHIELD could just watch and do nothing. Spider Man spotted News reporter Rosetta and told her to stay clear. He confronted the Lizard and he claimed he is ordered to find one of the disk in the bank building nearby.

Iron Man arrived and together with Spider Man defeated the Lizard using a command from Akira which activated Iron Man's final attack-Ultimate Uni Beam. Akira captured the Lizard and Iron Man returned back to Akira. Suddenly they were attacked by Diamond Back which was released by Rosetta who is actually one of the Masked Men.

Meanwhile, Hawkeye approached Hikaru and Pepper and he want him to join the battle. Hikaru agreed and they parachute out of the Helicarrier. They arrived to help Akira while Hikaru rushed to find the disk in the bank. However Rosetta found it and it is King Cobra's DISK. She summoned him and knock Hikaru out of the building but Spider Man saved him.

Spider Man told Hikaru that he must be ready to accept great responsibilities for a great power. Hikaru accepted it and he was given the Thor DISK. Thor was called out and he defeated both King Cobra and Diamond Back with ease. Rosetta escaped with King Cobra with the help of Tim and Modok while Akira sealed up Diamond Back.

As the two Avengers returned to their disks and started arguing over what has happened the last few days, Roberts is revealed as Loki and he has imprisoned Nozomu in the Frost Giants Palace. Akira and Hikaru took refuge in Stark Tower with Pepper while Spider Man found Chris in an alley...

For those who think it is a silly show, I said this is a pretty fun show since I am a big of Marvel comics. I know some of the designs were weird like the Lizard who look like Lizard Man from Soul Caliber. Hawkeye looked like his Avengers Assemble counterpart but he is more serious and cool than the AA version who like eating his pickles.

It also make sense that since this is a Japanese anime that the heroes and villains called out their attacks and Ultimate Uni Beam is a huge Kamehameha. Loki disguising as Roberts is a give away as he is holding a cane but with him spying on SHIELD and framing Nick Fury, it will take a smart eye to unravel his evil plan. With Iron Man and Thor in the brothers' hand, Spider Man found Chris but is he ready to accept his destiny?