Companion thread to
this one. Since I made it last year, I thought I'd make it this year, too. I like to balance the negativity with a bit of positivity.
Here's my list:
Shirokuma Café:
What I thought I would get: A moderately funny slice of life comedy which exploits animals for cuteness, absurdity.
What I got instead: A hilarious slice of life comedy with likable characters and a distinct feel-good air. Also, someone - probably the original magaka - actually seems to be interested in animals.
Sengoku Collection:
What I thought I would get: Yet another (more or less fanservicy) samurai girls show.
What I got instead: Well, that's tricky. I watched the first episode (almost didn't), and here we are. Ah, here's the Nobunaga cuty, and here's the avarage male lead... Boring. But, uh, well, the character design has a sort of cheeky charm, so I'll stick with it. At the end of the episode: wait, she leaves? Surely they'll meet again and the cookie-cutter plot commences? Next episode? New characters. Then? New characters. Ah. Collection. I see. It's going to be episodic. My interest perked up a bit. Then came Date Masamune's episode. It wasn't my favourite episode up until that point, but it was... stylistically different (despite retaining the over-all feel). I was... disorientated. What's going on? Come to think of it, every episode had its own feel, really. Why didn't I notice before. Then: some more episodes. And then Hideyoshi's episode. Wait, what? Alice in Wonderland with a sprinkling of Wizard of Oz and a weirdness worthy of Ken Russel or David Lynch? *In love with this episode* Wait a minute... I go to the thread to check, and - yes - they're using pop culture reference as a template for each show. Intrest turned up to the level it will stay. The show is
very uneven. Some episodes are mind-numbingly dull, others are brilliant. But there's
definitely more than meets the eye. And the best thing: because of the episodic format it's safe skip episodes that bore you.
Mouretsu Uchuu Kaizoku:
What I thought I would get: At some point in the development this was referred to as "Mini-skirt Pirates". I'll give you three guesses what I expected.
What I got instead: A fun, family-friendly adventure show that took its SF surprisingly seriously, but didn't beat you over the head with it.
Tari Tari:
What I thought I'd get: A lesser
Hanasaku Iroha
What I got instead: A consistent, well-done slice of life show with respect for all its characters, even the grown ups.