Sping 2011 Preview (and what you should know)


...Actually, I don't know why I use this image. Does it feel like Spring to you?

It's late as usual, but my plans to post this right before the start of the new season got delayed by some unforeseen circumstances...

As you might already know, there's a ton of new shows coming out this season. My original watch list was eight shows but that is a pretty crazy number, seeing that five shows in Winter 2011 is already a bit much. Funny though, despite the number of new shows, there doesn't seem to any really prominent series people are looking for, unlike last season's Madoka and Fractale.


Will Watch

(L to R)
Deadman Wonderland

What you should know:
1. Same author as Eureka Seven.
2. Animated by Manglobe, who made Samurai Champloo and Ergo Proxy.
3. Lead is voiced by Paku Romi (of FMA fame).
4. The female lead Shiro (White) in white body suit is voiced by Hanazawa Kana.

I've got my eye on the manga right before the studio announced plans to animate this series around nearly a year ago, when I just finished the Eureka Seven manga and was searching for more stuff written by the author. Besides the fact that the leads of both series looked really similar, I feel that both series share a similar flaw, which is that the leads are both angsty boys without really a direction in life and are quickly thrown into a chaotic situation. The early parts of both the stories are driven by random new characters popping into the main lead's situation and helping him to adapt to the situation around him, while he does not do anything else and is being lead by the nose by whoever that is helping him at that moment.

While both share a similar story set-up, Deadman Wonderland is set to finish in just one season unlike Eureka Seven's 50 episodes. I guess I shouldn't be so judging, but I really liked Eureka Seven so I hoped to see how Deadman Wonderland can have the same potential as well.

Maria Holic Alive

What you should know:
1. Seconds season, by Shaft.
2. No one I know seems to have a favourable opinion of the first season O.O

I liked the first season. But to tell you the truth, I don't know what I liked about it anymore. I figured it's due to how much I'm impressed with Shaft at that time that I just came to enjoy everything Shaft produces and that seeing the Shinbo-styled animation was enjoyable in itself. Now that I'm all over the Shaft-hype I'll watch this to see if Maria Holic is really worth my praise for the first season. I don't doubt that the studio knows about the complains regarding the show, so hopefully the second season will be better but then again, people says that Shaft's second seasons would never make any improvements. If you ask me, I'll say that it's true for Hidamari Sketch, Zetsubou Sensei and Natsu no Arashi.

Hanasaku Iroha

What you should know:
1. I don't care much about Itou Kanae voice the lead, but there's Toyosaki Aki, Omigawd Chiaki and Tomatsu Haruka on the supporting characters.
2. Animated by P.A works, a studio that (seem to?) only did True Tears, Canaan and Angel Beats.

First things first, while I think Omigawa Chiaki did a pretty bad job on Soredemo Machi wa Mawatteiru, I loved how she did Mitsuba in Seitokai Yakuindomo. Hopefully the laid-back genre on the series will give her character better lines.

I don't know much about the series, but the character designs, voice actors, country life setting, cute girls, and what looked like drama/slice-of-life genre is something that appeals to me the most. And since it's P.A's commemorative work and they dared to make it a show that span two seasons, I'm expecting it to be really good. Furthermore, shows like these seems to be becoming better after the demand for slice-of-life shows had risen so much.

I expect this to be a relatively low-key show, but it seemed like it has caught the eye of many bloggers as well.

Fireball Charming

What you should know:
1. It's a Disney CG series that is only a couple of minutes long per episode.

I liked the character design so much that I've already owned two Drossel figurines. And no, I don't have many figurines. While it's true that the only thing that is "anime" about the series is that it's made in Japanese, it's still a pretty enjoyable series to watch. Drossel's childish nature, random poses and actions, and nonchalant attitude about the war can be pretty interesting if you're not taking it seriously. Why not? It's just couple of minutes per week.

Denpa Onna to Seishun Otoko

What you should know:
1. It's a Shaft sci-fi comedy

It's a guaranteed watch, just as with any other Shaft productions (except for Arakawa, I haven't got around to watch that yet). With a bit of research, "Denpa" roughly translates to "eccentric", so the title roughly means "Eccentric Girl and Adolescent Guy". The plot summary didn't tell much, and the trailer mostly consists of the light novel drawing so very little information is available. I don't wanna spoil myself getting into the novel, but the girl and concept looks interesting, so I hope for the best.

Steins;Gate

What you should know:
1. From the creators of Chaos;Head
2. Nanoha TamuraYukari and Hanazawa Kana are among the primary female VAs.

Despite the number of shows coming out this season, Steins;Gate is one of the most anticipated series coming out this season. I just hope that the show doesn't make too many references to Chaos;Head, because I haven't watch that yet (not that I'm planning to, I've read many negative reviews about it). Still, I'm doubtful if White Fox studios can make a decent piece of work, because while I haven't watch Katanagatari, Tears to Tiara is shit. But like with Hanasaku Iroha, if a show these days can warrant a two-season timeslot, the show should be at least decent. I'm no fan of time-travelling plots, but sometimes (like Haruhi) it could turn out to be pretty interesting.

Might Watch

Moshidora
I never watch sports anime, and combining business logic with sports doesn't seem like a good idea (although it does for the author in person). But this combination does make this series a bit more unique. I might actually watch it for Hanazawa Kana and Hisaka Youko, but I'll watch for more reviews.

Dog Days
Nanoha meets Zero no Tsukaima. While the concept looked like it might work, the kiddy characters and colors is actually a turn-off to me. Like Moshidora, I might watch it for the voice actors, which boast Hanazawa Kana (again) and Hisaka Youko (again) and Horie Yui.

Nichijou
It might seem like a must-watch for any anime fan, and it's a comedy that might actually outdo K-ON, but frankly episode 0 is really disappointing. I haven't watch episode 1, but I just can't seem to find the jokes in Nichijou to be funny. Might give it a try sometime later.

C: The Money Of Soul And Possibility Control
While this might be one of the most anticipated shows this season, and it's on the noitaminA slot, I'm not sure who the target audience was and I feel that it's really a hit-or-miss show. I'll wait for the blogosphere to give me more info and if it's good, it might replace Maria Holic on my watch list.

Anohana
The name roughly translates to "We still do not know the name of the flower we saw that day", if my friend didn't translate wrongly. Like C, it's a noitaminA show, so I'm not sure if it's something for me but I'm likely to give it a 2-episode test, if I had the time.

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