Meri\'s Reviews

Meri

I'll start making some reviews of the series I've seen
I sometimes watched 2-3 series a week,
so it'll also help me remember what I've been watching
and whether I liked it or not.

The first reviews will probably be posted tonight.
I'm starting of with Ayakashii and Busou Renkin.

Look forward to it!

Meri

My next Review will be Star Driver!

Number of Episodes: 25
Airing Status: Finished (Sep 16, 2010 to Apr 3, 2011)
Genre: Action, Mecha, Shounen

At first glance:

The genres didn't seem all that appealing to me.
I don't usually do Mecha at all, so to have that as a main genre was questionable for me.
But I decided to give this one a shot after reading the storyline without giving it much further thought.

Review:

Oh my god is pretty much all I have to say.
For a series to catch me like that...
The music played the biggest role in it though.
If you take out the epic music the series would really loose most of its glory.
The story (stripped of all the epicness) is basically that of a hero fighting an evil organisation.
We get to learn a lot of different characters and their backgrounds,
even people from the evil organisation.
That's one part to enjoy. The overlapping roles they all have.
But I won't spoil it for you guys, you'll just have to go watch it!
:D

Grades:

Story: 7 (Average Story, nothing too out of the ordinary)
Audio: 9 (Especially the great Insert Songs worked wonders on the show)
Originality: 8 (Though it's Mecha it's not space and wars stuff)

Visual: 8 (At least they didn't overdo special effects)

Overall: 8

Refer to myanimelist link in spoiler for more info and pictures

[spoiler]Star Driver: Kagayaki no Takuto - MyAnimeList.net
[/spoiler]

Meri

[COLOR=DarkOrchid]Title[/COLOR] : Ayakashi
[COLOR=DarkOrchid]Number of episodes[/COLOR] : 12
[COLOR=DarkOrchid]Genre[/COLOR] : adventure, fantasy, horror, supernatural
[COLOR=DarkOrchid]Story[/COLOR] : Ayakashi is a parasite life force that gives superpowers to its host, taking in return the host's entire life force. Kusaka Yuu is a student that lost his will to live after the death of a dear childhood friend, until the day a mysterious girl, named Yoake Eimu, appears. From that moment on, his life would never be the same again. Hunted by Ayakashi and their hosts, the power within Yuu awakens and a never ending battle begins.
[COLOR=DarkOrchid]Characters[/COLOR] :
Kusaka Yuu: The main character. He's still developing as an Ayakashi handler. He has the power of Ryuu. (pic 2)
Yoake Eimu: She is a skilled Ayakashi handler. She has 2 Ayakashi, which isn't common. Her first one is Akuro-ou, a big blue one, and the second one is Satori, a white blue smaller one. (pic 3)
Pam: A cute girl who's also an Ayakashi handler. Her Ayakashi is Ten (The left one on the first picture, with Ten)
Kare (him): This mysterious individual is somewhat a leader of the Ayakashi handlers

(There are more characters involved in the story, including non Ayakashii users)

[COLOR=DarkOrchid]Your own view of the Serie[/COLOR] :
I don't really understand why the genre drama isn't included.
Maybe it's not as obvious as the other ones,
but I thought this was a sad series...
It only contains 12 episodes, but it doesn't damage the story.
If you feel like watching a short series with this type of genre,
you should consider giving this one a try.
[COLOR=DarkOrchid]
Pictures[/COLOR] :

[COLOR=DarkOrchid]Grades: [/COLOR]
Story: 8
Audio: 8
Drama: 9
Humour: /
Originality: 8

Visual: 8.5

Overall: 8

Meri

Hmm I should've written something earlier
Busou Renkin review is still coming up!
I just got delayed quite a bit

Meri

Time for a new review :D

This time I want to talk about Chihayafuru

Synopsis -taken from MAL-
Chihaya is a lighthearted tomboy, who's not especially good at anything in particular. Her dream has always been for her sister (an aspiring model) to become the number one beauty of Japan, or perhaps of the world. But then one day she meets someone who tells her that a dream is something that should concern only herself - and something she has to work hard for as well.
At the same time, Chihaya discovers a passion for the old Japanese game hyakunin isshu, also called "karuta".

Number of Episodes: 25 in season 1, season 2 will also have 25 episodes
Genres: Drama, Game, Sports, Josei
Age Rating: PG-13

Chihayafuru is one of those shows that had been sitting snugly on my plan to watch list for ages. It wasn't flashy or appealing, but it still looked good enough to give it a go. Am I glad I finally did!

Chihayafuru starts out with a flashback that lasts a few episodes.
It introduces the characters and gets you up to speed with everything.
Most characters in the show have a detailed background,
so you can easily relate to them.
This is no series of superpowers or whatever, but of pure hard work and determination.
That's the part I love most about it.
It has drama but also enough humor to compensate.
The series is well balanced.
You'll get drawn into the story, you're cheering for them.

Story: 9.5
Audio: 9 (very fitting)

Visual: 10 (great artwork)

Overall: 9.5

Meri

Expect a review of Shinsekai Yori this weekend or next week,
the weekend and week after Zetsuen no Tempest and Psycho-Pass

:cheerleader::cheerleader::cheerleader:

Meri

Time for a review on Shinsekai Yori :D

Synopsis -Taken from MAL-
A millennium from now, in Japan, exists a utopia. The Protagonist, Saki Watanabe, lives in an idyllic village barred from the outside world. Her world is ruled by the people who possess the "gods' power" of psychokinesis. After finally obtaining her own powers, Saki enters the Zenjin Academy to train along with five other children: Satoru Asahina, Maria Akizuki, Mamoru Itou, Shun Aonuma, and Reiko Amano.

Not all is as it seems, however. In this utopian village, strange rumors about a monstrous cat that abducts children circulate, and students are said to disappear from the academy. The world and its history are much darker than they appear and humanity is on the verge of collapse.

Number of Episodes: 25
Genres: Drama, Sci-Fi, Supernatural
Age Rating: R-17+

When I watched the first episode of this show on the first episode marathon last fall, I was like, sure I'll pick it up since there's not much good to watch anyway. I somehow made it through the first couple of episodes that appeared pretty boring and slow. But the pacing couldn't have been any better.
The story is well built, and everything will fit right into place after a while.
Imo every person that loves a show with a bit of mystery should pick this up.

Story: 10 (very deep storyline)
Audio: 9 (very great soundtrack, very fitting)

Video: 9.5 (nice graphics, really love the art style)

Total: 9.5

Meri

Psycho-Pass

Synopsis -taken from MAL-
The series takes place in the near future, when it is possible to instantaneously measure and quantify a person's state of mind and personality. This information is recorded and processed, and the term "Psycho-Pass" refers to a standard used to measure an individual's being. The story centers around the "enforcement officer" Shinya Kougami, who is tasked with managing crime in such a world.

In the future, it is possible to quantitatively measure a person's emotions, desires, and every inclination. In this way, it is also possible to measure a person's criminal tendency factor, which is used to judge criminals.

This is the story of a team of policemen dedicated to maintaining public order. Some of them work in the Enforcement Division, responsible for the apprehension of criminals, while others belong to the Supervisory Division which oversees their colleagues in Enforcement.

Episodes: 22
Genres: Action, Sci-Fi, Police
Age Rating: R-17+

I loved this series from the first episode. I got hooked almost instantly.
Great design, great story, great soundtrack. It's a kick ass series.
Great openings and endings. One in a million. Just go check it out!

My score is 10 for this one, no question about that.