Tsurugi

Now that I’m back and able to update again, time to start doing so.

There aren’t many series I’m actively watching right now. I’m onlywatching Kanon, Death Note, and Code Geass. I blame the lack of anime worth watching on Kyoto Animation. By setting a high standard, they’ve reduced the number of studios willing to try for something great. I have hopes for the spring season, but for now I’m not watching much anime.

So now I’ll talk about the few shows I’m watching:

Kanon 2006: I never saw the original Kanon, but I heard good things about it. Kyo Ani has done a very impressive job with this new version. I enjoy watching it, but I’m not sure why. The pacing is very slow and all the characters are cliched. However, it is refreshing to see such a well-written story in a harem anime. Yuuichi is more than just a doormat, he actually has a personality worth liking. It makes the story much more believable when the male lead seems like he could actually attract the attention of all these girls. The story is carefully planned, from beginning to end, with actual foreshadowing present. It’s great compared to my next anime:

Code Geass: Standard Sunrise mecha show, but with CLAMP character designs. It’s entertaining, but nothing more. It’s obvious that the writers are making it up as they go along, with no idea where they’re going with it. The pacing seems odd, with events happening very quickly and little indication of how much time is passing between episodes. Despite its flaws, I watch it because it’s enjoyable. The mecha designs are good if not great, it’s well-animated, and I want to see what happens next. A consequence of the poor writing is that I have no idea what will happen in the next episode. That’s in contrast to the last show I’m watching:

Death Note: I broke down and spoiled myself by reading the manga a few weeks ago, so now I know what’s going to happen. That takes the fun out of Death Note because even if it’s a very good adaptation, it’s still just an adaptation. Nothing is changed in the translation from manga to anime. This is okay because the manga is great, but it means that people who have read the manga won’t enjoy the anime much. It’s unclear how much of the manga will be adapted to the anime. I’m hoping for the anime to stop with chapter 58 of the manga, since the story takes a turn for the worse after that.

Those are actually the only three current shows I’m watching. I’ll talk about past shows I’m watching later.