Anime REVIEW: Violet Evergarden

Violet Evergarden is available in streaming form on Netflix

With the world's biggest streaming platform now with anime firmly in its sights, 2018 is set to be a big year for Netflix anime content. As well as kicking things off in a big way with the release of Devilman Crybaby, Netflix is also making waves with Violet Evergarden – the latest series from Haruhi and K-On! maestros Kyoto Animation. Based on the (Kyoto Animation award winning) light novel series by Kana Akatsuki, the series immediately garnered attention through its strange release pattern – simulcasting weekly in some territories but then surprisingly being held back in the US until the series was complete. But wherever you may reside its now here for you, complete with a selection of different language options. Being an anime fan has never been easier.

First Impressions: Violet Evergarden

Violet Evergarden is streaming in selected territories on Netflix

There are a number of extremely strong offerings amongst the 2018 winter anime season, but undoubtedly one of the most hotly anticipated shows kicking off this new year of anime is Violet Evergarden – based on the light novel series by Kana Akatsuki. As well as being the latest show from acclaimed studio Kyoto Animation (Haruhi, K-On! and more recently A Silent Voice), the first episode has also been premiered across a number of anime conventions last year to drum up anticipation. Now with Netflix simulcasting the series across a number of different territories (but surprisingly not the US), the streaming service properly enters the anime game on the same playing field as its genre-specific competitors.

Anime REVIEW: Tamako Market

Rounding off my trio of winter 2013 anime reviews is another work from Kyoto Animation, particularly the creative team behind the rather fantastic K-On!. This 2013 entry goes by the name of Tamako Market, and its 12-episode run goes by Kyoto's usual resume of cute girls doing cute things. Only this time they throw a talking bird into the mix.

Tamako, her sister Anko (left) and the various shopkeepers of the district

The story follows a girl named Tamako Kitashirakawa, the eldest daugher of a mochi-shop owning family in the heart of the Usagiyama Shopping District. One day when going through her everyday errands she encounters a strange talking bird which goes by the name of Dera Mochimazza (which translates as "bad-tasting mochi, much to Tamako and her family's dismay). Dera explains that he has travelled from afar to search for a bride for his country's Prince, but after eating too much mochi he becomes too fat to fly and ends up as a freeloader at the Kitashirakawa residence.

Dera observes the day to day life of Tamako, her younger sister Anko, her four friends Midori, Choi and Kanna, and childhood friend/rival mochi shop worker Mochizō. But while living the life of luxury amongst the shopping district community, he is reminded of his original task by the arrival of his Prince's attendant Choi. But could the Prince's bride have been right in front of him all along?

Dera looking his most fabulous

So the main drive of Tamako Market is supposedly Dera's search for a bride for his Prince (whose name is Mecha by the way), but that's pretty easy to forget. Besides the first episode and then the final two or three, it actually takes a back seat to the various day to day lives of Tamako and her friends and family. A lot of it is fluff, but there are some genuinely heart-warming episodes - particularly the ones focussing on Tamako's sister Anko and episode nine (which deals with the cliché but emotional story of a deceased parent). If you take away the inclusion of a talking bird (which has unexplained robot-like powers), it's actually a pretty normal show. 

Tamako with her school friends

Perhaps the main problem with Tamako Market is that it doesn't really know what to do with it's overly large cast. Tamako is a good main character, but she never really grows outside of being a bubbly airhead with a heart of gold. Dera on the other hand provides some of the series' better comic moments, but even he can get annoying sometimes. Meanwhile the rest of the cast includes Tamako's four female friends, her love interest (although she's completely oblivous to it) Mochizō and then the entire community of the shopping district. So much could have been done with all these characters and added a lot of variety to the show (it is called Tamako Market after all) but most of them are resigned to single character traits or obvious stereotypes. It's a shame, because the various store owners show a great sense of community spirit to the show which adds to it's obvious family theme. As well as Mochizō's own feelings toward Tamako (which aren't resolved), it turns out that her friend Midori has potentially romantic feelings for her - something which really would have made the series stand out if given more expansion.

"I could really have done with a character trait outside of 'romantic interest'"

However if there's one thing Kyoto Animation never skimp on, it's the quality of the animation. The K-On! style of character design is very clear, with the characters so facially similar that it sometimes feels like you're watching the characters of K-On! wearing wigs. That being said, each character is visually distinctive from each other, even if some of them do hark back to older Kyoto works (Shiori bears a striking resemblance to Yuki from Haruhi, while K-On!'s Sawako is lurking amongst the shopping district inhabitants). A fantastic level of detail has gone into bringing the scenery and backgrounds to life, filled with beautiful colours and intricate detailing. Much like Kyoto's other works, it's likely that the scenery is based on real life places in Japan.

These guys aren't as important as they may seem.

Essentially, you're never going to get a rewarding experience out of Tamako Market as far as plot is concerned. Very little actually happens in the show, the character development is very shallow outside of Tamako herself and the main plot of the show doesn't go anywhere. Should this show be given a second season, there's plenty that can be built upon but as it stands most of Tamako Market's story can be written off as a missed opportunity. However what you WILL get out of it is a beautiful viewing experience as far as the art and character design is concerned, and episodic stories that make you feel warm inside even if they don't really alter the status quo. Tamako Market is a show where the phrase "it's not the destination that matters, it's the journey" couldn't be more applicable.

Anime REVIEW: Nichijou

Not every anime series you come across may have a cohesive plot. Similarly, not every anime series makes a whole lot of sense either. But what happens when you combine nonsensical comedy with episodes made up of short sketches? The end result is Nichijou (which translates as "Ordinary/Regular Life"), a 25-episode series from Kyoto Animation based on the manga of the same name by Keichii Arwari. It originally aired in Japan back in 2011.

Nichijou follows the average day to day lives of a group of high school students and various other characters that populate their town. Only upon closer inspection, the activities these characters engage in might not be so average after all. Various hi jinx ensue between hyperactive slacker Yūko, short tempered yaoi artist Mio and silent but eccentric Mai. Among the weird and wonderful students attending their school is Kōjirō Sasahara, a farm boy with an aristocrat complex who rides his goat to school and Misato, a girl who can seemingly pull an arsenal of weapons out of thin air.

Mai, Yūko & Mio

Elsewhere, an eight-year old genius has created an android schoolgirl who is virtually indistinguishable from real humans other than the key sticking out of her back and the weird and wonderful "features" her creator has bestowed on her. Joining them is a stray black cat named Sakamoto, graced with the power of speech by the Professor's inventions.

If I had to describe Nichijou in one word, that word would probably be erratic. Sketch-style slice of life animes usually have a surreal element to them, but Nichijou strives to take that one step further. Even amongst the goat riding, gun wielding and often over-the-top characters, segments are split up via unrelated title cards, clips of egg-headed men spinning a skipping rope and skits that go by the name of "Helvetica Standard". It can take a few episodes to fully adjust to the bizarre off-the-wall style of the show, and the jokes sometimes take a bit long to set up/overly wordy. But when it's funny, Nichijou is side-splittingly funny. 

A pre-adolescent professor, a robotic schoolgirl and a talking cat: What's not to love?

However if the erratic pace of Nichijou is an issue for you, it's advisable to stick it out until the middle of the show where things start to meld together a lot more. At this mid-point Nano finally gets her dream of attending school, meaning she interacts with Mio, Yūko and Mai on a regular basis - quickly becoming the fourth member of their group. Where the first half saw the Professor/Nano/Sakamoto sequences completely segregated from the rest of the show, at this point they start to integrate and we see all of the characters interact together. Nano's arrival at the school also introduces a great new character in the form of Ms. Nakamura, a science teacher fixated on studying Nano's not-so-subtle robotic nature.

Comic genius.

With a huge cast of characters on show, there's literally something for everyone. School-girl fans with be satisfied with the constant bickering between Yūko and Mio, broken up by the abstract nature of Mai's sense of humour. Elsewhere the Professor (or Hakase if you want to go by her Japanese name) and Nano will surely satisfy the moe-lovers watching. There are even adult characters getting amongst the humour, such as the eternally shy Izumi or the attempts to win her heart from Manabu. However if there's one brilliant character that's sorely underused, it's Sasahara. His early appearances are among the highlights of Nichijou, but following that he sort of skulks into the background until the very end. If there was one side character who needed more exposure, it's him.

Oh Manabu, one day you'll win the fair Maiden's heart

Nichijou is a series whose humour can often be hit or miss, but the glory of a sketch show is that if you don't like one thing, there's still hope you'll find pleasure elsewhere. With a wide variety of characters each offering their own jokes, bizarre cutaway segments and art that's permanently gorgeous to look at, if you can get behind Nichijou's unique sense of humour, it's a show that you will undoubtedly have fun with.

Anime REVIEW: Full Metal Panic! The Second Raid

After a brief comedy interlude courtesy of Full Metal Panic? Fumoffu,  the FMP franchise returned to its more serious roots in 2005 with the release of Full Metal Panic! The Second Raid. Set three months after the conclusion of the first season, this season was significantly shorter than the first (13 episodes plus an OVA as opposed to 24 episodes) and once again animated by Kyoto Animation rather than Gonzo.

Following the hijacking of Tuatha de Danaan submarine in the last season, life has seemingly returned to normal for Sousuke Sagara - both in his role as a Mythril soldier and student at Jindai High School. That is until Mythril learn of a secret organisation known as "Amalgam", that has been orchestrating conflict behind the scenes and access to Whispered technology. As Mythril attempts to uncover Amalgam, Sousuke must face his own demons as he is split apart from Kaname Chidori and his ability to pilot the Arbalest Arm Slave is called into question.

Sousuke and Kaname in a (rare) moment of high school hi-jinx

Full Metal Panic's unique brand of humour is still very present in The Second Raid, however it seems to have be given a much needed retooling. A shorter episode span means that the story can't be as easily divided into specific chunks like the first season was, leaving a lot less time for Sousuke's comical antics and Kaname's subsequent scoldings. While there is an episode dedicated solely to this to get viewers back into the swing of things, later on it becomes more sporadic and usually paralleling something more serious going on in the show. The balance has shifted squarely in favour of the war-drama element of the show, featuring a much more intricate plot and a very significant rise in violence, but unlike Fumoffu the flip side of the Full Metal Panic! coin is never forgotten. After a mixed first season and a disappointing second, it's great to see the show finally strike the perfect balance in terms of storytelling.

About as twisted as you can get. And that's a good thing.

With a better plot, it's good to see better characterisation go hand in hand. Rather than throwing as many characters as they can into one scenario, this season deals with them one at a time, with episodes that may only feature one or two key characters. While Kaname plays a much more restricted role here, her value and importance to the series is never understated. Meanwhile Sousuke is undoubtedly the star, as The Second Raid studies his transformation from a mercenary-come-soldier bound by orders into someone originally ignorant of his own human emotions. Even bit players like Melissa Mao and Kurz Weber get their own moments in the spotlight. On the villain side of things, Amalgam prove to be a much more interesting (and eccentric) bunch than Gauron did in the first season. Gates often reaches Bond-villain levels of eccentricity, and though underused the merciless Xia twins prove to be a lethal force. But with Sousuke's past catching up with him as the season goes on, some familiar faces also pop up at the very end.

A sharper, shinier Arbalest

Though the boost in animation may have been noticeable in Fumoffu, it's here where Kyoto really take the reign and make this the best looking Full Metal Panic! so far. The character design is as crisp as ever, but it's the much more elaborate Arm Slave battles that have most benefited from this. Using a blend of animation and cel-shaded CGI, movement is much more fluid and allows a greater range of motion for what could easily be perceived as clunky mecha suits. Seeing human faces closeup in CGI might be a little distracting to begin with, but as time goes on they become easier to look at and fit in well with Full Metal Panic's overall aesthetic.

Not sure who this character is? You won't be fully sure when the series is over either.

It isn't all perfect though, and despite everything it manages to do right The Second Raid still manages to fall short at the final hurdle. The plot becomes increasingly rushed, trying to fill as much info as it can into two or three episodes while earlier ones (as entertaining as they may have been) had no real advances. The end fight is anticlimactic, and manages to leave a huge loose end that will probably never be covered outside the original source material. A lot of light is shed on just what the Lambda Driver is and how it works, but what exactly a Whispered is is still shrouded in mystery.

After two offerings that weren't particularly notable, Full Metal Panic! The Second Raid makes sure that the franchise ends with a bang (as far as the anime is concerned anyway). Every aspect has been kicked in overdrive - the animation, the characters and the story, resulting in a far more enjoyable and engaging experience despite the smaller episode count. It's a shame that this happens to be the last FMP anime, because it was finally beginning to get good and there are still plenty of unanswered questions left.

First Impressions: Tamako Market

A new section for this year, here I'm going to look at the first episode of new series that come out over the course of 2013, giving my first impressions on them and what my expectations are, if any, for future episodes. The first of these will deal with the latest offering from anime studio Kyoto Animation (whose previous works include K-On!, Haruhi Suzumiya and Lucky Star), titled Tamako Market. Bearing very similar character design to that of K-On!, this series is currently slated to run for 12 episodes.

Tamako Kitashirakawa is the eldest daughter of a mochi shop-owning family in her town's bustling shopping district. One day while running her errands she encounters a strange talking bird named Dera Mochimazzi, an attendant of a foreign prince who has come in search of a bride for his master. The series will follow the life of Tamako, her friends and their interactions with this strange bird.

Straight away its clear that this show lives up to Kyoto's standard of crisp animation. The background is detailed and colourful, and the characters design is superb (even if some do look just like the cast of K-On! with different hairstyles). We don't learn a whole lot about Tamako and her friends and family, but enough to comfortably know what roles each one will be playing in the weeks to come. There's also some real oddities among the cast, including what looks to be a female flower shop owner voiced by a clearly male seiyuu. Whether the series will shed any real light on it is anyone's guess.

This episode alone was dominated by our feathered protagonist, who stole every scene he was in. Whether it was strutting around like a diva or showing a perverted streak in a public bathhouse, all eyes were firmly on Mochimazzi. And with the episode ending on a very interesting note, it seems there will be a lot more to this bird than meets the eye.

It may not give a great deal of the plot away, but the first episode of Tamako Market tells you just about enough to know what kind of show to expect. It has Kyoto's usual stamp of cute and colouful schoolgirls, but with an added dose of craziness which could lead the show in a new and unusual direction. I'm not really sure just what to make of this show overall just yet, but I'm rather excited for the coming weeks to see where it goes.

Anime REVIEW: Full Metal Panic? Fumoffu

As one of the biggest problems with the first Full Metal Panic season was its constant fluctuation between serious and comedic, the second instalment of the franchise makes sure this doesn't happen again. 2003's Full Metal Panic? Fumoffu is a 12 episode series which ditches the military/mecha aspects in favour of focussing purely on the relationship between high school student Kaname and military sergeant Sousuke, partticularly the latter's inability to use common sense amidst a high-school background. Unlike the first season which was made by Gonzo, Fumoffu was the first full length series animated by Kyoto Animation (which would move on to do Haruhi, Lucky Star and K-On!, among others).

Unlike the first season which featured an ongoing plot with various story arcs, each episode of Fumoffu (with the exception of episodes eight and nine) are completely standalone, with many of them split into two shorter stories. Plots range from standard high school anime fare such as club drama, dating angst and the obligatory beach episode. Without Sousuke, it would sound like every other generic anime of its type. What sets it apart is Sousuke, who continues to apply military logic to everyday situations just like we saw in the first Full Metal Panic season. From blowing up lockers to bringing biological warfare into class, there isn't a dull moment when Sousuke is left to his own devices - much to the dismay of Kaname. But unfortunately, once again Full Metal Panic's brand of humour proves inconsistent. The first episode is excellent - we see Sousuke go on a stakeout to after mistaking a love letter to be a terrorist threat, followed by him addressing a hostage situation by kidnapper the kidnapper's brother! After such a strong start, it's disappointing to see each episode become more mediocre than the last, with only brief moments of humour to prop them up.

This is actually the answer to a lot of problems in the show

With the focus so squarely on Sousuke and Kaname, Fumoffu doesn't have a great deal of time for any other characters. Kaname's friends Kyoko, Mizuki and Ren, Shinji and teacher Eri Kagurazaka all make regular appearances, but have next to nothing in terms of episode focus. If you were hoping to see Mithril soldiers and first season regulars Tessa, Kurz and Mao you'll also find yourself disappointed as they only show up for two of the series' 12 episode run. New characters introduced include the calm and collected Student council president Atsunobo, and Issei Tsubaki - leader of the school's karate club and rival to Sousuke. Both have plenty of potential, but never really go anywhere.

Don't expect to see many old favourites often

So before we finish, where does the "Fumoffu" come from? With this series featuring no Arm Slaves or mecha action whatsoever, it turns to the cute and cuddly side of things for a mascot...with a different. The phrase comes from Bonta-kun, a theme park mascot whom Sousuke (in one of the series' most memorable sequences) takes the identity of to secretly protect Kaname. Later, the suit returns and has been modified into what is essentially a mini Arm Slave capable of only saying "Fumoffu" over and over...hence the title. The Bonta-kun segments usually offer a higher dosage of action, injecting a much needed bit of life in the show to keep it going.

Fu-mo-ffu M*********r

Just like the previous season's comedy antics, Full Metal Panic? Fumoffu is a show that starts on a high and then progressively gets worse as it goes along. Each episode is guaranteed at least one laugh out loud moment but the plots themselves are cliché and largely forgettable, while both the original side cast and new characters are completely underused in favour of Sousuke (who is the only reason people should really be watching anyway), Kaname and the one-shot characters. It would be interesting the see how Full Metal Panic fares as a straight-up military show, because as a straight comedy it leaves a lot to be desired.

Anime REVIEW: K-On!

Admittedly I'm writing this one a little later than I should be since I finished the series (both seasons) two weeks ago, but admittedly I've been a little busy of late and better late than never I guess.

Anyway, moving away from the usual mecha, murderous notebooks, space bounty hunters and more mecha for a while, K-ON! is a heart-warming slice of life anime revolving around the lives of a group of school girls who are members of their school's light music club. The story takes us through the girls' three years of high school, starting with the beginnings of their friendship and their attempts to stop the club being abolished (due to a lack of members), to their first live performance and the arrival of a new member and more. In some ways, think Lucky Star but swap out the geek references for musical ones - from Black Sabbath to The Who and more (and for those with a keen eye, even Krauser from Detroit Metal City pops up from time to time). Don't think the rest of the series is filled with band practice though - in fact After School Tea Time (or Houkago Tea Time if you prefer) spend more time doing what their band name suggests - which can sometimes cause quite a problem when it comes to concert time!

The first season is compromised of 13 episodes and an OVA, while the second season (entitled K-On!!) is 26 episodes long. While I felt the second season suffered slightly by containing more of the conventions and cliches of high school student animes (festivals, school trips, exam study - you know the sort), it didn't ruin it, but rather made it (much to my surprise) a far fuller experience. With personalties ranging from joker to airheaded to dedicated, the band members are all so different to each other that its sometimes hard to pick a favourite (although mine ended up being Mio if you're interested). Meanwhile the supporting cast (while small) is sometimes as strong as the lead cast itself and the music is both catchy and an enjoyable listen in and outside the series.

For those fans of school girl/high school animes and/or music, this is definitely one I recommend to check it. I almost guarantee it'll have a) melted your heart b) had you singing along c) laughing d) crying or e) doing all of the above by the end of it. The news of a movie next year is definitely one thing I was happy to hear, as this is one series that could do a follow up nicely without ruining the story (although I imagine it'll be set somewhere within the series like the last few episodes were....never mind, the more K-On! the better!)