Jeoffrey

I am not familiar with the video game series, however, I like the anime-influenced TV series quite a lot so far. The first season is really just a bit of an introduction to the plot and characters, and it is pretty well animated. It has the right kind of dark atmosphere too. At times it can be a bit brutal, and the characters deliver some pretty decent lines here and there, although there is only one Hellsing and we are still some way off from it's quality... Moreover, it is easy to relate to Dracula as he clearly perceives that the greatest evils in this world are human stupidity and religious bigotry, which have been a problem for every generation, and are portrayed really well... The major issue I have with this show is that the first season is incredibly short. Right on cue, just when it starts to get interesting and when it might get going, it is suddenly over... In conclusion, I have watched a pretty decent introduction to something that could be good and interesting, although at the end of the day it was still just a pretty short introduction and that is actually not enough. After the first season - 6/10.

Well, I was expecting something a bit more from the manga artist behind One Punch Man. Sure, it has got a bit of momentum, some atmosphere, and sometimes there are some pretty good jokes, however, it just did not reach the same standard as OPM. As far as the animation is concerned, I was more or less expecting something like this, because this is what the art style of the gentleman behind the pseudonym "ONE" really looks like. Even the original version of OPM looked something like this, although due to overwhelming interest from manga readers, it was remade as a digital adaptation (illustrated by Yusuke Murata) to create the version we know from the anime series or even from the second (digital) version of the manga... Unfortunately, let us be honest with ourselves here, ONE is not the most precise mangaka, and his style is quite distinctive and unfortunately not very appealing. However, it is an acquired taste! So the main question regarding MP100 is where the plot is heading to, how hilarious the comedy aspect will be, and how I am going to get used to the boy they called Mob. As far as the plot goes, there is a significant shift and practically from the moment Mob meets another "esper" it starts to get quite interesting and even slowly goes on to get better. As far as the comedy element is concerned, as I already mentioned, there were a few good jokes, although otherwise it was quite weak. I did not get along with Mob either, and I am going to agree with Starletka that his emotional outbursts were not something to really write home about… Well, I have reached the conclusion it is better than average, which in this case is not actually much of a win. 6/10.

Monsters, demons, ghosts, vampires, and whatnot roam the streets of a fantasy apocalyptic New York City landscape, and the only one trying to keep them at bay and maintain a delicate balance and peace is the mysterious organization called Libra... The show’s setting is very impressive, and all the different creatures that inhabit it are designed in a variety of interesting ways. I also like the way they are trying to create an evocative atmosphere, and the well-chosen soundtrack which is great in my opinion, however, these are the only positive aspects I have found so far. Although... The narratives within its stand-alone episodes do not really go anywhere, as the various cases gradually crop up, thinly connected by a main narrative, which the manga artist has hidden very well, eventually it is slowly revealed to the audience what is actually really going on... Well, it turns out that I was really starting to enjoy this uncertainty I felt (or rather, the feeling that I did not know what to think about it), which I was originally rather put off by, and I found this style of storytelling, the narrative’s denouement and the characters to be very entertaining. Furthermore, as the episodes went on, I started to like some characters that I had not found interesting at first. In other words, the more I got to know them, the more I liked them and found them more interesting. In addition, if I add to that the fact that I found some episodes really very good, like the sixth episode featuring the "mushroom man" Nej, and just could not get enough of the visuals in some (for example episode nine), I am forced to raise my rating again. So from the initial two stars through a better three stars, I am now up to a solid four stars (7.5/10) and if this trend continues I might even get to five stars, if I ever get to the final episode - twelve. I have personally never seen such a long wait for the final episode, so hopefully it will be worth it and hopefully the anime’s creators are not going to run out of money and the last episode will be released... EDIT 10.06.2015 - Finally, after several months of waiting, the grand finále has arrived! I have to say that the finále itself convinced me of the rating I have given as well as the whole anime series. There were some things I had suspected would happen, and others I had not expected at all, however, I quite liked the narrative’s conclusion. In other words, I liked where the anime’s producers took it in the end. It had a great atmosphere and was even quite emotional (which I pretty much expected from the ending) and so I thought that on the whole the feel of the narrative (the main story’s plot line) was outstanding. I really liked the style of the animation and in general this anime series shows that someone really played around with and worked hard on the design and animation and it is really noticeable, the animators really won me over with their ideas and use of colors. I also really liked the soundtrack. There was a lot of music in the last episode which I really liked, and I thought the soundtrack was really exceptional. In conclusion, I really liked this anime series and I think it fully deserves four stars, and due to the fact that I think the ending was really good, I am going to raise the rating one last time and end with 8/10.

I have seen a good few anime series about how to make computer games (or even draw manga comics). In the same way, I have seen anime series about girls who are supposed to be between twenty and thirty years old yet they all look like cute little young Lolitas. So, is there anything remotely new or original about "New Game!" actually? Basically no, there is nothing, so I just quietly watched a group of cute "girls” who had pretty interesting characters create a new game, make friends and sometimes communicate humorously and stupidly with each other, and go through everyday common and original stuff at their work. So it can be a very enjoyable and sometimes funny show, even though one of the main things that struck me was how faithfully the animators depicted some of the processes and programs. My final impression is somewhere between good and praiseworthy, although eventually, I am leaning more towards the higher rating... 6.8/10.

Have you ever smoked some really great weed and then thought about the meaning of life, the connection between our existence and the universe, who are we, where do we come from, where are we heading, and how everything is connected? While under the influence of illicit substances, you can come up with all sorts of convoluted theories and visions that make sense to you, however, if you were to try and explain them to someone else, they would probably just stare back at you rather nonplussed. However, there is still much we do not know, and the more we know, the more we realize that we are lacking knowledge = I know that I know nothing... So, I think this movie seems to be one such intoxicated vision full of philosophy and symbolism. Yes, there are the bare bones of a conventional narrative, however, there is so much packed on top of it that you are just staring at the screen unable to fully take it all in. Despite all this, understanding everything is not the point of this movie, on the contrary - the point is to use your imagination, accept the fact that you will never really know and understand everything, perceive with your senses, and let your mind follow - you are going to leave with a new experience of something… Or you could just watch a bizarre movie where all you take away is something about a girl meeting two weird guys, and then stranger and more bizarre things happen, wrapped up in sometimes absolutely stunning animation, with incredibly dynamic motion sequences, making it colorful, charming, and very impressive. This movie is simply a visual extravaganza! It is interesting, weird, very philosophical, and abstract - it is probably too much for Jeoffrey, and so I am somehow still not inwardly convinced that I actually enjoyed it. 6.4/10.

In my opinion, movie adaptation is better suited for Violet Evergarden stories than the anime series. The fact that this adventure has an uninterrupted seamless narrative makes it much more intense. So, I found this movie quite moving in two different parts, and for a few seconds, it managed to convince me that postmen really do deliver happiness (even though you then realize that they also bring bills and subpoenas which destroy that poetic image...). Again, the animation is really beautiful, and the soundtrack too - I was completely satisfied, although it was still missing something to have me be completely enchanted, although I just cannot figure out exactly what it is... 8.4/10.

I had not reviewed this untill now, and something tells me that now is the time to fix that. Even after almost two years, I have no problem remembering the narrative of Violet Evergarden (at least the bare bones of the narrative), I remember most of the characters and my impressions of it at the time. So it makes sense that, unlike some of you, this anime series must have left a mark on me. I cannot easily forget the stunning animation and great soundtrack. As far as the emotional aspect is concerned, some of the narratives touched my heart and I was also intrigued by the show’s premise of delivering feelings in the form of letters, which in this day and age is probably rather neglected because of modern technology. However, (and, I am agreeing on this with Zíza), I also remember some of the narratives where the emotions seemed quite forced and came on too strong, and so it never really got to me and did not seem natural enough to consider giving this anime series the highest rating. I liked the main female protagonist Violet, and I liked her efforts to understand human feelings, especially the one the romantic poets thought was the most beautiful. I also liked her almost machine-like nature, which gradually became much softer. I was personally very satisfied, and it was a pleasant experience. 7.5/10. P.S. If you are a pragmatist rather than a romantic, then, of course, you are going to see some things from a completely different point of view, even though we can all at least agree that the animation is breathtaking, so if you want to see magnificent graphics/visuals…

Now that was an absolute trip! When I was reading the premise of a movie about a world where spontaneous combustion of a human occurs, I almost immediately thought, OK here comes another Fire Force. However, I was wrong, because this is Studio Trigger, and when you look at who directed it nothing much should surprise you. From the first few minutes and while watching the supercharged, dynamic, and insane fight scene I was just open-mouthed, glued to the screen, and the pace never let up. I myself am shocked that they managed to cram a decent, interesting narrative into an action-packed movie with such a limited running time, which on the one hand makes a lot of sense and on the other hand contains, as usual with this studio, a completely exaggerated, insane and sometimes unbelievable ending!  In addition, calling one of the mechas that unexpectedly shows up Deus ex Machina is a total, genius fucking stunt that had me laughing and banging my head against the wall at the same time. Sure, it is full of tropes and clichés, the characters are pretty flat and the whole thing is incredibly over-the-top at times, yet I could not care less... The animation is not done in a style that suits everyone, however, they make the fight scenes beautifully colorful, incredibly dynamic - and simply very impressive (especially the first and then the last). Then there is the soundtrack which is just great! It comes naturally to compare this anime to Gurren Lagann, even though Promare loses by at least a point in most respects, simply because GL anime devotes more time to plot and character development... Even the action scenes in Gurren Lagann are more explosive. Well never mind, I still enjoyed the hell out of this. Everything Burns... 8/10.

I do not have much to add to Filmmaniak’s review. At the beginning it was difficult for me to keep my attention, and almost the whole time I could hardly feel any significant suspense, not to mention detect any drama throughout the movie. In my opinion, the animation lacks any real charm, however, it still manages to conjure up some nice panoramas and landscapes, so it serves its purpose. It has a very simple narrative, free of anything that would keep me glued to the screen and not let go, although, at the same time it does have a point and a message. So what did I take away from this movie in the end? I got the impression that it was just average and I also felt the desire to get out of the house tomorrow and go for a walk in the forest, or at least go for a smoke on the balcony and look at the stars... the world is big and beautiful, right? 5.5/10.

Despite all the releases in the Winter 2020 anime season, I have to tell myself at least once that enough is enough! This anime series features a generic main male protagonist with a lot of cheesy catchphrases who leaves a bad taste in my mouth. If I add to that all the boredom I experienced while watching this show and multiply it by all the not-so-funny weirdness, and add to it tonight’s episode with the penguin and animal ears then I finally ran out of patience. The conclusion is simple: enough is enough! This show is not amusing, it is simply stupid. I am not a fan of the main male protagonist at all. I find his new friend who has a succubus embryo incredibly irritating for some reason too, and I am not even going to talk about the reporter... It has been a long time since the characters in an anime series absolutely passed me by like this, so uninterested and irritating… The mechanics of the gameplay did not appeal to me either and so I missed that feeling of - yeah, I would like to play this. So, before the main male protagonist can shout "Vengeance is mine!" one more time with gusto and passion, I am just going to run as far away as possible and leave only my poor impression of the first four episodes. 3,2/10.