2011 Winter Anime Season

So just about over two weeks into the new year, and along with the new year is a new set of anime shows to come out in Japan. So I've decided in a very typical Anime Blogger way to give my early impressions on some of the new shows.

I won't get into continuing shows, not that there are many. Aside from the usual big shonen shows - Naruto and Bleach - the continuing shows from last season is Star Driver and the second season of To Aru Majitsu no Index (A Certain Magical Index). I'm sure there are others, but the none come to mind of the top of my head. Continuing shows that is starting up again this season are Kimi no Todoke and Mitsudome, both starting second seasons as well as yet another incarnation of PreCure called "Suite PreCure."

Anyway, my thoughts on thirteen of the seventeen new shows to come out this season are past the jump.




Before I get into the thick of it - I'll throw out the names of the four series that I didn't see and why I didn't watch it - in case anyone who actually does read Fatally Curious want to go check those series out:

• Haiyoru! Nyaru-ani - The episodes are fairly short, this is much more a web series then a full on show. The first nine episodes are less then a half-hour. 
• Wolverine - I'm fairly wary of anime adaptations of US comics as much as I am wary of Hollywood film adaptations of anime series.
• Cardfight!! Vanguard - Promotional anime trash that just seeks to promote a new card game from the creators of Yu-Gi-Oh! and Bushiroad. 
• Mai no Mahou to Katei no Hi - This comes out next month in Feburary. It actually has a interesting premise and I may pick this up when it airs.

Okay, now with that squared away, lets start!

Rio - Rainbow Gate 

The premise is pretty straightforward: rich girl arrives at super luxurious casino island city with her rich grandfather who owns everything and she meets the title character, Rio, who ends up being her guardian in addition to her other duties. I actually had to take a 12 minute break in the middle of the episode because I couldn't take how badly clichéd and boring this show was. There were dips in the animation quality, and some of the actions of the characters in relation to the plot came out to be downright stupid. I mean, seriously, what young 8-10 year old girl checks out a woman's "three-sizes"? Theres times where suspension of belief is okay for a anime - but for this anime, doing that just makes me want to toss my keyboard out the window. Obvious series for me to drop.

Mahou Shoujo Madoka★Magica

This series is pretty much the series to actually watch initially - as it combines the visuals from Bakemonogatari and the wide-face character designs from Hidamari Sketch. Story-wise, it's a pretty typical Magical Girl show except that we actually haven't seen the title character actually get her powers yet - which is pretty unusual for the first episode of a Magical Girl show. Madoka is a pretty cute character, and her foil/nemesis (for now) Akemi is a deadpan Dark Magic Girl. With Shugo Chara off the air - it'll be interesting how this series fares as the only Magical Girl show in town and how unique Madoka will end up being compared to Sakura Kinomoto, Nanoha Takamachi, and Amu Hinamori. I'll probably be following this series fairly closely.

GoSick

GoSick is one of those series that either gets you interested by hooking you into it's mysteries, or it bores you because of back-and-forth verbal warring and long depositions. Pretty much, it's a hit or miss Mystery series. Sometimes, the best fanservice is to just have a European looking loli detective who smokes out of what looks to be a  tobacco pipe. I'll probably give this another episode or two.

Infinite Stratos

The Mecha Musume theme continues to pick up in popularity as we get Infinite Stratos - which is about a 15 year old boy who is the only male in the world who can pilot the mechs in this series and his trials and tribulations in a school full of girls. I personally don't know if this is going to be as good as the big Mecha Musume series, Strike Witches, but I'll give this a few episodes before dropping or not.

Beelzebub

This series that has been featured in Shonen Jump is probably going to be a favorite of a good crowd of people - generally the people who are into animes such as Gintama and Katekyo Hitman Reborn! The premise of this series is that Tatsumi - a boy just entering as a first year in a high school for delinquents - gets stuck with taking care of a baby. Turns out this baby is next in line to be the next Demon King - and hilarity ensues. I may end up watching this due to my sister, who pretty much liked the first episode very much.

Freezing

Freezing is pretty much a mixture of My-HiME and Queens Blade. This series is not for anyone who cannot watch porn, as the assets of the girls in this series tends to hang out there. I hope this series ends up being more then the "chests" that it regularly shows on screen and has some twists and turns in the same way that My-HiME did. Otherwise, this series will just be fanservice trash - so I'll give this a few episodes.

Hourou Musuko

Also known as "Wandering Son" - this series is actually pretty interesting. It's all about a boy who can't help but cross-dress as a girl, who happens to like a girl who happens to like to cross-dress as a boy. It's actually a quite emotional and pretty deep. This series is probably going to be forgotten about or dropped by many people, but I personally think it's actually very interesting. I'll probably follow this series for the season.

Level E

Level E is one of those anime series where you have aliens integrating with normal Japanese life - in the same vein as Asobi ni Iku yo and Tenchi Muyo. It probably has one of the more interesting PV commericals I've seen in awhile but this series didn't engage me enough for me. There's nothing wrong with the premise, but I'm just not feeling the fact that we got to have the alien butting into the life of some random high schooler. I'll probably drop this series.

Dragon Crisis!

Looks like Rie Kugimiya is stuck again as a loli, this time as a loli that can turn into a dragon. Hey, at least it's not a tsundere loli. As if that's not enough, most of the first episode she spouts "Ryuji" - which makes probably most seiyuu fans remember the not so distant past with Toradora. Yukana is also on this project as Eriko - so the voice acting talent will probably warrant me to watch at least another two episodes. 

Yumekui Merry

For a JC Staff production that is running concurrently with To Aru Majitsu no Index - this is surprisingly interesting. The premise of this series is that a guy who can see the aura of someone's upcoming dreams - and he has nightmares of cats that are after him because they want to make the jump from the dream world to reality. He stumbles (or rather, she falls) into a weird girl who doesn't know much about herself who wants to go from the real world to the dream world. This is a interesting series - worthy of giving it at least quite a number of episodes to feel it out.

Fractale

This series has a very Last Exile-like feel to it, with many scenes in the first episode being rolling green hills and such. The premise is pretty basic - boy lives by himself (for the most part), boy meets girl, boy and girl have fun times, girl leaves boy gift and disappears, boy ends up going after girl. I'm hoping this series keeps that Last Exile/Haibane Reimei feel to it and not end up being some crazy action series. Worth a couple episodes.

Kore wa Zombie desu ka

There always seems to be one crazy, zany anime series out there every season - and this one fits the bill. Poor guy randomly gets killed by a sword and is brought back as a zombie by a necromancer girl and now she lives in his house as a freeloader. Then comes across a Magical Girl who loses her powers to him when she tries to use magic on him - and now she ends up freeloading too. As with most animes like this series, it's best to shut off your brain and just laugh.

Onii-chan no Koto Nanka Zenzen Suki Janain Dakara ne!!

I must say, the darn title for this series is too darn long. In English, it means "I don't like you at all, big brother!!" Anyway, considering how many people are falling over to sub this series, I'll probably end up dropping this because the subbers will dry out. This series might be worth watching for the zany bro-con little sister. Poor guy doesn't ever get some time to himself in this show.