Winter 2014 Roundtable -- AV MOD MATERIAL

What stood out in the winter 2014 guide?

BigHeart711: My picks were Wooser's Hand-to-Mouth Life: Awakening Arc, Pupa, and Magical Warfare. After checking out the promos for each of them, I thought Magical Warfare and Pupa would make a difference while Wooser would end up being as fun as it's first season.

Takashichea: For me, it was Silver Spoon and Nobunagun. In Silver Spoon's season 2, I was already deep in the show and loving Arakawa's work from the previous season. Nobunagun's art style is reminiscent of Mushibugyo.

Marshal_Victory: Witch Craft Works, Log Horizon, and Tokyo Ravens.

What are your first impressions of the shows you actually watched?

BigHeart711: From what I actually watched total, Space Dandy stuck to me because it ended up being nothing like everyone expected, Witch Craft Works due to an surprising turn of events when I thought it would be generic as heck and Wooser's Second Season because the short time lengths work unlike most of the other shorts out there at the time, plus it was a lot funnier than Season 1 after 3 to 4 episodes. I also found Sakura Trick to be quite sweet so far after about 4 episodes.

Takashichea: Like Marshal_Victory, we had watched too many shows on our end. Marshal, for sure, watched more shows than me this season. I'll do my first impressions on shows that are obscure and haven't been covered much by the front page: Noragami, D Frag, and Pilot's Love Song.

Noragami was an unexpected hidden gem because from the poster and synopsis, I thought it would be a regular show with some supernatural elements. It quickly became a fun show to watch with a great mix of charming, characters that I warm up fast within the few episodes. D Frag was also unexpected. It looked like an average show, but it made me laugh a lot. The only thing I didn't like was Katsuyuki Konishi's role as Kenji Kazama because it didn't match his Tsukkomi role. For Pilot's Love Song, I had high expectations for the show, but later on, the character deaths were predictable and the story felt shallow. It didn't give me enough sympathy for the characters.

Marshal_Victory: The three I mentioned became more than what they looked like at first. All three had flaws but over came them later on in the season. Witch Craft Works was stylish in illustration and animation but played reverse tropes with comedy that played well. Log Horizon suffers for me from illustration style that does not match the story, but the story made up for that. And finally Tokyo Ravens became more than it seemed. It almost had a big budget movie feel by the end. Though, it suffered from bad CGI at times and a bit of confusing story. I agree with Taka on Pilot's Love Song and its wasted potential from overused death flags.

Halberdierv2: I had a look at Nisekoi, Kill La Kill, and Golden Time among the shows I watched. I had known about Nisekoi and Golden Time beforehand and was interested. For Golden Time, it was written by the same mind as the classic ToraDora, and it immediately reeled in as well as the rarity of seeing adult main characters in a university setting. I did also look a bit at Kill La Kill at the start of the Fall season after it piqued my interest. To avoid spoilers, I wasn't a fan of the general direction it took in the last arc. Nisekoi also seems to be a long runner, and a welcome replacement for the Sket Dance void in me. I also had a momentary glance at Super Sonico which I'm considering continuing. I'm starting Witch Craft Works which I've heard good things about.

Shows We Enjoyed!

What are your bad shows from this season?

BigHeart711: Pupa was the first of the only bad shows I saw due to the time length it ended up getting. The short format doesn't work because Pupa's story also included development for the main characters, which only partly happened as an episode passes. It also felt quite rushed. The other show was Hozuki no Reitetsu after two episodes because they felt bland, which is unusual for me whenever I check out anything supernatural themed.

Takashichea: Well, BigHeart711 nabbed Pupa from me. I'll add this scene. The episode where she just eat her brother's meat and says Onii Chan for the whole time that was terrible. Yet at the same time, it was hilarious. It's a similar thing to My Sister is Unusual. It was really uncomfortable in the first 2 episodes with the masturbation and water works. You can't help but make fun of the series. That's where I got my enjoyment there. Lastly, Super Sonico. I finished this series. I wasn't much of a slice of life fan. I pretty much watch the show for the side characters. Sonico was a boring character. She just serves as window dressing, a poster girl. I don't find her cute, funny, or interesting. Pretty much, I watched it for the Manager Kitamura.

Marshal_Victory: Z/X Ignition and Strange+ were the last ones that I had dropped. Strange+ as a short was to confusing for its time allotment. I forgot Pupa too, but it just didn't live up to its hype. Z/X Ignition felt like to much of a mess, and Pilots Love Song just was to transparent with death flags etc. Kill la Kill and Space Dandy were hyped, and many folks seem to have some disappointment in them due to hype.They are not on my list of disappointing shows because I knew what they were going in. Back to the whole "Review what something is not what it could be thing."

Our Bad Shows

What are the major themes in this season?

BigHeart711: I actually didn't think there was a main theme or trend to the season since many themes were in play. Of course, a few of these shows would've evoked more themes, but I haven't seen anything surface. Hopefully nothing overly-nasty like "My Little Sister is Unusual Recently" shows up in drones later on...

Takashichea: Well, I thought this was a good question, but it could be bad. Back to our topic, we had more micro series in this season than the previous seasons:

• Everyone Gather! Falcom Academy
• Oneechan ga Kita
• Go! Go! 575
• Pupipo!
• Tonari no Seki-kun: The Master of Killing Time
• Pupa
• Double Circle (ONA)
• Strange+

Marshal_Victory: Magic High School - that specific sub genre with school is pretty common. We're light on shonen this season.

What are the changes in your first and final impressions of the Fall 2013 leftover anime series?

BigHeart711: Kill La Kill was the only fall leftover series that I ended up seeing as it turned out. As the story and the action scenes got more intense, I ended up being amazed. I was also shocked about how some people even predicted on what would happen on a few events in the show, but it was just like watching a crazed-up game of roulette to me.

While BigHeart711 talked about Kill la Kill, Marshal and Taka had a conversation about Golden Time and Log Horizon.

Takashichea: For Golden Time, it had a slow start with the character build up with their relationships. It wasn't so serious.

Marshal_Victory: Show is set up with sucker punch surprises and drama. They mix the comedy in fair amounts, but it became very soap opera like at the end where as the start was not like that.

Takashichea: Log Horizon did pretty well towards the end. From heavy exposition and world building, the beginning focuses on Shiroe's gang while the later half focuses on Minori's group and their growth.

Marshal_Victory: Log horizon evolved much like a guild would in a MMORPGs. Just about right amount of drama too. Writers got a love for MMORPGs, and it's right there in the show.

What are your underrated shows you recommend?

BigHeart711: Robot Girls Z and HappinessCharge Pretty Cure since I haven't heard nothing for either series so far. I thought both were fun, especially considering that HappinessCharge already broke some patterns in the Pretty Cure franchise (the patterns are early spoilers, so I won't say).

Halberdierv2: I would say Super Sonico, if you can get past the fan service, isn't that bad of a show, and the characters are fairly interesting. Otherwise, if you're into romance, look at Nisekoi and Golden Time.

Takashichea: Check out Noragami, D Frag, and Witch Craft Works if you're into these genre.

Marshal_Victory: Generally, I add a series to my average and above list. I would recommend Log Horizon, Ghost in the Shell, and the ones we just covered.

About the Authors

	BigHeart711 is a proud anime fan of the Blue Roses and Magical Mages! Follow him @MasterMenos
	Halberdierv2 is a student, video game and manga specialist. Follow him @HalberdierV2
	Takashichea is an Asian American Studies student who is a big wiki and anime nerd. He's an Anime Vice mod who helps out at To Hollywood and Beyond Wikia occasionally. Follow him @Takashichea
	Marshal_Victory is a long time anime fan of all genre.