First Impressions: Autumn 2015 – Part 5

Okay! This should be the last of the first impressions posts for this season (thank god I hear you all cry!), and as has been typical across the board this season, it’s another mixed bag!

• Taimadou Gakuen 35 Shiken Shoutai (AntiMagic Academy ‘The 35^th Test Platoon’)
• Fushigi na Somera-chan
• Subete ga F ni Naru – The Perfect Insider
• Garo – The Crimson Moon
• Ore ga Ojousama Gakkou ni “Shomin Sample” toshite gets-sareta ken
• Seraph of the End S2
• Valkyrie Drive -Mermaid-

Taimadou Gakuen 35 Shiken Shoutai (AntiMagic Academy ‘The 35^th Test Platoon’)

You know, I just watched this a couple of hours ago and have already forgotten most of it.  Something about a team of misfits, MC-kun being special because he uses a sword, tsundere red-head, loli-sniper, pervy scientist and flamboyant school chairman……that’s about the sum of what I got out of this episode.  I think it was perfectly serviceable for what it is – yet another magic high school LN adaptation, but in this season where there are already two other identical shows, this was just way too late on for me to give a damn about paying attention to.

It all looks fine though if this kind of generic show is you sort of thing, there isn’t really anything glaringly awful about it (unless you count the checklist of anime tropes paraded across the screen), but there isn’t really anything to elevate it about its brethren either.  Dropped.

 

Fushigi na Somera-chan

Well this is a short, weird, poorly drawn thing that I watched.  It’s in a similar vein to Strange+ where violent randomness just happens for no real reason…..I think we’re meant to find it funny?  I just found it bemusing.  Dropped.

 

Subete ga F ni Naru – The Perfect Insider

I’m not entirely sold on this, mainly because this first episode didn’t really give me anything to go on!  The whole episode was a long series of conversations, and while I can usually forgive that in shows like The Monogatari Series where the interesting visuals make up for the lack of actual action, in The Perfect Insider the visual presentation is rather bland.  It’s not bad by any stretch of the imagination, the cinematography is pretty good and the dialogue is natural feeling and very nuanced, but I did get a bit glazed-eyed watching this.

I think it is the overwhelmingly bland colour palate used – none of the vivid colours A1-Pictures usually employ are present here.  It’s kind of like the animators wanted use all those neutral tones they don’t normally get to touch!  I will say that the washed out colour scheme does work with the character designs and general feel of the show, but it just doesn’t really attract me to the show all that much (because I am part magpie and have an attraction to shiny, colourful things).

But yeah, the character interations are excellent in The Perfect Insider, and while I don’t really feel that I’d like these characters with their smarter than thou attitudes, I do find it interesting to watch them talk to each other.  The conversations flow extremely well and there is some excellent body language too – it’s quite impressive.  However it’s going to take another couple of episodes to really sell this show to me, because this opening episode really didn’t give us much to go on.

 

Garo – The Crimson Moon (Guren no Tsuki)

Well.  This was okay I suppose, I guess I was just expecting more after the stunning opening episode that Honoo no Kokuin had.  Crimson Moon is much more sedate, there isn’t much spectacle going on but it still does a good job of introducing the setting and characters (who I generally like, except for the obnoxious little boy).  The story this opening episode was telling was a bit slapdash though, we don’t really know if the serial killer was murdering prior to meeting with our Makai Alchemist or if talking to her pushed him into that leap in logic.  But whatever, he was hardly important.

The change in artstyle will take a little getting used to as I really liked the stylised approach of Honoo no Kokuin, but there isn’t really anything to complain about these new character designs I suppose.  I really like the Heian period setting and the more placid feeling it brings to the series – it’s a sharp contrast to the harsh feel of the Medieval Europe setting of the first season.

So this was a pretty okay start, I’m definitely keeping Crimson Moon on, I’m just a touch disappointed that I didn’t come out of the opening episode really hyped for more like I did with season one’s première episode.

 

Shomin Sample – Ore ga Ojousama Gakkou ni “Shomin Sample” toshite gets-sareta ken (The Case of My Abduction as a “Commoner Sample” by a School for Rich Ladies)

Urgh.  You know this would have been an entirely unremarkable “single fella in a school of rich girls” show if it wasn’t for the unfortunately inclusion of those terrible muscle bound gay-man stereotypes which elevated a dull show into the horrible trash category.  I more or less completely turned out after that display of crotch-trusting and weirdness.  Definitely dropped.

 

Seraph of the End S2

Well Seraph of the End is back and it is the same as ever thankfully!  All beautifully drawn backgrounds, pretty character designs and terrible personalities – it’s like its never been away!  Authority figures are still terrible, Yu is still angry, Mika is still suffering, Shinoa is still the best character – it’s business as usual in Seraph of the End.

This episode didn’t really do much other than recap, remind us of what the characters general attitudes are and introduce the Hiragi family of gits a bit more thoroughly.  I’m happy to have this trashy experience back, looking forward to more vampire killing antics.

 

Valkyrie Drive -Mermaid-

And we wrap things up with our battling lesbians show courtesy of ARMS, and it sure is ARMS in here.  This is pure trash entertainment, and it doesn’t pretend to be anything other than trash entertainment – this show wants to show you lesbians and tits with some fighting action thrown in for good measure, and that is exactly what you get in this episode.  So long as you go into Valkyrie Drive knowing what you’re getting, there is nothing to be disappointed with here – it’s actually a fairly solid, if trashy, opening episode.

The concept is basically Soul Eater but with weapon transformations fuelled by orgasms, and it every bit as classy as that concept would suggest.  All the creative angles you can think of to see panties & boobs from every conceivable direction, nary a male in sight to divert your attention from the many varieties of lesbian on offer – the show knows what its viewer wants and doesn’t fail to deliver.

It’s kind of hard to be upset with a series that is so upfront and honest about it’s identity.  Sure it isn’t my kind of thing, but I’m sure this is great fun for those of you who are after a yuri fighting series with lots of boobs – and uncensored boobs at that!  Good for you Valkyrie Drive.

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