A quick review of REC (anime)

Synopsis: Fumihiko Matsumaru is an average salaryman with no girlfriend. He invited his colleague Ms. Tanaka to a movie but was stood up. Right at the time he was about to toss tickets into a trash can, a cute girl appeared and asked him not to waste those two tickets. After movie and dinner, he escorted her home and found they live in the same neighborhood, yet unfortunately her apartment caught on fire hours later. Having nowhere else to stay, rookie seiyuu Aka Onda moved to Matsumaru’s place, and the two had started a “more than friends but not yet lovers” relationship under the same roof while keeping this secret from their employers. (from: ANN)

Genre: Romance, comedy, drama
Status: Anime – completed, 9 episodes + 1 DVD-only episode (Feb to Mar 2006)
Manga – ongoing (10 volumes as of 01/2010)
Age rating: The anime contains some mature content (nudity, suggestive scenes and dialogue, and the like), but I heard the manga does indeed contain mature content (R-18?)

Thoughts / Review: The OP was your typical upbeat tune, though it did sound a bit different than the usual ones on similar types of series. It was done by SHAFT, so there were some touches of their unique visual style/elements present here and there. It has 9 episodes in total plus an extra DVD episode. Each episode is just approximately 12 minutes long (or short, however you wish to refer to it), so I managed to finish it in one sitting.

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Year-End Babble: 2009 Anime Notables

Here’s the usual “notables” list as the end of 2009 is just around the corner. A little something to look back and mention several anime series that I think are quite noteworthy to share.

Just a heads up, this is a rather subjective list as this was mainly based on my picks among the series I’ve seen which aired from January to December 2009 that I feel are notable.

* List order is chronological based on the season when it started airing (from Winter 2008/2009 to Fall 2009)

Without further ado, on to the list!

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Ryoko’s Case File

Ryoko’s Case File
More info – Official Site

Also known as Yakushiji Ryouko no Kaiki Jikenbo.

Synopsis: The series revolves around Ryōko Yakushiji, a 27-year-old multilingual investigator who graduated from Tokyo University’s elite Department of Law, and Junichiro Izumida (her subordinate), and the supernatural and bizarre cases they face while working for the Tokyo Metropolitan Police. Ryōko works with her colleagues and subordinates, including Yukiko Muromachi, alongside JACES security forces personnel and her personal maids, Lucienne and Marianne, to resolve the cases before they go out of hand. (from: Manga Updates and Wikipedia)

Genre: – Action, mystery, supernatural
Status: Anime – Completed, 13 episodes (July to September 2008.)
Light novels – Ongoing (8 novels as of 03/2009)
Manga – Ongoing  (10 volumes as of 03/2009)

Thoughts / Review: The OP [“Thème Principal” by KATSU] is a nice and jazzy theme. The ED [“La Vie en Rose” by KATSU] is less jazzy than the OP, but also nice and easy to listen to. I thought both themes were quite fitting for the series.

ON A SIDE NOTE… Ryoko’s Case File is a series that consist of TV anime, mangas and light novels created by Yoshiki Tanaka and illustrated by Narumi Kakinouchi. As the light novels, manga, drama CDs and anime adaptation have different plots and paranormal events/creatures, their central plots are most of the time different from each other.

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Year-End Babble: 2008 Anime Notables

Another “notables” list as the end of 2008 nears. Just a little something to look back on the anime scene and mention several series that I think rather noteworthy to share. 

Do keep in mind that this is a rather subjective list as this was solely based on my picks among the series I have seen that aired from January to December 2008 that I feel are notable.

* List order is chronological based on the season when it started airing (from Winter 2007/2008 to Fall 2008.)

Here goes…

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Special A

Also known as SA.

Synopsis: Hanazono Hikari has always been second to Takishima Kei. When they were six years old, their pro-wrestling loving fathers introduced them to each other. Assuming that she was the best in wrestling, young Hikari challenged Kei to a wrestling match only to be thoroughly defeated by him.  Ever since that fateful incident, Hikari swore to beat Kei in school grades, a sporting event – anything. To do this, she has enrolled in the same school as Kei since elementary. Now she attends Hakusenkan, an ultra elite school, that costs her carpenter father a lot of money. Hikari and Kei are the top two students in the school, with Kei holding firmly to that number one position. While Hikari considers Kei to be a rival and important friend, she is completely unaware that Kei loves her.  The story primarily focuses on Hikari and her constant attempts to defeat her one and only rival, Kei, and how she finds love in their rivalry. (from: Wikipedia)

Genre: Romantic comedy, drama
Status: Anime – Completed, 24 episodes (April to September 2008.)
Manga – Ongoing  (14 volumes as of 09/27/2008.)

Thoughts / Review:  This series had two OP and ED themes throughout. OP#1 “Special Days” (ep 1-12) and ED#2 “Special Gyutto Good Luck!” (ep 13-23) were both performed by the seiyus of the SA girls, while ED #1 “Hidamari no Gate” (ep 1-12, ep 24) and OP#2 “Gorgeous 4U” (ep 13-24) were both performed by the seiyus of the SA guys.

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ef – a tale of memories

The visual novel is known as ef ~a fairy tale of the two

Synopsis: The anime revolves around two main protagonists, Hirono Hiro and Asou Renji. On Christmas Eve, Hirono Hiro meets a girl named Miyamura Miyako who was chasing a purse snatcher. Hiro later finds out that Miyako also goes to the same school as he does and they start hanging out together. This made Hiro’s childhood friend, Shindou Kei, feel left out. Kei then tries to compete with Miyako for Hiro’s affection and a love triangle ensues. The anime also tells the story of Asou Renji. Renji meets a girl named Shindou Chihiro at an abandoned train station. He soon learns that Chihiro suffers from a type of amnesia where her memory span only lasts for 13 hours. He also discovers Chihiro’s dream of writing a novel, but she has never been able to fulfill that dream due to her condition. Renji then decides to help her fulfill that dream. (from: ANN)

Genre: Drama, romance
Status: Anime – Completed, 12 episodes (Oct to Dec 2007)

Thoughts / Review: The OP is the English version of “Euphoric Field” by Tenmon featuring Elisa (from episode 3 onwards. It was also used as an ED for episode 2). The final episode had the Japanese version of this OP. With Shaft as the production company, expect a number of song changes for the OP/ED themes. It had 4 ED themes: The 1st ED is “I’m here” by Hiroko Taguchi (episodes 1, 3, 7, and 10), the 2nd ED is “Kizamu Kisetsu” by Junko Okada (episodes 4, 5, and 9), the 3rd ED is “Sora no Yume” by Natsumi Yanase (episodes 6, 8, and 11), the 4th ED is a remix of the visual novel’s theme song called “Yūkyū no Tsubasa” 07mix by Yumiko Nakajima (episode 12).

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Minami-Ke

Minami-Ke, literally translated as “The Minami Family”

Synopsis: A slice of life comedy that focuses on the everyday life of the three Minami sisters: Haruka, Kana, and Chiaki. (from: Wikipedia)

Genre: Comedy, slice of life
Status: Anime – Completed (October to December 2007)
Manga – Ongoing (4 volumes as of 01/2008.)

“This story gives a straightforward account of the three Minami sisters’ normal, everyday lives. Please have no expectations beyond that.” — This note is shown before each episode as sort of a “warning.” I love the honesty of it. xD

Thoughts / Review: I kinda liked the OP theme, “Kokoro no Tsubasa” performed by Rina Satō, Marina Inoue, and Minori Chihara (the three Minami sisters’ seiyus). It was nice and fun. I thought it fit quite well into the series. I liked the chibi version of the characters that pop out here and there… so cute! The ED is “Sono Koe ga Kiki Takute” performed by the seiyus as well.

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Year-End Babble: 2007 Anime Notables

As the end of 2007 nears, I figured it would be fitting to post something to look back on the anime scene and mention a few of the series that I found rather noteworthy to share. I prefer using the term “notables” than “best of” since I don’t think I’ve seen enough anime to actually say which is best.

Please note that this is quite a subjective list as this was solely based on my picks among the series I have seen that aired from January to December of this year that I feel are notable.

* List order is chronological based on the season when it started airing (from Winter 2006/2007 to Fall 2007)

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