Thoughts on the Spring 2015 Anime Season

[coates32]

As we all know that the Spring Anime season is ending. I'm curious what everyone's favorites, and lease favorites during this season? Also, has anyone tried Funimation's broadcast dubs (shows that are dubbed while they're being simulcast). You can find details here [http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2014-10-29/funimation-dubs-psycho-pass-2-laughing-under-the-clouds-anime-as-they-air-in-japan/.80475].

As for me, I've been enjoying the [broadcast] dubbed versions of the following:

-Highschool DxD (season 3)
-Blood Blockade Battlefront
-Seraph of the End
-The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan (I'm a big Suzumiya fan)
-Assassination Classroom (my current favorite in this season)

Admittedly, Funi's Broadcas Dub idea kinda of made it a bit difficult to watch Sailor Moon Crystal on Crunchyroll.

 

[StormShaun]

To be honest, I think that Summer 2015 is going to be better. It contains less ... Undesirable genres. Okay I'll just come out with it, I'm glad Summer is getting less Harem cra- ... Series, I just get annoyed with it. Okay, deep breaths me, deeeeeeep breaths.
Don't worry though, Spring contained some good anime too, and I watched it all in subtitles.

I am currently watching (or have finished).

- Arslan Senki.
The series hasn't ended yet, but I'm quite interested in it. Not as much as Kekkai Sensen, but enough it get be invested in the main characters and setting. I'm just hoping that Arslan himself will do something awesome, especially since he has changed quite a bit. Still, the series is good, and I'm definitely going to hang onto it ... Especially considering Narsus might be getting a little romance to himself. Getting to the OP and ending, I like them both, especially since I don't skip them.

7/10 - Daryun is Lu Bu confirmed. (So far, it ain't over yet.)

Also surprisingly I want to watch Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood again.

- Fate/Stay Night Unlimited Blade Works S2.
Well ... What can I say about this. Everyone loves Fate/Stay Night, especially when it comes to the Unlimited Blade Works or Heavens Feel routes. To me, I actually like the Fate route, and I would love if Ufotable actually did give it a chance ... Even if it is the most boring route. To be honest I just want to see the Saber and Shirou romance in full glory ... Yeah, I don't exactly like the other romances. Apart from that, what can you say, they did the route faithfully, even if it was a little more "talky talky" unlike Fate/Zero. It still has its moments, and I enjoy it for that.

8/10 - Needs more Fate and Saber ... Also confirmed best girl.

- Gunslinger Stratos.
This one was a surprise. A arcade game that turned into an anime. I don't usually have experience with those ... But I hear that they can get quite bad. As I said, this one was a surprise though. I'll quickly admit, the overall story wasn't something I liked, and the ending was slightly anti-climatic. Yet they placed the focus in places I cared about ... Annoyingly enough though, the large cast barely got screen time apart from the main lot, but what can you get from a short (around 12 episodes) anime? It did alright.

5.5 - Better than average I guess, but nothing special.

- Hibike! Euphonium.
What can I say ... What can I say about Hibike? It seems the community is fast at shipping than some damn dock workers. Let me just say, it is about the music, and it is a wonderful thing. It is basically K-On except with a big musical band. I can understand why the community talks about the yuri, but they are very quick to pair people up ... Enough where they shall be disappointed because, well, I got spoiled accidentally. I'll be honest, this anime should be exploring more other other characters, especially the new friends to the protagonist. When I see those two, they could be expanded SO very much. It just annoys me how they focus too much on the main heroine and her plain romance. Those other two should have got something like that. Other than that, it is doing fine. Animated, check. Music, check. Cuteness, check. More Sapphire ... ... Needs desperately more.

6 - More Sapphire. More Sapphire. (Not over yet)

- Kekkai Sensen.
Now this ... Now this is my highlight for the season! The designs, the characters, the story, the plot, and the everything that connects all together. Kekkair Sensen is just on top with all. A story that we can follow with ease and should be able to along with everyone. A plot that intrigues most, with many threads that can weave a web of excellence. Characters that are interesting and unique, with many of them gaining their own separate moments ... Well, you can see where I am going with this. The series was created by the same person who made Trigun. Basically, it's real good.

8.5/9 - Thermal Crotch Shot ftw. (Almost over, I can't wait for the finale.)

- Ore Monogatari!!
An anime for a great romance manga. Let me just say this. You like romance? You like interesting protagonists? Then watch this. It will sweep you off your feet. The only thing you need to watch in this series, is the romance, and the protagonist. I haven't exactly seen all of it, but it is certainly faithful to the manga, and it has moments that are just ... Great. If you are a man, you will feel so much "Bro" over this [http://41.media.tumblr.com/4ced4f7ef4e04013368bc03573e0fb5f/tumblr_nmr57ufkca1qa0mm4o2_r1_500.jpg] protagonist. If you don't like it, get out of my Earth.

BRO/bro.

- Plastic Memories.
One of the more complicated series, at least for me. It is a sci-fi romance that reminded me of Blade Runner. The designs are neat, the characters are neat and all get their moments. Yet there is feels, definitely feels. To be honest, even I don't know what to feel for this anime. It is nearing its end and I'll probably come up with a better opinion once I finish it. The only problem I did not like though is the stupid focus on one of the side-girls who like the protagonist ... Quite a stupid focus since it should have a better focus on the main two.

6.5/10 - Needed to build up the relationship more, but still, not bad. A second season would be interesting. Also needs less Michiru/Candidate for worst girl 2015.


... My eyes became moist like the tears of a thousand Michiru supporters.

- Seraph of the End.
The last one, well, it was interesting, somewhat like a more free Attack on Titan, with cooler fights. All I hope for it is that there are Angels in the future of this series. If so, hopefully they won't represented as the evil bastards or giant boobed monsters like in other anime. Apart from that, the overall story and setting seems intriguing with humans, vampires, demons, and the possible entry of Angels. As said, it is basically Attack on Titan except with better ... Everything, maybe not for animation. Well, that and it actually might have an interesting romance between the protagonist and the intriguing main heroine. Apart from all of that, it will be getting a second season soon ... Well, later this year.

7.5 - Needs more Angels, and Shinji getting in the damn robot ... And needs less yaoi shipping.

Phew, that was long. Still, with all of these series out of the way, it makes me seem more excited for the next season.
Especially since it contains more intriguing anime.
...
...
Okay it contains more "pure" romance series, you can't judge me, and I won't judge you ... Even if you watch that horrible hare- *Indefinable rambling*
Apart from that, the summer season will have Charlotte, now that will be one anime to give us feels.

 

[[Kira Must Die]]

Honestly, I haven't really been watching anything this season.

The only thing I caught up with was Fate/Stay Night, which is great. Has a few minor issues, like a little too many flashbacks, and I'm not too big on talking in the middle of a fight, but I'm still willing to forgive a lot of that simply because of how much better it is than Studio Deen's adaptation, and that Rin is still awesome.

I think for the most part I'm taking a short break from currently airing anime, and am simply looking for older anime to engross myself in. I feel as though I need something "Madoka" good to reinvigorate my interest in currently airing anime. Or maybe something super shitty. Those can sometimes help, too.

 

[Ultress]

I haven't watched much new anime or really much in general lately(reading more manga) but I have kept of with a few.

Stardust Crusaders, I've always been pretty lukewarm about this arc of Jojo's Bizarre Adventure but something about this adaption has made me fall almost in love with it. The style,the fights and the characters all work wonderfully,making for a fun time. I could go on for a while but I wrote some words about it over here [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.877471-Things-No-One-Cares-About-Jojos-Bizarre-Adventure-Stardust-Crusaders#22089719] that sum up why I enjoyed it. Probably my favorite of the season,also Last Train Home invokes so much emotion from me thanks to this show.

My Love Story: I adore the manga and while I probably won't finish watching this since the manga is still a bit too fresh in my mind, It's a fun adaption.The voice actors are perfect for their roles,it captures the feel of the manga and it's an enjoyable story. Both the main guys are cool as hell but I maybe it's the fact that I'm used to Rinko later in the manga,she feels a bit too moe blob right now.

Plastic Memories: I don't know if this is intentional or not but the way the show handles the Gifta's "collection" is remarkably similar to how (at least in the US) the funeral industry operates from the way business is conducted to the stigma associated with the industry. The romance I feel is a bit dry from as far as I've seen but it's not terrible and the way it handles death is great, so I hope this one sticks the landing once I get there.

Wish upon the Pleadies: An average web animation gets a equally average if confusing Tv series,nothing particularly interesting about it. Calling it bad would imply it tried and failed but from what I saw it was completely mediocre

 

[TranshumanistG]

Now that I think of it, I may have spent a bit too much time absorbing anime this Spring.

World Trigger -- The Neighbor's large-scale invasion ark is finally over. Good. It had started becoming exhausting. That said, I liked the start where all the new characters and Trion soldiers are introduced and the end managed to get the suspense going again. Also, I liked the moment where a certain character got their physical body wounded. It's much more exciting than the Trion Body's "Oh, you chopped my arm off? That's ok, I will just have some shiny contours in its place for a bit". The blood coughing felt a bit too cliche'd though.

Plastic Memories -- I typically dislike clumsy moe characters and Isla seems to have been exactly that for most of the series. The whole romance thing felt a bit rushed, and a bit too close to loli territory(yes, I know, she's a Giftia) for my tastes. What kept me going was the ligh-hearted humour and the whole terminal illness metaphor. I half-expected MC to not go through with the plan in the end and either somehow get an ultimate happy ending or bad end. I must've become spoiled. The series end exactly where the preceding episodes were pointing. Given the subject matter, I kinda respect that.

Shokugeki no Soma -- I started watching it because of it's over-dramatization of food, intending to use it as a JoJo surrogate. The plot is nothing special, but the amount of detail the give to food makes it feel like it should be mandatory viewing in some kind of a teen cooking school. It has actually made me a bit more interested in cooking. So far the story and characters have been pretty plain and predictable. Though, in the last few episodes MC has started to show a bit more character than "I'm cheery perfect at cooking" Soma. The cliffhanger at the end of the most recent one has actually left me waiting.

Comical Psychosomatic Medicine -- honestly, it has felt like some kind of inventive government-sponsored PSA or a commercial for private mental clinics that at some point decided to become a parody of itself. The jokes do get a chuckle from me from time to time and the medical stuff is pretty interesting. Not much more that you can expect from it, given its run time I guess.

I Can?t Understand What My Husband Is Saying: 2nd Thread -- I started watching the first season when nothing else was on my backlog, liked a few jokes and kept watching mostly out of habit. Still watching mostly out of habit. The jokes are not really something to speak a lot about. The character interactions are pretty bland, so is the plot.

PUNCH LINE -- started out a supernatural ecchi mystery but kept throwing out more and more plot and fantasy elements. Ended up as a 'nakama take on the world which is Fantasyland' story. At first the show focused mostly on MC which made other characters feel kinda clueless. Over time each of them got a bit more story time but only MCs and Chioko's backstory felt actually interesting. In the final fight, though, they all were good. The ending, with other Yuuta goin for the 'Ultimate Happy Future' could be a continuation hook, though doubtful.

JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Stardust Crusaders - Battle in Egypt -- The plot concludes in the formulaic JoJo fashion. JoJo and his trusted friends finally come out and fight the antagonist who proves to be overpowered, but is ultimately defeated, though not before some of the friends die. But that's not what important. The fights are what is important. First off, I liked the D'Arby(that's with an apostrophe) fights because they gave a breather from the, um, fighting and kinda made me remember Kaiji. The 80s games with unbelievably realistic graphics and unfeasible camera placement were interesting as well. I didn't really like the first Mondatta episode, it felt pretty much like a filler, but I liked the second one where he teamed up with Horse because of the whole 'you need to do stuff precisely as I say' and situation it leads him into, like jamming his fingers into Kakoyin's nose. Iggy's episode felt kinda stale, maybe it's just me, I don't generally like when a show centers on animal side-kicks. The final fight with Dio delivered what I expected, with gambits stacked and collapsing, like JoJo manipulating his own heart. Didn't expect the older JoJo to be resurrected, with all the farewell smoke and all, so him saying he's actually Dio didn't surprise me, but the following reveal did. A bit disappointed that they didn't use the time limit for plot any more, it actually didn't feel like the characters were under a lot of time pressure.

MY love STORY!! -- Simple. Simpler than I expected. I've mostly watched it for the cringey lovey-dovey camp. Takeo and Suna's friendship was my main highlight.

Yamada-kun and the Seven Witches -- I liked the whole 'lonely MC discovers a supernatural mystery and starts making friends with whom he explores it' thing in the first few episodes as well as how they played with the powers, but soon enough they started introducing new characters and witch powers, throwing MC in new situations a bit too fast for my tastes. It seems to be coming to an end now, but there's too much motion blur for me to determine how I feel about it.

Gintama° -- It's same old Gintama, their off-beat self-referencing over-analyzing gross-out tsukommi humor gets me every time. The character's don't really change much, but are still like-able. I was a bit disappointed when the Joi Rebels reunion ark first baited me with war-era flashbacks(the stuff I'm most interested in plot-wise), but instead made it all a joke. Then again, Gintama is not Gintama if it takes itself seriously. The gender-bender ark, still fresh in memory is the one I liked the most and I wouldn't mind it dragging even longer just to see Ginko switch between sleazy old guy and cheerful schoolgirl personas. The bent Sarutobi and Tsuki owning the scene were also nice, though I couldn't help but wonder if that meant that they were better men because they used to be women or that men are just better in general.

 

[Fappy]

JoJo's Bizarre Adventure and Fate/stay night just wrapped up. I really enjoyed JoJo, but Fate was a slog. I ended up just watching it for the pretty colors and the fights. The plot was horribly paced/boring and the protagonist was horrible.

Didn't really watch anything else, and as far as I can tell there's not much to look forward to from here on out. Dragon Ball Super (dubbed) and Lupin III are the only things I am excited about. Unfortunately, most of what's been coming out lately has been nothing but harem and moe crap :/

 

[Kaimax]

Since I always watch a lot, I'm going to just keep it short.

Assassination Classroom
Fun non-mainstream Shonen, a faithful adaptation, stopped on a weird place (22 episodes). For those who don't know, one of the series dominating the current Shonen Jump Line-up.
8/10

Arslan Senki
Dynasty Warriors the anime. Has changes from the source but not detrimental.
Daryun is Lu Bu/10

Dungeon ni Deai wo Motomeru no wa Machigatteiru Darou ka
Kirito 2.0, nothing special for the current story just good action scenes.
7/10

F/SN Unlimited Blade Works
Uber level animation, kinda wonky in the depiction of Shirou when compared to the original VN
9/10

Hibike Euphonium
Not K-On the anime, drama is kinda forced, good quality overall.
7/10

Highschool DxD BorN
Lack of Quality compared to the first 2 season, and there are no "Dance sequence Ending"
6/10]

Jojo, Stardust Crusaders
Good Quality for a old shonen, but strangely quality drops near the end of the show.
I'm biased/10

Kekkai Sensen
I thought this was made by Trigger.
Awesome/10

Kyoukai no Rinne
Obligatory Takahashi Rumiko Anime
6/10

Nagato Yuki-chan no Shoushitsu
Kinda good for a while. until Haruhi appeared and stole the show..and then the start of episode 10.
7/10

Nisekoi:
Nothing Happens the anime. no, seriously nothing happens when compared to the 1st season.
5/10

Ore Monogatari
Bromance the anime
Bro/10

Owari no Seraph
Attack on Vampires the anime (It's mad eby the same studio lol), beautiful painted background, shoddy animation sometimes.
7/10

Plastic Memories
Dem Beautiful FEELS
I don't have enough Tears/10

Shokugeki no Souma
More than faithful adaptation, adding scenes that wasn't in the manga for foreshadowing and plot-hole filling.
FoodGASM/10

Yahari Ore no Seishun Love Comedy wa Machigatteiru. Zoku
NOICE new Character designs (New studio), goes a bit deeper on the main characters, anti-climatic ending
IROHA/10

Yamada-Kun to Nananin no majou
Not exactly Fairy Tail the anime, took some liberties in the adaptation, overall nothing detrimental.
6/10

 

[coates32]

Snipped out of 10

I've totally forgot to mention that I was watch Is It Wrong to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? and I'm enjoying it so far (I'm on episode 5).

While I'm not finished with DxD Born, I have to agree that the general quality of season 3 was noticeably off. It was still pretty entertaining in places, though.

Admittedly, I'm not the biggest Takahashi fan, due to Inuyasha. So, how does Rinne stack up to Inuyasha?

 

[Fdzzaigl]

First off: dubs must burn in hell.

That said, Kekkai Sensen was definitely nr. 1 for me this season. Excellent OP and ED, story with surprising turns and twists, tongue in cheek, awesome.

One that people keep forgetting is Sidonia no Kishi S2. People keep hating on it because of 3D animation, but it fits the style of the manga. Even though the second season was less good, that's because it followed the manga pretty closely. Nihei is still my waifu and if they do the finale right it will be tied for a nr1 place for me. The little snippet of a supposed Blame! adoptation made me shit my pants, I hope that becomes reality.

My second waifu has to be Shinoa from Seraph of the End, I watched that thing only for her sarcasm.

Arslan Senki was pretty good as well and Dungeon ni Deai wo whatever was your generally enjoyable anime this time around.

Ghost in the Shell: Alternative Architecture sseemed quite good as well, but I didn't follow it. Neither did I watch much of Plastic Memories.

 

[FPLOON]

I only saw two this time:Plastic Memories: My friend calls it "a poor man's Key"... I think that was suppose to be a compliment...
The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan: I love it because I'm biased...Other than that, my friends and I can't wait until Monster Musume anime comes out! WOO!

 

[Kaimax]

Admittedly, I'm not the biggest Takahashi fan, due to Inuyasha. So, how does Rinne stack up to Inuyasha?

It's basically has more of Ranma 1/2 comedy, but less perverted than Lum and Ranma, relies more on the dead pan and cold jokes. The main girl is pretty apathetic, so it's fresh wind when compared to most of Rumiko's main girl (Lum, Akane, Kagome) The Main Guy is the the usual hot-headed type, he's more like Ranma though.

 

[Paragon Fury]

To be honest, I think that Summer 2015 is going to be better. It contains less ... Undesirable genres. Okay I'll just come out with it, I'm glad Summer is getting less Harem cra- ... Series, I just get annoyed with it. Okay, deep breaths me, deeeeeeep breaths.
Don't worry though, Spring contained some good anime too, and I watched it all in subtitles.

I am currently watching (or have finished).

Son, I hate to ruin your happy times; but it doesn't matter the number of harems coming out this summer. The ULTIMATE Harem Anime is coming out, and that one on it's own will be enough.

Monster Musume is coming.

 

[Cold Shiny]

I've only watched one anime this season. My Love Story! is absolutely awesome. Is it complicated? No. It's just a little story, and I love it. Rarely in anime do we get a main character like Takeo, he's pretty unique.