Synopsis:

Thoughts: Who knew an anime adaption about a video game where you have to turn girls into idols could turn out to be an interesting show.  Is it going to be the best show of the season?  I do not know, but going at the path it is now there is a good chance that it could be a top five show.  Looking at the picture above you can see that this is a moe show.  With the many, a moe shows that exists today finding one that takes a new look at the genre is always refreshing.

The first episode is done in the style of documentary.  The camera operator asks the girls a question (which appears in subtitles) about being an idol or why they want to be an idol and the girls answer to the best of their abilities.  What makes this interesting to watch is it shows that the behind the PR perfected looks and responses the girls are supposed to give when they have their idol face on, that being an idol is not as easy as it may appear to be.  One of the girls is asked if the two and half hour train ride she has to take is hard, but she gives a cheerful response saying that it doesn’t bother her and that she gets to either listen to music or study up on her profession.  The show attempts to give the girls some personality outside of being an idol and in to an extent give the girls a three dimensional personalities.

Production wise the show looks amazing.  A lot of attention was given to the girls character designs while they are moe and are simple, if you pay attention to how the girls move you will notice that a lot of attention was given to body movements.  Even the background art looks good as well.

The appeal that IdolM@ster has to anime fans may be limited.  Those who cannot stand moe shows or game based adaptions will most likely want to pass on this one.  For those who stick around and decide to give the show a watch will get a pretty looking and almost deconstructed look into the world of being an idol.

Score 4/5

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Synopsis: “The shoujo-ai series is about a group of school girl aged friends who end up taking over a tea ceremony room in the school that’s no longer used and form their own club, an “amusement club” as you may say.”

Thoughts: Similar to last season’s slice of life show A Channel but now with yuri elements instead of implied yuri elements.  Of course having yuri elements does not make a show that does just about nothing to set itself apart from other moe slice of life shows any better.  Yuru Yuri’s first episode is introduces the main four girls who go to an all-girls middle school.  Nothing in this first episode of this show really stands out.  The character designs are generic moe and are forgettable.  The music is generic and forgettable.  In fact, most of what is present in the first episode is forgettable.

Of course, there are some good elements to this show.  While this is a slice of life show, there is comedy involved too and the comedy is quite funny.  I have never seen a show do a bit on what makes someone noticeable and make it funny at the same time.  The cast is also likeable as well, which is important for any moe or slice of life show.

The first episode of Yuru Yuri does not do much to set it apart from other shows in the genre.  Those who like moe shows or even slice of life shows should give the first episode a watch to determine if they want to keep watching it or not.  Those looking for something deeper look elsewhere.

Score 2 out of 5

Yuru Yuri is streaming on Crunchyroll

As the song goes: She's got the whooooole world ..... in her hand. Somehow, this does NOT reassure me. Credit: Noizi Ito, Kyoto Animation

The Sexual Harassment of Haruhi Suzumiya or Now I Get It!

Perhaps I’m a bit slow on the uptake. Heck, sometimes it takes a looong time before I figure something out.

Some time ago I wrote a three part article The Head Trip of Haruhi Suzumiya. In the first part I mentioned how taken aback I was over some scenes in episodes 01, 02 & 03. I still hold to the same reservations but now I more fully understand as to what it’s about.

I originally thought it had to do with some kind of wierd Japanese sexual humor. I now see they were nothing more than satiric pokes at the anime trope known as moe’. It’s nothing more than the title characters’way (Being the pushy, inconsiderate ASS she can be.) of pointing out some of the Mikuru characters’moe’aspects. In this case, cute, tiny, and uh ….. generous secondary female characteristics. Still, it could have been handled differently (Being as I’m from Ohio & not ohayo, I like my women real & of legal age.).

While Mikuru is moe’, Haruhi is definitely Moe Howard!

Article copyright © 3-24-2011 Jay Agan

This article originally published at http://jaysteevee.blogspot.com/

Here are some Haruhi goodies I found on You Tube:

While our anime marketers usually leave the opening/closing numbers alone, it seems the Russians like to re-dub them in their own language.

Here’s the Russian version of God Knows.

These are in Russian with “gratuitous” English in order to preserve their Japanese character (Eyes cross, brain siezes up.).

Here’s a couple unrelated ones for the opening/closing of the second season. Quite funny as seemingly no editing was needed. They just “fell in” on their own.

K-On! is one of those girly little animes I know absolutely nothing about. As a child of the Cold War, if anyone told me 20 years ago I’d be chuckling over something to do with the Soviet anthem, I’d have told him he was nuts!

Here’s an Azumanga one you’ve probably seen before.

Otaku in Review – Episode 43 – Shinji’s Erection | Subscribe in iTunes

This week we invited Jake and Kyonkun from Jake’s Anime Blog to come on and discuss the phenomenon that has taken Japan by storm… K-ON! We discuss the anime, the recently announced movie, the newly released PSP game, and the huge fandom surrounding them.

We also discuss Occult Academy and give our final impressions (it’s at the end, with a spoiler warning, so don’t worry). In the news… Angel Beats! gets another epilogue – yay or nay? Touhou Project FINALLY gets an anime (what the hell took so long?). Visual novel company minori has partnered with the fan-translation group No Name Losers and MangaGamer to bring their titles overseas. Finally, did you get your Toradora! and Persona Trinity Soul replacement discs yet? If not, fill out the form!

Otaku in Review – Episode 33 – K-ON! Special | Subscribe in iTunes

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The first person I ever heard say it out loud was Travis Touchdown in No More Heroes.

“Moe,” he gushed, slowly enunciating both syllables while he pawed a poster featuring three prepubescent anime girls.

I was familiar with the word and concept from reading Genshiken manga (though I admit I thought it was pronounced “mo” at the time), but I’d thought it stood for a general affinity for a character or object. Lately though, the more I’ve heard about moe, the more it seems to apply to a singular character type. Modern moe, in fact, appears to apply to just a select few anime titles.

As a female anime fan, I have a lot of male friends who are into these so-called moe shows, but I wasn’t sure if they’d apply to me: When the series’s audience is male otaku, what is the appeal for women? However, I enjoy shounen type anime as much as I do shoujo, so what’s the harm in trying?

In order to begin my first foray into moe, I crowd-sourced Twitter for some essential moe shows. I chose four: The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, K-ON!, Toradora!, and Clannad. Based on watching one or two episodes of each, here’s what I think moe means:

Prepubescent features. Despite Travis’s prize poster, I was expecting moe to refer to women with hyper-sexualized features- big breasts and tiny waists. However, moe characters tend to be exceptionally young looking and acting. While they’re usually high school aged, their big eyes, thin frames, and – oddly enough – super deformed tiny hands and feet, they could pass for much younger. When older women, like mothers or teachers, are portrayed, they could easily pass for their students and daughters.

A sensitive male protagonist. Moe anime directors seem to go out of their way to make the male protagonist sympathetic. He is usually a quiet, reserved guy who has lost a parent. Because he’s usually a jaded delinquent who doesn’t fit in, he’s not sparklingly sweet like a shoujo anime male lead, but he knows what to do to attract that special lady. The obvious exception to the rule is K-ON!, which so far has no male characters at all, but I suspect a yuri protagonist eventually takes this position.

Quirky personalities. Every moe character falls into a type. There’s the class representative one, the energetic one, the quiet one, the spacey daydreamer, and most moe of all, the shy, embarrassed one. This last one seems to be the most desirable of all moe characters, and the general “fan favorite” moe character of each anime – let’s say Mio (K-ON!), Taiga (Toradora!), Mikuru (Haruhi), and Nagisa (Clannad) – possesses this personality type.

No overt sexuality. This is key. If this was standard anime, moe series with their multitude of female characters for every male character, would fall into the harem genre. But moe doesn’t ever address sexuality head on. The focus is less on sex appeal than on cavity-inducing cuteness. Even with characters like Mikuru from Haruhi who could fall into standard anime sex appeal standards, we’re treated to close up shots of her big, sparkling eyes, not her breasts.

From these four observations, I’ve deduced one very important thing: Moe is a genre, not a character design. It’s not just about appearance, or even just about character personality. Moe is an overarching theme that seeps into whatever else the show is about. Can moe be for women? It depends whether you’d find it distracting or not. While a moe anime may purport to be about a music club, the supernatural, or plain high school drama, the main focus is still on showcasing the cute, quirky, female characters. But with that in mind, don’t knock it ’til you try it.

Yes, that’s right. Strike Witches is a show about a bunch of cute girls that grow animal ears & tails, fly around with big guns, and battle aliens in a post-World War II era. They do not wear pants and the show takes no shame in constantly reminding you of this. After reading that, chances are you think one of two things: (A) this is the stupidest and creepiest idea for a show ever, or (B) this is an AMAZING idea for a show. If you’re in group B, read on…

Set in an alternate-universe post-World War II era, a race of fierce aliens known as the Neuroi have taken over many areas of the planet. Humanity’s only hope for survival are the Strike Witches, a group of girls from all around the globe that have magical powers. Through the use of leg attachments with propellers known as Striker units, the Strike Witches are able to fly. They launch into the air with their guns and battle the Neuroi in hopes to one day help reclaim the areas of Earth that rightfully belong to humans.

Strike Witches constantly shifts among the genres of drama, ecchi comedy, and action. The most exciting scenes in the show are the action scenes, which are very well animated and, through the use of CG, visually impressive. The guns are big, the explosions are loud, and the action is plentiful. When the pacing slows down, the series consists mostly of scenes of the girls in their dormitories acting silly and doing the kinds of stuff you’d see in a typical ecchi comedy. These are the weaker parts of the show, and are also the parts that receive the most criticism. However, this is all part of the show doing what it does best: pandering to its intended fanbase.

Otaku-pandering silliness aside, Strike Witches is actually a damn good series. As I mentioned earlier, the action scenes alone are fantastic. As for the story, it may initially sound like a cliché alien invasion story, but it actually develops into something quite good, and has some excellent twists and turns to it that may surprise viewers. There’s plenty of good drama and character development to go around as well, which help to balance out the less desirable parts of the show.

The FUNimation DVD release includes some nice extras. Because the show contains many characters, it can be difficult to keep track of them all. Thankfully, an insert with a character guide on it is included for your convenience. I found myself referring to this guide quite often while I was watching. The DVD release also includes a fairly decent dub, which definitely turned out better than I expected it to be. If you enjoy the show enough and aren’t afraid to express your enjoyment, there’s a free patch included in the box set, which you can sew onto your favorite bag.

Strike Witches is a show that you’re either going to love to death or hate with a fiery passion. If you don’t mind cute girls with fox tails flying around in their panties, then this show is an absolute must for your anime shelf. If you’re creeped out by the mere mention of such things, then you need to stay far away. Strike Witches is a show that knows who it caters to and does exactly that. And it does so spectacularly.

Strike Witches is licensed and distributed by FUNimation Entertainment and is on sale now. Watch it now at funimation.com.

ENJOYMENT
Overall lots of fun, though the fanservice is a bit excessive

4/5

RECOMMENDATION VALUE
IF you are in this show’s intended fanbase…

5/5

REWATCH VALUE
Great action scenes and underlying story make it worth rewatching

4/5

Purchase Strike Witches at RightStuf

In this blog post, I’m going to go into more detail with the shows I spoke about on the ANNCast and why I think many anime fans, and even non-anime fans, may enjoy them. I’ll also talk about some other “moe shows” that might be worth checking out as a sort of segue into appreciating moe.

The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya

Haruhi is pretty much the prime example of a show with moe elements that most anime fans can enjoy. It’s a show that spans many genres and thus, it pretty much has something for everyone. Fans of comedy, drama, mystery, sci-fi, slice-of-life, and even action can find something interesting about this show, and that’s what makes it great. The “moe-ness” of this show is found mostly in its main female characters: specifically the totally adorable and innocent Mikuru and the silent genius Yuki, both of which can certainly be viewed as cute in their own way. Even Haruhi herself may be considered moe by some, with her tsundere-like attitude. If you watch the show and find that you like these characters, then you just might be starting to like this moe thing.

Hayate the Combat Butler

I mentioned this show on the ANNCast episode because I think it’s a great example of an off-the-wall comedy presented by a largely “cute girl” cast, thus being where the moe comes in. Hayate is pure comedy, and it’s comedy that most people can enjoy. It’s true that many of the jokes are geared towards otaku, with its many parodies, but there is plenty of original, non-otaku humor found in the show as well. If you like a good comedy, Hayate is worth checking out, and even more so if you’re familiar with anime titles like Saint Seiya, Revolutionary Girl Utena, and Neon Genesis Evangelion, as those shows (and many others) are parodied many times throughout the series. If you watch Hayate and find that you like the female characters and don’t find them all annoying, then there’s your moe appeal.

Clannad / Toradora!

If you’ve enjoyed teenage high-school romantic comedies such as 10 Things I Hate About You or She’s All That, then you might appreciate shows like Clannad and Toradora! While I can already see some people aiming their shotguns at me for making that comparison, hear me out. These are all romantic comedies, or “dramedies” that involve romance, but present it with plenty of laughs on the side. They all have their funny moments, but they also tone down on the comedy when things get serious.

Even those who aren’t into anime might find a certain appeal to these shows, and it’s not because of the moe. It’s because both Clannad and Toradora! both manage to present a very serious, emotionally vesting, and tear-jerking story that drama fans will just eat up. Obviously, if you’re not into drama, or you never felt emotions for fictional characters before, then these shows probably aren’t your thing. But if you are into that stuff, and you haven’t quite been “sucked in” to the moe-loving crowd just yet, these shows might do the trick.

Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha

This one might be a bit of a stretch because of the fanservice factor, but there are some elements to the Nanoha series that might appeal to more than just the stereotypical “male otaku.” To make another bold comparison: I’ve heard the series described as “Dragonball Z with girls” before, and I kind of agree with that. Both Nanoha and DBZ have plenty of crazy fight scenes (although Nanoha focuses on magic battles and DBZ focuses on martial arts, it’s still fighting) along with a pretty decent story to boot. So, Nanoha may have some appeal to non-moe fans, and even non-anime fans who are into magic/fantasy stories. It also holds appeal to fans of other “magical girl” titles like Sailor Moon and Cardcaptor Sakura. The main issue with Nanoha is the fanservice, which may turn off many people. But, if you’re someone who can get around that, it might be worth your time to check it out.

In the latest ANNCast, Zac Bertschy (@ANNZac) and Justin Sevakis of Anime News Network tried something new: a “call out show.” They had several different guests come on, one at a time, to discuss various topics. Zac and Justin were kind enough to let me be a guest on the show. On the show, I discuss anime viewing habits and a few “moe shows” that might be worth checking out for those who aren’t really into the moe thing.

ANNCast – Viewers Like You

In the latest ANNCast, Zac Bertschy (@ANNZac) and Justin Sevakis of Anime News Network tried something new: a “call out show.” They had several different guests come on, one at a time, to discuss various topics. Zac and Justin were kind enough to let me be a guest on the show. On the show, I discuss anime viewing habits and a few “moe shows” that might be worth checking out for those who aren’t really into the moe thing.

ANNCast – Viewers Like You