Madoka Magica film adaptation

The “Puella Magi Madoka Magica” film adaptation project has begun!

March: In Retrospective

Kore wa Zombie Desu ka (Ep 7-11)

As part of a last ditch attempt to get into KoreZom, I held a mini-marathon. To no prevail. This show is too sloppily put together, the comedy is off (by a long-shot), the characters are genuinely unlikeable, and the story seems to have just given up on itself.

Dragon Crisis (Ep 9-12) [Complete] Rated 5/10

Forgettable. In a nutshell. The series set to achieve no more then it physically does, oping for moe over creativity, depth, concrete storytelling every time. Disappointing to say the least.

Gosick (Ep 9&10)

Through only two episodes of Gosick aired, they were perhaps the worse story arc in the series so far. Victorique is not a super genius, every other character is just below normal human intelligence.

5. (7) Kimi ni Todoke (Ep 8-10)

Finally Kimi ni Todoke is starting to demonstrate its worth. The relationship between the main couple is no longer will they/won't they, its a simple case of when and where. I'm banking on it being episode 12.

4. (6) Yumekui Merry (Ep 9-11)

Lately I've been noticing a reoccurring problem with this one, whenever the bad guy(s) have the heroes cornered, they inexplicably let them go. Why? Why wait until "next time"? Crush em now and be done with it! Just a minor detail :)

3. (2) Level E (Ep 9-12)

With one episode to go, I have a theory as to how Level E will end. Since this show has done its best to dispense with cliches, often deviously spinning them round on their heads. So, what ever I'm thinking, I know I'm probably wrong...

2. (3) Hourou Musuko (Ep 7-10)

Hourou Musuko refuses to be an ordinary young teenage/slice of life/school days program. It's breathtakingly refined and mature, just superb all the way.

1. (1) Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica (Ep 9&10)

In light of the recent tragic events in Japan, only two episodes of Madoka Magica have aired, I'm not sure when the final two episodes will come to light but I eagerly await their broadcast. My favourite show this season.

January & February: In retrospective

Top Ten Animes:

10. Kore Wa Zombie Desu Ka? Ep1-6

I’ve fallen behind and it’s increasingly difficult to be motivated to want to continue. The problem with this show is the unnecessary horde of female characters, the relationship between Ayumu Aikawa and Eucliwood Hellscythe is more than enough to intrigue the viewer. Probably won’t feature next month.

9. Dragon Crisis! Ep1-8

It had me and than it lost me with the beach episode. Aside from being visually pretty, Dragon Crisis seems incapable of delivering anything else worthwhile. The characters are clichéd, the plot is cluttered and the outcome is starting to feel very predictable. In short: my attention is starting to dwindle. Fast.

8. Mitsudomoe 2 Ep1-8 [Complete]

Shorter, more compact and overall much better, Mitsudomoe 2 continues the antics of Mitsuba, Futaba and Hitoha. There is one downside, the series doesn’t really go anywhere we haven’t been before and I mean how many Christmas sketches is this show going to have?

7. Kimi Ni Todoke 2 Ep1-7

Kimi Ni Todoke ranks highly because there has been some romantic development (at last) between the two main characters. It may have brought about a new barrier, but it’ll be interesting to see how this plays out or rather how long the show can drag the misunderstanding along.

6. Yumekui Merry Ep1-8

Pretty cool, pretty funky and still pretty impressive. No complains here.

5. Gosick Ep1-8

If I’m honest Gosick continues to under whelm me. The premise is still pretty interesting; it just has some serious kinks that need to be smooth over. That being said, I like this show.

4. Supernatural Ep1-6

Once the anime stopped reanimating TV episodes and turned to more original routes, the show did a 180 for me. The acting is still a little starchy and the script needs a bit more work, the Winchester brothers in particular are lacking as a pair. Hopefully this will pick up when Jensen Ackles is brought to the table, despite the fact that the actor dubbing Dean is doing a top notch impersonation.

3. Hourou Musuko Ep1-6

Wandering Son was pretty much set up to be an instant classic. The sensitivity and maturity towards this topic has been handled very touchingly. Primarily through the progressive, multilayered characters who easily engage with the audience through their own individual struggles.

2. Level E Ep1-8

The first arc was the best, unfortunately the following episodes haven’t been quite on par, still extremely good nevertheless. Which is surprising considering the original manga was published over ten years ago. True comedy is timeless.

1. Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica Ep1-8

It was a tough call but Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica narrowly scrapped ahead after dropping one sinister bombshell last week. Each episode continuously goes from strength to strength, all it needs is to deliver a knockout ending and Madoka Magica will be my highlight this season. Delightful twisted would be the icing on the cake.

First Impression: Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica

I’ve always found large doses of magical girl animes nauseating. The same rehashed sparkly plot was tedious after Sailor Moon and the typical bumbling airhead heroine gets on my nerves. Magicial girl genres tend to stress the importance of self belief during battle, perhaps a reflection of society in that young girls are more likely to be self conscious. I can’t help but wonder that portraying female cartoon heroines as riddled with self doubt, immature and fairly whiny does in some way contribute to this stereotype rather then dispense with it. Ultimately the magical girl requires confidence in herself in order to access that special secret innate power that she had from day one but was held back by her low self esteem, and save the day. And of course win her love interest.

Mahou Shoujo Madoke Magica is not your average magical genre. It has the basics covered, the talking animal sidekick, the multiple coloured transformations, and the main heroine is kinda wimpy. But I guess that’s kinda unavoidable. Madoke maybe dragging her feet a bit with becoming a Mahou Shoujo, but she has good reason. And here is where the similarities end. Mahou Shoujo Madoke Magica takes itself very seriously. The two main characters, Madoke and Sayaka are given the option to form a contract and become magical girls in exchange for one wish. However there are risks involved. As if to drive this part home, magical girl Mami dies during a battle in the third episode and has yet to return. Already some pretty prolific reality checks for a couple of young girls.

The action itself is staggering. The girls fight within a trippy labyrinth setting, a nightmarish wonderland that employs a surreal animation that is absolutely mind-bending. Our heroines themselves are also quite stylish, adorning different fashions from the trademark pink and girly Madoke, to the streampunkish Mami. They also use actual weapons; Mami is packing a couple of hundred guns, while Sayaka prefers a set of swords and Sakura has a scythe. I highly doubt these damsels are going to need a prince to save them when things get tough. In all, Mahou Shoujo Madoke Magica is surprisingly dark, twisted and very sophisticated. It’s managed to capture a depth to this genre while not trying to hard to think outside of the box. Wonderful job.

Rating: 8/10