The Bones Party – Noragami, Space Dandy First Impression

Noragami

Great first episode to what I foresee to be a likeable show. I'm kind of glad they cut out the first chapter, because it is essentially a one-shot with no real significance and the pacing will have to be airtight if they are going to make do with one cour. But by taking it out, coherency did suffer, however minimal. The girl who got bullied by her classmate called up Yato when she saw his message on the wall of the toilet stall, but this tidbit is extremely glossed over in the anime, which could leave some scratching their heads. The animation and the sound track are both flawless, and I'm enjoying the heck out of the OP/ED. It is some real stylish stuff. Overall, it didn't blow me away, but it's a solid package that maintains my interest. By the record, Bones does well with adaptions, so I'm looking forward to see this one unfold.

Space Dandy

This is definitely Bones' more high-profile offering going into season. Did the first episode live up to the hype? Well, I'll be honest, my feelings are somewhat mixed. The plot itself so far has been nonsensical, but I do expect that to change for the the better over the next few weeks. I can't say the same thing about the humor though and I'm going to be real worried if the rest of the show is banking on it to succeed. The prowess of the script writers is yet to shine through, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed. The highlight here is the colorful, over-the-top, and wonderfully dynamic animation. The animators were clearly given a heck lot of freedom to do what they wanted with it. The music is also fantastic and does everything in its power to set the mood. Whatever it is, I can assure you my excitement has not gone down a single notch as I have plenty of faith in the talents involved in this thing. If nothing else, this opening is as crazy, absurd, and silly as it promised, so it did its job in that regard.

Kyoukai no Kanata – Review

Year: 2013
Studio: Kyoto Animation
Genre: Fantasy, Drama
Synopsis:
 Akihito Kanbara is a high school sophomore in the literature club who believes himself to be a "Meganest", and although he appears to be human, he is actually half Yōmu, which makes him invulnerable to wounds, due to the fact that he can heal so quickly, and also immortal. One day, Akihito meets freshman Mirai Kuriyama when it appears as if she is about to attempt suicide by jumping off of the school rooftop. Mirai is isolated because of her ability to manipulate blood, which is considered heresy even among other members of the underworld, so she is shunned. Soon after Akihito saves Mirai, disturbing events begin to arise."