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crazypenguinbob
Reviews
Shingeki no Kyojin (2013)
Two words sums it all up - FREAKIN EPIC!!!
I can't put into words just how amazingly awesome this show is. It is without doubt the best action anime of all time due to its intense fight scenes, mix of slight romance, comedy, ridiculously EPIC moments and best of all, no stupid fanservice.
If you're looking for an anime that keeps you on the edge of your toilet the whole way through, this is the one. The shocking scenes at the start of the first episode hook you straight away, and although the next few episodes may be a bit slow to build up, the suspense in later parts are somewhat unbearable. At the end, you'll be DYING for another season and hopefully it'll be coming soon.
Humans have been nearly all wiped out by huge man-like creatures called Titans, which are naked, senseless and eat humans for fun (but lack genitals) and the last few surviving have built three walls to protect themselves from being killed. Eren Yeager and his family, along with his adoptive sister Mikasa (who, by the way is the greatest female badass of all time) and his best friend, Armin live in the outer wall and dream of going outside to explore the world. Eren wants to join the Survey Corps, the elite soldiers that fight the Titans face to face. Everything changes however, when the wall that surrounds them is breached, and havoc ensues.
I must say, each and every character in the show has a unique personality that draws them to you straight away. Eren is the general ('I'm gonna kill them all!!!') character but with a hidden surprise, Mikasa is just super-cool and Armin is a genius. Along with the quirky characters of their brigade, like the potato girl, you are never bored of the main people. Captain Levi is also just on another level of badass. Like Roronoa Zoro level or Spike Spiegel.
The action, as I've said already is so awesome, it gives you those spine chills. The animation is superb, clear and really crisp. Even the gore is much, but not too much to make you feel sick, except I did feel a bit queasy after seeing Eren push a massive wood splinter further into his chest (not suicide, for a reason don't worry). I found the fight scene with Mikasa and Levi against the Female Titan one of the most thrilling scenes of any show ever, (especially when Levi does his spinning blade attack, similar to Zoro's Yasha Garasu.)
Another point that some action animes leave out, is the effort put into the music. Unlike Gurenn Lagann, the music is varied constantly, the soundtrack is reeallly long and each song is absolutely amazing and the feels and epicness are strong. The opening theme for the first half of the 25 episodes just fills you with POWER!!! and the ending theme does the same kind of thing, just more subtly. However, the second opening theme sucks real bad. Like real bad. That's the only bad thing I can say. Other than that, the show is flawless. If you haven't watched it, watch it now. It's legendary in my eyes, and sure to become a classic.
Angel Beats! (2010)
Way too short and rushed - but amazing nonetheless
I'm going to be as honest but unbiased as I can here.
After watching Clannad and Clannad Afterstory, I had become a huge fan of Key and their works, so I decided to pick up 'Angel Beats!'. Immediately I was captured by the music (which, by the way is so good I actually listened to the opening and ending every single episode)and the level of detail in animation (especially the guns!) although this is constant throughout Key's works. However, I feel that this anime was incredibly short, and suffered extremely because of it and I feel the writer (Jun Maeda) who also developed Clannad did not get what he expected. The plot is very confusing, and extra random information is thrown at you in every episode, and half the time you have to figure out 'what on earth is even going on' and 'how does this even make sense' instead of concentrating on the screen.
A guy (Otanashi) wakes up in an afterlife, where teenagers who led unhappy lives and did not get to fulfil their dreams get a second chance in this world, which is like a high school with surrounding rivers and stuff. Once they become happy, fulfil their dreams or behave like a normal student they disappear from this world. Some of the students there are rebelling against God because of their unfair lives, and do not want to disappear. They do this by fighting against the student council president, Kanade (Angel) who is trying to make them behave. But the extra stuff they add in for no reason really over complicated things.
I feel that although all the characters were unique, attractive and fun to watch, there was just not enough time to get attached to them before the end and it seems a lot of the emotion is forced on you, (here's a cute girl saying sad things to sad music, cry dammit!) when really, there is just no 'substance', if that makes sense whereas in Clannad/Clannad AS, the amount of thorough tear jerkers was just too much for me to handle (and I'm a guy!).
The characters did not get enough time to develop, especially the main guy, who I thought was a bit bland. It ended up with major plot holes (What happened to all the other characters? What is HER backstory? What the hell just happened?!) that I felt left a gaping hole in what could have been an incredibly enjoyable anime.
Enough of the criticism. The overall feel of the anime was really enjoyable, and makes you feel both happy and sad at parts. The music is a really big part of this. I liked the backstories of the characters they showed, especially Otonashi, whose backstory I thought was very interesting. The animation is slick and the characters are all likable with the voice-acting on point (none of the irritating over the top moe stuff)and I strongly recommend watching the English sub instead of dub. One reason is one of the characters only speaks English, spontaneously uttering random hilarious phrases, and also I felt the voices fit the characters and convey the emotions better, and the songs and names sound much better in Japanese (in fact Captain Levi plays the main character so what other reason would you not want to watch it?!) The battles are really awesome and get you fired up, but there isn't that much humour; when there is its pretty lame and repetitive.
After all that, it may seem strange to say that I would strongly recommend this anime but it really is one you can't miss. The music, characters and final scene are ones you can't go without saying you've experienced. Though short, it does leave an impact on you for a while (what do you want to do in your life? do things now before its too late!). Considering the huge fanbase, I'd say it could become a classic, but decide for yourself. Perfect mix of action and quite a thriller that keeps you hooked. Watch it, its pretty damn good for a thirteen episode series.If you find yourself uninterested, just remember the half tragic/depressing and half happy ending is worth the wait. I just loved the whole atmosphere and fantasy of it.