Amazing Anime: Sword Art Online

Sword Art Online has been described by some as the best new anime in the last 10 years.  A claim like that sets a high bar and creates a bit of skepticism.  The premise of the show is based around a VRMMORPG called Sword Art Online.  Only 1,000 copies of the game are released which causes a huge demand.  The game requires a virtual reality headgear system called NerveGear that allows the player to feel as if they are really in the game.  That takes a turn for the worst when the game's creator decides to remove the log out button and keeps the players trapped in the game.  If the headgear is removed in real life, the player's brain gets fried and they die.  On top of that, if the player dies in the game, they die in real life.  The only way out is for someone to beat the game.

As a lover of MMORPGs such as World of Warcraft (I'm a retired frost mage) and Ragnarok 2 (I'll be doing a review of this game soon), this anime was one of the best I've ever watched.  If you aren't into these kinds of games you can still appreciate the story and the wonderful animation of this show.  And if you are into these kinds of games, I'm going to have to insist that you watch this anime.  Seriously, you have to.  As usual, all 25 episodes are available on Crunchyroll for free!

Amazing Anime: Little Busters

Little Busters is made by the same horrible people at Key that made Clannad, Air, and Kanon.  I say horrible only in the sense that they make you attached to the characters and then something terrible happens to them and you end up sobbing for half the show.  The basic premise of Little Busters is a group of friends get together and start a baseball team.  However, the show has little to do with baseball.  It's more along the subject lines of split personality disorder, child abuse, and narcolepsy.  However, Key always finds a way to portray the oddest subject material in the cutest possible way (I mean, just look at that picture above!).  Right now there's only one season available to watch.  At the end of the season, you'll get a sneak preview at the next season.  I can already tell that I'm going to need a bottle of wine and a box of tissues to be able to get through it.  Although the show may make you shed a tear now and then, it's fantastic.  It's got a great mix of comedy and slice of life, which I love.  If you're interested in watching the 26 episode series, it's free to watch on Crunchyroll.

Chibi Maker

 

Well I managed to waste over an hour playing around with this, but it's just too cute!  The Chibi Maker was just about too entertaining.  Here's a few that I came up with, but I suggest that you check it out yourself.  (Thanks to my friend Robin for sharing!)

Amazing Anime- Bleach

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If it's possible to be in love with an anime, I totally am.  I know that Bleach has been around for a while, and I'm probably late jumping on the bandwagon, but who cares.  It's great.  However, I've only watched about 30 episodes of the 366 episode series, so I've still got a ways to go.  It's the absolute perfect combination of drama and comedy.  This explanation of the show from Bleach Exile is the best I found that didn't give away too much of the plot (of course it's not a new series anymore)...

 "Bleach is a new anime series that follows the life of a 15 year old boy by the name of Kurosaki Ichigo. Ichigo is not any average boy; he has the ability to see and communicate with ghosts and spirits. This stems from his other unusual trait: awesome, untapped Spiritual energy. Ichigo does what he can for the spirits he meets, until a Hollow (evil soul spirit) attacks him and his family. To the rescue comes a female Shinigami (Death God) named Kuchiki Rukia. Rukia chases the Hollow off, and is astounded by the fact that Ichigo can see her and the Hollow, which most mortals cannot. She explains that Shinigami have two duties: to lead the “Pluses” (good souls) to their rest in Soul Society, and to exterminate Hollows, who endanger them. All Shinigami carry a Zanpakutou, or Soul Slayer, with which they can release the Pluses and kill the Hollows. These Zanpakutou resemble katanas in their shape and size. The Hollow comes back at this point to menace the pair again, and Rukia is badly wounded. She thrusts her Zanpakutou into Ichigo’s body, intending to transfer enough of her power into him to enable him to destroy the Hollow….except his soul takes all her power, and combines it with his own, which enables him to dispatch the Hollow with ease. Thus begins Ichigo’s journey, as high-school student and part-time Death God!"

If you're an anime fan, you've probably already seen this series.  If not, YOU HAVE TO WATCH IT.  I'm just saying....  And of course you can watch the whole show for free here on Crunchyroll.

Amazing Anime- Sket Dance

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This is an anime that I'm currently watching and is still going on (I think it's up to episode 72?).  Sket Dance is about a high school club that specializes in helping others.  There's a goofy guy named Bosson, a hockey stick wielding girl name Himeko, and a guy named Switch who only communicated through a voice system on his laptop computer.  The show follows these three on their quests to help others with their problems.  There are many characters in the series that make multiple appearances.  

 

As I've said before, I'm a fan of any anime that can combine comedy and drama, and Sket Dance definitely has a winning combo of both.  There are some super serious parts (really serious...like WTF serious), but the majority of the show is just hilarious.  I highly recommend it!  And of course another perk is that you can watch it for free here on Crunchyroll!!!

Amazing Anime- Soul Eater

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It's been a while since I did an Amazing Anime post, but I'm going to start making it a regular thing on Sundays.  I usually start out by saying that this is an anime about a boy in high school, but this isn't one of them!!! 

Soul Eater revolves around 3 teams of weapon meisters and human weapons that attend  "Death Weapon Meister Academy".  If you're wondering what a "human weapon" is, it's basically a human that can take the form of a weapon like a sword or gun.  It's kind of a far out concept, but once you start watching the show it grows on you.  The goal for these teams is to capture the souls of 99 evil humans and 1 witch, in that order. I'm not going to give a whole synopsis since I don't want to give anything away.

It's really a great show.  It's got comedy, action, and drama, which are a winning combo in my book for animes.  It's 51 episodes, so it's a bit longer than most, but I have a feeling you wouldn't have a problem watching the whole thing.  And the wonderful and beautiful thing is that you can watch them all for free here on Hulu.  I know I sound like I'm doing a commercial for Hulu, but if you're into anime, it's one of the best places to watch for free, besides Crunchyroll.

Family Portrait

I'm pretty sure that I've stated that "this is the most awesome thing ever" about 10 million times over the last 24 hours, but it's because it's true.  The incredible Daisy over at BouxWho did this portrait for me, and I'm just beyond smitten with it.  I really wanted to wait until our 5 year wedding anniversary in September, but after taking one look at it I knew I couldn't keep it a secret for that long.  So now that you've seen my family portrait, you want one of your own right?  Just go to Daisy's blog and send her an e-mail!  You'll be glad you did!

 

Amazing Anime- Gosick

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As I've said before, I love animes that take place in the past.  Gosick takes place in 1924 in a fictional French-speaking European country.   The plot revolves around a young Japanese boy named Kujo who transfers to a school in this country.  He meets Victorique, who looks like a porcelain doll and is confined to the school's library.  She helps her detective brother solve crimes and mysteries by using her super genius powers.  The series focuses on Kujo and Victorique solving mysterious cases, while Kujo learns more about Victorique's past.

If you like mysteries, you'll love this show.  It also has a nice Victorian, slightly goth/steampunk feel to it.  Not to mention is has a bit of romance, which is always wonderful.  I highly recommend it.  And the best part is you can watch the whole series on Crunchyroll here for free (I know you're thinking Crunchyroll must be paying me for sponsorship or something, but no.  I just love free tv).

Amazing Anime- Dusk Maiden of Amnesia

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Most of the animes I've seen are fairly old, but Dusk Maiden of Amnesia is brand new.  The last episode just aired on June 24th.  And I'm almost tired of saying this, but it revolves around a boy in high school.  Teiichi ends up meeting a ghost, Yuko, that lives at his school and he vows to help her recover her memories.  Things get complicated, as you would imagine that a relationship between a ghost and a living person would.   I can't really say much more than that without some spoilers!

Even though this series was only 12 episodes, I really enjoyed it.  It had a nice mix of mystery and comedy, and was very visually creative.  And I apparently got pretty attached to the characters because the last episode had me teary-eyed.  

I would definitely recommend this one!  It's a great series if you don't want to get started on a long series and just want something quick and entertaining.  And best of all, they can all be seen on Crunchyroll for free here!  Enjoy!

Amazing Anime- Rurouni Kenshin

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I love animes that are set in a different era.  This one happens to be based in the early Meiji era in Japan, and follows a young man named Himura Kenshin.  He was a great warrior in the Bakumatsu War and apparently killed one to many guys, because he commits himself to a life of peace after the war and vows not to return to his violent ways.  He runs into a girl named Kamiya Kaoru and ends up being the "Master" of the dojo that she teaches at. There's a lot more to the plot than that, but you can read more about it here.   

Besides being set in a real life historical era, this story also includes a bit of romance between Himura and Kamiya.  And what girl doesn't like a good love story?  Kenshin always ends up being the knight in shining armor and it's kind of swoon worthy.   

I totally recommend this anime.  It has almost a hundred episodes, so if you start it you're in for a commitment because I promise you won't want to stop watching it.  Just typing this review kind of makes me want to re-watch the series!  

Amazing Anime- The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya

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Wow well, I think every anime I review is going to revolve around a boy in high school (Fairy Tail being the only wonderful exception).  This boy's name is Kyon, and he meets a girl named Haruhi.  She's an odd girl who claims to have no interest in "humans" and wants to investigate aliens, time travelers, and espers.  Kyon helps her form a school club called the SOS Brigade which has 3 other members: Yuki, Mikuru, and Itsuki.  It turns out that these 3 members are actually the things she wants to investigate.  Unknown to Haruhi, they are actually there to prevent her from unleashing her reality warping powers (that she doesn't know she has).  You can read more about it here.

This is a very popular and highly rated anime, and it was pretty good.  But I honestly can't rate it as one of my favorites.  For example, in one of the episodes, Haruhi unknowingly uses her powers and gets all the characters stuck in a time warp.  They know it's a time warp, but she doesn't.  The same episode is repeated EIGHT TIMES with only slight changes to the episodes, like the character's clothes might be different.  I get the point that it makes you think you are in a time warp too, but it was just extremely annoying in my opinion.

Unless you've just got a lot of free time on your hands, I would skip this series.  It was ok, but not one I can honestly recommend.

Amazing Anime- Kanon

(via: kanoncosplay)

Since the last few anime post I've done have been about kind of dark subjects, here's one that's a little lighter. I'll give you one guess as to what it's about....wait for it....a boy in high school!!!

Kanon does revolve around Yuichi, a boy in high school who has lost the memory of the last 7 years of his life.  He goes to a city he visited in his past to live with his cousin and aunt to try and regain some of his memory.  The story follows him and 5 girls who are connected to him in some way.  You can read a little more about it here, but I can't really say a whole lot about it without giving some key things away.  The version you want to watch is from 2006, not the 2002 version.

Apparently, this anime is categorized as "harem", based on that it follows a protagonist followed by 3 or more members of the opposite sex.  I'm sure some animes in this category could are geared towards the male viewers, but trust me, this one is for the girls.   It will make you laugh and cry at the same time, which means that it really ropes you into the story.  

This is the perfect anime for a rainy day alone, curled up on the couch with a blanket and a good cup of tea (and a box of tissue nearby).  You'll definitely enjoy it!

 

Amazing Anime- Death Note

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I mainly watch animes that have a bit of humor to them, but this is an exception.  Death Note is definitely more serious and I suppose could be considered a psychological thriller. 

As with almost all anime, it follows a young high school boy.  His name is Light and one day he stumbles upon a "Death Note" dropped by a shinigami (Japanese for "Death God) named Ryuk.  Any name can be written in the Death Note and that person will die (for example, he could write that John Smith will die in 2 hours in a car accident.  There are more rules to it but that's the main idea).  Light uses this notebook to try to rid the world of evil by killing only criminals, but as you can imagine he gets a little carried away when he starts to think of himself as God.

Since the police kind of can't ignore that all the criminals in the city are mysteriously dieing,  they hire the services of "L" who is a young super detective of sorts (who of course only eats cake and sweets).  L's involvement becomes a problem for Light and a psychological battle insues.

This is actually a pretty deep anime.  It touches on many moral issues and forces you to really think about what you would do in the same situation.  In China, it was actually banned because kids were making their own "Death Notes" and writing the names of their enemies and teachers in it.  You can pretty much chalk that up to a bunch of emo teenagers, but if you had a Death Note, what would you do with it?  Would you use it for good, evil, or not use it at all?  

If you're interested in watching, you can do so here on Hulu for free (along with a ton of other anime).

Amazing Anime- Black Butler

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So, I'll give you fair warning that this one is kind of strange.  However, keep in mind that Japanese people are much more open to gender "bending" for lack of a better term.  Visual Kei is widely accepted and explains why the more flamboyant characters on this show are no big deal.

With that out of the way, I'll give you a little background on this show.  It follows a young orphaned child name Ciel Phantomhive who has inherited a large business empire after his parent's murder.  He of course, makes a pack with a demon butler named Sebastian to seek revenge on those who would disgrace his family name, in exchange for his soul.  The relationship between the characters can be a bit odd sometimes, but this appeals so much to my inner gothic sensibilities that I overlooked it.  This part of the anime only ran for 24 episodes, but ended with a pretty good twist.

There is a Black Butler 2, that follows a different butler and a different boy, but with the same premise.  It features appearances of characters from the first series, so they are still kind of tied together.  The second series is ok, but I prefer the first one.

Overall, I would have to say unless you really like gothic or Victorian themes, this one might not be for you.  I enjoyed it because I love animes that are dark but still add a bit of humor.  I'd say at least watch the first episode and see how you like it!

Amazing Anime- Beelzebub

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Finally I think I might get on a normal blogging schedule, providing that I have internet for more than 20 minutes at a time.  Anywoo, I'm currently watching the anime Beelzebub, which is becoming one of my favorites.  The story is kind of absurd if you're just reading it.  It's about a high school kid named Oga, who finds himself in the position of being the parent of a baby demon lord.  The high school he attends is made up of delinquents whom Oga fights on a regular basis.  Because the baby demon lord Beelzebub (or Baby Beel) needed someone strong to raise him, he choose Oga for his superior fighting skills.  The problem is that Oga doesn't want anything to do with him.  However if Oga gets more than 15 feet away from Baby Beel, he'll die.  So the story follows them around on their adventures and so on.

The best part of this anime is Baby Beel.  He never says anything, but his reaction to situations cracks me up.  The below video does a good job of summing it up.  Ok, so the humor might be a bit crude but I love it!!!

Amazing Anime- InuYasha

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I'm sure there's probably some anime enthusiasts that would groan at me for putting this show on my list of favorites, but tough cookies.  This show is the reason I got into anime in the first place.  InuYasha first aired in the U.S. in 2002 on Adult Swim, and since that was around the time I started college, I watched it a lot (probably when I should have been studying).  The series was an English-dubbed version, which makes me cringe a bit now (I like reading subtitles).

The story follows Kagome, a young high school girl who falls into a well and ends up in the Sengoku Era of Japan.  There she meets InuYasha, a half-demon, and they embark upon various adventures trying to recover the pieces of the powerful Shikon jewel.  You can read more about the storyline here.

In my opinion, this is a "classic" anime that any fan should watch.  It's not the deepest, most involved storyline, but it's entertaining and fun, and that is what's most important to me in an anime.  You can also watch all 7 seasons online for free on Hulu.  It's one of those shows that you don't really have to pay close attention to- meaning you can crochet while watching it.  Multi-tasking is awesome.

Amazing Anime- Fairy Tail

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I love animes that are action-packed and funny at the same time.  Fairy Tail is definitely one of those.  The story follows Lucy, an up and coming mage that joins the magic guild Fairy Tail.  She teams up with Natsu, Gray, and Erza to go on missions for the guild and fight for the greater good.  Since this series has been going since 2009 (and is still going), there's no shortage of episodes or characters.  I've watched the majority of the episodes except for the most recent and have not gotten bored yet.  I highly recommend it!

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My favorite character is Happy.  He's Natsu's sidekick/pet/BFF and always helps get him out of trouble.  I mean, how could you not love a blue kitty with wings? 

 

Amazing Anime-Clannad

I have watched a lot of anime.  Really, a lot.  My husband and I didn't have cable for quite a few years, so we didn't watch basic cable tv. Instead, we watched tons of anime.  Surprisingly, one of the best sites to find free anime is Hulu.  They have a huge variety of shows and the best part is you can watch them whenever you want.

Anyways, I love anime so much I'd like to share some personal reviews of the shows I've watched in a series called "Amazing Anime". I hope you enjoy it!

Clannad

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My first review is of Clannad (to read a full show description and get more show info, click here).  The first season of this show is a typical boy meets girl and they fall in love kind of story.  It's really good, but the second season, Clannad After Story, is where it really gets good.   I have never been so emotionally attached to characters in any movie, tv show, or book as I have with this show.  Not only did it make me cry, it made me bawl.  Like a baby.  I'm getting teared up just thinking about it.  The reason it gets viewers so emotionally attached is because you can relate to the characters.  I can't go into the plot of the story too much without a spoiler, so you'll just have to watch it yourself.

When some people think of anime, they probably think of ninjas and robots, which can be true.  But there's a good bit of anime that is set in a Japanese high school and follows the story of a young male or female in their daily life.  This show may not be on the top of the list for a first time male anime viewer, but it's definitely a good starter for females.  I highly recommend it!  You'll also have the dango song stuck in your head for at least a month or two...