Showing posts with label Sentai FilmworksL Comedy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sentai FilmworksL Comedy. Show all posts

Clannad [review]

On Tuesday, May 24, 2011 1 comentarii



Alternative Titles
Japanese: CLANNAD -クラナド-

Information
Type: TV
Episodes: 23
Status: Finished Airing
Aired: Oct 4, 2007 to Mar 27, 2008
Producers: Kyoto Animation, Pony Canyon, Sentai FilmworksL
Genres: Comedy, Drama, Fantasy, Romance, School, Slice of Life, Supernatural
Duration: 24 min. per episode
Rating: PG-13 - Teens 13 or older

Review

Art

The first thing I noticed about Clannad was the art, it is probably one of the best elements in Clannad. I would often pause the anime for a minute just to watch the surroundings. I concluded that the sunsets were the most beautiful. Why? Because the orange glow it emitted was just stunning. Never before had I seen anything similar in an anime. Well, we do got other animes from Kyoto Animation, like Air or Haruhi Suzumyia. But I still found Clannad's art more charming than any other anime. The character art is also brilliant, and can resemble Haruhi Suzumiya, Kanon and even Lucky Star. A huge element which Kyoto Animation used was tears, you could for example often see Sunohara cry out of pleasure, pain or by being fooled by Okazaki. I can't find anything bad about the art in Clannad and therefore:
Rating: 10

Sound

Another good thing about Clannad is the sound. From excellent voice actors like Yuichi Nakamura, Mai Nakahara, Ryō Hirohashi and Daisuke Sakaguchi too amazing situational music. Clannad soundtrack covers everything in a perfect manner: from spirited and happy moments too melancholy and sad moments. Jun Maeda, Magome Togoshi, and Shinji Orito who are the geniuses behind the music also made soundtracks for Air.
There are also soundtracks which fits each character. For example you have Sunohara which have uplifting and spirited music which fits too his personality. Nor in the sound can i find any flaws, and therefore:
Rating: 10

Character:

One thing i simply loved about Clannad were the characters. How they were presented, their development and everything else about them. Each character had their past and views about things throughly explained throughout the anime, which was a first for me. And while watching Clannad, i felt like i were bonding with each character. Which made After Story a heart breaker, but lets save that for later.
Rating: 10

Story:

Clannad's story is separated into several arcs. You have the very beginning of the anime were the main characters and some secondary characters are presented and also some relationships start to spin off. Then you have the Fuko Ibuki arc, the Kotomi Ichinose arc and after that Clannad keeps building the relationship between the characters. You often get a harem feel in Clannad, although it is not presented on a "ecchi" basis which we often witness in comedy/romance animes. Well, you have Sunohara of course, but the protagonist, Okazaki, isn't really the ecchi type. Of course, there are a few moments, but it is not the main basis of Clannad's humor. Which I think affected the story in an excellent way.
Rating: 10

Enjoyment:

Clannad's humor is just flawless. It's not too ecchi and you never seem to get tired of Sunoharas stupidity or Okazakis pranks. You also have Kyou's anger and Tomoyo's grown up personality and her desire to be a student council president. These are of course just examples. But there are also sad parts in Clannad which I think were done really well. And it were all supported by excellent music.
Rating: 10

Overall:

What can I say? I loved everything about Clannad, and it is by far my favorite anime. I can recommend this anime to everyone, it is really worth taking a look at. Even if you don't like romance/drama/humor as much!
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Clannad After Story [review]

On 0 comentarii



Alternative Titles
English: CLANNAD After Story
Japanese: CLANNAD ~After Story~ クラナド アフターストーリー

Information
Type: TV
Episodes: 24
Status: Finished Airing
Aired: Oct 2, 2008 to Mar 26, 2009
Producers: Kyoto Animation, Pony Canyon, Sentai FilmworksL
Genres: Drama, Romance, Slice of Life
Duration: 24 min. per episode
Rating: PG-13 - Teens 13 or older


Review


STORY: 10/10

I do not want to spoil a moment of this compelling story for you, but essentially this is the story of the beginnings and life of a family. So simple, yet the slow and emotional way in which it is presented is truly amazing to watch. The characters and music combine with the story and make its presentation even more astounding and emotional.


ART: 10/10

I absolutely love this art style. The animators will take their time to highlight specific things in a scene, perhaps the wind carrying sakura petals or the gaze of a robot lost in a desolate world. I am big on eye styles if you know me well, and Clannad does not fail to deliver. The eyes are unique and refreshing, yet they completely work for the characters.
I will say that the Clannad team does tend to "recycle" their clips a lot, and they re-use many scenes that have already been used. It was never a problem for me however, and I never seemed to notice during each episode. Each clip of animation has a visible amount of dedication put into it, and it pays off.


SOUND: 10/10

I would say this is where Clannad truly shines, but to be honest, it shines everywhere, and the soundtrack is no exception. Honestly, this is one of the most amazing anime soundtracks I have ever heard. Shinji Orito and gang have created a moving soundtrack to match the emotions of the anime perfectly. Without these songs, the anime would only be half as good as I believe it is. I urge you to listen to the songs carefully and let yourself be absorbed into the emotions of the anime, and listening to these songs later will immediately bring to mind these emotions that our characters were feeling at the time. Fabulous, fabulous job to the music team.


CHARACTER: 10/10

Another 10, yes, but I am sure you will agree with me on this one. There is Tomoya, the main character, who changes dramatically over the course of After Story. There is Nagisa, Tomoya's wife, who is kind, gentle, and sometimes a bit incapable of handling things herself. There is Kyou (yay Kyou fanboy here), the aggresive tsundere of the group who is outgoing, kind, and well... intolerable of stupidity. There is Tomoyo, very similar to Kyou but with ambitions and a steady path she sees for herself.
These and many other characters make this story a must-see. There is a character for everyone to love and be attached to; in fact I find myself loving every single character. (Except Fuuko, who I must add, was put in this anime a bit too much.) Overall, amazing cast, and voice acting is also very solid.


ENJOYMENT/OVERALL: 10/10

I always hate to give a review all 10's, because it seriously looks like I'm a fanboy of Clannad. But thinking back on the series, it deserves nothing less. All the elements that make up an anime mesh perfectly for Clannad After Story, and it is truly a treat to watch. I enjoyed every second of this anime, and came close to crying (which I have never done watching an anime).
I knew then that Clannad After Story was something special, something that draws the emotion from everyone's hearts and connects you to the story in one way or another. This is something you cannot miss.
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Gintama [review]

On 0 comentarii




Alternative Titles
English: Silver Soul
Japanese: 銀魂

Information
Type: TV
Episodes: 201
Status: Finished Airing
Aired: Apr 4, 2006 to Mar 25, 2010
Producers: Sunrise, Aniplex, Sentai FilmworksL
Genres: Action, Comedy, Historical, Parody, Samurai, Sci-Fi, Shounen
Duration: 24 min. per episode
Rating: PG-13 - Teens 13 or older

Review

Story
Gintama is not an anime that one should approach expecting a plot. It's an episodic action and adventure comedy that details the hilarious and ridiculous daily escapades of Gintoki and the other boarders that are a part of his freelancing business. The only thing that Gintoki, Kagura, and Shinpachi want is to be able to pay the month's rent but instead wind up attracting trouble like a magnet. The jokes can be downright hilarious and the characters will literally go out of their way to say something funny at the wrong time. It's not a series that I would recommend to new anime fans because a lot (but certainly not all) of the jokes poke fun at the anime subculture and even the more seasoned fans might have trouble understanding some of the Japanese cultural jokes to a point where it's like a Japanese Family Guy. The fansubs do, however, take the time to explain a lot of the references. It's also great to approach this series with at least some knowledge of Japanese history, particularly the Bakumatsu and Meiji Periods, due to the fact that a majority of the characters are based on historical figures.

Art
The characters watch television dramas and read Weekly Shonen Jump but the scenery and the clothes do a good job of reminding us that this series is supposed to be based on the Meiji Period. The backgrounds are detailed and the animation is generally smooth. Facial expressions, as with any comedy anime, are important and the character designs suit the characters. The overall semi-realistic art style helps the characters seem more realistic as well, though, it's not something I personally found to be especially unique.

Sound
The themes are fun, catchy, and upbeat. I found that one of the most memorable things about Gintama's music was the fact that one of the ending songs, Mr. Raindrop, is entirely in (good) English! The background music does not particularly stand out but its "wild" style suits the anime. The voices fit the characters well and the acting is excellent.

And did I say that the most memorable thing about the sound of this anime was Mr. Raindrop? I meant to say that the most memorable thing about this anime was the popular idol singer, Otsuu, who writes these catchy songs with crazy lyrics, like, "Your brother is a hikikomori!"

Character
Characters are the single most important feature in an episodic series such as Gintama and this is one area where this anime does not disappoint. Every character has unique quirks that makes them interesting and the few "archetype" characters that are in this anime are parodies. Shinpachi's sister Otae, for example, has the appearance of the typical "sweet older sister" character but she's actually one of the most violent characters in the entire series aside from trigger-happy Okita. There is no "self-righteous" hero in this anime; every character is just another person trying to get by in the new Japan no matter how rude, weird, or downright strange he or she might be.

Enjoyment
This is the first series that I have seen in a long time that has made me truly laugh-out-loud. I sometimes even have to stop myself from laughing while reading the manga in study hall to avoid being stared at!

Overall
The best thing about this anime is that it's not afraid to laugh at its demographic, its medium, its culture, or even itself. It almost goes out of its way to make sure that it crosses the line. And, even though some of the jokes are hit-or-miss references, it's an anime that can leave even new anime fans laughing or literally thinking, "WTF?"
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