My Anime Review Thread!

[xyxhrhynne]

I was considering doing this on OT, but this place is probably considerably more fitting for it... you'll have to forgive my ridiculously pedestrian tastes, as there probably won't be a single even mildly obscure series on this list, due to the fact that money doesn't grow on trees, and thus I don't take nearly as many chances in that matter as I should... also, I tend to be pretty easy to please, so many will probably be getting a higher rating then they deserve... anyways:

Cowboy Beebop:
Figured I might as well start with a good one. This is just the classic example of a well made series... it isn't considered the best by people because it has the best characters, or the best action scenes, or the best soundtrack, or the best story to tell... it's considered one of the best because it's simply an exceptionally made series, and all the little sub-qualities stream from that.

Unlike some shows which have one really likeable character, or a handful of particularly gripping moments, in this series every character and line of dialogue are good not because it stumbled onto a gimick that people would like, but simply because it was made with care. I'd probably say it's the most effective series I've ever seen, animated or otherwise... does this necessarily entail being the best? Not quite. It's consistent quality tends to mean it doesn't have the highs and lows of some programs... while it's often quite funny, you're probably never laughing out loud... while the characters are inherently likeable, I doubt many would claim them as being their favorite characters. Dispite this "flaw", it's still very rewatchable and certianly deserves it's high rating from the anime community as a whole.

9.5/10

[xyxhrhynne]

Outlaw Star:

Only seems sensible to follow the Cowboy Beebop review, with a review for the series that desperately wants to be Cowboy Beebop. Unfortunately, it just isn't... I still consider it a servicable program, but that's just how it is. While the series does have more of an ongoing and linear storyline, it still often feels disjointed and relatively poorly done... it's one of the relatively few shows that the filler episodes are often better then the story ones. The reason for this is that the show is generally best while it's light... the characters and setting as a whole are just a bit too bizarre to be taken seriously sometimes.

Look at some of the major action scenes for instance, which are between 'grappler ships'. To those unfamiliar with the series, these are basically space ships with robotic arms comming out them which carry weapons, and for some bizarre reason are considered the ultimate war machines. It's a bit hard to take a scene based on two ships flying around space punching at each other with their robot fists and slashing at each other with huge knives... on the bright side, however, it's reassuring to know that our own space shuttles would naturally make deadly pirate ships thanks to the canadarm.

Likewise, a lot of the humor does tend to fall flat, which isn't uncommon with shows that try particularly hard... I'd still say it works more often then not, usually more in the form of the little character interractions and nuances then the set up gags.

All things considered, for action, characters, storyline, humor... it's servicable. Kind of flawed in all areas, but I think ultimately watching it isn't a waste of time, as there is some enjoyment to be had.

6.5/10

[xyxhrhynne]

Neon Genesis Evangelion:

*Note: This will probably be spoiler heavy, so rather then just black out the whole thing, I'll just warn people in advance.

This will probably be a contraversial one... suffice to say, I didn't care much for the series. It's probably my fault, for getting over-hyped about it... after hearing for so long about how wonderful it was, my expectations were a bit high, and I was probably considerably less forgiving in regards to it then I have been with some other series'.

Normally, I hate to use the word pretentious, but to me it feels appropriate here. The series has a sense of importance, namely surrounding the Shinji character... it set everything aside for him, abandonned fascinating characters and great storylines only to make it completely obvious exactly why he acts the way he does... even though anyone paying attention will already have this figured out halfway through the series... back to this later...

As for the series itself, I found the visuals a bit strange. At times they were standard, at times they were downright great, and other times they were just plain lifeless, and non-detailed... not in an artistic way either, but in an old Hanna-Barbara cartoon sort of way. The story, not so much in regard to specifics but in general was okay, even if a bit poorly executed I thought... the Angels were creative in design, but rarely felt like they posed a significant threat, and the battles against them, again with a few exceptions, were remarkably uninteresting... naturally, one could argue that the show wasn't about the battles, and be correct, but if that's the case, why devote so much screentime to them?

Personally, I found the show tried the audiences patience... action set pieces such as angel battles aside, it worked at a very casual and languid pace... now, this is fine for a 300 episode monster of a series like Dragon Ball Z, but here we know there's a very finite amount of time, and every bit wasted will never be gotten back. As a result, it felt like every subplot that wasn't exploring Shinji's angst was underfed, and indefinately abandonned. As for Shinji, I found the character pretty uncompelling... he seemed to alternate between being essentially normal and completely incapable of functioning whenever it was convenient to the plot... he wasn't a person, he was a contrivance, a plot device, a reason for things to happen around him. Worse still, his character was unbearably simple... well, at least unbearably simple for the role they try to give him in the show. Very early on, you basically figure out what makes him tick... you know why he acts the way he does, and how he has such difficulty relating to people... but the series doesn't understand that... it keeps pounding it into the audiences heads, and finally when all the angels are dead, and you're ready for some actual answers and a resolution to the many storylines, what do you get? A two part redundant character study, primarily of Shinji.

The real tragedy of this is that the show didn't put all of its eggs in one basket... the series is filled with fascinating characters, and a generally interesting premise, all of which desperately deserve more screentime, but in the end, it's just a tease. You want to know what happens to everyone? Too bad... you want to understand the nature of the world and the angels? Too bad... you're watching the Shinji show, and they'll be damned if you'll find entertainment in any of the subplots... it's like a live action sitcom, where the main star holds the program hostage for more screentime or something.

The sad thing is that there are moments of absolute brilliance in this show... but in the end, they're just moments. I can understand a lot of people looking back on the show, and recalling these many amazing scenes, but when I look back, I just remember the waiting what often felt like an eternity between them.

I can forgive a show with a bad premise and bad characters being bad... but in this case it just felt like there was an infinitely better series that was crying to be made here. It felt like infinite potential was wasted.

5/10

[Demons In The Night]

I completely agree with you on NGE, only I would have given it a 4/10. Very overrated, flawed, self important, etc. The list goes on.

[xyxhrhynne]

The Slayers:

Personally, I've always had something of a soft spot for goofy anime humor, and although this is one of the first series' I owned, it's still among my favorites. Like most anime, the name has absolutely nothing to do with the series... well, aside from the fact that the characters are always killing people. No one ever looks at the main characters and say "Hey look! It's the Slayers!" or anything. It's just a typical anime title, most of which fall into the categories of hopelessly generic, or completely incoherent.

Now that that's out of the way, the series itself is mostly comical, and seems based on the idea that there are no problems that can't be solved through violence. That said, it actually does manage a decent storyline... not as epic or deep as some shows of course, but given the nature of the program, it's quite effective.

While it does have a lot of slapsticky stuff, it can be surprisingly witty at times as well, which is surpising, as that sort of thing usually has difficulty with the language barrier. The main thing that carries the show, of course, is the characters... they're all quite good in their own way, and if the entire series was just them sitting around arguing every episode, it would probably still be okay.

Only real drawback is that some of the visuals are a bit sub-par, especially early on in the series, and while it doesn't depend too heavily on them, there are a lot of action scenes which are pretty to look at, but could be nicer.

8/10

[Morox]

Berserk is one of the only shows I have seen that was so damn effective. Every second of this show was amazing. It's my highest rated anime series as of yet.

[xyxhrhynne]

Beserk:
This show is pretty surprising all things considered... a while ago, I'd seen a trailer for the series, and it looks just like non-stop mindless violence, and it actually turned out to be fairly representative of the series.

While the episodes seem to just go from on bloody battle to another, there's actually a lot of depth to it, and it's handled to well that even the almost comical level of gore doesn't trivialize it any. It's really a show based purely on the interractions between a handful of characters, and never feels forced or angsty or melodramatic... just convincing, and draws you in surprisingly effectively.

My only real criticism of the show is the ending...
It felt rushed in many ways... as though they were desperate to bridge the relatively realistic universe of the anime with the fantastic and monster filled universe of the manga. This wasn't pulled off exceptionally poorly, but seems it could have been done better, and with a slightly more natural feeling transition.

9.5/10

[Demons In The Night]

The Slayers:

8/10I wub Slayers.

[DarkRival]

Beserk:

9.5/10
Excellent anime. I just finished watching it the other day.

[xyxhrhynne]

InuYasha:

I obtained this show on eBay, for a surprisingly low price for the entire series... I suppose I shouldn't have been surprised when it came in the form of a shoebox full of unlabeled VHS tapes, fansubbed from the internet, and most episodes were essentially unwatchable. Still, I've much of it from television, and think I'm relatively qualified to review it.

All things considered, I kind of like the show... but can more then understand the hate of it. For one thing, it's pretty derivative... for another, it had a horrendous abundance of filler episodes. When I talk about filler, I don't mean less then crucial events, or things which don't directly relate to the overall storyline... I mean the worst sort of filler episodes, the kind that are all but non-cannon, and will never be refferenced again in the series. Unfortunately, about half of the series is these sort of episodes, and the show goes on for a very long time.

For the first couple seasons, I'd say the show is actually very likeable. It still doesn't bring much new to the table, but the ongoing storyline is fairly well handled, the soundtrack and visuals were more then adequate, and the characters were relatively likeable. It quickly fell apart from then on, though. Even when future seasons actually did reach the real storyline about 2/3rds through them, it just wasn't particularly impressive... no major new characters were introduced, and it really just felt like old hat. The few existing sub-plots likewise dragged on with no apparent resolution in sight. As for the filler, well, they alone were a recipe for disaster... ever notice how most action or drama shows are an hour long? That's because it's almost impossible to introduce a credible threat to the characters and have them deal with it in an interesting fashion in about 25 minutes. Filler works much better for somewhat comedic series', and although this show did have it's moments, and in fact entire episodes were based on this, but really not enough. Far more often they'd just fight some sort of demon who you swear they used before on another episode.

Even though it severely overstayed its welcome, I consider it a fairly likeable, if not simplistic show.

7/10

[xyxhrhynne]

D.N.A.

A little bit of background... most of the anime I own is from an online distributor... his prices are insanely low, but there is a catch: He's completely incompetent. He always mixes up peoples orders, so you end up with a relatively slim chance of getting what you purchased. Fortunately, in my case, most of the mistakes were in my favour... for instance, getting two random series' instead of the one I requested. This series was one of them.

The fact that I came into the show with the lowest of expectations probably helped. This isn't to say that the series is that bad, but it's certianly flawed. Uneven is probably the right word... it doesn't seem to know whether it wants to be a comedy, romance, or drama... as it doesn't blend these qualities particularly well, just seeming to jump from one to the other, exemplified at the end Where it's based on a martial arts battle against a costumed supervillian of all things.

That said, it does have its moments, and the sheer absurdity of the premise and events were generally enough to hold my interest, even if I didn't exactly give a standing ovation when it was all said and done. Since the series as a whole was essentially a bonus, I'd say all things considered I enjoyed it, but not have had quite the same reaction had I paid full price for it.

6.5/10

[coolerimmortal]

Inuyasha given a higher score than Evangelion? Evangelion given a bad score? Bebop and Berserk not given perfect ratings?

I strongly disagree with the ratings.

[xyxhrhynne]

Inuyasha given a higher score than Evangelion? Evangelion given a bad score? Bebop and Berserk not given perfect ratings?

I strongly disagree with the ratings.
Beserk and Bebop probably could have been given perfect scores... I don't know, suppose I just don't give them out. Afterall, someday I might see something that I end up enjoying infinitely more then them, and it would be unfair to give it an equal score. :)

As for Evangelion and InuYasha, I stand behind them... in my opinion, InuYasha aimed low, and pulled it off fairly well... Evangelion aimed incredibly high, but just wasn't effective enough to live up to its ambitions. In the end, I just obtained less enjoyment from it.

[xyxhrhynne]

.hack//Sign
I know this show is generally disliked, and for fairly good reason. For one thing, it's rather slow and somewhat dull. For a series centered around characters in an action based video game, there's remarkably little action. It's purely a story driven series... that isn't to say it lacks any other virtues, but nothing else particularly stands out. The characters are adequate (I know a lot of people dislike Tsukasa, because they find him whiney, but after watching Evangelion, the character seems downright pleasant), the soundtrack is exceptional in my opinion, but naturally that's the sort of thing that can only improve a series so much, and the visuals are also quite good, even if often lacking in diversity.

The real problem is that more then most shows, it depends on the story to push it foreward. There are no filler episodes, as the general nature of the show wouldn't make for decent ones. You watch it fundamentally to see what's going to happen next, which results in two flaws: 1) The final payoff is a bit disappointing and 2) The show has very little replay value as a result.

Personally, I enjoyed the show on the first time through, but didn't even finish it the second time... not because it was unwatchable or anything, but knowing how it was going to turn out, I just lost interest.

A great show, such as Cowboy Beebop or Beserk can be watched again and be enjoyed almost as much as it was the first time... thus, this just isn't a great show.

6/10

[xyxhrhynne]

The Slayers: Next

This might be my favorite series, or at least it's very close, but in simply isn't up to the level of quality as some. It's quite similar in nature to the original series, but in my opinion, improved in every respect. The visuals are considerably enhanced, making the show quite nice looking, whereas the original was just okay... the humor is improved even if a little over-the-top, and the general storyline is more interesting, even if it's slightly more filler heavy then the original series, but since the filler episodes generally work, this isn't much of a strike against it.

One could easily argue that the show has less subtlety then the original, with the characters largely being exagerrated versions of their original selves, but I think it works. If one liked the original series, they'll almost definately like this one... if not, welll, you still might, but I have my doubts.

9/10

[Grand SACHI]

.hack//Sign
I know this show is generally disliked, and for fairly good reason. For one thing, it's rather slow and somewhat dull. For a series centered around characters in an action based video game, there's remarkably little action. It's purely a story driven series... that isn't to say it lacks any other virtues, but nothing else particularly stands out. The characters are adequate (I know a lot of people dislike Tsukasa, because they find him whiney, but after watching Evangelion, the character seems downright pleasant), the soundtrack is exceptional in my opinion, but naturally that's the sort of thing that can only improve a series so much, and the visuals are also quite good, even if often lacking in diversity.

6/10
Yup! and I agree with the rating.

[The Questyen]

i have a problem with people reviewing shows that they can't even spell correctly.

[xyxhrhynne]

i have a problem with people reviewing shows that they can't even spell correctly.
Seeing as how I'm not a 1930's jazz musician, the word "bebop" is used very rarely in my vocabulary, and written even less... but if you want to follow that brilliant philosophy of dismissing everything anyone says due to one spelling error (and a very acceptable one, I should think, seeing as how beebop is phonetically accurate), feel free to...

Fortunately, I have a problem taking criticism from people who don't use a capital "I" for the word "I", so I suppose it evens out, doesn't it? :)

[andarsoninflame]

youre reveiw for Eva sucks(your score and reveiw do that is;) ), Inyuasha is stupid and Bebop needs .5 more

[GundamRT]

*tagged*

[xyxhrhynne]

Think I'll take advantage of the few seconds at least of RT stability...

.hack: Legend of the Twilight:

This show is about as far off from .hack//Sign, in regards to general themes, as humanly possible. It's you're basic goofy anime humor... well, at least it is until about 2/3rds into it. Why is that? Well, that's a very good question... sit back, and I will tell you a tale...

This series was based on a manga, which was actually quite entertaining. The only problem was that only two of the three books were finished at the time... so, did the series makers 1) Wait until the third book was finished to make the series 2) Consult the artists/writers on the future plot developments or 3) Make up an ending that nobody could possibly like? I'm sure you could guess the answer is 3.

The last bit of the series is dead serious... and as we all know from sitcoms that try to tackle real life issues, that's usually downright painful, because the fact that you're good at comedy doesn't make you good at drama persay. In this case, it's just horribly done... the plot is just awful, and although neither the other anime series nor the games which it was based on were epics, this still tarnished them pretty severely.

At its best, it's still kind of lukewarm. It certianly has its moments, and I'll say I generally liked it, but I do tend to be rather forgiving. In the end, the manga is far better, and actually fairly entertaining... this is... watchable... but not by a great degree.

4/10

[xyxhrhynne]

Gundam Wing:
Personally, I liked this show, but it's not without its problems. The problem is that as a whole, the show could be more mature in many regards... and while for many series', this wouldn't be a problem at all, in this one, it does try very hard to be which tends to hurt it.

There is a lot of philosophy in this show... and whether due to poor translation, or writing that simply doesn't think things through, it often doesn't make much sense. Things people say constantly contradict other things they say, and never really correlate to their actions... worse, it seems everyone has some twisted moral agenda, and trying to figure out why the villians especially do what they did inspite of their ridiculously complex plans will give anyone a headache.

This doesn't really hurt the series too much though, I don't find... I more bring it up because I find it amusing just how hard the show tries. As for the show itself, it's surprisingly eventful... the entire balance of power for the entire universe seems to dramatically shift every several episodes, and I doubt a single episode goes by where something crucial doesn't happen. As a result of this, it's rarely boring, and the sheer quantity of events does give the show replay value, since you'll rarely be just waiting for things to happen, having probably forgotten most of the events.

The visuals and soundtrack are very nice... only drawback for the visuals is that I think they repeat some scenes. I only think though, because the main characters destroy approximately two million mobile suits, and one leo getting its head cut off by an energy scythe looks pretty much like another leo getting its head cut off by an energy scythe. If they do recycle graphics, it isn't too blatant, so it's not much of a strike against the series.

A lot of the characters are likewise a little stiff... not unwatchable by any stretch of the imagination, but you're quite as drawn into them as with some shows... they just aren't particularly compelling.

All things considered, I find it a good show... not great, but good. It doesn't do anything perfectly, but does a decent job on almost everything.

7.5/10

[xyxhrhynne]

Mobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS Team:

In the DNA review, I mentioned the problems with my distributor... this was another one of those cases. I'd never heard of this show, and it was sent instead of something I'd actually wanted.

The show itself is actually fairly good... even if very short. It's only 12 episodes (11 really), plus a movie which is made of about 8% new footage, which is supposed to expand on events in the series, but actually ends up leaving out some major storylines. Dispite its legnth, it doesn't feel rushed which I tend to find is a problem with most shows, especially when they reach about the 3/4 point, and are desperately trying to force a logical conclusion.

It's quite a far leap from Gundam Wing, which I believe I'd heard was a non-cannon alternate reality of the Gundam universe, which I'm less then familiar with, and probably a more mature show as well, dispite managing to have lighter moments as well. The plot does feel a little uneven though... this is likely a product of its short legnth, so continuity, at least in the subtle sense can be a bit of a problem, as they occasionally just seem to jump awkwardly from one mission to the next... dispite the fact that the story is considerably less epic and grand then some, it still probably should have been a little longer, and taken its time just a bit more.

It was a good show, but it had some intangible quality that made me kind of expect more... maybe it's just the legnth too. It would have been a bit nicer of some of the subplots and characters were explored a bit more, but I suppose being succinct is an advantage in itself.

7/10

[GundamRT]

^^^
I'm glad you reviewed Gundam W and The 08th MS Team. I agree with the rating you've given W, but I would personally give 08th MS Team a 9/10. I didn't like the follow-up movie though. Have you seen Endless Waltz?

I'm about halfway through 0083: Stardust Memory, and liking it for the most part.

[xyxhrhynne]

^^^
I'm glad you reviewed Gundam W and The 08th MS Team. I agree with the rating you've given W, but I would personally give 08th MS Team a 9/10. I didn't like the follow-up movie though. Have you seen Endless Waltz?

I'm about halfway through 0083: Stardust Memory, and liking it for the most part.
I did see endless waltz, but is was kind of a while ago, and my memory for it is poor... strangely enough, I'd gotten the MS Team, when trying to order Endless Waltz... but since I paid for a movie, and got a whole series, I can't complain. As for the 08th MS Team, I'm sort of thinking I should have rated it higher too... personally, I'm not big on number ratings, so they'll probably often going to be inconsistent. I did like the series, but didn't "love" it, not for any real clear reasons, which made it a bit hard to rate.

All things considered, I think I did like Gundam Wing a bit more, however.

[Demons In The Night]

The Slayers: Next

This might be my favorite series, or at least it's very close, but in simply isn't up to the level of quality as some. It's quite similar in nature to the original series, but in my opinion, improved in every respect. The visuals are considerably enhanced, making the show quite nice looking, whereas the original was just okay... the humor is improved even if a little over-the-top, and the general storyline is more interesting, even if it's slightly more filler heavy then the original series, but since the filler episodes generally work, this isn't much of a strike against it.

One could easily argue that the show has less subtlety then the original, with the characters largely being exagerrated versions of their original selves, but I think it works. If one liked the original series, they'll almost definately like this one... if not, welll, you still might, but I have my doubts.

9/10I like Next better than the original Slayers. I haven't seen Slayers:Try or the OAV's yet, but it's on my to do list. I saw a Slayers movie that I rented from blockbuster, and it pretty much sucked. The story was stupid, and it's only redeeming feature was Naga.

I would say Next deserves a good 9 out of 10

[GundamRT]

xyxhrhynne, are you going to be reviewing RahXephon, either the series or the movie?

[xyxhrhynne]

xyxhrhynne, are you going to be reviewing RahXephon, either the series or the movie?
Never heard of it... I warned in the first post that most of them I'd seen are very common. :)

[xyxhrhynne]

The Slayers: Try

Unfortunately, this series is a step down from next in really every possible way. The new addition to the cast isn't particularly likeable, the storyline doesn't really expand on the existing mythology effectively, most of the villians are just downright terrible, and worst of all, it just isn't funny. Most of the jokes fall completely flat, and the humor based filler episodes are almost painful to watch.

From this, one would probably assume it would get about the worst score imaginable, but you're wrong. The fact is, it's still the same characters that I liked from the first two series', which in itself gives it a bit of value... it's like new Simpsons episodes... sure, they're nowhere near as good as the old ones, but they're watched anyways, because nostalgia still gives the series some appeal.

As for the good points, it does improve greatly near the end of the series the battle against Darkstar is fairly well done, and still does have the occasional moments of quality.

All things considered, it's a poor series, but not horrendously bad, at least not to the extent that it brings down the previous ones... it's simply medeocre in most regards, and watching it without having seen the other series' is not recommended.

6/10

[xyxhrhynne]

Ranma 1/2:

This is one of the first series' I'd gotten... at the time, I knew nothing about it, aside from having heard the name before, and as for the show itself, it certianly was... unusual.

The show has no sex, no obscenity, and minimal violence, yet is oddly full of nudity, usually in a comical context, which is strange due to the fact that dispite that, it's relatively harmless.

Now, as for the show itself, it's kind of your standard anime humor... I like it, some won't. Much like InuYasha, which was made by the same person, it started out with something of an ongoing storyline, which gradually meandered into endless filler, but since the show is much more comedy based, this works much better, but the episode qualities do get very hit of miss.

The show is really about the characters, whose relationships can get surprisingly complex... some would argue that most of them are pretty one dimensional, and the show doesn't tackle gender roles in a particularly socially responsible manner, but again, it's quite clear that it was never a show to be taken seriously.

Like InuYasha, the show just does go on a bit too long, however, with predictably no payoff at the end of it's 150 episode lifespan, but throughout all of the seasons there are enough enjoyable bits to make it worthwhile, even if it rarely surpasses the first couple of seasons.

8/10

[xyxhrhynne]

Hellsing:
The main problem with this series is that it's too short... the fact that it's only 13 episodes loosely implies this, but it's far more due to the fact that there's clearly much more story to tell here then ends up shown. Few of the main characters really have a chance to develop much... for instance, you'll spend the entire series waiting for the "Police girl" to become remotely useful, but she never does, instead she's really just a sidekick role, giving Alucard one of his relatively few bits of dialogue which isn't about how pathetic humans are... and how pathetic fake vampires are... and how pathetic other full vampires are.

Aside from that, it's not a poorly made series. It's pretty nice looking, and does have a mildly interesting and creative story to tell, but dispite how much it rushes, it never does quite reach an effective destination. I still rather liked the series, but I think it could have been a great one were it 'complete'.

7/10

[xyxhrhynne]

The Vision of Escaflowne:

This is actually one of my favorite anime series'. A lot of people consider it a bit too girly, and they might be right, but who cares... I'm something of a sucker for fantasy series' in general, and it is a fairly creative twist on the whole giant robot genre.

Both the look and soundtrack are very good... although for the look, all of the characters have odd pointy noses which is a little distracting. For the soundtrack, a lot of it is odd chanting which works well enough in context, but there is also some very nice instrumental track.

One thing I like about the series is that it doesn't really let logic hold back its creativity... for instance, apparently in the Escaflowne universe, if you gather enough people who seem to survive dangerous situations more often then others, you'll find that they have 'lucky DNA', which can be extracted to make 'fortune blood'... then, all you have to do is completely replace a persons blood with this new fortune blood (Combined with a bit of work from the fate alteration engine, something I won't even bother explaining), and you'll create people with 'invincible' luck, where whenever you try to fire a bow at them, the string will break and whatnot, as apparently good luck for evil people entails bad luck for everyone else.

Now, although this detail doesn't even make the slightest bit of sense, I still consider it among the greatest things ever.

I likewise think the story is fairly good, not in the sense as having the most depth, but just in being fairly interesting and engaging, even if a little rushed at the end. I just think the show manages to both do something different yet at the same time familiar, which makes it highly watchable... oh, and I also kind of have a thing for catgirls, which probably boosted the rating by a good point and a half...

9/10

[GundamRT]

^^^
I tried Escaflowne and just coudn't get into it...a bit too shojo for my tastes. The manga was even worse. However, it's not a series that I've completely written off, and I may revisit it later.

[xyxhrhynne]

^^^
I tried Escaflowne and just coudn't get into it...a bit too shojo for my tastes. The manga was even worse. However, it's not a series that I've completely written off, and I may revisit it later.The first few episodes are relatively representative of the series... it's not quite for everyone, and although I liked it, there's a good chance you won't. :)

[SciFi-ActionMan]

.hack//Sign
I know this show is generally disliked, and for fairly good reason. For one thing, it's rather slow and somewhat dull. For a series centered around characters in an action based video game, there's remarkably little action. It's purely a story driven series... that isn't to say it lacks any other virtues, but nothing else particularly stands out. The characters are adequate (I know a lot of people dislike Tsukasa, because they find him whiney, but after watching Evangelion, the character seems downright pleasant), the soundtrack is exceptional in my opinion, but naturally that's the sort of thing that can only improve a series so much, and the visuals are also quite good, even if often lacking in diversity.

The real problem is that more then most shows, it depends on the story to push it foreward. There are no filler episodes, as the general nature of the show wouldn't make for decent ones. You watch it fundamentally to see what's going to happen next, which results in two flaws: 1) The final payoff is a bit disappointing and 2) The show has very little replay value as a result.

Personally, I enjoyed the show on the first time through, but didn't even finish it the second time... not because it was unwatchable or anything, but knowing how it was going to turn out, I just lost interest.

A great show, such as Cowboy Beebop or Beserk can be watched again and be enjoyed almost as much as it was the first time... thus, this just isn't a great show.

6/10I'd consider reversing that sentiment and say that their ALL filler episodes. But unfortunately I can't say it as halfway through, it became crystal clear that nothing of interest was ever gonna happen. I'd stick .hack//sign at the very bottom of any anime series I've ever seen.

[SciFi-ActionMan]

Hellsing:
The main problem with this series is that it's too short... the fact that it's only 13 episodes loosely implies this, but it's far more due to the fact that there's clearly much more story to tell here then ends up shown...but I think it could have been a great one were it 'complete'.

7/10My thoughts exactly. It's like they got to episode 11 and someone told them they weren't going to be able to do 26 episodes afterall, so they cut the whole thing short in the last two episodes. The pacing was terrific up until then, but at that point, the series just ran into a wall and ended itself.

[Galapogos]

Your Eva review sums up perfectly absolutely everything I dislike about that show. Bravo.

[xyxhrhynne]

I'd consider reversing that sentiment and say that their ALL filler episodes. But unfortunately I can't say it as halfway through, it became crystal clear that nothing of interest was ever gonna happen. I'd stick .hack//sign at the very bottom of any anime series I've ever seen.
I wouldn't call them filler... they are progressing towards something, even if they do so at a pretty slow pace, and the destination isn't particularly appealing. I consider filler to be in the more 'non-cannon' sense... such as with InuYasha, which has the worst kind of filler. In such episodes, absolutely nothing of even the slightest relevence to the overall story occurs. I don't think a single episode of .hack//sign really fell under that category... it wasn't really episodic, it was all really a steady continuation of the rather understated storyline.

One should note however that doesn't necessarily mean the show is good or interesting. All things considered, it's fairly bland, but I thought it had its moments. :)

[xyxhrhynne]

Dragon Ball Z:
I'll warn people right now... I'm rating this show higher then Evangelion, so if anyone needs to stand in the shower or anything so their exploding heads don't cause a mess, they should probably hurry up and do so.

To say the show is not without its flaws is really a pretty massive understatement, but I personally still kind of like it, and think it does have a certian odd charm to it. Unfortunately, the obsessive fans forced the inevitable backlash which turned it into a dirty word online.

If you only watch a few episodes, especially in the middle, you'll probably think it's stupid, and you'll be right, but especially if you watch it long enough from the start, it kind of grows on you. Unlike most people, I personally like the fact that the show takes its time, and never seems in a hurry to wrap up events and storyline, yet still very rarely feels like it's stalling for time (with a few exceptions, of course). Unfortunately, this quality makes it rather painful to watch on television, where it's not even remotely uncommon for an entire episode to go by without a single event reaching completion.

Likewise, the show is fairly illogical, but that's not much of a strike against it, because even when serious there's a clear sense of humor, even if it's a bit indirect, and clearly the storyline is not exactly the main priority. It follows it's own vague sense of logic, which is more then a lot of other shows manage.

The soundtrack is pretty unremarkable... the visuals are okay, but tend to be recycled often, both literally in repeated frames, and figuratively in scenes which are technically different, but have basically been done several times before.

Part of the appeal I find is that unlike some shows, it doesn't feel like an investment of time that you're hoping will eventually pay off... it's relatively consistent all through, naturally varying somewhat in quality, but only to a limited extent.

While it's not even close to a perfect series, I think it is one that's underrated, and often dismissed due to it's simplicity. That said, it's hard to argue with anyone who hates it, because there are a lot of things to hate about it.

7/10

[GundamRT]

While I don't have genuine hatred for the various Dragonball series, it's a franchise that has never really interested me and probably never will.

[The One]

I'm waiting to hear what you think of Trigun. Very nice reviews so far though. I agree with most of what you say.

[Demons In The Night]

While I don't have genuine hatred for the various Dragonball series, it's a franchise that has never really interested me and probably never will.Same. It's alright, but I wouldn't go out of my way to see it.

[xyxhrhynne]

I'm waiting to hear what you think of Trigun. Very nice reviews so far though. I agree with most of what you say.
Unfortunately, that's another one I haven't seen... I have a few more to do, but have most of them I've seen already covered. Have heard good things about it though, and will look into getting it at some point.

[The Bomb]

I agree with many of your reviews though I couldn't get in to any Slayer anime. Sorry.

[Drummers02]

Good thing this is only YOUR own personal reviews.

As I agree with your ratings for quite a few...it just feels you obviously didn't care much for NGE and didn't really give much thought into it about the massive character developments I was able to witness.

It feels like many people on this forum really dislike NGE for the wrong reasons and expect it to be the holy grail. I feel it's just a series you need to find for yourself.

Glad Slayers and Outlaw Star (even though I hardly agree with your analysis of it) made the list....Love those series :up:

[coolerimmortal]

Unfortunately, that's another one I haven't seen... I have a few more to do, but have most of them I've seen already covered. Have heard good things about it though, and will look into getting it at some point.
It's quite good...one of the first anime I ever saw that I truly loved.

[xyxhrhynne]

Bubblegum Crisis

Back before I was an avid net viewer, anime news was hard to come by, since I knew few people interested in it... thus, whenever I saw an availible series that I'd actually heard of, it was kind of a big deal, and I usually bought it. This was one of those cases.

The show isn't terrible... it isn't even particularly bad. It's just rather ordinary in all regards. To call the story uneven is really quite an understatement, as although there are some bits on ongoing premise, you could watch almost any of them in any order and basically get the same effect. What story there is is both simple and incoherent at the same time, somehow.

The visuals were okay, but did show their age a bit... just weren't as "clean" as many modern animes. Another strange quality was how every episode was a different legnth, but even considering the fact that, it was still a very short series, with predictably no resolution to the minimal ongoing plot that there was.

It's a hard one to recommend... it's not particularly good, or offensively bad, but in the end really just doesn't have much going for it.

5/10

[xyxhrhynne]

Ranma 1/2 OVA

Probably shouldn't even bother reviewing this, because I don't have much to say that wasn't covered in the review for Ranma 1/2. Basically, it's just 12 new episodes of slightly above average quality strung together... it teases you with hints of storyline resolution, but predictably it never happens.

The episodes are better then most of the later season fillers, but not quite up to the calibre of the best of the series, so in the end, it kind of balances out.

8/10

[Pentacle5]

.hack//Sign
I know this show is generally disliked, and for fairly good reason. For one thing, it's rather slow and somewhat dull. For a series centered around characters in an action based video game, there's remarkably little action. It's purely a story driven series... that isn't to say it lacks any other virtues, but nothing else particularly stands out. The characters are adequate (I know a lot of people dislike Tsukasa, because they find him whiney, but after watching Evangelion, the character seems downright pleasant), the soundtrack is exceptional in my opinion, but naturally that's the sort of thing that can only improve a series so much, and the visuals are also quite good, even if often lacking in diversity.

The real problem is that more then most shows, it depends on the story to push it foreward. There are no filler episodes, as the general nature of the show wouldn't make for decent ones. You watch it fundamentally to see what's going to happen next, which results in two flaws: 1) The final payoff is a bit disappointing and 2) The show has very little replay value as a result.

Personally, I enjoyed the show on the first time through, but didn't even finish it the second time... not because it was unwatchable or anything, but knowing how it was going to turn out, I just lost interest.

A great show, such as Cowboy Beebop or Beserk can be watched again and be enjoyed almost as much as it was the first time... thus, this just isn't a great show.

6/10
I think people should really give .hack//sign more of a chance. Because not enough people did, I'm without one of my favourite anime shows. Just when it was getting really really good too. Yes, it's slow and yes, there's little action. But it requires thought. It's one big puzzle. It's sad, and almost depressing, yet there's somehow a glimmer of hope. I never found Tsukasa whiney, I found him/her? to be mysterious and a very tragic character. Filler episodes don't exactly thrill me anyway. I want the story, not attempts at humour.

[TheMaster847]

I think people should really give .hack//sign more of a chance. Because not enough people did, I'm without one of my favourite anime shows. Just when it was getting really really good too. Yes, it's slow and yes, there's little action. But it requires thought. It's one big puzzle. It's sad, and almost depressing, yet there's somehow a glimmer of hope. I never found Tsukasa whiney, I found him/her? to be mysterious and a very tragic character. Filler episodes don't exactly thrill me anyway. I want the story, not attempts at humour.I absolutely agree. I'm currently in the middle of .hack//SIGN and I'm finding it pretty interesting. Sure, it's a bit slow, and sure, there isn't much action. But it isn't an action show, it's more of a drama.

And what's wrong with being story driven? What else is going to drive a show? And aren't filler episodes generally bad? They just break up the story, which is the reason to watch anything.

[xyxhrhynne]

I absolutely agree. I'm currently in the middle of .hack//SIGN and I'm finding it pretty interesting. Sure, it's a bit slow, and sure, there isn't much action. But it isn't an action show, it's more of a drama.

And what's wrong with being story driven? What else is going to drive a show? And aren't filler episodes generally bad? They just break up the story, which is the reason to watch anything.
You'll be surprised at how little replay value it has... :)

[Pentacle5]

You'll be surprised at how little replay value it has... :)
Maybe we will be, maybe we won't. However, there are four key aspects to a show, movie, or book that help me decide whether or not it is worth seeing. First and foremost: I must be able to care about at least one of the characters (for example, although Ghost in the Shell is interesting, I find it hard to get into because I don't really care about anyone, whereas with Gundam Seed, I fell in love with it right away because I cared about Athryn and Cagali. In .hack//sign, I was able to care about Tsukasa and Subaru, so it doesn't matter how it ends because if Subaru or Tsukasa die, I'll see it as a tragedy, if there's a happy ending, I'll be glad they're okay). Second: there needs to be a decent level of emotional content. Third: there needs to be some serious issue(s) adressed (child abuse, war, murder, torture, etc.). Fourth: at the very end (as in, no more seasons, or sequels, or prequels), there should be no holes.
I haven't seen the end of .hack//sign, so don't know if it fits in four, but it does fit in one, two, and three. And that's pretty good in my books.

[xyxhrhynne]

I was just going to review all the series' I owned, but might as well cover a few basic TV ones as well...

Yu-Gi-Oh

Come on... it's a show about a bunch of kids playing with cards, designed purely to market the product... how good could it possibly be? That said, it could be a lot worse. For all it's many glaring flaws, it isn't a lazily thrown together show... this was a show which clearly did have effort behind it. The people who made it clearly wanted to make a quality show.

This is actually part of the flaw of the program. The show takes itself very seriously, dispite the somewhat ludicrous premise. As a result, it tends to be melodramatic and over-the-top.

For the good points, the show is quite well drawn and artistically impressive, even if a little hard and angular at times. Although it's a technically impressive form, one could argue it isn't the most engaging, as even in more serious programs, the lighter anime imagry can be a bit easier on the eyes.

The real problem with the show is actually its attention to the subject matter... it's incredibly thorough, to the point of being tedius. After listening to about five minutes of the charaters bantering back and forth about how their monster will take off so many life points, but will activate this magic card that will create another monster and destroy the first and so on and so forth (as every card game round takes about five minutes at least), you're forced to wonder exactly what the appeal of the show is, and what it's goal is, aside from turning a generation of kids into complete nerds.

90% of the show itself will be card duels, and thus, 90% of episodes will end in one of two ways... 1) Yugi freaking out over how he doesn't have a single card in his deck that can beat the monster on the field, but be must fight on to save his friends/the world or 2) Yugi's beaten competitor, who earlier in the match relied on unfair tactics learning a valueable lesson about friendship and fair play.

All thinks considered, the real flaw of the show is that it's slow and boring. Beyond that, it essentially works on at least a primitive level. It depicts the card game in a seemingly accurate fashion, all the while throwing in grandiose elements like the fate of the world being at stake and whatnot, in a way which doesn't seem to forced.

All things considered, it isn't a good show... but there are far worse shows out there to introduce kids to anime with.

4.5/10

[xyxhrhynne]

Dragon Ball GT

This show is truly an abomination. If there is ever going to be a ritual to give Satan a coporeal form, in the chamber filled with dead kittens and tortured people, there will also be an episode of DB-GT playing in the background.

While there are decent moments, I think two in the run of the entire series, the show is such a massive step backwards in quality from DBZ, that it's just mind boggling. You know how people arrogantly say they could write a better show then they're watching, but obviously don't mean it? Well, the average sixth grader could write a better show then this.

The first quarter to half of the series or so is an adventure, much like in the style of the original Dragon Ball show... only completely unfunny, completely uninteresting, completely inconsistent, and centered around the three least likeable characters in the series (Goku might have been a bit likeable before, but now you just want him to die).

Eventually they finish their quest, which was based on a largely nonsensical premise, it gets into the DBZ mode of endless mindless action, which is only done marginally better then the comedy. The battles tend to feel like the old western bar brawls, where people punch each other, smash tables over one another heads, and never show any signs of injury or fatigue until it's scripted that the fight is over, at which time they go down with one punch.

Also, did I forget to mention that the characters are completely stupid? If there's something they can do wrong in a battle, they will, whether it's not bothering to use all of their power and almost dying, or using completely unintuitive methods which fail to work, they'll attempt it time and time again... for example:

In the battle against super android 17 (one of the better villians, which shows just how high the quality of the rogues gallery of the series is, Goku immediately starts to rely on energy attacks. This is unusual, because as a rule Goku uses them fairly rarely. Immediately, it's clear that they aren't working... also keep in mind that he's fought energy obsorbing androids before. He does this for about 20 minutes, nonstop, tiring himself, clearly not weakening the android in the slightest, and as he's attacked, he realizes that the android is getting stronger... so rather then bothering to throw a punch of anything, he keeps firing energy. A few more minutes, and he comes to the realization that the android is indeed getting stronger by obsorbing his energy blasts... so there's only one solution. He gathers every last ounce of energy he has, for a 10x kamehameha, which stregnthens the android tenfold, and leaves him unable to fight anymore. As a final cruel sidenote, he later fights an enemy who's incredibly hot, and thus he can't punch... she instead of using energy attacks, he just constantly runs away, finally transforming to the heat wouldn't damage him, rather then taking the obvious alternative.

None of the villians are particularly good, and their origins tend to be largely incoherent. Likewise, all ofthe characters aside from Goku, and in the final moments, Vegeta become completely useless, seemingly forgetting any techniques they have which might make them somewhat useful.

As mentioned before, when the battles do end, they tend to be very anti-climactic, and thoroughly disappointing (at once point Goku lies in order to lead an enemy into a false sense of security, and later kills him, which is clearly out of character).

The only mildly redeeming quality is it's kind of interesting to see how some of the characters have changed, and gone on with their lives after the first two series.

That said, it's a horrible tragedy that the Dragon Ball series ended this way.

1/10

[Oddbody -[AS2]-]

I've got a soft spot for Bubblegum Crisis since it's the first anime I ever bought, but your score is pretty fair.

Great work on your reviews.

[GundamRT]

I was just going to review all the series' I owned, but might as well cover a few basic TV ones as well...

Yu-Gi-Oh

Come on... it's a show about a bunch of kids playing with cards, designed purely to market the product... how good could it possibly be? That said, it could be a lot worse. For all it's many glaring flaws, it isn't a lazily thrown together show... this was a show which clearly did have effort behind it. The people who made it clearly wanted to make a quality show.

This is actually part of the flaw of the program. The show takes itself very seriously, dispite the somewhat ludicrous premise. As a result, it tends to be melodramatic and over-the-top.

For the good points, the show is quite well drawn and artistically impressive, even if a little hard and angular at times. Although it's a technically impressive form, one could argue it isn't the most engaging, as even in more serious programs, the lighter anime imagry can be a bit easier on the eyes.

The real problem with the show is actually its attention to the subject matter... it's incredibly thorough, to the point of being tedius. After listening to about five minutes of the charaters bantering back and forth about how their monster will take off so many life points, but will activate this magic card that will create another monster and destroy the first and so on and so forth (as every card game round takes about five minutes at least), you're forced to wonder exactly what the appeal of the show is, and what it's goal is, aside from turning a generation of kids into complete nerds.

90% of the show itself will be card duels, and thus, 90% of episodes will end in one of two ways... 1) Yugi freaking out over how he doesn't have a single card in his deck that can beat the monster on the field, but be must fight on to save his friends/the world or 2) Yugi's beaten competitor, who earlier in the match relied on unfair tactics learning a valueable lesson about friendship and fair play.

All thinks considered, the real flaw of the show is that it's slow and boring. Beyond that, it essentially works on at least a primitive level. It depicts the card game in a seemingly accurate fashion, all the while throwing in grandiose elements like the fate of the world being at stake and whatnot, in a way which doesn't seem to forced.

All things considered, it isn't a good show... but there are far worse shows out there to introduce kids to anime with.

4.5/10
Interesting review...I've caught maybe 10 minutes of this show, spread out over a handful of episodes, but I think your comments are dead-on. the Pokemon anime suffers from the same downfalls.

[xyxhrhynne]

-']I've got a soft spot for Bubblegum Crisis since it's the first anime I ever bought, but your score is pretty fair.

Great work on your reviews.It's actually been quite a while since I'd watched it... have to check it out again before long. :)

[Pentacle5]

Those reviews were so great, that all I can say is my confirmation. I watched Yu-Gi-Oh! strictly because many of the monsters were based on some mythological creature or another, and I wanted to know which cards I could get either in the video game or just to look at at home. The show was repetitive, and its messages have already been said in just about every other kid's show out there. I loved Dragon Ball Z! And everybody was always talking about how Dragon Ball GT was coming soon and how it was going to be SO awesome!...I watched the first five episodes and then gave up on it completely. It was just so...not like Dragon Ball Z! So thanks for that review, now I don't have to watch the rest out of curiosity because I know the show doesn't get any better.

[xyxhrhynne]

Pokemon

This... this is an odd show. It's actually bordering on disturbing. We've all heard the jokes about how it's cruel to keep the animals in little balls and make them fight one another... those uneducated in the matter believe it's a notion that the makers haven't really considered... from what I've seen, they are very much aware of it.

For instance, on many seperate occasions, they make a point of stating that pokemon pretty much never fight one another in the wild, and are naturally non-agressive. Thus, we can assume that they don't enjoy combat or fighting at all... thus, the owners are fundamentally making them battle against their will. Sure, they can always refuse the orders, but that will just lead to being trapped in the ball again.

Also, keep in mind the goal of Ash, the main character... to be the best pokemon trainer there is. Not to save the world, or to help people, but to force him pets to fight for sport and amusement, when they would obviously rather sit around and enjoy themselves, rather then being forced to hurt one another for no real reason.

Now, back to the trainers... they really don't deserve much credit. If I have a little yellow cat thing that can shoot lightning, that's up against a gaint fire breathing dragon, and you tell it to shoot lightening at it... you're really not helping. Really, if I were able to shoot lightening, I would never need anyone to tell me to do so... at any feasible situation where it even might help, I would be using it, as well as many situations where it wouldn't, and it's quite clear that the pokemon are considerably smarter then every human character on the show.

Now, actual criticism of the show... it isn't very good. It sort of has an ongoing story, but since the characters goals are so trivial, it never really goes anywhere. Every episode is basically the same... all of the guest stars seem to have the same voices, and at the end, the same morals are repeated over and over again, as they trounce team rocket, the comic relief characters which essentially are repeating the exact same joke every episode.

If you've seen one episode, you've basically seen them all... it's about as devoid as a series can possibly be... and I don't mean devoid of intellectualism, but drama, humor excitement... really, there's just nothing appealing here. Watching the characters standing against a brick wall for a half hour would probably be just as engaging.

Really, with most shows I can detect a faint hint of appeal... here, I truly just don't get it... but that said, it's still much better then Dragon Ball GT.

2/10

[xyxhrhynne]

Sailor Moon
These are probably the worst superheroes ever. On this show, perhaps more then any other, it's incredibly hard to root for the good guys. The main character has an ability that can be used at any time, and immediately kill any monster... does she use it though? Eventually... usually after getting a bunch of fireballs shot at her, and being beaten up for ten minutes.

Okay, I'll freely admit this behavior has ample prescident... Voltron, Power Rangers, and countless others... but the difference is they're martial artists with giant robots... they at least have some vague reason to believe that conventional attacks might be effective, even if they never turn out to be.

These people, on the other hand, have nothing beyond their instant monster killer attack, aside from the ability to transform into embarassing outfits, which somehow people won't recognize them once changed.

Conversely, every monster they face has a dozen devestating and creative powers, which they won't hesitate to use. Naturally, only the main characters ability kills monsters... the others just stun or hurt the monsters so this fatal attack can be done, dispite the fact it seems completely unnecessary, since I've only seen the main attack miss once, and that was against a major villian.

The result is five people who don't bother using their powers getting beaten up and needing Tuxedo Mask to save them (who must roll his eyes every time this happens, which is pretty much every episode). Really, they don't deserve to win a single battle.

Onto the show itself... it's one of those 90% filler shows, which is mostly based on highschool hyjinx, a meaningless monster battle, and an incredibly forced moral lesson at the end which always feels horribly out of place.

It does have periods of real ongoing storyline, which are, in truth, considerably better then the show deserves. Once in a while, they're good enough to convince you that it's actually a great show... then they go back to several more episodes of general filler, where they fight tennis ball monsters who turn people into giant tennis balls, and other downright embarassing stuff.

Speaking of embarassing, the costumes are a bit much. The skirts are obscenely short... short to the point where it isn't even sexy anymore, it's just... awkward. It makes you wonder what people would think of you if they walked in and saw you watching this, which is an attitude which really should be reserved for hard-core pornography.

It's an odd show, and while it does have some amusing comic-relief, I can't quite figure out what the audience for it is meant to be. It's good moments have made me consider getting the uncut version of the show, but frankly I doubt I'm missing much.

3/10

[xyxhrhynne]

Digimon

This show was terribly named, and it's a horrible injustice that it's so closely and justifiably associated with Pokemon, since it's really better in every regard.

It isn't a great show, mind you, but it really does do a lot of things right. For one thing, it has a real ongoing story... this won't seem too impressive, but it's a bit uncommon in a kids show for every episode to be based closely on the last, even if it's becomming a bit more commonplace these days. Either way, this simply little thing really helps draw one into the story, even when it is a medeocre one.

It's also a considerably more mature show then Pokemon... for instance, characters 'die' quite frequently, and not just the villians either. Again, another seemingly simple notion, but that little thing does offer the story a little less certianty then so many comparable shows.

Now, that bad stuff... it's very cutesy, and about half of every episode are recycled transformation clips. Also it follows an annoying Pokemonism where every time one of the digimon changes, they change their name as well. Shouldn't they have names beyond their species? What if they run into another of their kind? How will they identify one another? Worse, since all of them have four or so transformations, there are a total of a couple dozen constantly changing character names... just once, I'd like to see one of the humans mess up their names, just once... oh well.

Like Pokemon, the humans here don't do much aside from stand around and watch while their digimon companions either beat up the enemy, or get beaten up themselves. The combat is a bit bland, with every attack either instantly destroying a foe, or inflicting no damage whatsoever (which is far more common), removing any real stategy on their end, since they all only have one attack, and making the fights considerably less engaging to watch.

Although the humans are pointless, they aren't anywhere near as stupid of grating as they are in Pokemon, and don't have the bloated senses of self worth either. One doesn't mind that they're all the time doing... well, whatever it is they're doing while their digital monsters do all the work.

Another way the show remained mildly engaging was by dramatically shifting everything every season. New characters, generally different sorts of conflicts... sometimes even fairly different visuals and even the very nature of the world as a whole was often dramatically altered. As a result, even if the show was somewhat medeocre, at least it stayed somewhat fresh.

This is not a great show... but it's infinitely better then what it's compared, and often dismissed as a cheap copy to. For a purely kid-anime, I'd say it's actually quite acceptable, even if anyone looking for something really engaging and interesting should look elsewhere.

5/10

[GundamRT]

I'd dearly love to hear Kiyone debate Sailor Moon with you.

Your assessment of Pokemon is pretty much spot-on. What truly annoys me, aside from the stuff you mentioned, is how the characters endlessly talk about how their Pokemon can beat each other up with which tactics and which attack. It's "monologueing" taken to a whole new level, and it's about as irritating as wiping your butt with an SOS pad. Believe it or not, the Pokemon movies are actually better than the show (having been dragged to the first three by my wife).

What little of Digimon I've seen has not inspired me to watch it regularly, but I have noticed that it seems to be better in terms of story and characterization than Pokemon. The annoyance factor creeps in during the "digivolving" sequences, though.

[xyxhrhynne]

Your assessment of Pokemon is pretty much spot-on. What truly annoys me, aside from the stuff you mentioned, is how the characters endlessly talk about how their Pokemon can beat each other up with which tactics and which attack. It's "monologueing" taken to a whole new level, and it's about as irritating as wiping your butt with an SOS pad. Believe it or not, the Pokemon movies are actually better than the show (having been dragged to the first three by my wife).
The monologuing is similar to in YuGiOh, where apparently nobody knows what any of the cards do, so every time one is used, a five minute explanation is needed. Pokemon does the same, dispite the fact that Ash and the others are supposed to be experts... I suppose it's for the audience sake, but it really seems unnecessary. If someone summons a giant floating fish, I don't need someone enthusiastically announcing that it's a water pokemon, that can shoot water at people... even if I couldn't figure that out right away, I'm sure it would become quite apparent two minutes after the battle started. :)

As for the movies, I've only seen the first, and yes, it really was much better then it deserved to be... even if it did end with the TV show theme of an inconsistent and verbose moral lesson.

What little of Digimon I've seen has not inspired me to watch it regularly, but I have noticed that it seems to be better in terms of story and characterization than Pokemon. The annoyance factor creeps in during the "digivolving" sequences, though.
That is an annoyance... on the bright side, the sequences aren't quite as long as the 20 or so minutes that are spent on the transformations and attacks in say, Sailor Moon.

[Pentacle5]

Well, I certainly agree when it comes to Sailor Moon, however, I must disagree when it comes to Pokémon. Definitely the quality of the show is bad, but having played the games, watched five of the first six movies, and watched the show until I just couldn't stand it anymore, the goal of a pokémon trainer is to become a pokémon master or breeder, etc. and can only do so if s/he treats her/his pokémon with "trust and love". In one episode, there was a pokémon who wanted win in the pokémon league even more than its master, and there many episoodes that illustrate how wrong it is to abuse and exploit pokémon. There is a difference between forcing a pokémon to battle until it has to recover in the hospital for several days and letting it battle until it faints, only to wake up shortly after the entire battle and be good as new. The pokéball is a resting place that most pokémon accept and others downright refuse, like pikachu. Is it really any different than keeping a bird or hamster in a cage or a dog within your propety? What the show desperately needs is a darker element and some character growth, plus a real villain. Jessie and James prove only to be annoying and certainly not evil, and Ash's rival, Gary, is only that: a rival. Team Rocket's leader seems to have potential, but he is rarely shown, and the protagonists have never had a battle with him. The movies have a lot more substance than the show, but the show just kills it because the characters never seem to remember what happened in the movie and nor do they seem to carry whatever important lessons they may have learned with them. Yes, I am aware that in the first movie, Mewtwo makes them forget everything (unnecessary in my opinion, is it not important for Brock and Misty to remember that Ash virtually died and how they felt about that? Is it not important for Ash and his pokémon to remeber the experience and form a closer bond because of it?), but what about the others? The only mention in the show I heard regarding the second movie was when the protagonists encounter a lugia and her baby (up until then, I had thought there was only one, as with the other legendary birds, but okay), Ash says quite matter-of-factly, "Oh, I saw one in the orange islands". Doesn't seem to remember that this particalr lugia was the "beast of the sea", that he saved the world with it, or even that he rode on its back. So no, Pokémon does not advocate the mistreatment of animals, but it does need quality.

[Steve Brandon]

I'd dearly love to hear Kiyone debate Sailor Moon with you.

Not gonna happen. Either you enjoy Sailor Moon, or you don't. I love it, but I perfectly understand why the show isn't a cup of tea that a lot of other anime fans would enjoy. There's nothing much in the way of substance to debate.