I have been proven wrong. If you don't know me, then I'll share a little fact with you. I hated Birth By Sleep. Its what caused me to denounce kingdom heart spin-off games for good. Then this news breaks, and I am simply left amazed. Yes, cannot technically judge a game based upon one guest character (Learned that one the hard way with Birth By Sleep, but simply the fact that Square is acknowledging The World Ends With still exists, is enough to get me excited for Kingdom Hearts 3DS. You win this round square, now you have to double prove me wrong by actually making that sequel to The World Ends With You, instead of teasing it every other year. That would sure put me in my place.

Well Manga Bytes is kind of ker plunt. So in the mean times.

Thought I'd finish off that first impressions thing I started making, so here's all the anime I watched ranked in order from worst to greatest. Hope you like it. Now this is based off of the first episode, or first couple of episodes that I watched, so don't go counting it as a full review.

10. Itsuka Tenma no Kuro Usagi: This is trash; kind of enertaining trash, but trash nonetheless.

9. Mayo Chiki: Not exactly trash as it has likable lead characters and pulls off a couple of laughs, but nothing else in this anime is above 'Painful to watch' when it comes to standard ecchi fare.

8. Uta-No-Prince Sama: I actually liked this as a guilty pleasure, it had a couple of good moments and while the cast isn't exactly well-rounded their all likable; however I cannot put this any higher up on the list because for every moment I was wowed for the beautiful animation and offbeat wackiness I was reminded this is pretty much the female version of the ecchi shows I so harshly cirticize.

7. Kami-sama no Memo-chou: This would be higher on the list if it weren't for one reason; first lets talk about the good things, the animation is solid, the story set ups and finishes are great, and the idea of a 'NEET DETECTIVE' is both original and hits my mystery show sweet spot; now onto my fault with this anime, which is a pretty big fault, both of the main characters are terrible; the girl is a pretentious slob who has to be waited on hand and foot and the guy is a pushover cardboard cutter anime male protagonist.

6. Sacred Seven: This is being pushed above Kami-sama no Memo-chou simply for the fact that I love the animation and lead characters, besides that this is a pretty standard super-hero show with a bit of a sci-fi mix thrown in and a premise that takes a few episodes of explanation to understand.

5.5 Ikokuko Meiro no Croisse: This is one of those anime with no important quest to save the world, no enemies to face, but still manages to tell a story nonetheless. Ikoku Meiro no Croisse is beautiful, soft and makes up for its lack of grand storyline with a good cast of characters.

5. Baka to Test to Shokanjuu Ni! : The shounen comedy show back for its second season, and its a good return to form; the first episode would have scored higher on the list if it weren't beach filler, you know that thing thats in every anime ever made.

4. No. 6: An anime that made me fall in love with it from the premise only, it suffers a little because the anime jumps seven years from the first episode to the second, and a bit of the pseudo-science requires a bit of disbelief, but otherwise its a great sci-fi anime, and hits my dystopian sweet spot.

3. Dantalian no Shoka: Random-ass lion demon summoned by a book. Thats all I need to say. Also its all mysterious and victorian, and the main characters have really good chemistry, (And cool hair).

2. Mawaru Penguindrum: Yes, the first episode is a bit hard to understand, and it gets a bit trippy at time, but it was also very emotionally touching to watch characters I'd only known for eight minutes cry at the loss of their sister. Any anime that manages to pull you in like that is good. I also love the shoujo artstyle, the theme of fate, and the hint of a much darker plot hiding under the glitzy cutesiness.

1. Usagi Drop: I think I'm starting to love Josei more than any other demographic, because this anime had me hooked from the first episode. It had an interesting premise, but it executes it very well. Its just so heartwarming, and the artstyle is so cool, and the characters are so good. There are a hundred good things I can say about the anime.

Beccano's 2010 Summer Anime Preview:
I always read the Anime Preview on AnimeNewsNetwork for every new season, and find myself wanting to share my own opinions on the anime I've watched, or at least first impressions. Then I remembered, Durr, I have a blog. So yeah, if your at all interested here's my opinions on the first episode of every anime I've watched on the first season.



Baka to Test to Shokanjuu Ni!-> The second season of Baka to Test, one of my favorites from last year. Its pure fluff, but doesn't seem to suffer from any of the faults that other fluffy comedy anime have. The characters are still as lovable as ever, with one of the few moron protagonists that are so common in shounen that I actually like. The show uses alot of those tropes common in shounen comedy anime (Take a drink everytime I say the phrase Common in Shounen, thats twice now), and parodies them in hilarious way. The characters are your standard pick and mix, the idiot but well intentioned protagonist, the pervert, the straight-laced best friend, the ditzy love interest, the tsundere love interest, but they all subvert their typical roles in some silly way. Except for the tsundere and yandere who are played to such extremes that it ends up being hilarious. The plot centers around a highschool, because EVERYTHING in anime has to do with some highschool. But manages to make itself into some sort of Battle/Highschool/Comedy anime with a dash of Romance, with a unique plot. Also this show gets an A++ for being one of the few light novel anime that doesn't just end with the first season even though there's tons more to adapt in the light novel.

If you want a score on it, it rounds out to about an A-. The animation and music are colorful and well-done, but if your not into fluffy shounen comedies then this anime probably won't change your opinion on it.




Mayo Chiki-> This is another Shounen Echi comedy that follows the recipe to the T. (If your wondering what that recipe is, its four parts boobs, two parts relatable and spineless male protagonist, and throw in a cast of characters that are defined more by their quirks then actual personality). Despite that, there were a few moments in Mayo Chiki! that I found genuinely funny. Make no mistake most of the jokes were groan worthy. "What, the extremely bishounen butler to the school's token extremely rich and sought after girl is a girl?" was about as shocking a revelation as finding out that the transformers movies sucked. While we're on the subject, I feel like sharing one of the many things I love slice of life anime. That being, without the grand scale mystery, adventure or sci-fi plots, slice of life rely on character driven stories to get by. I love character driven stories. Unforntately Mayo Chiki is not. Its characters aren't really people as they are quirks. The main character has a girl phobia, other than that he's white bread toast without any butter. His sister likes to beat him up, thats her character thing. The only interesting character was the butler, and thats mostly because she's the center of the only good jokes. Also, this being Ecchi!, we have to talk about the fan service. Which wasn't THAT bad for the first episode, but there were a few moments where it got ridiculous, (The ball gag for one, and the other where Subaru's gender is confirmed after she gets knocked down and her clothes fly off-What is this Ikki Tousen?-). Despite all this I kind of liked the first episode. It hit my soft-spot for cheesey rom-coms, and it shows a bit of potential. That is, it would if it took the camera off of the butler's breasts for like five seconds to actually round off its cast.

It gets a disappointing C+, and a reccomendation only to those who like trashy rom-coms as their guilty pleasures.



[From right to left the super star, the nerd, the funny short guy, the pretty rich guy, the angsty pretty rich guy and the friendly and laid back ginger]

Uta No Prince-Sama Maiji 1000? Love
This show is like a paradox for me, because for everything thats good about it there's another bland element in it that should really hold it back for me but it doesn't. I LIKE this show. Alot more than I should really, considering quality-wise its just average. It shares most of the character and story problems I mentioned in Mayo-Chiki, just flipped to appeal to the opposite gender. ((IE. Character Traits favored over actual characters, the protagonist being a bit bland, and the plot just being an excuse for the show to throw pretty boys in your face)), but none of those factors made the show outwardly bad. There were plenty of positive traits (From my perspective at least, consider that I am female), namely the animation and the overall quirkiness and likability of the cast. The main character really didn't leave an impression on me, but the sequence where she explained her dream of writing a song for her favorite popstar to a newfound friend and roommate was both touching and beautiful. On the whole, the plot is nothing special, an average girl makes it into an elite academy (This one centered around music), and meets a bunch of cute boys who start fawning on her, but it was executed well. All the boys are introduced in unique ways, and they all have personalites that are likable and clear to distinguish from one another. Its your typical pretty-boy pick and mix, the nerdy one, the angsty one, the rich and beautiful one, the best-friend fun-loving one, so its not actually unique on that front. It does however, manage to throw in a few curveballs. The most surprising being the principal's introduction, which was so campy I couldn't help but find it completely awesome.

Recommended to girls, music fans, or girly music fans who can put up with the standard cliches of the reverse harem genre to find an interesting series at heart. A solid B-

#10 Devil May Cry 5 or [DMC5]



Let me get this out of the way first. Yes, I hate his hairstyle. Yes, I still subscribe to the theory that Capcom came up with an original game idea that sounded 'Like' Devil May Cry, and decided to stick Devil May Cry on it in order to sell. Despite all of that, I'm confident in Ninja Theory's ability to make a fun fighting game, typical to the crazy-ass spirit of the series we know and love. The trailer has me interested enough to consider buying the game. I wouldn't consider myself hyped up just yet, as Dante's character design still bugs me, but its worth at least a definite look.

#9 Final Fantasy XIII-2



How do I put this? I hated Final Fantasy XIII. Its the only game I've actually returned to the store unfinished in a long time. So, I took a great deal of convincing before I even looked at the trailer for this sequel. Really, my main problem with Final Fantasy XIII lied in the characters, Lightning was a bitch, Snow a Moron, Hope annoying, Vanille even more so, Fang barely was a character, and Sazh was completely awesome. Now, switching out the lame cast from the second game with new characters that seem much more likable in the trailer. Yes. Purple haired bishie to rival Lightning. Yes. Breaking up the linearity of the gameplay, (At least in the demoes I've seen). Hell Yes. I've always preferred somewhat more open worlds and character driven stories, which is what Final Fantasy XIII-2 is shaping up to be. I'm not exactly waiting in line at opening day, but I'll definitely pick up a copy.

#8
Luigi's Mansion 2


Luigi's Mansion was alright, but not exactly what I expected it to be. Still I was glad to see my favorite of the mario brothers getting a game to himself. Did the game need a sequel? Not really. But hey, I need more games to play on my 3DS. Seriously, right now all I have are ports of fighters and Nintendogs. This is a bit higher up on the list than it normally would be because of my lack of 3DS games, but hey it looks like Nintnedo is trying to imrpove on this sequel. The music in the trailer is good, (I love the music in Luigi's Mansion, it was probably my favorite part of the game), and they fixed the Luigi model so he's not constantly making a constapated face. From the trailer alone its hard to tell exactly what kind of changes Nintendo is making to improve upon the original, if any, but it does peak my interest.

#7
Street Fighter X Tekken


As a self proclaimed god of Tekken, its my duty to tell all those street fighter fans exactly whats the best fighting game series around. Well, not exactly. Truthfully besides Tekken, Blazblue, Dissidia and Brawl I have never been that into fighting games. I do happen to love crossover fighting games, having grown up on Marvel Vs. Capcom one and two. I also do not meet many Tekken fans, despite my godhood, os I'm often stuck playing street fighter within my group of friends. Street Fighter X Tekken seems to be the solution to my problems. So while I'm waiting for my fabled King vs. Ryu match, I'll be hyping up this game.

#6
Mass Effect 3


Okay, technically I haven't finished Mass Effect 2 yet. Still, its freaking Mass Effect. Bioware's Epic Space trilogy coming to an end may be saddening for some folks, but I'm personally exciting. My favorite part in a trilogy is always the third installment, watching all the plot threads from earlier coming together to form an epic ending is always the greatest part. Not only that, but the aliens are invading earth this time. Hopefully that means no more planet exploration or mining bullshit. From the gameplay demoes I've heard, there is also going to be a few combat changes to make the experience feel more strategic, empowering and all that jazz. Including a new weapon, (The swiss army knife holo-thing that you carry on your arm), and some AI tweaking. Now if you'll excuse me, I have a turian to romance.


#5 Bioshock Infinite


Have you played Bioshock? Cause I haven't. Two things I've never cared much for, Ayn Randian Philosophy and First Person shooters. The gameplay intrigued me, but I figured it wasn't worth my money. Bioshock Infinite however, seems to be proving me wrong. You know what I love, floating cities, mysterious magical girls, and commentaries on the American Nationalistic blady blady bla, and Bioshock infinite provides. The outlook of the city is pretty creative and steampunky, and the two main characters seem likable from what I've seen. So yeah, finally giving the Bioshock series a chance.


#4
Assasin's Creed Revelations


Let me start by saying this, the trailer to this game is perfect. The music fits the actions perfectly, it does a good job of foreshadowing the epic tale that Revelations is going to be, and it shows the face of sexy bearded Ezio. If somebody were to ask me how to make a good teaser for a video game, I would point to this. My only problem with Assasin's Creed revelations is a slight doubt at the back of my mind that whatever answers I receive to the many questions that have been building up over the course of the series will eventually disappoint me. Which is pretty likely now that I think about it. On the other hand, you don't really play Assasin's Creed for the story. (The Story helps, but its gameplay and characterization that are doing all the work). Though I wonder how long we'll get to play with Italian Sex God Ezio, and Badass Altair before we're forced back into snooze fest Desmond's Shoes.


#3 Super Mario 3DS and Paper Mario 3DS

I couldn't decide one over the other. One has the tanuki suit, and the other is freaking Paper Mario. In case you have not noticed at this point, I have been a hardcore nintendo fan since I first picked up a controller. These games just serve to remind me the things I love about nintendo. I'm going to keep this post short to avoid gushing, but both of these games had really impressive trailers for E3. Also, Tanuki Suit. YES.


#2 Skyrim



My opinion of the Edler Scrolls series in two sentences or less. Loved morrowind, Oblivion got a bit too reprettitive for me, and fallout bugged out far too much. Well that's not technically Elder Scrolls, but they built it on the Oblivion engine. Now what about Skyrim has me so intrigued. EVERYTHING. First they got Patrick Stewart to do a voice over in the trailer. Second, you get to slay dragons. Third, vikings. Fourth, they aren't using the oblivion engine. Fifth, Guards aren't omniscient. It seems Bethesda really went the extra mile in learning from their past mistakes, and reigning in the things they do right (mainly open worlded games and customization), and using it to craft an all around better experience. I mean, I already have my character planned out for this game and everything. He's going to be an elf, but really spanish looking. He'll have the name montoya, and use a cutlass. I'm also putting everything into stealth so I can steal sh-- maybe I shouldn't be talking about this now. The guards are always watching.


#1 SKyward Sword


Skyward Sword, just, this game looks so awesome. Finally, the wii gets a game tailor made for its hardware. Considering this is also the longest development time ever for a Legend of Zelda game, I have nothing but high hopes for this prequel of a prequel.



So yeah, that was my Top Ten. If you have your own, post it in the comments section.

I'm still a bit optimistic on Devil May Cry five. Sure it's not as crazy looking as the previous games in the series, but the new trailer almost intrigues me. There's an interesting gameplay mechanic to be had in a beat up old town which, for some reason or another, looks like demon filled wonderland. Ninja Theory has also proven themselves capable of making a good combat oriented action game that Devil May Cry requires. There is a bit of hope that the gameplay will be solid, and the story while still strange looking seems to be attempting something bold and new. But still, dear sparta somebody needs to fix that boy's hair. I admit, it may be a stylistic choice or have some symbolism I am just not getting, but right now Dante looks like a crack hoe.

Source from Animnenewsnetwork:



Aniplex of America has anounced that Durarara!! will be running on Cartoonnetwork's late night television block 'Adult Swim', with new episodes being broadcasted every saturday starting in June. As a fan of Durarara!! from day one, I was excited the moment that this was anounced, about three minutes ago to be exact. While I have been following the Durarara!! dub, I always find myself short on cash when Aniplex releases the next volume of DVDs. Durarara!! being my favorite anime of 2010, hands down, being released on Adult Swim is just badass. After falling out of love with Adult Swim's new anime liscenses (I am not that into Brotherhood, and Kekkaishi always struck me as a bit silly), I abandoned watching the saturday anime block in favor of sleeping for the past couple months. Durarara!! is exactly the kind of motivation to get me back watching, I mean it has Crispin Freeman as Shizuo and Johnny Yong Bosch as Izaya. There is not a single thing not to love about this dub. Looking forward to watching it with you guys as well.