Utawarerumono: D+
I first heard of this series when I was shown the DVD special... it must have been 4 years ago. It was amusing and kind of silly, but given that the title (which translates to "The One Being Sung") is a rather complex mishmash of japanese syllables, it didn't stick in my head and I lost it until a friend reminded me of the name a few weeks ago. So I decided I'd watch it.
And I really really wanted to like it. The characters held my attention and the fantasy world felt fantastic and mysterious. The protagonist clearly had some powerful magical dark secret (and amnesia, which worked out well, actually) and I was looking forward to learning more about it.
One of my first complaints were the pointlessly evil villains. These guys were moustache-twirling, dog-kicking, incredibly-skilled-but-good-hearted-subordinate-who-refused-to-massacre-a-village-full-of-innocent-people-firing idiot villains. And they don't stop showing up, either. Maybe I've just been spoiled by other anime that have provided justifications for why people are bastards, but that was my first disappointment. But whatever, right? We beat up some bad guys and save the world. It's cool.
More characters keep getting rolled as the series progresses on, especially female characters. This isn't really surprising, originally, Utawarerumono was a turn-based strategy hentai game, but very few elements of the original fan service or naughty bits are left over (in TVTropes terms, the underwear has been very well bleached). I think we don't even see cleavage until episode 3? Anyway, that combined with the fact that the girls' reasons for being attracted to the protagonist are either well-justified or just left out led me to enjoy the first half of the series.
Now, I'm going to spoil the ending, because it's the part of the series that ruins it.
Then, around episode 18 or so, things just start going downhill, and they start going downhill fast. A character who was made sympathetic begins making outstandingly bad decisions. We suddenly have invincible mecha in our fantasy setting (which isn't that bad, it's anime, right?). And then the invincible mecha aren't invincible any more, and our protagonist can turn into a kaiju. That's his dark secret. He turns into godzilla. And then evil godzilla shows up and they fight. And the protagonist has to be sealed beneath the earth for the safety of the world. The end.
Even that could have been made a credible story except for the fact that so many of the characters wind up not mattering at all to the ongoing story, they were only put in there because they were in the original game and taking them out would have displeased their fans.
It reminded me more than anything of the Fate Stay Night anime: they clearly have way more story and characterization and plot than they can ever fit into 26 episodes, so they tried to make a cohesive and expansive story out of everything, but they wind up not giving enough focus to the things that would have made that story make sense because they're trying to give screen time to everything else in it. Which is really too bad, because there are some nice ideas and some genuinely lovable characters in this series, and it's really disappointing that they series they're in sucks so bad.
I should mention in regard to Fate Stay Night's anime: I also played/read the Visual Novel, and it was mind-blowingly good, a truly brilliant example of what can be done with a voiced and partially animated choose-your-own-adventure story that takes full advantage of its multiple endings and branching plot trees to deepen characterization and plot. So I think it's very likely that the Utawarerumono GAME is actually really good, worth making into an anime, certainly.
But unless you have a disturbing fetish for animal ears, tails and disappointment, I recommend against watching the series.
Monday, September 3, 2012
Friday, August 31, 2012
Medaka Box
Medaka Box: B
Written by Nisio Isin of Bakemonogatari and Katanagatari and animated by Gainax, there's pretty much no way I could give it a BAD rating, is there?
Medaka Box is about an invincible genius superwoman who happens to be 16, hot, and impossibly optimistic and nice. She becomes student council president in her first year of high school with 98% of the vote. Actually, it's about her childhood friend who looks out for her and helps her get through her life, because despite being an invincible genius superwoman, she's still also a 16 year old girl with emotions who overlooks things and fails to understand how people work sometimes.
Nisio Isin likes writing with pre-set relationships and history and letting you get to know the characters as well as they know each other. Medaka Box also avoids any sort of traditional harem-ery and much in the way of ship tease. The series is very episodic, with several episodes containing two short stories within them, but, true to Nisio Isin's writing, every character who we meet has a personality, goals and position in the setting. Episodes also tend to be dialogue-heavy (though not as much as Bakemonogatari or Katanagatari), though there is a fair amount of action.
Medaka Box basically asks "What if Superman were a 16 year old girl and the student council president?" and runs with it, more or less honestly. If that sounds like fun, check out Medaka Box.
Written by Nisio Isin of Bakemonogatari and Katanagatari and animated by Gainax, there's pretty much no way I could give it a BAD rating, is there?
Medaka Box is about an invincible genius superwoman who happens to be 16, hot, and impossibly optimistic and nice. She becomes student council president in her first year of high school with 98% of the vote. Actually, it's about her childhood friend who looks out for her and helps her get through her life, because despite being an invincible genius superwoman, she's still also a 16 year old girl with emotions who overlooks things and fails to understand how people work sometimes.
Nisio Isin likes writing with pre-set relationships and history and letting you get to know the characters as well as they know each other. Medaka Box also avoids any sort of traditional harem-ery and much in the way of ship tease. The series is very episodic, with several episodes containing two short stories within them, but, true to Nisio Isin's writing, every character who we meet has a personality, goals and position in the setting. Episodes also tend to be dialogue-heavy (though not as much as Bakemonogatari or Katanagatari), though there is a fair amount of action.
Medaka Box basically asks "What if Superman were a 16 year old girl and the student council president?" and runs with it, more or less honestly. If that sounds like fun, check out Medaka Box.
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
Dog Days', first half
Been a while since I did a part-way review, hasn't it?
So, Dog Days season two (written Dog Days') continues in the first season's tradition of utter adorability and fan service, and somehow turns both up a little bit.
For the people who are two lazy to read my Dog Days review, the series takes place in an alternate world populated by dog-, cat-, bunny- and, newly appearing in season two, squirrel-people, who summon humans from the real world to be 'heroes' in their wars. However, the wars in question are more like friendly mass athletic competitions than anything like involving death or really serious injury, instead, you're beaten when your armor (or clothing) is blasted off (thus providing one of the primary forms of fan service).
This time, Shinku (which is being spelled Cinque by the sub group I'm watching, which is as good as anything) has brought two of his friends from the real world to serve as Heroes for two other countries. Like many second seasons I'm seeing lately, they seem to have the advantage of getting straight to the point and right to the adorability and fan service.
There's just this sense of childish glee and FUN that the show maintains that makes it a joy to watch, if you can watch this show and not grin at it then some part of your soul has died. Either that or you're too distracted by the jiggling (Yukikaze is made of jello with springs in it, I swear) or the fan service.
So, Dog Days season two (written Dog Days') continues in the first season's tradition of utter adorability and fan service, and somehow turns both up a little bit.
For the people who are two lazy to read my Dog Days review, the series takes place in an alternate world populated by dog-, cat-, bunny- and, newly appearing in season two, squirrel-people, who summon humans from the real world to be 'heroes' in their wars. However, the wars in question are more like friendly mass athletic competitions than anything like involving death or really serious injury, instead, you're beaten when your armor (or clothing) is blasted off (thus providing one of the primary forms of fan service).
This time, Shinku (which is being spelled Cinque by the sub group I'm watching, which is as good as anything) has brought two of his friends from the real world to serve as Heroes for two other countries. Like many second seasons I'm seeing lately, they seem to have the advantage of getting straight to the point and right to the adorability and fan service.
There's just this sense of childish glee and FUN that the show maintains that makes it a joy to watch, if you can watch this show and not grin at it then some part of your soul has died. Either that or you're too distracted by the jiggling (Yukikaze is made of jello with springs in it, I swear) or the fan service.
Gintama
Gintama: B
Jeez, it took me more than a year to finish that 252-episode-and-a-movie monster of a series. But you know what? I enjoyed it. All 86 hours of it. That, alone, is a pretty impressive thing. Let me try to explain what it is about this series that makes it good despite its length.
Gintama, unlike most other long-running shows, occurs in short arcs, 1-5 episodes long, with the very longest being about 8 episodes. The vast majority of them fall between silly and absurd, with the longer arcs being much more likely to resemble the standard shonen fare of fights for honor, swordsmanship, badassery and saving the world, but usually with humorous interludes (such as a long-winded duel of out-witting each other about in a public restroom with no toilet paper), and, most importantly, endings. The short-arc format is one of the things that keeps Gintama fresh, especially combined with the show's intent of changing genre every arc (much like Excel Saga, a series which it definitely took several tips from).
Unlike most long-running shows, where the filler stabs you in the eye with its low quality and out-of-placeness, Gintama has no filler because it's all filler, but the filler is usually just as good as the actual show, or only a little bit worse. Gintama is also extremely off-color, making fun of the anime industry, other shonen shows, and generally breaking rules about what it should and shouldn't show. Kagura (the girl with the red hair and red chinese-style shirt in the picture above) is renowned for being the first heroine in a Shonen Jump series to vomit on-screen for instance, and she's hardly the only character to do supremely inappropriate things.
Gintama is a silly show with a lot of meta-humor, childish humor, toilet humor and absurdity punctuated with drama, heroism and good advice. If you can enjoy these things, you'll still probably dislike about one in five episodes of Gintama, but fortunately, there's so many episodes and they're so episodic that skipping a couple won't ruin anything for you.
Jeez, it took me more than a year to finish that 252-episode-and-a-movie monster of a series. But you know what? I enjoyed it. All 86 hours of it. That, alone, is a pretty impressive thing. Let me try to explain what it is about this series that makes it good despite its length.
Gintama, unlike most other long-running shows, occurs in short arcs, 1-5 episodes long, with the very longest being about 8 episodes. The vast majority of them fall between silly and absurd, with the longer arcs being much more likely to resemble the standard shonen fare of fights for honor, swordsmanship, badassery and saving the world, but usually with humorous interludes (such as a long-winded duel of out-witting each other about in a public restroom with no toilet paper), and, most importantly, endings. The short-arc format is one of the things that keeps Gintama fresh, especially combined with the show's intent of changing genre every arc (much like Excel Saga, a series which it definitely took several tips from).
Unlike most long-running shows, where the filler stabs you in the eye with its low quality and out-of-placeness, Gintama has no filler because it's all filler, but the filler is usually just as good as the actual show, or only a little bit worse. Gintama is also extremely off-color, making fun of the anime industry, other shonen shows, and generally breaking rules about what it should and shouldn't show. Kagura (the girl with the red hair and red chinese-style shirt in the picture above) is renowned for being the first heroine in a Shonen Jump series to vomit on-screen for instance, and she's hardly the only character to do supremely inappropriate things.
Gintama is a silly show with a lot of meta-humor, childish humor, toilet humor and absurdity punctuated with drama, heroism and good advice. If you can enjoy these things, you'll still probably dislike about one in five episodes of Gintama, but fortunately, there's so many episodes and they're so episodic that skipping a couple won't ruin anything for you.
Tuesday, August 7, 2012
Kore wa Zombie Desu Ka of the Dead
Kore wa Zombie Desu Ka Of the Dead: C
It's kind of a relief when a series is painful enough that I can't give it anything other than a C, but that I can praise for being exactly what it is and absolutely nothing more. More so than its first season, KoreZombie Of The Dead (as the Second Season is titled) is a shameless parade of fan service, schadenfreude, embarrassing situations and dirty jokes. Maybe it's because I came into the second season with that expectation that I find myself appreciating it more than the first season.
In many ways it's more of the same that the first season brought, but, (to make a comparison), the first season is rock crack, season two is premium purified cocaine. Neither of them is good for you, and they both leave you with self-loathing but the second season is at least classy.
If the above image offends you in any way, don't watch this series. But if it still makes you giggle after reading all of this, you'd actually probably like KoreZombie of the Dead. You sick bastard.
There really is no other picture that gets this series across.
It's kind of a relief when a series is painful enough that I can't give it anything other than a C, but that I can praise for being exactly what it is and absolutely nothing more. More so than its first season, KoreZombie Of The Dead (as the Second Season is titled) is a shameless parade of fan service, schadenfreude, embarrassing situations and dirty jokes. Maybe it's because I came into the second season with that expectation that I find myself appreciating it more than the first season.
In many ways it's more of the same that the first season brought, but, (to make a comparison), the first season is rock crack, season two is premium purified cocaine. Neither of them is good for you, and they both leave you with self-loathing but the second season is at least classy.
If the above image offends you in any way, don't watch this series. But if it still makes you giggle after reading all of this, you'd actually probably like KoreZombie of the Dead. You sick bastard.
Sunday, July 29, 2012
Haiyore! Nyaruko-san
Haiyore! Nyaruko-san: C
So my first description of this series to my friends is as "The least dignified possible series about the Cthulhu mythos possible" and I still hold to that description.
In short, Nyarlothotep takes a form as an attractive silver-haired girl with an extreme ahoge (idiot hair) who (depending on how you interpret the series) either falls in love with a human boy or decides to screw with said boy in an extraordinarily invasive and creepy way. But not creepy like Lovecraft creepy, creepy in that 'girl trying to get herself pregnant by you without your consent' sort of way. Nyarlothotep is interfered with by Cthugha and Hastur (or possibly Hastur's son, it's not well explained), which could either be a good thing or a bad thing.
It's pretty funny, but it's not really good. The series has a lot of references, to the Call of Cthulhu tabletop game, the Lovecraft mythos and anime of all flavors. It's a High School Fantasy with all that implies, it just also has a lot of references to the Lovecraft Mythos and some moments of genuinely hilarious comedy. Being a High School Fantasy isn't actually a bad thing, but it does establish a quality ceiling. There's only so good one can be, and Haiyore! (which means, about "Creeping!") Nyaruko-san starts strong and trails off, like so many of its type do.
Give it a watch if you want to see a handful of awesome bits of animated Cthulhu mythos and get some laughs out of clever references, wordplay and Lovecraft-based humor, but don't go expecting anything brilliant or moving out of it.
So my first description of this series to my friends is as "The least dignified possible series about the Cthulhu mythos possible" and I still hold to that description.
In short, Nyarlothotep takes a form as an attractive silver-haired girl with an extreme ahoge (idiot hair) who (depending on how you interpret the series) either falls in love with a human boy or decides to screw with said boy in an extraordinarily invasive and creepy way. But not creepy like Lovecraft creepy, creepy in that 'girl trying to get herself pregnant by you without your consent' sort of way. Nyarlothotep is interfered with by Cthugha and Hastur (or possibly Hastur's son, it's not well explained), which could either be a good thing or a bad thing.
It's pretty funny, but it's not really good. The series has a lot of references, to the Call of Cthulhu tabletop game, the Lovecraft mythos and anime of all flavors. It's a High School Fantasy with all that implies, it just also has a lot of references to the Lovecraft Mythos and some moments of genuinely hilarious comedy. Being a High School Fantasy isn't actually a bad thing, but it does establish a quality ceiling. There's only so good one can be, and Haiyore! (which means, about "Creeping!") Nyaruko-san starts strong and trails off, like so many of its type do.
Give it a watch if you want to see a handful of awesome bits of animated Cthulhu mythos and get some laughs out of clever references, wordplay and Lovecraft-based humor, but don't go expecting anything brilliant or moving out of it.
Saturday, July 28, 2012
Saki
Saki (Season 1): C
So I think I saw "Saki" as a name that popped up on like every one of my favorite seiyuu's pages over the course of surfing to see what else they were in, but it wasn't til it became a popular tag on an image board that I frequent that I went "huh I suppose this is popular, I should watch it."
What I didn't realize is that the series is about Mahjong in a big way, and that following the series is reaaaally hard if you don't know anything about Mahjong. So I watched the first nine episodes, stopped, got Diablo 3, played that for three weeks, learned about Mahjong, and then watched Saki. There may have been a few unnecessary steps in there.
Saki is about the mahjong club at a high school and its attempts to get to the Mahjong nationals. The series is up front with the fact that it's taking place in a different time/parallel universe where Mahjong is more popular than it is here. The characters are alive and have personalities and hopes and dreams and getting to know them is entertaining.
What I can't shake is the sense that Saki targeted at older gentlemen who know their Mahjong and like watching a parade of girls blushing at each other and very pointedly not making out even though perhaps they should be for the sake of their own health and happiness.
Saki has some strong Yuri elements, is really what I'm saying. They're not bad, but they're not explored in any way which would make them fascinating to the viewer. The series' fan service quotient is fairly low, at least in the traditional sense of 'panties, huge breasts and lots of skin,' but fairly high in the moe category (they even hit one of my personal moes, heterochromia). Aside from that sense and the fact that every so often Mahjong is such SERIOUS BUSINESS that I burst out laughing, Saki is actually pretty good entertainment.
If you're interested in what amounts to a sports anime about Mahjong (which will help you learn about it, if you get yourself a bit of a basis) and either enjoy or will tolerate the lesbian schoolgirl aspects and moe aspects, I recommend Saki. If any of that sounds like you'd be either bored, confused or creeped out, this is not for you.
So I think I saw "Saki" as a name that popped up on like every one of my favorite seiyuu's pages over the course of surfing to see what else they were in, but it wasn't til it became a popular tag on an image board that I frequent that I went "huh I suppose this is popular, I should watch it."
What I didn't realize is that the series is about Mahjong in a big way, and that following the series is reaaaally hard if you don't know anything about Mahjong. So I watched the first nine episodes, stopped, got Diablo 3, played that for three weeks, learned about Mahjong, and then watched Saki. There may have been a few unnecessary steps in there.
Saki is about the mahjong club at a high school and its attempts to get to the Mahjong nationals. The series is up front with the fact that it's taking place in a different time/parallel universe where Mahjong is more popular than it is here. The characters are alive and have personalities and hopes and dreams and getting to know them is entertaining.
What I can't shake is the sense that Saki targeted at older gentlemen who know their Mahjong and like watching a parade of girls blushing at each other and very pointedly not making out even though perhaps they should be for the sake of their own health and happiness.
Saki has some strong Yuri elements, is really what I'm saying. They're not bad, but they're not explored in any way which would make them fascinating to the viewer. The series' fan service quotient is fairly low, at least in the traditional sense of 'panties, huge breasts and lots of skin,' but fairly high in the moe category (they even hit one of my personal moes, heterochromia). Aside from that sense and the fact that every so often Mahjong is such SERIOUS BUSINESS that I burst out laughing, Saki is actually pretty good entertainment.
If you're interested in what amounts to a sports anime about Mahjong (which will help you learn about it, if you get yourself a bit of a basis) and either enjoy or will tolerate the lesbian schoolgirl aspects and moe aspects, I recommend Saki. If any of that sounds like you'd be either bored, confused or creeped out, this is not for you.
Sunday, June 24, 2012
Bakemonogatari and Nisemonogatari
Bakemonogatari: AA++
Nisemonogatari: A
So first let me say that Bakemonogatari is pretty much my favorite series of all time, right now. Nisemonogatari is the 'sequel' series, and aired earlier this year. There's going to be a prequel, a movie, called Kizumonogatari released later this year.
The titles are all portmanteaus of the world 'monogatari' which means 'story.' 'Bakemono' means ghost or monster, Nisemono means a fake or an imposter, and Kizumono means 'damaged goods'. If I had to anglicize them, "GhoStory" and "ImpoStory" come fairly easily, though I don't know what to do with Kizumonogatari.
Like most series which I recommend highly, my primary way of recommending Bakemonogatari is to just say "Watch it."
However, Bakemonogatari isn't an S rank, for very specific reasons: it's extraordinarily dialogue-heavy, it's rather perverted, it revolves deeply around japanese mythology, language and symbolism, it's much darker than it looks on the surface and to really get everything out of it it requires a thorough analysis of actions vs words: most of the characters lie or are mistaken, and it is only occasionally pointed out directly that they were lying or wrong in retrospect, it is simply shown that they were wrong or inaccurate.
This makes it the kind of series that you have to let yourself get involved in to fully appreciate. However, the characters are flavorful, the art is absolutely stunning and the writing is clever, it's not difficult to get yourself wrapped up in it.
In short, if you're like me, you'll absolutely adore this series.
Nisemonogatari is overall weaker than the original series, I feel, but is still very good, as it expands inter-character relationships as well as providing substantial character development and further explaining certain characters' history and even more quiet, disturbing implications.
Nisemonogatari: A
So first let me say that Bakemonogatari is pretty much my favorite series of all time, right now. Nisemonogatari is the 'sequel' series, and aired earlier this year. There's going to be a prequel, a movie, called Kizumonogatari released later this year.
The titles are all portmanteaus of the world 'monogatari' which means 'story.' 'Bakemono' means ghost or monster, Nisemono means a fake or an imposter, and Kizumono means 'damaged goods'. If I had to anglicize them, "GhoStory" and "ImpoStory" come fairly easily, though I don't know what to do with Kizumonogatari.
Like most series which I recommend highly, my primary way of recommending Bakemonogatari is to just say "Watch it."
However, Bakemonogatari isn't an S rank, for very specific reasons: it's extraordinarily dialogue-heavy, it's rather perverted, it revolves deeply around japanese mythology, language and symbolism, it's much darker than it looks on the surface and to really get everything out of it it requires a thorough analysis of actions vs words: most of the characters lie or are mistaken, and it is only occasionally pointed out directly that they were lying or wrong in retrospect, it is simply shown that they were wrong or inaccurate.
This makes it the kind of series that you have to let yourself get involved in to fully appreciate. However, the characters are flavorful, the art is absolutely stunning and the writing is clever, it's not difficult to get yourself wrapped up in it.
In short, if you're like me, you'll absolutely adore this series.
Nisemonogatari is overall weaker than the original series, I feel, but is still very good, as it expands inter-character relationships as well as providing substantial character development and further explaining certain characters' history and even more quiet, disturbing implications.
Monday, May 21, 2012
Gokusen
Gokusen: B
Another bit of josei anime, Gokusen is a short series about a yakuza princess who is inheriting her grandfather's position but also has aspirations of becoming a high school teacher. The title comes from a portmanteau of "Gokudou" and "Sensei," and pretty well sums up that basic concept in one go.
The story is mostly humorous, with just enough of a serious story to drive the plot. Being based on an ongoing manga, the story loses points in my book for not reaching any sort of completion. The other primary criticism I have of it is that I much more enjoy the yakuza side of the story than I do the high school side of the story, and it is the latter that the story spends more of its time on.
These criticisms are small next to the execution and characterization present in the series, as well as its fun and positive outlook. It seems like a strange thing to praise a show for less words than you criticize it for, but the truth is that the good qualities of it are in its purity and relative simplicity. It's just good.
If you're looking for a show that's genuinely about people and story and emotion and growth without anything like fan service or supernatural events getting in the way, you'll really enjoy Gokusen. If you're looking for something a bit less realistic, or you like your girls drawn the way we picture 'anime girls,' these days, you'll be disappointed.
Another bit of josei anime, Gokusen is a short series about a yakuza princess who is inheriting her grandfather's position but also has aspirations of becoming a high school teacher. The title comes from a portmanteau of "Gokudou" and "Sensei," and pretty well sums up that basic concept in one go.
The story is mostly humorous, with just enough of a serious story to drive the plot. Being based on an ongoing manga, the story loses points in my book for not reaching any sort of completion. The other primary criticism I have of it is that I much more enjoy the yakuza side of the story than I do the high school side of the story, and it is the latter that the story spends more of its time on.
These criticisms are small next to the execution and characterization present in the series, as well as its fun and positive outlook. It seems like a strange thing to praise a show for less words than you criticize it for, but the truth is that the good qualities of it are in its purity and relative simplicity. It's just good.
If you're looking for a show that's genuinely about people and story and emotion and growth without anything like fan service or supernatural events getting in the way, you'll really enjoy Gokusen. If you're looking for something a bit less realistic, or you like your girls drawn the way we picture 'anime girls,' these days, you'll be disappointed.
Friday, May 11, 2012
Toaru Majutsu no Index
Toaru Majutsu no Index (Both Seasons): C+
I give out a lot of C+s, because I feel a lot of shows are slightly better than 'just okay.'
A Certain Magical Index (to use its English title) is a mishmash of a whole lot of Anime tropes put into a blender and served with a hefty spritz of fan service (which I mostly don't mind, aside from the cloth-physics defying properties that breasts of a certain size and above seem to display).
The story takes place in Academy City, a center of research into psychic ability (which in this setting is commonplace and understood enough to justify an entire city devoted to its research). "Ability-users" to awkwardly translate the japanese word, are classified from the powerless or extremely weak "Level 0s" to the obscenely potent Level 5s. Our hero is a very unfortunate man named Kamijou Touma, a Level 0, who does have a power, a power that anyone with an ounce of sense would call a high level five power (don't worry, this is hardly most nonsensical thing that happens in this series, it's just the most consistently repeated): Touma's right hand has the ability to nullify and cancel any other supernatural ability it comes into contact with completely.
Touma meets the eponymous Index, a young Anglican nun when she is hanging off his balcony being 'pursued by magicians,' of which Touma is initially skeptical, but he accepts quickly when he meets a gentleman who summons a fire elemental outside his home. Touma, being the typical protagonist, isn't particularly smart but he's always willing to risk his neck to save someone, usually one or more young women, which he will do by punching the problem with his super anti-magic/psi/divinity/whatever right hand.
The cast very quickly gets absolutely massive, but the characters are alive and interesting, if predictable. The stories begin differently and take place in different locales with different focuses, but tend to follow a certain pattern, established early on. The second season escalates to the point where Academy City is badly damaged, the entire Roman Catholic Church (who have a lot of mages, Magic and Religion are mostly inextricable in this series) has declared war on Science and the shadowy figures controlling the Scientific Conspiracy are beginning to come out.
I can say a lot of negative things about it (and I already have) but I should also note that I wouldn't have given it a C+ if it weren't fun. The character designs and implementations are good, the magical system retains a solid feeling of mysticism and strangeness despite being commonplace, and the plot holds together, despite several places where you simply need to take the story's word for it, and accept that Scientists in this setting really want to be performing unethical experiments. This is the kind of series that, if you are able to go "Okay, watching two girls who can both teleport fighting is totally awesome," you will appreciate, but if you start going, "Wait, why do Science and Magic need some sort of 'balance' in order to make the world better? And if they need that, why does everyone seem so intent on destroying it?" the flaws in the series show up fairly readily.
There's a spinoff series, Toaru Kagaku no Railgun (A Certain Scientific Railgun) which follows one of the main protagonists and is mostly more of the same, though is less world-wrecking, a bit more personal and slightly more slice-of-life rather than Index' consistent if progressively apocalyptic plot.
Overall, if you can throw the horns and enjoy beating the tar out of over-the-top bad guys with your fists and pretty girls randomly being in various states of distress and undress, you'll love Index. If you need a lot of internal consistency, deep emotions or any sense of restraint in your anime, Index isn't the right show for you.
I give out a lot of C+s, because I feel a lot of shows are slightly better than 'just okay.'
A Certain Magical Index (to use its English title) is a mishmash of a whole lot of Anime tropes put into a blender and served with a hefty spritz of fan service (which I mostly don't mind, aside from the cloth-physics defying properties that breasts of a certain size and above seem to display).
The story takes place in Academy City, a center of research into psychic ability (which in this setting is commonplace and understood enough to justify an entire city devoted to its research). "Ability-users" to awkwardly translate the japanese word, are classified from the powerless or extremely weak "Level 0s" to the obscenely potent Level 5s. Our hero is a very unfortunate man named Kamijou Touma, a Level 0, who does have a power, a power that anyone with an ounce of sense would call a high level five power (don't worry, this is hardly most nonsensical thing that happens in this series, it's just the most consistently repeated): Touma's right hand has the ability to nullify and cancel any other supernatural ability it comes into contact with completely.
Touma meets the eponymous Index, a young Anglican nun when she is hanging off his balcony being 'pursued by magicians,' of which Touma is initially skeptical, but he accepts quickly when he meets a gentleman who summons a fire elemental outside his home. Touma, being the typical protagonist, isn't particularly smart but he's always willing to risk his neck to save someone, usually one or more young women, which he will do by punching the problem with his super anti-magic/psi/divinity/whatever right hand.
The cast very quickly gets absolutely massive, but the characters are alive and interesting, if predictable. The stories begin differently and take place in different locales with different focuses, but tend to follow a certain pattern, established early on. The second season escalates to the point where Academy City is badly damaged, the entire Roman Catholic Church (who have a lot of mages, Magic and Religion are mostly inextricable in this series) has declared war on Science and the shadowy figures controlling the Scientific Conspiracy are beginning to come out.
I can say a lot of negative things about it (and I already have) but I should also note that I wouldn't have given it a C+ if it weren't fun. The character designs and implementations are good, the magical system retains a solid feeling of mysticism and strangeness despite being commonplace, and the plot holds together, despite several places where you simply need to take the story's word for it, and accept that Scientists in this setting really want to be performing unethical experiments. This is the kind of series that, if you are able to go "Okay, watching two girls who can both teleport fighting is totally awesome," you will appreciate, but if you start going, "Wait, why do Science and Magic need some sort of 'balance' in order to make the world better? And if they need that, why does everyone seem so intent on destroying it?" the flaws in the series show up fairly readily.
There's a spinoff series, Toaru Kagaku no Railgun (A Certain Scientific Railgun) which follows one of the main protagonists and is mostly more of the same, though is less world-wrecking, a bit more personal and slightly more slice-of-life rather than Index' consistent if progressively apocalyptic plot.
Overall, if you can throw the horns and enjoy beating the tar out of over-the-top bad guys with your fists and pretty girls randomly being in various states of distress and undress, you'll love Index. If you need a lot of internal consistency, deep emotions or any sense of restraint in your anime, Index isn't the right show for you.
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