Man, what is it with anime girls and libraries?

I had two reasons for watching Amagami SS: Its four-episode arc gimmick and sex hair. After watching the first episode, I now have a third reason: Buck Buck. I'm hoping Buck Buck makes an appearance in every episode. I had no idea Japan even knew about this game.

"No, I wasn't just in the library. Why do you ask?"

Okay, let me back up a bit. Amagami SS is based on a Playstation 2 galge with, I'm told, no sexual content. I guess Male Protagonist just goes around trophy-befriending girls in his school—kinda like a Hiroyuki emulator (original To Heart anime version only).

That is one awesome house.

Surprising no one, I'm sure, the first episode of Amagami SS plays out by the numbers. The clingy little sister wakes up Potato-kun, err, Junichi (criminy, another Junichi? We just got rid of the last one!) so he isn't late for school.

I hope you're hiding Rukia in there with you, Potato-kun. Or even Rizel.

On the way, he meets up with Perverted Friend and they speak in awed, hushed tones about School Idol and her overwhelming beauty.

Hey, a hard copy of cheesecake pictures. Just like in the movies.

Then they meet Dependable Girl and Childhood Friend. He somehow avoids Athletic Girl, but Junichi makes time for Timid Girl which is lucky for him because it gives him the inside track with School Idol, err, Morishima, who is basically Sayuri from Tokimeki Memorial ~Only Love~ except with a sense of humor and without all the legends.

She's laughing because you're a dojikko, you putz.

So by this point I've basically lost all interest in the show because Sex Hair has only had two minutes of screen time, but then suddenly Buck Buck comes out of nowhere. Why in Hell these numbnuts are playing Buck Buck at school, I have no idea, but Morishima is into it, so I guess it works out.

Morishima Haruka was the baddest Buck Buck breaker in the world.

Pity Junichi is kind of a tool. I give him some credit for manning up at least once during the first episode, but you gotta remember he spends most of his free time curled up in the fetal position in his planetarium womb that he crudely constructed with highlighters, construction paper, (and a black light, no doubt) moping over the time he got stood up in middle school two years ago. Dude needs to turn the page.

The fetal position? Really, Starbaby?

Eh, when you run the totals, it's not so bad, I guess. I like the (presumably) non-canonical bits of service in the individualized ED. It features what I can only guess to be a game of strip solitaire and a still from what would be a trapped-in-a-storage-shed love confession were it not for the open window. It's good enough to justify a four-episode test.

I don't know how you play, but I bet nobody loses.

Now if only the Clingy Little Sister would just hook with the Perverted Friend and spend every available moment in the library, effectively removing both annoying characters from the show almost entirely. Then we'd really have something. But I guess it wouldn't be very Playstation 2 of them.

The best part of B Gata H Kei episode five is the harmonica BGM.

B Gata H Kei has faltered a bit by departing from the dirty jokes and physical comedy that powered its early episodes. The recent introduction of Yamada's ojousama rival is an unwelcome development. I have to assume Kanejou is a staple of the original 4koma, but this is one example of where an anime should should not follow the source material too closely. This is not to say her appearance drags the show down per se, but there is just not a compelling reason to introduce a second rival in such a short series. (Although technically the B Gata H Kei anime already does not follow the original comic too explicitly. For example, there is is a lot less masturbation in the anime.)

Suddenly shoujo. And how.

I say "second rival" because Mayu already exists as the common-type rival. Or more accurately, from a traditional perspective, Yamada exists as Mayu's rival. A lot of B Gata H Kei's charm comes from it's twofold reversal of roles. First, the story is told from the female love interest's point of view instead of that of the presumptive harem comedy protagonist. Second, the sex bomb Yamada is the primary love interest rather than the good-natured, painfully earnest childhood friend moe blob.

There's probably something symbolic about this
picture, but damned if I know what it is.

Telling the story from Yamada's perspective would be an interesting change of pace even if she wasn't a sex-crazed ditz. I've seen this story from Male Protagonist's side far too many times. Reversing the point of view is refreshing enough on its own, but making Kosuda a decent guy completely sells it. Just by virtue of his not being a cretin like Junichi from Da Capo or a twit like the cookie cutter male leads in most harem comedies, Kosuda joins the ranks of Hand Maid May's Kazuya, the original To Heart anime's Hiroyuki (both stand-up decent fellows), and VanDread's Hibiki (a smart-ass punk) as a non-odious harem comedy male protagonist. I guess he kind of has to be if we are to appreciate Yamada's viewpoint in the slightest.

I'm actually quite impressed Kosuda uses the viewfinder
of his digital camera instead of its LCD screen.

I describe Mayu as Yamada's traditional rival because Mayu fills the Akari role of the childhood friend with the inside track. Expanding on what others have noted, I see Yamada filling a stereotypical role as the sex bomb that is too intimidating for the meek male protagonist to handle, driving him deeper into the too-perfect safe girl's comforting embrace.

Yamada deres Kosuda to his knees.

That Yamada and Kosuda stand a genuine chance of eating from the tree of knowledge (based on what I infer from the comic's more aggressive nature) fills me with amazement such a thing can still exist in this genre. As B Gata H Kei does for sex what Hatsukoi Limited does for romance, it's no wonder this is nearly my favorite show this season, outpaced only by an increasingly strong Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood as it nears its epic conclusion. Now if only B Gata H Kei would only just get on with it. You've got a guy in scoring position, Yamada. Don't try to draw a walk.

Does this count as a spoiler?

I'm not really a fan of B Gata H Kei's Girl Next Door. It's probably because she's also a Clumsy Girl and I despise dojikkos as a whole. Besides, they don't even call her a Girl Next Door in the show; they call her a Childhood Friend. I don't understand why Japan doesn't get this.

Holy crap. THIS CHAIR.

In other news, if B Gata H Kei keeps this up, Yamada is seriously going to challenge Aoba from Cross Game and Shimizu from Major season six as Girl of the Year, 2010. This is most unexpected. Takeshita is also going to place well as the clear voice of reason à la Nobu from Lovely Complex.

I liked the manga version of this scene better, though.

Cross Game and Kimi ni Todoke went down to the wire as to which show would claim the top spot, but Cross Game pulled ahead for the win at the very last episode because it had a great ending and Kimi ni Todoke didn't have an ending at all.

Ume > Sawako.

To be fair, the Kimi ni Todoke manga is still running, so there wasn't much else the anime could do without making Kazehaya a vengeful bounty hunter years in the future after a sudden timeskip. On the other hand, Cross Game took a good manga ending and adapted it so well it's better than its source.

Damn, Chiaki, give the kid a break.

I already said why I like Nodame Cantabile: Finale so much.

Here is a screenshot of Ed instead of Winry
again since it is technically his show.

Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood remains as solid as or better than the first Fullmetal Alchemist anime. I'm still perplexed why so many viewers who were excited by the first anime are apparently completely uninterested in the current show. I guess maybe they outgrew it. Brotherhood continues during the Spring 2010 season.

The Book of Bantorra needed more Noloty.

I liked The Book of Bantorra mostly because it was so different. Imaginative and perplexing at nearly every turn, The Book of Bantorra kept me interested because I never knew what to expect from any episode. That, and I liked how the most powerful and dangerous librarian's primary weapon consisted of hucking very small rocks. I was also amused she spent a good portion of her spare time embroidering little bunny rabbits. Hamyuts was pretty well-rounded for a sadist.

I promise not to make any head jokes.

Durarara!! is a good show that I would enjoy more if I cared about any of the characters. They aren't badly written characters by any means; I just don't find them interesting for some reason. I don't even care about Celty—probably because she gets flustered so easily. It's like finding out your hot date is infected with moe. Yeah, you can get a shot to clear it right up, but sometimes the burning sensation just isn't worth it. I guess I kinda like the girl who smiles in every single one of her scenes and the perpetually angry dude who throws vending machines at people. DRRR!! also continues Spring 2010.

Cure Berry needed more funnels.

Fresh Pretty Cure really took a dive after the Cure Passion arc. The ending was completely lackluster. When you compare it to the ending of the original Futari wa Pretty Cure series or the ending of its Max Heart sequel, it's blatantly obvious the Precure franchise is playing it safe and taking no chances anymore. The ending of the original Futari wa Pretty Cure was a complete downer that probably didn't traumatize many children but doubtlessly left many of them sad. Too bad, kids; life is real. The ending of Max Heart was a multi-episode fist fight between Zakenna dudes that didn't fight fair and the outnumbered Cure Black and Cure White. (Shiny Luminous was on the bench with too many fouls at this point.) Then they basically had to fight Lilith from The End of Evangelion. It was awesome. The Fresh Pretty Cure finale, on the other hand, faced off four Cures against a bad guy Kirk and Spock would have outwitted without leaving the bridge. And they received battle costume upgrades in the form of angel wings for some reason. Except for Cure Gundam Berry. Just had to be different, didn't you, Miki?

Okay, there was some misinformation in Chu-Bra! as well.

I didn't expect much from Chu-Bra!! at all. This was my PSP experiment show. Results from the experiment were inconclusive in this case, but I believe it would have made a difference with a show where the video and audio mattered more regarding one's enjoyment of the series. Instead of the fan service bonanza and a lot of pandering, Chu-Bra!! instead turned out to be the low-brow anime equivalent of a +5 Informative Slashdot post. It wasn't especially ambitious, but Chu-Bra!! surprised me by not being crass. Honest. Many of the underwear scenes were drawn extremely simplistically to presumably minimize the amount of fan service in the show. In fact, I think there were fewer gratuitious T&A scenes than there were underwear lessons in the style of the Gunbuster science lessons. I kid you not.

Hirano Aya is perfect as Katja.

Seikon no Qwaser is basically porn that's not intended to titillate. It's anime one-upmanship. Episode one: Junior high kid sucks high school tits to boost his shounen fighting powers. By episode 11 the show moves on to twincest lesbian S&M rapists. I'm dead serious. And it's planned for 24 episodes. I, for one, am looking forward to another cour with a great Hirano Aya character and the only Kawasumi Ayako game in town.

I guess Hinagiku was all right since she had a yakuza posse.

Hanamaru Kindergarten was the least Gainaxy Gainax show I've ever seen. I would have liked it better if it had Gainax kicks, or if the lead characters weren't so despicable. I swear, Tsuchida could have learned a lot about ambition and guts from Love Hina's Urashima Keitaro. Yamamoto was supposed to be a Belldandy-type perfect woman, but she's dumb as all Hell.

Vamp and Kayoko should get married.

Astro Fighter Sunred is about as good as it ever was, I suppose, but 40+ episodes of essentially the same jokes over and over gets a little tedious. I'll keep watching it if ANBU keeps subbing it, but Sunred really should have been a 13-episode series. I'd still rather watch a Kayoko + Vamp cooking show about bachelor chow.

Cure Kero-chan.

Heartcatch Precure appears to be the most popular Pretty Cure series thus far, at least as far as mainstream acceptance goes. I'm really unimpressed by it, however, probably because Cure Blossom is a dojikko and her worst-Cure-ever shtick is not endearing at all. Needs more Dark Precure and Cure I-Know-It's-You-Hisakawa-Aya Moonlight. A mid-season replacement for Fresh Pretty Cure, look for Heartcatch to run at least another 40 episodes.

I bet Dark Precure's original designation was Cure Sunshine.
[Update: Oops, there's already a character called Cure Sunshine.]

Final Tally: Cross Game > Kimi ni Todoke > Nodame Cantabile: Finale > Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood (50) > The Book of Bantorra > Durarara!! (12) > Fresh Pretty Cure > Chu-Bra!! [PSP] > Seikon no Qwaser (11) > Hanamaru Kindergarten > Sunred II (40) > Heartcatch Precure (8). Dropped Winter 2010: None.

Against my better judgment, I watched the first episode of Air. I wasn't at all interested in this show, since the promo looked terrible, but it is one of the most hyped shows this season. Apparently it is based on a very popular hentai game, which accounts for much of the excitement over the anime, and helps explain why something like half a dozen fansubbing groups are all putting out their own releases.

Air was not as bad as I was expecting. The pacing is very good, so the story moves well. The animation is also surprisingly good, although I find the art very unattractive. Also, the character I thought sounded like Aya Hisakawa on a bad day turned out to actually be Aya Hisakawa, so it's got that going for it.

Seriously, she has a fish's face.

However, I feel no need to continue watching it, as I had no real interest in the show itself except for its technical curiosities. I guess I'll keep an eye out for it in case I hear it becomes awesome later, much as Popotan turned out to be much better than its first episodes led me to believe.

One final note: I am not at all enamoured by Air's "GAO" catchphrase. It is too obviously an attempt to create a catchphrase. That's a level of pandering I can't stomach from a show that doesn't have enough charisma going for it. Now, Mahoromatic's obvious attempt to create a catchphrase—that's different.