Animeph

Review: During a family trip to the sea Nagasumi is saved from drowning by a mermaid. Back at their hotel his parents don’t believe his story; or that is until she knocks on the door and asks to marry Nagasumi. Her name is San and she is the daughter of a kind of mermaid mafia organisation’s leader. Usually when a human spots a mermaid, both are to be killed to keep the secret. Still San decided to save Nagasumi’s life and their marriage is the only way to save both their lives. However, San’s father and his friends from the mafia organisation do not want to see their cute little San taken away by a weakling like him, and thus secretly start several assassination attempts.

Seto no Hanayome is the hilarious love story of Nagasumi and San. The different characters and the funny misunderstandings they are put in make this show to one of the best comedy anime series this year.
Rating: 9/10

Review: Risa is very tall for a girl, while Otoni is very short for a boy. Both have very similar personalities and share many common interest. Still they always fight with each other and make fun of one another. Despite that they hang around each other all the time und understand each other well. Their friends tell them they should just date, but instead of this they make a bet on who will get a boyfriend/girlfriend first.

This anime and its characters are just hilarious. There are many well placed, sudden and unexpected twists and turns. Comedy and romance are well balanced and it all perfectly adds up.
Rating: 8/10

Review: All members of the house of Kannagi possess the ability to manipulate fire. Kazuma however was never really a talented fire-user. After he was defeted by his cousin Ayano, his father banished him from the family for being a disgrace. Now, 4 years after Kazuma left, he decides to return to his hometown. He has made a contract with the spirit of wind and became a powerful wind-user much stronger than most of the Kannagi family members. At the same time several members of the Kannagi family are killer by wind-magic and as rumours spread Kazuma seems to be the main suspect. Despite having no interest in the Kannagi family anymore it seems Ayano’s and Kazuma’s ways are bound to cross again.

Kaze no Stigma is an action filled anime with a solid story taken from a novel series. The animation quality and fights are well designed; yet the downside is this series abrupt end which leaves you hoping for more.
Rating: 8,5/10

Review: Izumi Konata is a hopeless otaku totally into anime and games. Still, without studying and always copying homework from her friends, she always gets good grades.
This anime is, same as Azumanga Daioh, based on a 4-panel-manga and portrays the daily high school life of Izumi and her friends. All of them have unique and funny characteristics and make up an interesting combo. The different scenes might seem random and unconnected at times as it is based on a 4-panel-manga, but it is very funny none the less, especially the Happy-TV special at the end of each episode and its funny moderator. Being made by Kyoto Animations it is already certain to become a cult hit, yet I feel sad that they decided to make a cheap moe anime instead of another dramatic fantasy anime with high quality animations.
Rating: 9/10

Review: During a huge storm Ikuto falls overboard and is swept away. When he regains consciousness he finds himself on an isolated forgotten island. When he meets the locals he learns that it is impossible to get off this island easily and that this island is only inhabited by females due to some tragic accident. Being the only male around soon the young ladies start to fight over young Ikuto so much that it’s already scary.

Nagasarete Airantou is obviously a harem show featuring rather young characters, but the settings of this story have a lot of logical inconsistencies. However, this show wasn’t ment to make sense anyway, so if you  just accept the settings how they are, you will see some nice harem comedy, while even though there are a lot of love candidates, you will know who is going to win in the end right from the start.
Rating: 7/10

Review: Claymore or silver-eyed witches; that’s how the villagers call those members of the organisation whose profession it is to find and slay Yoma. Those Claymore are all half Yoma half human, very powerful and female, fore only woman are able to survive merging with a Yoma. Yoma are powerful demons who can take human form to remain undetected. However, they can not fool the eyes of a Claymore since they themselves are half Yoma. When there is a suspicion of a Yoma hiding in town, villagers will hire a Claymore to get rid of it. Claire is one of those Claymore, but she is travelling with a young boy who acts as her cook, which is unusual since Claymore usually are feared by humans and live a lonely monotonous life. What this boy yet doesn’t know is that each time Claire fights, she isn’t only fighting with the Yoma in front of her, but also with the Yoma within her. It is the fate of all Claymore to one day lose to the Yoma within at which point they will request their closest fellow Claymore to kill them before they lose their human heart.

Claymore tells the story of the sad, lonely and terrible fate of Claire, a young woman who decided to become a Claymore, and a boy, who decided to accompany her. This promising theme is supported by an adequate atmosphere and animation quality.
Rating: 9/10

Review: Review: El Cazador de la Bruja is about Ellis, a young girl who is on the run. It is said, that she has killed the physicist Heinrich Schneider. Now, many bounty hunters are after her. So is Nadi, a young female bounty hunter. But then an old woman who was looking after Ellis asks Nadi to take care of Ellis, and so Nadi decides to travel with her to reveal her unknown past.

El Cazador reminded me of Noir, while this doesn’t necessarily have to be a bad thing, because Noir was actually a really good anime. However, it is too early to judge if El Cazador will live up to past similar anime shows like Noir and Madlax, but this author’s stories are known for getting more interesting as their mysteries reveal themselves.
Rating: 8/10

Review: Mugi is a cute and shy girl who just entered high school with her friend. She gets nervous very quick and when that happens, her voice won’t come out so that she’s unable to speak, which always gets her into a lot of trouble. Despite not using it very often she has in fact a very nice, loud and incredible voice. The folks of the drama research club have noticed it and soon approach her. Out of her nervousness she joins the club without thinking, but a girl from the club seems to understand her and says she will be happy she joined them. Will Mugi find happiness in action and will she be able to perform in front of an audience and bring out her voice?
This show’s strength lies within its enjoyable, diverse and well drawn characters. It also has a touch of comedy, romance and even some small hints of shouji-ai.
Rating: 6/10