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High School DxD New: The Complete Second Season (anime review)

Posted by :Patches On : November 20, 2014
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Category: Reviews

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High School DxD New: The Complete Second Seasonreview provided by Katie and Andrew

Title: High School DxD New: The Complete Second Season

Director: Tetsuya Yanagisawa

Studio: TNK

Author: Takao Yoshioka

U.S. Distributor: Funimation Entertainment

U.S. Release Date: November 11, 2014

Format and Length: DVD/Blu-Ray Combo / 12 Episodes / 321 Minutes

Genre: Action, Comedy, Demonic, Ecchi, Romance, Harem, Shounen

Industry Age Rating: TV MA

Overall Personal Rating: B-

Similar Series or Titles to Check Out: High School DxD or Rosario + Vampire

Synopsis:

Issei Hyoko and the rest of the Occult Research Club are back, only this season Issei has more power than ever before. The Excalibur swords and Michael the Archangel join Issei and the rest of the gang in battling against the deadliest of foes yet and only time will tell if the Occult Research Club will continue to thrive or if new leadership is needed to usher in a new magical era. Will Issei be able to survive these battles or will everything crash down around him? You will have to watch High School DxD New: The Complete Second Season and find out for yourself.

Commentary:

*Fair warning to those who are wanting to watch this series but are still on the fence about it…there is a large amount of fan service / ecchi scenes. However, High School DxD New: The Complete Second Season can actually pull off this amount of fan service and still have a decent plot line to be considered a good anime.* Also, why is it always an Occult Research Club?

High School DxD New: The Complete Second Season picks up soon after the end of the first season with hardly any change. This season focuses on the conflicts and interactions between the devils, angels, and fallen angels. I felt the plot was more interesting than the first season and the comedy undertones continue to reappear frequently. I did not notice the fan service as much as the first season because the story line kept my attention. This season was split up into two arcs, the Excalibur of the Moonlit Schoolyard and the Vampire of the Empty Classroom. I felt that the first arc, the Excalibur of the Moonlit Schoolyard, to be the conclusion to the first season and it was quite dark. The second arc, the Vampire of the Empty Classroom, really leaves the story line open to a third season and also includes the required beach episode that is needed in harem animes. I thought this arc went a little bit out there with all the mecha-like fighting that took place.

We finally see the character development that was missing in the first season and we also get to meet a few new characters. We learn how the characters were turned into devils and how their lives were prior to that. The new characters add to the story and created some interesting subplots. Plus they really added to the shenanigans between the girls and Issei. And yes, Issei is still obsessed with creating his harem, very much obsessed. Of course, it is slightly annoying for every female character to randomly fall in love with the main character for little to no reason but he is unable to act for whatever silly reason he comes up with.

The art work was average and they really focused on drawing the female characters. However, that is to be expected in this genre. They did a great job animating the fight scenes though. The voice actors brought the characters to life with their very real and refreshing emotions. The music was okay. By the end of the series I did find myself humming along with the opening and closing songs.

Extras:

High School DxD New: The Complete Second Season includes Yoko Hikasa’s Voice Acting School, clean opening and closing animations, promotional videos, Funimation Entertainment trailers, commercials, New Material from Ichiei Ishibumi! Fantasy Full-blast Gentleman’s Disc Club Promos and Not Seen on TV! Deleted Scenes as special features. This release is available with both English and Japanese with English Subtitles as language options.

Overall Grade: B-

High School DxD New: The Complete Second Season is a good anime for the genre it is. Just take the above warning to heart and give it a shot.

Senran Kagura: Ninja Flash! – The Complete Series (anime review)

Posted by :Patches On : August 2, 2014
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Category: Reviews

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Senran Kagura: Ninja Flash!

Review provided by Katie and Andrew

Title: Senran Kagura: Ninja Flash! – The Complete Series

Director: Takashi Watanabe

Studio: Artland

Author: Takao Yoshioka

U.S. Distributor: Funimation Entertainment

U.S. Release Date: July 29, 2014

Format and Length: DVD/Blu-ray Combo Pack / 300 Minutes / 12 Episodes

Genre: Action, Drama, Ecchi, Shounen

Industry Age Rating: TV-MA

Overall Personal Rating: C+

Similar Series or Titles to Check Out: Samurai Bride, Battle Girls: Time Paradox, and Ikki Tousen

 Synopsis:

There was a time when there were amazing ninja serving the powerful, hired for intelligence missions, destruction, or assassination. While the times have changed, the need for ninja has not gone away. However, the type of ninja has changed through the ages. Asuka and her friends may look like any other girls at Hanzo Academy, but they’re secretly studying the ancient art of Ninjutsu! They push their bodies to the breaking point in pursuit of their perfect form while the other students at Hanzo Academy do their homework. Days are spent in sparring session after sparring session until a rival clan of evil ninjas ambushed the Hanzo ninjas and steals their sacred ninja scroll. These evil ninjas are their toughest enemies they have ever faced and Asuka and her friends will have to go further than ever to prove they have mastered the art of the ninja.

 Commentary:

Senran Kagura: Ninja Flash! – The Complete Series takes ninja anime series to new heights and lows at the same time. The story line was not the best; however it was enough to develop the plot and give a little bit of insight to the characters. The fights that occur between the good ninjas and the evil ninjas were pretty good and showed off both side’s rivalry with each other. Eventually, there seems to be a bigger evil force working behind the scenes among the evil ninjas. However, the premise of the plot was the age old good versus evil ploy and while it gets old eventually it was entertaining to say the least. To be honest, if Senran Kagura: Ninja Flash! – The Complete Series would have had less fan-service and perverted old men I may have liked it more.

The characters in Senran Kagura: Ninja Flash! – The Complete Series were your cliché ecchi characters including the pervert (Katsuragi), the timid and shy girl (Hibari), the cool genius (Yagyuu), the willful protagonist (Asuka), and the straight and narrow girl (Ikaruga). However, the girls look very similar and if you know these types of series then you will understand why and how they are similar. But their personalities are all very different. The characters listed above are the good ninjas. We are also given some background on the characters, which I was not expecting in an ecchi anime. Each characters background story is sad and depressing save for Hibari. If I had to choose a favorite character I would choose Hibari followed closely by Asuka. The Ninjutsu teacher is Kiriya and the owner/director of the Ninjutsu is Hanzou, Asuka’s grandfather. Both men are slightly perverted and enjoy watching the girls practice more than they should.

The art was good but they focused far too much on the sex appeal of the ninjas and did not put enough attention into anything else. The voice actors were spot on and brought the characters to life. I usually watch all anime in Japanese with the English subtitles but the English voice actors for this series were not bad. I found myself switching between languages after a few episodes. The opening and closing animations were well done and the music was okay. All in all, if you enjoy this type of anime series then you will enjoy Senran Kagura: Ninja Flash! – The Complete Series.

Extras:

Senran Kagura: Ninja Flash! – The Complete Series includes episode commentaries, promotional videos, clean opening and closing animations, Japanese commercials, U.S. trailer, and Funimation trailers as special features. Senran Kagura: Ninja Flash! – The Complete Series has both English and Japanese with English subtitle language options and both are great options.

 Overall Grade: C+

Senran Kagura: Ninja Flash! – The Complete Series is a decent anime and if you enjoy ecchi anime or loads of fan-service then I recommend that you check this series out.