Winter Season 2024

Thought we'd need a thread for those first impressions where nobody creates a thread for now.


Ishura episode 1:

I didn't entirely dislike it and it has the best, most "fun" killing scene of a cute anime girl EVER (made me laugh out loud for how brutal it was :D). But my big issue is with the swordman dude. He's ridiculously overpowered. Why should I fear that giant golem when he's even more dangerous? Get on his bad side and nobody will be able to protect me :/ This is a problem with many anime, but this one certainly is extra ridiculous. Will give it at least one more episode, but if it's just a chain of "watch overpowered characters look cool", I'll drop it.

Mahou Shoujo ni Akogarete (Gushing over Magical Girls) - Lead girl is shy and timid, but adores magical girls. She's in the same high school class as the town's resident trio of magical girls and fantasizes about being one herself. Immediately a magical mascot creature appears and offers her a transformation device and transforms...into the scantily clad villain character that must torment the magical girls she loves.

And of course, she is weirdly extremely successful at being a villain.

Gave me Machikado Mazoku vibes, but more pervy, slapstick and sarcastic instead of heartwarming and healing.

That is the anime of the century for people like me.

Oddly enough, there's even another this season. It may very well be the theme this season.

Hime-sama Goumon no Jikan desu (Tis Time for "Torture," Princess) - A proud, noble warrior princess, armed with a sentient holy sword, is invariably captured by the forces of the demon lord. In order to extract information from her, they deploy the greatest inquisitor of theirs to torture her and extract critical secrets about the Empire in their ongoing war. They torture her with the temptation of delicious food until she breaks, her one true weakness.

Two things sell this series:
1) Phenomenal sound design. Seriously. The foley and music are top-tier.
2) Shiraishi Haruka playing the princess, selling it completely. She has a remarkable vocal range.

I've really become a fan of hers lately, partly because she sounds so different in her many roles, to the point that she's really good at backfilling for other VAs (as she did as a fill-in on Gundam WfM). Her skill is starting to approach Tanezaki Atsumi's range.

Akogarete and Gomon clearly need other ideas than first ep pitch to entertain in the long run though.
Also Akogarete felt awkward to me, ecchi borderlining hentaï with underaged girls all around. Art is not very enticing.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by David75

Also Akogarete felt awkward to me, ecchi borderlining hentaï with underaged girls all around.

---

Thx for the recommendation

;>

Ok, lol, it really is hentai :D Not quite the same level (yet), but giving me strong Redo of Healer-vibes, lol. Most of the girls are too scrawny, but the Azure girl got some nice curves, so every scene of her getting tortured is welcome.

The concept of the story is fun, though, so I'll keep watching.

Metallic Rouge 1:

Well, that was rather generic and boring. The setting and premise make this one sound way more interesting than it ended up. Honestly, it's sad how cheap anime have become. I have to think of Armitage which has a generally similar feel to this one, but looks so much better.

Will probably drop it, but if I'm bored ... we'll see.

Is "A Sign of Affection " any good/did anyone watch it?

Bit turned off on the character design (the faces) but looks like some cute shojo or whateve the female seinen word is.
I always feel really bad for people who can't hear or see, I wonder if I should pick it up.
A Silent Voice got me good when I watched it, not sure if I want a heartache, but it's probably a *lot* lighter than that movie.... for sure.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by KrayZ33

Is "A Sign of Affection " any good/did anyone watch it?

Bit turned off on the character design (the faces) but looks like some cute shojo or whateve the female seinen word is.
I always feel really bad for people who can't hear or see, I wonder if I should pick it up.
A Silent Voice got me good when I watched it, not sure if I want a heartache, but it's probably a *lot* lighter than that movie.... for sure.

---

I watched the first episode. It was pretty standard shoujo, as far as I can tell with my somewhat limited sample of the genre, but one detail I did pay attention to was the generally positive attitude and depicting the life of the (deaf) female MC in a way that wasn't trying to incite any feelings of sympathy for her disability. She was merely shown to live her life just as fully as anyone. Of course it's still a big issue for her, but it wasn't underlined unnecessarily, as if it had been her most defining feature.

At the Eps 3-4 mark, so update time.

Favorite new show is probably Chiyu Mahou no Machigatta Tsukaikata (Wrong Way to Use Healing Magic). It's an isekai, but one that remember what it is like to do a fun one. The ParaRescue focus is legitimately interesting, and the cast are all likeable.

I dropped Metallic Rouge because even though it had a promising trailer and has a good OP, MFauli has it right. The show is boring. It's remarkably bad, pacing and lore is all over the place, and its honestly not engaging at all. It's a bad nostalgia bait imitation of something far better (80-90s OVAs).

Mato Seihei no Slave is rough, but still faithful and enjoyable.