Anime Review: Dragon Ball Super, Episodes 120 to 131

Details: The series just ended and is going on hiatus after episode 131, which aired in 2018.

Dragon Ball Super is unadulterated fan service. I know that and yet I don’t care. I love Dragon Ball. For those who are not as biased as me, I know that Dragon Ball looks really fucking stupid. I will admit, the story is pretty crap. I just don’t care. Dragon Ball Super gave me exactly what I wanted. It gave me fight scenes that were incredibly well animated and it gave me shiny new super saiyan forms embodied in different hair colors. For me, that is enough.

Anime Review: Akagi

 

Details: Also known as Tōhai Densetsu Akagi: Yami ni Maiorita Tensai. First aired in 2005. Twenty-six episodes with each episode at a little under twenty-five minutes.

I was looking for an anime about gambling the other day and came across an article about a manga that had been notoriously in the same continuous story arc since around 1999. This manga was called Akagi and had just ended recently. After a quick search, I found an anime for it on crunchyroll.com and started watching through it.

It’s been a while since I’ve been so immersed and addicted to a series. I binged watch the whole thing in one sitting and, though mostly enjoyable, found myself extremely sad at the unfinished ending. As mentioned above, this series only recently finished the same story arc that had been going on for the last twenty years. The anime simply didn’t have an ending with which to end on. Even still, I can easily recommend this series to most anime fans.

Anime Review: Nobunaga Concerto

Details: Aired in 2014. Ten episode with each episode a little under twenty-five minutes long. There’s also a live action drama and movie that I didn’t watch.

This is a mostly incomplete anime series. For that reason, you might want to watch the live action drama instead and the movie to get the full story. However, if you’re intrigued by the anime, it’s still worth a watch and there is an ending to this first season, even if it felt like the show got canceled after the first season aired. I still enjoyed the show for its style and the color it gives to Japanese history.

Anime Review: Restaurant to Another World

Details: Also known as Isekai Shokudō. Aired in 2017. Twelve episode with each episode at a little under twenty-five minutes.

Two of the most popular genres of anime right now are fantasy anime (Sword Art Online, Konosuba, Overlord, too many others to count) and gourmet/food anime (Shoukugeki no Soma being the most popular I think). Restaurant to Another World combines these two genres to create a lighthearted anime that was relaxing and fun watch.

Anime Review: Juni Taisen: Zodiac War

Details: Aired in 2017. Twelve episodes with each episode a little under twenty-five minutes long.

Juni Taisen is an action, battle royale oriented anime. I mostly enjoyed it for what it was.

Anime Review: Kino’s Journey -the Beautiful World- the Animated Series

Details: Also known as Kino no Tabi -the Beautiful World-. Aired in 2017. Twelve episodes with each episode a little over twenty minutes long.

Kino’s Journey can be considered a second season or a remake of the similarly named anime that was released in 2003. A few of the episodes are remakes/upgrades to episodes in the prior anime series. Personally, this never bothered me because I’ve mostly forgotten everything from the prior anime series since I watched it so long ago. For me, this newly released series of Kino’s Journey is an interesting, tense adventure that often times dips into the horror, fantasy, and science fiction genres.

Anime Review: Blood Blockade Battlefront & Beyond

Details: Also known as Kekkai Sensen & Beyond. Aired in 2017. Twelve episodes with each episode a little under twenty-five minutes long.

Blood Blockade Battlefront & Beyond is the second season of the Blood Blockade anime. It continues where the last season left off and is as entertaining as the last season was.

Anime Review: Recovery of an MMO Junkie

Details: Also known as Netojū no Susume — Recommendation of the Wonderful Virtual Life. First aired in 2017. Ten episodes and an OVA that are each a little under twenty-five minutes long.

I came into this expecting another cookie cutter anime with the setting of a fantasy role-playing video game, except with a thirty year old female protagonist. I was expecting some action and some comedy. Instead, this is a fairly standard romantic comedy that could easily be made into a live action drama, maybe a Korean drama. Don’t expect any action. Do expect some cute, perhaps cringe worthy romance.

Anime Review: Gintama, Episodes 1-125

Details: This is a review of episodes one through one hundred and twenty-five. Originally released in 2006, but is still airing new episodes. There is confusion in how the seasons are divided as Wikipedia lists one thing and crunchyroll.com lists something else. Each episode is little over twenty minutes long, like with most thirty minute long anime.

Along with One Piece, Gintama is one of the longest running anime that is still currently airing new episodes. I tried to like this show and to watch the over three hundred episodes of Gintama. Unfortunately, the lack of an overarching story as well as the tiring slapstick humor drained my interest. I only got as far as episode one hundred and twenty-five before giving up on this show.

Anime Review: Dragon Ball Super

Details: First started airing in 2015 and is still airing. There are currently one hundred and nineteen episodes. Each episode is a little over twenty minutes long.

Like many other children at the time, I grew up watching Dragon Ball Z. I used to wake up early every morning at around six, turn the volume real low and watch about thirty minutes of posturing and cartoon characters yelling at the top of their lungs. Dragon Ball Z was an integral part of my youth, which is why seeing it started up again in this most recent incarnation (and retconning all of Dragon Ball GT away) made me really excited. After watching over a hundred episodes of the show, I am happy to say that Dragon Ball Super is maintains the action and entertainment of Dragon Ball Z while reaching new levels of fan service.