The first entry in animation studio Bee-Train's girls with guns trilogy, Noir takes the audience on two assassins' pilgrimage to the past while exploring the complexities of the European criminal underworld. Noir is just like its namesake, noir (French for "black") being a film genre that unravels the hidden side of humanity. And it is fitting that our two assassin leads, a Corsican blonde named Mireille Bouquet, and an amnesiac, Kirika Yuumura, are our guides to that world, working under the name of "Noir". Noir, much more serious in tone than El Cazador de la Bruja, had some pacing issues in terms of how exposition to the audience was shown. I did try to take up an interest in the show the first time. However, I did not get past episode six before I moved on to other shows. It took me a year to get back to Noir, and frankly I'm quite glad I did.

The main problem I had in its early episodes were repetitive flashbacks of the same scene, as well as an introduction to Noir, two maidens burdened with living in sin by killing, also known as "the thousand year darkness". Whether it eludes to the budding partnership between Mireille and Kirika or not is made clearer further into the show. I can definitely say the Noir verses are not a coincidence. Because there are no filler scenes or episodes in the show, the plot unrolls slowly, and every episode has some significance to the plot. That's right, every episode, such a refreshing fact to know. Mireille and Kirika do some seemingly random jobs, and bit by bit they learn that their previous jobs are connected to an ancient and power-hungry organization. With the introduction of another character early on, the plot thickens and leaves the audience enraptured in the drama of it all. Because while it's about assassins, do not expect a lot of gunplay. The show focuses on the people behind the weapons, centered on the leads and their interaction with each other. The dialogue is sparse, but adds the pointed emphasis whenever characters do reveal something important that immediately gets the action ball crashing down. Both Mireille and Kirika have frightening accuracy with their respective guns (Walther P99 and Beretta M1934) that highlights their professionalism, and usually gets the job done with only a couple of shots, maximum. Of course that is discounting any goons that they'll have to shoot through to get to the prize.

Who would you have as a waifu? A Tsundere or a Yandere? Well look no further, Mirai Nikki will satisfy all of your needs. The suspenseful and action packed manga now makes its way to TV. Now that we are quite a few episodes into the series, it is time to make a final judgement on the Mirai Nikki anime.

Why the title for this article you may ask? Well, it is because I will be reviewing a hentai anime OVA. That should be enough warning to those who cannot view such things, so on with the review! STAR☆jewel is a hentai anime OVA series that contains purely girl-on-girl futanari action. One factor that separates STAR☆jewel from the rest of hentai is the quality of animation as it comes in BluRay format. This review will attempt to be as SFW (safe for work) as possible.

And that's only from Raimon and assorted teams.
That image just about sums up the first two seasons.

Are you a sports fan? Even if you're not, get ready for the best matches of soccer you'll ever see. Inazuma Eleven is an addicting series right down to the bone, welcoming to all ages. Inazuma Eleven is originally an Nintendo DS RPG game produced by the same company as Professor Layton, Level-5. The anime follows the same, simple storyline as the game: the protagonist Endou Mamoru enters and desires to win the soccer championship. But there's a catch: there are hissatsu moves, or killer moves. Quoting from several viewers, Inazuma Eleven's a ridiculously, great blend of Shaolin Soccer, DragonBall Z, and Yu-Gi-Oh. They are fighting against ninjas, otakus, aliens, kappas, and teams from almost every country (with the exception of a non-existing one).

Although the fanbase is not particularly large in the United States, the English dub premiered on Cartoon Network and the first of the games is in English with replaced names. There are three games (with several versions) for the first season with the Nintendo DS console that the anime follows. In Japan, kirigumi are used to promote the series at the Level-5 festival every year. There was also a live-action stage play, and it was amazingly accurate if I was to say anything myself, back in September 2010. And just because the anime had ended at the end of Spring last year, doesn't mean that there isn't a sequel running now with a completely different (and depressing) plot with the main characters aged ten years in advance. The Inazuma Eleven Strikers on Wii combines both the cast from the first series with the main characters in the sequel (and secret characters like the main characters' great-grandsons).

If you're not up for watching all 127 episodes of the anime, you can spoil yourself with Inazuma Eleven's first movie that recaps the first season in its first fifty minutes. There's another movie set to release this winter for Inazuma Eleven's sequel, Inazuma Eleven Go.

Debating on watching it now? Give it a try, almost every person I've recommended this to got hooked and marathoned the series within a few days.

“She’s the general manager of all the trouble I’ve gotten into since April. She’s the root of all evil in the universe, the person behind every threat to my existence.

Uh, yeah. Her.”

It was another day for the average high school student, Kyon. He went to class, attended the SOS Brigade’s club activities, and put up with its club leader Haruhi Suzumiya to keep her from irrevocably altering reality with her godlike powers. Yep. Another normal day for Kyon.

That’s when everything changed. Kyon arrives at school and discovers Haruhi had mysteriously vanished. Not just from the school either, but from everyone’s memories as well. The rest of the SOS Brigade are either gone or don’t remember him. Kyon desperately tries to find out what has happened as his entire world has been turned upside down. Was it Haruhi who had finally altered the world? Or is someone else behind it…?

Now for the review:

Oh boy. Here we go. Reviewing the movie based off of one of the modern day anime juggernauts, The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya. This review is either going to please a lot of people and invalidate me as a critic, or piss a lot of people off and invalidate me as a critic anyway. Either way, I’m screwed. Let’s get this review started.

“I saw this amazing thing. I have experienced something I have never experienced anywhere else. Here, in this town.”

Ikebukuro, Japan: A city full of wonder and mystery. Young man, Mikado Ryugamine, has moved there from a more rural town, where he meets up with his childhood friend Masaomi Kida, who shows him around the bustling city. However, Ikebukuro is much more than meets the eye. With gang wars, slasher attacks, stalkers, kidnappings, conspiracies, suicide pacts, and a mysterious headless motorcyclist roaming the streets; Ikebukuro is a city of secrets, intrigue, and danger…

Now for the review:

This review is probably going to turn a lot of my otaku readers against me. Durarara!! is a bit of a tough cookie to crack. On one hand, it’s wildly creative with imaginative ideas and an original premise. On the other hand, its second half…

It will never leave your head.

This review is going to be a little different from my usual fare. Not only am I reviewing an OVA series, but I’m reviewing an OVA series that has only released four fourteen-minute long episodes with more to come in the future and it’s based on two series of which I have only seen one series’ movie of and passing knowledge of the other.

Also, it’s a gag series.

The absolute bane of critics everywhere. Comedy such a subjective genre that it is nigh impossible to judge it objectively. But here we are. As such, I’m going to only be judging this series on its merits of animation, characters, and charm factor. Plot and acting (especially since it’s only in Japanese) is negligible. Not that this series had a plot anyway…

Carnival Phantasm is a lighthearted spin-off OVA series based on the characters of two extremely popular visual novels turned anime produced by Type-Moon, Fate/stay night and Tsukihime. Except there is no Tsukihime anime. There never was.

(Full Version of the Header - Artist: hi-ho- [original image here])

Yoshika Miyafuji and the 501^st Joint Fighter Wing are back again to combat the alien Neuroi forces that are taking over Earth in the latest anime adaptation of the Strike Witches (ストライクウィッチー) light novels/manga. The second season of Strike Witches brings back the cast that fans have come to love, but it did not necessarily bring back a stronger plot with better action scenes that some may have been hoping for. In spite of that, it is still somewhat enjoyable watch. This anime aired from June 19, 2010 to September 23, 2010. As always, little to no spoilers will be in this review.

Many will say that the plot of Strike Witches 2 is not as good the first season as it does not focus as much on action packed scenes and that character development is not as strong between the characters. Some of the battles between the Neuroi in episodes may feel kind of quick and slapped on just for the sake of having action. Fanservice throughout the plot is more toned down compared to the first season and leaves a bit more to be desired. One of the biggest issues however, is the ending of Strike Witches 2. It had some great flaws which can almost ruin the entire series for someone.

First thing I will mention is that Strike Witches 2 is animated by a different studio. While AIC did a decent job, they certainly could not compare to GONZO’s performance in the first season. CGI is clearly apparent in some scenes, which is disappointing to see. Backgrounds and scenery however, still maintain a great amount of quality and are enjoyable to look at it. The show’s musical score is well done and has some new tracks. Voice actors gave a strong performance in their roles and continued to bring personality to cast. Another thing to note is that Sakamoto Mio’s voice actor has changed from the first season. Seto Saori is able to fulfill her role though and live up to performance of Chiba Saeko from the first season.

Overall, the second season of Strike Witches is enjoyable, but it cannot compare to the first season. This earns it a score of 7.4/10.

Oh yeah, they still have wonderful art for the half time transitions.

P.S. Sanya and Eila, BEST PAIRING.