Nichijou (My Ordinary Life)

                What is your definition of an ordinary life? Is it living day by day the same way with nothing unusual happening, or is it living day by day expecting for unusual things to come about? If you’re not sure on the answer, then this anime will give you the answer. Nichijou, or My Ordinary Life, is about the citizens of a small town living what they call an ordinary life. A  Life that may consists of robots, talking cats, and the high school principal wrestling with a deer.

                The series mostly follows two groups of three. The first group consists of three high school girls, Yuko, Mio, and Mai. The first girl, Yuko, is a highly energetic and care free girl how plays around a lot. She’s also a lazy when it comes to her school work and is constantly copying her friend’s homework. She also tends to make a big deal out of little things, like how to order a cup of coffee. The next girl, Mio, is the complete opposite of Yuko. She’s very responsible and keeps herself on track and focus; but because of Yuko’s playful and care free mentality, Mio is constantly stressing over Yuko’s actions. She’s also a talented inspiring manga artist, but her drawings consist of yaoi illustrations of her upper classman crush which can get her into trouble if they get into the hands of others. The last girl, Mai, is a very quiet girl. She also doesn’t show her emotion much, so it’s very hard to tell how she’s feeling. Even though she’s a plain girl, her plain personality is what makes stand out and can make her a funny character at times.

                The next group of characters includes of Hakase, Nano, and Sakamoto. Hakase (Japanese for Professor) is an intelligent eight year old girl, but still tends to act like her age despite her brightness. The other character, Nano, is a robot created by Hakase and is always begging her to make her like a human girl; but the more she asks, the more Hakase puts robot traits into Nano. For example, whenever Hakase wants a cake roll, then with a command a cake roll will pop out of Nano’s arm and it always Nano whining. The last character is Sakamoto. The interesting thing about Sakamoto is that he’s a cat that able to talk thanks to a scarf that Hakase invented that gives any animal the ability to speak. He also demands that the girls treat him respect and address him as Sakamoto-san because he’s an adult in cat years and the girls are still children. Despite those demands, Hakase and Nano still treats Sakamoto as a cat.

                This series also includes side stories from other characters like a girl whose to tsundere to admit her love for a fellow classmate to anyone, a teacher whose too nervous to do her job properly, and another teacher whose to nervous to confess his love to the previous teacher. This series is packed with funny randomness segment after segment. You can watch all episodes on Crunchyroll.com under its English name, My Ordinary Life. This series proves that no matter what you might think, there is no such thing as an ordinary life.

Don't forget, watch AX Live every Thursday at 7pm (pst) at http://www.anime-expo.org/ex-online/ax-live/watch-ax-live/.

Sword Art Online

                If you think it would be awesome to play a virtual reality online game, Sword Art Online will change your opinion. The series is about an online virtual reality game that’s designed where once a player enters the game, they won’t be able to logout. Not only that, if you die in the game, you die in real life. The only way to leave the game is by clearing all 100 levels and defeating the finial boss.

                The story follows a beater (a combination of the words beta and cheater) by the name Kirito. He accepts the fact that he cannot logout of the game faster than everyone else, but was still stock to learn the news. Because of his status as a beater, Kirito is a skilled swordsman and mostly works alone; but runs into different players throughout the game and partner aside them for as long as he can. The Player he tends to work with the most on the other hand is a girl named Asuna. When the two first met, Asuna didn’t want to work with anyone because she didn’t know anyone in the game. She was then convinced by Kirito to work with him in hopes to increase their chances in winning the game and escaping. Also in the beginning, Asuna paints herself to be an amateur when it comes to games, but her skills showed other wised. With their combined skills, Kirito and Asuna are both an unstoppable team.

                This anime is action packed and entertaining. The storyline is intense as the characters fight for their survival and learns more about each other personal lives. The series is currently streaming episodes each week on crunchyroll.com. If you’re a member, you get to see new episodes as they’re release without the ads. If you’re not member, you can still watch the episodes a week after their release with the ads included. Either way it’s worth watching.

Don't forget, you can catch me on AX Live on the chat feed or on the show very Thursday at 7pm(pst) on anime-expo.org/axlive. DON'T MISS IT!!!!

Yuru Yuri

               When you think of yuri, what do you think of? If you think of a group of girls whose friendship is so close that it seems as if they’re more like lovers than friends and maybe that they’re always in random, funny situations, then that’s exactly what you’ll get out of Yuru Yuri. Yuru Yuri is about a group of four middle school girls forming a club at their school called the Amusement Club, where the purpose of the club is to do whatever you feel. Now the yuri part comes from how a few of the girls tends to commit lesbian like actions towards their fellow club members and school mates. The girls and their friends also tend to get themselves into random situations that will make you laugh out loud.

            There are four main characters in the series that brings their unique aspect to the show. The first character is Akari Akaza. Akari has an issue with standing out; because of this, she is purposely lift out of the show time and times to indicate how she doesn’t stand out much. Despite this problem, Akari is entertaining to watch because all the times she’s tries to stands something goes wrong and you end up laughing at her. The second character is Yui Funami. Yui is the cool headed, mature, voice of reason of the show. She’s the one who keeps everyone in line, or at least she tries to. She tends to get herself dragged into strange situations because of her maturity and being around immature people whether she wants to or not. In the end, she makes the best out of whatever situation she’s in and enjoys herself around the presents of her friends. The third character is Chinatsu Yoshikawa. Chinatsu is interesting because she’s a mixture of maturity and immaturity. She’s mature because she’s very well mannered, but is immature because of her love for Yui; and it is exactly that, she loves Yui with a passion and she doesn’t even try to hind it. Her “Yui Obsession” gets her into awkward moments, like in episode five in season one. I won’t spoil anything and tell you what happened, but you’ll see what I mean. The last main character, and in my opinion the funniest character in the show, is Kyoko Toshino. Kyoko is the main reason why randomness coincidently happens in the series. She’s always has some crazy idea in her head, saying things before thinking, and is always trying to accomplish her perverted desires that evolves Chinatsu. Kyoko will always keep you laughing and you’ll fall in love with her by the end of episode one.

If you have not seen this anime, you need to hurry up and do so. This series will keep you laughing from beginning to end, and then you’ll want to watch the next episode afterwards. So where should you go to watch Yuru Yuri? Crunchyroll.com has all of season one and streams episodes from season two as they’re release. Trust me, if you love comedy and yuri then you’ll love Yuru Yuri.

P.S. I've been resently choosen to be the new correspondent and Interactive Meadator for AX Live. So you can now chat with me during the show every Thursday at 7pm pst. at http://www.anime-expo.org/ex-online/ax-live/watch-ax-live/, don't miss it.

Best Student Council

               This week I’m going to do something different and talk about an old anime, but still a good one. Best Student Council is about Rino Rando, 15 year old girl, and her friend Pucchan, a smart mouth puppet on Rino’s hand, starting a new life at the Miyagami Private Academy. She was mysteriously accepted into the school after the death of her mother. On her first day of school, Rino was elected as her class’s representative and then appointed secretary of the Best Student Council by the council president, Kanade Jinguuji. The reason why the academy’s student council is called the “Best Student Council” is because the student council has more power than the faculty and staff, and the reason why that is because Kanade is the one who founded the Miyagami Private Academy.

               The English cast is filled with experienced voiced actresses. The voice of Rino Rando and Pucchan is Kira Vincent-Davis. She was in roles such as Osaka in Azumango Daioh, Miyu Yamazaki in Super Gals, and Kokoa Shuzen in Rosario + Vampire Capu 2. The voice of Kanade Jinguuji is Kelly Maison. Her roles include Azanael from Blue Drop, Emiko Niwa in D.N. Angel, and Akiko in All Purpose Cultural Cat Girl Nuku Nuku. Other voice actress includes Shelley Calene- Black as the voice Nanaho Kinjo, a highly strict first Vice President and main assistant to Kanade. Nanaho is also in charge of the Assault Squad. Ms. Black roles also includes Princess Hime from Princess Resurrection, Ishu Benikawa in Xam’d: Lost Memories, and Canaan in Canaan. Another Voice Actress is Luci Christian as the voice of Kuon Ginga, the second Vice president in charge of the Covert Squad. Ms. Christian roles include Elise from The World God Only Knows, Yukari Tanizaki from Azumago Daioh, and Nagisa Furukawa from Clannad.

               To be honest, what first attracted me to this show was the title. When I first heard of Best Student Council I was in student council myself. After watching the first episode, I became hooked. Not just because I was in student council, but because of the mysterious reason on why Rino was accepted to the academy and then appointed to an executive position in the most powerful organization at Miyagami Private Academy. The show is also impacted with a lot of funny scenes and an amazing storyline as well. This series originally came out in 2004 and the complete series is in stores now, so go check it out!

Oreimo

    Ok, I was going to talk about another anime this week, but when I learned about an exciting news about this anime I decided that I had to write about this show instead. At the end, I’ll share the big news with you guys; but right now, let talk about what makes this anime tick the way it does. The full name of this show is “Ore no Imoto ga Konnani Kawaii Wake ga Nai,” in English, “My Little Sister can’t be This Cute.” The show is about a 17 year boy name Kyosuke and his love/ hate relationship with his little sister Kirino. After coming home from school one day, Kyosuke finds a magical girl anime DVD laying on the floor near the doorway. He then cooks up a story around his family’s dinner table about his friend suggesting an anime (the same anime that he found earlier) for him to watch and letting him borrow it. All just to see their reactions in attempts to find out where the magical girl DVD came from. After witnessing Kirino’s strange reaction, he then decides to confront her; and when he does so, he learns that not only does the DVD belongs to her, but she’s been secretly hiding the fact that she’s an otaku who’s a big fan of any moe anime and she loves playing “little sister” scenario eroge (Japanese adult games). After learning this, Kyosuke agrees to help Kirino keep her otaku life a secret and help her live a full otaku life at the same time, turning his normal life into a life filled with crazy otaku adventures one after another. Adventures that he’s forced in to thanks to his little sister.
    Directing this series is Hiroyuki Kanbe. Kanbe-san has had many titles under his belt. He was the key animation for Afro Samurai, Blue Exorcist in episode 2, Cowboy Bebop the movie, Neon Genesis Evangelion, and many another series. He was also the animation director for Hellsing, Rosario + Vampire, Full Metal Panic, and more.
    This show is really funny and I absolutely love it, and the reason why I love this show is because it as two big messages that I made me fall in love with this series. The first message is that no matter who you are, being an otaku is perfectly ok. The second and most important message; whatever you might think about any hobby, if your younger sibling enjoys it you should support them. As an older brother to a sister and a bother, this hits home to me. Their hobbies might not be for me, but as long as I see them happy and safe I’m going do whatever I can to support them. This was the most important message for this series, and the fact Kyosuke puts his feelings aside and put up with Kirino’s craziness for her happiness is very touching.
    Ok, now for the news. I was late on learning this, but as soon as I learned this it didn’t matter how late I was. On April 1st. 2012, Animenewsnetwork.com revealed that Oreimo has been green lit for production of season 2! It was announced at the Anime Contents Expo during the “Yuichi no Manma 2~ Taketatsu to Hanazaua ga Debut Suru Wake ga Nai,” stage event. No word yet on when the second will be released, but as soon as it’s announced I’ll let you know. Until then, you can check season 1 of Oreimo on crunchyroll.com before season 2 comes, and see why this series is worth a second season.

Guilty Crown

    Ok, let me explain how I first go into this show. The Anime Expo’s website has this weekly online show called AX Live, and it talks about the latest anime, manga, video game, and toy news; and I was watching the an show a while back, where one of the co-host was showing how much she has a huge obsession with Guilty Crown. After watching how much she loves this show, I decided to check out the show and find out why she loves it so much; and because of that, I’ve became obsessed with this show as well.
    With that said, let’s talk about the plot. In 2029, a severe epidemic called the Apocalypse Virus broke out in Japan causing people to turn in to crystal and scattering them into the wind. The first day of the outbreak was nicknamed the Lost Christmas because outbreak was on Christmas Eve and it caused a nation wide spread of panic, chaos, and even the collapse of the Japanese government and being replaced with a multinational military force called the GHQ. Ten years later, Shu Ouma, an average 17 year old high school student, meets Inori Yuzuriha, a popular signer who’s taking the internet world by storm. After meeting Inori, Shu learns that she’s member in a terrorist organization, labeled by GHQ, called the Funeral Patrol. The Funeral Patrol mission is to destroy the GHQ and freeing the Japanese people from GHQ’s oppression. He then learns that he has develop a special power that give him the ability to pull out a person’s void, a materialized weapon or item that comes of his or her heart. Because of this new found power, Shu is then recruited by the Funeral Patrol’s leader, Gin in hopes of putting an end to the GHQ.
    The director for Guilty Crown is none other than Tetsuro Araki. Araki-san has directed other animes such as Death Note and High School of the Dead. He was also the episode director for episodes 3 and 9 of Black Lagoon and served on the storyboard of episode 5 of Blade. Araki-san graduated from Senshu University and works with Madhouse, the studio that brought you hit animes Ninja Scroll, Vampire Hunter D: Blood Lust, Trigun, and Death Note.
    When I decided to watch this show, it took me the first ten minutes to understand why the AX Live co-host was obsessed, which then made me obsessed. Guilty Crown is filled with suspense to keep your entire attention on the show, and the show alone. To see what I mean, you can watch Guilty Crown on the Funimation website at www.funimation.com/guilty-crown; and if you want to check AX Live to see if there’s any other animes that the hosts might love with a passion, AX Live comes on every Thursday at 7 pm (pst) at www.anime-expo.org/ex-online/ax-live.

Muv-Luv Alternative: Total Eclipse

    On July 1st, 2012, the Anime Expo hosted the American premier screening of the new Muv-Luv anime Total Eclipse. The screening feature Kouki Yoshimune, the master mind of the show, sharing his thoughts about the anime, and a live mini concert featuring Minami Kuribayashi and Ayami who sings a few of the show’s songs. The show starts off with a brief explanation of the situation. In the late 1950’s, an alien force known as BETA, Being of Extra Terrestrial, begins their process of invading the Earth. The battle first starts off on the Moon, an attempt by the human race to stop the BETA from invading the Earth, but fails. As the years passes by, all of Eurasia falls and Japan is on the verge of falling to the BETA. After America was able to successfully fight off the BETA and both America and Japan agrees that the only way to defeat the BETA and stop them from a complete take over of the Earth they must partner up. One of the main characters of the show is Yui Takamura, who has been a member of the Imperial Royal Guard, the official Japanese guard designed to fight the BETA, since she was in high school and is very dedicated in defeating the BETA. Her reasons for her dedication are all answered in episodes 1 and 2.
    As stated earlier, Kouki Yoshimune is the master mind of Total Eclipse. Yoshimune-san is the CEO of ACID which the company that owns the Age brand. He wrote ML/A, TE, Chronicles Adoration, Schwarzemaken, and other project. Also in his time with ML/A, he did base mechanical and character designs.

    This anime pretty much has everything I want in an anime, a kick ass action scenes and hot girls in tight pilot suits. The graphics are really cool and since we’re dealing with an alien invasion the show is also really gory as well, but it has interesting storyline to follow. Also if you’re an American patriot who also loves Japan as well, like me, then you’ll love the fact that Japan and America are working together to fight off the BETA invasion. I can’t say more about the show because it is currently airing, but if you want to see what I’m talking, you can check out this show on Crunchyroll.com. New episodes are release every Saturday after midnight. If you are a premium member, you’ll be able to see new episodes when they’re release; If not, then you’ll have to wait a week later; but ether way, it’s worth the wait and worth the watch.