It's always the ones you least suspect.
With a title like "Rascal does not dream of Bunny Girl Senpai", the expectation is that we'll get a harem comedy about bunny girls, instead we get a show that deals with the darker elements of adolescence.
Sakuta sees a bunny girl moving around a library but no one seems to be able to see her but him. This is Mai, a teen actress who appears to be disappearing from the minds of the world; suspecting a phenomenon dubbed Adolescence Syndrome, something he himself has experienced following a rumoured incident, Sakuta decides to help Mai eventually developing romantic feelings for her, but Sakuta later becomes a magnet for more victims of this unusual condition, sometimes explained in theoretical physics including a reference to Schroedingers cat.
To list all the different phenomenon, we have: Becoming invisible to the world, repeating the same day constantly, creating another version of yourself, body swapping, creating a being as a coping mechanism and amnesia formed through a traumatic experience.
I concede that this anime is written incredibly well and all characters particularly Sakuta, Mai and Futaba are written very well but the subject matter can hit a few nerves if you've had similar experiences especially in the digital age of cyber bullying or feelings of being invisible which personally is something I've had trouble with since my breakup.
And although not highlighted by the anime directly there is a darker implication of suicide as well made all the more disturbing when you see the bruises appear on Sakuta's sister Kaede.
No dub, but would be worst for it as it really pays to have a gentle voice tone to amplify the plot elements something American voice actors lack at times.
Final Verdict: Don't be fooled by the title, you won't get what it says but you will get a show that really makes you question reality which depending on your taste in anime can either be depressing, thought provoking or surprisingly heart warming if a little bit tear jerker.
I promise a happier anime to follow this.
About time I bashed a 2010s anime, this is Demon King Daimao.
Akuto Sai is a wide eyed student hoping to graduate as the top student of a prominent magic academy but his world gets turned upside down where an aptitude test determines him as the future demon king. Ostracized by his fellow students and attracting a harem consisting of a ninja, an android, a witch, an occultist and a childhood friend who likes flying and stripping, Akuto decides that the system created by god needs destroying.
This series is messy, whoever was in charge of editing needs to be fired because the plot is so disjointed you can't tell where you are in the story and you feel convinced you missed an episode or two.
The actual harem is weak, Junko especially makes Love Hina's Naru look like a decent character in comparison.
I'm also puzzled as to why it takes place in a magic academy as it quickly drops that plot in favour of a corrupt government conspiracy, fate of humanity and ninja clan betrayal, they couldn't even rip off Harry Potter correctly and don't get me started on the ending.
Dub is cookie cutter of the time.
Is there anything I like? The student council has it's moments as does Akuto and the dragon Peterhausen but it's not enough to save this train wreck.
Final Verdict: They couldn't even rip off it's inspiration correctly, they couldn't get a decent harem, they couldn't make the action interesting and the ending is a kick to the balls, they couldn't even edit it properly. So yeah, this is proper anime trash and not the good kind.
I don't have anymore creators to highlight but I wanted to finish with a big title so bring on Sailor Moon.
Anyone who cares about anime should know this series but for those who may have missed it. Sailor Moon is about a bunch of magical girls reincarnated from princesses of various ruined Kingdoms. With evil on the horizon, Luna the cat finds the reincarnated Sailor Moon and the Sailor Scouts to fight evil by moonlight sometimes aided by the mysterious Tuxedo Mask.
I don't need to tell anyone that this series put magical girl shows on the map and it's nostalgia value and appeal has transcended beyond 20 years. Although I've not seen the new dub of this series, I have fond memories of the first dub which is very hit and miss.
But it's not aged well. In fact everything that's followed Sailor Moon is better than Sailor Moon especially in characters.
Sailor Moon herself is infamously unlikable and she's the lead character making the supporting cast better in comparison.
The length of the series while okay for a monster of the week show can become exhausting after a while as key moments are dragged out worst than DBZ.
It's story can pull through during it's worst moments and crystal really tidies up the weaker aspects of the franchise, but overall if I watched it today, I wouldn't enjoy it.
Final Verdict: Nostalgia is the only reason to enjoy this series but that can only last so long as newer generations switch to newer shows with better written characters and it's fair to say that Precure has long since taken it's crown for best magical girl franchise.
For my next entry in the list of early works from major creators takes us to Go Nagai and Iron Virgin Jun.
The Asuka family have ruled the land for many decades with their conglomerate and it's time to choose a suitor for it's next heir, 18 year old Jun; but as it is with this type of story, Jun abandons the party not wanting marriage but her beefed up mother insists on it to continue a dynasty of ultra strong powerful women and not just mentally either but physically as Jun is built like a pro wrestler with her mother being twice the muscle mass.
With pressure mounting from Jun's grandmother, the mother decides in her infinite wisdom to send rapists with an interesting array of cod pieces from xenomorphs, drills, turtles and swans I wish I was joking, after Jun thinking that sex and draining strength from men would make Jun stronger, failing that she fights Jun herself and then becomes a demonic being to try and get Jun to see reason. When your head has stopped spinning, I'll continue............thank you.
This can only come from the twisted mind of Go Nagai, it's good intented message is hidden amongst a barrage of insanity. The dub just makes it laughable. I'm not sold on Jun's voice but her mother's voice reminds me of the Amazon women from Futurama, Snoo Snoo jokes aplenty here.
Any fan should know Go Nagai, but for those too young, he came back to anime with Devilman Crybaby.
Final Verdict: It's hilariously bad anime at it's finest providing you don't take it too seriously and you can find a strong character in Jun to enjoy.
Now for a weird ova series, not in the way you are thinking, all will be clear throughout.
The anime opens up with a Phil Collins track? as we witness the life of twin actors Cipher and Siva as they work in America and you start to paint a picture of what we can expect as more cheesy 80s pop songs play, most noticeably Vanessa Williams but there is something more worthy of note. All the dialogue is in English but this is no dub, it's on purpose making it a genuine anime in English and the voice acting is still terrible, how you can do that when it's not a dub is beyond me.
If I call this anime anything, it's a glorified music video.
Final Verdict: It's interesting from the perspective of how Japan viewed 80s Americana but it's impossible to overlook how terrible the voice acting is, authenticity or not, there's no excuse for poor voice acting even in English.
