The Season So Far...

[Hanover Fist]

* high fives hano*
Game of Thrones S2!!!!

Oh hell yeah!    *high fives*
I just wish George R.R. Martin wrote faster.

[Krozam]

Hmm, let's see... I started a break in anime almost at the start of last season, only getting back now, so I'm not currently watching any of those that continue from last season.

Watching:
KoreZombie S2 - I like the first season, so naturally I'm watching the continuation. The first two eps are amusing enough, but I'm looking forward to the plot kicking in again. (Yes, I'm watching KoreZombie for the plot rather than the comedy, is that a problem?)
Acchi Kocchi - 4-koma and their adaptations aren't really my cup of tea, but this is funny and cute enough that I'm enjoying it.
Accel World - The season's pleasant surprise, for me. There are several elements that I don't like in principle, but it's simply so well written and executed story (so far) that I'll definitely keep watching.
Hiiro no Kakera - Seems interesting, judging from one episode. For a change, it's nice to watch an anime full of shoujo clichés instead of the shounen ones.
Shining Hearts ~Shiawase no Pan~ - Reminds me of Campanella: so full of happiness that it might get boring after a while, but a dose of adventure should prevent that problem. I like the male lead, he seems level-headed and dependable.

Will check out:
Sankarea - I've read a couple of chapters of the manga, seems interesting.
Kuroko no Basuke - Again, have read a few chapters of the manga and it seems okay.
Medaka Box - You know the deal, read a bit of the manga etc...
Hyouka - Summary sounds interesting.
Ozma - I doubt I'll like it, I'm very picky about my Japanese scifi, but it sounds remotely interesting...

Might check out:
Zetman, Kuromajo-san ga Tooru, Tasogare Otome x Amnesia, Jormungand, Haiyore! Nyaruko-san...

Also, I really hope that someone will re-sub the remastered Nadia.

Edit: Well, I checked out Nyaruko, and to my surprise I actually found it pretty good. It's giving me some nice laughs, and for some reason I really like the OP.

[Hanover Fist]

Well, under half an episode into Hyouka and I'm hooked:

First was my pleasure at finding that Mazui wasn't going to be idle this season. Next, less than a minute in I realized I'll be hearing echoes of both Tomoya Okazaki and Youhei Sunohara in similar roles with their voice actors. Then 10:48 to 11:15 hits ... guh! Beautiful art, incredi-moe lead female, great story with intriguing subtleties (and fun things you catch on the second view).

Yep. Moving this one from "maybe" to "definitely every week".

Edit: Ooh! And I liked the Bach cello at the end!

[Krozam]

Meh. Hyouka ep 1 was unimpressive to me. It's got potential, and a male lead I can definitely relate to, being lazy myself, but the mysteries and dialogue were disappointing. Art is enjoyably above average, though after Denpa Onna, everything feels lackluster. >.< I'll have to see 1-2 more episodes to know whether I'll keep watching.

[Krozam]

So, time for my impressions on this season's shows:

Sword Art Online - Looks pretty good based on 2 eps, but a bit rushed adaptation. I've read some of the original material, and the short story covered in ep 2 really needed another ep. I haven't been in the right mood for a while, and it's possible I'll stall this and marathon it later, when the right mood hits.

Campione - This could've been epicly awesome, but unfortunately, the people responsible for adapting these great light novels into anime are utter idiots. 5 novels crammed into 12-13 episodes, WTF were they thinking? The first 3 eps are painfully bad, but at least the 4th ep is decent. Still, as a fan of the light novels I intend to see this to the end. This story concept is perfectly up my alley, it could be written by me, so I'm very glad that the novels are getting translated at a good pace over at Baka-Tsuki.

Oda Nobuna no Yabou - Unexpectedly, my favourite of the season. I thank Thingy and heyman for the fact that I even checked this out. The premise doesn't sound too interesting, but this anime has excellent production values (art, animation and musics) and good writing and direction. There is an actual plot, in addition to entertaining battles and cute female characters. The male lead is pretty awesome, he's powerless in battle but he has courage, intellect and a likeable personality. Most importantly, this show has exceptionally good dramatisation.

Tari Tari - I checked out one episode, and this seems like a show I'd enjoy, but only when in a certain mood. Like Hanasaku Iroha, I decided to stall this and wait for the right mood.

Hagure Yuusha no Estetica - Gotta love a badass, over-powered (and perverted) male lead. An entertaining show, but somehow I'm not getting properly into it, I fail to care about any of the characters and I'm not even really interested in the plot.

Dakara Boku wa, H ga Dekinai - Unusually high quality ecchi, that's all there seems to be to this show. The battles are repetitive, there's no plot to mention, the male lead isn't bad but not really great either... Well, it's just interesting enough for me to bother watching it.

Arcana Famiglia - Seems pretty interesting, but so far it's not really reaching its potential. Ep 4 is better than the earlier eps, though. I like the character designs and premise, and actually the characters as well, but I was kinda hoping to see them use their weapons and powers more. Well, I don't mind patient story building and character development, if it leads to something awesome later on.

Koi to Senkyo to Chocolate - I rather like this show, based on 2 eps, it reminds me of Seitokai no Ichizon. Good dialogue, an actually funny harem lead, and it seems there might even be a somewhat interesting plot somewhere there.

Hyouka - This show turned out to be quite good. Mystery is one of my favourite genres, and it's pretty amazing how this story makes such seemingly trivial mysteries so interesting. The characters and dialogue are good, and KyoAni lives up to its reputation as a great studio that doesn't compromise quality.

Accel World - Stalled for now, at ep 9, but I might continue any day, when the right mood hits me. Still my favourite of last season.

[Seiryuu]

Well its been a few weeks since the start of summer so its time to do this.

First up the shows continuing from last season/long running shows.

Accel World - One of my favourites from last season and its still holding strong but recently the mc has been.....well an idiot.
Fairy Tail - Still the damn filler. Its making the main characters look so damn weak.
Hunter x Hunter - Well first off...we didn't have another recap! \o/ And so starts the Auction arc. Time for some slow eps about well...buying and selling until we reach the good parts of this arc.
Hyouka - Still one of my favourites from last season and still loving every minute of it.
Mobile Suit Gundam AGE - Needs to end already.
Phi Brain: Kami no Puzzle 2 - Has been somewhat lacking recently but it seems to be picking up a bit again with ep 16.
SKET Dance - Same as last time I did this I don't really have any comments.

And now for the new shows.

Arcana Famiglia - 4 eps watched. I agree completely with what Krozam posted. I hope we can see some fighting soon.
Campione! - 3 eps watched. Everything has seemed so rushed from what I've seen and I don't really know what's going on. I'll probably read the LNs after I finish the little I have left of SAO and then Muv-Luv.
Dakara Boku wa, H ga Dekinai. - 4 eps watched. Not really much to say here...lackluster story and characters but what more can you expect from an ecchi anime? Though I'll keep watching cuz I'm a sucker for red heads.
Hagure Yuusha no Estetica - 4 eps watched. It seems I would need to read the LNs for the full experience to this story. I wouldn't say its rushed but it just kinda throws you in without much backing. Again its another ecchi anime idk what im expecting tbh.
Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita - 2 eps watched. This is probably one of my favourite anime for summer. Its random but hilarious and it just makes me want more.
Koi to Senkyo to Chocolate - 2 eps watched. When I watched the beginning of ep 1 I was wondering if I dled the right show. I was really surprised that this anime might be more than just another generic harem. Its got likeable characters and some good laughs with a possibly drama heavy plot hidden within.
Kokoro Connect - 2 eps watched. Its been ok from what I've seen so far, not really good or bad. Theres not really any plot and the characters are just ok.
Kono Naka ni Hitori, Imouto ga Iru! - 4 eps watched. The first few eps I was considering dropping this. Its your regular generic harem and I didn't like any of the girls, but when Ikusu was introduced it kinda saved the show for me. It brought in a few laughs and now that im at ep 4 I'll just power though it till the end.
Moyashimon Returns - 4 eps watched. I was surprised when this was announced since its been over 4 years since the 1st anime. Well its back and its time to brew again! Moyashimon is still the great show that it was 4 years ago. The story was picked up exactly where it was left off with the same great characters.
Muv-Luv Alternative: Total Eclipse - 5 eps watched. This is in my top 3 along with Jinrui and Oda Nobuna. I haven't played the VNs yet but I will soon. This anime is just great, its got some awesome battles, the story is pretty good, and the characters are likeable.
Oda Nobuna no Yabou - 4 eps watched. One of my surprising favourites for summer. I wasn't really going to check it out because it didn't seem like it would be the type of show I would enjoy. I've got to thank Thingy and heyman for talking about it all the time in cbox which made me dl the first 2 eps which I found amazing. The MC is awesome, its got a good plot, cute girls, great battles and excellent music. What more can I ask for?
Rinne no Lagrange Season 2 - 4 eps watched. Hmm...not much to say I loved the first season and this is just a direct continuation. Its still awesome and I just want more every week.
Sword Art Online - This would have probably been my favourite anime of summer until ep 2 happened. I've read most of the original material out and I've got to say it could have been so much better. Ep 1 (vol 1 chp 2-3) was wonderful they adapted it perfectly I had no complaints. Ep 2 (SS Aria in the Starless Night) was just so...SO rushed. They crammed a 120~ page novel into 20 minutes which really didn't do it justice. Quite a bit of material and character development was cut or changed and even a whole character(Argo) was cut out. As for ep 3 (vol 2 Red-nosed Reindeer SS) it got better significantly. Yes I do have some complaints about it where they changed some things, but they are all minor nothing like what was in ep 2. Ep 4 (vol 2 The Black Swordsman SS) again like ep 3 I have some minor complaints but nothing like in ep 2. If anyone was wondering why theres so much skipping around in the material its because its being shown chronologically. Ep 5 will cover events from vol 8 A Murder Case in the Area SS.
Tari Tari - 5 eps watched. Good art, characters, and music, Not really anything else needs to be said.
Yuru Yuri ♪♪ - 4 eps watched. Good laughs and cute lolis.

I also planned to watch Binbougami ga! and Joshiraku but I refuse to watch anything from gg. So I guess I'll wait for BDs to see if someone else does them/edits gg subs.

[no_good_name]

Girls und panzer- i have a hard on for cute girls in tanks.

[Hanover Fist]

Now that there have been few weeks for things to settle it's looking like a fun quarter overall.

Favorites of the season:
Chuunibyou demo Koi ga Shitai! - this has me laughing loudly every episode. The characters are goofy and fun but not shallow. The animation is good, I like the art and the plot is very believable - from the real to the fantasy. The six Lite shorts are also excellent and shouldn't be missed.
Sakurasou no Pet na Kanojo - is also funny, but heavier on the fanservice. The different insanities in Sakurasou are great fun for me.
Sukitte Ii na yo - a sweet little romance that has become better in my eyes as the season progressed.
Tonari no Kaibutsu-kun - this hilarious rom/com started off with excellent and unusual character development. It also keeps a great balance between the romance, comedy and drama.

Other excellent shows: Girls und Panzer (cute girls doing tankwondo), Little Busters (KEY, a bit of a given in this forum), Psycho Pass (great dystopian SF), Robotics Notes (getting very interesting now), Shinsekai Yori (a compelling future, amazing ED song) and Zetsuen no Tempest (good balance between thought and action).

BTOOOM!, Kami-sama Hajimemashita and Onii-chan Dakedo Ai range from OK to good and I'll finish them. I've only made it through one ep of Magi so far - it's a maybe. One factor on its plus side is seeing what new CRCs GotWoot will come up with next.

Ongoing shows: Bakuman S3 is slow but still interesting for me. Hayata no Gotoku S3 and Jormungand S2 are collect and watch later. Nogizaka Haruka Finale is some light ecchi for series-completion's sake. Sword Art Online I still enjoy a lot, but the new villain is pretty tedious and cliched. I can make it through To Love Ru: Darkbeams, the censoring isn't as bad as say R-15 or 30-sai where the TV versions were unwatchable. Finally there's Big Bang Theory, Dexter and Walking Dead over in Live Action-land.

Drops: Busou Shinki - mini-loli-mech show to sell figurines. Meh. Code Breaker - the female lead was the only interesting character to me. The others felt two-dimensional and I didn't care. K just couldn't hold my interest and my backlog of shows to watch is too large as it is.

[Krozam]

My favourite of the season is Zetsuen no Tempest - not because of what I've seen so far (though it's been really good) but because of what is to come. Zetsuen is one of my top 3 manga, and the anime is slowly getting into the good part after a beginning that was meh in the manga, but greatly improved in the anime adaptation. The main characters are badass and the plot delivers far more twists and mindfuck-moments in 20 chapters than most stories in their entire length. Seriously, don't be fooled by the beginning, very few things in this story are as they seem at first.

Second-favourite is Sakurasou. It's got the same kind of charm as Denpa Onna, with all the quirky (yet also surprisingly deep) characters and great comedy, and quite similar concept. Mashiro is almost as adorable and eccentric as Erio.

Other very interesting ones are Shin Sekai Yori (3 eps watched), Magi (5 eps) and Psycho-Pass (2 eps). Shin Sekai has a powerful mood, and somehow it doesn't bore me at all despite very little having happened so far. For some reason it reminds me of Banner of the Stars, my favourite Scifi anime. Magi is very entertaining and I love the settings. Psycho-Pass has potential, it seems like it could be a pretty deep dystopia story.

K (2 eps), Chuunibyou (5 eps) and OniiAi (5 eps) seem okay. I've only seen 1 ep of Kaibutsu-kun, but it seems pretty promising as well. Little Busters (2 eps) and Ixion Saga (5 eps) hang just above the dropping line.

That's all I'm watching this season - so far. Irie has been urging me to check out Sukitte Ii na yo, and I will, but I don't know when.

[kiritoakito]

 

sword art online desu~

(click to show/hide)

[Hanover Fist]

Out of the new shows, I only have one real favorite this season. Maoyuu Maou Yuusha has a lot of the feel (and of course the voices) of Spice and Wolf but the comedy isn't quite as restrained, maybe it's the somewhat dumb hero. Anyway, quite the interesting plot, good comedy and maybe some romance too.

I'll probably be following these too: Kotoura-san had a good transition from the heavy start to the fun lightness later and I like the development of the perils of telepathy. Ore no Kanojo is promising, I'll see how the comedy and probable harem develops. With Tamako Market I'm waiting to see how much more of the annoying bird they focus on - it jars my suspension of disbelief - but I like the rest. Yama no Susume - cute little 3 minute shorts.

Most are continuations from last season or previous seasons: Bakuman S3, Boku ha Tomodachi ga Sukunai NEXT, Chihayafuru S2, Little Busters, Magi, Minami-ke Tadaima, Psycho-Pass, Robotics;Notes, Sakurasou no Pet na Kanojo, Shinsekai Yori, Uchuu Kyoudai and Zetsuen no Tempest. There are also Big Bang Theory and Castle for my live action quota.

Finally there are the maybe shows, where I'm waiting to see which drop out after the next few eps: Even given the Amnesia, the heroine is a bit too bland and there are more bishounen than I need to see. Dropped it, the heroine is too much of a non-entity for me. Mondaijitachi feels a lot like Dog Days. Too much perhaps. Funny enough to continue, but not archiving. [email protected] might be too niche for me. A little more comprehensible after the 2nd ep. Watch and delete so far. Senran Kagura looks like a present-day high school version of that boob-ninja show a few seasons back - oh yeah, Manyuu Hikenchou - without as much fan-service. 3 eps in, I'll probably continue. Finally, Vividred Operation has a bit of a pedo-vibe so far, Negima crossed with Rinne no Lagrange perhaps? However, it's kinda cute and the plot is interesting enough to follow. Oh yeah, Cuticle Detective Inaba didn't make it past one episode for me before I dropped it. Its humor doesn't match mine.

So what are your picks?

[Haxton Fale]

Much less to say, for my second term at university has certainly started.
I was planning to pick up Maoyuu, especially considering the fact that I greatly enjoy the manga and even wrote a manga diary entry for Krozam. But then I did not pick it up yet, possibly wary of seeing everything once again for no good reason, maybe other than staring at the blatant volume of... err... Maou. And the art style does not entirely convince me either.
My first pick from this season is Kotoura-san. Escaping the dark topic presented within the first ten minutes with very light-hearted comedy and no hint of dark humour seems to be not an easy task, and yet the show seems to have succeeded in it so far. Kotoura-san will be probably very enjoyable, up to the point where they turn to joking about her quite painful past. Which, I hope, will never happen.
My second pick is [email protected]. This shows confirms SHAFT's expertise in adapting weird series of all kinds. Sasami-san herself is quite cute, though I suppose the "relationship" she shares with her brother does not help much (for I am a sucker for such cases of brocon). Other than that, the show seems to be emanating weirdness, even despite the choice of the studio (if memory serves me right, Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita was not adapted by SHAFT either, and yet it turned out quite... peculiar. Not that I mind, though).
Waiting for watch is Senran Kagura, mostly for Katsuragi. Her habits, as well as somewhat mysterious relationship between two of the other girls, have certainly piqued my interest - though not so far as to have me sit through one episode completely, making it a very likely candidate for being dropped before first episode.
Another show I am not certain about yet is Vividred Operation - various opinions call it similar to Strike Witches, and that might be enough of a reason for me to watch it. So, whenever I have time this week, probably.
Tamako Market as KyoAni moeblob, GJ-bu with interesting synopsis, maybe Mondaijitachi due to Hano's comparison above - no clear opinion, tempting to at least try. Shouldn't hurt to do so...

I could end it here, but I will spare some space for two shows. Firstly, OreShura - rarely do I use the phrase "generic harem shit", but I might start to do so more often if series like this will continue to be adapted. Main character's indecisiveness, as well as the comedy in general falling within the pattern of "a gag where every girl reacts to <insert event/challenge/item here> in her own single-dimensional and typical way" make the series go stale and boring, even close to becoming repetitive.
Haganai NEXT is equally as bad, though for completely different reasons. Well, save for repetitive comedy - the plot is mostly driven by Yozora and Sena's sickening obsession over one another, and visit to Sena's house does not help the case. Yukimura might as well be replaced with a prop, rare occurrences of comedy stemming from the conflict between Maria and Kobato, with the characters themselves being almost as intolerable as the others. Over-the-top tasteless humour with schematic, one-dimensional characters is what I do not enjoy watching nor reading. The only saving grace for Haganai would be the series of events between Kodaka and Rika, who turns out more sensible than she looks - though that is only in the ending of volume 7 and the beginning of volume 8.

And so ends up my "much less"...

[Krozam]

So... 9 series I'm watching this season, plus 1 I'm waiting to complete before I marathon it. Overall kinda meh season, but some shows have potential.

- Railgun S2 is the one I'm waiting to complete. I expect it'll be very good, as the first season was.

- Red Data Girl I almost dropped after the first ep. The guy was an ass and the girl was pathetic. Well, someone convinced me to give it another chance, and after 3 eps I think it has potential. Still only just above dropping line, though. Nice art.

- Nyaruko S2 is as amusing as the first season. I'm not entirely sure why I enjoy the anime, but I find it quite entertaining.

- Hataraku was, despite the awesome first minutes, unimpressive at first. Again, I was convinced to give it more time, and after 3 eps it seems to have some potential. Barely above dropping line.

- Yahari seems pretty interesting. At first I was struck by the similarity to Haganai, but after 3 eps, I think Yahari has much more substance, it's not a simple romcom.

- Gargantia is probably my favourite so far. Balancedly good, it drew me in nicely and gets better by the episode. I'm just dreading when the Urobutcher effect is going to kick in...

- Karneval has been hanging just above the dropping line since the first ep. Decent action, some cool characters, potential for an interesting plotline, but so far it has left me pretty cold.

- Dansai Bunri is another one of my favourites. Great musics by Takanashi Yasuharu, interesting MC, nice mood.

- Date A Live seemed pretty entertaining at first, but for some reason I hated the second ep. Third ep was decent. Typical romcom, hanging barely above the dropping line.

- Hentai Ouji could also be desribed as "typical romcom", but Kantoku's character designs are moe as fuck, I find the comedy hilarious, and as the second and third ep demonstrated, these characters could end up having decent depth to them. My second-favourite ATM.

As for Shingeki, I'm staying away from it for now simply because it REEKS of despair. I'm leaving it for one of those rare times when I feel like watching something really dark and violent.

[Hanover Fist]

This is a rather light season for me

Good:
Hataraku Maou-sama is keeping me entertained. It's balancing the day to day comedy well with the ongoing demon world plotline.
Hentai Ouji to Warawanai Neko isn't quite worth all of the hype, but it is funny and building up more depth in the characters. The character design is a little too moe for me.
Suisei no Gargantia is well balanced between the mech and character interaction. It does a good job with the contrast between a total military mentality and a more down to Earth (heh) nature.
Yahari - the cynical humor is keeping this one fun for me. It has similarities to the Haganai and Chuu2Koi plots but is a show of its own.

So-so:
Date a Live - harem rom-com, I wasn't planning to watch it but got curious and marathoned the first four eps. It's interesting in a good enough way.
Namiguchiwa no Muromi-san - goofy half-length episode mermaid comedy. Amusing.
Photokano has all the similarities (with good reason) to Amagami, but seems to be going the harem route. The main character started out nice, but is becoming more of an ass as the show progresses.
Red Data Girl - beautiful backgrounds, so-so story.
Shingeki no Kyoujin - Krozam is right. It does reek of despair. Right above the drop line for me.
Sparrow's Hotel - amusing three minute show, ninja-trained bouncy bellhop.

Continuations of past shows and seasons:
Chihayafuru 2 - this had a great pace last season, but has recently switched to Bleach mode with multiple episodes per fight match.
Game of Thrones - waiting until I have all ten to consume at once.
Haiyore! Nyaruko-san W - still offbeat and hilarious, great fun.
Hayate no Gotoku! s4: Cuties - meh, just for completionism.
Hyakka Rouran Samurai Bride - fan-service heavy harem comedy much like the first season. Watch and delete.
Ore no Imouto S2 - it's been doing a good job of filling in backstories of the side characters while keeping the plot moving. Moe as ever, but not overwhelmingly so like HenNeko.
Railgun S is building up well with all the comedy of the first season. The little details you might miss at first glance remain important for the continuing story.
Uchuu Kyoudai keeps chugging along.

[Krozam]

First impressions on some of the new anime airing this season:

Yuusha ni Narenakatta Ore wa Shibushibu Shuushoku wo Ketsui Shimashita: Ugh... I'm getting strong Hataraku vibes here. Conceptually very similar, right down to the misleading action-beginning. Slightly better comedy than in Hataraku, but still awful. Filled with low-class service. At least it takes place in a fantasy world, but I'll need to learn more about it than about the magically powered household-appliances to know whether it's an interesting world or not. However, I've learned from Sora no Otoshimono (manga) and Hataraku that even if 80% of the show is crap, the rest can be so good that it makes the whole worth watching. So I'm only putting this on hold, until I get some opinions about several episodes forward, not dropping it instantly.

Log Horizon: Conceptually, seems like a SAO ripoff. Still, I actually liked the first ep more than the first ep of SAO. The main character is the intelligent type, I have some hopes for him. The comedy is also pretty good. Overall, surprisingly promising beginning, I'll be watching this one.

Outbreak Company: Despite the premise being completely out of whack, the first ep was actually fairly entertaining. The comedy is ok and there are some hints of racial unequality issues akin to Eien no Aselia. This could be good, or it could fall flat on its face. I'll watch at least a bit further.

Strike the Blood: My favourite first ep in this season, so far. Some interesting mystery, decent action and a promising protagonist. Reminds me of Index, a little. Will definitely watch.

Golden Time: As an anime based on another work by the author of Toradora, this is one of the two anime I've actually been looking forward to. The first ep didn't disappoint, though it wasn't a pleasant surprise either, mainly due to the male lead being about as bland as they come. Well, I expect some character development, so I'm not too worried about it. I expect an enjoyable romcom, nothing more, nothing less.

I'm still waiting for Tokyo Ravens to air, it's the second anime I'm actually looking forward to this season. I'm reading the manga adaptation, and it's pretty good. I don't remember if there was anything else I was going to check out this season, that hasn't aired yet...

Edit: I forgot Kyoukai no Kanata: Maybe even better than Strike the Blood. Awesome dialogue reminiscent of the Monogatari series. Standard KyoAni quality animation and moe character designs. A nonchalant protagonist, just as I like them. All in all, a promising start.