Little Busters! Refrain - Episode 13 (Completed)

Riki and Rin have chosen to ignore Kyousuke's pleas to live on and prepare to move forward without their friends, but can they really save their classmates?  Before this can even be considered, Naoe needs to overcome his narcolepsy.

To do this requires him to revisit the very start of his troubles - not just the accident that claimed the lives of his parents which went on to cause his first bout

White Album 2 - Episode 13 (Completed)

Last week's episode of White Album 2 turned Hazuki and Kazusa's relationship on its head, and as the series finale begins we find the pair desperately trying to escape from black bars that are attacking them.  No matter how much they writhe around trying to escape, even shedding their clothes won't allow them to avoid the grasp of this darkness...

Wait, that is what's happening, right?  Anyhow,

Nagi no Asukara - Episode 13

Last week's episode of Nagi no Asukara ended in a blitz of confessions and outpouring feelings - not that there's really a lot of time for anyone to consider these revelations given the impending hibernation and Ofunehiki festival.

Although both Hikari and Manaka find at least a little time to ponder their respective feelings, nothing is resolved as attentions turn fully towards those two major

Coppelion - Episode 13 (Completed)

Safety is almost in sight for all and sundry as their train makes its way out of the Zone... which is not really the ideal time for Kanon Ozu to come crashing after them with what remains of the 1st Division's mechanical spider.

To make things worse, Kanon's actions are being carried out with nothing but complete indifference towards her life, making her a decidedly awkward opponent - this is

Little Busters! Refrain - Episode 12

It's time for Riki and Rin to face up to the harsh realities of the real world to which they're about to be returned - a challenge which is easier said than done.

As promised by Kyousuke, the pair awaken to find themselves in pain and aching all over, but ostensibly safe a suitable distance from the devastating bus crash which seems to have taken the lives of all of their friends.  Having picked

Reverse Thieves Secret Santa 2013 - Giant Robo: The Day the Earth Stood Still

One of the joys of the Reverse Thieves Secret Santa project is that it effectively holds a gun to my head and forces me to watch things that have been on my list of things to see for more years than I care to remember.  This is certainly the case with the Giant Robo OVA, The Day the Earth Stood Still - so frequently is it referenced in various discussions that it's almost criminal that it's taken

Reverse Thieves Secret Santa 2013 - Dragon Half

Never mind all that "time for giving" nonsense, Christmas is all about laughing at stupid stuff - enter the first of two selections that I managed to watch as part of this year's Reverse Thieves Secret Santa project, and a series that was bizarrely re-licensed in North America just weeks after its selection dropped into my Inbox!  The series in question is Dragon Half, a nice and simple two-part

Arpeggio of Blue Steel: Ars Nova - Episode 12 (Completed)

For all of her talk of abiding by the rules and codes of the Fog, it's fair to say that Kongou has gone a little.... "off the rails" as we enter Arpeggio of Blue Steel's first episode.


If anything further evidence were needed that she's gone bonkers, her first attack is not to take out Iona and her crew but to obliterate and effectively absorb all of her allies.  It's a move which leaves

Monogatari Second Season - Episode 25

Although not entirely a surprise, Hanekawa's arrival on the scene and her interest in Kaiki's current job is still an intriguing development, and what's more it seems that she has as keen an eye as Kaiki for Nadeko's true personality.

Hanekawa also has some knowledge of "the closet", although she doesn't seem to know what's in it and Kaiki is certainly in no hurry to enlighten her despite a

White Album 2 - Episode 12

It seems as if Hazuki has done a pretty good job of ruining everything by the end of last week's episode of White Album 2, having soured his relationship with Setsuna by dodging her birthday party before getting a slap from Kazusa for kissing her.

In the aftermath of all this, it seems as if our protagonist is still hoping to both have his cake and eat it, as he continues to feign illness to a

Space Brothers - Episode 87

As the Japanese trio of prospective lunar astronauts impatiently await the verdict following their NEEMO training by sharing a barbecue together with Kenji's family, our focus shifts back to Hibito as he continues to progress rapidly with his rehabilitation.

Much of this progression is framed through the continuation of Olga's story as Hibito watches the second volume of her family's DVDs

Golden Time - Episode 12

Trying to work, especially under the auspices of studying hard at home, was never likely to end well for Banri when it comes to pulling the wool over Koko's eyes, and of course it isn't long before she realises that something is up.

Not that Tada is aware of this as he continues his cross-dressing turn working a birthday party - although Mitsuo might be the one getting most of the attention,

Kill la Kill - Episode 12

As Kill la Kill reaches its half-way point, it's fair to say that the appearance of Nui Harime has struck a raw nerve with Ryuko, and not because of her interruption of the battle against the Elite Four either.

Instead, Matoi's blood is almost literally boiling as she suddenly finds herself faced with someone who claims to be the murderer of her father, and who even has the other half of the

Samurai Flamenco - Episode 11

King Torture has been defeated, and Hazama unmasked as Samurai Flamenco.... however, it seems that this whole ordeal was little more than a warm-up act for the real action to start.

Thus, at the same time as news cameras are training themselves upon Hazama, so a new threat pops up right in the middle of Tokyo bay - a mysterious but aggressive object of unknown origin.  This is also the moment

Galilei Donna - Episode 11 (Completed)

The game is up for the Ferrari sisters, as their adventure to find the Galilei Tesoro, followed by the quest to collect all of Galileo's sketches, ultimately lands them in jail at the behest of the Adni Moon Corporation.

Yes, believe it or not Galilei Donna's finale is to all intents and purposes a courtroom drama, as Adni Moon not only try to prosecute the Ferrari sisters for the untold damage

Nagi no Asukara - Episode 12

As progress on setting up the Ofunehiki continues apace, the thoughts of many are becoming ever-more distracted by the forthcoming hibernation of those within Shioshishio and what that might mean for their various relationships.

This soul-searching brings about some surprising results too, in particular as it relates to Akari and Hikari's father who, it seems, has been harsh about the decisions

Coppelion - Episode 12

The human (and not-quite human) cost might have been high, but the train is finally running - cue jokes about Japanese trains even running to time in the aftermath of a nuclear apocalypse.

Even with this good news the mission is far from over however, as Ibara and her group still need to board the movie train before it leaves the city - something which is easier said than done when the Ozu

Beyond the Boundary - Episode 12 (Completed)

Akihito has managed to find his way to Mirai in the odd globe hovering above the town that is now Beyond the Boundary - but can he save her and defeat this most powerful of beings?

Between Mirai's ability and the fact that Beyond the Boundary was effectively born from Kanbara, just maybe, although it certainly isn't an easy fight as the pair struggle to make their way to the creature's core via

Arpeggio of Blue Steel: Ars Nova - Episode 11

Kongou may have been relieved of her duties as part of the Fog, but that doesn't mean that the I-401 (now combined with Takao) and her crew are on easy street as they look to take the all-important corrosive torpedoes to America - far from it in fact.


Faced with nearly two dozen enemy fog ships, Chihaya doesn't flinch, and in a single move making full use of both the supergravity cannon and

Monogatari Second Season - Episode 24

We all have skeletons in our closets, but what is literally contained within Nadeko's?  Kaiki now knows the answer to this, but for now we'll have to leave that to our collective imagination.

For now though there's a more pressing issue for Kaiki, as returning to his hotel room he finds a hand-written note telling him to, quite simply, "stay out of it".  Who could have penned such a message, and

White Album 2 - Episode 11

We continue to view things through Kazusa's eyes in this week's White Album 2, meaning that we're once again reliving those pre-festival events.

Just in case you weren't already entirely clear about it, we spend some more time establishing Touma's feelings for Hazuki and the reasoning behind them, as Kitahara gives her a gift for helping him to learn the guitar only for her to lose it and spend

Little Busters! Refrain - Episode 11

The core of the Little Busters have been reunited, but time is running out as the truth threatens to encroach upon Rin and Riki's world.

With the rest of the school's populace gone and even the sky no longer moving, there's one last thing to be done - to play some baseball, of course.  For Naoe and Rin this is just another opportunity to play with their friends, but for the other trio this is an

Space Brothers - Episode 86

Mutta is the talk of the town (or rather, of NASA's management) thanks to his smart thinking during the latter stages of his NEEMO training, and this week we're filled in on the slice of genius which has led to all of this praise.

Having heard news of Sharon's lunar telescope plan being shelved by NASA, it seemed only sensible that he do likewise for his team's moonbase model, leaving the

Samurai Flamenco - Episode 10

It's time for Samurai Flamenco to face his final battle... well, his final battle for the time being, seeing as we aren't even quite at the half-way mark of the series yet.

As our leading man makes his way to King Torture's mountainous hideout, the villain himself makes sport out of his hostages Mari and Moe - in particular, Mari is the subject of Torture's vitriolic abuse as he lays bare the

Golden Time - Episode 11

Banri has more or less recovered from his recent exertions and the accident that resulted from them - probably a good job with a high maintenance girlfriend like Koko.

Although the pair's immediate thoughts are turned towards the festival their club are partaking in (which is particularly tricky for Kaga, who has now been labelled "RoboGirl" on account of her dancing technique, or lack thereof),

Galilei Donna - Episode 10

Time is running out for Hozuki as she seeks to go back to the future (hey, that sounds really snappy - it would make a great movie title) with the help of none other than Galileo himself.

For want of anything much else to do, this week's instalment is effectively a love story between Galileo and Hozuki as they work on refining, improving and testing the aircraft that will take her back into the

Kill la Kill - Episode 11

As all and sundry focus their attentions on the on-going contest, a small girl slips into town unnoticed.  Then again, why would you even pay attention to such a newcomer when Matoi is about to defeat a third member of the Elite Four?

Having further evolved with Senketsu to learn how to use her Kamui to take flight, Jakuzure now finds herself out-thought and out-outmaneuvered, and although she

Nagi no Asukara - Episode 11

With the prospect of disaster on the surface and a long sleep for an unspecified amount of time for those within Shioshioshio, it's hardly surprising that some minds have been focused with a view towards the future - especially so in Kaname's case, it seems.

His out of the blue confession to Chisaki aside, folks under the sea have set a date for their sleep to begin, and thus the fasting to

Coppelion - Episode 11

Offering to act as a diversion is one thing, but one has to assume that Naruse and company weren't planning on tackling a giant mechanical spider as well as the trouble-making Ozu sisters.

Still, that's exactly the situation that they have to deal with now that the 1st Division's secret weapon is on the scene - thankfully, this mechanical monstrosity has a switch that allows it to turn off,

Beyond the Boundary - Episode 11

She may have been gone from the real world for three months, but Mirai Kuriyama is neither forgotten nor deceased - rather, she continues in her battle against Beyond the Boundary while a whole other world dangles unseen above the Earth.


Although nobody can see this odd phenomenon, Akihito can certainly hear it, even if he isn't sure what it is.  This isn't the only strange occurrence either,

Arpeggio of Blue Steel: Ars Nova - Episode 10

With the wool pulled over Kongou's eyes thanks to an effective use of Iona as a decoy, it seemed as if the wrath of the Fog fleet flagship had been avoided.  Chihaya had, however, reckoned without Iona's direct "sisters", a pair of submarines with no qualms about scuttling their kin.




Having been hit with a full-on assault, the I-401 is badly damaged as it sinks fast and begins to take on

Monogatari Second Season - Episode 23

Having met with Nadeko - and more specifically her new Snake God form - Kaiki is keen to speak face-to-face with Senjougahara to update her on his progress.

Thus, the pair meet and head for Mister Donut, wherein Kaiki surprises Hitagi somewhat by stating that not only is everything in hand, but that tricking Sengoku into not killing Araragi, Shinobu and Senjougahara will be a piece of cake.  

White Album 2 - Episode 10

It's Setsuna's birthday, but it seems that Hazuki has something more important to do than attend his girlfriend's party, instead crying off by feigning illness in service of other ends.

In other words, it's Touma who has won out on this particular occasion, as Hazuki meets her at the airport to escort her back home out of the blue.  There is at least something of a method to his madness however

Little Busters! Refrain - Episode 10

The core of the Little Busters have been reformed thanks to Riki's hard work, and it's time for the gang to pay Kyousuke a visit...

As the quartet head to Kyousuke's room, it's the main himself who becomes our guide and narrator for this episode, sending us into a recap of sorts that skims over all of the events of the entire series from his point of view.  In other words, this is the point

Space Brothers - Episode 85

After some fraught and tense times that threatened to scupper both of their lunar ambitions, Mutta's flash of time-saving genius seems to have put things back on track for his and Kenji's team in this week's Space Brothers.

In fact, Mutta's inspirational moment has not only brought Kenji out of a period of shoe-gazing but also caused him to up his game markedly as he suggests and effects

Samurai Flamenco - Episode 9

Now that the initial shock surrounding the appearance of King Torture and his minions has dissipated, any initial terror has faded to a sense of mere boredom of the regular appearances of these agents of low-key terror - and to be honest, when their nefarious plans involve giving people split ends it's  hardly surprising.

Such is the apathy towards these events that Flamenco Girl and her cohorts

Golden Time - Episode 10

It might just be for a moment, but the invasion of Banri's "ghost" into his current consciousness is a jarring one that shocks him to his core, and although any memories of his past leave him as quickly as they arrived, what lingers is a sense of longing for Linda.

What follows this strange moment is a rather more mundane occurrence - illness, which leaves Banri with a sky high temperature, to

Kill la Kill - Episode 10

Gamagoori has been defeated, but that's only the beginning of Ryuko's epic battle against the Elite Four, and next up is intelligence expert and former hacker turned student council member at Satsuki's request Houka Inumuta.

As you might expect, Inumuta's main weapon is the data he collects on his opponents, and having watching Matoi take on Gamagoori he has no shortage of that, while his Goku

Galilei Donna - Episode 9

The search for Galileo's sketches quickly comes to an end as this week's Galilei Donna begins, with the Libyan desert offering up the sixth and final sketch, alongside - for a reason that nobody can quite fathom - a telescope.

Given that we've been following Anna's nefarious activities for a little while now, it's inevitable that this discovery quickly leads to a visit from Roberto at an

Nagi no Asukara - Episode 10

The appearance of snowflake sand on the surface has sent Shioshishio into a panic, calling all and sundry back to their homes including the children from their school life on dry land.

Uroko is quick to explain what's going on to Hikari upon his return to the ocean - in short, a tale of years gone by prophesies that the advent of saltflake snow falling is the precursor to an ice age of sorts on

Coppelion - Episode 10

Everyone is ready to go and Ibara's plan has been laid out before them - now all they have to do is execute it.


In other words, its time for our quartet of Coppelion and the surviving members of The Planet to split into two groups - one, comprising Ibara, Aoi, Haruto and No-Sense, to divert and distract the Ozu sisters, while the other is tasked with using that time to get the train line

Hidamari Sketch - Sae and Hiro Graduation OVA

So here it is, the moment we've all been waiting for... and by that, I mean the moment we've all been quietly dreading.  It's time for Sae and Hiro to graduate from both Yamabuki High and, of course, Hidamari Apartments.




Before that though, let's not get ahead of ourselves, as both seniors have to fret over exams (which seem to be of varying difficulties for the two of them - nothing that

Beyond the Boundary - Episode 10

The advent of the Calm, and the awakening of Akihito's youmu form, has put both himself and Mirai into a decidedly dangerous and highly unfortunate (to put it mildly) position.  But, as this tenth episode of Beyond the Boundary begins, all seems to be well once again, with Akihito recovering from his wounds in hospital while Mirai does her best to tend to him.

However, everything seems to be

Arpeggio of Blue Steel: Ars Nova - Episode 9

Now that Chihaya's first plan (Operation Bribe Them With Tea And A Barbecue) has failed and Kongou has decided that she wants nothing more than to wipe out Gunzou having seen how they've "corrupted" her fellow Mental Models, it's time for Plan B: Operation Get Out Of Here Really Fast.

Luckily, with an array of Mental Models now effectively at his beck and call, taking on Kongou, Maya and their

Monogatari Second Season - Episode 22

Despite his better judgement, and with little in the way of a reward dangled before him, Kaiki has accepted Senjougahara's audacious offer of employment.  Now, all he has to do is trick a god - simple, right?

Thus, it's off to Hitagi's home town that Kaiki heads, with 100,000 Yen in his pocket (well, somewhat less than that as he has to lend some of it back to Hitagi to pay for her own travel

White Album 2 - Episode 9

What should have been so simply has proven to be anything but, as the relationships between Hazuki, Setsuna and Touma become ever-more tangled.

In fact, as this episode begins and we enter January, the relationship between Hazuki and Kazusa has broken down entirely - she ignores his calls and visits under the auspices of practicing hard for a piano recital, but given that she finds at least some

Little Busters! Refrain - Episode 9

Having won Masato over from whatever insanity had gripped him, Riki's next target in his reforming of the Little Busters is Kengo.

Just like Masato, Kengo immediately knows what's up when he's approached by Naoe and he wastes no time in warning him off trying to get him to join his merry band.  With no obvious way of persuading Kengo appearing before him Riki talks to Kyousuke, who lets slip one

Space Brothers - Episode 84

After the initial shock of discovering that only one of them will be selected for the next lunar mission, Mutta has quickly found the resolve he needs to fight for his place, even if it means thwarting Kenji's own lunar dreams as a result.

Having initially agreed to cut his suggested parts of the scale lunar base they're tasked with building, Mutta has now rescinded that decision and insisted

Samurai Flamenco - Episode 8

I have to admit that I suspected that somebody had spiked my cup of tea while I was watching last week's Samurai Flamenco but no, apparently all that crazy shit really did happen, and any assumptions that the whole thing was some kind of crazed fever dream on Hazama's part are also quickly vanquished this week.

So, it seems that the Torture organisation and their leader, the cunningly named King

Galilei Donna - Episode 8

The pendant may be lost, but the search for Galileo's sketches continues, meaning that it's off to Japan we go for this week's episode of Galilei Donna.

However, before the sketch hunt begins in earnest, Hozuki and her sisters have a request - to make a stop in Kyoto to visit their grandfather.  Even Anna can't resist this request when it comes so earnestly from all three of them, and so this

Golden Time - Episode 9

Banri's subconscious outburst at the end of last week's episode of Golden Time certainly made his feelings clear, if only to us as onlookers (and most likely to Linda as well) - but were we the only ones to hear those words?

As night turns to morning and a sluggish Banri sleeps in as the other party-goers in his room leave, Koko seems to be far from her usual ebullient self, and when classes

Kill la Kill - Episode 9

With the prospect of learning the truth about her father's death dangling in front of her, Ryuuko is face with one simple task - she only has to defeat the student council's Elite Four to be granted an audience with Satsuki.




While all of the parties concerned are ready and raring to go in this battle, it's Gamagoori who gets the first crack at defeating Matoi... but not until the specified

Nagi no Asukara - Episode 9

The appearance of saltflake snow on the surface is certainly unusual, but seems like little more than a novelty to most.  Is it, however, portentous in signifying a forthcoming calamity?

Meanwhile on that surface, Hikari finds himself privately worrying about his father while publicly stating that he has no interest in returning home - a thought process pushed to the back of his mind by a

Coppelion - Episode 9

As if things weren't tough enough with a pregnant woman about to give birth, the Ozu sisters on the rampage and the 1st Division looking to destroy the whole world, now even the weather is against Naruse and her charges.

More to the point, a strong wind seems to be blowing the radiation in all directions, moving the centre of the Zone dangerously close to the Planet, and meaning that there's

Beyond the Boundary - Episode 9

Ironically, things are getting dangerous in the midst of the Calm, and no more so than for Akihito.

Although this event should theoretically be responsible for weakening youmu, in Akihito's case it appears to be doing the opposite, with his human half weakening considerably and thus allowing the youmu half of his being to take over - no wonder he's the source of so much interest.  While various

Arpeggio of Blue Steel: Ars Nova - Episode 8

Repaired and refreshed at their island home of Iwoto they might be, but Gunzou and his growing team now find themselves surrounded and with nowhere to run, as Kengou and Maya close in on them.  Their base may be well fortified thanks to Hyuuga's efforts, but can it really withstand this kind of offensive?

However, it seems that Chihaya has no intention of allowing himself to be besieged, or

Monogatari Second Season - Episode 21

Now that my eyes are just about dry after last week's emotional farewell, we move forward into the final story arc of Monogatari Second Second season.

This time around, our tale is being told by Kaiki, meaning that - as he succinctly points out - we really don't know how much of it is the truth or how much of it is a lie.  Anyhow, the story begins on New Year's Day, where Kaiki's reverie (if you

White Album 2 - Episode 8

The school festival is over and Hazuki's heart has been won... or has it?

Certainly, he has at least accepted Setsuna's confession, even if she's feeling incredibly guilty about it and the fact that she feels that she's "stolen" him from Kazusa - not that Touma is having any of this, which only serves to further cement the bonds between the two of them.  Indeed, it seems as if nothing has

Little Busters! Refrain - Episode 8

Trying to recreate the Little Busters from their recent adventures as a baseball team have proved fruitless, but that isn't the end of the matter for Riki, as he sets his sights on going back even further into the group's history to effectively recreate it from the very start.

After quizzing Rin on how Kyousuke started the Little Busters, he learns that his first target is to be Masato, although

Space Brothers - Episode 83

Paired together in their underwater NEEMO training, Mutta and Kenji seemed to be a perfect team - a combination that would take them all the way to the Moon.  At least, that's what they thought....

Having been informed that, in fact, only one of the two of them will be selected from their team for the next lunar mission, the atmosphere suddenly changes markedly, and while Mutta seems to almost

Galilei Donna - Episode 7

In spite of their globe-trotting adventures, was the Galilei Tesoro really being carried around by Hozuki the entire time?  It certainly seems that way, but perhaps there's more to this enigmatic legacy of Galileo's than meets the eye.  Regardless, the same can certainly be said of Alice, as we get full confirmation of the fact that she's been working with Roberto and Adni Moon all along,

Samurai Flamenco - Episode 7

Between them, Samurai Flamenco and the Flamenco Girls have been doing a sterling job... perhaps a little too good a job, given that criminals now seem to be few and far between.


Ironically, this proves to be rather frustrating for all and sundry - Hazama is left pondering what to do next, Mari is climbing up the walls without any crotches to stomp on, the hunt to reveal any of the hero's

Kill la Kill - Episode 8

Having inadvertently aided Satsuki in her plan to refresh the student council and Gou uniform owners with her whole Fight Club idea, Ryuuko now finds another tantalising carrot dangled in front of her in the form of a survival game-cum-general election (or General Selection, as Kiryuin would rather have it) to pick the best of the best in a free-for-all involving the entire student body.

While

Golden Time - Episode 8

This week's episode of Golden Time begins with some further dipping into Banri and Linda's past to fill in more of the blanks in their prior relationship (if there were any such blanks still to be filled in).

Any such musings are interrupted by Koko's report that Mitsuo is in trouble, sending Banri to his rescue in her stead - a smart move perhaps, as his ability to improvise and overact on the

Coppelion - Episode 8

Trying to get a heavily pregnant woman in labour to a hospital isn't really the time to be dealing with any distractions, but that's exactly what Naruse and company have to deal with in this week's Coppelion.

With every route blocked by the mysterious appearance of canisters of high-level nuclear waste, the group eventually comes across the origin of these obstructions - two girls in school

Nagi no Asukara - Episode 8

Having survived the trials and tribulations associated with their difficult decision to leave for the surface, Akari and Hikari are all set to begin their new lives, however awkward those first steps might be.

Indeed, their first evening at the home of Akari's boyfriend and daughter Miura is a classic case of nobody knowing quite how to act and what to say, while any attempt for Hikari to be

Beyond the Boundary - Episode 8

Everything has settled down for Mirai now that her issues with Sakura have been resolved (so much so that the two now effectively act like sisters around one another), and with news spreading that the Calm is on its way, surely there's nothing left to be worried about?

For a Spirit World Warrior like Mirai this is perhaps true, but the impending Calm is problematic for others, marking a period

Arpeggio of Blue Steel: Ars Nova - Episode 7

Its back to the water we go for the start of this week's Arpeggio of Blue Steel, as the I-401 returns to the sea for a journey "home"... and this time, she's bringing a trio of new guests with her.

Upon arriving at Chihaya's carefully hidden dock, Iwoto, it appears that it perhaps wasn't quite so carefully hidden as they have an unexpected guest waiting for them in the form of Takao.  Of course,

Monogatari Second Season - Episode 20

With Shinobu missing and the instinct danger tormenting them liable to show up again at any time, Koyomi and company have finally managed to track down Izuko Gaen in search of help with their current quandary... or perhaps I should say that Gaen has tracked them down.

Given that she claims to know everything, it seems that nobody is better placed to inform Araragi et al how to defeat their

White Album 2 - Episode 7

It's the day of the festival at last, and everything is running smoothly, assuming you're happy to discount Touma's complaints about the outfit chosen for her.

This week's instalment wastes no time in getting the light music club take to the stage, allowing us to watch the increasingly enraptured crowd taking in two of the three songs that make up their set list, as well as Setsuna's MC'ing

Little Busters! Refrain - Episode 7

Their attempt to run away ending in failure, it seems that everything has changed as this seventh episode of Little Busters! Refrain begins.

Perhaps the most marked shift here belongs to Kyousuke, who returns from job-hunting in Tokyo a broken man with no interest in his friends, instead locking himself away in his room, reading manga, and generally being decidedly emo.  Things aren't much

Space Brothers - Episode 82

Kenji and Mutta's undersea training and testing continues apace, but first this week's Space Brothers treats us to some very good news for both Serika and Ena.

For the main focus of this instalment however, the three teams engaged in NEEMO training receive their first mission - to build a 1:3 scale model of a moon base, which they can base upon either an existing design or by creating one of

Samurai Flamenco - Episode 6

Samurai Flamenco and Flamenco Girl have parted ways, but despite their differences neither of them seem to have any intention of backing away from their lives of crime-fighting.

Indeed, in Maya's case she's actually somehow managed to rope her fellow idols into joining her to create a trio of crime-fighting heroines - three peas in a pod... at least until Maya manages to persuade Goto to drop by

Golden Time - Episode 7

Nothing punctuates a confession of love quite like being arrested for theft immediately after - well, it certainly makes for a memorable event if nothing else...

So it goes that Koko's confession to Banri is quickly followed by her arrest for the bicycle she stole to chase after Banri, leading to some time in questioning followed by the rite of passage that is having your father come to collect

Kill la Kill - Episode 7

What's a girl got to do to get some peace and quiet?  As if having her bath time interrupted by the peeping Toms which make up her surrogate family isn't bad enough, Matoi's lunch breaks at school seem to leave little time for eating in the midst of the constant attacks from low-rent school clubs desperate to prove their worth by defeating her.

As the saying goes, "when you can't beat them, join

Galilei Donna - Episode 6

It's Hazuki's turn to be injured courtesy of the fallout from last week's episode of Galilei Donna, leaving Hozuki with no other alternative than to set a course for the nearest hospital despite their status as fugitives.  If only you'd brought the homeless guy with the magic medical robot along with you, eh?

Speaking of homeless people, this week's episode also delves into the back story of two

Nagi no Asukara - Episode 7

After all of the various trials and tribulations surrounding its creation, the Ojoshi is finally complete - cue celebrations from those responsible for crafting it, be they from the sea and the surface.

In fact, so proud are those involved that a stirring of a more fundamental desire springs forth - these kids want to use the fruit of their labours to resurrect the Ofunehiki festival that has

Coppelion - Episode 7

Things have gone decidedly sideways in the latest attempt to rescue Aoi, and although this member of the Coppelion team is now safe, it seems to have come at a great cost to Ibara.

With a shrapnel wound, heavy blood loss and in cardiac arrest, it takes everything that Haruto and the rag-tag collective around him have got to stabilise her so that they can return her to The Planet for surgery and

Beyond the Boundary - Episode 7

With its idol-esque shenanigans out of the way, in this week's Beyond the Boundary Mitsuki joins HND48... at least, in Hiromi's dreams she does.

That aside, Mirai's never-ending cavalcade of problems continues, as it becomes clear that Sakura Inami is about to transfer to her school - and into her class no less.  This wouldn't be such a problem is Sakura wasn't still so dead-set on wreaking

Arpeggio of Blue Steel: Ars Nova - Episode 6

Never mind the pair of mental models on their doorstep, the armed forces have only one target in mind as this week's Arpeggio of Blue Steel begins - little kid-cum-artificial intelligence Makie.

Having befriended her however, Haruna in particular has no intentions of letting Makie come to harm at anyone's hands, and thus she sets about attacking the forces which have come to dispatch this child

Monogatari Second Season - Episode 19

Shinobu's long tale about her past, and her previous encounter with the mysterious "darkness", may be over, but it seems that we're still no closer to finding a solution to the crisis currently facing Araragi and company.

However, perhaps three heads are better than two, as rather than going off to return to work as she'd previously suggested it seems that Ononoki has been handing around to

White Album 2 - Episode 6

Whether it's through overwork, stress or plain old organic illness, Touma's collapse isn't exactly good news with the school festival only a couple of days away.


Having not turned up to school or answered her phone, it's Haruki who comes to the rescue and finds Touma in a heap, and he sets about skipping both school and the light music club's first rehearsal to look after his old friend and

Little Busters! Refrain - Episode 6

As if having to say goodbye to Rin as part of her temporary transfer of schools wasn't bad enough, Riki also has to swallow the fact that the entire thing - and indeed the entire history of the Little Busters - was manufactured by Kyousuke as a way to help Rin in growing up and maturing.

Although Naoe has no problem with that concept in and of itself, the way Kyousuke has gone about it leaves

Space Brothers - Episode 81

To get closer to his ultimate goal, Mutta must first move further away from it, as the latest step in his training to reach the Moon sees him move deep underwater for NEEMO training.

As part of a group of trainee astronauts, Mutta is thrilled to find himself paired up with Kenji alongside a couple of more experienced individuals, both of whom seem to be rather dismissive of the newcomers.  What

Samurai Flamenco - Episode 5

The double-act of Samurai Flamenco and Flamenco Girl remains at the cutting edge of crime-fighting, although even amongst the criminal fraternity interest has piqued far more in the latter than the former, not least because the bounty on Flamenco Girl's head is twice that of her predecessor at this point in time.

All of this is enough for Hazama to start seriously questioning where he should go

Kill la Kill - Episode 6

Having seen the true extent of Matoi's powers, it seems that Kiryuin isn't in the mood to mess around any longer, ordering in a bulk load of Life Fibres, seemingly with a view towards creating even more Goku Uniforms and club presidents to sport them.

Before all that however, Satsuki is asked for a favour from a former rival and now one of the school's so-called Elite Four, Uzu Sanageyama.  

Golden Time - Episode 6

This week's Golden Time begins by allowing us to dig a little deeper into Banri's pre-accident memories, giving us a view into the life of a far weaker boy than the one we now see before us, and also one besotted with Linda, only to find his confession to her put on hold until the following day.  A day which effectively never came.


Of course, moving back to the present day Linda is continuing

Galilei Donna - Episode 5

It's off to the Netherlands we go - the home of clocks and interesting cheeses, as our goldfish AI helpfully informs us.

As we see the Adni Moon company being asked awkward questions by the press as their self-serving schemes seemingly become more evident, the Ferrari sisters quickly come unstuck as they land in the Netherlands once they find themselves walking straight into a group of armed

Nagi no Asukara - Episode 6

This week's episode of Nagi no Asukara begins by bringing a rather unique experience to the school-goers of Shioshishio - a swimming lesson.

Needless to say, those who reside under the sea aren't used to the etiquette of getting changed, wearing swimsuits, or even warming up before jumping into the water, leaving them with plenty of alien territory to tentatively explore - in fact, when it comes

Coppelion - Episode 6

Taeko may be injured, but that aside all is well within the temporary safety of The Planet as this week's Coppelion begins.

However, "temporary" is the operative word here, and it's no time at all before the 1st Division come knocking on their front door.  This might not be such a big deal normally were it not for Aoi answering the front door and being summarily taken hostage - after announcing

Beyond the Boundary - Episode 6

Mirai has her youmu hunting license back, and with most of her money spent on bonsai trees boy does she need it.  Then again, given her opponent in this week's Beyond the Boundary, perhaps there's more to life than money after all...

Such thoughts are far from Mirai's mind as she's offered the chance to defeat a youmu worth half a million Yen however, and what's more it's a fruit-based creature

Arpeggio of Blue Steel: Ars Nova - Episode 5

Haruna and Kirishima may have been defeated in last week's episode of Arpeggio of Blue Steel, but they haven't been entirely destroyed, which proves to be an important development in events this week.

Having been discovered unconscious (can an AI be unconscious?), Haruna finds herself in the care of an impressively large and lavish house which seems to be mostly empty but for a made and a young

Monogatari Second Season - Episode 18

Settle down and make yourself comfortable, as it's story time with Shinobu in this week's episode of Monogatari Second Season.

In short, this instalment is all about Shinobu's past as Kiss-shot Acerola-orion Heart-under-blade, and more specifically her previous visit to Japan.  Having arrived from the Antarctic via a single, mighty leap, her landing in a lake near an area of drought saw her

White Album 2 - Episode 5

Just when everything was going so well, all it takes is a pesky toothbrush to get in the way...

It's this toothbrush which tells Ogiso that Haruki hasn't been entirely forthcoming about his recent movements, and more specifically that he's been staying at Touma's house despite having never mentioned it to her.  Seething with jealousy and a more simple disappointment that she was kept out of the

Little Busters! Refrain - Episode 5

All that purportedly now sits between Rin, Riki and the secret of the world is a spot of volunteering at school - what could possibly go wrong here?

So, with this final task delivered by Lennon at hand, this new couple steps up to the plate and volunteers when required of them by their homeroom teacher.  It turns out that what they're volunteering for is the duty of escorting an inspector and

Space Brothers - Episode 80

Returning home early from his rehabilitation in Russia at NASA's behest, it seems as if Hibito's career is at a low ebb at just the moment that Mutta's own ambitions are about to receive a major boost.

With the first prototype of the new lunar buggy he helped to design now ready to roll, Mutta gets the call that he really wasn't expecting at this point in time - the call to join a team of a

Samurai Flamenco - Episode 4

From his humble beginnings, it seems that Samurai Flamenco is moving up in the world as he starts dealing with purse-snatchers and "proper" crimes instead of harassing people for putting out the trash too early.

With his training at the hands of Joji Kaname, Hazama certainly seems to be getting the hang of the whole hero thing, leading him to go on patrol in a particularly seedy and dangerous

Golden Time - Episode 5

Banri's return home has proved to be rather a confusing one for him - spurred on by a seemingly random comment from Linda, a hunt through his old possessions seems to suggest beyond all doubt that she knew him - and was very close to him in fact - before amnesia struck him and his memories.

Not that there's all that much time to digest this possibility, as Koko is as ebullient as ever - indeed,

Galilei Donna - Episode 4

The search for the Galileo Tesoro is on - first stop, Germany!

Upon landing at their desired location, it quickly becomes clear that a park has recently been built over the land where the first clue to this treasure is hidden, which looks likely to make finding it difficult.  In fact, all the girls can find within the park is a homeless man on the scrounge for food, and upon helping him out they

Kill la Kill - Episode 5

After last week's frivolity, it's back to school for Matoi - but it seems she's being watched through the scope of a sniper, and more to the point by a man named Tsugumu Kinagase.

It soon becomes clear that Kinagase is not someone to be trifled with as he quickly and easily dispatches a Goku Uniform gardening club head without a second though, and the next thing we know he's given Mako a little

Nagi no Asukara - Episode 5

It's decision time for Akari as the future of her relationship comes to a head in this week's Nagi no Asukara - mind you, it seems as if the wheels are now well and truly in motion for some of the other romantic entanglements portrayed by the series too.

Most notably, Chisaki has not so much put her foot in it as thrust her entire leg into an open wound, as an impromptu admittance Tsumugu about

Coppelion - Episode 5

Now that the rescue of Professor Shiba has been completed, a clean-up operation is beginning of the toxic waste that has been found dumped in the city and all appears to be well - or at least as well as it can be in an irradiated city.

Any such sense of tranquility doesn't last long however, and before we know it a tank has appeared to shoot down one of the modified helicopters charged with

Beyond the Boundary - Episode 5

The Hollow Shadow (or whatever it was that attacked the town) might have been defeated, but there's now a new danger for Mirai to face - joining the literature club and its pair of male members who waste no time in proving that they have mastered the art of sexual harassment.


Still, this isn't the only thing of note going on in the lives of the main cast in the wake of the previous episode, as

White Album 2 - Episode 4

With the main trio of their new band now assembled, it's time for the real hard work to begin for the light music club with the school festival fast approaching.

Luckily for Haruki, Touma is both a decent teacher and an incredibly hard taskmaster who simply refuses to give up as her new club-mate fumbles over the same parts of the song over and over again - indeed, quite a rapport seems to be

Space Brothers - Episode 79

Is this the end of the road for Hibito's career in space?  It certainly seems that way as he received the fateful call to return to the US and NASA with his rehabilitation still very much incomplete.

Much to the frustration of Ivan, there's nothing he or his higher-ups can suggest to prevent Hibito's departure, and it goes without saying that Olga isn't exactly thrilled to learn that he'll be

Little Busters! Refrain - Episode 4

Kurugaya seems to have vanished without a trace, but it's some of her parting words that are playing on Riki's mind as this week's Little Busters! Refrain begins - a demand that he look after Rin.

This request is brought into relief yet further by a stalker of Naoe revealing herself before dealing him an impromptu confession to ponder.  Happy though he is to find a cute girl telling him that she

Arpeggio of Blue Steel: Ars Nova - Episode 4

Although it had hardly been a happy homecoming for Chihaya and his crew in the first place, things look set to become a whole lot more uncomfortable as the port of Yokosuka finds itself the subject of a concerted attack by a pair of Fog battleships.

This deadly duo, known as Haruna and Kirishima to Iori, have no qualms about laying waste to everything that they see before them, and with the

Monogatari Second Season - Episode 17

It's time for Shinobu to take centre stage once again - well, not that she truly arrives until late in this episode, but then again this instalment also promises a journey four hundred years into her past but we haven't quite arrive there yet either.

Anyhow, our real focus for much of this episode sees Koyomi spending some time with Hachikuji, and more specifically seeking to return her backpack

Golden Time - Episode 4

Linda and her festival club's appearance ensured that Kaga and Banri were saved from the perils of the religious cult into which they have stumbled, but have either of them learned anything about pouring their hearts out to one another in the wake of that disastrous "club trip".

Well, no, it seems - having sent Kaga a text to find out whether she was okay during that incident, it seems that

Neneko-chan Kawaii

I'd like to dedicate this next post to Neneko, a Taiwainese cosplayer which has caught my eye over last couple of years. Her amazing cosplay is always spot on, my favourite has to be Kirino Kouska, from the anime Ore No Imouto.




Samurai Flamenco - Episode 3

Samurai Flamenco is becoming a YouTube sensation, and as you might expect this quickly starts to cause some issues for Hazama when it comes to preserving the secret of his true identity.

Most pressing of these issues is Ishihara, who is beginning to have very definite suspicions about what her charge is up to, even though he dnies outright to her face (and her death threats) that he isn't

Nagi no Asukara - Episode 4

As if Akari's romantic entanglement with someone from the land wasn't tough enough, we now learn that the man in question has a daughter of his own, which only succeeds in further inflaming Hikari's ire.

However, and perhaps surprisingly for him, rather than take action at the behest of said daughter and her friend, he chooses to simply walk away.  Unfortunately, this isn't a habitual reaction

Kill la Kill - Episode 4

Does Senketsu come with washing instructions?  Can he be tumble dried?  Is he suitable for ironing?  So many important questions that we have to face as this week's Kill la Kill begins.

Unfortunately, it seems that Mako's mother has little concerns about such things, and thus Matoi awakens to find Senketsu being thoroughly washed, meaning that there's nothing for it than to for her to go to

Galilei Donna - Episode 3

The Ferrari sisters have escaped their pursuers for the time being, and their father is also on the run, but it seems that their mother hasn't been quite so luckily...

We learn this as the true face of the family's nemesis becomes clear - outwardly, they're a respectable company named Adni Moon, but beneath that businesslike exterior resides their darker face, Messier, a group responsible for

Coppelion - Episode 4

Trained in combat or not, most people would leave an escaping stealth bomber well alone - not so Ibara and company, who are keen to give chase against the mysterious individuals who landed said bomber in the middle of the city.

Then again, when you have a guided rocket launcher to hand, maybe chasing after the bomber in a jeep isn't such a crazy idea - cue the obligatory (but really rather

Beyond the Boundary - Episode 4

Despite all advice to the contrary, Mirai has headed off alone to defeat the Hollow Shadow - luckily for her she isn't entirely alone, as inevitably Akihito has taken it upon himself to follow her.

Although he manages to save Mirai from her immediate fate and an unexpected enemy, escaping the clutches of the Hollow Shadow itself is another matter entirely, and it's a problem which only becomes

Monogatari Second Season - Episode 16

With Nadeko's story arc not at all resolved but put on the back burner until a later date, it's back to the recap episodes for this episode of Monogatari Second Season.




More precisely, this episode takes us back through the events of Nisemonogatri at break-neck speed - something which still doesn't really suit this series where the execution is usually more entertaining than the pay-off.  

Arpeggio of Blue Steel: Ars Nova - Episode 3

With Takao defeated in impressive fashion, the I-401 and her crew can continue onto their destination, which marks a return home for Gunzou and company as they dock in the port of Yokosuka, now impressively fortified to protect against the Fog.

With the resupply of food and munitions underway, but the supergravity cannon beyond repair with the materials currently at their disposal, Chihaya

White Album 2 - Episode 3

The mystery pianist has been revealed, and it's none other than the girl who sits right next to Haruki in class!

Indeed, perhaps more notable here is that the girl in question, Kazusa Touma, is in fact a long-standing friend of Haruki's - or perhaps we should say was a long-standing friend, as they don't really talk much these days.  Despite being the girl who taught him to play guitar in the

Little Busters! Refrain - Episode 3

What looked like a case of déjà vu on Riki's part has now escalated far beyond that, as he finds himself reliving the 20th of June over and over and over again - a series of events that led to me suffering from brief flashbacks to Endless Eight.

Although most of those around him seem to have no recollection of previous instances of the same day, Kurugaya also seems to be experiencing the same

Space Brothers - Episode 78

Hibichov... err, Hibito... has seen Olga's clumsy first steps into ballet, followed by the finished product and rising star that she is now.  But how did she come to reach these heights of her talent?

It's something for Hibito to ponder as he finds Olga hanging out with him, heading out on a "date" with him where he ends up buying her coffee and boots.  Unfortunately, her father won't divulge

Golden Time - Episode 3

Having had her complaints about being left alone with nobody to talk to at university heard, Koko has herself a club to join thanks to Banri, and without further ado it's time to set off on what promises to be an enjoyable club getaway with both new and existing members of this vague but intriguing outfit.

However, the reason for the lack of clarity surrounding this club quickly becomes clear,

Galilei Donna - Episode 2

When it comes to conflict resolution, it's hard to beat a flying, mechanised goldfish, and thanks to Hozuki any immediate threat to her family has been well and truly been quelled, damage to the family home and surroundings be damned.

Indeed, the rest of the Ferrari family are beyond impressed with both Hozuki's guts and her engineering ability as they quiz her on the origins of her machine -

Kill la Kill - Episode 3

This third episode of Kill la Kill begins by offering us a rare moment to get into the head of antagonist Satsuki Kiryuin - or at least it lets us see the object of her desires, a garment which seems not entirely dissimilar to that discovered and sported by Matoi, and a piece of clothing promised to Satsuki as the head of the family upon her marriage.

Meanwhile, Matoi herself is looking to find

Pokemon X and Y


Last week, The Pokémon Company released
Pokémon X and Pokémon Y for the Nintendo
3DS. In Japan, the pair of games collectively
sold 1.86 million copies at retail in their first
week on the market.

Additionally, Japanese sales tracker Media
Create provide a very interesting tidbit about
the two games in their latest weekly sales
report: The majority of people that bought
Pokémon X and Pokémon Y at launch in Japan
were college students, the reason being that
school kids have been busy with exams.
This demonstrates the continuation of an
ongoing trend. Since the release of Pokémon
HeartGold/SoulSilver , the Pokémon audience
has gradually been expanding to include more
older players. In fact, at the time of Pokémon
Black/White’s launch in 2010, first-week sales
were divided among a broad spectrum of
gamers ranging from very young children to
people aged 19 – 24.

So, in the case of Pokémon X and Pokémon Y,
where school kids were preoccupied with
exams, Pokémon’s older fanbase picked up the
slack. In the weeks ahead, it should be
interesting to see how sales hold up, since
more kids will be free to buy the games, and
Media Create recently reported that Monster
Hunter 4 has begun selling to younger players
now, too. That means the two games will likely
initially compete with each other for people’s
money.

Food for thought:
Interestingly, Animal Crossing has been
following the same trend as Pokémon , and
amassing a greater number of players between
the ages of 19 – 24. The primary difference is
that a greater portion of Animal Crossing’s
audience consists of women.




Samurai Jack Comic Book Covers
(2013) Photoshop
IDW Publishing 
These are variant covers for subscription customers only.





Superman shorts for DC Nation
(2013) Photoshop
Cartoon Network
Genndy Tartakovsky, Justin Thompson and I were very
excited to do our take on an animated Superman but 
unfortunately it was pulled from us just as we were starting.

Samurai Flamenco - Episode 2

Humble though his beginnings might be, but Samurai Flamenco is continuing to fight against evil as best he knows how... even if this knowledge is limiting him to telling people not to put out their rubbish at the wrong time amongst other things.

No matter how pure his motivations, it seems as if a lot of people are getting the wrong idea about what Samurai Flamenco is up to in some shape or form

Nagi no Asukara - Episode 3

Hikari's sister is in hot water (with no pun intended) now that her relationship with a boy from the surface has been discovered - as she's lectured by the elders, is she prepared to give up on her under-sea life, or instead abandon her love?

Inevitably, Hikari isn't exactly the type to leave well alone as this scenario pans out, and after a "strategy meeting" which ends up with him hearing

Coppelion - Episode 3

The events of the previous episode are clearly still resounding with Ibara as this third instalment of Coppelion begins - there's little time to fret over those events however, as another mission quickly comes their way.

Put simply, the trio's latest task is to find the "delivery man" who has been bringing aid to numerous survivors within this post-apocalyptic wasteland, and with the group

White Album 2 - Episode 2

Haruki's usual impromptu duet with a pianist in the adjoining music room has suddenly been complemented by some unknown vocalist with a beautiful voice - you can hardy blame him, then, for rushing to the rooftop to find its source.

Of course, we could already have guessed who the owner of that voice would be - none other than Setsuna Ogiso.  Despite his better judgement, he asks her to join the

Beyond the Boundary - Episode 3

Having made her position as not only a loner but also (in her mind) a murderer, Mirai continues to go it alone while shunning the help of those around her...

...unless it comes to the prospect of receiving a 10,000 Yen bill, that is.  It seems that money is still a weak spot for Mirai even as she refuses to except any assistance when it comes to either her life or her youmu hunting.  This looks

Space Brothers - Episode 77

Hibito is at an all-time low as this latest instalment of Space Brothers begins - so much so that he isn't even turning up to his training-cum-rehabilitation any more, and to all intents and purposes it seems as though he's given up on any hope of recovery.


Although Ivan isn't the type to call his temporary subordinate in and force him to attend his rehabilitation sessions, he does have a

Arpeggio of Blue Steel: Ars Nova - Episode 2

As this second episode of Arpeggio of Blue Steel opens, there's a formidable challenge on the horizon for Gunzou and Iona being posed by the Fleet of Fog.


As a typhoon rages overhead, the threat in question is posed by another of the Fog's war vessels known as Takao, and we join the battle to find that said vessel is unerringly destroying any decoy ships that Iona happens to toss into their

Little Busters! Refrain - Episode 2

Naoe's latest bout of narcolepsy seems to have brought with it a strange sense of deja-vu - not that this is his major concern, as he awakes to find that Kurugaya has been taking care of him during his sleep.

Being the person that she is, it seems that Kurugaya can't resist teasing and flirting with Naoe, making him increasingly flustered before telling him that she likes him.  Naturally, this

Monogatari Second Season - Episode 15

Nadeko has found what she's looking for on behalf of Kuchinawa, but unfortunately for her this discovery also coincides with Araragi returning home, and needless to say he's keen to stop her from doing anything foolish.

As Koyomi pleads with Sengoku to put the talisman she's found down, our protagonist for this story arc seem to have little intent of doing so.  Such is the severity of the

Catherine nurse cosplay

Catherine (キャサリン Kyasarin ? ) is a puzzle-platformer adventure video game developed by atlus Persona Team and published by Atlus for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. It is Atlus'first internally developed game for seventh- generation consoles in high definition, and is described as an " adult-oriented " title by the game's character designer, Shigenori Soejima Here are a couple of awesome cosplay photos I think youll like from cosplayer Kioyomi



Golden Time - Episode 2

It's one week on from the start of college life, and Koko still hasn't let up in her persistent attempts to follow Mitsuo everywhere that he goes - similarly, Mistuo certainly has no intention of falling in with Kaga and does everything in his powers to avoid her.

As a result, Banri starts to find himself feeling rather sorry for Koko - with her expensive tastes in clothing and the demeanour she

Nagi no Asukara - Episode 2

Manaka's firsh curse problem seems to have resolved itself the morning after a difficult day - but then again, maybe she didn't want it to go away after all, as we discover that Tsumugu was rather taken with it.


Of course, any kind of friendship Manaka might have with Tsumugu is incredibly problematic when it comes to the over-protective Hikari, who wastes no time in warning this

Samurai Flamenco - Episode 1

It isn't every day that you run into a superhero; it's even less frequent to run into one whose hiding naked behind some bins.

This, however, is exactly the situation that off-duty policeman Hidenori Goto finds himself in as he stumbles across said naked man who claims to be a superhero.  As if this wasn't bad enough, Goto's lit cigarette ends up setting our supposed hero's discarded costume

Kill la Kill - Episode 2

Come the end of the first episode of Kill la Kill, Matoi has won herself an opportunity to quiz her nemesis Satsuki about the death of her father - the trouble is, the amount of blood consumed by the school uniform which fuels her power means that she's also about toi pass out, meaning that she has to beat a tactical retreat.

Collapsing in town while making this mistake, Matoi is luckily taken

Galilei Donna - Episode 1

A ship sails through the sky, dropping a decidedly deadly cargo upon an unsuspected mine, with the giant robots unleashed by said craft blowing the whole place to smithereens.

Alongside this, it seems that whoever has a penchant for blue ships isn't doing much for the reputation, as the next thing we see is three very different girls finding themselves simultaneously under threat of being

Coppelion - Episode 2

With wolves on the prowl and Taeko missing, things seems to be going a little awry all of a sudden for Coppelion's genetically engineered high school school girls.

Indeed, things quickly go from bad to worse as they find their colleague only to discover that she's been taken hostage by a man demanding the return of their daughter.  Luckily, Ibara is both skillful and quick-witted enough to both

Beyond the Boundary - Episode 2

Having persuaded Mirai to deal with the youmu in her home, this probably isn't the best time for Akihito to be spacing out in some kind of dark nightmare - luckily for him, she at least has enough presence of mind to save him from said youmu while he's away with the fairies.


However, actually catching the little begger proves to be rather more difficult, especially given Mirai's strange blend

Arpeggio of Blue Steel: Ars Nova - Episode 1

On a future Earth decimated by global warming, things have only been made worse by the appearance of an unidentified alien force known only as the Fleet of Fog who have systematically taken control of the seas and destroyed most human communication capabilities.  In other words, humanity is in rather a tight spot.


There is, however, one hope for mankind, and that's the I-401 - a Fog submarine

Space Brothers - Episode 76

This week in Space Brothers, NASA is closed due to the government shutdown so we instead move to Russia for our entertainment instead.

Okay okay, so that isn't the actual reason - rather, we join Hibito in Russia as he seeks to overcome his panic disorder as it relates to wearing a spacesuit, in the hope that a change of scenery will do him good.  Once there, Hibito finds himself in the charge

Monogatari Second Season - Episode 14

After a good night's sleep in Koyomi's bed, Nadeko finds herself awakening next to the unexpected presence of Araragi...

...Tsukihi Araragi, that is.  Although it seems a little too early in the morning to be concerned with such things, Tsukihi is keen to know why Nadeko is there, and this only escalates when she reacts negatively to the suggestion that she might be cute on account of Shinobu's

White Album 2 - Episode 1

Set ten years after the original White Album and sharing very little other than a broad timeline and the evolution of its titular song, White Album 2 arrives this autumn with the time-honoured tradition of beginning at what seems to be the end of the story, as we see a trio of characters playing at a school festival.

From here, we rewind to properly meet our protagonist, Haruki Kitahara - a

Little Busters! Refrain - Episode 1

Just as Clannad had its After Story, so Little Busters has its Refrain, meaning that this autumn sees this Key visual novel adaptation continue as it reunites its cast of students and their baseball team that isn't.

Despite suffering from a strange dream in which someone seemed to be crying out for his help, Naoe awakens to find some fun times ahead, courtesy of the first ever Little Busters

Nagi no Asukara - Episode 1

Who lives in a pineapple under the sea?  Nobody in Nagi no Asukara, because they all have proper houses and stuff to reside in.

As you may have guessed, the main cast of this new series from the autumn live beneath the ocean waves, as part of a small but still notable species of not-quite humans who have the ability to breathe underwater despite otherwise looking identical to your everyday human

Golden Time - Episode 1

It's a time of new beginnings for Banri Tada - the start of university life, the start of his time in Tokyo, and the start of a spell living alone.  You could almost say that it's a Golden Time for Banri.

At least, you might be able to if he wasn't making such a pig's ear out of the start of that university life.  Having managed to miss the establishment's opening ceremony, he's also struggling

Kill la Kill - Episode 1

It's the show everyone has been talking about incessantly ever since its announcement, and now its opening episode is finally here - boy, does Kill la Kill have a lot of expectations to live up to this autumn.

This first episode quickly introduces us to Honnouji Academy, a school with a decidedly strict regime of discipline - then again, when students are running around with tear gas maybe

Coppelion - Episode 1

Seeing three school girls wandering into a desolate wasteland of a city is an incongruous one at the best of times.  It is, however, entirely more so when that city is Tokyo.

As this opening episode of Coppelion progresses, it becomes clear that this trio are no ordinary school girls, but rather genetically engineered children designed to be immune to the radiation... errr, sorry, "unexplained

Beyond the Boundary - Episode 1

When Akihito Kanbara sees a fellow student looking all set to jump off the school roof, he does what anybody would do - rushes to the rooftop to coax her down.  In return, this bespectacled girl does what anyone would do in this situation - she jumps over the fence and stabs her saviour straight through the heart.

Luckily for Kanbara, he's no ordinary human, but rather half-human and half-youmu,

The Eccentric Family - Episode 13 (Completed)

As we reach the finale of The Eccentric Family, the tanuki elite and the Friday Fellows are now sharing adjacent rooms in the Sensuiro restaurant.  What could possibly go wrong?

Needless to say, tempers are flaring on the tanuki side of the partition, with Yaichirou not slow to reel off the list of accusations against his uncle, who of course denies them all fervently even with Yajirou on-hand

Monogatari Second Season - Episode 13

Despite accepting his offer of help, as this week's episode of Monogatari Second Season begins we see that Nadeko has instead decided to eschew any assistance from her "big brother" now that she knows the true face of the snake which seems to have been haunting her, making her excuses so that she can go it alone and do Kuchinawa's bidding.

Put simply, Kuchinawa is looking for his body, and he

A Certain Scientific Railgun S - Episode 24 (Completed)

Aritomi and company's plan is about to enter full swing, with 20,000 remote controlled powered suits at the forefront of their assault - surely this is too much for Misaka and her friends to handle?

It most certainly is... but then again that isn't really a problem when they can also call on the rest of their fellow students to assemble en masse and task them with containing these powered suits

Attack on Titan - Episode 25 (Completed)

It came later than planned, but Eren has finally succeeded in taking on his Titan form - but can he really defeat Annie in her own Titan form this time around?

If nothing else, it seems that Annie has given up on trying to capture Eren again and is instead intent upon making good her escape - something which a now-furious Eren has no intention of allowing her to do.  The result is utter chaos,

Genshiken Second Season - Episode 13 (Completed)

Madarame quitting his job was certainly something of a shock, but just how badly has his decision affected Hato?  With the club's resident cross-dresser not visiting Madarame or the Genshiken, or even answering his phone, something is clearly amiss.

Fortuitously however, it just so happens to be time for a club trip, making for a perfect excuse to all-but force Hato to participate, even if that

il sole penetra le illusioni ~ Day Break Illusion - Episode 13 (Completed)

As all and sundry around her try to save Akari from Cerebrum's plan, Akari herself seems to be at breaking point in her psychological battle with her own painful memories as she relives Fuyuna's descent into a Daemonia over and over again.

However, breaking point or not she seems to have reached a breakthrough in terms of her understanding of Fuyuna and why things transpired the way that they

Space Brothers - Episode 75

Mutta has pulled off the vertical roll climb right in front of NASA's chief as planned, but he isn't done yet with his aerobatic attempts.

Part two of his masterplan involves getting the attention of Serika, and what better way to do that than by drawing a heart in the sky?  Certainly, Serika is suitably impressed... the trouble is, a delay to her shuttle bus means that she doesn't see said

Danganronpa - Episode 13 (Completed)

Now that the mastermind behind their incarceration has been revealed, it's time for the remaining students of Hope Peak's Academy to learn the truth behind their situation as they face their final challenge.

Although those gathered believe that they've only spent two short weeks at the school, the truth is rather different - they've actually been classmates for two years prior to losing their

Servant x Service - Episode 13 (Completed)

Things seemed to be going so swimmingly at last between Hasebe and Yamagami... at least, they were until that revelation at the end of last week's penultimate episode of Servant x Service.

After announcing to his other co-workers (Lucy excluded, of course) that it was in fact Hasebe's father who signed off on her insane name, we get to dig a little into the reasons why - reasons which

WATAMOTE ~No Matter How I Look at It, It’s You Guys Fault I’m Not Popular!~ - Episode 12 (Completed)

The culture festival is over and winter is fast approaching, yet Tomoko still isn't popular.  Is it too late for her high school life to blossom?

Beyond this question is an equally pressing one of her future plans beyond high school - with no ideas of her own she calls Yuu for advice, only to be reminded that she spent her middle school years insistently telling her friend that she was going to

The Eccentric Family - Episode 12

Thanks to Kaisei's intervention at the end of last week's episode, it's up to Yashirou to save the day as the rest of his Eccentric Family are in dire straits.

All of them, that is, except for Yajirou - frog at the bottom of a well he might be, but Yashirou has a cunning plan to lure him out to help his brothers, and like all of the best cunning plans it involves alcohol.  Before we know it, the

Monogatari Second Season - Episode 12

Nadeko becomes the focus of Monogatari once again as a new story arc begins - despite reeling off a glut of information about her this isn't the Nadeko we know and love however, but a Nadeko Medusa (for that is the story arc's name) with snakes for hair and an overwhelming desire to kill Araragi; something it seems that she's more than capable of doing judging by the opening scenes of this

Genshiken Second Season - Episode 12

Now that everything between himself and Kasukabe has been aired and resolved, Madarame can relax and return to normality, right?

Well, not quite - as Keiko sees it, resolving the issue personally is only part of the solution, and she insist that he now goes and updates the rest of the Genshiken crew as to what has happened.  Of course, they already knew all about Madarame's unrequited feelins

Attack on Titan - Episode 24

As their plans to capture Annie go rather awry, this penultimate episode of Attack on Titan rewinds a little to see the formation of this plan, together with the flimsy but undeniable evidence provided by Armin which leads to its inception.  It's an inconvenient truth that Armin really doesn't want to believe, which proves to be an issue further down the line...

Having successfully morphed into

Space Brothers - Episode 74

His presentation for a new lunar rover design successfully completed and creating lots of excitement amongst the management, Mutta focuses his sights once again upon reaching the moon.

This desire is once again increasing in its urgency as letters from Sharon become rarer and with poorer handwriting, suggesting a deterioration in her condition.  Little does Mutta know that is that the chief is

il sole penetra le illusioni ~ Day Break Illusion - Episode 12

Cerebrum has laid out his terms for saving Luna and Seira to Akari, and the price for their survival is a high one... effectively, he wants to mate with her in return for their safety.

Akari being who she is however, it doesn't take too much hesitation before she agrees and finds herself whisked away to the Clessidra, a kind of limbo between the Astralux and the real world.  It's here that

Danganronpa - Episode 12

Danganronpa's series of cruel tests reaches its end-game this week, but the stakes are high with a requirement to not only unravel the mystery of the school's final murder, but also pinpoint and point the finger at the mastermind behind it all.

With the entire school now unlocked there's no time to lose, and Kirigiri and Naegi's first port of call is the principle's office - a location which

A Certain Scientific Railgun S - Episode 23

The villain of the piece has finally revealed himself to Misaka - not that she can do much about it, given that she's been temporarily paralyzed.

Although Aritomi isn't stupid enough to give away all of his plans to Misaka (which is surprising for a villain in itself), what is clear is that his frustration at Academy City's reliance upon espers over all else is about to boil over into an

Servant x Service - Episode 12

Lucy's big date is looming as this week's Servant x Service kicks off - but is her official clothing provider for said date Chihaya still going to be in a fit state to make her outfit?

With no shortage of cosplay outfit creation also on the go (and it seems that Chihaya is a fan of Attack on Titan amongst other things, incidentally), Chihaya is struggling to stay away let alone anything else,

Silver Spoon - Episode 11 (Completed)

It seems that Hachiken has become rather popular as this first season of Silver Spoon comes to a close - all the girls want to talk to him (to ask him for bacon) and all of the guys want to give him whatever foodstuffs he may desire (in return for bacon).  In short, bacon is clearly the best way to make friends and influence people.

With his first year at Ezonoo coming to an end, so thoughts

WATAMOTE ~No Matter How I Look at It, It’s You Guys Fault I’m Not Popular!~ - Episode 11

The culture festival is here, and needless to say Tomoko is finding it hard to manoeuvre herself into a position to do anything much as preparation for the big event picks up pace.

However, eventually Tomoko does manage to find sufficient reserves of self-confidence to ask to help with cutting some leaflets, a task which she plans to stretch out over the entire day until she's assigned some help

Monogatari Second Season - Episode 11

It's recap time again for Monogatari Second Season, and this time around we somehow manage to cover the entirety of Bakemonogatari in a single episode.  Or should we be calling it Monogatari First Season now?

Told complete with a voiceover from Araragi as he reminisces, the episode perhaps rightfully dedicates half of the episode to the show's first Hitagi Crab arc, complete with some snippets

The Eccentric Family - Episode 11

His fellow family members kidnapped and surrounded himself, Yasaburou seems like his time is up as the last hope for avoiding a member of the Shimogamo family ending up in the Friday Fellows' hotpot.


This is, however, to reckon without Benten, who happens to be in the vicinity and needs an umbrella in the pouring rain.  Yasaburou naturally transforms and obliges, and Benten offers him salvation

Space Brothers - Episode 73

With a potential place on a future lunar mission at stake, it's time for Mutta to put his money where his mouth is and impress the bigwigs with his new lunar rover design in this week's Space Brothers.

For all of the talk of flying cars both last week and this, Mutta's actual ideas to improve the rover are far more down to earth than that. As well as some tweaking to the suspension of the

Attack on Titan - Episode 23

After the failure of their grand plan, the Survey Corps are left very much on the back foot in terms of their political support, and as this week's Attack on Titan begins we switch our view to take in the world of the Military Police.

More specifically, we initially follow events through Annie's eyes, as her group is tasked with escorting and protecting the Survey Corps as they move through town

Genshiken Second Season - Episode 11

The on-going Spring Fair certainly didn't need any more livening up for the Genshiken crew, but regardless of this is seems that Kasukabe's appearance is going to give it yet another shot in the arm.

Aside from her glee at getting to call Madarame a lolicon at every available opportunity having spied him with Sue, Saki is also more than happy to be able to catch up with old friends and be

il sole penetra le illusioni ~ Day Break Illusion - Episode 11

Their establishment-cum-base in ruins, Luna now serving as a Daemonia and Seira stripped of her powers - things aren't exactly going too well for Akari's employers at the moment.

They have, however, managed to escape with their lives in the wake of the riots and arson which razed their property to the ground, and as they regroup it's time to decide their next course of action.  Any such decision

Danganronpa - Episode 11

It's time for another, rather unexpected, classroom trial as this week's Danganronpa begins in the wake of the death of mysterious sixteenth student Mukuro Ikusaba.

With no knowledge of who this student is and little time to gather clues, the resulting trial is decidedly incoherent apart from one recurring theme - the insistence that Kirigiri must be responsible for this murder.  To be fair, it

A Certain Scientific Railgun S - Episode 22

The clock is ticking for Febri, and with time running out Misaka is left with little choice than to plunge headlong into the "darkness" of Academy City by facing an old (and now thankfully incarcerated) adversary.

Naturally, Therestina Kihara Lifeline is more than happy to remind Misaka of just how dark Academy City can get, run as it is with its students serving more or less as guinea pigs for

Servant x Service - Episode 11

The stress of recent events surrounding Lucy have clearly taken their toll on Hasebe by the start of this week's Servant x Service, to the point where he vanishes from his workplace even more than is normal for this natural-born layabout.

But exactly where has Hasebe gone?  He's nowhere to be found in any of the usual haunts, but the section chief posits that he might be hanging out at a bazaar

Silver Spoon - Episode 10

As Hachiken continues to look after Pork Bowl and company, a throwaway conversation with Yoshino suddenly sends the ever-grinding rumour mill into overdrive.

With talk of a "bump on the way" and Hachiken having to "take responsibility", it's not all that surprising that somebody might get the wrong end of the stick, although once teachers intervene any confusion is soon cleared up in short order

Autumn 2013 anime preview guide

The never ending progression of the seasons continues apace, and that means it's time to start considering what new anime to watch again.  As per usual, I've toiled over a hot keyboard to put together a new season preview guide for the autumn (or fall, for you American types) over at UK Anime.




Autumn 2013 anime preview



Enjoy checking out this behemoth of an article, and let me know what

Blood Lad - Episode 10 (Completed)

You know what they say about what happens when the cat's away, and it seems as if the proverbial mice of Staz's area of the demon world have finally caught on to the fact that he isn't around.

This, however, isn't really Staz's major concern, as he instead finds himself facing Bell's father Hydra - a simultaneously angry yet friendly fellow from whom Bell has inherited her powers, who wants to

WATAMOTE ~No Matter How I Look at It, It’s You Guys Fault I’m Not Popular!~ - Episode 10

A new school term has begun, and immediately any thoughts that this is the real start of Tomoko's high school existence are not so much dashed against the rocks of reality as obliterated entirely.

For starters, a seat reorganisation sees her lose her prized seat at the back by the window, instead thrusting her into the limelight in the midst of a bunch of talkative students... not that anyone

The Eccentric Family - Episode 10

The big day has finally arrived - not only the anniversary of Souichirou Shimogamo's death, but also the day when the next Nise-emon is selected.

While Yaichirou looks to focus his mind on making the final preparations for this big day, Yasaburou can't help but dwell on Kaisei's vague warning to him from last week's episode - thoughts that continue to prickle at the back of his mind even as he

Monogatari Second Season - Episode 10

It's the end of the world as we know it, and Araragi most certainly doesn't feel fine - a feeling not helped by the fact that he and Shinobu's attempt to communicate with any other potential survivors in this apocalyptic wasteland have instead attracted only a teeming swarm of zombies-cum-vampires.

Actually, that isn't strictly true, as a rice shower which sends the "zombies" scarpering for some

Attack on Titan - Episode 22

His pugilistic battle with the mysterious Female Titan over and ending in defeat, Eren is now hostage to said Titan as it looks to make good its escape.

However, you couldn't ask for a more effective duo to give chase here than Levi and Mikasa, and it is indeed these two who find themselves in hot pursuit of this tiring Titan.  Although hoping to kill it seems to be nothing more than folly at

Genshiken Second Season - Episode 10

Hato's perfect disguise has left him confident that he won't be recognised by his former schoolmates during the festival - he has, however, reckoned without his Genshiken colleagues.

Between Kuchiki and Madarame, Hato is all but outed to his two former classmates, and once his former senior Kaminaga is on the scene and his wig is removed... well, the game is well and truly up.  Having witnessed

il sole penetra le illusioni ~ Day Break Illusion - Episode 10

Now that Luna has been attacked in her own home Cerebrum, things are about to become nigh-on impossible for our group of magical heroines in this week's Day Break Illusion.

For starters, there's Luna herself, who is sent out to attack her former comrades now that she's becoming a Daemonia.  Although Seira has no qualms about fighting her one-time friend in this new state Akari simply won't have

Space Brothers - Episode 72

Hibito continues to take some of the focus in this week's Space Brothers, as his struggle with a panic disorder after his major lunar mishap remains in the spotlight.

After flashing back to just how badly this problem affects him via a testing session while suited up in a NASA pool, we learn that Hibito has also decided to keep his panic disorder a secret from everybody around him while he tries

Danganronpa - Episode 10

With another clasroom trial survived, the remaining students seem to be entering the end-game of Monokuma's malicious charade as a fifth floor of the school building opens up.

This latest part of the building is certainly an eclectic one, with a botanical garden and chicken coop on the one hand but a room that seems to have played host to a mass murder in the past on the other.  With suspicions

A Certain Scientific Railgun S - Episode 21

It was pretty clear to us from the outset tat Febri was no normal little girl, but we now know the full extent of her abnormality - needless to say, it's a revelation that shocks Misaka somewhat in spite of her previous dealings with similar matters.

More pressing than the fact that Febri is an artificial lifeform however is, of all things, those lollipops - rather than an attempt to cater to

Servant x Service - Episode 10

Fed up of the status quo, Chihaya has made a brave decision - she's finally going to tell Toko about her relationship with Toko's brother.

Needless to say, this doesn't go well - not because Toko is distraught about it, but because she simply doesn't process what Chihaya is trying to tell her at all.  This doesn't come out of any lack of intelligence or an attempt to block out truth, but rather

Silver Spoon - Episode 9

The summer break is over, so it's back to Ezonoo for a new term to find that quite a lot has changed, although not all of it for the better...




As everyone tries to get back into the swing of things, it's Pork Bowl (the big, that is, not the dish) that pushes its way to the forefront of Hachiken's mind - the little fella has certainly grown to be not so little any more, but he's still the runt

WATAMOTE ~No Matter How I Look at It, It’s You Guys Fault I’m Not Popular!~ - Episode 9

The summer break is nearly over but hey, at least Tomoko has a day out at the movies with Yuu to look forward to..

...at least, she did until Yuu cancelled those plans.  It turns out that Tomoko's sole friend has been roped into helping out at her uncle's cafe, which gives Tomoko something else to do as she's invited along to spend a little time there as a customer while Yuu works.  Our

The Eccentric Family - Episode 9

This week's episode of The Eccentric Family begins by filling us in on another slice of recent tanuki history, explaining the links - and later rivalry - between the Ebisugawa and Shimogamo families right the way through to the aborted engagement between Yasaburou and Kaisei.

That aside, the process to choose the next Nise-emon is now looming large, beginning with the two contenders from the

Blood Lad - Episode 9

Braz has been summoned to meet the demon king - a terrifying prospect in itself; but for what reason has Braz been granted an audience with the top man in the demon world?

It seems that the king's interest is in Braz's dealing during the whole incident with Akim, and more specifically the fact that this nasty piece of work looks exactly like somebody in the king's charge.  Braz is quite open in

Monogatari Second Season - Episode 9

So well-used is the so-called "Butterfly effect" in popular culture that I'm sure it doesn't need to be expounded upon, but still - is saving one girl in the past really enough to send the entire world into turmoil?

This certainly seems to be the case as Araragi and Shinobu return to the present after their successful jaunt to save Hachikuji from her fate - everything is wrecked and desolate,

Attack on Titan - Episode 21

Their plan to capture the "driver" of the Aberrant Titan has failed, and now it looks like the Survey Corps will have to find a way to deal with this probably traitor in their human form as they set out to pursue Eren once again.

As if this pursuer wasn't deadly enough as it was, it seems that things are even more dire than anyone could have anticipated, as it appears that this individual also

Genshiken Second Season - Episode 9

As the school festival approaches, Ogiue has her story all prepared for the one-off manga set to star within the Genshiken club magazine - now, all that's required is to figure out how to get an angle on Hato's art...


Any confidence that Hato can draw something that isn't Boy's Love provided he has a story to work on quickly proves to be unfounded, and as Ogiue tries to get to the bottom of