Violet Evergarden

Violet Evergarden is well renowned Netflix original series that won the award for best animation in the 2019 Crunchyroll Anime Awards. This anime is a beautiful coming of age story that will definitely pull on your heart strings and make you feel for its characters. I really struggle with thinking of any criticism for Violet Evergarden, it has outstanding visuals, a complex plot, intriguing characters and makes you feel connected to its world. I think this is a prime example of new age anime pushing the conventions of vibrant story telling. Please be warned however, Violet Evergarden is like an onion: It has many delicious layers, but as you cut through them, you are likely to find yourself brought to tears. 

I love a good period anime, this one is set in a time just post the war (which war? doesn't matter). People are starting to move on from the scars left behind by the war and new businesses are booming, despite the worlds limited technology. Violet Evergarden wakes up to this unprecedented peace after a traumatic accident in which she lost her arms, only to realize she has no idea how to live in a society devoid of the battlefield. She was orphaned in the war and taken in by a kind army major who taught her how to fight and survive. She attaches herself to this major and becomes a war weapon, to be used at his disposal. Now with the war over and her beloved general missing, she has no idea how to move on with her life. Violet gets automated metal arms to replace her torn off ones (full metal violet?) and sets off to become an 'auto memory doll'. This profession requires understanding the feelings of your client and then writing a letter on their behalf to support their lack of ability to express themselves well. These letters can be between lovers, friends, businessmen or even politicians and convey the sentiment of the sender. The journey of Violet going from not being able to comprehend basic human emotions to being able to emote for others is astoundingly wonderful. You begin to root for her as she navigates society and learns how to interact with people, how to make friends. You'll stay with her on her search to understand, what does it mean to say "I love you". 

I'm not going to lie, This anime has actually made me cry, it gets you so emotionally invested and deals with the most sensitive of human feelings that you won't help getting teary eyed occasionally. Because of this, watching it can be emotionally taxing if you aren't mentally prepared. Other than this, I find no basic faults with Violet Evergarden. It stays true to its style and is a great blend of action, drama and romance.   



My personal ratings are:

Story: 4/5
Character Development: 5/5
Dialogue: 4/5
Music: 4/5
Enjoyment: 5/5 

Overall Recommendation: One perfectly written letter 

This is a Netflix original and should be available there in all regions. 

Weathering With You

       

Sometimes anime is made for the heart and not the mind, 'Weathering With You' is one such movie. Makoto Shinkai does it again! (that bloody genius) Even though 'Weathering With You' didn't do as commercially well as his previous movie 'Your Name', he still knocked it out of the park with 193 million dollars worldwide in box office collections. This movie will take you places and make you feel like you've had an actual experience. Forget the critics, forget trailers, forget reading reviews (except this one), just chance upon this movie and let the magic happen. 

I have an instinct when it comes to detecting good anime, if even one scene manages to make me feel enough to have the hair on my hand stand up, the anime has 'it'. While watching 'Weathering With You' (even after the first three times) I get full fledged goosebumps every 15 minutes just because of it's sheer beauty. The movie takes place in the same universe as 'Your Name' and explores an unnatural phenomenon. High schooler Hodaka runs away from home to try and make it on his own in Tokyo, and through a series of fateful events meets Hina, a girl who can change the weather when she wants to. The Tokyo depicted in this movie is one that seldom see's any sunshine because of its constant rain. Seeing this as an opportunity, they try to clear the weather for people who want to see the sun and charge them a small fee. It's all fun and games with cheery friendships across well developed characters, amazingly portrayed, until they realize that there's more to this ability and that the world holds many mysterious secrets linked to this phenomenon. Expect love, laughs, friendship, anticipation, fear and mystery all leading to excitement and one unforgettable experience- Weathering With You is an absolute must watch! Also expect brilliant music because The Radwimps whipped up a new album for this movie and it really lives up. 

I think I've made it clear that I'm in love with Makoto Shinkai's works and hence am not the right person to point out its flaws, but the main criticism 'Weathering With You' receives is that it draws too many similarities to the style of 'Your Name'. Now while I personally don't have any issues with that, many people ho came in expecting something completely new were a little let down, and I can understand why. Either ways you should watch it and decide where you stand for yourself. 
        My personal ratings are:

Story: 4/5
Character Development: 3/5
Dialogue: 4/5
Music: 5/5 
Enjoyment: 4/5

Overall recommendation: One Sunny Day

This movie holds a special place for me because it was the first anime movie to release in actual theaters in my home city (Mumbai). Its distribution rights were given to PVR pictures and it won't be found on OTT platforms for a while, you may have to rent it online or stream otherwise but still try to pay for your view if possible because I'd like to see more anime movies releasing here. 

Mob Psycho 100

Mob Psycho 100 is a diamond in the rough that doesn't look like one at first. While initial thoughts for most people will be that it's strangely animated and looks too odd to continue watching, you'll regret not continuing. This anime is pure comedic gold and its vibe begins to suit the animation style very well. If you aren't sent into a fit of laughter over how the show builds up intense situations and immediately introduces levity to defuse it, I'll change my name. Mob Psycho 100 is so refreshingly hilarious and exciting- It's the anime equivalent of getting comically punched in the stomach so hard that you can't breathe (but like, in a good way).   

I see Mob Psycho 100 drawing a few similarities to One Punch Man and I mean that in a really good way. You'll see an OP protagonist who's pretty likable and is somewhat oblivious to how ridiculously strong they are, which makes for great laughs. The story follows young Shigeo Kageyama, nicknamed Mob, who's a powerful psychic despite looking like a weak school boy. Real psychic's are rare in the world which is why his master Reigen, who's about as real as Tsunade's boobs, employees Mob as an assistant (yes I meant Tsunade from Naruto and before anyone argues with me please remember that she changes her appearance using her creation rebirth, aka boob job jutsu). He pretends to be a know-it-all psychic guru, but is really just a glib con man. Mob however looks up to Reigen and actually learns to control his powers through his master's fake but somehow still relevant advice. Over time even you begin to think that Reigen is just amazing. The anime progresses to explore the limits of Mob's powers, that erupt into unstoppable carnage when he gets too emotional about something. There are many delightful side stories and supporting characters like Mob's friends and family that add flavor to this anime, which has a steady progression over two seasons and hopefully more. 

Mob Psycho 100 is unapologetically a comedy. This means that it frivolously plays around with story progression and uses any means to tie in loose ends. While that's generally entertaining, it puts me off just a little because they actually build those plot points really well. 

                    

My personal ratings are:

Story: 3/5
Character Development: 4/5
Dialogue: 4/5
Music: 3/5
Enjoyment: 4/5

Overall Recommendation: hilarious 100% outburst 

Catch Mob Psycho 100 on Cruncyroll with subscription and Netflix. 

 

My Teen Romantic Comedy Snafu

Also called 'My Youth Romantic Comedy is Wrong, As I Expected' and Yahari Ore no Seinshun... you know what, this one has too many long names, we shall refer to this as 'Oregairu' (as most people do online). This show is a three season slice of life, teenage love story that's different from the usual anime rom-com. Oregairu is focused on realism and tries to portray an actual representation of how people think and feel in high school. This means you can't expect cliche and silly rom-com lovie dovey moments, but instead we get brilliant dialogue, stimulating sub plots and witness genuine human interactions. Coupled with its amazing animation style and complex character development, this one makes a great weekend binge!

Oregairu, likes to throw social ideologies and scenarios at its viewers with the intention of making them actually think about it, and I find that fascinating. The story starts with Hachiman Hikigaya, also called Hikki (yes, I giggled too) who is a realist that is very blunt and has no care for what others think of him. He is fine being a social outcast and thinks he is smarter than most. He is forced to join the schools social service club by his teacher where he meets Yukinoshta, an intelligent girl who is narcissistic and is socially awkward because of her limited interactions with friends. Added to the club is Yuhigahama who is a very social, likable and has many friends. The clash between these three personalities which buds into friendship and then something more is very entertaining. The anime will explore complexities of love triangles, high school friendships and social groups within schools. Honestly what makes Oregairu great for me is Hikki's monologues and commentaries about life that are just masterfully written and extremely amusing. You'll start for the cute anime girls (guys too), and stay for the Hikigaya wisdom.   

My biggest issue with this anime is that it gets too convoluted the further to go along watching it. They rely heavily on subtext and circumstantial understanding of feelings which can make even simple plot points seem confusing. Oregairu is also ridiculously faced paced in terms of dialogue, one look away from the screen and you'll be lost, so you need to pay attention. 

                          

My personal ratings are:

Story: 3/5
Character Development: 5/5
Dialogue: 5/5
Music: 4/5
Enjoyment: 4/5

Overall Recommendation: Yahalloo!

Catch My Teen Romantic Comedy Snafu on Crunchyroll. Use a VPN if not in your region. 

K

The winner of the shortest anime title award is... K! This anime is beautifully chaotic and extremely fast paced. K is very much like what you'd expect from an orgy: nobody knows what's happening but you'll definitely enjoy all of it. Despite the strange story progression, you will always be engaged by the plot points and happy with their conclusions. I love the art-style, visuals and battle choreography in K, it has some real top tier stuff. It even has one of the best sound tracks in the anime world, guaranteed to get viewers pumped. A must watch for action fans; this is a story of loyalty, power, friendship and of modern day kings.      

K stands for 'King' which is a concept this anime revolves around. An ancient power allows 7 kings to exist in the world, the kings are assigned a color and abilities that they can share with their clansmen. The story will follow certain kings very closely and the relationships they have with their followers. We start with getting thrown into a turf war between the Red and Blue kings who fundamentally don't agree with each other's ideologies. Then added into the mix is a boy called Yashiro Isana who seems to be a regular school student but is suddenly targeted by other clans because a viral video has surfaced in which he claims to be the new colorless king and murders a friend of the Red king. this entire story unravels in a very engaging manner and does not fail to entertain. K is very good at captivating its audience, in fact, I challenge you to watch the first five minutes of episode one and not progress further. You'll have so many questions like, who is Yashiro? how will the conflict get settled? How do other kings fit in? and the only way to know is by diving deeper. 

Now I know that I've already described K as chaotic or confusing, but let me tell you to what extent. The anime has a unique world set up- different species exist, government/society structures are different, magic selectively is in play- but NONE of this is explained, like ever! You have to contextually figure everything out including what I've explained in the paragraph above, which tends to cross a line between intriguing and downright frustrating at times. I think that some blanks need to be filled, we as viewers can't just assume everything. 

       

My personal ratings are:

Story: 4/5
Character Development: 5/5
Dialogue: 3/5
Music: 5/5
Enjoyment: 4/5

Overall recommendation: No blood! No Bone! No Ash!

K is on Netlix and Hulu in most regions. Use a VPN if not available in yours. 

BOFURI: I Don't Want to Get Hurt so I'll Max Out My Defence

"Ew, not another cliche virtual reality video game based isekai anime, I'm done with this boring and repetitive concept". WRONG, there is no isekai out there like this one. Bofuri is a refreshing video game isekai featuring a female protagonist, and just seeing a shojo isekai that won't objectify women is reason enough to watch this. Even that aside, this is a very calming anime, full of positive vibes and amazing imagery. The focus of Bofuri is to display the perfect virtual reality gaming environment and community, a story about friendship, inspiration and hardcore RPG style fun!

The story of Bofuri is like one of those amazing dreams you get once in a while: it's a great experience, and you wish it was real when it ends. We follow a young girl called Kaede who plays a new online virtual reality video game for the first time, on her friend's recommendation. She names herself Maple in the game and is in it just to have fun. Not being a veteran gamer, she does a lot of unusual things like allocating all her skill points just to defense. Eventually through many events, unexpectedly becomes a strong player that even game developers start to keep an eye on. She goes through a journey of balancing her online life with her school work, learning how to make comrades in-game and exploring the unique game world. What I love about all this is that nothing ever goes wrong! The anime is all about positivity and showing viewers what the perfect online gaming experience would look like. And honestly, it worked, I want to be able to play this game. They absolutely nailed the battles, the power ups, the scenery and even the costume design (amazingly with zero lewd fan service). Watch the anime to see what unexpected things Maple will do next! 

Bofuri has just one short and sweet season with 12 episodes and a season two in development, while I like the anime's pacing, it falls flat in many episodes because of its general lack of direction. There are moments when you feel like the entire anime is a giant form of product placement but the game they are promoting is fake. I don't like that it's teasing an experience that does not exists.



My personal ratings are:

Story: 2/5
Character Development: 3/5
Dialogue: 3/5
Music: 3/5
Enjoyment: 4/5 

Overall Recommendation: Well if its fine with Maple then I'll do anything 

Watch BOFURI: I Don't Want to Get Hurt so I'll Max Out My Defence on Netflix and use a VPN if it's not in your region.            

Demon Slayer

                     

Demon Slayer or Kimetsu No Yaiba is a stellar recommendation for you shonen lovers. This critically acclaimed series won the 'Anime Of The Year' award during Crunchyroll's 2020 Anime Awards and also uses special CGI technology to make its visuals more stunning (kudos to you animators at UFOtable). Demon Slayer becomes an immediate classic and fan favorite as it brings to life a heart-rendingly touching story that takes viewers through a roller-coaster of emotions. You'll feel all sides of the spectrum, from empathetic character development to exciting action sequences, all balanced by light comedy that's done very tastefully. 

Demon Slayer's plot starts off dark unlike most of its shonen peers. It's a period anime set in the Taisho-era that follows the story of young Tanjiro who loses his entire family, except his sister in a gruesome demon attack. While attempting to rescue his sister he realizes that she is slowly transforming into a demon herself and has now become the target of demon hunter, Giyu. In an emotional display of faith the sister, Nezuko shows that she is different from other demons and is able to control her blood lust, giving reason for Giyu to recruit them into the Demon Slayer Corps instead of killing the siblings. The story progresses with Tanjiro training to become a powerful demon slayer who vows to find a way to restore Nezuko's humanity. The journey of transforming from weak to strong, for both siblings, is very entertaining. Even side characters introduced as companions play vital roles in setting an interesting structure to prevent the anime from getting monotonous. Setting story aside, Demon Slayer's visuals are enough to rope you in for the long haul. Expect beautifully choreographed battles, creative attacks and vibrant environments. 

The anime doesn't really leave much for anyone to complain about. I just think that season one spent too much time focusing on Tanjiro's training. I would have liked to see more of him unleashing hell on enemies with his new found abilities, but that being said I'm sure the Demon Slayer movie set to release in October 2020 and season two in 2021 will cover this in due time. 

      

My personal ratings are:

Story: 4/5
Character Development: 5/5
Dialogue: 4/5
Music: 4/5
Enjoyment: 5/5 

Overall recommendation: 5 Total Concentration breaths! 

Demon Slayer is available to stream on Netflix.