Topic: Anime & Manga (NO SPOILERS PLEASE)

Heh, I tend to ignore To-Love-Ru so much that I didn't even realize it had a sequel until a few months ago. All I know about it is that supposedly it actually tries a bit with its story while simultaneously ramping up the fanservice to even more rediculous levels. Oddly enough, this arguably makes it worse in a way, since now it went from a harmless manga that was genuine in its simplicity, to one that actually asks its readers to take it a bit seriously despite being so over the top and smutty.

I'm watching the new anime for Pokemon X and Y. They really stepped up the animation. I'm actually greatly enjoying this!

I tend to read it every now and then for the laughs. But your right, the fanservice has increase so much that I thought Rito would get laid now. It tries to hard to have a good story.

Has anyone read the manga version of Air Gear? I like to know your opinion about it.

So, I've been watching a stupid amount of anime lately. Here's wot I think;

• Kill la Kill (episode 6): Ignoring the Fanservice 2.0 aspects (of which there are a lot), this is a show that is really easy to like. The comedy is excellent, the characters are so enjoyable to watch, and the animation style is a very nice break from the digital, completely clean shows that have come to consume the market. I'm extremely pleased with how smoothly the series is going and I'm expecting Studio Trigger to continue to hit it out of the ballpark.
• Beyond The Boundary (episode 4): I'm entertained by this Kyoto Animation series. Sure, it's not exactly original nor super-good, but the action is fun to watch and I definitely like the more critical nature of the main protagonist. Seeing as how the big conflict is dealt with I have no idea where the series could be going.
• Samurai Flamenco (episode 4): I really, really like this show. It both appeals to my sense of idealism and my sense of realism while wrapping it up in a comedic context. I'm also loving the slow escalation that the show is going through.
• Outbreak Company (episode 3): I definitely thought that this was going to be the otaku smut of the Fall 2013 anime season and...well, the show kinda is. However, the show brings up a lot of other interesting topics. They may not be expanded upon, but I like that they are there. Also, I have a feeling that the series won't follow through on its surprise ending to episode 3 because the show's premise is too pandering to that otaku culture.
• Kusougiga (episode 0): My brain hurt A LOT after seeing the "Preview" episode. Yeah, the colors were pretty and there was lots of action in ~23 minutes, but trying to follow anything that was being said made my logic capacitators explode. The storytelling was ridiculously scattershot such that it was impossible to tell who had what motivations and why. Of course, the production studio is not calling this a proper episode so I'll play along for now, but I do hope that the actual episodes of this series aren't nearly as cranium-smashing.
• Bakemonogatari (episode 2): I've continued to hear opposing opinions about the Monogatari series, ranging from "It's The Best Show Ever!" to "It's A Stupid, Artsy Harem!" In lieu of deciding which of those opinions is right, I instead decided to watch the series myself. From the first two episodes of the first two seasons, I'm definitely getting the "Artsy" vibe, but I'm not seeing greatness or a horrendous harem. Looks like I'll just have to sit through a few more episodes before the true nature of the show is revealed.

I'm gonna try to watch some of those 9-12 Fall series I was gonna watch over the weekend. Thank you, V8 for giving me the energy motivation I need, since now that means at least 8 of those shows I was gonna watch have gotten positive feedback from people I trust (I don't know anybody who has seen Arpeggio or Blazblue, and I don't think Kyousogiga has been that well liked).

@CanisWolfred Glad I could be of help. There is a LOT of anime this Fall season, so much that I feel sorry for anyone trying to watch it all.

Also, on Arpeggio of Blue Steel, I watched the first episode and found it to be interesting but off-putting. The special thing about Arpeggio is that it's an entirely 3D animated show despite not immediately looking like one. As I've gotten used to 30 FPS and 60FPS in my video games, the TV-standard 24 FPS Arpeggio conforms to makes the show look badly animated. Also, from what I've read the series has a bizarre sea vessel ecchi thing going on beyond the first episode. Yes, you heard that right; Sea. Vessel. Ecchi. Don't ask.

I saw the first episode of Arpeggio and yeah, CG everywhere. I didn't notice it was entirely 3D though! Some of the school environments still felt hand drawn. The setting is great and the plot could go in a lot of interesting directions. I didn't get any ecchi (well, except for some questionable character designs) although I figure the way they went about forming a relationship with the sea vessels was a little weird.

Then again, this season has horse ecchi in Walkure Romanze so who knows what can happen

@V8Ninja
I've been watching most of those anime V8. Kill la Kill is ok; Beyond The Boundary (Kyoukai no Kanata) starts getting better and funnier later on; Outbreak Company is hilarious (for those aware of the Otaku culture that is). Currently, I'm watching Monogatari Season 2 and I'm enjoying it. There's no doubt your opinion about the Monogatari series will change later on, especially after Bakemonogatari.

Well I haven't kept up to date on Kill la Kill, Diamond no Ace, or Samurai Flamenco. Thankfully I have a three day weekend!

But I'm still really enjoying One Piece, my favorite anime by far at this point.

I looove Chopper!

Finished up through chapter 42 of Kagetora!

Beyond the Boundry is actually the one I've heard the most complaints about. I'm not gonna watch it myself, since the premise alone makes my skin crawl (BLOOD power?! F-NO!), but it sounds like a show with no direction, and I've never been cool with those types of shows.

Has anybody watched Gingitsune? A friend of mine recommended me that anime, and he says is good, but i dunno know, look's like a girl's anime to me.

@CanisWolfred
My only complaint of Kyoukai no Kanata was ep.6 since it was pretty much a filler episode, but it was hilarious and fun to watch nonetheless. I should also mention that Kill la Kill has the "blood power" concept as well, but it's used in a different way.

If anyone here is a fan of One Piece, and of RPing, I've found a great site to do so:
http://strawhatforum.proboards.com/index.cgi

It should be a lot of fun.

Well, I finished kagetora today! It was definitely not something I was expecting from the Shonen demo, but I ended up liking it quite a lot.

Despite being Shonen, it's core focus is that it's a romantic comedy. There have been a few Shonen I've seen that have had a strong romance element (InuYasha, Rurouni Kenshin), but none make it the main focus, like Kagetora.

Generally, the series is about the titular Kagetora, a ninja who is sent from his remote mountain village to Tokyo in order to train Yuki Toudo in martial arts (her family is well off, and his clan has served hers since ancient times). The assignment doesn't go quite as smoothly as planned however, as he develops feelings for her (and vice versa, a big no-no), and has to get adjusted to modern life (being raised in the mountains, and old fasioned even amongst his fellow ninja).

I wouldn't say it's a must read, but I would recommend it, especially if you want something different from a Shonen. I know this sounds corny coming from a guy, but I got pretty attached to their romance, the most attached to an anime/manga romance since Kensin & Kaoru, or possibly even InuYasha & Kagome.

Objectionable Content:

• Blood & Gore: None. This is a comedy first & foremost, after all. There are quite a few light sparring matches presented here & there, but due to the nature of the bouts, the occasional scratch is about as bad as it gets.
• Language: Low. I won't say there isn't an instance of bad language, but I'd say it's much, much lower than in your typical Shonen. I really didn't notice much.
• Fanservice: Low. They seem to squeeze in a bath scene every other chapter, but they're never explicit, and outside of a few rare instances (seemingly later in the manga's run, mostly), it just never felt like it was being presented with fanservice in mind (either that, or things have just gotten so exaggerated these days, that everything here semes tame by comparison).

Well, I don't know how many of you would be interested, but I'm glad to share.

I'm not terribly interested in Ninja anime...

I miss watching Zettai Karen Children. I still have 5 episodes and a special left.

Toonami Saturday night!

Bleach - Missed it.

Naruto - Missed it.

One Piece - I'm not really sure where this show is going to go next. It's like a whimsical adventure, rather than an epic quest. (not that that's bad)

Soul Eater - A pretty good episode today. Now Kid has me questioning things, too.

Sword Art Online - Umm, Okay, this episode just felt... creepy. I knew there was a twist coming halfway through the series, as people have mentioned, but it's definitely going in an odd direction. It's wierd, but I still feel like I need to see where they're going to go with this.

FLCL - This has to be one of my favorite episodes, lol. I feel bad for Naota, what with everyone wanting to pet his cat ears, lol.

They reviewed Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag tonight! ARRRRR!/10 (yes, you read that right. Also yes, it's a positive).

I just finished Gundam seed & destiny and it was amazing. It had a good plot, likable characters (minus shin imo) and a decent amount of action. My only problem was that i wish Hein had gotten more screen time, but whatever. Though the reason I don't like shin is because I feel that he constantly plays victim. Also the Strike Freedom = epic / awesome, that and Kira was my favorite character. I might try to get back into one piece but, that episode count is intimidating. That or i'll start watching gundam unicorn.