j1m0ne's blog

The condensed summer version of my usual anime season guides, covering only music and seiyuu concerns with an extended opinion section (cos I feel like whining!). Still a lot of holes to fill though, so there’ll be at least another update to this post next week.

Quick Jump: Aoi Hana | Bakemonogatari | CANAAN | Element Hunters | Fight Ippatsu! Juuden-chan!! | GA Geijutsuka Art Design Class | Kanamemo | Needless | Princess Lover! | Sora no Manimani | Spice & Wolf II | Taisho Yakyuu Musume. | Tokyo Magnitude 8.0 | Umi Monogatari~ Anata ga ite kureta koto~ | Umineko no Naku Koro ni | Yoku Wakaru Gendai Mahou | Zan. Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei

J.C.Staff adaptation of the yuri manga that focuses on two childhood friends and their respective love lives.

Cast: Untested Takabe Aoi (actress, gravure) takes on one of the leads, with another unheralded seiyuu Gibu Yuko as the other. More familiar names fill up the rest of the roster, including Horie Yui, Ishimatsu Chiemi, Iguchi Yuka, Kawada Shinji, Oura Fuyuka, Toyosaki Aki, Yahagi Sayuri, Asanuma Shintaro, Noto Mamiko, Fukui Yukari, Nakahara Mai & Hamada Kenji
Web Radio: Aoi Hana~Sweet Blue Radio~ hosted by Takabe Ai & Gibu Yuko
Music: Haketa Takefumi
Opening theme: Aoi Hana (青い花) by Kukikodan
-First ever anime theme for the vastly underrated pop trio.
Ending theme: Centiforia (センティフォリア) by Ceui
Website
Staff blog

SHAFT-made anime about a high school boy and the weird students he meets.
Cast: Kamiya Hiroshi is the lead. Saito Chiwa, Katou Emiri, Sawashiro Miyuki, Hanazawa Kana, Horie Yui and Sakurai Takahiro are amongst the rest of the cast.
Web Radio: No
Music: Kousaki Satoru
Opening theme: Kimi no Shiranai Monogatari (君の知らない物語) by supercell
-aka the Nico Nico douga creative. Song composed by ryo, vocals by nagi (formerly Gazelle).
Ending theme: ?
Website
Staff blog

Based on the Wii visual novel 428, featuring a girl with a gun who shares a name with the Promised Land as the lead character.

Cast: All-star cast featuring Sawashiro Miyuki, Sakamoto Maaya, Hamada Kenji, Tanaka Rie, Tomatsu Haruka, Nanjo Yoshino, Noto Mamiko, Hirata Hiroaki, Minagawa Junko, Ohkawa Toru and Ohtsuka Akio
Web Radio: No
Music: Nanase Hikaru
Opening theme: mind as Judgment by Faylan
-First major OP/ED gig for Faylan, who’s performing at Animelo this year.
Ending theme: My Heaven by Annabel
Website
Staff blog

NHK & Korean company collaborate to make a sci-fi anime teaching kids chemistry.

Cast: Asanuma Shintaro, Enomoto Atsuko, Kuwashima Houko, Kobayashi Sanae, Sasaki Nozomu, Suyama Akio, Yamaguchi Rie, Nakayama Sara, Mayama Ako & Koyama Rikiya
Web Radio: No
Music: Sahashi Toshihiko
Opening theme: First Pain by Ishikawa Chiaki
Ending theme: Suihei Liebe~Mahou no Juumon~ (スイヘイリーベ～魔法の呪文～) by Kakki & Ash Potato
Website
Staff blog

Wonderfully deep anime about girls in plug suits charging unlucky people up with electricity.
Cast: Fukuhara Kaori, Takagaki Ayahi, Takahashi Hiroki, Miyazaki Ui, Yahagi Sayuri, Kawasumi Ayako, Shimizu Ai, Mitsuishi Kotono and Kaneda Tomoko star.
Web Radio: No
Music: Tada Akifumi
Opening theme: CHARGE! by Fukuhara Kaori & Takagaki Ayahi
Ending theme: Onegai Sweetheart (お願いSweetheart) by Fukuhara Kaori
Website (wowzers, nipple peek)

Slice of life story about a high school art club. So far, so Hidamari SketchBook.
Cast: The main quartet are voiced by Tomatsu Haruka, Tokunaga Ai, Sawashiro Miyuki, Nazuka Kaori & Horie Yui.

Web Radio: Hosted by Tomatsu Haruka & Nazuka Kaori at Animate.tv.
Music: ?
Opening theme: ?
Ending theme: ?
Website

4-koma manga adaptation about a girl who ends up living at the newspaper delivery office after her family all passes away.
Cast: Toyosaki Aki, Mizuhara Kaoru, Kugimiya Rie, Horie Yui, Kitamura Eri (see those three? It’s like a Toradora! reunion) Hirohashi Ryo & Endo Aya.
Web Radio: Hayane Hayaoki, hosted by Toyosaki Aki & Kitamura Eri starting July 4.
Music: Hashimoto Yukari
Opening theme: Kimi e to Tsunagu Kokoro (君へとつなぐココロ) by Toyosaki Aki, Mizuhara Kaoru & Kugimiya Rie
Ending theme: Yahho!! by Horie Yui
Website

‘Bishojo x Violence’ anime, set in the aftermath of World War III in 2130.

Cast: Established cast featuring Koyasu Takehito, Endo Aya, Kitamura Eri, Utsumi Kenji, Ito Kentaro, Kato Emiri, Touchi Hiroki, Goto Saori, Makino Yui, Taniyama Kisyo, Yamaguchi Mayumi, Ise Mariya, Chihara Minori & Toyoguchi Megumi. Replaces most of the drama CD cast that had the likes of Kobayashi Yumiko, Saito Chiwa & Ueda Kana on board, with only Koyasu and Ito retained.
Web Radio: None
Music: Kato Tatsuya & Iizuka Masaaki
Opening theme: modern strange cowboy by GRANRODEO
Ending theme: Agressive zone by NEEDLESS Girls+ (Kitamura Eri, Endo Aya, Goto Saori, Makino Yui, Kato Emiri)
Website

Eroge adaptation, harem anime etc.

Cast: Terashima Takuma tackles the lucky harem lead, with Yuzuki Ryoka, Toyoguchi Megumi, Kato Emiri, Matsuoka Yuki, Miyake Kaya, Mizuhara Kaoru, Sasaki Nozomi, Wakamoto Norio, Koyasu Takehito, Akimoto Yosuke & Shiraishi Minori offering support.
Web Radio: To be hosted by Hashimoto Miyuki & yozuca* on lantis-net.
Music: ?
Opening theme: Princess Primp! by Hashimoto Miyuki
Ending theme: S.S.D. by yozuca*
Website

High-school astronomy club antics.

Cast: Maeno Tomoaki & Ito Kanae lead. A stellar support cast features Tomatsu Haruka, Hayami Saori, Koshimizu Ami, Takagi Reiko, Majima Junji, Chan Li Mei (not some exotic Chinese, her real name is Toyohara Satomi) & Matsukaze Masaya.
Web Radio: Sora no Manimani Housoushitsu hosted by Ito Kanae & Hayami Saori, to start June 30 (check website)
Music: CooRie & Okubo Kaoru
Opening theme: Super Noisy Nova by Sphere
Ending theme: Hoshikuzu no Surround (星屑のサラウンド). CooRie
Website
Staff blog

Furry economics pt.2.

Cast: Koshimizu Ami, Fukuyama Jun, Chiba Saeko, Koyama Rikiya, Sasajima Kaoru, Watanabe Akeno, Paku Romi, Uchida Yuya & Toyosaki Aki.
Web Radio: Ookamiku Radio hosted by Koshimizu Ami and Fukuyama Jun
Music: Yoshino Yuji
Opening theme: Mitsu no Yoake (蜜の夜明け) by Arai Akino
Ending theme: Perfect World by ROCKY CHACK
Website
Staff Blog

Girls playing baseball in the Taisho era (1912-1926).

Cast: Ito Kanae and Nakahara Mai lead. Rest of the cast includes Ueda Kana, Noto Mamiko, Kaida Yuko, Kitamura Eri, Hirohashi Ryo, Makino Yui, Goto Saori, Fujimura Ayumi & Arai Satomi.
Web Radio: Romantic Radio hosted by Ito Kanae & Nakahara Mai
Music: Hattori Takayuki
Opening theme: Romantic Strike (浪漫ちっくストライク) by Ito Kanae, Nakahara Mai, Ueda Kana & Noto Mamiko
Ending theme: Yume.Miru.Kokoro (ユメ・ミル・ココロ) by Ito Kanae
Website
Staff blog

Airing in the coveted noitaminA slot. Set in the aftermath of a Tokyo reeling from an 8.0 magnitude earthquake, following the lives of siblings Mirai & Yutaka.

Cast: Hanamura Satomi and Kobayashi Yumiko take on the lead roles. Supporting cast includes Kaida Yuko, Kitamura Eri, Toyosaki Aki, Hirataka Narumi, Endo Aya, Sawashiro Miyuki, Nonaka Ai, Naka Hiroshi & Inoue Kikuko. French-born news announcer Christel Takigawa also makes her seiyuu debut here.
Web Radio: No
Music: Otani Kou
Opening theme: Kimi no Uta (キミノウタ) by abingdon boys school
Ending theme: M/elody by Tsuji Shion
Website
Staff blog

‘Magical maiden fantasy’ anime based on a pachinko game, centering on a pair of ‘pure’ sisters who live in the sea with the fishes. Sounds trite, but it’s in the hands of the very capable Sato Junichi (ARIA, Kaleido Star etc) so chances are it won’t totally descend in a sea of cheesy fluff.

Cast: Asumi Kana and Horie Yui voice the sisters Marin and Urin, while the other lead is taken by Kotobuki Minako. Support comes from Fukui Yukari, Majima Junji, Naya Rokuro, Gibu Yuko, Nagai Sachiko, Toyosaki Aki & Sawashiro Miyuki.
Web Radio: UmimonoRadio hosted by Asumi Kana + guests
Music: Muramatsu Ken
Opening theme: violet by marble
Ending theme: Toumei na Inori (透明な祈り) by Itou Masumi
Website
Staff blog

You know the drill, it’s another Naku Koro ni… adaptation.

Cast: Ono Daisuke and Inoue Marina head a large cast that also includes Horie Yui, Suzumura Kenichi, Kugimiya Rie, Kobayashi Yu, Mugihito, Kosugi Juurota, Itou Miki, Hirose Masashi, Koyama Rikiya, Tanaka Atsuko, Koshimizu Ami, Funaki Masato, Bifu Hitoshi, Hatori Yasuko, Ishizumi Akihiko and Ohara Sayaka.
Web Radio: No
Music: ?
Opening theme: Katayoku no Tori (片翼の鳥) by Shikata Akiko
Ending theme: la divina tragedia~Makyoku~ (la divina tragedia～魔曲～) by Jimang [of Sound Horizon]
Website
No staff blog but you can sign up for mail magazine

Based on a light novel about a high-school freshman who meets and becomes the understudy of a mage.

Cast: Nonaka Ai and Nabatame Hitomi lead. Supporting cast includes Tomatsu Haruka, Asanuma Shintaro & Kotobuki Minako. Also the cast picture from episode one shows Hamada Kenji, Sato Satomi & Hikasa Yoko but there’s no confirmation whether they’re just guesting or are cast regulars.
Web Radio: Hosted by Nonaka & Nabatame at the site
Music: Hashimoto Yukari
Opening theme: programming for non-fiction by Asou Natsuko
Ending theme: Made in WONDER by Misato Aki
Website

Third full season of Dr. Doom and his lovely harem.
Cast: The usual suspects return, from Kamiya Hiroshi to Nonaka Ai, Inoue Marina, Shintani Ryoko, Sanada Asami, Kobayashi Yu, Sawashiro Miyuki, Tanii Asuka, Matsuki Miyu, Goto Yuko, Yajima Akiko, Sugita Tomokazu, Ueda Youji, Mizushima Takahiro & Terashima Takuma
Web Radio: Close approaching its 100th episode, the very popular Sayonara Zetsubou Housou continues to be hosted by Kamiya Hiroshi & Shintani Ryoko
Music: Presumably Hasegawa Tomoki
Opening theme: Ringo Mogire Beam! (林檎もぎれビーム！) by Ohtsuki Kenji & Zetsubou Shoujo-tachi (Nonaka Ai, Inoue Marina, Kobayashi Yu, Sawashiro Miyuki, Shintani Ryoko)
Ending theme: Zetsubou Restaurant (絶望レストラン) by Zetsubou Shoujou-tachi (Tanii Asuka, Sanada Asami, Goto Yuko, Matsuki Miyu)
Website

Useless statistics
No. of shows covered in this guide: 17
No. of shows with an exclamation mark in the title: 2
No. of sequels, sidestories, prequels, remakes, blah: 3
No. of original shows not based on a manga, game, novels or random gimmick (& not including sequels): 1
No. of shows with a theme song by one of the seiyuu: 7

Stuff
Will be looking to pick up some shows to replace the ones that are ending – with Hatsukoi Limited, K-ON!, Eden & SoraKake all ending soon, my watch list will consist of just Cross Game. Pretty much anything Sato Junichi does is a done deal, so Umi Monogatari gets top priority for me this season. Also, Tokyo Magnitude 8.0 wins a few more bias points thanks to the noitaminA slot and my tendency to gravitate towards anything that doesn’t look oh-so-kewt.

That means two more available slots (I try to keep it at a limit of 5 concurrent TV series to avoid blowing my brains apart) and I’m open to anything apart from the sequels – I’ve seriously had enough of Zetsubou-sensei after two seasons, Higurashi put me to sleep by the 10th episode and I somehow never got into Spice & Wolf despite a lot of people telling me I should (just because I’m an economist doesn’t mean I want to see it in animated form). Taisho is also getting passed over because I can only deal with one baseball anime at one time.

At first glance Aoi Hana (yuri) and Bakemonogatari (a fresh version of Zetsubou-sensei?) are the most likely candidates to fill those slots but that is of course, not set in stone – I never intended to watch Cross Game at all, but it still ended up as arguably my favourite show from spring. CANAAN is a distinct possibility too, though intriguing as it is I can’t really tell from the description what the heck it’s really about. I mean, Shangri-La sounded good on paper and look where that ended up.

I think you can probably tell that I’m not a huge moe fan, but I’m willing to let GA or Kanamemo try to push my Mio and Mugi buttons. I’m also dying for a good brainless shonen series but I honestly haven’t found anything worthy since… Yakitate Japan! maybe, and nothing here indicates that it will break the trend.

Shows that can go screw itself up the butthole – Princess Lover! and Juuden-chan (worst trailer ever, wtf). Seriously, if I ever end up watching either, please take me to the mental hospital. It’s a mere 2-minute drive from my house, straight on past two roundabouts and the first turning on the right.

Seiyuu notes up next.