Now to cover the last remaining new series of the spring lineup, and to rank the spring season's watchable shows as a whole, the most exciting part of this whole enterprise:
Joujuu Senjin!! Mushibugyou: The thing that most stands out in this series is its flashy art style. Everything jumps out at you as being over-the-top and extreme, from the color schemes to the sharp lines. I also like that the series is set in ancient Japan, a place I feel has been too underutilized in anime so far. Everyone is drawn in pretty kimonos with the old shaved head haircuts, you instantly feel like you're in a different world. The problem with so many fantasy series is they are the exact same as modernity except for the technology level. In some cases the technology level of the fantasy series is actually superior to our own, but just uses magic instead of fossil fuels. I won't say it's impossible to make a good story on that basis, but what it means is you lose most of the point of even being a fantasy series before the story even begins. Mushibugyou feels different, like it's genuinely set in a different world. As such, I can have fun exploring the setting as well as just the characters this time around.
My only worry about this series is it's so straightforwardly a shonen action series that it may have nothing to offer we haven't already seen in better series like Kenshin or Fairy Tail. It feels like a very derivative work when it comes to the plot and characters -- only the setting is different and praiseworthy. In a sense, the story appeals to me for the same reasons as Leviathan -- the pretty new world I want to look at -- rather than any solid dialogue lines like you could find in Bakemonogatari. Mushibugyou is looking to be another watchable mediocrity for now.
Arata Kangatari: I came in to this story thinking it would be terrible because it was a shoujo series, but was surprisingly relieved. Though it does have obvious shoujo tendencies, like boys appearing half-clothed, all being badasses with cocky grins, and the ending theme showing them all practically kissing each other their faces were drawn so close together, all of this can be overlooked because the plot, setting, and characters are actually fun. There's been plenty of stories involving body swapping, and tons of stories involving time travel, but this has to be the first story ever to introduce a time traveling body swap. Now we get twice the culture shock at half price! Apparently culture shock is the theme of this spring anime. I also like how the devoted servants of this long royal lineage heartlessly betray and murder the royalty the moment they have a chance -- SO REALISTIC. Royal lineages are so constantly revolted against and assassinated it's ridiculous, most don't even last ten years, so I loved this plot twist where fantasy acted more like history than our idealized version of the past. I also like how both boys who ended up body swapping had a girl supporting them from behind, and now both of those poor girls have to build their new relationships with the body swappers from the ground up again. It seems somehow bittersweet. Between the strengths and weaknesses, the story ends up a solid mediocre watchable that could go either way in the future.
Sparrow's Hotel: A random short where a ninja works at a hotel and every guy who sees her is enamored by her looks. This story looks like it's going absolutely nowhere and has no purpose for existing so I give it a zero.
Aiura: Another anime short, only five minutes long with most of that occupied by the opening and ending themes. If you can get around that, the content itself is pretty good. The girls are pretty and kind, and isn't that all any series needs to be good? Another Yama no Susume is born.
Yuyushiki: By God this was boring. Even more boring than Acchi Kochi's first episode. It felt like the neverending story. The art is terrible, the animation is terrible, the plot is non-existent, the characters are way too annoying and unbelievable, and the humor just isn't funny. It's better than Karneval or Aku no Hana but then again so is vomit.
Valvrave: Have you ever thought to yourself, "I wish everyone in anime suddenly and thoroughly killed each other without any speeches at all?" Well then, in that case, Valvrave is the series made for you. In Valvrave, people start killing and dying so quickly it's impossible to understand why any of it is happening. All you get is a strange sense that something very, very cool is unfolding in front of you. The mecha combat seems to be an afterthought, the real point of this series is to finally depict cold blooded killers. So much happens in the designated half hour that it's over before you can even catch a breath. It will probably start to make more sense and slow down in pace in the following episodes, but for now it's certainly provided a worthwhile 'hook' for any viewer. I doubt the series is genuinely good, but as another watchable mediocrity it will do just fine.
Hentai Ouji to Warawanai Neko: There are many things I dislike about this story. For one, it's unlikely that a guy with such a simple approach towards girls could become so wildly popular among them. Second, a wish granting device that ends up being a curse is an unfair mechanic. People should be informed ahead of time before making a decision, otherwise they aren't really making decisions at all. Since these characters are victims of a fraud instead of actors in their own right, they have very little room to actually establish themselves as autonomous agents.
Still, there are things I like about the story too. For one, the art is just fantastic. I could look at these girls all day. Second, the heroine had a great personality, both before the curse landed and after. Third, Yukari Tamura is along for the ride again this time as the track club president and opening singer. Basically, everything superficial about this series is good enough to forgive everything meaningful about it. As a result, this series is yet another watchable mediocrity.
That's five hits and two misses overall for the remainder of the spring anime season. If we put it all together, the list of watchable shows would appear in this order of quality:
1. To Aru Kagaku no Railgun S
2. Hayate Cuties
3. Ore no Imouto ga Konnani Kawaii Wake ga Nai 2
4. Suisei no Gargantia
5. Photo Kano
6. Chihayafuru
7. Dokidoki Precure
8. Hunter x Hunter
9. One Piece
10. Hataraku Maou-sama!
11. Yahare ore no Seishun Love Come wa Machigatteiru
12. Valvrave the Liberator
13. Shingeki no Kyojin
14. Joujuu Senjin Mushibugyou
15. Date A Live
16. Ginga Kikoutai Majestic Prince
17. Hentai Ouji to Warawanai Neko
18. Arata Kangatari
19. Zettai Leviathan
20. Namiuchigiwa no Muromi-san
21. Saki Achiga-hen (one episode down, one left to go)
22. Aiura
Naruto, Higurashi and Miyakawa-ke will be joining the spring lineup eventually. But for now, we get 22 shows. Suisei no Gargantia and Photo Kano have good chances of entering the rankings. Most of the rest have a lot to prove, and many more will probably be dropped before the season ends. But at least all of these shows have proven they're interesting enough to follow for now, which is the entire point of making a good first impression.
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