Review of 2010 Anime Part 1 ~Winter~

Like last year I made it a goal to watch everything that aired this year. With a few exceptions of course. Season 2 of shows I haven't seen were counted out and shows that I had seen a lot of but knew I couldn't just stomach anymore. Yup that means no Hidamari Sketch for me this winter! I still can't stand that so many seasons of it are being made... Cobra The Animation was the only other show I didn't watch that aired. It is something I've been wanting to watch for a while and this as certainly bumped it up in my want to watch list. Here we go with Winter's Aired Anime.

Winter actually was a really short season with only 13 shows that aired. Katanagatari started but it only showed one episode per month for the entire year so I don't quite count it. Only 2 shows ended up being 24 episodes (Durarara and Qwaser) and carried onto Spring where all the others were 12-13 episodes. So everything pretty much ended for new spring anime to take over the airwaves.

Winter honestly was a pretty boring season. It had some winners but half my list is on the lower half, out of 10 score wise for only 13 series... Everything was new except for Hidamari Sketch, Cobra, and Heartcatch but since I only started Heartcatch that didn't really matter to me. I was expecting new and fresh from everything but all I got was lame and crappy for the most part.

Katanagatari did something new. Something I haven't ever really seen before. Well in more ways than one honestly. Some of it was cliche like the one episode per sword capture type deal but mostly it was unique. The art and music were amazing and not to mention that you only got one episode per month! That was something special to me. I had always honestly wondered why no one had ever really done a show like that before (There might have been but I'm too lazy to research it) spanning an entire year with 12, 45 minute episodes. Generally I hate shows that have long air dates but Katanagatari was reliable for when it was going to come out. So I knew I would get my show once a month no matter what.

Best Show of winter for me, aside from Katanagatari because that is the winner for overall best anime of 2010 was Durarara. I was looking forward to it from the moment I saw it announced. I watched the first episode and wrote a little something about it and then I actually ended up waiting till it was finished to watch anymore. I'm SO glad I waited too because there's nothing worse than waiting to see one of your favourite shows one episode at a time over many, many weeks. Some people love that but I just can't stand it with something I'm totally into.

Worst Show of winter for me would be Chu-Bra... Even though it's THE only series I have "successfully" blogged all the way through... ._. ...I love panties but not from the eyes of a 12 year old. I'm not even going to chew this anime out anymore. I think I've done that enough already. Urrg.

Here's my big list of Best to Worst shows of winter 2010:

1. Durarara 10/10
2. Baka to Test to Shoukanjuu 8/10
3. Hanamaru Youchien 7/10
4. Sora no Woto 7/10
5. Heartcatch Pretty Cure (still airing) 6/10
6. Seikon no Qwaser 5/10
7. Dance In The Vampire Bund 4/10
8. Ookami Kakushi 4/10
9. Ladies Versus Butlers 4/10
10. Omamori Himari 2/10
11. Chu-Bra 1/10

Surprise enjoyment: Hanamaru Youchien I expected to be just another one of those perverted school kid shows that everyone thinks is cute. It ended up being much, much more.

Surprise fail: Ookami Kakushi I don't even know what that was...

Honorable mentions: Cobra I honestly can't wait to sink my teeth into. I put off watching the new one because I haven't seen the old. This is something I shall be completing in the year to come for sure. Sora no Woto I actually expected to hate a lot more than I ended up. It was total win though. Well not total, it could have been a little less slice of war life like and a little more awesome even though what was there in general was pretty darn awesome. I'm still not sure of my overall thoughts of the show. Heartcatch has brought Pretty Cure back up to my magical girl standards. It was shattered with Fresh last year so I was expecting the worst. Thankfully I got the best. Seikon no Qwaser I think digiboy said it best here "purposefully awesomely bad".

365 Days of Anime Characters: Day 89/365 Nanako Yamamoto

Day 89/365

From the anime Hanamaru Youchien, Nanako Yamamoto is a teacher at the Hanamaru Kindergaten that teaches the Peach Class. The newly added teacher, Tsuchida, ends up relying on her a lot for guidance and eventually his feelings grow stronger for her. She is kind and sweet which makes everyone around love her to bits, especially the children.

Why I like her: She's fun, energetic, and always has an idea or two that she can suggest. She cares greatly for everyone around her and always tries to help out when she can.

Why I hate her: Despite this as being part of her charm, her totally clueless attitude towards  Tsuchida's romantic feelings drives me bonkers.

Overall: Gold star!

Hanamaru Youchien 06-08

It's pool time!

I only recognize her suit because of the anime Kappa no Kaikata Her shark suit was adorable as well though. I'll never tire of these outfits. Since Tsuchida only seems to have eyes for Yamamoto while at the pool side this makes Anzu sad and want attention anyway she can get it. They come up with many schemes to get Tsuchida to see Anzu instead of Yamamoto's huge breasts. They start off with a water dance.

Now it's a shark attack! Fake trouble means Anzu gets into trouble!

Children need to be careful with their wolf crying. As when something really terrible does happen adults might just think it's another false alarm and ignore it. Either way though Anzu did get the attention she wanted even if it wasn't exactly what she hoped for.

Next we have Tsuchida's sister Satsuki randomly show up... I knew they couldn't just keep this anime to adults and kindergarten... They HAD to add a high school girl in there somewhere. And of course she gives Tsuchida a hard time like all teenage sisters do to their older brothers. She is here to observe if Tsuchida is doing a good job or not being a teacher for children.

Random observation, I think these days people would freak out with a male teacher taking a girl to the bathroom like that.

Ending picture I just had to include! I love beluga whales! <3

Awesome cute ED yet again!

Summer break = Trips together!  They go to where Tsuchida and Sakura grew up by train.

Once they arrive it takes Hiiragi no time to start exploring the area and find all kinds of interesting creatures.

Sakura decides to take the children to a near by riverbed where her and Tsuchida use to spend a lot of time when they were kids just talking about anything and everything.

BOOB WARS!

Hiiragi again has a new outfit! An adorable little flounder swimsuit!

After much fun outside all day, Satsuki wishes to surprise Tsuchida with a difficult meal including gnocchi (yum!). Despite praising her when she visited him at school for her cookin,g he turns out to be dumbfounded by the gnocchi and can't figure out who made it and guesses everyone but her. This of course makes her very upset and she runs away to her room and pouts.

Summer getaways wouldn't be complete without a festival to go to. Everyone gets dressed up and hits the town in style.

And yet another ED! This one is a little odd

Their first task is to draw what they did all summer. Most draw cute pictures but one girl draws her parents working. She didn't go anywhere and just wanted to help her parents with their fish business. The children wish to learn about work so they go to her fish place to try and make him see that children can help out in the workplace as well. Super cute.

The second part of this episode Tsuchida meets Hinagiku on the street. She needs help because her shoe broke! Tsuchida helps her out and brings her to her home and now she wishes to get married to him and to be put into his class at the kindergarten.

Anzu tells Hinagiku after her meeting with Yamamoto that she should never give up on her love for Tsuchida because someday she'll grow up and be able to compete with Yamamoto (meaning her boobs).

In the end she still gives up (for now) and goes back to her home to her wonderful father that will do anything for her sweet Hinagiku.

This episode was the most boring one so far. It had it's cute moments but there just wasn't that cute wow factor in it that the rest of the episodes have had for me. This ED though is my favourite of these 3 episodes... I think it's cause of the cat and the mellow song

Hanamaru Youchien 04-05

Oh boy lots and lots of other anime references in this episode! Lum for sure. Kenshin or Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei possibly? Antique Bakery I think? I'm sure there was something else as well but yeah.

That little date during recess was cute too. I liked the mud coffee... XD I use to make that too. I dunno how this show keeps finding random things that I seriously thought only I did as a kid.

Second act and Tsuchida has take a personal day so Yamamoto fills in taking his class into hers for the day. I always likes substitute teachers in school because it was a like a day off. Sure they try to keep up with the lesson but in reality everyone just sits back and has a lot of fun all day. Anzu took this opportunity to be teachers little helper for the day doing anything and everything that she could to help Yamamoto out.

I found it really odd that teacher lady would leave to go to the "bathroom" and leave that annoying little kid in charge. I know she wanted to give her the feeling of "being in charge" but I don't think that was a correct way to do it. I actually use to be like that though... always wanting to help the teacher. I even use to stay inside during recesses and cleaned stuff up for them... I was a weird kid but I suppose every kid wants to be useful in some way at that age. Eventually the day ends and most of the children go home but Anzu wishes to stay behind and help out more. It ends up turning into a little pep girl talk where Anzu brings her worries to the table that Yamamoto will steel away Tsuchida from her because she is so pretty. Yamamoto assures Anzu that she is way cuter than she ever could be and somehow Anzu is happy with that answer. lol kids.

When Tsuchida gets back after attending a wedding he is dismissed immediately at the end of the episode because all the girls have taken a liking to Yamamoto because she is a girl and they had "girl talk" a lot while he was gone so there is NO boys allowed! Super cute because that is very VERY typical at that age when it comes to school. Even more adorable because Yamamoto played along.

Here is yet another amazing ED!

Detective Conan, Evengelion, and Fullmetal Alchemist are what I spy in this episode. I rather like the cute references to other anime it this adorable little show. I also spy a Death Note reference as well... or maybe that was just me looking too hard.

I don't quite understand how the kids are able to stalk him around town and their parents not worry... Then again Anzu's mom is secretly following them so I suppose they are safe. I just know my parents would NEVER let me wander around town like that alone and I'm sure lots of other parents would agree with that. Of course it's not like the children don't get distracted at every corner while in stalk mode. So it's probably even better that Anzu's mom was stalking them in return. XD

The random encounter with the trash thug mafia type guys who have signs on their backs with safety pins was VERY random.

Little kids falling in love with others is cute. Well not so much love at that age but crushes. Especially if the boy/girl is in the same class.The girls gather around to figure out a way to help their friend confess to this boy before something terrible happens like moving away or alien abduction.

Anzu's big way to help her friend confess was to tell her to tell him "hold me" because that's how her mom did it with her day. Kids don't even understand what that means at that age. At least it all works out in the end and they run off to play in the school yard together.

And of course we are given yet another cute ED. I'll never get tired of how awesome these are. I think they are one of the best parts of this show!

Hanamaru Youchien – 02-03

My goodness I don't think I could be a kindergarten teacher. All that whining, carrying on and mischief. I'm a pretty patient person but I think doing that everyday would drive me bonkers. I noticed in the first episode that the girls were wearing diapers. (I assume anyway) I think this is a way to get around not showing their panties or something because the boys aren't wearing any unless they are under their shorts. So since the girls are all wearing skirts and super energetic they would show their panties a lot. I'm glad they did it this way as they don't have to be as restricted with their movements.

Going down the slide brought back more memories of kindergarten for me. My father built our play structure at our school for us with a bunch of other fathers of the community. That big red slide was just like that yellow one in the show. Makes me wanna go to a park and ride the slides again.

My favourite character by far would be Hiiragi. She is super adorable and reminds me of me when I was that age haha. I wish I had her adorable little sleeping outfits... even now XD I'd so wear those to bed. Possibly anywhere... XD

A child's imagination about monsters in the dark is a cute thing. The eyes sure like to play tricks on you at that age.

This ending for episode 2 is awesome!

The 3rd episode's ending was different as well. I like what they are doing with the ED's

This episode is all about love triangles. Anzu X Yamamoto-sensei X Tsuchida-sensei apparently. Kids have such wild imaginations.

I don't know how or why but Japan still managed to make something so very, very wrong in this sweet, innocent, cute little show. *facepalms*

At least Hiiragi had a new suit this episode. I look forward to them. This show is really good at being super cute but not vomit inducing cute. I look forward to what wonderful memories they will bring out from my past in the next episodes.

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