AKB0048 - Episode 13

Mayuyu is best アイドル~

I laughed. I cried. I became a fan of AKB48. The season finale of AKB0048 further cemented its reputation as the season's most surprising and underrated anime. I was captivated throughout—to the point where I almost forgot that I was supposed to be editing while watching it along with the pre-edit translation—and felt my chest tighten with joy at several parts during the concert as I was overcome by how heartwarming it all was. The mostly successful performance allowed each understudy to shine like they had never done so before, bringing out the best in each of them, especially Nagisa and Chieri. Even better for me was that I got to hear Mayu sing solo (as Chieri) and that Chieri's realization midway through will probably remove some of the unnecessary hate she has garnered because of her easily misunderstood actions and words towards Nagisa as of late.

AKB0048 - Episode 12

Best girl of the series. She needs more screentime.

First off, some random advertising. I recently did a cover of AKB48's Manatsu no Sounds good!. I'm not that good at singing but if you'd like to listen to it, you can find it here. I plan to cover Oogoe Diamond next. Also, lots of stuff happened in this episode so prepare for a long post.

In this content-packed episode of AKB0048, we see the continuation of a rivalry, the revival of a drama-filled conflict, and a heartwarming story of love. Yes, this show brings virtually everything to the table. And although the focus jumped around a bit throughout the episode, many common questions were answered in the end and the episode itself was excellent. It even managed to almost bring me to tears—something that generally never happens. The main insert song was once again lyrically powerful and is starting to become one of my favourite AKB48 songs. Looking forward, with only one episode left, AKB0048 is definitely a series I will miss editing and watching every Sunday.

AKB0048 - Episode 11

What a twist!

Shifting from the Takamina-Kanata conflict to the Chieri-Nagisa one, this episode of AKB0048 brings what I expected to be the main focus of the series ever since the two understudies' confrontation on the trip to the audition. Obviously, Tsubasa has something up her sleeves when she announced to the unconfident Nagisa that'd she'd be singing a solo song at the understudy performance on Lancastar which is, fittingly enough, the planet where the main four originally lived on. While she doesn't explicitly state her reason for placing Nagisa in this role, what she saw in Mii-chan's photo in the last episode is enough to guess that Tsubasa would like to see Nagisa's full potential.

AKB0048 - Episode 10

Mayuyu <3

An obligatory fanservice episode that actually contains plot development—now that's definitely a rarity. While I didn't mind the first half of fanservice (I got to see the 0048 girls in swimsuits, after all), I was overjoyed at how the story still progressed. Instead of the usual 24 minutes of filler that most episodes of this type present, AKB0048 was able to please both sides of the audience—those that watch the show for the girls and those who watch it for the story.

Summer 2012

Naturally, I'd want to blog about all the series I plan to watch in the Summer 2012 season, but seeing as how it was so difficult for me to keep up with everything in Spring 2012, I have no choice but to cut down on the number of series I'll blog about. That's not to say I'll be watching a lot of series anyways; I have six hours less (excluding commute time) a week for myself in July and August since another one of my summer courses has started.

Now to get back to the topic of anime, judging by past experiences, I'm planning to stick to blogging about series which have the potential to incur lots of thinking and/or analysis on the part of the audience. That's not to say I don't enjoy slice-of-life or comedy shows; in fact, SoL is near the top of my favourite genres. As always, I'm open to suggestions as to what I should or should not blog about. And without further ado, here are my picks for the Summer 2012 season, now with some of my quick thoughts on each title.

AKB0048 - Episode 9

Because of Mayuyu :3

The main focus of the previous two episodes, this one included, is on the conflict between Takamina and Kanata, the captains of the successors and understudies, respectively. Externally, Kanata idolizes Takamina, while the successors' captain is really impressed with determination and talent of the understudies' captain. However, it is the conflict that goes on internally that gives rise to the drama in the recent episodes of this series. In this episode, it can be seen that Takamina took Yūko's advice and tried to continue living this dream of hers—the dream of being Takahashi Minami the 5th. The perseverance she displayed was really impressive as she managed to battle through the "river of sickness" (reference to one of the insert songs) in order to fulfill her duty. Upon seeing that, one might think that Takamina's successful performance in the concert would provide her with a much-needed confidence booster. However, Kanata's reaction to all this changed everything.

AKB0048 - Episode 8

Something tells me this DES machine is special.

What's more important to you: Your own success or the success of those you love? In general, most people would choose the former as it is in human nature to think of oneself above all else. However, if you take a step back and analyze that decision, you might actually find it to be a slightly selfish one. This is exactly what I believe is troubling Takamina now. Sure, there's no doubt that she wants to stay as Takamina and perform with her fellow AKB0048 members. But in doing so, she's preventing Kanata from reaching her goal. Adding on to the difficulty of the situation is the fact that Kanata has been an understudy for more than two years and that she absolutely looks up to Takamina. Because of these things, as well as what the Kirara of Succession revealed, it's understandable why Takamina is starting to lose her composure.

AKB0048 - Episode 7

(♥ o ♥)

Blogger's Note: Midterm time + real life has limited the time that I can spend on blogging. Thanks to the one-week hiatus for a few series, I'm not that far behind yet. Will try to catch up with everything soon.

If the amount of drama wasn't enough in the previous episodes, this one manages to really take it to the next level. It is not just the understudies who are affected by this, but the successors as well. The mystery regarding Sensei-sensei and the behind-the-scenes sacred place which is only known to the higher-ups is being slowly revealed now. In terms of pacing, I feel the producers are doing a great job right now. Each episode has enough material to keep me entertained, but is also moderated so that it doesn't feel rushed. I was really happy about getting to know more about Chieri's past as it helped to justify her actions, and also about the Kirara of Succession as they add another element to the mystery surrounding the 0048 system.

AKB0048 - Episode 6

Chieri = Mayuyu = <3

I found it amusing how the phrase "Haters gonna hate" could actually be applied to this episode. It's already obvious that Orine is someone who doesn't have much self-confidence. So when she gets hate mail from an "anti" (translated at "hater"), her shocked and scared reaction didn't come as a surprise. A part of me wants to scold her like Chieri did since I also felt that, if she couldn't handle something as minor as this, she'll have a tough time in the future. However, I also sympathized with her because of her unfortunate past in which she was all alone. So when Orine finally got her first handshake (apparently these handshake events are popular for idols/celebrities in Japan) and also managed to get a compliment out of her "very first hater", who just happens to be a tsundere, I couldn't help but smile.

AKB0048 - Episode 5

Mayuyu~

On the surface, it's perfectly valid to say that nothing happened in this episode because, in a way, nothing really did. There was no major plot progression or character development; no insert song, dance sequence or fighting, either. However, the setting up of a basis for the future episodes to build upon, in the form of hinting that Sensei-sensei is someone/something important, as well as having the current successors talk about their experiences and overall motivation to keep moving forward, were significant enough to make this episode not a complete waste. Personally, I think my bias for AKB48 allows me to make the most out of every episode, no matter how objectively "bad" or "boring" it might be.

AKB0048 - Episode 4

Party Members: +2

One would expect a "moeblob" show like AKB0048 to have hollow characters and no plot. While the latter point was already proven false in the previous episodes, Episode 4 does a good job of invalidating the former claim. The show itself is not as simple as one might think; it's not just about cute girls running around, singing and dancing, while blasting away enemies in style. There is indeed more to AKB0048 than meets the eye. The motivation for why each understudy wants to become a successor is mostly unknown, aside from the fact that most of them dislike DES and the entertainment bans or love being an idol, possibly even both. From the events that happened in this episode, I think each girl's backstory has a chance of being expanded on later on in the series.

AKB0048 - Episode 3

おめでとう,少女たち！

Wow... I actually thought this was going to turn into another Madoka at one point. The intensity of the selection round, enhanced by the music, made watching the episode a great experience. What's more is that the lyrics of "Beginner" actually fit in with its accompanying scene perfectly; it was as if all the candidates were singing the song from their hearts. Before the revelation that the whole thing was a simulation, I genuinely felt shocked when I saw many of the girls get eliminated by the enemy craft, thinking that they were dead. Even though what Chieri said was right—how some will pass and some will fail—I couldn't help but feel sorry for those who failed as all their hard work and effort amounted to nothing.

AKB0048 - Episode 2

That fang~

Before anything, I just have to say that the OP is definitely on par with this season's (possibly year's) best. Everything from the visuals to the song itself was outstanding. I can't wait for the single to be released!

As for the episode, the introduction of three new characters added more variety to the current cast of Nagisa, Yūka and Orine. The other three audition-bound girls were as different as can be, and they were a nice addition to the group. But while everything seemed to be fine and dandy, it comes as no surprise that things would go downhill sooner or later. And because of this, drama, which I did not expect would present at all prior to watching the show, ensues.

AKB0048 - Episode 1

Lolis and idols; music and dancing. Best show of the season?

"Aitakatta, aitakatta, aitakatta, yes!"
Indeed, I have been waiting for quite some time now; the best was arguably (I won't say "definitely") saved for last. The animation for the performance sequences was very smooth and fluid. The songs were catchy (I absolutely loved 少女たちよ) and AKB0048s idea of "fighting while singing" was entertaining, unlike Symphogear's. For amateur voice actresses, the members of AKB48 did a decent job in voicing their characters. Even the story, which I wasn't expecting to be strong, managed to surprise me as it is seemingly based on the interesting topic of throwing away everything one has in order to pursue a dream. The three girls' willingness to do this showed just how passionate they are about entertainment; I'm sure I'd do the same if I were them since I can't imagine a life without music, let alone entertainment.

AKB0048 - Preview

Blogger's Note: I'm editing this for EveTaku so be sure to come check out our subs!

AKB0048 is the last show of the season, and also my most anticipated. After being blown away by how good THE iDOL@MSTER was, it was difficult to find something to fill the big void that it left. Luckily, the announcement of AKB came along and I was overjoyed. What I expect from this series is music, and lots of it, given that the insert songs used will most likely be already-released AKB48 songs. Currently, I have zero knowledge about anything AKB-related, but I'm sure that, once the series reaches its conclusion, I'll know a lot more about the idol group that is arguably the most popular in Japan. Music aside, the premise of the plot also seems interesting. It's different from shows like K-ON! and iM@S in the sense that plot is seemingly solid and distinguishable (although that doesn't mean "no/weak plot" is bad; I gave both K-ON! and iM@S a 10/10). Whether it ends up being like the other two is left to be seen. Even though a show of this genre won't be well-accepted within the general anime community, I will definitely be sticking with it.

Spring 2012

It's been a bit over a year since I started this blog and it has been satisfying to see the page views rising every month. Having expanded my genres of interest a bit further, I have quite the list of planned to watch shows for the Spring 2012 season. With that being said, I'm only planning on reviewing some of them as I learned from last season that it's harder to review some genres than others (e.g. It was extremely hard for me to come up with an interesting review for each episode of Kill Me Baby).

Therefore, I have split the post into two sections: Will (Possibly) Review and Will Watch but not Review. Note that each show can be interchanged between sections depending on how the first few episodes are.