My favourite Katawa Shoujo.

It’s very rare for the collective response to an anime as widely viewed as Guilty Crown to be so unified and even rarer when that response skews so strongly to the negative, but that’s where we are after 15 episodes. Right from its debut the show was compared incessantly with Code Geass, propelled by a similar setting and premise and the fact that the two shows share the brains of the writing crew. Those comparisons died down a bit when the differences became clear and very quickly it was apparent that Guilty Crown simply wasn’t going to be anywhere near as fun, let alone as good as Code Geass. The question of what makes Code Geass more entertaining than Guilty Crown has been considered, but generally quickly dismissed with references to Lelouch’s naturally magnetic leadership. I think it’s worth considering at a (slightly) deeper level. (Major spoilers for both titles within.)

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Copyright © 2012 Behind The Nihon Review. All licensed material are owned by their respective parties.
By Sorrow-kun | Permalink | 14 comments | Add to StumbleUpon | Tweet! | reddit
Post tags: Code Geass Hangyaku no Lelouch, Guilty Crown

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The AnimeSuki Choice Awards frustrate the hell out of me. I definitely think it’s a worthwhile idea, which is why I cover it each and every year, as it is a good exercise to see which anime a community of its size rate highly, and Haak does a good job organizing nomination and voting stages, counting votes and announcing winners. But the problem I’ve been complaining for years about now, in this very column, seems to get worse every year. There’s too many categories, which makes the nominating and voting processes (as well as attempts to cover it comprehensively, like this one) a giant pain in the ass. The categories are hella ambiguous too, which makes the nomination process confusing (fortunately the voting process isn’t so hard, because the choices are more limited).

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Copyright © 2012 Behind The Nihon Review. All licensed material are owned by their respective parties.
By Sorrow-kun | Permalink | 23 comments | Add to StumbleUpon | Tweet! | reddit
Post tags: AnimeSuki Choice Awards, Ano Hi Mita Hana no Namae wo Bokutachi wa Mada Shiranai, Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai, Colorful, Fate/Stay Night, Hourou Musuko, Kami nomi zo Shiru Sekai, Mahou Shoujo Madoka★Magica, Mawaru PenguinDrum, Moshidora, Redline, Steins;Gate, Usagi Drop, Working!!

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Not many people noticed when we did this last year.

This year’s NHRV Staff Contest has now officially started. We’re looking for two new staff members to help us with writing anime and live action reviews and/or contributing to the Behind The Nihon Review blog. Applications will be open until Monday, 6 February, so if you’ve ever contemplated joining the NHRV staff, submit yours today! It will be the best opportunity you’ll have to get on board for the foreseeable future.

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Copyright © 2012 Behind The Nihon Review. All licensed material are owned by their respective parties.
By Sorrow-kun | Permalink | 8 comments | Add to StumbleUpon | Tweet! | reddit
Post tags: Recruiting

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It’s not often that we do two podcasts in two weeks, but it’s the time of the season where we get together to bitch about what we hated about the season just finished. Except, it was kinda hard to find enough shows from the last season that we hated, so we had to reach all the way back to the summer season. Shinmaru joins me for a chat this time, and we finished up by reflecting on his time as a reviewer at the NHRV over the last twelve months. Here’s the list of shows we’ve covered in this episode:

0:40 Un-Go

5:19 Mawaru Penguindrum

9:35 Squid Girl S2

14:35 Natsume Yuujinchou San

17:57 No. 6

23:11 An interview with Shinmaru

This episode runs for 25:31, and we’ve somehow managed to avoid spoilers. So feel free to listen here:

And collectors can get a download from here.

Copyright © 2012 Behind The Nihon Review. All licensed material are owned by their respective parties.
By Sorrow-kun | Permalink | 9 comments | Add to StumbleUpon | Tweet! | reddit
Post tags: Mawaru PenguinDrum, Natsume Yuujinchou, No. 6, Shinryaku! Ika Musume, The Nihon Revue, Un-Go

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I think the divisiveness of the response to Shinkai Makoto‘s latest film, Hoshi wo Ou Kodomo is very interesting, and it perhaps paints a picture of a set of expectations that fandom has for him that he still hasn’t quite met. Personally, I thought Hoshi wo Ou Kodomo was a great film but my precise opinion of its story has fluctuated, not only while I was watching the movie itself, but even afterwards, on further reflection. Various reviewers have attempted to grasp at where the story was lacking, some arguing it was overly ambitious, others saying it was unengaging, simplistic or the pacing wasn’t right. My opinion of its biggest shortcoming is probably controversial in the context of other reviews: I don’t think there was a great deal wrong with Hoshi wo Ou Kodomo‘s story, the core issues were with the plot. (Warning: this post contains major spoilers.)

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Copyright © 2012 Behind The Nihon Review. All licensed material are owned by their respective parties.
By Sorrow-kun | Permalink | 19 comments | Add to StumbleUpon | Tweet! | reddit
Post tags: 5 Centimeters per Second, Hoshi o Ou Kodomo, Shinkai Makoto

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Who's Akira's waifu again? I forgot.

On the flight to Sydney to meet Akira, the word “off-kai” rang continuously in my head. This was the first time I’d gone to meet someone from the internet, and I was reminded of what 2DT said of his meeting with Akira and the nerves he had beforehand, in his post on 2-D Teleidoscope. I was full of nerves too, which didn’t make an uncomfortable domestic flight on a budget carrier all that much enjoyable. (The sleepy guy sitting in the aisle across from me was rudely awakened when a stewardess clumsily bumped a drinks cart into his knee, but that’s nothing compared to the crap Akira told me he experienced from said carrier.) When I touched down, Akira told me to take the train into the city, and that he’d wear a shirt that only I would recognize.

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Copyright © 2012 Behind The Nihon Review. All licensed material are owned by their respective parties.
By Sorrow-kun | Permalink | 12 comments | Add to StumbleUpon | Tweet! | reddit
Post tags: Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai, Comiket, Guilty Crown, Ikoku Meiro no Croisee, Kannagi, Kill Me Baby, Kugimiya Rie, Mawaru PenguinDrum, Steins;Gate, The iDOLM@STER

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This is our hero shot.

This post is something of a spin-off/sequel from the last, this time looking at the events, particularly the episodes, displayed in anime this year that were memorable. While others on the aniblogosphere formatted their annual reflection in the 12 Days mold, I’ve instead distilled my list of awe-inspiring moments to five episodes in one post, not because I’m trying to be different, but more because twelve is… err, a big number. The Nihon Review, as a whole will also offer our reflections with the annual Year in Review article (coming soon, stay tuned), and there’s been a lot of debating and horse-trading behind closed doors as we figure out our definitive list of anime highlights and what we want to say about each title. But for now, let’s just look at some individual episodes. (Warning: major spoilers ahead.)

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Copyright © 2011 Behind The Nihon Review. All licensed material are owned by their respective parties.
By Sorrow-kun | Permalink | 13 comments | Add to StumbleUpon | Tweet! | reddit
Post tags: Ikuhara Kunihiko, Mahou Shoujo Madoka★Magica, Mawaru PenguinDrum, Moshidora, Shinbou Akiyuki, The iDOLM@STER, Usagi Drop

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If it wanted, anime could go back to business as usual after this, but it would be a great injustice if it did so.

It’s the time of year when people like to reflect on the events and people who shaped the last last twelve months and that’s not different among anime fans, particularly bloggers. So while the 12 Days of Christmas are underway again this year in various locations, and in various incarnations, most of which are particularly focused on the moments and episodes that defined the year, it’s also worthwhile to take a glance at the individuals who made headlines in the anime world this year (and gave people like me something to write about). So, my question is, who was anime’s “Person of the Year” in 2011.

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Copyright © 2011 Behind The Nihon Review. All licensed material are owned by their respective parties.
By Sorrow-kun | Permalink | 20 comments | Add to StumbleUpon | Tweet! | reddit
Post tags: Fate/Stay Night, Fractale, Ikuhara Kunihiko, Kannagi, Mahou Shoujo Madoka★Magica, Mawaru PenguinDrum, Shinbou Akiyuki, Yamakan

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When the Noitamina time-slot started back in 2005, its intention was to be a place where unconventional, “unusual” anime could air. Starting with Honey and Clover (these days considered a masterpiece by a not-insignificant number of fans), Noitamina’s ambition to showcase anime that reached beyond the typical demographics targeted by most anime has been a worthy one that, despite some up-and-downs, it generally made a good fist of achieving. While Noitamina’s expansion to a two-series slot has only been recent, when we get two shows that seem to be unremarkable genre pieces, it stands out.

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Copyright © 2011 Behind The Nihon Review. All licensed material are owned by their respective parties.
By Sorrow-kun | Permalink | 18 comments | Add to StumbleUpon | Tweet! | reddit
Post tags: Ano Hi Mita Hana no Namae wo Bokutachi wa Mada Shiranai, C: The Money of Soul and Possibility Control, Code Geass Hangyaku no Lelouch, Fractale, Guilty Crown, Mahou Shoujo Madoka★Magica, Mawaru PenguinDrum, No. 6, Steins;Gate, Un-Go

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A bit overblown, don't you think? What about New Coke?

In my first entry to this year’s “Tsundere Appreciation Month”, I gushed over some of my favourites, particularly looking back at the tsunderekko who have made a positive impact on the archetype and who I think are memorable for various reasons. Today, with just a few days left in Tsundere Appreciation Month, I want to rage about some of my least favourite, and make some comments on some of the ways that my favourite moe archetype is being cheapened. The tsundere is a tricky balance. Her appeal is a strange one. Too belligerent and you have someone annoying, and hard to like. Too submissive, and it comes off as transparent and forgettable.

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Copyright © 2011 Behind The Nihon Review. All licensed material are owned by their respective parties.
By Sorrow-kun | Permalink | 5 comments | Add to StumbleUpon | Tweet! | reddit
Post tags: Da Capo, K-ON!, Mamoru-kun ni Megami no Shukufuku wo!, Rental Magica, Tsundere

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