June Anime Picks

Instead of doing a manga pick this month, I'll do an anime pick instead. Plus I'm super late this month with my list. I haven't caught up with most of the anime I wanted to watch in the spring and I follow only a couple. I find that if I follow too many series at a time I lose interest in some series which isn't fair when they're actually not too bad in the first place. This month I will be recommending some spring leftovers transitioning to the summer time slots. Let's see if your favorite ended up.

JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Stardust Crusaders

Stardust Crusaders is the second season to JJBA and so far they adhered close to the manga. Starting off, I think it's great that they decided animate JJBA because it was the longest running manga without an anime ever made. The OVA that was made in 1996 was adapted to fit in 12 episodes so many major changes were made. Even as an adaptation, I enjoyed the OVA. Having read all of Stardust Crusaders, I know what happens next, but it's still nice to see it in moving pictures and sound. The story is wild and exciting. I can't wait for the next episode each week. It's that addicting. All battles are mostly based on wit rather than power. I expected really top notch animation, but I personally think that it isn't at its best. Maybe it's because it's hard to translate Araki's drawing styles into animation and capture the spirit of it. What irks me the most actually is that characters in JJBA speak in dramatic tones most of the time, but they animate it as if they were just casually talking to each other. It's not at the fault of the seiyuu because they record while the actual drawing is going on and all they see on a screen is moving lines. What makes the JJBA animation stand out is the use of the vibrant color scheme and patterns. They dramatically overlay patterns on scenes and use whatever color they like. To me, that's the spirit of animation. Since this is being broadcast on TV in Japan, they censored certain things like Jotaro's cigarette use and some gore with shadows. I'm guessing that the DVDs will have it uncensored and uncut. Some names were changed in the subs, but the Japanese dub retained the original names.

Kindaichi Case Files R

 

I did not expect to see Kindaichi again, but a wave of nostalgia hit me. Kindaichi originally ran in 1997 up until 2000. After that there was an OVA and a movie. I love watching a good mystery and I haven't watched one in a long time. Kindaichi mysteries have good suspense to them with a good breakdown on the technical aspects of the murders. The perpetrator's motives are too half-assed sometimes. It's nice to see recurring characters tag along with Kindaichi in his mystery solving like Miyuki and Reika. The animation in this series is ok and for a mystery I think animation isn't too important. Usually a mystery spans for four episodes. A shorter mystery will last for two. I don't know how long Kindaichi will be airing, but I hope it's not just 26 episodes.

Mushishi

 

The new installation is a season two. The pacing is rather slow and mellow (with Ginko being very laid back). What draws the audience in is the wild imagination of the different types of mushi and a great appreciation for nature. The entire series is a metaphor for the circle of life and how we all fit into it.  Mushishi being a slow paced series may not be for audiences who enjoy a lot of dramatic scenery, because you won't get that too much. The animation is still consistent with season one. Even the opening theme has that same feeling as season one. I hope there are some fun stories in this season. I describe the series as mellow overall. but I think there's a special eeriness to some episodes and tragedy to the characters that Ginko meets.