First Impressions: Anime of Winter 2018

- WARNING: THIS POST MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS -

Easing back into the groove with the Winter 2018 season.

MyAnimeList Profile
Final Thoughts: Anime of Winter 2018 (to be posted)


Speed Boosts:
Citrus
Karakai Jouzu no Takagi-san
Koi wa Ameagari no You ni
Violet Evergarden
Yuru Camp

TL;DR

Citrus (2/12)

I Rate: 7.4/10.0
One Sentence: Thought I was getting a drama with yuri undertones but turns out it's yuri overtones.

Citrus definitely sets itself up to generate a lot of buzz with with its... unorthodox setting and characters. The first episode is slightly disappointing, however our patience is rewarded with some substantial development in the second episode, and I am hopeful that the anime will live up to its drama tag. But for the time being, nothing warrants Citrus a higher score.

So where does the anime go wrong? The main problem with Citrus is its reliance on an unorthodox premise and shock factor to seem dramatic. Now, I can't tell if I'm insensitive to this "forbidden love" stuff or whatever (after watching Kuzu no Honkai and Koi to Uso), but when I am thrown several scenes of hot (kinda NSFW?) and steamy (I wouldn't open this one in public either) action for seemingly little reason, that isn't good. To be fair, this dependence is somewhat lifted in the events of the second episode, where Yuzu resolves to "save" Mei from her suffocating life, but it still feels like the biggest reason to watch Citrus is to see those scenes (once again, kinda NSFW). If the anime can't develop a thoughtful and meaningful story without resorting to pandering, it will remain B tier at best.

Asides from this problem, there isn't too much else to comment on. At times the rationale of the two main characters is questionable, best seen in Yuzu's stubbornness in not adhering to school dress code despite it being a completely reasonable thing to do with far greater benefits than repercussions. Mei has a bit more leeway, as her otherwise inexplicable behaviour can be attributed to her circumstances, but only time will tell if her actions are meaningful or simply rash.

Best Girl: Mei > Yuzu


Karakai Jouzu no Takagi-san (2/12)

I Rate: 7.6/10.0
One Sentence: Asides from the slightly annoying Nishikita the show gives you good vibes and is an entertaining way to wind down after a long day.

Truth be told, the main thing holding up Karakai Jouzu no Takagi-san is Takagi. Takagi makes for an entertaining character who is fun to watch - unfortunately though we cannot say the same about our boy Nishikita.

The voice actor for Nishikita has done a bang on job of sounding like the most impudent and whiny brat of anime in recent memory. While that serves to effectively tell the audience what kind of person Nishikita is, it also has the downside of making me want to recoil every time this face comes on. He truly is a piece of work.

Karakai Jouzu no Takagi-san is nothing special, but it's not bad at all. Instead it's kinda like a comfortable arm chair to sink into after a long day of school/work, only it makes an annoying sound every five minutes.

Best Girl: you already know it's Takagi


Koi wa Ameagari no You ni (2/10)

I Rate: 7.5/10.0
One Sentence: I'm on the fence since it's a romance, but the dude is 45 and the girl is 17, so we'll have to see how the anime progresses.

Koi wa Ameagari no You ni leaves me feeling confused - should I be alarmed or should I sit back and let things happen? A part of me says, "It's probably just a puppy love or misunderstanding that will never turn into anything tangible," while the other part is unsure of how to feel about a relationship between the two characters.

But hey, age is just a number right?

Asides from that, the other aspects of the anime are quite good. I like what they've done with the characters of Tachibana and Kondou, in terms of their respective personalities and traits. Kondou is just a honest and hardworking guy, though you can feel the awkwardness emanating from him. Tachibana is somewhat in the same vein, in that she is straight forward and direct with her words and feelings.

The art is a little bit out there, but you only notice it in the characters. There's a lot of detail in the eyes (for some characters at least) and the hair styles are unique, which sorta give off a surreal feeling when I'm watching.

Best Girl: Tachibana of course


Violet Evergarden (2/14)

I Rate: 8.3/10.0
One Sentence: Holy Violet Evergarden is finally here and it's every bit as glorious as expected.

Before the start of the season I didn't know if I should have kept my hopes up that the stunning art and animation shown in the Violet Evergarden PVs would remain consistent throughout the actual show, but now the need to worry about that is completely gone. If for nothing else, you should watch at least the first episode to see what I'm talking about. That being said, there's more to an anime than its art, and Violet Evergarden does not disappoint in other departments.

One area that I'd really like to praise for its excellence is in the characters, and more specifically how they are revealed through their mannerisms and gestures. You catch onto these little movements and subtle expressions, and that adds onto what has already been explicitly shown about the character. This way of implicitly describing a character is done exceptionally well in Violet Evergarden, and there are many examples in just the two episodes I've watched.

In regard to the story, it is interesting, but progressing quite slowly. While the anime may have the leisure to do this with its surprising but welcome 14 episode duration, there runs the risk of becoming unexciting. I think there's great potential for the world that has been created, and I believe that potential will be fully realized.

Best Girl: actually wouldn't be surprised to see any of the girls here, but Violet is the way to go


Yuru Camp (2/14)

I Rate: 7.8/10.0
One Sentence: Feels good and feels right.

Yuru Camp is this season's rendition of cute girls doing cute things, except this time, cute things involve camping.

Maybe you just finished an episode of Citrus and you need some eye bleach to cleanse your soul. Well look no further than Yuru Camp!!! It's a surprisingly well made anime surrounding the adventures and discoveries of a bunch of smol girls going camping in the big world. Its comedy is nothing new, but it is tried and true, which means that while you won't be bursting out laughing, it will be entertaining to watch.

I like the art and animation more than your "average" anime, and the characters are all reasonably likable as well. Yuru Camp along with Karakai Jouzu no Takagi-san are both great anime to watch when you just wanna wind down after a long day of doing whatever you're doing, but Yuru Camp is rated a little higher for its more significant story progression and its larger (and more interesting) cast of characters.

Best Girl: IT'S THE CLUMSY BUT DETERMINED NADESHIKO


TL;DR

Citrus: 7.4/10.0 | could turn into something good, would pick up
Karakai Jouzu no Takagi-san: 7.6/10.0 | if you like getting teased by girls your age this is right for you
Koi wa Ameagari no You ni: 7.5/10.0 | if you like getting teased by the FBI this is right for you
Violet Evergarden: 8.3/10.0 | came for art, stayed for the art and characters
Yuru Camp: 7.8/10.0 | half learning how to camp, half looking at cute girls