What I’ve Been Watching: #6

Sorry this post is late, I got a little sidetracked yesterday. It’s been a slower week for me, only watched a few series.

I started off the week with Himouto! Umaru-chan. A quirky show with decent but forgettable characters and no real plot to speak of, Mainly just a combination of “events”. Just easy watching stuff really, it did remind me of Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid a little bit.

Moving on from that I watched Maken-Ki! a very “meh” show. Some funny moments but nothing memorable. I wouldn’t bother watching it.

I finished the week watching Gamers! When I first started watching it I absolutely hated it, but I stuck with it and actually started to enjoy the show. The only issue is that none of the problems would have happened if any of the characters bother to talk to each other. It is kinda ridiculous.

Also in Manga Land, I dusted off the rest of Bloody Monday. Quite a few good twists towards the end.

Bloody Monday: Volume 4 Review

Bloody Monday is a series written by  Ryumon Ryou and was illustrated by Megumi Kouji. The fourth volume was published on 14th of February 2012. This volume features the next nine chapters (24-32). You can read my review of the third volume here. After being captured and interrogated by Third-I, Maya Orihara offers to make a deal with Fujimaru Takagi. If she can be granted amnesty for her crimes, then she will give Fujimaru and Third-I some information that will help to solve the case. With the deal approved, Fujimaru, Kano Ikuma and Hosho Sayuri take Maya in a car to transport her to where the information is to be found. However, all is not well as on the car ride over, Fujimaru begins to notice some strange behaviour coming from one of his comrades in Third-I. He begins to suspect that a spy is working to free Maya from her current position. As such Fujimaru must think quickly and put a plan into action to stop her escape.

My Review: Makes some big strides in the plot development area. Without spoiling anything we get to see the big reveal of a spy working inside Third-I. I have to say that the book did an excellent job of averting my expectation, completely undermining my thought on who the spy actually was for a character I had thought to be innocent. I really liked the time during the car ride where Fujimaru needs to find a way to contact Third-I and tell them about the spy, it has a pretty good sense of tone. Although I did think it was a little ridiculous how he just happened to know the exact details of Kirishima’s phone.

After the spy is revealed, Fujimaru gets a real system shock, having Maya toy with his thoughts and make him unsure of his initial guess. This is where we start to see him realise that he isn’t some super kid (despite the endless comment on how “amazing” he is). Now you would think that this would leave a lasting impression but for the most part, this event is quickly forgotten in next few volumes.

All in all, this volume covers some important plot developments and introduces a few new characters into the mix. Having now read the entire series I can say that this book is not as critical as some of the others but still plays a role in some of the events to come.

I rate this manga 5.5/10.

Thanks for reading!

H

Don’t forget to share and follow The Anime Accord on all the social site and visit our Patreon if you feel like supporting us. Arigatou.

What I’ve Been Watching: #5

Let’s get down to brass tacks, I’ve been watching and reading heaps.

I finished of Akashic Records of Bastard Magic Instructor. An I have to say that there was a lot of wasted potentials, like a lot. Which was really disappointing because it started out so well.

After that, I jumped right into Air. I thought it was pretty good although the plot completely derailed towards the end. I want a fan of the sudden jump to feudal Japan, kinda jarring. I also watched the OVA (Air in Summer) but it’s basically just an expanded feudal saga.

Then I mover onto Charlotte. And it was pretty good, started out fairly tame, gradually got better. There was a dip towards the end but it certainly could have been way worse. There was one point where I could see a really interesting story branching out, but you’ll have to wait for the review for that. (Ps. coming soon, … probably).

Moving on to My First Girlfriend is a Gal. The ecchi is strong with this one. It wasn’t terrible by any means and had a few laughs but I wasn’t really left with any want to watch more.

And now I have just finished watching Baccano! Wow, what a ride, literally. Get it cozz the train, … ok, I’ll stop. Anyway, I loved the setting of old-timey mobster America. Not what your everyday anime setting. The dub also has some great accents.

In the world of books, I keep chugging along with Bloody Monday. I have finished volume four, five, six, seven and most of eight. Some of its alright, some of its very stagnant. Although I will say that volume eight is awesome, loving it.

And there you go, now you know everything I’ve been up to this week. If you want to keep up with more of what I’m watching then you can check out my MAL which I try to keep as up to date as possible. You can do that here.

Thanks for reading!

Bloody Monday: Volume 3 Review

Bloody Monday is a series written by  Ryumon Ryou and was illustrated by Megumi Kouji. The third volume was published on 20th of December 2011. This volume features the next nine chapters (15-23). You can read my review of the second volume here. This volume begins with Fujimaru and Otoya going to pay Ms. Orihara (Maya) a visit. She had previously dismissed Fujimaru’s suspicion of her involvement with “the Christmas Massacre”, However, Otaya provides a piece of information that leaves Ms. Orihara’s alibi in shambles. When their plan to secure evidence of her crime goes awry, Fujimaru will need to think on his feet to keep inconspicuous or risk becoming another one of Ms. Orihara’s victims. While all this is occurring, more of the terrorist organisation start to crawl out of the woodworks as Fujimaru draws a connection between his current predicament and his actions in the events two years prior.

My Review: Volume 3 of Bloody Monday was far more interesting than the last two volumes. The partition of the book where Fujimaru and Maya are trying to sus each other out was pretty entertaining, it really reminded me of Deathnote if not a bit sillier. The rest of the volume is mostly dedicated to an action event that involved Fujimaru using his super hacker powers is a somewhat entirely unbelievable manner. My suspension of belief just can’t allow me to accept that Fujimaru is able to hack into the building and control the light, speakers and what not. I may be wrong but I have a feeling that that’s not how buildings work. Still, it was entertaining and had enough interesting action to keep it fresh and exciting. The rest of the volume consists of an introduction to the new villain characters who seem to be rather one-note, I guess we’ll need to wait and see.

I rate this manga 6.5/10.

Thanks for reading!

H

Don’t forget to share and follow The Anime Accord on all the social site and visit my Patreon if you feel like supporting me. Arigatou.

What I’ve Been Watching: #4

Hay everyone one, another week goes by and I’ve been busy watch and reading anime stuff.

Firstly, If you’ve been reading my reviews then you would know that I have just started reading the Bloody Monday series. So far I have read Volumes 1,2 and 3 and has started volume 4. It’s pretty good so far.

Nextly, I’ve finished watching Angel Beats! and the “Stairway to Heaven” OVA. The series wasn’t too bad, but I thought the OVA was a bit average.

After that, I watched all of Tsuredure Children. It was pretty fun, but I think the spontaneous nature of the show may have been a bit overbearing.

Now I am making my way through Akashic Records of Bastard Magic Instructor. All I’ll say is that there are hints of brilliance, just hints though. It is still pretty good regardless.