The 2010 Anime Season, as seen by me.
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Seen in entirety:
OKAMIKAKUSHI (Ookami-kakushi) (12 episodes): My first impression of this fascinating series was that it was Higurashi
with folklore and ritual substituted for the psychopathy and sadistic gore, so I wasn't that surprised to find it was created by the same person,
Ryukishi07 ("Seventh Expansion"). And yeah, there's a fundamental similarity (it might also remind you of 2007's Ghost Hound).
Hiroshi, a shy and modest megane kid, and his family --ebullient folklore writer/researcher dad Masaaki and wheelchair-bound kid sister Mana--move into the
seemingly-peaceful mountain town of Jouga, famous for its hassaku (a mandarin-orange-like citrus fruit, sour to taste but with a sweet fragrance).
Dad wants to study the local legend of the Jouga Wolves, huge beasts that live in the surrounding mountains and were (are?) worshipped as divine guardians of the
citrus harvest.
But almost immediately Hiro becomes caught up in the dark mystery of the place: disappearances no one will discuss, people whose word no one dares question
--like his steely classmate, Nemuru--and the weird tableau he stumbles into one night, in which a scythe-wielding assassin in ritual garb dispatches a townsman.
I imagine you can already guess that the Jouga Wolves and the ancient cult around them are very real; several of
the old families are god-possessed werefolk, controlled only by the lulling perfume of the hassaku (they even hang vials of hassaku oil in their cars like air-fresheners) and the revered, unquestioned sect of hunters who discipline them--
and that there's great tension developing
as the annual Hassaku Festival approches, since the
harvest this year was worryingly poor... [The title is a complex pun: kamikakushi,"taken by the gods", is the literal meaning of the phrase we translate as "spirited away";
while okami/ookami, the word for "wolf", also means "great god". So: "taken by the great wolf god"/"wolved away", or the like...) Ryukishi takes all this and amps it up with an old vs. new theme,
making it clear that the folk of the old part of town resent the newcomers who moved in with the dam construction. Should the Jouga Wolves' truth be revealed? Can the old system stand? It follows through to a dramatic
climax/confrontation that feels a bit forced, but I don't really mind, because I just love the vibe of this series. The sense of ancient belief pervading the
modern day (which is everywhere in Japan) is so keen you can almost smell the forest and the hassaku, and the haunting, almost dreamlike air doesn't dissipate right down to the final episode.
(AND it has Ozama Takumi's gorgeous soundtrack, the prettiest in I can't remember how long.) Something out of the ordinary; I love it.
DANCE IN THE VAMPIRE BUND(12 episodes): Wild little series in which the Vampire Queen Mina Tepes, who prefers to appear as a pre-pubescent and barely-clad girl, announces the existence of vampires to the world
and faces a storm of anger from those of her kind who would rather have stayed in the shadows. Political chicanery, gore galore, loyal werewolf protectors and a LOT of preteen nudity: this is a love/hate title.
Me, I'm a pushover for all things vamp that don't sparkle, and I thought it kicked ass. Much more after my rewatch.
HOUSE OF FIVE LEAVES (Sarai-ya Gorou)(12 hour-long episodes): Oh gosh, I love this one. It's a low-key, beautifully written series in which a ronin looking for work falls in with a thieving gang specializing in kidnapping...
but that doesn't give you a fraction of the lovely, subtle character writing, or the quiet, believable honesty of
this story. (It's the first hour-long series to air in the Noitamina block, and trust me, it deserves it.) ==Set in the late Edo period, it's about Masasunosuke, an out-of-work samurai just arrived in Edo after
losing his last gig.
He's an experienced swordsman, but such a timid and diffident guy that he doesn't impress anyone looking for
bodyguards. He can't afford to stay ronin long--he has family at home counting on the money he sends--and finally,
hungry and at the end of his rope, he accepts the offer of a shady dude called Yaichi. Turns out, though, that
Ichi-san is the boss of a kidnapping ring called the House of Five Leaves, and that what he really wants to do is
recruit Masa into the gang. Masa resists, hoping to stay clear of a life of crime, but as he's drawn into the
Five Leaves' world and gets to know the gang members and their reasons for taking this road, his resistance
starts to fade...
This is just a remarkable little series. It's very quiet--muted color palette, not much fighting, lots of
undertoned conversations--and it works entirely on its characterization and expressive details. The character
designs are by our own Kazuto Nakazawa (any Samurai Champloo fan will spot his distinctive style right away)
and he's on top of his game for emotional, subtle faces. The guy in charge (series director and head writer)
Tomomi Mochizuki, is one of the few on board with no Champloo connections, but he's got a ton of directing
credits including Studio Ghibli, and he's very good with this shadowy, steady-paced material. Masa is a
wonderful piece of work: loyal, honest, but so withdrawn and unaggressive that people sometimes question his
samurai cred to his face. The Five Leaves, used to the secrets and double meanings of the underworld, hardly
know what to make of a guy so innocent and candid, but they were all honest people themselves once, and he
reaches something in them. And moody, oblique Yaichi himself, no matter what he says, is definitely in this for more than the
money --and Masa becomes determined to find out exactly what.
HAKUOUKI (Hakuouki Shinsengumi Kitai) (12 episodes): A guilty pleasure for sure: the most delectable Mary Sue (Marisuki?) plot imaginable. =) Yukimura Chizuru,
a determined girl in search of her missing father (she even looks a bit like Fuu), journeys
to Kyoto and there, unexpectedly, witnesses the city's protectors--the fabled Shinsengumi--dispatching a glowing-eyed monster. She's taken under their protection,
and stays there as the political climate turns against them AND as it becomes uneasily clear that her father's disappearance and the vampiric transformation that grips the Shinsengumi members are
inextricably connected... Did I mention that in this version the Shinsengumi are all breathtakingly gorgeous (or at least cute) guys? ]==[[Swoon space here: OMG Hijikata.]]==And that
the "helpful assistant/junior apprentice/beloved kid sister" status that Chizuru (and I don't even find her annoying: she's got her own sword and can defend herself, and
genuiinely works hard to earn a place under their roof.) acquires with them is
pure dream soup? Guess I don't have to. =) History, some; fantasy, some; sword-fighting bishies, HELL yeah. ==Sequel begins in October and I am SO there.
Still watching:
Sengoku BASARA Two(13 episodes): More Sengoku Jidai politics, more heroic demises, more Sanada and Date. C'mon, you know you want to see it.
KUROSHITSUJI II (Monoshitsuji/Black Butler II) (only 13 episodes, drat): A murder-mystery: is Ciel Phantomhive actually dead? or if he's alive, does he have his soul? if not, who has it?
and what exactly happened at the end of the first series?--cryptic and mystifying, this one has fans of Kuro I tearing their hair worldwide. We've met Alois Trancy,
heir to the house that's apparently the Queen's *other* Guard Dogs (Her Majesty refers to "the Dog and the Spider"
in a missive to Ciel)--he's a nasty little sadist whose icy demon butler, Claude Faustus, doesn't seem to like him much, but he seems to have a backstory even more traumatic than Ciel's.
We've established that Ciel Phantomhive has been returned to life by his devoted butler, Sebastian Michaelis, but has lost his memories (including, heartbreakingly, his awareness that his last remaining
relative is dead); and we've seen that Alois desires above all to "have"
Ciel, though whether he means in bed, for dinner, or taxidermed in the drawing room isn't sure. Battle of the Akuma-Butlers ensues and a pact is made. Now what?
And what's Alois' game and backstory? We wait with bated breath...
NURARIHYON no MAGO (Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan)(24 episodes!): This is one of those series that makes you ask "Why? dude, just why?" ==OK: Rikou Nura, 3/4 yokai and 1/4 human, is the pending heir to the position of
head of the Nura Clan and thence Leader of the Night Parade--the formal head of all youkai. He lives in a handsome traditional house with his grandfather, the current head,and about a thousand
wonderful old-school youkai (real ones, not generic demon types! =) All he has to do is agree, and he gets it all: the title, the loyalty of legions of youkai,
superhuman powers and a cool adult form with huge battle skills. But does Rikou want all this? No! He's sick of youkai; he wants nothing to do with youkai; he wants to live as a human and go to school
like any ordinary kid. (Seriously now: come on! why?) --But, of course, there's a Paranormal Society at his high school which is passionately interested in the local youkai legends; and two of the strongest youkai from his clan,
Yuki-onna ("snow woman") and [], are determined to stay by Rikou's side and protect him no matter what awkward situations this may create to human eyes. And OH yeah, when Rikou manifests in his youkai form he's a handsome long-haired
warrior who at least one of his fellow students gains an instant crush on. Funniness ensues, but rival clans are plotting to take the leadership of the Night Parade for their own,
and Rikou needs to decide whether or not to step up and claim his heritage and his crown. Will he?...
More to come...
...go on to Fall/Winter 2010 reviews.
...return to Amalgam links page.
Part 1: 2010, Spring/Summer Season.
2010: FIRST SEASON: Spring Series
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(The final scene between them is simply priceless.)
You can watch this one on Funimation's website, and you really should. ==I'm serious. Go do it, now.
Anime News Network's review is beautiful and precise and dead-center.
...go back to Seasonal Reviews Mainpage for all anime series reviews 2005-10.