Winter '16 TV Shows

[Ryujin]

Okay, so the Winter 2016 season is upon us.

Of the new TV shows this season, I've found the following to have significant mecha content:

In alphabetical order:

Active Raid
- Has its own topic.

Bubuki Buranki

- It's hard to explain this one in a paragraph or two as the show's still in the process of unfolding the situation, and there hasn't been much exposition. Very good visual design, though. Starts off in a seemingly fantasy setting then moves to a near-future, possibly dysfunctional Tokyo. As for mecha, 'buranki' appears to be synonymous with 'giant robot' and one of the MC's objectives is to locate his mother's buranki.

Dimension W
- Studio 3hz did a good job in adapting the manga's style & atmosphere (and really did justice to Mira). This is probably my favorite of the bunch since the manga's a favorite of mine, and if you like sci-fi detectives, then this is the season's show for you.

Koukaku no Pandora
- Adaptation of a collab between Shirow & Excel Saga's Rikudo. Wacky cyborg adventures in a postcyberpunk world that'll remind you that Shirow wasn't just GitS & Appleseed; he gave us more humorous stuff like Dominion, too. Kuruni's probably going nuts over Clarion.

Saijaku Muhai no Bahamut
- I'd like to say it's fantasy Infinite Stratos, especially given how the Machine Dragons are literally magical versions of the IS, everyone's attending a school to train in their use, and there's a huge disparity in the number of male & female students, but there's no bunny-eared mad scientist sister so it's already leagues better, imho. If there's one IS character I hate, it's Tabane Shinonono. Also, Lux has gotten farther with a girl in the first episode than Ichika has in the entire first season. Kind of disappointed that Tiamat's Seven Heads didn't turn out to be a Gatling gun, though.

Schwarzesmarken
- It's MuvLuv. 'Nuff said. Miss West Germany annoyed the heck out of me. For an experienced pilot, she was incredibly naive.

I'm hesitant to add Phantasy Star Online to the list because, as of the first episode, it's literally about a student at Seiga Academy (yes, it has a pool shaped like Sonic, so where's my SeHa Girls cameo?!?) learning to play PSO2. One of the main characters plays a CAST, though, and of course players are actually depicted as characters interacting within the game universe most of the time (even though it's clearly shown that they're playing via handheld consoles & PC's).

Norn9 and Luck & Logic may possibly have some mecha-ish elements in the future, due to the sci-fi setting, but it will probably be incidental at best.

[Zeonista]

Bubuki Buranki: I didn't know this was a giant robo anime. Apparently something was missing n the promo stuff... I am watching this one with my fingers crossed. It has some potential, and there is some Eighties-style retro in the story and characterization, and the cheerful defiance of Authority.

Koukaku no Pandora: Once I understood that Rikudo was involved, suddenly the wacko tone and pacing made sense! It is basically a world by Shirow and a story by Rikudo, and it goes together a lot more than one might think. I am not 100% sold on it yet, but it looks like fun, and the story looks like it will handle some serious themes in a light way.

Schwarzesmarken: Hell yes I am watching this, it is Muv-Luv Alt's gorgeous-gory greatness in Der Spades. Adding in the human dimension of a protagonist in the old GDR makes things very interesting! The good little totalitarian officer is delicious too. The Bundeswehr cupcake and imouto-chan trope who joins in later is jarringly out of sync...but that's the point. That is what the Cold War was like in Europe in those days, and the episode says as much in 20 minutes than I could in 2 hours.

Phantasy Star Online: Sheer naked commercialism, presented without apology or embarrassment. Game fans will not care a bit! The idea of an enitre school devoted to game mastery sounded odd. But then I decided it was a dojo and then things went a bit smoother.

Luck and Logic: It is not a mecha anime, but more of a SF take on magical girls..and a magical guy. It seems like fun, with a bit more depth than the flying-shoes story.

[Destiny_Gundam]

The idea of an enitre school devoted to game mastery sounded odd.

The school itself isn't devoted to games. They're merely looking into PSO2 to see what effect it has on their students.

[Zeonista]

The idea of an enitre school devoted to game mastery sounded odd.

The school itself isn't devoted to games. They're merely looking into PSO2 to see what effect it has on their students.

A friend pointed out that I had missed the hero's true strangeness. He is a Japanese teenager who doesn't play electronic games! Even in the USA here that sort of admission in any suburban school would raise eyebrows. In Japan it is extraordinary. It makes the protagonist Sekai with better socialization.

[Henyo]

finally got to watching some of the current animes this season. among the mecha flavored, Pandora topped. Its YURI. that alone propelled it instantly. not to mention it was by Studio Gokumi(i could care less about it being a Shirow Idea. XD)

Active Raid: TOKU IN ANIME FORM KITTA!!!!!! this one also ranked high thanks to a female character also getting in on the armored form action. Call signs could have been better though. Oscar? really? the name reminds me more of LOGH and Rose of Versailles.

Bubuki Buranki - looks good so far. CG is okay. character design has Akira Toriyama vibes.

[Ryujin]

I was a bit nonplussed as to how the latest episode of Dimension W just skipped over 90% of an entire story arc which dealt with how dystopian its society had become. Asides from that, it made some character actions appear illogical.

For all its Alienware shilling, I'm actually finding the PSO2 anime to be an entertaining SOL, from the school prez's rapidfire internal monologue to MC's straightforward guileless approach to his roommate's in-game chuuni roleplaying behaviour. Even the young guy & girl in his party were construction workers IRL. And the SeHa Girls finally make a cameo in the third episode.

The second episode of Bubuki Buranki was a bit of a surprise--I was expecting the burankis to be components of the bubuki, but I didn't expect them to pull out the giant robot action until like, episode 5 or 6.

Also, from the bunch of other full-length shows I'm watching, Kono Suba is turning out to be the funniest. I guess Studio DEEN can still pull things off if it tries.

[Henyo]

One notable thing about his season is that there are a lots of serinpes that use CG animation for the character models. BBK/BRK and Ajin the most noteworthy as they are full CG.

the line "if you don''y play Online games nowadays you'll get left behind." from PSO2 The Animation made me crack. i DO NOT like online games. well, tried but never like them is more it. online gamers here have little to no netiquette. especially to people who download stuff.

also, the BEST Anime this season is:

S-E-K-K-O B-O-Y-S, SEKKO! S-E-K-K-O B-O-Y-S, SEKKO!