(Skip if you’ve read this paragraph already) So the summer of 2009 has come to an end last week on Tuesday. Well, what that brings is also the end to all of the summer seasons of anime that I have been watching. I’m not going to lie, I was pretty ambitious when I started the season; investing time into about 14 different series simultaneously. Needless to say, that didn’t work out so well – ended up dropping a ton of series that I found boring or just didn’t bother to keep up with. Now I find myself at the end of summer with around 6 series completed of varying quality. I have to say, 2009 hasn’t really blown me away with any anime, but it’s been interesting. So right now, I’m going to sum up what I have finished this summer: Bakemonogatari, Hayate no Gotoku S2, Canaan, Saki, Spice and Wolf S2, and Requiem for the Phantom. These aren’t listed in any particular order, so don’t follow it so much like that. Anyway, here we go.
So this article got extremely long. I’ve split it up into 3 parts so it’s easier to read. You’ll be able to tell when I’m wrapping up by the title of each one. I included the intro paragraph in each of these articles too in case you decide to read one, but not the others.
What will probably end up as my favorite anime of 2009 is Bakemonogatari. I enjoyed every minute of this series. The direction was appealing, the vector art was done very well, the characters were all unique and human, the story was always interesting, and the dialogue was probably my favorite aspect. The story centers around Araragi Koyomi, who we learn is partly a vampire due to circumstances that are pretty much explained in the first episode that happened prior to the series. Anyway, the rest of series follows Araragi as he tries to help people (girls) deal with certain ‘oddities’ that are plaguing them. The anime is structured in arcs of 2-3 episodes as Araragi runs into new ‘oddities.’
About the dialogue, I’d have to say that it pretty much consumes almost the entire anime. Granted, this anime is based off a bunch of light novels, but still. The amount of lines is absurd compared to some other anime I have watched. This is by no means bad though, as the dialogue is very amusing most of the time. There is a lot of wit and banter between the characters (I probably mentioned this in my first impressions post), while there is also the heavy portions of the anime when the characters suffering from the ‘oddities’ explain how they were received. I think it’s pretty clever how each of the ‘oddities’ can be explained by the circumstances in the characters’ lives. Events that could happen to anyone are taken as a literal physical representation somehow and affect the character.
Wrapping up now though, since I’ve already spent too many words on Bakemonogatari, I really hope that there ends up being 15 episodes. I saw on wikipedia that the show was scheduled for 15 and the last 3 will be released on the official website. I need someone to keep subbing it! >_< Oh yeah. And Senjougahara Hitagi wins Tsundere of the Year (she’s in the screenshot I put there).
Up next is Hayate no Gotoku Season 2. This time the series focuses a lot more on staying loyal to the manga. Don’t worry though, it still has tons of parodies and allusions to other anime/manga/otaku-ism. The arcs in this season, however, end up focusing more on the relationships between Hayate and Hinagiku, Ayumu, and Nagi. Of course, probably due to overwhelming popularity, Hinagiku gets tons of attention this season – she even gets her own ending theme song! Is this popularity well-placed? I’m not really sure, but for some reason she keeps drawing tons and tons of fans.
I think one of the wiser decisions of Hayate no Gotoku S2 was dropping the episode count from 52 in the first season to 25. I remember it taking me a very long time to finish the first season due to the sheer length of it; I’m not always in the mood for parodies. I am, however, well-versed enough in anime to understand around 95% of the jokes that go on (I’m not sure if this fact should be depressing or not).
So what do I think of Hayate no Gotoku in general? It’s definitely one of your love-comedies, except a lot more focus on the comedy than the love part. At least for now. This is one anime that you can definitely take your time and watch leisurely. The episodes don’t always leave you with a cliffhanger, and even if they do – you’re not enticed to watch the next one immediately (or maybe you are! Who knows?). Anyway, if you want to watch some just good-humored, well-natured anime and are knowledgeable in popular anime, then I can recommend this to you strongly. Will there be a season 3? I would say probably – and if there is, I hope that it will keep staying loyal to the manga. I like reading the manga quite a bit in my free time.
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