2010 Year in Review: Anime

2011 is a mere day away, so I present my year in review of every anime series, OVA, and film I completed in 2010, as well as a brief summary of my thoughts on each and my ratings (out of a possible 10). There are some that I am still working on, and others where I have completed a season but not the entire series, and as such those series will not be included. Many of the series, OVAs, and films mentioned here already have reviews posted, so you can check those out at your leisure. For those that do not yet have reviews posted, expect them sometime early 2011.

- Ergo Proxy: A dystopian sci-fi series set in post-apocalyptic world, Ergo Proxy follows Re-L Mayer and Vincent Law in their search for the truth behind mysterious and incredibly powerful beings known as proxies. The animation quality is some of the best I've seen in any series, though the lighting effects can occasionally leave a scene darkened and difficult to see. Aside from two episodes that feel rather out-of-place, the story chugs along at a steady pace, blending action and plot to deliver a thoroughly entertaining and cleverly planned narrative. My rating: 9.0

- Mobile Suit Gundam: Char's Counterattack: The final chapter in the struggle between Char Aznable and Amuro Ray sees Earth and its colonies thrust into a desperate struggle once again, and the return of a number of familiar faces. In terms of animation and the accompanying soundtrack, these are superb for a 1988 release. The plot, while interesting, seems a bit rushed, even with the film clocking in at over two hours in length, and might have benefitted from being formatted into a short OVA series instead of a standalone film. My rating: 8.0


- Spice and Wolf (seasons one and two): A seies that opts to play out its tense moments with quick thinking and cleverly planned out trades and transactions as opposed to violence, Spice and Wolf is an odd formula that ends up as a far superior series than it seems to aim for. Lawrence and Holo make a hillarious duo and the situations they find temselves in time and time again are as entertaining as they are gripping and suspenseful. With a phenomenal soundtrack and some high-end animation quality, this unorthodox series is defenitely worth checking out, even if math and economics aren't your strong suit. My rating: 8.5

- Turn A Gundam: With some of the most creative (and admittedly some of the strangest) mobile suit designs of any Gundam series and a story that focuses less on military combat than its brethren, Turn A Gundam is the black sheep of the franchise. With a complex series of relations that tie the many characters together as well as a deep and often thought-provoking plot, the series brings plenty new to the familiar Gundam story. Top that off with a beautiful soundtrack and some serious attention to detail in the animation, and the end result is arguably the single best alternate universe Gundam series to date. My rating: 9.75

- Castle in the Sky: Between their encounters with pirates and the military, Pazu and Sheeta find themselves caught up in a race to find the lost city of Laputa, a castle that floats high above the clouds. Combining sci-fi and fantasy motifs, the series is as creative as it is enjoyable. There is plenty of action and humor to keep younger viewers entertained, and Castle in the Sky caters to older viewers with one of the stronger stories of Miyazaki's films. My rating: 8.75


- Samurai Champloo: Laying a hip-hop soundtrack over a beautifully artful and action-packed series, Samurai Champloo is one of the stronger TV-MA anime released to date. While there is plenty of flash and flair presented, Fuu, Mugen, and Jin play off one another through a very amusing dynamic and meet a number of eccentric and quirky characters during their search for the samurai who smells of sunflowers. While most viewers will probably seek out Samurai Champloo with the intent of finding a quick action fix, the story is surprisingly strong and the art style and music make the series all the more fluid in its execution. My rating: 8.25

- Blue Submarine No. 6: While quite a major achievement for its time, the hybrid of traditional animation and CGI shows its age. The story, while creative, comes across as a bit preachy at times, but there is plenty of action and a few surprises to keep viewers entertained along the way. My rating: 7.0

- Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust: With a title that includes the word 'bloodlust', this film isn't particularly over-the-top in regards to the blood and gore portrayed therein. The story, while a bit slow in the beginning, is thoroughly entertaining and brings some new twists to a familiar formula. Couple that with a cast of diverse and overall well-rounded characters and you've got an entertaining and original dark fantasy film. My rating: 8.0

- MS Igloo: The Hidden One Year War: The crew of the Zeon vessel Jotunheim is tasked with overseeing the testing of various experimental equipment and mobile suits during the later days of the One Year War. Engineer Oliver May provides viewers with the necessary information on each piece of equipment at the start of an episode, and is then shown interacting with his fellow crew members, wherein viewers are given a look at the varying personalities that make up the Zeon forces (explored less often in the Gundam metaseries than those of the EFSF). Fully rendered with CGI, the series looks better and better with each episode and gives and intersting look into the desperate measures taken behind the scenes during the One Year War. My rating: 8.75

- Gundam SEED: The first Gundam series to be fully rendered through digital animation, Gundam SEED provided a sort of hybrid between the alternate universe and Universal Century series. While the animation and soundtrack are both solid, the characters are almost entirely 'hit or miss', and the story feels like it is dragging on at times. My rating: 7.25

- The Girl Who Leapt Through Time: Mixing teen drama and sci-fi genres isn't something that's always easy or successful, but this modern take on a high school girl who explores the possibilities of time travel is executed nearly flawlessly. It's by far one of the prettiest looking anime films released to date, with an equally solid story fueled by a small cast of quirky and entertaining characters - the strongest of these being lead character Makoto. My rating: 9.0


- Sgt. Frog (season one): A hillarious romp through pop-culture references and the zany situations which Keroro and his A.R.M.P.I.T. platoon find themselves in time after time makes for one of the funniest anime I've seen to date. Aside from one relatively weak episode, I found myself laughing the entire way throuh the series, which, while geniunely funny, doesn't seem to force its humor too much on viewers. My rating: 9.5

- Dragonball Z: Fusion Reborn: One of the Dragonball Z films tied less directly to the main storyline of the series, Fusion Reborn follows Goku and Vegeta as they fight a powerful evil entity known as Janemba and attempt to restore the natural rhythm of Earth and the Other World as the barriers between these have been broken. The story is rather basic in its premise and tries to dish out as much action as possible in less than an hour. While the conclusion is a bit abrupt, the pacing overall is decent and a few nods to the original Dragonball along the way mix things up a bit from the standard formula of most DBZ films. My rating: 7.25

- Axis Powers: Hetalia (seasons one and two): One of the most creative interpretations of the events surrounding World War II, Hetalia portrays each nation as a single person and stereotypes them based on national traditions and culture. The main character is Italy, and as such the majority of the first season spends more time focused on the Axis Powers, but the Allies get their fair share of screen time in season two. Each episode clocks in at roughly seven minutes, so the series is relatively short, but at the same time geniunely hillarious. My rating: 9.0


- Full Metal Alchemist (season one): One of the most popular and critically acclaimed anime series of all time, Full Metal Alchemist follows brothers Edward and Alphonse Elric as they search for the Philospher's Stone in order to try and restore their bodies, which they forfeited most of during a failed attempt to resurrect their dead mother. During their journey, the brothers deal with the state military, Ishbalan refugees, and Homunculi (creatures of a human nature, but still distinctly inhuman). The animation is some of the best for its time, and the story is sure to keep viewers drawn in all the way up to the season finale. My rating: 9.75

- Howl's Moving Castle: A young woman named Sophie finds herself caught up in the conflict between magician Howl and his ties to the state and military. Like many of Miyazaki's works, the story includes a lot of fantasy elements and can easily be enjoyed by viewers of all ages. However, a few loose-ended story elements and a clunky conclusion drag this film down a bit more than most of Miyazaki's other works. My rating: 7.75

- Robotech: The Shadow Chronicles: Part sequel, part resurrection of the Robotech series, The Shadow Chronicles is an intracite conspiracy that invloves the humans who want to regain control of Earth from the Invid, and the ever-watchful Haydonites. The story is entertaining, though a bit predictable during latter scenes. The characters play off one another interstingly enough, and the animation quality is fairly impressive for a 2006 release. While overall the film is good, some cheesy elements make it fall short of being great. My rating: 7.75

- Mobile Suit Gundam Wing: As important a role as Gundam Wing played in introducing North American viewers to Bandai and Surise's wildly popular metaseries, the characters therein lack any apparent depth or believability. The animation is sub-par for 1996 and the soundtrack lacking creativity. It certainly had its place during the late 1990s, but in comparison to other series in the franchise, Gundam Wing hasn't aged particularly well. My rating: 6.75

- Dragonball Z: Bojack Unbound: In the midst of a major fighting tournament, Bojack and his minions - previously imprisoned by King Kai - arrive to try and spread chaos. Once again, the Z fighters are called into action to stop this threat. Unlike some of the other DBZ films, Bojack Unbound is quite closely tied to the events of the main series. Heavy on action, the film includes a fair amount of humor and doesn't try to take itself too seriously during lighter moments. My rating: 7.5


- Paprika: Following the theft of the DC Mini - a device capable of recording dreams and allowing others to enter a user's dream through simultaneous use - Paprika, alter ego to Dr. Chiba Atsuko, begins searching the dream realm for whoever stole the device and what they intend to with it. As the film progresses, the lines between reality and dreams begin to blur. With a creative soundtrack and a number of twists along the way, Paprika is one of the most brilliantly executed anime films released in years. My rating: 9.75

- 009-1: A sort of spiritual sequel to Cyborg 009, the plot and mood of 009-1 are darker and more mature, borrowing many inspirations from James Bond and other spy films/books of the 1960s and 1970s. More often than not, the characters of 009-1 fail to see their full potential achieved, as the story is almost exclusively focused on agent 009-1 (who, in turn, is very well-rounded by the series' finale). Each episode is a distinctly seperate narrative, though some attempts late in the series are made to tie subplots together with marginal success. All in all, the series is more about action with flash and flair than it is about a deep story, and it executes the former in a most dazzling manner. My rating: 7.5

- Azumanga Daioh: A slice-of-life comedy that follows a group of girls through their high school education, Azumanga Daioh caught me by surprise due to how genuinely funny it is without forcing too hard the delivery of said humor. The characters are all eccentric and quirky enough that they play off one another nicely, but hardly ever reach the point of being downright annoying. There isn't much that connects any of the episodes until late in the series, but that's not necessarily a bad thing as casual viewers can enjoy it just as much as more hardcore anime fans. My rating: 8.75

- Paranoia Agent: The first and only series helmed by Satoshi Kon, Paranoia Agent follows those affected (whether directly or indirectly) by a baseball-wielding assailant on rollerblades known as Lil' Slugger. As the series progresses, the question of who Lil' Slugger really is and what he is capable of becomes increasingly prominent. Part psychological thriller, part mystery series, Paranoia Agent proves once again the genius of Satoshi Kon through inventive plot twists, a colorful cast of characters, and narratives that viewers must piece together along the way. My rating: 9.5

- MS Igloo: Apocalypse 0079: Picking up shortly after The Hidden One Year War, Apocalypse 0079 shows how the Zeon forces became even more desperate and dependent on their experimental technology as the EFSF began dominating space battles. The characters are more believable this time around, and Monique Cadillac receives about as much screen time as Oliver May. With a phenomenal soundtrack that empasizes the series' desperate and tense mood, and CGI quality that surpasses its predecessor, Apocalypse 0079 is not only a fantastic Gundam OVA, but a great sci-fi OVA as well. My rating: 9.75

- Death Note: A constant battle of wits between high school student Light Yagami and master detective L serves as the premise for one of the most critically and popularly acclaimed anime series in years. With an interesting and believable cast of characters fueling the events that unfold, top-notch animation quality, and a powerful soundtrack, it's no wonder that the series recieved as much praise as it did. Even with some issues during the final third of the story, the pacing of Death Note is nearly perfect throughout. My rating: 8.5


- After War Gundam X: One of the stronger of the alternate universe series released in the late 1990s, Gundam X depicts a post-apocalyptic world in which scavengers known as 'vultures' roam the recovering wasteland of Earth. Garrod Ran serves as one of the youngest and most entertaining lead characters in any Gundam series, and the remainder of he cast is fleshed out via colorful and relatively believable characters. The animation is solid, but the series really shines through with arguably the best soundtrack from any series in the entire franchise. My rating: 8.5

- Mobile Suit Gundam F91: Originally planned to be a full series, then scaled down to a short OVA, and finally released as a two-hour movie, Gundam F91 works well as a bridge between the events of Char's Counterattack and Victory Gundam. The main characters a quite entertaining, though admitedly some of the secondary and tertiary characters come across as a bit flat. Despite its fast pacing, the story is quite solid and dishes out an excellent balance of action and plot while paying homage to older Gundam series. My rating: 8.25

Funimation announces rights to three films

Just a brief update, but exciting news nonetheless. Funimation has announced that they have acquired the rights to Evangelion 2.22, the DVD release version of Rebuild of Evangelion 2.0: You Can (Not) Advance. Rebuild 2.0 is, in my opinion, easily the best of the Evangelion films released thus far and I can't wait to add it to my collection. As for the actual release date, nothing has been specified other than the fact that it will be a 2011 release. This isn't terribly surprising news, since Funimation put a lot of focus on Axis Powers: Hetalia as their major Fall 2010 release. Considering how things like this tend to work out, I'd wager Rebuild 2.22 will hit US store shelves around late Spring or early Summer 2011.

Speaking of Axis Powers: Hetalia, season two has been confirmed for an October 12 release, following approximately one month after the US release of season one. Funimation has subsequently acquired the rights to dub and distribute the Axis Powers: Hetalia film Paint it White. No news yet on Hetalia World Series, but as the third season is still running in Japan at present I imagine Paint it White is Funimation's way of tiding fans over until then.

Finally, the film Summer Wars has also been acquired by Funimation. I have heard very positive things about this film, though I must admit I know rather little about the plot at present. Summer Wars is from the same team behind The Girl Who Leapt Through Time and Madhouse Studios, responsible for the animation and production on works such as Paranoia Agent, Paprika, and Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust.

Anime review: Axis Powers: Hetalia (season two)

Picking up directly where season one left off, Axis Powers: Hetalia season two jumps right into things and chugs along full-force for the majority of the season. The events surrounding World War II are still the core focus of the narrative, but events such as the colonization of America and the Medieval Ages see solid inclusion into the story. Some modern day events are sprinkled in between and late in the season the Chibitalia storyline returns. In season one, the main story was often followed up in most episodes with a continuing side story, such as the Chibitalia prequel and America’s storage room cleaning. In season two, the story jumps back and forth in time a fair amount, but overall it feels more fluid and fast-paced than the side stories of season one, and only on a few occasions do the events of an episode seem choppy and unrelated. One episode in particular, being episode forty-five, left me very disappointed for its lack of cohesion with the overarching story of season two as well as its blatant lack of any humor whatsoever.

The core characters retain the same personalities they carried in season one. Italy receives less and less of the spotlight as season two progresses, which is good as it allows greater emphasis on the other major characters. However, the Allies that received the greatest focus in season one become even more prominent in season two, and England, France and America overshadow China’s inclusion in a huge way. Russia, however, receives roughly the same attention as in season one. The Axis Powers are not left completely out in the cold, though. Germany steals the show early on in season two, while Japan continues showing up when necessary. There are a number of instances where the two wind up in a situation where America unknowingly becomes the butt of a joke and the two are left in a awkward position, which only fuels the hilarity in later scenes.


The other guest characters are more varied than those in season one. Some return from season one, such as Switzerland and Canada, while others, such as Belarus and Ukraine are newcomers. The guest characters that receive focus early on in season two ultimately end up more rounded and play out a more important role. Those that show up later on are generally included for the sake of a short humorous sequence that doesn’t continue on for more than an episode or two in most cases.

The same problems that popped up every once in a while during Hetalia’s first season are the same ones that hinder the second season from achieving perfection. Though the instances are fewer and farther between, when an episode stops being funny it takes an annoyingly long time to pick itself back up – not the best issue to have when each episode is slightly longer than five minutes. Season two also attempts to mix in some dumbed-down humor in an attempt to cater to a broader spectrum of viewers. Ultimately the use of the scenes are brief but will likely evoke little more than a chuckle or two out of fans who have come to know and love the series signature style of poking fun at each nation and its respective stereotypes.

The art style doesn’t receive any drastic changes from the previous season, and that’s not a bad thing. Characters still swap back and forth between their more full adult selves and their chibi counterparts for arguments and flashbacks. It might have been nice to see a bit more attention to detail in background layouts, but there isn’t much point in fixing what isn’t broken, especially when it gives the series its signature style. The soundtrack still relies on a large number of quick jingles, though a number of variations on traditional classical pieces see inclusion and greater emphasis this time around. The end credits see some alterations every so often, generally when the focus of an episode is on one of the major countries other than Italy. While there still isn’t much of an original soundtrack to speak of (which makes such an aspect of the series difficult to critique), it certainly is more prominent in season two than in season one.


The returning Japanese voice actors continue their impressive performances in season two, building off what worked best for them in season one. Overall, the new characters are portrayed well. The three Baltic steal the show during their few guest appearances, while Russia’s sisters see so little inclusion that it’s difficult to gauge whether Belarus and Ukraine’s voice actors did a good job or not.

The major problems that tripped up season one every so often are addressed to an extent, though still present enough that they provide some minor annoyances. The main characters receive a much more balanced focus, though many side characters appear only when necessary to advance the plot. The plot mixes things up nicely by looking more in-depth to the events of WWII as well as exploring more present day issues, but in doing this the story jumps around a fair amount. Everything wraps up quite nicely by the finale, and the events therein make a lot more sense than the finale of season one. Season two of Axis Powers: Hetalia isn’t quite as strong as season one, but it doesn’t fall too far off the mark

My rating: 9 (out of 10)

Axis Powers: Hetalia Funimation dub voices announced (main cast)

Following hot on the heels of their Axis Powers: Hetalia supporting cast announcements, Funimation has released the names of the voice actors portraying the series lead characters one after another this past week and a half. I must say that the accents each of these actors/actresses puts forth are both phenomenally accurate and hilarious. I mentioned in my post concerning the official supporting cast that I had a few ideas of my own for who should tackle each role, but overall Funimation has exceeded my expectations in their casting choices. So, without further ado, the list:

- America: Eric Vale (who previously provided the voice of Trunks in Dragonball Z)
- Germany: Patrick Seitz (Raul Creed in Ergo Proxy)
- France: J. Michael Tatum (Lawrence in Spice and Wolf, Dororo in Sgt. Frog)
- Japan: Christopher Bevins (Naturon Shenron in Dragonball GT)
- Russia: Jerry Jewell (Barry the Chopper in Full Metal Alchemist, Kaworu in Evangelion 1.0: You Are [Not] Alone)
- China: Clarine Harp (Kokou and Ryuuhi in YuYu Hakusho)
- England: Scott Freeman (many background characters in series like Desert Punk, Initial D, and Soul Eater)
- Italy: Todd Haberkorn (Keroro in Sgt. Frog, Yamato Akatsuki in Suzuka)

Top five anime of 2010 - Spring/Summer contenders

It is now near the end of the first full week of July and I find myself looking back on the anime I completed last year as well as the series and films I have finished thus far in 2010. I plan on posting a similar “anime - year in review” as I put up this January, come 2011, as a recap of all the series I covered this year and my thoughts on each one. While I still have a fair number of series and films I would like to complete before the end of the year, I thought I’d take a moment to list the contenders that have a strong shot at making my “top five” list, being the five anime series and/or films that I enjoyed watching the most and felt like I got the most out of. These will not be finalized until the end of December, are listed in no particular order, and do not necessarily reflect the number ratings I gave them.

- Ergo Proxy – The combination of a cyberpunk setting and art style with a deeply psycho-analytical story makes for a thought-provoking experience. There is plenty of action woven in and an interesting cast of characters who play off each other brilliantly. The series requires a fair amount of interpretation on the viewers’ part, but the end result is that Ergo Proxy is far more engaging than most other adult-themed anime.

- Turn A Gundam – Perhaps the most unorthodox of all Gundam series, Turn A Gundam combines early 20th century technology and lifestyle with the space-faring mecha Gundam fans have come to know and love. The story carries a hopeful focus and the characters are very well-rounded, feeling far more complex than those in series like Gundam Wing or Gundam SEED. The soundtrack is beautiful, the animation solid, and the story at perfect pacing and devoid of cliché solutions.

- Samurai Champloo – Following the style of Cowboy Bebop, Samurai Champloo mixes Edo-period samurai traditions with hip-hop music and urban style. Jin, Mugen, and Fuu play off one another as a wildly entertaining lead cast who have very little in common from the start, and this only fuels the irony of the predicaments they often find themselves in. Though some episodes are better connected than others, the series comes to a satisfying conclusion. Viewers will likely find it difficult to find a similar series that can stack up to the entertaining story and well-written dialogue that Samurai Champloo has.

- Full Metal Alchemist – Easily one of the most popular anime of all time, Full Metal Alchemist follows brothers Edward and Alphonse Elric in their quest to find the Philosopher’s Stone and return their bodies to normal, following a botched attempt to bring their mother back from the grave. The variety of locales and broad cast of characters the Elric brothers come across keeps the story interesting, while their notably different personalities fuel the show’s humorous sequences. The story becomes darker and more complex as things progress, but the pacing is nearly perfect and only on a few rare instances do plot elements seem out of place.

- Axis Powers: Hetalia – Portraying each country as a single stereotype of its populous may offend some people, but Axis Powers: Hetalia is a no-holds barred anime that gives a unique comedic perspective on the events surrounding WWII. With an incredibly quirky cast and fantastic voice actors to boot, the series really stands out as one of the more impressive web-based series, as well as comedy anime, released to date.

- The Girl Who Leapt Through Time – A film that disguises itself as a more mainstream teen drama, The Girl Who Leapt Through Time is a surprisingly well-scripted and beautifully animated sci-fi adventure. The story centers around Makoto as she tries to help herself and her friends avoid mishaps and unfortunate events in life. Makoto soon realizes, however, that to achieve a better end result, a tradeoff must be made and others may wind up suffering as a result. The dialogue is largely aimed at the teen audience, but the story is something that viewers of almost any age can thoroughly enjoy.

Axis Powers: Hetalia Funimation dub voices announced (supporting cast)

Funimation has started announcing some of the cast members associated with the English dub of Axis Powers: Hetalia. Below is a video of the supporting cast anoouncements. I'll admit I'm a bit surprised that Vic Mignona and Chris Sabat are playing supporting roles - I really expected Vic to voice Italy and Chris to voice Germany, but their respective roles as Greece and the Roman Empire aren't bad fits by any means. I'll be sure to add more posts as Funimation announces the remainder of the English dub cast.

Check out the video to see Funimation's supporting cast voice actors.



Just for fun, I thought I'd share my ideas for lead character voice actors:

- America - Todd Haberkorn
- England - Greg Ayres
- China - Samuel Vincent
- France - Tony Oliver
- Russia - Chris Patton
- Germany - Dameon Clarke or Michael McConnohie
- Japan - Liam O'Brien

And as for Italy, well, to be honest, aside from Vic Mignona I really can't think of anyone off the top of my head that would be a fantastic fit for the character. That's not to say that I'm at all doubting Funimation's eventually announcement, but there's no one person poppoing into my head at this moment that makes me think "that's Ialy!" We'll find out soon enough who is to play the lead cast of characters, and if nothing else we only have to wait until September for the first season to see a U.S. dvd release.

Anime review: Axis Powers: Hetalia (season one)

One of the most witty and politically incorrect anime in recent years, Axis Powers Hetalia is for viewers who have done their history homework and understand the inner-working politics that occurred during World War II. It should be noted that this is certainly not a series for viewers who do not appreciate media poking fun at war. The series begins at an unspecified time, though obviously modern day, as all the countries from both the Axis and Allies, as well as a handful of others have joined in a boardroom meeting on the topic of global warming. After some arguing, Italy interrupts with his first very out-of-place “PASTA!!!” yell, and the series backtracks to explain the events leading up to and of WWII itself.

Each character in the series represents a single country (or in some cases, distinct separate regions of a country). The characters are meant to embody the stereotypes thrown upon each region’s people during the day. America nominates himself as leader of the Allies and chows down on hamburgers as he goes, the former of which frustrates England, as he believes his experience in military ordeals would benefit the Allied forces greatly. China more or less does as told, while Russia agrees with all of the Allies decisions, often muttering to himself about his plans following the war. As for France, he doesn’t seem to enjoy the competing egos of England and America, though the focus of any conversation he gets involved in turns to how everyone else should look to France for inspiration on their lifestyles. France also makes the situation awkward with perverted conversation from time to time, though what exactly he is saying is left largely up to the viewers’ imagination.


The Axis powers are given greater focus than the Allies, both due to the fact that they are introduced and form a pact earlier on in the series, as well as the fact that Italy is essentially the lead character of the series. For a lead character, Italy follows an unusual formula, as he is neither particularly skilled in combat nor motivated to defend himself. Time and time again, Italy talks about his love for pasta and – when faced with conflict – waves the white flag of surrender with great passion.

Germany is the brains of the operation for the Axis powers and seems to be the only character in the show both capable of succeeding in military operations and maintaining a serious attitude. Germany usually finds himself (begrudgingly) coming to Italy’s rescue, though as he states late in the series, Italy is the closest thing Germany has to a friend. Japan is easily the most difficult to read character in the show, his facial expressions rarely changing. His military strength is shown to be admirable, though it also seems he doesn’t quite understand the lifestyles and traditions of the European nations. Both Germany and Japan find themselves in many awkward or unfortunate situations, usually the result of Italy’s encounters with the Allies.


The series is split into two major stories – the WWII campaign, as previously mentioned, and the reformation of the Roman Empire’s remnants into modern-day Italy. During this prequel story (known as Chibitalia), young Italy spends his days cleaning the house of Holy Rome, which is occupied by the other divisions of Rome, as well as Austria and Hungary. It explains the underlying politics that led to modern-day Italy, not without contest from various political movements wishing to achieve the former glory of the Roman Empire. Chibitalia wraps up a short while before the conclusion of the first season, and in exchange viewers are given a brief look into America’s past as he attempts to clean out his storage room. This backstory focuses on America’s upbringing by England and the Revolutionary War, but is far more brief than the events of Chibitalia and isn’t nearly as engaging due to the choppy, fast-paced storytelling. America’s Storage Room Cleaning is a prime example of where the series does have some flaws, because - while there are very very few dull moments in the first season - when the show does slip up and lose its comedic touch it takes a while to get back on track.

The series received a TV-MA rating in the US, though this has been justified as a rating for the series as a whole, with many episodes being relatively clean in regards to content. The more adult elements have to do with occasional vulgar language and innuendos. The inclusion of these elements in an otherwise relatively clean series makes for a bit of an odd viewing experience, but the focus doesn’t ever detract because of them.


The animation is quite good, though as Axis Powers: Hetalia began as an internet series, it doesn’t quite stack up to the art design of other recent anime. Some may find the blurry watercolor style of the Chibitalia backstory to be annoying, as it is quite drastically different than the digital coloring featured in the bulk of the show. With each episode being roughly five minutes in length, however, the artists could have done much worse with the series. The soundtrack is few and far between, in large part due to constraints in the show’s time length. When the soundtrack is accompanying a scene, it’s usually in the form of a short jingle or event-specific tune, much like in some video games. The Japanese voice actors do a splendid job in keeping the humor of the series cruising along and it their characters’ respective accents and attitudes pretty spot-on. Without a strong cast, Axis Powers: Hetalia would have crashed and burned pretty fast, and it’s comforting to see that plenty of extra effort was put into the voice acting. It will be interesting to see how the English dub voice actors handle the show come September 2010.

The season finale isn’t anything particularly spectacular, but it is fitting, considering the time length of any given episode of Axis Powers: Hetalia. There is plenty of humor throughout the show and a fair share of running gags. Guest characters such as Lichtenstein, Switzerland, Austria, and even the Roman Empire (or as Italy knows him, ‘Grandpa Rome’) show up from time to time to keep the story interesting and advance the events surrounding WWII. While some viewers might get sick of Italy constantly surrendering, perhaps they will find some compensation during the latter half of the season when the focus shifts more heavily to the Allied forces. All in all, Axis Powers: Hetalia is a hilarious romp through history so long as viewers understand the context of the series’ events.

My rating: 9.25 (out of 10)