Anime Update: Iron-Blooded Orphans and Unbreakable Diamonds

As mentioned in my year-end posts for 2015, I did not complete nearly as many anime series in 2015 as I had hoped, despite my best intentions. However, I intend to make up for that in 2016, and I’ve already hit the ground running, finishing series that I started last year, and doing my best to catch up on as-of-yet-ongoing series.

First out the gate was One Punch Man, and that is almost certain to be the subject of my first anime review of the new year. I also viewed the second film in the Berserk Golden Age trilogy shortly after Christmas, and plan to follow up with the third film before the end of January. I will be reviewing that trilogy as a whole, as opposed to providing three distinct reviews for each individual film. For my first direct exposure to anything from Berserk, it’s proven decently entertaining, though the films are hardly consistent in quality, which is a point that I will cover more in-depth in my full review of the trilogy.

I’ve also devoted some time to the two latest Mobile Suit Gundam series, Iron-Blooded Orphans and the four-episode OVA known as Gundam Thunderbolt. While I only have five episodes of Iron-Blooded Orpahans under my belt, and there has only been a single episode of Thunderbolt released as of yet, I feel both are off to incredibly strong starts, and bring a wonderful mix of ‘something old, something new’ to the table. Meanwhile, I’m itching to get back to Ninja Slayer, as it was one of the most utterly bananas shows I’ve viewed in many years.

In April, the fourth part of Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure will see its anime debut with the first episode of Diamond is Unbreakable. Stardust Crusaders crushed the competition in 2015, becoming one of my all-time favorite anime series. I can’t wait to see Okuyasu, Josuke, Koichi, and Kira animated, as David Production has done an absolute knockout job with adapting all of the previous parts of Hirohiko Araki’s long-running action/comedy series.

Other series on the horizon include Bubblegum Crisis: Tokyo 2040, Gundam Reconguista in G, season three of Sgt. Frog, and the original Mobile Suit Gundam. All of these are series that I have watched within the past year, but have simply been watching with a lower priority. But, considering that I am nearly halfway through each of them, and they have proven quite entertaining, by and large, I feel compelled to follow them through to completion.

Perhaps there will be other series that join the pool in 2016 – the Digimon reboot is something that I would like to look into, and Daisuki has proven a strong go-to website for the general variety and quality of anime it is hosting. Depending on the release schedule of Mobile Suit Gundam: The Origin, it may also join the ranks of my 2016 reviews. And I have yet to view Tekkon Kinkreet, a movie that I purchased a couple of years back, and have neglected to pop into my DVD player, despite hearing only good things about it.

Anime update: The Dollars

I mentioned back in April that my anime lineup for this summer was going to be rather free-form in comparison to the video games I planned to play and review. And that has certainly proven true thus far. Cowboy Bebop was a relatively quick watch and a fun one at that, while Durarara!! was a sort of spur-of-the-moment choice that has proven thoroughly entertaining thus far. I only have six episodes of Durarara!! left to watch, so I will certainly have that series reviewed before the end of the month. Also, I watched Redline this afternoon, and should have my review for that posted sometime this weekend.

I stated in my summer anime forecast that I had plans to continue viewing Victory Gundam. This still holds true, though it may be pushed back to Autumn in favor of my completing Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood. At the very latest, I hope to have FMA: Brotherhood completed and reviewed before the end of August. Sometime shortly thereafter, I will review Fullmetal Alchemist: The Sacred Star of Milos.

There are still a few series/films floating in the mix, including the Iron Man anime and Tekkon Kinkreet. Also, despite my early impressions that I would probably drop Deadman Wonderland, I will continue to support Toonami by viewing both it and Casshern Sins in their entirety. I love Casshern Sins, and even though Deadman Wonderland isn't quite my cup of tea, I think it is good for me to broaden my horizons a bit.

I recently saw a trailer for Funimation's re-release of Serial Experiments Lain and it looks wicked awesome - trippy as anything, but a very interesting concept. I got the same sort of vibe from it that I got the first time I watch Neon Genesis Evangelion. I know not everyone is a fan of anime that messes with your head, but I am. So I will certainly be looking into that one some more, and possibly buying the DVDs when they release. Ghost Hound looked interesting - I'll have to check out a few episodes to test those waters. Also, my purchasing season three of Sgt. Frog is merely a matter of time. I do love that show - easily one of the funniest series I've ever watched.