Shakugan no Shana

Plot
*****
Yuji Sakai, a high school student, expected his very normal life to last forever. However, this expectation is quickly shattered one day while on his way home.

The world suddenly freezes in time, leaving Yuji to watch in horror as blue flames engulf the people around him. Soon a monster resembling a large doll appears and begins sucking the flames into its mouth, until it notices Yuji. Surprised with Yuji's insusceptibility to the time-stop (fuzetsu), it jumps with glee.

Just as the monster prepares to consume Yuji, a sword-wielding girl in black attire with flaming red eyes and hair appears, swiftly and confidently destroys the monster, before noticing Yuji moving freely. The girl calls herself a "Flame Haze" who hunts the "Denizens of the Crimson Realm" and the "Rinne" they send to do their bidding. When Yuji notices a blue flame in his chest, the Flame Haze tells him that the "real" Yuji died some time ago, and that he is a "Torch", a temporary replacement for erased humans. Torches take on the forms of those erased persons, but after a period of time, they will vanish from existence and the memories of the living. Unfazed by his apparent death, Yuji befriends the strange girl and names her "Shana" after her sword. The reason Yuji was able to move in the fuzetsu is that he is not a normal Torch, but instead a special kind called a "Mystes": he has a treasure inside him, known as a "Hougu", a device possessing special abilities of sorts, and an extremely powerful and valuable one at that. The hougo inside Yuji allows him to remain in existence rather than fading away like other torches. Shana resolves to protect Yuji from the Denizens, who would use the treasure to disrupt the balance of the world, and Yuji decides to join Shana in her fight.

Shana's fight is actually a long-standing struggle between the Lords and Denizens of Guze. The Denizens steal Power of Existence, the energy that forms the basis of the world, from living people and utilize it for their own selfish ambitions. Some Lords inhabit humans creating Flame Hazes in an attempt to retain balance by hunting renegades from Guze. Flame Hazes create Torches in place of the consumed to save the world the disruption of many existences being lost at once, allowing the Torches to gradually burn out over the course of time.

Character
*********
1. Yuji SakaiYuji, the main character of the story, is just an average high school student. However, his world is turned upside down when he discovers that he is already dead and does not have much time before he disappears. Fortunately, Yuji is a Mystes who contains a treasure known as the Reiji Maigo. Unlike normal torches, the treasure inside him restores his Power of Existence every night at midnight. With the Reiji Maigo, Yuji has the possibility to live on like an average human as long as he makes sure that his Power of Existence does not run out before midnight.

Later, he begins to learn to use the yet untapped potential of the treasure kept within him. He cares deeply about Shana, but has yet to reveal if he truly has feelings of love for her; also in the first season anime leading up to the final episode, he starts to see Shana as her old view of the world, where he is just a Torch and she is just a Flame Haze. With this going on, he distanced himself from the closeness than the two originally shared, leaving Shana hurt with the new feelings of love she has developed but cannot explain. However, Yuji and Shana have since repaired the damage to their relationship.


2. Shana
The female lead of the show and a Flame Haze. Initially she is concentrated solely on her duty as a Flame Haze, going as far as to not bearing even a name. She sees Yuji only as a Torch, an object, marginally interesting because of his status as a Mystes. However, she slowly opens up to Yuji, coming to think of him as a person, despite being a Torch, and eventually comes to love him. Until she met Yuji, she was identified by only her Flame Haze title "Flame-Haired Burning-Eyed Hunter," or her katana, Nietono no Shana.

Yuji, in his need to humanize her, chose to name her "Shana" after her katana. Shana has a habit of saying "Urusai!" which means "Shut up!" three times in a row whenever Yuji asks her questions or makes remarks that disturb her original point of view. But in reality they really care for each other. She has a great fondness for melon bread. Shana later comes to the startling conclusion that she loves Yuji, and even confesses it to him in the last episode of the first anime series when she thought she was going to die, but he does not hear what she said. Shana is continually torn between her mission to protect the balance, and her love for Yuji. Due to a decision she made near the end of the first season of the anime version, the closeness they once had began to erode as Yuji kept a distance from her because of it. However, it seems that Shana and Yuji have repaired the damage from their previous relationship.


3. AlastorHe is the Lord of the Crimson Realm to whom Shana is bound. He expresses his will through a divine vessel called the Cocytus, which (in Shana's case) takes the form of a pendant. His name is actually the name of a demon in mythology. Alastor is considered to be one of the strongest of all Lords or Denizens; in fact being one of the true Gods of the Crimson Realm. But even so, he tries to keep the Denizens from consuming Power of Existence.


4. Margery DawMargery is a tall, well-endowed and mature blond Flame Haze with a drinking habit. She uses the book Grimoire, which is the divine vessel through which Marcosius, to whom she is bound, expresses his will. Her main powers focus around chanting spells and turning into a werewolf. She casts spells by chanting an "Improvisational Poem of Slaughter". Her name comes from Mother Goose, as does what she chants. Eita and Keisaku look up to her because she saved their lives once, and act as her subordinates. She holds a vendetta against a Crimson Denizen with a silver flame. She is also known as the Interpreter of Condolence.


5. MarcosiasThe Crimson Lord to whom Margery Daw is bound. He expresses his will through the divine vessel Grimoire, which takes the form of a book. His name is actually the name of a demon. He talks wildly, makes comments without remorse, and often teases Margery, often earning a retaliatory punch. He does genuinely care about her, however, perhaps not in the form of friendship but as a companion in battle. The dynamic of their relationship is quite different than that between Shana and Alastor; Marchosias will serve as Margery's vehicle from time to time and occasionally suffers physical abuse at her hands, but they seem to be equals in their quest.


6. Kazumi YoshidaYuji's classmate. She has a crush on him, but is a bit too shy to tell him directly. When Shana becomes her love-rival, she vows to tell Yuji her feelings and to let him decide between her and Shana. She is a shy and pure person, who later finds out about Torches and Flame Haze.

D Gray-Man

Plot
*****
Set during the end of a nineteenth century on a fictional Earth, D.Gray-man mostly centers around 15-year-old Allen Walker, who is gifted with the ability to control a weaponized form of a divine substance from ages past, called Innocence, and becomes an Exorcist of the Black Order. This secretive organization aims to stop the plan set in motion by the Millennium Earl to destroy all life on Earth, thus 'cleansing' it. But the Earl has raised an army of Akuma, created by taking advantage of grief over a loved one's death, and summoned the direct descendants of Noah himself, the 13-strong Noah family, to aid him in his second attempt. Because of the Akuma's ability to wear a human's skin, they are nearly undetectable by any human. Allen proves to be a powerful asset as his 'cursed' left eye is able to detect the Akuma. But soon, this battle nearly turns into a race to collect the 109 Innocence fragments, scattered since the Great Flood of Noah, as the search to find the most powerful Innocence, the 'Great Heart', ensues.

Character
************
1. Allen Walkeris 15 and an Exorcist of British origin and the main protagonist of the series. Allen was abandoned by his biological parents because of the supposed "deformity" of his left arm and later adopted by Mana Walker. At some moment, Mana died and Allen turned him into an Akuma, hoping him to be fully resurrected but instead, he cursed Allen and sliced through his left eye. It was at this same moment that Allen's left arm first awoke as an anti-Akuma weapon and instinctively destroyed the Akuma.


2. Yu Kandais an 18-year-old Exorcist from Japan. Kanda is the first Exorcist that Allen meets at the black order HQ. He can recover much faster than ordinary humans due to a mysterious tattoo above his heart.


3. Lenalee Leeis a 16-year-old Exorcist from China. Her parents were killed by an Akuma when she was very young. She explains that her perception of the "world" consists of her friends and family; whenever one of her friends dies, it seems to her as if a part of her world has been destroyed.


4. Laviis a cheerful 18 year old, red-haired Exorcist of mixed race, who aims to become a Bookman and is working along the Black Order just to be close to the events that must be seen.

School Days

"Just as I thought. There's no one inside."

School Days is unquestionably the most blogged-about anime of the summer season, perhaps even eclipsing the king from spring, Lucky Star. Whether the hype is proportional to the quality of the show is the major question here.

This story of the three people who met in the school and got turned into three "love" stories has been getting reviews all over the spectrum; and it's not just anti-votes that are killing the show's rating.

Aside from the seasoned SD vets claiming that the story doesn't stay true to one plot - which is likely true, although unverifiable by me - the wide range of review scores and feelings about the show stem to the fact that School Days, above anything else, is unquestionably different from any show of the genre.

It sets itself up as a simple, happy romance show, a bit of a love triangle, something that a lot of anime viewers should be familiar with.

Where it goes from there is what's interesting, perhaps shocking.

Most of the viewers of School Days are well familiar with its darker-than-expected roots, and quite morally and/or sanity challenged characters. But adaptations tend to change a lot and with only 3 true "bad" endings out of a possible 20 (summing up possibilities from harem endings to ending up with any main character or side character) there are plenty of ways to clean up School Days's ways.

And for the first few episodes, School Days led you on like a criminal out of prison, claiming that it had changed. There was a happy, bright OP called "Innocent Blue." The character's crushes on each other seemed innocent enough. What could go wrong?

Plenty, in fact.

To say any more would be to spoil the show, but rest assured that if you like pleasant, upbeat, heartwarming romances you're going to be running screaming from School Days.

Rather, what you get is a dark, almost soap-opera-like concoction packed with twists, turns, and drama. This polarized the crowd, which generally fell into three groups:

1) Loved the drama, and the show.
2) Hated the drama, and the show.
3) Found the drama, and thus the show, hilarious.

Your ability to survive characters specifically set up to be detestable will say a lot about your enjoyment of School Days. If you can handle hating characters, if you can handle not making any assumptions that any character is "good", School Days is an excellent anime.

But not a top-notch one.

School Days is still a flawed anime, despite what one could possibly call quite enrapturing (when it's not ridiculous, or perhaps because it is) drama. The focus is arguably too thin, as while the main characters will have their stories resolved in a nice manner, the side characters simply disappear by story's end.

And it's not by any means a show everybody could find something to like in.

If you don't mind a walk on the dark side, School Days is still a show very worth watching, as what it does, it does very well. It's just what it doesn't do that keeps it from top status...

(Huge spoilers are huge, after the jump.)

The characters in School Days are arguably the most controversial aspect of the series, as they do plenty of things that range from ridiculous to just plain wrong.

Makoto is a martyr for the pimp lifestyle, as I can count on one hand all the characters with names in the show that he hasn't slept with...including guys. His actions at first were easily defendable; maybe he doesn't know how to approach Kotonoha, maybe he's being tempted by Sekai, maybe he's a good person after all.

And then he slept with Sekai, Setsuna, Otome, Otome's three friends, and Hikari, somewhat in that order.

The only people left defending him at the end were either the trolls who didn't take the show seriously, and those who respected him for being able to knock up that many girls. Yet somehow, Makoto was the character that showed both the most development...and the least.

Certainly in the last two episodes Makoto went through at least what seemed like an epiphany. He realizes that just maybe he was being a bit of a jerk to the one girl he really cared about, and he began focusing on the girl he'd been ignoring since the start...

Unfortunately there was another girl that he went through a phase with in between, Sekai, who brought out Makoto's true colors in trying to hang on to him, just to have him give her the cold shoulder in numerous ways.

Adding to the problems, Sekai was pregnant and so wasn't just about to give up Makoto to Kotonoha. Predictably, though, Makoto chose the one with the bigger rack and bigger will to make love to him, and Sekai made sure he didn't live to discover the error of his ways.

But to call Sekai a victim of circumstances would be a lie as well. School Days is filled with extremely flawed characters from every direction. Let's take a look at Makoto's harem:

Sekai sent the entire show into motion when she kissed Makoto at the end of episode 1. Had she stepped out there, things might have gone smoothly between Kotonoha and Makoto. Despite what she said about letting Kotonoha have him, in the end her emotional will overcame her logical one, and so she gave in to Makoto when he switched.

But it wasn't just Kotonoha who Sekai stole Makoto from. Setsuna was probably the original Girl With A Crush On Makoto, who confided in her best friend Sekai that she had a thing for him. Yet Setsuna got the shaft from the love triangle, having enough common sense to not get involved in other's business.

Not until late in the series anyway, when she kissed and slept with Makoto...in a desperate attempt to get him to stay with Sekai, and not turn back to Kotonoha. It's a strange paradox, where she sleeps with the guy she loves in order to keep him with another girl.

Otome was the third wheel, an outsider even more than Setsuna. Despite being a childhood friend of Makoto and wielding a powerful trio of evil friends, she didn't really have the courage or the opportunity to approach Makoto until the end, where she had a short fling with him, in between his Sekai and Kotonoha phases.

Her trio of friends slept with him later too, by the way. And inexplicably Hikari, the girl with a strange crush on his friend, Taisuke.

It's easy to see that all the characters suffer from a typical struggle of common sense vs. hormones, and in almost every case, the latter won.

Kotonoha is the "exception" to the rule in School Days, being made out to be the pure character, the real victim. Which arguably seems like patent lies, because she is quite mentally unstable, not to mention, possessive. She's easily pushed over, and there's probably a reason Makoto was the first one to approach her. You can't overlook any character in this show.

It's definitely a possible argument that these characters aren't as flawed as they look just because they had a slight (major) slip of judgment in bed; some say it's a realistic view of high school society.

But School Days takes the high road, ironically enough. It almost seems made to condemn this type of action. It certainly seems like the anti-harem show (not to be confused with "anti-harem" shows), a warning to future high school pimps out there to be very careful how you manage your harem.

Certainly Makoto could have gotten away with his life if he had, amusingly enough, stood up for himself a bit more. His ignoring of Sekai did more damage than anything else; his main flaw was that he failed to close relationships forcefully enough. He didn't ever really break up with anybody in person, instead taking cowards' way outs like using e-mail.

It's almost ironic that Makoto has the same problem as many harem leads, despite being so different: he lacks a backbone. Period. He just goes with the wind instead of just not going anywhere at all.

The characterization of the main trio worked relatively well, and despite all the ranting about their characters above they did seem like oddly realistic characters, realistic in their personalities and ability to make stupid decisions.

This is one of the interesting points of School Days, as for a long time it seemed like one of those things that Could Happen To You. Obviously at the end, it got a bit out of hand, but School Days's strength compared to other harem shows is that there is no supernatural premise, no magical secret. Everyone's a real person, with real friends and "lovers". It's almost creepy in it's realism (as stated over by the guys at Epic Win).

Unfortunately, the storytelling cracked a bit near the end, which may have alleviated the concern of some from the above regard, yet angered many more watching the show from an objective point.

Simply, the show takes on too much. There are so many plots introduced for the side characters that never really get solved. As interesting as the main love triangle was, there were many more things that needed to get conclusion.

Nanami got set up as the pity character at the end; admittedly I had hopes for her, since she was the only one untouched by Makoto. What happened to her?

Setsuna made a splash and dash with Makoto before flying off to France. Were they going to let her off? Never show her again? Apparently.

Otome seemed like she was getting somewhere in realizing she was foolish for ever liking Makoto. Why no true resolution on that?

Don't forget, there were probably almost as many people waiting for Taisuke the rapist to die in a fire as were those for Makoto.

And yet none of these plots were ever closed. With the one-minute "back to normal" scene at the very end of SD, after the credits, it's almost like they were anti-closed.

Unless, everyone would really forget and move on that fast?

Naturally in the end, there were some other logical loopholes too that didn't get covered, such as the body of a certain Saionji being discovered on the rooftop, or the dissaperance of Makoto and Kotonoha (off into the sunset, in a nice boat), or just why There Are No Parents In Anime.

One might argue that this show might slip from drama into the horror genre if that was covered, but in the end the show can get written off as an obvious work of fiction.

From that standpoint School Days works quite well. The soundtrack of School Days is one of the strongest I've seen in recent memory. While the actual music itself may be forgettable, the insert songs and changing credit themes really take the show to a new level of impact.

The end of the ninth episode, starting with Sekai's question "I'm your girlfriend, right?" really never fails to give goosebumps, with the way the song's highs and lows coincide with not just the ending of the episode, but also the following title display and episode preview. It's simply amazing.

Other insert songs are plentiful and strong, and add to the emotional effect of the show as well. I can't complain in the sound regard; while I can't really judge voice actors that well, I found them to fit quite well to their characters. The whiny Makoto, the desperate Sekai/Kotonoha, the quiet Setsuna...it works.

Graphically School Days is a good looking show as well; it's not fantastic (I think in terms of school series, it is topped by TokiMemo), but it's not ugly by any means. It GETS ugly in the show, but it doesn't look ugly.

On that note, the censorship in the series didn't bother me, if only because if it was uncensored, I'd probably be reaching for a bucket right now.

To sum it up, School Days is a dramatic and almost haunting school life show, which definitely gives perspective on the side of romance so rarely seen in anime these days. It makes a good contrast to the Shuffles and the Da Capoes where everyone gets along.

The audience can really feel the emotions from this show, which is what makes it such a hotly discussed series. One's mental state almost follows Kotonoha's throughout the show; first it's very pleasant and pure, followed by the creeping sensation that something's going wrong, and then topped off by a sort of insane laughter of the "this can't be happening" kind.

And that's what makes School Days such an appealing show to watch. If not because it's different than every other harem show, because despite the radical difference from the idealistic views and lives of many an anime viewers, it really connects.

It's one hell of a twisted roller coaster. Ride it once. Twice might make you sick, but it has to be experienced once, if only so you can say you hated (or loved) it.

Shuffle! Memories 2

Shuffle! Memories is a recap series, half the length of the original with the story split up into multiple parts. Each main heroine gets 2 episode for a total ten, there's one intro episode (the previous one), and one new episode (finally!) at the end for a total of 12.

However, the dividing up of the story does strange and awkward things to the flow of the plot. Kaede Fuyou, the first girl featured in Shuf!Memo, was one of the last to get a story arc in the original series. So now, instead of starting out with some of the lighthearted stuff and then going into the more serious plots (I think the arcs built off of and eclipsed each other in the original), we're going straight into the deep end.

Each character is split up into two parts, so Kaede's entire story isn't laid out at once, but we get a significant enough chunk of it that I'm forced to issue a spoiler warning for through Shuffle! 21 or so. Somehow, I've managed to overtake my blogging of the entire Shuffle! series with the 2nd episode recap of its...recap series.

Not to mention...a recap of a recap? Strange, isn't it.

On the plus side, since it spoils that far in the series I can talk about all the tangentially related stuff in the series now, without spoiling the poor newbies.

There is some vaguely new scenes in this episode, although a large amount of it is in the OP sequence. There's another good thing about Shuf!Memo - there' s a different opening and a different song for each character. Pretty neat!

Shuffle!

Story by introducing us to Rin Tsuchimi, a 17 year-old high school student who lives with his classmate Kaede Fuyou and her father. Rin moved in with Kaede after his parents died several years ago and has been there ever since, much to Kaede's delight. She's completely taken by Rin and spends her time doting on him in any way she can. Rin however, seems oblivious to this fact even when its pointed out by his fellow classmates.

The pair are surrounding by some equally-interesting characters including Asa, the outgoing tomboy, Itsuki, Rin's self-proclaimed "ladies man" friend and the bizarre idol clubs devoted to Sia, Nerine and Kaede.

Episode one provides a quick run down of who's who and how they got there, including a brief explanation of the "Gate" story that allowed demons and gods to live in the land of humans. We're then introduced to the two new students - Sia and Nerine - the daughters of the King of the Gods and the King of the Demons respectively. Both girls have come to the human world because they are in love with Rin and have hopes of becoming his bride. The Dads are apparently pleased with their choice and march up to Rin in class to let him know of his candidacy.

Our clueless Rin however, seems to think the whole thing is a joke until Episode 2 when we get a little more background on the two supernatural princesses and the secrets behind their love for Rin. Rin overhears some of these conversations and begins what appears to be a bit of soul-searching as he realizes he's been living an unfulfilled life.

Shuffle! isn't an edge-of-your-seat kind of anime but that's perhaps what makes it so delightful.

Character
************
1. Tshucimi Rin
he hero of this show. Rin is an average high-school guy. He is kind, always happy to help other people. After the death of his parents, he's living at her childhood's friend house, Kaede. Other guys are very jealous of him, because Kaede is one of the most popular girl in the school. Eight years ago, he had two encounters with two girls from the other realms, and that will change his life now.


2. LishianthusHer nickname is Sia. She is the only daughter of the King of the God. She is good at housekeeping and sports. However, her academic ability is as good as other students. She looks like a honor student, but she is actually funny and frank, and she is friendly to everybody.


3. NerineShe is called Rine. She is the only daughter of the King of Devils. She is pretty smart, but she's not very good at cooking (except for making omelettes). She is very timid and polite. However, as soon as she hears someone speak ill of Rin, she casts offensive magic to him without hesitation.


4. Fuyou Kaede She is Rin's childhood friend. She lost her mother with Rin's parents in an accident. She loves Rin. She is smart and good at house workings. However, because she thinks too much of Rin, she often fails in her own jobs.


5. Shigure AsaShe's is Rin and Kaede's senpai. She's the president of the cooking club, so you can assume she's very good at that. She always learns recipes to Kaede to please Rin. She's always cheerful and lively. Her best friend is Kareha.


6. PrimulaHer nickname is Rim. She is an artificial life form developed by the cooperation of the gods and devils. She has the strongest magical power in the world, but she doesn't use any magic. She is taciturn and very unsociable. She came to the human world because she finds an interest in Rin. She now lives with him and Kaede.


7. Thyme MayumiShe's in the same class as Rin. She has mixed blood, half human and half demon. She likes to tease Rin about his "brides". She seems very complexed about her very small breasts.


8. KarehaShe is a person from the realm of god, and came to the human world 10 years ago when the gate was opened. She is very polite and courtesy. She has a part-time job in a coffee shop. She is very romantic, and has a habit of daydreaming.


9. Shigure AmaShe's Asa's mother. She looks so young that she's sometimes mistaken as her elder sister. She cares a lot for her daughter. She seems to like Rin a lot.

Hikaru No Go

Simple Plot
**************
It's a common question coming from a person who has yet to see this series: "How can you possibly make pairings from a series centered on a board game?" With pretty-boy rivals and a fair amount of angst, it's very easy.

To anyone who knows the least bit about Go, Hikaru no Go has a very simple plot. Fujimaru Sai is a regretful, go-playing, spirit who takes over part of young Shindou Hikaru's mind. He possesses Hikaru's body in order to continue playing the game of Go. While still accepting Sai's presence, Hikaru comes to meet Touya Akira, a child Go-prodigy. From Touya's point of view, Hikaru is a beginner without any knowledge of the game. However, since Hikaru is getting help from Sai, Hikaru beats Akira in a match. Now, Akira is determined to defeat Hikaru and prove his superiority.

Hikaru, over time, begins to realize that he really likes to play Go. As he watches Sai play more and more matches through him, Hikaru becomes more and more intrigued. Throughout the rest of the series, Hikaru focuses on becoming a professional Go-player. Touya Akira also focuses on becoming a professional, as well as defeating Hikaru in a match. Sai's goal is to obtain the "Hand of God," a Go move never played before that is said to be the ultimate move.

Don't worry, if you don't know anything about Go, you'll learn quickly. The terminology used in the series is pretty basic and easy to figure out. Plus, at the end of every episode, there is a quick guide about how to play.

I barely have anything negative to report from this series. I loved almost everything. The animation was done by one of my favorite studios, Pierrot, so it was superb. The plot was extraordinary also. It's not just about playing Go; there are many interesting sub-plots that arise during the series. The characters were pretty unique, and the voices fit well. Did I mention the music? Yes, the music is excellent too; so excellent that I went and purchased the soundtracks.

It's a surprise as to how many pairings can come from this show. One of the most popular is Akira X Hikaru. The main reason for this is the fact that they are rivals. Also, that Akira spends most of the series "pursuing" Hikaru. Of course, Hikaru X Sai is also a very believable pairing. They're very close to each other all the time and their fondness of each other becomes even more evident towards the end. Another pairing I see often is Waya X Isumi, two Go-students. The boyish Waya and straight-faced Isumi look like a good couple. A pairing between either Hikaru or Akira and Ogata tends to be prevalent too. The only justification I can come up with as to how this pairing came to be is this: Ogata is an older man, probably in the prime of his life, but we never see him with any woman. Hikaru and Akira are probably just thrown in as young, vulnerable characters. As in most slashable anime, much more pairings have been created through the fans' minds. These pairings seem to be the most popular ones.

Hikaru no Go spans a whopping seventy-five episodes. Though after watching all the episodes and movies, I was still left demanding more. The only negative thing about Hikaru no Go is that the ending was never finished completely. I suppose that the viewer is supposed to imagine their own ending, but the story definitely could have been continued. That drawback is microscopic compared to all the good elements to this series. One thing I can promise is that Hikaru no Go will let your imagination run wild.

Shindou Hikaru is a lazy, under-achieving 6th grader until the day he finds an old goban in his grandfather's storage shed. The goban is haunted by the ghost of the greatest Go player of the Heian era, Fujiwara no Sai, who has spent a thousand years seeking the Hand of God; the Divine Move. Sai's soul attaches to Shindou's, so only Shindou can see or hear him, and Sai wants only one thing: to play Go.

Shindou has no interest in Go, but he takes Sai to a go salon to allow him to play. There Shindou and Sai meet Touya Akira, the same age as Shindou and a gifted Go player. Shindou is fascinated by both Touya's intensity and Sai's love of the game. Soon he develops his own desire to walk the path of Go and become a great player... and Touya's rival.

Full Metal Alchemist

Fullmetal Alchemist has become the biggest multimedia phenomenon to hit Japan since .hack went big nearly two years ago, and rightfully so. There's a plethora of big-name companies that got in on the action. What was originally the brain child of creator Hiromu Arakawa and Square Enix (best known for the Final Fantasy video games) has gone on to involve such prominent companies as Bandai (video games and merchandise), Sony (soundtrack), Shounen Gangan (manga serialization), and, of course, Studio BONES coming through with the animation. Each name acts as a stone pillar, supporting Fullmetal Alchemist in every way imaginable. From novels to bath towels, Fullmetal Alchemist is everywhere. Fortunately, the anime lives up to the unnatural amount of hype that surrounds it. When watching the show for the first time you'll find that this isn't your average series about magic and monsters.

This series involves the scientific marvel known as alchemy. Unlike magic, which can make something out of nothing, alchemy follows the law of even trade, making something out of something. Of course, watching a guy turn water into salt wouldn't make for a very entertaining series, so FA takes things to a much more imaginative level. By using certain circular symbols called “transmutation circles” (some also call these “arrays“), a house can be made out of rubble, or a sword from a chunk of metal. However, as with everything, there are some rules that should never be broken. This is where our aspiring protagonists come into play.

The young brothers Edward and Alphonse Elric have lost their mother to a rare illness and are unable to contact their father who's been away. To fill this void in their lives, the boys turn to a study of alchemy. It isn't long after their informal training that they attempt the most forbidden of alchemic crafts: Human Transmutation. They fail. The price is high, as Ed loses both his entire right arm and his lower left leg, and Al loses everything. Using quick thinking, Ed grafts Al's spirit to a full suit of armor using alchemy before passing out from the pain and blood loss. Likewise Al makes use of his new body to take Ed to their adoptive family, the Rockbells. It is here that Ed is fitted with a type of prosthetic called “automail,” a Rockbell specialty that allows for a full range of motion and added strength.

While recovering, the pair is offered a chance to be students at a special academy that will give them a shot at becoming State Alchemists (“government-issued” alchemists). Ed and Al see this as an opportunity not only to better their understanding of alchemy, but also to further research human transmutation, hopefully to regain their former bodies. To do this they find they'll need an item that will amplify their abilities, the Philosopher's Stone. It's with this that their biggest adventure begins.

Much of the earlier story is told as the real story of FA progresses. The current story actually takes place about 5 years after the events that set the brothers on their path. Learning about events that have taken place in the past helps promote interest in what is a long, complex story full of well rounded characters. Everyone has a past to explore. The past is just as important as the present, and viewers will want to understand both series of events well. It goes beyond the Elric brothers' search for answers as all chains of events become intertwined at one point or another.

The constant reviving of previous story arcs does much to keep the series fresh. By reintroducing characters that aren't expected to return, the entertainment level rises greatly. Throwing in one plot twist after another only increases the anticipation of each episode. Fullmetal Alchemist has full of some of the most interesting and well-rounded characters you'll see in an anime. Thanks to the connections between past and present in the story, we learn much about the characters in a short length of time.

We also get ample opportunity to watch the characters develop. In some cases it's as simple as a State Alchemist rising in military rank, but other times it's more personal, like a birthday. The characters mature, and as they reflect on their past lives, we often see changes in morals or ambitions. Be warned, though: Don't trust anybody in the show. One of the greatest things about this series is the ability to mislead the viewers into a false sense of security. Motives and intents change rapidly; the nicest character can quickly become the vilest. And of course, it goes both ways.

We also witness some of anime's best character designs. You'll never confuse characters in Fullmetal Alchemist, as each character has a distinct appearance. Some very calculated care was taken to make sure that no two characters looked even remotely alike. It's especially important because most characters are part of the military and, thus, will be seen mainly in their uniforms. The one exception is Ed, who almost always wears variations on his familiar black suit and red coat. The animation is squeaky clean. The colors are bright and vivid; even dull hues appear to glow. The animation is always flooded with colors--but never to the point that it becomes too busy or painful to watch. In some sequences they even use real photos of historical events like World War II.

In other cases they use computer generated rooms and perfectly animate the characters within them, leaving a pleasant, uniform look to the animation. Equally as impressive is the music. So far we've had opening and ending themes by such popular artists as Porno Graffitti, L'Arc en Ciel, YeLLOW Generation, and Crystal Kay to name a few. As of this writing there are still two more top names being added to the soundtrack, bringing the total to eight for this series' fifty-episode run. Thanks not only to the variety of artists, but also the different styles that each one brings to the table, the music is never boring and worth taking the couple of minutes to listen to every time.

Anyone who's familiar with the quality of music that Square Enix includes in their games should know what to expect from Fullmetal Alchemist. Much of the background music is fully orchestrated, often relying on the use of woodwinds and percussions that are pleasing to the ear and in no way distract from any talking taking place.

Ouran High School Host Club

Short Plot :
**************
Fujioka Haruhi is a common girl who's independent, smart, and witty. She earns a scholarship to Ohran Academy, a private high school catering to students from wealthy families. Unable to afford a proper school uniform, she constantly wears a polo shirt, long slacks and a vest which resembles the male uniform causing other students to mistake her for a male.

One day, she enters the room of the Host Club, a group of six attractive male students who entertain female students for profit. She accidentally breaks a vase worth 8 million yen, and is forced to work at the Host Club as compensation for the vase.

Haruhi becomes the 7th official member of the host club and is ordered to gather 100 guests as payment for her debts.

Character :
************
1. Fujioka Haruhi
First Name: Haruhi
Last Name: Fujioka
Japanese Way: Fujioka Haruhi
Birthday: February 4
Sign: Aquarius
Height: 5 feet
Blood Type: O
School: Ouran High School (Private Institution)
Elementary: Izumino Elementary School
Grade: First Year, Class A
Status: Common lineage

Haruhi, is a girl who was accpeted in to a Orean Acdamy, a high class rich school, she there she dresses as a boy, Doring her first day she stubles apon the the host club which is held in a music room, they all thought she was guy and assumed she was gay, while being interigated by the host club she accidently back up in to a vase, and has to 8 million dollars for it, but since she didn't have to money she had to be the dog of the host club, but later on the the ep. 1 became a host club member. The club the found out about her being a girl when Tamaki walked in on her while she was changing (she was wereing an undershirt, so you could tell she had upper support.) She mostly a tom boy and likes to where boy clothes, so she still had to act like a guy and pay off her debt to the host club. She is often called daughter by Tamaki, and is easily eritate by the members snobbines when the call the stuff she buy's commenor food, and calls the rich basterds. She not easily frighten only by thunder, and has a lot of commen sense, they consider her the natural type of the host club. She dosen't let people take control of her, and by the way shes a freshmen at the school.


2. Hanizuka MitsukuniFirst Name: Mitsukuni
Last Name: Haninozuka
Nickname: Hunny
Japanese Way: Haninozuka "Honey" Mitsukuni
Birthday: February 29
Sign: Pisces
Height: 4 feet 9 inches
Blood Type: AB
School: Ouran High School (Private Institution)
Grade: Third Year, Class A
Status: Wealthy lineage
Favorite Subject: Math
Favorite Foods: Cake, strawberries; unexpected cravings for spicy things
Habitual Phrase:* "Neeeeeeee" and putting "--ne" at the end of a sentence. Sometimes says "--kane" like a middle-aged man. (In Japanese, Hunny ends sentences with the equivalent of "Isn't it?" or "Right?")
Personality:
*- His niche is "cute in almost an illegal way." But when you look closely, you can't really tell if he's cute, weird, natural or calculated.


3. Hittachiin HikaruFirst Name: Hikaru
Last Name: Hitachiin
Japanese Way: Hitachiin Hikaru
Birthday: June 9
Sign: Gemini
Height: 5 feet 9 inches
Blood Type: B
School: Ouran High School (Private Institution)
Grade: First Year, Class A
Status: Wealthy lineage
Favorite Subjects: Math, Physics, Chemistry
Favorite Foods: Italian, anything super spicy
Personalities:
*- One word for their personalities is "dry." Very avid about things they are interested in but quite apathetic toward things they are not.
*- Unlike Tamaki, they are wholly calculating in their customer relations. They think women are easy. Still, they're just kids, so they sometimes do unexpected things. (i.e. In "Hunny's Bun-bun," they were "pretending to be scared," but in the end, they were genuinely upset.)
*- They're not really partial to spicy foods, so much as being contrary by eating whatever's "so fiery that nobody else dares try it." They do love maple syrup, though. Perhaps not the most ideal dining companions.

Hikaru Hitachiin. One of the two troublemakers. Hikaru and Kaoru both flirt with each other in front of their clients since they seem to love it. Hikaru is the twin with his hair parted on the right side of his head. He seems to love 'touching' Haruhi in front of Tamaki a lot, thus making him rage with jealousy. For ex. When Hikaru bit off a piece of the cookie that was in Haruhi's mouth, Tamaki had censored cuss words spouting from his mouth.


4. Hitachiin KaoruFirst Name: Kaoru
Last Name: Hitachiin
Japanese Way: Hitachiin Kaoru
Birthday: June 9
Sign: Gemini
Height: 5 feet 9 inches
Blood Type: B
School: Ouran High School (Private Institution)
Grade: First Year, Class A
Status: Wealthy lineage
Favorite Subjects: English, Modern Literature
Favorite Foods: Italian, anything super spicy
Personalities:
*- One word for their personalities is "dry." Very avid about things they are interested in but quite apathetic toward things they are not.
*- Unlike Tamaki, they are wholly calculating in their customer relations. They think women are easy. Still, they're just kids, so they sometimes do unexpected things. (i.e. In "Hunny's Bun-bun," they were "pretending to be scared," but in the end, they were genuinely upset.)
*- They're not really partial to spicy foods, so much as being contrary by eating whatever's "so fiery that nobody else dares try it." They do love maple syrup, though. Perhaps not the most ideal dining companions

The second troublemaker of the twins, along with Hikaru. He's basically the same as his brother, since they both love messing with Tamaki. lol. Though they seem the same, both are actually very different. Like if by himself, Kaoru would be nice and quiet, while Hikaru would be loud and rowdy.


5. Morizuka TakashiFirst Name: Takashi
Last Name: Morinozuka
Nickname: Mori
Japanese Way: Morinozuka "Mori" Takashi
Birthday: May 5
Sign: Taurus
Height: 6 feet 2 inches
Blood Type: O
School: Ouran High School (Private Institution)
Grade: Third Year, Class A
Status: Wealthy lineage
Favorite Subjects: Geography, Japanese History
Favorite Foods: Oriental (like fermented natto soybeans)
Personality:
*- Strong, yet kind.

Mori(his nickname) is a somber quiet guy. He hardly even smiles, and if he did, he'd be damn right gorgeous. He's Hunny's cousin. Also popular with the female clients. Not much is revealed about him until vol. 2 and maybe 5 and 6. I think.


6. Otori KyoyaFirst Name: Kyoya
Last Name: Ohtori
Japanese Way: Ootori Kyoya
Birthday: November 22
Sign: Scorpio**
Height: 5 feet 10 inches
Blood Type: AB
School: Ouran High School (Private Institution)
Grade: Second Year, Class A
Status: Wealthy lineage
Position: Host Club Vice President; Mom
Favorite Subjects: English, German, Physics
Favorite Foods: Anything spicy
Personality:
*- He is calculating but not greedy. He likes to move things forward according to careful planning, collecting profits along the way.
*- His fashion sense is not "intellectual" at all.

Kyoya Ohtori Kyoya Ohtori is a second-year student at Ouran High School, who was recruited to the Host Club when Tamaki established it. He is the club's vice-president, in charge of data - things like the request list and finances. He can be seen as the club's "Shadow King" behind Tamaki, since he takes charge of things from the background. He seems to be aware of all the coming and goings of anything concerning the Host Club (customers, events, etc). He maintains order when things get too out of hand, which is particularly useful since things get rowdy a lot. He also knows how to gain a profit out of everything.
Kyoya comes from a highly influential and powerful family, whose reach is "long and wide". He is the youngest of three siblings - he has one older sister and two older brothers. He has a close relationship to his sister, Fuyumi, who is now married and lives away from the family. His father is extremely strict and expects only the very best from his youngest son. As the third son, it is unlikely that Kyoya will be named heir to the family business. However, from Kyoya's secret smile in V6E25, it seems that he is working towards that goal one step at a time. (After the Host Club's success in the race for the Central Salon, his father said that if he has the talent, he wouldn't mind naming his third son the heir.)
Kyoya has a distinct money sense with a "devil's" smile. He is always calm and cool, and doesn't upset easily (or at all, it seems). However, just don't wake him up early in the morning. Kyoya is not a person to be disturbed during sleep.
Despite what he says, he's good friends with Tamaki.


7. Sudo Tamaki
First Name: Tamaki
Last Name: Suoh
Japanese Way: Suou Tamaki
Birthday: April 8
Sign: Aries
Height: 6 feet
Blood Type: A
School: Ouran High School (Private Institution)
Grade: Second Year, Class A
Status: Wealthy lineage
Position: Host Club King (President); Dad
Nationality: Half-French/Half-Japanese
Favorite Subjects: English, French, World History (also fond of Japanese History)
Favorite Foods: Common folk ramen (recently), especially pork flaver; common folk sweets (recently), especially Baby Star

Suoh Tamaki is called the king (ou-sama) by no one but himself. Everyone calls him Lord (Tono). He has an interest in commoner's things and is very smart, even though he often comes up with rediculous plans. He's half french half japanese but is banned to see his mother, since those were the conditions of his living in the suoh house. He knows sadness but chooses to carry on.
Sudo Tamaki is the president of the Host Club hes also refered to as mi lord my his fellow members. But he loves it when people refer to him as the king and known as the prince type or person,he's very dramatic in the series, and blushes everytime he sees Haruhi or imagine her in something femine, and get jealous when the twins get two freindly with her sometimes. (my gues it that he has hott feelings for her is affraid to about it.) he is also called dad because he treat Haruhi as if she was his daughter but by the twins call him the stupid aunt.

Clannad

Short Plot :
**************
Tomoya Okazaki is a third year high school student resentful of his life. His mother passed away from a car accident when he was younger, causing his father to resort to alcohol and gambling. This results in fights between the two until Tomoya's shoulder is injured in a fight. Since then, Tomoya has had distant relationships with his father, causing him to become a delinquent over time. While on a walk to school, he meets a strange girl named Nagisa Furukawa who is a year older, but is repeating due to illness. Due to this, she is often alone as most of her friends have moved on. The two begin hanging out and slowly, as time goes by, Tomoya finds his life shifting in a new direction.

School Rumble third term will Released!

Tsukamoto Tenma is an ordinary 2nd year high school student who has fallen in love with one of her classmates, Karasuma Ooji. However, currently she is unable to confess her feelings to him. To make things worse, she found out that Karasuma is transferring to another school in a year. On the other hand, Tenma's other classmate, Harima Kenji (who is a delinquent) is also in love with Tenma. Not being able to confess his feelings, Harima gets depressed day by day.

Check it out :
Direct to AniDB.Net (just click)

Enjoy it, now the School rumble third term was relase in Japan now ;). So Keep waiting for School Rumble Fans :)

Kanon

Story
*******
Kanon's story revolves around a group of five girls whose lives are connected to the same boy. Yuichi Aizawa is a second-year high school student who had visited the city where the story takes place seven years prior to Kanon's beginning. The story opens on Wednesday January 6, 1999 when Yuichi arrives in the city and is very detached from the it and its inhabitants. Prior to his return, it is decided that he is to stay with his first cousin, Nayuki Minase, and her mother, Akiko.

After his long absence, Yuichi has forgotten almost everything except minor details of what happened seven years before and is in need of being reminded of what he left behind. Nayuki initially tries repeatedly to jog his memory, but is unsuccessful. Throughout the story, as he learns about the supernatural undertones of the city, Yuichi is reminded of the events of seven years ago in the city. On the day after Yuichi's return, he is out with Nayuki who is showing him around city. Nayuki remembers that she has to buy things for dinner, but Yuichi is reluctant to go into the store with her, arguing that he might get lost.

Moments after Nayuki leaves him waiting on the sidewalk, a strange girl named Ayu Tsukimiya barges into him with little warning. Upon recovering, she drags him away to a nearby café and confesses to inadvertently stealing a bag filled with taiyaki after being accidentally scared away by the salesman before she had a chance to pay. Yuichi drags Ayu back to the salesman, where they both apologize for the trouble, and Ayu is forgiven. They decide to meet up again another day and Ayu scampers off.

A few days after he has been in the city, Yuichi is accosted by a girl named Makoto Sawatari who has lost her memories, though still remembers that she has a grudge against him from when he last visited the city. After she collapses in the street, he takes her home and learns about her situation. Akiko gives her permission to live with them for the time being, which is against Yuichi's plan to hand her over to the police.

Another girl who is connected to Yuichi's past is Mai Kawasumi who attends his high school as a third-year. She takes it upon herself to fight and defeat demons at night while the school is deserted. Due to this, she is constantly blamed for accidents because she never denies them, being too sincere to say anything and knowing that no one will believe that there are demons in the school.

Yuichi coincidentally meets a fifth girl named Shiori Misaka for the first time who he gets to know along with the other four heroines in the story. She has suffered from an unexplained affliction since birth which makes her weak to the point of missing school because of it. Yuichi starts to talk with her more after noticing her in the school courtyard one day. It turn out that Shiori stands outside on the school grounds nearly every day because she wants to meet someone dear to her.

Bleach

Ichigo Kurosaki is a brash 15 year old who is often picked on because of the unusual bright orange color of his hair. But although he seems like a hot-headed troublemaker, Ichigo has the unique ability to see ghosts and spirits in the world around him that other people cannot see. This ability allowed him to meet Rukia Kuchiki, a shinigami(death god) from the spirit world known as Soul Society.

Rukia explains to Ichigo that many dead spirits are sent to live in Soul Society, but lost or vengeful spirits often turn into vicious soul-eating creatures called hollows, and it's the responsibility of the death gods to vanquish the hollows from the living world. Not long after meeting Rukia, Ichigo's house and family were attacked by a hollow, which was attracted to Ichigo's strong spiritual energy. In a desperate attempt to protect them, Rukia ended up transferring all of her death god powers into Ichigo, and Ichigo managed to defeat the hollow.

Unable to take back her powers, Rukia decided to teach Ichigo to become a death god in her place, since he already has such incredible spiritual powers. It doesn't take Ichigo long to settle into his role as a death god and learn to use his powerful zanpakuto(soul slayer) sword effectively. Rukia also settles into life in the living world, using a faux body to attend Ichigo's school and hiding out in the closet in his room. During Ichigo's many battles with the hollows, it becomes apparent that he's not the only one with spiritual powers.

Not only does his sister Karin possess some, but his classmates Orihime and Sado(nicknamed "Chad") also begin to realize their spirit powers when hollows attack them. And Ichigo later discovers that another of his classmates, Ishida, actually comes from a long line of spirit users called Quincys.

As he battles more hollows, Ichigo begins to like his role as a death god. He becomes closer to his classmates and feels good when he's able to protect them and his family from hollows. In addition, he manages to battle the hollow that killed his mother and he also gains a strange ally in Kon, a spirit inhabiting a stuffed lion toy(Kon can also temporarily exist in Ichigo's body while his spirit is off fighting hollows.)

However, Ichigo's new life is suddenly shattered when two other death gods come from Soul Society on a mission to arrest Rukia and sentence her to death for illegally transferring her powers to Ichigo and remaining in the living world longer than is allowed. Ichigo desperately tried to fight off the powerful death gods(one of which was Rukia's older brother) but he was no match for them, and Rukia surrenders, not wanting to put Ichigo in more danger. As she's lead back through the doors to Soul Society, she demands that Ichigo not follow her. But, not one to abandon a friend in need, Ichigo becomes determined to find a way to Soul Society and rescue Rukia before it's too late.

With some special spiritual training from Urahara, the mysterious manager of a store that is somehow connected to the spirit world, and the support of Orihime, Sado, and Ishida, as well as guidance from the talking cat Yoruichi(who was once actually a respected female member of Soul Society), Ichigo and his friends finally find a way to Soul Society. But once there they are seen as invaders(ryoka) and are split up and immediately attacked by the hundreds of death gods that exists there. But also at this time there is a secret coup going on among the high ranking death god captains and lieutenants.

Rukia's execution sentence is somehow connected to this plot although most of the death gods are too involved in getting rid of the invaders to take notice. But as events of betrayal, deceit, and murder begin to plague the death gods of Soul Society, it's apparent that the culprit is one of their own. But as for Ichigo and his friends, the most important thing is rescuing Rukia before she's used as a pawn in this twisted plot!