Himouto! Umaru-chan REVIEW

Name: Himouto! Umaru-chan
English name: My Two-Faced Little Sister
Status: Currently Airing
Genres: Comedy, School, Slice of Life

Synopsis: Umaru is a attractive and popular 16 year old high schooler seems to have an alternative personality whilst she is at home. She's smart and skilled in almost every talent. She lives with her brother Taihei, whom does all the housework. Umaru keeps her true self to herself until one day a classmate finds out about her true personality!

Almost seemly like two different people, Umaru has a secret side to herself. She's obsessed with manga and playing video games! She relishes in reading manga and drinking a lot of Cola. So, she's basically the anime version of us.

This anime is much similar to Lucky☆Star, who's main character is a anime/manga obsessed otaku and WataMote: No Matter How I Look At It, It's You Guys' Fault I'm Unpopular!, who's main character has a strong love with video games. This concept of having a female character who loves all things nerdy is not uncommon anymore so it's definitely not something totally original.

The art style of this anime is one I have to mention. It's very simple and the character designs are also not that complicated or detailed like in some anime. The characters do not seem to have that much complicated color palettes which is always a big plus!  All in all, it's very simple and easy to follow along!

As for the characters, the main character is Umaru who, to put it simply,  loves cola and playing video games. She's seen very different when she's outside with her friends (her brother calls it her 'Outside Face') and is actually drawn differently when she is engaged in her "himouto" self. She's selfish, two-faced, and greedy when she's at home but Umaru is super sweet, gentle, and calm when she's hanging out with her friends or at school! Taihei is her older brother who is the only one who knows about her secret self. He's drawn to be very plain compared to the beauty of his sister and often tries to teach her "self-restraint". Unfortunately that doesn't do very well a lot of times.

All in all, this anime is filled with comedic scenes and adorable characters that will leave you feeling like you've watched a 24 minute video about yourself.

Reviewed by: K.K

Psycho Pass REVIEW

Name: Psycho-Pass
Japanese Name: サイコパス
Status: FINISHED
Genres: Action, Sci-Fi, Psychological

Synopsis: In the distant future, Japan has created a system where it is possible to assess one's mental health with just aiming a Dominator at a person. The story follows the one of the main characters, Kougami Shinya as he investigates with his partner, Tsunemori Akane a series of displayed murders.

If you could measure your mental health and see where you stand, would you? Japan has constructed a system in which one can measure their day to day mental health by using numbers and colors. The darker your color, the worst off you are. So? What color is your hue?

It's riveting to watch, seeing as it almost seems intrusive to one's being. I mean, a system in that can quickly assess and tell you what state your own mind is in? Seems a bit far fetched but that's what makes this anime such an experience to watch. With an art style that is similar to GANGSTA, it definitely isn't a light anime to watch. It involves a lot of  blood and mutilation of the body, so if you are uneasy seeing that type of thing, please be warned (Applies to Season 2, also)

The main character is Kougami Shinya and Tsunemori Akane. Both are on the police force tasked to hunt down those who's Psycho Pass (mental health) is clouded, or rather dark. Kougami is silent and stubborn but a serious person with an almost twisted sense of humor as he likes to tease Tsunemori. The other main character is Tsunemori Akane, who just recently joined the police force and is partners with Kougami. Although a novice, she shows remarkable resilience and seems to be able to handle and trust Kougami's character, even after the rest of the group warns her.

It starts off fairly easy with just investigations but then the drama becomes heavier and you find yourself at the end of your seat, wondering how it is all going to end. There are currently 2 seasons and a movie out! (which I will not review unfortunately)

Reviewed by: K.K

Gangsta (ギャングスタ) REVIEW

English Name: GANGSTA
Japanese  Name: ギャングスタ
Status: Currently Airing.
Genres: Action, Drama, Seinen

Synopsis: In the little shady town of Ergastulum in which two "handymen" work, Nicolas and Worick, taking care of the city's dirtiest jobs. On one of their jobs, theres an unfortunate witness that they take in instead of silencing.

This anime has simple gotten me at the edge of my seat with every moment that passes. My heart aches at the sight of the two main characters, Nicolas and Worick, who seem to capture the hearts of many with just a single stare!

With a dark art style and interesting characters, this is no doubt an anime that will be cherished in the long run. The main characters, Nicolas and Worick are criminals on kinda good terms with the
police. Nicolas is quiet and quite fool-hardy when it comes to doing his job. He acts on his instincts mostly and depends on Worick to get him through tough situations. Worick, on the other hand, isn't as nice as you might think. His complacency and avarice go hand in hand and are truly what makes him,

well, him. Both characters are audacious compared to the soft character of Alex. I call her soft because although in the beginning she is totally bad ass (no spoilers hehe) she has an older sister aura around her, which is pleasing especially in this type of obscure anime.

If you like deep plots with a lot of information and backstories then this anime is for you. There's a very detailed backstory concerning the two main characters which supports the plot but unless if you're like me and have the attention span of a rabbit, you're going to have a hard time catching up. 

The art style is beautiful and not very anime-esque as a typic anime might be. There isn't any over the top big ol' anime eyes or anything like that which is a big plus. The style is very dark as I have mentioned earlier and it really fits in well with the story. 

This is definitely a must watch!

Reviewed by: K.K

Aoharu x Kikanjuu REVIEW

Name: Anime: Aoharu x Kikanjuu
English name: Aoharu x Machinegun
Status: Currently Airing
Genres: Action, Comedy, and Shounen

Synopsis: Aoharu x Kikanjuu is a very brilliant anime that is unlike any you have seen before. The main character, Tachibana Hotaru has an amazing athletic ability but is often mistaken for a boy. She gets drawn to the world of survival games when she confronts Masamune Matsuoka, a host.

It's not often you find an action packed anime with guns that don't involve death. Although, if you see Yukimura Tooru's murderous face and can't help but grasp your chest and let out a small high pitched whine then yes, you can count that as dying. The content of this anime is everything but bad in my opinion. It's got guns, comedy, and characters you can relate to (to some extremes).

If I learned anything from anime, it's that any anime needs a character who has an incredible athletic ability and a good sense of justice. Tachibana Hotaru is the main character and also the student body president. She is mistaken often for a boy because of her clothes, she wears the boy's uniform instead of the females, and she's a bit rough when seeking justice. The anime takes you on a wild ride of Tachibana's life as she engages in the world of survival games. She befriends Masamune Matsuoka, a host at a high end host club, and Tooru Yukimura, a ero manga artist and joins their group for the survival games.

What makes this anime so irresistible is probably the amount of details they put into the guns. Many anime don't put that much emphasis on the guns. Aoharu x Kikanjuu puts attention on the guns to portray drama and intensity. All which is necessary to create the hot atmosphere in which the characters are quite often involved in. Trivial drama gets intensified making their problems seem bigger than they really are.

Tachibana starts off having a debt to Matsuoka due to her ruining the host club he worked at in Episode 1 but in Episode 2, her debt is paid off for just playing one game with the two males, even though Matsuoka said she was a couple thousand dollars in debt. She later permanently joins their team due to her new found love for survival games. The main goal of Matsuoka is to be the very best survival team in Japan but is that really all he wants? There isn't much revealed yet but everything leading up to it has been stunning.

I love every aspect of this anime from the intensity it releases during the survival games and the conflict she ensues because of her novice attitude towards survival games. But one can't help but notice how cliche her character seems at first. Her shocking athletic ability, she dresses like a boy, and her strong sense of justice is not unique to the anime world. But it's all washed away when she shows more of her personality later on. The other characters are also in their own way cliche. We have a charismatic host who seems to charm anyone with his sweet words and a quiet character with a love for everything ecchi.

Either way, this anime is a definite watch
Reviewed by: K.K