Short, non-spoiler reviews and hot takes of anime for the newly initiated weeb.
The movie is the best in the Index series, but that isn't saying much. Animation is improved, but it still bears all the sins of the series: Constant exposition, convoluted plot, and the same tired ecchi jokes. It also ignores the ending of Index II despite taking place right after it.
An improvement over the first Railgun season! Railgun S takes Misaka's arc from Index and properly develops it and gives it the weight, drama, and time it deserves.
In the "Military vehicles as Anime Girls" competition, fighter jets come dead last behind battleships and tanks. This felt like an adaptation of a very mediocre visual novel that relied wholly on tropes.
Alice in Wonderland meets Evangelion, which then cross with Kill la Kill and Madoka in this gorgeous, magical, and emotional trip with unforgettable moments.
Now that the Rebuild of Evangelions’s own different story is rolling, the pacing is much more natural and you’ll be on the edge of your seat - or hiding behind it, I literally pulled a muscle in my neck recoiling in horror at the excellently animated action.
An ensemble Reverse Isekai piece with a strong (though slightly less brutal) Fate/Zero feel to it. This takes a hard meta route and is ample with rich philosophical dialogue and design choices.
A completely revamped and beautiful beginning to a different Evangelion story. It was so nice to see crisp HD updates and detail, with more focused storytelling with pieces of the fat trimmed out, but this first movie is mostly the same story you know.
A remarkably dull sequel that progresses slowly with various non-sequitur arcs. When not in a monotonous fight scene, it's the same tired “jokes” of accidentally seeing a girl changing or naked, over and over again.
This is the best anime movie from a TV series that I've seen. KyoAni's love for their craft is strongly felt here in a beautiful and emotional piece. All the good of Haruhi improved while trimming all eye-roll moments.
Haruhi has its own fun thing going on. It doesn't "feel" like really any other anime, and that's part of what has made it a mainstay of anime history. That, and a very notorious arc. I really enjoyed this one.
At a Glance Anime 