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「ようこそ閃学園へ！」 (Youkoso Hirameki Gakuen he!)
"Welcome to Hirameki Academy!"
Going in, I would say my highest expectation for R-15 was that it would be a guilty pleasure. And after one episode, I can safely say that expectation was met, and possibly exceeded.
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「900秒の放課後〈前篇〉」 (900-Byou no Houkago (Zenpen))
"900 Seconds After School (Part One)"
So we have ZEXCS animating and the screen writer Morita Shigeru of Kore wa Zombie fame creating something? I’ll admit that I wasn’t too excited with the premise of this show but I was blown away with how well this first episode played out.
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「貧乏神インスペクト+」 (Binbougami Insupekuto)
"God of Poverty Inspection"
Local deities in the 21st century are what it's all about in the adaptation of mangaka duo FLIPFLOPs' 2007 fantasy comedy series. At first glance, the character designs are reminiscent of the ones seen in the Touhou Project anime. Replace the demons and youkai with gods and we have Nekogami Yaoyorozu -- or at least, that's the immediate visual impression that AIC PLUS+'s anime gives off.
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「僕とみんなと海水浴っ！」 (Boku to Minna to Kaisuiyoku!)
"Me, Everyone, and Sea Bathing!"
While I wouldn't say that Baka Test came off the strongest during this first week of new shows, it was a really fun watch. Plus it has a strong back story going for it since it is a sequel. Here's to a strong second season for this show!
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「エンド・オブ・アース」 (Endo obu Aasu)
"End of Earth"
When it comes to romantic comedies that tend to revolve around one, maybe two, gimmicky plot devices, the animation quality, character designs, and character personalities go a long way toward the overall appeal.
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「これからが彼女たちのはじまり」 (Kore kara ga Kanajo-tachi no Hajimari)
"It's the Beginning of These Girls from Here On"
Fans of the IDOLM@STER franchise should be happy about this incredibly faithful adaptation, as it felt like I was watching someone play the Xbox 360 game it's based on before my very eyes. The twelve aspiring female idols (and one producer) constantly broke the fourth wall to communicate with the nameless cameraman (soon to be producer), whose unvoiced lines were subtitled for most of the episode.
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「あまつかぜ」 (Amatsukaze)
"Heavenly Wind"
Production I.G and female mangaka group CLAMP's latest addition to the Blood franchise is here, and it uses the same concept as the variations before it in an all-new story. That concept entails a high school girl named Kisaragi Saya (Mizuki Nana), who uses the "Goshintou" katana passed down by her father's shrine to defeat ancient vampiric demons known as "Furukimono" that prey on humans.
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「びしょぬれネズミ」 (Bishonure Nezumi)
"Drowned Rat"
If it's Thursday it must be NoitaminA, if it's the second slot it must be an edgy fantastical series, and if it's BONES sci-fi the plot must be indecipherably complex. So far, No. 6 looks to be meeting demand in all three areas.
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「りんどうの女の子」 (Rindou no Onna no Ko)
"Bellflower Girl"
I am in awe at how the very first episode of Bunny Drop managed to bring tears to my eyes.
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「運命のベルが鳴る」 (Unmei no Beru ga Naru)
"The Bell of Fate Sounds"
The premiere of Revolutionary Girl Utena/Sailor Moon director/writer Ikuhara Kunihiko's original new series makes its way to television airwaves and leaves a very mysterious and promising first impression. All the mention of bearing sins and fighting fate in the commercials comes front and center almost immediately, yet raises just as many questions as I had originally.
Update: I incorrectly deduced that the possessed Himari is Oginome Ringo (Miyake Marie) based on the episode credits and how she's been described as heroine who's just as important as Himari. In reality, Ringo is actually the schoolgirl who walked by Shouma. My apologies for any confusion this may have caused.
