So we’re up to ~episode six in most series, which is the halfway point for the Fall season (though not necessarily the halfway point for each show). I figured I’d check in and talk about where I am with each show these days.

• Bamboo Blade: Miya-Miya owns the ass of every female character this season, hands down. Then again, it’s not like she’s up against a lot of competition. Status: Watching regularly.
• Blue Drop: The pacing is sooo slow, it took until episode three or four for anything to actually happen. But the promise of lesbians keeps me going. Status: Watching regularly.
• Clannad: I maintain that this show would be so much better if they would just ditch Nagisa entirely. Beyond that, I’m liking it better than I expected to. I do still wish that anyone looked somewhat close to how old they actually are / sound…but eh. Status: Watching regularly.
• Dragonaut: The Resonance: I can’t explain why I keep watching this show. I’m not really fond of the art style, the plot is pretty mediocre…and yet, I keep watching. I blame the boobies. Status: Watching regularly.
• Genshiken 2: Ogiue’s Sasahara x Madarama FTW. That is all. Status: Watching regularly.
• Goshuushou-sama Ninomiya-kun: GOOO REIKA! GO GO GO! Mayu’s cute, but boring. Status: Watching regularly.
• Jyuushin Enbu: Story-wise it’s gotten better, but the art and animation are still incredibly mediocre compared to FMA, and the characters aren’t as cool either. Status: Watching every so-often.
• Kaiji: I’m interested in seeing where this goes, but running out of space on my anime plate for watching it. Status: Dropped for watching later.
• Kidou Senshi Gundam 00: Major improvements in terms of developing characters, but I think I still like the ending theme better than anything else about the show. Status: Watching regularly.
• KimiKiss: I like this show, and I think it’s because it’s a dating sim but not one that focuses on one guy and a dozen girls, but rather a group of friends (male and female) and their love lives. Status: Watching regularly.
• Kodomo no Jikan: Epic yet uncomfortable win. But I’ve ranted about this show being undervalued as mere pedo fodder enough, so suffice to say Status: Watching regularly.
• Majin Tantei Nougami Neuro: I would totally be watching this show IF ANYONE WOULD FREAKIN’ SUB IT. I’ve actually already seen people cosplay from the manga, and yet no one will sub the anime? Am I missing something? Status: Watching…if it ever comes out.
• Minamike: I like the show a lot, but almost all the comedy comes from either crazy middle sister Kana, or crazy Kana-like characters (Chiaki and Haruka each have a classmate with a similar dynamic). And Kana is never given the opportunity to have any redeeming features. Hmph. Status: Watching regularly.
• Moyashimon: This one’s a little behind, but I like it…though the agriculture 101 bits can be a little dull, the rest of the batshit insane stuff makes up for it. Status: Watching regularly.
• Night Wizard: I’m getting a little tired of Eris being the sweet, cheerful, flock-of-birds attracting Mary Sue, and annoyed at Renji being the show’s whipping boy with, like Minamike’s Kana, no real opportunity to redeem himself. Status: Considering dropping.
• Prism Ark: …One episode was really enough. Status: Dropped.
• Rental Magika: It got so boring in episode three I just couldn’t continue. Status: Dropped.
• Shinrei Kari / Ghost Hound: I still have some issues with the art style, but the pacing has picked itself up nicely and I’m curious to see where it’s going. Status: Watching regularly.
• Shion no Oh: Mmm, delicious trap, must eat. Status: Watching regularly.
• Shugo Chara! Mmm, delicious magical girl, must eat. This is probably one of the more solid shows of the season, IMO, though it’s obvious not for everyone. Status: Watching regularly.
• Suteki Tantei Labyrinth: Looks cute, but pretty dull– I’m more interested in the dolls than in anything to do with the main character. Status: Dropped.

• Title: Kimi Kiss pure rouge
• Studio: J.C. Staff
• Genre: Romance

Ratings (out of 5):

• Story: ♥♥♥

• Animation: ♥♥♥
• Characters: ♥♥♥♥
• OP/ED Themes: ♥♥♥
• Overall: ♥♥♥½ (Oh baby baby.)
  

Thoughts:
Yet Another Dating Sim-Turned-Anime…but I like this one better than most of the others. I think part of it is the presence of female lead Mao(-neechan), who is both hot and fun, and not over-blown or a mere archetype. In fact, so far none of the characters feel one-dimensional, except maybe Aihara’s younger sister and Hiiragi, the president of the movie research club (which Aihara and male lead Kouichi are members of, under duress).

So, the story is thus: one morning Kouichi wakes up to the ringing of a doorbell. On his way down the stairs the person at the door opens up: it’s Mao. But he doesn’t recognize her. She teases him, asks for a drink, and then goes to take a shower– and during all this time he still has no clue who she is. It isn’t until Aihara arrives to go with Kouichi to a club activity that Mao’s identity is revealed: she’s a childhood friend of both Aihara (who DID recognize her) and Kouichi, and she went to France two years earlier.

Insert rant about how the hell Kouichi can fail to recognize someone he hasn’t seen in only two years, especially since he’s old enough to have a decent memory (second year senior high school) and since she doesn’t seem to have changed physically at all.

…But she has changed a lot personality-wise, it seems. And she’s clearly hiding the reason she came back to Japan from France for only the last year of high school.

I think the reason this series stands out among all the other dating sim/eroge adaptations so far this season is the characters. None of them are crazy over-the-top stereotypes. Like, it feels like someone sat down and wrote a story, instead of like they were trying to cram in as many “types” of females as possible. (There’re even multiple male characters– and so far the two side character males have gotten way more action than the lead! I.e. the male side characters are there for more than just comedy relief and occasional plot-pushing; they actually play a role in the story!)

So, yeah, Kimi Kiss is on my watch list for the time being.