Winter Season 2016: Early Impressions

[Ryllharu]

Oshiete! Galko-chan - A 8 minute gag show about a trio of girls. I'd say it specializes in gap-moe of the title character, who looks (and is assumed by her classmates and peers) to be a vapid slut, but is of course kind and smart, but a bit naïve. It covers a bit more mature topics than the average gag series. Most of the series is about teasing Galko or tricking her into answering very personal questions.

Koukaku no Pandora - GHOST URN -
A second opinion:
This series has earned a soft spot in my jaded heart. It is written by GitS' author, and it is nothing like GitS...except when it totally is. It's basically GitS without the militarization, though there does seem to be some nefarious stuff going on that the main duo will end up getting caught up in. The technology and cybernization goes away from GitS' dark take on what it is used for, and instead goes for a lighter, optimistic, more neon future. That said, there are some serious undertones going on, discussed in passing, but the series even states at the beginning of the third episode that this series generally won't be about that stuff. It frequently alludes to some pretty bad stuff going on outside the island they're on.

In addition, the protagonist herself is pretty scary in her own right. She's like the genki version of Motoko, extremely skilled at using her cyborg body and cyberbrain (edit: and yes, that is without the super upgrade temporary power).

I'd say give it a chance with the first three episodes. There's a little more depth to it than the description or the first two episodes give it credit for. It has a little bit of shoujo ai ecchi stuff, but that seems to take a back seat to exploring a much more optimistic version of the Ghost in the Shell premise.

Musaigen no Phantom World - I really don't see myself finishing this series. It's remarkably dull, and its premise repetitive. The VA performance and exploitation of the lead girl is honestly the only thing it has going for it. I've made it halfway through the 3rd episode and I honestly can't be bothered to finish it until I've finished everything else I downloaded this week.

Dimension W - It's been very good. I had no expectations for it and tried it when I was bored. It's a little like Solty Rei as mentioned elsewhere, but it is more like Saber Marionette with a Tiger and Bunny feel to it all. It absolutely feels like a late 90s series (possibly very early 00s) with modern animation.

Boku Dake ga Inai Machi - It's really just inverse Higurashi when you step back from it. It's getting a lot of universal love, but I find it more compelling than enjoyable. I don't look forward to it each week like I do some of the other series. It's very good, don't get me wrong.

Dagashi Kashi - I loved the first two episodes, but the third fell a little flat. I'm afraid the gags might start to get stale, but otherwise I love the hell out of it. Hotaru might be the girl of the season.

Schwarzesmarken - It's muvluv. You know what you're getting here. Blood, bleakness, and bickering.

Ooyasan wa Shishunki! - It's 2 minutes long (total), it's not very good, but I'll keep watching it because it is 2 minutes long. A win for momentum! Why it has a 30-second OP baffles me.

Other things I'm watching are sequels or ongoing, so I'm not going to mention them. Still need to try Kono Subarashii Sekai ni Shukufuku wo.