Hello everyone! I hope you're having a fun and safe holiday season! Today, I figured I talk about a what Lilac Anime Reviews has in store for 2014, as well as ask for some help with an ongoing project due next Wednesday!
The 2014 Posting Schedule
So first thing’s first. I wanted to give you all an update on the many many projects I have for LAR this coming year and announce a new project I’m starting up in January! The posting schedule will be available on the right side of the blog if you need a little reminder.
(Every other Wednesday) Of course the main content of LAR is the reviews. The word Review is in the name of the blog after all. What’s a little different though is the word Manga attached to the section. I would love to try and do a little bit more manga reviews since Solanin went rather well last year. Also, buying manga can be cheaper than anime depending on the series and I’ve been buying more manga these past few months that I would love to tell you guys about! How I’m going to approach the manga reviews, I have not decided on yet but once I figure that part out you’ll be the first to know! Of course, the posting schedule for reviews will not change and will remain at every other Wednesday with at least 2 reviews a month! As for video reviews, I am aiming for a video review every couple of months or so.
(TBD by Season Schedule) Since 2013 was the first full year of my Impressions series, I’ve taken a look at 47 series and over 60 since I started the Impressions series overall. However, for some reason, I still miss the gems that everyone keeps talking about. During my Fall Impressions, I took a look at nearly every single new show that caught my attention instead of narrowing it down to a start of 10 like I’ve done previously. And it seemed to work well for me. So I’m going to try and continue doing so! Posting schedule for Impressions will vary depending on the season, but I will try for two posts a week, splitting the many shows into two halves to go through. This is to save you some time reading one massive post each week. Though it’s still more work for me, I think it’s worth it for you guys in the long run! I also want to let you guys know about the upcoming winter season, so keep reading to find out more!
(Every Friday Night at 8PM EST) The Thriller Zone, for those who don’t know, is a weekly stream where I show features related to the Horror/Mystery/Psychological/Thriller/Suspense genre, my favorite genre. This could include films, TV shows, anime, web series, etc. Now I don’t really post or talk about the stream on the blog itself, but I do want to let you know it is out there. The best way to keep tabs on TTZ is by following me on Twitter @Stephie_Sue where I tweet about the feature of that week and when the stream goes up on Friday nights!. The more people the merrier!
(Every Friday) I’m terrible at vlogging. Very very terrible at vlogging. Because I can’t keep up with it. However, I decided to make it a New Year’s Resolution to vlog for you guys once a week. This is partly because I want to give more content to my YouTube channel since I can’t upload full reviews... Well... More like I don’t want to so I can avoid the copyright problem. And also, because I would love to talk to you guys, in a sense. I already have an idea on what the first vlog is going to be for next week! So yeah, I plan on vlogging once a week for you guys! Make sure to keep an eye out next Friday for the first vlog of 2014!
(Whenever it’s done) Another project I am a part of is a podcast with the Admins and Mods of Teh Bukkit Forums! It’s been months since we’ve had an episode, but we do have one in the works (hopefully). LAR is one of the main ways to listen to the podcast, but you can also check us out on YouTube! My hope is to switch everything over from Blip to YouTube permanently in this next year, and maybe see if there's an opportunity for you to download the episodes! Perhaps some research into iTunes? But first, we ought to make a new episode huh.
(First Monday of the Month) The newest feature for Lilac Anime Reviews and the LAR YouTube channel in particular. Every month, I will put together my top 10 list of something anime or otaku related. I already have the first few months planned and in the works! So keep an eye out for January’s Lilac 10 on the 6th! And if you have any ideas for top ten lists for me to make, feel free to suggest them! I already have a lovely list going including Crushes, Fictional Characters, and Otaku!
Top 20 Openings of 2013
This project has been ongoing for months now. As of right now, I have my countdown all done and ready to be posted next week and all I really need for the viewer countdown is the record audio for the 20 openings. This is where I need some help... I haven’t really received any comments on the openings from you guys and I really want to get your input on the openings! This is a countdown for you, so who better to talk about the openings?! All I need from you is your thoughts on the following openings! If you can make them last for about a minute or so then that would be great! Bonus points for recording actual audio clips on your thoughts and sending them my way via email!
Ace of the Diamond
Amnesia
Attack on Titan
Blood Lad
Coppelion
Danganronpa
Devil is a Part Timer
Diabolik Lovers
Flowers of Evil
Free!
Gargantia
Golden Time
Karneval
Kill La Kill
Nagi no Asukara
Samurai Flamenco
Sasami-san@Ganbaranai
Sliver Spoon
Watamote
Zettai Karen Children: The Unlimited
As you can tell, these are in ABC order so you guys don’t get to know what order they are in. Please leave a comment below on your openings of choice (however many you wish to talk about, there is no limit!), and the best comments for each opening will be featured in the viewer countdown next week!
Ace of the Diamond
Amnesia
Attack on Titan
Blood Lad
Coppelion
Danganronpa
Devil is a Part Timer
Diabolik Lovers
Flowers of Evil
Free!
Gargantia
Golden Time
Karneval
Kill La Kill
Nagi no Asukara
Samurai Flamenco
Sasami-san@Ganbaranai
Sliver Spoon
Watamote
Zettai Karen Children: The Unlimited
As you can tell, these are in ABC order so you guys don’t get to know what order they are in. Please leave a comment below on your openings of choice (however many you wish to talk about, there is no limit!), and the best comments for each opening will be featured in the viewer countdown next week!
Winter Impressions 2014
The Winter Anime season is going to start really really soon! And I wanted to give you a quick run down of the shows I have slated for my Winter 2014 Impressions! Right now, there are 20 series on my list, and I would love to narrow that down to 7 or 8 by the end of three weeks! I will say, since I am home on semester break, posting the first week and a half of the Impressions series may run behind sometimes until I head back to school so please bare with me! Here are the 20 series I will be looking into this coming season!
Winter Impressions 2014:
NAME (AIR DATE)
Inari, Konkon, Koi Iroha (1/1)
Wizard Barristers: Benmashi Cecil (1/1)
Nobunagun (1/4)
Space Dandy (1/5) (Both Dub and Sub to be covered)
Witch Craft Works (1/5)
Buddy Complex (1/6)
Nobunaga the Fool (1/6)
Noragami (1/6)
Toaru Hikuushi e no Koiuta (1/6)
D-Frag! (1/7)
Hamatora The Animation (1/8)
Mikakunin de Shinkoukei (1/9)
Hoozuki no Reitetsu (1/10)
Magical Warfare (1/10)
Strange+ (1/10)
Z/X: Ignition (1/10)
Nisekoi (1/11)
Nourin (1/11)
Wake Up, Girls! (1/11)
Sekai Seifuku (1/12)
Other Shows (Not in Impressions):
Sliver Spoon s2 (1/10)
Based on the current schedule, you can expect to see Impressions posts on Tuesdays and Thursdays this season! Keep an eye for the first part of Week 1 on Thursday the 9th and the second part on Tuesday the 14th!
I believe that’s everything from me! I can’t wait to start the new year with you guys! Do you have any New Years Resolutions?!? Leave them in the comments below! But please please PLEASE leave me comments on the viewer openings countdown! I need your input, since this countdown belongs to you guys! Until 2014, otaku on my friends!
My favorite opening of the year, especially if I just limit it to ones for shows that I acutely followed, pretty much comes down to a tie between Attack on Titan and Watamote. Both used and appropriate, fun to listen to song, had great animation, and fit the tone of the show and/or got you all pumped up and excited to watch it. Really, it's a tie for one particular reason. AoT probably had the better opening overall...but it feature the kind of Dragonforce-y cheese-metal that I don't hate, but would never listen to if it wasn't part of the opening for a kick-ass anime series. Watamote, on the other hand, had the kind of metal that I might actually listen to apart from the show. Given that, they're pretty much tied for me in terms of quality. (It helps that they're attached to the two shows I probably enjoyed watching the most this year.)
ReplyDeleteAt the risk of being completely predictable, my favorites of those listed are, by far, also Attack on Titan and Watamote, for completely different reasons. Attack on Titan's opening was powerful and built up like nobody's business, it practically screams "EPIC" and really makes you believe it. Watamote's was more of an emotional piece, dissonant to the show's more comedic tone, but in a good way, and it has a lot of layers to it, particularly the lyrics. I'll also give a nod to The Unlimited, which makes me really want to see the show (I haven't yet) for pure cool factor and really neat visuals, and Coppelion for... really neat visuals.
ReplyDeleteI rather like Diabolik Lover's op. Despite the show being splendidly horrid, the op is pretty good. Starting off with the classic dark mansion & bat shots, then having a creepy and nasally sung song play over shots of foreboding vampire boys works well, and the movements the heroine makes are so doll-like it reeks of puppetry on the vampires part, which is pretty scary in and of itself. And of course, ending the song with "MEESTAR SADEEESTIC MAAAN" just adds to the glory.
ReplyDeleteBesides the obvious, I quite enjoyed Blood Lad's OP. It gave you a taste of its zaniness and made you wanna watch it.
ReplyDeleteAnd a few more thoughts on some of the other openings:
ReplyDeleteDevil Is A Part Timer: Does a good job setting up the contrast between the more fantastical elements of the show and the more mundane/goofy comedy side of it.
Gargantia: I thought Gargantia did an excellent job showing how warm and bright and tropical the surface of the planet is and the opening captures that spirit well. It really makes you feel like you're watching something set in a place that's always experiencing the summertime.
Golden Time: I didn't watch this show and I don't really know what it's about (other than a romance, judging by the opening), but I thought the opening was really sweet. Just a nice, compacted story about two people falling in lover (I think). Awwwww.
Karneval: I can't tell if I think this opening/show's design aesthetic is really cool and interesting or just really goofy. Either way, it did at least catch my eye and make me curious to see what the show is like, so thumbs up to that.
Kill La Kill: The opening is solid enough, but I wished they'd picked a different song. Kill La Kill is way too hardcore for just a peppy J-Pop song. If only they'd gone with something more metal, then they could form a 2013 anime opening trifectica with AoT and Watamote. Oh well.
Silver Spoon: I like it! Of all the new shows I watched this year, this probably had the best overall opening after AoT and Watamote. It was bouncy and fun and gave us a taste of the characters and the world they live in. I also like the song they choose, with gave the opening a little bit of a rustic edge that complimented the farming school setting well.
This is a greatt post
ReplyDelete