Winter 2011: wrap-up

Merry from Yumekui Merry
Yumekui Merry
Hourou Musuko (Wandering Son): The episode count signalled the end. It certainly wasn’t a strong wrap-up ending! Beautifully made and sensitively scripted, with several interesting characters, it sometimes felt like a kind of gender sci-fi.

Fractale: The final episode was stupid and annoying – no surprise there. Candidate for the best animated series with the worst script.

Yumekui Merry (Dream Eater Merry): I really liked this series and its main characters, despite its increasingly complicated conceptual underpinnings. The “final battle” sequence was a bit drawn-out and predictable though.

Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica: Still waiting for last 2 episodes because of problems in Japan, but I thought this was the hit of the season. Deceptively cute at first, then becoming shockingly dark and powerful. Magical Girl anime will never seem the same again. Apr 22nd: Episode 11 maintains the standard. Episode 12 finale is a fumbling anti-climax, but not to the point of ruining the series.

Kore wa Zombie desu ka? (Is this a Zombie?): Loved this for its warmth and crazy humour, and its original characters. Less successful when trying for drama, but overall well worth watching.

Gothic: A 26-episode series, still running.
Level E: I got fed up with the focus on the schoolboys and dropped it.