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Rating: 7.8/10

Impressions:

The quality dropped quite a bit this episode, resulting in surprisingly distorted faces that look pretty bad. But if you watch this show, it’s probably not because of the character design, so I doubt that would have been too off-putting. Still, I think they animated body movements better, since Mana’s fleetingness seems to really stand out this episode. This episode has little dialogue as well, which I find a plus in this case. A lot of shows that have less dialogue and tell stories using music and visuals alone are usually more engaging and fast paced. This is often used to show a fast pass in time, which Gigantic Formula uses a lot.

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Popularity: 8% [?]

Rating: 7/10

Impressions:

Although the random skits at the end are rather funny, I can’t really approve of them. I see them as mainly time wasters, and perhaps that time could have been used to flesh out the story more. The introduction of characters could have been a bit more descriptive as well, but having read the manga it doesn’t affect me as much. Anyway, I do like the way the characters talk about fighting and finishing moves like the shounen series that Hayate no Gotoku loves parodying, since it gives you the familiar sense of the action genre, but in a very exaggerative and comedic way. Hinagiku appears too xD.

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Popularity: 9% [?]

Rating: 10/10

Overall Series Rating: 9.5/10

Impressions:

With these last two episodes, I can no longer say that I’ll be looking forward to the second season of Shana more than the second season of Code Geass, both of which are scheduled for next season (I hope this is right). These last two episodes are insanely captivating—I sat watching with full concentration the entire way, due to the lightning pace, action, plot twists and everything else. The appearances of some annoying characters such as Nina and Suzaku didn’t end up on my nerves; instead, I felt grateful for their appearances due to the excellent entertainment that they provide. Of course, CC’s appearances (and kiss) is a wonder in its own, since she’s my fave character.

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Popularity: 22% [?]

Rating: 7.5/10

Impressions:

Although this episode isn’t as impacting as the first one, it does present us with some interesting background information, handed to us in a very melancholic manner—something which I love watching. Sadness, angst, fury etc, all bring out characters far more efficiently than happier moods, which are usually forgotten as unimportant side information. We learn a bit about Shiika, someone who Daisuke apparently captures back in the flashback in episode 1. I don’t think it’s known from where she’s escaped from yet, though reading off of ANN, you get a much better picture.

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Popularity: 10% [?]

Rating: 7.5/10

Impressions:

This episode is actually pretty good, mainly due to the action and above average quality. The short scenes of Gai’s team fighting each other were done pretty well, and finally, the show has reached the point where Sakura gets to fight for real. Although this episode still has a lot of padding which contributes to the pacing issue, it’s not as noticeable. There’s a new ED as well, one which I like a lot better than the previous. I find it quite amusing actually, because I think I’d like to see an anime version of that manga depicted in the ED sequence, rather than Naruto itself. xD

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Popularity: 11% [?]

Rating: 8/10

Impressions:

People have been saying that this arc ends next episode. I dunno what to say about that, except that if that’s the case, this arc would be severely different to the usual arc structure of the Higurashi world. Some major differences to outline is that Satoko, the seeming victim of the whole thing, is not going down a straightforward path towards insanity and death. Just like Rika manages to return to her senses in Tsumihoroboshi-hen (regardless of what happens after in that arc), this time, Satoko is fighting for herself and for Rika. Rika may have given up, and although this arc is a sure failure as well, it’s clear that things are actually changing, however subtly.

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Popularity: 22% [?]

Rating: 7.6/10

Impressions:

At least this episode is much more eventful than the last, and as expected, something goes wrong which causes an unprepared Sonic Diver launching, and ultimately causes the recognition of a lesser known pilot…right, what I mean is, Eika goes off with Raijin, hoping to be the best, though due to her naturally low synch ratio (lol NGE), she’s not too good with handling her Sonic Diver. Then, the heroine of the story, Otoha, takes off with Reijin and owns Eika in terms of synching skills (though Eika does get some points for preventing them from crashing at the very end). Well know we know that Otoha is special and will most likely be the best in the future…

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Popularity: 10% [?]

Rating: 7/10

Impressions:

The transformation sequences are by far the coolest moments in Negima!? The artistic style that SHAFT employs is pretty distinct and memorable. Comedy-wise, this episode once again utilises many random jokes for the kind of ‘WTF?!LOL’ humour. I don’t think there will be any distinct plot any time soon, with the majority of the episodes being episodic like this one. This episode focuses on the relationship between Ayaka and Asuna, which I found pretty nice. I’m not sure if there’s a similar episode, though I do remember Ayaka’s birthday or something in the manga, and that too gives you a pretty good feeling. Then again, Negima!? isn’t something you take seriously.

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Popularity: 12% [?]