Rating: 9/10

Impressions:

It’s surprisingly soothing when I see Soujirou and Kanata together, despite the incredible difference in outward appearance (in terms of apparent age). It’s basically Konata’s dad dating a more refined Konata. I was rather surprised when they showed Kanata as a spirit, still wandering the Izumi household, but the idea is pretty touching. That is, if you get over the hilarity of the fact that Soujirou is a paedophile, blatant and proud of it. Still, the segment where Konata asks about her mother is extremely well done (yes, expect no less from KyoAni), and it’s that kind of stuff that should be in final stages of the show. I wonder how everything ends anyway…

Rating: 8.5/10

Impressions:

Another good episode, with nice comedy shorts (which are becoming increasingly easier to identify with), though now I’m beginning to want to see a sustained gag that takes up the entire episode. That would make for a nice conclusion, in my opinion. Kagami’s *love letter* gag is awesome, as it portrays her in such a serious and love-struck manner, only to be heart-broken (not really) when she realises that, not only is her *admirer* ugly, he’s also not interested. I love her before and after expressions—especially the contrast between them. It would be nice though, if Lucky Star actually pairs one of the characters up with a guy, even if only for a short while.

Rating: 8.5/10

Impressions:

Technically, Lucky Star has finished, though A.F.K. has been stalled in the subbing of the series, which is quite frustrating for me as I don’t want to waste my bandwidth getting a different subber. I’ll see how it goes though—I’m trying to finish everything up before the new season starts, as well as write the Autumn preview. Anyway, I dunno why—maybe it’s because I haven’t watched Lukcy Star in the while—but I really liked this episode. The jokes suddenly seem a lot stronger, although it does mean I relate to them less. At least, I for one have never collected trading cards, or anything similar.

Rating: 8.5/10

Impressions:

Is it just me, or is this episode of Lucky Star just a tad crazier than all the others? It feels like the energy has been upped significantly, and the comedy has somewhat morphed from the usual verbal jokes to the extremely exaggerated ones. I think I’d have to say that this is my favourite episode so far. A lot of the jokes are short as well, though just as sweet. The episode places Tamura in the spotlight for some time as well, and she’s probably become my favourite character now. She’s just like Kona-chan, except not nearly as composed, which is a good thing for entertainment purposes.

Rating: 8.3/10

Impressions:

The number of characters seem to have increased by quite a few, and to my pleasure, they’ve become quite main as Yutaka’s close friends. So now we have a kind of parallel-world thing going on with Konata’s peer group and Yutaka’s. And as for first impressions, I certainly have no problems with Yutaka’s group of friends. Hiyori has to be my favourite with her urges to draw her friends in manga, and perhaps erotic positions. Luckily, it seems that the next episode features these new characters as well. I wonder if Konata and co. will start hanging out with Yutaka’s group…oh and btw, I’m back (if you read my Lucky Star 17 post).

Rating: 8/10

Impressions:

Ah so AFK releases two episodes of Lucky Star at the same time…which means I am now behind on this show. Sigh…Btw, I’ll be away for a week, so my Lucky Star 18 post will mark my return (but I wouldn’t say this blog is going on hiatus since I have quite a few posts that have been scheduled). Anyway, this episode surprised me with the Hiiragi family section near the end, which is a really nice little feel-good segment. And the thing is, it’s something that’s so true, I’m sure many people can relate with it. Not to mention that part got some nice animation with the evening light and all…

Apart from the many little hilarious skits in this episode, the ED, once again featuring the seiyuu of Shiraishi, makes an appearance for a performance of Motteke Sailor Fuku. Now it can get pretty funny at times, but one longstanding feature is the awe you (or more specifically, I) experience when hearing these songs being re-iterated. Although that in itself can get a few laughs, seeing live performances of it by other people can be quite a sight (and I’ve already been awed to death by the Suzumiya Haruhi concert…oh god Hirano-sama is so cute).

Rating: 8/10

Impressions:

Hmm, the Konata-Haruhi transformation made me grin so badly it hurt. The entire Suzumiya Haruhi reference makes this episode a special feature for all those Haruhiists out there, including me. I’m pretty sure they got the real Tomokazu Sugita for Kyon, and Nagato’s voice seems genuine as well. Mikuru unfortunately did not get her real seiyuu (unless her real seiyuu decided to talk differently). Anyway though, watching Kona-chan with her hair like Haruhi, and with Hirano Aya putting on her awesome Haruhi voice and tone, I could not help but feel the same vibes I get from the real thing, even if it’s only for the few seconds that this occurs.

Rating: 7.8/10

Impressions:

So why exactly does Kona-chan feel all shocked after the concert? Is it because she’s so grateful for Kagami switching with her that she’s utterly speechless, or perhaps she’s realised what a great friend she has. Even Kagami gets all depressed when she realises she’s not in Kona-chan’s class. It would be interesting if the classes are split, just to see how the four still manage to communicate when apart. But then again I guess Shiroi-sensei is the set the homeroom teacher now, and splitting the classes up wouldn’t be convenient for her. Speaking of this though, I hope Kagami’s own class gets some more attention in the future.

The Lucky Channel in this episode is pretty short, but at least it tells us that Akira will be appearing in the actual show next time. I realty hope this does actually happen, and even better if Akira actually makes contact with Kona-chan or the others. Shiraishi appears enough anyway, and his performance at the end is pretty sweet. The original EDs are pretty good, though I’m more fond of Shiraishi’s ones since they are far more humorous. Ah, it would have been awesome if he sang the entire song (what’s the title again? All I remember is that ti’s from Suzumiya Haruhi episode 1). I wonder what he’ll do next time…

Rating: 7.6/10

Impressions:

Wow, new character! And just when it seems like the cast would stay as it was for the rest of the show…Yui’s sister *** acts a lot like a younger Miyuki, though much more normal. Her reaction to Kona-chan having an all nighter makes me love her character, and I would say that even if that was the only scene I saw. In fact, I didn’t actually see it coming how Kona-chan would say she had spent the night playing her MMO’s (and just when I thought I had all the jokes figured out…) Well it’s nice to see that the new material is always fresh and funny (though I have to admit Lucky Channel is getting SLIGHTLY uninteresting…they need a new character).

Rating: 7.8/10

Impressions:

I always enjoy seeing a range of facial expressions when the quality is good. When the quality is bleh and the faces look retarded, having different facial expressions would probably just worsen everything. However, with Lucky Star, the facial expressions depict their emotions so well, it’s really quite impressive. Tsundere Kagami is a perfect example with her tsun-tsun and dere-dere remarks (lol even if it’s in Kona-chan’s imagination). Kona-chan herself has a variety of expressions, though I find that they are either cute or funny so it’s all good. Oh and she even says ‘uguu’ in this episode (Hirano Aya must’ve had fun)!

This episode is another all-talk episode featuring more conversations about random topics that somehow end up being funny anyway. We do get a splendid section near the end with the manager trying to get Kona-chan to buy something. He even uses the Lucky Star version of Geass, which surprisingly actually works! The final gag is pretty easy to see through, though it’s jokes like these that never fail to be humorous. Luckily in Japan there are 1 yen coins (think of it as 1 cent), which makes being short 3 yen possible. But why the number three I wonder…heh, Kona-chan and co. could probably come up with a whole essay regarding something like this…

Shiraishi gets more involved in the actual episode each time! Disregarding his live-action performance during the credits and his increasing influence in Lucky Channel, he gets down and personal with a not-so-bad badass punk from his class! Valentines Day is all about the love! I was surprised they didn’t mention something like this in Lucky Channel (for example Akira making fun of how stupid Valentines Day is, only to hear Shiraishi talk about his fling! Akira would probably become sick again xD). Speaking of her, I was really expecting her to come in last in the character rankings just for the sake of making more fun of her, as sad as it may be xD.