Winter 2009-2010 TV schedule
I’m reposting this huge forum post I wrote here ’cause I thought it was pretty good.
Apparently these days everyone is looking at some guy’s chart instead. But I read it and his plot summaries are longer than the actual shows’ plots. What’s with that?
TV
12/04 Weiss Survive R
Originally by Bushiroad, script by Takao Yoshioka, directed by Kenji Satou, produced by Studio Hibari
Second season of a moe card-battle advertisement anime. Someone tell me what Bushiroad has to do with Gainax’s canceled project Bushilord.
12/27 Yume wo Kanaeru Zou (The Elephant That Grants Dreams)
Originally by Keiya Mizuno, script and direction by Akitarou Daiichi, produced by Studio DEEN
Anime version of this drama series about Ganesha squatting in people’s apartments and helping them find the meaning of love.
01/02 Cobra The Animation: The Six Heroes (Cobra the Animation: Rokuden no Yuushi)
Originally by Buichi Terasawa, script and direction by Osamu Dezaki, produced by Magic Bus
New Space Adventure Cobra TV series, combining classic pulp SF, terrible CG, and Terasawa’s love of women’s asses.
01/03 Haruka na Toki no Naka de 3 – Owarinaki Unmei
Originally by Koei, script by Kouji Takamura, directed by Shigeru Kimiya, produced by Yumeta
A reverse harem series that you don’t care about.
01/04 Chuu-Bra!!
Originally by Yumi Nakata, script by Reiko Yoshida, directed by Yukina Hiiro, “lingerie design” by Takahiro Yasuda, produced by ZEXCS
“middle school girls x underwear = slightly H girls comedy”
01/04 So ra no Wo to (Sounds of the Skies)
Written by Hiroyuki Yoshino, directed by Kanbe Mamoru, produced by A-1 Pictures & Aniplex
An original anime project by Aniplex about five girls in a military unit guarding a fortess nobody lives in or, apparently, cares about. They learn how to play music instead.
The trailer wants you to know that the world is full of sad things, but also has happy things, and doesn’t say or show anything about the plot.
01/04 Stigmatic Qwaser (Seikon no Qwaser)
Originally by Hiroyuki Yoshino and Ken’etsu Satou, script by Makoto Uezu, directed by Hiraku Kaneko, produced by Fuzz Entertainment
Fanservice-based chemistry fighting show. Brought to you by Champion Red Ichigo, the manga magazine dedicated to selling porn to minors.
01/04 Gag Manga Biyori+ (A Good Day for Gag Manga Plus)
Fourth season of a comedy anime which is apparently pretty good, when anyone manages to translate it.
01/05 Ladies vs Butlers! (Redii vs Bato)
Originally by Tsukasa Koudzuki, script by Tamai Tsuyoshi, directed by Atsushi Ootsuki, produced by XEBEC
ANN: “The school romantic comedy revolves around Akiharu Hino (Kazuyuki Okitsu), an ordinary high school student who unfortunately looks like a juvenile delinquent. He enrolls into an academy that was once a school for upper-class ladies, and he is placed in the school’s newly established servant training department. The students there are raised to be either maids or butlers, and Akiharu finds himself in the middle of the bickering cliques.”
01/06 Baka to Test to Shoukanjuu (The Idiot, the Test, and the Summoned Creature)
Originally by Kenji Inoue, script by Katsuhiko Takayama, directed by Shin Oonuma, produced by Silver Link
ANN: “The story centers around Akihisa Yoshii, the “baka” of the title. His academy rigidly divides up the student body into classes based on the results of tests. The prodigies are in the A class with reclining seats complete with air conditioning, but Akihisa is in F class, the lowest rung of the school ladder which is furnished only with low, decrepit tables and worn-out straw tatami mats. The school happens to have developed experiments to summon fantasy creatures, and Akihisa decides to rally F class to take on the higher-tiered classes and seize their perks. The F class uses the summoned creatures in an all-out battle for school supremacy.”
Made by the SHAFT B-team, which is why it kind of looks like Pani Poni Dash.
01/06 Omamori Himari (Guardian Himari)
Originally by Matra Milan, script by Katsumi Hasegawa, directed by Shinji Ushiro, produced by ZEXCS
ANN: “The slapstick romantic comedy centers around an ordinary 16-year-old high school boy named Yūto Amakawa who is protected by a spirit — specifically, a beautiful, sword-wielding cat spirit named Himari. Yūto is descended from a family that has subjugated demons since time immemorial. The charm that once protected him is now impotent, but fortunately, at that same moment, Himari appears before him as his new guardian.”
01/06 Dance in the Vampire Bund
Originally by Nozomu Tamaki, script by Hiroyuki Yoshino, directed by Akiyuki Shinbo & Masahiro Sonoda, produced by SHAFT
A loli vampire princess buys an island in Tokyo Bay to start a new country (“bund”) for vampires on, and various people try to kill her. Hiroyuki Yoshino sure gets around!
01/07 Dulalala!! (not “Durarara!!”)
Originally by Ryougo Narita, script by Noboru Takagi, directed by Takahiro Oomori, produced by Brains Base
Another “random people running into each other” action series by the author of Baccano, this time about a motorcycle-riding dullahan named Celtie. Some info here.
01/07 Hidamari Sketch ☆☆☆ (Hidamari Sketch Mitsuboshi)
Originally by Ume Aoki, script by Naoko Hasegawa & Natsue Yoguchi, directed by Akiyuki Shinbo, produced by SHAFT
Third season of SHINBOxSHAFT laid-back art student adventure.
01/07 Ookamikakushi (Abducted by Wolves)
Originally by Konami & Ryuukishi07, script by Touko Machida, directed by Norihiro Takamoto, produced by AIC
A mystery story about secrets in “the old part of town”. Set in the same year as Higurashi no Naku Koro ni, maybe just because the author likes it.
Ryuukishi07 has somewhat bad luck with anime adaptions, but his stories are interesting.
01/09 The Phantom Thief Reinya (Kaitou Reinya)
Originally by Up-Front Style, script by Kenichi Kanemaki, directed by Takahiro Yoshimatsu, produced by Stingray
Star vehicle for the Morning Musume member Reina Tanaka.
01/10 Hanamaru Kindergarten (Hanamaru Youchien)
Originally by Hayato in Young Gangan, script by Yuichiro Oguro, directed by Seiji Mizushima, produced by GAINAX
Slice-of-life comedy about a kindergarten class. Isn’t this staff kind of overkill?
01/14 Nodame Cantabile Finale
Originally by Tomoko Ninomiya, script by Kazuki Nakajima, directed by Chiaki Kon, produced by JC Staff
The third and last season of classical music series Nodame Cantabile, about a man who wants to be a world-famous conductor and his pianist girlfriend.
01/24 Katanagatari
Originally by NisiOisin, script by Makoto Uezu, directed by Keitaro Motonaga, produced by WHITE FOX
Anime version of Nisioisin’s 12-volume series, released once a month, about a samurai from the No-Sword School sent on a quest for 12 swords – he is the only one who wouldn’t want them for himself.
The novels have some bad reviews.
02/– Heart Catch Pretty Cure!
More magical girls. No info yet.
Movies
These are theatrical release dates, which don’t mean anything if you’re outside Japan.
12/12 Space Battleship Yamato – The Revival (Uchuu Senkan Yamato Fukkatsu-hen)
Originally by Yoshinobu Nishizaki, script by Buryuu Ishihara & Yoshinobu Nishizaki, directed by Yoshinobu Nishizaki, produced by Yamato Studio
The Nish needs more drug money.
12/12 One Piece – Strong World
Written by Eiichiro Oda & Hirohiko Kamisaka, directed by Munehisa Sakai, produced by Toei Animation
The 10th (and best?) One Piece movie.
12/19 Professor Layton and the Eternal Diva
Originally by Level-5, script by Aya Matsui, directed by Masagazu Hashimoto, produced by PA Works
01/23 Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha The MOVIE 1st
Written by Maki/Masaki Tsudzuki, directed by Keizou Kusakawa, produced by Seven Arcs
Adaption of the first season of the anime, this time with more explosions. Nanoha’s eyes are getting really big.
01/23 Fate/stay night – Unlimited Blade Works
Originally by TYPE-MOON, script by Takuya Satou, directed by Yuuji Yamaguchi, produced by Studio DEEN
Adaption of the last route of Fate/Stay Night. Unfortunately by the generally-disappointing DEEN, so it might turn out badly.
02/26 The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya (Suzumiya Haruhi no Shoushitsu)
Originally by Nagaru Tanigawa, script by Fumihiko Shimo, directed by Yasuhiro Takemoto, produced by Kyoto Animation
The more interesting story that was left out of the second TV season.
OVA
12/04 Denpa-teki na Kanojo #2
12/23 Utawarerumono #2
12/23 Hellsing #7
01/22 Quiz Magic Academy #2
01/27 Darker than Black Extra Episode #1
A side story for the first show included on the second DVD/BD for DTB2.
02/20 Gundam Unicorn #1 on PSN
First episode of new UC Gundam story set after Char’s Counterattack. Features a masked man named “Full Frontal” who is the leader of “The Sleeves”, thus bringing back old-style stupid Gundam names.
02/– Dante’s Inferno, An Animated Epic
An anime movie coming with EA’s game of the same name.
–/– Halo Legends